The Goat that wouldn’t stay put.

In the late 1800s, a Norwegian farmer named Ole Torkelson set sail for America from Bergen, traveling aboard an emigrant steamship packed with hopeful passengers, cargo, and the occasional farm animal. Like many rural Norwegians, Ole wasn’t about to leave his prized goat behind—a stubborn creature named Betsy who, according to family lore, gave better milk than most cows in the valley.

Despite strict orders from the ship’s crew, Ole smuggled Betsy aboard as “personal luggage,” disguising her under a burlap sack and insisting she was a very large “Norwegian footstool.” Things went smoothly for the first two days—until Betsy broke loose and wandered into the ship’s galley, where she helped herself to a crate of potatoes and nearly started a fire after knocking over a lantern.

“She’s Norwegian—of course she doesn’t follow rules.” 

The captain was furious and demanded Betsy be thrown overboard. Ole begged for her life, offering to do extra chores for the rest of the voyage. Eventually, a compromise was reached: Betsy would stay, but she had to be leashed and supervised at all times. From that point forward, Ole could be seen leading her around the deck like a dog, proudly telling anyone who’d listen, “She’s Norwegian—of course she doesn’t follow rules.” 

Ole, Betsy, and their milk pail made it safely to Minnesota, where Betsy reportedly lived to the ripe old age of 13, her fame growing with every retelling. To this day, some of Ole’s descendants still swear that without that goat, the family never would’ve made it through their first American winter.

Not certain if this is true: similar things absolutely did happen:

Norwegian emigrants did bring livestock—goats, chickens, even cows—on ships when allowed (especially on earlier sailings or more relaxed cargo vessels).

Smuggling animals (and all sorts of contraband) aboard ships was not uncommon.

There are documented cases of animals causing mayhem aboard emigrant ships, especially in steerage where space was chaotic and unsupervised.

Emigrants often had to bargain with ship crews to keep belongings—and even pets—from being tossed overboard.

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