USA > Pennsylvania > Lancaster County > Biographical annals of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania : containing biographical and genealogical sketches of prominent and representative citizens and of many of the early settlers > Part 3
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Elias Bear was reared on the farm and educated in the common schools. When a lad fifteen years of age, he began caring for himself, working on a farm for wages. When the Civil war broke out, he was twenty-one, and in August, 1862, he enlisted in Co. C. 122d P. V. I., being mustered out in 1863. after the expiration of his term of nine months' en- listment ; he was at the front all the time. participat- ing in the battles of Fairfax Court House, Fred- ericksburg and Chancellorsville. escaping without a scratch, though he was a gallant fighter and never shunned danger. After his return from the war, he rented a farm of seventy acres in Manheim township. For twenty-three years he rented this place of one man, Mr. Rudy, and when that gentleman died, he purchased it. Until 1897 he was continuously en- gaged in its cultivation. That year he retired to Oregon to a pleasant home he had already bought, and where he is now taking a well earned rest.
Mr. Bear was married Dec. 26, 1869, to Lucy, a daughter of Isaac Sowers, born in West Earl town- ship, at Groffdale, June 28, 1842, and died Dec. 9, 1899. She was a member of the Lutheran Church, as is also her husband.
Mr. Bear has taken his place among the leading men of the township, and his long and useful life shows the quality of genuine manhood.
CHRISTIAN H. KAUFFMAN (deceased) was born Aug. 26, 1839, a son of Christian and Eliz- abeth ( Hoffman ) Kauffman, of West Hempfield township, where he was reared and educated in the common schools. When he was twenty-seven he began operations for himself, locating about a mile east of Landisville, on the farm where his life was
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spent, and where his widow still lives. This at first was a farm of 104 acres ; it now contains only eighty acres, but is regarded as one of the pleasantest places in that part of the county.
Mr. and Mrs. Kauffman made many valuable im- provements on this farm, putting up a fine residence and other farm buildings, and the farm received the close attention of Mr. Kauffman. He was a man who was very domestic in his habits, and preferred the comforts of home to all the pleasures of the out- side world. In his religious associations he was a member of the River Brethren in Christ.
Mr. Kauffman was married Oct. 23, 1866, to Barbara, a daughter of John and Maria (Kauffman) Kendig, who was born in East Hempfield township, near the "Black Horse Hotel," July 20, 1846. His death occurred Jan. 2, 1893, and during the period of their married life they were more than usually faithful and devoted to each other. To this union
came the following children: Morris, now living on the homestead, married to Miss Emma Baker, and the father of the following, D. Baker, May B., C. Raymond and J. Harold; Mary K., the wife of Amos H. Herr, of Neffsville, and the mother of C. Kauffman, Paul and Grace ; Lizzie, the wife of Enos Heissey, making their home with Mrs. Kauffman ; Emma, who died at the age of eight years.
Mrs. Kauffman and her daughters are members of the River Brethren in Christ, and are very highly esteemed in the community in which they live.
JOHN ABRAHAM SPRENGER, one of the prominent retired citizens of Lancaster, was born Jan. 26, 1829, in an old log cabin which still stands, on Fourth street, near Penn street, in Reading, Pa.
