Statewide County HI Archives Biographies.....Rasmussen, James Peder October 24, 1887 - ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/hi/hifiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: J. Orr jessicanorr@gmail.com December 21, 2011, 2:36 pm Source: The Story of Hawaii and Its Builders, Honolulu Star Bulletin, Ltd. Territory of Hawaii, 1925 Author: Edited by George F. Nellist JAMES PEDER RASMUSSEN, Port Captain, Matson Navigation Co. Descendant of a long line of seafarers, Captain James P. Rasmussen, port captain of the Matson Navigation Co. at Honolulu, made his first sea trip when three weeks old, and has sailed the seas virtually ever since that time. Until he was seven and his parents found it necessary to send him to school, Captain Rasmussen was aboard ship with his parents continuously, and at the age of fifteen he became a cabin boy on the steam schooner “Pasadena,” operating between San Pedro and Eureka, Calif. After a short time he was made oiler, and then, leaving the sea, he worked in San Pedro, Calif., for one year in a plumbing shop, and for one year upon the building of the San Pedro breakwater. In 1905 he returned to the sea, signing as a sailor on the Hind & Rolph barkentine “Koko Head,” from Portland to China and up and down the Pacific Coast. In 1906 Captain Rasmussen joined the Matson Navigation Co. as a quartermaster on the “Hilonian.” In May, 1920, he was appointed to his present position. During the World War Captain Rasmussen gave notable service on the “Maui,” then in the transport service on the Atlantic. In a heavy sea, during which several men were washed overboard, he went over the side and rescued two, for which he was granted the Distinguished Service Medal by Congress. Captain Rasmussen was a lieutenant in the navy when he joined the “Maui,” later served as executive officer for a time, and was then promoted to the rank of lieutenant commander. Born in San Pedro, Calif., Oct. 24, 1887, Captain Rasmussen is the son of Nels J. and Amanda (Beck) Rasmussen. He attended the public schools of San Pedro and the Los Angeles Business College. In 1909 he married Martha (Peterson) Rasmussen, and they have two daughters, Lois Marie and Ruth Patricia Rasmussen. Captain Rasmussen is a Mason, Shriner and a member of the Outrigger Canoe Club. File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/hi/statewide/bios/rasmusse481bs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.poppet.org/hifiles/ File size: 2.6 Kb