Lawrence Waldemar Tonner (October 15, 1861 – May 25, 1947) was an 1870 immigrant from
Denmark
Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...
who became a
naturalized citizen of the United States
Citizenship of the United States is a legal status that entails Americans with specific rights, duties, protections, and benefits in the United States. It serves as a foundation of fundamental rights derived from and protected by the Constit ...
in 1875. Tonner met Jesse Shepard/Francis Grierson in 1885 and became his companion and personal secretary for more than 40 years, while they traveled and lived together in Europe and the United States. Tonner began his career as a translator in 1892 for the U.S. government in
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
, and was an aide and translator for
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was the 31st president of the United States, serving from 1929 to 1933. A wealthy mining engineer before his presidency, Hoover led the wartime Commission for Relief in Belgium and ...
after World War I. Tonner died in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, California.
Early life
Tonner was born in
Thisted
Thisted is a town in the municipality of Thisted in the North Denmark Region of Denmark. It has a population of 13,505 (1 January 2025) Originally using his Danish given name,
Lauritz Lauritz is a typically masculine given name, a Scandinavian form of the English Laurence or Lawrence. Another Danish and Estonian form is Laurits.
Popularity in Scandinavia
The name has been decreasing in popularity in all Scandinavian countr ...
, he emigrated to the United States in July 1870, sailing from
Glasgow
Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...
. His mother's maiden name was "
Lund
Lund (, ;"Lund" (US) and ) is a city in the provinces of Sweden, province of Scania, southern Swed ...
", according to a California Death Index entry. At age 28, Tonner's description on a U.S. passport application included a height of 5 feet 7 inches, light blue eyes, and light brown hair. The application identifies his father as Johann P. Tonner, through whose naturalization on December 14, 1875, Tonner obtained his own U.S. citizenship, while living in
Chicago
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
.
Shepard/Grierson
Tonner, who spoke fluently in five languages, did not have a steady job and instead adapted his professional career to the work and travel schedule of Jesse Shepard (1848–1927), a composer, pianist, and writer who used the pen name of Francis Grierson beginning in 1899; Tonner and Shepard met in Chicago in 1885. Tonner acted as a manager and personal secretary for Shepard. Tonner's 1890 U.S. passport application lists an occupation of "seceretary", and includes a certification of identity by Shepard.
Among his many performances, Shepard entertained at the Imperial
Palace of Gatchina
The Great Gatchina Palace () is a palace in Gatchina, Leningrad Oblast, Russia. It was built from 1766 to 1781 by Antonio Rinaldi for Count Grigori Grigoryevich Orlov, who was a favourite of Catherine the Great, in Gatchina, a suburb of the r ...
for the
Czar of Russia
This is a list of all reigning monarchs in the history of Russia. The list begins with the semi-legendary prince Rurik of Novgorod, sometime in the mid-9th century, and ends with Nicholas II, who abdicated in 1917, and was executed with his fa ...
and before a reunion of three royal houses at Cumberland Palace in
Gmunden
Gmunden () is a town in Upper Austria, in the district of Gmunden (district), Gmunden. It has 13,204 inhabitants (estimates 2016 ).
Geography
Gmunden covers an area of and has a median elevation of . It is situated next to the lake Traunsee on t ...
,
Austria
Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
. His hostess was the Duchess of Cumberland, sister of the Empress of Russia, of the Princess of Wales and of the Queen of Greece. An account of what happened at the reunion is given by Tonner for "The Hague", in ''Light'', March 17, 1894.
San Diego to Paris
Despite his close association with Shepard, Tonner's name does not appear in the official documents by or about Shepard; for example he is not listed in the
San Diego
San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...
City Directory as living at Villa Montezuma with Shepard. The two shared the home, named for the ship that first brought Shepard to the U.S., from July 1887 to the third quarter of 1888, before taking a mortgage out on the house to fund an initial trip to
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...
for the publishing of Shepard's first book. They returned to San Diego in August 1889, and on finding the city's economic boom had ended, sold the home and its furnishings by mid-December before returning to Paris, where they lived until 1896. While in Europe, Tonner began his career as a translator in 1892, working for the United States diplomatic mission in London.
Robert Todd Lincoln
Robert Todd Lincoln (August 1, 1843 – July 26, 1926) was an American lawyer and businessman. The eldest son of President Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd Lincoln, he was the only one of their four children to survive past the teenage years ...
, the former president's son, had the role of ambassador during this period, and issued a U.S. passport used by Tonner.
Europe to the United States
After Paris, Shepard and Tonner settled in London until 1913, when they decided to return to the United States. In the latter part of that decade, Tonner was a valued aide and translator for
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was the 31st president of the United States, serving from 1929 to 1933. A wealthy mining engineer before his presidency, Hoover led the wartime Commission for Relief in Belgium and ...
when the then-future president was head of the Food Administration. Hoover subsequently recommended Tonner for a position with a Bureau of Public Information, via a letter now among the Waldemar Tonner Papers at ONE Archives in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
After years of traveling the world together, Shepard lost his popularity and Tonner supported him. He taught French and was a partner in a small dry cleaning shop. Shepard died in Los Angeles on May 29, 1927, immediately after playing the last chord of a piano performance for about 30 guests who attended a benefit dinner arranged by friends on his behalf; he was still upright with his hands on the keys and it was Tonner who first noticed that something was wrong. Not long before Shepard/Grierson died, Tonner had published a pamphlet, "''The Genius of Francis Grierson''", that recounted his travels and musical/literary successes, and included quotations from favorable reviews and letters. Tonner also wrote the
introduction
Introduction, The Introduction, Intro, or The Intro may refer to:
General use
* Introduction (music), an opening section of a piece of music
* Introduction (writing), a beginning section to a book, article or essay which states its purpose and g ...
to Shepard/Grierson's last book, "''Psycho-Phone Messages''", published in 1921.
Tonner died 20 years after Shepard on May 25, 1947, in
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
, and is buried at
Inglewood Park Cemetery
Inglewood Park Cemetery, in Inglewood, California, was founded in 1905. A number of notable people, including entertainment and sports personalities, have been interred or entombed there.
History
The proposed establishment of "the larges ...