Colonial families of Philadelphia, Volume II, Part 25

Author: Jordan, John Woolf, 1840-1921, ed
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: New York : Lewis Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 978

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Africa. Executors, William Peters, Esq. Benjamin Price, Attorney-at-Law, and Evan Morgan of Philadelphia."

We have no record of the death of David and Grace (Parker) Breintnall, but the latter at least was probably deceased before the date of the will of her aunt Mary Andrews, as she, unlike her sister Esther ( Parker) Breintnall, is not men- tioned in the will.

Issue of William and Mary (Breintnall) Peters:

RICHARD PETERS, b. June 22, 1744, d. Aug. 22, 1828; m. Sarah Robinson; of whom pres- ently;

Mary Peters, b. Dec. 18, 1750, mentioned in will of Mary Andrews, m. a Mr. Smith;

THOMAS PETERS, b. Aug. 5, 1752, d. 1781 ; m. Rebecca, dau. of Edward Johnson, M. D., of Baltimore; of whom below.

THOMAS PETERS was a member of First City Troop, Philadelphia Cavalry, and was "one of three or four members of the Troop who went to General Washing- ton and offered our services to him in anyway we could be of use, at the time of the landing of the British forces on Long Island, and remained with him until the whole Troop was ordered to join him at the second attack on Trenton," writes the said Thomas Peters, 1818. After giving some account of the service of the Troop at Princeton and Monmouth he concludes, "I got wet from leaping on a wet horse, fresh from the crossing of the Delaware, which superinduced inflammatory rhen- matism," which eventually disabled him and, "when the British were about to take possession of Philadelphia, I got up to Little York-Town where Congress was and when able was appointed Commissary General of Prisoners, under Congress for that District, and served in that capacity until a few days before the battle of Germantown in which I joined, got into Philadelphia and there remained, which ended my Military career for the time being."

He removed to Baltimore, Maryland, at the close of Revolutionary War and died there, 1821. By his wife, Rebecca Johnson, he had ten children, four sons and six daughters, some of whom married and left issue. His son, Thomas, pur- chased a large estate near Baltimore, which he called "Woodlands," which bears the name to this day. He occupied many positions of honor in Baltimore, was elected Mayor, 1808, and several times re-elected; was a Presidential Elector, delegate to various state conventions and also served in State Legislature.

RICHARD PETERS, eldest son of William and Mary (Breintnall) Peters, born at Belmont, June 22, 1744, entered College of Philadelphia in 1758, and was vale- dictorian of the class of 1761, he was a fine classical scholar. He studied law, and his ability and indomitable industry enabled him to attain high rank in his profession. His uncle, Richard Peters, and his father were both well versed in the law and were able to advise and assist him, and as assistant to his father in the Land Office he became thoroughly familiar with the land laws and titles to large tracts of land, in the middle western portion of the Province, then being rapidly settled up, and the contention over the titles of which, constituted a large part of the litigation of that period. He took great pains to become familiar with the language of the Germans, who comprised a large proportion of his clientage. He was a man of fine address and a great fund of humor and was a great favorite in all assemblages, no gathering of his friends and associates being considered complete without him. He accompanied his uncle, Richard, to the conference

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with the Six Nations, at Fort Stanwix, New York, and the Indians were so pleased with his lively disposition, that they adopted him into their tribe, christen- ing him "Tegohtias" (paroquet), no doubt on account of his lively "chatter." He was Register of the Admiralty Court from 1771 until the Revolution.

At the outbreak of the Revolution he at once took sides with the Colonies with the utmost zeal, and volunteered for military service. He was chosen captain of a militia company but before rendering any active service, was called to a service more commensurate with his eminent ability, being selected by Congress for the important position of the head of the Board of War, June, 1776, and filling it with eminent ability until December 17, 1781, when, on his letter of resignation being presented to Congress, the following resolution was adopted :

"Resolved, that Mr. Peters' letter be entered on the Journal and that Congress are sensi- ble of his merits and convinced of his attachment to the cause of his country and return him thanks for his long and faithful service in the War Department."

