Century history of New Castle and Lawrence County, Pennsylvania and representative citizens, 20th, Part 94

Author: Hazen, Aaron L. (Aaron Lyle), 1837- comp. and ed. cn
Publication date: 1908
Publisher: Chicago, Richmond-Arnold publishing co.
Number of Pages: 1058

USA > Pennsylvania > Lawrence County > New Castle > Century history of New Castle and Lawrence County, Pennsylvania and representative citizens, 20th > Part 94

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In 1887, Mr. Withers was married to Miss Elizabeth Moore, and they have six children, namely: William T., Ernest, Mary, Robert, Walter and Martha. The family belong to Grace Methodist Episco- pal Church. Mr. Withers is a member of the order of Heptasophs, at New Castle.

ISAAC FRANKLIN MILLIKEN, a representative business man of Ellwood City, senior member of the firm of Milliken & King, dealers in furniture, and under- takers, was born May 10, 1850, in Greene County, Pennsylvania, and is a son of

Abraham S. and Jane (Gwynn) Milliken.

On both sides, the grandparents of Mr. Milliken were very early settlers in Greene County and the grandson recalls the stories of the wildness of the country at that time, the abundance of game and the necessity of carrying fire-arms, even when going to church, in order to be protected from the Indians. They lived near old Fort Girard, which was orginally erected to protect the early settlers from the savages. The grandparents all died in Greene County, except Grandfather Milliken, who passed away in old age in Ohio. The father of Mr. Milliken was born in Jefferson Township, Greene County, Pennsylvania, and died aged eighty-four years. He had two broth- ers and a sister who reached mature years. The brothers, John and Benoni Milliken, moved to Wisconsin, where they died. The sister, Mrs. Margaret Clark, who is ninety years of age, resides at Bolivar, Tuscara- was County, Ohio, where Mr. Milliken had the pleasure of visiting with her in 1906. On the maternal side, two sons and four daughters of Joseph and Martha Gwynn, lived into middle or advanced age. John Gwynn lived and died near Carmichaels, Pennsylvania, where he owned a consid- erable estate. Josiah Gwynn owned the old farm and died on an adjoining one. Elizabeth married a Mr. Gore and both are deceased. Martha and Margaret never mar- ried. The former still survives, aged ninety years, but the latter died in 1906. The mother of Mr. Milliken died aged sev- enty-six years.

Abram S. Milliken was a tailor by trade and was also a farmer and miller. He owned a grist mill and farming land and devoted the larger part of his life to agri- cultural pursuits. He married Jane Gwynn and they reared a family of which but two survive : Isaac Franklin and Jesse Abram. The latter is a carpenter and contractor, residing at Pittsburg. He married Lizzie Hogue, a daughter of Norval Hogue and they have eleven children.

Isaac F. Milliken attended the Gwynn

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school in Cumberland Township, Greene County, during boyhood, and later, with his brother, entered Monongahela College, where he was graduated in 1873. He then taught school for some six years, follow- ing which he served an apprenticeship of three and one-half years in the painting trade and afterward followed the same, during the summer seasons, until 1881, when he entered into the furniture busi- ness at Jefferson. Since that time he has been continuously interested in this line. He carried on a furniture business for three years, at Nineveh, and after dispos- ing of it, started up in the same business at Beallsville, Washington County, where he remained until 1897, when he came to Ellwood City. In connection with furni- ture dealing, including the handling of pianos, Mr. Milliken has been an under- taker for many years, probably twenty- eight, and during this time he has interred the bodies of 1600 people. The firm of Mil- liken & King, the junior member being Mr. Milliken's son-in-law, enjoy the confidence and patronage of the best city trade and both partners are known to be men of ster- ling integrity.

