Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1, Part 164

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 164
USA > Pennsylvania > Monroe County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 164
USA > Pennsylvania > Susquehanna County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 164
USA > Pennsylvania > Wayne County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 164

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ISAAC V. WESTBROOK, who is at present serving as auditor and justice of the peace in Leh- man township, Pike county, has been a resident of same since 1870, and he is ranked among the well- to-do and thoroughly progressive general farmers of this locality. Mr. Westbrook is a native of Del-

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aware township, Pike county, born February 12, 1847, and he is the son of Jacob B. Westbrook and grandson of Col. John and Sarah ( Brodhead) Westbrook, the former of whom represented his clistrict in the Pennsylvania General Assembly. On the maternal side his grandparents were Isaac P. and Jane ( Frazier ) Van Gorden, who were also prominent people of their day; Mrs. Van Gorden's father was a native of Scotland.

Jacob B. Westbrook, father of our subject, was born November 28, 1815, in Delaware township, and passed his entire life there, dying in January, 1853, at a comparatively early age. He was buried in Delaware cemetery. Mr. Westbrook was a well- known citizen in his township, serving for ten years as justice of the peace. On October 24, 1838, he married Hannah Jane Van Gorden, who was born November 20, 1819, in Lehman township, Pike county, and to their union came four children, namely: Sarah J., born February 20, 1840, who resides in Lehman township, the widow of Oba- diah Hornbeck ; Susan, born July 10, 1842, the wife of Hon. Everett Hornbeck, who served three terms as associate judge of Pike county and is now em- ployed in the mint at Philadelphia ; Isaac V., whose name introduces these lines ; and Jacob B., born April 9, 1853, who is engaged in the general mer- cantile business in Dingman's Ferry. In religious connection the parents were both members of the M. E. Church. Mr. Westbrook was a Democrat in politics. Sixteen years after his death Mrs. Westbrook wedded Jacob Hornbeck, who died at the age of seventy-three years, and she lived to the age of seventy-seven, passing away December 13, 1896, at the home of her son Jacob, in Dingman's Ferry. She too, was laid to rest in Delaware ceme- tery. There were no children by the second mar- riage.

Isaac V. Westbrook was reared and educated in his native township, during his boyhood attending the common schools, and after his father's death, which occurred when he was six years old, he made his home with his grandfather Van Gorden. He has made farming his life occupation. In 1870, immediately after his marriage, he removed to Venango, Penn., engaging in the oil business there for about one year, and in 1871 returning to Pike county and purchasing the place in Lehman town- ship which he has since conducted-a beautiful tract of fine river-bottom land, which has repaid him well for the years of labor he has expended in its cultivation and improvement. He is go- ahead and energetic in all his work, and as a result of thrift and good management, which are char- acteristic traits of members of the Westbrook fam- ily, he has gained a high standing among the suc- cessful and intelligent farmers of his township. He is well informed on matters of general interest, and is well fitted to take the active part in pub- lic affairs to which his fellow citizens have called him, for he has served ably and efficiently in vari- ous offices of local importance. He held the po-

sition of school director for three years, was as- sessor of his township, and in the spring of 1898 was elected to his present incumbency, that of au- ditor ; in the spring of 1894 he was elected justice of the peace for a term of five years. Though the requirements for the satisfactory discharge of his duties in these offices have been many and varied, Mr. Westbrook has always proved himself equal to them, and his public service has been honorable and praiseworthy in every respect. He is a Democrat in political connection.

On April 24, 1870, Mr. Westbrook was united in marriage, in Lehman township, with Miss Mar- cena Hornbeck, and two children have blessed this union-Mabel, born May 4, 1872, and Lucien, born March 17, 1874, both of whom live with their parents. Lucien Westbrook commenced teach- ing school in the district schools of Pike county when seventeen years of age, and has since grad- uated at the State Normal School at East Strouds- burg, Penn. He is now teaching in the graded school at Milford, the county seat of Pike county. Mrs. Westbrook was born May 4, 1846, the daugh- ter of Jacob and Eliza Ann (Hetzel) Hornbeck, the former of whom was an extensive farmer of Lehman township and in his day one of its best- known citizens.

