Carl (or W.C.), as he was known, is the youngest of 13 children born to Lester Lucius and Dorothy "Dolly" Jane (Le Furge) Warner. He has a rich ancestry through his parents.

Carl's father Lester was born in Shoreham, Addison Co., VT, and before him, his family descended from John Warner (1616-1692) of Boxted, Essex, England, who emigrated to Massachussets in 1635. Through the Warner line, Carl's 7th great-grandfather is Gov. William Bradford, of Plymouth colony fame.

Carl's mother, Dolly Jane, was born in Seneca, Ontario, NY, of French ((LeFurge, Freer) and Scottish ancestry (Linkletter). Her mother, Sophia Freer LeFurge, is likely descended from Hugo Freer, the Patentee, of the New Paltz, NY Hugenot fame (still confirming). Dolly's great-grandmother, Catherine "Katie" Linkletter's family can be traced back many generations to Criste Ae Lingakloetr (b. 1424), of the Scottish Orkney Islands, which was infamous Viking territory. Our emigrating ancestor, James Linkletter (Carl's 3rd great-grandfather) emigrated to New York City from the Orkneys about 1750, and later served in the U.S. Revolutionary War in Orange Co., NY.

Carl's parents arrived in Michigan (at that time "The West") in 1832 and 1850 to Washtenaw Co. and married there in 1854. They moved from Dexter/Lima, Washtenaw Co., MI to Ingham Co. about 1877, and Carl was born in rural Ingham Twp. (Dansville), MI USA, living also in Leslie and Onondaga, Ingham Co. during his childhood. He lived out his adult life and died in Aurelius Twp., Mason, Ingham, MI USA.

Carl lost his mother, Dolly Jane (LeFurge) Warner in March 1891, at the age of 10, when the family lived in Onondaga, Ingham, MI. Although a series of courtship letters between he and future wife Maud show his address as Dansville between May 1900-Feb 1901, he appears in June 1900 US Census as a farm laborer on the Alfred Marshall farm in Aurelius.

Carl married Maud Anna Palmer on 08 Aug 1901 in Aurelius Twp., Ingham Co., Michigan (Source: Family records and Michigan Marriages for 1868-1925 Film # 2342518). They had four children:

1) Ruth Warner (1902-1902); died in infancy

2) Adah Lavone Warner (1903-1988) m. 1st Merton B. Collins (1 ch.); m. 2nd Severin Jean (no ch.)

3) Fern Irene Warner (1910-1981) m. 1st Lawrence J. Jean (4 ch.); m. 2nd Emery Clemens (no ch.)

NOTE: Sisters Adah and Fern Warner married brothers Severin and Lawrence Jean

4) Carol I. Warner (1918-1987) m. Kenneth B. Lawson (2 ch.)

Carl and Maud are listed in the 1916-1921 Rural Directory for Ingham Co., which shows Carl having 2 children and owning/farming 100 acres with 7 horses; 5 cattle at R(oute) I, Mason, Aurelius Twp., Ingham Co., MI. He also was a subscriber to the Farm Journal. He was well-known in the community as reputable horse trader. The Mason-area farmers knew him to be honest, fair, and hard-working, and he was a loyal neighbor to those in Aurelius, where he spent most of his life, from about 1894 to the time of his death in 1965.

Carl lost his beloved wife Maud in 1924 and in 1925, married Maud's sister, Bertha (Palmer, Arend) Rankey, whose daughter Margaret was the same age as his youngest daughter Carol, and he raised Margaret as his own. Bertha also had a daughter, Gertrude {Arend, later Albert}, from her first marriage.

A favorite story is when Carol's husband, Kenneth B. "Kenny" Lawson, returned from World War II and took agriculture classes in nearby Leslie. While he was in school, Ken's teacher needed a piece of land to demonstrate a tractor and plow to the students, as they were learning about 'new-fangled' tractor power. Carl offered his land, saying "no tractor can outdo my team of horses." So, the tractor came to the Aurelius farm and Carl made a deal with Kenny that if the tractor could out-pull his horse team, he would agree to use a tractor on his farm. Needless to say, Carl's farm at that point moved from horse-drawn plows on his land to tractors in the late-1940s.

Great-Grandpa Carl died when I was only 4-1/2, but I lived across the road from him and remember him well. He would play a game of hiding pennies in the front placket of his bluejean overall pockets, which I could keep if I could find. My mother spent many wonderful times with her grandfather, and by many, he was well loved and continues to be missed to this day.
========================================
{Biography courtesy great-granddaughter Debra Hart Blackgrave Tyre, updated 02.15.2014; 09.13.2015}. PLEASE retain original credits if copied; thank you.