Person Page - 141

     Westley Fremont Harn Jr. was born circa 1917 at Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Co., Oklahoma.² He was born on 26 May 1917 at Muskogee, Muskogee Co., Oklahoma.³ He was the son of Westley Fremont Harn Sr. and Letta Lucille Smith. Westley Fremont Harn Jr. lived in 1950 at Fresno Co., California. He died on 14 September 1985 at Fresno Co., California, at age 68.³ He was buried at Clovis Cemetery, Clovis, Fresno Co., California.^4,3

     Westley Fremont Harn Sr. was born on 30 July 1880 at Mansfield, Richland Co., Ohio.^1,2 He was the son of George Upton Harn II and Jane Delano McCormick. Westley Fremont Harn Sr. married Letta Lucille Smith in 1904.² Westley Fremont Harn Sr. lived in September 1918 at 1228 E. Second St., Tulsa, Tulsa Co., Oklahoma. Wesley Fremont had lived in California. He died circa 1929 at Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Co., Oklahoma.¹ He was buried at Fairlawn Cemetery, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Co., Oklahoma.^1,2

     Wilbur Carmichael Harn was born on 5 June 1934 at Maryland. He was the son of Ambrose Clifford Harn Sr. and Helen Hunt Carmichael. Wilbur Carmichael Harn lived in February 1963 at Parkton, Baltimore Co., Maryland. He died on 21 June 2021 at Florida at age 87.

     Wilbur Eugene Harn was born on 31 December 1897 at Waterford Twsp., Fulton Co., Illinois.² Wilbur Eugene Harn was a Auto-mechanic. He was the son of Charles Wesley Harn and Katherine Belle Eveland. Wilbur Eugene Harn married Helen Florence Vliet, daughter of Bernard F. Vliet and Jeanette M. Monroe, on 11 February 1923 at Greeley, Weld Co., Colorado. Wilbur Eugene Harn died on 22 January 1989 at Van Nuys, Los Angeles Co., California, at age 91.³ Barbara Covey lists Wilbur born on 31 Dec 1898. His Social Security Number was 523-03-4405 issued in Colorado.

     Willard E. Harn II was born on 25 July 1941.¹ He was the son of Willard Eugene Harn and Barbara Jane McCauley. Willard E. Harn II married female (?) on 14 November 1970 at Cuyahoga Co., Ohio. Willard E. Harn II died on 22 June 2013 at Atlanta, Fulton Co., Georgia, at age 71.¹ He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Arlington Co., Virginia.¹

     Willard Eugene Harn was born on 9 June 1868 at Alberton, Howard Co., Maryland.² He was the son of Edwin Washington Harn and Leoline Edith Uesline. Willard Eugene Harn married Annette May Bopst, daughter of John Bopst and Louisa D. (?), on 1 January 1891. HARN Sheets, FHL film 1036595, # has name of William E. Harn.

TERCENTENARY HISTORY OF MARYLAND, vol III, 1925, page 734-735.



Following from TERCENTENARY HISTORY OF MARYLAND, Volume II, published in 1925, by the S.J. Clarke Publishing Company, page 253-254.
William Eugene Harn was born at Alberton, Howard county, Maryland, June 9, 1868. He is a descendant on the paternal side from Irish and Scotch stock and from an agricultural loving line. His father was the late Edwin Washington Harn, and his grandfather was Ephraim Harn, both of whom were large men and of fine physique. The father was a farmer in his younger days but he learned the weaver's trade and moved from his birthplace, Triadelphia, to Alberton, where he became superintendent of the weaving room of the duck mills, founded by James S. Gary and still operated by the Gary family. He retired from this business several years before his death and settled on his farm at Hoods Mill, Carroll county and from there he came to Baltimore, where he died. Mr. Harn s mother who is still living, Miss Leoline Edith Evans of Virginia. His grandmother was in her maidenhood Miss Elizabeth Gosnell, of the Gosnell family of Carroll county, a sturdy farming people still thickly entrenched around Woodbine and Taylorsville.
At the time Willard Eugene Harn was born the educational advantages in the country districts were meager. He attended the Public school at Alberton and on Diamond Ridge. The highest grade was the seventh. When at the age of eighteen Mr. Harn finished this grade, he went with John Cowan to learn the trade of carpenter. As a journeyman he was at the Washington navy yard, after which he was associated with Mr. Cowan as journeyman for nineteen years during the greater part of which period he filled the position of superintendent.
In 1904 Mr. Harn launched out for himself and established the firm of Willard E. Harn & Company, with office at No. 213 North Calvert street. Two of his first jobs were St. David's Episcopal church at Roland Park and the Sexton Company's warehouse at Nos. 5, 7 and 9 Gay street. St. David's church is the first monolithic concrete building to be erected in Maryland. In 1915 he built his present office, shop and storage places at No. 2314 Oak street, occupying them the same year. As the business grew Mr. Harn associated with him in the firm his son, John Edwin Harn, who had graduated from Cornell University as a civil engineer. He is secretary of the firm. William Bowersox, superintendent for the firm, was also associated in membership in the business. His office is that of the general superintendent.
The firm as it is now constituted has specialized in cottage construction. Some of the finest cottages around Baltimore have been built by the Willard E. Harn Company. Among these are the residences of James C. Fenhagen, John E. Semmes, Jr., Morris Whitridge, J. Ross Myers, Dr. Thomas R. Brown (Litter Louna), Mrs. Ida L. Dohme, John H. Barret, Dr. Gordon Wilson, William H. Bryan, and F.A. Adams (formerly owned by Charles H. Dickey). The firm however does not confine itself to cottage work, but enters into the building of other structures. The Rivoli theater, one of the most beautiful, convenient, and artistic theaters in the south, was erected by this firm. All of the work done by the Willard E. Harn Company is executed with skillful workmanship and in strict honesty with owner and architect. In order to be able to operate his business along efficient and intelligent lines Mr. Harn found that he would have to supplement the education he had received in the county schools. He accordingly pursued the study of mathematics, drawing, and engineering under private tutors until he thoroughly mastered the branches of learning necessary to complete knowledge in the erection of buildings. Mr. Harn's son is regarded as an authority in these details, but the father has not relinquished one job or title of his interest.
In his private life Mr. Harn has been more of a home man than a public man. In 1891 he was married to Miss Nannie M. Bopst, daughter of the late John and Louisa D. Bopst of Maryland, though for many years they resided in Martinsburg. Miss Bopst's grandparents were born in Germany. The children born to Mr. and Mrs. Harn are: John Edwin, who married Miss Elsie Norrington of Baltimore, and they have two children: Miss Edith Muriel Harn, who was educated at the Eastern high school, Goucher College, and Johns Hopkins University. From the latter institute she received her Doctor's degree in Modern Languages. She is now professor of Romance Languages in Agnes Scott College of Decatur, Georgia; and Lillian Pauline Harn, wife of James C. Miller, who was graduated from St. John's College of Annapolis and from the law department of the University of Maryland, and he is now practicing before the Baltimore bar.
Mr. Harn is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and of the Masonic fraternity. He was knighted in Washington (D.C.) Commandery before he was twenty-two years of age. He is a past eminent commander of Maryland Commandery, a Noble of the Mystic Shrine, and belongs to the Charcoal Club.
He attends the Lutheran church, but for all his associates he is broad-minded, independent in politics, and not without the characteristics that betoken a substantial citizen and a faithful follower in the pathway of honest government. One of his friends, speaking of him, said: "He never shows the slightest desire to be spectacular. He is more of the type of faithful friend, honest competitor, and man of unflinching integrity. He has a big heart, a keen but sympathetic mind, and a disposition to make the pathway of life happy, sincere, and helpful to others."³


