Centralia Journal, Friday, Nov. 5, 1937, page 1:
Dr. W.S. Shoemaker Dead
Centralia and this community and the county lost one of its prominent and native men last Sunday when Dr. Wayland S. Shoemaker passed away at his home here in Centralia. He was a dentist, one of the directors and a vice president of the First National Bank and one of the large land owners of this and Marshall county.

Dr. Shoemaker was born in Seneca, February 23, 1876, and was 61 years of age on that date last February. Seneca, Vermillion and Centralia have been his home all his life. He was well known in this community and in the adjoining county of Marshall on the west, and will be greatly missed by his many friends and business associates, his family, his aged mother, Mrs. P.K. Shoemaker, and his brothers and one sister, and many other relatives.

Dr. Shoemaker was married in Centralia on June 1, 1902, to Miss Florence Domer in the Methodist church by the Rev. George W. Browning who was then pastor of the church. To them were born eight daughters, Violet Thompson, Chicago, Illinois; Twila, a teacher in the Lawrence high school, Mary who died in 1927, Jeannie who passed away in 1932, Hazel, Ruth who teaches in the Fellsburg high school, Wava Jane Allen of Corning, Kansas, and Jonny Dale. Of the six surviving daughters, all are of the home but the two who are married. There is one grandchild, Joy Dianne, baby daughter of Mrs. Wava Jane Allen. The sister is Mrs. Darwin McLaughlin, who lives southwest of Centralia, and the two brothers Ivan of Calif., and Theodore of San Gabriel, Calif.

His grandfather on his mother's side was a pioneer settler in this community, coming here in 1859 and locating on land four miles north of Centralia, later living on a farm northwest of here. Those grandparents were fine people and did their part well in the pioneer days. His mother and father were both well educated people and his father was a minister, taught school, and was county superintendent for a term from 1871 to 1873. The father, Rev. P.K. Shoemaker came here from Pennsylvania in 1866, and with the exception of the time he was county superintendent and for a short time that he lived in Vermillion, he lived in this community. Dr. Shoemaker's mother who is 87 years old, lives here in Centralia just across the street from her son's home and she is beloved by many.

Dr. Shoemaker attended school from his first day of school until his graduation in the Centralia high school in 1894. He then attended the State University for two years and then decided to become a dentist and graduated from the Western Dental college at Kansas City, Mo., in 1901. He came to the home town after his graduation and opened his dental office and worked at his profession as a dentist until ill health came upon him. His wife and all of their daughters are graduates of the Centralia high school but Jonny Dale, and she will when graduation time comes next month. The daughters Violet, Twila, Jeannie, Hazel and Ruth are college graduates. Mary and Wava Jane each had two years of college.

Dr. Shoemaker was a very busy man looking after his many interests, and was a member of the school board for 12 years, a director of the First National Bank, and had served on the city council.

Dr. Shoemaker was a kindly man and loved children and they all knew and enjoyed meeting him. He continued with all of his many activities until his health became impaired. Up until a few weeks before his death he was interested in all that was going on although he could not get out and be among the people.

The funeral was held at his home Tuesday afternoon and people from far and near came to pay their last respects. All of the officials of the bank were there in a body. Rev. L.C. Campbell of Phillipsburg, a former minister of the Methodist church, was called to give the funeral sermon, and Rev. N.J. Adams, the present Methodist minister had his part in the service. The pallbearers were Ernest Swan, S.B. Moody, Oscar Darr, C.E. Drumm, D. Lee Jessee and Prof. W.H. Snavely. The floral offerings were many and beautiful. Interment was in the Centralia cemetery.