Mr. and Mrs. Milliken are both members of the First Presbyterian Church of Ell- wood City. Their family is as follows: George Leslie, Reason Franklin, Leonora, Alva Otto, John and Russell Dewey. George Leslie resides at New Brighton and is traveling salesman for Heyworth & Dew- hurst, of Pittsburg, wholesale groceries. He married Allie Dodds and they have two sons, Charles and Harold. Reason Frank- lin is engaged at West Pittsburg, being timekeeper and paymaster of the silk mill in West Pittsburg. Leonora married James R. King, and they reside on im- proved property of their own, at Ellwood City. They have two children, Lois E. and Dorothy. Alva Otto has been stationed at St. Louis, Missouri, where he is auditor of the accounts of the Armour Packing Com- pany. John Milliken is credit man for the wholesale dry goods house of Ferguson

& McKinley, one of the largest concerns in the country. One daughter died before the family came to Ellwood City. The family home is situated in that part of the city known as the Circle, and is a beautiful modern residence. Mr. Milliken is a mem- ber of the Odd Fellows, the Tribe of Ben Hur, the Protective Home Circle, the True Blues and Good Templars. He is a Pro- hibitionist from conviction and asserted his views when there were only few votes cast for the temperance ticket in Greene Coun- ty. He has frequently been tendered offices of trust and responsibility and is the pres- ent nominee for County Commissioner, on the Prohibition ticket. He is consistently temperate in all things himself, and be- lieves such laws should be made that will protect those who are not strong enough to resist temptation. He is a level-headed business man, is public spirited to a large degree, and is one of Ellwood City's best citizens.

RICHARD T. BROWN, superintendent of the Standard Tube Company, of Ell- wood City, which is the largest concern of its kind in the world, has been identified with this enterprise since its inception. Mr. Brown, nevertheless, is a compara- tively young man, having been born Octo- ber 8, 1862, and is a native of Erie County, Pennsylvania. His parents were Thomas R. and Anna (Jordan) Brown.

The father of Mr. Brown was born in Scotland and when he first came to Amer- ica he settled in Massachusetts, where he engaged in ship-building and construction work. Later, he came to Erie County and became interested in dealing in live stock. Both he and wife died in Erie County. They had the following children: Edward, who served as a soldier in the Confederate Army during the Civil War; John, who served as a soldier in the Union Army and later settled in the far West; William and Richard T.

Richard T. Brown was educated in the common and high schools of Erie County

RICHARD T. BROWN.

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and then went to sailing on the lakes and subsequently learned the machinist trade, following it until he came to Ellwood City, where he became an assistant to Mr. Stiefel in 1895, who was the first man to pro- duce a seamless tube from a solid ingot. Mr. Brown served in the capacity of as- sistant superintendent for two years and in 1897, when the Ellwood Seamless Tube Company built a branch at Greenville, Pa., Mr. Brown took charge and continued there for two years. When a start was made in the erection of the Standard Tube Company's great works, in 1899, Mr. Brown was with Mr. Stiefel when the lat- ter broke the first ground, and he has been superintendent of this extensive plant ever since. To realize the great responsibility thus entailed it must be remembered that this plant has been enlarged and at the present time is the largest seamless tube plant in the world; that its capital stock is $6,000,000; that it produces seamless tubing from the smallest to seven inches in diameter, the products being used by loco- motive and boiler builders, for mechanical purposes and for high pressure steam pipes, and also for Government require- ments. The capacity of this plant is 350 tons a day and the works cover an area of nine acres. Employment is given to 2,200 men.

The Standard Tube Company is a sub- sidiary part of the United States Steel Cor- poration, of which R. C. Stiefel is general manager. It was originally an independent plant and was purchased and transferred to the National Tube Company in 1901, and in the same year it was incorporated as a part of the United States Steel Cor- poration, the business being conducted under the style of the Standard Tube Com- pany.

