Soren Rammelhoj ( Olesen, Olsen)

Soren Olsen was born Nov. 25, 1791 in northwest Denmark: Ugilt, Hjorring, Denmark, (according to Clarence Olsen the location was, Binslew, or Binslev, Hjorring Co. Loister, Denmark) to Ole Thomsen and Anne Godskesen. He was the oldest of 5 children. There is little known of his early life, except that he loved the sea and would stand and watch the waves crash on the shore. We do know that on 9 Feb. 1816, he married Margrethe Christensen, born in Norgaard in Lorslev, 14 March 1790.

In a couple of years they lived in Rammelhoj, Hormested Sogn, they then moved to Lorslev and got a piece of Norgaards Mark (area of land) which was called Vester Faelled, but from the time he left Rammelhoj, he was named Soren Rammelhoj. They had a family of 10 children(2 daughters and 8 sons, 2 died in infancy). He was stern and expected discipline but always had a soft spot for his girls. He is described as a little square built, lively man, who liked to talk especially about his soldier trip through France.

Soren served in the Danish army as an officer( some say a General). Napoleon had taken over the Danish army prior to that time. He took part in Napoleon’s historic march across Europe, through the Alps and fought against the British under Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo. He personally met Napoleon. These experiences developed in him an intense dislike for the English Redcoats- so much so that he refused to wear any red on his clothing. At some point in his younger life he was injured, probably while he was in the army(one account said that he was injured in the Battle of Waterloo) and he was not really well in his later life.
His people were well to do and had a large estate. Soren’s last name has been spelled many different ways such as: Olsen, Olesen, and Rammelhoj(the name of his estate in Denmark) His first name has also been spelled Soren, Seren and Serren(this on his tomb stone). His people were fairly well to do and he had a fairly substantial estate where he grew beets.

His wife died 24 Feb. 1850 and Soren was 59 years of age. His life long companion was now gone and his children were married with children of their own, the youngest child being 21. Soren heard the testimony of the missionaries in Denmark and was baptised in April 1852. The missionary Erastus Snow, an apostle, stayed at Soren’s home and converted him. At this time Soren was 62 years old. There is record of only one of his children joining the church, Yorgen Sorensen who came and settled in Wisconsin. (Clara a granddaughter said that Soren’s children thought he had lost his mind and wanted nothing to do with him when he joined the church, but eventually some of them joined the church and came to Utah.) He departed Denmark for the United States in Dec. 1852, on board the ship Forest Monarch in Peter A. Fargren’s company. He was with the first group of Danish Saints that went to Utah. Although his children didn’t agree with his decision some of them came to see him off.

"He was not the only one of Ole Sorig’s family, who as a Mormon went to the far away country. No funny desire was in this whole family about this false teaching and at least half of them have moved over there." (an excerpt from a book written about Soren Olesen, our Soren’s grandson from the first marriage.) It seems that some of Soren’s brothers or sistser joined the church as well.

Soren was 10 weeks on the ship, there was a storm off the British Isles and the ship was almost lost. Soren loved to be on deck watching the waves and hearing the cry of the birds. While aboard the ship he met a young woman named Bertha Petersdatter who was 32 at the time. Bertha was born 8 May 1821 at Greve Sogn on Sjaelland (Island), Denmark. She too had been converted to the gospel and with her father (Peder JORGENSEN born 5 Dec. 1790) was following that same desire to "Come to Zion and gather with the saints". ( another account says: Her parents did not approve of her joining the Mormons so she left the luxuries of home and parents and began the journey to America.) Her last name was Petersdatter in Denmark but when she arrived in the United States she had to go by Jorgensen. A romance blossomed and when they reached St. Louis they were married on a beautiful Sunday afternoon, on 10 April 1853 by Elder Forsgren. ( This is recorded in " Heart Throbs of the West" Vol. 6 pg. 13) Soren always felt that Bertha was a great blessing to him.

Soren must have had considerable money because they were able to purchase team and wagon, outfit it. They outfitted for the trip across the plains at Koekook Iowa. They came across the plains in Lorenzo Snow company (Prominent Men of Utah) He drove the team (according to a letter from his son Erastus it was a team of mules), I suppose because of his age and infirmities, while grandmother walked and drove the cattle, along with some other young women, 1100 miles across the plains to Utah. They arrived in the valley of the Great Salt Lake on September 29, 1853. To repay the Emigration fund the new saints were required to work on the Temple square wall. Soren was too sick so the labour fell to Bertha. She built the whole required section on her own.(from Eldon Olsen)

They assisted in building the stone wall of the Fort and it has been told that the part still standing is the apart which great- great grandmother helped to build, as each person was supposed to build so many feet of the wall. ? (There is some confusion about what wall was built whether around Temple Square, or a fort, or somewhere.) They were sealed in the Endowment House on 17 Nov. 1861.

