Obit: Irvine, John James (1879 - 1965)

Contact: Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon

Email: dolores@wiclarkcountyhistory.org

Surnames: Irvine, Roscoe, Brasier, Brandt, Stark, Paff, Harberg

----Source: Clark County Press (Neillsville, Clark Co., WI.) February 4, 1965

Irvine, John James (9 August 1879 - 12 January 1965)

Editor’s note: the following obituary for John J. Irvine, a former Clark County official, who died January 12, in Watertown, was written and provided for publication by Mrs. Irvine.

John James Irvine was the son of an old pioneer family of Clark County, and was born on August 9, 1879, in the Township of Beaver, his parents being the late William Stephen Irvine and Elizabeth (Roscoe) Irvine.  He grew up on his parent’s farm, graduating from Loyal High School with the class of 1898.  In the fall of that year he was hired to teach in the school at Colby, which position he held for six years. Also, in the fall of 1898, on November 24, he was married to Olive Brasier.  Three children were born to them, all of whom survive.

In the summer of 1904 John took a job as a brakeman on the railroad, where he worked for two years; but due to health reasons, he quit this job and bought 40 acres of land and also worked his father’s farm for about 16 years.

In the fall at a primary election held on September 5, 1922, he won the Republican nomination for county clerk of Clark County, and also won the election by a big majority, and held this job for six years.

In 1928 he ran for county treasurer and was elected and stayed in this office for about six years, but again, due to health reasons, he quit his office work and got a job as foreman for the state school for the visually handicapped, working there for seven years at Janesville.

At the end of this time his wife, Olive, now became so ill that she could not stay alone during the day while her husband was gone to work, and so they moved to Sturgeon Bay, where their married daughter, Eula, lived (her name being Mrs. Herman C. Brandt) and Mr. Irvine got a job at the Peterson Boatworks during World War II, where he worked for nearly five years.  His wife, Olive, died on September 22, 1945.

On January 16, 1946, he went to work at the Dodge County Hospital as an attendant and had this job for over 15 months, after which he obtained a job at the Master Lock Company of Milwaukee, and began to work there on May 10, 1947.

He was married to Clara Stark of Rt. 6, Watertown, October 29, 1947, and they lived in Milwaukee until September 30, 1956, when Mr. Irvine retired and they moved to Watertown.

He was a member of the Watertown Moravian Church, F. & A. M. Lodge, No. 163, Neillsville, and was a 32^nd degree Mason, a captain of the national guard reserve unit (of Neillsville) during World War I and for some years thereafter.

John James Irvine of 410 Cole Street, Watertown, died at Watertown Memorial Hospital January 12, 1965, after an illness of nine days, due to pneumonia.

His wife, Clara survives, as do his three children: William D. of Marshfield; Mrs. Herman C. (Eula) Brandt of Milwaukee, and Mrs. Arthur B. Paff of Neenah. Six grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren also survive.  His first wife, Olive, and three brothers preceded him in death.

The funeral was held on Thursday evening, January 14, at eight o’clock from the Pederson Funeral Home in Watertown, with the Rev. Thorlief Harberg officiating.  Burial was made Friday at noon at the Loyal Cemetery, Loyal.  Besides the graveside service of the Moravian Church there was also the Masonic service conducted by members of Lodge No. 163, of Neillsville.