William J. Mounts

Notes:

Ken Harvey wrote the following biography of William Mounts, based on interviews with Grace Ellen Gentry, William's granddaughter, and Lewis Adair Payne, his great grandson, along with other family members. Some minor edits have since been made by Melinda Strong. Additionally, for more information about William J. Mounts and Salinda Galloway's siblings and parents contact Jay Kimmel - plainj@ieee.org

Ken wrote that "William J. Mounts apparently trained as a carpenter and was thought to have attended the University of Virginia in about 1850. Afterwards he was to join the Union cavalry. He quickly became a Captain. Some of his brothers, however, fought on the Confederate side during the Civil War.

William J. Mounts married in about 1854. He later maintained that he was pushed by his parents into what he claimed was an unfortunate relationship with Salinda Galloway, thought to be his step-mother's younger sister. He used to say later that people should not be bred like animals, he apparently considered that this is what had happened to him. When he divorced Salinda after the civil war, his family took Salinda's side-as did most of his own brothers. One of them, George Dobbs Mounts (apparentely a half brother0, however, evidently later maintained contact with him.

The Mount families antagonistic reaction to William J's decision to divorce Salinda was so strong that he claimed that he had to leave his parental home in West Virginia. He took with him daughter Molly, accordingly with her consent, and headed ultimately for Chicago. His training as a carpenter now paid off. He laid a parquet floor in a new saloon there that was being built, for which he was paid $40 a day. This was a small fortune at the time, but carpenters were worth their weight in gold in Chicago after the fire. At the time a labourer earned only a dollar a day. In his woodwork he always drove a nail in at an angle as he was a very careful worker.

Later he purchased or rented a saloon himself and set up business for a year or so.

Father, daughter and live-in companion Mrs. Harris were said to have then moved south to Texas in the early 1870's. After his daughter Mary's was married to Will Gentry in 1872, he went north again.

William J. remarried in about 1879, this time to an educated Indian woman originally from Kentucky whose name is unknown. The marriage probably took place in Arkansas City. He was living in Dewey, OK, at time of his death twenty-six years later. His second wife's former husband was said to have been a fellow Union officer of William J's who was killed in the Civil War. William and she had originally met in Kentucky. There were no children to this marriage.

He was an intellectual type with very high standards. It was said of him, with some hyperbole, that he had voted in twenty states. William J. was a very fastidious dresser. However he apparently had no great strong family feelings. He always seemed to have money when it was needed.

He broke off all contact with his daughter Mary after her marriage to Will Gentry. She heard occasionally about him but she never saw him again, nor is it thought that she ever saw her mother Salinda, although it is possible there was some contact.

In old age he visited Arkansas City in order to get a horse and had a fatal stroke as he returned home to Dewey, Oklahoma. He fell from the buggy and was still clutching the horse's reins when his body was found by locals. His wife was unable to attend the funeral as she may have been ill and the ceremony was too far away from Dewey. His half-brother, George Dobbs Mounts, looked after his funeral arrangements. His funeral director was Undertaker Oldroyd. His son, David, was in San Francisco. Daughter Molly Mounts Gentry didn't hear about the event until someone sent her a newspaper cutting which described his death. She was to say that this was the first time she knew he had been living in Dewey, although in retrospect this is a little hard to believe.

Mary was definitely in contact with both her step-brother James McCoy and her own brother David Mounts. One of them probably sent the newspaper cutting to her in Stephen's Co. Mary said that she knew that her father had been south visiting near her on several occasions but he never actually came to see her. She had been upset by this. He presumably would have heard about where she was even though he appears to have refused to contact her.

She was to say that if he wanted her to have anything of his estate he would have said so and he didn't, so she never made any inquires about the matter."

William married Salinda Galloway after 1853. Salinda was born about 1835 in Virginia; and died. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

1. David A. Mounts was born about 1854 in West Virginia; died in in Oakland, Alameda County, California.
2. Mary "Molly" Evelyn Mounts was born on 27 Aug 1857 in West Virginia; died on 10 Sep 1940 in Duncan, Stephens County, Oklahoma; was buried in Duncan Municipal Cemetery, Duncan, Stephens County, Oklahoma.