MEMORIES OF GEORGE LOAR

Written by his daughter: Margaret Jean (Loar) Bradley

George Loar was born February 21, 1910 to William and Desdemona Loar.   He was the oldest of nine children.   He had two brothers, John and Wesley, as well as six sisters, Julia, Anna, Rosie, Mary, Ella, and Esther.  

He was raised on a farm on Dan's Mountain in Lonaconing, MD. At the age of ten, he began mining and continued that the rest of his life.   Whatever money he made, he turned over to his father to help support the family.   He did this until he married in 1931.

He began dating Gladys Marie Ross when she was just 14 and he was 18.   They married shortly after her 18th birthday. They had four children, Margaret Jean in 1933, George Robert in 1937, Gladys Marie in 1941, and Janet Ruth in 1946.

He bought a farm not too far from his parents and that is where he remained.   He took a correspondence course and received a diploma on training horses and was quite successful at that.   He built a well on a high spot surrounded by trees.   The gravity pulled the water into the house.   This was a popular spot for visitors to take a stroll and see.   He had piped in water before he had electricity.   He also experimented quite successfully with using many Delco batteries hooked together to create some electricity in the house.   Eventually in the fall of 1946, electricity was brought up the mountain and installed in the house.

He did some farming, but he continued to earn his living as a miner.   He took a special course to become a foreman and was proud of his certificate.   Unfortunately, because he was a foreman, he was one of several bosses who were sent to "dust" the mine for gas pockets to prevent accidents when the miners were there.   I don't think it was ever determined exactly what happened, but something went wrong and he along with others was killed.   It was August 14, 1948 and he was only 38.  

He was a good man, well liked by all who knew him.   He was always inviting people to come to the farm and when they did, they usually brought a block of ice because they knew Gladys would make some ice cream and they would help George churn it and then sit down together for a bowl of the best ice-cream you ever tasted.   Almost every Sunday, he invited the pastor and another couple to join the family for a delicious dinner cooked by his wife.   Any visiting minister would look forward to an invitation.   Many Sunday school picnics were held on the farm.  

That farm is now part of Dan’s Mountain State Park. He was there for anyone who needed help and his death left a big gap in the Pentecostal Holiness church he was so much a part of.   Now his son is the well-respected and well-loved pastor of that same church.   His three daughters have all had very successful careers in the Federal Government.   There are now 13 grandchildren and 21 great-children with more on the way.   Not too long before his death, he gave his oldest daughter this advice that she tries to follow to this day. ? Don’t live in the past, live in the present, and plan a little for the future.