Garnesmordet...What about Ole?

A few weeks ago I blogged about the GARNESMORDET or Garnes murders. Only two survived that horrendous night; my great X3 grandmother Anne and her young uncle Ole. I can see why Anne survived. It would take a particularly brutal person to kill a baby lying in her cradle and besides an infant cannot witness to the identity of the thieves/murderers. But Ole? The story he gave was that stabbed a few times the criminals left him for dead and when they left the room he hid. Hearing him rolling out of bed and scrambling for cover, they returned but in the dark could not find him.

So Ole was the lucky one? Depends on how you look at it.

👍16-year-old Ole survived the Garnes murders of 1806.
👎 but Ole suffered the loss of his father, two brothers and a sister.
👎He also lay for weeks recovering from his "disfiguring" wounds and blood loss. (Remember no antibiotics, pain meds or blood transfusions back in the day). Do you think someone stitched him back together? Ouch.
👍Ole recovered from his wounds, inherited a properous family farm, married Martha Jonsdatter Storvuku in 1809 and started a family.
👎In 1811 the entire farm burned to the ground. Four servants living on the farm were killed and Ole's wife Martha was seriously burned trying to save them.
👍The farm was rebuilt, prospered and Ole and Martha had 6 kids who have many descendants in Verdal today.
👎In 1843 Ole, coming home from an auction, attempting to cross the river Stenselven, drowned.

It was said he beat the killer's hand and fire but water took him down.

Norwegian Digitalarkivet (click here to go to original record)

Well, that's life I suppose. Sometimes you're lucky 👍, sometimes you're not 👎.

Like Mom always said, "who told you life would be fair?"

my 5th great Uncle

Ole Pedersen Garnes

b.1790 Garnes, Inndalen, Verdal, Nord-Trøndelag, Norway

d. 25 April 1843 Inndalen, Verdal, Nord-Trøndelag, Norway

*click on document to enlarge for easier reading*