To see The town of Falslev zoom in on Norup just below the Fjord. You will also be able to see other places mentioned in this article. Randers is south and is where they were married.

Marius at School

Marius started school when he was seven years old and did very well. He had a strong desire to learn. They went to school one day a week in the summer and six days a week in the winter. At age nine, Marius was in the highest grade in the country school was the youngest in the class. Which being the smallest size in had to sit in the smallest seat. They were given a test at the end of the terms by a Lutheran minister. One minister once commented that he was the "raisin in the end of the sausage" This meant he was the good part of the sausage.

Marius Teenage years

When Marius was 12 years old, he moved north to what was called the Hoden(desert), a very poor place to live. He stayed there fours years at a farmer's place by the name of Anders Back, a widower with two children older than Marius.

He then went to another farm where he just about starved to death. They would make a kettle of kale, which would have to last for two weeks. There was time he had to steal crusts of stale bread to stay alive. When company would come, he would be given a nice meal. Just as the company would leave, it would be taken away from him. The farmer had very poor eyesight. Marius remembered one occasion when he was to help repair the dobies that had come loose on the house. Marius went outside and poked the dobies out faster than the farmer could put them in. The farmer with his poor eyesight could not imagine what was going on. Marius stayed there until he no longer could stand the cruel treatment and ran away. The farmer tried to catch him, but his eyesight prevented him from catching him. So, at age sixteen Marius went back to Gjerlev (pronounced Gerleu) to work for a man named Ole Johnson. Here he was paid $13.00 per year and his room and board. He was not fed enough to satisfy his appetite so all his money was spent at the bakery. This comes to the key part of the Falslev story. It was while here, Marius met Mariane Jensen.

Mariane early years

As Mariane remembered it, they were, indeed, poor people and didn't have much to eat. For breakfast they would have a cup of coffee, not being able to afford to put sugar or cream in it. They had a large brick oven in the kitchen which was large enough for them to bake a two weeks supply of rye bread, which they used for everyday meals. On Christmas and holidays, they baked white bread. For their lunch, they would have a piece of rye bread with lard spread on it and seasoned with salt and a glass of homemade beverage. For milk they drank goat's milk, which Mariane never learned to like. Their main meals consisted of split pea soup, kale, cereals, and soups.

Mariane always had to stand next to her grandfather when they ate because he said she was his girl. It was the custom for the women to stand on one side of the table and eat while the men sat on the other. For dishes they used one large clay bowl which sat on the center of the table. They ate from it using no dishes of their own.

When Mariane was eight years old, she moved to Randers to live with another aunt by the name of Karen Christiansen. She was a good woman, very tidy and clean. Karen had two small children and ran a small store. Mariane helped her aunt take care of the store. At times, she would enjoy a few tastes of the good, sweet candy, making certain that she put it away just as she found it. Mariane recalled that her daughter, Pearl, resembled her great-aunt Karen.

Mariane met Marius at seventeen

Mariane turned seventeen and went to work for a widow by the name of Mrs. Rasbeck in Gjerlev, (pronounced Gerleu). It was considered quite a distance from Randers (just over 10 miles North or 16.7 Kilometers). It was here that she met Marius Jensen. Mariane found work for Mrs. Rasbeck to be hard work. She had to milk, churn butter, help kill pigs, and work in the fields. There were times when they worked by lantern to get all the work done for the day. They milked cows three times a day. Mariane wondered why she went to work on this farm, but realized later it was to meet Marius.

Mariane back in Randers

Mariane then went to work in a hotel, the nicest one in town. It was here that the Crown Prince ate his meals. Mariane worked in the kitchen and would see the Crown Prince come in for his meals many times. Mariane worked here for about a year. Marius moved closer to Randers so that they could spend more time together. Although Marius grew up in a hard way, he always had a desire to do what was right. If he did do wrong, he felt uneasy about it. Marius knew there was a God, and that he should try to please him.

Marius in the Army

At age nineteen, Marius joined the King's Army. While in the army, he attended Officer's school and was one of the top students. While he served in the army, Mariane went to work for another farm in Aarsleu and then did housework for a shopkeeper.

When Marius came home on furlough, he and Mariane were married in the St. Martin Church (a Lutheran Church) in Randers, Denmark on June 15,1895. It was a small wedding, consisting of a few of their aunts and uncles. Marius spent two more years in and out of the army.

Marius inherited 200 crowns from his mother’s family. He gave it to Mariane to keep for him, and she spent it on a sewing machine and some other needed items. They first lived in the top of a meetinghouse which they took care of. Marius had another job but both jobs did not pay to make a good living.

