USA > Pennsylvania > Delaware County > Biographical and historical cyclopedia of Delaware County, Pennsylvania, comprising a historical sketch of the county > Part 54
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Heis a republican and a Methodist, and mar- ried Margaret Smith. To their union have been born seven children : Mary deceased), Albert, George S. (subject ), Lizzie (deceased ), Wil- liam, Laura, and Lewis. The Whittaker family has always been noted for industry and energy, and the gentleman whose name heads this sketch is an embodiment of the good qualities of his name and an honor to his family.
JOSEPH DYSON, a prominent contrac- tor and builder, and proprietor of the Wayne planing mills, is the worthy represen- tative of an old Scotch family and one of the most respected citizens of this part of Penn- sylvania. He is a son of Joseph and Helen ( Duncan) Dyson, and a native of Norwich,
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Connecticut, where he was born April 16, 1857. In that city he grew to manhood, receiv- ing a superior English education in the public schools. Leaving school he learned the car- penter trade, at which he continued to work in his native State until 1880, when he came to Chester, Delaware county, Pennsylvania, to accept a place in John Roach's ship-yards. He remained with Mr. Roach, working as a ship-carpenter, for a period of three years, after which, in 1883, he removed to the village of Wayne, where he has ever since resided. In 1886 he embarked in the contracting and building business here, and since that time has erected a large number of houses in this village and along the Pennsylvania railroad. By 1891 his business had become so large that as a matter of economy in the preparation of supplies he erected his present planing mill, which he has operated ever since in connection with his building operations. Mr. Dyson em- ploys from fifty to sixty men the year round, and a large per cent. of all the new buildings in this section of the county are erected under his supervision. He is careful and painstak- ing in everything he does, and has won an en- viable reputation for honesty and skill in the execution of contracts.
In 1884 Mr. Dyson was united by marriage to Mary E. Wilds, a daughter of John Wilds, of the city of Chester, this county. To Mr. and Mrs. Dyson have been born three daugh- ters : Elma May. Helen and Etta.
Politically Mr. Dyson is an ardent repub- lican, earnestly supporting the cardinal prin- ciples of his party and exercising considerable influence in local politics. He is now serving as president of the board of school directors of Tredyffrin township, Chester county, where he resides in a handsome and commodious country home, though attending to business every day in the village of Wayne. this county. Mr. Dyson is a member of Cassia Lodge, No. 273, Free and Accepted Masons : Montgomery Chapter, No. 267, Royal Arch Masons : and St. Alban's Commandery, No. 47, Knights
Templar, of Philadelphia. He is also con- nected with Council No. 200, Junior Order of United American Mechanics, and Wayne Cas- tle, Knights of the Golden Eagle.
Joseph Dyson, father of the subject of this sketch, was a native of Scotland, descended from an old Scotch family. He spent his boy- hood in his native land, but at the age of twenty-four crossed the Atlantic and settled for a few years in Delaware county. Later he went to Connecticut. and continued to reside in Norwich, that State, until his death in 1880, at the age of fifty-two. He was a machinist by trade, a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and a republican in politics. He mar- ried Helen Duncan, who was also a native of Scotland. She was a member of the same church as her husband, and died in 1892, aged sixty-six years.
H ON. ISAAC D. BARNARD, United States senator from 1827 to 1831, and the most distinguished of his name, was born in Aston township, Delaware county, Pennsyl- vania, March 22, 1791. The Barnard family takes its name from Roche-Bernard, of Nor- mandy, France, in which country Barnard has been a baptismal name since the eighth cen- tury, having been derived from northern my- thology, signifying boldness. Isaac D. Barn- ard received a good education, was admitted to the bar, and served as an officer with great bravery at Plattsburg and Lyons Creek in the war of 1812, being promoted from captain to major for meritorious services. Leaving the army he served successively as district attor- ney. State senator, and secretary of the Com- monwealth. He was elected to the United States senate in 1827. but resigned in 1831 on account of ill-health, while the New York pa- pers were demanding for him a seat in the cabinet. He served as a major-general of militia, declined the president judgship of Chester and Lancaster counties, and died on February 18, 1834.
