Knud Knudsen in the 1940 census
Knudsen's occupation in 1940 census was "making novelties"
Knud Knudsen came to America in 1906 as a laborer and hired hand and retired in 1958 as the president of a large industrial enterprise. But his heart and soul was in the metal shop as a tinkerer and inventor of consumer wares for enjoying spirits and tobacco.
Even as Danbury Electric Manufacturing took off as a supplier of electrical components during the 1930s, he tinkered away with inventions for corkscrews, ashtrays, and bottle stoppers. His 1940 census record identifies his occupation not as a corporate executive but as a novelty-maker in the metal goods industry.
The image is the census record for Knudsen and his wife Christine (her Danish given name was Kirsten) for their address at 5 Osborne Rd. in Danbury, Conn. (highlighted) with an enlargement of the Knudsen information below. This information was collected by a census enumerator on April 10, 1940, a year after Knudsen had acquired rights to the Walter Ruby corkscrew patent.
By contrast, his 1930 census record identified him as "General Manager" in "Electric Mfg."
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