Page:History of Goodhue County, Minnesota.djvu/848

 738 HISTOEY OF GOODHUE COUNTY born Feb. 15, 1876, is a successful school teacher. Charles E., born Sept. 3, 1877, died March 13, 1881. Arthur B,, born April 8, 1880, died Sept. 21, 1898 ; Anton T., born Dec. 4, 1882, died June 8, 1901 ; Edna V., born March 10, 1885, is stenographer and clerk in the Red Wing post office; Ruth A., born Feb. 9, 1891, died April 1 of the same year, and the youngest child died in infancy. Mr. Erickson attends the English Lutheran Church and the fam- ily worships at the Swedish Lutheran Church. John J. Ferrin, furniture dealer and undertaker, of Red Wing, has the honor of having assisted with the finishing of the artistic wood work of many of the larger public buildings of Chicago. He is a native of New York state, born at Jamestown, March 2, 1860. His parents. Matthew and Margaret (Donahue) Ferrin, came to America from Ireland in the early days, the father living in Jamestown, and the mother in Buffalo, N. Y., until their marriage. Father and mother are both deceased. John J. attended the graded and high school of his native town, hut started in work for himself at an early age. His first season as a laborer was spent in learning the brick-layers' trade. Then he learned furniture and cabinet finishing, following this occupa- tion twenty-nine years in various employes. lie worked eight years with the Martin Bros, of Ids native state as assistant fore- man, afterward entering the employ of Booth and Osgood, of Chicago, manufacturers of school, church and office supplies. With this firm lie had charge of the finishing department, one of the big contracts at which he worked being the furnishing of the Chicago post-office. Alter leaving this employ, he was fore- man. Jwo years, for the Rothehilds, of tin' same city, manufactur- ers of saloon and hotel fixtures. As foreman for R. F. Misner, with whom hi' was next employed, he worked on the furnishings of the Public Library and of the old Chicago < 'ity Hall. Labor troubles over the brick layers of Chicago, threw him out of em- ployment, and consequently, on July 19. 1887, he came to Red Wing, entering the employ of the Red A 7 ing Furniture Manu- facturing Company, on trial. After the three weeks' test was concluded, he was given a position in their finishing room, re- maining in this employ about thirteen and one-half years. In 1899 he started in the retail furniture business with Magnus ( 'arlson, still holding for a short time, his position with the manu- facturing company. His retail business, however, increased so rapidly that it soon demanded all of his attention. On January 13, 1906, Mr. Ferrin purchased his partner's interest and added an undertaking departement to the establishment. In politics, Mr. Ferrin is a Democrat. He has been a member of the Mod- ern "Woodmen twenty years and has passed through all the chairs of that order. He is grand Knight of the Knights of