William Xavier Waltz was born in St. Augustine, Pa., on Nov. 9, 1869, the son of Jacob Michael Waltz and Angela Mary Wagner.  Per the Catholic Vital Records of Central PA,  he was baptized on November 21, 1869 at St. Augustine Church. His godparents were Samuel Gill and Lydia Wagner.  The priest was E. J. Burns (the church register has his middle name listed as "Harvey")

William lived with his family in Chest Springs until 1871, when his family moved to Iowa.  His parents were encouraged to move to Iowa by his maternal grandparents.  At one point, they had acquired a total of 200 acres of land in Iowa County.  

William died by drowning on July 9, 1892. It was some time before the body was located. The story (per descendent, Marlene Waltz) has been told that Indians were camping in the area and one of them told the searchers to put a corked bottle of holy water in the river at the place where William was last seen and that it would sink at the place where they would find the body. This they did and the body was found, caught in the roots of a tree some distance downstream. 

He is buried  in Armah Cemetery, Dayton Twp., Iowa County, Iowa.