Commemorative biographical record of Washington County, Pennsylvania, containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, and of many of the early settled families, Part 25

Author: J.H. Beers & Co
Publication date: 1893
Publisher: Chicago, J. H. Beers
Number of Pages: 1540

USA > Pennsylvania > Washington County > Commemorative biographical record of Washington County, Pennsylvania, containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, and of many of the early settled families > Part 25

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THE LORD'S PRAYER.

Onr Father who in heaven art, Look kindly on Thy wayward child; Help me to chose the better part And save me from the tempter's wiles.

All hallowed be Thy sacred name, Thy kingdom here on earth be made; Fill all the earth with holy flame, Till sin's corrupting hand be stayed.

In love and peace Thy will be done, In every land Thy praise be heard; Till all on earth, aye, every one, Doth read and ponder o'er Thy word.

Give me each day my daily bread, Thy tender hand relieve my care; If Thon, who hath the ravens fed, Will help me, I shall have no fear.

Forgive my debts as I forgive The ones who do me grievons wrong; As I let others, so let me live, And always in Thy faith be strong.

Let no temptation lead astray The wayward passions of the soul; But guide me in the better way, And save me from my own control.

Deliver me from evil tide, Save me from its dire distress;

Open the gates of mercy wide, Where all is love and peacefulness.

And when the light of earthly bliss, Fades from my weary closing eyes, May all the love that here I miss, Be mine renewed beyond the skies.

Thine be the glory evermore; Thy holy faith my best endeavor; And when for me this life is o'er, Take me to Thee and Thine forever.

J. R. F.

Washington, Penn., September 8, 1884. GATHERING IIOME. In this neglected, quiet spot, Mid shadows soft and drear; With tangled grass and creeping vines And running waters near;

The old home grim and silent stands- The fires, warm and bright, That cracked and blazed npon each hearth, Are dark and cold to-night. The winter's blast amid the trees, With low and solemn mnoan,

Repeats the nightbird's mournfnl chant, Where once we gathered home.

I look upon the dolefnl scene, The time-worn ruined place, And fail to find amid the wreck One faint, familiar trace. It makes my heart o'erflow with grief, My tears I can't restrain, And o'er my bosom rolls a tide Of sorrow, grief and pain. The past doth flit before my mind- Here once again I roam; And once again I hear the shout Of children gathering home.

Again I see my mother come To meet me at the door, And welcome home her romping ones When school and work was o'er. Again I feel the grateful warmth That beamed from every smile,

When she would stoop to soothe our grief, Our little woes begnile. I hear again, with quickened pulse, Re-echo from each stone

The happy, merry, gleeful laugh Of children gathering home.

Those children who have long ago Grown up to man's estate, And wandered ont into the world, To strive with varying fate; That mother who, these many years, Mid shadows soft and still,

Hath folded up her tired hands And sleeps upon the hill; That happy home, this crumbling wreck, Deserted, sad and lone, Repeat the legend, here no more, " Will we come gathering home."

No more within these crumbling walls, Where build the noisy birds, Will I behold my mother's form, Or hear her loving words. No more beneath this falling roof, Each widening gap doth tell,

Will come again, with laugh and song, Those happy ones to dwell. No more, along these silent paths, Their merry feet will roam; But one by one-just over there They all will gather home.

Washington, Penn., May 28, 1885.

H ON. WILLIAM MONTGOMERY was born in Franklin township, Washington Co., Penn., April 11, 1819, and died in Canton township, April 28, 1870.

His father was William Montgomery, a native of Scotland, born in Ayrshire in 1792, and was a relative of Sir James Montgomery. He re- moved from Virginia to Washington county, Penn., in 1817, and the same year married Elizabeth

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Kelly. He died in 1858 leaving two children: William and Martha Jane. Martha married J. F. Linville, and now resides in New Castle, Lawrence Co., Penn. They have one son, Montgomery Linville, M. D.

