U.S., Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014
Mary E. Carner
Mary Elaine Carner, 88, of Richlands, died Dec. 21, 2003 in a Tazewell hospital following a lengthy illness.
Born in Tazewell County, she was the daughter of the late John Thomas and Martha Jane Alley Stranger, both Tazewell County natives.
She had made her home in the Richlands area all of her life and was a retired LPN from the Mattie Williams Hospital and the Clinch Valley Clinic. She was a member of the Cedar Bluff Community Church.
In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, Paul Carner, and two brothers, William H. Stranger and Arver G. Stranger.
Survivors: daughters, Marie Morrison and husband, Carl, of Trenton, MI, Betty Dillow and husband, Jim, of Beach Grove, IN, Ellen Lowe of Middletown, Mary Young of Richlands; sons, Paul Thomas Carner of Tazewell, William Carner of Richlands; sister, Ann Bailiff of Cedar Bluff; 15 grandchildren; 14 great-grandchildren; and one great-great-grandchild.
The funeral will be conducted Dec. 24 at 11 a.m. at the Hurst-Scott Funeral Chapel in Richlands with the Rev. Bill Shook and Rev. Tom Stranger officiating.
Interment will follow at Greenhills Memory Gardens at Claypool Hill.
Mark Cochran
Mark Cochran, 47, of the Baptist Valley section of Cedar Bluff, died Dec. 17, 2003 in a Salem veterans hospital following a long illness.
Born in Richlands, he was the son of the late Violet Faye Rasnake Cochran and Barney Robert Cochran of Cedar Bluff.
He was a self-employed industrial battery service technician and was a U.S. Army Veteran of the Vietnam era.
Additional survivors: wife, Thelma Brown Cochran; daughter Mrs. Brad (Rebecca) Taylor of Charleston, SC; sons, Robert Cochran and wife, Helen, of Myrtle Beach, SC, Dakota Cochran of the home; brother, Barry Cochran and wife, Juanita, of Myrtle Beach; sisters Una Kathleen Tolley of Myrtle Beach, Mrs. Gene (Joy) Kitts and Mrs. Ronnie (Kelly) Pennington, both of Cedar Bluff, Mrs. David (Jane) Hurd of Burkes Garden, Mrs. Ray (Jill) Morris of Graham, NC; paternal grandmother, Mrs. Gray Whitt of Vinton; cousin, Nadine Butterworth of Vinton; five grandchildren; and a host of cousins, nieces and nephews.
The funeral was conducted Dec. 20 at 1 p.m. in the Singleton Funeral Service Chapel in Cedar Bluff with Rev. Lee Blackburn officiating.
Burial followed in the Cochran Family cemetery at Baptist Valley.
Casey-Short V.F.W. Post 9640 and Tazewell Co. Chapter 31 D.A.V. conducted military graveside rites.
French Coleman
French Coleman, 88, of Pounding Mill, formerly of Prater, died Dec. 16, 2003 in a Tazewell hospital following a lengthy illness.
Born in Buchanan County, he was a son of the late Stuart and Sarah Ellen Cannady Coleman, both Buchanan County natives.
He had made his home in the Prater area most of his life before moving to Pounding Mill. He was a retired miner and a member of the United Mine Workers of America Local Union No. 7170 of Haysi. He was of the Baptist faith.
In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by two sisters, Maggie Desorda and Lillie May Owens; two brothers, David Coleman and Berkley Coleman, and two grandchildren, Leslie Ann Coleman and Jennifer Lynn Coleman.
Survivors: daughters, Ermaline Boyd and husband, Denny, of Davenport, Ada Sue Stacy and husband, Johnny, of Pounding Mill, Roma Jean Deel and husband, Willard, of Gans, OK, Effie Viers and husband, Brice, of Prater; sons, Kenneth D. Coleman and wife, Mitzi, of Prater, Lester W. Coleman and wife, Barbara, of Ferron, UT; sister, Rose Jones and husband, Sam, of Hamilton, NC; brothers, Lawrence Coleman of Woodville, OH, Bill Coleman of Floyd, Dayton Coleman of Prater, Trinkle Coleman of Fincastle; 11 grandchildren; and seven great-grandchildren.
