^: I HISTORY WARREN COUNTY PENNSYLVANIA WITH ILLUSTRATIONS AND BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES OF SOME OF ITS PROMINENT MEN AND PIONEERS EDITED BY J. S. SCH ENC K ASSISTED BY W. S . R A N N SYRACUSE. N. V. D. MASON & CO., PUBLISHERS 1887 PRESS OF D. MASON & CO. 63 WEST WATER ST., SYRACUSE, N. Y. NH l-/^n(^ PREFACE. WHILE it may seem to the uninitiated a task involving but little difficulty to prepare for publication a work no more comprehensive in character than this volume and containing the history merely of a single county, still it is not out of place here to assure all such readers that the work is one demand- ing a vast amount of labor and research, watchful care, untiring patience, and great discrimination. This need not be said to any person who has had ex- perience in similar work. In attempting the production of a creditable history of Warren County, the publishers and the editor did not underestimate the difficulties of their task, and came to it fully imbued with a clear idea of its magnitude, and a determination to execute it in such a manner that it should receive the commendation of all into whose hands it should fall. It is believed that this purpose has been substantially carried out, and that, while a perfect historical work has never yet been published, this one will be found to contain so few imperfections that the most critical reader will be satisfied. It has been a part of the plans of the publishers in the production of this history to secure, as far as possible, assistance from parties resident in the county, either as writers, or in the revision of all manuscripts ; the consequence being that the work bears a local character which could not otherwise be secured, and, moreover, comes from the press far more complete and perfect than could possibly be the case were it intrusted wholly to the efforts of com- parative strangers to the locality in hand. In carrying out this plan, the editor has been tendered such generous co-operation and assistance of various kinds, that to merely mention all who have thus aided is impossible ; the satisfaction 2 Preface. of having assisted in the production of a commendable public enterprise must be their present reward. Those who have aided and encouraged in this work have been almost " legion " ; and to all such the writer extends his grateful thanks, and hopes his efforts to present a truthful history will not prove fruitless, but that it may be a mile-stone of events reared upon our county's century course, and read by our youth and posterity with such profit that they, by their true patriotism, industry and frugality, may be enabled to add as worthy a record of their day and generation as the fathers of the county have here transcribed. CONTENTS CHAPTER I. OUR SUBJECT SOMEWHAT EXPLAINED. The Beginning of Warren County's History — Date of Organization — Its Boundaries — Its Area and Streams — Origin of its Name — Tlie System to be Pursued in Succeed- ing Chapters 13 CHAPTER n. NATURAL FEATURES, ETC. Topography — Character of Forests — Tlie Soil — Its Products — Minerals' — The Animal Kingdom — The Eries — The Kahquahs, or Neuter Nation — The Hm'ons — The Iroquois — Earlier Occupants — Inferences 15 CHAPTER HI. EUROPEAN DISCOVERIES, ETC., 1534-1655. The French in New France — The Puritans in New England — The Dutch in New Nether- lands — Activity of the French — Dutch Progress — The Jesuits — The Company of a Hundred Partners — Capture and Restoration of New France — Great Extent of the Province of Massachusetts Bay — Breboeuf and Chaumonot — Destruction of the Kahquahs and Eries — Seneca Tradition — French Account — Indian Hatchets 21 CHAPTER IV. THE IROQUOIS. Their Name as Apjihed liy Themselves — System of Clans — Its Importance — Its Probable Origin — The Grand Council — Sachems and War-chiefs — Line of Descent — Choice of Sachems — Religious Belief — Natural Attributes — Family Relations, etc 28 CHAPTER V. FROM 1G55 TO rl680. The Iroquois Triumphant — Obliteration of Dutch Power — French Progress — La Salle Visits the Senecas — Greenhalgh's Estimates — La Salle on the Niagara — Building of the Qriffin — Its First and Last Voyage — La Salle's Subsequent Career 34 Contents. CHAPTER VI. THE PROVINCE OF PENNSYLVANIA. Europeans Struggle for Supremacy Along the Atlantic Coast — Quakers Settle in New Jersey — William Penn Appointed a Trustee — His Labors in Their Behalf — An Early Description of the New Country — Admiral Penn — A Province Granted to His Son — It is Named Pennsylvania — Its Extent — A Miscalculation — Penn Pur- chases the Lower Counties — Outlines His Policy — Sends Governor Markham to Take Possession — Names Commissioners — Their Duties — An Address to the Indians — The Site for a New City Selected 38 CHAPTER VII. PENN IN PENNSYLVANIA. WiUiam Penn Sails for America — His Advice to His Family — The Voyage — Warmly Received at New Castle — The" First Assembly — Penn Visits New York and Mary- land — Unsatisfactory Conference with Lord Baltimore — The Great Treaty with the Indians — The Walking Purchase — Great Influx of Colonists — Counties Formed — Meeting of the First General Assembly — Sitting of the First Grand Jury — First Conviction ^ — Another Fruitless Interview with Lord Baltimore — Baltimore's Demand — Penn's Anxiety — His Liberal Offer — Baltimore's Adherents Invade the Lower Counties — Penn Determines to Return to England — His Farewell to His Colonists.. 49 CHAPTER VIII. FRENCH DOMINION. A Slight Ascendency — De NonviUe Attacks the Senecas — Origin of Fort Niagara — Count Frontenac in the Field — Treaty of Ryswick — Queen Anne's War — The Iroquois Neutral — The Tuscaroras — Joncaire — Fort Niagara Rebuilt — French Power Increasing — Conflicting Claims — Secret Instructions — De' Celeron Takes Possession of the Allegheny Valley — Buries a Lead Plate at Mouth of the Cone- wango — The Six Nations Alarmed — French Establish a Line of Forts — The Ohio Company — Virginia's Claim — Washington as an Envoy — French Build Fort Du Quesne — Washington and his Virginians Captured — Braddock's Disastrous Campaign — The Final Struggle — French Defeated all Along the Line — Their Surrender of Power in the New World 56 CHAPTER IX. ENGLISH DOMINION. Pontiac's Conspiracy — The Devil's Hole — A Fight at Black Rock — Bradstreet's Expedi- tion — Sulky Senecas — The Troops Composing Bradstreet's Command — Israel Put- nam — The Revolution — Four Iroquois Tribes Hostile — The Treaty at Oswego — A Price for American Scalps — Brant, the Mohawk — Principal Seneca Chiefs — Wyom- ing — Cornplanter Conspicuous — His Many Names, etc. — Cherry Valley — Ameri- cans Retaliate — Brodhead's Expedition — Sullivan's Indian Campaign — Results — Close of the War, and of English Rule 72 CHAPTER X. FROM 1783 TO 1790. Forlorn Condition of the Senecas at the Clo.se of the Revolutionary War — Willing to Cede the Remainder of their Lands in Pennsylvania — Commissioners Appointed to Treat Contents. 5 with Them — A Sum Appropriated to Piircliase Indian Goods — Quantity and Kind of Goods with whicli Purchase was Made — Treaty of Fort Stanwix — Boundaries of the Tract Acquired by Pennsylvania — Cornplanter the Friend of the Whites — Subsequent Indignation of His Tribe — General Irvine Explores the New Purchase — Extracts from His Report — Running the Boundary Line Between New York and Pennsylvania — Interesting Details — Early Names of Warren County Streams — In- dian Villages — Pertinent Suggestions — A Tract of Land Granted to Cornplanter- — Survey of Lands of the Mouth of the Conewango — An Account of the First Official Exploration of the Head Waters of the Allegheny 83 CHAPTER XI. CORNPLANTER AND OTHER INDIANS— 1790-91. The Seneca Chieftain Invited to Visit Philadelphia — Letter from Thomas Mifflin — Ensign Jeffers's Letter — The Journey — Arrival in the Quaker City — Subsequent Proceed- ings — Cornplanter's Speech to the Supreme Executive Council — President Mifflin's Reply — Cornplanter J Meets President Washington — Returns to His Forest Home with Gifts and Various Supplies — Attempts on the Part of Pittsburgh Tliieves to Steal the Same — Colonel Brodhead's Opinion of Early Pittsburgh Residents — Corn- planter Makes Choice of the Lands Granted Him — Their Location, etc. — Sketch of His Life 96 CHAPTER XII. FROM 1791 TO 1800. Troublous Times on the Border — Baneful British Influence — Uneasy Iroquois — Colonel Proctor Visits Them — Interesting Details Gathered From His Journal — His Mission a Failure — St. CJair Defeated — The Iroquois Become Insolent — Their Arrogant Demands — Cornplanter Joins the Malcontents — Extracts from Letters Written by Andrew Ellicott, Brant the Mohawk, and John Adlum — Wayne's Victory — Salutary Effects — Iroquois Ardor Cooled — The Treaty at Canandaigua — The. British Retire from American Territory — Cornplanter's Speech at Franklin — The Holland Land Company — Town of Warren Laid Out by State Commissioners — Survey of Lands West of the Allegheny River — Advent of the Fir.st Settlers — A Block-house at Warren — Navigable Waters — Origin of the Reserve Tracts and Academy Lands.. . . 110 CHAPTER XIII. THE ERA OF FORMATION, EARLY SETTLEMENTS, ETC., FROM 1800 TO 1819. Formation of Warren County — Its Original Boundaries — Temporarily Attached to Craw- ford County — Crawford County Organized — Erection of Brokenstraw Township — It Becomes the First Election District of Crawford — Warren County Annexed to Venango in 1805 — Brokenstraw Still Continues as the Sole Township of Warren County — Its Taxable Inhabitants in 1806 — Who were the First Settlers — A Mooted Question — An Order to Erect New Townships — Early Inn-Keepers — Division of the County into Two Townships — Their Names and Boundaries — Their Taxable In- habitants in 1808 — Visited by Western Indians — A Want of Confidence — Council Held with Cornplanter — Veterans of the War of 1812-15 — A Transfer of Lands by the Holland Land Company — Cornplanter as He Appeared in 1816 — The Taxables of the County During the Same Year — Subsequent Rapid Increase in Population .... 125 Contents. CHAPTER XIV. FROM THE OEGANIZATION OF THE COUNTY UNTIL 1830. Onerous Duties Imposed Upon Early Inhabitants — Passage of the Act of Organization — Its Provisions — Initial Proceedings of County Commissioners — The First Term of Court — Its Officers — Jurors — Attorneys — Early Inn-keepers — Reminiscences Con- cerning the First Term of Court — Population of the County in 1820 — New Town- ships formed in 1821 — The Attempts to Collect Taxes from Cornplanter — The Old Chief Victorious — The Hook Murder Trial — Incidents Connected Therewith — Re- sults — Other Early Events 141 CHAPTER XV. FROM 1830 TO 1861. The First Steamboat on the Upper Waters of the Allegheny — An Account of the Trip — Cornplanter a Passenger — Merchants and Inn-keepers in 1830 — National Character of Early Settlers — The Scotch-Irish at First m the Ascendency — Origin of the Term Scotch-Irish — Those of English Descent in Final Control — Early Routes of Travel . — A Remarkable Journey — Barefooted in Midwinter — An Influx of Alsatians — Death of Cornplanter — Incorporators of Various Associations — Lumbering — River Navigation — Store Goods — Prices — Routes Pursued in Transit — Part of McKean County Annexed to Warren — The Whigs and Democrats — The First Telegraph Line — Merchants of the County in 18.50 — The Whigs Disband — Organization of the American Party — Temporary Success— Causes Leading to the Formation of the Republican Party — An Incident in the Career of Jeff. Davis — Republicans Gain Con- trol of the County in 185(3 — New County Sclieme — Petroleum Discoveries — Tilus- ville to the Front — Warren Men Also — Railroad Completed from Erie to Warren — Tidioute Oil Field — Election in ISGO 149 CHAPTER XVI. DURING AND SINCE THE LATE WAR. Mutterings of the Coming Storm — The Outbreak — Call for Troops — Citizens of Warren in Council — Their Proceedings — The First Two Companies of Volunteers — Others in Readiness — Leaving Home for the Front — Brief Allusion to Other Organizations — Number of Warren County Men in the Field to November 1, 1862 — Events of 18G3 — Tribulations of the Stay-at-IIomes in 1864 — Relieved by Rebel Recruits — The Draft of 1865 — Probable Total Number of Troops Furnished — Victorious Re- joicings — Ladies' Aid Society — Dedication of Cornplanter's Monument — An Influx of Scandinavians — Another New County Project Defeated — Gradual Development of Oil Interest.^ — Conclusion of Continuous History 161 CHAPTER XVII. THIRTY-NINTH RKGIMENT — TENTH RESERVE. Where Recruited — The Warren Guards — Regimental Rendezvous — Organization of the Regiment — It Proceeds to Harri, Six Nations of Indians." 98 History of Warren County. account of unfavorable accounts about some of the Southern Indians, he sent a Speech to me, & said, ' he wished the people to keep their minds easy, & take care of their Cornfields, that the Six Nations were friends, that should the Southern Indians invade the Settlement he would gather his Warriors & help to drive them to the setting of the Sun.' In consequence of this the people rest intirely easy. On his arrival here, he told me that should I be invaded so that I could not get provision, that he & his warriors would clear the way — he said that at the Council at Muskingum, the great men asked him which side he would die on ? He told them on the side of the Americans, he says he is of the same mind yet. " Sundry other things might be said, but as he is now on his way to attend the Assembly at Philadelphia, I will only recommend him to the particular attention of the good people of Pennsylvania between here & that place. They may depend upon it that they not only entertain a friend, but a consequential friend, for the Senica Nation is so much Governed by him that if he says War, it is war, & if he says peace it is peace — of Course he is a Man worthy of the greatest attention. The other Chiefs with him second him in every thing, & are Men worthy of great attention. " I am, my Dear fellow citizens, with sentiments of the highest esteem, your obedient & humble Servant, "J. Jeffers, Ensign, " 1st U. S. Reg't. & Commanding Fort Franklin on French Creek. "To the Good people between here & Philadelphia." Thus supplied with a kind of passport through the State, Cornplanter and his party arrived in Philadelphia towards the latter part of October, he having been detained beyond the appointed time by reason of certain untoward cir- cumstances. A day or so later, or on Saturday, October 23, the deputation was introduced to the president and members of Council, when Cornplanter was pleased to make the following speech : " Brothers, We were very happy when we received the answer to our letter sent to the Quaker State ; we are happy to see you. We could not come at the time appointed, it was too soon afterwards. When we were coming we heard of the murder of two of our people. I was obliged to satisfy my peo- ple. After I had satisfied my people, I received a message from the Shawan- ese and other nations that I should not come till we had a Council with them. When the fire was kindled with the Shawanese they brought a Virginia scalp and insisted on our seizing the scalp, or they would treat us the same way as the Big Knife ; ^ we told them the Council was for peace not for war, I sent to all the tribes to be at peace with the Thirteen Fires.^ " Brothers, I am much fatigued, I want to get a friend to write my speech, iThc Indians of that clay termed the Virginians " Big Knives," or " Long Knives." 2 The thirteen original States. CORNPLANTER AND OTHER INDIANS — 179O-9I. 99 as no interpreter can do it as well as if it was wrote. I will be ready on Tuesday morning." When Tuesday morning came Cornplanter sent a letter to the Council say- ing that he was not ready and requesting further time to prepare the state- ment he wished to make to the Council. His request was granted. Three days later, however, or on Friday, October 29, 1790, the renowned Seneca chieftain with the Indians who accompanied him, attended the sessions of the Supreme Executive Council, " His Excellency Thomas Mifflin, Esquire," pre- siding, and spoke as follows concerning his tribe and nation : " The Fathers of the Quaker State, Obeale or Cornplanter, returns thanks to God for the pleasure he has in meeting you this day with six of his people. " Fathers, Six years ago I had the pleasure of making peace with you, and at that time a hole was dug in the earth, and all contentions between my nation and you ceased and were buried there. " At a treaty then held at Fort Stanwix between the Six Nations of Indians, and the Thirteen Fires, three friends from the Quaker State came to me and treated with me for the purchase of a large tract of land upon the Northern boundary of Pennsylvania, extending from Tioga to Lake Erie for the use of their warriors. I agreed to the sale of the same, and sold it to them for four thousand dollars. I begged of them to take pity on my nation and not buy it forever. They said they would purchase it forever, but that they would give me further one thousand dollars in goods when the leaves were ready to fall, and when I found that they were determined to have it, I agreed that they should have it. I then requested, as they were determined to have the land to permit my people to have the game and hunt upon the same, which request they complied with, and promised me to have it put upon record, that I and my people should have the priviledge. " Fathers, The Six Nations then requested that another talk might be held with the Thirteen Fires, which was agreed to and a talk was afterwards held between them at Muskingum. Myself with three of my chiefs attended punct- ually, and were much fatigued in endeavoring to procure the attendance of the other nations, but none of them came to the Council Fire except the Dela- wares and the Wyandots. " Fathers, At the same treaty the Thirteen Fires asked me on which side I would die, whether on their side, or the side of those nations who did not attend the Council Fire. I replied, 'listen to me fathers of the Thirteen Fires, I hope you will consider how kind your fathers were treated by our fathers, the Six Nations, when they first came into this country, since which time you have become strong, insomuch, that I now call you fathers. In former days when you were young and weak, I used to call you brother, but now I call you father. Father, I hope you will take pity on your children, for now I inform you that I'll die on your side. Now father, I hope you will make my bed strong.' LifC. History of Warren County. " Fathers of the Quaker State : — I speak but little now, but will speak more when the Thirteen Fires meet, I will only inform you further, that when I had finished my talk with the Thirteen Fires, General Gibson, who was sent by the Quaker State, came to the fire, and said that the Quaker State had bought of the Thirteen F"ires a tract of land extending from the Northern boundary of Pennsylvania to Connewango river, to Buffaloe creek on Lake Erie, and thence along the Said Lake to the Northern boundary of Pennsylvania aforesaid. Hearing this I run to my father, and said to him father have you sold this land to the Quaker State, and he said he did not know, it might have been done since he came there. I then disputed with Gibson and Butler, who was with him about the same, and told them I would be satisfied if the line was run from Connewango river thro' Chatochque Lake to Lake Erie, for Gibson and Butler had told me that the Quaker State had purchased the land from the Thirteen Fires, but notwithstanding the Quaker State had given to me one thousand dollars in fine prime goods which were ready for me and my people at Fort Pitt, we then agreed that the line should be run from Connewango river thro' Chatochque Lake into Lake Erie, and that one-half of the fish in Chatochque Lake should be mine and one half theirs. They then said as the Quaker State had purchased the whole from the Thirteen Fires, that the Thir- teen Fires must pay back to the Quaker State the value of the remaining land. When I heard this my mind was at ease, and I was satisfied. I then proposed to give a half mile square of land upon the line so agreed upon to a Mr. Hartz- horn who was an Ensign in General Harmer's army, and to a Mr. Britt, a cadet, who acted as clerk upon the occasion, and who I well know [by the name of Half-Town, for the purpose of their settling there to prevent any mischief being committed in future upon my people's lands, and I hoped that the Quaker State would in addition thereto give them another half mile square on their side of the line so agreed upon for the same purpose, expecting thereby that the line so agreed upon would be known with sufficient certainty, and that no disputes would thereafter arise between my people and the Quaker State concerning it. I then went to my father of the Thirteen Fires and told him I was satisfied, and the coals being covered up I said to my children you must take your course right thro' the woods to Fort Pitt. When I was leaving Muskingum my own son who remained a little while behind to warm himself at the fire was robbed of a rifle by one of the white men, who, I believe, to have been a Yankee. Myself with Mr. Joseph Nicholson and a Mr. Morgan then travelled three days together thro' the wilderness, but the weather being very severe they were obliged to separate from me, and I sent some of my own people along with Mr. Nicholson and Mr. Morgan as guides to con- duct them on to Wheelen [Wheeling]. After I had separated from Mr. Nich- olson and Mr. Morgan, I had under my charge one hundred and seventy per- sons of my own nation consisting of men, women and children, to conduct CORNPLANTER AND OTHER INDIANS — 179O-91. lOI thro' the wilderness, through heaps of briars, and having lost our way, we, with great difficulty reached Wheelen. When I arrived there being out of provisions I requested of a Mr. Zanes to furnish me and my people with beacon and flour to the amount of seventeen dollars, to be paid for out of the goods belonging to me and my people at Fort Pitte. Having obtained my request, I proceeded on my journey for Pittsburg, and about ten miles from Wheelen my party were fired upon by three white people, and one of my people in the rear of my party received two shots thro' his blanket. "Fathers, It was a constant practice with me throughout the whole jour- ney to take great care of my people, and not suffer them to commit any out- rages or drink more than what their necessities required. During the whole of my journey only one accident happened which was owing to the kindness of the people of the town called Catfish [in Washington county, Pa.], in the Quaker State, who, while I was talking with the head men of the town, gave to my people more liquor than was proper, and some of them got drunk, which obliged me to continue there with my people all night, and in the night my people were robbed of three rifles and one shot gun ; and though every endeavor was used by the head men of the town upon complaint made to them to dis- cover the perpetrators of the robbery, they could not be found; and on my people's complaining to me I told them it was their own faults by getting drunk. "Fathers, Upon my arrival at Fort Pitt I saw the goods which 1 had been informed of at Muskingum, and one hundred of the blankets were all moth eaten and good for not'g. I was advised not to take the blankets, but the blankets which I and my people then had being all torn by the briars in our passage thro' the wilderness, we were under the necessity of taking them to keep ourselves warm ; and what most surprised me, was that after I had received the goods they extinguished the fire and swept away the ashes, and having no interpreter there I could talk with no one upon the subject. Feeling myself much hurt upon the occasion, I wrote a letter to you Fathers of the Quaker State, complaining of the injury, but never received any answer. Having waited a considerable time, and having heard that my letter got lost, I wrote a second time to you Fathers of the Quaker State and then I received an answer. "I am very thankfuU to have received this answer, and as the answer intreated me to come and speak for myself, I thank God that I have this oppor- tunity, I therefore, speak to you as follows: I hope that you Fathers of the Quaker State, will fix some person at Fort Pitt to take care of me and my people. I wish, and it is the wish of my people if agreeable to you that my present interpreter, Joseph Nicholson, may be the person, as I and my people have a confidence in him, and are satisfied that he will always exert himself to preserve peace and harmony between you and us. My reasons for wish- ing an interpreter to be placed there are that oftentimes when my hunters and History of Warren County. people come there, their canoes and other things are stolen, and they can obtain no redress, not having any person there on whom they can rely to interpret for them and see justice done to them. " Fathers of the Quaker State: — About a year ago a young man one of my Tribe who lived among the Shawanese, was one of a party who had committed some outrages and stolen a quantity of skins, the property of David Duncan, being at Fort Pitt, was seized by the White People there who would have put him in confinement and perhaps to death had not some of the Chiefs of the Seneca Nation, interfered and bound themselves to the said David Duncan, who insisted upon satisfaction for payment of the sum of five hundred and thirty dollars for the said skins so stolen, upon which the young man aforesaid was released and delivered up to them. "Fathers of the Quaker State : — I wish now to acquaint you with what hap- pened to one of my people about four years ago, four miles above Fort Pitt. A young man who was married to my wife's sister, when he was hunting, was murdered by a white man. There were three reasons for his being killed: In the first place he had a very fine riding horse; secondly, he was very richly drest, and had about him a good deal of silver; and thirdly, he had with him a very fine rifle. The white man invited him to his house, to light from his horse, and as he was getting off his horse, his head being rather down, the white man struck him with a tomahawk on the head and killed him, and having plun- dered him dragged iiim into the river. Upon the discovery of the murder, my people, with Mr. Nicholson and Mr. Duncan, had a great deal of trouble, and took a great deal of pains to find out the person who had committed the murder, and after three days' searching, they discovered him. "Fathers of the Quaker State : — About five years ago, one of my Chiefs, named Half- Town, was sent to Fort Pitt to deliver up into your hands your own flesh and blood who were taken in the war, and before he returned two horses were stolen from him by the white people. Now, P'athers, I will inform you of another accident which happened to my people last winter, fifteen miles below F'ort Pitt. My Nephew, with a hunting party, being there, was shot thro' the head in Mr. Nicholson's camp, the particulars of wiiich Mr. Nichol- son, who is here present can inform you. " Well, Fathers, I beg of you once more not to let such bad people be 'longside of me. And, Fathers, you must not think I or any of my people are bad or wish evil to you or yours, nor must you blame us for mischiefs that have been committed by the other nations. Fathers, consider me and my people, and the many injuries we have sustained by the repeated robberies, and in the murder & depredations committed by the whites against us. " Fathers of the Quaker State : — I have now had the pleasure to meet you with six of my people. We have come a great way, by your desire, to talk with you and to shew to you the many injuries my nation has sustained. It CORNI'LANTER AND OTHER INDIANS — 179O-9I. I03 now remains with you to do with me and my people what you please, on account of the present trouble which I and my people have taken for your sat- isfaction, and in compliance with your request. " Fathers, having come this great way at your request, and as it is neces- sary for some of us to remain here to talk with the Thirteen Fires when they meet, I have concluded to send back four of my people, and to remain here myself with Half- Town and my interpreter, Mr. Nicholson, untiU that time, which I hope you will approve of But should you not approve of it, I must be under the necessity of returning with the whole of my people, which will be attended with a considerable expense. " Fathers of the Quaker State : — You have now got the most of our lands, and have taken the game upon the same. We have only the privilege of hunt- ing and fishing thereon. I, therefore, would make this further request, that a store may be established at Fort Pitt for the accommodation of my people and the other nations when they go out to hunt ; and where they may purchase goods at a reasonable price. For, believe me. Fathers, you yourselves would be frightened were you to know the extravagant prices we are obliged to pay for the goods we purchase. " There is a man (Esquire Wilkie) in Pittsburg, who has taken a great deal of pains to serve my people, and has pitied them ; my people, when there, are very kindly treated by him, and give him a great deal of trouble, but he thinks nothing of it ; he is the man my people wish should have charge of the store. " Fathers of the Quaker State : — I have heard that you have been pleased to present me a tract of land, but as yet I have seen no writings for the same ; Well, Fathers, if it is true that you have given me this tract of land, I can only thank you for the same, but I hope you will also give me tools and materials for working the same. " Fathers of the Quaker State : — Five years ago, when I used to be with my present interpreter Joseph Nicholson, he took care of me and my people. Considering his services and the difficulties he underwent in his journey from Muskingum to Fort Pitt, the Six Nations wished to have him seated upon a tract of land of six miles square, lying in the Forks of Allegany river, and Broken Straw creek, and accordingly patented the same to him, this being the place where a battle 1 was fought between my people and yours, and where about thirty of my people were beaten, by him and twenty-five of your people, and where he was shot thro' the thigh. Now, Fathers, it is my wish, and I tell you it is the wish of the whole Six Nations, in behalf of whom and myself, I request that you would grant and confirm to our brother and friend, the before named Joseph Nicholson, the aforesaid tract of land, as described in our patent or grant to him. 'This fight took place in August, 1779, during Colonel Brodhead's march into the Seneca country. I04 History of Warren County. " This, Fathers, is all I have to say to the Quaker State, and I hope you will consider well all I have mentioned. "Philadelphia, October, 1 790. His CORNPLANTER X, mark. " Half x Town, His "Big X Tree, His "James x Hutchins, mark. His " Seneca x Billy, His "John x Deckart." m.-lrk. On the following day a draft of a letter, addressed to the Cornplanter and the Indians who accompanied him, in reply to the representations which they had made to the Supreme Executive Council, was laid before the board, read and adopted as follows : "In Council, Philadelphia, Oct. 30, 1790. " Brothers : — Council have seriously considered the several matters which you laid before them yesterday morning, and assure you that it is their sincere desire to have all your complaints examined into and satisfactorily and speedily removed. But the change which has been made in the government of the State, puts it out of the power of this Council to give special answers to the most material parts of your speech. " On the first Tuesday of next December, the Legislature of Pennsylvania will meet under the new form of Government, and on the twenty-fourth of the same month the new Governor will commence his administration. " When those events take place, your speech, together with such further representation of a public nature, which you may think proper to make to us, shall be faithfully communicated to the new Government for their considera- tion and decision. " There are, however, two points on which wc may with propriet)' now decide. "The first, the grant to the Cornplanter of one thousand five hundred acres of land by the General Assembly, on the twenty-fourth day of March, 1789. " We would long ago have ordered the survey of the land for the Corn- planter, but being willing to gratify him in his choice of a tract, we instructed General Butler to consult with him on that subject, and have waited to this time for his determination. If he will inform us in what part of the unlocated lands of the State he wishes his survey to be made, we will order the Surveyor General to have the tract laid out without further delay. CORNPLANTER AND OTHER INDIANS — 179O-9I. I05 " The second point on which we shall decide, is the Cornplanter's request, that Half-Town and Mr. Nicholson may remain with him in Philadelphia untill the meeting of the Legislature of the United States, or untill the President shall arrive here. We cheerfully comply with that request, and approve of his sending back the other Chiefs and Warriors. " And in order to make the residence of the Cornplanter, Half- Town and Mr. Nicholson in Philadelphia, as convenient and agreeable as possible. Coun- cil will instruct their Secretary to provide suitable lodgings for them in a pri- vate family. " Chiefs and Warriors zvho are to return to the Seneca Nation: — We desire you to inform the Seneca Nation that the Government of Pennsylvania enter- tains sentiments of the most sincere friendship for them, and are anxious to pre- vent injuries being done by its citizens to their persons and property. " But as evil disposed men exist in every society, and as violence may sometimes be committed by such men upon the persons and property of the Indians, the Government will think it their duty upon complaint being made of such violence having been committed, to endeavor to have the offenders apprehended and brought to Justice. " In the instance of the Walkers and Doyle, 1 this Council has done every thing in their power to have them secured and brought to tryal. They have succeeded only with respect to Doyle, but will continue their exertions for the securing of the Walkers. "Doyle will be conveyed next week to Sunbury under a strong guard, to stand his trial ; should he be convicted, there is little doubt of his being capi- tally punished. " We wish you may arrive at your own homes in good health, and find your families in the possession of the same blessings. "Thomas Mifflin." Cornplanter's companions, nevertheless, did not return to their country as early as anticipated. In some way the Chief Big Tree while viewing the sights in the Quaker City received a gun-shot wound in his leg. Thereupon Corn- planter and Half Town, with their interpreter, Joseph Nicholson, attended a subsequent meeting of the Council, and requested that, on account of the wound received by the Big Tree, the chiefs and warriors who were to have returned to the Indian country be" permitted to stay in the city until the arrival of the president of the United States. This request was complied with. Subse- quently, after Cornplanter and his friends had met President Washington, and had a " big talk " with him, all returned via Pittsburgh together, well loaded with good substantial presents. Indeed, the supplies, gifts, etc., received by Cornplanter at Philadelphia and sent by wagons to Pittsburgh, filled a large 1 Doyle and two or three brothers by the name of Walker had killed two of the Seneca tribe on Pine Creek, then in the township of Lycoming, Northumberland county, in June, 1790. These were the murders referred to by Cornplanter when he first arrived in Philadelphia. io6 History of Warren County. bateau or keel boat, which, after the voyage up the Allegheny had been com- menced, unprincipled white wretches from Pittsburgh attempted to steal — both boat and cargo. It appears, however, that a certain class of residents of the latter town were only maintaining their former unenviable reputation when they endeavored to steal Cornplanter's boat and contents, since Colonel Brodhead in a letter dated at Pittsburgh, June 27, 1779, says : " The inhabitants of this place are continu- ally encroaching on what I conceive to be the rights of the Garrison and which was always considered as such when the Fort was occupied by the King of Britain's Troops. They have now the assurance to erect their fences within a few yards of the Bastion. I have mentioned the impropriety of their Conduct but without efiect The Block-houses, likewise, which are part of the strength of the place, are occupied and claimed by private persons to the injury of the service." Again on the 9th of July following the worried Colonel made another complaint as follows: " Whilst I am writing, I am tor- mented by at least a dozen drunken Indians, and I shall be obliged to remove my Quarters from hence on account of a cursed villainous set of inhabitants, who, in spite of every exertion continue to rob the soldiers, or cheat them and the Indians out of everything they are possessed of" Soon after Cornplanter's return to his old home on the upper waters of the Allegheny, he made choice of the lands which suited him best (which, by the way, proved to be at or near the place where he was then living), and promptly notified Governor Mifflin by letter of the location, etc., coupled with the request that a survey of the same be made as early as practicable. In direct- ing the attention of the Senate and House of Representatives of the Common- wealth to this matter the governor said : " Gentlemen : I have directed the Secretary to lay before you a Copy of a Letter from Cornplanter, in which that Chief requests that orders of survey may be issued for three tracts of Land, amounting in quantity to the 1500 acres which were granted to him by a reso- lution of the General Assembly of the 24th March, 1789, but differing in point of situation. 1 From the Information, however, contained in a Letter from the officers of the Land Office, a copy of which will likewise be transmitted to you, I find that the proposed tracts are unappropriated ; and as the resolution referred to describes Lands within the Tract of Country lately purchased from the United States, which Country has not yet been the subject of any Legislative provision, in respect to grants, and confirmations by Patent, permit me to sug- gest the propriety of complying with Cornplanter's request, and of authorizing the officers in the Land office to grant the Warrants, direct the surveys and issue the Patent which may be necessary upon the occasion." This communica- tion properly signed and indorsed was dated Philadelphia, January 22, 1791. 1 It was supposed liy General Butler, when he recommended that a grant of land be made to Corn- planter, that the latter would make choice of lands in the " late purchase," meaning the territory bor- dering on I.ake Krie. CORNPLANTER AND OTHER INDIANS — 179O-9I. lO/ The preliminary matters of granting warrants, making surveys, etc., having been attended to early in the year last mentioned, Cornplanter, with his two wives, his children, and a following of many others of his band,i including men, women and children, soon after became permanently established upon the site of one of his former towns (that is, the first village destroyed by Colonel Brod- head in 1779, after proceeding up the river above " Canawago "), where, as- sisted by white men sent to him for that purpose, he began the erection of log cabins. Thus he with his followers became the first permanent residents in the county after the acquisition of its territory by Pennsylvania. His grant, or patent, embraced about six hundred and forty acres of land on the west bank of the Allegheny River, sixteen miles above Warren, together with two large adjacent islands, or, in other words, tracts, aggregating about fifteen hundred acres in extent, situated in the present township of Elk. Here he resided until his death, which did not take place until nearly a half century later. According to Rev. Timothy Alden, the founder of Allegheny College, the village established by Cornplanter on the lands granted to him was named Jen-ne-sa-de-go, or Tin-nes-hau-ta-go, which means " burnt houses, since one of the Seneca towns destroyed by Colonel Brodhead in the summer of 1779 was located here." The same gentleman also said that Cornplanter's Indian names were as follows: Ki-end-twoh-ke, or The Planter, and No-nuh, or The Contemplative; but they (the Indians) usually addressed him as Shin- ne-wau-nah, or The Gentleman. From Day's " Historical Collections of Pennsylvania " we select the follow- ing sketch of the distinguished chieftain, whose life was so closely associated with the Indian history of Northwestern Pennsylvania, and particularly that of Warren county : " F"ew names are more distinguished in the frontier history of Pennsylvania than that of Cornplanter. He was born at Conewaugus, on the Genesee River, being a half-breed, the son of a white man named John O'Bail, a trader from the Mohawk Valley. In a letter written in 1822 [of course by an interpreter] to the Governor of Pennsylvania he thus speaks of his early youth : ' When I was a child I played with the butterfly, the grasshopper and the frogs ; and as I grew up I began to pay some attention and play with the Indian boys in the 1 Soon after the Meads and other pioneers .settled at Meadville, Crawford county, Pa., Cornplanter and his band paid them a friendly visit, and such visits were frequently repeated during subsequent years. It was then that these white settlers noticed that a number of white men were living with the Indians, among whom were Lashley Malone, who was captured in the Bald Eagle valley, Pa.; Peter Krause, a German by birth, who was taken on Duncan's t'rcek, near the head of the Monongahela, in Virginia; Elijah Mathews, who was captured on Graves's Creek, Ohio: Nicholas Rosencrantz, the son of a minister, and Nicholas Tanewood, who were taken in the Mohawk valley, New Vork. Krause, Mathews, and Rosencrantz were married to Indian women. These men having lived from boyhood with their captors, were thoroughly weaned from the habits of civilization, and preferred to remain with the Indians. Rev. Timothy ,\lden, of Meadville, while on a visit to Cornplanter in the fall of 1816, stayed over night at the cabin of Peter Krause, on the .Allegheny, where he was then living with his Indian wife and family. io8 History of Warren County. neighborhood, and they took notice of my skin being of a different color from theirs, and spoke about it; I inquired of my mother the cause, and she told me that my father was a resident of Albany, N. Y. I still ate my victuals out of a bark dish. I grew up to be a young man and married me a wife, but I had no kettle or gun. I then knew where my father lived, and went to see him, and found he was a white man and spoke the English language. He gave me victuals while I was at his house, but when I started to return home he gave me no provision to eat on the way. He gave me neither kettle nor gun, neither did he tell me that the United States were about to rebel against the government of England.' .... " Little further is known of his early life beyond the fact that he was allied with the French in the engagement against Gen. Braddock in July, 1755. He was probably at that time at least twenty years old. During the Revolution he was a war chief of high rank, in the full vigor of manhood, active, sagacious, eloquent, brave, and he most probably participated in the principal Indian engagements against the United States during the war. He is supposed to have been present at the cruelties of Wyoming and Cherry Valley, in which the Senecas took a prominent part. He was on the war-path with Brandt during Gen. Sullivan's campaign in 1779; and in the following year, under Brandt and Sir John Johnson, he led the Senecas in sweeping through the Schoharie Kill and the Mohawk. On this occasion he took his father a pris- oner, but with such caution as to avoid an immediate recognition. After marching the old man some ten or twelve miles he stepped before him, faced about and addressed him in the following terms : " ' My name is John O'Bail, commonly called Cornplanter. I am your son ! You are my father! You are now my prisoner, and subject to the customs of Indian warfare, but you shall not be harmed. You need not fear! I am a warrior! Many are the scalps which I have taken! Many prisoners I have tortured to death! I am your son. I was anxious to see you, and greet you in friendship. I went to your cabin and took you by force; but your life will be spared. Indians love their friends and their kindred, and treat them with kindness. If you now choose to follow the fortunes of your yellow son, and to live with our people, I will cherish your old age with plenty of venison and you shall live easy. But if it is your choice to return to your fields and live with your white children, I will send a party of my trusty young men to con- duct you back in safety. I respect you, my father. You have been friendly to Indians, and they are your friends.' The elder O'Bail preferred his white children and green fields to his yellow offspring and the wild woods, and chose to return. " Notwithstanding his bitter hostility while the war continued, he became the fast friend of the United States when once the hatchet was buried. His sagacious intellect comprehended at a glance the growing power of this coun- CORNPLANTER AND OTHER INDIANS I79O-9I. IO9 try and the abandonment with which England had requited the fidehty of the Senecas. He therefore threw all his influence at the treaties of Fort Stanwix and Fort Mcintosh in favor of peace; and notwithstanding the vast conces- sions which he saw his people were necessitated to make, still, by his energy and prudence in the negotiation, he retained for them an ample and beautiful reservation. For the course which he took on those occasions, the State of Pennsylvania granted him the fine reservation upon which he resided on the Allegheny. The Senecas, however, were never well satisfied with his course in relation to these treaties; and Red Jacket, more artful and eloquent than his older rival, but less frank and honest, seized upon this circumstance to pro- mote his own popularity at the expense of Cornplanter. "Having buried the hatchet, Cornplanter sought to make his talents useful to his people by conciliating the good will of the whites, and securing from further encroachments the little remnant of his national domain. On more than one occasion, when some reckless and bloodthirsty whites on the frontier had massacred unofiending Indians in cold blood, did Cornplanter interfere to restrain the vengeance of his people. During all the Indian wars from 1790 to 1794, which terminated with Wayne's victory over the northwestern tribes, Cornplanter^ pledged himself that the Senecas should remain friendly to the United States. He often gave notice to the garrison at Fort Franklin of intended attacks from hostile parties, and even hazarded his life on a media- torial mission to the Western tribes. He ever entertained a high respect and personal friendship for Washington, 'the great councillor of the Thirteen Fires,' and often visited him during his presidency on the business of his tribe. His speeches on these occasions exhibit both his talent in composition and his adroitness in diplomacy. Washington fully reciprocated his respect and friend- ship. They had fought against each other on the disastrous day of Braddock's field. Both were then young men. More than forty years afterwards, when Washington was about to retire from the presidency, Cornplanter made a special visit to Philadelphia to take an affectionate leave of the great benefactor of the white man and the red. "After peace was permanently established between the Indians and the United States, Cornplanter retired from public life and devoted his labors to his own people. He deplored the evils of intemperance, and exerted himself to suppress it. The benevolent efforts of missionaries among his tribe always received his encouragement, and at one time his own heart seemed to be softened by the words of truth; yet he preserved in his later \'ears many of the peculiar notions of the Indian faith." 1 This statement is incorrect. Cornplanter was unfriendly in 1794, and, without a doubt, if Wayne had been defeated the Senecas would have become generally hostile, with Cornplanter's approial. See next chapter. History of Warren County. CHAPTER Xn. FROM 1791 TO 1800. Troublous Times on the Border — Baneful British Influence — Uneasy Iroquois — Colonel Proctor Visits Them— Interesting Details Gathered From His Journal — His Mission a Failure — St. Clair Defeated — The Iroquois Become Insolent — Their Arrogant Demands — Cornplanter Joins the Malcontents — Extracts from Letters Written by Andrew Ellicott, Brant tlie Mo- hawk, and John .4.dlum — Wayne's Victory — Salutary Effects — Iroquois Ardor Cooled — The Treaty at Canandaigua — The British Retire from American Territory — Cornplanter's Speech at Franklin — The Holland Land Company— Town of Warren Laid Out by State Commission- ers — Survey of Lands West of the Allegheny River — Advent of the First Settlers — A Block- house at Warren' — Navigable Waters — Origin of the Reserve Tracts and Academy Lands. FOR more than a decade of years after England had been forced to acknowl- edge the independence of the United States, British troops held all the forts on the American side of the boundary line, in open violation of the treaty of peace, alleging that the Americans had also failed to comply with its provisions. Embittered by defeat and not without hopes of again becoming masters of the ambitious, yet weak and poverty-stricken, confederated States, their influence over the Six Nations and the W'estern Indians was most bane- ful. They openly assumed a protectorate over the Iroquois and advised them to resist by force the occupation of lands which had already been ceded by the Indians to the Americans. Hence, as a result of such advice, and the intrigues of the Tory Colonel Butler, and the detestable Mohawk chieftain. Brant, the majority of the Senecas, eight years after the close of the Revolu- tionary War, were almost at the point of marching into Ohio to join the West- ern tribes in their operations against the military forces of the United States. At this critical moment Cornplanter, alone almost, of all those high in author- ity in his nation, remained true to his pledges as the friend of the Americans. For a time he stood as firm as the tall pines which cast their shadows over the waters of his beloved Allegheny. For three or four years after his visit to Philadelphia he counseled peace and moderation ; but before the troubles were over — /. c, just before General Wayne administered such signal and deserved punishment to the Indians — he, too, was forced to bend before the popular clamor of his people, to join the majority in their avowed hostility to the Americans, to make unjust demands, and declare that the terms of former treaties must be abrogated, and to threaten violence unless such demands were acceded to. To counteract the evil influence of the British oflicers and their emissaries, as well as the bad effects resulting from Harmer's defeat by the Western Indians during the preceding fall, early in 1791 Colonel Thomas Proctor, who had won distinction in the Pennsylvania Line during the Revolution, was instructed to visit the Seneca Indians, and use his utmost endeavors to gain F"rom 1 791 TO 1800. their confidence, and to persuade them to use their influence to stop the hos- tilities of the Western Indians (against whom General St. Clair was then pre- paring to move), and to that end to send a delegation of chiefs along with him on a mission to the Miamis. Proctor's commission was signed by General Knox, secretary of war, March 10, 1 79 1, and two days later, accompanied by Captain M. G. Houdin, he started forth on horseback from Philadelphia. He journeyed ria Reading, Wilkesbarre, Tioga Point, Chemung, Newtown (now Elmira, N. Y.), to an Indian town a considerable distance beyond Painted Post, with the intention of proceeding direct to Buffalo, where he expected to meet the Seneca chiefs in council. But having learned at the last-mentioned place that Captain O'Beal, the Cornplanter, had not yet returned to his towns on the Allegheny from his visit to Philadelphia, and deeming it of the utmost importance that this chieftain should be present at the council. Proctor here secured the serv- ices of Horatio Jones, an interpreter, and determined to turn aside, and on reaching the Allegheny to proceed down that stream until Cornplanter should be met. He arrived at Cornplanter's " upper town " on the night of April 6. This town, Proctor informs us, was located on the north side of the Alle- gheny River, and was called " New Arrow's^ town," or " Tenachshegouchton- gee, or the burnt house." It contained twenty-eight "tolerably well built houses," one of which, new, neat and clean, was set apart for the use of Proc- tor and his party. At this place it was ascertained that Cornplanter was at Fort Franklin, at the mouth of French Creek, which point, said Proctor, was distant about one hundred and thirty miles down the river from New Arrow's town. This would indicate that the latter was located in the vicinity of the site of Olean, N. Y., which, by actual measurement of a United State's officer of topographical engineers, is one hundred and thirty-two miles by river, above the mouth of French Creek. Still, since Proctor's estimate was based on con- jecture alone, there might have been a variation in his calculation of fifteen or twenty miles from the true distance. Proctor's journal, however, establishes one or two interesting facts — that Cornplanter's immediate followers were then located in at least three different villages, widely separated one from another, /. e., at Tenachshegouchtongee, on the Allegheny, in New York ; at Cayantha, on the Conewango, just over the State line in New York, and at Jennesadaga, the " lower town," situated on the lands now known as the " Cornplanter Res- ervation," in Warren county. Also that Cornplanter was then living on the lands granted him by the State of Pennsylvania, that is, Jennesadaga, where, by the way, he had resided for years before the grant was made. From Tenachshegouchtongee Colonel Proctor proceeded in a canoe, guided by young Indians, to Fort Franklin, where he met Cornplanter, and where he ' The chief, New .\rrow, one of Cornplanter's subordina'.es anci one of }iis warmest supporters, resided here. History of Warren County. was warmly received by the commandant, Ensign John Jeffers, of the Con- necticut Line, or First U. S. Regiment of Infantry. Cornplanter was calm and bore himself with becoming dignity, but those of his tribe with him were highly excited. They had just heard of the seizure of their boats and stores by certain people near Pittsburgh (see preceding chapter), but upon being assured by Colonel Proctor that he would see to it that all should be restored to them (and it was done a few days later), they became quiet and friendly. A day or so later, accompanied by Cornplanter and a large number of his band. Proctor moved up the Allegheny in canoes en route to Buffalo. They passed the night of April 14 at the mouth of " Casyonding Creek," /. c, the Brokenstraw. On the following day, Proctor being ill and almost helpless from rheumatism, he urged his canoe- men to push forward in advance of the fleet in order to reach Cornplanter's " lower town " at the earliest moment ; but he says the current was so swift and strong against them, slow progress was made, and the town was not reached until in the night. Here he applied to an Indian doctor for treatment, but the poultice of bruised roots and herbs applied to his foot to relieve the pain in the upper part of his leg was so effective in increasing his agony, that he became seriously alarmed and quickly dispensed with the poul- tice, compounded with so much patience and care by the native practitioner. He had passed the mouth of the " Canawaugo " during the last day's journey, where, he noted in his journal, " the Government of Pennsylvania has laid out a manor of 3000 acres, and up the said river (Canawaugo) to an Indian town called Cayantha, or the Cornfields, are extraordinary rich lands, of which sur- vey was made by David Rittenhouse, Esq'., of Philadelphia some time since." After a brief rest at Jennesadaga, the journey up the river was contin- ued to the upper town, or the Cattaraugus settlement, where Poctor had left his horse, also Captain Houdin, who was quite ill from exposure, and from thence across the country to Buffalo, Houdin, Cornplanter, and quite a follow- ing of Senecas accompanying him. At Buffalo he found the English influence very strong, the Indians obtaining supplies not only of clothing, but of provi- sions, from Forts F>ic and Niagara. On the commissioner's arrival, " Young King," who could not have been over twenty-two or three j'ears old, met him, appareled in the full uniform of a British colonel — red, with blue facings and gold epaulettes. The Senecas were also in possession of a two-pound swivel, which they fired in honor of the occasion, the gunner wisely standing inside the council-house, while he touched it off with a long pole passed between the logs. The charge was so heavy that it upset the gun and its carriage. At this time the celebrated Red Jacket had risen to a high position as an orator (though in war he was known to be cowardly, and was frequently spoken of in derision, by Cornplanter and other chiefs, as the "cow-killer"), being mentioned by Proctor as " the great speaker and a jirince of the Turtle tribe." In fact, however, he belonged to the Wolf clan. From 1791 to 1800. 113 On Proctor's stating his object in the council, Red Jacket questioned his authority. This, as the colonel was informed by a French trader, was the result of the insinuations of Butler and Brant, who had been there a week before and had advised the Indians not to send a delegation to the Miamis. Proctor offered to present his credentials to any one in whom they had confidence, and they at once sent for the commandant at Fort Erie. The latter sent back Captain Powell, who seems to have acted as a kind of guardian to the Indians during the proceedings. These were very deliberate, and were adjourned from day to day. Red Jacket was the chief speaker for the Indians, and declared their deter- mination to move the council to Niagara, insisting on the commissioner accom- panying them the next day as far as Captain Powell's house, below Fort Erie. Proctor peremptorily declined. Then Red Jacket and Farmer's Brother ad- dressed the council by turns, the result being that a runner was at once sent to Niagara to summon Colonel Butler to the council. After two or three days' delay Butler came to Winne's trading-house (which was on the site of Buffalo, and four miles from the main Seneca village) and requested the sachems and head men to meet him there, but said nothing about Proctor. While waiting the commissioner dined with " Clear Sky," head chief of the Onondagas, whose " castle " he describes as being three miles east from " Buf- faloe," meaning from the Seneca village. There were twenty-eight good cabins near it, and the inhabitants were well clothed, especially the women, some of whom, according to Colonel Proctor, were richly dressed, " with silken stroud " and silver trappings worth not less than ;^30 per suit. It seems, too, that they had advanced so far in civilization that the women were invited to the feast of the warriors, which consisted principally of young pigeons boiled and stewed. These were served up in hanks of six, tied around the necks with deer's sin- ews, and were ornamented with pin feathers. However, the colonel managed to make a good meal. On the 4th of May the Indians went to Winne's store, to hold council with Butler. The latter invited Proctor to dine with him and his officers, including Captains Powell and Johnston. They (the English officers) spoke the Seneca language fluently, and advised the chiefs not to go with the commissioner then, but to wait for Brant, who had gone West. Red Jacket and Cornplanter used their influence in favor of Proctor, but Young King, Farmer's Brother, and the " Fish Carrier," a Cayuga chieftain, strongly opposed him. Every paper delivered to the chiefs was handed over to Butler for his inspection, who went back to Fort Erie next day. On the 6th of May Red Jacket announced to the commissioner that there would be no council held, as the honorable councilors were going out to hunt pigeons. Proctor makes special mention of the immense number of pigeons found — over a hundred nests on a tree, with a pair of pigeons in each. 114 History of Warren County. On the 7th a private council was held, at which lands were granted to Indi- ans of other tribes, who had fled from the Shawanese and Miamis. "Captain Smoke," and the Delawares under his charge were assigned to the Cattaraugus settlement, where their descendants dwell at the present time. Several Mas- sasauga families at the same time had planting-grounds given them near the village of Buffalo Creek. On the iith Proctor declares that there was a universal drunk; "Corn- planter, and some of the elder women excepted," from which it is to be pre- sumed that the young women indulged with the rest. Finally on the 15th of May the oldest women visited the commissioner and declared that they had taken the matter into consideration, and that they should be listened to, for, said they: "We are the owners of this land, and it is ours;" adding, as an excellent reason for the claim, "for it is we that plant it." They then requested Colonel Proctor to listen to a formal address from the "women's speaker," they having appointed Red Jacket for that purpose. The alarm gun was fired and the chiefs came together, the elder women being seated near them. Red Jacket arose, and after many florid prelimina- ries announced that the women had decided that the sachems and warriors must help the commissioner, and that a number of them would accompany him to the West. Colonel Proctor was overjoyed at this happy exemplification of women's rights, and seems to have thought there would be no further difficulty. He forthwith dispatched a letter by the trusty hand of his interpreter, Horatio Jones, to Colonel Gordon, the English commandant at Niagara, asking that himself and the Indians might take passage on some British merchant- vessel running up Lake Erie, since the chiefs refused to make the journey by land or to go in an open boat. But Gordon, in the usual spirit of English officials on the frontier at that time, refused the permission, and so the whole scheme fell through. It was just what was to have been expected, though Proctor does not seem to have anticipated it, and it is very likely the whole thing was well understood between the British and Indians. While it was supposed that Red Jacket and others would go West with Proctor, that worthy had several requests to make. Firstly, the colonel was informed that his friends expected something to drink, as they were going to have a dance before leaving their women. This the commissioner responded to with a present of "eight gallons of the best spirits." Then Red Jacket remarked that his house needed a new floor, and Proctor offered to have one made. Then he preferred a claim for a special allowance of rum for his wife and mother, and in fact — well, he wanted a little rum for himself So the colonel provided a gallon for the great orator and his wife and mother. Young King was not less importunate, but Cornplanter was modest and dignified, as became a veteran warrior. But the worthy commissioner made due provision for them all. From 1791 to 1800. 115 The projected expedition having thus fallen through, Young King made a farewell speech, being aided by "Fish Carrier," the Cayuga, whose "keen gravity" reminded Proctor of a Roman senator, and who seems to have been a man of great importance, though never putting himself forward as a speech- maker. The Indians must have had a pretty good time during Proctor's stay among them, since his liquor bill at Cornelius Winne's was over a hundred and thirty dollars. All this counciling having come to naught. Proctor set out for Pittsburgh on the 2 1st of May. He was accompanied as far as the New Arrow's town, a distance of eighty miles, by Cornplanter, Half Town, and others of the Alle- gheny River Indians. There he hired a canoe and two Indians to paddle him to Fort Franklin, where he arrived on the next morning in time to take break- fast with Lieutenant Jeffers. At Fort Franklin he hired another canoe and four Indians and pushed ofl' for Pittsburgh, which place he says was distant one hundred and fifty-six miles ^ by river from Fort Franklin, and was reached in twenty-five hours. Thus the journey from Buffalo to Pittsburgh, a distance of four hundred and eleven miles, according to Proctor's computation, was accomplished in five days and two nights of travel. In November of that year ( 1 791) General St. Clair's army met with a crushing defeat at the hands of the combined Northwestern tribes, and this disaster, together with the pernicious influence of the British, aroused all the worst pas- sions of the Iroquois. Their manners toward the Americans became insolent in the extreme, and some of their warriors joined the hostile savages. There is little doubt that another severe disaster would have disposed a large part of them to rise in arms, and take revenge for the unforgotten though well-mer- ited punishment inflicted upon them by Sullivan and Brodhead. Yet they kept up negotiations with the United States; in fact, nothing delighted the chiefs more than holding councils, making treaties, and performing diplomatic pilgrimages. They felt that at such times they were indeed "big Indians." The years 1792-93 were passed in fear and trepidation by the few Amer- ican families living northwest of the Allegheny River in Pennsylvania. Many depredations and a few murders were committed by small bands of savages, by many believed to be Senecas ; but when Cornplanter was questioned con- cerning these outrages, he declared that the Senecas were yet at peace with the Americans, and that the hostiles came from the West. In 1794, however, affairs in Northwestern Pennsylvania assumed a most threatening aspect. Gar- risons of American troops were, and had been for years, maintained at Forts Franklin - and Le Boeuf, but when it was proposed to establish a fort and lay 1 By actual measurement the distance from,FvanUlin, then known as P'ort Franklin, to Pittsburgh by river, is only 121 J4 miles. 2 The first military occupation of Northwestern Pennsylvania by the Americans was in the spring ii6 History of Warren County. out a town at Presque Isle, the Senecas, including the Cornplanter, declared that it should not be done. They flatly repudiated the treaties of 1784 and 1789, and demanded that a new boundary line should be drawn. Indeed, some of them threatened that unless all the lands lying west of the Allegheny were relinquished, war would surely take place. Baneful British influence was now in the ascendency, and Cornplanter finally yielded to it, and to the clamor of his people in their demands for a new treat)', new stipulations, or war. In speeches in councils held at Buffalo and Le Boeuf, in June, 1794, and at each of which British officers were present, this chief was bold in his demands for a new treaty, and threatened that unless a vast tract should be restored to the Indians (which territory would have in- cluded the greater portion of the county of Warren), dire would be the consequences. At this time Colonel Andrew Ellicott, the surveyor, was at Fort Le Boeuf, and in a letter describing the condition of affairs he said: "The Indians con- sider themselves as our enemies and that we are theirs. From this considera- tion they never come near the garrison except as spies, and then escape as soon as discovered." Although the Cornplanter and other Seneca chiefs strenuously denied that they were theii acting under British advice and influence, the following extract from a letter written by Brant, the Mohawk, clearly proves that they were not telling the truth. Possessed of a fair English education, the protege of Sir William Johnson of colonial fame — hence thoroughly British in his instincts and sympathies and bitterly hostile through life to the Americans — Brant then cherished the idea, originated by Pontiac, of building up a great Indian confed- eracy, of which he was to be the principal chief, and restricting the control of the Americans to the country east of the Allegheny River. The letter referred to was dated July 19, 1794, and was addressed to Governor Simcoe, of Upper Canada, wherein he says: "In regard to the Presque Isle business, should we not get an answer at the time limited, it is our business to push those fellows hard Should those fellows (the Americans) not go off, and O'Bail, (Cornplanter) continue in the same opinion [meaning his recently avowed hostility to the Americans], an expedition against those Yankees must of consequence take place. His Excellency has been so good as to furnish us with a 100 weight of powder, and ball in proportion, which is now at Fort Erie, opposite Buffalo; but in the event of an attack upon Le Boeuf people, I could wish, if consistent, that his Excellency in addition would order a like quantity in addition, to be of 1787, when a comp.iny of United States troops, eighty-seven strong, under the command of Captain Jonathan Hart, marched from Pittsburgh to the mouth of French Creek. There he built Fort Frank- lin, and there a garrison was maintained (sometimes by State troops) until 1803. During the Indian troubles from 1791 to 1794 the troops stationed there rendered impoitant service in protecting the early settlers at Meadville, or, as it was then termed, the "Cussewago Settlement." From 1791 to 1800. 117 at Fort Erie in order to be in readiness ; likewise, I would hope for a little as- sistance in provisions." Again, to further illustrate the position occupied by Cornplanter, and the condition of affairs on the Pennsylvania border at that time, the following letter from John Adlum (the surveyor of many tracts in Northwestern Pennsylvania) to Governor Mififiin is appended : "Fort Franklin, August 31"', 1794. " Dear Sir : I returned yesterday from a second trip I had to the Corn Planter's Town — having been sent for by him to go to the treaty said to be held at Buffaloe Creek, near Lake Erie. " When I arrived at his Town, which was the 23"' of this Inst., informa- tion came that it would not be held until about the 10"' day of Sep'. I, there- fore, concluded it best to return to this place. " The next day after I got to his town, a party of nineteen Chiefs & war- riors arrived from the Grand River, on the North Side of Lake Erie. " The Corn Planter had given me notice that such a party were on their way to protect their women and children while their chiefs were at council. " I told the Corn Planter that such a guard was unnecessary, as the Amer- icans wished to live at peace with the Indians. " He answered, that we could not know who were our enemies, and it was well to be prepared, and insinuated as much as if they feared the Western Indians. But, says he, they are wholly under my direction, and nothing is to be feared from them ; for they will hunt with my warriors until I know the result of Gen' Washington's answer, for they will behave themselves soberly and orderly until then. If the answer is favourable to us, they will return to their homes ; if not, times will be very bad and troublesome immediately ; though, says he, we mean not to make war on women and children, but on men, and with the men we mean to fight, and hope the white flesh, as he calls lis, will not set us any bad examples ; and the way that these men came to be sent here is this : Capt. Brandt sent to us, and desired us to move off the land, for that times would soon be dangerous. I answered, we are not afraid to live here, and as our corn &c. is planted, we intend to stay and enjoy the fruits of our labour. But Brandt sent again, and said that the regard he had for us made him very uneasy for our safety. I returned him the same answer as before, and added, if you have the regard for us you say you have, send us some people to protect us ; and in consequence of this, he sent us these men. " There was a M"' Rosencranz with me at the Town — an Interpreter — and we staid at the Corn Planter's house while we were at Town, and the General conversation of the Indians was about the times, and were very anxious to have our opinion whether their request or demand would be granted or not ; and the Chiefs concluded their conversation that nothing but the Lands required would do, and that they wished to know whether Gen' Washington ii8 History of Warren County. would grant their request or not. I told them to wait patiently, and the per- sons whom the Gen' had appointed would inform them when they met them at the treaty. I enquired if money would not do, provided they received an annual sum. The Cornplanter answered, it might have done some time ago, but at present nothing but the lands would do to make the minds of the Six Nations easy. " I told him that possibly when he had seen the Commissioners, and con- sidered better, that the minds of the Indians might be made easy, and then dropped the subject. " He laughs at the Idea of our keeping the posts, either at Le Bceuf or the Mouth of French Creek, should there be a war, for, he says, it is not possible for us to supply them with provisions, as they will constantly have parties along the River and path to cut oft" all supplies, and that we soon would be obliged to run away from them. " I don't know how far it may operate in our favour should Gen' VVaine be successful, to the Westward ; but it appears to me that War is inevitable, and, I think, Cap' Brandt has a very great hand in it, and his policy is to get the whole of the Six Nations on the North Side of the Lakes, as it will make him the more consequential, for, at present, there is but a small number of them there. " I have wrote to General Wilson of Northumberland on the subject, a copy of which I enclose, and intend writing to Gen' Wilkins and Col. Campbell on the same subject. "The posts along the Allegheny River, kept by the eight months' men,^ are a burlesque on the Military art, at least those that I have seen of them, (for the officers and men are generally Jack fellow alike), and I have passed them when the men have been lolling about without either guard or Gentry, and from Enquiry find it to be too generally the case, and I am certain that they might be surprised any day or night by an Inferior number. " Capt. Denny has endeavoured to keep up Military discipline at Le Bceuf, and has got the ill will of the men generally ; they say he is too severe, but from enquiry I cannot find he has punished any of them, although some of them deserve death, having been found asleep on their posts. " Some of his men mutinied some days ago, and I enclose copies of his and Mr. Ellicott's letters on the subject to the commanding officers of this post. " The Cornplanter desired Mr. EUicott should attend the treaty and I sent a runner to Le Bceuf for that purpose. " This post is commanded by an active and vigilant officer, who keeps up the strictest discipline, and has made great improvements in the works. It is wrongly situated, for should a war take place, fleets of Canoes may pass and repass up and down the Allegheny River, without any person being the wiser ', 43 inlots in Warren. Butler, Samuel, 2 inlots in Warren. Barr, John, too acres, i cow, 2 oxen. Brown, John, Sen', 300 acres, i cow. Brown, John, Jr., i cow. Brown, James, 100 acres. Brown, David, 200 acres, 2 horses, i cow, 2 oxen, 2 inlots in Warren. Budd, Benjamin. Baird, James, 200 acres, 2 oxen. Baird, Edward, i cow. Biles, Charles, 400 acres, 2 oxen. Clemons, Jacob, 12 inlots in Warren. Corbett, Daniel, 3 inlots in Warren. Cole, John, i cow, 2 oxen. Cole, Benjamin. 100 acres, i cow, 2 oxen. Colt & Marlin, 400 acres, i saw-mill, 2 oxen, 2 cows. Cole, Cornelius, 100 acres, 2 horses, 3 cows. Craig, Isaac, 1,688 acres. Campbell, John, single man. Campbell, Samuel, 2 horses, i cow. Cheeks, Nathaniel, 1,000 acres, I cow, i ox. Dickson, John, one inlot in Warren. Dougherty, Charles, 3 inlots in Warren. Davis, William, 2 inlots in Warren. Dike, Isaac, 2 inlots in Warren. Dale, Samuel, i inlot in Warren. Davis, William, 1 50 acres, 2 horses, 2 cows. Davis, Thomas, i 50 acres. Egan, William, 400 acres, i horse, l cow, 2 oxen Eddy, Zachariah, 400 acres, i horse, i cow, 2 oxen, 2 inlots in Warren, asssesor for 1808. Ford, William, 5 inlots in Warren. Foster, William B., 4 inlots in Warren. Frew, Hugh, 200 acres, 2 cows, 2 oxen, i grist-mill. Fuller, Salmon, 2 cows, i horse, 141 inlots in Warren, millwright by occupation. Graff, Andrew, 4 inlots in Warren. Goodwin, Jacob, 600 acres, 2 horses, 2 cows, 2 oxen, 2 inlots in Warren, ^ saw-mill. Greenwalt, Mathias, i cow, i ox. Gray, Joseph, 2 inlots in Warren. Geer, Asa, 2 cows. Goodwin, Joseph, 125 acres. Hurst, Henry, 2 inlots in Warren. Hill & Torbett, 10 inlots in Warren. Hackney, Joseph, 6 inlots in Warren. Harper, Elisha, 2 inlots in Warren. Hood, John, 100 acres of land, i horse. Hadley, Stephen, 66 acres, ^ saw-mill. Hawley, John, 1 50 acres. Jones, Isaiah, Esq., 329 acres, i cow, justice of the peace. Jackson, Daniel, Sen', 133 acres, 2 horses, 4 cows, 8 lots in Warren, i saw-mill, justice of the peace. Jackson, Daniel, Jr., 400 acres, i horse, i cow, I inlot in Warren. Jackson, Ethan, 470 acres, 2 cows, 2 oxen, 2 inlots in Warren, i saw-mill. Kennedy, Thomas R., 6 outlets in Warren. King, John, single man. Kerson, John, 200 acres, i cow. Kerson, Samuel, i cow. Lynch, George, i cow. Lapsley, William, 200 acres, 2 cows. McKinney, Michael, 400 acres, i horse, 2 cows, I ox. McDowell, Alexander, 3 outlets and 6 inlets in Warren. McNamara, Robert, i outlot and 12 inlots in Warren. McNair, Charles, 2 inlots in Warren. McKinney, John, 2 inlots in Warren Murdeck, Abijah, 100 acres, i cow, 4 oxen, i saw-mill, 18 inlots in Warren. Murdeck, Moses, 100 acres, 2 cows, 2 oxen. 134 History of Warren County. Murdock, Galen, i cow. Marsh, John, 200 acres, i horse, 3 cows, 4 oxen, 2 outlots and 2 inlots in Warren. Marsh, David, 100 acres, i cow, I horse, i in- let in Warren. Marsh, Mulford, 400 acres, 4 cows, 3 oxen, 2 outlots and 6 inlots in Warren. Morrison, Samuel, 133 acres, i cow, 2 oxen, 2 inlots in Warren, f of saw-mill. Miles, Robert, 1,400 acres, 2 horses, 3 cows, 2 oxen. McClay, Cliarles, 1,200 acres, 6 inlots in War- ren. Miles, William, 200 acres. Marsh, Hugh, 400 acres, i horse, 2 cows, 4 oxen. I bull, 2 outlots and 3 inlots in War- ren. McGintv, Daniel, 100 acres, 1 cow, i saw- mill. McClain, Neal, 200 acres, 2 horses, 2 cows. McClain, John, 200 acres, 2 cows, 2 oxen. Mullen, John, 3 inlots in Warren. Morrison, John, 400 acres, 2 cows, 2 inlots in Warren. Morrison, Jeremiah, 400 acres, i cow, 4 oxen, I inlot in Warren, .| saw-mill. Morrison, James, Jr., 65 acres, i cow, 2 o.xen, I inlot in Warren, Morrison, James, Sen', 2 cows, 2 oxen. Morrison, William, 200 acres, 1 cow, 2 oxen, I inlot in Warren. Murphy, Jesse, 200 acres, 2 cows, 2 oxen. Neville, John, i cow. Owen, John, i cow. Powers, George, 38 inlots in Warren. Pastorius, William, i inlot in Warren. Parmlee, Lothrop S., single man. Phillips, Ira, 66 acres, J saw-mill. Peelman, Christopher, 100 acres, i horse. Portman, John, 100 acres, 3 cows. Portman, James, 100 acres. Russell, Thomas, 100 acres. Russell, Robert, 100 acres, i cow, i inlot in Warren, millwright by occupation. Russell, John, Sen', 100 acres, 2 cows, 2 oxen. Russell, John, Jr., 100 acres, 2 oxen. Ross, Stephen, 400 acres, 2 horses. 2 cows, 2 oxen, I saw-mill, i inlot in Warren. Robertson, Jonathan, 275 acres, i cow, 2 oxen. Reilly, James, 1 inlot in Warren. Rason. Jacob, 2 inlots in Warren. Reese, Martin, Sen', i horse, 2 cows, 2 oxen, 7 outlots and i inlot in Warren. Reese, Martin, Jr., 117 acres. 2 oxen. Reese, John, 2 inlots in Warren. Ramsey, Robert, 100 acres, i cow. Swar, Jacob, 2 inlots in Warren. Sherman, Elisha, i inlot in Warren. Stiles, John, 375 acres, 2 cows, 2 oxen. Stewart, William. 100 acres, i horse. Slone, George, 2 cows, a blacksmith. Shipman, James, 100 acres, i cow. Stuart, James, 200 acres, 2 cows. Stuart, John, 100 acres, i cow. Smith, John, 4 inlots in Warren. Sims. William, Jr., i inlot in Warren. Simons, Titus A., i inlot in Warren. Simons, David S.. i inlot in Warren. Stage, Samuel, 300 acres, 2 horses, i inlot in Warren. Schoonover, Christopher, 400 acres, i horse, 2 cows. Thompson John, 3 inlots in Warren. Tyler Joel, 200 acres, i cow. Uppenhouser, Hendrick, i horse. Wright, Azariah, 4 inlots in Warren. Work, Edward, 4 inlots in Warren. Wilson. Hugh, i inlot in Warren. Woodworth, Joseph, 200 acres. 2 oxen. Woodworth, Isaac, 200 acres. Waldo, Frederick, 200 acres, 2 cows. Young, Jotham, single man. York. Amos, 100 acres, 2 cows. The rate per cent, on real and per- Reed. James, i inlot in Warren. Single men were taxed 75 cents each sonal estate was six mills on the dollar. The total amount of valuation was $75,140.80-^, and the court of appeals was ordered to be held at the house of Daniel Jackson. Brokenstraw : August, Benjamin, tailor, i cow. Andrews, James, 100 acres. Andrews, Robert, 300 acres, 2 horses, 2 cows, I .saw-mill, and justice of the peace. Andrews, John, 600 acres. 2 oxen, i horse, 4 cows, 2 stills. Arthur, John, 1 50 acres. 4 saw-mill, 2 oxen, 2 cows. Adams, William. 100 acres, 2 horses. The Era of Formation, from 1800 to 18 19. 135 Adkins. James, i horse, single man. Buchanan, Andrew, blacksmith, lOO acres, 2 oxen, 2 cows. Bonner, Robert, 400 acres, i grist-mill, i saw- mill, I cow, 1 horse. Berry, George, 100 acres. Bell, Robert, single man. i yoke oxen. Bell, John, 500 acres. Bonner. Francis, single man. millwright. Bonner. James, single man. Chamberlain, Stout, 250 acres. Campbell, James, i horse. Campbell, Samuel, i horse, i cow. Crawford, John, 200 acres, 2 oxen. Culbertson, James, 450 acres, i saw-mill, 2 oxen, 2 cows, i horse. Cover, George, single man, i horse. Corbett, Daniel, 350 acres, i saw-mill, 2 yokes oxen, 2 horses, i cow. Call, Daniel, 200 acres, 2 oxen, i cow. Call, Dennis, 150 acres. Call, John, 150 acres. Cochran, William, 2 oxen, i cow. Carpenter. William, Sen', 250 acres, 2 cows, I horse. Carpenter. John. 1 50 acres, i saw-mill. 2 oxen. I horse. Carhart, Stophel, single man. Cunningham, Richard, 200 acres. Collins, Jonathan, 100 acres, i cow. Davis, Elijah, 100 acres, 2 oxen, i cow. Davis, John. 100 acres. Davis, Abraham, 100 acres, 2 oxen. Evers, Andrew, 200 acres, 2 oxen, i cow, i horse. Elder, James, Jr., i horse, i cow. Elder, John, 100 acres. Frampton, John, 250 acres, 2 oxen, 3 cows, i horse. Ford. William. 200 acres, i ox, i cow. Fancher, Samuel, 100 acres, i horse, i cow. Ford, Obediah, single man. Groves, Thos. W., 400 acres, 2 oxen, i cow. Gray, Joseph, 600 acres, 2 horses, 2 cows, 2 oxen. Green, James, 2 oxen, I cow. Hare, James, 100 acres. Hare, Michael, 100 acres, i cow. Henry, William, cabinet maker, i cow. Huffman, Jacob, 200 acres, 4 oxen, i horse, I cow. Henderson, Richard, 400 acres, 2 oxen. Hunter. Robert, 4 acres, i cow. Hinds, John, blacksmith, 400 acres, 2 oxen. Hildebrandt, George, Jr., 100 acres. Hildebrandt, Solomon, 100 acres. Hildebrandt, George, Sen', 100 acres, 2 oxen, I cow, millwright by trade. Hicks, Levi, 100 acres, 2 cows, i ox, i horse. Hicks, John, 100 acres, 2 horses, i ox, i cow. Horn, Daniel, 100 acres, i horse. Pluffman, Philip, 395 acres, 3 horses, i cow. Justice, John, 1 horse, 2 oxen. Justice, James, 200 acres, i cow. Irvin, James, 200 acres, 2 horses, 2 cows. Irvin. George, 100 acres. Jackson. Elijah, 150 acres, 2 oxen, i horse. Jones, Daniel, 100 acres, 2 cows. Jones, Edward, single man. Long, John, Jr, 200 acres, 1 cow, 2 oxen. Long, John, Sen', 160 acres. Cover & Horn, 400 acres, I saw-mill. Long, George, 2 oxen, i horse, i cow. Linn, James, 100 acres, i horse, i cow. McQuay, Daniel, 400 acres, 2 o.xen. Miller, Humphrey, 2 cows, i horse. McKinney, Barnabas, 4 oxen. NcNair, Charles, 700 acres. Maxwell, William, 400 acres, i horse, 2 cows. Mead, Joseph, 400 acres, 4 oxen, 3 cows, i horse, I saw-mill. Mead, Darius, 500 acres, i grist-mill, i saw- mill, 6 oxen, 3 cows, 2 horses. McClain, William, 100 acres, 2 horses, 2 cows. McGuire, Patience, 400 acres, 2|oxen, 2 cows. Miller, John, 100 acres, i horse, i cow. McGahan, William, 2 oxen, I cow. McKinney, John, 200 acres, 3 oxen, 2 horses, 3 cows, i saw-mill. Mead, William, too acres, i horse. McLister, James, shoemaker, 100 acres, 2 cows. McCullough, Robert, single man. Mead, John, single man. Olds. Gilbert, shoemaker. Prosser, William, 100 acres, 2 oxen, i cow. Prosser, Daniel, 100 acres. Prosser, Isaac, 100 acres. Putnam, Nathaniel, 266 acres, 2 oxen, i cow, I horse, f of saw-mill. Porter, Andrew, 100 acres. Page, Joseph, 100 acres, i cow. Rhinehart, Isaac, 100 acres, 3 cows, i horse. Sims, James, 400 acres. 136 History of Warren County. Sims, Catharine, 2 oxen, 2 cows, i horse. Sample, John, 150 acres, 2 horses, 1 cow. Siggins, William, i yoke of o.xen. Sample, John, Sen', i cow. Smith, Charles, 100 acres, i cow. Stewart, Richard, 100 acres. -Tuthill, Francis, 200 acres, i cow. Thompson, Daniel, 100 acres, 2 horses. Thompson, Thomas, single man. Wilson, Samuel, 400 acres. 2 oxen, i cow. Wilson, William, 400 acres. Watts, James, 300 acres, 2 oxen, i horse. Watts, Alexander, 500 acres. Winton, Nathan, 2 oxen, 2 cows. Winton, David, 133 acres, 2 oxen, i saw-mill. White, Alfred, 100 acres, 3 cows. White. Giles, 100 acres, 4 oxen, 3 cows, 2 horses. Watts, John, too acres, i horse, i cow. Williams, John L., 50 acres. Willison, James, 100 acres, i cow. Welch, Samuel. 500 acres, 3 horses, 2 cows. Wilson, Hugh, 300 acres, i cow, i horse. Young. Mathew. 400 acres, J saw-mill. Hugh Wilson was the assessor. The tax upon single men and the rate per cent, upon real and personal estate were the same as in Conewango township. The total valuation of taxable property in the township was $58,766.99, and the house of Robert Andrews was named as the place for holding a court of appeals. In June, 1808, a delegation of Wyandot and Seneca Indians from San- dusky River passed through Warren and up the Allegheny River, on their way to a council with the Seneca nation. They were bringing a friendly message from the Ohio tribes, to allay any fears of an Indian outbreak in that locality. During the same summer some twenty or thirty Senecas, from their reservation on the Allegheny, went to Sandusky, where a council was held with the West- ern tribes. They also passed over the same route going and returning, and it was learned that the council's deliberations related principally to the existing differences between the United States and England, and in the event of a war they had decided to observe a strict neutrality. This decision, however, proved of very little stability, as the Senecas sided with the United States, while most of the Western Indians, through the influence of Tecumsch, assisted by British gold, went with England. When the War of 18 12-15 broke out, a want of confidence began to be manifested between the inhabitants of Northwestern Pennsylvania and the In- dians on the Allegheny River, which excited some uneasiness, lest disagreeable consequences might result from it. To quiet all apprehensions, the citizens of Meadville held a meeting, and deputized General David Mead, Colonel Joseph Hackney (afterwards for many years a well-known citizen of Warren), and Major Patrick Farrelly to visit the Indians and ascertain their disposition in the coming war with England ; also to make what explanations might be deemed necessary to continue the good understanding that had hitherto exist- ed with these tribes. A council was held at Jennesadaga, Cornplanter's village on the Allegheny, at which were present a number of chiefs and warriors of the Seneca nation, among whom were Cornplanter, Silver Heels — the old prophet, who, it has been stated, was a brother of Cornplanter — Joseph Beads, John Purfer, Major Henry O'Bail and Charles O'Bail, sons of Cornplanter. The Era of Formation, from 1800 to 18 19. 137 When the council assembled Cornplanter welcomed the delegates and wished to hear from them. Major Farrelly explained the object of their mission, viz., to preserve the peace and friendship heretofore existing between the whites and Indians. After a short consultation with the other chiefs Cornplanter replied, reciprocating the sentiments expressed by Major Farrelly, whereupon the council broke up with the best of feelings. At this period a treaty existed between the Senecas and the United States government which provided that if a white man should kill an Indian, or vice versa, the culprit would have to pay $200 to the friends or heirs of the mur- dered man. Though this might now be regarded as very questionable justice, yet it helped to establish a feeling of confidence among the Senecas, which made them the allies of this nation in the War of 1812— 15, though every effort was made by the agents of the British government to seduce them from their allegiance to the American cause. To Cornplanter's influence was due this happy result, as after the Revolutionary War (with the exception of the year 1794) he was always the steadfast friend of the young republic in her struggle against English arrogance, which was exhibited on every occasion, until the War of 1 81 2-1 5 taught her to respect the rights of American freemen. Corn- planter, then an old man of about four score years, took no active part in that war, but many of the Senecas, including his son. Major Henry O'Bail, and his half-brother, Half- Town, were conspicuous in the last struggle against English tyranny. Of the white residents of Warren county who served in the last war^ against Great Britain but little can be said, since it is an impracticable matter to ascertain who they were, how many there were, or where they served. But there is no room for doubt that the two townships furnished their full quota of soldiers and that the men who marched to the scene of conflict well performed the duty assigned them. During the year 18 13 "the Holland Land Company sold to the Lancaster Land Company one hundred and seventy thousand acres of land, mostly situ- ated in Warren county and covering the territory now included in Mead, Pleasant, Kinzua, Cherry Grove, and Sheffield townships. The latter com- 1 On the 15th of June, 1869, a number of the surviving soldiers of the War of 1812-15 met in Warren. Hon. William Siggins was chosen president of the meeting and Robert Miles secretary. They passed resolutions regarding the granting of pensions to soldiers of the last war with England, and were hospitably entertained by L. L. Lowry, Esq., at the Carver House, with a dinner sumptuous in its appointments. The veterans present were as follows : Zachariah Eddy, of Warren, aged ninety years ; Robert Miles, of Warren, aged seventy-si.\ years ; Stephen Olney, of Warren, aged seventy- eight years ; John Geer, of Glade township, aged seventy-eight years ; Emanuel Crull, of Tidioute, aged eighty years ; Caleb Thompson, of Pine Grove township, aged eighty-four years ; Isaac Davis, of Brokenstraw township, aged seventy-seven years ; John Brown, of Brokenstraw township, aged seventy-three years ; William Siggins, of YoungsviUe, aged eighty years ; Isaac Lopus, of Pittsfield, aged seventy-seven years ; Elisha Sterling, of Limestone, aged eighty-one years. Ira Badger, of Pine Grove, aged seventy-four years, and Joseph Ackley, of the same township, aged seventy-nine years, were also veterans of the same war, and living at that time, but were unable to attend the meeting. 138 History of Warren County. pany immediately employed Samuel Dale, of Franklin, to re-survey and sub- divide the original surveys into small lots of one hundred and sixty-five and two hundred and twenty-five acres each. This work was performed in 1814, numbering them anew from one to seven hundred and seventy. These lands have ever since been bought and sold, taxed and mapped, by these subdivision numbers. In 18 16 these lots were partitioned among the several members of the company and the titles made to each in severalty. "The hard times which followed the close of the War of 1812-45 seems to have crushed the ability or the spirit of these Lancaster gentlemen for further land speculation. Commencing with 1816, those lands began to be sold for taxes, and soon a great portion of them were in the tax market, .sold and resold many times for unpaid taxes, for thirty years and upward, before their value was properly appreciated. Many other lands in the county, especially those in the northwestern part, between the river and Conewango Creek, have passed through the unseated tax mill and are now held by treasurers' deeds. It is proper here to say, for the benefit of outsiders and new-comers, that the tax titles by which so large a portion of the land in the county is now owned, are generally very reliable and safe ones to deal in. They are free from com- plication, and it has been the policy of the law and the courts to sustain them, when not vitiated by gross irregularities." ' In the summer of 1816 Rev. Timothy Alden, before mentioned as the founder of the Allegheny College, set out on a brief missionary tour among the Indians residing on the upper waters of the Allegheny, and spent some days at the village of the venerable chieftain, Cornplanter. Upon his return to Meadville he wrote a letter to the Rev. Joseph McKean, of Harvard Uni- versity, giving an account of his labors, etc., wherein he says : " Cornplanter, as soon as apprised of our arrival, came over to see us, and immediately took charge of our horses. Though the chief Sachem of his tribe, and having many around to obey his commands, yet, in the ancient patriarchial style, he chose to serve himself, and actually went into the field, cut the oats, and faithfully fed our beasts from time to time, while we continued in the place, in ipsa per- sona propria " Cornplanter has been the greatest warrior the Scnecas have ever had ; yet he has always been remarkable for his humane treatment of the women and children of his enemies, who at any time have fallen into his hands. He is a man of strong mind and masterly eloquence. At the treaty of Fort Stan- wix, he greatly distinguished himself by his talents and address, insomuch that by general suffrage he has ever since held the first place of power among the chiefs of his nation. " He appears to be about si.xty-eight years of age." [Mr. Alden was mis- taken as to Cornplanter's age. He was born about 1732, and in i8i6was I Hon. S. P. Ji)linson. The Era of Formation, from 1800 to 18 19. 139 eighty-four years old.] " His countenance is strongly marked with the lines of intelligence and reflection. Contrary to the aboriginal custom, his chin is covered with a beard three or four inches in length, and upon his head are many of the blossoms of age. His house is of princely dimensions compared with the generality of Indian huts, and has a piazza in front. He is the owner of about 1,500 acres of excellent land, 600 of which encircle the ground-plot of his little town. From the United States he receives, annually, according to stipulation, $250, besides his proportion of $9,000 equally divided, one half in goods and one half in money, among those of every age and condition in the tribe." At this time (18 16) the tax-paying inhabitants of the county were as follows : Coiicivaiigo Toivnsliip. — Samuel Anderson, James Arthur, who owned a saw-mill, Robert Arthur, Sen"', Boon Arthur, James Akin, Adam Acker, John Brown, John Brown, Jr., John Barr, David Brown, a tanner, and justice of the peace as early as 1 8 1 1 , Andrew Buchanan, Ozias Barrett, Joseph Bailing, John Cole, James Cole, Benjamin Covel, Isaiah Cole, Cornelius Cole, Samuel Campbell, Josiah Chandler, Charles Chandler, John Chandler, Charles Dougherty, William Davis, Thomas Davis, Ezra Devereaux, Henry Dunn, Levi Doan, who owned a saw-mill, Zachariah Eddy, Randall Evans, Daniel Faulkner, Stephen Frank, who owned a grist-mill, Robert Falconer, Luther Freeman, Joseph Fitch, Eli Granger, Widow Gilson, Joseph Gray, Asa Geer, Joseph Goodwin, Hackney & Harriott, owners of a saw-mill, Jacob Hook, who owned a saw-mill, John Hood, Samuel Hunter, owner of a grist-mill and saw- mill, William Hodge, Ebenezer Jackson, Daniel Jackson, David Jackson, Isaiah Jones, justice of the peace, Jehu Jones, Edward Jones, John King, John Littlefield, Levi Morrison, Hugh Marsh, John Marsh, Webster Marsh, Jesse Murphy, owner of a grist and saw-mill, John Marsh, Jr., Michael McKin- ney, Joseph Mead, Ephriam Morrison, Samuel Morrison, owner of a saw-mill, Elisha Morrison, James Morrison, Sen", William Morrison, John Morrison, Robert Miles, Widow Miles, John Miles, James Morrison, Jr., William Mile^ Samuel Magee.i John McClain, John Neville, Joseph Northrup, Abraham Os- born, Eben Owen, a blacksmith, James Portman, Squire Phillips, John Rus- sell, Jr., Thomas Russell, Martin Reese, Jr., John Reese, Robert Russell, Michael Reese, John Russell, Sen^ Stephen Rogers, Rankin & Cochran, owners of one-half of a saw-mill, Martin Reese, Sen', Christopher Schoonover, James Stanton, Simeon Scowden, James Stewart, Jr., Robert Stewart, William Stew- 1 At the Tune term of Court of Common Pleas, 1821, one James Magee, an insolvent debtor, then eighty-six years of age, mnde statement under oath that early in 1776 he enlisted in the State of Dela- aware in a company commanded by Captain Lattimore, called the "Wilmington Greens," for a term of fifteen months. Subsequently he re-enlisted in the same State in a company commanded by Captain Mitchell. His company was attached to Colonel Grayson's regiment of the Virginia Line, and served till 17S0. Mr. Magee participated in the battles of Brandywine, Paoli, Germantown, and Monmouth. I40 History of Warren County. art, Thomas Stewart, James Shipman, David Sturdevant, George Sweet, Jonathan Thompson, Caleb Thompson, and Asa Winter, owner of grist and saw-mills. Brokenstraw Township. — Robert Andrews, justice of the peace, Arthur Andrews, James Andrews, William Arthur, Robert Arthur, owner one-half of saw-mill, Thomas Arthur, John Arthur, James Arthur, Richard Arthur, Na- than Abbott, George Berry, James Bonner, owner of a grist-mill and saw-mill, Samuel Burnett, Peter Burgett, owner of saw-mill, Robert Bell, Isaac Bucka- lew, Thomas Boyd, James Benson, Thomas Burbank, George Carpenter, James Culbertson, owner of a saw-mill, Alexander Clantz, Luther Chase, Daniel Corbett, owner of a saw-mill, John Courson, Stephen Carhart, George Cover, Henry Catlin, John Campbell, David Courson, John Camp, a millwright, Sam- uel Cole, David Dalrymple, Mark Dalrymple, Clark Dalrymple, David Dal- rymple, Jr., Robert Donaldson, Abraham Davis, John Davis, Isaac Davis, Eli- jah Davis, Abraham D. Ditmars, Benjamin Davis, Thomas Duprey, a black- smith, Richard Duprey, John De France, James Darling, owner of saw-mill, John Elder, James Elder, Andrew Evers, Nathaniel Frampton, Obediah Ford, Samuel Ford, Isaac L. Fitch, John Gardner, Joseph Grant, Jacob Goodwin, who owned a saw-mill and one-half of a grist-mill, Joseph Gray, owner of a saw-mill, John Gillespie, merchant at Youngsville, John Gregg, Samuel Gregg, Nehemiah Gray, John Gibson, James Green, Daniel Horn, owner of saw-mill, John Hamilton, a blacksmith, William Hunter, Poland Hunter, William Hare, James Hamilton, Robert Hunter, Richard Henderson, Joel Hill, Daniel Hough- wout, a joiner, Paul Huffman, Jacob Huffman, James Irvin, John Irvine, a mer- chant, Callender Irvine, Septimus King, Henry Kinnear, a merchant, Elijah Jackson, George Long, Cookson Long, owner of saw-mill, Hewlett Lott, Har- monious Lott, a merchant, William McClain, Solomon Miles, Richard Miller, William McGee, Patience McGuire, William McGuire, David Matthews, Arthur McGill, Samuel McGuire, Thomas McGuire, Samuel Moore, John McKinney, owner of saw-mill, Barnabas McKinney, John Mead, William Mead, Anna Mead, owner of one-half grist-mill and one-half saw-mill, Daniel McQuay, Charles McNair, Ephraim Miles, Humphrey Miller, Nathaniel Norris, Stephen Norris, James Phillis, Robert Prather, owner of saw-mill, Samuel Peoples, John Peoples, Leonard Pike, Thomas Page, Jonathan Rute, James Sturdevant, James Sturdevant, Jr., Peter Simons, George Shultz, Jesse Sims, Charles Smith, Adam Shultz, David Stillson, Abraham Strickland, Thomas Sims, Richard Stewart, John Sample, Jr., George Siggins, Samuel Sprague, William Siggins, Stephen Sweet, William Smith, Robert Thompson, John Thompson, John Tut- tle, Thomas Tubbs, James Williams, James Watts' heirs, William White, Henry White, Samuel White, James White, Parsons Wetmore, Lansing Wetmore, Will- iam C. White, Canvas B. White, Hugh Wilson, Joshua Whitney, Alexander Watts, Amos York, Nehemiah York, Christopher Young and Mathew Young. From the Organization ok the County until 1830. 141 This is a remarkable showing, as compared with the list of taxables of eight years before, and clearly proves that hard times, cold seasons, litigations con- cerning land titles, and the War of 18 12-15 h'^d proved disastrous to the new settlements in Warren — had discouraged many and caused them to migrate to more congenial parts farther West ; for, although this list discloses many new names, yet the number of tax-paying inhabitants in 18 16 is exactly the same as that of 1 808 — two hundred and fifty-six. During the next four years, however, a rapid increase in population took place ; for when the county was organized in 18 19 it contained nearly two thousand inhabitants. CHAPTER XIV. FROM THE ORGANIZATION OF THE COUNTY UNTIL 18.30. Onerous Duties Imposed Upon Early Inhabitants — Passage of the Ai-t of Organization — Its Provisions — Initial Proceedings of County Commi.ssioners — The First Term of Court — Its Officers — Jurors — Attorneys — Early Inn-keepers — Reminiscences Concerning the First Term of Court — Population of the County in 1820 — New Townships formed in 1821 — The Attempts to Collect Taxes from Cornplanter — The Old Chief Victorious — The Hook Murder Trial — Incidents Connected Therewith — Results — Other Early Events. FOR five years the inhabitants of Warren county had plodded their weary way from their log cabins in the wilderness, over the hills to Meadville, when it was necessary to transact public or legal business, and for fourteen years more had they made toilsome journeys to Franklin, a distance of sixty- five miles from the then hamlet of Warren, when business of the same nature imposed its duties upon them. This condition of affairs at last became too onerous and irksome to be longer borne without an effort being made to effect a change. Hence in the winter of 1818-19 Colonel Joseph Hackney, of the town of Warren, then representing Venango county in the State Legislature, introduced a bill providing for the separate and independent organization of the county of Warren. His efforts were crowned with almost immediate suc- cess, and on the i6th day of March, 18 19, an act containing the legislation de- sired was passed This act provided that Warren should be organized as a separate county from and after October i, 1819, and be attached to the Sixth judicial district. Also, that the legal electors should choose county officers at an election to be held on the second Tuesday of October of that year, whose duties were to be considered as commenced from the first day of October, 18 19. We have no evidence, however, that such an election was held, and from the fact that 142 History of Warren County. Lansing Wetmore's commissions as prothonotary, clerk of courts, register and recorder, etc., were signed by the governor, September 25, 18 19, it is believed that all the chief officers of the county at the beginning were appointed by the same authority. The county commissioners, viz., James Benson, Asa Winter, and Henry Kinnear, appear to have been the first officials of the county to make use of the power and priviliges vested in them. Their first meeting was held October 16, 1 8 19, at the house of Ebenezer Jackson, which stood on the west, or rather northwest, corner of Water and Hickory streets. Messrs. Benson and Winter only were present at this meeting. They appointed John Andrews as their clerk. They also hired a room from Jackson at a rental of two dollars per month, to be used and known as the county commissioners' office. The next meeting was held on the 28th day of the same month, all of the members being present, when Henry Dunn, of Conewango, and Isaac Connelly, of Bro- kenstraw, were appointed township assessors for the ensuing year. On the 8th day of November Charles O'Bail, a son of Cornplanter, pre- sented a claim for bounty on two full-grown wolf scalps. A room in which to hold the first term of court was rented from Ebenezer Jackson at a rental of $15 for the term, on the loth of the same month, and five days later, or November 15, 18 19, Archibald Tanner was appointed county treasurer for the term of one year. Preparations having been completed for the proper observance of such a grand event, the first Court of Quarter Sessions of the Peace and Common Pleas, to convene in the newly-organized county of Warren, began its sessions on Monday, November 29, 18 19, in an unfinished room of a house then being built by Ebenezer Jackson. This house of Jackson's, as before described, stood on the corner now occupied by the Carver House. There were present as officials Hon. Jesse Moore, president judge; Joseph Hackney and Isaac Connelly, associate judges; Andrew Bowman, sheritiof Venango county, act- ing, and Lansing Wetmore, prothonotary, clerk of courts, etc. The grand jurors summoned to attend at this term, all of whom answered to their names with the exception of Emanuel Crull, were Richard B. Miller, foreman, Alexander Watt, James Sturdevant, Henry Catlin, John Long, Joseph Gray, David Sturdevant, Philip Mead, William Bingham, John Portman, Samuel Trask, David Miles, Orange Owen, Jesse Tarbox, Samuel Gilson, John Dixon, Levi Doane, Squire Phillips, Thomas McGuire, Zachariah Eddy, John Tuttle, Emanuel Crull, Arthur Andrews, and Peleg Cranston. While of the traverse jurors summoned there were present John Geer, William Siggins, Abraham Strickland, James Wilson, John Gilson, Henry Myers, John Rogers, Cook.son Long, Levi Morrison, Ebenezer Jackson, Enoch Gillam, Eli Granger, Samuel Gregg, James Follett, John Sample, Ethan Owen, Cephas Holbert, Walter Seaman, John McKinncy, and Philip Huffman. From the Organization of the County until 1830. 143 These jurymen had been summoned by Andrew Bowman, sheriff of Ve- nango county, to whom had been directed the precept. He also cited the grand and traverse jurors who assembled at March term in 1820, by reason of the fact that Mark C. Dalrymple, the first sheriff of Warren county, was not com- missioned until about the time of holding the second term of court above mentioned. During the first day of the first term Ralph Marlin, of Meadville, Thomas H. Sill, of Erie, John Galbraith, of Frankhn, and Patrick Farrelly, of Mead- ville, were admitted to practice as attorneys at law in the various courts of the county. During the same day, also, David Stillson and George Stoolfire were granted license' to sell liquors and keep houses for public entertainment. For other interesting details relating to this first term of court held in Warren county, our readers are referred to the following accounts, written for publica- tion years ago by two of Warren's early citizens — Hon. Lansing Wetmore and Hon. Abner Hazeltine. True, these statements are somewhat contradictory, especially in describing the fight between the lawyer and the grand juror; but both are very readable, and only prove, for the millionth time or more, how easy it is for two men, in speaking of one and the same incident, to tell two entirely different stories. "This first term of court," says Judge Wetmore, "went off rather as a jubilee and jollification than the sober business of administering justice to par- ties, and trial of cases. Every body drank liquor then and almost every body got drunk, or, as Mr. Farmlee used to have it 'Gentlemanly gay.' Temper- ance Societies were unknown then. There were but two cases tried, and they were in the sessions. They originated in a fight on Monday evening of court week, between one of the grand jurors and an attorney at the bar from Mead- ville. The attorney had been a Colonel of the Militia in the War of 18 12, and the juryman a soldier. He, the colonel, was telling in rather a boasting way of his exploits while on the frontier. The juryman listened to him for some time, when he asked him if he was the officer who dodged behind a tree when there was an alarm of an attack by the British. The gallant colonel replied by a blow on the head of the grand juryman. It was promptly returned, when a general melee ensued. It resulted in some bloody noses and black eyes, but no serious injuries; all being a little more than 'gentlemanly gay.' The colonel was indicted and convicted of an assault and battery; a motion was made in arrest of judgment, which still remains unargued and undisposed of; 1 Others to whom licenses were granted for the same purpose during the ne.\t four years were John Thompson, place not stated ; Robert Miles, Thomas Slone, and Marshall Jones, of I'inc Grove ; Ebenezer Jaclcson, David Jackson, Henry Dunn, Rufus Olney, |and King & Jackson, of the town of Warren ; Ambrose L. Pratt, John Langley, Oldham & Gilman, John Reese, Jacob Wells, Mark C. Dalrymple, and Philo Brown, places not stated; John I. Willson, Samuel Hall, James Seaman, and Artemus Buel, of Sugar Grove; Alfred Vanornam and William Siggins, of Brokenslraw ; Samuel Magee, of Deerfield, and Isaac Williams, of Kinzua. 144 History of Warren County. the colonel has long since gone to his final account. The grand juryman was also indicted and tried, but was acquitted on the plea of se defaidendo." Judge Hazeltine, in his graphic description of the opening of the first term of court, and subsequent proceedings, says : "As all our county officers were wholly without experience, the prothonotary and sheriff of Venango county came up with Judge Moore, the president, and brought the Venango court crier, a Mr. Morrison, a dapper little man of wonderful volubility of speech, and certainly a great curiosity. There was no show of carriages in the streets. The attendants upon the court came either on horseback or on foot. I recol- lect that Richard B. Miller, the foreman of the grand jury, and Guy C. Irvine, who then lived on the Little Brokenstraw, came on foot by the way of Chan- dler's Valley, over the hills then a wilderness, with knapsacks on their backs, A rude bench for the judges, with seats for the other members of the court, were hastily improvised in the spacious and rather open court room. " On the arrival of the hour Crier Morrison blew his horn, bells being then unknown, and the court assembled, Sheriff Bowman, of Venango, accom- panied by Sheriff Dalrymple,i of Warren, leading the way. Judge Moore, a large, venerable-looking man, took his seat on the bench, wearing as large a beaver as ever graced the head of William Penn. The associate judges, Hack- ney and Connelly, then took their seats, one on the right and the other on the left of the president, they also wearing their hats. Crier Morrison, in a very audible manner, then made proclamation that the court was opened, and that all persons having any business with the Court of Oyer and Terminer, Court of Quarter Sessions, Common Pleas, and Orphan's Court, might draw near, give their attention, and they should be heard ; ending with what Daniel McQuay, a witty Irishman, used to call a bit of a prayer, viz.: ' God save the Commonwealth and this Honorable Court.' " The next business in order was administering the oath of office to such members of the bar as were present from other counties in the district. There was no attorney living in the county but myself, and I was then a foreigner. There were present Messrs. Marlin, Farrelly, Sill, and Galbraith, and they were severally admitted to the Warren Bar, and sworn according to seniority. The first sworn was Colonel Marlin. The oath was administered by Judge Moore to each orie separately ; and in doing it he rose from his seat, laid aside his hat, and repeated the words of the oath in a very solemn and impressive manner. The grand jurors were then called and sworn, the oaths being ad- ministered by the Hon. Alexander McCalmont, prothonotary of Venango county, who assisted Judge Wetmore, then the prothonotary of Warren; Mor- rison, the crier, ejaculating sivoni at the conclusion of each oath very emphat- ically. Judge Moore, then in a sitting posture, but with his hat removed, 1 This is an error. There was no Sheriff Dalrymple at lliat time. See " Commission Books," in register and recorder's office. From the Organization of the County until 1830. 145 charged the grand jury from a large roll of manuscript showing considerable age. " This was a novelty to me, as I had always seen that duty performed without the aid of manuscript, the judge and the jurors all standing. To those who were acquainted with Judge Moore and the courts in Western Pennsyl- vania, it of course appeared all natural and in order. The traverse jurors were then sworn. After calling over the docket, which then consisted of only a few suits that had been transferred from Venango county under the act organizing Warren county for judicial purposes, and the transaction of some routine busi- ness, the court adjourned to the next day to await the action of the grand jury. " During the evening of the first day Counselor Marlin, who was not a total abstinence man, was approached rather incautiously, as he thought, by one of the grand jurors named Dickson, who, like the colonel, had imbibed pretty freely. Colonel Marlin had been some years previous to that time engaged in lumber- ing on the Conewango and the Allegheny, and Dickson, who claimed to have been employed in some capacity about that business, was disposed to be more familiar with the colonel than was agreeable to him, and he put himself upon his dignity, which greatly irritated Dickson, who being a grand juror sup- posed himself the peer of any one. The result was a free fight ensued, in which the colonel was rather roughly handled. As several of the grand jurors were witnesses of the aff"ray, they thought it their duty to indict them both. My recollection is, that Mr. Sill, of Erie, officiated as prosecuting attorney and drew the bill. The next day the bills were presented in court and the defend- ants arrested. That day, or the next, Dickson was put upon his trial. That, I suppose, was the first trial before a jury ever had in this county. That cir- cumstance and the character of the parties concerned, interested the public and caused a large attendance. The evidence in the case was brief; only two or three persons who saw the aftray were sworn. One, I think, was Mr. Miller, the foreman of the grand jury. Mr. Sill appeared for the Common- wealth, and as was his wont, made a very eloquent speech, speaking in high terms of Colonel Marlin and alluding to his services in the then recent war with Great Britain, in which the colonel had served with distinction. Dickson was defended by Mr. afterwards Judge Galbraith, then a very young man. The jury, after receiving a very brief charge from the court, consisting mainly of a definition of the crime of assault and battery, retired to a room provided for them by the sheriff" in another building. They soon returned and rendered a verdict of guilty against the prisoner. A motion was then made to postpone the trial of Colonel Marlin to the next term, which was granted. The sentence of Dickson was also postponed. According to my recollection neither case was ever moved again, but what the records show in the matter I am unable to say." 146 History of Warren County. Since both gentlemen — Messrs. Wetmore and Hazeltine — depended upon their memory alone in reciting events connected with this term of court, tliey have quite naturally failed to state things just as they were, particularly in relation to the trial of Marlin and Dixon for assault and battery, the results, etc. Therefore we furnish the reader the following information derived from the docket : In the case of the "Commonwealth Z's. R. Marlin, Esq.," which was first called, the witnesses for the Commonwealth were John Dixon, Samuel Gilson, Henry Dunn, Alfred Ayers, and Jonathan Andrews ; the witnesses for the defendant being Richard B. Miller, James Wilson, William Siggins, Alfred Vanornam, Charles O'Bryan, and Barnabas McKinney. The trial came off November 30, 18 19, the second day of the term, before the following jurors : Cookson Long, Enoch Gillam, Cephas Hulbert, Samuel Gregg, Eli Granger, Levi Morrison, Ethan Owen, James Follett, Walter Seaman, John Sample, John Gilson, and Henry Myers. Defendant was found not guilty, but ordered to pay the costs of prosecution. On December i, 18 19, mf)tion for a new trial was granted. "Commonwealth vs. John Dixon." In this case thu witnesses for the Commonwealth were Alfred Vanornam and William Siggins ; for the defend- ant, Alfred Ayers and Jacob C. Boardman. The trial came off the same day as that of Marlin's, before a jury composed of the following members : Barna- bas Owen, Eben Owen, Philip Huffman, Abraham Strickland, James Willson, John Rogers, Eben Jackson, George Morrison, Michael McKinney, Johnson Wilson, Barnabas McKinney, and Robert Miles. The defendant was found guilty and sentenced to pay a fine of $6 and all the costs of prosecution. In 1820 the two townships of the county — Brokenstraw and Conewango — contained, according to the United States census, one thousand nine hundred and seventy-si.\' inhabitants, three of whom were deaf and dumb. The follow- ing year five hundred and twenty-four taxables were reported to the State authorities. In March, 1821, the two old townships were divided and reduced to but a fraction of their former great extent. Ten others were erected, making twelve in all, as follows : Brokenstraw, Conewango, Spring Creek, Sugar Grove, Pine Grove, Kinzua, Deerfield, North West (now Columbus), Limestone, Tionesta (now obsolete). Elk, and South West. Of these seven only, viz., Brokenstraw, Conewango, Spring Creek, Sugar Grove, Pine Grove, Kinzua, and Deerfield, were organized, the remainder being attached to the organized townships for a number of years. Full particulars, however, relating to these and all other townships in the county will be found in a subsequent chapter of this work, devoted exclusively to the topic. On the 2d of April, 1822, an act was passed by the State Legislature which declared that the lands held by Cornplanter and his tribe should be exempt From the Organization of the County until 1830. 147 from taxation so long as he or they " hold and occupy them in their own right." The same act further provided that all notes, moneys, etc., given by Corn- planter for taxes should be returned to him. It seems that a year or two prior to the passage of the above-mentioned act, the county authorities imposed a tax upon Cornplanter's lands which he refused to pay, declaring that it was levied without authority. A deputation was dispatched to inform him that the collection would be made forcibly if he persisted in his refusal. Cornplanter, who was then surrounded by several of his warriors, invited the deputation of whites into the council-house, and, pointing to a large collection of guns which were standing in one corner of the room, told them that the cause of the Indians was just, and there was their defense. An armed force, headed by the sheriff, was already assembled in Warren to put their threats in execution, but after some consultation the movement was considered premature and injudicious, and was abandoned. The matter was then submitted to the Legislature and decided in favor of the Indians, by the enactment above referred to. On the 6th of July, 1822, Cornplanter visited Warren by appointment, to confer with the county commissioners. He was firm and dignified in his bear- ing. His conduct had been justified by the State ; hence the commissioners could not do otherwise than to adjust all differences, and restore to him the moneys, notes, etc., which had been unlawfully obtained. During the year 1824 occurred the celebrated Hook murder trial. In relating the incidents connected with this case Judge Lansing Wetmore, in his "Reminiscences" of olden times, published in a newspaper in 1853, said: "There has been but one trial for a capital offense since the organization of the county. That was the Commonwealth vs. Jacob Hook, for the murder of Caleb Wallace in 1824. Mr. Hook came to this county in 18 12, and entered extensively into the lumbering business; built the mills which his brother Orin now occupies on the Allegheny, five miles above Warren. He was a man of strong mind, great energy of character, inflexible in his pursuits, unyielding in his opinions and purposes, but, withal, uncultivated. He had rapidly accumu- lated a large property for those times, and was using it to accumulate a still larger. He got into a quarrel with one of his hired men on account of a small balance of wages, claimed as due from Hook. Both were unyielding. The man applied to an attorney for redress, who, also being on bad terms with Hook, espoused the quarrel and brought a suit against Hook. Several other suits for trivial matters were brought against him the same week. "Having exhausted everything on the civil list, on searching the records of court an affidavit was found made by Hook, to ground a motion on to set aside an award of arbitration, something was discovered on which to found the charge of perjury. The oath was made to that effect by Perry Sherman, 148 History of Warren County. and a warrant issued. This was on Saturday. Hook had been to Warren every day that week to answer to some legal process. Sheriff Littlefield being sick, Asa Scott, his deputy, went to serve the writ. He went up in the morn- ing and made known his business. Hook told him he had been to Warren often enough on trivial, trumped-up matters, and should not go down that day; that he should be down the next week, and would answer to the charge. Scott returned and reported progress to complainant and his attorney, who directed him to return with ^ posse and bring Hook down. Scott, accordingly, called to his assistance the complainant, Caleb Wallace, James Arthur, and perhaps one or two more. They arrived at Hook's about dark, went into a house some ten or twelve rods from Hook's, and waited till some time after dark. Mr. Arthur, being on friendly terms with Hook, went to his bed-room window and attempted to persuade him to go with them peaceably; but he was inflexible, and told him he should not go to Warren that night a live man, and warned him if they entered his house it was at the peril of their lives. " Finding importunities fruitless, Scott, with Wallace and Sherman, went into the stoop at the front door; finding it fastened, Scott stepped back a few paces, and rushed against the door with his shoulder; it flew open suddenly, and he fell sprawling his length on the floor. At that moment a gun was discharged from within. Wallace being immediately in Scott's rear received the charge of slug shot in the breast, and fell dead. Sherman being at his side received four of the slugs in his left arm, above and near the elbow. The posse withdrew. Hook came down on Monday morning following, surrendered himself, and was committed to prison. He was taken before Judge Moore, at Meadville, on a habeas corpus, and admitted to bail in $3,000.' Henry Baldwin, with Pat. Farrelly, Sill, and Hazeltine, defended him on the trial. He was acquitted, mainly on the ground that the deputation to Scott was not under seal and void, placing the posse in the same situation as trespassers breaking into a house without any authority. Hook died at Pittsburgh a year or two subsequent to his trial, from the effects of a swelling on his neck, at the age of about forty years." Hook shot Wallace with a musket, March 25, 1824. He was acquitted June 2, 1824, by a jury, selected from a panel of fifty-six men, composed as fol- lows : Daniel Chapin, Horace Watkins, Thomas Gilson, Alexander Stewart, Stephen Williams, Joseph H. Marsh, Jeremiah Dunn, Robert Donaldson, Martin Reese, jr., Jesse Tarbox, Asa Winter, and Walter Seaman. The acquittal of Hook was severely criticised by the faction led by Josiah Hall, the lawyer who was so active in the prosecution of the defendant both before and after the death of Wallace. These criticisms so preyed upon the nerves of Jeremiah Dunn, one of the jurymen, as to produce temporary •The records state that Hook was held in $6,0 5544- 5553> ^'^^ 55^2, to the Allegheny River, thence down said river to the confluence of the Conewango Creek at the Borough of Warren, thence up the north and west bank of said creek to the place of beginning. Taking from Conewango township that part lying east of the Conewango Creek and north of the Allegheny River, and that part of Elk township lying south of the south lines of lots No. 5333, 5343, 5552, and 5561, and forming said new town- ship, which we would propose to call Point township, a draft of plot whereof is hereunto annexed." Corydon. — This township was erected by order of court confirmed abso- lutely March 20, 1846, from territory then recently set off from McKean county. The report of the commissioners — i. e., Andrew H. Ludlow, Benja- min Marsh, and James Cargill — was as follows: "We, the undersigned, ap- pointed by the annexed order of court commissioners to enquire into the pro- priety of forming a new township out of that part of Corydon township form- erly McKean county and establishing the line between Kinzua township and McKean county, do report, that in pursuance of said order having been respect- ively sworn or affirmed according to law, we have examined the premises, and are of opinion that all that part of McKean county lately set off to Warren county being part of Corydon township and part of Hamilton township, be erected into a new township to be called Corydon township." Mead. — This township was erected from parts of Sheffield, Kinzua, and Pleasant by an order of court confirmed absolutely June 7, 1847. The com- missioners, Andrew H. Ludlow, Lansing Wetmore, and James H. Eddy, de- scribed its original boundaries as follows : " Beginning at the Allegheny River at the northeast corner of Tract No. 2921, thence south with the east line of said tract to the southeast corner of the same, thence with the south line of said tract west to the northeast corner of tract No. 2837, thence south with the Township Organizations. 267 east line of said tract No. 2837 to the southeast corner of the same and north- east corner of Tract No. 38, thence with the east line of Tracts No. 38, 51, 58, 75, 82, 103, 1 10, 159, 166, and 199 south to the southeast corner of Tract No. 199, thence west with the south lines of tracts No. 199, 200, 201, 202, 586, 585, 584, 583, 582, and 581, to the southwest corner of said tract No. 581 ; thence north with the west lines of tracts No. 581, 564, 553, 534, 523, 502, 491, 470, and 459, to the northwest corner of said tract No. 459, thence with the north lines of tracts No. 459 and 460 east to the southwest corner of tract of land known as the J. Benson tract, thence with the west line of said Ben- son tract and the west line of the R. Arthur tract north to the Allegheny River, thence along the south bank of said river to the place of beginning." Cherry Grove. — This township was erected from Sheffield by an order of court confirming report of commissioners, )ii si, June 7, 1847, and absolutely Dec. 7, 1847. The commissioners, Andrew H. Ludlow, Lansing Wetmore and James H. Eddy, described its boundaries as follows: " Beginning at the northeast corner of tract No. 587, thence with the lines of the tracts south to the county line in the east line of tract No. 756, thence with the county line west to the west line of tract No. 3 142, thence with the lines of the tracts north to the northwest corner of tract No. 598, thence with the lines of the tracts east to the place of beginning." Pittsficld. — This township was formed from Brokenstraw and Spring Creek townships in 1847. If" response to numerous petitioners the court on the 9th day of September, 1846, issued an order naming Andrew H. Ludlow, Carter V. Kinnear and Stephen Littlefield as commissioners to inquire into the pro- priety of granting the prayer of the petitioners, to make survey, report, etc. These commissioners rendered their report June 5, 1847, but the order of court confirming the same does not appear on record. The boundaries of the town- ship, as described by the commissioners in 1847, were as follows : "Beginning at the northwest corner of tract No. 125 in Spring Creek township and in the south line of Freehold township, thence running south with the west lines of tracts No. 125, 128, 131, 134, 137, 140, 143, 146, 149, 152, and 155, to the southwest corner of tract No. 155, and to the north line of Deerfield township, thence east along the north line of said Deerfield township and the south line of tract No. 155, 156, 168, 214, and 223, thence north along the east line of tract No. 223 to the northeast corner of the same, thence east along the south line of tract No. 224 to the southeast corner of tract No. 224, thence north along the east line of tracts No. 224, 225, 226, 227, 228, 229, 230, 231, 232, and 233 to the northeast corner of No. 233, and the south line of Sugar Grove township, thence west along the north line of tracts No, 233, 204, 178, 126, and 125 to the place of beginning." Change of Toivnship Lines. — On the 7th of June, 1847, a change in the line dividing Conewango and Pine Grove townships resulted in increasing the area of the first-named division by a few hundred acres. 18 268 History of Warren County. On the 23d of October, 185 1, it was ordered by court that two tier of tracts in Deerfield township, commencing at the northwest corner of Deerfield town- ship and running thence east as far as the east line of Pittsfield township, be set off from Deerfield and attached to Pittsfield. Farniington. — This township was formed from Pine Grove by an order of court confirmed absolutely October 7, 1853. Its original boundaries were described by the commissioners as follows : " Being the western part of said township (Pine Grove) and commencing at the New York State line at the northeast corner of the Holland Land Company's lands at the northeast corner of tract No. 359, thence by said company's line, to the line of Conewango township at the southeast corner of tract No. 351, thence by said Conewango township line to Sugar Grove township at the southwest corner of tract No. 321, thence by Sugar Grove township line to the New York State line afore- said at the northwest corner of tract No. 293, thence by said State line to the place of beginning." Change of Tozvnsliip Lines. — During December Sessions, 1854, part of lot No. 233 was taken from Pittsfield and attached to Brokenstraw. During the same term, also, a small part of Freehold was annexed to Sugar Grove. At January adjourned term in 1855 tracts No. 5528, 5529, 5530, 5531, 5532, 5533, and part of 5569 were detached from Elk township and annexed to Pine Grove. On the 9th of January, 1856, lots No. 5544, 5553. and 5562 were taken from Glade and added to Elk. Triumph. — This township was formed from Deerfield by an order of court dated March 7, 1878, confirming report of commissioners, and in accordance with the wishes of a majority of the voters of Deerfield, as shown at an election held P'ebruary 19, 1878. The boundaries of the township as then formed were described as follows : " Beginning on the northern boundary of the Tidioute Creek road at the northern boundary line of Tidioute Borough ; thence along the north boundary of said Tidioute Creek road two miles, to the west line of the J. and C. Lovig lands ; thence north on said line of land three hundred and ten rods ; thence continue north two hundred and sixty-four rods to the south line of tract No. 265 Holland Land Survey ; thence west on the Holland Land Survey two and one-half miles to the township of Eldred, thence south along the eastern boundary of Eldred and South West townships eight and one-fourth miles to the Forest county line, thence east on said line four and three-fourth miles to the Allegheny River, thence up the Allegheny River and by the meanderings of the Borough line of Tidioute about five and one-fourth miles to the place of beginning." Walsou. — This township was erected from Limestone by an order of court dated March 4, 1880, thus confirming the report of the commissioners, and in conformity with the wishes of a majority of the voters of Limestone township, Agricultural Societies. 269 as expressed at an election held on the 17th day of February, 1880, it being the northerly portion of tlie old township of Limestone. A map of the new township showing its boundaries, etc., can be found on page 541 Road Docket No. 3, court records of Warren county. Boroughs. — Warren borough was incorporated by an act of the State Leg- islature approved April 3, 1832, its original area being three hundred acres, or in other words the inlots of the town as laid out in 1795. Youngsville was incorporated September 4, 1849; Columbus, March 19, 1853; Tidioute, June 7, 1862, and Clarendon, early in 1882. CHAPTER XXVI. AGRICULTURAL SOCIETIES. The First "Agricultural Show " — Organization of the Warren County Agricultural Society — Its Officers — First Annual Fair — Names of Those to Whom were Awarded Premiums — Extract from Judge Wetmore's Address — Subsequent Fairs, Officers, etc. — Organization of the Union Agricultural Society — Sugar Grove its Headquarters — The Warren County Agri- cultural Fair As.sociation Organized — Its Officers — Annual Exhibitions — Remarks. IN the fall of 1850 an "agricultural show," as it was termed, was held at the village of Sugar Grove by a few of the enterprising farmers and business men residing in that vicinity. It was a sort of an impromptu affair, and the exhibits and attendance of course were comparatively meager. But it aroused an interest in such matters, and a desire to organize a county association. Nearly every county in the State of New York and the Western Reserve of Ohio had already in successful operation county agricultural associations ; and the question was asked why should Warren, bordering on such an active, go- ahead farming district as the county of Chautauqua, stand idly by just as she was changing (from necessity) from a lumbering to an agricultural district. Therefore, prompted by such thoughts and queries, on the 8th day of January, 1 85 1, an article signed by N. B. Langdon, James Younie, E. C. Catlin, and George W. Buell was published in the county newspapers, setting forth the ben- efits to be derived from such an association, and requesting all persons inter- ested to meet at the court-house in the borough of Warren on the 28th day of that month. Pursuant to this notice a considerable number of the leading citizens of the county assembled at the time and place stated, and organized the meeting by electing James Younie, president; John Berry and Archibald Rynd, esq., vice- presidents ; and Thomas demons, secretary. The object of the meeting was 270 History of Warren County. then stated at some length by Lansing Wetmore, esq., whereupon a committee composed of L. Wetmore, N. B. Langdon, E. C. Catlin, Patrick Falconer, and John Hackney was appointed to draft resolutions expressive of the sense of the meeting. After the unanimous adoption of the resolutions reported, the meeting adjourned to meet at Sugar Grove on the 22d day of February of that year. Agreeably to adjournment, the next meeting was held in the village of Su- gar Grove, February 22, 185 1, when a permanent organization was effected, and it was decided to hold the " first annual meeting of the society " at Sugar Grove, on the fourth Tuesday of September, 185 1. The officers chosen for the first year were Lansing Wetmore, president ; Thomas Struthers, Riley Preston, Robert Mclntyre, E. C. Catlin, S. Raymond, George F. Eldred, Noah Hand, John Wales, James McGee, Mark Dalrymple, John Sill, Squire Sprague, Josiah Farnsworth, Erastus Barnes, Alson Rogers, J. H. King, William Brown, Perry Sherman, Jason Andruss, Charles Whitney, William Siggins, and John J. Berry, vice-presidents ; Patrick Falconer, secretary, and George W. Buell, treasurer. As announced, the first annual fair of the Warren County Agricultural So- ciety was held at Sugar Grove on Tuesday, September 23, 185 1. The exhibits were varied and creditable, but the festivities were somewhat marred by a rain storm, the most severe that had occurred in two months. Lansing Wetmore, esq., the president of the society, delivered the address. The receipts at the gate were not stated, though a considerable number of exhibitors were awarded premiums. Their names were as follows : John Russell, Mark C. Dalrymple, Ransom Gardner, A.J. Irvine, Melancthon Miles, George Brown, Vestus Pond, Ira Baker, Joseph M. Gardner, G. H. Lott, Friend Curtis, Patrick Falconer, Na- thaniel Kidder, Clark Dalrymple, Hosea Harmon, Joseph Jenkins, John Ma- han, N. B. Langdon, John Abbott, W. S. Roney, R. E. Cook, Dexter Hodges, Charles Lott, George Abbott, W. P. Falconer, James Patterson, Robert Allen, James Woodside, William Morgan, John Gregg, William A. Gates, Ezekiel Comstock, F. R. Miller, John B. Hamilton, Lyman Trantum, Nathan Cooper, Emily H. Cook, Quartus Wright, Mrs. Cobham, Miss E. Cobham, Lester Wright, F. A. Hull, R. J. Cowles, Miss Sally Parmlee, Miss E. K. Falconer, J. J. Broughton, E. P. Richardson, and L. E. Guignan. "Thirty-six years ago last January," said Lansing Wetmore, esq., in his address above alluded to, " I immigrated from my native place in New York, and came to this county. With all the efforts we could make, with four teams, it took over a month to get from Whitestown, in Oneida county, to Sugar Grove. I assisted to open the first path from this village to what was known through •eastern New York as Sackettsburg, now Lottsville. It was a beautiful village, ^u paper, with its corner lots, school and meeting-house lots, academy reserve, all free gratis to actual settlers, while the lands all around were only three dol- Agricultural Societies. 271 lars per acre, a dollar more than they were worth twenty years afterwards. There were some humbugs in those days as well as since. Sugar Grove then contained three log cabins, and Johnny Hood's grist-mill, built of poles, where the people far and near used to take their corn to grind — for he could grind nothing else. They took their grist home minus the toll and the cliit ; a mis- chievous squirrel would set and take them as fast as the corn dropped from the hopper. " There was then but one habitation between this and the western line of the county, a distance of fifteen miles. The site of Columbus was a dense for- est. Now behold the change. A wilderness has disappeared. Four pleasant and thriving villages have sprung up, the whole distance dotted with well- improved farms, neat and tasty dwellings, and fruit-growing orchards. The county has increased in population from a few hundred to fifteen thousand." His address throughout was very interesting. The second annual fair was held in the town of Warren in September, 1852, the grounds occupied being vacant lots located a square or two above the German Lutheran church and on the same side of the street. Domestic and other small articles of value were protected from the weather by a tent. Judge Lansing Wetmore, also, served as president during the second year. Other transactions of the society, as far as we have been able to ascertain the facts, will be mentioned by years as follows: 1853. The third annual fair was held at Pittsfield. Stephen Littlefield serving as president. 1854. The fair for this year was held in September at Columbus. Daniel Lett officiating as president. At about this time December fairs were insti- tuted for the purpose of exhibiting vegetables, field crops, winter fruits, etc., in a more perfect condition than could be done earlier in the season ; but after a year or two these fairs or meetings were abandoned. 1855. The fifth annual fair was held at Lottsville Wednesday, Septem- ber 12, on the farm of Daniel Lott, and proved to be the most successful of any to that date. John Mahan served as president. 1856. John Younie, president. Fair held at Sugar Grove September 17. It was a grand success, it being estimated that six thousand people were present. 1857. The fair during this year was held at Youngsville September 16. Henry P. Kinnear, president. One of the noted features of this exhibition was a load of Quaker Hill coal, which David Dinsmoor had hauled twenty-five miles for such a purpose. 1858. Fair held in the town of Warren in October. Patrick Falconer officiating as president. 1859. Fair held at Marsh's Corners in Farmington township September 21. Name of president not known. 272 History of Warren County. i860. In June, i860, fair grounds were leased at Youngsville for a term of three years. Hence, the tenth annual fair was held at that place Septem - ber 25. Friend Curtis served as president. Recently acquired railroad facil- ities assisted largely in making this exhibition a success. Several of the old militia companies of antc-belluvi days — viz.: The Warren Rifles, Youngsville Artillery, Deerfield Cavalry, Deerfield Rifles, and Eldred Rifles — were also present to add, as far as they were capable of doing, pomp and splendor to the occasion. 1 86 1. The eleventh annual meeting was held at Youngsville, Henry P- Kinnear serving as president, on the 25th day of September; but war was now raging and not much interest was manifested in the exhibition of fancy live stock and farm products. 1862-63—64. During the remainder of the war no fairs were held. 1 865. On the 27th and 28th days of September what was termed the thir- teenth annual fair was held at Youngsville, Henry P. Kinnear ofliciating as president. 1866. Fair held at Youngsville September 26 and 27. George J. Whit- ney, president. 1867. The fifteenth annual fair of the society was held at Youngsville Sep- tember 18, 19, and 20, George J. Whitney still officiating as president. 1868. Fair held at Youngsville September 23, 24, and 25, George J. Whit- ney, president. 1869. The seventeenth annual fair was held at Youngsville September 15 and 16, W. G. Garcelon, president; G. W. Kinnear, secretary. 1870. The eighteenth annual exhibition of the society was also held at Youngsville September 15 and 16. W. G. Garcelon, president; G. W. Kin- near, secretary. 1871. The nineteenth annual fair of the "Warren County Agricultural Society" was held at Youngsville on the 14th, 15th, and i6thdays of Septem- ber. W. G. Garcelon, president ; G. W. Kinnear, secretary, and Darius Mead, treasurer. This seems to have been the last expiring effort of the old society. It died of location, lack of interest, and consequently of support. In the summer of 1874 was organized at Sugar (irove what has since been known as the Union Agricultural Society of Warren county. The first annual fair was held in that village October 7 and 8, of the year mentioned, and all subsequent exhibitions have been held in the same place. The thirteenth and last annual fair occurred during the 14th, 15th, and i6th days of September, 1886. While no great financial success has been attained by the management of this society, its affairs have been conducted generally in a very satisfactory manner, and as yet there seems to be no lack of interest manifested among those who have ever been its steadfast friends and supporters. However, the county is too sparsely populated to successfully maintain two agricultural so- Agricultural Societies. 273 cieties, each claiming to be county associations, and, judging from the past — the experience of other counties — one or the other will eventually go down. The Warren County Agricultural Fair Association was organized at a meeting held in the court-house in the town of Warren on Saturday P. M., June 14, 1884, by a combination of members of the Warren Board of Trade and the Warren Farmers' Club. This meeting was organized by the selection of George P. Orr as chairman, and A. S. Dalrymple as secretary. A permanent organization was then effected by the election of George P. Orr, president ; A. S. Dalrymple, secretary ; George Ensworth, treasurer, and Messrs. Orr, Dalrymple, Ensworth, F. A. Cogswell, Charles Lott, W. B. Acocks, and C. H. Wiltsie, executive committee. On a motion made and carried Messrs. Acocks, Lott, and Wiltsie were instructed to select a vice-president from each township and borough in the county, to act with the officers already mentioned. The members of the executive committee were also authorized to make all arrangements for the fair, etc., in the name of the association. The original or charter members were Charles Lott, W. B. Acocks, George P. Orr, C. H. Wiltsie, F. A. Cogswell, B. F. Mead, S. A. Samuelson, M. Schu- ler, D. Ruhlman, Peter Smith, D. M. Davis, A. S. Dalrymple, A. E. Myers, and George Ensworth. Over fifteen hundred dollars had already been subscribed in aid of the enterprise by the business men of Warren, and thereafter, led and spurred on by the tireless activity of President Orr, the affairs of the association were pushed forward with unflagging zeal. Upon application the association was incorporated by order of court. Beautiful and spacious grounds located on the Irvine bottoms opposite the town were leased for a term of five years, with the privilege of five years more, at a rental of two hundred dollars per year, and the bridge made free for all, during the first annual fair, by the payment to its owners of one hundred and fifty dollars The work of fitting up the grounds, grading the race course, fencing, and erecting sheds and commodious buildings was hurried forward with all possible dispatch, and on the 9th, loth, i ith, and I2th days of September, 1884, was held the first annual fair of the association. It was pronounced a grand suc- cess, the display of stock, farm products, goods, etc., on exhibition being exceedingly creditable, and over three thousand dollars were received at the gates. The next fair was held September 8, 9, 10, and 11, 1885. An immense crowd was present during the last two days, estimated at from eight to ten thousand on the third day. In competing for premiums there were more than two thousand entries, whereas during the first year less than one thou- sand were numbered. The officers during 1885 were mainly those who had served in 1884. 274 History of Warren County. Early in 1886 the following officers were elected: George P. Orr, presi- dent; A. S. Dalrymple, secretary; George Ensworth, treasurer; Charles Lott, L. M. Rowland, C. H. Wiltsie, Philip Sechrist, and Willis Cowan, directors. The third annual fair was held September 7, 8, 9, and 10, 1886. It was another very successful effort, if the gathering of eight or ten thousand strangers each day, in a little town of five thousand inhabitants, is the object chiefly sought. The rustics were out in full force. The weather was hot, dry, and sultry. The street-sprinkler could not pursue his every-day avocation, and as a result clouds of dust overhung both town and fair-ground day and night. Sweltering, weary-looking country mothers, leading children of tender years (who doubtless had capered bare-footed, free and joyous through the long summer days till now), were seen running and dodging here and there in their sometimes frantic endeavors to avoid being run down by fast-driving, bawling hackmen, the poor children meanwhile toeing in and toeing out, now stepping on their heels and again on their toes, in the apparent effort to gain temporary relief from the pain and misery inflicted by tightly-fitting, coarsely made, and stiff nezv shoes. It was a great and varied display of humanity, truly. Happy Warrenites, those who had wares to dispose of, of whatever nature, smiled and rubbed their palms in glee. There were balloon ascensions, Indians in their aboriginal dress, horse races, etc., etc., and some as creditable displays of live stock and manufactured articles as can be found anywhere. But to the writer, who was present, it seemed to be a series of days set apart for the especial benefit of bridge owners, howling hack-drivers, thieving fakirs, hotel bars, and horse jockeys. Perhaps these are necessary and unavoidable concomitants of such gatherings with one exception, and that cries aloud for abatement. Warren is noted the traveling world over as a hack-infested town. Its jehus are too numerous and noisy every day in the year. But on circus and fair days they are an intolerable nuisance. They take possession of the streets ; pedestrians must invariably give right of way or be run over ; none are permitted to make as much noise as they, and from dawn of day till mid- night their noisy, ill-mannered solicitations for custom, can be heard above all else. It may be considered by some' pecuniarily interested that this is not an appropriate corner to speak of such practices ; but we are presumed to chronicle remarkable events. The fair of 1886 is a thing of the past, a matter of history. Then, too, it may prove interesting to future generations and deni- zens of Warren (when the hackman's voice has been abated here, as it already has been subdued in most other populous, well-regulated towns) to read how affairs generally were conducted in what will be to them the long ago. Without a doubt, however, these agricultural associations and annual exhi- bitions have been of vast benefit to the farmers and manufacturers of agricult- ural implements. They here meet together and can easily compare their own efforts with those of their neighbors.. The interchange of thought and Agricultural Societies. 275 rehearsals of experiences are of mutual advantage, and many new things are seen and learned each year. For these simple reasons alone the annual agri- cultural fairs should be perpetuated. The agricultural implements used by the early settlers were very simple and rude. The plow was made entirely of wood except the share, clevis and draft-rods, which were of iron, and had to be for many years transported from Pittsburgh. The wooden plow was a very cumbrous, awkward implement, very laborious to the plowman, and hard for the team to draw. It was, how- ever, very generally used until about the year 1825, when the cast-iron plow patented by Jethro Wood was first brought into the county, though it gained popularity but slowly. The farmer looked at it and was sure it would break the first time it struck a stone or a root, and then how should he replace it ? The wooden mold-board would not break, and when it wore out he could take his axe and hew out another from a piece of tree. Since that time no agricultural implement has been more improved upon than the plow. It is now made of beautifully polished cast steel, except the beam and handles, while in Canada and in some parts of the United States these, too, are made of iron. The cast steel plow of the present manufacture, in its several styles, sizes, and adapta- tions to the various soils and forms of land, including the sulky, or riding plow of the western prairies, is, among agricultural implements, the most perfect in use. The pioneer harrow was simply the fork of a tree, with the branches on one side cut close, and on the other left about a foot long to serve the purpose of teeth. In some instances a number of holes were bored through the beams and wooden pins driven into them. It was not until about 1825-30 that iron or steel harrow teeth were introduced into Warren county. The axes, hoes, shovels, and picks were rude, heavy, and clumsy. The sickle and scythe were at first used to harvest the grain and hay, but the former gave way easily to the cradle, with which better results could be at- tained with less labor. The scythe and cradle have been replaced by the mower and reaper to a great extent, though both are still used considerably in this county because of the hilly and rolling surface of the country, as well as the great number of stumps and rocks yet remaining in the districts recently improved. The ordinary wooden flail was used to thresh grain for many years, when the horse-power thresher was largely substituted. The method of cleaning the chaff" from the grain by the early settlers was by a strong sheet or blanket handled by two persons. The grain and the chaff" were placed on the blanket, which was then tossed up and down where a brisk breeze was blowing, the wind separating and blowing away the chaff" during the operation. Fanning- mills were introduced as early as 1825, but the first of these were very rude and little better than the primitive blanket. Since, improvements have been 276 History of Warren County. made from time to time until an almost perfect separator is now connected with every threshing-machine, and the work of ten men for a whole season is done more completely by two or three men, as many horses, and a patent sep- arator, in one day. In fact, it is difficult to fix limitations upon improvements in agricultural machinery within the last fifty years. In the employment of improved methods in the use of the best implements and machinery, the farmers of Warren county are not behind their neighbors. True it is that in many cases they were slow to change, but much allowance should be made for surrounding circumstances. Theirs, for the first fifty years of the century, was a noted lumbering region, and by engaging in lumbering operations was the readiest means of obtaining the necessaries of life. The general surface was looked upon as cold and unproductive. Then, again, the immense growth of timber to be cleared away, the depredations of wild beasts, and the annoyance of the swarming insect life, as well as the great difficulty and expense of procuring seeds and farming implements, were discouraging. These various difficulties were quite sufficient to explain the slow progress made in farming in the first years of settlement. Improvements were not en- couraged, while much of the topography of the county renders the use of cer- tain kinds of improved machinery impossible. The people generally rejected book-farming as unimportant and useless, and knew nothing of the chemistry of agriculture. The farmer who ventured to make experiments, to stake out new paths of practice, or to adopt new modes of culture, subjected himself to the ridicule of the whole neighborhood. For many years the same methods of farming were observed ; the son planted just as many acres of corn and po- tatoes as his father did, and in the same old phases of the moon. All their practices were merely traditional ; but within the last thirty years most re- markable changes have occurred in all the conditions of agriculture in this county, and there are still ample opportunities for many more. CIIAPTKR XXVII. rwK i'KKkSs. A Description of Wairen's First Printer ami Publisher— Tlie Conowango Eniigrant^Its First Editor — Interesting; Details — The Warren Gazette — Its Editors, Publishers, etc. — Voice of the People — The Union — Warren Bulletin — Democratic Advocate — Warren Standard — Warren Ledfrer — People's Monitor — Warren Mail — Youngsville Express — Tidioute Puhhcations — Warren Mirror — Clarendon Record— Evening Paragraph — Sugar Grove News — Bear Lake Record. EARLY in the summer of 1824 a stranger, unheralded and alone, made his advent into the sparsely built up, yet ambitious little town of Warren (composed as it then was only of log cabins and low frame buildings scattered The Press. 277 here and there), and announced to the somewhat astonished inhabitants that he was a printer by occupation, and that it was his purpose to establish a news- paper in their midst. His appearance was exceptional, to say the least, and, since he attained fame, but not riches, as the first printer and publisher to lo- cate in the county, deserves a brief description. A native of the North of Ireland, or in other words a Scotch-Irishman, and apparently about thirty years of age, his erect, well-proportioned figure of more than medium size was clad in a threadbare suit, of which a long swallow-tailed coat and home-made pants (cut with an eye to keeping the bottoms out of the mud, unless the mud were six inches in depth), were the most conspicuous garments. A heavy growth of red, or carroty-colored, hair curled outward beneath the narrow brim of a hat long worn, while upon his face deep, thickly-pitted marks of the ravages of small-pox, and a profusion of freckles disputed for possession. Of his eyes, so changable were their hue, none could determine their color, but all were unanimous in the opinion that they ever had an appealing look, as if con- tinually asking for help. Need we add, his name was Richard Hill, a former resident of Mercer county. Pa. The nearest printing establishments were then at F"ranklin and Meadville, and about the only newspapers in circulation here were the Venango Demo- crat, issued at Franklin, and the Herald and Crawford Messenger, printed at Meadville. Therefore, although to this time no one in Warren had hardly thought of starting a newspaper, Hill's proposition was well received, and, after a brief discussion of the project, his forbidding appearance was overlooked by the desire of having a home printing-oflice put in operation as soon as possible. The few business men of the place enlisted themselves in the enterprise and succeeded in procuring some two hundred subscribers. Soon after. Hill brought on his family, and a press ^ which bore marks of antiquity, and moved into the house built by Robert Arthur, then in an unfinished state. There he went to work. His rickety press was made to keep its place so that he could use it by spiking one end of a plank on each corner, and the other end to the joist above. The first number of Hill's paper, the Conczuango Emigrant, was dated July 24, 1824. In form and size it was a folio of twelve by eighteen inches. It was Jacksonian in its political tendencies, but treated John Quincy Adams with fairness. Among other things, the initial number contained an account of the trial of Jacob Hook at the previous June term of the Warren County Court, taken from the New York Censor. The paper on which it was printed was 1 It is stated in a volume published many years ago, entitled the " History of Pennsylvania," that the press used by Parker C. Purviance, who published the Warren GazetU in 1830, was the same which was used by Dr. Ben. Franklin, and on which the Continental money was struck. This is a mistake. The Purviance press was purchased by .-Vrchibald Tanner and Lansing Wetmore when near- ly new. If the old Franklin press was ever brought into use within the limits of Warren county it was the one utilized by Hill. 278 History of Warren County. made before the art of taking the color from blue rags was brought into use, and consequently partook deeply of that color. Andrew W. Morrison was announced as the editor, and the prospectus shown in soliciting subscriptions, as well as the first address to the Emigrant's patrons, were from his pen. As he (Morrison) was the one who advised Hill to locate in Warren, he also deserves a passing notice. Morrison had been a sojourner in this country of pine woods and buckwheat cakes some years previously, and taught a dis- trict school at the " Dam," now Russellburg, as early as the winter of 1816— 17. He was a fellow countryman of Hill's, though in no other way at all sim- ilar. He was then a young man of genteel appearance, pleasing in his man- ners, and of winning address. At the close of his school he had an exhibi- tion — the first school exhibition in fact to take place in the county. There being no large room at the " Dam," except Captain Slone's bar-room, this then grand affair came off" in an upper room of Daniel Jackson's tavern in the town of Warren. Morrison taught a good school and conducted himself with the strictest propriety while teaching. But after he had received pay for his services as a teacher, he proceeded to Warren and indulged heavily in what he probably had not been unused to before, strong drink. During this ca- rousal he was seen one day mounted on an Indian pony behind a young squaw of the Seneca tribe, bare headed and in his shirt sleeves, riding back and forth from Dunn's and Jackson's taverns, ordering whiskey to be brought out to treat himself and the squaw each time that he stopped. After spending a week or more in debauchery, his money became exhausted and he started down the river. From that time no more was heard of Morrison at Warren until his name appeared upon Hill's prospectus as the proposed editor of the Conewango Emigrant. It seems that during the years intervening from 1 8 1 7, he had read law in Mercer county, been admitted to the bar, and married a wife. It was now his purpose to come here with Hill, edit the Emigrant and practice law. He was admitted to practice in the courts of Warren county September 2, 1824, which indicates about the time of his arrival, for it is remembered that he did not come until after Hill had been here for several weeks. Prudently, as it would seem, he left his wife in Mercer county. As a law practitioner, however, he met with but little success. Thereupon, for old acquaintance sake, Lansing Wetmore, esq., the prothonotary, who had met him years before while he was teaching at the " Dam," gave him employment in his office. But it was all to no purpose, for though Morrison wrote fluently a beautiful hand, the fell de- stroyer — intemperance — had done its work; he could not resist the tempta- tion of drinking. Hence, after a stay of only a few months he again disap- peared, and was never more seen in Warren. After Morrison's departure Hill applied to A, B, and C, for assistance in the editorial department. Although a pretty good type-setter, and showing. The Press. 279 some taste in his selections from books and exchanges, he could scarcely write a sentence grammatically, or one that would convey a distinct idea of what he wished to explain or illustrate. He worked on in dirt and poverty nearly two years, finally changing the name of his paper to that of the Warren Courier. It was of no use, however, for matters were drawing to a crisis. Of a jealous disposition, he would without any just cause turn against and abuse his best friends. He would publish any thing for money, and for a very small sum too. No matter how scurrillous, if a communication was accompanied with a dollar, or the promise of it, it would appear in his columns. Among other articles of this character was one in the form of an advertisement, signed by " Naper Tandy." Naper said that he had commenced the business of tanning in Sugar Grove township, about two miles north of John I. Willson's tavern (which would be about a mile north of the State line), where he was ready to tan all kinds of hides on the shortest notice — especially carroty-colortA hides from Hibernia's Isle. He directed Hill to insert three times and send his bill. This, with like abusive notices, together with his own editorial work, when he could get no one else to write, brought his paper into contempt and ridicule. As a result it ceased to exist; died of starvation in fact in less than two years from the date of its establishment. Hill then returned to Mercer county, taking his venerable press (which maj' have been historic, the veritable Franklin instru- ment of torture) and other material along. Foreseeing the inevitable fate of the Etnigrant, and deeming it important for the character and welfare of the county that a reputable newspaper should be published in it, Archibald Tanner and Lansing Wetmore purchased a new press and other requisite material, engaged Morgan Bates to attend to the me- chanical part of the work, and about the time Hill's paper ceased to exist, the Warren Gazette made its appearance. The first number of the Gazette pub- lished by Morgan Bates, for Tanner & Wetmore, proprietors, was dated Febru- ary 18, 1826. It continued under their control about three years — the last number being issued March 4, 1829 — the day that Andrew Jackson took his seat as president of the United States. Thomas demons, who was the pub- lisher at this time, thus quaintly announced the event : " This day John O. Adams and I are both tipped overboard — ' How we apples swim.' " Bates had removed to Jamestown, N. Y., in the spring of 1828, where he published the Chautauqua Republican, which was established to promote the election of Jackson, and had a large circulation in Warren county. The Ga- zette supported Adams, and Mr. Clemons, who had been an assistant in the ofiice under Bates, continued its publication after the departure of the latter, until it passed out of the hands of Tanner & Wetmore. We will here explain, also, that the junior member of the firm (Wetmore) officiated as editor-in-chief during the three years of their proprietorship. Bates was a genial, good-hearted fellow, always ready for a frolic, generous 28o History of Warren County. to a fault, and impulsive. Money never burdened his pockets a great while at a time. Lacking discretion, however, he would say and do things which fre- quently brought him into trouble. As the editor, and ostensible proprietor of a then large newspaper (the Chautauqua Rcpublicaii), he seemed to feel the importance of his new position, and to look back on his situation in the Gazette office with disdain. In a political way he commenced upon the Gazette peo- ple, through his paper, in manner and language which was considered indeco- rous, and was told so. This brought forth from him a prompt and rather inso- lent reply. Thus began a war of words (common among editors during those days, however,) which was continued for many weeks, when such epithets as scoundrel, liar, knave, etc., were pretty freely indulged in. The last article in the Gazette was answered by the service of a writ for slander. The suit was continued from term to term until after the election, when it was withdrawn by Bates at his own costs. He also embraced the opportunity at that time, or soon afterward, of resuming friendly relations with his old friends of the Ga- zette. After leaving Jamestown he experienced a variety of fortunes, some prosperous and some adverse. In 1835 he was foreman in the office of the New Yorker, the first paper published by Horace Greeley. He afterwards pub- lished the Detroit Advertiser, in company with that prince of early editors, Dawson, of the Rochester Democrat. They published the Advertiser during the time the Whigs were in power, and did the printing for the State. He vis- ited Warren at about that time and displayed a large amount of Michigan State scrip, which he had received in pay for State printing. He was after- wards a commission merchant in Detroit. The last heard of him he was on his way to California by way of Cape Horn. In March, 1829, the Gazette establishment was transferred to the proprie- torship of Parker C. and Samuel A. Purviance. The former was a printer, the latter a lawyer. They published it about a year together, when Samuel A. withdrew. It was continued by Parker C. for some months after, when, like its predecessor, it suspended for want of support. Both Parker C. and Samuel A. Purviance were men of talent, particularly the latter, and the paper while under their management was conducted with signal ability. Both returned to Butler county, where Samuel attained a high standing at the bar. The course they pursued in politics, for they were zealous, untiring Whig partisans, caused the Democratic party to start a paper of their own. Accordingly, in November, 1829, the first number of the Voice of the Peo- ple was issued by Thomas demons and William A. Olney. It continued un- der their control about two years, when demons withdrew. Thereafter Olney kept up its publication until his death, which occurred in October, 1835. After Olney's demise Charles B. Cotter assumed control, but he proved to be rather a weak brother of the " art preservative," and after a few more weeks or months of tribulation its voice was hushed forever. The Press. 281 About 1830 J. B. Hyde, jr., began the publication of a paper termed The Union. It advocated the cause of anti- Masonry. Mr. Hyde was a young man of fair talents, quiet and retiring in his manners, and honorable in his dealings. He published the paper about two years, when he died, a victim to close con- finement and intense application to business. The first number of the Warren Bulletin, the successor of the Voice of the People as a Democratic organ, was issued May 1 1, 1836, by Norris W. Goodrich. It was moderately Democratic — usually candid and respectful in its treat- ment of political opponents. It was continued about three years, when Good- rich, having concluded to apply himself to the practice of law, ceased his labors as a newspaper man and retired. He was admitted to the bar in 1840, and subsequently became a well-known attorney in McKean county. Goodrich's paper was immediately succeeded, from the same office, by the Democratic Advocate, edited by a certain Quincy Adams Johnson, a pretentious fellow who brought good certificates but poor qualifications. He continued the pa- per about eight months, grossly imposed on his party friends, got badly in debt, and finally left both paper and debts to take care of themselves. The Advocate WAS continued during the exciting campaign of 1840 by Mr. J. B. Wilson, of Cincinnati, procured for that purpose, who left soon after the pres- idential election. Thomas Clemons, who always stood in readiness to lend a helping hand in case of a Democratic emergency, then took charge of it as editor, and continued its publication until some time in 1842, when he trans- ferred his interests to S. J. Goodrich and T. T. Wilson. In the spring of 1843 Wilson withdrew and left Goodrich sole proprietor. He continued its publi- cation about a year and then sold half his interest to J. Y. James, and the Ad- vocate was continued in charge of James & Goodrich a few months, when the latter transferred the balance of his interest to J. D. James. Under the pilot- age of J. Y. and J. D. James, the Democratic Advocate was continued during the years 1845-46 and until March of 1847, when it ran aground, and the of- fice and material passed again into the hands of S. J. Goodrich. He changed its name to the Warren Standard, which commenced in May, 1847, and was continued until March 6, 1849, when the office and all materials were burned in the conflagration which destroyed the old "Exchange Row." Books and everything were lost, and no insurance. Goodrich, however, immediately rallied, purchased new material, took into partnership again T. T. Wilson, and on the first day of May, 1849, was issued the first number of the IVarren Ledger. They conducted it together about two years, when Goodrich withdrew (he having received an appointment as collector of tolls on the Pennsylvania Canal, at Harrisburg), and it fell into the hands of Wilson alone. At the close of the fifth volume Wilson com- mended his two or three hundred pa\ing subscribers, but complained bitterly of the four hundred who had failed to pay, many of them for the whole five 282 History of Warren County. years, during which the paper had never missed a week nor published a half sheet. On the 14th of March, 1854, S. J. Goodrich announced his return here; and from April i to August 8, of that year, the Ledger was carried on by Goodrich & Wilson, when the latter sold his interest to A. W. Stevens. It was then published by Goodrich & Stevens until February 13, 1855, when Goodrich sold his interest to Thomas Clemons, from which time it was con- ducted by Clemons & Stevens until March 11, 1856, when Stevens sold out to John Daily. Clemons & Daily commenced April i, 1856, and continued to- gether one year, when they transferred their interests to, or for the use of, D. W. C. James. Mr. James officiated as its editor and publisher from the spring of 1857 to November 30, i860, when it passed into the hands of W. J. Clem- ons, who managed it alone until May 29, 1861, when Charles Dinsmoor be- came its associate editor. They carried it on until April 22, 1863, when Dins- moor retired, and W. J. Clemons again conducted it alone until November 23, 1863, when he sold out to B. F. Morris, who, for more than twenty- two years, with the exception of a few months, was its sole responsible editor and publisher. On the 9th of November, 1871, J. Hamilton King, jr., purchased an interest in the paper and appeared as joint publisher until the time of his death, September 20, 1875, when his interest fell back into the hands of Mr. Morris. On the 5th of February, 1886, the Ledger was purchased by D. D. and F. E. Reed, who, to the present writing, have retained Mr. Morris as editor. During all the changes here noted the paper never suspended and never missed but very few regular issues. From 1 83 1, the year the Gazette ceased to exist, until 1838 no Whig paper was published in the county. In August of that year, however, a Whig organ, entitled the People's Monitor, made its appearance under the management of M. Millington. He remained about eight months, but the income of the paper not being sufficient to maintain his extravagant ideas of dress and habits, he returned to Ilarrisburg, the victim, it is to be presumed, of disappointed hopes. The office and material then passed into the hands of Peleg S. Cole, who soon after took into partnership a young man named Woodward. The firm of Cole & Woodward continued about three years, when the latter retired and J. W. Weaver took his place, holding it, however, but a short period of time, when he withdrew, leaving Mr. Cole to continue alone until the Monitor ceased to be a mentor for the people, for want of support. This event happened during the year 1845. There was then an interval during which no Whig paper was published until July 25, 1848, when the first number of the Alleglieiiy il/rt// appeared. This paper was established by the efforts of a few leading Whigs, and was continued under the management of J. Warren Fletcher, its first editor, pub- lisher, and proprietor, until March 7, 1849, when E. Cowan, a young man ■who had been connected with the office from the beginning, became its owner The Press. 2S3 by purchase. On the 20th of November of the same year the name was changed to the Wanrn Mail, a title it has ever since retained. About July 21, 1852, Mr. Cowan took Lucius Rogers into partnership, and together they continued its publication until September 22, 1853, when Mr. Cowan dissolved his connection with the Mail, temporarily, as it will appear, and was super- seded by L. Rogers and O. C. Bates. Mr. Cowan sought a larger field for his abilities as a journalist at Buffalo and Erie, but, it seems, found the fields some- what barren. Meanwhile the Mail was managed by Rogers & Bates until June 29, 1854, when Mr. Cowan suddenly appeared again as co-editor with Rogers, and Mr. Bates as suddenly disappeared, without any explanation. The paper was then carried on by Cowan & Rogers until the 19th of August, 1854, when Mr. Rogers retired. Thereafter Mr. Cowan paddled his own canoe alone until June i, 1874, when his son Willis became associated with him in the publication of the Mail, a. business as well as a family relationship which still continues unbroken. The War?r>i Mail now enjoys the distinction of being the senior newspaper of the county, and has been known as an unswerving exponent of Republican principles since the formation of that party. The Yoiingsvillc Express was established by John W. Mason June '^,0, 1849. Nuetral in politics, its publication was continued until November, 1853, when it retired from view. In Tidioute, after the oil developments had made it pretentious, a number of newspapers, both dailies and weeklies, sprang into existence. The Tidioute Journal, Commercial, and Chronicle all had their birth and demise, and have now been succeeded by the Weekly Neivs, published by Charles E. White, which seems to be established on a permanent basis. The Warren Mirror was established as a Sunday paper October i, 1882, by Walker Bros. It started as a folio, four colmns to a page, of 9 by 14 inches in size; was enlarged to a quarto November 12, 1882. On the l6th of October, 1883, it passed into the hands of E. Walker, the present publisher and proprietor. May 1 1, 1884, it was enlarged to five columns to a page, size of page, i\\ by i/f inches. A Saturday edition was first issued July 12, 1884, of the same size as the Sunday issue. Another enlargement to six col- umns to a page, and columns increased to igf inches in length, took place February 14, 1885. The Daily Mirror, a folio, with pages the same size as the Saturday and Sunday editions, was first issued March 24, 1886. The Clarendon Record was started in the spring of 1882, about the time the Cherry Grove oil field was opened. The first four numbers were pub- lished by Dr. D. P. Robbins, and printed at the Times office, Union City, Pa. Northrop & Thomas then purchased the business and moved their material to Clarendon from Bordell and Duke Centre. About three weeks afterward D. D. Reed purchased a half interest, and the paper was conducted by Northrop 284 History of Warren County. & Reed about one year. Mr. Reed then became connected with the Warren S7inday Mirror, and C. G. Thomas assumed the proprietorship of the Record. In the fall of 1884 the office was purchased by B. F. Morris, of the Warren Ledger, and for a period of about one year it was leased to Sanborn & Knight, who changed the name to the Clarendon Herald. In the fall of 1885 the entire outfit was moved to Warren and combined with the Ledger office. The paper was then reduced in size, and was sold, with the Ledger, to the Reed Bros. The Evening Paragraph was founded at Warren, September 22, 1884, by E. L. Hempstead, F. W. Truesdell, and J. H. Kelly. On September 3, 1885, the Weekly Paragraph made its appearance. On the 28th of October follow- ing Messrs. Hempstead and Truesdell retired, when J. H. Kelley and T. F. Tuohy became the publishers and proprietors, and still continue as such. The Sugar Grove News was established at Sugar Grove in December, 1884, by J. Warren Fletcher, a veteran journalist, the first editor and pub- lisher of the Allegheny Mail, and appears to have gained a good foothold. A copy of The Bear Lake Record, the latest Warren county claimant for journalistic favors, lies before us. It is No. 7 of vol. I, and dated December 16, 1886, which indicates, barring mishaps, that the first number was issued No- vember 4, 1886, by J. H. and Frank Gardner, its publishers and proprietors. Of the early newspapers published in Warren nearly all were printed on what was known as the Ramage^ press. As a general thing, also, the early printing establishments, having originally been purchased by the leading men of either political party, and the use of them given to those who would publish a paper, but very little money, and few promises to pay, were passed from the ostensible buyer to the seller. Even then the publishers had a hard time of it until, say thirty years ago. Nevertheless, that the papers herein enumerated have been largely instrumental in promoting the growth, prosperit)', intelli- gence, and respectability of town and country, must be obvious to all; and, with one or two exceptions, their editors and publishers, those who have toiled and struggled and spent their time and substance in maintaining them, deserve to be held in grateful remembrance. ' .\clam Ramage, the inventor of llie R.image press, was born in Edinburgli, Scotland. He came to .•Vmerica in 1794, and soon after located in riiil.adeljiliia. He died in 1850. Petroleum. 285 CHAPTER XXVIII. PETROLEUM. The " Fontaine de Bitume " — The Earliest French Missionaries Aware of its Existence — Also the English — Early References to the Same — Washington and Jefferson Speak of "Bitu- minous Oil" in Virginia — Evidences that the French Gathered the Oil at Titusville — It is Known to Early Inhabitants as " Seneca Oil " — An Account of the First Producer and Refiner of Petroleum in Pennsylvania — He Terms it " Carbon Oil " — Colonel Drake's Discovery — Descrip- tions by Correspondents — Great Excitement at Titusville — Warren Men as Pioneer Operators — Subsequent Developments of Oil Producing Territory — Haudsonie Profits — Tidioute Field Opened — Squatters — Early Manner of Shipments — Annual Production of Penn.sylvania and New York Fields Since 18.59. BUT little more than a quarter of a century has passed since petroleum was first discovered in large quantities by boring deep into the earth, yet from the earliest occupation of this country by the French it was known to exist. As early as July i8, 1627, a French missionary, Joseph de la Roque Daillon, of the order of Recollets, described it in a letter published in 1632, in Segard's " L'Histoire du Canada," and this description is confirmed by the journal of Charlevoix, 1721. Fathers Dollier and Galinee, missionaries of the order of St. Sulpice, made an early map of this section of the country, which they sent to Jean Talon, intendent of Canada, November 10, 1670, on which was marked at about the point where is now the town of Cuba, New York, " Fontaine de Bitume." On the 3d of November, 1700, the Earl of Belmont, governor of New York, instructed his chief engineer and surveyor, Wolfgang W. Romer, during his visit to the country of the Six Nations, " to go and view a well, or spring, which is eight miles beyond the Seneks' farthest castle, which they have told me blazes up in a flame, when a lighted coale or firebrand is put into it ; you will do well to taste the said water, and give me your opinion thereof, and bring with you some of it." Thomas Chabert de Joncaire, who died in Sep- tember, 1740, is also mentioned in the journal of Charlevoix of 172 1 as author- ity for the existence of oil at the place mentioned above, and at points further south, probably on Oil Creek. The following account of an event occurring during the occupancy of this part of the State by the French is given as an example of the religious uses made of the oil by the Indians, as these fire dances are understood to have been annually celebrated : "While descending the Allegheny, fifteen leagues below the mouth of the Connewango, and three above Fort Venango, we were invited by the chief of the Senecas to attend a religious ceremony of his tribe. We landed and drew up our canoes on a point where a small stream entered the river. The tribe appeared unusually solemn. We marched up the stream about half a league, where the company, a large band it appeared, had arrived 286 History of Warren County. some days before us. Gigantic hills begirt us on every side. The scene was really sublime. The great chief then recited the conquests and heroisms of their ancestors. The surface of the stream was covered with a thick scum, which burst into a complete conflagration. The oil had been gathered and lighted with a torch. At sight of the flames, the Indians gave forth a triumph- ant shout, and made the hills and valleys re-echo again." In nearly all geographies and notes of travel published during the early period of settlement, this oil is referred to, and on several old maps, French as well as English, the word " petroleum " appears opposite the mouth of Oil Creek. It was also known many years ago that a similar product existed in West Virginia, since General Washington, in his will, in speaking of his lands on the Great Kanawha, says: "The tract, of which the 125 acres is a moiety, was taken up by General Andrew Lewis and myself, for and on account of a bituminous spring which it contains, of so inflammable a nature as to burn as freely as spirits, and is nearly as difficult to extinguish." Thomas Jefferson, in his " Notes on Virginia," also describes a burning spring on the lower grounds of the Great Kanawha. Thus, this oil not only seems to have been known, but to have been systematically gathered in very early times. Upon the bottom lands a mile or so below Titusville were many acres of cradle-holes dug out and lined with split logs, evidently constructed for the purpose of gathering it. The fact that the earliest English-speaking inhabitants could never discover any stumps from which these logs were cut, and the further fact that trees of great size were found growing in the midst of these cradles, are evidences that they must have been operated long ago, but by whom, is a question as yet unsolved. Some have suggested that it was the work of the mound-builders ; but the writer indulges in no such belief It is more reasonable to suppose that the French, who knew of its location, utilized this greasy product to a considerable extent for medicinal and other purposes, and arranged these holes, or pits, as a means of gathering it. They were in possession of this region for more than a hundred years before it was personally known to the English-speaking whites, and during that great period there was ample time for the stumps of trees taken to line these pits to crumble to dust, as well as for small trees to attain great proportions. General Irvine, during his exploring expedition through this country in the summer of 1785, visited Oil Creek, and in his report says: "Oil Creek has taken its name from an oil, or bituminous matter, found floating on the surface. Many cures are attributed to this oil by the natives, and lately by some whites, particularly Rheumatic pains and old Ulcers." For many years the usual means of gathering this product of nature, which finally became known as " Seneca Oil," was by throwing a woolen cloth, or blanket, upon the water, collected in a trough, or pit, and upon which the oil floated, and then wringing the cloth over a tub. The clean wool absorbed the Petroleum. 287 oil and rejected the water, and in this way a considerable quantity was ob- tained. The oil was then bottled in small vials and sold by tramping ped- dlers in many parts of the country, as a sure cure for rheumatism, sore throat, ulcers, and various aches and pains. Coming down to recent years, within the memory of men yet young and active, the name of Colonel E. L. Drake looms up prominently as the pioneer in the oil business in Western Pennsylvania ; yet there was another producer and operator in petroleum, who ante-dated Drake by nearly twenty years, and deserves mention. In 1840 Samuel M. Kier, and his father, Thomas Kier, of Pittsburgh, owned a salt well on the Allegheny River, about one mile above Tarrentum. The well had been worked some months, when oil made its appearance, and mixed in considerable quantities with the salt water. About the same time Lewis Peterson, jr., discovered oil in a well on his farm adjoining the Messrs. Kiers'. The accumulation on Mr. Peterson's premises was so considerable that it became troublesome, and had to be removed by means of surface drains. But Mr. S. M. Kier, with that practical sagacity with which he was distin- guished, could not believe that this (then mysterious) production of nature had been made in vain. He was convinced that there must be a want somewhere which it was intended to supply. As an experiment, the oil was bottled and introduced as a medicine. Chemistry has frequently shown that petroleum possesses several valuable medical properties, but in Mr. Kier's early essays the science of advertising was not understood, or at least but little resorted to, and his " patent medicine " speculation failed. Still, fully impressed with the conviction that the oil had its important uses, Mr. Kier submitted samples to Professor J. C. Booth, of Philadelphia, who, after a careful analysis of it, recommended him to offer it to a New York gutta- percha company, who were seeking a proper solvent for this gum. The gutta-percha company's experiments with it were not satisfactory. Mature reflection convinced Professor Booth that, by distillation, an excellent burning oil could be obtained from the crude. He furnished Mr. Kier with drawings for a suitable still. Mr. Kier returned to Pittsburgh, constructed a still, and put it in active operation. The product he named " Carbon Oil," by which designation it was for a a long time generally known. Mr. Kier soon had invented a suitable lamp for its use. He subsequently became largely interested in the manufacture and sale of these oil lamps, and, locally speaking the oil came into general use. The consumption, however, began to exceed the supply of crude, and the want of the raw material seriously interfered with the sales of carbon, or " refined," which had grown to be com- paratively a profitable and important business. Strenuous efforts were made to increase the supply of raw material with indifferent success. Agents were sent out exploring in various directions, and among the localities which con- 288 History of Warren County. tributed an additional supply was tlie " Land Diggings," on Hughes's River, West Virginia. Five years had now elapsed since Mr. Kier started his sixty gallon still " refinery," when oil was discovered on the Allegheny near his premises. A well which had been dug for and pumped as a salt well for twenty years, had been placed under the severe drain of a new and more powerful pump. The head of salt water became exhausted, and lo ! petroleum appeared and pumped freely. Thus, in the year 1845, was established the first " pumping well " known to the oil world, but years were yet to elapse before human knowledge should attain to a full comprehension of this singular discovery, destined to effect the greatest trade revolution known to modern commerce. The fortun- ate owners of this well, while on their way to Pittsburgh with a stock of their crude oil, sold it to certain druggists, who established a small refinery. But now the stock of petroleum was in excess of the market. After considerable negotiation a Mr. Ferris of New York city contracted for the greater portion of the well's production. About this time the coal oil excitement commenced. Mineral oil as an illuminant came into general use. Cheapness, brilliancy, and safety combined to recommend it. Parties who had purchased a quantity of land just below Titusville, observed oil floating on the surface of its streams. A number of wells were dug in pursuit of oil in quantities, in vain. The owners learned through Mr. Ferris, above mentioned, that oil might probably be obtained by boring. A well was started, and at a moderate depth the drill struck oil. This was no other than the famous " Dr.\ke Well," the first one bored for oil ex- clusively. From the facts above given it is clear and indisputable that Mr. Kier was the pioneer and founder of the oil business in Pennsylvania, and that to his sagacity, ingenuity, perseverance, and skill, the whole world is largely in- debted for the knowledge and introduction of one of the most important dis- coveries, conveniences and social blessings of modern times.' In 1855 Prof B. Silliman, jr., tested the rock or petroleum oil obtained in Venango county and found it equal in illuminating power to most fluids and gases in use, and superior to many of them. Wc now turn to the doings of E. L. Drake, and note what the newspapers had to say in relation to the first developments, etc. Some years after Drake's discovery, at a time when he was sick and penniless, and a handsome purse had been raised for him in Titusville, a newspaper writer spoke of him as fol- lows : " Colonel E. L. Drake was the pioneer in the oil business in this region. At one time he had a considerable fortune, but during the latter years of his life he was poor and out of health. His derrick, the first one ever erected for ' Wl1.1l is here said ofj Mr. Kier has been condensed from an article published in the Piltshiirgh Oil Novs, in March, 1865. Petroleum. oil, stood for many years about a mile below Titusville. He made his first appearance in Titusville in 1857. Prior to that time he had been a conductor on a railroad in Connecticut. He came to Oil Creek on business for another person. Calling casually at the office of Brewer & Watson, in Titusville, he there found a bottle of crude oil, and his curiosity being excited concerning it, he learned from Dr. Brewer all facts of interest connected with its production, viz., that it flowed from natural springs on the Watson flats ; and had been known to the Seneca Indians before the white settlements began, and had been sold by them as a liniment or medicine, to white persons, and also to the drug- gists ; and latterly had been gathered by Brewer & Watson and used for light- ing the saw-mills of the firm and for lubricating purposes. Drake visited the oil springs, and conceived the idea of boring to the sources of the oil. He returned east, obtained the co-operation of some moneyed friends, and the fol- lowing year came back as the agent of an oil firm located at New Haven, Conn." On the 8th of September, 1859, a newspaper correspondent, writing from Titusville, said: "Perhaps you will recollect that in 1854 there was organized in the city of New York a company, under the name of the Pennsylvania Rock Oil Company, which, for some good reasons, passed into the hands of New Haven capitalists, and the office and headquarters was by them removed to New Haven. In 1858 the directors leased the grounds and springs to Mr. E. L. Drake, well-known on the New Haven Railroad. He came out here, and in May last commenced to bore for salt, or to find the source of the oil, which is so common along Oil Creek. Last week, at the depth of seventy-one feet, he struck a fissure in the rock through which he was boring, when, to the surprise and joy of every one, he found he had tapped a vein of water and oil, yielding four hundred gallons of pure oil every twenty-four hours. "The pump now in use throws only five gallons per minute of water and oil into a large vat, where the oil rises to the top and the water runs out from the bottom. In a few days they will have a pump of three times the capacity of the one now in use and then from ten to twelve hundred gallons of oil will be the daily yield. "The springs along the stream, I understand, have been mostly taken up or secured by Brewer & Watson, the parties who formerly owned the one now in operation. The excitement attendant upon the discovery of this vast source of oil was fully equal to what I ever saw in California, when a large lump of gold was accidentally turned out." Another newspaper man. Editor Chase, of the Potter Journal, in October, 1859, informed his readers of what he knew about petroleum and the excite- ment at Titusville, then a town of about three hundred inhabitants, in the fol- lowing lucid manner: " After a brief rest we visited the famous Seneca Oil Spring which has recently created so great an excitement and wonder in the 290 History of Warren County. outside world. The sensation of seeing and smelling the oil was nothing new to us — we were born and bred there. The oil has been gathered from surface springs and used in that section of country ever since its settlement ; the In- dians and the French having opened and worked a large number of springs near the present site of Titusville, many years before any English settlers found their way there. The oil never had an outside market until now, though the ' Pennsylvania Rock Oil Company ' have, we believe, marketed a quantity of the surface spring product in New Haven, where the office of the company now is. In 1858, as stated in the Journal two weeks since, the company leased the spring (for which they paid Brewer, Williams & Co. $5,000) to E. L. Drake, who was to gather the oil at his own expense and pay them 1 2\ cents a gallon for it. His lease was for fifteen years, with full privilege of working at his option. " In May last Mr. Drake commenced boring for salt, and after sinking a shaft seventy-one feet, the first of last month struck a fissure in the rock through which he was boring, and the discovery of this subterranean spring of oil was the result. The yield of oil with the pump first used was 400 gallons per day, but when we were there a pump of three times the capacity of that was in operation, and a yield of 1,600 gallons per twenty-four hours, of pure oil, had been obtained. " Other parties along the stream have also bored for oil, and have found it at various depths ; the least of which was six feet, on the farm of Mr. John Watson, in Titusville Borough, three-fourths of a mile from the village. After one foot of soil had been removed, a stratum of three and one-half feet of Pot- ter's clay was bored through — that also being a new discovery. Another spring was tapped about twenty-eight feet from the surface, on the farm of J. Parker, about one-fourth of a mile from the village center, and opening through one of the old springs worked by the French and Indians, of which there are a large number at that particular point. " As a result consequent upon this discovery real estate and leases, with privilege of boring till oil was found, were each held at great prices. We heard of an instance in which $20,000 was offered and refused for a half interest in a lease of fifteen years on one hundred acres ! and we know of several fourth interests in leases at a distance of two or three miles from the working spring being sold for $2,500 and $3,000. The tract of land on which the large spring has been opened by Mr. Drake was once purchased by the father of the writer of this article for a cow, and previous to that had been sold at treasurer's sale for taxes. Now, we believe, $100,000 would not buy one acre of it. Men until now barely able to get a poor living off poor land are made rich beyond their wildest dreaming. " The properties of this oil (a bottle of which we brought with us and may be seen at this office) are medicinal, for internal as well as external applica- Plumb, Asa. " March, 7 1872 Smith, D. 0., ' M.inh 6, 186«i Putnam, T. L., " March 13 1876 Stright, W. E., -\huvh 4, 1870 Parker, A. M., March 13 1876 Slone, W, W., March 22, 1872 Preston, Nelson, " March 17 1877 Smith, Jones, ' March 14, 1874 Plumb, Asa, " March 17 1877 Sutliff, William B., March 16, 1875 Phillis, J. W., March 2.") 1878 Stright, W. E., March 16, 1875 Parker, Philander, " March 27 1879 Siggins, H. K. March 16, 1875 Peck, George W., March 30 1880 Shannon, W. G., March 16, 1875 Putnam, T. L., " April 9 1881 Sanford, J. G., March 16, 1875 Richardson, Joshua, " Aug. 1 1831 > -- Slone, W. W., March 13, 1876 Reese, Martin, " April 15 1833 Sutliff, William B., March 30, 1880 Ricliardson, Joshua, " March 7 1846 Straw. John M., ' April 9, 1881 Rouse, Henry R., " March 9 1850 Shannon, W. G., ' March 30, 1880 Roup, Christian, " March 6 1852 Schnur, Roman C, ' April 17, 1882 Ross, John, " Marcli 7 1863 Slone, W. W., April 17, 1882 Ricker, S. B., " March 5 1864 Siggins, William F., ' July 31, 1882 Ricker, S. B., March 6 1869 Spence, David, ' April 6, 1883 Race, Alexander, " March IG 1875 Siggins, William F., ' April fi, 1883 Reeves, W. I., " March 30 1875 Sammons, L D., ' April 6, 1883 Rowland, John, '' Marcii 13 1876 Shanafelt, J. T., Oct. 1, 1884 Reeves, W. I., " March 30 1880 Shannon, W. G., April 23, 1885 Richardson, C. S., " March 30 1880 Sutliff, Wm. B., April 14, 1886 Ray, WiUiam, " April 9 1881 Thompson, Caleb, Aug. 1, 1831 Rowland, John, " April 9 1881 i Thompson, Joshua W., ' March 9, 1844 Richardson, J. H., " April 14 1886 Taber, Georse W., March 6, 1852 Ray, William, April 16 1886 Tuthill, Robert, March 10, 1855 Siggins, William, " Feb. 1.5 1827 Taylor, Charles, ' March 10, 18.55 Smith, Elijah, ^ April 5 1830 Taylor, John J., March 10, 1856 Sargent, Henry G., " Jan. 19 1837 Thompson, William L., ' March 5, 1859 Stacy. Bdwm C, " March 11 1843 Thompson, J. W., ' March 7, 1863 Sanford, Sam'l W. B., " March 9 1844 Temple, Charles F., ' March 16, 1866 302 History of Warren County. Thompson, J.W., commissioned Terrell, E., " Whitney, Nathan, " Williamson, S., " White, Mark S., Whitney, .Toel, " Willson, Mark, " Williams. E. Leroy, " Wright, Jude, " Willson, Mark, " White, Orange, " Woodin, David, " White, Mark S., " Woodbeck, John E., " Wright, Jude, " Warner, John A., " Walton, Levi, " Woodbeck, J. E., " April IG, 1868 Willson, Mark, commission ed March 21, 1860 Nov. 9, 1869 West, Charles B., " March 21, 1860 Feb. 9, 1831 White, Lucius, " March 28. 1867 Nov. 28, 1834 Williams, George H., " March 26^ 1873 April 3, 1837 Walz. Frederick, " March 26, 1873 April 14, 1840 White, Jay, '' March 31, 1873 April 14, 1840 White, Lucius, " May 6. 1874 March 9, 1844 Wells, W. B., Marcli 27, 1879 March 8, 1845 Wood, John, A., " Marcli27, 1879 March 8, 1845 Wood, George R., " March 30. 1880 April 14, 1840 White, A. T., March 30, 1880 April 14, 1840 White, Lucius, " April 17, 1882 April 14, 1840 Walz, Frederick, " April 6, 1883 March 9, 1850 Wood, John A., " April 23, 1885 March 8, 1851 White, A. T., April 23, 1885 March 10, 1854 Wright, R. 0., " April 23, 1885 March 10, 1855 White, J. E.. April 14, 1886 March 21 1860 Yates, George V. N., " March 5, 1853 CHAPTER XXX. RIYER NAVIGATION, ETC.. WAGON ROADS, RAILROADS. Source of the Conewango —Navigable Waters of the County — Askmg Aid for Tlieir Im- provement^ — Survey of the Allegheny by U. S. Engineers — Its Length and Fall from Olean to Pittsburgh — Early Manner of Transporting Freight and Passengers — Keel-boats — Their Great Usefulness — Shipping Lumber to Nev^' Orleans — Names of Steamboats Engaged in the Warren and Pittsburgh Trade — An Immen.ie Raft — Description of Rafting — Nathan Brown's Ventures — Wagon Roads Laid Out by the Pioneers — Present Condition of Highways — Railroads — Celebrating the Opening of Railway Communication with Erie — Date of Completing Other Railroads. Ri\ER Navigation, 1-;tc. THE waters flowing through the Conewango branch of the Allegheny River tal-{U^^yUoC€^ Borough of Warren. 325 the town. This they accomplished by simply running Water street parallel with and next to the river bank, thus leaving an unobstructed view of river and street for a distance of more than half a mile. Judging from the past, however, residents have but little appreciation of the value and beauty of their inheritance, this magnificent sweep, side by side, of river and avenue. For scores of years — indeed since the first settlement of the town — this bank, rising gradually from fifteen to twenty-five feet above the river's surface — has been a common dumping-ground of all the filth and rubbish which usually finds its way to such places, and each year mother earth, as if ashamed of the desecration, of man's abominable practices, sends up a rank growth of wild grasses, weeds, and briars to cover the forbidding spots. In the future, doubtless, a transformation will be 'orought about by driving a row of piles, extending from the outer face of the suspension bridge abut- ment to a point on the bank some eight or ten rods below (thus doing away with the dirty little eddy which, while it may have been of value in the past, is now but a summer's nuisance, a depository along the shore of all the sewage, garbage, and trash which comes within its influence), tearing out the unsightly " lock-up," disposing in some way of the old Tanner building, filling up the yawning chasm of filth there to be found, grading an easy slope from the street level to the water's edge, sodding or seeding the same with blue grass, and thence continuing the work of grading and sodding to the railroad bridge ; finishing by cutting down the telegraph poles, building a sidewalk, planting shade trees, and placing park benches along the way. Few towns in America are afforded such a grand opportunity as this for the construction of a magnifi- cent promenade. And when such an improvement is made it will add more to the beauty of the town, to the pride of its inhabitants, to their health and wealth, than the erection of five hundred buildings. In a number of the preceding chapters of this work frequent mention of Warren and its site has been made, during the period beginning with the French occupation of this valley and extending down to the date of its survey and settlement by the Americans. Hence, to avoid unnecessary repetition, this sketch of the history of the town of Warren begins with the year 1795. During that year, " in order to facilitate and promote the progress of settle- ments within the Commonwealth, and to afford additional security to the fron- tiers by the establishment of towns," an act was passed by the State Legislature, April 1 8, providing for laying out towns at Presque Isle, at the mouth of French Creek, at the mouth of Conewango Creek, and at Fort Le Boeuf Of the town to be laid out at the mouth of the Conewango, it was ordered that the commissioners to be appointed by the governor " shall sur.vey or cause to be surveyed three hundred acres for town lots, and seven hundred acres of land adjoining thereto for out lots, at the most eligible place within the tract heretofore reserved [in 1789] for public use at the mouth of Conewango Creek; 326 History of Warren County. and the lands so surveyed shall be respectively laid out and divided into town lots and out lots, in such manner, and with such streets, lanes, alleys, and res- ervations for public uses, as the said commissioners shall direct ; but no town lot shall contain more than one third of an acre, no out lot shall contain more than five acres, nor shall the reservations for public uses exceed in the whole, ten acres ; and the town hereby directed to be laid out, shall be called ' War- ren,' and all the streets, lanes, and alleys thereof, and of the lots thereto adjoin- ing, shall be and remain common highways." As if still doubtful of the friendship of the Indians occupying this part of the country — owing, probably, to the hostile feeling displayed by Cornplanter and his band during the previous year — the act further provided that the troops stationed, or to be stationed, at Fort Le Boeuf should be used to protect and assist the commissioners, surveyors, and others while engaged in executing the provisions of the act. General William Irvine and Andrew Ellicott were the commissioners appointed to lay out town plots at the four points indicated, and it is believed, though we have seen no evidence of the fact, that their task was completed in 1795. Be that as it may, however, the lots in the new towns of Warren, Erie, Franklin, and Waterford were not offered for sale until August, 1796, when they were cried at auction at Carlisle, Pa. The original lots of the town of Warren were fi\-e hundred and twenty-four in number, each being 58-f feet in width, street frontage, and 233^ feet in depth. Water, Market, and High streets are presumed to be lOO feet in width, the others 60 feet. Six streets running nearly east and west, and ten nearly north and south, all crossing at right angles, comprised the highways of the original plot. After the county began to be settled John Andrews, one of the first settlers of the county, was appointed State commissioner, to dispose of the lots at public sale, and during the ten years succeeding 1797 sold all of them. They were purchased by the farmer settlers of this county, Venango, Crawford, and other counties, and some b}- Indians. The prices ranged from $2.50 to $6 per lot. One-third of the purchase money was required to be paid at once, the balance at the convenience of the purchaser — which with some, it seems, was never convenient. Indeed, but few of the original purchasers ever procured patents for their lots, but suffered them to be sold at county treasur- er's sale for taxes, and the purchasers at such sales, or their assignees, procured patents. Hon. David Brown, the father of the present president-judge, was the original purchaser of more than one hundred lots. Subsequently he trans- ferred them to other persons, and finally these went the way of a majority of the others — were sold at treasurer's sale — and the titles passed to new owners. Until about 1794-95, the site of the town was covered with a luxuriant growth of white, black and red oak of large size. At that time a party of the Holland Land Company's surveyors, under the orders and personal supervision of Andrev\- FUicott, the noted surveyor, and his son-in-law, Dr. Kennedy Borough of Warren. 