Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1, Part 12

Author:
Publication date: 1900
Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co.
Number of Pages: 2390

USA > Pennsylvania > Pike County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 12
USA > Pennsylvania > Monroe County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 12
USA > Pennsylvania > Susquehanna County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 12
USA > Pennsylvania > Wayne County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 12

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brothers, John and Joseph. He married Miss Laura Edinger, of Hamilton township, and has one daugh- ter, Florence, who has marked ability as a musician, and is now a successful teacher of music. (9) James Erven, born May 28, 1863, died August 16, 1863. (10) Lewis, born May 2, 1867, learned the mason's trade in his youth, and still follows it in the summer season. After the death of his father he purchased the old homestead and later he bought a part of the James Hunt farm adjoining, which he cultivates in addition to the homestead. In 1888 he married Miss Mary Edinger, daughter of Peter and Amanda Edinger, prominent residents of Ham- ilton township, Monroe county, and they have three daughters, Bessie, born in 1891 ; Ruth, in 1894, and Sarah, in 1897.

Mrs. Sarah (Strunk) Shiffer is a veritable "Mother in Israel," and her Christian character wins the affection of all who come within her range of influence. Although she is a devout member of the Presbyterian Church, the majority of her children have entered the Methodist fold. She was born in July, 1823, in Smithfield township, Monroe county, and still resides at the old homestead at the ad- vanced age of seventy-five years. Her parents, Jacob and Katie Strunk, were natives of Smithfield township, but their last days were spent in North- ampton county, Penn. They had ten children: Liz- zie, Hannah, Sarah, Benjamin, David, Jeremiah, Ellen, Charles, Annie and Catherine. Besides her- self, none are now living except Annie, wife of Fred- erick Smith, of Northampton county.

HON. GILES GREENE (deceased). If the length of personal and ancestral residence upon the soil of Wayne county did not entitle the subject of this sketch to a foremost place in the annals of this county, that lack of local settings found more than ample compensation in the devotion of a lifetime to the creation and development of the important ma- terial resources of the county ; in the abundant and valued services which he contributed to the public good ; in the matrimonial alliance with one of the old and honored families in the neighborhood, in the many ways in which a blessed character counts for the cause of progress and righteousness.

In a sense, and a direct and potent sense it was, Mr. Greene was a pioneer. In the dawn of the modern era of transportation, when the first low rumblings of the coming car of commerce, so fateful for the future of the country, were heard in the land Mr. Greene was instrumental in making history for Wayne county. He came to the county with the courage, energy, and confidence of a young man, destined to win in life's struggle, and his first op- portunity followed quickly in the construction of the Gravity road for the Pennsylvania Coal Co. Mr. Greene was soon a factor in that undertaking, not by the influence of inherited capital, not by the "open sesame" of friends who were high in council, but by the humble means which his own hard labor and economy had provided. The story of his life,

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Giles Greene

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

like that of most men and women who have become notable, is full of meaning. Effects must have adequate causes. A career which teems with gen- uine success and brightness reveals clearly the rul- ing mainspring of action.