During the whole of his arduous service he was closely associated with Robert Morris, "the financier of the Revolution," and like him, pledged his private means to enable the struggling Colonies to carry on the war. In constant communication with Gen. Washington, he did his utmost to secure for the use of the army the necessary munitions to carry on the war, though these had frequently to be se- cured without sufficient funds with which to pay for them. In 1779, on his way to a grand fête at the Spanish Ambassador's in Philadelphia, he received a letter from Gen. Washington stating that he was entirely out of lead, and that their small supply of powder was wet, so that, should they be approached by the enemy, they would be compelled to retreat for want of amunition. Knowing nothing of where he could secure the so sadly needed supplies, he was in no humor to enjoy the festive occasion, and his downcast mien, so unusual, attracted the attention of Robert Morris, to whom he communicated his trouble.

Mr. Morris was fortunately able to give him some help, one of his privateers having lately arrived with ninety tons of lead taken on as ballast, one-half of which was the property of Mr. Morris and the other half belonged to his partners, Blair McClenachan, and a Mr. Holker, who were also at the fête. Mr. Morris and Mr. Peters sought out the partners. On their refusal to allow the use of their share of the lead without payment, Mr. Morris made himself personally respon- sible for it and assisted Mr. Peters in securing a gang of men to remove the lead and make it into cartridges, and by morning they were able to forward to Wash- ington a large supply of the much needed amunition. This is but a single instance of the association of the two heroic patriots in the trying cause of their country in her darkest days. Again in August, 1781, they were delegated by Congress to visit Washington in his headquarters on the Hudson, and confer with him in reference to his proposed attack on the British in New York, and through them the Commander-in-Chief was induced to abandon the apparently hopeless attempt, and move his army southward to form a junction with the French fleet then off Hamp- ton Roads. Without funds with which to furnish the needed supplies and munitions of war, the expedition could only be accomplished by the respective heads of the Finance and War Departments, promising that these would be furnished. Then followed the strenuous and successful efforts of these two ardent and unselfish patriots to secure these needed supplies, which enabled Washington and his army

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to transfer their sphere of action to the Virginia coast, with the result that Corn- wallis was captured at Yorktown, and the American patriots saw there the be- ginning of the end of their heroic struggle for independence.

Mr. Peters was always on the alert to secure supplies for the army, and fre- quently became disgusted with the want of patriotism on the part of some of the men with whom he was associated, in withholding their much needed support to the patriot cause. With a strong escort he was in Philadelphia, June 18, 1778, before the last of the evacuating British army was across the Delaware, on its way to New York, to secure clothing and military stores long secreted in that city, and to purchase everything available for the use of the American Army. Gen. Arnold then took command at Philadelphia, and Mr. Peters returned to York to confer with Congress then in session there. He was always distrustful of Gen. Arnold, and always insisted that the funds he had entrusted to him at that time with which to secure military stores for the army in the field, were used by Arnold for the furtherance of his personal ends.

Turning over the portfolia of the War Department to his successor, Gen. Lin- coln, in November, 1781, Mr. Peters was elected to Congress in 1782, and partici- pated in the closing scenes of the War of Independence as a national legislator. On the expiration of his term he was elected to the Pennsylvania Assembly and was Speaker of that body, 1789, when appointed to the office of Judge of the United States District Court for Pennsylvania, by President Washington, a posi- tion he filled during the remainder of his life, published, 1807, in two volumes his "Admiralty Decisions in the U. S. District Court of Pennsylvania."

Judge Peters resided all his life at "Belmont," and, as before stated, it was the scene of many important conferences that had to do with the affairs of the nation, as well as of notable social functions. During the period that Philadelphia was the nation's capital, Washington was a frequent visitor there, as were members of his cabinet, of congress and the diplomatic corps, and many distinguished visitors from abroad were entertained there. The French traveller Chastellux says of "Belmont," " it is a tasty little box, in the most charming spot nature could em- bellish." Marquis Lafayette was entertained there on his visit to America in 1824.

