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 7
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Mr. Grumbine has also displayed a considerable talent in organizing or in the art of doing things. Among his achievements in this line it may be · said that he was the prime mover in the organization of the Pennsylvania
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Chautauqua and a member of its first board of managers. With the resources of a first-class newspaper at hand he was prominently instrumental in the organization of the Pennsylvania-German Society. Recognition of this fact is made in Vol. I of the Society's Proceedings : "during the months of December, 1890, and January, 1891, articles appeared in various journals throughout eastern Pennsylvania, the earliest being in the Lebanon Daily Report, followed by the New Era of Lancaster and the Philadelphia Inquirer, advocating the formation of a Pennsylvania-German Society." It was not the intention of its promoters to perpetuate the dialect, as is sometimes thought. but to secure for the heroic and pious German settlers of Pennsylvania that recognition which is due them, and to save to history their contributions to the material, political and religious development of the nation, which the society has been doing with eminent success and satisfaction. It numbers most of the leading professional and business men of Pennsylvania-German ex- traction in the State and elsewhere among its members. Mr. Grumbine has been a member of the Executive committee of the society continuously ever since its organization. He has also been one of the leading spirits in the Lebanon County Historical Society since it was founded, has been a member of its Executive committee since its organization, and has contributed a number of papers to its publications. He planned and helped to organize the Lebanon County Trust Company, one of the flourishing financial institutions of this county, of which he is one of the directors, vice-president and solicitor.
In politics Mr. Grumbine has been a Prohibitionist for twenty years, having by his labors, his earnest devotion to the cause and his forceful writing and speaking won a high place in the confidence and the councils of the party. He has for many years served on the State Executive committee and has taken a leading part in the party's conventions, presiding. on several occasions. and frequently serving as chairman of the committee on Resolutions. He was the author of the Gettysburg platform of 1903. which committed the party to "license repeal" as the first step toward the solution of the liquor problem. and which was justly regarded as one of the strongest and most statesman- like papers ever adopted by a political convention. It attracted wide attention. He was the Prohibition candidate for the office of lieutenant-governor in 1902, running a close second to Dr. Swallow for the nomination of governor. In 1900 he accompanied the Prohibition candidate for president on his tour through the State, and was one of the leading speakers in that campaign. Serving in numerous capacities of trust and responsibility in private life he never held a public office.
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Mr. Grumbine was married, in 1881, to Roie E. Adams, of Naples. N. Y., and has one son, LeRoy Adams Grumbine, a student in Oberlin College and Conservatory.
ROIE (ADAMS) GRUMBINE, musician, and wife of Lee L. Grumbine, though residing for the greater part of her life in Lebanon county. was born in the village of Naples, Ontario Co., N. Y. Her father. John Adams, was a native of Exmouth, England, and her mother, Sibyl Fox, of Saybrook, Conn. Through her mother she is descended from the large and prominent family of Palmers, originally from Massachusetts. Miss Adams was educated in the Naples Academy, and graduated in music from the then celebrated Lyons Musical Academy, of Lyons, N. Y., of which Rev. L. Hinsdale Sherwood, father of William H. Sherwood, the great pianist, was the founder, and during his life the principal. She also studied under the latter and in Boston and other places. She came to Lebanon county as teacher of music in Palatinate College, Myerstown, and was principal of the Musical Department in this institution for nearly ten years. It was owing alike to her ability as a teacher and to her administrative powers that this department rapidly grew in numbers and in influence until it became the leading and most important department of the college. Since her marriage she has resided in the City of Lebanon, where she continued her teaching. her pupils number- ing hundreds; and scores of these are now themselves teaching music here and in other places. It is not too much to say that for upwards of twenty years Mrs. Grumbine exerted the leading musical influence in this com- munity, which in music culture ranks second to none in the State. She has also been a contributor to various musical periodicals.
JOHN S. SPRECHER. The Sprecher family was founded in Leba- non county by Frederick Sprecher, who emigrated from Germany and set- tled on a farm in North Cornwall township, two miles west of the city of Lebanon. His property contained 144 acres, and it had been but slightly improved, requiring both his own and his son's industry to clear it up. This land is still in the possession of the family. being a part of the estate of the late Daniel Sprecher. Frederick Sprecher lived to advanced age. He was twice married, one son, George, being born to his first marriage, in 1805. His second wife was a member of the Stover family, and she bore two chil- dren to him: Frederick : and Elizabeth, who married Jacob Stover, of North Cornwall township.