Mr. Brown was united in marriage with Anna Johnston, who is a daughter of Rob- · ert and Ellen Johnston, of Chautauqua County, New York. They had two chil- dren born to them: Leeanna, who is de- ceased, and Catherine M., who is the wife

of A. M. Jones, who is secretary and treas- urer of the Glen Manufacturing Company, of Ellwood City. Mr. Brown is a thirty- second degree Mason, a Knight of Pythias and an Elk. In politics, he is an ardent Republican, and has been a strong sup- porter of President Roosevelt and his poli- cies. He is a man of engaging personality and is recognized as one of Ellwood City's active and useful citizens.

ROBERT A. RANEY, owning 102 acres of some of the best farm land to be found in Little Beaver Township, is a representa- tive resident of this section of Lawrence County. He was born May 16, 1856, in Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, and is a son of MeDowell and Lucy Ann ( McClurg) Raney.

McDowell Raney was born on the farm now owned by his son Robert A., and was the youngest member of his father's fam- ily. In his younger days he worked at the carpenter trade but later bought the farm in Litle Beaver Township, on which he died in 1868, aged fifty years. He married a daughter of William McClurg, who was an early settler near Enon. Mrs. Raney died in 1905, aged seventy-five years. They had the following children: William, James, Nancy, Robert A., Sadie, John, Elmer and Joseph. Nancy married William Failor, and died July 29, 1908. Sadie married James McGeehon. The sons all survive ex- cept John, who died December 13, 1885.

Robert Alexander Raney has spent his while life in this part of Lawrence County. He was reared a farmer and had charge of his uncle's farm, which he now owns, for some years, it originally belonging to John Raney. He has erected the excellent build- ings on the place, having to build a new barn in 1903, on account of a bad fire.

On December 6, 1883, Mr. Raney was married to Bertha Taylor, who is a daugh- ter of John Taylor, and they have four children : Lucy, who married John E. Mil- ler, has one child, May Elizabeth, and they reside in Little Beaver Township; and

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HISTORY OF LAWRENCE COUNTY

Emma, Sadie and Naomi. Mr. Raney and family belong to the Methodist Episcopal Church. In politics he is a stanch Repub- lican but he does not seek office, being a member of this party from principle.

JAMES M. GIBSON, general farmer and dairyman, one of the largest milk pro- ducers for the New Castle market, resides on his finely improved farm of sixty acres, which is situated in Hickory Township, on the south side of the Harlansburg Road. He was born on the old homestead on the Butler Road, February 13, 1859, and is a son of George B. and Nancy ( MeCaslin) Gibson. His grandparents, George and Anna Gibson, came from County Down, Ireland, and settled on this farm in 1830.

James M. Gibson went to school with the boys and girls of his early youth, in the same neighborhood, and many of these are rearing families and owning farms in the section where all have been acquainted from childhood. One of these he married, Jane Armstrong, to whom he was united March 24, 1887. She is a daughter of Alex- ander and Charlotte (Kennedy) Arm- strong, and a granddaughter of Samuel and Elizabeth Armstrong, who came to America from County Down, Ireland. Mr. and Mrs. Gibson have six daughters, name- ly: Gula Elizabeth, who resides at home but enjoys the acquaintance of many New Castle friends ; Mamie Opal, born January 2, 1885; and Helen Charlotte, Olive Ger- trude, Theresa Catherine and Lois Ma- tilda.

Mr. Gibson's handsome, modern resi- dence is a commodious two-story structure, placed some twenty-five yards from the highway, in the center of a fine lawn. His home has modern equipments and he has a system of waterworks with piping to his barn and stables, the latter buildings be- ing also of modern and sanitary construc- tion. He raises his own Jersey and Hol- stein stock and is one of the largest milk dealers in the township, having an immense trade in New Castle. With his family he

belongs to the United Presbyterian Church.

HOWARD J. THOMPSON, dealer in staple and fancy groceries, at No. 198 East Long Avenue, New Castle, is one of the city's enterprising and genuinely success- ful young business men. He was born De- cember 31, 1871, in Middlesex, Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, and is a son of John L. Thompson.