Willard Eugene Harn died on 16 December 1945 at Baltimore, Maryland, at age 77.

     Willard Eugene Harn was born on 2 July 1910 at Baltimore, Maryland. He was the son of Elmer M. Harn and Pauline Mayfield. Willard Eugene Harn was born circa 1912 at Maryland 1920 MD Census lists age. He married Barbara Jane McCauley. Willard Eugene Harn died on 3 April 1999 at Jupiter, Palm Beach Co., Florida, at age 88.

     Willia Elizabeth Harn married male (?) Willia Elizabeth Harn was born circa 1868 at Maryland according to 1870 MD Census. She was the daughter of Wesley Jaleel Harn and Urith Mannahan. Willia Elizabeth Harn married George Rigler circa December 1911 at Maryland.² Willia Elizabeth Harn died on 19 September 1945 at Taylorsville, Carroll Co., Maryland.³

MRS. GEORGE RIGLER
Mrs. Willa E. Rigler, widow of George Rigler. died at 6:45 o'clock this morning at the home of her
Granddaughter, Miss Eloise Frizzell, Taylorsville. She was a daughter of the late Wesley J. and
Erith Harn and was aged 78 years. There are no immediate survivors. Services will be held at the residence Friday at 1:30 p. m., with concluding rites at 2 p. m. in the Taylorsville Methodist church and burial in the church cemetery. C. M. Waltz is the funeral director.
The Evening Sun (Hanover, Pennsylvania)
Wed, Sep 19, 1945 ·Page 6.³


She was buried at Taylorsville United Methodist Church Cemetery, Taylorsville, Carroll Co., Maryland.^4,3

     William Harn was born on 18 September 1877 at Illinois.² He was the son of Jonathan Harn and Mary Levingston. William Harn was also known as Billie. He died on 15 December 1881 at Illinois at age 4.²

     William Harn was also known as Harne. He was born on 10 January 1845.^1,2 He was the son of John Harn and Henrietta Hettenhouser. William Harn married Mary Elizabeth Schlosser on 22 May 1880. William Harn died on 15 November 1912 at Sunnyside, Yakima Co., Washington, at age 67. He was buried on 18 November 1912 at Old Sunnyside Cemetery, Sunnyside, Yakima Co., Washington, Plot: Old section across the road, Block C, Lot 21, Grave 3.

     William Harn was born on 18 March 1824.^1,2 He was the son of Perry G. Harn and Eva Strohm. William Harn died on 23 September 1828 at age 4.^1,2

     William Harn was born on 31 October 1831.^1,2 He was the son of Perry G. Harn and Eva Strohm. William Harn died circa June 1863 at Mississippi.^1,2 Name repeated because first William had died.² Ellen Dorcas Harn Manuscript. In Civil War, and died somewhere in Mississippi.

     William Harn is the son of Clarence Everett Harn and Joanne Hanna.

