Miles - Roy
Source: Waveland Independent newspaper, Waveland, Montgomery County, Indiana, April 17, 1931
Roy Miles was not able to come to his father's funeral. Last
week there was a heavy snow at his home, Plato, Mich., and in
getting a car out of a drift his back was wrenched so severely
that he is laid up.
Source: Waveland Independent newspaper, Waveland, Montgomery County, Indiana, Jan 26, 1939
Harry MILES received a message yesterday from Cline Miles of
Rousseaue, Michigan saying that his father, Roy Miles had been
found dead on Monday but giving no particulars beyond that the
funeral would be on Friday. He was the son of John Miles and was
born here and spent the greater part of his life here until he
moved to the northern peninsula of Michigan several years ago. He
and his only child, Cline made thier home together for a number
of years but in the fall of 1937 he married Mrs. Elsie VanCleave
who survives him with one stepdaughter. At one time he lived in a
house on the Hannah place, west of town which is now a part of
John Gililand's home. -- typed by kbz
Source: Waveland Independent newspaper, Waveland, Montgomery County, Indiana, Feb 2, 1939
Writing from Rousseau, Michigan, Cline MILES gives the tragic
story of the death of his father, Roy Miles which was noted last
week. Father went into the woods Saturday morning Jan 21 to hunt
for coyote tracks. Later events proved he found a fresh track. It
was a beautiful sunshiny day and the temperature way above zero.
About 5 o'clock in the afternoon it began to snow and the
temperature dropped to zero or lower in about two hours time. The
wind became so violent we feared our upstairs would be blown
away. The storm lasted until sometime early Sunday morning but
father had not come home. Sunday was cold and when he did not
show up by 10 in the morning, I organized a search party of CCC
boys and searched for some trace of him all that afternoon but
with no success. The sheriff had been notified Sunday and Monday
the search was on in earnest. Quite a number of our friends, law
enforcement officers, myself and CCC Camp 682 spent the whole day
searching in the woods. Our neighbor, Edd Gillstrom, an
experienced man in the woods was fortunate enough to find his
trail at 8 in the morning. He followed the trail all day with
difficulty as the trail was almost completed obliterated in some
places for miles at a stretch. Gillstrom found him about 4 in the
afternoon. He died about one mile north of Gillstrom's home -
that would place the position about 3 miles east and slightly
north of our home. I went into the woods at half past 7 with the
coroner and friends to examine and bring the body out. Father lay
on his back, head south and feet north at the base of a large
uprooted tree. He lay on his back as though sound asleep with his
right leg drawn up and the left straight out. He had just played
out - probably meant to just rest for two or three minutes, but
he was so weakened and exhausted that, he fell sound asleep and
the cold got him. His left hand with mitten still on was at his
side, the right hand without mitten was clenched and held
slightly above and to the right of his head. His gun, a 22
caliber, pump action, repeating rifle stood upright in the snow
and his snowshoes lay by his side. There was no snow on the body,
so we know death occurred sometime Sunday morning. I believe 2 or
3 o'clock. We agreed that death was caused by over exertion,
exposure and freezing and that an inquest was not necessary. He
had no matches or light and of course, his compass, a nonluminous
one was of no use to him under the circumstances. We had the body
removed to the Cane Funeral Home, Ontonagon, Michigan. The trail
covered many miles; showed plainly how he fell over logs, down
steep ravines, when he finally lost his direction and how he
battled, weak and exhausted and hungry with frozen clothing and
how finally just completely exhausted he fell into that
untroubled sleep we all must take sometime. He came at one time
within a quarter of a mile of the road. The funeral was held at 2
Friday afternoon at the Cane Funeral home and body was taken to
Riverside Cemetery. We are deeply grateful to the many kind
friends in Waveland and elsewhere who sent flowers and who helped
in any way. I might mention that my father is survived by his
wife, Elsie Miles, stepdaughter, Alberta VanCleave, son, Cline
and stepsons (sic), Randel and Eunice VanCleave. -- typed by kbz