Commemorative biographical record of central Pennsylvania : including the counties of Centre, Clearfield, Jefferson and Clarion, Pt. 1, Part 22

Author: J.H. Beers & Co
Publication date: 1898
Publisher: Chicago : J. H. Beers
Number of Pages: 1358

USA > Pennsylvania > Jefferson County > Commemorative biographical record of central Pennsylvania : including the counties of Centre, Clearfield, Jefferson and Clarion, Pt. 1 > Part 22
USA > Pennsylvania > Centre County > Commemorative biographical record of central Pennsylvania : including the counties of Centre, Clearfield, Jefferson and Clarion, Pt. 1 > Part 22
USA > Pennsylvania > Clarion County > Commemorative biographical record of central Pennsylvania : including the counties of Centre, Clearfield, Jefferson and Clarion, Pt. 1 > Part 22
USA > Pennsylvania > Clearfield County > Commemorative biographical record of central Pennsylvania : including the counties of Centre, Clearfield, Jefferson and Clarion, Pt. 1 > Part 22

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William B. Rankin was born January 3, 1854. and as a boy was given the advantage of the public schools of Bellefonte, his course there being supplemented by an attendance at the Bellefonte Academy. His first employment was as a clerk in a store, but the growth of his father's business caused him to be called to assist in that, and on the retirement of the father. in 1883. William B. Rankin purchased the entire interest, and has since carried on the enterprise as sole proprietor. Fire insurance is still the chief line, and the business extends throughout Centre county, Mr. Rankin's high character and sound judgment having gained the confidence of the general public. He represents twelve fire insurance companies, one life and one accident company. He has been an Odd Fellow since 1878, and has filled all the chairs in the Subord ?- nate and Encampment, and has been district deputy grand master two terms. He is secretary of the school board, of which he has been a mem ber for fifteen years. He was auditor of Belle fonte for three years. Politically, he gives hi-

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

influence to the support of the Republican party. His wife, formerly Miss Adelaide Bailey, was born March 27, 1854, in Wellsboro, Tioga Co., Penn. Both take great interest in all that con- cerns the welfare of the community. They have six children: Lillie B., Elsie M., Walter B., John A., Adelaide and Mary.

The Blair family, of which Mr. Rankin's mother is a member, is of Irish origin, her grand- father, William Blair, having come from County Antrim, Ireland, to settle in New Jersey, where he spent the latter part of his life. His son Samuel (Mrs. Rankin's father) was a native of that State, but left in early manhood and lo- cated for a time in Pennsylvania. Later he re- sided for twenty years in Wayne county, Ohio, and then spent one year in Illinois; but after this opportunity for observation he wisely chose to pass his remaining years in this section. He settled at Milesburg, Centre county, and his death occurred in Spruce Creek Valley. By oc- cupation he was a chainmaker and wheelwright, and held various political offices in his township, and, in Ohio, he served as justice of the peace for some time. He married Margaret Eakin, a urative of Penn's Valley, and had five children, Mrs. Rankin being the first in order of birth; (2) Eleanor married Miles Read, of Clearfield county; '3) Sarah J. is not married; (4) Catherine died at the age of thirty; and (5) William J. lived only fifteen months.

J C. HARPER, an able and successful attorney of Bellefonte, Centre county, was elected in November, 1896, to the office of County Re- corder. As his abilities have already been thor- oughly tested in public office as Prothonotary, there is no doubt that his administration in his new position will be acceptable to the people.

