Thomas Joseph Wagner

Thomas Joseph Wagner was born on September 18, 1958 in Racine, Wisconsin. His parents were Herbert J. Wagner II, a World War II veteran with the Fifth Armored Division in Europe and Mary Anne (Fassie) Wagner, a homemaker. He was baptized Thomam losephum Wagner in the old St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church that stood on the corner of College Avenue and Eighth Street near downtown. Founded in 1852 by German immigrants, his families were among the founders and original parishioners. His great grandfather Michael Wagner, Jr. was editor and publisher of the Racine News and Burlington Standard-Press newspapers. Through his paternal great grandmother, Tom was first cousin twice removed to Frank X. Zirbes, Racine's famous Mitchell automobile test driver and early Mitchell motorcycle racer.

Tom grew up on Grove Avenue on Racine's south side a block north of the big North Shore Electric Railroad substation near the Taylor Avenue crossing. As a small child Tom developed a great love for trucks, cars, and motorcycles. His Buddy L and Tonka earth movers were his favorite sandbox toys. When a neighbor man, who owned a 1952 Chevy pickup with J.C. Whitney stacks pulled out of his driveway, Tom's family would call out, "Wayne's truck, Tommy, Wayne's truck." Still a toddler in pajamas with feet, Tom would come running to watch it go by. Unbelievably, 50 years later he tracked that truck down to northwestern Minnesota. Unfortunately, by then it was too far gone to restore.

Tom attended S.C. Johnson Elementary School, Mitchell Junior High School, and was a 1976 graduate of Washington Park High School. He also attended Gateway Technical College to learn welding. As a kid he loved comic books, buying DC and Marvel titles from the old Canteen Pharmacy on Taylor Avenue and Neisner's dime store downtown that had the city's best comic book selection. Eventually he amassed a large Silver Age collection. Tom also kept tropical fish, pet pigeons and turtles. His snapping turtle "Snapper Carr" grew so big that Tom finally set it free in the Fox River near Burlington. Tom loved dogs. Over the years he had a succession of hounds: Tramp, Scout, Scamp, Smoky, and Clyde. As a youth he was a paperboy for The Journal Times newspaper and used his earnings to buy a bright yellow Chicago Schwinn 10-speed bicycle from Racine Cyclery on North Main. He loved that bike. In high school he lifted weights and became quite strong. He enjoyed his family's yearly fishing and swimming vacation with the DeChecks at Musky Bay Resort on White Sand Lake on the Lac du Flambeau Indian Reservation in northern Wisconsin. While in high school Tom got his first car; a two-tone green 1956 Oldsmobile V-8 nicknamed "The Hulk" that he proudly drove to school. He kept that car all of his life.

A hard worker who never missed a day of work, Tom as a teenager was a clean-up boy for the R.H. Boehm Company, a machine shop behind Pierce Woods Park. Then he drove truck for The Journal Times, delivering paper bundles on the Burlington route. He liked that job. After high school Tom found employment with Twin Disc, Inc., where his father worked. Laid off during the severe recession of 1981-1982, he found work at an apartment complex on Durand, then ran maintenance at Holy Communion Church. Lastly hired by Modine Mfg. Company, he serviced machines and did other jobs there until his retirement.

During his lifetime Tom was an avid collector of trucks, cars, and motorcycles -- too many to fully list here. Besides his Oldsmobile, his favorites included a 1950 Chevy pickup nicknamed "Bumper," a 1956 Chevy four-door sedan nicknamed "Roberta" (it came from Roberts, Wisconsin), a late 1940s Chevy one-ton, and a Ford Model A. For many years his primary transportation was a heavy-duty 1972 Chevy 3/4 ton pickup with 4-speed transmission nicknamed "Melvin." He replaced the engine himself more than once, but the gearbox never failed. One of his hobbies was visiting auto salvage yards all over the Midwest that he recorded in 60 photo albums. A long-time member of the Antique Motorcycle Club of America, Tom also collected and rode Harley-Davidson motorcycles. These included a 1931 VL, 1939 Knucklehead (Frank Cihler's old bike), 1947 WL, 1948 WL, and a 1950 FL reverse-gear Panhead with sidecar. He also had a 1973 FLH Shovelhead (Ted Mastos's old bike), and a late model Twin Cam 88 Electra Glide Standard that he put many miles on. Perhaps Tom's favorite vehicle of all was his father's 1970 Chevy Impala, nicknamed "Spot" after its blue spray bomb paint job. Although Tom planned to keep that car forever, the frame broke in half and he was reluctantly forced to scrap it.

Tom did all his own vehicle restoration and maintenance work and accumulated a great stockpile of spare parts. He owned a million tools and was always willing to lend you one. To store his countless treasures, Tom bought an old brick factory building on the 1700 block of Racine Street with a storied history of its own. Originally built in 1909 by the Wabers Mfg. Company to make potato and onion diggers, during Prohibition it was raided several times by police as a place of illegally manufactured booze. In the late 1920s it became an automobile repair and towing company known as Perfect Motor Service. Then it was an Auburn automobile dealership. Then a Buick dealership. In more recent times it housed the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Business Group and the local Nation of Islam Muhammed Racine Study Center. Before Tom bought it in 2005, it was occupied by a heating and air conditioning company.

After a long struggle with cancer, Tom passed away on March 10, 2026, age 67 years, 5 months, and 20 days. He was preceded in death by his parents Herbert and Mary, his older sister Linda (Wagner) Somogyi, nephew Joseph W. Somogyi, and dog Clyde. Tom is survived by his brother, Herbert J. Wagner III; brother-in-law, Joe Somogyi; nephew, Aaron Somogyi; one uncle, Robert Wagner of Racine; and many cousins. Special friends who mourn his absence include Annabelle ("The Hulk") and Roberta, Melvin, Bumper and his big brother, Grumper, Murray, Michael, John Harris, John Francis, Dave Eickelberg, SPECIAL, special friends Kristee and Cindy, and many others.

A memorial service will be held at Maresh-Meredith & Acklam Funeral Home, 803 Main St., on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, 11:30 am. Relatives and friends may meet prior to the service 10 – 11:30 am.

The service will be live streamed and may be viewed at https://www.facebook.com/meredithfuneralhome/

Memorials to the American Cancer Society have been suggested.

Special thank you to the staff of Compassus Hospice for their loving and compassionate care.