William B. Mills was born in Madison, Indiana or Charleston Indiana, as his family migrated down the Ohio River. His family next moved from Charleston to Salem, Indiana, sometime between 1820 and 1826. In 1833, his family moved to Greencastle, Putnam County, Indiana. There he learned how to be a tailor from his brother-in-law Joel R. M. Allen. He married Melvina A. (last name unknown) in about 1840. They had two daughters, Sarah and Josephine, in Greencastle. In 1845 they moved to Charleston, Coles County, Illinois where his brothers John and Robert and his mother and father had previously moved. He is found on the 1850 census in Charleston, Illinois. He had two more daughters, Alice and Agnes, both born in Illinois. Presumably, his first wife Melvina died, because he married a second time in 1857 to Abbie House in Urbana, Illinois. It appears 3 of his daughters (Sarah, Josephine, and Alice) had died as well as his wife, because they do not appear on the 1860 census, and no marriage record can be found for them. By 1860, John had moved his family to Chicago, where he remained.

Abigail was previously married to Ezra W. Fletcher, and appears to have been widowed. She brought 3 children with her from that marriage whom William appears to have adopted (Ida Fletcher, Charles Mills, and Joseph Mills). John and Abigail had two children-- Georgianna, who died as an infant, and William B, who died at the age of 19.

William worked, in order, as a tailor, clerk, salesman, and finally, a cigar salesman according to the 1850-1880 censuses. He was a member of the Freemasons, and knew how to play the clarinet. In 1900, he was a patient at the Chicago Home for Incurables, where he passed away in August of that year.

Bio Contributor: Reed Miller (49801119)