Emma R. d/o Alfred~m. Harry P. Shomo Berks Co PA
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SHOMO, WILLIAM A., p. 526
Surnames: SHOMO, CONFER, WREN, SCHATZ, WOLFF, FISHER
William A. Shomo, one of the leading young attorneys at law of the Berks county Bar, and a member of the well-known law firm of Wolff & Shomo, was born at Hamburg, Pa., Dec. 25, 1879, son of Harry P. and Emma R. (Confer) Shomo.
Mr. Shomo is a member of one of the oldest families in Berks county, his great-great-grandfather, John Shomo, having lived here as early as 1752. John Shomo was a son of Bernard Shomo, who emigrated to Philadelphia from France in the early part of the eighteenth century. The latter was a civil engineer of repute in his native country, and he continued to follow this profession after coming to America. He died in Philadelphia, in 1793. John Shomo, like his father before him, became a civil engineer, and, so far as known, followed his profession up to the time of his death, May 5, 1836. It was he who originally surveyed the Schuylkill county coal fields, and he is known to have owned a large acreage of land in that section. He was a Revolutionary soldier. He resided in Reading up to the year 1800, when he moved with his family to Hamburg. He was the father of four children: Elizabeth, Joseph, John and William.
William Shomo, son of John Shomo, was born in 1796 and died Dec. 18, 1842, at the age of forty-six years. He was a successful merchant. He was the father of four children: John, deceased, late of Washington, D. C.; Henry, deceased, late of Fremont, Ohio; Sarah, deceased (m. Thomas P. Wren, of Pottsville); Elias, deceased, late of Hamburg.
Elias Shomo, son of William Shomo, was born in Hamburg March 26, 1827, and died there May 13, 1894, having been a life-long resident of that place. For some years he was engaged in the furniture business, but later he purchased the "Central House: property, one of Hamburg's leading hotels, and there conducted a successful hotel business for many years. He retired from business several years before his death. He was at one time postmaster of Hamburg, and was a leading and influential man of his day. He married Elizabeth Schatz, of German ancestry, and to them were born six children: Sarah, James, Laura, Harry P., Allen L. and Elizabeth.
Harry P. Shomo, son of Elias Shomo and father of William A., was born in Hamburg, Pa., Sept 28, 1860. He received his education in the public schools of Hamburg and under private tutors. For a number of years he has been prominently identified with the Auditor General's Department, at Harrisburg. He is a highly respected citizen of Hamburg and has a wide acquaintance throughout the county. Mr. Shomo married Emma R. Confer, daughter of Alfred Confer, deceased, and to this union have been born three sons: William A., Allen E. and J. Harold. The latter died during January, 1908, at the age of nineteen years.
William A. Shomo spent his boyhood days in the borough of Hamburg, where he attended the public schools, graduating from the high school in the spring of 1898. In the fall of that year he entered Dickinson College, Carlisle, Pa., matriculating as a member of the Class of 1901. He pursued the Latin Scientific course, and at the end of his sophomore year left the college to enter the Dickinson School of Law. From the latter institution he graduated three years later as a leading member of the Class of 1903, with the degree of LL. B. While at College, Mr. Shomo became a member of the Belle letters Society and the Sigma Chi Fraternity, and took an active part in the affairs of both. In the law school, he was a member of the Allison Law Society, and was chosen one year as president of his class. While a student at college, he was awarded a gold medal as first prize in an oratorical contest held under the auspices of the State Convention of the P. O. S. of A.
Upon graduating from the Dickinson School of Law, Mr. Shomo was admitted to practice before the Cumberland County Bar, but soon thereafter returned to his native county to follow his profession. At Reading, he entered the law office of Stevens & Stevens, where he remained for one and one-half years, and, then in June, 1904, he passed the State Board examination for admission to practice before the Supreme Court. On Oct. 3, 1904, he was admitted to practice in the several courts of Berks county, and on Sept. 1, 1905, he formed a partnership with O. M. Wolff, Esq., under the firm name of Wolff & Shomo. This firm have a fine suite of offices at No. 522 Washington street, Reading. They enjoy and enviable reputation, and have won the confidence of a large clientage. Mr. Shomo is a member of the Berks County Bar Association, Chandler Lodge, No. 227, F & A. M., Reading Board of Trade, American Academy of Political and Social Science, and other organizations.
On Aug. 10, 1905, Mr. Shomo was married to Marian Rae Fisher, daughter of the late George and Elizabeth Fisher, of Reading.