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Anton Gravesen - Immigrant's Way, Anton Gravesen

The Bridge

Anton Gravesen (1870-1952) became a well-respected merchant in Tyler, Minnesota, and banker in Askov, Minnesota. This autobiographical excerpt, provided by his daughter, Dagmar Gravesen, first records his experiences as a young immigrant and then describes his fast rise as a successful businessman. It ends with his philosophical acceptance of his losses during the Great Depression. Gravesen was born on a small farm on the Jutland heath. The death of his mother when he was 10 made him selfreliant and industrious. He not only worked for his father but also hired out to neighbors and his uncles as a sheep and …