John A. Sprenger, his father, was born in the Rheinpfalz, Bavaria, Germany, July 5, 1770, and emigrated to America in May, 1821, locating in Read- ing, Pa., where he carried on a butchering business until March, 1829. when he embarked in the brewing business, in Maytown, this county. Two years later he removed to Elizabethtown, where he remained until 1836, going then to Lancaster, in which city he rented a brewery from his brother-in-law, John Borell, and continued in the brewing business until obliged by the infirmities of old age to cease work. His very capable wife managed the business from 1843 to 1867. Mr. Sprenger died Aug. 28, 1854. He married Elizabeth Lauer, who was born in Gleis- weiler, Rheinpfalz, March 22, 1800, and died in Oct. 1875. Both were buried in the Lancaster cemetery, and both were members of the Reformed Church. The children born to them were as follows: Susan (deceased) married Henry Weber; Elizabeth mar- ried Jacob Yeisley, of Baltimore; Jacob, who re- sided in Atlanta, Ga., was born in Reading in 1825, and died Dec. 2, 1902; Christiana married Edward Wiley, of Lancaster ; John A. is mentioned below ; Catherine married (first) Charles Whidmayer, and is now the widow of Lawrence Knapp; Barbara married Ernst Krause, a retired brewer of Car-
lisle; Martha is the widow of Charles Connell, of Philadelphia; Anna married F. K. Dieffenderfer, of Lancaster ; Louise died unmarried, at the age of sixty-two years; George F. Sprenger, born Jan. 6, 1842, died April 17, 1888 (he married Emma Ziglor, of Carlisle) ; Amelia married William Roehm, of Lancaster.
From the age of ten years until his retirement John Abraham Sprenger was associated with the brewing business. Fifty consecutive years is a long period to devote to one business, but for a half century Mr. Sprenger gave his time, attention and energy to his large brewing interests. To improve the quality of his products, to decrease the cost of their production, to extend the territory of their distribution, required a man of great physical strength and mental activity.
Although he assisted his father in the business in his youth, it was in 1852 that he entered upon the business with his brother, Hon. Jacob J. Sprenger, this partnership lasting for eighteen months. John A. then started out on his individual career. He began by leasing a brewery, and two and one-half years later built a similar establish- ment for himself, on East King street (on the site of the present Excelsior Hall building), which he carried on from 1857 to 1873. Then he leased a brewery from Philip Frank, of Mt. Joy, making an agreement to purchase the same if desirable. This he did in 1883, and expended in refitting and building the sum of $100,000. This brewery plant was operated by Mr. Sprenger with increasing pros- perity until November, 1896, when he retired from active work, selling out to a stock company, which now carries on the business under the name of the Sprenger Brewing Company.
Although Mr. Sprenger was immersed in the cares of private business, when the call of his coun- try for defenders was heard, in April, 1861, he was one of the first to volunteer in the Lancaster Fenci- bles, the first regiment of State defenders, mustered in at Camp Curtin. Although he entered the serv- ice as a private, he was commissioned sergeant on the field, and served as such in Company FF. under Capt. Emlin Franklin, until he was discharged at Harrisburg. He was with the regiment at Win- chester, Va. While Mr. Sprenger was away from home the business was carried on by Tobias Miller. At the age of fifty-two Mr. Sprenger found himself, through endeavoring to assist a friend, $17,000 worse off than nothing, but instead of sitting down to bemoan his loss he put his shoulder to the wheel, and now has a comfortable competence for his old age. In 1867, with his wife and mother, he visited the family home in the old country, and also made a tour through France and Switzerland, in all spending three months abroad.
On Oct. 28, 1852, Mr. Sprenger was married (first) to Miss Adeline Erisman, born in Lancaster county, daughter of John and Maria Erisman, of Lancaster, where the former was a carpenter. She
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John A. Sprenger
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died without children, June 5, 1892, and was in- terred in the cemetery at Lancaster. Mr. Sprenger was married (second), Feb. 12, 1896, to Mrs. Cath- erine. (Ritner) Lamborn (widow of Israel Lam- born, of Chester county), who was born in Cumber- land county, a grandniece of ex-Governor Ritner, of Pennsylvania, who is remembered as the intro- ducer of the free-school system in the State. No children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Sprenger. They occupy one of the handsomest and best equipped residences in the city.
In political sentiment Mr. Sprenger is a stanch Republican. Since 1843 he has been a member of the Reformed Church. Fraternally he is connected with a number of organizations, notably the Ma- sonic, in which he is a Knight Templar ; the Order of Red Men ; the G. A. R. ; and the I. O. O. F. His business interests in this part of the State have been very important, and as an honorable and up- right man he won the approval and confidence of the public in commercial operations, while in pri- vate life he holds the esteem of a large circle of warm friends.
