\osborne\biograph\bio_wz  6/28/2013

Bio. of Warren Osborne


        Memorial and Biographical Record of South Dakota, Chicago,
        George A. Ogle & Co., 1897.  Page 582.  (transcript)

WARREN OSBORNE, one of the earliest settlers of Yankton county, an old
soldier with an enviable record, and a most progressive and prosperous
citizen, has his home in township 93, range 56, near the city of Yankton,
and a biographical sketch of this gentleman will interest every one
desiring an intelligent insight into the history of South Dakota.
   Mr. Osborne was born in Erie county, Ohio, at Berlin Heights, September
5, 1840, the son of Lewis and Sarah (Clark nee Bronson) Osborne, the former
a native of Connecticut and the latter of New York.  His father was a
soldier of the war of 1812, and fought at New Orleans under General
Jackson.  His grandfather was born in England, was a soldier in the
Revolutionary war, and lost a leg at the battle of Bunker Hill.
   Our subject grew to be a boy of fifteen years in his native county, and
obtained his education in the district schools.  At that age, however, he
was seized by the spirit of adventure, left home and found his way into the
pineries of Michigan.  After a few months he went to Freeborn county,
Minnesota, and there remained until the breaking out of the Civil war, when
he enlisted in Company K, Second Minnesota Volunteer Infantry, in the
spring of 1861.  His regiment was at once ordered to Kentucky and attached
to General Thomas' division, and he served through the war in the Army of
the Cumberland.  He participated in the battle of Mill Spring, Kentucky,
and was with General Buell on his rapid march from Nashville to Pittsburg
Landing, where he took part in the second day's bloody fight at that place.
He was at the siege of Corinth, the battles of Perryville, Triune,
Manchester and Tullahoma, and at the slaughter at Chickamauga his corps,
the Fourteenth, held the central position against the entire rebel army
after the right and left wings had given away.  At Missionary Ridge his
regiment, the Second Minnesota, led the charge of the division which became
famous for having advanced beyond the line prescribed in the order,
captured ten thousand prisoners and fifty-two pieces of artillery.  Out of
seventeen men his company lost ten, four of whom were killed outright.  His
time having expired soon after this fight, he returned to Minnesota, and
there re-enlisted in the same company and regiment, and on the sixth of the
following May again arrived at the front.  The Atlanta campaign was on, and
he took part in it, and was under fire one hundred and twenty-eight days.
He accompanied the victorious army on its famous march to the sea, fought
a severe engagement at Jonesboro, Georgia, and then on the return north
through North Carolina met the enemy at Bentonville, one of the closing
battles of the war.  He was in the grand review at Washington, and then
his regiment was sent to Louisville and there mustered out.  Mr. Osborne
enlisted as a private, was color-guard in 1863, and promoted early in 1864
to sergeant.  He still suffers from the effects of a wound in the head,
caused by a piece of shell, before Kenesaw mountain.
   His brother George served in the Tenth Minnesota, was wounded at Tupelo,
Mississippi, went home and died.  Omar, another brother, was in the Seventh
Ohio, was wounded at Winchester, went home and died.  His brother Lewis was
in the One Hundred and First Ohio, was left on the field of battle to care
for the wounded, was taken prison and died at Belle Isle.  Alfred, a half
brother, was a soldier in the regular army, belonging to Bragg's Battery
before the war and afterwards known as Lotton's Battery.
   After the war Mr. Osborne returned to Minnesota, where he was married to
Miss Mary J. Thomas, at Geneva.  With his wife and one child, Charles, he
went to Dakota in 1866, and located in Yankton county, on the place where
he has since resided, and where the child died at the age of six months.
Mr. and Mrs. Osborne began their frontier life in primitive fashion,
erecting a split log cabin, clearing the land, and combating the many
discouragements and privations attending their efforts the first few years,
which were finally overcome and prosperity rewarded them for their early
toils.  He is one of the very few settlers who have lived continuously upon
their original homesteads.
   In political views Mr. Osborne is a Republican, and takes an active
interest in the issues and questions of the day.  He was deputy United
States marshal of the state for six years, has held the office of county
commissioner and was chairman of the board, served as deputy sheriff six
years, and has been a member of the Republican county central committee.
He is a member of Phil. Kearney Post, No. 7, G. A. R., at Yankton, and has
held membership in Dakota Lodge, No. 1, I. 0. 0. F., for a quarter of a
century, having passed all the chairs.
   To Mr. and Mrs. Osborne six children have been born, five of whom are
living, named as follows: Fannie, George, Frank, Fred and Alpha.  Their
home is a model one, his family is surrounded by all the comforts and
conveniences of a modern progressive country place, and Mr. Osborne is
respected as a citizen, loved as a friend, admired as a soldier of
unflinching bravery, and regarded by all for his ability, integrity and
devotion to the public welfare.


