Family Tree Maker's Genealogy Site: Genealogy Report: Descendants of Robert Mill

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Descendants of Robert Mill

Generation No. 2

2. JOHN³ MILL (ROBERT², ROBERT¹ MILNE) was born 7 July 1837 in Richland, County, Ohio, and died 11 October 1912 in Spangle, Washington. He married EMMA CATHERINE FORSYTHE 1 July 1876 in Damascus, Oregon, daughter of JAMES FORSYTHE and THERESA. She was born 15 September 1858 in Wisconsin, and died 14 January 1929 in Spangle, Washington.

Notes for JOHN MILL:
From the Mill Family History it says that Robert Mill, John Mill's father, came to America in 1837, and
that John was almost born at sea. The History was written by Laura Mill Helmer, as told to her by her father, Roy Richmond Mill.
John Mill Migrated to Oregon in 1852 across the plains via Jacksonville, Oregon. He was a Presbyterian, Republican and a farmer. He came to Oregon with Benjamine Brown to Milwaukie, Oregon because he had known the Kellog family before they left in 1848.

Children of JOHN MILL and EMMA FORSYTHE are:

6.	i.	ROY RICHMOND⁴ MILL, b. 22 July 1877, Pilot Rock, Oregon; d. 10 March 1971, Spokane County, Washington.
7.	ii.	BOON EMMANUEL MILL, b. 16 October 1879, Pilot Rock, Oregon; d. 22 August 1945, Skokane County, Washington.
	iii.	ROBERT EARLY MILL, b. 27 May 1882, Cheney, Washington; d. 28 September 1947, Spokane, County, Washington; m. MARGARET NORTON FULLER, 28 May 1931.
8.	iv.	ELLA RUBY MILL, b. 4 January 1885, Spokane County, Washington; d. 17 May 1907, Spokane County, Washington.
9.	v.	MARY ELIZABETH MILL, b. 4 August 1887, Spokane County, Washington; d. 9 September 1969, Spokane County, Washington.

3. MARY JANE³ MILLS (ROBERT² MILL, ROBERT¹ MILNE)^6,⁷ was born 29 June 1840 in Wood County, Ohio, and died 6 February 1910 in Melrose, Oregon. She married WILLIAM CHARLES WILSON^8,^9,^10,^11,^12,^13,^14,^15,^16,^17,^18,^19,²⁰ 27 November 1858 in Portland, Oregon ²¹, son of DANIEL WILSON and ROSANNA MOUL. He was born 21 February 1833 in Licking County, Ohio, and died Aft. 1900.

Notes for MARY JANE MILLS:
Mary Jane Mills traveled to Oregon by way of the Isthmus of Panama and the ship Golden Gate in 1857.

Notes for WILLIAM CHARLES WILSON:
The William C. Wilson Family -

William Charles Wilson was born 21 February 1833 probably near the town of Utica in Licking County, Ohio. William is the second son of Daniel Pegg Wilson and Rosanna Moul.
William's father's family took up the call for it's westward destiny and in about 1836 migrated from Ohio to Illinois taking up a farm near Springfield, Illinois. The family in 1850 was living near Beardstown, Morgan County Illinois.
The great western movement was at that time under way. Economic depression and epidemics prompted more and more families to sell their farms, buy covered wagons and start the long journey across the plains. William's father had not given much thought to making the move himself until William's mother, Roseanna became ill with cancer and passed away in February of 1850. The family felt lost and discontented to remain where Roseanna had so long been a guiding spirit. After due deliberation with his father, brothers and sisters they decided to make the move, so William's father sold out, bought supplies and in April 1852, William Wilson, at the age of 19, set out with his father's family on the historic westward trek to the Oregon country. Just prior to starting on the trip, William married Lobia (also spelled Lobier or Lobiah) Richmond, the daughter of Alexander W. Richmond and Mahala Hassler. William and Lobia were married on 11 February 1852 in Morgan County, Illinois.
The present-day counties of Cass and Scott were part of Morgan County until 1837 and 1839, respectively. The boundary line with Cass County was originally further north than the current boundary, which was established in 1845.

