USA > New Jersey > Biographical, genealogical and descriptive history of the first congressional district of New Jersey, Volume II > Part 8
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When the last named reached man's estate he located on a farm on Oldman's Creek, where he lived for some time. He then removed to an- other farm further down the creek, and became one of the most prosperous agriculturists of that locality. In 1849 he visited friends in Illinois, and while returning was stricken with cholera, dying in Terre Haute, July 24,
CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT OF NEW JERSEY. 67
1849, at the age of sixty-two years and ten days. His wife bore the maiden name of Elizabeth Jaggard, and was a daughter of James Jaggard, who resided near Blackwood. The marriage of this worthy couple was blessed with six children. Thomas, the eldest, wedded Mary Ann Cheeseman, had seven children, and died in Elmwood, Illinois, in 1898, at the age of eighty- eight years. George married Martha Ewalt, of Illinois, had six children, and died in Elmwood, in 1895, at the age of eighty-four. Keturah became the wife of James White, by whom she had five children, and her death occurred in California, while her husband passed away in Illinois. Henry married Elizabeth Black, by whom he had seven children, and for his second wife he wedded Harriet Sailor, by whom he had three children. He always resided near Swedesboro, where he died in 1888, at the age of seventy- three years. Sarah became the wife of Benjamin Weatherby, and they had a family of seven children. Daniel married Angeline Whitesides, by whom he had three children and is now living in Elmwood, Illinois. After the death of his first wife Isaac Hurff was again married, his second union being with Ann Jaggard, his first wife's sister. They had eleven children. William wedded Mary Lynch, by whom he had four children, and died in Swedes- boro, in 1896, at the age of seventy-three years, and his widow is still living
in Swedesboro. Reese married Ann Thompson, by whom he had nine children, and is living in Roadstown, Cumberland county, New Jersey. Aaron is the next of the family. Elizabeth is the widow of Benjamin F. Swing and has five children, her home being in Shiloh, Cumberland county, New Jersey. Mary is the widow of John Ashcroft, by whom she had five children, three now living, and she is a resident of Swedesboro. Martha and Delilah were twins. The latter died in infancy, but the former married Samuel Cooper, of Bridgeport. Isaac, a resident of Elmwood, Illinois, married Elizabeth Lynch, and has two children. Deborah, deceased wife of Samuel Gaskill, of Swedesboro, had three children by her marriage. Freeman and Freeland were also twins. The former died at the age of two years and the latter married Susan Justice, by whom he had three children. He died in Bridgeport, at the age of fifty-six years.
Aaron Hurff obtained his education in the common schools, but his privileges in that direction were very limited, as he was enabled to pursue his studies for only a few days during the year, or, as he expresses it, "when it was too stormy to work on the farm." He has carried on agricultural pur- suits throughout his entire life, and has been one of the most successful farmers in southern New Jersey. His landed possessions are very extensive and valuable, and in addition to owning five farms he is one of the heaviest stockholders in the Swedesboro Bank. His other property interests are
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also extensive and valuable. He purchased and remodeled his present resi- dence in Swedesboro in 1876, and has since occupied it.
On the 2d of May, 1850, Mr. Hurff was united in marriage to Miss Sarah D. Gardiner, a daughter of Amos Gardiner, of Mullica Hill. She died May 19, 1878. In their family were four children, but Mary Ann, the third in order of birth, died at the age of three months. Amos G., the eldest, is a resident of Swedesboro. He wedded Maggie Allen, and they have one child, Aaron H. Freeman married Hannah Sparks and has one living daughter, May. They also lost a daughter, Grace. Their home is in Wash- ington, D. C. Sarah G. is now the wife of Alexander B. Hewes, of Swedes- boro.
In his political views Mr. Hurff is a stanch Republican, who keeps well informed on the issues of the day, and is therefore able to advance an in- telligent argument in support of the principles which he advocates. His fellow townsmen, recognizing his worth and ability, have frequently called upon him to serve in positions of public trust, and in all he has discharged his duties with marked promptness and fidelity. In business affairs he is a man of keen discernment, very reliable and energetic, and his capable management and well directed efforts have brought to him creditable suc- cess, making him one of the wealthiest citizens of the county.
ALBERT PORCH, M. D.
