USA > Pennsylvania > Dauphin County > Commemorative biographical encyclopedia of Dauphin County, Pennsylvania : containing sketches of prominent and representative citizens and many of the early Scotch-Irish and German settlers. Pt. 2 > Part 46
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91 | Part 92 | Part 93 | Part 94 | Part 95 | Part 96 | Part 97 | Part 98 | Part 99 | Part 100
BAKER, JOHN J., farmer, was born in Hali- fax township, Dauphin county, Pa., October 18, 1848; son of Jacob and Mary (Chubb) Baker. Jacob Baker was an enterprising and successful farmer of Halifax township. He was honorable and substantial and main- tained a high social standing. Heand his wife, Mary Chubb, are both deceased. . They had eleven children, one of whom died in in- fancy. Their living children are : Susanna, wife of Peter Minnick ; Sarah, wife of Joseph Dempsey ; Isaac; Margaret, widow of Peter Hetrick ; Mary, wife of George Jury ; Martha, wife of William Bowerman ; John J .; Daniel; Ellen, wife of John Kines, and Henry, the eldest.
John J. Baker was educated in the public schools of his native township. He could not pursue a continuous course in the schools because his help was required on the farm in the working season. . At the age of twenty- one he engaged in farm work, and began farming on his own account when he was twenty-seven. In 1892 he removed to Dau- phin borough, where he has since had his residence.
Mr. Baker was married, December 10, 1874, to Sarah North, daughter of John and
Mary Gable North Hammer. Of their five children one is deceased, John Truman, born October 2, 1885, died February 6, 1893. Their living children are: Harlow K., born May 30, 1875; Ida M., December 9, 1877 ; Mina B., June 9, 1883 ; Minzie N., October 24, 1887. Mr. Baker is a Republican. The family attend the Evangelical church. The parents of Mrs. Baker are deceased. Three of their nine children are also deceased : John, Jacob, and Susan, Mrs. Louis Noll. The survivors are: Margaret, Mrs. William Richard ; Henry ; Israel ; Samuel; Sarah, Mrs. Baker, and Amos.
SIMMONS, ROBERT ALONZO, builder and contractor, was born in Clark's Valley, Mid- dle Paxton township, Dauphin county, Pa., June 16, 1846. He is a son of Robert and Priscilla Amelia (Bricker) Simmons. Robert Simmons, grandfather of Robert A., was a resident of Middle Paxton township. Hc married Sarah Ward. Their children are : Washington, Mary J., John Henry, Matilda, Sarah, and Robert, father of Robert A. Mr. Simmons' maternal grandfather was Henry Bricker, who married Mary Firestein. Their children are: John, Priscilla, Amelia, Har- riet, Jane, Franklin, and Albert. The par- ents of Robert A. Simmons had six chil- dren : Robert Alonzo, Peter S. Mccullough, Sarah Olivia, wife of David Umberger, John Henry, George Washington, and Pris- cilla Amelia, wife of James Baxter. The mother died May 5, 1892. The father is still living.
Robert Alonzo Simmons received his pri- mary education in the public schools of his native township, which he attended at such times as he could be spared from farm work. At the age of fifteen he set out to earn his own livelihood. The business career of Mr. Simmons can be recorded in a brief space and in a short statement of facts and dates. In 1861 he turned from the scene of his youth, the sports, the schooling and the farm labor and faced the world to seek employ- ment, training and a vocation for life. For the first five years he is with the Keystone Bridge Company, beginning as an appren- tice and ending as a skilled workman in the art of bridge building. For the next four vears he is with J. II. Coffrode & Co., of Philadelphia, as general foreman. The next five years he is with Clark, Reeves & Co., of the same city, as foreman of structural work ; and for the next twelve years he is with the
1.Bell
Leonard
Efenhenger
A. J. Poffenberger,
Elias Fertig
865
DAUPHIN COUNTY.