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₿ ENJAMIN D. AYARS, Jr., of the firm of Benjamin D. Ayars & Son, con- tractors and builders, of Chester, who is one of the most popular and prosperous young business men of the city, is a son of Benjamin D .. sr., and Mary E. ( Steelman) Ayars, and was born at Bridgeport. New Jersey, January 10, 1858. The Ayars family is of remote de- scent, but have been native Pennsylvanians since colonial times. The paternal grand- father of the subject of this sketch. whose name was also Benjamin D., was born and reared in Philadelphia, from whence in early manhood he removed to New Jersey, where most of his life was spent. In 1875 he came to Chester, this county, where he died in 1889 at the advanced age of seventy-three years. He was a carpenter by trade, and a whig and republican in politics. His wife was Jane Ann Elkinton, and they were the parents of nine children, five sons and four daughters. Benjamin D. Ayars, sr. / father), is a native of Mullica Hill, New Jersey, where he was born in 1835. He removed to Bridgeport with his parents, where he grew to manhood, receiving a good practical education, and afterward learned the trade of carpenter with his father. For a number of years he worked at that oc- cupation in New Jersey, but in 1861 he obtained a situation in Chester, Delaware county, Penn- sylvania, and removed there with his family in 1864, where he continued to work at his trade, and has ever since resided. In 1883 he formed a partnership with his son, Benjamin D. Ayars, jr., under the firm name of Benjamin D. Avars & Son, and embarked in the contracting and building business in this city. They have been very successful, and now do an extensive business. During the ten years that have passed since this firm began operations they have erected a large number of houses in this city, including some of the finest residences which adorn its streets. As examples of their work may be mentioned the large residence of William B. Broomall, corner of Fourteenth and Chestnut streets : Hon. William Ward's
residence, adjoining the above, and the Ches- ter city hospital building. The firm owns a large amount of real estate in the city of Ches- ter. Politically the elder Ayars is an ardent prohibitionist, and in religion a Methodist, being a member of Trinity Methodist Episco- pal church of this city. In 1857 he married Mary E. Steelman, a native of Bridgeport, New Jersey, and a daughter of William Steelman. They had but one child, Benjamin D. Ayars, jr.
Benjamin D. Ayars, jr., was reared princi- pally in the city of Chester. to which his par- ents removed when he was six years old, and obtained his education in the public schools here. After leaving school he learned the trade of carpenter, and followed that occupa- tion until 1883, when as already noted he joined his father in the contracting and build- ing business, to which he has since devoted nearly all his time and attention. To his en- ergy and enterprise is due much of the grati- fying success which has attended the opera- tions of his firm. He owns a block of five | handsome brick dwelling houses, and a store. all situated on Kerlin street, between Sixth and Seventh.
On the 15th of April, 1885, Mr. Ayars was united by marriage to Rebecca P. Anderson, youngest daughter of Thomas and Mary Anderson. of the city of Chester. To Mr. and Mrs. Ayars have been born three daugh- ters : Mary C., Kate G., and Annie M.
Following the political traditions of his family, Mr. Ayars is a stanch republican. He is president of Franklin Fire Company, No. 1, and connected with a number of secret so- cieties and benevolent organizations: being a member of Chester Lodge, No. 236, Free and Accepted Masons : Chester Chapter, No. 258, Royal Arch Masons : Chester Commandery, No. 66, Knights Templar : Delaware County Lodge, No. 13, Knights of Birmingham : Mocoponaca Tribe, No. 149, Improved Order of Red Men, of which he is a past sachem, and Col. Theodore Hyatt Council, No. 573, Junior Order of United American Mechanics.
Benjamin D. arpara, fre
THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY
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PROF. JOSEPH SHORTLIDGE,
principal of Maplewood institute, Con- cordville, Pennsylvania, is a son of George and Martha ( Hutton) Shortlidge, and was born in New Garden township, Chester county, this State, August 1, 1832. George Short- lidge (father) was born in the same place in 1800, and was a farmer, owning one hundred acres and farming two hundred more, making three hundred acres in all. He was a democrat until 1856, when, on account of the slavery agitation, he became a republican, voting for John C. Fremont in that year. He was a mem- ber of the Society of Friends, and he married Martha Hutton, a daughter of Hyatt Hutton, of New Garden township, Chester county, who was a relative of the eminent English mathematician, Charles Hutton. To that union was born four sons and two daughters : William, who is extensively engaged in busi- ness at Bellefonte, this State; Joseph, the subject of this sketch ; Anna P., wife of Wil- liam H. Walker, of New Castle county, Del- aware ; Lydia H., wife of Augustus C. Nor- ris, deceased, late principal of Woodstown academy, New Jersey : Smithin C., principal of Media academy, this county ; and Dr. Evan G., the present mayor of the city of Wilming- ton, Delaware.
