USA > Pennsylvania > Lawrence County > Biographical sketches of leading citizens of Lawrence County, Pennsylvania > Part 10
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W. EDWIN JACKSON, D. D. S.
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, LAWRENCE COUNTY.
which was and is still one of the best estates of the township. He erected the new buildings and made many very great improvements, which are much in evidence even at this time. He died in 1867, aged fifty-four years, while his wife lived to pass her eightieth birthday. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Martin were: John S., James R., Mary S., Cyrus L., Annie E., and Permelia J. Mr. Gilmore and his wife Annie are the parents of a fine family of children, who are named in order: Edwin; Frank; Bessie; Frederick; Er- win; Walter; Charles; and an infant William.
Mr. Gilmore can be aptly termed a man of affairs. A loyal Republican, he is often called upon by his fellow-townsmen to serve them in an official position, and give them the benefit of his admirable business methods. Of the highest integrity and marked adaptability, he faithfully performs every duty which falls to him. He is known as a successful man, and is esteemed ac- cordingly. In church affairs, his lines are cast with the Baptist Church. In all matters he is a representative and valued citizen, and the com- munity is fortunate in possessing so worthy a citizen.
W. EDWIN JACKSON, D. D. * S., of New Castle, although not among the oldest practition- ers of dentistry in the city, having located there in 1889, easily ranks among the first in skill and general ability in the line of his profession; by careful, conscientious work he has built up a practice which we may safely say, with no fear of successful contradiction, to be the finest in the county. He is up-to-date in his methods, ex-
tracts teeth painlessly, does exceptionally good work in filling and crowning, and is recognized as an expert in the manufacture of sets of false teeth, and in bridge work. His early education was received in the common schools of Cadiz, Ohio, where his boyhood years were spent; after completing the general course of studies pre- scribed there, he entered the Pennsylvania Col- lge of Dental Surgery of Philadelphia, Pa., and graduated in 1889. He at once located in New Castle, of which city he has been a resident and prominent professional man ever since.
Dr. Jackson was born in Mercer Co., Pa., Oct. 25, 1865, and is a son of William P. and Susan (Strickler) Jackson, the former of Mercer County, and the latter a native of Connellsville, Pa. William Jackson, our subject's grandfather, was a farmer by occupation, and followed that vocation until his death, which occurred when he was a young man. He reared four children: Rachel; Hugh M .; H. Ferguson; and William P. They were United Presbyterians in religious belief. Dr. Jackson's father was educated in Mercer County, and learned the millwright's trade when a young man, and has followed that trade ever since; mill-owners, when desiring excellent work, have never failed to be thoroughly satisfied with his work. He is a stanch Republican, but could never have the term of office-seeker applied to him. His wife, who died in 1896, aged fifty-six years, left him seven children, all of whom have attained prom- inent places in life; they are as follows: Charles, who married Emma Vinton of Findlay, Ohio, and has two children-Clyde, and an infant: W. Edwin, our subject; Marguerite, who married Dr. H. M. Greissinger of Columbus, Ohio;
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, LAWRENCE COUNTY.
Harry F., a surgeon dentist of West Jefferson, and the profits of this very successful and lucra- Ohio; Minnie A .; Jennie B .; and Daisy.
In 1891 Dr. Jackson led to the altar Jessie Troutman of Sharon, Pa., daughter of Mrs. A. E. Troutman, and there mutual obligations of love were taken by each, and they were joined man and wife. Their only child, William F., was born March 30, 1893. They are Presbyterians in their religious belief. Dr. Jackson adheres strongly to the principles and political teachings of the Republican party.
The publishers of this Book of Biographies take great pleasure in presenting in connection with this narration of his life a portrait of Dr. Jackson, and we hold that he is entitled to a prominent place among Lawrence County citi- zens as the foremost dentist of the county.