Mr. Harper is a native of Centre county, and w is born November 1, 1854, upon a farm in Miles township, where his family has been well-known I many years. His grandfather, George Har- „r. came from the lower tier of counties to make a :. permanent home in that township, where his Heath occurred. Our subject's grandmother died wwe years later at Centre Hall, at the age of anety. John Harper, our subject's father, was rn in Miles township, Centre county, and al- ways resided there, following agriculture as an wenpation, and exerting a quiet influence as an pright citizen and a consistent member of the to rman Reformed Church. In politics he was a :mocrat. About ten years ago, at the age of xis, his earthly career closed; his widow, whose

maiden name was Jane Magee, is still living at Centre Hall. Her parents came from Ireland before her birth, which occurred in Union county, and after a short residence in Buffalo Valley they settled in Penn's Valley, Centre county, their last days being spent in Miles township. Our subject was the second of three children: (1) Maggie (deceased) married G. W. Stover, Jr .; (3) Emma married George Emerick, and resides in Centre Hall.

During Mr. Harper's early life he enjoyed the benefits of farm life, but was given the advan- tage of study at the normal schools at Centre Hall and Rebersburg in addition to the usual dis- trict-school course. In 1872 he began teaching school, and continued for some time, his summers being spent in other work and in attending school. In 1876 he was appointed Deputy Prothonotary, and after proving his capacity by about three years of service in that position he was (in 1878) elected Prothonotary, taking his seat in 1879. He was re-elected in 188 1 for three years, and at the close of his term began to read law. Since his admission to the Bar he has been in active practice, meeting with gratifying suc- cess, and he has now been chosen to the office of Recorder, as stated. He is a man well calcu- lated to gain and retain public confidence and esteem, and as a worker in the Democratic party, and as a citizen, he wields wide influence.

On September 16, 1879, Mr. Harper was united in marriage with Miss Laura Graham, who was born in Bellefonte, October 2, 1854. Their pleasant home is gladdened by three children. Clarence, Helen and Arthur.

C APTAIN AUSTIN B. SNYDER, whose death occurred at his home in Bellefonte on February 6, 1892, held an honor and distinction that few of his fellow townsmen shared in, that of a patriot of two wars-the war with Mexico and the war of the Rebellion.

As the name indicates, Capt. Snyder was of German lineage on his father's side, and de- scended from Gov. Simon Snyder. He was a son of Jacob and Jane (Allen) Snyder, industri- ous and frugal people, who lived at the time of their son's birth (October 3, 1824), in a stone house then standing on the site of Gerberich, Hale & Co.'s mill, at the foot of Race street in Bellefonte. Jacob Snyder was a millwright and also a miller, and had followed these occupa- tions in Bellefonte and elsewhere in Centre county. The Allens were of Irish extraction. The children of this couple were: Austin B ..

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

Ellis and Latimar. all now dead. The mother of these dying, Mr. Snyder then married Eliza Gray, of Half Moon township.

When our subject was but thirteen years of age, his father died, and he was thrown on his own resources, and at nineteen he enlisted in the United States army, served with distinguished honor through the Mexican war, and was one of the first to scale the wall at Chepultepec. He returned with a lieutenant's straps. Learn- ing the tailor's trade with Charles Calathan at Bellefonte, he followed that occupation until the breaking out of the war of the Rebellion. The echo of the guns at Fort Sumter had hardly died away before the veteran of the Mexican war had recruited the Eagle Guards, and as Capt. Snyder he was mustered, with his command, into the 4th Regiment under Col. Hartranft, April 19, 1861, as Company H, of that regiment. The regiment was assigned to the First Brigade, Third Division, of Gen. McDowell's army, and during their three-months' term of service were at . Perryvillle (Md.), Annapolis, Washington City, Alexandria and Centreville. On October I, 1861, Capt. Snyder left Bellefonte in com- mand of the McAllister Rifles, which was mus- tered in, October 17, as Company G, 5 Ist P. V. I., under command of Col. Hartranft. The reg- iment was assigned in the corps organization to Brig .- Gen. Reno, and formed a part of the Burn- side expedition to North Carolina. From the very outset the expedition was subjected to se- vere storms, having encountered one after an- other from the time of setting sail in January, 1862, and were at the mercy of the waves and wind for nearly two weeks. Their first en- counter with the enemy was at Roanoke Island, where the enemy's entire force was captured. Capt. Snyder's delicate constitution could not withstand the exposure incident to the swamps and at so trying a time in the year, hence he was compelled to resign from the service, which he did February 12, 1862. In September, 1862, on the call of the Governor of Pennsylvania for 50,000 militia, several companies volunteered from Centre county, and were arranged in the 23d Regiment, and of the militia concentrated near Hagerstown, under Gen. John F. Reynolds, at the time of the battle of Antietam, Col. Sny- der served on the staff as lieutenant-colonel. Again on the call of the President for men in June, 1863, at the invasion of the State by Gen. Lee's ariny, Capt. Snyder organized Company C, and served with them in the southern part of the State until discharged August 8, of that year. He served several times as provost marshal, and after the war followed his trade and carried on