Rev. War Pension Papers of William


Osborn - 750

Lived in Burke Co., NC during the Rev.
1779        Volunteered as a mounted militia man under Captain William Adams
                and Lieutenant William Simpson for a tour of three months.
1780        Drafted as a private militia man under the command of a Col.
                Moffit and Captain William Taber for a period of three months.
                He was in no battles, but was stationed at Turkey Cove at
                the head of the Catawba River in Burke Co., NC.
ca1801      Moved from Burke Co., NC to Scott Co., KY.
1827        Moved from Scott Co., KY to Fountain Co., IN.
10/31/1832  Affidavit by Bennet Osborn that he & William Osborn served under
                Capt. William Adams in NC in 1779, William Simpson was Lt.
                William Osborn also served 6 months under Col. Moffit in 1780.
3/13/1833   Declaration of William Osborn, age 69, for Rev. War Pension.
                States that a Bennet Osborn, resident of Scott Co., KY, can
                establish the fact of his service.
4/5/1835    Died.
2/3/1853    Declaration of Elizabeth Osborn for pension based on service of
                William Osborn.  She declares that she was married to William
                Osborn on 2/20/1800 in Scott Co., KY and lived with him until
                his death on 4/5/1835 in Fountain Co., IN.  Her maiden name was
                Elizabeth Redden.  She now lives in Fountain Co., IN.
9/2/1854    Affidavit by Elizabeth Osborn, widow of William Osborn that she now
                resides in Daviess Co., MO.
3/26/1858   Declaration of Elizabeth Osborn, age 75, for bounty land based on
                service of William Osborn.

            Family Record in William Osborn's pension papers.  Most of the
                entries are in William Osborn's handwriting.
            Births
            ------
            William Osborn     1/10/1764     John Taylor Osborn      9/21/1811
            Elizabeth Osborn,  3/20/1783     Rubin Lyle Osborn       3/17/1813
              his wife                       Martha Ann Osborn       12/8/1815
            Peggy Osborn       1/14/1801     Elisa Cournela Osborn   12/19/1819
            Abner Osborn       12/11/1802
            Ipsly Osborn       12/1/1804
            Katharine Osborn   8/30/1806
            William Osborn     11/6/1807
            Susan Osborn       1/8/1810

            Marriages
            ---------
            William Osborn  m. 2/20/1800 Elisabeth Redden
            James Sherrill  m. 6/17/1819 Margaret Osburn
            Abner Osburn    m. 8/3/1826  Elisa Glass
            Ipsly Osborn    m. 7/13/1828 Granville Adkins
            John T. Osburn  m. 5/1/1834  Permelia Dehaven
            Jacob Dehaven   m. 8/19/1830 Susan Osburn
            Eliza C. Osburn m. 1/21/1840 George Glascock

W. 4303     Bty. Land Wt. 80035-160-55


Bio. of William Osburn-1117


   Biographical and Genealogical History of Wayne, Fayette, Union and
   Franklin Counties, Indiana, Chicago, Lewis Publishing Co., 1899.
   Vol. 1, page 1039.  (transcript)

