Memories of Mr. & Mrs. Axle Olson by KC Garver.

MEMORIES OF MR. & MRS. AXEL OLSON
By KC Garver

My Mom and Dad, Ardis and Ken Garver, decided to buy an old log cabin and fix it up the first time we spent a summer vacation in Victor, Colorado. It was 1960 and I was 4 years old.

I spent the next 15 summer vacations in Victor and helped with the refurbishment when I was old enough to pull nails out of the reclaimed lumber or knock mortar off of the old chimney bricks and stack them for use later on down the road.

Ken and Ardis Garver fixed up an old log cabin near the home of Betzi & Axel Olson.

Garver family cabin when they purchased it in 1961. The back part of the cabin was later removed--as shown in the photo to right.

Garver family cabin after restoration (left). Ajax Mine headframe above to the right on Battle Mountain. Click photos to enlarge.

Mr. and Mrs. Olson (Betzi and Axel) were our next-door neighbors as were Bob and Shirley Beach. Shirley is the Olson’s daughter. I have fond memories of my summer vacations; Mr. Olson is in many of them. I don’t remember Mr. Olson first-hand in my early years, but my Dad had an 8mm movie camera and I remember seeing Mr. Olson in the videos playing with his grandchildren in their front yard, smoking his pipe while sitting in a lawn chair, or chatting with other adults while we were having a cookout.

Former home of the Betzi & Axel Olson -- where the Garver family first vacationed when they came to Victor. The Garvers subsequently bought a nearby cabin (shown above) to fix up for their summer use.

The home of Shirley & Bob Beach was located across the street from the Garver family cabin. Click photos to enlarge.

Mr. Olson came to America from Sweden, so his “v” and “w” was sometimes interchanged when he spoke. One of the first stories I remember my Dad telling us about was a conversation he had with Mr. Olson, who was talking about wolves and cold weather. My Dad was surprised to learn there were wolves around Victor, and confused as to why the wolves would freeze in the winter. Mr. Olson was actually telling a story about how the water valves froze. He pronounced “valves” as “walves” and my Dad thought he was saying “wolves”. Mr. Olson was a storyteller, many of his stories started with, “Velllll, I’ll tell ye” as he took intermittent puffs on his pipe. The “Well” had a faint “v” sound.

Mr. Olson's pipe smoking ritual made a lasting impression on young KC Garver. First--carefully striking the match.

Then lighting his pipe.

Then a puff of smoke, most likely followed by a story.

I loved hearing Mr. Olson’s stories, but heard them in my pre-teen and early teenage years 45-50 years ago. The accuracy of the stories may be questionable based on my childhood imagination, retentive abilities, the number of years that have passed and Mr. Olson’s ability to embellish.
Mr. Olson and his brother were supposed to come to America on the Lusitania in 1913, but they got bumped and had to make the trip on a cattle boat. They soon found their way to Kansas after becoming separated for a short time and one of his jobs was cutting firewood that winter.
Hedge trees were planted in Kansas to break the wind around the farmhouses and for soil conservation. The hedge tree, Osage Orange, is extremely dense and burns very hot, so is desirable for firewood. Its density makes it difficult to cut with a chain saw, let alone an axe and whatever handsaw was available in the early 1900’s. The sap freezes solid, which exacerbates the chore of cutting hedge trees in the winter. And this was how Mr. Olson was introduced to the hedge trees in Kansas. Mr. Olson was a dedicated hard-working man and I’m sure he gave it his all. But those frozen hedge trees really made an impression on him and he related the story to me on several occasions.
I remember sitting in lawn chairs with Mr. Olson on the mountainside in front of our cabin and listening to him talk about mines, rocks, and the gold. He also showed me a few gold and fool’s gold specimens he had collected through the years. I don’t remember specifics of stories he told about the different mines he worked in, but I was mesmerized by his tales of life in the mines. He taught my Dad, sisters, and me what kind of rocks have gold in them and how to break them open to discover the hidden treasures.

Headframes for the Ajax (left), Independence (center), and Portland (right) gold mines were visible from the Garver family cabin.

