Thomas Breiwick was born on January 11, 1893 in Breivik, Stokmarknes, Norway to Elling Lorence Olsen, a fisherman and small farmer, and Thea Bergitta Sorensen, a homemaker. There were eleven children in Thomas's family, but the first four died shortly after birth. Thomas's remaining siblings were Sophia, Olga, Emma, Emil, Sigrid, and Thorval. Thomas attended school for seven years and then fished with his father. Feeling that he was lacking in education and opportunities, Thomas decided to emigrate when he was seventeen years old in 1912. He had an aunt and uncle in Tacoma who lent him the money for a ticket. After arriving in Washington, Thomas got a job at a sawmill in Selleck and later did road construction in Tacoma. Thomas's uncle was a mechanic for Northern Pacific Railroad, but when he grew tired of working in the shop, he invited Thomas to start fishing with him. As it turns out, Thomas's uncle did not like it, but Thomas continued fishing for the next thirty-five years. He eventually owned nine boats.
From the description of Thomas Wilhelm Olsen Breiwick Oral History Interview 1982. (Eugene Public Library). WorldCat record id: 184907571
