Lester Rader McClintock, son of Archie L. and Minnie Belle McClintock, was born February 18, 1914, at the family's farm home several miles north of Council Grove. He passed away at the Council Grove Assisted Living facility October 17, 2014.
He was married to Vivian Orene Brown on May 17, 1942, at the home of the
bride's parents, in El Dorado, Ks. She predeceased him on October 29, 1998. He is survived by his two children, Kenneth W. McClintock (and wife Shirley) and Orene J. Nichols (and husband John), all of Council Grove. He also is survived by three grandchildren, Steven McClintock (and wife Barbara) of Alta Vista, Timothy McClintock of Round Rock, TX, and Christina Alspaw (and husband Philip), of Libby, MT. Also surviving are five great grandchildren and one great-great grandchild.
He was preceded in death by grandson Richard Nichols in 2011.
Others preceding him in death were his parents in 1966, and two brothers, Curren McClintock in 1996, and Wayne McClintock in 2008.
He attended Center View School, District 89, a one-room school commonly
referred to as "the cracker box", due to its resemblance to the metal cracker boxes of the day. He graduated from Council Grove High School in 1932.
In 1939-40, Lester and his brother, Wayne, went into business as McClintock Oil Co., at the Maple Camp Service Station, soon relocating to the Skelly filling station at the corner of Main and Union Streets. At the beginning of World War II he moved to California to work in an aircraft factory, but returned to Council Grove to operate the filling station when his brother Wayne was drafted into the Army.
After the war, Les and Wayne, in partnership with their father, Archie, obtained franchises for Dodge and Plymouth automobiles and Massey-Harris farm implements, operating as McClintock Motor Co. in the adjacent garage building alongside the Neosho River. They later moved across the river to buildings northeasterly of the present-day post office, before relocating in 1948 to a new garage building in the 900 block of W. Main Street. They eventually became a Ford dealer, and dropped the Massey-Harris franchise, before selling the business in 1967.
In 1965, the two brothers purchased the Home Gas Company, renaming it the Council Grove Gas and Service Co., which they operated until their respective retirements. After Wayne's retirement, he operated the business with son-in-law John Nichols and George Young, until the business was sold to Greeley Gas Company.
Les was very active in community affairs, as a member of the Church of Christ
(Christian) , serving as a deacon and as an elder, and later the Community Christian Church, the Council Grove Kiwanis Club, and the Council Grove Chamber of Commerce. He was for a time the Scoutmaster of Boy Scout Troop 65 and served on the Board for the Boy Scout Quivera District.
In 1962, he was elected to serve on the Council Grove City Council, and the following year was elected Mayor of Council Grove, a position he held until 1971. He was first appointed a volunteer fireman in 1944, and served the community in that position for several decades.
Over the years, Les and brother Wayne accumulated a wide variety of antique
items of historic value and eventually displayed them in the facilities they named the Yesteryear Museum, on Market Street, behind the Post Office Oak House. Onto that property they moved the 1895 Missouri Freight Depot from its original site just east of the Council Oak. They erected a large metal building and another, open building to house their collection, and later donated to the Morris County Historical Society the entire property and its contents. He also was instrumental in assisting the restoration of the Terwilliger Home and development of the Maple Camp Historic Site.
Memorial contributions may be made to Community Christian Church and may be sent in care of Penwell-Gabel, Po Box 273, Council Grove, KS 66846.