Hon. William Montgomery entered Washington College at an early age, and was graduated in September, 1839, under the presidency of Dr. Mc- Conaughy. He at once commenced the study of law under the late John L. Gow, as preceptor, and was admitted to practice at November term, 1841, his examiners and certifiers being the Hon. T. M. T. McKennan, Hon. Isaac Leet and James Wat- son, Esq. His rise at the bar was rapid and brill- iant, and in a few years he took a high position among its leading members, enjoying to the last an enviable reputation, as well as an extensive and lucrative practice. In 1845 he was appointed dis- trict attorney by Gov. Shunk. In 1848 lie re- ceived the Democratic nomination for State sena- tor, but was defeated by a small majority. In 1854 he received the nomination of the same party for Congress, and during that year made some of the most powerful speeches of his life. In 1856 he was elected to Congress, and in 1858 was re- elected by a very large majority. His career in Congress was marked by several speeches of great ability, which placed him at once among the rec- ognized leaders of the then dominant party.

Mr. Montgomery was known as the author of the "Crittenden-Montgomery Resolution" on the admission of Kansas to the Union. As a public speaker he possessed a power that would attract and hold the attention and raise the highest en- thusiasm among his listeners. As a lawyer he had few peers, and his name is handed down to history as one of the most talented of the day.

In 1845 Mr. Montgomery married Matilda Duvall, of Washington county, Penn., and they had three children: Andrew Jackson, James and William. Of these Andrew Jackson married Martha G. Black, of Washington, Penn., and they now reside in Canton township, same county; they have two children, Elizabeth and George. James married Lillias Ritner, of Washington, Penn., and they now reside in Salem, Roanoke Co., Va .; they have one son, William Morgan. William, the youngest son of our subject, died in 1880.

EORGE WASHINGTON MINTON, a prom- inent and well-to-do lifelong farmer and stock raiser, of Morris township, is a native of the same, having been born January 4, 1817.

His father. Philip Minton, who was a native of New Jersey, born October 6, 1782, came about the commencement of this century to Washington county, settling in Morris township, where he 8

passed the remainder of his life, Indians and wild animals being at that time still numerous and troublesome. On January 21, 1803, he was mar- ried to Eunice Clutter, of Morrison township, by which union there were nine children, viz. : Rachel, Thaddeus, John, Sarah, Sophronia, Ruth, George Washington, Sarah Ann and Harriet, all of whom are now deceased except Sophronia and George Washington.

The subject of this memoir was married Decem- ber 20, 1838, to Jane, daughter of Stephen Day, of Morris township, Greene Co., Penn., and the names and dates of birth of the children born to them are as follows: Sarah Philena, September 22, 1839; Bradley, July 25, 1842; Collins, October 30, 1845; Mary Edith, April 25, 1848; John, No- vember 13, 1850; Stephen Minton, June 9, 1853; George Lowrie, May 22, 1856; Philip Leondus, May 29, 1858; Oliver Homer, April 29, 1859. Of these, Sarah Philena lives at home, unmarried; Bradley married Mattie Gere, of Lawrence county, Penn., who died April 25, 1889, and he then wedded Mary Anderson, of West Alexander (he is a druggist at Claysville); Collins married Miss Min- erva Patterson, of Franklin township, this county, and after her death was united in marriage with Miss Mattie Grayble, of Akron, Ohio (he is a painter by trade); Mary Edith makes her home with her father, and is unmarried; John is a farmer in East Finley township, and is married to Sarah Rickey, of Richhill township, Greene Co , Penn. ; Stephen is a farmer, and is married to Cora, daughter of Artemas Day, of Morris township; George Lowrie married Callie V. Webb, and after her death wedded Luella Doty (he lives in Nine- veh, Greene Co., Penn., where he carries on a dry- goods store); Philip L. is married to Emma San- ders, and lives in Washington, this county; Oliver Homer lived only one year, dying April 29, 1860. The mother of this family departed this life De- cember 20, 1888. Mr. Minton, in addition to car- rying on general agriculture, has been consider- ably interested in stock raising, and at the present time has some ten horses on his place. He has been eminently successful, and is recognized as one of the best authorities on matters pertaining to agricultural pursuits. Politically he is a pro- nounced Democrat, one " dyed in the wool," and has served three years as school director.