GEORGE J. JONES, an employee in the repair shops of the Pennsylvania R. R. at Law- rence Junction, residing on West Pine Street, Mahoningtown, was born in the city of Pitts- burg, March 12, 1869. His parents were Joseph WV. and Margaret (Theiken) Jones, and his grandparents were Presley N. and Mary (Coates) Jones, the latter a native of England. The father of Presley N. was of Quaker stock, his ancestors having come over with William Penn; he was familiarly known as "Old Tom" Jones. He came to Pittsburg at a very early date, when the Indians had not left the coun- try, and still terrified the settlers with their bloody depredations. "Old Tom" established a ferry between Pittsburg and Allegheny City,
tive venture he invested in real estate on the south side, which in time became a valuable her- itage to his descendants. His son, Presley N., was a man of magnificent size, and commanding presence, well-proportioned and possessed of very great bodily strength and energy; in his prime he weighed 380 pounds, but did not appear to be very stout. For many years, until bridges were built over the river connecting Allegheny City and Pittsburg, he operated the ferry lines that his father had established, and accumulated a comfortable fortune. Two chil- dren were born to him: Presley, a prominent and able attorney, who was a leading counsel in the famous Kring case in St. Louis; and Joseph W., the father of our subject. Joseph W. was born near Pittsburg, Aug. 1, 1846, and for a number of years was captain and pilot on the river steamers of the Hawling's line. His wife was born near Pittsburg, and was a daughter of Michael and Margaret Theiken, the former a merchant of Pittsburg.
George J. Jones was the third in a family of seven children born to his parents. He passed the years of early manhood in Pittsburg, and completed his education at the age of sixteen in the Peebles School in the Twenty-third Ward. Desiring to give the boy a good start in life by providing him with a trade, his father appren- ticed him to a boiler-maker in Pittsburg, with whom he remained four years. The two suc -. ceeding years were passed in railroading, being employed as a brakeman on the passenger train that ran between Pittsburg and Wheeling, West Virginia, on the B. & O. R. R. In the summer of 1889, he gave up his job as brakeman, and
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, LAWRENCE COUNTY.
accepted a situation in the boiler works of Thomas Morrison of Washington, Pa., where he worked until December, 1891, coming to Mahoningtown on the 20th of that month, and commencing work for the Pennsylvania R. R., as a trusted employee of the repair shops, located at Lawrence Junction. He is a trained mechanic, and skilled in all that pertains to his trade; his services, consequently, do not go begging, but command a good price, which he has never failed to obtain. He is young still, and with the many years that seemingly are promised to him, it will be no surprise to his friends to see him rise to the highest positions that are open to a wide-awake, ingenious man, whose knowledge of machinery is so exact and intimate.
He forsook the state of "single blessedness" for happy married life on Oct. 29, 1889, in Wash- ington, Pa., on which date he was married to Addie J. Martin, the fifth child in a family of six born to Benjamin F. and Julia (Zedeker) Mar- tin, the latter a daughter of Louis and Harriet Zedeker; Benjamin F. Martin, who was a son of Joshua Martin, a millwright, who lived in Martinsburg, was a carpenter by trade, but also followed the pursuits of farming. Kenneth Wray and Percy Martin are the names of their two manly sons. Mrs. Jones is a member of the Presbyterian Church, and is bringing up the children in the faith of that church. In his political -views, Mr. Jones is a Republican of deepest dye. He is a member of the Pennsyl- vania Co.'s Relief Association. He belongs to the two following secret orders: Amazon Lodge, No. 336, Knights of Pythias, of Mahoningtown; and Improved Order of Heptesoph, Zingooqua Conclave, No. 164, of Washington, Pa.
JOHN WINTERS, a respected citizen of Union township, who carries on a general team- ing business chiefly in the city of New Castle, was born in Katrusville, Md., Sept. 17, 1850, and is a son of Christian and Margaret (Hoffman) Winters. Christian Winters was born in Hazen, Germany, in 1818, and came to America in 1844, settling in Katrusville, Md., where he bought a small farm, and engaged in agricultural pursuits for some eight years. He then came to New Castle and worked in the gas-house; and later in 1859 he bought the Col. O'Brien farm, which the heirs still own, where he lived and labored until he passed away to better abodes in 1876. His wife, who is still living, was a daughter of George and Marguerite (Ancer) Hoffman, and was born in Beria, Germany, in 1844. Her father, mother and the remaining members of the family came to America, and settled in Balti- more, Md., where the father died at the age of seventy-one years; he was a carpenter and mill- wright by trade, and in the prime of his life did extensive contracting. His wife, who only lived to be fifty-two, bore him three children: Mar- garet, our subject's mother; Elizabeth; and Henry. There were born to Christian Winters and his excellent wife the following children: George, a resident of New Castle; John, our subject; Henry, who lives on the homestead; William of Harlansburg; Elizabeth (Flynn); and Mary Trushel.
