Thorstenson and McGregor family papers and photographs, approximately 1850-2014

Odin Thorstenson and Helen McGregor Thorstenson met in Seattle, Washington and married there on January 20, 1923. Together, they had one daughter, Rosemary Thorstenson Van Arsdel, who married Paul Parr Van Arsdel, Jr. They had two children, Mary M. Van Arsdel and Andrew Paul Van Arsdel. Odin Thorstenson founded Thorstenson's Pharmacy, which was located at 1000 Madison Street in the First Hill neighborhood of Seattle. After Odin's death in 1965, Helen took over the operations of Thorstenston's Pharmacy for 10 years. The couple owned a beachfront summer home in Vashon Island, Washington and were members of St. Stephen's Episcopal Church in the Laurelhurst neighborhood of Seattle.

Odin Thorstenson (who changed his surname from "Thorsteinson") was born on June 22, 1893 in Seattle, Washington to Icelandic immigrants Thorfinner Thorsteinson and Gudrun Bergsteinsdottir Thorsteinson. He emigrated to British Columbia, Canada in March 1915, living in Vancouver and Trail, British Columbia and earning a degree in pharmacy from the University of British Columbia. Odin moved back to Seattle in 1917 and received his certification from the Washington State Board of Pharmacy in 1921. He owned and operated other pharmacies in Seattle in addition to Thorstenson's Pharmacy. Odin was a member of the American and Washington State Pharmaceutical Associations and the National Association of Retail Druggists. He was also a 32nd Degree Mason and life member of Eureka Lodge #20 in Shoreline, WA. Odin passed away on July 27, 1965 at the age of 72.

Helen McGregor Thorstenson was born in Spokane, Washington on February 26, 1901 to Peter W. McGregor and Mary E. Daly McGregor. She grew up in Republic, Washington, and her father was involved in the state's early gold mining industry. Helen moved with her younger sister, Ruth McGregor Barron, to Seattle as a young adult. During World War II, she worked in the Seattle office of the U.S. government's Office of Censorship. Helen was a talented pianist and piano-accordionist, and played in Maestro Tiedemann's all accordion orchestra and Sherman Clay's Seattle Accordion Band. She volunteered in the Mary B. Myers Guild of Children's Orthopedic Hospital, serving as its president. Helen moved into Parkshore Senior Living Community in 1977 and was an active community member there until her death on July 21, 1991 at the age of 90.

Other extended Thorsteinson family members include Maria Maak (or "Maack"), mother of Odin's father, Thorfinner Thorsteinson; Odin's brother, Bragi Thorsteinson, and sisters, Skuld Thorsteinson, and Idunn Thorsteinson Bock; and Idunn Thorsteinson Bock's husband, Ludwig Bock, and daughter, Carol Bock Thorp.