W. O. Stoddard Biography

	This biography is from "Memorial and biographical record; an illustrated
	compendium of biography, containing a compendium of local biography,
	including biographical sketches of prominent old settlers and 
	representative citizens of South Dakota..." Published by G. A. 
	Ogle & Co., Chicago, 1898. Pages 462

	Scan, OCR and editing by Joy Fisher, jfisher@sdgenweb.com, 1999.

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W. O. STODDARD. Volga township is not without its share of well-regulated farms, 
the income from which forms so large a part of the wealth of Brookings county.  
One of these carefully cultivated tracts of land belongs to the gentleman whose 
name introduces these paragraphs. It is located in the southwest quarter of 
section 4, Volga township, and on it buildings of substantial construction and 
good design have been erected.

Mr. Stoddard was born in Lowell, Massachusetts, January 23, 1855, and moved with 
his parents, when but five years of age, to Dodge county, Minn.  He remained 
there but a short time when the family moved to Winona county, Minnesota, where 
our subject spent the remainder of his boyhood, attending the district school, 
and later worked at the carpenter's trade.  In 1879, he went to Dakota and 
located his claim and returned to Minnesota to spend the winter.  In the spring 
of 1880 he again set out for Dakota, this time accompanied by his father, and 
settled in his new home, and in the fall of the same year they were joined by 
the wife and mother. The father is a native of Massachusetts, born November 19, 
1820, and now owns a farm of eighty acres adjoining the home of our subject.  
His mother, who bore the maiden name of Miss Mary Jarvis Little, was born in 
Maine, in February, 1827, and died in Volga township, October 19, 1894.

July 20, 1886, Mr. Stoddard was united in marriage to Miss Esther W. McCreery, 
who was born at Homesdale, Pennsylvania~ October 27, i866, the daughter of 
Charles W. and Harriet McCreery.  Mr. McCreery was born at Sullivan, New York, 
April 23, 1840, served in the war of the Rebellion, and died at Volga, South 
Dakota, November 1, 1893.  Mrs. McCreery was born at Homesdale, Pennsylvania, 
June 28, 1848.

To our subject and Mrs. Stoddard have been born three children, upon whom they 
have bestowed the following names: Otis Russell, Charles William and Cora.  Mr. 
and Mrs. Stoddard are devout members of the United Christian church, and in the 
political field Mr. Stoddard gives his influence in support of the Populist 
party.