John A. Johnson: An Uncommon AmericanMain MenuIntroductionEarly DaysSettlement in WisconsinEntrance Into PoliticsCivil WarBusiness EndeavorsFuller and Johnson CompanyGisholt Machine CompanyThe Public SchoolKristina Warnerc8c3eeb8fc534b4204fc4ece92574ef9ee4ab6bd
Fuller and Johnson plow ad in Norwegian, circa 1873
1media/jaj_00022_thumb.jpg2024-09-30T17:42:36+00:00Kristina Warnerc8c3eeb8fc534b4204fc4ece92574ef9ee4ab6bd53P0691: John A. Johnson Papersplain2024-10-18T21:17:26+00:00Kristina Warnerc8c3eeb8fc534b4204fc4ece92574ef9ee4ab6bd
After John took a break from the world of politics, he contemplated what he wanted to do. In 1869, he received and accepted an invitation from Chauncy C.L. Williams of the established Fuller & Williams Company to work as a sales representative with the Madison company. The Fuller & Williams Company had national connections that would play an important role in his life moving forward. Johnson also worked as an agent for the Walter A. Wood Mowing and Reaping Machine Company. With the development of catalogs and pamphlets for the company in Norwegian and English, this played to his advantage since he knew English and Norwegian. During this time, he was also an owner of Skandinaven, a Norwegian language newspaper in Chicago. With his help, Skandinaven played a key role in advertising efforts.
Johnson intelligently followed the immigrants that went to Minnesota and the Dakota Territories. This move was advantageous for him since two-thirds of the immigrants were Norwegian. During these trips, he continued sending notes back to Skandinaven noting his personal impressions of conditions in these areas. By September 17, 1873, he was a co-partner with Fuller and Williams in an affiliated business called Johnson, Fuller, and Company. A branch was established in St. Paul where he spent much of his time, but he continued to make Madison his home.
Hekla Fire Insurance Company
Johnson’s ambitious endeavors didn’t stop there. He took a leading part in establishing the Hekla Fire Insurance Company which began operation in June 1871. Johnson collaborated with various well known men in Wisconsin, including Mons Anderson, Halle Steensland, Oliver Johnson, Rasmus B. Anderson, O.B. Dahle, and Harald Thorson. All of these men played important roles in the leadership of Hekla. Despite being successful, internal debates and clashes of personality happened, and in February 1890 Hekla was sold to St. Paul German Fire Insurance Company.
Amerika Newspaper
A year later in 1872, Johnson formed a partnership with Knud Lageland for publishing a Norwegian-language newspaper called Amerika. Eventually, this newspaper merged with Skandinaven to be Skandinaven og Amerika, and eventually, the owners dropped the name Amerika in 1873.
