Watson - William P. - Montgomery InGenWeb Project

An estimable citizen and one of the pioneers of our city has been lost in the death of W. P. Watson. Mr. Watson was attacked suddenly with erysipelas on Thursday and died early on Sunday morning. He was born in Butler County, Ohio, on the 4th of December, 1804, and therefore had almost completed his three score and ten years. He came to Crawfordsville in the spring of 1836, and continued to reside here until the day of his death. He kept a store for a few years after his arrival, and then served a number of years as postmaster. When he retired from the post office he started a tan yard near his residence by Sperry’s Mill, but soon afterward left it and invested in a saddlery and harness shop, in which business he continued until his death. Although raised by Presbyterian parents, he became a member of the Universalist Church when a comparatively young man, and lived in that faith the balance of his life. He was kind hearted and unostentatious in his life and universally respected as a neighbor and citizen. His remains were followed to the Masonic Cemetery on Monday afternoon by a large concourse of relatives and friends. The burial services were conducted by the Masons, of which order he had been an honored member. -s