Bio-Minerd, AlbertWard

Albert "Ward" Minerd
(1895-1972)

Albert "Ward" Minerd was born on Sept. 2, 1895 near Mill Run, Fayette County, PA, the son of Lawson and Lutitia (Steyer) Minerd. His family has been very active and visible in the public eye for many years, both locally and nationally.

Ward grew up on his parents' farm in Maple Summit, a mountainous area about three miles from Mill Run, near where his great-great grandparents had settled as pioneers in 1791, and to where his grandparents had returned in 1867.

On Jan. 15, 1917, in Uniontown, Fayette County, Ward married Ada Whipkey (1895-1971). She was the daughter of Albert S. Whipkey of Mill Run. They had five children – Ferne Lucille Work, Delbert Minerd, Ruth Cunningham, Dalton 'Dale' Minerd and Byron 'Kenneth' Minerd.

Seen here is a three-generation photograph taken on the Maple Summit farm in March 1917, when the trees were bare and the shadows strong. Ward proudly holds their firstborn baby Ferne, posing with Ada (right) and mother Lutitia (at left, in profile). The picture was taken as part of a series of photographic views of the farm made by Ward's brother Freed.

That same year, in October, Ada wrote a short postcard to her mother in law, who apparently was residing in the nearest town, Mill Run:

Ward has the coal out. You can get it any time. If you bring some of our buckwheat please bring our mail.... Come down when you can.

Ward was a custodian at the Mill Run School. He also is said to have helped install electrical wiring during construction of Fallingwater.

Circa 1940, Ward served as assistant secretary of the Hampton Church of God in Mill Run, a congregation his father had helped to found. Later, the Minerds were members of the Mill Run Evangelical United Brethren Church, where Ada served as Sunday School teacher for many years.

Circa 1945-1946, Ward was a foreman with Region Electric and Machine Co. in Mill Run.

When Ward’s parents celebrated their golden wedding anniversary in 1940, Ada and several cousins served a plate lunch for 61 guests.

During World War II, Ada made a financial donation to assist their daughter Ferne in her volunteer work as an editor of The Messenger (seen at left). The newspaper was church-oriented, "published in the interest of Christ and the Communities of Mill Run, Ohiopyle and Hickman Chapel." It was sent to local servicemen and women deployed around the globe, and designed to maintain their morale as well as that of of local residents. Its mission was to keep readers informed of the whereabouts and activities of their fighting husbands, brothers, sons and friends overseas. Copies of nine issues of this fascinating newspaper are in the Minerd-Miner-Minor Archives (October 1944, November 1944, January 1945, June 1945, October 1945, December 1945, January 1946, February 1946 and March 1946).

Son Delbert (seen here in uniform) served in action with the 305th Infantry of the 77th Division of the Army during World War II. Stationed in the Philippines, Delbert was an admirer of famed war correspondent Ernie Pyle, whose stories about common soldiers on the front lines were seen in newspapers coast to coast -- before Pyle was felled by a Japanese bullet in 1945. As reported in The Messenger, "the 77th Division ... was with Ernie Pyle when he fell. Delbert said they lost a great friend when Pyle was killed, [and] that he had done many things for them." In a letter to his grandmother Minerd, Delbert also penned these words:

I know you have been praying for all of us who [are] over here doing our little bit to win this war. I don't want you to quit for one minute because it looks like it is about over, but just keep right on. I'm sure that is the reason we are making such progress.

In January 1967, Ward and Ada marked their 50th wedding anniversary. They celebrated with an afternoon dinner in the dining room of their church. Said the Connellsville Daily Courier, "The buffet-style dinner was served [to] approximately fifty relatives and guests, including a number of out-of-town persons… The celebrants were recipients of many gifts and flowers."

Ward outlived her by on a few months, and passed away on July 2, 1972, at age 77. They are buried together at the Indian Creek Baptist Church Cemetery in Mill Run.

Ward and all five of their children are mentioned in the 1970 book, A History of Mill Run, a landmark history of their community.