     William Adrian Harn was born on 27 August 1918 at Frederick, Schuyler Co., Illinois.² He was the son of Elmer Levi Harn and Myrtle Barbara Rohn. William Adrian Harn died on 16 February 1920 at Schuyler Co., Illinois, at age 1.² He was buried at Messerer Cemetery, Pleasant View, Schuyler Co., Illinois.²

     William Allen Harn was born on 11 March 1805 E.B. HARN Sheets, FHL film 1036595,#18,219-221,224,225,228,230-231.¹ William Allen Harn was a Builder. He was the son of Caleb Harn and Charity Duval. Marriage License of William and Ruth, dated Jan 23, 1830. William Allen Harn married Ruth Spurrier, daughter of Joshua Spurrier and Harriett Baker, circa 23 January 1830 at Frederick Co., Maryland.² William Allen Harn married Rebecca Parker in September 1869 at Dayton, Montgomery Co., Ohio. William Allen Harn died on 15 March 1878 at Dayton, Montgomery Co., Ohio, at age 73.^3,1,4 He was buried on 17 March 1878 at Woodland Cemetery and Arboretum, Dayton, Montgomery Co., Ohio, Plot: Section 39, Lot 1564
GPS (lat/lon): 39.74424, -84.17357 (no headstone.)^5,4

     William Arnold Harn was born on 9 May 1939 at Jefferson Twsp., Greene Co., Pennsylvania.^1,2 He was the son of Harry Harn and Florence F. Jenkins. William Arnold Harn married Della Skaggs on 2 March 1965.¹ William Arnold Harn married Carolyn Vassion on 3 November 1973.¹ His Social Security Number was 161-32-0715 issued in Pennsylvania. Social Security Death Index lists born 09 May 1939 and died 02 Sep 2002; last residence being Tacoma, Washington. William Arnold Harn died on 2 September 2002 at Tacoma, Pierce Co., Washington, at age 63.³

Paper: Observer-Reporter (Washington, PA)
Title: William Arnold Harn
Retired Air Force major formerly of Greene County
Date: September 14, 2002
William Arnold Harn, 63, of Fircrest, Wash., died Monday, September 2, 2002, in Tacoma, Wash.

He was born May 9, 1939, in Jefferson Township, Greene County, a son of the late Harry and Florence Harn. Mr. Harn retired as a major in the U.S. Air Force where he served two tours of duty in Vietnam. He received two Distinguished Flying Crosses. After retiring from the Air Force, he worked and retired from the U.S. Postal Service. Surviving are his wife, Carolyn; a son, Terry; three stepsons, John, Tyrone and Greg; four grandchildren, Victoria, Jesse, Nicholas and Jacob; three sisters, Ruby Sweitzer, Glenna Denny and Marie Keener; and a brother, Joseph Harn. Deceased are a brother, Leslie Wayne Harn; and a sister, Frances Sweitzer. Services and burial were held in Tacoma. The family requests donations be made to Franciscan Hospice, 1717 South J Street, Tacoma, WA 98405.² He was buried at New Tacoma Cemetery, University Place, Pierce Co., Washington.

     William Benton Harn was born in 1887 at Maryland.² He was the son of John Henry Harn and Mary Ann Clemintine Long. William Benton Harn died on 10 February 1952 at Mount Airy, Frederick Co., Maryland.² He was buried at Linganore Cemetery, Unionville, Frederick Co., Maryland.²

     William Calvin Harn was born between 15 October 1872 and 1873 at Oregon. E.B. HARN Sheets lists William as born 15Oct1873.² He was the son of William Singleton Harn and Juliette Ann Reed.

     William E. Harn was born on 2 December 1825 at Maryland.^1,2,3 He was the son of Singleton Wesley Harn and Maria Cordelia Harn. William E. Harn died on 12 February 1908 at age 82.^1,2,3 He was buried at Linganore Cemetery, Unionville, Frederick Co., Maryland.³

     William E. Harn was born in 1866 at Pennsylvania estimated birth date from 1880 Census. He was born on 5 March 1866.¹ He was the son of Thornton Fleming Harn and Margaret Esther Molter. William E. Harn married Uena (?) William E. Harn died on 20 January 1944 at age 77.¹ He was buried at Beaver Cemetery and Mausoleum, Beaver, Beaver Co., Pennsylvania.¹

     William Fremont Harn was born on 1 June 1859 at Wooster, Wayne Co., Ohio.^2,3,4 William Fremont Harn was a Attorney. He was the son of George Upton Harn and Mary Ann Bricker. William Fremont Harn graduated in June 1880 at Wooster University, Wayne Co., Ohio. He married Alice Moores, daughter of Dr. Thomas J. Moores and Lavernia Ogden, on 27 December 1881 at Mohican, Ashland Co., Ohio.^5,3
William and Alice had a son that died in infancy.


