George Washington Wilson
27 Oct 1852 - 27 Feb 1916
diedArizona, USA
bornStanton, Virginia, USA
SchooltblData
BiographyCattle rancher, butcher, and superintendent of buildings for the Territorial Normal School.At the age of 13, he went to California, and eventually acquired a large cattle ranch north of
San Bernardino. He married and made his home there until they came to Arizona and bought
section 22 near Tempe. Their first Arizona home, an adobe house, was still there in 1980. In 1885 he sold his property in Tempe and bought a section of land near Mesa. After his wife died in 1888, he sold his home in Mesa and moved back to Tempe. He was the original owner of the 20-acre pasture that became the site for the Territorial Normal School. He
offered to sell 5 acres of the land, and eventually donated the other 15 acres to the school.
He worked at the normal school as superintendent of buildings and the heating plant, and as carpenter, until c1919.
Wilson Hall on ASU campus was dedicated in his honor in 1956. He was a member of the
Knights of Pythias, Woodmen of the World, and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.
Lived at 929 Normal Avenue, c1910-1919.
OSB 34
Federal census (Tempe), 1900, 1910
Tempe CD, 1905-1919
Double Butte Cemetery, Tempe
Hopkins and Thomas, The ASU Story, pp. 50, 71-72
Person TypeIndividual