Frederick Sprecher (2), son of Frederick, was born in 1809. and died
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May 14, 1879. He was reared on the homestead and spent his life operating the home farm, until within twelve years of his decease, when he retired from active labor. For a long period he served faithfully on the school board, and was a leading man in the township, advocating reforms of all kinds, anxious to have the children afforded good educational advantages and cheerfully contributing to the building of good roads. In politics he was a strong Democrat. In his death the Lutheran Church lost a worthy member who had served as trustee, elder and deacon. His wife was Miss Susannah Seachrist, daughter of John and Elizabeth (Imboden) Seachrist, born in 1817, in South Lebanon township, and died September 27, 1902, her death occurring at the home of her son, John S., where she had lived for the twelve previous years. Children as follows were born to Frederick and Susannah Sprecher : Mary, who died unmarried; John S .; Lavina, who died unmarried; Daniel, who was a farmer of North Cornwall township on the old homestead, and who died in 1883, leaving a widow and eight children ; Miss Catherine; Ezra, who died in infancy; Emma Susan, who died unmar- ried; and an unnamed infant.
John S. Sprecher was born July 30, 1837, and grew to manhood on the old homestead, obtaining his education in the common schools and the academy in his locality. When he was twenty-three years of age he settled on the farm he still occupies, adjoining the old homestead, his fine farm of 102 acres being the best proof of his ability as an agriculturist, his reputa- tion being that of one of the best farmers in the county. Mr. Sprecher is more than that, no man standing in higher esteem.
On November 17, 1854, Mr. Sprecher was married to Miss Frances Kettering, daughter of Samuel and Frances (Shenk) Kettering, born April ·15, 1840, in Millcreek township. Three children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Sprecher, namely: Anna Mary, born June 8, 1861. is the wife of Simon Long, of North Lebanon township, and they have had. children, Samuel, Elias, John, Amos, Leah, Cora, Nancy, Bulah, Fannie (deceased) and an infant unnamed (deceased) ; Samuel F., born August 29, 1865, now a lead- ing stock dealer in North Cornwall township, married Sallie Shaak, and they have had children, John, Mabel M., Helen and Charles (deceased) ; and Harvey, born August 3, 1869, died October 23, 1869.
Mr. and Mrs. Sprecher belong to the -Lutheran Church, in which he holds the offices of trustee and treasurer, and has long been one of the elders. As stated, no man in this part of Lebanon county is more highly esteemed, and if he desired he could probably be elected to almost any local office, but he only serves when he feels that he can benefit his neighborhood by doing
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so, and has been judge of elections and school director. His home is one of hospitality, and his hand is extended in hearty good will to all who deserve his friendship.
LINEAWEAVER. The first ancestor of the Lineaweaver family of Lebanon, Lebanon county, one of the oldest and most prominent of the Lebanon Valley, to come to America, was Peter Lineaweaver (Leinweber, as the name was then spelled), who emigrated from Zweibrucken, in the Rhine Palatinate, near Frankfort-on-the-Main, in 1729. He was of the Reformed faith, and was thoroughly in sympathy with the large numbers of Germans arriving in America in that decade from the Rhine Palatinate. He settled in the Swatara Valley, in what is now Lebanon county, taking up 300 acres of land there in 1733. At his death he left one son, Peter (2).
Peter Lineaweaver (2) was born in 1747, in Londonderry township, then Lancaster county. In 1777 he enlisted, at Lancaster, as ensign in one of the companies of the Revolutionary forces recruiting at that point. He held tracts of land in Fayette county, but so far as can be learned never lived there. He died in August, 1806, leaving a son, Peter (3), born in 1774, in Londonderry township.
Peter Lineaweaver (3) was register of wills and clerk of the court under appointment of Gov. John A. Schultze, and had charge of the mails between Reading and Harrisburg. He was a man of prominence and influ- ence, and was actively interested in the political questions of the day. His death occurred at Lebanon in 1835. He married Susanna Gilbert, born 1774, died 1855. Seven children blessed this union, as follows: George, M. D., who married Sarah Toby; Catherine, born in 1801, who married George W. Kline; Elizabeth, born in 1804, married to John Krause; Maria, Jacob and Dr. William Gilbert (born ISII), who all died without issue; and Henry D., born 1814, who married Elizabeth Siegrist.
