The Franklin Democrat, Friday, January 7, 1898, Volume XXXVIII, Number 26, page 1, column 4

Death of William Doty.

William Doty, one of the oldest and best known of the pioneers left in White River township, died on Thursday of last week from dropsy of the heart.

He is said to have been the first white child ever brought into White River township. He was born at South Bend, Hamilton county, Ohio, Feb. 28, 1821, and when six months old came with his parents, John Doty and wife, settling in White River township at a time before the county was organized.

He was married to Elizabeth Rhoades in 1845, to which union were born thirteen children, eleven daughters and two sons. One son and six daughters, together with their mother are now living.

Deceased was a member of the Salem M. E. church, having held a membership there over fifty years. Funeral services were held at the church Saturday morning at ten o’clock.

Mr. Doty was a man of quiet, frugal and industrious habits and held in high respect by the community in which he lived.

The Franklin Republican, January 7, 1898, pg 5

Wm. Doty, sr., died at his home in White River township last week and was buried at Salem M.E. church cemetery. Mr. Doty was the last and youngest member of the John Doty family who came from Cleves, O., having been tenants on the farm of Gen. Wm. H. Harrison. The Doty’s came to the township in the year 1821, William being a babe of nine months old, he claiming to be the first white child nursed by a white mother in the township. Mr. Doty was seventy-seven years old and had lived at but two homes in all the seventy-six years of the time he was in the township, on the old Doty farm known as the Doty hill, and then after his marriage to Elizabeth Rhodes about fifty-five years ago, they lived and raised a large family on the farm given him by his father, a mile south of the old homestead. Mr. Doty was the last of the old pioneer stock who came to the county when it was a wilderness and contributed somewhat to the building up of the country to what it is and while he did not perform manual labor equal to his brothers, George, Peter and Samuel, yet he helped to do the work incident to pioneer life. We now bid farewell to the last of the Doty family and may he rest in peace.