William J. Finney
William J. Finney, the subject of this sketch, was born in New Castle, Penn., May 6, 1811. His father, David Finney, was one of the earliest settlers of Holmes County, and, being a man of intelligance and of an enterprising spirit, he early secured a large tract of fertile land, containing some 500 acres, upon which he built his cabin, and raised a family of seven children: John, David, Washington, Mary, Ann, William J. and Thomas. After his father's death, William J. became the owner of the original homestead. In 1848 he married Miss Louisa Crist, and to them were born four children. Mr. Finney died in 1883, aged seventy-two years. Mrs. Finney still lives on the homestead with her children.
From Commemorative Biographical Record of the Counties of Wayne and Holmes, Ohio, J. H. Beers & Co., Chicago, 1889