HENRY W. NORTHROP. It is difficult to realize the fact that within the memory of living men much of this section has been reclaimed from the wilderness, but the reminiscences of this ven- erable resident of New Milford township, Susque- hanna county, bring the early days clearly before us. Coming here in boyhood, he was reared amid the surroundings of pioneer life, and later he and his worthy wife made a new home in a clearing, their hard work being lightened by hope and affec- tion.

Mr. Northrop was born January 13, 1817, in Orange county, N. Y., where his ancestors in both paternal and maternal lines settled at an early period. Nathan Northrop, our subject's father, was born and reared in Orange county, N. Y., and married Miss Jane Miller, also a native of that county. In 1820 they removed to Susquehanna county, settling in, a log cabin in the wilderness in what is now Bridgewater township. Later they made their home in Hart Lake, remaining there twenty years, and their last years were spent in Jackson township. The father followed farming as an occupation until twenty years before his death, which occurred in 1867, when he was seventy-four years of age. The mother died in 1877, aged eighty-four, both being buried in Jackson township. In religious faith they were Methodists, and their influence did much to promote the growth of the Church in their local- ity in pioneer times. Of their children, the first, Elsa, died in infancy ; Henry W. was second in the order of birth ; Eunice (deceased) married Alexan- der Martin; Betsy Ann (deceased) married Theo- dore Galway; Stephen J., a retired resident of

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Montrose, Penn., was formerly an editor of the Montrose Sentinel.

Our subject remained under the parental roof until he reached the age of twenty-four, and on at- taining his majority was allowed a salary by his father. With his earnings he bought a small tract ·of land at Hart Lake which was considered so worth- less that his taxes amounted to but nine cents, but under his able and scientific management it in- creased in value until he was offered and declined $40 per acre. As time passed he added to his first purchase until he had 200 acres, but in 1869 he rented this and removed to Caroline county, Md .. where he spent eight years. On his return to Susquehanna county, in 1877, he lived on the farm until 1881, when he bought the house and lot in New Milford borough where he has since made his home. He has also purchased other property in the borough, now owning five houses and lots, and he has a substantial bank account. Among the at- tractions of his comfortable home is a fine apiary, to which he has given much attention, although a slight stroke of paralysis has restricted his work of late. In politics he is a Republican, and while residing on his farm he served as judge of elections and for one year was township assessor. For more than forty years he has been a member of the Methodist Church, in which he has served three years as trustee and four years as member of the official board. On December 30, 1840, Mr. North- rop was married, in New Milford township to Miss Elsa Miller, and five children have brightened their home: Hester A. died in Maryland at the age of thirty. Mary E. married Alford Dennis, a farmer in Tioga county, N. Y. James B. married Isabella Sewall, and is engaged in farming in New- ark Valley, N. Y. Richard died in Susquehanna county at the age of thirty ; and Charlotte J. is the wife of Joseph Lewis, a farmer in New Milford township.

Mrs. Elsa (Miller) Northrop, whose loving companionship and aid have cheered her husband's life for nearly sixty years, was born May 22, 1818, in Orange county, N. Y. When a girl she became an expert in spinning and weaving, and after her marriage she raised all the flax and wove all the cloth used by the family for many years. Before her children were able to help she made a coat and overcoat for her husband. Her paternal grandpar- ents, Nicholas and Elsa (Parker) Miller, resided in Westchester county, N. Y., and her father, Elisha Miller, spent some years in Orange county, N. Y., but removed to this section in 1834. For about twenty years he made his home in New Milford township, Susquehanna county, spending his last days, however, in Tioga county, N. Y. By occupa- tion he was a farmer and blacksmith. He died in 1871, aged seventy-three years, and his wife, Anna Price, a native of Orange county, N. Y., died at the age of fifty-five. This worthy couple had seven children, viz .: Peggie A., deceased, who married James Watson, of Franklin township, Susquehanna

county ; Elsa, Mrs. Northrop; Naymeyer P., a resi- clent of Nebraska ; James, a farmer in New Mil- ford township, Susquehanna county; Nathaniel, who died in Maryland; Mariette, who married Alfred Dennis, and died in New York State; and John W., a farmer near Ithaca, New York.