At the age of seventeen years, John Winters learned the plastering trade and followed it un- til he was married at the age of twenty to Miss Mary C. Cameron, daughter of James Cameron of Union township, Lawrence Co., Pa. Imme- (liately after that auspicious event, realizing his
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need of a permanent home, he added to the acre of land given him by his father by purchasing an- other acre from his brother, and on the resulting tract of two acres he built a house, and has since made the place his home, following general teaming for a livelihood. Mr. Winters has gath- ered about him a family of seven children : James C. of New Castle; Maggic E., who married C. Patterson; Molly E .; John C. and Nanny J., twins; Clara; and Eddie W. Mr. Winters is a Democrat in politics, heartily believing in the princples of that organzation. He and his wife are communicants of the Roman Catholic Church, and take an active interest in all mat- ters that are caluclated to advance the interests of the community in which they live.
JAMES M. LAWRENCE, of rugged New England stock, but now one of the foremost men of the number who have made Lawrence County famous for its fine farms and excellent agricultural products, has lived in Plain Grove township for the fifty-six years past. He is a man who has seen the Nation rise exhausted from a victorious battlefield, on which our pres- ent liberties were won, and with a renewal of vigor start in on a fresh struggle with the forces of nature, a struggle which to-day is proven suc- cessful by the happy lives of eighty millions of people.
Mr. Lawrence was born in Alstead, N. H., April 16, 1806. His paternal grandfather was a native born Englishman, and by calling, a Con- gregational minister. He followed this service
all the days of his life, and did a world of good among the hardy sons of the Granite State, where he made his home. Joseph Lawrence, the father of James M. Lawrence, our subject, was born at Alstead, and obtained his training for the battles of life in the schools of that sec- tion. He was united in marriage with Lois Mann, and was busied all the active part of his life in tilling the soil, not an easy task on the rocky hills of his native State. Nevertheless, he was prospered, for he left behind him a record for well-doing and good management that made the name of Lawrence respected far and wide in the eastern home. Three children made up the family. They were: Franklin; Lucinda; and James M., our subject. Lucinda, the daughter, became the wife of Dr. Stein of Grove City, and they have three children-Josephine, Mary and Laura. The family of Joseph Lawrence were, naturally enough, brought up to reverence the teachings of the Congregational Church, and observe its rules of Christian living.
James M. Lawrence, after pursuing a thorough course in the common schools, himself became a teacher, and taught school twenty-two quarters or terms. He followed this calling for about three years until 1838, when he came into Pennsyl- vania. After a three years' residence in the Key- stone State, he bought a farm in Plain Grove, Mercer County, a part which was later set off and is now included in Lawrence County. He owned this place for a number of seasons, then sold it, and purchased another, on which he now lives. This estate was then in great part wild land and very little cultivated. Through his cf- forts he cleared the land lot by lot and as timne passed brought his fields into a most excellent
2
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, LAWRENCE COUNTY.
state of cultivation The farm is adapted to al- most any branch of farming, though perhaps it is at its best when devoted to stock and grain raising. Mr. Lawrence is known everywhere as a farmer of the best type, knowing just how to rightly handle every separate acre of his domain. He is far above the ordinary in the matter of in- telligence and all around ability; consequently, he is a man whose individuality and force of character have long been felt. Politically, he is a Republican of the more conservative school, and a man whose advice the younger spirits of the party are wont to heed. He has filled the office of county commissioner for three years, and for thirty-six years has satisfactorily dis- charged the duties of justice of the peace. With many other useful acquisitions, he understands surveying, and it is very close guessing to say that he has probably done more surveying than any other man in Lawrence County.
In 1844, Mr. Lawrence was married to Sarah Chandler of Windhall, Vt., and to them three children were born: Asher; Carl; and Abigail, deceased. Asher Lawrence took for his wife Emma Frances of Crawford Co., Pa .; they now live in the State of Missouri and have three chil- dren-James F., Betty B., and Rena. Carl Lawrence married Mary Barber of North Liber- ty, and they have a family that consists of Charles W., Sadie C., James S., John H., Harry H., Ernest B., Frank E., Raymond, and Mary. Mrs. Sarah Lawrence, the first wife of our sub- ject, passed from this world in 1874 at the age of sixty-seven. Mr. Lawrence entered into a second union with Margaret Chandler in 1877; she was a daughter of Samuel T. and Mary A. (Dennison) Chandler of Slippery Rock. Four
children have resulted from this union, as fol- lows: Hiram C .; Harriet A .; Ora M .; and George E. Mr. Lawrence has reared his family beneath the shadow of the Presbyterian Church. Mr. Lawrence his life long has been a man who knew about many interests besides that of his chosen vocation. He cared for an extensive iron business which was at one time conducted in the vicnity of Princeton, Slippery Rock township, at a place called Rose Point, and has at one time and another been engaged in various industries, which have tended toward the development of this section. He has always been wide-awake to the resources of the country, and has always been active in their development. He also served as civil engineer on public works for two and a half years.
