Kern County Obituaries

Walter Frederic Minard

Submitted by Don Stowell; 13 Feb 2008

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Source Unknown; 17 Jan 1952

Happy Minard Laid To Rest
Walter Frederic Minard, known as "Happy" to his scores of friends, died Friday, 
January, 11 at the age of 81, at his home, Red Hill, near Cantil.	
"Happy" Minard came to Mojave 25 years ago on Thanksgiving Day, 1926. He 
lived here with his wife, Bessie, and sons, Bruce and Bill, until five years ago when he 
moved to Red Hill, 20 miles north of Mojave.	
During his many years here he owned and operated the Adobe Cabins which were 
situated at J and Panamint Streets until 1946 when they were removed.
"Happy" Minard's nickname" was a descriptive one according to his friends. They 
say he was never, even through his long illness, anything but happy. Also often 
mentioned among his friends was his integrity and honesty. It was these attributes that 
endeared him to all he came in contact with.
"Happy's" history sounds much like an adventure story. He was born in Pleasant 
Grove, Iowa, on February 22, 1870, and orphaned at an early age. When still quite
a young lad, he journeyed to Texas where he became a cowboy. A few years later, he 
answered the "call of the Mississippi" and went to work on a river boat. It was there 
he earned his river pilot's license. A number of years later he went back to Texas as a 
river guard on the Rio Grande near EI Paso. Again, he ventured farther west, to 
Arizona where he worked as a forest ranger until he came to Mojave.
Few men could claim' a more varied and adventurous life or have the storehouse of 
memories that undoubtedly helped to keep "Happy Minard" a happy man. In 
addition to his wife, Bessie and sons, Bruce and Bill, he is survived by another son, 
Ed Dickerson, of Yuma, Arizona. 
Funeral services were held on Monday at 2:00 p.m. at the O'Donnell Funeral Home 
Chapel with Constable George Hodges officiating, fulfilling a promise he made to 
Mrs. Minard many years ago. Mrs. Rachel Hodges was the vocalist. Interment was in 
Mojave cemetery.