Background
Wells was born to Edmund William and May Louise (Arnold) Wells on February 14, 1846 near Lancaster, Ohio. In 1852, his family moved to Oskaloosa, Iowa where he attended public schools. Following his mother's death when he was sixteen, Wells and his father traveled to Pike's Peak Country to prospect for gold. Failing to find riches, the pair moved south and arrived in Prescott, Arizona Territory on July 6, 1864. The senior Wells was appointed alcalde by Governor John N. Goodwin while the younger Wells worked a series of clerk positions. The list of clerking positions included work for the 1st and 2nd territorial legislatures, the U.S. Army, Chief Justice William F. Turner, and the county board of supervisors. In 1870, Wells was elected county recorder and he also served as United States commissioner from 1871 to 1875.
Wells married Rosiland Gertrude Banghart on October 5, 1869. The couple had six children, one who died in childhood. As a result of the marriage, Wells became the brother-in-law to newspaperman John H. Marion and to Governor Oakes Murphy. The Wells were founding members of Prescott's First Church of Christ, Science.
Read more about this topic: Edmund W. Wells
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