George
B. Miner
(1871-1964)
George
B. Miner
was born the day after Christmas (Dec. 26), 1871 at Normalville, Fayette County, PA, the son of Martin
and Amanda (Williams) Miner. He was a longtime railroad man.
As a young adult, George moved to Scottdale, Westmoreland County, PA. He was stationed there with the Pennsylvania Railroad, a major employer in the booming era of coal, coke and steel in the greater Pittsburgh area.
On the Fourth of July 1900, at age 29, George married 20-year-old Mary Ann 'Annie' McLuckie (1880-1964) of Scottdale, Westmoreland County, PA. She was the daughter of Walter McLuckie.
(Interestingly, Annie's nephew, Charles Edward McCluckey [variant spelling] was married to our cousin, Margaret Mills.) The Miners had two sons – Clyde Miner and Lester G. Miner.
George and Mary Ann's sons Clyde and Lester
In the hot muggy days of waning summers, George and Annie often brought their sons back to the old family homeplace at Normalville to spend a week of vacation with his parents.
The Pennsylvania Railroad Yards at Youngwood, ca. 1914
The
Miners later resided for many years in their home on 7 South Sixth Street, seen
at left, in
Youngwood, Westmoreland County.
George
was a longtime laborer with the Pennsy. He belonged to an early workers' union known as the Brotherhood of Railroad
Trainmen.
George and Annie were longtime members of St. Paul’s Methodist Church of Youngwood (seen at right).
George's brother Warren also was employed by the Pennsy, and they may have labored together for a period of time. Both men are mentioned in the book, Way Back When – Youngwood, the Railroad Town, on a 1901 list of Brotherhood of Railroad Trainmen members who had paid their dues. (Another cousin who was employed at Youngwood by the Pennsy was Edward J. Lemon, husband of Bess Minerd.)
George and Annie attended a McLuckie family reunion in the mid-1930s in Star Junction, Fayette County. They are said to have been a "fun couple" and the smiles on their faces certainly suggests this was true.
Sadly, George and Annie both died in 1964. They are buried together in the Youngwood Cemetery.
Son
Lester married Catherine Drake (1914-2006) and worked at Robertshaw Controls in Youngwood. The
Robertshaw plant is seen at left in a rare old postcard photograph. He belonged to the American Federation of Musicians, Greensburg chapter.
She was a member of St. Paul United Methodist Church in Youngwood. She passed
away on Aug. 10, 2006, and was laid to rest in the Westmoreland County Memorial
Park.
Son
Clyde married Maude Diehl, and they resided in Monessen.
Clyde was a pipefitter with Wheeling-Pittsburgh Steel Corporation’s Monessen Plant,
seen here, and was a member of the Mon Valley Association of Retired
Steelworkers. Maude
worked for many years in the central supply department of Charleroi-Monessen
Hospital.
For more information on the McLuckie genealogy, contact Karen Michelotti.
Copyright © 2000, 2002-2003, 2006 Mark A. Miner