The pioneer party consisted of William, along with his new bride Lobia, William's father, William's two brothers, his five sisters, the wife and infant son of William's brother George.
After a long trip the Wilson family arrived in Oregon City, Oregon on the 25th of October 1852. They made camp there to rest a few days then sold their wagons and animals, then hired some Indians to take them by two canoes down the Willamette River to Portland, Oregon. One of the canoes capsized and much of the Wilson family's precious supplies were lost. The Wilson's first home in this new western frontier was near what is now Old-Town Portland's 1st and Stark Streets. At that time there were few buildings near them mostly uncleared land and stumps.
William C. Wilson and his father Daniel Pegg Wilson set out making their way by boat down the Columbia River. They landed at a place called Chinookville, located on the north bank of the Columbia River near what is now called Baker's Bay, Washington. Chinookville was the first county seat of Pacific County, Washington, it had been a thriving Indian village, home to the Chinook Indians.
William C. Wilson explored the wild areas north of Chinook and around Shoalwater Bay, which is now known as Willapa Bay, Washington. William must have thought that the area looked very promising with its abundant wild life, timber, mild climate and waterways for transportation. William C. Wilson and his wife, Lobia, claimed and settled on a 326 acre Donation Land Claim there.

Donation Land Act of 1850
The Donation Land Act called for the orderly and legal ownership of property in Oregon Territory. It voided all laws previously passed making grants of land, but was worded to take into account existing claims in the Oregon Country. It granted every white settler and "American half-breed Indian" above the age of 18 already living in Oregon a free half-section of land if single or a full section (640 acres, the same as allowed under the Organic Act) if married, with half in the wife's name. Residence and cultivation for four years was required. Settlers arriving after 1850 were granted half a section if married, or one-quarter of a section if single.

The William C. Wilson Donation Land Claim is listed in Volume I of the Olympia Land office Certificate # 114, DLC #1284, patent dated Sept 27, 1865, recorded in Vol. 2, page 140; sent to Registrar at Olympia on Sept 30, 1865. The description of William Wilson's land claim is as follows:
Lots 8, 9 and 10 and NE 1/4 of NW 1/4 of Section 20 and Lots 21 of the W 1/4 of SW 1/4 and East 1/4 of SW 1/4 of Section 17 and Lot 5 in Section 18, all in Township 10 West and Range 10 North. The claim is located East of the Bear River near the southern part of Shoalwater Bay.