Phoenix Bridge Company, of Phoenixville, Pa., as general superintendent of construction. And then he is established in business for himself. This is his career in its briefest state- ment. By these few steps the modest farm- er's boy rose to one of the most honorable positions held by an American mechanic. It is well to contemplate it in its brevity. Its substantial and enduring monuments dot the continent. Mr. Simmons took part in the erection of the principal iron structures west of Pittsburgh, at Kansas City, at St. Louis, at Cincinnati, the structures on the railroad from Milton to Williamsport, Pa., the Bound Brook railroad, the South street to Penrose Ferry bridge at Philadelphia, and the bridge across the Mississippi at Louis- iana, Mo.
Mr. Simmons was one of the first success- ful contractors in building elevated railways. The great Kinzura Viaduct, which spans the Kinzura Valley, thirteen miles south of Bradford, Mckean county, Pa., on the New York, Lake Erie and Western railroad, is one of the works erected under his superin- tendence and is worthy of a more detailed description. It is 2,052 feet long and at the bottom of the valley it is 302 feet high, be- ing the highest railroad bridge in the world. The famous truss bridge at Cincinnati, with its 550 feet span, is another structure which he superintended. He had charge of the bridges on the West Shore railroad, and also of many large bridges in Canada and South America. Since 1888 Mr. Simmons has been in business for himself. He erected the large bridge over the Potomac river at Will- iamsport, Md., and the bridge for the New Jersey Steel and Iron Company in Kentucky. Mr. Simmons has erected some of the most difficult structures in this country ; among these are the famous bridges on the Pomeroy and Delaware railroad, the Alexandria and Fredericksburg railroad, the Girard Avenue and Sixth Street bridges, Philadelphia, the Greenbush and Roundout bridges in New York, and numerous other important rail- road bridges in this country and in Cuba and South America.
Mr. Simmons has endured the hardships and privations and exposure incident to the life and work of a bridge builder, the severest in his experience being at Quantico, Va., driving piles along the Potomac river, which can never be forgotten. The accomplish- ment of more important and difficult work with better success than any other builder
is the title to prominence which must be con- ceded to him. The highest compliment that can be paid to his skill and fidelity is to note that his work has been done with fewer fatal accidents than that of any other builder who has executed as much dangerous and difficult construction. He is familiarly known among builders by the homely cog- nomen of "Pop." The name is a tribute to his good heart and to his prominence as a master builder. In his success and celebrity Mr. Simmons has not lost sight of his native place, which he delights to honor. He al- ways gives a Dauphin man the first chance for employment. The annals of his native county would be incomplete without the record of his life and works, which are an enduring monument to American skill.
Mr. Simmons was married, February 20, 1870, to Martha L., daughter of Benjamin and Catherine (Books) Leaman. They have two children: Harvey J., born November 12, 1871, and Bertha, born November 12, 1873. Mr. Simmons is a member of Lodge No. 75, F. & A. M .; Chapter No. 198, R. A. M .; Council No. 168, and Jerusalem Com- mandery, No. 15, K. T., at Phoenixville. He is a member in good standing in Paxton Lodge, No. 621, I. O. O. F. He is a Repub- lican. The family attend the Lutheran church.
Mr. Leaman, father of Mrs. Simmons, died in August, 1874, aged about sixty-four years. Her mother died in February, 1891. They had eight children, two of whom are de- ceased, one who died in infancy, and Na- thaniel, who died aged about forty years. The survivors are: John ; Mary, wife of George Langsdorf Free; Martha L., Mrs. Simmons ; Joseph, and Albert.
HOCKER, JOHN P., farmer, was born in Clark's Valley, Middle Paxton township, Dauphin county, Pa., March 16, 1837. He is a son of Peter and Nancy (Welpmer) Hocker. Peter Hocker was born February 24, 1801. He was a prominent and honored citizen ; was extensively interested in farm- ing, and also had charge of the Peters' Moun- tain Inn. He served several terms as county commissioner of Dauphin county, and a nun- ber of terms as school director. He con- tributed liberally to the establishment and support of churches at Dauphin and in the vicinity. He was a Democrat. He died De- cember 17, 1865 ; his wife died February 20, 1877, aged sixty-eight years, one month and
55
860
BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA
twenty-six days. They had nine children : Susan, wife of Jacob Beam; Martin; Peter; Margaret A., wife of Benjamin Meyers; John P .; Catherine, wife of Jonathan Fox ; George W .; Jacob, and Emeline, wife of Martin Koons.
