I've had this death certificate for a long time. It's one of the first things I sent for after joining the Church in May of 1972. Notice the date on the seal at the top is Sep 14 1973. That's when I sent for a certified copy. I had always been told that Grandpa Robertson died of a heart attack. This death certificate confirms that.....immediate cause of death coronary occlusion. There are several things I found interesting on Homer's death certificate. First, it gives his date of birth as 11/11/1900. This is completely different that any other birth date I have found for him. But it does uphold the 1900 birth year. Grandpa Robertson died 2 days before my 7th birthday and was actually buried on my birthday, as I discovered from his Memorial Service Program:
He died on March 7, 1962 - my birthday is March 9, 1955 - and he was buried on March 9th....my birthday. Both the death certificate and this Program say that Grandpa Robertson was going to be buried at East Slope Memorial Gardens in Riverside, Missouri. I decided to take a look at this cemetery online and see what I could find out about it. Google directed me to Find A Grave, where I found these photos:
I really like the look of this cemetery and found comfort knowing my Grandfather was buried here. Since I knew for sure from his death certificate and Memorial Service program that Homer was buried here, I tried to find a list online of the different cemetery plots and who inhabited them. I searched Find A Grave and didn't find Homer Ross Robertson...but I did find Elisha M Robertson listed as buried at East Slope Memorial Gardens! Whoever had put Elisha's name on Find A Grave gave the following information:
Elisha M Robertson
Birth: Mar. 25, 1881 - Missouri, USA
Death: Nov. 25, 1946 - North Kansas City, Clay County, Missouri, USA.
I don't have this specific kind of information for Elisha....so I was hootin' and hollerin'! I'll see if I can verify these dates.
I put in a request for a photo of Elisha's grave at Find A Grave, and then I made a Memorial page for Homer and requested a photo of his grave, too. I hope, with all my heart, someone out in Riverside, MO will go to the cemetery for me and find their graves!
Update on Elisha and Homer's graves - 6/10/2012
I have to say a big thank you to Jeremy Yazell for going to East Slope Memorial Gardens for me and finding these graves! Above is a picture of Elisha's headstone...Homer's father. Below is a view of his headstone in the grass. The dates shown for Elisha are 1881 - 1946, which agree with my records.
The photo below shows Elisha's headstone and a grassy place beside it. I had a couple of people go to the cemetery for me and they couldn't find Homer's grave anywhere. But I knew he was buried there because I had the funeral program that listed East Slope Memorial Gardens as the place where he was buried. I wouldn't have had the answer to this riddle without the persistence of Jeremy Yazell, the author of these photos. Here are two messages that I received from Jeremy:
"Hello Debbie. I have located Homer's grave. Unfortunately, Homer has no headstone. You are correct, Homer is located near Elisha. The graves are 2 plots apart. We photographed Elisha's headstone and also took a photo of Homer's grave with no stone. According to the records at the cemetery, Homer shows no birth or death dates, but is located in lot 8 row 36 plot 4. I will post Homer's grave photo for you , but again, I am very sorry he has no stone. I will also post Elisha's gravestone photo..."
"Hello Debbie, it was not a problem at all (I had thanked him for going the extra mile in finding my grandfather's grave). We spoke to Toni Looker, her and her husband, Jim, have been taking care of East Slope for 13 years. The number is 816-741-1881. He is in their records as being buried there and Toni's guess as to why there was not marker was perhaps the family could not afford one. I have no problem going back to speak with Toni and ask any questions you may have, just let me know."
So, Homer's grave is two plots away from Elisha' grave...to the right in the photo. I really want to put a headstone there! I'll have to find out how much it would cost and try to save up and get that done! I wondered why my grandmother or my mother never got that done while they were alive. Then I remembered that my grandmother came to live with us right after Grandpa's death - in California - and, to my knowledge, she never returned to Missouri. If she had still lived in Missouri, I think she would have taken care of that. I would like to take care of that for them.
Google Maps and Street Views
Let me see what address Homer lived at when he died......his death certificate gives his address at death as:
4417 East 44th Terr. No.
North Kansas City, Clay County, Missouri.
It also states that Homer had lived in Kansas City for 25 years.
I googled this address to see if I could get a street view of this address and to see if the house still existed. Nowadays, the address is written as 4417 NE 44th Terrace. The street is still there - a beautiful street! But the houses I saw had a different number on them. However, looking at the street gave me a really good idea of what it looked like for Homer and Eleanor while they lived there. I doubt that is has changed that much.
I tried to copy a picture of the view from google maps, but it didn't work. Maybe I can figure it out later. Suffice it to say, I could live there. It's beautiful and green with lots and lots of huge trees and super huge yards for the houses. I think Missouri is probably in my blood.