The Shortlidge family is of Scotch-English ancestry, and was founded in America by James Shortlidge, who came over from Eng- land and settled in Chester county, Pennsyl- vania, at a very early date. His son, Smithin Shortlidge (grandfather), was born in New Garden township, Chester county, and spent his life in agricultural pursuits in that county. He was a member of the Society of Friends.
Prof. Joseph Shortlidge received his educa- tion at Jonathan Gause's Greenwood Dell academy, in Chester county, Dr. C. P. Wil- liams' chemical laboratory in Philadelphia, Fort Edward institute, New York, and at Yale college, receiving his diploma from the latter institution in 1863. As early as 1856 he began teaching, being employed one year at Green- 24
wood Dell, after which he was principal of Putnam academy, New York, for one year, and then served as principal of Fairview in- stitute, in Chester county, Pennsylvania, for two years. He afterward built the Maplewood institute, and remained principal of that school until 1880, when he resigned to accept the presidency of the Pennsylvania State college, at Chester. For one year he held that posi- tion acceptably, and then returned to Maple- wood institute, where he has been earnestly and successfully engaged in educational work ever since. The attendance at this institute has frequently numbered one hundred, and has included some of the most prominent men in this State and other parts of the country. Among the students of Professor Shortlidge were the late Hon. J. Edward Leonard, mem- ber of Congress ; Hon. Cassius Stubbs; John Hannum, Esq., district attorney of Delaware county ; John Reardon, district attorney, Wil- liamsport; this State; Henry Howard and Horace. P. Green, of Media, this county ; Or- lando Harvey, of Chester, and his two younger brothers. On account of his extended career as an educator, and his gratifying success in "the work to which he has devoted the best years of his life, Professor Shortlidge is widely known and highly esteemed.
On May 24, 1865, Professor Shortlidge was united by marriage to Caroline B. Gause, youngest daughter of Jonathan Gause, then principal of the Greenwood Dell academy, and one of the most noted educators of his day. Mrs. Shortlidge died in 1874, leaving three children : Marian E., wife of Jared Dar- lington, of Delaware county ; Charles B., a teacher in the Maplewood institute ; and J. Chauncey, now a student in Swarthmore col- lege.
When President Lincoln issued his call for one hundred thousand men in 1863, Prof. Jo- seph Shortlidge was among the first to re- spond, enlisting as a sergeant in a Penn- sylvania infantry company, which became a part of Major Short's battalion. The history of this
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company may be found in Beatty's History of the Civil War. Politically the subject of this sketch is a stanch republican. He served for a number of years as school director, and was appointed justice of the peace by Governor Beaver in 1887, to fill out the unexpired term of Davis Painter. Since then he has been twice elected to that office, and has discharged its important functions in a manner highly ac- ceptable to the public. He is a member of the Society of Friends, as his ancestors were, and of Bradbury Post, Grand Army of the Republic, of Media. On his father's side Professor Shortlidge is a decendant of the Chandlers and Gawthrops, and on the mater- nal side, of the Huttons and Pughs, all prom- inent families in the early history of this county. Through the Chandlers his ancestry runs back to the Norman French, and he also claims kinship with a number of other prom- inent families in this county, including the Kirks, Stubbs, Trumbles, Pairshes and Har- mons.
JOHN WILKINSON HARRISON,
one of the prosperons business men of Chester city, and connected, on his paternal grandmother's side, to the late Sir Henry Havelock, the conqueror of the great revolt in India, is a son of Capt. John and Marianne (Dawson) Harrison, and was born at Little- thorpe, near Ripon, in Yorkshire, England, October 13, 1851. The Harrison family is one of the reputable families of Darlington, county of Durham, England, where it has been resi- dent for over a century. One of the descen- dants of this family in the last century was John Harrison, the grandfather of the subject of this sketch. John Harrison, when quite young, was pressed into the British navy, and served under Lord Nelson at the battle of the Nile, where he was wounded. When dis- charged from the naval service he returned to England. and afterward became a gentle- man of means. His son, Capt. John Harri- son (father), was born in 1820 and received
his education at Oxford, from which grand old educational institution he was graduated. He learned the printing business, went to Pietermaritzburg, in the district of Natal. South Africa, where he edited and published the first newspaper, The Natal Witness. He became a great favorite with Panda, king of the Zulus, and they hunted and traded to- gether in the wilds of the "Dark Continent." Leaving Africa, he went to Australia, but the climate affected his health, and he finally re- turned to England, where he entered the 8th Hussars. or Earl de Grey's Yeomanry, as an aide de camp, with the rank of captain. He served until 1855, when he resigned, by advice of his physicians, and removed to Montreal, Canada, in hopes of recruiting his health. He was a tory in English politics. a member of the Established church, and and an active worker in the Masonic fraternity. Captain Harrison was a man of fine literary ability, and married Marianne Dawson. They had three children, two sons and one daughter : John W., Frank W. (see his sketch), and Eliza Jane, who died young.
