Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1, Part 123

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 123
USA > Pennsylvania > Monroe County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 123
USA > Pennsylvania > Susquehanna County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 123
USA > Pennsylvania > Wayne County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 123

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On May 1, 1883, at Binghamton, N. Y., Mr. Burrows married, for his second wife, Miss Caro- line Boyd, a native of Orange county, N. Y., and a most estimable lady, who still resides at the old homestead left her by her husband, but rents the farm. Her parents, Freegift and Lucretia (Tompkins) Boyd, also natives of Orange county, N. Y., came to Susquehanna county, Penn., in 1845, and located near Montrose, in Bridgewater township. The father, who was a prominent farmer of his com- munity, died in 1881, aged eighty years, the mother in 1882, aged seventy-eight years, and both were buried in Franklin Forks cemetery. Religiously they were sincere and faithful members of the Pres- byterian Church. The children born to them were as follows: Adelaide, who died unmarried ; Joshua, a merchant and postmaster at Franklin Forks ; Mary, wife of L. O. Smith, a carpenter of Bingham- ton, N. Y. ; John, a grocer of Brooklyn, N. Y. ; Caro- line, widow of our subject ; and Frances, a resident of Newburg, New York.

ROBERT TINKER, a well-known extensive farmer of Clifford township, Susquehanna county, was born September 19, 1842, in the same township, on the farm where his sisters now reside, a son of John and Agnes ( Stevenson ) Tinker, who are repre- sented elsewhere in this volume.

Mr. Tinker remained at home with his parents until two years after his marriage, and then located on what was known as the old Simeon Burdick farm, in the same township. After residing there

for nineteen years he removed, in January, 1895, to his grandfather's farm, making that his home at the present time. On September 16, 1874, in Car- bondale, Penn., Mr. Tinker was united in marriage with Miss Mary A. Tralles, and to them have been born eight children, namely: John R., who died December 28, 1892, while attending college ; Agnes, who is a graduate of the Susquehanna Collegiate Institute, and has taught school for the past five years ; and Anna H. ( who also attended the Susque- hanna Collegiate Institute), James, Janet S., Rose L., William E. and Irving B., all at home. Mrs. Tinker was born in Breslau, Germany, March 25, 1848, a daughter of John R. and Rosalie (Cleinot) Tralles, who were born, reared and married in that place, and came to the United States in 1851. They spent the first winter in New York, and from there moved to Honesdale, Penn., and later to Carbon- dale, where the father died in 1890, aged seventy- four years, and where his remains were interred. He was a gentleman of considerable prominence in Germany, and quite an extensive farmer; in this country he was engaged as a bookkeeper and later as a gardener, having lost his property before leaving his native land. He was a member of the Lutheran Church, as is also his widow, who still resides in Carbondale at the age of eighty-six years. Of their children, three died in infancy ; Paul served as a soldier and musician throughout the Civil war, and is now a photographer in Washington, D. C .; Rob- ert, who was also a soldier in the Civil war, is now a merchant in Carbondale : Mary A. is the wife of our subject ; Rosa (first) married William Rosser and ( second) George Herbert, of Carbondale ; Ella is the wife of Thomas Smith, general freight agent for the Delaware & Hudson Railroad Co., at Car- bondale ; and Annie and Jennie died when young ladies.

Mr. Tinker has ever taken quite an active and prominent part in public affairs, and has most creditably filled the offices of school director, super- visor and poor master for three years each. His political support is always given to the men and measures of the Republican party, and he and his wife are consistent members of the Presbyterian Church.

HENRY W. BRANDT (deceased) was for many years a leading resident of Susquehanna coun- ty, and a number of prosperous business enterprises of that locality owe their success to his foresight and energy. He accumulated a large fortune, of which he gave liberally to many worthy projects, and he was the founder and one of the chief supporters of two Presbyterian Churches, one at Brandt and the other at Susquehanna city. His death, which oc- curred July 8, 1886, was sincerely mourned in the community where his sterling qualities of mind and heart were best known.

