Carey, Charles Henry.  "History of Oregon." Vol. 3. Chicago-Portland: Pioneer
Historical Pub. Co., 1922.  p. 567.
 
HON. ALBIN WALTER NORBLAD

     The career of Hon. Albin Walter Norblad of Astoria, now serving as state
senator of Oregon, presents a notable example of what can be accomplished by men
of progressive ideas, alertness and energy.  He has been actuated at all times
by a laudable ambition that has prompted him to put forth earnest and effective
effort in the attainment of the goal which he has now reached and his political
record is a most creditable one, characterized at all times by public-spirited
devotion to the general good.  Mr. Norblad is a native of Sweden.  He was born
in Malmo in 1881, a son of Peter and Bessie (Anderson) Norblad, who were also
natives of that country, the latter being of pure Scandinavian extraction.  The
father, an officer in the army, was a descendant of a long line of army men, the
Norblad family dating back to Bernadotte, who was one of the marshals of
Napoleon and accompanied him to Scandinavia.  In 1883 Peter Norblad resigned
from the Swedish army and came to the United States, making his way to Grand
Rapids, Michigan, where he engaged in business as a building contractor,
continuing a resident of that city until his demise in 1910.  Mr. and Mrs.
Norblad became the parents of three children, Albin Walter, Clara and George.
     In the public schools of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Albin W. Norblad pursued
his education to the age of twelve years and for five years prior to this time
had carried and sold newspapers, thus early displaying the elemental strength of
his character and the spirit of enterprise and determination which has
characterized him throughout his life.  In connection  with his newspaper work
he was a member of the Evening Press Newsboy Bank, with which he toured the
southern states, winning a gold medal offered by John Philip Sousa to the member
of the band making the greatest advancement in music within a year.  After
leaving school Mr. Norblad secured a position with the Grand Rapids Furniture
Company of Chicago, subsequently becoming a newspaper reporter, and while acting
in the latter capacity he continued his long interrupted education, entering the
Chicago Seminary of Science, which he attended for four years.  He thus laid a
good foundation for further progress along educational lines and in June, 1905,
was graduated from the Chicago Law School on the completion of a three years'
course.  Previous to this he had entered upon the study of medicine, but
abandoned that profession in favor of the law.  In April, 1904, before
graduation from law school, he was admitted to the bar in Michigan and at once
engaged in practice in Grand Rapids, Michigan, but at the end of a few months
removed to Escanaba, that state, where he formed a partnership with Judd
Yelland, with whom he continued until the latter's election to the office of
probate judge.  Meanwhile Mr. Norblad had been called to public service, filling
the position of prosecuting attorney of Delta county, Michigan, until July,
1908.  Upon dissolving partnership with Judge Yelland he continued alone in
practice for a year and then started for the west, selecting Astoria, Oregon, as
his place of residence.  Here he formed a partnership with G. A. Hemple, with
whom he was associated until June, 1910, and from 1911 until 1916 he served as
city attorney, having been the nominee of both the republican and democratic
parties at the primary, a fact indicative of his standing as a man and citizen
and the confidence reposed in his professional ability.  He is an able attorney,
well informed in all branches of the law, and his clear and cogent reasoning and
careful presentation of his cases have won for him many favorable verdicts.  In
1915 he formed a partnership with Frank C. Hesse under the firm name of Norblad
& Hesse, which firm continues.  He has been admitted to practice in the Oregon
and Michigan federal courts and also in the supreme court of the United States
and has been intrusted with much important litigation, representing as counsel
many of the large corporations of the state, among which may be mentioned the
Union Fishermen's Packing Company, the largest individual salmon packing plant
on the Pacific coast; the Astoria National Bank and others.  He is also
secretary of the Shaw-Bertram Lumber Company of Klamath Falls, Oregon, and as
its attorney handles a large part of its litigation.  He is credited with being
the "father of the port of Astoria," acting as its secretary and dong all of the
legal work during its formative period.  In 1918, in recognition of his services
to his state and to his profession, Mr. Norblad was honored with the state
senatorship from the fifteenth senatorial district and is still serving in that
capacity.  He has done much to shape public thought and opinion and has been the
stalwart champion of many measures which have found their way to the statute
books of the state and are proving of great value to the commonwealth.  He was
one of the framers of the new state fish and game law and the bill to prohibit
the publishing of newspapers in foreign languages in the state.  At all times he
has been actuated by a public-spirited devotion to the general welfare, and "The
Oregon Voter," in giving to the people a list of the votes of the senators on
every question before the senate in the session of 1919, placed Mr. Norblad's
name at the head of the list as having voted more for the interests of the
people than any of the other members of the senate.  Aside from his professional
interests Mr. Norblad has always taken an active interest in the civic affairs
of his community and has served as president of the Chamber of Commerce, being
familiarly spoken of as a "live wire."  During the World war he worked
untiringly to promote the various drives and was active as a Four-Minute man.
     In 1906, at Escanaba, Michigan, Mr. Norblad was united in marriage to Miss
Edna Gates, a daughter of Lew Gates, one of Michigan's veteran newspaper
editors, and they have become the parents of two children:  Albin Walter, Jr.,
and Eleanor Lyle, the former a high school student, while the latter is a pupil
in the grades.
     Fraternally Mr. Norblad is a Mason of high standing, having attained the
thirty-second degree in the Scottish Rite Consistory and also being a member of
the Knights Templar Commandery and the Mystic Shrine.  He is likewise a
prominent member of the Benevolent Protective Order of Elks, in which he has
served as exalted ruler and as district deputy grand exalted ruler.  Mrs.
Norblad is prominent in lodge circles as a member of the Eastern Star and she is
also connected with the Daughters of the American Revolution.  She is an active
and faithful member of the Presbyterian church and a leader in club and social
life.
     At the close of the 1921 session of the legislature, upon his return to
Astoria after serving as state senator, in recognition of his services to the
county in securing the passage of many measures of local interest, the citizens
of Astoria presented Mr. Norblad with a solid silver service suitably inscribed.
Mr. Norblad's splendid intellectual attainments and thorough knowledge of the
law make him most efficient in the discharge of the duties of his present office
and he is using his influence to carry out the will of his constituents, never
employing his native talents unworthily nor supporting a dishonorable cause.  He
stands for high ideals, yet utilizes practical methods in their attainment and
his life record has been a credit and honor to the state which has honored him.
 
 
 
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Submitted to the Oregon Bios. Project in January 2007 by Diana Smith.  Submitter
has no additional information about the person(s) or family mentioned above.