John Wesley Lucore (1845-1934) John Wesley Lucore was born 29 April 1845 at Penfield, Clearfield, Pennsylvania, the son of Stephen D. Lucore and Elizabeth Bliss. When John was 3 years old his father, Stephen, was bitten by a rabid dog and died at the age 45. John recalled seeing his father chained to a tree so he could not infect others. He grew up with a dislike of dogs. Later in life he carried a cane, not so much to assist in his walking but to scare off any dogs which may have attempted to bother him. In 1861, John was working as a farm hand. He told his mother that he was going to walk a ways with his brother who was enlisting in the Union army (it is not know which brother he was referring to). He didn t return home and on the 5 November 1861, he enlisted at Elk County in Union army in Captain Engram s Company G, 84 th Infantry Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers. He did not see his mother again until after his discharge. When it was discovered he was only 15 years old he was made a drummer and water bearer. The next year John did see regular action as an infantryman and 23 March 1862, he was wounded. The Surgeon s Certificate dated 28 May 1862 reads, Contused wound of the back and shoulder from a shell-four months standing. He was honourably discharged on 4 June 1862, at Carver Hospital, near Washington, D. C. for reason of disability. He was then 17 years old. While still in Carver Hospital John had the opportunity to shake hands with President Abraham Lincoln, an occasion which he never forgot and one he often referred to with considerable pride.
The Following news article was about the 6 Lucore brothers who served in the Civil War. Moses was John Wesley s older brother. The brothers who served were as follows:
Following his return home, John worked in various situations: cutting timber, road supervisor, auditor, Collector and Constable of Huston Township and Postmaster at Penfield. He was a member of the Grand Army of the Republic, was a Republican and a Methodist. John married Martha Hevener on 14 October 1873 at Penfield, Clearfield, Pennsylvania. Martha was the daughter of John and Arvilla Hevener. John and Martha had 11 children, the youngest of whom was Rose Viola Lucore. Back row from the left-samantha (Mant), Alice, Minnie, Clara Belle (Belle) Middle row-roy, Horance (Lowell), Harper (Harp), Howard, Roland (Sim) Front row-rose, Grandma Lucore, Grandpa Lucore, Abbie
This original photo and was sent to John Wesley and Martha Arvilla Lucore by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1909. John Wesley admired President Roosevelt and wrote him a letter expressing his admiration. He included a copy their family photo showing John, Martha and their 11 children. President Roosevelt wrote back at the bottom of this photo. It reads: With best wished to Mr and Mrs J. W. Lucore and all their eleven children; in kind and in number it is just the kind of American family I like to see. Give my especial regards to Mrs Lucore. Feb 17th 1909 Theodore Roosevelt John had the letter framed and hung it on his living room wall. He also had a picture of President Abraham Lincoln hanging above his mantle. John was always called "Pappy and he always called Martha "Ma'am. He wore a bowler hat over his full head of white hair. When John and Martha lived at 10th and Wallace in Erie in the early 1900s, he was sitting in a chair by their fireplace with his bowler hat sitting upside down on the floor next to him and his usual glass of ice water. He always had to have ice in his water. Without him knowing someone was working on the chimney and happened to knock lose a lot of soot -- which of course came down and landed in his hat unbeknownst to him. When he got up he put on his hat which of course dumped the soot on his white hair. He then went out to walk
up the street. Someone called for "Ma'am" to go and get him. His hair was quite black from the soot. Ma'am put him in the tub and dumped buckets of water over him. The Veterans of Foreign Wars would set up wooden chairs on the corner of 10th and Parade Street. Many of the old Vets would hang out there all day. One day J W (as he was then called) pulled up a chair to sit down, saying he felt he had walked 10 miles that day. He went to get his pension check from the military office and then have it cashed and then back home. John also used to hang out on the corner of 10th and East Avenue with his friends. The family at that time lived on East Avenue about 8th Street on the West side of town. Of course while he was on the corner he needed to go to the bathroom and decided he didn't want to walk home (just a few houses away). So he peed - his word - on a tree by the sidewalk. When someone told Ma'am he was soundly scolded. But his answer for his misbehaviour was that dogs do it all the time and didn't hurt the trees so it was good enough for him. John was 5 8 tall, a slightly built man, but quite strong throughout his life. Major contributions to his health were no doubt his work as a lumberjack and farmer and that throughout his life he never drank alcohol. At the time of his death he had a mustache and full head of hair. Rose and Harry Bennett were living on 10th and Wallace in Erie and John and Martha lived with them there. Martha died 27 August 1933 and John died in 8
January 1934 in DuBois. They are both buried in Morningside Cemetery, DuBois, Pennsylvania. Souces: Lucore Genealogy, Florence Sykes, FHL US/CAN Film 1425285 Personal knowledge of Lynn Wolsey Personal knowledge of Cheryl Fugal