Esther (Ogle) Kooser
(1876-1920)
Hester
"Esther" (Ogle) Kooser was born on Dec. 28,
1876 in Pennsville, Fayette County, PA the daughter of William
D. and Sarah (Minerd) Ogle.
She apparently was named after her grandmother, Hester (Sisler) Minerd, but used the more modern form of the name, "Esther."
Four days after Christmas, on Dec. 29, 1897, Esther married John D. Kooser (1875-1944), the son of George W. and Elizabeth (Miller) Kooser of Connellsville, Fayette County. She was age 21, and he was 22, at the time of their marriage.
John was a man of medium height and build, and worked as a farm laborer. The 1900, 1920 and 1930 censuses show this family with a large brood of 11 children residing near Pennsville. Their children were Irene May Martethe, Carl Ellsworth Kooser, George Francis Kooser, Ray "Albert" Kooser, Isabel Balsley Davidson, John Henry Kooser, Charles Harold Kooser, Frank Ellwood Kooser, Edward Parker Weddell Kooser, William DePew Bow Kooser and Esther Elizabeth Kooser. Sadly, son Ray Albert (1901) died in infancy, and is buried beside his parents.
In 1900, John was a farm laborer and teamster doing general hauling. During World War I, when he registered for the draft at age 43, he was employed as a laborer for a company in Uniontown, Fayette County. Circa 1920, the family lived in East Connellsville.
In March, the family celebrated the birth of its 11th child, Esther Elizabeth Kooser. A headline in the Connellsville Daily Courier trumpeted, "Nearing the Dozen Mark," and reported the following: "Mr. and Mrs. John D. Kooser of Connellsville are receiving congratulations upon the birth of an eight pound daughter, the third girl and 11th child in the family Monday morning. The other eight children, two being twins, are boys. Mrs. Kooser formerly was Miss Esther Ogle of Pennsville."
Temporarily happy Daily Courier headline
Tragically,
the celebration was all too premature. Esther died of complications of the
birthing just five days later, on March 20, 1920, at the age of 44. Her worn out remains were
laid to rest in Pennsville at the Pennsville
Independent Cemetery. Rev. W.H. Hetrick, of the local Lutheran Church,
presided over the funeral and burial.
Compounding the tragedy, baby
Esther also died, with a month, on April 17, 1920. Rev. Hetrick again was called
upon to conduct the funeral, with the baby buried beside the mother, and the
news reported on the front page of the Daily Courier. John was thus left with a family of nine motherless
children to raise.
After a period of seven years, John married again, to Amelia T. Foreman (1874- ? ), a native West Virginian. The wedding took place on June 30, 1927, although they had known each other for several years. In fact, in 1925, when he was residing in Moyer, Fayette County, John hosted a wedding supper for one of Amelia's relatives, Charles and Reva (Foreman) May, which Amelia attended. The Koosers continued to live in Moyer following their marriage.
When the federal census was made in 1930, John worked for a foundry. Among his near neighbors in the 1930 census were cousins Howard and Phoebe (Thorpe) Workman of the Freed/Thorpe branch of our family.
John passed away in 1944, and is buried with Esther.
Son William DePew Bow Kooser (1918-1999) married Grace Elizabeth Miller ( ? -1987). He "was a lifelong resident of Connellsville and prior to his retirement he worked as a millwright for the Connellsville Mining Supply Co.," said the Daily Courier. "He was a member of the Connellsville American Legion and the Connellsville Moose Lodge." The Koosers had nine children -- William T. Kooser, Dale R. Kooser, Franklin A. Kooser, Donald Kooser, Hazel Oldland, Barbara Pericho, Deborah Hough, Kimberly Welsh and Marcia Shroyer. Grace died in 1987. William outlived her by 12 years, and passed away at the age of 81 on May 24, 1999. At the time, he was survived by 18 grandchildren and 20 great-grandchildren. He was laid to rest at Green Ridge Memorial Park in Pennsville, near Connellsville.
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The Koosers' son William T. Kooser (1940-2008) was married to Valerie J. Gallentine and had four children. Said the Connellsville Daily Courier, "He had formerly worked at the former Modulus Corp. in Mt. Pleasant for 20 years and then worked as a truck driver for Allegheny-Bedford Express. He then retired as a bus driver for Colborn Bus in Mill Run. Bill [was] a member of the Bullskin Township Lions Club, the Bullskin Township Volunteer Fire Department and a member of the former Connellsville Jaycees." He passed away at age 68 on May 31, 2008, with burial at Green Ridge Memorial Park.
The fates of the other Kooser children are not yet known.
Copyright © 2006-2008 Mark A. Miner