Mildred Mathilda Lager was an American pioneer of natural foods and health food

Health food

The term health food is generally used to describe foods that are considered to be beneficial to health, beyond a normal healthy diet required for human nutrition. However, the term is not precisely defined by national regulatory agencies such as the U.S...

. On October 15, 1933 (in the depths of the Great Depression

Great Depression

The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...

), she founded a health food store named The House of Better Living at 1207 West Sixth St., Los Angeles

Los Ángeles

Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...

, California. This store issued a regular newsletter and catalog.

Ancestry

Mildred was born in West Superior, Wisconsin, the only child of Gustav Walfred Lager (a station engineer, who was born in Sweden) and Hilda Marie Erickson Lager (also born in Sweden). Gustav came to the United States in 1890 and Hilda in 1881. They were married on October 28, 1899 in Superior, Wisconsin

Superior, Wisconsin

Superior is a city in and the county seat of Douglas County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 26,960 at the 2010 census. Located at the junction of U.S. Highways 2 and 53, it is north of and adjacent to both the Village of Superior and the Town of Superior.Superior is at the western...

.

History

A history of the life and work of Mildred Lager (78 pages, 153 references), with many original photographs, is now available online.