I found Elisha's death certificate in my records. He died at home and the address was 206 E. 16th St., North Kansas City, Clay County, Missouri. He died of a stroke due to hypertension. I googled his address and took a look at the street map. It's now a business district. I did check the distance between their homes, though. They lived about 8 miles away from each other.
Update on Railroad Retirement Board and Social Security Number
Today I filled out two forms and wrote two checks. One was to the U.S. Railroad Retirement Board to see if they have a file on Homer Ross Robertson. His social security number indicates that he worked for the railroad at the time he applied for social security, and I'm hoping they have some records on him. The Railroad Retirement Board website said to write a letter with his name, birth and death dates, and social security number - - along with a check for $27.00 - - and they would check to see if they had the records.
The other form letter was to the Social Security Administration to get a copy of Homer's Social Security Application. This also cost $27.00....and I can't wait to get these back! I'll update when I do.
6-10-2012 Update on Railroad Retirement Board request for information
I received a reply to the letter I sent in March to the Railroad Retirement Board to see what information I could get on Homer.
They said that they "have no retirement or survivor records of Mr. Robertson as he did not have enough railroad service to be eligible for railroad retirement benefits. The minimum service requirement needed to qualify for such benefits under the Railroad Retirement Act is 120 months (10 years) of railroad service of 60 months (5 years) of railroad service if such service was performed after 1995. Our past service records show that Mr. Robertson acquired only 15 months of railroad service after 1936. Consequently, no benefits would have been payable to him or his survivors by the Railroad Retirement Board (RRB). If a railroad employee does not qualify for railroad retirement benefits, the RRB transfers the employee's railroad retirement credits to the Social Security Administration where they are treated as social security credits. You may wish to contact that agency at 6401 Security Boulevard, Baltimore, Maryland 21235, to see if they can provide you with any additional information. Our records showed that Mr. Robertson was employed as a bridge and building carpenter from January 1937 through March 1938. He was employed by the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad Company. He earned $1, 404.11 in 1937 and $358.95 in 1938. These records do not reflect where any of this work was performed, his address at the time of his employment or any other details about it. Enclosed is a photocopy (see picture above) of the application for a social security number that Mr. Robertson signed on December 21, 1936, and has been preserved on microfilm. (Signed Robin J. Channon, Public Affairs Specialist)."
I already sent a request to the Social Security Administration to get a copy of Homer's SS Application, but I haven't received a response yet - almost 3 months later. Hopefully it will come soon!
I'm very happy with the results of this search. I now know when Homer worked for the railroad and that the railroad he worked for was the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy RR Company. I know that he was a Bridge and Building Carpenter and that he worked for the railroad from January 1937 through March 1938. I even know how much money he made at that time!! The application lists his parents as Elisha Millford Robertson and Zona Elizabeth Rogers. It states his age as 36 and that he was born 10-12-00 (Oct 12, 1900) in Gallitan, Davis, MO. It verifies his social security number to be 707-07-3979. And...I have his signature!
Update on Homer's occupations
So far I've found out that Homer worked at Darby Corp in Kansas City, Kansas, at least in 1944 - where they made amphibious vehicles for the military for the war effort. He also worked on the Railroad - - not sure which one or what he did - but he has a railroad social security number. And on his death certificate it states that his occupation was a 'welder' and he worked for the C. S. Foreman Company at the time of his death in 1962. I tried to google this company, but all I found were court records. It sounded, though, like the company repaired pipes. Since he was a 'welder' for the C. S. Foreman Company, I wonder if that's what he did all of his working life? He could have been a welder working on amphibious vehicles and a welder for the railroad. It makes sense. Maybe I'll find out more about him when I get replies to my two letters above.
I had an idea to look at the census' for Homer and see what occupation they listed. He's on the 1910 census, but his age was listed at 6. He's on the 1920 census, but his age is 16 and his occupation is listed as 'none'. However...........Elisha, his father did have an occupation listed on that same census. He worked as a 'section boss' for the 'railroad'. Railroad again.....so Homer grew up with his dad working on the railroad. It was natural, then, for him to work for the railroad when he was old enough. Maybe Elisha was able to get him a job there! I checked the 1930 Census. Homer was a 'lodger' at the time and his occupation was listed as a 'laborer - independent'. I'm not sure what an independent laborer was at the time, but I don't think he worked on a farm. The 1940 Census is due to be released in just 17 days! I'll look for Homer on that one and see what his occupation was. That will be the first census where Homer is married to Eleanor and my mother, Kay, should show as a child since she was born in 1934! Yeah!!!
Military Service
I wondered if Homer ever served in the military....not just helped build amphibious vehicles for the war. But on his death certificate it asks the questions 'Was deceased ever in the US armed forces?' The answer was NO. I wonder, though, if he had to register for the draft?
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