HIRAM L. ERB (deceased), for many years a leading merchant of Clay township, Lancaster coun- ty, and one of the public-spirited and progressive citi- zens of the town, was a member of a family long prominent in the annals of Lancaster county.
Jacob Erb, the great-great-grandfather of Hi- ram L., was brought from Switzerland to America by his parents in 1728. He was but four years of age at that time, so that practically his entire life was passed in the New World. They located near Hammer Creek, in Warwick township. About 1782 Jacob removed to Clay township, where he purchased several hundred acres of land, with mill privileges. and he made his home there for the remainder of his life. Besides a mill at Clay village, he operated another farther up Middle Creek, and he also cleared and improved large portions of his extensive estate. Until the outbreak of the war of the Revolution he was a believer in the Mennonite faith, but the princi- ple of non-resistance taught by that society was in too great opposition to his patriotic spirit, and he with- drew his membership to support the provisionary government. He became a man of prominence in public affairs, and represented his district in the State Legislature. He died in 1810, when he was past eighty years of age. His wife was a Miss Johns, and their family consisted of two sons and several daughters. Of the sons, John is mentioned below; and Christian lived on the old homestead in Warwick, where some of his descendants are still to be found.
John Erb, son of Jacob, was for three years in the service of his country during the Revolution, acting as teamster. He was but sixteen at the time he entered the service, and after the close of the war he resided at Clay, where he operated both the mills belonging to his father, and also looked after the
cultivation of the home farm. He was prominent in all public affairs, was the founder of the school at Clay, and took an active interest in religious af- fairs. John Erb married Judith Hull, and their chil- dren were: Jacob; John; David; Isaac; Samuel : Joseph; Molly, who married Abraham Erb and moved to Canada; Elizabeth, who married Michael Shepler; Nancy, who married Abraham Bear; and Catharine, who married Joseph Weidman.
Jolın Erb, son of John, was born Nov. 3, 1786, and passed his life in Clay, engaged in farming and milling, and in keeping a public house. He belonged to the Old Line Whig party, and at one time served as county commissioner. He married Barbara Ber- gelbach, and his children were: Hiram: John B .; Henry B. : and Priscilla Cecilia. who married George W. Steinmetz. John Erb died in 1862, in the sev- enty-sixth year of his age.
Hiram Erb, son of John and father of Hiram L., was born at the upper mill in Clay township April 11, 1810. The common schools afforded him his educational advantages, and at the age of nineteen he succeeded to the milling business established by his great-grandfather, for forty years successfully following that line. Some 150 acres of the old home tract belonged to him, and he met with abun- dant success in farming it. In 1869, in partnership with his son, Hiram L., he established a general store at Richland, Lebanon county, but in 1875 the business was removed to Clay, where prosperity awaited the enterprising proprietors. President Taylor appointed Mr. Erb postmaster, and he effi- ciently discharged the duties of that office for four years. He was originally a Republican, and an inti- mate acquaintance of Hon. Thaddeus Stevens, one of the party's founders, but in 1872 his admiration for Horace Greeley carried him into the Democratic ranks, after which he voted independent of party affiliations. Mr. Erb served as school director for three years, and always supported educational and religious movements. On May 16, 1839, he mar- ried Catharine Lane, widow of John S. Bear. One child, Hiram L., blessed this union. Catharine Lane Erb died in 1886, at the age of seventy-six years. Hiram Erb died in 1892, aged eighty-two years.
Hiram L. Erb was born Nov. 24, 1840, and he entered into rest Jan. 27, 1900. Like his father be- fore him, he was trained to farming and milling, but on account of ill health entered the mercantile world, in partnership with his father, in 1869, under the firm name of Hiram Erb & Son. His political faith was like that of his father, and he served the Demo- cratic party as a member of the county committee.