Dr. Albert Porch of Clayton, New Jersey, will be represented in this connection as one of the leading and skillful physicians of his locality, whose career is justly entitled to be made a part of the history which he himself is helping to make. He was born at Franklinville, New Jersey, April 9, 1842. His father was William Porch, a native of the same place. Our subject's grandfather on his paternal side, Samuel, was born in the same county, and his great-grandfather was Elijah Porch, whose ancestor came from Eng- land. Three brothers of the name of Porch came to America, one settling at Trenton, one at a point in this county, and one in Virginia. Samuel was in the war of 1812, and our subject now possesses the sword he carried and prizes it highly. He conducted a store, sawmill and gristmill at Franklinsville for many years. He served as the postmaster for a long time, and was a justice of the peace for forty years. He was a great ad- mirer of General Jackson.
William Porch, the father of our subject, followed farming and was a
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constable for forty years of his life. He collected taxes for twenty years and assessed his township for fifteen years. Many came to him for advice, relying on their own opinion not so much as upon his. In religious mat- ters he was a Methodist, and he lived a consistent life. He died in 1888. His wife's maiden name was Ruth Sunan, the daughter of Peter Sunan, a large land-owner of Salem county. She died in 1856. Of their five chil- dren, our subject is the only survivor.
After having attended the common schools, Dr. Albert Porch taught school when he was seventeen years of age. Next he engaged in the study of medicine, and graduated at Jefferson College in 1867, after which he located at Franklinville, practiced there for five years, and removed to his present home in Clayton. He belongs to the Gloucester County Medical Society and the Jefferson College Alumni Association. For nine years he served as a member of the educational board. He belongs to the Masonic order, and is now a past master, and also a past sachem in the Order of Red Men. His name also appears on the roll of active members in the order of American Mechanics. In his practice he has had an almost phe- nomenal success. Out of the two thousand women whom he has cared for during their confinement, he has not lost a case.
For his companion, the Doctor married Martha Melford, the daughter of Lorenzo Melford, of Millville. Of their five children, the names of the living are: Hannah, a graduate of the normal school; and Alice, Harriet and Francis at home.
We here subjoin a bit of national as well as family history, of which the subject and his children may well care to preserve. During the stormy days of our war for independence, our subject's great-grandmother served as a cook in General Washington's army. She accompanied the army wherever they chanced to go, and was at the hard-fought battle of Trenton, New Jersey. Our subject has frequently heard her tell how the British bullets whistled as they sped by her! .
In concluding this brief memoir of the Doctor and his estimable family, it should be remarked, in passing, that one seldom meets a family whose ancestry are so closely connected with the singular and great historic events of our country, as the one of which we have just written. Members of his family have served in both the war for national independence and the war we have come to call the "War of 1812." Our subject's excep- tional success as a medical practitioner, his connection with the various civic and religious orders, his bright and interesting family, all make his life and history both valuable and replete with interesting events.
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CLARK PETTIT.
It is scarcely necessary to introduce this gentleman to our readers, as his name is familiar not only throughout New Jersey, but also in almost every other state in the Union, as one of the foremost breeders of fine stock in this country; and he has done more to advertise the city of Salem, this state, than any other man living here. He is a farmer of more than average ability and instead of following in the old beaten track, has branched into new channels and raised the standard of the New Jersey farmer.
He is a son of James Jess and Elizabeth R. (Ridgeway) Pettit, and was born November 1, 1843, in Mannington township, this county, on the beat- tiful villa, Hedgefield, which was formerly the property of his grandfather and is now his own home. The ancestral tree of the Pettit family grew on English soil, the first branch of the family being transplanted to America in 1638, when John Pettit located with his family in Roxbury, Massachusetts. Mr. Pettit traces his genealogy back in a direct line to this early pioneer as follows: James Jess; Woodnut, married Sarah Jess; Joseph, who married Sarah Bassett in 1801; Jonathan, who built at Tuckertown in 1799 and mar- ried Mary Shourds; Nathaniel, who settled in Tuckertown, this state, in 1734; Moses, who located at Mansfield, New Jersey, in 1718; Nathaniel, who came to Trenton, New Jersey, in 1714, and owned the bluffs upon which the New Jersey state-house now stands; Thomas, a resident of Newtown, Long Island, in 1682; and John, the founder of the family on American soil.