W.F. Harn, son of Capt. George W. Harn, of Co. I, 16th O.V.I., who was killed at the battle of Chickasaw Bayou in December 1862, is a candidate for representative on the Republican ticket in Oklahoma Territory. Mr. Harn will be remembered as an old Wooster boy and was in the newspaper business at Mansfield for many years. Mrs. Harn was a former resident of Lake township.⁶



Adopted and reared 2 children of his wife's sister: Dudley Morres Willson and Florence Ogden Wilson.³

William Fremont Harn lived in 1943 at 313 NE 16, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Co., Oklahoma; This later became the site of the Harn Museum. He died on 15 December 1944 at Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Co., Oklahoma, at age 85.^7,4 He was buried at Fairlawn Cemetery, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Co., Oklahoma.^8,4

The following is from the book, STATE OF OKLAHOMA, volume I, 1910, by Luther B. Hill, published by Lewis Publishing Company, page 36-38.
William F. Harn. The country lying adjacent to Oklahoma City on the northeast is now in process of development as suburban additions, and with the extension of transportation facilities to this part of the city, real estate values will rise and property became as popular here as in any other section. One of the men to whose enterprise many of these improvements are due is William F. Harn, a well known capitalist and real estate man of Oklahoma City. He brought and promoted Harndale addition, consisting of thirty acres, lying near Epworth University and intersected by Classen boulevard. About ten years ago he acquired the ownership of a quarter section lying north of Maywood addition and fronting south on Sixteenth street, where developments are in progress that will convert this into one of the most valuable and attractive parts of the city. On the east this high-class residence district will be skirted by the new Lincoln boulevard, which will be built north from the Lincoln school for a distance of four or five miles. Mr. Harn, J.J. Culbertson and others are associated in the building of a street railway line to reach this property, their intention being to give the same boom to this northeast section of the city that the Oklahoma Street Railway Company has given to the northwest section. In the new Harn addition trees have been planted everywhere, which will have reached nearly full growth by the time the lots are placed on the market. Pavements, sidewalks, sewers and other improvements will be put under way of construction before this addition is formally opened. In various other ways, Mr. Harn has taken an important part in building up Oklahoma City. Long before the future of this city was assured as it now is, he has given evidence of his strong faith in the possibilities of its growth and expansion.
In the early years of his residence in Oklahoma City, Mr. Harn was best known for his prominence for his prominence as a government official and as a lawyer. He was born in Wooster, Ohio, and graduated from Wooster University in 1880. Having read law under private tutors, he was admitted to the bar by the supreme court of Ohio in 1881. While in the practice of law, Mr. Harn conducted some of the most important lawsuits pending in the courts and was unusually successful. Large fees in these cases were the foundation of his large real estate interests, which, conservatively estimated, now greatly exceed a million dollars in actual value. Though he practiced in Ohio for several years, he was best known as a newspaper man, being editor and one of the owners of the morning paper at Mansfield. Through the instrumentality of the late Senator John Sherman of Ohio, he was appointed, as special agent of the department of interior to assist in the prosecution of perjury cases in connection with homestead entries in Oklahoma. This was in 1891, two years after the opening of the territory, and the courts were burdened with bitterly contested suits over the ownership of land. During the first year of his residence in Oklahoma City, Mr. Harn gave all his time to the secret work of his position, especially the securing of testimony for the conviction of the perjurers whose deceit had rendered the establishment of legal titles so difficult.
... As it was, these falsifiers and illegal claimants were defeated in nearly every case, and for this wholesome outcome such officials of the federal department as Mr. Harn deserve the gratitude of Oklahomans for their efficient and arduous labors in establishing just claims and bringing about law and order. Perjury was often accompanied by murder, and the strife and litigation cost the participants hundreds of thousands of dollars, which was so much subtracted from the capital available for the development of the new country. It is said that nearly every claim of prospective value within ten or fifteen miles of Oklahoma City was in dispute and litigation, and to prove the just merits of each case was a toil whose final accomplishment has few parallels in the history of land claims.
After leaving the service of the interior department, Mr. Harn began the practice of law in Oklahoma City. During one year he was clerk of the United States district court at Perry, and other places. This appointment was made by President McKinley, as a personal recognition to Mr. Harn for securing the Oklahoma delegation that helped to nominate him at St. Louis in 1896, President McKinley's interests in Oklahoma having been placed exclusively in the hands of Mr. Harn by Mark A. Hanna. With this exception he has been a resident of Oklahoma City since 1891. Mr. Harn has been actively engaged in politics from the day of his arrival in Oklahoma, but has seldom sought public office. In 1904 he was nominated by the Republicans of Oklahoma county for the Territorial Legislature by acclamation. In the contest he polled his full party vote, but was defeated by a small plurality. He was one of two persons that was called into consultation with Arthur I. Vorys and others at Kansas City, prior to the Oklahoma state convention for the purpose of laying plans to further the interest of Wm H. Taft for the presidency. And it was largely through his influence that the Oklahoma delegation was instructed for Taft.
Mr. Harn is always among the largest contributors of money and time towards public enterprises. He alone induced the Mississippi Valley Trust Company of St. Louis, and the Denver, Enid & Gulf Railroad Company to agree to build the latter railroad from a point northwest of Guthrie to Oklahoma City, paralleling the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railway for about thirty miles and to construct a terminal railroad in Oklahoma City to accommodate five new railroads. The Denver, Enid & Gulf Railroad Company was to receive a bonus of sixty thousand dollars, all of which was raised. Some delay was caused by promoters of other roads, who desired to be considered in the drawing of the leases, although the officials of the D., E. & G. R.R. Co. were urging the closing up of the contract, and before the citizens of Oklahoma City fully realized the importance of immediately signing up the papers, the D., E.G. R.R. was sold in a night to the Santa Fe, which thus got rid of what would otherwise have proved a dangerous rival.
Mr. Harn was married in Ohio, 1882, to Miss Alice, daughter of Dr. Thos. Moores, of Mohican, Ashland county, Ohio.