John P. Hocker in his early boyhood at- tended private schools; at twelve years of age he attended the district school. At seven- teen he left school and worked on his father's farm until he was twenty-five. He enlisted at Camp Simmons, Harrisburg, October 16, 1862, in company K, One Hundred and Seventy-third regiment, Pennsylvania volun- teers, under Capt. C. A. Harper and Colonel Nagle. He was discharged at Harrisburg, August 18, 1863. He returned home in ill health and cultivated the homestead farm until 1865. His father having been killed. at this time by the running away of a team of horses, Mr. John Hocker succeeded to the management of the farm, which he conducted for one year. He then removed to the neigh- berhood of Zion church, where he lived and was employed for a year and a half. On January 14, 1869, he bought the homestead where he has since resided.
Mr. Hocker was married, March 24, 1861, to Mary Ann Ferree. Of their fourteen chil- dren, four are deceased : Mary Jane, born February 14, 1862, died March 20, 1863; George Williams, born April 29, 1864, died April 19, 1866; Charles Cleveland, born January 26, 1885, died March 20, 1885; Car- rie Emma, born August 12, 1882, died Sep- tember 29, 1893. Their living children are : John Peter, born July 24, 1865; Julia Ann, April 6, 1867, wife of John E. Bickel ; Ophe- lia, April 2, 1869 ; Catherine Elizabeth, Au- gust 15, 1871, wife of Theodore A. McCarty ; James Martin, June 23, 1873; Alexander Harvey, September 16, 1875; Agnes Gertrude, August 19, 1877 ; Sarah Ellen, August 20, 1879; Martha Washington, February 22, 1886 ; and Maud Ethel, March 15, 1889. Mr. Hocker is neutral in politics. He has served two terms as supervisor of Middle Paxton township. The family attend the Lutheran church.
The mother of Mrs. Hocker died in Decem- ber, 1866; her father in August, 1878. They had eight children : Leah Jane, wife of George Hocker; Mary Ann, Mrs. John Hocker; Joel; Jefferson; Elizabeth, wife of Zachariah Knapp; Agnes, wife of James Duncan ; and Ellen, wife of John Arrison.
-CLEMSON, L. W., was born in Watts town- ship, Perry county, Pa., July 23, 1826. He is a son of Leonard and Mary (Bechaman) Clemson. Joshua Clemson, grandfather of L. W. Clemson, was a major in the war of 1812. He was at York, Pa., when General Ross was shot near Baltimore. Leonard Clemson, father of L. W., was born in Lan- caster county, Pa., on " Hallow Eve," 1800. He was energetic and persevering. He drove for his father, who ran a line of teams from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh. When the State Capital was removed he hauled the first six- horse wagon load of State records from Phila- delphia to Harrisburg. He died July 23, 1892, being run down by a freight train in Halifax. His wife was a daughter of Robert Bechaman ; she died aged about seventy-five years. They had ten children : L. W .; Lydia Ann, wife of Alexander Lingle; . Maria Louisa, widow of John Brubaker; Alfred Buchanan; Amos; Jemima Jane; Mary ; Laura Cecilia, wife of John Metzinger ; Charilla Jacevis, and one infant, not yet named.
L. W. Clemson received his early educa- tion in the private schools of his native township. At twelve years of age he went with his parents to Dauphin county, and at- tended the public schools until he was eigh- teen. From that time until he reached his twenty-sixth year he assisted his father on his farm on Clemson's Island, opposite Hali- fax. He was afterwards engaged in boating on the Pennsylvania canal, between Bello- fonte and Philadelphia, on his own account, until the autumn of 1859. In 1860 his father purchased the present homestead, which L. W. Clemson cultivated on his own account until his father's death in 1892. Succeeding his father in the ownership of the place, he has occupied it since that date. Mr. Clemson was married to Mary, daughter of Daniel and Margaret Livingston. The grandfather of Daniel Livingston was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independ- ence. Mr. and Mrs. Clemson had twin chil- dren, Harry and Lillie Elizabeth, born Sep- tember 24, 1852. Mrs. Clemson died Feb- ruary 9, 1858, aged thirty years, five months and twenty-six days.
