Jens and his family traveled to the United States on the ship John J. Boyd from Dec. 1855 - Feb. 1856. According to an autobiography by Jen's son, Jen's wife, Karen Gotfredsen (Jensdatter) died on July 4, 1856 in Alton Illinois. Following her death, Jens married Karen Marie Pedersen. In 1857, the Gottfredson family only traveled a short distance with the Christiansen company before halting near Genoa while the rest of the company proceeded. They returned to Florence and traveled to Utah in 1858 in the Iversen company.