"Old Union Soldier Answers Last Call
Wm. E. Rice Passes After a Long and Useful Life"
Note: On the 14th KY roster he is noted as William M. Rice, Jr."
On October 14, 1930, there passed to his reward one of Johnson County�s oldest and most substantial citizens, William E. Rice. He was born July 3, 1845, in Floyd County (now Magoffin County), Ky. Mr. Rice spent his entire life in the neighborhood in which he was born, and a useful and upright life it was. He was always found on the moral side of all questions, and his influence was always toward higher and better things in the material, moral, and spiritual lines. He was a man whose word was as good as his bond, and every one who came in contact with him, and knew him, trusted him implicitly. He had the courage of his convictions, and if necessary would fight for what he believed to be right.
At the age of 18 he enlisted in the Union Army, and fought to the close of the great war between the states, and his family now is in possession of his honorable discharge, signed at Louisville September 15, 1865, by the late Captain John Milt Atkinson. He was a member of the Company B, Battalion 14, Kentucky Volunteer Infantry, and was a model soldier and a true patriot. He loved his country and his country�s flag, and was willing to give his life if needed for the high ideals of American Liberty.
Mr. Rice was practically all of his active life a consistent member of the United Baptist Church and was a true Christian in every sense of the word. In the years to come, long after his earthly remains shall have molded into dust, the influence of his Christian character will be felt in the neighborhood in which he lived and worked. On April 4, 1866, Mr. Rice was married to Amanda J. Patrick, and to this union was born two sons, James F. and Eddie Rice. Eddie Rice died March 1, 1903. James F. Rice is still living and is one of the most honored and respected citizens of the county. Besides his son, James F. Rice, Mr. Rice leaves surviving him, his widow, Amanda J. Rice, his daughter-in-law Emily Rice, one grandson, Eschel Rice, one daughter-in-law Hazel Rice, and one great grandson William E. Rice.
The funeral services were conducted at the Rice home on Wednesday, October 15, by Hargus Conley and Millard O�Brian. In addition to the relatives, hundreds of friends who respected the memory of this noble character attended the funeral. In the passing of Mr. Rice one is caused to pause and reflect that the strong characters, who have borne the heat and battle of others fast passing away. They came upon the scene of action when the country was young. It was theirs to brave the danger and bear the burdens of the pioneers, and they did their work nobly, in order that we who follow after might have a nobler and wider heritage, and as we revere and honor their memory, let us invoke power from on high that we may acquit ourselves in our day as nobly as they did in theirs.
Source: Paintsville Herald, Johnson Co. KY, October 30, 1930. Submitted by Mary Fletcher.
| RETURN TO MAIN PAGE |