Mr. Brandt was born April 26, 1808, in Boden- werder, Germany, son of Gottlieb and Hannah C. Brandt. At the age of twenty-one years he came

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MRS. MARY A. TINKER

ROBERT TINKER

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Pery Cordially yours Newsnigh Sheldon

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

to the United States, having but a few dollars in his pocket on his arrival in New York City, and he located first at Hunter, N. Y., where he was em- ployed for some time in a tannery. His ability was quickly recognized, and on gaining a knowledge of the business he became foreman of a plant owned by Mr. Edwards, of Hunter. Later he bought a small tannery in Greene county, N. Y., and some years afterward he purchased another in Delaware coun- ty, N. Y., in partnership with a Mr. Harver. He sold his interest after a time, and rented the Ed- wards tannery for several years, but in 1852 he came to Susquehanna county and engaged in the tanning business at Brandt. He also became interested in the acid works at that place, and from the date of its organization until his death he was president of the Burcy Chemical Works, at Binghamton, N. Y. He was prominent in banking business, being the founder and builder of the National Bank at Sus- quehanna. In politics he was a Republican, but took no active part in the work of the party. In all his undertakings there was seen the influence of a broad and well-balanced mind, and his rise from poverty to affluence was but the result of wisely- directed effort. In 1838 Mr. Brandt married Miss Ruth Coe, of Lexington Heights, Greene Co., N. Y., a daughter of Oliver and Nancy (Buell) Coe, the former of whom, a farmer, traced his descent to one of the "Mayflower" pilgrims ; the latter was a daughter of Judge Milo Buell, of Greene county, N. Y. Mrs. Brandt was a devout member of the Presbyterian Church, and a most loving helpmeet to her husband, her advice and assistance being rec- ognized factors in his success. Her death occurred in October, 1887, and the remains of both now rest in the cemetery at Brandt. Eleven children were born to them, of whom nine are living and occupy honorable positions in social and business life.

(I) Nancy H. Brandt was born November I, 1839, in Greene county, N. Y., and was educated chiefly in the Susquehanna county schools. In 1859 she married Rev. Raphael Kessler, of Germany, who was educated for the Presbyterian ministry and for three and one-half years was engaged in Presbyterian missionary work in New York City. He then removed to Mt. Pleasant, Wayne county, where he preached four years, and later he spent five years at Webster Groves, Mo., and one at Wil- mington, Ill. He then went to Pontiac, Ill., where his health failed, and he gave up ministerial work, locating at Brandt and taking charge of a branch of his father-in-law's business. Politically he is a Re- publican, and he and his wife are active workers in the Presbyterian Church. (2) Charlotte Brandt, born in Delaware county, N. Y., is now the wife of Rev. Dr. Moon, of Peckville, Lackawanna Co., Penn. (3) Henry Brandt, born in Delaware coun- ty, N. Y., was a soldier of Company H. 9th Penn. Cavalry, and died at Clarksville, Tenn., May 14, 1862. (4) Harriet S. Brandt married Dr. Theo- dore Wing, of Carlisle, Penn., and resided in Sus- quehanna county, where he practiced medicine for

some years. He died in 1888, and Mrs. Wing is now a resident of Binghamton, N. Y. (5) Win- field S. Brandt, born in Hunter, N. Y., in 1848, married Miss Harriet Fromer, of Hunter, and they now reside in Binghamton, where he is extensively engaged in the acid business. They have four chil- dren-Ruth, wife of Frank Root, of Binghamton ; Winifred, wife of William Willis, a reporter on the New York Sun; and Annett and Buell, at home. (6) Putnam Proctor Brandt, born at Hunter, N. Y., in 1850, died in childhood. (7) Helen O. Brandt, born at Hunter in 1852, is the wife of Rev. Walter Peterson, a minister at Lead, S. Dak. (8) Jacob S. Brandt, born at Brandt in 1854, is now the leading merchant at Brandt, where he also holds the office of postmaster. He married Miss Carrie Porter, and they have children-May, Henry, Josephine, Florence and Walter. (9) Gustavus A. Brandt, born in 1857 at Brandt, graduated from. Princeton College and entered the ministry, and is now doing mission work in Minnesota. He mar- ried Miss Josephine Buffum, of Minnesota, and has six children-Ruth, Maria B., Julia, Herman, Oth- niel and Persis. (10) Josephine Brandt, born at Brandt in 1861, married Charles Stickley, a furni- ture dealer at Binghamton, N. Y., and they have two children-Karl and Maria. (II) Schuyler C. Brandt, born at the present home in 1866, is a mem- ber of the firm of Stickley & Brandt, of Bingham- ton. He married Miss Sallie Wilbur, of Washing- ton, D. C., and has one son, Schuyler B.

HENRY K. SHELDON has for over thirty years spent his summers at his country residence at Silver Lake, Susquehanna county, where he has become closely identified with the welfare and ad- vancement of that region. His broad experience in large and successful enterprises gives his opinion special weight, and his advice is often sought on matters of general importance, while he is ever ready, with his means and influence, to forward any good work. The enterprising spirit which has characterized his life has been manifested in the zeal which he has displayed in improvements in the locality. He has been especially interested and liberal in securing good roads in Silver Lake and the surrounding townships. He has also been in- strumental in maintaining the Presbyterian Church and Sunday-school, which had long been closed.

