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Place of Birth
Shamokin, PA
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Place of Death
Sunbury, PA
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Burial Place
All Saints Cemetery, Elysburg, PA
Born June 2, 1908, in Shamokin, Joseph was a son of Hungarian immigrants Joseph and Ellen (Kerestsey) Koletar.
Joseph dropped out of school after 8th grade to help support the family after the death of his father. He worked as a breaker boy in the mines for several years and later worked as a miner in the Burnside Mines in Shamokin. He picked up spare money boxing in amateur bouts at Packers Island, Sunbury. Joseph was known as Kid Koley when he fought. The nickname stuck and he was known as Koley throughout his life.
He married Grace Krumbine of Sunbury on February 2, 1932. Together they had six children and 15 grandchildren.
In the late 1930s, Koley worked as a machinist by Shipman’s Machine Shop, Sunbury. After 16 years at Shipman’s, Koley moved to Celotex where he worked as a machinist for 16 years before retiring in 1973.
He was a life member of the Goodwill Hose Company, Sunbury. A quiet man, Koley could be an intimidating presence to those who did not know him, but he was a devoted husband and father and enjoyed his great-grandchildren.