JAMES R. DOUGHERTY of Mahoning- town is a conductor on the P. & W. R. R. He was born at Apollo, Armstrong Co., Pa., Aug. 8, 1849, and is a son of James and Ann B. (Rich- ards) Dougherty.
Our subject's father was born at Youngstown, Ohio, Oct. 8, 1822, and departed this life for a better world July 14, 1891. He was a manufac- turing cooper, and employed from eight to ten men most of the time. He was a drum-major of the 54th Reg. of Pennsylvania Militia, and when the war broke out he enlisted in the 11th Reg. Pa. Reserve, serving in the regimental band, and seeing service in the Wilderness Campaign. After the war was over, and the greatest army of modern times had been mustered out, and
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, LAWRENCE COUNTY.
the soldiery returned to occupations of peace, Mr. Dougherty opened up a restaurant in Salts- burg, and ran it until a short time previous to his death, when he moved to Hulton, and was engaged in farming near Logan's Eddy on the Allegheny River, when his last sick- nes compelled him to cease from work, and to prepare to leave this life. His wife was born in Blairsville, Pa., a daughter of Abraham and Polly (Banks) Richards; the latter was born June 13, 1825, died Sept. 23, 1893, and was a daughter of Joshua Banks. Abraham Richards was a tinner by trade, and followed that voca- tion at Elder's Ridge, Indiana Co., Pa., where he died at the age of sixty-eight. He was a member of the Lutheran Church. In politics, he favored the Republican party, and took a lively interest in local affairs, serving as supervisor of his township.
From the time he was two years old until he was twenty, our subject lived at home with his parents at Saltsburg; he commenced to work in his father's cooper-shop at an early age, and continued until he was eighteen years of age, when he was employed in the woods about a saw-mill for two years. He then traveled with a circus for a year, and after returning home and marrying, began his railroad life as a brakeman on the Allegheny Valley R. R .; he continued to act in that capacity for two years, after which he was a conductor for the same road until 1877. In that year he entered the service of the B. & O. R. R., and was a conductor for four years. Upon leaving the employ of the B. & O., he became connected with the P. & W. R. R., and came to Mahoning in 1891 from Allegheny City, where he had been working, to accept the
position of yardmaster at New Castle Junction. Since April 1, 1896, he has been a regular con- ductor of the P. & W. R. R.
He was married Aug. 29, 1871, in Saltsburg, to Ellen Welch, daughter of Patrick and Mary (McGraw) Welch, and to them have been given nine children: Harry P .; James B., who mar- ried Miss Perdue of New Castle; Charles T .; Mary Maude; Lennie; Addie; Tillie; Dall; and Ella. The family are attendants of the Presby- terian Church. Mr. Dougherty has been a life- long Republican. He is a member of the Order of Railway Conductors, New Castle Division, No. 326.
GEORGE G. WEINSCHENK. This gen- tleman for the last quarter of a century has been successfully carrying on the business of a gar- dener in Shenango township, just on the south- ern suburbs of the city of New Castle, and on the land which constitutes his homestead, where he located and established his business in 1873. The home garden comprises twenty-four acres in the highest state of cultivation, with over half an acre under glass; fruit and vegetables are Mr. Weinschenk's specialties, although his love for flowers leads him to grow large quantities of them, which are, however, for home use only. Besides the homestead he owns other tracts of land in different places throughout the county. He is an expert in his line of business, having learned the trade of a gardener in Germany when a young man, and having practiced it at various places ever since.
PATRICK J. SCANLON
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, LAWRENCE COUNTY.
