A new article has been added at Newspaper Abstracts > United States > Nevada > Mineral http://www.newspaperabstracts.com/index.php?action=displaycat&catid=1001 Also visit our new sister sites: http://www.AncestorsOnTheWeb.com http://www.Genealogy101.com Direct link to article: http://www.newspaperabstracts.com/link.php?id=43822 Submitted by: Eileen Gillette Article Title: Mineral County Independent News Article Date: March 24 1943 Article Description: Samuel Thomas Kelso, Oldest Resident Of Mineral County, Dies At Age 94 Article Text: Samuel Thomas KELSO, oldest resident of Mineral County and a resident of this locality before the town of Hawthorne was founded, died last night (23 Mar)at the county hospital where he had been residing since last June. He was 94 years of age but was very active until a short time ago. It was on 6 Aug 1849 in New Brunswick, a British Colony, two and one-half miles from the boarder line of the state of Maine. He was the youngest of ten children, all of whom exceeded the three score and ten life span. One sister died at the age of 94, the mother lived to 87. At the age of 15 Samuel attempted to enlist in the Union Army because, as he put it "I had three older brothers who came over to fight for Lincoln and I figured if four of us could get in there we would wind up that battle in short order, I cried when they rejected me." In the Spring of 1872 Mr. KELSO came West and settled in the town of Seattle, WA which had a population of 2,500. He was stricken with the mining fever, however, and again took up his travels. In 1876 he held a job as superintendent at one of the mines in Virginia City. He located and sold some mining claims for a high price, taking all but $250.00 in stock. "Then I spent a year on the bum." He had mining claims in many areas of Mineral County (until 1911 Esmeralda County). He also served as Recorder/Auditor and also Clerk Treasurer, a position he held until his retirement in 1931 at the age of 82. Possibly the oldest member of the Odd Fellows Lodge in Nevada, Mr. KELSO joined that order in Aurora many years ago. When the town of Aurora declined he trqnsfered hi membership to Reno. He was past Grand Master of I.O.O.F. in Nevada and also was a charter member of the Queen of Rebekah lodge in Hawthorne which he helped organize. Under the direction of these lodges the funeral services were held in the Hawthorne Cemetery. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ NV-Old-News ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ NewspaperAbstracts.com - Finding our ancestors in the news! TM http://www.NewspaperAbstracts.com