Biographical annals of Lebanon County, Pennsylvania : containing biographical sketches of prominent men and representative citizens and of the early settled families, Part 10

Author: J.H. Beers & Co
Publication date: 1904
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : J. H. Beers
Number of Pages: 946

USA > Pennsylvania > Lebanon County > Biographical annals of Lebanon County, Pennsylvania : containing biographical sketches of prominent men and representative citizens and of the early settled families > Part 10

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George H. Horst was born in Annville, Lebanon county, but was taken to Dauphin county at-the age of one year, when his father there entered

BIOGRAPHICAL ANNALS OF LEBANON COUNTY.

into active business. His education was liberal, attendance at the common schools of Union Deposit being succeeded by a period at the Millersville State Normal School, in Lancaster county. He left school at the age of eighteen in order to make a trip and see something of the great West, and during an absence of four years visited Indiana, Kansas and Colorado, but decided to locate permanently in the East. With this intention he came to Myerstown, where he organized a State Bank, this being, in 1873, the same safe financial institution which, in 1900, became the Myerstown National Bank, with a capital of $50,000. Upon its organization Mr. Horst became its cashier. remaining as such until its change into a national bank, in 1900, since when he has continued in the same position in the new organization. Mr. Horst drew the first charter for the first ( State) bank, and this was granted by a special act of the Legislature. The bank continued to do busi- ness under that charter and the renewal of it, in 1892, until it was changed into a national bank, in 1900. For the past thirty years Mr. Horst has been established as a leading factor in the life of Myerstown, and has taken an active part in all its interests. For many years he has been president of the board of trustees of the Reformed Church, of which he is a consistent member. He is the treasurer of the Tulpehocken Mutual Fire Insurance Company, and also treasurer of the Goodwill Fire and Hose Company, of Myerstown. His interest in educational matters has been shown by his long and disinterested service on the school board, and his connection with the Palatinate College. He was for a long time treasurer of the Association of that college, from its organization, in about 1894, to the time of its sale to the Evangelical Church, which now owns it. Mr. Horst was one of seven members who organized the Myerstown Water Company, and has been a member of the board of directors and secretary since its organization. However, with all a public spirited citizen's interest in the place of his resi- dence, he will not enter public life, his other duties making that impossible. Mr. Horst has been a lifelong Republican from principle, but he has held no public office except that of school director.

In 1881 Mr. Horst was united in marriage with Miss Annie R. See, a daughter of Richard J. and Mary Elizabeth ( Liesse) See, of Myerstown, and one daughter, Mary E .. , was born to this union: the mother died in 1884. ' Miss Horst is one of the most accomplished and attractive young ladies of the town, a graduate of Albright College. and is a student at Bryn Mawr Col- lege. where she is taking a post-graduate course. In 1891 Mr. Horst was married ( second) to Lottie Bahney, the only daughter of Adam Bahney, a capitalist and prominent resident of Myerstown. -

BIOGRAPHICAL ANNALS OF LEBANON COUNTY.

JOHN L. ZUG, one of the old and honored citizens of North Lebanon township, residing upon his fine farm midway between Lebanon and Myers- town, descends from one of the early settlers of this part of Pennsylvania. His ancestry emigrated to America from Switzerland, to escape religious persecution. Ulrich Zug, a man of intelligence and thrift, was the great- great-grandfather of John L. Zug, of North Lebanon township. He was a member of the Dunkard faith, and belonged to that body of early Christians, who, although stern in belief, were ever righteous in their dealings. This faith was handed town to his descendants, and Abraham Zug, the grand- father, was a minister in that church, and his son. Rev. John Zug, preached the doctrines of this religion for thirty years.

Abraham Zug was born and reared in Lancaster county, moving with his family about 1816 to Lebanon county, where he died at the age of sixty-nine years. His father, Rev. Hannes Zug, had preached the faith for fifty years, and lived to be almost ninety years of age, in 1821, having been a preacher since 1772. His home and ministry were at White Oak, Lan- caster county, where his father, Ulrich, had settled in 1727. His baptism was in 1742. His life and work did much to establish the church in Lancaster county, and he is recalled in the church history with great honor. His family consisted of six sons and two daughters.

