Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1, Part 215

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 215
USA > Pennsylvania > Monroe County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 215
USA > Pennsylvania > Susquehanna County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 215
USA > Pennsylvania > Wayne County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 215

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SEBASTIAN KRESGE. The value of scien- tific methods in farming is strictly demonstrated in the management of this enterprising and successful agriculturist of Ross township, Monroe county, who has transformed a barren tract into a fertile and pro- ductive estate. On taking possession of the farm twenty years ago he planted seven acres of corn, but reaped only thirty bushels for his pains, while a por- tion of the farm which he planted in oats did not pay the cost of the seed, as the yield was so poor that he plowed it all under. By the intelligent use of fer- tilizers he has given to the soil the needed elements, and one could not ask for better results than he now obtains. With the true spirit of the scientist he has sought to extend the knowledge of correct methods of tilling and enriching poor soils, and for a number of years he dealt extensively in farm implements and fertilizers; but since 1894 he has found his time too much occupied with his other interests to continue that line of business.

Mr. Kresge was born July 21, 1838, on the old Kresge homestead in Chestnut Hill township, Mon- roe county, and is a member of one of the old pioneer families, being a great-grandson of Conrad Kresge, who settled at the site of the present village of Ef- fort about 1745. The descendants of this noted pioneer are now numerous in this section, and the family records are given elsewhere. Conrad Kresge, the grandfather of our subject, became the owner of his father's estate. He married Margaret Kunkel, and had ten children: Conrad, Margaret, John, Philip. Charles, Daniel, Peter, Elizabeth, George, and Katie.

Peter Kresge, our subject's father, was born in

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1807, and died in 1892, at Kresgeville. He married Miss Elizabeth Brong, who died in 1871 at the age of fifty-nine years. They had eleven children as follows: Amelia N. (deceased), who married J. J. Barthold; Mary Ann, who died in childhood; Tim- othy, a farmer in Chestnut Hill township, formerly treasurer of Monroe county ; Sebastian, our subject ; Peter, a veteran of the Civil war, who now resides in Tennessee ; Elizabeth, wife of James Kunkel, of Kresgeville ; Owen, a farmer in Chestnut Hill town- ship; Spearing, who settled upon a farm in Kansas ; Nathan H., a farmer in Indian Territory; Susan- nah, wife of John Graver, of Mauch Chunk, Penn .; and Amanda, who died in infancy.

Our subject received thorough practical train- ing in agricultural work during his youth, and on leaving home at the age of twenty-three years he rented a farm at Gilberts, Monroe county, where he remained one year. He then purchased a farm in Polk township, which about two years later he sold, and then removed to Luzerne county. For twelve years he operated a farm there, and for one year he had charge of the old homestead in Chestnut Hill township, Monroe county. In 1878 he settled at his present farm in Ross township, an estate of 113 acres, where he has since been engaged in general farming. Although he is a stanch Democrat in politics, he is not especially active in party work, having often declined to take official positions. For three years he served as school director, and then resigned the office. He is a leading member of the Reformed Church at Gilberts, and for one year served as deacon. He was elected and served one year as superintendent of the Michal Sunday- school ; was elected and served one year as secretary of the Reformed Sunday-school at Pleasant Valley, and next ten years taught in the same Sunday-school, Class No. 2, composed of married women. Among the exhibitors at the county fair he takes a promi- nent place, and always has the largest display of any one in the county. His exhibits consist of grain, potatoes, fruit, honey, canned fruit, wine, etc. He has 400 apple trees, and all kinds of fruit in abundance : also an apiary of fifty bees. all kept in hives of his own make, having movable frames. He and his family are prominent in the social life of their locality.

On May IT, 1862, Mr. Kresge was married at Sciota. Penn., by Rev. Mr. Becker, a Reformed min- ister. to Miss Catherine Kunkel, a native of Polk township, Monroe county, born November 7. 1839. Her father, the late John Kunkel, was a leading citi- zen of Kresgeville, and her mother, whose maiden name was Sarah Kresge. is still living at that place. Two of her brothers. Jacob and James Kunkel, comprise the firm of Kunkel Bros., at Kresgeville, and the family history is given elsewhere more fully. Nine children were born to our subiect and his wife, all of whom are living except the last two (twins), who died in infancy: (1) Diana mar- ried Charles Wilson, now in Port Huron, Mich., where he is conducting a five and ten cent store.

