Julia Othelia Dorius

Biography

Julia Othelia Dorius was born on March 3, 1852 in Copenhagen, Denmark. She was the second of three children. Not much is known about her life with her birth parents, but it seems like they and her two siblings died when she was very young. Julia was then adopted by Ane Sophie Christoffersen and Hans Jorgen Birch. She stayed with them in Copenhagen for many years. Her adopted mother Ane's family had all joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and emigrated to Utah. In 1862, Julia and Ane visited two of Ane's sons in Norway and were baptized members of the church.
Despite the fact that many Saints were gathering to Utah, Julia stayed in Denmark for another fifteen years. In 1877, she finally left her native country behind and went to join her family in Utah. Ane had emigrated a few years previously. Julia traveled first to Liverpool, and then took the steamship Wisconsin to New York. They arrived on July 7. Then, she and the Saints she was traveling with took a train to Utah. They arrived in the Salt Lake Valley on July 15th. When leaving for Utah, Julia took her adoptive mother's name by her previous marriage, Dorius.
Two years after her arrival, Julia married Anders Henry Johnson, another Danish immigrant. They lived in Sanpete county before settling in Salt Lake City. They had six children, a daughter and five sons, together. Two of their sons died very young. Julia stayed in Salt Lake City for many years, even after her husband died. She passed away there on February 23, 1927, at the age of seventy-four and was buried in Salt Lake City.