JOHN TOMS. A well-known writer has said that "every person may learn something from the recorded life of another," and in the history of this enterprising and thrifty agriculturist there is much to encourage others to perseverance. Mr. Toms came to America in early manhood without capital or influence, yet he has attained a hand- some competence through his own efforts, his farm in Cherry Ridge township, Wayne county, being one of the best in that neighborhood.

Like many of our leading men, Mr. Toms is of English birth and ancestry, and his paternal grandparents, John and Mary ( Marshall) Toms, were life-long residents of Cornwall, England, where the grandfather followed farming. John Toms (2), the father of our subject, was born in Cornwall, England, and for many years was a day laborer there. He married Miss Catherine Hock- ing, a daughter of John Hocking, and a native of the same locality ; she passed to the unseen life in 1843, her remains being interred in the burial ground at the old home. In 1854 he came to the United States, locating upon a farm in Wayne coun- ty, Penn., where he died in 1885, at the age of seven- ty-nine, and his remains now rest in Glen Dyberry cemetery, at Honesdale. He was a man of in- telligence, taking much interest in public affairs in his adopted country, and politically he affiliated with the Republican party. In religious faith he was a Methodist, his wife a member of the Church of England. Of their children, the eldest, Will- iam, remained in England; John, our subject, is mentioned more fully below; Jane, deceased, mar- ried Rev. John Durham, a Methodist minister, now residing in Illinois; Mary is the wife of Charles J. Jay, a carpenter at Mt. Pleasant, Penn. ; Francis is a farmer in Manchester township, Wayne county ; Joseph resides in Berlin township, Wayne county (he is a veteran of the Civil war, having enlisted, in 1862, as a member of Company D, 179th P. V. J., and served nine months) ; and Stephen died in Wayne county in December, 1862.

John Toms was born August 23, 1831, in the Parish of St. Cue, Cornwall, England, and dur- ing his boyhood gained a knowledge of agricultural work while assisting his father. At the age of twenty he crossed the Atlantic to make his home in America, the voyage lasting thirty days, as was common in those days of sailing vessels. On land- ing in New York he spent a short time in the metropolis, but later came to Wayne county, where he worked two years for a farmer in Berlin town- ship. His father having then arrived in Wayne county, they rented a farm in Berlin township which they conducted for four years when Mr. Toms

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removed to the present homestead, a fine estate of 100 acres, soon followed by his father. Mr. Toms is prominent in local affairs, being one of the leading Republicans of his section, and for sev- eral years he was a member of the county com- mittee of that party, while he held several town offices, including those of school director, super- visor, and auditor. He is a member of the Method- ist Church at Honesdale, and takes an active interest in all that pertains to the welfare of his community.

