William was the oldest son of ten children born to Sarah Alice Frye Beaver and George Washington Fetterman, born in Ringtown, Union Township in Schuylkill County, PA. He married Anna E. “Annie,” daughter of Lucy Beaver and Samuel Stauffer, a farmer in Ringtown Valley, on May 2, 1908. Their marriage was announced in the Catawissa News Item on May 14, 1908.

They made their home on Main Street in Ringtown, Schuylkill County, and William worked as a laborer in the coal mines. Of this marriage, six children were born:

1. An infant deceased by 1910 (according to the 1910 census);
2. Samuel S., b. July 15, 1912 - d. November 27, 1987, married Theresa Blume;
3. George S., b. July 15, 1912 - d. May 1987 (wife is still living);
4. Lucy A., b. July 26, 1914 - d. April 9, 1993, married Raymond Crouthamel;
5. John W., b. May 24, 1920 - d. June 1972, married Minnie Topping; and
6. Clara A., b. July 11, 1926 - d. November 26, 2001, married Norman H. Benner.

They were members of the Lutheran church in Ringtown.

Headstone documented June 2, 2004.