W ALTER L. WHITING. Among the well- known, progressive young business men of Washington, the subject of this sketch occupies a leading position. John Whit- ing, his father, was born in 1820, at Ports- mouth, England, where he was educated and reared to mercantile business.

John, while yet a young man, came to America,

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and made a settlement in Washington county, at Washington, in 1842. In 1844 he married Marga- ret, daughter of Reuben and Elizabeth Turner, and the children born to this union were: Edwin (deceased), Sarah M., Mary E., William B., George E., John, Carroll C., Harry D., and Walter L. The family are members of the Prot- estant Episcopal Church. In politics Mr. Whit- ing is a Republican. For several years he has been engaged in mercantile business in Washing- ton.

Walter L. Whiting, the subject proper of this sketch, was born at Washington, this county, Jan- uary 13, 1862, and received a liberal education at the public schools. When a youth he entered the employ of William Smith & Son, the well-known merchants of Washington, remaining with them eleven years, during which time he acquired a thorough business training. In August, 1885, he received the appointment of assistant bookkeeper for the Citizens National Bank of Washington, and in 1890 was chosen cashier of the Farmers & Mechanics' National Bank, of the same place, which position he fills with eminent ability and complete satisfaction. On May 17, 1888, Mr. Whiting was married to Frances, eldest daughter of the late Edward Little, of Washington. Two children, Haven L. and Helen L., have come to bless their home. Our subject and wife are mem- bers of the Protestant Episcopal Church. In politics Mr. Whiting is a Republican.

Edward Little, born in 1837, at Silloth, Eng- land, married Eleanor, daughter of John and Mary Wales, of Carlisle, England, in 1861. The children born to them are Frances, Grace, Eleanor, Jane, Mary, Edward and Bessie. Mr. Little, wife and two children came to America and settled at Washington, Penn., in 1869. He was a contractor and builder of prominence here. Frances (Little) Whiting was born at Workington, England, August 30, 1864. Edward Little, her father, died July 27, 1885, and Eleanor Little, her mother, died March 7, 1891.

S® AMUEL MAXWELL was born near Car- lisle, Penn., October 23, 1776, and died Oc- tober 9, 1865. About the year 1800 he pur- chased a farm in the vicinity of New Cum- berland, W. Va. (then Brooke county, Va., now Hancock county, W. Va.), which was his home un- til his death.

Mr. Maxwell was very highly esteemed as a neighbor and a citizen. He was for over fifty years a ruling elder in the Presbyterian Church, having been ordained to that office by Rev. Elisha McCurdy, in the church known as the "Three Springs," in the burial ground of which his body awaits the resurrection of the just. He was twice

married: first to Miss Sarah Scott, by whom he had five sons-Scott, Smiley, John, Robert, Will- iam (who died in infancy)-and one daughter -Elizabeth, who became the wife of a Mr. Welsh, whose son, Rev. Josiah Welsh, was the founder and, until his death in 1877, the pastor of the First Presbyterian Church of Salt Lake City, Utah.

Mrs. Jane Fulton, a sister of the Rev. John Mc- Cluskey, D. D., and widow of John Fulton, of Florence, Penn., was Mr. Maxwell's second wife. They were married August 18, 1831. Mrs. Max- well, by her first husband, was the mother of Rev. Robert John Fulton (a sketch of whom follows), a brilliant young clergyman, who died at Cumber- land, Guernsey Co., Ohio, in 1855. The children of Samuel and Jane (Mccluskey) Maxwell were William (born August 9, 1832, and died at Will- iamsburgh, Va., May 13, 1863), James McCluskey (a sketch of whom follows), and Joseph Henry, who is an extensive wheat-grower near Dawson, Minnesota.

