Herman Nelson was born July 3, 1882 in Överkalix, Norrbotten, Sweden. He immigrated through Canada in 1904 and was in Portland by 1908, where he married Hilma Carolina Petersson, 10 years his senior, and also a Swedish immigrant. After living briefly in Portland, the couple settled in the Gladstone area, where they kept a small farm and started their family. This photograph, courtesy of Swedes In Oregon and Ann Baudin Stuller, shows Herman and Hilma with sons Kenneth (with tie) and Arthur about 1920, after the family moved to Portland. Read more about Swedish Roots in Oregon.

In 1919, the Nelsons sold their Gladstone home (which Herman built) and farm property to move to Portland where Herman launched into homebuilding—he had been employed as a shipbuilder at Pacific Marine while also building houses on the side. His brothers Oscar Nelson and Emil Nilson (who used his pre-immigration family name) also became prolific home builders in the Portland area.

The oldest Herman Nelson-built home that survives today is from 1918 at 2943 NE 22^nd Avenue. Two earlier homes—on NE 67^th and NE 80th—have been demolished.

Nelson’s prolific work speaks for his success. In his advertisements, Nelson began to style himself as “The Master Swede Builder,” “Owner and Builder,” and “Designer and Builder.”

Because customers stopped building and buying homes during the Great Depression, by 1931 once he completed the properties already in his pipeline, Nelson shifted to handyman and home repairs. Many of his contemporaries were forced out of business altogether due to bankruptcy or illness, but Nelson was resilient:

From The Oregonian, July 16, 1933

Business picked up by 1936, and Nelson returned to being a sought-after home builder for another 20 years until retiring in 1945 at age 63. His son Kenneth joined him in the homebuilding business starting in the 1940s. Hilma died in 1954 at age 82 and Herman in 1959 at 73.

What follows is a partial list of homes he built between 1916 and 1945:

Near NE 67th and Broadway Demolished	1-30-1916
4102 NE 80th Demolished	7-18-1918
2943 NE 22nd	11-8-1919
2816 NE 26th	5-8-1920
2737 NE 25th	10-9-1920
2745 NE 25th	11-23-1920
2943 NE 18th	3-16-1921
3027 NE 21st	7-30-1921
1603 NE 46th	9-23-21
Near 25th and Weidler Demolished	10-27-21
2224 NE 52nd	4-16-22
3015 NE 20th	6-11-1922
2109 SE Stephens	7-12-1922
3115 NE 20th	9-1-22
548 NE 43rd	9-17-22
2834 NE 20th	5-6-23
5120 NE 27th	5-20-1923
2006 NE Stanton	8-11-23
1825 NE 53rd	4-30-24
2738 NE 28th	1-31-1925
2814, 2824, 2825 NE 28th. Nelsons lived in 2824 in 1929	1-25-25
Near 25th and Weidler Demolished	5-10-25
Near 14th and Halsey Demolished	6-7-25
2933 NE 26th	6-28-25
625 NE 22nd (apartment building) Demolished	8-23-25
2943 NE 26th	11-8-25
2226 and 2236 NE 31st	2-21-26
2246 NE 31st	7-4-26
2223 NE 32nd Ave.	10-7-1926
2611 NE 31st	4-24-27
2517 NE 32nd Court	4-28-1927
3217 NE Brazee	7-20-27
2245 NE 32nd Avenue	10-9-27
5611 SE Yamhill (very similar plan to 2837 NE 32nd place)	10-29-28
2910 NE 29th (flipped plan to 2837 NE 32nd Place)	11-3-28
7221 SE Reed College Place	4-28-29
7207 SE Reed College Place	5-19-29
7157 Reed College Place (twin to 2837 NE 32nd Place)	5-30-29
2823 NE 32nd Place. Nelson personal residence 1930.	6-26-29
2837 NE 32nd Place	10-31-29
7135 SE Reed College Place	8-31-30
5714 NE 32nd Place	6-16-31
Roseway Apartment at NE 22nd and Irving Demolished	8-30-31
4430 NE 27th	11-28-31
3678 SE Woodward	6-18-36
2316 SE 5th	9-26-36
4236 NE 41st	10-10-36
2405 NE 25th	11-20-36
7214 SE 32nd	2-18-37
7317 SE 30th	9-23-37
7537 SE 30th	9-19-37
7323 N. McKenna	2-8-1938
1536 SE 31st	4-2-38
7305 N. McKenna	10-8-38
6315 NE 35th	7-7-39
5925 N. Depauw	11-21-39
6017 N. Depauw	5-27-40
6007 N. Depauw	6-12-40
6006 N. Depauw	10-4-40
6106 N. Depauw	3-29-41
5906 N. Depauw	6-22-41
3829 NE 81st	3-17-44
4325 and 4335 NE 73rd	3-17-44
5308 N. Willamette	7-5-45
5503 ne 81st	9-16-45