Minerd.com Biography of Richard C. and Bertha (Minerd) Reese of Bessemer, Mt. Pleasant and Standard, PA

Bertha (Minerd) Reese
(1889-1952)

Bertha O. (Minerd) Reese was born in October 1889 at Stauffer near Mount Pleasant, Westmoreland County, PA, the daughter of Charles Marion and Sabina (Pierce) Minerd.

She and her husband faced almost indescribable sufferings, outliving three of their children and two grandchildren, including two who were killed in wartime military service, and another who was seriously wounded in war.

Bertha at age 16 gave birth to a baby daughter named Elvira in October 1905. The child's father was a German immigrant named "Boyer," but he and Bertha never were married. Nothing more about Boyer is known.

In November 1907, at the age of 17, Bertha was joined in the bonds of wedlock with 31-year-old Richard C. "Dick" Reese (1876-1970), a resident of Stauffer, Westmoreland County. Richard was 13 years older than his bride, and was a naturalized American citizen, having emigrated from Germany as a boy in 1882.

The portrait of Bertha seen here was taken around the time of her marriage. At the time they were wed, Richard worked as a railroad brakeman.

Richard adopted Elvira as a little girl and considered her as his own. In all the Reeses had 10 children -- Elvira May Kantorik, Charles Richard Reese, Clara Agnes Reese, Sabina Matilda Borza, Gladys Pearl Balcerek, Richard Nathan Reese, William Edward Reese, Alice Jane Balestrieri, Erma Jean Miller, Donald Henry Reese and James Arthur Reese.

When the federal census was taken in 1910, Richard, Bertha and children Elvira and Charles lived together in Bessemer, Westmoreland County. Their residence was next-door to Bertha's brother and sister, Rev. William Mullen and Violet Pearl (Johnson) Minerd, along Buckeye Road. Richard's occupation at the time was coal miner, while his brother in law Will Minerd was a tipple man in the mine.

Richard was a member of a safety team at Standard which, in 1918, won the 4th National Mine Safety contest, held at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. Other members were William Gefsky, master mechanic and team captain Curtis Spence, hoisting engineer "Rube" Spence, blacksmith Oscar L. Armstrong and hoisting engineer Milton Anderson. In 1921, he was captain of the Standard First Aid team in competition with other Frick Coke Company plants.

Circa 1919, first aid and mine rescue teams line up in "foul territory" at Pittsburgh's Forbes Field, where they competed in a contest organized by the U.S. Bureau of Mines. Richard's team won in 1918.

In 1920, the family lived on High Street in Mount Pleasant, with Richard working as a driver in the mines.

Ten years later, in 1930, when the census again was taken, the Reeses made their home in Standard (also known as Spring Garden), Westmoreland County. That year, Richard continued his longtime occupation as coal miner.

Tragedy stocked this family over and over for many years. Daughter Clara Agnes, a, 18-year-old glass worker, died from a "trench mouth" infection on Oct. 13, 1940 and was buried at Greenlick Cemetery.

Then on March 29, 1944, son William died at home at the age of 22 years, 10 months, having succumbed from the effects of grand mal seizures. An obituary in the Greensburg Daily Tribune noted that funeral services were to be held in the family home, led by Rev. Ralph Singer, pastor of the First Brethren Church.

During World War II, son Richard and grandson in law Jack Barr both joined the armed services. Tragedy rocked the family when both men were killed in action within a three-and-a-half-month time-span. While Richard was unmarried, Jack left behind a widow and young son.

Exhausted by the overwhelming struggles of life, Bertha passed away at the age of 63 on Nov. 18, 1952.

Richard survived her by 18 years, and spent his final years in the home of his son James at 23 Penn Street in Mount Pleasant. He died at the age of 94 on Feb. 28, 1970. At his death, said the Daily Courier, he was survived by 20 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren and four great-great grandchildren. He and Bertha are buried together at Greenlick Cemetery.