The ancestry of Mr. Greene was American back to the ninth generation, and includes names famous in American history. About the middle of the seventeenth century there were contemporaneous in Rhode Island three John Greenes, who were dis- tinguished by genealogists as John of Kingston, John of Newport, and John of Warwick. The last named was the progenitor of our subject. John Greene of Warwick was a surgeon. He was born at Salisbury February 9, 1596-97, the fourth son of Richard Greene, who was the son of Robert Greene. John Greene of Warwick married Joanna Tattersall at Salisbury, November 4, 1619, and came to Massa- chusetts in 1635, and to Providence, R. I., in 1638. He was one of the original purchasers of Warwick, R. I., from the Indians in 1642. He was married three times, and at his death in 1658 left six children, all by his first wife, Joanna, who died at Conanicut, R. I., in 1643. (2) Capt. John Greene, the eldest son of Joanna and John Greene, was baptized at Salisbury, England, August 15, 1620, and came to America with his father in 1635. He married Ann Almy, a daughter of William Almy, of Portsmouth. She was born in 1627, and died at Warwick, May 6, 1709. Capt. John Greene was deputy governor of Rhode Island. He had eleven children, and died November 27, 1708. His brother James, the fourth child of John of Warwick, was the great-grand- father of Gen. Nathaniel Greene of Revolutionary fame. (3) Capt. Peter Greene, the fourth child of Ann and John Greene, was born at Warwick, February 4 (or 8), 1654-55. He married, in 1680, Elizabeth, daughter of Stephen and Sarah (Smith) Arnold, born November 2, 1659, and died June 5, 1728. Capt. Peter Greene had seven children, and died August 12, 1723. (4) William Greene,fifth child of Capt. Peter and Elizabeth Greene, was born at Warwick, July 29, 1690. He was married in War- wick February 14, 1712, to Sarah Medbury, born April 27, 1689, and died April 6, 1763. He had eight children. William Greene died March 17, 1766. (5) James Greene, oldest son of William and Sarah Greene, was born in Warwick, September 8, 1713, and was married June 15, 1738, to Desire, daughter of Giles Slocum. She was born January 14, 1720, and died November 22, 1794. James Greene was part owner and manager of one of the first cotton mills of Rhode Island. He died May 30, 1792. Of his nine children, Mary K., the second child, was the mother of Senator Henry B. Anthony, of Rhode Island. (6) Giles Greene, son of James and Desire Greene, was born at Centerville, town of Warwick, March 25, 1745. He married, Sep- tember 13, 1764, a cousin Phœbe, daughter of John Rhodes, Jr., whose wife was a daughter of (4) Will- iam and Sarah ( Medbury) Greene. John Rhodes, Jr., was a son of Major John Rhodes, whose wife, 4

Catherine, was a daughter of Charles Holden, who was a son of Randall Holden, the emigrant. Ran- dall Holden married Catherine Greene, daughter of (2) Capt. John and Ann (Almy) Greene. Major John Rhodes was a son of John Rhodes, who was a son of Zacharia Rhodes, the emigrant, whose wife was a granddaughter of Roger Williams. Giles Greene died about 1765, leaving one son, Giles. His widow Phobe was married March 2, 1767, to Nathaniel Chapman. (7) Giles Greene, son of Giles and Phœbe Greene, was born in 1765, and was married in Warwick January 6, 1784, to Rhoda, daughter of William Arnold, Jr. They had three sons, James, Rhodes and Giles Slocum, and four daughters, Phœbe, Susan, Elizabeth and Nancy.

James Greene (8), eldest child of Giles and Rhoda Greene, was the father of our subject. He was born at Warwick, R. I., May 5, 1785. He was married in Coventry, R. I., July 7, 1808, to Lydia, daughter of Pardon Abbott. She died leaving no children, and on April 20, 1814, James Greene, for his second wife, married Susan Westgate, who be- longed to a Coventry family of Quakers. He was the first of the immediate line of Greenes for eight gen- erations to migrate from his native State. In 1817he came to Susquehanna county, and settled upon a farm. He was an industricus and conscientious farmer, but his acres were not many, and his fam- ily was large. The richest heritage they received was patient teaching and the example of right living. He died at Clifford, Susquehanna county, July I, 1857 ; his wife survived him until 1874. James and Susan Greene had twelve children as follows: (1) Lydia, who married Stephen Clark, and had three children, Byron, Frances, and Eliza; (2) Susan, who married Daniel Dayton, and died without issue ; (3) James, who married Alma Carpenter, and had one child, Lydia ; (4) Rhoda, who died unmarried ; (5) Rhodes, who married Eunice Reynolds, and had six children; (6) Giles, subject of this sketch ; (7) Alexander, who married Mary Jordan, and they had four children. (8) Arnold, who mar- ried Lydia Tinkham, and had six children, Dora, Lester, William, Nettie, Frederick, and Ella ; (9) Priscilla, who married Benjamin Ayles- worth, and had seven children, Jedediah, Mar- ian, Lucina, James, Stephen, Fannie, and Will- iam; (10) Charles, who died unmarried; (II) Syl- linda, who married William Aylesworth, and has two children, Byron and Albert; ( 12) Stephen, who married Helen Swartz, and has one child, Eva.

