William Sandham
INTRODUCTION
William R. Sandham, son of James and Sarah (Connelly) Sandham, was born in
Northumberland county, Ontario, Canada, September 23, 1842. His father was born near
Preston, England and his mother at Loughrea Ireland. His father died in 1847. In 1851 his
mother along with William and his brother John, moved to Herkimer County, New York.
The sons were educated in the common schools of New York and then at Fairfield
Seminary, one of the leading educational institutions in that state, located at Fairfield,
Herkimer County.
EDUCATIONAL EXCELLENCE
William R. Sandham taught school several terms in Herkimer county. He came to Illinois
in March, 1866 and located in Henry County where he was a teacher for four years. He
came to Stark County in September 1871 to take charge of the Bradford schools. In the
same year on July 16, 1871 Mr. Sandham was married at Atkinson IL to Miss Rhoda S. Tuttle
who was born in Naugatuck, New Haven county, Connecticut on January 17, 1849. In August
1873 he applied for and received a state certificate which was good for life and entitled
him to teach in any school district in the state of Illinois. In September 1873 he assumed
charge of the South Side School in Wyoming IL, which position he held until the end of the
school year 1879. It was while at the South Side School that Charles Duryea the eventual
automobile pioneer was a student of Mr. Sandham. During the year 1879 he also
purchased the Wyoming Post and later he bought the Wyoming Herald.
The two papers were united and called the Wyoming Post-Herald.
OTHER ACCOMPLISHMENTS
In September 1882 Mr. Sandham was elected county Supt. of schools of Stark county and
was re-elected in 1886, 1889 and 1894, serving the people of Stark county in that office
from Dec. 4 1882 until Dec. 4, 1898. By appointment of the board of supervisors he held the
same office from Dec. 1, 1891 to Dec. 1, 1902. In recognition of his great practical
knowledge of school affairs he was appointed in the year 1885 by Governor Richard J.
Oglesby to be a member of the state board of education, which position he held until
March 1893. He was reappointed in 1897 by Governor John R. Tanner and held the position
until August 1913. Mr. Sandham was one of the organizers of the State Historical Society
in 1899.
After retiring from the schools Mr. Sandham was for six years assesor of the township of Toulon. He was a member of the Wyoming Lodge No. 479 A.F. & A.M. and was its secretary for six years. He was a principle figure in the establishment of the Wyoming Public Library.
MRS. SANDHAM’S ANCESTRY
The Sandham’s had a son, Arthur who was bor December 13, 1874 and died on May 15,
1883. On her father’s side Mrs. Sandham traced her ancestry back to William Tuttle who
was one of the first English settlers in Connecticut and who also at one time owned a
portion of the ground that later became Yale University. On her mother’s side she traces
her ancestry to Andrew Sanford, who came to Connecticut from England in 1636. She was
one of the organizers of the Tuesday Club in Wyoming and was its president for
six years.
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