Clark, Robert Carlton, Ph.D. "History of the Willamette Valley Oregon."  Vol. 3.
Chicago: Chapman Publishing Company, 1927. p. 336.
 
ANDREW K. NELSON

     To no one man is the town of Monitor, Marion county, more greatly indebted
for its growth and development than to Andrew K. Nelson, who for thirty-five
years has been closely devoted to various business interests here, while at the
same time he has overlooked no opportunity to further the general welfare of the
community. Mr. Nelson was born near Copenhagen, Denmark.. on the 13th of
February, 1864, and was there reared and educated. In 1891 he came to the United
States, locating first in Brown county, Minnesota, where he remained about a
year, and then came to what is now Monitor, arriving here in March, 1892. He was
one of the real pioneers of this locality, there being but one house here when
he came. Some years later, at a public meeting called for the purpose of
selecting a name for the place, New Denmark was first suggested, but eventually,
after much discussion, the name Monitor was chosen.

     On his arrival here, Mr. Nelson went to work in a sawmill, which he later
rented and ran it for six years. His brother Hans, who had accompanied him to
this country, was interested with him in. the mill for a time, and long remained
a resident of this locality, dying in 1926. The mill was devoted mainly to the
cutting of rough lumber, though there was also a planer in the mill. When the
water power decreased to the point where it could not run both sawmill and
flourmill, the former was shut down. In 1912 Mr. Nelson established a
lumberyard, shipping his lumber in from Portland, and In the course of time he
gradually increased his stock to include all kinds of building materials, and in
this enterprise he met with very gratifying success. In 1921 Mr. Nelson
established a water works for the town, his first object being fire protection,
but eventually many private consumers were connected with the line and now the
city has a splendid water system. He drilled a well, two hundred and eighty-five
feet deep, from which water is pumped by electric motor and forced under sixty
pounds pressure through twenty-five hundred feet of supply pipe to the
community. He furnishes the water at a flat rate and an analysis by the
laboratory of the Oregon Agricultural College shows it to be of the finest
quality, grading "A." Mr. Nelson's interest in the welfare of the community was
further shown by the fact that he was one of the prime movers in securing the
building of the railroad into Monitor. He is the owner of a fine farm of forty
acres, and in all of his enterprises he has, through sound business judgment and
progressive methods, realized a flattering success, being today regarded as one
of the most substantial and enterprising- citizens of his section of the county.

     Mr. Nelson was united in marriage to Miss Christina Olson, who was born in
Denmark, February 26, 1866, and whose death occurred in Portland, Oregon,
February 12, 1927. To this union were born six children, as follows: Carrie,
born in Sleepy Eye, Brown county, Minnesota, November 23, 1891, was graduated as
a trained nurse from the Portland Sanitarium, and has followed her profession in
that city for sixteen years, specializing in the care of babies; Arthur, whose
birth occurred in Monitor and who now lives in Daly City, California, married
Miss Emma Flowers and they had a son, Arthur, who was killed in an accident in
California, July 6, 1927, when eight years of age; Elizabeth is the wife of
Marion Dailey, living in Portland and is the mother of a son, Donnell Dailey;
Hilga, born June 18, 1899, is the wife of Lamanul Estep, a school teacher in
Portland; Reta, born December 15, 1905, is the wife of Paul Catillio, of San
Francisco, California; and Harry, born December 13, 1900, married Miss
Jessie Christenson, of Minnesota, a daughter of Marins and Elizabeth (Johnson)
Christemon, who were early settlers in Minnesota.

     Politically Mr. Nelson has long been an active supporter of the republican
party and has frequently served as delegate to conventions of his party. For
twenty-two years he has been a member of the school board, serving a number of
times as chairman. No enterprise or measure for the betterment or advancement of
Monitor has ever lacked his earnest support, and throughout the community he is
regarded as one of its most public-spirited citizens.

     
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Submitted to the Oregon Bios. Project in June 2016 by Diana Smith.  Submitter
has no additional information about the person(s) or family mentioned above.