public of Cokato, and later he was elected Recorder of Deeds of Wright County on the Democratic ticket. Another man, Jacob Ojanperä, was one of the group of Republicans supporting

Democrat John Nugent, Sheriff of Wright County for 27 years. Ojanperä was not only an outstanding farmer, businessman, and leader in the cultural life of Cokato but also a member of the board of directors of the State Bank of Cokato from the time of its establishment in 189221 and was the organizer and chairman of the board of the Finnish Mutual Fire Insurance Company, founded that same year with Oscar Ingman, Isaac Abrahamson, Peter Gunnary, Erik Paava, Jacob Peterson and Adam Zachariason. Originally the company served only the Finns of Wright County, giving them insurance coverage at the low rate of 25c per $100 for five years. Before World War II began, the company had grown to a membership of 480 and had a capital of over two million dollars, but by this time the company no longer served the Finns exclusively, and indeed, the only thing Finnish about

it was the name. 22

Specifically serving farming interests was the Cokato Creamery Association, which the Finns and Swedes of Cokato founded jointly in 1894, with August Hanno, Jacob Ojanperä, Peter Salmela, Peter Wanha and Peter Ylijärvi as its original Finnish members. A dairy building was erected the following spring and was in operation by June. 23 The Cokato farmers have also had their own organization since 1910, the Cokato Farmers' Mercantile Association, which has been supported chiefly by Finns and Swedes; to its board were always elected three Swedes and three Finns, and as a seventh member, someone belonging to that national group which happened to have the most votes at election time. In this organization, too, the name of Jacob Ojanperä once more appeared, for he was the treasurer of its general store for several years. The Association follows cooperative principles, as does another farmers' organization, the Cokato Farmers' Shipping Association.

Other Finns have earned mention of their names by their individual efforts: Matti Sippola as a businessman; William A. Nelson as founder of a soft drink plant, the Wright County Bottling Works; H. O. Ohlgren as a veterinarian; more recently

21. 50 Years of Service. State Bank of Cokato. Cokato, Minnesota, 1942. p. 5.

22. William Onka interview. 1939. Archives of the Minnesota Finnish American Historical Society.

23. History of Wright County. Chicago, Ill., 1915. p. 665.

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