Commemorative biographical record of central Pennsylvania : including the counties of Centre, Clearfield, Jefferson and Clarion, Pt. 2, Part 31

Author: J.H. Beers & Co
Publication date: 1898
Publisher: Chicago : J. H. Beers
Number of Pages: 1266

USA > Pennsylvania > Clarion County > Commemorative biographical record of central Pennsylvania : including the counties of Centre, Clearfield, Jefferson and Clarion, Pt. 2 > Part 31
USA > Pennsylvania > Jefferson County > Commemorative biographical record of central Pennsylvania : including the counties of Centre, Clearfield, Jefferson and Clarion, Pt. 2 > Part 31
USA > Pennsylvania > Clearfield County > Commemorative biographical record of central Pennsylvania : including the counties of Centre, Clearfield, Jefferson and Clarion, Pt. 2 > Part 31
USA > Pennsylvania > Centre County > Commemorative biographical record of central Pennsylvania : including the counties of Centre, Clearfield, Jefferson and Clarion, Pt. 2 > Part 31

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).

Nicholas Straw, the father of our subject, early in life learned the potter's trade, which he followed previous to his marriage, and then op- erated a rented farm for a few years. Subse- quently he purchased 100 acres of heavily tim- bered land in Jordan township, and engaged in lumbering and improved a fine farm -- the pres- ent homestead of our subject. There he con- tinued to make his home until called to his final rest. in1 1870. With the Baptist Church he and

of Charles Litle, who was born in Clearfield county of Scotch parentage, and was a shoe- maker by trade. In his family were children as follows: James; William; Samuel, who died in childhood: George H .; John; Jane, wife of C. Straw; Elizabeth, wife of R. Miller: Maria: Mary; Martha; Nancy; and Sarah. To Nicholas Straw and wife were born eight children: Sam- uel, a farmer; William, of this sketch: Mrs.

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

Eliza J. Ester; Mrs. Matilda Jones; Mrs. Car- oline Summers; and Reuben, Alfred and John, all farmers.

William Straw pursued his studies in the country schools near his boyhood home, and since twenty years of age he has spent his winters in the lumber woods, while the summer months have been. passed in agricultural pursuits. He and his brother Reuben purchased the interests of the other heirs in the old homestead, which they still own and operate, having separate resi- dences upon the place. In 1869 William Straw was married to Miss Letitia, daughter of William and Catherine (Stewart) Magarvey, who were both natives of Ireland, but came to America previous to their marriage, which was celebrated in Philadelphia, where the father worked in a lint factory. Removing to Huntingdon county, Penn., he secured employment at an iron furnace, but after coming to Clearfield county, in 1841 or 1842, purchased land and improved a farm in the midst of the forest, where he spent the re- mainder of his life, dying in 1893, at the age of eighty years. His wife died in 1877. They were members of the Methodist Protestant Church, and the parents of eight children, namely: Will- iam; John; Paul; Letitia; Mary A., wife of Anson Williams; Mathew; Robert and David.

To our subject and his wife have been born seven children: Sarah C .; Ann E., now the wife of C. Witherow; Heber H. ; William N .; Samuel L .; Mary M .; and Paul S. All have been provided with excellent educational privi- leges, and the oldest son has attended a commer- cial college for two terms. One room of their comfortable residence has been fitted up for the use of their children in study hours, and they | have been given every advantage necessary to fit them for the responsible duties of life. The fam- ily is one of prominence in social circles, and the mother and children are all active members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. His political : support is given the men and measures of the Democratic party. He is a true citizen in every respect, and has an excellent reputation as a straightforward and upright man.

W ILLIAM H. EDWARDS, M. D., whose beautiful home at Janesville, Clearfield county, commands a charming view of that pic- turesque locality, is a busy and successful phy- sician, his practice extending many miles in all directions. Choosing the arduous labors of a country practitioner in preference to other branches of professional work which are usually deemed more desirable, he has faithfully held to

his choice, and in summer's heat and winter's snow has traveled many miles uncomplainingly at the call of duty.