business for himself, residing in Bellefonte. For the last five or six years of his life, owing to fail- ing health, he was compelled to retire from busi- ness. A consistent member of the Presbyterian Church; an honored comrade in G. A. R. Post No. 295, -a beloved and loving father and a faith- ful husband, he has gone to answer "present " on the golden shore of Eternity. He was a member of the Masonic fraternity.

On October 27, 1858, Capt. Snyder was mar- ried to Margaret Wolf, a daughter of Joseph and Sarah (Zones) Wolf, natives, the former of Boalsburg, Penn., and the latter of Muncy, Penn .; both died and are buried at Bellefonte. The children of Capt. Snyder and wife are: Emma married Edward Cook, and lives at Jeannette, Penn .; Mary; Isabella T. died Sep- tember 18, 1885; Ellis, of Dunkirk. Ind .; and George, of New Kensington, Pennsylvania.

MISS MARY SNYDER is a native of Bellefonte, and received her education in its schools. She is conducting an extensive and fashionable millinery establishment, in the display of which is evi- denced ability and taste. She is popular with the masses, and her business efforts are being re- warded with success. Both she and her mother are members of the Presbyterian Church.

H UGH S. TAYLOR. One who makes trial of his talents in the profession of law is judged by the public upon his individual merits to a much greater degree than is a man who chooses a business career, and the young attor- ney whose name opens this sketch may well be proud of the estimate which the people of Ceri- tre county and of his native city of Bellefonte have placed upon his abilities. As he possesses an abundant fund of energy. there is every reason to believe that their high hopes for his future will be fulfilled, and their confidence justified.

Mr. Taylor was born January 12, 1868, of Scotch-Irish parentage. and his home has always been in Bellefonte. The late Hugh Taylor, his father. a native of County Monaghan, Ireland. on arriving in America at the age of twenty years. settled at Bellefonte, where his death occurred. Our subject's mother, whose maiden name was Annie Starr, is a native of Bellefonte, born in 1848. and is still living. As the eldest of a family of fourteen children, Mr. Taylor learned to depend upon his own exertions, and the value of thrift was. early impressed upon him by the difficulties experienced in gaining a livelihood for himself, and securing the means to help those who looked to him for more or less assistance. "Where there's a will there's a way." it is said.

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

and he took a complete course in the Bellefonte High School, graduating in 1886; was then ap- pointed to the West Point Military Academy by Hon. Andrew G. Curtin, M. C., but resigned, and in 1891 entered the Pennsylvania State Col- lege. His legal studies were carried on under the supervision of Orvis, Bower & Qrvis, and after his admission to the Bar in 1894 he re- mained with them a year and a half before start- ing in practice independently.

Mr. Taylor has gathered around him many friends, and he has a lucrative business, his sound judgment on legal principles having been already demonstrated in his professional work. As an advocate he has few equals of his age, and his oratorical gifts have brought him into prominence as a political campaigner for the Democratic par- ty, of which he is a devoted supporter. In June, 1896, he was elected chairman of the Demo- cratic Executive Committee of Centre County, was re-elected County Chairman in June. 1897; since February, 1894, he has held the office of tax collector of the city of Bellefonte. His abilities have a wide and varied scope, as he is a first-class mechanical engineer, having studied practical engineering and drafting at Pennsylva- nia State College, and at present he is superin- tendent of the Bellefonte Steam Heat and Gas Co.'s works.