Daughter Ferne Minerd (1917-1997) married Graydon Work (1917-2001 ), the son of Grover Cleveland and Mabel Marie (Friend) Work. They were the longtime owners of the "Working Acres Farms" in Mill Run, a "'Dairy of Distinction" with a prominent sign in Mill Run. Said the Uniontown Herald-Standard, Graydon "was a former Committeeman of the Fayette County ASCA office, former board member of the Fayette County F.H.A., and a member of Mill Run Grange 1109..." He was also "a charter member of the Springfield Township Volunteer Hose Company." Ferne served as a post office employee, as clerk of the Indian Creek Baptist Church and taught Sunday School there for 40 years. In mid-August 1956, when Connellsville, Fayette County celebrated its sesquicentennial (150th) anniversary, Graydon served on the Agricultural Day Committee along with distant cousins Lawrence Leonard and Emmett Newell. Graydon was named in the official program booklet, today preserved in the Minerd- Minard- Miner- Minor Archives. A number of other cousins were active volunteers with the celebration, including former Connellsville Mayors Dr. H. Daniel Minerd and Ira David Younkin who were members of the Executive Committee. Ferne and Graydon and their children are listed in the 1975 book, Brooks Family History. Ferne passed away at the age of 80 on May 6, 1997. Graydon outlived her by four years. He died on Dec. 4, 2001. They rest for eternity at the Indian Creek Baptist Church Cemetery.

Above: Ferne and Graydon Work, 1988. Below: Working Acres Dairy Farm along Route 381 near Mill Run

Daughter Roberta "Ruth" Minerd (1924-2009) married Jack Rush Cunningham (1923-2009), the son of Mathew Ross and Helen Irene (Rush) Cunningham of Ohiopyle. They had four children -- Larry Cunningham, John "Jack" Cunningham, Joy Miller and Deborah Inks. During World War II, Jack served in the U.S. Army Air Corps, was shot down over Germany and held as a prisoner of war in the Stalag B prison camp. Following marriage, the Cunninghams resided for a period of years in Beaver County, PA. They later divorced, with Ruth residing in Mill Run and Jack in McDonald, Washington County, PA. Ruth was "a very active member of the Mill Run United Methodist Church," said the Connellsville Daily Courier, "and a former member of the Mill Run Senior Citizens Club." Ruth passed away on Aug. 8, 2009, at the age of 85. Jack died at the age of 86 on Nov. 13, 2009. At the time of their deaths, they had produced 11 grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. Tragedy struck this family twice with the accidental deaths of son in law Roger Wesley Miller (1993) and Daniel A. "Poke" Inks (2009).

Seen at left, grandson Kenneth Tilghman Minerd serves on the Regional Trail Corporation (reappointed in 2005) and the Zoning Hearing Board of the City of Uniontown, PA (2001). He is a senior commercial lines analyst with the Barnett Inc. insurance agency in Pittsburgh. Ken and his son run a golf-equipment website, MinerdGolf.com, a leading information resource about golf tournaments, products, services and member benefits. In 2003, Ken graciously chaired our "Jacob Minerd Weekend Proclamation Committee."

Grandson B. Scott Minerd is CEO and chief investment officer of Guggenheim Partners Asset Management. In April 2006, he was a guest speaker at the Milken Institute's Global Conference on "Expanding Opportunities in the Global Marketplace." Previously, he was chairman of Hedgefund.net. He also has been a managing director for Morgan Stanley and Credit Suisse, where he oversaw fixed-income credit trading in the U.S., Europe and Asia, and has made contributions to the development of derivative securities in the global capital markets.

Grandson Dean Minerd is an actor, director, producer, author and entrepreneur based in Hollywood. Early in his career, he appeared in such films as Demolition Man (with Sylvester Stallone, Wesley Snipes and Sandra Bullock) and The Arrival. He once was a contestant on Dick Clark's hit TV show, $25,000 Pyramid, and helped publicize the smash TV show, X-Files, when it made its cable premier on the FX Network. Currently, Dean is a partner in a TV production company, Evolution Film & Tape, where he is executive producer for shows the company creates and produces. His clients have included ABC, Comedy Central, FX, Lifetime, HBO, Paramount Television and TLC (The Learning Channel) in addition to Norman Lear's Declaration of Independence Road Trip, the Thomas Jefferson Foundation and the Academy of Television Arts and Science. He has created, developed and managed the productions of Clean Sweep for TLC, The Mansion and House Rules for TBS, King of the Jungle II for Animal Planet and Boy Meets Boy for Bravo, among others. In late 2007, he was named executive producer for "Battle of the Bods" on the Fox Reality Channel. His work puts him in regular contact with such superstars as Matt Damon, Cher, Chris Rock, Jennifer Lopez, Reese Witherspoon and John Travolta. Dean and co-author Christine Ecklund published a book in 2004, entitled Fixed Mix Seeks Same - The First Book of Dog Personal Ads.

Daughter Mary Ellen Hoover is a librarian at Rockwood (PA) High School and has coached junior high athletics for many years. Her husband Harry was a member of the Rockwood school board in the mid-1980s.

Great-grandson John Warrick is a science teacher at Connellsville Junior High East.

Other grandchildren have been very active in the nursing, coaching, community and church activities in Western Pennsylvania.