On August 6, 1864, Mr. Toms was married, at Hamlinton, Wayne county, by Rev. J. O. Wood- ruff, a Methodist minister, to Miss Martha A. Swin- gle, and their home has been brightened by six chil- dren, viz .: Harry W., who married Miss Sarah Brock, December 23, 1890, resides at Traceyville, Wayne county, where he is employed in a planing mill; Joseph S., who lives on a farm near the homestead, was married December 28, 1897, to Florence Jennings, of Hawley ; Mary is the wife of William E. Brock, a farmer in Cherry Ridge town- ship; Miss Mattie A., a graduate of Scranton Business College, resides at home; John Wesley, a glass cutter at White Mills, Wayne county, was married December 15, 1897, to Elizabeth Decker, and Andrew D. is at home. Mrs. Toms was born September 12, 1839, at Cherry Ridge, Wayne county, and is a member of one of the oldest and most esteemed families of that county. The first ancestor of whom we have a record was Hans Ulrich Swingle, a native of Germany, who came to America prior to the Revolutionary war, and locat- ed for a time in Orange county, N. Y. He was drafted during the war but did not serve, as he was not a naturalized citizen. In 1783 he settled in Wayne county, where he purchased 400 acres of land in the wilderness, upon which no tree had been cut. There was not even a road made through the forest to his "land, but he began at once on his arrival to clear the place and build himself a log cabin for a home. His death occurred March 28, 1809, and his wife, Mary Shaffer, died in March, 1816. They had the following children : Christina, who married Silas Woodward; Morilla, who mar- ried Henry Curtis, a Revolutionary soldier; Con- rad, who married Lucy Bunting; Kate, wife of George Enslin; Jeremiah, who married for his sec- ond wife Patience Bunting ; John, the grandfather of Mrs. Toms, who was married three times and had eighteen children (he was a class leader in the M. E. Church) ; Frederick (born in 1781, died May 10, 1861), who married Susannah Enslin (born in 1780, died August 15, 1856) ; Jacob (died July 23, 1870), who married Eva Shaffer (died June 23, 1861) ; Henry, who married Elizabeth Enslin, and died September 13, 1851 ; and Mary, who mar- ried Moses Shaffer, and died July 20, 1839.

Joseph Swingle, the father of Mrs. Toms, was born March 28, 1811, in Wayne county, a son of John Swingle, and his second wife Catherine (Shorter), and throughout his life was successfully engaged in farming. He took a prominent part in

local affairs, holding various township offices, and for many years he was a member of the Method- ist Church, with which his family had been identi- fied from pioncer times. His wife, Susan ( Ackers), who was born in Wayne county in 1814, died Au- gust 9, 1847, in South Canaan township, where her remains now rest, and his death occurred February 21, 1880, in Salem township, his remains being interred there. Their children were: Milo E., born July 13, 1832, is a farmer and fruit grower near Los Angeles, Cal .; Artemus C., born December 14, 1833, is a carpenter at Scranton, Penn. ; Amasa A., born March 12, 1836, resides at Peckville, Penn., and at present holds the office of postmaster there ; Sanford S., born October 18, 1837, died August 30, 1871 ; Martha A., Mrs. Toms, born September 12, 1839, was fifth in the order of birth; John E., born March 28, 1842, died September 30, 1852; Andrew J., born March 12, 1844, enlisted during the Civil war in Company G, 5th U. S. Regulars, rose, through his gallant service, to the rank of corporal, and on May 5, 1864, met a soldier's death at the battle of the Wilderness ; Egbert, born June 17, 1847, died July 13, 1897.

JAMES M. SPENCER, one of the most pros- perous lumbermen and influential citizens residing in Preston township, Wayne county, is a native of that county, born in January, 1832, and is a worthy representative of one of her prominent families. The grandfather, Ezra Spencer, Sr., was a native of Connecticut, belonging to one of the old and hon- ored families of that State, and as early as 1816 he emigrated to Wayne county, Penn., taking up his residence in Mt. Pleasant township.

Ezra Spencer, Jr. (our subject's father), was born in Connecticut, in 1806, accompanied his par- ents on their removel to Wayne county, and is still living in Mt. Pleasant township-one of the old- est, as well as one of the most highly respected men of the county. He married Miss Mary B. Moore, a native of New Jersey, and a daughter of James Moore, a representative of a leading family of that State. Mrs. Spencer, who was a faithful member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, died January 21, 1858, at the age of forty-seven years. During his active business life the father always engaged in farming, and since attaining to man's estate has been a supporter of the Democratic party, while in religious faith he is. an Episcopalian.

