Biography of Jerry Webber

Jerry Webber comes from a strong and prominent family and his record compares favorably with that of his worthy ancestors and will make very interesting additions to the volume of the County history.

Jerry Webber was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, on August 2, 1858, being the son of Jeremiah and Anna J. (Arbuckle) Webber. The father was born in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, and has been a steamboat captain on the Mississippi all his life and still continues to run the river. The mother was born in East Liverpool, Ohio, in 1830, of Welsh ancestry and her father is aged ninety-eight and her mother ninety-seven.

Our subject departed from the parental roof when he was ten years old and found employment as clerk in a grocery store. A year or so later, he went as pilot on the Wisconsin River, being also watchman. Then he went with the Hudson Bay Company as pilot on the Saskatchewan River for eight years. Then came the Reil Rebellion for services in which he owns a medal from the Canadian government. After this he went to the Nile for the English government to the relief of General Gordon under Woolesley. For his excellent service in this expedition, Mr. Webber bears a silver medal and a bronze cross from the Khedive of Egypt. These trophies of merit and excellent service should cause a pardonable pride and they speak great things of Mr. Webber’s faithfulness, his ability, and his courage, having been given from governments in widely different sections. He served on a steamer for a time and then returned to St. Paul, where he took the position of mail carrier, about eight years, after which he builded bridges, then came to Buffalo Hump and mined.

In 1898 Mr. Webber entered the Spanish War and soon rose from private to regimental quartermaster, serving in that capacity for nine months. 1899, he came to Idaho and took a claim on the Salmon River six miles south from Morrow. Mr. Webber has five sisters, Phoebe Henderson, Sarah Hines, Lavina Cassity, Deborah Ella, Ida May Upham.

Mr. Webber is a member of the I. O. O. F. and the Knights of Malta. Politically he is a Republican and takes up the campaigns with a zest. His paternal grandfather was in the war of 1812 and also the Mexican war and lived to be one hundred and one years old. He built the arsenal at Allegheny, Pennsylvania, in the forties. Mr. Webber had five uncles in the Civil war and three of them gave their lives for their country.

Back to: Nez Perce Biographies

Source: An Illustrated History of Northern Idaho, Embracing Nez Perce, Idaho, Latah, Kootenai and Shoshone Counties, Western Historical Publishing Company, 1903

1 thought on “Biography of Jerry Webber”

  1. Most of the above bio is for Jeremiah Webber (Jerry) born 1831 Penn His son Jeremiah Webber jr. 1858 (Jerry) remained with his family 1880 US Census shows age 20 employed as tinsmith he later went on to work for the railroad The 1911 US Census res. 714 Bradley in St Paul Jerry jr. never worked the rivers Jerry sr. in 1908 capt. of the steamer Minnesota res. 795 Rondo St Paul

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