    
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Administrative
Information
Scope and Content Note
Biographical Information
Lineage
Selected Search Terms
Partial Interview Transcript
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Information
Resources
Robert A. L. Mortvedt Library
Pacific
Lutheran University
Tacoma, WASHINGTON 98447
Phone: (253) 535-7586 E-mail: archives@plu.edu
New Land
New Lives Oral History Collection
Alfred (Aage) Valdemar Andersen
A Guide to His Oral History Interview |
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Administrative
Information
Creator:
Andersen, Alfred (Aage) Valdemar
Collection Nr: t159
File Content:
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2 file folders
0 photographs
1 sound cassette
0 compact discs
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Processing Information:
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The
interview was conducted using a cassette recorder. A research
copy was also prepared from the original. To further preserve
the content of the interview, it is now being transferred
to compact disc. We deliberately did not transcribe the
entire interview because we want the researchers to listen
to the interviewee's own voice. The transcription index
highlights important aspects of the interview and the
tape counter numbers noted on the Partial Interview
Transcription are meant as approximate finding guides
and refer to the location of a subject on the cassette/CD.
Interviewed
by Donna Mallonee
Transcribed by Mary Sue Gee, Julie Peterson and Becky
Husby
Encoded by Kerstin Ringdahl & Amity Smetzler
Recording Quality: Good
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Restrictions:
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The
collection is available for research.
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Preferred Citation:
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[Collection
Number, Collection Title]
New Land New Lives Oral History Collection
Scandinavian Immigrant Experience Collection
Robert A.L. Mortvedt Library
Pacific Lutheran University
Tacoma,WA 98447
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This
interview was conducted with A.V. (Aage Valdemar) Andersen on
April 1, 1982 in Poulsbo, Washington. It provides information
on family background, emigration, employment, marriage, and
Danish heritage. The interview was conducted in English. Also
see Ellen Andersen.
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Aage
Valdemar Andersen was born on August 24, 1902 in Hornbæk, Denmark
to Ernst Andersen and Louise Jensen. Ernst owned a shoe store
but spent most of his time as a Lutheran missionary. There were
four other children in the family: Dan, Skjøld, Else, and Frede.
Aage finished high school in Denmark and then became an apprentice
in the hardware business for four years. Aage obtained a good
job after his apprenticeship but wanted to travel, which led
him to immigrate to the United States in 1924. He stayed in
New York City for about one year and then went to Detroit, where
he worked for General Motors. Aage then went to British Columbia,
where his brothers had immigrated in the meantime. He did harvest
work with them for a couple of months before moving to Seattle,
WA, where he got back into the hardware business. In Seattle,
Aage also met his wife, Ellen Hoch, and was married in 1928.
Ellen was from Fredericia, Denmark, and they had two children,
Elsie and Carl. Aage worked as an electrician at Sand Point
Naval Station during WWII, after which he and Ellen bought their
own store, where they sold gifts and hardware. Aage also became
a storekeeper in Alaska for ten seasons, during which time Ellen
managed the store at home. After the store, Aage made another
business venture and built a motel in Moses Lake, WA with a
friend named Sigmund Tetten. Aage sold the motel after eleven
years, retiring at the age of sixty-six. After retirement, Aage
and Ellen settled in Poulsbo, WA and bought a motor home. They
have visited all fifty states and have also visited Denmark
several times. Aage has belonged to the Danish Brotherhood and
the Sons of Norway and is proud of his heritage. However, he
also feels he is "as good of a citizen [American] as anybody
is going to be."
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Full Name: |
Alfred (Aage) Valdemar Andersen
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Father: |
Ernst Andersen
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Mother: |
Louise Jensen
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Paternal Grandfather: |
Jens Christian Andersen
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Paternal Grandmother: |
Stine Tipperup
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Maternal Grandfather: |
Lars Jensen
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Maternal Grandmother: |
Else Jensen
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Brothers and Sisters: |
Dan Andersen
Skjøld Andersen
Else Andersen
Frede Andersen
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Spouse: |
Ellen Hoch Andersen
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Children: |
Elsie Andersen
Carl Andersen
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This collection is indexed under the following headings
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Personal Names |
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Andersen, A.V. (Aage Valdemar)
Andersen, Ernst
Jensen, Louise
Andersen, Dan
Andersen, Skjold
Andersen, Else
Andersen, Frede
Hoch, Ellen
Andersen, Elsie
Andersen, Carl
Tetten, Sigmund
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Family Names |
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Andersen family
Jensen family
Tipperup family
Tetten family
Hoch family
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Geographical Names |
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Hornbæk (Denmark)
Fredericia (Denmark)
New York (New York)
Seattle (Wash.)