In the family were eleven children, James M. being the eldest; the others were: Mrs. Eliza Part- ridge and Mrs. Juliette Kerr (both deceased) ; Nor- man, who was a Union soldier in the Civil war, and died in Starrucca, Wayne county; Mrs. Adaline Butler (deceased) ; Clark E., who lives on his grand- father's old farm in Mt. Pleasant township; Mrs. Keziah Le Barr, of Starrucca; Mrs. Kate Clemon, of Bethany, Penn .; Charles, who resides on his father's old homestead; Olive, wife of James Wat- son, of Lake Como, Wayne county ; and Mrs. Hat- tie Clough, who died in Logan county, Ohio. Of

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these children, James, Juliette and Keziah all en- gaged in teaching school in early life.

Mr. Spencer, the subject of this sketch, obtained a good practical education during his youth, and at the age of twenty-one began teaching, a profession which he successfully followed for some time. In 1861, with his uncle, W. H. Spencer, of Kirksville, Mo., he built a sawmill, and after operating it together for a while, he purchased his partner's interest, carrying on business alone with good suc- cess. During the season of 1875 he sawed one mil- lion feet of lumber. He is now the owner of a fine farm of 220 acres in Preston township, on which he has erected one of the most convenient and pleas- ant residences in the county, at a cost of $3,000. It is heated by steam, supplied with hot and cold water, and in fact has all of the conveniences of a city home.

On January 1, 1864, Mr. Spencer married Miss Martha A. Monroe, who was born, reared and edu- cated in Preston township, Wayne county. Her father, Charles Monroe, was born January 1, 1810, in Massachusetts, a son of Joseph and Mary (Jos- lyn) Monroe, of the old Bay State. Charles Mon- roe married Philinder Partridge, a native of Mt. Pleasant township, Wayne county, and they became the parents of nine children, namely: Charles H. (deceased), who was a member of the 45th P. V. I. during the Civil war; Polly B., wife of G. B. Sherwood; Alphonso, a resident of Susquehanna county, Penn. ; Martha A., wife of our subject ; and Eleazer and William, both of Forest City, Penn. The mother, who was a consistent member of the Presbyterian Church, died March 4, 1897, at the age of eighty-three years, but the father is still liv- ing. By occupation he is a farmer, and in politics is a Republican.

To Mr. and Mrs. Spencer have been born twelve children, namely: Nelson J., vice-principal of the high school of Honesdale, Wayne county ; Alma E. and Elva A. (twins), the former a teacher in the Starrucca schools, the latter the wife of a Mr. Noble, of Damascus township, Wayne county ; Mrs. Mary M. Doyle, of Preston township; Mrs. Jennie Doyle (deceased), and her twin sister who died at birth; Hattie and Etta, both popular teach- ers of Wayne county ; George Ezra ; Grace J. ; Ralph W .; and Herbert M. All of the children have been provided with good school privileges, and the fam- ily is one of prominence in social circles where intelligence and worth are received as passports.

Politically Mr. Spencer is what may be termed an independent Democrat, as he is not strictly par- tisan, voting at local elections for the candidate he believes best qualified to the office regardless of party ties. He has efficiently served as school director for six years. By his energy, perseverance and business ability he has been enabled to secure an ample fortune, and to-day he enjoys the reward of his painstaking, conscientious work. Social, edu- cational and moral interests have been promoted by him, and anything that tends to uplift and benefit

humanity secures his hearty co-operation. Relig- iously his wife is an earnest and active member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. 1

DAVID S. BISBING, a representative farmer of Coolbaugh township, Monroe county, and who was a valiant defender of the Union during the Civil war, was born near Tannersville, in Pocono town- ship, Monroe county, in October, 1831, and is a son of Jacob and Abbic ( Seebring) Bisbing, who were among the early settlers of Pocono township.

