The siblings Ole and Hedevig Paus were born in Lårdal in Upper Telemark, where the Paus family belonged to the region's elite, the "aristocracy of officials," and had moved to Skien at a young age with their oldest sister, joining Skien's merchant elite with the support of their relatives in the family Blom. The children from Ole's and Hedevig's homes maintained close contact throughout Knud's and Marichen's childhood; notably, Ole's oldest son, Knud's half-brother Henrik Johan Paus, was raised in Hedevig's home.
The siblings Ole and Hedevig Paus were born in Lårdal in Upper Telemark where the Paus family belonged to the region's elite the "aristocracy of officials" and had moved to Skien at a young age with their oldest sister joining Skien's merchant elite with the support of their relatives in the family Blom The children from Ole's and Hedevig's homes maintained close contact throughout Knud's and Marichen's childhood; notably Ole's oldest son Knud's half-brother Henrik Johan Paus was raised in Hedevig's home