Feary and Moll at right
photo from maisa_nyc on Flickr CC BY-SA 2.0
Fearey and Moll was a plumbing business in the 1920s and 1930s run by Robert D. Fearey, Jr. and Charles Moll. It was at 1075 - 40th Street next to the Key System tracks.
As shown on the sign in the above photo, they also did heating and ventilation work. Their most notable work was on the Fox Oakland Theatre, which opened in 1928. 1
Robert Fearey appears to have worked as a plumber from at least 1900 to 1939. The 1900 census lists both Robert, Jr and Robert, Sr as plumbers. Fearey and Moll are associated in the directories from 1924 to 1933. [ not all years of the directory are available, so it may be longer. ] The 1935 directory lists Robert Fearey as a plumber at that address, and Charles Moll as a sheetmetal worker but no work address; by 1939 he was working for Best Furnace Company in San Leandro.
Odd bit of trivia: Robert Feary was friends with Edward J. Hampton (1878–1935). Hampton secretly starting building a crypt for himself near where Briones Reservoir is now. He kept it a secret from nearly everyone but Fearey. Fearey was tasked with completing the grave, and saw to Hampton's burial. Hampton donated some of the surrounding land with the proviso that be used as a park. 2
1950 Sanborn excerpt
There is a metal plate in front of what is now the Fairfax Lighthouse Community Church at 5345 Foothill Blvd.:
photo courtesy Andrew Alden
Links and References
- 1928 Polk's Directory
- Andrew Alden's picture of plate (and which started this entry)
- https://photos.smugmug.com/photos/i-CKr7dzL/0/L/i-CKr7dzL-L.jpg, part of EHS photos posted here: https://twitter.com/emeryhistorical/status/1591475162536644609
- Fresh Air Is Feature of Playhouse Oakland Tribune October 26, 1928
- Dam Will Spare Grave Oakland Tribune January 5, 1961