Moses Lake (Wash.)
Poulsbo (Wash.)
British Columbia
Detroit (Mich.)
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Subjects |
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Family -- Denmark
Denmark -- Emigration and immigration
Hornbæk (Denmark) -- Emigration and immigration
Danish Brotherhood -- Seattle (Wash.)
Sons of Norway (Seattle, Wash.)
Danish-Americans -- Ethnic identity
Mental Club (Seattle, Wash.)
Naval Station Puget Sound (Seattle, Wash.)
Sand Point (Seattle, Wash.)
General Motors Corporation (Detroit, Mich.)
Seattle Hardware Company (Seattle, Wash.)
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Occupations |
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Motel management
Hardware stores -- Washington (State)
Farmers - Danish-Americans
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Genre/Form |
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Oral history
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Institution |
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Pacific Lutheran University. Scandinavian Immigrant Experience
Collection
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The
partial interview transcription highlights important aspects
of the interview. Numbers on the left may be used as guides
to important subjects. Two numbers separated by a slash indicate
that the first number is for cassette and the second for CD.
010 PERSONAL BACKGROUND: His name in Denmark was Aage Andersen
which has been changed to Alfred Valdemar Andersen. Born on
24 August 1902 in Hornbaak, Denmark, which is about 30 miles
outside of Copenhagen. This place means "Horn Brook." This is
a summer resort area.
072 PARENTS: Ernst and Louise. Father had a shoe store but he
spent more time as a Lutheran missionary. He was quite strict.
Had a good home life. The oldest brother has the house which
now houses stores and apartments.
125 GRANDPARENTS: Paternal grandfather sailed in the war in
1868. Maternal grandfather had a delicatessen in Copenhagen.
158 BROTHERS AND SISTERS: Oldest brother, Dan. Skjold lives
in Canada. Has a sister on Orcas Island. Youngest brother, Frede
lives in Denmark.
175 FAMILY HISTORY: Maternal grandfather came from Sweden and
maternal grandmother came from Denmark. He also has some Norwegian
blood. Paternal grandfather was an interesting man and wrote
a few small books.
210 CHRISTMAS: Lighted candles on the tree.
222 BIRTHDAYS: Was a big occasion.
225 WEDDING ANNIVERSARIES: Big occasion. Neighbors come in the
night and put up a big arch. Then about 6am they come and sing
wedding songs. (Added by Aage's wife, Ellen)
244 SCHOOL DAYS IN DENMARK: Finished high school there. Took
German, Swedish, and arithmetic. There weren't as many choices
of what they could take. They had gym and religion once a week.
He didn't work while he was going to school.
268 WORK IN DENMARK: Was an apprentice for four years to learn
the hardware business. Had to go to night school. He opened
the store at 7am and came home from the night school about 12
midnight. After his apprenticeship he went to Copenhagen and
got a job at a place which made light fixtures and also hardware.
It was a good job.
300 REASONS FOR EMIGRATION: Wanted to travel. Left by himself.
Didn't have to leave because he had a good job and family in
Denmark. Felt free and happy when he left home.
315 Left by ship in Copenhagen and went to New York.
318 NEW YORK EXPERIENCES: He and a friend he met on the ship
went to the Danish Mission Home. They had to take the subway
there and get off at Prospect Ave. When the subway stopped the
sign said "Women" so they didn't get off there. They found the
place and stayed a few days, but there were too many bed bugs.
349 FIRST IMPRESSIONS IN NEW YORK: Got a job right away because
he saw so many people who were broke. He was shoveling snow
outside a bakery shop where he saw an entire family laying by
the grate from the shop to keep warm. He had never seen anything
like that in Denmark. There were many people without homes.
375 NEW YORK: Stayed for about one year. After about a week
he got a job taking care of an apartment house (furnace, etc.).
Then he worked making popsicles. Then he got a job at B. Hoffman
(?) which is a big department store.
396 PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA: Had a job here for 2-3 months.
400 DETROIT: Was going to get a job at Ford, but it was too
much work so he went to General Motors. The man he gave his
application to was Danish so Aage got a good job. After this
he sold vacuum cleaners.
430 HARVEST HELP: Saw an advertisement. Took the train to Winnipeg,
Canada and then up to Regina, Canada. They ran into a farmer
who asked them if they needed a job. The horses on the farm
didn't understand his Danish commands.
465 BROTHERS: Met his brothers who were farther west. They had
immigrated in the mean time. They were working as harvest hands
and moving from farm to farm. Aage went and worked with them.