The Thompson family was established in Lawrence County in 1800 by George Thompson, who was a native of Scotland. John L. Thompson was born on the old family homestead in Pulaski Township, in 1845, and is a leading business man at New Castle, where he owns a large amount of property and is engaged in the cement business.

After completing his education in the New Castle schools, to which city his par- ents moved in 1874, Howard J. Thompson engaged as a clerk in a grocery store until 1895, when he engaged in the business for himself. He conducted his store for eight years and then sold out and bought a small farm in Pulaski Township, which he op- erated for three years, when he sold it and returned to New Castle. Here he again entered the grocery trade and has contin- ued until the present. He has one of the largest and most complete stores in staple and fancy groceries in his section of the city.

In February, 1898, Mr. Thompson was married to Miss May Sankey, a member of one of the old and prominent families of the county, and they have one son, Russell Clair. Mr. Thompson is a member of Grace Methodist Episcopal Church. He belongs to the organization known as the National Protective Legion.

JOHN P. BRUA, whose fine farm of 110 acres lies in Perry Township, about eight miles from Ellwood City, is a representa- tive citizen of this section. He was born June 24, 1875, on his present farm and is

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a son of Peter and Catherine (Goehring) Brua.

Peter Brua was born in Germany, in 1843, and came to America when aged about twenty-five years. For some five years afterward he worked in different places and then settled in Perry Township as a farmer. He now resides on a valuable farm of ninety-nine acres, which he owns, not far from Eastbrook. He married Catherine Goehring, who was a daughter of John Goehring, a farmer in Beaver County. She died in the spring of 1907 .. Their two sons, John P. and Charles, both survive.

John P. Brua attended the public schools in his township and later a busi- ness college at New Castle, after which he took possession of his present farm which he has intelligently operated ever since. He has made improvements and has a com- fortable home.

After completing his education Mr. Brua was married to Miss Amelia Bentrim, who is a daughter of George Bentrim, of Butler County. Mr. and Mrs. Brua have five children: Arthur, Nora, Grace, Anna and Helen. The family belong to the Reformed Church at Lancaster. In polities he is a Democrat and has served on the election board, as school director, and in other township offices. He is an intelligent, fair- minded man who enjoys the respect of the neighborhood where his whole life has been spent.

SAMUEL DAYTON SLEMMONS, postmaster at Enon Valley, where he is also serving in his second term as town burgess, has been a representative citizen of this section and identified with its prog- ress and development, in large degree, for many years. He was born on a farm in Harrison County, Ohio, April 7, 1856, and is a son of Samuel and Eleanor P. (Leathem) Slemmons.

Samuel Slemmons was a life-long resi- dent of Ohio, where he died in 1886. He was born at Cadiz and engaged in farming

in that vicinity, also followed the carpenter trade and in his earlier years he was in- terested in dealing in horses. Before the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad was built he drove many horses from Eastern Ohio to Baltimore. He married Eleanor P. Leath- em, who is one of the most venerable ladies of Lawrence County. She was born in Jefferson County, Ohio, in 1818, and is one of the most valued members of Mr. Slem- mons' family, being deeply interested in all family affairs and enjoying the social life around her, in spite of the weight of her ninety years. Samuel and Eleanor P. Slemmons had eight children, namely : Susanna, James, John, Catherine, Deborah M., Harvey, Samuel D. and Ella M. The survivors are: James, John, Harvey and Samuel Dayton.

Samuel Dayton Slemmons grew to man- hood on his father's farm, near Cadiz, Ohio, and secured a district school educa -. tion. He first entered into business as a partner of his brother, James, in a general store, at Westminster, Ohio, but the de- struction of the store and loss of stock, in the second year, caused a change in his plans. He entered the employ of Gus Kolb, a clothing merchant at Lima, for a few years, and then became a clerk in a shoe store in the same place, but shortly after- ward was appointed deputy auditor of Hardin County, under his old school teach- er, Auditor G. W. Rutledge, of Kenton. He served three years in this capacity and then resigned and became an employe of the Lazarus Bros. Clothing Store at Co- lumbus, where he remained until his mar- riage in the summer of 1889.