327 (subsequently the builder and owner of Kennedy's mills), were encamped upon the bank of the river near where the old Tanner storehouse now stands. One night a terrific storm of rain, accompanied with thunder, lightning and wind of irresistible force, came sweeping up the valley from the west and prostrated every thing in its path from the western part of the town's site to Glade Run. The inmates of the " camp," or shanty of poles and bark, fled for safety to the small bar or island where Rathbun's grocery was for many years a landmark. It was fortunate for them that they hesitated not upon the order of their going for their shanty was blown down and two of their pack horses were killed by the falling trees. A few years later a fire swept over this windfall, burning the small brush and much of the fallen timber. The remainder furnished dry firewood for the early inhabitants. Then sprung up the growth of scrub oaks remembered by some persons still living. About the year 1796, the surveyors employed by the Holland Land Com- pany erected a building of hewn timbers for the storage of their supplies — tools, provisions, etc. This building, the first permanent structure reared on the site of Warren, stood down on Water street in the near vicinity of Page's blacksmith shop. For two years it had no floor other than the ground, no chimney other than a hole in the center of a leaky roof It has been related that Daniel McQuay, then in the employment of the land company, occupied this building as a dwelling house during the first or second year after its erec- tion, thus earning the distinction of being the first inhabitant of the town. He then located on the Little Brokenstraw just above its mouth. He was the wit of the valley. A genuine son of Erin, full of recklessness and adventure, fond of fun, fight and whiskey, and the only man who ever made from two to ten trips from the Brokenstraw to New Orleans on boats of lumber and traveled back afoot. This was a perilous undertaking prior to 18 10, which was subse- quent to the first trip or two made by him, for saying nothing of walking nearly two thousand five hundred miles, the few towns along the Ohio and Mississippi rivers were then but insignificant villages, and all else between them tangled thickets, swamps and dense forests infested by Indians, wild ani- mals, and frequently by worse foes — white desperadoes and highwaymen. When James Morrison, jr., accompanied by his brother-in-law, Galen Murdock, arrived on the site of Warren in June, 1798, the only evidences of civilization and improvement to be seen here were the Holland Land Com- pany's unoccupied storehouse, and a small abandoned improvement near Reig's old tannery, made by George Slone, a blacksmith, afterwards a well- known resident of the Beech Woods settlement. Morrison and Murdock came from Lycoming county, and accomplished the journey by pushing a canoe up the Sinnemahoning and the Drift Wood Branch until the immense piles of driftwood prevented their further progress by water. Leaving their canoe, they packed their effects on their backs, and a little more than one day's walk 328 History of Warren County. brought them to the waters of the Allegheny. There they felled a large pine tree, made a commodious canoe, and continued their way to Warren. From that time the place where they embarked on the Allegheny was known as "Canoe Place," and many other early adventurers pursued the same route and plan in journeying from the West Branch of the Susquehanna westward. In 1800 James Morrison, sr., a soldier of the Revolutionary War, his brother Jere- miah, and several others of the Morrison and Murdock families, eight or ten men in all, besides women and children, came on from Lycoming county over the route previously described, and settled on the outlots below Warren. At about that time, too, Martin Reese, sr., and family settled in the same locality. In 1 804 James Morrison (whether father or son is not known) built a house of hewn timbers on the site of the pipe line office, below R. P. King's residence. During the same )'ear, however, a majority of that family — perhaps all of them — removed to the Kinzua valley and located there permanently. In the mean time Isaac Buckalew had squatted on the bottoms opposite Warren, and for a number of years enjoyed the distinction of being the only resident in Warren county on the east side of the river south of Kinzua. Zachariah Eddy also tarried at Warren for a brief period as early as 1801, but did not become a permanent resident until some twelve or fifteen years later. John Gilson, who resided in Sheffield for many years and attained an age of nearly ninety, stated, years before his death, that his father, John Gilson, sr., was a native of New England, either Massachusetts or Connecticut, but before removing to Warren had resided for some years at a point on the Delaware river in New York. Gilson's family, accompanied by two other families, reached Warren in May, 1803, floating down from Olean on a raft. John Gilson, jr., was the youngest of a family of eleven children, all of whom lived to be seventy-five or more years of age. During the first year of their arrival here (1803) his father built a house on the site of Ephraim Cowan's former residence on Water street. This was the second building erected upon the inlots of Warren, counting the Holland Land Company's storehouse as the first. In 1804 James Morrison built his house, previously referred to, and Gideon Gilson, son of John, sr., built a house on C. P. Henry's corner. These three houses were built of pine timbers hewn square. Stephen Gilson, son of Gideon, was born soon after their arrival here, and without doubt he was the first white native of the town. John Gilson, sr, died in March, 181 1, and was buried in a small plot set apart for such purposes on the farm of Daniel Jackson. Daniel Jackson, the pioneer, whose name has been written more frequently', perhaps, in connection with the early history of Warren than that of any other person, was a native of Connecticut, but came here from the vicinity of Ithaca, N. Y., in the spring of 1797, and settled upon a tract of land (since known as the Wetmore farm) bordering the run which still bears his name, and distant about one mile north of the town of Warren. Here, about half a mile above Borough of Warren. 329 the mouth of the run, he built a saw-mill (and subsequently a small grist mill) said to have been the first one erected in the county; at least there was but one other to dispute for the priority, and that was the mill built by the Meads on the Brokenstraw. Jackson's mill was completed about the year 1 800, and, it has been related, the sawing of the first board was thought to be an event of sufficient importance to call for some unusual demonstration on the part of those present. Accordingly it was placed on the ground, a bottle of whisky brought out, and two individuals, after partaking of its contents sufficiently to give elasticity to their limbs, went through the primitive performance of danc- ing a jig. From this mill, it has been claimed, the first raft of pine lumber ever known to descend the Allegheny from Warren county was safely landed at Pittsburgh. Some aver that this event took place in the year 1799, others in 1 80 1. The raft contained thirty thousand feet and was guided by sitting- poles instead of oars. In coming to this county Jackson traveled by the way of Buffalo and Erie to Waterford ; thence with canoes down French creek and up the Allegheny and Conewango to his place of settlement. His children were Daniel, jr., Ethan, David, Ebenezer and Sylvia, and another daughter who died when quite young. Being so far away from marts of trade and neighbors, he and his family for a few years suffered many and great privations. At one time he was obliged to make a winter's journey on snow shoes to Waterford, a dis- tance of fifty miles, in quest of salt. Steep hillsides, deep ravines and roaring torrents intervened, and over all were cast the shadows of a dense primeval forest unbroken by a single improvement. In 1805 he built the first frame house, and the fourth for dwelling purposes in the town of Warren on the northeast corner of Water and Hickory streets, the lot now occupied by the dilapidated brick block erected by Archibald Tanner in 1849-50. He was licensed to keep an inn in this house by the courts of Venango county in 1806, and continued to be so engaged for a num- ber of years. Lansing Wetmore, Esq., has said that when he first visited Warren in 1815, "Esq. Jackson" kept a tavern at the place described, " and, what was rare in those times, was a temperate landlord." He died on Sunday, June 20, 1830, in the seventy-ninth year of his age, under circumstances pecul- iarly distressing in their nature. In an obituary notice of his death, published soon after in the Voice of the People, certain incidents connected with his life and last illness are noted as follows : "The deceased was a native of the State of Connecticut and at an early day removed to this county and settled on the banks of the Conewango creek, in the immediate neighborhood of this place. With its earliest history and the settlement of the country he was thoroughly conversant, and with the narrative precision of vigorous old age, could tell of 'times and things gone by.' In his hunting excursions he had explored the forests that environ us, and learned 330 History of Warren County. the windings of the several streams. Beneath his guidance the first raft of lumber ever sawed in this county was molded into form and conveyed on the bosom of the Allegheny to Pittsburgh. " He was commissioned a justice of the peace under the administration of Governor Snyder, and continued to discharge the duties of the station. It was in the honorable discharge of his official duty as a magistrate that he was assailed by Nehemiah Waters and inhumanly bitten in the thumb of his right hand. So envenomed was the wound that his strength of body and constitu- tion (although superior to that of most men of his age) could not resist its influ- ence, and its baneful effects soon set at naught the sedulous attention and skill of his medical assistance and took entire possession of his system. To the last he retained the entire possession of his faculties, and bore the most agonizing pain with a patience and resignation becoming the dignity of christianized old age. "As a magistrate, an honest zeal for justice characterized the performance of his official duties. As a man and a neighbor he was hospitable, friendly, and benevolent; honest and punctual in his dealings, and social in his inter- course with his fellow-men. As a parent he was tender and affectionate. His eulogy is that name which poetic language has inscribed upon the noblest work of creation — ' an honest man ' : " Bv nature honest, by experience wi.se, Healthy by temperance and by exercise, His life though long, to sickness pass'd unknown. His death was peaceful and without a groan." In the winter of 1805-6 George W. Fenton, father of the late Hon. Reuben E. Fenton, of New York, taught the first school in a vacant room of Daniel Jackson's new house. While here he became acquainted with Miss Elsey Owen, of Carroll, to whom he was married in November following. She was a niece of John King's wife. The name of John King, a "single man," first appeared upon the rolls of the county as a tax-payer in 1808. From that time until his death, which occurred October 22, 1842, he continued to reside in the town of Warren, and held several positions of honor and trust. He married Betsey, a daughter of John Gilson, sr., August 15, 181 1, who survived until October 23, 1873. The children born to them were J. H. (now the oldest native of the borough, he having been born May 20, 1812), Rufus P., George W., Mrs. Harmon, of War- ren, J. E. King, M. D., of Buffalo, Mrs. Eveline Mead, of Youngsville, and Mrs. Betsey Hunter and Mrs. Malvina Cowan, of Warren. Although the town had been made the county seat of Warren county in 1800, it improved but slowly, and few, if any, families were added to its popu- lation, other than those already mentioned, until after the close of the War of 18 1 2— 15. During the next four years, however, many changes took place in the appearance of the little town ; and when the county was organized, in Borough of Warren. 331 1 8 19, such men as Archibald Tanner, Colonel Joseph Hackney, Lothrop S. Parmlee, Henry Dunn, Zachariah Eddy, Robert Arthur, James Arthur, James Stewart, Ebenezer Jackson, son of Daniel, sr., Dr. Ayres, the son-in-law of the latter, John Andrews, James Follett, Robert Falconer, William Pier, besides a number of blacksmiths, cordwainers, and tailors, were counted as additional residents. Henry Dunn, who at an early day was connected with Hackney & Harri- ott in their lumbering operations on the Conewango, came hiere from Meadville and became a permanent resident about the year 181 5. For a number of years he kept tavern in a hpuse said to have been erected by Martin Reese about 1812. This building, of hewn timbers, stood upon the grounds now occupied by the First National Bank. Dunn's Tavern was a popular resort, and at one time he entertained as a guest the notorious Aaron Burr, who, being storm-bound, was compelled to tarry here several days while cii route down the river to the home of Blennerhasset. Subsequently Dunn built quite a pretentious hostelry on the northwest corner of Second and Liberty streets, afterwards known as the Hackney House and the Russell House corner. Robert Falconer was a native of Scotland. For some years prior to the beginning of the War of 18 12 he, in partnership with his bachelor brother Patrick, had been engaged in the mercantile business in the city of New York, having also a branch house at Charleston, S. C. When the war began, Pat- rick, whose sympathies for Great Britain were very strong, determined to remain in this " blarsted country" no longer, and, returning to Scotland, con- tinued there until his death. He never married. After the restoration of peace, Robert, having disposed of his business affairs at New York and Charles- ton, began to look about for a country home for the benefit of his wife, who was in a declining state of health. He had been advised by physicians to find some place where hills or mountains, pine forests, and clear running streams abounded. In some way, probably through his Long Island friend, Abraham D. Ditmars, he heard of this then forlorn, out-of-the-way place, and concluded to make a personal inspection of a region so highly extolled by land agents. Accordingly, he first came here with Ditmars and his family in 1815. The journey was a memorable one. Ditmars started with two good wagons, well loaded, good teams, etc., and reached Chandler's Valley with one horse and the fore wheels of one wagon only. The route followed led through New Jer- sey to the crossing of the Delaware at Easton, thence to Bellefonte, and on over the mountains to Holman's Ferry on the Allegheny, thence via Titusville and Brokenstraw to Chandler's Valley. It required five weeks to accomplish the journey, and when it was concluded Ditmar's effects, as well as some mem- bers of his family, were scattered along the way from Bellefonte westward. They were finally gathered up, after much trouble and expense. Falconer came through with the advance-guard of the party, including Ditmars. Not- 332 History of Warren County. withstanding the difficulties encountered in getting here, he seems to have been favorably impressed with the appearance of things, and purchased quite largely of lands in town and country. Man is a strange, perverse animal, to say the least, and his freaks when migrating are quite aptly illustrated in Falconer's case. It does not appear that he came here with any intention of becoming a farmer, but merely to found a home in a retired, wholesome locality. Hence, unless it was his wish to place a great distance between himself and his former haunts, he could have gone up the Hudson River but a few miles, compara- tively speaking, and there found hills and mountains, umbrageous forests of pine and hemlock, swiftly-flowing streams of pure, sparkling water ; and a region, too, where the health-destroying clouds do not bank upon the ground in the valleys at nightfall, and remain until eight or nine o'clock each morning for seven months in the year. The lands along the Hudson were then equally as cheap as those in Warren county. To-day they are worth so much more, with no oil or gas considered in the prospective, that a comparison would be, in most cases, as one to one hundred. Falconer returned to New York and completed his arrangements for a ' removal to Warren ; but his wife died ere the second trip was commenced, hence he reappeared at Warren alone. He soon became one of its prominent and highly-respected citizens; was elected a county commissioner in 1823, and was numbered as one of the merchants of the town prior to 1830. In 1834 he completed the stone building on High street, known during late years as the "Tanner House," and, when the Lumbermen's Bank (of which he was presi- dent) was organized during the same year, its office was established in that structure. As shown elsewhere, the bank failed in 1838. Being severely and probably unjustly censured by reason of this failure, Mr. Falconer never regained his former exuberance of spirits and business activity, and finally sank into a state of utter helplessness, physically speaking, which only ended with his death. He married a second wife in this county, but left no children. The present Falconers are descendants of Patrick, a son of Patrick the brother of Robert, who, when the last war with England began, would not live longer in a country where dukes and lords and kings and queens were spoken of irrev- erently, and returned to Scotland. Robert I'alconer purchased for this nephew a fine farm, now occupied, in whole or in part, by the State Asylum at North Warren. Colonel Joseph Hackney, a leading and highly-respected citizen among the pioneers in both Crawford and Warren counties, was born at the "Little Falls," on the Mohawk River, N. V., of Holland Dutch parentage, in 1763. The opportunities afforded him of acquiring the most common rudiments of an edu- cation were very meager indeed, and at the early age of seventeen years he entered the American army and served during the remainder of the Revolu- tionary W^ar. Subsequently he served against the Western Indians, during Borough of Warren. 333 the years 1785-90. In 1790 he joined a detachment of troops at Pittsburgh which proposed moving down the Ohio River to Fort Washington (now Cin- cinnati) and there join General Harmer, who was then preparing for a cam- paign against the northwestern tribes. At Pittsburgh suppHes for the troops were placed on board of " DurKam " boats and started down the river, while the main body of the armed force marched by land. Hackney went in one of the boats commanded by Captain Doughty. At or near the mouth of the Muskingum they were fired upon by a party of Indians lying in ambush on shore. The steersman was mortally wounded and fell. Hackney sprang for- ward to take his place, and ordered the men to pull for the opposite shore. He had scarcely taken the oar in his hand when a rifle ball shattered his arm above the elbow, rendering that member useless. He seized the oar with his other hand and, amid the whistling of bullets, exhorted the men to pull for life. Encouraged by his heroism they did pull, and as fast as one was shot down another took his place, until they were out of reach of the enemy's balls. Of the seven men in the boat five were killed or mortally wounded, and Hack- ney and Captain Doughty were the only survivors of the party. Wounded and disabled. Hackney was unable to join the main body of the army and par- ticipate in the battle which followed and resulted in the disastrous defeat of General Harmer's army of about fifteen hundred officers and men. Returning to Pittsburgh, he soon after engaged in the mercantile business; with Oliver Ormsby, and remained there until 1794, when he removed to. Meadville. There he erected a small frame building (which is still standing)) in 1797, and kept store in it until his removal to Warren county. When Crawford county was organized in 1800, with four other counties attached to it, including Warren, he was one of the first county commissioners to be elected, and served as such from 1800 to 1802, also from 1811 to 1814. In 181 5 he, in partnership with Major James Herriott, of Meadville, purchased the saw-, mill on the Conewango near Irvineburg, which was in operation and owned by Colt & Marlin (the Col. Ralph Marlin particularly mentioned during the ses^ sions of the first term of court held in Warren county) as early as 1808. In 1 817 Colonel Hackney became a permanent resident in the town of Warren, and in 1818-19 he, together with Jacob Harrington and James Cochran, rep- resented the district composed of Crawford, Erie, Mercer, Venango and War- ren counties in the State Legislature ; thus being in a position to introduce and advocate a bill providing for the organization of Warren county. When this event took place he was one of the two associate judges first commissioned, and served as such until his death, which occurred May 20, 1832. His title of colonel seems to have been honorary, at least it does not appear that he held that rank during his active service as a soldier. Archibald Tanner, Warren's first merchant, and, we believe, its first post- master, was born in Litchfield county, Connecticut, February 3, 1786, and re- 334 History of Warren County. moved with his father's family to New Connecticut, Trumbull county, Ohio, in 1802. He came to Warren in 18 16 and at once began a successful business career here by occupying part of Daniel Jackson's bar-room and ofiering for sale at retail a small stock of merchandise. Jackson's tavern, as before stated, stood on the corner of Water and Hickory streets, now occupied by the Tanner block. During that or the following year, Mr. Tanner built a small store on the river bank nearly opposite the tavern mentioned, and occupied it for the sale of his goods as soon as it was completed. There is quite an interesting story connected with the history of this build- ing which has been related to us in substance about as follows: The ground utilized by Mr. Tanner had not been laid out as a town lot or as a fractional part of one, but was and is yet considered part of the public domain of 3,000 acres reserved in 1789, besides being the natural bank of a navigable stream. Some years subsequent to the building of Tanner's store, a man named Hunter, considering that he had as good a right to occupy the bank in question as Tanner, proposed to erect a building just above Tanner's, or near the north end of the present suspension bridge, and there collected a considerable quan- tity of building material — timbers and lumber. Tanner objected to Hunter's occupancy of the site selected, and a bitter personal quarrel followed. Finally Hunter desisted from his purpose of building, but had Tanner indicted as a trespasser upon the lands of the Commonwealth. But Tanner seemed to be a man who could easily surmount difficulties, both great and small, and employ- ing counsel (Thomas Struthers, we believe); the latter proceeded to Harrisburg and secured the passage of a legislative act by the provisions of which Tanner was permitted to remain in peaceful possession of the building he had erected, and to repair it from time to time when necessary, but was denied the privilege of rebuilding. With the decay or destruction of the structure the occupancy of its site for private purposes should cease. Need we add the building still stands in a good state of preservation and is now known as the La Pierre res- taurant? Conflagrations have repeatedly swept away rows of buildings in front and to the right of it, yet by reason of its somewhat isolated location it has escaped them all. It has been carefully and systematically repaired at divers times, from foundation walls to rooftop, and to-day, probably, is much in the same condition as the famous old United States frigate Constitution was rep- resented to be in when she went out of commission and was broken up — con- taining not a single panel, plank, or timber of the original vessel. It has been related of Mr. Tanner that in the spring of 1817 he descended the Allegheny and Ohio rivers with a raft of pine boards, thence down the Mississippi to New Orleans. After disposing of his lumber he proceeded to New York in a sailing vessel, where he purchased a stock of merchandise, transported the same overland to Olean and floated from that point down the river to Warren in a boat built for the purpose. That stock of goods was the S^ ^JU-^Il Borough of Warren. 335 beginning, the nucleus, of the handsome estate which a long life of industry, perseverance and honorable dealing enabled him to accumulate. He served as the first treasurer of the county, and also held the office of postmaster for years prior to 1829. In building he had no equal in the early history of Warren. The first steamboat to navigate the upper Allegheny was a monument to his enterprise and public spirit. He was an early member of the Presbyterian Church, and when the first church edifice of the society was erected he was much the largest contributor. He died in Warren February 15, 1861, aged seventy-five years. Lothrop S. Parmlee, Archibald Tanner's competitor in the mercantile busi- ness for about twenty years, located here permanently in 18 17. He passed some months at Warren as early as 1808. Subsequently he had resided at Marietta, Ohio, and Jamestown, N. Y.; was engaged in merchandising at the latter place just before removing to Warren. A native or former resident of Oneida county, N. Y., he was gentlemanly in his manners, high spirited, im- pulsive and loquacious. Both he and Mr. Tanner were enterprising, fair- dealing business men, and by their example and public spirit did much to mould and shape and give character and stability to the early residents of the town. In 1 8 19 Ebenezer Jackson had nearly completed a building on the Carver House corner. In it the first term of court was held, commencing Monday, November 29 of that year, and here Jackson and his successors kept tavern for many years. It finally became known as the Warren Hotel, but after the lapse of thirty years from its completion gave place to the Carver House. Among others who became residents during the years from 18 19 to 1822 were William Arthur; Joseph Adams, a carpenter; Philo Brewer, cordwainer; John Brown, prothonotary ; Samuel Graham, tailor; John Hackney, tailor; Daniel Houghwout, carpenter; Josiah Hall, a law student with Abner Hazel- tine ; David Jackson ; Abner Hazeltine, attorney at law ; Abel Mansfield, car- penter ; William Olney, carpenter ; Joseph Hall, stone mason ; Asa Scott, blacksmith ; Hezekiah Sawyer, carpenter ; Samuel Saxton ; Lansing Wet- more ; Johnson Wilson; A. Stebbins, shoemaker; R. Chipman, shoemaker; J. Dinnin, tailor ; Adam Deitz, gunsmith ; Miner Curtis, shoemaker. At a later period, yet prior to 1830, some old numbers of the Warren Gazette furnish valuable information concerning the town and its inhabit- ants. Thus, early in the spring of 1826 Archibald Tanner informed the public through the columns of the Gazette that he continued to keep on hand " an extensive assortment of Dry Goods, Hardware, Queen's Ware, Glass Ware, Men's and Women's Shoes, Straw Bonnets, &c. Spades, Shovels, Tongs, Tea kettles, a few barrels of Dried Apples, Old Pittsburgh Whiskey, Tea, Chocolate, Cofiee, Pearlash, Pork, Cheese, Codfish, Lard, Flour, Salt, &c., all of which will be sold as low for ready pay as can be purchased in the Western country." 336 History of Warren County. At the time Tanner began his career as a mercliant in Warren, flour was worth $15 per barrel; salt, $2.75 per bushel; tobacco, 50 cents per pound; bacon and pork, 25 cents per pound ; tea, $3.00 per pound ; black cambric 50 cents per yard ; cotton sheeting, unbleached, 62 cents per yard ; India sheet- ing, 70 cents per yard ; coffee, 37^ cents per pound ; whisky, $1.75 per gallon ; ginger, $1.00 per pound; pepper, 62 cents per pound; allspice, 62 cents per pound. On the 6th of May, 1826, the Gazette announced " the arrival in this port, on Tuesday last, of the Transport, 12 tons burthen, D. Jackson of this place master, in 13 days from Pittsburgh, laden with flour, whisky, iron, nails, glass, &c., for A. Tanner and others; " also on the same day two other keel boats with two passengers and more whisky from Freeport. On the 27th of the same month and year, the editor said : " On Wednesday last the citizens of our village [he was more modest than present ones, who term a small borough a city] for the first time were cheered by the arrival in it of a four-horse stage. It will be seen by the advertisement of Edson & Ea- ton [Obed Edson and Harry Eaton] that they have commenced running their line of stages regularly between Dunkirk (on Lake Erie) and this place. This speaks much in favor of the population and improvement of our countr}'." He further remarked that if any one had talked in favor of such an enterprise five years previously he would have been regarded as "visionary and chimerical." Under the management as then announced, stages were run twice a week between Dunkirk and Jamestown, and once a week between Dunkirk and Warren. A few weeks later Uriah Hawks made his bow to the public, and informed the readers of the Gazette that he had " opened a shop on Water street, east of Jackson's Hotel, where he has on hand and will continue to keep spinning- wheels of all kinds, made of the best stuff, which he will sell cheap for cash or country produce." During the latter part of May, 1827, Joseph 1 lackney advertised that he had " taken the commodious stand in the town of Warren known as the ' Man- sion House,' lately occupied by William Pierpont, and has supplied himself with a stock of liquors and other accommodations suitable for travellers, and all those who please to honor him with their custom." In 1828 Orris Hall gave notice " that he has just received from New \'ork and offers for sale in this village, as cheap for cash as can be purchased in the Western country, a general assortment of Foreign and Domestic goods," etc., etc. " Also Liquors, Loaf and Brown Sugar." L. S. Parmlee likewise an- nounced for sale in the same number " an elegant assortment of Dry Goods, as cheap as the cheapest." There was also noted in the columns of the Gazette, in the summer of 1828, the arrival " from luirope of eighty German and I'rcnch emigrants, Borough of Warren. 337 ■who have pitched their tents at the mouth of the Conewango, where they are visited by the citizens of the village old and young, and while looking at their quaint dress and wooden shoes, they can but gaze and wonder." During the same year, too, Thomas Struthers and Samuel A. Purviance, attorneys at law, became residents of the town. On the22d of January, 1829, in a description of the town, furnished at the solicitation of the publishers of the United States Gazette, the editor of the Warren Gazette said: "The only public buildings we can boast of is a brick court-house and public offices of stone, fire-proof The court-house is not large, but neat and convenient, substantially built and well finished, with a well-toned bell in it weighing with the yoke 362 pounds. We have a jail, also, although it has once or twice been mistaken for a turkey pe7i. Our village con- tains fifty dwelling houses, mostly frame, two stories high, painted white, and tenanted. Five stores (well fillfd), three taverns, two tanneries, two black- smith shops, five shoemakers, one saddler and harness maker, two chair makers, one wheel wright, one cabinet maker, two carpenters and joiners, one hatter, one wagon maker, six lawyers, two doctors, one baker, two masons, six free- masons, two saw mills, and a grist mill." The chief event of this year (1829) was the celebration of the 4th of July. It had been decided to assemble at "one of the Sisters," a small romantic isl- and in the Allegheny River, about one mile and a half above the village. Ac- cordingly about half-past one P. M. the party embarked on the Warren Packet. A small band struck up Hail Columbia and the boat moved off. But the voy- age up the river suddenly terminated at the " ripples," where the craft stuck fast in the gravel, and the passengers, instead of going up, were only too glad to come down again ; the men of the party being compelled to get out into shallow water and shove the boat off. This done they floated down with the current, and landed at the point formed by the confluence of the Allegheny and Conewango rivers. Here in a beautiful grove " tables were erected and covered with the choicest provisions. After the repast the tables were cleared and the company again took seats, his Honor Judge Hackney, being appointed president, and Thomas Struthers, esq., vice president. Then followed volun- teer toasts by Hon. Joseph Hackney, A. Tanner, esq., Thomas Struthers, esq., W. L. Adams, M. Gallagher, esq., Parker C. Purviance, William P. McDowell, Jefferson Smith, J. H. Shannon, and S. S. Barnes, which were respectively drank amid much good humor. In the evening the party re-embarked on board the boat, and, as the band played several national airs, slowly moved into the current towards the village. . . . On landing a procession was formed, and to an appropriate air struck up by the band it proceeded to Mechanics Hall, from which place the company retired to their homes at an early hour, all well pleased with the amusements of the day." In 1830 the merchants doing business in Warren were Archibald Tanner, 338 History of Warren County. Lothrop S. Parmlee, Robert Falconer, Orris Hall, Samuel D. Hall, Daniel Chase, and N. A. Lowry, dealers in general merchandise; O. Stanton & Co., grocers, and Milton Ford, grocer and druggist. The physicians during the same year were Abraham Hazeltine and Thomas Huston. By a legislative enactment approved April 3, 1832, the town was erected into a borough. The first borough election was held at the court-house May 7, 1832, when the following officers were chosen: John Andrews, burgess; Joseph Hackney, Lansing Wetmore, Zachariah Eddy, James Stewart, and Albinus Stebbins, town council. On the 12th of May following the burgess and council appointed Thomas Struthers clerk, and John King street commis- sioner, and June 2, of the same year, Dr. Abraham Hazeltine was appointed borough treasurer. At the time of its incorporation the town contained three hundred and fifty-eight inhabitants. The first separate assessment roll of those residing or owning taxable property within the borough limits — the original in lots comprising three hundred acres — was completed in 1833, and from this list it is ascertained that the names of the taxable inhabitants at that time were as follows : Andrews, John, county commissioners' clerk, Arthur, James, lumberman. [etc. Arthur, Robert, lumberman. Adams, Warren L., cabinet maker. Adams, Joseph, mechanic. Booker, Philip, shoemaker. Brown, Alfred, single man. [nery. Bostuick, Henry, owner of shoe shop and tan- Blackley, John, single man. Bell, William, mechanic. Brown, Henry. Brownell, Silas. Chase, Daniel, merchant. Coe, Ariel. [fice. Clemens, Thomas, proprietor of printing of- Curtis. Asa. Curtis, Miner, shoemaker. Crippen, Daniel. Dilmars, John, single man. Deitz, Adam, gunsmith. Davis. John F., tailor. Eddy, Zachariah. Eddy, Isaac S., single man. Eddy, William. Edgar, John, mechanic. Ferguson, Morgan, mechanic. Farrington, Jesse, shoemaker. Ford, Milton, grocer. Falconer, Ilobtrt, merchant. Graham, Samuel. Gray, Simon. Gregory, Porter. Gregory, Asa. Gordon, Joseph C, tavern keeper. Graham, James W., single man. Gordon. Lewis, single man. Geer, Benjamin. Geer, Caleb. Hunter, John. Hodges, Walter W. Hall, Joseph. Hawley, Alpheus, prop'r carding mills. Hall, Samuel D., merchant. Hackney, Joseph W., tavern keeper. Hodge, William. Hall, Josiah, attorney at law. Hackney, John. Hackney, Joseph C. Hawk. Peter. Hazeltine, Abraham, physician. Hackney, Margaret, widow. Houghwout, Daniel, carpenter. llook, Orrin. Hook, Francis. Hall, Orris, merchant. Hook, Moses. Jackson, David. Jackson, Ebenezer. Jackson, Thomas W. Kidder, Truman. King, John. King, J. Hamilton. Borough of Warren. 339 Kidder, Nelson. Luther, Jacob, shoemaker. Lilly, Henry. Lane, Asahel, single man. McDowell, William P., merchant. Masten, Cornelius, Morrison, Abijah. Morrison. William, single man. Mead, Darius. Mead, William. Merrill, Oilman, attorney at law, Magee, Dudley. Miles, Robert. Newman, Hiram S., profession. Nugent, James, mechanic. Olney, Rufus, potter. Osmer, John P.. mechanic. Olney, William A. Portman, John. Pier, William, justice of the peace, Parmlee, Lothrop S., merchant. Parker, Timothy F., physician. Pierce, Thompson, single man. Ray, Nesbit. Reese, Martin. Russell, Robert. Reed, Samuel, single man. The year 1834 was made memorable in the history of the borough by the building of the academy and the organization of the Lumbermen's Bank, de- tailed accounts of which will be found in succeeding pages. In 1835 the town must have been almost as badly overrun with snarling, snapping hydrophobia breeders as it is at present; hence many of its best citizens attached their signatures to a paper of which the following is a copy : " We whose names are undersigned do hereby agree to indemnify and keep free from all damages that may or shall legally accrue, to any person or per- sons, who shall kill any dog or dogs that shall be found running at large in the streets of the borough of Warren, the property of any citizen or other person residing in said borough for the space of three months from the date hereof, or any dog or dogs found as aforesaid without any owner or person along with them, claiming the ownership of them, for the space of time above men- tioned. Warren, February 2, 1835." This agreement was signed by William Bell, W. E. Griffith, William Sands, T. H. Fenton, Samuel D. Hall, James O. Parmlee, William P. Clark, John A. iDr. Henry Sargent was born at New Chester, N. H., in 1790; was a graduaie of Dartmouth Medical College; became a resident of Warren in 1833, and died here suddenly in August, 1851. His only child, a daughter, became the wife of Hon. C. B. Curtis. Dr. Sargent was highly respected as a citizen, and his great skill as a physician was widely known. Stewart, James. Struthers, Thomas, attorney at law. Sayles, Scott W. Sands, Alanson. Smith, William. Stebbins, Albinus, mechanic. Snyder, Simon, single man. Scott, Asa, blacksmith. Summerton, J. D., grocer; came here from Cayuga county, N. Y., in 1S32. Stone, Ellery, shoemaker. Stanton, Daniel, single man. Snyder, George, mechanic. Sargent,' Henry, physician. Skinner, Archibald, single man. Stevenson, Simeon G., tin smith. Stevenson, Reuben, mechanic. .Steadman, James. Smith, Abel. Turner, Thomas, tavern keeper. Turner, Joshua, burgess. Taylor, Justus, mechanic. Tanner, Cyrus, single man. Tanner, Archibald, merchant. Temple, Stephen, single man. Wetmore, Lansing, attornev at law. 34° History of Warren County. Hall, Harrison French, J. M. Olney, Milton Ford, Robert Falconer, Archibald Tanner, Archibald Skinner, Robert Miles, William P. McDowell, Darius Mead, Thomas Morton, Joseph W. Hackney, Josiah Hall, James Vanhorn, William Pier, Oilman Merrill, Thomas Struthers, Samuel P. Johnson, George W. Snyder, Francis Everett, Thomas Clemons, Morgan Ferguson, Warren L. Adams, David Jackson, Z. H. Eddy, William Smith, R. McKinney, W. G. Morrison, James Steadman, and Carlton B. Curtis. Of those whose names appear in the above paragraph, only two now reside in the borough ; but what is still more remarkable than the fact that there should be but two survivors after the lapse of fifty-two years, is the coinci- dence that these men were then associated together as members of a law firm, and that their names were affixed to the agreement side by side. We refer to Hon. Thomas Struthers and Hon. Samuel P. Johnson. The Lumbermen's Bank failed in 1838, and, as we are informed by a relic of the past — a copy of the Warren Bulletin published in the early part of that year — Timothy F. Parker, Robert Miles, Cornelius Masten, jr., Archibald Skinner, and Benjamin Bartholomew were the commissioners appointed to investigate its affairs. This paper also announced the arrival of the steamboat New Castle from Pittsburgh, and the presence of a corps of engineers in the employ of the Sunbury and Erie Railroad Company. During the following year (1839) the first bridge across the Allegheny was built. The decade which followed was not marked by any extraordinary events nor an unusual degree of prosperity. The town kept along in the even tenor of its way, slowly increasing in population as a result of being the commercial center of a lumbering region. In the destruction of the pine forests in this part of the county a few of its citizens acquired considerable wealth, but the many — those who did the work, the chopping, sawing, hauling and rafting — barely earned enough to provide shelter and food for their families. A few minor manufacturing industries were established, while about an equal number from time to time suspended, by reason of the migratory habits of their operators. Many changes were likewise noted among mercantile firms, lawyers and doctors, as they came and went in the endeavor to better their financial con- ditions. There were a considerable number of men, however — such as Archi- bald Tanner, N. B. Eldred, C. B. Curtis, Thomas Struthers, Walter W. Hodges, Gilman Merrill, Orris Mall, Lansing Wetmore, Samuel P. Johnson, Henry Sargent, Abraham Hazeltine, Timothy F. Parker, J. D. Summerton, Hiram Gilman, Benjamin Bartholomew, Rasselas Brown, J. Y. James, Thomas Clemons, Andrew H. Ludlow, Joseph Carver, Stephen Carver, Robert Fal- coner, Richard S. Orr, Charles W. Rathbun, Lewis Arnett, Jerome B. Carver, Cornelius Masten, jr., D. V. Stranahan, John H. Hull, G. A. Irvine, G. W. Scofield, and a number of others — who, having become permanently estab- lished here prior to the close of the decade referred to, were active in the pros- Borough of Warren. 341 ecution of their respective professions and occupations, and gave character and stabihty to the whole community. Until the year 1848 the only brick structures in the town were the court- house and the academy, while up the river a short distance a few Indian wig- wams with tenants were yet to be seen. During the year mentioned, however, an innovation upon the old order of things began, by the erection of the Carver House, upon the corner previously occupied by the old Warren House, or, in other words, the tavern built by Ebenezer Jackson in 1 8 19. The new hotel was opened for business in March, 1849, with John H. Hull (the former landlord of the old Warren House) installed as proprietor. In referring to the erection of the new building, the editor of the Mail, under date of August I, 1 848, said : " Our village — or rather our borough — presents many indications of improvement. Among them we notice a fine block going up on the corner of Front and Hickory streets ; the basement of chiseled stone and the body of brick. It is to be used for a hotel and store, and bids fair to be what might be expected from the energy and enterprise of its proprietors — Messrs. Carver & Hall. It will greatly improve that part of Front street [an absurd expres- sion, still in vogue, the calling of Water street. Front street], and contribute in making Warren as distinguished for the elegance and convenience of its build- ings as it is for the beauty and romance of its scenery." In the same number of the Mail the editor also said : " The early settlers of this country who still remain among us, can probably discover some improve- ment in the facilities for traveling at the present day. Formerly it required about four days to come from Pittsburgh to this place, though some have come in less time. The roads were bad, carriages could not be procured. Forests, hills, valleys, rocks, brush, and mud greeted the weary footman. Accommo- dations were scarce. Darkness often overtook him on Pennsylvania's hills, while thoughts of home and loved ones there, were all that cheered him on his lonely way. Now, by the new line of stages, recently established by Richard S. Orr and others, the traveller can go from Pittsburgh to Buffalo in less than three days. Stages leave this place for Buffalo every evening (Sundays ex- cepted), arriving at Buffalo the next evening in time to take the Eastern cars. Also for Pittsburgh every morning at seven o'clock, going through in forty- eight hours. Good teams, good carriages, and low fares make this a good route." This is a pen picture of the ivondcrfnl traveling facilities afforded the citi- zens of Warren, and other points on the route between Pittsburgh and Buffalo, less than forty years ago. Yet, if the people of to-day had no better way than is here described — the delights of being jolted, thrown forward, backward, to the right or left, without intimation or warning, for twenty-four hours at a time, and still the journey not half over — there can be no doubt that they would consider themselves in even a worse condition than were the first set- tlers who uncomplainingly made their journeys afoot. 342 History of Warren County. In the fall of 1848 an old building, which stood on the point at the junction of Water and Third streets, was torn down, and it was then first proposed to make the place a " public common." On Tuesday, March 6, 1849, between three and four o'clock A. M., the Ex- change Building — in which were the stores of Taylor & Arnett ; S. L. Axtell, and Baker & Hunter; S. G. Stevens, tin-shop and store; Summerton's tin- shop; the Standard printing office, S. J. Goodrich proprietor; the shoe-shop of E. N. Rogers, occupied by N. Ford ; the tailor shop of county treasurer H. L. Church, and Benjamin Nesmith's harness shop — was discovered to be on fire, and two hours later was entirely destroyed. Loss from $50,000 to $75,000. In May of the same year a resident, enraptured by his or her surroundings, indulged in a bit of poetic gush as follows : '■ \Y.\RREN. " Sweet village of a sweeter vale, Where flow.s the Allegheny bright, Thy beauteous scenes can never fail To fill this bosom with delight. " Let others talk of Southern climes, Where flowers blossom all the year ; Let poets pour their flood of rhymes, Where brighter lands to them appear; " But I will sing of thee, my home. For thou hast joys enough for me ; Nor will I breathe a wish to roam, While thus inspired with love for thee. "Yon river, on whose bosom sweet I've often watched, with childish glee, The sunbeams dance with merry feet. Is Nature's loveliest child to me. '• Then can I breathe a wish to roam. While thus inspired with love for thee ? No, thou art still mv chosen home. Sweet village, and must ever be." In the summer following, the three-story brick block on the northeast cor- ner of Water and Hickory streets, was commenced by Archibald Tanner. It was the second brick structure erected in the town for individual purposes, and to make room for it the old Jackson tavern, built by Daniel Jackson in 1805, was moved back. At this time, too, Warren had other residents possessed of literary ability, as witness the following : "THE END NOT VET. " The subscriber believing that the world will not come to an end in '49, but that '49 will end the last day of December next, and that Gen. Taylor Borough of Warren. 343 cannot ruin the Nation (alone) and that Tom Benton and Calhoun will not be president until after they are elected ; that a National Bank or 'Independent Treasury ' is very convenient in every family (under proper restrictions) properly managed, and having of late embraced the ' one idea ' principle that every man must look out for himself, he has concluded to continue the SHOEMAKING BUSINESS, and spare no effort to please all who may favor him with their custom. You will find him ' armed and equipped ' as St. Crispin directs, in his shop over the Ledger office on Second street. Therefore, in the language of the poet, " All vou who dote on a good fitting boot, Whose pockets are filled with the Rhino, Pass ye not by, like an ignorant coot, He'll fit you most finely that / know. "Warren, July 24, 1849. N. FoRD." Among the merchants doing business in the town in 1849-50 were Watson & Davis, Summerton & Taylor, Hull & King, Baker & Hunter, Parmlee & Oilman, S. C. Brasington, and John A. Hall, postmaster, dealers in general merchandise ; William & T. S. Messner, grocers ; Charles W. Rathbun, liquors and groceries ; D. M. Williams, grocer, and Hazeltine & Co. (G. W. Hazel- tine and S. P. Johnson) dealers in drugs, books, stationery, etc., at Variety Hall. In 1850 Watson, Davis & Co.'s block at the junction of Second and Water streets was built, being the third brick structure of the borough. In excavat- ing for the foundation walls the bones of a human body were found, supposed to have been the remains of a French hunter or explorer, or of an employee of the Holland Land Company. In the spring of that year the maple trees, now densely shading the little park at the point separating Water and Third streets, were placed in position. Of the traveling "shows," which during that period regularly visited Warren in their rounds, the tent exhibitions of Quick & Co., Levi J. North, Barnum, and Dan Rice, and the hall entertainments of the Baker Family, the Burt Fam- ily, etc., seemed to be the most popular. In the summer of 185 I a form of diarrhcea became epidemic in the town and carried off many of its residents, particularly young adults and children. The Johnson block, on the southeast corner of Second and Liberty streets, was built in 1854, and was then considered to be the most imposing and best building in the county. The year 1859 closed with railroad communication established between Warren and Erie, and great was the rejoicing thereat. The lower railroad bridge was completed in September of the following year, and, resting on rather low abutments or piers, terminated steamboat navigation to points above. The United States census of i860 revealed the following facts concerning 344 History of Warren County. the borough and its inhabitants: Total number of inhabitants, 1,742; total number of the same, foreign born, 417 ; total number of deaths during the year, 22; total number of persons whose estates exceed $30,000,9; total number of persons whose estates equal or exceed $20,000, 19; total number of persons whose estates equal or exceed $10,000, 29 ; total number of dwelling houses, 308. In July of that year the chief topic of thought and conversation for a short time was in relation to a bold burglary committed in their midst. The office of Hon. Thomas Struthers had been broken into and a safe containing $3,000 in gold and many valuable papers carried off by thieves who left no traces be- hind them. After two or three days, however, the safe was found on James H. Eddy's farm in Glade. It had been broken open and the coin taken away, but the papers were found nearly intact. Suspicion was soon directed upon three Irishmen living near by, who upon being arrested were found to be the guilty parties, and a portion of the money was recovered. During the fall of 1 860 the marshaling of the ante-bellum militia companies of the district under Brigadier- General R. Brown and staff (the latter composed of George V. N. Yates, judge advocate; Nelson S. Woodford, quartermaster; Leroy L. Lowry, paymaster ; Harrison Allen, aid, and Samuel W. Brown, surgeon), the parades of the wide-awake marching companies, the great polit- ical campaign then in progress, and last, but not least, the oil excitement-^all conspired to make matters exceedingly lively in and around the borough. In the fall of 1864 wood was worth $7 per cord, and coal $12 per ton. For a small inland town literally surrounded by thousands of acres of timber land all in sight, this seems to have been an exorbitant price for common fire wood, even though it was at a time of inflated prices. In March, 1865, occurred the great flood remembered so vividly by many, and still to be seen — as pictured by the photographer. The roily^ rushing waters rose to their greatest height on the 1 8th, when the Irvine bottom opposite the town was one vast lake. The " Island " was covered to the depth of several feet, and all the buildings, lumber, cooperage, etc., near the banks of the Conewango and Allegheny were swept away. Hook's old saw-mill, which for nearly fifty years had been a familiar land-mark on the Allegheny some five miles above Warren, was lifted from its ancient site and transferred to Morrison's flat, below the town. Among the dealers in various kinds of merchandise at this time (1865) were O. H. Hunter, Beecher & Coleman, E. T. Hazeltine & Co., George L. Friday & Co., P. J. Trushel lSj Co., George Ball, Arnett & Galligan, Pierce & Shafer, William Messner, John Honhart, Schnur & Ruhlman, J. M. Turner, F. A. Randall, S. Burgess, J. B. Brown, D. D. Babcock, Otto Huber, Kelly Weaver, Christian Retterer, Jacob Lesser, C. L. Hassel & Co., George Rcig, L. D. Crandall, S. G. Stevens, L. W. Arnett, Adolph Saltsman, brewer. Smith & Messner, Abijah Morrison, A. Kirberger, and Rowan & Converse. Borough of Warren. 345 The years 1867-68 witnessed marked improvements throughout the bor- ough. Many new buildings, both for dwelHng and business purposes, were erected, a number of them of a size and ornate style of architecture to this time here unseen. The handsome residences of Hon. R. Brown, Judge Will- iam D. Brown, Boon Mead, and Colonel L. F. Watson were among the num- ber then built. War prices still prevailed, which, in comparison with present rates, were almost frightful Thus, flour was worth from $12 to $16 per barrel; butter 60 cents per pound ; potatoes $1.00 per bushel; lard 22 cents per pound ; pork 18 cents per pound, and sugar 15 to 20 cents per pound. All other commodities bought and sold — dry goods, hardware, etc., were equally as high in price, while the laborer and mechanic received but little more pay for his daily toil than he does to-day. About the ist of November, 1869, the buildings on Water street, occupied by Bennett, Carrie Denison, A. Ruhlman, S. M. Cogswell, P. Bysecker, Mrs. A. Ruhlman, Taylor & Messner, M. Carpenter & Co., O. H. Hunter, F. Fettee, J. F. Wells & Co., and Allen & Reeves, were destroyed by fire. In February, 1 870, another conflagration raged, at the corner of Liberty and Water streets. A newspaper writer of that day said: "There were a few men who worked faithfully to subdue the flames and save property, and a very large audience collected to see them do it." By the census enumeration of 1870 it was ascertained that the borough contained two thousand and one inhabitants. The wire foot-bridge across the Conewango was built during the same year, and a stock company organized to build a suspension bridge across the Allegheny, which structure was finished in 1871. During the year 1872 a number of notable events occurred — Decoration Day was formally observed for the first time. The new union school building, which was completed a few months before at a cost of $23,000, was badly damaged by the fire which destroyed the old Germania Hotel. The old pioneer, Zachariah Eddy, died at the age of ninety-four years. A street railway extending from the Philadelphia and Erie Railroad station, via Water street to Glade, was built. Two one-horse, or "bob-tail," cars were brought into use, but it appears that there were then two cars too many. The enterprise proved to be a complete failure, and after about two years the rails were taken up, and all the material shipped to some locality more populous or appreciative. During 1872, also, the Irvine family, of Irvineton, proposed to donate to the borough, for a public park, thirty acres of land, lying on the left bank of the Allegheny, about one mile below the town; but as the proposal was accom- panied by conditions requiring the immediate expenditure of a large sum of money, it was considered that for a town having no gas or water supply, nor fire apparatus worthy of mention, the luxury would prove to be too expensive. 346 History of Warren County. quite out of character; hence the proposition was respectfully declined. Gifts bestowed under conditions are not always acceptable. The building termed the Town Hall, on the southeast corner of Third and Hickory streets, was built in 1877—78, at a cost of about $9,000. In 1884 the substantially-built structure now occupied by the Warren Library Association was completed. For a number of years there had been a chartered public library in the town, but it had neither home nor income. Its destitution excited the sympathy of the Hon. Thomas Struthers, and aroused his beneficence. He therefore proposed to the citizens that if they would fur- nish the grounds he would build and donate to the association a structure of which all might feel proud. The site, a rather costly one, corner of Liberty and Third streets, was purchased with money contributed by L. D. Wetmore, H. A. Jamieson, William D. Brown, S. P. Johnson, F. Henry, Rasselas Brown, Willard White, C. W . Stone, M. B. Dunham, A. J. Hazeltine, O. W. Beatty, L. F. Watson, David Beatty, M. Waters, Benjamin Nesmith, A. Hertzel, H. L. Bartholomew, Robert Dennison, S. T. Allen, O. C. Allen, S. W. Waters, Christian Smith, E. T. Hazeltine, Beecher & Copeland, J. H. Eddy, F. H. Rockwell, Thomas H. De Silver, W. H. Pickett, C. H. Noyes, E. B. Frew, J. K. Palmer, Charles P. Henry, E. Cowan, O. H. Hunter & Son, Sol Cohn, J. E. Berkstresser, G. I. Mead, J. W. Jenkins. J. A. Weible, G. G. Mead, F. Barnhart, Albert Kirberger, Alice W. Jefterson, W. A. Rankin, Henry Knupp, James C. Wells, Hazeltine & Baker, George H. Ames, A. J. Davis, Medora I. Mead, H. E. Brown, M. V. Van Etten, P. H. Towle, Manville Bros., L. G. Noyes, Henry Cobham, W. W. Wilbur, William Schnur, Rufus P. King, M. Shaeffer, S. T. Daggett, George L. Friday, John Kropp, Thomas Keelor, S. P. Schemerhorn, Fred Morck, M. Mead, S. H. Davis, S. V. Davis, George H. Leonhart, J. VV. Stearns, Jane Orr, P. Greenlund, S. Keller, A. B. Miller, Rick Donovan, and A. H. McKelvy. Not including the site, the building cost about $90,000. Besides affording spacious and elegant rooms for the books of the association and visitors, it also contains one of the handsomest and best appointed halls for the use of opera and theatrical troupes to be found in Western Pennsylvania. The post-office officials, and the publishers of the Ledger, likewise find commodious quarters within its walls. A glance at the assessment roll of the borough for the \'ear 1885 discloses the following pertinent facts : Value of lots and buildings, $1,5 14,759; number of horses and mules, 221 ; number of cows, 37; number of resident taxables, 1,167. The resident taxables for the year 1886 are 1,134 in number, thus showing a decrease of 33 in twelve months. This can be accounted for, how- ever, from the fact that for ten years or more Warren has been the rendez- vous of large numbers of oil men. As residents they are an uncertain quan- tity — birds of passage, coming and going constantly. Hence many former //^^ Borough of Warren. 347 short-term Warrenites can now be found in Washington county, Pa., and the Ohio oil fields. Though the town is built upon lands the surface of which is but a few feet above the bed of the Allegheny, it is credited with an elevation of eleven hun- dred and ninety-eight feet above tide water, and six hundred and thirty-three feet above Lake Erie. Its population numbered considerably less than three thousand in 1880. The present inhabitants are estimated to be full five thou- sand in number, or more than the entire county contained in 1830. The last decade has witnessed the introduction of illuminating gas ; water, of the finest quality, from Morrison's Run ; the formation of an efficient fire department ; the inauguration of a system of drainage and sewage, and the utilization of natural gas as a fuel. In the " Warren County Directory," published at the Ledger office in 1886, Judge S. P. Johnson closed a brief article relating to the borough, as follows : "Warren has always kept up even with, and sometimes a little ahead of, the enterprise and progress of the surrounding world of the same age. She had a bell in her court-house, a chartered bank, a public hall, an academy, and a street railroad before Franklin, twenty years her senior in judicial organization, enjoyed these luxuries. . For the last twenty-five years it has furnished the bench with more judges, and the legislative halls, both State and National, with more representatives than any other town of its size in the State. For some years it was the head of steamboat navigation, until bridges obstructed the river's channel. It has now within its limited territory eight churches, well supported, four hotels, four restaurants, and of saloons five too many. It abounds in dry goods, grocery, drug, hardware, shoe, millinery, clothing and fancy goods stores, mostly permanent and successful business houses. In me- chanical and manufacturing establishments Warren is well supplied — of which the iron works of Struthers, Wells & Co., the Wetmore door and sash factory, and the Jamieson pail and tub factory are the largest. Besides these there are four planing-mills, two furniture factories, and other shops and factories in almost every branch of productive industry, including Piso's cure for consump- tion, and the Warren flouring mills. " Outside local history has given Warren the reputation, for some years past, of being a wealthy town, having large capital in proportion to its popu- lation. As an evidence of that it has had, and now has, three banks — the First National, the Citizens' National, and the Warren Savings Banks — owned entirely by her own citizens. For the fact, if it be so, it is indebted to no factious aid or circumstance ; it is the result of intelligent and persevering industry and at- tention to business for a lifetime, for which, notwithstanding the slurs of the ephemeral parasites that have floated into it upon the tide of oil develop- ments, they are entitled to much credit. All the so-called wealthy men of the town commenced life poor, and have acquired what they have, not by gam- 23 348 History of Warren County. bling in an oil exchange or bucket-shop, but in the prosecution of honest and legitimate business. These men came, or were here, before there were any- brick buildings in Warren, and by their enterprise have made it what it is — the most permanently prosperous and beautiful little city in the western por- tion of the State." MuxicnvvL History. — The following is believed to be a full and correct list of those who have served as burgess, town councilmen, and clerks for the borough, from its incorporation in 1832 to 1886 inclusive. 1832. — John Andrews, burgess ; Thos. Struthers, clerk; council, Joseph Hackney, 1 Lansing Wetmore, Zachariah Eddy, James Stewart, and Albinus Stebbins. 1833. — Joshua Turner, burgess ; Thos. Struthers, clerk ; Robert Arthur, Rufus Olney, Eben Jackson, Thomas Turner, and Scott W. Sayles. 1834. — William Pier, burgess; Thos. Struthers, clerk; Francis Hook, W. W. Hodges, Oilman Merrill, J. C. Gordon, and Warren L. Adams. 1835. — G. Merrill, burgess; C. B. Curtis, clerk; Henry Sargent, Orris Hall, John Edgar, Joshua Turner, and David Jackson. 1836. — G. Merrill, burgess; C. B. Curtis, clerk; Hiram Oilman, N. B. Eldred, Geo. L. Chapel, W. W. Hodges, and J. D. Summerton. 1837. — O. Merrill, burgess; C. B. Curtis, clerk; Geo. L. Chapel, J. D. Summerton, Hiram Oilman, W. W. Hodges, and N. B. Eldred. 1838. — Hiram Oilman, burgess ; C. B. Curtis, clerk ; Abraham Hazeltine, Thos. Clemons, A. H. Ludlow, Joseph Carver, and John King. 1839. — Zachariah Eddy, burgess ; C. B. Curtis, clerk; Lansing Wetmore, Abijah Morrison, Stephen Carver, Thos. Clemons, and A. H. Ludlow. 1840. — Robt. Falconer, burgess ; C. B. Curtis, clerk; Abijah Morrison, Lansing Wetmore, Richard S. Orr, Stephen Carver, and Zachariah Eddy. 1841. — J. D. Summerton, burgess ; C. B. Curtis, clerk; John Edgar, John II. King, Robert McKinney, S. G. Stevens, and H. L. Towle. 1842. — Joseph Carver, burgess ; C. B. Curtis, clerk ; J. Y. James, John H. King, Richard Alden, Zachariah Eddy, and A. H. Ludlow. 1 843.-^ John Edgar, burgess; C. B.Curtis, clerk; Henry L. Church, William Bell, S. G. Stevens, Silas Lacy, and Charles W. Rathbun. 1844. — S. L. Axtell, burgess; C. B. Curtis, clerk ; Aaron S. Farmlee, Lewis Arnett, S. J. Page, James H. Eddy, and A. H. Summerton. 1845. — Aaron S. Parmlee, burgess ; C. B. Curtis, clerk; Wm. S. Parmlee, Jerome B. Carver, S. 0. Stevens, Geo. Lobdel, and J. H. Eddy. 1846. — Rasselas Brown, burgess ; C. Masten, jr., clerk ; H. T. Baker, R. P. King, Richard S. Orr, John H. Hull, and D. V. Stranahan. 1847. — Carlton B. Curtis, burgess; J. D. James, clerk; Zachariah Eddy, Stephen Carver, Calvin C. Lovell, Thos. Clemons, and J. D. Summerton. 1 June 2, 1832, al i» special eleclion, Kobt. Miles was elected to fill the vacancy occasioned by the death of Joseph Hackney. Borough of Warren. 349 1848. — W. W. Hodges, burgess; L. T. Parmlee, clerk; P. R. Bennett, G. W. Scofield, Benj. Nesmith, W. S. Parmlee, and Stephen Carver. 1849. — Richard S. Orr, burgess; L. T. Parmlee, clerk; D. V. Stranahan, John A. Hall, C. W. Rathbun, Rufus P. King, and Philip Bucher. 1850. — G. A. Irvine, burgess ; John F. McPherson, clerk ; Thos. Clemens, P. R. Bennett, Geo. L. Chapel, John Edgar, and Wm. Mead. 1851. — R. P. King, burgess; John N. Miles, clerk; John H. Hull, Milo Parks, J. D. James, Benj. Nesmith, and Starling Waters. 1852. — G. Merrill, burgess; J. A. Morrison, clerk; Boon Mead, J. D. James, Richard S.,Orr, S. J. Page, and Milo Parks. 1853. — Milton W. Hull, burgess; I. S. Alden, clerk; S. J. Page, Richard S. Orr, Boon Mead, Milo Parks, and Andrew Hertzel. 1854. — Orris Hall, burgess ; F. A. Randall, clerk ; H. L. Church, John H. Hull, Stephen Carver, Rufus P. King, and Wm. S. Parmlee. 1855. — Oilman Merrill, burgess; Theodore C. Spencer, clerk; L. D. Wet- more, Thomas Clemens, J. B. Carver, A. Hertzel, and Peter Somers. Ap- pointed under amended charter — Rufus P. King, John H. Hull, J. Y. James,, and Chester Park. 1856. — G. Merrill, burgess; Theodore C. Spencer, clerk; Rufus P. King, John H. Hull, L. D. Wetmore, Peter Somers, Andrew Hertzel, M. W. Hull,. A. J. Davis, W. F. Kingsbury, and Thos. demons. 1857. — J. D. James, burgess; S. N. Dickinson, clerk; S. D. Hall, John M. Olney, George Offerlee, M. W. Hull, A. J. Davis, W. F. Kingsbury, Rufus P. King, John H. Hull, and L. D. Wetmore. 1858. — J. D. James, burgess ; D. J. Hodges, clerk ; A. J. Davis, John H. Hull, John M. Olney, J. B. Carver, George Ofiferlee, C. W. H. Verback, S. D. Hall, W. F. Kingsbury, A. Brock. 1859. — Thos. Clemens, burgess; G. Merrill, clerk; C. W. H. Verback, A. Brock, George Offerlee, John M. Olney, S. Burgess, J. B. Carver, John Sill, E. T. F. Valentine, S. D. Hall. i860. — G. N. Parmlee, burgess; H. Allen, clerk ; E. T. F. Valentine, A. Brock, C. W. H. Verback, Starling Waters, Christian Keller, John Sill, Chris- tian Smith, S. Burgess, and Andrew Hertzel. 1861. — J. B. Carver, burgess; J. A. Neill, clerk; L. Arnett, J. H. Hull, C. Smith, John Sill, A. J. Davis, Andrew Hertzel, Christian Keller, Seneca Bur- gess, and E. T. F. Valentine. 1862. — G. N. Parmlee, burgess; S. T. Allen, clerk ; L. Arnett, A. Hertzel^ George Offerlee, Christian Keller, John F. Davis, John Honhart, A. J. Davis, J. H. Hull, O. H. Hunter. C. Smith resigned. 1863. — S. J. Page, burgess; Thos. Clemons, clerk ; L. Arnett, A. Hertzel, J. H. Hull, J. F. Davis, George Offerlee, O. H. Hunter, Rufus P. King, M. \V. Hull, and A. J. Davis. 3SO History of Warren County. 1864. — L. Arnett, burgess; Chas. Dinsmoor, clerk; G. N. Parmlee, A. B. McKain, Thos. demons, John F. Davis, O. H. Hunter, A. Hertzel, R. P. King, George Offerlee, and M. W. Hull. 1865. — L. Arnett, burgess; Chas. Dinsmoor, clerk; R. P. King, R. D. Bartlett, J. H. Hull, Thos. Clemons, A. B. McKain, P. Bucher, A. Hertzel, G. N. Parmlee, and M. W. Hull. 1866. — L. Arnett, burgess; Rufus P. King, clerk; J. H. Hull, R. K. Rus- sell, A. P. Wetmore, R. D. Bartlett, Philip Bucher, G. N. Parmlee, John B. Brown, Thos. Clemons, and Chas. Dinsmoor. 1867. — J. S. Page, burgess; Rufus P. King, clerk; Philip Bucher, J. H. Hull, B. F. Morris, M. Schaffer, S. Keller, jr., C. Dinsmoor, R. K. Russell, R. D. Bartlett, and A. P. Wetmore. 1868. — A. Hertzel, burgess; Rufus P. King, clerk; R. K. Russell, Philip Bucher, C. Dinsmoor, F. A. Randall, S. Keller, jr., B. F. Morris, J. H. Hull, A. P. Wetmore, and M. Schaffer. 1869. — S. J. Page, burgess; Rufus P. King, clerk; J. H. Hull, S. Keller, B. F. Morris, C. Dinsmoor, John M. Olney, M. Schaffer, L. W. Arnett (died), F. A. Randall, and Philip Bucher. 1870. — E. T. F. Valentine, burgess; Rufus P. King, clerk; J. H. Hull, John M. Olney, Philip Bucher, George Offerlee, C. Dinsmoor, V. A. Randall, J. H. Eddy, Seneca Burgess, and S. H. Davis. 1871. — E. T. F. Valentine, burgess; Rufus P. King, clerk; J. H. Hull, John M. Olney, J. H. Eddy, Geo. Offerlee, S. Burgess, S. H. Davis, J. H. Mitchell, C. Dinsmoor, F A. Randall. 1872. — Charles Dinsmoor, burgess; Rufus P. King, clerk ; J. H. Mitchell, S. Burgess, J. H. Hull, F. A. Randall, James Nesmith, C. W. Stone, James Clark, jr., S. H. Davis, and J. H. Eddy. 1873. — John Sill, burgess; Rufus P. King, clerk; Seneca Burgess, Wm. Ryan, H. A. Jamieson, C. W. Stone, James Clark, jr., James Nesmith, F". A. Randall, John M. Davidson (removed), J. H. Hull (died Aug., 1873). D. W. C James and Geo. Ott elected to fill vacancies. 1874. — John Sill, burgess; Rufus P. King, clerk; James Clark, jr., A. Hertzel, C. W. Stone, M. B. Dunham, George Ott, Wm. Ryan, S. Burgess, G. H. Ames, and James Nesmith. 1875. — E. B. Eldred, burgess; Rufus P. King, clerk; James Clark, jr., A. Hertzel, M. B. Dunham, George Ott, Wm. Ryan, W. C. Rowland, G. H. Ames, E. G. Wood, and S. Burgess. 1876. — W. H. Pickett, burgess; Rufus P. King, clerk ; James Clark, jr., A. Hertzel, M. Spaulding, W. C. Rowland, M. B. Dunliam, P. J. Falconer, G. H. Ames, E. G. Wood, and Geo. L. Friday. 1877. — C. H. Noyes, burgess ; Rufus P. King, clerk ; James Clark, jr., A. J. Davis, M. Spaulding, Geo. L. Friday, E. G. Wood, Peter Greenlund, W. C. Rowland, Wm. L. Lewis, and P. J. Falconer. Borough of Warren. 351 1878. — M. Miles, burgess; Rufus P. King, clerk; James Clark, jr., A. Hertzel, A. J. Davis, S. Burgess, Peter Greenlund, M. Spaulding, J. H. Palmer, G. L. Friday, and P. J. Falconer. 1879. — S. T. Allen, burgess; Geo. O. Cornelius, clerk; A. J. Davis, D. S. McNett, S. Burgess, T. J. Clemons, A. W. Morck, F. Barnhart, W. H. Heck, A. Hertzel, Peter Greenlund. 1880. — S. T. Allen, burgess; Geo. O. Cornelius, clerk ; D. S. McNett, A. Hertzel, A. W. Morck, Robert Dennison, C. A. Waters, W. H. Heck, T. J. Clemons, S. Burgess, and F. Barnhart. 1 88 1. — S. T. Allen, burgess ; Geo. O. Cornelius, clerk ; D. S. McNett, A. W. Morck, C. A. Waters, W. H. Heck, A. Conarro, Robert Dennison, George H. Leonhart, A. J. Hazeltine, F. Barnhart. 1882. — H. A. Jamieson, burgess; Rufus P. King, clerk; A. J. Hazeltine, Robert Dennison, G. H. Leonhart, L. T. Borchers, A. Conarro, C. A. Waters, j: A. Bell, A. W. Morck, J. H. Eddy. 1883. —Geo. P. Orr, burgess; Rufus P. King, clerk; S. H. Davis, G. H. Leonhart, J. C. Siechrist, J. A. Bell, S. M. Cogswell, A. J. Hazeltine, L. T. Borchers, A. Conarro, J. H. Eddy. 1884. — Geo. P. Orr, burgess; Rufus P. King, clerk; S. H. Davis, J. A. Bell, S. M. Cogswell, F. M. Knapp, J. H. Eddy, Joseph Walkerman, L. T. Borchers, J. C. Siechrist, August Morck, jr. 1885 — C. C. Thompson, burgess; F. A. Cogswell, clerk; S. H. Davis, S. M. Cogswell, J. C. Siechrist, August Morck, jr., F. M. Knapp, Joseph Walkerman, Robert MacKay, Wm. Schnur, A. A. Davis. 1886. — A. W. Morck, burgess; F. A. Cogswell, clerk; F. M. Knapp, Joseph Walkerman, August Morck, jr., Robert MacKay, William Schnur, A. A. Davis, Christian Smith, J. W. Crawford. P. J. Bayer. Since the incorporation of the borough, by the provisions of various acts of the General Assembly, passed from time to time, the corporate limits have been widely extended, and the authority of the town council largely increased. The public grounds on the southeast and southwest corners of Market and High streets, as shown upon the original plot of the town, likewise valuable strips of land along the Allegheny and Conewango not included in the original survey, as well as lands bordering upon Water street east of Market, have been, under such authorization, transferred by the borough to individuals. By scanning the minutes of proceedings of early councils, a few matters of interest, perhaps, to present residents have been ascertained. Thus, at a meet- ing held June 16, 1832, $80 were appropriated to grade and turnpike portions of Fifth, Liberty, and High streets ; but a few weeks later the resolution was rescinded. At the same meeting — June 16, 1832 — ten dollars were voted to improve the road leading from Water street down to the eddy near A. Tan- ner's storehouse on the bank of the Allegheny river, by cutting a ditch on 352 History of Warren County. the upper side, "and prevent the water from running over and across the same, and by filling up the holes already washed next the wall in the lower side thereof." Fifteen dollars were also appropriated to be applied in reducing the grade of hills near John Andrews's office and the house of Lansing Wetmore. On the 4th of August, 1832, council met and " took into consideration the remonstrance of sundry citizens against the improvement of High street — No. 15 on the files, and the same being under consideration, adopted the following resolution, viz.: Resolved, That the said Remonstrance is couched in disre- spectful and indecorous [terms] and that therefore the same be discharged from further consideration." On the 8th of June, 1833, council by an unanimous vote directed that the mills of Hawley & Parker — carding-machine works — fronting on the borough, be assessed. On the 6th of July following it was " Resolved that the Eques- trian Company of Mills & Harrison shall receive a license to exhibit and per- form for two evenings within the Borough of Warren, upon paying to the Treasurer Six Dollars. License to issue in like manner as licenses are issued in pursuance of the Ordinance framed 28th May, 1832, any thing in said ordin- ance of 28th May, 1832, to the contrary notwithstanding." The members of this council (1833), after making settlements May 3, 1834, for the year pre- ceding, unanimously resolved that they would make no charge against tlie borough for services rendered "as councillors." On the 3d of April, 1843, council " Resolved that the Borough of W'arren hereby appropriate Two Hundred Dollars for the purpose of Building a Bridge over the Conewango Creek, at the old location, at the foot of Second street, provided a sufficient amount can be raised to build said Bridge at the foot of said street, said amount to be paid to the Contractor as the work pro- gresses." On the 28th of March, 1844, it was enacted "that from and after the first day of May next, it shall not be lawful for any hog or swine of any age to run at large within the limits of the Borough of Warren." To that time it is to be presumed, free and unrestrained, they had rooted and wallowed to their hearts' content. Fire Department. — For many years Warren, in its ability and state of prep- aration to fight fire, was in about the same condition as other country towns at an early day — /. e., it had a small hand engine and a few feet of hose, the whole, usually, being out of repair when a fire occurred. We have ascertained that the borough possessed an engine of the class described in 1848; but there was no organized company to man it. This engine, with apparatus, etc., cost $1,000. During the year 1853 "Vulcan Fire Company No. 1" was organ- ized, of which David Law was mentioned as foreman, and Rufus P. King, Richard S. Orr, M. W. Hull, L. Rogers, Julius B. Hall, G. W. King, C. A. Horton, and M. D. Waters as among the original members. The German residents organized "Rescue I'ire Company No. i" in August, 1859, and an Borough of Warren. 353 engine house was projected during the same year. This company was incor- porated by an order of court March 6, 1861, and they continued to render efficient service until 1869, when, becoming dissatisfied because the citizens seemed disinchned to render assistance either at fires or at any other time, they disbanded. The sum of $258, remaining in their treasury, was donated to the German Lutheran Church to aid in the purchase of a bell. Then followed the organization of" Allegheny Fire Company No. i," and the "Conewango Hose Company," about the ist of January, 1870. The steam fire engine "R. P. King" was received at Warren in December, 1873, and the severe trial tests imposed proved to be eminently satisfactory. To the department has since been added the serviceable yet elegant apparatus manned by " Niagara Hose, No. i," "Watson Hose, No. 2," "Struthers's Inde- pendent Hose, No. I," and "Exchange Hook and Ladder, No. i." The mem- bers of the department are handsomely uniformed. Commodious quarters for the storage of apparatus, etc., are afforded by the borough building, known as the Town Hall. It is a fact worthy of remark, perhaps, that of all the conflagrations which have heretofore raged in the business part of the town, the flames almost with- out exception have spent their force upon old buildings, those that could best be spared; and in their places have arisen spacious brick structures, with modern improvements. Warren Academy, and Public Schools. — The famous old academy building, so often referred to in the local annals of Warren, was built during the years 1834-36. It was of brick, and stood upon the southeast corner of High and Market streets — beautiful, spacious grounds, since divided into three large lots, sold to individuals, and now occupied by private residences. The history of the institution briefly told is as follows : By an act of the General Assembly, approved April 1 1, 1799, the governor was authorized to direct the surveyor-general "to make actual survey of the reserved tract of land adjoining the town of Warren, which has not been laid out in town or out lots," etc., and providing, further, "that five hundred acres of the same be laid off" for the use of such schools and academies as may here- after be established by law in said town." Under this act Alexander Mc- Dowell, of Franklin, then deputy surveyor-general, surveyed and marked the boundaries of the academy lands (lying west of the town and bounded on one side by the river), in the summer of 1799. By a legislative enactment, passed in 1822, Joseph Hackney, Lothrop S. Parmlee, and Abner Hazeltine were named as trustees, who, with their successors in office, to be elected, were to assume control of the lands and the academy when built. In 1829 an act was passed authorizing the trustees to lease "said 500 acres" (541 acres by correct measurement) for a period not to exceed ninety years. Thereupon, during the following two or three years, the tract was leased in lots of one hundred acres 354 History of Warren County. each for ninety years, at an annual rental of not much over $ioo for the whole. By an act of the State Legislature, passed February 15, 1832, the sum of $2,000 was appropriated to erect an academy building at Warren. This was followed by another act, approved April 8, 1833, which authorized the trustees to erect the building on grounds reserved at the laying out of the town for public build- ings, and directed that the sum of $2,000 already appropriated be used in the construction. This sum was increased to a considerable extent by individual subscriptions before the structure was completed. Hon. Rasselas Brown, the first principal of the academy, commenced teach- ing in the court-house in February, 1836, the academy not yet being ready for occupancy, and continued there until June of the same year, when a transfer was made to the academy, and its doors were opened for the admission of pu- pils for the first time. Judge Brown, then a very young man, continued to preside over the academy until 1838, when he retired to engage in the practice of law, and was succeeded by W. A. McLean. The latter's successors were John Dixon, Cyrus Brown, L. A. Rogers, Charles B. Curtis and a number of others. Meanwhile the new Union School building of the borough having been completed and provided with a corps of very competent teachers, the now old academy fell into disfavor. Free tuition in a fresh, new building, as compared with $3.00 per term for the higher branches, and $2.50 per term for common studies in a somewhat dilapidated structure, left it almost without patronage ; hence its doors were finally closed about the year 1857. It was condemned by the grand jury in 1864. An act of Assembly, passed March 22, 1865, author- ized the burgess and town council to sell and convey to the highest bidder at public sale the lands on which the academy stood, the proceeds of sale to go into the borough treasury. Accordingly the square was divided into three lots and sold separately August 17, 1865, the sum realized being $5,785. The building was purchased by Hon. William D. Brown for $300. Of the early history of the common, district, or public schools of Warren but little can be said in the entire absence of data, either traditional or authentic. We have in another place made mention of the fact that the father of the late Hon. Reuben E. Fenton, of New York, taught a school in Warren, in the win- ter of 1805-06. Thereafter no other reference or intimation regarding the schools or school-houses of the town is made until 1820, when the county com- missioners agreed to assist the school committee to " finish building the school- house," to the end that courts might be held in the same until a court-house could be built. This little school-house stood on the site of the first and of the present court-house. It is probable that when the first court-house was com- menced, in 1826, the school-house was removed to some resting-place not far away, and its use continued for educational purposes, until the building of the academy. The latter then became the school-house of the town, for those who were able to pay for the instruction of their children. (d.C ^^^^^ Borough of Warren. 355 The old part of the present Union School building was built in 1854-56. Stephen Carver was the contractor for the stone and brick work, and J. L. Kappel for the wood work. The first teachers to preside within its walls were Charles Twining, of Lancaster, Pa., principal ; assisted by Miss M. C. Shat- tuck, of Groton, Mass., Miss S. E. A. Stebbins, of Clinton, N. Y., Miss Kate Miller, of Sugar Grove, Pa., and Miss S. O. Randall, of Warren, Pa. Hon. S. P. Johnson stood at the head and front in the movement which led to the erection of the building and the securing of the first very excellent corps of teachers. The first building cost $7,500, and was completed in December, 1856. The new structure, which adjoins the one above described, was built in 1871 at a cost of $23,000. Together they afford room and educational facilities for a large number of bright-faced pupils. Prof A. B. Miller, a vet- eran instructor, has been in charge some twelve or fifteen years. His assist- ants during the present year are Miss Kate C. Darling, Miss Arline Arnett, Miss Carrie W. Coats, Miss Nannie C. Locke, Miss Libbie M. King, Miss Mary O. King, Miss Jennie Thomas, Miss Ellen Glenn, Miss Berta Thomas, Miss Mary O'Hern, Miss Mary Kopf, Mrs. Blanche Hawkins. At the West End school, also under the supervision of Mr. Miller, the assistant teachers are Miss Bessie Richards, Miss Mary Conrath, and Miss Laura Snyder. Banks. — Tlie Lumbermen s Bank of Warren, the first banking institution established in Warren county, was incorporated by an act of the State Legis- lature approved February 28, 1834. Robert Falconer, Josiah Hall, Robert Russell, Guy C. Irvine, Archibald Tanner, and Robert Miles, all of Warren county, were named as commissioners to execute the many provisions of the act. With Robert Falconer as president, and Fitch Shepard cashier, the bank began business during the same year (1834), with a paid-up capital stock of $100,000, divided into shares of $50 each. Subsequently the directors were authorized by a legislative act to increase the capital stock to $200,000. Its notes were widely circulated, and it transacted a large (and as it was supposed very successful) business until 1838, when the financial panic, which swept the whole country at that time, caused its sudden collapse and failure. Much of Mr. Falconer's private fortune went to swell the aggregate of losses ; besides being unjustly censured because of the failure, his proud, honorable, and sensitive nature met with such a shock that it gradually destroyed his mind and hastened his death. The Warren County Bank was chartered by an act of the State Legislature passed during the winter of 1852-53. The officers then mentioned were J. Y. James, president ; Orrin Hook, Rufus P. King, Thomas Clemons, John N. Miles, Myron Waters, and Lewis Arnett, directors. Soon afterwards an installment of $5 on each share of the capital stock of $100,000 was paid in. During the following winter another legislative act was passed providing that the institu- tion should be a bank of issue as well as deposit. All preparations having 3s6 History of Warren County. been completed, the bank opened its doors for the transaction of business dur- ing the last days of November, 1854, with J. Y. James, of Warren, officiating as president, and Herman~Leonard, of the city of New York, as cashier. Said the editor of the Mail under date of November 24, 1854: "To-day (Friday) our bank is in the flood tide of operation Certainly there never was more need of a Bank here, or a more favorable time for one to commence operations, and we hope it may have a long career of usefulness and pros- perity." In 1855 a building for the accommodation of the bank was erected. Under date of July 30, 1859, we find the following mention of this bank in the columns of the Mail : " At the last term of court the Warren County Bank was changed to the North Western Bank, and under that name it re-opened last Monday. The bills of the old bank are redeemed when presented." From this statement it appears that business under the old title had been suspended for a time. In March, i860, the officers of the bank were Rasselas Brown, president ; John F. Davis, Rasselas Brown, F. Hook, J. Y. James, Carter V. Kinnear, Lewis Arnett, Rufus P. King, Carlton B. Curtis, Andrew Hertzel, Joseph Hall, George V. N. Yates, Hosea Harmon, and Lewis F. Watson directors. In December of the same year it was published as a noteworthy fact that all the banks in Western Pennsylvania had suspended, with the exception of the old Bank of Pittsbnrgli and the North Western Bank of War- ren. The further existence of the latter, however, was destined to be but brief in duration; for during the latter part of May, 1862, the North Western Bank closed its doors. A day or two later they were reopened and an effort was made to redeem hotne circulation, but after two days this plan was abandoned. The affairs of the bank were always fairly and honorably conducted in Warren. The trouble originated in New York city, where its finances were really con- trolled, and where they put into circulation more of the bank's issue than could be taken care of at home. Private Bankers. — In 1855 Augustus N. Lowry, of Jamestown, N. Y., established a private banking office in Warren. In December of the same year Chapin Hall, of Warren, also opened a similar establishment in Johnson's building, under the title of " C. Hall's Bank." After the failure of the North Western Bank Messrs. Beecher & Coleman opened a banking house in their hardware store opposite the Carver House, and continued it until the organiza- tion of the First National Bank, when their banking business, which had proved very satisfactory to the people, was transferred to the new institution. The First National Bank of Warren was organized at a meeting of stock- holders held at the Carver House on Saturday, August 6, 1864. At this meeting the following named gentlemen were elected to serve as directors : Chapin Hall, Thomas Struthers, Carlton B. Curtis, William D. Brown, Lewis F. Watson, Rasselas Brown, James H. Eddy, S. J. Page, and M. F. Abel. Subsequent!)', during the same day, this board of directors elected Chapin Hall Borough of Warren. 357 president, and M. Beecher, jr., cashier. The capital stock of the association was fixed at $100,000, in shares of $100 each. During tlw two months which immediately followed the date of organization, Messrs. Hall and Beecher were actively engaged in collecting subscriptions to the capital stock, investing the funds thus obtained in United States bonds, and attending to the many and varied details preparatory to opening for business. This event took place on Monday, October 10, 1864, in the middle room of Johnson's Exchange block. Second street, George W. Tew, of Jamestown, N. Y., officiating as teller. The net profits for the first year amounted to $27,022.08, and the total busi- ness aggregated $17,655,749.62, being much larger than any year since, owing to the enormous sale of government bonds on which were allowed a large pre- mium, and the immense purchase and sale of exchange during the great oil excitement of 1864—65. Until 1872 the annual sale of drafts averaged over $1,500,000, and the paper discounted per annum amounted to $1,000,000. In April, 1871, the lot upon which stood the old building of hewn timbers, known as early as 18 15 as Dunn's Tavern, was purchased from John F. Davis and S. Burgess. The old structure (then the oldest building in the borough) was speedily removed, the work of erecting a new bank building commenced, and in October, 1872, the handsome edifice now owned by the association was completed at a cost, including grounds, of $16,000. Of the officers who have been connected with this bank, Mr. Beecher has served as cashier from the very beginning of its existence down to the present time. Chapin Hall, its first president, continued in office until January 2, 1866, when, having sold his stock, he resigned, and was succeeded by L. D. Wet- more, esq. The latter continued until July 22, 1871, when he resigned, deem- ing himself ineligible by reason of holding the office of president judge of this judicial district. Boon Mead was then elected to fill the vacancy and con- tinued as president until his death, which occurred August 19, 1880. His successor, James H. Eddy, was elected September 6, 1880, and held the posi- tion until July 4, 1885, when he resigned. Thereupon Hon. L. D. Wetmore was again elected president and has continued to discharge the duties of that office to the present writing. Other officers of the bank (1886) are as fol- lows : George H. Ames, vice president ; M. Beecher, cashier; F. K. Russell, teller; L. D. Wetmore, J. H. Eddy, R. Brown, G. H. Ames, M. Beecher, A. T. Scofield, and Mrs. Medora I. Mead, directors. The Warren Savi7igs Bank was chartered by an act of the State Legis- lature early in 1870. Those named as corporators were Lewis F. Watson, R. Brown, O. C. Allen, W. F. Dalrymple, Patrick Falconer, David Beatty, P. J. Trushel, J. J. Taylor, B. Nesmith, S. J. Page, O. H. Hunter, J. R. Clark, M. Waters, W. W. Wilbur, Richard E. Brown, A. D. Wood, J. H. Nichols, L. B. Hoffman, W. H. Shortt, John A. Jackson, and James Kinnear. On the 12th of March, 1870, an organization was effected by the election of Lewis F. Wat- 358 History of Warren County. son, O. H. Hunter, B. Nesmith, P. Falconer, O. C. Allen, P. J. Trushel, and W. H. Shortt, to serve as directors. Subsequently Lewis F. Watson was chosen president of the association, and he has continued to discharge the duties of that office to the present time. Business was commenced in the Watson & Davis block in April following, George E. Barger officiating as cashier. The latter served until February, 1872, when he resigned and was succeeded by A. J. Hazeltine, the present efficient incumbent of the office. The bank building now occupied was completed in 1876, at a cost of $10,500. The officers serving in 1886 are as follows : Lewis F. Watson, president ; Benjamin Nesmith, vice-president; A. J. Hazeltine, cashier; George B. Ens- worth, teller; Lewis F. Watson, Benjamin Nesmith, James Clark, M. B. Dun- ham, O. H. Hunter, A. J. Hazeltine, and L. R. Freeman, directors. The Citizens' Saving Bank was organized March 8, 1870. Among its stockholders were S. P. Johnson, L. L. Lowry, Boon Mead, Orris Hall, J. A. Neill, E. B. Eldred, J. H. Mitchell, R. Brown, L. B. Hoffman, J. R. Clark, R. K. Russell, David McKelvy, G. H. Ames, L. D. Wetmore, F. A. Randall, and William D. Brown. Of the stockholders named Messrs. Johnson, Lowry, Hall, Neill, Clark, McKelvy, and Eldred were chosen directors. L. L. Lowry was elected president and H. R. Crowell cashier. This association was not chartered. Its place of business was one door west of the Carver House; capital $25,000; stockholders individually liable. About the first of May, 1875, a reorganization took place and the title of the institution was changed to the Citizens' National Bank. Its business is transacted in the corner of the building known as the Carver House. Ma)infactiiring Interests. — Although Warren has never been noted as a manufacturing center of unusual importance — indeed, in this respect hardly up to the average of towns peopled chiefly, as this was, by New Englanders, New Yorkers, and their descendants — yet it has always had its quota of artisans skilled in their respective crafts. Among its first residents were blacksmiths, shoemakers, tailors, carpenters, stone-masons, millwrights (those who could build, repair, and operate water-power grist-mills, saw-mills, etc.), wheelwrights, or those who made and repaired spinning-wheels, cabinet-makers, etc. In 1829 the only mills within the limits of the town proper were two saw- mills and a grist-mill. One of these saw-mills had been built and operated by James Stewart for ten years or more prior to the date mentioned. The other saw- mill and the grist-mill were more recent acquisitions, having been built about the year 1828. Then followed a small tannery, and in 1833 the wool- carding and fulling-mills of Hawley & Parker were noted as in operation. In the summer of 1851 the old structure known as Stewart's Mills was remodeled by W. Y. Kingsbury, for use as a foundry and machine shop. His facilities as well as his manufactured products at first were limited, the latter being mainly mill-irons, plow-points, and repairing. His iron was brought up . r..y- \ /3 , /}^U/yyyuyi^ Borough of Warren. 359 the river on flat-boats, and the coal used was hauled from Dunkirk. Subse- quently he began the manufacture of stoves. Still later Henry W. Brown became associated with him in the business, under the firm name of Kingsbury & Brown. In the fall of 1856 this firm completed a foundry, etc., at the lower part of the town, at a cost of $6,000. Not long after the completion of this building Mr. Kingsbury retired, when Mr. Brown formed a partnership with his brothers John and Thomas, and the business was continued under the title of Brown Bros. During the year 1864 John and Thomas Brown retired from the firm, when another brother, Joseph, became associated with Henry W., thus still keeping intact the firm name of Brown Bros. In 1865 the firm em- ployed sixty men, and their manufactures consisted of steam engines, circular saw-mill and shingle-mill machinery, stoves, plows, castings to order, oil pipe and oil tools. During the fall of 1868 the successors of Brown Bros. — Brown, Arnett & Co., or, in other words, Henry W. Brown, L. W. Arnett, and Thomas Struth- ers — completed the quite extensive brick buildings known at that time as the "Allegheny Iron Works." The facilities were greatly increased thereby, and a still larger number of men were furnished employment. A few minor changes occurred during the next seven years, and in 1875 the works passed to the control of the firm since and now owning them — Struthers, Wells & Co. The " Struthers Iron Works," under this management, have gained a wide reputation for the excellence of their products, and their machinery for oil wells, saw-mills, and tanneries reaches all sections of the United States, and also finds its way into Cuba, Europe, Mexico, and South America. Their specialty, however, is oil and gas-well machinery, and the large share of orders assigned to this department has frequently forced the management to run overtime. They build engines with cylinders from five by ten to thirty by thirty-six inches, ranging in horse-power from six to three hundred and fifty, and make boilers of any size required. The works are one square in extent, and the principal buildings, which are constructed of brick, range from one to three stories in height. They are conveniently located for the reception and ship- ment of freight — near the junction of the Philadelphia & Erie, Buffalo, New York & Philadelphia, and the Dunkirk, Allegheny Valley & Pittsburgh Rail- roads — and natural gas is utilized as fuel. Individually speaking, Thomas Struthers, J. C. Wells, A. H. McKelvy, and J. P. Jefferson are the men who control these works. In September, 1856, the sash and door manufactory of B. P. Bell & Co., on the " Island," was destroyed by fire. It had just been completed, and the losses sustained amounted to about $10,000. In July, 1864, the editor of the Mail, in an article on home matters, said: "The grist-mill and old saw-mill, owned for several years by Arnett & Orr, between the town and island, have been torn away. A new grist-mill is being 36o History of Warren County. erected on the site of the old one, and a new saw-mill and factory will be erected where the old saw-mill was built so long ago as 1828. Arnett then (in 1828) came to Warren from Alsace, France, and worked on the mill-dam as a day laborer. . . . Now he superintends the erection of two mills and a factory on the same ground as principal proprietor, besides running one end of the Warren County Court." The new mills, and the sash, door and blind manufac- tory were completed in the summer of 1865, at a cost of $25,000. James Clark, of Warren, superintended the building of the saw-mill and " factory." A few weeks after their completion — in September, 1865 — these mills were sold by Arnett & Orr(Mrs. Jane Orr) to Boon Mead & IVIcDaniels, for about $50,000. The saw-mills, etc., are now owned and extensively operated by the Mr. Clark above mentioned, who for many years has been known as one of Warren's most active and respected citizens. The grist-mill, after some changes in ownership, passed to the control of George Ensworth, and while owned by him was burned in the conflagration which some four or five years ago again destroyed the " Exchange Row " on the south side of Water street. Upon its site was erected in 1882 the structure now known as the Warren Flouring Mills, by a company composed of George Ensworth (its present manager), S. P. Johnson, Andrew Hertzel, and M. Wa- ters. The main building is of brick, 46 by 72 feet in dimensions, and four sto- ries and basement in height, to which is added another structure, also of brick and the same height, covering grounds 32 by 32 feet in extent. The latest designed roller process for the production of the finest grades of flour, two run of stones for custom and feed work, etc., are among the equipments of this establishment. The machinery is propelled both by water and steam, an eighty horse-power Buckeye engine and a boiler of one hundred horse power being ready for instant use when the water supply fails. There are facilities for stor- ing twenty thousand bushels of grain, and one hundred and fifty barrels of merchantable flour, branded as " Conewango," " Snow Flake," and " Patent," can be manufactured per day. On the island, in the near vicinity of Clark's saw-mill, arc located the build- ings devoted to the manufacture of the world-famous remedy known as "Piso's Consumption Cure." About the year 1863 Mr. E. T. Hazeltine (then associ- ated in business with Hon. S. P. Johnson, under the firm name of Hazeltine & Co., druggists, etc.), having learned of some remarkable cures being eftected by this remedy, secured the formula and determined to manufacture the medi- cine for the general public. He began by preparing a few dozen bottles, and offering the same for sale at his drug store. The demand, when once its virtues became known, increased rapidly. An adjoining room was rented ; then a room on the third floor of the Johnson block. In 1870 the business had grown so large that more room was necessary ; hence a factory on the island was established, and the facilities increased to one thousand" bottles per hour. Borough of Warren. 361 Since 1872 Mr. Hazeltine has devoted his entire attention to the manufacture and sale of Piso's Cure. Like all other proprietary medicines that have been made successful, its sale has been extended to every part of the United States and Canada by active agents and a constant and judicious use of the news- paper columns throughout the country. In 1880 a branch office and laboratory was established at Chelmsford, England, thirty miles from London. Mr. Haz- eltine personally superintends every department of the business, and has invented machinery now capable of filling two thousand bottles per hour. He employs altogether about fifty people. He likewise distributes annually millions of almanacs which are printed in his establishment. During the past year an extensive brick building has been erected, the business demanding a still further enlargement in capacity, etc.; and doubtless the production will be greatly increased in the near future. The very complete and extensive sash, door, and blind manufactory of L. D. Wetmore & Co. is situated in the lower part of the town, on and near High, Beech and Chestnut streets. The capacity is sufficient for the manufacture of 150 doors, 150 windows, 40 pairs of blinds, besides large quantities of siding and flooring, daily. Their mills, office, dry-kilns and lumber yards cover more than four acres of ground, the main building alone, which is fitted with the very best of modern machinery, being 192 by 65 feet in dimensions. The interior of this building is so arranged that no unnecessary handling of material is required; the rough lumber is passed in at one end of the mill, it goes from one machine to another, and finally comes out at the other end a finished and exact piece of workmanship. During the past year these mills consumed over 2,000,000 feet of lumber. Large shipments of manufactured products are annually made to Baltimore, Philadelphia, New York, etc., and intermediate points, besides supplying a considerable home demand. From fifty to sixty men are usually employed. Besides H. A. Jamieson's pail and tub factory, James P. Johnson's furni- ture manufactory, Philip Leonhart's brewery, the gas works, etc., there are other and varied minor manufacturing establishments in the borough, about the same as are found elsewhere, which the future chronicler of local events can unearth by turning to the directory and newspaper files of the present time. Merchants. — In preceding pages the names of nearly all who have been prominently identified with the mercantile interests of the town, from its first settlement until years quite' recent, have been mentioned. Ag a rule the mer- chants of Warren, no matter in what department of trade they have been engaged, have proved to be men of conscience, conservative, fair, and honor- able in their dealings. In the dry goods trade but three failures (one of them by a non-resident) have occurred in forty years, and a number of well-known citizens laid the foundation of large fortunes while so engaged ; among them 362 History of Warren County. Lewis F. Watson, for twenty-one years a member of the firms of Watson & Davis, Watson & Rogers, Watson, Davis & Co., retiring in i860; Ben- jamin Nesmith, of the firms of Arnett & Nesmith and Crandall & Nesmith for sixteen years, retiring in 1 870; D. M. Gross, of the firm of D. M. Gross & Bro. for eleven years, retiring in 1884; M. Waters, as Hunter & Waters for four years, and O. H. Hunter, a member of the firms of Baker & Hunter, Hunter & Waters, Hunter & Mathews, O. H. Hunter, and O. H. Hunter & Son for forty-one years, and still in trade. The names of many others might be added, but those mentioned sufficiently illustrate the class of men who have heretofore represented the dry goods trade in Warren, in a manner quite satisfactory to themselves and their customers. Mr. O. H. Hunter, the widely-known dry goods merchant above referred to, has had a longer continuous business experience than any other merchant in Northwestern Pennsylvania, and possibly in the State. More than forty- one years ago, when but a boy, he commenced business here. He has con- tinued with varying success until the present, and now stands at the head of an extensive dry goods establishment, employing a large number of salesmen and women, the annual sales of which would be creditable to houses in any of our cities. He has seen Warren grow from a small hamlet to a populous town, containing among its residents a larger proportion of wealthy men than any other place of its size in Pennsylvania. Among the other leading merchants now engaged in business in the bor- ough are David Shear, a popular and heavy dealer in dry goods, etc., who with his brother succeeded an old firm in 1882; George L. Friday, C. P. Henry, George P. Orr & Co., Messner & Kopf, and J. J. Taylor & Co., grocers ; Johnson & Siegfried, A. W. Morck, and Richard R. Stewart, drug- gists ; Christian Smith, C. P. Northrop, and Offerlee & Son, boot and shoe dealers; Beecher & Copeland, and H. A. Jamieson & Co., dealers in hardware and oil-well supplies ; Morck Bros., and Wyman & Davis, jewelers, etc. ; George Ball, for many years an extensive dealer in clothing, custom work, etc. ; Jacob Keller, J. K. Ronne, C. and J. F. Retterer, merchant tailors, and A. A. Davis & Co., books, stationery, etc. Physicians. — Abraham Hazeltineand Thomas Huston were the first phy- sicians to reside and practice here of whom we have authentic data. Both were here as early as 1828. The latter remained but two or three years. Dr. Hazeltine, however, continued for a decade or more. He as well as Abner Hazeltine, esq., the first lawyer to locate in Warren, were representatives of the family of that name, which for three-quarters of a century has been so prominently identified with the history of Warren, Pa., and Jamestown, N. Y., all being descendants of a Vermont family of sterling worth, \\hich traces its origin back to the Pilgrim fathers and beyond. Then came Dr. Parker from Vermont, about 1832, closely followed by Dr. O^U^U-^^^^i^c/^i- /^ Borough of Warren. 363 Henry Sargent, a native of New Hampshire, in 1833. Next in order came Dr. D. V. Stranahan, a native of Columbia, Herkimer county, N. Y. He be- gan the study of medicine with Dr. Sargent in 1833, graduated at the Fairfield Medical Institute in 1835, commenced to practice his profession in Warren in 1840, and died here May 19, 1873. Dr. G. A. Irvine died in Warren in Feb- ruary, 1867. It was then stated that he had resided in the county thirty years and in the borough twenty-five years. He was a skillful physician, an accom- plished gentleman, the possessor of decided abilities, and enjoyed the respect and esteem of all who knew him.^ Dr. S. A. Robinson, it appears, who came to Warren in the fall of 1858, was its first homoeopathic practitioner. Dr. B. G. Keyes, of the same mode of practice, came in the autumn of 1859. Since that time many changes have occurred ; but the trails of those who have come and gone are considered too intricate to be followed. A County Medical Association was organized at Warren May 31, 1871, and a constitution, by-laws, medical code of ethics, and fee-bill adopted. The offi- cers then elected were D. V. Stranahan, president ; William V. Hazeltine and A. C. Blodget, vice-presidents ; H. L. Bartholomew, recording and correspond- ing secretary; C. H. Smith, treasurer; J. L. Burroughs, H. C. Daveny, and R. C. Sloan, censors. The physicians now in practice in the borough are William V. Hazeltine, W. M. Baker, H. L. Bartholomew, D. V. Stranahan, Richard B. Stewart, J. M. Davies (homceopathic), W. S. Fierce, E. D. Preston (homoeopathic), F. C. Stranahan, and F. W. Whitcomb. H0TEL.S, Taverns, etc. — Daniel Jackson, sr., was the first to receive a license to keep an inn in the town of Warren, and when this privilege was granted him, in 1806, he was the only licensed " mine host" in the eastern half of the county. In the western half at the same time Giles White was the only one lawfully entitled to dispense liquors and entertain the public as a tavern-keeper. Jackson had no opposition in town until about 1815, when Henry Dunn opened a tavern on the site of the First National Bank, in a house built of hewn tim- bers. In 1819 the third hostelry was opened by Ebenezer Jackson (son of Daniel), in a frame house which stood on the Carver House corner. Some five or six years later Archibald Tanner, having gained a firm foot- ing here and amassed some surplus capital, erected a row of buildings — small frame houses mainly — extending from Daniel Jackson's tavern to the site of a structure now occupied by F. R. Scott's book- store and G. W. Cogswell's meat market. On the grounds last described Tanner built a frame house intended for the entertainment of the public. It was the famous old " Mansion House," 1 When this paragraph was written we unintentionally omitted mention of Dr. H. S. Newman, who it is believed settled in Warren prior to either Hazeltine or Huston. His wife died and was buried here in July, 1827, and he was still numbered among the resident taxables in 1833. 24 364 History of Warren County. and it was first opened for business about 1826, by William Pierpont. His successor a year or so later was Joseph Hackney. After various changes in its management, this stand finally passed to the control of Richard S. Orr. It was a low, rambling, story-and-a-half structure, with no pretensions to elegance ; but " Dick " Orr, in southern parlance, made a " heap of money " in it, and it is said dispensed more " hard licker " within its walls than the combined output of all his predecessors and contemporaries in the business, from 1806 down to the time of his retirement. Old Guy Irvine, and other coarse-grained and bel- ligerent lumbermen and raftsmen, frequently " made things howl " around the Mansion House; but the able and good-natured proprietor was equal to the emergency, and would soon bring order out of chaos. But few landlords on earth, probably, have ever been bothered with a customer more unreasonable, noisy, bulldozing and murderously inclined than were those of Warren with old Guy Irvine when he was loaded with " Old Monongahela." By his own exertions and the driving of those in his employ he amassed considerable wealth in the lumber business, and his money gave him some standing in the community. Occasionally he was given to generous, commendable acts. Nevertheless he was naturally coarse and brutal, and withal seemed proud of the reputation he had gained — the power to intimidate and terrorize the timid and peacefully inclined when within reach of his arm. He has long since passed beyond the line dividing the known from the unknown ; but his reputa- tion, traits of character, etc., still linger on this side. The Mansion House was closed as a tavern about 1856, when its lower rooms were utilized as stores, shops, etc. It was finally destroyed in the con- flagration which swept that part of the street in March, 1869 Surmounting its low, broad roof was a quaint-looking bell-tower in which swung a bell. This bell was transferred to the " Tanner House " — the Falconer stone building nearly opposite the court-house — in 1859, when Editor Cowan indulged in some facetious reminiscences concerning it, as follows : " Who has not heard of the old Mansion House bell of Warren ? For many long years it was the reg- ulator of the town. The sleepy heads couldn't get up in the morning till the bell rung, and sometimes not then. The cook couldn't set the dinner on until she heard its familiar clang. The boys couldn't quit work for meals until the bell turned on its old wooden wheel and told them the glad hour had come. If tlie clock ran down in the cold night it couldn't be got right until the bell rung. Then it was all right again, for didn't everybody go by the bell, and didn't the bell go by Bennett, and didn't Bennett go by the sun ? Yea, verily, and let him dispute the tell-tale rattle of the old bell who dare ! A watch wasn't good for anything if it didn't agree with the bell. A clock was forth- with dismantled if it varied a hair from that standard. If we had a jollification, felt merry and all got drunk, forthwith the old bell echoed our joy in merry peals from hill to hill. If the shrill, startling cry of fire went up from any part Borough of Warren. 365 of town, forthwith the old Mansion House bell re-echoed the cry in tones that roused us like a signal gun." The building known as the Carver House was commenced in 1S48, and was first opened for the entertainment of the public in March, 1849. It has ever since enjoyed the distinction of being termed the leading hotel of the town. John H. Hull, its first proprietor and manager, continued in charge until January i, 1857, when he leased it or gave way to N. Eddy & Son. In February, 1859, Mr. Hull again assumed control, and remained until Decem- ber, 1864, when M. W. Hull and J. B. Hall made their bows to the public as proprietors. An addition, sixty-five by forty feet, three stories in height, with an entrance on Hickory street, was commenced by Mr. Hull, its owner, in the summer of 1865. In April, 1867, J. B. Hall, having purchased the interest of his partner, M. W. Hull, became sole proprietor. Williams & Scott assumed control in September, 1871, and in September, 1873, Myron Waters became the owner of the property by the payment of $20,000. Of the changes in ownership to this time we have no knowledge ; hence, where the term proprie- tor is used, as above, it refers to those who presided over its management, either as lessees or owners. Mr. Waters improved and enlarged the building to a great extent, and while owned by him it was leased and managed by dif- ferent parties until about 1882, when Mrs. C. W. King, its present proprietress^ became the owner by purchase. Under her control, assisted by her son the ever gentlemanly George W., and B. H. Johnson, the active, watchful man- ager, the Carver House has gained an enviable reputation far and near. Its furnishings are first class, and kept scrupulously clean and in order. Its table d'hote is always well spread with tempting viands, game, fruits and veg- etables in season, and last but not least, its employees are quiet, polite, and prompt in the performance of their duties. The Exchange Hotel, under the management of George H. Leonhart, a life-long and highly respected citizen of the county, and the Warren House, H. Buss, proprietor, are the only hotels, other than the Carver House, in the business part of the town. The buildings occupied are of brick, comparatively new, well appointed throughout, and both are extensively patronized. Secret Associations. — North Star Lodge No. 241, F. and A. AT., was chartered December 3, 1849. Its first principal officers were Joseph Y. James, W. M.; Henry Sergent, S. W.; Gilman Merrill, J. W. Those now officiating in these positions are James Cable, W. M.; Nelson Moore, S. W.; and Albert W. Rj'an, J. W. The lodge has a present membership of about one hundred and fifty. Occidental H. R. A., Chapter No. 235, was instituted August 17, 1871, with the following officers: Henry S. Getz, M. E. H. P.; D. M. Williams, king; George Hazeltine, scribe ; John H. Hull, treasurer ; Stephen Carver, secretary. The present officers are Nelson Moore, M. E. H. P. ; Willis M. Baker, K. ; Al- 366 History of Warren County. bert W. Ryan, scribe ; Andrew Hertzel, treasurer ; Robert \V. Teese, secretary. Its members are about one hundred in number. Warren Conimandery No. 63, K. T., was organized May 27, 1885. The first officers were Caleb C. Thompson, E. C; Clarence E. Corbett, generalissimo; John M. Clapp, captain-general; O. W. Beatty, treasurer; George L. Friday, recorder. Those now serving are Clarence E. Corbett, E. C. ; Nelson Moore, G. ; George L. Friday, C. G. ; O. W. Beatty, treasurer ; William A. Talbott, recorder. The knights are about seventy in number. JVarrcH Lodge No. 339, /. 0. O. F., was organized in a hall which then included part of the third story of the Carver House, February 27, 1849. The first officers were John A. Hall, N. G. ; J. Warren Fletcher, V. G.; A. J. Davis, secretary, and Stephen Carver, treasurer. The lodge started with a member- ship (including charter members and those initiated during the first meeting) of about twenty-five. Their hall was dedicated June 26, 185 1. In 1852-53 there were nearly two hundred members in good standing. Thereafter for some years many seem to have become lukewarm in Odd Fellowship and gradually dropped out. Of late, however, the membership has increased, and now num- bers about one hundred and forty. To the old steadfast members of this lodge is due the credit of establishing the Oakland Cemetery, and hastening the building of the suspension bridge. The present officers are A. M. Rogers, N. G.; Frank Werey, V. G.; A. S. Dalrymple, secretary; P. E. Sonne, assistant secretary; George H. Ames, treasurer; R. P. King, C. C. Thompson, and J. P. Johnson, trustees. Kossiitk Encatnptncnt No. 98 was instituted in 1 850. Its present officers are F. K. Johnson, C. P.; J. P. Johnson, H. P.; S. E. Walker, S. M.; Frank Werey, J. W.; Dwight Cowan, scribe; George H. Ames, treasurer; R. P. King, W. C. Allan, and C. C. Thompson, trustees. Warren Lodge No. 481, K. of P., was instituted April 21, 1882, by Thomas Ij. Sample, D. D. G. C. The officers first installed were John C. Fuelhart, P. C; Harrison Allen, C. C; George H. Leonhart, V. C; Christian Arnold, P.; V. Meek, M. at A.; C. A. Richardson, K. of R. & S.; Peter Greenlund, M. of F.; E. F. Hodges, M. of E.; George Bradenbaugh, I. G.; A. Carroll, O. G.; G. C. James, C. P. Northrop, and John Graham, trustees. J. C. Fuelhart, who died in November, 1885, was the first representative to the grand lodge. The present officers are Richard B. Stewart, P. C; S.J. Martin, C. C; A. J. Heibel, P.; John H. Sandstrom, M. at A.; E. J. Phillips, I. G.; Jacob Hartman, O. G.; Peter Greenlund, M. of E.; J. R. Bairstow, M. of F.; W, Corwin, K. of R. & S.; George Ball, John H. Sandstrom, and A. Mull, trustees. L. T. Bishop was the last representative at the grand lodge and was then elected grand inner guard. On the loth of August, 1886, Uiiiforin Rank No. 24, K. of P., was instituted in Warren Lodge, of which L. T. Bishop is the chief officer. It has thirtv-two members. Borough of Warren. 367 Eben N. Ford Post No. 336, Dept. of Pa., G. A. R., was organized with twenty-seven charter members June 24, 1883. The first officers were G. W. Kinnear, commander; D. W. C. James, S. V. C; John Rowland, J. V. C; George W. Cogswell, surgeon ; Fred Baltzinger, Q. M.; C. A. Waters, O. of D.; W. H. Taylor, adjt; S. M. Cogswell, Q. M. S.; C. A. Still, sergt-maj.; Theodore Bach, chaplain ; James A. Mair, O. of G. The members now in good standing are one hundred and sixty-three in number. They have pleasant rooms, where regular meetings are held every Thursday evening. The members of this post are noted for their thorough and very appropriate manner of annually observing Decoration Day, also for their promptness in extending a helping hand to needy comrades and their families. Charity, however, is one of the cardinal principles upon which the grand association is built. None respect a soldier's reputation or revere his memory as do soldiers, and none are so prompt to respond to an appeal for aid from an unfortunate comrade as they, no matter whether the giver or recipient belongs to the Grand Army or not. The ties, thoughts, and impulses born in bivouac, on the march, or on the field of battle are beyond the ken, the comprehension of simple mortals whose cheeks have never been fanned by an enemy's gun or its missiles. The present officers of the post are S. H. Davis, commander ; Ameriah Cook, S. V. C; John Rowland, J. V. C; Dr. H. L. Bartholomew, surgeon; W. J. Alexander, chaplain; W. H. Taylor, adjutant; J. J. Leonhart, quarter- master; John Townley, O. of D.; R. H. Smith, O. of G.; C. A. Waters, sergt- maj.; John Knupp, Q. M.-sergt. Laban Lodge No. 52, K. of H., named in honor of Laban Hazeltine, the originator of the lodge, was organized March 4, 1875. The officers then in- stalled were Laban Hazeltine, dictator; J. H. Bowman, V. D.; Monroe Hall, ass't D.; W. P. Lightner, reporter; P. J. Bayer, financial reporter; J. C. Wells, treasurer; Henry P. Hunter, sentinel; A. Merrill, guide. This lodge has paid out, to the present writing, the sum of $12,000, for the benefit of widows and orphans of deceased members. The present members are about sixty in num- ber, of whom the following are serving as officers: C. T. Boberg, D.; J. J. Ar- nold, V. D.; W. S. Leffiird, R.; J. Danforth, F. R.; F. K. Russell, treasurer; Dr. W. M. Baker, examining physician. Besides the associations above named there are several others in Warren of varied titles and aims, not of much importance, however, to the general reader. MiLlT.\RV Company. — Company I, of the Sixteenth Regiment N. G. State of Pennsylvania, we had nearly forgotten. It is composed of an exceptionally fine-looking body of men, and completely uniformed and equipped, can be placed in line ready for active service at thirty minutes' notice. Its officers are John M. Siegfried, captain ; F. M. Knapp, first lieutenant ; George H. Hamil- 368 History of Warren County. * ton, second lieutenant. Of its civil officers, George N. Frazine is president ; Homer J. Muse, secretary ; F. M. Knapp, treasurer. Cemeteries, etc. — At the dedication of Oakland Cemetery, October I2, 1863, Hon. S. P. Johnson delivered the principal address. His somewhat lengthy article indicated much thought and research, and was considered to be quite correct ; hence, from it we have selected the following paragraphs. We do not quote the judge literally, but close enough to render necessary the use of quotation marks : " For several years after the first settlement of Warren, tradition furnishes no history of schools, places of holding religious worship, or burial grounds. No common place of burial had been selected, yet scattered graves were visible along the river side. Some time prior to 1 8 1 o, however, a retired acre had been selected and set apart on the farm of Daniel Jackson as a habitation for the dead. Here the first settler in Warren, John Gilson, was laid March 12, 181 1 ; but to the grief of his descendants his location is lost. In death as in life, he has around him many of his contemporaries, among them Jackson, Dougherty, McKinney, and Henry Dunn. Here were interred the dead from Warren and the surround- ing country, down to 1823 ; but no head-stones or monuments were erected to mark their several resting places. The first memorial placed there was in 1839, at the grave of Sidney N. Berry. It consists of the stone by which he was killed at the Warren bridge, and, in the true spirit of monumental history, con- tains a record of that event. This yard is still used by several families on both sides of the Conewango, and a number of grave-stones have since been erected. " In the spring of 1823 two lots in the town plot, near the bank of the Con- ewango, containing two-thirds of an acre, were selected and purchased by the people of Warren for a burial ground. It was then sufficiently rural and re- mote from the actual residences of the few settlers who lived along the river bank. In April of that year a portion of this ground was hurriedly cleared off to make room for the last tenement of its first tenant, Mrs. Patience, widow of John Gilson, who died April 4 of that year, aged seventy years ; the pioneer of the dead to this new settlement, as she had been to the living in the local history of Warren. " The ground had been purchased by subscription, and a ' bee ' was made to clear it. Among the workers was one P21i Granger, an early settler, and prior to 1807 one of the proprietors of the property afterwards known as Hook's Mill. In a fit of simulated merriment he selected a spot under a hickory in the northwest corner, where he desired to be buried, and especially charged Judge Hackney and Zachariah Eddy with the execution of this request. A few weeks later he was drowned in the Conewango, and was buried in his chosen spot, the second body deposited in the new ground. "As no record of interments was kept, it is impossible to ascertain after the lapse of so many years the date or order of burials there, except as indicated Borough of Warren. 369 by the few head-stones erected by surviving friends, in spite of the absence of both marble and marble-cutters. " Guided by these primitive monuments, it is ascertained that the body of Caleb Wallace, shot by Jacob Hook, on the 25th day of March, 1824, was the next one there deposited. A large native stone at the head of his grave has been rehearsing that melancholy occurrence for nearly forty years to all the passers-by, and is yet read by many with unabated interest. " Next in the order of deceased adults is Margaretta, wife of Archibald Tan- ner, who died January 28, 1825, aged twenty-five years; and next to her in time, Climena, the wife of David Mead, aged twenty-four years. Harvey Jones, who died May i, 1826, aged forty-three, is the next whose record is preserved ; and after him Sarah D., the wife of Dr. H. S. Newman, who died July 30, 1827. The inscriptions recording these deaths were all cut upon rude stones native to the soil. " During the same five years two similar memorials of parental aft'ection, with tender and touching inscriptions, were placed over the graves of two in- fants — one of Dr. Newman, close to its loving mother, and the other of Ethan and Matilda Owen. Close beside the latter, whose age was but five weeks, is a marble stone that records the death of John Owen, in 1843, a Revolutionary soldier, aged one hundred and seven years ten months and eight days, thus presenting in strong contrast the extremes of age at which the insatiate archer seeks his prey in the same family. " In about thirty years this two-thirds of an acre became filled so that it should have been entirely abandoned, when the two lots adjoining on the west were appropriated to burial purposes. About this time (1853) the idea of procuring new ground beyond the borough limits was generally adopted. Hence, for ten years the question was held in suspense ; at one time the town council took the enterprise in hand, but after three years it came to naught — died still- born. In i860 a company of gentlemen were incorporated by the court of this county, called the 'Warren Cemetery Company.' By this company, as well as by the town council and many private citizens whose zeal and public spirit would give the project no rest, every hill and dale, every mountain top and valley for miles around Warren was traversed, examined, and discussed. Indeed, upon the hill north of Warren considerable work was done, to make it accessible and adapt it to the purpose, by Mr. Tanner. " In this, as in most other public improvements affecting the interests of Warren, Mr. Tanner was the pioneer. But with his decease, and burial upon his own chosen ground, that enterprise terminated." At length Warren Lodge No. 339, I. O. O. F., stepped to the front, and as a result "Oakland Cemetery" was dedicated October 12, 1863. It has since been beautified with a display of much good taste, and contains many handsome monuments. Nearly all of the bodies interred in the grounds opened for such purposes in 1823 have since been transferred to " Oakland." 370 History of Warren County. The Odd Fellows purchased forty-eight acres from Thomas Struthers, May 14, 1863, for the sum of $2,100; the lands being deeded to John F. Davis, Charles S. Hessel, S. V. Davis, and their successors " in trust." Soon after two or three acres were purchased from the Biddle estate for a necessary front- age. The Odd Fellows began to improve the grounds in July, 1863. After the dedication lots were taken rapidly, and by the ist of May following $900 had been returned to their treasury. About 1873-74 fifteen acres more were added. Thus this beautiful plot now contains nearly seventy acres. The soil is dry, underlaid by gravel. The Catholics of this parish also ha\'e beautiful and extensive burial grounds here immediately adjoining " Oakland." ReligioU-S Societies. — Tlic First Presbyterian Church. — There was no religious worship held statedly in Warren previous to the year 18 19. Occa- sionally Methodist itinerant preachers had held services at various places in the town and vicinity ; but there was no religious organization of any kind in the place. In 1819, Abner — afterward Judge — Hazeltine took up his residence in Warren. He had been in the habit of regularly attending worship at his former home in Vermont in the Congregational Church, and finding a number of persons here who had been accustomed to a similar attendance either upon Congregational or Presbyterian service in their old homes, he invited them to attend worship at his house every Sabbath, when he would read them a sermon. His invitation was accepted, and thereafter such services were held regularly until the school-house was built, on the site now occupied by the court-house, when the members of this little band removed their place of worship into the new building. In 1822 the Rev. Amos Chase, a missionary under the Presbytery of Erie, came, and formed out of this nucleus what was termed the First Presbyterian Church of Warren. It consisted originally of nine members — viz., Abner Hazeltine and Polly his wife. Colonel J. M. Berry and Eunice his wife, Samuel Oldham — who was in the employ of the Pittsburgh Synod as teacher of the Indians at Cornplanter town — John Andrews, Mrs. Rose Eddy, Mrs. Margaret Hackney, and Mrs. Amelia Winter, all of whom except the last-named were received by letter. Only five of these members lived in Warren — John An- drews, Abner Hazeltine and wife, Mrs. Hackney, and Mrs. Eddy. Mrs. Win- ter resided at what is now North Warren, on a part of the farm now occupied by the asylum for the insane; Colonel Berry and wife lived at Irvine's Mills, and Mr. Oldham at Cornplanter, fourteen miles up the river. This organiza- tion was not properly a church, having only one officer, a secretary, Abner Hazeltine, who remained in that position until he removed from Warren in 1823. The society was reported to the Presbytery of Erie, however, and enrolled under its care, and supplied now and then with preaching. In 1824 the organization was completed by the election of two elders, Nathaniel Sill Borough of Warren. 371 and Colonel Berry. The first pastor was the Rev. Nathan Harned, who had been regularly educated for the ministry in the Baptist Church, but upon changing his doctrinal views and uniting with the Presbyterian Church, had been licensed by the Presbytery of Philadelphia. On the 20th of April, 1825, he was ordained and installed as pastor of the churches of Sugar Grove, Bro- kenstraw, and Warren, at a meeting of the Presbytery which was held at War- ren. On this occasion the Rev. Samuel Tait preached the sermon, and the Rev. Amos Chase made the ordaining prayer and gave the charges to both pastor and people. Mr. Harned must have been deemed rather impulsive by Mr. Chase, for in his charge the latter emphatically exclaimed : " Be discreet, you Nathan ! I charge you, be discreet." The extent and laboriousness of this field made it necessary for this relation, harmonious though it was, to be dissolved in the following May. During his brief ministry, however, Mr. Harned had organ- ized a Sabbath-school — a work in which he was greatly assisted by Cyrus Tanner and Colonel Berry. In 1829 what was known as "the accommoda- tion plan " was adopted by the church. The congregation was made up in great part of those who had been Congregationalists, and naturally a desire was entertained for the ecclesiastical government to which they had been accus- tomed ; and in deference to their wishes this plan was adopted, in which Con- gregational and Presbyterian forms were combined. The articles were drawn up by Thomas Struthers, esq., at the request of Nathaniel Sill, Colonel Berry, and others. The pulpit was supplied by ministers who were engaged tempo- rarily to fill it, and in their absence by laymen who read sermons. Under this form of government Silas Lacy and John Hackney were made deacons in 1829, and the membership increased until in 1831 it numbered twenty-six per- sons. In that year a Rev. Mr. Coleman, of the Congregational persuasion, officiated for a short time ; and it was during his term of service that, at the solicitation of Cyrus Tanner, Rev. Samuel Orton, the then noted evangelist, visited the church in company with the Rev. Mr. Jones, of Mayville, N. Y., and held continuous services for two weeks. The result of this revival was most gratifying. Forty-two members were added to the church, and immedi- ately after, as a further result, the project of building a house of worship was started, and finally carried out. It was a wooden structure, surmounted by a cupola and bell, containing four pews and forty-six slips, besides a gallery on three sides, and a basement. The church was entered through a vestibule running the entire width of the church, reached from the outside by a flight of steps. The seats faced the two entrance doors, between which stood the pul- pit, quite high, after the fashion of that day, and surrounded on three sides by a space inclosed by a low railing. The building occupied the same site cov- ered by the present Presbyterian Church. The credit of pushing along this work is officially ascribed to Archibald Tanner. The frame was erected by George Snapp, and the structure finished by Archibald Skinner, almost without 372 ' History of Warren County. aid. To this fact it is no doubt owing that, although the church was begun in 1 83 1, it was not dedicated until the early winter of 1833. At this time the Rev. John McNair had recently succeeded Mr. Stone, and by him the dedica- tion was performed. The trustees of the property were Robert Miles, Warren L. Adams, and Samuel Graham. The expense of building the house of wor- ship was met by the sale of pews and slips. In 1835 a call was extended to Rev. Absalom McCready, a member of the Presbytery of Erie, to succeed Mr. McNair. Mr. McCready began at once upon the work of the new position, though he did not officially accept the call until 1837, on the 12th of April of which year he was duly installed. In the mean time the church had become dissatisfied with the "accommodation plan," resulting as it did in interminable contentions, and in 1836 it was abandoned and the association was reorganized as a Presbyterian Church, and the reorganization approved by the Presbytery at a meeting held in Meadville on the i ith of May. In this reorganization the elders elect were Silas Lacy and John Hackney, the former of whom lived at Sheffield, fifteen miles away, and who walked that distance to attend divine worship on Sabbath. In October, 1839, the pastoral relation of Mr. McCready with the church having been dissolved, the Rev. E. C. McKinney was procured as stated supply. The month following, an election for an additional elder was held ; but as no candidate received a majority of votes cast, it was post- poned indefinitely. The existing session, though small, was not idle, for at a single meeting five cases for discipline were presented : Two for intemperance, one for dancing, and two for neglect of ordinances. In the early history of the church, both before and after this date, the discipline was more rigidly enforced than now, and that was made matter of discipline which is now toler- ated. In 1 84 1 Mr. McKinney was succeeded by the Rev. Hiram Eddy, as stated supply for one year, at a salary of $500. Mr. Eddy was connected with the Congregational Association of Connecticut, but upon the request of the church unhesitatingly united with the Presbytery of Erie. On the i8th of January following the church adopted a constitution, under which, upon ap- plication of a committee, consisting of Lansing Wetmore and S. P. Johnson, it was duly incorporated by the Court of Common Pleas for Warren county, on the 23d of March, 1842. The trustees named in this instrument were Lansing Wetmore, T. F. Parker, Archibald Tanner, J. D. Summerton, and Aaron S. Parmlee. On the i6th of July following this board was organized by the elec- tion of Dr. T. F. Parker as president, and A. S. Parmlee as clerk. During the fall of 1842 the church was visited with a fruitful revival, which resulted in the addition to it of fifty-three members, and an increased interest in the work. An election for elders soon after the arrival of Mr. Eddy resulted in the choice of Isaac S. ICddy, Archibald Tanner, and Eben Ewell ; and another, immedi- ately after the revival, in that of James Osgood and Lansing Wetmore. The Rev. John Smith, tlie successor of Mr. Eddy, was installed on the 2Sth Borough of Warren. 373 of January, 1846. Within two years, at his own request, the pastoral relation was dissolved, August 11, 1847. At this time the Rev. Miles T. Merwin was pastor of the church at Irvine, and was invited to supply the pulpit of this church in connection with his own, which he did, residing at Warren and preaching every Sabbath morning. While he officiated, the Sabbath-school, which, it has been said, " had died out from lack of wood and superintendents," was revived, the new superintendent being E. Cowan, and its teachers being all women. During Mr. Merwin's ministry the records of the church, session, and trustee books and papers concerning the building of the church and sale of pews, were irrecoverably lost. At a congregational meeting held April I, 1850, it was resolved " That the Rev. John Sailor be invited to abide with and preach for us a year, in consideration of which the trustees be recommended to assume and promise to pay him $400 a year — provided a sufficient sum shall be raised upon subscription to justify their doing so." Mr. Sailor was thereupon engaged in accordance with this resolution. His ministry of five years was eventful, and was disturbed by a temporary schism — if such a phrase be admissible — concerning the ownership and right of disposition of pews and slips, which seriously affected the growth of the church, and the Christian zeal of the members of the community. On the 29th of August, 1855, at his own request, Mr. Sailor was dismissed from the pastorate, though he continued to occupy the pulpit for some time. After his departure the pulpit was long supplied by occasional preaching or the reading of a sermon by one of the lay members. On the 5th of February, 1856, a call was made out to the Rev. C. L. He- quembourg, who had been dismissed from the Ontario (new school) Presby- tery, and had not united with any other. At this time it was said that he intended to unite with the presbytery with which this church was connected, and he began his pastoral duties here when this was the prevalent impression. The bitterness of feeling engendered between the members of the church in former years had not, apparently, abated, and the new pastor was confronted with unpleasant difficulties in the way of harmony. This bitterness was not allayed by his sermons and discourses, if record and tradition may be trusted, for he was accused of preaching and avowing heretical opinions, which elicited explicit and determined protests from members of the church and session. The matter ended in litigation, the circumstances of which are too multifarious to be detailed here. It is stated that the unfortunate division of the church was due far more to the unhappy occurrences of other days than to the undue independence of Mr. Hequembourg, who was a man of high scholarship and warm heart. His successor in the pastorate was Rev. Robert Taylor. His relations with the church were most pleasant and profitable, though they were cut short in about one year, as Mr. Taylor was dismissed upon his own request, to accept another call, on the 26th of September, 1862. His successor, the 374 History of Warren County. Rev. Dr. Hamilton, was invited on the 29th of July, 1863, to supply the pulpit for one year, and received a regular call to become the pastor on the i ith of January, 1864, in consequence of which and his acceptance he was installed on the 1 2th of May, 1864. This promising relation was cut short by the unhappy deposition of Dr. Hamilton from the gospel ministry. For about two years the church was then without a pastor, during which it was supplied by several ministers. The project of building a new church had been pushed for- ward for several years, and in this interim H. A. Jamieson was appointed by the trustees to solicit subscriptions for that purpose. On the 2 1st of March, 1866, a resolution was passed by the trustees "that a new church edifice be built the present season, and that the plan submitted by S. G. Hoxie be adopted." On the 29th of the following August the corner-stone of the present edifice was laid. A week previous to this resolution a call had been extended to the Rev. W. A. Rankin, which was allowed to lie for a time in his hands for consideration, though in the mean time he was engaged to supply the pulpit and began his labors on the ist of May, 1866. He subsequently accepted the call and served the church until his successor, the present pastor. Rev. Perry S. Allen, was called. Mr. Allen was installed on the 7th of May, 1883. During the early part of Mr. Rankin's pastorate the church edifice was com- pleted at a cost of $26,000 (dedicated May 23, 1867), and a parsonage pur- chased and a fine pipe organ procured. At the installation of the Rev. Perry S. Allen the Rev. W. A. Rankin preached the sermon, the Rev. E. I. Davies, of Pittsfield, conducted the instal- lation ceremony, the Rev. Edward Bryan, of Bradford, Pa., delivered the charge to the pastor, and the Rev. L. H. Gilleland, of Tidioute, delivered the charge to the people. During this pastorate, which still continues, the church has grown in numbers and liberality and efficiency. During these four and a half years there have been added to the roll of the church 194 members. There have been contributed by the church $21,777 ^°^ payment of debts, repairs, and current expenses, and $14,533 for the boards and benevolent objects. The church stands second in the Presbytery of Erie in its benevo- lence. The present officers are as follows : Elders, Francis Henry, Elisha Thomas, A. H. McKelvy, H. S. Thomas, Prof A. B. Miller, Hon. Wilton M. Lindsey, and Judge William D. Brown; trustees. Judge S. P. Johnson, W. C. Copeland, J. P. Jefferson, Francis Henry, Judge William D. Brown; superintendent of the Sabbath-school, Hon. Wilton M. Lindsey; assistant superintendent, Dr. J. H. Jenkins; superintendent of the primary department, Mrs. William D. Brown; secretary of the Sabbath-school, J. P. Jefferson ; assistant secretary, John Danforth ; librarian, Hiram Eddy ; assistant librarians, Mr. and Mrs. J. A. Eichenberg ; treasurer, Mrs. James Kitchen ; chorister, Dr. Joel Danforth. Connected with the church are two missionary societies which reflect great Borough of Warren. 375 credit upon the the spirit of the members — the Women's Home and Foreign Missionary Society, and the Young Ladies' Missionary Society. The present value of the church property is estimated as follows : Church edifice and lot, $20,000; parsonage, $5,000; sexton's house, $1,000. The First Evangelical LiitJicran Church of IVarren.-^lt is difficult to pre- pare a complete history of the Lutheran Church at this place, from the fact that the early records of the congregation have been lost or misplaced ; and, as most of the members who participated in the organization have gone to their eternal rest, only a few dates and facts have been secured. About the year 1830 a number of German Lutherans immigrated into this country from Alsace and Bavaria, Germany. This small number constituted the nucleus of the present large and flourishing organization. Through the influence of these early German settlers many of their friends were induced to come into this country, and to this county. As these Lutherans were unable to secure the services of a Lutheran pastor, a number were led to abandon the faith of their ancestors, and connected themselves with the Evangelical denomination, or German Methodists. Those who remained convened in private houses and school-houses, and worshiped God as they had been taught from childhood in their native land. Among the early German settlers and organizers of the Lutheran Church were Messrs. Messner, Hertzel, Schirk, Knopp, and Schuler. Thus German services were conducted by different individuals in private fam- ilies and in school-houses up to the year 1839, when the first German Lutheran minister, Rev. David Keil, occasionally visited and preached for these people. At first he served only as a supply, but afterwards more regularly until 1842, when he was succeeded by Rev. Brumbacher, who became a regular pastor of this congregation, residing among his people and preaching regularly in school-houses until 1845, when he resigned the pastorate. The next pastor was Rev. Mr. Wucherer, who assumed the pastoral charge of this congregation in 1846. During his administration the first house of wor- ship was erected and solemnly dedicated to the services of the Triune God, costing about $1,000. It is now occupied by the Swedish Lutheran people. He resigned this field of labor in 1848. In 1849 Rev. Julius Zoller took charge of the congregation and preached regularly about three years, and then was succeeded by Rev. Conrad Kuehn in 1852, who was the first pastor be- longing to some regular synodical body. He served this people about three years. After him came Rev. Mr. Browneck in the year 1855, and after a service of about three years he resigned this pastorate. In the year 1859 Rev. Henry Weicksel became pastor. Under his min- istry the congregation united with the Pittsburgh Synod. He resigned in 1863. The Sunday-school was first organized in the year i860. The next pastor was Rev. A. L. Benze. He assumed the pastoral charge of the congregation in June, 1864. During his administration the new, com- 376 History of Warren County. modious, and handsome brick church was erected and dedicated to the wor- ship of Almighty God. Also a parsonage was erected along-side of the church, on a separate lot These lots and buildings cost about $20,000. After a faithful and self-sacrificing service of seven years and seven months he left this pastorate. His immediate successor was Rev. G. A. Bruegel, who took charge of the congregation on the ist of July, 1872. Under his pastoral care English services were introduced and an English Sunday-school organ- ized. He resigned this charge May 5, 1875. His immediate successor was Rev. F. C. H. Lampe, who assumed his office here on the 19th of September, 1875, and continued to serve this people until the beginning of 1879. During his ministry an addition was built to the parsonage, involving an expense of $1,000. In the spring of 1879 Rev. G. A. Wenzel became pastor, and left in the spring of 1881, having served two years. On the 3d of September, 1881, Rev. P. Doerr became pastor of this congregation, and has labored in the field to the present time. Services are conducted in the German and English lan- guages. The membership numbers between 400 and 500 communicants. The Sunday-sphool numbers 200 scholars, twenty one teachers, and seven officers. The instruction in the Sunday-school is almost exclusively English. Two active organizations exist in the congregation — The Ladies' Society and the Young People's Aid Society. Various improvements have been made re- cently. A sawed- stone walk was laid around the church property, a wrought- iron fence built, a pipe-organ placed in the church and the church beautifully frescoed, church and parsonage painted, and other improvements made — all involving an expense of over $2,500. In all the church work the members have shown an untiring zeal, activity, and self-sacrifice. The Lutheran Church, though not the oldest, has still become numerically one of the largest congre- gations of Warren, and our public services are well attended. The officers at present are Rev. P. Doerr, president ex officio ; Jacob Rieg, secretary ; C. Schelhamer, treasurer. The remaining members of the church council are Charles Bartch, J. P. Hanson, Albert Leonhart, Louis Bauer, and William Highhouse. The Methodist Episcopal Church. — In 1806 Rev. R. R. Roberts, afterward elected bishop, visited Warren and other portions of Warren county, and was without doubt the first Methodist minister that preached the gospel in this county. In 1 812 Rev. Jacob Young, presiding elder of the Ohio District, held a quarterly meeting on the banks of the Conewango, a short distance above the village of Warren ; at this meeting Bishop McKendrie was present, and preached with great eloquence and power. In 18 17 Rev. Ira Eddy preached a sermon on the banks of the Allegheny River, two or three miles below Warren, and quite a revival of religion took place, and a class was formed consisting of Jo- seph Mead and wife, Mr. Owen and wife, Martin Reese, wife and mother, Ben- jamin Mead and David Mead. Soon after this class was increased to twenty- Borough of Warren. 377 six members. Of this number the venerable Benjamin Mead is the sole sur- vivor; a hale man of ninety-one years, who through all these years has led an exemplary Christian life. In 1830 the Rev. James Gilmore was appointed to Youngsville charge, and, coming to Warren, found the small class spoken of above still worshiping below the village ; but there was no Methodist preach- ing in the village. During the year an extensive reformation occurred in War- ren and the class, numbering some seventy members, was transferred to the village ; and this was the first organization of the Methodist Episcopal Church in the new borough of Warren. Until the church was built they held divine worship in the village school-house. The charter of the present church is dated in January, 1836, and recites that at a meeting of the male members of the Methodist Episcopal Church at Warren Station, borough of Warren, Pa., pur- suant to notice, in the east wing of the court-house on Monday, the 5th of Oc- tober, 1835, Rev. Samuel Ayres in the chair and John P. Osmer secretary, it was resolved, on motion, to appoint a committee to draw up a charter to be submitted for approval to the attorney-general of Pennsylvania, according to the provisions of an act of the Assembly of April 6, 1791, and that the com- mittee consisted of Rev. Samuel Ayres, William L. Snyder, and Benjamin Bar- tholomew. The style of the charter is "the Methodist Episcopal Church of Warren Station, borough of Warren, Pennsylvania." By its provisions the trustees of the church — viz., John Andrews, Albinus Stebbins, Joseph Mead, James Morrison, Robert Arthurs, Martin Reese, and Judah L. Spencer, and their successors — were to nave all the care and management of all the property of the church, real and personal. The early history of the church, subsequent to the dedication of the first building in 1833, cannot better be given than in the words of the recent pastor. Rev. W. W. Painter, as they appeared in a ser- mon which he preached upon the occasion of the removal from that church fifty-two years later (May 24, 1885), and with a few introductory remarks in the IVnrroi Mail of the following week. This article reads as follows : "Another old landmark is gone, or is going. The old M. E. Church edifice was vacated last week, and will soon be torn down to give place to a new and larger house of worship. It has done its work, and now goes into the past after a service of half a century. On Sunday of last week. May 24, Rev. W. W. Painter preached the last sermon in the old church and reviewed the his- tory of the Methodist Episcopal Church in Warren, most of which was pub- lished in the Ledger. He showed when this church was dedicated, fifty-two years ago, the M. E. Church in the United States had 2,265 ministers, and 638,787 members. In 1884 it had 12,900 ministers, and 1,800,000 members. Of this church he said : " ' Great are the changes in any church in a period of fifty-two years. Probably not in many churches have the changes been so great as in this church in Warren. Not one of those who were members of this society when this 378 History of Warren County. church edifice was dedicated in 1833 is a member of this society to-day. Mrs. Jane Waters, the oldest member of the society at present, united with it four years subsequent to 1833, when S. Gregg was the pastor. Benjamin Mead, for many years a member of this church, and one of the first members of the M. E. Church in Warren county, at the time this house was built was a mem- ber of a society organized a few miles west of Warren at a place then known by the name of Brokenstraw. E. P. Steadman was the pastor, and Joseph Mead, James Morrison, and Martin Reese were the trustees who superintended the erection of this house of worship. " From what we can learn, the little band who composed this society when this edifice was erected, toiled hard and sacrificed nobly, some of them giving more than one-tenth of what they had of this world's goods. Even then they could not have succeeded had it not been for the liberal assistance of those outside of the church membership. They labored nobly and well, and we have entered into their labors. The time has come for us to show ourselves worthy to be their successors in the erection of a new church edifice ; a house of wor- ship not only for ourselves, but for our children and all who shall come after us to worship within its walls. A precious privilege I trust we shall esteem it, to bring to a speedy and successful completion this now prospective house of worship. May the same spirit of self-sacrifice that actuated that little society fifty-two years ago prompt us to give and work and pray until we shall to- gether rejoice in the success that God gives to every self-sacrificing, believing worker in his vineyard ! " It is a source of regret to mc that I have been unable to find the names or the number of members who composed this society in 1833 ; we trust their names are all written in heaven. In 1833 this region of country was a part of what was known as Pittsburg Conference. In 1836 the Erie Conference was organ- ized. The following is a list of the names of the pastors stationed in the M. E. Church in Warren since the date of the dedication of the church edifice : 1834, A. Plimpton; 1835, S. Ayres ; 1836-37, S. Gregg; 1838-39, B. S. Hill; 1839, in part, L. Kendall; 1840, A. Barnes and B. S. Hill; 1841, A. Barnes; 1841-42, I". J. L. Baker; 1843, John F. Hill; 1844-45, J- K. Chapin, 1946-47, N. Norton; 1848, J. K. Hallock ; 1849, J. O. Rich; 1850-51, R.J. Edwards; 1852, R. S. Moran ; 1853-54, H. H. Moore; 1855, A. C. Tib- bitts; 1856, E. B. Lane; 1857, D. C. Osborne ; 1858-59, J. Robinson ; 1860- 61, J. S. Lytle; 1862-63, O. L. Mead; 1864-65, P. Pinney; 1866, T. Stubbs ; 1867, C. R. Pattee; 1868-69, R. W. Scott; 1870-71, E. J. L. Baker; 1872- 73-74, A. J. Merchant; 1875, O. G. McEntire ; 1876-77-78, R. M. Warren; 1879, W. F.Wilson; i88o-8i-82,J. M.Thoburn; 1883-84-85, W.W. Painter.'" About five years ago, or more, a project for the building of a new house of worship was set on foot, which culminated in the present structure, the fin- est in this part of the State or country. So successful were the sacrifices and Borough of Warren. 379 labors of those who contributed time and labor and money to the accomplish- ment of this object, that we deem it worth while to describe the movement and the building in nearly the words of a writer in the Mail, in an article which appeared in that sheet on the 21st of September, 1886.^ " In 1 88 1 it became apparent that the needs of the society, which was rap- idly growing with the prosperity of our town and surrounding towns, required additional room to accommodate the church with its various departments of Sunday-school, social and other work. The official board that year, or in early winter of 1881-82, seriously considered the question. It was finally re- solved to enter upon the work of remodeling the old church by erecting in front an auditorium connecting with the old building, provided a certain sub- scription could be realized. Plans were drafted by Jacob Snyder, of Akron, O., and a canvass made in the church by Rev. J. M. Thoburn, resulting in a handsome amount — over $6,000 being subscribed. After further consider- ation it was proposed to build entirely anew an edifice costing $15,000 — the board rigidly acting in a conservative manner. At that time a church costing $20,000 was deemed to be out of the question. After the change was deter- mined upon, Rev. Mr. Thoburn commenced the canvass anew, increasing the former amount, it all being subscribed within the membership of the church. Owing to local causes and those unaccountable reasons that often occur, the work, after this subscription was raised, was laid aside — not buried, but post- poned. " When Rev. J. M. Thoburn reads these lines in his present home, Calcutta, India, we trust that he will feel, what we believe to be the fact, that the church society to-day have to thank him for really founding the new church project upon a sure basis, and for planting the seed which has richly brought forth fruit. " When Rev. W. W\ Painter succeeded Mr. Thoburn, he found the society still quartered in the old church, more crowded than ever, and still firm in the belief that a new church must be provided. The church records show that on March 25, 1884, it was resolved to tear down the church and erect a new one. The question then of the location of the church was actively discussed. It was generally thought best to build on a larger lot and dispose of the old prop- erty, by which means the society would have a place to worship during the process of building. On April 5, 1884, O. C. Allen was appointed a com- mittee to investigate and report in regard to lots which might be obtained. The school board thought it possible the church lot and building would be profitable and valuable for them, and the society was willing to exchange the building and lot for a lot suited to their purposes. Negotiations during the summer of 1 884 toward obtaining a different location for church building were fruitless, and the old church lot was decided upon as location for a new church. 1 This article, we believe, was written by \V. H. Hinckley, of the firm of Wetmore, Noyes & Hinckley. 38o History of Warren County. " Rev. W. W. Painter in the mean time proceeded with the subscriptions and secured the required subscription Hst of $i2,ooo. Early in 1885, as the list grew, the problem of actual work began to loom up, and the style of church to be erected was the next question to be decided. After consultation with various architects, the plan offered by Aaron Hall, of Jamestown, known as the Akron church plan, was adopted and Mr. Hall instructed to prepare nec- essary plans. On March 25, 1886, the building committee, M. B. Dunham, B. Nesmith, and A. Fisher, was duly elected. " The court-house, through the courtesy of J. Clinton, T. L. Putnam, and M. Crocker, the county commissioners, was secured as the place for holding services. " May 23, 1885, resolutions were passed to commence active operations at once. This was the decisive step toward which all previous efforts had been directed, and this dates the commencement of the work. On May 31, 1885, the last service was conducted in the old church by Rev. W. W. Painter, and on Monday, June i, 1885, under the direction of A. Fisher, the first blow was struck toward demolishing the old church, which rapidly followed. "The corner-stone was laid August 18, 1885. Rev. John Feate presided at the exercises, delivering an appropriate address and depositing beneath the corner-stone the box of records described at that time. " The burden of the work almost from the beginning fell upon Benjamin Nesmith, of the building committee. He assumed charge with his accus- tomed vigor, and from the date of the commencement, June I, 1885, down to September 19, 1886, there was, no cessation of operations. The debris of the old church was properly cared for and removed, the excavation for found- dation walls dug, and the stone work was contracted to Charles Ott, who laid the foundation walls completely. A. B. McKain superintended the frame work and erection of the trusses, rafters and towers. John Beebe, of James- town, was placed in charge of interior carpenter work when work was com- menced inside. The brick work was contracted to Benjamin Jones, of James- town. " Delays in securing plans carried the work late into the fall and winter of 1885 and 1886, which fortunately proved open long enough for completion of the brick work before frosty weather. The cut-stone work was under direc- tion of Joshua Yerden, and the Ohio sandstone used, the native stone being used for steps and balance of stone work. Brick were furnished by Mecusker, of Jamestown ; the front, including the towers, being finished in pressed brick and the balance in selected brick. The slating and galvanized iron work and spouting were furnished by Machwirth Bros., of Buffalo. The outside painting and sanding was done by N. K. VVcndlcboe, of Warren. " The method of heating and ventilation is what is known as the Ruttan heating and ventilating process — the same employed in the new school-house Borough of Warren. 381 in the West End, and insures distribution of heat and a constant change of air, which may be regulated to almost any temperature. The windows are made of rolled cathedral glass throughout, and put in by S. S. Marshall & Bro., and are of remarkable beauty in tint and design. The three large circular win- dows, fourteen feet in diameter, being especially attractive when lighted at night. The doors throughout, with the exception of eight hard wood doors, are from the factory of L. D. Wetmore & Co., Warren. The ceiling of the auditorium is of corrugated iron, furnished by A. Northrup & Company, of Pittsburgh. This ceiling is simple, durable, safe and handsome. Beck & Allen, of Warren, have made a lasting record for themselves in the plastering job. Tunstall & Thompson built the elaborate staircases and have also done themselves credit. " No pews are used in the church ; but in both auditorium and gallery chairs will be used, which are constructed with folding seats, provided also with foot- rest, book-rack, number-plate, hat-protector, and umbrella-rack. The wood- work is of deep, rich cherry or mahogany color. They are furnished by A. H. Andrews & Co., of New York. " The inside graining and finishing has been principally done by B. M. Slay- ton, of Warren, and the work speaks for itself. All of the halls and the kitchen are floored in hard woods. The entire building is finished in oak and ash and wainscoated throughout, the natural grain of the wood being left un- touched, except by the polishing, filling and varnishing, making the appearance delightfully substantial and handsome. "The ladies of the church deserve the highest encomiums. They have never faltered a single moment. Their subscription of $1,000, increased to $1,500, was paid promptly, adding another round $800 for carpets and chairs in the Sunday-school rooms. They have sewed all the carpeting from gallery top to kitchen. They have labored in hot and cold, wet and dry, pleasant and unpleas- ant times, and as they have continued to do what they could, have given time labor, money, everything, for the cause they loved. During the various changes of the church in the past fifteen months the utmost harmony has prevailed, and under the careful and sacrificing attention of Rev. W. W. Painter the congregation has remained intact and all current expenditures of the church provided for. Other churches and the Good Templar Lodge and order of A. O. U. W. kindly tendered them the use of their edifices and halls, and the congregation greatly appreciate their courtesy and interest. Rev. W. W. Painter will ever be held by church, congregation, and the citizens of the community in the highest esteem, for the highest measure of Christian fellow- ship and untiring zeal in promoting, fostering, and at last successfully terminat- ing the work of erecting this building, from which Christian influence will go forth through all the coming generations. He has received no extra compensation and mere temporal reward would be trivial ; but the affection of his people and the blessing of God will surely attend him. 382 History of Warren County. "The new pipe organ is a fine instrument. It was manufactured by John- son & Son, at Westfield, Mass., and cost about $2,ooo. What is called the great organ has 406 metal pipes. The swell organ has 290 metal pipes, and the pedal organ has twenty-seven wooden pipes, with numerous accessory stops, pedal movements, and wind indicator. The descriptive list of stops, etc., would hardly be interesting to the general reader. " The dedication took place last Sunday, September 19. The sermon of Dr. Sims Sunday morning was a very eloquent and earnest appeal for the Christian Church, from the 137th Psalm, 5th and 6th verses : ' If I forget thee, O Jeru- salem, let my right hand forget her cunning. If I do not remember thee let my tongue cleave to the roof of my mouth; if I prefer not Jerusalem above my chief joy.' The doctor is a silver-tongued talker, and held the crowded audience in close attention for nearly an hour. When he closed Dr. Boyle, of Pittsburgh, read the treasurer's statement showing the cost of the new struct- ure, including sidewalks, seating, lighting, heating, carpeting, furnishing, and new pipe-organ, is about $35,000. After deducting the amount subscribed and paid they found themselves in debt $20,000 ; and then commenced a zealous appeal for the money to be pledged then and there. The subscriptions were taken, payable in four annual installments. First they called for $500 promises. Mr. Thomas Keelor responded first, quickly followed by B. Nes- mith, M. B. Dunham, and the other heavy men of the church. Mr. Dunham is the largest contributor, having paid nearly $7,000, besides giving his time and attention freely. Then came the $300 call. This dragged a little, but several responded ; then the $200, $100, $50, and $25 subscribers made up the sum of $16,000, before adjournment. At the evening session the whole bal- ance was pledged, making a splendid offering of $20,413.47 in a single day. The Methodist society entertain the deepest feelings of gratitude toward the citizens and friends who generously subscribed. It was a great success, and the members and managers have a right to feel very thankful to the liberal subscribers, as well as to God from whom all blessings flow. "The formal ceremony of dedication in the evening, after Dr. Boyle's ser- mon, was beautifully impressive. Dr. Sims called up the trustees and solemnly charged them to guard carefully the sacred trust placed in their keeping." Rev. W. P. Bignell, the present pastor, succeeded Mr. Painter in the fall of 1886. First Baptist Church of C/trist. — On Friday, the 2d day of May, 1834, in response to a request from a number of communicants of the Baptist Church who had previously united in conference, a council representing churches at Pine Grove, Ashville, and Carroll, and partly composed of delegates from the New York Baptist State Convention, convened at the court-house in Warren, for the purpose of organizing a church. The ministers present were Revs. Foot, Fuller, Coleman, and Gildersleve. After being accepted by the confer- Borough of Warren. 383 ence as their council they proceeded to organize, choosing Isaac Fuller, moder- ator, and James McClellen, clerk. This body of believers was then recog- nized as a church — a member of the Baptist denomination. There were six- teen persons who thus composed the first germ of the present Baptist Church in Warren, viz. — Mrs. P. Curtis, Miss F. Curtis, Mrs. H. Gier, Mrs. P. Doty, Mrs. M. Shaw, Miss Elizabeth Morse, Mrs. P. Waters, Mrs. P. Strong, Miss Louisa Wheeler, Mrs. Mary Comstock, Mr. O. W. Shaw, Rfr. W. M. Morse, W. M. Gildersleve, Mr. E. Doty, and Mr. Curtis Pond, who was soon after elected deacon. The " articles of faith," though not recorded in the church book, were of that character, at least, that a Baptist council regarded them Baptistic. Hence public exercises were observed as follows : Sermon was preached by Rev. Cole- man, right hand of fellowship by Rev. Fuller, and concluding prayer by Rev. Gildersleve. For eight years this society held services without the aid of a regular pas- tor, and only occasionally listened to sermons from the missionaries, Revs. King, Williams, Gildersleve, Wilson, and Gill. All this time, and afterward, from 1842 to 1857, they worshiped in the old court-house, on the ground now occupied by the new court-house. In 1844 a committee was appointed to con- sider the feasibility of building a church edifice. Ground was purchased and some of the materials were drawn upon it, but unforeseen hindrances prevented the consummation of the project at that time. The pastors through this period were Revs. Handy, Everetts, and Smith, and the deacons were Messrs. Win- chester and William Snyder. At this time the Sabbath-school was organized. In the summer of 1859 the present church edifice was commenced, on the Mi- ner Curtis lot, near the then residence of Chapin Hall. It was completed in the summer of i860. A part of the subsequent history of this church is given in the language of Rev. E. D. Hammond, as reported in the Evening Para- graph on December i, 1884: " Commencing with 1857, we find this church still worshiping in the court- house. In answer to a pressing call from the little church, Rev. B. C. Wil- loughby became pastor, remaining until i860. As a result of his wise manage- ment and persistent efforts, the church building in which we congregate to-day was built and dedicated to the worship of God in i860. Too much praise can- not be given to the self-sacrificing pastor and little band at that time. During the same pastorate the church improved spiritually and increased in member- ship. It was during this period that two brothers were taken into this church who have proved to be ambassadors for Christ and an honor to the church. I speak now of John S. Hutson, received in April, 1858. Believing himself to be called to the work of the ministry, and the church discerning in him gifts and graces fitting for the work, he was licensed to preach the gospel. He soon afterward took a letter from the church and went to fully prepare himself for 384 History ok Warren County. the work. After completing a college course and graduating from the theolog- ical department of Lewisburgh University, he was ordained in 1868 to the reg- ular work of the gospel ministry, and has since served as pastor of the churches at Stockton, N. Y., Allegheny City, Pa., and Warren, O. " Rev. G. W. Snyder was converted during the winter of 1857 and 1858, and at once began active work for the Master at Sheffield, where he was teaching school. A number of his pupils were converted. He united with the church in May, 1858. He pursued his studies in Allegheny College and Crozier The- ological Seminary, graduating from the former in 1863, and from the latter in 1869. After this he became pastor of the church at Columbus, N. J., remov- ing from there to Lock Haven, Pa., where he died in the summer of 1874, and in the summer of his life, being at the age of thirty- seven. He was a devoted minister of the gospel, an earnest student of the gospel, and loved learning for its own sake. His early struggles for a thorough education no doubt aided in taking him away. " The church may well cherish the memory of these two sons. They are noble sons of their mother church, and may the church live to conceive and bear for the gospel many such men ! " In 1864 we find another era in the history of the church. Norman Snyder and Deacon Gerould are deacons. In the fall of 1866 Rev. George Balcom came to hold revival meetings ; he was here four weeks, and as a result several were taken into the church. From 1866 to 1869 Revs. Hastings and Evens were pastors. In 1869 Rev. Trowbridge became pastor, remaining two years, during which time the church worked hard. This baptistry was then put in, the bell was placed in the place where it now is, and some members were added to the church. " In December, 1876, Rev. Mr. Hulbert commenced meetings. A great revival spirit was then seen in the community, and the membership of the church was doubled. "In May, 1877, Rev. E. F. Crane became pastor. In the month of July Brother A. J. Hazeltine, Mr. Waid, and Mr. Lorie were appointed deacons. " In the summer and fall of 1877 the church underwent thorough repairs, costing $3,350, and was rededicated December 20, 1877. Thus we are ena- bled to see from this time a continuous growth along all the lines of church work and spiritual development. " In January, 1879, Rev. H. H. Lcamy became pastor, lasting two years, and some members were added to the church during the time. " In the spring of 1881 Rev. Mr. Rea, a graduate from Rochester Theo- logical Seminary, commenced his labors with this church. During his pastor- ate the church had a healthful growth and the membership grew from sixty- five to one hundred and seventeen. His pastorate ended in May, 1884. Within a year or more this church has lost by removal some efficient church workers. Borough of Warren. 385 The Great Shepherd, however, has kept watch over the flock, and has filled the vacancies by others. Let us believe in the providence of God." The following are the names and dates of service of the respective pastors of this church from the beginning to the present : Church served by missionaries, 1834-42 ; Alfred Handy, Nov., 1842-June, 184s; Rev. W. R. Northrop, supply, March, 1847-Sept., 1848; Wm. Everet, Sept., 1848-June, 1852; Wm. Smith, April, 1857-Sept., 1857; B. C. Wil- loughly, Oct., 1857-60; A.J. Hastings, Oct., i86s-Oct., 1866; Thos. Evans, Feb., 1867-Oct., 1867; I. Trowbridge, March, 1870-Aug., 1871 ; J. Harring- ton, Oct., i87S-Jan., 1876; E. F. Crane, April, 1877-Oct., 1878; H. H. Leamy, Jan., 1879-March, 1881; James Rea, April, i88i-May, 1884; E. D. Hammond, Sept., 1884-July, 1886; Wm. J. Coulston, Aug., 1886. The present membership of this church is 144, of which number one-third are male members. During the past year $103.63 was expended for benovo- lent objects. The estimated value of the church property is now $6,000. The present officers are Rev. William J. Coulston, pastor ; A. J. Hazeltine, clerk ; D. L. Gerould, treasurer; and H. E. Davis, secretary of the board of directors. St. Joseph's Church (Roman Catholic). — There is strong probability that the first religious services conducted by civilized men on the site of Warren borough took place more than a hundred and thirty years ago. There is evi- dence that during the progress of the French and Indian War an expedition of French Catholics passed from Canada to Fort Du Quesne and New Or- leans by the way of Lake Erie, Lake Chautauqua, Conevvango Creek, and the Allegheny River. From their records it appears that- they were accustomed to land at various places on the route for the purpose of holding religious serv- ices under the guidance of priests who accompanied the expedition (which was military in its nature and object), and that they buried at such places leaden plates inscribed with language revealing that they had thus taken pos- session of the country in the name of France. The records show also that they landed for such worship and formality at the junction of the Conewango Creek and Allegheny River. The plates have been discovered at a number of the places described in their records ; but, from vagueness, the spot on which they landed and in which they buried the plate at the mouth of the Cone- wango has never been determined. It has thus become a matter rather of conjecture than sober history, at least until the plate is unearthed and the exact site located. Among the first Roman Catholic families to settle in Warren county were three brothers named Thomas, Patrick, and Joseph Archbold, who came from Philadelphia in the early part of this century and took up about three hundred acres of wild land each, about two and a half miles below Irvineton. They were there previous to 1830. Other early families in the county were the Mc- Graws, of Triumph, the McGuires, of Tidioute, and William and Sylvester 386 History of Warren County. Carlow, brothers, who came from Canada to Warren. The first bishop to visit Warren county was Francis Patrick Kendrick, who came from Philadelphia on horseback between fifty and sixty years ago, and held services at the house of Joseph Archbold. He also held services in the court-house at Warren. From this time the various places in the county were visited two or three times each year by priests from away, generally from Erie. The first Catholic Church edifice in the county was built at Warren about 1850, and has recently been converted into a school-house for that denomination. Rev. Father de la Roque remembers with gratitude the unselfish assistance rendered at that time by Protestants toward completing the house of worship. Orris Hall contrib- uted the lot on which the church now stands, and Mr. Summerton, the mer- chant, gave two hundred dollars, which was increased by other contributions from similar sources. This building has now been used for a school-house about four years. When the first church was building, Warren was attended by Father Deane, of Erie, and also by Father Thomas Smith, of Crawford county, and Father McConnell, of Frenchtown, Crawford county. In 1854 Father John Berbiger, the present assistant rector here, made his first visit to the church at Warren. The first resident priest was Father Thomas Lorna- gen, now rector of the parish at Corry. He was here from about 1858 to 1 866. Father Voisar, now in the diocese of Toronto, was rector of this parish in 1867 and 1868. In 1869 the present rector, Rev. M. A. de la Roque, came here from Meadville, Pa., and remained in charge ever since. His assistant, Father Berbiger, settled here in 1880. The present house of worship was dedicated on the 6th of May, 1880, after a period of building which lasted two years. The cost of the edifice and site was about $20,000. There are now in the neighborhood of 150 families in the parish. The next church in the county was built at Tidioute by Father Lornagen about 1864. There are there at present some forty or fifty families. The church at Irvineton was erected in 1870, and is attended by Father James Lavery, of Tidioute. At this place there are about fifty Catholic families. A chapel was built on Quaker Hill in 1874, where about six families worship. The church edifice at Clarendon was built in 1876, and is attended by Father Berbiger. At this place are about 100 families. The church in Sheffield township was built in 1878, and is occupied by about fifty families, attended by Father de la Roque. In Garland a church has just been completed, which is under the care of the parish of Corry, and is occupied by some fifteen or twenty families. A lot has been purchased for the erection of a church at Kinzua, and this work will undoubtedly be completed in the near future. The old church edifice at Warren was converted into a school-house in September, 1883, and was divided into two departments. It was soon discovered to be too small, however, and in the summer of 1886 it was sup- plemented by an adjoining structure. The entire average attendance at these Borough of Warren. 387 schools at present is about 150. The school is taught by sisters of the Bene- dictine order, five in number, who came from St. Mary's, in Elk county. They are thoroughly efficient, and give lessons in music in addition to the common branches of learning. Trinity Memorial Church. — The beginnings of the Episcopal Church are faintly indicated by the fact that a church called the Calvary Church, of War- ren, was incorporated by order of the court on the 8th of October, i860, and that the Trinity Memorial Church was incorporated on the 9th of March, 1867, and was undoubtedly the successor of the Calvary. The circumstances attending the organization of this church, and its subsequent history are given in the following extract from the Warren Mail of October 26, 1886. It is taken from an address written by M. Beecher, of Warren, and delivered upon the occasion of the laying of the corner-stone of the St. Saviour's Church at Youngsville, on the 21st of October, 1886. We reprint only so much as seems to be pertinent in this place. " An interesting event for Youngsville was the laying of the corner-stone of its new Episcopal Church last Thursday, October 21, under the direction of Dr. A. W. Ryan, of Warren, who was assisted by Rev. Henry Mitchell, the new assistant to Dr. Ryan, Rev. H. L. Yewens, of Franklin, Rev. S. P. Kelly, of Pittsburgh, and by the choir and vestry of the Warren church. " Among the ceremonies, William Schnur read the following paper prepared by Mr. Beecher, who was unable to be present. It was intended to be a cor- rect history of Trinity Memorial Church, of Warren, and its missions, and is well worthy of being read and preserved. " 'The part which has been assigned to me to-day in the exercises of this in- teresting, and, to the people of Youngsville, memorable occasion, is a very sim- ple and prosaic one. It calls for no flights of fancy, flowers of rhetoric, or well- rounded periods. It will deal simply with the leading events connected with the history of the Protestant Episcopal Church of Warren county, which is in reality but a history of Trinity Memorial Church, Warren ; and may the or- deals through which it has passed stimulate you to encounter and overcome obstacles and difficulties which in the distance may appear unsurmountable, but which grow smaller as you approach, and disappear when grappled with. " ' It is only by earnest, persistent effiart in any good work that success is ensured, and that too, oftentimes, in the face of apparent failure. " Be ye there- fore steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord ; foras- much as ye know that your labor is not in vain in the Lord." " 'Previous to the year 1858 there never had been but one service of the church held in Warren county. But in July of that year Rev. Dr. Egar, now of Rome, N. Y., who married a daughter of the late Judge Merrill, held one or two services in the Presbyterian Church in Warren. In i860 Bishop Bowman made a visitation, accompanied by Rev. Mr. Abercrombie, of St. Paul's church. 388 History of Warren County. Erie, and held services in Johnson's Hall. The only ones to read the responses were Mr Struthers, Judge Johnson, Col. Curtis, Archibald Tanner (father of Mrs. Scofield), Geo. A. Cobham and family, Mr. and Mrs. Hoskins, Miss Mer- rill, Mr. and Mrs. M. Beecher. " 'Although the little band of worshipers there assembled looked somewhat lonesome in that large hall, it was an occasion of deep interest, and when the service was opened with — " The Lord is in His holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before Him," there was a feeling of solemnity pervading every heart, and that even there might be realized the promise that " where (even) two or three are gathered together in His name He would grant their re- quests." "'Two years later Bishop Potter, with his son Henry C, now assistant bishop of New York, held services in the Baptist Church. After this Bishop Stevens visited Warren and held services in the Presbyterian Church, and a year later Bishop Lee, of Iowa, in the Methodist Church. " 'On August 3, 1 86 1, about a year after Bishop Bowman's first visitation to Warren, he started from Pittsburgh to visit what was then known as the Oil Regions of Pennsylvania, a region infinitely smaller than what is now embraced in that name. When about twenty miles this side of Pittsburgh a landslide was encountered, which made a walk of about two miles necessary to enable the passengers to take a train awaiting them on the other side. In his then enfeebled condition the bishop was unable to keep up with the rest, and was missed when the train was about ready to start. On going back to look for him he was found dead by the roadside — another example of that mysterious dispensation of divine Providence which passeth man's understanding. So useful a life and so sudden and remarkable a death seemed to demand more at the hands of a bereaved people and diocese than was customary in ordinary cases to bestow. To that end it was suggested that a memorial church should be erected in the region he was about to visit when overtaken by death, and that the whole diocese of Pennsylvania should be asked to contribute for that purpose. "'Accordingly collections were taken up in all the parishes of the State, and the sum of $5,200 was realized. Then the question arose as to where the money should be expended. Bishop Potter, as one of the trustees of the fund, suggested that the site selected should be at some point on the Allegheny River between Kittanning and Warren — probably at the latter point. To this end he offered $4,000 of the fund, providing Warren would raise a like amount. This was deemed at that time as impossible. "'A delegation of sixteen was sent from Titusville to Philadelphia to repre- sent the church interests there and to pledge a compliance with the conditions imposed. Colonel Curtis was the only champion Warren had to represent her interests, he having business in the Supreme Court, then sitting in Philadelphia- Borough of Warren. 389 He argued the case of his cHent ably and eloquently, but the odds were too great against him, and Titusville was awarded the $4,000. But as Bishop Bowman died on the banks of the Allegheny, Bishop Potter was anxious that a church should be erected to his memory immediately upon its bank, and to that end the balance of $1,200 was reserved for Warren whenever that amount would be required to complete a church edifice. This fund was invested in Philadelphia city 6 per cent, bonds, which afterward amounted to $1,800. " ' In the spring of 1864 Bishop Potter made a visitation to Corry with the rector of St. Paul's Church, Erie, Rev. John F. Spaulding, now bishop of Col- orado, fully impressed with the importance of at once occupying this region ; and through his solicitations and those of Bishop Stevens the Rev. C. C- Parker, then a deacon, was sent in June, 1864, to this new and then unculti- vated field. " ' It was arranged that he should hold services at Warren and Corry on alternate Sundays, with his home at Warren. The first regular services were held in Warren in the Presbyterian Church, on the afternoon of June 26, 1864. The next service was held in the Baptist Church, which had been secured until the following December. In September of this year a Sunday-school was organized. It opened with five scholars. During the Sundays Mr. Parker was officiating in Corry the school was held in the dining-room of Mr. Beecher's house on Liberty street. " 'When compelled to vacate the Baptist Church, rector and vestry were in a quandary what to do, as they were again thrown upon the charity of a cold world without an abiding place. Finally they decided to apply to Judge Johnson for the use of the east room in Johnson's Exchange. This application was met in a most liberal and Christian-like spirit. The hall, with the requisite number of settees, was at once set apart for the exclusive use and control of the church, free of charge. It was neatly fitted up for church and Sunday- school purposes, and here services were held until the completion of Trinity Memorial Church, in the summer of 1867. Soon after Mr. Parker's coming to Warren much discussion was had relative to the building of a church edifice, thereby enabling it to claim the Bishop Bowman fund reserved for that pur- pose. After many vexatious delays and hindrances a subscription was finally started. " ' During the winter the rector and his estimable wife taught the Sunday- school scholars an oratorio, with the aid of local talent, from which entertain- ment was realized a sufficient amount to purchase a cabinet organ for the church. " ' In the mean time, subscriptions having progressed satisfactoril}', the building of a church was decided upon. Matters were pushed as vigorously as possible — some delays occurring as a matter of course — and on the i6th day of July, 1867, the church was finished and furnished complete, at a total cost. 390 History of Warren County. including the lot, of $11,375, ready for the first service, which was held that P. M. at five o'clock. "'The day following, July 17, the time fixed for the consecration of the church, the procession entered, preceded by J. H. Palmer, senior warden ; M. Beecher, junior warden ; C. B. Curtis, L. L. Lowry, John T. McPherson, John Sill, and Lewis F. Watson, and followed by Bishop Kerfoot, Rev. J. F. Spauld- ing, rector of St. Paul's Church, Erie ; Rev. Marison Byllesby, of Christ's Church, Meadville ; Rev. Henry Purdon, D. D., of St. James Memorial Church, Titusville ; Rev. R. D. Nevius, of Christ's Church, Oil City ; Rev. George C. Rafter, of Emmanuel Church, Emporium ; Rev. John T. Protheroe, of Em- manuel Church, Corry, and the rector, Rev. C. C. Parker. The sentence of consecration was read by Rev. Mr. Billesby, and the sermon was preached by the bishop. The services throughout were exceedingly interesting and impressive, and all rejoiced that the labors of years had at last been rewarded with full fruition. Mr. Parker continued his earnest work for nearly a year afterwards, when he resigned his charge and removed to Greenburg, Pa. His resignation took effect Easter Monday, 1868. To his self-sacrificing efforts and untiring zeal, and a faith that though in darkest hours sometimes wavered yet never forsook him, to him more than any one else is Trinity Memorial Church of Warren indebted for its present existence. At this date there were only sixteen names on the list of communicants, of which only three were males ; and of these for a long time the only one present to respond to the invitation " Draw near in faith," was Isaac Ruff, a colored man. " ' The next rector of this parish was the Rev. Henry S. Getz, of Mahonoy City, Pa., now assistant rector of the Church of the Holy Apostles, Philadel- phia. He was a God-fearing, God-loving, faithful Christian worker, who was beloved not only by his own congregation, but by all others with whom he came in contact, for his many noble qualities of head and heart. He was dean of this convocation until it was merged into the Erie deanery. He was also rector of the church at Tidioute, holding week-day services there. His rector- ship covered a period of upwards of thirteen years, when he resigned, his resig- nation taking effect on the 1st of October, 1882. " 'No special effort was made to secure another rector for several months, although many letters were received on the subject. It was not until the fall of 1883 that matters assumed a definite shape and the Rev. Albert W. Ryan, of Howell, Mich., was secured. Of his work in Warren, Clarendon, Youngs- ville, and other points in the county it would be out of place to dwell upon on this occasion. That he is peculiarly fitted for the work he has undertaken is fully attested by his superior mental endowments, his sound and varied scho- lastic attainments, and a push and vigor which stop at nothing short of success. His present assistant. Rev. Mr. Mitchell, comes to us as a stranger, but with a good record as an efficient and successful co-worker.'" Borough of Warren. 391 Scandinavian Evangelical Lutheran Cluircli. — This church was organized on the 7th of June, 1871, some of the original members being Axel Carlson, George P. Miller, Herman Greenlund, Lars Hanson, Erik Anderson, and Adolf F. Larson. These with others, numbering in all about thirty-five, constituted the first organization. The meetings both before and after this time were held in the building still occupied, though it then belonged to the German Luth- eran Church. In this same year (187 1), however, the Scandinavian Church purchased the church building and lot, and now own it. The work of acquir- ing this property should be accredited chiefly to a Miss Sara Carlson (now Mrs. Larson), who distinguished herself by her Christian zeal at this time not only, but later, when she and her husband removed to Rock Island, 111., they presented $125 to this church, a remarkably unselfish gift, considering that they were and are by no means well to do. The price of the church building was about $800. It has been greatly repaired within and without since the last purchase was completed, and an addition erected in the front, surmounted with a neat steeple. The first Swedish preacher at this place was J. P. Loving, now living at Chandler's Valley. He was not an ordained minister, but came with good recommendations from the old country, and proved himself to be a man of sound doctrine and profound faith. He remained here between three and four years, preaching once or twice a month. J. Vender (who went from here to Rock Island, 111., was graduated from the Aug. College and Seminary, was or- dained a minister, and in 1882 died at his post on the Pacific coast). Axel Carlson, Erik Anderson, and others were good members and deacons of the church, who by their unwearied efforts in leading the Sabbath-school and prayer meetings, etc., kept up the interest of the congregation during vacancies in the pulpit. Several ministers of this conference who were stationed in this vicinity gave such time and attention to the welfare of this church during its feeble efforts at learning to walk, as their own congregations would permit. Rev. J. Millander, the first ordained minister who was given charge of this church, began his labors here in July, 1874. He was well Hked, and it was a great blow to his flock when about eighteen months later he handed in his resigna- tion. For some time after this the society was under the protection of students from the Aug. College and Seminary of Rock Island, III, especially under that of L. G. Abrahamson. In 1879 Rev. M. U. Norbury was called to take charge of the church ; eight calls previous to this one had elicited negative answers, but Mr. Norbury accepted. His stay here was but of a year's duration. Thus far this congregation had been obliged to divide the services of their pastors with several other congregations, as Kane, Titusville, Sheffield, etc. On the 14th of September, 1881, the present pastor, Rev. N. G. Johnson, took charge of his labors here. Although he has had the care also of other charges, he has devoted as much time, or more, as could be expected. In the spring of 1882 392 History of Warren County. he was forced by ill health to visit Sweden During his absence of some five months a Danish minister named P. C. Fronberg, then a recent arrival from Denmark, filled the vacancy. Although he was scholarly and zealous, his ideas did not conform with the preconceived opinions of his congregation, and a division arose in the church, which culminated in the separation from the con- gregation of a number of members. In 1883 a resolution was adopted that the church should build or buy a new parsonage, and subscriptions soon amounted to about $1,100, with which the present suitable and neat dwelling was purchased. The congrega- tion, although necessarily small in numbers, has indeed made wonderful prog- ress, considering the adverse circumstances which have conspired to retard their growth. In 1885 the young people bought a fine pipe organ for the church. The pastor has much to do, for besides his pastoral labors in Warren he has charge over congregations, or missions, at North Warren, Glade Run, Stoneham, Clarendon, Irvineton, Tidioute, Triumph, etc. As a rule the Swedes are a religious people, and have a decided penchant for the Lutheran persuasion. The church is an Evangelical Lutheran Church of the Augustana Synod, which synod has a membership of more than 100,000, and an ordained ministry of about 230 members. There are not far from 140 members be- longing to this church in Warren. The present officers are George P. Miller, Martin Nelson, Charles Peterson, J. Seyser, C. P. Anderson, Peter Holmes, and Otto Marker. The church property is valued at about $3,500, while a small indebtedness rests on the church of about $200. The Evangelical Association, of Warren, was organized in 1833 t>y Rev. John Seybert. Its original members were H. D. Grunder, Mary E. Grunder, Conrad Gross, Saloma Gross, Adam Knopf, Mary E. Knopf Jacob Wise, Sal- oma Wise, Magdalene Martin, Philopena Martin, George Weiler, Barbara VVei- ler, Martin Esher, J. J. Esher, George Esher, D. Gross, sr., D. Gross, jr., Jacob Ott, F. L. Arnett. In 1852 a brick church edifice was built on Liberty street. In 1883 this structure was extensively remodeled at a cost of $4,000. During the year 1 876 a frame church was built at Mack's Corners, in Elk township, costing $1,200. The pastors of this association, which extends into Conewango, Glade, and Elk townships, have been, in the order of their coming, as follows : John Sey- bert, J. K. Kring, E. Staver, J. Bricklcy, J. Honecker, J. Boas, J. Yambert, H. Bucks, R. Miller, J. Lutz, H. Heis, J. Long, S. Heis, J. Rank, J. Truby, J. C. Link, J. Edgar, J. Dick, A. Stahle, S. B. Kring, A. Niebel, J. G. Pfeuffer, A. Long, C. Lindaman, B. L. Miller, Jacob Honaker, C. G. Koch, R. Mott, J. J. Barnhart, R. Mott, A. Rearick, B. L. Miller, W. Houpt, T. Bach, and L. M. Boyer ; the latter gentleman, a veteran of the late war and a native of Som- erset county. Pa., still being in charge. For many years the Warren congregation was e.xciusivcly German, and Borough of Warren. 393 religious exercises were conducted in the language of the Fatherland. By degrees, however, English was introduced, and in the spring of 1884 it was wholly adopted. The present members are two hundred and forty-seven in number, and the church property owned by them (two churches and a parsonage) is valued at $1 1,000. We will conclude our remarks on church matters by saying that the first preaching in the county, of which we have authentic data, was rendered by the Rev. Jacob Cram, of Exeter, N. H., a missionary of the Congregational Church. From his journal it appears that in 1805 he journeyed across Ver- mont and New York States to Olean, preaching at many points along the way. From the latter place he proceeded down the river to Warren. He met the Cornplanter, and informs us that the Quakers had a mission near the latter's settlement, which was established by them about 1798. They also operated a small saw and grist-mill located near the mission. Cornplanter was rather cool, and expressed his distrust and dislike of Yankee preachers. He said he had seen and heard them at councils. They would preach and talk very fair to the Indians, but immediately afterwards would be found try- ing to cheat the poor Indians out of their lands. The missionary preached at Kinzua and at the house of Daniel Jackson, on the Conewango. At this place he said the people were very attentive, and he received more money from them for missionary purposes than at any other place in the western country. He also made note of the fact " that Warren had a beautiful situation for a town, though there were but four or five houses in the town plot." From Warren he journeyed northward (stopping to preach at the " Beech Woods Settlement") to Buffalo and into Canada, and thence eastward to his home. The first Methodist quarterly meeting ever held in the county was also convened at the Jackson homestead, on the Conewango, in 1812. There were present Bishop McKendrie, Rev. Jacob Young, the presiding elder of the Ohio District, Rev. John P. Kent, of Chautauqua county, N. Y., and Rev. William Connelly, of Venango county. Pa. Many people assembled from Kinzua, Brokenstraw, and the Beech Woods, and numbers of them, being compelled to stay all night, slept on the hay mow in the barn. 394 History of Warren County. CHAPTER XXXni. HISTORY OF CONEWANGO TOWNSHIP. ALTHOUGH Conewango was not the first township to be organized in the county, it is given a place in these pages next to the borough of Warren, by reason of the fact that from 1 808, when it became the second township of Warren, until 1832, the town was only part of the township, and the corporate limits of the former are still largely environed by the latter. The term Cone- wango is supposed to be of Indian origin, but as now written and pronounced it bears no more resemblance in form and sound to the name applied one hun- dred and fifty years ago, than do the letters A and Z. From " Kanonogon " it has been changed through a long series of years to " Kanaougou," " Kanoa- goa," " Canawagy," " Conewauga," " Conevvagoo," " Canawago," " Conna- wango," until now we have what many simple folk suppose a simon pure Sen- eca term, spelled Conewango. A majority of our so-called Indian names of streams, towns, counties, territories, and States have gone through the same processes of change at the hands of white men. Indeed, they were wholly the work of white men in the first place. The Indians, as we all know, had no writ- ten language, and in the attempt to fashion their gutteral monosyllables into written English, hunters, traders, and interpreters — some of them densely ignorant in letters — have furnished us many wonderful Indian names. The name and original boundaries of this township were established by a commission (appointed by the Venango County Court in 1806), whose report and recommendations were adopted and confirmed by the same authority in 1808. (See Chapter XIII of this work.) The township of Conewango then em- braced the eastern half of the county, and the first township election was held at the house of Daniel Jackson, in the town of Warren, which then consisted of five houses, in the spring of 1808. The first settler within its present limits, probably, was Daniel Jackson, who with his family began a residence on Jackson's Run, just north of Warren, in 1797. Much concerning him will be found in the history of Warren bor- ough, to which place he removed about 1805. Michael McKinney followed closely in the footsteps of Jackson as a settler of Conewango township, and it is believed by his descendants that he settled upon the farm where he lived for more than fifty years as early as 1798. He came here from Southwestern Pennsylvania, the scene of the Whisky Insur- rection — 1790-94. He died at the age of eighty-five years, of injuries received by a kick from a horse. His wife, a sister of Robert Russell, of Pine Grove township, attained the great age of more than one hundred years. Of the children born to them but one is now living — Eliza A., the wife of F. O. CoNEWANGO Township. 