Soldier Information
Name: Willis Ditto
Alias: William Van Meter
Place of Birth: Hardin County KY Year of Birth: 1845
Occupation: Farmer
Eyes: Brown Hair: Black Complexion: Black
Height in Feet: 5 Inches: 4
Enlistment Information
Enlistment Date: July 12, 1864
Enlistment Place: Lebanon
Enlistment State: KY
Compiled Military Service Record
Document: View
Congressional District: 4th
Company: F Regiment(s): 107th USCI
Mustered Where: Lebanon, KY
Mustered Out Date: November 22, 1866
Rank at Muster Out: Private
Notes:
The Compiled Military Service Records for Willis Ditto state he enlisted on July 12, 1864, at Lebanon, Kentucky, and he mustered in on the same date. Willis was 19 years old, height of 5′ 4″, with brown eyes, black hair, and black complexion. Willis served in the 107th USCI, Co. F, and he mustered out on November 22, 1866, at Washington, D.C. The CMSR includes Willis’s enlistment papers, which state his enslaver was Malinda Ditto of Hardin County, Ky., and Willis enlisted without consent.
Soldier Death Information
Died in war? No
Military Death Date:
Military Death Location:
Military Cause of Death:
Death Date: January 1, 1893
Cause of Death:
Soldier Pension Information
Pension Card Link: Pension Card
Pension Application Date: February 9, 1888
Application No.: 639399 Certificate No.: 754697
Alternate First Name: William Alternate Last Name: Van Meter
Widow Pension Information
Widow Pension Card: Pension Card
Widow Application Date: January 3, 1894
Application No.: 588128 Certificate No.: 406804
No other family pension card found
Pension File Information
Pension File:
Pensioners:
Pensioner County: Pensioner State:
Number of Pages:
Pension Notes:
Willis Ditto applied for an Invalid’s Pension on Feb. 9, 1888, application no. 639399, certificate no. 754697. The filing date in February of 1888 suggests Willis was alive at this time. His wife, Sophy Van Meter, applied for a Widow’s Pension on Jan. 3, 1894, application no. 588128, certificate no. 406804. The filing date of January 1894 suggests Willis died shortly before this time. Both applications were filed from the state of Indiana. The name of the soldier states “Willis Ditto” is an alias, and his name is “William Van Meter.”
Freedman’s Bank/Freedmen’s Bureau Information
Freedman’s Bank Link: View
Freedman’s Bank Notes:
There are two Freedman’s Bank records for Willis Ditto, one dated May 19, 1866, in Washington, D.C., and one dated Dec. 20, 1866, in Louisville, Kentucky. Willis is noted as being 5’4″, with black complexion. He is from the 107th USCI, Co. F. The names of his enslavers are James and Linda Ditto. The name of his father is Kitts Van Meter. His place of birth is Hardin County, Ky. There are no names for a wife or children.
No Freedmen’s Bureau Documents found
Family Information
Mother First Name: Mother Maiden Name:
Father First Name: Kitto/Kitts Father Last Name: Van Meter
Siblings:
Wife #1 First Name: Sophia Maiden Name: Bowman
Wife #2 First Name: Maiden Name:
Wife #3 First Name: Maiden Name:
Children: Lula Van Meter Curel 1875
William Van Meter 1876
Ollie D. Van Meter 1878
Howard Van Meter 1879
Grace Van Meter Spillman 1882
George Hansen 1883 Van Meter
Alyosius Van Meter 1885
Family Notes:
Willis (Ditto) Van Meter was married to Sophia Bowman, and they had at least nine children, as reported in the 1900 Census. The 1880 Census names: Lulie A. (Lula), William, Ollie D., and Howard. The 1900 Census names: Lula, Grace, George Hansen, and Aloysius. There is a possible marriage record for Willis and Sophia: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HY-6GLL-V7?i=261&cc=1410397. There is a marriage record for their daughter, Grace, which provides the maiden name of her mother: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-6DS9-47P?i=54&cc=1410397&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AXXPS-GYV
Family Tree:
View Family Tree on Ancestry.com Please note: this requires a paid Ancestry.com account to view
1870 Census
1870 Census information not found
1880 Census
1880 Census Link: View
1880 Profession: Laborer
1880 Live with/near former enslaver? No
1880 Ability to Read? Can read Ability to Write? Can write
1880 Census Notes:
Willis Ditto (aka William Van Meter) is living with his wife and four children in Jeffersonville, Indiana. Willis/William is a laborer, and Sophia is keeping house. This record provides supporting evidence that Willis also went by the name “William,” although it may have been an enumerator’s mistake. Willis/William is living with his wife Sophia and children Lulie A. (Lula), William, Ollie D., and Howard.
1890 Census
1890 Census information not found
1900 Census
1900 Census Link: View
1900 Profession: Seamstress
1900 Ability to Read? Can read Ability to Write? Cannot write
1900 Own/Rent: Own 1900 Home Free/Mortgage: Mortgage 1900 Farm/House: House
1900 Census Notes:
Willis Ditto (Van Meter)’s widow, Sophia Van Meter, is living in Jeffersonville, Indiana, with four children and a son-in-law. Sophia is listed as a widow, her occupation is a seamstress, and she owns her home (with a mortgage). She has had nine children, and the four of them who live with her are the only ones still living.
1910 Census
1910 Census information not found
1920 Census
1920 Census information not found
Enslaver Information
Name: James and Malinda Ditto Location: Meade County, Kentucky
Previous Enslaver:
Enslaver Notes:
The 1860 Census lists James C. Ditto as a farmer in Meade County, Kentucky. He lives with his wife, Malinda (Linda), and his six children. The 1860 Slave Schedule shows that James C. Ditto had one slave house, and he enslaved four people, including one 16-year-old male. These records are very likely evidence of the enslaver of Willis (Ditto) Van Meter, as his CMSR records and Freedman’s Bank records state his enslavers’ names were James and Malinda (or Linda) Ditto. The Ditto farm is in Meade County, which has also been mentioned in previous records as the birthplace of Willis.
1850 Enslaver Census
1850 Census information not found
1860 Enslaver Census
1860 Census information not found
1870 Enslaver Census
1870 Census information not found
1880 Enslaver Census
1880 Census information not found
Compensation Information
Compensation Application not found