Bastress, Chester Jay

Male 1917 - 1998  (81 years)


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  • Name Bastress, Chester Jay 
    Born 25 Feb 1917  Northumberland, PA Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Gender Male 
    Died 17 May 1998  Stonington, PA Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Buried Northumberland Memorial Park, Stonington, PA Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Notes 
    • Notes for CHESTER JAY BASTRESS:
      Chester worked for 27 years as a drop forger at the Keystone Forge, Northumberland, PA. He had the gift of
      "water witching" or "dousing." Chester was a member of the August Baptist Church and was a bell ringer for
      years.

      Chester and Lester were twin brothers.
      The brother's got to watch President Herbert Hoover's motorcade come through Northumberland on Duke Street.
      While working for Keystone Forging the brothers got to go see President Harry S. Truman's Presidential train. The President's daughter, Margaret, came out on the platform on the back of the train and waived to everyone.
      Edible treats were sassafras root, birch bark, and yellow May apples.
      The twins earned spending money by selling moleskins for five cents a bundle. At the Blue Hill canal bed, moles were stomped on. A hollow tree was laid on top of canal lock. A wire was strung across inside the tree with fire lot on one end to dry moleskins. Licorice root was bought at a store for one cent a piece with their earnings.

      Memories....
      The farmhouse was on RD#2, Sunbury.
      The large shrub bush at side porch
      Dog Trixie laying behind the coal stove
      Bags of beans lying around house
      Big rocking chair in the Kitchen
      Large maple trees lining the front yard
      All ages of people sitting and talking on the front porch.
      Poplar trees lining the road to the barn
      cousins playing hide n' seek among the lilacs and a favorite place for the chickens as well.
      trudging through the woods to find the "perfect" Christmas tree and setting it up in the parlor.
      Friday night visits with the men sitting in the kitchen and the women sitting in the living room and the cousins outside playing or inside listening to whichever conversation was liveliest.
      Watching Ray Bolger, Lawrence Welk, & Friday night fights.


    Person ID I305  Philip Basters (Bastress) Family Tree - b. 1735
    Last Modified 16 Jul 2018 

    Father Bastress, Clark Edwin,   b. 23 May 1892, Northumberland, PA Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 5 Oct 1957  (Age 65 years) 
    Mother Leitzel, Mossie Eva,   b. 7 Mar 1894, Kratzerville, PA Find all individuals with events at this location,   d. 20 Mar 1956, Sunbury. PA Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 62 years) 
    Married 9 Aug 1913  Rolling Green, Hummelswarf, PA Find all individuals with events at this location 
    Notes 
    • Notes for CLARK EDWIN BASTRESS:
      Clark was raised in Shamrock and met Mossie at the Aldine Hotel in Sunbury across from the train station where
      she was a cook.
      Mossie later baked pies at Keithan's Bakery in Sunbury. They lived in Kratzerville, where Clark worked in a sawmill. Most of the men spoke Dutch and Clark had a hard time understanding them. Mossie tried to help him understand the language.
      They moved to Sunbury where Clark was born. They lived in New York where they farmed for a period of time. They return to PA and moved to Northumberland in time for the twins to be born. They moved to Island Park for awhile and then back to Northumberland. Their last home was a 21 acre farm in RD #2, Black Mill Road, Sunbury.
      Clark worked for 38 years at the Keystone Forge, Duke Street, Northumberland, as a Heater and then became a hammer man in the foundry. He also worked at the Danville Iron Works and on a threshing crew that was owned by Thomas J. Leitzel ( Mossie Leitzel's Father).
    Headstones
    Clark & Mossie Bastress Tombstone
    Clark & Mossie Bastress Tombstone
    Clark & Mossie Bastress Tombstone
    Family ID F83  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

    Family Houser, Ella Rosetta,   b. 27 Sep 1922,   d. 19 Oct 2002, Sunbury, Northumberland County, PA Find all individuals with events at this location  (Age 80 years) 
    Children 
    +1. Bastress, Nancy Ella
    Headstones
    Chester & Ella Bastress Tombstone
    Chester & Ella Bastress Tombstone
    Chester & Ella Bastress Tombstone
    Last Modified 12 Mar 2012 
    Family ID F109  Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  • Event Map
    Link to Google MapsBorn - 25 Feb 1917 - Northumberland, PA Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsDied - 17 May 1998 - Stonington, PA Link to Google Earth
    Link to Google MapsBuried - - Northumberland Memorial Park, Stonington, PA Link to Google Earth
     = Link to Google Earth