Marguerite Ann Miller

July 23, 1944 – October 16, 2026

Marguerite Ann (Knauer) Miller, 82, of Ballardsville, Kentucky—formerly of Bedford and Smithfield—passed away peacefully on Friday, October 16, 2026 surrounded by the love of her family.

Marguerite was born on July 23, 1944, at St. Mary & Elizabeth Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky, the beloved only child of the late Lee William Knauer and Dorothea Viola (Gagel) Knauer. She grew up with an enduring work ethic on her family’s dairy, hog, corn, hay, and tobacco farm in Oldham County. A 1962 graduate of Oldham County High School, Marguerite was honored at graduation with the prestigious Crisco Award as the most outstanding four-year student in Home Economics—a skill and passion for home and family that defined the rest of her life.

At age seventeen, Marguerite met the absolute love of her life, Charles Allen Miller. They were united in marriage on Charles’s eighteenth birthday, September 29, 1962, in Bedford, Kentucky, embarking on a blessed union that spanned 64 devoted years. Their lifelong romance was filled with humor and tenderness from day one: on the morning after their wedding, a young Marguerite asked her new groom what he would like for breakfast. When Charles jokingly answered, “A dozen eggs,” Marguerite—not realizing he was teasing—proudly served him twelve hot, cooked eggs!

From that morning forward, farm breakfasts were the heart of her home. Marguerite believed in starting every day with farm eggs, bacon or sausage, toast, milk, and always a glass of orange juice to keep everyone strong and healthy. Together with Charles, she worked tirelessly: managing the home, bucket-feeding calves, working side-by-side in the fields, and serving her community as a care worker through the Tri-County Community Action Agency. Above all, she emphasized the value of education, taking immense pride in seeing all three of their children graduate with college degrees.

Marguerite expressed her love through countless crafts and traditions. She treasured cooking time-honored German recipes passed down from her mother and grandmother, piecing beautiful quilts, and crocheting afghans for family and friends.

As her children grew and left the nest, Marguerite channeled her energy and curiosity into genealogy and local history, becoming a widely respected family historian. She served as President of the Louisville Genealogical Society and Vice President, Secretary, Board Member, and longtime newsletter editor of the Trimble County Historical Society, as well as an active contributor to the Kentucky Historical Society and Henry County Historical Society. Marguerite authored more than a dozen published family genealogies and cemetery records, with volumes preserved in the national collections at the Allen County Public Library in Fort Wayne, Indiana, and the FamilySearch Library in Salt Lake City, Utah. She traveled internationally to Germany and Switzerland to trace her roots back generations—even featured in German newspapers for reuniting long-lost branches of family across the Atlantic. Closer to home, she was legendary for carrying her dowsing rods through forgotten pastures and woods to locate unmarked graves, dedicating years alongside Charles to clearing overgrowth and restoring lost and weathered headstones.

Her Christian faith was the bedrock of her life. A devoted member and Life Bridge volunteer at Southeast Christian Church, Marguerite lived by the assurance that God is the author and finisher of every life’s story, trusting with joyful peace that she would one day stand in His presence and dance before Jesus.

Marguerite’s memory will forever be cherished by her devoted husband, Charles Allen Miller; her three loving children:

• Beery William Miller and his wife, Kimberly

• Nancy Dee Hilton and her husband, Paul

• Jeffery Allen "Jeff" Miller and his wife, Myra

She was the proud grandmother of five:

• Charles Dean Miller (Stephanie)

• Nicholaus Brandon Miller (Jamie)

• Teresa Mariel Miller Checchi (Jeffery)

• Dorothy Ann Karcher Kelsay (Alexander)

• Samuel Allen Miller

She was also the adored great-grandmother of six:

• Gage Thomas Miller

• Dixie Lillie Ann Miller

• Madison Justice Miller

• Landon Kelsay

• Cheyenne Rae Kelsay

• Lucas Checchi

She was preceded in death by her parents, Lee William and Dorothea Viola Knauer.

Service and Arrangements

• Visitation / Gathering: Wednesday, October 21, 2026 from 4pm to 8pm and Thursday, October 22, 2026 from 10:00 am-11:00 am at Heady-Radcliffe Funeral Home, 706 West Jefferson Street, LaGrange, KY 40031.

• Memorial Service: Thursday, October 22, 2026 Beginning at 11:00 am at Heady-Radcliffe Funeral home, with Rev. Bobby Wade presiding.

• Interment: Historic Bedford IOOF Cemetery, Bedford, Trimble County, Kentucky

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made in Marguerite's honor to the Trimble County Historical Society or the Louisville Genealogical Society.