NameElizabeth “Betty” L BLOOM 130
Birth Date8 Oct 1922131
Death Date11 Nov 2005131 Age: 83
Cause of DeathInjuries sustained from a fall (see notes)
FatherDavid Lucien BLOOM (1888-1970)
Misc. Notes
Betty was with a grandson visiting her son Rusty who was in jail when she fell backwards while climbing stairs and died as a result.124,121
____________

An Elizabeth L. Lines SSN: 165-48-6908, issue state Pennsylvania, last residence 16830 Clearfield, Clearfield, Penssylvania. Born: 8 Oct 1922, Died 11 Nov 2005 Pennsylvania.131
Spouses
Birth DateJul 1905
Residence PlaceEast Orange, Essex Co., NJ, USA
OccupationWorked For The Thomas Edison Company In West Orange, NJ
Misc. Notes
Lester’s daughter Cheryl decsribed her father as “a great guy, a hard worker, a good provider and a good christian man who took care of his aging aprents in their last days.”119

There are a lot of Boal family members buried at Centre Methodist Episcopal Church Cemetery, Hyde, Clearfield, PA with headstone photos at USGenWeb site.716,790
____________

Lester had a brother Russell who also worked for the Thomas Edison Company, first in Ohio and later moved to East Orange, NJ.789
Family ID584
Misc. Notes
Bettgy left her husband Lester to marry Elmer.119
ChildrenDonald Lee (<1944-1996)
 David Lester (1946-)
 Cindy Ann (1953-)
 Gary Robin (1955-)
Birth Date29 Jan 1911111
Birth PlaceCurwensville, Clearfield Co., PA, USA
Residence Date6 May 1937112 Age: 26
Residence PlaceFort Monroe, Hampton Co., VA, USA
Residence Date15 Apr 1940113 Age: 29
Residence PlaceCurwensville, Clearfield Co., PA, USA
Residence Date15 Jul 1947114 Age: 36
Residence PlaceBloomington, Clearfield Co., PA, USA
Residence Date25 Mar 1953115 Age: 42
Residence PlaceCurwensville, Clearfield Co., PA, USA
Residence Date26 Aug 195515 Age: 44
Residence PlaceGlen Richey, Clearfield Co., PA, USA
Residence Date15 Jun 1961116 Age: 50
Residence PlaceCurwensville, Clearfield Co., PA, USA
Residence Date27 Jun 197463 Age: 63
Residence PlaceCurwensville, Clearfield Co., PA, USA
Residence Date8 Nov 1983117 Age: 72
Residence PlaceJamestown, Chautauqua Co., NY, USA
Residence DateJan 19887
Residence PlacePhilipsburg, Centre Co., PA, USA
Death Date26 Jan 1988111 Age: 76
Death PlacePhilipsburg, Centre Co., PA, USA
Soc. Sec. #172-16-0419, issued in Pennsylvania state118
OccupationWorked In The Coal Mines Of Clearfield County, PA7
OccupationDrove A Coal Truck When Married To Betty119
Cause of DeathHeart Attack120
FatherHarry Wilbur LINES (1884-1974)
MotherNora Agnes WERTZ (1886-1963)
Misc. Notes
Elmer served in the U.S. Army and was in his second enlistment in the spring of 1937 when his brothers Wilbur and Reuben also enlisted. He had been stationed at Ft. Monroe, VA, and in May of 1937 was assigned to Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, D.C.112
____________

A lot of people thought Elmer had a college education by the way he talked. He was once encouraged to become a wrestler.121
____________

In my observations I'm amazed at how much my uncle Elmer Byron Lines resembles in appearance his uncle Byron Francis Lines (1888).3
_______________

Memories of my Uncle Elmer
By his nephew Richard Lee Gleason

My uncle Elmer was among my favorite uncles, probably because I saw him fairly regularly during our trips to Pennsylvania and during one particular summer when I spent more than a month with him and his family.

Tall, broad-shouldered, tatooed and a muscular physique built while working in the coal mines as a young man, Elmer was an intimidating sight. With his black hair combed in a similar fashion, and the same kind of voice and appearance, he reminded me of singer Johnny Cash, but my uncle was more rugged around the edges. His step daughter, Sherry once told me he would say “I’m more like John Wayne than John Wayne was!” There may have been some truth to that!

Like many in my family Uncle Elmer was much more talkative and outgoing when he was drinking, which I witnessed on occasion to some excess. At times during his bouts with alcohol his demeanor could turn mean. But, all-in-all my memories of my time spent with him were those of fun adventures.

One summer when I was about nine years old, I spent about a month of my summer vacation staying with Uncle Elmer and his family. He and his wife Betty had about ten kids at home. Some of the kids were hers, and a few were theirs together. Suffice to say, there was a lot of kids to play with. Elmer had lost his young wife Sarah years earlier to cancer while Betty was divorced. My uncle didn't work and lived in a very old two-story house in the country a few miles from Clearfield in an area known as Bailey Settlement.

