Gaston, Joseph.  "The Centennial History of Oregon, 1811-1912."  Vol. 4. 
Chicago, Clarke Publishing Co., 1912. p. 861.
 

WILLIAM C. WHITE.

     Spending the latter part of his life in his comfortable home in Hermiston,
William C. White is now living in honorable retirement, enjoying in well earned
rest the success that came to him as a logical result of well directed effort
and earnest endeavor. His birth occurred in Gibson, Tennessee, February 16,
1832, and he is a son of Allen and Nancy (Cribbs) White, both of whom were
natives of Tennessee. The father was a son of Montague White, who was born in
Virginia, and who was a soldier in the Revolutionary war before removing to
Gibson county, Tennessee, where he was one of the pioneer settlers. The maternal
grandfather also served in the Revolutionary war. Mr. and Mrs. Allen White spent
their entire lives upon a farm in Tennessee, where the father was a circuit
rider. To them, five children were born. John, the eldest, whose death occurred
at Weston, Oregon, came to this state in 1844. He was an agriculturist and
stock-raiser and was also prominent in political circles. He served as city
treasurer of Portland and was three times a representative of Umatilla county.
He was judge of the county and also served in the legislature, having been
elected from Portland by the republican party. His death occurred about
twenty-five years ago, when he was fifty-five years of age. William C., the
second in order of birth, is the subject of this review. Mrs. Lucy Moore died in
Tennessee. Mrs. Mary Cunningham and Nancy reside in Tennessee.

    William C. White is indebted to the common schools of his native state for
the educational advantages enjoyed by him and on the Tennessee homestead he
spent the period of his boyhood and youth, assisting his father in the work of
the farm when not busy with his text books. At an early age he became familiar
with the tasks that fall to the lot of the country lad and with the passing of
years, as he increased in strength and experience, his duties became more and
more important and his training in agricultural lines thorough and
comprehensive. His parents died when he was very young, his mother passing away
while he was but a child and his fatherās death occurring when he was twelve
years of age. In 1852 he came to Multnomah county and resided with his brother
for about two years before removing to Yamhill county, where he purchased a half
interest in a herd of cattle of two hundred head. After about three years he
purchased his partnerās interest in the herd, which then comprised about three
hundred head and he took it to Umatilla county up the Walla Walla river. In the
winter of 1861-2 he had the misfortune of losing all but about 18 head. The
severity of the weather made it impossible for the cattle to find grazing at the
proper season of the year. In that year it began snowing on the 22d of December
and continued steadily until April. In June there were still many drifts two
feet in height throughout the country. After his heavy loss Mr. White went to
Florence and worked in the Closser mines, returning in August 1862, with two
hundred and eighty-seven dollars. He then began farming in Umatilla county, six
miles southwest of Walla Walla, and continued in that occupation there until
about a year ago. He has thus been a resident agriculturist of Umatilla county
for fifty years. He owns two hundred and thirty acres on the Umatilla river, one
half mile from Stanfield, all of which land is irrigated. He also owns a half
section of wheat land two and one half miles northeast of Echo and about two
acres of land in Hermiston, where he has been residing for the past year. At
present his property is all leased. During the years in which he devoted his
time and attention to the development and improvement of his property and to
general farming and stock-raising he showed that the thorough training which he
received in the early days upon his fatherās and uncleās farms well fitted him
for the successful conduct of an enterprise of this character and his keen
business sagacity and wise management were resultant factors in the success
which attended his efforts. His substantial and gratifying success has made it
possible for him to retire from active business life and enjoy in well earned
rest the fruits of his former toil. In 1856 he was a witness of some serious
Indian troubles. In Yamhill county, the Indians were dying rapidly and, being
able to assign no other cause for the deaths of their fellow members than the
mistakes which the doctors were making in the treatment of their cases, they
tried to kill these physicians. This would have occurred had not Phil Sheridan,
who was there at the time, exerted his strength in his attempt to keep the
Indians from killing one another. Mr. White was frequently brought into contact
with such troubles and many of the trials of the pioneer are among his personal
experiences.

    In 1856 William C. White was married to Miss Susan Amanda Lenox, whose birth
occurred in Missouri, in 1842, and who was brought to Oregon by her parents,
David and Louisa Lenox, in 1843. They were residents of Multnomah county,
Oregon. To Mr. and Mrs. White eleven children have been born. W.S., who died at
the age of fifty-two years, was survived by three children: Elmer, of Spokane;
W.H., of Astoria; and Fred, of Pullman. L.O. makes his home with his father.
Elizabeth married W.B. Estes, who is engaged in farming, and they became the
parents of six children. Thomas Harvey is deceased, and left four children,
Grace, Laura, Lelis and Mary. Rosella became the wife of A.A. Hammer, of
Spokane, who owns and operates gold and silver mines, and they have four
children. Millard F., who is engaged as an architect in Portland, is married and
has three children. Harriet Frances, the deceased wife of G.L. Ward, was the
mother of two children, Gladys and Eva. Delia May, the deceased wife of Clarence
Getchell, left two children, Clarence and Bonnetta, the latter residing with our
subject. Nancy Catherine married J.R. Means, a contractor and builder of
Hermiston, and is the mother of two children. Jessie, who married Val J.
Gonzales, died at Reno, Nevada, in 1911. John Edward, the youngest member of the
family, died at the age of nineteen years. The two eldest of the children were
born in Yamhill county and the others were born in Umatilla county. Mr. White is
now eighty years of age and enjoys the veneration and respect which should ever
be accorded one who has traveled thus far on his earthly pilgrimage and whose
career has at all times been upright and honorable.


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Submitted to the Oregon Bios. Project in November 2005 by Phil Andrews.
Submitter has no additional information about the person(s) or family mentioned
above unless otherwise stated.