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| #53 William Conners |
#53 Private William Conners
Born on Christmas Day, 1864, in Cummery, Connell, Rouls, Cork, Ireland, William was the son of John Conners and Catherine Linehan. From the 1880 U.S. census, we can deduce that they probably immigrated to America sometime between 1872 and 1875. Father John was 60 in 1880 and worked as a day laborer, while his wife, Catherine, was only 45. Their children - John-16, William -14, Peter - 12, Ella - 11, and Patrick - 8, were all born in Ireland, while the youngest, Mary, was born in VanWert, Ohio in 1875.
William seemed to first find trouble in Defiance as a youth. When 21, he was indicted along with Frank Miller and August Holzer.
The Defiance Democrat of June 13, 1895, reported:
"Frank Miller, August Holzer and William Conners are indicted for conspiring to intimidate a witness in cases against Holzer and Ed. Miller, who are also indicted for retailing liquor without payment of the government tax.
Pomeroy Helmick is indicted on a similar charge. These are the youths who sold whisky from a bottle at a dance at Sherwood. The liquor was obtained from Frank Miller's saloon.
After the young fellows were arrested, Holzer, Frank Miller, and Wm Conners tried to bully a witness in the case and were arrested for that."
Conners joined the 6th Regiment, Company M for the 1898 mission. One of the local newpapers recorded on February 9, 1899, that he was home and very sick. He was formally discharged on January 23, 1899.
Various local newspapers contained articles about his mischief in Defiance.
On September 27, 1900, the Defiance Democrat reported his first major crime.
He escaped for a while but was caught far away.
The Defiance Weekly Express had as a headline on November 11, 1900:
"Conners Arrested. William Conners, who is wanted in this county, for criminal assault, has been arrested in Baltimore, Md. Sheriff Elser has gone to that city after Conners."
"William Conners who plead guilty to the charge of criminal assault was sentenced to eight years in the penitentiary by Judge Hubbard today."
Defiance Daily Express, Nov. 26, 1900, p. 2
On December 6, 1900, he was escorted to the Ohio Penitentiary by Sheriff Elser.
Then, on July 3, 1903, the Crescent-News ran this notice:
So, had our William Conners been in prison for the previous three years?
He was first admitted to the National Home for Disabled Soldiers in Dayton on December 14, 1908. His record there showed his service in Company M, 6th O.V.I. His vital statistics included that he was born in Ireland, currently 5 feet tall, with a fair complexion, blue eyes and dark hair. William could read and write, was Catholic, and worked on the railroads. He claimed he was married, but named his mother, Catharine Conners, as his nearest relative, living at 1630 Schultz Street in Defiance. He was receiving $30 a month in pension.
His disabilities were listed as a loss of the tips of his middle and ring finger on the right hand, and rheumatism, especially in his left hip and leg. William stated that he had chronic constipation and a history of malaria and typhoid. He dropped off the rolls on September 10, 1909; his mother died in that year which may or may not have contributed to the discharge.
He was out in 1910, apparently, when the Crescent-News reported on May 7, 1910, that William Conners was arrested for intoxication and resisting arrest for which he was fined $200. On May 17, the same paper noted that Sheriff Buchholz had taken William Conners to the Toledo Workhouse. He was about 44 years old.
Conners was readmitted to the Dayton facility on January 20, 1911. The next discharge was March 23, 1924. Then, again, he was readmitted on June 14, 1927 and discharged on June 12, 1930.
At this point, William Conners seemed to disappear completely. No marriage record, tombstone, obituary, or death record could be found. Was he buried in a pauper's grave? Further research would be needed.
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