Mr. Taylor was married November 8, 1894, to Kittie L. Bauer, second daughter of Nicholas Bauer, a merchant of Bellefonte, and they have two sons: Hugh and Vincent Nicholas.

Socially our subject is a member of the K. of G. E., and of the I. O. O. F., Centre County Lodge No. 156, and of Logan Fire Company No. 1. For eleven years he has been in military service in Company B, 5th Penn. National Guards, and now is captain of the company.

D ANIEL C. KELLER, of Bellefonte, Centre county, the well-known proprietor of the "Hotel Haag." formerly known as the " Cum- inings House," is a member of one of the most prominent pioneer families.

His great-grandfather, Elder Jacob Keller, a native of Lebanon county, Penn., born in 1753. was an influential worker in the German Re- formed Church, and took a leading part in the establishment of his Church in Centre county after he made his home there. He was a patriot and served his country in the Revolutionary war. His children were: Jacob, grandfather of our subject, born February 21, 1779, died September 12. 1835. John, born January 27, 1781, died November 15, 1871. 'Elizabeth, born March II,

1785. Margaret, born April 26, 1787. Chris- tian, born in October, 1789. Peter, born Janu- ary, 1791. Philip, born December, 1794. Jacob Keller (2), our subject's grandfather, was born in Lebanon county, coming with his father to Cen- tre county, and settling in Potter township, at the old Red Mill. He married Elizabeth Korn- man, and had seven children: John, born in November, 1801, died in Harris township, Centre county, October 11, 1865. Jacob (3), our sub- ject's father, of whom mention is made farther on. Catherine, born April 11, 1804, married John Stauffer, who died January 15, 1898, at the age of ninety-four years; she passed from earth De- cember 31. 1897. George, born May, 1806, died September, 1865, near Ravenna, Ohio. Elizabeth, born 1808. Henry, born February 3, 1811, died February 6, 1884. David, born January 25, 1818, a resident of Boalsburg. Dan- iel, born August 15, 1825, who lives at Warren, Ohio.

Jacob Keller (3) was born January 28, 1803, and became a weaver by trade, later engaging in agriculture. He was married December 15, 1826, to Miss Christina Dinges, a native of Cen- tre county, born in Penn township April 22, 1807. Their union was broken by the death of the husband February 10 (or March ? ), 1848. and she did not long survive him; her death occur- ring November 25, 1850. Our subject is now the only living member of a family of seven children, the names with dates of birth and death of the others being as follows: Samuel, May 16, 1828 -October 5, 1875, a farmer in Centre county. and married to Elizabeth Wright; Andrew, Feb- ruary 1, 1831-December 8, 1881, a laborer. married to Sarah Bubb; Catherine, March 16, 1833-December 28, 1890, married to John Moyer, of Potter township, Centre county; Eliza- beth , February 11, 18-, lived only twenty days; Christina, September 13, 1838-August 23, 1881, was the wife of Isaac Gift; Lydia, July 6, 1845- June 18, 1893.

Daniel C. Keller who is the sixth in the order of birth, was born July 18, 1841, and was reared at the old farm in Potter township, receiving but meagre educational advantages. He remained at home until his marriage, December 23, 1862, to Miss Julia A. Stump, who was born in Snyder county, June 8, 1844. Her father, William Stump. is now living in Virginia; her mother died in 1865. For three years following his marriage Mr. Keller conducted a hotel at Milroy, Mifflin county, andhe spent one year in farming, and man- aging a hotel at Centre Hall. He then became in- terested in dealing in implements, and in the cat- tle business, and remained at Centre Hall until

