 From the Illustrated Album of Biography, of the Famous Valley of the Red River of the North and the Park Regions:
"John F. Selby, a prominent attorney of Hillsboro, North Dakota, where he is engaged in an extensive law practice, is a native of the State of Pennsylvania. He was born in Mercer county, Pennsylvania, on the 24th day of December, 1849, and is the son of John F. and Jane (Rogers) Selby, natives of Ohio [Before 1850 the family is in Worth, Mercer County, Pennsylvania]. In 1855 the family removed to Hayfield, Crawford county, Pennsylvania, where the mother died in 1882 [1884]. The father was a soldier in an Ohio regiment, and died in the army hospital at Chattanooga, Tennesee. They were the parents of the following-named children: William A. [William Albert - See below], Mary L., Eva P. [Eveline] and John F.
John F. Selby, the subject of this article, attended the common schools and the normal school at Edinborough, Pennsylvania, until he was about twenty years old. During that time, and after his father’s death, he had helped support the family, and in 1865, after his brother William had returned from the army, they engaged in the oil business in Venango and Clarion counties, Pennsylvania, until 1874, when they both registered as students at law under C. W. Gillfillan, their immediate preceptor being R. G. Lamberton, of Franklin, Venango county. They were admitted to the bar on the 12th day of May, 1876, and then removed to Edenburg, Clarion county, Pennsylvania, where they were engaged in their profession until March, 1880. William then removed West and settled in Traill county, Dakota, locating at Caledonia. Our subject remained in Pennsylvania until the 1st of April, 1881, when he removed to Hillsboro, North Dakota, where he opened an office for the practice of his profession, and has since remained.
He is one of the leading attorneys, and his practice is rapidly increasing. In November, 1884, he was elected county attorney, and previous to that had been attorney for the board of county commissioners. He has been admitted before the supreme court of Pennsylvania and also of Dakota Territory, and is one of the most prominent and highly
esteemed lawyers in the county.
Mr. Selby was united in marriage on the 12th day of August, 1875, in Franklin, Pennsylvania, to Miss Martha J. McCaughtry, the daughter of John and Catharine (Grove) McCaughtry, natives of Mercer county, Pennsylvania. Mr. and Mrs. Selby have
been blessed with one child Mary L. [Mamie] born in Emlenton, Venango county, Pennsylvania.
Our subject is a member of the Masonic fraternity, Hillsboro Lodge, No. 32, A. F. and A. M., and also belongs to the Royal Arch Chapter in Grand Forks. He is a hard student, a safe counsel and an able advocate."
Mamie's Death Notice John's Burial, Tombstone Photo, Family Links Martha's Burial, Tombstone Photo, Family Links Mamie's Burial, Tombstone Photo, Family Links [Note: The 1880 Census showed G. A. Selby, born in May 1880 as an adopted son who was left at their door. He is not included in John's family in the 1885 Dakota Territory [residing in Hillsboro] census and this writer could find no further information on him. Some notes on William in John's information above.
William Albert generally just used his initials W. A. He was born Pennsylvania on 26 September 1848, the son of John F. and Jane (Rogers) Selby, natives of Ohio [Before 1850 the family is in Worth, Mercer County, Pennsylvania]. In 1855 the family removed to Hayfield, Crawford county, Pennsylvania, where the mother died in 1882 [1884]. The father was a soldier in an Ohio regiment, and died in the army hospital at Chattanooga, Tennesee. They were the parents of the following-named children: John F. [See above], Mary L., Eva P. [Eveline] and William Albert.
At the very young age of fourteen, William enlisted as a Corporal into Company B, 111th Pennsylvania Infantry on 30 December 1861. On 29 October 1863 he was wounded in The Battle of Wauhatchie in Hamilton and Marion Counties of Tennessee no doubt in the same area as his father at about the same time. He was released at the end of the war on 19 July 1865 at Washington, D.C. His wife, Adelia, started receiving a war pension on 10 July 1890.
William married Adelia Watson, daughter of George Washington and Mary Berlin Watson in Pennsylvania. There were three children from the marriage: Kate, John Roland, and Albert Edgar.
Just prior to 1880 the family is living in Traill County. In 1880 the family is living in Township 146, Range 49. In 1882 his land in Township 147, Range 52, Section 2 is recorded and by the Dakota Territory census of 1885 the family has relocated to Grand Forks in Grand Forks County. In Traill County and Grand Forks County he was very active in veterans causes. He was the Grand Forks County District Attorney at the time of his death.
William died unexpectedly from a long illness and a very young age in Grand Forks.
After William's death, Adelia married Homer C. Moore on 12 August 1890 in Pennsylvania and then later married Flavius J. Peck on 26 November 1902 in North Dakota.
Adelia's Death Notice William's Burial, Tombstone Photo, Family Links Adelia's Burial, Tombstone Photo, Family Links Kate's Burial John Roland's Burial |
