Larsen, Anton

Anton Larsen was born in Jutland, Denmark, on November 11, 1846, where he learned the cooper’s trade and served in the Danish army. Seeking better opportunities in America, he worked as a farm laborer in Amsterdam, New York, and near Cedar Rapids and Iowa City, Iowa. After spending several years working as a cooper in Milwaukee, Staten Island, St. Paul, and San Francisco, he eventually moved to Fresno County, California, where he worked at a sawmill in Pine Ridge before settling on the Laguna de Tache Grant.

In Fresno County, Anton purchased a ten-acre home ranch on Mt. Whitney Avenue west of Laton, as well as an additional fifty-acre tract of land. Through relentless industry and rigid honesty, he successfully developed his holdings into fine agricultural land and earned widespread respect from his neighbors for his strong work ethic. Living comfortably into his seventies, he remained a dependable and hardworking member of the Laton community.