John Willard Anderson was born January 8, 1847, in Odense, Denmark. At the age of 17 he volunteered for service in the Danish Army for 18 months. At 20 years old, he emigrated to the United States and located first in Wisconsin, then in Iowa. On December 25, 1877, he married Addy Belle “Ida” Chadsey (1860-1945) in Riverton, Iowa. Their surviving children were John Willard Anderson (1878-1960), Sarah C. (Anderson) Shaffer (1881-1906), Mary Elsie Christina (Anderson) Knapp (1885-1954), Marion Andrew Anderson (1888-1937), George H. Anderson (1890-1973), Albert B. Anderson (1892-1963), Clyde Oscar Anderson (1899-1986), and Hubert F. Anderson (1902-1922). In 1880 he became a naturalized citizen. In 1885 he moved with his wife and children to Rawlins County, Kansas, first living in Driftwood and later in Celia, where he remained until his death. His obituary mentions that, at the time of his death, he had “united with the M. E. Church several years ago and remained a true Christian until death” (The (Atwood, Kansas) Citizen-Patriot, September 26, 1918). Another obituary refers to him as “one of the best farmers in the county and a square man besides” (The (Atwood, Kansas) Square Deal, September 19, 1918). Although his ministerial duties were not mentioned in the obituaries, a letter from his great-granddaughter suggests that he served congregations in Stephens Chapel (near Atwood), Beardsley, and McDonald, Kansas. It is possible that he was a local “supply” preacher for those churches. He died at the age of 71, on September 15, 1918, at his home in McDonald, Kansas. He was buried in Atwood Fairview Cemetery in Atwood, Kansas.

Note written by Sarah St. John