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Show CHARLES HOWS I0BSEVES 90th BIRTHDAY By PAT WILLIAMS Comfortably relaxed in his favorite rocking chair in the front room of his home, quietly smoking his pipe, with a cane across his lap and probably thinking that most of us younger ones still have a lot to learn, Charles Thomas Hollis observed his 90th birth anniversary on Monday, July 25th. Mr. Hollis is a man of character, char-acter, strong in his beliefs, and still exhibits "a lot of spunk." One thing of great concern to Mr. Hollis is "why some of these younger men don't start these roads to going. You have to fight and speak up for what you get," he said. Born in Mt. Vernon, Ind., on July 25, 1859, to Mr. and Mrs. T. H. Hollis, he spent his early life and began his career as a blacksmith in his Indiana home town. He learned the black-smithing black-smithing trade from his father. Being of adventurous spirit, he set out for the West as a very young man, and spent three years working at his trade in Salt Lake City in the early days. While in Salt Lake he made the first band wagon in the state. Later he moved to Beaver, first working in the Fernley shop under the management of Charlie Rollins. "In all my life I never sent a man a 'dunner'," Mr. Hollis said. "I always believed that a man should be honorable enough to pay his debts without being 'dunned' for them." .When he met his wife, the former Francis Crosby, "it was love at first sight." The couple met in Mrs. Kuss restaurant the first day Mr. . Hollis arrived in Beaver. Miss Crosby was employed em-ployed at the restaurant. A year later they were married in Beaver by Judge McGarry. They lived in Panguitch for a year, then moved to Milford 42 years ago, and Mr. Hollis continued con-tinued to follow the trade of blacksmith, owning several establishments es-tablishments here, the last of which was in the original old Milford Times newspaper building, build-ing, and was moved across the railroad tracks. Mr. Hollis' ability at repairing repair-ing broken mine machinery, as well as metal articles of every nature, and his ability at making mak-ing sturdy wagons which would stand up under the rough usage of early - day transportation earned for him the reputation of being the "best blacksmith in the state." He built the first house in Milford Townsite, the home now owned by A. B. Mer-ryweather. Mer-ryweather. He retired from work at the age of 82. Mr. Hollis is still active, raising rais-ing a fine garden each spring and keeping the lawns neat and attractive. Living children of the couple are Charles Hollis of Ogden Kenneth Hollis of Milford, Ambrose Am-brose Hollis of Las Vegas and Mrs. Stella Ashby of San Pedro . Calif. |