This old historic mansion and the grounds surrounding it, where Washington was wont to walk in the beautiful gardens while cogitating questions of State, was included in Fairmount Park in 1867.

Soon after the close of the war, Judge Peters travelled extensively in Europe. He was a member of the church of England and was very active in securing Bishops of the Church in America, and advancing the work of the Church on all lines. He took a deep interest in agriculture and horticulture and was president of first Agricultural society in America. In 1797, he conducted a series of experi- ments to determine the value of gypsum as a fertilizer and published a pamphlet giving the result of his experiments. He was active in the advocacy of public im- provements and was instrumental in having the bridge built over the Schuylkill in 1803, being president of the company at whose expense it was erected. He died at "Belmont," August 22, 1828, full of years and honor, universally lamented.

Judge Peters married at Christ Church, August 22, 1776, Sarah, daughter of Col. Thomas Robinson of the Pennsylvania Line, who with his brother, Abraham Robinson, lived on Naaman's Creek, Delaware, seven miles below Philadelphia.

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Abraham Robinson and Gen. Anthony Wayne, married sisters, and the family was connected with the most prominent families of the Province.

Issue of Richard and Sarah (Robinson) Peters:

RALPH PETERS, b. Nov. 28, 1777, d. Nov. 11, 1842; m. Catharine Conyngham; of whom presently;

Richard Peters, b. Aug. 4, 1779, d. May 2, 1848; m. March 1, 1804, Abigail, dau. of Thomas and Ann (McCall) Willing. Richard Peters, Jr., many years reporter of U. S. Superior Court, and published numerous condensed reports of the U. S. Superior and Circuit Courts, and the case of the "Cherokee Nation against the State of Georgia." He was also editor of "Chitty on Bills," and Washington's "Circuit Court Reports," 3d. Circuit.

Issue of Richard and Abigail (Willing) Peters :

Nancy Bingham Peters, d. Oct. 5, 1879, unm .;

Sarah Peters;

Frank Peters, member of Phila. Bar, d. Paris, May 19, 1861; m. Maria Miller;

Elizabeth Willing Peters, m. John W. Field, d. s. p. 1900, East Grimstead, Sussex. Maria Wilhelmina Peters, b. "Belmont," Aug. 26, 1781; m. Jan. 6, 1802, at Christ Church, William Shippen, son of Thomas and Ann (McCall) Willing, b. Feb. 6, 1779, d. Aug. 9, 1821;

Thomas Peters, b. Nov. 7, 1782, d. Sept. 22, 1784;

Sarah Robinson Peters, b. Nov. 5, 1785, d. Sept. 24, 1850; many years mistress of "Bel- mont;"

Thomas Peters, b. at "Belmont," Aug. 4, 1787, of whom we have no further record.

RALPH PETERS, eldest son of Judge Richard Peters, was born at York, Penn- sylvania, November 28, 1777, while the family were in temporary exile there with the Continental Congress, the British army being in possession of Philadelphia. He was educated for a merchant, and sailed for many years as a supercargo for Stephen Girard. He later started into business for himself by sending a vessel to China, in charge of a supercargo, for a cargo of tea. The Chinese merchants succeeded in palming off on his agent a cargo of willow leaves, and Mr. Peters was financially ruined. His next venture was the renting of the "Bull Farm," now part of West Philadelphia, a fine tract of two hundred acres belonging to his father-in-law, David Hayfield Conyngham, for which he agreed to pay $1000 rent, but was never able to pay a cent. His father then made him agent for liis large tracts of land in Bradford and Luzerne counties, and he removed his family to the Falls of Schuylkill, and spent sometime back in the woods, hunting and prospecting the wild lands in what is now the rich coal fields of Pennsylvania, the greater part of which, by the way, he and his brothers allowed to be sold for the payment of taxes, after the death of their father, just as they were about to become very valuable.

