Peter Tollefson's Death Card, Obituary & Tombstone

Below I have included photos of Peter Tollefson's Obituary, Death Card and Tombstone. I have transcribed the obituary because it can be hard to read in spots. It tells the story of how such a small incident can lead to a tragic accident.

Mr. and Mrs. Peter Tollefson of Black Hammer, while returning home from Caledonia, Thursday evening had a runaway, which caused almost instant death to Mr. Tollefson, and severe injuries to his wife.

While in town the horses broke the buggy pole, having been frightened by an automobile. A new pole was replaced but as this was of a different type than the old one, it being too small for the neckyoke ring, which probably the main cause of the accident. As they were crossing a grade in the road near the county poor farm the neckyoke slipped over the pole, throwing the buggy onto the horses who at once started off on a mad gallop. For half a mile the couple clung to the buggy when suddenly they were dashed to the ground, Mr. Tollefson striking a stone breaking his neck and in about two hours he expired. Mrs. Tollefson escaped with three broken ribs, an injured arm and several bruises, she also was knocked unconscious, but recovered sufficiently so that she was able to go to a house in the neighborhood for assistance. Mr. Tollefson leaves a wife and eight small children to mourn the loss of a kind husband and father. Funeral was held Saturday at Black Hammer.


Peter Tollefson was 49 at the time as stated in his death card. The obituary does not give any clues to who is parents were or where he was born. The death card does list his birth location as Norway which narrows it down a more than the information provided on his Naturalization papers. It is able to tell us that he had 8 children and that his wife survived the accident. She would live about another six years.