Mr. Weinschenk was born in Geradstetten, Wurtemberg, Germany, March 10, 1835, and was a son of John G. and Katherine (Retter) Weinschenk; John G. was born in 1804, and died about sixty years of age; John G.'s father was killed in his vineyard when John was about four years old. Our subject received his edu- cation in the splendid educational institutions of Germany between the ages of six and fourteen. When fifteen years of age, he went from home to earn his own living, and has made his own way since. He learned gardening thoroughly, and when twenty-two years old came to Amer- ican, where he found abundant chances to work at his vocation. He set sail from Havre, France, in May, 1857, and after a voyage of 35 days landed at New York City, from which place he came at once to New Castle, where he arrived June 22, 1857. Almost immediately he secured work with Mr. Butz at Croton, who was then the leading gardener of New Castle, and was in his employ two years, after which he worked for Mr. Peebles for a time. Mr. Weinschenk then went South, and for several seasons had charge of private gardens in and about the city of Louisville, Ky. At the close of the war, work in that locality ceased to be profitable, and so he returned to Lawrence County in 1865, and worked for Mr. Butz again for nearly a year, and then rented a tract of land in Taylor town- ship, where he conducted gardening operations some eight years, and then bought his present farm in 1873, taking possession the following year.
Mr. Weinschenk was first married in Pittsburg to Margaret Mack, daughter of Frederick and Margaret (Specht) Mack, and to them were born
four children: Annie M., the wife of Charles F. Alborn, whose biography appears elsewhere in this work; Alice; Margaret, deceased: and William H., also interested in gardening in Shenango township, and whose life history may be found on another page. Our subject was again married Aug. 12, 1875, to Catherine Sech- ler, who was born at Harmony, Butler County, a daughter of John and Fannie (Tinstman) Sechler, the latter a daughter of Abraham and Katherine (Moyer) Tinstman. John Sechler was a son of Abraham Sechler. Eight children, four boys and four girls, were the fruit of this second union, as follows: George, deceased; Emmanuel; Frederick, deceased; Rosa; Samuel; Katherine; Sarah; and Ruth. Both our subject and his wife are members of the Lutheran Church. Mr. Weinschenk has never allied him- self with any political party, but votes according to the dictates of his own conscience. He was formerly a member of the I. O. O. F.
PATRICK J. SCANLON. This gentleman, of whose life we now propose to give a few salient facts, interesting alike to his many friends and neighbors in Mahoningtown, his present residence, and to many throughout the county, is a wealthy contractor, whose fortune has been accumulated through his work in grading and paving. He is a splendid example of what a man may do by his own efforts, when he has the brains and energy to improve his opportunities. He was born at Bally Lane, County Kerry, Ire- land, Feb. 19, 1845. He remained on the "ould
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sod" until his eighteenth year, and attended the parish schools. On April 4, 1863, he sailed for America, which has ever seemed the land of promise and plenty to the down-trodden inhab- itants of the Emerald Isle, and landed in New York City, after a singularly long and distress- ing journey of thirteen weeks and four days; they encountered at sea a severe storm with heavy head-winds and icebergs, that protracted the voyage to such an extent, that the provi- sions, except by the most careful husbanding, would have never lasted them till they reached port, and as it was, for the last four days the daily allowance was four crackers to each per- son. After landing, Mr. Scanlon found work in Brooklyn with a plumber, with whom he worked a short time, and then found employment on a farm at Somerville, N. Y. We next find him laboring on the docks, where he received $15 a week, and where he remained very nearly three months. From this he went to work in a coffee- mill in Brooklyn. He came to Pennsylvania in November of 1863, and worked first on a gravel train at East Liberty, was next in the employ of an oil company, and then became a resident of Shadyside, at which time he had $200 saved, not a very bad record for only about a year in this country. Going to Pittsburg, he worked as shipping clerk in a wholesale store for six months, and then turned his hand to gardening in the employ of Thomas Aiken and Robert Pitcairn. In 1867 he began contracting in earth work, grading, etc., in the main for railroads, although his enterprise has led him to extend his operations into many other fields of labor. For the Pennsylvania R. R., he graded from the Union depot in Pittsburg to Raub Station, from
East Liberty to Homewood, one mile at Greens- burg, one mile at Latrobe, one mile at Derry, one mile at Conemaugh, and one mile at Wil- more Station. He also graded and paved one and one-fourth miles on Forbes Street, Pitts- burg, and in 1895 graded and paved three streets in New Castle, and three more the following year. He now owns two valuable sand and gravel banks, a brick yard, a stone quarry, and a coal yard. As an illustration of what phenom- enal success was his, we offer this true state- ment : when he came to America in 1863, he was without capital, but in 1869 and 1870, he had $187,000 in the bank, and $40,000 invested in real estate; few men can produce a record equal to this. Since living in Mahoningtown, he has served three years as street commissioner, and three years as a member of the borough council.
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