O.F. Nelson (1884-1944), a leader of the Mau (Samoan National Movement), was the son of a Swedish sea captain and a Samoan woman of chiefly rank. He founded the firm of O.F. Nelson and Company Limited during World War I. After the New Zealanders occupied Western Samoa in 1914, Nelson's firm flourished and he became a prominent leader of the Samoan community. After Western Samoa was made a 'C' class mandate of the League of Nations in 1921 to be administered by New Zealand, Nelson organised resistance to New Zealand rule. In 1928 he was banished from Western Samoa for five years, during which period he lived in New Zealand.

Correspondence with H.E. Holland, Chairman of the New Zealand Labour Party, Nelson's wife Rosabel, and Mau leaders during Nelson's banishment from Samoa.