George Lineaweaver, M. D., eldest child of Peter (3), was born in Londonderry' township in 1799, and he died in 1860. Being brought to Lebanon by his father, he was educated in the public schools and at the academy, and then studied medicine with: Dr. John B. Mish, and attended one course of lectures at the University of Pennsylvania, in the Medical Department, in 1819. In 1846 Jefferson Medical College conferred the degree of Doctor of Medicine upon him because of his professional standing, and the interest he manifested in the institution. In 1820 Dr. Lineaweaver began the practice of his profession, and soon took prominent place in its ranks in his county, which prominence extended year by year, until he was
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known and esteemed throughout the Lebanon Valley. He was also dis- tinguished, aside from his profession, and held offices of honor and trust, and was noted for his remarkable memory. In 1839 he was appointed by Gov. Porter to the office of register of wills of Lebanon county, a position his father had had. Dr. Lineaweaver married Sarah Toby, a daughter of Captain Simeon Toby, of Philadelphia, and to them were born the following children : George Peter, M. D., born August 27, 1827, married Mary McAbee, and died about 1885 ; Simeon Toby, M. D., born January 29, 1829, married Mary A. O. Harbaugh, and died in 1899; John Krause, M. D., born April 30, 1831, married Jane S. Crane; Samuel T., born April 9, 1837, mar- ried Emma Jeffries; Washington Kline, born November 21, 1839, married Eliza F. Pleasants, and died in 1888; Albert, born September 28, 1843, mar- ried Cecilia C. Carver ; and two others died in infancy.
George Peter Lineaweaver, eldest son of Dr. George, studied medicine with his father and subsequently received the degree of M. D. from Jefferson · Medical College at Philadelphia. He married Mary McAbee, a sister of the wife of Kline Cyrus Lineaweaver, son of Henry D. and Elizabeth. by whom he had three children : George, now deceased : William; and Fanny, who died in infancy. Dr. George P. Lineaweaver took up the practice of his profession in Lebanon, and continued his residence there until his death. His extensive knowledge of medicine made him a worthy successor of his father, and he built up a large practice in his native town. He and his brother, Simeon, were the only two members of the family of that genera- tion to continue living at Lebanon.
Simeon T. Lineaweaver, M. D., was born in Lebanon January 29, 1829, and died July 11, 1899. His early education was gained in the old Lebanon 'Academy, after which he read medicine with his father and attended medical lectures at Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia. graduating in the class of 1864. He began the practice of his profession at Millerstown, Perry Co., Pa., and in 1877 he removed to Hagerstown, Md. In 1881 he settled permanently in his native town, where he was prominently and successfully engaged in the practice of his calling until his death. He married Mary A. O. Harbaugh, born at Lewisburg, Pa., daughter of the late Rev. Henry Harbaugh, D. D. The issue of this marriage was as follows: Sarah; John K., deceased; THOMAS T .; Mary L .; Henry H .; Grace G .; and Simeon E.
The Rev. Henry Harbaugh, D. D., graduated from old Marshall Col- lege (now Franklin and Marshall) in the class of 1842. Union College, Schenectady, N. Y., conferred upon him the degree of Doctor of Divinity,
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and he began his ministerial work in the Reformed Church at Lewisburg, Pa., whence he went to Lancaster and there had charge of a congregation. He came to Lebanon in 1860, and was pastor of St. John's Reformed Church until 1864. when he resigned to accept the chair of Didactic Theology in the Theological Department of Franklin and Marshall College, then at Mercersburg. His death occurred at Mercersburg in 1868. He was twice married, his first wife being Louisa Goodrich, of Ohio, who bore him one daughter, Mary A. O., who married Simeon T. Lineaweaver. The second wife was Mary L. Linn, of Lewisburg, and of this marriage ten children were born.
DAVID TICE, a prominent and substantial citizen and retired farmer and machinist of Myerstown, Pa., was born in Jackson township September 3, 1825, on the old Tice homestead near Myerstown, a son of Michael and Catherine (Noecker) Tice, deceased. Michael Tice was reared in Jackson township, and was a son of David Tice ( for whom our subject was named), one of the very early settlers of the district. David Tice was the father of two children. All of the name have always been highly respected and have occupied prominent positions in the several communities in which they have, from time to time, made their homes. Michael Tice was a farmer for many years, residing in Jackson township. He had a family of thirteen children : Henry, Israel, Eliza, David, Susan, Andrew, Catherine, William P., Percival, John, Lavina, Rebecca and Aaron, all of whom grew to maturity. All are now deceased, except Catherine, wife of Samuel Reber ; David; and William P., of Myerstown.
