William Streeter Travis was born October 22, 1896, in Paulding County, Ohio, the son of Earl Norman Travis, born June 1861 in Ohio, and Margaret C. (Streeter) Travis, born August 1863 in Ohio. This couple was married in 1880. By 1900, with the family living on Water Street in Paulding, the Travis family had grown with the births of Kate (1882), Paul (July 1889), Florence (April 1891), Helen (March 1893), and William (1896). Earl was working as a real estate agent, and most of the children who were old enough were attending school.
By 1910, still living on Water Street, another daughter, Mary Margaret, was born in 1906; she passed away in 1907. Anne Louise was born February 18, 1908. William, along with Helen and Florence, were still in school, and Earl continued working as a real estate agent.
In 1912, the family moved to 212 East Jefferson Street in Paulding. On June 5, 1917, William returned home from Akron, Ohio, where he had been working for the Kelly-Springfield Tire Company as a Kelly airfield worker, and registered for the World War I draft at the Paulding precinct. He was listed as single, with blue eyes, light blonde hair, a light complexion, standing 5 feet 7 inches tall, and employed as a bookkeeper. William was inducted into service on August 15, 1918, in Paulding. He served in the 96th Balloon Company, Air Service, until December 16, 1918, then was transferred to the 67th Balloon Company, Air Service, until he was honorably discharged on January 22, 1919…