395 Crocker, of this township. The old McKinney homestead is now embraced in part by the asylum farm at North Warren. Jacob Goodwin also settled in the township about 1798, by squatting upon the premises since known as the Dougherty or Dunn farm. He was McKin- ney's immediate neighbor on the north. Martin Reese, sr., with his two sons Martin, jr., and John, came from Lycom- ing county and settled on the beautiful plateau lying in the bend of the river below Warren, about 1803-04. Here the family resided for many years, the tract occupied being known as part of the outlots of Warren or " Reese's Flats." John Reese, one of the sons above mentioned, married Miss Marcia Owen and settled upon the farm on Conewango Creek, where he resided for more than forty years, or until his death, which occurred in July, 1852. They were the parents of an intelligent and respected family. William Sturdevant, Asa Scott, and Asa Winter were also very early pio- neers in the township. The latter was one of the first three county commis- sioners elected, and as early as 1815 he owned and operated a grist-mill on the Conewango. In 1 82 1, by an order of court confirmed March 8 of that year, the two townships of Brokenstraw and Conewango, which to this time from 1808 had embraced the whole county, were divided into twelve townships (see Chapter XXV). By this division the area of Conewango was reduced to but a fraction of its former extent. Still, it was yet a large township, for by the boundaries confirmed in 1821 it included the major portion of the present township of Glade, while Tionesta was temporarily attached to it. The first township elec- tion, after the changes above referred to, was held at the house of Daniel Jack- son, in the town of Warren, March 16, tR-^t In the mean time, while the town had increased but slowly in population, the township had become quite populous, and a number of well-improved farms were already to be seen. The first assessment under the new condition of affairs was made in 1822, and the following list embraces the names, etc., of the resident taxables in town and township during that year : Andrews, John, J. P., county commissioners' Andrews, Robert. | clerk, etc. Arthur, Boon. Alden, Richard, clothier, operating fulling-mill. Arthur, James, lumberman. Arthur, William. Arthur, Robert, lumberman. Ayres, John W. Ayres, Alfred. Adams, Joseph, carpenter. Ballard, .Samuel. Buckalew, Isaac. Brewer, Philo, cordwainer. Brown, Samuel. Brown, John, prothonotary. Brown, David, Esq. Bell, Robert. Chandler, Alvah. Crull, Emanuel. Cranston, Peleg. Chapman, Elijah. Clark, Joseph. Dalrymple, Mark C, distillery, value i?400. Dalrymple, Wm. Dunn, Henry, inn keeper. Doan, Levi. Dougherty, Charles. Derby, Edward. 396 History of Warren County. Davis, Patton. Eddy, Zachariah. Follett, James, Senr. Foilett, James, Jr. Foster, Jesse. Foster, David. Gilson, John. Granger, Eli. Geer, Asa. Geer, John. Graham, Sam!., tailor, house and lot in town. Gray, Joseph. Green, John. Green, Christopher. Green, Parker. Green, Edmond. Hackney, John, tailor. Hook, Moses. Hunter & Fisher. Hook, Jacob. Houghwout, Danl., carpenter. Harriot, James, of Meadville, Hackney's part- ner in saw-mill and lumbering business. Houser, John P. Hall, Josiah, house and lots in town. Hackney, Jos., Esq., associate judge. Hall, Joseph, stone mason, Hubbel & McConnell. Hazeltine, Abner, attorney at law. Jackson, David, house and lot in town. Jackson, Dan!., Esq., Justice of the Peace. Jones, Harvey. Jordan, Elisha. Jones. Jehu, single man. Kelly, Julius. King, John, house and lots in town. Kidder, Corbin, single man. Kidder, Nathaniel, settled about 1820. Lewis, James B. Littlefield, Stephen, carpenter. Miller, Linus H. Marsh, John, Sr. Marsh, Enoch. Marsh, Joseph. Mansfield, Abel, carpenter. McKinney, Michael. McKinney, John, 2d, single man. Mead, Joseph. When Limestone was organized, in 1829, and absorbed the now obsolete township of Tionosta, it took the latter, of course, from the jurisdiction of Con- ewango ; and by the erection and organization of (iladc township, in 1844, Mead, David, Jr. Mead. Benjamin. Owen, Eben. Owen. Barnabas, single man. OIney, Rulus. Olney, Stephen, Senr. Olney. Stephen, Jr. Olney, Wm., carpenter. Owen, Eben, Jr., single man. Owen, Orange. Owen, Ethan. Potter, Jabez. Parmlee, Barrett & Co., merchants in town. Parmlee, L. S. Pier. Wm., cordwainer in town. Portman, John. Reese, John, innkeeper and owner of saw- mill. Reese, Martin, Senr., outlots west of town. Rogers, Le\'i. Reese, Martin, Jr. Rogers, John. Stewart, James, double saw-mill, lived in town. Stebbins, Elijah. Stebbins, Albinus, cordwainer. Swift, Seth, single man. Stiirdevant, James, Jr. Scott, Asa, blacksmith in town. Sawj-er, Hezekiah, carpenter. Saxton, Saml., house and lot in town. Shirley, Moses, single man. Simmons, Peter. Sly, Timothy, single man. Shipman, James. Trask, Samuel. Tanner & Dunn. Thompson, Abraham. Thompson, Caleb. Tanner, Arch., merchant. Valentine, Robt., saw-mill. Wetmore, Lansing. Wait, Reuben. Willson, Johnson, single man. Wallace, Caleb. Winter, Asa. Walbridge, , a distiller. Young, Matt., county treasurer. CoNEWANGO Township. 397 Conewango was reduced to about its present limits. It is centrally located in the county, the Conewango Creek forming its eastern boundary. In 1832 the town of Warren was erected into a borough, and at this time the interests of the two — town and township — in civil affairs became separated. Separate assessment rolls were made out in 1833, and from them we learn that Conewango's taxables, including that part across the creek afterwards attached to Glade, were as follows. We will first explain, however, that a considerable number of those owning lands in the township were residents of the village. The names, where positively known to us, will appear in italics : Arthur, Robert, saw-mill and seat. Adams, Warren Z., 18 acres. Berry, Sidney, single man. Berry, John M., saw-mill, 288 acres. Buckalevv, Isaac. Berry, John J., 94 acres. Babcoclc, Merritt, 100 acres. Bell, Robert, 357 acres. Babcock. Harley, 200 acres. Babcock, David. Blakesley, Benjamin, 50 acres. Brown, Joseph, 100 acres. Ci-gswell, Hubbard. CruU, Emanuel. Carter Zoar, 50 acres. Clark, David, 50 acres. Colver, John D., 50 acres. Chapman, Amos B., 100 acres. Chandler, Josiah. Cole, William. 100 acres. Canon, Gilbert. 120 acres. Connoutt. Harr)-, 190 acres. Canon, Samuel, 92 acres. Chase, Danl., 100 acres. Clark, Martin. Davis, John S., 1 24 acres. Dunn, Henry, 204 acres. Doty, Halsey, 100 acres. Doty. Elisha, 150 acres. Doty, Isaac, 100 acres. Dailey, Saml., 160 acres. Dalrj-mple, Corning, 234 acres. Dalrymple, Joseph, 50 acres. Dean, Levi, 34 acres. Follett, 'James, 3 acres. Follett, James, Jr., 254 acres. Farnsworth, Josiah, 100 acres. Grander, Henr\', 100 acres. Geer, Asa, 50 acres. Gregory, Anson, 50 acres. Gibson, David, 1 50 acres. Gordon, Joseph C, 95 acres. Green, Parker, 50 acres. Gray, John E., 137 acres. Green, Christopher, 250 acres. Gregory, .Asa, 113 acres. Graham, Joseph, 50 acres. Gray, Jason, 30 acres. Huntington, Jacob, 100 acres. Hook, Orrin, 1186 acres. Houghwoiit , Danl., 74 acres. Herrick, Henry, 50 acres. Hibbard. Luther, 205 acres. Holt, William, 100 acres. Hatch. Dorastus, 84 acres. Hook, Francis, 56 acres. Hall, Saml. D., 83 acres. Houghton, James, 149 acres. Hamlin, Jacob, 1 50 acres. Hackney, John, 100 acres. Jackson, David, 100 acres. Joy, John. Jackson, Wm., 100 acres. Irvine, William A., 336 acres. Jennings, Edmond, 100 acres. Knapp, David, 50 acres. Kidder, Nathaniel. 100 acres. King, John, 73 acres. Leonard, Levi. 90 acres. Leonard, Calvin, 40 acres. Leonard, Arnold, 57 acres. Lee, Philip. 96 acres. Littletield, John. 180 acres. Morrison. Abijali. McKinney, John, Jr., (sheriff) outlot. Morse, Joseph. Morse, William. Morrison, James, 100 acres and outlots. McKinny, John, 50 acres. Mead David, 56 acres. Mead, Joseph, 114 acres. Mead Benjamin, 236 acres. 398 History of Warren County. McKinny, Michael, i6o acres. Mair, Hugh, 550 acres. Mallony. John, 100 acres. Mallony, Meredith, 89 acres. Owen. Ethan, 50 acres. Owen, Barney, ic» acres. Owen, Heman, 124 acres. Owen, Mary (widow) 124 acres. Olney, John, 100 acres. Olney, Stephen, 185 acres. Ott, Jacob, 75 acres. Parker, Titiwthy /•'., 231 acres. Porter, Abraham B., 156 acres. Parker, Oliver, saw-mill. Perkins, Edson, J saw-mill. Reese, John, 539 acres. Russell, Robert, 100 acres. Reese, Martin, 56 acres and outlets. Reed, John, single man. Shipman, William, 400 acres. Sturdevant, William, 150 acres. Salmon, Amos, 100 acres, Sturdevant, James, 100 acres. Strubler, Andras. 100 acres. Sidler, Jacob, 40 acres. Shaw, Joseph, 83 acres and i saw-mill. Snapp, George, 100 acres. Spencer, Judah, 92 acres. Spencer, Abner, 250 acres. Spencer, Alfred, 112 acres. Shutt, Adam, 80 acres. Scott, Asa, 1 19 acres. Sly, Timothy, 50 acres. Turner, Thomas, 99 acres. Taggart, James, 240 acres. Tanner, Archibald, 244 acres. Tamter &" Falconer, 814 acres. Turner, Luke. 400 acres and tavern stand. Taylor, Charles, 360 acres and saw-mill. Winter, Asa. Williams, Wm. Wilcox, Thomas, 75 acres. Wilcox, Thomas, Jr., no acres. Wiley, Saml.. 4 acres and saw-mill. Whitney, Joel. Wright, Justus B., 40 acres. Simmons, Peter, 586 acres. During the last fifty years many and varied changes have taken place. The township has not increased in population and wealth to an unusual extent, but the names and personal characteristics of its people have undergone al- most a complete transformation. Those of English and Scotch-Irish ancestry have given place to those of Alsatian and German origin to such an extent that at this time the latter seem to be largely in the majority. They are an honest, moral, and industrious class of citizens, of which any country should be proud. The general surface of the township is high and broken. The stranger in driving over its roads in mid-summer, when the foliage by the wayside is dense, is suddenly confronted by an abrupt hillside, or has an opportunity of peering down into a deep ravine at frequent and the most unexpected places. The land when brought under cultivation is productive and lasting, and abund- ant crops of hay, potatoes, oats, corn, etc., are annually produced. It is also ■well adapted to grazing and dairying purposes. In 1886 the assessed valuation of taxable property, etc., was reported as follows : Value of lots and buildings, $80,735 ! acres of seated lands, 17,302 ; acres of unseated lands, 281 ; number of horses and mules, 312 ; number of oxen, four; number of cows, 386; number of resident taxables, 443. The little village of North Warren is very pleasantly located on the right bank of the Conewango, about two or three miles north of the borough of Warren. Besides the great structure known as the State Hospital for the In- CoNEWANGO Township. 399 sane, it has a woolen-mill, hotel, post-office, lumber yard, two or three small stores for the sale of groceries, hardware, flour and feed, and a number of blacksmiths, carpenters, etc. The woolen-mills, first known as the " Falconer Woolen Works," were es- tablished about 1848. Their principal work was wool carding, though even at the first some coarse cassimeres, plain cloths, tweeds, etc., were manufactured. In later years they were owned by Judge Wetmore. About twenty years ago George Hazeltine came into possession, and he has since successfully operated them under the firm name of George Hazeltine & Co. In 1873 a State hospital for the insane was located near the village by a commission appointed by the governor. After a personal inspection of several of the northwestern counties, for the location of such an institution, its mem- bers found no place so perfectly adapted to the wants and purposes as this, in the beautiful valley of the Conewango. The corner-stone was laid in the presence of Governor Hartranft and other distinguished visitors, September 10, 1874, and was sufficiently completed in 1880 as to admit patients. From the beginning its construction and management had been under the superin- tendency of Dr. John Curwen. In style, finish, and perfect adaptation to the purposes of its creation it is not surpassed by any similar institution in the State or on the continent. Its great good fortune has been to have the de- signing eye of Dr. Curwen over its architecture and construction, and of his learning and experience as physician-in- chief in its management and care of the unfortunate inmates. During the month of April, 1886, a correspondent of the Bradford (Pa.) Era prepared the following very complete description of this building, its size, cost, appointments, etc., and, believing that we can do no better byway of ex- planation, we insert it : North Warren Asylum. — The building, of brick faced with sandstone, is about 1,200 feet long, practically four stories high, situated about two miles north of the borough of Warren, in a beautiful valley drained by the Cone- wango Creek. It consists of a central building devoted to officers, reception- rooms, quarters for superintendent and medical staff, steward's office and rooms, pharmacy, sewing- room, chapel, and amusement hall. Extending at right angles from the center, and connected with it are a series of three con- necting wings, the north series devoted to male and the south series to female patients. These two series are divided into eleven wards each, making a total of twenty- two wards, capable of accommodating 600 patients according to the original plan, but now containing about 650, owing to the excessive overcrowd- ing of other similar institutions, and can hold without injury to the inmates quite a good many more. These wards connect with each other, those on the same floor by doors leading from one hall to another, and those on different floors by fire-proof stairways. In addition to the large double central stair- 400 History of Warren Coui ty. way there are two exits from each ward by means of the fire-proof stairways referred to. The building is fire-proof throughout, well heated, lighted, and ventilated. Each is classified, patients being assigned to such one as their condition warrants ; No. i being filled with those convalescent or nearly so, while No. 1 1 contains the cases that are most violent and hopeless. The inter- mediate numbers are graded from one to eleven, except No. 4, which, on the north side, is a private and on the south a sick ward. Each ward contains a dining-room, pantry, bath-room, wash-room, clothes closet, an automatic closet, sitting-room, and is supplied with hot and cold water, elevator from the kitchen, dust-shaft, clothes-drop, dry room, and is thoroughly lighted, warmed and aired. There is not in the entire building a single room of any kind, used by patients or attendants, which is not better lighted, heated, ventilated, and kept cleaner than the rooms of the best hotel in your city. Absolute cleanliness of rooms, halls, table service, beds and bedding is the most striking feature about the building. The heat is furnished by four steel boilers, each one hundred horse power, by a system of indirect radiation as simple as it is complete. The cold air is drawn through two towers by means of large fans, and by the same fans driven through underground tunnels arched with brick into the halls or chambers in the cellar, containing the radiators. Above the fans in the towers is a coil of steam pipe, another at the entrance to the tunnel, and still another at the point where the tunnels enter the radiator rooms. Air having an external tempera- ture of zero will thus reach the radiator at about forty- eight above, and then passes through another individual radiator, inclosed and connected with the portion of the building designed to be warmed by it. Each room and hall has separate heating radiators, and can be shut off or opened at pleasure with- out in any way affecting the balance of the house. By means of ventilating flues from each department the foul air is carried into air ducts connected with the towers on the main building, the towers being thus not only an addition to the looks, but also to the utility of the structure. The same boilers also supply hot water, steam for cooking, and the laun- dry, and for running the carpenter and machine shops. The water is pumped from the Conevvango into a reservoir back of the house, and from there dis- tributed by gravity. The pumps are of the Worthington duplex make, and the quantity of water for all purposes is about 1 80 barrels an hour. The pump house and gas works are contained in a handsome brick building near the bank of the creek, about an eighth of a mile from the hospital. The gas is made from coal and is abundant in quantity and of fair quality. Coal (anthra- cite) is used as fuel, although natural gas was used until the gas company wanted the building and some of the rest of the earth, when the trustees con- cluded to fall back on the old standard fuel, and coal was reinstated. All the furniture used in the building is made in the shop, and all repairs, plumbing. Brokenstraw Township. 401 gasfitting, etc., is also done by the regular employees of the State. A fine coach house of brick, in the rear of the house, furnishes ample quarters for the horses used for carrying the mail, airing the patients, and the steward's busi- ness. The garden supplies all the more common vegetables used, while the farming is perhaps as yet in its infancy. An immense barn, which will hardly bear favorable criticism either as to economy of construction, location, or adapt- ability to the requirements, is under process of erection. The grounds are being gradually laid out and beautified quite as fast as the limited means at the control of the superintendent will allow, and will in time be beautiful. Sixteen millions of brick were used in the building, which cost, including farm and buildings completed, in round numbers $1,000,000, and it can be said, to the credit of the gentlemen who had charge of the building and fitting up, that the money was well and judiciously expended. The work through- out is good, durable, and handsome, the material of the best, and the effect of the whole harmonious and elegant. CHAPTER XXXIV. HISTORY OF BROKENSTRAW TOWNSHIP. BROKENSTRAW township, which was organized as " Number Four," on the 8th of March, 1821, lies near the geographical center of Warren county, and is bounded north by Sugar Grove, east by Conewango and Alle- gheny River, separating it from the township of Pleasant, south by Deerfield, and west by Pittsfield. Although the soil of the town is for the most part well adapted for farming purposes, and is well drained by the Big Brokenstraw Creek, which takes its rise in the township of Columbus, and flows southerly and easterly through the townships of Spring Creek, Pittsfield, and Broken- straw into the Allegheny, and by Mathew's Run and Irvine's Run, which flow into the Brokenstraw, yet the original motive which induced settlement was the unusual facilities afforded by these same streams, and the splendid forests which at first covered the town, for lumbering. The names of these hardy and adventurous pioneers will be given soon. The name Brokenstraw, it seems, is taken from the Indian word of that meaning — Cushanadauga — bestowed upon this region from the fact that the Irvine Flats once bore an annual crop of tall prairie grass, which in the fall would break and fall over. About on the site of the present borough of Youngsville, during the Revolutionary War, the Indians had quite a village, called Buckaloon, from which they descended the river in canoes and commit- 402 History of Warren County. ted depredations on the country below. In 1781 Colonel Brodhead, with a detachment from Pittsburgh, attacked, and, after a siege of some days, drove them from their village, and destroyed a large crop of corn then growing on the flats. He then fortified his position by erecting breastworks at the highest point on the bank of the river, a short distance above the mouth of the creek, traces of which may still be seen. It is stated that Robert Andrews, who is mentioned more at length in the " History of Pittsfield," was the pioneer set- tler on the Brokenstraw ; but he was not long in advance of the first settlers in this township. The first resident settler here was probably John McKinney, who came on in the summer of 1795, with commissioners appointed by the gov- ernor to survey this part of the country. " McKinney," as the Hon. Samuel P. Johnson has well said, " was then a fresh import from the Emerald Isle, young, vigorous, and adventurous ; had first halted at Lancaster, where his serv- ices were engaged by the commissioners. His visit here had given him a view of this valley, and a knowledge of the fact that there was land here to be had for the taking." Accordingly he returned the next year, and took up what is still known as the McKinney farm, about one and a half miles east of Youngs- ville, on the road to Irvineton. There he lived two or three years alone, clear- ing the forests and subduing the obstinate wilderness. He then returned to La..^aster and married Miss Arthur, who afterward lived here with him and reared a family which have since become prominent beyond the town limits for energy and integrity. McKinney's house afterward became the hotel of the settlement. He was shrewd, hospitable, genial, and thoroughly democratic. He was one of the most extensive farmers of the neighborhood, and was a heavy dealer in lumber, horses, cattle, etc., etc. He had a large family of boys, and one daughter. The children of his son, Arthur, now occupy the old home- stead. John McKinney, jr., became a very wealthy citizen of Youngsville. He was the fifth sherifi" of Warren county, elected in 1831, and it was during his term of office that his father died. In 1829 he married Loranda, daughter of William Simmons, of Jamestown, N. Y., after which event they always lived on the place now occupied by his widow, in Youngsville. He died in Decem- ber, 1878. He was prominent as a lumberman, who in all his dealing avoided loss. In 1797 Callender Irvine, then a young man, undertook in person, aided only by his servant, " Black Tom," to make the actual settlement then required to perfect the title which his father, the famous Revolutionary general, had pro- cured. The first house stood on the ground now occupied by the railroad station at Irvineton, but this was abandoned for higher ground after the mem- orable " Pumpkin Flood " of 1805. When he came here his nearest neighbors were John McKinney, two miles above him, Mathew Young, on the site of Youngsville, and Robert Andrews, at Pittsfield. The Irvine family are of Scotch descent, some of their ancestors having received a grant of land in Ulster r-^»lPV HBFoir* 5»nA2ft** Brokenstraw Township. 403 county, Ireland, from James VI. For some time before the year 1804 (when his father died) Callender Irvine was in command of the fort at Erie, Pa.; but he then resigned his command to look after the extensive property left to him. He shortly afterward became commissary-general of the United States army, a position which he filled for some thirty-four years and until his death. (For a sketch of this family, especially of Dr. William Irvine, see later pages of this work.) The title to this extended property in the eastern part of Broken- straw has thus never been vested in any hands but of the Irvine family. In the spring of 1796 Mathew Young, a Scotchman and a bachelor, " pitched his tent " on the site of the borough of Youngsville, and began a career which justly entitled him to the distinction of bequeathing his name to the beautiful and prosperous village that sprang up around him. Mr. Johnson relates an incident of him which so tersely illustrates one of his peculiarities that we cannot forbear inserting it in this place : " Late in the spring of that year (1796) Callender Irvine, anxious to cultivate acquaintance with his neigh- bors, and to see how they prospered, walked up to see Mr. Young, and found him engaged in opening out what is now the main street of the borough, and extending it down the creek. He inquired of Young, with real curiosity, what he was about, and why he was not putting in some crops. With the utmost simplicity he replied : ' Why, man, I'm more fond of a beautiful prospect.' To which Mr. Irvine retorted : ' The prospect is, you will either starve or have to leave the country before spring.' Sure enough, when fall came he had no corn and was kept from starvation only by the surplus of provisions Irvine had and generously furnished him, when he went abroad to winter." Young lived for many years the life of a recluse, making his home most of the time with John McKinney, sr., at whose house he often taught children in the evenings. He taught school frequently in town, a calling for which he was well adapted, being well educated, and a friend and general favorite of chil- dren. He was county treasurer from 1821 to 1823, the second to hold that office (Archibald Tanner being the first). In 1807 he built the first saw-mill, on what is called the Siggins water power. He died on the 4th of August, 1825, while on a visit to Charles Smith, in Deerfield township, and was brought back in a canoe and buried in the village cemetery at Youngsville. His remains now lie in the cemetery of the Odd Fellows. He is described, by one who well remembers his appearance, as being tall, slender, and erect, with very light complexion and (in later years) with white hair. " He was simple in his character, earnest in his purposes, and eccentric in his habits, with a kind heart for all, and an integrity that was never tarnished." In 1798 Hugh Wilson emigrated from Northumberland county and set- tled on the place now occupied by the Rouse Hospital. He owned this entire farm of four hundred acres, and became a prominent and influential farmer and lumberman, though he had no mills. He reared a large family, and had one 404 History of Warren County. of the best farms in the county at the time. About 1835, by some misadven- ture in business, he became involved in debt, and was obhged to leave the home to which he had become endeared. He went to Clearfield county, where he died in 1S46. He was a man of generous and manly impulses, and an honest purpose. His hospitality was boundless. Contemporary with him, Joseph Gray settled on what was afterward called the McGuire and still later the Horn place, on the Brokenstraw. In 1793 Darius Mead, with his sons David, John, Darius, and Joseph, and two daughters, emigrated from the Susquehanna River in what is now known as Lycoming county, to the tract of land now embracing Meadville, from whom it took its name. By reason of the hostile demonstrations of the Indians they removed to Franklin, where was a fort and United States garrison. The following spring, while the father was plowing in a field in the vicinity, a party of three Indians came stealthily and suddenly upon him, seized and bound him hand and foot. They took him about twenty miles into the woods westerly from Franklin, where they stopped to encamp for the night. While the Indians were cutting wood for their camp fire. Mead succeeded in extricating one of his hands. As one of the Indians came up with an armful of wood, and was bending over in the act of kindling the fire. Mead stepped up, and drawing a large hunting knife from the Indian's belt, plunged it into his heart. The other two came up at that moment, and a desperate encounter at once com- menced. It is supposed that Mead succeeded in mortally wounding one of his antagonists, but he was finally o\'erpowcred and brutally murdered, and cut to pieces with a tomahawk. After the subsidence of the Indian troubles, David and John Mead returned to Meadville. In the spring of 1799 Joseph and Darius removed to Warren county with their families, the former settling on the Big Brokenstraw, where Mead's mill now stands, about a mile west of Youngsville. Darius located on the farm more recently owned and occupied by Captain James Bonner. In a year or two, however, he joined his brother, and with him built a grist-mill and two saw-mills. This was the first grist-mill in Warren county, there being at that time no mill within a radius of thirty miles. To the mill at Union, and that belonging to the Holland Land Company at Titusville, many grists were borne from this county on the backs of their owners or of the patient oxen, guided through the trackless forests only by Indian trails. Mead's mill, it has been said, was the Mecca to which the population of a large district made regular pilgrimages for supplies. It is said that in dry times some grists came forty miles. The inhabitants of Columbus brought their grists to this mill in canoes. Darius Mead was an acting justice for several years, and was hospita- ble and social in his habits. It is told of him that once, pending the delivery of a sermon at his house the Rev. Bishop Roberts, Darius Mead and his friend Isaiah Jones went to the cupboard and indulged in a drink of whisky. When Brokenstraw Township. 405 requested to postpone the drinking until after the services were over, he replied : "Bishop, stick to your text; never mind us and we'll not disturb you." Darius Mead died in 1813, and was buried in the cemetery on the original John Andrews farm. In 18 13 Joseph removed to a farm on the Allegheny River, three miles below Warren, including the island which still bears his name, and passed the remainder of his life there, dying in March, 1846. His wife, Hannah, died on the 25th of February, 1856, at the age of seventy-seven years and four months. They were the parents of fourteen children, eleven of whom were living at the time of their mother's death. Many of the descend- ants of these hardy brothers are now living in Brokenstraw township, and are worthy of their ancestry. After the death of Darius Mead the mill came into the hands of his nephew, John Mead, who had labored in them since 1807, as a hired man. John Mead, jr., was born near Sunbury, Pa., on the 28th of August, 1786. While he was yet a mere child his father, John, sr., removed to the valley of French Creek at Meadville, as before stated. In the spring of 1807 John, jr., came to the valley of the Brokenstraw, in company with his brother William, to labor in the mills of his uncles, Joseph and Darius. He married Sallie Hoff- man on the 1 2th of October, 1809, and built his house on a piece of land which his father-in-law gave him. In 18 14 he and John Garner bought the Mathew Young tract of 400 acres, for $2,500 — the tract containing nearly all the land now within the limits of the borough of Youngsville. He rebuilt the Mead mills several times. He died on the 4th of November, 1870. Before his death his son Darius operated the mills for some time, and finally sold the saw-mill to Mad. Alger and the grist-mill to H. T. Marshall. In connection with these mills it is well to mention honest and ingenious John Gregg, who came in the early part of this century and settled about two miles north of Youngsville. He ground the corn for the Mead mill, and also preached the gospel according to the Methodist persuasion, made hickory splint cables for the lumbermen at three dollars apiece, and educated two sons for the ministry. His brother, Samuel Gregg, a bachelor, hired out to Judge Siggins and cleared for him the place now occupied by his son, William F. Siggins. Another early settler, whose arrival in Brokenstraw antedates the year 1806, was William Arthur, who lived two miles west of Youngsville on the Brokenstraw, and as late as 1820 owned the mills at Wrightsville. His farm is now occupied by his son, William Callender Arthur. William Carpenter, also here previous to 1806, lived on the Brokenstraw, and is remembered as a lumberman of considerable activity. On one occasion he accompanied John Siggins and Daniel Horn to New Orleans on a raft. On their way back Sig- gins died at Natchez. Carpenter died some time previous to 1830, and has now no descendants in town. Still others who are mentioned in the list of taxables for 1806 were William Cochran, a single man, who sawed in the mill 4o6 History of Warren County. of Judge Siggins, and who afterward went to Pithole during the oil excite- ment, and became wealthy ; David Carr, who owned two hundred acres of land at the mouth of the Brokenstraw ; Abraham Davis, brother of Elijah, who (Abraham) lived on the Brokenstraw in the eastern part of the borough of Youngsville, on the place now occupied by his son, William A. Davis, and who farmed and lumbered until his death, something over twenty years ago ; John Davis, brother of Abraham, who lived on what is now East Main street in Youngsville, on the place now occupied by his descendants, who was the father of ex-Sheriffs Sylvester and Sylvanus Davis, now of Warren, and who, though poor, left his children an inheritance of brain and brawn which has secured them a competence and a good position in life; William Davis, brother of John Davis, and father-in-law of W. H. Shortt, who, until his death about seven years ago, lived in the eastern part of Youngsville borough ; Philip Huff- man, who lived in the western part of the present township of Brokenstraw, and carried on quite a farm there, where he died more than thirty years ago, an old man ; and Barnabas McKinney, who at first lived on a farm near the present Irvinton, until the early death of his wife, after which he came to live with his nephew at Youngsville. Nearly or quite all of the settlers before 1806 have now been mentioned, among them being some of the most prominent men in the history of the town. This chapter would be very incomplete, however, without some men- tion of such men as Judge Siggins and Abraham Davis, and others who arrived between the years 1806 and 1820. Judge William Siggins was born in Center county, Pa., in 1789. His father died in 1801, and two years later he came with his brother George to Pithole, in Venango county, then a wilder- ness almost uninhabited. It is related that the few settlers who were there were holding at that time an old-fashioned revival, that William Siggins was converted from the primrose paths of religious indifference, that he had the power, and that he received a pious impulse which did not forsake him in all the after years of struggle and activity. In 1 807 he settled on the Broken- straw, on the site of Youngsville and of the place now occupied by his son, William F. Siggins. There was no house of worship in this neighborhood then, and four years elapsed with little opportunity for Christian converse. In 181 1, however, he had the privilege of going to Meadville to attend the first camp-meeting ever held in this part of the country. He married in 1812, and at that time built a grist-mill at Pithole. In 181 5 he returned to Youngsville, where he remained until his death, on the 15th of July, 1875. His wife preceded him in 1855. Judge Siggins was a life-long and fervent Christian, though for reasons best known to himself he severed his connection with the church as early as 1837. He had not only a "sound mind in a sound body," but a powerful mind in a powerful body, and it was a pity that he had not the ad- vantage of a more thorough academic training, which would have made him ^ 't^ tl^%^ ^ ^' Brokenstraw Township. 407 more skillful in the use of the weapons that nature had put into his hands. He bore an active part in the War of 18 12, and was with Commodore Perry at Erie. His mind was admirably adapted for judicial labors, a fact sufficiently attested by his long service as justice of the peace, and his long train of deci- sions, not one of which, it is said, was reversed on appeal. He was also asso- ciate judge for the five years following 1842. He was decidedly impulsive in disposition, though his strong sense of justice usually checked him from mak- ing a perverse use of his natural force. The parents of Judge Siggins were both from the north of Ireland, and were of Scotch descent. His wife was Polly Wilson, of Center county. Pa. They had twelve children — eight sons and four daughters — of whom three sons and two daughters are now living. Two of the sons, Nathaniel and Will- iam F., now reside in Youngsville. His youngest son, Porter, served during the late war in the One Hundred and Eleventh Regiment of Pennsylvania Vol- unteers, and rendered distinguished assistance to the Northern cause — taking part in nineteen engagements. He was killed at Antietam by a bullet, which passed through a pocket Testament to his heart. (For a sketch of William F. Siggins, see biographical notes at the close of the volume.) James Davis, who is now the most aged of the surviving settlers in Bro- kenstraw, came to this township from Columbus with his father, Elijah Davis, in 1809. Elijah came to Columbus from Northumberland county six years previously. In 1809 they settled on the site of Irvinton. In 18 15 they removed to what is now Youngsville, where Elijah Davis died in 1823. James Davis was born in Columbus on the 2d day of October, 1804. On the 7th day of November, 1827, he married Jane Martin, a native of what is now Fulton county, N. Y., who at the present writing (December, 1886) is still living with her husband. On the 7th of November, 1886, they were given a party by their numerous friends in Youngsville, and presented with several elegant gifts. Mr. and Mrs. Davis have seven children now living — two sons and five daughters. Mr. Davis says that when became here in 1809 the " forest primeval " had hardly been broken into. The largest clearing was a five or six- acre plot at Irvinton. On the east side of the Brokenstraw, in what is now Youngsville, Mathew Young had cleared a tract of nearly the same extent, and had built and started a single saw-mill. Young then kept bachelor's hall in a small log house on the ground between the present Wade house and the hardware store. John Arthur then lived on the site of the present residence of William F. Siggins, and operated the saw- mill for Young. The two saw-mills and the grist-mill of Joseph and Darius Mead were then in active operation in the western part of the town. One John Crawford lived near the turn of the road leading to Tidioute, at Irvinton, the place being afterward occupied by John Long. Joseph Gray lived near the site of the Irvinton station, where the spring and the oak trees may now be seen. John Andrews had built a saw- 4o8 History of Warren County. mill below Irvinton, and lived where Dr. William Irvine recently died. There were no hotels or taverns in town, and no mills but those mentioned. The principal business even at that early date was the rafting of lumber to Pitts- burgh and New Orleans. The principal farmers in this neighborhood were Hugh Wilson, on the Rouse farm, and John McKinney, on the ne.xt farm below. Settlers Ai-riving between 1806 and 1820. — Following are brief items concerning the inhabitants of Brokenstraw township, whose arrival dates be- tween the years 1806 and 1820. Joel Barton was a farmer who lived about one and a half miles north of Youngsville, and a number of years after his arrival here removed to Pittsfield. Stephen Crippen lived about one and a half miles south of Youngsville. He was a carpenter by trade. He went west as many as thirty years ago. John Camp, a millwright, and an officer of the Methodist Church, lived on what is now called the Charles Whit- ney place. He was more than an ordinary man. About 1828 or 1830 he went to Missouri. John Crippen took up a farm on York Hill, also about one and a half miles south from Youngsville, but afterward sold his farm and moved to Youngsville, where he died, probably about twenty-five years ago. It seems that he has descendants now in Deerfield township. Judge Isaac Con- nelly settled on the farm which lies on the eastern line of Youngsville borough. He was the first associate judge appointed in Warren county, in i8ig, and held that office for twenty-one consecutive years. His son, W. W. Connelly, who now lives near Tidioute, was also associate for the five years following 1876. Isaac Connelly lived for a number of years in Deerfield township, where he owned and operated a saw- mill, but came back to Brokenstraw, where he died about 1864. None of his descendants are now in town, though he has two sons and several daughters elsewhere. Isaac Davis lived on Hull's Hill for a number of years, but died in Youngs- ville. He had a large family. John Dougherty was one of the earliest of the school teachers in Youngsville. Between 1825 and 1830 he removed to Buf- falo, where he became a merchant and speculator in lands, and acquired great wealth. Jeremiah Dunn, it is said, gave Dunn's Eddy its name by the prox- imity to that place of his residence. This is two miles below Irvinton, in the Allegheny River. He had an early tavern at that point, but went away years ago, and none of the family remain in the vicinity. Richard Duprey occupied a farm in the northern part of the town, toward Sugar Grove. Although he had a large farm, he also had a large family, and the wants of the one en- croached to such a degree upon the productiveness of the other that poor Duprey was nearly always "hard up." He died at least as early as 1850, leaving descendants which still survive. Andrew or "Andy " Farrely lived below Irvinton, and had a whisky distillery near "Still House Run." He also engaged more or less extensively in the lumber trade. He is described Brokenstraw Township. 409 as a hearty, driving fellow, tall and stout, and withal a good judge of whisky. He moved away at a pretty early day, leaving no descendants hereabouts. Roger Filer was a carpenter and joiner, and lived in Youngsville, where two of his sons, Samuel and Wallace, still reside and carry on the trade of their father. Roger died here of old age only a few years ago. Christopher Green came here in 18 17, and settled about half a mile east of the business part of Youngsville borough. In 1820 he removed to Yankee Bush, in Conewango township. James Green (grandfather of Dorwin Green, now a respected resi- dent of Youngsville) also came here in 18 17, and for some time kept a shoe shop in the western part of the borough. James Sturdevant, also grandfather of Dorwin Green, came in 18 17, and brought Dorwin with him, then an in- fant. Sturdevant settled on a farm in what is now the western part of the borough. He died very early, and was one of the first tenants of the old burying-ground. John Garner, who only a few years ago moved to Ohio, was an early settler on a farm about three miles west of the borough. He also owned and operated a saw-mill. Nathan Howard was the first occupant of what is now called CruU's Island, in the Allegheny River, and gave to that isl- and his name for a number of years. He went away, however, at an early day, and little is known about him. Powell Hoffman lived many years on the line between Pittsfield and Brokenstraw. His brother Jacob lived on the adjoining farm. They at last sold out and went to Union City. Descendants of theirs are now residing at Corry. Hull's Hill derived its name from Chester Hull, who was the first settler on its bosom. There he reared a large family and carried on a large farm. Three of his sons became Methodist ministers. Chester Hull died on Hull's Hill as early, probably, as 1825. Miner Noble, a cabinet-maker, lived and moved and had his being and plied his trade in the eastern part of the borough until about fifty years ago, when he and all his house went West. Amasa Ransom, a lumberman and farmer, lived about one mile west of the borough. He went to Beaver, Pa., forty years ago, though his son Adoniram has repurchased the old place and now occupies it. John Siggins was a single man and a brother of William, with whom he abode. He died previous to 1830. Another brother, Alexander, was a black- smith in Youngsville, and the pillar of the Methodist Church. His death oc- curred about twenty-five years ago. Adam Shutt lived and died on the Barney McKinney place, adjoining the Rouse farm. He reared a family of a number of sons and two daughters. One son, Jacob, is now an influential citizen of Covington, Ky., and another, William G., lives in Pittsford. Stephen Littlefield, a carpenter by trade, resided about two miles west of Youngsville until the oil excitement " in the sixties," when he sold out and removed to Kingsville, O. He was a strong Democrat and an influential poli- tician. He was elected the second sheriff of Warren county in 1822. His 4IO History of Warren County. descendants are not living in this neighborhood at the present time. Thomas McGuire had a farm and dweUing house a short distance west of the site of the railroad station at Irvineton, where he died not far from forty years ago. Philip Mead lived in the western part of Brokenstraw township. He had a large family of children, a number of whom are now residents of this vicin- ity. He died about twenty years ago. He was but distantly related to his namesake, who was so long a merchant and justice of the peace in Youngs- ville. Samuel Trask, a farmer, lived in the western part of Youngsville village, where he died ten or twelve years ago. He had quite a family. A grand- daughter, Sigourney by name, is at the head of a mission at Hong Kong, and is also a physician. Alfred Van Armon will be mentioned again in connection with the early taverns of the town. He was accustomed, when his guests were treating each other, to invite himself to join them with the remark, " What have I done that I shouldn't have a drink ? " and thus receive pay for drinking his own liquor. Charles Whitney, who died about twenty years ago at his home in the western part of Youngsville borough, was one of the wealthiest and most extensive lumbermen of early times. None of his chil- dren are now living. Nehemiah York, who has the distinction of giving his name to York Hill, acquired his possessions in part by taking up 400 acres of State land. He died at his home but a few years ago, leaving " him surviv- ing," according to legal phrase, a number of sons and daughters. Henry Kinnear, son of Robert, was born in Ireland on Easter Sunday in 1764. He came to this country about the year 1790. After passing a short time in the eastern part of Pennsylvania, he settled in Center county, where he remained a number of years. He married in 1797. Thence he went to Venango county, near Titusville, and came to Youngsville in 1815. During this season he purchased a part of the Mathew Young tract, built and occu- pied a small log house, and in the following summer erected a small framed storehouse. These buildings stood about on the site of the present Odd Fel- lows' Hall. Henry Kinnear was the first merchant in Youngsville. On the 6th day of August, 18 16, he was appointed and commissioned a justice of the peace by Simon Snyder, then governor of the State. His commission was recorded in Franklin, Venango county, on the 27th of August, 18 16, and again in Warren county on the 19th of December, 1 820. In 18 19 he was appointed one of the first commissioners of Warren county, continuing in that office two terms. Besides clearing his land and cultivating in some measure his farm, he kept a store sufficiently stocked to supply the needs of the community, and continued an acting justice of the peace during his lifetime. About the year 1810, while Henry Kinnear was acting in the capacity of constable in Venango county, he had a warrant for the arrest of a notorious ruffian and desperado named Polen Hunter. Against the threats of the crimi- nal, Kinnear attempted his forcible apprehension, when he received from ■Bw' iy SS BmXs Sins. JEv"^'* /L ^l._.X / . / Brokenstraw Township. 411 Hunter a wound in the hip from which he never recovered. It is said that he succeeded in obtaining pecuniary redress for the injury. He died on the 6th of March, 1826. He had a family of nine children, five sons and four daugh- ters, all now dead, but many of whose children are now residents of Broken- straw township or Youngsvilie borough. Henry P. Kinnear and C. V. Kinnear have been perhaps the most prominent of his sons in Youngsvilie. The latter was born in Venango county on the 8th of January, 1 808, and came to War- ren county with his father in 181 5. Upon the death of his father he took up the trade, and continued to be one of the prominent and active merchants of Youngsvilie for a period of fifty years, besides engaging to some extent in the lumber trade. On the 19th of May, 1836, he was appointed and commissioned a justice of the peace by Governor Joseph Ritner. When the office was made elective in 1842, he was the choice of the voters of Brokenstraw township, and by successive re-elections held the position for twenty-four years. He was county auditor for ten years, represented the county in the State Legisla- ture in the session of 1852 and 1853, and in 1871 was elected and commis- sioned an associate judge of the county, and served in that position for five years. He was a warm friend of the common schools, serving as director for near a quarter of a century. He died September 6, 1884. Henry P. Kinnear was born in Youngsvilie on the 26th of July, 18 16. As soon as he reached years of discretion he began to manifest an interest in public affairs, and, as has been said by another, he became a politician because he could not help it. He served two terms as sheriff of Warren county; the first from 1843 to 1846, and the second from 1861 to 1864. He was a member of the Legislature in the session of 1847 ^"d 1848. It was he who obtained for Youngsvilie its charter and for the Odd Fellows Cemetery Association theirs. He died June 28, 1886. Early Business in Brokenstraw. — Mention having already been made of the first mills in the township, it is unnecessary in this place to recur to them. We have also stated something concerning the rude condition of the country in the first decade of years in its settlement. As late as 1 809 there were in all this part of the country only such roads as were demanded by the most imperative necessities of the inhabitants. When the route was determined upon, the underbrush was cleared away ; such trees as could not be avoided by a gentle curve were cut down, and the stump frequently left to be straddled by the wheels or runners of the vehicles ; and such mud holes as interposed very seriously in the path of the traveler were converted into corduroy. There was thus early no bridge at Irvineton, and the stream had to be crossed by fording, or by patronizing the ferry of Elijah Davis and his sons. Indians were plenty. About 1825 or 1830, however, the population had increased very perceptibly, and internal improvements had been considerably developed. The principal business was manufacturing lumber, or rafting timber down the river 412 History of Warren County. to the various markets between this place and New Orleans. Saw-mills were therefore numerous. John Garner and Charles Whitney owned and operated the mill which stood farthest up the Brokenstraw within the present limits of the township, on a site which now gives forth no sign of former industry of this kind. Next on the way down stream were the saw-mills and the grist- mill of Joseph and Darius Mead. Then appeared the grist and saw-mill of Judge William Siggins, in the central part of the present borough of Youngs- ville, which their owner kept in operation until 1872. They then ceased run- ning. About forty rods farther down stood another saw-mill, owned also by Judge Siggins, which has not been in operation for many years. Still farther down Judge Siggins owned a grist and saw-mill (about three-fourths of a mile east of Youngsville). He afterwards sold them to Charles Whitney, who allowed the grist-mill to go down, but rebuilt the saw-mill. The last owner of this mill was William Freese, who long ago left it to the mercy of the de- composing elements. At Irvineton were the grist and saw-mill of Dr. William A. Irvine, which had been erected very early by his predecessor, under the direction, it is said, of his father. The mills are still in operation under the management of Dr. Irvine's estate. Dr. Irvine also erected and started a woolen-factory about thirty years ago, and a short time later set in operation a foundry which had been erected under his management. Both have been quiet for a number of years. The first tannery in town was built and operated by John McKee, on the site of the present stave-mill in Youngsville borough, as many as fifty years ago. After successfully operating it for a number of years McKee allowed it to fall into inocuous desuetude. Since that event Bowman & Culbertson built and operated a tannery in the northern part of Youngsville borough, which continued in operation until ten or twelve years ago. The only distillery in town within the recollection of living men was started by Mark Dalrymple on Still House Run, below the mouth of the Brokenstraw. Andrew Farrely afterward kept it running for a time, but left it early to decay. The Rouse Hospital. — Full details of the manner in which the munificent intentions of Henry R. Rouse were efiectuated in part by the erection of this building in war times are given in an earlier chapter of this work. MUMCIl'.M. HISTORY. Youngsville. — This borough, named from its first permanent settler, who laid out many of its streets, and seemed to have a prophetic vision of the relative importance in the county which the otispring of his somewhat fanciful energy would attain, had grown to be quite a village when it was incorporated, on the 4th day of September, 1849, and organized on the 15th of Februarj' following, by the election of Archibald Alexander, burgess; William Siggins and John Brokenstraw Township. 413 Hull, councilmen ; Philip Mead, treasurer; Henry P. Kinnear, clerk ; John Sig- gins, collector, etc. James Davis is authority for the statement that as early as 1800 Mathevv Young carved the quaint word " Yungval " on a large flat stone which stood for many years on ground now covered by the brick hardware store, and was used as a doorstep. The name Youngsville was naturally given to the place as soon as it became a settlement, in the first decade of the present cent- ury. We have seen that the first store in the village or township was that of Henry Kinnear, opened in 18 16, which was practically continued until the death of his son, Carter V. Kinnear, in 1884. It is worthy of remark that W. D. Kinnear, a grandson of Henry and a son of Carter V. Kinnear, is now a merchant here. The next merchant was probably Henry McCuUough, who started a store across from Kinnear previous to 1830, on land which he had purchased from William Siggins. He removed to Pittsburgh as early as 1832 or 1833, where he engaged in the wholesale iron trade and became very wealthy. John Gillespie started a store in Youngsville soon after the business of Henry Kinnear was established ; but he soon failed, and his name has not become prominent in the annals of the town. The first tavern in town was probably that unpretentious hostelry of John McKinney, below the Rouse farm. Mathew Young next built a hotel on the site of the present Wade House and sold it to John Mead and John Garner. The first landlord was Amasa Ransom, who leased it of Mead. In a short time after it was opened Mead and Garner sold the property, with ten acres of land adjoining the site, to John McKinney, who rented it to Cephas Hurlburt about a year. William Siggins followed, and was there in 1822, when William F. Siggins was born. The proprietors or lessees since the retirement of Judge Siggins, about 1823, have been, as well as may be remembered, as follows: John Layler, William Arthur, Morrell Lowrey, Robert McKinney, son of John, sr., Mathew McKinney, brother of Robert. At this period the house was torn down, and John McKinney immediately rebuilt, on the same ground, the pres- ent Wade House. Since then some of the landlords have been Peter S. Wade, son-in-law of John McKinney, who remained a number of years, besides others who remained but a short time, among them John Siggins, about 1846 or 1847, William Gray and his successor, A. P. Garfield, the present proprie- tor, who came here about three years ago. The house is well kept, and looks carefully to the comfort of its guests. About 1822 Alfred Van Armon started a tavern on the site of the new brick store on East Main street, and was succeeded by Elijah Davis the younger, Robert Kinnear, and several others. It did not last long. The site of the American House was first used for hotel purposes about 1827 by Charles Whitney. Among his successors were Abraham Wilson, Thomas Turner, Dorwin Green and others. A short time previous to 1850 it burned and the present structure was erected by William Mead. 414 History of Warren County. The Fairmont House first saw the light about 185 1, when John Siggins built it. Siggins had erected one there about three years before, but it had burned in the fail of 1849, and he rebuilt it in 185 i, about as it is at present. After keeping the house for a number of years he rented it to J. S. Trask, of Irvineton. Dorwin Green bought the property afterwards of the estate of John Siggins, and entertained the traveling public hospitably for a period, when he was succeeded, in November, 1879, by the present proprietor, C. H. Gregory, who besides keeping a first-class house deals extensively in horses and other live stock, carriages, wagons, etc. The house will comfortably accommodate thirty guests. Mills. — The early mills having been already mentioned at length, it will be necessary only to say a word concerning the mills now in operation in and about Youngsville. Some ten or twelve years ago R. A. Kinnear built a plan- ing mill near the railroad station, of which he still retains the ownership and active management. J. W. Agrelius, another of Youngsville's most promi- nent business men, in company with Carter V. Kinnear, who had a one-third interest in the concern, built a stave-mill, of which he is now the sole owner. It stands near the site of one of the old mills before mentioned. At the pres- ent writing we have not learned the new owner of the new saw-mill, built about six years ago by Jed. Bartlett, and afterward owned by Henry Woodin. The planing-mill now owned and operated by George Pierson was built about five years ago by himself and W. Filer. Mr. Pierson has been sole proprietor since the spring of 1886. Mercantile Business. — The merchant of longest standing now in Youngs- ville, we believe, is J. G. McKee, who established himself in business here about twenty years ago. Excepting about three years he has occupied the building which is now his store, all this period. He carries a stock of groceries valued at about $2,000. Mad. Alger came to Youngsville and opened a store on West Main street in the fall of 1867. In June, 1885, he removed to the building which he now occupies. He carries stock worth about $3,000. W. J. Mead and B. J. Jackson, who keep on hand a good line of hardware stock, and trade under the firm style of Mead & Jackson, formed their part- nership about eighteen years ago. Their goods are estimated to be worth about $7,000. J. VV. Agrelius, who deals in a stock of drugs and medicines valued at some $8,000, began his career as merchant in Youngsville about ten years ago. After dealing in partnership with Carter V. Kinnear one year and with VV. A. Mains two years he continued the trade alone, and is now sole proprietor of the business. The dry goods and general mercantile business now conducted by H. L. Mead & Co. was established by J. D. Mead in November, 1877. In Decern- ^: C^^ r3^U^n^h Brokenstraw Township. 415 ber, 1883, he took into partnership with him his son H. L. Mead, the relation continuing until July, 1886, when the present firm, consisting of H. L. and C. S. Mead, was formed. Their stock varies in value from about $7,000 to $8,000. The firm of McDowell & Kinnear, composed of L. McDowell and W. D. Kinnear, was formed about four years ago. The business was established about six months previously by William Spinner. The present firm are ex- tensive dealers in hardware of all kinds, carrying stock worth some $5,000. The junior member of this firm is, as has before been stated, a grandson of the first merchant in the town, and a son of the merchant who was longest in bus- iness in Youngsville. The general store of A. F. Swanson was started by the present proprietor three years ago. George K. Murray has dealt in jewels in Youngsville about three years. W. B. Phillips has had a harness shop here about two years. W. D. Belnap began dealing in general merchandise here in November, 1886. Excepting three years which he passed in the army during the last war, and nine years in California, he has passed his mature life in Warren county, his father, Guernsey Belnap, having emigrated to Pittsfield from his native (Erie) county in 1826, when W. D. was six years of age. The Youngsville Savings Bank was established in 1875. The first presi- ident was John McKinney; vice-president, Henry P. Kinnear, and cashier, John A. Jackson. Mr. Kinnear succeeded Mr. McKinney as president and remained in that office until his death. B. J. Jackson is at the present writing vice-president, and John A. Jackson is cashier. Physicians, Past a7id Present. — The first resident physician in the township of Brokenstraw was Dr. John W. Irvine, who settled in the vicinity of Irvine- ton in about 1822, and after abiding there some eight or ten years returned to Philadelphia. He was, it is stated, an uncle of Dr. William A. Irvine. About 1826 Dr. James A. Alexander settled in Youngsville and remained here in active practice until not far from 1853, when he removed to Kentucky, the place of his death. Dr. Benjamin F. Parmiter came to Youngsville about the same time as Dr. Alexander, but remained only two or three years. In 1847 Dr. A. C. Blodgett, the veteran physician of Youngsville, made this place his home. A more extended sketch of his life appears in the biographical de- partment of this work. Dr. A. C. Axtell was born at Sheakleyville, Mercer county. Pa., on the 14th of July, 1828; attended lectures and dissections in 1853-54 in Starling Medical College, at Columbus, O., and began to practice in 1854 at New Leb- anon, Mercer county. In April, 1865, he removed thence to Youngsville and has since then been continuously and busily engaged in practice here — a pe- riod at this writing of nearly twenty- two years. Dr. C. H. Jacobs was born in Mercer county. Pa., in 1856 ; was graduated 4i6 History of VV'arren County. from the medical department of Western Reserve University at Cleveland, O., in February, 1883 ; and after a brief period of practice at Evansburg, Craw- ford county, came to Youngsville. Dr. S. C. Diefendorf, born in Jefferson county, N. V., on the 21st day of May, 1847, was graduated from the Geneva Medical College in the class of 1868-69. He practiced for a time with a preceptor at Syracuse, N. Y., and removed to Youngsville two years ago. Hugh Addison Davenny, M. D., is also a native of Mercer county. Pa., where he was born in 1849. He has been engaged in practice about twenty- one years. In 1869-70 he took a course in the Buffalo Medical and Surgical College. He first practiced seven years in Youngsville, then four years in Oil City, seven years in Fredonia, Mercer county. Pa., three years in Mercer, the county seat of that county, and on the 28th of July, 1886, came back to his old home in Youngsville. Laivyers. — The only regular legal practitioner acknowledged by all the courts of the State who practiced in Youngsville was J. B. Delamater, who made Youngsville his home for a short time about thirty-five years ago. He afterward became prominent as an oil dealer and politician, and is now wealthy. The Post-office. — Until about the year 1819 the inhabitants of all this vicinity used to obtain their mail matter from the earlier office at Pittsfield. At that time Henry Kinnear was appointed postmaster, and opened an office in Youngsville, which was named Brokenstraw. Alfred Van Orman succeeded Kinnear in two or three years, and during his brief term the present name of the office was adopted, an office having been given to Dr. William Irvine at Irvineton, with the name of Brokenstraw. Other postmasters at Youngsville, nearly in their order, have been F. W. Brigham, W. F. Siggins, Andrew Alex- ander, Henry P. Kinnear, Frank Kinnear, Erasmus Foreman, A. M. Belknap, about twenty- one years, J. W. 'Agrelius, and the present incumbent, VV. J. Davis (2d), who received his appointment from President Cleveland on the 9th of November, 1885.1 Irvineton. — Twenty-five years ago the site of Irvineton \illage presented to the traveler no signs of life beyond the quiet industries of the farmer, or the occasional shouts of lumbermen rafting their timbers down the river. Soon after that period, however, the intense oil excitement that agitated the entire region embraced within the limits of the several northwestern counties of Penn- sylvania served to develop the resources which were given to this place by its natural position, and a lively village grew up. The name of Irvineton had been given to the vicinity previous to this time, and it now centered at this village. The post-office had been kept during all the previous years across the river, by Dr. Irvine and Edward Biddle. The first settler, strictly speak- ' W. J. Davi.s is a grandson of Abraham and a son of Klijali L. Davis, the latter of whom is now a resident of Cincinnati, whither he removed in 1838. RoHKRi Thompson. Brokenstraw Township. 417 ing, on the site of the present village, was John Cooney, who is now a mer- chant of thrift, and the postmaster at this place. Mr. Cooney came here in in 1866 and "pitched his tent in a field;" the nearest neighbors being the Irvine family across the creek. Mr. Cooney built a house a few rods west of his present residence, opened a store in the front, and slept in the rear. At this time the oil excitement was very high, and there was also considerable lum- bering. Besides his business as a merchant, Mr. Cooney boarded a number of men for several years, and thus deserves the credit of opening the first tav- ern in Irvineton. During his second year here he built another house, and during the third year still another. Three years ago he removed one of these old buildings to the site of his present store, and removed to it. He lumbered extensively when he first came, and acted also as a contractor for the building of railroads. There were then no mills in this part of the township except the mills of Dr. Irvine, at the mouth of the creek. The first regular hotel at Irvine- ton was built by Michael Swing in the latter part of the year 1 866, and opened in the spring of 1867. It stood just north of the present railroad station. It burned about eleven years ago, while kept by R. Donovan. Donovan rebuilt it and kept it until another fire consumed it, in the spring of 1886. The only hotel now in the village was built by R. A. Kinnear in the fall of 1 886, and is kept by T. C. Nuttall. The first mill built in the village was erected by Perry Patch and Henry Walters about eight years ago. It is now operated by Patch & Arnold. H. and F. Walters are also now engaged in the manufacture of staves, etc., at Irvineton. After Mr. Cooney, the next merchant in Irvineton was William Singleton, who opened trade in 1867. There are now three stores in the village besides that of Mr. Cooney, viz., the drug and general store of George W. Shannon, which has been open for fifteen or sixteen years ; the general store of William H. Metzgar, who has traded here also about fifteen years ; and the general and feed store of George W. Kolfrat, which has been open a shorter time. The Post-office. — In 1867 the post-oflice was removed from "across the creek " for the convenience of the greatest number. Frank Metzgar was ap- pointed postmaster, and since then he and his two brothers, William H. and G. W., have held the ofiice for eighteen years. John Cooney was appointed to the position in November, 1885, and is the present incumbent. Scliools of Brokenstraw Township. — The first school taught in this town- ship was under the management and instruction of Mathew Young. The next teacher was probably Edward Jones. One of the earliest school-houses stood on the brink of the hill in Irvineton, near the site of the present union school at that place. Another early teacher was John Lee Williams. After the organ- ization of Youngsville borough in 1850, twp school-houses were built in the borough, and for eight or ten years these seemed to answer every purpose. 4i8 History of Warren County. though one of them was enlarged in 1854, at an expense of $281. The next year a new building was erected on the east side of the creek, at a cost of $476. The schools were first graded in 1858, and W. F. Siggins took charge of the higher department, at one dollar a day and his dinner. Elizabeth Siggins took charge of the primary department, at four dollars a week, and boarded herself. The union school building was erected in 1871 at a cost of something more than $8,000. Its rooms are all spacious and well lighted and ventilated, besides being well furnished with modern furniture and all the equipments necessary to a school of the present day. It has four departments. The first principal was J. M. Hantz. The present one is W. W. Fell. At Irvineton the stone school-house built by the Irvine family was used until about fourteen years ago, when the present union school was built. It has three departments and is well prepared for the purposes of its erection. The principal is H. H. Weber. Besides these schools there are four others in the township. Ecclesiastical. — The first church organized in Brokenstraw township was the Methodist Episcopal, though there were services held here for years before the permanent organization was effected. Rev. William McConnelly, the first preacher on the Brokenstraw, preached near the site of Youngsville in the year 1809. At this time (from 1800 to 18 16) the salary of an itinerant preacher was eighty dollars a year and traveling expenses ; an additional eighty dollars being allowed for the care of the wife, unless she was otherwise provided for, and sixteen dollars for each child. In 18 12 Jacob Young and Bishop McKen- dree passed through the valley of the Brokenstraw, stayed over night at the house of Darius Mead, and on the following day the bishop preached, after which Jacob Young formed a class consisting of the following members: John Gregg and wife, Jacob Goodwin and wife, William Arthur and wife, Anna Mead and her son Philip, Betsey Ford, Polly Arthur and Polly Campbell — eleven in all. That was previous to the formation of a circuit. In 18 13 the Chautauqua Circuit was formed, and was in the bounds of the Ohio Conference and the Ohio District. Youngsville was then one of the appointments. The circuit then had a membership of 150, and the entire conference, 1,690. John McMahon was preacher of the circuit, and Jacob Young was presiding elder of the district. From that time to the present there has been regular preach- ing at Youngsville. The list of preachers is as follows, it being borne in mind that they were not resident preachers before about 185 i : 18 14, Burrows West- lake ; 181 5, Lemuel Lane; 18 16, Daniel Davidson; 181 7, Curtis Goddard ; 18 1 8, John Summerville ; 18 19, John Summerville ; 1820 (this year the Chau- tauqua Circuit was taken into the Genesee Conference and Genesee District, Gideon R. Draper presiding elder), Philetus Parker and David Smith; 1821, Parker Buell and Sylvester Gary; 1822, Parker Buell and Benjamin Hill; 1823, Asa Abell and John W. Hill; 1824, Nathaniel Reader and John Scott; 1825 (Chautauqua Circuit and Erie District taken into Pittsburgh Conference), Brokenstraw Township. 419 Peter D. Horton and Joseph S. Barris ; 1826, Joseph S. Barris and Dow Pros- ser; 1827, John Chandler and John Johnson ; 1828 (Youngsville Circuit taken from Chautauqua Circuit), Hiram Kinsley and John Johnson ; 1829, John P. Kent and L. L. Hamlin ; 1830, James Gilmore and John J. Swazy ; i83i,John C. Ayers, Samuel E. Babcock, and G. D. Kinnear; 1832, A. Young and Thomas Jennings; 1833, Hiram Luce and D. Pritchard ; 1834 (Jamestown District), David Preston and H. N. Sterns; 1835, William Todd and James E. Chapin ; 1836, J. H. Tocket and Theodore Stone ; 1837, Josiah Flower and John Deming; 1838, C. C. Best and John Scott; 1839, B. S. Hill and Luther Kendall; 1840 (for this year only, this was named Youngsville, Warren, and Smethport District), B. S. Hill, A. Barris, and S. Henderson; 1841, Alexan- der Barris; 1842, John F. Hill; 1843, Martin Hineback; 1844, Horace Hitch- cock; 1845-46, O. P. Brown; 1847, D. Vorce and D. King; 1848, D. Vorce and R. L. Blackner ; 1849, S. Henderson and O. D. Parker; 1850, Samuel Sullivan (this year the circuit was divided by cutting off Wrightsville and Lotts- ville) ; 1851, Albert Norton; 1852, J. N. Henry and M. Hineback ; 1853, James B. Hammond; 1854, Samuel S. Warren; 1855-56, A. R. Hammond; 1857, Samuel Holland; 1858, Samuel Holland; 1859, H. M. Bettis ; i860, George F. Reese; 1861-62, David Mizenn ; 1863, A. H. Dome; 1864-65, C. M. Heard; 1866-67-68, James C. Sullivan; 1869-70, B. F. Delo; 1871, A. H. B^owen ; 1872-73, Joseph F. Hill; 1874, S. S. Burton (Garland added to the charge and the parsonage built); 1875-77, L. W. Riley; 1878, W. B. Holt; 1879-81, A. S. Goodrich; 1882, I. N. Clover ; 1883-86, H. G. Hall ; 1886 and at present, T. W. Douglas. From the beginning until 18 18 the meetings were held for the most part in private houses or barns, and occasionally the school-house. In 18 17 a house of worship was begun on the site now occupied by the Swedish church, and was completed and first used in 1818. It was a small, cheap, structure, and in 1827 was replaced by a second edifice, which is now occupied for pur- poses of worship by the members of the Swedish Lutheran Church. This house the Methodists were satisfied with until about 1882. In that year their present convenient and commodious church edifice was built. A Sabbath- school was started about sixty years ago, and has been kept up ever since ; the average attendance upon the Sabbath-school is now said to be about fifty. The present trustees of the church and parsonage are Willard J. Davis, John Agrelius, Erastus A. Davis, G. A. Jackson, John Jackson, J. I. Sanford, M. D. Whitney, John Black, Henry Mead. The Sabbath-school superintendent is J. I. Sanford. The other church officers are, stewards, John Agrelius, Sarah Agrelius, Erastus A. Davis, Adelia Davis, W. H. Shortt, Willard J. Davis, Miss Florence Chipman, and Mrs. Jane Thatcher. J. I. Sandford is class leader. There is now a membership in the church of about 125. In the first half of this century, at the same time that she displayed her 420 History of Warren County. unselfish interest in the town by building the stone school-house at Irvineton, Mrs. William Irvine showed her devotion to her spiritual faith by also con- structing, or causing to be constructed, a church in the same community, in which the Presbyterians for some time worshiped, but which is now occupied in common by the Presbyterians and Methodists. The services of the former denomination are conducted by the Presbyterian clergyman from Sugar Grove, and of the latter by the pastors of the Methodist Church of Youngsville. There is also at Irvineton a Roman Catholic Church, which was erected in 1 87 1. It is attended by Father Lavery, of Tidioute, and has a membership of about forty families. At Youngsville also the Swedes have established a Lutheran Church, and have since their organization, some three years ago, occupied the old Methodist Church, though at the present writing they are engaged in building a neat and commodious edifice of their own. CHAPTER XXXV. HISTORY OF ST'G.VR GKOVK TO\V\sniR THIS township was formed, as will be seen by reference to the general chapter devoted to the history of township organization, on the 8th of March, 1821, and was called, for immediate convenience, " Number Three." Its northern boundary line is coincident with the southern limit of the State of New York (Chautauqua county). It is bounded on the east by the town- ship of Farmington, south by Brokenstraw and parts of Conewango and Pitts- field, and west by Freehold. The southeastern part of this town is drained by Jackson Run, which flows thence southeasterly through the southern part of Farmington and the northeastern part of Conewango, into Conewango Creek just south of North Warren. Stillwater Creek rises in the western portion of Sugar Grove township and flows easterly through Sugar Grove village, and thence northerly into the State of New York. The soil in the valleys is prin- cipally a gravelly loam, and on the highlands chestnut. The surface was originally covered with a dense growth of forest — on the ridge in the south part with chestnut, to the north with beech and maple, and in the valleys with pine, maple, cherry, and black cherry. The remarkable predominance of maple timber afterward gave to the township its present significant name. For its agricultural wealth Sugar Grove is not surpassed by any region in this part of the State. While dairying is profitable here, it is not the exclusive interest, as the fruits and cereals are easily produced in great abundance. At the time of the formation of the township a conisderable population had •% ' b, ESSHts Sana. ITo. ~-' ^^^' Sugar Grove Township. 421 congregated here, composed, for the most part, of the most intelHgent and industrious elements of the older societies of the Mohawk valley and New England. A number of the early inhabitants of the town were also natives of Ireland and Scotland. The first permanent settler was undoubtedly Robert Miles, whose son and namesake afterward became prominent in Warren. He came up the river from Pittsburgh in June, 1797, with his family, in the first keel-boat that found its way to Warren. His farm at first embraced an area of nearly three miles square, though it was not rectangular in form. His dwelling house stood about one and one-half miles directly east of the site of Sugar Grove village. (See sketch in later pages of his son Robert.) Soon after his arrival Major Howe, Brigham Howe, and John Dickinson came from Long Island, though none of them was here long enough to become promi- nently identified with the business interests of this part of the county. About 1800 came William Lopsley, the ever-to-be-remembered John Barr, and John Hood; in 1802 John Stuart, and in 1803 James Stuart, all from Ireland. Lopsley made a clearing about two miles east of the village, but moved away at an early day. John Barr was born in Ireland in 1766. Being of the ardent temperament peculiar to his race, he bore too conspicuous a part in the Irish Rebellion of 1798, and was forced to flee his native country. His wanderings soon brought him to Sugar Grove, which he decided to make his home. He settled on the summit of the hill, in what is now the village, erecting his dwelling house near the site of the Congregational Church, as it now stands. He is described by those who remember him as an ingenious man, capable of turning his hand at any kind of work, besides engaging in his chosen vocations of agriculture and shoemaking. Many of his descendants are in town at the present day, and are numbered among the most respectable class. Mr. Barr was a born wit, and innumerable amusing anecdotes related to-day attribute their paternity to him. Among his personal possessions was an old-fashioned "bull's-eye" watch," more weighty than accurate. He was, for some reason, perpetually annoyed by questions as to the time of day, to which he invariably replied : " Sex past nine, and be d d to ye! Keep a time o' your own." In later life Mr. Barr became extremely convivial. He died on the 9th day of January, 1839, and was buried — not with his fathers, but in the village cemetery. David Brown, who deserves prominent mention by reason of the fact that he probably did more to build up the village of Sugar Grove than any other man, was another pioneer of the county. He was born in Belfast, Ireland, on September 7, 1777, and came to the United States in 1802. He resided in Franklin, Venango county, for a short time, at which place, on the 7tli of No- vember, 1803, he married Jennet Broadfoot. Soon after his marriage he removed to Warren, and was for a time in the employ of the Holland Land Company, living in the block-house built by that company on the bank of the 422 History of Warren County. Conewango Creek, a short distance above the site of the present grist-mill. He was the purchaser from the Commonwealth of a large number of the town lots in Warren borough. He owned land in what is now Sugar Grove village as early as 1 806, as the list of taxables of that year sufficiently attests, and moved thither in 1807, or 1808, or possibly as late as 1 809. Here he made his permanent home. He erected one of the first framed dwelling houses (by some said to be the first) in Warren county, on the north side of the road from the village to Lottsville, a few rods west of Stillwater Creek, and upon the site of the present residence of James C. Hamilton. His farm had already been partly cleared by John Dickinson. In this house all his children, with the exception of his eldest daughter, were born. The old house has been moved a short distance from its original location, and at this writing (Novem- ber, 1886) still stands, one of the few relics of the early settlement of the vil- lage. Near to the house may still be seen the spring noted among the early settlers for its abundant supply of clear, cold water. Near to his dwelling house Mr. Brown erected, and, to the time of his death, in connection with a farm, carried on a tannery, said to be the first started in the county. He died November 26, 1825, and is buried in the village cemetery at Sugar Grove. In a lecture on the early history of Warren county, one who knew David Brown well, said : " He was well educated, wrote an elegant hand, and had an easy and flowing style of composition. He possessed the impulsive feelings peculiar to his nation ; was hospitable and generous to a fault. The needy never sought aid of him in vain when it was in his power to relieve them, and he frequently did so to his own pecuniary injury. These estimable qualities were concealed beneath a stern, sedate exterior. He was retiring and diffident, and seldom smiled." Jennet Broadfoot, who became the wife of David Brown, was born at Wig- ton, Scotland, November 4, 1 78 1. She had the solidity of character, the energy, the quiet resoluteness of purpose, and the tenacious adherence to religious convictions that characterize Scotch Presbyterianism. Attacked by disease that baffled the skill of local physicians, she sought medical treatment at Philadelphia, going the entire distance on horseback, and returning to her home after a few months restored to health. A few years later her husband died, leaving her with limited means to care for a family of seven children, the eldest eighteen years of age. With Christian fidelity, with patient, self-deny- ing love, she met the responsibilities cast upon her. She gave her children such education as was possible with the scanty means at her command, and by precept and example she sought to lead them in the way of Christian liv- ing. She was a friend to the poor, she sympathized with the sorrowing, and her ministrations of love to the sick and the dying were so universal, so con- stant, and so cheerfully rendered, that the benediction of all who knew her rested upon her. She died June 4, 1841, and lies buried by the side of her husband. Sugar Grove Township. 423 The children of David and Jennet Brown were Mary, now Hving at Sugar Grove, and the widow of James Jagger ; Barbara, who died at Sugar Grove in 1840, the wife of N. B. Langdon ; Catharine, now living at Warren; John B., who died and was buried at Warren in 1883; Agnes H., now living at Jackson, Mich., and the widow of Walter Fish; James, who died and was buried at Sugar Grove in 185 i ; and William D., living at Warren, and now the president judge of the thirty-seventh judicial district of Pennsylvania. About the time of the settlement in Sugar Grove of David Brown, two of his brothers, James and John, also came here to live. The former settled on the farm afterward owned and occupied by Henry Catlin, and went down the river not far from 1820. John was a single man, kept one of the first schools opened in town, and lived with his brother David. He was nineteen years an inhabitant of Pennsylvania, and was prothonotary of Warren county at the time of his death, which happened suddenly at Warren on January 25, 1823, when he was in his thirty-sixth year. He was buried at Sugar Grove with Masonic honors. Other names found in the tax-list of the county for 1806, belonging to Sugar Grove inhabitants, are those of Charles Byles, William Evans, John Hood, John Portman, and John, James, and William Stuart. The first-named married a daughter of Robert Miles, and resided in town for a number of years. William Evans settled in the south part of the township, in the vicin- ity of Chandler's Valley, where he remained until his death, not long previous to 1840, and where some of his descendants are now living. John Hood was one of the very earliest of the pioneers in this vicinity, being a contemporary arrival with Robert Miles, about 1797 or 1798. He cleared, and occupied all his life after, a farm in the extreme north portion of the township, adjoining the New York State line, on the Jamestown road, and there operated a small grist-mill. He died in the decade of years which closed with 1830. John Portman lived here but a short time, and removed to Piije Grove township. He was still a young man in 1820, and married Pamelia, daughter of Alexan- der Clantz, who was probably the first man on the farm afterward owned by James Brown, and later still by Henry Catlin. Clantz then bought the old Robert Falconer place, and soon went away, giving place to Mr. Falconer himself. John, James, and William Stuart, three brothers of Irish nativity, settled here between the years 1802 and 1806, residing in the eastern part of the township until their deaths. James died August 3, 1825, aged sixty-eight years eight months and twenty-two days. His wife, Catharine, a sister of John Hood, survived her husband until March 26, 1847, when she followed him, aged eighty- seven years and twenty-eight days. They landed in the United States on the 13th of June, 1795. John Stuart, who was born in Antrim county, Ireland, on the 28th of May, 1780, died in Sugar Grove on 424 History of Warren County. the 30th of June, 1862, being the last survivor of the three brotlicrs. He had two sons, James L. and John, the former of whom was born in this town on the 1 2th of November, 1807, and died in the village on the 24th of May, 1873, leaving a number of descendants in the town. John early went to Clarion county, where he preached the gospel, and ministered as physician, to the ne- cessities of the sick in body. Clark Dalrymple, who, at the time of his death in July, 1869, was the eldest of the surviving early settlers in Sugar Grove, came here from Massachusetts, his native State, in 181 1, when he was but sixteen years of age. In the spring of the next year he was followed by his father, David, who was born in Massa- chusetts in about 1765, and four brothers — David, Mark, Oliver, and Chauncey. The father settled just opposite and about ten rods east of the site of the pres- ent residence of his grandson, Noah Dalrymple (son of Clark), where he remained until about the time of his death in 1840. He also had three daugh- ters, and his descendants now comprise in part a numerous and respectable portion of the population of Warren county. Abraham D. Ditmars came here from Long Island in the spring of 1814, upon the advertisement and personal importunities of Agent Sacket, of the Holland Land Company, exchanging a farm in Long Island valued at $15,000 for three thousand acres of wild land in this vicinity (and something was given him " to boot " ). He selected every alternate tract between what is now Sugar Grove village and Lottsville, after viewing the country in 18 13, and established his residence on the top of the hill immediately west of the village. The hardships which he suftered in making the long and perilous journey from Long Island were akin to those that all the pioneers were forced to brave. He brought his family across the Delaware from New Jersey at Easton, traveled thence to Belfonte, and by a rough road to a point opposite Holman's Ferry, on Allegheny River. There he crossed the river and went to the site of Titusville, thence through a trackless wilderness to the rude house of James White, on the Big Brokenstraw ; thence to the Widow Mead's, and, by an un- frequented and almost impassable road through Chandler's Valley, to his desti- nation. His family consisted of his wife, two sons, and five daughters (one of whom afterward became the wife of Darius Mead, of Brokenstraw). They were on the road from the loth of May to the 19th of June, and stayed two nights in the woods on the Allegheny Mountains, and one night between Titusville and lirokenstraw. At the beginning of the journey they had two good teams and wagons. At the termination they had the fore wheels of one wagon only, and those were nearly a wreck, the family having to travel on foot most of the distance from Brokenstraw. The personal effects were after- ward gathered up with great cost and difficulty. Mr. Ditmars has been described as a large, athletic man, six feet in height, erect and well proportioned, of gentlemanly bearing, an open countenance. Sugar Grove Township. 425 large, dark-blue eyes, heavy jutting eyebrows, and a heavy voice. He was convivial to a fault. Another daughter was married to Lansing Wetmore, of Warren. His son, Abraham, jr., taught school in Sugar Grove some time after the year 1820. After living in this town a number of years, Abraham Ditmars returned to Long Island. David Stilson came to Sugar Grove from Westmoreland, Oneida county, N. Y. (whence many of the early settlers of this town emigrated), in March, 1 8 14, and settled on what has ever since been known as Stilson Hill, in the southwest part of the town. He brought his wife and five children with him, and was obliged to cut his way through the woods. Four children were born to him after his arrival in Sugar Grove. His descendants are still numerous here. He carried on his farm successfully until the time of his death, June 6, 1852, when he had almost reached his seventy-fourth year of life. In the month of January, 18 14, Richard B. Miller, then a young man nearly twenty-three years of age, made his way from Whitestown, N. Y., through Buffalo, up the lake to Mayville, thence through Jamestown and across the country to Sugar Grove, making his home on a piece of land which he had purchased from the Holland Land Company, on which his son Frank R. Miller now resides. He had married on the preceding month. He passed through Buffalo only two weeks after the destruction of that village by the British and Indians, when the whole site of the present city contained but one little log house, then occupied by a widow. Richard B. Miller died in Kentucky on the loth of June, 1832. Frank R. Miller, who now owns the place, was born upon it on the 6th of July, 1827. James Jagger, a native of Suffolk county, L. I., setded in this township in 1815. A brother, Stephen, bought the old John Hood place about the same time, and continued the operation of the old grist-mill. He was in all respects an exemplary man. Among his several descendants now in town is his son Sylvester Jagger. Stephen Jagger died on the 8th of March, 1874, aged eighty-one years six months and eleven days. By this time (about 1818) the country began to display here and there the traces of advancing civilization. The empire of nature showed symptoms of yielding to the dominion of the rude arts of the woodsmen. There were three or four families in Sugar Grove village, a few settlers in the beech woods be- tween Sugar Grove and Pine Grove, besides the men already mentioned, and a few others. After the passage of the act of 1792 to induce the settlement of pioneers in Western Pennsylvania, and the subsidence of the Indian diffi- culties in 1795, immigration turned its tide in this direction. As already no- ticed, a number of the settlers came to this county by the way of Susquehan- na River and Pittsburgh. During the years 18 15-16 about thirty families came from Oneida county, N. Y., and settled principally in Pine Grove, Freehold, and Sugar Grove. Among those who settled in this town were David Stilson 426 History of Warren County. and Richard B. Miller, already mentioned, and John Tuttle, Joseph Langdon, and Henry Catlin. Mr. Tuttle resided until his death, some forty years ago, in the western part of the town. Joseph Langdon cleared a place about a mile from the village, on the Ashville road, and during the later years of his life operated a grist-mill. He was born in Berkshire, Mass., on the 13th of January, 1 780, and died here on the 27th of April, 1857. His wife, Survina, died June 8, 1833, aged thirty-seven years. A number of their descendants still make Sugar Grove their home. Henry Catlin, a brother of Mrs. Richard B. Miller, came here about 18 16, and settled on the farm next north of that owned by his brother-in-law. He was born in Conway, Mass., on the 15th of January, 1785, and died in Sugar Grove on the 30th of July, 1845. His daughter Julia, now Mrs. L. H. Pratt, was born in what is now Rushville, N. Y., on the 31st of December, 18 14, and was consequently but two years of age when her father removed to Sugar Grove. Her retentive and accurate memory, stretching over a period of nearly seventy years, has been of great assistance to the compiler of this chapter. At this place should be inserted a sketch of one of the most noteworty of the pioneers of Sugar Grove, Robert Falconer. He was born in Inveraven, Banffshire, Scotland, on the 22d of December, 1780. He was descended from a wealthy and ancient family, who could never forget that they were " lairds " in the days of Monteith and Wallace and McDoogh, and bravely fought with Bruce at Brannockburn. Yet Robert was thoroughly republican in opinion and practice. He was graduated from old Aberdeen in 1808, and soon after emigrated to America, not only to increase his wealth, but to enjoy its free republican institutions, to which he was a convert. In this country he married Eliza, a sister of Henry Catlin and Mrs. Richard B. Miller, who was born at New Haven, N. Y., on the 15th of October, 1802, and affectionately per- formed the duties of wifehood until her death, on the 20th of January, 1850. For several years after his arrival in the United States Mr. Falconer was en- gaged in the purchase and sale of cotton in New York and Charleston, S. C, sending large invoices to Glasgow, and other parts of Scotland. In 18 16 a brother in Scotland, who never was in the United States, desired to join him in the purchase of lands, with the intention of making a Scotch settlement, for which the brother at home was to select and send over an extra class of emigrants. Accordingly, Mr. Falconer came to Jamestown, N. Y., in 18 17, and passed the summer in examining the surrounding county. He was an excellent surveyor, and many of our early roads were afterward surveyed by him. During this visit he would frequently make long trips into the wilder- ness, always on foot, and sometimes remaining away for a week. His favorite resort was along the valleys of the Stillwater and the Brokenstraw. Finally he selected lands just east of the village of Sugar Grove, which he declared should be his future home. He returned to New York for his family (by his Sugar Grove Township. 427 first wife) in the winter of 181 8, and in the following spring was established in Sugar Grove. He was at that time deemed to be the most wealthy man in this part of the country. He loaned considerable money, and was very active in laying out roads, effecting improvements, and in all ways aiding in the set- tlement of the town. In 1829 he removed to Warren, and became interested in the Lumbermen's Bank, of which he was made president. Through the rascality of those who were supposed to be its friends and supporters, the bank was broken, and in his attempts to save it Mr. Falconer lost largely of his wealth, and suffered a permanent impairment of health. He returned to Sugar Grove in 1840 a mental ruin, where he died on the 20th of October, 185 i. Yet another prominent pioneer of this town and county was Captain John I. Willson. He was born at Pleasant Valley, Dutchess county, N. Y., on the isth of August, 1781. His wife, Mary Elliott, whom he mar- ried in New York city in 1807, was born in that metropolis on the 29th of August, 17S9. Captain Willson's ancestors were from Ireland; Mrs. Willson's were Scotch. Inclined to a seafaring life, he engaged on board a vessel sailing from New York when he was about eighteen years of age. Commencing as a cabin boy, he rose to the command of the brig Franklin, sailing from New York to the Bermudas, of which he also became part owner. After the enact- ment of the embargo on commerce and navigation under Jefferson, he left the ocean, and with his young wife removed to Upper Canada, where his elder brother, David Willson, had preceded him, and where he cultivated a small farm, and taught school winters. In 18 19 he removed with his family to Sugar Grove. About 1821 he there opened a public house (which he purchased of Robert Miles, and which still forms a part of the present hotel), and made it for many years the most popular resort for travelers in that section of the country. Having retained his fondness for navigation, in 1825 he bought an interest in the schooner JSIilan, of Buffalo, and took charge of her as master in the lake trade. When the steamer Chautauqua, on Chautauqua Lake, was built he took charge of her for one or two seasons. Then, having purchased an in- terest in the schooner Nucleus, on Lake Erie, he was made master. As this was before the era of steamboats on Lake Erie, the Nucleus participated largely in carrying passengers, and was fitted up specially for that business. In 1836 he disposed of his interest in the vessel, abandoned navigation, and returned to his family and home at Sugar Grove. He was a moral and an upright citi- zen, temperate in all his habits, and enjoyed the fullest confidence of the com- munity. He had been educated in the Society of Friends, but was tolerant and friendly towards other societies. He read much and was a man of intelli- gence and culture. The children of Captain Willson were Catharine Elliott, married to Charles Doane, of Aurora, Ontario, and residing there; Martha dinger, who died 428 History of Warren County. in 1869, unmarried ; Mark Willson, and Eliza Willson, who resides at Winona, unmarried. John I. Willson died on February 16, 1859; his wife died on the 9th of June, 1854. Both are buried in the village cemetery at Sugar Grove. Mark Willson, only son of John I. Willson, was born in 1 8 18. In early life he engaged in the mercantile business at Sugar Grove, and was successful as a merchant. He possessed the confidence of the community in which he resided, and was regarded as a man of strict integrity and good judgment. He was elected to the office of justice of the peace when he was only twenty- one years old, and was continued in the office by re-election for a period of twenty- five years or over. He also filled the office of postmaster several years, and was often called to fill various other local offices, which was always done with credit to himself and satisfaction to the public. Mr. Willson was a public-spirited citizen, and always ready and willing to aid in every public en- terprise, contributing his full share in both time and money. He did much to improve the village by the erection of buildings of his own, and by aiding and encouraging others to do the same. Although not a member of any church organization, he was ever ready to aid in the support of all when called upon. In politics he was a Republican, and often represented his town and village in the county conventions of his party ; and while firm in his political opinions, he was always courteous toward those whose politics differed from his. In 1853 he married Elizabeth T. Hallock of Milton, Ulster county, N. Y. He has four children — two sons and two daughters — all of whom are married ex- cept the youngestson, John I. Willson, who is employed in the Merchants' Bank. Disposing of his property in Sugar Grove in 1863, Mark Willson removed with his family to Hastings, Minn., and continued in the mercantile busi- ness for three years, during a part of the time filling the office of mayor of that thriving city, and in 1S66 removed to Winona, Minn., where he has been since continuously successfully engaged in the banking business, and has for many years filled the position of president of the Merchants' Bank of Winona. James Elliott, brother of Mrs. John I. Willson, was the first person buried in the village cemetery at Sugar Grove — not far from the year 1820. John Hamilton, father of James C. Hamilton, now a respected citizen of Sugar Grove, was sheriff" of V^enango county before the division was effected that set off" Warren county, and frequently came through this part of his dis- trict on a bridle-path. The intimate knowledge of the resources of the country which thus came to him in the performance of his official duties attracted his attention to Sugar Grove, and in 1827 he removed hither, where he married a daughter of David Brown, and where many of his descendants now reside. He was born in York county. Pa., June 22, 1782, and died October 27, 1857. Catharine, his wife, was born in Belfast, Ireland, March 13, 1789, and died September 29, 1862. Sugar Grove Township. 429 Not all of the early settlers have received mention yet, liowever, it being the object of the writer to give a running account of those who bore a more conspicuous part in public affairs before locating the several members of the steady and sturdy yeomanrj who performed so useful a part in the settlement of the country by clearing away the forests and tilling the ground. Some time between the years 1806 and 18 16, as shown by the lists of ta.x- ables in the county, the population of Sugar Grove was increased by the ar- rival of Amos York, who gave to York Hill in the eastern part of the town its name ; Alexander Clantz, already mentioned ; Thomas Duprey, a blacksmith, who settled on the road between Sugar Grove village and Chandler's Valley ; David Mathews, who built his dwelling on Mathew's Run, between Sugar Grove and Youngsville; Thomas Page, who established a settlement near the farm of the Dalrymple family, and James Sturdevant, at Chandler's Valley. It was also about this time that John Chandler brought his family to the val- ley which has ever since borne his name. Stephen Sweet, a carpenter and joiner, about this time settled just east of the old Falconer house, near the vil- lage of Sugar Grove. He married a daughter of John Barr and left numerous descendants in Sugar Grove, several of whom are yet residing there. He was born on the 6th of September, 1786, and died on the i ith of November, 1865. His wife, Mary, was born February 26th, 1806, and died June 13, 1863. Between the years 1810 or 18 12 and 1820 quite a number of the settlers moved away from this part of the country, probably discouraged by the ex- treme and unprofitable hardships of pioneer life. But new forces were con- tinually arriving in such numbers as to counterbalance this efflux, and at the time of the formation of the township in 1821, the population was in excess of that at any previous period. Among the new arrivals were the following : James C. Austin, who taught winter school here for a time, and during the remainder of the year worked in the tan-yard of David Brown. At a later date he married a lady of Youngsville and removed in that direction. Nathan Abbott, who cleared a farm, still called the Abbott place, a little way west of Wrightsville. He was a good man and citizen, and died quite early. His descendants are numerous in this town now. David Allen, who married a daughter of Nathan Abbott, lived in the same neighborhood, and died there many years ago. Ezra Basset, a cooper, resided with his daughter, Mrs. Silas Hazen, at the village of Grove ; Mrs. Samuel Hall was also his daughter. He was a very pious man. His death occurred many years ago. Samuel Hall was one of the early tavern-keepers here. He came about 1820, and lived for a short time in a small bark-roofed shanty on the site of the house now occupied by Emri Davis, while his hotel was building. This hostelry stood on the site of the present bank, and was two stories high. Hall kept tavern there many years, and died on the 2d of February, 1854, aged seventy-six years. His wife, Polly W., died on the iith of December, 1848, aged sixty eight years. 430 History of Warren County. For some time before his death Mr. Hall operated a grist and saw-mill, which he had built. Smith Burlingame, who is also mentioned in the list of taxables, was an employee of Samuel Hall. Simon Brooks settled about this time at Chandler's Valley. Joseph Berlin was an early settler — an Englishman — right on the ground now occupied by the village of Sugar Grove. He was a farmer. He died about 1835. Cor- nelius Bassett (not related to Ezra Basset), lived thus early on the farm next west to that occupied by Joseph Berlin, towards Watt's Flats. After a few years he removed from the county. Asa Curtis was a shoemaker, and built the house just east of the village of Sugar Grove, now occupied by Charles Temple. Curtis afterward went to Warren. John Chambers came from Eng- land, it is said, with Joseph Berlin, a fellow-bachelor, and lived for a number of years with him. Chambers then married and worked his farm until he died. Randall Evans settled at Chandler's Valley and cultivated a large farm there until his death. His descendants are numerous in that part of the township now. Samuel Foster, a gunsmith and blacksmith, married a daughter of Alexander Clantz,and lived near the bridge in the village of Sugar Grove. He was a good and an active citizen, and came to his death in 1837, while acting as constable, by being thrown from a horse. Thomas Fox, a farmer, lived on the place owned by Robert Falconer, and left descendants which are yet in town. His brother David lived on Stilson Hill, and died there many years ago. Annum Gregory settled at first at Chandler's Valley, and afterwards removed to a place about a mile east of Sugar Grove village. Mrs. Putnam Bugby, of Chandler's Valley, is his daughter. Thomas Green came from Gorham, N. Y., in 1 8 16, with Henry Catlin, and settled near Cornelius Bassett, where he died a number of years ago. His descendants reside in the same neighborhood now. Otis Green, brother of Thomas, came from the same place a few years later, and after living near his brother for some time, settled on the place just oft' that now owned and occupied by L. H. Pratt, where his death occurred. He was born in Massachusetts December 26, 1799, and died May 11, 1877. Silas Hazen, whose name has been before mentioned, dwelt in a house, still standing, •opposite the residence of Emri Davis. Hazen was a farmer and brickmaker, but did not remain in town longer than about ten years, when he removed to Michigan. Moses Harmon, grandfather of Hosea Harmon, resided in the east- ern part of the township. For information concerning this family the reader is referred to the sketch of Hosea Harmon, in later pages of this book. James and John Lowther, with two of their sisters, came from Ireland and settled in the northeastern part of the town. John married a daughter of John Hood- They were successful and industrious. Marcus Leonard, mentioned in the list, is not known to have been a freeholder here, but to have taught school in this town, and to have " boarded 'round." Isaac Lopus, a pensioner of the War of 1812, is still living in Sugar Grove, on the way to Watt's Flats. His chil- /K /^. ocn-i^^n^^y^ Sugar Grove Township. 431 dren have by dint of economy and industry secured themselves a competence. Ambrose Pratt is another member of that honorable but much-abused class who earn a livelihood by teaching school. Stephen Smith was for a time a resident of the village of Sugar Grove, working the Richard Miller farm for three years. He died at Chandler's Valley. Bemsley Rowley lived about a mile and a half east of Sugar Grove village, and has descendants in town now. He died more than twenty years ago. Abraham Strickland lived with his parents near the New York line, and died suddenly at Willson's Hotel about 1824 or 1825. Valentine Tiffany was a carpenter and joiner and lived in a house ofhis own construction, still standing, about one mile northwest of the village of Sugar Grove. His wife was a daughter of Samuel Hall. Mr. Tiffany removed to Michigan at a comparatively early date. Lodowick Wright was a mill- wright and the builder of Samuel Hall's mills. He lived near the home of Henry Catlin. He died on the 14th of June, 1828, in the sixty-second year of his age. At this period, about 1820, the roads in this part of the country were in a rough, unfinished condition, mere bridle-paths. The face of the country was still covered for the most part with thick forests. Chandler's Valley had a name, but was not yet large enough to deserve the dignity of being called a village. The village of Sugar Grove was very small. There was a small, un- painted school building on the site of the present union school-house. An acre of land had been donated to the " Utica school district" (as it was called, from the number of families herein from the vicinity of Utica, N. Y.) by John Barr, for the purposes of erecting upon it a good building for school purposes. The village had until about this time been known as Brownsville, after David Brown, the name giving place to that of Sugar Grove about 1821. The inhabitants of the village during this period have been already mentioned, among the most prom- inent being David Brown, Captain Willson, Samuel Hall, John Barr, Silas Hazen, Samuel Foster, Asa Curtis ; and the nearest neighbor outside of the vil- lage was Robert Falconer. The road between Sugar Grove and Jamestown was extremely rough — at times almost impassable — and was not in a line with the present road, but lay over the hill. A few years after this the present Jamestown road was laid out by Robert Falconer, Stephen Jagger, and Hulett Lott. The principal roads hereabouts were all laid out about 1830. Sugar Grove has a well-known inhabitant who has gone through experiences worthy of a permanent record. James G. Brookmire was born in Antrim county, near Belfast, Ireland, on the 2d of June, 18 10, and was the fourth of nine children. His ancestors were inhabitants of Ulster county, Ireland, whither they had come from England, probably at a time when war and massacre had nearly depopulated that part of the country and the home government was en- couraging the immigration thereto of Protestant settlers. His father was a cotton-spinner and worked in a cotton-mill in Antrim county from about 1790 432 History of Warren County. until old age compelled him to relinquish active business. The son of whom we write was apprenticed to learn the art of making calico prints, etc., at the age of fourteen years, and at the termination of his necessary seven years, and when he was of age, he removed to Philadelphia, in this country, where he landed on the 4th of July, 183 1. After working two years and nine months at his chosen trade he returned to Ireland to see the girl who was waiting for him there, and whom he brought back very soon as his wife. At that time the recent destruction of the United States Bank had produced a panic in bus- iness and he felt the hard times sorely. He moved three times in as many years, the last time being to Bergen county, N. J. He soon started for Sugar Grove with his family — a wife and two children — and settled in the unbroken forest about three miles from the present village. Here he held three hundred acres nearly. The gold fever of California took hold upon him in 1850 and he sold fifty acres of his farm to aid him in reaching California. He went by public conveyance to what is now Kansas City, where he bought in with a company from Kentucky, and started into the wilderness on the 27th of June. There were then no white settlements on their way except Forts Kearney and Laramie. After the party reached Fort Kearney Mr. Brookmire resolved to break with his companions, whom he did not fancy, although to leave them was to incur great peril. They refunded, with unusual fairness, all he had paid in, and permitted him to take as company a well-trained dog. It was a fatal year — the year of an unexampled inundation of emigrants for the Far West, who were overtaken with all forms of disease, that decimated their numbers with pitiless regularity. On his route Mr. Brookmire witnessed wolves digging up the graves of those who had died and been buried in a shallow trench. He did not molest them, and was happily surprised to find that they did not seem eager to disturb him. He fell in with Indians — not the starved and half- clothed substitute for native grandeur which the government professes to pro- vide for free of cost at the present day, but the genuine, naked, rifled, mounted and painted savage. His good fortune did not desert him, however, and he was well treated by his savage hosts, in consideration of his giving them a por- tion of his ammunition. He was nearly drowned in Utah ; encountered a thunder storm on the Rocky Mountain ridge — a bolt of which tore up the ground at his feet and stunned him for a moment — and at last reached his destination, where in a few months he was doing well. At this time he heard from home of a legacy left his family from the old country, and was forced rather reluctantly to return home. He returned by way of Nicaragua to New York. Since then several other legacies have come into his possession, and he is now in more than comfortable circumstances, which he and his wife are worthy to enjoy. Early and Present Mills. — The first mill in the present limits of Sugar Grove township was undoubtedly, as has been stated, the grist-mill of John Sugar Grove Township. 433 Hood, in the northern part of the town. The first grist-mill in the village was that built by Samuel Hall, as before stated, and which stood near the site of the present mill of G. Clark. Mr. Hall also operated a saw- mill with the same water power that impelled his grist-mill. These mills were afterward owned and operated by Joseph Langdon. The present steam mill on that site was built in 1856 at a cost of some $8,000, by S. P. Fuller, Russell Clark soon after purchasing a half interest. Another saw- mill was erected soon after 1835 below the village, and was known as Watkins's mill, from its builder, Horace Watkins. Another saw-mill stood above the village, its builder being an En- glishman named John Sellers. These were all water mills excepting that erected by S. P. Fuller ; but the diminished volume of the streams which followed the clearing of the forests have expelled them all from existence. The only tan- nery of consequence ever operated in Sugar Grove is that previously mentioned, belonging to David Brown. Samuel Hall at one time had a small distillery, but it was short lived. The grist and saw-mill now owned and operated by M. W. Curtiss and P. Davis, under the firm name of Curtiss & Davis, was built about fourteen years ago by W. M. Haggerty and E. R. Wheelock under the style of Haggerty & Wheelock. In a few months Mr. Wheelock sold his interest to his partner. In January, 1876, Mr. Davis purchased a half interest in the business. The relation thus established continued until October, 1885, when Mr. Haggerty was superseded by Mr. Curtiss. The capacity of the grist- mill is estimated at about 400 bushels of grain a day. That of the saw-mill is stated at 3,000 feet of lumber in every ten hours. Connected with the saw- mill is also a stave and shingle-mill of good capacity. The mills are operated separately by steam, one engine for the grist-mill and the other engine running the saw, stave, and shingle-mills. George Haupin has recently started a cider and jelly-mill in Sugar Grove village, his first supply of apples for reduction arriving September 23, 1886. Mr. Haupin has been manufacturer of cider since 1874, during which year he began the business in Freehold. He has all the appointments of a first-class mill, and will undoubtedly build up a large business. The other manufacturing interests of Sugar Grove village are included in the carriage shop of W. W. Jones, who has been in business here about eight years, and the harness shop of J. J. Smutz, who came in June, 1883. Eai-ly and Present Mercantile Business. — If we exclude the manufacture and sale of brick, carried on by Silas Hazen, opposite the old framed house of* David Brown, the first store in town was that kept on the site of the pres- ent residence of C. F. Temple, by John Brown, brother of David Brown. The next merchant was Henry Higby, who kept store in Sugar Grove village about 1823 or 1824, and was soon followed by Charles Butler. This store was on the ground now covered by the bakery. Subsequently, in this same building were Joshua Van Duzen, Pier & Co., and George Mosher. The oldest busi- 434 History of Warren County. ness now in progress in town is tlie business of H. N. Frazine, dealer in har- nesses, etc., which was established by his father, Newton Frazine, in 1853, in the same building now occupied by the present proprietor, who succeeded the founder about fifteen years ago. Mr. Frazine carries from a thousand to twelve hundred dollars' worth of stock. The general store of A. G. Mclntyre was founded, in 1867, by C. P. Har- ris. The firm of Harris & Mclntyre was formed in 1881 — and the senior partner withdrew from the business in 1885. Mr. Mclntyre carries a stock which he appraises at about $15,000. Next in chronological order of establishment is the drug store of L. H. Darling, which was begun about 1869 by Dr. C. J. Phillips. Since he retired the several proprietors have been M. W. Lenox, Lenox & Smilie, George M. Burroughs, and the present owner, who succeeded Mr. Burroughs on the 1st of January, 1886. In 1 87 1 Theodore Van Duzen established the furniture business now under the proprietorship of his successor, M. W. Harrington, whose connection with the concern dates from 1873. Mr. Harrington carries stock valued at about $3,500. W. H. Mix purchased the old brick store in 1872, that being then, accord- ing to his statement, the only brick building in town. From the first he dealt in drugs, groceries, boots and shoes, glassware, etc. He moved into his pres- ent quarters in 1878. He values his stock at from $6,000 to $8,000. The firm of Smith, Wheelock & Co. began to deal in hardware, and built a store for that purpose in the summer of 1873. Successive changes since then have taken place, and now the sign reads " K. R. Wheelock & Son." Their stock is estimated at about $8,000 or $9,000. Augustus Scott, merchant tailor at Sugar Grove village, came about twelve years ago. The tin-shop and hardware store of John Barlow was started the same year. Mr. Barlow now carries stock worth $4,000 or $5,000. J. G., A. M. and A. D. McDonald, under the firm style of McDonald Brothers, established a general store in Sugar Grove village in 1877, and now carry stock valued at about $12,000. Wellman Brothers & Co., drugs and general merchandise. — This estab- lishment was founded in 1881 by W. D. and D. E. Wellman, who, in the sum- mer of 1886, formed copartnership relations with the present junior member of the firm, R. S. Cummings. They have been in their present building two years at this writing. They carry about $3,000 worth of goods. The general mercantile business now conducted in the name of Mrs. R. D. McDougal was started in 1881 by Hardin Hazeltine, her father. Her husband had charge of the store for about a year, ending in March, 1885, when the present proprietress assumed the management. S. G. Stuart began to deal in groceries in Sugar Grove village, on the 4th of September, 1886. Sugar Grove Township. 435 Physicians, Past and Present. — In the earliest days of the township med- ical aid was obtainable no nearer than Jamestown. About the year 1820 Dr. Hiram Newman came to reside in a house next to the old school-house in Sugar Grove village. His wife was a sister of Abraham Ditmars. After a brief stay here of two or three years Dr. Newman sold out to Dr. Hiram Alden, who lived about three years in the same house. His successor was Dr. Jona- than Pratt, a single man, who boarded with Henry Catlin three years and then returned to Ontario county, N. Y. Then arrived another bachelor physician, Dr. Marcus Whitman, who boarded at Willson's Hotel. Several years after- ward he was followed by Dr. Noah Weld, who lived on the edge of the village toward Jamestown. He practiced in Sugar Grove a number of years and until his death, only a few years previous to the last great war. His son, Des- cartes Weld, afterward practiced here some time, finally removing to California for his health, where he died. Dr. Samuel Rogers and Dr. C. H. Smith also practiced in Sugar Grove a number of years. Of the physicians at present in practice in Sugar Grove village Dr. W. W. Seabury is the one of longest standing. He was born in this town on the 17th of August, 1851, and received his medical education at the University of Wooster, at Cleveland, O. He also took a degree from the Western Reserve University of Cleveland. The date of his diploma from the first-named insti- tution is February, 1875. He practiced in Sugar Grove two years under Dr. C. H. Smith (who is now in Mason City, Iowa), and since then has continued for himself Dr. W. D. Wellman was born in Harmony, Chautauqua county, N. Y., • February 15, 1855, and received his medical education at the Eclectic Medical Institute of Cincinnati, O., from which he was graduated in June, 1881. He came to Sugar Grove in the following fall. Dr. W. M. Page received his medical education in the medical department of the Western Reserve University of Cleveland, being graduated from it on the 3d of March, 1886. In August following he settled in Sugar Grove. Dr. Fred A. Morrell was born in Strong, Me., on the 26th of October, 1857, and obtained his professional education at the Long Island College Hos- pital in Brooklyn, N. Y., from which he was graduated in June, 1885. He practiced for some time on the resident staff of physicians of that institution, and came to Sugar Grove on the 1st of October, 1886. The only dentist in active practice at the village of Sugar Grove is Dr. H. B. Arnold, who practiced dentistry in New York State nearly forty years, the last thirteen of which, before his arrival in Sugar Grove, were passed in James- town. He came here in the summer of 1884. The Sugar Grove News is the only newspaper ever published in Sugar Grove, is apparently established on a sound basis, and is published by a veteran newspaper man, who " cannot remember when he couldn't set type." His father. 436 History of Warren County. Adolphus Fletcher, established the Jamestown Journal about 1825 or 1826. The proprietor of the News is also the founder of the Warren Mail. He was in Southern Illinois fifteen or twenty years, and came here from Washington, D. C, where he had been in the employ of the government. The News is a clean, crisp, well-edited paper. Republican in politics and interesting in matter. It dates its origin to December, 1884. Sugar Grove Saznngs Bank was organized in April, 1877, with a capital of $25,000. The first officers were W. H. Shortt, president; J. H. Nichols, vice-president; J. B. Hamilton, cashier ; and J. H. Spencer, assistant cashier. Mr. Shortt is still president, and his son, C. M. Shortt, is the present cashier, having succeeded Mr. Hamilton in 1878. Hotels. — The only hotels of any prominence in the village of Sugar Grove have been that of John I. Willson and his successors, and that of Samuel Hall — the last building having been destroyed by fire about thirteen years ago, though it had not been kept as a hotel for some time previous to that date. As stated in the sketch of Captain Willson, he purchased the hotel (of Robert Miles) about 1 821, and retained the property until about the year 1857, when he sold out to James Patterson. In the summer of 1859 Aaron Smith suc- ceeded Patterson, and in one year was followed by James Dennison one year. Henry Sylvester, now of Sinclairville, N. Y., then came here and remained about one year. Since his withdrawal the successive proprietors have been Fred Alvord, William D. Edgerton, H. Harmon, Fred Alvord, George Owen, Porter Pemberton, David CruU, Jacob Wiggins, and the present proprietor, Charles Ricker, who assumed charge on the 4th of July, 1886. Agricultural Society. — The unquestioned pre-eminence of this township in agricultural matters has occasioned several attempts toward the organization of societies looking to the advancement of this art, the basis of a country's pros- perity. In the fall of 1857 an agricultural society was formed as a township organization auxiliary to the county society. It was officered as follows : L. H. Pratt, president; F. R. Miller, secretary; Dwight Buell, treasurer. It was decided that fairs should be held in or near the village of Sugar Grove, and one or two such fairs were so held. The society now in operation in this town- ship, however, dates its origin to the year 1874, when it was organized and soon after chartered. The first president was Darwin Wentworth ; the first secretary, David Jagger, and the first treasurer, E. R. Wheelock. Its pur- po.se is the advancement of the agricultural, horticultural, and mechanical arts. No premiums are offered at its fairs to fast horses, no gambling is allowed on the grounds, nor is any liquor sold. Grounds of about twenty or twenty- five acres are leased of three parties, and are a pattern of convenience and beauty. According to its charter, any person purchasing a family ticket be- comes ipso facto a member of the organization, the membership varying from 1,000 to 1,500 in numbers. Once in three years the society elect a member Sugar Grove Townshii>. 437 of the State Board of Agriculture. The present officers are Hon. Emry Davis, president ; David Jagger, secretary, and J. B. Hamilton, treasurer. G. A. R. Post. — This organization, which was named after James P. Younie, a brave soldier killed during the last war, was mustered in on the 21st of Jan- uary, 1885, by post commander J. W. Brighton, of Bear Lake Post. Follow- ing is a list of its officers : Commander, Samuel Lord ; senior vice-commander, W. G. Peckham ; junior vice-commander, B. F. Darling; surgeon. J. L. Bur- roughs ; chaplain, N. J. Cooper; officer of the day, A. D. Frank; adjutant, William A. Stuart; quartermaster, D. Fulkerson ; sergeant-major, H. Arters; quartermaster-sergeant, William A. Younie. Tlie Post office. — It is not known exactly when a regular post-office was established in the village of Sugar Grove, though it seems probable that the first appointee under the general government was Jeremiah Jolls, who, about 1830, had an office a little to the west of Willson's Hotel. It is stated on good authority that John Brown, of Harper's Ferry fame, was at one time a mail carrier through this township, when he resided in Crawford county. Jere- miah Jolls was followed in his federal office by Joshua Van Duzen, whose office was in the same building. Since the expiration of his term the following have basked in presidential favor for more or less brief periods : W. O. Blodgett, Mark Willson, G. W. Buell, James Patterson, Jacob Horton, C. J. Phillips, James Stuart. The present incumbent, J. M. Martin, was appointed in May, 1885. Cliandlcr s I'allcy. — This is a small village in the southeastern part of the township, containing two general stores, one which is kept by H. Wilson, and the other by F. A. Sagerdahl ; besides the drug store of F. N. Chapin. At this place Baker & Anderson operate a successful planing, matching, and shingle-mill ; N. W. Dupree manufactures lumber, lath, and shingles ; C. P. Quilliam carries on a cheese-factory ; C. J. Sagerdahl and Charles Sundell are severally engaged in selling and manufacturing wagons and carriages. There is one hotel, the Ellis House, kept by Benjamin Ellis. H. Wilson is post- master, and until recently the only physician here was F. W. Whitcomb. Dr. Whitcornb was born in Sugar Grove, and remained in his native township until July I, 1886, when he removed to Warren. He was graduated from the med- ical department of the University of Buffalo on the 2 1st of February, 1882, and at once began to practice in Chandler's Valley. He was the first resident physician of this village. Chandler's Valley received its name before 1820 from John Chandler, who came hither from Connecticut about the year 18 15, and settled on the flats in the valley, his house standing on a little rise of ground immediately west of the flats. The country was then noted for its maple sugar, great numbers of maple trees covering the surface of this part of the town. Josiah Chandler, the father of John, came with him, an old man, but died in a few years. John 438 History of Warren County. Chandler had twelve children, four of whom were sons, and of the latter only one now lives, while but four of the daughters are living. John Chandler was a hard-working man, was conscientious in the performance of his duty, and just toward others. He died in the early part of July, 1867. The other early settlers, most of them, have been mentioned in former pages. About 1859 this portion of the town received a considerable influx of Swedish immigrants, who now form an important and law-abiding element of its society. Schools. — The first school kept in Sugar Grove was in 181 5, in what was then known as the Utica school district, embracing the present village of Sugar Grove. The first schools were supported by individual subscription, the tuition being valued at from two to five dollars per pupil. The first school was taught by Betsy Wetmore, who was succeeded by James Brown. Other early teachers were J. O. Wilson and Corbin Kidder. As before stated, John Barr donated an acre of ground to the district for school purposes, which is still used as a site for the union school. About 1869 Frederick Miles be- queathed $3,000 to his wife in trust, to be used as a school fund. The present union school building was erected about this time at a cost of nearly $7,000, F. R. Miller, James Catlin, and James Younie being the commissioners who worked in conjunction with the school directors. Besides this union school and the district schools of the township, there is an educational institution in the village of Sugar Grove which reflects honor upon the place, and will, undoubtedly, redound to the elevation of public morals and opinions. The Sugar Grove Seminary was erected through the efforts of the Erie Conference of the United Brethren of Christ. The confer- ence resolved to establish the school (the only one in the conference) at that point from which the best inducement was offered. The citizens of Sugar Grove with characteristic liberality subscribed the sum of $8,000 for the pur- pose, which, being the largest offer, was accepted, and the building erected in 1883. The first board of trustees was elected two years previously, and was composed of Rev. J. Hill, who was foremost in his zealous efforts to secure the establishment of the school, Rev. A. Holeman, Rev. N. R. Luce, Rev. R. J. White, H. Prick, C. H. Partridge, and Joel Carr. The cost of the building, an elegant and modern structure, was $20,000, and of the furniture $3,000 more. The school was opened in September, 1884, with an attendance of about 130. The institution, though under the management of the United Brethren, is entirely non-sectarian, and makes a specialty of music, having a corps of excellent teachers. The other branches are not, however, neglected. The first and present principal is Rev. R. J. White. The attendance in the 1885 was 215. The religious organization of the United Brethren connected with the school was effected in 1884, the membership of which now numbers about seventy. The pastor from the beginning has been and now is Rev. J. Hill. The Sab- Sugar Grove Township. 439 bath-school superintendent is Professor E. H. Hill ; class leader, P. Smith ; steward, J. P. Atkins. The average attendance at the Sabbath-school is about sixty. The congregations at the church meetings are much larger than is in- dicated by the statement of membership, there being usually in attendance upon divine service at the chapel no fewer than 125 persons. The present board of trustees of the institution is composed as follows : Rev. J. Hill, Rev. R. J. White, Rev. I. Bennehofif, Rev. N. R. Luce, Rev. A. Holeman, H. Frick, J. D. Christ. The members of the prudential committee are Rev. J. Hill, J. P. Miller, T. Fulkerson. Rev. J. Hill is the general agent. Ecclesiastical. — The first regularly organized church in Sugar Grove town- ship was the Presbyterian, which was formed in the parlor of David Brown's dwelling house in 1821 by Rev. Amos Chase. Previous to that, however, meetings were irregularly held three or four times a year, without regard to denomination, in the school-house usually. The original members of this church were David Fox, I. Fitch, Nathan Abbott, W. C. White, Samuel White, David Stilson, Hannah Tuttle, Matilda Fox, Anna Abbott, Aurelia Wetmore, Cynthia Fitch, Betsey White, Catharine Stuart, William Stuart, Betsey Stuart, Robert Stuart, Polly Stuart, James Lowther, Barbara Lowther, Jennet Brown, Joseph Langdon, Frederick Miles, Catherine Miles, Sally Smith, and Francis Smith. The first meetings were held in the dwellings of members and in school-houses. During the year 1834, however, a house of worship was com- pleted at a cost of about $1,000. This building was of wood and stood out- side of the village proper. Sometime between 1865 and 1870 it was mo\ed within the village limits and repaired at an additional cost of $1,200. Pastors and stated supplies, in the order of their coming by years, have been as follows : Amos Chase, 1821 ; Nathan Harnod, 1825; W. F. Huston, 1831 ; John McNair, 1832; A. McCready, 1836; Daniel Washburn, 1838; M. T. Merwin, 1846; N. M. Crane, 1849 to 1854; J. H. Gray, 1862; Samuel Graham, 1865 ; William Elliott, 1875 to 1884. The number of present mem- bers is twenty-si.x, and the present value of church property is $1,500. In 1838, through the influence, it is said, of a division of the Presbyterian Church of Jamestown into two organizations, one retaining the Presbyterian form of government and the other assuming that of the Congregational Church, a like division was effected in the Presbyterian Church of Sugar Grove. Dea- con Joseph Langdon had originally united with this church with the express understanding that whenever the vicinity should have Congregationalists suf- ficient for the formation of a separate organization, he should be at liberty to withdraw from the Presbyterian Church, and organize a separate body. In the above-mentioned year. Deacon Langdon, deeming the time ripe for the performance of his condition, moved in the church that the organization with- draw from the Presbyterian and assume the Congregational form of govern- ment. Among the Congregationalists were, besides Deacon Langdon, Henry 440 History of Warren County. Catlin, Amos Wright, L. H. Pratt, Clark Dalrymple, Stephen Jagger, Mrs. Stephen Jagger, Miss Julia A. Catlin (now Mrs. L. H. Pratt), David and Mrs. Stilson, David and Mrs. Fox, Betsey Stilson, Polly Stilson (afterward Mrs. Hardin Hazeltine), James Gray, Lydia King (afterward Mrs. Amos Wright), and Europa Fay. Miss Catherine Brown, Mr. and Mrs. Hazeltine Spencer, and James Jagger were left almost alone in the Presbyterian Church for a time. This division subsequently led to a protracted litigation for the possession and own- ership of the church property, which resulted in favor of the Presbyterians. After the division the Congregationalists held meetings usually in the ball- room of Samuel Hall's tavern, and also in the ball-room of a small tavern built by Samuel Foster, but then owned by Samuel Brown. No church edifice was erected until January, 1849, when the present one was reared. The pastor of the Congregational Church at the time of the division was Rev. Emery, who was soon followed by Rev. Hiram Kellogg. The pastors since his departure have been many, among the last few being D. L. Gear, O. A. Thomas, J. B. Davison, and W. W. Pringle, the last pastor. The church has at present no pastor. The present officers of the Congregational Church are as follows : Edwin Hazeltine, S. O. Smith, Noah H. Dalrymple, deacons ; Miss Sarah Stoolfire, treasurer ; Noah H. Dalrymple clerk ; De Forrest Temple, Sabbath-school superintendent. A Sabbath-school was organized before the separation from the Presbyterian Church, under Rev. Harnod, and has since been continued in both organizations. The property of the Congregational Church is now valued at about $2,000, including the parsonage. The first knowledge we have of Methodism in Sugar Grove places the date of its origin here at about the period between 1825 and 1830. Previous to that time Sugar Grove had had the misfortune to be counted, as one of the leading members of that church has said, merely one of the picket posts of some circuit, and, indeed, practically continued to be so counted until 1855. Until the last-mentioned date the members were few and scattering, and held at irregular periods such services as they could in the log house of some set- tler. Occasionally also prayer meetings and class meetings were called to keep up the interest of those who adhered to that faith. Among these pioneers of Methodism in Sugar Grove are found the names of Gregg, Warner, Carter, Thorp, Crouch, Andrews, Mahan, Pero, and others. Among the preachers who conducted meetings previous to 1855, are found the following: Revs. Todd, Flowers, Demming, Norton, Forrest, Chapman, Graham, Edwards, Lloyd, Forrest, Blin, Peate, More, Hineball, Holland, and Jones. In 1840 the first Methodist class was formed in Sugar Grove by Rev. T. J. McClellan and Rev. E. J. S. Baker, preacher in charge. J. Andrews was class leader. The circuit at that time was called Harmony circuit. During these years revivals were not uncommon, and were undoubtedly productive of much Sugar Grove Township. 441 good. On the 5th of October, 1846, a meeting was held at the house of An- drew Gregg to consider the desirabihty and feasibihty of building a house of worship. Rev. E. J. S. Baker was in the chair and Dr. J. Andrews acted as secretary. Resohitions were adopted to the effect that the demands of the denomination in this vicinity required the erection of a church edifice, and Dr. J. Andrews, A. D. Jackson, and Stephen Crouch were appointed a committee, which in accordance of their duty reported at the next meeting, December 28, 1 846, in favor of the immediate erection of a house of worship. At this meeting trustees and also a building committee were elected. The people, however, were very poor, and considering their circumstances and small number the undertaking was serious, and reflects credit upon their zeal. Farms were not cleared, and many were not paid for; money was scarce and the prices of products were ex- tremely low. Notwithstanding these untoward conditions the contract was let on the 28th of March, 1848, to Stephen Crouch. After slow and toilsome prog- ress the edifice was completed, and on the 31st of August, 1852, was dedicated to the worship of the Most High by Rev. H. Whallon, assisted by Revs. T. D. Blin, J. Chesbrough, and others. It is truthfully related that when the people met to cut down and prepare the timber for the building, two women of the society, Mrs. Dunbar and Mrs. Abigail Fox, sawed off the first log amidst great shouting and applause. They both died long ago. It is also due to the memory of Stephen Crouch, who was soundly converted at one of the log cab- in meetings, as he said from a very sinful life, that he rendered indispensable aid in the building of this church. Until this edifice was completed services were held in the school-house on the village green. A Sunday-school was at this time also organized, and has continued in active and successful operation to the present day. In 1855 the conference set Sugar Grove off from what was called the Ash- ville Circuit, and the new circuit was called Sugar Grove. Rev. E. M. Nowland was pastor. The following official members were found on the bounds of the new circuit at the time of its erection: Local preachers. Comfort Hamline, Chris- topher McManus ; exhorters, David Blodgett, Artemas Woodard, Griffin Sweet ; stewards, John Mahan, Sylvester Howd, Peter Fretts ; class leaders, H. Cooper, S. Howd, J. Andrews, A. Gregg, J. Whitely, A. Woodard, and J. Walker. Since the year 1855 the influence of the church upon the people has not been without its good effect. Many of the ministers have been men of force and usefulness. Revivals of religion have been of frequent occurrence, and the community have thus been benefited by the elevating influences shed upon them. Few of the official members of 1855 remain at the present day, most of them having gone to the other world. In conclusion it may be truthfully said that the Methodist Episcopal Church of Sugar Grove has been aggressive in its warfare against sin, and its altar fires have never been permitted to be 442 History of Warren County. for a moment extinguished. Through the years of the Rebellion it occupied no doubtful position, but was loyal to the Union, and patriotic to the cause. It has ever been found on the side of right and sobriety. Its ministers have ever been ready and present to administer the consolations of the gospel to all classes and conditions of men, to visit and comfort the sorrowing, and dispense the last rites to the dying and the dead. The pastors since 1855 have been as follows: 1855-56, E. M. Nowland ; 1856-57, M. Colgrove; 1857-58, A. Barras; 1858-59, S. S. Burton ; 1859-61, E.A.Anderson; 1861-63, J. Marsh ; 1863-65, D. Mizner; 1865-67, Stocker and Bush; 1867-69, L. J. Merrill; 1869-72, A. A. Horton; 1872-73, J. P. Storey; 1873-74, J. P. Hicks; 1874-75, D. H. Snowden ; 1875-77, E. K. Creed; 1877-78, S. S. Bennett; 1878-81, W. O. Allen; 1881-83, C. O. Mead ; 1883-85, D. R. Palmer; 1885-86, V. Corneule ; 1886-87, Rev. Lindsey. The value of the church property is at present estimated at $3,700. The Sabbath-school superintendent is G. Horton. The other officers are as follows : stewards, VV. W. Jones, S. Jones, Mrs. F. Bixford, Mrs. G. Horton ; trustees, Thomas Stuart, A. Shaw, C. Dole, G. Horton, B. H. Wiggins ; number of Sabbath-school teachers and officers, 15 ; number of scholars of all ages, ill. Tlie Swedish Evangelical Lutheran Hcssel Valley Church of Chandler's Valley. — This church was organized in 1856 by Rev. Jonas Swenson. The first meetings were held in private houses in different parts of the town, and were conducted by missionary ministers. Among the original members were prominent Magnus Hultberg, Lars Samuelson, S. F. Anderson, A. J. Hult- berg, J. P. Swanson, A. P. Morris, and others. The first house of worship was built even before the permanent organization of the society was effected, namely, in 1854. It was a framed building, erected at an expenditure of about $2,000, and stood one mile north from Chandler's Valley village. It was superseded in 1884 by the present edifice, of brick, which is situated in the village of Chandler's Valley, and which cost about $6,000. The pastors of this church in order are as follows: Rev. Jonas Swenson, 1856-58 ; John Person, 1859-62; C. O. Hultgruen, 1864-70; Henry O. Lindeblad, 1871-79; C. A. Johnson, 1880-85 ; and the present pastor, A. P. Lindstrom, who came in 1886. At present there are 250 communicants of this church, and a total membership of 433. The church property is valued at $10,000. A division of the old church took place upon the erection of the new church edifice at the Valley, which resulted in a total separation of a part of the congregation and the formation of a new independent church, which built a new edifice near the site of the old church. Pine Grove Township. 443 CHAPTER XXXVI. HISTORY OF PINE GROVE TOWNSHIP. PINE GROVE township is a tract of land nearly six miles square, lying somewhat in the northeasterly part of Warren county, and is bounded north by Cattaraugus county in the State of New York, east by Elk township, Warren county, south by Glade and Conewango, and west by Farmington. Its surface is diversified by hill and valley, though this feature is not so prom- inent a characteristic of Pine Grove as of those towns lying farther south. Neither does it contain so much wild land as most of the other towns in the county, the soil of which it is composed being admirably adapted for agricult- ural uses. Natural irrigation is afforded by the Conewango Creek and its trib- utaries. This stream takes its rise in Chautauqua county, N. Y., flows south- erly through Pine Grove township — a little west of the center — forms the boundary line between Conewango and Glade townships, and unites with Alle- gheny River just east of Warren borough. The Dunkirk, Allegheny Valley and Pittsburgh Railroad intersects the town along the east bank of this creek, making access easy to the bounteous resources of nature here provided. The township was formed on the 8th of March, 1821, and its area diminished by the formation of Farmington, 7th of October, 1853. It was first called " Num- ber Six." Early Settlements. — As has been written by one of Pine Grove's best informed local historians, " The history of Pine Grove township from its first settlement would necessarily include a recital of the sufferings, hardships, and privations of the early settlers, of which the present generation can form no adequate idea. A densely wooded country, inhabited by wild beasts, and wild men who had recently surrendered the title to their lands under compulsion," were the conditions which confronted the unfaltering and fearless pioneers of this neighborhood, which they accepted with a readiness born of intrepidity. It was in circumstances thus inauspicious that, as early as 179S, and while the reports of savage atrocity were yet distinct and vivid, John Frew, John Rus- sell, Robert Miles, and soon after Isaiah Jones, starting from Philadelphia, ascending the Susquehanna and Sinnemahoning, and penetrating the wilder- ness in what is now McKean county, found the Allegheny at " Canoe Place," where they provided themselves with means of transportation, floated down the river to the mouth of the Conewango, and made the first permanent settle- ment of Warren county in the beech woods of Pine Grove and Farmington. It has been claimed that this event occurred previous to Wayne's treaty of 1795, but we have been unable to discover any evidence sufficiently strong to confute the presumption, which " will not down," that it was impossible for 444 History of Warren County. white men to make a settlement in the heart of the hostile Indian's battle- ground, so far away from the protection of the government. They would not have lived to see the last faint glimmer of their first camp-fire, or to have cleared a space sufficient for their final resting-place. As soon, however, as Wayne's treaty had laid open these rich lands to the settler, came the settler. The smoothest and most available lands for agricultural purposes are found upon the wide flats and low, broad hills of the central and northwestern por- tion of the township. In the eastern and southern parts high elevations and a surface roughly corrugated by fierce water courses have rendered large areas unfit for cultivation. Originally these hills were covered with pine of a supe- rior quality, as well as other valuable timber. It was this more than anything else that invited the early settlers to make this region their home. " We find," says our author, "that as early as 1801 there was at least one saw-mill; and in 1803 Mulford Marsh built a mill near the Irvine mill site, Daniel McGinty and Ethan Jackson built another at Russellburg, near where now is the bridge. Water power was eagerly sought after, to drive the machinery for sawing lum- ber. But little attention was given to improving the land for agricultural pur- poses. There were a few attempts made here and there at actual settlement. Z. H. Eddy commenced in 1801 on what is now the Phillips farm, but soon after moved to Warren, where he lived until his death, at an advanced age. One Charles Biles settled on the farm now owned by S. P. Allen. A man by the name of Davis settled on the Sloan farm, but transferred his claim to Gar- field, Garfield to S. W. Green, and he to Sloan, who retained it for many years. John McClain settled on the John Daley farm, and Neal McClain es- tablished himself on the Cook or Wittsie farm. Samuel Anderson was the first settler on the John Arnold farm. These attempts were made under the settlement act of 1792, which required five years to give title. But few of the first arrivals perfected the title in their own names, as a subsequent assessment mentioned only Samuel Anderson and Isaiah Jones as owning land, of those before named. The population increased slowly until after the War of 18 12, when there seemed to be a more rapid increase, principally from the Eastern States. Many located in New York, while others wound their devious way into Penn- sylvania. Pine Grove obtained a portion of this influx. Thomas Martin came from Venango county in 18 13, Joseph Akely in 1815, while K. L. Derby, Robert Russell, Robert Miles, Adam Aker, David C. Bowman, John Rogers, John Russell, Caleb Thompson, Joseph and Orrin Hook, Major James Hcrriot, Robert Valentine, Thomas Slone, John and Marshall Jones, and many others were named in the assessment roll of 1822. Up to this time, and long after, there were no roads on the east side of the creek, and but two houses, one built and occupied by Major Herriot, near Akely Station, the other on the estate of William and Danford Hale, near the Pine Grove Township. 445 mouth of Store House Run, where there was also a saw-mill. There had been several cabins built a little above the present site of the water tank of the D., A. V. & P. Railroad, by a number of men, who obtained the timber for the first bridge across the Allegheny River, at Pittsburgh, where now stretches the iron bridge at the foot of St. Clair street. This was in 1817, and the place was long known hereabouts as " Shanty Hill Landing." There were but thirteen persons assessed in Pine Grove, as now constituted, in 1806. Isaiah Jones, who has been before mentioned as one of the first of the pioneers, lived on the land he selected when he first visited this township until the time of his death. The farm is now occupied by Messrs. Pitts and Way. He was appointed a justice of the peace, and acted as such until the adoption of the Constitution that made the office elective. Edward Jones, his brother, will be remembered by the older inhabitants as court crier for many years. George Slone, father of Thomas Slone, came to this township in 1799 from Cumberland county, Pa. He was by trade a blacksmith. In 18 17 he emigrated to Ohio. Robert Russell, who appears in this early list, afterward became an extensive lumberman, and will again be referred to in speaking of the village. Thomas Martin and Garrett Woodworth owned and operated the mills at Russellburg, but low prices for lumber and other adverse circumstances induced them, after a brief period, to sell. Lumber, such as was manufactured here, was sold for $2.50 per thousand in Pittsburgh in the fall of 1820. Mar- tin afterward moved to the mill on Store House Run, which he operated until it burned, about 1825 or 1826. He at the same time took up the farm now owned by Daniel Harrington, and owned it at his death. The Warren Ledger said this of him : "Thomas Martin, of this county, died the 15th of February, 1869, aged eighty- three. Mr. Martin was one of the oldest settlers of Warren county, having emigrated to this county more than fifty years ago from Kent county, in Delaware, where he was born in 1786. He was once sheriff of Warren county for three years, and county commissioner for the same length of time, and his faithful discharge of his public duties received universal com- mendation. He was a man of more than ordinary intelligence, his advice was often sought, and his counsels accepted. A good man has left us." The D., A. V. & P. Railroad was completed in 1871, which made an out- let for certain kinds of lumber and bark that had hitherto been unmarketable and comparatively valueless, besides cheapening the expense of freight for supplies. The village of Pine Grove, now called Russellburg, was named after Rob- ert Russell, son of that John Russell who emigrated into this township as be- fore related, and lies buried in Pine Grove cemetery, having died 23d of March, 18 19, aged seventy-eight years. Robert Russell died August 17, 1847, aged sixty-five years. The village was not regularly laid out until 1843, but had been inhabited by different families from the earliest occupation of the 446 History of Warren County. township. That the ground upon which the village stands had been used by the Indians and French from time immemorial, there are many evidences. Being at the head of the Seven-mile Rapids, at the foot of the deep and slack water extending into New York, it seemed to be a natural stopping place on the route from the lakes to the Ohio River, before it was abandoned for the Presque Isle portage. The first white inhabitant must have been one John Houghy, who, with his wife Betsey, lived in a cabin near those large apple trees in the field of R. Chapman, and doubtless planted them. But soon after other people came, and Mr. and Mrs. Houghy, fearing that they were liable to be too crowded, left here and commenced again near the Irvine brick house, where they lived for a time. The island opposite their last place of residence has ever since been known as Houghy's Island. But people again becoming too thickly settled, they went down the river, and probably settled where they would not be molested by impertinent or inquisitive neighbors. The first house erected in the village stood near the present residence of R. Chapman. Soon after, another one was built of planks, where now is the store of A. A. Clark, and in this tenement D. M. Martin was born 15th of January, 1821. The first public house was built by Lansing Wetmore, father of Judge L. D. Wetmore, now of Warren, who afterward sold to Rob- ert Miles. After passing through various hands, it came into the possession of A. G. Lane. This was on the same ground now occupied by the hotel. Thomas Slone commenced on the opposite corner to build a public house, but sold to Marshall Jones before completion, who, after finishing it, kept tavern in it until 1824. It then burned, and was at once rebuilt by Jones. This property also went through various permutations until the winter of 1 841, when both hotels were burned at once. During the time that Jones was keeping public house he and his brother John commenced building a saw-mill across the creek on Akely Run, but soon sold to Joseph Akely, who came from Brattleboro, Vt., in 18 15, and took up 600 acres of land, embracing the site of this mill. Here he manufactured lumber, cleared and cultivated land until his death, 14th of October, 1875, at the age of eighty-six years, leaving an untarnished name as an example and a heritage to his many children. As the country filled up, and saw-mills increased in number far up the Conewango in the State of New York; Pine Grove, or Russellburg, in the rafting season became a busy place, located, as it is, at the head of the rapids, where pilots were procured to pilot the rafts into the Allegheny. The Cone- wango seemed to afford more water than now, or at least a rafting stage of water lasted much longer. Sometimes for nearly a month the village would be thronged with raftmen engaged in transporting their lumber to a lower mar- ket. All this has passed away forever. The timber has nearly all been taken away, and probably the last raft of sawn lumber has passed out of the Cone- wango. With the extinguishment of this business the occupation of many of Pine Grove Township. 447 the citizens of Pine Grove has gone likewise. The whole male population seemed to depend upon going down the river as often as possible — and many thereby became intimately acquainted with the rivers, their windings and in- tricate channels, from here to the falls of the Ohio. That knowledge, so highly prized at one time, is useless now, except as affording an interesting and never- failing subject of conversation between old river men when they meet and tell minutely every circumstance connected with a trip made fifty or sixty years ago. Thomas Slone, who has previously been mentioned, and who died in this village 3d of October, 1886, at the age of ninety-nine years, was never so happy as when relating the rafting experiences which occurred in his boyhood. In relation to him the following is copied from the " Historical Atlas of Warren County": "Thomas Slone was born in Cumberland county, Pa., in 1796. He came with his father to Pine Grove in 1 799, and has been a resident of this township ever since. He has been one of the most active and energetic busi- ness men in Pine Grove, and always took an active interest in everything per- taining to the welfare of the township or county. He was county commis- sioner from 1837 to 1840. He is now in his eighty-third year, living in Rus- sellburg, surrounded by his friends and relations, enjoying the calm reflections incident to a busy life. His wife, a few years younger, is also Hving " (1878 — died 1 883). The following in reference to her is copied from the " Warren Cen- tennial Business Directory": "Jane Slone, born in 1800 in Pine Grove, is be- lieved to be the first white child born in the county now living. " Richard Alden came to the county in 1827 from Oneida, and built a card- ing-mill and cloth-dressing establishment at the head of the island at Russell- burg soon after he came. This business was carried on by him until about 1835 or 1836, when he emigrated to Louisiana on the Red River. Henry Gray took his place in the mill until it was washed away, not long after, by a flood and a break in the dam. The business was again undertaken by T. Drummond, of Denver, Col., who later removed his machinery to Brookville, Pa. Woolen-factories having been established at Jamestown and eleswhere in the vicinity, the business was abandoned as unremunerative, and such machin- ery became useless for the reason that the women had forgotton how to spin and weave as their ancestors had been forced to do. Dr. Newman was the first physician that resided in the village, and it has been said of him that none who have since practiced here have filled his place. He went away with Richard Alden and died in Louisiana. He was succeeded by Dr. Wheeler, a young man who read medicine with Newman, and died young of consumption. Since then the village has been blessed with many practitioners,^ who have made, this the halting-place, until they had learned enough to go elsewhere. Pine Grove, like most villages of its size and age, has been imposed upon by quacks. 1 Savs our author. 448 History of Warren County. Luke Turner came to Russellburg in 1827, kept a public house here for many years, and in 1839 moved to Limestone. His widow, now nearly eighty- eight years old, resides with R. Chapman, who married one of her daughters. She has been blind for many years, but her mind is as clear and her memory as correct as most of those who are younger. The first bridge across the Conewango at Russellburg was built in 1827 or 1828, and was again built in 1840, and replaced by the present structure in 1853 by F. E. Perkins. The main building now occupied as a grist-mill was built for a pail-factory in 1834, and was before long abandoned. The old grist-mill was then removed, in 1838, from the present site of Thompson's mill to this new building. In 1868 it was furnished with new machinery, and the additional portions of the building by D. M. Martin and J. S. Briggs, from whom it was purchased by A. G. Lane. The first planing-mill was started by L W. Briggs, who has continued the business unto the present time, and now has a steam mill at the foot of East street. E. W. Thompson also carries on that kind of business in connection with his saw-mill. The first elementary school in the township was kept in a private house in the village by a man named Stephen Rodger, who was drowned in 181 5 or 1 8 16. About the same time a school was kept in Marshtown by Hugh Marsh. (See Farmington.) The first school-house erected in Pine Grove was also in the village in the year 18 18, and the first teacher in the same was named' Mur- dick ; he emigrated hither from some of the Eastern States. These schools were supported by their patrons alone, per capita. Indeed, all the schools in the township were kept up in this manner until after 1834. There are eleven school-houses in the township with 331 pupils. There are three schools in the village with an attendance of about lOO pupils. The foregoing mosaic of interesting facts concerning the early history of Pine Grove is the work of one the best-informed oflier citizens. So much has been said already that little is left for the writer but to fill up with the results of his own research a few of the fissures left by our generous contributor. The remarks made by him in respect to the busy appearance of the village dur- ing the height of lumber traflic in the spring, will apply to nearly every town in the county which is bordered or penetrated by a stream of any size. Forty or fifty years ago, in Russellburg, from nine o'clock in the morning, during the rafting seasons, the creek would be filled with rafts, and the roads would be crowded with men going and coming in every direction. This condition of things lasted until about the time of the last war, though a decline had then already begun. Men still living remember having seen the ball-room, dining- room, bar-room, halls, and even barn floors belonging to the tavern of Thomas Slone, completely covered with lumbermen who were glad to get any place of shelter for the night. The eccentric Guy C. Irvine used to cut, it is stated, about 3,000,000 feet of pine lumber a year, and Robert Russell turned out about the same amount. Pine Grove Township. 449 Such additional information concerning the early settlers as has come to the writer he here gives as a supplement to the first part of this chapter. The farm of Isaiah Jones was in the north part of the town, adjoining the State line. Jones was found dead by the roadside not far from the brewery in War- ren, and it was supposed that he had been thrown from his wagon and killed. His brother Edward was here as early as Isaiah himself, and was a near neigh- bor. Job Damon, who is mentioned in the list of 1822, was an eccentric sort of man, who had fifty acres of land near the New York State line, and is said to have carried his eccentricity to insanity. He was found dead near his house about twenty years ago. His life was very secluded. About 1 830 Robert Russell built the brick building now occupied by Patrick Wetherby, and re- sided therein until his death. Previous to that time he dwelt in a framed house opposite his mills on the creek. His descendants are numerous in town, the postmaster, Harvey Russell, being one of his grandsons. Following is the list of taxables of Pine Grove the first year after its forma- tion (1822). It will be borne in mind that it frequently happens that many were ta.xed who were not residents, but merely property owners in the town : Samuel Anderson, 200 acres; Robert Anderson; Enoch Alden, 75 acres; Hiram Alden, 75 acres; John M. Berry; Adam Acker, 100 acres; Garrett Burget, 297 acres; Peter Burget, 100 acres; David C. Bowman; Daniel Chapin ; Levi Chappie, 70 acres ; Andrew Chappie, 70 acres ; Alanson Chap- pie, 70 acres ; Eademus Comstock, 200 acres ; Eleazer Chase ; Ale.xander Chesney ; Samuel Cowen, 200 acres ; Edward Derby, carpenter ; Nathan Davis; Samuel Daley; Job Damon, carpenter; Joseph Fitch, 150 acres; Josiah Gibbs ; Seth W. Creen, 300 acres ; Joseph Hook ; Orrin Hook ; Major James Herriot, 1,965 acres and a double saw- mill ; William Hearns; William Heaton, 102 acres; Joseph G. Heaton, carpenter, 80 acres; Stephen Hadley, 200 acres; Isaiah Jones, "Esq.," 329 acres; Silas Rowland, 50 acres; Benja- min L. Raymond, 50 acres; David Root; Stephen Rowland, 188 acres; John Roger, 376 acres; Joel Rathbun (heirs), 650 acres; John Russell, 300 acres; Mary Russell, widow, 78 acres ; Thomas Russell, lOO acres ; William C. Shel- don, 130 acres; William Sheldon, 180 acres ; Arthur N. Smith ; William Tan- ner; Edward Treadway ; Caleb Thompson, 300 acres; Jonathan Thompson, 150 acres; Spencer Johnston, 200 acres; Jehu Jones, 150 acres; Marshall Jones ; Edward Jones, 450 acres ; Joseph Jenkin, blacksmith ; Ozam Kibbey, 50 acres ; McConnell & Hubbell ; Thomas Martin, 98 acres and two saw-mills ; James Martin ; John Marsh ; Hugh Marsh, 300 acres ; Thomas Marsh ; Ross Marsh, 100 acres ; Joseph Hugh Marsh, 100 acres ; John Marsh, sr., 366 acres ; Joseph Marsh, 50 acres; Joshua Marsh; Robert Miles, lOO acres, a tavern and one-half of an acre; John Mahon ; Medad Northrop, 35 acres; Gideon M. Northrop, 100 acres; Jesse Northrop, 93 acres; Merritt Nortlirop, 93 acres; Joseph Northrop, 100 acres; Jeremiah C. Newman, 147 acres; Enos 450 History of Warren County. Northrop, 30 acres; Joseph B. Overton, 150 acres; Lewis Osborn, 100 acres; Zebulon Peterson, 50 acres; Robert Russell, 623 acres and two saw-mills ; Anthony Thamer, 50 acres ; Samuel Treadway ; Robert Valentine, 200 acres and a saw-mill ; Joseph Akely, 550 acres; Thomas Slone, one-half acre and a tavern ; James G. Staunton, 200 acres ; Jeremiah Sanford, 24 acres ; Esquire Phillips, 85 acres ; Levi Phillips, 100 acres. Present Business. — The hotel now kept by E. Dean was built in 1 870 by A. G. Lane, who had burned out on the opposite side of the street. Mr. Lane will long be remembered by the people of Russellburg as a man who has done as much to build up the village as any one who has ever lived in the town. He died suddenly in August, 1 876. He was born on the 20th of February, 1 8 1 2, and came to Warren from Camden, Oneida county, N. Y., when he was about four years of age. He removed to Russellburg in 1832, and made that place his home until the time of his death. He was elected treasurer of Warren county in 1865, and served the term with satisfaction to the people. He afterward filled the same office another term, in place of Chase Osgood, who failed to qualify. Mr. Lane always held a good character among his fellowmen, and has bequeathed his good qualities to his son, Hiram W. Lane. The hotel was first kept, after Mr. Lane had opened it to the public, by Dwight Hayward for four years. J. M. Martin was then proprietor for four years. His successors are Theodore Chase, L. Harrison, Mrs. Mary Miller, E. Dean, A. J. Marsh, and in May, 1886, the present proprietor, E. Dean, took possession. The house is well kept and will accommodate about twenty-five or thirty guests. Mr. Dean has been a resident of Pine Grove for forty years. He came here from Chautauqua county, N. Y. Among the merchants now in Russellburg, H. T. Russell is of the longest standing, having engaged in mercantile business in this village for fourteen years. He has occupied the building, in which he now transacts his business, about six years. He carries a general stock valued at about $4,000. He is also postmaster, having retained the office about thirteen years. The store which he occupies was built by A. G. Lane in the summer of 1867. A. A. Clark, who began his mercantile career in this village in 1876, now carries stock worth about $5,000. A. V. Mott, who deals in general merchan- dise in a building which has been used for mercantile purposes for nearly fifty years, began here in May, 1880, though he did not occupy the present building until 1883, when it was vacated by A. A. Clark. He estimates the value of his stock at about $4,000. E. H. French, a resident of this township since 1832. has been proprietor of a feed store in Russellburg since 1883. He was in the mercantile business here during the war, but sold out in 1868, and from that time to 1883 was engaged in lumbering. Before the war he was for years a practical shoemaker in Russellburg. He came in 1832 from Massachusetts with his father, Harrison French. He was born in Lowell, on the 8th of July, Pine Grove Township. 451 1829. P. F. Lewis, the only hardware merchant in town, came from Frews- burg, N. Y., in the winter of 1885-6 and estabhshed the business which he is now successfully conducting. The harness store of M. A. Lockwood was established here in September, 1886, by the present proprietor. After serving a sort of apprenticeship with R. Chapman, John Moll started making boots and shoes in town in 1852. C. Moll also worked with Mr. Chapman as jour- neyman from 1850 to 1853, when he started for himself Excepting two terms, when he lived in Corydon (1857 to 1862 and 1867 to 1871), he has passed his business life in Russellburg. The principal blacksmithing shop now in town is that of E. D. and W. R. Johnson, who, under the style of Johnson Brothers, have done blacksmithing here for six years. In the same building J. C. Hatton carries on the business of wagon-making, and has done so for twelve or fifteen years. The grist-mill has been mentioned in an earlier page of this chapter. The present owner and proprietor, Hiram W. Lane, bought the property of D. M. Martin in March, 1872, and has operated it with good success to the present, having considerably enlarged it and increased its facilities. Besides his cus- tom work, he keeps well-stocked with feed and meal. The capacity of his mill is stated to be about 500 bushels of grain in twenty-four hours. The other manufacturing interests in the township are represented by a number of saw, planing-mills, etc. E. W. Thompson, who operates perhaps the most ex- tensive mill in this part of the county, is on the site originally occupied by Rob- ert Russell. He built his saw-mill in 1874, and first set it in operation in May, 1875. In January, 1886, he added the planing, matching, and house furnish- ing department, and now has practically all the facilities for providing from his own mill a complete outfit for buildings and furniture. He has the largest wheel and power in the county, operating his mill entirely by water. He now cuts about 500,000 feet of lumber annually, but expects soon to run the amount up to about 12,000,000. Mr. Thompson deserves well at the hands of his townsmen, not only by his honesty and diligence, but because he is a native of the adjoining town of Farmington, where he was born in 1835. His father, William Thompson, came from Long Island to Farmington in 1829. Since he was old enough to engage in business on his own account Mr. Thompson has transacted successful business in this town and vicinity. He bought his pres- ent mill property of D. M. Martin and Joseph Briggs. J. H. Dickinson has a steam saw-mill in the northeast part of the town, which he built some fifteen years ago. Near him is the mill of Lacox & Son, of Buffalo, which was erected in 1884. More than thirty years ago Chapin Hall built the mill now operated and owned by Gilbert Turner & Son. A. G. Lane acquired the property from Hall, and sold to John Schnor, the grantor to the present proprietors. It is a well appointed steam saw and lath-mill. Near the railroad station is the stave-factory, operated by steam, owned by J. 452 History of Warren County. H. Fry, and built some ten or twelve years ago by E. VV. Thompson. Mr. Fry purchased the property of G. W. Slone. In the east part of the township is the steam saw-mill of Robert Parish & Co., which has also a shingle and planing department. This mill was erected in March, 1886. J. H. Martindale is manufacturer of grape baskets, shingles, etc., and transacts a good business in a steam mill which he erected in June, 1886. The stone grist-mill in the south part of the township, by the railroad, was erected by Guy C. Irvine in 1836, and is now in the hands of his executors. Near the railroad station at Russellburg is the steam cider-mill and jelly- factory of John Allen, which he built some four or five years ago, and which does a large business every season. At Ackley Station is a thrifty creamery owned and operated by Young & Clark, which has been in operation about three years. The old mill site occupied by Thomas Slone years ago is now occupied by the saw-mill of Charles Van Arsdale. It is a good mill and manufactures a goodly amount of lumber. About a mile east of the railroad station at Russellburg is the chemical laboratory of R. B. Day, of Dunkirk. Including his wood-choppers, Mr. Day employs some thirty men. He manufactures a wood alcohol and an acetate of lime. The works have been in operation there about si.x or seven years. At Ackley Station there are two general stores, kept by VV. C. Hale & Co., and Bennett & Co., respectively. There are only two physicians at present practicing in Pine Grove town- ship. Dr. William A. Clark is a physician of signal ability, who has been in practice here for many years. Dr. Otis G. Brown, a more recent arrival, was born at Farmington on the 3d of August, 1863, received his medical educa- tion at the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Baltimore, Md., from which he was graduated in March, 1886. After practicing five months in East War- ren, he opened an office at Russellburg. Ecclesiastical. — The oldest ecclesiastical organization in the township is the Methodist Episcopal, which was formed, it is said, about 1 830. Among the first members were E. W. Chase, Almira Chase, Joseph Lindsey and Cath- arine Lindsey, and Richard Alden. James Gilmore seems to have been the first pastor, and was followed successively by Revs. Todd and Luce, Tacket and Stowe, Preston and Stearns, Flower and Demmon, Best and Pritchard, Bryan S. Hill, Alexander Barris and Samuel Henderson, E. I. L. Baker, John Hill, Butts, Norton, Peate and Ware, Burgess, Bush and Stocker. This brings the record down to December, 1852, at which time the following were members of this organization : Joseph Lindsey and wife, Joseph Jones and wife, H. B. Herrick and wife, F. H. Herrick and wife, John Allen and wife, J. W. Akely and wife, H. Demmon, J. W. Demmon, Ira Badger, Harriet Badger, Nancy Vansile, Mary Moll, Mary Hodges, and L. Akely. Deerfield Township. 453 The pastors, since 1852 and including that year, have been as follows: 1852-53, C. Irons; 1854-55, S. S. Burton; 1856, James Gilfillan ; 1857-58, E. A. Anderson; 1859-60, J. C. Scofield ; 1861, S. N. Warner; 1862-63, P. Burroughs; 1864-65, Z. W. Shadduck; 1866, W. Bush; 1867, S. Hollen ; 1868, C. W. Reeves; 1869-70, H. W. Leslie; 1871, J. F. Hill; 1872-73, F. A. Archibald; 1874-75, E. Brown; 1876-77, A. H. Bowers; 1878-79, L. J. Bennett; 1880-81, L. F. Merritt; 1882-83, C. W. Miner; 1884-85, C. C. Hunt ; Mr. Hunt is the present pastor. From the beginning until the summer of 1854, meetings were held in private houses and in the school-house on the east side of Conewango Creek. But at that time the present house of worship was erected at a cost of about two thousand dollars, and was dedicated by J. H. Whalen, S. S. Burton, and others. The church has a membership at the present writing of about forty- eight, and the church property is valued at about $1,700. CHAPTER XXXVn. HISTORY OF DEERFIELD TOWNSHIP.i DEERFIELD township was organized by the Court of Warren county on the 8th day of March, 1821, and first called " Number Eleven." The whole township was then a vast wilderness, very little land having been cleared. A few venturous pioneers had wandered this far into the wilderness and taken up claims along the river years before. The Allegheny River, winding in and out among the hills, divided the township as it was then into about equal parts. The Allegheny has always been noted for its beauty, but it was far more beautiful at that early day, with the great forests still growing in their natural state from the hilltops down to the river's brink, than it is now, with most of the forests cut away, and many refineries scattered along its banks, giving it a continuous coating of filth. The river was narrower and deeper than it is now, and full of fish. It never became so high in the spring and fall, nor did it become so low in the summer, as it does now. The vast forests along the river and its tributaries protected it from sudden rise, and prolonged the flow of the springs in the dry seasons. The river banks were also kept from washing away by the growing timber. The river was the main thorough- fare for travel and the transportation of burdens — in the summer by means of the canoe, and in the winter by means of the ice. Driving on the ice at this 1 The beginning of this chapter, to the asterisk, a few pages farther on, was compiled and written by James Kinnear. 454 History of Warren County. early period was much more common than it is now. Nearly every winter the river afforded a splendid road-bed from Franklin to Deerfield and Warren, and it was utilized by the few travelers of that day; for there was no other road that would compare with it. There was a rough road cut through from Deerfield northward to Brokenstraw, and from Deerfield southward to Franklin, but it was hardly more than a trail. Along this road or trail, which left the river valley at Deerfield and went over the hills, a distance of thirty-three miles, to Franklin, there were only four or five families scattered along the whole dis- tance. The following are about all the families that lived at that time along this road from Deerfield to Franklin : William Neal, Henry McCalmont, and Mr. Renn. Could we look back at Deerfield township as it was then, we would certainly consider it well named ; for deer were in abundance here, and all kinds of game peculiar to this climate and region held undisputed sway over about the whole township. In 1 82 1, when the township was organized, those settled here were a sturdy class of men and women, honest, and, of necessity, hard working. They came in here with their families and came to stay; for it was too difficult a matter to move, to get away easily. But their wants were simple, and, with an inex- haustible fund of contentedness, that stands in contrast to the nervous and restless spirit of the present day, they were happy. Their log cabins were scattered along the river valley, a mile or so apart; they were all on an equal- ity, and so there was a oneness in life's burdens and pleasures. There were living in Deerfield, when the township was organized, Thomas Arters, Sam- uel McGuire, Michael Gorman, sr., Charles Smith, John Thompson, Caleb Richardson, Arthur Magill, sr., Robert Hunter, sr., and some others. Brief sketches of the early history of these old pioneers will be found below. They, and those who came during the next ten years, deserve the honor and credit of first opening and settling this part of the Allegheny valley, which years later was the scene of the greatest activity. They felled the trees, built their log cabins, tilled their little clearings in summer, and in winter put in a few logs, which in early spring were run to Pittsburgh, and with the proceeds thereof they purchased the necessary articles of food and clothing which they could not raise or make. This merchandise was not shipped home by means of the express train which now rolls every few hours from Pittsburgh up the valley, but was placed in a canoe and towed or poled the whole distance, one hundred and fifty miles. The canoe soon gave way to the keel-boat, and years later the steamboat took up the task and conveyed the merchandise part way up the river, and often all the way. Deerfield township was well timbered. Pine and hemlock in enormous quantities covered nearly every valley and ridge. At first the lumbering con- sisted in felling trees and cutting them into logs, and in splitting lath. The choice pine tree was selected for lath, cut by hand four feet long, and packed Deerfield Township. 455 in bunches of one hundred each. This lumber was placed on the river to await the spring freshet. In 1826 William Kinnear, sr., built the first saw-mill in Deerfield town- ship. It was run by water power. Later other mills were erected, and soon the class of lumber changed to boards and shingles. In 1829 all that part of Deerfield township lying on the east side of the Allegheny River was organized into a separate township called Limestone. This took away fully half of Deerfield's fine forests, but still there were remain- ing broad tracts of fine timber, far more than the inhabitants of that day could handle with their upright saws and water-power saw-mills. There is, in fact, at the present day, some pine and a large quantity of hemlock remaining in Deerfield, and lumbering is still an important factor in the business of our township. In early years piloting rafts down the river to Pittsburgh and Cincinnati became quite a trade, and many of the early settlers of Deerfield became expert pilots. About the year 18 18 the first school in the township was held in a log house belonging to John Thompson, situated about two miles above the mouth of Tidioute Creek. John Elder and a Mr. Smith taught here at different times. In 1824 John Elder kept school in a log house near McGuire Run, and from that time there was school nearly every winter in some place in the township. In 1832 a building, standing in upper Tidioute, used for holding elections, was used for school purposes. In 1849 the first school-house in Deerfield was built. This was a framed building, and was supported by subscriptions. This school was located on the east side of McGuire Run. Another framed school- house was erected in 185 i near Tidioute Creek. In 1867 a two-story build- ing containing four rooms was erected near the central part of the borough, and the school thoroughly graded. In 1877 two large rooms were added to the building, and since that time an addition of five or six rooms has been made, several new lots added to the grounds, and a complete steam heating system placed in the building, making the school building second to none in this part of the State as regards convenience. These additions were made under the direction of H. H. Cumings. A. W. Couse, John Hunter, J. L. Grandin, M. Ross, and W. W. Hague, school directors. When the repairs were finished, and the school buildings in proper shape, there was a bonded debt upon the school of $5,000. This debt was canceled by Mr. Samuel Grandin, who drew his check for the whole amount and gave the same to the borough of Tidioute. An industrial school building and other property have been added to the school possessions through other benefactors residing in the borough of Tidioute. The first post-office in Deerfield was opened in 1828 and kept by Samuel Parshall at his residence. It was called Deerfield Post-office. G. W. Turner was second postmaster. The first store in the township was opened in 1832 456 History of Warren County. by Joshua Turner and son. It was a general store, for furnishing provisions an(l dry goods. The first framed house was erected in Deerfield township in the year 1824, ; it is the same house, with the exception of frequent repairs, that is now the property of L. D. Galligan. The first grist-mill was erected by Michael Gorman, sr. Religious services were held occasionally at different houses, whenever a wandering itinerant chanced along. There were no regular services held here until years after the township was organized. The framed house of Thomas Arters was used after its erection for nearly all religious meetings. The following is a list of the ministers of the Methodist Episcopal Church who have labored along this part of the Allegheny valley since the formation of Deerfield township, and their respective years of labor : Ira Eddy, Charles Elliot, 1820; Z. Paddock, 1821 ; Josiah Keyes, 1822; S. Gary, 1823; Robt. C. Hatton, 1825; John W. Hill, 1825 ; I. H. Tackitt, 1826; John Leach, J. H. Tackitt, 1826; Job Wilson, W. R. Babcock, 1828; N. Callender, A. Callander, 1829; A. Callander, A. Plimpton, 1830; A. Young, B. Preston, 1831 ; H. Kingsley, J. E. Lee, 1832 ; D. Richey, S. W. Ingraham, 1833 ; JacotLj^nJts, 1834; J. Robinson, D. Richey, 1835 ; H.Luce, 1836; J. O. Rich, W. Todd, 1837 I V. Lake, 1838 ; J. E. Chapin, D. Rolland, 1839; D. Rolland, 1840; John Scott, C. R. Chapman, 1841 ; E. Bull, 1842; A. P. Brown, 1843; D. Pritchard, 1844; J. W. Wilson, 1845 ; J. W. Wilson, M. Himeburgh, 1846; M. Himeburgh, A. Barnes, 1847; A. Barnes, J. B. Hammond, 1848. The first Methodist society was organized in Deerfield about the year 1826. Joseph Lindsey, Susan Middleton, and Dorcas Hunter, members of that early day, are still members of the church militant, awaiting the time when they shall be relieved from their long service, and called to the church triumphant. The first church in the township was a Presbyterian Church, built of logs, about the year 1828, and situated near the old Tidioute cemetery, one-half acre having been donated for a church and one-half for a public cemetery, by Alex. McCalmont. The first Presbyterian minister was the Rev. Mr. Chase ; Thomas McGee and Joseph McCauley were deacons. Rev. Chase was fol- lowed by the Rev. Mr. Hamson. The Presbyterians built a new church on the above-mentioned lot about the year 1841, which was afterwards sold and the present church built in 1867. The following is a list of the Presbyterian ministers who have labored in Tidioute since 1867: D. M. Rankin, J. J. Marks, D. D., 1867; W. B. Cullis, 1868; A. B. Lomes, 1869; J. H. Edwards, 1871 ; W. L. Findley, 1873; Theodore Crowl, 1874; L. M. Gilliland, 1877; J. C. Olliver, 1885. The first M. E. Church was built about the year 1836, where the Grandin brick block now stands. This church was sold in 1854 to Samuel Grandin, Deerfield Township. 457 and a new one built in the eastern part of Tidioute. This edifice was sold to the Lutherans in 1872, and a new one built where the present church now stands; this church was burned in the fall of 1872, before its completion. The present brick structure was commenced in the spring of 1873, and dedicated in September, 1874. The following named M. E. ministers were appointed to labor in Tidioute the years opposite their respective names : T. G. McCreary, 1849-50; J. T. Boyle, P. Burroughs, 1851 ; J. Wriggles- worth, 1852; S. Hollen, 1853; J. Gilfillen, J. B. Hammond, 1854; J. Gilfillen, 1855 ; James Gillmore, Edwin Hall, 1856; M. Colegrove, 1857 ; G. F. Reeser, W. W. Warner, 1858-59; J. K. Mendenhall, i860; W. Hayes, J. F. Stocker, 1861 ; N. W. Jones, J. F. Stocker, 1862 ; John Crum, Z. W. Shadduck, 1863 ; A. H. Domer, 1864; D. Smith, 1865-66; W. Sampson, 1867-68; E. A. Squier, 1869-70; W. H. Mossman, 1871-72; Francis Brown, 1873-74; A.J. Merchant, 1875-76; J. M. Bray, 1877-79; M. Martin, 1880-82; W. P. Gra- ham, 1883; S. H. Prather, 1884-85 ; D. S. Steadman, 1886. The Universalist Church was erected in 1868. Rev. S. J. Dickson was the first pastor. The Episcopal society erected their present structure in 1872, and called Rev. G. W. Dunbar to the pulpit. The Catholic Church was built in 1866. A school building was erected by and under the charge of the Catholic society in the year 1875. Biographical. — Arters, Thomas, was born of English parentage in 1787. He came with his father, Richard Arters, from Lewistown, Pa., in the year 1806, and settled at the mouth of Tidioute Creek, on the Allegheny River, on a tract of land containing four hundred acres, surveyed by John Spangler. He afterwards received one hundred acres of said tract for making a settlement thereon, from Alexander McCalmont, who was their agent for eastern parties. Thomas Arters also had a claim of four hundred acres of land on the south side of the river, on tract number 5278, now in Limestone township. He built the first framed house in Deerfield, in 1824. The house, having been often repaired, is still standing in the central part of the borough, and is the prop- erty of L. D. Galligan. Of his family of nine children, one, Jackson Arters, was killed while in the army, in the battle before Fredericksburg. All the rest are still living, and four of his children — W. M., Mary, Washington, and Thomas — are still living in Tidioute and vicinity. To Thomas Arters is given the credit of having made the first permanent settlement in this part of Warren county. He died at his home in Tidioute in 1858, and his wife survived him until 1869. McGuire, Samuel, of Irish descent, was born in Huntington county. Pa., in 1788. In 1808 he came to Deerfield and settled on the John Keller tract, of 458 History of Warren County. which he owned two hundred and fifty acres. His land joined Thomas Arters's land on the east. He was married the same year, to Charity Gilson, and made his permanent home on this tract. They had a family often children born unto them, all of whom grew to be men and women, and were all married. Father McGuire died in the year 1865, at the age of seventy-seven years, and Mother McGuire survived him until 1869. Of their family five have passed away. Those still living are Elsie, born in 1810, and married to John Parshall ; Patience; McCray, born in 1820; William, born in 1822, married Mary Stu- art, and still lives in the borough of Tidioute ; and Charity, born in 1827, mar- ried Henry Lott, and still resides in Tidioute. Parshall, Samuel, of English descent, came to Deerfield in the year 1824 and settled on a claim of three hundred acres, at the mouth of Gordon Run. Mr. Parshall was born in 1 781, and came originally from Massachusetts to Trum- bull county, Ohio, where he married Elizabeth Goutcher in 1806, and lived there for some years before he removed to Deerfield. He kept the first post- ofiice in the township, and the first elections were held at his place. They had a family of eight children. All grew to maturity, and married. Many of them are still living in this vicinity, while their children and grandchildren are many. Samuel Parshall died in the year 1839 ; his wife, born in 1783, died in 1865. Six of their children still survive. John Parshall, born in 1809, married Elsie McGuire, and raised a family of nine children. He now lives in Crawford county. Pa. ILliza Parshall, born in 181 2, married Robert Henry. She still lives in Tidioute, Pa. Nancy Parshall, born in 1817, married Joseph Richard- son. She now resides in McKean county, this State, with her daughter. Sarhuel Parshall, born in 1814, married Lucy Henderson They now live in Venango county, Pa. Jennette Parshall, born in 1822, married James Kin- near, and they still reside in Tidioute. James Parshall, born in 1827, married Henrietta Shugert, and now lives in Titusville. Gorman, sr., Michael, of Irish descent, was born in 1761, and came from Center county, Pa., to Deerfield, in the year 181 8. He settled three miles west of Tidioute, where he claimed four hundred acres of land and made a permanent settlement. He built the first grist-mill in Deerfield township and in this part of Warren county. He married Sarah Gilson, and they had thir- teen children. He died in the year 1859, and left three sons living: Michael Gorman, jr., lives in' Ohio; J. Benjamin Gorman lives in Tidioute; and Peter Gorman lives on the old homestead. Smith, sr., Charles, of Irish descent, came to Deerfield in 1807 and settled five miles northeast of Tidioute, on the Allegheny River, where he made his home. He had five children: James Smith, Peter Smith, Charles Smith, Nancy (Smith) Magee, and Luke Smith, all now deceased. Smith, James, eldest son of Charles Smith, sr., was born in 1800, and came to Deerfield with his father in 1807. He married Margaret Magee, and passed Deerfield Township. 459 most of his life in Deerfield as a farmer. During the first oil excitement he sold his possessions here and went West, where he died in 1884. His children still live in Deerfield and vicinity. Smith, Peter, second son of Charles Smith, sr., was born in 1 802. His whole life was passed in Deerfield and vicinity. He became a man of consid- erable importance, and had good business ability ; was in early days a suc- cessful lumberman. He married Matilda McGuire, and they had three chil- dren — Hugh, John, and Nancy — who are all still living. Thompson, John, moved to Deerfield about the year 18 1 7 and settled two miles east of Tidioute, on the Allegheny River, where he cleared his farm and made his permanent home. He kept the first tavern in Deerfield, and became quite well off for those days. He had three children. His death took place about the year 1830. Courson, Anthony, was born in Centercounty, Pa., in 1788, andcameto Deer- field with his family of seven children in 1825. He settled upon four hundred acres of land fronting upon the Allegheny River. Here he kept a tavern for many years, affording the weary raftman returning on foot from Pittsburgh a shelter. He was a lumberman and farmer. He married Elizabeth Gates and they had a family of nine children, some of them still living in Tidioute and vicinity. His children are : Nancy Courson married John Hazeltine and is now deceased ; Margaret married D. N. Richardson and now lives in the West ; Sarah married Charles Magill and is now living in the West; Jane married Arthur Magill and is still living in Tidioute ; Hannah married William Church and resides in the West ; Benjamin Courson married Elizabeth Morrison, now deceased ; his widow and children still live in Tidioute ; Samuel Courson married Rachael Thompson and lives in Wisconsin ; John Courson married Martha Brown and is still living in Tidioute. In 1842 Father Courson lost his wife, and after disposing of his farm he moved west, where he died in 1883. His remains were brought east and interred in the cemetery in Tidioute. A portion of the borough of Tidioute is now located on part of Anthony Cour- son's farm. Kinnear, William, was born in the northern part of Ireland in 1783. He came with his father and mother, Alexander Kinnear and Jane (Ganley) Kinnear, to Americain 1790. They were descendants of Huguenots. William Kinnear married Rebecca McElvain in the year 1806, and moved from Cen- ter county, where his father had settled, to Venango county, in 18 19. He bought a tract of two hundred acres of land at the mouth of Oil Creek, of Cornplanter, chief of the Seneca Indians. Here he cleared about thirty-five acres of land, where the business part of Oil City is located, and ten acres on Cottage Hill, as it is now called. He also erected a furnace at this place. In 1826 he sold his property in Venango county and moved to Warren county, settling in Deerfield township at the mouth of Tidioute Creek. Here he pur- chased two hundred acres of the John Spangler tract of Alex. McCalmont, 460 History of Warren County. agent This purchase included the Tidioute Creek for about one mile from its mouth. On this creek he erected a saw-mill in 1827, the first one in Deer- field township. He had a family of seven children. Father Kinnear died in the year 185 i, and Mother Kinnear survived him two years. Roup, Christian, was born in 1809 and came to Deerfield with his father in 1829. In 1833 he married Rebecca Richardson, and they have had a family of six children born to them ; some of them now live in the Far West. He held the position of justice of the peace for many years, and he and his wife still re- side in Tidioute. James Magill, the eldest son of Arthur Magill, was born in 1804 and came to Deerfield with his father in 18 12. He was the first constable in Deerfield township, and held the position of justice of the peace for many years. He married Rhoda Parshall and had a family of eight children. The mother and four of the children are now deceased. James Magill resides with his daugh- ter in Tidioute. Of his family now living are Elizabeth (Magill) Walker, Irvin Magill, James Magill, and William Magill. William Magill, third son of Arthur Magill, was born in 1810, and was married to Margaret Hartnes in 1835. They have no children. He was a farmer and a lumberman, and still lives in Tidioute, but has long since retired from business. Magill, Arthur, was born in Deerfield in 18 16; he married Jane Courson and had a family of nine children. He settled on a part of the Anthony Cour- son tract. He was a local preacher in the Methodist Episcopal Church; was constable of Deerfield for some years, and was commissioner of W'arren county for 1857 and i860. He was a farmer and a man of the strictest integrity. He died in 1862. His widow and four of his children reside in Tidioute. Magee, Samuel, the oldest son of James Magee, sr., settled four miles up the river from Tidioute, at the mouth of Magee Run, about the year 1821. He married Anna Allender, and they had a family of eight children born unto them. He was the first justice of the peace in Deerfield township. Two of his sons, Joseph Magee and Perry Magee, were prominent men in their day, but have passed awa>'. Morrison, R. H., esq., a son of Thomas Morrison, was born in 1821. He was elected justice of the peace in 1858, and has been continued in that position ever since. He has resided in the borough of Tidioute since its organization, and has been one of its prominent and influential citizens. He has a family of four children and still resides in Tidioute. The Oil Development. — In the year i860 Deerfield township and the whole western part of Warren county underwent a great change. The little village of Tidioute, nestling quietly among the hills, was transformed suddenly to a booming oil town of thousands of inhabitants. Years before oil had been no- ticed in different springs in this locality, and had been gathered by the use of Deerfield Township. 461 blankets. It was used for many purposes and was considered a good remedy for many diseases. The success of Mr. Drake on Oil Creek encouraged Henry Dennis and J. L. Grandin to commence a well in 1859, on the Gordon Run, near a spring where oil had been gathered. This, for some reason, proved a failure. The next year King & Ferris started a well below the mouth of Gor- don Run, on the bank of the river. This was a success, and oil in abundance was found. How to save it was then a great question to be solved ; barrels were in demand, but a sufficient number could not be had. Coopers were brought in and set to work ; but for immediate use a tank was proposed and built in the form of a rectangle, 16 by 24 feet, and eight feet high. The suc- cess of this and other wells brought people and prospectors by the score to our township. There was no available railroad for shipping the oil at that time, as neither the Sunbury and Erie nor the Oil Creek and Allegheny Valley Railroads were then completed, and the only outlet was the river. Boats of all kinds were immediately pressed into service, and many barges of all descriptions built for the purpose. They were towed up stream by horses, and after being loaded with oil were floated to Pittsburgh. The river was alive with these craft. About this time Captain Amasa Dingley built a steamboat to run on the river between Oil City and Warren, and applied to the Legislature of Pennsylvania for the exclusive right to navigate the Allegheny River between these two points. This was defeated, much to the relief of the inhabitants of this section of the country. Organization of the Borough. — In 1862 the borough of Tidioute was or- ganized, and on the 27th day of June of that year the first election under the new charter was held. The following were the officers elected : Burgess, Luther Green ; council, Samuel Culbertson, W. S. Cohill, Thomas Goodwin R. Christy, and J. Hunter. Isaac Scott was appointed clerk ; constable, R. Magill. At this time the inhabitants of the town were doubling and trebling in number every year, houses and shanties sprang up as if by magic, and still there were not accommodations for the incoming throng. All classes of men, from the speculator and honest workman to the blackleg and knave, came with this great rush. The prices of lands in various parts of the township be- came fabulous. Speculation in real estate became at once a great business. Lands were bought or contracted for, stock companies formed for operating and controlling the same, and the stock sold in many of the eastern cities, chiefly New York. The throng of all classes became so great that it soon be- came necessary to have a change in the municipal control. The government necessary for the quiet village of Tidioute would not answer for the booming oil town. In response to a call of the citizens, a small hall was crowded; many men of rank and ability were present, and after the object of the meeting was stated by one of the old citizens, a judge from Buftalo was elected chairman. A 462 History of Warren County. police force was appointed at this meeting and two hundred dollars raised for the purpose of erecting a lock-up. Within three days the lock-up was built, and in less time it was filled with the worst kind of roughs. Some of the pris- oners, being assisted by parties' without, escaped, and it was found necessary to guard the lock-up day and night. Different citizens were detailed for this duty, and they paced their beats as regularly and faithfully as a sentinel upon an advanced picket line. The parties arrested were tried and fined according as they deserved. By this means good order was soon restored in Tidioute, and has been maintained ever since. At this time Babylon and Triumph, oil towns adjacent to Tidioute in Deer- field, appeared and flourished as business centers for a while; but as the oil was exhausted in their vicinity their prosperity faded out. Babylon, at one time mighty in sin and debauchery, has long since fallen. Triumph clung to life longer than the average oil town on account of the quality of the oil-bearing rock of this section, which has not been excelled in any part of the oil regions. The rock here was often found seventy-five and one hundred feet thick, and it has proved the longest-lived oil territory yet discovered. Many wells in this locality are still yielding a small production. A little later Fagundus loomed up in the extreme southern part of Deer- field township. A small but rich yielding territory was found here, and Fagundus became for a while a flourishing banking town ; but it has met the sad fate of other similar oil towns, and there remains now only a relic of what there once was. All these towns were tributary to Tidioute, and their prosperity only added vigor to its flourishing business of that day. Several daily and weekly papers sprang into existence at this time in Tidioute. The Morning Journal and the Evening Commercial both had their day and death. The Weekly News, ably edited by Charles I'3. White, is the only publication now issued in the borough. Mr. White is not surpassed in this part of the State in neatness and dispatch of job work. The Oil Creek and Allegheny River Railroad was laid through Tidioute in 1866, and was completed in 1867. The first bank in our borough was under the title or Wadsworth, Baum & Co., afterwards changed to Grandin & Baum, and at present Grandin Bros. The Tidioute Savings Bank and the People's Savings Bank were started in 1872 ; the latter was closed some years ago. The present water system was commenced by Luther Green in 1872. In December of the same year a stock company was formed, which purchased the works and completed them. Since that time a supply pipe has been laid four miles up Tidioute Creek, which secures pure spring water and a natural flow into the reservoir. The Tidioute and Economy bridge across the Allegheny River was built in 1873, and the same year the gas works were completed.* Deerfield Township. 463 The early history of Deerfield having been so fully and thoroughly written by Mr. Kinnear, little is left to write but such mention of the present business and professional interests as is customary in works of this nature. Deerfield town- ship, as now constituted, is of irregular formation, having no fewer than eight or ten sides, and is bounded north by the townships of Pittsfield and Broken- straw, east by Allegheny River, separating it from Pleasant, Watson, and Lime- stone, south by Allegheny River and Triumph, and west by Triumph, Eldred, and Pittsfield. The beginnings of settlement within the limits of the present borough of Tidioute date very early in the century, as has well been shown. About the year 1825 the settlers within these limits, on the north side of the river, were about as follows : Beginning in the extreme western part of the borough, and partly outside of the line, was the place owned and occupied by Samuel Parshall. Next east of him was William Kinnear (1826); Thomas Arters was his adjoining neighbor on the east, the territorial succession east- ward being Samuel Hunter, Anthony Courson, and no others that have not received mention. The history of this township would be indeed incomplete without some mention of one who has done more, probably, than any other one person for the upbuilding and prosperity of Tidioute, viz., Samuel Grandin. A more detailed sketch of Mr. Grandin appears in later pages. As will be seen by reference to that sketch, he came to Tidioute from Pleasantville, Venango' county, in 1840, and began dealing in general merchandise and trading exten- sively in lumber. This business he continued on an ever-increasing scale until his practical retirement from business, about i860. His present residence he built in 1867. He has ever had the welfare of Tidioute at heart, and has never been tardy in extending his aid and influence for the furthering and suc- cess of any project looking to its material or moral advancement. He is de- servedly an honored man. His sons have displayed the sagacity and public spirit which might, in the circumstances, have been expected, and have wielded, and do still wield, an influence in affairs which extends far beyond the borders of this township, or county, or State. The banking firm of which they are the members was formed in 1 870, and the large brick block which they now occupy was built in 1872. As to their other interests, and their general repu- tation, no better idea can be gained than by a perusal of the following extract from one of the leading newspapers of the day : " The proneness, as it were, of the oil people as a rule for the concentration of capital in single industrial lines is proverbial. This mode of procedure is, in some instances, attended with the most gratifying results ; and again it is followed by consequences most disastrous to the investor. There are excep- tions, however, to every rule ; among this class may be cited the firm of Grandin Brothers. Everything undertaken by the Grandins is gone about in the most practical and matter-of-fact way, and about everything they take a 464 History of Warren County. hand in turns into money. Their one thousand and one successful oil ventures is a matter of public information in this region, where the gentlemen are widely- known and uniformly respected, and a reiteration of the same here and now would only be to dispense stale news. The Grandin boys have been called lucky, and their luck has been extolled far and wide, while the truth of the mat- ter is, there never has, perhaps, been a business firm in this or any country that depended so little on the deceptive tyrant luck. They have made what the world would call unlucky investments, but by the exercise of good horse sense or shrewd business judgment, as you will, they seldom make large losings. In 1873 the Jay Cook failure cost the firm $93,000; in the final settlement with Cook they accepted Northern Pacific Land scrip for their claim, in lieu of Cook's personal acceptances. This gave them 38,000 acres of land. Being practical men, they set about it at once to develop the soil. In due course they had a wheat production and the annual clean up, showing a handsome profit ; other land purchases followed, and now the boys find themselves in possession of a little garden patch of 86,000 acres of the best wheat lands on the American continent. This small farm has been split up in two smaller farms of unequal proportions. In the Grandin farm there are 38,000 acres, and 26,000 in the Mayville farm. The wheat production of this year for both farms was 315,000 bushels. The Grandin farm produced 215,000 bushels, the balance belongs to the Mayville farm. There is about 18,000 acres under cultivation, leaving 68,000 acres of virgin territory in which the plowshare has never trespassed. The Grandins have their own line of elevators, and a steamer on the Red River, and by means of their own traffic-arrangements deliver their wheat in Duluth. This comes pretty nearly managing one's own business. Each farm is managed by a superintendent and financial agent. During the harvest season they find employment for 400 men and 350 mules. Their Mayville farm is operated more for stock-breeding purposes than agri- culture. For several years past the profits in wheat production has been greater than oil ; when oil is depressed the Grandins turn their attention to wheat, and 7nce versa. There has not been a year in the past ten when their Dakota farms' products did not pay a sum equivalent to the $93,000 supposed to have sunk in the Jay Cook collapse. All this shows what pluck and enter- prise will do for those who are wise enough not to carry their eggs in one basket." Present Mercantile Interests. — Of the merchants now in trade in Tidioute, W. D. Bucklin is of the longest standing, as he dates his arrival here in the year 1861. James L. Acomb started his drug store here in 1866, at which time he came from Pithole. His stock is valued at about $2,500. A. Dunn opened a grocery store in Tidioute in 1866, and in the fall of 1886 he put in an additional stock of clothing, and boots and shoes. He carries about $10,000 in stock at his store, besides stock in flour and feed at his grist-mill, worth on Deerfield Township. 