Robert Tyler Kellogg

Robert Tyler Kellogg September 19, 1925 - March 5, 2010 Robert Tyler Kellogg, 84, of Greenfield, IN died Friday, March 5, 2010 at Regency Place, Greenfield. He was born September 19, 1925 at Parkland Hospital in Dallas, Texas. He lived in Greenfield since 1959. Growing up during the Great Depression, he earned money by hunting and trapping. In his mid-teens he hopped a train near Minot, ND and literally rode the rails to Fort Worth, TX. He later worked as a migrant, following the wheat harvest back home. At 17 he joined the U.S. Marine Corps and served during WWII at Guadalcanal and China. He then continued his education under the GI Bill at San Antonio Junior College, Texas A. & I. at Kingsville, and earned his B.S. in Bacteriology from the University of Texas at Austin. His professional career began at Baxter Laboratories, Chicago, where he was a district sales manager. He left Baxter to work for Air Shields, Inc. of Hatboro, PA, selling the first incubators for premature babies. After a brief stint as a stock broker for Paine Webber, his independent streak took over and he worked his way into the oil business by drilling water wells in Central Indiana and studying geology and land title law. He was a member of the American Association of Professional Landmen. His efforts at developing leases in Eastern Kentucky led directly to the discovery of several productive oil and gas fields. A lifelong genealogist, about which he was passionate and an expert, he researched everything to the last detail and kept meticulous records. He was preceded in death by his adoptive parents, Rhetta and Russell Kellogg of Boone, IA. After their deaths, he worked for many years searching for his biological family. It wasnt until 1976, when records laws were becoming more open, that he found them in Corpus Christie, TX. Although it was too late to meet his father, whom he closely resembled, he developed a lasting bond with his mother and four full siblings. He was preceded in death by his parents, James and Frances Connor; his brother Patrick Connor and his sister Mary Frances "Mimi" Connor. Survivors include his wife, Joan Harlan Kellogg, whom he married on December 24, 1952; daughter, Kathy (Bob) Haldrup of Knightstown, IN; son, Wade (Tammy) Kellogg, of Seymour, IN, brothers, James Connor of Corpus Christie, TX and Mike (Gayle) Connor of Bastrop, TX; three grandchildren, Erin Haldrup, Joey Kellogg, and Clay Kellogg. A private memorial service was held Saturday, March 6. There will be no calling. His family would like to thank the wonderful staff at Regency Place for their care and comfort while he was there. One of his final wishes was that there should be no obituary. His family ignored this request. Arrangements have been entrusted to Stillinger Family Funeral Home Pasco Chapel, Greenfield.