This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list.
Surnames: Kerr, Pigman, Wilson, Ely, Bolton, Carr, Allen,
Classification: Biography
Message Board URL:
http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/rw/Ii.2ADI/646
Message Board Post:
This book has no cover, and no index, I bought it on Ebay, it just has the insides, but it
full of Indiana biographies. I am not researching this family, just thought I would
share. I do not know anymore about these families or these surnames.
Typed by Lora Radiches:
Surnames in this biography are: Kerr, Pigman, Wilson, Ely, Bolton, Carr, Allen,
WILBURN K. Kerr
It would be difficult to find a more satisfying type of good citizen than the Hon.
Wilburn K. Kerr, who for many years has been one of the solid business men of Liberty,
Indiana, kindly and helpful, always willing to assist others. A leading citizen of
Liberty, he exerts a wide influence for good, not only in business affairs, in which he
holds great prominence, but also in public activities. The public schools and the churches
profit by his abilities, and at all times he stands for good government and honesty in
politics. Associated with him in all of his public-spirited endeavors is his beloved wife,
Mrs. Lourena (Pigman) Kerr, who is a member of one of the prominent families of Union
County. Lourena Pigman was born in Harmony Township, Union County, Indiana, a daughter of
Eli and Rebecca (Wilson) Pigman, he born in Union County and she at Lebanon, Ohio. The
paternal grandparents of Mrs. Kerr were Adam and Mary (Ely) Pigman, he born in Virginia
and she in Pennsylvania. !
Adam Pigman came to Union County in 1805, and he conducted the first blacksmith shop of
that vicinity. During the War of 1812 he served as a soldier, and participated in the
battle of Lundys Lane. Later on he entered land in Harrison Township, which subsequently
became Harmony Township, and he also had 820 acres in Fayette County, Indiana. A man of
enterprise, he was back of many projects, and among others owned and operated a grist and
sawmill. His son, Eli Pigman, father of Mrs. Kerr, was a farmer of Harmony Township, an
able man, well-educated, and looked up to by his neighbors. For many years he served as a
justice of the peace, and his advice was sought both officially and otherwise, for his
good judgment and keen sense of justice were recognized. Wilburn K. Kerr, husband of Mrs.
Kerr, was born at Everton, Fayette County, Indiana, in 1856, a son of John and Julia
(Bolton) Kerr, he born in South Carolina and she in Fayette County, Indiana. The paternal
grandfather, Ja!
mes Kerr, was born in Ireland, but came at an early day to Fayette County, Indiana. The
maternal grandparents were James and Jane (Carr) Bolton, he born in London, England, from
whence he came to the United States and first settled in Virginia, but later moved on west
to Union County, Indiana. John Kerr and his wife settled in Union County following their
marriage, and at Everton he conducted a general store and worked at his trade of cabinet
making, and he also made the coffins in which the dead of the community were interred, as
he lived at a time when there was no general manufacture of these last coverings for
humanity. During the war between the states he recruited several companies, but was not
accepted himself for service owing to his being over weight. Growing to manhood at
Everton, Wilburn K. Kerr learned farming while attending school, and later the
cabinetmaking trade with his father. Still later he moved to Connersville, Indiana, and
worked there at his trade fo!
r twelve years, and during that period made warm personal friends. He then came to Liberty
and was connected with a general store handling clothing, shoes, notions and dry goods,
and in 1921 bought a similar store, and has conducted it ever since, building up a very
large and valuable trade. Mr. and Mrs. Kerr have one son, Durbin Ward Kerr, of Columbus,
Ohio, who is in the wholesale lumber business. He married Blanche Allen, and they
have four children, Wilbur, Durbin Ward, Junior, Allen and Corinne. Wilburn K. Kerr is a
member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. He is a Democrat, and served for six years as
trustee of the Liberty School Board. Fraternally he is a Chapter and Council
Mason, and he and his wife belong to the Eastern Star, and he is a member of the local
lodges of the Odd Fellows and Knights of Pythias. The Kerr home on Spring Street is one of
the most desirable ones in town, and the many friends of the family are always made
welcome beneath it!
s hospitable roof.