Almstrom, Anders Albin “Albin” “Al”

Albin Almstrom was born in Sweden on February 28, 1932. He married May Starks. He died on August 2, 1932 at Grand Forks, BC.

He came to Canada, to the Boundary region, in 1897. According to the Phoenix Pioneer (Greenwood), he bought a half-interest in the Norden Hotel in August 1900. 

At the time of the 1911 Census, the Almstrom family was living in Phoenix City, BC. He was the proprietor of Al. Almstrom, Cigars and Tobacco (1911). He was a member of the Scandinavian Aid and Fellowship Society in Phoenix in 1912. 

In August 1920, A.L. Almstrom, mayor, postmaster, and merchant of Phoenix, visited Princeton with a view to opening a store. He had been a resident of Phoenix for twenty years.

A few months later (October 1920), he took a large store in the Britton Block where he sold stationery, office supplies, books, photographic supplies, and novelties as well as a new line of furniture. The business was known as “Almstrom’s New Store”(1920), “Almstrom’s Store” (1920),  “A. Almstrom Furniture and Stationery” (1921). In 1922, he added wallpaper to his inventory and was advertising his stock of house furnishings (1922). H.H. Avery also had is insurance office at Almstrom’s store (1921).

He was a member of the Princeton Lodge No. 50, Knights of Pythias (1921). He donated to the Princeton General Hospital Ladies’ Auxiliary x-ray machine fund (March 1925). 

The July 21, 1922 edition of the Princeton Star reported that he had disposed of his stock of furniture to A.L. White and taken up new quarters “adjoining the post office, in the portion of Mr. Bell’s block that was formerly occupied by the cooperative store” and he was planning to add to his stock “a full line of groceries.” His new store was known as “Almstrom’s Grocery” (1922).

In May 1923, he won a case in county court against D. Marino.

They were in Allenby from 1925 to 1930. May Almstrom operated the Allenby mine staff boarding house, beginning in May 1925. Albin Almstrom opened a new store in Allenby in 1926, closing his store in Princeton.

He became a member of the newly organized Princeton Credit Bureau in May 1927. 

He was an general insurance agent at Allenby in 1929 and an agent for the Great Northern Railway’s Empire Builder service Wenachie, Washington to Chicago and Twin Cities (1929).

While in Allenby, he played on the “But Don’t Forget to Pass the Puck” senior men’s hockey team (1929).

The Almstrom’s moved to Nelson in 1930 after the closure of Granby. They had just moved to Grand Forks a few months before his death.