Biographical annals of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens and of many of the early settled families, Part 93

Author: Genealogical Publishing Co., Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1905
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : Genealogical Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 994

USA > Pennsylvania > Cumberland County > Biographical annals of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens and of many of the early settled families > Part 93

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Dr. Koser received his primary educa- tion in the schools of Shippensburg, where he prepared for college. Leaving the high school of that city, he entered the Cumber- land Valley State Normal School at Ship- pensburg, where he continued for four years, taking a special course. The next six

CUMBERLAND COUNTY.

months he spent traveling through the West- ern States and Territories. He then re- turned to Shippensburg and read medicine with Drs. A. Stewart and Robert C. Stew- art. Later he entered the Medical Depart- ment of the University of Pennsylvania, from which he was graduated in 1881. Af- ter graduation he located at Shippensburg, where he has devoted his whole time to the practice of his profession, in which he has been very successful, and he is now in the enjoyment of a lucrative patronage, stand- ing very high among his brother physicians He is surgeon for the Western Maryland and Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Companies and does much of the work of the Cumberland Valley Railroad Company.

In 1892 Dr. Koser was united in mar- riage with Miss Ada C. Atkins, of Province- town, Mass., daughter of Capt. Thomas G. Atkins, a sea captain and much respected cit- izen of Provincetown, who died in early life. The mother of Mrs. Koser bore the maiden name of Rachel C. Brown.

Dr. Koser is a member of the Cumber- land County Medical Society (of which he has served as president ), the State Medical Society and the American Medical Associa- tion. In 1901 he was appointed by the State Medical Society of Pennsylvania as a dele- gate to represent that organization at the State Medical Society of Massachusetts. About 1882 Dr. Koser became convinced that tuberculosis was contagious-a con- viction he communicated to his personal friend, Dr. William Pepper, of Philadelphia, who recognized its importance, and who from the data furnished by Dr. Koser pre- pared a paper which was read before the Academy of Natural Sciences in Philadel- phia. This was in time copied in the pro- ceedings, and published in various medical magazines. With the data therein as a stim-

ulus, Dr. Koch began his researches and dis- covered the bacillus of tuberculosis. Dr. Koser has at intervals contributed articles to minor papers. The Doctor is a prominent Mason, being a member of the Cumberland Valley Lodge. No. 315. A. F. & A. M., in which he has illed the important chairs ; of St. John Chapter. No. 171, R. A. M. ; of St. John Commandery, No. S. K. T. ; and he is also a member of Cumberland Lodge, No. 90, I. O. O. F .. in which latter organization he has passed all the chairs. In 1891 he served as burgess of Shippensburg. In ad- dition to being prominent in the civic orders and his profession, he is a most genial and affable gentleman, who has many friends in the city and county.

WILLIAM E. DRAWBAUGH, farmer and dairyman. of Newton township, Cum- berland county, was born Nov. 3. 1855. in West Pennsboro township, a son of John and Nancy ( Zeigler) Drawbaugh. The father was born in Cumberland county, a son of George and Katherine ( Bloser) Drawbaugh

After marriage the parents of William E. Drawbaugh settled in West Pennsboro township, where he became a prosperous farmer. His death occurred Oct. 7. 1882. His widow, who was a daughter of William and Margaret ( Adams) Zeigler, survived him until Oct. 9. 1893. They had nine chil- dren, eight of whom lived to maturity : Ezemiah married S. W. Lehn, and died Nov. 15, 1904: Anna M. died Oct. 9, 1882; Wilson is deceased; Margaret G., the widow of Rev. M. M. Foose, resides at Lancaster ; William E. is mentioned below ; George A. died Nov. 6, 1882; John F. died Oct. 4, 1882; Rev. David Porter is a prominent Lutheran minister.

William E. Drawbaugh spent his boy-

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hood on the farm and attended what is known as Smith's schoolhouse. At the age of eighteen years his school days ended and he assisted his father on the farm until he was twenty-two. Soon after he married Miss Isabel Sharpe. eldest daughter of An- drew and Eliza (Jacobs) Sharpe. The Sharpe family is one of the pioneer families of Cumberland county, of Scotch-Irish ex- traction, and as proud of their honorable ancestry as of their attachment to the Pres- byterian Church. Andrew Sharpe was an in- telligent man and successful farmer and one of the most liberal supporters of the church in Newton township. He died on the old Sharpe homestead Nov. 13, 1865. His widow survived him until Jan. 20, 1868. The grandfather of Mrs. Drawbaugh, John Sharpe, one of the first settlers in Newton township, married Martha Huston, and died at the advanced age of eighty-two years. The great-grandfather was Robert Sharpe, who married Margaret Boyd. Both died in September, 1815. They were pioneers in the Cumberland Valley and settled in New- ton township about 1740. They were active in all good works and much credit is due their religious zeal in the establishing of the Presbyterian Church in this locality.

