Search Archived Marriage Records
David Mathias Jr.
Retired US Army Master Sgt. David Mathias Jr, 81, died Thursday, Dec. 28 at the Sierra Villa Retirement Home.
He was born and raised on a farm in Brownsville, Tenn. He entered the Army in 1938 and survived the torpedoing of his troopship in the English Channel, later entering Europe during its World War II occupation.
Though leaving the Army at the end of World War II, he was recruited back into the service in 1946. He served as a Master Sgt., Infantry and as a Company First Sgt. His Army career included postings in Trieste, Italy, Teheran, Iran, the Presidio in San Francisco, and Ft. Jackson, S.C.
His post-retirement career included work at the Bishop High Altitude Station and nearly 20 years with the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power.
Mr. Mathias was a life-long member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and many service and fraternal organizations.
Survivors include son David Eugene Mathias of Wilmington, Del.; son Roy Bruce Mathias of Bollingbrook, Ill.; daughter Barbara Mathias Flores of Guadalajara, Mexico; sister Rosie Blanks and Grace Hopper of Memphis, Tenn; and five grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
Leora Lenora Charley
1922-2004
A memorial service will be held at 10 a.m. Friday, Nov. 26 at Brune & Buck Mortuary, 325 W. Elm St., for Big Pine resident Leora Lenora Charley. Burial will take place at Woodman Cemetery
in Big Pine immediately following the memorial service. Additionally, there will be a cry dance at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 23 at 475 N. Crater St., Big Pine.
Born Oct. 10, 1922 in Big Pine to Lee and Susie (Lundy) Howard, Leora died Nov. 19, 2004 at home after a courageous, six-month battle with cancer. She was 82.
Leora was raised at Indian Camp in Big Pine. She attended public schools in the Owens Valley, graduating from Sherman Institute of Riverside in 1940.
Over the years, Leora worked at various places and held many positions. She worked as a dishwasher, tailed off on saw machines at the old Mt. Whitney Lumber Mill and she also worked at the Bishop Laundry. During part of the 1960s, she worked at Northern Inyo Hospital, and in the 1970s worked at Indian Tri-County, where she drove many patients to and from such places as Stewart and Schurz, Nev. From 1970-86, Leora worked for Toiyabe Indian Health Project, where she was eventually trained as a dental assistant.
She was preceded in death by her daughter, Joann Davis Castillo, on Saturday, Oct. 2, 2004.
Leora is survived by her husband, Cleveland Charley of Big Pine; stepchildren, Clayton Charley of Orange County, Norman Charley of Reno, Nev., Carla Bacoch of Big Pine, Veronica Charley of Orange County and Vanessa Butterbredt of Big Pine; son-in-law, Manuel Castillo Sr.; grandchildren, Cecelia Gomez, Connie Castillo, Manual Castillo Jr. and Anthony Castillo; great-grandchildren, Atlana Castillo, Matt Gomez, Madeline Gomez, Darrel Navarrette, Danielle Navarrette, Racine Morales, Katherine Castillo, Jacquee Castillo, Angelica Castillo and Cassandra Castillo; great-great-grandchildren, Christopher Castillo and Dustine Castillo; one brother, Lee Howard Sr. of Big Pine; and numerous nieces and nephews.
Memorial contributions in memory of Leora may be sent to Loretta Howard in care of the Brune & Buck Mortuary.
Daniel George Harris
1927-2004
A celebration of life will be held (if weather permits) at the Harris Field baseball diamond at Owens Valley High School in Independence or in the high school gym at 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 27 for life-long Independence resident Daniel George Harris
"Grandpa Danny," as he was affectionately known, died on Nov. 19, 2004 at Northern Inyo Hospital in Bishop. He was 77.
Daniel was born on June 22, 1927 in Independence, the first of two sons to Albert and Etta Parker Blunt. He attended local schools and graduated from Owens Valley High School.
Daniel served for four years int the United States Navy during World War II. He married Sara Barns of Lone Pine and three children were born to them.
Dan loved baseball and served as head baseball coach for the Owens Valley Little League. He was a charter member of the Lone Pine Post No. 8036, Veterans of Foreign Wars. He also loved hunting, fishing and the outdoors. He operated the Parker Ranch pack station for many years and worked for the Inyo County Road Department as a civil engineer.
He was preceeded in death by his wife.
Dan is survived by his daughter and son-in-law, Nancy M. and Bob Brown of Flagstaff, Ariz.; daughter, Ann Jeanette Jewett of Big Pine; son, David Harris of Big Pine; five grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; and his brother and sister-in-law, Ernest and Peggy Blunt of Bishop.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests contributions to the Owens Valley High School baseball program or the City of Hope, 1500 E Duarte Rd., Duarte, CA 91010.
