William “Bill” Hoare

Bill passed away the morning of March 23, 2020, at his kitchen table, drinking coffee. Bill wanted his obituary to simply say “Bill’s dead.” This is his story as his wife knows it.

Bill was a hardworking, patriotic American whose world was simple. He was born March 30, 1940 in Baltimore City, Maryland to William Emmitt Hoare, a steel mill worker, and Therese Martha Miller. He had a little sister Martha Anne, and they spent much of their childhood growing up on their grandparents’ farm in Pennsylvania. He talked about this time often and fondly, especially remembering jumping in piles of leaves in the fall, taking baths outside, lots of dogs running around, eating corn fresh from the field. His father was in the service so they moved around a lot. Bill’s family on his father’s side came from France, and his great granddad was a sea captain in the Merchant Marines who sailed all the seven seas. His mother’s family, the Millers, came from Nuremberg, Germany to America; his mother’s dad worked a wrecking crane for the railroad and owned a bar in Baltimore City. Bill spent a lot of time in the bar when he was small and said he often stole nickels from the coin counter. All of these people were a part of who Bill turned out to be. He always said he was born 100 years too late.

Bill was a teenager in the 50’s. He met many famous people and shook hands with Rocky Marciano and Johnny Unitas. He would go to the neighborhood parks where the Baltimore Colts and Baltimore Bulletts would meet and play with the kids. Bill got to ride in Guy Lombardo’s hydroplane, Miss Budweiser, in 1955 in Chesapeake Bay. They “only” went 80 mph but Bill said they weren’t even touching the water. He hated it. Bill attended Guy Lombardo’s New Years’ Eve celebrations in Baltimore City for many years which were something special.

When he was 15, Bill took trumpet lessons and soon formed a band with friend Donald Bock on drums; the band also included saxophone and guitar, and they practiced at Don’s house in Pasadena, Maryland. Don’s father was a big shot who held dances, and hired the band to play. They also played on the beach at Mago Vista Park and the local high schools every Saturday.

Bill graduated from Catonsville High School in 1957. He worked for a lumber company and a box manufacturing plant before joining the Army in 1959. He spent basic training at Fort Jackson, South Carolina, and then took advanced infantry and Ranger training in Fort Benning, Georgia. In 1960 he was stationed in Bamberg, Germany at the Berlin Wall for 2 years. Bill was honorably discharged from the Army in August 1965, and was recognized for having served during the Cold War and promoting the peace and stability of this nation.

Bill married Mary Rose in Baltimore in 1964. In 1968 he migrated to York, Montana, with Mary, his cousin Phil Popp, and Phil’s wife Kaye. They lived in the little cabin across from the York Bar, and Bill started his life in Montana working as a gravedigger. They ate a lot of trout. Bill learned the art of trapping from his good friend Jim, and off and on during the following years, when needed, made a living selling coyote, beaver and fox pelts. Bill worked for the Forest Service as a member of the Helena Hot Shots in the early 70’s and made so many good friends that he always talked about. He shot a bear with a bow and arrow near Frontier Town in 1971, ended up in the paper, and got a letter from Judge Gordon Bennett congratulating him. In 1973 after working in the Capital as a security guard, he became Governor Forrest Anderson’s personal driver and accompanied him between Helena and Craig and all around the state. He remembers one time he had 3 Supreme Court judges in the back seat and how nervous he was. Bill then went to work for Otis Elevator and spent time all over Montana installing and servicing elevators, particularly enjoying Fort Peck Dam and fishing for paddlefish and walleye.

Bill and Mary were divorced in 1981 and in 1982 he married Margo in Coeur d’Alene on a houseboat called the Love Boat. The honeymoon was spent in Edgar Brown’s yellow Cadillac driving down the Oregon Coast. Bill was happy to have finally seen the “left coast”, and it became a yearly vacation destination, especially Waldport. Bill and Margo lived on the McTaggart/Means thoroughbred horse ranch in Silver City, before his friend Howie introduced him to George Vincent in Canyon Creek, where Bill and Margo lived for 5 years. Bill learned “cowboying” from George and made a lot of new friends in Canyon Creek, Silver City, and Marysville. His dog Travel the Irish Setter was a familiar visitor all over Canyon Creek and was a self-taught cow-dog and snake pointer. Bill helped break and became buddies with Cody the horse, and Bill, Cody, and Travel spent many a long day working the fence lines, irrigating and feeding the cows. Bill also moonlighted at the Silver City Supper Club bartending for Edgar Brown.

When George sold the lower ranch, Margo and Bill moved to Avon where Bill worked for the Mattice Ranch, then moved to the Johnson Dairy Farm, where Bill milked cows for a living until he couldn’t take it any more. He worked for Schwann’s loading truck, thanks to his friend Jack Robertson, then got a job at the Helena School District, thanks to his friend Mike. During these years, Margo and Bill spent every weekend and holiday camping, bar-hopping, hot-potting, road tripping, partying and hunting with a group of dear friends. After moving around the Helena Valley, Bill and Margo found their forever home on Trout Creek above York. Bill retired in 2002 to fish for walleye and hang out with Lucy, his hard-headed Akita, then later with Charlie Bear, his sweet black lab, who preceeded him in death just 2 months ago. Bill is survived by Margo and Libby the pit bull, as well as his niece Pam and her boys Grant and Eric in South Carolina, and in-laws John and Beth in Seattle. Bill has moved this one last time to go see his loved ones that he missed so much, especially his sister Martha Anne. Although we can hardly bear this loss, we know he is now young again which will make him so very happy. He has gone fishing! We wish to thank Big Sky Cremation of East Helena for their care of Bill. Due to the coronavirus, services are not planned at this time. Bill asks everyone to just stay home!

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