USA > Pennsylvania > Lawrence County > Biographical sketches of leading citizens of Lawrence County, Pennsylvania > Part 60
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the soil for two years. In 1863 he moved to Youngstown, Ohio, where he engaged in the manufacture of nails as a feeder. He then came to New Castle and engaged in the butcher busi- ness until 1870. That year marks his initial step in his present prosperous and extensive business; he purchased the fur and leather busi- - nes of Henry Diedmor, who succeeded Isaac Dickson, who was one of the pioneers in the leather and tanning industry of New Castle. From a humble beginning he has managed, by economy and well-spent energy, to raise himself to a station where he commands the deep respect of all who have the pleasure of his acquaint- ance, either from a purely business or social standpoint. Among the best of our American citizens we include thousands of the sons of the Fatherland, who are an example by their indus- trious lives to all classes of native-born citizens. When he came to New Castle first, soon after arriving in this country, it was Aug. 5, 1849, he travelled with his brother from Youngstown, Ohio, by the way of Mahoningtown to the me- tropolis of Lawrence County, crossing the river at County Line Street on the wooden-covered bridge, then spanning the Shenango River at that point. He had scarcely enough money to buy food to appease his hunger, but there being no lazy bones in his body and upheld by a great desire to make his way in the world of business, he succeeded in years of toil in accumulating enough to launch him in his present profitable venture. He has proven himself to be a man of more than ordinary business ability, and as one who will surely be successful wherever his lot in life may be cast. He casts his ballot uni- formly in support of the Democratic party, but
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having exercised his right of manhood suffrage there his interest in politics ceases.
In 1857 Mr. Knobloch was joined in marriage to Amelia Baker, daughter of Christian Baker, a native of Germany, but later a resident of New Castle, Pa. They have reared to noble manhood and womanhood the following children: Caro- lina; Margaret; Wilhelm, who married Agnes Kildoo of Slippery Rock township, and has three children, Olive, Gertrude, and Hazel; Harry; and Edward, who married Lydia Ullrich, and resides in Hazleton, Pa. They have one child, Eliza- beth, as a fruit of the union. Mrs Knobloch died January 9, 1896. Our subject and his fam- ily are German Lutherans in their religious at- tachments.
JOSEPH WRIGHT, of Mahoning township, Lawrence Co., Pennsylvania, was born Decem- ber 27, 1826, on the farm he now owns and which has always been his home. .
He is a grandson of Alexander Wright, the founder of the family in this country. Alexander Wright was born in the parish of Donnyclony, County of Down, Ireland, January 1, 1746. He married Esther Silcox, who was born the same day of the same year as her husband. They emigrated to America in the spring of 1771. The first year in America was spent near Phil- adelphia, where he worked at his trade, that of a weaver.
In the spring of 1772 he rented a farm in Kish- acoquilles Valley, where he lived until the spring of 1776, when he purchased an improvement
right to a tract of land on Raccoon Creek, Washington County. He put in crops on the land the same year, but did not bring his family until the spring of 1777. That year and the year following were ones of terror on account of depredations by the Indians. Many of his friends and neighbors were murdered or carried away captive. The settlers erected block-houses for protection, and worked their fields with their guns close at hand in case of an attack.
In the spring of 1796 he settled on the land in what is now Mahoning township, Lawrence County. He held warrants from the State for the land on which he settled. A company called the Population Company claimed the same land and sold it to other settlers. This was the cause of much trouble and many lawsuits, each settler firmly believing himself to be in the right. The trouble was finally settled by a compromise.
Alexander Wright was appointed justice of the peace in 1791, receiving his commission from Governor Thomas Mifflin. He served as asso- ciate judge for Mercer County from the time it was organized until he resigned on account of old age in 1829.
He helped organize the Presbyterian Church of Hopewell about the year 1800, and served as a ruling elder until his death. He died May 25, 1838. His wife died June 17, 1812. She was a woman of unusual strength of character, a devoted wife and mother, and an earnest Christian woman. Their children were: Elea- nor; Alexander; James ; Dorothy; and Betsey. Eleanor married Rev. Robert Johnson. Doro- thy married John McConnell. Betsey married William Porter. James was a minister in the Presbyterian Church. He died March 30, 1843.
