John Beltz

John Beltz was born in Clark County Illinois in 1891. His family was poor because his mother and father were divorced. As a young man he worked in the mines. He worked as a trapper. His job was to open the doors for the mules and the mine cars. The opening and closing of the doors made a good circulation of air to push out the gases in the mineshaft. He went to high school in Gardner Illinois. Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois is where he took some of his engineering classes. He majored in electrical engineering at the University of Illinois. He took as many electives as he was able to in mining engineering. He worked his way through college and graduated in 1916. John worked the 6 to midnight shifts in a powerhouse, which supplied the electricity for the dormitory. He also worked a lot of other part time jobs while attending college. After graduating from the University, he went to Schenectady, New York with General Electric for more training.

In 1918, he married Ethel Jackman. They had one child, a daughter, born on January 18, 1922. His wife and brother-in-law both died of Rheumatoid Arthritis, after being ill for six years. John had a full time registered nurse to care for them. Their daughter was married on October 29, 1944 and is currently living in Williamsville, New York. John Beltz died on June 17, 1988 at the age of 96.