On December 29, 1859, Mr. Clemson mar- ried his second wife, Mary Jane, daughter of John G. and Eliza (Hampton) Nowvirck. Of their three children two are deceased : Leon- ard Alfred, born April 30, 1861, died March
867
DAUPHIN COUNTY.
11, 1866, and Emma Cecilia, born Septem- ber 30, 1862, died April 4, 1872. Their sur- viving child is Maggie May, born May 24, 1869 ; married, February 13, 1890, to Charles Bricker, one of the five children of John and Amanda (Stout) Bricker; has had two chil- dren, Mamie Edna, born September 5, 1890, died January 8, 1894, and John Wesley, born August 3, 1894.
Mr. Clemson had been an earnest and ac- tive worker for the welfare of Dauphin county. He is a successful business man and a prominent citizen. His fellow-citizens have repeatedly honored him by calling him to places of public service. He has served two consecutive terms as auditor, and two as director of the poor of Dauphin county ; also one term as supervisor of Middle Pax- ton township. Mr. Clemson is a Republi- can. The family attend the Presbyterian church.
The parents of the present Mrs. Clemson had six children : Louis; John; William ; Mary Jane, who is Mrs. Clemson ; Elias, and Emma. Mr. Nowvirck, her father, died in January, 1852, aged fifty-seven ; her mother died in October, 1858, aged about forty- nine years.
Aaron Shaffner was a pupil in the common schools of his native township until he was ten years old. His parents then removing to Middle Paxton township, he attended the district schools there during the winter until he was twenty. IIe was then regularly em- ployed by his father in farm work; this arrangement continued for six years, and then he rented the farm of his father, and cultivated it on his own account. He con- tinued to be a renter on the homestead until September, 1895, when he bought the farm of his father's heirs.
.
Mr. Shaffner was married, July 6, 1873, to Anna Rebecca, daughter of John and
Mary (Reicht) Bowman. They had two children, one who died in infancy, and Harry B., born September 5, 1877. Mr. Shaffner belongs to the Junior Order United American Mechanics. He is a Republican. The family attend the Evangelical church.
Mrs. Bowman, Mrs. Shaffner's mother, died November 30, 1877, aged forty-nine years, three months and eighteen days. Her father died March 28, 1894, aged sixty-three years and one month. Four of their ten children are deceased : John, died aged four months ; Jennie, aged two years and twenty days; Uriah, aged six months ; and one infant died unnamed. Their living children are: Anna Rebecca, Mrs. Shaffner; Sarah E., wife of Jacob Conrad; Henry R .; William; Margaret A., wife of Peter Witman; and Cora, wife of James Nelson.
The brothers of Mr. Shaffner were in the United States army. William enlisted in company H, Fourth regiment, Pennsylvania volunteers, re-enlisted in the regular army and served three years more. Philip en- listed at Harrisburg in a cavalry regiment, and served three years. Henry enlisted at Harrisburg, and served less than one year.
MEYERS, BENJAMIN, retired farmer, was - SHAFFNER AARON, farmer, was born in , born in Lancaster county, Pa., October 11, Halifax township, Dauphin county, Pa., Sep- tember 7, 1847. He is a son of Philip and Mary (Hoy) Shaffner. Philip Shaffner was born October 20, 1809, and died October 21, 1894; Mrs. Shaffner died November 20, 1887, aged seventy-five years, ten months and thirteen days. Of their ten children, four died in infancy, and Henry died December 17, 1880. Their other children are: Philip H .; William H .; Susan, wife of William Sheetz; Aaron, and Sarah, wife of James Lyter.
1834. He is a son of Christian and Eliza- beth (Cassel) Meyers. His father died in 1858, aged about sixty-four, and his mother in 1861, aged about sixty-seven years. They had fifteen children : John; Isaac; Katie, wife of John Hess; Christian ; Annie, wife of George Look; Daniel; Fannie, wife of Peter Fox; Abraham; Benjamin ; Sarah Jane, wife of Elias Brooks; Elias; Hetty, wife of Jonas Brooks ; and three who died in infancy.
