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THE OBITUARY OFLee Moore |
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THE OBITUARY OFLee Moore |
Lee Moore, 109 year old exslave, departed Friday evening on his long awaited journey to the "green pastures." He died at a local hospital Suffering from old age, he had been hospitalized since Monday. Several years ago, Moore bought a tombstone at Sheeley and Lane's. The stone is inscribed with his picture and date of birth -- July 12, 1840. He had also arranged for a casket at the Meyer Funeral Home, and a plot in Walnut Hill Cemetery. "All bought and paid for" he often said of his future funeral.
Born in Argentina, Moore was brought to the U.S. aboard a British ship in 1857. He was sold to a Virginia plantation owner. When his owner went to the Confederate army during the Civil War, Moore went along to care for is master's horses. He was freed after the Civil War.
Moore came to Council Bluffs on Easter Sunday 1913, the day of the great tornado. He first found work as a laborer rebuilding the Wilcox greenhouses. They were destroyed by the storm. For four decades, he was a familiar figure in Council Bluffs. He had a junk wagon. Later he just worked around as a handyman.
Although rheumy eyed with age, Moore scorned eye glasses. He still had his own teeth. In recent months, he trudged around the city bundled in a long overcoat to keep his frail old body warm. Last Monday, he was taken from his home on Union Pacific railroad property in the south part of the city to the hospital. The body is at the Meyer Funeral Home. Services will be held there at 11 a.m. Monday, with burial in Walnut Hill Cemetery.
Funeral services were held Monday at Meyer Mortuary for Lee Moore, 109 year old exslave, who died Fruiday following a short illness. Dr. Leon C. Hills officiated. Burial was in Walnut Hill Cemetery. In a tribute to the dead man, Dr. Hills described Moore as a loyal citizen. "He did not drink and never indulged in profanity," he said. "He was friendly and respectful to those with whom he came in contact and he was honest in his business. dealings."
After eighty one years residency in the United States, L.E. Moore, 96 year old Argentine born Negro, will cast his first vote November 8. Moore, naturalized as an American citizen October 4, 1938, before Federal Judge Charles A. Dewey, registerd as a voter with Deputy City Clerk Al Peterson late Friday. He is believed to be the oldest person ever to register as a voter in Council Bluffs. He lives at 1806 Eighth Avenue, and will vote in the Second Precinct of the Fifth Ward.