They departed Liverpool, England, on January 2, 1855, on the ship Nesmith.
“With the assistance of a small steamer tugboat, the Nesmith carefully picked her way through the maze of ships and anchors into the Mersey Channel to wait for favorable winds to carry it out of the crescent-shaped harbor. Fair winds could easily propel the ship at about eight to eleven miles an hour through the Atlantic. The first day of sailing was christened with the birth of a child, bringing the passenger total to 441 souls.”
“The following day, the Nesmith was blessed with a fine breeze and passed out of the Irish Channel and into the deep waters of the Atlantic. For the next several days, the sea was rough and those foreignto be foreign is to be of, from, in, or characteristic of a country or language other than one's own; something foreign my be considered strange or unfamiliar to sea travel suffered from considerable seasickness. Foreshadowing future events, one infant passed away and was buried at sea, shrouded in a small cloth bag. This sad occasion would be repeated thirteen times while crossing the Atlantic. Small children were generally the victims.”
Arrival at the Mississippi Delta
“At last, on Sunday, 18 February, the Nesmith arrived at the mouth of the Mississippi River, where it lodged on a sandbar. The long voyage from Liverpool to the mouth of the Mississippi had taken forty-seven days and claimed the lives of thirteen people.” At last, they had arrived! Peter described:
Two tugboats were sent out to meet us on which were two or three Negroes, the first we, the Danish people, had ever seen, which I assure you was a great curiosity to us.
“The tugboat pilots boarded to survey the situation and render assistance. Due to the low water levels at the delta, the tugboats failed to move the ship from the sandbar. Another tugboat was arranged for, but their efforts were futile. The captain said they would have to remain lodged there until the river rose. Peter wrote:
“While lying on the sandbar, we saw myriads of fish of all kinds, some as heavy as a half-grown pig. We were advised not to eat them as for some cause they were considered not to be fit for use.”