Tennessee, U.S., Delayed Birth Records, 1869-1909
Dorris Diseker
Retired Linden teacher
Dorris Diseker, 87, of Oak Ridge, died Saturday afternoon, June 27, 1998, at Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge.
Miss Diseker, a retired schoolteacher, came to Oak Ridge in 1944 and taught second grade at Pine Valley Elementary School. In 1960, she transferred to Linden Elementary School, from which she retired in 1975.
She was born in Williamsburg, Ky., on Feb. 25, 1911, the daughter of James and Virginia Creekmore Diseker. She was a graduate of Eastern Kentucky University in Richmond, Ky. In 1929, she began her teaching career near Williamsburg in Whitley County, and frequently rode a horse to school.
In 1941, Miss Diseker moved to Troy, Ohio, where she taught until she moved to Oak Ridge in 1944.
In earlier days, she lived in Batavia Hall, a dormitory near Jackson Square. Later, she and her sisters bought their home on Henley Road. She was a member of First Baptist Church and a charter member of Alpha Epsilon Chapter of Delta Kappa Gamma, an honor society for teachers.
Miss Diseker enjoyed playing piano and played for the people in the Oak Ridge Health Care Center when her sisters, Mildred and Imogene, were residents there. She also played for group singing at the Keystone Elder Day Care program at First United Methodist Church during the time she spent there.
Later, she moved to Key Springs Residence Home in Oliver Springs and then to Mariner Health of Norris.
Betty Fraker was Miss Diseker's caregiver and special friend.
The funeral will be held at 8 tonight, July 1, in the chapel of McCarty-Martin Oak Ridge Funeral Home. The Rev. Danny Bush will officiate.
A graveside service will be held at 1 p.m. Thursday, July 2, at Highland Park cemetery in Williamsburg, Ky.
The family will receive friends from 6 to 8 tonight, July 1, at the funeral home.
Verner Ray McNeely
Retired K-25 foreman
Verner Ray McNeely, 78, of 121 W. Lincoln Road, died Tuesday morning, June 30, 1998, at Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge.
Mr. McNeely retired in 1983 from Union Carbide Nuclear Division. He had worked as a foreman at the Oak Ridge K-25 Site.
He was born in Prenter, W.Va., on March 15, 1920, the son of Millard and Myrtie Griffith McNeely.
Mr. McNeely had lived in Oak Ridge since 1962, when he moved here from Ohio. He was a member of the K-25 Federal Credit Union and served on its board for 25 years. He had also served for 24 years on the board of the Oak Ridge Housing Authority.
He attended West Village Christian Church. Mr. McNeely was a 50-year Mason and a member of Faith Masonic Lodge No. 756 in Oak Ridge.
He is survived by his wife, Alma Irene Jones McNeely; a daughter, Eleanor Ann Williams, and her husband, Benny, of Edgewood, Md.; a son, Verner Ray McNeely Jr., and his wife, Lynn, of Chico, Calif.; a sister, Opal Fileerti of New Haven, Conn.; two brothers, Donnie Gene McNeely of Seth, W.Va., and Virgil McNeely of Melbourne, Fla.; and by six grandchildren, eight great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews.
The funeral will be held at 8:15 tonight, July 1, in the chapel of Weatherford Mortuary with the Rev. Noel Kirk officiating. A Masonic service will precede the funeral at 8.
A graveside service will be held at 10:30 a.m. Thursday, July 2, at Oak Ridge Memorial Park.
The family will receive friends from 6 to 8 tonight at the mortuary.
The family requests any memorials be in the form of donations to the American Cancer Society, Anderson County Chapter, in care of Lee Costanzo, 103 Case Lane, Oak Ridge, TN 37830.
James Carlyle Douglas
ORNL engineer
James Carlyle Douglas, 41, of 149 S. Columbia Drive, died Saturday, July 11, 1998, in Laurens County, S.C., of injuries sustained in an automobile accident.
Mr. Douglas was a nuclear engineer at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.
He was born in North Charleston, S.C., the son of Edmund W. and Eva Dell Singletary Douglas of North Charleston. He attended Clemson University and Charleston Southern University and earned a master's degree from the University of Tennessee.