William and his family afforded assistance to travelers going to or coming from the Shoalwater Bay area. James G. Swan in his book, "The Northwest Coast" described how a Wilson family afforded assistance to travelers going to or coming from the Shoalwater Bay area. James Swan mentions the name "James' Wilson in this account, however, I believe that description of the location of the Wilson home and circumstances indicate that he was in error. The name "James Wilson" that James Swan mentions should be in fact William Wilson. William became an associate of an industrious man named Joel Brown. William, with Joel Brown and others including his father Daniel Pegg Wilson, Job Lamley, Samuel Woodward, Henry Whitcomb, Job, Mark and Seth Bullard and Captain Jackson had cut a wagon road on the portage, crossing from Shoalwater Bay and connecting to the Columbia River. Joel Brown died before he could finish his dream of developing the Shoalwater Bay area, so William C. Wilson and his associates carried on where Joel Brown left off. Their intention was to induce a large immigration of pioneers from Portland to settle on Shoal-Water Bay. Job Lamley ran an advertisement in the Oregonian newspaper in 1853 describing his route to Shoalwater Bay. Job solicited settlers to travel on the U. S. Mail Boat Union from Portland to Astoria, then to Chinook, then up the Wappalooche River to William McCarty's Landing, thence by their wagon road to William C. Wilson's Landing and Hotel, then via the Bear River to Shoal water Bay....... " Having the best of sea boats on this line are prepared to take passengers and freight safe and with dispatch from Astoria via Chinook, Shoalwater Bay, and back the same route. Accommodations rough and charges high "....... Quite an interest was excited by them among immigrants of Oregon to make Shoalwater Bay their home.
Two children were born to William C. Wilson and Lobia Wilson; a daughter Isadora and a son Wiley, both born in Washington Territory. The family probably lived on William's Donation Land Claim from 11March 1853 until about 1858. His wife Lobia died from causes unknown about 1857.
William C. Wilson was remarried in Portland, Oregon to Mary Jane Mills in 1858. Mary Jane Mills was the daughter of Robert Mill and Margaret McGregor who were from Scotland. Mary Jane was born in Wood County, Ohio. Her father and older brother, John Mill, were already in Oregon when she made the journey to join them in 1857. She traveled from Ohio with her younger brother William (Billy) Mills to Oregon via the Isthmus of Panama. William and Mary Jane Wilson eventually had nine children: William H., Frank, Rosa, Ida, Herman, Howard, Blanche, Daisy and George.
William had an adopted brother named William or Will Buchannan. Will Buchanan was a steam ship builder and a river boat captain.
The 1860 Clackamas County, Oregon Census lists William and Mary Jane Wilson as living in Milwaukie, Oregon along with William's daughter, Isadora from his first marriage to Lobia Richmond. Willliams occupation is listed as blacksmith. The 1860 Clatsup County, Oregon Census lists Wiley R. Wilson, William C. Wilson's son from his first marriage, as living with and under the guardianship of Matthew McCreary in Astoria, Oregon. William and Mary Jane's first child William H. Wilson apparently died as an infant in 1860, as evidenced by the 1860 Clackamas County Mortality Schedule.
From about 1861 to 1864, the William C. Wilson family was living in a house on the corner of Third and Mill Streets, the location where the "Market Building" now exists in Portland, Oregon. Their second child Frank and third child Rosanna was born in that house.
From about 1864 to about 1870 William and Mary Jane Wilson lived on a large farm that they owned in Clackamas County on Rock Creek near Damascus, Oregon. The land was 160 acres of a Donation Land Claim that William became eligible for through his second wife, Mary Jane. William and Mary Jane purchased additional lands adjoining this property. This property, was described in the Clackamas County, Oregon Agriculture Productions Report of June 1870, as 160 acres of improved land and 160 acres of woodland, $380 of livestock, producing 50 bushels of winter wheat, 100 bushels of oats and 10 bushels of buckwheat. According to the 1870 Census of Clackamas County, Oregon, William C. Wilson's son, Wiley R. Wilson, from William's first marriage to Lobia Richmond, was then living with William C. and Mary Jane Wilson. Mary Jane's Father, Robert Mill, her brothers John Mill and Billy Mills occupied farms next to William and Mary Jane's. William C. and Mary Jane Wilson's children Ida and Howard were probably born while they lived on their farm in Clackamas County.
From about 1871 until about 1887, the William C. Wilson family lived in East Portland in a house located on the northwest corner of 6th Street and Alaska (Alaska is now known as Harrison Street). The 1874 East Portland (Multnomah County) City Directory lists him as Wilson W. C., teamster, res NW corner of Sixth, Stephens add.
Their children: Herman, Blanche, Daisy and George M. Wilson were probably born while they lived in East Portland. George was the last child born to William and Mary Jane Wilson. George was born at the time when William was forty-eight years old. During this time when the Wilsons were living in East Portland, William was a blacksmith and had a horse and wagon drayage business in Portland located at 50 Ash Street. William's occupation was listed in the city of Portland's directory from 1873 until 1887 as " teamster, dray man or truck man ". William may have had business ties with Aaron Meier who founded the Meier and Frank stores. William got his son Frank a job working as the Meier's first employee in their first store on Front Street in 1873. William sold part of his Donation Land Claim on the Bear River in Washington to Aaron Meier.