They left Salt Lake and move to Spring City and from there to Manti. They lived for several years in Manti where grandmother gave birth to four sons. Peter was born Jan. 1856, twins Seren and Joseph were born Sept 24, 1860 but Joseph died at birth. On April 1, 1863 a son was born and named Erastus after the beloved Erastus Snow. (This is confirmed by Snow family history)

Soren and his family was called to settle on the Virgin River in May 1863. (Erastus Snow led the mission to colonize the Dixie area in 1861.) They first settled at Springdale, but because of Indian trouble they moved to Rockville, about thirty-five miles east of St. George, Utah. They struggled through the trials and hardships of pioneering the Dixie country. They tried unsuccessfully to grow cotton and to dam the Virgin River. The soil was too sandy and the dams just kept being washed away. The cliffs were so steep and sheer that they only needed one fence because the other three sides were the cliffs. Here Soren’s health improved and he was able to help build the first canal and roads in the Rockville area. On 2 October 1872 Soren Olsen passed away at the age of 81 and was buried in the Rockville cemetery. His youngest son Erastus was 9 years old when Soren passed away.

Bertha was able to attend the 1st opening of the St. George Temple on the 11th of January 1877. She remained in Rockville for several years until 1880. Her two oldest sons married there, they were unable to make a living down there so they moved Paragonah, Iron County in June 1880 and then to Price, Carbon County Nov. 9, 1882, taking their mother and Erastus (who was unmarried) with them. Bertha died Nov. 23, 1890 and is buried in the Price cemetery.

Apparently they moved to Parawan about 1875 where Peter married Sally Ann Barton and Seren married her sister Emily Barton. About 1882 Mother Olsen with Peter and his wife and Erastus moved back up North and were among the first settlers in the Price area. Seren and Emily followed them in 1883 and spent their first winter there in a tent next to the Olsen’s home where Peter’s family and Erastus lived with mother Bertha. The next spring Seren built the 3rd house in the Price townsite in 1884. (according to a news article of Seren’s 61st anniversary)

Erastus was married to Sarah Marchant Cox on 27 Dec. 1889. The newly married couple lived with his mother until her death.

Bertha had brought a few things over from Denmark such as a Scandinavian Mangle Board(ironing board) which was donated to the Church History Museum in Salt Lake by Doug Ryan. (It is on display on the main floor and even still has her initials BPD written on it. She also brought over a child’s chair that is in the possession of Sheila Bauder.

Glen Olsen said that Soren and Bertha adopted an Indian child.

From "Prominent Men of Utah" :
OLSEN SEREN, Born Nov. 1791, in Uland, Denmark. Came to Utah 1853, Lorenzo Snow company. Married Bertha Peterson in Copenhagen while on way to Utah. She was born May 8, 1821 and came to Utah with husband. Their children: Peter Issac b. Jan 6, 1856, m. Sally Ann Barton: Seren b. Sept. 24, 1860. m. Emily Frances Barton; Joseph b. Sept. 24, 1860, died: Erastus b. April 1, 1863, m. Sarah Cox. Family resided Manti and Rockville, Utah.
Elder; teacher in ward. helped to build the first canal and roads in Rockville.. Died Oct. 8, 1872 at Rockville.

Danish Feudal System.

From the last part of the 14th century a form of serfdom (vornedskab) had existed in Denmark that not only bound peasant farmers tightly to the feudal estate of their birth, but forced them to work the particular farm and holdings (gaard) to which they had been assigned.

Thus it was that in 1733 a new law was passed (stavnsbaandet) reinstating the requirement that young farmers remain on the estate where they were born. In the beginning the requirement was limited to those between fourteen and thirty-six years of age, but through a series of adjustments it was gradually extended until, by 1764, it included all males between the ages of four and forty.

What did this feudal system look like by the middle of the eighteenth century to a Danish farmer(bonde) and his family? Aided by the law that forbade men to leave the estate during their productive work years, a member of the nobility could compel a farmer to accept a position on his estate that he wanted filled(faestegaard).