He also served on the school board. In his re- ligious connection he was a member of the United Brethren Church. Kind hearted and liberal, his charity was often the means of helping a weary fel- low traveler to rest and comfort. He was a man of many friends, and his genial social nature made his home a favorite meeting place.
On Nov. 24, 1863, Hiram L. Erb was married to
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Celinda Becker, a daughter of William and Lucy (Spayd) Becker, of Mill Creek township. Three children blessed this union, two of whom reached maturity : Laura, widow of Rev. C. J. F. Miller, a prominent minister of the United Brethren Church, who was born in 1860, and who died Nov. 7, 1899, leaving eight children, Edgar L., Clio D., Lois E., Victor H., Earl Raymond, Guy Ralph, Erickson Colon and Vivian E .; Linnie, widow of Rev. A. L. Shannon, a well known minister of the United Breth- ren Church, who was born in 1864, died Dec. 13, 1900, leaving six children, Helen E., Florence L., Carl F., Paul E., Mary A. and Minerva E.
The Becker and Spayd families, from which Mrs. Hiram L. Erb is descended, were among the early settlers of Lebanon county. John Becker came from Germany to Lebanon county, Pa., about 1735 or 1740, and his son, George, was one of the pioneers of Kleinfeltersville, Lebanon county. William Becker, son of George and father of Mrs. Hiram L. Erb, was born in 1816, became one of the leading farmers of his township and died Oct. 29, 1879. William Becker married Lucy Spayd, and of the three children born of their union Mrs. Erb alone lived to mature years.
Mrs. Hiram L. Erb is now making her home in Richland, Lebanon county. She is a kind and Chris- tian woman, whose gentle spirit has endeared her to all who come within the circle of her acquaintance.
JOHN H. KAYLOR, a retired farmer, and an old and much respected resident of Mt. Joy town- ship,was born in West Donegal township Jan. 19, 1836, a son of Joseph and Mary Annie (Hoffer) Kaylor, both native to Lancaster county.
The father was a carpenter, and in his later days a farmer, though he lived retired for some years. He was born April 9, 1803, and died in 1878. The mother, who was born March 10, 1807, died in 1863. They were married in 1823, and were devoted mem- bers of the Lutheran Church. The following chil- dren were born to them: Tobias, born in East Donegal township March 28, 1826, a retired farmer in Elizabethtown; Jacob, born Nov. 6, 1827, a re- tired farmer in Mt. Joy township; Henry B., born Feb. 26, 1829, deceased; Mary Ann, born Sept. 4, 1830, the widow of George Hess, and living in Ill- inois ; Isaac. born Feb. II, IS32, a farmer in Dauphin county ; Joseph, horn Sept. 21. 1833, a retired farmer in Illinois ; John H., born Jan. 19, 1836; Elizabeth, born Feb. 26, 1839, wife of Samuel Caley, now a re- tired soldier in Dauphin county ; Benjamin, born Jan. 10, 1838, a carpenter in West Donegal township; Anna, born Nov. 2, 1840, married to Isaac Winters, a farmer in Dauphin county ; Sarah, born Aug. 18, 1842, the wife of Aaron Manning, and living in Ill- inois : Samuel, born April 3, 1843, who died young ; Magdalena, born June 25, 1845, deceased; Cath- erine, born Sept. 1, 1846, married to George Ruther- ford, the proprietor of a bakey .in Bainbridge ; Lo- vina, born July 5, 1848, wife of Simon Steffy, of
East Donegal township; Abraham, born Oct. IS, 1850, a farmer of Dauphin county. The paternal grandfather Kaylor kept a tavern in West Donegal township: Joseph Hoffer, the maternal grandfather of Mr. Kaylor, was a farmer in Dauphin county, where he died.