James Sheldon ( father of Henry K. Sheldon) and Ann Owen, his wife, who were natives of Suffield, Conn., removed to Windsor at the time of their marriage, and soon after to New York City. He soon became prominent in financial matters in New York, and was identified with many of the important undertakings of the day. He was one of the original capitalists who built the Erie and Dela- ware, Lackawanna & Western railroads. He died in 1852, at Marseilles, France, while traveling abroad with his family. His wife survived him many years, passing away in 1884, in Brooklyn. Their family consisted of three sons, namely :

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James O., Henry K. and Lucius M., all at present residents of New York.

Henry K. Sheldon was born in the old town of Windsor, Conn. He began business life with his father, who in 1828 had established the firm of Sheldon & Phelps, one of the three oldest hardware houses in this country. At that time there were only a few staple articles of hardware manufactured in this country, and these were extremely difficult to sell. Now nearly everything in this line is made in America. Mr. Sheldon has said that it is almost impossible for one not conversant with these facts to realize the enormous increase in this line of manu- factures. In his time he has seen the great growth of this line of business from its inception. Since retiring from that business Mr. Sheldon has given his attention to various commercial interests, bank- ing, railroading, mining, etc., etc. He is senior di- rector of the American Exchange National Bank ; vice-president of the Brooklyn Savings Bank; di- rector in the Fidelity & Casualty Co .; director in the American District Telegraph Co .; trustee of the Brooklyn Trust Co., etc., etc. The confidence gained by the father in the commercial circles of the greatest metropolis in the country has descended to the son, who has proved himself a worthy successor, and his wide experience with men and affairs has brought him to the front as a financier of more than ordi- nary ability and acumen. His genial, kindly dis- position, and cordial, though reserved, manner, have won him hosts of friends, and his many admirable personal qualities have gained him as wide popu- larity among his fellow men, socially, he has been accorded him by his business associates for his un- impeachable integrity and sound judgment. He is one of Nature's noblemen, and he has exemplified, throughout his long and honorable career, the prin- ciples and instincts of the sturdy New England race to which he belongs.

In 1866 Mr. Sheldon became the owner of a portion of the old Dr. Rose estate, in Silver Lake township, Susquehanna Co., Penn., his purchase in- cluding the James Rose home and part of the beau- tiful lake. He has changed the house, more than one hundred years old, into a comfortable summer cottage. No expense has been spared in beautify- ing and improving the place, and evidences of the refinement of the owner are seen in every depart- ment of the home and all its surroundings.

Mr. Sheldon married Miss Anna K. Embury, a member of an old and wealthy Brooklyn family, and this union was blessed with one child, Anna Embury, now the wife of Rev. James Townsend Russell, rector of St. Thomas Episcopal Church in Brooklyn. There is one grandson, Henry K. Shel- don Russell. Mr. and Mrs. Russell make their home with Mr. and Mrs. Sheldon, in the summer at Sil- ver Lake, and in the winter at their home in Brook- lyn, No. 220 Columbia Heights, conceded to be one of the finest situations in the world, overlooking as it does the City and Bay of New York.

Mrs. Sheldon's father, Daniel Embury, was for

many years one of the prominent men of Brooklyn, being president of the largest bank in that city and at one time associated with Jacob Barker, the great financier, with whom he negotiated several large loans for the government. He married Miss Emma C. Manley, the well-known poetess, who was the daughter of Dr. James R. Manley, a distinguished physician of New York City. Mrs. Sheldon was highly educated in the best schools of the day. She has seen the development of the great city from the days of its insignificance. She well remembers leaving her home in Brooklyn when a child of eleven years, crossing the ferry to New York, and going about the city alone with perfect safety.

Mr. and Mrs. Sheldon were both accomplished musicians in their younger days, and have always. been deeply interested in musical matters. Mr. Sheldon is now, as he has been for many years, president of the Brooklyn Academy of Music, and president of the Brooklyn Philharmonic Society. He is also a trustee of the Brooklyn Institute of Arts and Sciences, and a trustee of the Brooklyn Art Association. Mr. Sheldon is a trustee of the First Presbyterian Church of Brooklyn, with which his father and mother were for many years con- nected. In politics he is a Republican, and has al- ways been identified with the interests of that party ; not, however, as an office-seeker, for he has de- clined even so great an honor as the nomination for mayor of Brooklyn.

