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W. E. Stuart, a stockman living in the Falk district of Payette county, was born near his present residence at Falk, Idaho, December 29, 1868. His father, William Stuart, was a native of Ireland and on coming to America about 1850 took up his abode in Illinois. He afterward removed to Missouri and in 1864 came to Idaho, settling at what is now known as Falk. In Illinois he had married Sarah Ellen Ackels, a native of Ohio, and they crossed the plains from Missouri with an ox team and four cows, which they drove as a team, and also a four horse team. They experienced all of the troubles and hardships attendant upon such a trip in those early days and were six months on the way. In Idaho the father engaged in the live stock business and was considered one of the most prominent stockmen of the state. He owned thousands of head of cattle and at one time owned thirty-one hundred and sixty acres of land in the Payette valley. He was a man of upright character and genuine worth, was fearless, and it was said of him that when the Indian stole his horses he always brought them back. He died on the 18th of October, 1895, while his wife passed away at Blackfoot, Idaho, in January, 1901. They were the parents of fifteen children, of whom four are living: Emma B., now a practicing physician of Portland, Oregon; Mrs. Minnie Patton, of Falk, Idaho; Mrs. Nellie Meldrum, of Victoria, British Columbia; and W. E. of this review.
The last named was reared on the old homestead farm and early became familiar with the best methods of tilling the soil and raising stock. He was yet a youth in his teens when he became an active factor in the development of the stock raising interests of his father. Today he is the owner of seven hundred and fifty acres of excellent land and is extensively engaged in the raising of cattle for beef. The residence which he occupies was built by his father in 1893 and overlooks the beautiful valley of the Payette, being about seven miles southeast of New Plymouth. He also has a summer home - a log cabin, located in a picturesque spot on Squaw creek, in the mountains of Idaho.
On the 25th of June, 1902, Mr. Stuart was united in marriage to Miss Mary Carter, of Arkansas, a daughter of Josiah and Martha (Daniels) Carter. Her father is still living in Ontario, Oregon, at he age of eighty years. Her mother died while crossing the plains and her father became one of the well known pioneers settlers of Idaho. Mr. and Mrs. Stuart have a daughter, Alta, who was graduated from the eighth grade of the grammar school at the age of twelve years. She has many interesting relics, found in Idaho, and a fine fossil specimen from Oregon. She also has the bullets taken from two bears which were killed by a friend of her father. She possesses likewise a collection of pestles which were used by the Indians to crush their grain, and she has an old rifle and two powder horns which were given her by an old Indian. She is very fond of these souvenirs and takes great delight in listening to the stories of which they are the visible evidence. She has the photographs of her grandparents on both sides of the family, which she prizes highly and which are most interesting mementos of bygone days. She is a girl of most attractive personality, a splendid type of the western life that thrills everyone that comes to know aught of this section of the country.
Mr. Stuart is a man of commanding figure, affable and genial, and he has a host of warm friends in his section of the state. Here he has spent his entire life, witnessing the marvelous growth and development of the region, and he has always born his full share in the work of progress and improvement.