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

1881, when he was elected county treasurer, and moved to Bellefonte. He entered upon the duties of his office January 1, 1882, and served three years, returning to Potter township at the close of his term, and erecting one of the finest residences in that section. Farming and dealing in stock occupied his time while there, but in 1883 he sold his farm and moved to Turbotville, Northumberland Co .; Penn., to take charge of the "Union Hotel," which he gave up later for his present business at Bellefonte. Success has attended his efforts in these various lines, and he is one of the substantial citizens. He still owns valuable property at Centre Hall, and during his residence there he for several years held the office of justice of the peace. In political faith he is a Democrat, and the same genial nature which has so materially aided him to success in the hotel business has given him great influence in local affairs. Like his ancestors, he belongs to the Reformed Church, and he is also a mem- ber of the Masonic order, having been one of the nine charter members of the Old Fort Lodge.

Mr. and Mrs. Keller have had four children, of whom two are deceased: Jacob W., who was born January 29, 1864, died January 12, 1866, and James D., born August 11, 1868, died Janu- ary 20, 1872; those living are: John R., born October 14, 1871, and Mary A., born August 19, 1875, both at home.

S AMUEL T. GRAY, of Patton township, one of the substantial and prominent citizens of Centre county, descended from ancestors who came to what is now the county, upward of one hundred years ago. Peter Gray (I), from Fred- erick Co., Md., came to what was then known as the Half Moon country in 1788, and was assessed and regarded as belonging to Franklin township, Huntingdon county. Accompanying the Grays was the Hartsock family from the saine place, and these families became the earliest settlers of Patton township of which there is any record. From this Peter Gray has descended the many families of Gray in this section of Pennsylvania, a number of whom have never moved very far away from the lands he first occupied, and repre- sentatives of these families are found occupying honorable and useful stations in the various call- ings of life.

John Gray, one of the sons of Peter Gray (I). and the one from which Samuel T. descended, was born in 1767 and died in 1848; he married Catherine, a daughter of Conrad Hartsock, the head of the first family of the name to settle here; she died in 1847. Their children were:

Elizabeth, married to Jonas Stine; Catherine, married to Samuel Stine; John (2), married to Mary Mattern; Samuel P., married to Sarah Gray; Barbara, married to George Mattern; Sarah, married to Franklin Johnson; Susanna, married to Robert Blakely; Hannah, married to David Mckinney; Eve, married to John Cham- bers; Isaac, married to Catherine Mattern; and Mary, married (first) to Thomas Shivery, and (second) to John Mattern. It will be observed that four of these children married Matterns, and of the same family, so that their children were doubly related. The children of John Gray (2) and Mary Mattern were: Samuel T. is our subject; Catherine married James Love; John C. married Rebecca Lias; Miles D. married Anna Wilson, and died in 1884; Isaac married Sarah Liggett, and died in 1889; George died aged twenty-one years; Elizabeth married James Ebbs (deceased); Mary married George Thompson (de- ceased); Harriet married Capt. William C. Dale, of Harrisburg, and Margaret married A. C. Hutchinson. The parents of these children died, the father in 1856, in his fifty-seventh year, and the mother in November, 1871, in her seventy- third year.

Samuel T. Gray, the subject of this sketch, was born July 24, 1824, in Patton township, where his father and grandfather before him had lived, and within sight of his present home, where he has resided for forty-five years past. Like the sons of the general farmer, he received such edu- cational privileges as the schools of the neighbor- hood afforded, John W. Bowen and Reuben H. Meek being among his early teachers. He re- mained at home until his marriage in 1852, when he came to his present farm and began life for 'himself. This farm comprises some three hun- dred acres of land, much of which he has cleared and improved himself; it is well watered and lies beautifully; on it are large and commodious buildings, both barn and dwelling, and in goodly shape, presenting an inviting appearance-indic- ative of the careful and tasteful farmer that Mr. Gray is. The barn was built in IS55, and the house in 1859. Through industry, economy and good managenient, Mr. Gray has accumulated a competency. He has given his life to the pur- suits of an agriculturist, and is to-day one of the successful farmers and substantial and influential men of Centre county. While in no sense an office-seeker, he has for years served the people of his township as overseer of the poor; was for a number of years justice of the peace, and for six years served as auditor of Centre county, his term of office expiring some three years ago.

