WESTLEY E. BOLTON resides in section seventeen La Grange township, and is one of the leading' citizens of the town. He was born in Wilton township. Monroe county, Wisconsin, October 1, 1863. His parents, Edwin L.. and Roseline (Cady) Bolton, were natives of England and Vermont, respectively. The father came west to Wisconsin in the early fifties, locating in Dane county, where he remained four years, when with his father, John G. Bolton, he came to Wilton township, Monroe county, and in 1873, when our subject was ten years of age, moved to La Grange township and settled on the farm where our subject now resides, a small amount of which was cleared at that time. The father died in 1886, at the age of forty-nine years. His widow, mother of our subject, made her home in Tomah until her death, September 23, 1912. John G. Bolton, grandfather of our subject, who was born at Leeds, England, died in 1884, aged about seventy years. Harriet Lathem Bolton, his wife, died in 1889, at the age of seventy years. The maternal grandfather of Wesley E. was Reverend Cady, a Methodist clergyman. He died in Greenfield township, and was survived for some years by his wife.

Westley E.. the subject of this sketch, is one of a family of eleven children, seven sons and four daughters; of the others, Frederick E., is professor of psychology in the State University of Iowa, James A., of LaGrange township, whose sketch appears elsewhere in this volume: Herbert F., has chair in history of Berkeley, Cal.; Laura, wife of Dr. A. R. Bell, of Tomah: Dr. Ernest LeRoy, of Chilton, Wis.; Grace is a teacher in the Tomah high school; Edwinnie, wife of Roy Naphus, resides in lowa; Edmund and John W. and Hattie M. are deceased. Our subject was reared on the home farm and received his education in the district schools. He assisted his father with the farm work until he reached the age of seventeen, when he started out in life for himself. He was employed four years by S. H. Griswold in the lime business in the town of Wilton, and then rented a farm in Wilton township which he carried on until 1897, then purchased the home farm of 145 acres to which he has since added the Henry Mallory farm of eighty acres, making in all 225 acres which is well improved. His residence, barns and outbuildings are of modern construction and well kept up, and the beautiful country home of Mr. Bolton is indicative of the ambition of its owner. He is active in the affairs of his township and for the past seven years has been chairman of the town board. He has filled the office of treasurer for one year, was assessor for the years 1904 and 1905, and has also been a member of the side board. He is at present and has been for the last five years, secretary of the Farmers Mutual Fire Insurance company of Tomah.

He was married at Wilton in 1884 to Miss Willella Hancock, daughter of William and Ellen (Gooder) Hancock, natives of England, and who settled in Wisconsin many years ago. Mr. and Mrs. Bolton are the parents of four children, viz.: Charlotte M., Edwin E., Raymond L., a student at Lawrence university, and Russell B. Bolton.