John Zug. father of John L. Zug, was born May 14, 1797. in Rapho township, Lancaster county, and died July 19, 1873, in Lebanon county. For more than half a century he was a consistent member of the Dunkard church and during thirty years its faithful minister, one of the zealous workers for the welfare of the Tulpehocken church, where his father had also labored. Mr. Zug was ever ready to minister in all kindness to every one, and his influence is felt to this day. He was united in marriage with Margaret I.ane, born in 1795, in Jackson township, daughter of Joseph and Margaretta (Rumler) Lane. and eight children were born to them, as follows: Abraham and Mary, both deceased; Rebecca, deceased wife of Henry Ballinger; Israel, who died in Illinois; John L .; Nathan, who died in Illinois; Katie, deceased wife of David Yingst; and Reuben, residing in South Lebanon township. The father engaged in farming in Heidelberg township, where is situated the family homestead.

John L. Zug was born December 9, 1829, in the old Heidelberg town- ship home, and was there reared and received such schooling as the time and locality afforded. Mr. Zug remained at home assisting his father until he was thirty-three years old, and then secured a small tract of land, which "he cultivated for five years, buying then a farm of thirty-seven acres located

BIOGRAPHICAL ANNALS OF LEBANON COUNTY.

near Prescott, in South Lebanon township, where he continued for twenty years, removing then to his present home in North Lebanon township, where he owns seventy-eight acres of the finest land in. the township. Mr. Zug owns other property in South Lebanon township, and is regarded as one of the substantial, as well as upright and reliable, citizens of this locality. His friends are many and sincere, his just character and kind disposition gaining him esteem and friendship.

On May 14, 1863, Mr. Zug married Eliza Fox, born September 15, 1836, in Berks county, a daughter of Samuel and Sarah ' (Gansert) Fox, her death occurring March 22, 1902. The five children born to this happy union were: Ephraim, a farmer on the homestead, and the owner of the Prescott warehouse, coal yard and creamery, and of a branch creamery at Stouchsburg, married Barbara Longenecker, and has three children, Nora, Mary and Naomi; Benjamin F., who attends to his brother Ephraim's business at Prescott, whither he moved September 8, 1903, married Ella Fry; Lizzie is at home; and Sarah and an infant daughter, deceased. With his whole family, Mr. Zug belongs to the Dunkard church, and they are justly regarded among Lebanon county's worthy and estimable citizens.

JOSIAH FUNCK. This highly respected and prominent member of the Lebanon County Bar, and one of the most distinguished citizens who has ever been connected with the public life of the city, died July 17, 1896. The death of Hon. Josiah Funck was looked upon by all citizens as a distinct public calamity, and he was followed to his last resting place by a very large con- course of sorrowing friends and fellow-citizens. As a lawyer, Mr. Funck had reached the top of the profession in eastern Pennsylvania, and was regarded as one of the most profound jurists who have ever practiced in the Lebanon courts. He had a keen appreciation of the high character of his profession, believing implicitly that the law was the conservator of justice, that justice should ever be blind, and that the duty of the practitioner was to interpret rightly the principles of jurisprudence regardless of individual advantage. His influence was powerful in the Bar of Lebanon County, of which he was dean at the date of his death, and by which he was greatly revered.

Hon. Josiah Funck was a native of Lebanon county, born on the old Funck homestead, near the city of Lebanon. December 26, 1825, a son of Jacob and Sarah (Bowman) Funck. His grandfather was named Martin, as was also his great-grandfather, the latter being one of the earliest settlers of Lebanon county, he having come to the county before it had been erected from old Lancaster county. The education of Josiah Funck was secured in the

BIOGRAPHICAL ANNALS OF LEBANON COUNTY.

common schools, and in Lebanon Academy, then under one of its noted early instructors, Prof. Kluge. After graduating from this school he taught school in East Hanover township during the years 1848-49. Deciding at this time upon the law as a profession, he began its reading in the office of the Hon. Levi Kline, then one of the leading lawyers of Lebanon. April 7, 1851, marks the date of his admission to the Bar, and for nearly a half century he practiced his profession with the greatest success. During this time he was frequently honored by responsible public positions, all of which he administered with rare fidelity. His first public office was that of District Attorney of Lebanon county, to which he was elected in 1854. In this office he served with dis- tinction fon one full term, and then retired to private practice, which was not interrupted until 1872, save for a few months during the Civil war, when he became captain of Company H, of the Emergency troops. As a lawyer he was profoundly versed in legal jurisprudence. In 1873 he had attained such high standing in the legal circles of the State that he was selected to repre- sent Lebanon county in the Constitutional Convention of Pennsylvania, and he became one of the most useful members of that august body-a body composed of men, who, regardless of personal gain or party politics, were "actuated by a desire to frame a fundamental law that would help to preserve the rights and privileges of the people of this free Commonwealth, and also to promote its strength, to preserve order and obedience to its ordinances." In the year 1875 Mr. Funck became connected with one of the most noted law cases that has come up in the courts in the distribution of the large fortune of the noted James Lick, the founder of the great Lick Observatory, his client being John H. Lick, a son of the gentleman named. He spent considerable time in Cali- fornia, and was successful after a hard legal fight in securing the rights of his client to a very large share of his father's estate.