The following is from the book, STATE OF OKLAHOMA, volume I, 1910, by Luther B. Hill, published by Lewis Publishing Company, page 254-261, contained an article on Sooner and Perjury Cases by W. F. Harn.
The first grand jury that sat in the United States side of the territorial court in January, 1891, brought in seventy-five indictments for perjury. The first few trials consumed as much as four weeks each, day and night, and were fought desperately by the several defendants and their attorneys. A conspiracy was unearthed, in which it was planned to dynamite the court house for the purpose of killing Judge Clark, United States Attorney Speed and Special Agent Harn, but the plans of the assassins were thwarted by the early discovery of the details through a confession of one of the accused, who subsequently served time in prison for murder. A bomb was thrown under the house of Special Agent Harn, but the fuse was put out by the bomb striking some bushes. At another time Deputy United States Marshall Frank Cochran stayed the hand of a defendant perjurer's son-in-law, as the latter was about to plunge a dirk (long straight-bladed dagger) into the back of Special Agent Harn, as the latter was leaving the court room. Other instances of this kind, never publicly made known, were numerous and frequent.

The following is from the book OKLAHOMA AND THE MID-CONTINENT OIL FIELD, published in 1930 by the James O. Jones Company, page 228,229,441.
Individualist though he is, William Fremont Harn has never been unwilling to join his neighbors, or fellow-townsmen, in a move that was intended to promote the general welfare. He did not hesitate, when Oklahoma City was considered as the site for the capital, to donate as much as three-hundred and twenty-thousand dollars worth of land as the site. Alice Harn Park was his gift to the children of Oklahoma City. Harndale, as an addition, is unsurpassed for the beauty of its homes.
But when he is seen as the victim of State which has not respected his contracts, and the butt of attacks which have no justification, the wonder is that the former lawyer, and present capitalist, is not in the least bit embittered. He smiles as broadly now as he did the day he landed in Oklahoma City- about the first of January, 1891.
He confounds the belief that "lone wolves" are unpopular, for among the folks who know him, he is a much-liked man. "Always," he asserts, "I have played a lone hand, and managed my affairs in the way I saw fit. If persistency is a vice I must confess that I am vicious. But whoever won nothing without displaying some persistency?"
He learned to be persistent, industrious, and ambitious, as the son of a captain who died in the forces of the North in the Civil War. Mary Ann (Bricker) Harn, whom George Upton Harn had married, was one to see to her son's education however difficult it was to do. The boy which had come into the world on June 1, 1859, was not slow to learn, and when he was graduated from high school in his native town of Wooster, Ohio, he had decided to become an attorney.
As President of his class, in one of the literary societies in the University of Wooster, Mr. Harn was not long in winning to leadership. He was an orator on occasion, and class prophet at his graduation in June 1880, when he was the youngest to finish as a Bachelor of Philosophy. He belonged, while in college, to the Phi Delta Theta fraternity.
In his role of prophet the youthful Harn could not foresee that the political education he acquired in the offices of McClure and Smyser, lawyers at Wooster, was to do him as much good as the law he had to read. Such it proved, however.
Mr. Harn was admitted to the barn in 1881, but he went, a year later, to Mansfield, Ohio, where he joined his brother in publishing the Herald seven mornings a week. The young man had been everything from printer's helper to when the chance arrived, in December, 1890, for him to accept an appointment as Special Agent for the General Land Office. After he reached Oklahoma, in January, 1891, he caused more than one-hundred indictments to be returned by grand juries in Oklahoma City, at Guthrie, at Kingfisher, and at Wichita against claimants for land whom were charged with perjury. He helped to convict seventy-five of the defendants before William H. Harrison went out of office and Grover succeeded him. With this change of Presidents, Mr. Harn left his job as agent to open offices as an attorney, but he was not loth in the year to follow to assist the Government in the rest of the cases. So successful was the prosecution, there was not a single acquittal.
Mr. Harn had been practicing law for two or three years when he was telegraphed from Washington, by a friend, that a quarter-section of land to the Oklahoma City was open to settlement. Before night-fall Mr. Harn had succeeded both in taking possession of the property and in filing his application with the local land office. There were contests, however, and they ate into his income for years to follow.
And his income, we must say. was not always in cash, since time and again, it was necessary to take his fee in real-estate. Thus it was that he could afford, when Oklahoma had been admitted to the Union, to offer forty acres of his farm to the State. Since but seven and one-half of the forty acres would be used as a site for the capitol, Mr. Harn asked that the rest of his donation be sold by the State for residential purposes. To this the State agreed. But never since then has the contract been observed, and eighteen years, as Mr. Harn sees it, "is a mighty long time for a 'temporary building' to stand. I have been holding a hundred or more acres of my quarter section to realize something on it, depending upon the State to keeps its word. It hasn't. So I intend now to use it as the site of one or more oil wells. Can a derrick be more unsightly, in the neighborhood of the capitol, than the mule barns, the hot-dog stands, and the garages which are now to be found there?"
Mr. Harn gave up his practice of law when the management of his property began to occupy most of his time. The Harn Building erected on the site of his first home in the City, was for many years the headquarters of the United States Veterans Bureau.
To Mr. Harn and his wife, who was Alice Moores before her marriage at Mohican, Ohio, in 1881, was born a son which died in infancy. Dudley Moores Wilson, and Florence Ogden Wilson, children of Mrs. Harn's sister, were reared in the lawyer's home. Home: 301 East Seventeenth Street. Office: Harn Building.

