Person:George Hazlett (1)

George Irwin Hazlett started life as a farmer on his family's homestead near Monona, Iowa. He graduated high school in 1916 and and continued to farm with his father until October 1, 1918, when he enlisted with the Army at Nevada Iowa. He was still in basic training when the war ended. He was honorably discharged on December 4, 1918 before completing his basic training. His discharge papers noted that he was five feet eleven inches tall with blue eyes, brown hair, and a dark complexion. His discharge lists him as Erwin George Hazlett.

After the army, Irwin eventually was hired by the Chicago, Milwaukee, St Paul and Pacific Railroad. He worked his entire career as a section hand, retiring at age 62. He used to say that the railroad's initials CMStP stood for the "cheapest, the meanest, and slowest to pay." After retirement, he continued to work part time as a radio dispacher for the Monona police department. His home was outfitted with two telephones and a radio for this purpose. George was a life long Cubs fan and was in elementary school when they won back to back World Series in 1907 and 1908. He would often listen to Cubs games on WGN radio, although at that distance the broadcast was mostly static. In retirement, he enjoyed traveling with his wife, fishing, gardening, and playing checkers.

On January 20, 1970, Irwin suffered a stroke and was taken to Praire Memorial Hospital in Praire du Chien, Wisconsin. He was transferred to the VA Hospital in Iowa City on January 26th and suffered a massive stroke on January 30th, which caused total paralysis. On March 31, 1970, he was transferred to Shenks Nursing Home where he spent the remainder of his life. He passed away on September 7, 1970 and gifted his remains for medical research to the University of Iowa. He was buried in Monona Cemetery on October 23, 1971.

1. ↑ Irwin Hazlett, 05 Apr 1900; citing v 2 p 44, Giard Township, Clayton, Iowa, United States; FHL microfilm 1255481., in "Iowa, County Births, 1880-1935," index, FamilySearch
   [1].

   Name: Irwin Hazlett
   Event Type: Birth
   Event Date: 05 Apr 1900
   Event Place: Giard Township, Clayton, Iowa, United States
   Gender: Male
   Father's Name: George Hazlett
   Mother's Name: Mae Cunningham
   Certificate Number:
   GS Film Number: 1255481
   Digital Folder Number: 004311209
   Image Number: 00398