On July 10, 1889, Mr. Slemmons was united in marriage to Miss Susan B. Slem- ons, who was the only child of James Slemons, who was born in Ireland and emigrated to America, dying on his farm in Lawrence County. To this farm Mr. and Mrs. Slemmons soon moved. It was then the property of Mrs. Slemmons, and they lived in North Beaver Township un- til 1890, when they came to Enon Valley.

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HISTORY OF LAWRENCE COUNTY

They have one son, James Guy. The par- ents of Mrs. Slemmons, James and Eliza- beth (Kildoo) Slemons, both died while she was young. Her step-mother, Cath- erine Kildoo, is also deceased. After be- ing orphaned, Mrs. Slemmons became a member of the Glover family, by whom she was reared.

After locating at Enon Valley Mr. Slem- mons entered very actively into politics, and was elected a justice of the peace, serving in that office for five years, when he was appointed postmaster, a position he has satisfactorily filled until the pres- ent. An ardent Republican by conviction, he has ably supported the cause of his party, being in perfect accord with its many reformatory movements. During the first administration of the late Presi- dent Mckinley, he served as secretary of the Republican County Committee, and that was the year that Lawrence County gave the largest Republican majority at the polls ever recorded in the county's his- tory. Mr. Slemmons has served in numer- ous other offices of the town and township, has been constable, supervisor and is at the present writing serving in the honor- able office of town burgess. The Civil War found him too young to enter the army, but an older brother, John P., served three years as a member of Company H, One Hundred and Twenty-sixth Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and was wounded at the battle of the Wilderness on May 2, 1864. From the father down the family has made a record for loyalty and patriotism.

Mr. Slemmons is a member of the order of American Mechanics, at Enon Valley, and of the Knights of Pythias, at Kenton, Ohio. In addition to his other interests he is agent for the firm of Knox & More- head, fire insurance, at New Castle.

ROBERT M. HOPE, a successful gen- eral farmer residing on a valuable prop- erty of seventy acres, which lies at the cross roads where the Mt. Jackson, Enon,

Petersburg and Moravia highways meet, was born in Mercer County, Pennsylvania, April 16, 1862.

Mr. Hope was reared to the age of four- teen years in Wilmington Township, Mer- cer County, and then came to New Wil- mington, Lawrence County, where he served an apprenticeship to the printer's trade. He started in the office of the New Wilmington Globe, when that journal was first organized, and remained in that office for four years, and subsequently worked five years in the office of the Cleveland Leader. He then returned to Lawrence County and engaged in farming. On No- vember 8, 1887, he was united in marriage with Adella M. Hope, who is a daughter of A. M. Hope, of Lawrence County. They have one daughter, Jane Marie, who is the wife of James E. Hamill, who is a son of William Hamill, all well-known residents of this section. Mr. and Mrs. Hamill have a little daughter, Florence Muriel. This fortunate little maiden has three great- grandmothers and a great-grandfather. One of the grandmothers is the mother of Mr. Hope, Mrs. Sabina C. Glover, who is a daughter of James Hope, an early settler of North Beaver Township. She has a half interest in the farm and resides on it. Mr. Hope and family belong to the Westfield Presbyterian Church.

JAMES R. KING, a leading business citizen of Ellwood City, a member of the firm of Milliken & King, dealers in furni- ture and pianos, and also undertakers, was born in Bethel Township, Allegheny Coun- ty, Pennsylvania, and is a son of Isaiah D. and Anna (Phillips) King.

