Jens (James) Nielsen, his wife Ane Johanne (Hansen), and their baby girl Elise Jensine sailed for America on the steamship S/S Wieland from Hamburg, Germany. Elise died on board before they reached New York. Peter and Ane K. Hansen, Ane's parents, and Sofie Hansen, Ane Johanne's sister, also sailed on the same ship. They arrived in New York on 6 Jun 1885. Following are their entries in the passenger list, a picture of the ship, and information about the ship. The names in the list are: Peter Hansen, Anna Hansen, Maren (Sofie) Hansen, Jens Nielsen, Anna Nielsen, Elise Nielsen. The numbers in the first column after the names are the ages in years and the number in the second column after the names is the age in months.

The S/S Wieland was 3,504 tons; 114,4 x 12,2 meters or 375 x 40 feet (length x breadth); straight bow, 2 funnel, 2 masts; iron construction, screw propulsion, service speed 13 knots; accommodation for 90 passengers in 1st class, 100 in 2nd class and 800 in steerage; crew of 110.