Dr. Edwards began life as a boy in a family of moderate means, and worked at various call- ings to obtain the money for his professional education. He comes from some of this coun- try's best Colonial stock. He is a lineal descend- ant of John Edwards, who settled at Haverhill, Mass., in 1703.

John Edwards had a son, John, Jr .. who was born at Haverhill, Mass., November 10, 1713, and married Elizabeth Crockett, by whom he had among other children a son Samuel, the Doctor's great-grandfather. Samuel Edwards was born at Haverhill, February 16, 1749, and became a soldier in the struggle for our national Independence. He lived at Gorham and Grove- ville, Maine, and was thrice married. He was the father of nine children, all by the first mar- riage, and all girls save one, John Edwards, the Doctor's grandfather, who was born April 30, 1778, at Gorham, Maine, where he continued to reside after his marriage to Miss Eunice Smith (a granddaughter of the Elizabeth Mclellan, portrayed in Kellogg's "Good Old Times, or Grandmother's Struggle For a Homestead "), and there their third child, Bryce Smith, the Doctor's father was born, September 17, 1806. Bryce was married, March 6, 1830, to Abigail Flood. born July 12, 1802, at Gorham, Maine. She was also from old New England stock, one an- cestor, Calvin Lombard, having the credit of being the first man who fired on the British, at the siege of Portland, Maine, during the Revo- lution. Bryce Smith Edwards had seven chil- dren: Dr. William H .; John C. (deceased,, for- merly of Chelsea, Mass .; Luther F., of Madi- son, Maine ; Rev. Bryce M., of Brunswick. Maine; Sylvester (deceased), formerly of Gar- diner, Maine: Mrs. Susan Vaughan, of Boston. Mass. ; and Mrs. Adrianna Butler (deceased), formerly of Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin.

Dr. William H. Edwards was born November 28, 1842, at Industry, Franklin Co., Maine. and was reared upon a farin, receiving a common- school education. In November, 1860, he came to Clearfield county, and that winter he spent in teaching school near Madera. During the sum- iner he worked at the carpenter's trade, but he secured a position as teacher for the following winter at Janesville. In the spring of 1862 he returned to his native State, and in September of that year he enlisted at the call of nine-months' men as a private in Company H. 24th M. V. I. On December 31. he was promoted to the rank of orderly sergeant of Company H. his regiment

W.H. Edwards MED.

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

being then a portion of the Nineteenth Army Corps, under Gen. Banks, in the Department of the Gulf. On August 4, 1863, the Doctor be- came a second lieutenant in his regiment, and held that rank until his discharge, by reason of illness, on August 25, 1863. During his term of service he took part in all the engagements of his regiment, and was at Port Hudson throughout the siege. On May 21, 1863, when a call was made for volunteers to reconnoiter the position of the Rebels, two men from each company, he was one of the men to step forward. This band was afterward christened "Banks' Forlorn Hope."

In November, 1863, Dr. Edwards returned to Clearfield county, but after teaching four months in Becaria township he went back to Maine, and began to read medicine in the office of Dr. Gould, of Madison. His health began to fail, however, and after six months he again came to Clearfield county. He taught school for eighteen months, two terms in the Weld neighborhood, two months at Mt. Pleasant, and eight months at Glen Hope, then returned to Maine. In 1865 he resumed his medical studies in the office of Dr. Dyer, of Farmington, Maine, and later he entered the medical department of Bowdoin College, Brunswick, Maine. After one course of lectures there, he took a second course at the University of New York, and returning to Bowdoin College he completed the prescribed studies, graduating in the spring of 1868. Locating at Mount Ver- non, Maine, he began practice; but the attrac- tions of this region were sufficiently strong to bring him to Clearfield county as a permanent resident, and in November, 1868, he opened an office at Janesville. He succeeded from the first, and as his finances permitted he bought a lot and built a comfortable and tasteful residence in the village. Later he sold this to John Flynn, Jr., and purchased a tract of land, from Daniel Fulk- 'erson, on the summit above Janesville, where he has erected an elegant two-story dwelling with all modern improvements, including a green- house, and a well-planned barn, the grounds be- ing laid out in a most artistic way.

