Los Angeles County
Biographies
JAMES R. H. WAGNER
WAGNER, JAMES R. H., Real Estate, Los Angeles, California, was born in Detroit, Michigan, September 22, 1870. His father was Robert Wagner and his mother Mary Leicester (Hornibrook) Wagner. On November 4, 1894, he married Mabel E. Monahan, at Cleveland, Ohio. To them were born Arline Leicester, Harriet Handy and Mary Leicester Wagner.
Mr. Wagner’s education was obtained in the Cass School of Detroit.
His first employment as a boy was with the American Exchange National Bank of Detroit, where he acted in the capacity of messenger for the years 1886 and 1887. During the succeeding two years he was receiving teller and individual bookkeeper in the Peninsular Savings Bank of Detroit. Between the years 1890 and 1894 he was traveling salesman for a Detroit tobacco firm. He worked for the wholesale tobacco house of R. Wagner & Co., and ably fitted himself for an active career with the largest tobacco institution in the world.
In 1895 he started in New York City with the American Tobacco Co. as a retail salesman. His first efforts, in three months, attracted attention and he was sent to Boston. In six months he was stationed at Philadelphia, doing special work for the fine smoking department of the corporation.
In 1897 he was sent to Nashville, Tenn., to supervise the States of Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee. His work covered largely the Old Virginia Cheroot department. With a year of success in the South he was transferred to Virginia and North Carolina in order to take charge of the cheap smoking and cheroots. In 1899 he was called to New York and given charge of a national campaign on a new brand of cheroots. This work covered the United States east of the Rocky Mountains. A year later the American Tobacco Co. acquired the Egyptian Deities cigarette factory, and Mr. Wagner was given charge of the sales in all the Eastern States.
In 1901, after many years in the tobacco business, Mr. Wagner gave it up to go with the New York “Commercial,” one of the oldest daily financial papers in America. His initial business trip for this newspaper was one which carried him over the entire United States, and eventually to Los Angeles. In that city he expected to spend only a short time, but one month’s stay convinced him that there was no other place on earth for him. This was about April 1, 1901, at a time when Southern California was in the height of its floral beauty and growth. He had just arrived from the north, where the blizzards and snowstorms were raging. He immediately sent his family word to pack and come to California.
Mr. Wagner associated himself with the William R. Staats Co. of Pasadena for one year. From there he went to Santa Barbara and organized the Santa Barbara Realty & Trust Co. His associates there were Harrison T. Kendall and D. T. Perkins of the Potter Hotel Co.; George Edwards, president of the Commercial Bank of Santa Barbara, and William R. Staats of Pasadena.
Outside of the general real estate business in Santa Barbara he secured a franchise for the Home Telephone Co. and was instrumental in building the plant. He was an officer of that organization for two years. In 1905 R. A. Rowan prevailed upon him to handle Venice of America, then in the infancy of its organization. He became the general agent in the organization of that resort, and since that time has been prominently identified in the realty business of So. Cal. He has handled with success Venice of America, Venice Annex, Normandy Hill, Florencita Park, the Cudahy Ranch, Bell Flower Acres and the Owens Valley Lands. Mr. Wagner is second vice president L. A. Realty Board; member, Chamber of Commerce and California Club.
Transcribed by Joyce Rugeroni.
Source: Press
Reference Library, Western Edition Notables of the West, Vol. I, Page 767,
International News Service, New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles,
Boston, Atlanta. 1913.
© 2011 Joyce
Rugeroni.
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