Early in 1821, he removed his family to Wilkes-Barre, then but a village, trans- porting his family and household goods from Philadelphia by wagon, a trip con- suming three days. Here they resided in a house belonging to his brother-in-law, john Nesbitt Conyngham (then a young practicing attorney), known as "Suiton House," near the centre of the village.

In 1823 he removed to Bradford county, settled on a tract of recently cleared land, and again made an unfortunate speculation, in the purchase of land for which he was unable to pay, instead of settling on a 1000 acre tract of his father's, ten miles distant. He lived on the Bradford plantation with his family until about 1837, and then removed to Towanda, where his wife died May 14, 1839, and he November II, 1842.

Ralph Peters married, October 2, 1806, at Christ Church, Catharine, born Phila- delphia, August 29, 1786, daughter of David Hayfield Conyngham, of the great

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:mercantile firm of Conyngham and Nesbitt, by his wife, Mary West, and grand- daughter of Redmond Conyngham, of Letterkenny, Ireland, who came to Phila- delphia in 1749, and founded the firm, returning to Ireland, 1776.

Issue of Ralph and Catharine (Conyngham) Peters:

Mary Peters, b. Oct. 26, 1807, d. April 2, 1895, bur. at Woodlands;

RICHARD PETERS, b. Nov. 10, 1810, d. at Atlanta, Georgia, Feb. 6, 1889; m. Mary Jane Thompson; of whom presently;

Henry Peters, b. Jan. 26, 1813, d. Aug. 11, 1817;

Ralph Peters, b. May 3, 1815, removed to St. Louis, Mo .; m. a Mrs. Carr, or Kerr; no issue;

Sarah Helen Peters, b. Dec. 21, 1816, at "Belmont," d. Paris, June 13, 1893; m. 1842, Samuel Lovell Dana, of Wilkes-Barre, Judge of Luzerne County Court; Captain of First Pa. Volunteer Infantry, in Mexican War, 1840-8; Brigadier General 1805; died April 25, 1889. He was b. at Wilkes-Barre, Jan. 29, 1817;

Anne M. Peters, b. 1819, d. Feb. 6, 1904, in Paris, unm .;

John Peters, b. 1822, d. Aug., 1839;

William Graham Peters, b. 1824, d. May 19, 1870; m. 1855, Eugenia E. Coryell, b. July 3, 1832, near Lambertville, N. J., d. May 19, 1879;

Eleanor McCall Peters, b. Nov. 1, 1829, d. 1869; m. 1854, Dr. Edward Rodman Mayer, of Wilkes-Barre; no issue ;

Charles Edward Peters, b. Nov. 5, 1826, d. July 29, 1857, unm.

RICHARD PETERS, eldest son of Ralph and Catharine ( Conyngham) Peters, was born at Germantown, November 10, 1810, removed with his parents to Wilkes- Barre, 1821, and to Bradford county three years later. He attended school in Philadelphia, and during the residence of the family at Wilkes-Barre also attend- ed school there; about 1826, his grandfather, Conyngham, being on a visit to the family in Bradford county, brought him back to Philadelphia, where he attended school for two years, living with his grandfather, and making frequent visits to "Belmont," where his grandfather, Judge Peters, was still living. On his return to Bradford county, just prior to the death of Judge Peters, the latter executed a deed to his son, Ralph, for the use of Richard, his grandson and namesake, for 1000 acres of land in Bradford county, but the deed was never recorded and the property was eventually sold for taxes. After a year spent in Bradford county, he decided to take up the study of engineering and surveying, and through the influence of his uncle, Richard Peters, a position was secured for him in the office of William Strickland, the celebrated engineer and architect at Philadelphia. He, at the suggestion of Mr. Strickland, attended lectures at Franklin Institute for eighteen months, and after six months more in the office, he spent six months with a corps of engineers at Delaware Breakwater. His uncle, Richard, then secured him a position with Major Wilson, who was about to survey the route for the Camden & Amboy Railroad. He was later employed on the Philadelphia & Lancaster Road, with headquarters at Downingtown. Returning to Phila- delphia in 1834, he remained there until February, 1835, when he secured a posi- tion under J. Edgar Thompson, with whom he had previously been associated under Major Wilson, and who had then been appointed chief engineer, in charge of the building of the railroad from Augusta, Georgia, to Athens.

