Thomas Gilson
Thomas Gilson, farmer, P. O. Atwater, was born in Oil Creek Township, Crawford County, Penn., in 1823; son of William and Mary (Lafferty) Gilson, natives of Pennsylvania, both now deceased. Of their children, John, Alice, Peter, Margaret and Thomas W. are now living. Our subject spent the greater part of his life in his native county, and has always been a farmer by occupation. He was married, in 1846, to Miss Cynthia Fowler, a native of Crawford County, Penn., who died January 19, 1876, the mother of five children, viz.: M. H. , M. W. , L. A., A. T. and E. L., who have been spared to care for their father and his home through the declining years of his life. In 1865 Mr. Gilson purchased and settled on his present estate, comprising 120 acres, now one of the best cultivated farms in Atwater Township. He and his family are highly respected in this community.
From History of Portage County, Ohio, Warner, Beers & Co., Chicago, 1885