Giles, the sixth child and the subject of this sketch, was born at Clifford, November 9, 1823. His youth was spent upon his father's farm, and his educational advantages were few. He thoroughly learned the lesson of industry, for as a boy nine or ten months each year were spent in manual toil. Two or three winter months each winter were de- voted to the district schools, where only the rudiments of an education were taught, and as the boy grew older and his services became more valuable even the two or three months schooling were withdrawn.

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

For the times it must be regarded as an instance of parental generosity, that when Giles attained the age of twenty his father gave him a suit of clothes and released him from further service. Realizing the need of a better educational equipment, the young man attended school at the academy at Dun- daff, near Clifford, the following winter, but with the advent of spring he grappled actively with the problem of working his own way. Going to Car- bondale, he found employment as a teamster on the railroad then under construction by the Delaware and Hudson Canal Co. He remained uninter- rupted at this work several years, and at the expira- tion of that time had saved enough from his earnings to purchase a full teaming outfit, including a span of fine horses.

About this time the Pennsylvania Coal Co., then known as the Washington Coal Co., was con- structing its Gravity road, from Pittston to Hawley. The industrious young teamster with his splendid outfit had no difficulty in securing steady employ- ment in the great work of construction, and in drawing supplies and machinery from Honesdale to the various stations along the line. His energy and ability were recognized, and when the road was completed. John B. Smith, the efficient general man- ager, placed Mr. Greene in charge of the stationary engine at the incline plane of the station, known simply as "No. 19," with supervision also of the company's traffic and other interests at that point. Giles Greene thus became the pioneer of the nucleus of a settlement. For years it remained "No. 19," then took the postoffice name of Ariel, and for many miles around became known as Jones' Lake or Ariel Lake, a beautiful sheet of water, upon the northern shores of which clusters the pretty little village, win- ning fame and popularity as a summer resort.

It was soon after he settled in the wild but promising region that Giles Greene realized one of the happy dreams of his life. There was a wed- ding and the founding of a home in the picturesque region, a home that was rich in its stores of happi- ness, and whence emanated many of those impulses which crowned with laurel of worth and success the life of our subject. While teaming at Hones- dale, he had at the farm house of J. P. Darling, of Cherry Ridge, where he then boarded, met Harriet L., one of the handsome daughters of Col. Jacob Schenck. Their acquaintance ripened into mutual esteem and affection, and in February, 1850, Giles was called upon to act as best man at the wedding of Isaac R. Schenck and Rebecca Bonear, while Har- riet was bridesmaid to the bride, her future sister- in-law. On Saturday, September 21, of the same year, Giles and Harriet appeared at another wedding ceremony, but this time as the chief contracting par- ties. They were married at the residence of the par- ents of the bride by the Rev. Darwin Chichester, a Presbyterian minister.

The ancestry of the bride has been no less con- spicuous in American history than that of the young teamster to whom she now united for life. Mrs.

