Unsolved in Belgrade - Episode 1: A Life Cut Short
Welcome to the Purple Valley Whispers, and welcome to unsolved in Belgrade, podcast dedicated to uncovering the truth behind a chilling cold case that has haunted the rural community of Belgrade, Minnesota for over 4 decades. Join us as we examine the evidence, consider different theories, and speak with those impacted by this unsolved case. Community still dealing with the question, who killed Joseph Olsen? And his nickname was Skyver, Skiver, Skyburger. If anyone knows, I think it's Skybur because I've heard people say that.
Speaker 1:Okay. Okay. Cool. Today, we rewind the clock back to 1983. The bitter chill of Minnesota winter had settled over the landscape, but in the hearts of the Belgrade community, a different kind of coldness was taking hold.
Speaker 1:This is the story of Joseph Skyver. Skyver.
Speaker 2:Olsen. Or Skiver. What is that?
Speaker 1:I think it's Skiver. Like, it's Skiver. Skiver. I don't know which one it is. Skiver.
Speaker 1:Okay. Skiver. Skiver is a 75 year old retired farmer known for his gentle nature, church dedication, and community roots. It is the story of a life cut short and a mystery that continues to cast a long shadow over the place he called home. So a little bit about Belgrade.
Speaker 1:It's a small little town in Minnesota. With the high schooler. Yep. We did. It is a city rich in history and community spirit.
Speaker 1:Belgrade is known for its significant landmarks. If you guys know, you can't miss that crow. Big old crow. I didn't know
Speaker 2:what that was till I was like what'd you think it was?
Speaker 1:I didn't know. It was just a statue. It was
Speaker 2:a bird. I didn't know what
Speaker 1:it meant. I was like, what is crow wearing?
Speaker 3:Yeah.
Speaker 1:That's, like, honestly the biggest curl I've ever seen. Exactly. The world's biggest curl. Literally in the world.
Speaker 3:This weekend, our audience spotlight during the weekend is the fire to celebrate the world's largest crow. It seems like it was taken out of an outbreak of Hitchcock movie. The crow stands about 42 feet tall perched on a branch overlooking the city of Highway 71. The Crow was built in the eighties as part of a monument to celebrate the town of Centennial in 1988. The town leaders felt that Crow would be a fitting mascot and upgrade, or Crow Lake as it was first called, was during Crow River, Crow Lake, and Pro Lake Township.
Speaker 3:Besides the colossal bird, the monument also features It also salutes all the states in Canada as well as the countries of the ancestors who built their lives and operate with separate flags flowing away. So the next time you find yourself in this quiet community, make sure you walk over to the giant memorial. Take the time to enjoy a little history. Alex White house.
Speaker 1:Anyway, to understand Joseph Skyver Olsen's case, we need to travel back to the beginning to understand the man himself and the community he was so much part of. Paul Lee Knutsen, who was Skyver's grandfather, immigrated to America from Norway immigrated to America from Norway in 18/62 with his with his wife, Rhianby. Does that sound familiar? Sounds like your name? Yeah.
Speaker 1:It does. And they had 10 children that they brought over. There's no reason why the Knutson family left Norway. Still, they were likely seeking economic opportunities and fleeting difficult conditions in Norway, such as poverty, land shortage. Only Knutsen settled in Colfax and became a farmer, a common occupation for Norwegian immigrants.
Speaker 1:He was also among the first members of the Crow River Lutheran Church, highlighting the importance of religion for the Norwegian immigrants who often established their own churches and congregations in their new communities. There's some something about his grandparents. Rambi Knudsen, Ole's wife, was born in Norway in 18/24 and lived in America for 42 years. She passed away in 19 09 at the age of 85. The source I had mentioned that Rambi struggled with rheumatoid
Speaker 2:arthritis. Mhmm.
Speaker 1:Is that right? Yeah. Okay. Rheumatoid rheumatoid arthritis in her later years. One of their 10 children was Foley a Olson, who was 4 years old when they came over from Norway.
Speaker 1:Ole and Johanna Olsson Olson had 7 children, and one of their 7 children was Joseph Skjiber Olson. Joseph Schuyver Olsen was born on August 13, 19 o 1907 in Colfax Township in Kandiyoah County, Minnesota. He was baptized shortly after on September 1, 1907. Skyver's baptism occurred at the Crow River Lutheran Church in Belgrade. Skyver, Skyver, as all knew him, was a long life resident of Burbank Township, which is just outside of Belgrade.
Speaker 1:He witnessed the changing seasons and the slow steady rhythm of farm life. He never married, devoting his time to his work faith and simple rural life. He was a familiar face in town. Some people relied on him for seed, corn in the spring, and a friendly face in the pew of Crow River Lutheran Church every Sunday. Sometimes, you know, we get all this information about people, and they make them all seem like a really good person, but I I always wonder if there's always stuff we don't know.
Speaker 1:Well, people say that he was a drinker. Okay. Yeah. And he was just, like, oh, a a typical Norwegian immigrant. Mhmm.
