AT VICTORIA RESIDENCE - COUPLE DIES IN FIRE
H. Paul Blair, 66, and his wife, Winifred, 61, died Friday morning, apparently from asphyxiation, when fire ripped through a portion of their home at 3102 Coffey St.
Blair, a supervisor for Wilson Supply Co., who was expected to retire Jan. 1 after over 20 years of employment in the oilfield equipment business, and his wife, were found dead in a bedroom of the home while firemen were battling the fire that resulted in an estimated $12, 000 in damages.
Both clad in bed clothing, Blair had apparently gone from his bedroom to his wife's in an attempt to rescue her from the fire that had gutted the living room and kitchen and was threatening her bedroom.
Mrs. Blair's body was found lying at the foot of the bed and Blair's body was discovered in a sitting position against the bed, with one of his hands clutching the guard of a small electric fan.
Firemen said there was a possibility that Blair had made an attempt to break out a window with the fan.
No burn marks were found on the bodies with the bedroom being one of several that suffered intense smoke and heat damages.
"You couldn't have gone inside without a mask" said Asst. Fire Chief Ed Kurtz, in describing the intense heat.
The fire was blamed on a cigarette that apparently dropped on a chair in the living room and smouldered, possibly, late Thursday or Friday morning. It eventually destroyed the chair, burned a hole in the floor, and then flamed up and burned through the roof and side of the west wall.
The bedroom where the bodies were found was on the opposite side of the frame two-bedroom residence.
Kurtz estimated that the couple had been dead at least 30 minutes before the bodies were discovered shortly after 6 a.m. The alarm was sounded at 6 a.m., and an ambulance was dispatched to the location 15 minutes later.
Kurtz said there was an indication that Mrs. Blair was still alive and one of the firemen applied mouth-to-mouth resuscitation but to no avail. The couple was officially pronounced dead at a local hospital at 6:55 a.m.
A resident on nearby Rio Grande Street, located one block to the south, reportedly was the first to notify the fire department after smelling smoke and then seeing the flames leaping through the roof.
First police officer at the scene was Officer Larry Mitchell.
Coffey Street is a three-block street running east from Ben Wilson Street and a short distance south of the Southern Pacific Railroad tracks.
Justice of the Peace Alfred C. Baass held an inquest but didn't have a verdict Friday afternoon.
Blair had worked the last five years for Wilson Supply Co. and the previous 15 years for D&W Tool Co. He was a former employee of Magnolia Petroleum Co., now Mobil Oil. He was his wife had resided in Victoria since 1954, coming here from Corpus Christi.
Blair was born May 27, 1907, in Granville, N. D., and was a member of the Methodist Church and the Elk's Lodge. Mrs. Blair was born Jan. 14, 1912, in Fayetteville, Ark., and was a member of the Baptist Church.
Blair's parents were the late John Wesley and Dania Courtney Blair. Mrs. Blair's parents were the late John and Willie McNeely Mayes.
Joint graveside services will be held at 4 p.m. Saturday at Memorial Park Cemetery with the Rev. Nelson Ponthieux officiating. McCabe-Carruth Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Names as honorary pallbearers for Blair are Bobby Kalich, George Pickering Jr., Boots Odom, Joe Ruddock, W. F. Meyer, Henry Buske and Hank Slater.
Honorary pallbearers for Mrs. Blair will be Munson Smith, J. Barney Daniels, Sam Chambers, Rudy Gresovitch, Gene McGarity, A. C. Randle, Henry Mears and M. Gary.
The couple is survived by three daughters, Mrs. Sue Chambers, of San Antonio, Mrs. Sandra McGarity of Granbury, Tex., and Mrs. Paula Harkrader of Jacksonville, Ill.; five grandchildren and one great grandchild.
Also surviving Mrs. Blair are two sisters, Mrs. Evelyn McCoy of Victoria and Mrs. Alexa Hamilton of Wilmington, Calif. and two brothers, David M. Mayes of Hampton, Va., and Kent Mayes of Okmulgee, Okla.
The Victoria Advocate-Saturday, December 8, 1973, pages 1A and 14A.
