WILLIAM NEWTON SYMINGTON, son of ]ohn and Elizabeth McCarr (Johnston) Symington, was born in Washington, D. C., June 10th, 1841. Prepared at Lafayette College, Easton, Penn., and entered the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in September, 1858. After graduating at the Institute in 1861, he studied in Europe at the University of Gottingen, and later at the Royal Saxon Mining Academy, Freiberg, until September, 1863; special student, and visiting mines and smelting works in France, Belgium and England, until February, 1864; He attempted to enter the Confederacy by blockade runner, but was taken prisoner by the United States blockading squadron off Wilmington, N. C., May, 1864, and exchanged January, 1865 The same month, after being exchanged, he entered the service of the Confederate States on engineer duty, and as assistant inspector of mines for Virginia and North Carolina till close of the war; March to September, 1866, assistant superintendent Bellevue zinc works, Mineral Point Wis.; July 1869, superintendent mines and works of American Barytes company, Alexandria, Va.; until April, 1870, superintendent Colorado silver mining company, of Baltimore, at Greytown, Col.; until February, 1873, civil and mining engineer with office at St. Louis, Mo., engaged in the field and in consultation at various points in Missouri, Illinois and elsewhere on the Missouri river; Later, from offices in New York, engaged as consulting mining engineer and metallurgist. In the early 1890s, he moved to Brevard, NC. Where he was Engineer in charge of construction of the Hendersonville and Brevard Railroad. About 1890, he also purchased a farm about three miles from Brevard, and was a prominent and scientific farmer in the area. He died there in 1899.
He married, February 1st, 1883, Florence de Treville, daughter of Richard de Treville, of South Carolina.
Source of the above: Newspaper obituaries and RENSSELAER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE biography of graduates.