Alfonse Martin Nikolaus
1912-2004
A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 27 at the Pioneer Memorial Methodist Church in Independence for longtime Owens Valley resident Alfonse Martin Nikolaus.
Al was born Sept. 21, 1912 in Colfax, Calif. to Paul and Emilie Nikolaus. His family came to Big Pine in 1922 with the railroad to the narrow gauge depot just east of Big Pine. The scenic view of the Sierra from the depot reminded Al's mother, a native of Zurich, Switzerland, of the Alps in her homeland and led her to rename the depot Zurich after her home.
Al graduated from Big Pine High School in 1929. While attending high school he worked as a printing apprentice for the Big Pine Citizen and after graduating became a manager for the Owens Valley Progress Citizen. During this period Al developed a friendship with Sierra mountaineering pioneer Norman Clyde while printing articles Norman submitted for publication. This friendship led Al to a lifelong love of the outdoors with backpacking trips throughout the Sierra.
As a young man, Al yearned for adventure and took a job with Kennicott Copper in McCarthy, Alaska. After four years of exploring the Alaskan frontier, he returned to Big Pine and his love of the eastern High Sierra. On returning from Alaska, Al took a job with the Inyo County Road Department, where he served most of his 47 years in Independence. During World War II, Al served with the U.S. Army in the Battle of the Bulge and supported post war occupation activities.
Al was an active member of the community. He served as secretary of the Big Pine Volunteer Fire Department Board of Commissioners for 50 years, was active member of the Inyo Masonic Lodge for 70 years, was an early president of the Inyo Associates, served as secretary of the Inyo-Mono Coordinating Council and shared his love of the outdoors with Boy Scout Troop 84 for 20 years.
Al was preceded in death by his brother, Jim, and sister, Lillian Nelson.
Al is survived by his wife of 49 years, Evelyn-Mae; son and daughter-in-law, Ralph and Myra of Milpitas, Calif.; grandsons, Alfonse Martin III and Jeremy of Fallbrook; daughter and son-in-law, Niki and Frank Cutler; granddaughters, Kaitlyn and Megan of Quartz Hill; son and daughter-in-law, Frank and Debbie; granddaughter, Kelsey of Big Pine; and brother, Don Nikolaus.
In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations in Al's memory be made to Pioneer Memorial Methodist Church or the CARE Center at First United Methodist Church of Bishop.
Eleanor Lucile Anderson
1914-2004
A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Monday, Nov. 22 at the Gateway Christian Church, 11760 Gateway Blvd., West Los Angeles, for Bishop resident Eleanor Lucile Anderson. A graveside service will be held at 1:30 p.m. at Forest Lawn-Hollywood Hills, 6300 Forest Lawn Dr., Los Angeles. Eleanor will be buried next to her late husband, John.
Born on Dec. 4, 1914 in Lathrop, Mo. to William and Julia (Parks) Cochran, Eleanor died Nov. 17, 2004 at the Bishop Care Center. She was 89.
Before moving to Bishop, Eleanor had been active at Gateway Christian Church for 50 years, teaching Sunday school and being involved in the women's ministry group.
Eleanor graduated from Marysville State Teaching College in the Winter of 1933-34. She taught school in a one-room school house for four years. One of the highlights in her later years was hearing from a former student who she hadn't heard from for 67 years. The student had just wanted to tell Eleanor what an impact she had on her life.
Eleanor married John H. Anderson on Aug. 10, 1940. They moved from Missouri to California in 1947. The couple had three daughters: Helen and twins Madelyn and Marilyn.
In 1994, Eleanor moved to the Sierra Country Club. There, she enjoyed Bible study, Bingo, playing cards and putting jig-saw puzzles together. She also liked keeping up on baseball and was displeased when the Dodger games were taken off TV.
Preceding Eleanor in death were her husband, John, in 1965; her parents; her siblings (one brother and three sisters); and her son-in-law, Roger Ferrell, in 2002.
Eleanor is survived by her daughter, Helen Jones of Grand Junction, Colo.; daughter, Madelyn Ferrell of Bishop; daughter and son-in-law, Marilyn and Bill Roush of Bishop; grandchildren, Roger Anderson of San Francisco, Wendy Salazar and husband Frank of Frisco, Colo., Dale Wilhorn of Arizona, Lynne Roush of Bellflower and Cindy Roush of Bishop; and great-grandchildren, Jeremi, Raymond, John and Tashina.
