OVERVIEW[]
William Barlow Willis was born on Georges Fork, near Clintwood, Dickinson Co, Virginia. He and his brother London, left Dickenson Co, VA during the Alaskan Goldrush. Though he reached the goldfields in 1906, and he apparently filed a claim, he and London soon headed back to the lower fourty-eight. They found work in a logging camp in southwestern Washington. Here William Barlow met and married Effie Taylor. Effie had been born in Nebraska, and came wesst as a young girl with her family, settleing in Oregon. She and her sister were working as camp cooks in the same logging camp that William was working in. William and Effie married about 1910, and made their home on a "stump farm" in Lebam, Washington. Here they raised four boys and one girl. William continued to work in the timber camps through the 20's, but by 1930 was listing his occupation as a "farmer". During prohibition he practiced the traditional mountain craft of his family, making moonshine whiskey. After prohibition he operated a tavern in the nearby town of Raymond. William Barlow died in 1938 of a heart condition, and is buried in Lebam Washington. Effie continued on raising the children by herself on the stump farm. With the chilren grown she sold the farm and moved to a home in the nearby town or Raymond, living there until elderly. She died of old age in a nursing home in Seattle, Washington, in 1983. Both William Barlow and Effie are buried in the family cemetery in Lebam.
Location of Raymond, Pacific Co, Washington
Location of Lebam, Pacific Co, Washington
Location of Clintwood, Dickenson Co, Virginia
Vita[]
| Entry | Source/Basis/Commentary | |
| DOB: | 23 December 1882 | |
| POB: | Georges Fork, Dickenson Co, VA | |
| DOD: | 3 May 1938 | William Barlow died while away from home on business. His sons, Cecil and Thurston, on learning of his death, went to Portland to take him home. In order to get enough money to make the trip they had to break open the Juke Box in the Bar that William Barlow owned in Raymond, WA. |
| POD: | Portland, OR | |
| Burial: | Lebam, Lewis Co, WA. | |
| Spouse: | Effie Taylor (1889-1983) | |
| DOM: | ||
| POM: | ||
| Father: | James C. Willis | |
| Mother: | Rebecca E. Kilgore |
Ancestry[]
| Abner Willis | Eve Sifers | Isaac Anderson (1790-1861) | Nancy James (1796-1869) | Rev. Charles Kilgore | Mary Gray | George W. Bond | Hannah |
| Amos Willis (1808-1882) | Winnie Anderson 1823-?) | Isaac Kilgore (1829-?) | Nancy Bond (1828-?) | ||||
| James C Willis (1854-1932) | Rebecca E. Kilgore (1853-?) | ||||||
| William Barlow Willis (1882-1938) | |||||||
Child List[]
| Name | DOB | POB | DOD | POD | DOM | POM | Spouse | Notes |
| Cecil Wayne Willis (1911-1981) | 9 APril 1911 | Lebam, Pacific Co, WA | 21 August 1981 | Edmonds, WA | ||||
| Thurston Leroy | 20 Jul 1913 | Lebam, Pacific Co, WA | 30 December 1991 | Portsmouth, VA | 1943 | Baltimore, MD | Evelyn Francis Morrow (1913-2005) | |
| Ray Sylvester Willis (1921-?) | 5 Jul 1921 | Lebam, Pacific Co, WA | Lottie | His given name was simply Ray, not Raymond, per Effie Willis to WMW | ||||
| Living | ||||||||
| William Glenn Willis | 18 May 1929 | Lebam, Pacific Co, WA | Eileen |
William G., Ray Sylvester, Thurston Leroy, and Cecil Willis, about 1950 in Raymond, Washington. This photograph was taken in the alley behind Gramma Effie's house on Cedar Street. The shed in the background was used for storing wood; The house behind it may be Gramma Effie's place
.