Jacob Bisbing was born in 1797, a son of John and Sarah Bisbing, of Philadelphia; his wife was born in Pocono township, in 1795. After their mar- riage, in 1817, they located near Tannersville, where he cleared and developed a fine farm. Their first home was a log cabin, but in later years it was re- placed by a good frame house, substantial outbuild- ings were also erected, and many other improve- ments were added to the place, which remained the home of the family until after the children were all grown up and married. The father then sold his farm and bought a house and lot in Tannersville, where he lived until his death in 1871. After the death of the mother in 1847, he married a Mrs. Cus- ter, of Hamilton township, Monroe county, but all his children were of the first marriage, and were as follows: (I) James S., born in 1818, married and lived in Pocono township, where he died leaving two sons, Samuel and Randal; Samuel still resides in Monroe county ; he and his father were both sol- diers in the Civil war. (2) John, born in June, 1820, married, reared a family of eight children, and died at Tannersville. (3) Peter S., born in Feb- ruary, 1822, married Magdalene Berry, of Tanners- ville, and resided on his farm in Pocono township, where he died leaving a family of eight children, of whom one son also served in the war of the Rebel- lion. (4) Henry S., born in December, 1823,mar- ried Sarah Hilyer, of Spragueville, and they located near the old homestead, where he owned a fine farm. At their deaths they left a family of twelve children. (5) Jacob S., born in November, 1825, married Julia Smith, of Tannersville, and removed to Mich- igan, where some of his children are still living at Saginaw City; he was a soldier in the Civil war. (6) Annie S., born in September, 1827, is the wife of Samuel Nye, and with their family they now re- side in Dallas county, Iowa. (7) Abigail S., born in September, 1829, died in July, 1831. (8) David S., our subject, is the next of the family. (9) Amos, born in October, 1833, married Isabel Will- iams, of Hamilton township, Monroe county, who died at White Haven, Penn., leaving eight children, of whom five are still living ; later he married De- lila Staggers, by whom he has two children, Hattie and Amos, and they now live in Scranton, Penn. (10) Edna, born in November, 1835, died at the age of two years. (II) Malissa, born in Septem- ber, 1837, is now the widow of Charles Hilyer, and a resident of Stroudsburg; she has three children, Emma, Annie and Susan. (12) Susan, born in

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December, 1839, married Hiram Gould, who died in the service of his country during the Civil war, and she later wedded Allen Ellis, of Dallas county, lowa, and they spent their last days in Nebraska. David S. Bisbing was reared on the old home- stead in Pocono township, and received the benefits of a common-school education. When a young man he learned the shoemaker's trade with Austin New- comb, of Tannersville, and for a number of years successfully followed that occupation. In 1856 he was united in marriage with Miss Mary A. Miller, who was also reared and educated in Pocono town- ship. Her father, John Miller, born in New Jersey, married Eliza Stein, a native of Poughkeepsie, N. Y., and a daughter of Mathew and Phoebe Stein, of that place. After his marriage Mr. Miller located in Pocono township, Monroe county, where he fol- lowed lumbering, and he was killed by a falling tree at White Haven, Penn., leaving a widow and one daughter, now Mrs. Bisbing. To our subject and his wife have been born six children, namely : (1) Eliza J., born at Mountain Home, Monroe county, in March, 1859, married George Stiff, of Tannersville, who is now engaged in farming in Coolbaugh township, and they have six children- Clara May, Bertha M., Nellie G., Metia K., Horace B. and Lizzie F. (2) Horace W., born in May, 1861, is a conductor on the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western railroad, and resides in Scranton, Penn. He married Almeda Lance, of Blairstown, N. J., and they have two children, Mary E. and Walter. (3) Jerome H., born in Tannersville, June 25, 1866, is depot agent for the Delaware, Lackawanna & West- ern railroad at Scranton. He married Lizzie Jetter, of that place, and they have one daughter, Alverna. (4) Mary E., born in Paradise Valley, in July, 1868, married Clark D. Wagoner, of Paradise, and they now reside in Potter county, Penn. (5) Nettie F., born in January, 1871, is now engaged in clerking in one of the dry-goods stores of New York. (6) Frank N., born August 10, 1875, is at home with his parents and is one of the reliable young men of the community.

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Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1, Part 164

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