William “Bill” Daugherty Jr. passed away on Sunday, November 30, 2025, at Essentia Hospital in Fargo, ND at the age of 92. He was born on January 10, 1933, in Bluemound Township, McLean County, Illinois, to William and Ola (Basham) Daughtery. His early years were spent in rural Illinois, where his family lived near Towanda and later in Colfax. After eleven years in Colfax, the family moved to Clifton, Illinois. Bill’s father purchased 160 acres, and it was there that Bill attended a small country school.

Bill began high school in Kempton in 1946, during another family move to a farm east of town. Farming was central to the Daugherty family. His father was both a farmer and a jockey. The family farmed several tracts of land in the Cooksville area, and many of Bill’s Kentucky relatives came north during those years seeking new opportunities.

In 1947, Bill’s father traveled north, found a farm near Comstock, Minnesota, and made arrangements to purchase it. Bill attended Moorhead High School during this time.

The family moved permanently to Comstock in August 1948. They soon purchased additional acreage near Wolverton, and by 1951, they had bought the home farm there. Bill left for the U.S. Army in 1953, and during his service the family sold their house in Moorhead and moved out to the farm. Bill returned home in 1955.

Bill’s Army service took him across several posts, including Fort Sheridan in Chicago; Camp Chaffee, Arkansas; Camp Atterbury near Indianapolis; Camp McCoy in Wisconsin; Camp Claybanks near New Era, Michigan—where he served for 18 months—and finally Fort Harrison, Indiana, where he was discharged in 1955.

On March 18, 1954, Bill married the love of his life, Nancy Lee Wagner, at a Methodist church in Fargo. Nancy passed away on September 24, 2019.

In the years following his return, Bill and his family established roots in the Wolverton area and began spending winters in warmer places. Beginning in 1955, they spent three winters in Dunedin, Florida, and later in Marble Falls, TX. The family continued their seasonal travels until 1965.

Bill’s life was deeply tied to farming—from the cornfields of Illinois to the wide fields of the Red River Valley.

Bill is survived by four children: Steven (Engie) Daugherty, Aberdeen, SD, Debra (Robert) Evenson, Wahpeton, ND, Paul (Heidi) Daugherty, Wolverton, MN, and David (Penny) Daugherty, Wolverton, MN; 12 grandchildren—Nora Daugherty, Cloe Daugherty, Madison Daugherty, Hayley Daugherty, Melissa (Sam) Rustan, Lindsey (Bill) Wrigley, Erin (Brian) Meadows, Andrea (Tyler) Mattson, Austin (Olivia) Daugherty, Allen (Abby) Daugherty, Allison (DJ) Janssen, and Ashley (Ethan) Baril—as well as 11 great-grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his parents, wife, Nancy, and sister, Opal Earing.

No services are scheduled at this time.