Individual Details
Howard Manning Kirk Jr.
(17 Jan 1905 - 27 Apr 1997)
New Castle News, New Castle, Pennsylvania, Wednesday, May 14, 1997, Page 5 Cols. 1 & 2; Page 5, Cols. 1 & 2: There will be a memorial service for Howard M. Kirk at 1:30 p.m. Saturday at First Presbyterian Church. The Rev. Dr. Keith M. Curran, pastor, and the Rev. F. Dickson Marshal of the City Rescue Mission, will officiate. A reception will follow in the Heritage center. Private Burial will be in Oak Park Cemetery. Contributions in remembrance of Mr. Kirk's interest in children may be made to the Howard M. Kirk Youth Memorial Fund at either First Presbyterian Church or the City Rescue Mission.
Mr. Kirk, 92, a life-long resident of New Castle, died early the morning of April 27, 1997. Born Jan. 17, 1905, he was a son of Howard M. Sr. and Elizabeth Raney Kirk. He married the former Kathryn Matheny on June 13, 1940. She survives.
Other survivors include two daughters, Elizabeth Kirk Stewart of Washington, D. C., and Kathryn Sheehan of New York City; two grandsons; one great-grand-daughter; one sister, Dr. Elizabeth Kirk Rose of Kennett Square, Pa.; and one brother, the Rev. William H. Kirk of Hamden, Conn.
A 1923 graduate of New Castle High School, Mr. Kirk played varsity basketball and football there and was president of his junior and senior classes.
He attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he was a member of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity. After graduating from the university's Wharton School of Business and Finance in 1927, he returned to New Castle to join Kirk-Hutton & Co., the family's hardware business.
Three generations of the Kirks were involved in the growth of Kirk-Hutton. The company was founded in 1861 by Mr. Kirk's grandfather, Henry S. Kirk, and expanded by his uncle, C. J. Kirk and father, Howard N. Kirk Sr. Mr. Kirk further expanded the business in the 1940's, '50s and '60's.
It was legendary in the community for its 1918 slogan "22,000 articles in hardware," for its slow-city-water-pressure-powered freight elevator; for its oversized orange scale, which is now in the community Y building; for the depth and breadth of its inventory; and for Mr. Kirk's entertaining stories and knowledge of the community's history and its families. Kirk-Hutton closed in 1989 when Mr. Kirk retired.
He was a life-long and active member of the First Presbyterian Church after joining the congregation in 1917. In April 1940, he was ordained as an elder and served in 1904, 1944 and 1949 with special responsibilities for youth work and Sunday school. He is most remembered for the 30 years he taught the Sunday school class for junior boys.
In 1954, he became a trustee and negotiated the purchase of the Mobil property south of the church for the new education wing. In 1955, he became chairman of the canvass committee for raising the funds to build the new wing and was in its 1959 dedication committee.
For 60 years, Mr. Kirk was involved in the work of the City Rescue Mission. From 1938 to 1992, he was a member of tits board and in the late 1940's served two, two-year terms as president. During that time in July of 1949, he hired the Rev. F. Dickson Marshall as superintendent of the mission. Mr. Kirk had been on the Mission's Honorary Board since 1992.
He also contributed to opportunities for young people through his support of Boy Scout and Girl Scout camps and the building of the swimming pool at Pearson Park.
For 31 years, Mr. Kirk was associated with First National Bank, now First Western Bank, where he was a member of the board from 1954 to 1985 and the Senior Advisory Board from 1985 to1987.
In addition, he was an active member and participated in various committees of the Greater New Castle Association, now the Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce.
He served on the board of Greenwood Cemetery, supported the work of the Neighborhood House on the South Side, was involved in the development of the water and sewer authority for Neshannock Township, assisted with the Almira Home Board's renovation projects, was active in the research and oral history collections of the Lawrence County Historical Society, was a member of the Covered Bridge Society of Pennsylvania, and enjoyed fellowship in retirement through the Lawrence County chapter of the Pennsylvania Association for the blind.
He will be remembered for his interest in people and especially for his friendship with children, for his story-telling, his knowledge of Lawrence County's history and families, and for his interest in sport, opera and Scots-Irish folk music.
Mr. Kirk, 92, a life-long resident of New Castle, died early the morning of April 27, 1997. Born Jan. 17, 1905, he was a son of Howard M. Sr. and Elizabeth Raney Kirk. He married the former Kathryn Matheny on June 13, 1940. She survives.
Other survivors include two daughters, Elizabeth Kirk Stewart of Washington, D. C., and Kathryn Sheehan of New York City; two grandsons; one great-grand-daughter; one sister, Dr. Elizabeth Kirk Rose of Kennett Square, Pa.; and one brother, the Rev. William H. Kirk of Hamden, Conn.
A 1923 graduate of New Castle High School, Mr. Kirk played varsity basketball and football there and was president of his junior and senior classes.
