San Joaquin County
Biographies
MRS. MARY THOMAN AGIEN.
Among the pioneer women of San Joaquin County, Mrs. Mary Thoman Agien is well and favorably known. She is a good business manager, and since her husband's death has most creditably borne the obligations and duties laid upon her by that event; she owns the family residence in Stockton where they have resided since 1910, as well as desirable store rental property located at 1146 East Main Street and other valuable real estate in that city; also property in San Bruno, Half Moon Bay and San Francisco. She has lived in California since 1880, when she accompanied her parents from Kansas to San Joaquin County. She was born near St. Joseph, Mo., in Kansas, a daughter of R. R. and Julia (Summers-Titman) Wilcox, natives of Rhode Island and Indiana respectively. The father passed away in 1899 at Ripon, the mother surviving him until 1914 when she passed away at Lathrop. Mrs. Agien was reared in San Joaquin County and attended the Old Crow school, walking from the home place near Ripon to school every day, a distance of a mile and a half.
In 1889 occurred her first marriage, which united her with Daniel Thoman, a native of Switzerland, who came to California in 1886. He was a carpenter by trade and for a number of years worked with P. A. Buell, building contractor, being entrusted with finishing work in which he, was an expert; later he entered the contracting business on his own account, which he followed for fourteen years in Stockton and throughout the county. Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Thoman became the parents of two sons: Lloyd D. was born at Lathrop in 1891 and is a graduate of the public schools; he married Miss Nellie Morris and they have two children, Floyd D. and Nellie; they reside in Lodi, where he is proprietor of the Lodi Hardware Company. The other son, Elmer, was born at Lathrop in 1894, also a graduate of the public schools of the county; for eighteen months he served as a yeoman on the U. S. S. Virginia and during that time made five trips across the Atlantic. He is single and resides at the family home in Stockton. Mr. Thoman passed away on April 15, 1915, his untimely death being a severe loss to his family and the community where he had resided for so many years. He was a member of the Foresters and the Knights of Pythias in Stockton. In 1918, Mrs. Thoman was united in marriage with J. Agien, a prominent business man of San Francisco, who has since made his home in Stockton. Mrs. Agien is a past noble grand of the woman's auxiliary of the Foresters of America, San Francisco Chapter, and is otherwise well known and highly esteemed in Stockton, where she has resided since 1910.
History of San Joaquin County, California – Los Angeles, Historic Record Co., 1923
p 1184
Transcribed by Kathy Sedler.
FELIX C. MINDACH.
The city of Stockton is indeed fortunate in the number of parks within her borders and much of the beauty of these lovely spots scattered throughout the city is due to the superintendent of city parks, Felix C. Mindach, for there is no one in this locality better versed in horticulture and floriculture than he. Since coming to California he has made a special study of all flowers, ornamental trees, shrubs and plants grown here and he is considered an authority in this field.
Mr. Mindach was born at Forst, Brandenburg, Germany, March 29, 1862. He was educated in the schools of his home town and at the age of ten years started to learn the science of horticulture and floriculture, meantime continuing his attendance at the local schools until he completed the course at the age of fourteen years. He then apprenticed at the floricultural establishment in which he had already become greatly interested. So rapidly did he advance that after two years' service with the large nursery company which specialized in plants, flowers, ornamental trees and fruit stock, he was advanced to instructor, and in this position he instructed others in learning the rudiments of the business, most of them very much older than himself. After four years with this company, he traveled throughout Germany and became landscape gardener on a number of large private estates.
In 1886 Mr. Mindach crossed the ocean to New York; securing employment on a farm, he attended school during the first winter in order to master the English language. Later he located in Rochester, N. Y., and for a season was a landscape gardener on a large private estate there. In 1888 he arrived in California, and here he established himself in the nursery business, conducting one at Red Bluff and one near Corning, purchasing a small tract of land at the latter place. Selling out his nursery business he entered the employ of the Maywood Colony at Corning and became superintendent for W. N. Woodson, the manager of this colony. Later Mr. Mindach came to San Joaquin County in 1902 and bought a twenty-acre ranch at Summer Home, near Manteca; there he established a nursery and soon after, in 1905, he moved to Stockton and bought two lots at 721 North East Street, where he erected the residence where he has since lived.
Soon after locating in Stockton, Mr. Mindach became engaged in laying out and improving the city parks. He first laid out Constitution Square and completed the laying out and improvement of Weber Park, and also laid out Washington Park and Lafayette Park, this work being done by the day. In 1910 he accepted the appointment as superintendent of Stockton city parks, a position he has held ever since, and since then he has laid out the following new parks—Liberty, Union and Columbus. The city of Stockton is unusually rich in parks, the acquisition of which has covered a number of years, and under Mr. Mindach's expert care they are beauty spots, indeed, giving enjoyment to thousands of residents and visitors alike and they are an index to Stockton's progressive and aggressive growth. In the sequence of their establishment they are as follows: Fremont, Independence, Eden, Weber, Lafayette, Constitution, Washington, Liberty, Union and Columbus. Some years ago the city acquired Victory Park, an area of twenty-seven acres, that is now being improved as fast as can be done with the means at the city's disposal. Lately the city acquired Oak Park, of thirty acres, also being improved. At Union Park Mr. Mindach devotes about one-fourth of the area to a nursery for raising ornamental trees and shrubbery for planting the new parks and needed replacement in the old parks, which makes a considerable saving to the city.
Mr. Mindach's marriage in San Francisco united him with Miss Kate Rable, like himself a native of Germany, and they have been blessed by the birth of two children, Richard and Elsie. Mr. Mindach's special talents as a landscape gardener have made him a valued acquisition to Stockton, and the family have made many friends here.
History of San Joaquin County, California – Los Angeles, Historic Record Co., 1923
p 1184
Transcribed by Kathy Sedler.