Ramsay family.

William Gouverneur Ramsay was the son of Joseph Gales Ramsay (1843-1899) and Anne Morris Ramsay (1846-1910). He was born August 23, 1866 at the Presidio, San Francisco, California. He trained as a civil engineer at the University of Virginia, finishing his course work in 1887. His employment included numerous engineering positions with the Chesapeake and Ohio Canal, and the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, for which he worked sporadically from 1883 until 1892.

In 1892, Ramsay joined the Chicago sales office of the Repauno Chemical Company and Eastern Dynamite Company. While in Chicago, he was involved with the construction of the Chicago drainage canal. In 1894, Ramsay was transferred to the New York sales office of Repauno where he was head of the sales office until June 1898. He left to organize Company "A," 1st U.S. Volunteer Engineers in response to the Spanish-American War. He served in the war as captain of the company and was promoted to major.

After his return from military service in 1899, Ramsay became president of the newly-established Great Northern Manufacturing and Supply Company, located in Terre Haute, Indiana. The company primarily sold powder it purchased from E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Company and other powder manufacturers for mining use in the Indiana coal fields. Great Northern went out of business in 1902. With the company's demise, Ramsay joined the newly-formed engineering division of the Eastern Dynamite Company as chief engineer. When Eastern Dynamite assigned its assets to Du Pont in 1903, Ramsay became Du Pont's chief engineer and directed the construction of many of the largest explosives factories in the United States.

In 1916, Ramsay became a director and vice president of Du Pont and retained his position as chief engineer. He died September 28, 1916 at his home north of Wilmington, Delaware.

Caroline ("Lena") Johnson Canby (1872?-1958) was a daughter of Samuel Canby and Rebecca Tilghman Canby. She was educated at Misses Hebbs School in Wilmington, Delaware and married William Ramsay in January 1892. She was interested in cultural and educational institutions, was active in local organizations, and traveled extensively.