Mr. Douglas was a member of Grace Lutheran Church.
In addition to his parents, he is survived by his wife, Georgianne Moody Douglas, and two sons, James Edmund Douglas and Robert Henry Douglas csof the home.
A memorial service will be held at a later date in Summerville, S.C., and in Oak Ridge.
The family requests any memorials be in the form of donations to the Building Fund at Grace Lutheran Church, 131 W. Gettysburg Ave., Oak Ridge, TN 37830.
The Mackey Mortuary in Greenville, S.C., is handling arrangements.
Faye L. Martin
Retired teacher
Faye L. Martin, 87, of Oliver Springs, died Thursday, July 16, 1998, at the home of her daughter in Oliver Springs.
Mrs. Martin had retired after teaching school for 10 years.
She was born in Beech Hill, W.Va., on June 24, 1911, the daughter of James and Myrtle Hemmings Lewis. She had lived in Oliver Springs for 17 years.
Mrs. Martin was a member of Central Baptist Church of Oak Ridge. She was the widow of Miles Herbert Martin.
She is survived by her daughter, Lois Bales of Oliver Springs; seven grandchildren, Carolyn Walls, Christina Russell, William Bales, Vickie Roberts, Kathy Whitlock, Leslie Dibble and Scott Martin; two sisters, Naomi Cowan of Belpre, Ohio, and Connie Stanley of Lenoir City; and a brother, Seth Lewis of Thousand Oaks, Calif.
A son, Dr. Miles Herbert Martin Jr., died earlier.
The funeral will be held at 4 p.m. Sunday, July 19, in the chapel of Sharp Funeral Home in Oliver Springs with the Rev. David McPherson and Cecil Mourfield officiating.
A graveside service will be held at 3 p.m. Monday, July 20, at Montgomery Memorial Gardens in London, W.Va.
The family will receive friends from 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday at the funeral home.
Charles Howard Bryant
Retired MMC employee
Charles Howard Bryant, 82, of Oak Ridge, died Wednesday, July 29, 1998, at his home.
Mr. Bryant retired in 1990 from Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge. He had worked in the Maintenance Department for 14 years, beginning when the facility was called Oak Ridge Hospital.
He had previously spent 14 years working for Union Carbide Nuclear Division as a chemical operator at the Oak Ridge Gaseous Diffusion Plant.
He was born Oct. 24, 1915, in Balkan, Ky., the son of Hubert and Nannie Calloway Bryant.
Mr. Bryant was a member of Royce Baptist Church.
He is survived by his wife, Alma "Jerry" Conar Bryant; and seven children, H. Douglas Bryant and his wife, Marvene, Donna E. Welcom and her husband, Jay, Danny L. Bryant and his wife, Mary, Dale M. Bryant and his wife, Lisa, Dean C. Bryant and his wife, Becky, Jo Ann Fitzpatrick and her husband, Chris, and James L. Lewis.
Mr. Bryant is also survived by three brothers, Walter "Dink" Bryant and his wife, Pauline, Cooper Bryant and his wife, Janet, and James Bryant and his wife, Lois; three sisters, Elizabeth Spargo, Agnes Bird and Gladys Adams; and by 13 grandchildren.
A son, Danny Lewis, died earlier.
The funeral will be held at 8 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 1, in the chapel of Weatherford Mortuary with the Rev. Rick Miller officiating.
A graveside service will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 2, at Anderson Memorial Gardens, Oliver Springs Highway, Clinton.
The family will receive friends from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Saturday at the mortuary.
Evan Thomas Freels
Former Wheat resident
Evan Thomas "Tom" Freels, 89, of Roswell, Ga., died Monday, July 27, 1998, in Roswell of a heart attack.
Mr. Freels had lived in Memphis for 56 years before moving to Roswell last fall.
He grew up in the former Wheat community, which is now part of Oak Ridge. He and his wife, Ruth Butler Freels, who survives him, were high school sweethearts. They later made their home in Cincinnati, Ohio, where Mr. Freels worked at the local stockyards.