WILLIAM OSBURN.
   This honored and highly respected citizen of Butler township, Franklin
county, is a representative of one of the prominent pioneer families of the
county, being a son of James T. Osburn, who settled here at an early day and
bore an important part in its early development and prosperity.  The father
was born in Virginia, about 1797, and was a son of Squire Osburn, who died
during the childhood of James T.  Soon afterward his mother emigrated to
Indiana, accompanied by her five children, one son and four daughters, and
the family located in Metamora township, Franklin county, where the son was
reared.  On attaining man's estate he married Ruth Nelson, who came from
Virginia with her parents about the same time Osburn family did.
   In February, 1834, James T. Osburn settled on the farm in Butler township
where his sons now reside, William being at that time but nine years old.
He cleared the land where the village of St. Mary's now stands, and from the
wild land developed a good farm, on which he died April 6, 1859, and his
wife passed away March 20, 1857, honored and respected by all who knew them.
He was a typical pioneer and a hard-working, industrious man.  The section
of the country where he located was new and wild game was abundant.  He was
an expert hunter; and on one occasion, while making a short trip across the
country, he killed seven bears in one day.  He was a man rugged in nature
and fearless in character, and was withal an honest and good citizen.  A
full account of his many experiences in pioneer days would fill a much
larger space than can here be given.  Suffice it to say that he lived a
useful and upright life, and did his part toward developing the resources of
the county.
   To Mr. and Mrs. Osburn were born eleven children, of whom the following
are still living: George R.; Mary and Hannah, twins; William; and Squire.
The last two mentioned own and occupy the old homestead.  William Osburn,
from whom much of the information contained in this sketch was obtained, is
one of the most successful, enterprising and progressive farmers and
stock-raisers in Butler township.  He has never married, but his brother
Squire has a wife and family.  These gentlemen have spent nearly their
entire lives on the old homestead, and are widely known and highly
respected.


Bio. of William Osborne


   History of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Thomas Cushing, Chicago,
   A. Warne, 1889.  Page 396.  (transcript)
   [See the bio. of John Osborne]

   WILLIAM OSBORNE, M.D., Frank, is a son of John and Sarah (Abernathy)
Osborne, of England.  The father came to this country in 1881, and settled
near Irwin station, in Westmoreland county, and remained until 1882, when he
removed to Homestead, and has since resided there, retiring from the coal
and mercantile business.  Dr. Osborne was born in England in 1847, came to
this country in 1862, and first worked as a coal-miner, but afterward
entered the Bennett Medical College, of Chicago, from which he graduated in
1882, and commenced the practice of his profession at Turtle Creek, but in
the same year moved to his present location, and now enjoys a very lucrative
practice.  In 1888 he was married to Mary J. Percy, daughter of John and
Margaret (Miller) Percy, natives of England, who located in Westmoreland
county.  They have six children living: Sara, Maggie, Francis A., Lizzie G.,
William and Edgar J.  Dr. Osborne and family are members of the M.E. Church
at Scott Haven.  He is a member of Alliquippa Lodge, No. 375, F. & A.M.


Bio. of William Osborn


   The History of Polk County, Iowa, containing A History of the County,
   Its Cities, Towns, Etc., Des Moines, Union Historical Company,
   Birdsall, Williams & Co., 1880.  Page 899.  (transcript)
   (Contributed by Harriet Hunt)

OSBORN, WILLIAM - Farmer, section 5, P. O. Ashawa.  Was born in Pickens
District, South Carolina, October 23, 1833, and at the age of six years
moved to Boone County, Indiana, residing there until 1856.  He then came to
this county and has remained here since, following farming; owns 160 acres
of well improved land.  He is a son of James Osborne<sic>, a native of
Massachusetts, who has represented his district in the state legislature for
a number of terms, and is one of the leading politicians of the State.  Mr.
Osborne was a candidate for Representative of this county in 1877 on the
Democratic ticket. December 23, 1858, our subject was married to Miss Maggie
Pierce, a native of Montgomery County, Indiana; born March 20, 1838.  They
have nine children: Henry T., Elisha L., James T., Eva O., Wilbur A.,
Benjamin F., Leota I. and Maggie M., living, and one, Charles, deceased.


Bio. of William E. Osborn-15151


        Biographical and Genealogical History of Cass, Miami, Howard,
        and Tipton Counties, Indiana, Chicago, Lewis Publishing Co., 1898.
        Page 848.  (transcript)
   [See the 1901 bio. of George A. Osborne-15154]
   [See the 1907bio. of George A. Osborn-15154]

