1921 Duluth & St Louis County MN, Van Brunt.pdf - Garon.us

DULUTH AND ST. LOUIS COUNTY 801
the Loyal Order of Moose, and he and his wife are active members of
the Presbyterian Church in their home city.
May 4, 1907, recorded the marriage of Mr. Staff to Miss Hilda Strolberg,
of New York Mills, Ottertail county, Minnesota, and they have
three children— Clarence, Lyle A. and Kenneth.
Andrew Grande. The hardy Norwegians who come to these shores
in quest of a livelihood and more extended opportunities for the development
of their latent ability are seldom disappointed. It is not necessary
to go beyond Virginia for a substantial illustration of these facts, the
immediate case alluded to being that of Andrew Grande, who has been
a resident of Virginia since 1900.
Mr. Grande was born in Norway June 19, 1858, a son of Jacob and
Rangnel (Munstatter) Grande, people in humble circumstances, w^ho lived
and died in the old country. Andrew Grande is one of a family of six
children, five of whom are now living. His opportunities for educa-
tional advantages were very limited in his boyhood, and with a view to
assisting his parents to help keep their family he started out to work at
an early age, at a time when most boys are attending school. His chief
occupations during those years were carpentering, sailing and fishing in
deep sea waters. In the early '80s considerable immigration drifted from
European countries to the United States, and Mr. Grande, seeing no bright
prospect of advancement in his native country, decided to venture across
the Atlantic to America, whither so many of his countrymen had previously
come. He was further induced by the circumstances of having
a brother who had been here for some years, and his favorable reports
left no doubt in the mind of Andrew as to where his lot should be cast.
Accordingly, he set out in 1882 and in the same year arrived in Duluth,
having, however, at that time no knowledge of the English language or
of the customs of this country.
For a time after his arrival Mr. Grande worked at any kind of honorable
employment he could pick up, but after a short period resumed his
f)riginal occuj^ation of a carpenter. He embarked in the grocery business
in Duluth, remaining in that line until the panic of 1893, when he went
under. His mainstay, however, was carpentering, and he thus continued
until 1900. when he moved to Virginia, which has been his home ever,
since. Desiring to spread out. he began to take contracts and did much
work for the Oliver Mining Company. He built many of the better residences
and business blocks now to be seen in Virginia, and in fact, it is
conceded he has done more along this line than any other man. The success
which attended his efforts induced him to engage in the general building
supply business, and he has four separate concerns, covering about
twenty thousand square feet of floor space. From small beginnings he
has steadily progressed and is now in possession of a substantial fortune.
He has no regrets for leaving Norway behind, and is of the type
of adoT)ted citizen of whom the community feels justly proud.
In 1890 Mr. Grande was united in marriage to Miss .Anna Ness, also
a native of Norway, and they have become the j^arents of six children,
as follows: Mamie, ,\gness (who became Mrs. Frank W. Crane). T'^ibn.
Gida l^ebecca Cdeceased), Myrtle and .Xrnold. John Grande served as a
sergeant in the United .States ;\rmy during tin- World war. He was
attached to the machine gun service and spent nine months in France,
returning home at the end of hostilities.
Mr. Grande is a warm supporter of the Republican j^arty and a stroncr
advocate of its policies and principles, but he has not, however, been .t
seeker after public office. He is an earnest member of the Norwegian