Following obituary from THE DAILY OKLAHOMAN newspaper, 16Dec1944, pg 3, col 1.
William Fremont Harn, Oklahoma City pioneer and capitalist died of heart disease Friday afternoon at his home, 301 NE 17, on the most valuable piece of farm land in the state. He had been confined to his bed more than six years with heart disease and became critical about 10 days ago.
The man who in 1911 gave the state 40 acres for the state on which the capitol now stands, died without realizing his dream of having his farm southwest of the capitol platted as one of the city's finest residential sections.
Harn acquired the 160-acre farm in 1892 for $1.25 an acre under the homestead laws. At the time of his death this tract contained 90 acres and was bordered by Lincoln boulevard and Santa Fe tracks, east and west, NE 21 on the north and a line half-way between NE 16 and NE 17 on the south. A portion reaches to NE 23. His offer of a 120-foot diagonal strip across his farm for a boulevard approach to the capitol from Broadway was new accepted because city and state officials could never agree on who ought to pay for the paving.
Harn was born June 1, 1859, in Wooster, Ohio, and was the youngest graduate of the 1880 at the University of Wooster. He was admitted to the bar in Ohio in 1881. The following year he married Miss Alice Moores of Mohican, Ohio. They had one son who died in infancy.
He was co-publisher with his brother of the daily Mansfield, Ohio, Herald almost eight years prior to coming to Oklahoma City. Harn came to Oklahoma City in January 1891, as special agent of the general land office to assist in the prosecution of perjury involving lands in Oklahoma Territory. In one year he caused more than 100 indictments to be returned by United States grand juries in the courts at Oklahoma City, Guthrie and Wichita, Kan.
President William H. McKinley appointed Harn clerk of the U.S. district court in Perry as personal recognition for Harn's securing the Oklahoma delegation that helped nominate McKinley in St. Louis in 1896. Harn returned to his private law practice after one year. Cash was scarce in those early days and Harn was obliged frequently to take part of his fees in real estate. The Harn building, 218-24 NW 3, is on the site of their original home. Land for the present Federal Reserve bank building was purchased from Harn.
Shortly after oil was struck in 1928 in the south Oklahoma City field, Harn leased part of his homestead for oil development. Almost immediately the city brought the land into the city limits and ruled it was not zoned for oil, thus temporarily blocking his attempt to have wells drilled.
For years, Harn was undecided whether to turn the property over to oil development or to a fine residential area, alternately bickering with the city for permission to drill and urging the state to accept his offer of the diagonal boulevard.
At the time of Harn's death, the property held two houses (one the old family home built in 1900 and the other a smaller house occupied by his nephew, George U. Harn), and 10 oil wells. The state took 16 1/2 acres of his property by condemnation for Lincoln Terrace drive and a block matching the Historical building site, then later disputed his claim to the mineral rights under that 16 1/2 acres. Meanwhile, Harn allowed two Negroes to cultivate the farm for two years, their corn, cotton and vegetables flourishing almost in the shadows of the capitol.
In 1909, Mr. and Mrs. Harn platted Harndale, a 30-acre tract on the west side of the city. A 5-acre park in the center is known as Alice Harn park. Mrs. Harn, an artist of considerable talent, died May 5, 1931, and is buried in Mohican.
Harn's philanthropies included annual gifts to the YWCA in memory of his wife, and memorial scholarships at Oklahoma City University and his alma mater. He had supported the Oklahoma State Symphony from its beginning. He was a member of the bar association, Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, Phi Delta Theta fraternity and still retained membership in the Wooster church of which his father was once pastor.
Services will be in the Smith and Kernke funeral home at 2 p.m. Monday. Burial will be in Fairlawn cemetery. Survivors include a niece Miss Florence O. Wilson, home address, and a nephew Dudley M. Wilson, Plano, Texas, whom the Harns reared from childhood; a nephew George U. Harn Sr., 307 NE 17; a cousin, Mrs. M.C. Clayton, Mountain Lake Park, Md; a grand-niece, Jane D. Harn, and four grand-nephews, George U. Harn Jr. and Edward J., both of Oklahoma City John Robert, Sheppard field, Texas, and Wesley F., Alhambra, Calif.

The following is from THE CHRONICLES OF OKLAHOMA, Volume XLVII, Number 4, Winter 1969-1970, page 462:
"A presentation of the William Fremont Harn Memorial Collection was made to the Oklahoma Historical Society by President George H. Shirk. This collection, he said, is the gift of William F. Harn's niece, Miss Florence O. Wilson. One-half of the State Capitol is located on land homesteaded by Harn. The collection contains at least a half million pages. Miss Mary Mahood of Edmond is working with Mrs. Simpson in organizing the material so that it may be used by researchers."

The following is from THE CHRONICLES OF OKLAHOMA, Volume LI, Number 2, Summer 1973, page 246-248:
"Annual Meeting of the Oklahoma Historical Society April 26, 1973. In 1969, Miss Florence O. Wilson first advised the Society that she wished to make a contribution of the personal files of her uncle, William F. Harn, to the Society. Mr. Harn had been appointed by President Benjamin Harrison as Special Agent to the Land Office in Oklahoma City in 1891 and during his lifetime had collected an entire attic of papers and files relating to early-day Oklahoma City. For this contribution, the Board has created Miss Wilson an Honorary Life Member of the Society-only the sixth such membership accorded by the Board in the past twenty years. The William Fremont Harn Memorial Research Collection has been referred to as the 'mother lode' of Oklahoma City history. Accession of the large collection is now underway."

