Edward A. Wilson, BiographyPorter County biographical sketches . . . .
Transcribed biography of Edward A. Wilson
EDWARD A. WILSON. One of the thriving business enterprises of Porter county is the Sall Mountain Asbestos Manufacturing Plant located at Chesterton, of which Edward A. Wilson is superintendent and one of the stockholders. This plant was located at Chesterton in February, 1904, is incorporated under the laws of Indiana, and has been a very valuable factor in adding to the business life of the county. Its corps of officers are: J. W. Bingham, president; C. M. Clark vice-president, manager and treasurer; and C. E. Cook, secretary. Its directors are N. C. Heston, Mary Myers and E. A. Wilson. In this connection and through his prominent Masonic affiliations Mr. Wilson is well known in Porter county, where his reputation is that of an enterprising and sagacious business man and citizen of sterling worth.
He was born February 8, 1864, a son of Aristarchus and Emma (Biddle) Wilson. Aristarchus Wilson was born in Ohio, but was married in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to Emma Biddle, a native of that city. They remained residents of Pittsburgh nearly fifteen years and there Edward A., their only child was born. From there they moved to Michigan and thence to Missouri, where the elder Mr. Wilson became a stockman and where he and his wife now live retired in Independence, Missouri. He is a Knight Templar Mason.
Edward A. Wilson was a pupil in the Pittsburgh schools until twelve years of age, when he accompanied his parents to Michigan. There he later was employed in a drug store and became a registered pharmacist, his state certificate being No. 70. He followed the drug business in Michigan until 1887, then spent one year in Wichita, Kansas and returned to Chicago, Illinois in 1889, in which year he was married in that city to Miss Margaret Smith. Chicago remained their home until their removal in 1905 to Chesterton, Indiana, where they have since resided. Mrs. Wilson was born in Canada on March 8, 1865, and was reared and educated there. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson have five children, as follows: Fay, the eldest, now eighteen years of age, and Grant, the eldest son, are both students at Emmerson high school, Gary, Indiana; Edward Jr., Lylbert and Margaret are all at home and are attending the Chesterton schools. Both Mr. Wilson and his wife are members of the Church of Christ, Scientist.
Mr. Wilson sustains prominent affiliations in the Masonic order. He is a member of Beacon Light Lodge No. 784 Free and Accepted Masons at Chicago; of Chesterton Chapter No. 123 Royal Arch Masons; of Council No. 86 Royal and Select Masons at Valparaiso; of Valparaiso Commandery No. 28 Knights Templar; of the Mystic Shrine, Orak Temple, Hammond, Indiana, and is a thirty-second degree Scottish Rite Mason, his membership in the last named branch of the order being held in the Valley of Fort Wayne, Indiana, Lodge of Perfection. In politics he is a Republican but has never taken any part in political affairs other than to exercise his franchise. Mr. Wilson is a man of recognized integrity, worth and ability, and as a citizen his efforts have been directed toward the public welfare as well as toward individual success.
Source: Lewis Publishing Company. 1912. History of Porter County, Indiana: A Narrative Account of its Historical Progress, its People and its Principal Interests. Chicago, Illinois: Lewis Publishing Company. 881 p.
Page(s) in Source: 872-873
This biography has been transcribed exactly as it was originally published in the source. Please note that we do not provide photocopies or digital scans of biographies appearing on this website.
Biography transcribed by Steven R. Shook