Following is one of the Biographies and Stories which where gathered by Charles Sumner McKamy in the 1950s for publication in a Crawford County History Book. Unfortunately he passed away before the book was published.
Edward William Ferris, better known in Robinson as E. W. or Ed. Ferris, was one of the early electrical wiring contractors of Robinson, who for some 35 years not only wired many of Robinson's ever increasing number of new homes and business and industrial buildings, but also built many himself. There is hardly a section of town that doesn't contain at least one or more homes or buildings wired by him, and he probably wired more places than any other individual electrician during his time.
Born August 22, 1884 in Dubuque, Iowa, the only son of William Edward Ferris and Dora Klingbenberg Ferris, the latter passing away at his birth, he was raised by an aunt and uncle in Dubuque, He attended public school and highs school in Dubuque until 16 years old, when he left to become manager of the telephone exchange in Dubuque -- being probably one of the youngest persons ever to hold a job of that kind in the country. While in school, he showed a great love for physics and kindred subjects and performed many advanced experiments, although too young himself to study such subjects in school.
Later moving to Terre Haute, Indiana, with his aunt and uncle, he met and married Effie Wolfe in 1906, who was also employed by the company, and who was to become his lifelong companion, both in the home and business. In the same year, he accepted a position with the Suttle Equipment Company of Olney, manufacturer of telephone equipment for the Commercial Telephone Company, which owned the Robinson and other exchanges, before selling out to the General Telephone Company. In 1917, he transferred to Robinson as manager of the Illinois Commercial Telephone Company, with Mrs. Ferris as chief operator.
In 1918, Mr. Ferris resigned as manager of the telephone company and went into the electrical wiring business -- a trade he was to follow for some 35 years. He opened a retail electrical store at 107 North Cross, a building still owned by him and now occupied by the Singer Sewing Machine Company, and he stayed there until 1924, during which time he undertook many electrical jobs, while Mrs. Ferris handled the store. Then he began operating from his home at 508 East Main Street and later at 302 South King until his retirement some three years ago.
Among the many jobs wired by him were the first buildings of the Zwermann Pottery, later to become the Case Manufacturing Corporation, the Lincoln Theatre, the office building at the Refinery, the main high school building, the Otey and the Brubaker buildings and many other businesses and industrial buildings, as well as many of the fine homes built during that period of time. In addition, his confidence in the growth of Robinson was such that he built or remodeled several homes, buildings, apartments and apartment houses, doing much of the work himself.
During this time Mrs. Ferris took an active part in the retail business uptown and later in their large number of rental properties. The daughter of Noah and Charity Wolfe, the latter, Charity Duck, making her home in Robinson following her retirement as an employee of the federal government in Washington for some 24 years, until her passing in 1954.
Effie Corylee Wolfe Ferris was born near Terre Haute and was educated in the Terre Haute and Washington, D.C., schools. She was employed by the Citizens Independent Telephone Company in Olney and then became chief operator of the telephone company in Robinson.
Mrs. Ferris has been a member of the Robinson Woman's Club, and both have been members of the Grange, Odd Fellows, and Rebekah lodges here and are members of the First Christian Church of Robinson. They have one son, Courts, who also makes his home in Robinson. This year they celebrated their fiftieth wedding anniversary at their home on South King, where they have lived since 1935. Mr. Ferris loves to read while Mrs. Ferris' biggest love is the raising of flowers, and fishing is the hobby they both love to do together.