Per Kay-Review July 4, 1949
Earl was drowned in Lake Decatur when the boat he was operating capcized 300 feet from the dock. The condition of the body indicated he may have been fatally injured by the propeller of the boat.
Earl was manager of the sporting goods department at Morehouse and Wells and had gone to the lake to demonstrate the motor for a customer.
He was born in LaPlace November 20, 1916 to Mr. & Mrs. Earl Hathaway. He had lived in Decatur 12 years.A veteran of World War II, he had also been employed at Montgomery Ward here. He married Bernice Eppley July 12, 1937 in St. Charles, MO. Survived by his wife; father of Decatur; mother and step-father, Jr. & Mrs. W. B. Bowen of Cerro Gordo; children, Suzanne, Richard Wayne, Stephen Michael and Marcella, all at home; sisters, Mrs.John M. Gates of Tuscola and Mrs. Russell Reed of Maroa.
