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49

daughter, Almira., died in infancy but Freida, Ellis and Harold lived on and later, had families of their own. We have been told that William A. Davis was a builder and that his death occurred from an accident in 1908 caused by a fall from a rooftop.

Martha Davis, Meshach1s daughter, married Sam Bass. They had only one daughter and she was named Myrtle Pearl Bass, however, she went by the name of Pearl. She married James Andrew Martin and they raised a family of boys. They were: Charles Leo Martin, James Loring Martin, Merril Davis Martin and Cecil Ray Martin. They have been residing in parts of Southern Oregon near Medford in Phoenix and Ashland.

The wives of Ellis and Harold are also living near Medford.

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*  WILLIAM D. DAVIS   *
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Up to this point, little has been said of the youngest one of the David Davis' children. He was rather young when his father died - only fourteen. Then he was fifteen when his stepmother died and he was like an orphan. We can imagine that young William D. Davis had something like a trauma at about that time. The word got around that young William was attempting to make a run away and we understand that Caswell Hendricks was alerted to watch for him and if he traveled in the direction of the Hendricks place, to send him back home. William, of course, survived it all.

William never got married but remained single. He got around a lot and was able to engage in a number of business enterprises. He owned several ranches and raised sheep. He lived in Central Oregon at Prineville in the 1880s; took a trip to Arizona for awhile then returned to Prineville to resume his business.

William moved to California and made his home there for awhile. Then in the early 1900s he came back to Oregon and settled in Jackson County. He took up a small ranch at Beagle Oregon.

William or "Uncle Bill" as he was called by so many affectionate young nieces and nephews for several generations, had a very kind disposition with children. He remained a bachelor but he wasn't alone - he had many visits with his young relatives and exchanged many cards and letters. We understand that "Uncle Bill" opened his home or ranch to a number of young relatives that came and stayed with him, some because they really needed a place to abide. We have heard that "Aunt Jane" Ragsdale (a niece of William) took up residence with "Uncle Bill" in later years and helped him take care of his home and children that lived there.

"Uncle Bill" lived until 1925 when he died and since he was born in 1846 his age at that time was around 79. He outlived all of his relatives that were brothers and sisters and lived a pretty good life. He evidently had an ailing condition in his later years - we noted that many of post cards had messages that pertained to his health. His devoted family was greatly concerned with 'Uncle Bill's health. William D. Davis drew up a will several years before he died, probably because of his general poor health and a concern for some young nieces. Toward the last, "Uncle Bill" was in very poor condition and evidently grew tired of living. His relatives around were much concerned about the possibility that he might attempt to take his own life. We have heard that they removed all the firearms from the place. They evidently didn't think of other possibilities because when he had the chance he ended his life with a knife to his throat.

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