Woodnut Pettit, the grandfather, was born in Lower Penn's Neck town- ship, where he attended the country schools and later engaged in farming in that and Elsinboro townships. In 1821 he purchased Hedgefield and re- sided there until the marriage of his son, the father of our subject, when he moved to Salem and lived in retirement for some sixteen years prior to his death. He owned two hundred and fifty acres of land, the first to be cleared off between Salem and Woodstown. This clearing was the work of Samuel Hedge, who married one of the daughters of John Fenwick. Woodnut Pettit was a very prominent man and closely identified with the local affairs of that community, at one time serving as a member of the legislature. He was a member of the Society of Friends and attended the Salem meeting. He was a man of strong force of character and decided opinions who lived up to his ideals and was esteemed for his honorable and upright life.
James Jess Pettit, the father, was born in Lower Penn's Neck township in 1819 and spent the earlier part of his life in farming on the land now owned and occupied by his son Clark. In 1866 he retired from the active duties of life, finally taking up his residence in Woodstown, where he now
Clark Pettit
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lives. He has been closely identified with township affairs and held a num- ber of offices, such as assessor, committeeman, etc. He was formerly a Whig, later a Republican, and then having the courage of his convictions, he took a decided stand for prohibition and has been an ardent advocate of that policy ever since. He has always been an attendant of the Salem and Woodstown meetings and is a man whose sterling worth and pure life has made him a man among men. He was united in marriage with Miss Eliza- beth Ridgeway and for more than half a century they have journeyed through life together, sharing each other's joys and sorrows until they have reached the eighty-first and seventy-eighth years respectively of their lives and are spending their sunset years in the serene consciousness of lives well spent and duties fittingly performed. Three children were sent to brighten their fireside and bring comfort to their declining years, the eldest being Clark, our subject; Ruth, born April 3, 1845, married William Reeves, formerly a farmer of this vicinity, but latterly a resident of Helena, Montana, where he is interested in the mines of that state. Their two children are Martha, who married Warren Flitcraft, a druggist of Haddonfield, this state, by whom she had one child, Ruth, and Frank Reeves, who is in the insur- ance business in Philadelphia; and Dilwyn, who was born October 25, 1847, and married Miss Mattie Smith and is a lumber merchant in Boston, Massa- chusetts. He has one son, Clarence.
Clark Pettit was educated in the schools of Salem and Eldridge Hill, graduating at the Salem high school. He then assisted his father with the duties of the farm, gradually assuming the management until he had entire control, carrying on general farming. In 1870 he began breeding fine stock of different kinds, and his horses, cattle, sheep and swine are known over a large section of the country. His hogs are the finest bred in this state, and every state in the Union has received shipments of his Jersey Reds, a pure strain of which he is justly proud. He has also been noted for his South- down sheep, while his herds of Jersey and Guernsey cattle it would be a difficult matter to equal. But it is his horses that form the chief attraction at this peerless farm. Standard-bred road and track horses are his specialty, and his stud, established in 1880, has contained horses whose records have made them famous all over our land. The beauty and symmetry of these colts attract universal attention and enable them to command double the price of any other breed in the country. At the head stands Bellman with a record of 2:144, and King Wedge with a trial of 2:26. While his brood mares are from horses who are speed getters, such as Onward, Red Wilkes, Leland, George Wilkes, Aberdeen, Dictator, Saladin, Othello, Lancewood and Happy Medium, of Hambletonian stock. Mr. Pettit has raced Bellman in
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all the larger cities and he has trotted his half mile in 1:03. He covered him- self with glory by beating the cracks of his class in hotly contested races and added additional laurels to a record which was par excellence, a superior one. There are but few farms having two stallions that are adding to their honors right along like Bellman and King Wedge. Some of the colts bred by him that have made records in the racing world and brought their owner a handsome price are Camilla, record 2:241; Bellette, record 2:162, trial 2:131; Bell, of Hedgefield, 2:29}, trial 2:19; Betsey Bellman, 2:232, trial 2:13; Bell Leland, 2:234; Baltimore, 2:30; Brigham Bell, 2:224, trial 2:19, and Nellie R., 2:152. Mares from all over the country are sent to his stables to be bred, South Carolina, Montana, Virginia, etc., being often represented, seventy head now being found there. At the tri-state fair of Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey held in 1894 he took six first prizes and one second on seven entries, and in eighteen show rings Bellman carried off eighteen first premiums. Few men are better known through- out the state than Mr. Pettit or enjoy a better reputation for honest, upright dealing. He also conducts a nursery, which was established about fifty years ago and from which he sells many trees of such varieties as his life experience proves are best suited to that locality.