David Tice was reared upon the. homestead farm, and received very meager educational advantages. He married Miss Eliza Zinn, a native of Jackson township, daughter of John and Elizabeth (Groh) Zinn, old resi- dents of Lebanon county, and seven children were born to them, four of whom reached maturity : William H., who is a merchant at Myerstown, Pa .; Sarah J., at home; M. Ella, a clerk for her brother, William H .; and Lizzie R., wife of Elmer Haak, of Myerstown.
Mr. Tice began the battle of life a poor boy. but by hard work and economy he has placed himself in comfortable circumstances, owning a fine farm of ninety-one acres, as well as the old homestead, consisting of one hundred and six acres ; both tracts are in an excellent state of cultivation. The first thirty years of his business life were spent upon the farm, but later he located at Myerstown, where he learned the machinist's trade, and about that time went into partnership with John Gairing, for the purpose of manu-
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facturing threshing machines. After continuing in that line for ten years with marked success he retired, and is now spending his declining years at his comfortable home on East Main street.
In politics Mr. Tice is a stanch Republican, but has never desired nor sought office, preferring to give his time and attention to his private affairs. In religious matters he is a consistent member of the United Brethren Church, of which he has served as trustee, always holding important offices. In busi- ness and private life Mr. Tice has always proven himself an upright, loyal, true, Christian man, and one in whom every confidence may be placed.
TOBIAS REINOEHL. Few men in the city of Lebanon have wielded a wider or more powerful influence in the vicinity than has Mr. Reinoehl, re- tired manager of the Lebanon Courier, under the firm name of Worth & Reinoehil. For thirty-five years, through the columns of his paper, he has instructed the public, given practical advice, and voiced the unbiased senti- ments of the people. As a public educator his services have been invaluable. Now, at the age of seventy years, having well earned a riglit to leisure, he is living a quiet life at his handsome residence at No. 340 North Ninth street.
Mr. Reinoelil comes of an old distinguished Lebanon family. In 1749 there came to that village from Wittenberg, Germany, a man of force and ability, George Henry Reinoehl, accompanied by his son, Henry, who was about eight years of age. From him have descended all the Reinoells in this country. By his marriage here there were three sons : George and Conrad, of Lebanon; and Christopher, who was a drummer in the Revolutionary war.
George Reinoehl, son of George Henry, married and had fifteen children -fourteen sons and one daughter.
George Reinoell, Jr., grandfather of Tobias, was a prominent business man of Lebanon for many years. For some time he conducted a blacksmith's shop, which was widely patronized, and he also engaged in the lumber business, carrying on a large and extensive trade. He was also the owner of a large farm in South Lebanon, now Cornwall, township. By his marriage there were four children: Mary, who married John Yorty; Samuel, who is mentioned below: Helena, who married John Marquart; and George, who settled in Ohio, later in Indiana, whence he removed to Minnesota, where he died.
Samuel Reinoehl. father of Tobias, was born in 1805. Upon reaching manhood he made his residence in Lebanon, where he became well-known and highly esteemed, and continued in the lumber and coal business. In 1827 he married Mary Uller, a noble woman. who is now deceased. By this mar-
Tobias Reinochl
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riage there were thirteen children : Catharine, Helena, Adolphus, all deceased ; Tobias, who is mentioned below; George H., now deceased; Eliza Catharine. widow of John M. Good, residing in Lebanon ; John L., merchant of Lebanon ; Mary A., widow of John Rodearmel; Rosanna, the wife of Edwin W. Stoner, of Lebanon; Samuel U., and Michael W., both members of the Reinoelil Lumber Company, and the latter county recorder; and two children, both named Selma, who died young. Mr. Reinoehl died in 1866 in his sixty-second year, and the mother in 1876.