465 an average about $2,000. W. R. Dawson has kept a variety store in this place something more than twenty years. He has been postmaster since Jan- uary 5, 1886. The jewelry store of Henry Ewald was opened here by the present proprietor in 1867. The store of C. Kemble & Son (William VV. Kemble), containing a full stock of drugs, artists' materials, paints, oils, wall paper, etc., and a general line of holiday goods in season, was first opened by the senior member of the present firm in 1871. The firm was formed in 1878. J. O. Strong has carried a good stock of stoves arid hardware in Tidioute for more than fourteen years. The dry goods and general store of John Siggins was started here by the present owner about fourteen years ago. At that time Mr. Siggins came from East Hickory, where he had been in business since 1864. He now carries stock valued at about $15,000. D. M. McCall, dealer in all kinds of furniture, picture frames, pianos, organs, etc., and undertaker, has been in business in this place since February, 1876. He then came from Crawford county, where he had been engaged in the furniture trade since 1857. R. Chaffey, the grocer, who carries stock worth some $2,500, started in Tidioute in 1877, and first occupied his present corner in 1881. H. F. Head, merchant tailor, has been here more than five years. E. A. Culver, dealer in groceries, provisions, etc., established his present trade about three years ago. The store of C. P. Bucklin, dealer in dry goods, boots and shoes, etc., was opened many years ago by Maybie & Hunter, who were succeeded by the present owner in 1883. His stock is valued at about $10,000. J. A. Ulf, merchant tailor, began here on the 1st of January, 1884. The dry goods and clothing dealers, Hopkins & Co., conduct a business established in April, 1885, by H. J. Hopkins and J. H. Lockwood. Their stock is now valued at about $12,000. The harness shop of A. Allen was started by the present pro- prietor in the fall of 1885, he then succeeding Scott Allen, who had been here several years previously. C. A. Allen, dealer in general furnishing goods, has been in Tidioute in business since January, 1886. H. W. Kunn established his boot and shoe trade here in April, 1886. Other Interests. — The steam grist-mill, now owned and operated by A. Dunn, was built by Kemble & Coleman about 1877. In 1880 Mr. Dunn rented it from the estate of Peter Evans, and in the fall of 1886 purchased it. Others mills are the planing-mill belonging to the estate of Z. M. Jones, who started the mill some fifteen or sixteen years ago ; the machine shop of R. J. Carson, which has been in operation in Tidioute about fifteen years ; the chair factory, operated by the Chair Company (limited), whose general manager is M. Clark. This business was established in September, 1881. The capital is about $50,000. About 500 chairs are manufactured here daily. The hub factory of Martin (Joseph) & Homer (C. S.) was established also in the fall of 1881. Hotels. — The oldest hotel in Tidioute at present is the Shaw House, which 466 History of Warren County. was built by the present proprietor, W. P. Shaw, more than twenty years ago. The National Hotel was built for mercantile purposes by H. Greiner, a num- ber of years ago, and converted by W. D. Bucklin, the present owner, into a hotel some fifteen years ago. The Hanchett House, so named from the pro- prietor, N. N. Hanchett, was built, and for some time kept, by Mr. Wheelock. Mr. Hanchett has owned and kept it now for about twelve years. Physicians, Past and Present. — The first physician to practice in Deerfield township was Dr. Kellogg, of Titusville, who used to come out this way with his horse and saddle-bags about once in three months. This he began as early as 1826, and continued for a number of years. The physician now in prac- tice here who deserves the distinction of belonging to the longest residence is Dr. F. A. Shugart, who was admitted to practice in 1838, and after practicing in Philadelphia and other places came to Deerfield township in 1849, and has continued here ever since. Dr. Charles Kemble came here about ten years later, and also remains here yet. Dr. Freeman, who died a few years ago, had also been here for many years. Dr. J. L. Acomb came here from Pithole about 1866. Dr. A. C. Magill came in March, 1885, immediately after grad- uating from the Detroit Medical College. Dr. N. W. Shugart was admitted to practice from the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Baltimore on the 13th of March, 1885, and after an experience of a few months in the Bay View Hospital came here and went into practice with his father. Post-office. — We have already seen who was the first postmaster in town, and the date of his service. The present incumbent, W. R. Dawson, owes his appointment to the present administration. He was preceded by James C. Long, who served more than eight years ; Thomas B. Monks, his predecessor, held the position about two years, having succeeded Levi L. McCall. S. H. Evans was postmaster from December i, 1866, to June 30, 1874. He was preceded by Mr. Hanna, and he by S. H. Evans again. H. H. Evans was postmaster next previous to S. H. Evans. In Deerfield township also is a post-office called Parthenia, which was established through the efforts of the Grandin brothers, in the summer of 1886. Here these gentlemen have a saw and planing-miil, which they have been successfully operating twelve or fifteen years. The members of the Colonel George A. Cobham Post 311, G. A. R., and the citizens of Tidioute and vicinity are justly proud of one of the finest soldiers' monuments in this part of the State. It was erected mainly through the efforts of Major Curtis and others in this neighborhood, in the spring of 1885, and dedicated on Memorial Day of that year. It stands in the center of a plot of ground set apart for the purpose years ago by the projectors, in the ceme- tery. The circle is about sixty feet in diameter, and is finely graded from the circumference up to the monument. The structure itself is imposing and beautiful. It is from the Monumental Bronze Company of Bridgeport, Conn., Spring Creek Township. 467 and is built of white bronze, one of the most durable substances known. Its height from base to top is sixteen feet and eight inches, while the base stands about four feet above the surrounding ground. The base is fifty-two inches square. On the several tablets are appropriate inscriptions, among them being the names of the following members of Company F, One Hundred and Forty-fifth Pennsylvania Volunteers, killed in action, or from the effects of wounds received: O. S. Brown, JohnT. Roberts, Darius W. Hunter, George W. Alcorn, R. J. Ar- ters, Thomas Acocks, Sullivan Baker, J. C. Brennesholz, Shambert Chambers, Stephen Chambers, Philemon Clark, J. Clonay, Thomas Clark, Daniel Cochran, John J. Gorman, Charles W. Grove, Leonard Horn, David E. Jones, Ransom Kendall, Jesse Kightlinger, Samuel C. King, Virgil Libby, Joshua Lloyd, Samuel May, Thomas J. Magee, William Magee, George B. Miller, John M. Pearce, Sim- eon J. Roosa, Jacob Rutledge, George W. Shay, William Shreve, Reuben Swag- gart, Charles Thompson, John Thompson, John Tuttle, Hiram K. Young. On the west base are the following names of soldiers in varrious regiments killed in action : One Hundred and Eleventh Pennsylvania Volunteers — J. R. Brough- ton, jr.. Walker H. Hogue, William M. Jones, Charles Miller, John M. Rich- ardson, Samuel Sturgis ; Fifty-eighth Pennsylvania Volunteers — Samuel Rich- ardson ; Fifty-seventh Pennsylvania Volunteers — Theodore Barber ; Seventy- fourth New York Volunteers — Zachariah Barber, W. H. Brown, Washington Magee, Grandin Magee, James Magee, Amos Magee, Joshua Richardson ; Regiments Unknown — Solomon Cias, Daniel Henderson, John Russell, Frank West. CHAPTER XXXVHI. HISTORY OF SPRING CREEK TOWNSHIP. SPRING CREEK township was formed from the original town of Broken- straw on the 8th day of March, 1821, and was called "Number Two" until the inhabitants named it as it is now known, from the stream which drains its soil. It is in the western tier of townships in the county, and is bounded north by Columbus, east by Pittsfield, south by Eldred, and west by parts of Craw- ford and Erie counties. Brokenstraw and Spring Creeks are the principal streams in the town. The surface is pleasantly diversified by hill and dale, and the soil is fertile and excellently adapted to agriculture, being especially favor- able to dairying and stock raising. Early Settlements. — The first settlement made within the present boundary Hnes of Spring Creek was on the Brokenstraw Creek, south of the State road. 468 History of Warren County. by Andrew Evers and Elijah Jackson. These two men came to this then wil- derness together on the lOth day of November, 1797, and built the first cabin in the vicinity, a few rods nearly north of the present dwelling house of Will- iam M. Jackson. They came from what was then called Union Mills, now Union City, Pa. Elijah Jackson settled on the farm now owned and occupied by his son, William M., a sketch of whose life appears in later pages of this book. He (Elijah) was born in Litchfield, Conn., on the 27th of October, 1772. When he was a youth his father removed to Ontario county, N. Y., whence, upon attaining his majority, he went to Marietta, Ohio. There he and his companions were in constant apprehension of attacks from hostile Indians, hav- ing to remain in barracks when their business did not demand their presence elsewhere, and at such times being under the protection of an armed guard. Not liking this kind of life, Mr. Jackson came to this part of the country. In this town he remained — on the farm which he was the first to clear and culti- vate — until his death on the 1st of September, 1845. He was worthy of the esteem in which he was universally held. He was a farmer and lumberman of enterprise and honesty, and a citizen of public spirit and fearless utterances. Soon after their arrival, Andrew Evers removed to the farm now owned and occupied by Clinton Horn, where he remained until his death, some thirty- five or forty years afterward. He was of a quiet disposition, industrious and conservative — a good citizen. None of his descendants are now in Spring Creek. He used to say of himself that he was a citizen of the world, for he was born (of Irish parentage) in mid-ocean, in a vessel bound for America. In 1798 George Long, with his wife and three children, came from the Susquehanna, and lived until 1801 with Andrew Evers. Then he removed farther down the creek, built a dwelling house, and in 1802 erected the first saw-mill In town, on the site now occupied by the Horn mill. In that year Elijah Jackson made the first clearing on the site of the present village of West Spring Creek, where he was succeeded by Joshua Whitney. About the year 1800 James Watt came from Lancaster county and settled west of the Broken- straw, on the line afterward occupied by the State road, and on the farm since in the possession of Jamieson & Co. In 1801 Daniel Horn purchased the property of George Long, now called Horn's Siding, and resided there until his death in 1869, at the ripe old age of ninety years. He was born in New Jer- sey, and served as lieutenant in the War of 1812. He was the third sherifi" of Warren county, receiving the election in 1825 ; and in 1 830 and again in 1838 was chosen county commissioner. He was a very active and successful business man. He operated a saw-mill on his place as long as he continued in business. His sons Clinton and Stephen are on the oldMiomestead. Other children are Mrs. D. S. Prentiss, of Garland, and Irwin, Martha and Ellen, in Illinois. O. D., E. D., and D. D. Horn, of this county, are sons of Hiram and grandsons of Daniel Horn. John Horn, a brother of Daniel, was here at the beginning Spring Creek Township. 469 of the present century and lived with Daniel until the time of his marriage, not far from 1S30, when he removed to Missouri and passed the remainder of his days. Andrew Evers, Elijah Jackson, and James Watt were the first settlers on the William Miles, now the Irvine farm. Charles McNair and James Culbert- son, bachelors, came in about the same time. Culbertson settled a few rods east of the place of Elijah Jackson, and McNair lived with him. There they built a saw-mill, which continued in operation until they removed to what was, at the time of their going, Deerfield township, in the second quarter of the cent- ury. Robert Boner settled previous to 1806 in the northern part of the town and built a log grist-mill. His was the first grist-mill in town. He was a good business man and public spirited, and it was a loss to Spring Creek that he remained here but two or three years. The first list of taxables of the town, made out in 1822, reveals the names of the settlers who had made this town their home previous to that time, and attests that they were men of the right sort to open a new country — men of nerve and courage, who were willing to suffer hardships and privations for the promised reward of a settled habitation, where a competence might with dili- gent application be obtained ; men of enterprise and foresight sufficient to see the benefits of living in a country covered with such valuable timber, and to take advantage of their sagacity. Such of them as remained in town long enough to identify themselves with its history are mentioned in the paragraphs immediately following, in alphabetical order : Horace B. Abbey was something of a lumberman, who settled about the year 1 82 1 a little southwest of the site of West Spring Creek. As early as 1840 he removed southward. James Benson was a farmer and commenced clearing a farm just north of the present place of William M. Jackson. He was there only five or six years, however, after which he went to Waterford, Pa., where a num- ber of his descendants are now living. Daniel Boardman came to Spring Creek in 1 82 1, and lived until about the year 1850 next to the farm settled by Benson. He was a farmer, and did not spend much time or money in the lumber busi- ness. Luther Chase came about the same time and lived in the same neigh- borhood, but went to Columbus soon after this time. He was a farmer and lumberman, and a man of unusual enterprise. Daniel Corbet is mentioned in this list, though all accounts of his settlement agree that he had gone to Co- lumbus before this time. He was the first settler on the farm afterward occu- pied by Benson and Chase. It is probable that he is mentioned at this time as a property owner, not as a resident. Robert Donaldson, also named in this list, did not become a resident until about 1830. He was born in Ireland in 1780, and settled not far from 1 820 near Wrightsville, in this county, and soon after moved to Pittsfield. He was largely engaged in the farming and lumbering interests, was a man of great 470 History of Warren County. sagacity and energy, and was furthermore honest and fair in all his dealings. He was an unwavering Democrat. He owned about 900 acres of land, embrac- ing the entire site of the present village of Spring Creek, having purchased the property in about 1 830 from Thomas C. Rockhill, jr., of Philadelphia. He died in October, 1868, a short time after he had divided his property among his four sons, Daniel, Irvin, David and Wilson — all but the last of whom are yet living. Robert Donaldson also had two daughters — Eleanor and Cordelia, both of whom are now living ; the former the wife of William H. Deming, the latter Mrs. Levi Leonard. Daniel Donaldson, now a resident of Spring Creek village, was born on what is known as the James Cotton farm, near Wrightsville, on the 2d of October, 1824, and came to Spring Creek with his father. John Jobes was a resident of Spring Creek at an early day and worked in saw-mills. After a number of years he procured a farm about half a mile east of Irvine's Four Corners, where he passed the rest of his life, dying at the ad- vanced age of about ninety years, in 1885. One son, Samuel, and one daugh- ter, Mary, wife of William Patchen, survive him. Harris Lasure was a respect- able factotum of his town, and resided for a time on the western part of the farm occupied at the same time by James Benson. He left town before 1840, and died at Jamestown. His father-in-law, Abner Sherwin, owned a grist- mill on the western part of the William Miles farm at a very early date. Will- iam Miles was never, properly speaking, a resident of Spring Creek, though he was an extensive land owner here. The farms occupied by James Benson, Lu- ther Chase, and his nearest neighbors were all leased of William Miles, who also operated a large saw-mill in town. Eleazer Ogden resided for a short time on the William Miles farm, but left town as early as 1830. James Tubbs married the eldest sister of William M. Jackson ; lived here many years, and died near the center of the town on the 15th of May, 1859. Thomas W. Tubbs, who married another daughter of P^lijah Jackson, was a resident of Spring Creek before the formation of the township. After a long residence here he removed to Crawford county, where he died on the i6th of December, 1881. Marcus Turner was an early settler in the northern part of the town, and was a farmer and lumberman. After a residence here of but a few years he removed in the direction of Fredonia, N. Y., where he died. Alexander Watt, a brother of Mrs. Elijah Jackson, was an early settler on the place next east of Elijah Jackson, where he died on the 2d of February, 1866. One daughter, Mrs. Hannah Mallery, now lives in town. Converse B. White, an eccentric man, engaged in farming and lumbering about one and a half miles east of West Spring Creek. His family are all gone. He emigrated south under peculiar circumstances and there met his death. Joshua Whitney, already mentioned, worked for some time in saw-mills, and left town not far from the year 1835. He afterward married and died in Crawford county. This ends the list of sel- lers previous to 1822. Spring Creek Township. 471 One or two of the most worthy of the early settlers of Spring Creek remain to be mentioned, however. George Yager was a man so invaluable to his town that a chapter would indeed be incomplete that did not give some of the incidents of his life and character. In the year 1825, when he was about twenty-nine years of age, he, with his wife Clarissa, nee Armitage, and only daughter, Sarah, moved from Otsego county in the State of New York to this township, and settled on the place now belonging to the estate of Michael C. Smith. At that time the country was still an almost unbroken wilderness, and luxuries or even conveniences were hardly attainable. His early training had made him conversant with the labors of husbandry, and being a man of tireless industry and perseverance, these were not to him insurmountable obstacles. Both early and late he toiled, his energy seeming to increase by what it fed on. His farm is one of the most fertile tracts in this section of the State. He was the first postmaster in the town. He was a man of rare virtue and moral worth, intelligent, high-minded, patriotic, firm but tolerant in his opinions, honest, devoted to his church and party. He died in 1 881, at the age of eighty- five years. His wife survives him and is now living with her daughter, Mrs. Cummings, at the advanced age of eighty-seven years, in the enjoyment of good health. N. P. Cummings, who married Sarah, daughter of George Yager, in 1837, was born in Bristol county, Mass., in 1813. He came to Spring Creek in 1835. Four children have been born unto Mr. and Mrs. Cummings, two of whom, George D. and Mary A., are yet living. George D. Cummings was born in Spring Creek on the 17th of August, 1842. He married Sue Woodbury, of Pittsfield township, in September, 1868, and is now a respected resident of West Spring Creek. N. P. Cummings left the old homestead (now belonging to the estate of Michael C. Smith, as before stated) and came to West Spring Creek in 1869, where he has for a good part of the time since operated the grist-mill. Another prominent factor in the development of the town was Josiah Uem- ing, who was born in Amsterdam, N. Y., on the 17th of November, 1791, and died in Spring Creek on the 8th of January, 187 1. He came to Spring Creek from Unadilla, N. Y., in February, 1838, and purchased the farm of Aaron Rose, embracing the present site of West Spring Creek and the farm now owned and occupied by his son, J. O. Deming. This piece of land contained 149 acres, and at that time there had been but one village lot measured and sold off — the one now occupied by Curtis Johnson. Mr. Deming divided his land into village lots and deliberately started the construction of a village. He was a gunsmith by trade, and he at once opened a gun-shop, a saw-mill, and a grist-mill. This is the same grist-mill now owned and operated by Mr. Cummings. Mr. Deming "also built the first hotel in town at that place, and was a most liberal contributor toward the building of the Union Church edifice, 4/2 History of Warren County. now owned by the Congregationalists. In 1866 he resigned his business into the hands of his children. His wife was Asenath Mudge. They had five sons and five daughters, of whom four sons and four daughter are now living. E. L. Deming, the eldest, was born August i, 1813, and died in February, 1885 ; Julia A., now Mrs. Presho, of Yankton, Dak., was born May 10, 1815 ; Will- iam H. was born January i, 1817, and now resides at Erie; Salgy Amelia, now Mrs. J. P. Mather, of Council Grove, Kan., was born December 24, 1820; Sally Mailla, born March 3, 1819, died April i, 1819; Euphemia J., born March 20, 1823, married Abijah Morrison, of Warren, and died about fifteen years ago; Loton Lament, born April 17, 1825, is in Charleston, Ark.; Josiah Ogden, born December 10, 1827, now lives on the old homestead in West Spring Creek; Frances Jane, born May 4, 1830, is now Mrs. Harvey Thomp- son, of Charleston, Ark.; Mary Amanda, born December 3, 183 1, is now the wife of Daniel Donaldson, at Spring Creek village ; and Andrew Jackson, born December 25, 1834, now lives at West Spring Creek. The mother of these children, whose maiden name was Mudge, was descended from an English family who emigrated to this country in Puritan times, the first of the name on the American continent being Joseph Mudge, one of the first and most pow- erful Methodist preachers in the country. At the time that Josiah Deming came to West Spring Creek there was practically no village there. The only buildings on the ground now occupied by the village were a blacksmith shop and three dwelling houses, occupied re- spectively by Charles McGlashen, Eleazer Aken, and Josiah Deming. 'The village of Spring Creek was still later in birth, no sign of such a place being detectable in 1830, and for years thereafter Robert Donaldson being the only inhabitant of its site. The village did not assume the appearance of its pres- ent thrift until the railroad was opened. The first family to move in after that event was that of Baldwin Willis, who was division boss on this division of the road. His house stood on the site of the present residence of A. W. Jackson. The first station agent here was David Donaldson. The first store in the vil- lage was the grocery of Irvin Donaldson, where the drug store now is. Next was the store of Willis & Jackson, then of David Slasher, now of Erie, and next the store of William G. Garcelon. The first postmaster in Spring Creek village was David Donaldson, who was appointed by President Buchanan. Previous to that time William Garcelon had been postmaster at the mouth of Spring Creek, and when he came to this village, during Lincoln's administra- tion he succeeded Donaldson. At his death in 1876 P. M. Garcelon received the appointment. The present incumbent is Dr. W. O. Gilson. The first tavern in Spring Creek village was opened by James Johnson about 1 860, who after some five or six years sold the property to its present owner, Warren P'uller. It is now a private house. Present Business Interests. — The oldest saw-mill now in operation in town Spring Creek Township. 473 is that of Curtis Johnson, which is operated by steam. E. B. Hyde also owns a water power mill, which has been busy for more than twenty years. Davis, Jones & White operate a steam saw-mill, which has been in their possession a number of years. It was originally built by William H. Deming on another site, and removed to its present site. Wesley Nichols is the proprietcfT^oC^a steam shingle-mill, a business with which he has been connected fbp-^on><; fif- teen years. Bates & Phillis started a steam saw- mill about fiv^ years ago, which is now owned and operated by the junior partner of the former firm, James Phillis. The tannery, now so successfully operated by Fred Beck, was built by him some fifteen years ago. The site of the present tamiery of J. G. Tyler, at West Spring Creek, was first occupied by a tanoefy shortly previous to 1870, owned by Yennie & Manzer. It burned-in- December, 1871, and about twelve years ago the present building was erected by N. P. Cummings and F. A. Butterfield, under the firm name of Cummings & Butterfield. They were suc- ceeded in the ownership of this property by McConnell & Hermens, by Tyler & McConnell, and the last-mentioned firm by the present owner. The first store at West Spring Creek was opened by Charles McGlashen .in 1836. There is now but one store in this village. It was started by George Cummings in January, 1877. In February, 1884, Mr. Cummings sold out to Myers & Stanley. M. A. Myers himself now owns the property and conducts the business. The first postmaster in the township was George Yager, who received the appointment in 1828, the office then having the name of Spring Creek. While he was postmaster the mail was distributed at his house. At that time the mail was carried on horseback, one of the routes being from Titusville, through Columbus, and another from Meadville to Jamestown. Previous to the year 1837 the office was removed to the bridge on the State road (which road was opened 1818-19), and it appears that George F. Eldred was appointed post- master. From there Mr. Garcelon carried the office to the village of Spring Creek, as before stated. The first postmaster at West Spring Creek was Nathaniel Wood, a native of Vermont, who was appointed by President Pierce about 1854 or 1855. In the mean time the store and mill property which had in 1837 belonged to Charles McGlashen had, about 1842, been sold to Abra- ham Woodin. The present owner of the property, Curtis Johnson, obtained his title about 1862. William H. Deming succeeded Wood as postmaster under Buchanan, and during the first term of President Lincoln gave place to his father, Josiah Deming. The office was kept in their store while it was in their family, the store having been first opened about 1850. This store is now occupied as a dwelling house by N. P. Cummings, who bought it in 1869, the same year in which he acquired title to the grist-mill. From the date of his appointment to that of his death, Josiah Deming remained postmaster at 474 History of Warren County. West Spring Creek, when he was succeeded by the present official, W. H. Babcock. There is now no hotel at West Spring Creek, and but one at Spring Creek village, called the Cottage Hotel. It was opened six or seven years ago by Caroline Donaldson, widow of Wilson Donaldson, and was continued by her son, Frederick R. Donaldson, the present proprietor, after the spring of 1884. Of the stores now open in Spring Creek village, that of P. M. Garcelon & Co. (the Co. being J. H. Donaldson) is the oldest. It was started in 1868 by W. G. Garcelon, brother of the senior member of the present firm. From 1 87 1 to 1876 W. G. and P. M. Garcelon were partners in the business. From that year until the fall of 1885 P. M. Garcelon was sole proprietor of the trade, the growing demands of the trade, however, then compelling him to take into his business confidence Mr. Donaldson. They carry a general stock valued at about six thousand dollars. William Baker began to deal in general merchandise at West Spring Creek about fifteen years ago. In 1878 he removed to Spring Creek village, and in the fall of 1 88 1 erected his present commodious store building. The trade in drugs and medicines now controlled by Dr. W. O. Gilson and C. D. Baker, under the firm style of Gilson & Baker, was established by H. P. Hamilton. After a brief period of trade, Hamilton sold out to Dr. S. C. Diefendorf about 1883. In 1884 J. D. Shannon became proprietor of the business, and in the fall of 1885 sold his interests to the present firm. Physicians, Past and Present. — The first physician to exercise the myster- ies of Esculapius in Spring Creek was Dr. Fitch, of Columbus, who was soon assisted without his own consent by Dr. Eaton, of Concord, Pa. One Dr. Cornell was the first resident physician in the township, and dwelt at West Spring Creek for two or three years previous to 1840. About that time Dr. Southard Wood came to West Spring Creek from Crawford county, and after a residence and practice there of many years he removed to Spartansburg, Pa., where he died. His remains, however, were buried in this township, where was, before, the last of earth of his first wife. Dr. Samuel Rogers also re- moved at a comparatively early day from Sugar Grove to West Spring Creek and remained several years. The first physician to reside at the railroad sta- tion was Dr. Elias Baker, who came from Concord, Pa., about 1874, and after a stay of two years returned to Concord. Dr. Diefendorf then sojourned here for a brief time, and was succeeded by the present physician of the place. Dr. W. O. Gilson was born at Titusville, Pa., on the 8th of January, 1858. There he received his education, and he studied medicine there under the guidance of Dr. W. A. Baker. He then attended lectures at the Western Reserve University, of Cleveland, O., and in February, 1883, received his pro- fessional diploma from the medical department of that institution. He came at once to Spring Creek and began to practice. In the fall of 1885 he was KiNZUA Township. 475 appointed postmaster at Spring Creek, and at that time began his career as a druggist. He married in June, 1885, Jessie, daughter of William Baker. The only other physician in town is Dr. W. L. Harvey, who practices at East Brancli. Schools and Churches. — The first school in this township was taught by Daniel Jones in 1804 and 1805, in a log house at the mouth of Spring Creek. The next was taught by Daniel Horn in 1809 and 18 10. All the schools were supported by subscription until 1834. There are now fourteen schools in the township, those at the two villages each having two departments. The average attendance for the whole township is about 400. The first church organized in town was the Congregational, which was formed at West Spring Creek in 1847, ^'^d the church edifice, the first in town, was then erected. The Methodist Episcopal Church edifice at that place was dedicated in 1875. At Spring Creek village a Congregational house of wor- ship was erected about five years ago, the services therein now being con- ducted by Rev. A. B. Sherk, the pastor at West Spring Creek. The Methodist denomination also erected a house of worship at Spring Creek in 1886, the site being donated by D. H. Donaldson. The pastor of this church is Rev. A. S. M. Hopkins. CHAPTER XXXIX HISTORY OF KIXZUA TOWNSHIP. KINZUA township lies on the eastern border of Warren county, and is bounded north by Allegheny River, separating it from the townships of Glade and Elk, east by Corydon and McKean county, south by Sheffield, and west by Mead. It is a good farming town, the soil being composed of a sandy loam along the streams and on Kinzua Flat. The fruits and cereals are raised here in goodly quantities, while a prosperous dairying interest has sprung up in the last few years, which adds much to the agricultural growth of the town- ship. Kinzua was one of the seven towns in Warren county, the organization of which was effected on the 8th of March, 1821, and was first called "Num- ber Eight." Its name, it is said, is of Indian origin, the word meaning fish. This section of the country was in early times one of the favorite resorts of the Indians during the fishing seasons, who bestowed upon it the peculiar title which has been adopted by their civilized successors. Eai-ly Settlements. — The original industry here was identical with that ot all the towns in Western Pennsylvania, which could find water channels to the 476 History of Warren County. great lumber markets of early days — viz., lumbering. About the year 1800 a number of energetic and enterprising men procured the right to strip these lands of their timber for the purpose of rafting it south to Pittsburgh, Cincin- nati, and the other markets on the great rivers that pour their waters into the Gulf of Mexico. Among these men (who came then or later) were John Dick- son, who lived on the west side of Kinzua Creek, a little south of the present residence of William English, our informant. Dickson, though mentioned first, could not have attained prominence until some years after 1800, as he lived in town until within five or six years. He was also a great hunter and fisherman, and cultivated a farm. The first permanent settler in Kinzua, however, was James Morrison, who settled on Morrison's Island in 1801. He was soon followed by Benjamin Marsh, Seaman, Fisher, and others. Jeremiah Morrison, who is mentioned in the list of taxables of Warren county for 1806, lived for a time in Kinzua, removed to Cincinnati, and came again to this town. His was a locomotive disposition. He died a number of years ago in a canoe, on the way to Tidioute from Kinzua. Abijah Maddock came here from Cincinnati at a very early day, and began lumbering on the Indian reservation with John English. Although he was thus identified, in a manner, with the town, he can hardly be deemed a resident. He was always going and coming after and with rafts of lumber for the south. One of his sisters was married to James Morrison. Galen Maddock was a brother of Abijah, and was connected with this town in the same business. He died in McKean about thirty years ago. Between the date of the opening of the country during the first ten years of the present century, and the setting off and formation of this township in 1 82 1, a considerable immigration had poured into this part of the country, and affairs looked favorable for the establishment of a prosperous community. Among those whose names appear in the list of 1822 are the following: George Blacksnake owned property here in some manner, though he was an Indian chief of the Seneca tribe, and resided on the reservation at Cold Spring. In 1821 John Campbell lived on the west side of Allegheny River, but soon after removed to Kinzua and settled on the west side of Kinzua Creek, in the southeast part of the town. He was a farmer, lumberman, etc., and was fond of hunting. He died some ten or twelve years ago. His widow, it is said, still lives at the ripe old age of one hundred years, with her son, in Lud- low, McKean county. Jacob Hook was one of the most influential men of his day. He resided on the strip of land which was part of Kinzua until Mead was formed, when it became a part of that township. Hook was very wealthy, engaging largely in the lumber business, and erecting a number of extensive saw-mills. He died in Pittsburgh while there on business. KiNzuA Township. 477 Jacob Hamlin, a farmer, occupied at this time the site of the present village of Kinzua, his house standing near the center. He was an uncle of William English. He removed from here to Chautauqua county, in the State of New York, and after several other removals settled in Michigan, the place of his death. Andrew Marsh, a single man, owned and occupied a good farm in the northeast part of the town, on Kinzua Flat. He was not, like so many other farmers of this county at that day, interested in the lumbering trade, but attended strictly to his agricultural occupation, and was successful. He died there. Benjamin Marsh, a half-brother of Andrew, lived very early on Kinzua Flat, and kept the first store, perhaps, in that part of the country. He after- ward became a resident of Elk township. He was drowned between the mouth of Kinzua Creek and Warren. He was a farmer and lumberman. James Morrison, the first settler on what is still known as Morrison's Island, at the mouth of Kinzua Creek, owned the entire island, and on it cultivated an extensive farm. He died there as early, probably, as 1840. Among his. sons were Abel, Elijah, and William. Jeremiah, who was mentioned in the first paragraphs of this chapter, was a nephew of James. Samuel Morrison was an early lumberman, and lived in McKean county, at the head of Kinzua Flat. At a later time he settled on about the site of the railroad station in Kinzua, where he died about thirty years ago. Several of his children are- here at the present time. James Sherley lived for a number of years with Benjamin Marsh, after which he removed to Glade township. There he reared a large family, and there he died. These are only a few of the names of settlers mentioned in 1822, but they are the most prominent of those who owned property here at that time, and who remained in town long enough to be remembered by the older inhabitants of the present day. There were others who afterward achieved prominence, who at this time resided in town, but had not risen to the position of property- holders. Of these one of the most prominent was Smith Labree, who was born at Brintwood, Exeter county, N. H., on the 24th of June, 1797, came to Kinzua when he was eighteen years of age, and began to work for Jacob Hook. In one year he returned to New Hampshire, and acted in the service of his father one year. Again he came to Kinzua, and engaged in lumbering with John English. Soon after this he purchased of Archibald Tanner a large tract of land, which embraced nearly the entire site of the present village of Kinzua. His first house stood on the lot now occupied by that of Emory Lyle. In addition to his own lumber interests he acted as pilot for others and made frequent trips down the Allegheny River, once going as far as Natchez, Miss. The habit in those days was to take down on the raft a large canoe, 4/8 History of Warren County. and bring it back well filled with provisions. This he did on about every trip. On the 31st of October, 1822, he married Susannah, daughter of Comfort Hamlin. Following are the names of his children, together with the dates of their birth, and of the deaths of those who have died : Sally, born December 27, 1824, died July 28, 1825 ; Adaline, born Decem- ber 22, 1829, died August 4, 1833 ; Rosina, born March 26, 1832, died July 7, 1863 ; Rosetta, born June 19, 1834, now the wife of J. O. McManus, of Kinzua ; Loren, born April 20, 1837, died July 27, 1839; Loren, born No- vember 28, 1840, married Mary H. Nett, of Fayetteville, Fa., December 11, 1865, and now resides in Kinzua; Archibald, born September 17, 1846, died April 9, 1 87 1. Smith Labree died on the 27th of November, i860, and was followed by his widow on the 29th of March, 1867. His son Loren, who now owns a part of the old estate, has passed his life thus far in his native place, excepting a period of two years and nine months, which he passed in the service of the Union cause during the Rebellion. He served under Captain D. W. C. James, of Warren, in the last company of volunteer infantry raised in the State, and was also in the last volunteer battery raised in the State, under Captain William Barrows. His civil occupation has always been that of a successful farmer. In politics he has been a consistent member of the Republican party, until the principles of the Prohibition party absorbed his political faith. William English, from whom the writer has obtained much of the informa- tion concerning the early settlers of this township, was born in Lycoming county, Pa., on the 3d day of March, 1818. He was the son of John and Mary English, who were reared in the county of his birth. John English brought his family to Kinzua in the year 1 82 1, and two years later settled on the place still occupied by his son William. John English was an honorable and successful farmer, and was also engaged to some extent in the lumber bus- iness. He died in 1868, and in five weeks was followed by his widow. In 1 846 William English married Laura E. Parmenter, of Chautauqua county, N. Y., who has passed an harmonious period of forty years with her husband. They have seven children living — viz : Mary Ella, wife of Thomas Fullerton ; Orren, Solon, George W., Charles Fletcher, Alice L., wife of Hector Strong, and John, who is the only one remaining at the home of his parents. Rice I'^nglish, now a resident of Kinzua, is a brother of William. In 1 83 1 Claudius English, an uncle of William, came to Kinzua and settled on the site of the village, and passed the remainder of his days within a mile of his first settlement. At the time of the formation of the township there were within its limits but one or two patches of clearing, besides the already large clearing on Mor- rison's Island, which is said by some to have been the work of Indians long before the arrival of the white man. William Morrison had a small piece KiNzuA Township. 479 cleared on Kinzua Flat, these two being the only clearings worthy of the name. There was not a road in town, the only means of travel or transportation being furnished by the streams and canoes. Wild beasts abounded — bears, deer, wolves ; while rattlesnakes added the terrors of their presence to diminish the comfort of the human intruders. Wolves were so numerous that it was prac- tically impossible to keep sheep. There was even danger in the necessary custom of letting the cows run in the woods, with no other safeguard against loss than the tintinnabulating cow-bells which depended from their throats. There was not a sign or suspicion of a village. The inhabitants, few and far between, were not accommodated with the convenience of a store and delivery wagons, the nearest place in which to purchase goods and the necessary pro- visions of life being at what was then called a store, kept by Benjamin Marsh, just over the line, in Corydon. Most of the trade of the town, however, was given to Warren, whither the people made frequent trips in canoes. During the rafting seasons, also, it was the custom to bring large quantities of pro- visions from Pittsburgh by canoe. There was no grist-mill here, the grain being taken to Warren for grinding. It was not long after this that John English, Smith Labree, Comfort Hamlin, and John Hamlin built a grist and saw- mill near the site of the present railroad station, and on the ground now covered by the mill of H. A. Jamieson. These mills were the first erected within the present limits of the town, excepting the five mills of Jacob Hook, which stood on the strip afterward set off to Mead township. As early as 1828 John Campbell, James Stewart, and Robert Arthur, all of whom had married daughters of Martin Reese, built a saw-mill in the southwestern part of the town, and operated it until it wore out. Samuel Campbell, son of John, rebuilt it, and operated it until it went down, some ten or twelve years ago. The next mill was built several years later by Andrew Merritt and Robert Campbell about a mile above the mill last mentioned, and near the McKcan county line. Then a number of years later still John L. English and Sylvester Strong erected another mill a considerable distance below the John Campbell mill, on Kinzua Creek. About this time Stephen and Jesse Morrison, sons of Samuel, built a saw-mill on the Allegheny River, near the head of Morrison's Island; but this and all the other mills have long since gone to decay, and with the exception of the one first mentioned, which occupied the present site of H. A. Jamieson's mill, their places know them no more. The grist-mill was operated first by John English, then by Anthony Courson and others, until a few years ago Denton & Chattle assumed management and continued their joint labors for some time. Their successor, the present occupant, W. H. Hoxie, is worthy of his precession. The Village. — Until as late as 1850 the town was without the convenience of a business center of any sort. The first settlers directly on the site of the village of Kinzua were Jacob and Comfort Hamlin, Comfort Knapp, and Smith 480 History of Warren County. Labree. Until that time there was no tavern in town, unless the name be ap- plied to the house of Smith Labree, which, during the rafting seasons, was thrown open for their entertainment, and afforded all the comforts, but none of the extraordinary privileges of a licensed tavern. The principal credit of building up the village belongs undoubtedly to Sterling Green. He was the eldest of ten children of Seth and Sarah Jane (Portman) Green, and was born in Pine Grove, Pa., in the year 1816. His father came from Massachusetts and settled in Pine Grove about 18 13, and married Miss Portman in 181 5. The family removed to the head of Kinzua Flat, in Corydon, where occurred the death of Seth Green in August, 1848. Sterling went to Warren, and was for a time actively engaged in the lumber business. In 1848-49 he kept the Mansion House. In 1849, when he came to Kinzua, he found the site of the village nothing but a farm in the hands of Smith Labree. This land he purchased, and immediately laid it out into vil- lage lots, kept the first store, and built the first hotel, the Kinzua House, in 185 1, and in this way became the author of the village. The year 1851, the author has been told, is memorable from the laughable occurrence of a dispute within the town limits in the fall of that year. The menagerie of G. C. Quick & Co., en route from Warren to Smethport, was ad- mitted to the privilege (?) of performing and exhibiting to the people of Kinzua and vicinity. The proprietor, however, discouraged at the small num- ber that gathered to see his " greatest show on earth," concluded to move on without giving the exhibition. The boys of the neighborhood insisted upon his fulfilling his contract, but nevertheless he began packing his impcdiincnta preparatory for departure. He had not proceeded far into the wild road that led from the town before he discovered " the boys " who had opposed his go- ing felling trees across his path. They declared that unless the procession faced about and satisfied the demands of the spectators, they would fill the road with trees from Kinzua to Smethport. The proprietor, considering dis- cretion the better part of valor, yielded to their somewhat peremptory impor- tunities, pitched his tent, performed his agreement, and was permitted to go on his way unmolested. There are undoubtedly many of those " boys " now living in Kinzua, who recall the affair with a smile of satisfaction. Present Business Interests. — Probably no town in the county has received more unmitigated benefit from the opening of a railroad through its borders than has Kinzua. It has created a market for all the products of the town, and has been greatly instrumental in increasing the population of the village. The oldest mill and also the oldest mill site, as we have seen, in town is now owned by H. A. Jamieson, of Warren. Mr. Jamieson became the owner of this property in 1863, and has kept the mill in uninterrupted operation ever since. The grist-mill of W. H. Hoxie has been mentioned. The present pro- prietor has owned the mill, at the present writing, something over a year. The KiNzuA Township. handle-factory of Mason Sheldon was started about four years ago, as was also the oar-factory of J. W. Neily. The oldest hotel in town is the Kinzua House, which was erected in 185 I by Sterling Green. Mr. Green kept the house himself for twenty years, and has been followed successively by Mclntyre & Langworthy, Eugene Marsh, William Fogies, Joseph Clendenning, Joseph Hale, and the present landlord, T. W. Dempsey, who came into the house more than two years ago. The next hotel was the Maple Shade, which A. T. Banks has kept since June, 1886, but which was first opened a number of years ago by J. H. Williams. Follow- ing Williams and preceding the present proprietor was L. W. Siggins. The merchant who has been longest in continuous trade in town is John H. King, who first opened a store here in 1870. The building which he now occupies was built by him about four years ago. Mr. King carries stock worth about $7,000. Sterling Green has dealt in general merchandise in Kinzua village in all about ten years, though he has occupied the present building only since the opening of the railroad and the oil excitement, at which time he caused its construction. E. A. Van Scoy and G. W. Morehouse, under the style of E. A. Van Scoy & Co., erected the store building they now occupy as dealers in hardware in 1880, just previous to the opening of the railroad. They have a good trade, carrying stock valued at about $6,500. J. Tate has dealt in general merchandise about five years. D. G. Blackman built the store which he now occupies for mercantile pur- poses in 1882, and after renting it for one year to William Wright, came into the building himself His stock is estimated to be worth about $3,000. In August, 1883, J. W. Green opened a jewelry and drug store here, and a year later the business was enlarged by the addition of S. Green. The firm name is now S. Green & Co. The harness shop of S. Norton & Co. (S. Norton and Norton Cardot) was established in the fall of 1885. These gentlemen also have shop in Sinclair- ville, N. Y. The first resident physician in town was Dr. Nichols, who practiced here a number of years following about 1850. Before his settlement in town the inhabi- tants were accustomed to call their physicians from Warren, whither they went on floats. One of the oldest inhabitants has informed the writer that he once went to Warren for a doctor in the night, when the darkness was so intense that he could not see the hills on either side of the stream, nor even distinguish the sides of his float. After Dr. Nichols came Dr. Hector Galloway, a single man, who, in connection with business as an Esculapian minister, taught school. He was here four or five years. Dr. Thomas Eddy then came, not far from 1870, and has been here ever since. Dr. J. J. Knapp, who was born in Farmington, 482 History of Warren County. this county, on the 15th of June, 1854, and was graduated in the spring of 1 88 1 from the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Baltimore, came to Kin- zua on the last day of March, 1881. Postmasters. — The first postmaster in town was probably Benjamin Marsh, who had his office at his house on Kinzua Flat. Jonathan Marsh then held the office for a time, and was succeeded by Hiram Gillman. Sterling Green received the first appointment after the removal of the office to the village, or rather, he removed the office to the village. He was postmaster for eighteen years. The present incumbent is Mrs. Rose Murray, who owes her position to the present national administration. Following is a list of the present officers of the township : Commissioners, John Smith, L. S. Strong, J. C. Fuller; judge of election, E. A. Weagrafif; inspectors of election, Lovel Gibson, G. K. Brown ; school directors, Mason Sheldon, J. W. Springer, Stephen Harris, R. P. Vanarsdale, H. W. Neiiy, G. W. Moorehouse ; treasurer, James Tate ; justices of the peace, R. H. English, D. G. Blackman ; constable, A. J. Williams ; collector, A. J. Williams; assessor, Frank L. English ; town clerk, Frank L. English ; auditors, S. O. Campbell, E. A. Weagrafif, J. H. King; pathmasters, district No. i, Calvin Stoddard; district No. 2, Marcellus English ; district No. 3, George W. English. Educational. — The first settlers in this township, from 1822 to 1825, patron- ized a school kept within the present limits of Corydon. In 1825 a rude structure of logs was the first house used for educational purposes in this town, and was the place where all the schools were kept until 1829. They were sup- ported by subscription. The teachers in this house were Nelson Seaver, Pre- sene Corbin, Sophronia Inglesby, and Hiram Gillmore. In 1829 this house was burned, and for five years schools were kept in several houses, according to the immediate convenience of the citizens. Rice Hamlin, Edward Evans, and Amanda Inglesby were teachers during this period. Since 1834 the town has not been without its regular district schools, which, on the whole, have been very creditable. The village of Kinzua is now graced with a fine school-house which was built in the year 1882, and first opened in the fall of that year. The cost of its construction was something more than $5,000. The first principal was O. J. Gunning, who has been succeeded by Firth, Daniel Reeves, and the present principal, Arthur M. Marsh. The school is conveniently divided into four departments. The average attendance is stated to be about 150 pupils. Ecclesiastical. — The only church ever within the present limits of Kinzua township is the Methodist Episcopal Church, which, previous to about 1830, like all the Methodist churches, was accounted as a part of a circuit. Services were formerly held in private houses, barns, and wherever convenience, rather than comfort, dictated. Among the first members of the class formed here were John, Jacob, and Comfort Hamlin, Samuel, James, Elijah, and Levi Mor- rison, John Campbell, and John English, with their wives. About 1848 John Columbus Township. 483 English gave the ground on which at tliat time the present house of worship and parsonage were erected, at a total cost of about $2,500. The present pastor is Rev. Sampson Dimick. The trustees are Loren Labree, Dr. J. J. Knapp, William English, and others. CHAPTER XL. HISTORY OF COLUMBUS TOWNSHIP. THE territory now comprising for the most part the township of Columbus was formed as early as the 8th of March, 1821, by the name of North- west, and attached to Spring Creek. It was organized as a separate township on the 25th day of May, 1825, and from that time was called Columbus. The first township election was held in the spring of 1826, at the house of Cap- tain David Curtis. It is bounded north by Chautauqua county, N. Y., east by Freehold township in this county, south by Spring Creek, and west by Erie county, Pa. The township is said to have received its name in the following manner: David Curtis, from Sherburne, N. Y., and Kimball Webber, from Columbus, N. Y., both wanted to name the town from their former places of residence, and after much hot debate it was agreed that the person who should furnish the most whisky at election day should have the privilege of naming the new township. Webber offered five gallons and named the township. It cannot be learned at this date what the whole result of the first election was, but it is known that Joseph Munroe had already been commissioned justice of the peace by the governor, and officiated in the organization of the election board ; that Edmund Rowe was the first constable ; and that not all the whisky contributed for the first election was then consumed. Early Settlers. — The earliest settlement of Columbus is not well ascer- tained, and at this period in the history of the township the facts are for the most part irretrievably lost. The first instrument procuring the settlement of this portion of the State was the Holland Land Company. Their agent for this territory was William Miles, and it seems probable that soon after the year 1795, though not before, a few settlers succeeded in building their rude huts and clearing each a small space for cultivation. But their stay was not prolonged. Those settling within the present limits of Columbus, so far as known, were Irvine, Call, Miller, two Vails, Daniel Prosser, Maxwell, and Davis. All their supplies had to be brought from Pittsburgh. They suffered privations which can not be adequately described. They struggled on until the cold season in the years 1805 and 1806, when they became discouraged. 484 History of Warren County. abandoned their settlement, and sought a warmer climate and an older com- munity. As an example of the effect of those cold seasons, and the conse- quent failures in crops, the settlers had to pay three dollars per bushel for potatoes and transport them from Union, a distance of fifteen miles. On one of these improvements, as late as 1 8 14, were the remains of a school-house, with its benches of split logs and desks of slabs, formed with the ax in the most primitive style, and fastened to the log walls with large wooden pins. In 1800 and 1801 Nathaniel Frampton, Daniel Horn, Joseph Phillis, and per- haps one or two others, made settlements here and remained a number of years, some of them until their death. In the spring of 1804 Daniel Corbett came from Lancaster county, Pa., and settled on the farm next east of Sample Flats. He weathered through the cold season, and in 1807 built a saw- mill on his farm, which enabled him to construct warmer houses for him- self and others, and to make a little money by rafting lumber down the river to market. His wife was a daughter of Nathaniel Frampton. Corbett remained on his farm until about 1 830, or a little later, when he died. John Sample, another early settler, was a son-in-law of Nathaniel Frampton, and settled as early, probably, as 1800, on the tract in the southwestern part of the town, known at the present day as Sample Flats. Mr. Sample was a good farmer, increased his landed property here, and performed his duties as a citizen and a Democrat until his death, not far from twenty years ago. His grandson, John, lives now in the same neighborhood, and other grandchildren are resi- dents of this township. John Sample, jr., was a bachelor son of John, sr., and owned property adjoining his father's farm. He survived his father a few years. The Prosser clearing, named after Daniel Prosser, was about in the center of the township. Daniel Call settled previous to 1 800 on a farm about two miles northwest from what is now the borough of Columbus, the place being still recognized as Call Hill. He went away during the cold season of 1805— 6. Daniel Horn lived as late as 1806 about one mile east of the site of Co- lumbus borough, on the farm now occupied by Klmer Crosby. In 1866 he removed to Spring Creek, where his children still reside. Nathaniel Framp- ton was living in this township with his son-in-law, John Sample, until as late as 1825. Michael and James Hare were settlers, previous to 1806, about a mile south of the site of Columbus borough. Others of the same surname lived near the site of Corry, but they had all gone away before 1806. Luther Chase settled between 1806 and 18 16 in this township, near the line of Spring Creek. Not far from 1830, it is stated, he removed to Titus- ville. He was not able to accumulate much property, for he had a large family, and when he settled here he was well along in years. He was not a public man in any sense of the word. Columbus Township. 485 James Phillis lived near the Corbett farm for a time, and after that moved around considerably. He married a daughter of James Irvin, near Wrights- ville. He was something of a lumberman, but much more of a hunter. A number of years after 1825 he went West. He has a number of descendants in the county now. Thomas Tubbs was reared by Daniel Corbett. He was born in Lancaster county. Pa., on the i ith of August, 1793, and while a small lad was bound out to Daniel Corbett for a term of twelve years. He has written and published a pamphlet memoir of his life, and describes Corbett as cruel, tyrannical, accustomed to steal and lie. Tubbs died but a few years ago near Titusville. These first settlers obtained their property rights by settlement and resi- dence. About the year 1822 Captain David Curtis, as agent for H. J. Huy- dekopper, the successor of the Holland Land Company, proposed to exchange wild lands in the " Brokenstraw country " for improved lands in Central New York, and being a practical surveyor, he came here with some others from Chenango county, N. Y. Soon after this time he sent Jabez Johnson to this township from Chenango county, who settled at what is now the Center. There he built a house and for some time boarded others who had come, while they were erecting houses of their own. Johnson was born on the 1 8th of November, 1798 ; was the first Yankee settler in Columbus, and became well known here before he died, on the I2th of February, 1841. He was a shoe- maker by trade and engaged in that occupation after his settlement until his death. About 1823 Captain Curtis, who was probably the wealthiest of the settlers, came here with his family and took the Johnson farm, upon which he passed the rest of his life. He was born on the i8th of August, 1786, and died July 27, 1832. His wife, Delilah, was born September 5, 1791, and died February 10, 1872. In 1823 others came also, most of them under the influence of Captain Curtis. Among them were Aaron Walton, Porter K. Webber, Edmund Rowe, JuHus Merriam, and Levi Boardman, all of them single young men engaged in chopping and clearing. The next year Kimball Webber, Matthias Spencer, Aaron Walton, sn, John Dewey, Luther Mather, and probably William Z. Bush, moved their families from New York State and became permanent set- tlers. From that time on the settlements became rapidly thicker and more modern. When Aaron Walton, sr., came here he found no store in the town- ship except a small affair kept by Porter Webber at his house about a mile east of the present borough limits. By the summer of 1825 the lumber trade had not become a very prominent industry, though it was in full tide farther down the river. The little saw-mill which Daniel Corbett had built on his farm had nearly gone to decay, and there was no other in town except the one then in process of construction by Luther Mather, at the falls, in what is now the bor- ough. Mather was also building a grist-mill — the first in the township — on X 486 History of Warren County. the site of the mill now owned by Aaron Francis. Mather lived then in a little sixteen by sixteen plank house on the west side of the Brokcnstraw, on land now forming a part of the mill property — then the only house within the area of the present borough. The site of Columbus village was covered with an almost unbroken growth of forest ; there was no bridge across the creek, only a rough log thrown over. There was no post-office, the little mail that was obtained being brought from Warren. There was no physieian here, though Mrs. Aaron Walton had quite a practice in attending families at the birth of children. Luther Mather, who took so active a part in the improvement of the town- ship, especially of the village, was a son of Stephen Mather, and was born in Bennington, Vt, on the 24th of June, 1785. He came to Columbus in March, 1825, from Jefferson county, N. Y., where he had been living for a number of years. Immediately upon arriving here he became the first settler in, and the founder of, the village of Columbus. He built a part of a saw-mill with a little lumber that he had brought with him, and from that sawed out the rest of his building material. Soon after his brother Daniel and Dr. M. F. C. Fitch bought near him, and in a settlement with J. H. Huydekopper for his services as surveyor, Captain Curtis became possessed of lands opposite and also in- cluded in the site of the borough. Daniel Mather and M. F. C. Fitch each donated lands for a public square on the west side of the creek, and Dr. Fitch surveyed and plotted that portion of the borough. David Curtis donated a public square and cemetery on the east side of the creek, and surveyed and plotted that part of the borough. Luther Mather married November 7, 181 1, Gabrielle B. Balmat, then of Jefferson county, N. Y., but a native of Paris, France. She died at Columbus in January, 1881, at the age of nearly ninety years. Her husband had gone before her on the 9th of June, 1842. They had six children, of whom five live — Harriet M., widow of Erastus Pearce, in Crawford county; Jedediah P., now of Council Grove, Kan.; Joseph V., now of Bear Lake, in this county; Eliza M., widow of Lore n Pearce, now in Columbus, and Arvilla A., now wife of H. A. Baker, and residing in Corry, Pa. Among the settlers who came to Columbus during that flood-tide of immi- gration preceding 1830 was Solomon Dutton. He was born in New Hamp- shire in 1804, of Richard and Sarah (Grant) Dutton, grew to manhood in Co- lumbus, Chenango county, N. Y., and in 1829 married Rebecca Rice and re- moved to this township, where he died in 1857, and was followed by his widow in 1876. They had a family of four children — Sarah E , Adelia A., Hiram R., who died in infancy, and Richard D. After he came to this place he taught two terms of school in a log building in the district now called the center school district. He was an acting justice of the peace for more than twenty-one years, school director several years, and has held the office of assessor. It is said Columbus Township. 487 that he officiated at the marriage of more than fifty couples. By occupation he was a farmer. L. C. Baker, who lives here now, came to Columbus in 1837, from Catta- raugus county, N. Y., though originally from Chenango county, with his father, Ira, who settled in the southern portion of the township and there died in 1885. D. C. Blair came with his step-father, John Judson, in 1841, and settled in the village, first on the east and soon after on the west side of the creek. Judson died in 1878. He was for years a prominent merchant of the town, associate judge of the county, and in other respects a well-known public man and a life- long Democrat. Although he came here from Bradford county. Pa., he was originally from Madison county, N. Y. Ira Baker was a farmer of large prop- erty and was also a very active man. Messrs. Baker and Blair have furnished the following information concerning the growth of business interests in the village and townships since their recollection, and from tradition : " As before stated, the first store in town was kept by Porter Webber. Perhaps the first in the village was kept by William Jackman, on the site now occupied by the store of Baker & Co. He moved to Illinois in 1846 and died there. For a year or two, about 1843-44 and 1845, ^ peculiar industry was carried on here, viz., the manufacture of fanning-mills by John Smith, Charles Anderson, and one or two others; but it never became very flourishing. Anderson was a great inventor, and only a few years previous to this had invented a new steam engine for propelling boats. He built a steamer here and took it down the river to Beaver for the machinery, but his invention there failed. By 1 840 the village had become at least as large as it now is. At this time Judson & King were the principal merchants in the village and township, their store standing just west of the grist-mill. Besides dealing in general merchandise they bought and sold lumber and shingles, which were then practically a legal tender. About 1848 they sold out to Enfield Leach and Alfred Willoughby. Leach kept the store five or six years and was succeeded by Willoughby. Morillo Woodworth became then a partner of Willoughby, and this firm kept up the business until about 1861. About 1850 Davis Jones and Charles Hewitt opened a store on the site of Yates & Smith's present store, and after some three years were succeeded by "Dyer Elderkin and William Walker. They wound up the business in two or three years. The present building was erected by D. A. Dewey in 1871. About 1876 he was followed by Cyrus Blakeslee, who in turn sold out to George F. Yates. D. C. & G. Blair, brothers, opened a store in a building still standing just west of the hotel about 185 i, and traded in it for nineteen years. Upon the retirement at that time of George Blair, D. C. Blair took his son-in-law, E. S. Royce, into partnership with him, which continued some three years. Royce then purchased the business and property and engaged in it for four years. 488 History of Warren County. when he sold out also to Mr. Yates. For about the fifteen years following 1850, the other part of the building occupied, as last stated, was occupied suc- cessively by D. A. Dewey, Richard Dewey, A. J. Atherly, G. V. N. Yates, Muzzy, Horn & Cady, and Muzzy, Howard & Mallett, the last-named firm finally closing out. In 1867 D. A. Dewey and D. H. Cady started a store " on the bridge " on the west side of the creek, and kept it about two years, after which Dewey continued it alone until 1 871. The saw-mill which Luther Mather built in 1825 stood on the east side of the creek until about 1840, when it was rebuilt on the west side, above the grist-mill. The grist-mill has been many times rebuilt. About 1830, or a little later, Mather moved about a mile down the creek, and there erected a saw-mill on the site of the present mill of Russell Clark, and remained there until his death. Meantime William Jackman had succeeded him in the owner- ship and possession of the grist and saw-mill, and kept them in operation until about 1842 or 1843, when he failed, and the property went into the hands of Judson & Hutchins, of Waterford, Pa. Daniel Walton then bought them and operated them until 1864, at the same time doing a general mercantile and lumbering business. Stephen Stewart then had the property, and sold the mills to D. C. & G. Blair, who, after running them a few months, sold them to Henry Stevens, also in 1864. In one year they sold to James Smith and John Eason, who operated them five years ; Smith, Eason & Walton, Walton & Eason, A. W. Francis and M. E. Skinner, and finally A. W. Francis alone had charge of the property. Mr. Francis is the present proprietor. The second mill that Mather erected, he and his son, J. D. Mather, oper- ated until 1842, when the latter continued it until 1857. It was then sold by the sheriff to George Cady, Ethan Skinner, and Asa Walton. After several years they sold to George Vermilya, who transferred the property to the present owner, Russell Clark, about fifteen years ago. Captain David Curtis built a saw-mill before 1830 in the village, a little down stream from Mather's first mill, and near the mouth of Coffee Creek, which passed through many hands, and was burned in 1863. Soon after D. A. Dewey built a steam mill on the site, which was abandoned in a few years. As early as 1830 Elijah Smith built a saw-mill about half a mile east of the village, and connected with it a small grist-mill. Smith & Hull operated the two mills for several years. It was afterward successively operated by Mr. Pinney, of Pittsburgh, and M. P. Osborne, until the decline of the lumber trade, when it was abandoned. At one time, about 1840, Pine Valley, in thp northeastern part of the township, was quite a settlement. There were three mills, owned and operated respectively by Justin Danforth, Ezra Beals, and Thomas Barker and his father. About i860 the decline of the lumber business brought this smiling village to dust. The steam mill of D. H. Parker is the only industry there now. About Columbus Township. 489 one and a half miles north from Pine Valley, on what is called the " Sulphur Spring " property, is the steam saw mill of Clemens, Huffman & Jamieson, which was built in 1885, and is now doing a large business. Chauncey Marble also has a saw- mill in the north part of the township, about four miles from Columbus borough, which he built in 1885, and which is doing a good busi- ness. The height of prosperity of this borough, Columbus, was during the greatest period of activity of the lumber traffic and manufacture between 1850 and 1 86 1. The oil business and the junction of railroads then conspired to enlarge Corry at the expense of Columbus, and with the growth of that place has been a corresponding decline of prosperity in Columbus. The borough was chartered in 1853, and on the 29th of March of that year an election was held in the school-house on the west side. Nathaniel Stacy was chosen judge, Charles Hewitt and G. W. Bracken, inspectors, and E. C. Stacy and Jones Smith, clerks. The officers elected at this time were Ozro A. Smith, burgess; W. L. Weed, William Byington, William Walker, Alexander Harris, and D. W. Elderkin, common council ; O. A. Smith and D. W. Elderkin, justices; G. W. Bracken, constable ; A. Barris, F. R. Burroughs, and D. W. Mason, school di- rectors ; John Judson and M. S. White, path-masters; M. S. White, judge; W. C. Howard and Asa Walton, inspectors of elections ; Lucius Spencer, assessor; D. C. Blair, D. A. Dewey, and HoUis King, auditors. There being some irregularity in this election, another was afterward held with the same result, except that G. V. N. Yates was chosen justice. Presejtt Business Interests. — Of the four stores now open in Columbus borough, the one of longest standing is that of George F. Yates and Albert J. Smith, who deal in general merchandise under the firm name of Yates & Smith. The firm was formed on the I2th of February, 1883, succeeding George F. Yates. The previous history of this store has already been related. Their present stock is valued at about $5,000. The firm of Rhodes & Rowe Brothers, consisting of W. R. Rhodes, C. E. Rowe, and F. M. Rowe, was formed more than two years ago, and deal in stock containing, among other things, drugs and medicines. They estimate their stock to be worth about $7,000. The firm of A. Baker & Co. was formed about two years ago. F. M. Rowe had a store in this building before it was occupied by this firm. H. L. Zimmerman, dealer in stoves, general hardware, lime, cement, phosphate, coal, etc., began in Columbus township and borough in September, 1885, succeeding F. C. Smith, who had been here for several years. Hotels. — The first tavern or hotel built and kept in the township was that erected in 1826 by Porter K. Webber, which is in part the same building now owned and occupied by H. L. Gordon, on the east side of the creek. In 1844 George Cady succeeded Webber, and remained until i860, since when it has passed through many hands. The property came into the hands of Mr. Gor- don in the spring of 1885. 490 History of Warren County. As early as 1830 Dr. M. F. C. Fitch built the other hotel on the west side of the creek, and after a short time was succeeded by Daniel Walton, who kept it until 1849, ^^'^ was followed by William L. Weed. From that time for years it kept changing hands, until H. P. Stevens bought it. He was the last one who kept the house open for guests, and he left in 1884. The house is not now used for hotel purposes. There have not been many hotels outside of the village of Columbus in the township. At Pine Valley Lyman Calkins kept tavern about the year 1840, which was afterward in the hands of Anson Ouimby, George Shannon, and others, and was closed before i860. It was noticeable for its sign, which read, "Call and See," and the House was designated as the " Call-and-see House." A mile east of the village S W. Webber had a hotel between 1850 and i860, but discontinued it previous to the latter date. The building was destroyed by fire about 1872 or 1873. About three miles east of the village the Kansas House was opened in 1856 by Seth and Delos Wilber. After the lapse of three or four years it was converted into a private house, which it still re- mains. T/ie Ta7incry. — As early as 1840 Porter Damon built the first tannery in town, on the site of the present one. It was then but a small " pocket " affair. He was followed by Horace English as early is 1847, ^^^o kept it in operation about ten years in connection with the manufacture of boots and shoes, and sold out to Hollis King and Asa Walton. They ran it until about 1864 under the name of King & Walton, and were succeeded by Rose & Hewitt. The senior member of the new firm soon went out, and William Hewitt continued the business for a year or two, and was followed by Nathaniel Pearson. The next proprietor was Byron Pearson, from about 1868 to 1870, when John Williams acquired the property. His son, Frank Williams, is the present owner and proprietor. The Equitable Aid Union of Ameriea, which has carried the name of Columbus to all parts of the United States, describes the purpose of its institu- tion in its title. It was chartered on the 22d of March, 1879, under the laws of Pennsylvania, the headquarters of the company being at Columbus. The incorporators were D. A. Dewey, R. Nell Seaver, H. S. Ayer, W. H. Muzzy, and W. B. Howard, all of Columbus. D. A. Dewey was president of the asso- ciation until March, 1886, when he was succeeded by R. N. Seaver, who had been vice-president all the time previous. Mr. Seaver has also been supreme medical examiner during the history of the union. Since its organization, also, H. S. Ayer has held the office of accountant, and W. II. Muzzy of secretary. In addition to the five incorporators, two representatives from New York and two more from Pennsylvania came in in September, 1884, and since that time there have been added one from each State. The organization was introduced for the benefit of persons everywhere who were not able to enter other more ex- Columbus Township. 491 pensive or less liberal associations in other respects similar to this one. It is not introduced as a competitor to any similar order heretofore existing, but solely with a view to extend social and financial benefits to a very large and worthy class of our fellow-citizens entirely "cut off and, as the incorporators justly think, unrighteously ignored by other organizations of a similar nature. They started with only the one society at Columbus, but at this writing they have 560 different societies in sixteen States and Territories from Dakota to Massachusetts. They have about 18,000 insurable members in all, besides about 2,000 non-beneficiary members. In November, 1886, they had paid 687 death policies, involving $1,269,705.45 in money. Tlie Post-office. — The first postmaster in this township was Captain David Curtis, who was appointed as early as 1829, and probably earlier. His suc- cessors in the office have been about as follows : Robert Campbell, William Jackman, Mark White, who was appointed about 1845 and served several years, E. C. Stacy, Davis Jones, F. R. Burroughs, Lewis Crosby, W. H. Muzzy, Lewis Crosby, James Hopkins, Lewis Crosby, S. L. Skiff, O. A. Smith, and the present incumbent, Frank O. Howard, who was appointed on the 1 2th of April, 1886. The office was named Coffee Creek post-office until about 1840, when the present name was adopted. Schools and Churches. — The first school held in the township was at the house of Kimball Webber, in 1824, and was taught by his daughter Sophronia, for thirteen weeks at one dollar per week. There are now in the borough two school buildings, with three departments, and an attendance of more than one hundred pupils. Outside of the borough are twelve schools. A history of the religious movements in this township would be incom- plete without somewhat extended mention of the most prominent clergyman and theologian in the town. Rev. Nathaniel Stacy was born on the 2d of December, 1778, in New Salem, Mass. His father, Rufus Stacy, was a fisher- man, during the seasons, on the banks of Newfoundland, and, like his mother, was a native of Gloucester, Mass. They were probably of Scotch or Irish de- scent. The subject of this notice studied theology under the tuition of Rev. Hosea Ballou, of Massachusetts, and did his first preaching near New Salem. He was always of diminutive stature, being five feet and one inch in height, and weighing for years but ninety-nine pounds. His heaviest weight was 105 pounds. He was active in movement and rapid and nervous in speech, but at the same time was of a very calm and even-tempered disposition. He lived his religion. In the fall of 1798 he went to Bridgewater, Vt., where, for his health, he tried blacksmithing and several other manual occupations. He soon returned to Massachusetts. Then he went to Hamilton, Madison county, N. Y., in April, 1808, after itinerating through Massachusetts, Vermont, and New York, and remained there during a period of twenty-two years. On the 30th of January, 1806, he married Susan, daughter of Perez Clark. In 1830 he 32 492 History of Warren County. came to Columbus, Pa. In his Memoirs (page 359) he says of this country- then : "Although the country was mostly in a state of nature, and the roads intolerable, still I was pleased with it. It evidently possessed great strength of soil, with the heaviest growth and the greatest variety of timber I had ever seen, or have since seen, thrown together in any one place." At that time there were here the houses of Luther Mather and Captain Curtis, a build- ing erected for a public house, another for a store, shops for blacksmithing, shoemaking, wagon-making, and other mechanical employments. After five years he removed to Ann Arbor, Mich., where he remained about five years, and then came back to Columbus, where he spent the remainder of his life, preaching, as he says, until spiritualism " broke out," about 185 i or 1852, and his meetings were interrupted. From that time he engaged in only occasional preaching. He died April 7, 1868, and was followed by his widow exactly one year and six months afterward. They had eight children, of whom only three, Judge Edwin C. Stacy, now of Albert Lee, Minn., Clara, wife of John D. Anderson, of Washington, Iowa, and Charlotte, wife of O. A. Smith, of this township, survive. The house now occupied by O. A. Smith in Columbus borough was built by Rev. Stacy in 1832. He was the first Universalist preacher, and the organizer of the Universalist Church, in Columbus. He came at the solicitation of Peter C. Howard, Ezra Button, Solomon Dutton, Captain Curtis, Isaac Crosby, and others of that denomination. The house of worship was erected under Mr. Stacy's direction in 1847, and is now a union church. While Mr. Stacy was in Ann Arbor, the spiritual needs of the church were placed in the care of Rev. L. Payne. Since the death of Mr. Stacy the Universalist society has not flourished. Indeed, it is said that all the churches have felt the inroads of spiritualism severely. In 1830 the majority of the settlers were inclined to Methodism in religion, among the early members of that persuasion being James Sears and wife, Sam- uel H. Ayer, Joseph Sheffield and wife, A. Soggs, David York and wife, Mrs. Eli Crosby, Mr. and Mrs. Henderson, Mr. and Mrs. Marsh, Lloyd Smith, Mr. Brightman, William Jackman and wife, and Watson Miller and wife. Joseph O. Rich, the first preacher, was here about 1830 or 1832. The most pros- perous period in the history of the church was about 1840. The house of worship was erected in 1839. The present pastor is Rev. George Hummason. The membership now is about twenty. The only church in the township outside the borough is that of the United Brethren, who have had a church organization in Pine Valley about twenty- five years, and built their church edifice as many as twenty years ago. Limestone Township. 493 CHAPTER XLI. HISTORY OF LIMESTONE TOWNSHIP.i LIMESTONE was formed from the provisional townships of Tionesta and Limestone (see chapter on township organization) in August, 1829. At this time the land was covered with large quantities of pine, hemlock and hard wood. Millions of feet of lumber have been manufactured in this town- ship and run to market, and at the present day quantities of hemlock and some pine cover a large portion of its territory. The land is well watered, and abounding in never-failing springs in addition to the numerous tributaries of the Allegheny River which flow through this township. Years before the township was organized many settlers took up claims along the river, making settlers' claims, as it was supposed that this land was owned or controlled by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania; but some time later, after many had spent years of hard work in clearing their lands and es- tablishing homesteads, it was ascertained that a large portion of this land had been purchased by and belonged to an English landlord by the name of Ma- ben, and although many of them strongly protested against buying their farms, after spending so many years of work thereon, all those whose farms chancedi to be located on Maben's land were compelled to purchase them. This was done through Alexander McCalmont, agent. Other capitalists became own- ers of large tracts in this township and held the same for years. This retarded the settlement of Limestone, and the effect is still seen at the present daj^ A few coal mines have been opened and worked upon the more elevated tracts of this township, but with no great degree of success. There were few settlers in the township when it was organized, and these all lived along the river. The following are the names of parties living in Limestone at the time : Richard Arters, Robert Hunter, Arthur Magill, sr., James Middleton, Joshua Richardson, Alexander Magee, and Joseph Huff. Brief sketches of the lives of most of these old settlers will be found below. The first public road in Limestone township was laid out by order of the Court of Quarter Sessions of Warren county on the 24th day of March A. D. 1824. This road extended from the county line northward along the river to a point opposite the mouth of Tidioute Creek. Early Settlers. — One of the oldest, and perhaps the first permanent settler in Limestone township, was Richard Arters, who with his wife settled in Limestone in 1806. Here he cleared a small farm, which was located nearly opposite the lower part of Tidioute borough. His family was large. 1 By James Kinnear. V 494 History of Warren County. Hunter, Robert, another of the first settlers, was born in Ireland in 1758, and his wife, Elizabeth (Park) Hunter, was born in the same country in 1762. They settled in Limestone, then Deerfield township, four miles below the mouth of Tidioute Creek in 1808. Here they made their permanent home, and by industry and frugality succeeded in clearing a large farm. They had a family of ten children born unto them, consisting of six daughters and four sons, all of whom grew to maturity and married, most of them settling in Limestone and vicinity. Robert Hunter died in 1836, and his wife in 1843. Hunter, RTathew, the youngest son of Robert Hunter, was born in 1802, and after his father's death continued upon the old homestead. Here he farmed and lumbered as his father had done before him. His wife, Sarah (Magill) Hunter, was born in 1809 and died in 1846. Mathew Hunter died in 1872. He had a family of ten children. In 18 12 James Magee and wife moved from the eastern part of Pennsyl- vania to Warren county, and settled four miles below the mouth of Tidioute Creek in Limestone, then Deerfield township. His family, consisting of eight sons and two daughters, were mostly grown at the time they settled here, and they all afterwards settled in Limestone and vicinity. r Magee, Henry, the seventh son of James Magee, settled three miles below Tidioute Creek, in Limestone township, as it is now called. He was one of the prominent men of that early day, and was instrumental in securing the or- ganization of Limestone township. He was justice of the peace for many years, and held at difterent times all the official positions of the township. He married Kate Grandin and raised a large family. About the time of the oil excitement he sold his farm and moved west, where he died about the year 1884. Magee, Alexander, the youngest son of James Magee, was born in 1808. He settled four miles above Tidioute Creek in Limestone township. He was a farmer and a lumberman, and a prominent man in his day. His wife, Nancy (Smith) Magee, was born in 1809. /He had a family of five daughters, four of whom are still Hving and reside in Tidioute. Rebecca Magee married John Hunter, and Nancy Magee is the wife of W. C. Mabie. In the year 1854 the Harmony Society purchased about si.x thousand acres ■of land in Limestone township, from various parties, paying for the same a large amount of money, but nothing in comparison with what the land has since proved to be worth. Most of this land was well covered with timber, and a large part of it was found to be good oil territory, yielding immense quantities of oil, and affording the owners large profits. This territory was operated in the name of the Economy Oil Coiitpaiiy, which company is identi- cal with the Harmony Society, and only given another name in order to keep this part of its business separate and distinct. , Limestone Township. 495 Sketch of Harmony Society. The Harmony Society, a body of peculiar organization and interest, was founded by George Rapp and a colony of immigrants from Wurtemberg, who sought in the United States an asylum from hostility to their religious views, and a place where they might enjoy freedom in the exercise of their own re- ligious convictions, by the worship of God according to their understanding of his word. The basis of their association in its inception was a deep and earnest conviction of the necessity of a purer life, and the exercise of practical and personal piety, by a walk and conversation personally and socially in accord- ance with their understanding of the Scriptures. Entertaining similar views and convictions of religious duty and social economy (but views differing in some things materially from those of the recognized, religious denominations and organizations of that day), it was natural the different individuals of the colony should be attracted toward each other, and unite for their mutual ben- efit and advantage ; and the causes and influences which thus first brought them together in an associated capacity have ever since operated as a bond that has held them united and firrp in their adherence to the principles of the organization. One of the cardinal principles of the association was that of entire com- munity of property, community of interests and labor, and mutual assistance of and dependence upon each other. A formal organization was first effected in 1805, at Harmony, Butler county, Pa., where they first located, by written articles of agreement, signed by all the members, whereby each delivered up and surrendered all property owned and held by him individually to the association thus established, thus forming a common stock or fund, joint and indivisible, held and managed by a trustee therein designated, for the common use and benefit of all members of the so- ciety ; and bound themselves to submit to the rules and regulations established for the government of the society, and to labor for and promote the interests of the same ; and also that if any should withdraw from the society for any cause whatever, those thus withdrawing should not make or have any claim or demand for the labor or services of themselves, their children or families, but whatever they might do or labor should be done as a voluntary service for their brethren, and for the common benefit. In consideration for what each thus voluntarily surrendered and contributed in property, labor, or otherwise, to the common fund, he or she became a member of the society, and entitled to all the rights and privileges of members to maintenance and support in health and in sickness, from the common stock or fund, and to the religious privileges and teachings, etc., etc., established and provided. In 1821, 1827, and 1836 respectively, further and additional agreements were entered into, being signed by all the members, whereby some modification of and additions to the original compact were made, for the furtherance of their views and wishes 496 History of Warren County. and the better establishment thereof, and of a more complete union, brother- hood, co-operation, and mutual assistance. George Rapp, who had been the principal founder of the society, its spir- itual teacher, and also trustee of the property, died in 1847. After his death a new and more complete system of government for the society and the man- agement of its property and affairs was ordained and established by the mem- bers, all of whom united therein and signed the written instrument in which the same is fully set forth. In none of these instruments or agreements, which were intended mainly for the better management of the social affairs of the society and its business with others, was there any departure from their views of entire community of property, labor and interests, adopted at their organiza- tion ; but they reiterated this as one of their cardinal principles, declaring that all their property was, and was deemed to be, joint and indivisible, the property of the society for the common benefit of all its members, and this has always been regarded and maintained as one of the essential features of their compact. In 1814 and 1815 the society sold their property at Harmony, Pa., and re- moved to New Harmony, State of Indiana, where land was bought as the joint property of the society, and held and used for the common benefit of all under their compact. The location proving unhealthy, this was in turn sold, and in 1825 they removed to Beaver county. Pa., where land was again bought, held, and used as before, and where they still remain. The society has not escaped the fate of other similar associations, but there have been those of its members who became dissatisfied and withdrew, and who subsequently sought to re- cover from their former associates what they claimed they or their ancestors had put into the common stock, together with a proportionate share of the accumulations of the society, or if that could not be, then compensation for their labor and industry while they were members. Different suits were in- stituted for this purpose, some in the courts of the State of Pennsylvania, and others in the courts of the United States, wherein the affairs and management of the society were thoroughly investigated and the validity of the agreement or compact as originally entered into by the members, and as modified and ratified by the subsequent agreements, was fully and carefully examined by eminent counsel engaged on either side, and on most careful consideration sustained and established. Biographical. — Among the prominent citizens of Limestone township are William Merkle, superintendent of the Economy Oil Company ; John Myres, farmer, owning one of the best farms in the county, consisting of two hundred acres, and located upon the river bottom within a mile of Tidioute ; L. H. Sprague, J. H. McDonald, Michael Merkle, jr., Jacob Eisenbrown, Thomas Stroup, John Shoelkopf, T. A. McDonald, and W. S. Thompson. Houser, John P., was born in Venango county in 18 19. He came to Lime- stone township in 1836. He purchased three hundred acres of land on tract Limestone Township. 497 5225, of which he has cleared fifty acres. He was elected justice of the peace in 1864, and has held that position for five terms. He married Margaret Tut- tle in 1843. They still reside on their farm about four miles from Tidioute, Their children now living are Ordelia Houser, born 1844, married W. J. Slater and lives in Watson township; John P. Houser, jr., born 1854, married and lives in Limestone township; Margaret E. Houser, born i860, married C. A. Buchanan, and lives in Kane, Pa.; Carrie S. Houser, born in i860 and resides at home. L. H. Sprague was born in Jefferson county, N. Y., in 1836. He came to Limestone township in i860, and entered the employment of the Economy Oil Company. He married Cordelia Richardson in 1862. He has been constable and collector in Limestone for one or two terms. Kelly, Andrew, was born in Clarion county in 1820 ; he came to Limestone township in 186 1 and purchased one hundred acres of land, most of which by hard work he has cleared and made tillable. In 1845 he married Elizabeth Kelly. They have had ten children born unto them. Those now living are Hannah Daubenspeck, John Kelly, Sharron S. Kelly, Flora Kelly, and Madge Kelly, who reside in Limestone township, and Samuel Kelly, who lives in Kansas. Averill, Sylvester, was born in Erie county. Pa., in 18 19, and came to Limestone township in 1840 ; here he purchased one hundred and ten acres of wild land which he mostly cleared. He died in Limestone township in 1880. His wife, Hulda (Brown) Averill, still resides on the farm. Of the eight chil- dren born unto them there are living Lee Averill, who is married and lives at North Clarendon, Pa.; W. C. Averill, married Ufretta Gilmore and resides on the old homestead ; Lunette Averill and S. H. Averill also reside in Lime- stone ; S. B. Averill married and lives at Grand Valley. Shanley, John, was born in Canada in the year 1848, and came to Lime- stone in 1869. Since that time he has been in the employment of the Econ- omy Oil Company. He served four years and ten months in the Union army before he was twenty-one years of age. In 1879 he married Belle Morrow, and has a family of four children ; at present he is constable and collector in Limestone, which position he has had for two terms. The first oil well in Limestone was drilled by the Economy Oil Company in the fall of 1861, and proved to be a small well, yielding but two or three barrels per day. On Christmas day of the same year their first flowing well was struck. This produced about fifty barrels of oil per day. The oil business in Limestone township assumed large proportions from this time on ; many different parties became interested, and large quantities of oil were produced. The Economy Oil Compan)' alone drilled about seventy-five oil wells. The territory of Limestone township was lasting, and the quality of the oil-bearing sand was good, though the rock was not thick. The production from the old History of Warren County. oil districts of Limestone has now dwindled down very low. New fields with small productions are now being operated in other parts of the township. The general business of Limestone at present is farming and lumbering. A number of saw-mills are kept runuing during a greater part of the year. Within the past few years a number of farms on the lands of the Economy Oil Company have been cleared, fenced, and made tillable. A few years more and the lumber will be gone, the oil exhausted, and then attention will be turned to clearing farms, and tilling the soil. Most of the land throughout this township will make fair farms. There is but one church in Limestone — a Union church, located upon what is known as Economite's Hill. In this church services are frequently held in German, to accommodate the German population living upon and working the lands of the Economy Oil Company. Religious services and Sunday-schools are held in nearly all of the school-houses throughout the township, under the direction of the Evangelical Association. Rev. M. V. De Vaux has charge of the work at present. About the time Limestone township was organized, half an acre of land on the McKean farm was donated for a public cemetery, and has been generally used since that time. In 1886 an association known as the Limestone Ceme- tery Association was incorporated, and purchased the old cemetery and land adjoining, placed the same in good condition, and opened it for public use. There are six schools in operation in Limestone township, and have an enrollment altogether of about one hundred scholars. The population of the township at present is about four hundred. CHAPTER XLII. IIISTORV OF ELK TOWN.SHIP.' THIS township, the organization of which was effected on the 3d of May, 1830 (although formed as "Number Seven" and attached to Kinzua March 8, 1821), is situated in the northeastern part of Warren county, and is bounded north by Cattaraugus county, in the State of New York, east by Alle- gheny River, separating Elk from Corydon, south by Glade, and west by a part of Glade and Pine Grove. In extent it is one of the largest townships in the county, though for obvious reasons it is not so thickly inhabited as many of the more favorably situated and naturally wealthy towns. In general appearance it is rough, mountainous, and very rocky. Huge boulders scattered 'Suljstantially as prepared by Peter Holt, of Elk. Elk Township. 499 over the surface of the township present, superficially at least, the appear- ance of having been set in their beds by the convulsion of some prehistoric upheaval, earthquake, or " tempest, dropping fire." On the Warren and Olean road, about one and a half miles north of Peter Smith's residence, there are several rocks of such immense proportions as to be worthy of special mention. This road was changed by Mr. Cobham to conform to the demands of these silent but immovable sentinels. Two of the rocks are about 1 00 feet in length and rear their rough shoulders some fifteen or twenty feet above ground. The earth about them is of a beautiful white sand. The roadway here is always dry and smooth. Here are also two cavities shaped like wells, one of which is about five feet in diameter at the mouth, and sonje twelve feet in depth, after which it diminishes in diameter, though still extending into the bowels of the earth. A pole twenty-five feet in length cannot be made to reach the bottom of this aperture. Near this is another cavity so small as not to admit the body of a man, which is still unfathomable with any pole. A stone dropped in either of these holes may be heard tumbling along its dark descent for a number of seconds. The soil of Elk varies from a light sand to all kinds of clay and black loam, and is well adapted for the cultivation of nearly all the crops raised in the north — wheat, oats, potatoes, onions, grass, clover, fruit, and all the garden vegetables. It requires a good deal of manure, however. The writer has used plaster largely for this purpose, and finds it very effective, though he needs at least five bushels to the acre, rather than half a bushel, as a few the- orists are accustomed to recommend. The principal business of the town is agricultural. The inhabitants, a stranger would think from their polyglot speech, are contributions from many nations, English, Irish, Dutch, German, Swedish, Danish, and Yankee. The lumber trade, at one time thrifty, has now dwindled, and is really unprofitable. The fact is that the timber has all been cut away except small tracts of hemlock and oak, and indeed, the latter is nearly all gone now, owing to the heavy demand for it in the manufacture of railroad ties. There are now about four tie mills in town, which consume all the oak timber, and do not realize very heavy profits. The dairying interest here is in its infancy, the land not having yet been sufficiently cleared for graz- ing large numbers of cattle. The facilities will undoubtedly be good in a few years. No oil has been discovered within the present boundaries of Elk, though many profitable wells have been drilled in that part of the original township which now forms a part of Glade township. Coal Bed. — The Quaker Hill coal mine was discovered about 1834 by one Pond Curtis, who made the discovery while he was digging a well on the west side of the little ridge, about where the opening of Silas Dinsmoor's mine now is. I do not remember how long Curtis operated the mine, but I have been 500 History of Warren County. informed that the coal was used for fuel in the house into which my father moved about 1839 previous to the time of his removal. At the date of my earliest recollection of the mine it was worked by a Mr. Thomas. This was about 1843. William Jones operated the mine next after Thomas. My bro- ther, David Dinsmoor, moved to the mine in the fall of 1847, according to my best recollection. With the exception of about two years, 1854—55, he con- tinued to operate the mine until his death in 1881, when his son, the present owner, Silas Dinsmoor, succeeded to the ownership and operation of it. Township Officers. — There is no record of the first election held in the township, nor of the elections for several years. I cannot find that the first settlers voted at any place for many years. As Elk had been settled many years before the organization of either Kinzua or Elk, and as there were nine years between the organization of Kinzua and Elk, the citizens of Elk must have voted at Kinzua, if anywhere. The first account of any organization that I can find was a school meeting held on the i ith month, 26th day, 1835. Of course there must have been an election held in 1831, but no record was kept in the town ; neither does this adjourned meeting give a single name of the members of the board of directors. The writing is Daniel Pound's. The pres- ent officers in the township of Elk are: Justice of the peace, W. O. Martin ; Mrs. Mary Walling, postmistress; constable, E. A. Headly;*road commissioners, Jacob Shulers, A. A. Instone, Frank Nelson ; William O. Martin, secretary ; school directors, Andrew Clendening, president ; Charles Frostburgh, A. A. Instone, Stephen Lounsbury, August Fosburgh ; collector, August Fostburg; treasurer, Charles Fostburg ; mail carrier, John McStraw ; auditors, Jerome Knapp, Lyman Walling ; assessor, William McMahon ; board of election, judge, Peter Larson ; inspectors, George Holman, Daniel McMahon. Charles Fostburg keeps a store on the Warren road near the Roy farm. Mike Quinn also keeps a store of groceries. There are four nearly new church edifices in Elk, besides the holding of meetings in school-houses, and besides the Presbyterian (Indian) church. The Methodist Church stands idle. The Lutheran Church is most largely attended by Swedes. The I^vangelical and Catholic Churches have small congrega- tions. The United Brethren have meetings occasionally in school-houses. There were twelve school-houses in town in 1835. I built a school-house at my own expense in 1857 on Cornplanter Run. The present population of Elk may be very near 700. The First Roads. — The first road is called the Old State road, and leads from Erie county, and passes through Warren and McKean counties, I be- lieve, to Philadelphia. This road crosses the Allegheny River near William Marsh's, in Kinzua. The next road leads from the old house of Robert Miles, in Pine Grove, to the house of Benjamin Marsh, in Elk, at the Allegheny River. There was opened a road from Warren to the house of Benjamin Elk Township. 501 Marsh, in Elk, up the Allegheny River, and connecting with the above named road at Benjamin Marsh's. Another leads from Warren to the New York State line at the Allegheny River, near Calvin Webb's. Tlie First Settlers of Elk. — From the best information to be had at this late date, a George Schoonover made the first settlement on tract 5566, on the west bank of the Allegheny, on the farm which is now a part of James Roper's place, and lies opposite the lower Cornplanter Island. Mr. Schoon- over was moving down the Allegheny, either to Franklin or Cincinnati, late in the fall of 18 15 or 18 16, and having heard that the river at Big Bend was frozen over, he landed his boat, unloaded his goods and family, made himself at home, and commenced building a log house. It appears that Schoonover and his wife were both young. His wife was a very handsome woman, and gave birth to the first male child of the town. Walter Seaman and Schoon- over were related, and Seaman soon after appeared on the ground, and built another shanty near the first. It appears by recent developments, that Sea- man had three daughters born here, viz., Susanna, Polly, and one other. Susanna was born in 1 8 19. In the mean time, however, Benjamin Marsh arrived and built a hewn-log house, and, I believe, it is a part of the present dwelling house of Lewis Ladow. It seems that Marsh had a son born here, which died in infancy. It also appears that it became necessary to make some division of the property, whereupon Schoonover sold his interest to Seaman, who in turn disposed of his land to Marsh. Marsh soon after divided this property, giving to his second son, William S. Marsh, some 250 acres at the south end, and himself keeping about 170 or 180 acres — the same piece now occupied by James Roper. He next gave Ira F. Marsh, his eldest son, 100 acres next north. Meantime Enoch Oilman had married Marsh's eldest daughter, and bought of his new father-in-law 270 acres south of the Corn- planter reservation. Hiram Oilman, who married Marsh's youngest daughter (for these giants of other days looked upon the daughters of men that were very fair), received from his father-in-law the 170 acre piece upon which, as we have said, he lived. These transactions took place about 1829 or 1830. Hiram Oilman was the first postmaster in Elk, at that time Kinzua, and was also justice of the peace in the days when justices were appointed by the governor, upon the petition of their neighbors. Mr. Oilman held the two offices for several years, or until 1834 or 1835. Elk was organized as a sepa- rate township on the 3d of May, 1830, having previously been a part of Kin- zua. During the progress of a convivial spree, as it is called, but which our author forcibly and justly denominates a drunken row, Ouy C. Irvine stabbed William S. Marsh in the abdomen, a thrust which cost Mr. Irvine $500. So much for whisky, which was a staple article in early times. Benjamin Marsh was drowned in the Allegheny River while on his way to Warren on a float. His body was discovered by Indians, some three months after the fatality, under S02 History of Warren County. an oil boat at Sill's Landing, and was identified by Osmer Hook, John F. Davis, and Abijah Morrison, who sent word to the family. Mr. Marsh was interred in the cemetery at Warren. Enoch Oilman sold his land in Elk, before mentioned, to the writer of this chapter (Peter Holt), and he and his wife are long since deceased. They reared a large family of children, all girls but one, and all of whom have gone to other parts. Up the river, at the State line, Abel Morrison and Russell M. Freeman moved to the place afterward owned and occupied by Calvin Webb, and be- gan to build a saw-mill, but soon concluded that the site was hardly suitable, and therefore with their families crossed the river into Corydon, where they built and operated the mill. The ground they abandoned was next occupied by a John Morris and by Warren Reeves. Reeves kept tavern in the very house that his predecessors had built, and sold large quantities of whisky. Calvin Webb bought the property of Reeves, and also kept tavern and store in the building. It is related that a wayfaring man, who stayed with Webb a few hours, warned him that his house was going to be destroyed by fire, and it is further said that another man, named Levi Leonard, who took supper at Webb's, taking notice of the old-fashioned and broken stove, set up in a box of sand, also informed Webb of the danger to which he was in this careless man- ner exposing the building. Mr. Leonard and the wayfaring man went on to Dalrymple's for the night. About midnight of that same day the house was irretrievably in flames. Some years afterward, when a new house had been placed on the same site, Mrs. Webb took an axe and knocked in the head of a barrel of whisky, with the expressed determination that that should be the last whisky in that house. Mr. Webb kept a store there for many years, and gave the property and good will to his son, James K. Webb, who also engaged in the mercantile business for a long time, though whisky was forever a pro- scribed article in that household. The property has remained in the Webb family ever since, though Mr. James K. Webb has resided in Frewsburg, N. Y. We now come to the Dalrymple place opposite Corydon. Here, in 1832, David Dalrymple built a house, in which for a long time he kept tavern. He also built the saw-mill now owned by his son James. Next below Dalrymple was S. Fisher, who was the father of quite a family, and filled a number of important offices, such as that of school director, justice of the peace, road commissioner, etc. Mr. Fisher came from the vicinity of the Genesee River, in the State of New York. He was killed by the overturning of his buggy in the Narrows. One daughter now lives in town — Mrs. E. Harrington, about half a mile below the old homestead. Dr. Peter Hollister, with his son, now occupies the F"isher farm. He has doctored in the writer's family to the fourth generation. In this neighborhood, and on the Dalrymple farm, a store was kept at a later day by Amos Peterson, who, after a brief experience here, re- Elk Township. 503 moved to Corydon. Jacob McCall also kept store in this town for a time, and went to Corydon, where he was the quondam proprietor of the Corydon House. The Messrs. Morrison, mentioned above, came from the East in 1817. Going down the river, we next come to the old Elk mill, built very early by one of the Halls, from Jamestown, N. Y. It has been quiet for many years, and the very place can hardly be discovered. Next is the old Merritt or Flagg mill near the Big Bend. At this place was kept the first school under the school law of the State, in 1834. The old tavern house, torn down a few years ago because it was in the way of the railroad near Big Bend, was built by William Culbertson, one of the first settlers, who came to this town at the be- ginning of this century. Another early settler in this vicinity was Devorck Hodges, especially noted in his day for his extreme fondness for liquor. He moved away from this part of the country many years ago. The first settler on Quaker Hill, in this township, was Daniel Pound, who came as early as 1823 or 1824. Upon his arrival, and until he was able to build a rude shanty for shelter, his only house was his wagon. He is remem- bered principally from the fact that he was perhaps the most indefatigable friend of the schools in the township. He and his brothers, Elijah, Asa, and Thomas, with the assistance of their cousin, Jonathan Asher, built a log house on the corners, near the site of the present Evangelical Church, which was used for both church and school purposes. Daniel Pound here taught a night- school for the benefit of the young people of this town, and he also frequently organized and conducted spelling schools. He also erected a building on his farm in which he kept a select school. He and his brothers bought a number of thousand-acre tracts of land from the county commissioners of Warren county. The names of the Pound brothers were Daniel, Thomas, Jonathan, Elijah, jr., and Asa, sons of Elijah, sr. As has been stated, Asher Pound was a cousin of these brothers. Daniel Pound settled on the farm now owned and occupied by William Holman, where he lived until 1844. He was a surveyor, and subdivided the greater part of the township of Elk. Most of the mem- bers of this remarkable family were determined Abolitionists, both in practice and principle. For example, Daniel would use neither clothing nor food that was the product of slave labor. Jonathan Pound lived next north of the resi- dence of Daniel, and cleared the larger part of the farm now owned by Jacob Mack. He afterward exchanged farms with his' brother Thomas, who had set- tled the place now owned and occupied by Andrew Clendenning. Jonathan left this part of the country a few years later. Thomas continued to reside on the land which he had obtained by the trade with his brother. He built a saw-mill on a branch of Jackson Run, above Russellburg, and in 1834 sold it to the writer of this chapter. He owned several large tracts of land in Elk township, but he sold them all and removed to the East, and later still to the West. 504 History of Warren County. Elijah Pound, jr., was the youngest son of EHjah, sr., and settled and con- siderably improved the farm that Joseph Clendenning had first cleared in part. Elijah afterward moved to the farm now occupied by William McMahon. In 1838 he and his wife Judith, with their family, removed to Monroe county, N. Y., whence they removed to Rock county. Wis., in 1847. On this farm last mentioned, on the 6th of December, 1832, a son was born to these good peo- ple, who was destined to bear an important and conspicuous part in the legis- lation of the nation at a later day. His name is Thaddeus C. Pound, for he is still living. He is now a resident of Chippewa Falls, Wis. He commenced teaching when he was fifteen years of age, attended an academy several terms, afterward taught the union school at Caledonia, Livingston county, X. Y., at- tended the Rushford Academy in Allegany county, N. Y., and went to Chip- pewa Falls, Wis., in the spring of 1856. There he began as a book-keeper, early engaged in the lumber and mercantile business, and continued to ad- vance until he became one of the foremost leaders in public enterprises. He was a member of the Assembly of Wisconsin in 1864, 1866, 1867 and 1869, and in the latter year was elected lieutenant-governor. Since 1876 he has represented, without interruption, his district in the National Congress — the Eighth. Elijah Pound, sr., lived with his son and namesake until his death, at a very advanced age. He had 1,000 acres of land, which he subdivided and sold. Asa Pound, the next brother, lived on land since occupied at dif- ferent intervals by Asa A. Bennett, Joseph Bennett, and where A. H. and D. H. Lounsbury and John McStraw now live. He sold out or exchanged for lands in Ohio with a Mr. Reeves. Asher Pound, a cousin of those whom we have been describing, settled upon the farm now occupied by Mrs. Walling, and which had been first settled by William Shattuck, though he had never lived on it. After a brief residence in Elk, Asher Pound removed eastward. William Shattuck settled on what is now the James Roy farm, and there made extensive improvements. Mr. Roy married one of his daughters. Mr. Shattuck came from the State of New York about 1833, though he had been preceded as early as 1826 by men who were active in his interests. He was a Quaker in religion, an unwavering Abolitionist in politics, with the fiery zeal in that cause that stirred Garrison, and with an ability that might have made him as prominent as Garrison, had he possessed the latter's means and audiences. He was eccentric in his ways, but his eccentricity was ever on the side of the right. He had a large family, most of whom were daughters. He had two sons, the elder of whom was drowned while in bathing at Stump Creek Eddy, and the younger, William, jr., now lives at Salamanca, N. Y. William Shattuck, sr., was called upon at various times to fill nearly all the oflfices within the gift of the town, such as that of school director, supervisor of highways, etc. He finally removed to a farm near Randolph, N. Y., where he lived to an advanced age. His widow ^^^2^ Elk Township. 505 is still living, and at this writing is on a visit to one of her daughters beyond Chicago. John B. Hodges lived in what is now Glade township, and had a large, well-conducted farm there. He was a man of large stature, and took a prom- inent part in town affairs. He held many town offices. He finally moved away a few years ago. He had two sons, who lived in Russellburg. William Snyder, another early settler, lived on the farm afterward occupied by Daniel Lounsbury. He removed into what has since become Glade town- ship, and there died. John Snyder also lived in that portion of the original township of Elk, which has become Glade, and thence went west many years ago. Asa Plumb settled early near Cobham Park, where he reached a good old age and died. (For a sketch of George A. Cobham, see the history of Glade.) A. W. S. Bidwell was a brother-in-law of Daniel Pound, and settled at an early day on the MacMahon farm, south of the residence of William MacMahon. He lived many years on this farm, started a good orchard and raised a great deal of excellent fruit. He held several important township offices. He be- longed to the Hicksite Quakers. After many years of residence in this town he removed to the East. John Fitzwater settled on the hill above Cornplanter Run, and east of Bidwell's Settlement, where he cleared some sixty acres of land and built the first saw- mill on the site now covered by the steam mill of Lewis Ladow. Daniel Pound owned a half-interest in this mill, and each part-owner furnished his own stock of timber. Fitzwater was a very thorough man, and performed all his duties with energy and promptness. The writer of this chapter helped in the building of this mill, and operated it half the time for Daniel Pound. It was during the construction of this mill, in 1833, that occurred the memor- able natural phenomenon, the shower of stars. Fitzwater reared a large family of sons and daughters, and finally sold out his mill interests and removed to Ohio, none of his family remaining here. Thomas Fitzwater lived a little way west of his brother, on a small piece of land, but did not stay long. James Headley settled first on fifty acres west of Benjamin Marsh's, and after making improvements traded with Peter Jackson and removed to Quaker Hill, where he died at an advanced age. Elwood Headley now owns the place left by his father. Peter Jackson did not remain in town very long — yet long enough to become distinguished locally for the fact that his two little boys treed an old bear and captured two or three of her cubs, which they took to Warren and sold. This was considered quite a feat for so small boys. Isaac Bidwell came from the East and settled on one of the branches of Ackley Run, where the family of the late Edward Reynolds now live. Here Mr. Bidwell built a small saw-mill and an equally small but serviceable grist- mill. He had not made very extensive improvements before leaving for parts 5o6 History of Warren County. unknown to the writer. His was the only grist-mill ever in town. Edward Reynolds got the property and made many improvements, besides rebuilding and enlarging the saw-mill, and putting in machinery for manufacturing fan- ning-mills, wash-boards, etc. He died there a few years ago. Edson Hall bought a tract of land just west of the last above named, and erected a very respectable saw-mill, which property afterward came into the hands of his brother, Chapin Hall, of Warren. Both are long since deceased. A Mr. Davis built a saw-mill on the south branch of the run, above the Hall mill, which did a good business for those days. Both these mills are within the present limits of Pine Grove township, though at the time they were built they were in Elk. In this same tract, that was set off to Pine Grove, dwelt Joseph and Reuben Jones, brothers, who are now in Pine Grove. Eli Northrop cleared a farm on the road leading from the old " Pound Meeting-House" to Pine Grove, by the Edson Hall saw-mill, where he died many years ago, though I believe his widow is still living. James Headley came from New Jersey and settled on a piece of land about one and one-half miles west of Benjamin Marsh's, on the Pine Grove road. After making some- thing of an improvement he traded farms with Peter Jackson, taking in ex- change a piece of land on Cornplanter Run. Many years afterward he made a visit to New Jersey on foot, and before starting applied to the writer for a supply of codfish, which, upon obtaining, he pronounced good, saying that he could save money by eating nothing but codfish and drinking nothing but water. During his later years he removed to Qaaker Hill, where he died at an advanced age, and was followed some time later by his widow, who had also reached years beyond the allotted number. Daniel Lounsbury was an early settler from Wayne county, N. Y., and bought out William Snyder, on the corner of the road leading from Warren to the Allegheny River. He had a family of four sons and three daughters, and divided his large farm among the former. He was one of the first road com- missioners under the new road law of 1845. He lived to fullness of years and was survived several years by his widow. Daniel H. Lounsbury now lives on the west end of the old homestead, and is himself getting advanced in years. He has been honored with several township offices. He has one son and one daughter. A. H. Lounsbury lives on the south side of the corner above men- tioned, and is a highly respected citizen. Hiram A. Lounsbury occupies the old homestead proper, and sustains well the family reputation for integrity and industry. He has several children. Harlow A. Lounsbury has been dead several years. His widow occupies a part of the old homestead. Asaph A. Bennett came from Plymouth, Mass., in the thirties, and settled on a part of the Asa Pound farm, and south of Lounsbury Corners on the Warren and Olean road. He was a carpenter by trade. He and his wife have been dead for a number of years. Joseph Bennett now lives on his fath- Elk Township. 507 er's farm and that of William Reeves. The old house burned some years ago. John McStraw, who satisfies the legal needs of the people hereabouts, and is a justice of the peace, lives north of Joseph Bennett. Frederick Kilburn settled near and adjoining the place of Mr. Webb. He was from Wayne county, N. Y. He and his wife have been dead many years. His one son, Allen R., now lives on the old homestead, and has recently put in a saw-mill. A. C. Marsh, who has been in town some thirty-three years, came from New York State, and settled on the Warren and Olean road on the farm originally settled by Samuel Kilburn. Albert Cargill, a peaceable and law abiding citizen, married a daughter of Calvin Webb, and settled on a part of his land. William Roper was a native of Norfolk, England. He came to Elk in Au- gust, 1833, from Canandaigua, N. Y., and cleared a piece of land about two miles east of the Warren and Olean road. He afterward traded this tract for land where George Nobbs now lives, on the Warren and Olean road. He had two sons, James and George, the latter of whom went west, and from all ac- counts was killed. William Roper died in 1878 at the age of eighty-three years. His surviving son, James, married the eldest daughter of William S. Marsh, and now lives on the Hiram Oilman farm. John Nobbs came from the Isle of Wight to Ontario county, N. Y., and thence to Elk in 1835. He and his wife have been dead many years. They had two sons and one daughter. George, one of the sons, still owns the old home, but lives on the old Roper place. Martin Frazer came from England and settled next east of the Nobbs farm, on the Pine Grove and Allegheny road, about four miles west of the Allegheny River. He was an eccentric and humorous man, who would have his joke on all occasions. He was very apt in his expressions. He went west a number of years ago and there died. Owen Feany came originally from County Sligo, Ireland, to the State of New York, and, in 1854, thence to this town. He is now some ninety-one years of age, and lives near Joseph Clendenning. Joseph Clendenning came from Managhan county, Ireland, about 1852 or 1853, and owns the farm first settled by Elijah Pound, jr. Andrew Clen- denning came from Canada and settled on the old Thomas Pound place. Na- thaniel Enos formerly lived in Niagara county, N. Y., and settled on the Shu- ler place in this township about 1830 or 1831. He built a log house and found it convenient to occupy it before he had finished his fire-place. One winter's night a panther leaped on to the roof and peered through the hole left for the chimney. The tracks were examined by the neighbors next morning. After a few years Mr. Enos removed to the place near Clendenning's; of his large family only one son, Abraham, who lives on the old place, is now in town, the others being scattered or deceased. Mr. Enos was a man of decided individ- uality. John I. Striker came from New Jersey and settled near the place after- ward occupied by Nathaniel Enos. At a later day he bought lands and a 5o8 History of Warren County. saw- mill in Cattaraugus county, N. Y. Levi Learn came from New York State about 1833 or 1834, and settled west of the Striker place, where he cleared a large farm. He reared quite a family of sons and daughters, three of the former of whom are now living, viz., Lewis, Jacob, and Adam, while one daughter is the wife of Andrew Clendenning. Mr. Learn lived to be more than eighty years of age. His wife died some years previous to his demise. Lewis Learn, by purchase and operation of law, has become the owner of his father's farm and the interests of his brothers and sisters, besides the farm for- merly owned by John Striker. Jacob Learn lives near the State line, and Adam lives southeast of Clendenning's Corners. Lewis Mintouge came to Elk from the State of New York and settled near the State line, and near the junction of Chautauqua and Cattaraugus counties. He held several town offices in Elk, such as school director, auditor, town clerk, justice of the peace, etc. He removed to Jamestown and did not remain there long. He had one daughter, who married Edward Reynolds, and is still living. Zenos Rice came from New York State also, and settled about one mile northeast from the saw-mill of Thomas Pound. He cleared quite a farm there and then removed to the West. Daniel Gould came from Old Galen, N. Y., in 1833, and settled near the northwest corner of Elk township. He was the father of several sons and two daughters. His youngest daughter became the wife of David Holt, brother of the writer, and is still living. Mr. Gould and his wife have been dead for a number of years. John Brokaw came from New Jersey about 1 83 1 and built a saw-mill on the State Line Run. He did not reside within the limits of the township, though his saw-mill was within the town. Freeman Fenton owned a saw-mill on the State Line Run, below the Brokaw mill. James K. Webb also built a saw- mill on the west branch of State Line Run, though it is not very active now. Henry Brown, of Warren, built an- other saw-mill on the west branch of State Line Run and west of the Webb mill. Orren Hook built a double saw-mill a mile below Corydon on the river, which was in charge of Benjamin Marsh for a number of years, and was finally washed away by the flood of 1865. John Holman came from Kent, England, to Rochester, N. Y., and thence to Elk township, where he bought the Daniel Pound homestead. Being of a roaming disposition, he did not stay long, but went west in quest of a fortune, and finally drifted to Oregon, where after a number of years he died. He had a large family of sons and daughters, the eldest of the latter being now Mrs. Walling. Mrs. Holman attained an age something beyond eighty years, and died. William Holman now lives on the old farm. Mrs. Walling lives on the place next south, and has been the postmistress for Germany for many years. Jacob Lash came to Elk about 1834 or 1835, and lived in different parts of the township. He finally settled permanently on the place adjoining the James Roy farm. Mr. Lash reared a large family. He was, in his younger days. Elk Township. 509 one of the merriest of jolly men, but years have somewhat sobered him ; he is now about seventy-seven years of age. Jason Andrus was a very prominent man. He came from the State of New York about 1833, and settled about one mile south from John I. Striker's, on a thousand-acre tract. He made extensive improvements, and subsequently added another thousand acres to his possessions. He was a surveyor, and speculated in land to a considerable degree. He was a successful man. He took an active and a prominent part in town affairs, was at different times school director, supervisor, justice of the peace, etc. His family consisted of two sons and three daughters, only one of whom, Mrs. Owen Ladow, is now Hving. Mrs. Andrus died many years ago, and her husband married again. His second wife attained an advanced age, and died something more than a year ago. George F. Dinsmoor, from the State of New York, came to Elk about 1835^ and soon after purchased the place now owned and occupied by Jacob Mack. Mr. Dinsmoor reared a large family, and died full of years. He was frequently called upon to fill town offices, and was capable of holding any office which, lay within the gift of the town. ' Lewis Ladow, from the State of New York also, married the eldest daugh- ter of Joseph Clendenning, 1st, and with his brother purchased the old Fitz- water place, and the W. S. Marsh farm. He has held several township offices, and has built a large steam saw-mill. At the mouth of Hodge Run is the most extensive saw and planing-mill in town, owned by Imel, Powers & Shank. The mill does a large business, and is connected with an extensive store. Charles Rollins came to Elk a number of years ago, and built and now operates a saw-mill on Hodge Run. R. E. Green formerly owned the Enoch Gilman farm, and now lives at Big Bend in Glade. Peter Holt was born in the township of Billings, twelve miles from Liver- pool, Lancashire, England, on the 2d day of April, 181 1. On the day of the opening of the Liverpool & Manchester Railroad (which he witnessed), Sep- tember 16, 1829, he, with others, took ship at Liverpool, though they did not sail for a number of days. After sailing for nearly a week their ship was dis- masted, and they were obliged to return and put in at the Cove of Cork, Ire- land, where they remasted their ship and fitted her out in new rigging. Their next attempt was beautifully successful, and they arrived at New York on the 20th of November. Thence they took a steamboat to Albany, and journeyed on to Buftalo, arriving at John McKinney's a few days previous to Christmas. Peter Holt came to Elk in 1833, and helped to put the running gear into the Fitzwater & Pound saw-mill. His first vote in this country was cast for Jack- son in 1832. He has resided in Elk ever since his arrival here, fifty-three years ago. On the 3d of September, 1834, he married Susan B. Howard. In April, 1834, he bought the Thomas Pound saw-mill. In 1850 he built a saw-mill on 510 History of Warren County. Cornplanter Run, which was burned about six years ago. His wife was a sister of the late Edward Howard, of Fredonia, N. Y., and came to Ell< in 1831. They have had seven sons and four daughters, five sons and two daughters of whom are now Uving. Mrs. Holt was born in Herkimer county, N. Y., on the 19th of September, 18 14. She witnessed the last leap of Sam Patch over the Genesee Falls, at Rochester, N. Y. A Partial History of the Indians of Elk Townsliip. — The Indian reserva- tion is about three miles south of the New York State line, on the west side of the Allegheny River, and contains nearly 1,000 acres, including two islands, called Cornplanter Islands. This reservation was a gift by the State of Penn- sylvania to John Obeal, alias Cornplanter, for meritorious services during a part of the Revolutionary War with Great Britain. Cornplanter was held in great esteem by General Washington, from which the writer has read letters highly commending the invaluable services of Cornplanter. All this property is exempt from taxation of any kind. The county commissioners did at one time assess this property, but Cornplanter rebelled and resisted its collection. He appealed to the governor of the State, who sustained his position. Cornplanter was much opposed to the education of his tribe, regarding the indoor book-training of the white people as effeminate and enervating.' Nev- ertheless, he did give his eldest son, Henry, something of an education, which that enterprising and modern-like young man improved by forging his father's name to a check. This act so enraged Cornplanter that he drove his son into Canada, and forever after disowned him. The Legislature of the State made an appropriation of $1,000 to be used among these Indians for school purposes, not more than a hundred dollars of which was to be expended in a year. Sub- sequent appropriations have increased this annuity to something like $300 a year. The Indians do not take kindly to school. They are very fond of music, and at one time had a very respectable band, besides having among them a number of good singers. They have a good church, built by the Presbyterians in and about Warren. It adds much to the appearance of their town. Some years ago the Legislature made an appropriation of several hundred dollars to be expended in the erection of a monument to the memory of Cornplanter, and Judge S. P. Johnson was placed in the supervision and management of it. Judge Johnson has done much for the good of the Indians. They are of a peaceable disposition when not in liquor, and have made considerable advance- ment in the arts of civilization. It will be better for them, however, when they relinquish their unhappy jealousy of each other, which now disturbs all their mutual relations in religious and public affairs. Cornplanter died in F"ebruary, 1836, at the great age of a hundred years or more ; at the time it was alleged and believed that his age was one hundred and fourteen years. He had three sons and three daughters, viz., Ilcnr_\-, Charles, and William, Polly, Esther, and Mrs. Silverheels. Sheffield Township. 511 CHAPTER XLIII. HISTORY OF SHEFFIELD TOWNSHIP. THIS township was formed from Kinzua, on the 7th of June, 1833. Its territory occupies the entire southeastern corner of Warren county, and is bounded north by Kinzua and Mead townships, east by_McKean county, south by Forest county, and west by the township of Cherry Grove. It is very regular in outline, the northern boundary being the only one that devi- ates from a straight unbroken line. The land is drained by Tionesta Creek and its tributaries, and other small streams. This township, with Mead and Cherry Grove, was originally included in the limits of Kinzua township. The first town meeting after the town was set off from Kinzua was of a most primi- tive description. There were but seven men present at the meeting, which was held on the old farm of Timothy Barnes. Their bench consisted of a bob-sled turned upside down. There were not men enough present to fill all the offices, and those who were there merely agreed upon the persons who should perform certain duties, and thus sent in their report. According to the accurate mem- ory of Erastus Barnes, the names of these seven were as follows : Timothy Barnes, and Erastus Barnes, Samuel Williamson, Stephen Taylor, John Will- iamson, John Brown, John Gilson. The only families in town at that time were those of Timothy Barnes and John Gilson. Early Settlers. — The first tax list for Sheffield, completed in 1834, reveals the names of thirty-three property owners in the township, not more than twenty of whom were permanent residents. Several of them were mere squat- ters, who " folded their tents " and departed upon the slightest occasion, while others were men of prominence elsewhere, who in their speculative reach had taken hold of land or other property in this vicinity. The list is as follows : James Arnett, 225 acres ; Richard Dunham, 225 acres and a saw-mill ; Timothy Barnes, 225 acres and a saw-mill ; Asahel Kidder, 225 acres; Henry Snapp, 225 ; Melchi Snapp, 225 ; George Jones, 165 ; David Mead, 445 acres and two saw-mills; Thaddeus Mead, C. Mastin, 850 acres and a saw-mill; John Ingoldsby (Inglesby), John Williamson, 1 12 acres ; Samuel Williams, on 220 acres ; Silas Lacy, 450 acres ; Nathan Lacy, 650 acres and a saw-mill ; Patterson Lacy, Jeremiah Lane, 50 acres ; Stephen Taylor, John Brown, Or- rin Stanton, 225 acres; Joseph Carver, Stephen Carver, John Gilson, 225 acres ; William Barton, Cabot Barlow, James Stedman, Christopher Stranger, Daniel Stranger, Lorenzo Mason, James Scott, James Gaty, Henry Snapp, jr., Archibald Tanner. The last named — whom everybody knows to have been a prominent resident of Warren — was ta.xed for 450 acres of land. In the above list we have not mentioned the personal property for which these persons were 512 History of Warren County. assessed, deeming it sufficient to state the amount of their real possessions. Below are given a few facts concerning the more prominent of these early- settlers. James Arnett lived in the northern part of the township, as it was then constituted, a little above the present Stoneham. Arnett's Run derived its name from him. He was one of the earliest of the settlers in that part of the town. He remained there but a few years, however, before removing to the West. Richard Dunham was one of the most prominent men ever in Sheffield township. He died on the 30th of January, 1870, aged sixty-seven years six months and twenty-two days. More particular mention is made of him in the sketch of M. B. Dunham, appearing in later pages. In May, 1832, he with his wife and infant child, in company with the now venerable Adam L. Pratt, crossed the Allegheny River at Shipman's Edd)-, assisted by Mathew Morrison. The crossing was made with two large canoes lashed together, on which was a platform of boards. On this were transported the goods, while Dunham's cow and oxen swam the river behind the catamaran. The river being high, involved the party in considerable danger. On the south side of the river they met with John Inglesby, who had previously settled in the dense forests of what is now Cherry Grove township, but had become disheartened and moved out again. Dunham employed him as a guide in this wilderness. Their road lay over the top of the mountain northwest of the site of the Stoneham tannery, near which was a small log house occupied by a Mr. Brown, who had about an acre of land partly cleared. Here the party took dinner. The road has been described by Mr. Pratt as being little more than a trail, the under- brush cut off, and the logs turned to one side far enough to let a sled pass. In many places they were compelled to widen the road in order that their wagon, the first one that had been over the ground, could pass. Night over- took them at what was called the " Blacksley Chopping," about three miles southwest of the present site of the Clarendon tannery, where there was a chopping of two or three acres, without a clearing or a house. A shelter was improvised of hemlock boughs, in which the party passed a comfortable night. The next day they came to the house of Inglesby, about half a mile from the present residence of Montgomery Farnsworth, in the township of Cherry Grove. They remained there several weeks, meantime repairing an old cabin on Dunham's land, about a mile north of the Inglesby tract. In June they removed to this cabin, chopped and cleared ten acres, sowed it in wheat and had an excellent crop in the ensuing season. In 1833 Richard Dunham left his place in Cherry Grove and engaged in lumbering a short distance north of the present village of Sheffield. He was an energetic and public spirited citi- zen, through whose influence it was chiefly that the township was organized and schools started. In his later days he removed to Warren, where his wife still resides with their son, M. B. Dunham. » 0'^J^^OL.-^r'^>r^^M^ Sheffield Township. 513 Timothy Barnes has been justly styled the pioneer of Sheffield township. He was born on the 4th of October, 1786, and died on the loth of October, 1878. As early as 1828 he emigrated from Italy Hill, Yates county, N. Y., and built the first saw-mill on the south branch of the Tionesta Creek. His house was about half a mile south of where E. Barnes now lives. This mill he operated about two years, and then sold to Nathan E. Lacy. On the 4th of July, 1832, he raised another saw-mill on the site of the one now owned and operated by his son, Erastus Barnes, at Lower Sheffield. It was then closely surrounded by a forest of lofty pines, which stood like serried ranks of grim and silent sentinels, frowning upon the intrusion of civilization. One of these trees, to drop the simile, at the height of eight feet from the ground, measured twenty-three feet in circumference ; another made seventeen saw-logs sixteen feet in length. When he first came to his wilderness home, he came from Warren, and was obliged to cut his own roads. The journey of fourteen miles was accomplished in four days. About thirty-five years ago Erastus Barnes built the grist-mill near the old saw-mill, which was the first and only grist- mill in town. Timothy Barnes was characterized by his charity and benevo- lence — a twofold quality which seems to have been inherited by his son, Erastus Barnes. " In the early settlements," Mr. Pratt has written, "food and provisions were often scarce, but Barnes permitted no one to want for either food or work — he was the ' mainstay ' of the whole country. He spent the evening of his days with his son Erastus at the old homestead, surrounded by his children and in the enjoyment of all the comforts merited by a well-spent hfe." It is related that the next winter after Timothy Barnes built his mill he went back for his family in the State of New York, while Erastus hired out to work in a mill at Warren. During the winter Erastus came back to see how the men who worked in his father's mill were improving their time, and how they prospered. He made his way through the woods on foot and alone, and was followed the entire distance by wolves. The men he found had gone hunting and left nothing to eat in the shanty but a few spoonfuls of buckwheat and a small piece of venison. Of this young Barnes made a partial meal and passed the night alone in this rude hut, with the hungry wolves howling about his ears in an ominous manner. On his return to Warren the next day, he found the wolves had returned before him. Asahel Kidder cleared a farm two miles west of Sheffield Station. After a residence there of eight or ten years' duration he removed to Jackson Run, two miles north of Warren. His old farm is now used in the production of oil. He left no descendants in this town, though he has one son, Nathan, in North Warren. Henry Snapp was a farmer who lived about half a mile north of Sheffield Station, where he remained until his death. He has several descendants in 514 History of Warren County. town now. His son Melchi (who died October I2, 1882, aged about seventy- nine years) had charge of the farm in later years. They settled there in 1832. William and John Snapp, now respected residents of this township, are sons of Melchi. George Jones, an eccentric character, who was accustomed to calling on his neighbors for " victuals," of which he devoured inordinate quan- tities, and who was known as " Brother Jones," because he styled all his woman friends as " Sisters," lived about two miles west of Sheffield Station for a few years, and then left for parts unknown. David Mead, a shrewd seeker after wealth, lived on the southern line of the township, his house standing partly in one town and partly in another. It is related as a fact that when a sheriff from Warren county came for his ar- rest, he would invariably be found on the Forest county side, and vice versa. He had a saw-mill at this place. Some thirty years ago he removed to War- renton, O., where he was soon after drowned while attempting to cross the Ohio River in a skiff. Thaddeus Mead was a brother of David, who never had a fixed residence in town. C. C. Mastin was a wealthy man, who came to Warren from Yates county, N. Y., but who never lived in Sheffield. He built a large mill three miles be- low the forks in the south part of the town, now owned by Frank Henry, and which, it is said, has manufactured more lumber than any other mill in Shef- field. We have already learned something concerning John Inglesby. He oper- ated the Mastin mill for a number of years and then moved away. None of his descendants now live in town. John Williamson, a bachelor, operated the David Mead mill for a time. He was here but si.x or eight years. A singular circumstance was that there were five brothers of them — Samuel, John, Nathan, and two others whose names are not remembered — who all lived bachelor lives and kept bachelor's hall. Silas Lacy was born at Bound Brook, N. J., on the 30th day of March, 1789, and died at Warren on the 27th of December, 1870. Few men of any country have lived a more virtuous, consistent, and faultless life than he. At the early age of twenty years he became a member of the Presbyterian Church 6f his native place, and was soon after elevated, by virtue of his pious zeal, to the position of ruling elder. In 18 16 he removed to Yates county, N. Y., where he was again promoted to the position of elder. He came to Warren county in 1828, and became one of the pioneers in the roadless and unbroken forest of Shef- field township. After enduring privations of cabin life and aiding his brother, Nathan E., in the operation of his mill in Sheffield for seven years, he went to Warren to pass the remainder of his life. There he resumed and for years en- gaged in the business to which he had been trained — that of a hatter. Previous to his coming to Warren it had been his custom to take part in religious services in Sheffield, and often also walked to Warren to church on the Sabbath. Three Sheffield Township. 515 years before leaving Sheffield he was elected an elder in the Presbyterian Church of Warren. This office he held by successive re-elections until his death. In February, 1809, he married Nancy Parker, of New Jersey, who survived him two years. They had eleven children, only one of whom is de- ceased. One of the daughters is now the wife of Peter McKinney, of Pitts- field township. Jeremiah Lane settled on the farm next south of the present residence of Erastus Barnes, and built the house which stands there to this day. He mar- ried a daughter of Deacon Silas Lacy, and now lives in Jamestown, N. Y., a very old man. He went there at least thirty-five years ago. Not far from the year 1840 he built a saw-mill on the east branch of the Tionesta, which has long since disappeared, and the site of which is now a part of an oil field. Stephen Taylor was born December 4, 1796, and at the time of his resi- dence in Sheffield, a single man, worked out for Timothy Barnes, and after- ward for Erastus Barnes. He it was who came first with Timothy Barnes and helped to cut the roads through the forest. He also built the mill. At a later day he was the mail carrier for this part of the country. He finally married, and on the 13th of August, 1878, died at the home of his son, Neri, in Forest county. He was a soldier of the War of 1812. John Brown, the father of the famous ornamental penman, Delavan Brown, who was born in Sheffield, came to the town to reside on the west bank of the Tionesta in 1832, the year in which the tide of immigration in early days had reached the flood. He afterward moved to Chautauqua county, N. Y., where he died. Orrin L. Stanton settled about the same time about on the present site of Barnes Station, in Lower Sheffield, where he kept the first store and the first post-office in town. The Warren and Ridgeway turnpike was built by the State, and commenced in the summer 1832. Orrin Stanton built the first section of it, from the summit north of Stoneham to the river, and it was probably this business which brought to his notice the desirability of living in this fertile region. It is said that for a time he kept the little hotel in Warren which stood on the site of the present Carver House. He afterward removed to Smethport and thence to Kinzua, where he now has relatives and descendants. While he was postmaster the mail was carried once a week between Warren and Ridgeway, and his brother, Daniel Stanton, was the carrier. Joseph Carver operated the mill of Timothy Barnes, and rented it a year or two. Stephen Carver was his brother and partner in the mill. After a residence here of two or three years they removed to Warren. Stephen Car- ver built and named the Carver House in that place. John Gilson was one of the most prominent men that have figured in the history of Sheffield. He was born on the 20th of May, 1797, and died June 17, 1884. During his residence in this township he lived on the site of Gilson 5i6 History of Warren County. Station, which derived its name from his descendants. His widow still resides in town. Four sons also live here, Rufus, Curtis, James, and John. Carver Gilson, another son, named after the Carver family, now lives near Fredonia, N. Y. One who is in every way competent to state the facts, writes thus con- cerning the life in this county of the subject of this notice : " John Gilson, sr., brought his family on a raft from Olean to Warren the day John, jr., was six years old. (This must have been on May 20, 1803.) They lived in an old storehouse that stood where the Carver House now stands, until they put up a log house — one of the first families to settle in Warren. John was about fourteen years old when his father died, leaving him and his sisters to support their mother, who died four or five years later, and was the first person buried in Warren. The father was buried about three miles up the Conewango Creek. John, jr., was the youngest of a family of ten children. While he was supporting his mother he worked for a man by the name of Reese (who lived three miles below Warren) twenty- one days for a barrel of flour, cutting cord wood at the rate of four cords a day. The place now called Sheffield was then called ' Forks of Tionesta,' and he helped to run the lands through the region for miles around. He was then about six- teen years old. He was with Colonel Dale, surveying, who advised and helped him to buy the lot 358, which was covered with fine pine timber. He made his home in Warren most of the time. He followed the river, rafting, canoe- ing, and boating, until he was thirty years old. There is not a mile of the river bank between Warren and Pittsburgh that he has not slept on in his trips. He began work at the ' Forks' in January, 1820. He chopped about an acre, and put up a plank house twelve feet by sixteen in dimensions. On the lOth of February he married and came to live in this house the same week, making the journey with horses and sleighs on the ice, there being no roads. In April he went to Franklin to buy a yoke of oxen, and brought back seed potatoes and oats on a sled. From lack of roads his progress was slow, and he was overtaken by night in the forest. Wolves and owls were his company. He was gone just a week, while his young wife was left alone all that time. The only family living within ten miles of his home was that of Mr. Barnes, who had moved here just a week before. Asa Barnes, aged about sixteen years, stayed in the house with her nights, while she passed much of her time during the long days listening to the twittering of winter birds, and fishing. She caught many a trout weighing a pound and a pound and a half. The wolves kept up their howling about every night. When Mr. Gilson reached home he set about clearing his land, after doing which he was at a loss for a drag. He finally succeeded in constructing one, teeth and all of wood. When the oxen first began to draw the drag, it caught for a second on some roots, and then bounded against the oxen's heels, which ran as if for life. John came in the house laughing, and said he thought his oxen were pos- Sheffield Township. 517 sessed of the evil spirit. The first year he raised turnips, potatoes, and oats enough to keep a yoke of cattle and a cow. Winters he passed in cutting square timber and running it down the Tionesta, while he passed his summers in clearing and cultivating land. There was about here a great amount of land sold for taxes, several lots of which he bid off for the sake of the timber. In 1844 he built a saw-mill and ran his lumber to Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, and Louisville, supporting his family in this manner until 1865, when he sold out all but the improved lands. These he divided between three sons who were married, and took the rest of the family to Fredonia, Chautauqua county, N. Y., where he bought a farm. He stayed there fourteen years, and was then compelled, on account of poor health, to return to his old home in Sheffield, where he bought half an acre of land and built Jiimself a house. He buried five children in the Sheffield cemetery. Electa died at the age of six years, Sarah at the age of two, John H. at ten, Gilbert at two, while George S. enlisted in the War of the Rebellion and was killed at the battle of Gaines's Mills, when twenty years of age." The above paragraphs were taken from an interesting letter from Mrs. Gil- son, the widow of the subject of this notice, who also writes : " When we first moved here to the ' Forks ' of the Tionesta Creek, our house stood near the bank of the creek. There was a plenty of wild game at that time. We could very often see deer swimming in the creek. John could kill one almost any time. We frequently saw them feeding with the cattle. There were also wolves and bears in abundance. He killed several bears, and caught several wolves in steel traps, for the scalps of each one of which he received a bounty of twelve dollars. " We had visitors every fall. The Indians, who came every fall to hunt, camped around us. I often went to see them in their camps, and buy baskets. The first fall after we came here I saw wild turkey tracks in the first snow that fell ; they were quite near the house ; I told John I thought I could catch one with a trap, and accordingly set one baited with oats. The next morning I heard the chains rattling, and on going to the trap found a fine fat turkey struggling for liberty ; I broke his neck with a stick. After the Warren and Ridgeway turnpike was opened we built a new house, back on the road, large enough for a hotel. One day, while the men were at work on the house, a deer came swimming up the creek. I seized a gun, and resting it on a pile of boards, shot and killed it. The men dressed it. That night we heard a mourn- ful howling down the creek. John set a steel trap next morning, baited with the deer's head, and we soon caught a wolf We supposed that the wolves Jiad driven the deer down the river. At that time there was no store nor gro- cery nearer than Warren. As soon as the road was finished the farmers from the State of New York began teaming through here, and carried everything from a spool of thread to a barrel of flour. We could buy everything we 5i8 History of Warren County. wanted of them. They carried provisions to the iron country and came back loaded with iron. After a time we commenced keeping hotel and post-office, remaining in the hotel twelve or fourteen years." ^ James T. Osgood was born in Rockingham county, N. H., on the lOth of October, 1808. He is a descendant of William Osgood, one of three brothers who came from England in 1636 and settled in Southern New Hampshire. • Chase Osgood, father of James, settled still farther in the interior. James Os- good came to Sheffield township in 1848, and has been one of the justices of the peace in town for the last thirty-three consecutive years. His business for the first few years in Sheffield was shoemaking. In February, 1832, he mar- ried Jane, a daughter of Jacob Cole, of Sussex county, N. J., who is living yet. They have had ten children, six of whom, four daughters and two sons, are still living. Both sons. Chase and Henry, were in the army during the last war. When he came here in 1848 the surface of the township was covered almost entirely with a dense growth of pine, mingled with considerable hem- lock timber. The lumber business was then at about its most active period. It lasted with almost equal activity until about i860, and since then has some- what declined, though it is even now by no means extinct. The pine was about all gone, however, by the close of the last war. In the winter of 1864, after J. F. Schoellkopf, of Buffalo, had purchased some land of Daniel D. Bowers and of John Gilson, an oil excitement was created, and all the rest of the property about where the village of Sheffield now stands was sold for the purpose of producing oil. Lands of Elias Kings- ley, Elihu Kingsley, John Russell, Stephen Andrews, Captain Wallace, and James T. Osgood were sold to non-residents, who intended to drill for oil. Drilling was done, but by reason of the ignorance then prevailing concerning the proper method of testing, no oil was discovered, and the lands which had so recently enriched the vendors and impoverished the vendees, were sold for nominal prices or for taxes. This was in the winter of 1865. No paying well was drilled until 188 1, when the firm of Crary, Sigel & Co., consisting of Walter HortoH, Jerry Crary, and Charles Sigel as members, associated with James Magee, of Warren, started a well with a production of about fifty bar- rels a day, which is still producing about five barrels a day. There are now eleven wells on what is known as the Donaldson farm, and twenty-three wells on adjoining lands. Other oil firms here now are Melvin, Walker & Howe, Clark & Armor, the Union Oil Company, and many others. The first gas was struck by W. W. Hague, of Tidioute, in 1875 on lands of Horton, Crary & Co. The same well now furnishes the town with gas and has shown no diminution since the end of the first six months. Among many private gas wells may be mentioned those of Erastus Barnes and Mrs. L. M. Barnes. ' Allhoujjh ihis letter was not written to be published verbatim, it contained so vivid a description of the mode of living in those pioneer times, that we could not refrain from publishing it in almost the form in which it was written. Sheffield Township. 519 It will be seen that these various industries, coupled with the extensive tanning business which will soon be mentioned more at length, have conspired to keep the agricultural resources of the township from emerging from their rudimentary state. The soil of the town is well adapted for some kinds of farming, especially the raising of grain and fruit, but not particularly fitted for dairying. The lowlands are composed of a sandy loam, and the uplands of a gravelly clay. The decline of the lumber interest has conduced to develop an interest in the agricultural possibilities of the town, and farming has become one of the infant industries of the region. Municipal History. — Contrary to the natural supposition of a strange vis- itor to the township, the fact is that the little settlement called Lower Sheffield, at Barnes Station, is by far the oldest village in the township, and was indeed looked upon as the only village in the town for many years before it con- ceived the probability of having the present Sheffield village for a rival. It was here that Stanton first sold goods, and that Gilson first kept tavern. In 1839 John Gilson built this tavern, which, after twelve or fourteen years, went into the hands of George Messenger. His successors have been Nathan Branch, to 1850; Asa H. Barnes until 1868 ; various lessees under Asa Barnes until 1876; Erastus Barnes has since owned and rented it. The present lessee is James Marley. It was here, too, as we have seen, that the first mills in town — those of Timothy Barnes — were built. In 1850 Erastus Barnes started a store oppo- site his present residence. He drew his goods by team from Dunkirk. This store was kept open for ten years. The only store now kept here is that of J. E. Berkheimer, who has been here since 188 1, and who carries stock worth about $3,000. (At the present writing it is learned that Mr. Berkheimer is now closing his store.) About five years ago Selkirk Newell, of Syracuse, N. v., took a contract from Erastus Barnes for ten acres of land, on which he proposed to drill for oil. Instead of finding oil he found large quantities of gas. Nolan & Boardman, from New York State, then purchased four acres of Mr. Barnes for the manufacture of lamp-black. They erected a long iron building for this purpose, and have now demonstrated the success of their scheme of converting the gas into lamp-black of a superior quality. These, with the mills of Erastus Barnes, constitute the present business interests of Lower Sheffield. The village of Sheffield owes its origin and growth to the enterprise of the several firms now engaged in the extensive tanneries of the place. From about 1836 to 1864 the land, or the larger part of it, now embraced within the limits of Sheffield village, was owned by Daniel D. Bowers, a native of Ver- mont, who, soon after the latter date, removed to Missouri and there died. In 1864 W. & W. Horton purchased his land, and three years later the firm of Horton, Crary & Co. was formed and built one tannery. In 1871 J. McNair 520 History of Warren County. & Co. bought the land and saw-mills of I. V. Stone, and in 1878 built a tan- nery on the site, in which Horton, Crary & Co. have a controlling interest. About the time of the building of the tannery first above mentioned, J. F. Schoellkopf, of Buffalo, built a tannery here, in which Horton, Crary & Co. have also obtained a controlling interest. Horton, Crary & Co. have also three saw-mills in the village, and produce large quantities of lumber. Their income from the production of sole leather amounts to some $2,500,000 per annum. They are further largely interested in the production of oil, having wells in this township — at Henry's Mills, at Donaldson's, and near Farnsworth's Siding — which altogether produce about 18,000 barrels a month. This village is also the center of the great gas-producing district, in which Horton, Crary & Co. have extensive interests. This firm own land in this and adjoining counties, for their varied interests, amounting to about 50,000 acres. They built the Tionesta Valley Railroad in i88i, and afterward bought out the Cherry Grove and Garfield Railroad, which was built by an eastern company. The mem- bers of this company are Webb Horton, H. H. Crary, Walter Horton, Jerry Crary, George Horton, Isaac Horton, and George Dickinson. They employ nearly or quite 3,000 hands, most of whom are Swedes and Germans, and re- side in this village. The members of the firm of Schoellkopf, Horton & Co. are J. F. Schoellkopf, sr., Charles Sigel, and Horton, Crary & Co. The mem- bers of the firm of John McNair & Co. are John McNair, C. W. R. Radeker, and Horton, Crary & Co. The principal part of the business done by this en- terprising firm of Horton Crary & Co. is export trade. They manufacture nothing but hemlock sole leather. The hides are almost entirely from South America. Of course the chief motive which induced them to locate here was the dense growth of hemlock in the forests. To their industrious energy, and that of their neighboring companies, is due the thrift and growth of the village of Sheffield. 1 The Horton family came here from Sullivan county, N. Y. They are de- scended from Barnabas Horton, who came to this country from England in 1632, in the good ship SzvaUozv, and settled on Long Island. H. H. Crary, and indeed all the members of the firm of Horton, Crary & Co., except George Dickinson, are natives of Sullivan county, N. Y. Mr. Dickinson is from Del- aware county, N. V. Daniel D. Bowers, mentioned above, was born in Vermont, it is said, about 1803, and came to Sheffield not far from 1836. He settled about on the site of the present house of Webb Horton, and, besides operating a saw-mill, kept a tavern there under the name of the Forest House until about 1867. The house was then converted into a boarding-house for the employees of the tan- ning company, and thus used it burned about 1879. 'The DoiiaUlsoM tract, before mentioned, embraces the land once owned by Andrew Donaldson in the southern p.irt of the township. He was a farmer and lumberman, and came here about 1845. His widow now occupies a part of the old farm. He died .Vugust 17, 1867, aged sixty- six years. Sheffield Township. 521 About the time that Horton, Crary & Co. came to Sheffield, Amos Lee, a quondam butcher and cattle dealer, also arrived, and about 1869 built the Lee House, which he kept until his death, in 1875. In 1873 he enlarged it. During his life it was a temperance house. The next proprietor was Charles Lamkin, who did not own the property, however, and who gave place in 1884 to the present proprietor and owner, Joseph Clinton. It is now one of the best of hotels. It has about thirty rooms, and is unusually spacious and convenient, as it was erected apparently for the benefit of families rather than transient individuals. The mercantile history of the village of Sheffield also properly begins at the year 1864. W. & W. Horton then started a store in connection with their other business, and in the following year put up the block that now faces the railroad. At that time Chase Osgood was keeping a store at Lower Shef- field. In 1867 Horton, Crary & Co. succeeded W. & W. Horton. They now carry stock valued by one of their firm at $175,000 in all the departments. They have stores in three separate blocks, and deal in all kinds of goods, gro- ceries, dry goods and furnishing goods, furniture, hardware, boots and shoes,, drugs, etc. E. L. Branch also began to deal in groceries about ten years ago, and in the spring of 1886 took into partnership Orris Hall. Morris Einstein deals in general merchandise, and has been in buiness here about eight years. F. D. Austin has dealt in groceries about six years. The clothing store of Levi Epstein is about two years of age. Hull & Siegfried have traded in drugs since the spring of 1885 ; Frank Johnson & Brother in groceries since the spring of 1886. The planing and saw-mill of George R. Wood has been under the pro- prietorship of Mr. Wood about ten years. It was formerly operated by Wood & Culbertson. In June, 1885, an opera-house was opened by a stock company, who had built it, and promised to be a thing of profit and pleasure to the citizens. The cost of building it has been stated to the writer to have been about $12,000. In May, 1886, this building burned. Post-offices. — The first post-office in town was at Lower Sheffield, though it was established by the appointment of Orrin Stanton, about 1834 or 1835, under the name of Sheffield. About 1841 John Gilson was appointed, and had the office several years at his house. George Messenger succeeded him. James T. Osgood then held the office until 1853, when he was elected justice of the peace, and was succeeded in the post-office by Asa H. Barnes. After several years he had Mr. Osgood appointed his deputy, and requested him to keep the office. In 1873 Erastus Barnes was appointed postmaster, though since his appointment Mr. Osgood has continued to act in his stead. For some years previous to 1864 an office had been opened at Dunham's, called West Sheffield, and presided over by Richard Dunham. The Philadelphia and 522 History of Warren County. Erie Railroad was opened in the winter of 1865, and in tiie following year the office of West Sheffield was discontinued and re-established as Sheffield (while the old Sheffield office was changed to Barnes), with Webb Horton as post- master. In 1868 Jerry Crary was appointed postmaster at this point, and has ever since continued in this office. Schools and Cliurchcs. — The present school-house at Barnes Station was built in 1883. On this site, about 1 840, Erastus Barnes and John Gilson built a school-house. The first school in town was taught in this part of the town in 1833, by Miss Milford. The next was taught by Leverett Barnes. In the spring of 1835 Richard Dunham, Melchi Snapp, and Adam L. Pratt built a school-house in the woods near the spot where Mr. Armstrong's barn now stands. There Miss Hannah Snapp taught the ensuing year, and the winter terms of 1834 and 1835 were taught by Adam L. Pratt. About 1852 or 1853 the township built a larger school-house on the site of the one formerly erected by Barnes and Gilson, and which is now used as a union church in Lower Sheffield, though it has been removed from its old site. In this school are now in attendance about one hundred pupils. There are now in the entire township about six separate schools, two in the Farnsworth neighborhood, one in the western part of the town, one at Barnes, one near Frank Henry's mill, and the graded school at Sheffield village, which was built in 1876, burned in 1877, and immediately rebuilt, having been fully insured. It has five depart- ments. Its average attendance is stated to be about 250. The principal is M. A. Rigg. The first organized church in town was of the Methodist Episcopal denomi- nation, and was formed in the Barnes neighborhood about fifty years ago. Erastus Barnes, though not a member of any denomination, recognized the desirability of having a church in the town, and obtained a good subscription list, which he headed himself Silas Lacy, Jeremiah Lane, Melchi Snapp, and Richard Dunham were also very prominent and active in its organization and support. Rev. Hallcck preached the first year, while residing in Warren. Services were held once in four weeks in the school-house. About three years ago a Free Methodist Church was organized here, and a house of worship was erected in the summer of 1886. The pastor is Rev. Mr. Gaines. The first church to be built in Sheffield village was the Methodist Episco- pal, which was erected in 1867, and burned in the winter of 1876-77. It was originally built through the efforts of Richard Dunham and Horton, Crary & Co. After the fire, the firm just named rebuilt it at once at a cost of about $7,000, and presented it to the Methodist denomination. The present pastor is Rev. Mr. Darling. About 1877 the Roman Catholics built a church here, which is attended by Father de la Roque, of Warren. There is a Free Metho- dist Church also at I'arnsworth's. The Evangelical Lutheran Bethania Church (Swedish), located at Sheffield Freehold Township. 523 village, was permanently organized in 1882. The first meeting was held on the 30th of June, 1882, in the private house of John Monson. Rev. T. Fran- yen, of Kane, presided, and Rev. N. G. Johnson, of Warren, acted as secre- tary. The original members were J. A. Anundson, John Monson, J. P. Gus- tafson, Eric Peterson, Olof Peterson, C. G. Bergman, Otto Lagerquist, James Christiansen, T. A. Rydeberg, Andrew Wermblad, and Carl Otto Lang. The church edifice was erected in 1883 at a cost of about $2,500 — framed. The first pastor was Rev. J. A. Rinell, for 1883 and 1884. At present the congre- gation is under the care of R. A. Thompson, a student of Aug. College and Theological Seminary, of Rock Island, 111. The present membership of this church numbers sixty, while the church property is valued at about $3,000. CHAPTER XLIV. HISTORY OF FREEHOLD TOWNSHir. THE township of Freehold was formed from Columbus and Sugar Grove on the 3d of September, 1833. ^^ contains about thirty-five square miles, or something more than twenty-two thousand acres. It is in the northern tier of Warren county townships, and is bounded north by Chautauqua county N. Y., east by Sugar Grove township in this county, south by Pittsfield and a corner of Spring Creek, and west by Columbus. The surface of the town is uneven and, along the streams and water courses, broken and occasionally even precipitous. It was originally covered with a heavy growth of valuable timber such as pine, oak, hemlock, chestnut, ash, and whitewood. The pine was floated in rafts down the Allegheny and Ohio Rivers, while the oak was formerly manufactured into oil barrels, but more recently into butter-tubs and firkins, and the whitewood into household furniture of different kinds. The soil is generally a gravelly loam of good quality and very productive. The fruits, especially apples, are raised here in good quantities. The Little Brokenstraw Creek flows in a southeasterly direction through the township, furnishing an abundant and continuous water supply. Along its banks five saw-mills and one grist-mill have been built; the first in 181 5 and the last in 1886. The road leading from Pittsfield through Wrightsville and Lottsville to the New York State line was opened in 1 8 14, while the old country road, as it was known for a number of years, from Owen's Ferry on the Conewango Creek, near the State line between New York and Pennsylvania, to Lottsville by way of Sugar Grove, was partly opened from Sugar Grove to Lottsville in 34 524 History of VVarrex County. 1816, trees and underbrush being cut out so that an ox team and sled could pass over it. The territory of Freehold remained practically unbroken by the a.\ of the pioneer until about 1802, when James Irvine and others came in, though Mr. Irvine was the only one who remained permanently. The fearful and discour- aging privations of that early day, the perils and hardships that encompassed him who would make his home in the wilderness were so certain and severe that few could resist them long, but either died early from the exposures and fatigues, or removed to more congenial climes. James Irvine was born in North- umberland county. Pa., about 1773 or 1774, and died at Wrightsville in 1849. He was half brother to Guy C. Irvine, of Pine Grove, and Andrew Irvine, of Glade. He settled on the west side of the creek at Wrightsville, in September, 1802, where he built the first house this side of Pittsfield. During the rest of his life, which he passed here, he was a prominent lumberman and farmer of this region, and held a number of the township offices. He was a justice of the peace almost from the beginning until that office was made elective. Sam- uel Irvine, who came to his present farm near Wrightsville from Pine Grove about forty years ago, married a daughter of James Irvine, by whom he has had six children — all living. At the present writing Mrs. Samuel Irvine is liv- ing, though she is very ill. The next permanent settler was probably Harmones Lott, who came from his home in Long Island, N. Y., in 1814, and in the following year removed to the present site of Lottsville, which derived its name from his family, and on the place now occupied by Mrs. A. M. Smith. Harmones Lott died some time previous to 1840 at an advanced age. Hewlett Lott, one of his sons, built the house (1847 or 1848) now occupied by Mrs. Smith (his daughter), and came to the place with his father. He was born on the 25th of September, 1793, on Long Island, and died February 16, 1868, in this township. His wife, Maria, daughter of A. D. Ditmars, of Sugar Grove, died December 18, 1 880, aged eighty-seven years. The Lott family have always been prominent in both Lottsville village and Freehold township. Hewlett Lott was the first mer- chant in the township, though he relinquished that pursuit before the year 1830. His store building was converted into a school-house, which stood on the corner just opposite the present residence of Mrs. Smith. His brother, Daniel Lott, was also one of the leading men of the township for many years. He came with the rest of the family in 181 5, when he was about eleven years of age, and remained in town until his death on the 24th of July, 1886, at the ripe age of eighty- two years six months and twenty-four days. On the 12th of January, 1827, he married Sally, daughter of William Row, who survives him. They had five children, of whom two, Charles and Stephen, are still liv- ing. Daniel Lott was a farmer, and for fifty years previous to his death he was also a preacher of vigor and force in the Methodist Episcopal Church. Freehold Township. 525 He was ten years a justice of the peace in Freehold, and during two winters represented his district ably in the Legislature at Harrisburg. In all the ques- tions which affect the morality, peace, or prosperity of the Commonwealth or community, he was found on the side of right, his tendency being rather to carry those principles too far, than to be too lax in the interpretation and exe- cution of them. He was a believer in temperance, and during the long years of anti-slavery agitation he was an outspoken Abolitionist. For some time previous to his death he had accepted the doctrines of spiritualism, and under the inspiration of his feverish meditations, at night chiefly, he wrote several treatises on the subject, such as "The War in Heaven," "John Wesley and Modern Spiritualism, " etc., believing himself to be under the direction of the unsubstantial inhabitants of the invisible world. A short time before he died, however, he renounced this faith, pronouncing it an injurious delusion. William Row, the father of Mrs. Daniel Lott, was also an early settler in Freehold. He came from Broome county, N. Y., in 1823, with his family, and settled about three miles west of Lottsville in what is known as the Mon- roe neighborhood. Mr. Row was a farmer and a blacksmith, and had the ingenuity sufficient to make shoes for the members of his own family. He died about the year 1852 at a very advanced age. His wife had preceded him several years at the age of sixty-seven years. Five of his children are now living, although only three of them are in this county : Mrs. Lott, at Lotts- ville ; John, at Bear Lake ; and Edmund, at Columbus. In 1815 and 18 16, owing to the efforts of Agent Sackett, of the Holland Land Company, about thirty families emigrated from Oneida county, N. Y., to this part of Pennsylvania, most of whom settled in Sugar Grove and Pine Grove, although several families made their homes in Freehold. Among them was John Tuttle, who settled on the site of the village of Wrightsville, and for many years had a wagon shop in the building in that village now used as a blacksmith's shop. Mr. Tuttle was born in the year 1771, and was therefore about forty-four years of age when he came to Wrightsville. He was a man of worth, well fitted to act the part of a pioneer in an undeveloped country. He died on the 30th of January, 1855. Another early settler who lent force to the community by the worth of his character was Nathan Abbott. He was born in 1765, and as early as 18 16 settled at the Four Corners between Lottsville and Wrightsville. He was a farmer and also engaged, as did nearly all the early farmers who cleared their own farms, in lumbering. He died on the 3d of September, 1841, aged sev- enty-six years and five days, and was followed, on the 29th of March, 1847, by his wife, Anna, who had reached the age of seventy-four years seven months and nine days. Mr. Abbott's location made it convenient for him to entertain travelers, and he opened a public house, which benefited the lumber- men more than any other class of travelers. Among other early settlers 526 History of Warren County. whose arrival probably antedates 1820 by several years, may be named Isaac L. Fitch, who settled in the southern part of Lottsville, and engaged in farm- ing until his death some time previous to 1825 ; Joel Hill, a bachelor, who lived much of the time with Hewlett Lott ; James Phillis who came early to Wrightsville from Columbus, married a daughter of James Irvine, and passed his time farming and hunting; and William Arthurs, or Arters, who occupied a plank house in Wrightsville previous to 1820, and later, also, and operated the mills in that place. Jared Boardman was an early settler in Wrightsville, and for years kept a tavern in the large block opposite the saw-mill. He was later than those who have been before mentioned, however, as his birth took place on the 8th of September, 1817, and his death on the 5th of June, 1882. He was a soldier in the last war, in Company D, Third Artillery, One Hun- dred and Fifty-second Regiment of Pennsylvania Volunteers. Joshua Wright, from whom Wrightsville derives its name, came to the site of this village in 182 1 from near Rochester, N. Y. His house stood near the site of the present saw-mill. There were then only two houses on the ground now covered by the village. A grist and saw-mill were operated by William Arthurs. They were built a number of years previously by Peter Burgett Joshua Wright died on the 19th of January, 1842, aged seventy years and four months. From the time of his arrival here until his death he operated the grist-mill, and also ran the saw-mill until it burned a year or two after he came, whereupon his sons, Lester and Jude, rebuilt and operated it for many years. Lester Wright was born in Massachusetts on the 20th of August, 1 804, and went to Otisco, N. Y., when an infant. At the age of six years he was taken by his parents to Genesee, N. Y., and when he was sixteen accompanied them to Wrightsville, as it has since been called. They reached here on the i6th of July. At that time there was hardly an acre of tillable land in one spot in the entire township of Freehold, as now constituted. Trees had been extensively felled, but the farmers had been more industrious to reap the profits of lum- bering than of clearing the land. The timber was principally beech and maple, with considerable pine scattered through the forests. The flat south of Wrights- ville had been partly cleared and was occupied in 1821 by Stephen Burgett. The few roads were extremely primitive and rough, being cut out barely enough to permit the passage of teams. Lottsville had been laid out as a village by the members of the Lott family, and had been named. Its streets were 100 feet wide. Since that time Wrightsville has passed through all the events of a growing and declining village. Lester Wright started the first store in the place about 1832, on the site of the present meat- market. As he was engaged during the working hours of the day in his mill, he attended to the store only mornings and evenings. About 1837 ^^ enlarged this branch of his business, and in 184O built the large block now occupied by his son, Philander Wright. Lester Wright has been proprietor of this store from the beginning, almost Freehold Township. 527 without interruption, to the present. At the close of the war, in which his son took an active part, he took him into partnership with himself — a relation which has continued ever since. They keep on hand a good stock of goods. Jude Wright, brother of Lester, died on the I2th of March, 1871, aged sixty-eight years seven months and twenty days. Ouartus Wright, another brother of Lester, ten years his junior, was also in the mercantile business in Wrightsville for some time subsequent to 1840. He and Lester operated the saw-mill. Quartus now resides in Vineland, N. J., where he removed about 1864 or 1865, and since his departure his son, Newton Wright, has had sole charge and ownership of all the mills, both the grist and saw- mills. The first tavern in Wrightsville was kept by Chauncey Messenger, who built the pres- ent hotel many years ago. The site was occupied at an earlier date by Ed- ward Jones. After Messenger left the hotel, Calvin Wright, son of Jude, kept it for two years. A number of years later, in 1861, Philo Wright bought the property, and now owns and has charge of it. \\'rightsville has seen very lively times. There have been as many as seven stores open in this place at one time. Just previous to the last war was perhaps its most thrifty period. As long as lumber was abundant it was one of the leading villages of the county. As many as 2,000,000 boards have gone over the dam there in a season. Then in the height of the season forty or fifty hands would come daily from neighboring towns to " run boards." At present Chauncey Messenger has a store in the village, though he deals prin- cipally in wool. He has been in the mercantile business in town almost as long as Mr. Wright, and is one of the most worthy and prominent men in the county. His son, Alfred, keeps another store, and a good one. Albert Wright has also a store here, which he has presided over about two years. The first postmaster in Wrightsville was Cornwell Giftbrd, appointed about thirty years ago. Lester Wright has been postmaster, as have also his sons, Philander and Philo. The present incumbent is John Smallman, who received his appointment from the present administration. As in most other towns the first religious meetings held hereabouts were called from house to house as convenience dictated. The members and allies of the Methodist Episcopal Church built a house of worship here some forty years ago. Their pastor now is Rev. J. P. Burns, who attends from Bear Lake. There was also at one time a P'ree Will Baptist Church here, but it is deceased. Darius Cooper was born in Shoreham, Addison county, Vt, in 1797. When he was but seven years of age his father died, and when he was thirteen his mother died also, and he was left with no money and but few friends. He chose Eli Smith for a guardian, and lived with him nine years. He then, at^ at the age of twenty-two years, resolved to take a journey into the West, and traveled successively to New York, Ohio, Michigan, and Upper Canada. He then returned to Vermont, but after a few days started on another journey to A J 528 History of Warren County. Quebec and through Lower Canada, and back to Vermont, taking up in this way about a year. About this time he was married to Martha Tower, shortly after which he removed to Florence, N. Y., where he purchased 125 acres of land and lived upon it two years. The title to this property being defective through some oversight he was compelled to use his personal property to pay his debts. He was thus practically destitute, but his courage did not forsake him. He employed a man to remove him again to Vermont, where he soon earned enough money to pay the man for his removal. He remained in Ver- mont five years, renting a farm and performing different kinds of labor, until by close economy he had accumulated five hundred dollars in money and a good team of horses. He then removed to Slab City, a small place not far from Buffalo, N. Y., where he remained until 1833, when he sold his land at an advance and started for Pennsylvania. He settled in the township of Co- lumbus, now Freehold, and purchased of Mr. Barlow 200 acres of wild land and built upon it a log house and settled down. He lived in Freehold thirty- three years and then removed to Chautauqua county, N. Y., where he lived four years. After this he returned to Freehold and purchased the"BordweH" place, where he lived three years until the death of his wife. Mr. Cooper, now in the evening of a long life, lives with his grandson. He has lived an honest and a useful life, a reflection which must indeed be pleasing to old age. The village of Lottsville, as has been indicated, is of older date than Wrightsville, though it has never seen quite so stirring events. Between the arrival of Harmones Lott and family in 18 15 and the year 1820, the village had been laid out into streets, as it is at present to be seen. It is difficult to ascertain much more concerning the early history of Lottsville than has already been written in this chapter, because the early settlers have all passed away. In 1857 Chauncey Messenger built the hotel which is still open here, and for the first two years William Seeley kept it. John Eastman then came into possession and kept it until 1869, when his son, John, jr., succeeded him and remained in possession for ten years. Since his departure it has been man- aged by Frank Eastman. 1 he widow of the original John Eastman, Mrs. A. H. Eastman, has owned the property since the death of her husband. The only store now in the village is that of Whitney & Kay, the members of the firm being W. D. Whitney, M. D. and F. W. Kay. The partnership was formed in the fall of 1885, before which Dr. Whitney was here alone about two years. He was preceded by Charles Lott, whose uncle, James Lott, had been a merchant of good standing in the village for many years. Dr. Whit- ney was born in Brokenstraw township on the 28th of April, 1852. He received his medical education at the Buffalo Medical College, from which he was graduated in February, 1884. He is a regular. His wife, Mrs. D. A. Whitney, is also a physician. She was born in Freehold township on the 14th of November, 1853, and was graduated from the Homeopathic Hospital Medi- Freehold Township. 529 cal College at Cleveland, Ohio, in February, 1886, and came to Lottsville at once. She is a daughter of Isaac Baker, who came to Lottsville in 1835 from Ithaca, N. Y., and engaged in farming here until his death, in 1870. He was born on the 25th of January, 1809. His widow is now residing with her daughter, Mrs. Dr. Whitney. Mrs. Baker has eight children, all but one of whom are residents of this part of the county. The other is in Colorado. T. I. Baker owns and operates the saw-mill at this village. He built the mill in the summer of 1883. It was burned in July, 1886, and was immedi- ately rebuilt. Mr. Baker also owns and operates a mill at Abbott's Corners, which came into his hands some time before he obtained ownership of this mill. Mr. Baker was, during the last war, a member of Company F, Ninth New York Cavalry, and was wounded at Morton's Ford, Va., by a bullet which passed through his liver from the back of the right side to the front. This is a wound from which no one but with an iron constitution could have recovered. The present postmaster at Lottsville is Dr. Whitney, who was appointed in November, 1881, as successor to William Allen, whose appointment is dated in the year 1875 or 1876. Previous to this term the office was held for many years by James L. Lott. The only church in Lottsville is the Wesleyan Methodist Church, which organized on the 7th of October, 1852. Meetings were held for a number of years in the old school-house, during most of which period Rev. E. J. Carroll was the preacher. The house of worship was erected and finished during war times, and Mr. Carroll was present at the dedication. Services are now held once in two weeks, the pastor being Rev. John Case. Concerning the early schools of the township a writer has reported sub- stantially as follows : The first school was kept by Mrs. Rufus Fitch, at her house, in the summer of 1817. Her husband, Rufus Fitch, a Revolutionary soldier, kept school in the summer of 18 18. In the following winter James Austin was the teacher. After the country became more thickly settled edu- cational matters were systematized. The first school-house was constructed of logs, and extended sixteen by twenty feet. The salary for these early teachers was about ten or twelve dollars a month for men, and one dollar to a dollar and fifty cents for women. The text books in use were principally Webster's Elementary Speller, the American Preceptor, Columbian Orator, Dilworth's Arithmetic, and the New Testament. Bear Lake. — This thriving village is the product of railroad enterprise. It was formerly called Freehold, but about fifteen years ago this name was changed to Bear Lake, after the beautiful body of water of that name about a mile east of the village. This lake has a surface about ten acres in area, is deep and very clear, and without a visible outlet. As late as i860 there was no road through Bear Lake worthy of the name. Previous to that date a large part of the land now covered by the village was owned by Daniel Walker to 530 History of Warren County. the southwest, Asa Chapman to the north and east, and Ira Hamilton to the north and west. These three men, it is said, were here as early as sixty years ago. The first store in Bear Lake was kept in a small shanty, i6 by 20, by Ab- ner Chapman, on the site of Bordwell's present store. He dealt in groceries, liquors, etc., about i860, while the railroad was in process of construction. After an experience of a few months he sold out to George and Bryan Hill, who enlarged the building and increased the trade. They also kept a board- ing-house. They failed, however, in the course of eight or ten months, and in 1868 sold to C. T. Bordwell, who kept store there until some three years ago. Howard & Wadsworth then purchased the property and opened a store, which they kept until a year ago, when they failed. Mr. Bordwell took the property again in April, 1886, and now owns and conducts the store. One of the early mills in this part of the township was that of Bushrod Woodin, on the Little Brokenstraw, about two miles southeast of the site of the village. This mill he built about 1855. It was a large mill for those days. After running it for some fifteen years Mr. Woodin sold it to James Dennison, of whom he repurchased it in a few years. The present owner, Clarence Triskett, bought it of Mr. Woodin about ten years ago, and has converted it from a water to a steam-power mill. Sylvester Williams built the first mill exactly on the site of the village about 1866 or 1867. It was a steam grist and saw-mill. It burned about 1 871, after which he rebuilt it and soon sold it to James Goodwin, who operated it about five years. John Hill then owned it. Henry L. Wilcox next purchased the property, took down the old mill and built the present structure, which he now owns. Present Business Interests. — It has already been stated that the oldest of the present merchants in Bear Lake, considering their term of service, is C. T. Bordwell, who began to trade here in February, 1868. He now deals in mer- chandise of almost every description, hardware, flour and feed, and other wares, his entire stock being valued at about $6,000. The store building now occupied by Howard & Laquay for the sale of dry goods and groceries, was built by Joel Carr about twelve years ago. The present firm came into the store in December, 1885. C. V. Mather began to trade in feed in 1876, and two years later changed his stock to drugs and groceries. He came into the building he now occupies in 1880. C. L. Chadwick and William Sweetland formed the firm of Chadwick & Sweetland on the i6th of April, 1883, and at that time bought out the store of Henry L. Wilcox, who had been engaged in mercantile business about two or three years. The stock is confined princi- pally to groceries. The building which they now occupy was erected in March, 1886. Willis H. Houghtling started a business in hardware about three years and a half ago, and in November, 1886, first occupied his present quarters. The Freehold Township. 531 stock which Mr. Houghtling originally owned was purchased in November, 1886, by Henry L. Wilcox, who now trades in this line of goods. The gro- cery and drug store of Phillips & Livermore was established by the present firm on the i8th of October, 1886, when the partnership was formed. The building which they occupy was erected by them in the summer of 1886. Their stock is valued at about $1,000. W. H. Davenny also deals in dry goods and groceries. The harness shop of G. W. Cole was opened in August, 1886. Mr. Cole then bought out George Livermore. The saw-mill of Henry L. Wilcox, as it now stands, was built by the pres- ent proprietor in 1879. It has a capacity for 2,000,000 feet of lumber, but cuts ordinarily about 700,000 feet. About 1874 Daniel Parkhurst built a steam shingle and planing- mill and cider-mill on Greeley street, west of the railroad station, which he sold the fol- lowing year to Lorenzo Hyde. It was destroyed by fire about 1880, and Mr. Hyde then built another shingle and planing and grist-mill on the opposite side of the road, of larger capacity, which also burned in the fall of 1885. He now has a mill on Main street, with a planer and matcher, and connected with a grist-mill. Sylvenus St. John erected his steam grist-mill — roller process — in the sum- mer of 1886. The saw-mill of Borcher & Jamieson was built two years ago. About the time that Mr. Chapman opened the first store in the village, one Jordan opened a small tavern on the site of the present hotel in Bear Lake ; this was probably in the year 1861. Mr. Jordan did not remain long. The present hotel was erected in 1883 by A. E. Hollenbeck, who owns the property at this time. The lessee, since November, 1886, is B. C. Roberts. The Bear Lake Record, a live newspaper which promises to be a success, was started here in November, 1886. Mr. Gardiner is to be congratulated both on the appearance of his paper and on his choice of a location. The first physician to practice in Bear Lake was Dr. A. P. Phillips, who came about fifteen or sixteen years ago. Other physicians, of later arrival, are Dr. L. W. Harvey and Dr. F. T. Noeson. The first postmaster in the village was Caleb Carr, who was appointed about 1862. The name of the office was at first Freehold. C. T. Bordwell succeeded Mr. Carr in two or three years, and was followed by William Sweet- land about three years ago. Henry L. Wilco.x then held the position a few months, and was succeeded by the present incumbent, W. H. Houghtling, in the summer of 1886. The first house of worship erected in Bear Lake was built by the United Bretheren in 1874, at a cost of about $1,700. They formed a society in this vicinity about sixteen years ago, Rev. J. Hill being the first preacher. Among the first members were Joel Carr, S. Williams, H. C. Howard, William Hunt- ley, and others, many of whom were from the surrounding country. The 532 History of Warren County. present pastor is Rev, Lucius Markham, who has resided here a little more than a year. About 1876 the members of the Methodist Episcopal and Christian de- nominations organized churches here, and built a Union Church edifice at an expense of $2,000, in which they still worship. Among the first Methodists were Henry Widrig, Charles Goodwin, Harrison Robinson, and James Harter- Their present pastor is Rev. J. P. Burns. Among the early Christians were M. Kendall, Abner Chapman, and Frank Eddy. Their pastor is Rev. Mr. Wilbur. About five years ago the town built a school-house here with two rooms. There are now in this building an attendance of not far from 100 pupils. H. Phillips is the present teacher. CHAPTER XLV. HISTORY OF PLEASANT TOWNSHIP. THE township of Pleasant, a sparsely settled, irregular tract of territory, is situated nearly in the center of Warren county, and is bounded north by the Allegheny River, separating it from Conewango and Glade townships and Warren borough, on the east by Mead township, on the south by Cherry Grove and Watson, and on the west by the Allegheny River, separating it from Deerfield and Brokenstraw. The township was formed in March, 1834, and undoubtedly derived its name from its beauty of situation and prospect. The petitioners who caused its formation wanted it to be named " Mount Pleasant," but the court subtracted the first word from the title. The land- scape is everywhere lovely, especially opposite Warren. It is somewhat remarkable that the town was so late in being settled by permanent residents, when all along the other side of the river is a portion of the county which was dotted with homes almost at the beginning of the pres- ent century. But Pleasant was inhabited only by occasional and transient " squatters" until 1826. At that time no improvements to speak of had been made in the township. There were no roads whatever, nor any evidences, ex- cept the settlement of John Mead, opposite Brokenstraw, that man had ever intended to make the town his home. The first road, the main road from War- ren to Limestone, was opened about the year 1835. Nathaniel Sill, sr., the second permanent settler in town (John Mead being the first), was born in Lyme, Conn., in 1776, and in 1807 removed to Black Rock, near Buffalo, N. Y., where he engaged in the business of a forwarding Pleasant Township. 