On August 7, 1869, Dr. Edwards married Miss Lydia E. Whittier, of Madison, Maine, daughter of John and Lydia (Twitchell) Whittier, and a sister of Dr. G. M. Whittier, a well-known physician of Clearfield. John Whittier, father of Mrs. William H. Edwards, was born in Corn- ville, Maine, a son of Nathaniel and Sarah (Robin- son) Whittier. He was a descendant of Thomas and Ruth (Green) Whittier (the common ancestor of nearly all those having this name in America, including John G. Whittier, the poet), who

came to America in ship "Confidence " in 1638. Three of her direct ancestors were soldiers in the Revolutionary war -- Moses Twitchell, Sr., and Jr., of Gray, Maine, and Josiah Everett, Jr., of New Portland, Maine; three in the French and Indian war-Josiah Everett, Sr., William Bull- ard, and Ebenezer Farrington, all three of Ded- ham, Mass .; and one in Queen Anne's war- Samuel Thorpe, also of Dedham, Mass. On the maternal side her grandfather was a member of the Twitchell family, pioneers of Gray, Maine, and her grandmother was a descendant of several of the earliest (1636) settlers of Dedham, and Roxbury, Mass .; among whom were: Richard Everett. John Dwight, Jonathan Farrington, William Bullard, Robert Pepper, Nathaniel Whiting, Anthony Fisher, William Avery, Joshua Child, James Thorpe, and Francis Newcomb. Dr. Edwards and his wife have three sons:

ERNEST G., born December 5, 1870, attended the Janesville schools until the fall of 1886, when he entered the Bloomfield Academy in Perry county, Penn .. and remained a year and one- half. Returning home, he pursued his studies with Rev. William Gimmell, of Ramey. also with Joseph Rhodes, of Houtzdale, and in 1888 he taught schools at the Mountain School in Gulich township, Clearfield county. During the following winter he taught in Janesville, both winter and summer terms, and in June, 1890, he was census enumerator for the locality. In the fall of the same year he entered the Pennsylvania State College, in Centre county, and five months later he went to Lafayette College at Easton, Penn., where he was graduated in 1894 with the degree of B. S. The opening of the next col- legiate year found him enrolled as a student in the medical department of the University of Western Pennsylvania, at Pittsburg, graduating in the honor class, 1897. In.the summer of '97 he took a special course on diseases of eye and refraction at King Optical School, New York. He did considerable work as an athlete during his student days, serving for three years on the foot-ball team while at Lafayette College, and in 1894 he was its captain; he also belonged to the lacrosse team. In the seasons of 1894 and 1895 he coached the foot-ball team of Washing- ton and Jefferson College, which won the cham- pionship, two successive years, over all the col- lege teams of western Pennsylvania and eastern Ohio. He held various class offices, and was prominent in fraternity work. At State College he was a member of the Beta Theta Pi Society, from which he resigned while at Lafayette Col- lege to enter the Delta Upsilon. He was also a member of the Sophomore fraternity, Theta Nu

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

Epsilon of Washington and Jefferson College, and of the Phi Beta Pi, medical fraternity of University of Western Pennsylvania. In 1893-94 he served as editor-in-chief of " The Lafayette;" was one of the founders of the "West Penn Clinic," West Pennsylvania Medical College, of Pittsburg, Penn., and for some time was col- lege correspondent from Lafayette for the Asso- ciated Press. He has compiled a " List of De- scendants of John Edwards, of Haverhill, Mass., and Their Ancestry " in ms., and a genealogical chart of ancestry of Josiah Everett, and Moses Twitchel, of New Portland, Maine, published in

1895. In November, 1897, he took the examina- tion before the State Board of Medical Examin- ers, of Maine, and received second place in a class of eighteen. He is now located at New Sharon, Maine. He is interested in natural his- tory, and has large collections of stuffed birds and animals, bird eggs, botanical specimens, and Indian relics. On December 24, 1894, Mr. Ed- wards was married at Steubenville, Ohio, to Miss Louisa A. Wood, of Mercer, Maine, daughter of David and Lucy (Vaughan) Wood, and they have two sons-Everett Wood Edwards, born May 5, 1896, at Janesville, Penn. ; Gard Vaughan Edwards, born January 31, 1898, at New Shar- on, Maine.

