John O. Johnson (January 10, 1875 - February 1963)[1] was a Norwegian-born, American boat builder, early aviator, and inventor in White Bear Lake, Minnesota.
In 1893, he emigrated to America, traveling to White Bear Lake, Minnesota where he lived and worked for a fellow Norwegian, Gus Amundson.
In those days, White Bear Lake was a resort town with hotels, parks, steamboats and boat rentals.
[3] John's first major success was the Minnezitka a 38 ft. scow design sailboat that won the championship on the lake in 1900.
Car owners put their vehicles away and used horse drawn sleighs for travel or used the train to get into the city.
This snowplow was very successful, and some Minneapolis businessmen bought the patent and built the Snow King plows.