Emil was born to Emanuel Peter Jorgenson Johnson and Anne Marie Frederickson Andersen in Copenhagen, Denamrk. His father died in Denmark just befor they were to immigrate to Utah. His mother decided to still come to Utah with her children. Emil had been living in Deweyvill, Utah with his Grandma Marie and sister Josephine and brother Emanuel. Late in the year of 1875 Emil, Josephine and Emanuel rode on a bay horse and a white mule from Deweyville to visit their mother in Newton. Emil had many things to tell his mother, he was very fond of her. He was seven years old now. They stayed three days and then mounted their animals to go back, when on top of the devide they took a last look down into the valley, Emil cried like his little heart would break. Later he was so homesick for his mother that on January 3rd 1876 he sat out alone to walk to Newton. Grandmother and Emanuel had been alone all day and she had thought he had gone to play, but when night came they started to hunt for him, suspecting where he had gone,but a blizzard had come up and the search was stopped. They tracked him past Collinston and the Hampton bridge. They had no more news of him for 3 months, when George Rigby and a man by the name of Lybey were hunting when they saw him siting with his hands supporting his head. He had taken shelter there as his little legs would carry him no farther, so he sat there to rest going to sleep, a sleep from which he never awoke. No one will ever know what those 3 months meant to his mother. Not one storm came up but she wondered about her boy, Not a coyote howled but she prayed that her boy would be spared form those hungry beasts. When he was finally found, it was noted that he had been wonderfully protected for both beast and elements.Bishop Rigby was notified and he found a volunteer to go for the boy. That was North Jim Hansen. Emil's body was taken to the co-op store, some material purchased, Peter Benson did a very good job at making a casket from dry goods boxes. He was then taken to William Bell's home and from there to Newton Cemetery for burial.

This short stoy was taken from The biographical Sketch of Anna Marie Andersen Johnson written by her son James Senus Johnson.