Richard and his 1918 National Mine Safety team are pictured in the book, A Town That Grew at the Crossroad: Borough of Mount Pleasant 1828-1978 Sesquicentennial.

Bertha and her father Charles, the year her son and son-in-law were killed at war

Daughter Elvira May Reese (1905-1973) was born on Oct. 10, 1905 in Bridgeport, Westmoreland County. She was adopted as a young girl by her step-father Richard C. Reese.

She married Charles Leo Kantorik (1900-1972), a native of Acme, Westmoreland County and the son of Albert and Josephine (Sidehammer) Kantorik.

For many years, Charles and Lawrence Kantorik jointly owned and operated Mount Pleasant Implement Store, located at 243 East Main Street, a short distance from Charles' home. In January 1951, he is known to have attended the annual farm show held in the state capitol city of Harrisburg. He also was a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of the Elks.

Elvira was a longtime member of the Wesley United Methodist Church in Mount Pleasant.

Their son Charles suffered a freak accident and amputation of the index finger of his right hand at the age of 11 in June 1939. While "playing with a farm grinder," reported the Connellsville Daily Courier, he "had his hand caught in it, mangling the finger so badly that the operation was necessary."

Heartache blanketed the family in early March 1941. Their 13-year-old son Charles -- now a sixth grader at Fairview School -- contracted acute appendicitis which led to a severe infection of peritonitis and a painful abscess in his pelvis. He underwent emergency surgery to drain the abdomen at H.C. Frick Memorial Hospital in Mount Pleasant but could not rally. He succumbed in the hospital on March 3, 1941. Funeral services were held in the Kantorik's home at 243 Main Street, officiated by Church of God pastor Rev. V.O. Barnhart. The boy's remains were placed into eternal rest in Mount Pleasant Cemetery, with an obituary published in the Connellsville Daily Courier.

Charles and Lawrence closed the implement business and held a public auction on Oct. 19, 1963. The items ranged from tools, machinery and farm implements to shop and office equipment.

At some point, prior to 1970, the couple divorced. He married again to Maude P. (?).

Charles became ill in 1972 and was admitted to Frick Community Hospital in Mount Pleasant. At the age of 72, he passed away on May 20, 1972. Burial was in Mount Pleasant Cemetery, with an obituary published in the Connellsville Daily Courier. The fate of his second spouse is not known.

At the age of 67, Elvira passed away in the Frick Community Hospital in Mount Pleasant, on Feb. 28, 1973. Following a funeral service led by Rev. H. Wayne Beam, she was interred in the Greenlick Cemetery. In an obituary, The Connellsville Daily Courier said she was survived by two grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.

Daughter Nadine Kantorik (1924-2006) was born in 1924. She married Jack Barr ( ? -1944). They had two children -- Jack L. Barr and Joyce Francis. Jack, a native of United, Westmoreland County, was a high school football player for the Hurst High School Scarlet Hurricanes. During World War II, he joined the U.S. Army and rose to the rank of sergeant. Jack saw action in the Pacific Theatre and was killed in New Guinea on April 16, 1944. A memorial service was held at St. Paul's Evangelical and Reformed Church at Trauger, officiated by Rev. A.K. Horshaver and Dr. Lloyd F. Rumbaugh, superintendent of schools in Mount Pleasant Township. In April 1945, his name was included in an alumni honor roll at Hurst High School, among 15 former students who had given their lives in wartime. Nadine outlived her husband by more than six decades. She passed into eternity on Aug. 28, 2006.

Great-grandson Jeffrey Lee Barr ( ? -1999) married Jodi. He made headlines in 1999 after he died in a mountain bike race in Ohiopyle, Fayette County. In his memory, the state of Pennsylvania dedicated a trail at Forbes State Park along Route 31, named the "Jeff Barr Memorial Trail." The story received extensive feature coverage in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and Pittsburgh Tribune-Review newspapers.

Son Charles Richard Reese (1909-1975) was born on Aug. 2, 1909 in Bridgeport, East Huntingdon Township, Westmoreland County. Mrs. B. Dolan, a midwife, assisted in the birth.

