Stevenson, William

STEVENSON

Posted By: Karon Velau (email)
Date: 9/22/2019 at 21:54:33

William Stevenson

(From the 1891 Biographical History of Pottawattamie County, Iowa, p.525)
WILLIAM STEVENSON, one of the pioneer settlers of Valley Township, came from Ohio in March, 1870, and settled on his present farm. It was then wild land, but by dint of industry and perseverance he has converted it into a fine, fertile farm. William STEVENSON, his grandfather, was born in Virginia, near what is now known as the Cow Pens. His father came from Ireland, and was a Scotch-Irishman. He was a soldier in the War of the Revolution, and was the father of a large family of children. He had two wives, his first being Rachel WILKINS, by whom he had eight children: Robert, John, William, Charles, Samuel, Elizabeth, Polly and Jennie. This wife died and he married a widow by the name of SCOTT, who had a large family of children by her first husband. By this marriage Mr. STEVENSON had five children: James, Daniel, Homer, Preston and Rachel. The father lived on a farm in Virginia for some time, and then moved to Kentucky, and next to Tennessee, where his eldest son, Robert, was born, July 4, 1788. In 1796 he moved to Ohio, settling on the banks of Massie's Creek, in what was then Greene County. After a short residence at this place, Mr. STEVENSON moved to the Little Miami, near Clifton, where he was among the early pioneers, and where he lived until he was a very old man. He was a member of the Presbyterian Church, a soldier in the war with Indians, and a typical pioneer of the American wilderness. He had held the office of Justice of the Peace.

Robert STEVENSON, a son of the above and the father of our subject, was born in Tennessee, July 4, 1788, and was eight years of age when he went with his father to Ohio, and was brought up in Greene County. He was married to Sarah, daughter of William and Sarah COHAGAN. The father was a native of Maryland, and was a prominent farmer of Greene County Ohio. To Mr. and Mrs. STEVENSON were born eleven children, viz.: William, Caroline, John, Thomas P., Charles W., Samuel, James, Robert, David, Henry H. and Eliza. The father lived in Greene County all his life, was a substantial farmer, and a soldier in the war of 1812, serving under General Harrison. He was afterward a Lieutenant in the militia, and both he and his wife were members of the Presbyterian Church. He sold his farm and moved to Xenia, Ohio, where he lived for fifteen years, dying at the age of eighty.

William STEVENSON, the subject of this sketch, was born on his father's farm in Greene County, Ohio, November 17, 1814, and learned farming in early life. He remained in his native county until March 1870, when he came to this county, where he has since resided. Politically he is a stanch Republican, and has taken an active interest in the schools of his township, having been school director for many years. He is a self-made man, and stands high as a citizen whose word is as good as his bond. The family is from an old American stock of pioneers and soldiers, and their histories should descend to the most remote generations.

Mr. STEVENSON was married in Greene County, to Catherine MILLS, daughter of Jacob and Elizabeth (WEBB) MILLS. The father was an American, and a farmer of Greene County, and his wife was an American of Welsh descent. Mr. and Mrs. STEVENSON have one child, Catherine Owens. The mother died, and Mr. STEVENSON married Emily GOLDTHWAITE, daughter of Thomas and Abigail H. (SKINNER) GOLDTHWAITE. The father was from Massachusetts, a descendant from an old American family. He enlisted in the civil war, in the Forty-fourth Ohio Volunteer Mounted Infantry, as the Fifth Ohio Cavalry, and served under General Thomas. He was killed in one of the skirmishes preceding the battle of Shiloh. He was born in 1800, in Northbridge, Massachusetts, and was over sixty years of age when he enlisted. He was very patriotic, having a very great desire to serve his country, and made several efforts before he was accepted. He was the father of six living children: Franklin, Emily, Sarah, Jeanette, Freeman and Maria L. Mr. and Mrs. STEVENSON were the parents of four children: Benjamin J., William R., Mary A. and James F.