H. Paul Blair, 66, and his wife, Winifred, 61, died Friday morning, apparently from asphyxiation, when fire ripped through a portion of their home at 3102 Coffey St.
Blair, a supervisor for Wilson Supply Co., who was expected to retire Jan. 1 after over 20 years of employment in the oilfield equipment business, and his wife, were found dead in a bedroom of the home while firemen were battling the fire that resulted in an estimated $12, 000 in damages.
Both clad in bed clothing, Blair had apparently gone from his bedroom to his wife's in an attempt to rescue her from the fire that had gutted the living room and kitchen and was threatening her bedroom.
Mrs. Blair's body was found lying at the foot of the bed and Blair's body was discovered in a sitting position against the bed, with one of his hands clutching the guard of a small electric fan.
Firemen said there was a possibility that Blair had made an attempt to break out a window with the fan.
No burn marks were found on the bodies with the bedroom being one of several that suffered intense smoke and heat damages.
"You couldn't have gone inside without a mask" said Asst. Fire Chief Ed Kurtz, in describing the intense heat.
The fire was blamed on a cigarette that apparently dropped on a chair in the living room and smouldered, possibly, late Thursday or Friday morning. It eventually destroyed the chair, burned a hole in the floor, and then flamed up and burned through the roof and side of the west wall.
The bedroom where the bodies were found was on the opposite side of the frame two-bedroom residence.
Kurtz estimated that the couple had been dead at least 30 minutes before the bodies were discovered shortly after 6 a.m. The alarm was sounded at 6 a.m., and an ambulance was dispatched to the location 15 minutes later.
Kurtz said there was an indication that Mrs. Blair was still alive and one of the firemen applied mouth-to-mouth resuscitation but to no avail. The couple was officially pronounced dead at a local hospital at 6:55 a.m.
A resident on nearby Rio Grande Street, located one block to the south, reportedly was the first to notify the fire department after smelling smoke and then seeing the flames leaping through the roof.
First police officer at the scene was Officer Larry Mitchell.
Coffey Street is a three-block street running east from Ben Wilson Street and a short distance south of the Southern Pacific Railroad tracks.
Justice of the Peace Alfred C. Baass held an inquest but didn't have a verdict Friday afternoon.
Blair had worked the last five years for Wilson Supply Co. and the previous 15 years for D&W Tool Co. He was a former employee of Magnolia Petroleum Co., now Mobil Oil. He was his wife had resided in Victoria since 1954, coming here from Corpus Christi.
Blair was born May 27, 1907, in Granville, N. D., and was a member of the Methodist Church and the Elk's Lodge. Mrs. Blair was born Jan. 14, 1912, in Fayetteville, Ark., and was a member of the Baptist Church.
Blair's parents were the late John Wesley and Dania Courtney Blair. Mrs. Blair's parents were the late John and Willie McNeely Mayes.
Joint graveside services will be held at 4 p.m. Saturday at Memorial Park Cemetery with the Rev. Nelson Ponthieux officiating. McCabe-Carruth Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Names as honorary pallbearers for Blair are Bobby Kalich, George Pickering Jr., Boots Odom, Joe Ruddock, W. F. Meyer, Henry Buske and Hank Slater.
Honorary pallbearers for Mrs. Blair will be Munson Smith, J. Barney Daniels, Sam Chambers, Rudy Gresovitch, Gene McGarity, A. C. Randle, Henry Mears and M. Gary.
The couple is survived by three daughters, Mrs. Sue Chambers, of San Antonio, Mrs. Sandra McGarity of Granbury, Tex., and Mrs. Paula Harkrader of Jacksonville, Ill.; five grandchildren and one great grandchild.
Also surviving Mrs. Blair are two sisters, Mrs. Evelyn McCoy of Victoria and Mrs. Alexa Hamilton of Wilmington, Calif. and two brothers, David M. Mayes of Hampton, Va., and Kent Mayes of Okmulgee, Okla.
The Victoria Advocate-Saturday, December 8, 1973, pages 1A and 14A.
