| Notes |
- Maine Sunday Telegram (Portland, ME)
March 12, 2000
Miles E. Haskell of Pillsbury Street, who loved music and played in a number of popular Maine bands, died March 11, 2000, at a local health care facility after a lengthy illness. He was 80. Mr. Haskell was an accomplished clarinet and saxophone player who performed for audiences from Mill Creek Park to Europe. "He was tops," said Richard Kelley, a friend and fellow musician.
Mr. Haskell was born in Rockland, a son of Miles L. and Maud E. Salie Haskell. He attended Rockland and South Portland schools and graduated from South Portland High School. He worked for the former Portland Gas and Light Co., retiring in 1982 with over 40 years of service. Mr. Haskell played with local bands such as the Meeting House Four, Italian Heritage Band, Joe Romano Band, S.D. Warren Band, Chandler's Band, the German Hoffbrau Band and the Presumpscot River Bottom Boys. This last group traveled to Europe and played at the Bush compound in Kennebunkport. "Miles was a top clarinet player and his idol was Benny Goodman," Kelley said. He was "one of the best around here that I ever heard."
Mr. Haskell taught his grandsons, Jeremy and Nicholas, to play on his old clarinets. Jeremy Bowie-Haskell remembers bringing lawn chairs and dinner to listen to his grandfather's bands play in the gazebo at Mill Creek Park in South Portland. Mr. Haskell loved listening to his music collection, in particular classical jazz, his grandson said. He also was known for beautiful vegetable gardens, and used to have raspberry and blueberry bushes in his backyard. "He'd take us out to pick from them when we were little," said Jeremy Bowie-Haskell. He made jam and sold the berries from his front porch.
Mr. Haskell was a deacon of the First Congregational Church of South Portland and a member of the Eskimo Club. He was a member of the Longfellow Chapter, Order of the Eastern Star, of which he was a past worthy patron; Hiram Lodge of Masons; Scottish Rite Bodies and Portland Commandery, Kora Shrine; and was a past commander of the Stewart Morrill American Legion.
His wife, Stamatina Nina Haskell, died in 1986. Surviving are two sons, Miles T. and James, both of South Portland, and his two grandchildren, Jeremy and Nicholas.
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U.S. World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946 Record
Name: Miles E Haskell
Birth Year: 1920
Race: White, citizen
Nativity State or Country: Maine
State: Maine
County or City: Cumberland
Enlistment Date: 8 Jan 1942
Enlistment State: Massachusetts
Enlistment City: Fort Devens
Branch: Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USA
Grade: Private
Term of Enlistment: Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise according to law
Component: Selectees (Enlisted Men)
Source: Civil Life
Education: 4 years of high school
Civil Occupation: Pharmacist
Marital Status: Single, without dependents
Height: 69
Weight: 129
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U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010
Name: Miles Haskell
Birth Date: 18 Feb 1920
Death Date: 10 Mar 2000
SSN: 005164669
Branch 1: ARMY
Enlistment Date 1: 8 Jan 1942
Release Date 1: 4 Oct 1945
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1920 - 2000 (80 years)
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