SAUGUS — Longtime Saugus Assessor Dr. Frederick “Doc” Wagner died over the weekend at 97, and friends and colleagues are remembering a “true gentleman” and a “great guy.”
Selectmen Vice Chairman Steve Castinetti called Wagner a “very good friend” who had a great life and touched “a lot of people” in his 97 years.
“He was the kind of guy that didn’t like the limelight,” Castinetti said Monday. “Even when we would take him out for his birthday, he would just hate it that we took him out and paid. He just didn’t like to be the center of attention and didn’t want any accolades or things like that. If you ever have to explain to someone what a gentlemen is, Doc Wagner was the epitome of a gentleman.”
Castinetti said he was sad to see Wagner go, but noted “he had a tough go the last several months.”
“Now he’s at peace,” said Castinetti, who noted services for Wagner will be private. “He was a good guy, a dedicated public servant. He worked tirelessly well into his 90s for the Board of Assessors. He knew his stuff. No matter what you asked Doc he always had an answer for you. He had his thumb on the pulse of this town probably better than anybody.”
Deputy Assessor Ronald Keohan worked with Wagner for eight years and said chatting with him over coffee at the Hammersmith in the morning was the highlight of his day.
“Politics is a special hobby of mine, so to speak,” said Keohan. “So it was really an enlightening conversation about politics and what’s going on in the town. Until he got sick he was at the Hammersmith every morning for coffee, and they’d talk about what’s going on in town and try to solve the problems of the world.”
Wagner was the assessor in Saugus for more than 30 years and served right up until his death after being re-appointed in December 2010 at 95. He also served nine years on the Board of Selectmen, ran an optometrist practice and was a member of the Massachusetts Board of Registration in Optometry.
Wagner also made news in February 1985, when he helped administer first aid to fellow passengers aboard a tour bus after it hit a bridge abutment and flipped over in Connecticut.
Keohan said Wagner was like a “walking encyclopedia” of the town and knew every property by heart.
“It’s unbelievable,” he said. “He was a great, great assessor for a long time. He’s been involved in so much in this town for so many years. He’s been in the town since, I believe, 1950 ”¦ he just loved to try and help people and was just a great, great guy.”
Selectman Stephen Horlick called Wagner a fixture of the town and also recalled his encyclopedic knowledge of Saugus.
“He knew everything,” said Horlick. “He could look at a piece of property and tell you when the house was bought, how many times it’s been re-appraised. If you gave him a couple of minutes he could remember if three people owned that house in the past 30 years or five people. He was so sharp and had it right there all the time.”
State Rep. Donald Wong, R-Saugus, also called Wagner a friend and said his passing will be a “great loss” for Saugus.
“He’ll be greatly missed not only as a person on the assessors in Saugus but also as a great friend,” said Wong. “My parents knew him, and I knew him. He was like part of the family. I’m going to miss having coffee with him at the Hammersmith in the morning. I can’t say enough about the guy. I’m going to miss his smile and his laughter in the morning. It came hand-in-hand with my cup of coffee. He did great service for the community.”
Matt Tempesta can be reached at [email protected].
