After 1947 the fate of those who died at the County Home changed. Individuals who had no family or burial arrangements used to be buried in the County Home Cemetery. While George Bond and Ben Shade were buried there in 1947, those two were the last County Home residents to be laid to rest there. Beginning in 1948, any County Home resident who did not have family or burial arrangements had their body sent to the Western Reserve University Medical School. This continued until 1955 when, suddenly, burials started being made at Shaw Cemetery in Lafayette Twp.
The circumstances surrounding these arrangements are not known. The information given was gathered from two sources: the County Home register book and death certificates. Here are the ten County Home residents known to have met this fate:
HARRY GIEGGER
Admitted: August 26, 1946 due to “Medical care, old age”
White male, 63 years of age, single, farmhand
Born September 11, 1882 in Summit County, Ohio
Died June 25, 1948 of cerebral hemorrhage
Register book: no mention of burial
Death certificate: “Western Reserve University”
ADAM KRUSO
Admitted: December 22, 1937 as “Homeless”
White male, 81 years of age
Born December 25, 1865 in Austria/Yugoslavia
Died January 25, 1949 of cerebral hemorrhage
Register book: no mention of burial
Death certificate: “Western Reserve Medical School”
GEORGE MOREW
Admitted: December 7, 1941 as “Insane”
White male, 75 years of age
Born April 8, 1871 in Hungary
Died December 5, 1949 of cerebral hemorrhage
Register book: no mention of burial
Death certificate: “Western Reserve University”
WILLIAM BROOKS
Admitted February 1, 1919 due to “Inability”
Black male, 70 years of age, single
No birthdate
Died September 5, 1951 of coronary thrombosis
Register book: “No relatives – Western Reserve”
Death certificate: “Western Reserve Medical School”
STEVE HORVATH
Admitted February 25, 1950 with “Arthritis”
White male, 76 years of age, single, worked in greenhouse
Born September 9, 1874 in Hungary
Died December 6, 1951 of stomach cancer
Register book: no mention of burial
Death certificate: “Western Reserve Medical School”
STANLEY WIETECHY
Admitted August 20, 1946 due to “Old age”
White male, 75 years of age, married, 4 kids, farmer
No birthdate, born in Poland
Died October 14, 1952 from cerebral vascular accident
Register book: “buried by family” (crossed out); “Western Reserve – Catholic Funeral”
Death certificate: “Western Reserve Medical School”
Death certificate lists usual residence of 1318 Rodman Ave., Cleveland, Ohio
STEVE LOZITCH
Admitted February 8, 1951 – “Needed a home”
White male, married, laborer
No birthdate, “foreign”
Register book says he died March 29, 1952 (crossed out) and then date is listed in `dismissed’ column
Death certificate says he died April 23, 1952, aged 74 years, of cancer of left par???? gland (neck?)
Register book: “Gensemer Funeral Home” (crossed out); “was discharged”
Death certificate: “Western Reserve University”
Death certificate lists usual residence of 186 Chestnut St., Wadsworth, Ohio
CHARLES ANDERSON
Admitted February 11, 1952 as a “Transient”
Died May 8, 1952
Register book: “Western Reserve Medical School”
HERBERT JOHN MILLER
Admitted September 28, 1953 as “Very ill” – tramp/vagrant
Born March 16, 1929
Died September 28, 1953 (per Medina County Gazette, October 2, 1953, pg. 5)
Register book has no death information but reads “Western Reserve”
Death notice tells that he was from Reading, Pennsylvania
JOE BOSINACK
Admitted January 2, 1947 with “Sickness and burns”
White male, 75 years of age, single
Born November 2, 1869 in Hungary
Died February 28, 1955
Register book: “Medical School”
Starting with Charles Jackson, who died June 24, 1955, burials went to Shaw Cemetery in Lafayette Twp. He is listed in the register book as “Shaw – county burial, no relatives”. Also in 1955, dying November 30th, was Alex Volchesky – “Shaw cemetery, Lafayette”. What happened to change the burial situation in 1955?
These two individuals died in Medina County during the `Western Reserve period’ but were not County Home residents. They seem like the type that might have been County Home Cemetery burials in the past but were sent, instead, to the Western Reserve University Medical School. Information obtained from their death certificates.
MARTIN RANDLES
April 20, 1881 – March 1, 1950
Lived in Lafayette, died in Medina Hospital of terminal pneumonia, cerebral hemorrhage
Death certificate: “Western Reserve University”
HERMAN FRANK RUELBERG
Born in Prussia, white male
Died August 10, 1950 in Lodi of coronary thrombosis, aged about 65 years
Death certificate: “Western Reserve University”
Medina County Gazette, August 15, 1950, pg. 6 – lists him as Hermand Rueberg and stated that he was born in Germany and had no relatives in America