The Rasmussen Reminiscence

Alvin “Dave” Myron Rasmussen was a lifetime resident of Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, and he and his family played an undeniable role in shaping the history of the community in which they lived. When Nels Gunderson Naas (Alvin’s great grandfather) came to America with his parents Gunder Asper Naas Nelson and his stepmother he was ten years old. It was spring in 1845. They immigrated in a little sailboat named the Oleous, and at a record breaking (for the time) speed of seven weeks and two days. The family then travelled from New York to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Along with other Norwegian immigrants, the Nelson family became the heart of the Rock River Norwegian settlement and congregation. With such strong Norwegian heritage, it is likely that immigrant families at this time felt more pressure to identify and be identified as Americans. Perhaps that is why at the age of eighteen, Alvin joined the Wisconsin National Guard as soon as he graduated from high school. When World War I broke out in Europe, Alvin was quick to sign up to fight and arrived in France around March 5, 1918. His decision to begin a military career so young would not only add depth to his life otherwise atypical for those in his position, but it would also give sparkle to the Rasmussen/Gunderson family names.  

Alvin came from a large family. Quite a few of his kin wrote diaries and memoirs, including his younger sister Laurene, which can now be found in the Dodge and Jefferson County Archives. From what Laurene has written, the Rasmussen family were mostly dairy farmers. They lived in the countryside just outside of Oconomowoc, an area known largely as “Little Norway” to the locals due to its large population of Norwegian-Americans. According to Laurene, after her (and Alvin’s) mother Caspara died from pneumonia, it was up to their father Alfred to act as both the man and the woman of the household. He cooked, cleaned, and even sewed along with his other responsibilities of working the farm. Watching his father take on so many additional hats probably taught Alvin from a young age the importance of stepping up whenever needed. And because Alvin was the second oldest of his siblings, he also had a duty to help raise his younger brothers and sisters, more so than if there was a mother figure present. So, Alvin’s great-grandparents helped to shape history by being one of the first families to establish the Norwegian presence in Southern Wisconsin, and Alvin’s sister helped to shape history by writing detailed accounts of life for those living in the early 1900s, but what did Alvin himself do? He opened a drug store. He and his older brother Tomin opened a drugstore in 1919, with Timon being the president, Alvin the vice-president, and their younger brother Vilas being the secretary and treasurer when he joined around 1922. As written by the Oconomowoc Enterprise in 1953, what made their drugstore so important was that it was a self-serving drugstore, and one of the firsts in the Midwest. Though undoubtedly many of those living in Oconomowoc at the time were grateful for the faster, more convenient drug store, the tensions between Americans and Germans at the time could have easily soured the cheery, grand-opening mood. Wisconsin has a strong German population as well as a Norwegian one, and it is reasonable for one to assume that a divide between patriotism and love for the homeland could have caused strain in the Oconomowoc community, directly involving the Rasmussens.  

Norway was officially neutral during WWI, but the opinions of the citizens leaned more towards being anti-German due to the fighting at sea which disrupted the Norwegians’ trade-by-port economy. Undoubtedly, Norwegians living in the U.S desperately wanted to see the war end and their birth country bounce back from instability. Germans living in Wisconsin most probably hoped for something similar for their own homeland. There had to have been tension, to some degree, between these two ethnic groups. Though Norway, being neutral, was not necessarily as disliked as Germany was, it still did not fight for the Allies, so it is possible Norwegian Americans felt almost in limbo. Not hated, but perhaps not fully trusted by their neighbors. They may have looked to hating Germans as a scapegoat and to deflect any prejudice off themselves. German Americans must have felt immensely vulnerable to the judgements of their community and would have felt like they needed to be defensive to prove themselves worthy and loyal Americans. It is impossible to say whether or not Alvin Rasmussen partook in or was a victim of harsh judgements made about Europeans during WWI, but he would have lived in it regardless. Being from a strongly Norwegian, immigrant family and being a member of the National Guard, his feelings about WWI had to be strong. It is, once again, impossible for one to say exactly what those feelings were, but his obvious devotement to Wisconsin and to the United States speaks a lot about how he must have felt going into Europe in 1918.  

It was in Europe that Alvin met his first wife Genevieve at the age of 26 in France. They married there but returned to America around 1919. Together they had a son named Nathaniel. Alvin was promoted twice during his time serving, first to Corporal Sergeant and then to Second Lieutenant in July or August of 1918. Though it is unclear exactly what Alvin’s job was during the war, if Laurene and her diary can be believed then he primarily fought in battles (as opposed to his brother Vilas who worked in intelligence). When Alvin returned home from the war, he brought with him his wife and son. They continued to live together in Oconomowoc until Alvin and Genevieve divorced. Alvin remarried a woman named Myrtle, who had her own son, but they did not have any more children together. Alvin was born January 14, 1893 and died of a heart attack at his home on September 2, 1953. He is currently buried in La Belle Cemetery, Oconomowoc, Wisconsin. His family history, his Norwegian roots, and his service to the U.S are not just part of his personal story, but also the greater story of the state of Wisconsin. 

“WWI Draft Registration Cards.” Waukesha : Waukesha County Historical Society & Museum , n.d. 

Sandvik, Gudmund. “World War I and the Interwar Years.” Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc. Accessed March 13, 2021. https://www.britannica.com/place/Norway/World-War-I-and-the-interwar-years. 

Gunderson Family History. Accessed March 13, 2021. https://www.dodgejeffgen.org/archive/GundersonFamilyHistory.htm. 

FamilySearch. Accessed March 13, 2021. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:71D2-BS6Z. 

“Dave Rasmussen Dies Suddenly Of Heart Attack .” Oconomowoc Enterprise , September 4, 1953.