Tobias Reinoehl was born in the city of Lebanon, February 16, 1833. In the public schools of his city and in Lebanon Academy he acquired his educa- tion, developing the quick perceptive powers, the natural taste for good litera- ture, and habits of perseverance and industry, which pre-eminently charac- terized his later work. Discerning, at the early age of twelve, the place he was to fill in life, he contentedly started in at the bottom and apprenticed himself to a printer. For four consecutive years he patiently applied himself to the work, mastering all the details, and familiarizing himself with many other branches of newspaper work. Later he followed his trade in Harrisburg, where he remained nearly a year, in St. Louis, Mo., for about a year, and finally in Philadelphia, acquiring in these large cities a knowledge of journalism which made him confident of success in that line. A young man of push, energy and considerable attainments, he came to Lebanon in 1855 and pur- chased an interest in the Lebanon Courier. It was soon apparent to the public that a new man had the handling of this paper, and one who thoroughly under- stood his work. Old subscriptions were renewed, new ones came in, and the paper continued to flourish. For thirty-four successful years in partnership with Col. T. T. Worth, until 1889, when they both retired, he continued the management, winning for himself a lasting reputation as an eminent news- paper man of his State. In 1863. Mr. Reinoehl enlisted in Company E, Forty- eighth Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer Militia, to protect his State, serving some nine weeks. He has been married twice; first time to Emma L. Negly, of Lebanon, and, after her death, to Catharine M. Ellinger, of Lancaster, Pa., in 1858. By the first marriage there was one child, Mary Alice, who married George T. Kaley, and who is deceased. By the second marriage there were six children. four of whom are now living: Emma E., who married D. P. Wit- meyer ; Martha E., the wife of Frank A. Osbourn, now deceased, senator of the Third Pennsylvania District; and Catharine E. and Grace E., who are living at home.
Mr. Reinoehl's large acquaintance with the public pre-eminently fitted him for filling offices of public trust, and he has long been prominent in this
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field. In 1860, under Gov. Andrew G. Curtin, he was appointed notary public, a position which he has filled to the present day with marked ability, altogether more than forty-two years. He has served the Fourth ward in the city council for several terms, and, under the old borough law, served as assistant burgess for some time, filling both offices with distinction. Politically he is a firm Republican. In religious sentiment a Lutheran, he is a trustee of Salem Evangelical Lutheran Church. Fraternally he stands high, and affiliates with a number of orders. He is a member of Mount Lebanon Lodge, No. 226, F. & A. M .; Weidle Chapter, No. 197, R. A. M .; Lebanon Council, No. 27, R. S. & S. M. M .; Hermit Commandery, No. 24, Knights Templar; Mohegan Lodge, No. 288, I. O. O. F .; Uncas Encampment, No. 144, I. O. O. F .; Washington Camp, No. 254, P. O. S. of A .; Swatara Tribe, No. 276, I. O. of R. M .; Acme Lodge, No. 427, K. of P .; Lebanon Castle, No. 6, A. O. K. of M. C .; and Kittatinny Lodge, No. 85, A. O. U. W. High intellectual endow- ments and a large capacity for work have been promoters of Mr. Reinoehl's success in life.
SAMUEL HAUER (deceased) was born March 5, 1833, and died in Lebanon February 27, 1882. He was a son of Henry Hauer, who lived on a farm in Lebanon county and was one of a family of twelve children : Levi, Jacob, John, George, Peter, Catherine, Samuel, Elizabeth, Sarah and three that died in infancy.
Samuel Hauer was reared on the farm, and when eighteen years old came to the city of Lebanon. He learned the trade of a brick mason, and followed the same for about ten years, after which he began the manufacture of cigars. He continued at this work for fifteen years, and then went into the general grocery business and continued until the time of his death. On December 16, 1858, he was married to Miss Louisa Euston, daughter of Thomas and Elizabeth (Thomas) Euston, of the city of Lebanon. Her father was a farmer and miller by trade, and devoted his life to these pur- suits. She came of a family of nine children, all of whom lived to maturity : Mary, Susan, William, Joseph and John, all deceased; Louisa, widow of our subject ; Henry, of Lebanon, an iron superintendent: Edward, an architect of Lebanon; and Sarah, the wife of Cyrus Heverling, of West Lebanon, Pa. Samuel Hauer was the father of seven children: Harry, who died young ; Elmer E., cashier of the People's National Bank; Harvey, an architect of Philadelphia : Elizabeth, the wife of Adam Saylor. of Lebanon; Florence, a teacher in the public schools of Lebanon: Mary, a stenographer and insur- ance representative ; and Emma, also a teacher in the public schools of
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Lebanon. Mr. Hauer was a stanch Republican, and a member of the Evangelical Church. He was an active Mason and a member of the I. O. O. F., of Lebanon. He was a self-made man, by hard work, pluck and energy managing to obtain considerable of this world's goods before he died. He was one of the leading business men of Lebanon, and at one time was assistant burgess of the city. A man, honest and true to his con- victions, with a noble moral character, he was one who enjoyed the friend- ship of many. His widow is now residing at her fine home, No. 643 Walnut street, with her three youngest daughters, in retired life. She is a member of the Evangelical Church of Lebanon, and is a noble Christian woman, an esteemed citizen, and comes from one of the old and respected families of her home city.
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