|
Idaho
County
Free Press
November 25, 1915
W.A.
HALL CALLED BY THE REAPER DEATH
DIED LAST THURSDAY EVENING AT
8 O’CLOCK
AFTER SEVERAL WEEKS ILLNESS
BORN IN
ENGLAND
, RAISED IN
WISCONSIN
REMOVED TO
MONTANA
AND LATER TO
IDAHO
WHERE HE DIED.
Last
Thursday evening at 8 o’clock W.A. Hall, a respected citizen of Grangeville
and a pioneer of Idaho County passed into the silent realm of death and thus the
ranks of the old time residents, the pioneers, are thinner by one.
Not long ago, on the occasion of the Fourth of July celebration last
summer, on old pioneers’ day, Mr. Hall stood before the audience and told the
story of the olden days, the younger days of the county, of this state and the
nation. Another must now detail
these events of the past.
The
deceased followed a period of several weeks’ illness and Mr. Hall was confined
to his bed during that time. His
malady, which ended in death, was leakage of the heart and he endured great pain
during the time he was ill. From the
time he took to his bed there was no hope expressed for his recovery and he
gradually became weaker until the end came in death.
The funeral services were conducted from the old Methodist church where
Reverend Hall as a minister preached the gospel.
The funeral sermon was preached by Edward Robert Gornall and the funeral
was in charge of the local Odd Fellow lodge of which he was a member.
He was 68 years 9 months and 3 days old.
No
man was of wider or more extensive acquainted with a larger group of friends
than W.A. Hall. He preached here in
the early days, taught in the academy, and after he was admitted to the bar,
practiced law, being an honorable and respected practitioner.
His life has been one of activity and service without a moment of
idleness.
He
has been an unbuilder and a constructionist.
That his life has been fruitful may be seen in the telling.
The following is a brief statement contributed by a friend:
William
A. Hall was of English parentage, born near London, England Feb. 15, 1847, being
the son of William and Lucy Hall. His
father was born in 1813 and in 1857 came to
Wisconsin
where he died.
The son grew to manhood in that state and the widow mother married Wm. H.
Ambler, who later became a soldier in the Union army during the civil war, and
then threw the burden of the support of the mother upon Mr. Hall, and prevented
him from attending school. Late
however, he studied under private tutors and educated himself.
During this time he was reading law.
In 1866, he went to
Montana
where he farmed, taught, and later
became an ordained preacher of the Methodist church.
Later he removed to
Salmon City
,
Idaho
, where he preached.
In the fall of 1872 he went to
Michigan
and attended school for a time,
teaching two years. In 1874 he
returned to
Idaho
and later took charge of the Bitter
Root circuit in
Montana
.
In 1879 he came to Grangeville and took charge of the
Columbia River
Conference
Academy
where he taught for eight years.
He continued to study law during these years under Judge Norman Buck.
He was admitted to the bar in
Idaho
in 1884, commencing practice in
Idaho
County
being one of the oldest
practicioners in the county.
On
July 18, 1876
, Mr. Hall was married to Miss Susan
M. Hayes, daughter of William Hayes, a native of
Bath
,
Maine
and of Scotch extinction.
Mr. Hall has one brother, John S. and a sister, Jane Margetts, and a
half-brother Robert H. Ambler who resides in Grangeville.
He leaves surviving him a widow and a daughter, Mrs. D.H. Sasenbery.
He was a member of the I.O.O.F. order, encampment, and Rebekahs.
He was also a member of the Masonic order, affiliating with the Clarkston
lodge. He was formerly a law partner
of Judge James F. Ailshie and during his residence here served as county
superintendent and probate judge. He
served in the Indian war of 1877, being orderly sergeant of a company in
Montana
.
By examination in 1902 he received an honorary diploma from an eastern
college with the degree of Doctor of Law.
|