HANS C. FREDERICKSEN.
Among the strong and influential citizens of Audubon county, Iowa, a record of whose lives have become an essential part of the history of this section, Hans C. Fredericksen, of Hamlin township, occupies a prominent place. For many years he has exerted a beneficial influence in the locality where he resides. His chief characteristics are keenness of perception, tireless energy, honesty of purpose and everyday common sense, which have enabled him not only to advance his own interests but also largely contribute to the moral and material advancement of the community.
Hans C. Fredericksen was born on April 6, 1857, in Denmark. He is the son of Frederick and Hanne Fredericksen, both natives of Denmark, where they were farmers. They had seven children, of whom Hans C. was the third, the father dying when Hans C. was five years old, after which the mother was married again. Hans C. lived at home until eighten [sic eighteen] years of age, at which time he started to earn his own living, working on neighboring farms.
In the spring of 1884, Hans C. Fredericksen came to the United States, landing at New York city. He came directly from Xew York city to Clinton, Iowa, where he had relatives. He worked in a saw-mill there for one year and then took up farm work which he followed for five years. Subsequently, he rented land for fourteen years and in the spring of 1903 came farther west to Audubon county, where he purchased his present farm of three hundred and sixty acres in section 14 of Hamlin township. The land was fairly well improved for such a large farm, and Mr. Fredericksen has built a large eleven-roomed house with furnace, gas lights and waterworks throughout. He has also built a large barn, one hundred and sixteen by one hundred and eighteen feet, which is one of the largest in Audubon county. Mr. Fredericksen has good cattle sheds, hogs houses, etc., and altogether one of the most improved and best-equipped farms in this section of the state of Iowa. Since coming to this state, Mr. Fredericksen has made his industry count for increasing profit each year. His farm is conducted as a business proposition and he keeps a careful account of profits and losses and is, therefore, able to adjust his profit and the products of his farm in accordance with what he is able to make out of each department.
On July 22, 1890, Mr. Fredericksen was married in Clinton, Iowa, to Amelia Hansen, who was born in Denmark and came to the United States in the same year which she and her husband were married. Mr. and Mrs. Fredericksen have six children, Ellen, Frederick, Metha, Freda, Marie and Esther. All of these children are living at home. The mother of these children died on July 22, 1911.
Hans C. Fredericksen does general farming and stock raising. He feeds a great many cattle and hogs and is, in fact, one of the largest feeders in Audubon county.
Mr. Fredericksen is a member of the Modern Woodmen of America. He is a Democrat, but has never held office nor has he ever cared to do so. The duties required in overseeing his large interests and the various operations upon his farm, have prevented him from taking an active part in political affairs; moreover, he is more keenly interested in the welfare of his family and his home. The Fredericksen family are all active members and loyal supporters of the Danish Lutheran church.
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Transcribed from History of Audubon County, Iowa Its People, Industries and Institutions With Biographical Sketches of Representative Citizens and Genealogical Records of Many of the Old Families, by H. F. Andrews, editor, Indianapolis: B. F. Bowen & Company, 1915, pp. 463-464.
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