Joseph Henry Maxwell was born March 10, 1840. In the early history of the war of the Re- bellion he enlisted in the First West Virginia Reg- iment (loyal), Col. Thoburn, commander, and con- tinued in the ranks until the close of the war, re- fusing promotion and passing courageously through more than thirty pitched battles, fortunately re- ceiving no serious personal injury, and only on one occasion a slight wound.

Robert J. Fulton was born in the northern part of Washington county, Penn., a son of John Fulton, a descendant of Robert Fulton, of steamboat renown. His mother was Jane Mccluskey, a sister of the late Catherine (McCluskey) Herriott, who was the mother of William and John Herriott, well-known farmers of Mt. Pleasant township, of Miss Nancy Jane Herriott, of Canonsburg, and Mrs. Kate (Her- riott) Ewing, wife of Rev. William Ewing, of the same place. Her son, James H., died some years ago at Lawrence, Kans. Mr. Fulton was one of the brightest men that ever enlivened a dinner party or social. He was considerably over six feet tall, of very slender but compact build. His manner was keen and surprisingly alert. Had he been a heavier boned man he might easily have been mistaken for a twin brother of Abraham Lin- coln. He had dark complexion, small, black, sparkling eyes and a dense shock of very black hair. He was a man of exceedingly fine taste, and very few in the Presbyterian Church to day equal his scholastic attainments and oratorical powers. After teaching school in country districts for some years while a boy, he attended the celebrated acad- emy at West Alexander, presided over for many years by his mother's brother, the far-famed Dr. Jolın McCluskey. Then after teaching in this school and reading a complete course in the classics, mathematics and theology under the tuition of

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Dr. Mccluskey, he was, after a most rigid exami- nation, licensed to preach by the Presbytery of Ohio, whose members declared that he had stood a better examination than any candidate that had ever come before them. Mr. Fulton had no brother, but two sisters, one of whom, long since dead, was the wife of Samuel Phillips, of Chartiers township. She had three children: Fulton, Hibbert and Sophie C. J., the first being the editor and pro- prietor of the McDonald Outlook, the second a very popular and successful physician at Pitts- burgh, and the third a well-known resident of Canonsburg. The second sister of Robert Fulton was Mary, wife of Rev. T. B. Van Eman, of Can- onsburg, who died many years ago, leaving one son, John William, who is a Presbyterian minister and missionary at Geneseo, Kans. After having been licensed, Mr. Fulton was called to the Pres- byterian Church at Cumberland, Ohio. A few years after he went to assist at a wonderful re- vival of religion in a neighboring church where he preached each day and each night for two weeks; then coming home preached on Sabbath to his own people an exceedingly impressive sermon from Micah vi: 9, and took pneumonia and fever that carried him off in a few days. Thus passed away one of the brightest spirits this county ever pro- duced. Robert Fulton married Ruth Anna Lucas, who resides in West Alexander, Penn. They had one daughter, Kate, who married a Mr. Sproul, an attorney, who has for some years been engaged in one of the departments at Washington, D. C.

Rev. John McCluskey, D. D., was for over a quarter of a century the active and successful pastor of the church of West Alexander, Penn. At the age of thirty-three years he came to it, a licentiate from the Presbytery of Philadelphia, and was ordained by Washington Presbytery as pastor, October 8, 1828. Chester county, Penn., claims the honor of his birth, which occurred June 17, 1795, though the discipline of his youth came from Washington county, the future sphere of his labors. Jefferson College sent him forth in the class of 1822, adorned with her culture, and better still as a new man in the purpose of his life; for while an under-graduate he made his confession of Christ in the Chartiers Church, then under the pastoral care of Dr. John McMillan. Not a little of his mental development, before and after his collegiate training, came through his own efforts as a teacher, and the habit thus acquired increased and widened his influence throughout his pastoral work. He received his theological training partly under the instruction of Dr. Ezra Stiles Ely, of Philadelphia, and, for one year, in the Princeton Seminary. Dr. Mccluskey was more a man of action than of severe study. His preaching was plain, Scriptural, sound and spiritual, abounding in illustrations from daily life. It was attended with