John W. Harrison, at four years of age. was brought by his parents to Montreal, Can- ada East. They came in the steamship Can - adian, and were shipwrecked in the Gulf of St. Lawrence. After the death of his father, in 1859, he was sent back to England in 1860, where he received his education in Crowley Diocesan college, near Oxford. In 1866 he chose for his calling the sea, and was employed in the London and Australian trade until 1871. In that year he passed the government exami- nation for mate, and served as such for five years on different vessels, making voyages principally to South America and India. In 1876 he came to Chester city, this county, where he secured employment as assistant time keeper for the Delaware River Iron Ship Building and Engine Works. In 1880 he be- came time keeper, which position he has held ever since, with credit to himself and satisfac- tion to the company.
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On December 13, 1888, Mr. Harrison was married, by Rev. Joseph Vance, D. D., to Mary Krider Fountain, who was a daughter of John Fountain, superintendent of the Del- aware River Iron Ship Building and Engine works, and who died May 19, 1890. Mr. Har- rison afterward was united in marriage by Rev. George C. Moore, to Anna Leighton Fleming, daughter of William and Sarah Fleming, of Pequa Valley, Lancaster county, this State.
John W. Harrison ranks as a successful business man, and is a partner with his brother in the wood and coal firm of Harrison Brothers, which has a large and prosperous trade in the city of Chester. Mr. Harrison is a republican in political affairs, and is a mem- ber of the Protestant Episcopal church, in which he has always been active in the promo- tion of all religious movements for the moral improvement of the public and the advance- ment of the cause of Christianity. He is also a past commander of Oriental Commandery, No. 106, Knights of Malta, and a member of Lamokin Tribe, No. 80, Improved Order of Red Men.
WILLIAM B. REANEY, one of the organizers and now general manager of the Eureka Cast Steel Company of Chester, and one of the original founders of what is now known as the Roach ship-yards here, was born in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, April 26, 1833, and is a son of Thomas and Mary (Brown) Reaney. His father and mother were both natives of the north of Ireland, of Scotch-Irish descent, and came to the United States in 1830, locating in Philadelphia. Thomas Reaney was engaged in ship-building and engineering in that city, and in 1844 he established the firm of Reaney, Neafie & Co., a ship-building company which under the style of Levy, Neafie & Co., is still in active busi- ness in Philadelphia. Mr. Reaney remained at the head of this firm until 1860, when he retired, and in connection with his son, the
subject of this sketch, erected the original plant of what is now known as the Roach ship- yards of Chester, the firm name being Reaney, Son & Co. This enterprise was one of the most important ever set on foot in the city of Chester, and has probably done more for her industrial development and to make the city known abroad than any other single concern within her borders. It marked the beginning of that era of growth and prosperity which still continues, and which has transformed Chester from a quiet borough into a busy, bustling city of twenty-five thousand people, and supplied them with all the modern im- provements and conveniences of civilized life and elegant leisure. In addition to the im- mense number of boats and ships built for private parties, Reaney, Son & Co. constructed numerous war ships for the United States gov- ernment, some of which played an important part in the civil war and are embalmed in the history of that terrible conflict. They contin- ued to operate these ship-yards until 1872, when they sold out to John Roach, and Thomas Reaney then moved back to Philadelphia, where he died in 1880, aged seventy-three years. He was a prominent member of the Presbyterian church. Mrs. Reaney died dur- ing the same year, at the same age as her hus- band.