John H. Kaylor and Mary Wolgemuth were mar- ried in Mt. Joy township Sept. 12, 1861, and their first four children died young. Their names were Anna, Lizzie, Christian and Amanda. The next child, Katie, married Martin Heistand, an engineer at Mt. Joy. John and Mamie are unmarried and at home.
Mrs. Mary Kaylor was born in Mt. Joy township Oct. 6, 1843, and is a daughter of Christian and Anna (Metzler) Wolgemuth, of Lancaster county, both of whom died in Mt. Joy township ; he in 1888, at the age of eighty-nine years, lacking one day, and she in November, 1896, at the age of ninety years. Their remains were laid to rest in what is known as the Cross Roads cemetery, in East Donegal township. They were the parents of the following children : Elizabeth, the widow of John Hoffman, of Eliza- bethtown: Jane, the widow of Henry Nissley, of Rapho township ; John, a retired farmer in Mt. Joy township : David, a retired farmer in Mt. Joy town- ship ; Christian, who is dead ; Anna, deceased ; Abra- ham, deceased ; Mary. Christian Wolgemuth, the paternal grandfather of Mrs. Kaylor, was a farmer in Lancaster county.
John H. Kaylor spent the first twenty-one years of his life at home with his parents, and then car- ried on a farm on shares in Mt. Joy township, an arrangement which continued until the spring of 1899. That spring he removed to his present com- fortable and attractive home, about a hundred yards from the borough line of Elizabethtown. He has done well in life, and his present comfortable cir- cumstances are entirely the result of his economy, careful management and unwearied industry. Mr. Kaylor and his wife are members of the River Breth- ren Church, while his good standing in his neigh- bors' opinions is attested by his election three times as school director. Mr. Kaylor has made a small fortune off a rented farm, and well deserves a prom- inent place among the leading men of Lancaster county.
REV. CHARLES NAGEL is pastor of the Moravian Church in Lancaster, Pa. He was born in Cannstadt, Wurtemberg, Germany, Oct. 28, 1844, and was but a year old when his father, a clergy- man of the Lutheran Church, entered into rest. His early education was obtained in the schools of his na- tive land, and in his ninth year the widowed mother brought him and his sister to the New World. They located in Brooklyn, N. Y., where they continued to reside for some time. When young Charles was fifteen years old he went to Bethlehem, Pa., and there entered the Moravian College and Theological Seminary, having determined upon the ministry as
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his life work. His devotion to his work, his careful study and his consistent practice of the principles he professed won for him the high esteem of his in- structors, and when he was graduated, in his twenti- eth year, he was called upon to fill the position of teacher in the Moravian Boarding School for Boys at · Nazareth, Pa., which position he held for three years. In pursuance of the next call, this time into the min- istry of the congregation at Newfoundland, Wayne Co., Pa., he was, in 1868, ordained a deacon of the Moravian Church by the Right Rev. John C. Jacob- son. His labors in the Newfoundland field were crowned with success, and he continued in charge there until January, 1874. In 1870, at York, Pa., he had been ordained a presbyter by the Rt. Rev. Henry Shultz. When he resigned his pastorate at Newfoundland it was to accept a call to the Church at Elizabeth, N. J., where he continued until 1876, when he returned to Pennsylvania, and took charge of the parish at Lititz, Lancaster county, where he remained until 1885. During all these years he had not confined his attention to the duties of his own charge, but had taken a keen intelligent interest in all that pertained to the welfare of the church. By close study and a wide contemplation of the prob- iems that confront the clergy of whatever denon- ination, he became keenly alive to the needs and the dangers assailing the higher morality of the people. In 1876 he was delegated, with others, to represent the Northern Province of the Moravian Church in America at the General Synod, which convened in Hornhut, Saxony, from May to July, of that year. From 1885 to 1901 Rev. Nagel was the incumbent of the First Moravian Church in Philadelphia, and on Sept. 19, 1901, he entered the Gospel ministry. of the Moravian Church at Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
In 1868 Rev. Nagel was united in marriage with Miss Ellen M. Luchenbach, daughter of William Luchenbach, of Bethlehem, Pennsylvania.