The Kings were very early settlers in Western Pennsylvania, coming directly from Philadelphia, and remotely from Scotland and Ireland. It is probable that the Phillips family originated in Wales, but this branch was early established in New England, and came to Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, from Massachu- setts. The paternal grandparents, Isaac

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and Mary (Higby) King, were farming people. They had five children, namely : Joseph S., who died shortly after graduat- ing from Washington and Jefferson Col- lege; Narcissa, residing in Allegheny County, married John Wilson; Elizabeth, who is the widow of William Weir, resides in Washington, Pa., and Mary and Isaiah D., the former of whom died young and the latter in 1882, aged forty-four years. He followed farming in Allegheny County for some years and while his children were being educated he resided four years at Granville, Licking County, Ohio. He mar- lied Anna Phillips, who was born in Alle- gheny County, where she lived until the time of her death, in 1906, when aged sixty- one years. She was a daughter of Joseph Phillips, who was a cabinetmaker and un- dertaker. The children of Joseph and Mary Phillips were: Matilda, who married Peter K. Boyer, resides in Allegheny Coun- ty; Belle S., who is the widow of Peter B. Boyer, resides in Allegheny County; Hat- tie, who is the widow of Samuel Boyer, re- sides also in Allegheny County ; Emmeline, who was the wife of Rev. Douglas, died with him in Burmah, India; Anna, who was the mother of James R. King; Jesse, who formerly resided at Sharkleyville, is survived by his widow; Judson, who re- sides at Northfield, Mass., where he is an instructor in the George L. Moody School, and Walter, who died aged twenty-three years.

There were five children born to the par- ents of James R. King, Sr., as follows: Viola M., who graduated from the Mt. Pleasant Normal School, married Samuel Freeman Boyer and they reside in the old homestead in Allegheny County; Frank, who spent seven years as a student in Den- nison University, at Granville, Ohio, has been a missionary to Indians in Oklahoma for the past ten years, married Amy Pierce; Joseph S., who is engaged in a fur- niture business at Hinton, Okla., spent three years at Dennison University ; James R., and Mabel E., who graduated from a

seminary at Granville, married Rev. Carl Frederick Schneider, of the Baptist Church of Alexandria, Ohio.

James R. King enjoyed equal educa- tional advantages while the family resided at Granville, Ohio, with his brothers and sisters, and after leaving school he em- barked in a grocery business and continued in the same at Finleyville, Washington County, and during this time he took a course in embalming. On September 5, 1900, he came to Ellwood City and here entered into his present business partner- ship. Furniture and undertaking were first engaged in and the addition of pianos to the firm's stock has been an excellent business move. A large amount of patron- age is controlled by this firm, which is fully equipped in every department.

On July 3, 1903, Mr. King was married to Miss Leonora H. Milliken, who is a daughter of Frank and Joanna Milliken, and they have two children: Lois Evaline and Dorothy Eugenia. Mr. and Mrs. King have a beautiful home at No. 609 Wayne Avenue, Ellwood City.

In politics he is a Prohibitionist. He has been identified with the order of Odd Fel- lows for many years and belongs to Refuge Lodge, No. 142. He is a member of the Baptist Church at Ellwood City, in which he fills the office of deacon.

BERNHARD WELTNER, a prosper- ous farmer of Slippery Rock Township, resides on a fine farm of fifty acres lying about seven miles east of New Castle. He was born in Hessen, Germany, December 31, 1861, and is a son of Jacob Weltner.

Jacob Weltner, the father of Bernhard, was born in Germany and there engaged in farming throughout his entire life. He was united in marriage with Elizabeth Schnermund, also a native and life-long resident of Germany, and they became par- ents of four sons and three daughters, all of whom remained in Germany with the exception of Bernhard.

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Century history of New Castle and Lawrence County, Pennsylvania and representative citizens, 20th, Part 94

Author: Hazen, Aaron L. (Aaron Lyle), 1837- comp. and ed. cn Publication date: 1908 Publisher: Chicago, Richmond-Arnold publishing co. Number of Pages: 1058

Author: Hazen, Aaron L. (Aaron Lyle), 1837- comp. and ed. cn
Publication date: 1908
Publisher: Chicago, Richmond-Arnold publishing co.
Number of Pages: 1058