Marius got a good paying job

Through Mariane, Marius got a job at a sawmill and fuel business. He worked for a man by the name of Axelsen. Marius took care of the warehouse and ran the sawmill. Mr Axelsen would deliver the merchandise to the customers in the city. He had a bad temper and would get in trouble with the customers. Marius then would smooth things over. Axelsen decided to let Marius do all of the delivering and collecting. He did this for many years making more money than they were living on.

Children born in Denmark

Marius and Mariane had their first baby born August 23, 1893. His name was Thorvald. He only lived a short time. He died September 6 at two weeks old. Their second child was born October 5, 1895 in Randers, Denmark. Her name was Mette Marie. She developed a bronchial cough suddenly after her first birthday. It happened so fast, and she died before they could get help on October 18, 1996. She is buried in Randers Denmark.

Marinus was their third child. He was born September 16, 1897 in Randers, Denmark. Ellen, their fourth child, was born two years later on September 28, 1899 in Randers, Denmark. She got a disease that settled in her eyes and died at almost a month old on October 26, 1899. Their next child was born November 29, 1900 in Randers to make it number five. They named him Harold.

Oga Lorenzo was born September 25, 1902 in Randers Denmark and Lydia Marie was born two years after that on September 22, 1904 to make seven children, but only four living children in Denmark.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints

During Mariane's childhood she had been taught to attend church regularly and tried to influence Marius to attend church more often. Marius first heard of the "Mormons" when he was a child. The second time was one day two missionaries came by to visit Mariane and asked her to buy one of their books. When she told Marius that evening, he asked if she bought one. She said. “Of course not”. The third time, he recalls, he was exposed was one day he was making collections and came upon a door with the inscription "De Siste Hellige". This made an impression on Marius. It translates to "The Saints of Latter Days". He thought maybe there is something to their message.

One day, Marius was returning home from work and heard a choir singing. He stopped to listen because he never heard such singing. It was not that it was great singing, but the spirit and warmth he felt made a great impression. He asked who was singing and was told it was a group of “Mormons”. So, he left. Ironically, he was leading that choir one year later.

One day, Mariane's mother had a visitor from America. It was her cousin Severin Nielsen (1845-1910). Severin had immigrated to America and had been sent back to Denmark on a mission. Mette Marie asked Marius to come over and help Severin realize it was a mistake to join the LDS Church. Marius quoted scriptures from the Lutheran book, The Lutheran Katekismus to prove he was wrong. Severin used the Bible to correct him quickly. Marius could see he could not convert Severin but asked him about his church. Just as soon as Marius consented to hear Severin's message a strangeness fell over him as though he already been told everything he was about to hear. Marinus seemed to know the things Severin told him.

Marius received a testimony of the Church

Mariane and her mother attended the missionary meetings while Marius stayed home with the children. They thought the meetings were nice. When Marius showed interest in the Church, they became angry and would not attend anymore. Mariane's step father, Peter Rasmussen, was angry and told Marius the Mormons were a low class of people and to stay away from them. Marius had a testimony of the truthfulness of the gospel. Mariane told him she could not live with him anymore if he joined the Church.

This troubled Marius very much, so he went to the elders of the church and asked what he should do. He told them he believed in the Church, but he loved his wife and family very much and didn't know what to do. They told him to be patient and wait for one year. If he lived the gospel, he would convert his wife. Marius left feeling sad because he thought he could not get Mariane to accept the gospel in one short year.

Marius lived the gospel to the best of his ability. There were many things that appealed to Mariane, but she did not accept the Church. One evening, Marius returned home from work to find little Harold very sick. Mariane told him that the doctors had not helped her other children, and she wanted to try the Mormon elders. They both knelt down and offered their first vocal prayer. Marius went looking for the elders about three in the morning. He found Elder Christensen at home. He was from Hyrum, Utah. Marius and Elder Christensen administered to Harold. Just as soon as they finished, Harold opened his eyes and smiled. They rejoiced in the gospel. They were happy to have Harold healthy, but they had a feeling they would not be able to keep Harold long.

Blessing of the Church

Marius had gone back to the birthplace of his parents and found someone that told him about his parents. He told Marius they died of tuberculosis and that he it would be impossible for him to live long. This bothered Marius a great deal. He told the Elders about it. They blessed Marius, saying that if he lived the Word of Wisdom as found in Section 89 of the Doctrine of Covenants that he and his posterity would not be stricken with tuberculosis.