(2) Leno W., born March 19, 1873, attended the common schools of Janesville, until he was sixteen, when he entered Bloomfield Academy, Perry county, Penn., and spent four months. He then went to Franklin and Marshall Academy at Lancaster, Penn., where he was graduated in 1890. In the spring of 1895 he completed a four-years' course in Lafayette College, receiving the degree of A. B. and at present he is non-res- ident post-graduate student for the degree of Ph. D. While at Lafayette College he joined the Delta Upsilon fraternity, and was chosen to different offices in his class. After leaving col- lege he taught two terms in the Robison School at Gulich township, Clearfield county, and in the spring of 1896, he was elected clerk of Gulich township. In August of the same year he began the study of law in the office of W. C. Miller, of Clearfield, and he is at present teaching in the public schools in addition to his other duties.

(3) Girard B., born June 9, 1875, studied in Janesville schools until he reached the age of six- teen, when he went to Mercer, Maine, to secure special instruction in music for which he lias de- cided talent. He remained six months, and on his return to Pennsylvania entered Easton Acad- emy, Easton, Penn., where he was graduated in 1891. In 1892 and 1893 in Gulich township, Clearfield county, he taught two years, one at

the Mountain School and one in the Ginter dis- trict, and during two summers took lessons in shorthand, at Pott's school. in Williamsport, Penn. In the fall of 1895 he entered the Latin Scientific course at Washington and Jefferson College, where he is now pursuing his studies. During the two years there he has been a mem- ber of the football team, and lie was also the manager of the college baseball teamn, terms of 1897 and 1898, and the Junior Annual, 1898. He holds the college championship for Western Pennsylvania for the one-quarter mile run. Fra- ternally he belongs to the Beta Theta Pi and Theta Nu Epsilon (Sophomore Fraternity).

Dr. William H. Edwards, during his profes- sional career, has been the preceptor of a num- ber of medical students who have achieved suc- cess, among whom may be mentioned: Dr. G. M. Whittier, of Clearfield; Dr. L. F. Worthley, . of Altoona; Dr. B. J. Fulkerson, of Tyrone; Dr. Z. B. Ogden, of Pittsburg; Dr. H. Clay McGee. of Houckstown, Ohio; and Dr. John Edward Vaughan (deceased), of Brisbin, Penn. As an old soldier, the Doctor is, of course, interested in the G. A. R., and he is now commander of William H. Kinkead Post; No. 293, of Houtz- dale. He is an ex-surgeon-general of the De- partment of Pennsylvania, G. A. R .; an ex-vice- president of the Society of Honorably Discharged Soldiers of Clearfield County, and one of the members of the board of pension examiners of Clearfield county. He also belongs to the Royal Arcanum, to the Knights of Malta. to the Patriotic Order of the Sons of America, and to the I. O. O. F., in which he is a past grand. Politically he is a Republican, but has never as- pired to office. His keen interest in education has led him to serve as school director in his township for a number of years, his influence be- ing used effectively for higher wages, more com- petent teachers, and longer terms. Religious work has always received his hearty support, and according to his increasing prosperity he has en- joyed the privileges of aiding in such movements. He and his wife are members of the Presbyterian Church. The Doctor has considerable ability as an impromptu speaker, and is always in demand for that office at G. A. R. reunions, political meetings, etc.

T HOMAS M. McKELVEY, an honored vet- eran of the Civil war, has, after years of labor and sacrifice, secured a comfortable home in Bradford township, Clearfield county. where he is surrounded by and enjoys the esteem and confidence of his neighbors., Mr. McKelvey was

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

born September 23, 1846, in Perry county, Penn., where his parents, Thomas J. and Maria (Swartz) McKelvey, still reside upon a farm. They are also natives of that county, and the parents of four children, only two of whom are living, namely: Thomas M., and Catharine, wife of Henry Ferry, of Monticello, Ill. The father was a Union soldier during the dark days of the. Rebellion, enlisting in 1864, in Perry county, in Company K. 83rd P. V. I., which was assigned to the Army of the Potomac. He faithfully served until the close of the war. Having always been a great reader, he is a well informed man, and is a valued and representative citizen of the community where he makes his home.