Greene was born in Cherry Ridge, January 14, 1827, daughter of Col. Jacob and Sarah Davis Schenck. Col Schenck was the only son of Gen. John H. Schenck, one of the six children of Henry Schenck, who emigrated from Holland to America in 1720. Henry was a son of Johann I. Schenck, who lived and died in Holland. No more patriotic nor devoted American could be found during the Revolutionary struggle than Gen. John H. Schenck. At the outbreak of the war he placed in the hands of Gen. George Washington, as a Revolutionary fund his entire fortune of $12,000 or $15,000, re- ceived by inheritance, and then enlisted in the cause as a private soldier. At the close of the war he had risen to the rank of major-general. In 1796 he mi- grated from Newburg, N. Y., the ancestral home of his family, to a tract of land in Cherry Ridge town- ship, Wayne county. He lived to the age of ninety one years, and died at his residence in Canaan, Wayne county, March 5, 1845. Gertrude, a sister of Gen. John H. Schenck, was the wife of Gen. Frederick Frelinghuysen, whose second son, Theo- dore, attained distinction as a lawyer, as Chancellor of the College of New Jersey, and as nominee for Vice-President with Henry Clay as President on the Whig ticket of 1844. Col. Jacob Schenck, the father of Mrs. Greene, was born February 22, 1784, and was twelve years of age when he came with his father to Cherry Ridge township. Here he was married to Sarah Davis, who was born January 20, 1791, and who when nine years of age had come to the county with her parents from New Jersey. Col. Jacob Schenck engaged successfully through life in farming and sawmilling. In politics he was an earnest Whig. He filled various positions of honor and trust, and for many years served as justice of the peace. He died April 26, 1846, his wife on January 8, 1856, and the remains of both were in- terred at Cherry Ridge; both had held membership in the Presbyterian Church of Honesdale, and wer highly esteemed by all who knew them. Their chil dren were as follows: Phoebe, born May 25, 1810, died December 20, 1830; John J., born September 15, 1811, wedded Mary Hoel, and died December 1, 1877; Gertrude, born September 6, 1813, died in 1836; Magdaline, born September 26, 1815, died in 1833; Apollos D., born January 3, 1818, married Mary Mayhon, and died December 30, 1892; Henry V., born January 26, 1820, married (first) Jane Taylor, and (second) Laura Smith (he died in January, 1894) ; Caleb D., born April 12, 1821, mar- ried Calista Bellnap, and died in 1896; Isaac R., born September 6, 1823, married Rebecca Bonear, and died January 28, 1888; Adna, born April 25, 1825, died in infancy ; Harriet L. is the next of the family, and the only one now living ; and Sarah C., born November 10, 1831, married Perry A. Brown, and died in November, 1895.

About two months after his marriage to Miss Schenck, on November 18, 1850, Giles Greene escort- ed her to the only frame dwelling house in the clear- ing at "No. 19," and here they began housekeeping.

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

The scene was wild and rough. The thick forest growth hid even from their view the sparkling waters of the lake. The dismal hooting of the owl and the barking of the fox were heard at night, and once a noble buck stood at the edge of the forest and inspected this human habitation, and then dis- appeared into the primeval wilderness. Bears prowled about, but the shriek of the locomotive was heard, and gradually brought civilization in its wake. Nothing daunted by the surrounding wilderness, the young couple thus began their married life. Giles Greene held steadfastly to his work. The shadows of the primitive wilderness faded away. The village grew. The duties and position of Mr. Greene rose steadily. In the fall of 1864 the Penn- sylvania Coal Co., in recognition of his faithful "service and ability, appointed him general lumber agent, and in that capacity he had charge of the pur- chase, manufacture and shipment of the immense RART quantities of lumber used by the company in the building of its coal breakers and the opening of italy plage of Shawnee, in the township of Smith-

mines during the era of prosperity that succeeded `the war. He held the position until the fall 'In 1870 he purchased 800 acres of le SCHOOL 'well timbered, and including the Lestard sawmill property near No. 17, and for many years engaged actively in lumbering. During that period his mill was twice destroyed by fire and twice rebuilt.

For many years he served as school director in Salem township, and for ten years was justice of the peace. In political faith he was a stanch Re- publican, and became one of the leaders of his party. He for many years represented his county in the State conventions. In 1876 he was elected on the Re- publican ticket to the office of associate judge at the time the county was usually Democratic by from five hundred to seven hundred majority, and his elec- tion attested in a measure his popularity. He served on the Bench during the celebrated anti-court house struggle, but throughout that bitter and exciting "contest he acted with judgment and firmness, and he retired from judicial life with the esteem and good will of all.

