Elsie Robertson

Elsie Valetta Robertson, 99, of Bradford passed away Friday (Nov. 21, 2025) at The Pavilion at Bradford Regional Medical Center.
Born Jan. 16, 1926, in Bradford, Elsie was the eldest child and only daughter of the late Arthur R. and Bertha I. Munn Hayes. She graduated from Bradford High School in 1944. She was a lifelong Bradford area resident.
On Aug. 28, 1948, Elsie married Richard L. "Dick" Robertson at Asbury United Methodist Church in Bradford. They shared more than 67 years of marriage until Dick's passing March 27, 2015.
Committed to preserving local heritage, she served on the Board of Directors at the McKean County Historical Society and volunteered with the Bradford Landmark Society as a genealogist. She also loved her early morning coffee with The Bradford Era.
Elsie was known for her warmth, generosity and love of family, as well as her wit, spunk and laughter.
She worked for Jansen Dental Laboratories on Congress Street and later for Mr. Orange at the B&O Newsroom on Mechanic Street. She acted as a buyer for Thelma and John Lane of East Randolph, N.Y., in the antique business.
Elsie loved feeding the birds, especially hummingbirds and chickadees. She was an avid observer of wildlife. She was an excellent cook and loved baking desserts. She enjoyed antiquing, swimming, canoeing, picnicking, picking berries and fishing.
She is survived by two sons, Wade A. (the late Jane Hoop) Robertson of Bradford and Gary H. and Janet Schoonmaker Robertson of Gilford, N.H.; her sister-in-law, Joanne Palazzetti Hayes of Freehold, N.J.; four grandchildren, Julie Dixon (Seth), Jay Robertson (Kate Simpson), Elizabeth Robertson and Christina Jones (Tom); and five great-grandchildren, Kylie Dixon, Kaitlyn Dixon, Nathaniel Dixon, Delaney Jones and Weston Jones; as well as several nieces and nephews, including Bill Robertson of Duke Center and Art Hayes of Lafayette.
In addition to her parents and husband, Elsie was preceded in death by her three brothers, Leo E. Hayes, Philip W. Hayes and Charles V. Hayes.
Friends will be invited to a celebration of Elsie's life in the spring, with details to be announced.
Memorial contributions, if desired, may be made to the McKean County Historical Society, the Bradford Landmark Society or a charity of the donor's choice.
Funeral arrangements are under direction of Hollenbeck-Cahill Funeral Homes Inc. Online condolences may be expressed at hollenbeckcahill.com.