Daisy
(Minerd) Hiles Predilla
(1889-1963)
Daisy
(Minerd) Hiles Predilla was born in 1889 in Dunbar, Fayette County, PA, the daughter of Charles B. and Ada Arthill (Tressler)
Minerd.
She lived most of her adult years as a survivor, having
endured the extraordinary tragedy and pain of losing her husband (seen here)
and two sons in coal and coke accidents at work or at play.
Daisy's first husband was Josiah "Sie" Hiles Sr. (1885-1917). He was born Jan 20, 1885 and had a twin brother, David.
At age 16, on June 1, 1905, Daisy and Josiah were married. That year, he worked as a laborer at the Lafayette Works at Helen, Fayette County, a town which no longer exists. Later, he was a machinist at the Plumer Coke Works at McClellandtown, Fayette County.
Daisy
and Josiah hey had six children --
Josiah "Sie" Hiles Jr., Harry Rebock Hiles, Charles Hiles, Milford Hiles, John William
'Moonie' Hiles and Jane Lytle.
Sons Sie, Milford and Charlie are seen at left as young boys. This photograph likely taken by their uncle, Frank Minerd, who took many family pictures during this era, and in whose collection the image was found.
The
first of a series of tragedies
struck the family in the spring of 1917. That year,
Josiah was a laborer at the Plumer Works and was friends with his boss, often
wrestling for fun. In a tragic twist, Josiah was killed in a
freak accident during one of the contests. The Uniontown
Morning Herald reported that he:
... met a tragic death Saturday during a friendly wrestling bout with E.W. Eberly, superintendent of the plant. Mr. Eberly, Mr. Hiles and several other employes had gone to the mine to repair a motor. During the interval while a "trip" was being made, Mr. Hiles and Mr. Eberly engaged in a friendly wrestling bout as they had done dozens of times before. Mr. Eberly finally threw Mr. Hiles, both men falling at the same time. Mr. Hiles' head, however, struck on the edge of a bench which had been nearby but thought out of danger. Death resulted from a broken neck. Mr. Hiles is survived by his widow and four children. He was one of the most popular men at the plant.
Josiah
Sr. was buried in Pleasant View Cemetery in Dunbar.
Daisy lived near the Hope Works when, 11 years later, she faced another unspeakable tragedy -- her son Harry, seen here, drowned while playing on a raft at the works. The Uniontown Daily News Standard of April 6, 1928 reported that:
...When
an improvised raft on which a half dozen youngsters were playing last evening at
5:30 o'clock was submerged in the waters of a reservoir near Hope works, in the
vicinity of High House, Harry Rebock Hiles, aged 16, son of Mrs. Daisy Hiles ...
was drowned. His body
was recovered last night at 10 o'clock by use of dynamite by employes of the
works. The
boys had built the raft after school hours yesterday, and had just "set
sail" when too much weight drove the structure under water.
The youths were thrown in the reservoir all managing to get ashore
excepting Harry. Help was summoned
and despite hours of effort location of the body was impossible.
Two
years later, tragedy struck yet again. Son Josiah 'Sie' Jr. (seen here
at right as a young boy) was a
laborer at the Provance Mine of Powell
Coal near Masontown, Fayette County. He was married to Josephine, and they had a son, Franklin Hiles. On June 18, 1930,
Sie was "instantly killed" in a
mine accident, at age 24. The Uniontown
Daily News Standard reported that he was:
... caught beneath a trip of mine cars in the Provance mine of the Powell Coal company, near Masontown. His body was badly mangled. He is survived by his widow ... and an infant child.
After
a decade as a widow, on Nov. 8, 1927, Daisy married James Predilla (1887-1967), a
native of Austria. They are seen here. James was a coal mine laborer who lived in
Masontown, and he became step-father to Daisy's teenage children Jane and John,
who still resided at home.
Daisy faced further heartache in 1952 when her brother Arthur Ralph 'Buck' Minerd and nephew William Minerd were killed in an automobile accident near Masontown.
Daisy passed away, relieved of her many sufferings, on May 22, 1963.
Jim outlived her by four years. He died on May 1, 1967 at Uniontown. She and James and her son Josiah Jr. are buried at the Fairview Church of the Brethren Cemetery at Masontown.
Great-granddaughter-in-law Teressa Reeves has developed a website on this branch of the family. Click here for more details.
Great-great granddaughter LeAnn Hiles has been involved with important geoarchaeological research at prehistoric sites in southern Alabama. She has been praised by name by the Alabama Historical Commission. She also received the Elliott Hagler Award at the University of South Alabama for "the most deserving Geology Major planning on attending the Department's summer field school."
Copyright © 2000-2005 Mark A. Miner