Mariane and Marius were baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints on March 15, 1901 between 11 p.m. and midnight. This was necessary because of the hatred towards the "Mormons". The water was so cold that Marius let Mariane go first for fear she would back out. She walked into the ice-cold water and was baptized by Peter Frost from Benson, Utah. They were confirmed by a man by the name Zobell. Peter Frost would play a later part in their settlement into Benson, Utah.

Just after a few months as members of the Church, Marius was asked to lead the same choir he heard less than a year earlier. Mariane also sang alto in the choir. Marius led this choir for almost four years. Mariane was Relief Society President. The Relief Society was different than today. Instead of lessons they sewed for the needy and bazaars to raise money.

Immigration to America

Marius and Mariane decided to immigrant to America in 1905. Marinus was seven years old and they feared he might not leave Denmark if they waited longer. As the children got older, they would have a harder time with the new language and schooling. It was a hard decision. They would have to leave their friends, family, country, and the good job that Marius had. He was just given a contract to sell goods to the entire city which would have given them a great income. Mariane really had a hard time leaving her family. She knew that she would never see them again and felt she could not do this. Mariane was also to receive money from her real dad, Ole Jensen; but after hearing about them leaving he disinherited her. Her step father, Peter Rasmussen, wanted them to leave Oga. He was really attached to him.

The family, with four children, left Randers, Denmark on May 8, 1905. Mariane's mother did go to see the train off in Randers. It was later learned by letter that she fainted when she heard the whistle blow. On May 9 they left Esberg, Denmark for England. When they were to board the ship to take them from Denmark, Mariane couldn't board. Her family was already on board. She then realized she could not leave her husband and children, so she boarded.

They took another train across England to Liverpool. Leaving Liverpool at 7 p.m. (They came across the Atlantic on the SS Arabic. Commissioned into service in 1903. It was sunk August 19, 1915 by a German U-24 outward bound for the United States during World War II). They arrived in Boston, Massachusetts on May 20, 1905. They took a train from Boston through Chicago to Ogden and then to Logan. They were met by Mr. James C. Johnson on May 25 1905 in a surrey.

Settling in Benson Utah

They found a home in the north east side of Benson and a job of $25 a month on the farm. They had no wood or coal to burn to keep warm. They used sage brush to keep warm the first winter. Marius then bought 270 acres in center of Benson from Peter Frost, who had baptized them. He had borrowed money from Marius while in Denmark and promised to repay. Peter Frost owned a considerable amount of land in Benson. They had many hardships in life--one of the hardest was the language. They could not speak any English or understand people around them. After years they learned the English language but still carried the danish accent. They, especially the children, would be ridiculed by people many times. One day Marius was walking home from the church house after choir practice. Some young men drove by in a pick up truck and the passenger opened the door as they passed. The door hit Marius, knocking him to the ground. They longed many times for their peaceful Denmark.

When Marius was getting started on his new farm a very bad hailstorm devasted the place. It killed turkeys, apples and lucerne seed. They had nothing to live on, pay taxes and interest. Marius went to the Cache Valley Bank and asked to borrow $500 to keep his farm. The man felt he could trust Marius and let him have the money. They built the barn first and lived in it for six months while building the house. This is where Bill and Joyce Pitcher would later live.

Children born in Utah

Pearl was the first child born in America on August 15, 1906 in the home on the Toomb’s homestead. Edith was born after they moved to their own homestead on July 25, 1908. Carrie became the tenth child born on August 14, 1910. On November 18, 1912, Mary was born but only lived days. She died on the 29th the same month. The last child, Ephriam, was born on July 7, 1916. All were born in Benson. Pictured here Back row: Ephriam, Lydia, Marinus, Pearl, and Oga. Front row Edith, Marius, Mariane, and Carrie.

Making Utah home

Marius and Mariane took their family to the Logan Temple and were sealed together on May 13, 1908. Marius and Mariane raised their family on the new farm. Marinus joined the Marine Corp and left to fight in Germany in World War II. Harold got sick with appendicitis at this time and died from complications after the surgery on June 25 1917. They celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary on June 15, 1920 and later that year they learned that Mette Marie died in Denmark on October 20, 1920.

Marius drove the school bus for nineteen years. He also hauled people into Logan on Saturday night to see the show. He organized the Benson Ward choir in 1907 and lead it for forty-five years. He also organized the youth choir. Marius served as second counselor in the Bishopric with Bishop Howard Reese.