Kristian Bendiksen of Brørup

I've been trying to build a family tree for my nieces but it's been tricky. Their mom's parents are immigrants from Denmark and Barbados and it was hard to get a foothold in those places. Fortunately, through DNA testing, I managed to find some 2nd and 3rd cousins who had some of the information I needed to get started, or sometimes they found me!

My nieces' grandfather, Arne Bendixen, was born in 1939 at Brønshøj, originally its own village but, at the time of his birth, was part of Kobenhavn, which we English speakers would spell Copenhagen. 

Brønshøjvej during Children's Day 1946 (click for image source)

According to Peter Schmidt, Arne's 2nd cousin, once removed on his mother's side, Arne Confirmed in the town of Brørup in 1954. A small town of a few thousand people, Brørup today is part of the municipality of Vejen. 

Looking through the census records for Brørup, I quickly found the 1916 and 1911 census listing Arne's father, and grandparents:

Kristian (Christian) Bendiksen (born September 22, 1874 in Brørup)
Marie Bendiksen (born July 18, 1873 in Sonderjylland)
Anna Bendiksen  (born January 13, 1902 in Brørup)
Alfred Bendiksen (born May 14, 1903 in Brørup)
Esther Bendiksen (born January 7, 1906 in Brørup)        
Oskar Bendiksen (born September 9, 1907 in Brørup)
Kristian Bendiksen (born October 20, 1910 in Brørup - Arne's father)

My nieces' 3rd great grandfather, Kristian Bendiksen, was a carpenter, earning 1,040 kroner per year, a modest middle class income. His youngest son and namesake also grew up to become a carpenter, as did his grandson, Arne. Apparently, it was a long running family profession.

Kristian Bendiksen (1910-1981), or Christian Bendixen as it came to be spelled, married Anna Marie Hansen. Peter tells me that Anna was the daughter of Hansine Pedersen but does not know the name of the father [edit: yes he did!].  This Hansen father died during the Great War, also known as World War 1. Hansine's parents were Mikkel Pedersen and Anna Marie Schmidt. 

However, while I can find Mikkel and Marie on the 1911 and 1916 Denmark censuses, I can find any record of Hansine anywhere; she may have moved on by then. However, I can't find any record of a Hansine Pedersen or a Hansine Hansen that is consistent of what we know of her. This is going to take additional research.

If we can prove Anna's mother was Hansine, we could have several more generations of the family tree in Denmark.