(2) Alvin H., a traveling salesman, married Miss Susan Fuller, and resides in Wilkes Barre, Penn. (3) Elmira, twin of Alvin, married Charles Depew, a railroad fireman, residing in Scranton. (4) Sarah E. married William Gregory, a dairyman and farmer of Wetherly, Penn. (5) Sebastian, Jr., married Miss Anna Hervey, and resides in Detroit, Mich., where he conducts a five and ten cent store. (6) Mary A. married Edmond Howell, a farmer and dairyman in Lehigh county. (7) Cora E. mar- ried Washington Howell, a brother of Edmond, who is engaged in the same line of business in Le- high county.

JOHN GANTZHORN, a prominent repre- sentative of the agricultural interests of Pocono township, Monroe county, is of German descent. His grandfather, David Gantzhorn, was a native of Germany, and died in Philadelphia, Penn.

John David Gantzhorn, father of our subject, was born in Wurtemberg, Germany, January 4, 1808, and in 1820 crossed the Atlantic with his par- ents, landing at Philadelphia, where they remained, but he proceeded to Easton, Penn., where he was employed in a tannery for a time. Subsequently he came to Pocono township, Monroe county, and purchased a tract of wild land in the western part of that township, where he cleared between seventy- five and one hundred acres, transforming it into a fine farm, which he continued to operate until called from this life, May 9, 1876. In Jackson township, Monroe county, he married Miss Fannie Smith, who was born in that township, a daughter of Abra- ham and Susana (Possinger) Smith, and died in Pocono township August 7, 1876. Of the thirteen children born to this union, William, born March 26, 1840, died April 27, 1840; Levi, a tanner, born March 14, 1841, wedded Mary Reinhart, and died February 22, 1897; David. born November 30, 1842, and died April 15, 1889, was engaged in the hotel business in Elkhart county, Ind .; Adam, born May 23, 1844, is a farmer in Chestnut Hill town- ship, Monroe county ; Lydia, born June 28, 1845, died September 22, 1861, at the age of sixteen years Mary, born February 28, 1847, died in February, 1852 ; John, our subject, comes next in the family ; Franklin, born March 14, 1850, died in February, 1852; Nathan, born September 9, 1851, died Sep- tember 18, 1861, at the age of ten : Aaron, born Oc- tober 17, 1853, died March 20, 1879; Anna Maria,. born January 20, 1856, died January 6, 1879, was the wife of Joseph Buskirk, of Jackson township, Monroe county ; Lavina and Sabina (twins) were born November 12, 1859; Lavina died September 22, 1861, Sabina on November 5, 1861.

Upon his present farm in Pocono township, John Gantzhorn was born October 31. 1848, and there amidst scenes common to pioneer life he grew to manhood, attending the district schools of the neighborhoood, and assisting in the arduous task of clearing the wild land and transforming it into highly cultivated fields. At his father's death he

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took the old homestead, on which he has successfully engaged in general farming, while through the win- ter season he has carried on lumbering quite ex- tensively. He now owns 136 acres of valuable land, about 100 of which are under excellent cultivation, much of the same having ben cleared by our sub- ject. The old log house erected by his father when he first purchased the property, and in which the children were all born, is still standing upon the place, a land mark of pioneer days. As a dwelling it has long since been replaced by a commodious frame residence, and it is now used as a store-room. An air of neatness and thrift pervades the place, and shows conclusively that the owner thoroughly understands his chosen calling, and that prosperity has crowned his well-directed efforts. In his politi- cal views, Mr. Gantzhorn is a stanch Democrat, but he has never cared for official preferment. He is a prominent member of the Lutheran Church, to which his wife also belongs, and for twenty years has been officially connected with the same as either deacon or elder. In the estimation of his fellow citizens he is one of the representative men of his community, and he enjoys the friendship and high regard of a large circle of acquaintances.

In Pleasant Valley, November 27, 1879, Mr. Gantzhorn was married by Rev. A. M. Straus, a Lutheran minister, to Miss Emma Jane Gearhart, who was born in Chestnut Hill township, Monroe county, July 3, 1856, and they have a family of seven children, whose names and dates of birth are as follows: Spener, November 5, 1880; Ethan Allen, October 22, 1882 : Fannie, April 22, 1884 ; Florence and Clarence ( twins ), January 24, 1887 : Elise, Octo- ber 13, 1888 ; and Chester, June 25, 1891. Mrs. Gantz- horn's paternal grandparents were Philip and Sarah ( Wright) Gearhart, whose home was at Chestnut Hill, Stroud township, Monroe county. Her fa- ther, Edwin Gearhart, was born in Stroud town- ship. and first married Margaret Hufsmith, a native of Chestnut Hill township, who died August 28, 1860. By this union were three children, Mrs. Gantzhorn being the eldest; Ethan Allen married Hester Gregory, and is now engaged in the practice of medicine in Allentown, Penn .; and William Henry died in infancy. For his second wife Mr. Gearhart married Lydia Hofner, now deceased.