Charles grew up near the Buckeye coal mine and had an eighth grade education. He stood 5 feet, 8 inches tall and weighed 145 lbs.

In young manhood, circa 1940, he was employed as a laborer with the Pittsburgh Steel Company, working on construction of the Pennsylvania Turnpike. The United States Census of 1940 shows him making a home with his parents in Mount Pleasant at the age of 20. Their address at the time was 137 High Street.

He was united in the bonds of holy matrimony with Mary Martha Kuniec (Feb. 5, 1912-1964), a native of Czechoslovakia and the daughter of Bartholomew and Anna (Wasyl) Kuniec.

Charles and Mary Martha made their dwelling-place in Owensdale near South Everson, Fayette County. He was employed for many years as a plater's helper by Robertshaw Controls Company of New Stanton, and eventually retired from the company.

Robertshaw Controls, where Charles Reese Sr. was employed

Sadly, Mary Martha suffered from an enlarged heart, and physicians noted a "severe deformity of chest." She was admitted to H.C. Frick Community Hospital and died there at the age of 52 on Nov. 19, 1964. Interment was in St. Joseph's Cemetery in Everson.

Mary Martha's obituary in the Connellsville Daily Courier reported that among her survivors were four adult siblings -- Michael Kuniec of Erie, Sophie Foriska of Erie, Josephine Drotser of Detroit and Antoinette Kusiolek of Youngwood.

Charles Sr. outlived his wife by 11 years and maintained a residence in South Everson. He enjoyed a special bond with his young granddaughter Karen Lynn.

With his health in decline, he was admitted to Frick Community Hospital. After a stay of two weeks, he succumbed to the spectre of death there on July 17, 1975, at the age of 65. Rev. C. Smith Hixson preached the funeral service, with burial following in Greenlick Cemetery. His obituary also was published in the Daily Courier.

Son Charles Richard Reese Jr. (1942-living) was born in about 1942 and grew up in South Everson, Fayette County. He served in the U.S. Army in 1964 and was based at Fort Hood, TX. He is the father of Karen Lynn Reese and settled in Erie, PA. He has attended several of our reunions over the years and graciously provided valuable content for this biography.

At the age of 18, living at 137 High Street in Mount Pleasant, she was employed circa 1940 as a glass worker.

Clara suffered for four weeks from "quincy," also known in more precise medical terms as "Vincent's Angina" or more simply "trench mouth" -- a major type of infection of the gums due to buildup of bacteria.

Unable to regain her health, she died on Oct. 13, 1940, at the age of 18, and was buried at Greenlick Cemetery.

Daughter Gladys Pearl Reese (1917-2008) was born on June 19, 1917 in Mount Pleasant.

They produced three children -- Sylvia Elsbury, Sandra Shaffer and John Balcerek.

Gladys outlived her husband by 16 years. She died at the age of 91 in Excela Health Frick Hospital in Mount Pleasant on Sept. 21, 2008. She was laid to rest in Mount Joy Cemetery, following a funeral led by Rev. Mark Peachey. At her death, reported the Greensburg Tribune-Review, she was survived by six grandchildren.

During World War II, he was a member of the 3160 O.B.A. and F.C. Company, 6100 B.A.M. Battalion.

He lost his life in an attack in Dorchester, England, on Aug. 1, 1944, at the age of 24.

His remains were not returned home for burial until July 1948, after an interval of nearly four years. He rests in the family plot at Greenlick Cemetery.

He is one of far too many cousins in the extended family to give his life for the supreme sacrifice in United States military service during wartime.

Son William Edward Reese (1922-1944) was born on May 23, 1922 in Mount Pleasant.

When he was age nine, William was struck by a moving vehicle, and never fully recovered his health despite suffering for the next 13 years. In 1944, he resided at home with his parents at 137 High Street in Mount Pleasant but was not employed.

In late 1943 or early 1944, he began to suffer epilepsy-type seizures, known as "grand mal convulsions." After enduring the seizures for three months, he may also have contracted tuberculosis and peritonitis.

