Interview with Joe Jagoe concerning his experiences as owner and operator of Jagoe Abstract Company in Denton, Texas and co-owner of Lewisville Fishing Barge in Lewisville, Texas. Jagoe discusses his family background, the history of Carroll's Abstract business and Jagoe Abstract Company, the history of Denton courthouses, the origins of First Mondays in Denton, Denton transportation in the 1920s, and his father's experiences operating an abstract company. He also talks about the effects of the Depression in Denton, his employment as a weigher for Jagoe Public Construction Company in 1938, his work with the Universal Credit Company in Fort Worth in 1940, and his employment with Jagoe Abstract Company in 1946. Jagoe describes title policies, the problems of insurance claims filed against title policies, the locations of Jagoe Abstract Company, record-keeping in cards, microfilm, and computers, the boom of housing and the abstract business following World War II, the development of the Southridge and Montecito areas in Denton, and the typical abstract. He also comments on personnel, the incorporation of the business in 1960, the sale of the business in 1978, the area independent abstract companies, the Denton Square businesses, his civic and trade association activities, the history of the Lewisville Fishing Barge and the services it offered, and his problems insuring the Barge operation. In addition, he discusses his dealings with the City of Lewisville and the Corps of Engineers, his entry into the fishing barge operation in 1978, the effects of droughts and floods on business, a typical day's activities, employees, and his experiences with ranching and real estate.