A particularly promising ore specimen that Mr. Olson shared with the Garver children to show them what to look for while busting rocks dumped below the Ajax gold mine.

Mr. Olson told fascinating stories of working underground in the gold mines--the Ajax, Portland, and others.

When working in the underground gold mines, Mr. Olson sometimes used a pick & shovel. Other times he operated more sophisticated equipment.

My sisters and I spent countless hours busting rocks at the base of the Ajax Mine. We loved looking for silver flecks, or better yet a vein of gold that we could take back to Kansas with us. Mr. Olson probably got a kick out of seeing my Dad load dozens of rocks into the trunk of our car every year when we got ready to go home. I’ve passed the rock busting knowledge down to my children and grandchildren and busted rocks with them through the years. The mine dumps are disappearing as the new mining operation is reclaiming them; a tradition is quickly fading away before my eyes.

Garver children, July 1960: Julie, Ardis Ellen, KC, & Karen (middle front).

Surface facilities for the Ajax Gold Mine where Mr. Olson worked underground. Click photos to enlarge.

Rock dump for the Ajax Mine where the Garver children found many promising specimens. Mr. Olson chuckled as they loaded their car.

The Garver children and grandchildren spent countless hours busting rocks.

Some of the busted rocks had to be left behind on the Ajax dump.

With open pit mining & reprocessing of old tailings, the historic headframes & rock dumps from the underground mines are disappearing.

I don’t remember talking with Mrs. Olson, but I think I remember she always had beautiful flowerbeds and flowerboxes, she always wore an apron over her dress, and I remember her baking things in her bright yellow wood cook stove. She seemed to be the embodiment of the word “grandma” to me back in the day.

Mrs. Olson's flower beds and flower boxes that KC remembers. Click photos to enlarge.

Mrs. Olson's granddaugher in her flower garden.

Mrs. Olson was the embodiment of the word "grandmother". She always wore an apron and baked wonderful things in her bright yellow wood cook stove.

Mr. Olson was hardworking and told great stories. The Garvers consider the Olsons part of their family and remain grateful for their friendship.

I describe Mr. and Mrs. Olson as dedicated and hard working, and throw in “Storyteller” for Mr. Olson.

Although my parents knew them better than my sisters or me, we all consider the Olson family as part of our family, and are fortunate for their friendship.

Submitted by KC Garver, October 2016.

Ardis and Ken Garver (parents of KC) with Shirley Beach (daughter of Betzi & Axle Olson). Their families remain lifelong friends--2002 Reunion. Click the link below to read Shirley's story about Axel Olson & His Golden Girl, Betzi Johnson.

KC Garver and his sisters--Julie, Ardis Ellen, & Karen, 2015.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
KC Garver was born in Wichita, KS in 1956. He visited Victor, CO on a family vacation in 1961. His parents, Ardis and Ken Garver, bought a log cabin on N 6th Street. He vacationed in Victor every August for most of the next 20 years and helped refurbish the old cabin. The cabin is still in the family and used frequently through the summer months.
KC has two children and six grandchildren who live in Kansas, where he lived for 50 years. He also lived in Seattle, WA and is currently in Charleston, SC. He works at the Boeing Commercial Airplane Company as a Facilities Planner, he has been with the company for 30 years. He has an MS in Management and taught Master level classes at Friends University, Wichita, KS while working at Boeing.
KC enjoys bike riding, hiking, and other outdoor activities where he gets to sharpen his landscape photography skills. He also enjoys craft beers and supports local and traveling musicians at breweries and other music venues around the Charleston area.

CLICK HERE TO READ "The Story of Axel Olson & His Golden Girl, Betzi Johnson"--by their daughter, Shirley Beach.

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Please Share Your Memories and Family Connections to Victor & the World's Greatest Gold Camp by
Contacting Victor Heritage Society, PO Box 424, Victor, CO 80860 or e-mail VictorHeritageSociety@gmail.com.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE MEMORIES AND STORIES OF FAMILY CONNECTIONS TO VICTOR & THE WORLD'S GREATEST GOLD CAMP.