Appointed – April 14, 1904
End of Watch – May 31, 1916
Officer Nels C Anderson was dispatched to 2004-24th Avenue South on May 27, 1916, to respond to a domestic dispute in which a husband, armed with a pistol, had threatened his wife and children and then pursued his wife from their home to a drugstore at 2401 Franklin Avenue where he shot and killed her.
The husband then ran back from the drugstore to his home and barricaded himself inside. When Officer Anderson arrived at the home, he ordered the husband to surrender and the husband fired two shots striking Officer Anderson. Officer Anderson was taken to City Hospital where he died four days later.
Officer Anderson was survived by his wife and three children: Eleanor, 19; George, 17; and Elsie, 14. Mrs. Anderson was the first widow to receive benefits from the Minneapolis Police Mutual Association.
Officer Anderson was 50 years old and had been with the department since 1904. At the time of his death, he was a motorcycle patrolman and was going to soon be promoted to sergeant.
Officer Anderson’s funeral was held Saturday, June 7, at St. Paul’s Swedish Lutheran Church and he was buried at Lakewood Cemetery.