In the county of his nativity our subject was reared and educated, and, on leaving the parental roof, he worked on the canal until his enlistment in the Union armny. - In 1864, he joined the Fed- eral forces in Lycoming county, Penn., becom- ing a member of Company A, 76th Pennsylvania Zouaves. At Williamsport he was mustered in, and the company was assigned to the Second Brigade. Tenth Army Corps, under Gen. Terry. He participated in the battles of Fort Fisher and Bentonville, N. C., and was with Gen. Sherman all through the Carolina campaign. At Raleigh he was mustered out on July 18. 1865, and started north by boat from Beaufort, N. C., his destination being Baltimore, but the ship was wrecked off Cape Hatteras. He was picked up by a man-of-war, and was finally discharged Au- gust 6, 1865, after which he returned to his home in Perry county. Shortly afterward, Mr. McKel- vey went to Kansas City, Mo., where he re- mained until the spring of 1866, when he again went to Perry county, but in the fall of that year secured work in the lumber woods near Snow Shoe, Centre county. After one winter there passed he engaged in lumbering in Sugar Valley until 1869, when he purchased a timber tract of forty acres in Bradford township, Clearfield coun- ty, and has since made that place his home. In Morrisdale Mine, he was married to Miss Johanna Flegal, a native of Graham township, Clearfield county, of which locality her parents, Samuel and Sarah (Smneal) Flegal, were early pioneers, but both are now deceased. To our subject and his worthy wife have been born eight children: Ralph, Hope, Scott, Blanche, Grant M., and three who are deceased.

Politically, Mr. McKelvey is a pronounced Republican, and he is an earnest advocate of the principles of his party. Fraternally, he is a inember of John W. Geary Post, No. 90, G. A. R., of Philipsburg, Penn., and, for disability in- curred in the service during his country's hour of

peril, he now receives a pension of $12 per month. He was a faithful defender of the stars and stripes, and in days of peace he is just as true to the duties of citizenship.

E E. OWENS. The motto "merit always commands its reward " is well exemplified in . the career of our subject. He early learned that knowledge is the key with which the poor boy on the farm could open the store house of the world and cull its choicest fruits. The re- sult is that he is now one of the most successful agriculturists of Ferguson township, Clearfield county, and is essentially the architect of his own fortune.

Mr. Owens was born March 17, 1851, in the township where he still resides, a son of Thomas and Einaline (Hile) Owens. Peter Owens. the paternal grandfather, was a native af Wales, and came to Ainerica in the 18th century at the age of seven years, locating on the river in what is now Clearfield county, where he spent the re- mainder of his days. In his family were six children: Aaron, John, Moses, Robert, Caroline and Thomas, from whom sprang the Owens fam- ily now so numerous in Clearfield county. In religious belief its members have been mostly Methodists, and, in politics, Democrats.

Thomas Owens, the father of our subject, spent his entire life in Clearfield county, and throughout manhood followed the occupations of lumbering and farming. After his marriage he located in Ferguson township, where he de- veloped a farm from the wilderness and passed forty years of his life, and where his death oc- curred in 1860. Politically he was first a Whig. later a Know-Nothing, and on its organization joined the Republican party. which he ever afterward supported. He and his estimable wife were faithful members of the United Brethren Church, and were highly respected by all who knew them. Her father. Henry Hile, was a native of Germany, and became one of the early settlers of Clearfield county. To the parents of our subject were born ten children: Robert; Lorenzo; Carl: Henry; Lucy, wife of J. Ferguson ; E. E. ; Alfred; Perry; Lyman; and Nora. wife of Peter Bradley.

