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William Harrison Folsom advanced in this vocation until he was an accredited "joiner" at the time, of his marriage in 1837. He received his early scholastic training in the schools of Buffalo and according to knowledge and ability he displayed later in life must have had some higher education.
On August 24, 1834, the family gathered at the bedside of their mother, Hannah, to bid her farewell as she passed away. She was buried in the family plot in Buffalo, New York.
The inhabitants of the state of New York soon recognized the advantages of transportation by canal and petitions flooded the governor's office for extensions of the system. Some petitions were granted and some were not. At Avon Springs, New York, William Fullington Folsom found work on a lateral canal. While working at this location, he became acquainted with Ann Cornwall Bettis, daughter of John and Elizabeth Wright Bettis. William and Ann were married at Avon Springs on December 25, 1834. They made their home at this location until after the birth of a son, Martin Van Buren Folsom, on October 27, 1835. As soon as the work on the canal project at Avon Springs was completed, William took Ann and the baby to his home in Buffalo, where Lydia Ann, William Harrison, Louisa Maria and Ebenezer made them welcome.
During the absence of her father, Lydia Ann was very faithful in her service to the other members of the family. She was now about 25 years old and very beautiful, with hair that was a darker brown, more abundant and even more luxurious than that of her mother. It is interesting that although she received many invitations to outstanding social events in Buffalo, she never married. Brother Benjamin had married Hannah Ford November 26, 1834, just one month before his father's second marriage. Sister Mary Jane died March 12, 1836 about one year after her marriage to Valoras D. Ford.
Connecticut claimed that her western boundary extended at least to the Mississippi River. She therefore set up her Western Reserve west of the Allegheny. Moses Cleveland was commissioned to survey and set up townships in this Reserve. Several prominent surveyors and their families, along with assistants, relatives and friends, mostly from Connecticut, accompanied him on this venture.
Among these settlers was Richard Clark, his wife Susan Gillett, and their five daughters (no sons). They established a home at Atwater, Ohio.
Education is a "must" with the inhabitants of Connecticut, so the first families who came into this Reserve brought their culture and education with them. This Clark and Gillett family claimed lineage from some very influential early American colonists. Among them was the Honorable Daniel Clark, Magistrate and Secretary of the Colony at Windsor, Connecticut. When his wife's sister, Sarah Newbury Wolcott, died, Daniel took her sons and educated them in law. No less than twelve Wolcotts became governors, due to his interest in their welfare. The Reverend John Russell was also included in their lineage. Then there was William Gager, who came with the Winthrop Company as "that honorable and skillful
'chiurgion' (physician; surgeon)." Listed as progenitors also were the Roots, Griswolds, Newburys, Ellsworths, Buells, and many other educated and honorable families.