AT VICTORIA RESIDENCE - COUPLE DIES IN FIRE
H. Paul Blair, 66, and his wife, Winifred, 61, died Friday morning, apparently from asphyxiation, when fire ripped through a portion of their home at 3102 Coffey St.
Blair, a supervisor for Wilson Supply Co., who was expected to retire Jan. 1 after over 20 years of employment in the oilfield equipment business, and his wife, were found dead in a bedroom of the home while firemen were battling the fire that resulted in an estimated $12, 000 in damages.
Both clad in bed clothing, Blair had apparently gone from his bedroom to his wife's in an attempt to rescue her from the fire that had gutted the living room and kitchen and was threatening her bedroom.
Mrs. Blair's body was found lying at the foot of the bed and Blair's body was discovered in a sitting position against the bed, with one of his hands clutching the guard of a small electric fan.
Firemen said there was a possibility that Blair had made an attempt to break out a window with the fan.
No burn marks were found on the bodies with the bedroom being one of several that suffered intense smoke and heat damages.
"You couldn't have gone inside without a mask" said Asst. Fire Chief Ed Kurtz, in describing the intense heat.
The fire was blamed on a cigarette that apparently dropped on a chair in the living room and smouldered, possibly, late Thursday or Friday morning. It eventually destroyed the chair, burned a hole in the floor, and then flamed up and burned through the roof and side of the west wall.
The bedroom where the bodies were found was on the opposite side of the frame two-bedroom residence.
Kurtz estimated that the couple had been dead at least 30 minutes before the bodies were discovered shortly after 6 a.m. The alarm was sounded at 6 a.m., and an ambulance was dispatched to the location 15 minutes later.
Kurtz said there was an indication that Mrs. Blair was still alive and one of the firemen applied mouth-to-mouth resuscitation but to no avail. The couple was officially pronounced dead at a local hospital at 6:55 a.m.
A resident on nearby Rio Grande Street, located one block to the south, reportedly was the first to notify the fire department after smelling smoke and then seeing the flames leaping through the roof.
First police officer at the scene was Officer Larry Mitchell.
Coffey Street is a three-block street running east from Ben Wilson Street and a short distance south of the Southern Pacific Railroad tracks.
Justice of the Peace Alfred C. Baass held an inquest but didn't have a verdict Friday afternoon.
Blair had worked the last five years for Wilson Supply Co. and the previous 15 years for D&W Tool Co. He was a former employee of Magnolia Petroleum Co., now Mobil Oil. He was his wife had resided in Victoria since 1954, coming here from Corpus Christi.
Blair was born May 27, 1907, in Granville, N. D., and was a member of the Methodist Church and the Elk's Lodge. Mrs. Blair was born Jan. 14, 1912, in Fayetteville, Ark., and was a member of the Baptist Church.
Blair's parents were the late John Wesley and Dania Courtney Blair. Mrs. Blair's parents were the late John and Willie McNeely Mayes.
Joint graveside services will be held at 4 p.m. Saturday at Memorial Park Cemetery with the Rev. Nelson Ponthieux officiating. McCabe-Carruth Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Names as honorary pallbearers for Blair are Bobby Kalich, George Pickering Jr., Boots Odom, Joe Ruddock, W. F. Meyer, Henry Buske and Hank Slater.
Honorary pallbearers for Mrs. Blair will be Munson Smith, J. Barney Daniels, Sam Chambers, Rudy Gresovitch, Gene McGarity, A. C. Randle, Henry Mears and M. Gary.
The couple is survived by three daughters, Mrs. Sue Chambers, of San Antonio, Mrs. Sandra McGarity of Granbury, Tex., and Mrs. Paula Harkrader of Jacksonville, Ill.; five grandchildren and one great grandchild.
Also surviving Mrs. Blair are two sisters, Mrs. Evelyn McCoy of Victoria and Mrs. Alexa Hamilton of Wilmington, Calif. and two brothers, David M. Mayes of Hampton, Va., and Kent Mayes of Okmulgee, Okla.
The Victoria Advocate-Saturday, December 8, 1973, pages 1A and 14A.