He attended the University of Pennsylvania, where he was a member of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity. After graduating from the university's Wharton School of Business and Finance in 1927, he returned to New Castle to join Kirk-Hutton & Co., the family's hardware business.
Three generations of the Kirks were involved in the growth of Kirk-Hutton. The company was founded in 1861 by Mr. Kirk's grandfather, Henry S. Kirk, and expanded by his uncle, C. J. Kirk and father, Howard N. Kirk Sr. Mr. Kirk further expanded the business in the 1940's, '50s and '60's.
It was legendary in the community for its 1918 slogan "22,000 articles in hardware," for its slow-city-water-pressure-powered freight elevator; for its oversized orange scale, which is now in the community Y building; for the depth and breadth of its inventory; and for Mr. Kirk's entertaining stories and knowledge of the community's history and its families. Kirk-Hutton closed in 1989 when Mr. Kirk retired.
He was a life-long and active member of the First Presbyterian Church after joining the congregation in 1917. In April 1940, he was ordained as an elder and served in 1904, 1944 and 1949 with special responsibilities for youth work and Sunday school. He is most remembered for the 30 years he taught the Sunday school class for junior boys.
In 1954, he became a trustee and negotiated the purchase of the Mobil property south of the church for the new education wing. In 1955, he became chairman of the canvass committee for raising the funds to build the new wing and was in its 1959 dedication committee.
For 60 years, Mr. Kirk was involved in the work of the City Rescue Mission. From 1938 to 1992, he was a member of tits board and in the late 1940's served two, two-year terms as president. During that time in July of 1949, he hired the Rev. F. Dickson Marshall as superintendent of the mission. Mr. Kirk had been on the Mission's Honorary Board since 1992.
He also contributed to opportunities for young people through his support of Boy Scout and Girl Scout camps and the building of the swimming pool at Pearson Park.
For 31 years, Mr. Kirk was associated with First National Bank, now First Western Bank, where he was a member of the board from 1954 to 1985 and the Senior Advisory Board from 1985 to1987.
In addition, he was an active member and participated in various committees of the Greater New Castle Association, now the Lawrence County Chamber of Commerce.
He served on the board of Greenwood Cemetery, supported the work of the Neighborhood House on the South Side, was involved in the development of the water and sewer authority for Neshannock Township, assisted with the Almira Home Board's renovation projects, was active in the research and oral history collections of the Lawrence County Historical Society, was a member of the Covered Bridge Society of Pennsylvania, and enjoyed fellowship in retirement through the Lawrence County chapter of the Pennsylvania Association for the blind.
He will be remembered for his interest in people and especially for his friendship with children, for his story-telling, his knowledge of Lawrence County's history and families, and for his interest in sport, opera and Scots-Irish folk music.
Events
| Birth | 17 Jan 1905 | New Castle, Lawrence Co., Pennsylvania |  | ||
| Marriage | 13 Jun 1940 | New Castle, Lawrence Co., Pennsylvania - Kathryn Matheny | | ||
| Death | 27 Apr 1997 | New Castle, Lawrence Co., Pennsylvania | | ||
| Burial | Oak Park Cemetery, New Castle, Lawrence Co., Pennsylvania | |
Families
| Spouse | Kathryn Matheny (1902 - 2004) |
| Child | Elizabeth Kirk ( - ) |
| Child | Kathryn Kirk ( - ) |
| Father | Howard Manning Kirk (1868 - 1952) |
| Mother | Elizabeth Raney (1875 - 1950) |
| Sibling | Helen Raney Kirk (1900 - 1990) |
| Sibling | Elizabeth R. Kirk (1901 - 2008) |
| Sibling | Leander Raney Kirk (1903 - 1955) |
| Sibling | William Henry Kirk (1909 - 2001) |
Endnotes
1. Family Search.
2. Find A Grave.
3. Obituary of Kathryn M. Kirk, New Castle News, New Castle, Pennsylvania, Wednesday, May 14, 1997, Page 5 Cols. 1 & 2; Page 5, Cols. 1 & 2.
4. Obituary of Howard M. Kirk, New Castle News, New Castle, Pennsylvania, Wednesday, May 14, 1997, Page 5 Cols. 1 & 2; Page 6, Cols. 1 & 2.
5. Obituary of Kathryn M. Kirk, New Castle News, New Castle, Pennsylvania, Wednesday, May 14, 1997, Page 5 Cols. 1 & 2; Page 5, Cols. 1 & 2.
6. Marriage of Kirk to Mathey, New Castle News, New Castle, Pennsylvania, Thursday June 13, 1940, Page 3, Cols. 4 & 5,.
7. Family Search.
8. Find A Grave.
9. Obituary of Kathryn M. Kirk, New Castle News, New Castle, Pennsylvania, Wednesday, May 14, 1997, Page 5 Cols. 1 & 2; Page 5, Cols. 1 & 2.
10. Find A Grave.