Paul Neer
Paul Neer was the son of Oliver Lee Neer and Ida Jane Johnson.
A December 1919 passport application for Paul Neer provides considerable detail about his life. It specifies that he was born near Cheyene, Wyoming on October 15, 1879; that he lived in Mexico from 1897 to 1903 and from 1911 to 1916; that he lived in Honduras from 1908 to 1910; that he had never previously had a passport; that he currently lived in Glendale, California; and was applying for one to go to Honduras for "Mining Engineering" to depart from Nogales on the Southern Pacific line in January of 1920.
According to the U.S. Census, in 1900, he lived in Bisbee, Arizona, as a copper miner. He married Fay. Their daughter was Pauline E. Neer. Paul was a student in the 1909 class of the Colorado School of Mines. The school quarterly reports that his sophomore year, he was class vice-president. He was a member of the Sigma Nu fraternity, a brother in the School of Mines Gamma Eta chapter, badge number 49, initiated on September 14, 1906, just before his brother Lee Neer.
Charlotte Ann Quinlan remembers her mother Leona Jane Neer describing how Paul was "assassinated" in Mexico in the presence of his wife, leaving Guanacevi on November 16, 1924. This murder resulted in the often cited case of Neer versus Mexico. The case records describe Paul as having been a superintendent of a mine near Guanacevi. More detail can be found in a November 19, 1924 article in the Bisbee Ore. An article headlined "American Citizen Killed in Durango, Mexico Says Statement by U.S. Consul" reads "American Consul McEnolly today reported the killing of Paul Meer [sic], an American citizen, employed by the Penoke Mining Company at Guanocevi [sic], state of Durango, Mexico. His assassin has not been captured."
