Hershey Family
26 03 2007ASL Vlog - Approx 1:23 Minutes Long
Discussed about Hershey Family — the family who started Hershey candy business many years ago. They are one of the biggest candy makers in the world today. They have a town called Hershey in Pennsylvania — that’s where I heard about it when I grew up in Pittsburgh, PA.
Anyway, one of my family members said they have deaf son at one point who becomes one of the important person in family business. Yet he refused to recognize and support deaf community for some reason for many years.
Don’t know if anybody knows about this Hershey family unless it’s just another myth. I am very curious about this little piece of history — maybe you can help me out.
Did search in Google with no luck.
Grant W Laird Jr.
http://blog.grantlairdjr.com
Hey, I have a good friend who has family in Hersey, PA and she did work at Hersey factory there. Let me forward your blog to her and see what she says…
Grant,
I’m more than glad to help out. I did my short research based on what you tried to find “Fact or Fiction”. I found something that may interest you. Milton Snavely Hershey was a businessman who founded company town and candy company. I got the headline out of Wiki and paste on for you.
“On May 25, 1898 Milton Snavely Hershey married Catharine “Kitty” Sweeney. Since Milton and his wife Catherine could not have children, they decided to use their successes to benefit others, opening the Hershey Industrial School in 1909. In 1951, this was renamed the Milton Hershey School.”
So it give you hint that they couldn’t have children. So I assume they don’t have deaf son. Hope that help you. BTW Can I have some candy please?
ASLumabas
Yes, Milton Snavely Hershey was a businessman who founded company town and candy company. Also is married and didnt have any children. Also i read some history papers at Hershey Park in PA. There is big pictures of them all of his freinds and himself are orphans as they grew up together in that area.
My advice is you go out there and explore.. you will find alot history muesum there.
Have fun!
SB
I live nearby Hershey and I have learned more about Hershey family . The man who made the chocolate AND becomes successful business man . He and his wife don’t have any children . His wife was struggled to get pregnacy.They gave up and They decided to found the Milton Hershey School for children who lost parents or less privileged children . I dont think they have deaf member in the family … check the history at http://www.MHS.com . where did u get the info ??
VERY INTERESTING i never heard that before. i will like to find out but i guess one of comments said they don’t have children as they can’t get children. oh well……. thank for sharing
Joshua Womick
ASLumbas was absolutely right about Milton and Catherine Hershey donated millions and millions of dollars to provide education from K-12 to colleges for impoverished families.
That could be possible about one deaf “oralist” individual, who happened to be hired thru the industrial school. Who knows?
Kennywood amusement park in Western Pennsylvania was a popular gathering site for deaf people from the 30s to 80s.
Robert L. Mason (RLM)
Guys: Thanks for quick response. It appears to be just another silly myth. It is like forelore story, I am not too sure. I will ask my dad again about it.
gwlj
Hi there,
I found a link — it has some deaf people and about Milton Hershey, Is that what you were asking about?
http://www.boyshome.org/NewsletterArchive/The%20Walter%20Booking%20Story%20Archive%20Copy.htm
I picked out three excerpts of this story link that has two deaf people and then Milton Hershey that I gave out above. Grant, I think your family was telling you something and I was fascinated when I read this.
“The Board of Trustees then hired Mr. and Mrs. C. T. Friend. They ran the “Boys Home” as a family. The boys like them a great deal. They were very attentive to the boys needs such as school, church, health needs, and the boys’ real parent input.
Mr. Friend was totally deaf but he had a sense of feeling that when something was going on, which should not, he showed up, and put an end to it.”
“Robert Oates played football on the Boys Home team. He was totally deaf but still wanted to play. Coach Carlton and Mr. Saunders made him quarterback. They worked hard to teach him how to pass the ball but he learned very fast and became a very good passer. During a game, when he wasn’t on the field, Coach Carlton asked him what he would have done on a play. Robert replied, ” I would have moved further up on the bench so I could see the play”. After leaving the Home, Robert opened a sandwich shop just off Broad Street then later moved it next to the National Theater. He did very well in this location. He and Willie Moore joined a partnership and purchased the Richmond Auto Court where Mr. W. L. Carneal, who was Chairman of the Board of Trustees for the Richmond Home for Boys ate most of his evening meals. The Richmond Auto Court was valued at more than one million dollars!”
“During World War II, I took my family to visit my wife’s relatives in Hershey, PA. My wife was a relative of Mr. Milton Hershey and when I met him he told me the history of making chocolate products. I told him all about my stay at the Boys Home and asked him why he called his home for boys “The Boys Industrial Home”. He explained that he was training the boys to work in the Hershey factories. He was very interested in hearing about the Richmond Home for Boys and asked me to send him the names and addresses of the boys in the military. After the war was over, some of the boys told me that they received a box of Hershey chocolates.”
I got an email from my friend who asked her father who lives in Hersey (his house is a few blocks away from the Hersey amusement park.) His answer: “Nope - this can’t be right. Milton and Kitty Hershey didn’t have any children. Kitty couldn’t have children. That’s the reason they started the Milton Hershey School.”
Grant, can you pls let me know if the story link that i sent you fits right with your family storytelling? I am so curious.
One thing i was fascinated with this story is that the houseparent (Mr Friend) was deaf, Robert Oates was the quarterback of his football team (if this was hearing team, wow thats great), and then he was successful with his sandwich shop and later Richmond Auto Court. The Boys Town was in Richmond Virginia but Milton Hershey went visting there, maybe he met these deaf boys. Let me know what you think of the links i sent to you. Thanks!
I know for fact the Hershey’s didn’t have any children. I was told by my
Mother that they left the family fortune to a nephew.
Somehow my Mom is related to Mrs. Hershey on my Grandfathers side of the
family. Their name is Reese. We were told that the candy bar was named after
one of the Aunts because Mrs. Hershey was close to her.
And now you have the reat of the story.