The History of the Yakima Valley, Washington, Comprising Yakima, Kittitas and Benton Counties, The S.J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1919, Volume II, page 511 CHARLES GUSTAFSON. Charles Gustafson is the owner of an excellent farm property of three hundred and sixty acres, which he has brought under a high state of cultivation and to which he has added many modern improvements. That he is practical as well as progressive in all of his ideas is indicated in the excellent results which have attended his labors. He was born in Sweden, September 9, 1873, a son of Gustave and Charlotte Larsen. The father is now deceased but the mother survives and is still a resident of Sweden. Through the period of his boyhood and youth Mr. Gustafson of this review remained a resident of his native country. He was a young man of nineteen years when in 1892 he crossed the Atlantic and made his way to Iowa, where he worked out. He afterward went to Minneapolis and later to Chicago, where he was employed on the drainage canal. Subsequently he secured work in the lumber woods of Michigan and afterward went to Moorhead, Minnesota, where he was employed at farm labor for a few years. Although he had previously worked in the lumber woods, he decided on removing to Minnesota that he would secure employment in the harvest fields. A farmer who offered him a job asked him if he could run a binder. He replied that he could, although he had never done such a thing. That he made good in the position is indicated in the fact that he was retained in the service of that farmer for four years. He readily adapted himself to any task that was assigned him. He closely studied the demands and the opportunities of each situation and day by day learned valuable lessons which have been of the greatest worth to him in later years. He continued a resident of Minnesota until 1900, when he made his way to the northwest, settling in Kittitas county, Washington, where he was employed by others for a year. He then bought one hundred and sixty acres of land eight and a half miles northeast of Ellensburg and to his original purchase he has added from time to time until within the boundaries of his farm are now comprised three hundred and sixty acres. Of this he has two hundred acres planted to hay and grain and he also has a fine dairy, splendidly equipped according to modern methods. In addition to the cultivation of the soil he raises cattle and horses and both branches of his business are proving profitable. He has erected all of the buildings upon the place, which include a fine home and large, substantial barns and sheds, and his business affairs have been wisely, carefully and systematically conducted, bringing to him well earned success. On May 17, 1901, Mr. Gustafson was united in marriage to Miss Mary Anderson, a native of Norway, who came to the United States during her girlhood days. By her marriage she has become the mother of four children: Andy, Carl, Ruby and Roland. Fraternally Mr. Gustafson is connected with the Modern Woodmen of America. His political allegiance is given to the republican party and he lends earnest support to its principles. He is a self-made man in that he started out in the business world empty-handed, coming to America without financial resources. Steadily he has worked his way upward and each forward step has brought him a broader outlook and wider opportunities. Believing that he might secure the best chance in the great and growing northwest, he made his way to this section of the country -- a step that he has never regretted, for here he has made steady progress along lines that have placed him with the substantial agriculturists of Kittitas county. ******************************** Submitted to the Washington Bios Project in December 2007 by Jeffrey L. Elmer. Submitter has no additional information about the subject of this article.