Page:Portland, Oregon, its History and Builders volume 3.djvu/765

Rh ness. advancement. He is a member of Grace Methodist Episcopal church and serves on its board of trustees and is a Hberal contributor to the various charities of that organization. Mr. Rasmussen was married in Portland in 1878 to Elizabeth, daughter of Christopher Daniels of Chicago, Illinois. They have four children: Jennie Sophia, Hardy Daniels, Sidney Christopher and Ralph Waldo. The family residence is at 380 East Eleventh street North.

Industry, close application and a strict observance of a rigid code of business honor have constituted the salient features of his success. Genial, prosperous, generous, by sheer merit, Mr. Rasmussen has won for himself an enviable position in the commercial and social life of his adopted city, where by taking intelligent advantage of the opportunities offered he has become a striking example of that peculiarly American product, the self-made man.

Max S. Hirsch is president and general manager of one of the substantial and productive industries of Portland—the Williamette Tent & Awning Company, which is the largest concern of the kind on the Pacific coast. The development of this business from a very small beginning to its present extensive proportions, is incontrovertible proof of the business ability and progressive methods of him who stands at the head. And, moreover, his life history is of intense interest, for his success has come to him as the merited reward of earnest labor intelligently directed.

He was born in Rhein-Hessen, Germany, and his educational privileges were those offered by the public schools of his native country. The year 1871 witnessed his arrival in America, and he made his way direct to Portland, where he entered the department store of Meier & Frank. The senior member of this firm, Mr. Meier, was his uncle, and it was through his influence that Mr. Hirsch came to Portland. He remained with that company for twenty years, working his way steadily upward from the position of utility boy to that of manager. He resigned in 1906 to become connected with the Willamette Tent & Awning Company, of which he was made vice president and general manager, while since 1908 he has been the president. The other officers are E. H. Wemme, vice president, and H. A. Weis, secretary and treasurer. The company today employs one hundred and ten operatives in the factory, mostly women. The business had its inception in 1884, when a small room, twenty by twenty feet, in a frame building was secured in which to conduct a tent and awning manufactory. At that time, however, only two people were employed, but the four hundred square feet of floor space was ample for the business. The growth of the enterprise is indicated in the fact that today the concern occupies more than one hundred and thirty times the original floor space, having erected a large brick building, containing on its four floors fifty-five thousand square feet, nearly every foot of which is utilized in the manufacture of tents, awnings, porch curtains, wagon covers, sheets, canvas hose, hammocks, flags, camp furniture, bags, cordage, umbrellas, waterproof clothing, and in fact everything that can be made out of canvas. At first its principal output was awnings for the merchants who in that day could afford the luxury but the gradual growth of the business has enabled the house to increase its output in the number of manufactured articles as well as in the extent of the shipments. The plant is equipped with the most modern facilities for the manufacture of its various products and for the comfort and health of its one hundred and ten employes. The basement is used for the machinery and wood and iron work, the first floor for the office, salesroom, and packing and shipping rooms, the second and third floors are used as stock rooms, and the fourth floor is the factory with its fifteen thousand square feet of space. It is said that this factory is unequalled in the city for ligh, air and general sanitary conditions. The large window and skylight surfaces furnish light