Benjamin Meyers, at four years of age, went with his parents to Lower Paxton township, Dauphin county, where he at- tended the public school in winter and as- sisted his father on the farm during the busy season until he was twenty-two. IIe then began farming for himself, renting his father's farm for two years and afterwards for one year another farm near by. In 1859 he removed to Clark's Valley, Middle Paxton township, and rented a farm from his father- in-law for five years. In the spring of 1866 he purchased the homestead from his father and farmed it for ten years. In 1876 he bought an additional tract of land near the old Hocker Tavern, upon which he built a
1
868
BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA
new house and barn, and which was his resi- dence until 1889, when he relinquished farming and removed to his present home.
Mr. Meyers was married, October 9, 1856, to Anna, daughter of Peter and Nancy (Welpman) Hocker, both deceased. They have had seven children : James W., born December 9, 1871, died May 8, 1872; Sarah Jane, born August 22, 1859, wife of F. H. Sponsler; Mary Ellen, August 28, 1862, wife of George W. Simmons; Peter, September 17, 1864; John, August 2, 1866; . Alfred Stephen, October 25, 1859; and Samuel, April 17, 1873.
By his efficient business methods, his care- ful manner of living and the help of his good wife, Mr. Meyers has accumulated an ample competence. Freed from the cares and burdens of business he may now enjoy the afternoon of life in his quiet home. Mr. Meyers has served the public in several township offices. He was supervisor for four years, school director twelve years, and tax collector and assessor four years. His poli- tics are Democratic. The family attend the Lutheran church.
- GARMAN, ISAAC, farmer, was born near the homestead, in Middle Paxton township, Dau- phin county, Pa., July 26, 1829. He is a son of Casper and Elizabeth (Bogner) Garman. His grandfather, Jacob Bogner, served in the Revolutionary army. He died at the age of one hundred years and six months. Casper Garman, father of Isaac Garman, died June 18, 1877, aged eighty-five years, five months and eighteen days. His mother died March 5, 1872, aged seventy-seven years, five months and three days. They had seven children : Lucy, Zacharias, Tobias, Isaac; Eleanor, wife of John Umberger ; Mary, wife of Will- iam Coffrode, and Catherine, wife of Jacob Bogner.
Isaac Garman attended the common schools of his township during the winter, and assisted his father in farm work during the summer until he was sixteen. He re- mained on the farm with his father until he was twenty-four ; at this age he rented and cultivated the old Goss farm for four years on his own account. He next spent two years on the old Peter Hocker farm, and moved thence to Susquehanna township, where he farmed for three years, and subse- quently worked General Ott's farm for two years. ITis next removal was to a farm near Rockville, which he occupied three years.
He then rented Dr. IIcck's farm in Middle Paxton township, and cultivated it eight years. In the spring of 1876 he purchased his present homestead, where he has been engaged in farming up to the present time. He has served three consecutive terms as supervisor in Middle Paxton township, and also served as judge of elections. He is a Democrat.
Mr. Garman was married, November 18. 1855, to Julienne, daughter of David and Catherine (Geiger) Unger. Of their nine children four are deceased : Annie Kate, born September 1, 1856, died April 24, 1864 ; Johnny, born April 9, 1871, died May 8, 1873; Stella May, born February 22, 1874, died August 25, 1874, and Isaac C., born February 11, 1865, died June 16, 1892. He was temporarily engaged as foreman for a section of the bridge in process of building over the Licking river at Covington, Ky., when a portion of the structure collapsed, carrying him and thirty-seven other work- men to sudden death. Their living children are : Elwood Purdy, born February 4, 1858 ; Laura E., July 2, 1860, wife of John Lebo ; David Unger, June 25, 1868 ; Eugene M., July 27, 1875, and Lulu F., December 7, 1879. The family attend the Evangelical church.
The father of Mrs. Garman died in 1840, aged about thirty-five years. Her mother was born March 14, 1811, and died Decem- ber 27, 1885, aged seventy-four years, nine months and twelve days.
