Fresno County, California Biographies

Source: History of Fresno County, California, with biographical sketches of 
the leading men and women of the county who have been identified with 
its growth and development from the early days to the present (1919)

History By Paul E. Vandor 
Illustrated, Complete In Two Volumes 
Historic Record Company, Los Angeles, California, 1919
 
Notes: Missing+page1185-1186

Transcribed by Peggy Hooper

This file is part of the California Genealogy & History Archives 
http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~cagha/index.htm


NILS E. LARSON. � A sturdy old-timer who came to Fresno County in 
the early eighties is Nils E. Larson, to whom there is probably no document 
of more precious value than the honorable discharge which certifies that al- 
though he was born in Arebre, Sweden. November 8, 1859, he served awhile 
in the United States Navy and so won for himself the right to American citi- 
zenship. His father was Frederick Larson, a farmer known for miles around 
on account of his experience, his industry, and his honor, and as the second 
youngest of six children, three of whom are still living, Nils enjoyed all of 
the educational advantages that the first-class public schools of Sweden could 
afford. He was reared on a farm, and he learned farming thoroughly, as it 
is followed in his native land. 

When he was sixteen years of age Nils enlisted in the Swedish Navy, and 
for three years he followed the sea under the flag of a country long famous 
for its brave and well trained seamen. He learned marine engineering, and 
as a skilled mechanic and machinist made several lengthy voyages on differ- 
ent ships. He visited Philadelphia and New York, and sailed around Cape 
Horn ; and through his intercourse with the peoples of other countries than 
his own he mastered everyday English and picked up some knowledge of 
other languages as well. Having received an honorable discharge, he con- 
cluded to leave Sweden and to try his fortune in the New World. 

In 1878, Mr. Larson landed at New York City and immediately enlisted 
as a marine engineer in the United States Navy, in which position he served 
the Union for three years. He was appointed, in time, to five or six different 
ships, went around Cape of Good Hope, sailed to China, and then returned to 
Philadelphia by way of the same Cape. He went around Cape Horn to 
San Francisco, and in that city, in 1881, he received his honorable dismissal. 

Thereupon Mr. Larson went to Port Costa, where he worked in a ware- 
house for a year; and on the fourth of July, 1882, he reached Fresno and 
soon after began to engage in grain farming. He drove the big teams in the 
grain fields, and he teamed to the mountains, and from the upper regions he 
hauled lumber, using at times from eight to twenty-two mules and horses 
in a single team. 

In 1884 he took up a homestead of 160 acres at Tollhouse, and at the 
same time engaged to work for John Haskel, on whose ranch he remained 
seven years. He then started grain farming twelve miles south of Fresno 
on Elm Avenue, and leased 3,500 acres from A. A. Weber. He used six 
big teams ; but the year proving a very dry one he harvested scarcely two 
and a half sacks to the acre and lost everything except a span of horses. He 
bought more horses on credit, however, came to Academy, leased land of 
D. C. Sample, beginning with 600 acres, and increasing the area to 2,200, 
and ran four big' teams with a combined harvester drawn by twenty-four head 
of horses. He cut other grain, and sowed and reaped 1,600 acres a year, 
finally meeting with success. For the first six years he could hardly make 
expenses, selling wheat as low as sixty cents per hundred and thirteen dollars 
a ton for barley, but he persisted and overcame the handicaps which seemed 
insurmountable. 

While operating there, fourteen years ago, Mr. Larson bought his present 
place of 150 acres in the Gray Colony; and after he had farmed the same to 
grain for three or four years he moved onto it and began to improve the 
land. He had already leveled it, and had planted forty acres to alfalfa ; 
then he put out a vineyard of sixty acres, and the same year set out twenty 
acres in orchard. Since then he has planted more than forty acres, and has 
altogether a ranch of 152 acres, twelve miles from Fresno. He has over 100 
acres in vines distributed to Thompson, sultana, muscat and wine grapes, and 
twenty-five acres in peaches. He has an orange avenue leading to his resi- 
dence, and a small and useful orchard at the house. He holds membership 
in the California Peach Growers' Inc., and the California Associated Raisin 
Company. 

At Oakland, in 1909, Mr. Larson was married to Miss Meta Husted, 
who was born in Denmark ; and by her he had three children : Nils Frederick, 
Margaret C. and Christen H. Larson. Mrs. Larson passed away in May, 
1918. Mr. Larson is a Republican in national political movements.