Mr. Funck married Miss Bella I. Marshall, daughter of the late Dr. Jacob Marshall, of Reading, Pa. Dr. Marshall was formerly of Annville, Lebanon county, whence he removed to Reading. His mother was a Gloninger, of the old family of that name of Lebanon county, and whose members were dis- tinguished pioneers. To Josiah Funck and his wife were born the following children : Mary L., deceased; Jacob Marshall, a leading member of the Lebanon County Bar; Edwin B., deceased; Helen I., who married Major Lincoln Karmany, of the Marine Corps of the United States Navy, now in the Philippine Islands; Sarah B .; Alfred Coit, an attorney in the United States Patent Office in Washington.

Besides having attained distinction at the Bar, Mr. Funck was a suc- cessful financier, and held large and important interests in Lebanon. In later

BIOGRAPHICAL ANNALS OF LEBANON COUNTY.

life his shrewd business foresight had brought him a competence, but he could not bring himself to leave the forum where the field for activity was so great. It held for him a fascination which clung to him through life. He loved his profession, and honored it by an eminence attained by few of its devotees. At the time of his death he was dean of the Lebanon County Bar, and the follow- ing resolutions on his life and character were adopted by his fellow practi- tioners, at a meeting held July 20, 1896 :

Resolved, That in the death of Hon. Josiah Funck the Bar of Lebanon County has lost one of its most prominent members since the erection of the county.

That his course at the Bar was an example to all practitioners as indicative of the necessity for and the good results flowing from hard and incessant labor ;

That the Bar concedes to him fidelity to his client, a determination to win for his client by all fair and honorable means, and a persistency and pertinacity which more than once snatched victory from the jaws of defeat ;

That his death has deprived the community at large of a useful and public-spirited citizen ;

That we extend our sympathies to the bereaved family in their great sorrow.

We respectfully request the Court to enter these proceedings upon its record.

In Church and religions matters Mr. Funck was much interested and gave liberally of his means to the support of his own denomination and that of many others in the community. He was also exceedingly charitable, giving largely to organized charities and also in a private way. He was long con- nected with St. Luke's Protestant Episcopal Church of Lebanon, and was one of the oldest members in point of service in that church in the city, having been a charter member in Christ's church, corporated January 6, 1859, this name being afterward changed to St. Luke's. During his long service he frequently served as senior warden, and was also treasurer for many years. Mr. Funck was for a long term of years a member of the board of directors and treasurer of the Church Home for Children, the following minute being spread on the record of the Board at the meeting following his death :

Since our last meeting. the Church Home for Children has suffered a great loss in the death of Mr. Josiah Funck, a member of the Board from its formation, and who served most acceptably as the treasurer of the Home for many years. He was a steadfast friend of the institution from its inception, always present if possible at the meetings of the Board and ready to do whatever lay in his power for the interests of the Home by valuable advice and liberal contributions. It is not for us to speak of the rare gifts and qualities which made him a man of mark in the various relations which he sustained. We would only speak of him as a fellow member of the Board, whose pleasant and cordial manner made it a pleasure to meet with him. We would place on record this expression of our esteem and regard for a departed friend and fellow member, our sense of the value of his services to the institution which we represent, and express to his family our sincere sympathy in their loss.

BIOGRAPHICAL ANNALS OF LEBANON COUNTY.

Mr. Funck was a worthy and prominent member of the Grand Army of the Republic, for which organization he had great regard. Sedgwick Post, No. 42, the local organization, passed the following resolutions relative to his death :

Again we have been called to part with a comrade who has answered the last roll call. In the death of Comrade Josiah Funck the Post mourns the loss of a valued member, his family a fond and affectionate parent : and the community, the Church and the Bar, in all of which he was a shining example, feel with us the great loss which we have sustained. Tendering our sincere sympathy to the afflicted family we bow with meek submission to Him who doeth all things well.

