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.
ANDREW J. WILLIAMS lives about
four miles south from Delight where he follows farming. He was born
in Linn county, Kansas, on October 12, 1860, the son of W. R. and Eivira
(Street) Williams, natives of Illinois. The parents came to Missouri
from Illinois and then to Kansas which was their home until 1887.
In that year they moved to Washington. Our subject received his education
in Linn county, Kansas, in the country schools and at the age of nineteen
started in life for himself. We first find him freighting in Colorado
and Idaho. He assisted to develop two placer mines that were in the
Coeur d' Alene country where he worked in the mines until 1888. In
that year, he came to Adams county and located where we find him at the
present time. He took a homestead and began developing the same.
The hard times then came on and it was with difficulty that he succeeded
in pulling through but he did so and soon thereafter began to purchase
land. The first that he bought in 1898, he paid one dollar an acre
for and the last that he bought in 1902, which was the same kind of land,
cost him ten dollars an acre. He now has nine hundred and twenty
acres of first class wheat land all under cultivation. The same is
supplied with good water, buildings and so forth and shows a thrifty and
first class farmer.
In 1889, Mr. Williams married Miss Hattie
F., daughter of Joseph and Milenda (Taylor) Priestly, natives of England
and Illinois, respectively. The parents were married in Kansas and
dwell there at the present time. To them thirteen children were born.
Mr. and Mrs. Williams are the parents of five children, Elvira M., Lula
E., Bryan F., Noman J., and Charles R.
In political matters, we find our subject
untrammeled by the ties of any party, being decidedly liberal in his views.
He and his wife are members of the Christian church.
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