Before proceeding on his southern trip he made a visit to his parents in Brad- ford county, and saw his mother for the last time, alive. Soon after his arrival at Augusta, Richard Peters was promoted to the position of First Assistant Engi- neer, and on the completion of the road was appointed, October, 1837, superin- tendent of the road. He resided at Augusta until 1845, and prospering financially,

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purchased a steam saw mill and several large tracts of land. On the extension of the road to Marthasville, now Atlanta, he transferred his headquarters to that place, then an insignificant village, boarding with the family of Dr. Joseph Thomp- son, whose daughter, Mary Jane, he married February 18, 1848.

At about this time, Mr. Peters purchased and operated a line of stages, from Madison, Georgia, to Montgomery, Alabama, which, owing to the Mexican war and the consequent migration to the newly acquired territory in the southwest, proved a profitable investment, and was continued until the Civil War.

In 1847 he purchased a farm in Gordon county, where he later devoted his attention to breeding of fancy and improved breeds of cattle, sheep, swine and chickens. He, however, continued to live in Atlanta, where he had purchased considerable land on which he erected a home, and later also conducted a well equipped nursery of fruit and other trees.

In 1856 Mr. Peters formed a company in which he was a large stockholder, and they erected the largest flour mill in the southern states. The milling business did not prove profitable, but the rapid increase in land values at Atlanta, and the sale of the mill and power plant to the Confederate government, for the manu- facture of military ordnance, at the outbreak of the Civil War, fully made up all their losses.

Mr. Peters had by this time become prominent in that section ; he was instru- mental in having the first telegraph line built into Atlanta; established the first church there and introduced and fostered a number of other public institutions and improvements. He took a lively interest in his stock farm; his fine herd of Jersey cattle, of which he was the first importer in that section, became justly famous. At the first germination of the seeds of secession he did all in his power to prevent its fruition. He was intimately associated with Alexander H. Stephens, later Vice-president of the Confederacy, but one of the strongest opponents of secession, and a number of letters written by him on the subject to Richard Peters are still preserved by the latter's family. Mr. Peters continued to reside in At- lanta until it was captured by Gen. Sherman.

After the close of the war he did much to rehabilitate the shattered industries of his section, and continued to operate his model farm, still conducted by his widowed daughter, Nellie Peters Black, who recently published a delightful his- tory of the Peters family, made up largely of the personal recollections of her father, supplemented by data from papers in the possession of the family and careful research at home and abroad, by members of the family. Richard Peters died February 6, 1889. As before stated, he married at Atlanta, February 18, 1838, Mary Jane, daughter of Dr. Joseph Thompson, of Atlanta. She was born December 31, 1830, and was therefore twenty years her husband's junior. Dr. Thompson was a grandson, of Joseph Thompson, who came from Monaghan county, Ireland, 1740, and located in York county, Pennsylvania, at Dillsburg, named in honor of Mathew Dill, who accompanied him from Ireland. About 1750 Joseph Thompson, accompanied by his two sons, Alexander and Joseph, and several other families from that locality, among whom were members of the Collins family, emigrated to what was later Spartansburg county, South Carolina.

Alexander Thompson married Nancy Collins, and his brother, Joseph, married Jane Dill. Joseph Thompson died July 1, 1802, and his wife, Jane, died April 7, 1802.

