Gash, William Cornelius ‘Jack’ husband of Myrtle Ellen (Altland)
Burial Date: 1960, 12/10 Age: 80 Lot:754 C
War: Spanish-American War
OBITUARY – Sterling Kansas Bulletin
W. C. “Jack’ Gash
William Cornelius Gash, son of Mr. and Mrs. J. W. Gash, was born on a farm near Sterling, November 17, 1879, and died of a heart attack at his home in Berkeley, Calif., December 3.
He enlisted in the Army in 1899 and served actively in the Spanish-American War in the Philippine Islands. Following army service he remained in Manila and served twelve years with the United States Bureau of Customs. While living there, he was married September 30, 1907 to Myrtle Altland of Sterling.
In 1913, the family moved to California, first living in Exeter, then later moving to Berkeley. Mr. Gash entered the custom brokerage and freight forwarding business in San Francisco and was well-known in that area’s foreign trade circles. At the time of his retirement in 1948, he was vice-president of the San Francisco office of the Frank P. Dow Company, Incorporated.
Mr. Gash had been a Mason for fifty-five years and associated with the East Bay Masonic Lodge for forty years. He was a member of the Alethe Chapter of the Order of the Eastern Star, and an active member of the Joseph McCort Camp of the Spanish-American War veterans. He was also a member of the Presbyterian Church.
Mr. Gash was survived by his widow, Myrtle Altland Gash, his children, Robert W. Gash, and Mrs. Ransom Pierce; five grandchildren; a sister; numerous nieces and nephews.
Masonic funeral services were held December 8 at the Berkeley Hills Chapel under the direction of David Roberts, lifetime business and personal friend, Rev. James Comfort Smith of Saint James Presbyterian Church conducted the service. Burial was held at the Sterling Cemetery Saturday and was attended by his widow, children, relatives and friends. Members of the Sterling Masonic Lodge, which he had first joined, acted as pall bearers. The Sterling American Legion furnished the flag attendance. Rev. Paul Mundell of Sterling officiated.
