 Ursula Newell married John Smith Emerson on October 25, 1831.She and her new husband sailed to Hawaii in 1832, part of the fifth company of missionaries sent by the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions (ABCFM).Most of their work was located on the north shore of Oahu, at Waialua, where they were supported by High Chief Gideon Peleʻioholani Laʻanui.