steady ingathering to the communion of the church, and often with special revivals. He was pre-emi- nently a man of affairs, even at times taking the temporal as well as spiritual interests of his people into his care. Thus, under his influence, the gen- eral advancement of society kept pace with the progress of his church He was a special friend of liberal education. He established the West Alexander Academy, and conducted it with much success and reputation during the pastorate, send- ing forth from its walls about fifty students who became ministers, besides many candidates for the other professions. He was also an active trustee of Washington College. Dr. Mccluskey's resigna- tion, April 15, 1854, in the fifty-ninth year of his age, was not for the purpose of inglorious ease, but rather for a change of work. After a year spent in the service of the board of education, he supplied the pulpit of the church of Neshaminy, Penn., and afterward that of Smyrna, Delaware, through a period of five years. In 1859 he found- ed a church-school in West Philadelphia. In 1864 he established an institution at Hightstown, N. J., for the free tuition of the children of ministers, and especially of missionaries. Returning to Phil- adelphia in 1870, he acted for a time as associate principal of the Mantua Academy. The evening of his declining life was spent among friends at Wooster, Ohio. On March 31, 1880, in the eighty- fifth year of his age, his life work came to its end in Philadelphia, and he ascended to the upper skies. [From the "History of the Presbytery of Washington."]

His body was laid to rest in the old Neshaminy Cemetery at Hartsville, Penn., where, since, at his side was placed the body of his most estimable and greatly beloved wife.

REV. JAMES MCCLUSKEY MAXWELL, D. D., was born in the vicinity of New Cumberland, Brooke Co., Va. (now Hancock county, W. Va.), August 1, 1837. He was baptized in infancy by Rev. John W. Scott, president of Washington College, at the old Three Springs church, where his father, Sam- uel Maxwell, had been many years before ordained a ruling elder by Rev. Elisha McCurdy. His mother was Jane Mccluskey Maxwell, a native of Robinson township, Washington Co., Penn., and a sister of Rev. John McCluskey, D. D., well known in western Pennsylvania as a leading preacher and educator in his day. At Cumberland, Ohio, and at Miller Academy, Washington, Ohio, Mr. Max- well was prepared for Washington College, where he graduated in 1860. The two years following he spent in the Western Theological Seminary, at Allegheny, Penn., going in the autumn of 1862 to Chicago, where, in the spring of 1863, he graduated from the McCormick Theological Seminary. Mr. Maxwell's student life was marked by faithfulness as well as brilliancy, and gave full promise of his

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subsequent successful and eminently useful career. He was licensed to preach the Gospel by the Pres- bytery of Zanesville at its session held at McCon- nellsville, Ohio, in April, 1862, and was invited, immediately after completing his theological course, to take charge of the Presbyterian Church at Fort Madison, Iowa, also to the pastorate of the Presby- terian Church at Kirkwood, in the vicinty of St. Louis, Mo. The latter he accepted, and was in September, 1863, ordained a Gospel minister by the Presbytery of St. Louis, and installed pastor of the Kirkwood Church, which position he held until June, 1865, when he accepted a call to the pastorate of the Twelfth Presbyterian Church of Baltimore, Md. The two years which Mr. Max- well passed at Kirkwood were the closing years of the war of the Rebellion, and in addition to his pastoral duties he gave attention to the physical and spiritual wants of the soldiers in the barracks, hospitals and prisons of St. Louis. He entered upon his labors as pastor of the Baltimore Church in Angust, 1865, and continued in that pastorate for nine years, when, on account of impaired health, lie was advised by his physician to give up his work entirely for a year or two, or seek a field in which his duties would be much lighter; and in accordance with his advice he removed, in the fall of 1874, to the beautiful town of Belvidere, N. J., where he accepted a call to the Second Presbyte- rian Church, in the pastorate of which he contin- ued for six years. On October 26, 1865, Mr. Max- well was married in Hightstown, N. J., to Miss Gertrude A. Appleget, of that town, Rev. S. S. Shriver and Rev. John McCluskey, D. D., offici- ating. Mrs. Maxwell is a woman of rare natural endowments and broad culture, and she has ever, by her sweet, Christian spirit, and her efficiency and exceptional qualifications as a social leader and Christian worker, won a warm place in the esteem and affection of all with whom her position . has brought her into contact. The kindly, gener- ous and hospitable disposition of the husband has always met with the hearty sympathy and co-ope- ration of the wife, so that the parsonage has ever and everywhere been noted for its delightful hos- pitality. Mr. Maxwell and his wife have been twice abroad: first for four months in 1877, visit- ing Great Britain, Holland, Germany, Belgium, Switzerland and France. The second visit abroad was made in 1880-81, including almost a year, and embraced Algeria, Spain, Italy, and, on the part of Mr. Maxwell, Egypt, Palestine, Greece, Constantinople, and. westward by way of the Black Sea, the Danube, Hungary, Austria, Venice, and over the Simplon Pass. During this tour Mr. Maxwell was correspondent of such well-known newspapers as the New York Independent and Tribune, the Interior of Chicago, and has since been a valued contributor to the Christian at Work