This was 1925. They lived in tents.
490 DANISH COLONY: Brother started a colony in Edgewater, BC.
Went and stayed there for 2-3 months then went to Vancouver,
BC, then to Seattle.
500 SEATTLE: Hard to find work. Got a job at American Can Company.
Wanted to get back into the hardware business. Worked for Seattle
Hardware Company for about four years.
524 MARRIAGE 1928: Met his wife at the Danish Church. Ellen
adds that they married in that church and that their children
were baptized, confirmed, and one was married there. The other
was married in Montana.
530 SEATTLE HARDWARE COMPANY: Saw no future in this company.
There were no unions or anything so he quit.
535 OTHER JOBS: Ellen adds that Aage had a milk route and sold
supplies to restaurants.
540 HOME: Lived between Seattle and Tacoma near Beacon Heights.
During the depression they sold the house there and moved into
Seattle where it was easier to find work.
553 Didn't work with many other Danish people.
560 CHANGES IN WORK FROM THEN AND NOW: People were more willing
to do anything. There wasn't relief or unemployment. During
the depression he bought an old truck and went to the public
market and bought fruit and went out and sold this in the country.
They made a couple of dollars a day doing this. Too proud to
go on relief.
595 ORGANIZATIONS: Belongs to the same organization as his wife,
Ellen, plus the Sons of Norway. Used to belong to a club called
"Mental Club". Belonged to the Danish Brotherhood.
605 WORK DURING WWII: Worked at Sand Point Naval Station. He
worked as an electrician for four years there.
618 GIFT SHOP: Bought a gift shop on University then they moved
out on Holmen Road where they had a giftware and hardware store.
Sold mostly imported gifts and greeting cards. The first business
they bought was small and they enlarged it quite a bit with
appliances and mail order. At Holmen Road, they had too much
competition with drugstores and other stores.
644 ALASKA: Got a job as a storekeeper and went there ten seasons.
Ellen took care of the home business. The store in Alaska was
about seventy miles from Juneau. Then he worked at a larger
store in False Pass in the Aleutian Islands, which is about
100 miles away from Dutch Harbor
675 MOTEL BUSINESS: A friend, Sigmund Tetten (?) and he built
a motel at Moses Lake, Washington. Had the motel for eleven
years until he was 66 and then he quit the business. Sold the
motel and retired to Poulsbo, Washington.
686 TRAVELLING: Bought a motor home and traveled for seven years.
They have been in every state in the United States. Have visited
Denmark several times. Have been to Hawaii. Took a steamer from
Seattle down through the Panama Canal and down to St. Thomas,
Virgin Islands.
700 VISITS TO DENMARK: Nice to visit, nice people and country.
The cities are different. The Pacific Northwest is his country.
Compares old Copenhagen to today. Glad he immigrated. He feels
that everyone should travel around so they will appreciate what
they have here.
733 CORRESPONDENCE: Keeps in touch with his sister-in-law in
Denmark. Has cousins there. They used to have family reunions
every other year.
744 FAMILY DISTRUBUTION: About one third in each of the countries:
Denmark, US, and Australia. His father's brother went to Australia
and was a minister. This man had about nine children.
782 FATHER: Ellen adds that since his father was a minister
Aage never missed a Sunday in Sunday school from when he was
big enough until when he was fourteen years old. Had prayers
with all the meals and before they went to bed. She says he
kind of got fed up with it. She compares it to ice cream and
says he likes it but not five times a day.
795 DANISH PEOPLE: They discuss Danish humor. In Jutland where
his wife is from, they have a different kind of humor. They
talk about a humorous incident during the war.
822 IMPORTANCE OF HERITAGE: Proud, not ashamed of being Danish.
The United States hasn't had to spend any money on him. He went
to school in Denmark. Did go to night school here to become
an American citizen.
830 CITIZENSHIP: He feels he is as good of a citizen as anybody
is going to be. Took a year to fill out the papers and get into
this country. The sponsors had to promise that you wouldn't
be a burden to the US. Now the people who come in are a burden
from the day they come. This country is built on the hard work
of many immigrants.
845 GREENHORNS: They were called "Greenhorns" when they first
came.
848 CHANGES IN DENMARK: Ellen really doesn't know how many of
the old traditions they really keep up anymore. Now they have
TV and they don't use the same forms of entertainment as before.
855 SAINT HANS: June 24th. They light bonfires and dance around
to celebrate midsummer. They had a witch on the top of the bonfire.
877 FASTELAVN: The children would decorate branches and hit
their parents' bed with them to wake them up. Then coffee and
buns would be served.
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