George Downs Marble, the son of Duane Pierce Marble and Magdalena Knapp, was born on July 03, 1914, in Ashland, Ohio.

George Downs Marble was named after his great grandfather George Downs, who immigrated to the United States on 18 April 1870 from England. After graduating from Ashland High School, Class of 1932, George D. Marble started attending Ashland College in 1936. Part of the expense of his college education came from money he earned by his activity in a small dance band of ten. Tom Vanosdall led the band, Tommy Van and his Orchestra. The band, traveling by bus, played as many as three engagements a weekend. George played the trumpet and his twin brother, Emory Wages Marble, played the trombone. The band required George to stay on the road into the early morning hours. Without time to change for college, George often attended his eight o'clock classes in his band tuxedo. In 1940, George received his Bachelor of Arts Degree with a major in Economics and in Business Administration.

After George graduated from college, the Ohio Public Service Company employed George as a storekeeper and stock ledger clerk. On October 8, 1941, he entered service, joining the Army. He served for four years and two months, including eleven months overseas in the European Theater. A member of the 63rd Infantry Division, he engaged in combat service in the Alsace -Lorraine sector, including the Battle of the Bulge.

After his discharge on December 21, 1945, George returned to the Ohio Public Service Company, until he left to enter the insurance business. In 1947, George, at age of thirty-three, became an insurance agent for Lafayette Life Insurance Company, serving Ashland County, Ohio. That year, county commissioners appointed George to the Ashland County Clerk of Courts. A Republican, George was a member of the Ashland Chamber of Commerce, the Junior Chamber of Commerce, Ashland Lodge 151, F. and A.M., the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and the First Church of Christ. After this appointment, he was elected in February 1948 for a four-year term and reelected in 1952. During his eight years service, he was responsible for many improvements in procedures, effecting a saving in time and in expense. He initiated the installation of a flat filing system for court cases and made changes in the method of handling support payments. George Marble resigned before January 1956, in order to devote more time to teaching. George had joined the faculty of Ashland College in the fall of 1955, as an instructor in business administration. Jim O. Gossett, nephew to George, was appointed January 1, 1956 as the new Ashland County Clerk of Courts.

Attracted to the field of Business Administration, George pursued his education. He attended Pennsylvania State University in 1958 and received a master of education degree. The 1968 Pine Whispers Yearbook honored George D. Marble, Associate Professor of Economics at Ashland College, by selecting him as the dedicatee. The tribute to George noted he was a chairman of the faculty committee, which sponsored athletic contents and acted as a steering committee for the broader athletic program. He was a member of the American Economic Association, the United Business Education Association and a Student Senate adviser. The tribute quotes, "We all praise this popular professor, adviser, father and leader, as he is named The Honored Professor of 1967-68." The yearbook tribute opens with a quote from Shakespeare that Professor Marble fondly repeated throughout his teaching career. "All the world's a stage and all the men and women merely players and one man in his time plays many parts."

As a nephew, I, Brad Marble remember the stories filled with humor that George and his brother Emory would exchange at family gatherings. Each had a sense of what the other was going to say. Their timing and wit surpassed what I have seen by professional comic teams. Love and miss my twin uncles.

Sources for biography:
Ashland Times Gazette,
History of Ashland County, Volume II by Betty Plank, Page 129
Pine Whispers, Ashland College Yearbook 1968

Military Service: Bet. October 08, 1941 - December 21, 1945
Army Serial Number: 35029492
While residing in Ashland, Ashland County, Ohio George enlisted into the Army at Cleveland, Ohio.
Branch: Alpha Designation: Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USA
Education: 4 years of college, Motorcycle mechanic, or packer, high explosives (munitions worker, ammunition) or toolroom keeper or stock clerk or stock control clerk.
Musician in the 63rd Infantry Division Band during WWII.
December 1943, Camp Van Dorn, Mississippi
1945, 63d Band played in Bad Mergentheim, Germany

Social Security Death Index:
George MARBLE
Birth Date: 3 Jul 1914, Death Date: 27 Dec 1997, Social Security Number: 289-16-4985,
State or Territory Where Number Was Issued: Ohio, Death Residence Localities
ZIP Code: 44805 Localities: Ashland, Ashland, Ohio, Bailey Lakes, Ashland, Ohio, Olivesburg, Ashland, Ohio, Widowville, Ashland, Ohio

Ohio Deaths, 1958-2000
Marble, George Downs, Volume: 31330 Certificate: 093422, Autopsy: No Gender: Male, Date of Death: 27 December 1997 SSN: 289164985, Birth Date: 03 July 1914 Father's Surname: Marble, Time of Death: 7:27 PM Age: 83, Birth Place: Ashland, Ashland County, Ohio Marital Status: Widowed
Residence: Ohio Hispanic Origin: Non Hispanic, Years of Schooling: 17 Certifier: Physician, Referred to Coroner: No Branch of Service: Army, Method of Disposition: Burial, Mother's Surname: Knapp
Place of Death: Nursing Home, Race: White.

Ashland High School Graduation Photo
Senior Class of 1932
http://www.rootsweb.com/~ohacogs/ashhigh1932/ahighsc1932a.html

Document created by nephew, DeCody Brad Marble