and the Christian Union. In 1882 Mr. Maxwell became editor of the Presbyterian Observer at Bal- timore, which position he held until the winter of 1885-86, much of the time supplying the Presby- terian Church of Harmony, Harford Co., Md., and was earnestly solicited to become pastor there, but, though the mutual attachment was very great between the people of that church and himself, he did not see his way clear to assume its pastorate. In the meantime he was called to the pastoral charge of the Presbyterian Church at Sweet Air, Baltimore Co., Md., and to that of Beaver, Penn., and also to the church of Monongahela City, Penn., which latter he accepted, and of which he is still the popular and beloved pastor. Dr. Maxwell is a preacher of rare power-fresh, vigorous and suggestive-a pastor of exceptional tenderness and devotion-an organizer of peculiar tact-a friend whom one values and a companion of whom one never tires. [By Rev. John R. Sutherland, D. D., of Pittsburgh.

T THOMAS H. BAIRD. A conspicuous figure on the streets of Monongahela City, elastic in step, erect in carriage, of fine physical proportions, still in the prime of life, and, withal, remarkably well preserved, is the subject of this biographical notice.

Thomas Harlan Baird, his father, was born No- vember 15, 1787, in Washington, Penn. He was the third son of Dr. Absalom and Susanna (Brown) Baird, the latter a daughter of John Brown, archi- tect. When quite young he was sent to a Latin school, taught by one of the pioneer classical teachers of that day in Brooke county, W. Va. He was called home by the sudden death of his father, and liis education from that time had to be completed by his own earnest efforts and scholarly tastes. He studied law with Joseph Pentecost, one of the most prominent lawyers of that period, and was admitted to the Washington county bar in July, 1808, before he had reached the age of twenty-one. In 1818 he was selected as president judge of Washington, Fayette, Greene and Somer- set counties, and continued to hold the position until 1838. This commission bestowed upon so young a man, when the Washington county bar was quite noted for its able lawyers, was an ac- knowledgment of his legal ability. During the ten years in which he practiced law he was in- tensely occupied in promoting by every means in his power, the growth and progress of his native town. Like his father, Dr. A. Baird, he was al- ways among the first to assist, by his hardly earned money and indomitable energy, any enter- prise for that purpose. In very many cases the credit due his indefatigable labors was given to others, who did not hesitate to assume an honor

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Commemorative biographical record of Washington County, Pennsylvania, containing biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens, and of many of the early settled families, Part 25

Author: J.H. Beers & Co Publication date: 1893 Publisher: Chicago, J. H. Beers Number of Pages: 1540

Author: J.H. Beers & Co
Publication date: 1893
Publisher: Chicago, J. H. Beers
Number of Pages: 1540