Mr. Fudge, of this review, grew to manhood in Oregon and was indebted to the early schools of that state for the educational advantages he had. In 1872 he came to Walla Walla, where he continued to make his home throughout the remainder of his life. For five years he was engaged in the butcher business in Waitsburg and then purchased a ranch in Whitman county. He made his home in Waitsburg until coming to Walla Walla. His death occurred in May, 1901, his remains being interred in the Odd Fellows cemetery at Waitsburg. In his farming operations he met with good success and left to his widow a valuable tract of eight hundred acres of land in Whitman county, which she still owns.
In 1872 Mr. Fudge was united in marriage to Miss Mary M. Perkins, who was born in Marshall county, Illinois, and is a daughter of Joel B. and Margaret (Burt) Perkins, both natives of Kentucky. In that state the Perkins family lived about ten miles from Mammoth Cave. They removed to Oregon in 1852 and located on a farm near Portland, where they made their home until coming to Walla Walla in 1862. The parents both died at Waitsburg and two of their nine children have also passed away. Those living are: James A., for many years a banker of Colfax, Washington, but now engaged in the real estate business Mary; Mattie, the wife of Alfred Miller, of Lacrosse, Washington; T. J., of Spokane; Frank B., of the Big Bend country; E. L., of Harrington, Washington; and Garfield, of Spokane. To Mr. and Mrs. Fudge were born three children, namely: Grace, deceased; Adna, the wife of Samuel B. Sweeney; and Will C., assistant cashier of the Colfax National Bank. Mrs. Fudge rents the ranch and she and her daughter are now residing in Walla Walla, where they own a fine residence. She is a member of the Christian church and is a most estimable lady, who has a host of warm friends.
Mr. Fudge took a very active part in the Odd Fellows lodge to which he belonged and was a stanch supporter of the republican party. He was a man of good business and executive ability, who usually carried forward to successful completion whatever he undertook, and his course in life was ever such as to commend him to the confidence and regard of all with whom he came in contact. He was one of the representative pioneers of the Pacific northwest and to such men is due the present development and prosperity of this region.
EMERSON LEE WHEELER.
Emerson Lee Wheeler, owner and publisher of the Waitsburg Times, of which his father had long been the editor, is not only widely known in journalistic circles but is regarded as one of the most prominent and influential residents of his section of the state, a fact which finds its verification in his long continued service as mayor of his city. He was born in Waitsburg, March 22, 1878, a son of Charles and Alice Wheeler. The father was born in Cass county, Missouri, February 19, 1852, and was one of a family of ten children. After reaching manhood he wedded Alice Reavis, a daughter of Judge D. B. Reavis, the wedding being celebrated in 1877, and not long afterward they started for the west, making the journey by mule team across the plains. Arriving at Waitsburg, Mr. Wheeler learned that the village school was without a principal and applied for and secured the position. After a year spent as teacher he was nominated for the position of county superintendent of schools at the hands of the republican convention and was elected and re-elected in 1880. In the following year he was appointed by the governor as territorial superintendent of schools and during his five years' incumbency in that office did splendid work in organizing the schools, in promoting their standards and advancing their efficiency. On the expiration of that period he acquired a lease on the Waitsburg Times and afterward purchased the plant. He then successfully edited and conducted the paper until 1896, when he leased the plant to his son, Emerson L., who afterward purchased the paper and has since successfully conducted it. For about seven years Charles W. Wheeler was lecturer for the Woodmen of the World and gained an enviable reputation as a public speaker by reason of his eloquence and his clear presentation of every question which he handled. He died May 19, 1917, at the age of sixty-five years, respected by those who knew him and most of all by those who knew him best.
Emerson L. Wheeler, spending his boyhood and youth in Waitsburg, acquired his education in its public schools and in the Waitsburg Academy. He, too, took up the profession of teaching, which he followed for a year, and he then leased the Waitsburg Times from his father and still continues its publication. He was practically raised in the print shop, being, as it were, "To the manner born." He had spent most of his vacations in the printing office up to the time when he assumed its active management. He has since given his undivided attention to the publication of the paper, which is a representative of high standards of journalism. Its columns have been used in large measure to further the interests and welfare of town and county and he has made the Times both the mirror and the moulder of public opinion.