The funeral was conducted Dec. 19 at 2 p.m. at the Hurst-Scott Funeral Chapel in Richlands with Evangelist Bob Smith officiating.
Interment followed in Greenhills Memory Gardens at Claypool Hill.
Mary F. Compton
Miss Mary Francis Compton, 73, of Tazewell, died Dec. 16, 2003 at a Tazewell hospital following a lengthy illness.
Born in Tazewell County, she was a daughter of the late William and Mary Kate Compton, both Tazewell County natives.
She was a life long resident of the Richlands area.
Survivors: cousin, Clyde Matney of Tazewell, and a host of other cousins.
Graveside services were conducted Dec. 18 at 12 noon at the Clinch Valley Memorial cemetery Mausoleum at Richlands with Rev. David Brannock officiating.
Interment followed in the Clinch Valley Memorial cemetery.
Hurst-Scott Funeral Home in Richlands was in charge of arrangements.
Richard Estep
Richard Mills Estep, 30, of the Baptist Valley section of Cedar Bluff, died Dec. 21, 2003 in a Richlands hospital following a lengthy illness.
Born in Grundy, he was the son of Lorraine Atwell Estep of Cedar Bluff and the late Ernest Estep.
Additional survivors: sisters, Emma Jane Yates of Grundy, Sue Dawson of Hurley; and brothers, John Estep and Del Estep of Hurley, Steve Estep and Gary Estep, both of Grundy, and Roger Atwell of Charleston, SC.
The funeral will be conducted Dec. 24 at 1 p.m. at the Hurst-Scott Funeral Chapel in Richlands with the Rev. Barry Absher and Rev. Ed Hankins officiating.
Entombment will follow at the Greenhills Memory Gardens Mausoleum at Claypool Hill.
Evelyn Ray Gillespie
Evelyn Ray Gillespie, 92, of Tazewell, loving mother and grandmother, died peacefully Dec. 13, 2003 at Princeton Community Hospital.
Born in Barnwell, SC, she was a daughter of the late John Rice Ray and Mary Agnes Moore Ray.
She was a member of Bundy’s Chapel Baptist Church in Witten Valley. Upon graduation from high school, she moved to Columbia, SC, to study telegraphy. She then began working for Western Union Telegraph Company as a Morse Code operator in various cities along the eastern seaboard.
She moved to Tazewell in the early thirties to manage and operate the local western union telegraph office. She retired after serving 26 years when the office was closed.
In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, Ernest Gillespie, and one son, John Hampton (Jack) Gillespie. She was the last surviving member of her immediate family.
Those left to cherish her memory are her son, Dr. James Gillespie and wife, Cheryl, of Denton, TX; daughter-in-law, Margaret Gillespie of Tazewell; grandchildren, Deborah Mehrings of San Diego, CA, Kathy Gillespie of Ocean View, John H. Gillespie of Abingdon, Bill Gillespie and wife, Michelle, of Glade Hill; seven great-grandchildren; one great-great-granddaughter; and a special niece, Gayle Tallon-Roth of Columbia.
The funeral was conducted Dec. 19 at 2 p.m. at Peery & St. Clair Funeral Home Chapel in Tazewell with the Rev. Charles Addington and the Rev. John Gunter officiating.
Burial followed at Grandview Memory Gardens in Bluefield, VA.
Memorial contributions may be made to the American Heart Assoc. C/O Marie Alicie, Treasurer, P.O. Box 909, Tazewell, VA 24651 or Bundy’s Chapel Baptist Church C/O Chris Kinser, Treasurer, Rt. 3 Box 547 AA, Tazewell, VA 24651.
Dana Sue Gross
Dana Sue Gross, 59, of Richlands died Dec. 17, 2003 in a Richlands hospital following a brief illness.
Born in Virginia, she was the daughter of the late Charlie and Molly Osborne Webb.
She was a volunteer for several organizations in the community.
In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by one brother, Curtis Webb, and one sister, Lucy Annis Webb.
Survivors: sons, Mark Horn of North Tazewell, Tommy Wright of Bristol, TN; daughter, Gale Roe of Wichita Falls, TX; brother, Jennings Webb of Richlands; sisters, Nadine Lester of Doran, Doris Rose of Fork Ridge, Emma Absher of Road Ridge, Esther Russell of Raven Nest Branch; and grandchildren, Mark Anthony Horn, Chelsey Shea Horn, Zachary Tyler Horn, Joshua Ray Hogan and Jeremy Lynn Roe.
