Ane Andersen

Biography

Ane was born in Denmark in 1823 to loving parents as the youngest of four children. She had soft grey eyes and curly hair. Her family lived on a farm with a fair amount of land, animals, and hired help. As a child she worked in the hay fields, bound grains, cared for dairy products, and helped with other chores. Ane loved the festivals, feasts, and social gatherings. In 1847, she married Peter Olsen and they had one son together. They were devastated when the child died before being baptized, but then they heard the gospel that gave them hope. They joined the church in Denmark, serving as local missionaries, and then immigrated to Utah in 1857. By selling their belongings, they were able to aid others in immigrating as well. Along the way, food was limited and one out of every ten people died. After arriving, Ane and her family were among the first to settle in Sanpete and continued to live there for many years. They worked on irrigation, saw mills, flour mills, and the adobe homes they lived in. Ane and Peter had another son together and then took in a young Native American girl as well. Despite the great workload of their daily lives, Ane made time to attend dancing school. The settlement faced multiple disputes with the Native people as well as fighting the overwhelming swarms of grasshoppers. Ane continued to work hard with many responsibilities such as shearing sheep, washing clothes, knitting wool, sewing, baking, cleaning, and homemaking. She was known to be kind, forgiving, intelligent, industrious, witty, and generous. Ane and her husband contributed much financially to build temples and served in them often. When Peter passed in 1888, Ane was heartbroken for she was a most devoted partner, but she lived on to be 91 years old.