The tenants had to pay a yearly payment of natural produce (landgilden) which typically amounted to between 20 and 25% of the harvest, or he had to fulfill a work requirement on the estate owner’s fields. It was not uncommon for them to work as much as several hundred workdays a year. These workdays typically fell during the critical spring planting and autumn harvest times. If a man objected to the number of workdays required, it was well within the power of the estate owner to have him disciplined and punished.

The Stavnsbaandet was done away with in Jan. 1800, which allowed the tenants to move and own land etc. (Notice that in 1800 Ole Sorig became free from the law Stavnsbaandet) and he was eventually able to own his own land. (Taken from "The Land of the Living: the Danish folk high schools and Denmark’s non-violent path to modernization" by Steven M. Borish 1943 published by Blue Dolphin Pub. Inc. Nevada City, California)

This is very much the experience our ancestors as they struggled to break free from an unfair and oppressive life.
Thaine Olsen

This is a Translation from a book written by J. P Wammen in 1924, in Gislum Skole Denmark about Soren Olesen(notice the spelling), the grandson of my great-great- grandfather Soren Olsen. When Peter Issac Olsen (Soren's son from his 2nd marriage) passed away, his daughter Viola was contacted by Lillian Johnsen who had a copy of the book mentioned above. She was looking for someone who could translate it. Lillian lived in Kansas. Viola and her sister Mary Jane Rasmussen found a lady in Price to translate a part of the book. The Danish was strange and hard for the lady to read so only a portion was translated. Supposedly Jesse's mom sent the book to her cousin, Howard W. Hunter to translate. Lillian requested the book back and it was returned. When Jesse Rasmussen Holdaway (daughter of Mary Jane) tried to contact Lillian the letters were returned. I received this copy from Sheila Bauder granddaughter of Clara Ryan. It was received from Jesse Holdaway(the person the above information was received from). I contacted Howard W. Hunter's son but the family does not recall seeing the book or have a copy. I was very hopeful that someone would find this book and then out of the blue came an email from a cousin in Denmark Leif Wammen, a grandson of the author.
Thaine Olsen.

TRANSLATED FROM THE BOOK ABOUT SOREN OLESEN
(GRANDSON OF OUR SOREN)

Soren Olesen from Mors was of birth in Vendelbo (another part of the country in Denmark) and from Vendsyssel came both his fathers and mothers family, here he spent his childhood and youth years and here he lived the most important times of his life, his Christian experiences.

Ole Sorig
The oldest known of his father’s family was named Ole Thomsen Sorig. He was born on Stenbraek Gods (farm area surrounding a castle owned by a wealthy man - the people on these farms were more or less slaves to the lord owning the land they farmed) in Bindslev Sogn (name of the the lord and his land) in 1758. The parents were Hestekober Christen Thomsen and Maren Godskasdatter. When he was thirty three years old he (Ole Sorig) married the 28 year old Anne Godskasdatter, and took her home as a bride in 1791. She was born in Sterbaek in Uggerby Sogn (Sogn means the same all the way through -- same as our country) 27 April 1763. Ole Sorig was then a Faestegaardmand (farmer) working for the Lord who owned all the land where he lived. In 1800, he became free of Stavnsbaandet (the law governing these farmers working for the lords) and he moved with his family to Hormested Sogn, where he lived until the twentieth of July 1804 and he bought a farm which was in Lorslev By (city) Ugilt Sogn, where he belonged under Herregaarden Hvidstedgaad(castle and lord in Taars (town). He was able to receive pay from this man he worked for, and bought his own farm.
Of Ole Sorig and Anne's five children, the oldest one was named Soren Olesen. He was born in Bindslev 25 November 1791 and was named after his mother’s brother, Soren Olafsen Sorig in Bindslev. Ole Sorig died in Lorslev 1828.

Soren Rammelhoj ( Olesen)
Rammelhoj was the town where he lived, but he adopted the name for his last name.
The son Soren, was in 1816, after having taken part in the Napoleon Wars, married with Margrethe Christensdatter, born in Norgaard in Lorslev, 14 March 1790. In a couple of years they lived in Rammelhoj, Hormested Sogn, they then moved to Lorslev and got a piece of Norgaards Mark (area of land) which was called Vester Faelled, but from the time he left Rammelhoj, he was named Soren Rammelhoj. He is described as a little square built, lively man, who liked to talk especially about his soldier trip through France.
The married couple had ten children, but when the wife died in 1850. Soren Rammelhoj got into some trouble of religious sort. Which, resulted in that he went over to Mormonism. He was between the first group, which in 1852 went from Denmark to Utah. The 29th of September 1853, he came to the Salt Lake City, but on the way, he had married a widow, Bertha Jorgensen from, Greve Sogn on Sjaelland (Island). With her, he got four sons, Erastus, Soren, Peter Isaac and Joseph who died.