WILLIAM E. OSBORN. -- It is seldom that one of such venerable age as William
E. Osborn -- now in his eightieth year -- is an active factor in business
circles, but this honored gentleman is still actively connected with
commercial interests in Converse, and is regarded as one of the leading and
influential citizens of the town.  His career is that of an industrious,
energetic and straightforward man, and in his record there are no blotted
pages, for his book of life will bear the closest scrutiny.
   Tradition says that the Osborn family is of English origin and that those
who were its founders on American soil sprang from the same parent stem as
did the Osborn family to which Queen Victoria belongs.  It is believed that
three brothers of the name came from England to the New World in the
earliest epoch of its settlement, and that one located near the present site
of Jersey City, New Jersey, and the other two lived in New York just across
the river.  One of these brothers, it is said, planted the first one hundred
bushels of wheat in the Empire state.  The family furnished its
representatives to the American army in the war of the Revolution, and Major
Osborn won his title in that struggle.  He was a second cousin of the
subject of this review.  The grandfather of our subject, whose name was
either Jacob or David Osborn, was born in Jersey City and was a farmer by
occupation.  He spent his entire life in his native state.
   His son, Isaac Osborn, the father of our subject, was born near Jersey
City and there learned the shoemaker's trade.  He married Sarah Pardee, a
native of Guilford, Connecticut, and a daughter of James Pardee, who
followed farming near Guilford, not far from Long Island sound.  He was of
English lineage and lived to be an old man.  His children were Stephen,
James, Chloe, Clarissa, Sarah and one who married a soldier, but whose name
has been forgotten.  After wedding Sarah Pardee, which was his second
marriage, Isaac Osborn removed with his family to Ohio, making the journey
in a sleigh to Olean Point, New York, and thence on a raft down the
Allegheny river to Pittsburg, then a frontier post.  They then floated down
the Ohio river on a flat-boat to Portsmouth, at the mouth of the Scioto
river, where Angeline, the first child of Isaac and Sarah Osborn, was born.
In Cincinnati, Ohio, they mad a location, but after a year and a half went
to Madison, Indiana, where the father made his home until his death.  He
died at Natchez, on the Mississippi river, while on a trading expedition to
New Orleans, at the age of forty-six years.  His widow lived to the
venerable age of eighty-three and died in the home of our subject in
Converse.  After the death of Mr. Osborn she married Amos Davis and they
removed to a farm in Clinton county, Ohio, where Mr. Davis died at the age
of seventy-six years.
   William E. Osborn was the second of five children, the others being
Angeline, Margaret and James, twins, and George A.  William E. Osborn was
born in Madison, Indiana, October 13, 1819, and received but limited school
priviledges in his youth, yet, being fond of books, he has always read
extensively, and having a retentive memory and an observant eye he has
gained a wide general information that has made him a well informed man.
He was only three years old when his father died and when he was twelve his
mother married again and he accompanied her on her removal to Clinton
county, Ohio.  A few months later, however, he returned to Indiana, making
his way to Richmond, where he learned the wagon-maker's trade, under the
direction of Jesse Templeton, a friend of the family.  He remained with him
for four years and two months, after which he returned to his family in
Clinton county, Ohio.
   Mr. Osborn was there married September 5, 1842, to Hannah Newcomb, who
was born in Maryland, near the Delaware line.  During her girlhood he
removed to Greene county, Ohio, where he became a prosperous farmer.  Mr.
Osborn remained in Oho until 1850, when he removed to the Hoosier state,
arriving in Wabash county on the 31st of August.  There he cleared and
developed a good farm, upon which he resided until 1865, when he located in
the town of Wabash, making his home there until April, 1867, when he came
to Converse, then known as Xenia.  He has since been engaged in the lumber
business here and has handled large quantities of black walnut lumber and
other native timber.  He has long been regarded as one of the best judges
of uncut timber that has ever lived in this part of the state.  He cut and
prepared large quantities of lumber for shipment to the eastern markets and
built up a good business.  He has also been engage in the hardware business
for the past fourteen years and has always been a practical, progressive
man, whose straightforward dealing and honorable business methods have not
only brought to him success but have also won him the confidence, good will
and high regard of all with whom he has been brought in contact.
   Thirteen months after his first marriage Mr. Osborn was called upon to
mourn the loss of his wife, who died leaving one child, James, who died in
infancy.  He was married a second time, in Clarmont county, Ohio, Rachel
Murphy becoming his wife in 1845.  She was born in Wilmington, Delaware,
a daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth Murphy.  Her father also was born in
Delaware and belonged to one of the old families of that state.  He was a
farmer and also a local minister of the Methodist Episcopal church, and,
in connection with public affairs, served as constable and justice of the
peace.  His children were as follows: Thomas, John, William, Joseph, Samuel,
James, Mary Elizabeth, Margaret, Rachel and Sarah.  Each of these children
weighed over two hundred pounds, and the mother also weighed as much.  The
father was numbered among the pioneer settlers of Clermont county, Ohio,
and lived to be an old man.  Mrs. Osborn died in Converse, Indiana, July
29, 1877, at the age of fifty-nine years.  She was a devout member of the
Methodist church and a lady of many virtues.  Her children were Arthur,
Sarah C. and George A.  The elder son was a member of the Forty-seventh
Indiana Regiment during the Civil war, and served eighteen months.  He
enlisted when only sixteen years of age, but displayed marked bravery on
a number of battle-fields.
   The third marriage of Mr. Osborn occurred in Sharpsville, Indiana, where
he wedded Mrs. Frances Plummer, nee Fish.  She, too, was a member of the
Methodist church, and died in Converse.  The present wife of our subject
was formerly Mrs. Cyrena (Beckford) Starbuck, a native of Fountain City,
Indiana.  Her father removed from North Carolina and located in Wayne
county in pioneer days.  He had eighteen children, all of whom lived to be
over sixty years of age.  He passed the ninetieth milestone on life's
journey and died on the farm, in Wayne county, Indiana, on which he located
at the time of his arrival in this state.  Mrs. Osborn holds membership in
the Methodist church and takes a very active part in its work.
   Long prior to the Civil war Mr. Osborn advocated the abolition of
slavery, and his home in Port Williams, Clinton county, Ohio, was a station
on the "underground railroad."  He assisted many a negro on his way to
freedom.  At one time he sheltered thirteen runaway slaves and conveyed
them to the next station, seventeen miles distant, and on another occasion
he aided a mother and her four children to escape.  During the war between
the north and the south he was a stanch advocate of the Union cause.  In
politics he is a stalwart Republican and socially is an Odd Fellow and a
Mason.  Numbered among the pioneers of the state he has witnessed much of
the growth and development of Indiana, and is one of the oldest citizens
now living within here borders who can claim the state as the place of his
nativity.  His life has been a busy and useful one and the opinion which
his fellow men entertain for him is shown by the high regard and friendship
which they extend to him.
   The following genealogical data touching the Osborn family are taken
from records found in the Lenox library in New York: "Osborn, John, Albany,
son of Nehemiah; born 1817, died 1871; married, 1854, to Harriet Pardee.
Son of Nehemiah Osborn, born 1770, in New Haven, Connecticut; died in 1853
in Albany, New York; married Mary Frazier.  Son of David Osborn, born 1746;
died 1786; married Mary Talmadge.  Son of Jeremiah Osborn, born 1699; died
1789.  Son of Joseph Osborn, born 1667; died 1735.  Son of Jeremiah Osborn,
born 1620; died 1676.  Son of Thomas Osborn, who was one of the original
settlers of New Haven, Connecticut."
   In Hatfield's history of Elizabeth, New Jersey, reference is made to one
Isaac Osborn, who signed some official documents; but no further mention
is made of him.  Undoubtedly William E. Osborn, the immediate subject of
this sketch, is a lineal descendant from Thomas Osborn, the original New
Haven settler, as the marriage into the Pardee family indicates.


