Memorials › Robert Walter Fenner

Robert Walter Fenner

1842 – Jun 1926

Birth1842
DeathJun 1926
CemeteryEvergreen Cemetery
Victoria , Victoria County , Texas , USA
FaGhttps://www.findagrave.com/memorial/232414818

Bio

Gonzales Inquirer June 24, 1926 An item from Victoria carried announcement of the passing of Robt. W. Fenner, 78, native of that place, and for 30 years county surveyor of Bee county. Mr. Fenner was the father of Rev. Goodrich Fenner, , Episcopal minister, who for a short timed filled the pulpit of the. Hu4 h of the Messiah here through one summer. FENNER, ROBERT W. As a surveyor and engineer, Robert W. Fenner has a record of active service and accomplishments extending over forty years, all of which has been passed in southwest Texas, and most of it in Bee county. He was county surveyor of Bee county during the early days, and himself and son have continuously held that office now for more than thirty years. Mr. Fenner represents one of the families which located in southwest Texas during the early fifties, and for sixty years the name has been identified with public spirited citizenship, and worthy activity and honorable position in private life. Robert W. Fenner was born in Ouachita Parish, Louisiana, in 1848, a son of Sherrod and Louise (Phiol) Fenner. Both families were early established in the state of Louisiana, and that was particularly true of the maternal branch of the family, as the Phiols were of French stock, and had lived in Louisiana since the Spanish reign. In 1852, the Fenner family moved from Louisiana to Texas, locating first in Guadalupe county, and subsequently in 1857 removing to Victoria county, where Robert W. spent his early youth, and grew to manhood. Some of his early schooling was obtained in the old common schools, such as were maintained in this vicinity during the early days, but he was chiefly educated in the old Bastrop Military College, one of the excellent schools of its time, and in its halls he prepared for his preparation of surveyor and civil engineer. He has followed this professional career throughout his life with the exception of a few years, during which he was engaged in teaching school. In 1879 Mr. Fenner located at Beeville in Bee county, where he has since resided. At that date, 1879, the county was very sparsely settled, and Beeville itself was a mere village on the prairie. In 1880, the year following his settlement here, Mr. Fenner was elected to the office of County Surveyor, and each successive election was chosen for that office, until he had given 30 successive years of efficient and faithful service to the office. On his retiring, he was succeeded by his son John S. Fenner, who is also an engineer and surveyor. Thus father and son together have given more than thirty-five years of continuous service in one county office, a record which is probably equaled in only a few instances in the annals of public office in this state. The father and son, under the firm name of Fenner & Fenner, have offices at Beeville, and conduct a general business in surveying and engineering. Their services have been called to numerous commissions throughout southwestern Texas, and through their long standing and known capabilities have always enjoyed a very prosperous patronage. Mr. Robert W. Fenner married Miss Kate Fenner, who stood in the relation of cousin to him, and who is also a native of Louisiana, where the family have been established for so many years. Mr. and Mrs. Fenner are the parents of nine children, six sons and three daughters, whose names are as follows: Henry, John S., Boy, Bolla, Goodrich, Power, Mrs. Mabel Whaley, Miss Ella Fenner, and Miss Anna Fenner. ["A History of Texas and Texans" By Frank White Johnson, Eugene Campbell Barker, Ernest William Winkler; Published by American Historical Society, 1914 Contributor: Sherry (47010546)

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