Memorials › John Joseph Matous Jr

John Joseph Matous Jr

28 Jul 1905 – 31 May 1981

Birth	28 Jul 1905
Death	31 May 1981
Cemetery	Restland Memorial Park Dallas , Dallas County , Texas , USA
Added by	Veronika Grace on 07 Feb 2024
FaG	https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/40754900

Bio

John was the third son of John and Anna Matous. He was named after his father. His parents lived in Abie, Nebraska and owned J. J. Matous hardware and J. J. Matous Merchantile store. Additionally, they farmed while raising a family of eleven children ( eight sons and three daughters). John wanted to explore the world and got his opportunity when he told the Navy recruiter he was older than he was. After a short stint John reached out to his father pleading with him for help in getting out of the Navy and returning home. His father successfully assisted in getting John home only for John to decide he made the wrong decision. John reenlisted again for the second time albeit he was still underage. Navy regulations at the time required men to be age 17 with parental permission and 18 without. John enlisted on 5/13/1921 just a few weeks before his 16th birthday. After a little while John decided he wanted to return home and reached out to his father again for help. His father met with the family priest and it was decided not for his father to help him return again since this was the second time he went and wanted to return home. John completed his stay with the Navy. About 1926 his parents purchased additional land in Verona, North Dakota and moved the youngest eight children to live in their new home while farming and raising turkeys. Upon his release from the Navy John went to his parents home in Verona where he met his soon to be bride, Nellie ,who was born there and grew to womanhood. John became a father at age 24 at the start of the dirty thirties, named because of the dust bowls on account of the severe drought in the land. During this time the GREAT DEPRESSION of the thirties was making times difficult for many people, including rural areas and the farming industry. John and his young wife, Nellie, migrated to Detroit, Michigan in search of work. America had embraced a ' love affair' with the auto industry and Detroit was hiring in the midst of the depression. John secured work with Packard Motor Car Company. The company was known for making the finest luxury automobiles in America. John retired, receiving a gold watch with his name engraved on the back of the watch. This was a common retirement gift at this time. This gold watch was presented by his son, Roddy, to his firstborn son, John, who was named after his grandfather per his grandfather's request. John and his wife, Nellie, wanting to live in a warmer climate migrated to Texas where his younger brother, Leo, was living. John attended barber school and was co-owner of a sophisticated men's barber shop with multiple chairs and services provided including shoe shining which was inside the prestigious Richardson mall. John, age 55, was devastated after the premature death of his dear wife in the year 1960. He returned Nellie's body to her county she was born and raised in and returned to Texas a heart broken man. Years, later, in 1974 John remarried to Clemma until his death in 1981. Submitted by author L.G.Matous

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