He was married January 3, 1866, to Miss Mary Colson, a daughter of Benjamin Colson, a farmer of Gloucester county. They have three chil- dren: Henry Woodnut, born in December, 1866, is a salesman of Salem. He married Miss Mary House, a daughter of Jonathan House, of Alloway, and has one child, Mary. Carroll Lippincott, born in 1868, is a farmer in Piles Grove township and married Mamie Smith, a daughter of Peter E. Smith, by whom he has four children,-Frank, Elmer, Joseph and Cornelia; and Charles R., at his parental home. His wife dying May 17, 1882, when in her thirty-ninth year, Mr. Pettit on October 8, 1884, chose as his bride Miss Mary Augusta Austin, daughter of William Austin, a prominent farmer of Piles Grove township. This union also resulted in the birth of three children,-Edward Austin, James and John Lawrence.
The home of Mr. Pettit is familiarly known as Hedgefield and is one of the most attractive spots in Salem county. The grounds are among the most productive in this section of the state, noted for fertile lands, and are ornamented by attractive, spacious buildings, surrounded by fine shade and ornamental trees and occupying an eminence commanding a view of country at once pleasing and varied. In politics he prefers to be independent of any party lines and votes for the best man regardless of party. He attends the Friends' meetings at Salem and is a man who would be a credit to any com- munity.
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JAMES SWING JOHNSON.
Any history of New Jersey would fail to be complete unless the name of James Swing Johnson was given a place in its pages, for he was a typical representative of one of the earliest pioneer families of Salem county, the memory of whom will ever be held sacred for the services rendered this part of the state in its struggle against barbarism and ignorance. He was born June 17, 1819, in Lower Penn's Neck township, and was a son of William and Margaretta Lambson. The earlier settlers- who came to this county in the early part of the eighteenth century found the name of John- son was a familiar one even at that time. A Swedish family named Johan- son located on the eastern shore of the Delaware at what is now Penn's Neck in 1640, but the name was soon merged into Johnson. The first English settlers of that name was Richard Johnson and his cousin Thomas, who settled in Fenwick's tenth a few months before that gentleman himself located in this country.
John Johnson and his wife, whose maiden name was Jane Suayberry, came from London, England, about 1756 and settled in Salem, where he purchased a large tract of land in Piles Grove, now Pittsgrove township, upon which they settled. He possessed considerable property and was a man of means. He died March 31, 1802, at the age of seventy-seven years. and his wife, June 28, 1825, at the very advanced age of ninety-two years. Their family consisted of James, John, Rebecca, Samuel, Phoebe, William, Mary and Isaac. James Johnson, the eldest son, was born October 31, 1757, and entered the Colonial army, taking part in the battle of Red Bank, New Jersey. He was one of the earliest settlers and most influential busi- ness men of Lower Penn's Neck township, Salem county, where he owned several hundred acres of land, which has since been divided into a great many farms. He came from Mannington township in 1809 and resided near the village of Salem. He was a man of splendid physique, possessed of great power and endurance and energy, with a well balanced mind of extraordinary breadth. He was one of the most successful farmers in this county at that time and occupied an enviable place in the affections of the people. He was an earnest Christian, a deacon and member of the Baptist church at Salem up to his eightieth year, when he received the call to come up higher on February 9, 1837. His wife died March 19, 1825, at the age of sixty years.
