Gunnison County CO Archives Biographies.....Wilson, Charles A. February 25, 1844 - ?
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File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Judy Crook jlcrook@rof.net March 24, 2006, 6:10 pm

Author: Progressive Men of Western Colorado

     Charles A. Wilson, of Gunnison county, a prosperous and progressive

ranchman, has had successes and adversities in life, but through them all he has

preserved his equipoise and determination of spirit, and by his admirable

qualities of head and heart he has finally become well and permanently

established in worldly comfort and public esteem.  He was born in Summit county,

Ohio, on February 25, 1844, and is the son of Sullivan S. and Samantha (Clark)

Wilson, the father a native of Vermont and the latter of Massachusetts.  Both

accompanied their parents to Ohio when young, and in that state they were reared

and married.  The father was a prosperous farmer and a man of prominence in his

county, serving as its treasurer for a number of years.  He died in Michigan in

1892, aged eighty-one years.  The mother died in Ohio in 1876.  Mr. Wilson’s

paternal grandfather, Jonathan Wilson, was a soldier in the war of 1812.  His

grandson grew to manhood in his native county, being reared on a farm and

educated at the district schools and at a good academy located at Tallmadge.  He

remained at home until 1862 when he enlisted in Company C, One Hundred and

Fifteenth Ohio Infantry, in defense of the Union during the Civil war, but after

less than a year of service he was discharged on account of severe illness

contracted in the line of duty.  In 1871 he moved to Kansas and, locating in

Woodson county, took up one hundred and sixty acres of land and bought one

hundred and sixty more.  There for more than twenty years he was actively

engaged in the live-stock business, acquiring a competency which he afterward

lost through drought and low prices.  Then borrowing money for the purpose, he

came to Colorado in 1892, and soon after his arrival bought on time the ranch

which is now his home and is located six miles northeast of Gunnison on the

Gunnison river.  It comprises one hundred and seventy acres of land, practically

all under irrigation, and yields excellent crops of hay and grain.  When he

bought the place much of it was covered with timber, but he has it nearly all

cleared now.  In addition to his ranching operations Mr. Wilson conducts a

flourishing live-stock industry here, and through hard work, strict economy and

close and careful attention to every detail of his work he has prospered, and is

now one of the substantial citizens of the county.  Politically he is

independent and fraternally has belonged to the Masonic order since 1876.  On

November 11, 1868, he was married to Miss Sarah Wooldridge, a native of England

who came to the United States with her parents when she was five years old.  She

died in Kansas on May 11, 1886, leaving nine children, all still living, Laura

A., Delberta, S. Albert, Orlena, Samantha, Amy, Joel W., Kate and Fred.  On June

22, 1890, their father married a second wife, Mrs. Elizabeth (Klinkinbeard)

Alvy, a native of Iowa.  They have two children, their daughters Mabel and Cecil.  

Additional Comments:
From Progressive Men of Western Colorado.  Chicago:  A.W. Bowen & Co., 1905

File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/co/gunnison/bios/wilson401gbs.txt

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