Peters, William E. (William Edwards), 1857-1952
Dates
- Existence: 1857 July 25 - 1952 November 15
Biography
William Edwards Isaac Peters was born on July 25, 1857 in Somerville, Ohio (Butler County) to Samuel A. and Angeline Edwards Peters. Peters graduated from the Alfred Holbrook National Normal School in Lebanon, Ohio in 1878 with certificates in Land Surveying, Civil Engineering, and Bookkeeping. After he graduated he taught for a few years in Shelby County, Ohio.
Peters was a man of many interests. Following teaching, in 1880, he became the clerk and the census enumerator for Loramie Township, Shelby County. Peters also ran the levels of a proposed railroad, but never built, from Sidney, Ohio to Fort Wayne, Indiana (a total of 80 miles) in 1881. He then became the Division Engineer from the 14 mile section of the New York Central Railroad running from Glouster to Armitage Crossing in Athens County. In the fall of 1882, Peters located in Nelsonville, Ohio and worked as a civil engineer designing coal tipples for coal mines and in 1887 he designed the first hard pressed sewer pipe factory with downdraft vitrified ovens in Athens County.
Among other recognitions, in 1881 Peters received a letter of recommendation from William Harry (ex-chief engineer of the Ohio Southern Railroad) for engineering in Columbus, Ohio. Peters was elected Athens County Surveyor in 1887 and in 1891 he was elected the first President of the Ohio Surveyors Association. Also in 1891, Peters was admitted to practice law by the Ohio Bar Association, specializing in corporate law and abstracting titles.
Peters was also a proficient author. He appears to have been interested in a variety of subjects pertaining to history. A few of his writings include: An Abbreviated History of the Legal Title of the Ohio Company to Lands in Southeastern Ohio (1906), The Legal History of the Ohio University (1910), Athens County,Ohio (1947), Ohio Lands (1917). Perhaps the most widely used manuscript materials Peters compiled are his Range Books. Peters visited and indexed 254 cemeteries and other historical places of interest in Athens County. The indexes list 9519 burials and contain 1582 photographs. These 26 volumes have helped hundreds of genealogical researchers locate the cemetery in which their ancestors are buried.
On October 3, 1883, Peters married Mame Mary Coots of Chauncey. She was the daughter of Daniel and Frances Rowena (Nye) Coots. Their home was on West Union Street in Athens, Ohio for over fifty years. Peters died on November 15, 1952 at the Hillcrest Nursing Home in Athens, Ohio. His wife, Mary, died October 30, 1956.
Places
- Somerville (Ohio) (Place of Birth)
- Athens (Ohio) (Place of Death)