After marriage William E. Drawbaugh settled for one year in Frankford township and then removed to Newton township, where he lived a number of years. In 1894 he moved to his present farm which is known as the old Sharpe homestead, or a part of it, containing 100 acres. He also owns an ad- joining farm of seventy-seven acres, upon which are good buildings, erected many years ago. Mr. Drawbaugh has met with unusual success in the raising of wheat, of which he has made something of a specialty. His farm is well stocked with first-class

hogs, cattle and horses, and he has given at- tention to dairying.

Mr. and Mrs. Drawbaugh have one son and one daughter, Edgar Sharpe and Nancy Zeigler ; the latter was educated at the Cum- berland Valley State Normal School at Shippensburg, and is now teaching. Mr. Drawbaugh and his wife are members of the United Presbyterian Church, in which he has been an elder since 1892. In politics he is a Democrat, but no office seeker. He ranks with the leading and most progressive citizens of Newton township.

WILLIAM E. JONES. a successful farmer and stock-raiser residing on the Jo- sephine Nevin farni, was born in Path Val- ley. Franklin Co., Pa., Sept. 25, 1861, son of Jennings L. and Elizabeth ( McDonald) Jones.

Samuel Jones, grandfather of William E., was an early settler of Cumberland coun- ty. and was of Scotch-Irish ancestry. He married a Miss Rebald, whose father was born in Scotland. The McDonalds were also of Scotch extraction.

Jennings L. Jones was born in Path Val- ley. in February, 1825, while his wife was born in the same place in 1829. After mar- riage, they settled on the Samuel Jones farm and engaged in farming for some time. The following children were born to them: A. Franklin, of Huntingdon, Pa. : Louisa, who married Daniel Reeder : Edna, who married Henry Motter, of Clearfield county, Pa .; William E .; Jessie and James, both de- ceased : Laura, who married Lafayette Lind- sey, and resides in Clearfield county ; Robert K., also of Clearfield county : J. Elmer, en- gaged in mining in Clearfield county.

William E. Jones received his primary education in the district schools in Path Val-

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ley. Franklin county, leaving school when he was in his seventeenth year. He returned to the farm, and assisted his father until he at- tained his majority, at which time he began working in an ore bank, in what is known as the Carrick furnace in the Tuscarawas mountains, and there he continued until 1877. when he began farming and stock- raising.

In 1883 Mr. Jones married Miss Jennie Johnson, of Path Valley, daughter of Ben- jamin and Louisa (Seitz) Johnson. Mrs. Johnson was born in Path Valley, where she spent her girlhood and was married. In 1896. Mr. Jones moved to his present farm, which is known by the name of the Josephine Nevin farm, which for many years had been the home of Mrs. Jones, and which was or- iginally called the Waverly place. This farm consists of 204 acres, upon which is a large, comfortable stone edifice, surrounded by forest trees andi pines, making an ideal home. In the rear are numerous out build- ings and a large bank barn. On this farm Mr. Jones is engaged in farming and stock- raising, and also conducts a small dairy. His farm being of a lime stone soil, it is well adapted to wheat raising, and he produces from 800 to 1000 bushels annually. He milks from eight to ten cows, and all of his operations are conducted upon scientific methods.

Mr. and Mrs. Jones have one child, Mary, who recently married I. H. Kessler, and the young people live with her parents. In politics Mr. Jones is a very strong Repub- lican, and for two years he served his party as tax collector, was auditor of Shippens- burg township, andi in 1903 he was elected a member of the school board. In religious matters he and his wife are consistent mem- bers of the United Brethren Church, of which Mr. Jones is steward, and to which he is a

liberal contributor. Mr. Jones is a man widely known and deeply respected, and he and his wife have many warm personal friends, all of whom they cordially welcome at their delightful home.

BISHOP BENJAMIN F. ZIMMER- MAN has, since 1892, filled one of the high- est positions in the Mennonite Church, of which he has been a minister since 1887. He was born April 4, 1851, in Fairview town- ship, York county, son of Peter and Barbara (Hess) Zimmerman.

The Zimmerman family is of Swiss ex- traction, but has been known and honored in Pennsylvania for a great many years. The founder of the family in America was Peter Zimmerman, the great-great-grandfather of Bishop Zimmerman, who settled about 1735 in the Conestoga Valley, in Lancaster coun- ty, where he engaged in farming. He also was one of the early introducers of the tenets of the Mennonite faith. John Zim- merman, one of his three children, born and reared in Lancaster county, had three sons, Christian, Jolin and Peter.

