Where William Bostwick was born and who his parents were are as yet unknown to this author or anyone in the family who have made inquiries by letter, phone, or in person. Both his marriage and death certificates state his birth date as 28 Feb. 1870. According to his death certificate, he was born in Ohio. According to his marriage certificate, he was born in "Hayland," Ohio. No Ohio map found so far shows "Hayland" on it. Perhaps the name of the town may have changed. One theory is that William may have actually written the county down. Although there is no Hayland County, there is a Highland County, Ohio. However, the after looking at the birth records for Highland and the surrounding counties, none of the records state a male being born on 28 Feb. 1870. Another theory was that instead of "Hayland" the town's name was "Wayland". There is a Wayland in Portage County, Ohio. After researching the Portage County and surrounding counties' birth records, none of them recorded a male born on 28 Feb. 1870. The marriage certificate copy is very clear,but with many written documents, the writing is not always easy to decipher.
Another mystery recently solved is what his actual middle name was. Sources such as his marriage certificate, administration dockets and tax records, and the US Census' for 1910 and 1920 give him the middle initial "S.". William's death certificate states that his middle initial was "A". One source gives him the middle name of "Abram". Two descendants of his daughter Lillie May and a descendant of his daughter Marjorie Ellen give his middle name as "Westley". Normally, the vital records, i.e., William's marriage and death certificates, would be the primary source of information, giving him the middle initial "S" or "A". Recently new evidence has surfaced, which finally settles the matter. Lillie May Bostwick's daughter, Thelma has provided copies of her mother's birth and death certificates. The birth certificate states her father as William W. Bostwick, and her death certificate states his name as William Westley Bostwick. Furthermore, Lillie May's obituary states that she was "a daughter of the late William Westley Bostwick...". Thus, the name of our ancestor is William Westley Bostwick.
William Bostwick married Mary Elizabeth Harriman at Muses Bottom in Jackson County, West Virginia on May 29, 1890. Their first of eight known children, Hazel, was born in Meigs County, Ohio near Pomeroy. Apparently the family moved quite often over the years according to the birth places of the children. Lillie, the next child, was born at Ripley in Jackson County, West Virginia. William's, the third child, birth place is still unknown. The fourth child, Clarence, was born in Belpre Township, Washington County, Ohio. The fifth child, Thomas, was born in 1902 in Parkersburg, Wood County, West Virginia, The sixth child, who died at birth in 1905, was a son (no name given) who was born in East Liverpool, Columbiana County, Ohio. The 1910 census lists a seventh child, Lorena, as having been one year old at the time. However, the 1920 census does not list her indicating that she may have died at a young age. Her likely birth place was East Liverpool, Ohio since the family was there at least from 1905 on. The youngest child, Marjorie Ellen, was born about 1912, also in East Liverpool.
The family tended to move along either side of the Ohio River between Ohio and West Virginia. According to William's death certificate, his occupation was a stationary engineer for an ice plant in East Liverpool. William's occupation required that he have a fairly good education. Nothing has yet surfaced concerning his life prior to his marriage.
Some pictures of William, recently found, show him as a man of fairly large stature and of average height. One picture showing him as a young man, perhaps near the time of his marriage, reveals his physical characteristics well. He strikes a handsome figure having a broad mustache and wearing a bowler style hat and vested suit and tie. Those that recall him or have talked to people who knew him, agree that he could be temperamental at times and at others display a sense of humor. Those who knew him state that he was a hard working individual and apparently did what was necessary to support his family, including moving to different locales. He most likely had a good education, which accounted for his being a stationary engineer.
