Elmer W. Bolen
(1904-1987)
Elmer Winston Bolen was born on June 3rd, 1904 in Columbus, Ohio. Elmer was the second of five children of Edward C. and Susan S. Bolen (née Stiles). In the 1920 Federal Census, Elmer’s family was listed as white and living in a rental home in Pomeroy, Ohio. The highest level of education Elmer completed was grammar school. At age 15, Elmer was working as a coal miner along with father and older brother Thomas.
In 1925, two days after Christmas, Elmer’s mother Susan died of uterine cancer at the age of 53. The following year, Elmer was listed in the directory of Columbus, Ohio as being a driver and living with his younger brother Virgil.
In 1931, when Elmer was 26 and living in New York, his father was killed while working in a West Virginia coal mine. In 1932, in another tragic accident, his older brother Thomas was killed while working on a highway improvement project near Haydenville, Ohio.
In October 1932, Elmer married Jeanne “Jennie” Plackin in Manhattan, New York. Their marriage was short lived however, as his Army Enlistment record stated he was separated with no dependents a few years later.
In 1942 at the age of 38, Elmer’s WW2 draft card indicated that he resided at 326 West 40th Street in New York City.
Elmer died on July 14th, 1987 at the age of 83. He was buried in Plot 179 Section 2 Grave 42 on Hart Island. Elmer outlived all of his siblings except his younger brother Edward who died in 2001.
Sources:
- Ohio, U.S., Births and Christenings Index, 1774-1973
- 1920 U.S. Federal Census
- U.S., City Directories, 1822-1995
- Ohio, U.S., Death Records, 1908-1932, Susan Stiles
- OBITUARY - Thomas Bolen, Athens Messenger, Sunday, January 18, 1931, Athens, Athens County, Ohio.
- New York, New York, U.S., Extracted Marriage Index, 1866-1937
- U.S., WWII Draft Cards Young Men, 1940-1947
- Elmer Winston Bolen, U.S. Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014
