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John William Vawter

Birth: 4-13-1871 Boone County, West Virginia Death: 2-11-1941, Nashville, In . Married: Mary H. Murray around 1906, Ola Genolin 1923 Known For: Illustrations Associations: Chicago Galleries Association, Hoosier Salon, Charter Member Brown County Art Gallery Association Awards:  Hoosier Salon 1926, 1928, 1930, 1932, 1935 Facts As a young boy, Will Vawter loved to draw filling his school books with sketches. He was very talented and, for the most part, self-taught. Worked with his sister on a children’s book called “The Rabbit’s Ransom.” For 30 years, John did illustrations for James Whitcomb Riley that appear in many Riley books. Mary wanted to get Will away from Riley’s lifestyle, more specifically his drinking, so she convinced him to move Brown County permanently in 1908 Brown County at the time was a dry county they bought a 57-acre farm on Town Hill Riley made an excellent income receiving work from Harper and Life magazine illustrations for Riley's books,