Peter Zimmerman, grandfather of Bish- op Zimmerman, was also born in Lancaster county. In 1814 he moved to Lower Allen township, Cumberland county, where he purchased a tract of 300 acres of land, which remained in the Zimmerman family for eighty-nine years. In 1903 a portion of it was sold to Congressman Olmstead, of Har- risburg, who erected a summer home upon it. Peter Zimmerman married Esther Mar- tin, of Lancaster county, and they had chil- dren as follows: Christian; Peter; Martin, who moved to Ohio in 1869; Samuel, a Mennonite minister, who died in 1877: Emanuel; Esther, wife of John Weaver ; Mary, who married Abraham Weaver, and had one son, Henry, a minister of the Men-

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nonite faith; Barbara, who married Jacob Hershey, a minister in the Mennonite Church, living near Manheim, Lancaster county: Annie, wife of Jacob Burkhart ; Julia, who married Christian Hess, and has one son. Samuel, a minister of the Mennon- ite Church; and Miss Elizabeth, who lives at Carlisle.

Peter Zimmerman, the father of Bishop Zimmerman, was born Jan. 5. 1802, in Lan- caster county, where he was engaged in agri- cultural pursuits. He was twice married. His first wife, a Miss Weaver of Lower Allen township, bore him the following children : Moses, now a retired farmer of Warren county, Ill .; Henry W., a farmer of Cum- berland county, who sold the homestead : Peter, a farmer of Lower Allen township; Esther, who died unmarried at the age of twenty-nine years; Mary, who died at the age of three years; and Magdelina, who died unmarried, Jan. 1, 1902, aged sixty- four years, four months, seventeen days. The second marriage of Peter Zimmerman was to Barbara Hess, daughter of Christian and Elizabeth ( Martin) Hess, farming peo- ple, of Lancaster county. Six children were born to this union, as follows: Samuel, a retired farmer of Dauphin county, who mar- ried Eliza Shope; Christian, a retired farmer of York; Amos, who owns a part of the old homestead, and lives in Lower Allen town- ship: David, deceased; Benjamin F., men- tioned below ; and Elizabeth, wife of Martin L. Miller, of Lancaster county. Peter Zim- merman passed away Sept. 14, 1874, when more than seventy-two years of age. His widow survived until June 27, 1896, dying at the advanced age of eighty-three years. They were buried in the Slate Hill Church cemetery, in this county. Both were mem- bers of the Mennonite Church.

Benjamin F. Zimmerman was educated

in the public schools of York and Cumber- land counties, his school days ending at the age of fourteen years. Had he been like many his mind would have stood compara- tively still since that time, but such has not been the case. Much reading and close study have developed him not only along religious lines, but have made of him an educated and forceful man. His trained fa- culties and intelligent comprehension, to- gether with a noble piety, have served to fit him well for one of the most responsible and honorable positions in the Mennonite Church.

After leaving school he assisted his father on the farm and worked at the carpenter's trade, occupations which gave much oppor- tunity for quiet, serious meditation. This re- sulted in his turning toward the Christian ministry, and in 1887 he was ordained a minister of the Mennonite Church. This was followed by his elevation to the bishopric, in 1892. Since 1875 he has resided in Hampden township, his present home being a compact little farm of forty-five acres. carefully cultivated and well improved, but his name is known through church circles all over the State.

On Nov. 4, 1873, when in his twenty- third year, Bishop Zimmerman was united in marriage with Mary E. Eberly, a daugh- ter of Samuel and Susan (Garber) Eberly. of Sporting Hill. Two children were born to this union, namely : Cora E., who resides at home; and Samuel, who married Mary Brinton, a daughter of William Brinton. of Shiremanstown, and has two children, Clar- ence and Ruth, both at home. Bishop Zim- merman attributes his success in life to his earnest striving in the direction of honesty, frugality, industry, sobriety and piety.

THE MENNONITES. - The body of Christian believers known since the Refor-

CUMBERLAND COUNTY.

mation as Mennonites derive their name from Menno Simons, of Friesland, Holland, a Catholic priest, who. in 1536, renounced the doctrines of the Roman Church. The people who became his followers were not of those who separated from the Catholic Church, but were a people known as Anabap- tists, who had already existed. and who con- tended for the purity and simplicity of the Gospel. It is claimed that they were de- scendants of the Waldenses, a people per- secuted for many centuries, and who pos- sessed a faith like those who in every age of the world since the days of Christ have stood out against error.

