Born: June 3, 1856
Died: September 20, 1935
Married: Agnes Louis Macdonough
Children: Mrs. Raymond Sontag, William Macdonough Agar, Herbert Sebastian Agar, Philip Sylvester Agar
John Giraud Agar was a lawyer from New York City. He bought the 106 acres of Gull Point in 1896 and built Camp Gricoq about 1900. He was active in the Upper Saranac Lake Association and the Upper Saranac Yacht Club, and was the long-time president of Protect the Adirondacks.
Unidentified newspaper clipping, dated June 16, no year, from a scrapbook in the Adirondack Collection of the Saranac Lake Free Library
The Season in the Adirondacks
Hotel Improvements--Cottage Tenants--A Choice of Routes
. . . Mr. John G. Agar of New York is erecting a $15,000 summer home on Birch Island, in Upper Saranac Lake. . .
Brooklyn Daily Eagle, July 12, 1908
...John G. Agar is having a garage built at Wawbeek for the housing of his motor car, and J. R. Dickson, who is occupying Levi P. Morton's camp, Eagle Island, will also keep his car at Wawbeek...
New York Times, September 21, 1935
JOHN G. AGAR, 79, LAWYER, IS DEAD
Ex-Member of Westchester County Park Board Once a Reform Leader Here.
PIONEER IN CONSERVATION
Held High Position in Children's Society -Belonged to Many Clubs and Civic Groups.
Special to The New York Times
NEW ROCHELLE. N. Y., Sept. 20 —John Giraud Agar, New York attorney, former member of the Westchester County Park Commission and former leader in the reform political movement in New York, died this morning at his residence, Fair Oaks, at Premium Point here, after a long illness. He was 79 years old.
Mr. Agar is survived by a widow, the former Agnes Louis Macdonough; a daughter, Mrs. Raymond Sontag of Princeton, N. J.; and three sons, William Macdonough Agar, headmaster of the Newman School, Lakewood, N. J.; Herbert Sebastian Agar, author; and Philip Sylvester Agar, a member of the New York bar. There are six grandchildren.
Mrs. Agar's father was James Macdonough of San Francisco, one of the early settlers of California, and her mother was Catherine O'Brien, sister of William O'Brien, noted financier. She was married to Mr. Agar on Feb. 18, 1832.
Funeral services for Mr. Agar, which will be private, will take place in the chapel of the Paulist Fathers Church, Columbus Avenue and Fifty-ninth Street. New York, on Tuesday.
A Knight of St. Gregory.
In June, 1916, Mr. Agar was made a Knight of the Order of St. Gregory by the late Pope Benedict XV. He was formerly one of the trustees of St. Patrick's Cathedral.
He had served also as a trustee of the Grand Central Art Galleries and was a member of the Municipal Art Society from 1906 to 1908. Formerly he was a member of the Committee on Character and Fitness of the New York Bar.
Mr. Agar for many years was president of the Association for the Protection of the Adirondacks. He also had served as vice president of the New York Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children and as a member of the welfare committee. In the last two years be had resigned from many organizations because of his desire to lessen his activities.
Until the beginning of his last illness Mr. Agar was a member of the Union, Century, University, Metropolitan, Manhattan, Riding, Piping Rock, Turf and Field and Bankers Clubs of New York, the Pacific Union Club of San Francisco, the Metropolitan of Washington, the Arts of Washington and many others.
Mr. Agar formerly lived at 944 Fifth Avenue, but he had not lived in the city in recent years.
A Native of New Orleans.
Mr. Agar, on his mother's side, was descended from families prominent in the early history of the South. William Agar, his father, was a member of one of the oldest families in County Carlow, Ireland. After the father had gone to New Orleans to live, his unusual ability made him a leader in the business world. Mr. Agar's mother before her marriage was Miss Theresa Price of Louisville. Ky., a descendant of an early settler of that State.
Mr. Agar was born in New Orleans on June 3, 1856. His early education was received from private tutors. In 1872 he was graduated from the preparatory school of the University of Georgetown and received the degree of B. A. from the university four years later. Georgetown also made him a Master of Arts in 1888, a Doctor of Philosophy in 1889 and a Doctor of Laws in 1910.
After his graduation Mr. Agar studied biology and moral and mental science in Europe for two years. In 1878 he entered the Columbia College Law School, graduating two years later. He had made his home in New York or its vicinity ever since.
Mr. Agar was an independent Democrat, standing for uncompromising honesty and efficiency in the administration of public affairs. His independence in politics, together with his marked ability as a lawyer even while still a young man, caused President Garfield, a Republican, to appoint him as Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York in 1881. He resigned the next year and returned to private practice as senior member of the law firm of Agar, Ely & Fulton, a connection he maintained up to his death.
The cause of reform in municipal administration early enlisted Mr. Agar's ardent interest. For years he was one of the most earnest advocates of measures leading to civic righteousness in the management of New York City's business. He was one of the first and most prominent members of the People's Municipal League.
Fought for Australian Ballot.
During the State campaign of 1891 Mr. Agar was chairman of the league's executive committee, and it was largely through his efforts that the Australian system of voting was ultimately passed by the Legislature, thus doing away with many of the grosser forms of election frauds…
External link:
- WikipediaJohn G. Agar