William C. Wilson traveled with his son Frank to California in the summer of 1876. William was originally trying to finance a trip to Pennsylvania for "The Centennial Exposition", celebrating one hundred years since the signing of The Declaration of Independence. The exposition was to be held in Fairmount Park, Philadelphia. He wanted to hear Theador Thomas' famous orchestra, which was scheduled to lead the ceremonies. William contrived a plan to exhibit a seven-legged calf along the way to Pennsylvania, thus paying for the trip as they traveled. He bought the calf for a few dollars from a farmer near William's home in Portland. He and his son Frank took the calf to San Francisco where that city was holding their own Centennial Exposition. William there hired a " fire eater ", bought a large tent and set it up along side the Grand Central Hotel on Market Street. There he put the seven-legged calf along with " fire eater " on exhibition and at fifty cents a person he started raking in the money. William and son Frank also found time to view the Fourth of July Grand Centennial Parade there. William then sold the calf for $3,000, but changed his mind about going east. Instead William bought a team of horses, a buckboard and together with son Frank they went on a tour of California, prospecting for gold and coal claims. They traveled through the Mother Load country working south as far as the Mexican boarder.
William's son, Wiley R. Wilson from his first marriage to Lobia Richmond, was married in Astoria, Oregon to Ida Hardesty in 1878. Wiley was killed in 1880 while working as an engineer on a steamboat. Wiley was scalded to death when the boat's boiler blew up near Portland.
In 1884 William's business was listed in the city of Portland directory as " Wilson, W.C. (Wilson and Poinsett) transfer agent ". In 1886 William's business was listed in the directory as " Wilson, W.C. and Company (Wm. C. Wilson and Fred R. Lownsdale), Drayman and Forwarders, 50 Ash ".
William C. Wilson in about the year 1887 moved his family to a large ranch that he owned in Melrose near Roseburg, Douglas County Oregon. The Wilson ranch house still existed in 1998 as the Carl Eder home located at 572 Cleveland Hill Road in Melrose, Oregon 97470. The ranch there consisted of 1608 acres comprised largely of: sections 25, 26 and 36 of Township 26 South, Range 7 West; section 1 of Township 27 South Range, Range 7 West; section 31 of Township 26 South, Range 6 West, also the Donation Land Claim of Augistine Foisy, Number 41 located in Township 27 South, Range 7 West and his Claim number 48 in Township 26 South, Range 7. The Wilson ranch was at one time one of the largest in Douglas County and here the family raised fine work horses and whippet dogs. William and Mary Jane's children: Frank, Rosanna and Ida stayed in Portland.
William and Mary Jane's son Frank became employed in the riverboat business and became a captain. Frank married Elizabeth Guild, a niece of R. D. Inman, founder of the Inman Poulsen Lumber Company. They had no children.
William and Mary Jane's daughter Rosanna married her first cousin, Van Marion Bullard, together they had six children: Ivan, Trevor, Marion, Flossie, Kenneth and Jean. They lived on a ranch in Menlo, Washington.
William and Mary Jane's daughter Ida married Thomas D. Richardson in 1887 but she died only nine months later, no children were born to them. She is buried in the Lone Fir Cemetery in East Portland.
William's gold fever in the 1880's led him venturing into a gold mine in southern Oregon along with his father Daniel Pegg Wilson and William's son Frank. The mine was on a tributary of Cow Creek located near Azalia, Oregon, it was called the Green Mountain Mine. William's son Frank described the mine as: " It was a five-stamp mill and they had quite a lot of stock in this mine but not enough for the controlling interest. The only hold Pa had on the property was a three-year lease. When this ran out, they wouldn't renew the lease so he lost out, except for the stock ". William and his father Daniel invested a great deal of money into the mine. William's speculation in gold mining caused him to loose almost everything he owned.
William's father, Daniel Pegg Wilson, died in 1890, after which William was sued by his father's estate. The executor of the estate, William's brother George W. Wilson, claimed that moneys invested by Daniel Pegg Wilson in gold mining were in fact loans made to William C. Wilson and that this money should be paid back to their father's estate. William fought this case all the way to the Oregon State Supreme Court where William lost the case in 1894. This family dispute over William's father's estate was the apparent cause of a rift between the William C. Wilson and George W. Wilson families for which the two families seldom associated with one another again.
It was soon after the year 1900 that William C. Wilson, the father of eleven, then disappeared, never to be heard from again by his family. The last story concerning William C. Wilson is that he was last known by his family to be heading south, possibly for California to prospect for gold. The 1900 Douglas County, Oregon Census lists William C. Wilson as the "Head of Family". The 8 February 1910 Obituary of William C. Wilson's wife, Mary Jane, states that "she leaves a husband". I have found no later records concerning him.