533 \ merchant, and was the senior member of the prominent firm of Sill, Thompson & Co. At one time they owned every vessel on Lake Erie except two small schooners. His partner, Sheldon Thompson, was the first mayor of Buffalo. They owned the famous Michigan, which went over the Niagara Falls. Mr. Sill's house, which was built of stone and was one of the best houses in the State we.st of Albany in its day, was battered down by the British in the War of 18 1 2. Nathaniel Sill removed to this township, or the territory now known as Pleasant, in 1826. He came to the farm now owned and occupied by his son and namesake, in December of that year, having made the journey from Buffalo by team by way of Dunkirk and Jamestown. He had a family of three sons and five daughters. Nathaniel Sill, jr., was born in Ontario county, N. Y., on the 13th of February, 18 14, and since his father's arrival on this farm in 1826, has made it his home. He married Susan, daughter of Josiah Farns- worth, then of Sheffield township, in 1853. His father died on this place on the 1 8th of February, 1858, and he has managed the farm alone since that time. When Nathaniel Sill came here in 1826 there were but three small open- ings — they can hardly be called clearings — within the present limits of the town- ship. One of these had been made by squatters on a tract embracing the present farm of Mr. Sill, the other was opposite Warren, and was probably made by owners who had not lived on it, and the third was on the Irvine farm, near the present village of Irvinton. Not a stick of timber had been cut at any distance back from the river. About 1832 and 1833 a German immigra- tion began. Christian Hertzel came in 1835, Philip Wendling as early as 1832, and many others who will be named in the course of the chapter. There was a great boom in land speculation in 1837, and many of those who had settled here sold out and removed to the vicinity of Chicago and Northern Illinois. These Germans were many of them from Alsace. There they had been ac- customed to live in villages and travel several miles each day to a little patch of land which they owned, and out of which, by the severest labor, they wrung a scanty subsistence. The reports which reached them of the large and productive farms of Pennsylvania, and other parts of America, stirred them with a desire to visit and settle upon these lands. This country seemed an El Dorado to them. As a rule they were steady, hard-working, economical, tem- perate, law-abiding, and intelligent men. Most of them were poor, and after they reached this country they found hard times. They had to work harder for their living than their children and^'grandchildren are obliged to do. Able- bodied men labored for fifty cents a day in haying, and took wheat at two dollars a bushel in payment. Cloth that now costs six cents a yard then brought twenty-five cents, and most other articles which the laboring people must have were priced accordingly. Still they labored on hopefully, and many of their descendants now live in comfort and some of them in luxury, the reward, in part, of their industry and thrift. 534 History of Warren County. Following are the names and places of residence of the more prominent and permanent settlers of the township, who settled here previous to its forma- tion, and are mentioned in the first list of taxables, in 1835 • Martin Esher, assessed with forty-seven acres, lived a short distance west of where the cemetery now is. He came here with other Germans about 1832 or 1833, and moved away after a few years. He was an Alsatian. George Arnold, also an Alsatian, came about 1834, and settled in the western part of the township opposite Brokenstraw. He lived there very many years, and died in October, 1886, in Warren, at a very advanced age. Lewis Arnet, a German, but not an Alsatian, came about 1832, and took up one hundred acres of land on the upland, some distance south of Martin Esher's settlement. He went west in a few years. Emmanuel CruU rented the Irvine farm, opposite Brokenstraw, and lived on it for about ten years, when he removed to the vicinity of Franklin. His daughter married Perry Shaw, of Tidioute, where he and his wife died. An- other daughter married James Newgen, a shoemaker by trade, and a pilot on the river, who went down the river on annual raft pilgrimages until within a few years. Jesse Foster, and David, his brother, lived opposite Brokenstraw for a number of years, when the former sold out and removed to the northern part of the county. Jabez B. Hyde owned forty acres just west of the farm of Nathaniel Sill, and built the house now owned by the heirs of Mrs. J. H. King. He was a Presbyterian clergyman, and, for some years previous to his settlement here, was stationed among the Seneca Indians of Cattaraugus county, N. Y. He was well known in Buffalo. He lived here a few years and returned to the Indian Reservation. By an unfortunate turn of affairs he lost his mind, it seems, and was found in an impoverished and distressed condition in Buffalo, where friends cared for him until he died. Christian Hertzel, father of Andrew and Philip Hertzel, settled, in 1835, on the first farm south of that of Nathaniel .Sill, on the hill now occupied by his son Philip. (See sketch of Andrew Hertzel in later pages). Jabez Hyde, jr., son of Jabez above mentioned, died here while his father lived in this township. He was a printer by trade, and worked for a time in Buffalo. Christian Groos, a German, lived for a year or two near Christian Hertzel, and then went west. Jacob Knopf, a German not from Alsace, took up 184 acres of land south of Christian Hertzel, about 1832, and lived there until his death, about i860. He was one of the most prominent of the Germans, and was very active and industrious. Peter Knopf, his nephew, cleared a farm of 133 acres about a mile west from the settlement of Nathaniel Sill. He was a man of considerable Pleasant Township. 535 ability, though he has been characterized as of too sanguine a temperament. He had a large family, and late in life went to Glade, where he died, with some of his children. Michael Kraienbuehl came from Alsace with the other emigrants previous to 1835, and took up forty-seven acres of land directly opposite Warren. He resided there until his death, about thirty years ago. Among his descendants still in this county is Mrs. Andrew Ruhlman, of Warren, who is his grand- daughter. Adam Knopf, a brother of Jacob, settled near him at the same time, but in 1837 sold out and removed to the West. His log house is still standing. The property was bought from him by Christian Hertzel, and is now owned by Philip Hertzel. Jacob Lenhart settled on five hundred acres of land opposite Brokenstraw, where he died about 1 860. His son Matthew now owns and occupies the farm. Jacob Luther was an early German settler, near the present site of Oakland Cemetery. Jacob Myers settled as* early, probably, as 1833, on the uplands opposite Warren and back some distance from the river. His tract contained, according to the assessment roll, one hundred acres. He died on this farm not long after 1850. One son is now on the old homestead, and another son occupies another farm in this township. John Mead had 331 acres of land and a saw-mill about two miles west of the farm of Nathaniel Sill, and was there a number of years previous to 1 830. He was a member of the Mead family, which receives more particular mention in the history of Brokenstraw, and was a brother of Mrs. David Beatty. He moved on to the Brokenstraw and there died, about twenty-five years ago. William McDonald was an early settler (about 1826) on the south side of the river in the western part of this township. He was assessed in 1835 with 300 acres. John Raham, probably an Alsatian German, came to this township about 1832 or 1833, and took up fifty-four acres of land, now a part of Oakland Cemetery. He was taken with the land fever of 1837, however, and at that time sold out and went west. John Reig, an Alsatian German, settled early during the period of German immigration in the vicinity of Oakland Cemetery, where he remained until about 1850. He then removed to a farm near Irvinton, though in Cone- wango township, where he died in 1855. He was the father of Mrs. Andrew Hertzel, and his widow made her home with her daughter until her death, in 1884. l-'rederick Stroopler was an Alsatian German, who lived four or five years about one and a half miles from Warren in Pleasant, and went west in 1837. George Swigart, at Alsatian, resided from about 1832 to 1837 "P Sill Run. Alexander Van Horn, a Hollander, settled in Warren previous to 1826, 536 History of Warren County. and about 1832 settled on 120 acres of land, directly west of Nathaniel Sill's farm and only a few rods distant. He was a shoemaker by trade, and after a residence on this place a few years, sold and returned to Warren. About thirty years ago he was drowned in Conewango Creek. Philip Wendling, already mentioned as a German from Alsace, who came one of the first of immigrants, occupied a forty-seven-acre tract within the present limits of Oakland Cemetery until 1837, when he removed to Glade. In 1843 he went west, and at his death left children in Cook county. 111., who are there now. George Wiler was an early Alsatian settler on the farm adjoining that of Jacob Esher. In 1837 he sold his land and removed to Conewango township, where two of his sons, George and John, now reside. Jacob Wise, a German, whose wife was a sister of the wife of George Swigart, came at the same time as Swigart and settled near him, on Sill Run. He went away with Swigart. Pleasant township has been so situated as to need no post-office, the prox- imity of offices at Warren and Brokenstraw being deemed sufficiently conven- ient by the inhabitants. The same cause has operated to deter any one from attempting to establish a store of any kind in the township. The only kinds of occupation in the town, therefore, have been those of farming, in which the Germans were most numerous, and lumbering, which was almost entirely con- fined to settlers other than the Germans. Among the Germans who have en- gaged in lumbering with success may be named the several members of the Hertzel family. John and Nathaniel Sill have at times engaged in lumbering with success. The first steam saw-mill in town (we have already mentioned the mill of John Mead, which was operated by water) was that of one Morton, who built it about four miles south of the farm of Nathaniel Sill to saw the timber of Colonel L. F. Watson, about 1862. It kept in operation some fif- teen years, and sawed millions of feet of e.xcellent lumber. The next mill was built by William A. Wheeler, of Jamestown, N. Y., soon after the mill of Mor- ton was finished. It was afterward abandoned for a short time and went into the hands of Elijah and Alonzo Johnson, who sawed great quantities of lum- ber. It was about a mile south of the mill of Morton. It went down about 1870. Another steam mill, built and owned by Marsh & Kinnear, of Youngs- ville, situated south and west of the Johnson mill, went down about 1875 or 1876. A Mr. Satterly also built a steam mill in the west part of the township as early as 1862 or 1863, which he kept in operation ten or twelve years. There has never been a church nor a religious organization of any kind in town. This does not argue anything against the piety or religious habits of the inhabitants, as they usually belong to church organizations near their re- spective residences, but in other townships. There are at this writing seven schools in the township of Pleasant, and they are well conducted and effect the purpose of their establishment. Southwest Township. 537 CHAPTER XLVI. HISTORY OF SOUTHWEST TOWNSHIP. THIS township, which was formed from Deerfield in March, 1838, is situ- ated in the extreme southwestern corner of the county, whence its name, and is bounded north by the township of Eldred, east by Triumph, south by Venango county, and west by Crawford county. It is nearly square in outline. Its population at present does not exceed, perhaps, a thousand souls, of whom not more than two hundred constitute the village of Enterprise. The town is intersected by Pine Creek, which flows in a southwesterly direction and, with its tributaries, forms the principal natural drainage of the town. This stream was from the beginning known as the east branch of Oil Creek, and is still called occasionally by that name. Early Settlers. — That portion of Warren county west and north of Alle- gheny River was settled a number of years earlier than the part lying to the south and east — a fact which seems to affirm that even a stream no larger than the Allegheny River may form a boundary line or barrier which will mark the limit of human settlement for many years. Southwest township, or that portion of the county now confined within the limits of Southwest, was settled almost as early as any part of the county. We have no means of as- certaining the exact date of the first settlements, but they were probably about contemporary with the birth of the present century. One of the first settlers in the town, if he was not the first, was Richard Henderson, who had made quite a clearing here at the time the first list of taxables of the county was made out in 1806, lived about two miles east of the site of the village of En- terprise. His grandson, Clark Henderson, now owns and occupies the old homestead. He was what the other early settlers denominated a " Pennam- ite," /. c, a settler from the eastern part of Pennsylvania, as opposed to those who came from New York and England. There was considerable ill feeling between the Pennamites and the other settlers ; and Richard Henderson, though a quiet, peaceable man, was not exempt from this dislike, and would not min- gle much with his Yankee neighbors. He was a man of sterling character, however, one of the kind fitted by nature to fell the forests of a new country and aid in establishing schools and comfortable homes in the wilderness. He was in no sense of the word a public man, but attended strictly to his home affairs and family. We have not the date of Henderson's death, but it must have been as late as 1850, for settlers who did not come here until 1847 or 1848 remember him. He and Selden Spencer were for a number of years the only Whig voters in this township. Robert Hunter was another " Pennamite " settler, who came to this part of 538 History of Warren County. the county probably as early as 1800, and settled near to Richard Henderson. His son, Gates Hunter, now lives on the old homestead. Another son, Jared, lives not far from Grand Valley. Robert Hunter was one of the best citizens in the township, quiet and peace loving, industrious, temperate, and econom- ical. He reared a large family. He died previous to 1847, and probably as early as 1840. Thomas Gilson was another " Pennamite," whose settlement in town is probably dated as early as Henderson's and Hunter's. He was the first settler on the place some three miles and a half north of Enterprise, now owned and occupied by John Wales. He was a very active and prominent man among the early settlers, and was universally respected. He was passionately fond of hunting and trapping. He died not far from 1850. Mrs. Stowell Cheney is his daughter. Between the year 1806 and the year 1838, the date of the formation of the township, many settlements were planted in this forest territory, and cultivated fields took the place of tangled underbrush and thick woods. The period in- tervening between about 1825 and 1836, however, was the period of most rapid immigration. The following paragraphs disclose the names of the most prominent settlers of this period, together with the places of their settlement, and such information concerning them as is deemed of interest, not to their descendants, but to the present inhabitants of the township. The first name on the list is that of Jare Benedict. Particulars of his set- tlement and career are given in the sketch of his grandson, W. B. Benedict, appearing in later pages of this volume. His arrival to this township from New England was in the year 1833. He lived in the house afterward occu- pied by his widow, and in which he died. Selden Benedict, his son, came with him, and at the time of the formation of the township lived in the village of Enterprise, near the Spencer and Benedict mill. In 1840 he built the house now occupied by his son, W. B. Benedict. Elbridge Benedict settled in the village of Enterprise, where he remained until about 1 87 1, in which year he removed to Corry, Pa., where his widow now lives He died in Dakota in April, 1882, and was buried in Corry. His house in Enterprise was the sec- ond building west of Dunham's store. Elijah Bevier settled on a farm east of Enterprise and near the hamlet called Pineville. The Beviers were from Ulster county, N. Y., and went back previous to 1850, excepting Elijah Bevier himself, who remained in town and died here but three or four years ago. He was a man of domestic tastes, quiet and respectable. Benjamin Dunham settled two miles east of Enterprise on the Tidioute road, where he died many years ago. He reared a large family, some of whom, with their descendants, are 1 w living in \'enango county. Myron Dunham, now a respected citizen of tiic township, is his nephew. James Dunham was Southwest Township. 539 a brother of Benjamin and lived on tlie adjoining farm on the west. He was a bachelor. He died many years ago. William Dunham, another brother of Benjamin, lived about one mile east of Enterprise, where he operated a saw- mill of his own for a number of years. About 1870 he sold his property to W. B. Benedict, and removed to Venango county, where one son lives at the present writing. William Dunham died at a ripe old age about two years ago. Eli Dibble came to this town some time previous to 1838, and set up a carding-machine in the village of Enterprise nearly opposite the present resi- dence of Alonzo Wilson, on the Pleasantville road. His son, Marcus T. Dib- ble, is a justice of the peace in this township now. W^illiam Dunkin lived about a mile and a half north of Enterprise on the farm adjoining that of S. Cheney. He removed to Erie county. Pa., about 1866. He was a farmer of eccentric disposition. One son, John, now lives in Crawford county, near Titusville. His first wife was a daughter of George McCrea, of Crawford county, where he was an early settler. His second wife was a daughter of Thomas Gilson of this township. Simeon Frear settled on a tract of land about four and one-half miles east of Enterprise on the Tidioute road, where he remained until his death, many years ago. He was a farmer and lumberman. He had several sons, none of whom are here now. They removed to Vineland, N. J., about the year 1866. Hugh and William Gilson are mentioned in this list. They were sons of Thomas Gilson. The former settled on a farm five miles east of Enterprise on the Tidioute road, near Funk's mill, where he died a number of years ago. The latter occupied a part of his father's homestead north of the village, and after many years removed to some part of the Great West. Dr. Alonzo Heffron, who was the eldest brother of Mrs. Selden Benedict, and son of the celebrated Dr. Heffron, of Madison county, N. Y. (see sketch of W. B. Benedict), came to Southwest from Madison county in 1837, and practiced medicine here until about 1844, wlien he removed to Fabius, N. Y. He died at that place a few years ago. Warner Perry was born in Windham county, Conn., on the 7th of Novem- ber, 1800, and came to Warren county in May, 1826. He settled at once on the hill about half a mile northeast of Enterprise. About 1840 he built the first hotel in town, which stood on the Pleasantville road a few rods south of the present hotel in Enterprise. Here he passed the remainder of his days, dying on the 17th of September, 1863. He was the first postmaster in town, receiving the appointment between 1845 ^^^ 1850, and holding it until his death. He was a justice of the peace in this town for the thirty-three years immediately preceding his death. He was county commissioner two terms, commencing with 1 840, and in 1 860 took the census in his district, which then comprised portions of Warren, Venango, and Crawford counties. He was a 35 540 History of Warren County. Democrat, and, as has undoubtedly been Inferred from the public positions which he filled, he was a public-spirited man. He married Sarah Stowell, at Ashford, Conn., on the 24th of September, 1824, and by her reared a family of five children. Two of these only are living — Jason A., who now resides in Southwest, and Hiram S., who moved to Titusville in 1865, 'ind thence to Warren, where he now resides, in 1879. Dorus Wales came to Southwest from Ashford, \\'indham county, Conn., in 1826, with Warren Perry, and settled on the hill adjoining Mr. Perry's place on the east. One Williams built the first mill in town, on the site of the Ben- edict mill, which was afterward operated by Mr. Lee, and then passed into the hands of the Messrs. Benedict. But to Dorus Wales belongs the honor of building the second mill — on Pine Creek, about half a mile above Enterprise, on the site now occupied by the Benson mill. This mill Mr. Wales operated until his death in 1854. He was a stepfather of Mrs. Warner Perry. Dorus Wales was not a public man, but a good business man, and one who loved quiet better than contention. His only living child, John Wales, is now a resident of this township. Jonathan S. Cheney came to Southwest also from Windham county, Conn., in 1827, and settled on a farm about a mile east of Enterprise, on the Hender- son road, so called. In 1840 he married Alice, daughter of John Gilson, who resides in town to-day. He died on the old homestead in the summer of 1886. He was a hard-working, home-staying man. Three of his sons and three of his daughters still reside in Southwest. Enos Whitney, soon after 1833, settled about a mile east of Enterprise, on the Henderson road, and died a few years ago in Youngsville, where he had been for a number of years living with a daughter. None of his descendants now reside here. He was a laboring man. George Kellogg settled on the site of what is now called Pineville, in the southeastern part of the town, where he built and operated a saw-mill, and a pottery for the manufacture of stone ware, etc. His wife was a daughter of Simeon Frear. In the oil excitement of 1865 he sold his land and removed to Vineland, N. J. Truman Knight was a sawyer and worked for many years in the mills of Jare Benedict and of Spencer & Benedict. He came to Southwest from Cen- tral New York. He was especially noted for his gigantic structure and hercu- lean strength. He was the father of one son and a number of daughters. The son, Samuel, was killed by a bear when he was about fourteen years of age. Some thirty-five years ago Mr. Knight went to Wisconsin. John G. Smith, a native of Vermont, came here from Chautauqua county, N. v., about 183s, and settled in Enterprise, where he worked in the cloth- dressing mill of Alonzo Wilson. At a later day he engaged successfully in the lumber business, and finally removed to Muddy Creek, in Crawford county; Southwest Township. 541 thence he went on to a farm near Union City, in Erie county, where he is still living at the age of about eighty years. One son, Samuel R. Smith, now lives in Southwest. He was a prisoner in Andersonville prison fourteen months during the War of the Rebellion. Selden Spencer (who was born February 2, 1793, and died December 12, 1872) came to this township from West Stockbridge, Mass., about 1833, soon after the emigration of his partner, Jare Benedict. He and Mr. Benedict engaged for years together in the lumber business and were very successful. Mr. Spencer's house was right in the village of Enterprise. Selden Spencer was one of the most prominent men of this part of the county. His children, all but one, are living. Mary became the wife of Isaac B. Rowe, of this town; Harriet married George C. Pettit, and still resides here ; Egbert built the Spencer Hotel here about 1850 and kept it for many years, after which he engaged for some time in mercantile business, and finally went to Jamestown, N. Y., where he now lives ; Delia was married to Asbury Dawson, of Pleas- antville, Venango county, and now lives at Coldwater, Mich. Alonzo Wilson settled just south of where the hotel now is in Enterprise, in the house which is still standing there. He owned a carding-machine — the same one which was kept in operation by Eli Dibble. He was a brother- in-law of Selden Spencer, and came from Massachusetts about 1833. His. death occurred here not far from thirty years ago. He had two daughters^ both of whom married well. Delia became the wife of David H. Mitchell, who' came here about 1845, and was afterward well-known throughout the county.. He engaged in lumbering and in general mercantile business in Enterprise, his store being in the building now occupied by Myron Dunham. He also built an oil refinery directly below Enterprise, about 1862, and at the same time, and during his residence here, carried on a sort of private banking business. About 1 870 he removed to Titusville and established the Producers' and Man- ufacturers' Bank, of which he was made president. He and his wife both died in Titusville. Delia's sister, Laura, married Foster W. Mitchell, brother of David, who engaged also in lumbering and general mercantile business in En- terprise, and finally removed to Venango county. He now resides at Frank- lin. He is at the head of the banking house of F. W. Mitchell & Co., of Oil City, which is largely identified with the oil business. Peter Yost, whose wife was a sister of Samuel Grandin, of Tidioute, lived very early in the southwestern part of the township, near the present site of Benedict's mill. After living a few years at that place he removed some dis- tance southwest of Enterprise to the Grandin Farm, so called, in Venango county. Thomas Van Scoter Morian, who is at present the oldest merchant in this part of the county, was born in Steuben county, N. Y., in 18 18, and in 1842 married Clarinda Woods, of Pomfret, Chautauqua county, N. Y. They had a 542 History of Warren County. family of six children, four of whom, Carlos C, Elbridge R., Herbert T., and Eva C, are living now. In 1845 he came to Enterprise as a clerk for C. Smith, of Sinclairville, N. Y. Two years later he built his present store, and at that time became largely interested in general mercantile and lumber trade. In i860, when success seemed attainable only in the oil business, he left the store and began producing oil, and running it in barges from the mouth of Oil Creek (now Oil City), down the Allegheny River to Pittsburgh. Being an expert pilot on the river, he also carried on a large shipping business. By degrees, and as the oil excitement abated, he returned to his former occupa- tion in Enterprise. His father, Jacob Morian, was born in Germany in 1782. Not liking the prospects which promised Napoleon the subjugation of all Europe, he decided to remove to America, and upon arriving here settled in Philadelphia. He afterward went to Steuben county, N. Y., and married Lydia Van Scoter. By her he had nine children, six of whom, Anthony, John, Margaret, Alexander, Thomas, and Lydia, are still living. Jacob Morian served in the War of 1812, and was under Colonels Brown and Scott, at Lundy's Lane. In 1830 he removed his family to Chautauqua county, N. Y. He died in 1862, and was followed by his widow in 1869. Both are buried in Forest Hill cemetery, of Fredonia, N. Y. Southwest in 1847. — When Mr. Morian began his mercantile career in this township in 1847, there was no village of Enterprise in existence. The terri- tory had become more thickly populated than it was at the time of the forma- tion of the township in 1837, but it was still in a great part uncultivated, and with considerable tracts covered with the virgin forests. In what is now the village of Enterprise there were about nine houses. Selden Spencer lived a few rods north of the present store of T. V. S. Morian, and had cleared the greater part of the present village site. As has been stated, Mr. Spencer was a very active and prominent man, a determined Whig and a devoted Metho- dist. A a little way west of his house, at this time, lived Annis, widow of Jare Benedict. There was quite a clearing in the pine forest back of this house. Spencer and Benedict had a mill near to Benedict's house. For a history of the Benedict family and the prominent part that they have always borne in business and public affairs in this township and county, the reader is requested to scan the sketch of Mr. W. B. Benedict in later pages. In 1847, where the hotel now stands, was a story and a half house owned by Selden Spencer, and occupied by T. V. S. Morian as a dwelling house. In the latter part of this year Mr. Morian built his present store, left the employ- ment of the Sinclairville Quaker, C. Smith, and started for himself South of this house, on the road toward Pleasantville, where J. A. Perry now lives, was then the house of C. O. Child, a shoemaker. He had a small 10 by 12 shop just south of his house. This part of the town was extensively cleared at that time. ^ S ^^^--^^ Southwest Township. 543 About I 864 Mr. Child became quite wealthy by selling lands for oil purposes, and removed to Philadelphia, where he lost all his acquisitions, it is said. About six rods south of Child's house stood that of Enos Whitney, who has been mentioned in an earlier page. About thirty rods still farther to the south on this street lived Alonzo Wil- son, and on the opposite side of the street stood his carding- machine. Mr. Wilson was shrewd enough to invest his money in New York State at seven per cent, rather than in this State at six per cent. Some ten rods west of the store of Mr. Morian, on the road to Titusville, lived, in a little 16 by 20 house, one Edward Landas, a stone-mason and laborer. He lived here until about 1850, when he was killed by being thrown from a raft. The next house on that street, occupied by Stephen Brown, stood about thirty rods west of the site of the hotel. On the opposite side of the street he had a small foundry in which he manufactured plow-points, sled-shoes, etc. He went west about 1852. or 1853. In the next house west, and on the north side of the street, about half a mile from that of Mr. Brown, lived a Mr. Free- man, a laborer. He died soon after this time. A son, Morris, lives in Enter- prise now. Next was the house — the frame of which is still in use — then owned and occupied by Selden Benedict, whose son, W. B. Benedict, lives in it at the present time. Still farther west some thirty rods, on the north side of the street, was a log house occupied by M. F. Benedict, brother of Selden Bene- dict. That was the utmost house in the neighborhood. Outside the site of the village the clearings were few and small, and far between. The principal business of the people was lumbering. There must have been at that time eighteen or twenty saw-mills in active operation in the township of which we are writing. Among these may be mentioned the mill of George Kellogg near Pineville, that of Warner Perry and Dorus Wales about seventy rods east of Enterprise, that of William Dunham a little farther to the southeast, the Spencer and Benedict mill just north of the village, E. G. Benedict's mill a few rods south of Enterprise, that of S. S. and M. F. Bene- dict some distance to the west, while a long distance farther west, on the Titus- ville road, stood the mill owned and operated jointly by Forbes, Johnson, and Bela Tracy. Twelve years later, or in 1859, there were ten large mills in town, all on Pine Creek, which sawed about 5,000,000 feet in all a year, besides large quantities of shingles. Present Business. — The saw and shingle-mills in town at this writing are as follows : J'., F. and \ . Shepard, under the firm name of Shepard & Brothers, own and operate a large steam mill about half a mile east of the village of Enterprise. George Zover & Sons havs a mill in the village ; C. E. Potter, of Pineville, owns and operates a mill in the eastern part of the township ; Mr. Isinger has one in the northeast part of the town ; C. H. Ames has two mills 544 History of Warren County. on the D., A. V. & P. Railroad, which cut vast amounts of lumber ; Jesse Whee- lock has one on the same railroad a short distance east of the mills of Mr. Ames ; near this is the steam shingle-miil of Frank Adams ; T. L. Cheney has a shingle-mill about two miles northeast of the village ; and J. F. Stearns has a shingle and cider-mill nearly a mile north of Pineville. The streams having in the past few years diminished in volume in consequence of the clearing away of forests, now fail to furnish the water power of former days, and all the mills now in town are operated by steam. There are two general stores in town. That of T. V. S. Morian, already mentioned, which was opened in 1847, closed from i860 to 1867, and from that time to the present open again. Mr. Morian has not altogether aban- doned his interest in the oil business, although he subordinates it to his mer- cantile occupation. Myron Dunham also deals in general merchandise in Enterprise. About twenty-two years ago he went in with David H. Mitchell, and two years later was a partner with V. S. Benedict four or five years. We have already observed that Warner Perry built the first hotel in town, and that the present hotel was built by Selden Spencer about 1850. The pres- ent proprietor, J. S. Forbush, came to Enterprise in March, 1886. The post-office was established at ICnterprise a short time previous to 1850, by the appointment of Warner Perry to the dignity of first postmaster. Pre- vioue to that time the mail was obtained from Holland post-office (now Pleasant- ville), once a week. After Mr. Perry's death in September, 1863, D. H. Mitch- ell was made postmaster, and was in turn succeeded by the present postmaster, Myron Dunham, about 1875 or 1876. The office of Scofield, which is located at Pineville, is of much more recent origin. The postmaster there at present is Philip Robinson. The first reli-^ious services in the township were held in private houses. This style of edifice gave place in time to school-houses, and about 1870 the present church edifice was erected by a union of all denominations. The pre- vailing denominations in early days, and indeed at present, were and are Baptist and Methodist Episcopal. Among the former were the Benedict family, while Selden Spencer and Enos Whitney, were most prominent among the Metho- dists. There was not in early times much religious fervor observable in this part of the county, owing, no doubt, to the sparseness of population. The first school in town was taught in the winter of 1836-37, by Mrs. Ben- edict, in a little tailor shop, twelve by fourteen feet. Twelve pupils were in attendance. The term was three months in length. The teacher received twelve dollars per month, and had the rare privilege of boarding herself Kirkham's Grammar, Daboll's Arithmetic, Webster's Speller, and the old English Reader were the text-books. The present school-house in Enterprise was built in 1850, and was occupied by Marshall Coach, of New York, as teacher. Eldred Township. 545 CHAPTER XLVII. HISTORY OF ELDRED TOWNSHIP. THIS township was formed from Southwest on the Sth day of September, 1843, and was named from Judge Eldred, a sketch of whose life is writ- ten in this work. The credit of procuring the formation and organization of the township belongs justly to Samuel W. B. Sanford, who drew up, circulated, and pushed through the petition upon which the order of the court was based. The township is situated in the western tier of townships of the county, and is bounded as follows : North by Spring Creek, east by Pittsfield, Deerfield, and Triumph, south by Southwest, and west by Crawford county. Eldred is quite regular in outline, being nearly a square in form. The soil is generally a sandy loam, and is well adapted for agriculture, particularly for grazing. No town- ship in Warren county is gifted so abundantly with perennial springs of water, and it has been said on good authority that within a few years, when lumber- ing has completely given place to farming, Eldred will be the principal dairy- ing township in this part of the State. Already many farms produce two tons of hay per acre ; spring wheat from ten to twenty-five bushels, and oats from forty to eighty bushels to the acre. Early Settlements. — Eldred, like all the townships in Northwestern Penn- sylvania which do not border on some important water way, was left uninhab- ited by man many years after the river lands had become quite thickly popu- lated. Lumbering being the chief industry, kept the inland tracts untouched until the forests along the rivers had been cleared away, and the enterprising white man had to penetrate farther into the wilderness to continue his chosen occupation. The first settler in the township of Eldred, as now limited, was probably Lovell Greeley, an uncle of the illustrious Horace Greeley, who came hither soon after the year 1 830, and took up lands in the northwestern corner of what is now the township. He remained here about ten years, and made a considerable clearing. About 1840, after Mr. Greeley had removed from this territory, his place was occupied by Elijah Leroy Williams, who remained on the farm not less than twenty years and died there. Between 1830 and 1838 only four new settlers arrived to cheer the lonely heart of L. Greeley. About 1835 John R. Smith emigrated from New York State hither, and engaged some seven or eight years in farming on a lot now in the southwestern part of the township. At the end of this time he returned to New York. Robert Robinson lived on the farm next north of that of Smith. He had been a drinking man in New York city, and his son sent him out in the wilderness to take him away from the allurements of the town and city. He went back about 1842 or 1843, leaving no descendants in town. John Cullom 546 History of Warren County. afterward purchased this farm of Robinson's grantee, and has now been a res- ident upon it for more than thirty years. Ezra Trim came to the same farm he now occupies, in 1837, from Olean, N. Y. He was taxed at first with only twenty-five acres, but has by degrees increased his possessions. His brother Simeon came at the same time, and until within ten years last past lived near him. He now resides not far from Corry. Ezra Trim has gained his competence by economy and industry. He is a good citizen and a conscien- tious Democrat. Samuel W. B. Sanford, one of the most prominent of Eldred's citizens, and now about the oldest, came here from New York State in 1838. He has always taken a most active interest in the affairs of the township, and is worthy of the esteem with which he is universally regarded. We recommend our readers to peruse the sketch of his life which appears in that of his son, J. G. Sanford, in later pages of this book. From the time of the arrival of the first four or five settlers, as already named, to the time of the formation of the township, immigration poured a full flood of good men into the tract embraced within the township limits, and the forests began to fall visibly away beneath the strokes of the ax. The names of the more prominent settlers mentioned in the first list of taxables in 1844, appear in the paragraphs immediately following, in the order in which they are written in the list itself: John M. Carr lived on the farm originally settled by John R. Smith. A short time previous to 1850, however, he re- moved to a place about a mile north of it, where he remained until his death, some ten years later. He was a blacksmith by trade, and was not inclined to take a very active part in public affairs. He usually voted the Democratic ticket. His son, James Carr, is now a resident of this township. David Cutler settled the farm now occupied by James Carr, and continued thereon until his death, about 1855. He has descendants in Eldred now. His father, Sheldon Cutler, also lived for a time near his farm, but soon moved away. From about 1S40, or a little later, until May, 1876, when he died, Noah Hand occupied a farm a few rods south of Ezra Trim's. He was an indus- trious farmer and a very prominent man. He became wealthy, and in later years engaged considerably in trading. For many years, also, he converted his house into a tavern when the comfort or convenience of wayfarers de- manded it. His health became poor at last. He was an active man in town- ship affairs, and was devoted to the destiny and principles of the Republican party. He was twice married and had but one child. His farm was first set- tled by a man named Willis, who died early and was buried there, and was, in- deed, the first person buried in the township. Leicester Kelley lived in the south part of the- township, and engaged in- dustriously in farming until about 1864 or 1865, when he became inoculated with the oil fever and sold out, removing with all his family. \. Eldred Township. 547 Jeremiah Main lived rather to the east of the township center, and engaged in farming. Although not a prominent man in political affairs, he was strongly Democratic in sentiment. During the oil excitement of more than twenty years ago he sold out and removed to the State of New York. A daughter, Mrs. Levi Pierce, is still residing in Eldred. Cyrus S. Oviatt, still residing here, lived in 1844 about one and one-half miles north of his present farm. He has been twice married, and a number of his twenty-four children are still in Eldred. David H. Sanford, a brother of Samuel W. B. Sanford, came here at the same time and settled southwest from his farm, on the same tract. After liv- ing there about fifteen years, he removed to Erie, Pa., where he remained un- til about 1874. He then returned to Eldred, and here died in the spring of 1876. Although he has no descendants in town, they are scattered through the State. About 1842 David White immigrated hither from the vicinity of Albany, N. Y., and settled in the south part of the township, on the place now occu- pied by Mr. Hatmaker. It is said that previous to the War of 181 2 that farm was occupied for a time by a man of the name of White, who went away dur- ing the war because of fear of the Indians. The Jeremiah Main place was also settled as early as 1806, for a very brief period, by Richard Cunningham, who went away during the War of 1812. On this (Hatmaker) farm David White died a number of years ago. He was quite prominent and took con- siderable interest in township matters. He was a member of the old Whig party. Two of his sons and two of his daughters now reside in this township, named respectively Alonzoand John, and Mrs. George Chappie and Mrs. Mary Brown. Charles M. Williams came here with the Sanford family in 183S, and set- tled on the same tract. He died in about ten years. Jacob Young came from New York State in 1838 and settled in the north- east corner of the township, where he remained to the day of his death, ten or eleven years ago. He was a good, quiet, industrious man, by occupation a farmer and blacksmith. Three sons, Mansel, Joseph, and Wesley, now live in Eldred township. Early Industries, etc. — The first mill in the township was built by David White on his farm. Mr. White operated this mill for many years, until, in spite of frequent repairs, it was worn out and went down. The first store was kept by Stephen Mead on the David White farm, and was opened during the oil excitement, about 1 862. The first regular tavern was opened by Leicester Kelley a few years before the war, and continued until about 1865. The first postmaster was David Cutler, who was appointed some time pre- vious to 1850. The office, as now, was called Eagle. Cutler's successors have been Benjamin F. Wallace, Alvin Way, Benjamin F. Wallace, and the present 548 History of Warren County. incumbent, who was appointed under President Cleveland's administration. About fifteen years ago the post-office called " Star " was established by the appointment of John Main. In about five years Charles Carr followed him, and the office was removed to Grand Valley. E. W. Thompson was then ap- pointed, and has been succeeded by F. A. Wood, and the present postmaster, William Pierce, appointed by the present administration. Grand Valley. — Not until after the construction of the Dunkirk, Allegheny Valley and Pittsburgh Railroad some sixteen years ago, was there a suspicion that the site of Grand Valley was so soon to be covered by a thriving and promising village. During the earlier years of the township the ground was owned and occupied by Stephen Mead, who succeeded David White, and who kept the first store in the township. Enos W. Thompson — still a respected resident of this town — at a later date, but still quite early in the history of the township, owned the most of the village site, and engaged extensively and suc- cessfully in farming. About 1864 or 1865 he purchased the store of Stephen Mead and moved it to his place, where he kept it until about three years ago. He then sold it to his sons, A. R. & A. L. Thompson, who still engage largely in mercantile operations. Another man, to whom is due much credit for his enterprise and public spirit in building up this village, is L. B. Wood. Shortly after the railroad was opened Mr. Wood started a store, which he still owns and conducts as a hard- ware store. He also bought the mill of Mclntyre, Merritt & Co., which was built some sixteen years ago, and still operates it. Grand Valley now contains not far from 200 population, more than half of the village being the direct fruit of the oil excitement. Among the saw- mills and other factories in the township may be men- tioned that of C. H. Whaley. He has a saw and shingle-mill about one mile west of Grand Valley. Although he has made shingles for not less than twenty years, he has owned the saw-mill but four years. George Whaley also owns a shingle-mill about half a mile north of Grand Valley, which he built some three years ago. A. M. Parker, in partnership with the Reno Oil Com- pany, owns and operates a saw-mill about one and a quarter miles north of Grand Valley, which they built in the summer of 1886. The saw-mill of Rome & Brother, in the northern part of the township, was built about four years ago. There are five stores in Grand Valley. The oldest, which has already been mentioned, is that of A. R. Thompson & Brother. The store of J. P. Miracle was first opened by L. B. Wood, who with his brother, F. A. Wood, kept it for a number of years, and in April, 1886, sold to the present owner. L. B. Wood & Brother are now in the oil-well supply and hardware trade, and have invested in oil, gas, and lumber. They have a saw-mill at Newton, in Deer- field township, besides the one in Eldrcd. Eldred Township. 549 Since his appointment to the postmastership, in the spring of 1886, Will- iam Pierce has kept a grocery connected with his office. The drug store of G. W. Peck was established by him in Grand Valley, in the spring of 1886. Previous to that time he had been one of the firm of G. W. Peck, Wood & Co., which for about two years kept a store at Star Station. They were there succeeded, when Mr. Peck came to Grand Valley, by Samuel Graham. The first hotel at Grand Valley was built early in 1879, and opened in April of that year by J. N. Gerow. It was burned on the 19th of September, 1883, and on the 20th of the. folio wing September, Mr. Gerow moved into his present house. He now has room for many guests, and is well qualified both by nature and training, to provide for the comfort of travelers. Previous to his beginnings here in the hotel, he had for about twelve years been in the employment of L. B. Wood & Co., in the lumber business. Schools and Churches. — At the time of the formation of this township, there were but thirteen votes in Eldred. Previous to 1843, and as early as 1836, however, a school was supported by subscription in a joint district of Crawford and Warren counties. About 1840 a log school-house, the first in Eldred, was biiilt about a mile northeast of the present Sanford school-house, and was very soon, within a year, followed by a school-house near the John R. Smith farm. Upon the formation of the township in 1843, the schools were no longer maintained by individual subscription, as theretofore, but were kept up by the unseated land tax and State appropriation, and as other settlers came in other schools were built. There are now eight good schools in Eldred. The most active friend of the schools, for many years from the beginning, was S. W. B. Sanford, to whom is due the organization of the township, any many other acts of praiseworthy character. The present school- house at Grand Valley was built in the fall of 1885, and has two well-conducted departments. The present, and first principal, is Mr. McClellan. The attendance here is nearly two hundred. The first church edifice in Eldred was erected by the United Brethren about i860, previous to which time services were held at irregular intervals in school-houses and private houses. The first religious organization in Eldred was of the Methodist denomination. Services were held by them as early as 1840. Samuel W. B. Sanford was one of the foremost Methodists in town. These are the only denominations now in the township. It is stated on good authority that soon the Methodist Church will erect an edifice at Grand Valley, and that the preparations are already complete. The first Methodist preacher in town, remembered by the inhabitants, was Rev. Rev. M. Hinebaugh, who supplied this appointment from Youngsville in 1844. 5 so History of Warren County. CHAPTER XLVni. HISTORY OF GLADE TOWNSHIP. GLADE township, lying northeast of the center of Warren county, is an irregular tract, bounded north by Pine Grove and Elk townships, east by Allegheny River, separating it from Kinzua, south by the same stream, sepa- rating it from Kinzua and Mead, and west by Conewango Creek, separating it from Conewango township. This township has in past years produced to its inhabitants and others considerable wealth from the abundance of its timber, and in the future, as to some extent it has in the near past, it may be product- ive of oil in great quantities, but as a farming town, it is destined to no very brilliant achievements, except by the most stupendous labors of the population, and generous fertilization. Much of the soil, in which an average clay pre- dominates, is reasonably productive, but the surface of the country is so rocky and broken as to be almost inaccessible to the plow. Nevertheless a few tracts which have been improved, are doing well. The name Glade was first applied to the stream now known as Glade Run, probably from the surrounding scenery, etc., and upon the organization of the township, on the 8th of March, 1844, it was extended to the entire territory comprised within the township limits. Early Settlements. — Undoubtedly the first permanent settler within the present boundaries of Glade was James Shipman, who emigrated hither pre- vious to 1800, cleared land embracing the present farm of Guy C. Irvine, and built and occupied a plank house. The plank were sawn at Morrison's mill just over the river in Mead. Previous to 18 17 Shipman removed to what is still known, after him, as Shipman's Eddy, still in Glade, on land which had been for a short time previously occupied by a blacksmith named John Mor- rison. His first farm, now the Irvine place, was next occupied by Levi Leon- ard, who remained there a few years, went down the river to Conewango town- ship, where he froze to death about 1830. Meantime Shipman continued at the Eddy until his death about 1838 or 1839. He was a man of extraordinary stature, and was seemingly well fitted for the toils of a pioneer. He had a large family, and his three sons, William, James, jr., and Matthew, lived near him. Matthew, who remained there longer than the others, died ten or twelve years ago, and left a daughter, now Mrs. John Eddy. After Levi Leonard left the Irvine lot, Josiah Hook was taken into the de- serted house, and left to the ravages of the small-pox, which had " gat hold on him." After his death the house was burned. The property remained then in the hands of Jacob Hook, of whom Andrew Irvine bought it in 1835, and re- moved to it in the following year. Glade Township. 551 Jacob Hook owned all the land along the creek, including the entire site of Glade City, before 18 16, though he lived at his saw-mill across the river in Mead. This mill, which had five saws, was one of the largest mills on the Allegheny River at that day. In 18 19 he built the large barn now standing on the farm of Guy C. Irvine. He died at Pittsburgh in 1827, while there on business. At that time he was one of the most extensive of the lumbermen in the entire State. He owned also a quarter interest in the old Pittsburgh bridge. He was a brother of Orren Hook, who will be mentioned in a later page. The family came from New Hampshire. He was a bachelor, and at the time of his death was in the prime of life. Another brother, Moses, owned his mill after his death, and later still transferred it to Orren Hook, who in turn operated it until it went down. The property is now known as Wardwell's, and it is the center of quite an oil field. A short time prior to 18 16, too, David Jackson lived in Glade, but in 1822 removed to Warren, where he soon built the Mansion House. His farm in Glade included the property now designated as the Frank Hook farm. David Jackson lived in Warren county until his death, a little more than twenty years ago. John King, father of J. H. King, now of. Warren, was with David Jackson in Glade from 1817 to 1822, under a separate lease, on the farm now owned by Thomas Struthers. It was in 1 81 8 that one Thomas Murphy came up the river from Pitts- burgh in a keel boat with a load of flour, and went up the Conewango, through Pine Grove, to Jamestown, and across Chautauqua Lake to Mayville, after which he returned by the same route to Pittsburgh with a load of salt. This was one of the first trips ever taken for mercantile purposes along this route and in this manner. Murphy now lives near Pittsburgh. By the time that Glade was formed the settlers had become quite numer- ous, and tax lists afford a good avenue of information concerning their names and property acquisitions. The following were among the most prominent of these early settlers : John Allen came to the township about 1836, when he was already well advanced in years. He settled in Indian Hollow on the farm now owned and occupied by Jacob Sutter. His death probably took place soon after the for- mation of the town. His wife died on the same farm. No children are living in Glade now. William Goodrich, of Union, is a grandson of John Allen. Previous to 1836 John S. Davis settled and cleared the farm now owned by Albert Kerberger, where he also engaged to some extent in the business of a carpenter. He removed at a later day to Illinois, where he died. His son, Jerome, is now a resident of Warren. James L., John N., and Ferdinand S. Davis were the other sons of John S. Davis, and lived with him. James L. improved the place now owned by L. A. Siggins. Eliakim Davis settled, long prior to 1836, on the farm on Quaker Hill now owned by William Gebhardt. He went to Ohio soon after the year 1845. 552 History of Warren County. David Cook, a farmer, settled about 1830 on the place now owned by Ross Kerr, near Cobham Park. He died, probably, as early as 1850. His son James now lives in Glade, and two other sons, Amariah and Norton, reside in Warren. About 1836 William Culbertson settled at Big Bend, on the place now occupied by Randall Geer, and there, before a road had been opened to the farm, built the first tavern within the limits of Glade as now constituted. Dur- ing the lumber seasons he had a good trade, especially in whisky, of which he sold large quantities. He died in Glade but a few years ago. In the earlier days of the township he was quite a prominent man. One brother, Isaac, now resides in Glade, and others of his relatives and descendants are scattered through the county. Alexander Culbertson, a brother of William, died in Glade some thirty years ago or more, having passed a number of years on the farm opposite Kinzua, first cleared by John Strong. Zachariah Eddy, jr., now a citizen of Warren, lived in 1845 o" '^h^ Lacy farm, in Glade, just above the home of Guy C. Irvine. While in Glade Mr. Eddy was very active, energetic, and public spirited. He did not remain there long after 1 850. John S. Gilson, who lived in Glade at this time, and who died more than thirty years ago, was a hunter by trade and occupation. He lived at what is known as the Round Turn, where Willis's Hotel now is. One son, Samuel, is now in Michigan, and another, Peter, is in Tiona. Adam Harmon, still living in Glade, in 1845 had quite a clearing at the mouth of Hemlock Run. He has earned his competence by hard and honest labor, and is one of the worthiest citizens of the township, by common con- sent. S. D. Hall settled on the place now owned by Ira Eggleston, and became by virtue of his activity and good sense one of the most prominent men in the township. He was frequently placed in positions of trust and responsibility. His death occurred about thirty years ago. Two of his sons, Miloand Oscar, and one daughter, Mrs. H. A. Jamieson, now reside in Warren. Hugh Holt, an Englishman, lived on and owned the farm now the property of Philip Lenhart, in Hatchtown. He came to Glade as early as 1836, but did not immediately settle on the Lenhart farm. He was an industrious farmer and lumberman, and was constable of Glade township for a number of years. Not far from 1850 he removed to Conneaut, Ohio, where he still lives. Abel Holt, his brother, lived in the same neighborhood, and went to Richmond, Ohio, a few years after the removal of Hugh. William Holt, their father, who came to Glade as early as 1830, lived in the same vicinity, and became quite prominent. He died previous to 1850, and his son James now occu- pies the old homestead. John Hackney, a Mohawk Dutcliman, so called because he came of an old Glade Township. 553 Dutch family in the Mohawk valley in New York, settled about the time that the township was formed on the farm now occupied by his son, Tanner Hack- ney, where he lived until his death, about 1858 or i860. He was active, prominent, and influential in all matters pertaining to the welfare of his town, and was often made to serve in some official capacity. Although not a lum- berman, he invested in land to some extent. He was a man of good charac- ter, and was a deacon in the Presbyterian Church. His daughter Sarah now resides in Warren. Walter W. Hodges and Derrick Hodges, brothers, came from Yates or Tompkins county, N. Y., previous to 1840, and went back, it is thought, as early as 1845. The former owned land now owned by David Beaty, adjoin- ing the Kerberger farm, by did not live there. Derrick lived at what is called Hodges's Run, then in Glade, but now in Elk. Dorastus Hatch, from whom is derived the name of Hatchtown, was here quite early, and cleared, owned, and occupied the farm in Hatchtown now owned by James H. Eddy, where he remained until his death, but a few years ago. He was there as early as 1820. He had served ably as a soldier of the War of i8l2, and showed himself to be a man of worth in war and in peace. He owned a small saw-mill, and engaged quite successfully in the lumber trade. He had a large family of sons and daughters. Of them all, Joseph now lives in Chautauqua county, N. Y., Erastus is in Kentucky, and one daughter is in California. Francis Hook came from New Hampshire to Warren, and thence, about 1836, settled in what is therefore called Hooktown, where he remained until his death, more than ten years ago. He was a good business man, a farmer, horse dealer, speculator in land, etc. He built the first iron abutment under the bridge across Conewango Creek. Orren Hook, uncle to the last mentioned, was a conspicuous figure among the speculators in land and lumber in this part of Warren county for many years. As early as 1834 he owned no less than 900 acres of land in Glade, including Glade City, and to the present farm of John McWilliams. In 1836 he lived just below the dam, on the farm now owned by Thomas Struthers. In 1837 he went to Hook's Mills in Kinzua township, though in a few years he returned to Glade. On his return he built a hotel in Glade Run, called the " Glade Run House," and about 1856 built a large dwelling house near the site of the present railroad station, where he died but twelve or fifteen years ago. He was a man of almost unlimited personal resources of mind and body, and besides his prominence in business, was an active and influential public citizen. In 185 i he was elected county commissioner, which position he filled to the perfect satisfaction of his constituents. A number of his children sur- vive, among them being Clinton Hook, at Glade Station, and Mrs. Irvin Mead. Two sons, Frank and Orren, were killed in the last war. 554 History of Warren County. Andrew Irvine bought 394 acres of land of Orren Hook in 1834, which in- cluded the farm now owned by his son, Guy C. Irvine, and in 1835 built the brick portion of the house which is still standing on the farm. In 1836 he removed into it from Bradford county, when Guy C. Irvine was in his thir- teenth year, he being a native of Towanda, in Bradford county. Andrew Ir- vine was born near Watsontown, Pa., and emigrated to Bradford county in 1813 or 1 8 14. He was a tanner and currier by trade, and followed that busi- ness in Towanda, and in some measure here in connection with farming and lumbering on the river. He was a prominent and useful business man, and always took an active and vigorous part in the matters relating to the well- being of the township. He died at his home in Glade in 1853, and was fol- lowed by his widow about 1866. His eldest daughter, Jane D., died there in June, 1886; Mary F. died in 1876; B. Franklin died in Tununangwant, N. Y., more than ten years ago. Guy C. and Thomas now reside in Glade, and a daughter, Catherine Parker, lives in Bradford. Philip Lenhart, the father of his namesake now living in Conewango, lived on the farm on the creek now owned by Thomas Struthers, and built a brew- ery there about the year 1846, the only brewery that ever blessed the surface of the township. He was a prominent farmer and lumberman. He died a few years ago in Conewango township, where his son Philip now has a brew- ery. He has left numerous children in the county, all of whom are accounted respectable and worthy. James McAffee, father of Mrs. Andrew Irvine, was a native of Northumber- land county, served as a major in the War of 18 12, at Erie, Buffalo, and other points. During his stay in Glade he lived with Andrew Irvine, and died about 1855. Hugh Main, a Scotchman and a farmer, lived on the farm now owned by S. J. Page on Glade Run, near Cobham Park. He came thither as early as 1828 or 1830. He afterward kept a meat-market and general store in Warren, and removed thence to Red Wing, Minn., where he died thirty years ago. He was remarkable for his quiet and unobtrusive industry and economy. Barney Owen was an old settler in the northwestern part of the township, on the farm now owned by his nephew, Orrin Jones. He died there about 1875 or 1876. He was of a quiet and retiring disposition, provident and good-natured, and is spoken of as a " nice old man." He left no children. Amariah Plumb, who died about fifteen years ago, was a cooper by occu- pation, and settled near Cobham Park prior to 1840. Before that time he lived for a time in Warren. He was several times married, and left a number of grandchildren here, though his children are all gone. Davidson Russell was the first and a very early settler on the farm after- ward owned and occupied by Hugh Holt, and now by Mr. Lenhart. He was a son of Robert Russell, of Pine (irove. About 1840 he went to Kiantone, N. Y., and thence at a later time to the West. ^/^X- Glade Township. 555 Thomas Struthers, of Warren, owned a part of what is called City Point as early as 1837. John Strong cleared the farm afterward occupied by Alexander Culbertson, and lived there from 1832 or 1833 until his death, about 1845. He used to quarry stone on his place and dispose of it in Warren for hearths, headstones, sidewalks, etc. Several of his sons are now in Kinzua. He was a man of in- dustrious and temperate habits, and was universally respected and liked. William Snyder seems to have come from Yates county, N. Y., previous- to 1830, and settled on the farm east of Cobham Park, now occupied by Peter M. Smith. In the decade of years intervening between 1850 and i860 he died, on the farm now occupied by John Cramer. Norman, John, Mrs. Abel Porter, Mrs. Hugh Holt, and Mrs. Johnson were his children. He was a bright-minded man, a good farmer, a resolute Whig, and an enthusiastic Baptist. He was an old man at the time of his death. His family are all gone. Daniel Nesmith settled about the time of the formation of the township, in the upper part of Hooktown, where he lived long and acquired a good prop- erty. He was a brother of Benjamin Nesmith, of Warren. Two sons, John and Homer, and one daughter. Rose, wife of Richard Orr, now live in Warren. Daniel Nesmith was well deemed a valuable citizen of Glade, and was to the Methodist persuasion what William Snyder was to the Baptist. Samuel Storam, a mulatto, cleared a part of a hundred-acre tract, now in- cluded in the farm of Guy C. Irvine, as early as 1834. He came to this farm from Pine Grove. He and his wife died of small-pox in 1854, on the farm owned by their son Samuel. Another son in Glade is Nelson, while a third, Henry, is in Pittsfield. James Shipman, one of the three sons of James Shipman, sr., who has re- ceived mention, lived at Shipman's Eddy, and as early as 1840 erected a hotel there for the accommodation of raftsmen. This he kept until his death, a few years later, when he was succeeded by Charles W. H. Verbeack, who married his widow. Shipman was extremely fond of hunting, and was a good " shot." Charles Whitcomb came as early as 1838 to the place just below Glade Run, now occupied by Jacob Baldensperger. He went to Kinzua about 1853 or 1854, where he is yet living. His father, Paul, lived with him in Glade. Joseph Dunn was a settler of about 1836 on the farm now occupied by his widow and two daughters, next south of Barney Owen. He was a good farmer, and died there about five years ago. His sons, Samuel, Daniel, and John, now live in Warren. Rhodolphus Arnold had a log shoe-shop a short time near William Culbert- son's, and afterward near Hook's mill in Mead township. William Zeigler, a Pennsylvania Dutchman, cleared the farm now owned by Frederick Wentz, and lived thereon from 1838 or 1839 until about 1880, when he removed to Warren. ^'' 556 History of Wakken County. Cobham Park and its Authors. — As yet the family, which by peculiar dis- tinction, is in some respects most worthy of mention, has not been named. George Ashworth Cobham, sr., was born at St. Asaph, in Wales, on the 20th of January, 1803, and was the third son of Elijah Cobham, one of the merchant princes of Liverpool, England. Mr. Cobham practiced law for some years at Liverpool, and afterward removed to Fearns Hall, at Rosendale, near Man- chester, which he rebuilt and occupied. In 1828 he married Catherine Cob- ham, the widow of his eldest brother, Henry Cobham, and daughter of John Gilmore Curry, M. D., of the same place. Henry Cobham had been accident- ally killed by a gun-shot wound in July, 1825. The young couple continued to reside at Fearns Hall until 1832, when they went to France and resided at Paris and Havre. In the autumn of 1834 they emigrated to this country, and in the summer of 1835 settled on tract 5536 (1,000 acres) in Elk, afterward Glade township. Here he built a fine residence, which he called Cobham Park, and on which he continued to reside until his death, on the 6th of October, 1870. His wife preceded him, dying on the 27th of July, 1867, and he was buried beside her on the ground surrounding the residence. They had four children, Frederick Fearns Cobham, born at Fearns Hall, September 7th, 1831, died at Jamestown, Chautauqua county, N. Y., on the 21st of May, 1835 ; Georgina Catherine Cobham, born at Havre, France, on the 20th of March, 1834, and died at Cobham Park, August 7, 1882 ; Elizabeth Cobham, born at Cobham Park, April 1 1, 1837, and now residing on a part of the old farm ; and Alice Cobham, born at Cobham Park, June 19, 1839, and now residing at Cob- ham Park. Henry Cobham, born on the 24th of Januar\', 1824, at London, England, was the eldest son of Henry Cobham, a barrister of Liverpool, who was de- scended in direct line from Lord Cobham, the martyr who was burned at the stake at Smithfield, in the reign of Henry V, at the instigation of Thomas Ar- undel, Archbishop of Canterbury, because he was one of the followers of Wic- liffe, and assisted him in the publication of his translation of the Bible. The subject of this paragraph came to this country in 1834, with his step-father, George A. Cobham, and lived with him until 1866, aiding him with his labor and money (the rents of property he inherited from his father and other members of the family, and which he still owns) to purchase and improve the property in Glade township and to build Cobham Park. In i860 he married Ann Hodges, eldest daughter of \V. W. Hodges, but continued to live at Cobham Park until the residence was finished, when he removed to Warren and built the house which he now occupies. Soon after he was elected county surveyor and served two terms. He has two children, Kate C. Cobham, M. D., the eld- est, now practicing medicine at Dayton, Ohio, and Henry, who is still living with his parents at Warren. Brigadier-Gcucral George Asliivorlh Cobliavt. — (ieorge A. Cobham was Glade Township. 557 the second son of Henry Cobham, the barrister of Liverpool mentioned in the preceding paragraph, and was born at Liverpool, December 5, 1825. He came to this country with his step-father, George A. Cobham, in 1834, and lived with him, helping to improve the farm and build the residence now known as Cobham Park, until a short time before the outbreak of the Rebel- lion. In 1 86 1, in response to the president's call for troops, he, in connection with Dr. E. M. Pierce, W. J. Alexander and others, raised a body of five hun- dred men, which, with a similar force from Erie county, constituted the One Hundred and Eleventh Regiment of Pennsylvania Volunteers. Cobham was appointed lieutenant-colonel, and Pierce captain of Company D, and Alexan- der, first lieutenant. Their first service was at Harper's Ferry, where the One Hundred and Eleventh was posted on the Heights, and held them against the Confederates in pursuit of Banks. They distinguished themselves at Chancel- lorsville, and at Gettysburg, also. At the latter engagement Cobham com- manded General Kane's brigade, and from that time to the close of the war retained the command of a brigade, leading it at Resaca, Mission Ridge, Wau- hatchie, Lookout Mountain, and what the boys called the grand sk'rmish, until he fell on the field of Peach Tree Creek, on the 20th of August, 1864. Soon after, he was breveted by the War Department brigadier-general, to date from his death. When his remains were brought home, the citizens of Warren, in honor of his memory, gave him a public burial. Early Mills, etc. — One of the earliest mills in the township of Glade was. built by Robert Valentine at a very early date, and was purchased by Dorastus Hatch, at the time of that person's settlement in town. Mr. Hatch kept the mill in operation while he lived, and his sons owned it until within a few years. Several years ago, while owned by William and Joseph Hatch, it ceased run- ning. The next mill was built by Andrew Merritt, on Allegheny River, about a mile above Big Bend, about 1840. Previous to 1850 it came into the hands of Orris Hall and Mr. Flagg, who kept it in operation for a number of years. It went down about thirty years ago, while in the possession of Stephen Mor- rison. James Eddy and Francis Hook built a saw-mill in Glade City on Cone- wango Creek about 1845. Orris Hall afterward owned it for many years. L. B. Hoffman now owns the property, though the mill fell into decay and disuse eight or ten years ago. The first tannery built in the township stood near this mill and was operated by the same power. It was built by John Reig about 1858, and ceased in 1876, though Mr. Reig still owns the site. George A. Cobham and his two step-sons, Henry and George A. 2d, built a saw-mill on Hemlock Run in 1847, and operated it for ten years, when they sold it to Peter M. Smith. He owned it when it burned, about 1880, and rebuilt it. It is now silent from lack of timber. 558 History of Warren County. About a mile above the Cobham Mill was a saw-mill, erected in 1855 by John Eaton, and afterward owned and operated by C. W. H. Verbeack and James Roy. It went down a number of years ago. A Mr. McFarland built a saw-mill about 1857 some three miles above the Cobham Mill, which afterward came to the hands of James Roy, and was until ecen tly operated. The tannery of L. A. Robinson, which the present owner acquired in 1875, was built by Newkirk at the mouth of Glade Run, its present site, about thirty years ago. Mr. Robinson has developed the business with most com- mendable enterprise, and made it one of the largest tanneries in Warren county. It is stated on good authority that Mr. Robinson pays $100,000 annually for hemlock bark, and that his weekly pay roll ranges from $1,200 to $1,500, inside the building. There was no store in Glade township until long after the construction of the tannery by Newkirk. From 1852 or 1853, for a few years, Myron Waters and O. H. Hunter sold goods to the raftsmen during the seasons, but the near proximity of Warren has been a hindrance to the opening of a successful store in Glade until recently. There are now a number. Among them are the fol- lowing : N. C. Allen, groceries and general merchandise; Jacob Balden- sperger, groceries, provisions, flour and feed, and meat market ; J. W. Geer, general merchandise; Frank D. Jones, news-room, tobacco and cigars; S. S. Jordan, general merchandise ; J. R. Mitchell, groceries, boots and shoes ; and J. P. Trushel & Son, groceries. Post-office. — There has ne\er been a post-office in Glade. The mail is obtained at Warren. Hotels. — The first tavern in town was the little concern of William Cul- bertson, already mentioned. The next one was that of James Shipman, jr., at Shipman's Edd)', who kept it for years and afterward was succeeded by Ben- jamin Nesmith. It was open as long as the raftsmen went down the river from that point in numbers sufTicient to make it pay to accommodate them. From about 1844 to about 1850 Solomon Hudson entertained guests in a slab shanty at Glade Run. At this time Orren Hook built a hotel of more dignity at Glade Run and named it the Glade Run Hotel. Jacob McCall, the first landlord, kept it two or three years. It burned ten or twelve years ago, and C. B. Willy built on the same site the present hotel two or three years ago. George Hertzel keeps it. Schools and Churches. — The first school kept in the present limits of Glade township was built on Quaker Hill, of logs, about 1836. About that time, too, there was built a log school-house in the Hatch settlement. The Glade Run school-house was built about the year 1852 by subscription, Andrew Irvine, Orren Hook, John and Alexander McWilliams and others subscribing for the purpose. There are now seven schools in the township, including the Union CoRVDON Township. 559 Graded School in Glade City, which was built in 1877 and has four depart- ments, and the school in Glade Run which has two departments. Thomas W. Arird is at present the principal of the Union School at Glade City. As in all business respects, lumber and oil excepted, the proximity of so large a village as Warren has ever operated to prevent a large independent growth of business in Glade, so the same cause has prevented the formation of large churches here. Everybody who attended church in other days was content to go Warren, where a more numerous congregation could pay for better preaching. And thus the need of church work did not press itself upon the people of Glade in early days. About 1870 the United Brethren built a church in Hatchtown, in which they hold services at regular intervals. At Glade Run is a hall built by temperance reformers, which is used by all denom- inations at times for purposes of religious worship. CHAPTER XLIX. HIS'l'OliY OF CORVDuN T^^^ ^ ^^^ ^^^^^^ frequency with which -t will ^^ "^J^f^^ ^^^^^ 1829, aged sixty-five years, of this chapter. He died on the/6th ot ^^^T" ^ ^^^en she had attained and his wife survived him -^^'\*; f^ \°J^ ^^r ol 'sixteen children, whose the age of eighty-two years. '^^J^J^^J His brother John, who descendants are now numerous in ^^-^7; ^^T^^^, ^^ this township soon was born in New Jersey on the 9^^ ;^' '';j^; 'J^CZ ,^2. He had five :::l%;'7d::re':rn;'th:Z::':rbi.ants'„f this wilderness pre^ion. '<2^:2- Farmington Township. 587 to the clearing of the forest primeval. In the early part of this century Jo- seph Marsh (born March 10, 1795 ; died February 14, 1881) started out to hunt for deer just off the Hne of his father's farm, leaving word that if he dis- covered any deer and needed help to take it he would shout, upon hearing which his father, John, was to come to his assistance. It was not long before Joseph saw a huge buck rubbing his neck against a tree. He fired and hit the buck, bringing him to the ground. Supposing his victim to be dead, young Marsh ran up to him, and putting his foot on the buck's neck, began cutting his throat with a dull knife. He had just succeeded in bringing blood, when the beast began to revive and to make the most desperate struggle to rise. In his frantic efforts he kicked every stitch of clothing from Marsh's body, and at last got upon his feet and stood in a defiant attitude. At this point the hunter shouted for help, and though before his father, with the dogs, reached him, the buck had beaten a hasty retreat, they found him and carried him home in triumph. Almost contemporaneously with the settlement of Hugh Marsh, Hugh Frew settled on what was afterward the Spencer Johnson place, just west of the site of Lander. Here he built a grist-mill in after years, but abandoned it at an early day and went to Chautauqua county, N. Y., where he became the founder of Frewsburg. Another early settler within the limits of Farmington township was John Portman, who, previous to 1806, took up two four hundred-acre tracts just north of the present farm of William S. Marsh. He was well known around here and at Sugar Grove, where he has descendants at this day. John Mahan, of Irish descent, came to what is now Farmington as early as 18 1 5, from Philadelphia, where his parents had then but recently died of the yellow fever. He boarded with the family of Hugh Marsh, and attended school here until he was old enough to take care of himself He then began business as an operative in the several saw-mills in this part of the county. He died on the 21st of May, 1882. His son, David Mahan, is now a citizen of Farmington. After the close of the War of 18 12 the population of this part of Warren county began to increase quite rapidly, and was composed more and more of that steady element which contributes to the permanent prosperity of a town. They were men and women who desired to establish homes in the wilderness, and were willing to toil, in order that they might enjoy the blessings of peace- ful and intelligent industry. Previous to the year 1822 the following persons had settled within the limits of Farmington, as those limits now run : Captain Garrett Burgett settled a short distance west of where the Center, or Lander post-office now is, and engaged extensively in farming and lumber- ing. He died on the i6th of October, 1862. He was the father of Peter Bur- nett, who lived at this period on the farm now occupied by his son, Ira Bur- gg History of Warren County. gett Peter Burgett was also a farmer, and a successful man. He was prom- fnent in township aftairs and was for some time a justice of the peace. He died on the 5th of May. 1874. His mother Hved until about .873, when she died at the advanced age of ninety-seven years and five months. Levi Chappel lived on the rise of ground east of Lander, and engaged m farming He was one of four sons of Noah Chappel. who also lived near Lan- der and who was a soldier of the Revolutionary War. The fires of " 76 never died out in Noah Chappel's heart while it throbbed with life, and he loved with a soldier's zeal, the country which he had helped to create. He always had the stars and stripes floating over his house on Independence Day. He died on the 23d of March, i849. Andrew Chappel was another son of Noah and he had served in the War of i8i3. as had John Mahan Andrew Chappel died on the 29th of October, 1864, and his widow is stdl hvmg m F-irmin-ton. Another son of Noah, Alanson by name, hved south of Lander from the time of which we write (1821) until his death in 1879. The other son. Shubel, died in 1864. Alexander Chestney, a bachelor of a quiet and reserved disposition, lived for a time on the farm now owned by Nelson Philo, and afterward in the north- ern part of the township, on the farm now owned by Thomas M. Knapp. He died on the 15th of September. 1868. William Heaton owned and worked a farm just south of the farm of John Mahan, now owned by R. L. Gardiner. He settled in town quite early and once, in a time of scarcity, carried half a bushel of salt on his back from Pitts- burc^h to Farmington. Silas Rowland was living in 1822 in the •• Hollow." on the county road. He moved away very soon after this. His brother Carroll was a stone-mason here for a time. Another brother. Stephen, went from here to Butler county. about eighteen miles below Franklin. Levant Rathbun was a temporary settler of this period on the State road in the northern part of Farmington, but soon became a Baptist minister and removed to other fields. r , • William Shelden was one of the earliest and most prominent of the pioneers in Farmington township. He was born in 1766. and followed ugh Marsh closely to this country from the East. It is stated by some that he built the first saw-mill in the county, and was running at full speed previous to .803. It stood on Fairbank Creek on the farm now owned by Isaac Howard and wasbut a few rods from his house. His daughter Ruth married Joseph Marsl. and was the mother of William S. Marsh. William Shelden died (was killed by a rolling log) on the .5th of March, 1834. His wife, Parthene Sherman, who was born in 1770, became his wife in 1788, and died on the 23d of Feb- ruary 1844. Their son William was a blacksmith, and for years engaged .n his chosen trade near the home of his father, soon after whose death he went west. Farmington Township. 5^ Jonathan Thompson lived in 1822 on the place now owned by Frank Wil- cox in the northern part of the township. He moved away quite early. Spencer Johnson lived about half a mile north of Lander, on the farm now owned by his sons, Calvin and Isaac. He was a man of earnest purpose in life, a good and prominent citizen and a pattern in his domestic relations. He died on the 9th of July, 1865. Joseph Jenkins lived on the country road about midway between Lander and Russellburg, on the place now occupied by his son Theron. A short time previous to his death, which occurred on the 1st of August, 1862, he was stricken with total blindness. Ozam Kilbey lived about three-quarters of a mile south of Marsh's Corners. He married a sister of Joseph Marsh. He remained on this farm until some time between 1840 and 1850, when he removed to Indiana. Colonel Jeremiah C. Newman settled, sometime before 1822, in the eastern part of the town, on the the farm now divided between Paul Brown and Aaron Wright, his sons-in-law. He was drowned in Irvine's mill-pond on the 25th of February, 1866, when he had reached the age of sixty-eight years two. months and seven days. He was an uncle to William S. Marsh. His descend-- ants are now numerous in this township. Lewis Osborn, a shoemaker, lived on the farm next south of the place now owned by William S. Marsh, where he died in April, 1833. Descendants of Lewis Osborn still reside in Farmington. James G. Stanton lived in the eastern part of the township, in what is now called Stanton Settlement, where three of his sons, Alexander, John, and James, are now living. James G. Stanton died on the 4th of June, 1865. Esquire Phillips lived on the place now owned by Frank Wilcox, in the northeastern part of Farmington. He was a pensioner of the War of 1 8 1 2, and engaged industriously in farming and coopering. He was a former resi- dent of Bennington, Vt., and resided here until his death, not far from the year 1850. Levi, son of Esquire and Anna Phillips, was born in Bennington, Vt., on the 24th of June, 1795, and died just south of Marsh's Corners in 1883, leaving two daughters and one son on the old homestead. A short time previous to 1830 William Cady settled about on the site of Lander, where he resided until his death, on the 23d of October, 1848, when he was aged nearly seventy-four years. Not long after his arrival Aaron Scranton made the first large clearing exactly on the site of Lander, and gave to the place the name of " Scranton's Corners." He afterward moved south of this farm, where his death took place. Aaron Scranton, now living here, is his son, and he has other descendants in town. Early and Present Business Interests. — The first mill in what is now Farm- ington township, and, indeed, in this part of Warren county, that belonging to William Shelden, has already been mentioned. The little grist-mill of Hugh 5 go History of Warren County. Frew, undoubtedly the first in town, has been mentioned. Among the other early mills was the saw-mill of John Marsh, built soon after the year 1 830, almost across the road from what is now the Marsh Cemetery. Another saw- mill -stood on the Johnson farm, and was kept in operation for some time by Shubel Chapel. A Mr. Gates afterward rebuilt it and operated it for a time. About 1835 Horatio Saddler built a short lived saw-mill in what is known as the Thompson Settlement. About the year 1853 Levi Phillips erected a saw- mill half a mile south of the county road. Previous to 1865 Melancthon, son of David Miles, built a flouring-mill in the south part of Lander village, which burned while Mr. Miles owned and operated it. On the north side of the vil- lage, about 1879, Benjamin Franklin suffered loss from the destruction by fire 01 a saw-mill which he had but a short time previously erected. The saw-mills now in operation in Farmington are the saw-mill and planer built by its pres- ent owner, A. R. Mix, a little more than four years ago, in the south part of Lander village. Mr. Mix also grinds feed, meal, etc. He formerly owned a saw, shingle, and spoke-mill on Jackson Run, with his brother Horace, which was destroyed by fire ten or twelve years ago. Another saw-mill stands in the western part of the village, and is owned by John Eccles, who bought it of R. Stewart in the spring of 1885. Stewart had removed an old mill building to this site and rebuilt it in its present form. In the summer of 1885 James Dunham built a saw-mill in the southern part of the township, near the old mill (repaired and now operated by steam) of Joseph Fay. The cider mill now owned by Peter Mahan and James Arird, was formerly the property of Mahan brothers. There are now three creameries in town, one owned by Ira Burgett, in the western part of the village (opened in the summer of 1886); another by James Curry, in the southern part of the village, which, until the season of 1886, had been for about twelve years a cheese factory; and the third by R. Houghwot, of eicjht or ten years standing, in the eastern part of the township. The rest of the business of Farmington may be described as follows : There are three blacksmith's shops, one kept in operation by H. McKitrick, who has been here about fifteen years ; one by A. I. Strickland, who has been here not far from twelve years, and one by H. Mix, jr., who has been here about two years. There are two wagon-shops, one owned by W. S. Liver- more, who has been in the business in Lander for not less than twenty-five years, and one by E. G. Wilcox, who has been here about ten years. There are two cooper-shops in Lander, under the ownership and management of William S. Brown and Hatten Sweet respectively. E. F. Thompson has had a shoe- shop in Lander for man\- years, beginning as the successor of Daniel Thomp- son. R. E. Miller has been dealing in general merchandise in Lander since the fall of 1865, at which time he established the business. His brother, J. H. Farmington Township. 591 Miller, was in partnership with him from the beginning until about five years ago. Mr. R. E. Miller was elected county treasurer in 1874, and served his term with the greatest satisfaction to his constituents. For some time previous to 1865 Melancthon Miles was the principal merchant in Lander or Farmington. J. L. Thompson began to deal in general merchandise in Lander on the 1st day of February, 1884, succeeding J. H. Houghwot & Son. Their predeces- sors were Houghwot & Thompson. J. H. Houghwot had been in the mercan- tile business in the village for about twenty years, and had once been burned out. Mr. Thompson carries a fine stock of goods, valued at about $4,000. It was through his efforts that the telephone connection between Russellburg and Lander was effected in May, 1884, as he raised the money by his individual endeavors. The drug department of his store is owned by H. H. Cowles, M. D., who has practiced medicine in Farmington since the fall of 1877, Dr. Cowles is a native of Harbor Creek, Erie county, Pa., and received his medical education at New York city. He is of the eclectic school. Henry N. Frazine owns a harness-shop in Lander, and has owned it for ten years or more. He carries a good line of stock and is doing a good busi- ness. The first post-office in Farmington was on Jackson Run, about four miles south of Lander, and was called Jackson Run, but it was of short duration. The post-office was established at what is now Lander village soon after the formation of the township in 1853. The office was first called Beech Woods, and Rev. Obed Ovatt, a Baptist clergyman, was appointed the first postmaster. The name was soon changed to Farmington, and held that name until it was discovered that another ofl^ce in the State had a name so similar as to produce confusion, when the present name of Lander was adopted in honor of General Lander. Among the successors of the first incumbent were Ansell Franklin, Peter Burgett, S. W. Brown, M. D. (who kept the office for as long as twenty- five years, though during a portion of that time J. H. Houghwot was acting postmaster), and the present postmaster, J. L. Thompson, who was appointed in May, 1885. Schools and Churches. — The first school in what is now Farmington town- ship was taught in 1803 by John Marsh in his own dwelling in Beech Woods, the pupils being his own children, those of his brother, Hugh Marsh, and one or two others. The second school was taught in the same place by Isaiah Jones. In 1805 John and Hugh Marsh built the first school-house in Farm- ington, near the site of the present one in Marshtown. It was constructed of logs, with white greased papers for windows, a large fire-place four or five feet wide, and seats made of slabs with the convex side downward. There were no desks, except a narrow shelf fastened to the side of the house for the pur- pose of writing upon with the split goose-quills. The first religious organization in the township was of the Methodist Epis- 592 History of Warren County. copal denomination. The church called the First Congregational Church of Farmington was first organized as a Presbyterian Church on the i ith day of February, 1 830, with thirteen members, who adopted the faith of the Buffalo Presbytery. The organization was effected by Rev. W. F. Houston. Aurey Ballard and Vetes Pond were elected deacons. Meetings were held at first in private houses and new barns, membership increasing by letter and profession until 1836, when the roll showed a membership of eighty-four. In October, 1838, the Rev. Emery delivered a lecture, after which the church voted to dis- solve their relations with the Presbytery and unite with the Congregational Association. They soon afterward received a discharge from the Presbytery. In January, 1839, Deacon Pond was the first representative of the church at a meeting of the association, and in June of that year letters of confession and faith were approved. In the spring of 1843 the services of William Todd were secured for half the time, meetings being held in the school-house at Pond's Corners. Measures were now projected to build a house of worship, and by continued effort and much sacrifice, a house was completed and dedicated on the 14th of August, 1845. Up to 1878 meetings were regularly held, most of the time with preaching. At this time the numbers diminished, the members seemed to flag in interest and influence, and it was finally decided to remove to Farmington Center. The old church building was accordingly torn down and a new one erected, which was dedicated on the 20th of June, 1882, at which time and place the semi-annual meeting of the Western New York As- sociation was held. At this time the pastor was the Rev. J. B. Davidson, who has been followed by the following ministers : Rev. Emery, Rev. A. C. Kaye, and Rev. H. N. Cornish, the present pastor. The present membership is thirty-seven, and is nearly evenly divided between the sexes. C. B. Mix and N. Preston are deacons. The Sabbath-school has an average attendance of seventy-five scholars, Dr. H. H. Cowles being the superintendent. The Farmington Baptist Church was organized on the 21st of February, 1 83 1, Elder Turner, moderator, preaching at the time. Following are names of the first members: William Heaton, Jacob Allen, Levi Hitchcock, Thomas Foster, Elizabeth Heaton, Olive Allen, Elizabeth Putnam, Louis Hitchcock, Bethana Foster, Bethiah Braley. Jacob Allen was the first deacon. The first house of worship was a log building, which stood about two and a half miles south of the village, near the present residence of R. G. Strickland. The church was recognized on the 24th of May, 183 1, when it was decided to build a framed edifice for worship nearer the village. This was not completed until 1854, and stood at the junction of the main street leading south from the vil- lage and the street to the cemetery. After being ready for occupancy (except the seats) it was burned. Two years later the church rallied and built the present house in the south part of the village, which was dedicated September 23, 1856. The following have served as pastors in the order named: Revs. Triumph Township. 593 Gage, Alvord, Rathborn, Ovatt, Sparks, Stoddard, Hammond, Derby, Sharp, Merriman, Allen, Phellps, Foster, Harrington, Myers, Fisher, Seyse. The pulpit is supplied in union with the Congregational Church at present by Rev. H. N. Cornish, from Brokenstraw, N. Y. The present deacons are D. F. Strickland, Zurial Allen. The membership is fifty-two. The Sabbath-school is conducted in connection with the Congregational Church. A bequest from Mrs. Ross Marsh in 1879, approximating $700, placed this church on a sound financial basis, where it stands to-day.' CHAPTER LIV. HISTORY OF TRIUMPH TOWNSHIP. THE township of Triumph was formed from Deerfield on the 7th of March, 1878, and is bounded as follows: North by Deerfield, east by Deerfield and the Allegheny River, separating it from Limstone, south by Venango county, and west by Southwest and Eldred. It is of irregular contour, and since the lumber has been taken from its surface is adapted principally to the production of farm vegetation and oil. So much of its early history was nec- essarily included in the history of Deerfield that but little is left for this chap- ter. Among the first settlers, who came in in about the order named, between the years 1828 and 1835, were the Gormans, James Culbertson, Charles Mc- Nair, Michael McGraw, Samuel Parshall, and Benjamin Clark. When Michael McGraw came here on the 17th of April, 1830, he found not more than half a dozen families in the present township. Michael McGraw was born in East Freedom, Blair county. Pa., in 1809, and was son of Peter and Catherine (Mc- Affee) McGraw. When he came here he settled on a tract of 400 acres, now occupied by his sons, J. A. and W. A. McGraw. (See sketch of Michael Mc- Graw in later pages.) About the first saw-mill in town was built by A. B. Funk about 1840. Mr. Funk was an extensive lumberman and operator in oil, and died but recently. There are three small settlements, hardly villages, in Triumph township ; Triumph, McGraw's, and Fagundus. Fagundus derives its name from Charles Fagundus, the first settler on its site, who died soon after i860. The other villages were the simple products of the oil excitement of more than twenty years ago. A. M. Gillam, the present merchant at Triumph village, came there in 1867 from West Hickory. A short time previous to his settlement he had a well here, which promised abundance and resulted in his ' For the history of the churches, and for other interesting matter connected with the business in- terests of Farmington, the reader is indebted to the kindness of Mr. J. L. Thompson. 594 History of Warren County. removal from West Hickory. When he came here A. J. Sink, Mr. Moore and others had opened small stores, and everything was in a state of incertitude and everybody was excited. The United States Hotel had just been com- pleted. In 1868 a destructive fire swept away these stores and the hotel. There were during this period many saloons and hotels and mixtures at Tri- umph, but they were ephemeral, and it would be difficult and uninteresting to attempt an enumeration. The floating population (and what little there was of a permanent population) amounted to some three thousand souls in Tri- umph village, where now are not more than one hundred and fifty. Among the first wells drilled were those of Captain Goodrich, Mr. Hart, A. M. Gillam. The village suffered almost total destruction from the fire of 1868, and again in about two years later. About 1870 there was a temporary abandonment of the place, lasting nearly two years. Samuel Wiggins had a drug-store in the village, however, for some time subsequent to about 1871. The second oil excitement, which owed its existence to Mr. Gillam, was greater in intensity than the first. The first fever had exhausted, apparently, the first twenty feet of rock, and the second was fed from the second twenty feet. Mr. Gillam is now drilling other wells and is quite confident of creating another and a healthy boom. About the time of the first excitement the National Hotel was built and kept by Messrs. Thompson, Fairchild, and others. It was torn down in 1885, though it had long been out of use. The Pine Grove Hotel was also started, during the first excitement, by David Wiggins, who still lives in it, though it is no longer open to the public. The store now kept by Mr. Gillam was first opened by Mr. Moore, shortly after the fire of 1868, and after awhile was put into the hands of Andrew Husband, who had previously kept a gro- cery in the barn of Mr. Gillam. After him came as proprietors of this store Hawks, William Wiggins, Wiggins & Curtiss, A. R. Curtiss, and about 1880, A. M. Gillam. The store at McGraw's, now owned by A. Dunn, of Tidioute, was founded by Peter Stinwandle and Frank Foster a few years after the Triumph store was opened. The first post-office in the township was established about this time by the appointment of Peter Stinwandle, at McGraw's. He was succeeded by P. Masterson, William Hurry, and the present incumbent, E. C. Tullock, who was appointed by President Arthur. There was never a post-office at Tri- umph. There has been an office at Fagundus but a short time, the present postmaster there being W. P. Wagner, a merchant there, successor in the office of Joseph W. Jones. There are at present nine school-houses in Triumph township, but they are not all in use, as the present population will not fill them. At Funk's Mills is a Methodist Church, which was built about i860; at Fagundus is another, built about 1872; the Union Church at McGraw was erected in 1878. At Triumph village, during the early period of the oil fever, a union church was W .y?7f'^. '{fiOuJ.^.^^ Iri Triumph Township. 595 built, though previous to that time the school-house was used for religious pur- poses, as it had been built with a view to its employment as a church. We cannot do better than close this chapter with a well-written poem from the facile pen of Mr. A. M. Gillam, who thus contributes to the literary enlight- enment of his community no less than to its material development. TRIUMPH — PAST. PRESENT AND FUTURE. All hail, old Triumph ! Thrice all hail ! Thou art like a ship without a sail ; Thy masts are broken, rudder gone ; Thy crews have vanished, one by one. Till scarce an anchor-watch is left Of those of whom thou art bereft. In olden times thine honored name Both far and near was known to fame ; For man, along thy rocky breast Deep holes had bored from base to crest, And with a suction pump did draw- Vast riches from thine oily maw. But now, alas ! thou'rt wrecked, old tug, ; And in each vacant hole a p Is left. Thy golden stream is clogg'd. And people say thou'rt water-logg'd. And even I, thine old-time friend. Believed that thou had'st reached the end Of thy wonderful oil career"; Not thinking (as it doth appear In the sequel), that while weeping O'er thy death, thou wert but sleeping. Surface water could not fill thee. Consequently could not kill thee ; Thou art alive ; thy rocky vault No water holds excepting salt. The sandrock in its virginity, (So to speak), had an affinity For salt water. Ages ago. When earth was young, the ocean's flow Deposited on bar and beach The pebble sand, a porous leach. Through which the briny waters crept, And oil for ages past has slept Secure in nature's stony bed. But man's persistency, 'tis said. Stove in the rocky door, and woke The sleep of ages at a'stroke. Thy stately hills were forest-grown In that decade ; thy name unknown. Till vandal man, with axe and spade. Thy shady woodlands did invade. With avaricious thought intent 596 History of Warren County. Thy old sandrock to circumvent. Thy veins were pierced ; the gushing oil Flowed out upon thy virgin soil ; As the struck whale, whose gory spout And bloody form stains the liquid route Through which he glides, with crimson gore. From wounds the cruel iron tore. So thou, man's comfort to promote, Doth, from thy hydra-headed throat Spew out upon the thirsty sands The contents of thine oily glands. A noted town, which seemed to suit All hands, including Tidioute, Was built, but hearts and pockets broke When that fair town went up in smoke. And then salt water was the bane Of the gay oil man. On the brain He had it. Also in the rock, (In imagination). The shock Was immense ! " He vamosed the ranch ;" Pulled up stake and left, root and branch. But yet thou wert not left alone, A few old fogies with backbone And some money, another raid Commenced upon the rock, which paid. The sand in feet was full five score And ten in depth. Never before Nor since, in all the regions round. Was another such sandrock found Like to the first. Another rush Was made, and every tree and bush Was leased, and oil in torrents poured From these old holes, that others bored. Judging the present by the past. This new excitement cannot last. Five hundred leeches soon must drain The life-blood from thy stony vein. The first excitement drained the head ; The ne\t thy low'er end was bled ; They thought their pumps were sucking higher. And so thy trunk was left entire. A man addicted to the weed A spear-head bought. With hungry greed He bit from either end a chew. And then deliberately threw The plug away. Such silly waste Is like the oil men's foolish haste. Again, grim want thy hills menace ; The wiry grass that grew apace, 'Twixt rock and stump, is closely nipp'd ; Thy noble flocks and herds have skipp'd Watson Township. 597 To pastures new. A lonely buck Remains to browse upon the truck That's left : and watch the creeping vine. The plantain and the dandelion Put forth their tender crimson shoots ; A mess of greens, for men or brutes. And now another leaf we'll turn, Man never gets too old to learn. Of Triumph's future we will sing. Her possibilities we'll bring To view ; and let the people judge, This kindling flame, or smoky smudge. For weal or woe ! !. 'Tis Triumph's good We seek, and her near neighborhood. Come gentle muse, inspire my song. That we may reach the skeptic throng Who take no stock in this debate Of Triumph's old conglomerate. 'Tis not with water, that's distill'd By solar heat, this rock is fill'd. By gravitation's law it drops From top of well to base, nor stops The intervening rocks to spoil, Where nature brews and tanks her oil. The water scarce is from below ; It is a sort of undertow ; Deep in the rock its level finds. And through the stony chasm winds Its course along through slaty shells, A nemesis to pumping wells. Oh ! had I but a Chinese gong, A butler's voice, a smutz's tongue, With eloquent and oily phrase I'd portray Triuinph's means and ways ; Her seventy feet of virgin rock That ne'er has felt torpedo's shock ; I'd wake the echoes round about Repeating, 'tis not "drowned out." But only needs a plug below To guard against the undertow. CHAPTER LV. HISTORY OF WATSON TOWNSHIP. IN the year 1880, on the 4th of March, Limestone township was divided into about equal parts, and the northern half was organized into a separate township called " Watson," in honor of Hon. L. F. Watson, of Warren, who owned extensive tracts of timber lands in that section. 598 History of Warren County. No oil developments have as yet been made in this township, but it is by no means condemned territory, as it has never been thoroughly tested, and what may be in store for it in the future as an oil field, can only be ascertained as the drill makes its way thoroughly through the township. The inhabitants at present are engaged in clearing lands, farming, and lum- bering. Some of the finest timber tracts in the county are to be found here, and there are eight steam saw-mills located in this township, with an aver- age capacity of twenty-five thousand feet of timber per day. At this rate the best timbered tracts will soon be stripped, and the attention of the inhabit- ants must of necessity be turned more exclusively to farming. The aggregate value of the saw-mills as assessed in this township is over $12, GOO. The schools of Watson township are good country schools. There are five school-houses valued in the aggregate at $2,000, and schools are at present held in each. These schools with number of scholars enrolled are as follows: Miller's school, 18 scholars enrolled; Cobham school, 22 scholars enrolled ; Luken's school, 15 scholars enrolled; Slater's school, 10 scholars enrolled; Baxter's school, 8 scholars enrolled ; making a total of seventy-three scholars. There are no churches in Watson township, but religious services are held in the various school-houses regularly under the control of the Evangelical Association. Rev. M. V. De Vaux has charge of this work at present. A public burial-ground is located near the Lukens school-house. Large tracts of the land in Watson township, as in Limestone, are owned by capitalists and others. Hon. L. F. Watson owns about 3,500 acres in this township. Grandin and Slater own about 2,000 acres. B. D. and J. Mowris own about 1,500 acres. B. F. Rynd owns about 1,100 acres. These large tracts, owned and controlled by single individuals, would naturally retard the settlement. A large part of Watson township is still an entire wilderness. The unseated lands of Watson township are valued at $51,590. There are about three hundred inhabitants in this township at the present time. Among the prominent citizens of Watson township are Jacob Conarro, Benjamin D. Mowris, William Lawrence, John H. Conarro, James McFarland, Samuel Mc- Farland, W. J. Slater, James Russell, John Rapp, Robert Slater, and John W. Wilkins. Sketches of the lives of a few of the above will be found below : Mowris, Peter, one of the earliest settlers in Watson township, was born in Ulster county, N. Y. He came with his wife to Warren county in 1843, and settled in Watson township, then called " Limestone." He died in 1880. His wife survived him six years. Mowris, B. D., son of Peter Mowris, was born in Ulster county, N. Y., in the year 1830. He came to Watson township with his father in 1843, where he still resides. His wife, Nellie (Cameron) Mowris, was born in Morayshire, Scotland, in 1850. Thomas Struthers. 599 Conarro, Jacob, was born in Monmouth county, N. J., in 182 1, and came to Watson township in 1852. His wife, Harietta (Fredrick) Conarro, was born in Steuben county, N. Y., in 1832. McFarland, James, was born in Tyrone county, Ireland, in 1824, and came to Watson in 1855. His wife, Elizabeth (Lukens) McFarland, was born in Philadelphia in 1824. His father, Samuel McFarland, was a soldier in the War of 18 1 2. He belonged to the artillery, and was a participant in the bat- tle of New Orleans. Slater, W. J., was born in Glasgow, Scotland, in 1845, and came to Lime- stone, now Watson township, in 1858. His wife, Ordelia (Houser) Slater, was born in Limestone township in 1845. Russell, sr., James, was born in Butler county, Pa., in 1812, and came to Warren county in 1868. His wife, Rachael (Connely) Russell, was born in Youngsville, Pa., in 1821. His father, Samuel Russell, was born in Ireland in 1776; he was a soldier in the War of 18 12, and came to Warren county in I CHAPTER LVI. BIOGRAPHICAL. STRUTHERS, THOMAS. The subject of this sketch was born in Trum- bull (now Mahoning) county, O., on the 6th day of June, 1803. His father, John Struthers, came of a Scotch family, and, imbued with the spirit of adventurous enterprise characteristic of that hardy race, removed with his father's family from the State of Maryland to Washington county, Pa., in 1776. By reason of his skill as a practical land surveyor he rendered inval- uable assistance to the settlers then crowding into that region ; and by reason of his military prowess he rose to the command of a company of mounted rangers, who were commended for their courage and skill in protecting the government from the fierce onslaughts of the desperate and savage allies of the British during the Revolutionary War. He married a Miss Foster, of Irish extraction, and with a family of four children removed to Trumbull county, O., in 1798, where he settled on lands that he had previously selected during his excursions as an Indian hunter. He was thus one of the first settlers in the Connecticut Western Reserve, which from that time became rapidly peopled with immigrants from New England and Pennsylvania. Here he cleared and cul- tivated a large farm, built mills, and in company with Robert Montgomery, erected a small blast furnace, the product of which was cast into pots, kettles. 6oo History of Warren County. caldrons, and such other articles as were demanded by the household neces- sities of the settlers. He afterward unfortunately met with disastrous business reverses. On this farm, some eighty-four years ago, Thomas Struthers was born and disciplined in the then undeveloped mysteries of agriculture. He obtained his early education in the common schools of the time; during intervals of farm work, prepared for and entered Jefferson College at the age of seventeen years, worked his own way through, and after graduation entered the law office of A. W. Foster, of Greensborough, Westmoreland county. Pa. In December, 1828, one year and eleven months after his admission to the bar, he opened an office in Warren, Pa., which has ever since been his home, and, as we shall see, the object of his pride and bounty. He was partly induced to settle here by offers of agencies by owners of large tracts of disposable wild lands in north- western Pennsylvania, but chiefly by his belief that the best thing for a young man to do was to cast his lot among the pioneers of a new and promising country, and keep step with the march of improvements. There were only about five hundred voters in Warren county at that time. His success in the practice of his profession was active from the first, though he found his com- missions from the sale of land more profitable. His unwavering fidelity to his clients, his diligent efforts in their behalf, and the signal ability with which he discharged the duties imposed upon him, soon established for him a most grat- ifying reputation. He was from the beginning so successful in disposing of lands and turning the tide of immigration in this direction, that he was encour- aged to purchase large tracts on time, and pay for them by the proceeds of resales, at a moderate advance. The greatest difficulty with which he had to contend in this work was the utter want of railroad or other facilities by which to reach these lands. " Here " it has been well said, " was a broad expanse of almost unbroken forest lands, partly in the State of New York and partly in the State of Pennsylvania ; probably one hundred and fifty miles north and south by two hundred and fifty or three hundred miles east and west ; not penetrated even by good wagon roads ; and in some directions one hundred and fifty miles without any roads, and this, too, in the direct line between New York city and the West, and Philadelphia and Lake Erie. The State of Penn- sylvania had left it intact by her line of canals and railroads on the south, whilst the Erie Canal passed around to the north." His attention was thus directed to the incipient movements on foot for the construction of railroads through one part or another of this wilderness. Whilst he preferred a road from Phil- adelphia, by the route now occupied by the Philadelphia and Erie (originally the Sunbury and Erie) railway, and a branch by the Catawissa and Lehigh Valley to New York, he found the projectors of the New York and Erie road first in the field, and hastened to give them all the encouragement he could, attended many of their primary meetings held along the proposed line, aided them in Thomas Struthers. getting the necessary right of way through Pennsylvania, and in other ways evinced his interest in the scheme. In 1836 efforts were first made to estabhsh a hne between Philadelphia and the great lakes, and Mr. Struthers, as a delegate from Warren county, attended the first convention held at Williamsport. Here was developed the scheme for the Sunbury and Erie road, and Mr. Struthers, with others, appointed to lay the subject before the Legislature and induce, if possible, that body to adopt the appropriate measures. A bill was accordingly introduced early in the session of 1836-37, but the members of the Legislature, from their igno- rance of the character of the northwestern part of Pennsylvania and of the trade of the lakes, looked upon the scheme as altogether absurd and chimerical. The committee thought it best, therefore, not to urge precipitate action on the meas- ure, but gradually to educate and interest the southern and eastern members in the geography and unbounded resources of that region, and the importance of the lake trade, and thus win their approval. By virtue of his zeal and of his more intimate knowledge of the country, Mr. Struthers was requested by the Philadelphia gentlemen who had been chosen to act with him, to pilot the measure through to its enactment. After months of untiring work he suc- ceeded in obtaining the passage of the bill, though he did not dare bring it to a vote until April, 1837. In the subsequent organization of the company Mr. Struthers was chosen one of the directors, the others being of Philadelphia and east of the mountains, while the accomplished financier, Nicholas Biddle, was made president. After elaborate surveys made in 1838-39, the location of the line and the beginning of the work of grading in 1840, operations were suspended by the recurrence of the financial panic of 1837, the consequent failure of the United States Bank and its associates, and the long train of failures that followed in the wake of these disasters. In 1847 the Philadelphians abandoned the scheme and transferred their efforts to the Pennsylvania road. This project was not dead, however, and Mr. Struthers, with sublime faith and perseverance, despite a host of discouraging circumstances, obtained a revival of the company and its works in 185 i. Philadelphia returned to her allegiance and subscriptions came in from all along the line. To prevent the subscriptions from the west from being conveyed to the east, Mr. Struthers placed himself at the head of a company associated at Warren, while a similar company was formed at Erie. These parties took contracts covering eighty-six miles of the western division, receiving the municipal bonds of their several localities and stock of the com- pany for their principal pay, taking only a very small percentage in money. They also rendered aid to the eastern division. The financial operations of the Warren party were managed altogether by Mr. Struthers, to whose energy it is largely due that, while the prosecution of the work on "the remainder of the line was suspended nearly two years for lack of means, this party went 6o2 History of Warren County. steadily forward with their labors, trusting to events for that part of their pay which they were to receive in money — a misplaced confidence, as the subject of our notice realized in a loss of more than all the profits of the contract. However, under a new arrangement he took an individual contract for the com- pletion of a portion of the work, and carried it through. The road was finally completed in 1862. In the mean time, early in the decade of years that ended with i860, Mr. Struthers became interested with General Wilson in constructing the first rail- road in California, from Sacramento to Folsom, or Negro Bar. When he took hold of the enterprise it was unendowed. By his superior tact and financial abil- ity, he procured in Boston the rails and equipment complete for forty miles of road, to be delivered in San Francisco, without money or other securities than the bonds of the company, and his own and Wilson's guarantee. Soon after this he embarked with others in the enterprise of building street railways in the city of Cincinnati, and obtained from the city council a grant for about half the city, after which he sold out his interest. It was about this time, too, that in company with others, under the supposed protection of an act of the Iowa Leg- islature, procured for the purpose, he undertook the improvement of the Des Moines River for steam navigation. No sooner had they located their dams, and several towns and cities on the donated lands, then their grant was repu-, dialed by the Legislature. After the completion of the Sunbury and Erie Road, Mr. Struthers procured the passage of a law incorporating the Oil Creek Railroad Company, with powers to build a line from the Sunbury and Erie Railroad in Warren or Erie county to Titusville, and down Oil Creek and Allegheny River to Franklin. In the year 1862 he organized the company, located the road from Corry to Titusville, a distance of twenty-eight miles, and in one hundred and twenty working days the road was completed, without subsidies from any source, and almost without stock. Finding it almost impossible to inspire the people along the route with confidence in the project, he and his associate, Dr. Streator, took nearly all the stock themselves and built and equipped the road upon its own bonds. The project developed into a remarkable success. He remained the president of the road and chief financial agent until 1866, realizing large profits from its earnings, when he sold his interest, and with his entire family passed a year and a half traveling through Europe, Asia, and Egypt. Pre- vious to his departure, however, he made arrangements for the completion of the Cross-Cut Railroad, which he and Dean Richmond had organized for the purpose of connecting the Oil Creek and New York Central Railroads. After his return from the Old World, and as late as 1870, he, in conjunction with John Stambaugh, John Tod and others, completed the Liberty and Vienna Railroad. Again he was remarkably successful; this road was afterward sold to the At- lantic and Great Western, and Ashtabula, Youngstown and Pittsburgh Railroad Thomas Struthers. 603 Companies. Mr. Struthers was also one of the projectors of the Youngstown and Canfield Railroad, connecting the Lawrence Railroad with the Kyle and Foster Coal Mines, in which he owned a large interest. Notwithstanding the multitude of his business undertakings, the care of an extensive law practice, his dealings in land, and his various public enterprises, Mr. Struthers had not for- gotten the place of his birth. In 1863 he purchased the farm on which he was born, and four years later, in company with several associates whom he had induced to join him, he erected upon it a large blast furnace and built up the prosperous village of Struthers, on the Lawrence Railroad. In the same year, 1867, he purchased an interest for himself and son in a flourishing machine- shop and foundry in Warren, which he extensively enlarged and had incorpo- rated under the name of the "Brown & Struthers Iron Works." In August, 1875, he bought up the entire property of the corporation and founded the firm of Struthers, Wells & Co. During the period of his management of the Oil Creek Railroad, he estab- lished the Corry National Bank, becoming and for years continuing its presi- dent. Mr. Struthers has always been an earnest and active politician of the Whig and Republican persuasion, and a tried friend of the protective tariff system. He represented his district in the State Legislature in the sessions of 1857 and 1858 with distinguished ability, and was a prominent member of the conven- tion of 1872—73 to revise and amend the constitution of the State, serving on important committees. He spent much time and money in aid of the Union cause during the war with the South, filling quotas, etc., and furnished two substitutes, though not subject to service himself His course in the Legislature so inspired his fellow-members in that body with confidence in his abilities and integrity, that at the close of his term many of them insisted on his becoming their candidate for State treasurer, to which he was reluctantly constrained to consent. During the canvass for the nomina- tion the' following tribute to his worth, one of many published throughout the State, appeared in a paper more than a hundred miles from the district he rep- resented : " Among the Republican gentlemen named as candidates for the responsi- ble office of State treasurer, the Hon. Thomas Struthers, of Warren county, stands conspicuous. His sterling integrity, business capacity, and the efficient services he has rendered to the political cause upheld by the great Republican party, render him, in our opinion, by far the most suitable and available can- didate. The West, we think, is now entitled to the office, more especially when one so capable and trustworthy is presented. During the sessions of 1857 and 1858, Mr. S. represented in the State Legislature, first the counties of Warren, Venango, and Mercer, and afterwards Warren and Crawford. Those who served with him during two sessions can testify to the important charac- ter of his services to the State and to his party. '■^•' 6o4 History of Warren County. " We agree with the Reading Journal when it says to the members of the present Legislature, let us for once have a State treasurer upon whom we can look without suspicion or distrust ; in whose past life and freedom from evil financial associations the people can have some guaranty of future honesty. There are such men before the people. Give us one of them if only for this once. Give us a man of pure and spotless honesty, not one whose name has been dragged in the mire. Give us a man whom we can hold up before the people as a servant worthy of their confidence, as a servant of the kind in whom they will be well pleased." Neither his business nor private inclinations permitted him to give the can- vass the attention necessary to obtain the nomination. He had no political aspirations. To aid in developing the resources of the country by public im- provements, was ever his highest ambition and greatest pride. The work for which he will be longest remembered is the magnificent structure known as the Struthers Library Building, which was built for the borough by Mr. Struthers in the winter of 1883, at an expense of about $90,000 in addition to the site, which was furnished by the citizens. It is described in the history of Warren in this work. Mr. Struthers's " predominant mental characteristic," says one who has for many years been closely associated with him by the ties of friendship and busi- ness connection, " is concentrativeness. He would always become totally absorbed in the project or enterprise in hand, and pursue it with an avidity and pertinacity that admitted of no diversion or interruption. His mental re- sources in extricating himself from embarrassment, and in combining agencies to accomplish his purpose, have always proven sufficient for all drafts upon them and seem inexhaustible, and his power for attracting both men and cap- ital and enlisting them in his adventures, is wonderful. His temperament is over-sanguine, producing too favorable estimates of future results, and would often have led him into serious diflSculties, except for his indomitable will and perseverance. He never surrendered, and consequently was always victorious, or made a draw game of it. " He has always shown himself emphatically to be what Carlyle said of Crom- well, 'an earnest man.' Whatever his hand has found to do he has done with his might. Bold, apparently to rashness, and hopeful to enthusiasm, whatever he has undertaken he has carried through with an earnestness and energy that surmounted all obstacles. These elements in his composition induced him sometimes to venture too much, perhaps, and take risks which the timid pru- dence of less resolute men would have avoided. I le would buy, on time, far beyond his income from other sources to pay, trusting to sell at an advance before the liability matured. Yet no protests came. He would spread more canvass and run farther out to sea than larger crafts dare venture, yet his frail bark, through calm or storm, always made the voyage bravely, and returned ''iy TIB acv Sr^ JSwIoV* Thomas Struthers. — John Curwen, M. D. 605 to port safely. His industry has ever been as indefatigable as his will indom- itable. Had he not enjoyed perfect health and great powers of endurance, he would often have overtaxed his energies and broken down. " Although his travels and associations with the business world have been such as to subject him to frequent and strong temptations, his habits have ever been temperate and free from dissipation of any kind. He, indeed, attributes much of the vigor, both physical and intellectual, which he enjoys at his pres- ent advanced age, to the fact that several years ago he abjured the use of spir- ituous liquors altogether. He seldom indulges even in a glass of beer. He says its use defiles the stomach, vitiates the appetite, destroys the sensitive or- gans, and results in intellectual stupidity, physical grossness and deformity, and total unfitness for business or society. The medicated wines generally in use he considers equally obnoxious and to be avoided. " But paramount among his virtues it may be affirmed that he is an honest man. In his immense and complicated business transactions, no one was ever found to charge him successfully with a dishonest or dishonorable act. Nat- urally a little credulous, although usually cautious, he has sometimes been overreached and involved in litigation. But he has lived through more than forty years of trials without a tarnish upon the escutcheon of his manhood, or a stain on his integrity as a citizen. During all that time he has been the recognized leader, and often the originator of measures calculated to benefit the county and borough in which he has lived, and still enjoys the confidence and esteem of the present, as of the past generation." In December, 1831, Mr. Struthers married Miss Eunice Eddy, of Warren, Pa., and reared two children. Hisson, Thomas E.,died in 1872. His daugh- ter, Ann Eliza, was married to Captain George R. Wetmore, a soldier of the war for the Union, and a prominent manufacturer and influential business man. She died in 1880 leaving one son, who is Mr. Struthers's only lineal descendant. CURWEN, M. D., JOHN, is a native of Lower Merion township, Mont- gomery county, Pa.; received his collegiate education at Yale College, and his medical education at the University of Pennsylvania, in Philadelphia. Shortly after graduation he was appointed assistant physician of the Pennsyl- vania Hospital for the Insane in Philadelphia, under the charge of Dr. Thomas S. Kirkbride, and remained there until the fall of 1849. After a year spent in the city of Philadelphia, attending the hospitals and general practice, he was elected in February, 185 i, superintendent of the Pennsylvania State Lunatic Hospital at Harrisburg, where he remained until February 11, 1881. Shortly after leaving that institution he was elected physician in chief and superintend- ent of the State Hospital for the Insane at Warren, Pa., and assumed charge of the institution on July 7, 1881. He was one of the original members of the 6o6 History of Warren County. Medical Society of Dauphin county, Pa., and is also a member of the Medical Society of Warren County, Pa. He has been a member of the Medical Society of the State of Pennsyl- vania since 1866; was president in 1868, and has been chairman of a number of committees of that society, having reference to the care of the insane, viz., the committee to memoriaHze the Legislature in favor of a hospital for the in- sane for the northern district of the State, now located at Danville ; the com- mittee to memorialize the Legislature in favor of the law regulating the admis- sion into hospital for the insane, passed in 1869 ; to memorialize the Legisla- ture in favor of a hospital for insane criminals ; to memorialize the Legislature in favor of the hospital for the northwestern district of the State, now located at Warren, Pa.; to memorialize the Legislature in favor of a hospital for the southeastern district of the State. The hospital now located at Norristown was established as the result of that movement, but not as the memorialists had intended. He has been a member of the American Medical Association for about twenty years, and has read papers before that body on the care of the insane. He has been a member of the Association of Medical Superintendents of American Institutions for the Insane since 185 i, and its secretary since 1858. He is also an honorary member of the British Medico- Psychological Associa- tion, and of the American Philosophical Society of Philadelphia. He was one of the commissioners for the erection of the State Hospital for the Insane at Danville, Pa., and also for the erection of the State Hospital for the Insane at Warren, Pa., and was also one of the commission appointed by the Legislature to inquire into the condition of insane criminals in Pennsyl- vania. He has been for many years one of the trustees of Lafayette College, Easton, Pa. In 1850 he prepared a manual for attendants in hospitals for the insane. His principal writings have been the reports of the hospitals of which he has been the superintendent ; of the commissions on which he has served ; various papers and reports to the Medical Society of the State of Pennsylvania, em- bodied in their proceedings, and papers read before other societies, or printed in medical journals. He prepared also a history of the Association of Medical Superintendents of American Institutions for the Insane ; a history of the original thirteen members of that association, with photographs of each mem- ber, and a biographical sketch of Thomas S. Kirkbride, M. D. WATSON, LEWIS FINDLAY, was born in Crawford county, Pa., on the 14th day of April, 1 8 19. His parents, John Watson and Rebecca Bradley, were natives of the State of Delaware, and descended from a Scotch- Irish ancestry. The early education of the subject of this sketch was such as the educational advantages of Crawford and surrounding counties afforded Lewis Fixdlay Watson. 607 during his boyhood. At the age of thirteen he entered a store at Titusville in the capacity of clerk, and remained in that occupation there and at Franklin and Warren until 1837, his residence in the latter place having commenced in in 1835. At the close of his last engagement, in 1837, ^^ entered the pro- thonotary's and register and recorder's office in Warren, where he remained until 1838, shortly after which he commenced a course of study at the Warren Academy, then under charge of Mr. Rasselas Brown, who subsequently be- came president judge of this judicial district. Upon leaving the academy, Mr. Watson entered upon mercantile pursuits in the borough of Warren, in partnership with Archibald Tanner and S. T. Nelson, under the style of Nelson, Watson & Co. At the termination of this co-partnership, in 1841, he continued his mercantile pursuits, sometimes on his own account, and sometimes with others, until i860, when, closing this busi- ness, he turned his attention more directly to the manufacture and marketing of lumber. In the autumn of 1859, in company with his brother John and Archibald Tanner, he engaged in the development of the petroleum business by drilling wells on his brother's farm at Titusville, Pa. In the spring of i860 this firm opened what was known as the Fountain Oil Well, the first flowing well in that district, and probably the first in the country. Since the date of the above-mentioned discovery Mr. Watson has, at inter- vals, engaged in the production of petroleum, and has continuously engaged also in extensive operations in pine timber lands, and in the manufacture and sale of lumber up to the present time. Enterprises of more public importance have at various times occupied his attention. In 1864 he was one of the original stockholders of the First Na- tional Bank of Warren, and for several years acted as its vice-president. In 1870 he organized the Warren Savings Bank, of which he was the first presi- dent, a position which he continues to hold. In 1 86 1 he organized the Conewango Valley Railroad Company, now known as the Dunkirk, Allegheny Valley and Pittsburgh, and was elected its first president. It was mainly through his efforts that the Conewango Valley road was constructed. In 1877 he purchased a large tract of land in Cass county. Dak., and at once commenced the cultivation of wheat and other agri- cultural products. At the present date he has over two thousand acres under cultivation. Since the organization of the Republican party Mr. Watson has at all times supported the political principles which have distinguished that great body — principles that have more firmly cemented the bonds of the Union ; which have protected the American laborer from competition with the degraded la- borers of foreign nations, and which have established and sustained the conserv- ative financial policy that has secured so much prosperity to the country, and insures the extinguishment of the public debt without distress to the people. 6o8 History ok Warren County. Although not a politician by profession or practice, his unswerving loyalty to his party, his known patriotism, his energy, perspicacity, and success in the various enterprises which he had undertaken, led, in 1874, to the unanimous recommendation of Mr. Watson, by the Republicans of Warren county to the district convention, as a candidate for representative to Congress. At the meeting of the district convention Mr. Watson's name as a candidate was with- drawn at his own request, to effect an unanimous nomination of Hon. C. B. Curtis, the sitting member of the House from the Twenty-seventh Pennsyl- vania Congressional District, for a second term. Unfortunately Mr. Curtis was defeated at the polls by his Democratic competitor, by a small majority. Two years thereafter, in 1876, Mr. Watson was nominated by the Repub- lican convention, held at Franklin, as a candidate for representative to the Forty-fifth Congress from the above district, and he was elected by the over- whelming majority of 3,547, against Wm. L. Scott, the Democratic nominee. notwithstanding the election of a Democrat for the preceding term of 1874-76' In 1880 he was again elected to Congress. His congressional duties were per- formed with the same assiduity and zeal that he displayed in private affairs- In the Forty-fifth Congress he introduced a bill to regulate inter- state commerce and to prohibit unjust discrimination by common carriers. This bill aimed to correct one of the crying evils of the times. In the House it elicited discussion which its importance merited, and it was was widely commented upon by the leading newspapers of the country in a manner which indicated the deep interest felt in the proposed reformatory leg- islation by the people at large. The bill passed the House, with some unim- portant amendments, by a large majority, but reached the Senate too late for action during that session of Congress. That its passage through the House, by a large majority, should be ascribed to the energetic and skillful efforts of Mr. Watson, is apparent from the fact that a similar bill, introduced in the Forty-sixth Congress, did not reach a vote in either the House or the Senate. In 1842 Mr. Watson married Elvira VV. McDowell, whose death occurred in 1849. No children of this marriage survive. In 1856 he married Miss Caroline F,., daughter of Hon. N. B. Eldred, of Wayne county. Pa. Of the children born of this marriage Annie Bartlett alone survives. At the date of this publication Mr. Watson continues actively engaged in the various business pursuits which have absorbed so many years of his life — banking, the manufacture of lumber, operations in pine timber lands, the pro- duction of petroleum, and grain growing. While increasing his lumber interests, he has gradually become, probably, the largest land owner in the county of Warren, and latterly he has acquired extensive timber tracts on the Pacific slope. These various and absorbing pursuits have not diminished his concern in Lewis Findlay Watson. — David Beaty. 609 public affairs, nor have they dulled his lively interest in the successes, or less- ened his sympathy in the misfortunes of his neighbors, and his large and ever- increasing circle of acquaintances. On the contrary, he contemplates the va- rious political schisms of the time with all the ardor of earlier days, but with a judgment and wisdom ripened by wide and varied experience. Happy in his own domestic life and successes, he is ever ready to contrib- ute to the happiness of the less fortunate, by his quiet sympathy in their dis- tress, or by extending the hand of unostentatious charity — the greatest of all the virtues — which adorns alike the prince and peasant, the private as well as the more conspicuous public citizen who may wear her mantle. BEATY, DAVID, was born in Beaver county. Pa., on the 26th day of Oc- tober, 181 1. His paternal ancestry is derived from Scotland. His grand- father, William Beaty, emigrated from Scotland to Newburg, on the Hudson, in New York State, and thence removed to Beaver county, in this State, nearly eighty years ago. He had a family of three daughters and four sons, of the latter of whom William, jr., the eldest, was the father of David Beaty. Will- iam, the younger, was born in Newburg, N. Y., in 1764; could distinctly re- member having seen Washington; served in the War of 18 12, being stationed at Erie to protect the country from an apprehended invasion of the enemy, and died at his home in Beaver county on the 5th of June, 1859. He was a farmer by occupation, a Democrat of the old school, and a consistent member of the Presbyterian Church. His wife, Mary, had four brothers and three sis- ters, the children of David Clark, of Irish birth and parentage. He was a giant in stature, measuring six feet two and one-half inches in his stockings. He died in Beaver county about the year 1822. Mary (Clark) Beaty died in the summer of 1868, of palsy. William and Mary Beaty reared a family of seven sons and six daughters. Of this family of thirteen children, David Beaty was the sixth. Just previous to his nineteenth birthday David Beaty came to Chautauqua county, N. Y., where he remained at work on farms for four years, removing, at the expira- tion of that time, to Tionesta, Warren county. Pa. There he engaged in lum- bering in the forests for a period of five years, when he went to West Hickory, near Tidioute, and was married November 16, 1843, to Abigail Mead, young- est daughter of Joseph Mead ; uniting the labors of a farmer with those of his former vocation. At the beginning of the oil excitement, more than twenty years ago, he commenced his operations in petroleum on Oil Creek, eight miles south of Titusville. This occupation gradually assumed larger proportions, and in time absorbed Mr. Beaty's entire time and attention. The material result, however, has been most gratifying. The boy who left home with one dollar and seventy-five cents in his pocket, and with venturesome daring, walked 1 30 miles to the destination which he had selected as the field 6io History of Warren County. for his labors, was bound to succeed, and has succeeded beyond his original calculations. After erecting and furnishing the buildings in which he now lives, Mr. Beaty removed hither from West Hickory on the llth of March, 1873. Hisjhome farm consists of 170^^ acres, besides which he now owns sixty acres in one lot above here, lOO acres on Hatch Run, etc., making more than 500 acres that he owns in Warren county, and nearly four thousand acres in Dakota. Mr. Beaty is a stalwart member of the Democratic party, and a member of the Presbyterian Church of Warren. Joseph Mead was born in Northumberland county. Pa., June 25, 1772; came to where Meadville now stands, when it was a wilderness, with his eldest brother, David Mead. Joseph was sixteen years old at that time. They had some narrow escapes. Their father, Darius Mead, was taken prisoner by the Indians and killed about thirty miles from Franklin. Joseph remained there one year ; returned to Northumberland, and went to school ; acquired as good [an education as he could possibly; was married in 1794 to Hannah Boone, a relative of Daniel Boone, of Kentucky ; emigrated to near Youngs- ville, Warren county, in 1799 with his brother Darius, and their families- They built the first grist and saw-mill in the county. Joseph afterward came to reside three miles below Warren, on the Allegheny River, and died there in 1846. The family of Mr. and Mrs. Beaty consists of three sons — O. W., David W., and Albert B., the last named of whom died on the 20th of September, 185 I. The other two are still residing in Warren county. WETMORE, L. D., was born in Pine Grove township, Warren county. Pa., on the 18th day of October, 1818. He is the son of Hon. Lansing Wet- more, a sketch of whose life is written in this work, and the grandson of Par- sons Wetmore, an early settler in Whitestown, whose wife was a daughter of Hugh White, the first settler west of the Dutch settlements in the Mohawk Valley in the State of New York. Hugh White earned the distinction of being the founder of Whitestown, N. Y., as his son Hugh became the founder of Cohoes, N. Y. The family came originally from the vicinity of Hartford, Conn. L. D. Wetmore received his earlier education in the district schools of War- ren, and afterward attended the academy at the same place. He was gradu- ated from Union College in the class of 1841, after which he began to study law in Warren. He was admitted to practice in 1845, and at once commenced the practice of his profession in Warren, his labors being interrupted for a time in 1843 ^"d 1844, when he taught in the academy at Smethport for two sea- sons. From that time on he has conducted a large and successful practice in Warren, and is now at the head of the firm of Wetmore, Noyes & Hinckley. Mr. Wetmore's prominence in this and adjoining counties is sufficiently attested by the fact that in the fall of 1870 he was elected president judge of the Sixth ^. L. D. Wetmore. 6ii Judicial District, composed of the counties of Erie, Warren, and Elk, and that during a term of ten years he performed the functions of that office with the most creditable promptness and efficiency. For some time previous to the death of his brother, C. C. Wetmore, in April, 1867, he was interested with him in an extensive lumber business. After that painful accident, as described in other pages of this volume. Judge Wetmore was obliged to assume sole charge over the business, and from that time to the present he has engaged heavily in the manufacture and sale of lumber, with results which disclose his sagacity and capacity for managing afifairs. In politics Judge Wetmore is a Republican, and though not an office seeker was clothed for a time with the judicial ermine, as stated, and has been called upon to take a part in the ardu- ous and not less important burdens of local office. Previous to his election to the bench he was president of the First National Bank of Warren, a position which he resumed on his retirement from the political office, and which he now holds. His judicial ability has been even better appreciated since the expira- tion of his term than while he was in office. Like his father, he has always been remarkable for the affability of his manner and his social disposition in all the relations of life. His decisions were almost always correct, notwith- standing the fact that he was engaged in private business enterprises that would alone have fully taxed the energies of most men. He studied all the questions that came before him for decision with the thoroughness of a student in love with his task, and refused to neglect the minutest duties of his position. The following is the correspondence on the termination of his official life in Erie county : Erie, Pa., April 29, 1874. To THE Honorable L. D. Wetmore, Dear Sir : — As your connection with the bar of Erie county as president judge has ceased, the undersigned, its members, desire to give an expression of their respect for you, officially and personally, at a supper at such time as it may suit your convenience to meet us. We are unwilling that your connection with us as president judge of our county should cease without some demonstration, feeling that while it should be a pleasant occasion to us, it is due to you for the ability, impartiality and fidel- ity with which you discharged the duties of the office as well as a grateful ex- pression of our remembrance of the agreeable intercourse we have had with you as our late president judge, signally marked out as it was by gentlemanly and courteous bearing, and patient consideration of our efforts before you. With great respect we are your friends and obedient servants. John H. Walker, Elijah Babbit, James C. Marshall, and some forty members of the Erie bar. 6i2 History of Warren County. Warren, Pa., June 8, 1874. Gcntleiiicn : — Your favor was duly received and my absence has delayed a reply. To have performed the duties of judge in a manner to meet the approval of the members of your bar is to me a source of great satisfaction. Your learning, ability and urbanity greatly aided me in my labors on the bench. The upright, fearless, and learned lawyer is as much a minister of justice as the court to which he speaks, said Justin Grier, on his retirement from the bench of the Supreme Court of the United States. The fact so truly stated by Judge Grier has been appreciated by me in my official intercourse with you. I would be pleased to accept your invitation but am unable at present to state a time when it would be convenient for me to meet you. Thanking you for the flattering compliment of your letter, I remain Very respectfully yours, L. D. Wetmore. To Hon. John H. Walker, Hon. Elijah Babbit, Hon. James C. Mar- SH.\LL and others. At a meeting of the court in Warren on the first Monday in January, 1881, the following resolutions, offered by a committee appointed by the bar, were adopted : Whereas, The term of office of Lansing D. Wetmore, president judge of the 37th Judicial District has expired, and he is about to retire from the bench, therefore be it Resolved, That we, the members of the bar of Warren county, express to Judge Wetmore our great respect and esteem for him personally, and our high appreciation of his able, learned, and impartial administration of justice in the county. Resolved, That as a judge he has been calm and impartial in investigation, independent without pride of opinion, just but merciful in judgment, earnestly striving to judge according to the law. He has ever sincerely sought to establish truth and do impartial justice, and by his considerate politeness and courtesy towards all he has merited our special gratitude, and shown himself a kind and cultured gentleman, as well as a just and learned judge. The pure and perfect gem of judicial authority which was committed to his keeping ten years ago he transmits to his successor, still a diamond, not a stone, with its brilliancy undimmed, its lustre unimpaired. Resolved, That the sincere and hearty good wishes of this bar follow Judge Wetmore into private life, and we hope and expect to see his ripe years and manhood crowned with even greener honors than those he to-day lays down. L. D. Wetmore. — Charles W. Stone. 613 With all his labors he is governed by a philosophy of good will and enjoys life as it passes. He has an exquisite taste in literary matters, and among those who are acquainted with his attainments is regarded as a just and dis- criminating critic. He was one of the original contributors to the first fund, and is now one of the trustees of the Struthers Library Building. Moreover, he is liberal and ready to promote by generous contributions all beneficent public institutions, and with the aid of his wife is constantly engaged in the dispensa- tion of many and well-directed private charities Judge Wetmore has been twice married. His first wife was IVIiss B. Wetherby, of Warren, who died in 1856, four years after their marriage, leaving one child, now the wife of Lieutenant J. P. Jefterson, a graduate from West Point. In March. 1858, Judge Wetmore married Maria C. Shattuck, of Gro- ton, Mass. They have three children, l^dward D., Frederick S., and Albert L. Wetmore. STONE, CHARLES W., was born in Groton, Middlesex county, Mass., on the 29th day of June, 1843, and was the eldest of the three sons of War- ren F. and I\Iary (Williams) Stone. His mother was of Welsh extraction, and her ancestors had settled in this country during the early years of its history. His father, who was of English descent, and whose ancestors were related to General Nathaniel Green, of Revolutionary fame and were pre-Revolutionary inhabitants of Massachusetts, was a carpenter by trade, and though of feeble health, was distinguished by a strong, clear, and active mind. The year prior to his death, in his forty-second year, he was a member of the Legislature of Massachusetts. He had a keen appreciation of culture, and to his tendency to intellectual occupation, and his early words of inspiring encouragement, is due much of the success that has waited on his son, the subject of this sketch. The boyhood and youth of C. W. Stone were passed on a farm with his grand- father, with the exception of one year, during which he worked at the trade of his father. At an age when most boys have no thought for the morrow, he conceived an ambition for a liberal education, and determined to obtain it, notwithstanding the somewhat straitened circumstances of the family, and his own delicate health. He prepared for a collegiate course at Lawrence Acad- emy, and in i860 was sufficiently advanced to enter the sophomore class at Williams College. In order to supplement his limited means, he taught in a private family, sawed wood, and did other " chores " during college terms, and, free from debt, was graduated in 1863 in the section of first ten in a class of fifty. Soon after his graduation he became principal of the Union school at Warren, Pa., and in March, 1865, relinquished that position to accept that of superintendent of common schools of Warren county. In the fall of the same year he was chosen principal of the academy at Erie, but this situation he re- signed in November, 1865, and went to Mississippi in company with F. M. 6i4 History of Warren County. Abbott and Colonel A. P. Shattuck, both of whom afterward became promi- nent cotton planters in that State. At the close of December, 1866, he re- turned to the north, and having been admitted to practice law in the courts of Warren county, on the first day of January, 1867, entered into partnership with his present partner, Judge Rasselas Brown. This partnership has now continued longer without interruption than any other law partnership in War- ren county. In 1868 he was elected school director and served nine years; the last three as president of the board. He was also for three years a mem- ber of the borough council. So soon were Mr. Stone's abilities known and appreciated, that as early as the fall of 1869 he was elected to the House of Representatives of Pennsyl- vania, from the district composed of Warren and Venango counties. Unlike too many men in public life, he did not look upon the position as an honor merely, a sinecure, but a trust which demanded the best of his talents and en- deavors. He was a prominent figure in his first session in the Legislature. .A movement, led by Senator Lowry, of Erie, in the Upper House, and Rep- resentative Ames, of Titusville, in the Lower House, was initiated for the formation of a new county to comprise Eldred, Southwest and half of Spring Creek townships in this county and portions of Venango and Crawford coun- ties. Mr. Stone and J. D. Mcjunkin, from the Venango district, opposed the measure, and Mr. Stone made a powerful speech against it, which materially aided to produce its defeat. The effort was complimented throughout the State in the press, even the opposition bearing witness to its force and effect. The struggle was a very severe, laborious, and exhaustive one to Mr. Stone, but it was the occasion of his re-nomination and re-election in the fall of 1870, without an opposing nominee, the Democratic party paying him the high com- pliment of not putting an opposing candidate in the field. The honor was well deserved, for the division of Warren county would have deprived it of some of the richest portions of its territory, and would have injured Warren by making Titusville the county seat of a new and rival county. Although at the beginning it seemed destined to be regarded as a local question, it engen- dered such a fight as to assume the proportions of a State question. The odds against which Mr. Stone and his confrere contended may be partly appre- ciated when it is stated that the victorious party were led by two young men in their first term against political veterans. An important feature of his labors in the session of 1871 was the part he took in a measure to protect the harbor of Erie. In consequence of a com- munication from the United States secretary of war to Governor Geary, rela- tive to depredations said to have been committed upon the Peninsula protect- ing and forming the harbor at Erie, and thus endangering the harbor, a com- mittee of five was appointed to investigate, and Mr. Stone was made chairman. The committee made two elaborate reports, which undoubtedly operated to Charles W. Stone. 615 save the harbor from destruction, and restore the Marine Hospital (now the Soldier's Home) property to the State. At the expiration of the second term in the House of Representatives Mr. Stone returned with renewed energy to the practice of law, from which he had been drawn by the press of public duties. But he was not long permitted to enjoy his retirement. In 1876 he was chosen to a seat in the State Senate, and took his place in the beginning of 1877. In that body he served as chair- man of the general judiciary committee, and while taking a leading part in all its deliberations was recognized as the special champion of the interests of the oil- producing sections of the State, and, as in the Lower House, was esteemed very clear, able, and impressive in debate. Perhaps his ablest effort was his speech in support of the free pipe bill, in the winter of 1878. The bill was then defeated, but has since been passed and is now in force. In 1878 he was brought forward as the best candidate for the position of lieutenant-governor of the State. The opposition in the convention was but nominal, the vote standing 182 against 59, and in the subsequent election he was chosen by a majority of 23,250 votes. He served with distinguished ability from January, 1879, to January, 1883, the entire term. The importance of this office, which is of recent institution in Pennsylvania, is at once apparent from the following section of Article IV, of the new constitution of the State : "Sect. 13. In case of the death, conviction, or impeachment, failure to qualify, resignation, or other disability of the governor, the powers, duties, and emoluments of the office, for the remainder of the term, or until the disability be removed, shall devolve upon the lieutenant-governor." It also provides that he shall be o- officio president of the Senate and member of the board of pardons. It fell to him to preside over the joint assembly during the protracted contest for election of United States Senator, which resulted in the selection of John I. Mitchell, and though he was called upon to make more rulings than were ever before or since made in a similar assembly, not one of his rulings, either in the Senate or joint assembly, was ever reversed or even appealed from, a statement which cannot be made concerning any other lieutenant-gov- ernor in the history of the State. During that contest Mr. Stone had the gen- eral support of the press of northern and northwestern Pennsylvania for the senatorship, but he declined to enter the field. It is a custom for the Senate, at the close of each term of its presiding offi- cer, to extend him a vote of thanks. This vote may have meaning and it may not, but there can be no mistaking the sentiment that impelled the Senate, at the close of Mr. Stone's term, in 1883, by the co-operation of every member of both parties, to present to him a gold watch of superior workmanship, bear- ing the following inscription : " Presented to the Hon. Charles Warren Stone, lieutenant-governor of Pennsylvania, January 16, 1883, by the members of the State Senate for the 6i6 History of Warren County. sessions of 1879, 1881, and 1883, as a testimonial of their high regard and great esteem for him as a public officer, and for the impartial and faithful perform- ance of his duties as president of the Senate." To the heavy gold chain, which was presented with the watch, is attached, as a charm, a miniature gavel with diamond settings. The presentation address was made by Senator John Stew- art, since the independant candidate for governor, to which Mr. Stone feelingly replied. In 1883 Mr. Stone was one of the three commissioners that located the United States public buildings at Erie. In 1884 he received the unanimous support of the delegates from Warren county for the congressional nomination for this district, though he made no canvass in the other counties. In 1886 he was strongly urged from Warren and Erie counties to go into the fight, but declined, in January, 1887, however, he was appointed by Governor Beaver as secretary of the Commonwealth, a position which he fills at this writing. Notwithstanding his activity in political affairs, Mr. Stone has borne his share of the labor and received his share of the honor in business and social life. His standing as a lawyer is attested by the fact that he is presi- dent of the Bar Association of Warren county. In recent years he has engaged to a considerable extent in lumbering and oil operations in the Clar- endon field and elsewhere. Although in rather more than comfortable circum- stances, he has not accumulated so much property as he is commonly accred- ited with, having made it a rule, as well as possessing the inclination, to spend all that is necessary for his own enjoyment, or that of others, as he " goes along." He is a member of the State Historical Society, and since its origin has been prominently identified with the Warren Library Association. His ability as an orator is recognized throughout the State, and he is in demand, not only during political campaigns, but on Independence Day celebrations, and like oc- casions. On the 30th of January, 1868, Mr. Stone married Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Moorhead, of Erie, Pa. They have six children — Grace Mary, Annie Isabel, Ralph Warren, Elizabeth Moorhead, John Lyon, and Clara Rebecca. He has two brothers, both residing in the city of Bradford, Pa. One, R. B. Stone, is a prominent lawyer; the other, George F. Stone, is city superintendent of schools. SCOFIELD, GLENN! W.,' son of Darius and Sallie (Glenny) Scofield, was born at Dewittvillc, Chautauqua county, N. Y., March 11, 18 17. In early life he had such educational advantages as are usually furnished in the common schools. When about fourteen years of age he quit school to learn printing, and worked at this trade, off and on, for about three years. At sev- enteen he went back to his books and entered upon a course of classical study. ' li.xtiact from " Karnes's Historical and Biographical Sketches of Congress." 1 X^^-y\^v^i Uf, Ji-ff^^cJi Glenni W. Scofield. 617 In September, 1836, he entered Hamilton College, New York, as a freshman, and graduated from this institution with fair rank of scholarship in 1840. Many years thereafter the college conferred upon him the title of LL.D. The two years immediately following his graduation he spent in teaching; the first in Fauquier county, Va., and the second as principal of the academy in McKean county, Pa. While teaching he studied law, and in December, 1842, was admitted to the bar, and at once entered upon the practice of his profes- sion at Warren, Pa. November 20, 1845, he was married to Laura M. Tanner, daughter of Archibald Tanner, of Warren. They have three children — two daughters, Ellie G. and Mary M., and one son, Archibald T. — all of whom now reside with their parents. Except when interrupted by his several terms of public service, his whole time has been devoted to his profession. In 1846 he was appointed district attorney by Governor Shunk, which place he held for about two years. In 1849 he was elected to the Legislature of his State, and re-elected in 1850. While a member of this body he was esteemed one of its most effective debaters, and was chairman of the judiciary committee. His speech in favor of an elective judiciary was quite widely circulated at the time, and attracted considerable attention throughout the State. Although during his term of service in the Legislature he acted with the Democratic party, as he had uniformly done before, and as he did for some years after, he was always an anti-slavery man. During his college life he was a member of an abolition society, formed by a number of young men in the institution, and never relinquished his early convictions in hostility to slavery. In accordance with these convictions and while still acting with the Demo- cratic party, he advocated the Wilmot proviso, opposed the fugitive slave law and the repeal of the Missouri compromise, and took the anti-slavery side of all kindred questions. When a Republican party was formed in 1856 he immediately severed his old party connections and in a public address united his political fortunes with the new party of freedom and progress. In the autumn of that year he was nominated by the Republicans for the State Senate, and in a district, before largely Democratic, was elected by a majority of twelve hundred. He occu- pied this position three years, and ably sustained the reputation which he had gained as a debater in the lower branch of the Legislature. While in the Senate he introduced and advocated bills to exempt the homestead from sale for debt, and to abrogate the laws excluding witnesses from testifying on account of religious belief Neither of these bills passed, but Mr. Scofield's speeches in their favor, which were reported and printed, prove that they should have passed. His bills were voted down, but his arguments were not answered. He was more successful in his etibrts in connection with other 6i8 History of Warren County. western members to procure State aid for the construction of the Philadel- phia and Erie Railroad. For a short time in 1861, b}^ the appointment of Governor Curtin, he was president judge of the district composed of the counties of Mercer, \'enango, Clarion, and Jefterson. In 1862 he was elected a member of the Thirty-eighth Congress and re- elected to the Thirty-ninth, Fortieth, Forty-first, Forty-second, and Forty- third Congresses ; the last time by the State at large. During this twelve years' term in Congress he served on committees on elections, appropriations, Indian affairs, and for six years as chairman of the committee of naval affairs. March 31, 1878, he was appointed by President Hayes register of the United States treasury, which office he held until May 20, 1 881, and then resigned to accept a judgeship on the United States Court of Claims, to which he had been commissioned by President Garfield. As a debater in Congress, Mr. Scofield has been much admired for his analytical, terse, and logical style. Without striving to be amusing, he not unfrequently enlivens his argument b\' pungent satire dnd humorous illustra- tions ; but the general character of his cftbrts is that of clear statement and close reasoning. He seems to aim only at conviction. The following extract from a speech delivered in reply to Hon. James Brooks, of New York, in Jan- uary, 1865, in the House of Representatives, is a fair specimen of his style of address and power of discussion: " It has been often said of late that history repeats itself Of course it can- not be literally true ; but the gentleman reiterates it, and then proceeds to search for the prototype of the terrible drama now being enacted on this con- tinent, and affects to find it in the Revolution of 1776. Having settled this point to his own satisfaction, he proceeds to assign to the living actors their historic parts. The rebels take the position of the colonial revolutionists, the Government of the United States re-enacts the part of George III and his min- isters, while for himself and the Opposition debaters of this House he selects the honorable role of Chatham, Fox, Burke, and other champions of colonial rights in the British Parliament. Let us examine this. It is true that the colonists rebelled against the Government of Great Britain, and the slave- holders rebelled against the Government of the United States ; but here the likeness ends. Between the circumstances that might provoke or justify rebellion in the two cases there is no resemblance. The Government from which the colonies separated was three thousand miles beyond the seas. They could not even communicate with it in those days in less than two or three months. In that Government they had no representation, and their wants and wishes no authoritative voice. Nor was it the form of government most acceptable to the colonists. They preferred a republic. The rapidly increas- ing population and the geographical extent and position of the colonies de- Glenni W. Scofield. 619 manded nationality. Sooner or later it must come. The tea tax and other trifling grievances only hurried on an event that was sure to occur from the influences of geography and population alone. How is it in these respects with the present rebellion ? The Government against which the slaveholders rebelled was not a foreign one ; it was as much theirs as ours. They were fully represented in it. There was scarcely a law, indeed I think there was not a single law upon the statute-book, to which they had not given their assent. It was the Government they helped to make, and it was made as they wanted it. They had ever had their share of control and patronage in it, and more than their share, for they boasted with much truth that cotton was king. Nor is there any geographical reasons in their favor. It is conceded, even by the rebels themselves, that a division of the territory lying compactly between the Lakes, and the Gulf, the Atlantic and the Mississippi, into two nations would be a great misfortune to both. If it were the Pacific States demanding separ- ation, bad as that would be, there would be some sense in it ; but for this ter- ritory you cannot even find a dividing line. When you attempt to run one, the rivers and mountains cross your purpose. Both the land and the water oppose division. There is no disunion outside the wicked hearts of these dis- loyal men. I can see no resemblance, then, between our patriot fathers, who toiled through a seven years' war to establish this beneficent Government, and the traitors who drenched the land in blood in an attempt — I trust in God a vain one — to destroy it. "Again, sir, in what respect do the apologists of the present rebellion in this House resemble the advocates of our great Revolution in the British Parlia- ment? Conceding they are their equals in statesmanship, learning, eloquence, and wit, I submit that they fall far below them in the merit of their respective causes. Chatham defended the cause of the colonists as set forth in the Dec- laration of Independence that ' all men are created equal, endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, among which are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness ' — the honorable gentlemen from New York pleads for slavery, the auction block, the coffle, the lash. With slavery he cures all national troubles. He begs for harmony among ourselves. How shall we be united ? ' Restore slavery,' says he. He is opposed to war. How then shall rebels in arms be subdued? ' Revive the traffic in blood.' He is op- posed to taxes. How then shall our exhausted Treasury be replenished ? ' Raise more children for the market' Slavery, more slavery, still more slavery, is the only prescription of the Opposition doctors. If we are to look for the representatives of these great men on this side of the Atlantic I would not select them from among those who, born and raised in the free States, with all their moral and educational advantages, had not yet quite virtue enough when the struggle came to be patriots, nor quite courage enough to be rebels, but I would rather select them from such men as Johnson, of Ten- 620 History of Warren County. essee, or Davis, of Maryland, who, born and educated amid the influences of slavery, still stood up for the Union cause, at first almost alone. But, sir, the representatives of these men are to be found now as they were then on the other side of the Atlantic, the leaders of the liberal party in the British Parlia- ment. "There is another party that figures largely in the history of the revolution- ary struggle that the gentleman entirely omitted to name. He gave them no place in his cast of parts. The omission may be attributed to either modesty or forgetfulness. Prior to the Revolution the members of this party had filled all the places of honor and profit in the colonies, and when the war came they heartily espoused the cause of the king, though they did not generally join his armies. Their principal business was to magnify disaster, depreciate success, denounce the currency, complain of the taxes, and denounce and dodge arbitrary arrests. To the patriot cause they were ever prophets of evil. Failure was their word. The past was a failure, the future would be. In the beginning of the war this party was in the majority in some of the colonies, and constituted a large minority in all, but as the war progressed their num- bers constantly diminished. Many of the leaders were from time to time sent beyond the ' lines ' and their estates confiscated. Most of these settled in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, right handy to the place where the gentle- man informs us he was born. The members of this party were called tories, and if this war is but a repetition of the war of the Revolution, as the gentle- man intimates, who are their present representatives ? "Again exclaims the gentleman, 'You cannot subjugate eight millions people.' I know not which most to condemn in this expression (I speak it of course without personal application), its insinuation of falsehood or its con- fession of cowardice. The United States does not propose to subjugate any portion of its people, but only to exact obedience to law from all. It is this misrepresentation of the purpose of the (jo\'ernment that still keeps alive the dying flames of the rebellion. I can go further with perfect truth, and say it was this misrepresentation that lighted those flames at first. The slave- holders were told that it was the purpose of this Administration to destroy their personal and political rights ; next they were reminded that they were proud, brave, chivalric men, and then tauntingly asked if they were going to submit. They were thus fairly coaxed and goaded into rebellion. Except for this misrepresentation the Union people would have been in a large majority in all the slave States, and despite it they are in a majority in more than half of them to-day if they could be heard. But they are gagged, bound hand and foot by a despotism so cruel and so mean, so thorough and so efficient, that even the gentleman from New York has no fault to find with it. The country is too much engaged now with the immediate actors in the drama to look be- hind the screens for the authors and prompters of the play. But when these Glenni W. Scofield. — Archibald Tanner. 621 actors have disappeared from the stage, gone down to graves never to be honored, or wandering among strangers never to be loved ; in the peaceful future, when inquisition shall be made for the contrivers, instigators, aiders, and abettors of this great crime, the two classes so often coupled in denuncia- tion in this Hall, the abolitionists of the North and the fire-eaters of the South, will be scarcely noticed, but the quiet historian will 'point his slow, unmoving finger' at those northern leaders who for fifteen years have deceived the South and betrayed the North. They will stand alone. The large minority that now gathers around them, moved thereto more in hopes to escape the severe hard- ships of the war than from any love of them or their position, will have melted away from their support like dissolving ice beneath their feet, and well will it be for their posterity if they can manage then, like Byron's wrecks, to sink into the " Depths with bubbling groan, Without a grave, uiiknelled. uncoffined, and unknown." Subjugate the South ! No, sir; it is the purpose as it is the duty of the- Government to liberate the South, to drive out the usurpers, and to restore to the deluded and betrayed masses the blessings of a free Republic." TANNER, ARCHIBALD. Soon after the death of Archibald Tanner, which occurred February 15, 1861, the following obituary notice, written by the Hon. S. P. Johnson, was published in the Warren Mail : The subject of this notice was to Warren its oldest inhabitant, its best friend, its most enterprising citizen. Here he spent his youthful vigor, his ripened manhood and his feebler age. Around us everywhere are visible mementos of his public spirit and private virtues. With all our pleasing recol- lections of the past his memory is commingled. Every mind is stored with reminiscences of his genial and eccentric humor. Every eye is moist at his seemingly sudden exit. His loss is equally a private grief and a public calamity. The religious, the political, the commercial, and social circle have each a vacant seat and no one able and willing to wear his falling mantle and fill them. But the tear which this bereavement exacts is dried by the knowledge that the good which he has done will live after him, and the conviction that our loss is, to him, eternal gain. Archibald Tanner, son of Tryal Tanner, was born in Litchfield, county. Conn., February 3, 1786 — emigrated with his parents to Trumbull county, O., in the year 1802 — commenced his business life at his majority by boating produce down the Ohio River, and came to Warren in 18 16 with a small stock of goods and groceries, brought by keel-boat up the river. He had been loca- ted for a few previous months in Franklin. With this small stock, his earthly substance then, he commenced a career of commercial success. This he achieved single-handed, where many others failed, in a poor and sparsely set- 622 History of Warren County. tied country, without aid from relatives or patronizing friends. His integrity- gained him universal confidence, while his capacity and close attention to business secured him a large measure of success. He prospered and enlarged his business for many successive years, until he was recognized at home and abroad, as the capitalist and business man of Warren. The latter part of his active commercial life was spent in company with Robert Falconer, esq., and the well-known firm of Tanner & Falconer is yet remembered by all middle-aged descendants of the early settlers, with feelings of sincere respect. Two more honorable dealers never did business in Warren. In December, 1819, Mr. Tanner married the daughter of Colonel Alexan- der McDowell, of Franklin, one of her earliest and most prominent citizens. His married life was short. In 1825 he was left a widower with two infant daughters, only one of whom, wife of Hon. Glenni W. Scofield, survives him. Not forgetting his obligations as a citizen nor relaxing his business energies, he added to their burdens the double duties of a widowed parental vigilance. His political proclivities may be summed up by saying, he was an Adams man while Adams and Jackson headed the parties of the country, subsequently a Whig during the life of that party, and lastly a Republican in full com- munion. In politics, as in all things, he was an earnest man, acting boldly upon his convictions of right and duty. When in a discouraging minority, he pur- chased a press and established at his own expense the first newspaper ever printed in the county, to maintain the political doctrines he thought right. In 1819—20 he was treasurer of the county, and for many years prior to 1829 — the advent of Jackson's administration — he held the office of deputy postmaster in Warren, with great credit to himself and satisfaction to the people. But his most prominent characteristics were local pride and public spirit. He led in every enterprise that aimed to promote the interest of the town and county in which he lived. Coming to Warren when it was an ungrubbed plateau, accessible only by the river channel and the Indian trail, he was fore- most in all improvements, both useful and ornamental. To roads, turnpikes, boats, and bridges, and all other means of progress, he was the largest con- tributor and most active friend. In building he had no compeer in the early history of Warren. The first steamboat that ever navigated the Allegheny River, in 1830, was a monument to his enterprise and self-sacrificing spirit. His last undertaking was the development of the rock-oil fields of Pennsyl- vania. At Titusville, in company with lion. L. F. Watson, he sunk the first Jlotaiiig well. In his early life he devoted a portion of his leisure time to mechanical im- provements. His inventions, though useful in their day, have been superseded by changes in business and later discoveries. One of his patents bears the signature of James Madison and another of J. Q. Adams. Archibald Tanner. 623 Nor was he less a friend to the moral and religious advancement of society. He was one of the pioneers of Presbyterianism in Warren. Having united with that church at its first organization in 1831, he became its chief supporter. In 1832 he was much the largest contributor to the erection of its church building, and for a quarter of a century thereafter, to the support of stated preaching therein. His religion was the result of an earnest, vital conviction of its truth, and was never laid aside or forgotten in the excitements of the hour. His conscientiousness was largely developed and ever present, prompting him in questions of doubtful morality. Although possessing certain idiosyn- crasies of character that occasioned him to differ with many others in his views of right and wrong, he never could be betrayed into an act that was dishonest or dishonorable. While he was an advocate for the doctrine of expediency, few men lived so blameless a life in a moral point of view. In intellectual capacity Mr. Tanner occupied a prominent position among intelligent business men. His was an original intellect, possessing large self- sustaining resources, ingenious, inventive, eccentric, with a strong appreciation of the ridiculous, a ready adaptation to the details of business and a pride of peculiarity in the mode of accomplishing his purpose. In his later life, his water works, his fence building, his cemetery project and the various enter- prises which he either originated or patronized for the development of the country and improvement in the arts, were evidences of these characteristic peculiarities of taste and talent. His perceptions were quick, and his mental action upon every subject pre- sented, direct and pertinent, overleaping all circumlocution. His conclusions were rather instincts than rational deductions. His views of men and things were often quaint and quizzical, and so abrupt that many of his sayings have passed into proverbs and became the common property of the people. In judgment he was not infallible, and he often embarked in projects that proved unfortunate pecuniary speculations. Such were his printing, steam- boat, turnpike, railroad, bridge, and bank experiences, prompted always by public and patriotic motives, but disastrous in their financial results. To his friends he was always true, to his enemies persistently hostile. To his friends he always made himself useful and reliable, while he was at times exacting and censorious ; to his enemies he was uncompromising and defiant, but never cruel. To his relations he was always kind and often generous, even to involving himself in heavy losses on their account. True to his benevolent impulses, to the last, in his will, he releases all obligations to his estate for such advances. He was the poor man's friend, if he would work. To the wants of the needy and unfortunate his heart always responded in acts of substantial aid. Industrious and energetic himself, he had no toleration for idleness or dissipa- tion. 624 History of Warren County. In his temper he was self-willed and somewhat hasty, exhibiting at times a degree of petulance and passion that was doubtless largely attributable to his sensitive and very excitable nervous temperament. But underneath all his foibles lay a manly and open heart, sincerely devoted to truth, honesty, and the public good. His courage, moral and physical, no one ever doubted. It had been often tested. He dared to do right in all emergencies, even against the swell of popular sentiment. He had long been a member of the Masonic order and adhered to it as a benevolent institution. With this brief but candid review of his character and history by one who knew him long and well, we must now part with our old friend Tanner, not to forget him, but to commemorate his virtues and perpetuate his good name. P'or integrity and firmness of purpose, for industry and energy in its exe- cution, for public enterprise and private charity, for an untarnished morality and a consistent piety, his life was a model well worthy the study and imita- tion of those who have a lifetime yet to live, and desire to attain his high position in the estimation of mankind. M'; 1':RRITT, HON. CHARLES C. The first of Judge Merritt's ancestors to immigrate to America was his grandfather, George Merritt, a native of England, who, in his younger days, settled near Hartford, Conn., about 1767 or 1768. He was thus placed in the center of a "rebellious" territory, and became, during his first ten years, thoroughly initiated into all the grand mys- teries of American patriotism. He imbibed the sentiments of his adopted countrymen, and was one of the first to take up arms in defense of oppressed rights when the War of the Revolution burst like a storm cloud upon the de- voted heads of the " Rebel Americans." He bore an active part in that fa- mous struggle. In times of peace he was a farmer He was the father of five sons and two daughters. Thomas, the father of the subject of this sketch, was the youngest of these sons, and was born on the 1st day of November, 1790. He received a common school education in Hartford, and at the age of about twenty-one years removed to Chautauqua county, N. Y., near Forestville, by the way of Buffalo, at a time when the only tavern in that city was a double log house, and when there was no road to Forestville. He therefore found his way from Buffalo to his destination by the lake shore. He engaged in farming near Forestville until as late as 1850, when he removed to Deerfield township, Warren county. Pa. In 1864 he removed to Strawberry Point, Iowa, where he died on the 12th of November, 1874. He was a thorough-going Whig from the time he became a voter until the dissolution of that great party, and the organization of the Republican party. F"rom that time until his death he voted with the Republicans. He was an out-spoken anti-slavery man. At the age of twenty years he married Sally, daughter of Jeremiah Wright, Hon. Charles C. Merritt. 625 of Chantauqua county, N. Y., who died in 1834, leaving a family of seven sons and three daughters. In 1836 Thomas Merritt married, for his second wife, Elizabeth, daughter of Samuel and Hepzibah Jewett, of Chautauqua county, by whom he had five sons and three daughters. She died in 1847. Charles C. Merritt, the subject of this sketch, is the eldest son of Thomas and Elizabeth Merritt, and was born in the township of Hanover, near the village of Forestville, N. Y., on the 3d of April, 1837. He passed his boy- hood, until his thirteenth year, at the place of his birth in attendance upon the common schools, and in 1850 accompanied his father's family to Deerfield township, in this county. There he continued his attendance at school for six months each year, including several terms at the school at Tidioute, until he reached the age of twenty years. From 1857 to i860 he engaged in farming and lumbering on his own account, and during the oil excitement, until 1862, he operated in oil. In August, 1862, he enlisted as a private in Company F, One Hundred and Forty-fifth Regiment of Pennsylvania Volunteers, from which he was promoted in the following January to the office of orderly sergeant, and was afterward commissioned captain. He was wounded at the first battle of Fredericksburg, and again at Gettysburg. He participated in the battles of Cold Harbor, Gettysburg, Fredericksburg, and Antietam. On the i6th of June, 1864, he was captured at Petersburg, from which time he was for ten months and sfeven days a prisoner at Andersonville and at Florence, S. C. He was exchanged in the latter part of March, 1865, after suffering the indescribable horrors of starvation and prison life, which could be sustained only by "muscles of iron and a heart of steel." Immediately after his exchange he returned to Warren county and engaged in farming and lumbering in South- west township. This occupation he continued with uninterrupted success until the spring of 1886, when he began to operate in oil, in which he is still en- gaged. Judge Merritt has ever taken a very active interest in politics, his sincerity and disinterestedness having been abundantly manifested by the part he bore in the war for the preservation of the Union. He is an uncompromising member of the Republican party. His fellow townsmen have honored him with repeated elections to nearly every ofiice within their gift. He served fifteen years as justice of the peace, nine years as road commissioner, and nine years as school commissioner. In the fall of 1885 he ran for his first term in a county office, and was elected associate judge of the Court of Common Pleas for a term of five years, beginning with January i, 1886. For this position he has been partic- ularly well trained by his long experience as justice of the peace. Judge Merritt is a member of the church of the United Brethren in Grand Valley, and has for twenty years been one of its trustees. He has ever been a liberal contributor to the support of all churches, believing that the influence of a sincere religion is the most elevating and ennobling that can be shed upon 626 History of Warren County. any community. He has not been sparing, either, in his practical aid to those who have been more unfortunate than himself, especially when he believes them to be deserving. One most remarkable fact should not be omitted, viz., that neither he nor any member of the Merritt family, within the memory of li\'ing man, have ever used intoxicating liquors in any form, and only one member, a boy, has used tobacco for a short time. This is remarkable in view of the general and respectable use of these intoxicants and narcotics, and un- doubtedly explains, in part at least, the rugged health of the family. In the face of all these facts, Judge Merritt's success is not in opposition to any natural law, but strictly in conformity to nature. It is the reward of continuous and well directed industry, probity, and intelligence. Moreover, Judge Merritt has never been known to desert a friend. This is one secret of his popularity and of his political success. He is prominent for the one fact that when he espouses the cause of a friend he "stays by him." He is at the same time fair toward his opponents, and consistent in his own position. On the 17th day of July, 1857, Charles C. Merritt married Esther L., daughter of Robert and Lovisa Hunter, of Southwest township, who has blessed him with six children, all daughters, three of whom are living — Lovisa, wife of Robert Meabon, lives in Michigan ; Lorinda, after attending the State Nor- mal school at Edinboro, Pa., and engaging with conspicuous success in teach- ing, now resides with her parents, as does Grace, the youngest. Such are the salient particulars of a life crowned with virtue and culminat- ing with a well-developed character. The mere dates are of little value ; the achievements are worthy to be studied and emulated. The secret of success, of usefulness, is revealed in this brief sketch. Judge Merritt has always been what Carlyle has called " an earnest man." This earnestness is what made him a good soldier, and a still better citizen in times of peace, and exemplifies the saying that "peace hath her victories no less renowned than war." M cKINNEY, PETER, was born in Lawrenceville, N. J., on the 17th day of April, 1817. He was a son of Patrick and Sarah (Brown) McKinney. Patrick was a native of Ireland, and emigrated to New York in 1792. He was a brother of John McKinney, who settled in Brokenstraw in 1795. Pat- rick settled and married in New Jersey. He died about 1820, leaving a family of three children — Mary, Peter, and Elizabeth. Peter is the only one now living. He married in 1840 Sarah Ann White, who was born in Pittsfield in 1820. They reared a family of eight children, five of whom are now living, as follows: Elizabeth, Amanda, Almeda, Orris F., and Stella, while Olive, Lena, and Genevieve are deceased. Sarah Ann McKinney was a daughter of James and Eunice White. Mr. McKinney, who is one of the most prominent citizens of the county, has been called upon to officiate in the following public positions : deputy sheriff, constable, town commissioner, school director, and Peter McKinney. — Joshua Turner Currie. 627 assessor. He began lumbering and farming at an early day, and by his in- dustry, economy, correct habits and fair dealing has achieved a conspicuous degree of success. He is now a retired capitalist. His son. Orris F., married Emily Grennell, by whom he has had one son and one daughter. Mrs. Pat- rick McKinney settled in Pittsfield with her family in 1824, where, ten years later, Peter embarked in the lumber trade. He died on the 22d day of De- cember, at his old homestead in the township of Pittsfield ; was sick two months and fifteen days ; buried in Garland Cemetery. CURRIE, JOSHUA TURNER, was born in Stanbridge, county of Mis- sisquoi, P. Q., on the 6th day of September, 18 15. His father, Francis Currie, was a captain of militia in Stanbridge at that time, when the title was a term of positive and complimentary distinction. Francis Currie, whose par- ents were from Scotland, was born near Albany, N. Y., on the 1st of August, 1785, passed his life as a farmer, and died at Stanbridge on the 7th of October, 1846. His wife, Polly Turner, was born in Vermont on the 23d of June, 1788, and died at Stanbridge in June, 1872. They reared a family of seven sons and one daughter, of whom Joshua Turner is the second son. Only three of these children are now living, the other two being H. M. Currie, who resides in Michigan, and George Earl, whose home is in Dayton, Ky., but who is en- gaged in business in Cincinnati and Louisville. He was a colonel in the last war. The subject of this sketch was reared on the farm on which he was born in Stanbridge, Province of Quebec, until May, 1837, when he removed to Rus- sellburg, Warren county. Pa., and for some six months assisted his elder brother and uncle in the manufacture of lumber. In the winter of 1837-38, deeming his education unfinished, he attended the academy at Warren, when Hon. Rasselas Brown was principal, and in the fall of 1838 returned to the place of his birth. At the end of one year he came back to Russellburg, engaging as clerk in the store of A. G. Lane. From the fall of 1840 to the fall of 1842 he was Mr. Lane's partner, but at the latter date disposed of his interest in the business, and removed to Youngsville, where he began the work of mill build- ing. He had never served his time as a mechanic, but was naturally gifted with mechanical ingenuity, and performed his contracts with such scrupulous punctuality and accuracy, that he soon had more work than he was able to do. He introduced a patented water wheel of superior construction, which brought him in generous returns. He followed this business for thirty years, putting power in nearly all the mills in the vicinity, and entirely rebuilding many of them — sixty-three in number. One prominent secret of his success is his re- markable executive ability. He has always depended on himself as much as possible, leaving little to be done by his subordinates that required responsible duties or skill. He has ever been willing to accommodate his patrons, also, and for years previous to the war received his payment more in interest bear- 628 History of Warren County. ing notes than in cash, and was always paid. In 1864 and 1865 he made con- siderable in investments in real estate, since which time he has also been act- ive in brokerage, purchasing notes, etc. In this way he has by industry and sagacity, by perseverance and economy, by honesty and fidelity, amassed a competence, although at the beginning he had nothing for capital but his character and determination. His landed property now consists of si.xtccn and a half acres in Youngsville borough, and fifty-six acres in Brokenstraw town- ship, in another lot. Its principal value is in its location. Mr. Currie is a lifelong Democrat. Although he has taken an active and keen interest in political matters, he has never sought, and seldom held office. In his religious views he is independent. He is at the same time advanced and conservative. His opinions do not coincide wholly with any religious creed, but he gives much time and thought to the conflicting theories respect- ing man's origin and destiny, and finds his ideas becoming clearer with ad- vancing years. His faith is bottomed on no metaphysical hypothesis, but on upright conduct. He married Jane, daughter of Samuel Irwin, of Venango county, on the 4th of February, 1 846, who through all the wasting years has blessed his life with the consolations of an intimate and self-sacrificing companionship. At the time of his marriage he first settled on the place which is still his home. The members of his household in the past have been, in addition to himself and his wife, Martha McDowell, who came to live with them when she was seven years of age, and is now the wife of Nelson Mead, of Corydon ; and John L. Currie, who lived with them from the time he was five years of age until his marriage at the age of twenty-three years. He now lives on a farm in Brokenstraw township. I DAVIS, ALPHEUSJ., was born in Reading, Steuben county, N.Y. He is the fourth son of Greeley and Lucy (Dow) Davis. His mother was born at Wat- kins, Steuben county, N. Y., on the 10th of October, 1792, and died at Tionesta Forest county. Pa., in 1868. His father was a native of Saratoga county, N. Y., the date of his birth being August 4th, 1787, and of his death at Pleasant- ville, Venango county, Pa., June isth, 1863. They were married at Reading, N. Y., in 181 1. During the war of 1812 Greeley Davis enlisted in the Amer- ican army, was stationed principally at Ticonderoga, and for his meritorious services received a soldier's land warrant. A partial record of his children would read somewhat as follows: Lot B., born in 1812, twice married, first to Susan Cencipaugh, secondly to Julia Hudson, and resides at Watkins, N. V. ; John D., born in 1814, died after the family removed to Warren, Pa.; Barnum, married Manda Wright, died in Illinois ; Alpheus J.; Mary, born in 1822, mar- ried Flavins j. Benedict, and resides at Pleasantville, Pa.; Meredith and Mi- randa, twins, born in 1824, the former twice married, first to Amanda Bcnley, ^^t_,^cy^x^ Alpheus J. Davis. — Willis B. Benedict. 629 secondly to Anna Evans, and now resides in Clearfield county, Pa.; the latter married Daniel Whitney, and resides in Buffalo, N. Y.; Priscilla Ann married James H. Clark, and resides in New York city ; Frances married Marshall Couch, died in 1858 ; Samuel married Adeline Henderson, and resides at York, Neb.; Luther married Mary Houston, and resides in Warren county. 111.; Ephraim married Elizabeth Dale, and resides at Tionesta, Pa. Alpheus J. Davis received his education at Reading and at Warren, Pa., to which place the Davis family moved in 1833. At fifteen years of age, leaving his older brothers to assist on the farm, he was apprenticed to a clothier, and served three years. Then, wishing to continue his education, he passed the next three years at school in Warren. Afterward he engaged in the lumber business, and continued to be most actively and extensively connected with that interest through all his side issues of other business operations. He served a j'ear as constable of Warren borough with such fidelity that the people earnestly importuned him to serve longer, but the pressure of his pri- vate affairs, and his dislike for public office constrained him to refuse. In 1858 he opened a flour and feed store, in which he remained two years. Meantime he was appointed the first express agent of Warren county, and he held that office with signal credit until his resignation in 1 861, in favor of his friend, L. D. Crandall. He had always been successful in business enterprises, selling out readily at good opportunities. Upon tlie first development of petroleum he built on Oil Creek a refinery with a capacity for sixty barrels per diem, which, after successfully managing for three years, he sold, and returned to the lumber business. From 1876 to 1883 he owned the largest drug store in Warren. Although a strong Democrat, he has never taken any active part in political matters, preferring rather to assist in advancing the material interests of his own town. He is a member of several town and county associations, and has performed the duties which have devolved upon him with credit to himself and advantage to others. He contributes liberally to the support of the Pres- byterian Church, of which his wife is a member. In 1852 he married Nancy J. Miles, daughter of Robert Miles, a sketch of whose life appears in this work. They have two children, Jessie Miles, wife of Dr. A. C. McAlpine, of Warren, and Annie Grace, now residing with her parents. BENEDICT, WILLIS B., was born in the village of Enterprise, township of Southwest, on the 19th day of February, 1838. He comes of an an- cient English family, the first emigrant from which to this country, Thomas Benedict, settled in Massachusetts Bay in 1638, removing from there to Con- necticut. He died at Norwalk in 1690, where many of his descendants are now living. The great-grandfather of the subject of our sketch, named Thomas 630 History of Warren County. Benedict, bore an active part as a soldier throughout the War of the Revolu- tion, and was afterward a pensioner, as was also another great-grandfather, James Spencer. W. B. Benedict's grandfather, Jare Benedict, was the first of the family to settle in Southwest. He was born in December, 1787, in West Stockbridge, Mass. His father emigrated from Massachusetts to Onondaga county, N. Y., whence, in the winter of 1833, Jare Benedict removed to South- west, bringing his family and worldly effects with him in sleighs. His wife Annis, daughter of James Spencer mentioned above, was born in West Stock- bridge, Mass., in 1791, and died in Southwest township on the 9th of August, 1858. When they came to this township, in 1833, their children, Elbridge G., Selden Spencer, Major F., and Harriet, afterward wife of George C. Pettit, of Fabius, N. Y., were all born. Jare Benedict, at once upon his arrival in Warren county, formed a partnership with his brother-in-law, Selden Spencer, for the purpose of engaging in the manufacture and sale of lumber. They purchased large tracts of lands covered with a dense growth of pine timber of the best quality, and erected what was in those days a fine saw-mill on Pine Creek, at what is now the site of Enterprise village, on the ruins of the first mill ever built in this part of the county. Mr. Benedict continued in a most successful prosecution of the lumber business until his death, on the 19th of July, 1844, when he had reached the age of fifty-six years, si.x months and twenty-eight days. He was a noted man in his day, both for his superior sagacity and energy in the management of his private affairs, and for his unbounded public spirit. He was an acknowledged leader in all matters relating to the welfare of his town and county. He was a staunch but intelligent Democrat. To his enterprise and industry are due the laying out and opening of many of the roads in this vicinity. He and all his family were members of the Baptist de- nomination. Before coming to Pennsylvania he and his brother Aaron, al- most unaided, built a Baptist house of worship in Fabius, N. Y., which is still standing. His only surviving son. Major F. Benedict, resides in Titusville. Major F. and Selden S. Benedict succeeded to their father's estate. Selden Spencer Benedict was born in Fabius, Onondaga county, N. Y., on the 27th day of March, 18 17, and was consequently sixteen years of age when he came to Southwest with his father's family. In July, 1836, he married Mary H., daughter of the celebrated Dr. John Heffron, of Erieville, Madison county, N. Y., where she was born on the 2 2d of March, 18 17. Her father was a graduate from Dartmouth College, and a surgeon in the War of 18 12. Selden S. Benedict and wife reared a family of five children: Willis B., the eldest ; Eugenia, now the wife of W. J. Booth, of Titusville, Pa. ; Francis Wayland, who died November 22, 1865, aged twenty-two years; M. Laverne, who became the wife of Dr. John Chick, removed with him to Kansas City, Mo., and after his death, in 1881, removed to Titusville, where she now resides ; besides a son, born next after Wayland, who died in infancy. Selden Benedict i Willis B. Benedict. 631 succeeded not only to a share of his father's property, but inherited his energy and public spirit. He was esteemed for his open-handed charity and liberality; was a member of the Democratic party until 1856, when he joined the ranks of the Republicans, during that period of general osmosis between political par- ties ; and was a member and supporter of the Baptist Church in his own town. In 1865 Major F., his brother, retired from business and settled in Titusville, after which he conducted the business in his own name until his death, on the 6th of February, 1873. His wife died on the 23d day of May, 1879. Willis B. Benedict passed his boyhood in attendance upon the district schools of Southwest township, after which he underwent a thorough training at the Waterford Academy in Erie county. In 1856 he had the benefit of a course of study in Duff's Commercial College of Pittsburgh, the first and about the best institution of the kind west of the Allegheny Mountains. Thus equipped for the serious business of life, he returned to Enterprise and busied himself in aiding his father, until the oil development of 1859, when he added the production of oil to the manufacture of lumber. He commenced the pro- duction of petroleum in the fall of 1859, when he drilled a well in Rouseville, Venango county. From that time to the present writing Mr. Benedict has united the two industries — that of operating in oil and that of manufacturing lumber — with a degree of success. He has drilled many hundreds of wells, and still owns large tracts of timber and oil lands. He was, unfortunately, a victim of the great oil fire, which caused the death of Henry R. Rouse, on the 17th of April, 1861, and himself escaped only with serious injuries. Though not ambitious for political eminence, Mr. Benedict's ability for management, and his personal influence, has made him, of necessity, active in public affairs. He is in principle a Republican, and while a firm and unyield- ing one, is not an "offensive" partisan. In 1862 he was elected treasurer of Warren county, and during his administration demonstrated his fitness for the position. He was elected to a seat in the State Legislature in the fall of 1880, and served with credit to himself and his constituents. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church of Enterprise, and contributes liberally to its support. Mr. Benedict has been thrice married. His first wife, Mary, daughter of Elisha Sprague, of Fabius, N. Y. — (an early friend of his father) — he married on the 1 8th of September, i860. She died in July, 1872, leaving one daugh- ter, Myra E., who was born on the 30th of December, 1868, and is now living with her father. In June, 1874, he was united in marriage with his second wife, Jennie, daughter of Judge Richard Irwin, of Franklin, Venango county. She died in April, 1877, leaving one child, Selden S., born on the 23d of June, 1875, and also at home. On the 25th of July, 1878, he married Edna J. Ruland, then of Shamburg, Pa., though formerly of Batavia, N. Y., who is his present wife. By her he has had four children — Willis B., born on the i6th 632 History of Warren County. of March, 1880; Wayland R., born on the 19th of January, 1882; Harry H., born on the 4th of January, 1884; and Robert H., born on the 8th of March, 1886. MARSH, WILLIAM S. Joseph Marsh, the father of William S. Marsh, was born of Quaker parentage in Woodbury, county of Middlesex, N. J., on the loth of March, 1795. When he was five years of age his father, John Marsh, left his old home in New Jersey, and started for the wilds of Northwestern Pennsylvania. He transported his family and goods in carts, drawn by oxen. They wended their way slowly along through rough and hilly roads until they reached Franklin, on the Allegheny River, where they unloaded their goods and placed them in keel-boats together with carts, as there was no road up the river to Warren, their destination Their cattle were driven over the hills and through the woods to Warren, where their goods and carts were disembarked from the boats, and they proceeded as before until they reached the end of their journey, in what was known as Beechwoods, later Pine Grove, now Farmington township, on the 15th day of October, 1800. Mr. Marsh's brother, Hugh, had preceded him thither two years before. He settled on a piece of land now embraced within the limits of the " Marsh burying-ground." His house stood in the fields (east) about eighty rods from the route of the present highway. He had married Phebe Allen on the 26th of August, 1790, and in 1800 followed his brother Hugh to this county. Another brother, Charles, came a number of years later. Joseph Marsh became in time one of the leading men of the township. He held many of the township offices, and was justice of the peace for fifteen years and until about 1856. His record as a justice is a remarkably good one. It was his aim to persuade all litigants to adjust their difficulties peaceably if possible. In nearly every case which was pushed to a judgment before him, however, his decisions were supported by the appellate courts. He was a man of few words, was very deliberate in his opinions, could hardly be provoked to anger, practiced the utmost lenity toward those who were his debtors, never could say " no " to anybody who asked him for favors, and in his domestic life was irreproachable. His carefulness is exemplified by the fact that it was his lifelong habit to make notes of all the occurrences of interest in the vicinity of his home. I le was twice married. His first wife was Ruth, daughter of William and Parthena Sheldon, of Farm- ington. He married her on the 28th of December, 1820. She died on May 7, 1844, after becoming the mother of ton children, born and named as fol- lows: Parthena, born on the 15th of October, 1821, died February 15, 1838; Phebe, born May 4, 1823, died August 28, 1826; Miriam L., born June i, 1824, died December 28, 1841 ; William S., the subject of this sketch; Nancy P., born May 22, 1828, died March 15, 1844; John A., born April 4, 1832, died September 22, 1881 ; Phebe A., born June 23, 1834, married Fdwin Wat- kins, died February 23, i860; Joseph L., born July 5, 1837, died December I iyfu^i^ /ii^^^i^ rnj'-by SBBMs Sins 2f,^-iSr^. William S. Marsh. — Alson Rogers. 633 I, 1838; Rachel Jane, born November 30, 1839. died March 26, 1844- and bdvvm Sheldon, born July 18, 1842, died March 18, 1844. Joseph Marsh married his second wife, Mrs, Betsey Trask, in 1844 Bv her he had three children, Martha and Agnes, now deceased, and Joseph Al- bro, now hvmg in Russellburg. Joseph Marsh died on the 14th of February 1 88 1, aged eighty-five years, eleven months, and four days William S. Marsh, the fourth child of Joseph and Ruth (Sheldon) Marsh was born m Farmington township on the 9th day of July, 1826 and there received all the education that could be obtained without attendance upon the higher institutions of learning. He lived on his father's farm until he was mar- ried on the 6th of March, ,850, to Rosaville R, daughter of Hiram Knapp of Farmington, then Fine Grove. His wife is still living. Previous to their mar- riage he had purchased fifty acres of land included in his present farm and immediately after the marriage he built a house and moved into it He has engaged from that time to the present in general farming, making something of a specialty, however, of dairying. The original dimensions of his farm he has increased to one hundred and fifty acres, which contains as good land as can be found in the surrounding county. In addition to his farming he has also acquired skill as a carpenter, but has d- ne comparatively nothing at the trade since 1876. In 1870 he moved their first dwelling house back from the road and erected on its old site the house which they now occupy Mr. Marsh supports the views of the Republican party, and takes a lively interest in the vicissitudes of that party in State and national aftairs though in local matters he is accustomed to vote for whom he considers the best man for the oflice, irrespective of party. He has been placed in many of the township offices by his townsmen, but has declined to take offices which have been offered him of late. He has served three terms as justice of the peace, two consecutive terms beginning with 1856, and after missing one term was elected the third time. At the expiration of the third term he was invited to accept the office once more, but declined it. His discharge of the duties of that responsible position seems to be of the same pattern as that of his father His decisions on questions of law and justice are deliberate and indicative of a far-seeing common sense, and on appeal have generally been sustained Mr. and Mrs. Marsh have had four children, three of whom are livin- The eldest, W. Edgar, was born on the isth of January, 1851, and is now'a practicing attorney at Corry. Pa.; Joseph Sherman was born June 17 1857 and died November 14. 1861 ; Frederick Sherman was born April 29' 1862' and IS now in the drug trade in Jamestown, N. Y.; and Carrie A. was born on the 23d of December, 1868, and is now residing with her parents. ROGERS, ALSON, eldest son of Dr. Joseph and Cornelia Waldron Rogers was born in Dutchess county, N. Y., on the i6th of November 1807' Being left an orphan at the age of seven years, he was taken by his grandpar- 634 History of Warren County. ents to Vermont, where he Hved on a farm until 1830. He then removed to Warner, Pa., and went into business for himself In March, 1835, he married Miss Kezia P. Sill, daughter of the late Nathaniel Sill, of Pleasant township. He settled in Mead township three miles above Warren on the Allegheny River, and engaged mainly in the lumbering business, in which he continued successfully until his death, April 11, 1876. His wife and seven children sur- vive him. Mr. Rogers was kind and hospitable in his social relations, plain and unas- suming in manner, and one of the substantial and useful early settlers of War- ren county. He possessed in a marked degree that untiring perseverance, in- dustry, and economy which deserve and command success ; while his strict in- tegrity, high moral character, and firmness in his convictions of right, won for him the respect and esteem of his fellowmen. BLODGET, DR. A. C. Western New York and Northwestern Pennsyl- vania received a large influx of settlers from Oneida county, N. Y., in the earlier years of this century — men with the prophetic instinct and un- daunted mettle to look through the struggles and hardships which characterize life in a new country to the wealth that flows from newly-developed resources, and to brave the former for the acquisition of the latter. Of such a stamp was Cyrenus Blodget, the father of Dr. Blodget, of Youngsville. He was born in Whitestown, Oneida county, N. Y., on the 6th of October, 1792 ; served in the second war with Great Britain, participating in the battle of Black Rock, and other engagements along the Niagara frontier ; settled in Busti, Chautau- tau county, N. Y., about 1816; toiled unremittingly in clearing and cultivat- ing a farm of respectable proportions, and died in September, 1862. His father, Solomon Blodget, was a soldier in the Revolutionary War, an early set- tler in Whitestown, N. Y., and died in Ontario county in that State. Cyrenus Blodget married Celia, daughter of Gardner Clark, of Petersburg, Rensselaer county, N. Y., about the year 1816. She was born on the ist of June, 1799, and died in March, 1858, leaving three children — Mary Angeline, now the wife of Dr. E. S. Stewart, of Ellicottville, N. Y.; Alden Diver, who died in September, 1862; and Alanson Clark Blodget, of whom we are writ- ing. A. C. Blodget was born on the 26th of October, 1821, in Busti, N. Y., where he received such education as could be obtained in the common schools, and the academy at Jamestown, N. Y. Believing his tastes and abilities adapted him for the life and work of a physician, he determined to fit himself for the practice of that learned profession, and began his medical studies with Dr. IC. S. Stewart in 1 840, subsequently attending lectures at the Geneva Medical College in Geneva, Ontario county, N. Y., from which he was grad- uated in 1846. Previous to that time he had commenced practice in Wrights- Dr. a. C. Blodget. — Erastus Barnes. 635 ville, Warren county, as early as 1843. Upon his graduation from the medical college, however, he sought a more promising field, and removed to Youngs- ville in the fall of 1847. He soon acquired a good practice, which has con- tinuously grown to such an extent as to occupy his almost undivided attention for many years. Until within a year or two he has been the attending physi- cian and surgeon for the Rouse Hospital since its establishment. He was not engaged very largely in any other business, excepting that about twenty-five years ago he operated a little in oil, and put down two wells in Tidioute, which were worked with profit, and abandoned when they declined. For the last fifteen years he has owned and managed a farm of about eighty acres, hiring it worked according to special directions. Though never conspicuous as a politician, he has always been ready to aid in securing the best men for offices of trust and responsibility. His sympathies were at first with the Whig party, and have been with the Republican party since its birth, before the last war. He has been honored with several town offices, and served one term as county commissioner, but prefers the practice of his profession to the duties of public office. He has been twice married, first to Mary E. Littlefield, on the 19th of No- vember, 1852. She is now deceased. He was united in marriage with his present wife, Venie C. Culbertson, on the 8th of August, 1876. He is the father of three children, two sons by his first wife, one of whom, Frank H., is now residing in Youngsville, the other, Lynn, having died in infancy, and one daughter, Lucelia, by his present wife. The former was born on the 5th of December, 1854, and the latter on the 28th of March, 1878. BARNES, ERASTUS. The subject of this sketch was born at Italy Hill, Yates county, N. Y., in the year 181 1, his father being Timothy Bai-nes, who with his family left New York State in 1828, and settled on the south branch of Tionesta Creek in Sheffield township, Warren county, then a wilder- ness. Here a mill was erected which still stands, a landmark in the now thriv- ing community. Land was acquired, business accumulated, and soon all the evidences of a prosperous career began. Grown to manhood, Erastus, who had become manager of the business, married Eliza Eddy, a daughter of Zach- ariah Eddy, of Warren. Their children were Rose, now Mrs. Frank T. Blair ; Timothy E., late treasurer of Warren county, now deceased, who married Miss Ada Houghton ; Letitia, who married George Horton ; and Catharine, the wife of H. H. Ham. Mr. Barnes, becoming a man of note in the county, was selected one of the county commissioners ; and the Rouse fund coming to the county at this time, enabled Mr. Barnes and his associates to enact those wise measures which the county now so highly prizes. The commissionership was his only political office. He lives full of years, honored and respected by all who know him. 41 636 History of Warren County. M^ ILES, ROBERT, one of the first and most prominent merchants and capitalists of Warren county, was born in Northumberland county. Pa., on the 2d of April, 1793. His parents, Robert and Katharine (Watts) Miles, were both Pennsylvanians, and when Robert, jr., was but three years of age the family passed through Warren on their way to Sugar Grove, their future home. Here his father performed the duties of an early settler on a tract of land which, had it been a rectangle, would measure nearly three miles square. Robert was the sixth of seven children, and like the others, was educated by private tuition till, at the proper age, he was obliged to do his share of work upon the large farms which his father had put into cultivation in 1797. It is thus established that the family were among the first to settle in Warren county. He continued upon the home farm until the death of his father, when he engaged in the lumber trade, and remained actively and extensively con- nected with that interest until within a few years of his death. He was a vol- unteer soldier in the War of 1812. In 1830 he was elected prothonotary of the courts of Warren county, being the fourth person to hold that office after its separate establishment in Warren county. The infinite variety of his tal- ents impelled to enlarge perpetually his business interests. He was identified very considerably with mercantile and real estate transactions, most of them involving large amounts. He was one of the first to perceive the probable effect of the discovery of petroleum on business operations, and engaged with ardor in its production. About the year 1859 he erected a refinery a short distance below Warren, and kept it in operation for a number of years. His business tact and sound judgment were so prominent characteristics of his mind as to cause the advantageous issue of nearly all his investments. His connection with Warren as a resident of that borough began with the year 1830, when he removed from Pine Grove, the place in which he began the manufacture of lumber. In politics Robert Miles was a zealous and an influential advocate of the principles of the Whig and Republican parties. In religion he evinced his faith by attaching himself early to the Presbyterian Church. He was very patriotic and public spirited, and to his efforts much of the prosperity of Warren county is to be ascribed. In business he was active and laborious to a degree that would have broken down a more feeble constitution. He was deliberate in forming an opinion, but his decisions were practically irreversible. He was a great reader, and was well versed in general literature, in history and in the chronicles of passing events. It was his habit to preserve carefully a record of all his business transactions. A spirit of benevolence pervaded his character and impelled him to give with great liberality to the support or assistance of those who needed and deserved help. He died on the nth of May, 1877, aged eighty-four years. Robert Miles married Sally Smith, of Enfield, (Jonn., on the i6th of Jan- Robert Miles. — James Roy. 637 uary, 18 17, and by sustaining him in his early efforts and crowning his latter days with comfort, slie amply justified the wisdom of his choice. She sur- vived him until the 30th of August, 1882, when she had reached the ripe age of eighty-eight years. They had a family of two sons and four daughters, all of whom lived to years of manhood and womanhood. Their names are as follows : Harriet, now Mrs. E. N. Rogers, of Union, Pa.; John, formerly an attorney of Warren, where he died in 1855 ; Catharine, now Mrs. C. D. Rog- ers, of Jamestown, N. Y.; Dwight, who resides at Osceola Mills, Polk county, Wis.; Nancy, now Mrs. A. J. Davis, of Warren ; and Sarah, who became the wife of Dwight Allen, of Jamestown, N. Y., where she died in 1853. ROY, JAMES, who was born in Phelpstown, Ontario county, N. Y., on the 14th day of September, 1822, is descended from a family bearing his pat- ronymic in Scotland. His grandfather, Cole Roy, came from that country^ about 1788 or 1789, and settled in Phelpstown, where he died about 1825. His son, Andrew, the father of the subject of this sketch, was born in Scot- land about 1785, and was the youngest member of a family of five sons and a daughter. He engaged in farming near Phelpstown, N. Y., until his death in 1829. His wife, Margaret, was a native of eastern Pennsylvania, and was married to him as early as 1810. He took an active part in the second war with Great Britain, serving at Black Rock, and along the Niagara frontier. One of his brothers, Charles Roy, was killed in action at Fort Erie. Andrew and Margaret Roy had a family of three daughters and two sons, of whom James is next to the youngest, and the youngest of the sons. Mr. Roy received the rudimentary portion of his education in Phelpstown, but in 1836 he came to Elk township in this county, and attended school for a time after his settlement there. Before he had reached the age of twenty-one years he began engaging in agricultural and lumbering pursuits, clearing land in Elk township and shipping lumber down the river. From this early beginning until as late as 1883 Mr. Roy continued this twofold business, and from a seemingly unpropitious start, with little means and few friends, he wrought out by patient labor and sagacious management, a well-deserved fortune. In 1883 he discontinued lumbering, and besides the cultivation of his old farm and other land which he has accumulated in the years that are past, he has devoted himself assiduously to operations in oil. In all the business transactions of a long life he has manifested a mingled conservatism and energy which are sure prognostics of success. His landed interests in Warren county comprise about fifteen hundred acres, though the acres he has owned and disposed of may not be reckoned. Mr. Roy has not been a political aspirant ; nevertheless he has accepted several township offices, and in 1880 was elected county commissioner of War- ren county. During the war he supported the nominees of the Republican 638 History of Warren County. party ; voted for Horace Greeley in 1872 ; and is now a member of the Green- back party. On the loth of September, 1851, he married Sophia, daughter of William and Maria Shattuck, who were originally from Massachusetts, and later became prominent in Elk township. Mrs. Roy died on the 19th of July, 1867. She left seven children, all of whom are now living. The eldest, Helen Maria, was born on the 28th of May, 1853 ; Margaret, born June 3, 1856, is the wife of Glennie Meade, of Warren ; Franc, born June 17, 1858, is the wife of Jesse F. Baker, of Des Moines, la.; James, born March 27, i860, married Saloma Smith, of Warren; John was born March 20, 1862; Blanche was born Septem- ber 24, 1863, and Josephine Adella was born March 7, 1865. GRANDIN, SAMUEL, the subject of this sketch, is a grandson of one Samuel Grandin, who was born in 1700 on one of the islands along the coast of France. He came to this country, settled in New Jersey, and passed nearly all his life there, but died in 1787 on an island near New York harbor. He was well-to-do, and gave his large family of children a good education. Three of his sons were educated, one for the practice of law, one for the min- istry, and the other for a mercantile life. John Grandin, father of the subject of this notice, was for a time in the mercantile business, but at a later day taught school, until failing health compelled him to retire. His family lived in Morris county, N. J., but he died in Pleasantville, V^enango county, Pa., more than forty-five years ago, aged sixty-seven years. His wife, whom he married in New Jersey, was a native of Sussex county in that State. They had seven children, of whom three were sons and four daughters. Only two of these are now living, namely, the subject of this sketch, and Daniel Grandin, of James- town, N. Y. Samuel Grandin was born in Sussex county, N. J., on the 15th day of Oc- tober, 1800. His educational advantages were very limited, the schools were not good, and he did not attend them after his eighth or tenth year. He then learned the trade of a tailor, which he afterward followed for twenty consecu- tive years. In 1822 he came to Pleasantville, Venango county. Pa., where he remained until 1840. In that year he removed to Tidioute in this county, re- linquished his trade, and began selling goods. He also built mills and engaged in the lumber trade, rafting large quantities down the river. He continued this business until his retirement from active business pursuits shortly after the year i860. In 1867 he built the dwelling house which he still occupies. By virtue of his sagacity and industry he amassed a fortune, his capital at the be- ginning being, as he has been heard to say, " a pair of shears and a lap-board." He has never been a politician, nor an office seeker. Although urged to ac- cept office, he has persistently refused, leaving that duty or pleasure to those who sought it. lie votes, independently of party distinctions, for the best ^^^) <^^>^.^ Samuel Grandin. — Nathaniel Bailey Eldred. 639 man. His religious belief is that all men are at last saved, that they should do their best here and not wait until after death. He is a member of the Uni- versalist Church, and contributes liberally to its support. He has ever been found at the head of any enterprise which looks to the advancement of the in- terests of the county or of Tidioute borough, taking especial pride in her edu- cational institutions, and generously aiding them with his means. Personally he is of a sociable disposition, though his hatred for sham will not permit him to disguise his feelings when it is manifested to him. He is generous to a fault, and has never been able to refuse help to any one in need. He has lost large amounts of money by indorsing notes for the accommodation of friends who allowed him to stand the consequences of his own kindness. In public affairs he is much more discriminating, wisely giving where his bene- factions would do the most good. On the 4th of October, 1832, he married Sarah Ann Henry, of Venango county, who was born October 12, 1807, and died May 11, 1852. They reared a family of five sons and two daughters, as follows : Morris Worts Grandin, born October 10, 1833, died September 5, 1834; Stephen Girard, born April 14. 1835, died by drowning July 24, 1851 ; John Livingston, born December 20, 1836, now a member of the firm of Grandin Brothers, of Tidioute; Will- iam J., born August 26, 1838, now of the same firm; Elijah Bishop, born No- vember 23, 1840, also a member of this firm ; Maria Jane, born February 21, 1843, now the widow of Adnah Neyhart, of Ithaca, N. Y., and living with her father; and Emma Ann, born June 29, 1849, died in Jamestown, N. Y., Au- gust 17, 1867. ELDRED, NATHANIEL BAILEY, the first president judge appointed from the bar of Wayne county, was born at Dolsontown, Orange county, N. Y., January 12, 1795. His early education was such as the local schools afforded, supplemented by a diligent reading of all books that fell into his hands. While yet a boy he formed the purpose of becoming a lawyer, and about the year 181 1 he went to Milford, then the county seat of Wayne, to begin the work of preparation. He first entered the office of Dan Dimmick, one of the leading lawyers of the county, and subsequently completed his studies under the direction of Edward Mott, deputy attorney-general for the county. Before his course of legal study was finished the county was divided, and Milford became the county seat of Pike. January 27, 18 17, he was admitted to the bar of Wayne. He continued, however, to reside at Milford until after the death of Andrew M. Dorrance,' the senior of the two lawyers then practicing at the county seat of Wayne, in April, 18 18. Thereupon he took up his residence and commenced practice in Bethany, which remained his home for the greater part of the next half cen- tury. 640 History of Warren County. In thus commencing life, Mr. Eldred was favored with no advantages except those bestowed by nature. Those however were sufficient to win rapid advancement, especially in a community which recognized no conventional standards or artificial distinctions. His mental constitution was a rare combi- nation of sturdy personal qualities, quick intelligence, keen powers of observa- tion, generous impulses, rigid integrity, and a ready adaptability to surrounding conditions. He rapidly gained the appreciation and confidence of the people of the county, both as a lawyer and a man, and in 1822, four years after he had come among them, a stranger, he was elected to the Legislature. In the following year he was re-elected. Under the system of rotation in the district that prevailed, the nominees were selected from Pike county for the next two years. When it again fell to Wayne to secure the candidate, Mr. Eldred was re-elected for two terms more. His fourth year's service completed, he declined a subsequent nomination. Later when the system of public improvements constructed by the State was put in operation, he accepted the position of canal commissioner, but declined a second term. He was also a member of the board of commissioners appointed by the State — Hon. John Ross and Hon. David Scott being his associates — to treat with a like board appointed by the State of New Jersey in relation to the navigation and control of the Delaware River, and aided materially in the adjustment of all questions connected with this subject. In 1844 he was chosen a presidential elector and cast his vote for James K. Polk. In the spring of 1853 he received from President Pierce the appointment of naval officer at the Philadelphia custom-house, a position which he held for four years. But it was in the field of his profession rather than in politics that his chief distinction was won. During a practice of nearly twenty years, in competition with such men as Amzi and Thomas Fuller, George Wolf, Dan Dimmick, Ed- ward Mott, Garrick Mallcry, Oristus Collins, John N. Conyngham, and other noted practitioners of that day, he rose to a high position at the bar, and for nearly twenty years more he held a seat on the bench. By an act passed April 8, 1833, the counties of Potter, McKean, Warren, and Jefterson were erected into the Eighteenth Judicial District, from and after September i, 1835, ^""^ the governor was required to appoint a president judge for the district. When the time for making the appointment arrived Governor Wolf, who had often met Mr. Eldred at the bar, and recognized his fitness for the position, com- missioned him president judge of the new district. In 1839 the death of Judge Slupper made a vacancy on the bench of the Sixth District, composed of Erie, Crawford, and Venango counties, and Governor Porter commissioned Judge Eldred as president judge of that district. In 1843 Judge Blythe, of the Twelfth District, composed of Dauphin, Leb- anon, and Schuylkill counties, resigned to accept the office of collector of cus- Nathaniel Bailey Eldred. 641 toms of Philadelphia, and Governor Porter thereupon commissioned Judge Eldred as his successor. In 1849 the counties of Wayne, Pike, Monroe and Carbon were erected into the Twenty-second District, and Judge Eldred, desiring a return to his old home in Bethany, Governor Johnson commissioned him president judge of the district. In 1851 the judiciary having been made elective by the constitu- tional amendment adopted the preceding year, many of Judge Eldred's friends throughout the State proposed his nomination for judge of the Supreme Court. He declined however to become a candidate, preferring to remain on the bench where his home was situated ; and the desire to retain him was so general in the district that he received the support of both parties, and was elected with- out opposition. In April, 1853, the position of naval officer at Philadelphia being tendered him by President Pierce, he decided to accept it and resigned the judgeship. This closed his judicial labors, and, substantially, his profes- sional career. On quitting the position of naval officer Judge Eldred returned to his home in Bethany. The remainder of his life was passed in comparative retirement. The advancing years were beginning to make their approach felt ; he had be- gun to suffer in health ; and though frequently consulted in important cases, he declined to resume active professional employment. The decade following was spent mainly amid the tranquil pursuits and interests of rural life, and he passed the limit of three score and ten, loved and honored by all. He died January 27, 1867, just half a century from the day of his admission to the Wayne county bar, at the place which had witnessed the beginning of his career, and had for more than a generation been his home. Judge Eldred was twice married. His first wife was a daughter of Dan Dimmick, his earliest preceptor in his profesion. She died in 1824. His second wife, who survived him, was a daughter of Dr. Samuel Dimmick, of Bloomingburg, Sullivan county, N. Y. He left three daughters and a son. The latter, Charles F. Eldred, studied law and was admitted to the bar in 1861. In casting his lot among the people of Wayne connty. Judge Eldred iden- tified himself with them in purpose and action. He made their general interests his own and strove by every means in his power to promote them. In private and public life he was active in aiding the progress and development of the county, both as to material interests and educational advancement. By nature and by habit of thought and life he was essentially a man of the people, and no man in Wayne county ever had a stronger hold on the popular heart. The people of the county appreciated his services, and at all times gave him an unwavering support. During the first decade of his residence among them, the only office in their gift which he would consent to accept was bestowed upon him again and again. They viewed his elevation to the bench with a 642 History of Warren County. feeling akin to personal satisfaction and pride. When his life closed, most of the generation which had witnessed his success and usefulness had preceded him to the grave ; yet his fame, though it had become largely a tradition, was so enduring that his death was felt and mourned as a loss of no common mag- nitude. As an advocate Judge Eldred was clear in argument, earnest and persua- sive, resting on the broad basis of equity, appealing largely to the natural preception of right, and arousing an aversion to every form of meanness, oppression, and wrong. He was a jurist of more than ordinary rank. On the bench, however, he was little given to legal subtleties and refinements, or to the habit of measuring questions of right by narrow technical rules. He regarded the judicial function as designed for practical administration of jus- tice, and his decisions aimed at a fair and equitable adjustment of the difficul- ties between the parties. He was well read in his profession, and possessed a legal mind of high order; but a controlling sense of justice that responded instinctively to all questions respecting rights as between man and man, pre- dominated over the strictly professional view of a case, and his conclusions, even when not in strict conformity with technical rules and precedents, rested on a firm and obvious basis of equity. The essential justice of his purpose was so apparent as to command the respect of the bar, even when error was alleged in his rulings on questions of law. The people, without measuring his judicial action by professional tests, accepted its results as in the main just and equitable ; they recognized his strong common sense, and clear judgment, and had abiding faith in his judicial integrity. They gave him their confidence because they knew him to be up- right, impartial, and devoted to the administration of justice in its broadest and noblest sense. It will not be out of place to preserve anecdotes illustrating some of Judge Eldred's characteristics. While he was on the Dauphin county bench a case of assault and battery was tried. The evidence showed that while the defend- ant and his wife were walking on the streets of Harrisburg, a rowdy used some grossly insulting language toward the wife, whereupon the husband knocked him down. Judge Eldred's charge to the jury was substantially in the following terms : " Gentlemen of the jury, the defendant is indicted for an assault and battery on the prosecutor. You have learned from the evidence the character of the offense. In law, any rude, angry or violent touching of the person of another is an assault and battery, and is not justified by any provocation in words only. But if I was walking with my wife, and a rowdy insulted her, I'd knock him down if I was big enough. Swear a constable." The verdict may readily be conjectured. Another instance is related showing his readiness and fertility in resources. On reaching the county seat at which the first term of court was to be held. [ Nathaniel Bailey Eldred. — Michael McGraw. 643 on his appointment to one of the western districts, his commission was not to be found, having been forgotten on leaving home, or lost on the way. It hap- pened that the sheriff of the county had just been commissioned, and was to begin his official duties at that term of court. Judge Eldred at once decided on a line of action. Sending for the new sheriff, he told him that the practice of reading commissions in court on assuming office was a relic of the cere- monial established under a monarchy, and unsuited to the simplicity of re- publican institutions, and that he should dispense with it in the courts of his district; that the sheriff and himself having been duly sworn, nothing further was required of them, and they should enter on their duties in a quiet, unostentatious manner. Accordingly the new judge and sheriff went into court together the next morning, took their r-espective places, and proceeded to the discharge of their duties without further ceremony, no question being raised as to their authority in the premises. M' CGRAW, MICHAEL, was born in Blair county, Pa., on the 9th of Sep- tember, 1809, and died in Triumph township, Warren county, on the 9th of December, 1880. He was a son of Peter and Catherine McGraw. The Mc- Graws were among the early settlers of Maryland, coming to America with Lord Baltimore. Peter was born at Antietam, Md., and his father served in the Revolutionary War. In 1830, after the death of his wife, Peter, with his four sons, Edward F., Michael, Benjamin, and John, and two daughters, Sarah A. and Mary E., moved to Triumph township as now constituted. The only member of this family now living is Sarah A., who married Edward McGarrell (now deceased), and lives in Portland, N. Y. The McGraws settled in a wilderness of pine timber, the lumber from which supplied their means of support while clearing up their farms. Michael settled on a tract of 260 acres, 240 of which he owned at the time of his death, and on a part of which is a beautiful farm. In 1836 he married Margaret McGar- rell, of Venango county, and to them was born a family of five sons, only two of whom are now living — John A., born in 1837, and William A., born in 1849. Margaret (McGarrell) McGraw was born in Venango county, April 18, 18 12. Her parents, Michael and Grace (Griffin) McGarrell, were born in Ireland and married in Pennsylvania, and had a family of twelve children. Michael Mc- Garrell was born in 1778, and died in 1850. He served in the War of 18 12, and his widow, Grace, drew a pension. She died in Portland, N. Y., in 1881, at the advanced age of ninety-five years. Michael McGraw, being an early settler, became identified with the public business of his township, and honorably performed the duties of about all the local offices. Being a man of calm judgment and just disposition, he earned no enemies, and was never either plaintiff nor defendant in a suit at law. Through all the hardships and privations incident to a pioneer life and his vari- 644 History of Warren County. ous dealings in more prosperous times, no man can point to one dishonest act. His sons, John A. and VVilHam A., enjoy the esteem of their fellow-citizens, and have filled many local offices. William A. was married February 8th, l88i, to Clara T. Kelsey, of Erie, Pa. They have a family of three sons, John E., Cyril W., and Hugh A. DUNHAM, MINOR B., was born in Tompkins county, N. Y., on the 25th day of January, 1829. His grandfather, Thomas Dunham, emigrated from New Jersey to the town of Ovid in that county in 1805, and engaged in the occupation of a farmer. He died on the 22d of January, 1845, aged sev- enty-nine years, in Steuben county, N. Y., where he had passed the later years of his life. Richard Dunham, father of the subject of this sketch and the fifth of eight children, seven of whom are sons, was one of the most remarkable and prominent men who figured in the early history of Warren county. He was born in New Jersey in 1802, accompanied his father to Tompkins county, of course, when he was but three years of age. He received his education — a good one for those days — in Ithaca, Tompkins county, and at the age of eight- een years began to teach school. Although he became owner of a farm soon after, he continued teaching until 1832, when he exchanged his farm in New York State for one in Warren county, Pa. Meantime, in July, 1826, he was united in marriage with Laura, daughter of Enos Allen, of Yates county, N. Y., and a descendant of Ethan Allen, the famous leader of the Green Mountain Boys. Laura Allen was born in Saulsbury, N. Y., in 1805, and went to Yates county about the year 18 17. In March, 1833, Richard Dunham removed to his new farm in what is now the township of Cherry Grove, in Warren county, and built his cabin on the site afterward occupied by the first and greatest oil well in the once promising village of Garfield. At that time the town, which is far from clear of timber now, was indescribably wild. The weather was m.ost inclement, there being sixteen inches of snow on the ground. In Jul\% after his settlement, Richard Dunham began the life of a lumberman in earnest. At first he entered the employ- ment of a firm-to help them in constructing a saw-mill and a dam, and soon after bought out first one of the partners, and then the other. He soon removed to Sheffield, in which township he had been preceded only by Tim- othy and Erastus Barnes. The history of that township refers to many of his business operations. There he was quite an active politician, and was for twenty consecutive years a justice of the peace. He remained at the head of his large lumbering interests until 1856, when ill-health forced him to a reluct- ant retirement. He had always been a man of strict morality, and had trained his children to correct habits and upright conduct. In 1858 he united with the Methodist Episcopal Church. He died in January, 1870, at Warren, and his widow still survives him at an advanced age, and resides near her son, M. B. ^ A Minor B. Dunham. 645 Dunliam. They had eleven children (six sons and five daughters), nine of whom reached maturity, and eight of whom are now Hving. Of these eleven children, Minor B. Dunham was the second. The subject of this sketch attended the common schools of Sheffield, after which he passed some time in attendance upon the school at Havana, in Schuyler county, and at Alfred in Allegany county, finishing his education at the age of twenty-one years. Meanwhile he had been pretty thoroughly in- structed in the ways of the business world, having begun the management of his father's business as early as 1846. His father's health was never robust, and as soon as M. B. Dunham was old enough to execute his plans, he set the boy at work Indeed, his first trip on a raft to Pittsburgh was in 1841, when he was but twelve years of age, and he followed the river to Pittsburgh and Cincinnati with great regularity after 1845. He was able to attend school only a small part of the year after twelve years of age. In 1858 he purchased his father's homestead and all the property, and while his father retired, he took complete control of the business, and has managed and increased it to the present time. In 1865, owing to the growing scarcity of timbered lands in Sheffield, he sold his interests there and removed his base of operations to Cherry Grove and Watson, where he has continued ever since. For three years previous to 1871 he was connected with a lumber yard and planing-mill in Sharpsburg, a suburb of Pittsburgh. In 1871 he removed his place of resi- dence to Warren, and in 1876 erected the dwelling house which he now occu- pies. In 1874 he and three other business men of Warren started a sash fac- tory where the one now owned and operated by L. D. Wetmore now stands, and he retained his interest in that mill for four years. Naturally with the change produced in methods since he began to deal in lumber, and the shift- ing of the channels of trade, caused by the opening of railroads and other ave- nues of communication, he has revised and altered his own methods. He is now principally engaged in sending lumber of his own manufacture to Phila- delphia and other eastern markets. He has enlarged his estate continually, and is now interested in timbered land in Forest county, where he also owns mills, and in Wegt Virginia. Aside from his individual interests, he has been con- nected with Colonel L. F. Watson in the lumbering business since 1856, when they bought large timbered tracts. Incidentally, he has taken part in other ventures. He has been a director in the Warren Savings Bank for twelve or fifteen years, and now owns interests in mines, and operates to some extent in oil. Although at all times intensely interested in public and political affairs, Mr. Dunham is far from being a seeker of office or political patronage. His whole life, since his majority, has been passed in sympathy with the Republi- can party. His second presidential vote was cast for the electors of John C. Fremont, and from that time to the present he has voted for every successful 646- History of Warren County. nominee but Buchanan and Cleveland. He has not deemed it his duty, how- ever, to neglect his business for the sake of holding office, as he would have to do, while there are so many that are willing and eager for the opportunity. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. While residing in Sharps- burg he assisted in the construction of the Union Centenary Methodist Epis- copal Church, and when he removed to Warren he saw the need of a new Methodist Church edifice there. The present elegant edifice was commenced in June, 1885, and dedicated on the 19th of September, of the following year. In the work of building this house, Mr. Dunham most generously assisted, con- tributing liberally of his time, labor and money. This makes the third church building to the erection of which he has contributed, the first one being the Methodist Church in Sheffield. He is now a trustee of the church society in Warren. On the 19th of February, 1852, he married Mary M., daughter of Harrison Person, of Ellery, Chautauqua county, N. Y. They have had four children, two of whom only are living. The eldest child, Clara E., was born on the 23d of August, 1853, and died on the 6th of February, 1875; George H., born October 27, 1854, married Fannie Crosby of Steuben county, N. Y., in 1884, after having had the advantage of a good education at Mount Union College, and at the Business College at Pittsburgh, and now aids his father in business ; Frank, born April 1 5, 1856, died about a year later from the effects of an injury received by falling ; and Jessie M., born April 6, 1862, named from Fremont's wife, is now the wife of Dr. Richard B. Stewart of Warren, and the mother of two children. HUNTER, O. H. The subject of the present sketch was born March 28, 1823. He is of Irish descent. His great-grandfather, Archibald Hunter, emi- grated from Ireland in 1727 to New York, where he married Miss Constable, by whom James Hunter was born October i, 1744. In time he removed to Sullivan county, and married Francis Gallation, September 12, 1782, by whom Peter Hunter was born, .September 13, 1794. On the 14th of May, 1818, he married Lucinda A. Dimmick, to whom was born the subject of this sketch. O. H. Hunter was reared on a farm in Steuben county, N. Y., until he was eighteen years of age, when he went to Bath in that county to act as clerk in a dry goods house. This position he resigned in 1845, when he came to War- ren and formed a partnership with H. T. Baker, for the purchase and sale of dry goods. Warren at that time had a population of about 700, and merchan- dise had to be shipped to Warren from New York by way of canal to Buffalo, thence by lake to Dunkirk, from which place it was taken by teams. The transportation consumed three weeks of time. O. H. Hunter married, January 6, 1848, Betsey J. King, sister of Judge King. By her he had four children, his eldest son, Henry P. Hunter, being O. H. Hunter. — Rasselas Brown. 647 now associated in business with him. His wife dying in 1862, he again mar- ried, his second wife being Lucy B., daughter of O. Mathews, of Panama, N. Y., and sister of the late Major Mathews, of the One Hundred and Twelfth Regiment of New York Volunteers. Mr. Hunter has never sought political honors ; has been one of the directors of the Warren Saving Bank from its organization. But as a dry goods mer- chant he has attended faithfully to his calling, and has as such filled a large place, for more than forty-one years, in the local history of Warren. He is now the oldest dry goods merchant — the longest in the trade — in northwestern Pennsylvania. BROWN, RASSELAS, was born in Brownsville, Jefferson county, N. Y., on the lOth day of September, 18 12. Although himself a native of the State of New York, he traces his lineage back to an early day in Bucks county, Pa., his grandfather, John Brown, who died in Jefferson county forty or fifty years ago, being a native, and almost a lifelong resident of the county. His occupation was farming. He was related to the father of the gallant Major- General Jacob Brown, the founder of Brownsville, N. Y., and the celebrated defender of the American frontier along the great lakes in the War of 1812. His son, George Brown, the father of the subject of this sketch, was born in Bucks county and remained there until he was about eighteen years of age. He then accompanied his father to Brownsville, N. Y., where he engaged in farming for about fifty-eight years. He took an active part in public affairs, and among other positions held that of supervisor of the town of Brownsville for many years. The sterling worth of his character won him the respect of all who knew him. In i860 he removed to Warren, Pa., where, in the spring of 1868, he died at the age of eighty-four years. In 181 1 he married Tem- perance, daughter of Nathaniel Plumb, of Brownsville. They were the par- ents of nine children, four sons. Eight of the children attained years of ma- turity. Two sons and two daughters are now living. Judge Brown being the eldest. Rasselas Brown was favored with good educational advantages. He at- tended the common schools of Brownsville, took thorough courses of study in the academies at Wwtertown and Belleville, N. Y., entered Union College in 1834, and was graduated in 1836. Immediately thereafter he came to War- ren, where he at once gained the distinction in local history of being the first teacher in the Warren Academy, a position which he filled most fruitfully for three years. In the mean time he began to study law in the office of Judge Lansing Wetmore, continued in the office of Struthers & Johnson, and was admitted to practice in all the courts of the county in the spring of 1839. In the fall of 1845 he became a practitioner in the Supreme Court of the State. After working for a time, following his admission to the 648 History of Warren County. bar, for the firm of Struthers & Johnson, he became a partner of Hon. S. P. Johnson, and until i860 remained a member of the law firm of Johnson & Brown. This relation was dissolved in that year by his appointment by Gov- ernor Packer as president judge of all the courts of the Sixth Judicial District, then composed of the counties of Erie, Crawford, and Warren, to fill the va- cancy caused by the death of Judge John Galbraith. At the expiration of this term he returned to an increasing practice, in which he has continued to the present time. He has had in this long period several partners. For the first few years he was the senior member of the firm of Brown & Jamieson, his partner being H. A. Jamieson ; then, after practicing about two years with- out a partner, he united his practice with that of Hon. C. W. Stone, and a few years later took into the firm his son, H. E. Brown. This triune partnership, which still exists, has continued since that time. His practice has always been of the best kind, and for years has extended over the entire northwestern portion of the State of Pennsylvania. He has been for a number of years an attorney for the Lake Shore and Michigan Southern Railroad Company, and for the Dunkirk, Allegheny Valley and Pittsburgh Railroad Company, in which companies he is also director. He is a director of the First National Bank of Warren. Besides these positions of a quasi-public nature, he numbers among his clients many of the wealthiest and most intelligent men in this part of the State, who look upon him as the experienced Nestor of the profession. Judge Brown's father was in his earlier days a member of the Republican party as opposed to the Federalists and believers in a strongly centralized gov ernment. During the period beginning with the second quarter of the present century, he became a determined anti-Mason. Whether under the operation of the law of heredity or not, may not be said, but Judge Brown's political propensity is, like that of his father, toward decentralization of gov- ernmental power. He is a Democrat, though an independent voter. It is surprising, therefore, to find that notwithstanding his politics, unfavorable to the attainment of office in a Republican district and State, he has frequently been placed in positions of great trust and responsibility by the voters of this district. lie was elected a member of the Pennsylvania Legislature, was ap- pointed a member of the board of revenue commissioners for the Sixth Judicial District in 1852, and among other positions was chosen a member of the State Constitutional Convention to revise the constitution in 1873. His religious views are conservative. He is a regular attendant upon divine worship at the Presbyterian Church, though he is not a member of any denomination or re- ligious organization. Judge Brown married on the 20th day of January, 1841, Elizabeth, daugh- ter of Nathaniel Sill, of Warren county. They have had four children, all of whom are now living. The eldest, Ada, is the wife of Dr. A. J. Part- ridge, of Kalamazoo, Mich., and the mother of three children; H. E. Brown, Rasselas Brown. — Orris Hall. 649 the second child, now the partner of his father, married Ida, daughter of Boon Mead, in February, 1871 ; and George R. and Epp E. Brown are both unmar- ried and at the home of their parents. HALL, ORRIS, who died on the 3d day of November, 1881, was born in Wardsboro, Vt., on the 22d day of September, 1804, and was the young- est of twelve children. He was the son of William and Abigail (Pease) Hall. He received a fair education in the place of his birth, and came to Warren in 1824, where he engaged in teaching. It did not take him long, however, to perceive that the greatest promises of wealth lay in the prosecution of the lumber business, and with the boldness of a thorough business man he at once embarked in that trade. In the mean time he had for a time engaged in the mercantile occupation. In all his enterprises he was eminently successful. It was said at the time of his death that he undoubtedly had the clearest business mind of any man in Warren county. He weighed chances shrewdly and care- fully, and was therefore more uniformly successful in his ventures than most men. Although engaged in the lumber business through the most active of its periods, and having the care of many heavy investments, he was never at a loss for expedients to avert or destroy a difficulty. He never made money for the purpose of hoarding it, but rather for the purpose of investing it. A few years previous to his death he expended large amounts of money in brick stores and dwellings in Warren. His speculative mind was not content with one occupation. His investments reached into almost every possible field which promised a return. At one time he became an oil operator, and was thoroughly identified with the production of the same in various places. As he grew older he seemed to take more pleasure in improvements than formerly. In politics he displayed the same qualities that distinguished him in the business world. He was a Democrat, and worked without stint for the success of his party. He could usually predict with astonishing accuracy the outcome of a campaign, and seemed gifted with that prophetic knowlege of human motives, which can presage human conduct. He would have made a good lawyer, and though well informed upon business laws, seemed intuitively to understand the principles of law without the necessity of referring to professional attorneys or to books. This was a pre-eminent faculty of common sense. Although fitted to fill any position within the gift of the people, he naturally and persistently refused to hold office, because he could make more money in business than in politics, without the employment of dishonest methods, to which he would not resort. Not long before his death he was induced to accept the nomination for State senatorship against General Allen. He was ambitious to receive a flattering vote in his own county, which he did ; but here his efforts stopped, as he did not wish to be elected, feared that he would be, and consequently did not go into Venango or Mercer counties, which then formed with Warren this senatorial district. 650 History of Warren County. During the fifty-six years in which he was engaged in lumbering, Mr. Hall, who marketed his own lumber, never failed to make his annual trip to Louis- ville, and in the earlier part of his life would go as far as Vicksburg and Natchez ; would stack his lumber at Cairo, let it season, and tow it on barges by steamboat to St. Louis, which was always a ready market before the lumber was floated down the Mississippi. At times his business would take him down the river more than once during the year. He remained in active business longer than any of those who began with him. His most honorable characteristic, however, was his love for his home and family. After the rivalries and resentments of the day were over, it was his delight to forget them in the repose and comfort of domestic life, in the com- pany of his wife and children. In the outside world he was known as a man of strong attachments and equally strong resentments. Indeed, it is a prop- erty of human nature, that a good lover is also a good hater, that a man who loves his friends is capable of keeping his enemies at a distance. But no man was ever more fair in his treatment of those whom he disliked than Mr. Hall. He hated trickery, and whenever he came to the conclusion that he was being imposed upon, he stood firmly for his legal rights. This is a more noble trait than a pusillanimous submission to fraud. Finally, he was a believer in the di- vine truths of the Christian religion, and his faith sustained him in the last try- ing days of his life, and removed the fear of death. On the lOth day of March, 1830, he married Eliza, daughter of Colonel Joseph Hackney, who became a resident of Warren in 1 8 14. She was born near Meadville, in Crawford county, Pa., on the 9th of February, 1809. For many years her father occupied a substantial block house on the site of the First National Bank. Mrs. Hall was a faithful Christian and a working member of the Presbyterian Church. Her kindness of heart, her cheerfulness of disposi- tion, her liberality to the poor, her many social qualities, and her other amiable traits of character had endeared her to a large circle of friends and acquaint- ances. She was the mother of a large family of children, of whom five sons and four daughters survive. Mrs. Hall died on the 15th day of March, 1885. DINSMOOR, CHARLIES. The subject of this sketch is in the fifth gen- eration in direct descent from John Dinsmoor, the founder of the family in America, who came from Londonderry, Ireland, in 1719, and settled at Windham, N. H. John Dinsmoor, although coming from Ireland, was a Scotchman, his parents having been born and raised in Scotland. To the family of his descendants belong the Governors Samuel Dinsmoor, the elder and younger, whose pure and vigorous administrations are still remembered in the Granite State. The elder Governor Dinsmoor was in Congress in 181 1-12, and as his name was first on the roll, he is the first member recorded as voting for the series of measures which led to the declaration of war be- Charles Dinsmoor. 651 I tween this country and Great Britain. To this family also belong Robert Dinsmoor, the " Rustic Bard," a New England poet, who achieved something more than a merely local celebrity in the early part of the present century, and some of whose songs, in the Scotch dialect, deserve to live along with those of Scotland's famous poets ; and also Colonel Silas Dinsmoor, the famous Indian agent and teacher of the arts of civilization to the Cherokee and Choc- taw nations, and William B. Dinsmore, now president of the Adams Express Company. Charles Dinsmoor was born at Alabama Center, Genesee county, N. Y., on the 19th day of September, 1834. He is the son of George F. and Catha- rine (Harper) Dinsmoor. His mother, the daughter of George Harper, of Elba, Genesee county, N. Y., died in the year 1872, aged sixty-six years. His father, born at Keene, N. H., in 1794, removed from the State of New York to Elk township, in this county, in 1836, and remained there until his death, in 1868. Charles received a fair education, though it was obtained against great disadvantages and under circumstances of peculiar hardship. He attended the common schools in Elk township for a time, but very irregularly, owing to his services being required in the support of a large family in poor circumstances. After he left home in 1850 he became, through his own ex- ertions, successively a student at the academies at Warren, Smethport, and Coudersport, Pa., and Randolph, N. Y. He was engaged in the printing business at Smethport, Pa., Corning, N. Y., Coudersport, Pa., Randolph, N. Y., and Warren, Pa., in connection with teaching and attending school, for about eleven years, during the last three of which he was editor of the Warren Ledger. During the years 1856 and 1857 ^^ attended the Randolph Academy one year, and read law in the office of Weeden & Henderson, attorneys of that place, six months. In 1858 he came to Warren, and continued his law studies under B. W. Lacy. He was admitted to the bar of Warren county in Septem- ber, 1859. In i860 he was appointed assistant United States marshal, and took the census of the northern half of Warren county. In February, 1861, he was elected justice of the peace for Warren borough, and was successively re-elected for fifteen years, practicing law in the courts in the mean time. He retired from the office of justice voluntarily in 1876, and has never since held any office of his seeking. He has been elected to many positions in the borough government, from town clerk to chief burgess. In 1S78 he was elected unanimously to the office of school director, and has been continuously in that position ever since. No man, probably, has contributed more in that position to bring about the present high condition of the schools of Warren than Mr. Dinsmoor. From the beginning he has taken a deep interest in the association now known as the Struthers Library Association, and was for sev- eral years its treasurer and a member of its Board of Control. Since 1868 he has been connected with the order of Odd Fellows, and is now a past grand 652 History of Warren County. master of Warren Lodge No. 339. Politically, Mr. Dinsmoor is a Democrat, of very decided opinions. He has, at times, taken an active part in politics, having, as chairman of the Democratic County Committee, led the party of the county in the only two successful contests for the office of member of Congress for this district, which it has made in the last thirty years. Mr. Dinsmoor is now, as a lawyer, engaged in the practice of his profession in Warren and several adjoining counties, and in the Supreme Court of this State, and the United States Circuit and District Courts. His abilities have marked him as a man peculiarly adapted to the functions of referee and mas- ter, and his legal opinions, delivered in these positions, are quite numerous in the Reports of this State. In October, 1861, he married Elizabeth C, daughter of Abijah Morrison, who was elected sheriff of Warren county in 1840 and again in 1846, and is one of the only two men who ever held the office under two elections. He was the son of James Morrison, and was born In Mead township, as now con- stituted, in 1807, on what is now known as the Rogers farm. While he was a young man, his father, James Morrison, purchased what have ever since been known as Morrison Flats, just below Warren, and erected thereon a large dwelling house, which is now one of the oldest landmarks in the county. Abi- jah Morrison was also an extensive lumberman and merchant in this county, and the community sustained a severe loss in his death, in 1869. He had al- ways been a zealous Democrat in politics, and was many years a constable in Warren borough. His wife was Euphemia J., daughter of Josiah Deming, a leading pioneer in Spring Creek township. She died at Warren in 1878. Mr. and Mrs. Dinsmoor have had four children, as follows: Imogen G., born Octo- ber 17, 1867, and was graduated from the Warren high school in May, 1885 ; Loten A., born January 25, 1870, graduated from the Warren high school in the spring of 1887; Harry, born in August, 1873, died in March, 1874; and Frederick, born January 13, 1875. HERTZEL, ANDREW, was born near Strasbourg, in Alsace, France, now Germany, on the 6th of January, 1829. His father, Christian Hertzel, a carpenter by trade, was born in Switzerland in 1788, and went to Alsace when a young man. In 1832 he left Europe, and in April of the following year reached Warren, Pa. He died in February, 1841. He was twice married, and had one son by his first wife, and five sons and a daughter by his second. The second wife, Marie, mother of the subject of this sketch, died in the fall of 1853. Of her six children, five are now living, as follows: Jacob, in Iowa, Philip, in Pleasant township, in this county, Martin, in Glade, Andrew, in War- ren, and Mary, the wife of M. E. Stranger, of Downer's Grove, 111. Andrew Hertzel was but just past four years of age when he was brought by his parents to Warren county. His father settled in Warren borough, and Andrew Hertzel. 653 for two years worked by the day at common labor. He then purchased fifty acres of timbered land in Pleasant, and in the pathless forest erected his little log hut. Andrew, being the youngest of the children, did not have much to do in clearing the farm at first, but at a very early age was utilized in various ways. His father, in two years, added fifty acres to his original purchase. He remained at home until 1845, when, at the age of seventeen years became to Warren, which has ever since been his home. Here he began to learn the blacksmith's trade under an agreement to work for three and a half years as an apprentice to S. J. Page, which contract he performed. He continued in Mr. Page's employment until April, 1852, when he purchased his employer's shop and tools, and became an independent artisan. He did not relinquish this business until 1872, at which time other investments which demanded his entire time, drew him from the anvil. As early as i860 he was drawn by circumstances into the lumber trade, and two years later purchased tim- bered tracts in Limestone township. From 1866 to 1870 he devoted his sole time and attention to the development of this industry with success. He has not abandoned the business, but is still interested in the trade. He owns some timber in Forest county. He runs most of his lumber down the river in rafts to the various markets — Pittsburgh and below. In 1872 he became inter- ested in the oil business in Clarion county. But when they developed the petroleum interest in Warren he transferred his interest to the county of his adoption. He is still connected with oil operations and has owned interests in twenty wells at one time. He owns a quarter interest in the Warren grist- mill, which he acquired when it was rebuilt in the fall of 1 881, and helped to rebuild the present structure. Mr. Hertzel has never been desirous of hoard- ing his money, but immediately upon acquiring it seeks some safe channel in which to set it in circulation. He has owned stock in the F"irst National Bank of Warren ever since its incorporation, and has been a director of the Citizens' National Bank from the time of its organization. A city full of rich misers might be a temptation to plunderers, but not to laborers, nor to men who look for enterprises in which they may safely invest their capital. Money does no good to the world while it is locked in chests or buried in the earth. It is the free circulation of wealth which at once marks and creates a prosperous community. Mr. Hertzel and men of his stamp have made Warren proverbial throughout the State for its enterprise and progress- ive energy. As an example of this praiseworthy public spirit, may be related briefly the circumstances attending the construction of the bridge over the Allegheny River to the township of Pleasant. In the winter of 1870-71 they, after suffering inconvenience about twenty years from having no bridge across this river at Warren, began to agitate the question of the feasibility of building such a structure. They at once communicated with a number of eminent civil engineers and bridge builders throughout the country, particularly with the 6S4 History of Warren County. Roeblings, and afterward with George W. Fischler, of Elmira. In the same winter they organized a stock company under the name of the Pleasant Bridge Company. Negotiations resulted in the hiring of Mr. Fischler, by the month, to build the bridge. It was crossed in November, 1 87 1, but was not com- pleted until the next year. The cost of construction and of subsequent re- pairs was about $45,000. Mr. Hertzel has ever since remained the president of the company, and may justly be proud of the monument to his public spirit and zeal. In 1 88 1 another company was formed under the name of the Allegheny Bridge Company, which built a bridge across the river two miles above War- ren, and Mr. Hertzel was from the first a stockholder, and is now the treasurer of that company. In the upbuilding of the material prosperity of the town and its advance- ment in every way, Mr. Hertzel has undoubtedly done as much, at least in proportion to his means, as any man who ever lived in the county. In 1864, in company with two others, he built the Union block. In 1870 he and Mr. Nesmith erected the clothing store which now the joins the Union block on the east. He has also been interested in many other building operations. In 1867 he contributed more than any other two men toward the erection of the Lutheran Church, which was finished two years later. During the two years in which it was in process of construction he superintended the work, devoting much valuable time to the task. He was a member of the town council when the new town hall was built, and was made the superintendent of its construc- tion. In literary and educational matters he has taken the same unselfish in- terest, and generously assisted the inauguration of the library society which preceded the Struthers Library. He also contributed one hundred dollars to- ward the purchase of the lot on which the Struthers library building now stands. Politically, Mr. Hertzel was during the greater part of his life a Democrat, but for four years or more he has voted the Prohibition ticket, believing that the greatest evil in the country and world can never be eradicated until a powerful public sentiment will support proper legislation prohibiting it. In this Mr. Hertzel evinces that he has the courage of his convictions. He has never desired to hold public office, although he has accepted office where he conveniently could, for the reason that he holds it to be the duty of every honest ■citizen to bear his proportion of the public burden. He has held a seat in the town council many years, and has been burgess, school director, etc. He is a member of the Lutheran Evangelical Church, and for years has been a trustee of its affairs. He contributes also to the support of other churches. He is in addition a trustee of twelve years standing of the Lutheran College at Greene- ville. Pa. Andrew Hertzel married, November 30th, 185 i, Mary, daughter of John Andrew Hertzel. — Jay White. 655 Reig, of Warren. Mrs. Hertzel is also a native of Alsace. They have had a family of six children, five of whom are sons. Two children died in infancy- The eldest, Isabel, died in March, 1 876, aged twenty-three years, then the wife of Frederick Morck. She left one child, Gertrude W. Morck, who now lives with her grandparents. The eldest son, Albert G. Hertzel, born in Septem- ber, 1854, died in November, 1884, while holding the position of cashier of the Citizens' National Bank, leaving one child, Eda May; Freeman E., born September 29, 1865, and Roy Laird, born July 8, 1871. WHITE, JAY, of Corydon, is the grandson of Israel White, who died in Oneida county, N. Y., in 18 12, and the son of Orange White, who died in Farmington, in this county, in January, 1877. He is a descendant, also, of Hugh White, the first settler at Whitestown, Oneida county, N. Y. Orange White was born in that county on the 13th of June, 1806, at the same time with a twin brother, Otis, who died within two years thereafter. He had five other brothers, Moses, Israel, George, Willard, and another Otis, all of whom are deceased, but who have numerous descendants in Oneida county at this day. In the winter of 1836-7, Orange White came to that part of Farmington township, Warren county, which was then a part of Sugar Grove, where he passed the remainder of his life. In the spring of 1867 he leased the home- stead and removed to Lander, where his widow still resides. He was twice married, first to Bethilda Brainerd, of Oneida county, deceased in March, 1833, leaving one child, Delia, who died in 1861 ; and secondly, in January, 1837, to Nancy Robbins, who still lives. She was a daughter of Ebenezer Robbins, a lawyer of the town of Western, N. Y., and was the eldest of his thirteen children, all but two of whom are now living. Ebenezer Robbins lived to a ripe old age, and died about ten years ago, he and his wife within a short time of each other. Orange and Nancy White had nine children, all of whom are living, and all of whom but one are married. The subject of this sketch is the eldest of these children. He was born in Sugar Grove, now Farmington town- ship, on the 1st day of October, 1837. There he received a common school education, remaining on his father's farm until he was twenty-one years of age. At that time he went to McHenry county. 111., where he remained two years and six months, teaching and farming. From there he went to Howard county, la., where, until the spring of 1866, he taught and worked as clerk in a store. His next venture was in Busti, Chautauqua county, N. Y., where he engaged in the mercantile business, his father taking an interest in the trade until the fall of 1869. He then opened a store at Lander, in Farmington, and remained in that place for one year. His father, meantime, retained a financial interest in the store, and with him removed the stock from Lander to Corydon in the fall of 1870. Father and son remained partners five or six years in all, though Orange resided all the time in Farmington. After the dissolution of this part- 6s6 History of Warren County. nership, Jay White continued the business alone until the fall of 1884, when he relinquished it and engaged largely in buying and selling lumber. He was persuaded to enter upon this occupation by the belief that the growing importance of Corydon village had already created a demand for dressed lumber, and the result has evinced the accuracy of his supposition. He does not manufacture the lumber, but hires it dressed in a mill which he owns and rents. Although he has abandoned the mercantile business, he still owns sev- eral stores, which he leases. He has never been smitten with oil fever. In politics Mr. White was formerly a Democrat, but for some three years he has favored and upheld the Prohibition party. He has held a number of the im- portant township offices in Corydon, serving one term as justice of the peace, and being re- elected to the same office, though he did not qualify because he had been appointed postmaster. He also served two terms as school director. He was postmaster of Corydon for about ten years, and until the spring of 1886. For a number of years he carried on the only mercantile operations in the whole township, but the opening of the railroad in 1882 increased the im- portance of the place in the eyes of outsiders, and other merchants brought their stock hither. His religious belief is in the final salvation of all. He is a friend of all churches and of good schools as the props of the good order, stability, and purity of society. He is at present one of the trustees of the Methodist Church in Corydon. He was the most generous contributor towards the build- ing of the Methodist house of worship, and did more to assure its success than any other one person. On the 19th of September, 1868, Mr. White married Alice, daughter of Joseph and Elizabeth Airron, formerly of Sugar Grove, then of Busti, N. Y., and for eight years last past members of Mr. White's household. They have two adopted children — Jay M. and Vernie M., children of Mrs. White's sister. WlCTMORi:, HON. LANSING, was born at Whitestown (now in Oneida county), N. Y., on the 28th of August, 1792, and died in Warren Pa., on the 15th day of November, 1857. His father. Parsons Wetmore, was an early settler in Whitestown, N. Y., whither he had gone with his parents in 1786. In the year 18 15 Lansing Wetmore emigrated from the place of his birth, where he had received a good common school education, to the head- waters of the Little Brokenstraw, in Warren county, Pa. There, in 1816, he married Caroline, daughter of Abraham S. Ditmars. His wife survived him until June, 1878. His mother was Aurelia, daugiiter of Judge Hugh White, one of the settlers of Whitestown, as Western New York was called in 1784. After living for a while at Pine Grove, he removed his family in 1 820 to Warren, where and in the vicinity of which he resided until his death. On the 25th of September, 1819, soon after the separate organization of Warren Lansing Wetmore. 657 county, he was appointed its first prothonotary by Governor Findlay, which office, together with those of register and recorder of deeds, and clerk of the several courts, he held until the spring of 182 1. On the 23d of January, 1824, he was again appointed by Governor Shulze to the several offices of prothono- tary, recorder, register, etc., in which he continued until the year 1830. About the year 1831, as will be seen by reference to the list of attorneys of Warren county, he was admitted to the bar, and he continued in the practice of law from that time until his retirement to his farm in Conewango in 1842. For a number of years between 1825 and 1830 he was interested in the publication of the Warren Gazette, in which enterprise he expended considerable time and money. In the fall of 185 i he was elected one of the associate judges of the county, and faithfully and ably discharged the duties of that office for his term of five years. The latter years of his life were devoted to agricultural pursuits, in which he always felt a deep interest, and to the advancement of which he contributed perhaps more than any one else in Warren county. Without ostentation he was always found with the foremost in every enter- prise that promised progress in the improvement of society and the develop- ment of the county, and was ever ready to bestow liberally of his time, toil, and money, to further all educational or literary projects, as well as also all enterprises looking to the material improvement of the county in the construc- tion of roads, bridges, etc. He came to the county when its population num- bered not more than three hundred. He was gratified at the advancement to which he had contributed in the county, isolated from the civilization of the east, and dependent for development on the character and spirit of its pioneers. Coming into the wilderness peopled by an infant and scattered colony, without resources except character, ability, courage, and energy, he " grew with its growth, and strengthened with its strength," for forty years of contin- uous and faithful work in all the varied duties which devolve upon an active man in a new and growing county. The competent fortune which crowned his life of labor, was the slow growth of industry, fair dealing, and good judg- ment. Perhaps the most prominent features of his character were his integrity and evenness of temper. He was in all circumstances and at all times the same calm, conscientious and unimpassioned man, performing every duty quietly and completely, disarming opposition by his gentle firmness of manner, and inspiring all his associates with admiration for the firmness of his purpose, the soundness of his judgment, and considerate regard [for the rights and feelings of others ; he was one of the original stockholders of the Sunbury and Erie now the Philadelphia and Erie R. R. Co. As a citizen his influence was always found on the side of order and sobriety, morality and progress ; as a public officer he performed burthensome duties with the same promptness and fidelity with which he discharged those that were more agreeable ; as a politician he 658 History of Warren County. was intelligent, tolerant, and firm in his adhesion to the old Whig party ; as a lawyer his conduct was characterized by integrity of purpose and urbanity of manner; in the limited duties which devolve on the associate judge he was patient, sound, and impartial ; as a Christian (a member of the Presbyterian Church), he was earnest and consistent ; and as a husband and father, as was said at the time of his death, " he left a widow and numerous family, whose characters and positions in society are enduring monuments to his virtues in his domestic relations, and his faithful attention to the interests of education in the community where he had to be one of the originators of educational facilities." His children were Lansing D., Warren, Pa.; Jerome W., Erie, Pa.; Au- gustus P., Warren, Pa.; Sidney A., Warren, Pa.; Albert A., dead ; Caroline L., dead ; Charles C, dead ; Sarah M. Reese, Warren, Pa.; Catharine B. Hutchin- son, Albion, N. Y.; George R., Warren, Pa. WETMORE, C. C, son of Judge Lansing Wetmore, was born in Warren, Pa., on the 23d of June, 1829. A biographical sketch of his father is published in this work. C. C. Wetmore had rather unusual advantages for obtaining an education, and availed himself of them with unusual diligence. Taking especial delight in the exercise of his ratiocinative faculties, he wisely determined that destiny had appointed him for work of that nature, and ac- cordingly took a thorough mathematical course in Union College. He subse- quently adopted civil engineering as his life-work, and about 1856 surrendered a good position on the New York Central Railroad for the purpose of engag- ing in his chosen vocation in Warren. His success was assured from the first. He had one of the largest contracts on the Philadelphia and Erie Railroad, and was a pioneer in the projection and construction of the Oil Creek road. He was a man of great executive abilities, was full of energy and activity, and was gifted with remarkable powers of endurance. He was, moreover, shrewd and enterprising in business matters, and in a few years accumulated a fortune. Just previous to his death he became largely interested in the lumber business, on the Allegheny River and its tributaries. During the later years of his life he was much embarrassed by ill health, which threatened to result in consumption, and passed the winter of 1865-66 in Florida. But he was not to meet his death in this manner. On the 23d day of April, 1867, he was thrown from a spring wagon by a span of spirited horses, and received injuries on the head and back from which he died in a few hours. During his life he had won the respect and esteem of all who knew him, and because of his energy and great abilities would have been known, had he lived but a few years longer, not only for his great wealth, but for his pub- lic spirit and benefactions. C. C. Wetmore. — Chapin Hall. 6S9 He married Rose E., only daughter of Chapin Hall, on the isth day of December, ,857. and at his death left two children-Chapin Hall and Charles Delevan. HALL, CHAPIN, was born in Busti, Chautauqua county, N. Y on the I2th day of July, 1816. His father, Samuel Hall, and his mother a daughter of Samuel Davis, came from the Green Mountain State to Chautau- qua county m 18 14, and performed the arduous duties, suffered the privations and endured the hardships of pioneer life in a rough country. From them and their ancestors in Vermont Mr. Hall inherited great force and sturdy in- dependence of character. Naturally the common schools which he attended in his early boyhood were not of a very high type, nor possessed of an ad- vanced curriculum, but he made the most of these limited advantages and at- tended for several terms the Jamestown Academy, then the leading educational institution in that part of the State. His school-boy days gave prophecy of the tireless energy and impatient determination to lead, which marked his character in more mature years. At the age of twenty-one he married Susan Bostwick, of Busti, remaining upon the farm where he was born for nearly four years. About the year 1841 he moved to Rine Grove, Warren county. Pa., where he engaged in the lumber and mercantile business for eight years, then going to Fond du Lac, Wis after- wards returning to Ridgway, Warren county. In 1851 he moved wi'th his family to Warren, and engaged in the banking business. Later in life he be- came interested in manufacturing, and at the time of his death was the leadino- partner in the extensive manufacturing firms of Hall, Hatt & Parker of Newt ark, N. J., and of Hall & Eddy, of Louisville, Ky. He was also one of the owners of the Jamestown Worsted Mills, and was a large proprietor of real estate in Louisville, Ky., Fond du Lac, Wis., and other places. Mr. Hall was a Republican in politics, and as would be expected of a man who was not born to compromise, he was a sturdy, though fair, partisan He will long be remembered by politicians for the shrewdness and the executive power he displayed as the leader in the political revolution of Northwestern Pennsylvania in 1858. It was the year of the anti-Lecompton revolt and Judge Gilhs, a devoted Democrat and friend of Buchanan, was defeated for re- election to Congress by Chapin Hall. Judge Gillis had settled at Ridgway as the agent of the Philadelphia Ridgway estate, when there was not a road nor a settlement within fifty miles of that now pretty mountain village He had been taken from there to New York to be tried for the murder of Morcran of anti-Masonic fame. He had been in the House and Senate of PennsyTvania and had been chosen to Congress in 1856, but the success of 1858, when the first Republican victory was achieved in the State, was too much for him and the far-seeing wisdom of Chapin Hall was the instrument of his downfall ' Mr 66o History of Warren County. Hall served but one term in Congress, for he did not relish publiclife, and was too much involved in important business matters to devote his entire tmie to the public service. While in Congress, however, he discharged his duties with the fidelity, energy, and integrity which marked him in every transaction of his life. . He was a man of unusually decided peculiarities of character, and it has been said that he was liable to strong prejudices. This was owing in a meas- ure to his direct and positive nature. Sham, hypocrisy, indecision, or weak- ness of character he despised, and was at times unable to conceal his dislike for these traits. No man, however, made more ample reparation than he when convinced that he had been in the wrong, and no man ever manifested greater fidelity to friends, or was more willing to help them than he. In all his busi- ness relations he was the soul of integrity and justice, and he gave all his ex- tensive interests his constant personal supervision, and familiarized himself with every detail. Though he held those in his employ to strict accountabil- ity for genuine hard work, he exacted no more than he was willing to render, and all the years of his life was noted for his great industry, and the amount of unremitting toil he was capable of performing. As a citizen he set an ex- ample worthy to be followed. His vast wealth, instead of being hoarded, was invested in active business, greatly benefiting various localities and employing hundreds of workmen, who were always paid good wages and received their just dues. He was also a generous man, exercising his liberality with wisdom and good sense. As a friend to young men engaging in business he was a powerful ally and a good adviser, and many men were placed on the road to financial prosperity through his instrumentality. A short time before his death he purchased the old homestead of 6oo acres, in Busti, Chautauqua county, N. Y., which he took great pride and pleasure m improving; but he had overworked and from the effects of this over-expendi- ture of physical strength, he died on the I2th of September, 1879- at the resi- dence of his brother. John A. Hall, proprietor of the Jamestown Journal. Chapin Hall married Susan, daughter of Alexander and Lucinda Bostwick. November 2, 1837, of Busti, N. Y. His wife is now living. They have one dau-hter. Rose E., now the wife of A. M. Kent, of Jamestown, N. Y. Mr Kent was, at the time of Mr. Hall's death, one of the proprietors with him of the Corry pail factory, of Corry, Pa. JAMH^'SON HUGH A., was born in Berkshire county, Massachusetts, on the 31st of' May, 1835. His parents, Hugh and Jeannette Jamieson, emi- grated from Paisley, Scodand, in 1824, to Hudson-on-the-Hudson, in the btate of New York, and from there, in a short time, removed to the heart of the Berkshire hills. During his residence there, for years, Hugh Jamieson had charge of the weaving departments in large cotton factories. In the fall ol nci^/U'-r^ ^ y^a/Z Hugh A. Jamieson. 66i 1843 he removed, with his family, to Sugar Grove, in this county, where he entered the employment of D. H. Grandin, of Jamestown, in the manufacture of woolen fabrics, and remained with him five years, walking to Jamestown every Monday morning and returning Saturday night. The later years of his life were passed on a farm in Sugar Grove. He died in 18S0, aged seventy- seven years. His parents were for years residents of Freehold township, and lived, the father, to be ninety-eight years of age, and the mother, to be eighty- eight. The subject of this sketch passed the greater part of his time until he was twenty-one years of age, at his father's home in Sugar Grove, excepting such times as he was away at school, or teaching. Excepting one term at the academy at Randolph, N. Y., his education was confined to such limits as are prescribed in the common schools, though he made long and rapid strides ahead of other students by the most persistent and industrious application to study at home. By this praisworthy means he fitted himself for teaching, and before saying his last good-bye to his home farm he taught three winters, the last at Jamestown, N. Y. In the spring of 1856 he accepted the offer of W. T. Falconer, a merchant of Kennedy ville, Chautauqua county, N. Y., which he had received a short time after leaving home with the capital of fifty cents in his pocket. His previous earnings had been given to a younger brother to enable him to reach California, and Mr. Jamieson sent the rest of his wages, until his minority was a thing of the past, to his father. In the spring of 1857 he returned to Sugar Grove, purchased the interest in a dry goods business of Mark Wilson, and became a partner in trade with Isaac H. Hiller, who was afterward prothonotary of the county. At this time he had been on the point of going West, indeed, he had his trunk all packed for the journey, but was induced to remain in Sugar Grove. This business he disposed of in the spring of 1858, and for a year following he handled boats on the Ohio River for Daniel Griswold, of Jamestown, where he received the most useful portion of all his business education. During the winter of 1858-59 the well-known Joshua Van Dusen, of Sugar Grove, who had always taken a deep interest in him, persist- ently urged him to come to Warren and begin the study of law. After van- quishing what had before seemed serious obstacles, in August, 1859, he entered the law office of Johnson & Brown. In the fall of i86i he was admitted to the bar. In the interim Mr. Johnson was elected president judge of the district, and Mr. Jamieson, after his admission to practice, remained in the office with R. Brown, with whom, in less than a year, he formed a co- partnership, under the firm name of Brown & Jamieson. Being naturally of a speculative turn of mind, he was disposed to reach out in business, and in the fall of 1863 began his extraneous investments by purchasing an interest in lumber and mill property of Kinzua Creek, in the vil- lage of Kinzua. This he still owns, together with several thousand acres of 662 History of Warren County. timbered lands, out of which he has made large amounts of money. In the summer of 1865 his investments had grown to such proportions that it became evident that he must give up either his outside business or relinquish his law practice, and after mature deliberation he decided to abandon the profession. Accordingly the partnership with Judge Brown was dissolved. About this time he furnished the money and became interested in the hardware trade, and established a store in Warren under the name of J. H. Mitchell & Co. This was changed in 1871 to H. A. Jamieson. By shrewed and prudent man- agement Mr. Jamieson has developed this interest until now he is without question the proprietor of the largest hardware business in the county. To accommodate it requires the use of a large three-story brick building and a spacious cellar, besides a 40 by 50 warehouse four stories high. In the summer of 1876 Mr. Jamieson took a small amount of stock in an enterprise known as the Warren Woodenware Works, which, unfortunately proved a losing investment to the citizens of Warren, and in consequence of being an endorser on their paper for a large amount, he was compelled to step in and run the business temporarily. He subsequently became the owner of this large establishment, employing about fifty hands and running under an invested capital of some $75,000. The necessities of this business prompted him to become an active power in the organization known as the Western Woodenware Association, the office of which is in Chicago, 111., and of which he is and for years has been president. Through his influence the wooden- ware business has been made a success instead of the failure, which was pre- saged of it. During all these years he has not disconnected himself from the lumber business, but during his residence in Warren has interested himself in the flouring, and saw-mills, and sash, door and blind factories on the island at the foot of Liberty street. He is also very considerably interested in oil oper- ations, though he is careful not to permit that interest to absorb his other business. He was one of the original incorporators of the Citizens' National Bank of Warren, and is now a director in the same. He has always readily taken stock in every enterprise which presented itself seemingly to advance the interests of Warren. He is recognized as a very active worker for the benefit of the War- ren Library Association and the good of Warren. He has always been a steady Republican, and is now a warm admirer of James G. Blaine, in spite, as he says, of the aspersions which have been used to stain his name. In the winter of 1882, against his own wish, he was elected burgess of the town, not- withstanding the opposition of a majority of Democrats and an independent Republican. He has for the last ten years been a member of the Presbyterian Church, to the support of which he has generously contributed. lu personal appearance Mr. Jamieson is tall, slender, and very straight. Though not robust, he has yet great powers of endurance, and has never had i Hugh A. Jamieson. — Samuel Grossenburg. 663 a serious illness but once ; about four years ago he had a severe attack of a brain difficulty, which it was feared might prove fatal, but after about two years he recovered. Besides the encouragement which he has so readily given to every public enterprise in Warren, Mr. Jamieson has indirectly con- tributed to the wealth and beauty of the borough by his extensive building operations. He is now living in the third residence of his own construction in Warren. This house is an elegant brick structure, and is furnished in the best of taste, and without regard to cost. Mr. Jamieson is largely interested in real estate in Warren and other portions of the county. GROSSENBURG, SAMUEL, the subject of this sketch, was born on the 2d day of May, 1809, in Canton Berne, Switzerland. His parents, Sam- uel and Mary Ann (Stopfel) Grossenburg, were also natives of Switzerland. Mr. Grossenburg received his education in his native country, and when he was twenty years of age came to Pittsburgh, Pa., where he worked out for about six months as a common laborer, and then passed some three years and a half as a butcher. Thence he removed to Warren, where he engaged with unusual success in the same occupation. In 1839 1''^ again moved — this time to the farm which is now in the possession of his widow, near Stoneham, in Mead township, Warren county. When he settled here he penetrated an al- most trackless wilderness, in which the right of nature's sway had scarcely been controverted by any daring act of man. By dint of tireless toil Mr. Grossenburg cleared his farm and forced from its reluctant soil the harvests of plenty. He united the kindred industries, farming and lumbering, by manu- facturing into lumber the trees which it was necessary to fell in clearing his farm. At first upon his arrival he built a log house on the site of the present woodshed, in which he lived until 1848. In that year he erected the dwelling now occupied by Mrs. Grossenburg and other members of his family. At that time he eft'ected most of the improvements now perceptible about the farm. His original diminutive possessions he finally increased to three lots, one of ninety acres, comprising this farm, eighty-two in another lot, and two hundred and forty in the third — the last two of the lots being still wild land. It was about 1866 that Samuel Grossenburg, jr., erected a saw-mill on the 240-acre tract, but which was sold and removed in 1885. The principal characteristics of this most useful but equally unostentatious man have been quite clealy denoted in the mere recital'of his business under- takings. He was essentially a lover of home and its quiet enjoyments. His ambition was of that fibre which forms the only safe and trustworthy fabric of a nation's greatness and permanent prosperity. It was to acquire a home, un- encumbered by indebtedness, to be able to look upon a plot of ground, a dwell- ing, flocks and herds, and say to his loved and loving wife and children: "This I have gained by my labors for you; enjoy it with me ; share my acquisitions." 664 History ok Warren County. He took comparatively little interest in politics, only as much as an intelligent and thoughtful private citizen should. His partisan preference was decidedly Democratic. He was conservative in his religious views, having a strong lean- ing toward the Lutheran Church — the church of his fathers. Mr. Grossen- burg died on the 23d of September, 1885. On the 19th of January, 1836, he married Elizabeth, daughter of Francis T. and Catharine Yost. His widow survives him, and, as has been stated, now occupies the old homestead. She was born in Alsace, that famous battle ground between the German and French people, on the 14th of June, 1818, and came to Warren with her parents when she was about eight years of age. There she resided until her marriage. She has borne her husband ten chil- dren, seven of whom, four sons and two daughters, are still living, as follows : Samuel, jr., born September 19, 1838, and now living on the homestead ; married Frances M., daughter of D. W. and Sarah A. (Cantrell) Brennan, of this township, March 16, 1875. He was the second child, the first, Mary Ann, was born September 6, 1836, and died November 6, 1838. The third child was William, born October 6, 1840, and deceased September 8, 1848 ; the fourth, Eliza, born March 28, 1843, is now the wife of Samuel J. Arnett, of Geneseo, 111. ; the fifth, William H., born January 12, 1846, married Rosamond Carter, of Corry, Pa., November 22, 1878, and now resides in Stoneham, Pa.; the sixth, Jerome C, born November 6, 1848, still single, lives on the old home- stead ; the seventh, George F., born October 25, 185 I, died January 25, 1852 ; the eighth, Albert G., born November 25, 1853, married Margaret Weaver, and lives in Geneseo, 111.; the ninth, Clara E., born February 17, 1856, mar- ried first to Stephen Cochran, of Wellsbury, N. Y., in June, 1874, and secondly to Mark Lauer, from Wayne county. Pa., April 26, 1886, and now residing in Clarendon. The tenth, Lillie O., born May 16, i860, married Samuel Mc- Nett, of Clarendon borough, Januar}' 7, iSSi. GRAY, ROBERT MILES, of Sugar Grove, was born on the site of Union City, Pa., on the 8th day of January, 18 13. He derived his patronymic from a family in the north of Ireland, whence his father's father, William Gray, emigrated to Northumberland county, in this State, previous to 1785. He was probably in this country early enough to witness the ratification of the constitution of the United States. In 1795 he removed with his'family to Huntington county. Pa., and in 1803 settled on the site of Union City. He was twice married, the second time about 1824 or 1825, and reared a family of eight children by his first wife, and three by his second. His eldest son and the son of his first wife, James Gray, was the father of Robert M. Gray, and was born in White Deer Valley, Northumberland county. Pa., on the i8th of November, 1785. He removed with his father to Huntington county, and in 1 803 went to take possession of his father's newly purchased farm in Erie county. Robert Miles Gray. 665 It must be remembered that in those times the present modes of rapid transit by land had not even entered the dreams of the prophet. It required the hardiest muscles, the steadiest nerves, and the most adventurous spirits of the settled portions of eastern North America, to push forward through the dark and seemingly impervious forests that frowned upon the outposts of civiliza- tion, and extend its frontiers in spite of wolves, bears, panthers, and inhospitable wilds. James Gray was well-fitted for this kind of work. After looking over the ground which was to become his home, he returned, in December of 1803, to Huntington county. The incidents of this journey disclose a glimpse of the difficulties of the traveler in Western Pennsylvania at that day. He reached the Allegheny River four miles above the site of Kittanning, where he found the stream impassable by means of high water and running ice. He finally succeeded, at great risk of life and limb, in crossing the river with his horse on ice which had formed in a single night. Then he led his horse (for he could ride very little through the thick underbrush) along a " blind path " over hills until he reached Freeport. The rest of the journey was comparatively easy. In April, 1804, he returned to Erie county, with his sister Sarah to do the housework while he cleared the farm. His first work was to build a large hewn-log house on the place. He remained at Union, as it was then called, nearly twenty years. In 1809-10 he built flat boats and took them to Water- ford for the purpose of carrying salt to Pittsburgh. In the fall of 18 10 he went to Pittsburgh, where he saw the first steamboat ever floated in the city. In September, 18 12, he was drafted on a requisition on the State to furnish a quota of 100,000 militia to prosecute the war with Great Britain, and rendez- voused at Pittsburgh on the 2d of October. Aften an honorable service for six months he was discharged at Fort Meigs on the 2d of April, 1813. In March, 1823, he removed to Sugar Grove, in this county, where he remained the rest of his life. He died on the 30th of June, 1858. He was one of the most useful citizens that ever lived in this township or county. He took an active and patriotic interest in public affairs, both as they related to his town and the country. He was a member of the great Whig party, and was hon- ored with various offices that could be filled only with such ability as he pos- sessed. In 1825 he was elected assessor of Sugar Grove, and was soon after made foreman of the county grand jury. In 1826, and again in 1843, he was chosen county commissioner, the last time on the workingmen's ticket. He was what has aptly been denominated " an every day member of the church," while in Erie county, and in sympathies was a Presbyterian. He was not a religious automaton, however, but was a thinker, in obedience to the direction of St. Paul to "think on these things," and in later life he became a Congrega- tionalist. At a still later period he practically adopted the faith of the Unita- rians. In December, 181 1, James Gray married Polly, daughter of Robert Miles, 666 History of Warren County. with whom he passed the best years of his hfe, in the contentment of domestic love and co-operation. She survived him, dying a day or two before Christ- mas in 1 864. They left two children — Harriet, now the wife of Dexter C. Hodges, of Sparta, Tenn., and the subject of this notice. Robert M. Gray received a common school education in Sugar Grove, and passed sometime in attendance upon the academies at Jamestown and Warren. He remained on his father's farm until he reached the age of thirty-two or thirty-three years, when he became owner by purchase of the farm and began on his own account. He began chopping on the place in March, 1836. He lived on that farm until 1883, when his wife died, and he placed the property in the possession of his son, Hugh F. Gray, and bought the place on which he now resides. He has not been a public man in the general acceptation of the term, but he has taken a live interest in all public matters, has done without hesitation what he deemed to be his duty, and in the infirmity of declining years retires from active cares with a mind made serene by the consciousness of life- long rectitude. His townsmen have urged upon him a number of township offices, all of which came to him without the asking. Mr. Gray votes with the Republican party, the successor of the Whig party, which he supported in earlier life. His first presidential vote was cast for William Wirt. He has been three times married. Hannah, daughter of Jacob Wells, be- came his first wife on the 4th of October, 1843. She died in 1862, leaving two sons and daughters, of whom Harriet, James Marshall, and Hugh Fred are still living. James M. now occupies the old homestead of James Gray, his grandfather, and Hugh Fred has been mentioned as the present occupant of the farm of Robert M. Gray. Mr. Gray was again married to Sarah Par- ratt, daughter of M. Ewers, of Farmington. She died on the 6th of Septem- ber, 1882, leaving no children. His third wife, Mary Ann Vickory, of Glade township, in this county, was married to him on the i6th of January, 1884. HARMON, HOSEA. The birth of Hosea Harmon took place in Rensse- laer county, N. Y., on the 22d day of January, 1818. The first of the family to come to Sugar Grove was his grandfather, Moses Harmon, who im- migrated hither about the year 1825. He engaged in farming until he died some ten or twelve years after his settlement. He was the father of two sons and three daughters. Nason Harmon, father of Hosea, was the eldest child of Moses, and was born in Rensselaer county in 1786. He remained in the place of his birth several years after his father had come to Sugar Grove, and fol- lowed him about the year 1830. He was a hard working man, a farmer, and strove earnestly to acquire a competence for his family. But the advantages and emoluments that follow in the wake of well-directed labor at the present time, did not then exist in a new country whose resources were neither known nor developed. The pioneer (and Nason Harmon may almost be called a pioneer) in I HosEA Harmon. 667 a new country may not hope to accumulate wealth ; he must be content to pre- pare the way for others who are to reap the rewards of his toil, to eat fruit from the trees which he has planted, to cultivate the soil which he has cleared, and to enlarge and beautify the homes which he may rear in the wilderness. The lot of Nason Harmon was that of the common pioneer. He toiled without ceas- ing, he practiced the most rigid frugality, he bound his children out to service — and he died poor. He died on the 4th of September, 1855. His wife, Anna, daughter of a Mr. Bennett, of Rensselaer county, whom he married in 1810, survived him until January 21, 1869. They reared a family of thirteen chil- dren, of whom three are now living. The subject of this sketch was the third of these children. The limited means of his father compelled him to set his children at work at an age when they should have been at school, and Hosea Harmon received his education almost exclusively from contact with the world, his mind being sharpened by the friction as " iron sharpeneth iron." At the early age of eight years he began to work for a farmer in Busti, Chautau- qua county, N. Y., with whom he remained three years at a salary of three dollars a month. Another year was passed in the same occupation and neigh- borhood for five dollars a month. His father then hired him out to a farmer in Kiantone six months, where he chopped wood one winter, at the rate of eighteen cents a cord, while he boarded himself This was good pay for a full-grown man at that time, and Mr. Harmon undoubtedly felt that he had attained full stature. In this manner he passed his time, getting work of the hardest kind wherever he was able, and always under the control of his father, until he was nineteen years and six months of age. Impatient to be his own master, he then bought the remainder of his minority of his father for the price of one hundred dollars. Thereupon he went to Spring Creek and hired out to George F. Eldred at ten dollars a month. His work was hauling logs from the woods to a pond near the mill. He kept bachelor's hall with another em- ployee. Mr. Eldred agreed to give Harmon the butts of the logs which were sawn, from which he might gain a little profit by making shingles of them dur- ing the winter evenings. His diligence is attested by the fact that he made on an average five hundred shingles every night while he was at work there, and at the close of his engagement had on hand 40,000 shingles. These he traded with Henry P. Kinnear, of Youngsville, for a yoke of cattle, which he drove to Jamestown and sold for exactly one hundred dollars. His first deed upon receiving his well-earned money was to hasten home and pay his father for his purchased time. His ability to work in the woods had been gained by an experience which commenced when he was sixteen years of age. At that time his father had hired him out to work for Garrett Burget, on the Indian Reservation at Cold Spring, hewing and getting out timber to the Alleglieny River, at a salary of ten dollars for the first month and thirteen for each suc- ceeding month in which he worked. During one summer he felled a hundred 43 668 History of Warren County. trees over and above his stint, each tree being worth about three shilhngs — his own property by agreement. His next venture was as a pilot on the Alle- gheny River. He took rafts down to Pittsburgh and even farther. It was his habit frequently to buy shingles at the commencement of a trip and pilot a raft down the river without charge except the privilege of transporting his shingles to market. In this way he realized a profit on his goods without suffering a discount for freight. When he was twenty-two years of age he entered into copartnership rela- tions with one Sylvester Howd, and one Blackmer, for the purpose of engaging in mercantile business in Rusti, Chautauqua county. The capital of this firm was proportioned about as follows : Blackmer, sixty dollars ; Howd, a horse and wagon; and Harmon about 200,000 shingles which were worth about $200. The business lasted about a year in Busti, and was not a very gratifying suc- cess. Howd and Harmon then bought out Blackmer's interest, and established a store at Pittsfield in this county, where they remained about six years. They then sold out to Gray & Mallory. Mr. Harmon at the expiration of that time came to his father's farm in Sugar Grove to help him out, while Howd pur- chased an interest in the mercantile firm of Pattison & White, in Sugar Grove. Tiring of this arrangement within a year, he bought out his partners and per- suaded Mr. Harmon to take an interest with him. This relation continued four or five years. From that time on for about six years and as many months Mr. Harmon remained in this store, first as the partner of Howd's son-in-law, T. F. Abbott, then of Isaac Hiller, and afterward of Dr. Sherman Garfield. The business was finally sold to John and William McLane. At this period Mr. Harmon discovered an opportnnity for dealing in cattle, and immediately embarked in the business, selling many of them at Tidioute, and shipping many to New York and other places. During the seven years in which he remained in this occupation he was in partnership with William Haggerty. Upon terminating this experience he engaged once more in the mercantile occupation with D. McDonald, at Sugar Grove village, which lasted about five or si.x years, when he sold his interest to his partner. Since then he has been prominently interested in farming and land investments. His acres now number about fifteen hundred in all, all but two hundred of which (in Chautauqua county) are in Warren county. He has also dealt extensively in lumber, though he has not shipped any down the river. He has further- more operated to some extent in oil. Mr. Harmon has not taken a very prominent part in public affairs, his time being too much taken up in private business. But the voice of his townsmen has occasionally called upon him to exert his abilities in office, and he has accepted whenever he thought it was his duty to accept. His first political affiliation was with the old Abolition party, when the term was with the ma- jority a reproach and by-word. Mr. Harmon was one of the first three in I Joiix Whiiman. I HosEA Harmon. — John Whitman. 669 Sugar Grove. He afterward allied himself with the Republican party, and remained with it until he deemed it succeeded by a party which is governed by still higher principles, the prohibition party, when he joined its ranks. He has for more than forty years been an active member of the Wesleyan Metho- dist Church. These incidents of his life show him to be a man of active nature, of shrewd calculation, of industrious and tireless energy, and of fearless, unflinching integrity of character. These traits are evidenced by his success in life, by the fact that he has wrung competence out of poverty, and that he has done this without sacrificing his manhood or working injury to others. Hosea Harmon married Sally, daughter of Merritt and Almira Johnson, of Sugar Grove, on the 3d of September, 1846. Mrs. Harmon's parents came from Oneida county, N. Y., when she was but five years of age, and after her marriage made their home with her until their death a few years ago. They have had two children, only one of whom, a daughter, Emma, is living. She is the wife of J. P. Miller, of Sugar Grove, and the mother of two children, Geoerge H. and James H. Miller. WHITMAN, JOHN, son of John and Jane (Davis) Whitman, was born in Sugar Creek township, Venango county. Pa., on the 30th day of March, 1 8 ID. His father came to that township as early as 1797 from eastern Penn- sylvania, and was never more than three days out of the State. He died in 1839, and his wife followed him in about ten years afterward. Jacob Whit- man, grandfather of the subject of this notice, was what is called a " Pennsyl- vania Dutchman," and was undoubtedly born in this State At about the age of seventeen years the subject of this sketch embarked in life on his own account, and for four years worked on farms in the vicinity of his home. His health then failed ; he was afflicted with bilious fever and pleu- risy, and was advised by his physician to burn charcoal for his health. This he did for four summers, after which he took a trip down the Allegheny, Ohio, and Mississippi Rivers as far as Vicksburg, Miss., with boat-loads of ice, pur- chased and procured by residents of that city. The first time that he attempted to make this trip he was taken ill and had to postpone the pleasure, but he finally succeeded in going in the spring of 1838. He remained in Vicksburg about two weeks looking to the unlading of the boats, and then returned to the North by boat, after an absence of some two months. During the remainder of that summer he worked on a farm in Venango county and also performed service on a turnpike road then building through the county. The next two years were passed in sawing lumber in Buck mill, as it was called, in Venango county, after which he came to Sheffield township, and worked in the saw-mill of White & Gallop, in the southern part of the township. He operated their mill one year. At that time Erastus Barnes was rafting lumber to Wheeling, W. Va., 670 History of Warren County. and seeing in Mr. Whitman the man he wanted for his help, he hired him to raft the lumber, going with him on the first trip. This work he performed for six or seven years, and in the mean time began to buy lumber of his employer and take the property of both himself and Mr. Barnes to the same market at the same time. By this time his reputation as a skillful pilot and raftsman had extended beyond the limits of his county, and Fox & Wetmore, of Forest county, made him an offer to enter their service, which he thought well to ac- cept. He rafted for this firm for ten or twelve years, and as long as they con- tinued together, running occasionally as far down as Louisville, Ky. On his last trip he took down 127,000 feet of lumber without help. In the fall of two different years he also assisted in the construction of a wooden tramway from the place where the timber of his employers was cut to the east branch of the Tionesta Creek, whence it was floated to the mill. From 1866 to 1873 he worked as pilot for different employers. In the last year he purchased a large amount of lumber from Fox & Wetmore and went down the river with it, realizing a gratifying profit. From that time to the present he has kept teams at work in this county drawing oil and lumber. Meantime, as early as 1866, he purchased thirteen acres of land from Sam- uel Gilson, and worked on it at such leisure moments as were at his command. Since he has relinquished the life of a raftsman he has devoted the greater part of his time to the cultivation of this tract. In politics Mr. Whitman has been a consistent and loyal Democrat, and, though he has avoided rather than sought office, has frequently been called upon to serve in various capacities in his own town. He is a member of the Free Methodist Church, at which he is a regular attendant, and of which he is a trustworthy supporter. He also takes a deep interest in Sabbath-school work. It is too much the custom to deem the life of a man reviewed when the incidents of his labors and investments have been recited. Such sketches, were they not generally regarded as incomplete, would convey the impression that the subjects are men of the stamp which Julius Ca;sar denounced in •Cassius : " He loves no plays, As thou dost, Antony ; he hears no mu.'iic ; Seldom he smiles ; and smiles in such a sort As if he mock'd himself, and scorn'd his spirit That could be moved to smile at anything." No such man is Mr. Whitman. While the main incidents of his career show him to be a man of earnest purpose, he has ever been controlled by the true philosophy that much of the pleasure of life consists in enjoying such privileges as may be gathered on the way, rather than condemning them, and trusting to the often vain hope of "an easy time in the evening of life." On the 2d day of March, 1885, Mr. Whitman laid aside his cares for a time and John Whitman. — Dr. William A. Irvine. 671 took a pleasure trip to the New Orleans Exposition. While there he improved his opportunity to the utmost, going no miles below the city to the mouth of the Mississippi River, visiting the old Spanish Fort, sailing to West End, view- ing that famous cemetery or city of the dead, in which the bodies of the dead are kept in vaults above ground, inspecting the old battle-ground of General Jackson, and pacing on Shell Beach on the Gulf of Mexico. He returned by way of Nashville, Tenn., and Cincinnati. In this way he united pleasure and profit — the profit that comes of instruction. IRVINE, DR. WILLIAM A. The subject of this notice was born in the old fort at Erie, Pa., on the 28th of September, 1803, and died at his residence near Irvine, Warren county, on the 7th of September, 1886. He was de- scended from the branch of the old Scotch family of Irvine, which settled in Ulster, Ireland, under a grant from James VI. of Scotland. His grandfather, William Irvine, was a general in the War of the Revolution, and an intimate friend of Washington, whose letters, now in the possession of the family, show that important military movements in the struggle for the independence of the colonies were committed to his command. Dr. Irvine's father, Callender Ir- vine, was in command of the fort at Erie when his son was born. As Gen- eral William Irvine, then Commissary-General of the United States, died in 1804, Callender was summoned to Philadelphia to take his place, which office he retained until his death in 1840. The journey from Erie was made on horse- back, the child being carried the entire distance in the arms of his father. His correspondence with President Jefferson reveals the confidence of the au- thor of the Declaration of Independence in his ability and integrity, and that he was directed to look after the speculations of Indian agents in this part of the country. He had inherited lands in Warren and Erie counties, some of which were granted to General Irvine for military services. He passed every summer at Irvine, and when Dr. Irvine was old enough to take the long journeys on horseback, he always accompanied his father. After receiving a liberal education, William Armstrong Irvine studied medicine, and was graduated from the University of Pennsylvania. Immedi- ately upon his graduation he removed to Irvine, which was his home from that time until his death. He took an active interest in the development of the resources of this part of the State. He took a prominent part in the building of the first turnpike road from Warren to Franklin, the result of which was the opening of a stage road to Pittsburgh. To this end he devoted his influ- ence, time and means unsparingly. He was also among the pioneers in the early efforts to procure the location of the Sunbury and Erie, now the Phila- delphia and Erie Railroad, through this part of the country, giving his per- 672 History of Warren County. sonal efforts to the scheme. As a citizen he had an earnest interest in the local and general welfare of the country. Among the first improvements upon his place in Irvine were an iron foundry and a woolen-mill, built by him- self By his intelligence and energy he made his home a pleasant place. His person was most imposing and graceful, and his manner refined without affect- ation. He was ever a student of nature and of books. His mind was richly stored with a vast fund of information, which he always turned to account whenever occasion demanded, for he was no less practical than learned. This made him exceedingly attractive to those who came in contact with him in social life. In 1834 he married a daughter of Stephen Duncan, a prominent planter of Mississippi. She died a number of years ago and was buried in the grounds of the stone church built by them during her lifetime. She was a woman of superior mind and of charitable and unselfish nature, who did all in her power to advance the cause of religion and education in the community in which her lot was cast. Of this marriage there now survive two daughters, Mrs. Thomas Biddle and Mrs. Thomas Newbold. At the time of his death. Dr. Irvine was president of the Pennsylvania branch of the Society of Cincinnati, and vice-president of the general society. JACKSON, WILLIAM MILES, was born in Spring Creek, on the same farm that he now occupies, on the 29th of May, 1818. He is the son of Elijah and Mary (Watt) Jackson. His father and Andrew Evers, the first set- tlers in this township, came here in November, 1797, from Union Mills (now Union City), and built the first log cabin in Spring Creek, a few rods nearly north of the site of William M. Jackson's present dwelling house. Elijah Jack- son was born in Litchfield, Conn., on the 27th of October, 1772. He accom- panied his father to Ontario county, N. Y., when he was sixteen years of age, and upon attaining his majority removed to Marietta, O. The Indians were thick and hostile thereabouts, and the settlers were obliged to pass their lei- sure in the barracks, and their hours of labor surrounded by guards. Not lik- ing this sort of life, Elijah Jackson decided to settle in Spring Creek. About 18 16 he built a log cabin on the site of his son's present dwelling house. On this farm he remained, engaged in farming and lumbering, until his death on the 1st of September, 1845. On the 26th of February, 1801, Elijah Jackson married Mary, daughter of John Watt, of Spring Creek. Mrs. Jackson's parents were natives of Ireland, and came to Spring Creek from Penn's Valley, Lancaster county, Pa., about 1800. Mrs. Jackson died on the 9th of January, 1855, aged seventy years two months and eight days. She was the mother of Elijah Jackson's thirteen William Miles Jackson. — John Walton. 673 children — eight sons and five daughters, as follows : Sarah, born May 1 2, 1802, died May 15, 1882; Hannah, born December 1 1, 1803, widow of Thomas D. Tubbs, and now living in Spring Creek township ; John, born May 8, 1805, died June 16, 1839; Mary, born July 5, 1807, died July 22, 1876, then the wife of William Ludden, her second husband ; Uri, born March 31, 1809, died January 18, 1870; James, born April 2, 181 1, died in young boyhood; Ziba Mena, born May 7, 1813, died March 19, 185 I ; Washington, born December 7, 1815, died May 20, 1833 ; William Miles, the subject of this sketch; Alex- ander W., born April 16, 1820, now living in Spring Creek village; Harriet, born December 19, 1822, died June 28, 1823 ; Charles M., born July i, 1825, died August 23, 1885, in Busti, N. Y., and Robert R., born March 30, 1829, and now living in Farmington township. After receiving such meager education as was afforded by the common schools of his native town, William M. Jackson began at a very early age to assist his father in clearing the 200 acre farm, even then attending school oc- casionally in the winter. When he became of age he began to work on his own account in saw-mills and drawing timber, etc., until the death of his father. Then he and his brother, A. W. Jackson, bought the home property of the other heirs and worked the farm in partnership until 1866, when William M. Jackson purchased his brother's interest, and from that time to the present has retained the ownership and control of the entire property. He has engaged in lumbering to a limited extent, piloting on the river from his twentieth birth- day until 1864. His occupation for years past has been that of general farm- ing. He has a small dairy business. In politics he is a thorough Democrat, and has borne his full share of the public burdens. His father was a " stiff" Democrat before him. The family, indeed, is distantly related to Andrew Jackson. Mr. Jackson has held about all the offices which it is in the power of his town to bestow, from road commissioner to justice of the peace, and is now township auditor for the ninth consecutive year. His father and mother were both Presbyterians, and his opinions and tastes are that way inclined, though he is not a member of any religious organization. Mr. Jackson has never been married, and therefore it may be said that he has the more thor- oughly wedded the interests of the township, county. State and country of his birth. WALTON, JOHN, was born in the town of Columbus, Chenango county, N. Y., on the 31st day of August, 1806. His father's father was a farmer in Connecticut, where he died not far from 1820. Aaron Walton, father of John, was born in New England, and removed to Chenango county, N. Y,, in the latter part of the last century. His wife, Artemisia Field, also a native of New England, accompanied her husband to what was then a forest country in New York State. They had eleven children, ten of whom, four daughters and 6/4 History of Warren County. six sons, attained years of maturity. One of the daughters, Mary, is now the wife of Mr. Kennedy and resides in Bradford, Pa.; Aaron, Levi, and John, the surviving sons, are all residents of Columbus township in Warren county. Pa. In 1823 Aaron Walton, sr., came to Columbus, bringing with him his son Aaron, and built a log house on his farm about two miles northwest from the present village of Columbus, and about half a mile north of the " Center " so called. He returned at once to Chenango county, leaving his son and hired men to clear the land. In the fall the son Aaron returned and married that winter. In the spring they both came back, and in the February following John, Asa, Andrew, and Daniel, the other sons of Aaron, sr., walked from Chenango county to this wilderness by the way of Syracuse and the south- east. Aaron, jr., built a new house for himself and his bride, while all the rest of the family lived in this first log house. At about the age of nineteen years John Walton went to work in the win- ter season at Wrightsville in this county, operating the saw-mills for the pro- prietors. At other seasons of the year he went down the river on a raft to Pittsburgh. He continued several winters at Wrightsville, and he continued making annual trips down the river — rafting his own lumber to Pittsburgh, every year for thirty years. On these trips he would take down the river in tlie spring the logs he had cut the preceding winter. He regarded his father's house as his home until he was twenty-two years of age. Meantime, as may have been supposed, he had had few advantages for obtaining an education, as his father's means were too limited to send his numerous children away to school, and the schools in this unbroken country were not very advanced nor well graded; still, he had by his own unaided efforts, mastered the elementary studies, such as stand him in good stead in the business world, and was con- tented. On the 2d of September, 1828, he married Harriet Tracy, daughter of Israel Spencer, of Columbus, who was born March 5, 1808, and who died Jan- uary 4, 1 87 1. As soon as they were married John Walton took his wife to live on a farm of some seventy-five acres, five acres of which he had previously cleared, and on which he had erected a log house. Eighteen months later he moved back to his father's farm where he resided for one year, when he again moved, this time to a farm situated about one and a quarter miles northeast of Columbus village, where he stayed two or three years. In 1832 he purchased of Hannibal Lamb a farm two or three miles farther north, consisting then of about one hundred and fifteen acres, but which by gradual accessions Mr. Wal- ton has increased to two hundred and fifty acres. He removed at this time to this farm, where he passed many years, where most of his children were born and where several of them were married. Several years previous to the out- break of the civil war he bought a farm of lOO acres (to which he has since added forty acres), on the west side of Columbus borough as now constituted, i 'UN Wamon John Walton. 675 where he Hved until after the death of his first wife, and his marriage to the second. Thus has the subject of this sketch, by virtue of industry and thrift and honesty, been able to accumulate property. Starting with no means or capital but his own energy and faith in himself he has added one acre to another and one farm to another until he is accounted a wealthy man. The acres which he now owns do not represent a tithe of what he has had, for it has been his method to buy land when it was cheap and by his own efforts increase its selling properties and its value, and sell it at a profit. In this way he has bought and sold land all his life. His farming now consists principally in dairying. He owns in all about twenty-eight cows, besides other live stock, several colts and horses. His last home farm is now run on shares by his son Frank. Has a small farm of about sixty- five acres north of Columbus, which is chiefly devoted to the raismg of hay for his horses and cows. Another farm of seventy-two acres adjoining his old farm is used for pasturing. Mr. Walton cast his first vote for Andrew Jackson, and has been pretty true to the Democratic party ever since. He has held several important town- ship offices, but has not been politically aspiring. He was reared in the Meth- odist Episcopal faith, but has become more liberal in his views as he has grown older, and at this writing is devoting some thought to the mysteries of spirit- ualism — that fascinating system which, like Glendower of Wales, " can call spirits from the vasty deep." Whatever his creed, wherever he is known, Mr. Walton is esteemed for his sterling and undeviating honesty. His note is un- necessary ; for an oral promise is as binding on his conscience as is a note in the eyes of the law. More than once he has exerted an energy seemingly far beyond his power for the purpose of meeting an obligation which was fast coming due. By his first wife he was the father of the following children : Charles Henry, born June 14, 1829, now living in Columbus ; Laura Ann, born June 17, 1831, now the wife of Washington Colegrove in this township ; Lucinda Maria, born September 26, 1833, now the wife of Lawrence Colegrove, in Concord, Erie county. Pa.; Darius Seth, born February 10, 1836, living now in Concord, Pa.; Louisa Jane, born November 13, 1836, first the wife of Albert Dewey, who died about a year after the marriage, and now the wife of Lawrence Madison, of Concord; Spencer Aaron, born July 8, 1841, now of Columbus; Frank Denham and Franklin Ferdinand, twins, born December 20, 1845, the latter dying in about three months, the former still living in Columbus ; and Lucretia Emma, born May 7, 1848, died unmarried at Hudson, Wis., November 12, 1873, whither she had gone for treatment. Mr. Walton married the second time on the 15th of September, 1880, his wife being formerly Elizabeth Lackey, daughter of Robert Lackey, a native of Scotland, as is Mrs. Walton, but for years a resident of Port Hope in Can- 6t6 History of Warren County. ada West. Her mother, Agnes Parker, died when Ehzabeth was eleven years of age. Previous to their marriage, Mrs. Walton had resided in Columbus for some nineteen years. SANFORD, JOEL G. The ancestors of J. G. Sanford are traceable sev- eral centuries in the past. The Sanford and Hoyt families, both his an- cestors^ were among the very earliest settlers of New England. One of the great-grandfathers of the subject of this sketch, named Ward, was a sea cap- tain in the War of the Revolution. During that struggle he was taken pris- oner and confined in one of the British prison-ships. He jumped overboard with a companion and attempted to swim ashore, but \\as drowned, though his companion escaped and lived to tell the story. John Sanford, grandfather of J. G. Sanford, was born in Connecticut in 1772, came to Warren county with his son in 1838, and died at Rome, Crawford county. Pa., in 1856. His son, Samuel Ward Benedict Sanford, was born in Reading, Fairfield county, Conn., on the 22d of August, 1796, and the record of his birth is still en- grossed on the town books. He removed to Onondaga county, N. Y., in 1819, and four years later went to Batavia, Genesee county, in that State. Just pre- vious to his removal to Batavia, he married Esther Hill, daughter of John Green, who was a soldier of the Revolution, was with Washington at Valley Forge, and after living for a time in Vermont, died in Onondaga county, N. Y., not far from 1840. Samuel and Esther Sanford had four children, three of whom are now living. These three, besides the subject of this sketch, are Nancy Irene, wife of Calvin Nichols, of Spring Creek ; and Orsamus Orland, living in Eldred township. The one that died was Washington Sobrieski, his death occurring on the 6th of June, 1862, when he had reached the age of thirty- one years. Samuel W. B. Sanford came to Eldred township from Batavia in the spring of 1838 with horse and wagon, reaching that township on the 6th of May. He immediately built a house on the site now covered by his present dwelling, and began to clear his farm of seventy-six acres. During the summer he en- gaged in farming, and to some .extent in lumbering, and in the following win- ter taught school in Garland, in Pittsfield township. From then to the present he has continued his farming. He is now an old man, but bears the respect and esteem of all who know him. He has for more than fifty years been a consistent member of the Methodist Church. He was a member of the old Whig party until its dissolution, when he united himself with the Republican party. He has been at all times a prominent man in town affairs, having held all the offices which it is within the power of his townsmen to bestow. He has been a justice of the peace three terms, school director seventeen years, and has also been prominent in county elections. It was chiefly through his ellorts that the township was formed and the post-office established here. His Joel G. Sanford. 677 wife, who was born on the 25th of March, 1801, in Grafton, N. Y., is still liv- ing. Joel Green Sanford was born in Batavia, Genesee county, N. Y., on the 3d day of September, 1 824. He accompanied his parents to this county, and re- ceived the education that could be given to all the children in a new country. He kept his home with his parents until he was twenty- five years of age, work- ing on his father's farm. On the loth of July, 1850, he married Nancy Ann, daughter of Samuel Mogre, of Pittsfield township, and she lives to crown his latter days with comfort, as she did his earlier days with joy. At the time of their marriage Mr. Sanford removed to a piece of land containing eighty acres, embraced partly within the farm which he still owns and occupies. This farm now contains only seventy-five acres, Mr. Sanford believing in thorough culti- vation of a small farm rather than in loose management of a cumbersome tract. He owns another piece of land, however, of thirty-four acres. He built a house on the site of the one that he now occupies, which gave place to the present one in 1870. He has made his agricultural labors as general as the soil and climate will admit, refusing to confine himself to any specialty. He also engaged quite largely in lumbering until about 1880, when he allowed the saw- mill, which he had operated for years, to run down. Previous to the oil pe- riod he used occasionally to run down the river, though his suspension of these trips did not result from any interest he had in oil, as he has kept free from the entanglements and exciting fevers that disturb the oil operator's peace of mind. He is a natural mechanic, moreover, and though he was never apprenticed to the carpenter's or blacksmith's trade, or, indeed, any but the farmer's, he has done admirable work in all these branches of business and more. He built a number of the finest dwellings and barns in this part of the town. Besides this, he has a wagon or wheelwright's shop in which, at leisure moments, he manufactures some of the best wagons in the world. In fact, he seems at home in any branch of the mechanic arts. Mr. Sanford is a Republican of the uncompromising type, believing that the nature of Democratic institutions like the United States demands the perpet- ual though peaceful collision of two opposite parties, the one conservative and the other radical. He favors the Republican principles because he thinks that party to be the one of moral force and ideas. He is well adapted for the ad- ministration of public affairs and is a natural leader. He has held all the offices within the gift of his township, and was, indeed, school director for thirteen consecutive years. He has been postmaster at Sanford post-office for five years. He is not a member of any church, but favors the establishment and rejoices over the success of churches, and contributes to their support with- out regard to creed. J. G. Sanford and wife have had five children, four of whom are living — Samuel Myron was born on the 12th of September, 185 l, and resides in El- 678 History of Warren County. dred township; Ida lanthe, born November 2, 1854, died July 6, 1878 ; Mary- Jane, born February 14, 1858, now lives at the home of her parents; Wash- ington Aaron, born January 19, 1862, now at home; and Etta Irene, born October 23, 1866. ORR, RICHARD S., was born in Halifax, Windham county, Vt., on the 7th day of June, 1810. He was of Irish descent, his grandfather, Isaac Orr, being born of Irish parents in Boston, and emigrating to Halifax a short time previous to the Revolution. His father, Isaac, jr., was a native of Halifax, where he passed his life, dying in 18 18, aged forty-five years. Susan (Sum- ner), wife of Isaac Orr, jr., survived him a few years. The subject of this sketch attended the excellent common schools in his native place, and finished his education in a high school at Wilberham, near Springfield, Mass. After leaving school he took a partner and opened a hotel in Hartford, Conn., but this enterprise proved ephemeral. A short time previous to 1835 he went to Black Rock, Erie county, N. Y., where he engaged again in the hotel business. Not liking the place he soon removed to Jamestown, N. Y., where he passed a brief period as clerk in a hotel. After visiting Ohio City for a few months, he made Jamestown another abiding place pro tempore. At the solicitation of his brother, Henry Orr, who was in Warren then and is here now, he came to this borough to inspect some property for sale, and ended by renting the Mansion House, which is described in the history of Warren. This was in 1839. The owner of the property was the well-known Archibald Tanner, one of the largest property owners ever in the county. Mr. Orr remained the lessee of this hotel for a little less than ten years. Meantime he had become somewhat interested in the lumber trade, which then formed so prominent an industry in northwestern Pennsylvania, and in the spring of 1849 he severed his connec- tion with hotel life, and devoted more attention to the lumber trade. He did not allow that to absorb his sole attention, however, but formed a partnership with Frank Henry, and opened a store between the Mansion and Carver Houses, under the firm style of Orr & Henry. Mr. Orr continued his interest in the lumber trade until his death, on the loth of January, i860. The mer- cantile establishment was abandoned one or two years previously. Richard S. Orr was one of nine children, who were born in the order named — Abner, the first born, died in infancy; Annis, Lydia, Lurancy, Eu- nice, Henry, Elizabeth, Richard S., and Thomas. Of these only two are now living — Henry, who was born in 1806, and now resides in Warren, and Eliza- beth, who was born in 1808, married Robert Barber in 1831, and has resided in Warren since 1846. Mr. Orr was at first a member of the old Democratic party, but when the Republican party was formed he gave it his allegiance and support. He was actively interested in politics, keeping himself well informed upon all the Richard S. Orr. — Henry R. Rouse. 679 questions of the day, and entertaining opinions which he fearlessly expressed, and which evinced his intelligence He was a regular attendant at the Pres- byterian Church, though not a member of any denomination. The most prom- inent trait in his character, probably, can be described only by the statement that " he was a lovable man." He was the soul of geniality. He was open- hearted and had the faculty of everywhere and always winning friends. He was especially felicitous in all his domestic relations, and was a kind and affectionate son, brother, husband, and father. He was very public spirited and charitable, contributing generously to the material, and no less to the moral prosperity of the community in which he lived. He was always ready to help those who needed help and were worthy of it. He was never morose. Although he possessed a temper somewhat impetuous, he learned before at- taining manhood to keep it well curbed. He liked to have the good opinion of his fellowmen, but would never sacrifice his self-respect or a principle on the altar of popularity. Finally, he was faithful in every relation of life. When he was a young man in the employment of others, he was remarkable for his unrivaled fidelity. He would perform every duty with punctilious promptness and completeness, and this faculty seemed to increase with the ap- proach of years, rather than moderating. On the 8th of January, 1839, he married Jane, daughter of Alexander and Lucinda Bostwick, who lived near Jamestown, N. Y. His widow now resides in Warren. Thej' had five children, only three of whom are now living — Richard B. Orr was born July 11, 1841, and now in Warren; Sumner E., now in Warren, was born December 11, 1842; Henry S., born May 11, 1844, died May 27, 1845 ; George P., now in Warren, was born on the 25th of Sep- tember, 1846; Frank Henry, born September 15, 1855, died April 16, 1856. ROUSE, HON. HENRY R., was born in Westfield, Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1824, and was killed on the 17th of April, i86i, by the explo- sion of an oil well on his farm in Southwest township. He was the son of Samuel D. and Sarah Rouse, and received a good academical education in his native town, though it was gained almost entirely by his own exertions. In early life he was in very indigent circumstances, and was unable to raise even the amount of his tuition bills at the academy, yet such were his energy, dili- gence, and exemplary conduct, and so great the promise in him of superior abilities, that he secured the regard of his teachers, who took a deep interest in him, and most of them remitted his tuition. Having afterward become wealthy, he particularly remembered his early teachers, some of them in his will. Not long before his death, meeting one of them, residing in Westfield, Mr. Rouse asked him for the old tuition bills, and said he was ready to pay them ; and he did pay them, principal and interest for more than twenty years. He was remarkably proficient in his studies, and displayed thus early the traits 68o History of Warren County. of character, the energy and tlie loving disposition for which he was noted in after life. Having completed his academical course, he began the study of law in the office of Abram Dixon, of Westfield, but after about two years he relinquished his purpose because of a slight impediment in speech, which his diffidence led him to feel disqualified him for public speaking, though the impediment van- ished as soon as he became warmed with the subject of discussion. In the fall of 1840 he removed to Warren, Pa., traveling most of the distance on foot, and having when he reached Warren but one small piece of money in his pocket. But he was gifted with indomitable energy, and perseverance, and fertility of resource, and seemed to feel no discouragement. The first winter he taught school in the village of Tidioute. Being obliged to collect his own school tax, and times being hard, he took his pay partly in shingles. Laying out the rest of his money in shingles, he put the whole on a raft and sent them to Pitts- burgh, and with the proceeds the next spring purchased more shingles, shipped them in the same manner to the same market, and thus in a year or two was able to own a raft, and begin the accumulation of his fortune. Soon after he purchased an interest in a saw-mill, and produced his own lumber, and ran his own fleet of rafts. In company with R. M. Brigham he established a store at the village of Enterprise, which was built up largely by his exertions. Here he exchanged goods for lumber, and pressed on with such diligence and energy that in the course of fifteen years he became the owner of more than a thousand acres of valuable pine lands and a large farm which he had cleared himself In the summer of 1859 his attention was called to the discovery of coal oil in his neighborhood, and with his usual sagacity and decision he set himself about the determination of its value. In October he opened a well on the Buchanan farm and on the Barnsdale tract in the vicinity of Titusville. Having satisfied himself of the value of the discovery, he proceeded to invest in oil lands, and with his partners became the owners of some of the best tracts in the entire region. His wealth now began to increase with almost fabulous rapidity, and the resources of his oil territory at his death were but partly developed. In the fall of 1858 he was a candidate for political honors, and was elected by a large majority to represent Crawford and Warren counties in the Legisla- ture of the State. His public duties were discharged with ability, with honor to himself and fidelity to his constituents The next year he was again elected to the Legislature, though his increasing business made it extremely difficult for him to absent himself from home. Foremost among his many noble traits of character were energy and de- cision. He was rather small in stature and of a light frame, but the energy of his will seemed to be unbounded. He never knew fear, and with him to re- solve was to execute. His public spirit was of the noblest and most unselfish kind. There was no enterprise by which the public was to benefited ; the re- Henry R. Rouse. — Benjamin Nesmith. 68i cources of the region developed ; facility of intercourse increased, in which he did not prominently figure. He spent much time, money, and labor in opening and improving roads, constructing bridges, and helping on every work which tended to develop the wealth of this new country. How dear to him was the ac- complishment of these is evident from his will, which appropriated one-half of his property, after the payment of legacies, to the construction and improve- ment of roads and bridges in Warren county. Mr. Rouse was a man of much literary taste and culture, and for a busi- ness man was a great reader. The impulse which he received in this direction while in attendance upon the academy was never lost. He kept himself in- formed on national affairs, and had collected a beautiful library of standard works in history and general literature. He was moved by warm impulses, and fostered strong personal attachments. He loved his friends with his whole heart, and never forgot them. This love for his friends was probably intensi- fied by his isolation from family attachments, as he was never married. He was continually showing kindness to families, and the children of his neighbors, making them presents, taking them to ride, and he surprised a number of them by legacies in his will. Many of his early friends were also thus re- membered, and to each of the persons who picked him up when he was insen- sible, and carried him to a place of safety he gave a legacy of one hundred dollars. To the poor he was proverbially liberal, dispensing his favors with a lavish hand. The anecdotes of his timely and sympathizing aid are many. He never forgot that he was once poor, and he had a strong sympathy with indigent merit, always lent with an open hand to its encouragement, and in his will he showed the liberality of his heart by giving a large part of his princely fortune for the support of the poor of Warren county. He was loved by all who knew him, and in his death Warren county lost a most valuable and pub- lic-spirited citizen, his fellow- townsmen an energetic and a liberal-minded busi- ness man, the cause of virtue and sound morals a firm supporter, and the poor a sympathizing and most helpful friend. NESMITH, BENJAMIN, the subject of this sketch, derives his name from a prominent family of Nesmiths that removed from Scotland to Ireland in 1690. In 1718 James Nesmith emigrated from Ireland to Londonderry, N. H. There he settled and reared a family of four sons and a daughter, viz.: Arthur, James, John, Thomas, and Mary. Benjamin Nesmith, of whom we are writing, is four generations in direct descent from the original settler in Amer- ica, and three generations from the son Arthur. Benjamin Nesmith, the grandfather of the subject of our notice, removed as far west as Buffalo, where in the course of nature he died. Two of his sons, James and John, emigrated from Buffalo to Mayville, N. Y., thence to Jamestown, and in 1825 to Warren, Pa., by canoe, as early as 1804. John Nesmith married Hannah, daughter of 682 History of Warren County. John Shirley, of New Hampshire. Shirley was also a pioneer in Warren, had served in the war of the Revolution, and died here about the year 1826. John Nesmith died at Warren about 1829, and was followed by his widow in one year. They had a family of nine children, all but three of whom are yet living. Of this family, Benjamin Nesmith, the sixth, was born in Mayville, N. Y., on the 22d of January, 1820, and accompanied his parents to Warren in a canoe, in 1825. At that day there were only five or six houses in Warren, and they occupied a log structure on the bank of the Allegheny River. Here he received such limited education as was provided for all the young people of the time. Being very young when his father died, he was bound out without his own knowledge, by the township of Conewango, to Colonel John Berry, for whom he worked four or five years. As soon, however, as he found that he was looked upon as a ward of the town, his independent spirit revolted, and he took " French-leave " of his town-constituted master. He worked out by the month until 1843, when he learned the trade of harness making, and con- tinued to work at that business himself until 1848, and even until i860 he re- tained an interest in the business which he had established. In 1848 he opened a store in Warren, and at the same time embarked in the lumber trade. His interest in the store he disposed of in 1871, but he has not yet relinquished his connection with the manufacture and sale of lumber. From small beginnings he has increased operations, until he now manufactures about about 30,000 boards every day. He has been pre-eminently a busy man all his life, and in- herited from his father a strong frame and great powers of endurance. He has been a builder, also, and has erected all the school-houses in Warren but one. He managed the construction of the magnificent Methodist house of worship, and encouraged the work of constructing it, not only with his unremitting personal efibrts, but with much of his money and time. Most of the brick buildings in the business part of Warren were built by him, and he still owns three of them. His timbered lands, situated in Warren, Forest, and Kane counties, number some three thousand acres. He is at the same time an extensive operator in oil. He holds a number of honorable positions in the business world, among them being that of vice-president of the Warren Savings Bank, which he has held ever since he himself erected the building. His interest in educational matters is shown in the fact that he was school commissioner for twenty-one consecutive years until his resignation four or five years ago. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and a trustee in its society. The secret of his success lies in the disposition which he has always owned that he would never leave for another to do what he himself could do. He is, as he always has been — a hard-working man. Until within four or five years, when he has listened to the admonition of wasting years, he ran rafts down the river. He has never sought nor held political office, though he keeps informed upon all topics of national or State importance. He was formerly a Democrat, but -since the organization of the Prohibition party has joined its ranks. Benjamin Nesmith. — Orren C. Allen. 683 He has been twice married. He was first united in marriage with Louisa, daughter of John Dickinson, of New Hampshire. She died on the 4th of Oc- tober, 1848, leaving two children, Alonzo and Ozro, still living and in business in Warren. In March, 1851, Mr. Nesmith married Arrilla Norton, his present wife. They have one child, Lurinda. ALLEN, ORREN C, was born on a farm near Russellburg, Pine Grove township, Warren county, on the 1st day of May, 1840. He traces his ancestry back to his great-grandfather, who came from the north of Ireland about ninety years ago, and settled in the county of Dauphin, near Harris- burg, Pa. He died about sixty-seven years ago. He there owned and oper- ated a saw and flouring-mill successfully, and lived to be about one hundred years of age. He was a man of strong character, though marked by decided eccentricities. Of his two sons, Thomas and James, the former was the grand- father of the subject of this sketch. The latter enlisted in the War of 1812 when he was quite young, and was never afterward heard from. Thomas grew up to partial manhood in Dauphin county, and went to western Vir- ginia, near Georgetown, on the Ohio River, where he remained for fifteen or twenty years, and where he married Joanna Jones, a descendant from a Welsh family. About 1845 he settled in Pine Grove township, whither one of his sons had preceded him, and there died in 1855, aged sixty-six years. His wife survived him about ten years and died in the same town. They had eight children, three sons and five daughters, of whom the eldest, Samuel P. Allen, was the father of the subject of this notice. He was born in Virginia, and when quite a boy removed with liis parents to what was called Sewickly Bottoms, in Beaver county. Pa. From there, about 1830, he emigrated to Russellburg, and engaged in lumbering. After a few years he married Mary, daughter of Caleb Thompson, one of the early settlers of Pine Grove township, and who was long a justice of the peace in Russellburg, and was noted for his enormous strength. He died at the age of eighty years. Samuel P. Allen and wife had a family of five sons and three daughters. The eldest son is Colonel Harrison Allen, who was born in 1834, admitted to the bar of Warren county in November, 1866, took an official part in the War of the Rebellion, served in the State Legislature in both houses, was made auditor general of Pennsyl- vania, afterward became United States marshal for Dakota territory, was super- seded by a Democrat in 1885, and now resides in that territory. Samuel T., the second son, was admitted to the bar in February, 1864, served in the last war, held a clerkship in the office of the auditor general one term, was a clerk under General E. B. French in the treasury department at Washington, D. C, was three times elected burgess of Warren borough, and died on the lOth of January, 1885. The third child was the subject of this sketch. The History of Warren County. next was Mary E., now the wife of Luther Bishop, of Warren. The fifth was George W. Allen, born at Pine Grove in March, 1845, was admitted to the bar of Warren county in December, 1866, served two honorable terms in the Legislature, residing until 1882 at Tidioute, and then removing to his present residence at Denver, Col. The sixth was Martha, now the wife of Fenton B. Hayward, of Russellburg. The next was Walter, who now resides in Warren, and the youngest is Ida, wife of Dr. H. H. Bowers, of Forrestville, N. Y. O. C. Allen was reared on the farm on which he was born, remaining at home until he was twenty-one years of age. The farm was a pretty rough one, requiring hard work to manage it and gain a good livelihood from it, which they did. During his boyhood he>^ attended the district schools in the winter time and worked on the farm every summer ; the sons generally man- aging the farm while their 'father looked after the lumbering business. During the fall, as they approached manhood, the boys had the privilege of attending select schools in Russellburg for one or two months. Later still O. C. Allen went to the academy at Jamestown and at Randolph, N. Y., leaving the latter school in the spring of 186 1. He remained on his father's farm until the har- vesting was over in August of that year, when he came to Warren and began to study law in the office of Scofield & Brown. During two or three years before he was twenty-one years of age, and one winter after he began to study law, he taught winter schools to earn his own money. He reached Warren a comparative stranger, and with very little money. He rented a room in the Johnson Exchange building, purchased an outfit, and diminished his expenses by cooking his own provisions. This he continued for two years, at the same time pursuing his studies with the utmost diligence. The income from a little business which came to him then enabled him to live better, and he boarded at the Tanner House. In February, 1864, he was admitted to . practice in the courts of Warren county, on the same day that witnessed the admission of his brother, S. T. Allen. His preceptors, Scofield & Brown, kindly gave him the use of their office for the first season free of rent, and he began to practice on his own account. Only one year later he was nominated and elected the disrict attorney for Warren county, and then opened his office in A. H. Lud- low's building. His success in practice was something unusual and was con- stantly on the increase; but after a few years Mr. Allen became connected with oil operations in Tidioute, in this county, and being somewhat broken in health, he concluded to abandon the practice of law for a time, and removed with his family to the village now called North Warren, though then less •euphoniously denominated Berry's Corners. Several years in that place fail- ing to bring him to a return of health, he removed to Richmond county, Va., purchased a farm, planted a large peach orchard, and remained a portion of the time for four years. He returned to North Warren about the time of the location there of the hospital for the insane. As soon as he discovered that S.AMUtx M. Graham. Orren C. Allen. — Samuel M. Graham. 685 the hospital was surely to be erected there, he and several other gentlemen purchased lands in the vicinity and laid them out into village lots. After dis- posing of these lots and of other land at a gratifying profit, he returned to War- ren, and in company with his brother, S. T. Allen, and Dr. Laban Hazeltine, now of Jamestown, engaged in the drug business at the corner of Second and Liberty streets. At the end of a year he and his brother sold their interests, and the same season he was appointed postmaster of Warren, succeeding Cap- tain Robert Dennison. He acted as postmaster eight years and was then fol- lowed by the present incumbent, Isaac Alden. On leaving the office he again engaged in the practice of law, in the office of his brother, and then formed the partnership with the district attorney, G. H. Higgins, which still continues. In June, 1886, he was recommended by the county of Warren as a can- didate for the State Senate in the Forty-eighth Senatorial District, composed of Warren and Venango counties, and was nominated at the district conven- tion. The nomination was followed by a very spirited campaign, resulting in his election by a plurality of 1,830 votes, and in Warren county of a majority of 1,557 votes, or 500 more than were given to the State ticket at that time. This success is due to his personal popularity, the confidence which the members of his own party repose in him, and his plain and direct course as a politician, a strong member of the Republican party, but a courteous and just opponent. In business matters Mr. Allen has been uniformly successful, and no more significant praise can be bestowed than to say that amidst fierce competition, in spite of early poverty, by his own unaided efforts, without the use of dishonest expedients, he has become a man of means. He has always been extensively interested in building operations, and a few years ago erected the block which he now occupies. On the 1 2th of July, 1864, he married Maria C, daughter of W. M. Cook, of Russellburg, his present wife. They have two sons, W. H., born July 21, 1867, and Samuel G., born August 24, 1870. They are both boys of great promise, and are afforded all the advandages of a thorough education, and are now attending the military and naval academy at Oxford, Md. GRAHAM, SAMUEL M., son of Samuel Graham, was born in Lycoming county, Pa., on the 9th of March, 1805. His father was a farmer in that county (now Clinton county), and died there about 1857. He had three sons and as many daughters (of whom two daughters now live), and Samuel Gra- ham, jr., was the third of these children. When he was about eighteen years of age the subject of this sketch began to pilot on the Susquehanna River as far down as Havre de Grace. From that time until he reached his twenty- fifth year he continued to labor under his father's direction, and by his own 686 History of Warren County. efforts almost supported the entire family. He did not relinquish the rafting business until 1837, and on the 28th of June of which year he married Mar- garet, daughter of George and Isabel (McCormick) Long, of Warren county. Immediately after the marriage the couple settled on a farm in the near vicin- ity of Mr. Graham's birth place, where they remained until 1842. They then removed to what is now the township of Pittsfield, in this county, in one village in which (Garland) Mrs. Graham was born on the 23d of July, 18 10. The principal motive which induced Mr. Graham to make this removal was the condition of George Long, his father-in-law, who needed care. They resided on his farm in the southern part of the township until 1868, when they returned to their old farm in Clinton county. There they remained six years. In 1874 they sold out there and returned to Pittsfield and settled on the old homestead. In 1882 they purchased and removed to the farm now occupied by Mrs. Graham, where he died on the 13th of April, 1884. The incidents and characteristics of George Long and his career are mentioned in the history of the township of Pittsfield. Samuel Graham was during his life a strong Republican in politics, and though not an office seeker, was by his special adaptability for such positions as that of constable, etc., frequently forced by such persuasion to accept this and kindred oflices. While he lived in Clinton county he was a member of the Presbyterian Church, but did not join any church in this county. As a busi- ness man he was pre-eminently successful; as a friend he was most trustwor- thy ; and in all the essential elements of manhood was beyond reproach. The children of Samuel M. and Margaret Graham have been as follows : Helen, born June 20, 1838, died August 14, 1847; Herman, born December 24, 1839, died December 8, 1842; and John W., born June 6, 1847, and drowned in the Susquehanna River August 24, 1869. It was his death that formed the chief inducement for their removal from Clinton county to Pittsfield the second time. JOHNSON, S. P., was born in Venango county, Pa., January 31, 1809, the second son of the Rev. Robert Johnston, one of the earliest ministerial pioneers of Northwestern Pennsylvania, who, after serving as pastor of the Presbyterian Church in Meadville for some years, removed to Westmoreland county in 1817. At the age of sixteen the subject of this notice entered Jefferson College at Canonsburg, from which he graduated in 1830. After graduation he immedi- ately went east and took charge of an academy in Danville, then Columbia county. Pa., where, in addition to his academic duties most of the time, he studied law, under the direction of the Hon. Robert C. Grier, subsequently for many years one of the judges of the Supreme Court of the United States. I S. p. Johnson. 687 He was admitted to the bar at Sunbury, Northumberland county, Novem- ber 3, 1833, and in January, 1854, located as a lawyer in Franklin, Venango county, and in September of that year removed to Warren, which has been his place of residence and business ever since. For the first six years of his pro- fessional life here he was the working member of the firm of Struthers & John- son, Mr. Struthers having largely withdrawn from active practice. , In 1840 Rasselas Brown became his partner, and Johnson & Brown were the leading firm in the profession for twenty years, and until the election of Mr. Johnson to the president judgeship of the Sixth Judicial District of Pennsylva- nia, consisting then of Warren, Erie and Crawford counties, to which Elk county was afterwards added. He discharged the laborious duties of this large district for ten years with industry and acceptability, but declined to be a can- didate for renomination. Retiring from the bench at the beginning of 1871, he readily fell into a large practice again in the counties of his old district. He continued in active practice for about fourteen years, when he gradually withdrew from its more active duties, but still remains as the advisory and assistant member of the firm of Johnson, Lindsey & Parmlee. In 1836 he commenced practice in McKean county as prosecuting attorney, under the administration of Governor Ritner. The next year he extended it to Potter county and subsequently to Elk county. In those three counties, together with Venango, in which he had always retained a practice, he was in constant attendance at all their courts. He thus kept up a leading and suc- cessful practice in five counties, besides his annual pilgrimages to the Supreme Court, until the fall of i860, when he was elected to the bench as before stated. With a sound constitution, good health and temperate habits, he was able to endure and underwent more hard labor than falls to the lot, or is within the capacity, of ordinary men. In temperament he was ardent, and in energy and industry indefatigable. These, with a characteristic economy of both time and money, made his life a successful one, both professionally and financially. He was naturally bold, fearless, independent, and never courted popular favor ; never drank, gambled or danced ; had the courage to act up to his convictions, and this made him somewhat arbitrary and dogmatic in practice, and severe in his criticisms of others in his social life. His style made enemies, and he never sought the good will of any body at the sacrifice of principle or self-respect. He was always the inveterate foe of intemperance, and during half a cent- ury of his life delivered frequent temperance lectures and addresses. He was a Whig, Republican and Anti-slavery man of the most radical sort. He was an earnest partisan, often on the stump in early life, but never would ask for or take a nomination for a political office. 688 History of VVarrex County. In 1837 he married Miss Martha Hazeltine, the daughter of Dr. Laban Hazeltine, of Jamestown, N. Y., with whom he shared the full measure of domestic happiness for nearly twenty-one years. She died in 1858, leaving him four children needing a mother's care, the youngest but five years old. In 1859 he took for his second wife Mrs. Martha L. Parmlee, the widow of Aaron S. Parmlee, deceased, and sister of the Hon. R. Brown, then his partner, and afterwards his competitor for the judgeship, and the mother of Colonel James O. Parmlee, one of his present professional partners. In all matters of public interest, relating to church. State or municipal enter- prise, he was always an active participant. He was for several years a leading school director, and largely by his efforts the educational system of Warren was brought into efficiency, by the erection of the first union school-house, and organizing its departments. After a long life of incessant toil, extending during most of his professional Hfe till midnight of each day, he is still engaged in active business, and enjoys both a physical and mental soundness vouchsafed to very few men at such an advanced age. SECHRIEST, JOHN CHRISTIAN, was born in Sundhausen, near Stras- bourg, in Alsace, France, on the ist day of June, 1831. His ancestors several centuries ago emigrated to Sundhausen from Switzerland, and from time immemorial have engaged in agricultural employments. His grandfather, Henry Sechriest, had a family of seven children, Jacob, John Philip, George, Christian, John, Henry, and one daughter. Three of the sons came to Amer- ica, John Philip, the father of the subject of this sketch, and Henry in 1833, and George two years later. John Philip was born in 1791, and left the old country for America on the 2d of September, 1833. He arrived at Warren on the 2d of December following, and immediately began farming in Cone- wango, which he continued until his death on the 2d of July, 1861. A num- ber of years before coming to this country he married Mary S., daughter of Daniel Strubler, a native of a town in France. She bore him seven children, and died on the 20th of February, 1881, aged eighty-nine years and nine months. Four of their children died and were buried in Europe ; three came to America and are now living, Philip, Saloma, wife of J. C. Weiler, of Warren, and the subject of this notice. Mr. Sechriest was about two years of age when he was brought to Warren by his parents, and here he received such education as the common schools and his somewhat restricted personal advantages would allow. Matthias Gutzler, whose wife was a sister of Mr. Sechriest's mother, came to Warren with John Philip Sechriest, and resided with him for about a year ; then the two went their several ways. But Mr. and Mrs. Gutzler were so lonesome in 'uf John Christian Sechriest. — Robert Thompson. 689 their new home without children that they besought John Phihp Sechriest for the loan of his son John C, whom they desired for his company. Negotia- tions culminated in the adoption by them of "little Johnny," although he re- tained his family name. From that time on until Mr. Gutzler's death, June 8th, 1852, Mr. Sechriest remained a member of their household and family. He then assumed the management of the farm and property in Conewango town- ship. In the latter part of April, 1873, he removed to the place in Warren borough which he now owns and occupies, and a few days after his removal, or on the 2d day of May, 1873, his foster mother died at an advanced age. But Mr. Sechriest had long previously formed other attachments, which, though adding to his earthly enjoyment, did not diminish his regard for his adopted parents. On the 27th of February, 1853, he married Susan A. Shafer, daughter of Joseph Shafer, of Franklin, Venango county, Pa., and his wife is still living. They have had five children, two of whom, sons, died in infancy, while two daughters and one son are living. Cinderella, the eldest, was born on the 8th of May, 1854; Sarah S. was born on the 24th of November, 1863 ; and Simon S. S. Sechriest was born February 8th, 1868. Mr. Sechriest's parents were Democrats in their political sentiments, and the subject of this sketch entertained similar opinions until he voted first. His first vote was cast for Fremont, the presidential nominee, and from that time until recently he has voted the Republican ticket. He now desires the ascend- ency of the Prohibition party. He has more than thirty years been an active member of the Evang^elical Church. THOMPSON, ROBERT, was born in Deerfield township, Warren county, Pa., on the 1 6th day of August, 18 16, and died in Irvine, Warren county, on the lOth day of March, 1877. He was one of ten children (seven of whom were sons) of Robert and Rachel (Irvine) Thompson, who were of Irish na- tivity. From the time of his birth until his marriage in 1843, the subject of this notice remained at home, attending the district schools of his native town, and rendering assistance on the large farm and timbered lands of his father. At the same time he engaged quite considerably in lumbering on his own ac- count, taking frequent and regular trips down the river on rafts, until he became well and widely known as a skillful and trusty pilot. Upon his marriage he pur- chased a large tract of land at Dunn's Eddy, in Deerfield township, which he cultivated with diligence, at the same time continuing and increasing his activ- ities as a pilot and lumberman. Indeed, he did not relinquish lumbering until a short time previous to his death. Some twelve or fourteen years ago he opened the Dunn's Eddy House, and kept it until his removal, in February, 1875, to Irvine. At the date last mentioned he had become owner, by pur- 690 History of Warren County. chase, of the fifty-one acres now occupied by his widow, and built the house which stands thereon at this day. Robert Thompson began in hfe with a small capital, and by unremitting industry, by the practice of frugal economy, by temperate habits, provident foresight, pleasant manners, and honest dealings acquired more than a compe- tence. His widow and heirs now own the property which he left, including the land at Dunn's Eddy, much of it still heavily timbered, and the property at Irvine. He married Hannah, daughter of John Thompson, of Deerfield, on the 22d of January, 1843. His wife, who survives, was born in that township on the 20th of December, 1823, though at the time of their marriage she had been re- siding at Jamestown, N. Y., and at Warren. She has ever sympathized with her husband in his domestic affairs, in his business undertakings, in his Republican politics, and in his willing contributions to the support of school and church. Although not members, they were regular attendants upon worship at the Presbyterian Church. Mr. Thompson left, living, at his death four children, sons, as follows: James A., born March i, 1852; John Nelson, born June 29, 1854; G. Canby, born April 22, 1863 ; and Harry Dale, born November 22, 1865 ; all of whom are now at home with their mother. The eldest two are married. SHORTT, HON. WILLIAM HAMILTON, was born in Lockerbie, Scot- land, on the 23d of June, 1822, being the ninth of the eleven children of Robert and Agnes (Sanders) Shortt, five of whom were sons. Mr. Shortt traces his maternal ancestry back to the Hamiltons of the time of Charles the Preten- der, in the seventeenth century. Robert Shortt, his father, was a stone-mason, and carried on his trade in the old country until 1833, when he emigrated with his family to Warren, in this country. Two years afterward he removed to Youngsville, where he continued his calling until the time of his death in 1857, when he had reached the age of seventy-one years, owning the farm now the county farm. Robert's wife died in Wisconsin, at the home of her young- est son, in 1878, aged nearly ninety-four years. The subject of this sketch received the greater portion of his scholastic training in the place of his birth ; when he was eleven years of age he accom- panied his father to Warren, and afterward to Youngsville, where he passed between two and three months more in attendance upon the common schools. He was then apprenticed to a tailor in Warren, and in 1841, opened a shop in Youngsville, expecting soon to go to Buffalo to reside. This he did not do, however, but remained in his chosen vocation in Youngsville until 1856, when he entered into partnership with J. B. Phillips, and engaged in the general mercantile business. A year later this partnership was dissolved, and Mr. Shortt William Hamilton Shortt. 691 continued sole proprietor of the trade until "1872. His earlier manhood had been passed under the banner of the Democratic party, and he had been elected, during the administration of Franklin Pierce, to the position of county auditor, by Democratic votes. His last Democratic vote was cast for Bu- chanan, since which time he has been consistently Republican in sentiment and deed. In 1872 he was chosen to the State Legislature, in which he served two terms to the great satisfaction of his constituents, and was probably prevented from being then elected to the State Senate only by his appointment by Presi- dent Grant to the consularship at Cardiff, Wales, and adjacent ports, such as Swansea, Newport, Miiford Haven, etc., his commission being dated in May, 1 873. He remained at Cardiff until 1 876, in January of which year he resigned his office, on account of the continued indisposition of members of his family, and in July he returned to his home in Youngsville. Whether he performed the duties of his responsible trust acceptably to the citizens of Cardiff, or not, may be collected from a mo^t gratifying testimonial of regard, and a request for his re-appointment, signed by the mayor and a number of distinguished officers and citizens of that port, presented to him when he was about to take his departure from them. After a few months of retirement from active business, in April, 1877, Mr. Shortt became largely interested in the Sugar Grove Savings Bank, and was made its president — a position which he continues to fill with his accustomed skill and fidelity. His son, Charles M., who also served a term in the State Legislature five or six years ago, has been cashier of the same institution since 1878. Excepting the absence already mentioned, and several interims during the last war, when he was commissioned to look after the sick soldiers from this district, Mr. SliOrtt has resided in his present dwelling house since 1842. Be- sides the office of county auditor, already mentioned, he has been kept almost continually in office ever since his first entrance into public life, serving ten years as justice of the peace. In conformity with the traditions of his ancestors and his native land, he has ever retained an affection and a pciichaiit for the Presbyterian Church, though his mind has kept up with the ever- widening march of a liberal charity for the beliefs of others. In default of a Presbyterian Church in Youngsville, he has united with the Methodist Church for many years, and has contributed to its support On the 17th of July, 1844, he married Emaline, daughter of William and Mary Davis, of Youngsville, and his wife is still living, though an invalid. They have eight children, five of whom are still living. The following are their names and the dates of their births : 692 History of Warren County. Mary A., born June 23, 1845, now living in Greenville, Pa.; Agnes, born October 7, 1847, died March 20, 185 1 ; Charles M., born March 10, 1850, now living in Sugar Grove; James W., born May i, 1853, died in January, 1886; Emma Irene, born September 19, 1855, now living in Nashville, Tenn.; Ida May, born December 15, 1857, now living with her parents; Nettie, born June 20, 1862, died in August, 1864; and Mattie, born August 6, 1864, and now living at the home of her parents. BRIEF personals; ABBOTT, NOAH W., Sugar Grove, a practical contract sawyer and farmer, was born in Sugar Grove in 1841. He was a son of John G. and Agnes Nancy (Allen) Abbott. Noah W. Abbott was married in 1864 to Mary M. Norris, of Freehold, who was born in 1845. They had a family of seven children born to them, six of whom are now living, one having died at an early age. Those living are John, Eugene, Earl, Christopher, Edward, and Harry. Mary M. was a daughter of Thomas and Ann Norris, who were early settlers in Freehold. They had a family of five children born to them — John, James, Elizabeth, Mary M., and Alice. John enlisted and it is supposed that he died while in the army. Abbott, James A., Sugar Grove, was born in Sugar Grove in 1839, and married on March i, 1865, to Lavantia C. Steward, in Harmony, Chautauqua county, N. Y., where she was born in 1845. They had a family of three children born to them — Sardius Steward, Archie Allen, and Florence Rhoda. James A. Abbott has been commissioner for two terms, and is a large stock and general farmer. He was a son of John G. and Agnes N. (Allen) Abbott. She was born in Colchester, N. Y., in 1806, and her hus- band was born in Rome, Oneida county, N. Y., in 1806, and they were married in Sugar Grove in 1829. They had a family of ten children born to them, eight of whom are now living — Albina C, Charles, Robert, James A., Noah W., Isabell, Loretta, and Jane. John G. Abbott died in 1873, Agnes N. Abbott died in Sugar Grove October II, 1886. John was a son of Nathan and Johanna (Gibson) Abbott, who settled in Warren county, on the Brokenstraw, in 1814, coming there from Oneida county, N. Y. Agnes Nancy (Allen) Abbott was a daughter of John and Margaret (Holmes) Allen, who were born in Scotland and married there, and with one child immigrated and set- tled in Delaware county, N. Y., in 1801, and later went to Chenango county, N. Y., and in 1832 they came to Sugar Grove, where they settled. They had a family of nine children born to them, three of whom are now living — James, John, and Mar- garet. John Allen, sr., died in Sugar Grove in November, 1844 ; his wife also died at the same place. Acocks, Judge William B., Pittsfield, was born in Hancock, Berkshire county, Mass., in 1 82 1. He was a son of Williain and Phebe (Baker) Acocks, who with a family of three children — Eliza Ann, James L.,and William B. — settled in Ellicott, Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1830. Phebe died in 1832, and William then married his second wife, Mrs. Caroline Kinsley, by whom he had three children, two of whom are now living— Grant A. and Mary Ann. William died in Illinois in 1867, and Judge William B. settled in Pittsfield in 1842, and embarked in the general blacksmith business, from which he retired in 1880. He served as justice of the peace for two terms, was side judge of the county for five years, from 1876 to 18S1, and also held several other offices of the town. He was married in June, 1843, ^° Mary Ann Dalrymple, who was a daughter of Clark and Elizabeth (Shoff) Dalrymple. Elizabeth was born in Albany county, N. Y., and Clark, her husband, was born in Colerain, Franklin county, Mass., in 1796, and died in 1869. His wife died in 1883. They had a family of nine children born to them — David, Mark, William, Clark, Reuben, Oliver, Noah, Shelden, and Mary Ann. Clark Dalrymple settled in Warren county with his father, David Dalrymple, in 1811. iTo avoid needless reiteration the name of the State of Pennsylvania is omitted after towns and counties located therein. History of Warren County. Acocks, Julia A., Pittsfieldi was born in Conewango, Warren county, in 1820. She was a daughter of Mark C. and Phebe (Greene) Dalrymple. Phebe was born in Rensselaer county, N. Y., and Mark C, her husband, was born in Vermont in 1799. They were married in Troy, N. Y., in 1810. Mark C. first settled in Pennsylvania in 1809. and in 1810 settled with his wife. She died September jj, 1841, leaving a family of six children, four of whom are now living — Julia A., Mrs. Lydia Foster, David R., and Mrs. Jerusha Ford. Mark Dalrymple was a prominent man of his county, and was the first sheriff of Warren county. He also held several other offices, and was always active in all town and county affairs. He died in April, 1873. Julia was married in 1835 to James L. Acocks. They had a family of three children born to them — Oliver Perry, Thomas L., and N. Lamar. James L. Acocks died in August, 1870. He was a prom- inent business man of the town, and was born in Hancock, Berkshire county, Mass., in 18 14, and settled in Pittsfield in 1834 ; was married in 1835, and embarked in the hotel business in 1838. They were burned out, and in 1854 they erected the present hotel at Pittsfield, where Mrs. Acocks still resides with her son, N. Lamar, who is now en- gaged in the hotel business. He was married October 3, 1879, to Hattie Martin, of North Bay, Oneida county, N. Y. She died in 1883, leaving two sons — James L. and Clarence S. Acomb, Dr. James L., Tidioute p. o.. Glade, was born in Stanford Bridge, York- shire, England, February 27, 1828. He was a son of Joseph and Elizabeth Acomb who settled in Geneva, N. Y., in 1832. In the spring of 1834 they moved to Sandy Hill, Steuben county, N. Y., and settled on a farm which he purchased and which is still owned by them and known as the Acomb homestead. Joseph Acomb died in the fall of 1834, of cholera, leaving an invalid wife and four children, two sons, and two daughters — Thomas, James L., Margaret, and Elizabeth, the eldest of which was Thomas, aged eight years. Elizabeth Acomb by her own industry and economy main- tained herself and four children until they were able to contribute to their own support. She lived to see them all grown up, married and settled, and in good circumstances, dying at the good old age of seventy-four years on April 7, 1875. Dr. James L. Acomb left home at the age of seven years, and by his own eftbrts and close application to business fitted himself for his medical profession, and graduated from the Syracuse Medical College in 1853. He studied medicine in Buffalo, Erie county, N. Y., where he began his medical practice, afterward moving to Cuba, Allegany county, N. Y., there following his profession until 1865 ; then spending one year at Pit Hole, Venango county, moving from there to Tidioute, Warren county, where he now resides and enjoys a large and remunerative practice in his profession. On settlement here he embarked in the drug and prescription business and still continues in the same, dealing in all grades of fancy and staple goods of the drug trade. He has also been an oil producer for the past fifteen years and is still in the same business. He was a volunteer surgeon in the army in 1862, and has held some of the town offices in which he now resides. He married Seraph Oliver, daughter of Squire Charles Oliver, of Rogersville, Steuben county, N. Y., in 1863. By this union he had born unto him six children — four sons and two daughters; the sons died in their early childhood; the daughters. Seraph May and Lillian T., are still living and have received a collegiate education. Serajih May married C. M. Knight, |)rofessor of chemistry and natural sciences, of Buclitel College, .'Vkron, O., where he now resides. Lillian T. graduated at Buchtel College, Akron, O., in 1885, with appropriate honors. Agrelius, John W., Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, is a general dry goods and grocery merchant, and proprietor of a drug and prescription and fancy goods store ; he is also engaged in the manufacture of staves, heading and shingles, having a large steam-mill and factory in Youngsville. Mr. Agrelius was born in Sweden in 1838, and with his parents — Isaac and Inga Christina (Peterson) .\grelius — and their other five children, came to America and settleil in Brokenstraw in 1851. Two more children were born after their arrival. Two sons of Isaac enlisted in the army during tlie civil war — Charles Gustavus in the 4th Pennsylvania Cavalry, and Andrew Peter in the 83d Pennsylvania Volunteers; both were captured and confined in Anderson ville prison ; Brief Personals. were removed thence to Columbia, S. C, where they died. The six now hving are Eva C, J. W., Clara T., Otto M., Eugene, Frank O. Isaac Agrelius was born in i8og, and his wife in 1810; the former is dead, and the latter is living in Kansas. John W. Agrelius is one of the energetic business men of the county. He embarked in the pump business in 1866, and in 1873 built a steam-mill, which was burned in 1876. Taking with him a partner — Judge Kinnear — he rebuilt the mill the same year. In 1878 he engaged in mercantile trade, and purchased the interest of his partner in the mill, which, together with his dry goods and drug stores, he conducts at present. He was appointed postmaster in January, 1884, and resigned December, 1885. He is agent for the American line of steamships of Philadelphia. Mr. A. married Sarah Jane Demmon, of Russellburg, in 1867; they have four children — Alice B., Grace G., Blanch B., and Ray V. Probably no family of the pioneers of Pine Grove has been as prolific as the Akeley family. They came to the town from Vermont about the year 1827. From the original pioneer of the family has sprung a race of over three hundred descendants. Jonathan was the eldest of the family born here, James F. was next ; Ira, who died while an infant, and Rollin and Volney (twins), were the other children, natives of this town. Jona- than was a member of the 12th Pennsylvania Cavalry, and died while in service.. James F. married Sarah Jane Widdifield, and had two children. After the death of his. wife, Sarah Jane, Mr. Akeley married Mrs. Mary A. .\ndruss, of Corydon. James F. enlisted in Company G, 2 1 ith Pennsylvania Volunteers, and served until the close of the war. He still resides on the home farm which has been so long in the family. He is a member of the " Eben Ford" Post, G. A. R., a Republican in politics, and not connected with any church society. Akins, Theodore, Chandler's Valley p. o.. Sugar Grove, was born in Sugar Grove in. 1859, and married Vesta Jones, of Ashtabula, O., in 1886. He has been town com- missioner. His parents were John M. and Mary Oman Akins. They were born in Sweden, he in 1809 and she in 1816. They were married in Sweden, and came to- Sugar Grove in 1851. They have had ten children — seven sons and three daughters — Christina, Matilda, Mary, Jonas P., John A., Andrew M., Charles F., O. William, Alfred D., and Theodore. Jonas P. and John A. enlisted during the civil war and served till it closed. Akeley, Joseph, Russellburg p. o.. Pine Grove, one of the sons of the pioneer, Thomas Akeley, was born August 22, 1789. He married Eliza Ruland in 1829, who bore him eight children — Mary, Phebe, Cynthia, Huldah, .\bigail, Harriet, William, and Thomas. These were the children of a second marriage. The first wife of Joseph Akeley was Cyntha Chase, and by her he had two children — Philena and Albert. William .A.keley, child of the second marriage, now resides in Pine Grove, on a part of the original Akeley tract, his farm being one of the best in the town, and containing 117 acres. William Akeley married Theresa Jones, daughter of Joseph Jones, a pioneer, on March 23, 1867. They have two children — Carrie E. and Mattie T. William .\keley was born December 14, 1S38. Akins, John A., Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, was born in Sweden in 1843, and was a son of John M. and Mary (Peterson) Akins, who were married in Sweden and with a family of five children immigrated to America and settled in Sugar Grove, Penn- sylvania, in 1851. They now have a family of ten children, seven sons and three daugh- ters. John M. was born in 1809, and his wife Mary in 1816. They were married in 1836, and two of their sons served in the War of the Rebellion. They were John A. and Jonas P. Jonas P. has served one term in the Minnesota State Legislature. Jo- nas P. enlisted from Minnesota, and John A. first enlisted on nine months call in an in- dependent company; was discharged and re-enlisted in 1863, Co. M 21st Pennsylvania Cavalry; was discharged after one year, re-enlisted in Co. K 12th Pennsylvania Cav- alry in 1864, and served to the close of the war, when he was honorably discharged in August, 1865, at Philadelphia, Pa. John A. Akins was married in 1868 to Matilda C. Samuelson, who was born in Sweden and settled in Warren county, Pennsylvania, com- ing therewith her parents in 1851. They have had a family of six children — John History of Warren County. Frank, Edwin James, Bertha Belle, Clyde Raymond, Emma May and Ethel. He pur- cha.sed his homestead of 150 acres in 1871, and has been commissioner of highways for the past seven years. Alger, Madison, Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, is a general merchant. He was born in Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1828; he settled with his parents in 1844 in Tidioute, where he remained till 1865, when he removed to Youngsville, his parents remaining in Tidioute till 1867, when they went to Jackson, Mich., where they died. Upon settling in Youngsville Mr. Alger embarked in mercantile, and lumber manufacturing and ship- ping business ; he has built several saw-mills, and is now the oldest merchant in trade in the town. He married Ziltha Holladay, of Oil City, in 1850. They have three chil- dren — Elva, Ward, and Julia. Elva married A. H. Webb ; Julia married Victory Pierce ; and Ward married Kate Jordan. Mr. Alger first engaged in the lumber business on his own account at the age of nineteen years. Allen, Zurial, Lander p. o., Farmington, is a farmer and was born in Royalton, N. Y., June 3, 1822. He was a son of Jacob and Olive (Tupper) Allen ; settled in what is now Farmington, in 1830, locating on Thompson Hill, clearing and improving a farm on which they lived and died. They had a family of four children, who grew to maturity — Harriet, Lydia E , Cynthia (deceased), and Zurial. Zurial Allen was reared on the old homestead from eight years of age, and resided on the same up to 1863, when he removed to Farmington Center, where he has since resided. He was married in 1845 to Elizabeth Cramer, a daughter of Abram and Mary (Stewart) Cramer, of Farmington. They have one adopted child, Myrtie B. Mr. Allen and his wife are members of the Baptist Church. In politics Mr. Allen is a Republican. Allen, Abby P., Brokenstraw (N. Y.) p. o.. Freehold, is a daughter of Elijah W. Allen, who was born in Otsego, N. Y., in 1804, and settled in Warren county in 1836, and died in 1865. He married Philena Brooks, of Otsego county, N. Y., who was born in 1808. They had a family of six children — Abigail, Vinton, Dewitt, Dwight, Horatio, and Melvin (deceased). Vinton Allen died October 23, 1886, of consumption. Horatio Allen, was hurt by a wagon tongue while running the wagon out of the barn on Septem- ber 4, and died September 6, 1886. Mr. Allen was an extensive breeder of Durham cat- tle ; his herd, established in 1845, was the first in the county. He came to this country in 1836, and at the time of his death he owned 1,000 acres in Pennsylvania and New York. Allen, Samuel P., Russell p. o.. Pine Grove, was born in Virginia on January 7, 18 10, and while yet young his father's family moved to Beaver county, where they con- tinued to reside until 1832, when Samuel came to Pine Grove. His father, Thomas Allen, and several of the others of the family came several years later. Thomas Allen died in Pine Grove, after a residence of about ten years. Samuel, who was the oldest of eight children, married first Mary E., daughter of Caleb Thomson, on March 17, 1833. The children of this union were Harrison (who was U. S. Marshal of Dakota), Harriet, Samuel, Orrin C, George W., Harriet second (born after the death of the first child of that name), Mary Martha, Walter, Ida, and one child that died unnamed. Samuel P. Allen followed the Ohio River, rafting lumber for over forty years, but of late years has turned his attention to farming, at which he has been very successful, having a fine farm of 247 acres of land. He has been a prominent figure in town politics, fre- quently holding town offices. Before the late war he was a staunch Democrat, but since that time has voted with the Republican party. He is an active member of the M. E. Church. Thomas Allen, his father, was a soldier in the War of 1812. Allen, Dwight A., Brokenstraw (N. Y) P- o., was born in Warren county in 1838. He married Louisa Woodin, of Warren county, and to them have been born three chil- dren — Ernest W., Lida J., and Herbert D. Mr. Allen is an extensive breeder of Devon cattle, and is well known throughout the country. He established his herd in 1874. Amann, George, Warren p. o.. Glade, an Alsacian, with his wife Katherine (Jssler) Amann, and their children, came to Pleasant township during the summer of 1840. Their children were George, Martin, Jacob, John, Mathis, and Mary (who was a native Brief Personals. of this country). The father, George, died on August 14, 1867, and his wife Katherine died in July, 1870. Jacob Amann married Marguerette Schweng, of Warren, who bore him eight children — Lena M., Henry E., Jacob M., Mary J., Michael, Anna C, Clara W., and Celesta G. Of these children Lena M. and Celesta are the only ones now living, and the sad visitation of the death of six of their children has been a most severe one to the loving parents, whose hearts have been continually bowed under its weight. Ja- cob Amann took up his residence in Glade in 1856, and notwithstanding his afflictions he is an active and prominent firmer, having 106 acres of land well located in the north part of the town. Amann, John, North Warren p. o., was born in Sundhausen, Alsace, France, De- cember I, 1836. He is the son of George and Catherine (Elser) Amann, who settled in Pleasant township in 1840, clearing part of a farm there, where the father died in August, 1857. George Amann had six children — George, Martin, Jacob, John, Ma- thias, and Mary (Mrs. John Dible). John Amann was reared in Pleasant township from four years of age. In 1858 he located in Conewango, and in 1881 he purchased the farm where he has since resided. On July 10, i860, he married Christiana C, daughter of Henry and Christiana (Baker) Weis, natives of Wiirtemburg, Germany, who settled in Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1854. By this union there are three chil- dren — Rosanna (Mrs. David Uhl), George, and Lorena. Mr. Amann and wife are members of the Lutheran Church. .Anderson, Augustus, Pittsfield, was born in Sweden in 1841. He was a son of John Nelson and was adopted by his uncle Charles Anderson, and with him came to America and settled in Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1852, and in 1854 he settled in Freehold townshi]), where his uncle died in 1862. After the death of his uncle, Augustus became engaged in farming, and in 1866 he settled in Pittsfield, and there embarked in the gen- eral smithing business. He hired a foreman and soon learned the trade, and in 1879 he erected his present fine shop, with a public hall m the second story. He stocked his shop with all of the latest improved tools and machinery that could be found, for his extensive trade He was married in February, 1869, to Christina Johnson of Freehold. They have had one daughter born to them, Ina L. Mr. Anderson held the oftice of collector in 1875 and 1876, and was constable in 1875. He is now engaged largely in farming. Anderson, Peter A., North Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Sweden on De- cember 7, 1850. He is a farmer and was a son of Andrew and Louisa (Erickson) An- derson. He came to America in 1872 and settled in Warren county, and in 1881 he came to Conewango and settled on the farm on which he now resides, which he has cleared and improved himself His father came to this country in 1876, and died in 1885. He had five children who came to America — Peter A., Oscar, Andrew, John, Otto, and Josephine. Peter A. Anderson was married in 1876 to Eva Lawson, of Swe- den. They have had four children — Amelia, Albert, Selma, and Frank. Eva was a daughter of Augustus and Mary Lawson, who were natives of Sweden. Andrews, Hiram F., Garland p. o., Pittsfield, one of the leading business men of Warren county, was born in Pittsfield in 1838. He was married in 1862 to Sarah A. Thompson, who died in 1882 leaving a family of six children — Delia, Earl, Khlare, Maud, Leah, and Floyd. In April, 1883, he was again married to Mary Davies, who was born in Wales. In early life Hiram F. Andrews was a farmer; in 1859 he was appointed the first postmaster of Garland. He has been and is now connected with all the leading branches of business in the town. He embarked, in 1866, in the general merchandise business under the firm name of W. B. Street & Co.; his uncle, Moses Andrews & Co., took the business in 1870. He built his first steam saw-mill in 1871 and then formed the firm of Hiram Horn & Andrews ; this firm continued until the death of Mr. Horn, which occurred in i88o, when Mr. Andrews went out of the bus- iness and became engaged in two separate branches of trade, that of hardware dealers doing business under the firm name of Watt & Andrews, and also that of Andrews & Co. (D. J. McMillen), who were engaged in the general dry goods and grocery trade. Mr. .\ndrews is also connected with the firms of Moore & Andrews and Hill & An- History of Warren County. drews, engaged in the manufacture of lumber and shingles ; also engaged in farming and fruit growing. Hiram F. Andrews was a son of Robert Andrews, jr., and Jane Manderville. Jane was born in Claverack, N. Y., and her husband Robert was born in Pittsfield. They had a family of four children born to them. Robert was drowned in the Brokenstraw River in 1850. He was born in i8oi. He was a son of Robert, sr., and Anna (Ross) Andrews, who settled in this town in 1795. They had a family of nine children born to them, only one of whom is now living — Moses Andrews, who was born in 1803; is a bachelor and now resides with Hiram F. Robert was a soldier in the Revolutionary War. He built the first mill on the Brokenstraw River. The chil- dren of Robert and Jane were Hiram F., Alcinas, Eliphalet, and Eda. The family of Robert Arthur came to Warren county in the year 1798, coming down the Allegheny River in canoes, and driving their stock through the paths and trails along the banks of the stream. Beside Mr. Arthur, the pioneer, there came with him his wife, and John, William, Robert, jr., James, Boone, Samuel, Charles, Betsey, Manley, and Rebecca, their children, none of whom are now living. Robert Arthur, jr., married Mary Wilson, by whom he had a family of ten children, all of whom grew to be men and women. They were William, Isabelle, Susan, Robert, Isaac, Mary, Margurette, Brison, Alexander, and Caroline. The first settlement of the family was made at War- ren. Robert, the pioneer, subsequently lived and died at Brokenstraw. Robert, jr., died in 1865 in the town of Corydon, where he located in 1853. Brison and Alexander Arthur still reside in the south part of Corydon, and are among the substantial farmers of the town. Having passed the middle age of life, they are content to live out their allotted time on their farms adjoining, near the banks of the Allegheny, whose waters furnished means of conveyance to the county for their pioneer ancestors. Arnold, John, Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Alsace, France, on June 24, 1821, and was a son of Christian and Katherine M. (Mathis) Arnold, who came to this country in 1841 and settled in Brokenstraw, where they lived for about fifteen years, after which they settled in Warren, where they resided until the time of their deaths. They had a family of three children — John, Christian and Mathis. John .\rnold set- tled in Coneuango in 1858, on the farm now occupied by him, most of which he has cleared and improved himself He was married in 1846 to Mary S. Weiler, who died February 16, 1886 ; she was a daughter of George and Barbara (Rockenbach) Weiler, who settled in this county in 1832. John Arnold has had a family of four children born to him — Charles H., Albert W.,John B. (married to Josie L. Somers, of Warren, June 30, 1883 ; resides at Warren), and Sarah S. (Mrs. George J. Gross). Axtell, Doctor A. C, Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, present physician and surgeon of Youngsville, was born in Sheakleyville, Mercer county, on July 14, 1828. He was a son of Doctor Samuel and Mary (Loveridge) Axtell, natives of Washington county, who died in Mercer county, he at the age of seventy-four years, and she died in 1884 at the advanced age of ninety-five years. She left a family of nine children — three sons physicians — Doctors W. H., M. B., and A. C; two sons who are farmers — L. S. and J. M., and one son a clergyman, N. H., D. D., and also three daughters. Dr. A. C. Axtell read medicine with his father, and attended lectures at Columbus, O., in 1853 and '54, and settled in New Lebanon in 1854, in the practice of his profession, and in 1865 he settled in Youngsville, where he enjoys an extensive practice in medicine and surgery. He was married in 1853 to Fanny White, of Sheakleyville. They have had a family of five children born to them — Mary, Emma, Willie (died December 30, 1881 ; one of the most successful teachers in Warren county ), Hattie, and Charles S. Hattie is now a teacher in the high school ; Mary married 0.scar Shutt, and Emma married C. D. Arird, who is the present county superintendent of schools. Doctor .