JOSEPH S. RISSER, one of the old and suc- cessful farmers of Mt. Joy township, Lancaster coun- ty, was born in Londonderry, Lebanon Co., Pa., Dec. 28, 1836, a son of John and Mary (Shenk) Risser, both natives of Lebanon county, where they died full of years and honor. The father, a farmer, who died in 1869, at the age of sixty years, ten months and twelve days, had lived retired many years. His widow.passed away in 1892, at the age of seventy-six years, seven months and twenty-eight days. They were interred in the Risser Church burying ground in Lancaster county. They were members of the Mennonite Church, and had the fol- lowing family: Fannie, born Aug. 5, 1835, now an invalid and the widow of John H. Risser, of Mt. Joy township, who was born Feb. 21, 1834, and died Nov. 5, 1901 : Joseph S. ; Abraham, who died aged thirty-eight years : John, a prominent man in Leba- non county, and a director of a National bank in Elizabethtown ; Samuel, a farmer in Lebanon county.
Several of the Risser family came to America
during the eighteenth century. Ulrich and Jacob Risser came from Rotterdam in the ship "Ad- venturer." John Davis, master, qualified Oct. 2, 1727. John Risser came at the age of twenty-three, in the ship "Queen Elizabeth," Alexander Hope, master, from Rotterdam, qualified Sept. 16, 1738. Philip Risser came in the "Loyal Judith," Edward Painter, commander, from Rotterdam, qualified Sept. 3, 1739. Peter Risser and his wife, Anna Sny- dier, sailed from Rotterdam in the "Robert and Alice," Walter Goodman, commander, qualified Sept. 3, 1739. The last couple were the great- grandparents of Joseph S. Risser.
The paternal grandparents of Joseph S. Risser were Peter and Fanny (Witmer) Risser, farming people of Lebanon county, where their lives were spent. The grandfather died in 1856, at the age of seventy-six. The Rissers are of Swiss descent, and have always been sturdy and industrious people of good character and fine standing. The same thing may justly be said of Mr. Risser's maternal grandparents, Joseph and Fanny (Ober) Shenk, of Lebanon county, where their peaceful and upright lives were passed. The Shenks also came originally from Switzerland.
Joseph S. Risser was married Nov. 8, 1864, in Lancaster county, to Miss Annie L. Gerber, who was born in Rapho township and died Sept. 24, 1888, at the age of forty-two years. Her remains were laid to rest in the Kraybill cemetery. She was a sister of David L. Gerber, of East Donegal township.
Mr. Risser remained with his parents until he reached the age of twenty-eight years, when he rent- ed a farm in East Donegal township. There he re- mained until 1873, when he came to the farm on which he is found to-day, and where he has made a signal success in its cultivation. In his religion he has united himself with the Mennonite Church, and his clean and wholesome life has cast no dis- credit upon his profession of faith. In politics he is a Republican, and is known as an upright and conscientious citizen. He has worked hard, been prudent and careful, and has amassed a very com- fortable competence.
EMANUEL NEFF. Among the old and re- spected citizens of Strasburg township is Emanuel Neff, who conducts a mill and operates a farm two miles west of the borough of Strasburg, in Lancaster county, and well represents the two prominent fam- ilies from which he came.
Emanuel Neff was born in Lancaster county Oct. 25, 1840, a son of Henry and Anna (Groff) Neff, both of whom have passed away. Henry Neff was a native of East Lampeter township, a son of Chris- tian and Annie Neff, and was born March 19, 1819, dying Feb. 16, 1881. His first marriage was to Anna Groff, who died in 1851, leaving three chil- dren: Emanuel; Amos, a farmer of Cass county, Mo .: and Susan, deceased, who married Amos Hershey, of Gordonville. The second marriage of
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