William C. Wilson's wife, Mary Jane, died in Melrose in 1910 and she is buried in the Melrose Cemetery.
Frank Wilson had various jobs over the years with riverboats. Frank became a riverboat captain. He was also employed as a carpenter, building contractor, house painter and mining engineer. Frank and his wife owned a restaurant in Neuberg, Oregon in the 1920's and 1930's.
William and Mary Jane's son Howard became blind as a result of an accident while taking apart a shotgun ammunition. He became a self-sufficient farmer, was an accomplished musician, never married and lived the rest of his life in Melrose, Oregon. Howard is remembered by still living neighbors as always having a happy disposition.
The Wilson's son Herman married Mary Pierce and they lived in Melrose, Oregon. Herman and Mary had two sons, Alva and Lloyd and a daughter Ione or also called Cleo.
Blanche, the third daughter of William and Mary Jane Wilson was married to Charlie Keys. They had only one child, a daughter named Leona who died at the early age of eighteen. Charlie Kyes was in the real estate business in Roseburg.
The William C. and Mary Jane Wilson's youngest daughter Daisy was married briefly to a man named Frank Nelson who treated her badly. Daisy moved to California and worked in a candy factory there. Daisy returned to Oregon and married Tom Ward and together they lived the rest of their lives in Melrose and Roseburg. Daisy was well known for selfless concern for others, she was a charter member of the Melrose Comfort Society. Daisey had no children.
George M. Wilson grew up in Melrose and graduated from high school there. He became a mail carrier and drove a stagecoach.
The family was musically inclined. George Wilson played the fiddle, Blanche played the guitar and her husband Charley Keys played the banjo. Howard Wilson played many instruments and together with Daisy and her husband Tom Ward, they would all travel and perform at barn dances and Grange halls around the Roseburg, Oregon area.
George M. Wilson, in about the year 1900, moved to Portland where he worked for the Inman Poulsen Lumber Company and later became involved with a life long career in the food flavoring business. George married Estella Beckwith and they had two sons, one that died shortly after birth and a second son, Donald R. Wilson. George and Estella lived the rest of their lives in Portland.
The Van Marion and Rosanna Bullard families remained close to the rest if the W.C. Wilson families. The families of W. C. Wilson and V. M. Bullard often visited between the Bullard ranch in Menlo, Washington, the Wilson families around Roseburg and the George M. Wilson family in Portland. Rosanna Bullard died in 1926 and is buried in the Firndale Cemetery of Menlo, Washington.
Frank Wilson died in 1937 in Portland.
Howard Wilson died in 1937 and is buried in the Melrose Cemetery.
Herman Wilson died in 1942 and is buried in the Melrose Cemetery.
George M. Wilson died at the age of 81 in 1963 and is buried in the River View Cemetery of Portland.
Blanche Keys died in 1968 in Roseburg, Oregon and is buried in the Melrose Cemetery.
Daisy Ward was the last of the William C. and Mary Jane's children to pass away. Daisy died in 1972, having lived to be 97 years old. She is buried in the Melrose Cemetery.
The only known families to continue the line of William C. and Mary Jane Wilson to this day are from their children Rosanna Bullard, and George M. Wilson. The Bullard families often have large family reunions in Menlo, Washington. The last of the males to carry on the Wilson name from William C. Wilson are his grandson Donald R. Wilson of Salem, Oregon and William's great grandson Clark J. Wilson of West Linn, Oregon.