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Alexander Wright, Jr., was born April 15, 1772. At the death of his father he succeeded to the homestead. He built a new house and devoted his time to farming. He married Mar- garet Porter, who was born Dec. 25, 1782, and died Nov. 13, 1806. She left one child, Marga- ret, born Nov. 10, 1806, who married David Johnston. His second wife was Margaret Bev- ington, who died Oct. 3, 1818. The children of this union were: John P., born Feb. 27, 1810, died October, 1860; Ruth, born July 23, 1811, married William Phillips, died November, 1887; James, born Feb. 27, 1813, died Oct. 5, 1833; Eliza, born Feb. 12, 1815, died September, 1816; Alexander, 3d, born Sept. 25, 1817, died June 3, 1894. His third wife was Margaret Young, who was born Aug. 12, 1792, and died May 4, 1833, leaving six children; Samuel P., born Nov. 12, 1820, died July 12, 1897; Elizabeth, born Jan. II, 1823, married James McConnell; Will- iam, born Nov. 25, 1824, died 1835; Joseph K., born Dec. 27, 1826; Robert S., born Jan. 2, 1829, died 1835; Isaac P., born Dec. 19, 1831. Alexander Wright's fourth wife was Elizabeth Cunningham, who was born March 19, 1797, and died April 10, 1870.
Alexander, or Squire Wright, as he was com- monly known, was appointed justice of the peace in 1814, receiving his commission from Jacob Snyder, Governor of the State. He served un- til the revision of the constitution in 1838, when his son John P. was elected to fill his place.
Alexander Wright was an earnest Abolitionist, and for years his home was a station on the Un- derground Railroad. He was also identified with the earlier temperance movements. He' died July 31, 1853. His son, Joseph K., succeeded
to the old home. He married Marcia M., daughter of James and Pamelia Beggs of Coits- ville, Ohio. Their children are: Ella; Anna (who married George G. Erskine of Mahoning township; Margaret; Arthur; and Pamelia M. The grandchildren of Joseph Wright, who were born to his daughter, Anna (Wright) .Erskine, are-Paul, Arthur W., Marcia K., Ralph J., George G., and Dorothy M.
DR. CHARLES A. REED. We have the pleasure to present to our readers the biography of one of New Castle's foremost physicians, whose excellent reputation for professional honor and skill has been acquired through a general practice in New Castle, extending from July, 1886, until the present time. Dr. Reed possesses that peculiar insight into the hidden causes of various forms of disease which will ever be the greatest recommendation of a successful physician. A case once definitely diagnosed loses much of the dread that surrounds it, and the mistakes that are occasionally made by even the best of practitioners result invariably from an incorrect diagnosis. Dr. Reed was born in Shenango township Sept. 18, 1858, and received his early education in the district schools of his immediate neighborhood and in the high school of New Castle. After completing an academic education at the State Normal School of Edin- boro, Pa., he read medicine for a while, and eventually, in 1882, entered Miami Medical Col- lege of Cincinnati, Ohio, from which institution he graduated in 1885. His preceptors and ad- visors in medical studies were Dr. Joseph Reed
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of Sharon, Pa., and Dr. J. J. Wallace of New Castle. Dr. Reed also took a one-year's course in the Western Pennsylvania Hospital of Pitts- burg, Pa., where he was a resident physician. In July, 1886, he took up his residence in New Castle, and now has all he can do to attend to his constantly increasing practice.
Our subject is a son of J. C. and Phoebe A. (Iddings) Reed, both of whom were natives of Shenango township, Lawrence Co., Pa. Joseph Iddings, our subject's grandfather on his ma- ternal side, was a native of Chester Co., Pa .; when a young man he went to sea, and when he returned home after a three-years' absence he became a student of a college in Pennsylvania, from which he graduated. He spent the re- mainder of his life in agricultural pursuits and. educational work. He married Hannah Hoopes, a native of Chester County, and they removed to Lawrence County in 1820. They were Quak- res in religious belief. Their children were: Mary, who is eighty-four years old; Mirabel, deceased; Hannah, who married Martin Reno, deceased, of Shenango township, Lawrence County; Sarah, who married Hugh A. McKee; Elizabeth, deceased, who married James Leon- ard of Lawrence County, and now of Michigan; Ann, deceased; Lavina, who married James Davis of Lawrence County; and Phoebe A., our subject's mother. William Reed, the paternal grandfather of Dr. Reed, was a native of Penn- sylvania; he was a millwright by trade and by the means of that calling and by farming he managed well to secure a livelihood, raise a goodly number of children, providing liberally for them, and to put himself beyond the grasp of want in his old age. He married Ann Can-
non, a native of Mahoningtown, this county, and this union resulted in the following children: John C., the father of Dr. Charles A. Reed; Mar- garet ; Henderson; Jane; William; Elizabeth; and Mary. In religious belief they were United Presbyterians. William Reed died about the year 1842, aged forty-five years.