Family and friends called from 2 to 4 p.m. Dec. 18 at Singleton Funeral Service in Cedar Bluff.
Albert Junior Lambert
Albert Junior Lambert, 70, of Tazewell, formerly of Burkes Garden and Indianapolis, IN, died Dec. 19, 2003 at Heritage Hall Health Care in Tazewell.
Born at Burkes Garden, he was a son of the late Nelson and Gladys Lambert.
He attended Mary’s Presbyterian Church at Gratton. He resided in Indianapolis for 40 years, prior to retirement and returning to Tazewell. He had resided at Heritage Hall Health Care in Tazewell for the past year.
Survivors: sister, Ruth Wilson of Tazewell; brothers, Andy Lambert and Ernest Lambert, both of Tazewell, Marvin Lambert of Crozet; friends at Heritage Hall Health Care in Tazewell; and several nieces and nephews.
The funeral was conducted at 2 p.m. Dec. 22 at Peery & St. Clair Funeral Home Chapel in Tazewell with the Rev. Eddie Nash officiating.
Burial followed at Burkes Garden Central Church cemetery.
Mrs. Fred B. Lowe
Mrs. Fred B. (Elizabeth Gillespie) Lowe, 94, formerly of Bluefield, VA, died Dec. 9, 2003 in Wilmington, NC.
Born in Tazewell County, she was a daughter of the late John Gratton Gillespie and Sallie McMullin Gillespie.
She was a member of the First Presbyterian Church in Bluefield and was given an honorary life membership by the women of the church. She attended James Madison College for two years and graduated from Radford University with a B.S. Degree in Elementary Education. She taught school in Bluefield, VA, for over 32 years and received an Honor Award from the Virginia Education and Retired Teachers Association. She was a member of the Bluefield Garden Club, Bluefield Country Club and Daughters of the American Revolution.
In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, Fred Bolen Lowe; five brothers, James H. Gillespie, Jess S. Gillespie, Robert G. Gillespie, H. Bowen Gillespie and John C. Gillespie; and two sisters, Mrs. James (Eva) Miller and Mrs. Robert (Elma) Pierle.
Survivors: niece, Mary G. Sutton of Wilmington, NC; nephew, Carl Gillespie Jr. of Bluefield, VA; and several other nieces and nephews.
Graveside services were conducted Dec. 12 at 2 p.m. at Maple Hill cemetery in Bluefield, VA, with Dr. W.D. Hasty officiating.
Donations may be made to the First Presbyterian Church, 208 Tazewell Ave., Bluefield, VA 24701.
Dudley Memorial Mortuary in Bluefield, VA, was in charge of arrangements.
Betty Lou Matney
Betty Lou Edwards Matney, 58, of Vansant, died Dec. 13, 2003 at her home from a short illness.
Born in Dickenson County, she was a daughter of Alma May Stanford Edwards of Pilgrim Knob and the late Arlie Edwards.
She had been a resident of Buchanan County several years and was a member of Vansant Presbyterian Church. She was a graduate of Whitewood High School and a Cosmetologist. She was a devoted wife and a loving mother and grandmother.
Additional survivors: husband, Frank K. Matney; daughter, Regina and husband, Seth Peters, of Lynchburg; son, Kennith and wife, Sallie Matney of Christiansburg; sister, Sandra Ann and husband, Robert Holmes of Pilgrim Knob; brothers, Harold and wife, Shirley Edwards, of Clintwood, Jimmy D. and wife, Diane Edwards, of Pilgrim Knob, Joe and wife, Donna Edwards, of Rosedale; and grandchildren, Jordan Peters, Ryan Matney, Christopher Matney, Matthew Peters and Justin Dunford.
The funeral was conducted Dec. 16 at 11 a.m. at Grundy Funeral Home Chapel with Phyllis Canter, Evg. Mike Trent and Rex Spencer officiating.
Burial followed in Greenhills Memory Gardens at Claypool Hill.
A song service was held at the funeral home Dec. 15 at 7 p.m.
The family requests that expressions of sympathy be made in the form of donations to Vansant Presbyterian Church, P.O. Box 22, Vansant, VA.