JACOB SIEDLER comes from the Father- land, and the strongest and most creditable char- acteristics of the Teutonic race have been marked elements in his life, and have enabled him to win success in the face of opposing circumstances. He possesses the energy and determination which mark the people of Germany, and by the exercise of his- powers has steadily progressed, not only winning a handsome competence which enables him to lay aside business cares, but commanding universal. respect by his straightforward business methods. He is now living retired in Hawley, Wayne county, where for several years he successfully engaged in the hardware business.

Mr. Siedler was born in Baden, Germany, Janu- ary 28, 1823, son of Frederick and Susan ( Siedler ). Siedler, who were not related previous to their mar- riage. The father, who was a contractor and builder, died in Germany, in 1826, at the age of sixty years. The mother later became the wife of Carl Frahlick, and in 1845 they emigrated to Amer- ica, accompanied by our subject, her only child. They first located in Rochester, N. Y., where Mr. Frahlick engaged in peddling dry-goods for a time, and then removed to Bloomingburg, N. Y., where he established a tin shop. On selling out, in 1849, he came to Hawley, Wayne Co., Penn., where he engaged in the hardware and tinware business for some time, at length selling out to our subject. He then conducted the "German Hotel," on the north side of the canal in Hawley, until called from this

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life, in 1853, at the age of forty-five years ; his wife died in 1887, aged seventy-six years. Both were laid to rest in Wayne county, though they were not buried in the same cemetery. In religious faith they were Catholics.

At an early age Mr. Siedler began assisting his stepfather in his business, and continued with him until 1851, when he purchased the hardware store in Hawley which Mr. Frahlick had established. He successfully carried it on until 1887, when he sold out to his nephew, Jacob F. Siedler ( his name- sake). Since then he has lived retired, enjoying the fruits of his former toil. He was always an enter- prising, wide-awake business man, of known relia- bility, and the success that he achieved was cer- tainly well deserved.

Mr. Siedler was married, at Hawley, in No- vember, 1852, to Miss Margaret Sheader, who died in 1867, aged thirty-four years, and was laid to rest in the Catholic cemetery at Hawley. To them were born two sons and two daughters, namely : Charles, who died at the age of three years: George, who · died in childhood; Anna, deceased wife of Gustave Leiber, who conducts a tin shop in Hawley, and by whom she had two sons; and Odella, wife of Nich- olas Kelsch, a glass-blower of Hawley, who has six children (they live with our subject). For his sec- ond wife Mr. Siedler married Barbara Staussen, by whom he had two children: Charles, deceased ; and Josephine, deceased wife of Dr. Eyrod, who now lives in Mexico.

In 1873 Mr. Siedler met with misfortune, fall- ing from the roof of a house and breaking his limb, so that amputation was necessary. He is one of the most valued citizens that Germany has furnished to Wayne county, and has always taken an active interest in all enterprises which he believed calcula- ted to prove of public good. His political support is always given to the men and measures of the Democratic party, and he has most acceptably served his fellow townsmen in the capacity of poor- master and school director. . Religiously he holds membership in the Catholic Church.

WILLIAM C. NORTON. The world in- stinctively pays deference to the man whose success in life is worthily achieved. This is a progressive age, and he who does not advance is soon left far behind. In Mr. Norton we find one of the most successful, enterprising and progressive farmers and stock raisers of Wayne county, and through his en- ergetic efforts and capable management Ridge Farm, in Clinton township-the home of the Nor- tons-has become famous far and wide.

Sheldon Norton (grandfather of our subject) was born in 1793, in Connecticut, and in the spring of 1812 came to Wayne county, Penn. After read- ing law for some time, in Mt. Pleasant township, he was appointed, by Gov. Findlay, prothonotary and clerk of the county, when but twenty-five years of age. After receiving his appointment he re- turned to his native town in Connecticut, where he

married Harriet Spencer, and brought his bride to his new home in Bethany, Wayne county. For two years he filled the offices to which he had been ap- pointed, and then removed to Clinton, where he built the house, long known as the Norton homestead, which is still standing. In 1831 he was appointed agent of the American Sunday-school Union, and at once entered upon the arduous duties of that office, riding the first year 7,000 miles on horseback through the South and West, establishing Sunday- schools. The family still preserve the manuscript of several of his addresses delivered at Sunday- school conventions. These are written in the neat, clear handwriting of the author, and their thoughts prove him to have been a man of advanced ideas, and fully aware of the importance of the work in which he was so successfully engaged. He died in this service, in 1838, honored and respected by all who knew him. Among his papers was a genea- logical record of the Norton family, tracing it back for forty generations. The name was originally spelled Norville, and among its later representatives were Thomas Norton, a noted English lawyer and playwright; Gre Norton, one of the signers of the death warrant of King Charles; and Col. Richard Norton, a member of the Council of 1642, and a great favorite of Oliver Cromwell.