An obituary in the Greensburg Daily Tribune noted that funeral services were to be held in the family home, led by Rev. Ralph Singer, pastor of the First Brethren Church. Burial was in the Reese plot of graves in Greenlick Cemetery.

Daughter Alice Jane Reese (1924-2009) was born on Sept. 19, 1924 in Mount Pleasant.

Anthony died in October 1974 in Greensburg. Alice remained in Greensburg for the rest of her life and was a member of Blessed Sacrament Cathedral.

She died on Jan. 9, 2009, at the age of 84. Interment was beside her husband in Greensburg Catholic Cemetery. The Greensburg Tribune-Review noted in an obituary that she was survived by three grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

Daughter Erma "Jean" Reese (1927- ? ) was born on Oct. 1, 1926 in Mount Pleasant

The couple produced four daughters -- Ruth Jean Vernon, Karen Sirianni, Gail Geyer and Reida Miller.

They lived in Mount Pleasant and were members of the Mount Pleasant Church of the Brethren. Erma Jean also belonged to the Ladies Auxiliary of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and American Legion posts and in later years to the Multi-Service Senior Citizens Center. She loved to garden and raised many different types of flowers.

Erma Jean outlived her husband by nine years. She contracted cancer and eventually was admitted to H.C. Frick Hospital, where she succumbed at the age of 73 on Feb. 1, 2000. Funeral services were led by Rev. Henry G. Landis, with interment in Mount Joy Cemetery.

He married (?) Newill, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Stanley Newill of Kecksburg, Westmoreland County.

They had three known children -- Donald Henry Reese Jr., Cheryl Ann Reese and William Edward Reese.

The family resided in Mount Pleasant in 1954 and in Alverton, Westmoreland County in 1970.

Heartbreak followed this family again in June 1954, when 13-month-old son William "pulled a pot of hot coffee down over himself," reported the Connellsville Daily Courier. He suffered "burns on the back and hips" and died shortly afterward in the H.C. Frick Memorial Hospital in Mount Pleasant. The lad's tender remains were laid to rest in the Middle Presbyterian Cemetery at Middle Churches, following a federal led by Rev. George Coffman of the Kecksburg Church of God.

Donald passed into eternity at the age of 55 on Oct. 1, 1985. He reposes for eternity n Middle Presbyterian Cemetery in Mount Pleasant.

Son James Arthur Reese (1931-2002) was born on March 31, 1931 in Mount Pleasant. With the exception of wartime military service, he spent his entire life in the community.

During the Korean War, he served in the U.S. Army as a corporal, and saw action in the Chorwan Valley. He was wounded and initially was treated at Tokyo Army Hospital.

While there, he received a visit from General John E. Hull, UN Commander, Far East, and a photographer snapped a photo of the general at James' bedside. The image was published in the Jan. 30, 1954 edition of James' hometown newspaper, the Connellsville Daily Courier.

James received further treatment at Walter Reed Army Hospital in Washington, DC, and was discharged in June 1955. Upon his return home, he became a member of the Disabled American Veterans, American Legion and Veterans of Foreign Wars. He also joined the Mount Pleasant Fireman's Club.

In 1955, at the age of 24, James married Janet Ersick. They had two children, James Arthur Reese Jr. and Wendy Sue Reese.

James also was close with his widowed niece Nadine (Kantorik) Barr, and they "enjoyed making ceramics" together at Creations Unlimited, said the Daily Courier.

James and his wife and niece Nadine attended our national family reunion in July 1999, held at the Kingwood Picnic Grove in Somerset County, PA, just about a mile from the farm where his great-grandfather Eli Minerd was born in 1831. Several months later, James attended the large reunion of his uncle's family -- Rev. William Mullen Minerd -- and reconnected with his cousins.

He died at the age of 70 on March 27, 2002, in UPMC Presbyterian Hospital in Pittsburgh. Rev. Sherry A. Miller led the funeral, followed by interment in Mount Pleasant Cemetery.