George Washington "Wash" Wilber was born in Indiana on May 10, 1844. By 1850, his family had moved to Russellville in Lawrence County Illinois where he lived the rest of his life. In 1862 at the age of 18 he served as a private in company K of the Illinois 70th regiment during the Civil War. He later married Catherine McIntosh and together they had 12 children. He was a farmer and owned many acres throughout Lawrence County.