| Notes |
Lived at Fairplain, WVa; Staats Mill, WVa; Bidwell, OH
Farmer, loved his horses
John Robie lived the life of a gypsy during his youth, as his family moved back and forth from WV to PA, and maybe even into Ohio, never staying more than a couple of years, then moving on. John was probably the third of the nine children of Isaac and Cathleen (Rector) Robey.
Minnie Belle was the fifth of 11 children born to Ferdinand Silas and Loretta Victoria Casto Reynolds. Theirs was a solid old house, but they left it to move across the river to Ohio about 1919.
I remember stories about Grandpa riding his horse to visit Grandma. It was so far he had to stay all night. They married in 1904 and in 1908 had a son, Everett, and in 1914 a daughter, Loretta.
John was a big man with the biggest ears God ever put on a man. He must have had dark hair but I remember it as white - and very shiny on top. He was a farmer and loved his horses. John and Minnie lived on 2 or 3 farms in WVa and in Oct 1939 moved to near Bidwell, OH to the farm Minnie's parents had owned and left to their children. The farm was about a mile from the little village of Bidwell, which boasted a grocery store, a hardware store, a mill, two churches, and a railroad depot. Everett, his wife Erma (Casto) whom he had married in 1930 and their four children had moved to the farm across the road in January 1938, but Loretta was still living at home.
The farm house was a big white one with a wide porch, but everyone used the kitchen door. I remember the brick path and the cool water we'd draw up out of the well. The yard was shaded by big trees and Grandma always had flowers. The barn wasn't far away and always smelled of warm hay and old leather harnesses. The kitchen was large and heated by the wood burning cook stove. Lace curtains, crocheted doilies, a funny smell - was it Grandma's medicine? She died when I was 10, and I didn't know her very well; my parents had separated when I was three and Mom took us to visit infrequently. Between 1939 and 1945, Everett and Erma had three more children, and Loretta married Sammy Jobe and started her family of three.
Grandma was a religious woman, she'd attended the United Brethren Church, but Grandpa was getting on in years before he was baptized in the Ohio River at Middleport, Ohio. He respected her faith, for he gave her a Bible in 1908. She must have had a mind of her own, she changed the spelling of the name Robey to Robie because she just didn't like the way it was spelled, according to one story, but another story says she had a feud going with John's brother and changed the spelling to be different.
According to Loretta, they were proud of their grandchildren, at least the first few. The first two were girls and they were OK, but when the first boy came along, he was IT! After that it was downhill until the last one was almost disliked!
After Minnie died, Loretta talked John into selling the farm. He lived in little houses - first near Everett, then near Loretta, who was divorced by that time. Finally he was put into a rest home where he died. He outlived Minnie by 10 years. They were married 51 years.
~~
According to Loretta:
John Robie had Blue eyes, black hair and was 6'1"
Minnie had greenish blue eyes, brown hair and was 5'6".
He was the only one who couldn't play music, all his brothers and sisters and father could, but his mother couldn't. John sang bass, Minnie sang soprano, had sung alto earlier in life. They sang a lot. John was a great dancer.
John was democrat, Minnie Republican and wouldn't vote because of it. They didn't argue.
John had hardly any education, could read & write. Minnie went to 6th or 8th grade - got good grades.
Everett says Minnie had black eyes.
Jackson Co Register of Marriages John Robey, 27 to Minnie Reynolds, 20, 19 Mar 1904, both born and reside in Jackson Co, by CD Johnson at the home of the bride
Ohio Deaths, 1908-1932, 1938-1944, and 1958-2007
Name: John Robie
Birth Date: 1875
Gender: Male
Race: White
Residence County: Gallia
Residence State: Ohio
Residence Country: United States
Death Date: 4 Mar 1965
Hospital of Death: Long-Term Care Facilities
City of Death: Athens County
County of Death: Athens
Certificate: 16326
Age at Death: 90
Certifier: Coroner
Autopsy: Yes, not used for certification
Marital Status: Widowed
U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007
Name: John Robie
Gender: Male
Race: White
Birth Date: 27 Dec 1876
Birth Place: Ravenswood, West Virginia
Father: Isaac Robie
Mother: Cathleen Rector
SSN: 233288615
Notes: Sep 1938: Name listed as JOHN ROBIE
Robie Services
GALLIPOLIS - Funeral services for John Robie, 90, former Bidwell area farmer who died Thursday in an Albany rest home, will be conducted at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Vernon McCoy funeral home in Vinton by the Rev. Seth Huntley. Burial will be in Vinton Memorial Park.
Born at Ravenswood, he was the son of the late Isaac and Kathleen Rector Robie. His wife, the former Minnie Reynolds, died in 1955. He came to Gallia County from West Virginia in 1939 and after his wife’s death, he lived in Pomeroy for several years.
Survivors include a son, Everett Robie, Mesa, Ariz., a daughter, Mrs. Loretta Jobe, Gallipolis, a brother, Edward Robie, Pomeroy, and three sisters, Miss Minnie Robie and Mrs. Emma Casto, Ripley, W. Va., and Mrs. Clara McGraw, Parkersburg, W. Va. There are 10 grandchildren and several great-grandchildren.
Athens Sunday Messenger
March 7, 1965
Transcribed by Sandy L. Milliron
http://www.galliagenealogy.org/Obituaries/obits_rick-rob.htm
In Memory of
John Robie
Date of Birth
December 27, 1874
Entered Into Eternal Rest
March 4, 1965
Services From
McCoy's Chapel
Sunday, March 7, 1965
2 P.M.
Clergyman Officiating
Rev. Seth Huntley
Final Resting Place
Vinton Memorial Park
Arrangements by
Vernon & Elsie McCoy
Vinton, Ohio
John Robie
Birth: Dec. 27, 1874
Ravenswood
Jackson County
West Virginia, USA
Death: Mar. 4, 1965
Albany
Athens County
Ohio, USA
John was born in Jackson Co, WV to Isaac Robey and Catheleen Rector. Married Minnie Belle Reynolds, 3/19/1904 in Fairplain, Jackson Co, WV.
They had two children, Everett Gay Robie, 1908-1985, buried Mesa, Maricopa County, AZ and Loretta Kathleen, 1914-1994.
Family links:
Parents:
Isaac Robey (1847 - 1920)
Kathleen Rector Robey (1850 - 1920)
Spouse:
Minnie Belle Reynolds Robie (1884 - 1955)
Children:
Everett Gay Robie (1908 - 1985)*
Loretta Kathleen Robie Jobe (1914 - 1994)*
Siblings:
Alice Robey Wilson (1872 - 1952)*
Laura Robey Heiney (1873 - 1940)*
John Robie (1874 - 1965)
Edward Robie (1879 - 1961)*
Frederick Robey (1890 - 1927)*
Inscription:
Robie
Minnie B 1884 - 1955
John 1874 - 1965
Burial:
Vinton Memorial Cemetery
Vinton
Gallia County
Ohio, USA [Add Plot]
Created by: Betty Briggs
Record added: Dec 30, 2006
Find A Grave Memorial# 17219086
|
West Virginia Pioneers
1874 - 1965 (90 years)
[1] 