William B. Reaney was reared in the city of Philadelphia, and received a classical edu- cation from private tutors. In 1849 he en- tered the engineering department of his fath- er's ship-yards, where he remained until 1860, acquiring a practical knowledge of ship-build- ing in all its departments. In the latter year he came with his father to the city of Chester, Delaware county, and began the construction of the ship-yards already mentioned. After their completion he was actively engaged in ship-building on his own account for a dozen years, and when the yards were sold to John Roach in 1872, Mr. Reaney remained in the employ of that gentleman for two years. In 1874 he returned to Philadelphia and opened
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an office, where he followed the business of a civil engineer and naval architect until 1879. In that year he became manager of the Eureka Cast Steel Company of Chester, of which he was one of the original founders, and has ac- ceptably occupied that position ever since, though his family continues to reside in Phil- adelphia. Mr. Reaney has been prominently connected with this large cast steel plant ever since it was started, and to his ability and en- terprise is due much of its remarkable success in recent years.
In 1855 Mr. Reaney was married to Andelie Peters, a daughter of Jacob Peters, of the city of Philadelphia. To Mr. and Mrs. Reaney was born a family of five children, one son and four daughters: Julia A., Mary, Susan P., Frank, Adelaide and T. Robinson. Mr. Reaney and all his family are members of the Presbyterian church. He is a member of Meridian Sun Lodge, No. 158, Free and Ac- cepted Masons, of Philadelphia.
C HARLES F. HALL, commissioner of highways in the city of Chester, and one of her most active, substantial, and useful citizens, is. a son of Robert H. and Eliza (Cloud) Hall, and was born January 10, 1836, in the township of Middletown, Delaware county, Pennsylvania. The Hall family is of Welsh extraction, and is among the oldest in Pennsylvania, having been settled in this sec- tion long prior to the Revolutionary war. When the American forces retreated from the Brandywine, during that memorable struggle, they passed the residence of the grandparents of the subject of this sketch.
Robert H. Hall (grandfather) was a native of Delaware county, and spent most of his life engaged in agricultural pursuits in the township of Aston, where he died at an ad- vanced age. He served as a soldier in the war of 1812, and was a prosperous, highly re- spected, and useful citizen. He married and reared a family of children, one of whom was
Robert H. Hall (father), who was born at the old Hall homestead in Aston township, this county, in 1808. There he grew to manhood and recived such education as was afforded by the common schools of that day. He after- ward learned the trade of shoemaker, and fol- lowed that occupation most of his life. For a few years after his marriage he resided in Maryland, but returned to Delaware county in 1852, and settling in Chester, continued to make this city his home until his death in 1881, when in the seventy-third year of his age. During the civil war he served for a time with the emergency men in 1863. He was a life-long member of the Society of Friends, and during his later years a democrat in politics. He married Eliza Cloud, of Bethel township, this county, where she was born in 1805. Mrs. Eliza Hall was a strict member of the Society of Friends, and her death oc- curred in 1853, when in the forty-eighth ycar of her age.
Charles F. Hall was reared on a farm in this county until he had attained his fifteenth year. when he became an apprentice to the trade of house carpenter with William L. Grubb, of this city. His education was ob- tained in the public schools, and by diligent study and extensive reading at home. After completing his apprenticeship he continued to work at his trade of house carpenter until 1867, when he secured a position in a large planing mill in this city, and remained con- nected with the planing mill business until May 1, 1893, having served as superintendent · of the planing mills of Morton, Black & Bros. here for a period of sixteen years, and for eight years occupied the same position in the mills of H. M. Hinkson, of this city. In the spring of 1893 Mr. Hall was appointed com- missioner of highways in Chester, by Mayor John B. Hinkson, which position he is now holding. Since entering upon the duties of this office he has conducted its affairs in a manner highly satisfactory to the public, and done much to maintain the reputation of
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Chester as a city of beautiful streets and fine driveways. He is the second democrat to hold this office in the city of Chester.
In 1858 Mr. Hall was married to Ellen Pickup, a daughter of William Pickup, then a resident of this city, but formerly of England. To Mr. and Mrs. Hall were born four sons : Davis M., William H., Frank C., and Harry F.
In his political sentiments Mr. Hall is a stanch democrat, as has been intimated, and always gives his party an active and influen- tial support. He is a member of L. H. Scott Lodge, No. 352, Free and Accepted Masons ; Chester Chapter, No. 258, Royal Arch Masons ; Chester Commandery, No. 66, Knights Tem- plar, and is also a member of the Knights of Birmingham, of this city.
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