\xtell was a vol- unteer surgeon in the government hospitals at the time of the War of the Rebellion. Ayer, H. S., Columbus, was born in Eaton, Madison county, N. Y., in 1828, and was a son of Samuel H. and Roxana (Damon) Ayer. Roxana was born in Massachu- setts in 1801, and Samuel H. was born in Pomfret, Conn., the same year. They were married in the town of Eaton, N. Y., in 1825, and settled in Columbus borough in 1834, where Samuel erected a carding and cloth-dressing mill where the tannery now stands. Brief Personals. Roxana was a daughter of Thomas and Lovina Damon, who were born and married in Massachusetts and settled in Columbus in 1837, coming here from Madison county, N. Y., with a family of six children, two of whom are now living — James and Roxana. H. S. Ayer was married in 1875 to Ellen Cady. They have had a family of three chil- ■dren born to them — Ruth E., Martha R., and Anna L. Ellen was a daughter of George and Eliza (Horn) Cady. H. S. Ayer became a general merchant at Clymer, Chautau- qua county, N. Y., m i86o, and erected a custom and merchant flour-mill, and was also engaged in the manufacture and shipment of lumber. He retired from the mercantile business in 1872, but continued in his lumber interest until 1879, when he became one of the founders of the popular organization in the State, the E. A. U. Mr. Ayer was supervisor of Clymer in 1863 and '64, also in 1867 and '68. He settled in Columbus in 1879, and has been justice of the peace for two terms. He is now the general ac- countant for the E. A. U. Babcock, W. H., West Spring Creek p. o.. Spring Creek, was born in Burlington, Otsego county, N. Y., in 1818, and settled in West Spring Creek in 1865. He married Mary Ann Harrison, who was born in Vernon, Oneida county, N. Y., and by her had a family of seven children, four of whom are now living — M. A., Annette, Charles and Frank. By trade Mr. Babcock is a shoemaker. He has held the office of postmaster from 1871. He was a son of Jonathan and Lucy (Shaw) Babcock. Jonathan died at the age of sixty-six years, and his wife Lucy died in the seventy-seventh year of her age. W. H. Babcock's wife, Mary Ann Babcock, died January 2, 1884, aged sixty-six years. Babcock, Almon, Warren p. o., Conewango, is a farmer and was born in Youngsville, Warren county, April 22, 1S29. He was a son of Merritt and Lucinda (Sturtevant) Bab- cock. His paternal grandfather was David Babcock, and his maternal grandfather Will- iam Sturtevant, both of whom came from Lake George, N. Y., and were early settlers in Warren county, locating in Conewango, where they remained up to the time of their deaths. David was a farmer and cleared and improved the farm which is now owned by Benjamin Bailey. His son Merritt was a blacksmith by trade, and settled in Youngs- ville about 1825, and a year or two later settled in Conewango, on the farm which is now owned and occupied by W. Leiter, which he cleared and improved. He had a family of four children, who grew to maturity — Almon, Prudence, Plymton, and Antis. Almon Babcock was reared in Conewango, where he has always resided. He was mar- ried in 1850 to Mahala Spencer, a daughter of .Alfred and Mary (Wilcox) Spencer, and a granddaughter of Abner Spencer, a pioneer of Conewango. To them have been born eight children — Alwilda, Alice, John, James, Plymton, Mahala, WilUam and Merritt. Baird, George, East Branch p. o.. Spring Creek, was born in Crawford county in 1862; he is a farmer. He was married in 1884 to Clara Armatage, of Spring Creek. They have had one child born to them — Deross. George was a son of Lorenzo Baird, who was born in 1825 and married Louise Courtney. They had a family of twelve children, eight of whom are now living. Baker, John A., Chandler's Valley p. o.. Sugar Grove, is a farmer and carpenter. He was born in Sweden in 1838, and immigrated to .America in 1866, settling in Chau- tauqua county, N. Y. In 1869 he came to Warren county, and purchased his present farm of fifty acres in 1870. In 1873 he was married to Clara Albertena Abbenson, bom in Sweden in 1847. They have three children — Irene Albertena, Frank Axel Theodore, and Hugo Amanuel. Baker, William, -Spring Creek, was born in Spring Creek in 1841. He commenced active business life in 1861. He has been town treasurer for five years and was numer- ator in 1880. He was married in 1866 to Abi Grant; to them have been born three children — Jesse Jean, Kate Grant, and Bonnie Lewis. William Baker was a son of Lewis B. and Sarah A. (Webb) Baker. Lewis B. was born in 181 2 and settled in Warren county, in 1837. He was married in 1835 to Sarah Webb, who came with her parents to Pennsylvania in 1832. Tliey had a family of eleven children born to them, seven of whom are now living. One of their sons, Josiah, enlisted in the 145th Pennsylvania Vols, and was killed at the battle of the Wilderness. His remains were never recov- ered. History of Warren County. Baldensperger, Jacob, Warren p. o., Glade, was bom in Alsace, France, in 1829. His early life was spent on a farm, and in 1852 he came to this country and located at Glade Run, in which vicinity he has since resided. His first employment was as a farm hand, and he was also engaged in the lumber business, and worked for Guy Irvine and Joseph Hall. In October, 1857, he married Emeline Walter, who bore him a family of eight children — Charles, Jacob, Emma, Henry, Theodore, Frederick, Lena, and Bertha. Mr. Baldensperger is now the leading merchant of the Run, having in charge a grocery, feed-store, meat-market and boarding-house. He had no starting capital save a determined will and strong arms, but now he is in comfortable circumstances. Al- though not an active politician he is a firm Democrat. In religion Mr. Baldensperger is a freethinker. Baldensperger, Laurence, Stoneham p. o.. Mead, is a farmer and was born in Al- sace, France, February 9, 1825. He was a son of Gotfried and Margaret (Lesser) Bal- densperger. He came to Warrea county in 1849 and settled in Mead township on the farm on which he now resides, and which he has cleared and made all of the improve- ments. He was married in 1850 to Elizabeth Lauffer, a daughter of Martin and Cath- erine (Gruber) Lauffer, natives of Alsace, France. They have had a family of eight children born to them — Elizabeth, Mary, Louise (deceased), William, Louise (second), Albert, Samuel, and Lorena. Mr. Baldensperger and his wife are members of the Lu- theran Church of Warren. Ballard, John W., Lander p. o., Farmington, is a farmer and was born in Chautau- qua county, N. Y., April 6, 1821. He was a son of Samuel and Rhoda (Jones) Ballard. His maternal grandfather was Levi Jones; was a pioneer of Carroll, N. Y., where he settled in 18 14. John W. Ballard located in what is now Farmington in 1831, worked through the summer at three dollars per month, which he never received, and the second summer for one dollar per month and received his pay. He was married November 19, 1841, to Rachel Marsh, a daughter of Ross and Esther (Dyke) Marsh. Hugh Marsh, father of Ross, settled in Warren in 1795, and in Farmington in 1798. He reared a large family of children, of whom Ross Marsh was one, and settled on the farm which is now occupied by John W. Ballard. Mr. Ballard married twice. His first wife was Rachel Marsh, by whom he had a family of four children — Betsey, Louisa, Nancy, and Esther. His second wife was Lovina (Dewey) Kingsley, of Farmington, where he was married in Februar)-, 1876. Mr. Ballard bought the Marsh homestead, where he has always resided, and has improved a large part of it. Barnes, Asa H., Barnes p. o., Sheffield, was born on January 2, 1817, in Yates county, N. Y., and was a son of Timothy and Betsey Barnes. He was married in 1840 to Letetia M. Force, a daughter of Samuel Force, of Kirkland, O., and who in the year 1 84 1 came to Sheffield, where his after life was spent in lumbering and farming, in which his labors were rewarded. He also kept the " Barnes House " for twelve years. Asa H. Barnes died on January 19, 1875, leaving an estimable wife and a large family of children. The children of Asa and Letetia (Force) Barnes are as follows: Amy (who married Curtis Gilson, now living in Sheffield), Erastus, Edward, Eliza (who married Doctor Badger), Frank, Cole, William and Ellsworth. Bartsch, Charles F., North Warren p. o., Conewango, came to this country from Saxony, Germany, in 1836, and commenced business as a grocer and baker. In 1858 he bought and cleared a farm in Glade township. In 1865 he sold this farm and bought another, in Conewango township, which he now occupies ; his son Henry cleared this farm and is now working it. Mr. Bartsch's family comprised eleven children, seven of whom are now living — Caroline, Charles, Margaret, Armenia, Frederick, Henry, and Edwin. Mr. B. is now eighty-three years of age, and his wife is seventy, both in usual health. They are both members of the Lutheran Church. Barlow, Richard, East Branch p. o., Eldred, was born in England in 1841 ; came to America in 1844 and settled in Warren county ; married Mary Hilman, of Sugar Grove. They have four children — Cora, Myrtie, James, and Nettie. Mr. B. served in the 151st Pennsylvania Vols, during the late war; also in the navy. His farm contains thirty-one acres. Brief Personals. Basset, L. S., Spring Creek p. o., was born in Ontario county, N. Y.; he is a son of Cornelius, who was born in Martha's Vineyard, Mass., and settled in Warren county in 1816 ; married Betsey Sawyer, by whom he had seven children, five of whom are now living. L. S. Basset married Sarah Maria Tillotson, of Chenango county, N. Y. They have had four children, two of whom are now living — Cornelius, engineer in the late war, died in Florida ; Morris John ; Lucia Persilla ; Wealthy Ann, dead. Mr. B.'s farm comprises twenty-five acres. Bates, George H., Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, was born in Niagara county, N. Y., in 1837, and was a son of Henry R. and Betsey (White) Bates. Betsey was born in Erie county and was a daughter of Samuel White. She was married in Erie county and they settled in Youngsville in 1838. Henry died in 1874, leaving a widow and six children, all of whom are now living — Morgan M., George H., Rebecca, Wm. H., Cor- delia, and Ransom. George H. Bates enlisted in Co. G, 211th Pennsylvania Volun- teers in 1864, and served under Captain Tremble. He has been a prominent man of his town and has held the following offices — school director for three terms, commis- sioner for one term, associate judge one term of three years. He purchased his home- stead farm of 100 acres in 1862. He was married it 1858 to Agnes A. Hamblin, of Youngsville, Warren county. They have had a family of four children — Frank A, George, Wilder D., and Clara A., and two who died in infancy. Bates, L. L., Spring Creek, was born in Spring Creek in 1867, and was married in 1879 to Mattie Long. They have had two children born to them — Daisy A. and Hazel. Bates, George, Spring Creek, was born at Spring Creek in 1838. He is a farmer, owning 240 acres, also is largely interested in lumbering. He was married in i860 to Olive Cobb. To them have been born two children — Byron D. and Maud M. His father, Francis Bates, was born in 1808, and married Mary Evers, who was born in Spring Creek in 1817, and died in 1875. They had a family of eight children, six of whom are now living. Francis was a blacksmith by trade, and held the office of justice of the peace for forty years. He died in 1880. Beck, Frederick, Spring Creek p. o., was born in Wijrtemberg, Germany, in 1839, and immigrated to America in i860. In 1861 he enlisted in Company E, 72d New York Volunteers, at Dunkirk. His regiment belonged to Siegel's brigade. He served for three years and two months. He was wounded at Spottsylvania Court House. He was married in 1867 to Miss Seidel, of Cleveland, O. To them were born five children, three of whom are now living — Julius, Louisa, and Mary. Mr. Beck settled in War- ren county in 1870, and erected a small tannery, which he has added to until now it has reached the capacity of eight hundred sides a week. He has also erected a num- ber of tenement houses, and owns a farm of 100 acres, and is one of the solid business men of Spring Creek. Beck, Martin, Warren p. o., Farmington, is a farmer, and was born in Bavaria, Ger- many, August 5, 1824. He was a son of John and Eve Beck. He was reared on a farm in Bavaria, and immigrated to America in 1853, and came to Warren county and worked as a farm hand for six months, after which he rented a farm until 1857, when he purchased the farm which he now occupies, and which he cleared and improved himself, and built the buildings and made all of the improvements. He was married in 1853 to Margaret Schlick, who was born in Bavaria, Germany, September 29, 1823, and died August 6, 1884. They have had a family of six children born to them — Eliza, born August 8, 1854; Anna and Margaret, born March 24, 1856, and died April 17, 1856; Martin, born July 3, 1857; Mary, born May 9, 1859; and John, born January II, 1862. Mr. Beck is a member of tlie Catholic Church, and pohtically he is a Republican. Belknap, C. M., Titusville p. o., Eldred, of the firm of Bush & Belknap, large manu- facturers of lumber, owning some 2,100 acres of timber, was born in Concord, Erie county, and was married in 1869 to Laura Lord, of Wayne, Erie county. They have had a family of three children born to them — ^H. Berenice, Angeline Emoine, and Cecil Iverness. C. M.'s father was born in Rensselaer county, N. Y., in 1824, and History of Warren County. was a son of William and Jane (Thompson) Bracken. Jane was born in County Down, Ireland, and her hu.sband, William, in Wayne county. They had a family of twelve children horn to them, two of whom are now living — Hannah and George. William was born in 1767 and died in 1851, and his wife Jane died in 1821. Their oldest son, Thomas, served in the War of 1812. William died and was buried in Kentucky. George W. Bracken was married in 1844 to Angeline Lloyd, who was born in Otsego county, N. Y., and married in Columbus. They had a family of ten children, eight of whom are now living — five sons and three daughters. Angeline Bracken died in February, 1879. George W. Bracken was the first constable of the borough and was a school director for ten years. He settled in the borough in 1839 and there became engaged in his present business, that of furniture and undertaking. He has attended over one thousand funerals. He was apprenticed to his trade for four years at Cleveland, O., bound by his parents by contract, and received thirty-five dollars per year. He was burned out in 1848, losing his all, after which he again began empty handed, with a large family struggling for success. Brasington, Warren, Warren p. o., Glade. — Samuel Clark Brasington, and his wife Sally, came from Genesee county, N. Y., to Glade in the year 1832. They had a fam- ily of four children when they came here, and ten were subsequently born. The chil- dren were John, Delilah (who married Henry C. Knapp, both of whom are now de- ceased), Warren, Sally (deceased), Jane (who married Elijah Winchester), Samuel (de- ceased), Milton (deceased), Elizabeth (who married Thomas Phillips), Oscar, Albert, Dewitt, Lucinda (who married James Parks), Mercy (who married Russell Winchester), and Ida (who married George Tarbell). Samuel, the ])ioneer, died in Glade February 2, 1866, and his widow, Sally, June 2, 1884. Warren Brasington is one of the substan- tial men of Glade. At the time of his marriage his father gave him a farm of seventy- five acres, and upon this he has enlarged his possessions by earnest toil and fair dealing until he to-day represents a considerable fortune, well and honestly earned. He made a substantial gift to each of his children at their marriage. Mr. Brasington married Harriet E. Winchester, by whom he had a family of five children — Adelaide (now dead). Flora (who married Eugene Arnold), A\'illiam, Alice (who married David Holt), and Albert. Warren Brasington, though not a church member, is a firm believer in Christianity. In politics he is a Republican. Breitenbaker, Charles F., Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Conewango on July 2, 1855. He is a farmer, and settled on the farm on which he now resides in 1879. He was married in 1876 to .^nna Seigrist, an adopted daughter of Philip Seigrist, of Cone- wango. They have had two children born to them — Lottie and Eddie, and have also one adopted son, Willie. Charles F. was a son of George and Louise (Hofl'man) Breitenbaker, who were natives of Germany and Alsace, France, who settled in Warren county in 1848; lived for a time in Conewango, but finally settled in Glade township, where they cleared a farm, and where George, the father of the subject of this sketch, still resides. Brennan, Patrick, Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in County Tipperary, Ireland, March 27, 1849; he was a son of James and Margaret Dunn Brennan, who immi- grated to McKean county in 1868. Patrick settled in Warren in 1872 and worked at the lumber business until 1881, when he engaged in farming in Conewango, on the farm he now owns and occupies. In 1874 he married Susan C. Eagan, by whom he has had seven children — Mary A., Margaret S., Julia E., James J., Edward. Thomas I"., and John E. Mrs. Brennan was a daughter of James and Mary A. Carroll, of Wayne county. Brightman, John, East Branch p. o., Eldred, was born in Erie county in 1843; he is a farmer and owns a farm of no acres; he was married in 1872 to .Mahala Ray, of Waterford, and settled in Warren in 1883. His father, Erastus Briglitman, was born in Brookfield, Madison county, N. Y., in 1819, and married Sylvia Smith, who was born in New York in 1826, and by whom he hatl a family of three children — Mary, John, and Amelia. Briggs, Raymond, of Plymouth, Windsor county, Vt., with his wife and si.x chil- Brief Personals. dren — Dexter, Raymond, jr., William, Tabitha, Thomas, and Mary — came to Pine Grove in the fall of 1827 and located on Conewango Creek, where Thomas Briggs now lives. Noah S. Briggs was born after the family came here. Tabitha married Aaron Crampton ; Mary married Charles Niver ; Thomas married Margaret, a daughter of Abrani Thompson, by whom he had seven children — Sardine H., Abraham, Leonora, Loanda, Mary A., Jane and Kate. Raymond married Julia Ann Jones, and to them were born ten children — Mary, Joseph, Arvilla, Allen, Lydia, Julia, Raymond, Rhoda, John, and Lewis — all of which are alive excepting Raymond, who died at the age of eighteen. Joseph and Allen served through the war. Thomas Briggs is a self-made man, having earned for himself the competence which he now enjoys. He was a Democrat before the war, but has since changed his political views. He is a prominent member of the M. E. Church. William Briggs was married at the age of twenty-five years to Lorette Badger, by whom he had ten children — William W., Elizabeth L., Elmore E., Marion L., Leon A., Solon S., Noah A., Alice E., Emmet O., and Clara E. William Briggs has always been a lumberman and farmer, at which he has met with a fair degree of success. He never takes an active part in politics, but is a staunch Democrat. Brondage, Roland, Pittsfield, was born in Cattaraugus county, N. Y., in 1847. He was a son of Hiram and Susanna (Faulkner) Brondage. Hiram was born in Genesee county, and his wife Susanna was a native of Steuben county, N. Y. They had a fam- ily of three children born to them. Roland Brondage enlisted in Company E, 9th N. Y. Cavalry, in 1862, under Colonel Sackett, and was discharged at the close of the war. He settled in Warren county in 1866, and was married in 1870 to Ida Pier, of Pittsfield. They have had a family of three children born to them — Lulu, Calvin, and Mary. Mr. Brondage was wounded while in the service of the Union, and now receives a pension, and to-day he is one of the representative men of Pittsfield. His wife was a daughter of Calvin and Elizabeth (Hitchcock) Pier, who settled in Pittsfield in 1861, where they died, leaving a family of four children — Ada, Minerva E., William, and Betsey. Cal- vin, the father, died in 1884; his wife died in September, 1867. Brooks, Henry, Spring Creek p. o., was born in 1809 near Whitehall, N. Y.; settled in Spring Creek in 1847 ; married in 1826 Delia Geer, who died in 1843, leaving eight children, six of w-hom are now living. In 1845 he married Lydia Ann Smith, of North East, Erie county ; by her he had nine children, five of whom are now living — Mary S., Luzetta E., L. A., Eva L., and Cora E. Mr. Brooks died in 1864. In his early days he was extensively engaged in lumbering, and had large landed interests, owning at the time of his death a farm of 800 acres. Brooks, Simon, Chandler's Valley p. o.. Sugar Grove, was born in Connecticut March 20, 1789, and married Sarah Littlefield April 15, 1813 ; she was born in Massachusetts October 13, 1791. They came to Sugar Grove in 1817. They had a family of nine children ; two — Sally M. and John — were born in Vermont, and seven in Sugar Grove. William, De.xter G., Mary Jane, and Hiram are now living. Mrs. Sarah Brooks died July 10, 1875 ; Simon Brooks June 10, 1875. John Brooks married Fanny French in 1841 ; she was born in Vermont in 1818. They have two sons — Perry L., born in 1844 ; John F., born in 1857. Perry L. enlisted in the army August 9, 1862, and was discharged June 5, 1863 ; re-enlisted September 3, 1864, discharged June 2, 1S65. He married Addie Crandall. John F. married Emma T. Brooks. Brown, Absalom (deceased). Grand Valley p. o., Eldred, was born in New York in 1815, and settled in Warren county in 1846. He married Jane Bradley, of Chautauqua county, N. Y., who was born in 1813. Mr. Brown died in 1878, and his wife died in 1885. They had a family of four children born to them — Ellen L., Emerson (deceased), Milton E., and F"ranklin H. Mr. Brown was largely engaged in lumbering and farm- ing, and left a farm of one hundred and fifty acres. Brown, Alexander, Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, was born in Garland, town of Pittsfield in 1833. In September, 1870, he married Mrs. Samantha, widow of Heman . His parents were John and Matilda Jane McCray Brown; the former was born in Lancaster county, and the latter in Crawford county, and they were married at Titusville. He settled in Youngsville in 1833, coming from Franklin county. Mrs. History of Warren County. Brown died in 1870, and her husband in November, 1880, aged eighty-seven years. They had a family of seven children, four of whom now survive — George W., Anna M., Al- exander, and Oliver P. Anna M. married Arthur McKinney. Brown, Seymour, Chandler's Valley p. o.. Sugar Grove, was born in Mayfield, Ful- ton county, N. Y., July 4, 1823, and died March 27, 1863. He was a son of Jacob and Anna (Ferguson) Brown, and settled in Youngsville in September, 1851. He was married in 1853 to Abigail Brown, who was born in 1835. They had a family of five children born to them — Wellington S., Annie D., Walter F. and Edgar W. (twins), and Willard T. Abigail Brown was a daughter of Samuel and Diantha (Foster) Brown. She was born in Massachusetts and her husband Samuel was born in New Mavfield, N. Y. They were married in 1808 and settled in Warren county in 1819, nine miles south of Warren, on the Allegheny River. They had a family of fourteen children born to them. He also had a family of five children by his first wife, making nineteen in all. Eight of the last fourteen children are now living — Nathaniel, Lydia, Solomon, Polly, Huldah, Adaline, Cyrus F., and Abigail. The father, Samuel, was born in 1779, and died in 1864. Diantha was born in 1792 and died in 1874. Fourteen of the children remained residents of the county, and at the death of the mother she had thirteen chil- dren living, seventy-two grandchildren, and twenty-six great-grandchildren. Brown, Thomas S., Sugar Grove, was born in Brokenstraw township in 1844. He was married December 30, 1875, to Sarah Bates, who was born in 1850. They have had two children born to them — H. Grace and Charles Ralph. Sarah was a daughter of Charles E. and Ruth (Davis) Bates. Ruth was born in 1823, and her husband was born in Warren county, N Y., in 1818. They had a family of six children born to them — Sarah D., J. Byron, Walter H., Seldon D., Maggie A , Clara C. Ruth was a daughter of Isaac and Margaret (Andrews) Davis, who were early settlers in Youngsville. Thomas S. Brown was a son of Solomon and Esther (Stuart) Brown, of Sugar Grove, and a grandson of Diantha and Samuel Brown. The father of Charles E. Bates was George Bates, who came to Youngsville from Warren county, N. Y., in 1822. In those early days he was a surveyor. He was one of the first abolitionists in the county. He died in 1859. Brown, George W., Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, was born in Crawford county, on April 4, 1827. He was a son of John and Matilda Jane (McCray) Brown, she of Titus- ville, and her husband, John, of Franklin county. They settled in Brokenstraw town- ship in 1839, and lived there until their death, at a ripe old age, a few years ago. They had a family of seven children, four of whom are now living — George W., Anna M., Alexander, -and Oliver P. Mr. Brown was coroner of the county for three years, and also held other minor offices. And it is said by the peo[)le of his county that (ieorge W. Brown is one of the most successful organizers of temperance movements, and mu- tual aid, protective and equitable societies; and his record shows that he has organized 337 organizations of working divisions. He is also a weekly contributor to all the prom- inent newspapers. He settled on his present homestead in 1867. He was married in 1858 to Mrs. Sarah C. Whiting, who was born in Tompkins county, N. Y., in 1827. They had two sons, who died at an early age. In early life Mr. Brown was engaged in farming and lumbering, but his later life has been devoted to the interests of the public. Brown, Solomon, Chandler's Valley p. o., Sugar Grove, was born in Genesee county, N. Y.; he was a son of Samuel and Diantha (Foster) Brown ; he was born in Mayfield, Fulton county, N. Y., and she in Massachusetts. They were married in 1810, and came from Genesee county, N. Y., to Warren county in 1819, and settled on the .Mlegheny River nine miles below Warren. They had a fiimily of fourteen children, and five by his first wife, and eight of the last wife's children are now living — Nathaniel, Lydia, Solomon, Polly, Huldah, Adaline, Cyrus F., and Abigail. Samuel was born in 1779 and died in 1864; Diantha was born in 1792 and died in 1874 ; sixteen of the children were residents of the county at the time of her death ; she had thirteen children then living, seventy-two grandchildren, and twenty-six great-grandchildren. Solomon Brown in 1839 married Esther Stuart, of Sugar Grove, who was born in 1820. Tliey had eleven children: one died in infancy; David E. enlisted in company D, iiith Pennsylvania Brief Personals. Vols., in November, 1861, and was killed at the battle of Antietam in 1862, aged twenty- two years ; now living, Aha M., Thomas S., Julia Ann, Joshua P., Jane, Cyrus F., Rob- ert L., Solomon, Adelbert, and Esther L. Esther was a daughter of William and Eliz- abeth (Dalrymple) Stuart; Elizabeth was from Colerain, Mass.; was born in 1792 and died August 23, 1873; William was born in Ireland February 28, 1784, and died in 1883. They had a family of twelve children; now living — Margaret, Esther, Ann, Thomas J., and Jane. William was a son of James and Catharine Stuart, of Ireland, who settled in Sugar Grove in 1808, with six sons and four daughters; two of the sons, William and Robert, served in the War of 181 2. Brown, Nathaniel, was born in Mayfield, Montgomery (now Fulton) county, N. Y., August 13, 1812. With his parents, Samuel and Diantha (Foster) Brown (for whose record see preceding notice of Solomon Brown), he settled on the Allegheny River in 1819. He was engaged on the Allegheny and Ohio Rivers in the lumber business for forty years, thirty-four of which he acted as pilot. He is now a retired farmer, as well as an e.\pert pilot. On December 31, 1834, he married Margaret L. Stuart, who was born in 1819. They have had seven children — William S., Samuel W., Diantha, Fill- more D., James E., Jane, and Nathaniel Sumner. Two of the sons — William S. and Samuel W. — enlisted and served in the late war, the former under General Hancock, and the latter under General Sheridan. Brown, Oliver Perry, Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, was born in Garland, Pittsfield, Warren county, April 12, 1841. January 22, 1868, he married Marion Delphina Patchin ; they have had a family of four children — Guy Livingston, Kyle Agasiz, Oliver Lyal, Iris Florentine. Mrs. Brown was a daughter of Aaron and Polly Pearse, and was born in Sugar Grove. Mr. Brown was a son of John and Matilda Jane McCray Brown. The latter were married near Titusville in 1820. John was born in Lancaster county in 1793, and settled in Youngsville in 1833 ; he purchased a farm in Brokenstraw, where he died in 1880, and his wife in 1870. They had a family of seven children, four of whom are now living — George W., Anna M., Ale.xander, and Oliver P. The latter now owns and occupies the old homestead ; engaged in breeding blooded horses, general farming, and dealing in cattle and sheep. Bucklin, Cornelius Penn, Tidioute p. o., Glade, was born in Tidioute m 1862. He was a son of William D. and Hannah (McCue) Bucklin, who were married in 1856. She died in 1869 leaving a family of three children, two of whom are now living — Will- iam N. and Cornelius P. His paternal grandparents were Parker and Minerva Bucklin, of Chautauqua county, N. Y. Cornelius P. Bucklin became the successor of Wm. H. Mabie, in 1883, who was then a dealer in general dry goods, boots, shoes, and clothing. He was married in 1880 to Ella Hammond, who was born at Greenport, Long Island, N. Y. They have had one daughter born to them — Maude. Cornelius is a member of Eden Lodge No. 666 of the I. O. O. F., also Tidioute Lodge No. 204 of the A. O. U. W., and a member of St. Paul's Universalist Church ; now engaged in mercantile busi- ness in Jahu Hunter & Son's block. Brown, Elisha, Ackley Station p. o., Pine Grove, was born in Providence, R. I., in 1810. Prudence Wilbur, his wife, was born in Mass., m i8io They were married in New England and came to Sugar Grove about the year 1837, and about two years later to Pine Grove. The old Bible record shows their children as follows : John, born Jan- uary I, 1830, died March 13, 1866; Colvin, born April 5, 1832 ; William, born May 22, 1834, married Susan Plum; Edwin, born May 30, 1836, now in Michigan; Mary E., born October 20, 1838, died October i, 1844; Levi, born February 28, 1844, married Nancy McCoy and has three children — John, Mary E., and Bert ; Mary E., born No- vember 3, 1846, married Joseph Reynolds ; Ellen, born July 3, 1849 ; Susan, born June 24, 1852, died May 27, 1874. Elisha Brown came to Pine Grove a poor man. In the lumber and agricultural pursuits he was successful, and at the time of his death, June 15, 1878, was in comfortable circumstances. His farm comprised 103 acres of good land lying on the " Cable Hollow " road, on which his widow still resides. Elisha Brown was a man whose opinion was frequently sought, and his advice followed. His example shows in his sons, who are thrifty, prosperous farmers. History of Warren County. Bull, David, Freehold, was a son of John and Patience (Gray) Bull, who were natives of Nottinghamshire, England, and came to America in 1851, settling in Warren county. They had a family of eight children — George, Isaac, Hannah, David, John, Frank, Elizabeth, and Samuel. Frank enlisted in the 4th Pennsylvania Cavalry, Com- pany H, was taken prisoner at Sulphur Springs, and died in prison at ColumlDus, Ga. David Bull was born in Nottinghamshire, England, in 1835, and in 1857 married Mary Gray, who came from Nottinghamshire in 1850. They had a family of eight children born to them, only two of whom are now living — Sarah A. and Josephine. Burroughs, jr., Frank R., Columbus, a physician and surgeon, was born in Columbus, Warren county, in 1859. He read medicine at Corry, and graduated from the Buffalo Medical College in 1883, and settled in Columbus in the practice of his profession. He was married in 1883 to Julia Clark, of Columbus. They have had one child born to them — Ellen L. Frank R. was a son of F. R. Burroughs, who was also a doctor, and Sarah (Merriam) Burroughs. F. R. was a native of Vermont, and Sarah, his wife, was born in Columbus, where they were married in 1854. F. R. died in 1865. He was a graduate of the university at Castleton, Vt., in 1848, and first settled in Lottsville ; and in 1850 he settled in Columbus, and there became a prominent man in his profession, both in county and State. Burroughs, Fitch, West Spring Creek p. o., was born in Chenango county, N. Y., in 1829, and settled in Warren county in 1851. His father was Amasa Burroughs, born in Columbus county, N. Y., in 1797, and who married Phiance Nowland, of Dutchess county, N. Y. They had eight children born to them, seven of whom are now living. Amasa was in the War of 181 2. Fitch Burroughs married Margaret Eldred, who was born in Spring Creek in 1834, and died in 1856. He married for his second wife Jane Williams, of Columbus. They have four children — Margaret, Frank M., \\'ilniot A., and Gertrude. He has held the offices of constable, collector, school director, and auditor. Butterfield, Francis A., was born in Washington county, N. Y., in 1817, settled in Chautauqua county, N. Y., and died October 21, 1886, from asthma, and was buried in the Forest Hill Cemetery at Fredonia, N. Y. He was married on July 4, 1837, to Polly Burniiam, of Ashwright. She died in i860, leaving a family of five children — Orville O., Lucy L., Julia L., Charlotte J., and Mary Eliza, three of whom are now living. CharlotteJ, and her husband were burned to death in the Prospect disaster on December 24, 1872. Francis A, was again married in 1861 to Phoebe A. Mark, of Mina, Chautauqua county, N. Y. They have had two children bom to them — Francis (deceased), and John W. (who settled in Spring Creek). Mr. Butterfield set- tled in Spring Creek in 1S69, and now owns and occupies a farm of fifty-five acres. He was a contractor in the late war, and the only one not killed between Nashville and Memphis. He also acted as provost marshal in the Cumberland district. Cady, Reuben Paine, Warren p. o.. Glade, was born in Windsor county, Vt., August 27, 1816. When a boy he went to Essex county, N. Y., where he lived until 1838. Then he went to Cattaraugus county, N. Y., and in 1848 to Deerfield township, War- ren county. In 1868 he removed to Glade, where he has since resided. He married Charlotte E. Hammond, who bore him four children — Calista E. (who married Clar- endon Hull; Mr. Hull died in the war, and his widow subsequently married W. C. Arthur), Hubert (who died while in the army), Scott A., and Lulu I. Mr. Cady, during early life, in Deerfield, was a lumberman, farmer, and mechanic. He is a licentiate of the Christian Church, but of late years has preached but little. Campbell, James M., Enterprise p. o.. Southwest, was born in Jamestown, Chau- tauqua county, N. Y., in 1843. He was married in 1865 to Adaline Ware, who was born in Venango county. They have had a family of eight children born to them — Edward, Emma, Lillian, Sarah, Ruth, Belle, John, and Maud. Emma married John Coburn, and they had one daughter born to them — Carrie. James M. Campbell was a son of William V. and Almeda (Hlakesley) Campbell. .-Mmeda died in 1846, leaving four children — Margaret (born in 1839), Martin, James, and John Q. William V, married for his second wife Maria Burnett, in 1849. They have had a family of seven Brief Personals. children born to them — Marietta, Austin, Walter, Jane, Clarinda, Rinnie, and Delia. Mr. Campbell settled and purchased his present farm in 1866. Campbell, Jeremiah S., Enterprise p. 0., Southwest, was born in Schoharie county, N. Y., in 181 2. He was a son of Patrick and Susan (Webber) Campbell, who settled in Jamestown, N. Y., in 1813, and in 1817 they came to Warren county, where they settled. They had a family of eleven children born to them. Those now living are Betsey, Jeremiah, William, Susan, James, Abraham, Nicholas, and Nancy. Patrick Campbell was a blacksmith, and died in Southwest in 1848; his wife, Susan, died in 1832. Jeremiah was married in 1832 to Lucinda Burnett, who was born in Crawford county in 1818, and died in February, 1870. They had a family of eighteen children born to them, nine of whom are now living — Elizabeth, Davis, Johnson, Melissa, William V., James, Mary M., Harvey, and Ella E. Jeremiah S. Campbell married for his second wife Harriet Barron, who died in 1881. Two of his sons, Davis and Johnson, enlisted in Company I, Pennsylvania Bucktails, and John was wounded. Mr. Campbell was a blacksmith by trade, but later in life became a farmer. He was a very successful river pilot for thirty-five years. Cargill, David, was one of the pioneers of Elk. He came here in 1824. In the family were his wife Betsey and five children. The children were John (who went to Michigan and died there), Betsey (who married Leve Leonard), Albert G., Rebecca (married John E. Woodbeck), and James (now dead). The following children were born after the family had settled here — Nancy (who became the wife of James Lowery), Sarah (who married Dr. William Hollister), Nathan, and two children who died in infancy. David Cargill died about thirty years ago, but his widow survived him about twenty-two years. Albert C. Cargill married Nancy Webb, of Elk, by whom he had a family of three children. His life has been spent on the river and in the lumber woods. Mr. Cargill is a life-long Democrat of the Jacksonian type, honest and earnest in that which he believes to be right. He never would consent to town office, nor has he ever associated with any church society. Case, Franklin R., Corydon, was born at Sagertown, Crawford county, March 20, 1830, while his father's family were temporarily stopping at that place. The family residence, however, was at Westfield, N. Y. Franklin came to Corydon in 1853 to "run the river" during the rafting season, and to work at his trade, that of a mason, at other times. He was married in 1855 to Esther L. Tomes, a daughter of Benjamin Tomes, by whom he has had two children — Theodore L., who died in 1871, aged fifteen years, and Adda L., who is still at home. Mr. Case was elected justice of the peace in 1865 and has held that office ever since, with the exception of a single year (1885). He has recently been elected again and called upon to enter upon his fifth term of five years. He has been town clerk for four years, and has served as secretary of the school board for eighteen years. Mr. Case is a Democrat in politics, and his election to office occurs in a town generally having a Republican majoritv. Tliis attests his popularity among his town people. He is also a trustee of the M. E. Church, and one of the building committee, although his convictions tend strongly toward Universalism. Carter, J., Bear Lake p. o., Freehold, was born in Columbia county, N. Y., in 1829, and settled in Warren county in 1838. He was married in 1854 to Mary Howies, by whom he had a family of twelve children, eleven of whom are now living. Mr. Carter enlisted in the Eighty-second Pennsylvania Regiment, was captured and taken prisoner at Shenandoah Valley by Mosby, but with one other man made his escape. The rest were never heard from ; was again captured on the Weldon Railroad by Willcox's brigade of sharpshooters, December 31, 1864, and remained a prisoner in Pemberton and Libby prisons, Richmond, forty-seven days. He has been an almost constant suf- ferer from chronic diarrhoea, rheumatism and a kind of scrofulous sore on his leg. Chaffee, Elliott F., Pittsfield, was born in Pittsfield, Warren county, in 1839, and was a son of Albert and Anna (Mead) Chaffee, who were married in 1835. Anna was a daughter of John Mead. Albert Chaffee was born in Connecticut and settled in east- ern Pennsylvania with his parents at an early day. He learned the carpenter trade and History of Warren County. on settlement here he engaged in the clock manufacture, and later he became a farmer. They had a family of seven children, two of whom are now living — Elliott F. and An- drew. Elliott F. Chaffee embarked in the manufacture of carriages and wagons in 1865. He erected his fine residence in 1881, and that same year he became engaged in the handle manufacturing business. He was married in July, 1864, to Elizabeth Brown. They have had one son — Charles Chaffee. Mrs. Chaffee was a daughter of William Brown. Chapin, Daniel Webster, Columbus, was born in 1852. He was married in 1873 to Emma Barry. Mr. Chapin was a son of Daniel, jr., and Nancy (Smith) Chapin, of Venango, Erie county, where they were born in 1816. They were married in 1836, and had a family of si.\ children, five of whom are now living. They settled in Colum- bus in 1855. Daniel died in 1875 at the age of sixty-one years, and his wife Nancy died in 1884. Daniel was a son of Daniel and Alice (Barrett) Chapin, of Otsego county, N. Y. They settled in Erie county in 1828, where they died. Daniel Webster Cliapin is now a farmer and occupies the old homestead. Chapman, Rensselaer, Russellburgp. o., was born January 26, 1807, at Tioga county, and came to Warren county May i, 1834, and located at Russellburg. He married Harriet F., daughter of Luke D. Turner, by whom he had ten children — Benjamin F., who died, aged three years ; Lydia D., who married James G. Marsh, of Warren ; Rich- ard W. died, aged eighteen ; Lewis T., Maria B., now the wife of Dr. Satterlee, of Cus- ter City; Jo R., Phebe E., who married D. M. Howard ; Luke S., died aged five; Kate E., married C. E. Cobb ; and William E., now residing at Russell. Rensselaer Chap- man was a shoemaker at Russell for many years. Although not a politician he has al- ways been a staunch Democrat. Luke D. Turner, father of Mrs. Chapman, was also one of the pioneers of Pine Grove, having come there in 1827 with his wife Elizabeth (Cook) Turner and five children. He went to Venango county after a residence here of but four years, and he died there in 1869. His widow lives at Russell, aged eighty- eight years. Chase, William G., Russellburg p. o., Pine Grove, was born in Dutchess county, N. Y., in 1819, and with his father's family came to Pine Grove about the year 1827. Will- iam Chase the father was twice married, and by his wives had thirteen children, five of whom were born in Pine Grove. William G. Chase married Pamelia Satterlee. a daugh- ter of Salmon Satterlee, by whom he had a family of eight children — Martha, Alvora, Sarah, Harrison, Alzina, Charles, and two who died before receiving a name. William G. Chase commenced his life poor and with but little education. By industry and economy he has built up a comfortable home, and now owns a fine farm of about sixty acres. Mr. Chase is a consistent Democrat and a member of the Methodist society. Cheeney. Thomas L., Enterprise p. o., Southwest, was born in 1840, and was a son of Jonathan Stovvell and Alice (Gilson) Cheeney. Alice was born in Rome in 181 5, and her husband Jonathan Stowell was born in Connecticut in 1803 and died July 18, 1885. They had'a family of nine children born to them, eight of whom are now liv- ing — Thomas L., Mary E., Eliza A., Jonathan, jr., Martha, Ruth, Emma A., and Henry D. Alice was a daughter of Thomas and Eleanor (McGuire) Gilson, of Deer- field township. Mr. Cheeney settled here about 1827. Thomas L. married Nancy A. Soule, who was born in Milford, Otsego county, N. Y., in 1841. They were married in 1866. Nancy was a daughter of Elder Isaac and Lear (Brownell) Soule. Elder Isaac settled in this county in 1846 and died in i860, leaving a widow and three children — Peter J., Betsey M., and Nancy A. Clapj). John M., Tidioute p. o.. Glade, was born in Mercer in 1835. He is a son of Rev. Ralph and Sally (Hubbard) Clapp. Ralph Clapp was born in Martinsburg, N. Y., in 1801 and died at President, Venango county, in 1865. He was a Methodist minister of great ability and considerable celebrity. Sally Hubbard was born in Cliam- pion, X. Y., and died in Asbury Park, N. J., in 1886. They were married in Champion, N. Y., in 1824 and settled in Venango county in 1846. 'i'hey had a family of six chil- dren — Edwin E., Charles C, Emeline F., Caroline, John M., and Ellen G. Edwin E. Claj)]) now resides near the old homestead in Venango county. Charles C. Clapp Brief Personals. died in 1843 aged sixteen years. Emeline F. Clapp was married to E. R. Shankland, and died in 1865 leaving a family of four children, three of whom are now living — Edward C, Ralph M., and Emeline F. Caroline Clapp was married to J. L. P. Mc- Allaster and has a family of five children — Ralph C, Eugene L., Clinton P., Edwin E., and Emma G., and now resides at Ann Arbor, Mich. Ellen G. Clapp was married to James McLain and had a family of five children — Mary, Charles J., Margaret S. (died in 1873), Ralph, and Efl"ie(died in 1878), and now resides in New York city. John M. Clapp was married in 1865 to Anna M. Pearson, of New Castle. Their children were Ralph M. (born in 1866, died in 187S), Frances P., born in 1869, Alice J., born in 1873; and John H., born in 1880. John M. Clapp commenced business with his father at a very early age, and in i860 purchased his father's property and continued the business in his own name. In 1862 he recruited a company for the army and went out as captain in Colonel Chapman Biddle's regiment — 121st P. V. In August, 1863, he was discharged from the army on surgeon's certificate of disability, and re- turned home. Soon after his marriage he located in New Castle, and was for some time in the milling business. In 187 1 he went to Tidioute, engaging in the production of petroleum, in which occupation he has proved a success. He has for .some years taken an active part in Free-masonry, and has taken all its degrees ; is also a member of the G. A. R., A. O. U. W., and other societies of a similar nature. These organizations have been pleased to award him their highest honors. He has contributed largely to schools, churches and charitable societies, and is highly respected by all his neighbors and acquaintances. A strictly temperate man, and a man of undoubted integrity, his success is a bright example to our young men. Clark, jr.. Green, Sugar Grove, was born in Sugar Grove in 1835, his parents being Green and Betsey Brown Clark, who came from Rensselaer county, N. Y., and settled here about 1829. Green Clark, sr., was born in 1794 and died in 1875 ; his wife was born in 1796, and resides in Spring Creek. Green Clark, jr., married Ann Gibbs, of Sugar Grove, in 1857 ; she was born in Chenango county, N. Y., in 1837 ; they have three children — Eva S., Bessie, and Harriet. Mr. Clark engaged in the manufacture of lumber in 1862, which business he still continues, having a steam mill of forty horse power, which he erected himself, with a planing-mill combined, manufacturing all grades of lumber, moldings, and fancy finishing stock for builders' trade. Clark, James, Jane, his wife, and their children — Isabella, James, John, Alexander, Lewis, and William — came from Scotland to Warren county ni 1846, and settled on a farm in Glade township. They have mostly lived there and in Warren, with the excep- tion of Lewis, who went to Cincinnati, O. They have filled their position, in life with industry, uncompromising integrity and fair success. William died in 1872; Lewis in 1878; James Clark, sr., in 1882; Jane, his wife, in 1879, and Isabella in 1885. James and John now reside in Warren, and Alexander on the old home farm. Clark, Dr. Robert C, Columbus, is a physician and surgeon and was born in Craw- ford county in 1855. He read medicine at Union City, Erie county, and was a grad- • uate from the medical department of Wooster University, Cleveland, O., in the class of 1881. He was married November 18, 1884, to Cora A. Dean. She was a daughter of Benjamin and Helen M. Dean. Benjamin was born in Taunton, Mass., and his wife Helen was born in Fairport, N. Y., and died in 1873. Benjamin was born in 1817 and settled in Columbus in 1833 with his parents, Benjamin and Hannah (Allen) Dean, who were natives of Plymouth, Mass. They had a family of eight children, two of whom are now living — Job. P. and Benjamin, jr. Dr. Robert C. Clark was a son of .\ndrew and Mary (Campbell) Clark, who were born and married in County Tyrone, London- derry, Ireland, who immigrated to America and settled in Crawford county, with a family of five children — Mary C, Bessie, Dr. Robert C, Joseph, and Charles H. .Andrew was born in 1821, and his wife Mary (Campbell) was born in 1824. They were married in 1846, and settled in Pennsylvania in 1851. Clendenning, Joseph, Ackley Station p. o.. Elk, was born in County Monohan, Ireland, on March 17, 1827. He emigrated from Ireland in 1851, and in the year following came to Quaker Hill. Two or three years later he bought a farm and com- History of Warren County. menced a permanent residence in the township. In July, 1853, he united in marriage with Jane Clendenning, by whom he had a family of eleven children — Esther, James, Laura, Emma, Andrew, John, Nellie, Harry, Etta, and two who died in infancy. Mr. Clendenning is one of the most prominent and popular men of Elk. There is no town office but which he has been called upon to fill. There is no trust in the township that can be placed with any citizen that has not been placed with him, and in every case he has given satisfaction. Joseph Clendenning commenced life poor, but industr)' has put him in comfortable circumstances. He had such an education in the old country as was afforded boys there, and no more. The family from which he came were Irish Presbyterians, but he is not connected with any church society. In politics he has always been a Republican. Cobb, E. I., East Branch p. o., was born at Spring Creek, Cobb's Corners, in 1836. He married Amanda Logan, of Corry. They have three children — Flora E., Clinton M., and Varney C. His father, Ira, was born in Rutland, Vt., in 1808, and married Jerusha Jewett, of Vermont. They had ten children, six of whom are living; Myron was killed at the battle of Antietam; Zackway was killed at Spottsylvania Court House; remains not recovered. Colby, H. H., was born in New York in 1824, and was married Februar)- 25, 1849, to Susan Williams. They had four children ; Mrs. Colby died September 27, 1858. For his second wife he married Sarah Driggs on November 3, 1858. They had four children; three of them are now living. Mr. Colby was a resident of Warren county for thirty- five years; he died December i, 1885, leaving a wife and seven children, and a farm of 100 acres to his two sons, U. S. and William G. Colby, of Eldred, Warren county. Colby, J. W, East Branch p. o., Eldred, was born in Erie county in 1834, and settled in Warren county in 1842. He married Electa Green, of Onondaga county, N. Y. She died in 1871, leaving a family of eight children — Anion, Eunice, Frank, John D., Elmer E., U. S. Grant, and Wesley; one of the children died in infancy. Mr. Colby married his second wife, Josephine Terrill, in 1876; she was born in Crawford county. Mr. Colby is now engaged in farming and lumbering, and now owns a farm of 106 acres. Cole, Peleg S., Russell p. o.. Pine Grove, was born in Herkimer village, N. Y., January 8, 1808. At the age of fifteen years he left home and went to Penn Van, Yates county, N. Y., and there entered a printing office to learn the business. After a few years' residence there he went to Geneva, and thence to Rome, N. Y. In 1837 Mr. Cole came to Warren and took sole proprietorship of the People's Monitor, which he published for about eight years, when he sold his interest to Mr. Cowen. The Afo/iifor w-as a weekly publication. After this sale Mr. Cole became landlord of the " Diamond House," whicii he conducted until just before the outbreak of the late war. Having a tract of land on "Jones Hill," in Pine Grove, he decided to live there, and engaged in farming, and he has since resided on this farm. In Yates county he married Louisa Brown, who bore him four children — .Albert, Harvey, Alonzo, and Sariette. His wife died and he then married Mar)' Forbes, by whom he also had four children — James, Henrv, Lucreatia, and Louisa. Mr. Cole has always been a Whig and a Republican in political life. During his residence at Penn Van, Yates county, N. Y., he was a mem- ber of the Baptist Church. Conklin, jr., John, Tidioute p. 0., Deerfield, was born in Poultney, Steuben county, N. v.. May 7, i8ig. His father was John Conklin, a native of Vermont, who settled in Deerfield m 1826 and engaged in the lumber business; he died at Conklin Run in 1839, leaving a family of four sons and three daughters — Hiram, Henry, John, James, Eliza, Roxana, and Hannah. John, jr., embarked at the early age of seventeen in the manufacture and shipping of lumber, and became an extensive land owner and dealer. Owing to misplaced confidence in a ])artner, who had the disposing of his interests, he was a great financial sufferer, but still holds possession of some 3.000 acres now in controversy. He married Emma Pricein 1844; she died in 1876. Tliey had a familv of five sons — James, Henry, John, jr., J ose|)h, and Eugene. Joseph married Mary Chambers; James married Ida Morrison; Henry married Amanda Covell ; and Brief Personals. John married Mary Amy. Mr. Conklin united with the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1844, and devoted much time as layman in church work, and soon became active in establishing places of worship; he preached for over twenty years, and is now an ardent worker in the cause of his Master. He is still engaged in the land and lumber business. Connely, Sidney S., Pittsfield, is a druggist, general grocer, and fancy goods dealer, and also deals largely in patent medicines. He was born in Deerfield in 1852, and was married in 1875 to Ellen E. Mead, a daughter of John Mead. They have had two children born to them — Rufus N., born in 1880, and Leon S., born in 1882. Sidney S. Connely was a son of John F. and Aurelia (Trask) Connely, who were born in War- ren county. They had a family of three children born to them — Helen E., Newton I., and Sidney S. Newtim was born in 1850, and died June i, 1S85. Helen E., born in 1S48, married R. Bliss in 1883. John F. Connely died February 22, 1854. He was a son of Isaac and Mary Connely. Isaac was a prominent man of his county ; was a judge of the same, and died in 1864. Sidney S. Connely embarked in the mercantile business in July, 1879. His mother, Aurelia, died May 3, 1862. Cooney, John, Irvine p. o., Brokenstraw, was born six miles from the city of Cork, Ireland. His parents were Daniel and Mary Mahoney Cooney, who were born and married in Ireland; Daniel was born in 1780. Mary died in Ireland, leaving a family of six children, three of whom are now living — James and John in this country, and Daniel in Ireland. Daniel, senior, married for his second wife Mary Shehan, in 1830, and had two children ; one died in Ireland, and the other, a daughter, is living in Pennsylvania. Daniel and Mary (Shehan) Cooney left Ireland about 1856. Daniel died in Warren county in 1864, and Mary died in 1885 at Silver Lake, aged 108 years; she always enjoyed good health up to the time of her death. John Cooney left Ireland and settled at Susquehanna county in 1844, and in 1846 he became engaged in the building of railroads as contractor, etc., a business he followed for several years. In 1866 he settled in Irvine and built a store and embarked in mercantile business, in which he still continues. He was married in 185 1 to Bridget Collins, of Lockport, N. Y. They have had a family of twelve children, nine of whom are now living — four daughters and five sons. Mr. Cooney has been justice of the peace for several years, and town supervisor; also postmaster of the town he lives in at present, and has been engaged in the lumber business, to a large extent, for railroad supplies. Cornen, C. A., Ybungsville p. o.. was born in Connecticut in 1844. He settled in Venango county as a butcher and packer in 1862, and in 1863 he was induced by his judgment to embark in the oil producing business. He accordingly leased a section, which proved successful, and then purchased a tract of 165 acres near Oil City in 1868. In 1872 Messrs. C. A. & D. Cornen purchased 210 acres in McKean county, and later they made a purchase of 550 acres in Forest county ; this latter purchase is yet unde- veloped. They now have seventy producing wells, all of which except seven are flowing wells. He has never failed in finding the object of his search. D. Cornen was born in Connecticut in 1855, and settled in Warren in 1883. C. A. settled in Voungsville in 1883, where he erected his residence in 1886. Covell, Charles, Tidioute p. o., Deerfield, was born in Washington county, N. ¥., Feburary 3, 1835. He was a son of Nathaniel and f^liza (Densmore) Covell. Eliza died May 20, 1840, leaving a family of three children. Nathaniel was a son of Dr. Joseph Covell, who came to America with General La Fayette as a surgeon in the Revolutionary army. Charles Covell settled in AVarren county in 1853, coming there from Saratoga county, N. ¥., and there engaged in the lumber business and farming. He was married July 11, 1857, to Esther Cauvel, of Venango county. They have had a family of three children born to them — Amanda A., Amelia A., and Charles A. Amanda A. married James Lewis, and Amelia A. married Whitley W. Greenlee. He died in 1883, leaving a widow and two children. Amelia then married her second husband, Seth Ganyes. Charles Covell enlisted in Company K., 12th Pennsylvania Cavalry, in 1862, under Colonel Pierce, and served to the close of the war, and was discharged July 24, 1865, at Philadelphia. He was elected justice of the peace in 1882 for a term of five years; has been assessor for four terms, and also held other oflices. History of Warren County. His wife was a daughter of Christian and Mary (Lama) Cauvel, of Venango, Penn. Amanda A. has four children — three daughters and one son — Maud A., AdaZ., Xettie A., and Wilham H. Lewis. AmeHa A. has two sons — Earl A. and C'harles W. Greenlee. Charles A. married Ella Higley September 8, 1886. Joseph Covell had twenty-one children — nineteen sons and two daughters. Charles Covell's brother's name was Andrew J. Nathaniel Covell was born October 24, 1782; Christian Cauvel was born March 6, 1798; died October 6, 1870. Mary Tama Cauvel was born November 16,1812; died July 5, 1886. Esther Cauvel was born April 28, 1841. Nathaniel Covell was a soldier in the War of 1812. Crocker, Michael McKinney, Brokenstraw, Youngsville p. o., was born in Cone- wango in 1849, and was a son of Francis O. and Eliza (McKinney) Crocker. Eliza McKinney was a daughter of Michael and Margaret McKinney. Eliza was born in Warren county, and her husband, Francis O., was born in Vermont, in 1809. They have had a family of ten children — six sons and four daughters. Two sons enlisted — S. James and Rienz. Sidney James was a prisoner in the rebel prison for ten months dur- ing the late war. Francis O. Crocker has held the office of tipstaff of the court for the past thirty years. Michael M. Crocker was married in 1872 to Eveline D. Chandler, who was born in 1852. They have had a family of tliree children — Roy A., born in 1873; Raymond R., born in 1876; and Clair E., born in 1884. Eveline D. was a daughter of the old settlers, John W. Chandler and Abigail (Smith) Chandler, of Chand- ler's Valley, Sugar Grove township. They had a family of five children — three daugh- ters and two sons. John W. died in 1880. The children now living are Orville Del- phine, Perry L., Eveline D., and Mertie. John W. was a son of John and Mabel (Was- son) Chandler, who came from Orange county, N. Y., about 1810. John and Mabel had a family of twelve children. John was born in 1787 and died in 1867, and Mabel was born in 1791 and died in 1875. Chandler's Valley took its name from this family. Michael Crocker was elected county commissioner in 1885, and his term does not ex- pire until 1888; he has held manv of the minor offices of his town. He purchased his present homestead of ninety acres in 1877, then heavy timber land, but now is under fine improvement. Cummings, George D., West Spring Creek p. o., cleared and owns a large tract of land in Spring Creek, in which place he was born. In 1868 he married Sue Woodbury, of Pittsfield. He is a son of M. Perry, who was born in Bristol connty, Mass., in 1813 ; settled in Spring Creek in 1836, and married Sarah Yager, of Otsego county, N. \'., in 1837. Tiiey have two children — George D. and Mary A. Cumings, Henry H., Tidioute, was born in Monmouth, Warren county, 111., De- cember i, 1840, of New England parents. He removed to Madison, Lake county, O., in 1852, where Henry H. received his education, being a graduate of Oberlin College, of the class of 1862. He enlisted in July, 1862, in the 105th Ohio Vol. Infantry, and served under Buel in Kentucky, in 1862, taking part in the battle of Perryville, Ky., October 8, 1862 ; was post ((uartermaster at Mumfordsville, Ky., during the winter of 1862-63 ; rejoined his regiment — which was a part of the 14th Army Corps — in April, 1863, and partici])ated in all its campaigns and battles till mustered out in June, 1865, having served under Rosecrans, Thomas, and Sherman, through Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama, Georgia, North and South Carolina, closing witii the grand review of the army in Washington, D. C, in May, 1865. He was promoted to captain, and assigned to Co. K of his regiment in March, 1864. He came to the oil region in September, 1865 ; settled in Tidioute, June, 1866, being at that time engaged with Day & Co., in which firm he soon became a partner, in the oil refining business and ship[)ing of crude and refined oil. The firm dissolved in 1873, when he formed a partnership with Jahu Hun- ter, as Hunter & Cumings, in the jjroducing of oil, and various other enterprises, which they are still engaged in. H. H. Cumings married Charlotte J. Sink, who was born in Rome, N. Y., and married in Brooklyn, N. Y., in 1867. They have a family of five chil- dren — Harriet Emily, Charles A., Henry H., jr., Ralph, and Laura Frances. Henry H. was a son of Charles and Emily (Amsden) Cumings. She was a native of Vermont, and her husband, Charles, was born in Brookline, Hillsboro county, N. H., in 1814. Brief Personals. Charles Cumings was the son of Benjamin Cumings, born in Holhs, N. H., August 24. 1781. Curtiss, Marvin W., Sugar Grove p. o., was born in Busti, Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1848, and is the son of Sidney R. Curtiss, and grandson of Ransom and Mary Pratt Curtiss (she a sister of L. H. Pratt). Marvin Curtiss came to Sugar Grove in 1864, and in 1870 married Grace Guygnon, of Sugar Grove. They have two children — Gertrude and Alice. He settled in the borough in i88o, and in 1884 he engaged in the mercantile trade, purchasing a store; in 1885 he sold his interest in the stock, and in October of the same year he purchased a half interest in a steam saw, plan- ing, stave, shingle, and flouring and custom merchant mill. The firm is Curtiss & Davis, dealers in flour and grain. . Dalrymple, Clark, Sugar Grove, was born in Massachusetts and removed to Sugar Grove with his father in 187 1, and was married to Elizabeth Schoff in Brokenstraw in 1818, and unto them were born nine children — eight sons and one daughter — Mary Ann, now the wife of Judge Acocks, of Pittsfield ; David, Mark, William F., Clark, jr., Reu- ben, Oliver, Noah H., and Sheldon N. Clark was a son of David and Fannie (Clark) Dalrymple, who, with a family of eight children, removed from Massachusetts and set- tled two and one half miles southwest of Sugar Grove village, on the farm where his son Clark spent his life, and where Noah H. and Reuben now reside. The children were Mark C, David, Clark, Oliver, Chauncy, Mrs. Anna York, Mrs. Betsy Stuart, Mrs. Fannie Gregg. Mark C. was the first sheriff of Warren county. Clark died in 1869 aged seventv-five years, and his wife Elizabeth died in 1883 aged eighty-eight. Oliver, the son of Clark, is the famous Dalrymple Dakota farmer, having in crop about thirty thousand acres of wheat. Dalrymple, 'Squire David R., Pittsfield, was burn in Conewango township March 18, 1826, and married in 1846 Susan Foster, of Sugar Grove, who was born in 1830. Tliey have four children — Phebe E., William W., R. B., and Nat A. Phebe married Gar- wood Bedford ; William married Kate Campbell ; R. B. married N. Brown ; and Nat A. married Miss Moore, of Ohio. David R. was son of Mark C. and Phebe Greene Dalrymple. She was born in Rensselaer county, N. Y., and he was born in Colerain, Mass., in 1779; they were married at Troy, N. Y., in 1809. Phebe died Septem- ber 17, 1841, leaving six children — Mrs. Lydia A. J. Foster, David R., and Mrs. Jerusha J. C. Ford, now living. Mark C. Dalrymple settled in Sugar Grove in 1814. He became the first sheriff of Warren county in 1819, and served three years. He was a leading and influential man of the county. He settled in Pittsfield in 1828, where he died. He married a second wife, Mrs. Van Arnam, and after her death married Eliza Whitaker. He died in April, 1873. David R. Dalrymple enlisted in Company I, 14th Pennsylvania Cavalry, in 1864, and served till the close of the war under Colonel Schoonmaker. He was elected justice in 1855 and is now serving his thirtieth successive year; he has been commissioner two terms, and assessor nine years, and has held all the other minor town oflices. He has been a farmer and lumber manufacturer and shipper. Dalrymple, Frank H., was born in Sugar Grove, and is a son of David and Mary B. Dennigan Dalrymple. She was born in 1822 in Longford, Ireland, a daughter of Michael and Catharine Bannan Dennigan, who settled in Sugar Grove in 1838. David was born in 1821, and his wife in 1822, and they were married in 1842. They have had a family of six children, five of whom are now living — Sheldon C, Elizabeth E., Catharine, Watson D., and Frank Henry. David has been a lumber manufacturer and shipper, and stock grower and dealer; he has a homestead of 210 acres. He was a son of Clark and Elizabeth Schoff, who were married in Brokenstraw in 1816; he was born in Cole- rain, Mass. They had a fimily of nine children — David, Mark, William F., Clark, jr., Reuben, Oliver, N. H., S. H., and Mary A. (Mrs. Judge Acox). Clark settled with his parents in Conewango in 181 1. Clark's father, David, came with his family from Cole- rain, Mass., in 181 1 ; his children were David, Mark, Clark, Chauncy, Ann, and Fanny. Mark Dalrymple was the first sheriff" of Warren county. Oliver Dalrymple, the great wheat grower of Dakota, is a brother of David, and an uncle of Frank H. History of Warren County. Dalrymple, Mark, Sugar Grove, was born in Sugar Grove in February, 1823. He married, October, 29, 1844, Eunice Fancher, of Dryden, Tompkins county, N. Y., who was born in 1823. Their children were Wilham C, Newland, Mark, Silas A., Grant O., Mary E., Elizabeth, Alice, Harriet, Viola, Ada and Ella. Viola has taught several years ; also Elizabeth and Ada several terms. Mr. Dalrymple has been one of the lead- ing farmers of his town, and is now retired and lives in the borough. He was a son of Clark and Elizabeth Schoff Dalrymple. They were from Colerain, Mass., and were married in Brokenstraw. They had a family of nine children — David, Mark, William F., Clark, jr., Reuben, Oliver, N. H., S. N., and Mary A. Clark died in 1869, aged seventy-five years, and his widow died in 1883, aged eighty-eight years. Clark was son of David; he with his wife and children settled in the county in 181 1. The children were David, Mark, Chauncy, Clark, Mrs. York, and Fanny. The son Mark was the first sheriff" of Warren county. The Dalrymple family are prominent and noted farmers of the United States — Oliver and his brothers and nephews being large wheat growers in the W'est. Dalton, Andrew, Sugar Grove, is a general farmer, and was born in County Long- ford, Ireland, March 16, 1805. He was a son of James and Catharine Coffe Dalton. Andrew left Ireland and landed in New York in 1825. He married Ann Denning, of Ireland, in Brooklyn, N. Y., and spent five years in New York city, Hudson, and Al- bany, and in 1830 settled in Sugar Grove as a farmer. His wife died March 7, 187 1, leaving a family of nine children, eight of whom are now living — Catharine (married Thomas P'erguson and is dead), Bridget, Mary Ann, Michael, Thomas, James, Eliza- beth, Margaret, and William. Mary A. married Isaac Knapp ; Elizabeth married M. Curnell. Andrew Dalton has been a successful farmer and stock grower, having a great fancy for fine horses. Curtis, Elliot M.,Tidioute p. o., Glade, was born in Bridgeport, Conn., in i83i,and set- tled in Tidoute in 1866, and in 1868 he became a book-keeper in the bank of Grandin & Baum, and in 1870 he became cashier in the Grandin Banking House, and still remains there. He was married in 1867 to Ellen Stone, of New Milford, Conn. They have had a family of three children born to them — Harriet L., Elliot S., and Stillman W. Mr. Curtis enlisted from Bridgeport, Conn., in April, 1861, on the three months call, as a lieutenant, served his time, and re-enlisted as captain in the Ninth Regiment and served for three years. He was promoted to major and served from 1864 to March, 1866, as major of the Fourth Regiment, First Army Corps (Hancock's) U. S. Veteran Volun- teers. Darling, Lewis H., Sugar Grove, is a general druggist and pharmacist. He first en-^ gaged in the business in Chandler's Valley in i88i,and in 1886 settled in Sugar Grove. He was born in Chandler's Valley in 1857, and was married in 18S0 to Nettie E. Goodban, by whom he has had two children — Mabel and Sadie. Mr. and Mrs. Darling were both graduates of the State Normal School at Edenboro, Erie county, in the class of 1879. They have both taught school for several terms. Lewis H. was a son of S. S. and Sally M. (Brooks) Darting. Davis, Erastus A., Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, was born in Youngsville in Au- gust, 1837. He was married on March 28, i860, to Adelia Hamblin. They have a family of three children — Minnie C, Emma H., and Archie G. Adelia Davis was a daughter of David and Elsie (Davis) Hamblin. Mr. Davis was councilman for seven years, burgess one term, a school director for three years, and also held other minor town and district offices. He was a son of William W. and Mary A. (Blakesley) Davis; she was born in (kanville, Washington county, N. Y., July 13, 1806, and dietl June 12, 1881, and her husband, William W., was born in Westmoreland county in 1798. They were married on December 31, 1823, and had a family of six sons and three daughters — Emeline, Charles C, C. B., Prudence, Selden L., E. A., Ruben B., William P., and Cordelia A. William W. Davis was an early and successful river pilot, farmer and lum- berman. Two of his children — Cyrus B. and Erastus A. — are engageil in the manu- facture of carriages, wagons, and sleighs, and carriage smithing and rejjairing in Youngs- ville. They first engaged in 1858, purchasing the business of C. B. Davis, who first Brief Personals. became engaged in 1857. Cyrus B. Davis was married in 1849 to Laura Hull, of Youngsville. They have four children. Cyrus B. was born in 1829. Davis, Emry, Sugar Grove, a resident of Sugar Grove, Warren county, was born at Busti, N. Y., in 1827. He was a son of Emry and Amy (Aiken) Davis. He was a native of Wardsboro, Vt., and his wife was born in Pittstown, N. Y.; they died in Busti, he in i860, and she in 1870. Emry married Martha L. Robertson, of Busti, Chautau- qua county, N. Y., in 1854. They have had a family of three children born to them — Arabella, Adams, and James. Arabella married C. M. Short, a banker of Sugar Grove. Adams was a graduate of the Sugar Grove Seminary, the commercial department in the class of 1886. Mr. Davis was a member of the New York l^egislature in 1S62, and supervisor, and has also held other offices in Busti, N. Y. He settled in Sugar Grove in 1870, and in 1S72 he engaged in the manufacture of Hutch's universal cough syrup, Davis's home relief for pain, Dr. A. H. Davis's family pills, and Wilson's rheu- matism remedy, with offices at Jamestown, N. Y., and Sugar Grove. Davis, William A., Youngsville p. 0., Brokenstraw, was born ni Youngsville on April 18, i8i8. He was a son of Abraham and Ruth (Mead) Davis, who were mar- ried on November 12, 1807, in Warren county. They had a family of six sons and two daughters — Elijah, born in 1813; Darius, born in 1815; William A., born in 1818; Asahel, born in 1824; P. Fillmore, born in 1825; Willard J., born in 1828; Susan Whitney, born in 1809; and Anna Devendorf, born in 1820. Abraham Davis was born on Long Island in March, 1782, and was a son of Elijah and Desiah Davis. His father wks a soldier in the Revolutionary War, and settled in Warren county about the year 1801. Abraham's father had a family of nine children, only one of whom is now living — Mr. James Davis, now eighty-two years of age. William A. Davis was married on February 22, 1839, to Prudence A. Blakeslee, who was born in Crawford county in 1820. They have had a family of six children — Robert E., born on December 23, 1839; Reuben P., born on May 17, 1842; John W., born on November 25, 1844; Laura A., born on September 8, 1848; Susan H., born on August 12, 1853; Charles L., born August 31, 1868 ; Laura A., married in 1866 to Burt Hotchkiss. Susan H. was married in 1872 to G. Y. Ball; Robert E. married Harriet A. Hamblin in 1859; Reuben P. married Agnes A. Carrie in 1866, and John W. was married in 1867 to Sarah Holt. William A. Davis now owns and occupies the old homestead of two hun- dred acres, which was purchased by his father in 1814. Prudence was a daughter of Reuben and Prudence Blakesley, who were born and married in Washington county, N. Y., and settled in Crawford county in 1817, where they died. Davis, Willard J., Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw (first), was born in Youngsville, Warren county, in 1828. He was married in 1850 to Laura Littlefield, who was born in Brokenstraw township in 1829. She died in March, 1868, leaving a family of three children — Walter L., Homer F., and Mary Alice, who was married in 1881 to Mr. J. L. Babbitt, of Grand Valley. Willard J. Davis then married his second wife, Meada Root, of Farmington, in September, 1869. They have two children — Grace, born in 1870; and Joe. Mr. Davis is a representative man of his town ; was a justice of the peace for five years, a school director for twenty-four years, and is active in all interests relating to his town. He was reared on his father's farm, but at an early age gave his attention to the culture of bees, and is now the largest apiarist in \Vestern Pennsylvania, and is also engaged in general farming. He was a son of .-Vbraham and Ruth (Mead) Davis. She was born in Meadville on August 16, 1789, and her husband, Abraham, was born in New Jersey on March 22, 1782. They were married on November 12, 1807, and had a family of ten children — Elijah, born in 1813 ; Darius, born in 1815 ; William A., born in 1817; John, born in 1819; Asahel, born in 1824; P. Fillmore, born in 1825 ; Willard J., born in 1S28 ; Elsie, born in 1808; Susan, born in 1809 ; and Anna, born in 1820. Elsie died in 1850, and John in 1840. .Abraham died on March 14, 1863, and his wife, Ruth, died on January 25, 1867. Abraham was an early teacher, and became a successful farmer. He was also interested in the lumber busi- ness, and shipped lumber to New Orleans via the Allegheny River. He was a son of Elijah and Desiah (Littell) Davis. Elijah settled in Warren county soon after the close History of Warren County. of the Revolutionary War. They had a family of six sons and three daughters, only one of whom, the youngest, is now living — James, now eighty-two years of age. Eiijah was born in 1757, and participated in the War of the Revolution, and died in the northern part of the county in 1823. Dean, Daniel A., Columbus, was born in Cazenovia, Madison county, N. Y., in 1822. He was a son of Harvey and Maria (Bostwick) Dean. Harvey was born in Massachusetts, and Maria, his wife, was born in Rhode Island. They settled in French Creek, Chautauqua county, N. Y., where they died. They settled in French Creek in 1825, and had a family of si.v sons and three daughters. Three of the sons, Charles, Seymour, and Harvey, enlisted and served in the army. Charles died while in service, and Seymour was wounded. Daniel A. Dean was married in 1845 to Cordelia Coe, of Chautauqua county, N. Y. She died in 1852, leaving two children — James and Mary C. Daniel then married his second wife, Mary Jane Holmes, of Leon, Catta- raugus county, N. Y., in 1856. They had a family of four children born to them — Robert, Charles, Jesse, and Clara, who is now a teacher. Deming, Andrew J., West Spring Creek p. o., Spring Creek, was born in Otsego county, N. Y., in 1834, and came to Warren county in 1837. He is a farmer, and now owns and occupies a farm of twent)-one acres. He married Sarah E. Tucker, of Spring Creek, by whom he had a family of three children — George E., Miriam A., and Frank R. Andrew J. Deming enlisted in the 42d Pennsylvania Reserves ; was wounded at Fredericksburg in 1862; taken prisoner in front of l^etersburg, Va., August 19, 1864, and exchanged on the 4th of March, 1865. Dennigan, Patrick, Sugar Grove, was born in County Longford, Ireland, in 1820. He was a son of Michael and Catharine (Bannan) Dennigan. They were born and married in Ireland, and with a family of three daughters and two sons immigrated to America and settled in Columbia county, N. Y.,in 1826, and moved to Sugar Grove in 183S, where they both died — he in 1848, and she in 1873. Two of their children were born here, and but two are now living — Patrick and Bridget (Mrs. David Dalrymple). Patrick married in 1850 Jane E. Melius, born in Claverack, Columbia county, N. Y., who was born in 1822. They have a family of four children — Charles, Arabelle, Catharine M., and Mary E. Arabelle married Joseph Kidd in October, 1880. Dennison, Judge James, Sugar Grove borough, was born in Schenectady county, N. Y., in 1817. He was a son of Ezekiel and Margaret (Pulver) Dennison, of Schen- ectady county, N. Y.; they both died in Cordand county, N. Y. James married in 1849 Rhoda Martin, of Western, Oneida county, N. Y., who was born in 1830. They have eleven cliildren now living — Arthur W., Will E., Martin, Edgar, Elsworth, Clay- ton, Barbara J., Florence, Helen, Kate, and Gerda. Jacob, Robert, and Mary have died ; Jacob and Robert enlisted in the army and were both brevetted captain for bravery in service : Mary was a teacher. Judge Dennison settled in Sugar Grove township in 1850. He was elected school director in 1851 and continued in that office for seventeen years; he was associate judge from 1866 to 1871, and county auditor for six years. He purchased his present homestead of ninetv-two acres in the borough in 1883. Dewey, Daniel A., of Columbus, was bom in Sherburne, Chenango county, N. Y., May 27, 1821. He was a son of John and Maria (Whittaker) Dewey. Maria was born in Rhode Island, and her husband, John, was born in Lebanon, Conn. They were married in Chenango county, N. Y., and with two sons. Richard and Daniel A., settled in Columbus in 1824. They had a family of five cliildren born to them, three of whom are now living — Daniel A., Wilhani, born in 1826, and Melissa M., born in 1829. The mother, Maria, died in i860, and her husband, John, in 1870. Daniel Dewey was married in 1847 to Maria Louise Lawrence, who was born in Providence, R. I. They have had a family of five children bom to them — Nellis Edgar, Daniel M., Lola M., Lillie M., and Lottie P. Mr. Dewey was justice of the peace for five years, and from early age has always been an active and energetic business man of his town. He has been engaged in many enterprises. He first was a teacher and professor of ])enmanship ; was also a lumber mercliant, shipper and manufacturer, and engaged in Brief Personals. milling, and the building of mills. He also owned the Columbus Hotel, which he con- ducted in 1847. He became engaged in the mercantile business and was in the same until 1875. Deming, J. O., West Spring Creek p. o., was born in Unadilla, Otsego county, N. Y., in 1827. He was a son of Josiah, who was born in Connecticut in 1792, and died in 187 1. He married Assenette Mudge, of Schoharie county, N. Y., who was born in 1793, and died in 1878. They had ten children, eight of whom are now Uving. J. O. Deming had six children, five of whom are now living — L. L., A. A., Addie, Clyde, and Mattie. He has held the oflice of auditor and school director. Demmon, Lyman, Russellburg p. o., Pine Grove, was born in Cayuga county, N. Y., in the year 1800, November 15. He married Polly La Due, who bore him children as follows : Hiram, born September 19, 1824; Marriette, March 23, 1830, married Truman Johnson; James W., born February 10, 1834; Sarah Jane, born June i, 1845, married John W. Agrelius ; the last three children were born in Pine Grove. Lyman Demmon died March 7, 1875. ^'^ ^^'^'^ ^''^ lives, at the advanced age of sixty-nine years. Mr. Demmon was a lumberman and farmer of the tow n, and a man that stood well in the esti- mation of his fellow-men. Hiram Demmon, the oldest child, married Margaret Ann Wil- son, by whom he had three children — Will S., Mariette (who died soon after birth) and Ada. Hiram Demmon, by honesty and industry, has fairly earned the comforts of life he now enjoys. Formerly he was a member of the Methodist Episcojial Church, but now is class-leader of and a member of the United Brethren's Church. James W. Demmon married Lucinda Farnesworth, who bore him four children. His wife died March 4, 1881. In March, 1885, he married Minnie G. Andrews. Mr. Demmon is a prominent member of the Methodist Episcopal Church at Russell, and is at present steward of the church. Dible, John, Warren p. o.. Pleasant, is a wagon maker and farmer, and was born in Al- sace, France, June 24, t836. He was a son of Jacob and Magdalena (Jacobs) Dible, who settled in Pleasant township in 1847. His father was a miller by trade, but after com- ing to this country engaged in farming, and cleared the largest part of 100 acres oppo- site Warren. He had a family of five children — Magdalena, John, Saloma, Jacob, and Henry. John Dible learned his trade in Warren. He now owns and occupies the old homestead farm in Pleasant township. He was married August 5, 1861, to Mary A. Amann, a daughter of George and Catherine (Eisler) Amann, of Pleasant township, by whom he has had a family of six children — Lewis J., Isabelle M., Clara L., Benjamin F., Janet E., Gertrude G. Clara died at the age of one year and seven months. Diefendorf, Doctor S. C, Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw. a physician and surgeon, settled in \Varren county in 1881, coming there from California, and in 18S4 he settled in Youngsville, in the practice of his profession. He was a graduate from the Geneva Medical College of New York, in the class of 1867 and 1868, after which he first set- tled in Syracuse, N. Y., and in 187 1 he went to California. He was born in Jefferson county, N. Y., in 1847, and was inarried in 1878 to Hattie A. Smith, a daughter of Horace and Martha Smith, of Geneva, 111. They have two adopted children — Adel- bert and Roberta. Dietch, Nicholas, Warren p. o., Pleasant, sexton of Oakland Cemetery, was born in Alsace, France, May 30, 1836. He was a son of Nicholas Dietch and Johanna (Gro.ss) Dietch. He located m Warren county in 1852, and has resided in Pleasant township since 1858, and for twenty-one years has been sexton of Oakland Cemetery. He was married in 1858 to Francis Foltz, a daughter of Marcus Foltz and Elizabeth (Ownes), of Pleasant township. They have had a family of fifteen children born to them — Joseph N., Lorena S., Elizabeth M., Anna M.. Adelia B., Theodora E., Charles E., Agnes F., Fred N., Henry F., Alice J., Lillie R., Dora B., Kate M., and Mary J. Dinsmoor, Silas, Warren p. o., Elk. — The Dinsmoor family was among the pioneer families of Elk township. Of the children, David was one of the foremost men. They came here many years ago. On the farm which was owned by David during his life- time was a valuable deposit of coal, which had been opened several years betore it came into his possession. In his familv were ten children, viz. — Winfield, Louisa, Silas, Eu- History of Warren County. gene, Byron, Charlie, Alice, Myron, Susan, and Clara. Of these children all but Byron and Susan are still living. The farm has passed to the ownership of Silas, who now occupies it. Originally it comprised 1,500 acres. The coal found here is bituminous, but its distance from any railroad, and by reason of the great consumption of gas as a heat- ing element, no special inducement offers for its extensive operation. The annual prod- uct varies from 1,200 to 1,500 tons. Its quality, however, is excellent, and it is remark- ably free from all objectionable deposits incident to coal deposits. Dickinson, James Harvey, Ackley Station p. o., Pine Grove, was born in the town of Lisle, Broome county, N. Y., December 12, 1819, where he lived till about the year 1840, when he came to Jerusalem, Yates county. \\'hile residing at the latter place he married Mary Ann Rider, and came to Pine Grove, locating in the east part of the town on a tract of 100 acres, nearly all timber. He bought and operated the old " Andrews mill," using water power up to about fifteen years ago, since when steam power has been used. By his first marriage Mr. Dickinson had three children — Elizabeth, Charles G., and James. His second wife was Sarah Ann Neate, by whom he had one child — • Mary L., who, since the death of her mother, has charge of the household affairs. Mr. Dickinson comes of good stock, noted for generosity and thrift. He contributed liber- ally toward the erection of the United Brethren Church at " Cable Hollow," and is steward of the society. As a lumberman and farmer he has been successful, and enjoys the comforts of life, earned by his own industry. Donaldson, Andrew, Barnes p. o., Sheffield, was born in Kittanning, Armstrong county, March 3, 1800, and was married to Christina Dougherty April 20, 1826. They came to Sheffield in 1848. Their children now living are Margaret, James, Hannah, and John. Andrew Donaldson died August 17, 1867 ; his widow and eldest son, James, reside on the old homestead. James enlisted in Company D, iiith Pennsylvania Vols., in i86r, under the command of E. M. Pierce, but afterwards commanded by Captain Alexancier, of Warren. The first producing oil well was drilled in this town on the Don- aldson farm, 1881, since when an aggregate of eleven wells have been drilled, and their products afford a handsome revenue for the family. Dunham, Myron, Enterprise p. o.. Southwest, was born in Southwest townshi[) in 1841. He was a son of John and Elizabeth (Campbell) Dunham. Myron was married in 1864 to Velona .^mes, who was born in Crawford county. They had a family of two children born to them — Maitland M. and Stella. Maitland was a graduate of the Ran- dolph Academy in 1886, and is now a medical student. Myron w-as elected county com- missioner two terms, served in the building of the county court-house, and was appointed postmaster in 1870, which office he still holds, and by a statement rendered July i, 1S86, shows but a balance due the government of two cents. He is engaged in a general mer- antile business, in which business he has been engaged since 1865, antl which he still carries on. His father, John Dunham, was drowned in the Allegheny River in 1842, leaving a widow and eight ciiildren, seven of whom are now living. His wife, Elizabeth, was born in 1809. John was engaged in farming and was also largely interested in the manufacture of lumber. Dupree, Hugh, Youngsville p. o., Hrokenstraw, was born in Brokcnstraw, on Feb- ruary n, 1810, and was a son of Richard and Elizabeth (Miller) Dupree. Elizabeth was born in Juniata, and Richard, her husband, was born in Northumberland county. They were married in Brokenstraw in 1809, and have had a family of nine daughters and five sons, of whom five sons and four daughters are now living — Hugh, John, Ben- jamin F., Enoch, Josiah W., .\nn, Susan, Adaline, and Martha L. Hugh and Martha L. have remained single, and their mother, during the latter days of her life, was cared for by them. She died in 1864 at the age of seventy-two years. Her husband, Rich- ard, died May 10, 1847. He was born in 1787, and settled in Brokenstraw April 12, 1798, with his stepfather, John Andrews. Richard settled at Matthew's Run, in 1821, where he purchased a large tract of land. His sons, Hugh and Benjamin F., have held most of the town offices, and are now engaged in farming. Du])rey, Richard M., Chandler's Valley j). o.. Sugar Grove, was born in Brokenstraw township in 1843, the son of John and Samantha (Evens) Du])rey. She was born in Brief Personals. Sugar Grove December 25, 1820; they were married in 1839. John was born in Bro- kenstraw township. They have had six children, three of whom are now living — De- forest, born in 1840; Richard M., born in 1843; and Loana, born in 1846. Saman- tha died in 1883. They settled in Sugar Grove in 1859. Deforest married Almena Hazelton in 1870, and they have four children. John Duprey was a son of Richard and Elizabeth (Miller) Duprey; he was born in Northumberland county and she in Ju- niata county. They were married in Brokenstraw in i8og, and had a family of nine daughters and five sons — Hugh, John, Benjamin F., Enoch, Josiah W., Ann, Susan, Adaline, and Martha L., now living. Elizabeth, born in 1792, died in 1864; Richard, born in 1787, was drowned in the Allegheny River in 1847 ; he settled on the Broken- straw in 1798, with his stepfather (John Anderson) and his mother. Durant, William, Fentonville p. o., Pine Grove, a native of Massachusetts, was born January 8, 1797, and came to Pine Grove prior to 1824. In 1829 he married Mary Porter, granddaughter of Samuel Anderson, with whose family she hved at the time of their marriage. The children of this marriage were Nathan Porter, born in 1831, and died in 1847 ; Charles K., born in 1838; William, born in 1840, and died in 1875; Martha C., born in 1844, married Charles H. Wilsie, esq., of Pine Grove; Nathan P., born in 1847 ; William Durant died in 1869. His widow still resides on the farm with her son Charles. Mr. Durant during his long residence in the town was highly respected by his fellow men. In early days he engaged in lumbering in a small way, but latterly he conducted a farm of 148 acres on the Conewango, a few miles north of Russell. Eldred, Edgar J., Spring Creek, was a son of George F. Eldred, who was born in London, England, in 1797, and came to .\merica in 1819, and settled in Warren county in the same year. He married Laura Cady, who was born in Vermont. Edgar J. is one of the well-to-do farmers of Warren county, and now owns and occupies a farm of 507 acres; he is also largely interested in the raising of stock. He was married in 1862 to Helen M. Howard, and to them have been born four children — Agnes M., Grace M., Edith M., and Ethel M. Mr. Eldred has served as constable for three terms, and has also held the office of school director, and also that of auditor, assessor, and commissioner. George F. Eldred was one of the early setders of Spring Creek, and for many years cast the only Whig vote in the town. Ellis, Benjamin, hotel owner and proprietor, located at Chandler's Valley; was born in Gerry, Cattaraugus county, N. ¥., in 1830. He was a son of William W. and Clarissa Foster Ellis ; he was from Massachusetts, and she from Vermont. They married and settled in Chautauqua county, N. ¥., in 1824, and in 1845 settled in Sugar Grove, where they died, he in 1874 and she in 1876. They had a family of eleven children, four of whom are now living — Rowe W., Mrs. Whitcomb, Benjamin, and Mrs. G. R. Nobles. Benjamin married, in 1850, Sophronia Salmon, who was born in Warren •county; she died in March, 1870, leaving two children — Edmund and Fremont. He married his second wife, Kate McLain, in 1871 ; they have one daughter, Jennie. Mr. Ellis was town commissioner six years, school director two terms, and a county commissioner six years. In early life he was a farmer and lumberman. In 1885 he erected his present hotel in Chandler's Valley, of which he is now proprietor. His grandfather, James Ellis, came to America with General Burgoyne in Revolutionary days, and soon deserted and joined General Washington's forces. He died in the serv- ice in the War of 1812. His wife was the mother of twenty-four children. The grand- father, Benjamin Foster, was a soldier in the Revolution. Emerson, C. H., Spring Valley p. o., Eldred, was born in Connecticut in 1817, and settled in Warren county in 1861. He was married in 1840 to Abigail Smith, of Chau- tauqua county, N. Y., who was born in 1820. They had a family of nine children, four of whom are now living — Mary Jane (Proper), Polly Lureta (Putnam), Milo, and Rob- ert D. His parents were Abraham and Jane (Sanders) Emerson. They had a family of ten children, seven of whom are now living. Abraham .served in the W'ar of 1812, and died in 1838. C. H. Emerson is one of the representative farmers of his town, and now owns and occupies a farm of one hujidred and seventy-five acres. English, William, Kinzua, p. o. Elk. — In the year 182 1 there came from Lycoming History of Warren County. county, to Kinzua, the family of John E!ngHsh. Besides the pioneer, John, there was his wife Mary (Hamhn) English, and their children — Mary, Elizabeth, William, Jo- hanna. The children born after they settled here were Fanny, Sally, Susan, Rice H., James, and two or three others, who died while yet infants. John the pioneer, and Mary his wife, both died in 1868. William English married Mary Palmeter, who bore him seven children — Mary Ellen, Orrin, Solon, George W., Charles, Alice, and John. William English is to-day one of the leading men of Kinzua. His early life was spent in the lumber woods and on the river, and as time advanced he developed the land into a good farm. The oil production has also helped him. Mr. English has always taken a great interest in all town affairs, and has held various of the township offices. Both he and his wife are prominent and respected members of the M. E. Church, and con- tribute largely of their means to its support. Rice H. English, a younger brother of William, was born in 1832. He married Sarah E. Tuttle, by whom he had a family of four children. He too has been prominent in town affairs, having held the office of justice for nearly fifty years. They are both firm Democrats. These brothers com- menced poor, as did the whole family, and their accumulations so far in life have been the result of their own personal industry and thrift. English, Claudius, Kinzua p'. o., Elk, was born in Lycoming county, and came to Kinzua about the year 1832. He married Betsey, a daughter of Jeremiah Morrison, and by her had a family of thirteen children, eleven of whom grew to man and woman- hood. These children were Lebius, Margaret, Thomas, Sarah, Robert, Henry, Eliz- abeth, Rachel, Sylvester, Josephine, and John. Robert, one of these sons, still resides in Kinzua, on the Kinzua Creek. He married Caroline White, a daughter of Eben White, and by her had a family of seven children, all but one of whom is now living. Robert English is a self-made man. When he entered married life he had little or no capital, but by industry, energy, and economy he has built up a comfortable home, sur- rounded by family and friends. In the town he is universally respected by all who know him. He has frequently held town offices, but does not aspire to political prefer- ment. By choice he is a Republican. He is not a church member, but his wife is a member of the M. E. Church society. Claudius, the father, died about twenty years ago. Erickson, Frederick, Dugall p. o., Pittsfield, was born in Sweden in i860. He is a son of Charles and Mary Elizabeth Peters Erickson; they were born and married in Sweden, and settled in Pittsfield in 1S66. They have a family of nine children — Chris- tine, Charles Oscar, Samuel, Andrew, Frederick, Hannah, Mary, Minnie, and Elizabeth. Frederick was appointed deputy postmaster ,in the newly-established ]50st-office at Dugall in 1866, and his brother postmaster ; they are engaged as general merchants at that place, the firm being Erickson Brothers. Evans, Henry H., Tidioute p. o.. Glade, the oldest merchant of Tidioute, and is now engaged in the boot and shoe business, and also in the general clothing trade. He was born in Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1828, and settled in Tidioute November 4, 1856, and engaged in the mercantile business under the firm name of Evans & Kemble, and in 1865 the firm was changed to Evans Brothers, and again in 1867 back to Evans & Kemble. In 1871 they sold out and Mr. Evans became book-keeper for the People's Savings Bank, and ir 1876 he became engaged in the sale of his [iresent class of goods — boots, shoes of all grades, gents' and boys' clothing, and all grades of rubber goods. Henry H. married Mary Kemble, of Crawford county, January i, 1852. They had a family of si.x children born to them — Mariett, I.ydia A., Susan E., Mary, Alice, Gus B., and William P. Lydia A. and Mariett were graduates of the State Normal school at Edinborough. Erie county, in 1875. They have taken a high stand as teachers, and are now holding prominent positions as teachers. The four others are graduates of the graded schools of Tidioute. .Mr. Evans was school director for twelve years, was a member of the council for three years, assessor for two years, and ])ostmaster for six years. Henry H. Evans was a son of Peter and Elsie (Hadley) Evans. Elsie was liorn in Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1810, and her husband Peter was born in Lancaster county in 1804. They were married on January i, 1828. He died in 1882, and his Brief Personals. wife in 1883. They had a family of eight children born to them, four of whom are now living — Henry H., Elizabeth, George, and Stephen H. (who enlisted in Company F, i4Sth Pennsylvania Vols., in 1862, served as first lieutenant, was disabled, and resigned in 1863. He was appointed postmaster upon the resignation of his brother, Henry H. Evans. Ewald, Henry, Tidioute p. 0., Glade, dealer in watches, clocks, jewelry, silver ware, and musical instruments, and a practical watch maker, engraver, and jeweler, having served a four year apprenticeship in Germany. He was born May 21, 1847, in the city of Alzey, Rheinhessen, Germany. He came to New York in 1865 at the age of eighteen, followed a business call to Petroleum Centre in 1866, and settled in Tidioute in 1867, establishing the business in which he is now engaged. He was the only son of Fredrick Leopold Ewald, one of the government officers, who died in his native city in 1879. Henry married Alice A. Hadley, who was born in Adrian, Steu- ben county, N. Y., at Faxton, in 1870. They have had a family of seven children born to them — two sons. Fredrick Henry and John B., and five daughters, Effie, Rosamond, Winnie, Pearl and Julia. Ewer, Asa, Columbus, was born in Cattaraugus counfy, N. Y,. August 9, 1824, and was a son of Asa Ewer, who settled in Columbus in 1848 as a carpenter, and later became a farmer, and in 1883 he retired from active life and settled in the borough. He was married September i, 1851, to Nancy M. Howard, who was born in Columbus, Che- nango county, N. Y., on February 2, 1832. They have had three children — Alston De Elmer, born in 1852; Isaac Mt. Vernon, born in 1861 ; and Lily Blanche, born March 31, 1868. Mrs. Nancy M. Ewer was a daughter of Isaac and Sally (Bassett) Howard. Sally was born in Sharon, N. Y., in 1800, and Isaac was born in Rhode Island in 1795. They were married at Shelburne, N. Y., in August, 1820, and settled in Columbus in 1827. Isaac died on October i, 1880. They had a family of six chil- dren born to them, five of whom are now living — Mary E., Hiram D., William B., Nancy M., and Ivory F. Mrs. Sally Howard was a daughter of Symon and Mary (Tillotson) Bassett, of Connecticut, who settled in Columbus, where they died leaving a family of four children, of whom Mrs. Sally Howard is the only one surviving. Falconer, James A., Chandler's Valley p. o.. Sugar Grove, was born in Sugar Grove in 1840. He was a son of James and Christina (Stuart) Falconer, who were born in Scotland, where they were married in 1833, and with two children settled in Sugar Grove in 1837. They had a family of six children born to them, four children now living — Mrs. Christina Weld, Mrs. May Clark, James A., and Penuel. James Fal- coner, sr., was born in 1799 and died in 1886. His wife was born in 1803. James A. Falconer married Clarissa Jane Morley, who was born in Harmony, Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1839. They were married February 9, 1869, and have had a family of five children born to them — Patrick Archibald (born in 1870), Sarah Ann (born in 1873), Ida Rebecca (born in 1875), Rose Christina (born in 1877), Francis Morley (born in 1880). Clarissa J. was a daughter of Vilas and Rebecca (Bo we) Morley. He was born in Cayuga county, N. Y., and his wife was born in Rutland county, Vt. Farnsworth, sr., Thomas, Sheffield, was born in Cayuga county, N. Y., and his young life was spent there. He died in 1841, and his wife, Nancy, died in 1879, aged eighty-three years. He had a family of twelve children by Nancy Heron, whom he married at an early day. Of these children, Thomas, jr., was the fourth child. The family came to Sheffield in 1838, where Thomas, jr., married Malvina Corwin, of Brad- ford, and by whom he had eleven children, nine of whom are now living. He is a sub- stantial and self-made man, and has, until late years, been a farmer and lumberman; but during the last few years he has operated in oil, producing the same from his own farm, in the north part of the town. Of these wells fourteen are on other lands, leased to other producers, from which he derives a royalty. The others were sunk and are operated by himself Fisher, Samuel H., Enterprise p. o.. Southwest, was born in Stafford, Genesee county, N. Y., in 1821. He was a son of Abner and Rebecca (Morse) Fisher. Abner died in Chautauqua county, N. Y., and his wife, Rebecca, died in Genesee county, History of Warren County. leaving a family of five children. Samuel H. Fisher was married in 1842 to Ulyssa E. Fuller. They have had three children born to them — Rebecca (who married John Keeler, and died, leaving one daughter — Ulyssa), Rosalie M.,and John W. Mr. Fisher settled on his farm of 150 acres in 1863. He enlisted in the 211th Regiment, Pennsyl- vania Volunteers, in 1864, and was discharged at the close of the war. He was wounded in the front at Petersburg, and now receives a pension. Flasher, William S., Pittsfield p. o., Deerfield, was born in Mercer county in 1853. He married Esther L. Chambers in 1876. They have a family of three children — George Albert, William Stewart, and Benjamin Leroy. Mrs. Flasher was a daughter of Stephen and Elizabeth Chambers, of Crawford county. Mr. Chambers enlisted in the army in 1861, and was killed in battle. William at an early age learned the cabinet trade, and purchased his present homestead farm in 1880. He was a son of Benjamin and Fanny (Price) Flasher, who were born in Center county and settled in Warren county. They had a family of four children, two now^ living — William S. and Mary Jane. Flatt, Amos, Corydon p. o., was born in Muncey, Lycoming county, November 28, 1803, and came to Corydon about 1828. He married Nancy Morrison, the oldest daughter of Abel Morrison, by whom he had five children, as follows: A son who died in infancy. May 19, 1837, unnamed; John W., Morrison, Louis De F., Francis E. John W. was born May 9, 1838. He enlisted August 5, 1862, in Com- pany C, Ind. Pa. Vols., and served to the close of the war; then married S. A. Lyle, of Kinzua, by whom he had three children. Morrison was born March 24, and mar- ried Ellen J. Forbes, of Corydon, by whom he had six children. Louis De F. Flatt married Celia Lyle, of Kinzua, by whom he had seven children. Louis De F. enlisted September 11, 1861, in Company D, First Pennsylvania Rifles, 13th Pennsyl- vania R. V. C; was wounded June 27, 1862, at Gaines's Mills, Va., and captured and confined in the rebel prisons at Libby and Belle Island. He was paroled August 3, 1862. Fletcher, John G., North Warren p. o., Farmington, is a farmer, and was born in Sterlingshire, Scotland, .April 28, 1820. He was a son of John and Jeanette (Graham) Fletcher. He immigrated to the United States in 1850 and located in Warren county in 1854, and settled on the farm which he now occupies, most of which he has cleared, and upon which he has made all of the improvements in the buildings. He was mar- ried June II, 1841, to Jeanette Taylor, a daughter of David and Mary (Thompson) Taylor, of Glasgow, Scotland, by whom he has had a family of four children — Jeanette (now Mrs. Wesley King), Ida (Mrs. S. Clark), Archie, and Lizzie (who is now Mrs. Stephen Bradley). Forbes, Alfred, Corydon, was a native of New York State, and came with his family to Corydon in March, 1832. The children were Salona, Belvin, Diantha, Jarvis L., Laura, Levi, Porter, and Almeda. Jarvis L. Forbes married Martha Morrison, a daughter of Abel Morrison, and was the first white female child born in Corydon. The children born to this marriage were Laura (who married George Howard), Hector, Herbert, Francis (who married Hiram Lloyd), Nellie (who married Ben Barnett), and Minnie (who married Dr. Miller, of Clarendon). Alfred Forbes, the jiioneer, went to Iowa in 1843, taking all of the family, with the exception of Jarvis L. Belvin, another son, has since returned from the West. Jarvis Forbes has been a carpenter by trade for many years. He is a Democrat naturally, but inclines toward prohibition. Alfred Forbes, the father, was a practicing physician and surgeon during his residence at Corydon. Foster, Natiian A., Lander p. o., Farmington, is a farmer, and was born in Virgil, Cortland county, N. Y., October 21, 1839. He was a son of Nathan and Polly (Ohnstead) Foster, who were of Puritan stock. He located in Farmington in i860, in May, 1886, lie bought Elihu Johnson's farm, containing seventy acres, where he now resides, one-fourth of a mile east of Farmington Center ; he now owns tlie two farms. He has been married twice. His first wife w'as Jane Putnam, a daughter of Edson and Lizie (Kna])p) Putnam, or Faimington, by whom he had two children — Mary L. and Bessie A. His second wife was Mary A. Johnson, a daughter of Elihu and Salintha (Jones) Johnson, of Farmington. Brief Personals. Fox, Joseph H., Russellburg p. o., Pine Grove, was born in Onondaga county, N. Y., May i, 1813. Lorinda Akeley, his wife, was born in Plymouth, Vt., February 11, 1822. They were married in 1840. Joseph H. Fox came to Pine Grove about the year 1830. The locahty in which the family has since lived is in the east part of the town, on high ground, and is generally known as " Fox Hill." The children born to them are as follows: George, born June 7, 1842, died from accidental causes in Sep- tember, 1877; Addison, born October 5, 1843; Fanny, born March 12, 1845, mar- ried A. D. Blood; Levi, January 17, 1847'; Lewis, June 13, 1848; Herbert, March 13, 1850, died April, 1851 ; Alice, born September 20, 1851, married J. B. Holt, of Glade; Hubert, born June 17, 1853 ; Herman, July 10, 1855; Elva, born December 14, 1857, died during infancy; Thurston, born July 20, 1858; Rollin, born October 7, 1861 ; and Eva L., born January 15, 1863. Joseph H. Fox died on February 8, 1868, front injuries received from a falling limb only two days before his death. He was a man who was highly respected and successful in life, and died possessed of con- siderable real and personal estate. Francis, Aaron VV., of Columbus, was born in Erie county in 1836, near the line of Columbus. He settled in Columbus borough in 1872. He was married in 1858 to Lovanch A. Spencer, of Warren county. Aaron W. Francis was a son of H. D. and Eliza (Walton) Francis. Eliza was born in Chenango county, N. Y., and died in 1859. Her husband, H. D., died in September, 1884, aged seventy-six years. They had a family of five children born to them, three of whom are livings Aaron W., Clara, and L. H. Mr. Francis also had one daughter by his second wife, Anna C. Aaron W. Francis commenced business as a farmer in early life; later he became a railroad con- tractor and builder, a business which he followed for over nine years, engaged in several important contracts in the West as well as in the East. He purchased the custom and merchant mill of Columbus in 1872. It was originally built in 1824, and is located on the Big Brokenstraw. He now owns several buildings in the borough, and is a large real estate owner in Corry. He conducts a large flour and feed store at Corry. Franklin, Delos, North Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Jefferson, Schoharie county, N. Y., on October 20, 1847. He was a son of Ansel and Rebecca (Shelma- dine) Frankhn, who settled in Farmington, Warren county, and cleared and improved a farm on which they resided until the time of their death. They had a family of three children — Benjamin, Cordelia (deceased), and Delos. Delos Franklin was brought up in Farmington, and settled in Conewango in 1873, and on the present farm in 1881, which he has partly cleared and improved. He was married in 1876 to Agnes Logan, a •daughter of John and Helen Logan, of Farmington. They have had two children born to them — Ella and Ansel. Frantz, Philip, North Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Conewango on June 19, 1849. He was a son of George and Barbara (Geiselbricht) Frantz. His parents were natives of Alsace, France, who settled in Conewango in 1848, and his father cleared and improved the farm on which he now resides. He was born on September 24, 181 2, and was married twice. His first wife was Barbara Geiselbrecht, by whom he had six children — George, Christian, Barbara, Philip, Emeline, and Mary. His second wife was Salome Witz, by whom he had a family of eight children — Saloma, Fred, Samuel, Albert, Louisa, Christian, William, and Henry. PhiHp Frantz was married in 1877 to Susanna Gross, and to them have been born three children — Roy E., Ernest F., and Clara L. Susannah Frantz was a daughter of Christian and Catherine (Swartz) Gross, of Conewango township. Mr. Frantz settled on the farm on which he now resides in 1877, and has cleared and improved a part of it. Fuellhart, John, Tidioute p. o., Deerfield township, was born in Grand Duchy Hes- sen-Earnstaet, Germany, April 15, 182 1. In 1842 he married, in Germany, Christine P. Freidenberger, and in 1854 they immigrated to America, settling in New Jersey, where he became employed in the State service as civil engineer for 1855-56, and in 1857 settled in Pennsylvania, and through his friend, Mr. Ferris, became engineer for the P. and E. Railroad for 1862-63. ^^ 'he fall of 1863 he made the survey for the Oil City and Irvington Railroad, and was commissioned by that company to purchase the History of Warren County. right of way ; in 1864 he assisted in constructing the road, and in 1866 he retired from public service and purchased his present homestead in Deerfield township, two miles out of Tidioute. He now owns 700 acres of land. They have had eight children, five of whom are now living — Maggie, Julia, Emma, Charles, and Henry ; the three who died were William, John C, and William. Fuller, Jacob C, Kinzua p. o., Elk, was born in Sussex county, N. J., in the year 1835. Prior to having attained his majority he was employed on a farm. He after- wards engaged in the flour-mill business. In 1859 he married Pauline Van Scoden, by whom he had one child — Justin. The family came to Kinzua in i86i, when Mr. Fuller purchased the old Merritt home, and by the acquisition of other lands now has a farm of 156 acres, devoted to general agriculture, and of recent years oil producing. Although not an old resident, Mr. Fuller has taken an active part in the affairs of the town, and has held the office of town commissioner for twelve years. He is a staunch Democrat in politics. Gage, Ora C, Russell p. o.. Elk, although not among the old pioneer residents of Elk, yet the position which he has taken among his fellow townsmen, and the efforts he has made for the advancement and well-being of those whom he is surrounded by, places him among its prominent citizens. Mr. Gage was born in New York State, and came to Glade some years ago. His mother married for her third hu.sband Jason An- drus, better known as "squire" Andrus, one of the most prominent men in the east- ern part of Pine Grove, which some years ago was taken from Elk. In the Gage family were several children — Mary Elizabeth, who is now dead ; Rev. Joel W., of the United Brethren Church of Sugar Grove ; Rev. Orange James, of the United Brethren Church of Finley's Lake ; and Ora Calvin, who is by occupation a farmer, yet is a conspicuous and prominent member of the same church society. Ora C. Gage married Jennie Am- ann, a daughter of Martin Amann, of North Warren, and by her had a family of four children. Their farm property presents as fine appearance as any in the town, and gives evidence of the thrift and energy of its ow-ner. Mr. Gage is still a young man, but prom- inent in the councils of the township. Garcelon, P. M., Spring Creek, was born in Androscoggin county. Me., in 1827. He was married in 1851 to fane Warner, of Tidioute, and settled in Warren county in 187 1. His wife died in 1863, leaving two daughters — Charlotte D. and Lillian L. He was married the second time in i88i to Maranda Garcelon. He had the offices of school director and postmaster from 1871 to 1885. In 1S71 he opened with his brother, W. Garcelon, a large general store. W. G. died in 1876. Mr. Garcelon also has a large interest in all farming and lumbering pursuits. His father, who was known as Captain Peter, was born in 1787, served in the War of 1812, and died in 1867. He had a family of thirteen children, five of whom are now living — (iolder, Lucy A., Catherine, Dorcas, and P. M. Gardner, R. Loren, Lander ]). o., Farmington, is a farmer and was born in .Scho- harie county, N. Y., August 14, 1847. He was a son of Henry and Catherine (Ruland) Gardner, who were among the ])ioneers of Farmington. They for a time resided in Crawford county, and also in Schoharie county, N. Y.; later in life they returned to Farmington, where they resided until the time of their deaths. They owned and occu- pied the farm on which R. Loren Gardner now resides. They had two children — Di- antha and R. Loren. R. Loren's paternal grandfather was David Gardner, a pioneer of Farmington, who in later life removed to Oil Creek, and died there. R. I^oren Gard- ner was married November 21, 1871, to Emma \\'hite, a daughter of Orange and Nancy Robbins White, who were early .settlers in Farmington. 'ITicy have had one child liorn to them — Edith P. Garfield, Samuel, Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, manager and keeper of the Rouse Hospital and Warren county farm ; was born in 1851, at Busti, N. Y. He is the son of Jose];h and Lucy P. Garfield, and was married in 1876 to Agnes, daughter of Richard E. and Laura Brow n, of Farmington. He then removed from Chautauqua county, N. Y., to Farmington, Warren county, and on .\pril i, 1882, the Warren county commissioners appointed Mr. and Mrs. Garfield as superintendent and matron of Rouse Hospital. Brief Personals. Gautz, Andrew, Warren p. o., Conewango, is a farmer and was born in Alsace, France, on June 3, 1837. He came to America in 1855, and settled in this county, where he worked as a farm hand for several years. He was in the late War of the Re- bellion, enlisting in 1863, in Company F, 151st Pennsylvania Vols. He was wounded in the hip at the battle of Gettysburg, and was honorably discharged after ten months' service. After his return he resided in Mead township for four years. He settled on the farm on which he now resides in 1869, which he cleared and improved himself, clearing in all in this county about 100 acres. He was a son of Andrew and Mary ( Yehl) Gautz. Andrew was married in 1863 to Mary Stringer, daughter of John and Mary (Arnold) Stringer. They have a family of seven children — Celia, Lizzie, Hattie, Frank, Leonora, Samuel, and Charlie. Mr. Gautz is an active member of the G. A. R. George, Benjamin, Tidioute p. o., Triumph, was born in Columbia county, O., February 17, 1817. He was a son of Thomas and Sarah (Gansalus) George, who were born in Pennsylvania and died in Ohio. They had a family of nine children born to them, four of whom are now living. Benjamm married Harriet St. John in 1857; she was born in 1832. They had two children born to them — Margaretta (born in 1859) and Ben- jamin A. (born in 1874). They settled on their present farm in 1857, which Benjamia purchased in company with his brother, Russel St. John, who died, willing his half in- terest to his sister, Mrs. Harriet George. Harriet was a daughter of Ansel and Mar- garetta (Woods) St. John, who had a family of ten children born to them, three of whomi are now living — Harriet, William, and Fanny. One brother, Samuel St. John, enlisted from Ohio in 1861, and served up to the time of his death, which occurred in 1862. Benjamin George married his first wife, Anne Frasier, in 1841. She died August 29, 1851, leaving a family of three children — Henry B. (born in 1847), Thomas C. (born in 1843), and Sarah (born in 1842). Henry B. was murdered July 25, 1SS4, at [oliet, 111. Thomas enlisted in Captain Brown's company (he was a son of the -Abolitionist John Brown) and served through the war. He was in the Anderssnville prison for eleven months. Mr. George's farm is thought by many to be a rich oil section, not yet developed. He settled in a dense forest in 1857, and now has a large tract of heavy timbered land adjoining his residence. Gibbs, William, Corydon p. o., was one of the first settlers of Corydon, having im- migrated from New Jersey at a very early day. His children were John L., Nancv, who married S. H. Hull, of Warren ; Morris, William, Cynthia, who married Benjamin Tome ; George, at the time of his death a resident of New Albany, Ind. William Gibbs was a lumberman and farmer, and for many years a justice of the peace of Corydon. S. H. Hull, who married Nancy Gibbs, built the hotel at Warren now known as the Carver House. Gilson, Rufus P., Barnes p. o., Sheffield, the second child of John Gilson, the early settler in Sheftield, was born on January 15, 1833. He married Martha L. Blanchard, a daughter of Jasper P. Blanchard, formerly of Sheffield. They had a family of five children — Charles, Alma N. (who married Thomas Matthewson), Delia (who married George Noblet, of Forest county). Carver, and Cemer T., both of whom live at home. Gilson, Dr. Willis O., Spring Creek p. o., was born in Crawford county in 185S, and is a son of C. B. and Margurita Moore Gilson. He read medicine at Cleveland, and was graduated from the Western Reserve Medical College of Cleveland in 1883; he settled in Spring Creek, where he has a large and increasing practice. He is also pro- prietor of a drug store, opened in 1885. He was appointed postmaster in 18S6. He married Jessie J., daughter of Wm. Baker, of Spring Creek, in 1885. Goodwin, Jacob Ransom. Pittsfield, was born in Brokenstraw November 8, 1816. He was a son of Jacob and Mary Kinnan Goodwin. Mary was born in New fersey and died in 1858, and Jacob was born in Concord, N. H., in 1770 and died in 1847. He was married in 1792, and settled in Conewango in 1793. They liad a family of nine children born to them, three of whom are now living — Hannah, Poliv, and Jacob R. Jacob Goodwin, sr., was drafted and served in the War of 1812. He was a mill- wright by trade. Jacob R. Goodwin, jr., was married in 1851 to Octavia R. Matthews, who was born in Mayfield, Fulton county, N. Y., in 1823. They have had a femily of History of Warren County. four sons born to tliem — Edgar, Adelbert, Curtis M. (who was married in 1883 to Arvilla Fancher, by whom he has had two children — Paul and Ruth O.), and Fred D. Octavia was a daughter of Alinas and Catherine (Bovee) Matthews, who came from New York State and settled in Freehold in 1835, where they died, leaving a family of four children. Gorman, George W., Tidioute p. o.. Triumph, was born in Trium])h in 1859. His parents were Benjamin and Alvira Clelland Gorman, she born in Chautauqua county, N. Y., and he in Crawford county in 1818 ; -they were married in 1848, and have a family of five children — Nathan, Sarah E., Angeletta A., Mary J., and George W. Benjamin Gorman was a son of Michael and Sarah Gilson Gorman. They had a fam- ily of thirteen children, three sons and two daughters of whom survive — Benjamin, Peter, Michael, and the two daughters. They settled in Deerfield township in March, 1819. Michael was born in Pennsylvania. His parents immigrated from Ireland be- fore the Revolution ; his son William served in the army during the Revolution, and afterwards settled in Ohio. George W. Gorman married Margaret Lott, of Tidioute, in 1882, and they have a family of three children — Josephine, Clarence, and Gertrude. He was a graduate of Saint Bonaventure College in 1867, and became a civil engineer. He was employed on different railroads, and settled on his present farm in 1882 — the old homestead of his oarents. His wife was a daughter of Henry and Charity Lott. Goudy, Dr. Samuel P., Garland p. o., Pittsfield, a physician and surgeon, was born in Monroe county, O., in 1847. He read medicine in Crawford county with Dr. J. J. McMellen, and graduated from the medical college in 1881, and settled in Garland in the practice of his profession. He was married in 1873 to Jane Robinson, of Albion, Erie county. They have had one child born to them. Dr. Samuel P. Goudy was a son of Isaac and Mary (McMillan) Goudy. He was born in Pennsylvania and Mary his wife was born in ISIaryland, and died in Ohio in 1863, aged fifty-three years. Isaac died in West Virginia in June, 1878, leaving four sons and one daughter — David, Isaac, Virginia, John, and Dr. Samuel. Gould, Morgan Lewis, Ackley Station, p. o. Pine Grove, was born in Wayne county, N. Y., in the year 1819, and in the year 1834 came to Pine Grove with the family of his father, Daniel Gould, for whom the extreme northeast jjart of the town is to this day called " Gould Town," this family being its earliest pioneer. Morgan Gould married Rachel Seekins, daughter of Stephen Seekins. also a pioneer family of tlie town. Mor- gan L. Gould was one of a family of eight children, sons and daughters of Daniel Gould. When the family settled in Gould Town there was no cleared land between their home and Conewango Creek. Mr. Gould is a member of the United Brethren Church. Graham, Margaret, Garland p. o., Pittsfield, was born in Garland in July, 1810. She was a daughter of George and Isabella (McCormick) Long. George Long was born in Virginia and was a son of Colonel Cookson Long, one of the honored ofticers of the Revolution. George also served in the Revolutionary War as a private. At the close of the war Colonel Cookson Long returned to Virginia, where he died. His son George settled in Lycoming county, where he was married about 1792, and had a fam- ily of ten children, only two of whom are now living — Hugh (born February 2, 1802) and Margaret (born in 1810). (ieorge came to Warren county in 1800, where he re- sided until the time of his death, which occurred in 1854. Mrs. Margaret Graham was married in 1837 to Samuel Graham; he was born in 1805. They had a family of four children born to them, only two of whom are now living. Samuel (iraham died April 13, 1884, after a successful business life. The greater part of his life he was engaged in the lumber business. Grandin, William J., Tidioute p. o., CJlade, was born in Venango in 1S38. He was a son of Samuel and Sarah (Henry) Grandin. Samuel was born in New Jersey in 1800. They were married in 1832, and his wife died in 1852, leaving a family of five children, four of whom are now living — John Livingston. E. B., William J., and Maria (who is now the widow of Mr. Nevhart; she has two children — Emma and Adriah). Samuel settled in Tidioute in 1840, where he now resides in the eighty-sixth year of his age. He was a general merchant anil lumberman, manufacturer and dealer, and was one of Brief Personals. the first men who was interested in the production of oil in his section. He retired from active business Hfe in i860, his sons becoming his successors, when they soon closed the merchandise trade, and he became an independent banker. The sons became bankers, oil producers, refiners, and dealers. They also invested largely in western lands, and have now a farm in Dakota of thirty-eight thousand acres, which is run largely as a grain farm. Messrs. J. L. and E. B. have a grazing farm of twenty-eight thousand acres also situated in Dakota. They are also large land owners in Pennsylvania, and are now residents of Tidioute. William J. Grandin married Mary Breeisholtz, of Ulster county, N. Y., in 1S63; she died in 1878, leaving a family of four children — Frank, Charles, Willie, and Mary. He then married his second wife, Annie Merkle, in 1881. They have had one child born to them — Guy. Gray, Robert M., Sugar Grove, a retired farmer of Sugar Grove, was born in Union City January 8, 1813. He was a son of James and Polly (Miles) Gray, of Huntington county, who settled in Sugar Grove in March, 1823. They had a family of two chil- dren — Robert M. and Harriet. James Gray died June 30, 1858, and Polly, his wife, died in December, 1863. James held many of the town and county offices. His parents were from the north of Ireland, and settled in Waterford. Polly was a daughter of Robert and Catherine Miles, who were early settlers in Sugar Grove. Robert M. Gray married Hannah Wells October 4, 1843. She died in 1863, leaving a family of four children — Florence, James M., Harriet, and Hugh F. (who married). Robert M. then married his second wife, Sarah Parratt, May 9, 1869; she died in September, 1882. He then married his third wife, Mrs. Mary A. Vickery, January 16, 1884. She was born in Litchfield, Herkimer county, N. Y. Gregg, Thomas, Chandler's Valley p. o.. Sugar Grove, was born in County Antrim, Ireland, in 1830, son of William and Jane (Davidson) Gregg. William died in Ireland, leaving a widow with si.x children. The mother with two daughters and the son, Thomas, then nine years old, came to America in 1839. They all had ship fever, and the mother died in a hospital in New York. The three children came to Beaver county, where the sisters, Jane and Margaret, died. A brother, James, came in 1840, via Canada, with his family, and died, leaving four children. Thomas settled in Sugar Grove in 1S41, and in 1852 married Salona Gibbs, of Sugar Grove ; she died in 1869. In 1870 he married Lena Redell, who was born in Sweden. He purchased his present homestead in July, 1870. Gregory, Charles H., Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, owner and proprietor of the Fairmount House at Youngsville, was born at Oxford, Chenango county, N. Y., in 1834. He was a son of Asa and Arena (Spencer) Gregory, who settled in Farmington in 1839, where Asa died in 1855. aged fifty-six years. They had a family of twelve children. Those now living are Ezra, Lavina, Uretta, Betsa A., and Charles H. Charles H. Gregory was married in 1854 to Delia Smith, who died in 1857, leaving one child, who died at the early age of ten months. He then married for his second wife Mrs. Rosetta H. Gregory, widow of his brother, in 1858; she died in i860, leav- ing three children by her first husband — Rodolphus, Daniel, and Inez. Mr. Gregory then married his third wife, Mrs. Elvira (Spencer) Davis, in 1861, and she died in 1862, leaving one son by her first husband. He then married his fourth wife, Mrs. Lucy Soules, of New York, in December, 1866. Mr. Gregory settled in Youngsville in Octo- ber, 1878, as proprietor of the Fairmount Hotel, and in July, 1882, purchased the hotel property, and is to-day one of the popular landlords of the county. He has a fine livery for the accommodation of his guests and the public. He is a man of large busi- ness qualifications and has extensive experience in various branches of business. He, after the death of his third wife, enlisted in Company 12, Ohio Independent Battery, and served to the close of the war, and was discharged at Columbus, O. He emi- grated to Kansas in 1856, and met with flattering prospects at Kansas City; but his plans were changed on account of sickness, and he came back to Sugar Grove. Green, Thomas, Irvington p. o., Btokenstraw, was born in Philadelphia in 1836. He was a son of Samuel and Susan Green, who were natives of Philadelphia. They had a family of three sons and one daughter. Samuel and Susan died in Philadelphia. History of Warren County. Samuel's grandparents (Green) were from England, and of the staunch Quaker order, and settled in Burlington, N. J., from England. Thomas Green was married on Sep- tember 20, 1874, to Clarissa A. Skinner, of Waterford. They had a family of four chil- dren; three are now living — Henry, William Baldwin, and Virginia — and one child died in infancy. Clarissa was a daughter of Stephen and Clarissa R. Skinner. Thomas Green settled in Irvine, Warren county, in 1875, as joint freight agent for the P. and E., B. N. Y. and P., the N. Y. Lake Erie and Western Railroads, and Empire Line Com- pany, and now has under his employ six men. Green, Sterling, Kinzua p. o.. Elk, was born in Pine Grove October i, 1816, and the oldest of ten children of Seth W. and Sarah (Portman) Green. Seth W. Green came from the Eastern States, settled at Pine (irove about the year 18 13, where he married his wife, Sarah Portman, and lived there a number of years engaged in lumber- ing, and running the same down the river, sometimes as far as New Orleans. His mode of coming back was in a barge as far as Pittsburgh, thence in a keel boat to Warren, taking three months to make the trip. After living a few years in Pine Grove he moved to Morrison's Flats, below Warren. From there he moved in canoes to the head of Kinzua valley, then known as Morrison's Mills, owned by James, Ephraim, and Samuel Morrison. He finally moved one mile below, on Sugar Run ; engaged in farming until his death, which occurred August 8, 1848, at the age of fifty-si.x years. He left a family of ten children, who are as follows : Sterling, Wellington, Lloyd, Sarah Jane, Thomas, Artemus, William, James, Jesse, and Mary Ann. Sterling Green, the oldest son, in 1842 started in the lumber business with M. McCullough, of Pittsburgh, and A. H. Sunimerton, of Warren, at the Hazeltine Mills, one mile below Corydon. Afterward, in 1848, he assumed proprietorship of the Morrison House, in Warren, formerly kept by Richard Orr. Two years later he bought land in Kinzua and moved there, where he built the first hotel in 1851, which made a comfortable home for lumbermen and travelers. His first wife was Polly Cornelius Fogies. Their children were J. Wesley, George W., James S., Sarah J., and Mary Ann, the two last named dying before they reached womanhood. On March 23, 1878, his wife died of heart disease. Three years after he married Mrs. Doctress Louisa Green, of Jamestown, N. Y. The life of Sterling Green has been a varieil experience of ]iioneer hardships incident to a first settler. He commenced when fifteen years of age to go with his father to Pitts- burgh on rafts, and to push back in a canoe, a tiresome operation of two weeks' time, or more, lying on the shores at night and pushing against the current all day a canoe loaded down with provisions and articles for family use, there being in those primitive days no steamboats or railroads. In after years he became one of the leading mer- chants of Kinzua; was postmaster for eighteen years; frequently held town offices, and is now, at the age of seventy, one of the trustees of the M. E. Church society. Grosch, Christian, Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Conewango on May 3, 1849. He was a son of George and Barbara (Kiel) Grosch, both natives of Bavaria, Germany. His father was born on January 4, 1820, and was a son of Andrew and Ricky (Enger) (}rosch. He came to .\merica in 1845 and settled in Conewango, where he cleared and improved the farm on which he now resides. He was married on April 22, 1847, to Barbara Kiel, a daughter of Michael and Susan (Huscher) Kiel, who .settled in Conewango in 1839. He has had a family of five children born to him — Delia, Chris- tian, George, Dora, and William. Christian settled on his present farm, whicli consists of III acres, in 1873, and cleared and made all improvements himself He was married on December 29, 1872, to Mary Ka.shmer, a daughter of .\dani and Otilda Kashmer, of Conewango. They have had five children born to them — Fred, Ann, Albert, George, and Frank. Gross, George J., Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Conewango townshi]) on March 26, 1849. He is a son of Daniel and Philopena (Martin) Gross, who were early pioneers in the township of Conewango. He was married on April 8, 1879, to Sarah Arnold, a daughter of John and Saloma (Weiler) Arnold, of Conewango. He has lived on tiie farm on which he now resides since 1879. Gross, Joim A., Warren ]). o.. Conewango, was born in Brokenstraw on May 15, Brief Personals. 1846. He was a son of Daniel and Philopena (Martin) Gross. His paternal grand- father, Martin Gross, was a native of Prussia, and settled in Conewango at an early- day. He had a family of four sons — Jacob, George, Daniel, and John. Of these Daniel had a family often children — Philopena, Daniel N., Elizabeth, Mary, John A., George, Sarah, Carrie (deceased), William, and Henry. Mr. Gross settled on the farm now occupied by his son, John A., in 1S46, and cleared and improved it, where he resided until 1886, when he removed to Glade township, where he now resides. Grander, Daniel, Warren p. o., Conewango, is a farmer and lumberman, and was born in Conewango township on January 16, 1840. He settled on the farm, w-hich he now owns and occupies, in 1868. He was a son of Henry D. and Mary E. (Gross) Grunder, who were natives of Bavaria, Germany, and settled in Conewango in 1832 on the river road, and cleared and improved a farm on what is now known as the academy land. They later removed to Pleasant township, where Henry D. engaged in the lum- ber business, and where he died in March, 1871, in the seventy-sixth year of his age. He had a family of seven children born to him — John, Mary, Elizabeth, Henry, Cath- erine, Daniel, and Lewis. Daniel was married three times. His first wife was Sophia F. Geer, a daughter of Benjamin and Narcissa (Stedman) Geer, of Conewango. They had two children born to them — Mary and Irena. His second wife was Caroline Milex, and his third wife was Mary Gross, a daughter of Daniel and Philopena (Martin) Gross, and by whom he had two children — Caroline and Harry B. Grunder, John, Warren p. o.. Pleasant, is a farmer, and was born in Allegany county, N. Y., February n, 1827. He was a son of Henry D. and Mary Elizabeth (Gross) Grunder, who settled in Conewango in 1832. John Grunder was brought up as a farmer from the time he was five years old, and has been a resident of Pleasant township since 1S48, where he has been engaged in lumbering and farming. He was married in 1856 to Elizabeth Grunder, a daughter of John and Catherine (Meyers) Grunder, of Allegany county, N. Y., and by her had a family of three children — Edward H., John, and Hyett. Hale, Danford, Ackley Station p. o.. Pine Grove, was born in Brattleboro, Wind- ham county, Vt., in 1833. He married Lurina Ames, and had two children — Charles, who was killed by a falling limb, and Cynthia, who was born in Pine Grove, but now deceased. The family came to Pine Grove on May 25. 1830. In 1847 Mr. Hale, after the death of his wife, Lurina, married Louisa Aiken, by whom he had four children, viz.: — Francis A. (who married Anna M. Adams), Florence A. (who mar- ried George McCoy), David J. (who married Hannah Cable), and Emerson J. Dan- ford Hale was a successful farmer, and at the time of his death was comfortably situated. His farm was among the best in the county, and consisted of 170 acres. It is now divided between his sons Francis and David, they having purchased the shares from the other heirs. Hale, William, Ackley Station p. o.. Pine Grove, a native of Vermont, was born at Brattleboro, in the year 1801, and immigrated to Warren countv with his uncle in or about 1830, and settled in Pine Grove. He married Mehitable Thurber, who bore him eight children, viz.: — Joseph, Edward T., Mary Jane (who died at the age of nineteen years), Sarepta (who married Thomas C. Hunt), and the other four died in infancy. William Hale died on April 27, 1883, and Mehitable, his wife, died in 1879. Edward Thurber Hale married Eliza, a daughter of Lewis Jones, of Farmington, by whom he has had three children. His farm comprises 143 acres, lying but a short distance from Conewango Creek, and here Edward T. Hale resides, surrounded with comforts that during his well spent life he has fairly earned. Hall, Galbraith A. I., Sheffield, a son of Orris Hall, and one of the early settlers in Warren county, was born on July 11, 1841. He was married at the age of twenty-five years to Flora Bell (a daughter of William Bell, of Wanen), who bore him six children, all of whom are living. They are Orris P., Belle E., Mary Ella, Josephine M., Gal- braith A. I., jr., and Katie V. In 1865 and 1866 Mr. Hall w^as in Alabama growing cotton, but this venture, although not a failure, was not particularly lucrative. After this he returned to Warren, and for two years remained there, after which he removed xl History of Warren County. to Sheffield where he since resided. The tract of land owned by Orris Hall has recently been sold to the Pennsylvania Gas Company for a consideration of $82,500. Hallock, A. D., Garland p. o., Spring Creek, was born in Herkimer county, N. Y., in 1844, and settled in Warren county in 1861. He married Sarah E. White, of War- ren county, and to them have been born four children — Velta, Myra, Siles, and one child who died in infancy. Mr. Hallock is a carpenter by trade, but is now engaged in farming and owns and occupies a farm of sixty-three acres. He was a son of Jesse J., and Lovina (Van Buren) Hallock. Mrs. Hallock was born in Herkimer county, N. Y. They had a family of nine children born to them, five of whom are now living — Lucy J., Elizabeth Ann, A. D., J. L., and Alice L. Hamilton, James C, Sugar Grove, was born in Sugar Grove in March, 1832, and married Lucy Pratt, a daughter of L. H., and Julia Pratt, in i86o. She died in De- cember, 1864, leaving two children, only one of whom is now living — Edgar R. James C. married his second wife, Eliza F. Younie, in April, 1870. They have had one daughter born to them — Margaret S. Mr. Hamilton has been justice of the peace for fifteen years, and has been notary public since 1884, and has held most of the town offices. He was surveyor for twenty years. James C. was a son of John and Catherine (Brown) Hamilton. She was born in Belfast, Ireland, and John was a native of York county. They were married in Sugar Grove, in the first frame house that was ever erected in Warren county (still standing near the present residence of J. C. Hamilton), in 181 5. They had a family of seven children born to them, four of whom are now living — John B., Mrs. A. C. Jackson, Mrs. Frazine, and James C. Mr. John Hamil- ton came from Franklin and settled in Sugar Grove in 1827. He was sheriff of Ve- nango county before the division, and afterward associate judge of Warren county. Hamilton, John B., Sugar Grove, is a retired gentleman, and was born in Sugar Grove in 1827. He was a son of John and Catharine (Brown) Hamilton. John Ham- ilton was born in York, York county, in 1782, and his wife was born in Belfast, Ire- land, March 13, 1789. They were married in Warren county in 181 5. They had a family of seven children born to them, four of whom are living — Mrs. Jane D.Jackson, Mrs. Emeline C. Frazine, John B., and James C. Two of the children died at an early age. John Hamilton died October 29, 1857, and his wife, Catherine, died September 27, 1862. John Hamilton settled in Sugar Grove in 1827. His wife came to War- ren county about 1804 with her brothers, David, John, William, and James Brown. John Hamilton, sr., was sheriff of Venango county before the division ; he was also side judge of Warren county and an early teacher. Hanchctt, Newton N., 'I'idioute p. o., owner and proprietor of the Hanchett House in Tidioute, was born in Erie county in 1843, son of Cyrus and Mary (Reed) Han- chett. Cyrus was born in New York State, and Mary in Erie county. They both died in Erie county in 1852, leaving a family of six children. Newton married Mary Bakley, of Crawford county, in 1864; they have one son — Frank. They setrted in Tidioute in 1865, he for a time laboring for others, but finally engaging in oil s]iecula- tions till 1874, when he embarked in the hotel business. In 1883 he purchased his present hotel, located on Main street, one block from the depot ; it is the popular house of the borough. Hanpin, Charles, Dugall p. o., Pittsfield, was married August 11, 1880, to Betsey Pier. They have had one child born to them — Herby D. Betsey was a daughter of Calvin and Eliza (Hitchcock) Pier, who came from Harmony, N. Y., and settled here in 1861. They had a family of four children born to them — Ada, Emily Manerva, Will- iam, and Betsey. Charles Hanpin was a son of Daniel and Sarah (Cooper) Hanpin. Sarah was born in New York city, and her husband, Daniel, was born in England in 1827, and settled in Sugar Grove in 1832 with his parents, James and Catharine (Clark) Hanpin. Daniel and Sarah Hanpin had a family of two children born to them — Al- zada and Charles. Sarah was a daughter of Nathan and Martha (Brooks) Cooper, who were born in England. Harmon, Hosea, is a resident of Sugar Grove village, and was born in Rensselaer county, N. Y., at Sand Lake in 1818, and setded in Sugar Grove with his parents in Brief Personals. xli 1830. His parents were Nason and Anna (Bennett) Harmon. They had a family of thirteen children born to them, three of whom are now living — John, Hosea, and Sarah (who is now the wife of Amasa Baker.) Nason died in 1855, and his wife, Anna, died in i86g. Hosea married Sally Johnson, who was born in Oneida county, N. Y., in 1827. They were married at Freehold in 1846, and have had two children born to them, one son who died at an early age, and Emma, who married J. P. Miller. Mr. Harmon was compelled to labor from early age to aid his parents. He worked on a farm for three years at the rate of three dollars per month, and at the age of nineteen and one half years he purchased his time for one hundred dollars of his father, and by his perseverance and frugal habits he has reached great wealth worthy of imitation. Harrington, Murry W., Sugar Grove, the only furniture dealer and undertaker in Sugar Grove, was born in Jamestown, N. Y., in 1848, and settled in Sugar Grove in 1871, there engaging in the furniture manufacturing business under the firm name of Van Dusen & Harrington. In 1873 he purchased his partner's interest and has since con- ducted the general furniture and undertaking business. In 1869 he married Ida Pickard, of Salisbury, Vt., who was born in 1848. They have a family of three children — Lynn P., John F., and Lucina P. Murry W. was a son of Horatio W. and Lucina L. (Deland) Harrington. They were born in Jamestown, N. Y. She died in 1850, leaving one son. By a second marriage Horatio W. had five children. Hazard, David G., Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, was born in Washington county, N. Y., on June 27, 1810. He was a son of Sylvester and .^nn Hazard, natives of Rhode Island, who settled in Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1814. David G. settled in Brokenstraw in 1837, as a carpenter and builder. He was married on August 15, 1843, to Drusilla Mead, who was born on October 31, 1820. David G. died on March 7, 1874. They had a family of four chil(iren, three of whom are now living — Armitta A., Francilla A., and Cassius A. Armitta A. was married in 1868 to Samuel R. Broughton. They have three children — Fannie T., Orrin, and Frank. Cassius A. was married in 1886 to Cora L. Sabin. Mrs. Drusilla Hazard was a daughter of William and Susannah (Davis) Mead. William was born in Northumberland county December 23, 1784, and died September 19, 1852. He settled in Brokenstraw in 1806, where he lived and died. His wife was born in New Jersey March i, 1784, and died October 28, 1865. William served in the War of 1812. Susannah was a daughter of Elijah and Desiah Davis, who settled in Warren county in the year 1801. Elijah served in the Revolutionary War. They had a family of nine children, of whom James Davis is now the only surviving one. He was born on October 2, 1804, and now resides at Youngsville. William and Susannah Mead had a family of six daughters and two sons, four of whom are now living — John, born November i, 1808; Julia A., born December 7, 1813; Drusilla, October 31, 1820, and Susan, born February 27, 1823. Drusilla's grandparents were among the first settlers at Meadville, and the place took its name from them. Hazeltine, David D., Matthew's Run p. o., Sugar Grove, is a lumber manufacturer and farmer, and was born in Sugar Grove in 1853. He was married in June, i88i, to Emma F. Abbott, a daughter of Francis and Catherine Abbott. They have had two sons and one daughter born to them — Kate Naoma, Ivan A., and Francis H. David D. was a son of Harden and Polly (Stilson) Hazeltine. He was born in Brattleboro, Vt., in 181 1, and died in 1882. His wife, Polly, was born in i8n. They were mar- ried in 1835, and had a family of nine children born to them, six of whom are living — Pardon, Clinton, Susan, Abner, Almena, and David D. Pardon and Clinton enlisted in Company F, 151st Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers, and served on nine month's call. Abner enlisted in 1S63. Polly was a daughter of David and Mary (Burroughs) Stilson, who settled on Stilson Hill in 18 14. They had a family of nine children, four of whom are now living — Harry H., David, Betsey, and Polly. Hunter, Jahu, Tidioute p. o.. Glade, was born in Limestone township, Warren county, in 1830. He was a son of Matthew and Sarah (Magill) Hunter, who was born in Warren county. Their parents came from eastern Pennsylvania, and settled here about iSoo. They had a family of ten children, five of whom are now living, Jahu and four sisters. His parents died on the homestead farm. Jahu married Margaret R. History of Warren County. Magee, of Limestone township, January i, i860 — a daughter of Alexander G. and Nancy (Smith) Magee. They had two children — Livingston L. and Leila L. Leila L. died in 1883, aged eleven years. Jahu was reared on his father's farm in Limestone township, and was engaged in making and marketing pine timber from 1S50 to 1857 ; then came to Tidioute and engaged in the mercantile business until i860. He then disposed of his mercantile business and entered into the business of producing crude petroleum ; also the manufacturing and shi])ping of sawed lumber. He again became engaged in the mercantile business in 1868, under the firm name of Mabie & Hunter, and continued a successful business until 1882, when he disposed of his interest to his partner, W. H. H. Mabie. He was one of the original stockholders of the Tidioute Savings Bank. He was also one of the charter members of the Tidioute and Economy Bridge Company, that built the fine wire suspension bridge spanning the Allegheny River at Tidioute in 1873. He owns some stock in the Tidioute Chair Factory. He is interested in the Missouri Lumber and Mining Company. He is also a member of the firm of Hunter & Cumings, who have been engaged in producing crude petroleum since 1S73. He built him a very pleasant home in Tidioute, on the corner of Mani and Walnut streets in 1876, where he now resides. Hertzel, William A., Warren p. o., Mead, is a farmer, and was born in Pleasant town- ship August 7, 1853. He was a son of George and Emeline (Schuler) Hertzel, who were natives of Alsace, France, and early settlers in Pleasant township. Later they moved to Mead township, where they cleared and improved the farm which is now owned by Emeline Hertzel, and occupied by William A. and his brother Philip. His paternal grandparents were Christian and Saloma (Asher) Hertzel, who came to Warren in 1833, and settled in Pleasant township in 1835, on the farm now occupied by their son, Philip Hertzel. They had a family of six children — -George, Jacob, Philip, Mar- tin, Andrew, and Mary; of these, George had a family of five children — Sally, Eme- line, George, Philip, and William. W'illiam A. Hertzel was married August 5, 1877, to Ella Gant, a daughter of John and Mahala (Morrison) Gant, of Mead township. They have had two children born to them, Harry and Cora. Highhouse, William, Warren p. o.. Pleasant, brick manufacturer and farmer, of the farm of Highhouse & Baker, was born in Sa.xon Germany, .\ugust 30, 1829, and set- tled in Pleasant township in 1870, and located on the farm he now occupies, most of which he cleared and improved himself; the same year he embarked in the manufac- ture of brick with his brother Ernest, which partnership existed up to 1885. In 1882 he started in his present kiln, and in January, 1886, E. N. Baker became associated with him, under the firm name of Highhouse & Baker, manufacturing a million or more of brick annually. Hill, Samuel, Garland p. o., Pittsfleld, proprietor of the Johnson House, at Garland. He was born in Ireland in 1850, and was a son of David and Margaret (.Moore) Hill, who were born and married in the north of Ireland, and emigrated to America, and set- tled in Upper Canada in i86r. They had a family of nine children born to them ; three brothers came to Warren county; David came in 1865, Robert in 1866, and Samuel first settled in Crawford county, in 1868. They first engaged in the oil business. Rob- ert became a lumber manufacturer, and is now a member of the firm of .\ndrews & Hill. David is now engaged in the hotel business in Canada. Samuel was married in 1876 to Caroline Lopez Johnson, widow of James Johnson. She had two daughters, Hattie (was married in 1881 to D. D. Horn), and Blanche. Samuel Hill is now engaged in the hotel and farming business. Hinsdale, Charles, Sugar Grove p. o., Farmington, is a farmer, and was born in Farmington September 25, 1841. He was a son of Harmon and Fanny (Hurd) Hins- dale, who were natives of Cayuga county, N. Y., who settled in what is now known as Farmington, in 1841, on the farm which is now occu])ied by his widow, in the center of the west part of the town, which his father cleared and improved, and on wliich he lived and died, his death occurring in 1885, in the sixty-ninth year of his age. He had a family of four children. Charles Hinsdale was reared in Farmington, where he has always resided. He settled on the farm which he now occupies in 1 868, and on which i Brief Personals. xliii he has made all the improvements He was in the late War of the Rebellion, enlisting in 1863, in what was known as Baldwin's Company, and was on guard duty at Ham- burg and Washington, and was honorably discharged, on account of disability, after seven months' service. He was married in 1864 to Eugenia, a daughter of William and Sally (Temming) Rowland, by whom he had a family of seven children, all of whom are now living. Hodges, Robert A., Lander p. o., Farmington, is a farmer, and was born in Oneida county, N. Y., June 30, 1829. He was a son of Abram and Esther (Kennedy) Hodges, who settled in Sugar Grove township in 1837, and lived and died there. They had a family of six children — Sally, Hazard, Dexter C, Polly, Abram, and Robert A. The latter was married August 26, 1859, to Melvina Miles, a daughter of David and Polly (Smith) Miles, of Sugar Grove. Her father, David Miles, was the first white child born in Warren county. Mr. Hodges has had a family of eight children — Martha E., Elmer, Fred, William, Clyde, Charles, Mary, and Hattie. Mr. Hodges located in Farmington on the farm which he now owns and occupies in 1870. Hodges, William, Russellburg p. o.. Pine Grove, came from Pittsburgh to Warren in the year 1814. He had with him a family, among them a son, John Bryant Hodges, who married Rachel Fountain. They had seven children, viz.: Walter, who died at the age of twenty-one years; William, and John A., married Phebe, daughter of John Ake- ley, of Russellburg; Eliza Jane, who married James Benson, of Randolph ; Elizabeth, who became the wife of George S. Benson, also of Randolph ; Rachel Maria, who mar- ried Frank Mabbett, and Maria, who married George A. Walkley, of Russellburg. William Hodges married Phoebe Akeley, daughter of Joseph Akeley, a pioneer, and had but one child, Martha E., who died during infancy. His wife died in July, 1882. Mr. Hodges then married Mattie Fry, of Oswego county, N. Y. John B. Hodges died June 2, 1880. His wife, Rachel, died November 12, 1876. For thirty years prior to 1875 William, son of John Bryant Hodges, was a blacksmith, and by frugality and in- dustry acquired a comfortable fortune. Subsequent investments have increased this to goodly proportions. Mr. Hodges, although not a church member, is an earnest Chris- tian. In political life he has chosen the Republican party, and has held town offices at various times. His grandfather William built the court-house at Warren about the year 1826. Holman, John J., Germany p. o.. Elk, and Harriet, his wife, with their children, Harriet, Mary Ann, John, Thomas, George, Susan, William S., Benjamin F., and Henry C, came from Monroe county, N. Y., to Quaker Hill about 1845 or 1846. John J., the father, went to Oregon some two or three years later, and died there in 1865. John jr., Susan, and Thomas went to Illinois, where they now reside. Henry C. lived in Chautauqua county, N. Y. Benjamin F. died in the army. William S. Holman still re- sides in Elk, and is one of the substantial citizens of the township. He married Mary A. Jones, a daughter of Reuben Jones, by whom he had a family of four children. By occupation Mr. Holman is a farmer, and is an essentially self-made man. In the affairs of the town he has taken an active part, and is frequently called upon to hold town office. Mr. Holman is a firm Republican. Holt, Peter, Cornplanter p. o.. Elk, was born in Lancaster, England, April 2, 181 1, and was one of the sons of William Holt, whose family settled on the Conewango in 1829. In 1833 Peter came to Elk to work on a mill, and there met Susan B. Howard, whom he married in 1834. His wife was an orphan child, who lived with the Pound family. The children of this marriage were Elizabeth (who was burned to death), Mary Jane, Manley D., William H., James B., Alva M., Peter C, Susan A., Albert O., Cora E., and one child that died unnamed. In 1850 Peter Holt built the mill on Cornplanter Run, which was recently burned. In the lumber woods he was a pioneer and has oper- ated largely during the last half of the century, having owned nearly two thousand acres. Since 1864 he has turned his attention to farming. His residence is situated on the bank of the Allegheny opposite the reservation. At an early day Mr. Holt took an ac- tive part in the affairs of the town, but advancing years have compelled him to retire. Holt, William, Glade p. o.. and Ann, husband and wife, Peter, David, Abel, Eliza- History of Warren County. beth, Hugh, Catherine, William, James B., and Ann, children, came from, Lancashire, England, to Glade soon after 1830. James B. now resides on a good farm on the Con- ewango, in Glade. He married Alice Fox, of Pine Grove, who bore him one child, Jennie B. Holt. James B. Holt is a substantial farmer, and has dealt some in the lum- bering business. In politics he has favored the Democratic party, but is now a Prohi- bitionist. He is a member of the U. B. Church. Horner, Thomas, Pittsfield, was born in Glasgow, Scotland. He was a son of Thomas and Mary (Barr) Horner, who emigrated to America in 1848, and settled at Painted Post, Steuben county, N. Y. They had a family of eight children — Mathew, Mary, John, Thomas, Willie, Jennie, James, and George. Thomas, jr., married Ann Elizebeth Pierce in September, 1866 ; they have one son. John M. Horner moved to Pittsfield in 1869, as foreman of E. W. Ross's planing-mill, and remained with E. W. Ross while he was in business there. He entered tlie employ of McGrew Bros, in 1882, as their superintendent, and is in their employ in that capacity at this date. McGrew Bros, are engaged in the lumber business in Pittsfield. Horner enlisted from Painted Post in Co. C, 107th N. Y. Vols., on July 9, 1862, and served with the regiment through the balance of the war, and was discharged at Elmira, N. Y., June 17, 1865, and was in all the battles the regiment was in, namely, Antietam, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Resaca, Dallas, Peach Tree Creek, sieges of Atlanta and Savannah, battles of Averys- borough and Bentonville, carried a gun from the day the regiment received them until turned over at Elmira, he having been with the regiment every day from the time it went out until its return. Hopkins, Andrew Joseph, a general merchant of Columbus, was born in Westford, Windham county. Conn., February i, 1848. He was a son of James and Nancy E- (Parkhurst) Hopkins, who were married in Connecticut, and settled in Columbus in March 1850, where he became engaged in the business, that of blacksmithing. They now reside in Corry, and have had a family of six children born to the them — A. J., John T. (who was born in 1854, on the same day of the week, same day of the month, and the same hour of the day, and just six years from the day on which .\ndrew Joseph, his brother was born), Abbie A., Louisa, Hattie, and Carrie E. James M. enlisted in Co. C, First Engineers, of New York State, under Colonel E. W. Sherrill, ui September, 1861, and served until the close of the war. Joseph A. enlisted in the same company in 1864 and served to the close of the war. Andrew Joseph Hopkins was married in 1872 to Efifa J. Araidon, who was born in Erie county. She was a daughter of John and Charlotte (Curtis) Amidon. They have had three children born to them — Emma L., Mary A., and John D. Andrew J. has been school director and constable, and in early life he was a tarmer and butcher. He commenced blacksmithing in 1879 in Spring Creek, and m 1884 he settled in Columbus, and there also is engaged in the same business. Horn, Clinton, Sjiring Creek p. o., was born in Spring Creek, Warren county, in 1822, son of Daniel Horn, who was born in New Jersey in 1788, and died in 1879, and Mary Steele, who was born in 1798 and is dead. In 1842 Clinton married Jane Sam- ple, of Columbus, Warren county. They have had one child — Estelle. He has a farm of 410 acres. Horn, Dorr D., Garland p. o., Pittsfield, was born in Spring Creek township in 1853. He was a son of Hiram and Mary (Watt) Horn. Hiram was born in Spring Creek in 1816, and his wife Mary was born in the same township in 1817. They were married in 1845, and had a family of three sons born to them — Othello D. (born in 1848), Ellery D. (born in 1851), and Dorr D. (born in 1853). Dorr D. was married in 1880 to Hattie Johnson. They have had one daughter — Grace (born May 10, 1884). Hattie was a daughter of James and Caroline Johnson. Dorr D. became a clerk for the firm of Andrews & Horn, and in 1873 he, with his brother, embarked in the manu- facture of lumber, and is now doing business under the firm name of Horn Brothers. Horn, Ellery D., Garland p. o., Pittsfield, was born in Spring Creek in 1851. He was a son of Hiram and Nancy (Watt) Horn, who were born and married in S[)ring Creek. Hiram was born in 18 1 6, and died in March, 1880. Nancy, his wife, was i Brief Personals. xlv born in 1817 and died in i860. They were married in 1845, and had a family of three sons born to them — Othello D. (born in 1848), Ellery D. (born in 1851), and Dorr D. (born in 1853). Nancy was a daughter of Alexander and Elizabeth (Andrews) Watt. Her paternal grandfather was John Watt, who settled in Spring Creek in 1797, coming there from Lancaster. Hiram Horn settled in Garland in 1873. He had been suc- cessful as a farmer, lumberman, oil producer, and land operator, and in 1873 he became engaged in the mercantile business. He held many of the offices of the town. He was a son of Daniel and Mary (Steele) Horn, who came from the East and settled in Spring Creek in 1790 or 1795. Daniel Horn was sheriff of Warren county in 1825 and 1828. He was also an early school teacher, and became a large land owner. He was born in 1779, and died July 21, 1869. His wife Mary was born in 1791 and died in 1870. They had a family of eleven children born to them, seven of whom are now living — Sarah, Clinton, Irvin, Martha, Ellen, Mary Etta, and Stephen. Ellery Horn was married in 1876 to Flora White, a daughter of Albert T. and Jane White, of Pitts- field. They have had three children born to them — Mary E., Hiram Leo, and Dan Roy. Mr. Horn is a farmer, and general superintendent of the Horn Brothers' lum- ber-mill of Garland. Horn, Othello D., Garland p. o., Pittsfield, was born at Spring Creek in 1848. He was a son of Hiram and Mary (Watt) Horn, who were born in Spring Creek. Hiram was born in 1816, and Mary, his wite, in 1817. They were married in 1845, and had a family of three sons born to them — Othello D. (born in 1848), Ellery D. (born in 1851), and Dorr D. (born in 1853). Hiram Horn died March 17, 1880, and his wife died in April, i860, at the age of forty-three years. Hiram was an early oil producer and operator in oil lands and lumber, and became a partner in the mercantile business of H. Andrews &: Co. He was an active and enterprising business man, and was a son of Daniel and Mary (Steele) Horn, natives of Eastern Pennsylvania, who came among the very first settlers of Spring Creek, coming there about 1790. Daniel was an early teacher, and was also sheriff from 1825 to 1828, and was extensively engaged in the lumber business, leaving a large tract of land to his family. He was born in 1779, and died July 21, 1859; his wife, Mary Steele, was born in 1791 and died in 1870. They had a family of eleven children born to them, seven of whom are now living. Othello D. Horn was married in 1874 to Henrietta White, a daughter of William C. and Mary White. They have had one child born to them — Winifred. Mr. Horn em- barked in the mercantile business in 1873, and is now also engaged in lumber manufac- turing and shipping, and is a meinber of the firm of Horn Brothers in the lumber, saw and planing-mill business. Hosterman, John F., Shippensville p. o.. Elk, was born in Beaver township March 17, 1833, and was a son of David and Susanna (Reeser) Hosterman, who settled in Beaver township in 1829. His father was a tanner by trade, and was engaged in this in the pioneer days of Edenburg and Shippensville. He settled in Shippensville in 1835. He had a family of five children — Henry, Jacob, John F., Mary J., and David R. John F. is a carpenter and millwright by trade, and was married in 1872 to Mary M. Mahle, a daughter of Helwig and Frances (Ricenbrode) Mahle, of Washington township. John and Mary have had two children — Ulysses H. and Mary L. Houghwot, Alexander, Lander p. o., Farmington, is a farmer, and was born in Warren, August 27, 1822. He was a son of Daniel and Catherine (Stewart) Hough- wot. His father was a native of Staten Island, N. Y., and was a carpenter and joiner by trade. He settled in Warren about 181 2, where he worked at his trade for a num- ber of years. In 1837 he located in Farmington, and there engaged in farming, where he resided to the time of his death. His wife was a daughter of James and Catherine (Hord) Stewart, pioneers of Sugar Grove township, and were of Irish descent. Daniel Houghwot had a family of ten children, who grew to maturity — Hannah, John H., Alexander, Catherine. Rosetta and Rosanna (twins), Jane, Isaac, Daniel, and James. Alexander Houghroot came to Farmington with his father. He was married in 1846 to Betsey Gregory, a daughter of Asa and Arena (Spencer) Gregory, of Farmington. They had a family of three children born to them — Hattie, Kufus K., and Edgar P. Mr. xlvi History of Warrex County. Houghwot lived on the farm he now occupies for thirty years, a part of which he cleared and improved. Houghtling, W. H., Bear Lake p. o., Freehold, general hardware merchant, is one of the most enterprising business men in the county. Houghton, Hiram T., Sheffield p. o., was born in Cayuga county, N. Y., in the year 1816. His father died when he (Hiram) was fourteen years old, leaving his mother a widow with six children, of which he was the oldest. At the age of twenty years, with the family of Thomas Farnsworth (his uncle), he settled in Cherry Grove, formerly a part of Sheffield, where he cleared a piece of land and built a house for his widowed mother, who came about one year after. He stayed until 1842, when he settled on the Tionesta Creek, m Sheffield township. He went to Van Buren county, Mich., in 1844, and remained there for three years, when he returned with his family to make a visit and sell his lands — between three and four hundred acres — of which he had acquired in earlier years. But not being able to dispose of them satisfactorily he has since lived in Sheffield. He served with credit in the late war for three years, in Company H, Tenth Regiment P. R. V. C. His first wife was Sally Ann Aber, by whom he had four chil- dren — Phebe I. (Mrs. John Farnsworth), William H., who served three years in the late war, in the same company with his father, and was taken prisoner at the battle of Fred- ericksburg, since died in Florida with yellow fever ; Mary Ann (Mrs. Frank Collins), and Ann Eliza, who died at the age of eight years. For his second wife he married Jane Ann Farnsworth, who bore him three children — Ada A., married J. E. Barnes (son of Erastus Barnes), who died in Warren, Pa. ; Marvil M. A., married Alonzo P. Barnes, and Asa J. The last three reside in Sheffield. Hiram T. Houghton by occupation was a carpenter. Before the war he was a Democrat, but since he has affiliated with the Republican party. Howard, Ezra D., Columbus p. o., one of the early and prominent settlers of Colum- bus township, was born in Chenango county, N. V.. in 181 1, and settled with his parents in Columbus in 1834, and died July 19, 1886. He was a son of P. C. and Betsey (Button) Howard. They had a family of four children, all of whom are now dead. Ezra D. Howard was married in March, 1834, to Emeline Vermilyea, who was born in Columbus, Chenango county, N. Y. They had a family of seven children born to them, two sons and five daughters — Stacy, who married Marilla Berry ; Asa M., who married Elizabeth Faulkner; Betsey Angeline, married Henry E. Dodge; Angeline married Byron Benson ; Celia ; Harriet, married Thomas Welman ; Alice married H. Mead. Emeline (Vermilyea) Howard was a daughter of Jesse and Betsey (Veil) Vermilyea. Howard, Henry B., North Warren p. o., Conewango, is a farmer, and was born in County Queens, Ireland, in 1809. He was a son of William and Ellen (Brearton) Howard. He was reared in Ireland, and in 1837 he immigrated to the United States, and located in Troy, N. Y., where he resided for seventeen years. He settled in Con- ewango in 1853, on the farm which he now owns and occupies, and which he had pur- chased in 1844, and has cleared and improved it himself, with the exception of two acres. He was married 1833 to Mary A. McLaughlin, a daughter of James and Eliza (Thomp- son) McLaughlin, of County Queens, Ireland. They have had a family of .seven chil- dren born to them — Margaret, James, Henry, William J., Eliza, John R., and Thomas. Of these children Henry and John were in the late War of the Rebellion. Henry served three years in Company H, Tenth Pennsylvania Volunteers, and was honorably discharged, after which he re-enlisted in Company G, Two Hundred and Eleventh Pennsylvania Volunteers as first lieutenant, September 3, 1864, and served to the close of the war. He was married on December 13, 1866, to Helen E. Waters, of Warren, Pa. John enlisted in Company G, Two Hundred and Eleventh Pennsylvania Volun- teers, September 3, 1864, and was honorably discharged June 2, 1865. He died Octo- ber 31, 1885, from disease contracted while in the service William was married in December, 1864, to Louisa Hartsen, of Indiana. Howard, Lyman, of Rome, Oneida county, N. Y., with his family came to Quaker Hill, Elk townsliip, in the year 1830, and soon after moved to Pine Grove. The chil- dren of this family were Sally, Azariah, Lucy, Charles, Lyman M., Clarissa, and Harriet, Brief Personals. xlvii all born before the family came to Pennsylvania, and Mariette, Hannah, and Sarah, who were born in Pine Grove. Sally married Warren Ellsworth ; Azariah married Sarah Martin, and after her death Almira B. Myers; Lucy married John Gould; Clar- issa married Rolland Martin; Harriet married John Smith; Mariette married John Delaney ; Hannah married L. A. Roberts ; and Sarah married Plum Smith. Azariah Howard is one of the most respected residents of Pine Grove. He is a substantial farmer, having no acres. He has had six children, viz. — Lorinda, Jane (now dead), Thomas M., Catherine E., David M., who married Lizzie Chapman, and Flora, who is now dead. Mr. Howard is a Republican in politics. He is not connected with any church society. Howard, William B., Columbus, was born in Columbus, Chenango county, N. Y., in 1824. He was a son of Isaac and Charlotte (Bassett) Howard. Charlotte was born in Connecticut, and her husband, Isaac, was a native of Rhode Island. They were married at Chenango county, N. Y., in 1819, and emigrated to Columbus, Warren county, in 1827, and purchased the farm two miles east of the borough. Isaac, who was born in 1795, died in i88i, leaving his widow (who was born in 1800) and five children — Mary E., Howard D., William B., Ivory F., and Nancy M. William B. learned the carpenter's trade, and became a contract builder, and has erected many of the best buildings in this section. He retired from his profession in 1S78, and became one of the founders of the Equitable Aid Union, which was organized March 22, 1879, at which time he was elect- ed treasurer. It now has a membership of sixteen thousand. He was married in 1855 to Martha M. Raymond, who was born in Columbus. She died in 1881, leaving a fam- ily of two children — S. Belle and W. Bert. S. Belle married Howard Rowe, and died in 1884. Howard, William C, Columbus, was born in Sherburne, Chenango county, N. ¥., in 181 1. He was a son of John G. and Sally (Whitford) Howard. John G. was born in Rhode Island in 1783, and his wife, Sally, was born in Otsego county, N. Y., in 1788. They were married June 14, 1804. Sally died in 1834, and her husband died on May 20, 1875. They had a family of five children, two of whom are now living — William C. and Huldah, now the widow of Mr. Johnson. They settled in Columbus in 1833. William C. Howard was married on June 22, 1837, to Miranda Marble, who was born in Columbus, Chenango county, N. Y., in March, 1819. They had a family of eight children born to them — Jane L., Mary L.. Helen M., S. Jannette, Albert M., Harriett M., John Dewitt, Frank O. Jane married J. D. Babbitt, and died leaving one son, J. D. Babbitt, jr. Dewitt is also deceased. Mr. William C. Howard has held several offices of the town, and is known as " major" throughout the county. He was an early blacksmith and gunsmith, and in 1850 he became the station and ticket agent tor the P. & E. Railroad, and was also agent for the American Express Company. He is now the stock shipping agent at Columbus station for the P. & E. Railroad. Hull, John, Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, was born at Camillus, Onondaga county, N. Y., in 1807. He was a son of Chester and Sally (Comstock) Hull. She was born in Massachusetts and her husband Chester was born in Connecticut. They settled in Brokenstraw township in 1819, where they died. They had a family of eight children, five of wliom are now living. Chester Hull was a soldier and served in the War of 1812, and one of his sons was a soldier in the War of the Rebellion. Chester Hull was a stone and brick mason and builder and contractor. John Hull was married June 9, 1831, to Eliza Mead, who was born in 1812. They have a family of four children — Sarah, born in 1832 ; Elvira E., born in 1834 ; Nelson W., born in 1841 ; Flora A., born in 1849. John Hull has been burgess several terms, councilman for several years, a school director, and a lieutenant and captain for several years in the independent com- pany of his town. He retired from active business life in 18S0. Eliza Hull was a daughter of John and Sarah (Huffman) Mead. She was born at Susquehanna, and her husband John at MeadviUe. They had a family of thirteen children, eleven of whom are now living and ten now reside in Warren county. Humphrey, Reuben, Columbus, was born in Oxford, Chenango county, N. Y., in 181 2. He was a son of Ebenezer and Polly (Simons) Humphrey, who settled in At- xlviii History of Warren County. tica, Wayne county, N. Y., in 1813. Polly died in 1813, leaving a family of seven chil- dren — Hiram, died 1886; Cyrus, died 1886; Annis, and Reuben are now living. Eb- enezer then married for his second wife Mrs. Folsom. They had two daughters born to tliem. Reuben settled in Columbus township in 1829. He was married in 1837 to Mrs. Rebecca (St. John) Vermilyea, who was born in Genesee county, N. Y., in i8io. They have had a family of four children born to them — George A. (born in 1843), Fam- ily A. (born in 1848), Elva A. (born in 1850), and Edgar A. (born in September, 1853). (Jeorge A. enlisted in Company F, Ninth New York Volunteers, under Colonel Beards- ley, in 1861, and died at the hospital at Washington in 1862. Elva married Cyrus Shippee, and Edgar is a natural genius. He erected his dwelling where his parents now reside, and which is a model house. Mrs. Rebecca had by her first husband, four chil- dren, only one of whom is now living — Mrs. Mary Jackman. Rebecca was a daughter of Nathan and Martha (Eads) St. John, who settled in Columbus in 1815 or '16. Na- than was a Revolutionary soldier and a pensioner. Humphrey, Winfield S., Columbus, was born in Columbus, Warren county, May 23; 1861. He was a son of Horatio E. and Caroline S. (Manwarring) Humphrey. Caro- line was born in Genesee county, N. Y., January 19, 1825, and Horatio E. was born in Allegany county, N. Y. April 29, 1824. They were married on November 15, 1845, and had a family of two sons and three daughters born to them, three of whom are now living — Susan, Flora A., and Winfield S. One son, Hiram S.,died July 17, 1875. aged twenty-eight years. Horatio E. Humphrey was a son of Hiram and Betsey L. (Hills) Humphrey. Hiram was born in Oneida county, N. Y., in 1802, and his wife Betsey was born in Montgomery county, N. Y., in 1802. They were married on April i, 1825. Betsey died April 9, 1859, and Hiram died June 6, 1886. Mr. Hiram Humphrey was a son of Ebenezer and Polly (Simons) Humphrey, who settled in Attica, N. Y., where Polly died in 1814. leaving a family of seven children. Ebenezer married for his second wife, Mrs. Folsom, widow of Oscar P'olsom. Winfield S. Humphrey was married Sep- tember 5, 1886, to Tacie M. Allen, of Chautauqua county, N. Y. Hunter, Gates M., Enterprise p. o.. Southwest, was born in Limestone in 1832, and was married in 1854 to Sarah Merritt(a sister of Judge Merritt), who was born in Chau- tauqua county, N. Y. They have had a family of nine children born to them — Asa M., Delbcrt O., Francis M., Effie, Addie, Lincoln, Ulysses, Melissa, Merilla, and Harry Gates. Gates M. Hunter was a son of Robert, jr., and Lovisa (Manross) Hunter. Rob- ert was born in Warren county, and died in 1845. His wife Lovisa was born in Ver- mont and died in 1872. They had a family of eleven children born to them, si.\ of whom are now living — H. Jared, G. M., Esther, Elizabeth Candace, and Wilson. Rob- €st, jr. was a son of Robert, sr., and Betsey Hunter, and was born in County Cork, Ire- land. They settled in Southwest about 1795, and were one of the first families to settle there. They had a family of ten children born to them. Gates M. Hunter now owns and occupies the old homestead which was deeded in 1832 to his father, but which was purchased from the Holland Land Company years previous by his grandfather on con- tract. Hutchinson, Timothy O., is a farmer of North Warren, was born in Tunbridge, Vt., on March 3, 1823, and was a son of Timothy Hutchinson, sr. Timothy O. was reared in Orange and Windsor counties, Vt. He is a blacksmith by trade and located in War- ren county in 1839, and resided there and at Slieffield for eight years, after which he went to reside at Ridgcway, Elk county, where he resided for nearly three years, when he returned to Warren, where he worked at his trade up to 1877, when he became en- gaged in farming in Conewango, on the farm which he now occupies. He has been married twice. His first wife was Cleopatra V. Brown, to whom he was married in 1848. She was a daughter of John Brown, a pioneer of Sheffield. They had a family of seven children, two of whom are now living — Delwin O. and Mary. His second wife was Mrs. NLTrian Squires, of Conewango, to whom he whom he was married in 1883. Irvine, Thomas, Pittsfield, was born in Freehold in November, 1835. He was mar- ried in 1862 to Adalaide Frisbie, who was born in Homer, Cortland county, N. Y. Brief Personals. They have had one daughter born to them — Ida M. (who was born in 1863, and was married in 1880 to Charles E. Price. They have had two children born to them, Alta and Millie). Adalaide was a daughter of Andrew M. and Minerva (Alvord) Frisbie. Mrs. Frisbie was born in Homer, Cortland county, N. Y., and her husband Andrew was born in Jefferson county, the same State. They settled in Pittsfield in 1858. Thomas Irvine was a son of Samuel and Margaret Irvine. Margaret died in 1870, leaving a family of seven children, six of whom are now living — Thomas, Martin, Mary A., Jane, Charles, Margaret. His paternal grandparents were James and Esther Irvine, who were among the early settlers of Warren county. Jackson, James M., Warren p. 0., Conewango, was born in what is now Glade town- ship on March 5, 1819. He was a son of David and Lucretia (Cannon) Jackson. His paternal grandfather was Daniel Jackson, who came from Onondaga county, N. Y., and settled in Conewango township in 1797, cleared a small tract of land there and erected a grist-mill, and later a saw'-mill. He also erected the first frame dwelling in Warren. He held the office of justice of the peace for many years and was a prominent man in his day. He had a family of five children — Daniel, Ethan, David, Ebenezer, Rachel, and Sylvia. David Jackson kept the tavern in Warren for many years, but in later life he engaged in the lumber business and farming. He had a family of six children — Marvel B., Timothy, James M., Rebecca, Maria, and Virginia. His wife was a daugh- ter of Elisha Cannon, of Philadelphia. David Jackson died in 1S60 in the seventieth year of his age. James M. Jackson was brought up in Warren, and now owns and oc- cupies the old homestead where his father died. He was married in 185 1 to Mary Summers. They have had a family of five children born to them — Louie, David, Willie, Harry, and Maude. Mrs. Jackson was a daughter of Langford and Sarah (Bingham) Summers, of Farmington. Jackson, Joseph Barton, of Irvinton, Warren county, was born in Ripton Hills, Derbyshire, England, December 27, 1822, and was a son of Thomas and Elizabeth (Barton) Jackson, who came to America in 1829. Thomas was a practical miller, and was employed in several mills in New York State, and settled in Youngsville in 1845, where the mother Elizabeth died in 1846, leaving a family of six children, five of whom are now living. Thomas died in Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1879. Joseph B. Jack- son enlisted in the Forty-ninth New York in 1862. He was married in 1852 to Fidelia Hoxie, who was born on June 25, 1852. They have had two children — Leon and Flora. Joseph B. Jackson settled in Irvinton in 1883, and is now engaged in running the Irvine custom flouring mill on the Brokenstraw Creek. Jackson, Robert R., Lander p. o., Farmington, is a farmer and was born in Spring Creek township, March 30, 1829. He was a son of Elijah and Mary (U'att) Jackson. His father was a native of Connecticut, and settled in Spring Creek township in Novem- ber, 1797, where he cleared and improved a farm, and on which he resided until the time of his death. His wife was a daughter of John Watt, and was born in Penn's Val- ley, Lancaster county. Her father was also a pioneer of Spring Creek. Elijah Jackson had a family of thirteen children born to him — Sarah, Hannah, John, Mary, Uri, James, Ziba, Washington, William M., Alex W., Harriet, Charles M., and Robert R. Robert R. was brought up in Spring Creek, where he resided up to 1863, when he removed to Farmington on the farm which he now occupies. He was married January 29, 1862, to Mary H. Eldred, a daughter of George F. and Laura (Cady) Eldred, of Spring Creek. They have had two children born to them — William E. and Nora E. (now Mrs. Frank Gregory). Jackson, William H., Pittsfield, was born in Harmony, Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1833. He was a son of David and Betsy G. Jackson. Betsy was born in Connect- icut, and her husband David was a native of Onondaga county, N. Y. William H. Jackson was married in March, 1853, to Lucia Grosvenor, of Freehold township, War- ren county. She was a daughter of Nathan and Nancy Booktus Grosvenor ; he was born in Philadelphia, and she in Reading. They had two children born to them — Frank W., who married Ida Mclntyre, and died in 1S80 of typhoid fever; and Maribell, who was fitted for and became a teacher and has taught for ten terms; she was married June 1 History of Warren County. i6, 1886, to B. S. Dunning, of Erie. William H. Jackson settled on a farm near where he was born, soon after he was married, but in the fall of i860 moved to Tidioute, in the early oil excitement ; was superintendent of some oil wells for nearly five years; during that time he was elected assessor of the town of Limestone, and one term collector, also school director. In 1867 he was engaged as superintendent of the Rouse Hospital, which position he filled for six years. He was engaged in the manufacture of lumber in Youngsville for three years, and then moved on to his farm of 140 acres and engaged in the breeding of blooded cattle, and in the dairy business. He is now a school director of Pittsfield township. Jackson. William Miles, Spring Creek, was born in Spring Creek in 1818, and claims to be the tirst male child now living who was born in this town. He was a son of Eli- jah J. and Mary (Watts) Jackson. Elijah J. was born in Stratford, Conn., in 1772, and died in 1845. Mary (Watts) Jackson was born in Penn's Valley, Lancaster county, in 1784, and died in 1855, leaving a family of thirteen children, four of whom are now liv- ing — Hannah, William M., A. W., and Robert R. William Miles Jackson has held al- most all of the town offices. He now owns a farm of 204 acres, on which was built the first log cabin in Spring Creek, Warren county, by a white man, in November, 1797. Jacobs, Dr. Charles A., physician and surgeon, of Youngsville, was born in Mercer county, in 1856; was educated at Grove City Normal Academy, read medicine at Mill Brook, graduated at the Cleveland Medical Collejie in 1883, and settled in his profes- sion at Youngsville in 1884. In 1885 he married Belle Jackson, daughter of G. A. and Elvira King Jackson. Dr. Charles was the son of Isaac and Mary N. Lamb Jacobs. She was born in Mercer county and he in Ohio, and they were married in 1840. They have a family of ten children. One son enlisted in the One Hundredth Pennsylvania Volunteers, and was wounded in the battle of the Wilderness and died in 1864. Jagger, Enoch F., Sugar Grove, was born in Sugar Grove, and was a son of James and Mary (Brown) Jagger. She was born at Warren, on the Allegheny, in 1807, sur- rounded by Indians. James was born at Hempstead, L. I., in 1802. They were mar- ried in 1827. James settled here in 1817, and died in 1866, leaving a widow and seven children ; three sons are now living — David B., Enoch F., and Charles. William died leaving a widow and three children. Max, Fred and Florence. Mrs. Eliza died leaving two children — Lucy B., and Agnes M. Abbott. Agnes and Harriet Jagger died unmar- ried. Enoch V. enlisted in Co. D, 9th N. V. Regiment of Cavalry, in October, 1861, and was discharged September, 1862, for disability, from the hospital at Washmgton, He has served as assessor, and commissioner, and his father, James, was a justice of the peace for many years ; was appointed by the governor ; he was also assessor. Mary was a ilaughter of Hon. David Brown and Jeanette (Broadfoot) Brown. Jeanette was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, and David was born in Belfast, Ireland. They were mar- ried at Franklin, Venango county, in 1802, and settled in Warren, and in i8og settled in Sugar Grove, where he built a log house. He also built the first frame house in the town in 1816. David and Jeanette had a family of seven children, four of whom are now living — Mary. Barbara, Kittie, John 1!.. .\gnes, James, and William 1). Jeanette died in 1841, and David died in 1824. David established the first tannery in the town, and was a prominent man of the county. He was at one time a justice of the peace. Jenkins, Theron P., Russell p. o., Farmington, was born in Farmington, December 23, 1846. He was a son of Josejjh and Sophronia (Weatherby) Jenkins. His father was a native of Boston, was a blacksmith by trade, and settled in Pine Grove in 1823, where he worked at his trade until 1S37, when he settled in what is now Russellburg, on the farm which is now owned and occupied by Theron J., a part of which he cleared and improved, and on which he resided until the time of his death, which occurred .\ugust 4, 1866, aged sixty years. His children were Weston, Matilda, Almeda, Kldridge, Almira, Myron, Rachel, Orlinda, and Theron P. Theron P.'s maternal grandparents were Samuel and Abigail (Eddy) Weatherby. who settled in Farmington in 1835. The- ron P. succeeded to the homestead farm of his father. He was marrie. o., Pittsfield, uas born in Brokenstraw town- ship in 1834. He was a son of Thomas and Ruth (Arthur) McGuire. Ruth was born in Brokenstraw, and died in 1835. Her husband. Thomas, was born in 1781, and died in 1865. They had a family of five children born to them — Susan (married Mr. Snow), Emily, Thomas L., jr., Rebecca (married W. Crook), and Elsie. Thomas, sr., was a son of Hugh and Patience Mc(iuire. Hugh was a native of Chester county, and settled here early in the year 1800, and was engaged in farming with ileneral Irvin. He had a government contract for many years in carrying the mails to and from Jamestown, Ti- tusville, and Meadville. Thomas L., jr., was married in 1857 to Eliza Jane Upton, who was born in Garland. They have had a family of Ibur children born to them — Lavina D., Lillia Ann, John Willard, and Guy Ellis. Eliza Jane was a daughter of Benjamin and Eleanor Upton. Thomas L.,jr., settled in Pittsfield, in 1857. on his present home- stead farm. Mcintosh, Charles, Sugar Grove, was oorn at .\shville, Chautauqua county, N. V., in 1849. He was a son of James and Isabella (Laing) Mcintosh, who were natives of Scot- land. They have had a family of six children, four of whom are now living. James was born in 1803 ; Charles married Mary Jamieson, of Freehold township in September, 1885 ; she was a daughter of William and .\gnes Jamieson. Charles is a farmer and harness-manufacturer. Mclntyre, .Mmyron, Pittsfield, was born in Delaware county, .\. V., in 1818. He was a son of Nathaniel and Miramla (Goodrich) Mclntyre. Miranda was a native of Delaware county, N. Y., and her husband of Scotland. They settled in Delaware county in 1837, where he was married. He came to Pittsfield and engaged in the lumber busi- ness, and ."Mmyron came with him. In 1839 Nathaniel returned to Delaware county, where he died the same year, aged forty-six years. His widow after his death came to reside with Almyron. She died in Iowa. They had a family of ten children born to them, five of whom are now living as follows: tieorge, Jerome, James, Almyron, and Harriet. One of the sons, Jarvis, enlisted, was discharged and died while on his way home. .Almyron was married in 1841 to Mary Houghton, who was born in Chautauqua Brief Personals. Ixiii county, N. Y. They have had a family of four daughters born to them — Sceneth A., married Richard Brooks, now has a family of three children ; Justina, married John Sal- mon, and died leaving one son — Jay; Ina, was married twice; her first husband wa^ Frank Jackson, who died in 1880; her present husband is Laverne Wickwire; and Ella, who married Fred W. Price ; they have had one daughter born to them — Florence. Mr. Almyron Mclntyre has held the office of justice of the peace, assessor, school di- rector, commissioner, and all other town and district offices. He was an early practical mill contractor and bridge builder, and he has built several of the large hotels and build- ings of the county. He had no chance for school advantages but by close application he acquired a thorough business knowledge. Being a close observer he is well informed both on State and county affairs. Mclntyre, N. J., Grand \'alley p. o., Kldred, was born in Warren county in 1857. He is a farmer and is also largely engaged in lumbering as a contractor. He was mar- ried in 1879 to Harriet Catlin, and to them have been born four children — Gail, Mark Catlin, Florence, and Nathan Roy. His father was born in Scotland, in 1829, and came to America in 1835, and settled in Warren county in 1839. He was married in 1854 to Maria J. Cooper, of Warren county. To them have been born a family of three chil- dren — Robert E:. N. J., and Allie. Mclntyre, A. G., Sugar Grove, is a general merchant of Sugar Grove borough, and was born in the town of Sugar Grove in 1859. He was a son of Robert and Eliza (Sands) Mclntyre. Mr. Mclntyre was a native of Scotland, and setded in Warren county in 1848. His wife was born in Ireland. They were married in Warren in 1854. Robert enlisted in the Seventy-second Regiment, Company B, N. Y. Volunteers, and was killed at the battle of Cold Harbor; he also served ten years of his early life in the British Army. He left a widow and two children — A. G. and Lizzie. A. G. Mclntyre has been town clerk and town treasurer. He became the successor of Messrs. Harris & Mclntyre, who succeeded C. P. Harris in the business in 1882, as extensive dealers in dry goods, clothing, boots, shoes, and dealers in and shippers of farm produce. McKean, David H., Cobham p. o., Deerfield, was born in Venango county, Novem- ber 3, 1830. He was a son of William and Isabella (Russell) McKean, who wete born in Pennsylvania and settled in Venango county; moved to Deerfield in 1856. He was born in Venango county in 1808, and died in 1870. His wife, Isabella, was born in Butler county in 1805. They had a family of nine children born to them. David H. McKean was married in 1850 to Martha M. Pratt, who was born in Bolesburg, Centre county, on April 15, 1830. They have had a family of nine children born to them — Helen Mar, Samuel, David Lee, Harper M., Emeline E., Flora M., Minnie I., Erwin W., and one son who died at an early age. David H. McKean settled in Deerfield in 1850, and purchased his present homestead. At that time it was a dense forest, and erected his humble log cottage, which he has exchanged for a modern built home, by his persistent industry. He has for the last thirty-six years confined his labors to farm- ing and lumbering. David H. erected a steam saw-mill in 1883 where he manufac- tures extensively all classes of lumber. His mill is accessible by a plank road one and a quarter miles from Cobham depot, what is now known as Conley Run. His son. Har- per M., is now a partner in the lumber business. David H. McKean has held the office of justice of the peace for two terms, has also been assessor, school director, commis- sioner, and held other minor offices of his town. McKelvey, David, West Spring p. o.. Spring Creek, was born in the north of Ire- land, and came to America in 1869, and settled in Warren county in 1876. He married Margaret Murphy, who was a native also of the north of Ireland. They had a family of six children — -Thomas J., Amelia J., Adolphus, David, and George L. He is a farmer and now occupies a farm of 220 acres. McKinney, Arthur, Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, was born in Brokenstraw town- ship in 1 814, on the farm where he now resides. In 1842 he married Susan Arthur, of Jamestown, N. Y., who was born in 1819, and who died November 12, 1885. They had a family of nine children, of whom six are now living, as follows; John W., Mary, Calender A., Charles E., Elerv, and Grace. Calender A. married Bertha Tuttle in Ixiv History of Warren County. 1884, and they have one son, and a daughter named Emily. The latter married George Reavely, and died in 1877, leaving a daughter — Mabel — born in 1875. The family of father and six children all reside at the old homestead — but one married. Arthur was a son of John and Rebecca (Arthur) McKinney. She was born on the Susquehanna in Pennsylvania in 1784, and died July 25, 1852. John was born in Ulster county, Ire- land, in 1770, came to Philadelphia in 1790, and labored as a farmer. In 1792 he carried the chain to survey Western Pennsylvania, including Warren county, with Gen- eral Irvine, and in 1794 located 1,000 acres west of General Irvine's tract, where he settled and reared his family of nine children, but three of whom now survive, viz. : James, Susan (now the Widow Wade), and Arthur. John and Rebecca were married about 1800. He died in 1841, leaving each of his seven sons and daughters a large farm. Arthur now owns 680 acres of the original homestead; he became an extensive lumberman and farmer in early life, and retired in 1880. McKinney, Arthur, Youngsville p. o., was born in Youngsville in 1831, and in 1855 married Annie Mary Brown, of Titusville, who was born in 1831. They have four chil- dren — William S., Harriet A., Nellie B., and Fred O. ; they had one daughter, who died in April, 1880, aged seven years. Mrs. McKinney was a daughter of John and Jane (McCray) Brown, who were married in 1812. John was born in Westmoreland county in 1784, and died in 187 1. They had six children, four of whom are now living, as follows: George W., Alexander, Oliver, and Annie Mary. Mrs. Brown died March 4, 187 1. John Brown was the last of the eleven soldiers of the War of 18 12 in town. Arthur McKinney was a son of John and Lorinda (Simmons) McKinney. John was born in Warren county in 1804, and Lorinda in Chenango county, N. Y., in 1806; thev were married in 1829, and had seven children, two of whom are now living — Ar- thur, born in 1831, and James, born in 1850. John McKinney died in March, 1879. He held the office of sheriff of the county for three years, and of constable three years. He was a leading business man. His parents were John and Rebecca (Arthur) Mc- Kinney, who were very early settlers in Warren county. Three of their children are now living — James, Arthur, ist, and Susan. Lorinda McKinney, wife of John, was a daughter of William and Prudence (Stewart) Simmons, of Oxford, N. Y. They settled in Jamestown, N. Y., in 181 1, where they died. Of seven children, Lorinda is the only surviving one. James, 2d, married Olive Brown ; she died leaving one child ; she was a sister of Mrs. Arthur McKinney. McKinney, James, Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, was born in Youngsville in 1850. He was a son of John, jr., and Lorinda (Simmons) McKinney. She was born in Ox- ford, Chenango county, N. Y., in 1806, and was married in 1829; they had a family of seven children, two ot whom survive — Arthur and James. The father, John, jr., was born in Brokenstraw in 1804, and died in March, 1879; he was a prominent man in his county — sheritf three years, constable three years, and an active business man. John, jr., was a son of John and Rebecca (Arthur) McKinney. John was born in County Tyrone, Ireland, in 1770, settled in Philadelphia about 1790, and died in February, 1 84 1. He was first a farmer, and then carried chain for Surveyor Irvine while he sur- veyed Warren county and other parts of Western Pennsylvania, and in 1794 or '95 he took up 1,000 acres west of the Irvine tract. He married about 1800, and had a family of nine children, but three of whom are now living — Arthur, James, and Susan. James McKinney, 2d, married Olive Brown in 187 1. She died in 1882, leaving one child — Lurline. James married a second wife, Arlie E. Brown, in 1883. She was a daughter ■of Heman L. and Semantha (Bly) Brown. Heman L. died in 1865, leaving the one daughter — Arlie — and his widow married Alexander Brown. Olive, the first wife, was a daughter of John and Jane (McCray) Brown. McKitrick, Hance, Lander p. o., Farmington, is a blacksmith, and was born in County Down, Ireland, December 29, 1842. He was a son of James and Isabelle (Stevenson) McKitrick, who innnigrated to Canada in 1843, wiiere Hance was reared and educated, and where he learned his trade. He came to Warren county in 1865, and worked as a journeyman up to 1873, when he located in Farmington and embarked in business for himself, a business which he has conducted up to the present time. He Brief Personals. Ixv was married in 187 1 to Ann L. Johnson, a daugliter of Peter and Christina (Jones) Johnson, of Farmington, and by her has had two children — Fannie E. and Agnes J. Mr. McKitrick is now holding the office of town commissioner, and in politics he is Republican. McMillen, Daniel J., Garland p. o., Pittsfield, was born in Conewango township in 1835. He was a son of Joseph and Patty (Leonard) McMillen. Patty was born in Warren county, and Joseph, her husband, was born in Venango county. They were married in Cattaraugus county, N. Y., and after this event settled in Warren county. They had a family of five children born to them, four of whom are now living — Robert, Daniel J., Worth, and Leroy. Patty died in 1884, at the age of seventy-eight years. His last wife was Carrie McMillen. James was an expert pilot on the Allegheny and Ohio Rivers, and afterward became an extensive lumberman and shipper. Daniel J. McMillen was married in 1872 to Maggie Irvine, of Freehold. They have had two children born to them — Anna, and D. Lee (who was drowned at the age of nine years). David J. became engaged in the mercantile business in Pittsfield, and in April, 1883, he came to Warren county and engaged in the general mercantile business, now doing business under the firm name of H. F. Andrews & Co. McNett, Levi E., North Clarendon p. o., Mead, is a farmer, and was born in Paines- ville, O., June 14, 1834. He was a son of Levi and Eliza (Shepard) McNett; was reared in Chautauqua county, N. Y., from the age of two years, and came to Warren in 1854; worked some at his trade, that of cabinet-making, though he was principally engaged in lumbering up to 1881. He located in North Clarendon in 1S75, and em- barked m the clothing business in 1881, from which he retired in 1884. He was mar- ried in 1854 to Clara Cogswell, a daughter of Samuel H. and Mary (Arnett) Cogswell, of Warren. They have had a family of four children born to them — Eva (now Mrs. L. P. Millard), Mary (now Mrs. J. A. Barnes), Samuel, and Charlie. McWilliams, John L., Warren p. o., Conewango, was the youngest of the sons and daughters of William McWilliams, who came to Glade in 1851, from Canada. The fam- ily, however, were of Scottish birth, and emigrated from the mother country to the do- minion in 1842. These children were Janet, Elizabeth, Alexander E., Jane, Christina, and John L. Their father died in Glade in i860, and their mother died at the same place twenty-five years after. John L. McWilliams married Emma A. Zeigler, by whom he had two children. Mr. McWilliams is by trade a carpenter, but his time is devoted to oil producing, at which he has met with remarkable and deserved success. His farm of one hundred acres, near Glade Run, has seventeen producing wells at present, with an abundance of territory yet to be opened. Having commenced life with no capital Mr. McWilliams has by honesty and industry earned for himself a goodly com]ietence. He has figured somewhat in the affairs of the town, and has frequently held town offices. In politics he favors the Prohibitionists, but in earlier years was a Democrat. McWilliams, William, Warren p. o., Conewango, emigrated from Scotland about the year 1850, and settled in Canada, where he resided until 1855, when he settled in Glade. His third son, Alexander E., married Catherine Imhoof. They have had no children except by adoption. Mr. McWilliams is by trade a carpenter and joiner, but devotes most of his attention to oil producing, at which he is quite successful, owning and leas- ing extensively. In political life he is a strong Prohibitionist and an active worker in the cause. Both are members of the M. E. Church. Marsh, Grant, Ackley Station p. o.. Pine Grove, was born at Granville, Washington county, N. Y., December 8, 1796. He came to Russellburg in the tall of 1822, two years later than his brother John. On October 31, 1830, Grant married Catherine Martin, a daughter of one of the earliest pioneers of the town. The children of Grant and Catherine Marsh were John, born July 26, 1831, died August 30, 1866 ; Benjamin, born June 21, 1833 ; James, born December 25, 1835, scalded and died April 13, 1837 J James Grant, born February 5, 1838, and died June 3, 1879 ; Walter W., born Decem- ber 14, 1839. now resides on the old home farm ; Phebe Ann. born February 17, 1842, married Russel Marsh, of Dakota; Martin L., born February 27, 1844, now a resident Ixvi History of Warren County. of Dakota ; and Martha, born February 12, 1846, married Luther Forbush. Catherine Marsh, wife of Grant Marsh, was born September 13, 1808, and died December 29, 1847. Grant Marsh died September 27, 1876. After the death of his first wife in 1847, Grant Marsh married Corneha Loucks, by whom he had a child who died unnamed, Emilv, bom November 25, 1857, George W., born May 5, 1859, died from an accident October 18, 1883. Mattison, Oren D., Matthew's Run p. o.. Sugar Grove, was born in Washington county, N. Y., in 1833, and is a son of Christopher L. and Anna Allen Mattison. He was born in 1802, and died in 1867; she was born in 1805, and died in 1869. They were married in Washington connty, N. Y., and with a family of five children settled in Chautauqua county in 1837, and in 1843 settled in Sugar Grove township, where they died. They had a family of eleven children, but four of whom survive, as follows : Thomas T., Oren D., Corneha, and Sarah. Oren D. enlisted in Company G, Two Hundred and Eleventh Pennsylvania Volunteers, in 1864, and served to the close of the war. Edwin enlisted under the nine months call, and was wounded at Gettysburg. Chistopher was a graduated physician, but chose farming later in life. O. D. Mattison married, June 6, 1854, Sarah Smith, who was born in 1840. They have four children — Orvill J., Warren G., Melvina, and Erastus. Melvina married Perry Mead, and Warren G. married Ellen Covey. O. D. Mattison is a farmer; he has held the office of school director, and district offices. Mead, Benjamin F., Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Warren, on February 22, 1844. He was a son of Benjamin and Almena (Stebbins) Mead. His paternal grand- father, Joseph Mead, came from Northumberland county, and setded in Brokenstraw township, in this county, in 1799, where he engaged in farming and lumbering; later he moved to Conewango, purchased Mead Island (a place which still bears his name), and died on the farm now owned by James Mead, on March 3, 1846. His wife was Han- nah Boone, a niece of the famous pioneer Kentuckian, Daniel Boone. He had a fam- ily of fourteen children — Eva, Benjamin, Ruth, David, John, Ruth (second), William, Sarah, Darius, Gooding, Boone, Elizabeth, Abigail. Benjamin Mead, sr., was married on March 13, 1820, to Almena Stebbins. They had a family of seven children born to them — Abiram, Zerina, Roxy M., Caroline, Joel E., Maria C, and Benjamin F. He cleared the farm which he now occupies himself, and settled on the same about 18 19. Benjamin F., jr., now resides with his father and carries on the homestead. He was married October 22, 1868, to Penuel Falconer. They have a family of four children — Willard, Wallace, Ralph, and Stewart. Penuel Mead was a daughter of James and Christina (Stuart) Falconer, of Sugar Grove township. Mead, Darius, Youngsville p. o., was born at Youngsville in 1824. He was a son o' John and Sarah Huffman Mead. John was born at Meadville in 17S6, and died in 1870. Sarah was born at Susquehanna, and died at the age of sixty-two years. They were married in 1808. John settled in Brokenstraw township in 1806. They had thir- teen children, the survivors of whom are named as follows : Philip, Eliza, Elsa, Cham- bers, John C, and Sarah (twins), Darius, .^nna, Henrietta, Laura. Darius Mead mar- ried Kate Van Valkenburgh, of Erie, in 1885. He has held several county and town offices — county commissioner, .school director, road commissioner, town treasurer, etc. He is a general lumber manufacturer and shipper and oil producer. His father was a soldier in the War of 181 2, and his second wife drew his pension. She was Sarah E. Ireland. Mead, G. Fillmore, Pittsfield p. o., Brokenstraw, was born in Brokenstraw township in 1827, and married Caroline Hotclikiss, of Crawford county in 1853. They have a family of six cliildren — Helen De Ette, Nighton T., Mary A., Arlie C, Carry L., and Gaylord E. Helen D. was a graduate of Chamberlain Institute, taught several years, and married J. R. Babcock. Mary A. was a graduate of Corry school ; she also taught, and married Willis Eddy. Nighton T. was a graduate of the Alleijheny College in 1884, and is now reading law. .