Joseph J. Nebel, 95, of Contonment, Fla., formerly of Herman, died Sunday at the Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola, Fla.

Born July 19, 1911, in Herman, he was a son of Joseph A. and Elizabeth Schreiner Nebel.

Mr. Nebel had been a carpenter foreman and construction superintendent for 49 years and worked out of Union Local 500 in Butler until his retirement in 1976.

He built the first water well drilling machine in 1932 and was the founder of Joseph Nebel Water Well Drilling in Herman.

After his retirement, he and his wife moved to Mobile, Ala., in 1991, where they lived until they recently moved to Florida to be near their son.

Mr. Nebel was a World War II veteran of the Army Air Corps. He served overseas twice in the Southwest Pacific and the Philippines as a radio operator and was awarded 4 Battle stars.

He was a licensed pilot since 1940. He also was a licensed HAM radio operator. He was a life member of the Herman Volunteer Fire Department and a member of A.A.R.P.

Mr. Nebel was a member of St. Mary of the Assumption Roman Catholic Church in Herman. He also attended St. Andrew Roman Catholic Church in Butler, and Our Lady of Lourdes Roman Catholic Church, while living in Mobile.

Surviving are his wife, Kathryn H. "Kitty" Hawkins Nebel, whom he married July 9, 1945; a son, Matthew H. Nebel of Contonment, Fla.; a daughter, Mrs. Dusty (Virginia) Winn of Oklahoma City, Okla.; two brothers, George and Ralph Nebel, both of Butler; a sister, Mrs. Leona Coyle of Butler; and numerous nieces and nephews.

A brother and a sister preceded him in death.

<B>NEBEL </B>— Friends of Joseph J. Nebel, who died Sunday, July 30, 2006, will be received from 7 to 9 p.m. Thursday at the <B>Geibel Funeral Home</B>, 201 E. Cunningham St. Funeral services will be at 10 a.m. Friday at the funeral home. Burial will follow at St. Mary Cemetery in Herman.Information also is available at www.geibelfuneralhome.com.