Menno Simons, after receiving enlight- enment through the study of God's word, found that they had a like faith, and became their prominent preacher. "The strong con- trolling thought which underlay their teach- ing was that there should be no exercise of force in religion ; * * an oath was a means of compelling the conscience, and they refused to swear; warfare was a vio- lent interference with the rights of others, and they would take part in no wars, not even for the purpose of self-protection." They were to be found in parts of Germany, Holland and Switzerland. Bitterly perse- cuted by Catholics, and sometimes by Prot- estants, some sought shelter in caves. Others fled to Prussia, Russia, Poland and Den- mark. A number, on the invitation of Wil- liam Penn, came to America, and set- tled at Germantown in 1683. "Those thir- teen men, humble as they may have been in- dividually, and unimportant as may have been the personal events of their lives, hold- ing as they did opinions which were banned in Europe, and * * standing as they did on what was then the outer picket line of civilization, best represented the meaning of the colonization of Pennsylva-

nia and the principles which lie at the foun- dation of her institutions * they stood for that spirit of universal tolera- tion, which found no abiding place save in America. *

** Bullinger, the great reviler of the Anabaptists, in de- tailing in 1560 their many heresies, says they taught that 'the government shall and may not assume control of questions of religion or faith.' * %

* * But two cen- turies after Bullinger wrote, there was put into the constitution of Pennsylvania, in almost identical language: 'No human au- thority can, in any case whatever, control or interfere with the right of conscience.' The fruitage is here, but the planting and water- ing were along the Rhine."

The Mennonites continued to emigrate to America, settling in the eastern part of Pennsylvania, until. in 1735, there were probably five hundred families. "Thus, as a matter of course, the adherents to the faith of their forefathers greatly multiplied, and took a firm foothold in the New World, commanding the respect of the rulers of the land, and exercising a healthful influence, in many directions, by their modest, simple and honest intercourse with their neighbors. Many persons in higher stations of life were convinced that the principles and sentiments advocated and practiced by these modest and plain people were the true and cardinal principles of the Gospel, and if the descend- ants from generation to generation had con- tinued those principles by practice down to the present time, they would exercise a greater influence."

But many for reasons known to them- selves left the "plain and simple paths of their forefathers * and therefore that influence was much shorn of its effect. But notwithstanding all these jars and upheavals, the Mennonite denomi-

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nation still stands as a beacon on the shores of time."

"To write the life of all the prominent men in the Mennonite Church in America would be impossible, as they left scarcely any written record or account and to men- tion some only might seem partial. There- fore a few remarks will be made in a gen- eral way. The polity of the Mennonite de- nomination has remained unchanged as re- gards the principal points. There have been secessions from the main body, from time to time. Those have formulated other rules of government. As a body the Mennonite denomination consists of bishops, ministers and deacons, and also the laity. Each lay member has a right to the council of the church. At stated times examinations are held to ascertain the standing and condition of the church, the result of which is reported to conference, when bishops, ministers and deacons meet in general council, and counsel with each other, and advise for the welfare of the church. The preaching of the Word of God is extemporaneous and without charge. It is not the principle of the minis- try to preach according to the wisdom of this world, but according to the spirit of Christ, in humility and simplicity. All persons have access to public worship. Penitent believers upon application, and after being instructed in regard to the rules and ordinances of the Church, and promising obedience and alle- giance thereto, are received to membership by baptism in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. The members observe communion with each cther, with bread and wine, the bread and wine being emblems of the broken body and shed blood of Jesus Christ. Feet wash- ing commanded by Jesus Christ. as a token of humility, is recognized as an ordinance, and observed by the greater number of the

brethren. When any difference or strife arises between the members it shall be ad- justed according to Matt. xviii, 15-20. Al- though believing that living according to the tenets of the Mennonite faith is com- patible with the Word of God, yet the prin- ciple thereof does not allow members to condemn those of other denominations."

AARON C. BOOK, one of the pro- gressive and successful business men of Hopewell township, who deals in hardwood lumber and bark, with offices at Newburg, comes of an old Lancaster county family which was established there by David Book.

David Book, the grandfather of Aaron C .. was born Sept. 29, 1794, in Germany, where he married Anna Howery. David Book died Oct. 29, 1861, aged sixty-seven years and one month, leaving ten children : John. David, Elias, Isaac H., Jacob, Abra- ham, Susie, Katie, Elizabeth and Mary Ann. Susie became the wife of David Keeports; Katie married Christopher Keeports and lives in Lancaster; Elizabeth married Ben- jamin Wenger; and Mary Ann married Christopher Binkley. The two survivors are Elias, a resident of Talmage, Kans., and Katie, of Lancaster City.

