Columbia County PA Archives Biographies.....BLACK, William W. 1845 - living in 1899
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  Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com July 1, 2005, 4:13 pm
  
  Author: Biographical Publishing Co.
  
  WILLIAM W. BLACK, the popular and efficient sheriff of Columbia County, resides
  in the county jail at Bloomsburg, which is one of the finest and best equipped
  in the state. He is a son of John and Ann (Lemons) Black, and was born in Eyers
  Grove, Columbia County, November 19, 1845.
  
    Jeremiah Black, grandfather of our subject, who was born in Londonderry,
  Ireland, and came to America about the year 1800, first located in Lewisburg,
  Northumberland County, and later moved to Columbia County. He was naturally a
  mechanic and followed the trade of a miller and millwright. In Northumberland
  County he operated a large flour mill until 1822, the time of his removal to
  Columbia County, and the remainder of his life was spent in operating a mill
  owned by James Heberman. He was drowned in attempting to ford a stream below the
  mills on December 7, 1827. His wife survived him many years, dying January 27,
  1865. Their union was blessed by the birth of the following children: James, who
  was born in 1806, was a miller and inventor by trade and died in Philadelphia at
  the age of eighty years; John, the father of our subject; Mary, who married
  Theodore Pinkerton, a resident of Indiana; Jeremiah, who died at an early age;
  William, a retired jeweler of Tioga County; Caroline, deceased, who married a
  Mr. Pearsall, an actor; Lovina, who died at an early age; and Horatio Nelson,
  who, like his father, is of a mechanical turn of mind, and resides in Philadelphia.
  
    John Black, the father of our subject, was born October 26, 1809, and in due
  time learned the trade of a miller with his father and after the latter's death
  assisted in supporting the family and rearing his younger brothers and sisters.
  He was first employed in Hoffman's mill near Light Street, Pa., and later at
  Bowman's and other mills in that locality. He was finally obliged to give up his
  trade on account of failing health and for some time he was engaged in burr
  dressing, after which he purchased a tavern at Rohrsburg, which he conducted in
  connection with a general merchandise store. He built a new hotel which is still
  standing and is known as the Rohrsburg House. His son, Perry D., succeeded him
  as proprietor of the store, but Mr. Black assisted him until 1898, when he
  removed to Bloomsburg, where he has since lived in retirement at the home of our
  subject. He is enjoying excellent health for one of his years, being now passed
  eighty-nine years of age, and has a large number of friends throughout the
  county who wish him many more years of health and happiness. Mr. Black was
  united in marriage to Ann Lemon, a daughter of Jonathan Lemon, January 31, 1833,
  and they reared seven children, as follows: Lemon J., who is a farmer near
  Rohrsburg; Isaac F., a retired citizen of Morris, Tioga County, Pa., where he
  was formerly a very popular hotelkeeper; Perry D., a merchant of Rohrsburg; Mary
  C., deceased; Alfred B., who died in 1866 from diseases contracted in the War of
  the Rebellion; William W., the subject of this personal history; and Elizabeth,
  who married J. W. Fortner of Centralia, Pa.
  
    William W. Black was reared in his native township where he attended the
  common schools. He then engaged in huckstering which business he continued until
  he purchased his father's hotel, which he managed for over fifteen years with
  good results. He then followed farming in connection with the hotel business but
  for the past three years has rented his hotel property. In 1894 he was a
  candidate for the office of sheriff, but was beaten for the nomination. In 1897
  he received the nomination, was elected by a comfortable majority, and has since
  performed the duties of that office in such a manner as to gain the highest
  approval of all concerned. On January 1, 1897, Mr. Black moved into the
  residence part of the jail, which is fitted with all modern improvements and is
  in keeping with the remainder of the building. It is a massive and beautiful
  stone structure of two stories and a basement, and has a large stone tower from
  which an excellent view of the town of Bloomsburg may be had. The interior is
  divided into twenty-eight cells, fourteen on each floor, each of which contains
  the regulation furnishings. The jail is well ventilated and is lighted by three
  sky-lights and glass-closed slots, which are too small to permit a prisoner to
  escape through them. Every possible precaution is taken to prevent the escape of
  any of the prisoners, as the walls are of heavy stone, lined with metal, and the
  doors are also lined with metal. About the building is a stone wall twenty-two
  and a half feet in height with a smooth finish on the inside. Mr. Black
  appointed his son, A. Bruce Black, deputy sheriff, and he has performed his
  duties in a conscientious and straight forword manner. Our subject has also
  served in official capacity as constable and tax collector.
  
    Our subject formed a matrimonial alliance with Rachel A. Unger, a daughter of
  Lafayette Unger of Unityville, and they became the proud parents of two
  children: Ella M., who married John W. Mather, by whom she had two sons, Ray and
  Bruce; and A. Bruce, who attended the high school of York, Pa., and the seminary
  at Williamsport, and is also a graduate of Michael's University of Logansport,
  Ind.,—he took a special course in penmanship in Zanerian Art College at
  Columbus, O., and for a short time was a teacher of penmanship.
  
    In 1864, during the darkest period of the Civil War, Mr. Black enlisted in
  210th Reg., Pa. Vol. Inf., as a private and continued in the service until the
  close of the war. Our subject is well known throughout the district as a man of
  sterling qualities and is respected and esteemed by a large circle of friends.
  
  
  Additional Comments:
  Extracted from:
  
  Book of Biographies of the Seventeenth Congressional District
  Published by 
  Biographical Publishing Company of Chicago, Ill. and Buffalo, NY (1899)
  
  
  
  
  
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