Bio. of William F. Osborn


   History of Lawrence, Orange and Washington Counties, Indiana,
   Chicago, Goodspeed Brothers., & Co., 1884.  Page 596. (transcript)
   Also in History of Orange Co., Indiana, Paoli Bus. and Prof. Woman's
   Club, Paoli, IN, 1950.  Page 246.

   WILLIAM F. OSBORN, general merchant and manufacturer of the Hindostan
oilstone and sandstone, was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, October 2, 1834, a son
of Thomas J. and Eleanor (Ent) Osborne, who were natives respectively of New
York and New Jersey, and of English-German descent.  When three years old
William F. was taken by his parents to Louisville, Ky., where he was
principally raised and educated.  From 1851 to 1854 he served an
apprenticeship at the hatter's trade in silk, and in 1855 was a delegate to
the first silk hat convention held in the United States at Cincinnati.  In
1862 he began in business for himself at Louisville, continuing until 1866,
when he came to Orange County, Ind., and settled at West Baden Springs,
where he remained until 1873.  He there engaged in the manufacture of the
Hindostan oil and sandstone, which he has ever since continued, and in 1883
shipped 2,439 cases of this article.  Mr. Osborn is a Democrat, a Free
Mason, an Odd Fellow, and he and wife belong to the Methodist Episcopal
Church.  To the marriage of Mr. Osborn and Miss Sarah Woods, of Louisville,
three children have been born, named: Thomas E., Mary G. and Prather.  Mr.
Osborn is President of the Fourth Indiana Sunday-school District, composed
of Harrison, Crawford and Orange Counties.