PRESENTATION OF AN HONORARY MEMBERSHIP TO FLORENCE O. WILSON (response)
"Mr. Shirk, President, Members of the Oklahoma Historical Society and Friends. Thank you for this high honor of an Honorary Life Membership in the Oklahoma Historical Society and for your kind friendships.
First may I tell you just a little of the heritage that brought this all about? As members of William Fremont Harn's immediate family, Jane Harn McCarty, his grand-niece, and I, his niece, are deeply grateful for the fine recognition that Mr. Harn has received as a prominent pioneer citizen, builder and planner, and for the formal acknowledgment from the Historical Society of his early-day records. They are now a part of the Society Historical Files and are known as the William Fremont Harn Memorial Research Collection. We thank Mr. Shirk for his interest and concern in helping to assemble this historical material for a curator to organize. The Collection is now available for reference and for study. These records carry on some of the heritage Mr. Harn left us. Perhaps they also reflect a little of his stern, independent, determined personality and some of his ideals.
As many of you may know, Mr. Harn came to Oklahoma in January 1891, the appointee of President Benjamin Harrison, as Special Agent to the Land Office here, for the pursuit and prosecution of the Sooners-a hazardous and colorful assignment. The record shows that during Mr. Harn's period of service no offender was acquitted. He followed his law career until his retirement. When the State Capitol was move from Guthrie to Oklahoma City, Mr. Harn gave to the State, toward a new Capitol site, 40 acres of his farm land just west of the present Capitol Building. Harndale Addition and Alice Harn Park bear the Family Name. The Grand Boulevard, which once encircled the City, was Mr. Harn's idea. The new Federal Reserve Bank Building, opposite the Third Street Post Office, stands on the site of the Harn's first Oklahoma City home, a rose covered cottage, which took Mrs. Harn's artistic eye. In the intervening years the four story red brick Harn office Building stood there. Now the old farm homestead has been designated an 'historical site' and is to become a Pioneer Museum, surrounded by the William Fremont Harn Gardens. And so today we honor Mr. Harn.
For me, it is indeed a rare privilege to receive this gift of a Life Membership in this distinguished Society. There are scarcely words adequate to express my deep appreciation. That it comes to me through such sources enhances its value. It is in itself a rich and treasured heritage. Again my grateful thanks to all of you for this honor and for your interest and kindness in coming to be with us."
                    (Miss) Florence O. Wilson
                    7103 Nichols Road,
                    Oklahoma City, Okla. 73120


Following from http://www.harnhomestead.com/content/view/20/44/ on 12 Sep 2006:

William Fremont Harn
A Brief Biography
William Fremont Harn was born June 1, 1859, in Wooster, Ohio, the son of Mary Anne Bricker Harn and George Upton Harn. His father was a Church of God minister and a captain in the Union forces. He was killed during the Civil War at the Battle of Vicksburg, and Mrs. Harn was left to raise her sons, William and George, alone.

A strong believer in education, Mrs. Harn made sure that both boys pursued professional careers. William graduated from the University of Wooster in June of 1880, with a bachelor's degree in philosophy. He then "read" law under private tutors and was admitted to the Ohio bar in 1881.

In 1882, Harn married Alice Moores of Mohican, Ohio, an artist who had studied in New York and who continued to paint throughout her life. The Harns then moved to Mansfield, Ohio, in the first year of their marriage.

There Mr. Harn went to work for his brother, George, who was the owner and editor of the strongly Republican newspaper, The Mansfield Herald. At this time, William began his lifelong participation in Republican politics.

As a reward for his efforts on behalf of the Ohio Republican Party, Harn was appointed as Special Agent to Oklahoma for the General Land Office, Department of the Interior, in December of 1890. As Special Agent, he was charged with conducting behind-the-scenes investigations of claim disputes arising from the Run of 1889 -- many of which involved cases or perjury and "Soonerism."

Mr. Harn arrived in Oklahoma in January of 1891 and proceeded to investigate more than 100 disputes. His work led to more than 75 convictions and a degree of unpopularity among certain residents of the future city. It was also in 1891 that Mr. Harn acquired, from an Illinois couple, the present Homestead land as part of a "relinquished" quarter section that had been originally claimed in the Run of '89.

In 1892, Grover Cleveland succeeded President Benjamin Harrison. With the Republicans out of office for the moment, Harn left his position as Special Agent and opened a private law practice. He continued his practice until he was appointed clerk for the fourth judicial district, Perry. This was a "plum" clerkship that paid well above the clerkships in the adjacent districts, and there were charges and countercharges flung about concerning Harn's appointment. The situation was resolved when Harn was tricked out of the job by dirty politics and a judge that didn't want him in the position. It was then that Harn tried, and failed, to obtain an appointment as federal Marshal.

William Harn resumed his law practice but became increasingly involved in both real estate and railroads for the growing Oklahoma City. In 1902, he served as President of the Railroads Committee for the Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce, charged with attracting additional rail lines to the area. He also became a partner in the Citizens Traction Company, an interurban railway system established to compete with the trolley companies of Mr. Shartel and Mr. Classen, among others. Harn built the "Yellow Mule" line that ran from the intersection of 16th and Robinson to NE 50th Street.

