Wilber L. Hutchinson, one of the proprietors of the "Bulletin," of Anthony, was born Dec. 30, 1864, at Griggsville, Ill., the second son of Samuel and Sarah Elizabeth (Jones) Hutchinson. The father was born in England in 1812 and came to the United States with his parents when a small boy. He lived in Boston, Mass., until 1833, where his father was city undertaker and a cabinet maker, and where he learned the same business. In 1833, Samuel Hutchinson removed to Griggsville, Ill., where he built a large factory for the manufacture of agricultural implements. He was the patentee of four different agricultural implements, and placed on the market the first gang plow ever made and sold in Illinois. He was successful in this line, and retired in 1880, living in Griggsville until his death which occurred in 1904. He belonged to the Methodist Episcopal church. He was married three times. His first wife was Abigail Winchester, whom he married at Philadelphia in 1840. She was a sister of Oliver Winchester, inventor of the Winchester rifle. She died in 1847. Three children were born of this first union—one son and two daughters: James W., born in 1842, was educated at the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, Md. He was commissioned as an officer in the navy and participated in the bombardment and capture of Fort Fisher in the early part of the Civil war. He retired from the United States naval service in 1864 and for a few years was a mineral surveyor in Colorado. At the time of his death in 1883 he was engaged in the banking business at Greenfield, Ill. He was past grand commander of the Knights Templars of Illinois; Caroline, deceased, was born in 1844; and Ella M., born in 1846, the wife of Dr. Battles of Griggsville, Ill. His second wife, whose maiden name was Edwards, died about 1850. He married Sarah E. Jones, as his third wife, in 1859, at Jacksonville, Ill. She was born in 1832, at Memphis, Tenn., and died in March, 1888, at Griggsville Ill. She was of Welsh ancestry. Two children were born of this third union—a son and daughter: Wilber L., who is the eldest, and Irene, born in 1868, died in 1881.

Wilber L. Hutchinson was educated in the public schools of Griggsville, Ill., and began to learn the printer's trade at the age of eleven years. He worked four years in the office of the "Reflector" at Griggsville, then leaving home he worked in different states until 1883, when he came to Kansas. In 1885-86, he was manager of a weekly paper at Abilene. In 1887 he removed to Anthony, becoming one of the publishers of the "Harper County Enterprise" in which he remained interested until 1892, when the name of the paper was changed to the "Anthony Bulletin." The plant was burned in 1893, but was replaced with a more modern equipment without the paper missing a single issue. In 1898, the publication of the Bulletin was suspended and Mr. Hutchinson enlisted in Company M, Twentieth Kansas infantry, entering the army at Salina, Kan., June 16, 1898. He went with his company at once to San Francisco, and in October of the same year his regiment was ordered to service in the Philippines. His transport sailed Oct. 28, and stopping four days at Honolulu, H. I., landed at Manila, November 17. His company was assigned to police duty in Manila until Feb. 4, 1899, when the Philippine insurrection broke out. He was with his regiment, under Col. Frederick Funston in the thick of the battle of Manila, Feb. 4-5-6, 1899; Caloocan, Feb. 10; defence of Caloocan, Feb. 11 to March 24; battle of Tulajan river, March 25; Polo and Malinta, March 26: Marilao, March 27; outpost skirmish, March 28; Bocave, March 29; Guiguinto, March 29; advance on Malolos, March 30-31; defense of the same town April 1, to 24; Rio Grande, April 26-27; Santa Tomas, May 4; Bacalor, May 24. This concluded his field service in the interior. In June his company with others of the regiment was assigned to guard duty at Bilibib prison. About Aug. 1, he was taken ill with typhoid fever and acute dysentery and was confined to the hospital two months on Corregidor island, during which time his regiment had been returned to San Francisco. In the latter part of October he became able to travel and sailed for the United States on the transport Warren via Japan and the Japan Inland sea. He received an honorable discharge at San Francisco in the latter part of November, 1899. He at once returned to Anthony, Kan. and set about to reëstablish his old paper, the "Bulletin," buying modern machinery for the purpose. It is now published under the firm name of "Hutchinson & McColloch" and is one of the brightest and most influential weekly papers in Kansas, owning its own modern building, erected expressly for a newspaper office. Mr. Hutchinson was married Sept. 18, 1902, to Miss Euphie Croft, daughter of Samuel M. Croft, a successful farmer and cattle raiser of Harper. She was born Sept. 12, 1881, at Henry, Ill., and was a successful teacher in the Anthony schools for two years before her marriage. They have two children—Wilber Guy, born Oct. 28, 1904, and Samuel Croft, born July 5, 1909. Mr. Hutchinson is a Mason, and historian of the Wichita camp of United Spanish War Veterans.