From "The History of North Washington" Published 1904

Scanned by Susan Dechant (sdechant@triax.com)
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JOHN OLSON
     John Olson, of Springdale, Stevens county, is superintendent of the 
Washington Brick and Lime Company's plant located at that point.
     He was born in Lund, Sweden, July 1, 1867, the son of Ole and Ingar 
(Nelson) Olson, natives of Sweden, where they lived and died. They were the 
parents of nine children, all of whom are deceased with the exception of our 
subject, and Rengta who resides in Sweden.
     In the old country Mr. Olson attended school seven months in each year 
up to the period when he was thirteen years of age. He was then apprenticed 
to a saddler, with whom he remained working at that trade five years. Sailing 
for the United States, he settled first in Manistee, Michigan, living there 
two years, and going thence to St. Paul, Minnesota. During the succeeding 
eighteen months he traveled extensively through the central states, coming 
to Washington in 1889. Following the great fire in Spokane he worked in that 
city in rebuilding, and then engaged in railroading on the Central Washington 
line, a portion of the time with the engineer's crew. He then went to Idaho, 
worked at various employments, and in 1891 came to Stevens county where he 
has since resided. He came for the express purpose of laying a tramway for 
the Washington Brick & Lime Company. In 1893 he became manager for the 
company, with whom he has since remained, one of the most trusted employees 
of the company. He has thirty men under his charge, and has made as many as 
sixty thousand barrels of lime in one year.
     Our subject has a farm of two hundred acres, six miles north of 
Springdale, stocked with one hundred and fifty head of cattle. He also owns 
a lot in Spokane, and, altogether, is one of the prosperous men of Stevens 
county. On July 31, 1901, he was married to Ella Fogarty, daughter of 
Michael and Ellen (Carter) Fogarty, natives of Ireland. They have two 
children, Austin Donald and Ellen Vivian. Politically he is a liberal, and is 
also a member of the Good Templars organization. He is a member of the 
Lutheran church; his wife is a Catholic.
     Mrs. Olson was born in Monroe county, Missouri, on December 14, 1876. 
In her youth she went with her parents to Illinois, thence to Iowa and 
finally to Minnesota, in which latter place she received her education, 
partially in a convent and the finishing portion in the state normal school. 
Following her graduation, she began teaching, and for seven years was numbered 
with the leading educators where she labored. In December, 1900 she came to 
Washington and here occurred her marriage as mentioned above. Mrs. Olson is 
one of fourteen children, nine of whom are living, named as follows: Catherine, 
Patrick, Elizabeth, Dennis J., Johanna, Ellen, Bridget, Winifred, and Rose.