Kindler, Paul

Born near Berlin, Germany, in 1876, Paul Kindler was raised and educated in his native country, where he learned the brick mason’s trade and served as foreman on major construction projects in Berlin. Emigrating to the United States in 1906, Kindler worked for a year with the Spealser Construction Company in Toledo, Ohio, before relocating to Fresno, California, in the fall of 1907 to establish himself as a brick and terra cotta contractor across the San Joaquin Valley.

Kindler contracted the masonry and terra cotta work for many prominent landmark structures in Fresno County and surrounding regions, including the Bank of Italy, Liberty Theater, Christian Science Church, Burnett Sanitarium, Wiley M. Giffen residence, and several high schools in Delano, Kingsburg, and Riverdale. Married in March 1915 to Meta Rehberg, Kindler became a prominent local property owner and active member of the Catholic Church in Fresno.