He was not the only one of Ole Sorig's family, who as a Mormon went to the far away country. No funny desire was in this whole family about this false teaching and at least half of them have moved over there.
Ole Christian Sorensen

Soren Rammelhoj, oldest son, was born in Vester Faelled 13 August 1819. As a young man he learned to be a shoemaker in Hjorring. When he was finished with his apprenticeship, he married (23 years old), the 27 year old Anne Marie Fransdatter, who at the time was weaving on Herregaarden Spangehede in Lorslev (Castle). The two young ones bought a ramshackle home on (lays in Danish) Melgaards Mark a little east of Ole Sorigs farm (gaard). Here was born their oldest son, the 18 July 1842. He was named Soren Olesen from Mors. (This book)

Anne Mare Fransdatter was born on the farm Gjersholt in Torslev Sogn 28 June 1815. Her father was named Frands Jensen. Her mother was named Maren Thomasdatter. This old farm with the lovely surrounding, of woods, lakes, moors and hills with more, had belonged to her mother's family many generations back. The oldest known of this family was named Ole Nielsen, and was born around 1713.
The Gjersholterne (Charholts) were very religious people who were often sad, never smiling, melancholy and who often tended to think about the mysteries of life and Anna Marie was like her family in this manner. Several of these family members are well known of others as the farmers. Besides Soren Olesen who is a Gherholter (compared to a congressman or senator) and Arthur Thomas Larsen who is of the general (before Soren Olesen's time) and in his time a very well known high school teacher in Grundivgs-og - Vejatrup Hojskoler (name of the school) Grundvigs is the name of the man who started high schools in Denmark and author of Lutheran hymns.

Anne Marie was quiet, loved God, had a great religion, was straight in posture, beautiful and clean.
Soren Olesen (grandson of Soren Rammelhoj)

Old Soren, let me remember once more with my pen in hand what you were for me and many while you were young in the spirit. Wide on the foot, wide around the hips, broad and frank and heavy in speech, the voice sot and full of sadness as a river falls into the valley. No arrogance, no phrases, quiet words about the Christian people and two brave eyes, shining honestly behind the eyebrows.

The words sank into the open hearts, sot as night dew on the grain, no sound of the judgment horn of heaven and no sound from the horn from hell. And ... at last, when the speech quietness touched the hearts, the tones from the hymns came as waves through the giant beard.

Strongest were you when you spoke about love, under the timbers, (whenever he spoke) when the gathering and the word were both dressed in bondekofte. (This was the dress of the modest farmer-meaning the dress and words were simple and understood by those who listened.) Most of the preachers in this day spoke so elegantly, that the laymen did not understand. (Boncekofte means peasant coat.)

Long have I felt to write about Soren Olesen's life, but as it seemed too big for me, the years went by. Without luck, I looked around for somebody who knew and appreciated him, who would get the idea to take up the work. May this, which I have here gathered, find interested readers. It happened to me that the more I learned about Soren Olesen the more I liked him, and the more I admired this quiet, humble, talented servant of the Lord. May it, while my readers read this, may it occur on the same way, then this work will not have been done fruitlessly.

The book is built all the way through on Soren Oleson's own leftover papers, written works; lifebooks of remembrance, diaries, messages and loose pieces of paper and letters and so on. I have in only a few cases used printed sources.

Late Traffic Minister and Congressman (Congressman is not quite the title in Danish, but is identified as closely as possible in America), Hypothekbank-director (owner of place of medicine), Jensen-Sonderup, whom has shown the book and my work of interest in a thesis, which is in the back of the book, tells about Soren Olesen's work as a congressman. Therefore, I am very thankful to him as I am thankful to the Kirkeligt Samfund (Christian Gathering) 1898, in the memory about Soren Olesen's good services and his work, have published the book.

I also thank the retired teach J. P. Harbo who has taken care of the pictures and helped me with the proofreading.
(Gislum Skole September 1924 -- The place in Denmark where the author wrote the book.
J. P Wammen

to contact Thaine Olsen e-mail

thaine.olsen@westwind.ab.ca

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