During the stirring years of the Civil war, he was one of the leaders in devising means for the comfort and aid of the soldiers of Wayne county. In 1861 he was appointed postmaster at Ariel by President Lincoln. By reason of this appointment he was exempted from the operations of the draft; but in the trying times of 1863 he measured for him- self his duty, and at the expense of $1,000 of his hard-earned savings he procured and sent to the front a substitute. His political convictions were strong, and in the ominous years preceding the war he was largely instrumental in organizing the Re- publican party in Wayne county, and in voicing its principles.

In the later years of his life, the labor, fore- sight, and economy of Judge Greene brought him a handsome competence. He was a recognized and leading force in the community, and his kindly man- ner, pure living, charitable conduct and Christian

example won for him the permanent affection and esteem of his neighbors and friends. His success in life, however, was largely due to the intelligent counsel, warm sympathy, and generous assistance of his devoted wife, a woman of unusual strength of character, poetic temperament and intellectual attain- ments, yet content to shine only in the household and family. To Judge Greene and his wife came two children : Susan S., born November 6, 1851, now the wife of John W. Sandercock, a merchant at Ariel ; and Homer, born January 10, 1853, an author, poet, lawyer and prominent citizen of Honesdale. The latter years of the life of Judge Greene were passed in peaceful retirement amidst the scenes of his early struggles and successes. He died August 14, 1892, at his home in Lake Ariel, and there his widow still resides.

ANDLAY BUSH has been an active citizen held, Monroe Co., Penn., all his life, having been porn there September 18, 1818, and he has carried on the undertaking business for half a century.

George Bush, the paternal grandfather of the subject of this sketch, came from Bucks county to Monroe county when a young man, and here mar- ried Miss Mary Van Campen, a native of New Jer- sey. The Depews and Van Campens bought the first lands in this section from the Indians, and Mr. Bush, marrying into the Van Campen family, set- tled in Smithfield township, on part of their pur- chase at a time when the aborigines were still nu- merous along this part of the Delaware. He was a carpenter by trade, and he was also engaged in the work which fell to the lot of all pioneers, the task of clearing away the forest and reducing the land to arable condition. He succeeded by hard labor in converting from its primitive state the place now known as the Hiram LaBar farm, and there he passed the remainder of his days, dying on the farm in February, 1845. His wife preceded him to the better land in November, 1826. They had children as follows: John V., George V., Abram V., Henry V., Benjamin V., and Sarah Ann. John V. was born in 1789. George V. became the father of our subject. Abram V., born in January, 1797, died young. Henry V., born in 1800, married Miss Eliz- abeth Long, and settled in Smithfield, where he and his wife died, leaving a family. Benjamin V., born in January, 1801, married Miss Sarah Depew, 'and they located for several years on the Bush home- stead, which he finally sold to John Depuy LaBar, the father of Hiram LaBar, removing with his fam- ily to the Water Gap, where he purchased a home : he was elected justice of the peace, and filled that office for the balance of his life ; eight children sur- vived him, George, Depew, Frank, Abram (who is a resident of Stroudsburg), Amzi ( who lives at the Water Gap), Elizabeth (Mrs. Fenner), St- sanna, and Mary ( Mrs. Houser). Sarah Ann, the only daughter of George and Mary (Van Campen) Bush, was born in 1787, and became the wife of

COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

Jacob Houser, of Delaware Water Gap; they reared two children, George and Mary, both of whom are now deceased.

