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Below is a family biography included in the Biographical Annals of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania published in 1904 by T. S. Benham & Company and The Lewis Publishing Company; Elwood Roberts, Editor.  These biographies are valuable for genealogy research in discovering missing ancestors or filling in the details of a family tree. Family biographies often include far more information than can be found in a census record or obituary.  Details will vary with each biography but will often include the date and place of birth, parent names including mothers' maiden name, name of wife including maiden name, her parents' names, name of children (including spouses if married), former places of residence, occupation details, military service, church and social organization affiliations, and more.  There are often ancestry details included that cannot be found in any other type of genealogical record.

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PROFESSOR WILLIAM W. RUPERT, superintendent of schools in the borough of Pottstown, is a native of Chester county. He was born near Oxford October 29, 1852, being the son of George and Anna (Durnall) Rupert, both natives of Pennsylvania. The couple had three children: Professor William W., of Pottstown; Elizabeth, wife of Rev. Edwin Macminn, D. D., of Burlington, Iowa; and Edgar W. Rupert, of Oxford.

George Rupert (father) was a farmer in Chester county, near Oxford, where he died in 1891, aged eighty-two years. His wife died earlier, aged about sixty-five years. Both were Baptists in religious faith, the husband being a deacon in the church for many years.

William Rupert (grandfather) was a native of Pennsylvania and the early part of his life was spent in the neighborhood of Philadelphia, though he afterwards lived for many years in Chester county, where he died at an advanced age. His wife was Elizabeth Achuff. They had a large family. He was a teacher and followed that occupation for forty years at one place, Fox Chase, near Philadelphia, and now within the limits of that city. The family are of Welsh descent.

Mr. Durnall (maternal grandfather) was a native of Pennsylvania. His wife was Elizabeth Durnall. He was a farmer and both he and his wife lived to an advanced age. They had a large family.

Professor William W. Rupert lived on the farm until he was twenty years of age and attended the district schools of that vicinity. Later he spent three years in the Union high school in Lancaster county, a private institution conducted by James W. Andrews, A. M. Subsequently he took a course in civil engineering, graduating from the Polytechnic College of Pennsylvania, and located at Philadelphia, in 1877. He then taught school near Oxford for one year, having also taught in the same school before entering college. While he was employed there a second time he accepted a position as professor of mathematics in the Parkesburg Classical Institute, of Chester county, remaining in that position one year. From Parkesburg he went to Pottstown in 1879 as principal of the high school, continuing in that situation for nine years. He was then elected the first borough superintendent of Pottstown, which position he has held ever since.

On July 27, 1882, he married Mrs. Clara S. Davis, widow of Dr. Brooke Davis, and daughter of John and Margaret (Sommers) Miller. The couple have two children: William Earle and Marion E., both of whom were educated in the schools of Pottstown. Mrs. Rupert is a member of the Baptist church, which Professor Rupert also attends. Politically he is a Republican.

Mrs. Rupert’s parents were natives of Chester county. They had three children: Franklin, of Chester county, who resides on the farm; Lewis Miller, of Chester county; and Mrs. Clara S. Rupert. Mrs. Rupert had two children by her former marriage: Brooke Davis and Edgar Davis. Her father was a farmer and one of the directors of the First National Bank of Pottstown.

Professor Rupert is the author of the following works: “Guide to the Study of History and the Constitution of the United States,” published by Ginn & Company, of Boston; “Rupert’s Geographical Reader,” published by Leach, Shewell & Sanborn, of Boston; “Famous Geometrical Theorems and Problems with their History,” published by D. C. Heath & Company, Boston; and “Geography of Pennsylvania,” published by McMillan & Company, New York.

Professor Rupert is one of the most successful teachers in the country, and it is due largely to his energy and ability that the schools of Pottstown enjoy so excellent a reputation.

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This family biography is one of more than 1,000 biographies included in the Biographical Annals of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania published in 1904 by T. S. Benham & Company and The Lewis Publishing Company.  For the complete description, click here: Biographical Annals of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania

View additional Montgomery County, Pennsylvania family biographies here: Montgomery County, Pennsylvania Biographies

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