-\rlie C. was also a graduate of the Allegheny College. Mrs. Caroline Mead was a daughter of Rev. David and .Abigail Hotchkiss ; he was a Wesleyan M. E. cleryman and a missionary. G. Fillmore Mead was a son of Philip Brief Personals. Ixvii and Mary (Coover) Mead; they had seven children, five of whom are now hving, as follows : William A., G. Fillmore, Wilber F., Stephen L., and Ulysses. Philip was born in 1794 and died in 1861 ; Mary, his wife, was born in 1793 and died in 1883. G. Fillmore Mead enlisted in the navy in September, 1864, and served under Captain Rice on the Reindeer, and was later transferred to the Abeona, under acting-master Samuel Hall, and was discharged at the close of the war. Mead, John, Pittsfield p. o., was born in Brokenstraw township in 1808. He was a son of William and Susan (Davis) Mead. Susan was born at Northumberland, and William at Lancaster, and went with his parents to Franklin. William Mead was a son of John and Catharine (Foster) Mead, and John Mead, sr., was a son of Darius Mead, who was murdered by the Indians, and who left five sons — General David, John, Darius, Joseph, and Ansel. Joseph and Darius came to Warren county between 1798 and 1800; General David and John remained in Meadville, and Ansel went South. William Mead settled in Brokenstraw in 1806 and married in 1S07 Susan Davis. They had a family of eight children, four of whom are now living, as follows : John, born in 1808; Julia A., born in 1813; Drusilla, born in 1820; and Susan, born 1823. John Mead married in 1832 Mary Ransom, a daughter of Amasa and Abbie Ransom, of Brokenstraw. They had a family of nine children — Erastus, Rebecca, Harriet, Cor- delia, Ransom, Joseph, Susan, Lillian, and Alice, and twenty-three grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. Erastus enlisted in 1862 and served to the close of the war. John settled on his homestead farm of 150 acres in 1838. Mead, Nelson, Corydon p. 0., the youngest of thirteen children, sons and daughters of John Mead, was born in Brokenstraw February i, 1835. He lived in the vicinity of his native town until the year 1882, engaging in various branches of the mercantile and oil producing business, but with indifferent success. At that time having experienced all the turns of the oil business, he came to Corydon and opened a general store which is managed mainly by his younger sons. With his oldest child, under the firm style of N. Mead & Son, he purchased the timber on a tract of two thousand acres in Elk and Corydon townships and Cattaraugus county, N. Y. The firm operates two steam power mills with a producing capacity of nearly 30,000 feet of lumber daily. Charles C. Mead, the oldest son and partner of his father, has been station agent of the B., N. Y. & P. Railroad at Corydon since the road was opened. In March, i860. Nelson Mead united in marriage with Martha A. McDowell, of Youngsville, by whom he has had five children, four of whom are still living. Mr. Mead was one of the county commissioners in the years 187 1, 1872 and 1873. Mead, Wilbur F., Pittsfield p. o., Brokenstraw township, was born in Brokenstraw in 1830. He is a carpenter and builder, and also owns and occupies a part of the farm originally owned and improved by his father, Philip Mead. He is one of a family of six sons and one daughter, oftspring of Philip and Mary (Coover) Mead, viz.: William A., Benjamin M., Susan D., G. Fillmore, Wilbur F., Stephen L., and Ulysses. Benjamin M. qualified himself for the practice of medicine, but died at the age of twenty-six years. Susan D. married Chester Kingsley, of Ripley, Chautauqua county, N. Y., and died leaving a family of seven children ; those now living reside in Texas. Wilbur F. mar- ried Chloe A. Smith, daughter of Ammi and Edna L. (Morton) Smith, of Sugar Grove, in i860. Chloe died in 1884, having had a family of five sons and two daughters, as follows: Orion S., the first-born, died at the age of fourteen months; De W., Jasper L., Rollin K., Edna C, Marcia M., and one who died in infancy. W. F. Mead was mar- ried the second time in 1885 to Adeline Benoit, of Randolph, Cattaraugus county, N. Y. In religious faith he identifies himself with the VVesleyan Methodists. Mead, William A., Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw. — The family of Meads from whom the Meads of this county originated came from Connecticut to Wyoming county, and soon after, having difficulty with their land titles, came to Franklin, Venango county in 1789. Darius Mead, their father, was killed by the Indians in 1791. Gen- eral David and John Mead came to Crawford county. Darius, jr., and Joseph Mead came to Warren county about 1799 and settled in Brokenstraw valley. General David died August 23, 18 16. Joseph Mead, a brother of Darius, sold out his interest in the Ixviii History of Warren County. mills they built here and located near Warren in about 1814. William A. Mead's parents were Philip and Mary (Coover) Mead, both born in 1795. Their children were as follows : William A., Benjamin M., Susan D., G. Fillmore, Wilbur F., Stephen I,., and Ulysses. Benjamin M. was fitted for the practice of medicine in the Buftalo Med- ical College, and died in the year 1845. Susan D. married in 1841 Chester Kingsley, now dead, having sons and daughters now living in Texas, two of them in the practice of medicine in San Antonio. William A. married Margaret E. Stranahan. Their chil- dren are Bessy F., Gibson P., Louesa J. (who died at the age often years), and Chester K. Gibson is living on his father's farm and has the management of it. Chester is living in Des Moines, la., and has been manager of the Western Telephone Company of that city. Merkle, William, of Limestone township, Warren county, now superintendent of the Economy Oil Company, was born Aug. 6, 1840, in Wurtemberg, Germany. His par- ents were Michael and Wilhelmina (Killinger) Merkle, emigrants from Germany to this country in 1853, residing at Economy, Beaver county, until August, 1854, whence they moved into Limestone township, purchasing a piece of wood land, and began to clear up a farm. In 1864 they entered into the employ of the Economy Oil Company, and are now livmg on their lands. Michael Merkle was born in May, i8og, and VVilhelmina his wife in January, 1814. They have had a family of six children — Magdalena, Will- iam, Mena, Michael, Jane, and Anna Helena, all of whom are now living. In the spring of 1866 William Merkle married Louesa Lineman, of Ashland township, Clarion county. They have had a family of seven children born to them, viz.: Mena L., Will- iam H., Paulena A., Rosa L., Lydia M., Jacob H., and Albert E. In early life Will- iam was employed in farming and lumbering, but in 1864 he entered into the employ of Economy Oil Company, having been with them steadily since, and is now superintend- ing their business about Tidioute, where their property is located, it consisting of about 1,500 acres of timber and f;uming lands, and has also been noted for its rich production of oil in former years. Merrihew, James W., Corydon p. o., came from Norwich, Chenango county, N. Y., to Corydon about the year 1841. His family consisted of a wife and four children, viz.: Mariette, who married William Black ; Electa Ann, who married Braison Arthur ; Ly- man S. and James W., the latter being the only one of the family born in Corydon. James W. Merrihew was a farmer and lumberman, at which he was quite successful. He died in 1876. Lyman S. Merrihew married Eliza Crooks, daughter of John Crooks, by whom he had tln-ee children — Mary E., Ellen J., and Cynthia E. The success in life that Lyman S. Merrihew has attained is the result of his own personal eflbrt, as he had no capital with which to start in life. His farm contains sixty-four acres of land. Al- though a Republican in politics, he is an active worker in the cause of temperance and IS not bound by party ties when prohibition is an issue. Merritt, Judge Charles C, Enterprise p. o., Southwest, was born in Hanover, Chau- tauqua county, N. Y., April 3, 1836. He was a son of Thomas and Elizabeth (Jewett) Merritt. The parents settled in Deerfield township in 1855, where Elizabeth died, leav- ing a family of seven children. Thomas had by his first wife, Polly Wright, a family of twelve children, making nineteen in all, fourteen of whom are now living, and all are now filling prominent jjositions, members of the clergy, and holding State and county offices. Two of the sons served in the War of the Rebellion. Thomas Merritt was a soldier in the War of 1812. He was born in Connecticut and was married in Fabius, Onondaga county, N. Y., and after marriage settled in Chautauqua county, N. Y. Judge C. C. Merritt enlisted in Company F, One Hundred and Forty fifth Pennsyl- vania Regiment in August, 1862, and served to the close of the war ; he was promoted to sergeant and then to captain, under Colonel Hiram Brown, of Erie. He was wounded in two engagements and was taken prisoner and hekl for ten months at Andersonville. He has been justice of the peace for three terms, was elected judge in 1885, and has also held other prominent positions in his town. He is one of the leading men of his town and county. He was married in July, 1856, to Esther L. Hunter. They have had three ilaughters born to them — Lovisa, Lorinda, and Grace. ■ Esther L. was a Brief Personals. Ixix daughter of Robert and Lovisa (Manross) Hunter, and her grandparents were Robert and Betsey Hunter, who came from Ireland and settled here about 1795. Metzger, William H., Irvine p. o., Brokenstraw, was born in York county in 1834, and settled in Warren county in 1871, and with his brother, F. T. Metzger, erected the Revere House at Warren in 1872. They also ran in connection with this hotel the Irvine Hotel, until 1879, when William sold his interest to his brother and he embarked in the general mercantile business at Irvinton, where he now resides. He was post- master for six years, from 1872 to 1878, and was in the employ of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company from 1853 to 1864 as an engineer, and is now one of the oldest en- gineers of that road. He was a son of John and Maria (Gardner) Metzger. John was born in Philadelphia in 1789, and Maria was born in Maryland in 1805. They were married in York county in 1 83 1. He died in 1856. Six children are now living. Will- iam H. Metzger was married in 187 1 to E. B. Allbright, of Westmoreland county, who was born in 1832. They have a family of three children — Edgar, Charles, and Bessie. The children of the parents now Uving are William H., Margaret, Frank T., Thomas E., George W., and Ella. Miles, Joseph, Spring Creek p. o., was born in Spring Creek in 1825. He is a farmer and manufacturer of shingles, and owns a farm of thirty acres. He married Cordelia Odell, of Dunkirk, N. Y. They have a family of six children — Lucinda, La Fayette, Patterson, Henry Marquis, William Ernest, Frank Laton. Joseph was a son of Solo- mon Miles, who was born in Massachusetts, and served in the War of the Revolution, and settled in Warren county in 1814, and cleared a large farm there. He died in 1862. He married Betsey Crane, of Connecticut, who died in 1836, leaving a large family, four of whom are now living — Calvin, William, Joseph, and Delila. Miller, Robert E., Lander p. o., Farmington, is a merchant and was born in Troy, N. Y., July 13. 1839. He was a son of Robert and Jeanette (Todd) Miller; the former was a native of Ireland, and his wife of Scotland. They settled in Farmington in 1834, on the farm now owned by J. H. Miller, which they cleared and improved and upon which they resided for many years. They had a family of seven children — James, who was killed at the battle of Peach Tree Creek, Ga., during the late war; Jane, Mrs. George Cramer; Rachel, Mrs W. B. West; John, deceased; William, Robert E., and Joseph H. Robert E. was brought up in Farmington ; educated at the public schools of Meadville and Jamestown; was a successful teacher for nine years ; entered the law office of Johnson & Brown in Warren, as a student, in the spring of 1862, but like many others left his studies to enlist as second sergeant in Company F, Pennsylvania Volun- teers, and was honorably discharged. He has been director of the schools of his town for twelve years. Giaduated in the C. L. S. C. class of 1883, and has always led the advance in all educational enterprises in Farmington. He entered the mercantile busi- ness at Lander in 1865, a business which he has successfully conducted up to the pres- ent time. He was elected treasurer of Warren county in 1874, serving a term of three years, and is now serving his fourth year as justice of the peace in Farmington. He was married September 10, 1868 to ^lartha A., a daughter of George and Emily (Fos- ter) Ewers, who were among the early settlers of Farmington. They have had a family of four children born to them — Grant E., Emma J., Robert J., and Hugh E. Mix, Ashbel R., Landers p. o., Farmington, was born in what is now known as Farmington, March 22, 1842. He was a son of Horace and Sybil (Rowley) Mix. He was reared in Farmington, and was in the late War of the Rebellion, enlisting in 1861 in Company F, Ninth New York Cavalry. He participated in the second battle of Bull Run, battles of the AVilderness, Gettysburg, and was through the Potomac campaign on the Potomac, and Sheridan's raid to Richmond, and the battles in the Shenandoah Val- ley. He was honorably discharged after three years service. He and his brother Hor- ace bought a saw-mill in 1865, on Jackson Run, which in 1868 was burnt down. They immediately rebuilt the mill, and he sold his interest to his brother Horace Mix, and after that engaged in farming until 1883, when he built a saw, planing, and grist-mill at Farmington Center, with Elmer Hodge, and since January i, 1885, he has been sole proprietor. Mr. Mix was married in 1864 to Sallie Cooper, of Farmington. They have Ixx History of Warren County. had a familv of three children bora to them — Luvern, drowned at the outlet of Chau- tauqua Lake, Jamestown, N. Y., September lo. 1885 ; Emmett, born August 13. 1870; Delbert, born in 1S83, and died of pneumonia Marcb 26, 1884. Mrs. Mix was a daugh- ter of Abigail and Harvey Cooper. Her mother, Mrs. Cooper, died June 23, 1886, very suddenly, with blood poisoning caused by the overflow of the gall, at Chautauqua, N. Y. She was brought to Farmington for burial June 25, 1886. She was born April 10, 1825, and was the oldest daughter of Peter Burgett. She married Harvey Cooper in 1842. She practiced medicine for many years and was very successful. Her name stands on record at the Prothonotary's office at Warren. Morgan, A. T., Lottsville p. o., Freehold, was born in Chenango county, N. Y., in 1829, and settled in Warren county in 1845. He was married in 1862 to Mary Mathews, who died in 1867, leaving one child — Effie E., who is now teaching at Columbus In 187 1 he again married Mrs. Ann Maria Mathews, by whom also he had one child — Marion. Mr. Morgan is a shoemaker by trade, but now gives his entire attention to farming. He has been town collector and constable for a number of years. His father, Sanford Morgan, married Elizabeth Newton and died in 1849. Morian, Thomas V. S., Enterprise, p. o., Southwest, a general merchant, lumber man- ufacturer, and shipper, oil dealer and producer, was born in Danville, Steuben county, N. Y., in 1819. He was married in 1842 to Clarinda Wood, of Pomfret, Cattaraugus county, N. Y. They have had a family of three sons and one daughter born to them — Eva, Carlos C, Herbert T., and Ell B. Thomas V. S. Morian came here in 1845 as a clerk in the branch store of C. Smith, and in 1847 he built his present store, and be- came engaged in the general mercantile trade. He retired from his lumber business in i860, and then became engaged in the oil business, producing and shipping the same. He was an expert and successful river pilot, and did a large shipping business in oil from Oil City to Pittsburgh. He was a son of Jacob and Lydia (Van Scoter) Morian. His parents died in Chautauqua county. Jacob died in 1S62, and Lydia. his wife, in 1869. They had a family of nine children born to them, seven of whom are now liv-" ing. Jacob was born in Germany in March, 1782, and settled in Philadelphia, and then went to Steuben county, N. Y. He served in the War of 1812. He settled with his family in Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1830, where he died. His children now liv- ing are — Anthony, John, Margaret, Thomas, Lydia, and Catherine. Morrison, Hugh, Tidioute, p. o., Deerfield, was born in Venango county in 1819. He was a son of Thomas and Elizabeth (Hunter) Morrison, who had a family of ten children born to them, four of whom are now living — Hugh, Robert H., Elizabeth, and Lsabella. His second wife was Margaret Hunter, by whom he had a family of four children, three of whom are now living — Nathan P., Matthew J., and Margaret M. The parents settled in Deerfield in 1832. His second wife, Margaret, died in 1878. Thomas was in the War of 181 2, and was a prominent man of his town. He was also an extensive farmer and lumberman. Hugh Morrison married Martha McGuire, of Tidioute, m 1844; she died December 17, 1851. leaving a family of three children — Adclia, Samuel J., and Thomas Edson. Hugh then married his second wife, Jane P. Holeman, of Venango county, was born in 1827, and married in 1853. He has had one son by his second marriage — Ashbel Wilson. Mrs. Morrison was a daughter of Alexander Holeman. Hugh has been school director, road commissioner, and is now engaged in farming. One of the earliest of the old pioneer families of Warren county was that of James Morrison, a soldier of the Revolutionary War. The family came to that part of the county on which Warren borough now stands, when only three log huts marked the place. They built a log house near the old fort, where the family stayed until 1804, when they moved to Kinzua. At the latter place one of the sons of James Morrison, Abel Morrison, who was born in Lycoming county, August 3, 1795, married Lucinda Richards, a daughter of James Richards, and in the fall of 1827 moved to Corydon. Lucinda Richards was born in Lisle, Broome county, N. Y., January 23, 1801. The children of this marriage were Nancy, born January 15, 1819, married first Amos Flatt, who died, and second, John B. Carr. who was killed during the late war; John Brief Personals. Ixxi AVesley, born July 15, 1820, died August 16, 1825; Alanson G., born February 21, 1832, married January 24, 1846, to Ann E. Enos; Fanny, born January 15, 1824, mar- ried September 8, 1841, to E. R. Covell, and died December 14, 1881 ; James R., born April 10, 1826 ; Martha, born May 9, 1828, being the first white female child born in Corydon, married Jarvis L. Forbes ; Flavius Josephus, born September 23, 1832, mar- ried December 18, 1856, to Sarah E. Bradley; Ellen J., born January 16, 1835, mar- ried Henry E. Converse, April 27, 1851, and died October 11, 1871; Adeline, born March 15, 1837, married Robert M. Patterson; William Henry, born March 8, 1841. Abel Morrison was an extensive lumberman and farmer, and in every respect a self- made man. He died Christmas day, 1874. His widow, Lucinda, still occupies the old family residence with her son, William H., who is the voungest child. Lucinda Morrison possesses a remarkable memory. Every name and date given above was furnished by her entirely from memory, and a subsequent comparison with the family record disclosed not a single error. Indeed, so wonderfully does she retain dates and events of earlier days that she is a standard authority on all questions arising concerning them, and she has yet to be found in error. She is now in her eighty-sixth year. Of her children, three — Alanson G., James R., and William H. — were soldiers in the late war. Three of her sons-in-law, and three of her grandsons, also served in the army. This certainly shows that patriotism runs in the family. James R. Morrison married February 13, to Sarah F. Walker. Morrison, Rice, Corydon, was born in Lycoming county December 11, 1798. He carne with the family of his father, James Morrison, and settled in Warren in the year 1801. In this family were eleven children, and all of them grew to be men and women. Rice was the oldest child; became to Kinzua and built a mill about the year 1817. He was married in 1822 to Dolly Richards. Their children were Eliza Ann, deceased ; Abigail, who married Windsor Knapp, both of whom are now dead; Maria L., de- ceased; Warren L., Helen A., Cynthia E., who married Charles Sparks. Warren L. and Helen reside in Corydon village with their aged mother, now in her eighty-fourth year. Rice Morrison died March 20, 1884, in the eighty-sixth year of his age. For many years he was a pilot on the Allegheny River. He was also an extensive lumber- man. In politics he was a radical Democrat. His wife, Dolly Richards, was born in Lisle, Broome county, N. Y., September 26, 1802. Morton, Charles, Spring Creek, was born in Poland, Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1844. He was a son of Stutely and Abigail (Howe) Morton. Abigail died in 1859, aged thirty-nine years. She left a family of twelve children, nine of whom are now living. Charles Morton enlisted in 1864. at Cold Spring, Cattaraugus county, N. Y., in the 9th N. Y. Cavalry, and settled in Warren county in 1865. He married Flora Clark, of Spartanburg, by whom he had one child — Philip Sheridan. He now owns a large saw and planing-mill. Morton, Dexter, Spring Creek, was born in Orangeville, Wyoming county, N. Y., in 1829. He was a son of Samuel and Sarah (Wyman) Morton. Samuel was born in Massachusetts in 1786, and served in the War of 1812. He died in Spring Creek in 1868, and his wife Sarah was born in 1791, and died in 1882, leaving a family of nine children, seven of whom are now living. Dexter Morton married Harriet Jobes in 1850. She died in 1852 leaving two children, both of whom are now dead. Mr. Morton mar- ried his second wife, Louisa Jackson, in 1854. She died in 187 1 leaving a family of three children — Elovine, Fayette, and Ehvin D. He was married the third time in 1871, to Mary McCray, and to them have been born two children — William and Mayola. He is a farmer, and owns and occupies a farm of ito acres. Morton, William H., West Spring Creek p. o., was born in West Spring Creek in 1848, and married in 1880 Sarah Jcnks, who was born in Spring Creek in 1862. He was a son of Harrison and Eliza (Matteson) .Morton. The former was born in Niagara county, N. Y., in 1812, and the latter in Herkimer county, N. Y., in 1809, and died in 1862, leaving three children — Laura A., Harriet J., and William H. He owns a farm of fifty acres. Mowris, Thomas, AA'arren p. o., Glade. Peter Mowris with his wife and six children Ixxii History of Warren County. came to Warren county in June, 1842, from Ulster county, N. Y. These children were William, Thomas, Benjamin, Sarah, Phebe, and John. Peter Mowris died in 1881, and his wife in 1886. Thomas Mowris, the second child, resides on a farm on the Cone- wango River in Glade, a few miles north from Warren. He married Amy Luckins, daughter of Isaac Luckins. They have no children. Thomas Mowris is a substantial farmer, having 130 acres of land well located. He has lived in Glade since 1865. Mr. M. has never taken an active part in politics, nor is he identified with any church society. Mudge, E. W., West Spring Creek p. o., was born in Otsego county, N. Y., in 1822. He. was a school teacher for a number of years, and has held the office of county audi- tor and ai)])raiser. He married Edna L. Morse, of Orleans county, N. Y. They have had one child born to them, Elmer E. E. W. Mudge was a son of Israel and Rebecca (Thomas) Mudge. Israel was born in Otsego county, N. Y., in 1794, and died in 1878. They had a family of seven children born to them, six of whom are now living. One of their sons, Henry A., was in Company I, One Hundred and Fiftieth Regiment, and was killed at the battle of Gettysburg. Murphy, James, Conewango p. o., is a farmer, and was born in Wayne county, on May I, 1835. He was a son of Patrick and Elizabeth (Halligan) Murphy. His father was a native of county Kildare, Ireland, and his mother a native of county Armagh. They were early settlers in Wayne county, where they resided until the time of their deaths. James Murphy was reared in Wayne county and came to Warren county in 1872. After coming here he worked in the woods at lumbering for some years. He settled in Conewango in 1882, on the farm on which^he now resides. He was married in 1871 to Helen Egan, and to them have been born eight children — Mary, Celia, Will- iam, James, Margaret, Edward, John, and Thomas. Helen Murphy w^as a daughter of James and Mary A. (Carroll) Egan, of Wayne county. Mr. Murphy and his wife are members of the Catholic Church. He is independent in politics. Murray, George K., Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, a general jeweler, fancy goods dealer, and practical watchmaker, settled in Youngsville, January, 1886, and now deals in a full line of plated and silver ware, and has a tine assortment of stationery and fancy goods, and carries a full line of fine cigars. He was married in 1885 to Mollie Wood. George K. Murray was a son of W. A. and Mary A. (Kleckner) Murray, of Logansville, Clinton county, who now reside in Milton. She was born in 1822, and her husband, W. A., was born in 1824. They have had a family of nine children. W. A. Murray is a farmer, lumberman, and is also engaged in the tanning, furniture, and distilling business. Murray, jr., Thomas, Columbus, is a general farmer and cooper. He was born in county Merritt, Ireland, in 1831, and is a son of Thomas and Ann Colwell Murray. Thomas, sr., died in Ireland, leaving a widow and two sons — Philip and Thomas, jr. His widow married Thomas Kenan ; they immigrated to America and settled in Oneida county, N. Y., where she died. They had a family of eight children. Thomas Murray, jr., settled in Warren county in 1864, and in 1867 married Emily Trussler, born in Eng- land, in 1832. They have two sons — William R. and Philip F. Mr. Murray purchased his present homestead of ninety five acres in 1876, and erected his dwelling and other buildings. Myers, M. A., West Spring Creek p. o., was born in Panama, Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1 86 1, and is a son of Clark A., and Elsie Jane (Stevens) Myers, both of Oneida county, N. Y. Clark A., was born in 1836. They had three children — George W., M. A., and Lettie B. M. A. has held the office of town clerk, and keeps a large and well- stocked general store ; he is proprietor of a handle and shingle-mill, and deals extensively in lumber. Newman, William Davis, Fentonville (N. Y.) p. o., was born .^pril t8, 1821, in Niagara county, N. Y. During infancy he was adopted by a family and taken to Ellery, N. Y. ; thence to Frew Run, and in 1856 to Pine Grove. He married Matilda Stoddard, and by her had five children — Josephine, Nettie, James M., Ellen, and Jen- nie. Mr. Newman is strictly a self-made man, and in reasonably comfortable circum- stances. His farm is well located in the north part of the town. He is a Republican from choice, but not a member of any church society. 13 Brief Personals. Ixxiii Neyhart, Adnah, was born in Lansing, Tompkins county, N. Y., December 20, 1836, and was married in 1868 to Maria J. Grandin, of Tidioute. They have had two chil- dren born to them- -Emma Grandin and Adnah, jr. Mr. Neyhart settled in Warren county in 1865, and died in San Diego, Cal., in February, 1875. Mrs. Neyhart was a daughter of Samuel and Sarah Ann (Henry) Grandin, who were married in Pennsylvania in 1832. Sarah Ann was born in October, 1807, and her husband Samuel was born in Sussex county, N. J., in October, 1800. They were married in 1832, and settled in Pennsylvania ni June, 1822. They had a family of six children born to them, four of whom are now living — John L., William J., Elijah B., and Maria J. Stephen G., the oldest son, was drowned July 24, 1851, at the age of sixteen years, and Emma A. died August 17, 1867, at the age of eighteen years. Samuel Grandin settled in Tidioute in 1S40, coming here from Venango county, and embarked in an extensive lumber and mercantile business. He was also one of the pioneers in the oil business, in all its various forms, and of which he made a great success. Nichols, C. W., Spring Creek, was born in Spring Creek in 1849. He is a manu- facturer of lumber and shingles, and a farmer, owns several hundred acres of timber land, and has done very much to advance the business interests of the town. He was mar- ried in 1876 to Mary A. Catlin. They have had four children born to them — Helen, Irene, Rue, and Bessie. His father, Calvin Nichols, was born in Genesee county, N. Y., in 1822, and married Irene Sanford, who was born in Batavia, Genesee county, N. Y., in 1827. They had a family of six children born to them — C. W., Mary, Flora, Orley, Etta, and Dewey. C. W.'s paternal grandfather, Samuel Nichols, was born in New Hampshire in 1794, and served in the War of 1812. He married S. Townsind, and to them were born nine children, five of whom are now livmg — Nancy, Calvin, Ira, Ratio, and Clarissa. Nobbs, William C, Lander p. o., Farmington, is a farmer, carpenter and joiner, and was born at the Isle of Wight, England, December 16, 1835. He was a son of William and Mary (Lakeman) Nobbs, who immigrated to Canada in 1842, and settled in Pine Grove, this county, in the same year. William Nobbs, sr., was a basket-maker by trade, which he followed for many years. He located in Farmington in 1861, where he re- sided until his death, in 1884. His children were — Mary, Phillips, Ann, Marsh, Will- iam C, Stephen, and Jennette. William C. Nobbs is a carpenter and joiner by trade, a business which he followed for many years. In 1886 he purchased the James Cooper farm in Farmington and engaged in farming where he now resides. He was married July 4, 1861, to Betsey Marsh, a daughter of Aralzeman and Rachel (Grawbarger) Marsh, of Elk township. They have had a family of four children born to them — Irene, Myrtle, Emma, and Everett. Offerle, Jacob, Warren p. o.. Glade, was born in Alsace, France, on February 21, 1825. He was drafted in the French army under Louis Philippe, but did no service. He came to this country in September, 1846, and settled in Warren. He learned the trade of carriage-making, a trade which he worked at for twenty-eight years, his shop being on the west side of Conewango. In 1876 he built the greenhouses near his resi- dence, and has since then engaged in the florist business. Recently, however, he sold this business to Charles G. Offerle, his son, and the business is now managed by him. Jacob Offerle married Maria Spengler, by whom he had a familv of seven children — Daniel, Jacob B., Mary M., Salona A., Louisa, Charles G., and Philip H. Offerle, Adam, Warren p. o., was born in Alsace, France, February 20, 1842. He was a son of Jacob and Salome (Yaegle) Offerle, who settled in Pleasant township in 1855. In 1865 he removed to Illinois, and died there. They had a family of three children — Adam, Jacob, and Adolph. Adam Offerle has been a resident of Warren county since 1855. He was married in 1876 to Elizabeth Zeigler, a daughter of Will- iam Zeigler, of Warren. They have had a family of four children born to them — Mar- garet S., Ada E., Ethel C, and Merton A. O'Gorman, Michael, Sugar Grove, was born in Limerick, Ireland, in 1830. He was a son of Michael and Ellen Hedderman O'Gorman, who died in Ireland. One sis- Ixxiv History of Warren County. ter — Mary — and two brothers — Michael and Dennis — came to America. Michael set- tled in Sugar Grove in 1856, having married, in 1855, Mary O'Hearn, who died June 18, 1885. They adopted a child, of Swedish parentage — William — who has become a celebrated teacher, and who married Ida Thorp in 1878. Michael purchased his home- stead of seventy-six acres in 1858. His brother — Dennis — died leaving one daughter — Ellen — who now resides with her uncle Michael. Osgood, James T., Warren p. o., Sheffield, was bom in Rockingham county, N. H., in the year 1808. At the age of twenty-two years he came to Elk township and was married in 1832 to Jane Cole (a daughter of Jacob Cole), by whom he had eleven chil- dren, eight of whom lived to be men and women. Mr. Osgood's occupation through life has been that of a shoemaker, and for the last thirty-two years he has held the office of justice of the peace of the town of Sheffield, in which town he has resided for thirty- eight years. He has never amassed a fortune but has always lived comfortably. In political life he has always been a Whig and Republican. Packard, Mrs. Olive A., Spring Creek, was born in Garland, Warren county, in 1842. She was a daughter of Elias and Margaret (McCue) Miller. Her father Elias Miller died in 1864, aged forty -six years. Olive B. was married in 1861 to Uri Jack- son, who died leaving one daughter. She married her second husband, Marshall Pack- ard in 1873. He is a farmer and a manufacturer of broom handles, and all kinds of apiarian supplies. Parker, Charles, Lander p. o., Farmington, is a farmer and was born in what is now known as Farmington, February 19, 1834. He was a son of Laten and Maria (Thomp- son) Parker. The former was a native of Connecticut and the latter was born in Pough- keepsie, Dutchess county, N. Y. They settled in Farmington in 1831 on the farm which is now owned by Sylvester Clark, and later on the farm which is now owned and occupied by S. H. Parker, which they cleared and improved and upon which they re- sided until the time of their deaths. They had a family of six children, who grew to maturity — Charles, John, Henry, Hiram, Louisa, and Almon, who was born October 7, 1847, died November 6, 1849. Charles Parker located on the farm he now owns and occupies in 1855, all of which he has cleared and improved himself He has been married twice. His first wife was Sarah J. King, a daughter of Lorenzo and Eliza (Bly) King, of Farmington, by whom he had two children — Sumner H. and Ramah C. His second wife was Olive Clark, a daughter of John D. and Polly (Hollenbeck) Clark, of Farmington. Patchen, William F., Spring Creek, was born in Cayuga county, N. Y., in 1827. He is a farmer and now owns and occupies a farm of sixty-five acres. He was a son of Noah and Sarah (Jenney) Patchen. Noah served in the War of 1812. He was a carpenter and builder by trade and died in 1836. William F. Patchen married Mary Ann Jobs in 1851, and to them have been born six children, five of whom are now liv- ing — Almeda C., Amelia M. (who was accidentally shot and killed at the age of fifteen years), Z. D., William L., Adella May, Sadie A. Patchen, Francis P., Matthew's Run p. o., was born in Sugar Grove, and is a son of Aaron D. and Polly Pierce Patchen. Aaron was born in Onondaga county, N. Y., and Polly was from Busti, N. Y. They were married in 1840; setded the same year in Sugar Grove, and had a family of eight children — Stephen L., Francis Pulaski, Lemuel E., Aaron I)., Mary A., Sybil P., Clarissa F., and Polly Mildred. Aaron was a son of Zebulon and Polly Cohoon Patchen of Greenbush, Washington county, N. Y. Fran- cis P. Patciien married, in 1S70, Harriet Mattison, of Sugar Grove. She was a daugh- ter of Thomas and Emeline Hale Mattison — he of Kingsbury, N. Y., and she of Chau- tauqua county, N. Y.; they were married in 1845, and had but one daughter — Harriet. Mr. and Mrs. F. P. Patchen have one son — Frank Merrels. Mr. P. is a general farmer, and is school director. Patcli, Perry, Irvinton p. o., Brokenstraw, was born in Brokenstraw township in 1846. In 1874 he married Mary L. Houghton, daughter of Warren Houghton, of Hornellsville, N. Y. ; they have two children — Rex L. and Vinnie M. Perry was a son of Alonzo and Sarah Patch, wlio had three children — Levy, Perry, and Elizabeth. Brief Personals. Ixxv Alonzo died in 1877, aged sixty-one years. Mary L. had one son by her first husband — George W. Patch. Perry Patch embarked in the stave, heading, shingle and sawed lumber business in 1878, under the firm name of Patch & Walter, and in 1882 the firm dissolved, Perry continuing the same business alone. Pearce, Mrs. Eliza M., of Columbus borough, was born in Jefferson county, N. Y., in 1823. She was a daughter of Luther P. and Gabrielle B. (Balmat) Mather. Gab- rielle was born in Paris, August 22, 1791, and came to America with her parents in 1797, and died January 15, 1881. She was best known by her second name; she went about among the sick, and was familiarly known as " Aunt Bridget." Luther was born in Bennington, Vt., and died in June, 1842. They were married at Wilna, Jefferson county, N. Y., in i8ri, and settled in Columbus borough in 1825, where Luther built a custom mill in 1826. He purchased his land and built a saw-mill in 1824, one year before his family settled here. They had a family of six children born to them, five of whom are now living — Harriet, Jedediah P., Joseph V., Eliza M., and Arvilla. The mill which was first built by Luther is now owned by a Mr. Francis, and was the first mill built in the township. Luther was a well-known and prominent man m his town and county. Eliza was married in 1842 to Loren Pearce, who was born in Madison county, N. Y., in 1815. They had one daughter born to them — Ellen — who died in 1864, and one adopted son — Charles R. P. — who married and died, leaving one son. Loren Pearce died in 1880. Li early life he was a carpenter and builder, but in later life he became engaged in farming. Peck, David B., Lander p. o., Farmington, is a farmer, and was born in what is now Farmington, March i, 1839. He was a son of Samuel and Clarissa (Knapp) Peck, who setded on Thompson's Hill, Farmington township, about 1832, and in 1842 they settled on the farm which is now owned and occupied by David B. Peck. They built a log house on the same, and cleared and improved it. Their children were George W. (who died while in the service of the Union during the late War of the Re- bellion), Emily (now Mrs. George Love), David B., and Comfort. David B. now re- sides on the old homestead. He was married in 1867 to Myra White, a daughter of Orange and Nancy (Robbing) White, of Farmington. They have had a family of four children born to them — Ina D., Clara B., Lizzie J., and Samuel G. Mr. Peck has served one term as county auditor, and in politics he is a Republican. Perry, Jason A., Enterprise p. o.. Southwest township, was born in Southwest, July 4, 1 83 1. He was a son of Warner and Sarah (Sumner) Perry, who were natives of Woodstock, Conn. They were married and settled in Enterprise in 1824. They had a family of six children born to them, two of whom are now living — Hiram and Jason. AVarner was county commissioner in 1844, was justice of the peace for many years, and also postmaster. He was an early lumber manufacturer, and died in 1863. Warner Perry built and carried on the first hotel in Enterprise, in 1846. It was burned in 1870. Jason A. was married in 1852 to Angeline Dunham. She died in 1880, leaving a widower and a family of four children — Harriet, George C, Herbert R., and Clara E. Jason A. has held many of the offices of the town. He was assessor for eleven years, and has also been deputy sheriff" and constable. Peterson, Charles, Chandler's Valley p. o.. Sugar Grove, was born in Sweden in 1 81 7. His father was Peter, his military name, given him by the king when he became a soldier being Proset. Charles married in 1842 Anna Louise Fredrickson, who was born in 1S20. They immigrated to America in 1852; they have a family of three chil- dren — Matilda, born in 1843; Christina, born in 1846; and John A., born in 1849. John enlisted in 1864, aged fifteen years, and served to the close of the war. Matilda married Jedd Darrow, and Christina married Morris Southwick. Charles worked for Mr. Sherman at farm work for six years, and in i86i purchased his present homestead of fifty acres, which he has cleared. Peterson, C. O., Sugar Grove p. o., Freehold, was born in Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1855, and settled in Warren county in 1864. He married Minnie Buckstrand, who was born in Sweden. They had a family of two children born to them — Jennie Annette, and Amelia. Mr. Peterson is a large and prosperous farmer. His father, Ixxvi ' History of Warren County. Andrew P. Peterson, was born in Sweden, and came to America in 1852 and settled in Chautauqua county, N. Y. He had a family of eight children, six of whom are now living. Peterson, John, Chandler's Valley p. o., Sugar Grove, is a farmer, and was born in Sweden, in 1820. He was a son of Peter and Mary Peterson. John married in 1847 Sarah Johnson, who was born in Sweden in 1819. With two children they immigrated to America in 1852. They were fourteen weeks on the passage, during which one of their children — Adolph — died and was buried at sea. They have four children living — Matilda, Oscar, Christina, and Janet ; Albert died, aged sixteen years. Mr. Peterson purchased his present farm of sixty acres in 1858. then a timber lot, but now one of the best farms in the town. Janet Peterson married William Hagrain ; and Matilda married John Gunn. Phillips, Lorenzo D., Lander p. o., Farmington, is a farmer, and was born in Farm- ington. April 22, 1831. He was a son of Levi and Phebe (Marsh) Phillips. His pater- nal grandfather. Squire Phillips, was a native of Vermont, and a pioneer of Pine Grove, and later of Farmington, where he resided until his death. He settled on the farm which is now owned and occupied by Alexander Houghwoht, and cleared and improved it. He had a family of twelve children — Sally, Elisha, Loren, Darius, Lucy, Jonathan, Lydia, Levi, Anna, Maria. Elijah, and Albert. His maternal grandfather was Hugh Marsh, a native of New Jersey, who settled in Farmington, in 1798. Levi Phillips, father of Lorenzo D. Phillips, began life in Pine Grove, lived on the Houghwoht farm for a time in Farmington, and later removed to the farm which is now occupied by the Stan- tons. He cleared and improved the latter and resided on it the greater part of his life- time. He had a family of ten children — Hiram L., Nancy, Rachel (deceased), Lorenzo D., Alonzo L, Pierson C., Mary Jane, Andrew, Phebe Ann, and Daniel W. Lorenzo D. always resided in Farmington. He was married in 1862 to Malvina Hudson, a daugh- ter of William and Olive (Badger) Hudson, of Pine Grove. They have had a family of two children born to them — Herbert L. and Milton L. He settled on the farm which he now owns and occupies in 1865, and erected all of the present buildings. The farm was originally settled by Hugh Marsh. Phillips, Willis B., Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, was born in Youngsville in 1858, and was married in September, 1883. to Minnie S. Martin, of Jamestown, N. Y. They have two sons — Jesse W. and Willis Glen. Willis B. Phillips embarked in the manu- facture of harness, and deals in all horse and carriage furniture, giving employment to one or two hands the year around. He turns out from handwork the best of goods, as his sam];les will show. His business was organized in 1869, he becoming successor to his brother, J. D. Phillips. He is a son of Jesse B. and Mary Ann (Turner) Phillips. She was born in Saratoga county, N. Y., in 1822, and died in April, 18S5 ; her husband was born m Genoa, Cayuga county, N. Y., in 1809. He was a son of Buel and Eunice (Belknap) Phillips. Jesse and Mary Ann had a family of six children, three of whom are now living— James D., Alma E. (married W. P. Nutting), and Willis B. ; An- drew J., Erne.st H., and West S., being dead. Jesse B. Phillips settled in Brokenstraw in 1828, as a farmer and lumberman, which business he followed until 1865, when he retired, only looking after the interests of his farm. His jjarents were natives of New England. Pier, William, Dugall p. o., Pittsfield, was born in Harmony, Chautauqua county* N. Y., in 1855, and was married April 12, 1879, to Matilda Howard, of Pittsfield. They have had two children born to them— Calvin and Jerome. He was a son of Calvin and Eliza (Hitchcock) Pier. Eliza was born in Harmony. N. Y., and died September 17, 1867, and her husband was born in 1821, and died' November 12, 1884. They left a family of four children— Ada (married Roland Brundage), Minerva (who married Henry Ford), Betsey (who is now Mrs. Charles Haupin), and \\"illiam. His paternal grand- father, Oliver Pier, was an early settler in Chautaucjua county, N. Y., and was a great trapijer and hunter. He killed one thousand three hundred and twenty-two deer, and the bounty which he received for wolves killed was five hundred dolla January, 1885, at the advanced age of ninetv-one years. I Brief Personals. ■ Ixxvii Pierce, ist, Levi, Sanford p. o., was born in Washington county, N. Y., in 1824. He settled in Warren county in 1837, and married Julia A. Main, of Eldred, in 1854. They have eight children — Bertania, Lucretia, Albert B., Ellen E., Julia A., John Jeremiah, Levi J., Jackson, and Luttice A. His father, John L., was born in New Hampshire in 1790, and married Clarissa Bartholomew, who was a niece of General Huntington, of the Revolution; she was born in 1789, and died in 1866; he died in 1863. They had six children, three of whom are now living — Daniel L., Levi, and John — all residents of Warren county. Pierce, Levi, Sanford p. o., was born in Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1830, and set- tled in Warren county in 1882. He married Sarah E. Wright, of Chautauqua county, N. Y., and they have two children — William and Mary. His father, Luther, was born in New Hampshire in 1800, settled in Pennsylvania in 1828, and married Ardelia Wol- cott, of Massachusetts. He died in 1854, and she in 187 1. They left three children — Levi, Polly, and Ezra. Levi served in the late war. His business is farming and lum- bering, he owning a farm of 100 acres. Levi's son William married Elmira Wilcox, of Crawford county ; they have one child — Ardelia. Place, Thomas J., Sheffield, was born in Tioga county, in the year 1829, and at the age of twenty-one years he came to Sheffield. After a residence of three years here he returned to Tioga, where he remained for about two years. He then came to Claren- don, where he lived until about eight years ago, when he moved to the northeast part of Sheffield. He married Laura S. Whitcomb, by whom he has had the following chil- dren : Alice, VVilliam, Frank, Lucy, Lettie, Thomas, J. P., Nora, Luther, Mary, Robert, and Lorinda. Lettie and Luther are now deceased. His farm, comprising thirty-two acres, was a part of the tract formerly owned by Warren Snapp. The life of Thomas J. Place has been spent In farming and lumbering, in which he has met with a fair meas- ure of success. Four good oil wells are now on the farm, and others are to be put down. Pratt, Linus H., Sugar Grove p. o., was born in Windham, Greene county, N. Y., in 1810. He came to Sugar Grove May 7, 1831, and in 1837 married Julia Catlin, who Avas born in Ontario, Genesee county, N. Y., in 1814. They have had a family of five children — Edgar R., Lucy E., Marshall S., Florence, and one who died at an early age. Florence, the only one now living, married James Martin. Linus H. Pratt was a son of John B. and Hannah Steadman Pratt, who settled in Sugar Grove in 1833 with a fam- ity of four children — L. H., Lucina (Mrs. Clark), now living, and Mary and Solomon, deceased. Mrs. Julia Pratt was a daughter of Henry and Sally Pratt Catlin. He was from Conway, Mass., and she came from Kingsbury, N. Y.; they were married in On- tario county, N. Y., January 3, 1810, and had a family of twelve children, four of whom — Julia, James, Clarissa, and Henry — are now living. He was born in 1785 and died in 1845 ; she was born in 1790 and died in 1861. They settled in Sugar Grove in i8i6. Linus H. Pratt purchased his homestead and built his first log-house in 1834. Mr. and Mrs. Pratt will long be remembered by the rising generation for their courteous manner to all. Porter, Abraham V., Warren, was born in Reading, Steuben county, X. Y., on Oc- tober 28, 1810, and came to Warren county in 1831, and assisted in building the first stone jail in Warren. He settled in Conewango with his mother in 1832, on the farm he now owns and occupies, all of which he has cleared and improved himself The log- cabin in which he first resided is still standing. He was a son of Robert and Nellie (Houglitaliiig) Porter. He was married in 1836 to Margaret Snyder, who was a daugh- ter of William and Hannah Snyder, of Glade township. They have had a family of thirteen children born to them, nine of whom have grown to maturity — Maria, Sarah, Alice, Emma J., John W., Norman, William, Delia, and Belle. William now resides on the homestead and carries on the farm. He was married on October 16, 1882, to Mag- gie Brown, a daughter of Alexander Brown, of Glade township. They have had one child born to them — Clyde. Porter, John W., Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Conewango, on February 14, 1843. He was a son of Abraham V. and Margaret (Snyder) Porter. His father Ixxviii History of Warren County. settled in Conewango, on the farm he now occupies, in 1832. John W. Porter has al- ways resided in Conewango. He was married in 1866 to Caroline Gross. They now have five children living — George, Wesley, Maggie, Susie, and Catherine. Mr. Porter settled on the farm on which he now resides in 1872, and cleared and improved it himself. Porterfield, Robert .\ustin, Tidioute p. o.. Glade, was born in Venango county, in 1833. He was a son of R. G. and Lucy D. (Lyon) Porterfield. Lucy was born in Bos- ton, Mass., and her husband, R. G., was born in Pennsylvania. They were married in Ohio. R. G. died in Venango county at the age of seventy-seven years ; Lucy is now living at the advanced age of eighty-two years. They had a family of nine children born to them, seven of whom are now living. One of their sons, John, enlisted in the Fourth Regiment Cavalry, Pennsylvania Volunteers, and served for four years, and was dis- charged at the close of the war. Robert A. Porterfield was married in 1854, to Mar- garet Truby. They settled in Tidioute in 1864, and have had a family of si.\ children born to them — Clara R., Louis C, Martin T., Willard M., Frank D., and Anna B. Clara R. married D. VV. Clark, jr., and Louis C. married Hattie Clark. Robert A. is a carpenter and builder. Pratt, Adam L., Sheffield. Among the early pioneers of Sheffield came Adam L. Pratt, a native of Hector, Schuyler county, N. Y. He first came to this town in the spring of 1832. in company with Richard Dunham and his family. They built a mill on Tionesta Creek, near Dunham's Point. Adam was thrice married; his first wife was Martha Stanton, who bore him one child, Martha A., now Mrs. William Slocum, who now resides in Michigan. After the death of his first wife he married Miranda Spencer by whom he had two sons — Horace R., and Deforest S., both of whom were killed in the late war. His third wife was Betsey Palmer, by whom he had a family of six chil- dren — Edward K., Clarence H., John A., Anson L., Edith A., and Joseph H. Adam Pratt commenced life as a poor boy, having no capital except health and strength, but with these powerful factors has always kept pace with the advance of years, and now lives comfortably, surrounded by family and friends. Proper, L. M., Grand Valley p. o., was born in Wyoming county in 1842, and set- tled in Warren county in i860. He married Mary J. Emerson, of Erie county, and to them were born nine children, eight of whom are now living — Alta S., Minnie A., Alice A., Mary A., Hattie L., Lilly B., Frederick, George (deceased), and Ray. Mr. Proper owns a farm of one hundred and fifty acres; he is also largely interested in oil. He has held the offices of road commissioner, mercantile appraiser, and is now assessor. His father, Zachariah Proper, was born in Wyoming county, N. Y., in 1819, and died in 1877. His wife was Rhoda Brown, of the same county, who died in 1866, leaving a family of six children. Putnam, Perry B., Lander p. o., Farmington, is a farmer and was born in Erie county, N. Y., August 8, 1829. He was a son of Daniel and Betsey (Barrett) Putnam; his paternal grandfather was Jesse Putnam, who with two sons, Daniel and Edson, set- tled in what is now Farmington in 1830. Daniel settled on the farm which is now owned by A. Hinsdale, a part of which he cleared and improved, and afterwards re- moved to Pine Grove township, two miles east of where he first setded, and resided there until his death. His children were Angeline, Sidney, Mary (deceased). Perry B., Sarah (deceased), Almira, Theodore L., Manly T. (deceased), and Nancy, who grew to maturity. Perry B. Putnam was brought up in Farmington, and settled in Eldred township in 1851, and in 1865 he again returned to Farmington, and setded on the farm which he now occupies. He was married January i, 1859, to Margaret, a daugh- ter of James and Jane (White) McCray, and a granddaughter of one of the first settlers of Brokenstraw. Mr. Putnam has a family of four children — Mrs. Clara (now Mrs. Herbert White), Grant, Jennie, and Leroy. Quillian, Charles P., Chandler's Valley p. o., Sugar Grove, was born in Ohio in 1851. In 1S80 he married Sylvia Durham, daughter of J. R. and Lavina Durham, born in Cambridge, Crawford county. They have two children. Mr. Quillian is engaged in creamery butter manufacture ; he superintended the erection of the Sugar Grove, or Brief Personals. Chandler's Valley creamer)' in 1885, at a cost of $1,600. His parents were Hugh and Elizabeth Kelley Quillian, of Ohio ; they were born and married in the Isle of Wight — he born in 1801 and she in 1808. They settled in this country in 1837, and have had a family of eight children — John, Esther, Ann, William, Mary, Eliza, Sophronia, and Charles P. William enlisted in Company I, First Ohio Light Artillery, and served three years. Raymond, Harry D., Columbus, was born in Sherburne, N. Y., in 1830. He was a son of Fitch and Electa (Brown) Raymond, who were born and married in Connect- icut and died in Columbus, where they settled in 1836. They had a family often chil- dren born to them, eight of whom are now living — Ruhama, Delia, Laura, Harry D., Mary, Lizzie, Lyman, and Addie. The father. Fitch, died in 1853, and the mother. Electa, died in 1859. Harry D. Raymond was married in 1855 to Mary E. Spencer, of Chenango county, N. Y., where she was born in 1826. They have had two daugh- ters born to them — Sallie E. and Alice. Miss Alice is a music teacher, and Sally E. married Frank Howard. Mary E. Spencer was a daughter of Israel and Sally (Web- ster) Spencer, who were born and married in Connecticut, and settled in Chenango county, N. Y., and in 1826 they settled in Columbus. Raymond, jr.. Sears H., Columbus, was born in Columbus on June ig, 1836. He was a son of Sears S. Raymond and Caroline (Eagles) Raymond, who were born in Columbus, Chenango county, N. Y., and family of two children, settled in Columbus, Pa., in 1820. They had a family of eleven children, nine of whom are now living. Sears S. died in 1873, and his wife Caroline died in 185 1. Sears S. was a county commissioner, a farmer and a large stock dealer. He was a son of Zacheus and Sarah Raymond, and had a family of six children, two of whom are now living — Harvey and Enoch. Sears H. Raymond, jr., was married in 1861 to Ellen Woods, of Fredonia, N. Y. They have had a family of three children born to them — Bertha, who married C. N. Dood ; Addie, who married M. A. Day. Mrs. Ellen was a daughter of Lester Woods, who settled in Columbus, Pa., in 1858. Rickerson, L. B., Spring Creek, was born in Columbus in 1841, and settled in Spring Creek in 1880. He is a carpenter and builder by trade, but is now engaged in the manufacture of carriages apd blacksmithing. He was married in 1861 to Sarah Yager, who was born in Erie county in 1842. They have had a family of seven children — five living — Frank L., Nelson E., Dora L., Cora B., and Daniel O., and Oren and Willey (deceased). Mr. L. B. Rickerson was ordained minister at the Christian convention in 1876, and is now a preacher. He was a son of Oltha N. and Adelia (Brown) Rickerson. Rieg, Jacob J., Warren p. o.. Pleasant, is a farmer and was born in Alsace, France, January 28, 1834. He was a son of George and Salome (Frietch) Rieg, who settled in Warren in 1847, where they still reside. They had a family of five children — Jacob J., George, Hattie, Salome, and Aurelia. Jacob J. Rieg settled in Glade township in 1859, clearing and improving a farm there,'upon which he resided until 1882, when he located in Pleasant, on the farm which he now owns and occupies. He was married in 1859 to Elizabeth Seigrist, a daughter of Andrew and Barbara (Lenhart) Seigrist, by whom he has had a family of eight children — Albert, Isabel, Lorena, Helena, Andrew, Fred, Edwin, and Ella. Ridelsperger, David, Stoneham p. o.. Mead, is a farmer, lumberman, and oil pro- ducer, and was born in Alsace, France, December 11, 1827. He was a son of David and Catherine (Farney) Ridelsperger. He came to Mead township in 1841, and came into possession of the farm which he now owns and occupies in 1854, most of which he has cleared and upon which he has made all of the improvements in buildings. His homestead now consists of sixty-five acres, though he has several tracts of about four hundred acres in all ; was engaged in lumber business twenty-nine years, and since 1880 he has been actively engaged in the oil business. He was married June 13, 1850, to Mary Leonhart, a daughter of Philip and Mary (Leonhart) Leonhart, who were natives of Warren. They had a family of seven children born to them — William D., Leonora, Frank G., Louis M., Belle, Henry P:, and Lena. Ixxx History of Warren County. Robinson, O. A., East Branch p. o., Eldred, was born in Lower Canada in 1834. He is a farmer and owns eighty acres. He married Mary A. McCray, of Pittsfield, War- ren county, who died on February 25, 1865, leaving a family of two chidren — Dennie Clyde, born December 24, 1863, and died April 25, 1865, and Joey McCray, born February 23, 1865, and died September i, 1865. He was married for the second time in 1870 to Mary A. Immicke, of Spring Creek. She was born in 185 1 and died January 19, 1884. They had a family of seven children, four of whom are now living — Roena H.,born May 26, 1872; Catherine M., born .'August 10, 1873 ; Patty I., August 3, 1878; Amanda M., September 4, 1880; and Orange B., born September 8, 1875, died 1876; Leona M., born June, 1877, died October, 1877; Melissa G., born .\ugust 16, 1882, died May 7, 1883. His father. Chase R. Robinson, was born in New Hampshire in 1791, and died in 1865. His mother was Rowena Abell, why was born in Vermont in 1801 and died in 1879. Root, Elijah, Sugar Grove, is one of the successful farmers and business men of Sugar Grove. He was born August g, 1838, and was a son of Lyman and Almira (Hodges) Root. She was born in Jefferson county, N. Y. He was born in Saratoga county, N. Y. They were married in Camden, Oneida county, N. Y., in 1831, and they settled in Sugar Grove in 1837, where Mrs. Root died in 1847, and her husband in 1857. They had a family of four children born to them — Lyman jr., Mary, Elijah, and Maria. Maria died leaving one son — Elbert Simmons. Elijah married Cynthia Beardsley, of Orleans County, N. Y., December 15, 1869. They have had one son born to them — Fred Beardsley, born October 10, 1870. Cynthia was a daughter of Allen and Sallie (Hickey) Beardsley. Mr. Root is now a retired farmer. Root, Perry, Corydon, was born in Bradford August 10, 1824, and at the age of si.x years came to Kinzua, where he lived with the family of .\ndrew Merritt until 1848, when he came to Corydon. He operated and owned the saw-mill at Corydon village until 1859. Since this time he has devoted himself to agriculture, having a fine farm of two hundred acres in the north part of the town. Mr. Root married Anna Whitcomb, by whom he had one child — Merritt. For his second wife he married Celia Mc- Laughlin, who also bore him one child — Anna. Perry Root came to Warren county a poor boy, and by industry and energy he has placed himself above want. He is a consistent Democrat in political life, but takes no active part in the political affairs of the town. Daniel J. Root, brother of Perry, came to Corydon in 1858, and occupies a farm near his brother, near the New York State line. Roper, William, Cornplanter p. o.. Elk, and his wife, Hannah Eutetia (Turner) Roper, and their three children — James, Eliza, and Hannah Eutetia, all of whom were born in England, came to Elk in the year 1832. William died in January, 1879, Eliza (married first Simon Sneider, and after his death, John O. Rollins), Hannah E. (married Alanson Dewey), and James married Elsie Jane, a daughter of William S. Marsh, by whom he had a family of three children. James Roper commenced life with no capital, but built up a fortune by industry and economy. He helped his parents in their declining years. His farm consists of 180 acres nicely located on the .Allegheny. He also owns the Kinzua House at Kinzua. In politics Mr. Roper is a Republican, and takes considerable interest in town affairs. Rowe, Henry L., Columbus, was born in Freehold in 1826. He was marrieci in 1848 to Maria Monroe, a daughter of O. L. and Ann L. iMonroe, who was born in 1827. They had three children — Charles E., born 1856 ; Fred M., born in 1861, and Florence E., born in 1852. Henry L. Rowe was engaged in farming in early life, and in 1867 settled in Columbus, and engaged in the mercantile business in 1878, built a steam flour-mill, and in 1879 he retired from active life. He was a son of P'.dmund and Rachel (Hayes) Rowe, who were born and married in Greene county, N. Y. He was born in 1801, and his wife in 1799. They were married in 1822, and settled in Free- hold in 1823. Rachel died in 1869, leaving two children — Henry L. and Maria (now Mrs. Chadwick). Edmund Rowe was a son of William and Rebecca Rowe, who set- tled in Freehold in 1824. They were born and married in Dutchess county, N. Y., and I Brief Personals. had a famil}' of eight children born to them, five of" whom are now Hving — Orrin, Gil- bert, John, Sally, and Edmund. Rowe, John, Bear Lake p. o.^ Freehold, was a son of William Rowe, who was born in Dutchess county, N. Y., in 1778, and was married in 1800 to Rebecca Dunham. They had a family of eight children born to them, five of whom are now living — Ed- mund, Albert, deceased; Henry, deceased; Sally, Mile, deceased; John, Orrin, and Gilbert. William Rowe died in 1857, and his wife, Rebecca, died in 1849. John , Rowe married Bedora Beals, of Warren county. He is now a retired farmer, and has held almost all of the important offices of the town. Rowland, Samuel, Warren p. o.. Glade, was born at Ellery, Chautauqua county, N. Y., October 25, 1817, and was one of a family of six children, sons and daughters, of Jacob Rowland. Samuel began life on the farm and received at that time only a com- mon school education, but he endeavored then to acquire such knowledge as would fit him for the ministry, which he entered in the year 1858 as a Congregational minister. In 1842 he married Sarah B. Cowan, a daughter of Robert Cowan, who bore him four children, viz. — John C, Mary, Lineas M., and Abbie. They also had one child by adoption — Irvine Cowan Rowland. Rev. Samuel Rowland first preached at Frews- burgh, N. Y., and has since officiated as pastor at Farmington, Spring Creek, Pittsfield, Garland, Fentonville, Gouldtown, Stoneham, Clarendon, Tiona, and Glade respectively. The latter three now being his pastoral charges. For the last two years Mr. Rowland has been a resident of Glade. Rowley, Merritt B., Sugar Grove, was born in Sugar Grove in 185 1, and was mar- ried in 1873 to Emma Ricker, a daughter of Stephen and Julia Ann (Hubbard) Ricker, and by her has had one daughter — Margaret D. Mr. Rowley was first engaged in farming and stock growing. In 1884 he became engaged in the market and butcher business at the borough. Mr. Rowley was a son of Mark and Abigail (Johnson) Row- ley. His parents were born in Farmington. His father was born in 1820, and died in 1854, leaving a widow and two children, Mary and Merritt B. Mark was a son of Benzley Rowley. Rowley, Levy H., Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, was born in Massachusetts in 1824, and was a son of Solomon and Pleadus (Henry) Rowley. She was born in Mas- sachusetts, and her husband, Solomon, was born in Connecticut. They settled in Brok- enstraw in 1S38, where he died in 1866, and his wife in 1875. They had a family of nine children, six of whom are now living — Fanny M., Joanna, Lucy, Sarah S., Levy H., and Louisa. Levy H. Rowley became a successor to the homestead farm, which was purchased in 1838, and became a farmer and lumberman, and has been school di- rector for fifteen years, and held other minor town and district offices. He was married in 1862 to Eliza Black, of Venango county, who was born in 1838. They have had three children, two now living — Willie and Bertie. Eliza was a daughter of Thomas and Eliza Ann Black. Roy, James, Warren p. o.. Glade, was born in the town of Phelps, Ontario county, N. Y., September 14, 1822 ; he is of Scottish descent. His grandfather, Coll Roy, came from Scotland in the year 1749. He setded in Phelps, Ontario county, N. Y., and was a blacksmith by trade. To Coll and Elizabeth, his wife, were born seven children, of whom Andrew, the father of the subject of this sketch, was the fourth child ; he followed the life of a farmer and served in the War of 1812. In the year 1809 he married Mar- garet Ray, by whom he had a family of five children, James being the fourth child. When James was seven years of age, his father died, and in 1836 he, with his mother, came to Elk township, Warren county. At the age of sixteen he was thrown upon his own resources. He prospered reasonably in all his undertakings, was exten- sively engaged in the manufacture of lumber, and later in life he became engaged in the oil business as a producer. In 185 1 he married Sophia Shattuck, a daughter of William and Maria Shattuck, by whom he had a family of seven children — Helen M., Margaret, Franc, James, jr., John, Blanche, and Josephine A. Sophia (Shattuck) Roy died in 1867. Mr. Roy now resides in Glade, and occupies a beautiful residence on the banks Ixxxii History of Warren County. of the Conewango. Politically he has been a Republican, Democrat, and Greenbacker successively. He ran on the Greenback and Democratic tickets as a candidate for the office of county commissioner, and was elected. Mr. Roy has never been identified with any church society. Ruhlman, Daniel, Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Strasburg, Alsace, France, on November i, 1841. He was a son of Andrew and Saloma (Rugel) Ruhlman, who came to America in 1844, and settled in North East township, Erie county, where they lived until 1850, after which they removed to Warren county, where his father engaged in the brewing business, which he followed for one year. He suddenly disappeared and has not been heard from since. He had a family of two children — Andrew and Dan- iel. Daniel settled on the farm which he now occupies in 1869, all of which he has cleared and improved himself, owning now in all about 378 acres, fifty of which are all cleared and improved. He was married in 1862 to Mary A. Somers. They have had eleven children born to them — Cora M., Charles A., Sumner D., May B., Orange D., Blanche S., Ray W , Florence J., Cloyd G., Merl, and Hyett. His wife, Mary A., was a daughter of Wendell and Margaret (Schuler) Somers, of Conewango. Ruland, Michael W., Scofield p. o.. Southwest, was born in Deerfield in 1842. He was married in 1879 to Elizabeth Bevier, who was born in 1841. They have had a family of three children born to them — Nathan E., Margaret M., and one child who died in infancy. Elizabeth was a daughter of Elijah and Leah Bevier, who were natives of Ulster county, N. Y., and settled in Southwest in 1844. They had a family of four children born to them, but two of whom are now living — Elizabeth (born in 1841), and Simon J. (born in 1850). Leah was born in 1866, and her husband was born in 18 — and died in 1884. He was a son of Simon Bevier, who came to Southwest and settled with his family, and there purchased one thousand acres from the Holland Land Com- pany. He died in Southwest, and after his death his widow and children returned to Cayuga county, N. Y., and Elijah was the only child who again settled in Southwest. Michael W. Ruland was a son of Silas and Eliza Ruland, who settled in Warren county about 1820. They had a family of twelve children born to them, six of whom are now living — Huldah C, William P., Charles, Michael W., Byron, and Mary C. The parents emigrated from Long Island and settled here in 18 — , and engaged in the lumber busi- ness and farming. Silas was born in 1796 and died in 1878, and his wife was born in 1809. Michael enlisted and served in the late war, after which he was honorably dsi- charged. Russell, Robert, Russell p. o.. Pine Grove, was a native of Ireland, who immigrated to America and settled in Pine Grove many years ago; in fact he was one of its earliest pioneers. He was twice married. By his first wife he had four sons and three daugh- ters. John Russell was a son of the first marriage. He married three times. His first wife was a Miss Jones. His second wife was Sarah Jane Van Duzen, by whom he had ■seven children, viz. — David R. P. (born October 9, 1838, died September 24, 1S43), T. A. Emmett (born November 14, 1840), Harvey T. R. (born April 3, 1843), John (born August 8, 1845), Ella Isadore (born November 3, 1847), Eliza Jane, and Carl K. His third wife was Mary Penfield, of Chautauqua county, N. Y. John Russell kept the hotel at Russellburg for many years. He moved to Warren in 1861, and lived there until 1865, when he died. His son Harvey is the leading merchant at Russell, having been engaged in business there for thirteen years, all of which time he has been post- master at that place. Mr. Russell enlisted as private in Company K, Twelfth Pennsyl- vania Cavalry, serving three years, and by several promotions gained the rank of first lieutenant. Harvey Russell married Flora J. Houghwot, of Farmington. Sampson, Willis G., McGraw p. o.. Triumph, was born in Auburn, O., in 1843. He was a son of S. H. and Mary B. Sampson. He was a graduate of Geauga Seminary, ■0., where Garfield was educated. He enlisted in Company D. Eighty-eighth Ohio, and served in the late war. He settled in Pennsylvania, in the city of Titusville, in 1865, and in 1866 he went to Pithole, where he was engaged in the production of oil, and also engaged in the same business in several different localities. He was married in 1872 to Elizabeth Patterson, of Rochester, N. Y. He settled in Triumph, operating Brief Personals. Ixxxiii in his own interest, and has held the general superintendency of Edwin E. Clapp's large oil interest of Triumph from 1876, a lot of 417 acres, having put down sixty-one wells, and is now pumping forty-seven wells with three boilers and eight hands, and producing eighteen hundred barrels per month. Samuelson, Samuel A., Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Sweden, March 18, 1841. He was a son of Lars and Christiana (Petersen) Samuelson, who settled in Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1851, and in Sugar Grove in 1861, where they now re- side. They had a family of eight children — John P., Samuel A., Alfred, Ida, David and Matilda (twins), Albertine, and Sarah. Samuel A. Samuelson was in the late War of the Rebellion, enlisting in 1861 in Company F, Ninth New York Cavalry; served one year, and was discharged on account of disability; he re-enlisted in 1863 in the One Hundred and Fifty-first Pennsylvania Volunteers; was in the battles of Chancel- lorsville, Gettysburg, and also in other engagements ; was slightly wounded at Gettys- burg, and honorably discharged in 1864. He was married in 1866 to Mary S. Endin- ger, a daughter of Casper and Mary S. (Zimmerlin) Endinger, natives of Alsace, France, who settled in Conewango in 1840, and in 1857 they settled on the farm now occupied by Samuel A. They had a family of three children — George and Mathis (deceased), and Mary (wife of Samuel A.) Samuel A. has a family of three children — Albert, Ma- tilda, and Conway L. Samuel Samuelson settled on the Endinger farm in 1866, where he has since resided. Sanford, Joel G., Sanford p. o., Eldred, was born in Batavia, N. Y., in 1824, and settled in Warren county in 1838. He is engaged in lumbering and farming and now owns a farm of 144 acres. He now holds the othce of postmaster, and has been justice of the peace, assessor, commissioner, and held many other minor offices. He was mar- ried in 185 1 to Nancy A. Moore, of Garland, Warren county. They have had five children born to them — Myron S., Ida I. (deceased), Mary J., Washington A., and Irene E. His father, Samuel W. B. Sanford, was born in Connecticut in 1798. He married Esther H. Green, of Onondaga county, N. Y. They had a family of four chil- dren born to them — Joel G., Nancy I., Orland, and W. S. (deceased). Sanford, O., Sanford p. o., Eldred, was born in Genesee county, N. Y., in 1833, and settled in Warren county in 1838. He is a farmer, and now owns a farm of 143 acres. He was married in 1875 to Mrs. Hannah Hayes, of Sugar Grove. They have had two children born to them — Oma May, and Leroy (deceased). His father, Samuel W. B. Sanford, was born in Connecticut in 1798, and married Esther H. Green, of Onondaga county, N. Y. They had a family of four children — Joel G., Nancy I., Orland, and W. S. (deceased). Schramling, Charles H., Columbus, one of the successful and prominent farmers of the county, was born in Oneonta, Otsego county, N. Y., in 1834. He was married in in 1856 to Mary King, who was born in Erie county. They have had a family of three children born to them — Isadore E., Charles E., and Leland M. Isadore E. married F. W. Knowlton in 1878. They have had one son born to them ; Charles E. married Fanny Manwarren in April, 1881 ; and Leland M. married Ethel Hapgood in August, 1885. His homestead farm of two hundred acres is one of the best in the county, and he also owns and has large interest in lands in New York State. He was a son of Da- vied D. and Catharine Schramling. Schramling, De Loss, Columbus, was born in Otsego county, N. Y. He was a son of David D. and Catharine Schramling, who were natives of Oneonta, Otsego county, N. Y., and settled in Columbus in 1836, with a family of five children, and had eleven born to them, nine of whom are now living, seven sons and two daughters. De Loss Schramling was born in 1836. He was married in July, i860, to Phebe King, who was born in Erie county in 1841. They have had a family of three children born to them — William A., Edwin O., and Bertha A. William A. married Alice Owles. Phebe (King) Schramling was a daughter of William and Cynthia A. King, of Erie county. Schramling, Sylvester, Columbus, was born in Oneonta, Otsego county, N. Y., May 23, 1830. He was a son of David D. and Catharine Schramling, who were born and married in Otsego county, N. Y., and with a family of five children settled in Columbus Ixxxiv History of Warren County. in 1836. They had a family of eleven children born to them in all, nine of whom are now living — Alvin, Sylvester, Hiram, Charles H., De Loss, Orrin, Frank, Mary, and Sarah. 'l"he mother, Catharine, died in July, 1863, aged tifty-seven years. David D. Schramling was born in 1805. Alvin enlisted and vi^as appointed lieutenant, raised a company in Ohio, and served to the close of the war David D. retired from his farm in 1875. Sylvester Schramling was married in 1857 to Mary Jane Smith, a daughter of David and Adaline (Robbins) Smith. David was born in Chenango county, N. Y., in 1804, and his wife Adaline in Charlton, Mass., in 1807, and married in Columbus in 1831. They had a family of seven children, five of whom are now living — Mary Jane, Elvira C, Harriet E., William W., and George M. Sylvester has been town treasurer for six years, and held several other minor town and district offices. He is also a gen- eral farmer. Schirck, Michael, Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Alsace, France, on Decem- ber 27, 1823. He was a son of Jacob and Margaret (Kiselbright) Schirck, who came to America in 1834, and settled in Conewango on the farm which is now occupied by Michael Schirck. They had a family of four children — Jacob, Margaret, Michael, and Magdalena. Michael now occupies and owns the old homestead which he asssisted his father in clearing and improving, and where he has resided for fifty-two years. He was married twice ; his first wife was Mary Conrad (a daughter of Michael and Mary Con- rad, of Warren) and by whom he had seven children — Mary, Magdalena, Saloma, Isa- bel, Frank, Carrie, and George. His second wife was Mary T. Kopp (a daughter of Jacob and Elizabeth Kopp, of Erie county, N. Y.), and by whom he had two children — Matilda and Bertha. Schuler, Mathias, Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Alsace, France, on Sep- tember 22, 1818. He was a son of Mathias and Catherine (Hardwick) Schuler, who came to America in 1836, and settled in Warren in 1839, on the farm now occupied by Mathias, jr. They had a family of four children — Catherine, Mathias, Philip, and Mary. Mathias, jr. cleared the farm on which he now resides and where he has lived for forty- seven years. He was married in 1841 to Nancy McBradney. They have had five children born to them — Adam, Sarah A., Mary C, Eunice, and Lydia R. Mrs. Schuler was a daughter of John McBradney, who was a native of Ireland. Scott, August, Sugar Grove, is a merchant tailor and cloth dealer, and was born in Sweden August 13, 1834, and was married December 19, 1858, to Anna Carrie, by whom he has had a family of three children. They immigrated to America in 1871, and settled in Sugar Grove, and soon commenced his tailoring business, with a cash sum of tlie small amount of two dollars, and by constant labor and constant attention to his business he has made a financial success of his business, owning now a block of two stores, and other real estate. His wife Anna died December 16, 1884. Seabury, Dr. W. W., Sugar Grove p. o., physician and surgeon, was born in Sugar Grove in 1852. He was a graduate of Wooster University of Cleveland, O., in 1875, and in the same year settled in the practice of his profession in Sugar Grove borough. His professional services are liighly appreciated. June 10, 1S85, he married Ida Davis, of Erie county. Dr. Seabury was a son of Newell and Julia (Foster) Seabury. She was born in Pennsylvania, and he in Monroe county, N. Y., in 1826, and settled with his parents in Busti, Chautauqua county in 1830. Seaver, Dr. R. N., Columbus, a physician and surgeon, was born at Charlotte, Chau- tauqua county, N. Y., in 1847. He received his education at Ellington and Randolph Academies and Allegheny College. He read medicine with Dr. T. B. Lashells, of Meadville, and was graduated from the medical department of Wooster University, at Cleveland, O., in 1874, after which he located in Columbus, where he has since resided, and now enjoys a large practice as a physician and surgeon. He was married in May, i88i, to Nellie Bracken, of Columbus. He has been burgess of the borougli, and also held other offices. The doctor was one of the five originators of the Equitable Aid Union, which was organized March 22, 1879, and of which lie was made chief medical examiner, and afterwards su])reme president. The organization now consists of twenty thousand members, Dr. Seaver filling the responsible positions of supreme president and Brief Personals. Ixxxv supreme medical examiner. Dr. R. N. Seaver was a son of Randolph and Matilda (Fox) Seaver. Randolph was born in 1806, on his present homestead farm, where he has always resided. His wife, Matilda, died in i88i, leaving a family of seven children, five of whom are now living — Julia, Caroline, Corydon, Minnie, and Dr. R. N. Seaver. Randolph was a son of Robert Wellington Seaver, who was a soldier in the Revolution- iiry War. Seigrist, Philip, Conewango, is a farmer, and was born in Alsace, France, on No- vember 18, 1826. He was a son of John P. and Salome (Strubler) Seigrist, who settled in Warren in 1833, and in 1834 removed to Conewango and settled on the farm now owned and occupied by Philip, which they cleared and improved themselves. They had three children who came to this country — Philip, John C, and Catherine S. (now Mrs. J. C. Weiler). Mrs. Seigrist was a member of the Evangelist Church of Warren for twenty-six years, and was also one of the original members. He died on July 2, i860, in the sixty-eighth year of his age. At the death of his father, Philip came into possession of the homestead, where he has resided since 1834. He has been married twice; his first wife was Sophia Shomass. His second wife was Saloma Felleman, who was a daughter of John and Dorothea (Gosser) Felleman, who settled in Conewango in 1841. They have had two children born to them — Elmer and Dora. Mr. Seigrist and his wife are members of the Evangelical Church. Among the pioneer families of Warren county was that of Walter Semen. They came from Susquehanna county probably about 1812, and setried on the west side of the Al- legheny River, in Elk township. There were two sets of children, Mr. Semen having been twice married — Phebe, Anna, and George, were children of his first marriage, and Susanna, Polly, Rebecca, Laura, John, Sally Ann, Phebe, Charles, Lorinda, Dimmock, and Melinda, were born of his second marriage. The family subsequently came to that part of Corydon known as Sugar Run, where many of their descendants still reside. William Wooster, another pioneer, married Rebecca Semen, and by him had six chil- dren — Mary, John, Elizabeth, Grace, Eliza, and Julia. William Wooster came to this county nearly sixty years ago. His age is now seventy-two years, and his wife, Re- becca, is sixty-two. Shaw, Frank P., Tidioute p. o., is the freight and ticket agent of the B., N. Y., and P. Railroad, and also agent of the American Express Company. He commenced as assistant in 1880, and in May, 1884, he was promoted to general agent of the office. He was educated in the Tidioute Graded School. In 1880 he married Eva A. Colt- man ; they have had two children — Marian L. and Archie C. Mr. Shaw commenced his business life in 1877 as a clerk. He is a son of Hugh S. and Maria (Akin) Shaw. She was born in Venango county. Shippee, Cyrus E., Columbus, was born in Columbus in 1847. He was a son of Peter and Annis (Humphrey) Shippee. Annis was born in Onondaga county, N. Y., in 1809, and her husband, Peter, was born in Massachusetts, in 1799. They were married at Attica, N. Y., in 1826, and settled in Columbus in 1829. They had a family of five children born to them — William, born in 1830; Elijah H., born in 1826; Charles R., born in 1839; and Cyrus E., born in 1847. Elijah H. enlisted on August 28, 1864, Company G, Forty-ninth N. Y. Regiment, and was shot at the battle of Spottsylvania Court-House, on May 12, 1864. Peter Shippee, the father, died on December 16, 1875. Cyrus E. Shippee married Elva Humphreys, who was born in 1850, and married on Au- gust 17, 1873. They have had a family of two sons born to them, and also one daugh- ter — Ernest E., Paul G., and Lena F. Elva (Humphreys) Shippee was a daughter of Reuben and Rebecca Humphreys. Shutt. Adam, Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Conewango on May 7, 1825. He was a son of Adam and Mary (Stein) Shutt. His paternal grandfather was William Shutt, a pioneer lumberman of Brokenstraw township. He was formerly a farmer in Philadelphia, but sold his farm there and invested his means in the lumber business in Warren. He died while on a business trip to Louisville, Ky. Adam Shutt, sr., was a pioneer and early settler in the township of Brokenstraw. He lived for a time in Con- ewango, and cleared the farm now owned and occupied by J. M. Jackson, but later in Ixxxvi History of Warren County. life returned to Brokenstraw, where he resided until the time of his death, which occur- red at the age of forty-seven years. He had a family of nine children who grew to maturity — John, Elizabeth, Susan, Frederick, William, Adam, Jacob, Mary, and James. Adam Shutt, jr., has resided in Conewango far the past twenty-seven years, and resided on the farm which his son now occupies for twenty-three years, and on the one he now occupies for the last four years. He was married in 1853 to Sarah E. Watts. They have a family of three children — Kirk G., Orris J., and Etta M. Sarah E. Shutt was a daughter of Thomas and Susan (Barrett) Watts, of Jamestown, N. Y. Shutt, William G., Pittsfield, was born in Brokenstraw in 1823. He was a son of Adam and Mary (Stein) Shutt, who settled in Brokenstraw in 1815. Adam was born in Philadelphia, and was married there. He purchased a farm in Warren county, and died there in 1835. They had a family of nine children born to them, three of whom are now living — William G., Jacob D., and Adam. William G. was married in 1847 to Cordelia Ford. They have had a family of four children born to them — Alice, West, Eddie W., and Charles D. Alice was married in 1870 to A. R. Park, of Cincinnati, and died in 1879, leaving three children — Vivian, Ambrose, and Alice. Mr. Shutt has held several of the town and district offices, and was an early lumberman. He is now engaged in farming. Cordelia, his wife, was a daughter of Obadiah and Betsey (Hair) Ford. They had a family of eight children born to them, six of whom are now living — John C, Darius M., Margaret, Laura, Cordelia, Mansela, and William Vincent. Shutt, John, deceased, was born in Brokenstraw May 19, 181 6. He was a son of Adam and Mary (Stein) Shutt. He settled on the farm which is now occupied by his widow, in November, 1849, a part of which he cleared and improved, and where here- sided until the time of his death, which occurred on January 19, 1874. He was mar- ried on August 17, 1843, to Elizabeth Watts, a daughter of Thomas and Susan (Barrett) Watts, natives of England, who settled in Jamestown, N. Y., in 1853. They have had nine children born to them — Mary, Mrs. W. R. Teasdell, of Cincinnati ; Wallace, Susan, Mrs. A. Noble; Florence, Mrs. Slyvester Love; John, Rose, James, Leonard, and Roscoe. Siggins, 'Squire William Findley, Youngsville p. o., was born in Youngsville in 1822. He married, September 4, 1850, Edith D. Nelson, born in Busti, Chautauqua county, N. Y. "t'he have a family of three sons — Clarence. Ernest, and Frank Morris. Clar- ence is a graduate of the Randolph Institute; Ernest is a physician and surgeon — a graduate of Cincinnati Medical College in 1877 ; and F. Morris is a prescription and drug clerk. Mrs. Edith was a daughter of Normandus and Prudence (Bushnel) Nelson. They were born and married in Herkimer county, N. Y., and settled in Busti, N. Y., in January, 1823, where they died. 'Squire W. F. Siggins has held all of the town offices — school director twelve years, burgess two terms, justice of the peace two years, and other minor offices. He was a teacher for twenty years in early life, and taught the first graded school in Youngsville; he was postmaster under James K. Polk. He was en- gaged in the lumber business, but retired from active business in 1873. His wife, Edith, was also an early teacher. 'Squire William F. was a son of Hon. William and Polly (Wilson) Siggins. They were born in Ireland — he of Scotch and English parentage in 1789, and came to Center county in 1793, when his parents died. Hon. William and Polly married in 1812. He settled in Brokenstraw township in 1807, and after his mar- riage resided at Pithole until 1815, when he returned to Youngsville, where they died — he July 15, 1875. They had thirteen children, five of whom are now living. The youngest son, David R. P., enlisted in the iiith Pennsylvania Regiment, and was shot at Atlointa, the ball passing through a pocket bible in his pocket into his heart, produc- ing instant death ; the bible is now in the possession of 'Squire Siggins, and shows the blood stains from the wound. Judge William Siggins was a leading and influential man — justice of the peace many years, and side judge in 1842. He died in 1875. Smedley, Elijah, Sheffield, was born in Otsego county, N. Y., on November 9, 1808, and while a young man went to Chautauc[ua county, N. Y., where he lived for some time, and where he was married to Catherine Pickard, by whom he has had a family of five children, all of whom were born in Chautauqua county, N. Y. They are Lydia M., Brief Personals. Ixxxvii and Polly, who died in infancy ; Adam P., James, who died while in the army ; and an infant who died unnamed. The family came to Sheffield in October, 1845, and set- tled near the old " Lacey Mill " in the southern part of the town. Catherine Smedley died in June 19, 1850, and in June, 1852, Mr. Smedley married Phebe Snapp. Elijah died on August 5, 1883, aged seventy-four years. He was a Republican from the for- mation of the party, and his son, Adam P., has followed the paternal example. Adam P. was married in November, 1859, to Sarah Fenton, a daughter of Orrin Fenton. They have had a family of three children — Millard L., Orrin F., and Catherine E. Smith, Albert J., Columbus, was born in Columbus in 1849. He was married in 1884 to Lelie Walton, a daughter of Charles and Mary Walton. Albert J. Smith em- barked in the mercantile business at Columbus February 1, 1884, and did business under the firm name of Yates & Smith, who are large dealers in all staple goods, gro- ceries, dry goods, and farmer's supplies. Mr. Smith was a son of David O. and Emily (Walton) Smith. They had a family of six children born to them, four daughters and two sons, Albert J., and Robert. David O. Smith was a son of Elijah and Achsa Smith, who were natives of Chenango county, N. Y., and settled in this county about 1826. Smith, Chauncey, Youngsville, was born in Wethersfield, Conn., in 1809, and was married in 1834, to Mercy C. Mellen, of Dunkirk, N. Y. They had a family of five children — Sarah M., Alice S., Jennie S., Nellie W., and Mercy I. Chauncey Smith was the son of William Smith, who was a farmer at Wethersfield, Conn. In 1823 he came by stage to Dunkirk, N. Y., and went to work for his uncle, Walter J. Smith, and after a while became a partner. The firm later became Van Buren & Smith, Walter Smith retiring, and in 1839 ^^^- Smith came to Silver Creek, N. Y., where he became engaged in the banking business under the firm name of Oliver Lee & Co., and in 1841 he went to Jamestown, N. Y., there to act as teller in the bank. In 1844 he settled in Youngs- ville, where he became engaged in the general mercantile business from which he re- tired in 1 860, when he also retired from active business life, and died on December 10, 1886. Smith, David O., Columbus, is a retired farmer, and was born in Chenango county, N. Y., in 1815. He was married in 1840 to Sally Spencer, a daughter of Israel Spen- cer, of Columbus; she died in 1846, leaving one son — Oscar W., who enlisted from Chautauqua county, N. Y., and died at Camp Fenton. David O. Smith then married his second wife, Emily Walton, in December, 1848. They have had a family of seven children — Eda, Sarah, Lillian, Arta, Albert J., and Robert. One daughter — Winnie, died in December, 1883, aged nineteen years. Mr. Smith settled in Warren in 1826, with his parents, Elijah and Achsah Smith, of Chenango county, N. Y. Smith, Jones, Columbus, was born in Columbus, Chenango county, N. Y., in 1823, and was a son of Elijah and Achsah (Jones) Smith, natives of Massachusetts, who settled in Chenango county, N. Y., and then with a family of four children came to Columbus, Warren county, in 1825, one of the pioneers of said county, where they died. Elijah was born in 1793, and was an extensive land holder, lumber dealer, shipper, and farmer, and died in 1873. His wife, Achsah, was born in 1792, and died in 1S69. They had a family of five children, three of whom are now living — David O., Jones, and Mrs. Lucy Yates. Elijah was a justice of the peace and commissioner, and one of the leading men of his town and county. He retired from active business life in 1845. Jones Smith was married in 1850, to Amy Curtis, a daughter of Captain David Curtis. She died in i860, leaving four children — Jennie, Fremont, Lena and Lincoln. Mr. Smith then married for his second wife Sarah Jane Knowlton, in 1861. She died in 1864, leaving one son, Glennie E. Mr. Smith has held all the town offices, justice for twenty years, assessor, surveyor of county, and a farmer. He married for his third wife Julia A. Ely, of Rush- ford, Allegany county, N. Y., June 30, 1886. Smith, Rev. Perry E., Corry p. o., Pittsfield, was born in Warren in 185 1. He was a son of Nathan B. and Margaretta (Colver) Smith. She was a native of Warren county, and her husband, Nathan was born in Vermont. Rev. Perry E. Smith was mar- ried in 1883 to Jennie E. Dykstra, of Erie county, N. Y. They have had two children born to them. Jennie was a daughter of Squire John G. and Catherine (Stelsman) Ixxxviii History of Warren County. Dykstra, who were natives of Holland, and settled in Erie county, N. Y., in the town of Lancaster, in 1849. Smith, Walter J., Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Warren on February 12, 1833. He was a son of William and Polly (Mead) Smith. His father was a saddler by trade, and came to Warren about 1825, and worked at his trade for a time, after which he engaged in farming and lumbering. He is now living in Conewango. His children were Walter J., Wilson, Viola, Harriet, Joseph, Ellen, Dascom, D wight, and Jane. Three died in childhood. Walter J. was brought up in Warren and Conewango, and for many years was actively engaged in the lumber business. He settled on the farm on which he now resides in 1863. His wife was Irene Geer, a daughter of Benjamin and Narcissa (Stebbins) Geer, of Conewango. Walter J. Smith has had a family of five sons born to him — Charlie W., Benjamin O., Clyde C. Orrin L. died, aged nine years, and R. D. died in infancy. Smutz, Casper J., Russellburg p. o., Pine Grove, was born in Alsace, a province of France, in the year 1831. The family, consisting of his parents, brothers and sisters, immigrated to America and settled at Warren in 1852. The father, Jacob Smutz, died in 187 1. Casper made many ventures in the oil business during the early days, when this industry was in its youth, and at times was doing well, but as frequently was unsuc- cessful until at last he quit the business and bought a farm of R. K. Russell of about eighty acres in Pine Grove. As a farmer Mr. Smutz has been very successful, having one one of the best appointed farms in the town. Casper J. Smutz married Caroline Weiss, of Warren, in 1862, and has two daughters, viz. — Leonora and Ida Belle. Mr. Smutz is a respected farmer of Warren county, a firm Democrat, and numbers among his ac- quaintances the first men of the county. Smutz, John J., Sugar Grove, is a harness manufacturer and dealer in all classes of harnesses, robes, whips, blankets, fly-nets and dusters in Sugar Grove. He was born in Conewango in 1856, and spent eleven years at his trade as an apprentice and journey- man, and in 1883 he commenced the manufacture of goods in Sugar Grove, where his townsmen are invited to inspect his well made and easy-fitting goods. He was married July 6, 1879, to Sarah J. Austin, of Corry. Sarah w^as a daughter of John and Anna (Saddler) Austin. John Austin died in 1872, leaving a family of five children — James, Sarah, John, jr., Anna, Carrie, and Mary. J. J. Smutz was a son of Jacob and Catherine (Hertzel) Smutz. They were born in Elsas, France, and settled in Warren county, where they were married in 1853. They have had a family of six children born to them — Mary, John J., Salome, David, Albert, and Carrie. Snapp, Melchi, Tiona p. o., SheflSeld, was born in Cayuga county, N. Y., on Novem- ber 8, 1803. He settled in Warren county about 1830, just north of the present village of Sheffield. At the time of his death he was seventy-nine years of age. He was a thorough and successful farmer and lumberman, and by hard work acquired a good property. He died in October, 1882. He married Fanny Smith, and the children born to the union were, Phebe, who married Elijah Smedley, William married Mary O. Fair- field, a daughter of Walter Fairfield, and by whom he had five children — Gholson L., Frank H., Walter M., Otis F., Ethel Irma, Ida, married Samuel Smedley, Enos, Warren, Charles, deceased, John, Melchi, jr., deceased, Laura Janet, married Smith Burroughs, and Fauntley M. Somers, George H., Youngsville p. 0., Brokenstraw, a general blacksmith and mak- ing horseshoeing a specialty, also engaged in the manufacture and re[)air of wagons, carriages and sleighs, dealer in farm tools, mowers and reapers, was born in Conewango in 1853, and was married in 1875 to Alice Babcock. They had two children — Lettie and Clara. George H. Somers has held many of the village offices. He has been school director and commissioner. He commenced his trade in 1872, and in 1878 purchased his present shop and factory. He was a son of Wendle and Margaret (Schu- ler) Somers, who were natives of Germany, who setded in Warren county, wliere Wendle died in 1857 at the age of forty-two years, leaving a widow and a family of seven children — Mary, Salome, Elizabeth, Peter, George H., John, and Lena. Somers, Peter W., Warren p. o., Conewango, w^as born in Conewango on November Brief Personals. Ixxxix 8, 1 85 1. He was a son of Wendell and Margaret (Schuler) Somers. His paternal grandfather was Peter Somers, a native of Germany, who settled in Conewango about 1832 or 1836. He reared a family of five children — Charlotte, Peter, Frank, Wendell, and George ; of these Wendell cleared the farm now occupied by Peter W., where he resided for many years. He had a family of seven children — Mary, Saloma, Eliza- beth, Peter W., George, John, and Lena. Peter W. Somers was married in November, 1872, to Alwilda Babcock, a daughter of Almon and Mahala (Blexley) Babcock, of Conewango. They have had three children born to them — Harry, Belle, and Jenny. Peter W.'s maternal grandfather, John Schuler, was a native of Alsace, France, and an early settler in Conewango. He is now living aged ninety years. Speckman, George, North Warren p. o., Conewango, is a farmer, and was born in Baden, Germany, on April 8, 1836. He was a son of Peter and Monika (Hare) Speck- man, and came to America with his parents in 1851, and with them purchased the farm on which he now resides in Conewango in 1856, most of whicli he has cleared and im- proved himself His farm comprises eighty-five acres, of which about sixty acres has been improved. He was married on February 2, 1876, to Anna M. Earnhardt, daughter of Albert and Catherine (Arnt) Earnhardt, of Glade township, and by whom he has had a family of five children — Mary M., Anna K., Clara G., John J., and Alexander W. Mr. Speckman is one of the representative German farmers of Conewango. Spencer, Chauncey, Columbus, was born in Columbus, Chenango county, N. Y., in 1818. He was a son of Israel and Sally (Webster) Spencer, who were born and mar- ried in Connecticut, and settled in Columbus, Pa., in 1826, coming there from Colum- bus, N. Y. Sally died in 1839, aged fifty-nine years, leaving a family of ele\-en children, five of whom are now living — Israel, jr., Oliver, Chauncey, Erastus, and Mary, none of whom have Hved out of Warren county. Israel, sr., died in 1865, aged eighty-five. Chauncey Spencer was married in 1842 to Emily Monroe, of Freehold. She died in 1880, leaving one daughter — Ella, who married E. A. Allen, ex-sheriff" of Warren county, and have had two sons born to them — Eddie and Elton Allen. Chauncey was married the second time in 1882 to Fidelia Eoardman, of Needham, Wis. Mr. Spencer has been burgess of Columbus, school director, town commissioner and farmer. He was engaged in farming in Freehold from 1842 to 1880, after which he retired from active business life and settled in Columbus borough. Spencer, James (deceased), Columbus, was born in Columbus, Chenango county, N. Y., in 1824. He was married on May 6, 1855, to Eleanor Sample, who was born in 1837. They had a family of two sons born to them — Leon and Elmer. James Spencer died on April 26, 1886. He was a general farmer, and was a son of Israel and Sally (Webster) Spencer, who were born and married in Connecticut, and settled in Columbus, Pa., in 1826. Eleanor (Sample) Spencer was a daughter of Nathaniel and Hannah (Wynn) Sample. Nathaniel was born in Clarion county in 1804, and his wife, Hannah, was born in Genesee county, N. Y., in 1815. They were married in 1835, and had a family of fuur children born to them, two of whom are now living — Eleanor and Thomas W. Sally married Charles Rickerson, and died, leaving three children. George died in 1881, leaving two sons. Nathaniel Sample was a son of John and Eleanor Sample, who settled in Columbus about 1804 or 1805. Four of their children are now living — William, David, Martha, and Hannah. Spoon, Joshua, Columbus, was born in Oswego county, N. Y., in 1834. He was married in 1855 to Ann Eliza Aldricli, of Livingston county, N. Y. They have had a family of five children born to them, three of whom are now living — Maude, James, and Leon. Maude married E. P. Carrier. Joshua was collector of the town in 1885 and '86, and has also held many of the other minor offices. Joshua Spoon was a son of Peter and Sally (Hall) Spoon. He was born in Herkimer county, N. Y., in 1794, and his wife, Sally, was born in Chenango county, N. Y.,in 1802. They both died in 18S4. They had a family of five sons born to them — Simon, Nathan, Joshua, William, and James. James enlisted from Oswego county, N. Y.; was taken prisoner and died in Andersonville prison in 1864. Joshua settled in Warren county in 1852. Ann Eliza History of Warren County. was a daughter of Nathaniel and Sarah (Wynn) Aldrich. Sarah died in 1881, leaving two daughters. They settled here in 1840. Spoon, Simon P., Columbus p. o., was born in Oswego county in 1826. He married Marion Hall in September, 1856. They have a family of four children — Evered A., Ernest L., George A., and Kate M. Evered A. married Minnie Knowlton in 1884, and have one child — Ethel May. George H. married Jennie Inick in 1883, and have one child. Ernest married Edna Arters. Simon P. settled in Columbus in 1848, and engaged in farming. He vk'as a son of Peter and Sally Hall Spoon ; he was from Her- kimer county, N. Y., and was born in 1794 and died in 1884 ; she was from Chenango county, N. Y., and was born in 1802 and died in 1884. They had five sons, four of whom are now living — Simon P., Nathan, Joshua, and William. James enlisted from Oswego county, N. Y.; wSlS taken prisoner, and died in Andersonville prison in 1864. Mrs. Marion Spoon was a daughter of James Hall, who settled in Columbus in 1833. He was born in Connecticut in 1804, and was a son of Nathan and Abigail Hall, who settled in Madison county, N. Y., and died in Oswego county, N. Y. Stanford, Worthy, Busti, N. Y., p. o., Farmington, is a farmer and was born in Farming- ton October 4, 1845. He was a son of Horatio and Sarah E. (Mackress) Stanford, who were from Canastota, N. Y., and settled in what is now Farmington in 1832, on the farm now occupied by Worthy, which they cleared and improved and upon which they lived and died. They had a family of three children who grew to maturity — Achsa (now Mrs. Daniel McMillan), Hannah E. (now Mrs. Edwin Babcock), and Worthy. Worthy Stanford was reared on the homestead farm where he has always resided. He was married April 26, 1873, to Matilda Johnson, a daughter of Magnus and Margaret (Johnson), who were natives of Sweden. They have had one child born to them, Pearl E. Starrett, William P., North Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Vinal Haven, Me., on May 29, 1837, and was a son of Cyrus and Phebe (Philbrook) Starrett, who came to Warren county in 1839. His father was born in Wrentham, N. H., on Feb- ruary 21, 1802, and was married on March 10, 1833, to Phebe Philbrook, a daughter of Jonathan and Phebe (Lassell) Philbrook, of Searsmont. Jonathan Philbrook died in 1814, after participating in the battle of Plattsburgh, N. Y. Cyrus and Phebe set- tled in Warren county in 1839, settling on the farm which is now owned by John Amann, in 1850, a part of which they cleared and improved themselves. They moved to the farm which is now owned and occupied by William Starrett in 1875, where Cyrus died on December 31, 1878, aged seventy-seven years. Their children were Calvin B., John H., William P., Stephen B., Ferdinand and Ida. William P. Starrett was married in 1872 to Levancia Barber, a daughter of William and Asenoth (Post) Barber, of Fre- donia, Chautauqua county, N. Y. Stephens, Warner E., Tidioute p. o., Glade, is a general blacksmith and lumber wagon manufacturer, also manufactures fine hand made carriages, sleighs, etc.; was born in Crawford county in 1844, and settled in Tidioute in 1870 as journeyman smith, and in 187 1 he commenced the general smithing business, and continued the same in all of its various branches. He was married July 6, 1865, to Samantha Coon, who was born at Montara, N. Y. She died in Michigan in 1875, leaving one child — Norma. He married his second wife Alis Dougherty, of Tidioute, March 16, 1876. They have two children born to them — Neva and Raymond G. Warner E. was a son of Joshua and Julia A. Fowler Stephens. Joshua Stephens died in Alexandria, Ga., while in the Union service in 1865. They had a family of six children — Lucy, Lucien, Elias W., Warner E., Joshua and Mary. The mother, Julia, was born in Crawford county, Pa., and now resides with her daughter, Mary E. Flanegan, in Cuba, N. Y. Stilson, Amos C, Sugar Grove, carpenter and contract builder, was born in James- town, N. Y., in 1837. He was a .son of Benoni and Hannah Brown Stilson. Benoni was born in Connecticut in 1798, and settled in Sugar Grove in about 1820; his wife was born in New Ham[)shire ; tliey were married and died in Jamestown, N. Y. Amos C. Stilson settled in Sugar Grove borough in 187 i, as a carpenter and builder, and many of the best buildings therein show his artistic work. He formed a partnership with W. Brief Personals. A. Bush, and purchased the steam planing, sawing and carpenter supply factory in 1885, where they have machinery to do fine house buildmg work. Mr. Stilson married Adelia Robertson, of Crawford county, in i86o. She was born on October 15, 1839. She was a daughter of George and Rhoda Luce Robertson. The former was born in 1801, and died in 1869 ; the latter was born in 1807 and died in 1870; they were married Octo- ber 16, 1825, and had four children — Mary E., Martha L., John R. and Adelia. Stilson, jr., David, Sugar Grove, was born on Stilson Hill, Sugar Grove, in 1827, and is a son of David and Mary Burrough Stilson. David Stilson came from New Haven, Conn., and settled in Sugar Grove in 1814. He had a family of five sons and four daughters, two sons and two daughters now living — Harry H., David, Betsey, and Polly Hazeltine. David, sr., died June 6, 1852, and his w-ife died February 25, 1840. David, jr., married Margaret Page September 9, 1852; she was born in Pittsfield in 1834. They have a family of four children — Thomas Perry, Alice A., Frank A., and Mertie. Alice A. married Charles Middleton. Thomas died in 1881, aged twenty- eight years. David Stilson, sr., had three brothers who settled with him — Elias, Stephen, David, and Benoni. Storum, Samuel, Warren p. o.. Glade, son of Samuel and Maru Storum, was born in Chautauqua county, N. Y., in the year 1827. The family came to Pine Grove about 1830, for the purpose of clearing lands. Samuel, the son, returned to Carlton, Catta- raugus county, N. Y.,some years later, and in i860 came to Glade. He married Laura Woodward, who bore him three children, Marshall S. J., Mary and Myra M., who died at the age of four years. Mr. Storum has a good farm property on the Gotham road, so called, on which are fine buildings, erected through the energy and thrift of their propri- etor. In the affairs of the town Mr. Storum has never taken an active part, but in re- ligious life he is a strong advocate of Spiritualism. Strand, CO., Sugar Grove p. o., Freehold, was born in Sweden, in 1846, and was married in 1870 to Louisa Donaldson. To them have been born four children — Charles, Oscar, Emil, and Ernest. Strong, John O , Tidioute, was born in Herkimer county, N. Y. His parents were Henry and Mary Cristman Strong, who settled in Sardinia, Erie county, N. Y., in 1838. Henry died in 1881, aged seventy-nine years; and his wife died in 1881. They had a family of eleven children, nine of whom now survive. John O. Strong settled in Tidi- oute and engaged in the oil business as producer in 1861, and in 1866, with his brother, Charles B., engaged in the livery business, which they still continue. In 1873 they em- barked in the general hardware trade, dealing extensively in farm tools and machinery. In 1869 John O. married Mary Nugent, of Mercer county; they have had two daugh- ters — Daisy L., and Minnie E. Charles B. Strong married Sarah Whitney, of York- shire, Cattaraugus county, N. Y. Stuart, Thomas J., Sugar Grove, was born in Sugar Grove, in 1S26, and married Lucina Boyce in 1847. She was born in Youngsville, in 1829. They had a family of six children born to them ^ Mary E., Euphemia, William B., and Samuel G. (twins), Ernest Grant, and Emma Grade. Lucina was a daughter of Samuel G. and Elsie Davis Boyce. Thomas J. was a son of William and Elizabeth (Dalrymple) Stuart. She was born in Colerain, Mass., and William was born in Ireland, February 28, 1794, and i.is wife in 1792. They had a family of twelve children born to them, five of whom are now hving — Margaret, Esther, Ann, Thomas J., and Jane. Elizabeth died August 23, 1873, and William in 1833. He was a son of James and Catherine Stuart, who settled in Sugar Grove, in 1803. They had a family of ten children born to them — John, Thomas, William, Robert, James, Alexander, Rosa, Catherine, Margaret, and Jane. Stutts, Jeremiah N., Sugar Grove p. o., Farmington, was born at Niagara Falls, N. Y., January 22, 1821. He was a son of Jacob and Roxilana (Newman) Stutts. The former was a native of New Jersey, and his wife of Niagara county, N. Y. They settled in what is now Farmington, in 1830. Their children were Mary A., Catherine, Jeremiah N., William, Nancy, Jane, Luther, and Elvvin. Jeremiah N. Stutts was reared in Farm- ington from eight years of age, and worked at the blacksmith trade for twenty-five years, and afterwards became a buyer of cattle, hides, etc. He was married in .1843 t° Betsey History of Warrex County. Smith, a daughter of John and Harriet (Cady) Smith, of Sugar Grove. They have had one child — Ro.xilana, now Mrs. George Osborn. Mr. Stutts has owned the farm which he now owns and occupies, since 1861, akhough he has only resided on it since 1874. While working at the blacksmith trade he pared the feet and set two twenty-one shoes in four minutes, which is the fastest time on record. Sutter, Jacob, Warren p. o.. Glade, was born in Alsace, then a province of the French republic, where his early life was spent. In 1846 he came to Warren, and learned the tailor's trade, at which he worked for twenty-five years. He was married in Paris, France, to Katherine Bulger, who bore him six children — Louis, Caroline, Philip, Frederick, Lorena, and Mena. In 187 1 Mr. Sutter and his family came to Glade, where he had a small farm of si.\teen acres nicely located on the hillside, overlooking the borough of Warren. When the oil excitement reached Glade these lands at once be- came very valuable, and are now among the most productive ones in the town. This fortunate circumstance has placed Mr. Sutter in comfortable circumstances. Jacob Sut- ter was one of the founders of the Lutheran Church in Warren, in which he now takes a great interest. He frequently officiated at funeral obsequies in the absence of the pas- tor of the church. Sweeting, Jacob, John, Hannah, Elizabeth, Lucy, William, Samuel, and Mary G., Warren p. o.. Glade, were the children of Jacob Sweeting, sr., who was a native of Der- byshire, England, and came to this country in 1840, and who one year later settled on Quaker Hill, Elk township. Jacob, jr., married Louesa Sharp, who bore him a family of twelve children ; John married Lucinda Miller, by whom he had a family of seven cTiildren ; Hannah, married William Taylor ; Elizabeth, married H. B. Lonsbury ; Lucy, who was born during the journey from Rochester, N. Y., to Quaker Hill, married Will- iam Meyers; Mary G., married William Blair; William is also married and now resides in Glade ; Samuel is dead. William and John both served in the late war, and John was injured by the premature discharge of a cannon. The family have nearly all left Elk township, and most of them now reside in Glade. They are farmers and oil pro- ducers there, having fortunately taken lands many years ago on the oil belt more recently developed. Swift, Alfred W., Kinzua p. o., was born in Allegheny county, N. Y., July 7, 1833. He was the son of B. C. and Mary A. Swift. At the age of twenty years he left home and went to Olean, where he worked at the trade of a joiner. In 1854 he came to Kinzua, intending to stay but a short time, but was induced to remain and work at his trade, and also that of blacksmithing and wagon-making, at all of w'hich he was an adept. Here he became acquainted with and married Mary Ann. the youngest child of Seth (ireen, by whom he had one child — Ella V., now the wife of George L. Lawrence. About sixteen years ago Mr. Swift purchased the farm on which he now resides. On this farm was put down one of the first wells in this locality, and there are now seven oil producing wells in the locality, and these have netted the owner a snug sum. Taylor, William H., Barnes p. o., Sheffield, Energy, perseverance and industry, find a worthy example in the life of William H. Taylor. He was one of the six children of Silas S. Taylor, of Erie county, and came to Sheffield in the year 1859 ; for three months he worked for Andrew Donaldson in the lumber woods at thirteen dollars per month. After that he worked for Elmer I.,acey, and continued in his employ for about tliree years. He is essentially a self-made man. Circumstances never made him; he made circumstances. When he left Warren for Sheffield, he possessed just fifty cents. He now' owns a good farm on which stands substantial buildings which were built by him. His stock of every kind and the products of his farm are of the best quality obtainable. He was married in June, 1864, to Helen Sherwood, a daughter of James Sherwood, and by whom he had these children — Amos A., William H., jr., Dennis, George, Cassius, Jane, and Rudolph. After the death of his first wife he married Mary N. Rice, who bore him one child — Phebe A. Thacher, W. M., Youngsville, was born in Genesee county, N. Y., in 1840. His par- ents were Alvin (Pike) and Jane (Salisbury) Thacher. Alvin was born in 1813, and died April 12, 1881 ; his wife was born in 1820. They settled in Youngsville in 1872, and Brief Personals. had two sons — W. M. and William. The latter enlisted in Company C, Sixteenth Penn- sylvania Cavalry, and lost an arm at Malvern Hill. W. M. married, in 1S63, Jennie Henton, of Harbor Creek, Erie comity. She died August 24, 18S5, leaving three chil- dren — Ada, Minnie, and Ally P. W. M. has held the offices of school director, commis- sioner, and councilman ; by occupation he is a farmer. Thomas, John, Grand Valley p. o., Eldred, is a farmer, and now owns a farm of one hundred and fifteen acres; he is also largely interested in lumbering. He was a son of Lifus and Esther (Thompson) Thomas, of Ireland, who had a family of five children, four of whom are now living — Mary C, Joseph Emanuel, W. D., and Joseph. Joseph married Martha Deemer, of Westmoreland county, in 1871. They have had one child born to them — Ora Viance. Thomas, Elisha, North Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Schenectady county, N. Y., on April 10, 1831. He was a son of William and Jane (McConnell) Thomas, who settled in Warren county in 1833, on the farm which is now occupied by Elisha, which they cleared and improved themselves. They had a family of ten children — Will- am J., John, Joseph C, Elizabeth M., Elisha, Margaret J., Sarah M., A. McCready, Mary T., and Henry S. Mr. Thomas originally purchased 400 acres, which has since been di- vided into several tracts. The homestead tract now consists of 187 acres. The paternal grandparents of Elisha Thomas were John and Elizabeth (Hufif) Thomas. His mater- nal grandparents were William and Elizabeth (Hannah) McConnell, who with a sister Nancy and a brother James McConnell, were early settlers in Conewango. The sister died at the age of one hundred and one years, and the brother at the age of seventy- eight. Elisha succeeded to the homestead where he has resided since two years of age. He was married in 1874 to Emma L. Marsh, of Randolph, N. Y. They have two chil- dren — D. May (who died in infancy), and Grace E. Thomas, Samuel, Sugar Grove, one of the pioneer farmers of the town, was born in Livingston county, N. Y., in 1828, and settled in Sugar Grove in 1837. His parents were Thomas and Sophia (Whipple) Thomas, who were born and married in Connecti- cut, and settled in Livingston county, N. Y., in 1825, and in Sugar Grove in 1837. They had but one son — Samuel. Thomas died in 1868, aged seventy-two years, and Sophia died in 1866, aged sixty-nine years. Samuel now owns the farm purchased at the time of settlement — then a timber tract. Samuel married in 1852 Emeline Smith, born in Rensselaer county, N. Y., in 1832. They had four children — Charles, Alice, Earl, and Jennie, who died, aged twenty-three. Sophia Thomas was a daughter of Asa Smith, who settled in Sugar Grove in 1830. Among the earliest families that settled in'^Corydon was that of Philip Tome. Mr. Tome was born in Dauphin county ; he married Mary Yonce, and for a time lived on Pine Creek. They came to Corydon about the year 1827. In the family were ten children, as follows : Jane (who married William Case), Benjamin, Elizabeth (who mar- ried Rice Hamblin), George W., Philip, jr., Rebecca (who became the wife of Belvin Forbes), Hiram, William, John (who was the first white male child born in Corydon), and Savory (who married Clark White). George W. Tome was born March 20, 1818, and married February 24, 1840, to Ann Wright, daughter of William Wright. They had but one child — Rebecca — who is now the wife of Benjamin Crooks. On the farm of George W. Tome is an old mound of earth, concerning which the oldest Indians can give no account. Many relics have been taken from this vicinity, but the mound has never been thoroughly examined. Hiram Tome was born in Cattafaugus county, N. Y., May 23, 1824. In 1852 he married Eliza Dalrymple, by whom he had five children — Clara, Ella, Effie, Linnie, and Glennie. Hiram Tome is one of the most respected men of the town of Corydon. His residence stands on the main street of the village, overlooking the Allegheny River, and commands a fine view of the high mountain ranges on the opposite side. From the rear of the dwelling can plainly be seen Corn- planter's Peak. Benjamin Tome married Cynthia Gibbs, by whom he had eight chil- dren — Esther, Juliette, Sarah, Nancy J., Luella, Henry, George L., and O. J. George L. Tome is a farmer and blacksmith, giving most of his attention to the former pursuit. His farm comprises 28|- acres, nicely located about one-fourth mile north of the village History of Warren County. of Corydon. Mr. Tome married Ida Wilcox, daughter of S. R. Wilcox, by whom he has four children. The Tome family, aside from being one of the earliest pioneers of Corydon, enjoys the distinction of having been one of the most prolific of the town, and have grown up their children to become respected, industrious, law-abiding citizens. Phillip Tome, the pioneer, some years ago wrote a book entitled " Thirty Years a Hunter," containing a sketch of his family life, and filled with interesting anecdotes of the pioneer days. Thompson, Robert, Irvinton p. o., Brokenstraw, was born in Warren county, August i6, 1816, and was married in 1843 to Hannah Thompson, who was born in Warren county in 1823. Robert died in March, 1877, leaving a widow and four children — James A., John N., General Canby, and Harry D. Mr. Thompson was an extensive lumber manufacturer and shipper, and was also largely engaged in farming, and was a prominent man of his town and county. He was a son of Robert and Rachel (Irvine) Thompson. Hannah was a daughter of John and Hannah (Houfif) Thompson, who were early settlers in the county, and died, leaving a family of seven children, but two of whom are now living — ^Esther Morrison (widow) and Hannah. Tompsett, Charles, Tidioute p. o.. Triumph, was born in Kent, England, in 1847, and emigrated to America in 1865 and settled in Triumph as an agent and laborer in oil production. He was married October 15, 1868, to Ellen Griffin, who was born in Birmingham, England. They have had a familv of two children born to them — Will- iam C. (born August 17, i86g), and Albert E. (born August 26, 187 1). Charles Tomp- sett has been assessor for three years, was collector for three terms, and constable for six terms. He purchased a tract of twenty acres and put down eight wells in 1885, which he is now pumping with one engine, obtaining over twenty barrels per day, by his own labor combined with that of his son, using the gas as fuel for his engine and house, that he has on his premises. He also has a lot of sixty acres, which is now de- veloped. He was a son of Richard and Sarah (Beeching) Tompsett, who had a family of six children born to them. Sarah died in England, also one child. The father and his five children settled near Jamestown, N. Y. Four of the children are now living — George, Richard, Charles, and Sarah. Thompson, David S., Tidioute, was born in Pine Grove in 1840, and settled in Tidioute in 1865 and began the production of oil, which business he followed up to 1874, when he embarked in the general merchandise business, from which he also re- tired in 1884. He was married in 1865 to Charlotte P. Kinnear, of Tidioute. She was a daughter of James and Jeanette Kinnear. They have had two daughters and one son — only one daughter now living. Mr. Thompson is one of the leading men of his town, and was a son of V. R. and Laura (Burgett) Thompson, who were married in Warren county. Laura died in 1874, leaving a family of four daughters and three sons. V. R. Thompson was born in 1808, and settled in Warren county in 1810, with his father, Caleb Thompson, who was a soldier in the War of 181 2. Thompson, E. W., Grand Valley p. o., Eldred, one of the representative men of Grand Valley, was for twenty years keeping a general store, now conducted by his sons under the firm name of Thompson Brothers. He was born in Rensselaer county, N. Y., in 1827, and his father settled in Warren county in 1837. He married Adeline Brown, of Warren county, September 11, 1851, and to them have been born nine chil- dren, eight of vvhom are now living — Rosalia M., Lydia R. (deceased), Olive R., Almon T., Anson R., Anice R., Archie L., Wilfred E., and Nina I. His father, Samuel, was born in New York State in 1775, was married three times, and had a family of sixteen children born to him, nine of whom are now living. He died in Warren county in in 1857. E. W. Thompson now owns and occupies a farm of 270 acres. Thompson, Edwin W., Russell p. o., Pine Grove, was born in Farmington October 2, 1835. He is a son of William Thompson, a native of Long Island, N. Y., who set- tled in Farmington in 1831, and was one of its pioneers. At the age of twenty-one years Edwin came to Pine Grove, and built a water-power saw-mill in the heavily tim- bered districts of the town. In 1862 he built the first " circular saw-mill " of the town, and ran it until 1867, when it was sold to Thomas Briggs. In September, 1884, Mr. Brief Personals. Thompson purchased the mill site at Russell's, of D. M. Martin and Joseph Briggs, and erected thereon one of the most complete and available saw and planing-mills of War- ren county, at an expense of over $6,000. In 1862 Mr. Thompson married Harriet Jones, by whom he had four children, only two of whom are now living. Edwin Thomp- son is one of the most enterprising business men of Pine Grove. He believes that everything worth doing at all should be done well. In political affairs he is independ- ent, but inclines toward the Republican party. His religious views are as independent as his politics ; he is a Free-thinker. Thompson, jr., Joseph Dale, Tidioute p. o.. Triumph, was born in Deerfield in 1834. His parents were Joseph D. and Rosalie (Crippen) Thompson, who were married in 1831. He was born in Deerfield in 1812, and died in 1882 ; she was born in Broken- straw, and died, leaving a family of six children. Mr. Thompson then married his sec- ond wife, Mary Crippen, by whom he had three children. He was a son of John Thompson, who immigrated from Ireland and settled in Tidioute — one of the first set- tlers — where he kept a tavern many years, and died, leaving five children — one son, Joseph D., and four daughters, Polly, Rachael, Hannah, and Esther. Joseph D., jr., married Helen Huey, born in Eldred and married in 1858. They have had six chil- dren — Loretta Victoria, Orres Laverette and Oscar Lavant (twins), Florence May, Eva Jane, and Gertrude Elizabeth. Mr. Thompson has been treasurer for three years, school director thirteen years, and road commissioner for ten years. He purchased his present homestead of 130 acres in 1855 — then a wilderness; he now has a grain and grass pro- ducing farm second to none in his township. Thompson, Samuel, Warren p.o.,Farmington,is a farmer and was born on Long Island, N. Y., May 4, 1816. He was a son of William and Sally (Palmater) Thompson, both of whom were natives of New York, and settled in Farmington in 1831, locatingon the farm which is now owned and occupied by their son, Samuel Thompson, which they cleared and improved, and upon which they resided until the time of their deaths. They had a family of ten children — William, Maria, John, Daniel, Samuel, James, Betsey, Harriet, Sally, and George. Samuel purchased the homestead in 1850, and has resided there since 1852. He was married in 1841 to Angeline Putnam, a daughter of Daniel and Betsey (Barrett) Putnam, of Pine Grove. They have had a family of five children — Walter, Alfred, Orrin, Lovisa, and Elmer. Truman, Lillie, West Spring Creek p. o.. Spring Creek, was born in Ohio on October 29, 1852, and settled in Warren county, Pa., in 1876. He married Mary C. Wright, who was born in Spring Creek March 11^, 1855, by whom he had a family of four chil- dren — Roy L., born October 27, 1879; Earl D., born February 9, 1881 ; Ethel P., born August 11, 1882; and Wilmer G., born May 8, 1885. His jiarents were James and Claurdean (Havens) Truman. His father was a cooper by trade. Trushel, Philip and Mary, Warren p. o., Conewango, natives of Alsace, France, came to Warren in the year 1839. In this family were six children — Mary, Philip J., Jacob, Eva, George, and Caroline. Philip, the father, died in 1869, and his wife, Mary, in 1873. Philip J., the oldest son, when a boy, worked for Alonzo Summerton in the store. He went to Butler and Venango counties, where he drove stage, and afterwards followed the river, in rafting season, for fourteen years. In 1861 he went into the mer- cantile business in Warren county, where he has since resided. Mr. Trushel married Margaret E. Zagel, by whom he has had six children — Matilda, Albert, Frank, Edie, who died in 1872 ; Alice, and Clara. Philip Trushel is a conscientious Christian man ; a prominent member and officer of the Evangelical Association society. In political life he has generally supported the Republican nominees, but for the last six years has been a prohibitionist, and is now one of the leaders in the cause. He is the leading mer- chant of Glade, his place of residence and business. Tuneberg, Magnus, Chandler's Valley p. o.. Sugar Grove, a general blacksmith and manufacturer of wagons, carriages, buggies, sleds, etc., was born in Sweden in 1835, and married Christina Neilson in 1866, and immigrated to and settled in Sugar Grove in 1869, and in Chandler's Valley in 187 1, where he engaged at his trade, which he still History of Warren County. continues ; he has here erected a dwelling, shop, and factory. Thev have one daugh- ter — Hilda, born in 187 1. Twining, Mrs. Jane, Lander p. o., Farmington, was born in Phelps, N. Y., March 16, 1813. She was a daughter of Hugh and Martha (Burgess) Brown, natives of Ire- land, who immigrated to the United States in 1 798, and located in Maryland ; later they removed to Wayne county, N. Y., and in 1832 located in Warren, this county, and in 1835 they settled in Farmington, where they resided until their deaths. Hugh Brown married twice. His first wife was Margaret Brown, by whom he had a family of four children, who grew to maturity — Thomas, John, William and Sally. His second wife was Martha Burgess, by whom he had eleven children, who grew to maturity — Francis, Hugh, Margaret, Sally, Joseph, Margaret, Jane, Mary A., Susan, Benjamin and Fanny. Mrs. Jane Twining married twice. Her first husband was Arthur Morgan, of Fayette, N. Y., whom she married December 4, 1828, and with whom she came to Warren county in 1832, and by whom she had a family of seven children — William, Charles, Ellis, George, Edwin, Eunice, and John .\. Mr. Morgan died in 1854. Mrs. Twining was married in 1879 to Thomas Twining, of Farmington, who settled in this place in 1859. Tucker, George, West Spring Creek p. o., Spring Creek, was born in Massachusetts in 1814, and settled in Spring Creek in 1856. He is a farmer and owns a t'arm of two hundred acres. He was married in 1845 to Catherine Brown, of Spring Creek. To them have been born eight children, five of whom are now living — Catherine M., Sarah E., George H., Miriam M., William B., Rosa A., Dora E., and Mary E. Mr. Tucker is a millwright by trade, and has held the office of town commissioner and school director. His father, Seth Tucker, was born in Norton, Mass.; died May 19, 1853, aged eighty- nine. His grandfather, Robert Tucker, born April 20, 1727, died May 20, 1805, aged seventy-eight years. Van Guilder, S. D., Grand Valley p. o., Eldred, was born in New York in 1815, and settled in Warren county in 1858. He married Emeline Nichols, of Crawford county, by whom he had a family of eight children — Sarah E., George E., Sophia A., Henri- etta, David, Dean, Cassius, and Charles. Mr. Van Guilder was in early life engaged in lumbering, but now devotes the greater part of his time to farming, owning a fi^rm of one hundred and twenty-five acres. His son, George E., served in the late war, in the Twelfth Pennsylvania Cavalry. Frederick Van Guilder, his father, married Sarah Van- Guilder, by whom he had a family of four children, of whom the onlv one now living is S. D. Van Eps, John F., Bear Lake ]). o., Freehold, was born in Genesee county, N. Y., July 3, 1830, and settled in Warren county in 1838. He married Harriet Stainbrook, who died in 1863 leaving four children. He was again married September 19, 1864, to Mary Tyrrel (widow of David O. Tyrrel, who was a soldier in the civil war and died in Libby^ prison). To them have been born four children. Mr. V'an E|js is nt)w a retired farmer. Vanmon, Erik, Ackley Station p. o., Pine Grove, was born in Umea, Sweden, in 1846. He came to America in 1869, and until 1871 resided at Jamestown, N. Y., when he came to Pine Grove. Prior to this time he was a farm laboror. Mr. Vanmon purchased a tract of land in the northeast part of the town, a heavily timbered tract, upon which his start in the town was made. By remarkable perseverance, industry, and energy he has cleared and stumped a considerable portion of the land and purchased •more, so that he now has a farm of eighty acres, fifty-five of which are cleared and are in a good state of cultivation as any in the townshi]). He has in course of erection a new dwelling which compares favorably with a majority of those in the town. Erik Vanmon began here with only $150. and his possessions are worth nearly twenty times that amount. In 1872 he married Augusta Lawson. They have had no children. Mr. Vanmon adheres to the jirinciples of the Republican party, and takes an active part in ])olitical affiiirs. Van Orsdale, Augustus, Ackley Station p. o., Pine Grove, was born in Orange Brief Personals. county, N. Y., in 1813. He went while quite young to Lisle, Broome county, N. Y., where he married Eunice Graham. In 1844 he went to Crawford county, and there engaged in the manufacture of lumber for five years. From there he moved to Steuben county, N. Y. In 1870 he came to Pine Grove and settled in that part of the town known as Cable Hollow. In early life Mr. Van Orsdale was apprenticed to learn the tanning and shoemaker's trade with John Burghardt, of Upper Lisle, Broome county, N. Y., where he remained until about thirty years old. The new mill on Rice Run, on the old Brownell tract, originally built by Mr. Sloan, is now owned by Charles A. and John T. Van Orsdale, sons of Augustus Van Orsdale, and is managed by Charles A. John T. is a graduate of West Point, and is now lieutenant of Seventh Infantry U. S. Army, stationed at Fort Laramie, Wyoming Territory. The brothers own a tract of about 285 acres of good timber land on which the new circular saw-mill is now located. Van Sickel, P. N., of Tidioute, was born in New Jersey, and settled in Tidioute, from New York city, in 1873. He became engaged in the production of oil in 1864, in various sections, but his principal interests are in Warren and McKean counties, and became superintendent of " New York and Allegheny " now " McKean and Allegheny Oil Company" in 1875, and still remains in that position. Mr. Van Sickel married for his first wife, Ann Eliza Runyon, of Plainfield, N. J., and by her has one son, living in New York city. In i868 he married Hattie Williams, of Erie city. They have one child — Blanche, residing with her parents. Venness, George, Sugar Grove, is a leading farmer of Sugar Grove, and was born on his present farm in 1833. He married Prudence Andrews, of Busti, Chautauqua county, N. Y., who was born in 1839. They were married in i860, and had two chil- dren born to them — Clyo L. and Kate Belle. Prudence was a daughter of Deloss and Hannah Andrews. Deloss died in 1879, and his wife, Hannah, in 1845. They left four children — Hendrick, Prudence, Alice, and Eris. George was a son of John and Harriet (Davis) Venness. He was bom in 1800, and his wife, Harriet, was born in 1802 Thev were married in 1822. They were natives of Sussex, England, and with a family of five children left England April 14, and landed in New York May 17, 1828. Two of their children died on the voyage. They settled in Utica, N. Y., and in 1830 they settled in Sugar Grove. They had a family of eleven children, six of whom are now living — George, John, Harriet, Sarah, Caroline, and Mary. Harriet, his wife, died in 1869. Vermilyea, George W., of Columbus, was born in Seneca county, N. Y., in 1823. He was a son of Edward and Mary (Wentworth) Vermilyea. She was born in Dutchess county, N. Y., and her husband, Edward, was born in Chenango county, N. Y.. in 1794. They were married in Seneca county, N. Y., and had a family of thirteen chil- dren born to them, of whom three sons and five daughters are now living. They settled in Columbus in 1827. Mary died in 1851. George W. Vermilyea was married in 1848 to Lovina White, who was born in Cattaraugus county, N. Y., in 1829. They have had a family of four children born to them — Mark E., Edith M., Rachie, and George Orton. Lovina was a daughter of Mark S. White. George W. Vermilyea has held the offices of assessor and constable. He has been a machinist, and manufacturer of wooden ware. Virgil, Sylvester R., Sugar Grove, was born in Genesee county, N. Y., in 1828, and was a son of John and Betsey Elizabeth (Rich) Virgil. He was a native of Maine and his wife, Betsey Elizabeth, was born in Connecticut. They were married and settled in Fort Plain, Montgomery county, N. Y. He was a contractor on the Erie Canal, and built several locks on the canal in 1822, '23, and '24, and later he settled in Orangeville, Wyommg county, N. Y., where they died, leaving a family of six children, four of whom are now living, one son and three daughters. Sylvester married Mary A. Kelso, of Chautauqua county, N. Y. She was born at Otsego county, N. Y., and married April 14, 1853. They have had two daughters bom to them — Ella Louise and Julia Elizabeth. Ella L. married A. Dustin. Sylvester R. settled in Farmington, as a farmer, in 1867, and in early life was a carriage-smith. In 187 1 he purchased his homestead in Sugar Grove. History of Warren County. Waite, H. B., Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, is a civil engineer ; he was born in Nunda, Livingston county, N. Y., in 1826, and setted in Warren county as a teacher in 1849; he taught several years, and embarked in the general mercantile trade in 1857, which he continued until 1868, when he sold out on account of impaired health, and took up engineering. During the war he was active in the employ of the government in the purchase of stock. He married Susan Mead in 1830. They have had two children — Garello and Emma L. — the latter married Julius Bourquin. Mrs. Waite was a daughter of William and Susanna Mead ; he was born in Westmoreland in 1784, and she in New Jersey in 1784; they were married in Brokenstraw in 1807, and had a family of six daughters and two sons. Wales, John M., Enterprise p. o.. Southwest, was born in Southwest, Warren county, in 1862. He is a son of John Wales, who was born in Windham county. Conn., in 1807, and who settled in Southwest with his parents in 1825. His parents were Dorcas and Polly (Kees) Wales, who were born and married in Connecticut, and had a family of five children, of whom John is now the only surviving one. The others were Hiram, Sarah, Delosia, and Delusia. Dorcas died in 1850 at the age of seventy-one years, and Polly died in 1844. John Wales, sr., married Lucy Whitney in 1836. She died in 1850, leaving a family of five children — Maro died in 1S60; Delocia, Elizabeth, George, and Lucy. Mr. Wales then married Harriet M. Mayhew, who was born in Addison county, Vt., in 1827. She was married in 1850, and by her he has had a family of four chil- dren, one of whom died in infancy — Hattie, born in 1859; John M., born in 1862 ; Fred, born in 1865. Hattie married Fred Johnson, and died in 1882, leaving one son — Theodore. John M. and his brother Fred are the managers of a part of the homestead (185 acres) formerly 300 acres. They are now engaged in producing oil on their lands. Walker, Cecil E., Bear Lake p. o., was a son of William Walker, who was born in Chenango county, N. Y., in i82i,and settled in Warren county in 1837. He married Mary Ann De Long, of Clienango county, N. Y., and to them were born two children — Cecil E., and Leon E. He was a large dealer in lumber, and was the first to take lumber and shingles to St. Louis. Cecil E. married E. Curtis, of Columbus. They have had one child born to them — Roy. Mr. Walker is a dealer in short-horn cattle, and is engaged in farming. Walker, Mrs. Lavina, West Spring Creek p. o., Spring Creek, wife of Silas Walker, who was born in 1823, and settled in Warren county. He died, leaving a family of six children, four of whom are now living — Mary Jane. Silas Adelbert, Emilv Ann, Charles H., Franklin De F., and Martha R. Walling, Oliver Smith, Germany p. o.. Elk, was born in Orange county, N. Y., March 3, 1842. At Rochester, N. Y., he was united in marriage with Mary Ann Holman, by whom he had a family of seven children — ^Sylvester L., John Z., Lyman H., Melissa, Franklin P., Harriet M., and Amy E. They came to Quaker Hill about 1850, where the family have since resided. The farm, comprising one hundred acres, is one of the best in the township, and since the death of the father in November, i86i, has been con- ducted by his widow and her sons. Mr. Walling died in Oregon, where he had gone in the hope of regaining his health. During his life in Elk, Mr. Walling stood highly re- spected among his fellow-townsmen. His wife has held the office of ])ostmistress of the town for sixteen years, and the establishment of the office in this place was largely due to the efforts of her husband. They commenced married life with less than $100 in money, but by industry and economy he acquired a comfortable home and farm. Wallace, B. F., Eagle, was born in Onondaga county, N. Y., and settled in Warren ■county in 1849. He married Mary Green, of Onondaga county, N. Y.,and by her had a family of seven children — William A., John F., Permelia L., Ezra V., Morgan S., Bertlia, and Floyd He is a carpenter and farmer and owns a farm of fifty-two acres. He has been postmaster for twenty years, and also held the office of assessor, school director and town clerk. His father, William, was born in Washington county, N. Y., in 1798, and married Permelia Eddy, of Oneida county, N. Y. They had a family of three children born to them — Corydon S., Benjamin F., and Ichabod. Brief Personals. Walter, David, Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Alsace, France, and came to Warren on May 15, 1852, and in September, 1854, removed to Glade. In his family vvere four children, as follows : Mary, Elizabeth, Emeline, and David, jr. David Walter died February 26, 187 1, Anna Marie, mother, died February 26, 1876. David, jr. married Maria Ursula, who came to Warren with her uncle's family when she was but thirteen years of age. Her parents now reside in Alsace, France. The children of David and Maria Walter are Albert David, born March 9, 1865, Louisa, born April i8, 1867, George B., born January 24, 1870, Frederick M., born October 29, 1871, Otto S., born December 28, 1873, William P., born August 9, 1876, Martin L., born July 17, 1878, and John, born November 29, i88i. David Walter is a prominent man in the affairs of Glade. He commenced life poor, but has worked his way up to a comfortable and en- viable position in the town. He is a staunch Democrat, and a member of the Lutheran Church. Walter, Henry, Irvinton p. o., Brokenstraw, was born in Meadtown in 1857, and en- gaged in the manufacture of lumber in 1878 — firm of Walter & Patch ; they purchased the stave and shingle-mill at Irvinton. The partnership was dissolved in 1882, when Mr. Walter erected his present mill, and continued the stave, heading and shingle business. In 1884 his brother Frederick became his partner in the business. Mr. Walter was a son of Jacob and Burlena Walter who were born and married in Germany. They settled in Warren county in 1848, and had a family of ten children, seven of whom are now living — Frederick, Lewis, Henry, Samuel, Jacob, Kate, and Mary. Henry married Bertha Wiederhold, of Youngsville, in 1881, and they have two children — Alice P., and Guy V. Mrs. Walter was a daughter of George and Barbara Wiederhold. The Messrs. Walter employ on an average of five hands in their business. Walton, Aaron, of Columbus, was born in Columbus, Chenango county, N. Y., May 20, 1800. He was married in 1824 to Elizabeth Hanna, who was born in Oneida county, N. ¥., in 1798, and died in 1868. They had a family of nine children born to them — George, Benjamin F., Robert H., and John D., Hiram A., Emily, Mary E., Sa- rah J., Artimissa. Emily married David O. Smith, and Artimissa married A. J. Day- mon. Mr. Aaron Walton has held the office of county commissioner for three years, and has also held many of the town and district offices. He was engaged in farming and stock raising at an early age, a branch of business of which he has made a financial success. He was a son of Aaron, sr., and Artimissa (Fields) Walton. Artimissa was born in Connecticut, and .Aaron, sr., was a native of Massachusetts. They were married and settled in Chenango county, N. Y., and with a family of ten children settled in Colum- bus, in 1824. Those of the family now living are Aaron, John, Levy, and Mary. Walton, Charles H., Columbus, was born in Columbus in 1829. He was married in 1857 to Mary Parker, of Columbus. She died in 1867, leaving a family of four chil- dren, three of whom are now living — Laura, Dallas, and Lelia. He then married for his second wife Mrs. Johanna (Hesling) Morgan, in 1868. She had one son by her first husband, Arthur Morgan. Laura married Clifford Jarrett ; Lelia married .\lbert J. Smith, a merchant of Columbus. Charles H. Walton retired from farming in 1880. He was a son of John and Harriet (Spencer) Walton, natives of Chenango county, N. Y., who were married in 1828. Harriet Walton, died in 1870, leaving a family of four sons aud four daughters. The father, John Walton, was born in 1806. His sons are Charles H., Darius S., Sjiencer A., and Frank B. His daughters are Laura A., Lucinda M., Louisa J., and Lucretia E. Walton, Levi, Columbus, was born in Columbus, Chenango county, N. Y., in 1818, and is a son of Aaron and Artamissa Field Walton. They were born and married in Connecticut, and settled in Chenango county, N. Y., in 1824, and emigrated to and set- tled in Columbus, with a family of ten children, four of whom are now living — Aaron, jr., born in 1800; John, born in 1806; Levi, born in 1818; and Mary. Aaron, sr., was a successful farmer, and died at the age of eighty-two. Levi married in 1841 Cynthia A. West, of Chenango county, N. Y.; she was born in 1818. They have a family of three children — Clarence L., Amelia M., and Lawrence. Amelia M., married H. C. Allen, of Otsego county, N. Y., in 1870, and Lawrence married Mary E. Ripley, of Chautau- History of Warren County. qua county, N. Y., m 1879. Mr. Walton retired from active business in 1883. Cynthia was a daughter of Charles West and Eunice Randal, who settled in Warren county in 1865. Walton, Spencer A., Columbus p. o., was born in Columbus in 1841, and in 1864 married Louisa Hammon, who was born in Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1842. They haye one son, Cassius H., born in 1866. Louisa was a daughter of David and Louisa (Tooley) Hammon ; the latter was from Rutland, Vt., and the former from Massachu- setts. Spencer A. was a son of John and Harriet (Spencer) Walton, who were married in 1828. He was born in 1806, and settled in Columbus from Chenango county, N. Y., with his parents, Aaron and Artimissa (Field) Walton. They were born in Connect- icut and married there, and settled in Chenango county, N. Y., and came to Warren county with a family of ten children in 1824, Ward, George U., Matthew's Run p. o.. Sugar Grove, was born in Sugar Grove in i860, and chose a farmer's life. In 1882 he married Maggie Waters, who was born in i860. They have two children — James and Pearl. George U. is a son of James and Ann (Gray) Ward. They were born in Nottinghamshire, England, and were married in Su- gar Grove, in 1859 ; they had a family of four children — George U., Martha, Grant, and Kate. James died in 1868. He was a son of John and Catharine (Unwin) Ward, of Nottinghamshire. John was born in 1804, and Catharine in 1821, and they were mar- ried in 1837 ; they had but one son — James. Catharine died in 1880. James and John settled in Sugar Grove in 185 1, purchasing the homestead now occupied by George U. Waterhouse, Russell, Pittsfield, was born in Schoharie county, N. Y., in 1821. He was a son of William A. and Hannah (Davis) Waterhouse. William A. was born in Ston- ington. Conn., Hannah was born in Rhode Island, and was a descendant of the Roger Willams colony; she was raised in the same neighborhood and went to school with Commodore Perry, and was a cousin of the hero of Lake Erie. They settled in Pitts- field in 1840, where William A. died in 1842. Hannah died in Dakota, aged ninety-five years. Russell Waterhouse settled in Pittsfield, in 1840, and was married in 1848 to Laura Ford, who was born in 1825. They have had a family of six children born to them — Hyatt M., is a graduate of Scudder's Eclectic Medical College of Cincinnati, and is now a professor at Minneapolis, Minn.; John A., was also a graduate of the same college; Maud, graduated from the same in 1886; Elgia N., Thomas W., and Effie. Thomas W. is now a bookkeeper, and the other two daughters are students at Fredonia. Laura Ford was a daughter of Obadiah and Elizabeth H. Ford. Obadiah was born in Maryland. They had a family of nine children born to them, seven of whom are now living — John C, Darius, Margaret Cordelia, Laura, Mansell, and Vincent. Darius and Mansell enlisted and served for four years in the late war, and were honorably dis- charged. Their father Obadiah served in the War of 181 2. Watts, jr., Thomas, Sugar Grove, was born in Wilkshire, England, in 1829. He was a son of Thomas and Susan (Barrett) Watts; they were married in England and with a family of four daughters and three sons in 1835 settled in Sugar Grove. The parents are both dead, the father died in 1841, the mother in 1854. Five of the children are now living — Mrs. Elizabeth Shutt, Mrs. Sarah Shutt, Mrs. Ellen Mead, John Watts, and Thomas Watts, jr. Thomas Watts, jr., married Lucretia Armitage, of Spring Creek in 1863. She was born in 1845 and died in Sugar Grove in 1873, leaving a fam- ily of three children — Nellie, May, and Jennie. Nellie married James Armitage in 1884, and died April 12, 1886, leaving an infant daughter, Nellie. May is a graduate and holds a teacher's certificate. Mr. Watts is a farmer, and was in early life a lumber- man, and purchased his homestead farm in 1862. Watt, Moses, Garland p. o., Pittsfield, a resident of Garland was born in Spring Creek township in 1828. He was a son of Alexander and Elizabeth (.\ndrews) Watt. Alexander was born in Lancaster county, and his wife, Elizabeth, was born in Pittsfield. Alexander settled with his father, John Watt, in Spring Creek in 1797. John had a fam- ily of four children. Alexander and Elizabeth had a family of nine children born to to them, four of whom are now living — Mrs. Hannah Mallery, Mrs. Melissa Snyder, Mrs. Sarah Spencer, and Moses Watt. Alexander A. Watt died in 1866 at the advanced age Brief Personals. of eighty-five years. His son Moses was married in 1866 to Eveline Bright, who was born in Crawford county in 1844. They have had two children born to them — Frank M. and Robert, who are now living ; Winifred and a daughter, Sarah Etta, are dead. Sarah died in 1885 aged seventeen years. Eveline Bright was a daughter of Henry and Mary Ann (Butler) Bright. Moses Watt in early life was a lumberman and farmer, and in 1884 settled in Garland, coming there from Spring Brook, and there erected his pres- ent fine residence. He embarked in the general hardware business in 1884. Walz, Squire Frederick, Tidioute p. o.. Glade, was born in Wurtemberg, Germany, in 1827. He was a son of John and Siblyla Walz, who emigrated to America in 1833, where they died leaving a family of six children, four of whom are now living — John, Johanna, Rose, and Frederick. Squire Frederick is a man of two hundred and seventy-five pounds weight. He enlisted in Company D, First Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers, in 1846, and served during the war with Mexico. They left Pittsburgh in December, 1846, under Colonel Wynkoop, and returned from Mexico in August, 1848; in that ser- vice he was under Generals Winfield Scott and Wool. Mr. Walz was commissioned to raise a company for the Fourth Pennsylvania Reserves, whichhe did, and placed them in command of Colonel March. He was married in 1859 to Mrs. Mary Magdalene Glass- ing. They settled in Tidioute in 1S64, and in 1865 settled in Limestone on the Econ- omist Society plot. From 1859 to 1873 he was engaged in the grocery business in Limestone. In 1873 he was appointed by the Bridge Company at Tidioute, as toll collector and agent. He has held the office of justice of the peace for several years, and in 1883, he received a unanimous vote from the people of the borough for the office of justice, which position he is filling with credit. Way, Timothy, Russellburg p. o., was born in Scipio, Cayuga county, N. Y., Octo- ber 18, 1801, and died in Pine Grove January 31, 1879. Nancy Borthvvick, his wife, was born in Scipio January 20, 1802. Tney were married in 1826, and came to Pine Grove in 1830, settled in Russellberg, and in 1851 located on the beautiful farm in the north part ol the town, where Judson W. Way now resides. The children of this mar- riage were Willard J., born June 30, 1828; William N., March 6, 1830; Judson W., February 15, 1853; Orrin J., July 12, 1835 ; Mary Jane, March 27, 1839; Nancy Jenet, September 5, 1841 ; Rebecca Ann, March 29, 1847. Judson W. Way married Isaura L., daughter of Ezra H. Gregory, of Farmington, on May 9, 1866. They have two children, Charles A. and Ralph C. Timothy Way, during his life, was a farmer and one of the most respected citizens of Pine Grove. Some of his business ventures were unsuccessful, but he eventuallv regained his fortune and at the time of his death was in comfortable circumstances. He was a prominent anti-slavery Democrat, and supported Mr. Lincoln as a candidate for the presidency. He was a member of the society of the Baptist Church. Weiler, George, Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Alsace, France, on February 3, 1824. He is a farmer and settled on the farm he now occupies in 1850, a part of which he cleared and improved. He was a son of George and Barbara (Rockenbach) Weiler, who came to America in 1832, and settled in Pleasant township, where they re- sided for five years, after which they removed to Conewango and settled on the farm now owned by Jacob C. Seigrist, where they lived until the time of their deaths. They had a family of five children — Saloma (Mrs. John Arnold), George, John, Magdalena (Mrs. Christian Kaberlin), Mary (Mrs. Henry Boss). George Weiler, jr., was married on October 7, 1852, to Magdalena Kiel (a daughter of Michael and Susan (Hoscher) Kiel, who were natives of Germany and came to this country and settled in Conewango in 1839). They have had a family of seven children born to them — Lewis, Susan (Mrs. C M. Marston), Clara (Mrs. John Sly), Bessie, Nettie, John, and Robert. Weld, Robert and Clarissa (Howe), were born in Vermont, she in Brattleboro in 1795, and he in Windham in 1784. He died in 1875, and she died in 1885. They had a family of seven children, five of whom are now living — Susan, Sarah, Squire, William W., and Mary. Theodore died in 186 1 in his fifty-fourth year, and Clarissa died in 1883 aged forty years. The parents settled in Sugar Grove in 1831. Weld, William W., is a successful farmer of Sugar Grove, and was born at Bath, History of Warren County. Steuben countv', N. V., February 23, 1S29, and settled in Sugar Grove in 1831. He married Ciiristina Falconer, of Sugar Grove, by whom he has had three sons — Robert J., Fred F., and Guy T. (who died February 27, 1883). WiUiam enlisted in Company B, Ninth New York Cavalry in 1861, and was promoted to second and then to first lieu- tenant, and was discharged in 1863 by reason of disability, and in 1864 he enlisted in Company G, 211th Pennsylvaina Regiment, served to the close of the war and was dis- charged. He was wounded in 1862, for which he now draws a pension. He purchased the farm in 1848, which consists of forty-eight acres, and now owns a homestead of no, where he erected his dwelling complete in appointments in 1885. He was a son of Robert and Clarisa (Howe) Weld. She was a native of Brattleboro, and was born in 1795 and her husband was born in Windham county, Vt., in 1784, and died June i, 1875. They had a family of ten children born to them, five of whom are now living — Susan, Sarah, Squire William W., Mary, and Theodore N. (died leaving a widow and two children), and Clarissa married E. M. Dupray, and died leaving three children. Sarah M. married W. P. Cummings. \\eiler, John C, Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Alsace, France, on Novem- ber, 18, 1827. He is a farmer, owning about 450 acres. He purchased in 1868 two hun- dred and forty acres where he now resides, and has since added to it until now his farm cdmprises in all about 450 acres. He is one of the self-made men of Conewango, coming to this place when but four years old, and has accumulated his large property by his own exertions. He was a son of George and Barbara (Rockenbach) Weiler, who came to this country in 1832. John C. was married on June 6, 1851, to Saloma Seigrist, a daughter of Philip and Saloma (Strubler) Seigrist, who were among the early settlers of Conewango. They have had a family of six children born to them — Mary (now Mrs. Anthony Mintzer), Elias P. (deceased), Theodosia (now Mrs. Michael Kaf- .ferlin), Elias H., Gilbert G., and Chloe. Wellman, Dr. Warren D., Sugar Grove p. o., was born in Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1855. He was a graduate of the Cincinnati Eclectic Medical Institute in the class of 1881 and settled in Sugar Grove, in his profession, that of surgeon and doctor. His brother, Elmer E. Wellman, settled in Sugar Grove in 1881, when they as partners formed the firm of Wellman Brothers, now engaged in the general drug and prescrip- tion business, and added a full stock of groceries and fancy goods, with stationery. They are the sons of W. D. and Laura L. (Martin) Wellman, of Harmony, Chautauqua county, N. Y. Their mother, Laura L., died in 1866, leaving a family of four children —Dr. W. D., Julia E., Elmer E., and Arthur M. Welsh, Lawrence, Chandler's Valley p. 0., Sugar Grove, was born in Tijiperary, Ireland, in 1826, and was a son of Patrick. He settled in Morristown, N. J., in 1848, when he married Joanna Hogan, born in Waterford, Ireland, in 1829, and married in 1849. They have a family of two children — Kate and Mary Elizabeth. Kate married Leonard H. Homer, and has three children. Mr. Welsh settled in Sugar Grove in 1880, purchasing the old John Chandler farm of no acres. He has been for twenty- five years employed as section boss on the railroad, and agent of several roads, east and west. Wentworth, William Wallace, Pittsfield, was born in Litchfield, Herkimer county, N. Y., in 1827, and with his parents, I.,oren and Servilla (Crosby) Wentworth, settled in Chautauqua county in 1828. Their children now living are William W., Eugene, Jasper, and De Ette. William W. Wentworth was married in 1848, to Sarah Olivia Sharp, who was born in Grove, Allegheny county, N. Y.. in 1829. They have had a family of ten children, four of whom are now living — William W. jr., Marion W., Sarah Servilla Pierce, and i'^li B. S. William W., sr., enlisted in Company I., Fourteenth Penn- sylvania Cavalry in 1862, and was discharged at the close of the war in 1865. He was wounded in the shoulder and the knee. His wife, Olivia, was a daughter of Eli B. and Sarah (Barker) Sharp. Sarah was born in Maine, and Eli, her husband, was born in Cayuga county, N. Y. They settled in Pittsfield in 1836. Marion M. Wentworth married George W. Wing, and her sister, Sarah S., married Henry Pierce. They had one child born to them — Francis May. Brief Personals. Wentz, Philip, Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Alsace, France, on March 18, 1840. He was son of Philip and Wilhelmina (Messner) Wentz, who settled in Cone- wango, Warren county, in 1841, on the farm which is now occupied by Philip, most of which they cleared and improved themselves. They had a family of two children — Saloma (Mrs. Matthias Schuler), and Philip, who suceeded to the homestead where he now resides. He was married on February 20, 1S66, to Mahala Denney, by whom he has had one child — Eddie W. Mahala was a daughter of Ransom and Philena Denny, of Steuben county, N. Y. Wenzel, Henry, deceased, Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Leniburg, Bavaria, Germany, on November 15, 1824. He was a son of Henry and Libbie Wenzel. He came to America in 1854, and settled in New York city, where he remained until 1864, when he came to Conewango, where he cleared and improved the farm which is now owned and occupied by his widow, and where he resided until his death, which occur- red on February 5, 1886. He was married in 1849 to Saloma Kestner, a daughter of Michael and Ann M. (Bishop) Kestner, of Leniburg, Germany. Their children were Henry, Christian, William, Philopena, Amelia, Michael, Libbie, and Louis. Mr. Wen- zel was a member of the Lutheran Church, and his family also belong to that denomi- nation. Whaley, E. B., East Branch p. o.. Spring Creek, was born in Wyoming county, N. Y., in 1828, and settled in Warren county in 1847. ^^ '^ ^ farmer and owns 120 acres. He enlisted in 1862 in the Second District Columbia Regiment. He was ordained a minister in the Free Baptist Church, and now preaches at Sparta Church, being the old- est worker in this denomination in Spring Creek. He married Clarissa Nichols, of Sar- dinia, N. Y., who was born in 1835. They had a family of three children born to them — Charles A., Bettie, and Mattie. His father, Daniel Whaley, was born in Ver- mont in 1802, and died in 1879; he married Hannah Bean, of Genesee, N. Y., who was born in 1803, and died in 1844. They had a family of ten children, seven of whom are now living. Wheeler, Hon. Nelson P., of Tidioute, Pa., was born in Portville, Cattaraugus county, N. Y., in 1841. He was a son of William F. and Flora (Atkins) Wheeler, of Cleveland. Mrs. Wheeler died in 1850, leaving a family of three children — N. P., William E., and Augusta, now Mrs. E. A. Skinner, of VVestfield, N. Y. Nelson P. Wheeler was married in 1877 to Rachel A. Smith, a daughter of Captain Alexander Smith, in Cincinnati. They have a family of four children — Rachel F., Isabel S., Mary Atkins, and Nelson P., jr. In 1836 his father, William F. Wheeler, purchased interests in large tracts of land in Venango, now Forest county. Nelson P. came to that part of Venango county, which is now Forest county, in 1865 ; was county commissioner from 1868 to 1871, and was a member of Assembly in 1878-79. He is an extensive lumber manufacturer and shipper from Hickory and Tionesta, their improved band saw-mill and log railroad into the woods greatly facilitating the trade. He is also interested in lum- bering establishments in northern Michigan, and has lately been prominent in locating and erecting a tannery at Hickory. He removed with his family to Tidioute in 1885, and was elected school director the same year. Wheelock, Edwin R., Sugar Grove, was born in Genesee county, N. Y., in the town of Sheldon August 24, 1827. He was a son of Abner and Lydia (Tillotson) Wheelock. Lydia was born in Genesee county, N. Y., Jannary 19, 1801, and her husband, Abner, was born in Charleston, Mass., October 9, 1796, and died on May 22, 1886. His wife, Lydia, died in July, 1871. They settled in Wayne township, Erie county, in 1830, where they resided until 1S59, when they removed to Sugar Grove, where they resided up to the time of their deaths. They had a family of four sons — Charles A., George G., Edwin R., and Mathew G. Edwin R. was married on September 20, 1853, to Betsey Ann Allen, of Freehold township. They have had two sons born to them — Frank D. and George R. Edwin R. Wheelock settled in Warren county in 1842, and engaged in the manufacture and shipping of lumber, and in 1847 he, with his brother George, purchased the Mead Mill, in Mead township, where they resided until 1849, when they sold the mill to Joseph Hall and Charles Fisher, and purchased the David History of Warren County. Allen mill in Freehold township, where he resided until 1870, when he removed to Sugar Grove, and built his present residence, which he now occupies. In 1875 ^^ became en- gaged in the hardware business, under the firm name of Smith & Wheelock, and in 1879 the present firm of Wheelock & Son (Edwin R. and Frank D.), was formed. They deal in all classes of hardware, farmers' supplies, mowers, reapers, carriages, and ploughs. Mr. Wheelock is also engaged in the lumber business. White, L. K., Garland p. o., Spring Creek, was born in Warren county in 1841. He was a son of Samuel and Louisa (Miles) White. Samuel was born in 1787, and died in 1852. His wife was born in 1797, and died in 1878. They had a family of eleven children born to them, six of whom are now living. L. K. White married Mary E. Elder, of Butler county. She was born in 1844. They had a family of eight children born to them— S. L.,'Effie B., H. E., W. R., Anna M., Lelia E., Clifiord, Arliel, de- ceased. They now own and occnpy a farm of thirty-five acres. White, Herbert, Lander p. 0., Farmington, is a farmer, and was born in Farming- ton May 24, 1851. He was a son of Orange and Nancy (Robbins) White, who came from Oneida county, N. Y., and settled in Sugar Grove, now Farmington, in February, 1837, on the farm now owned by Harry Mahan, most of which they cleared and im- proved themselves. They had a family of nine children — Jay, Ebenezer, Otis, Myra E., Orange, jr., Emma, Herbert, Belle, and Harry D. Herbert White was reared in Farm- ington, and was married March 9, 1882, to Clara M. Putnam, a daughter of Perry P. and Margaret (McCray) Putnam, of Farmington. They have had two children born to them — Maggie and Irwin S. White, Lucius, Columbus, was born in Columbus in 1834. He was a son of Mark S. and Rachel (Walker) White, who were natives of Addison county, Vt., who settled in Columbus in 1832. They had a family of five children, four of whom are now living — Lovina, Lucius, Lyman, and Lura. Mark S.White died in 1879, aged eighty-four years, and his wife, Rachel, died in 1862. Mark S. was a son of Peter White, who was a Rev- olutionary soldier. Mark S. was a lumberman and farmer, and was a justice of the peace for some twenty or twenty-five years. He was appointed postmaster under the administration of President Taylor. Lucius White has served as justice of the peace from his early manhood up to the present time. He was appointed pension clerk at Washington under President Arthur. He owns and occupies the old homestead, which was purchased by his parents in 1836. Lucius White was married in 1885, to Mrs. Ada L. Doud, who was a daughter of Mr. William Lowry. She had a family of three chil- dren by her first husband — Jesse, William, and Sarah Doud. Whitehead, James F., McGraw p. o., Triumph, was born on Prince Edward Island, in 1845. He was a son of William and Rebecca Whitehead. James emigrated to Buf- falo, N. Y., in 1864, was employed as a journeyman and ship carpenter. In 1867 he came to Venango, and in 1872 he settled in Triumph, and engaged in the production of oil in his own interest as well as that of others. He became superintendent for J. M. Clap]), in his oil interest in 1880. He was married in 1875, to Marcia Thompson, a daughter of Squire J. W. and Nancy (McMillin) Thompson. J. W. was born in Sara- toga county, N. Y., and his wife, Nancy, was born in Hamilton county, O. James F. Whitehead purchased his homestead farm of 225 acres in 1883. Whitman, William, Kinzua p. o.. Elk, was born in New York city in the year 1819. An orphan child, he was taken from a charitable institution, and brought by a family named Sears to Kinzua in 1827. He was an industrious lad, and worked around the town, and saved his earnings. He married Margaret Morrison, by whom he had a fam- ily of eight children — Lafiiyette, Alvira, Ellen, Roberta, John, William, Ellen (second), the first having died when quite young, and Gardner. William, the father, died Septem- ber 16, 1883. His farm comprised seventy-eight acres nicely located on Kinzua Run. He was at one time connected with the M. E. Church, and was a class leader, but with- drew some years before his death. Whitcomb, Paul, Cornplanter p. o.. Elk, was a native of New Hampshire, and served in the War of 181 2. He married Matilda Page in Vermont, and settled in Howard, Steuben county, N. Y., and with his wife, Charles K., Matilda, and other children, came Brief Personals. to Warren county something over fifty years ago, where Paul died in 1866, and his wife in 1878. Charles K. Whitcomb was united in marriage with Laura Seaman, by whom he had a family of four children, all of whom are now living. He began life for him- self with no capital, and by industry and energy has amassed a comfortable fortune, the result of his own personal effort. Among his fellow men his judgment is respected. About thirty years ago Mr. Whitney moved to Corydon, on a good and well cultivated farm of seventy acres. He was formerly a member of the M. E. Church, but withdrew some years ago, but is a true friend and supporter of the Christian church. Whitney, Ira A., Pittsfield p. o., was born in Youngsville in 1842, a son of Nathan and Susan Davis Whitney. She was a daughter of Abraham and Ruth Mead Davis, and was born in 1809. Nathan was born in Massachusetts in 1803; they were born in Youngsville, and had a family of seven children, four of whom are now living — Ira A., Lucy, M. D., and Dr. William D. Nathan was a son of Ira Whitney, settled in Youngs- ville in 1824, and died in 1862. Ira A. embarked in the mercantile trade in Pittsfield in 1873, dealing extensively in all classes of merchandise, grain, seeds, feed, flour, lum- ber, shingles, clothing, boots and shoes, and does a general barter business to accom- modate his farming trade. He was appointed postmaster November, 18S5. He married Sabrina Mead, daughter of John and Eveline Mead, in 1879; they have three children — Ella, Mary, Lucy P., and Fred. Wickwire, Morton D., of Columbus, was bom in Hamilton, Madison county, N. Y., in 1829. He was a son of Giles and Lois (Carrier) Wickwire, who were born in Con- necticut and settled in Columbus in 1839, where they died, he in 1873, and his wife, Lois, in 1877. They had a family of five children born to them — Morton, Monroe, Dimmis, Myron, and Milo. Morton D. Wickwire was married in 1855, to Sarah Dut- ton, of Warren county. They have had three children born to them — Dennis S., Lura L., and Lelia I. Mr. Morton has been town commissioner, school director, and col- lector, and was also engaged in farming. His son, Dennis, married Mary B. Scholton, of Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1881. They have one child — Earl M. Mrs. Sarah Wickwire was a daughter of Solomon and Rebecca (Rice) Dutton, who settled here in 1829. They had a family of four children — two sons and two daughters. Wiederhold, George, Youngsville p. o., Brokenstraw, was born in Prussian Germany, Grossbartloff, County Heiligenstadt, R. B. Erfurt, Province Sachsen, January 11, 1826, and came to America in 185 1 and settled at Galena, 111., and in 1857 came to Buffalo, N. Y., where he was married in i860 to Barbara Smith, who was born in Bavaria, Ger- many, in 1842. They have had a family of seven children — Bertha, Maggie, George, Emma and Alma (twins), Leo, and Louis. George enlisted in Company D, One Hun- dred and Eleventh Regiment Pennsylvania Yolunteers, in 1864, and served to the close of the war, when he returned to his trade, that of cabinet-making and undertaking, and in 1859 settled in Youngsville and engaged in the general furniture and undertaking business. The undertaking business is a specialty, and he has on hand a variety of fine selections. Wickhizer, John H., Warren p. o., Conewango, was born in Monroe county in the year 1843, and came to Warren in 1869. He enlisted at Wilkesbarre in June. 1861, in Company F, Seventh Pennsylvania Reserves, was captured at Charles City Cross Roads, in the seven days fight in 1S62, and served in the Confederate prisons at Libby and Belle Isle, where he was exchanged, and afterwards discharged for disability. He then re-enlisted in the 8th N. Y. Heavy Artillery, and served to the close of the war. In 187 1 Mr. Wickhizer married Mary M., a daughter of Philip Trushel, by whom he has had two children. He is a contracting carpenter and joiner of Warren, and now resides in Glade. He is also a respected member of the Evangelical Church. Wilcox, Daniel F., Russell p. o., Farmington, is a farmer, and was born in Cone- wango township January 18, 1839. He is a son of Thomas and Sophronia (Spencer) Wilcox. His paternal grandparents were Thomas and Lydia (Dibble) Wilcox, who set- tled in Conewango township about 1820. They had a family of twelve children — Mary A., Thomas, jr., Prudence, Phebe, Tabor, Lovisa, Angeline, Susan, Rockwell, Lodema, History of Warren County. John, and Henry. The maternal grandfather of Daniel F. ^Vilcox was Abner Spencer, who was also among the first settlers of Conewango. Thomas Wilcox, jr., cleared and improved a farm in Conewango which is now owned by Daniel F. He had a family of five children born to him — Daniel F., Uretta, now Mrs. G. H. Pierson ; Salina J., now Mrs. W. Filer; George, Caroline, now Mrs. Daniel Grunder ; and Mathesia, de- ceased. Daniel F. Wilcox was reared in Conewango, where he resided until 1874, he then removed to Farmington, to the farm which he now owns and occupies. He was married March 26, 1874, to Rose Kiker, a daughter of Conrad and Sophia (Gross) Kiker. They have had two children born to them — George C, and Frank C. Williams, John W., of Columbus, was born in Westfield, Chautauqua county, N. Y., in 1817. He was a son of Alvin and Sylvia (Curtis) Williams, who were natives of Massachusetts, and settled in Chautauqua county, N. Y., where they died. John W. Williams settled in Crawford county, in the tanning business, in 1868, and in 1869 he settled in Columbus, and erected his present fine factory, and also purchased a large lumber tract. He has done an extensive business and now tans some fifteen hundred hides per week, giving employment to about fifteen hands. Mr. Williams retired from business in January, 1886. His son, Frank Williams, continues the business. John W. Williams was married in 1844 to Emma Wheeler. They have had a family of three children bornto them — Earl, Frank, Ida, who married C. A. Blakeslee. Mr. Williams first embarked in the mercantile business in 1837, and in the tanning business in 1857. Wilson, George T., Garland p. o., Pittsfield, a practical miller, was born in Cato, Cayuga county, N. Y., in 181 5, and settled in Pine Grove in 1832 with his parents, Joel and Sally (Ladow) Wilson. Sally was born in Cayuga county, N. Y., and Joel, her husband, was born in Vermont. They were married in Cayuga county, N. Y., in 1813, and had a family of thirteen children born to them, five of whom are now living — George T., Sarah, Polly, Cecilia, and Lyman D. Joel died in 1866. Sally, his wife, died in 1871. One of their sons, Lyman D., enlisted and served in the late war. George T. was married in 1842 to Betsey Miller, who was born in Canandaigua, N. Y. She died in Ohio in 1863, leaving two daughters, of whom only one in now living — Sarah Jane. Mr. Wilson was again married, in 1864, to Mrs. Augusta Pike, the widow of James Pike, and by her has had one child — Jeanette. George T. ^^'ilson settled in Garland in 1877, and in 18S5 he became the partner of G. W. Brockway in the general milling, grain, and flour trade. They now occupy the mill which was built by Mr. An- drews. Wollaston, James E., Stoneham p. o., Mead, is a carpenter, and was born in what is now Forrest county June 15, 1849. He was a son of James and Rachel (Tuthill) Wollaston. He was reared in Warren county, where he learned his trade, which occupa- tion he has followed since 1876. He located in Mead township in 1880, and was mar- ried December 13, 1880, to Mary J. McKee, born April 27, 1853,3 daughter of Samuel and Martha McKee, of Titusville. They have had a family of three children born to them — James E., born January 16, 1882; Mary J., born Alarch 19,1883; Samuel L., born April 6, 1885. Woodburn, William J., Brokenstraw, N. Y., p. o.. Freehold, was born in Philadel- phia in 1823, and settled in Warren county in 1833. He married Joicey Way, of New York, and- by her had a family of four children — Ella (Eggleston, deceased), ^Lary (Finch, deceased), Kate (Wood), and Earl H. His father, James Woodburn, was born in Ireland, and was a weaver by trade. He married Mary Porter, by whom he had a family of seven children, six of whom are now living; Wright, Aaron P., Lander p. o., Farmington, was born in St. Lawrence count)-. N. Y., March 14, 1818. He was a son of Aaron and Cornelia (Rose) Wright. He settled in Pine Grove township in 1839, and engaged in lumbering, and in 1846 located in Farmington on the farm on which he now resides. He was married in 1845 to Mary J. Newman, a daughter of Jeremiah C. and Nancy (Marsh) Newman, and a grand- daughter of John Marsh, a native of New Jersey, who settled in what is now Farm- ington in 1800. By his marriage Mr. Wright has had a family of seven children — Ida, Nancy C, Inez, Marion A., Louisa, Belle (deceased), and Mittie. Brief Personals. Wright, David, Sugar Grove p. o., was a son of Adam and Gertrude (Hunter) Wright, who were married in England, and settled in Sugar Grove. They had a family- eleven children born to them, only one of whom is now living — David. Adam Wright was a cotton spinner in his early life, and his children followed the same occupation un- til settlement. David was born in Preston, Lancashire, England, May 7, 1818. He married Anna Read in 1841. She was bom in Fabius, Onondaga county, N. Y., Nov. 15, 1822. They have had a family of ten children born to them — George B., Harriet E., Sarah A., David H., Ephraim M., Lois E., Mary A., Martha E., Belle, and Henry. Anna was a daughter of Zacheus B. and Sally C. (Dean) Read, who settled in Clymer, N. Y., where Zacheus died, leaving a widow and eight children. Wright, George B., Sugar Grove p. o., a farmer and lumber manufacturer; was born in Sugar Grove in 1843, and married Matilda Gifford, of North East, in 1868; she was born in 1843. They have had four children — Betsey E., Nettie A., Guy Allen, and Georgiana A. Matilda was a daughter of Ebenezer and Betsey Gifford ; they came from Saratoga county, N. Y., and settled in Warren county in 1835. Betsey was born in 1800, and died in 1868 in North East, leaving five children. George B. was a son of David and Anna (Read) Wright ; they have had a family of ten children. She was born in Fabius, Onondaga county, N. Y.; he was born in Manchester, England, and came to America with his parents and settled in Massachusetts as a cotton-spinner, and in 1835 settled in Sugar Grove as farmers, where they died. They had a family of eleven chil- dren, all now dead but David. Wright, Mrs. Laura, Freehold p. o., formerly Laura Pierce, of New York, and widow of Edward Wright, was born in 1837, and married in 1866, and died in 1877, leaving a family of two children — Albert and CHfton. Wright, Oliver O., Columbus, was born in Columbus in 1848. He was a son of Jacob and Clarissa (Davis) Wright. Jacob was born in 1803, and his wife Clarissa was born in Rush, Genesee county, in 1813. They were married in 1832, and that same year settled in Columbus. They had a family often children, seven of whom are now living, five sons and two daughters. Jacob, the father, died July i, 1882. Clarissa was a daughter of James and Mary (Jewett) Davis. James was born in England, and his wife, Mary, was born in Connecticut. Oliver O. Wright, was married in 1872 to Mary Jane Williamson, of Ohio. They have had a family of three children born to them — Clarissa G., Jacob W., and William C. Wright, Stephen B., Bear Lake p. o.. Freehold, was born in Chenango county, N. Y., 1818, and settled in Warren county in 1834. He was married in 1839 to Caroline Lopus, by whom he had a family often children, seven of whom are now living. Mr. Wright is a carpenter by trade. His father, Joseph Wright, married Sally Brooks, and to them were born seven children, three of whom are now Uving. Mrs. Wright's father, Isaac Lopus, was born in 1792, and served in the War of 1812, and now draws a pension. The list of the names of the children of Ste|)hen B. Wright is as follows : Chester O. Wright, born in the year 1843, was married in the year 1864 to Rosa J. Walker. Mary E. Wright, born in the year 1845, was married in the year 1864 to Rev. Lucius Markham. Julia L.Wright, born in the year 1849, was married in the year 187 I to Harrison D. Hotchkiss, and died in the year 1874. Rosella R. Wright, born in the year 1852, was married in the year 1870 to Rev. James W. Wilson. Sarah J. Wright, born in the year 1852, was married in the year 1871 to Oscar H. Wilson. Joseph B. Wright, born in the year 1854, and died in the year 1857. Laura F. Wright, born in the year 1856, was married in the year 1878 to George N. Dorn. Clara A. Wright, born in the year 185S, was married in the 1878 to Thomas R. Hinckley. Cyrus N. Wright, born in the year i860, and died in the year 1861. Ephraim L.Wright, born in the year 1865, and lives at home, is now twenty-one years old. Yagle, George, Warren p. o.. Pleasant, is a farmer, and was born in Alsace, France, May 28, 1840. He was a son of George and Barbara (Offerlee) Yagle, who settled in Pleasant township in 1847. He was reared in Pleasant township from the age of six years, and was married April 24, 1866, to Mary Riwa, a daughter of John and Emelien (Schuler) Riwa, who were natives of Alsace, France, who settled in Warren in 1846. History of Warren County. His father was a cooper by trade, a business which he followed for many years. He is still residing in Warren. He had a family of four children who grew to maturity — Emeline (now Mrs. Mathis Gutzler), ^ "^n, Elizabeth ( ,.- Mrs. Adam Shaffer), and Mary. By his marriage Mr. Yagle has a family > f seven children — George, Mary, Louis, Fred and Frank (twins), John, anu Cha.'ie. Mr. Yagle settled on the farm which he now occupies in i&'j2, all of which he has cleared and improved himself. He and his wife and their family are members of the Lutheran Church of Warren. Yagle, William, Warren p. o.. Pleasant, is a farmer, and was born in Pleasant town- ship July 13, 1849. He was a son of George and Barbara (Offerle) Yagle, who were natives of Alsace, France, who came to Warren county about 1847, and settled in Pleas- ant township, on the farm which is now owned by John Peterson, where the father re- sided until the time of his death. They had two children who grew to maturity, George and William. William was reared in Pleasant township, where he has always resided. He was married in 187 i, to Mary Schirck, a daughter of Jabob and Catherine (Schuler) Schirck, and by her has had a family of two children — Hattie B., and Carrie L. Young, W. J., Garland p. o., Eldred, was born in Eldred in 1849. He is a farmer, and owns a farm of fifty acres. He married Effie Brown, who died March 10, 1883, leaving one child, Effie E. He married his second wife, Ida M. Klinger, in 1885. His father, Jacob Young, was born in Ohio, December 4, 1802, and married Margaret Mc- McCrea, of Titusville, October 22, 1S29, and died November 16, 1873. He had a fam- ily of ten children, seven of whom are now living. The father and five of his sons served in the war of the rebellion, and one of his sons, Robert, was killed at the battle of Gettysburg. Yates, George, a general merchant, of Columbus, Warren county, and at present a member of the firm of Yates & Smith, was born in Columbus borough, on Jantiary 17, 1853, and was a son of Judge G. V. N. and Lucy A. (Smith) Yates. Lucy was a daugh- ter of Elijah Smith, of Chenango county, N. Y. They were married at Columbus, and Judge G. V. N. died February 14, 1876, leaving a widows and six children — Lelia M., George, Emma A., W. V. N., Mary B., and Minnie E. Mr. Yates was a manufacturer and dealer in harness, and was elected sheriff of the county in 1855. He also served as judge of the county for one term, and was president of the First National Bank of Corry. George Yates became engaged in the mercantile business in 1872, in Butler county, and in 1875 came to Columbus, where he became engaged in the drug business, sold his in- terest in the same and went to Jamestown, N. Y., and in 1878 he returned to Columbus, where be became engaged in the general mercantile business, and is now a member of firm of Yates & Smith. Li 18S1 he married Jennie S. Purcel, of Schoolcraft, Mich., and have two children — G. V. N. Yates and Lucy J. Yates. He was elected treasurer of Warren county, November 3, 1886. Dawson, William R., was born in Allegheny township, Venango county, in 1844, and in 1866 located in Tidioute; since that time has been engaged in mercantile busi- ness; in January, 1866, was appointed postmaster by the president. INDEX ACADEMY lands leased, 124. Act of Legislature providing for laying out towns, 123. Actual settlement law of April 3, 1792, 122. Adlum, John, his letter to Governor Mifflin, 117. Agricultural Societies, history of, 269. " Show," the first, 269. Fair, first annual, 272. Premiums, names of those to whom awarded, 270. implements, 275. Alden, Timothy, founded Allegheny College, 138. Allegheny steamboat, built by Archibald Tan- ner and David Dick, 149. Allen, 0. C, biography of, 683. Animals, kinds found, 16. Answer to Cornplanter's speech to Supreme Executive Council, 104. Assessor in 1806, 131. Assessor in 1808, 136. Attorneys, names and place of residence of, 314. BARNES, E., biography of, 635, Bartholomew, Benjamin, brief sketch of, 318. " Battle of the Fallen Timber," 120. Beaty, David, biography of, 609. Bench and Bar, chapter on, 311. Benedict, Willis B., biography of, 629. Bill introduced for independent organization of Warren township, 141. Biography of Allen, 0. C, 683. Barnes, E., 635. Beatv, David, 609. Benedict, Willis B., 629. Blodget, A. C, M. D., 634. Brown, R., 647 Gurrie, Joshua T., 627. Curwen, John, M. D., 605. Davis, Alpheus J., 628. Dinsmoor, Charles, 650. Dunham, M. B., 644. Eldred, N. B., 639. Graham, Samuel M., 685. Biography "of Gray,"Robert M., 664. Grandin, Samuel, 638. Grossenburg, Samuel, 663. • Hall, Orris, "649. Hall, Chapin, 659. Harmon, Hosea, 666. Hertzel, Andrew, 652. Hunter, 0. H., 646. Irvine, Doctor William A., 671. Jackson, William M., 672. Jamieson, Hugh A., 660. Johnson, S. P., 6S6. McKinney, Peter, 626. McGraw, Michael, 643. Marsh, William S., 632. Miles, Robert, 636. Merritt, Hon. Charles C, 624. Nesraith, B., 681. Orr, Richard S., 678. Roger.s, Alson, 633. Roy, James, 637. Rouse, Hon. Henry R., 679. Sanford, J. G., 676. Scofield, Glenni W., 616. Sechriest, J. C, 688. Shortt, W. H., 690. Stone, Charles W., 613. Struthers, Thomas, 599. Tanner, Archibald, 621. Thompson, Robert, 689. Watson, Lewis Findlay, 606. Walton, John, 673. Wetmore, C. C, 658. Wetmore, Hon. Lansing, 656. Wetmore, Hon. L. D., 610. White, Jay, 655. Whitman, John, 669. Block-house erected at Warren 1795, 131. Blodget, A. C, M.D., biography of, 634. "Blue Throat," an Indian, died at an extreme old age, 149. Boroughs, date of the incorporation of, 269. Boundary line, a new one established, 156. Boundaries, original of Warren county, 126. Braddock's disastrous campaign, 68. Brant, his letter to Governor Simcoe, 116. Brokenstraw township, history of, 401. t:x Index. Brokenstraw township, Andrews, Robert, pioneer settler of, 402. boundaries of, 401. derivation of name of, 401. early business in, 411. eccl'e.siastical, 418. Irvine borough of, 416. MoKinney, John, first resident settlei of, 402. municipal history of, 412. Rouse Hospital, 412. schools of, 417. iiQon settlers arriving between 1806 and 1820, list of tax-payers in 1810, 140. erection of, 127. . ,. . • * .,f it becomes the first election district ot Crawford, 127. the sole township of Warren couuty, 127. Brown, R., biogri-aphy of, 64 (. Burying the leaden plate with inscription en- graved thereon, 02 CABLE, James, brief sketch of, 321. Celeron and party arrived on the site ot the town of Warren, 61. Chambers, James, late colonel, 90. Chapman, John, started in 1797, 153 Cherry Grove township, history ot, obd. boundary of, 584. eariv settlers in, 584. Garfield, village in, 585. Church, Judge Gaylor.l, fourth judge, 312 Civil List, cliapter on, 294. County officers, list of, 29o. National Government, oflicers ot, IJi State Government, officers of, 295 Township officers, list of, 299. Clark, Perrv D., brief sketch of.;521. Columbus township, history of, 48.5. early settlers, 483. hotels of, 489. schools and churches of, 491. the Equitable Aid Union of America, 490. the tannery, 490. Commissioners' report to Supreme Executive Companies incorporated from 1836 to 1840, 15.5. Conewango township, history of, 394. boundaries of, 394. early pioneers of, 395. first settlers of, 394. first township election of, 395. land owners in, 397. . , ooo list ot taxable inhabitants in 1822, 395. North Warren Asylum, 399. North Warren, 398. origin of name, 394. surface of, 398. list ot tax-payers in 1810, 139. " Conewango Emigrant," first newspaper pub- lished in Warren, 149. Conewango and Brokenstraw creeks declared public navigable streams, 124. Cooper, Charles L., brief sketch of, .323. Cornplanter becomes conspicuous, »1. attempt of whites to steal from his party, 106. , , n 1 ch<>ice" of lands promised by General Assembly, 106. ,...-, Day's sketch of this great chieftain s life, 107. death in 1836, 154. his arrival at Philadelphia, 9i. speech to Supreme Executive Council, 98 his meeting with President Washington, 105. „. , ■ , his friendship for George ^^ ashington, 109. his settlement on new lands, 107. monument to his memory, 166. new village, name of, 107. petition to State for protection, 9(. sold a large tract of land, 99. started for Philadelphia, 97. Thomas Jilifllin's letter to, 97. Cornplai.ter's remarkable little speech at Fort Franklin, 122. Cornplanter, death of, l.i4. Cornplanter's lands declared exempt from tax- ation in 1822, 146. Cornplanter's lands taxed without authoritj, 147. . „, Cornplanter's reservation, ill. Cornplanter turns against the Americans, no. Corydon township, history of, oo9. boundary of, 559. _ early settlers of, 559. ecclesiastical, 56.5. educational, 565. . the village of Corydon and its business, 563. County buildings, etc., 253 Court-house, first one established 182o, 149. Court-house, new one built, 2o0. Court-house, the new one linished and dedi- cated, 257. Court, first term ot, 143. R„h,.,-t Court of Appeals held in the house of Robcit Anch-ews in 1808, 136. Cott "fAppeals Ordered to be heU at the house of Daniel JacU.son in 180(, 161. Court-house, the first, 255. Crawford county organized, I2b. Crawford county, temporary attachment of Warren county to, 126. Currie, Joshua T., biography ot. 62, . Curtis, Hon. Carlton B., ordered to recruit a regiment of soldiers, 16p. Cuskakushing, an old Indian t""'". '^^ Curtis, Cariton B., brief sketch of, .11 -. Curwen, John, M. D., biography of, OOo. Index. D kALRYMPLE, Made C, the first sheriff, 143. Davis, Alpheus J., biography of, 628. Death of Cornplanter in 1836, 154. ■ Deerfield township, history of, 453. borough of Deerfield, organization of, 461. first school held in, 455. Grandin, Samuel. 463, 638. hotels of, 465. list of Methodist ministers in, 456. mercantile interests of, 464. physicians, past and present, of, 466. post-office of, 466. prominent men of, short sketches of, 457. Defeat of General St. Clair's army November, 1791, 115. Depredations by savages, 115. Devil's Hole massacre, 73. Dickson, put to trial, 145. Dinsmoor, Charles, biography of, 650. Drake. Colonel E. L., prominent in oil regions, 289. Dunham, M. B., biography of, 644. Duukle, John W., brief sketch of, 322. Dunn, Jeremiah, hung himself, 149. Dwellings, utihzing the rooms of for public purposes, 253. EIGHTY -THIRD Regiment, history of, 195. Eldred, N. B., biography of, 639. Eldred, .Judge N. B., third judge, 312. Eldred township, history of, 545. boundary of, 545. early setJers of, 545. first hotel in Grand Valley, 549. Grand Valley, village in, 548. industries, early ones in, 547. schools and churches in, 549. Elk township, history of, 498. boundary of, 498. coal bed in, 499. first roads in, 500. first settlers of, 501. Indians of, partial history of, 510. township officers, 500. English dominion, 72. neglect and ill-treatment of red men by, 72. uprising of Indians against, 72. last attack of Senecas upon, 73. Era of formation, 125. European discoveries, etc., 21. Excitement in first court, 143. ARMINGTON township, history of, 586. boundary of, 586. bu.siness interests in, 589. churches and schools in, 591. early settlements in, 586. post-oflice in, 591. schools and churches in, 591. F Fifty-eigVith Regiment, history of, 192. Forests, character of, 15. Fort Du Quesne, when built, etc., 65. Fort Niagara, origin of, 57. Fort Stanwix, treaty of, 85. Forty-second Regiment, Bucktail Rifles, history of, 179. Frazine, George N., brief sketch of, 322. Freehold township, history of, 523. Bear Lake, village in, 529. present business interests in, 530. lioundary of, 523. Irvine, James, first permanent settler in, 524. Lottsville, town in, 528. Wrightsville, village in, 527. Wright, Joshua, brief mention of, 526. French, first white men to explore around Lake Erie, 22. French progress, 35. French dominion, 56. French Creek, 86. French, final defeat of, 70. English took formal possession of their lands 1760, 71. English and French War closed 1763, 72. GRAY, Robert M., biography of, 664. Galbraith, Hon. John, fifth judge, 312. Grossenburg, Samuel, biography of, 663. Grandin, Samuel, biography of, 638. Glade township, history of, 550. Ijoundary of, 550. Cobhara, George A., mention of, 557. early settlements in, 550. early mills, etc., in, 557. hotels in, 558. post-office, 558. schools and churches in, 558. Graham, Samuel M., biography of, 685. HACKNEY, Colonel Joseph, his biU to Legislature in 1819, 141. Hall, Orris, biography of, 649. Hall, Chapin, biography of, 659. Hall, Josiah, brief sketch of, 318. Hard times following War of 1812-15, 138. Harmon, Hosea, biography of, 666. Hatchets, description of, 26. Hazeltine, Abner, brief sketch of, 317. Hertzel, Andrew, biography of, 652. Higgins, George H., brief sketch of, 322. Hinckley, Watson D., brief sketch of, 322. Hook murder trial, 147. Hunter, 0. H., biography of, 646. INCREASE remarkable from 1806 to 1816, 141. Independent company militia of 1862, 252. Independent Company C. (infantry), 250. Indians, early tribes, 17. Information derived from the docket, 146. Inn-keepers, names of, 150. Index. Iroquois title to Warren county, 58. Iroquois, history of, 28. Irvine, Dr. William A., biography of, G71. Irvine, William, agent, his note of distances around Conewango, 89. Irvine, General, explores new purchases, 86. JACKSON, William M., biography of, 672. Jackson, Daniel, and Giles White licens- ed to keep the first public houses, 132. Jail breakers, reminiscences concerning, 254. Jail, the first, 253. Jail, the second, 255, Jamieson, Hugh A., biography of, 660. Jeflfers, J. Ensign, his letter to the people, 98. Jemison, Mary, the white woman hving among Indians, 75. Johnson, S. P., biography of, 686. Joncaire and his trappers, 59. Judges, late, names of, 313. KAHQUAHS and Bries exterminated, 23. Kier, Samuel M., mention of, 287. Kinnear, J. W., brief sketch of, 323. Kinzua township, history of, 475. boundary of, 475. early settlements, 475. ecclesiastical, 482. educational. 482. first settler in, 476. postmasters of, 482. present business interests, 480. village of, 479. " Know Nothings," 158. Knox, General, arrived at Cornplanters' " up- per town," 111. LANDS, extraordinary rich in vicinity of Conewango River, 1 12. Largest regiment of Warren county men, 196. Le Boeuf (now Waterford), why so called, 64. Le Griftbn (the Grillin), when built, etc., 36. Limestone township, history of, 493. biographical sketches of prominent set- tlers of, 496. early settlers of, 495. Harmony Society, sketch of, 49.5. Limestone organized in 1829, 149. Lindsey, Wilton M., brief sketch of, 321. Lytic & Merrick, oil well of, 257. McKiNNKY, Peter, biography of, 626. McGr.-iw, Michael, biography of, 643. Mad Anthony, 121. Marsh, William S., biography of, 632. Marsh, Hugh, the assessor in 1806, 131. Massacre, Devil's Hole, 73. Mead tovi'nship, history of, 576. boundary of, 576. churches and schools in, 582. Clarendon borough in, 579. Clarendon village in, 582. schools and churches in, 582. settlement and early condition of, 577. Meeting at Warren of the surviving soldiers of the War of 1812-15, 137. Meeting of loyal citizens at Warren April 19, 1861, 163. Merchants, names of those engaged in busi- ness in 1830, 150. Merchants in 1850, 157. Merrill, Gilman, brief sketch of, 317. Merritt, Hon. Charles C, biography of, 624. Milllin, Thomas, his letter to the Indian chiefs, 97. Miles, Robert, biography of, 636. Miles, John N., brief sketch of, 318. Minerals, 16. Monument erected iu memory of Cornplanter, 166. Moore, Hon. Jesse, the first judge, 311. Muse, Homer J., brief sketch of, 321. NATURAL gas lately discovered in Warren county, 169. Neill, Samuel T., brief sketch of, 320. Nesmith. Benjamin, biography of, 681. New Englanders and New Yorkers in Warren county, 152. Noyes, C. H., brief sketch of, 320. Nursery started by Chapman, 154. O'BAIL, Charles, son of Cornplanter, 142. Oil Creek, 87. origin of name of, 88. Oil fever struck Warren and Glade in 1876, 167. Oil furor, the last one at Kinzua, 168. Oil fields at Tidioute, opening of, 161. Oil market of the worl j caused to halt, 168. Oil production since 1859, table of, 294. Oil well, " Drake well," the first, 288. "Williams well," 291. One Hundred and Eleventh Regiment, history of, 196. One Hundred and Thirteenth Regiment, his- tory of, 214. One Hundred and Forty- lifth Regiment, his- tory of, 219. One Hundred and Fifty-first Regiment, history of, 227. One Hundred and Fifty-ninth Regiment, his- tory of, 232. One Hundred and Eighty-second Regiment, history of, 238. One Hundred and Ninety-third Regiment, his- tory of, 245. Orr, Richard S., biography of, 678. PARMLEE, James 0., brief sketch of, 320. Pearson, John J., brief sketch of, 319. Penn, William, 39. Penn, William, in Pennsylvania, 49. Personals, brief, 691. Petroleum, chapter on, 285. Pigeons, immense numbers found, 113. Pine Grove, township of, 443. assessment of in 1806, 445. Index. Pine Grove, boundary of, 443. early settlements in, 443. ecclesiastical, 4.52. first elementary school in, 448. present business in, 450. taxable inhabitants in 1822, list of, 449. villap-e of Pme Grove, now Eussellburg, 445. Pine Grove and Columbus townships settled, 131. " Pittsburgh and Warren Packet," 305. Pittsfleld township, history of, 566. boundary of, 566. churches and schools in, 575. early settlements of, 566. Garland village, 572. early settlers in, 573. post-office of, 574. schools and churches in, 575. Torpedo, small village, 574. village of Pittsfleld, 570. post-office of, 572. Pleasant township, history of, 532. boundary of, 5.S2. derivation of name of, 532. early settlers of, 533. Poor-house, erection of, 258. Population of Warren county in 1880, 169. Portmau, John, note on his life, 130. Press, the history of, 276. "Allegheny Mail," 282. " Clarendon Record," 283. "Democratic Advocate," 281. "Evening Paragraph," 284. First printer in Warren, 277. "People's Monitor," 282. "Sugar Grove News," 284. " The Bear Lake Record," 284, •' The Conewango Emigrant," first number of, 277. "The Union," 281. "The Voice of the People," 280. " The Warren Gazette," editors and publishers of, 279. Tidioute publications, 283. " Warren Ledger," 281. "Warren Bulletin," 281. " Warren Mirror," 283. " Warren Standard," 281. "Youngsville Express," 283. Proctor, Col., and Cornplanter en route to Byfialo, 112. Purviance, Samuel A., brief sketch of, 317. Putnam, Israel, distinguished American pa- triot, 74. RAFTMEN'S Guards, 164. Railroads, brief mention of, 309. Red Jacket, the orator, 112. Reminiscences of attorneys, by Hon. S. P. Johnson, 317. Rice, William E., brief sketch of, 323. River navigation, etc., 302. Rogers, Alson, biography of, 633. Rouse, Hon. Henry R., bequeath of, estate of, 257. Rouse, Hon. Henry R., serious injury of, death of, 257. monument in memory of, 258. biography of, 679. Roy, James, biography of, 637. SALE of lots in towns of Warren, Erie, Frankhn, etc., 123. Sanford, Joel G., biography of, 676. School-house used as a court-room, 253. School-houses in 1857, 160. Schools and academies, grounds laid out for them, 124. Scofield, Glenni W., biography of, 616. Scotch-Irish, 150. Sechriest, John C, biography of, 688. Seneca Indians, forlorn condition of, 83. willing to cede their lands, 83. Settlers, names of the very first in the county, 131. Sheffield township, history of, 511. boundary of, 511. early settlers of, 511. mercantile history of, 521. municipal history of, 519. post-office in, 521. schools and churches of, 522. Shippen, Henry, second judge, 311. Shortt, W. H., biography of, 690. Signatures to Cornplaiitev's speech to the Su- preme Executive Council, 104. Soil, its products, 16. Soldiers' Aid Society, 167. Southwest township, history of, 537. boundary of, 537. early settlers of, 537. first school in, 544. present business, 543. Southwest in 1847, 542. Spring Creek township, history of, 467. boundary of, 467. early settlements of, 467. first store in, 473. physicians, past and present of, 474. postmaster, first one in, 473. schools and churches of, 475. Struthers, Thomas, biography of, 599. Steamboats, names of, 306. Stone, Chas. W., biography of, 613. Sugar Grove, township of, 420. Agricultural Society, 436. boundary of, 420. Brookmire, James G., mention of, 431. Brown, David, mention of, 421. Chandler's Valley, village in, 437. Early and present mills of, 432. Ecclesiastical, 439. G. A. R. Post of, 437. mercantile business of, 433. Miles, Robert, first permanent settler of, 421. physicians of, 435. Index. Sugar G-rove, post-offioe of, 437. prominent settlers of, 424. schools of, 438. soil of, 420. Sugar Grove Savings Bank, 436. " Sugar Grove News," 435. Sunbury and Erie Railroad built, 161. TANNER, Archibald, biography of, 621. Tanner, Archibald, appointed county treasurer, 142. Taxable inhabitants of Warren county in 1806, 127. Taxable inhabitants, those added to list of 1806, 132. Tax-paying inhabitants in 1816, 139. Tax-rolls for 1808, 133. Tax, the amount levied on taxable property in 1806, 131. Telegraph line, the first one, 157. " Tenachshegouchtongee, or the burnt house,'' 111. Thirty-ninth Regiment, Tenth Reserve, his- tory of, 169. Thompson, Robert, biography of, 689. Thompson, Caleb C, brief sketch of, 320. Thompson, .James, brief sketch of, 319. "Tidioute Rifles," 164. Tidioute oil fields opened, 161. Townships, organizations of, 259. Brokenstraw, organization of, 259. Cherry Grove, organization of, 267. Conewango, organization of, 250. Corydon, organization of, 266. Eldred, organization of, 265. Elk, organization of, 264. Farmington, organization of, 268. Freehold, organization of, 264. Glade, organization of, 266. Limestone, organization of, 26.'i. Moad, organization of, 266. Pittsfield, organization of, 267. Pleasant, organization of, 264. change of boundary line of, 265. Sheffield, organization of, 264. cliange of boundary line of, 265. Southwest, organization of, 265. Township lines, change of, 265, 267, 208. Triumph, organization of, 268. Watson, organization of, 268. Townships, the two original ones divided, 146. Treaty between Senecas and the United State-s 137. Treaty of Nov. 11, 1794, 122. Trip of the steaml)oat Allegheny to Clean, N. Y., 149. Triumph township, liistory of, 593. boundary of, 593. early settlers in, 593. fire in, 594. Gillam, A. M., his poem, .595. school-houses in, 594. Troublesome times on the border, 110. Two Hundred and Eleventh Regiment, his- tory of, 246. WAGON ROADS. 308. Walton, John, biography of, 673. Warren borough, history of, 324. assessment-roll of, in 1885, 346. auction sale of lots of, 326. banks of, 355. building of hewn timber, the first in, 327. cemeteries, etc., of, 368. census of in 1870, 345. failure of " Lumbermen's Bank," 340. fire department of, 352. first borough election of, 338. first bridge across the Allegheny built, 340. first merchant in, 333. first tax-payer of, 330. great flood in 1865, 344. hotels, taverns, etc., of, 363. Jackson, Daniel, early pioneer of, 328. large fire in, 343. laying out of, 325. library association building, cost of, etc., 346. location of, 324. "Lumberman's Bank," organization of, 339. manufacturing interests of, 358. merchants of, 361. McQuay, Daniel, first inhabitant of, 327. municipal history of, 348. names of some residents of, 335. names of taxable inhabitants of in 1833. 33S. other merchants of, 336. physicians of, 362. prices of groceries, etc., about 1830, 336. religious societies of, 370. schools of, 353. secret associations of, 365. town hall of, 346. traveling facilities from, 341. Warren county, population of, 169. period from organization of county until 1830, 14L period during and since the late war, 161. period from 1783 to 1790, 83. period from 1700 to 1791, 96. period from 1791 to 1800, 110. Warren county men in Ulth regiment, 204. field and stalT, 204. company B., 204. privates, 205. company D., 209. privates, 210. " Warren Guards," organization of, 163. Warren county annexed to 'V^enango in 1805, 127. Warren county, formation of, 125. Warren county boundaries, 14. Index. Warren County, named after, 14. organization, date of, 1.3. Warren county, English authority over, 82. Washington, Geo., messenger to LeBoeuf, 64. Wa.shington fell sick, 67. Watson, L. F., biography of, 606. Watson township, history of, 597. churches, none in, .598. religious services held in, 598. schools in, 598. sketches, brief, 598. Wetmore, C. C, biography of. 658. Wetmore, Hon. L., biography of, 652. Wetmore, Hon. L. D., biography of, 610. Whig party disappeared, 158. White, Jay, biography of, 655. White, Giles, and Daniel Jackson, licensed to keep the first public houses, 130. Whitman, Jno., biography of, 669. Wiggins, James W., brief sketch of, 323. Wilson, Hugh, assessor in 1808, 136. "Y^ATES, W. V. N., brief sketch of, 323. X Youngsville, borough of, 412. lawyers of, 416. merchants in, 414. mills in, 414. physicians of, 415. post-office of, 416. the Youngsville savings bank, 415. / ^v 1/ f-t£. LIBRARY OF CONGRESS 014 209 770 9