George V. Bush was born in December, 1794, in the village of Shawnee, Smithfield township, near the Delaware river, and there grew to manhood, re- ceiving his early education in the local institutions of learning, and during his early life learned the car- penter's trade, which he followed for a number of years. He married Miss Maria Stetler, and subse- quently purchased a lot of his father in the village of Shawnee, where in 1818 he erected a home. Some time afterward he bought a farm adjoining his fa- ther's property, putting up a brick house and barn and good outbuildings on the place, where he made his home until his death in October, 1877; his wife died April 24, 1887. They were upright Christian people, beloved by their neighbors and friends, and re- spected by all for the useful, industrious lives they led. In religious connection they were consistent members of the Presbyterian Church, and they gave liberally of their means toward the building of the church and the support of Church work and chari- table enterprises. Mr. Bush was a Democrat po- litically, but he was never active in party affairs. To Mr. and Mrs. Bush were born six children: (I) Sarah Ann, (2) Susanna, (3) Findlay, (4) Han- nah M., (5) Jane and (6) Hiram. Of these (I) Sarah Ann married John Depew LaBar (now called LeBar), of New Jersey, in which State they lived for a number of years, finally removing to Monroe county and locating for a time on the Del- aware river, after which he bought the old home- stead ; he then erected a store in the village, where he was engaged in mercantile business for some time, and he died there in 1893. (2) Susanna mar- ried John Zimmerman and moved to New Jersey, where she died leaving three children, Mary Ann ( Mrs. George Van Campen, who has several chil- dren), Maria (Mrs. John Vannauken) and Emma ( Mrs. Frank Tunn, of East Stroudsburg). (4) Hannah M. is the wife of Thomas Broadhead, of Delaware Water Gap. (5) Jane is unmarried, and lives in Smithfield. (6) Hiram married Miss Calinda Ripple, of White Haven, Luzerne county, to which place he moved, carrying on farming there until his death in 1894; he left a widow and seven children, Edward, George, Abram, Carrie, Isabel, Julia and Nettie.

(3) Findlay Bush received his education in the public schools of Shawnee, and when a young man he learned the carpenter's trade, which he followed until his marriage. After that event he bought real estate in the village, where he built a comfortable and commodious dwelling, also the large shop in which he has carried on his undertaking business for the past fifty years. Mr. Bush has been one of the leading residents of the village, taking an active part in the commercial, social, civic and re- ligious life of the community, where he is highly esteemed by all who have come in contact with him. He bears a reputation second to none for upright-

ness and integrity of character, and he and his wife are recognized as thorough Christians, kind-hearted and charitable in their intercourse with all.

On October 3, 1848, Mr. Bush was married to Miss Annie Maria Ribble, who was born in 1829 in Warren county, N. J., daughter of George and Rebecca Ribble, prominent residents of that county, the father being an active business man. Mr. and Mrs. Ribble had a family of four children, Dr. J. S. B., of New Jersey; Annie Maria (Mrs. Bush) : Sarah ( Mrs. Philip Garis, of Warren county, N. J.) ; and William, who is married and lives on the old homestead. To Mr. and Mrs. Bush were born three children, George A., in August, 1852, on the home in Smithfield; Mary Elizabeth, in May, 1856; and Dr. Irvin R. Bush, in April, 1859, in Shawnee. The eldest son received his education in the public schools and the Millersville Normal, and for several years was agent for the Adams Express Co., at Wilkes Barre, Penn., where he is now superintend- ent in a large livery business ; he married Miss Della Coss, of Monroe county; they have no children. Mary Elizabeth is the wife of R. C. Stovers, a resi- dent of Bucks county, and they have two sons, John B. and Ralph. Irvin R. attended the public schools of the home neighborhood and the Millersville schools, studied medicine under Dr. Lewis Bush, of Stroudsburg, and graduated from Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia ; he is now practicing his pro- fession in East Stroudsburg ; he married Miss Oliv- ia Green, of Philadelphia, daughter of Emory Green, of Westchester county, Penn., and they have two children, Lemos and Irvin Russell.

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Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1, Part 12

Author: Publication date: 1900 Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co. Number of Pages: 2390

Author:
Publication date: 1900
Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co.
Number of Pages: 2390