Anton Johanssen, Caretaker of Johnson’s Island Cemetery

   

From about 1911 to 1956, Sandusky resident Anton Johanssen worked as the caretaker of the Johnson’s Island Cemetery, on Johnson’s Island. The cemetery is the final resting place of over two hundred Confederate soldiers who died at the prison camp on Johnson’s Island during the Civil War. An article from the December 5, 1953 issue of the Sandusky Register reported that Mr. Johanssen made the trip from Sandusky to Johnson’s Island from early Spring until late Fall to mow the grass at the cemetery, and care for the “most peaceful place on earth.” He would drive to Marblehead, and then take a small motorboat out to the island. (At that time, the causeway to Johnson’s Island had not yet been constructed.) For many years he decorated each grave with both a Confederate and a United States flag. 

Anton Johanssen was born in 1879 on a Danish Island. He emigrated to the United States in 1895. When he first settled in Ohio, he resided on Johnson’s Island, where he raised cattle and farmed over 75 acres of land. Besides working as the caretaker of the Johnson’s Island Cemetery, Mr. Johanssen also worked for twenty-five years at the American Crayon Company. 

  

On October 27, 1967, Anton Johannsen passed away at the age of 88. He was survived by a son, daughter, and several grandchildren. He lived a full and busy life in his adopted country. Mr. Johanssen must have found this monument to the Confederate soldier (built in 1910) a familiar sight.

Carl C. Jensen, Hansen's Fish Market

Carl C. Jensen and his son, Carl J. Jensen, are pictured above at Hansen’s Fish Market at the foot of Columbus Avenue in Sandusky, Ohio, about 1935.  Carl C. Jensen worked at Hansen’s Fish Market for thirty years. According to an article in the March 8, 1940 issue of the Sandusky Star Journal, Carl estimated that he had cleaned over three million fish between 1930 and 1940.  He cleaned, on the average, a thousand fish each day, which added up to about 450 pounds. Hansen’s Fish Market can be seen on the far right of the picture below. Chris Hansen, also a native of Denmark, was the owner of the fish market for several years.

In a closer view, you can read the name of the market on the outside of the building.

Carl C. Jensen, his wife Margaret, and three young children, cane to America aboard the ship United States, arriving in New York City on October 26, 1926. The Jensens first moved to Missouri, where they lived near relatives; in 1930 the family moved to Sandusky, Ohio. A daughter was born to Mr. and Mrs. Jensen while they lived in Missouri, and Carl J. Jensen, the youngest child in the family, was born in 1932 in Sandusky, Ohio. Many facts about individuals can be gleaned by doing research at online resources such as Ancestry Library Edition and FamilySearch. The passenger list of the entire Jensen family was listed at the Immigration Records available at Ancestry. At FamilySearch, you can find Carl C. Jensen's World War II registration card, which indicated that he worked at Hansen’s Fish Market.

An article in the June 14, 1948 issue of the Sandusky Register featured an interesting story of the sister and niece of Carl C. Jensen visiting their American relatives in Sandusky, Ohio. If you would like to learn more about the history of your own ancestors, visit the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center. Even if your family was not from Erie County, Ohio, a wealth of genealogical resources are available both in print and online. There are four computers in the Archives Research Center which are reserved exclusively for genealogical and local history research.