Adair, William W; 1905 Bio, Routt County, Colorado http://files.usgwarchives.net/co/routt/bios/adairww.txt --------------------------------------- Donated April 2001 Transcribed by Judy Crook from the book: Progressive Men of Western Colorado Published 1905, A.W. Bowen & Co., Chicago, Ill. --------------------------------------- William W. Adair William W. Adair, of Routt county, whose career covers several lines of active and productive usefulness, has been successful beyond many men who have had greater opportunities because his natural qualifications for business and thrift have made him so. He is a native of McMinn county, Tennessee, born on December 19, 1856, and the brother of Samuel Adair, of the same county, a sketch of whom, containing the family history, is to be seen elsewhere in this work. He received an elementary education in the public schools, remaining at home with his parents until he reached the age of seventeen, when he took up the work of making his own way in the world, learning his trade as a sawyer and working at it in his native state until 1878. He was next with the Wason Car Works at Chattanooga for a year, then taught school one term. In 1881 he came to Colorado and, selecting Routt county as his place of abode and future efforts, located through homestead and pre-emption claims a ranch of three hundred and twenty acres ten miles west of Hayden. This he improved and on it conducted ranching and stock industries until 1888, when he sold it and moved to Steamboat Springs, where he engaged in merchandising until 1901. He then sold his business to A. and G. Whithers and purchased the ranch he now owns, which comprises four hundred acres of arable land, all of which he has under cultivation and fruitful with good annual crops of hay, grain, hardy vegetables and small fruits; and there also he carries on a large and profitable cattle business, which is his main reliance from the ranch. The location is five miles south of Steamboat Springs, and the land is of excellent quality and well supplied with water. Mr. Adair has also made good improvements in the way of many and ornate buildings, and the other necessary equipments of ranch work in the best style. He has proven himself one of the progressive and far-seeing ranch and cattle men of the county, and in the matter of public progress and development one of its most energetic, broad-minded and patriotic citizens. He takes an active interest in the fraternal life of his community as a Woodman of the World and in political affairs as a stanch and zealous Democrat. On January 27, 1886, he was united in marriage with Miss Sallie C. Harris, a native of Monroe county, Tennessee, and a sister of John L. Harris, a memoir of whom appears on another page of this work. Although amid scenes, associations, social customs and methods of farming far different from those of his youth, Mr. Adair has shown ability to adapt himself thoroughly to his present conditions and surroundings, demonstrating the great adaptability of the American mind, and the qualities of gentility and social courtesy of his own particular section, which make the Southern gentleman at home everywhere and win him popularity and high regard from all classes of people. =================================================== Contributed for use by the USGenWeb Archive Project (http://www.usgenweb.org) and by the COGenWeb Archive Project USGENWEB NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access.