19. Lars Anderson

Lars Anderson was born in Loiten, Norway in 1871. He came to Concord in 1889, one of a number of Norwegian immigrants who settled in the region at the time. Anderson spent several years working on local farms before entering the grocery business. He married Pauline Nelson in 1892, and began working at W.B. and D.L. Chamberlin's dry goods and grocery store in Carlisle. When W.B. Chamberlin sold out his interest in the business in 1898, Anderson purchased it. After just one year of Chamberlin & Anderson, W.B. Chamberlin returned and Anderson sold back his interest, left the business, and began working for Towle & Kent in Concord. 

In 1913, Lars Anderson and his son Leslie bought Towle & Kent, establishing a partnership known as Anderson’s Market. The business was incorporated in 1929.

Active in civic life and successful in business, Lars Anderson died on May 9, 1941. His obituary reads: “Mr. Anderson’s passing is a shocking loss to the community at large as well as to his many friends, and his cheery, solicitous greeting will long be missed on the Milldam in Concord.”