Bio. of William H. Osborn


        The Early Hist. of Greene Co., IN, Jack Baber, Worthington, IN,
        N.B. Milleson, 1875.  p93.  (transcript)
        [See the bio. of K.B. Osborn-2933]

WILLIAM H. OSBORN
is from the same county and State <Cayuga county, New York>, came to Greene
county in 1859, and was one of the contractors on the canal.  He has been
engaged in various branches of business, and has had many ups and downs in
life.  He has amassed a considerable amount of property, and is now engaged
in the mercantile business.  He was born April 3d, 1822.


Bio. of William N. Osborn-6235


   A Twentieth Century History and Biographical Record of LaPorte
   County, Indiana, Chicago, The Lewis Publishing Co., 1904.
   Page 724.  (transcript)  (bio. accompanied by photos of both William N.
   and Cora A. Osborn)

   WILLIAM N. OSBORN, who, though a comparatively young man, has attained a
success that many an older man might envy and is prominent in the business
circles of LaPorte county, is proprietor of the Corwill dairy and stock farm
near Wanatah, and is a well known breeder of thoroughbred registered stock.
   John Osborn, his father, also a prominent farmer and stockraiser, was
born in Wayne county, Indiana, November 29, 1825, and came to LaPorte county
when a young man.  In this county he was married to Miss Jane McIntyre, who
was born in Colerain, Ireland, February 22, 1838.  Five children were born
to them, of whom William N. is the oldest, and the others are: Eliza H.,
born September 30, 1868, is now the wife of William A. Bohland, county
treasurer of LaPorte county and residing in LaPorte; James A., born July 19,
1870; John M., born July 23, 1873; and Jonathan Walter, born June 10, 1875.
   William N. Osborn was born at Wanatah, LaPorte county, March 16, 1867,
and passed his boyhood and youth under the parental roof.  He graduated from
the high school at Wanatah, and also in the business and scientific courses
at the Northern Indiana Normal School at Valparaiso in 1888.  He then began
farming on his own account, his first purchase of land consisting of forty
acres, to which he has added from time to time until he now has three
hundred and twenty-six acres, constituting one of the most desirable farms
of its size in the county.  He is a breeder of fine blooded stock, and makes
a specialty of Holstein-Friesian cattle and Poland-China hogs.  He has on
hand a fine herd of about sixty Holstein cattle, and has a half interest in
one hog valued at five hundred dollars.  He has seven fine blooded pigs,
which at this writing (1903) are about eight months old, for which he
refused an offer of five hundred dollars.  They are of the Poland-China
strain, and their sire, "T.R. Perfection," sold at Kankakee, Illinois, July
8, 1903, for forty-one hundred dollars.  A half interest in their grandsire,
"Chief Perfection 2d," was sold at Macey, Indiana, in July, 1903, for
$17,210, the highest price ever paid for a hog.  These pigs' sire and
grandsire rank as two of the best if not the best Poland-China hogs ever
sold.  Mr. Osborn has one of the finest herds of Holstein-Freisian cattle in
northern Indiana.  A very flattering notice is given him in the Farmer's
Guide of December 6, 1902, highly commendable of Mr. Osborn as a
breeder of fine stock.  Mr. Osborn does his own grinding of feed for his
stock, owning a gas engine and all the facilities which make stock farming
scientific and profitable.  His broad acres are about the best in the
township, and he is a thoroughly up-to-date stockman and agriculturist.
   At the home of the bride in Clinton township, this county, Mr. Osborn was
married, March 20, 1889, to Miss Cora A. Goodwin, who was born near Michigan
City, in Pine township, April 12, 1869.  The children born to them are Cleon
Clayton, on January 26, 1890, and died September 18, the same year; William
Ross, on October 7, 1891, and is now in the fifth grade at school; Ethel
Estella, December 14, 1896, in the second grade; and John Leland, August 10,
1899.
   Mr. Osborn affiliates with the Democratic party, and gives his earnest
support to all measures which he believes calculated to prove of public
benefit.  He belongs to the Knights of the Maccabees, Tent No. 41, and he
and his wife are members of the Christian church at Wanatah.  Wherever known
he is held in high regard, and his life has been such as to gain the good
will and respect of those with whom he has been brought in contact.


