Wilson Funeral to Be Today

The Montana Standard, Butte, 1944-04-05, p.7

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Summary

Sub-head: "Death of Early-Day Electrician Mourned." Fuller next-day biographical obituary for Lewis Wilson, 75, early-day Montana electrician who took active part in independent and other power developments. Funeral services Wed Apr 5 11am at White Chapel, Rev. A. C. Caton officiating. Interment in Pony, Mont., where the family made their home for many years. Died Monday morning April 3 1944 at family home, 822 West Silver, Butte. Born in St. Paul, Minn. Early education in Hastings, Minn. Came west as a young man and settled in Pony. Married in Bozeman in 1904 to Clara Belle Nelson of Pony. **Electrician career:** Foreman of construction of the first power line from Ennis to Bozeman; installed power plants at South Boulder and Mammoth mine; lighting system in Virginia City; worked on power and lighting systems at Whitehall, Sheridan and Billings; last for Montana Power company. Retired 1933 and moved to Butte. **Sports:** Keenly interested in sports throughout life, especially baseball. Pitcher in Minnesota, Spokane and along the coast. Continued active baseball in Montana with Pony and other clubs. **Survivors** (corrects 1944-04-04 obit): widow Mrs. Clara Wilson; son and DIL Mr. and Mrs. Joseph L. Wilson of Butte; son-in-law and daughter Mr. and Mrs. Dan Murphy of Butte; brother **Frank C. DeKay** in Los Angeles; sister-in-law Mrs. Mae McLeod in Pony. ARCHIVE SIGNIFICANCE. (a) Fuller version of the 1944-04-04 obit. Gives the electrician career detail that's the actual Wilson narrative (Ennis-to-Bozeman first power line is a significant piece of Montana infrastructure history). (b) Brother's name is "Frank C. DeKay" here — earlier obit had "William DeKay" — typesetting error in one of the two. (c) The Mr. and Mrs. Dan Murphy of Butte son-in-law detail is the Murphy-archive-relevant thread. Surrounding p. 7 items (peripheral to this clipping): "Two Sentenced in Theft Case" — Amelung / Davidson trial; "Stop in for a Swell Lunch — Green's Cafe and Cocktail Lounge, 43 North Main" Green's restaurant ad; a Caliente / roulette anecdote.

In its time

Narrative

Lewis Wilson, 75, an early-day Montana electrician, died early Monday morning at the family home, 822 West Silver, Butte; services are set for Wednesday at 11 o'clock in the White Chapel with the Rev. A. C. Caton officiating, and interment at Pony. Born in St. Paul and educated in Hastings, Minn., he settled at Pony, married Clara Belle Nelson at Bozeman in 1904, and over a long career was foreman on the first power line from Ennis to Bozeman, installed the power plants at South Boulder and the Mammoth mine and the lighting system in Virginia City, and worked at Whitehall, Sheridan and Billings before retiring to Butte in 1933. He was a keen baseball man who pitched in Minnesota, at Spokane and along the coast, and is survived by his wife, his son and daughter-in-law Mr. and Mrs. Joseph L. Wilson, his daughter and son-in-law Mr. and Mrs. Dan Murphy of Butte, a brother Frank C. DeKay of Los Angeles, and a sister-in-law Mrs. Mae McLeod of Pony.

  • “Hs death is deeply mourned by many friends in Butte and in Madison and Jefferson counties.”
  • “Throughout his life he was keenly interested in sports, especiall baseball.”

AI-generated (claude-opus-5). Verify against the transcription before quoting.

People

Also mentioned

  • Mr. and Mrs. Joseph L. Wilson · son_and_daughter_in_law
  • Frank C. DeKay · brother_los_angeles

    Conflicts with 'William DeKay' in 1944-04-04 obit. Frank C. is plausibly correct given the fuller obit.

  • Mrs. Mae McLeod · sister_in_law_pony_mt
  • Rev. A. C. Caton · officiant

Places

Themes

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Source type

obituary, news_item

Related sources

Transcription
transcription: complete · confidence high
# Wilson Funeral to Be Today ## Death of Early-Day Electrician Mourned *The Montana Standard (Butte), Wednesday morning, April 5, 1944, p. 7.* Funeral services for Lewis Wilson, 75, early-day Montana electrician, who took an active part in independent and other power developments in this section of the state, will be held Wednesday morning at 11 o'clock. The services will be conducted in the White Chapel with the Rev. A. C. Caton officiating. Interment will be in Pony, where the family made their home for many years. Mr. Wilson died early Monday morning at the family home, 822 West Silver. He was the father of Joseph L. Wilson, well-known automobile dealer. Hs [sic] death is deeply mourned by many friends in Butte and in Madison and Jefferson counties. ## Born in St. Paul The old-time Montana resident was born in St. Paul and received his early education in Hastings, Minn. He came west as a young man and settled in Pony. He was married in Bozeman in 1904 to Clara Belle Nelson of Pony, who survives her husband. During his long activity as an electrician he was foreman of the construction of the first power line from Ennis to Bozeman, he installed the power plants at South Boulder and at Mammoth mine, the lighting system in Virginia City and worked on power and lighting systems at Whitehall, Sheridan and Billings, the last for the Montana Power company. In 1933 Mr. Wilson retired and moved to Butte. ## Interested in Sports Throughout his life he was keenly interested in sports, especiall [sic] baseball. As a pitcher he played in Minnesota, at Spokane and along the coast. When he came to Montana he continued active baseball, playing with the Pony and other clubs. He is survived by his wife, Mrs. Clara Wilson; one son and daughter-in-law, Mr. and Mrs. Joseph L. Wilson of Butte; one son-in-law and daughter, Mr. and Mrs. Dan Murphy of Butte; a brother, Frank C. DeKay in Los Angeles, and a sister-in-law, Mrs. Mae McLeod in Pony, Mont.

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Open questions

  • place_pony_mt, place_bozeman_mt, place_virginia_city_mt — add to /vocab/places.yaml.