PETER P. SCHAFFER is one of the most intelligent, enterprising and progressive citizens of Eldred township, Monroe county, where for thirty years he has successfully engaged in farm- ing and in the slate and stone quarry business.

Our subject is a native of Pennsylvania, born in Moore township, Northampton county, December JO, 1833, and is a son of Peter and Susan ( Graver ) Schäffer, who spent their entire lives in Moore town- ship, the father being engaged in agricultural pur- suits. He was identified with the Democratic party, and both he and his wife were members of the Re- formed Church. He died in 1873, at the age of

sixty-eight years, and she passed away in 1892, at the age of seventy-two, the remains of both being in- terred in Moore township, Northampton county. In their family were the following children: Polly, wife of Michael Rabe, a farmer of Northampton county ; Paul, also a farmer of that county ; Daniel, a farmer of Monroe county ; Peter P., our subject ; Susan, wife of Rudolph Abel, of Northampton coun- ty ; Rebecca, widow of George Spangler, of North- ampton county ; Mary, wife of George Lahr, of the same county ; Belinda, wife of Daniel Rabe, of Northampton county; Jacob P., a farmer of Elkhart, Ind .; and Catharine, a widow, of Easton, Penn. The paternal grandparents of our subject, John and Sarah (Shutt) Sch ffer, also made their home in Moore township, Northampton county, throughout life. The grandfather, who was a farm- er bv occupation, served as captain in the war of 1812, and filled the office of justice of the peace for many years. The maternal grandparents were George and Rebecca (Flick) Graver, farming people of Northampton county.

The subject of this review was reared or the home farm, remaining with his parents until eighteen years of age, when he commenced teaching school, and for fifteen years he successfully followed that profession in Northampton and Monroe counties, being a thorough and capable instructor. During the following two years he engaged in farming in Livingston county, N. Y., but in 1868 he returned to Monroe county and located upon his present farm in Eldred township, where he has since made his home. In connection with agricultural pursuits he operates the quarries upon his farm, and for seventeen years was merchandising at Kunkeltown. As a business man he has met with well-deserved success.

Mr. Schäffer was married in Eldred township, in 1861, to Miss Lucinda Engler, and to them have been born seven children: Amazon, who married Mary E. Smith, and is engaged in farming in Eldred township; Milton, who married Cora Williams, and is carrying on a milk business in Northampton county ; Ira M., who married Flora A. Serfass, and is engaged in merchandising in Kunkeltown, Mon- roe county : Corus A., deceased; Allen, who mar- ried Eva Smale, and lives with our subject; and Stanton and Asa A., both at home.

Mrs. Schäffer was born in Eldred township. November 6. 1841, a daughter of Edward and Christiann (Smith) Engler, who as farming people spent their entire lives in Monroe county. The fa- ther was a prominent man in his community, and was called upon to fill several township offices. He died in 1868, aged forty-eight years, his wife in 1888, aged sixty-five, and both were laid to rest in the Kunkletown cemetery. Religiously, they were members of the Reformed Church. Lu-

cinda was the eldest of their children; Lydia was three times married: (first) to Aaron Kunkel, (second) to Amandus Marsh, and (third) to Owen Silliman; William H. is deceased ; Sarah is the wife of Joseph H. Saeger, of Bethle-

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

hem, Penn. : and Belinda is the wife of H. P: Boyer, a hardware merchant of Slatington, Penn. Mrs. Schäffer's paternal grandparents, Adam and Sarah (Learn) Engler, were lifelong residents of Monroe county. Her maternal grandparents, Henry and Lydia ( Andrews ) Smith, were both born in North- ampton county, whence at an early dav they came to Monroe county, where they spent the remainder of their lives.

In his political affiliations, Mr. Schäffer is a strong Democrat, and in 1877 he was elected justice of the peace, which office he most creditably and satisfactorily filled some fifteen years. He is an active and prominent member of the Reformed Church, in which he has served as deacon ten years and as elder five years : was a delegate several times to the East Pennsylvania Classis, and also a delegate to the general Synod at Akron, Ohio. For six years he was a director of the Farmers Mutual Fire In- surance Co. of Monroe County ; for three years was secretary of the school board, of Eldred township; for six years was auditor of the same township ; and for twelve years was superintendent of the Kunkel- town Union Sunday-school. under whom was kept the first Picnic and Christmas Festival in 1877. At all times under all circumstances he is an honor- able, uoright man, well worthy of the high regard in which he is held.

