Irish immigrant Thomas Breen came to Mineola working for the Texas & Pacific Railroad Company, which reached the town in May 1873. He stayed to be the first ticket agent. In the late 1870s, he wed Irish native Lucy Wilson. In the 1880s, he opened a hardware store. He served for many years as postmaster and later as city alderman. Of the Breens' twelve children, one also served as city postmaster, one served as city commissioner, one played on the 1912 baseball team, one helped establish the Mineola Canning Company, and three served during World War I. The Breen home, now razed, served for many years as a meeting place for early Catholic residents of the city. (2004)