Laurence Conrad Eklund (May 16, 1905 – June 20, 2002) was an American journalist and long time head of the Washington bureau for the ''

Milwaukee Journal The ''Milwaukee Journal Sentinel'' is a daily morning broadsheet printed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where it is the primary newspaper and also the largest newspaper in the state of Wisconsin, where it is widely read. It was purchased by the G ...

''. He was born in

Tomahawk, Wisconsin Tomahawk is a city in Lincoln County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 3,441 at the 2020 census. The city is located to the northeast of the Town of Tomahawk and is not contiguous with it. History Before 1837, the land where Toma ...

. His father was an immigrant from

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

. His brother was

antarctic The Antarctic (, ; commonly ) is the polar regions of Earth, polar region of Earth that surrounds the South Pole, lying within the Antarctic Circle. It is antipodes, diametrically opposite of the Arctic region around the North Pole. The Antar ...

explorer and scientist Carl R. Eklund. After graduation from Tomahawk High School, he went to the

University of Wisconsin-Madison A university () is an institution of tertiary education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase , which roughly means "community of teachers and scholars". Uni ...

. He was an associate editor of ''

The Daily Cardinal ''The Daily Cardinal'' is a student newspaper that serves the University of Wisconsin–Madison community. One of the oldest student newspapers in the country, it began publishing on Monday, April 4, 1892. The newspaper is financially and editori ...

'' and was elected to the Iron Cross Society. He graduated in 1927 with a degree in journalism. He worked at the Journal for 43 years, which included the position of Washington bureau chief from 1947 to 1970. In 1975 he received knighthood in the

Royal Order of the Polar Star The Royal Order of the Polar Star ( Swedish: ''Kungliga Nordstjärneorden''), sometimes translated as the Royal Order of the North Star, is a Swedish order of chivalry created by King Frederick I on 23 February 1748, together with the Order o ...

from the government of

. In 1990 he was inducted into the

Milwaukee Press Club The Milwaukee Press Club, in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, is the oldest continuously operating press club in the United States. The club comprises journalists and others in the media in the Milwaukee area, as well as journalism educators, public relations ...

Hall of Fame. He was member of the

National Press Club A press club is an organization for journalists and others who are professionally engaged in the production and dissemination of news. A press club whose membership is defined by the press of a given country may be known as a National Press Club ...

and the

Gridiron Club The Gridiron Club is the oldest and most selective journalistic organization in Washington, D.C. History :"an elitist social club of sixty print journalists" — Hedrick Smith, ''Power Game: How Washington Works'' February 1988 Random House ...

. He was married 53 years to Ethel, who died in 1982. Laurence died in

Bethesda, Maryland Bethesda () is an unincorporated, census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland, United States. Located just northwest of Washington, D.C., it is a major business and government center of the Washington metropolitan region ...

at the age of 97. He was survived by a son John.

References

1905 births 2002 deaths People from Tomahawk, Wisconsin University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni Journalists from Wisconsin Order of the Polar Star American people of Swedish descent 20th-century American journalists American male journalists {{US-journalist-1900s-stub