William P. Jonathan Barker

As printed in 1908

WILLIAM P. BARKER, senior member of the firm of W. P. Barker and Son, at Cuyahoga Falls, engaged in heavy blacksmith work for the big machine shops, and subcontracting work for the United States Government, came to this city in 1845, and it has been his real home ever since. Mr. Barker has been a great traveler through the United States, but in all his wanderings has not found a section more to his liking than the one to which he was brought by his English father, sixty-two years ago. Mr. Barker was born in Yorkshire, England, on August 3, 1841, and is a son of Jonathan and Mary Barker.

Mr; Barker's mother died when he was a child, he being the youngest of her sixteen children. The father, a weaver by trade, decided to come to America to better his business prospects, and brought with him his surviving children, namely: Elizabeth, who died unmarried; Anna, deceased, who married George Irvington; Sarah, who married J. C. Daly, residing at Medina; and William P. Jonathan Barker worked for a time in the fork factory at Cuyahoga Falls, after which he bought a horse and wagon and for many years traveled through the country as a tin peddler, retiring several year prior to his death, which occurred in 1877, when he was aged seventy-seven years.

Under the above circumstances it can be seen that William P. Barker had fewer opportunities of obtaining an education than is the Ciise with children of the present day; in fact, he went to school regularly for but one year. When he was fourteen years of age he went to Windsor, Ontario, Dominion of Canada, where he was apprenticed to his brother-in-law, George Irvington, and learned the horseshoer's trade. He continued to work there for two years, when he came back to Cuyahoga Falls and worked for one year at blacksmithing for John and Robert Allen. In 1863 he accompanied John Allen to Redwood, California, where Mr. Allen opened a blacksmith shop. After working in this shop for about a year, Mr. Barker joined a party of three and went with them to Arizona, and thence to Montana. He walked 1,800 miles that winter, going from Montana to Los Angeles, back to Arizona, around by Salt Lake City, and then back to Montana. Mr. Barker worked at his trade during favorable seasons and prospected during the rest of the time. He reached Cuyahoga Falls about two years after the close of the war, and then embarked in his present business, in partnership with his brother-in-law, J. C. Daly. A few months later he bought Mr. Daly's interest and continued to work alone for about a year, when he was again seized with a desire to travel.

On this occasion, Mr. Barker went to Minnesota, where he remained for a year engaged in lumbering and trapping. Then returning to his old home, he reopened his shop and continued in business until 1896. He then took a gold prospecting trip to Alaska, but was forced to return home on account of illness, after an absence of sixteen months, during which time he experienced hardships which almost terminated his life. He soon recuperated, however, under home care, and resumed business at his present place, which he had built before.starting for the far Northwest. His shop is a one-story brick building 107 feet long and 50 feet wide in the north end and 36 feet in the south end. For the past twenty-five years he has been engaged as above indicated, and fully one-half of the work of the plant goes to Alliance. Since 1895 his son, William H. has been his partner.

Mr. Barker was married to Charlotte Lyons, who was born probably in New Jersey, and is a daughter of John Lyons. They have had ten children, all of whom are still living as follows: Mary, Amelia, Sarah, William H.,

George, John, Samuel and Susan, twins, Harry and Fred.

Mr. Barker is a good citizen in all that pertains to keeping the laws and exerting an influence in the direction of morality and business integrity, but he has united with neither of the great political parties, casting his vote independently.

As printed in Centennial history of Summit County, Ohio and representative citizens (1908). See the original pages. Wording is the original; obvious scanning errors have been corrected, and a few may remain.