WILLIAM SMITH, a wealthy retired resident of Stroudsburg, has been prominently identified with the agricultural interests of Monroe county for many years, and has also been extensively engaged in business operations of various kinds, his uniform success in his enterprises showing that he possesses sound judgment as well as energy. He has also taken an influential part in politics, and for nearly a quarter of a century he has held office in his locality.

In the paternal line Mr. Smith is of English de- scent, while on the maternal side he comes of thrifty German stock. The paternal grandfather, James Smith, who was born in England, came to America at an early day and settled in the vicinity of Phila- delphia, where he died. He left two sons, Alexan- der, our subject's father, and James (deceased), who conducted a retail grocery in Philadelphia.

Alexander Smith, the father of our subject, lo- cated in Ross township, Monroe county, in early manhood, and engaged in business as a tanner. He died when about forty years old, but his wife, whose maiden name was Susannah Rilbert, survived him many years, passing away at the age of ninety- two. . She was born in Ross township, Monroe county, in 1792, a daughter of John and Catherine Rilbert, who came from Germany soon after their marriage and located upon a farm. Our subject was the fourth child and only son in a family of five children, and is now the only survivor. Eliza and Christiana never married; Mary was the wife of Peter Serfass: and Louisa married David Misson.

William Smith was born February 12, 1824, in

Ross township, Monroe county, and after attend- ing the district schools of that locality for some years he studied for a year and a half at a public model school in Philadelphia. On leaving school at the age of sixteen, he secured employment as a farm hand at $4 per month and board, and after spending six months in this work he found a situa- tion in the fall of the year in a store at Brodheads- ville. Six months later the proprietor failed, and Mr. Smith entered the employ of a merchant in Eldred township, Monroe county, with whom he remained three years. For a time he took charge of a farm for his mother, and for three or four years he taught school in the winter seasons, receiving from $to to $12 per month. As he could read and write English and German, he taught both lan- guages. Farming proved to be a congenial occu- pation, and for many years he carried on general agricultural work while engaged in other business, mainly of a public nature. About the year 1850 he and his sister Louisa organized the first Sunday- school in Ross township, furnishing the larger amount of the funds for the work. For twenty years he served as justice of the peace, resigning the position when he removed from the township, and during that time he held the office of county treas- urer, being elected in 1859. From 1854 to 1861 he carried on a general mercantile business in Ross township. During this period he became a stock- holder in the first bank organized in the county, and some years later he became a director of the bank, which position he holds at the present. In 1864 he engaged in milling which he followed for a year. He then traded his mill for a new farm where he resided for some time, but later he returned to the old homestead, which he continued to culti- vate until 1873, being also engaged during much of the time in supplying bark for a tannery. In 1883 he retired from active work. and on May 10. 1887, he removed to Stroudsburg, where he has since re- sided. In politics Mr. Smith is a stanch Democrat, and he and his wife are leading members of the Lutheran Church at Stroudsburg. On June 16, 1869, he married Miss Anna M. Snyder, who was born in 1832, at Snyderville, Monroe county. The only child of this union. Mary Ellen, born October 4, 1870, received an excellent education, and was .married February 1, 1885, to Layton Weiss. They have two sons, Francis S. Weiss and William B. Weiss.

CLAYTON YALE, a prosperous and sub- stantial citizen of Lebanon township, is one of Wayne county's honored sons, his birth occurring August 6, 1832, in the township where he still con- tinues to make his home. His father, Seth Yale, was a native of Litchfield, Conn., born September 13. 1786, and was one of the early settlers of Wayne county, becoming a resident of Mt. Pleasant town- ship in 1806. The paternal grandfather of our subject. Ezra Yale, was a well-to-do Connecticut farmer. He served as colonel in the Revolutionary

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

war. Besides Seth, he had two other sons, Norman and Elijah, both of whom were soldiers in the war of 1812.