One night during that summer in the black darkness Uncle Elmer took a couple of his step sons and I “snipe” hunting. In the middle of a nearby cornfield two of us held a burlap bag open while another shined a flashlight into it’s entrance. Once the stage was set the idea was that my Uncle would walk some distance away and then work his way back toward our trap. The little chipmunk-like creatures, as the legend pretended, would scurry away as he approached and be attracted to the shelter enticed by the lighted bag, thus trapping one or more of them in our midst. While the three of us crouched in anticipation, Uncle Elmer apparently ventured home nearby for a cup of coffee. About twenty minutes later he returned where we lay in-wait and asked, “Did you catch anything?”

Typically he and his brothers loved the outdoors and always had a gun nearby. A short walking-distance up the wooded hill behind his house he once took me frog hunting, where there was a small pond. We took our place on a slight incline above the pond and with his 22 revolver within a few short minutes shot several unsuspecting frogs. That night we ate frog legs. Tasted like chicken!

Often Uncle Elmer would take the family out at night to drive along the deserted mountainous gravel and dirt roads that for miles surrounded his home to “spot deer.” This is one of my most memorable and fun experiences as a young boy. With his car-mounted spot light we would find along the country and mountain roads open fields and with the bright light we’d often find as many as a dozen or so deer grazing in the darkness just a short distance away. Sometimes they would slowly walk, sometimes run away from the lumination while at other times they would just stand and look back at us as we gazed upon them and counted their antlers.

I remember being amazed by the massive number of lightning bugs we would see at night among those open country fields. It was quite a sight as thousands with their intermittent blinks of yellow-green light would dot the darkness that surrounded them. Not since I left the east do I recall ever again seeing these unique little bugs. As a young boy when home my friends and I would often entertain ourselves in the evenings by catching them and keeping them in a jar to softly light our bedrooms.

During those hot and humid summer days as we’d drive to town or other places we’d occasionally see a rattlesnake lying and sunning itself along or slowly meandering across the road. Uncle Elmer would never hesitate to take whatever means necessary to drive over them. Often times they’d quickly try to slink away and he’d back up and do it again, in an effort to bring them to a sudden demise. With each kill he’d pull out the sheathed knife he always carried and cut off their rattles as a trophy. Usually the bigger the snake, the more rattles to be counted. They’d range in length from three or four feet to as much as six. Once the snake was confirmed dead my uncle would throw it’s remains in the trunk and take it home and skin it for a tasty treat. Tasted like chicken!

One day while my cousins and I were out exploring the countryside we came across, in an open field, an old rotted tree stump and heard some kind of noise from under it. With a little effort we tugged, pulled and kicked it over and to our amazement discovered a large den of snakes in a hole hidden beneath it. It was literally a ball of about two to three feet in circumference made entirely of snakes! I was horrified! As a “city boy” I’d never seen anything like it, nor have I since. All we could think to do was run! Whether it was a result of that experience or not, I’ve never liked snakes.

Shortly before my time was over for my summer adventure Uncle Elmer wrapped his western-style holster with one of his pearl-handled revolvers around my waist. I recall he had to wrap it around me twice and tuck in it’s end to secure it to my tiny frame. It was heavy and even a bit cumbersome but he had me pose as a gunslinger about to draw my weapon and took a picture. I beamed with excitement that he would do that for me.

In November of 1987 I had the long awaited opportunity to return to Pennsylvania and Ohio for a short visit. I spent a total of ten days there and was able to see my mother, who was now retired and living in Philipsburg, not far from Clearfield.

Uncle Elmer also lived in the same community and on one occasion during that trip I got to visit with him at his apartment. He was a shadow of the man he used to be. A short time later Uncle Elmer passed away just three days short of his seventy-seventh birthday. His health was poor and he collapsed in the bitter cold winter weather outside his apartment from an apparent heart attack. When I heard the news I thought how grateful I was to have been able to see and visit with him only two months earlier. He was the first of the nine remaining brothers and sisters to die, since my father had passed away 32 years before.3


See my blog: Little Bit Country - Summer Days and Summer Nights
http://wp.me/p1FkLd-1Lz
Family ID232
Marr Date1959/1960119
Misc. Notes
The compiler of this database Richard Lee Gleason spent part of a summer vacation with his uncle Elmer, his wife Betty and most of their children in the 1960’s. He wrote about that experience in his blog. See: Little Bit Country - Summer Days and Summer Nights: http://wp.me/p1FkLd-1Lz
Last Modified 31 Aug 2016Created 17 May 2017 Rick Gleason - ricksgenealogy@gmail.com