Transcribed from "An Illustrated History of The Big Bend Country, embracing
Lincoln, Douglas, Adams and Franklin counties, State of Washington",
published by Western Historical Publishing Co., 1904.
WILLIAM GOODENOUGH, who resides
about eight miles east from Hatton and follows farming, was born in Lapeer
county, Michigan, on March 28, 1842, the son of James and Mary (Hiller)
Goodenough, natives of Vermont and New York, respectively. The parents
were married in New York then moved to Michigan in 1835, where they remained
the balance of their lives, living on the farm. The paternal grandfather
of our subject participated in the war of 1812. The ancestors came
from prominent English families. Our subject is the youngest of the
family and his brothers and sisters are named as follows, John, Josephus,
Josephine, Joanna, Jane and Melvina. The public schools of Michigan
contributed the educational training of our subject and at the early age
of twelve he was called to mourn the death of his father, which placed
upon him more responsibility. He remained on the farm until eighteen
years of age, then went to Illinois and when twenty enlisted, it being
1863, in the construction corps, which was mustered out in Chicago in 1865.
After that he enlisted for the Indian service in Colorado, Wyoming and
Kansas, and did considerable fighting against the savages. When that
was ended, he turned his attention to mining in Colorado and followed the
same for three years, then returned to Michigan and bought land which was
his home until 1887. In that year, he came to Washington and located
on his present place as a homestead, taking also a timber culture claim.
He has added to this from time to time until he now has one thousand seven
hundred and sixty acres of first class wheat land. Mr. Goodenough
has an excellent farm and harvests from twenty to thirty thousand bushels
of wheat annually besides other crops. It requires about fifty head
of horses to handle this estate. The farm is supplied with a modern
tasty, twelve room residence, all buildings, barns and machinery necessary
and is one of the choice estates of Washington. In addition to this
Mrs. Goodenough owns in her own right eight hundred acres of excellent
wheat land all under cultivation. The water supply for the farm is
brought from a well a mile away.
In 1868, Mr. Goodenough married Mehitable
Hall of Michigan, who died in 1892, leaving six children, John, Oscar,
Jacob, Levi, Thomas and Maude.
In 1894, Mr. Goodenough married Mrs. Ella
F. Kelsey, the widow of James Kelsey and daughter of Freeman and Hannah
H. (Norman) Tucker, natives of New Jersey, where the mother lives at the
present time. The father died while on a trip to California.
They were the parents of three children and Mrs. Tucker had one child by
her former marriage, William, John L., Phoebe and Ella Frances. Mrs.
Goodenough married Mr. Kelsey in California, in December, 1879, and he
died in 1891, leaving two children, Miller and Madeline, the former in
this county and the latter attending school at Pullman college.
Mr. Goodenough is an active Democrat and for
many years has been school director and justice of the peace. He
is a member of the I. O. O. F. and his wife belongs to the Methodist church.
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