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William O. BUTLER was born in Bedford County, Tenn., in 1847, and is a son of William and Joannah B. (TERRY) BUTLER. The father was also a Tennessean, and followed farming as an occupation. He was a participant in the Indian wars that took place on the borders of Tennessee in very early times. He moved from Tennessee to Illinois, thence to Missouri, and then back to Tennessee. He located permanently in Missouri in 1852, crossing the Mississippi River at St. Louis when that city was in its infancy. He died in 1858, leaving a wife and family to mourn his loss. William O. Butler was educated in Lawrence and Greene Counties, Mo., and afterward studied law under Norman Gibbs for two years, and was admitted to practice law in 1872 at Mt. Vernon. He remained with Mr. Gibbs for three more years, but in 1876 concluded he could find a better field in which to practice his profession, so made a trip to Texas, but after a short stay in that State he returned to his old home in the city of Marionville, in Lawrence County, Mo., where he settled down, and in the same year was married to Miss Fannie L., a daughter of Sam and L. C. COTTER, of Mount Vernon. Mr. Butler owns some valuable property in the city of Marionville, on which is a handsome residence. He has a good law practice, and has the entire confidence of the people. He is a Mason, and his wife is a member of the Presbyterian Church. In 1865 he joined Company H, Sixteenth Missouri Cavalry, United States Army, and was mustered out at Springfield. He was in Price's raid, and was at the battles of Boonville, Big Blue, Newtonia, and in several skirmishes.
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