Bio. of William Thomas Osburn


        The Centennial History of Oregon, 1811-1912, Gaston,
        Chicago, The S.J. Clark Publishing Co., 1912.  Vol. III, page 835.
        (transcript)

WILLIAM THOMAS OSBURN.  Several years before gold was discovered in
California, when it was the hope of securing homes and utilizing the
opportunities of the far west that brought the settler to the Pacific
coast, William Thomas Osburn took up his abode in Oregon, having traveled
across the plains with pack horses in 1845.  He was born near Paoli,
Indiana, January 18, 1823, and was only eight years of age at the time of
the death of his father, Thomas F. Osburn.  The mother passed away in 1851.
In early life William T. Osburn went to Iowa and when he was twenty-two
years of age he became imbued with the spirit of adventure and started for
the northwest.  Oregon City was then the only place where there was any
development to speak of in the state.  Mr. Osburn remained there until June,
1847, when he took the trail with pack horses for California, arriving in
that state toward the end of July.  On the discovery of gold in 1848 he
turned his attention to mining on the middle fork of the Sacramento river
and met with good success.  In the fall of 1849 he again crossed the plains
to Indiana, where he remained for two years, but in 1851 again came to the
coast, traveling with pack horses to Portland, Oregon, which was rapidly
coming to the front as the principal trading point of the Willamette river.
In February, 1852, Mr. Osburn again went to Indiana and there invested his
capital in quite a large bunch of cattle, with which he once more started
out for Oregon.  While on that trip he had several encounters with the
Indians, who, however, ran away when he and his party showed fight.  Mr.
Osburn took his cattle to the head waters of the Siuslaw river where there
was splendid pasture and plenty of range.  In the spring of 1853 he sold
his stock and again went to Indiana.  While there he was married and with
his bride came to the coast.  On that trip he also brought a bunch of
cattle, traveling over the Oregon trail and settling on Camas prairie in
Lane county, where was to be found the best grass in the country.  For five
years he continued there and then purchased a farm on the river road about
eight miles below Eugene.  In 1861 he took up his abode in that city and
became identified with its manufacturing and industrial interests as the
owner of a flour mill and sawmill.  Eventually he disposed of that business
and purchased a stove and hardware store which he conducted until 1865,
when he sold out and purchased the residence that he occupied from 1866
until the time of his death.
   It was at Paoli, Indiana, that Mr. Osburn was married to Miss Sarah
Sherod, a native of Virginia, and they became the parents of four children:
Curran D., who was a physician but is now deceased; Owen, a resident of
Roseburg, Oregon, where he is engaged in the drug business; Grant, who has
also passed away; and William F., who is proprietor of the Hotel Osburn, at
Eugene.
   Mr. Obsurn<sic> was not only prominent as a business man of Lane county
but was also widely known in other connections.  He was a member of the
first city council of Eugene and in his younger days was an active,
energetic citizen, whose cooperation could always be counted upon to
further progressive public movements.  He was a charter member of the first
Masonic lodge created in Oregon, this having been established in Oregon
City, in 1845.  He died at Eugene, January 21, 1905, and was buried under
the auspices of the Masonic order, being the oldest Mason in the state at
that time in years of continuous connection with the craft.


Bio. of Zachariah Osborn-1715


   History of Wayne County, Indiana, Vol. II, Chicago, Inter-State
   Publishing Co., 1884.  Page 296.  (transcript)
   [See the bio. of Daniel Osborn-1714]

   ZACHARIAH OSBORN, deceased, was born in Boston Township, Wayne Co., Ind.,
July 19, 1829, and was a son of Daniel Osborn, an old settler of the county.
His early life was spent on the farm and he received his education in the
country schools.  He was married in 1856 to Tracy, daughter of Jacob
Smelser, and settled on a farm in Union County, Ind.  In 1860 he purchased
the farm where his family how resides.  He was successful in his business,
and left his family in good circumstances.  He was a member of the
Universalist church.  He died July 24, 1881.  To Mr. and Mrs. Osborn were
born seven children, but four of whom are now living -- Foster, Charles S.,
Frank and Mary E.  Edward, Jacob and Henry are deceased.


Zerah Osborn Pension Papers


        Contributed by Tamara Prichard

R16861.  Born 8/15/1755, Morris Co., NJ.  Enlisted in Augusta (now Randolph)
Co., VA.  Still lived in Cove Settlement in Randolph Co., VA at pension time.