As a token of respect for our departed Comrade, the charter of this Post shall be draped in his memory for the usual length of time. This Memorial shall be spread on the records, and a copy thereof, properly engrossed, shall be presented to the family of the de- ceased.

REV. DAVID WESTENBERGER, bishop of the Lebanon County District of the Mennonite Church, was born January 31, 1857, on the old Westenberger homestead, in South Annville township, Lebanon county, one mile from Annville, a son of David and Sarah (Gosser) Westenberger. The father was born at Wegley's Mills, near Schaefferstown, Lebanon county, November 16. 1822, and is still living, residing on the old farm.

Henry Westenberger, the grandfather, purchased the homestead where the succeeding generations of the family have been born. and here Henry died, about 1866. In religion he was a devout Mennonite, and his son, David, father of Bishop Westenberger, is one of the deacons of the church. Sarah (Gosser) Westenberger died in August. 1863, the mother of five children : Levi, a farmer of Dauphin county, Pa., married Fanny, daughter of Jacob Ebersole: Henry, a farmer of Lancaster county, married Maria Lehman; Mary married Christian Stern, of Lancaster county : Sarah married Abraham Ebersole; and Rev. David.

David Westenberger was reared upon the farm, and attended the com- mon schools of his neighborhood, following the calling of a farmer all his life, and now owns the old farm of seventy-three acres, which he has improved. and which is now regarded as one of the best farms in the township. \11 his life he has taken an active interest in the work of the Mennonite Church. Tn 1888 he was ordained as a preacher of his faith, since which time he has had charge of Gingrich church. On January 10, 1893, he was ordained bishop by Bishop Jacob Brubacher, of Lancaster county, and he is now in charge of four churches, which comprise the Lebanon county district. Bishop Westenberger is a very eloquent preacher, and has gained the affection of his people by his kindly manner, devout life and blameless character. All

BIOGRAPHICAL ANNALS OF LEBANON COUNTY.

his teachings are carried out in his life, and he is recognized as a thoroughly good man, as well as faithful clergyman.

In ISSo Bishop Westenberger was married to Martha Ebersole, born in Lancaster county. in 1856, a daughter of Jacob Ebersole, formerly of Lancaster county, but now of Dauphin county, Pennsylvania.

HENRY E. ESHELMAN, cashier of the Jonestown Bank, and one of the leading men of this vicinity, was born in Jonestown, February 15, 1849, a son of Christian and Sarah R. (Heilman) Eshelman. The father was born in Fredericksburg, Lebanon county, Pa., and died June 12, 1873, and the mother was born in Jonestown, November 6, 1818, and still survives.

Christian Eshelman, the paternal grandfather, was a man well and favorably known, and Henry Heilman, the maternal grandfather, was a highly respected man. Christian Eshelman (2), the father of Henry E. Eshelman, came to Jonestown at a very early day, and learned the saddler's trade. Later he was in the employ of Henry Meily, a coal and lumber dealer, and subsequently entered into a mercantile life. After passing through a series of co-partnerships, he finally took his son into partnership with him under the style of C. Eshelman & Son, dealers in coal and lumber. Altogether, he was in business for over thirty years, meeting with success. When he came to Jonestown he was a poor boy with nothing but the clothes on his back, but he died possessed of a modest fortune. He was one of the charter members of the Jonestown Bank when it was started in 1873, and also served on the school board and as a councilman of Jonestown. In his death Jonestown lost one of its best and most representative men, while in his family his demise was deeply felt, as he was a man to command not only affection, but respect and confidence.

Henry E. Eshelman was reared in Jonestown. receiving an excellent education in the public schools and at the business college at Norristown. Pa. At the age of eighteen he began work for his father, and so continued until 1871. when he was admitted as a partner in the business. When the Jonestown Bank was organized he was made acting teller, and was appointed notary public for the bank. After years of faithful service, in 1893, he was made cashier, which position he still holds. For six years he has served as county auditor, and he is thoroughly conversant with all matters pertaining to the management of financial institutions. In addition to his other inter- ests, he is a director of the Lebanon Mutual Fire Insurance Company, and has settled up a large number of estates, involving vast interests. His keen insight and calm, level judgment make him eminently fitted for the positions

BIOGRAPHICAL ANNALS OF LEBANON COUNTY.

of trust he holds, and influence others to depend upon his decision in mat- ters of importance.

