Gaston, Joseph.  "The Centennial History of Oregon, 1811-1912."  Vol. 2. 
Chicago, Clarke Publishing Co., 1912. p. 94.
 
HON. WILLIAM C. HINDMAN

     is one of the most, if not the most venerable citizen in Baker county,
having passed the ninety-first milestone on life's journey. His honorable,
upright life and his unfaltering activity have commended him to the confidence
and support of the general public. He has today what Shakespeare terms "the
blessed accompaniments of age÷honor, riches, troops of friends."  Because of the
length of his years and his prominent connection with Baker county no history of
this part of the state would be complete without extended reference to him. He
was born in the town of Ketanning, on the Allegheny river in Pennsylvania, in
what was then Armstrong but is now Clarion county, April 30, 1821. His paternal
grandfather, David Hindman, came from County Donegal, Ireland. He was licensed
to preach as a minister of the Presbyterian church and he also figured
prominently in the public life of his adopted state as judge of the court of
Franklin county. At about that time it was necessary to swear allegiance to the
king of Great Britain but he changed the oath so that it would read: "As long as
the colonies retained their allegiance to the British crown." One of his
brothers went to Virginia and eighty-three years later, when W. C. Hindman was
teaching school in Racine, Ohio, an old man one day approached him and asked him
if he had relatives in Virginia, telling him of a certain Thomas Hindman who had
a wife and four children, three daughters and a son. The Indians surprised them
and killed the parents and knocked the children on the head, but they were saved
by neighbors. The eldest daughter, however, was scalped and ever afterward wore
a cap to cover her head. This Thomas Hindman, William C. Hindman discovered was
a brother of his grandfather. His father, Samuel Hindman, was also a native of
Pennsylvania, in which state his ancestors had settled prior to the
Revolutionary war. Representatives of the name participated in that struggle and
Samuel Hindman was a soldier of the War of 1812. He married Sarah Manning, a
native of Baltimore, Maryland, whose ancestors came to the new world with Lord
Baltimore and settled in that section of the country named in his honor. Mrs.
Hindman's father was Joseph Manning, who served as a soldier in the
Revolutionary war and was present at the memorable occasion when Cornwallis
surrendered his troops to Washington at Yorktown. He was at one time
aide-de-camp on General Washington's staff. Mrs. Hindman was born three years
before Washington was elected to the presidency for the second time. William C.
Hindman lost his father when he was but nine years of age and his mother died in
Galesburg, Illinois, when ninety-seven years of age. In the family were four
daughters and then came six sons. Of these two survive beside our subject: M.
J., of Pleasant Valley, Oregon; and Samuel M., living at Sisters, Crook county,
Oregon.
     William C. Hindman pursued his education in the public schools and in an
academy, through which he made his way after attaining his majority. His parents
removed to Youngstown, Ohio, when he was but a child and there he was
apprenticed as a millwright and also taught school. From that state he went to
Iowa, in 1850, engaging in farming near Council Bluffs for a time. He then made
the overland trip with ox and horse teams to Baker county, where he arrived in
1863. For two years he engaged in freighting from Umatilla Landing to points in
Baker county and then turned his attention to cattle-raising, entering a
homestead and adding to this property from time to time. He successfully
conducted his business for, a long period, becoming one of the leading and
extensive cattle-raisers of this part of the state. He and his son had a
thousand head of stock, including cattle and horses, and it is said that people
could count on the fact that spring had arrived when the Hindmans turned their
stock out. They had four hundred acres to winter their stock on but depended
upon the range for feed for the stock during the summer. It was necessary,
however, to feed for about two months during the winter. Year after year Mr.
Hindman continued in the stock business, occupying a foremost position in that
field of labor until 1911, when he sold out and retired. He still retains the
ownership of a ranch of two hundred and forty acres but since 1863 has made his
home in Baker with the  exception of two years spent in California. In the
spring of 1864 he bought two hundred and fifty pounds of potatoes which he
divided into three lots and planted, but they were killed by the frost before
the crop was practically started. However, he got about a gallon of new
potatoes, which he planted and which were the first raised anywhere in the
valley. He had lived here eight years before it was thought that fruit trees
would grow in this district, but the valley is today a fine fruit country. In
early times, too, wheat frosted and they could not raise a crop of that cereal
in this section which is today a splendid wheat country.
     As the years passed by Mr. Hindman took an active interest in public
affairs and in 1866 was chosen to represent his district, comprising Baker and
Union counties, in the state legislature. He proved a most capable officer,
discharging his duties in such a manner as to effectively promote the best
interests of his constituents. He was instrumental in securing eleven votes
toward having the state capital located in Baker county at the time it was
decided that Salem should be the location. Mr. Hindman was also instrumental in
naming Browns Peak. In politics he has been a lifelong democrat, casting his
first presidential ballot for James K. Polk. He held several town offices in
Iowa and at all times has been a loyal advocate of principles and measures which
he deemed of benefit to the northwest.
     In 1853 Mr. Hindman was united in marriage to Miss Sarah Kyle, of Iowa, who
was a native of New Brunswick but was reared in Ohio. They became the parents of
eight children: Clara, now the wife of Daniel Carn, of McEwen, Oregon; Ida, who
died at the age of eight years; Phila B., who is the wife of H. P. Kaizer, of
Idaho; Agnes, who became the wife of Leander Davis and died at the age of
forty-two years, leaving three children; Homer, who died at the age of forty-two
years, leaving a widow and four children; Grace, who is located in San Jose,
California; Frank, who is living in Alberta, Canada; and W. W., a practicing
attorney of Spokane. In 1883 Mr. Hindman was called upon to mourn the loss of
his wife, and on the 25th of November, 1897, he was again married, his second
union being with Mrs. Tollie (Mounts) Douthitt, a daughter of Noble and Scirilla
Theresa (Drake) Mounts, natives of Virginia and Kentucky respectively, a
complete record of whom appears in the sketch of Hon. L. O. Sterns. Mr. Hindman
holds membership in the Presbyterian church, in the faith of which he was
reared. He is a man of remarkable memory at the age of ninety-one years. It is
said that his mother was a woman of particularly wide knowledge and she
stimulated in her son a desire for learning. Throughout his life he has remained
a student, reading widely and thinking deeply, and to him has been preserved the
precious prize of keen mentality. Moreover, in business affairs his career has
been one of strictest integrity and an honorable, upright life has gained for
him the confidence and high regard of all and made his example well worthy of
emulation.


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Submitted to the Oregon Bios. Project in July 2007 by Diana Smith. Submitter
has no additional information about the person(s) or family mentioned above.