Minckler came to the Honey Lake Valley from his native Wisconsin and settled near present day Standish in 1872, with his grandmother, Hannah Lax, and his mother, Mary Kelley. It should be noted that he never met his half-brother Elbern Kelley who drowned in Honey Lake in 1863 at the age of 9. Minckler was a civil engineer for nearly thirty-five years. The position of county surveyor in Minckler’s lifetime was an elected one. He was elected twice, first in 1882, and again in 1890. Among the projects Minckler did in the private sector was that of Ward Lake, Hall’s Addition and Lassen Townsite, which is a huge subdivision from Richmond Road extending all the way past present day Plumas Bank to San Francisco Street—that location better known for a farmer’s market during the summer months.
In the Lassen Townsite subdivision a street was named after him, as were many of the investors, such as Alexander, Knoch, and Pardee. Its probably a good thing for Minckler, since there is no marker for his grave in the Susanville Cemetery. Those very seasoned residents of Susanville might remember when the Susanville Branch of the Lassen County Free Library was in a small building next to Susanville’s City Hall on North Lassen Street. That structure was originally Minckler’s office building.
