Here is a photograph of William Heckman along with the text of his diary transcribed by his great grandson Lawrence D. Heckman. (Click the "Text Version" button below to view.) William Heckman was born in 1844 in Dime, Pennsylvania. Free land for homesteading attracted William and several friends to Kansas in 1868. He writes about this journey in his entry dated February 11, 1868. William also recorded his travels to Topeka, Manhattan, Lawrence and Leavenworth, and to Liberty where he was involved in the Heckman Mercantile store. Later he worked in insurance and real estate in Coffeyville. With his wife Mary Jane Alsup he had four children: Altie Maggie Heckman, Pearl F. Heckman, Oscar Abraham Heckman, and Rolla D. Heckman. William died in February 1916 and is buried in Liberty Cemetery, Liberty, Kansas.
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