Martha Almeda Wiltse

Martha Wiltse of Newcastle Dies

Word of the death of Mrs. Martha Wiltse of Newcastle was received by Mrs. H. B. Hargraves Tuesday forenoon but no details are avilable as The Herald goes to press.

The Wiltse family were residents of Lusk for many years, Mr. Wiltse being one of the first drillers in the oil fields in this locality. He died several years ago.

Immediate survivors are a daughter, Mrs. Mary Ertle, and a son, Kirk Wiltse, both of Newcastle.

Funeral services will be held in the Methodist Church of Newcastle at 2:30 Thursday, June 12.

The Lusk Herald
June 26, 1952
Last Rites Held For Martha Wiltse

Final rites were conducted for Martha A. Wiltse, a resident of Lusk for 13 years, at the Methodist Church in Newcastle June 12. Burial was made in the Greenwood Cemetery.

Mrs. Wiltse died at the Weston County Memorial Hospital June 10 after a brief illness.

The Rev. Herschel Martin of Cody conducted the services. Casket bearers were Pierre LaFleiche, Blaine Pleak, Harry Thorson, Ben Strickling, W. Updike, and F. B. Thomas. Mrs. Dave Crum sang, "I've Done My Work" and the Methodist choir sang, "No Disappointment in Heaven."

Martha Almeda, the daughter of James S. and Emily Kirk, was born Mar. 25, 1877 at Robinson, Ill. She spent her early days on the family farm and attended school in Robinson township, later attending college at Effingham, Ind. She was employed as a secretary in Chicago, Ill. for five years.

She was married to Henry Dudley Wiltse June 29, 1910. They made their home in Waterloo, Ia. They became the parents of a son, Dudley Kirk Wiltse. In September, 1913, the family moved to Lusk where it resided for 13 years. During that time, Mrs. Wiltse was active in the Congregational Sunday School and Church. She became a member of Luke Voorhees chapter of D.A.R., the Civic Improvement Club, the Delphian Society and the Order of the Eastern Star.

She moved with her family to Osage in 1926, and there was active in the Sunday School and the Osage Woman's Club. In the fall of 1943 she moved to Newcastle where she resided until her death. In Newcastle, she was affiliated with the Methodist Church, the W.S.C.S., the W.C.T.U., the O.E.S. and the Navy Mothers Club of America.

She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, four sisters and three brothers. She is survived by her son, Dudley Kirk; two grandsons, Dudley and James Wiltse; one granddaughter, Jeanette; one daughter-in-law, Hazel; one stepdaughter, Mary Ertle; one son-in-law, L.J. Ertle, all of Newcastle; two sisters, Anna Leggett of Oblong, Ill, and Mary Tobin of Cleveland Heights, Ohio, numerous nieces and nephews.

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