Descriptions of the circumstances surrounding William's death vary. However, the death certificate records the cause of his death as being "Death by Shooting". This does not state whether it was accidental or by suicide. There is strong evidence that William did not plan to commit suicide, but rather he shot himself out of grief and shock. Apparently his wife, Mary and he had gotten into a violent argument during which time he pushed her, causing her to fall down and hit her head against the stove knocking her unconscious. Mary was of a frail-built stature, and, as the story goes, William mistakenly thought that the blow had killed her. He, therefore, took a gun and went to the next room and took his life. Had he known that he had not killed his wife, it was highly unlikely that he would have shot himself. At the time of his death, William had a successful career, he owned his own property, he had no large debts, and he had a good family and was close to his grandchildren as well. This would hardly be a scenario for someone to commit suicide, unless it would be from a rash action such as describe above. It is also quite understandable why hardly anyone would talk about such a death for a good many years.
Whatever the circumstances, William's death was tragic. He was only 52 years of age at the time. His wife was 48. Marjorie Ellen, their daughter, was only 9 years old. William's daughter, Hazel was executor for his will and property. William's burial took place in Riverview Cemetery in East Liverpool. However, the grave once marked is no longer so. Therefore, the exact location of his grave site is being sought for. What may have happened is for whatever reason when the grave marker disappeared, another person later on was buried at or near the same location. William's grandaughter, Thelma (Nicholson) Hughes, has been investigating this matter.
Mary Elizabeth Harriman was born in West Virginia on15 May1875. She was the daughter of Aurelius Harriman and Evelyn Lewis. Aurelius Harriman was born about 1842 in Jackson County, Ohio and died in Marietta, Ohio on 17 Mar 1932. He is buried at Oak Grove Cemetery in Marietta. There is no further information about Evelyn Lewis. However, Aurelius did have a second marriage to Mildred Wise. Mary's grandfather was Daniel Harriman.
Her educational background and childhood home(s) are unknown. She had two brothers, Rome Edward who was born 22 May 1890 in West Virginia and Arthur. Rome lived in Marietta, Ohio with his wife Catherine (Kate). Nothing more has been found concerning Arthur.
William Bostwick married Mary Elizabeth Harriman at Muses Bottom in Jackson County, West Virginia on May 29, 1890. Their first of eight known children, Hazel, was born in Meigs County, Ohio near Pomeroy. Apparently the family moved quite often over the years according to the birth places of the children. Lillie, the next child, was born at Ripley in Jackson County, West Virginia. William's, the third child, birth place is still unknown. The fourth child, Clarence, was born in Belpre Township, Washington County, Ohio. The fifth child, Thomas, was born in 1902 in Parkersburg, Wood County, West Virginia. The sixth child, who died at birth in 1905, was a son (no name given) who was born in East Liverpool, Columbiana County, Ohio. The seventh child, Lorena, is listed in the 1910 census as having been one year old at the time. In the 1920 census her name is not listed indicating that she may have died at a young age. Her likely birth place was East Liverpool, Ohio since the family was there at least from 1905 on. The youngest child, Marjorie Ellen, was born about 1912, also in East Liverpool.
Some pictures of Mary, recently found, show her as a woman of fairly petite stature and of average height. One picture taken probably near the time of her marriage, reveals her physical characteristics well. The picture shows her as having petite and beautiful features and wearing a large plumed hat and ruffled dress. Those that recall her or have talked to people who knew her, agree that she could be temperamental at times and for the most part kept to herself. She was known to be a hard working individual and apparently did what was necessary to raise her family, including moving to different locales when her husband's employment required it.
Following her husband's tragic death, Mary is said to have become very sullen and recluse for the rest of her life. According to some of her grandchildren, she was good to them and enjoyed their company. She lived in her daughter Lillie's home in East Liverpool for a time and then later on at her daughter Hazel's residence in Sebring, Ohio. In the fall of 1929 she became ill with bronchial pneumonia. Her grandson, Thomas Lamp, then only 4 years of age, found her on the morning of 17 October 1929 in her room where she had passed away during the night. She is buried in Spring Grove Cemetery in East Liverpool and a grave marker is at the site. Mary was survived by her father, Aurelius Harriman, her brothers Arthur and Rome, and six of her eight children. She also had several grandchildren at the time of her death.
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