Stories around the Lake
Interview with Mr. Martin Tillapaugh By Riley Fillion
“You may want to get away, but appreciate where you are.”
Born in Cooperstown in 1950, Mr.Martin Tillapaugh has lived in the village most of his life. His family has been in Cooperstown for almost 130 years. His great-grandfather bought a funeral home in 1888 and started Tillapaugh Funeral Service on Pioneer St. His grandmother was the second woman licensed as funeral director in the state of New York. His grandfather was the president of the New York State Funeral Directors. He is the 4th generation of Tillapaughs to become a funeral director and run the family business.
Mr. Tillapaugh grew up on the top floor of the funeral home. He was part of the first class of the newly constructed Cooperstown Elementary School. He also went to the old high school that was where Cooper Lane apartments are now, and he was in the last class there in 1968. After high school he got a Clark Scholarship to Hartwick College and graduated. After college, he wrote a thank you letter to Mr. Clark for the scholarship. Mr. Clark was so thrilled that Mr. Tillapaugh did well in college that he offered to take on his law school. He went to law school at Georgetown University. “This is why thank you letters are important,” he says.
He practiced law in a large firm for 27 years in Binghamton, NY. Three of his children graduated from high school in the Binghamton area. Fifteen years ago he retired from the law firm, and came back to take over the funeral home as a licenced funeral home director. They moved back to Cooperstown when Lily (his youngest child) was in 8th or 9th grade. And she graduated from Cooperstown Central Schools. “I did not have a calling but I seemed to want to continue the work that my great-grandfather started. He says “Probably the hardest thing is working with people in the hardest time of their life.” He continues to practice law and is the Cooperstown Village Attorney. He loves to travel and says,”I seem to be a workaholic.”
Mr. Tillapaugh fondly remembers growing up in Cooperstown. There was a youth center on the second floor of the old fire station with pool tables, shuffle board,etc. He also remembers the movie theater as one of the other things that he wishes was not gone. When he was 13 he got his sailing licence. And when he was 15 he started racing boats, and made a world record. (His dad was a pilot at the local airport, and was a sailing instructor.) His advice to kids in our area is that, you may want to get away, but you have to learn to appreciate this community. To hear more of Mr. Tillapaugh’s great storytelling, be sure to listen to our complete interview.