John C. Reed was educated in the district schools of Shenango township, and after the completion of such an education, turned his at- tention to agricultural pursuits. Nearly his en- tire life was spent on the farm where his life began. Industrious and progressive in all his labors, he found it a comparative easy matter to accumulate a comfortable amount of property, and was considered a very prosperous man. Po- litically, he was a stanch Whig, and later on, when the Republican party was organized with many Whig principles incorporated in it, he joined the ranks of the younger and more vigor- ous party. He took an active and intelligent interest in politics. In 1851 he married Phoebe A. Iddings, and this union resulted in ten chil- dren, as follows: William E., who married Eliza Keller of Shenango township, by whom he had three children, Lillian, Wesley, and one that died in infancy; Hannah, deceased; Joseph H., a physician of Sharon, Pa., married Kate Bowman of New Castle, Pa., and they have one child, Helen; Charles A., our subject; Anna and Mary, deceased; Sarah J., who married Harry Wright and bore him two children, Mary and Charles; Levinah, who married Henry Weinschenk of Shenango township, and their marriage has been blessed with one child, Mar- garet; John W., deceased; and Luther M., who married Elizabeth McMillin, and has two chil-
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, LAWRENCE COUNTY.
dren, Norma and Nettie. In religious mat- ters they favored the M. E. Church. Our sub- ject's father died in January, 1895, aged sixty- nine years, but the mother still survives at the age of sixty-seven years.
Dr. Charles A. Reed was joined in marriage Oct. 14, 1891, to Margaret E. Gaston, daughter of Philo and Mary Gaston, of New Castle, Pa., both now deceased; Elizabeth G., their only child, was born Oct. 8, 1895. Mrs. Reed is a member of the M. E. Church. Dr. Reed is a Republican in politics, but allows no organiza- tion to dictate to him how he shall vote at the polls, but casts his vote for the man whom he thinks best suited for the place. Although no office-seeker, he held the office of city physician two years, being elected on his own merits. So- cially, he is a member of the Knights of Pythias, New Castle Lodge, No. 404, in which society he has been past chancellor and trustee since 1893. He is also a member of Shenango Lodge, I. O. O. F.
JOHN A. SMITH, M. D., a prominent physi- cian of New Castle, Pa., was born in Pulaski township, this county, Jan. 2, 1856, and is a son of Samuel and Mary (Montgomery) Smith.
Our subject's grandfather, William Smith, was a native of County Derry, Ireland, and was a scion of a family in whose veins flowed Scotch blood. He came to America about the year 1786, and settled in Big Fork, Westmoreland Co., Pa., where he took up farming; eventually he settled in New Bedford, Pa., where he en- gaged in pursuits of a general agricultural nature
the remainder of his active period. His wife, Rosanna, made him the proud parent of six chil- dren, who were named: Elizabeth (Davidson); Margaret (Carnahan); Samuel; John; James; and Hezekiah. Our subject's grandparents were reared as members of the religious sect of Seceders, but after coming to this country and becoming associated with many of their fellow- countrymen, they joined the United Presbyter- ian Church, which was a development of the original sect.
Samuel Smith was educated in the common schools of his native town, and upon the com- pletion of his education turned his attention to agricultural pursuits, and was thus engaged un- til his retirement from active work, during this time accumulating considerable property and providing liberally for his children. He gave his political allegiance to the Republican party. He was a popular man, and prominent among his fellow-townsmen, deserving well of their re- spect for him, for his life was spent in a simple, unostentatious manner, as one of nature's no- blemen. His modesty and retiring character prohibited him from seeking political elevation of whatever nature. His wife, Mary, was born in Ireland, near Dublin, and was a daughter of James and Elizabeth Montgomery, both natives of Ireland; seven children were born to our sub- ject's parents. Rosanna, the eldest, married John Duff of Aledo, Ill. Elizabeth, the next in order of birth, married Henderson G. Sharp, of New Wilmington, Pa., and bore him six chil- dren: Nettie; Jesse; Rutherford L .; Rufus; Smith; and Elmer. William, M. D., married Emma J. McCreary of New Wilmington, Pa., and has three children, Genevieve, Samuel, and
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Gula. John A., the next child, is the subject of this personal history. Samuel S. married Eva McEwen of New Castle, this county, and has one child, Carelton. Nancy J. married Elmer Black of Grove City, Mercer Co., Pa., and has two children, Edward and Clifford. Frank, the youngest member of the family, is unmarried, and lives in Grove City. The family were United Presbyterians in their religious belief. Our subject's mother was taken to the "land of pure delight" March 13, 1872, and she was fol- lowed by her husband on April 28th of the same year.
