William C. Wygant    

WILLIAM C. WYGANT, insurance agent and Justice of the Peace, Blooming Valley, was born in Georgetown, Mercer Co., Penn., May 23, 1846; son of James and Lucretia B. (Hawley) Wygant. His paternal grandparents, Jonathan and Phebe (Townsend) Wygant, settled in Mead Township, this county, in 1836; the former a native of New Jersey and a son of James Wygant, a soldier of the Revolution, also settling in Mead Township in 1836; the latter was a daughter of Samuel Townsend, of Chemung County, N.Y. James, the father of our subject, was twice married; on first occasion, September 18, 1844, to Lucretia B., daughter of William H. and Lucretia B. (Benton) Hawley, of Schoharie County, N.Y., by whom he had four children: William C., Jennie (wife of William Hess), John and James (deceased). He married, August 6, 1854, for his second and present wife, Maria, daughter of Loren and Mary (Collins) Culter, of Randolph Township, this county, and by this union has had three children: Mary (deceased), Ella M., wife of Dr. Fred Clark, and Ira C. Mr. Wygant worked at shoe-making for many years, and in 1865 embarked in mercantile business in Blooming Valley, which he followed till 1881. He served six years as Justice of the Peace. Was ordained Elder of the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1879. Our subject was married, May 20, 1865, to Nancy M., daughter of Hugh C. and Isabelle (Emrich) Thompson, of Mead Township, this county, and to this union were born eight children: Eva, Hugh S. (deceased), Gertrude, Lucretia B. (deceased), Lynn, Morris (deceased), Agnes and Ida. Hugh C. Thompson settled in Mead Township, this county, in 1854. He enlisted in the war of the Rebellion in 1862, serving three years, was taken prisoner and incarcerated in Andersonville and later in Salisbury prison, where he died of starvation. During that war Mr. Wygant also enlisted, January 23, 1864, in Company I, One Hundred and Eleventh Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, and participated in the battles of Resaca, Dallas, Pine Knob and many other engagements, and was honorably discharged with the entire regiment in August, 1865. Our subject has been a resident of Blooming Valley for thirty-seven years; has held the office of Constable seven years; County Auditor three years, and is now serving his second term as Justice of the Peace. He is a member of the K. of H. and K.L. of H. and State Police; in politics he is a Republican. His wife and eldest daughter are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church.

History of Crawford County, Pennsylvania: containing a history of the county, its townships, towns, villages, schools, churches, industries, etc., portraits of early settlers and prominent men, biographies, history of Pennsylvania, statistical and miscellaneous matter, Chicago: Warner, Beers & Co., 1885. View image of this page of the book on line at ancestry.com.  Free access  More Crawford County History Books  Search Hundreds of 1880s-1890s Pennsylvania County History Books for biographies and historical information on your ancestors.  View the book page images on line and print them out for your genealogy file!  Free Access to the old history books - plus birth & death records, census images and ALL other records at ancestry.com

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