Ferris, William E. 1859-1940

FERRIS, VAN VALKENBERG, VANVALKENBERG, DRUMMOND, KNIGHT, FAUST

Posted By: S. Ferrall - IAGenWeb volunteer
Date: 10/23/2013 at 04:20:46

Funeral services will be held Wednesday for William E. Ferris, 81, who walked more than 100,000 miles over the streets of Dubuque during the 32 years he was employed as a mail carrier here.

Mr. Ferris died Sunday morning at 8:30 o'clock following a lingering illness at the home of his daughter, Mrs. M.C. Van Valkenberg, 250 1/2 West First Street. The body is at the Egelhof Home for Funerals, from where the funeral will be held Monday morning to St. Raphael's Cathedral at 9 o'clock. Burial will be in Linwood Cemetery.

Mr. Ferris was born at New Diggings, Wis., June 4, 1859, son of the late Dr. and Mrs. E.B. Ferris, and had lived in Dubuque since he was a youth.

Col. David B. Henderson of Dubuque, then speaker of the House of Representatives in Washington, D.C. persuaded Ferris to enter the postal service in 1898 after he had been associated with the Ferris Brothers Laundry here for 15 years. For 32 years, on an average of 300 days per year, Ferris walked about 13 1/2 miles per day on is mail route. "At that rate I've walked four times around the earth right here in Dubuque," Ferris said when he retired 10 years ago.

He was a member of the National Association of Letter Carriers and of Dubuque Camp No. 984, MOdern Woodmen of America.

Surviving with his wife, Mrs. Clara Ferris, are two sons, Edward Ferris, Robinson, Ill., and Carl W. Ferris, Davenport; two daughters, Mrs. F.F. (Florence) Drummond, Oak Park, Il., and Mrs. M.C. (Henrietta) Van Valkenberg; two step-sons, Robert Knight, Indianapolis, Ind., and Donald Knight, Chicago; one sister, Mrs. Virginia Faust, Tigard, Oregon; and 16 grandchildren and three great grandchildren.

~Obituary & photo: Dubuque Telegraph-Herald, Monday evening edition, July 22, 1940, page 3

Dubuque Obituaries maintained by Brenda White.
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