WILVERT, HENRY E., farmer, was born in Powell's Valley, Halifax township, Dauphin county, Pa., November 6, 1862. He is the son of Henry M. and Susan (Steel) Wilvert. His grandfather, John Wilvert, was a con- tractor in stone work. He built the stone piers of the old Dauphin bridge across the Susquehanna river; he also built those of the bridge over the Susquehanna at Clark's Ferry. On this latter job he sustained con- siderable financial loss. He was a man whose word was as good as a bond. He completed his contract at the expense of his estate, which was the result of the labors of a lifetime. His son, Henry M. Wilvert, Sr., was a stonemason. He died December 27. 1876, aged about forty-eight. His wife died July 3, 1894. Their children were: William J., Daniel Theodore, John Albert, and Henry M.
Henry M. Wilvert, Jr., went to the public
:
ยท
869
DAUPHIN COUNTY.
schools at Matamoras, Halifax township, dur- ing the winter, until he was eighteen years old, and worked on the farm in summer. He was employed at various kinds of work until he became of age. He then took up farming on his own account, on the old Geiger homestead, Middle Paxton township. He purchased the homestead in the autumn of 1883, and has occupied it since that time as his home. Mr. Wilvert was married, December 23, 1883, to Isimiah M., daughter of William and Eleanor (Felty) Geiger. They have no children. Mr. Wil- vert is a Republican. The family attend the Methodist Episcopal church.
Christian Geiger, grandfather of Mrs. Wil- vert, came from Lancaster county and settled in Middle Paxton township. Her father, William Geiger, was born in that township, near the old homestead, which he bought after his mother's death. He was born Sep- tember 29,1815, and died March 20,1888. His wife was born January 27, 1828, and died July 7, 1867. They had seven children : Daniel W., died in infancy; John Christian, born May 27, 1852; Mary Alice, November 3, 1853, wife of Michael Crisswell; Caroline E., July 3, 1855, wife of George W. Reed ; Solomon F., August 22, 1857; Isimiah M., Mrs. Wilvert, December 15, 1859, and Will- iam C., March 7, 1862.
-
WELKER, JOSHUA, farmer, was born in Northumberland county, Pa., October 30, 1837. He is a son of Jonas and Sarah (Kocher) Welker. His father was born Oc- tober 16, 1809, and died February 16, 1888. His mother was the daughter of Peter Kocher. She died aged about sixty-four years. They had thirteen children : Will- iam, Joshua, Amanda, Joel, Isaac, Sarah, John, Levi, Eli, Jonas, who died in child- hood, and three others who are deceased.
Joshua Welker attended a private school in an old log school house in Northumber- land county, until he was twelve years old, when his father removed to Lykens Valley, Dauphin county, in 1849 or 1850. He at- tended the district schools in Washington township four or five years, when the fam- ily removed to Jefferson township. There he continued attending school in the winter months until he was twenty years of age, assisting his father during the busy season on the farm. At twenty years of age he
rented Buffington's saw mill, Jefferson town- ship, and began business for himself, cutting lumber for the farmers and for merchant trade. He continued this business until June, 1863. On this date he enlisted at Camp Curtin, Harrisburg, in company C. Thirty-sixth regiment, Pennsylvania volun- teers, Capt. Dr. Witman, of Halifax, and was sent to Gettysburg, where he was stricken down with typhoid fever, and was for some time in the army hospital. He returned home, but again enlisted at Harrisburg, Au- gust 23, 1864, in company F, Two Hun- dredth regiment, Pennsylvania volunteers. He was in the ranks, but was promoted to corporal in November, 1864, for meritorious services and bravery while on picket duty near Dutch Gap. He was in a number of hotly contested engagements, and at the storming of Petersburg. He was discharged at Alexandria, Va., May 30, 1865. His health was seriously impaired by exposure. On his return Mr. Welker engaged in farm- ing on his own account in Jefferson town- ship, and continued there until 1872, when he rented the old Greenawalt farm, Middle Paxton township, which he has cultivated up to the present time.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.