Christian P. Hanson Biography


	This biography is from "Memorial and biographical record; an illustrated
 	compendium of biography, containing a compendium of local biography,
	including biographical sketches of prominent old settlers and 
	representative citizens of South Dakota..." Published by G. A. Ogle & 
	Co., Chicago, 1899. Pages 823-824

	Scan, OCR and editing by Maurice Krueger,mkrueger@iw.net, 1998. 

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CHRISTIAN P. HANSON, senior member of the firm of Hanson Brothers' 
department store, at Bridgewater, South Dakota, is one of the leading 
business men of southeastern South Dakota. He was one of the early 
settlers of McCook county and for many years has been identified with 
the business interests of that region. The brother's name is H. C. 
Hanson, who sold his farm in Wisconsin in 1887 and invested the 
proceeds in the store with his brother, thus putting the firm on a 
solid cash footing. 

Christian P. Hanson is a native of Vernon county, Wisconsin, and was 
born July 17, 1862, the fifth son in the order of birth of the family 
of Peter and Caroline Hanson. At the age of thirteen years he began 
clerking in a store at Viroqua, Wisconsin, and by money thus earned was 
enabled to secure a high-school education. At the age of nineteen years 
he came to McCook county, South Dakota, where his sister lived, and 
began an active business career that has been one of the most brilliant 
in the history of South Dakota. His capital at this time was simply his 
boyhood's savings and amounted to about one hundred and fifty dollars. 
His former employer in Wisconsin, having all confidence in the young 
man's ability and fidelity, advanced the goods with which to stock his 
store, and from the success of his present business the confidence of 
his former employer was not misplaced. 

Mr. Hanson's work in South Dakota, however, has not been confined to 
the mercantile business. He is the originator of the "Young People's 
County Speaking Contests," the object of which is to drill the young 
people in practical oratory. It is being conducted on a plan somewhat 
resembling the Demorest oratorical contests, so widely known, with the 
following exceptions: The contests are limited to no certain style of 
selections and the prize offered is a complete set of Shakespeare's 
works. In 1897 a meeting of the Bridgewater business men was called to 
discuss plans for the protection of merchants against the organized 
band of store robbers. Previous to this, however, our subject had taken 
a trip east to study methods of coping with such nuisances, and his 
investigations, which he made known at the meeting, resulted in the 
organization of the "South Dakota Detective Association, " of which he 
was at once made president. This association at present numbers about 
six hundred members and covers nearly the whole state with their work, 
and have met with pronounced success. 

In 1883 Mr. Hanson was united in marriage to Miss Anna Larson, and 
their wedded life has been blessed by the advent of three children, 
upon whom they have seen fit to bestow the names of Perley, Arthur and 
Leslie; and their family circle is completed by an adopted daughter 
whose former name was Lillian Clint. Politically our subject is a 
Republican, and believes that the state should control the liquor 
traffic. The family are members of the Norwegian Lutheran church.