The Willard family came to Minnesota from Ohio sometime in the late 1850s. They settled in Castle Rock Township, Dakota County, where Arthur Theodore was born in 1862. Following the death of Arthur's mother, the rest of the family, except Willis Robert and Arthur Theodore, moved back to Ohio.

Willis R. Willard (1854-1940) went to Hastings, Minnesota around 1870, where he worked in the newspaper office and learned the engraving trade. In 1874 he moved to Minneapolis and worked as a wood engraver. At about the same time he brought his brother Arthur to Minneapolis, where he also engaged in the business. Willis did engraving work for a number of firms in Minneapolis and elsewhere and in 1895 joined the advertising department of M. W. Savage's International Stock Food Company, with which he was associated until his retirement.

Arthur Theodore Willard (1862-1943) also did engraving work early in his career. He was an engraver for the Northwestern Miller in 1882. However, at about the same time he started experimenting with battery cells. In 1886 he went to Cleveland, Ohio, where he lived with his uncle Archibald M. Willard (an artist who painted the famous "Spirit of '76" portrait) and in the 1890s began the Willard Electric Battery Company, which later became the Willard Storage Battery Company. Shortly after he left Minneapolis, Willard changed his name to T. A. Willard. Willard was also interested in the pre-Colombian art of Central America and wrote and researched extensively on the Mayan civilization.

The Dimond family became related to the Willard family through the marriage of Alice Dimond, daughter of Alfred Stewart Dimond, to Willis Robert Willard. Alfred Steward Dimond (1836-1905) was a printer by trade and was the editor and publisher of The Minnetonka Tourist, Tourist and Sportsman, and Northwestern Tourist, all during the years 1876-1894. He also edited White Bear Life from 1896-1899. For a short period (1855-1856), he and Jesse Phelps leased the Faribault Home in Mendota as a hotel under the name "Mendota House."

Alice and Willis Willard's nephew, Stuart Dudley Dimond, was born 2 January 1891 in Minnesota, the son of Frank and Cora (Clark) Dimond. He went to New York City where he studied mechanics and engineering, but returned to Minnesota in April of 1912. After several short stints with other Minneapolis firms including Western Electric, Minneapolis Motorcycle Co., and Voeglis Photo Department, he took a job at Anderson Electric Car Company. He later became chief electrician for the Soo Line Railroad.

Stuart Dimond married Margaret "Bibs" Bixby (b. 19 August 1894) in May of 1913. They lived in Excelsior and later in Minneapolis. The couple had at least one child, a son named after his father. Margaret died 17 August 1965. Stuart passed away on 24 October 1985.

A genealogical chart showing the relationships of members of the Willard and Dimond family members mentioned above is in the collection.