The Valley of Heart's Delight
KARL R. FREDERICKS
Merchant, San Jose
HISTORY OF SANTA CLARA COUNTY 503
SURNAMES: KURGESS, LAVAGNINO, RIEGER,
An aggessive, progressive young man who is fast rising in the business
world and enjoying the fruits of intelligent industry and a
well-merited popularity, is Karl R. Fredericks, among the proudest of
American citizens from the fact that he has just received his
citizenship papers. He was born in the ancient city of Augsburg, in the
province of Schwaben-Neuburg, in Bavaria, on July 27, 1890, the son of
Ferinand Fredericks, an artist and an interior decorator, who was much
in demand for churches, public auditoriums and large buildings; he died
when only forty years old. He had married Miss Margaret Kurgess, and
she is still living in Vienna.
Karl went to the primary schools and the gymnasium at Augsburg, and
when fourteen years old started to make his way in the world. In 1906
he went to South America and worked in a broker's office, putting in a
year at Santos and a year at Sao Paulo, Brazil, and in 1908 he came to
California. He stopped only a short while in San Francisco, and soon
came inland to San Jose; and for three years he worked for the
Flickinger Fruit Canning Company. He then took a post in the Star
Grocery, and in the six years he was with that line of mercantile
trade, he mastered the business. He next joined Messrs. Richmond &
Chase, with whom he remained for two years; and after that he worked
for a year at Cook's Oil Station at the corner of Sixth and Santa Clara
streets. By this time Mr. Fredericks had saved enough to go into
business for himself, and he bought out Mrs. Lingua's store on Terraine
Street, and conducted a grocery store and soda fountain, and sold
school supplies. His anticipation of the wants of his customers as well
as his untiring efforts to please, have brought him many patrons.
As San Jose on October 18, 1915, Mr. Fredericks was married to Miss
Angela Lavagnino, a native of San Jose and the daughter of Joseph and
Margaret (Rieger) Lavagnino, who came to California in 1876 when she
was twenty-two years old. Joseph Lavagnino who is still living here at
the age of sixty-five, hailed from Genoa, Italy, although his wife came
from Bavaria. Angela attended the grammar and high school of Notre
Dame, and she also studied music and graduated in that subject in 1914.
She has two children; Karl J. and Margaret A., a joy in particular to
Grandfather Lavagnino, who is now one of the old-time residents of San
Jose and who by industry and close application to business acquired a
comptetence so that he now lives retired, enjoying the fruits of his
labor.
transcribed by Marie Clayton, from Eugene T. Sawyers' History of Santa Clara County,California, published by Historic Record Co. , 1922 page 503
SANTA CLARA COUNTY PIONEER BIOGRAPHIES
SANTA CLARA COUNTY HISTORY