In 1904, construction on the present Harn house was begun, and Mr. and Mrs. Harn moved to the property from their former home on 2nd Street. In this year, Mr. Harn made an unsuccessful attempt to gain a seat in the Territorial House of Representatives.

In 1910, Harn donated 40 acres of land to the state for the site of the Capitol. The Capitol was eventually constructed on approximately 10 acres of his land and another 10 acres donated by adjacent landowner, Mr. Culbertson.

In his later years, William Fremont Harn concentrated his efforts on real estate, remaining active until felled by illness in the late 1930's. He died in 1944.

     William G. Harn was born circa 1818 at Pennsylvania.^2,3 He was the son of Lloyd Harn and Susannah H. Ish. William G. Harn married Mary Ann Caplinger on 23 February 1841 at Fulton Co., Illinois; FHL film 1621428, Sheet 94, Batch number 6002050. William G. Harn died on 7 March 1886 at Fulton Co., Illinois.^4,2 He was buried at Oak Hill Cemetery, Lewistown, Fulton Co., Illinois.⁴

     William Grafton Harn was born on 30 September 1886 at Dayton, Montgomery Co., Ohio.^1,2 He was the son of Frances Reese Harn and Mary Jane McMahon. The cause of death was Diphtheria. William Grafton Harn died on 25 October 1894 at Dayton, Montgomery Co., Ohio, at age 8.^1,3,2 He was buried on 26 October 1894 at Woodland Cemetery and Arboretum, Dayton, Montgomery Co., Ohio.^4,2

     William H. Harn was born in 1843 at Pennsylvania.² He was the son of Samuel D. Harn and Mary Moore. The cause of death was lost in War of the Rebellion (Civil War.)

     William H. Harn was born on 18 July 1875 at Pennsylvania.¹ He was the son of Frank Harn and Susanna Cramer. William H. Harn died on 17 July 1898 at Beaver Falls, Beaver Co., Pennsylvania, at age 22.¹ He was buried at Beaver Cemetery and Mausoleum, Beaver, Beaver Co., Pennsylvania.¹

     William Henry Harn was born on 2 April 1860 at Pennsylvania.¹ He was born on 14 April 1860 at Pennsylvania.² He was the son of John Harn and Elizabeth King. William Henry Harn married Sarah E. Porter, daughter of John N. Porter and Lavine E. (?), on 5 October 1887 at Uniontown, Fayette Co., Pennsylvania.³ In 1920 William Henry Harn was a farmer.¹ He died on 14 March 1920 at Luzerne Twsp., Fayette Co., Pennsylvania, at age 59.¹ He was buried on 16 March 1920 at Redstone Cemetery, Brownsville, Fayette Co., Pennsylvania.¹

     William Henry Harn was born in November 1857 at Illinois Henry was 13 years old in 1870 Illinois Census. He was the son of Jonathan Harn and Susan Crabtree. William Henry Harn died on 28 July 1926 at Sedgwick Co., Kansas, at age 68.

     William Henry Harn was born on 15 July 1886 at Luzerne, Fayette Co., Pennsylvania.^1,2 He was the son of Henry Alexander Harn and Elizabeth Porter. William Henry Harn married Martha Ethel Barnhart, daughter of Walter Barnhart and Dora Rose (?), on 19 September 1923 at Washington Co., Pennsylvania. William Henry Harn died on 22 February 1934 at Menallen Twsp., Fayette Co., Pennsylvania, at age 47.^2,1 He was buried at Acklin Cemetery, Brownsville, Fayette Co., Pennsylvania.¹

The following undated obituary, in a letter from Mildred Harn in March 1995:
Funeral services were held for William Henry Harn 45, who died Feb. 22, 1934 at his home in Menallen Twp. on Sat. in the Hopewell Presby. church, in charge of funeral the Rev. R.C. Van Eman, pastor. Burial in Acklin Cemetery. Mr. Harn, a World War veteran, is survived by his wife, Mrs. Ethel Harn, a son Edward, and the following brothers and sisters, Wesley and Albert E. Harn of E. Millsboro, Harry Harn of Greene Co. and Mrs. H.H. Robbins of Arensburg.

     William Hillery Harn was a in coal and lumber business. He was born on 17 December 1811 at Liberty, Frederick Co., Maryland.^1,2 He was the son of Denton Harn and Rachel Ruth Pickett. William Hillery Harn married Martha Grove on 12 June 1834 at Chambersburg, Franklin Co., Pennsylvania; Ellen Dorcas Harn Manuscript. William Hillery Harn died on 9 June 1881 at Carlisle, Cumberland Co., Pennsylvania, at age 69.^3,1,2 HISTORY OF FREDERICK CO., MD, 1910, pg 1557. HISTORY OF FREDERICK CO., says wife was Martha Cheneworth. E.B. HARNS Sheets lists William's birth as 17Dec1811. He was buried at Old Graveyard, Carlisle, Cumberland Co., Pennsylvania.²

     William L. Harn was born in October 1867 at Fleming Co., Kentucky.¹ He was the son of Elijah Harn and Margaret Jane Lightfoot.¹ William L. Harn married Ida Mae Flora.¹ William L. Harn died on 8 December 1948 at Fleming Co., Kentucky, at age 81.¹