Having received a rudimentary education in the common schools of his native place Dr. Smith attended and graduated from the State Normal School of Youngstown, Ohio; he also received a diploma from the college at New Wil- mington, Pa. After a year's study under the direction of Dr. Silas Stevenson, now of Ell- wood City, Pa., he entered the Medical Depart- ment of Hudson College of Cleveland, Ohio, and graduated from that institution in 1881, among the first in his class. While a student in Hud- son College, his preceptor was Dr. Proctor Thayer. He then opened up an office for the practice of his profession at East Brook, Pa., where he remained four years. On account of ill health he gave up his practice there and went to Ashland, Ohio, where he lived until 1886. In that year he returned to Pennsylvania and lo- cated in New Castle, where he has built up a large and flourishing practice, most commend- able to his enterprise and professional skill. His practice is not confined to his immediate vicin- ity, but is general, and extends over a great part of Lawrence County. He is a Republican po-
litically, and as a successful candidate on that party's county ticket held the office of coroner three years. He is a member of the Lawrence County Medical Society.
In 1885 he was joined in marriage with Mary J. McKee, daughter of Charles and Margaret McKee of New Castle, Pa., and to Dr. and Mrs. Smith has been given one child, Hazel A., born Sept. 17, 1887. In religious matters he follows the example of his parents and unites with the United Presbyterian Church.
DR. JESSE R. COOPER, a prominent mem- ber of the medical profession of New Castle, Lawrence County, was born in Butler County, near Grant City, this State, Sept. 24, 1872. His education was commenced in the common schools of Grant City, Pa., and continued in the Slippery Rock State Normal School of Slippery Rock, Pa., and Grove City College, Mercer Co., Pa. Then wishing to adapt himself for work in business fields he attended Duff's Business College at Pittsburg, from which he graduated in 1889, after which he taught a short time in the same college. He pursued his medical studies in the Medical Department of the West- ern University of Pennsylvania, and graduated with the highest of honors in 1894. His.first field of practice was in New Castle, where he has been successfully engaged in medical practice since 1894; as a physician he is well and favorably known throughout a very large circle of patrons, a reputation which he has won by an energy, de- termination and skill that have secured for him
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, LAWRENCE COUNTY.
an extensive field of practice and have fairly given him a leading place among the practition- ers of his profession.
Socially, he is a Mason, belonging to Mahon- ing Lodge No. 243, of New Castle, Pa .; he is also a member of Lodge No. 909, I. O. O. F., of Portersville, Pa. His religious sympathies link him to the Baptist Church. Although a Demo- crat on general principles, he is no slave to party lines, but supports the candidates whom he thinks are best qualified to fill the offices; es- pecially is this true in local elections.
Dr. Cooper is a son of Robert and Elizabeth (Pence) Cooper, the former a native of Butler County, and the latter a native of Lawrence County. Our subject's grandfather, Thomas Cooper, was a native of Ireland and came to America when a young man, settling two miles east of Grant City, Pa., where he bought a tract of uncultivated land, and was engaged the re- mainder of his years in clearing and cultivating it, wresting a comfortable livelihood from the virgin soil. He married Phoebe Dean, who bore him seven children: Jacob; Jesse D .; Mar- shall, who was killed in the United States ser- vice in the late war; Harvey; Robert; Mary E .; and Polly. They were stanch supporters of the Baptist Church.
Robert Cooper, the youngest son of Thomas, was educated in the school of Grant City, and upon attaining manhood's estate turned his at- tention to agricultural pursuits, following the life of a farmer until his death in 1878. He was uniformly successful in his labors, and was es- teemed a valued member of the community. Politically he was a firm Democrat, but as his taste did not run to the holding of offices nor
to active political life, he did not permit his name to be placed in nomination as an aspirant for honors. His wife, Elizabeth, was a daughter of James Pence, a native of Scotland; to our subject's parents were born four children: Mar- tha J .; James Mc; Phoebe; and our subject, Dr. Jesse R. The eldest daughter married Will- iam English of Portersville, Pa., and bore him four children: Robert B., Maggie J., Franklin B., and Ira. James Mc married Anna Davis of Jacksville, Butler Co., Pa .; their union was blessed with four children, namely: Frank, Por- ter, Harry, and an infant. Phoebe married W. P. Book of Harlansburg, Pa .; three children were born to them: Howard, deceased, Jessie, and George. Both of our subject's parents. were Baptists. Mrs. Cooper died in 1894, aged sixty-six years; her husband was forty-seven years at his death.
