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Show George Jefferson, South Utah Civic, Business Leader, Dies in Sleep George Jefferson, Milford businessman and civic leader for more than 50 years, died in his sleep, of natural causes, Wednesday night. Masonic funeral services will be conducted at 1 p. m. Friday, in the Milford LDS Chapel. Burial will be in the Milford City Cemetery. r George Jefferson . George Jefferson was born at Winnevago City, Minn., April &, 1887, a son of Henry and Rachel McDonald Jefferson. The family moved to Butte, Mont., when he was 3 years old, and Mr. Jefferson Jeffer-son received his schooling in that city. They came to Milford in 1902 and Henry Jefferson engaged en-gaged in the mining business. As a young man George Jefferson Jef-ferson worked in the Milford area mines as a mucker, driller, blacksmith helper, drilling machine ma-chine . operator, hoistman, and timekeeper. In 1905 the Jefferson family purchased the "country store" business of J. T. Tanner, which was housed in a small building ori the corner of the lot now occupied oc-cupied by the Jefferson Block. Mr. Jeffsrson introduced the first commercial ice plant to Southern Utah in 1907. The plant was operated until the late 1940s. In 1913 when his father's health began failing, George Jefferson assumed active management of the Jefferson Mercantile Co. The present Jefferson Building, occupying occu-pying more than half a square block, was begun in 1915 with the first section being built to house the Milford News, and a grocery storage warehouse in the rear of the News plant. In addition to successfully operating op-erating the Jefferson Mercantile Co. and guiding it from a small "country grocery store" to a large, modern mercantile establishment, estab-lishment, Mr. Jefferson also was president of the Milford State Bank, president of the Southwest Distributing Co. of Cedar City and St. George, and president of the Southern Utah Powder Co. He had been director and treasurer treas-urer of the Utah Retail Grocers' Association; was a charter member mem-ber and past president of the Milford Lions Club, and for more than 20 years served as Milford city treasurer, always donating his treasurer's salary to the Milford Mil-ford Volunteer Fire Department. He served two terms in the Utah State Legislature, starting in 1924, and a four-year term in the Utah State Senate. He was Beaver County Republican Repub-lican Chairman for more than 12 years; county committeeman for many years, and in 1956 was a delegate to the National Republican Repub-lican Convention at San Francisco. Fran-cisco. He was a past master of Albert Pike Lodge No. 14, F & A M of Utah. He married Blanche Behrman in 1910. In 1929 he married Grace Smurthwaite in Salt Lake City. Surviving, besides his widow, are two sons, Richard G. Jefferson, Jef-ferson, Milford, and Thomas Jefferson, Jef-ferson, Ely, Nev., and a step-son, Elwood Jefferson, Milford. |