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A tribute to William Henry Outman, written by his daughter Evelyn Outman Perkins,
February 1988, Marseilles, Illinois:
WILLIAM HENRY OUTMAN
Born 10 June 1853
Died 11 January 1918
Married 1 Jan. 1874 to Margaret Steel who died in 1897
Married March 1899 to Alzoea Brownrigg
William Henry was born in Spruce Creek, Pa. His father George Willis was killed in Stones River, Tn. on
the first day of the Civil War there. Wm.'s mother, Amelia Corbett Outman, and the three living
children, Wm., Mary and Ella then went to Northern Illinois where Amelia lived until she died in 1869.
Wm. then was 16 years old when he took over as the head of the family.
Wm. followed in the steps of his Dad and became a school professor, part of the time in Northern
Illinois and part of the time in Marseilles. Alzoea had come to Illinois from New York for health
reasons, to make her home with her Aunt Emma Belshaw. She was hired as a grade school teacher
in the same school Wm. was principal. They were married in 1899.
Both Wm. and Alzoea were very strict, not only in the class room, but also in rearing a family.
Both were fine disciplinarians and we children didn't know any better than to know their directives
had to be carried out. Yet this was founded on love, not fear, both had a good sense of humor.
Back in those days when a parent told a child to do something, we knew that meant 'do it' and never
questioned it or stalled. Dad, as I say, was a highly respected school teacher and often was called
on for public speaking, in schools, churches and many civic affairs. I can remember him preaching
many sermons in the Methodist church where we were raised and I have learned since his death that he
was a 'certified lay minister' in that denomination. For many years after his death, I would
run into former students of his in the Marseilles school system and they told me how much they
liked him. He was known in public as 'Prof. Outman'. I can remember when we had an old
stereopticon viewer and one of our prize pictures for that machine was of 'Prof. Outman' on platform
with the first graduation class of Marseilles High School.
Wm. taught for 23 years, and then they combined the two districts in Marseilles and that left
him out of a teaching job -- conveniently for the District that he only lacked 2 years of becoming
eligible for a 25 year pension. Mom had given up her teaching at the time she married Dad to bring up
the remaining step-children as well as we 3. She only had 8 years of teaching school to her credit.
Dad passed away on 11-1-1918 in Marseilles at the age of 64 and Mom, who was 23 years younger
than my dad passed away in 11-June-1971 at 95 1/2 years of age. Both were buried in Marseilles.
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