DR. THOMAS J. BLACKWOOD, a leading physician and surgeon of New Castle, Pa., who has been prominently identified with the medical circles of that city as a regular practitioner for the past quarter of a century, was born in this county, in Slippery Rock township, Jan. 13, 1844.
Dr. Blackwood's father, Rev. James Black- wood, was Irish by birth; he was a minister of the Reformed Presbyterian Church, and was a graduate of the Glasgow University. He fol- lowed his profession as long as his years would permit, and his last years as a minister of the gospel were spent as a pastor in New Castle.
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, LAWRENCE COUNTY.
Some among the older residents of New Castle and the surrounding country will remember him to the last of their days as an earnest and forci- ble speaker, with a convincing power that brought the truth home to many a wavering one, and saved them for usefulness for the Mas- ter and His Kingdom. He married Jemima Calderwood, a native of Ireland, and to them were given eight children, as follows: Martha E .; Isabella C .; Thomas J., our subject; Will- iam; James, deceased; Jane; Robert; Andrew, and Jemima.
Dr. Blackwood seceured an elementary edu- cation in the schools of Grove City, Pa., and later attended Beaver Academy of Beaver Falls, Pa .; when he had completed the course of studies prescribed at that institution, he took a medical course at the Jefferson Medical College at Phil- adelphia, from which institution he graduated in 1866. He also further perfected himself with a post-graduate course at the Polyclinic Insti- tute of New York City in 1883. His first field of practice was in Butler Co., Pa .; in 1873 he located in New Castle, where he has built up a large and lucrative practice, which amply re- wards him for his painstaking efforts. His of- fice practice demands the greater portion of the time, which is devoted to his profession.
In 1866 he exchanged mutual vows of fidelity and love with Sarah M. Magee, who accordingly became his wife and trusted helpmeet; she was a daughter of James Magee of Butler Co., Pa. The union of our subject and wife has been cemented with the birth of four children, as fol- lows: Mary J., who married James Armstrong, and has one child, Thomas L .; Jemima C., who married Arthur Foster, and became the mother
of one child, Arthur B .; Margaret, who grad- uated in the class of 1897 from the State Normal at West Chester, with average scholarship of 97; and James M., who is at present attending col- lege at Beaver Falls, Pa. Jemima C. is at pres- ent matron of the Elmira Home of New Castle, Pa .- a home for the aged. Dr. Blackwood and his family are in their religious views Reformed Presbyterians, and support the church of that denomination in New Castle.
JOHN V. TRAVERS, a prominent coal dealer of New Castle, Pa., was born Oct. 13, 1858, and is a son of John and Ann (Mooney) Travers, both natives of Ireland, the former's birthplace being Dublin, and the latter's being in the county of Mayo. Our subject's father remained in Ireland until after his marriage in 1854, and after coming to this country became a citizen of the State of Pennsylvania, settling in Pottsville, where he engaged in coal mining, and remained there until 1858, when he moved to Youngstown, Ohio, thence to Minersville, Pa., thence to Kittanning, later to Freeport; from there he moved to Parker's Landing, thence to Pardo, where he made his home until 1872, when he once more changed his location, this time coming to New Castle. In this city he engaged in coal mining and also operated a mine on his own account, becoming well-known throughout the county as a successful, prosper- ous man. He was a stanch Democrat, and served his country through his devotion to party in a simple, unostentatious way, never desiring or caring to advance his name as a candidate
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BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES, LAWRENCE COUNTY.
for party favors. His death occurred Oct. 4, 1887. The following children were reared by Mr. Travers and his wife: Mary; Ellen; John V .; Stephen; Annie; Catherine; Patrick S .; Mar- garet; and Elizabeth. Mary married G. L. Griffith of New Castle, and has presented him with these children: Annie, Gertrude, Leo, Ste- phen, John, Lottie, Irene, and Mary. Stephen married Tessie Clark of New Castle, who bore him two children, John and Herbert. Annie married Constant Truhel of New Castle, and their children are: Asa, Annie, Harry, Lizzie, and Grace. Catherine married James F. Rodgers of New Castle, and is the mother of five children, John, Catherine, Veronica, Annie, and Mary. Patrick S. married Mary Moore of New Castle, and they have the following children: Ellen, Anna, John, Raymond, and Mary. Margaret became the wife of James Disken of Youngs- town, Ohio. Elizabeth married C. J. Walzer of New Castle.
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