The History of the Yakima Valley, Washington, Comprising Yakima, Kittitas and
Benton Counties, The S.J. Clarke Publishing Co., 1919, Volume II, page 644

WILLIAM H. McKEE.

William H. McKee has been a resident of the Kittitas valley for three decades
and during the past twenty years has been actively identified with ranching and
stock raising interests, now owning one hundred and twenty acres of excellent
land five miles west of Ellensburg. He was born in Allamakee county, Iowa, on
the 1st of May, 1859, a son of David and Henrietta (McWillie) McKee, both of
whom were of Scotch-Irish descent. They had become pioneer settlers of Iowa and
continued to make their home in that state until called to their final rest.

William H. McKee spent the first fourteen years of his life in the state of his
nativity and in 1873 removed to Kansas, where he followed farming until 1887.
Subsequently he spent one year in Nebraska and on the expiration of that period
made his way westward to Washington, settling in the Kittitas valley in 1888.
Here he devoted his attention to the trade of carpentering for a number of years
and then in 1898 purchased eighty acres of land five miles west of Ellensburg.
He has since purchased an additional tract of forty acres, so that his holdings
now embrace one hundred and twenty acres, whereon he cultivates both grain and
hay and also raises cattle and sheep. His undertakings along these lines have
been attended with gratifying and well-deserved prosperity, for he is a man of
good business judgment, unfaltering industry and undaunted enterprise.

In 1882 Mr. McKee was united in marriage to Miss Annie Crabtree, daughter of
Benjamin Crabtree. They have become the parents of two children: Blanche, who is
now the wife of E. A. Smith, a ranchman of Kittitas county, and William Glen,
who is engaged in ranching in the Kittitas valley and is married and has two
children.

In politics Mr. McKee is independent, always considering the capability of a
candidate rather than his party affiliation. His religious faith is that of the
Presbyterian church, while fraternally he is identified with the Independent
Order of Odd Fellows. His career has ever been characterized by upright
principles and honorable motives and during the long period of his residence in
this section of the state he has won an extensive circle of warm friends.

********************************
Submitted to the Washington Bios Project in December 2007 by Jeffrey L. Elmer.
Submitter has no additional information about the subject of this article.