Samuel T. Gray's wife, whose death occurred

Band I way

W. E. Gray

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

June 25, 1893, was Harriet Hutchison, a daugh- ter of Benjamin Hutchison, of Warrior's Mark, Huntingdon county, Penn., in his day one of the most prominent men of that section of the State. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Gray were Emma, born in 1853, died in 1870; George H., born in 1855, died in 1856; Mary R., born in 1854, died in 1859; William E., born in 1860; Annie Her- inan, born in 1863, died in 1864; Minnie W., born in 1865, died in 1892; Nora; Samuel E., born in 1872, died in 1891. In an obituary no- tice of Mrs. Gray it was stated that:

Within the last two years death has entered the home three times and broken the family circle. First within this limit, Samuel was called; then Miss Minnie, a bright and charming young lady who had hosts of warm friends; last, but not least, was the dear mother, who has always been a true and faithful friend and guardian to both husband and children, who will never forget her loving kindness and tender mercy. She leaves a husband and three children to mourn her death: W. E. Gray, Esq., one of the rising young lawyers in Bellefonte, and Misses Annie and Nora, who live at home. Samuel Gray, the venerable husband, is one of the most prosperous and highly respected farmers in Centre county. He is also one of the auditors of Centre county, and is an honest and upright man. Mrs. Gray was a Methodist, and was sincere and devoted to the cause of Christianity. She was one of those Christians who live by faith and not by sight, letting her "light so shine that men might see her good works and glorify her Father in Heaven." She had a kind heart and was always trying to do some kindness.

Mr. Gray has for many years been identified with the M. E. Church, having served as trustee and steward. In politics he is a Republican as was his father before him.

H ON. WILLIAM E. GRAY, who has just re- tired from the office of Burgess of Belle- fonte, is a prominent member of the Centre County Bar, and one of the most active and popular members of the Republican party of his locality. A deep thinker and a thorough student, his success in legal lines has been won by sound logic, his speeches always possessing the rhetori- cal graces of the orator that he is, and the energy with which he carries out any project marks him a leader of men.

Born June 14, 1860, he has the best part of his life yet before him, and his friends predict for him, with reason, a brilliant future. He is the son of Samuel T. and Harriet N. (Hutchison) Gray. His early life was passed at the old farm in Patton township, the district schools of the neighborhood furnishing him educational facilities until at eighteen he entered the preparatory de- partment of Pennsylvania State College, where in 1883, after a five-years' course, he was gradu- ated with the degree of B. S. In 1882 he took the junior oratorical class prize at the contest in oratory. Subsequently he took the degree of M. S. After his graduation he spent two years in

teaching school, the summers being devoted to the study of law with Messrs. Hastings & Reed- er. He then entered the Law School, at Albany, N. Y., and in May, 1886, graduated from that institution, receiving the degree of LL. B. At the commencement exercises he was one of the four orators chosen, and the only one from Penn- sylvania. On August 23rd, of the same year, he was admitted to the Bar in his native county, and has since been successfully engaged in general practice. In 1894, he was elected Burgess of Bellefonte for a term of three years, and in Jan- uary, 1895, he was elected chairman of the Re- publican County Committee, to which position he was re-elected in August, 1895, and again in June, 1896, and in August, 1897, he was again re-elected Republican County Chairman, his pres- ent term extending until January 1, 1899. The following extracts from the press evidence his growth as a young attorney and citizen:

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Commemorative biographical record of central Pennsylvania : including the counties of Centre, Clearfield, Jefferson and Clarion, Pt. 1, Part 22

Author: J.H. Beers & Co Publication date: 1898 Publisher: Chicago : J. H. Beers Number of Pages: 1358

Author: J.H. Beers & Co
Publication date: 1898
Publisher: Chicago : J. H. Beers
Number of Pages: 1358