Seth Yale was married, September 23, 1808, to Miss Betsey Biglow, a native of Massachusetts, and a daughter of James Biglow, one of the heroes of the Revolutionary war, who in 1808 located in Wayne county, becoming one of its honored pio- neers. In 1812 Mr. and Mrs. Yale located upon a tract of land in Lebanon township which became the homestead of the family. Throughtout his active business life he followed the occupations of a lumberman and farmer, and was also an en- thusiastic hunter, at one time being so nearly killed by a bear that it was three weeks before he was able to leave home. He died at the age of seventy-three years, and the mother, who survived him, passed away at the age of seventy-five years ; both enjoyed the respect and esteem of a large cir- cle of friends and acquaintances. In the family of this worthy couple were children as follows : Seth and Franklin, both now deceased; Eliza, wife of G. P. Bass; Tryphena, who married Philo Sherwood, both now deceased; Norman, a prom- inent citizen of Wayne county, who is mentioned more fully below; Mary, deceased; Ezra, a resi- dent of Lebanon township; Clayton, whose name introduces this sketch; and Elijah and Treplence. both deceased.

Norman Yale was reared on the old home- stead, received his education in the public schools of the locality, and since starting out in life for himself has devoted his energies principally to the lumber business. He has been and still is one of the few great hunters of Wayne county, and is a man very popular with all classes, being kind-hearted, and broad and liberal in his views. He is unmarried, and is living on the old home place with his brother Clayton.

Like his brother Norman, Clayton Yale spent his boyhood and youth on the home farm, and when not attending school he assisted in the labors of field and meadow, obtaining a good practical knowledge of farm work in its various depart- ments. He is now the owner of one of the most desirable places in Lebanon township, comprising 400 acres of fertile and well-cultivated land, on which have been erected, a pleasant residence and good outbuildings. Clayton Yale wedded Miss Laura Adams, a daughter of William Adams, and of the children born to them five are yet living : Emogene, wife of James Taylor, of Lebanon town- ship: Eliza, at home; Eunice, wife of Rev. John Knox, of Savre, Penn. ; Florence, wife of A. Cort- right, sheriff of Wayne county, and a resident of Honesdale: and William, who married Lillian LaTourette, daughter of Jackson LaTourette, of Lebanon township, and lives on the old homestead. Three children of the family are deceased: a son in infancy: Ida at the age of fifteen years: and Vernie, the youngest child, at the age of two years.

Mr. Vale is a stalwart supporter of the Re-

publican party, and for years has most efficiently served as a member of the school board. He is an elder in the Presbyterian Church, of which he is an active and prominent member, and his de- votion to the public good is unquestioned, arising from a sincere interest in the welfare of his fellow men. His career has ever been such as to warrant the trust and confidence so freely accorded him.

WILLIAM BLANKENBUSH, who as a farmer and blacksmith has been prominently identi- fied with the development and prosperity of Dreher township, Wayne county, for over a quarter of a century, is a native of Prussia, Germany, born October 18, 1825, and is a son of George and Sarah ( Boring) Blankenbush, also natives of that kingdom. In 1851 he and his son emigrated to America and located in New York City, where the father farmed and the son followed his trade, that of a blacksmith, for several years. The father also lived for a time in Hoboken, N. J., and engaged in farming in that State, after which he removed to the West, where he died. Several of their ten chil- dren died in infancy, those who reached years of maturity being Frederick and John, who both re- mained in Germany ; Elizabeth, who is married and also lives in that country ; and William, the subject of this sketch.

William Blankenbush accompanied his father on his emigration to the New World, and for some years made his home in New York City, but in 187I became a resident of Dreher township, Wayne county, where he has since successfully engaged in farming and blacksmithing, now carrying on operations along those lines with the assistance of his son. He has a good thirty-acre farm. all cleared and under a high state of cultivation, while the improvements are first-class in every respect. Mr. Blankenbush uses his right of franchise in support of the men and measures of the Democratic party, and both he and his wife are members of the Moravian Church, of Newfoundland, Wayne county.

Mr. Blankenbush has been twice married, his first union being with Miss Anna Donalley, a na- tive of Ireland, who departed this life after eleven years of married life, and the four children born to them are also deceased. In New York City, May 14, 1862, he was married, by Rev. F. Geisen- heimer, a Lutheran minister, to Miss Christina Kiihner, who was born December 8, 1845. in Wurtemberg, Germany, of which province her par- ents, Gotlieb and Elizabeth ( Loefler ) Kiihner, were also natives. On coming to America the family lo- cated in New York City, where the father was em- ployed as a carpenter. His parents were Frederick and Catherine (Van Frank ) Kiihner, while his wife was a daughter of Jacob Loeffer, who spent his en- tire life in Germany. Mr. and Mrs. Kiihner had five children: Elizabeth. now the widow of George Sang, and a resident of New York City; Sophia, deceased wife of John Stork, of Jersey City, N. J .;

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Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1, Part 215

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