William Paul was born August 10, 1841 in Madison Twp., Scioto Co., Ohio, and died November 11, 1916 near Garnett, Anderson Co., Kansas, son of Perris Augustus Paul and Elisabeth Monroe. William came to Anderson County with his parents and siblings in 1858 trailing a team of oxen. Perris and Betsy settled in the northeastern section of the county and remained there except for a brief exodus in 1860 when about half of Anderson County's population left during a severe drought. The ground was so parched and split that stumbling in the cracks was a game for the children if not a hazard for everyone else. In addition to the weather, trouble was brewing between the States and Kansas was as in-the-middle as it could get. For a short time, William lived in West Peculiar Twp., Cass Co., Missouri, before returning to Kansas. Following the drought was the Civil War. William, a young man at the time, enlisted in the Union Army. He enrolled at Shawnee Town, Kansas, on 15 April 1862 as a private in Co. A, 2nd Regt Kansas Vol. Cavalry, and was honorably discharged at Little Rock, Arkansas, on 14 April 1865. William was severely injured during the course of his duties. On 1 April 1864, while helping tear down a derilict building, a gust of win toppled the structure, part of which fell on William. A gash was inflicted from the top of his head to the top of his right ear, his skull was fractured, and a large iron spike was driven through his right arm above the elbow. His nickname "Spike" was a natural legacy. In later life, William was a member of the G.A.R.

William married Nancy Jane "Sis" Bealer January 1, 1867 in Anderson Co., Kansas, daughter of pioneers William Bealer and Matilda Bartlett, and step-daughter of James Adams. She was born March 16, 1845 in Lee Co., Iowa , and died suddenly February 13, 1922 at her home on 2nd Street in Garnett, Anderson Co., Kansas. Nancy was known far and wide as an angel of mercy, going wherever she was needed to relieve sickness. William and Nancy are buried in the Canton aka Judy Cemetery northeast of Garnett.

William and Nancy had two daughters, Rosanna B. "Rosa" (Paul) Post and Matilda Elizabeth "Tillie" (Paul) Thomas, and six grandchildren: Carl Alton Post, Burton Everett Post, Paul Post, Alta M. Thomas, Paul Thomas, and Wilma Joy Thomas.