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CAPTAIN RASMUS PETER RASMUSSEN
One of the veteran master mariners of the San Francisco water front is Captain Rasmus Peter Rasmussen, who has
had a long and colorful career on the sea, and is now manager for the firm of Simpson & Fisher, Incorporated,
manufacturers of canvas for sails at 240 Steuart street.
Captain Rasmussen was born in Denmark, September 20, 1860, and is a son of the late Hans and Maren (Hansen) Rasmussen,
both of whom died in the old country, where the father was a hotel keeper. The Captain attended school in his native
community until he had reached the age of fourteen and then. like so many other boys of Denmark, he heeded the
call of the great sea. He shipped first on a sailing vessel, and his first work on board was to assist the cook
in the galley. He then became deck boy, and held this rating until he was sixteen years old. He was paid off from
his first vessel in France, and then shipped on the Caravan of New York, and from its port he sailed on this craft
for four years, visiting many world points. In 1880, he shipped to California and debarked at Wilmington, whence
he later made his way to San Francisco. From the port of this city he then shipped as master for the period of
thirty one years, a time of steady and admirable service on the seas of the world. His last command was in the
service of the United States government during the World war, when he was master of the Monongahela, which was
a training vessel for the men who had enlisted in the merchant marine. He commanded the Monongahela for one and
a half years, sailing between San Francisco, Honolulu, and Manila, He resigned from the shipping board service
in 1919, since which date he has held his present position as manager of the canvas making firm of Simpson &
Fisher, Incorporated. Captain Rasmussen received his first master's papers from the old San Francisco Navigation
School in the year 1884, and thus is now one of the oldest master mariners of this city. He is a member of the
Master Mariners' Bureau and the Shipmasters' Association.
Captain Rasmussen was married September 3, 1888, to Miss Mary Rosalie Sophie Jorgensen, who was born in the country
of Denmark and came to the United States as a young girl. They have become the parents of the following children:
Abbie Martha; Laura Mary; Viggo Peter, who was third officer on his father's ship; and Inca Lulu. There are five
grandchildren.
In politics, Captain Rasmussen has been a stanch supporter of the republican party. Fraternally, he is a Mason.
Shipping men and those who know the sea hold him in high regard and respect. He has been a dependable, competent
and intelligent mariner through the many years of his active service, and in the history of navigation from the
port of San Francisco his name is worthy of prominent mention.
From:
The History of San Francisco, California
Lewis Francis Byington, Supervising Editor
Oscar Lewis, Associate Editor
The S. J. Clark Publishing Company
Chicago-San Francisco 1931
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