Jens Anderson
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| Name at Enlist | Jens Anderson |
| Birth Name | Jens Andersen |
| Other Names | James |
| Lived | 5 Feb 1837 – 18 Oct 1877 |
| Birth Place | Bærum Jern Værk, Vestre Bærum parish, Asker, Akershus fylke |
| Birth Country | Norway |
| Resident of Muster-In | Chippewa, Chippewa County, WI |
| Company at Enlistment | I |
| Rank at Enlistment | Private |
| Muster Date | 20 Dec 1861 |
| Burial Location | Big Elk Creek Lutheran Church Cemetery, Elk Mound, Chippewa County, WI |
| Mother | Mari Larsdatter Tanberg |
| Mother Lived | 3 Jul 1793-?aft 1865 |
| Father | Anders Nilsen |
| Father Lived | 7 Mar 1801-29 May 1865 |
| Immigration | 1856 |
| Spouse | Dorthea Nelson (Nildatter Fleskmo) |
| Spouse Lived | 19 Jun 1844-4 Feb 1872 |
| Married On | 30 Mar 1866 |
| Marriage Location | Eau Claire, WI |
| 2nd Spouse | Hendrikke Christiansdatter |
| 2nd Spouse Lived | 10 Dec 1837-28 Dec 1880 |
| 2nd Marriage Date | 18 Dec 1872 |
| 2nd Marriage Location | Eau Claire, WI |
Jens Andersen was born in Bærum Jern Værk, Vestre Bærum parish, Asker, and left the parish for America on April 23, 1856. He joined the WI 15th Infantry, Company I. The men of the company called themselves the “Scandinavian Mountaineers” but were also known as the “Waupaca Company” because so many of them were living in that Wisconsin county when they enlisted.
The army listed Anderson as living in Chippewa, Chippewa County, WI, age 24, and unmarried. He enlisted for three years on December 9, 1861, at Wheaton, WI, and mustered at Madison, WI, on December 20, 1861, as a Private (Menig). He was sick in Chattanooga, TN, on October 17 and November 28, 1862. He was sick in Knoxville, TN, on February 25, 1864. He was sent to the Division hospital in Nashville, TN, on August 11, 1864. He mustered out with I Company at Chattanooga, TN, on February 10, 1865.
After the war he returned to Chippewa County and married Dorthea Nelson. They had two children: Mina Dortea (1867-1886) and Adolph Nicolai (1871-1942). After Dorthea died, he married Hendrikke. Their children were Carl John (1875-1932) and Henri Olai (1876-1954). Jens died on October 18, 1877, and buried in Big Elk Creek Lutheran Cemetery, Elk Mound, Chippewa County, WI.
Sources: Series 1200: Records of Civil War Regiments, 1861-1900, Wisconsin Adjutant General’s Office, box 76-11; Regimental Muster and Descriptive Rolls, 1861-1865, Wisconsin Adjutant General’s Office, vol. 20, p. 128; Det Femtende Regiment, Wisconsin Frivillige [The Fifteenth Regiment, Wisconsin Volunteers], Ole A. Buslett, 1894, B. Anundsen, Decorah, IA, p. 584; Oberst Heg og hans gutter, Waldemar Ager, 1916, Fremad Pub. Co., Eau Claire, WI, p. 281, photo, pp. 314, e50; “Notes of a Civil War Soldier“, Bersven Nelson, Norwegian-American Studies, vol. 26, NAHA, 1974, p. 127; rootsweb.com; “Biography of Adolph Anderson” (who was Jens’ son); ancestry.com; findagrave.com; “Norwegian Immigrants 1850 and later”, database, NAGCNL, #18684.