| Herman Smith-Johannsen | |
 | |
| Birth: | 15 June 1875 Horten, Vestfold, Norway |
| Death: | 5 January 1987 Vestfold, Norway |
| Age: | 111 years, 204 days |
| Country: |  NOR CAN
|
| Validated | |
Herman Smith-Johannsen (15 June 1875 – 5 January 1987) known also as "Jackrabbit", was a validated Norwegian-Canadian supercentenarian who gained widespread recognition for being one of the first people to introduce the sport of cross-country skiing to Canada and North America. He is recognized by certain groups within the cross-country skiing community in Canada for the many contributions he made to the sport and for his personal longevity.[1]
Biography
Johannsen was born in the town of Horten, some 50 miles south of Norway's capital Oslo, and graduated with an engineering degree from the University of Berlin in 1899. He emigrated to the USA as a machinery salesman shortly thereafter. In 1907, Johannsen emigrated to Canada with his family and settled in the Laurentians in the predominantly French-speaking province of Quebec. Johannsen learned French and further introduced skiing to the area.
While on a trip to Canada to sell machinery to the Canadian Grand Trunk Railway in 1902, Johannsen was befriended by the First Nations Cree in the wilderness above North Bay, Ontario. The nickname "Jackrabbit" is said to have been given to him by the Cree, who were impressed by his speed on skis compared to the snowshoes they were using at the time.
Johannsen married Alice Robinson (1882–1963) in 1907 and settled permanently in the Laurentians region of Quebec in Canada during the Great Depression. They had 3 children; Alice (1911–1992), Robert "Bob" (1915–2001) and Peggy (1918–2014). He is credited with building many ski jumps and with blazing trails throughout Ontario, theEastern Townships, and the Laurentians. On 22 December 1972, Johannsen was appointed as a Member of the Order of Canada for fostering and developing skiing as a recreation and helping and encouraging generations of skiers in Canada.[2]
Johannsen is the namesake of Cross Country Canada's Jackrabbit program designed to introduce children 6-9 to cross-country skiing through local ski clubs. Some former "Jackrabbits" introduced to skiing through the program include Olympic medalists Beckie Scott, Sara Renner, and Chandra Crawford and World Champions Devon Kershaw and Alex Harvey.
He was an honorary member of the Norwegian skiing and gentlemen's club SK Ull. Jackrabbit died from pneumonia on 5 January 1987 at the age of 111 years, 204 days in a hospital near Tønsberg, Norway. He has been posthumously recognised as the oldest living man for the last month of his life. He is buried by the St. Sauveur church in St. Sauveur, Canada, next to his wife, who died in 1963.[3] He holds the distinction of being the only validated supercentenarian who was aged 110+ in two different countries and continents.
Gallery
References
- ↑ Table A - Verified Supercentenarians (Listed Chronologically By Birth Date) GRG
- ↑ Herman 'Jackrabbit' Smith Johannsen Canadian Ski Museum - Hall of Fame
- ↑ HERMAN “JACKRABBIT” SMITH-JOHANNSEN (1875-1987) Laurentian Heritage WebMagazine
| Norway's Oldest Living Person Titleholders (V • E) |
|
