David W. Butts, of Avon Township, was born in Warren county, N. J., Nov 11, 1884. His honored parents, Elias and Catherine (Emory) Butts, were natives of New Jersey and Pennsylvania respectively. The Butts family had large tracts of land in New Jersey and Elias pursued the calling of a farmer throughout life, as did his father before him. about the middle of this century Elias brought his family to the west, locating near Rochester, Oakland County, Mich. In this vicinity he purchased one hundredand sixty acres of rich and arable soil, the very tract which is now occupied by his son David. This land had been in possession of the family since 1854.

Elias and Catherine Butts had the happiness of gathering about their fireside seven beautiful and promising children, but four of them have passed to the spirit land and only three survive. John H., the eldest living son, is in Lakeville, this State. The second in age is David W., our subject, and the third, Effie, is now Mes Bowman ofRochester, this county. The father of these children passed from this earth May 27, 1879.

David W. Butts was ten years old when his parents removed to Michigan and he still remembers many interesting incidents of his home in the east and the long journey to the wilds of Michigan.

He attended school in the old log schoolhouse of pioneer days and benefited by the excellent drill which characterized those schools and produced good scholarship and excellent pracrtical results, notwithstanding the fact that its curriculum was not broad.

The life of our subject upon the farm and in the forest was calculated to strengthen and develop both the physical and moral nature, and he grew up to a strong and vigorous young manhood and early took his place as a man in the community. But it was not until he had passed the thirty-sixth milestone of his existence that he set up a household and took himself a wife. He married Miss Julia Bromley, daughter of Edward Bromley, on Jun 21, 1881. To them have been born two childen, who are the joy and light of their fond parents.

Mr. Butts has devoted his entire attention to agriculture, in wich ha has been truly successfu. His fine property and beautiful home overlook the Clinton River Valley, in which Rochester lies. The platform of the Democratic party embodies the political doctrines which are pproved by the judgement of Mr. Butts and he is a man of influence in his party, having been placed in some positions of responsibility, as he filled for three terms the office of Treasurer of Avon Township.