Isaac H. Book was born June 3, 1837, in Lancaster county, where he was educated and later taught school, teaching also in Lebanon county, Pa. On Sept. 29, 1864, he married (first) a Miss Sarge, who died Nov. 25. 1869, aged twenty-nine years, three months and twenty-three days. On Nov. 3. 1870, he married (second) Rebecca Hoover, daughter of Christian and Anna (Byers) Hoover, of Cumberland county. The children of his first marriage were: Mary, born July 14, 1865, married Elias Freeman, of West Lebanon; Ellen, born Dec. 22, 1867, married John H. Lerch, of

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West Lebanon: and John, born Nov. 5. 1869. died Dec. 7. 1869. Aaron C. was the only child of the second marriage. His father died aged thirty-five years and nine months, and was buried by the side of his first wife, at Jonestown. in Lebanon county. His mother married (second) John Burkart, and she died in Mifflin township. in 1896, and is buried in the Hoover cemetery in Hopewell township. After his first marriage Isaac H. Book came to Cumberland county and settled in Southampton township, where he followed milling for a number of years, and then bought a farm in Hopewell township, consisting of about 200 acres of land about four and a half miles from Shippensburg, upon which he remained a year prior to his death.

Aaron C. Book was born at his father's mill in Southampton township, in 1872, and attended first in the schools of Franklin and Mifflin townships. also a graded school at Oakville. Cumberland county. He then engaged in farming in Hopewell township, where he first bought a farm of eighty-two acres and later a tract of sixty acres, which he sold in 1904. On March 30. 1904, he came to Newburg, and has been engaged in lumbering ever since. On Nov. 1, 1900, he bought a mill, and he bought his first tract oi timberland from his father's farm. He is doing a fine business and keeps twenty men busily engaged continually.

On Nov. 17, 1891, Mr. Book was mar- ried to Anna J. Heberling, daughter of B. F. and Harriet L. Heberling, who still re- side in Hopewell township. They have had children as follows: Annie E., born Nov. 14, 1892 ; Mary Ellen, April 29, 1895 ; Flor- ence Grace, Nov. 5. 1898 (died when twen- ty-two months old and is buried at Zion Church ) ; Oscar, Oct. 3, 1901 ; and Mark,

Oct. 13. 1903-a happy little household all still under the parental wing.

Both Mr. and Mrs. Book are leading members of the Reformed Church of Zion, in Hopewell township, of which he is a trustee and has been a deacon for four years and superintendent of the Sabbath-school for some seven years. They are most highly regarded residents of this section where they have many friends and a large number of ·kindred.

JOHN H. WOODBURN. On March 27, 1772, James Woodburn, of Colerain township, Lancaster county, bought from Timothy Hosfickl, of Bethlehem, North- ampton county, 280 acres of land. The land is described in the deed as adjoining lands of Robert Dunning in Pennsboro town- ship, Cumberland county. This is the first appearance of the Woodburn name upon the records of Cumberland county. The purchaser soon afterward removed to this property for the tax list of West Pennsboro the next year shows him taxed with this land and also with personal property. James Woodburn continues taxed with practically the same amount of land from that time down to 1786, when he disappears. The next year a John Woodburn, who for sev- cral years had been listed as "freeman" in West Pennsboro, is taxed with the same amount of land that James Woodburn had been taxed with, and continues taxed with it for some years to come. The fact that the property which belonged for so many years to James Woodburn descended to John Woodburn is a pretty safe indication that John was the son of James, and his nat- ural and legal heir.

This John Woodburn lived in the locality known as "The Richlands," in the northern

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part of what is now Dickinson township. According to tradition the family came from: Ireland, but whether before or after John was born cannot now be determined. The family seem to have first settled in Lancas- ter county. James, the father, probably died about the year 1787, leaving two sons, John and Samuel. He may also have had other children, but whether he did and who they were is not definitely known. Samuel never married, and for a number of years the two brothers lived together and jointly farmed the lands which they inherited from their father. Afterward they divided the estate, and each farmed his own portion. They belonged to what was long known as the "Old Seceder" Church, which stood near the "Stone House", in Dickinson township. and it is probable that the remains of their parents are buried in the graveyard of that Church. Samuel died in November, 1834, in his sixty-ninth year ; and John died Jan. II, 1846, at the great age of ninety-two years. Their remains rest in the same lot in the graveyard of the United Presbyterian Church at Newville.

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Biographical annals of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania : containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens and of many of the early settled families, Part 93

Author: Genealogical Publishing Co., Chicago, pub Publication date: 1905 Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : Genealogical Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 994

Author: Genealogical Publishing Co., Chicago, pub
Publication date: 1905
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : Genealogical Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 994