Ole Cleven

Ole Cleven was a World War I veteran, skilled carpenter and builder, and longtime member of the Stoughton community who served as Commander of American Legion Post 59 in 1939.

Born January 17, 1892, in Pleasant Springs, Wisconsin, Cleven entered military service on December 11, 1917, during World War I. He served with the U.S. Army Signal Corps and was assigned to the 350th Aero Squadron, part of the Army's early aviation service years before the creation of an independent United States Air Force. He was honorably discharged on December 24, 1918.

Following the war, Cleven returned to the Stoughton area and built a life centered around his trade, his community and his fellow veterans. Historical records describe him as a builder and carpenter, and he also worked for many years at the Ford garage on Water Street in Stoughton. The photograph preserved with his records provides a glimpse into that part of his working life and into Stoughton's early automobile era.

Cleven eventually became self-employed as a carpenter and builder. His work can still be traced through Stoughton history. A 1932 newspaper advertisement congratulating Harry Johnson on completion of a new dairy building credited Ole Cleven with its concrete, tile and carpenter work — evidence of the variety of skills he brought to his trade.

On June 7, 1921, Ole married Rose Dailey. The couple made their home in Stoughton, where Ole became deeply involved in veterans organizations and community life.

His commitment to the American Legion lasted half a century. Cleven was a member of American Legion Post 59 for 50 years and served as the Post's Commander in 1939. He was also a member and past commander of the Stoughton Barracks, another organization serving veterans of his generation.

Ole Cleven died September 4, 1973, at the age of 81. His obituary remembered him as a retired carpenter and noted both his 50 years of American Legion membership and his service as a past commander. He was laid to rest with military graveside honors at Riverside Cemetery in Stoughton.

Ole Cleven's life represents the generation of World War I veterans who returned home and quietly helped build the communities in which they lived. In Cleven's case, that description is especially fitting — he quite literally helped build Stoughton while continuing to serve his fellow veterans through American Legion Post 59.

His service as Post 59 Commander in 1939 remains part of the long history of leadership and service upon which our Post was built.