William Solomon Thomas was born William Thomas Solomon to John B. Solomon and Margaret Stewart on October 31, 1879 in Sharon, Pennsylvania. Not much is known about his actual childhood. As an adult, he did manage and possibly own a men's clothing store in Pennyslvania, where he first met his future wife Emily Eleanor Fye.
When he was about thirty years old, he married Emily. Having been shunned by his family because of his desire to marry a gentile, William changed his name to William Solomon Thomas. He and Emily were married in 1910. I'm told by my grandmother (Evelyn) that he rarely spoke of his family. She had only one memory of him actually talking about them. One day he came home, sat in his rocking chair and slowly pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket. He stared at it quietly and when Evelyn asked him what was wrong he said his mother died. He put the piece of paper back in his pocket and she knew it was best to be quiet. He never it mentioned again as far as she knew.
Children:
Obituary of Grandpa Thomas, November 1941.
THOMAS - William S. Thomas, 62, died Sunday at his home in Montoursville. Born in Sharon, he had been a resident of Montoursville the last 12 years. Among his inventions were the Thomas twin-seat spark plug, a directional arrow light, a thermostatic controlling device, a battery connector clamp, a hot water heater, an electrical centrifugal switch, and an inner-spring plug. He held a life-time membership in the Chartered Institute of American Inventors. Surviving are his wife; four daughters, Mrs. Stanley Wilson and Mrs. John Crossley, of Williamsport; Mrs. Eugene Worth, of Lewisburg, and Evelyn, at home, and five sons, Jesse, of Lock Haven; John, of Williamsport, and Orrin, Clayton, and William, at home. He was a member of the Montoursville Presbyterian Church. Funeral services were held Wednesday.
NOTE: Any family links above when clicked will return an error page IF you are not logged into this family website.
--------------------------------
*According to Nana (Evelyn), the first child born to her parents was a baby boy who died shortly after birth. His name was also William Solomon Thomas.