H. Paul Blair, 66, and his wife, Winifred, 61, died Friday morning, apparently from asphyxiation, when fire ripped through a portion of their home at 3102 Coffey St.
Blair, a supervisor for Wilson Supply Co., who was expected to retire Jan. 1 after over 20 years of employment in the oilfield equipment business, and his wife, were found dead in a bedroom of the home while firemen were battling the fire that resulted in an estimated $12, 000 in damages.
Both clad in bed clothing, Blair had apparently gone from his bedroom to his wife's in an attempt to rescue her from the fire that had gutted the living room and kitchen and was threatening her bedroom.
Mrs. Blair's body was found lying at the foot of the bed and Blair's body was discovered in a sitting position against the bed, with one of his hands clutching the guard of a small electric fan.
Firemen said there was a possibility that Blair had made an attempt to break out a window with the fan.
No burn marks were found on the bodies with the bedroom being one of several that suffered intense smoke and heat damages.
"You couldn't have gone inside without a mask" said Asst. Fire Chief Ed Kurtz, in describing the intense heat.
The fire was blamed on a cigarette that apparently dropped on a chair in the living room and smouldered, possibly, late Thursday or Friday morning. It eventually destroyed the chair, burned a hole in the floor, and then flamed up and burned through the roof and side of the west wall.
The bedroom where the bodies were found was on the opposite side of the frame two-bedroom residence.
Kurtz estimated that the couple had been dead at least 30 minutes before the bodies were discovered shortly after 6 a.m. The alarm was sounded at 6 a.m., and an ambulance was dispatched to the location 15 minutes later.
Kurtz said there was an indication that Mrs. Blair was still alive and one of the firemen applied mouth-to-mouth resuscitation but to no avail. The couple was officially pronounced dead at a local hospital at 6:55 a.m.
A resident on nearby Rio Grande Street, located one block to the south, reportedly was the first to notify the fire department after smelling smoke and then seeing the flames leaping through the roof.
First police officer at the scene was Officer Larry Mitchell.
Coffey Street is a three-block street running east from Ben Wilson Street and a short distance south of the Southern Pacific Railroad tracks.
Justice of the Peace Alfred C. Baass held an inquest but didn't have a verdict Friday afternoon.
Blair had worked the last five years for Wilson Supply Co. and the previous 15 years for D&W Tool Co. He was a former employee of Magnolia Petroleum Co., now Mobil Oil. He was his wife had resided in Victoria since 1954, coming here from Corpus Christi.
Blair was born May 27, 1907, in Granville, N. D., and was a member of the Methodist Church and the Elk's Lodge. Mrs. Blair was born Jan. 14, 1912, in Fayetteville, Ark., and was a member of the Baptist Church.
Blair's parents were the late John Wesley and Dania Courtney Blair. Mrs. Blair's parents were the late John and Willie McNeely Mayes.
Joint graveside services will be held at 4 p.m. Saturday at Memorial Park Cemetery with the Rev. Nelson Ponthieux officiating. McCabe-Carruth Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Names as honorary pallbearers for Blair are Bobby Kalich, George Pickering Jr., Boots Odom, Joe Ruddock, W. F. Meyer, Henry Buske and Hank Slater.
Honorary pallbearers for Mrs. Blair will be Munson Smith, J. Barney Daniels, Sam Chambers, Rudy Gresovitch, Gene McGarity, A. C. Randle, Henry Mears and M. Gary.
The couple is survived by three daughters, Mrs. Sue Chambers, of San Antonio, Mrs. Sandra McGarity of Granbury, Tex., and Mrs. Paula Harkrader of Jacksonville, Ill.; five grandchildren and one great grandchild.
Also surviving Mrs. Blair are two sisters, Mrs. Evelyn McCoy of Victoria and Mrs. Alexa Hamilton of Wilmington, Calif. and two brothers, David M. Mayes of Hampton, Va., and Kent Mayes of Okmulgee, Okla.
The Victoria Advocate-Saturday, December 8, 1973, pages 1A and 14A.
Gravesite Details
COD: Suffocation in house fire. Death Certificate #99067
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