In 1941, they moved to Whitehaven, Tenn., and Mr. Freels worked as superintendent of South Memphis Stockyards, a position he held for 48 years. In the late 1950s, he built the stockyards' auction ring for the weekly sales which continued until the yards closed in 1994.
Mr. Freels was a member of Whitehaven Baptist Church and was a 22-year member of the Whitehaven Kiwanis Club. The family said he will be remembered by those who saw his beautiful vegetable garden behind the home at the corner of Finley and Faronia roads.
In addition to his wife, Mr. Freels is survived by two children, Tommy Freels and his wife, Barbara Blakely Freels, and Sue Freels Ryan and her husband, John Ryan; grandchildren, Celeste Cox and her husband, Fred, Curtis Freels and his wife, Deanna McAdory Freels, Jonathan Ryan and his wife, Amy Hatcher Ryan, and Aaron Ryan; and three great-grandsons, Chandler and Cameron Cox and John William Ryan.
A graveside service will be held at 10 a.m. Friday, July 31, at Crawford cemetery on Highway 58 in Oak Ridge.
The family requests any memorials be in the form of donations to Whitehaven Baptist Church, 4800 Elvis Presley Blvd., Memphis, TN 38116; the American Heart Assocation, 7320 Greenville Ave., Dallas, TX 75231; or to a charity of the donor's choice.
Sharp Funeral Home in Oliver Springs is handling arrangements.
Bessie Dagley Price
Mother of Oak Ridge resident
Bessie Price, 87, of Wartburg, died Tuesday evening, July 28, 1998, at Hamilton County Nursing Home in Chattanooga.
Mrs. Price was the mother of Jerry Price of Oak Ridge.
She was born in Morgan County, the daughter of Jim and Maggie Dagley. She was a homemaker and the widow of Eugene Price, described by her family as an old-time Baptist minister whom she traveled with to various churches.
Mrs. Price enjoyed gospel music, outdoor activities and going to the mountains, the family said.
In addition to her local son and his wife, Sandy Price, she is survived by two daughters, Betty James and her husband, Edward James, of Harriman and Sue Tilley and her husband, Lewis Tilley, of Chattanooga; another son, Billy Price and his wife, Norma Price, of Wartburg; a sister, Agnes Kreis of Wartburg; and by several grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren.
In addition to her husband, a sister and three brothers, Bonnie Howard, Louis Dagley, Roy Dagley and Willie Dagley, died earlier.
The funeral will be held at 2 p.m. Friday, July 31, in the chapel of Schubert Funeral Home in Wartburg with the Rev. Waylan Payne Jr. officiating.
Burial will follow at Petros cemetery.
The family will receive friends from 7 to 9 tonight, July 30, at the funeral home.
Harmon Terry
Pleasant View Baptist member
Harmon Terry, 87, of Clinton, died Wednesday, July 29, 1998, at his home.
Mr. Terry was a member of Pleasant View Baptist Church in Clinton.
Mr. Terry was retired from Knox Block Co. in Knoxville, where he worked for 15 years.
He was born in Scott County on Nov. 2, 1910, the son of Cal and Easter Terry. He enjoyed gardening, hunting and hiking, the family said.
Mr. Terry is survived by his wife, Ollie Terry; four daughters, Alma Ledford and her husband, Bob, Pauline Kesterson and her husband, Larry, Brenda Smith and her husband, Greg, and Beverly Gibson and her husband, Randy, all of Clinton; and two sons, Haskell Terry and his wife, Jean, of Ridgefield, Wash., and Anthony Terry of Portland, Ore.
He is also survived by nine grandchildren, Sandra and Amanda Ledford, Kristi Anderson, Mitzi Kesterson, Tony, Desember, Keysha, Shelby and Jodi Terry.
The funeral will be at 8 p.m. Friday, July 31, in the chapel of Holley-Gamble Funeral Home in Clinton with the Rev. Don Bright, the Rev. Joe Bridges and the Rev. Donny Disney officiating.
A graveside service will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 1, at McCarty Woodhaven Memory Gardens in Claxton.
The family will receive friends from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Friday at the funeral home.