Maria Padderud • Nils Monsen Slaire • Karen Thorsen • Mathias Hansen Saether • Vilhelmine Olsen • Marie Olsen • Gjertrud Aas • Madli Bjoerkenes • Synnoeve Gundersen • Ellen Hoddoe • Beret Esp • Kristine Fredriksen • Ingeborg Time • Hans Aasegg • Tomine Seland • Martha Eike • Olav Holtan • Hulda Lie • Ludvig Froeysland • Karl Holm • Ingebrigt Johansen • Inga Nilsen • Herman Smith-Johannsen • Maren Bolette Torp • Aasne Hustveit • Erik Arnegaard • Klara Joergensen • Inga Storstenvik • Lydianna Endresen • Ella Hagen • Laura Svehaug • Amund Vermedal • Karen Svisdal • Herborg Tjoflot • Olav Hovatn • Harriet Holm • Borghild Nilsen • Anna Gundersen • Asborg Aarli • Ingeborg Thuen • Inger Buchholdt • Emma Bendiksen • Gunda Harangen • Ida Sofie Hanssen • Gudrun Onshuus • Helene Nilsen • Kristi Oektedalen • Ragndid Slotfeldt-Ellingsen • Elisabet Ekenaes • Ragnhild Haugen • Torbjorn Overbo • Marie Andersen • Petra Hogetveit • Gudrun Nymoen • Gunhild Lyse • Elsa Gundersen • Vidar Eide • Lina Anundsen • Margit Larsen |
| Norway's Oldest Living Man Titleholders (V • E) |
|
Thrond Olsen • Nils Monsen Sleire • Mathias Hansen Saether • Erik H Boerset • Hans Peter Jacobsen • Anders Stenehjem • Johan Saanum • Andreas Sandberg • Gulbrand Morterud • Hans Felde • Erik Berg • Engebret Hatten • Kleng Skeie • Hans Asegg • Wilhelm Pedersen • Henrik Maeland • Olav Holtan • Anders Odegaard • Isak Aarhus • Ludvig Froeysland • Karl Holm • Ingebrigt Johansen • Anton Jakobsen • Herman Smith-Johannsen • Petter Iversen • Erik Arnegaard • Arnt Sundli • Tjolstolv Saetre • Sigvart Eide • Ole Svartas • Arne Olaisen • Severin Fosse • Amund Vermedal • Odd Oeyeflaten • Johannes Fosse • Olav Hovatn • Karl Doelven • Alfred Ihlen • Joergen Rustad • Helge Fjeldstad • Haakon Skoien • Jakob Gunnes • Thorvald Netteland • Birger Synsvoll • Carl Falck • Torbjorn Overbo • George Nygaard • Hjalmar Gregersen • Alf Johansen • Roar Gulbrandsen • Alf Olsen • Vidar Eide • Odd Borlaug |
| Canada's Oldest Living Person Titleholders (V • E) |
|
Flore Beland • Emma Bingham • Herman Smith-Johannsen • Agnes Munce • Nellie Thompson • Alice Sjoquist • Lillian Ross • Marie-Louise Meilleur • Marie-Louise Meunier • Maria Mallozzi • Zelda McCague • Fanny Martland • Evangeline Saulnier • Anne Samson • Julie Winnefred Bertrand • Jennie Fitzgerald • Margaret Fitzgerald • Pearl Lutzko • Cora Hansen • Yvonne Lamoureux • Merle Barwis • Colombe Benoit-Leclerc • Orma Slack • Marguerite Wabano • Lilian Cornell • Ellen Gibb • Sarah Patenaude-Bruyere • Phyllis Ridgway • Cecile Klein • Shige Mineshiba • Mabel Mah • Helen Doan • Gertruda Gorecka • Hazel Skuce |
| Canada's Oldest Living Man Titleholders (V • E) |
|
Joseph Saint-Amour • Unknown • Eli Lindsay • Stuart Bott • Unknown • Adam McDonald • Arthur Critchfield • Adalbert Marchand • Herman Smith-Johannsen • William Hargest • Philo McCandless • George Ives • Chester Pushie • Arthur Nash • Tokusuke Oyakawa • Gustav Wikberg • Theodore Remfert • James Grant • Romeo Tremblay • Raphael Cree • John Gard • Montague Little • Lazare Gionet • Nicholas Salamis • Harold Dunichand • Ernest MacPherson • William Thomas • Leon Robitaille • Johannes Markusson • David Wiener • Sam Baker • Joseph Ernest Poupart • Zoltan Sarosy • Robert Wiener • Ja Hyung Lee • Reuben Sinclair • Albert Middleton |