Tom Fenson was born in China Sept. 24, 1887. Mr. Fenson came to America in 1914 to San Francisco, Calif., moved to Moorhead and later lived in Kelliher 1 1/2 years. In 1918 he came to Bemidji and started the Kelliher Hotel and Cafe which he operated for 30 years. In 1948 he opened the Western Auto Associate Store in which he continued working until his death. He was married in Bemidji to Ella Goerke on Oct 19, 1922. From 1947 until the corporation as dissolved in 1988, Ella Fenson was president and bookkeeper for the Fenson and Olson Corp. After the corporation ceased to exist, she worked at Western Auto until 1992. Tom died in 1965. She died in 1995. Both are buried in Greenwood Cemetery.
Exploring the Rich History of the Bemidji Area