E. E. Owens was fourteen years of age when his father died, and he continued with his mother until she, too, was called to her final rest, when the family became scattered. At the early age of fourteen years he was thrown upon his own re- sources for a livelihood. His early education had been obtained in the country school. and with his first earnings he paid his own expenses

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while pursuing his studies for two years in the Armstrong Academy, knowing that a good edu- cation was essential to a successful business career. For six years he engaged in teaching through the winter season, while the summer months were spent in farining, and in this way he secured a start in life. Purchasing a tract of timber land, he engaged in lumbering until 1884, when he bought his present fine farm-a tract

of 150 acres, all underlaid with coal. He has cleared and placed 100 acres under a high state of cultivation, has erected a commodious two- story frame residence, large barn and other out- buildings, and has a large orchard. He makes a specialty of fruit growing, having upon his place choice apples, peaches, berries, etc. Besides his homestead he owns another improved farm in Ferguson township. In 1873, he was married to Miss Lola Schoning, a daughter of Ferdinand Schoning, who was of German descent and an early settler of Clearfield county, becoming a successful farmer of Jordan township. In re- ligious belief he was a Methodist, and, in politics, a Democrat. Four children constituted his fam- ily, namely: William, Mary, Lola and Ella. To our subject and his wife were born ten chil- dren: Lottie, who is now engaged in teaching; Alfred W., who died at the age of seventeen; Maud, who died at the age of fifteen; and Nora, Chester, Ralph, Leonard, Stanley, R. D. and Edward, all at home. The parents of these are both consistent members of the Methodist Epis- copal Church, and are highly esteemed in the community where they have so long made their home. Until the last five years Mr. Owens, in politics, was a Republican, but he is now an earnest advocate of Prohibition principles, and is looking forward to the happy time when the sale of intoxicants will be abolished. He cares nothing for the emoluments of public office, but always faithfully discharges every duty of citi- zenship, and is one of the valued residents of Fer- guson township.

18th of December, 1880, was one of the most influential and popular citizens of Burnside township, Clearfield county. He was born May 27, 1801, in Huntingdon county, Penn., whence in 1806 he was brought to Clearfield county by his parents, James (who was of Irish extraction) and Margaret (Ramsey) Gallaher, who located in Burnside township, where the father secured a large tract of land and was extensively engaged in lumbering and farming. He participated in many of the Indian wars in central Pennsylvania;

As a pioneer he was successful and prominent, and became widely and favorably known through- out this section of the State. His death occurred in Burnside township, after surviving the mother of our subject a number of years.

The early educational privileges of James Gallaher, Jr., were limited to two terms of three months each in the district schools, but by his own exertions he acquired a good practical education, which ably fitted him for the respon- sible duties of business life. He continued with his father until his first marriage, when he began life in earnest as a lumberman and farmer, con- tinuing the former occupation up to within ten or twelve years of his death. For a time he also successfully engaged in merchandising, but his last years he spent in retirement from active labor, leaving the work of the farm to hired help.

Mr. Gallaher married Miss Sallie Lee, a daughter of Jacob Lee, a farmer, and who be- longed to an honored pioneer family that came to Clearfield county from Centre county at an early day. A record of their children is as follows: Evaline, who became the wife of Joseph Neff, is now deceased; Elizabeth and Thirzah, who both died unmarried; John, who died at the age of ten years; James, who died at the age of six; and Margaret A., wife of Dr. Samuel McCune. The mother of these children passed away in 1858. In 1860 Mr. Gallaher was again married. his second union being with Mrs. Mary L. Kelly, a lady of rare intelligence and excellent business ability. She was born in Athens, Ohio, May 1 3, 1826, and at the age of five years was taken to the State of New York, where she was reared and educated. Her parents, Isaac C. and Rose (Fonston) Horton, were natives of that State. Thomas Horton, her grandfather, was a patriotic, loyal citizen, whom every one honored, and dur- ing the Revolutionary war he aided the Colonies in throwing off the British yoke. He belonged to that sturdy class of American agriculturists upon whom the prosperity of the country so largely depends. In 1837 Isaac Horton re- moved to Tioga county, Penn., where he followed

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Commemorative biographical record of central Pennsylvania : including the counties of Centre, Clearfield, Jefferson and Clarion, Pt. 2, Part 31

Author: J.H. Beers & Co Publication date: 1898 Publisher: Chicago : J. H. Beers Number of Pages: 1266

Author: J.H. Beers & Co
Publication date: 1898
Publisher: Chicago : J. H. Beers
Number of Pages: 1266