Mr. Eshelman was married to Mary Alice Buck, born in Lebanon, daughter of Robert and Mary Buck. Two children have been born to this union : Sallie B. and Raymond B., the latter deceased.

HON. CYRUS E. HOFFMAN. Of the earnest, public-spirited men who early settled Richland, Mr. Hoffman is one of the few surviving first residents of that place. Since 1858 he has been almost continuously identi- fied with the public interests of Richland-as station agent, postmaster and recorder of wills, and, evincing marked fidelity in the performance of every duty, he has been of invaluable service to the community. Now, in his seventy-fourth year, he has retired from active work, and is availing himself of the peace of his pleasant Richland home.

Mr. Hoffman is of German extraction. His father, Sebastian Hoff- man, a well-known drover of Schaefferstown for many years, was born at Ichenstruth, on the Rhine, in Germany, November 4, 1781, and there he passed many years of his life. Prospects of bettering his fortunes induced him during his young manhood to come to America. Settling in Schaeffers- town, he there engaged in buying and selling live stock, and meeting with great success, he continued the business for many years. During his early manhood he married, in the old country, Margaret Uhr, who died before his departure for America, leaving two sons, Christian and Frederick, who came to America with him. In 1827, after settling in Pennsylvania, he married Catherine Iba, of one of the pioneer families of Heidelberg town- ship. To this marriage there were born four children: Henry ; Cyrus E., who is mentioned below; William, a resident of Kleinfeltersville, Lebanon county ; and Daniel, of Winchester, Ind. The father of this family died in Schaefferstown, August 25, 1849, and his wife died October 6, 1856. Both were influential citizens of Schaefferstown; and as a Whig he was prominent in local politics. He was a consistent Christian, and a leading member of the Reformed church.

Cyrus E. Hoffman early gave evidence of a decidedly marked intel- lectual bent. Born in Schaefferstown, February 12, 1830, he there, in a well ordered home, grew to manhood. In the public schools of his native town he procured his early education, and later attended the Myerstown and Annville academies, further cultivating his literary studies. Inherent ability and thorough equipment for the work decided him upon leaving school to engage in teaching, and securing a position in Schaefferstown,

BIOGRAPHICAL ANNALS OF LEBANON COUNTY.

he there took up his profession. A strong disciplinarian, and an expert at imparting knowledge, he met with marked success, and continued in this work for many years. Good business openings in the little settlement of Richland induced him, in 1858, to move there, and he at once secured a position as station agent for the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad Company. Practical business knowledge and thoroughness of work won him the confi- dence of both the officials and the general public, and he continued there for the most part throughout the rest of his business life. About 1893 he retired, having filled the position with marked satisfaction for fully thirty- five years. Shortly after taking up the duties of this office he was appointed postmaster of Richland, and, performing his work with marked ability and fidelity, he continued as such for twenty-seven years.

On December 8, 1850, Mr. Hoffman married Elvira Bair, of Schaeffers- · town, daughter of William and Elizabeth ( Bricker) Bair, natives of Schaef- ferstown. To Mr. and Mrs. Hoffman has been born one child, Dora, who is now a highly accomplished young woman, exceedingly active in church circles.

Mr. Hoffman's scholarly attainments and his business ability have brought him to the front in the public affairs of his section. While in Schaefferstown he very ably officiated as justice of the peace for many years, and in 1856 through the merited esteem of his fellow citizens he was elected to the State Legislature, where he represented his district with marked efficiency for one term, and an extra session. In 1896 he was elected register of wills for Lebanon county, in the performance of his duties acquitting himself with his usual ability. Since the organization of the party, in 1856, he has been a stanch Republican. He is an active member of the Schaefferstown Lutheran church, and has served both as superintendent of the Richland Sunday-school, which he organized some thirty years ago, and as class- leader. He possesses great strength of character, is independent in his views, and thoroughly well-informed upon all questions of the day.

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Biographical annals of Lebanon County, Pennsylvania : containing biographical sketches of prominent men and representative citizens and of the early settled families, Part 10

Author: J.H. Beers & Co Publication date: 1904 Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : J. H. Beers Number of Pages: 946

Author: J.H. Beers & Co
Publication date: 1904
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : J. H. Beers
Number of Pages: 946