Will County IL Archives Biographies.....Walker, Rev William Bohler 
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File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by:
Deb Haines ddhaines@gmail.com November 10, 2007, 11:05 am

Author: Genealogical and Biographical Record of Will County

REV. WILLIAM BOHLER WALKER, rector of Christ Episcopal Church of Joliet, was 
born in Atlanta, Ga., February 3, 1852, a son of Matthew Talbot and Maria 
(Bohler) Walker, natives of Augusta, Ga. His paternal grandfather, George 
Minis Walker, was born in the Rappahannock district, Va., and married Mary 
Tyler Walker, a relative of George Walton, who was a signer of the declaration 
of independence. Removing to Georgia he followed the profession of a lawyer, 
and attained considerable prominence in that state. Matthew Talbot Walker, who 
was a druggist in Georgia, afterward entered the railroad service, and for 
years before his death was connected with the Western Atlantic (now the 
Georgia, Louisville & Nashville) road. During the Civil war he was connected 
with the government service. At the time Atlanta was besieged by the northern 
troops he and his family were in such danger that they were forced to flee 
from the city. On their return they found their residence destroyed and their 
property laid waste, and they were obliged to live in a stable until a house 
could be built. He continued to make Atlanta his home until his death, in 
1896. His wife, who was a daughter of William Bohler, of Georgia, is still 
living in Atlanta. Of their six children who attained years of maturity all 
but one still survive, William Bohler being the eldest of the family. The 
daughter, Mrs. Henry Z. Harris, resides hi Atlanta. Three sons are connected 
with the railroad service, George and Matthew Talbot being employes of the 
Georgia, Louisville & Nashville Railroad at Atlanta, while Henry is employed 
with the road in Nashville. The early years in the life of William Bohler 
Walker were filled with excitement. The country was plunged in a bitter civil 
strife, and the Walker family lived in one of the Confederate strongholds, 
against which the fire of federal guns was directed. He assisted in making 
ammunition for the confederate army, but was, of course, too young to enter 
the service. In the spring of 1865, at the close of the war, the family 
returned to Atlanta, from which they had been refugees. He prepared for 
college in Capt. William Bray's school in that city. In 1869 he entered the 
sophomore class, University of Georgia, from which he graduated in 1872 with 
the degree of A. B. Immediately afterward he began to read law with Alexander 
H. Stephens, a man of national distinction, with whom he made his home at 
Crawfordsville until Mr. Stephens re-entered public life. He was admitted to 
the bar in Atlanta in 1874, but never practiced the profession. It was his 
mother's hope that Mr. Walker might enter the ministry. This plan he had at 
first opposed, preferring the law, but afterward he began to be favorably 
drawn toward the ministerial profession, for which, indeed, he seemed to 
possess marked qualifications. Impelled by the persuasions of friends and 
relatives, and also by his own thoughtful, matured judgment, he decided to 
turn his attention from the law to the ministry. January 1, 1875, he 
matriculated in Berkeley Divinity School, at Middletown, Conn., from which he 
graduated in 1877. He was ordained by Bishop John Williams, of Connecticut, in 
Holy Trinity Church, Middletown, in 1877. Returning to Georgia, he became 
rector of the Church of the Atonement in Augusta, where he remained for nine 
years. Meantime he was married in Connecticut, February 6, 1878, to Miss 
Bessie Beecher Shew, daughter of Dr. Joel Shew, a successful physician, and 
step-daughter of Dr. Winthrop B. Hallock, of Connecticut. The four children 
born of their union are Winthrop Hallock, Edwin Weed, William Bohler, Jr., and 
Beverly. The climate of the south not agreeing with Mr. Walker, in 1884 he 
resigned his pastorate in Augusta and returned to Connecticut, where for three 
years he was rector of Christ Church in Stratford. He then accepted the 
rectorship of St. John's Church, in Dubuque, Iowa, where he remained for four 
years. In February, 1893, he came to Joliet as rector of Christ Church, and 
has since attained prominence as one of the scholarly ministers of the city. 
The church of which he is rector was organized thirty or more years ago, and 
contains in its membership many of the leading citizens of Joliet. Under the 
leadership of Mr. Walker every department of the work is in a prosperous 
condition, and the church attracts not only people well known in the city, but 
many visitors and strangers as well. A mind so active as that of Mr. Walker 
cannot be confined within the bounds of strictly theological work or the 
usually-accepted duties of a rector; for he is a citizen, public-spirited and 
progressive, and nothing that is of importance to the body politic is 
uninteresting to him. Every movement for the advancement of Joliet finds in 
him a champion. Every work originated in behalf of the people enlists his 
sympathy and endorsement. His interest in the city's welfare is of that stable 
character which adheres with steadfast support to principles of undoubted 
value. While he is a believer in the platform as adopted by the gold wing of 
the Democratic party, he recognizes the good in all parties, and is himself an 
enthusiastic supporter of the present (McKinley) administration in the many 
problems brought before it for solution. His name has been brought into 
especial prominence through his single-handed fight with the railroad 
interests. In an article he made the statement that the city should elect for 
its officials men who would not be subsidized by railroad and street-car 
lines. On account of this statement the railroad took away his clergyman's 
permit entitling him to half fare. He fought the matter in the courts, arguing 
his own case, and defeated them so completely that they sent him a permit, 
with the request that he use it. However, he returned it by the next mail, 
stating that he would accept no favors from them, as he had not cared for the 
permit, but was opposing boldly corporations that endeavored to subsidize the 
representatives of the people. The Interstate Commerce Commission decided in 
his favor, establishing the fact that the half-rate was his legal right, and 
not a courtesy. The case,which was carried on for almost two years, attracted 
a great deal of attention and started a reform movement along the line of 
passes.

Additional Comments:
Genealogical and Biographical Record of Will County Illinois Containing 
Biographies of Well Known Citizens of the Past and Present, Biographical 
Publishing Company, Chicago, 1900

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