Information compiled as of October 1998.

Children of MARY MILLS and WILLIAM WILSON are:

	i.		WILLIAM H.⁴ WILSON²¹, b. 1860, Portland, Oregon; d. 1860, Clackmas County, Oregon.
	ii.		FRANK EMERSON WILSON^22,^23,^24,²⁵, b. 25 January 1861, Portland, Oregon; d. 2 March 1937, Portland, Oregon; m. MARGARET ELIZABETH (LIZZIE) GUILD, 3 May 1889, Portland, Oregon; b. December 1872, Oregon; d. Abt. 1929, Newberg, Oregon.

Notes for FRANK EMERSON WILSON:
Frank was born at 3rd and Mill streets in Portland Oregon. He attended the White School in East Portland until age twelve. Frank in 1873 became the first employee of Aaron Meier of the original Meier and Frank stores at their first store on Front Street, Portland, Oregon. His job there was counting and stacking eggs. For eight years in the 1880s Frank was on active service with Grant Fire Engine Company Number 2 in Stephens addition. Frank was in Company A of the Washington Guards under Captain Horatio Cooke. Frank became employed in the riverboat business, he worked on several river boats and became a captain. Frank worked as chief engineer in the construction of the Oregon lighthouses at "Hecta Head" and "Umpqua". Later Frank was a general repairman on the Portland Railways. He was also employed as a carpenter, building contractor and house painter. Frank worked as a mining engineer for several gold mines, including his father's "Green Mountain" mine in Douglas County. Frank served for twenty years on the Multnomah County grand jury. He spent much time prospecting for gold in California, the black sand beaches of Curry County, Oregon and the Coquille river. Frank and his wife owned a barbecue restaurant on the highway in Neuberg, Oregon during the 1920's. The restaurant was called "Peggy's Sandwich Shop". In 1936 Frank Wilson was living at 1240 S. W. Park Street, Portland, Oregon.

Notes for MARGARET ELIZABETH (LIZZIE) GUILD:
Margaret Elizabeth Guild was known to friends and family as Lizzie, she was the niece of Robert D. Inman, the wealthy lumber baron of the Inman-Paulsen Company.

10.	iii.		ROSANNA MOUL WILSON, b. 4 July 1864, Portland, Oregon; d. 16 June 1926, Seattle, Washington.
	iv.		IDA M. WILSON, b. 1867, Clackmas County, Oregon; d. 10 April 1888, Portland, Oregon; m. THOMAS D RICHARDSON, 17 February 1887, Portland, Oregon ²⁶; b. Abt. 1860; d. 21 May 1920, Portland, Oregon.

Notes for THOMAS D RICHARDSON:
Thomas D. Richardson wife of Ida M. Wilson. He died at Good Samaritan Hospital, Portland, Oregon on 21 May 1920. He was watchman for Columbia Ship Co. His sister was Mrs. A.M. Mattingly,

HOWARD E. WILSON, b. 12 September 1869, Clackmas County, Oregon; d. 14 February 1937, Roseburg, Oregon.

Notes for HOWARD E. WILSON:
Herman Wilson was blind, he became blind by accident while loading ammunition. He overcame his blindness and made a living for himself, was an accomplished musician and a very likeable person.

11.	vi.		HERMAN ANDREW WILSON, b. 23 May 1872, Portland, Oregon; d. 29 January 1942, Roseburg, Oregon.
	vii.		DAISY ELIZABETH WILSON²⁷, b. 18 February 1875, Portland, Oregon; d. 7 May 1972, Roseburg, Oregon; m. (1) FRANK NELSON, 25 April 1894, Myrtle Creek, Douglas County, Oregon; m. (2) THOMAS FRAZIER WARD, 26 June 1906, Douglas County, Oregon ²⁸; b. 23 September 1874, Douglas County, Oregon; d. 2 March 1965, Roseburg, Oregon.

Notes for DAISY ELIZABETH WILSON:
Daisy lived most of her life in Melrose and Roseburg, Oregon. She first married Frank Nelson who treated her badly. She went to Los Angles, California for a while and worked in a chocolate factory there. She returned to Oregon and married Tom Ward. Daisy was a charter member of the Melrose Comfort Society. She was described as a person with a lot of energy and loved to talk. Tom and Daisy for lived for years on a homestead, in a log cabin which was destroyed by a forest fire. Don Wilson discribed that they lived as they did one hundred years ago with no electricity. Daisy had a stroke in about 1955 and was bedridden for the rest of her life. Clark Wilson remembers Daisy when he was about ten years old, on a family vacation to Oregon. Daisy was then able to speak but a few words such as "Oh boy". She shed tears of joy in seeing Clark his two sisters and her nephew , Don Wilson. In April of 1960, Daisy was living at 1646 SE Cobb Street, Roseburg, Oregon. Daisy is buried in the Melrose, Oregon Cemetery in Row 3, lot 32-3 and her husband, Thomas WARD in lot 32-4.

Notes for THOMAS FRAZIER WARD:
Thomas Ward was a logger and spent a lot of time in the woods.

12.	viii.		BLANCHE A. WILSON, b. 3 January 1878, Portland, Oregon; d. 28 December 1968, Roseburg, Oregon.
13.	ix.		GEORGE MARION WILSON, b. 30 October 1881, Portland, Oregon; d. 11 March 1963, Portland, Oregon.

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