E. K. Norton (our subject's father) was born in Bethany, Wayne county, June 3, 1819, and was given a thorough education, which well fitted him for life's responsible duties. During early man- hood he engaged in manufacturing in Aldenville, Wayne county, but later turned his attention to agricultural pursuits in Clinton township, becoming one of its most successful general farmers and fruit growers. He was deacon in the Church, and took an active and prominent part in all Church work. In Mt. Pleasant, January 5, 1843, he married Miss Clarissa N. McMullen, and they became the parents of five children, namely: Oscar M., born March 12, 1846, died August 2, 1861 ; Sheldon, born June 15, 1847, makes his home in Pennsylvania; M. Liz- zie, born July 3, 1850, is the wife of E. H. Ladyard, of Mt. Pleasant; William C. is next in the family ; and Emily J., born May 11, 1857, is the wife of C. P. Perham, of New Jersey.

In Clinton township William C. Norton was born October 10, 1852, and after attending the com- mon schools of that locality was a student for some time in the Delaware Literary Institute, of Frank- lin, N. Y. From youth he has been a careful ob- server of all improved methods of agriculture and stock raising, and a thoughtful reader of standard works and periodicals upon these subjects. He is therefore one of the best informed farmers and stock breeders of the State, and has met with re- markable success in his chosen calling. His knowl- edge of pedigrees, records, etc., and his ability to quickly discern the good points of any animal, has made him in great demand as a judge of cattle and hogs at the great eastern fairs, and given him an enviable reputation among stock breeders. At the

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age of twenty-one he entered extensively into the business of improving and breeding Berkshire hogs, and the Ridge Farm herd, under his management, was the largest and best in the country. It was exhibited year after year at all the leading fairs of the West, and won the largest amount of prize money of any herd in America. Mr. Norton is still engaged in stock breeding, and is now paying particular attention to the raising of blooded horses. On October 9, 1877, Mr. Norton was married to Miss Mary M. Stone, daughter of Lemuel Stone. She died July 28, 1878, leaving one child, Oscar M., born July 24, 1878. Mr. Norton was again mar- ried, December 3, 1879, his second union being with Miss Jessie M., daughter of A. R. and Sarah (Burns) Peck, and to them were born three chil- dren, whose names and dates of birth are as fol- lows: Albert E., August 31, 1881 ; Elwin S., May 23, 1889; and E. Kirk, August 16, 1892. The last named died May 25, 1897.

Mr. Norton is a charter member and lecturer of Clinton Grange, No. 1031, and is a member of Pomona Grange, of Wayne county. He takes an active and prominent part in the work of the Farm- ers' Institute throughout the State, and is a director of the Wayne County Agricultural Society and the Patriotic Order Sons of America. The Repub- lican party always finds in him a stalwart supporter, and he has efficiently served his fellow citizens as county treasurer, supervisor and town clerk. In November, 1898, he was honored with election to the State Assembly. A man of keen perception, of unbounded enterprise, his success in life is due to his own efforts, and he deserves prominent mention among the leading and representative business men of the county. As a public-spirited, progressive man, he is recognized as a valued citizen of the community.

EDWARD R. W. SEARLE, a prominent at- torney of Susquehanna, and one of the ablest lawyers practicing at the Susquehanna County Bar, was born on the old homestead in Bridgewater town- ship, that county, June 18, 1858, a son of Henry S. and Ellen ( Warner ) Searle.

In early life Henry S. Searle engaged in farm- ing, and also operated a grist and sawmill, and at the age of thirty-seven years he went to New York City, where he was interested in the boot and shoe trade. While there his family moved to Montrose, in 1865, and when he returned to Susquehanna county, two years later, they removed to Scranton, Penn., where in partnership with C. W. Kirkpat- rick he was engaged in the coffee and spice busi- ness-the first of the kind in the State outside of Philadelphia. After the death of his wife, on Jan- uary 18, 1874, when she was forty-four years of age, he removed to Pittston, Penn., where he spent a few years. in retirement from business, and then went to Detroit, Mich., living retired until called from this life, August 2, 1894. at the age of sixty-five years. Politically he was a Democrat, and both he and

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Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1, Part 123

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