Speaker 2:He drank a lot, and that was about it.
Speaker 1:And he was, like, do you remember he was friends with our uncle Ned? He what? Tell him a story about uncle Ned chopping
Speaker 2:wood. No. Just
Speaker 1:that Ned would, chop wood butt ass naked. In the boondock. At the boondock. Yeah.
Speaker 2:And they were
Speaker 1:like, that's right. So maybe that tells you a little bit about this guy. So there were some stories around Belgrade. One is that he never owned a truck. So he would tie hay bales to the top of his car, and that's how he'd bring hail hay hay bales into town.
Speaker 1:So he never owned a truck never owned a truck, but he was a farmer. That's interesting. So Skyler was Bernie's family had a long life connection to the Crow River Lutheran Church. He wasn't a man of great wealth, preferring a modest life, but he was known for his generosity. Just a few months before his death, he made a significant donation to his church, a testimony to his character and his commitment to his community.
Speaker 1:He lived alone in a farmhouse that held years of memories, a place where he finds solace and familiarity. Guyburn and his family had a long life connection to the Crow River Lutheran Church, which appears significant and long standing, returning to when the Knutsons and Olsons came to America in 18/67. And it got kinda confusing because
Speaker 2:so Skybur's parents Heber's parents Skybur, whatever.
Speaker 1:Their parents changed their name to Olson, but then their parents were, like, Knutson's. So, like, a lot of Knutson's and Olsen's are related because of that. Yeah. They, like, took their dad's name and put son up together. Oh, really?
Speaker 1:So yeah. Because their grandpa's name, o o e,
Speaker 2:and then they put son and then Son. So also, sometimes, like, why didn't the guffines do that?
Speaker 1:I know. Right? Because that's not me
Speaker 2:who can say that. Right?
Speaker 1:His membership extended his membership to the church extended mere attendance. He was he was a church choir member and known to miss never missed services. He occasionally sold grave markers and was described as a gravedigger for the church for many years. This implies a deep sense of responsibility towards the church and its community even in death. This information implies a multigenerational connection between the Olsen family and Crow River Lutheran
Speaker 3:Church.
Speaker 1:Okay. But on February 1983, the sense of peace was shattered. It was Skyler's brother Ludwig who made the grim discovery. He'd gone to his brother's house to share some share some bad news. There's On February 18th, the date of the 3, the sense of peace was shattered.
Speaker 1:It was Skyberry's brother, Ludwig, who made the grim discovery. He'd gone to his brother's house to share some bad news about the death of a sister-in-law, only to be confronted with a tragedy far closer to home. Alright. So 3 days before his brother found him, on February 15, 1983, at 3:30, Joseph Skyler Olson was last seen in Belgrade. February 15th at 3:30.
Speaker 1:That was last time he was seen in Belgrade.
Speaker 2:Skip to February 16, 1983, Olson failed to attend a choir practice for the senior new meal that he signed up for, which was unusual for him.
Speaker 1:That was the first sign that something was kinda wrong. Also, in addition to that, he did pick up his mail on that day. Authorities this was later on, but authorities later received the non anonymous letter stating that a brown pickup truck was seen in his driveway.
Speaker 2:I'm not that's inside the house, the scene that awakened was one of unimaginable violence. Skyver,
Speaker 1:a man known for his kindness, had been brutally beaten and stabbed up. Yeah. His body was found fully clothed in a storage room. The details of his demise, a chilling testimony to the brutality of the act. The body of Joseph Olsen was found around noon on February 18, 1993.
Speaker 1:Maybe we'll find out. Maybe. Well, they're both. Well, maybe we had evidence. Well, you have to wait.
Speaker 1:It's coming. So later, Chris' uncle yeah. They think Chris' uncle.
Speaker 2:I don't even
Speaker 1:know what his name is. I think his name is Richard Jensen. They're both, like, narcotics. So later authorities would reveal that he had been brutally being stabbed couple days, possibly a couple days before his brother found him.
Speaker 2:His, death certificate, which the West Central Tribune had trouble obtaining in 1983, did, How do you say that? Younghurst? Human nation? Yeah. Which is a severe loss of blood due to multiple stab wounds as the cause of death.
Speaker 2:So the news of Skyler's okay. Instead of
Speaker 1:having Skyler, I'm just gonna call him Olsen for no one. Joseph? Or Joseph. Yeah. The news of Olsen's death spread through the community like wildfire, leaving behind shock, disbelief, and profound sense of unease.
Speaker 1:How would how could this happen here in their peaceful corner of
Speaker 2:the world? And who would commit such a horrific act against a man who seemed to have
Speaker 1:no enemies. Should we end up sold 1 right there? And as next time on unsolved in Belgrade, as we examine the early days of the investigation, the search for answers, and the whispers of suspicion that began to circulate through the community. We'll explore the theories, the possible motives, and the individuals who would come under the scrutiny of law enforcement in the wake of this tragedy.