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Dr. Joseph Thompson was fourth son of Joseph and Jane (Dill) Thompson, born September 29, 1797, and died August 21, 1885. He married, May 1, 1827, Mary Ann (Tomlinson) Young, a daughter of George and Avaline (Reynolds) Tomlinson, natives of New Jersey, who had settled at Asheville, North Carolina, where their daughter, Mary Ann, was born July 6, 1801. She died at Atlanta, April 23, 1849, and Dr. Thompson married (second) January 19, 1851, a Mrs. Reeder, of Columbia. She died three years later and he married (third), June 29, 1858, the widow of Dr. Thompson, of Macon, Georgia.

In the early part of the Civil War, Richard Peters was engaged with a number of others in a scheme for running the blockade of the southern ports. He and his associates owned a number of steamers and for a time were quite successful in bringing into port a large amount of merchandise, in spite of the vigilance of the United States gunboats, and realized a handsome profit thereon.

Issue of Richard and Mary Jane (Thompson) Peters:

Richard Peters, b. at Atlanta, Georgia, Nov. 2, 1848; living in Phila .; m. June 30, 1874, Harriet Parker, b. Aug. 16, 1851, dau. of Samuel Morse Felton, of Mass., by his wife Maria Low Lippit, of R. I., and had issue :

Edith Macausland Peters, b. Nov. 2, 1875;

Ethel Conway Peters, b. Nov. 19, 1879; m. June 30, 1905, Smedly Darlington Butler, of the U. S. Marine Corps; issue:

Ethel Butler, b. Nov. 2, 1906.

Richard Peters, b. Dec. 25, 1880;

Samuel Morse Felton Peters, b. March 18, 1883;

Hope Conyngham Peters, b. March 31, 1890.

Mary Ellen (Nellie) Peters, b. Feb. 9, 1851; m. April 17, 1877, George Robinson Black, b. Nov. 14, 1835, d. Nov. 3, 1886, son of Edward Junius Black, of Beaufort District, South Carolina, by his wife, Augusta George Anna Kirkland. Mrs. Nellie Peters Black is manager of the Richard Peters Stock Farm; president of Free Kindergarten Association of Atlanta; member of the Colonial Dames; Daughters of American Revolution; and Daughters of United Confederacy;

Ralph Peters, b. Nov. 19, 1853, a prominent railroad official and civil engineer, residing a number of years at Columbus, Ohio, where he and his family occupied a prominent position in social circles, was Gen. Superintendent of Pa. Railroad lines, west of Pitts- burg; Superintendent of Cleveland and Marietta Railroad, and in April, 1902, became president of Long Island Railroad Co. He was for years a vestryman of Trinity Episcopal Church, Columbus, O., and a Son of American Revolution. He m., June 7, 1882. Eleanor, b. May 17, 1863, dau. of William Augustus and Lucy Ann (Grandin) Goodman, of Cincinnati, O .; had issue :

Eleanor Hartshorn Peters, b. May 8, 1884;

Pauline Faxon Peters, b. March 14, 1886;

Ralph Peters, b. May 5, 1887;

Dorothy Peters, b. Oct. 24, 1891;

Helaine Piatt Peters, b. Oct. 15, 1896;

Jane Breintnall Peters, b. Nov. 2, 1900.

Edward Conyngham Peters, b. Atlanta, Oct. 23, 1855; president of Peters Land Co .; member of City Council of Atlanta; president of Interstate Fair Association; presi- dent Atlanta Savings Bank; junior warden All Saints Protestant Episcopal Church, Atlanta ; since his father's death, has had full charge and management of Peters estate; m. Nov. 19, 1878, Helen, dau. of Ezekiel and Mary Victoria (Holt) Wimberly, of Baker county, Georgia; issue: Wimberly B. Peters, b. Oct. 13, 1885, and Edna Peters, d. inf .;

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Colonial families of Philadelphia, Volume II, Part 25

Author: Jordan, John Woolf, 1840-1921, ed Publication date: 1911 Publisher: New York : Lewis Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 978

Author: Jordan, John Woolf, 1840-1921, ed
Publication date: 1911
Publisher: New York : Lewis Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 978