William Johnson, the father of our subject, was born October 12, 1788, and was one of the children born to James and Christenah Johnson. He at one time was engaged in the pursuits of agriculture in Lower Penn's Neck
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township, on the farm now owned by Mrs. James Swing Johnson, and later moved to Talbot county, Maryland, where he purchased heavily of farm lands and mill property and carried on an extensive commerce. While taking a cargo of lumber to market in Baltimore in 1853 he was accident- ally drowned, and he is still remembered by some of the older inhabitants as an energetic worker and a man of splendid principles. He was married April 25, 1810, to Miss Margaretta Lambson, who departed this life May 12, 1866. She was a direct descendant of Thomas Lambson, who came from England in 1690 and settled in Lower Penn's Neck township. Their offspring were thirteen in number and were as follows: Isabella L., born July 3, 1811; Rebecca, born November 23, 1812, died January 8, 1887; Christianna, born May 16, 1814; Mary J., born June 18, 1816; James Swing, our subject; William Lambson, born March 23, 1821, and died February 17, 1843; Ephraim Loyd, born November 3, 1822, and died October 13, 1843; Edward M., born April 28, 1824, and died November 25, 1871; John, born January 13, 1826, and died October 23, 1871; Margaretta, born March 19, 1827, and is now Mrs. Flanigan; Robert Dunlap, born September 19, 1828, and died February 14, 1880; Ferdinand, born December 3, 1831, is a resi- dent of Pennsylvania; and Charles, born July 18, 1835, is a resident of Vir- ginia. The father died September 3, 1853.
James Swing Johnson left his native country in early manhood and located for a time in New Orleans, where he made considerable money. From there he went to Caseyville, Kentucky, where he was for four years the manager of the Kentucky Coal Company, in which he was a stockholder. During these years his heart turned longingly to the home of his youth; so he closed up his business in such a manner that he was at liberty to make his home once more in old Salem county, New Jersey. Arriving here, he purchased the old homestead in Lower Penn's Neck township and took up his residence there for a number of years. He was offered a good posi- tion as the manager of the Keystone Lumber Company, and in order to properly manage this business he rented his farm and moved to Cleveland, Ohio, where he remained for some time. He once more took up his resi- dence on the farm and devoted his time to agricultural pursuits until 1888, when he moved to Salem, where he died two years later.
He was married on October II, 1854, to Sarah Lindzey, a daughter of John Lindzey, and they had three children, concerning whom we observe that William, born September 15, 1855, is a farmer and married Marion, a daughter of Amos and Sarah Harris, by whom he had three children,- James, Josephine and Howard. John Lindzey, born January 20, 1857, is a farmer near the old home; he married Catherine, a daughter of Casper W.
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Acton, and their children are Rachel Acton and Arthur Lindzey: and Charles Moorhead, who was born January 23, 1858, and is a farmer, mar- ried Lydia, a daughter of George and Sarah Grier. Their children are Wetherell, Rebecca, Ferdinand and Helen. Mr. Johnson had been on the board of trustees of the First Baptist church for very many years, and his death was considered a personal loss to each member of that organization, all of whom knew and appreciated the sterling worth of the man. He held a number of township offices and was accounted a man whose public and private life was above reproach.
CLAYTON D. TICE.
The subject of this sketch belongs to a family that has long been iden- tified with Monroe township, Gloucester county, New Jersey, their history in this country dating beyond the Revolutionary period. Nine brothers of the name of Tice came from France to America in Colonial times and settled in New Jersey, and from one of them is Clayton D. Tice descended. Major John Tice, his great-grandfather, earned his title in the Revolutionary war. He was one of the first settlers of the vicinity of Williamstown, took up a large tract of land here, and from his land sold a great deal of timber which was used in shipbuilding. His son, Franklin Davenport Tice, was born here and passed his life at this place, engaged in agricultural pursuits. Among his children was a son, Mark N., born on his farm June 12, 1829, and who is still living here, his active years having been spent in work at the carpenter's trade and farming. Mark N. Tice served one term as Free- holder in his township, and in the Methodist Episcopal church, with which he has long been identified, he has served in various official capacities, also being active in Sunday school work, filling the office of superintendent. He was married June 26, 1855, to Miss Rebecca Davis, daughter of John Davis, of Cumberland county, this State; and to them were born nine children, five of whom are living, namely: Clayton D., whose name introduces this arti- cle; William J., engaged in business with his brother Clayton D .; Nettie R., wife of Amos Armstrong of Downer, New Jersey; Paris T., of Glassboro, New Jersey; and Mulford, of Williamstown.
Clayton D. Tice was born at Williamstown, New Jersey, December 22, 1858. He attended the country schools in his early boyhood and when only twelve years old began working out by the month as a farm hand, receiving as wages $5.00 per month. He always made it a point, however. to lay up a little of his scant earnings each year, and in this way he got his
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