Los Angeles County
Biographies
JULIAN TROCONIZ
A business man of Los Angeles who, in his day, conducted the leading retail hat store with headquarters in the old Natick House on Main and First streets, was Julian Troconiz, and he not only sold his goods but he injected into each sale an artistic touch that endeared him to everyone with whom he came in contact, and his customers were numbered among the very best families for many miles around Los Angeles. He was born in Valmesada, Spain, in 1848, and died in Los Angeles July 2, 1913 aged sixty-five years. He was a son of Timothy Troconiz, a manufacturer of fine fur hats in the northern part of Spain, and Valentina Andiscorena Troconiz, who was a Spanish Basque by birth and a woman of good education and a lecturer of note in her country early favoring the emancipation for women. Julian was the oldest child in a family of eleven boys and one girl, the latter of whom entered a convent in her native country. Also he was the only one of that large family to emigrate to America, coming primarily to be educated in English. He was for an artistic nature, had graduated in theology and had specialized on the guitar and piano in music; he also spoke four languages fluently.
Landing in America in 1877 to further his education in English, he was the protégé of Father Rubio, a well known priest who is buried at the Santa Barbara Mission. Arriving in San Francisco, Mr. Troconiz attended St. Mary’s College in that city and then came to Los Angeles and took a course of study in St. Vincent’s College. To better make contact with people he found employment as a clerk in the store conducted by Dillon & Kenealey and finally decided to embark in business on his own account. It was but natural that he should select the business with which he was familiar, for when his vacations were open he would go into the factory conducted by his father and work in the various departments in the manufacture of hats. It was in 1884 that he opened a hat store on a small scale at first and in time this grew to be one of the leading stores of its kind in southern California. All the rich rancheros and miners for many miles around would purchase their Stetson hats from him as he was the sole representative of that firm here at that time and sold hats for prices ranging from five collars to one hundred dollars—some of the hats he sold are still in existence among the old time families; also for many years he was the exclusive importer of the finest Panama hats. He was very successful and invested his surplus cash in property here in Los Angeles and that same property increased with the development of the city. That he was a man of vision can be seen as the reason of his locating in the southland and growing with it instead of returning to his native country were opportunities were not so alluring.
Julian Troconiz was married in 1880 to Carmen Salazar, a native of Mexico, whose parents went from Spain to that country and settled near Hermosillo and engaged in raising cattle. During one of the Indian raids on his ranch her father and two of her brothers were killed and the widow with three daughters made their way to Los Angeles with the help of relatives and friends, coming overland in a covered wagon. Mrs. Troconiz was a woman of culture and was a fine guitar player and had had special training in voice. Their first home was on Commercial street, and later on Wilmington street, where Mrs. Troconiz had a wonderful rose garden that was a delight to everybody who saw it. There she died May 6, 1892, aged thirty-six years. She left four daughters, viz: Carmen T., wife of Arthur Holliday, advertising director for the Los Angeles Herald-Express, who resides at 2700 Glendower avenue; Angelica T., wife of Ferdinand A. Linck, a well known brewer; Celia T., widow of Ralph S. Dobbs, a banker; and Marie Louise, wife of Felix Chenard, an accountant with Roose Brothers in San Francisco. The second marriage of Mr. Troconiz united him with Teresa Lopez, a member of an old Spanish family of southern California and who survives and makes her home in San Francisco. She reared the children and took especial pains to see that they were reared as girls of their station should be and that her work was successful is shown by the enterprise of these children, now grown to womanhood and taking their places in the civic, club and social circles of their home cities. Mr. Troconiz was a member of the Young Mens Institute and of the old Spanish Catholic Church. He was a most charitable man and interested in civic affairs in his city and when he died he was mourned by a very large circle of friends and acquaintances.
Transcribed
by Joyce Rugeroni.
Source: California
of the South Vol. V, by John Steven McGroarty, Pages
465-467, Clarke Publ., Chicago, Los Angeles, Indianapolis. 1933.
© 2012 Joyce Rugeroni.
GOLDEN NUGGET'S LOS ANGELES BIOGRAPHIES