Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1, Part 409

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 409
USA > Pennsylvania > Monroe County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 409
USA > Pennsylvania > Susquehanna County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 409
USA > Pennsylvania > Wayne County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 409

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On the old homestead in Tobyhanna township, Franklin P. Blakeslee was born July 20, 1853, and was there reared to manhood, assisting his father in farming and lumbering when not in school. He was provided with good educational advantages. After attending the common schools he became a student at the Wyoming (Penn.) Seminary, from which, after completing the commercial course, he was graduated. On January 3, 1883, at White Haven, Luzerne county, he was married, by Rev. James Borman, of the Evangelical Church, to Miss Jennie E. Torbert, who was born April 8, 1863, at Thornhurst, Penn., a daughter of George W. and Clara (Scott) Torbert. Her father was born at White Haven, and was killed during the Civil war, while her mother was born at Thornhurst, and died in 1872. The children born to our subject and his wife are: Helen Virginia, Austin Torbert, Edwin Howard, Clarissa Scott, Harriette Irene and Jerome Scott, all at home.

Mr. Blakeslee, at an early age, became inter-

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ested in his father's business and became part owner of the same. In 1892 he came into possession of 365 acres of land in Tobyhanna township, 100 acres of which had been cleared and converted into a fine farm. Here he is successfully engaged in general farming and stock raising, and has a large herd of cattle, including forty-five calves. For five years he conducted a store at Blakeslee, on his own account, and he still follows lumbering during the winter months. He is a most enterprising and progressive business man and has been remarkably successful in his undertakings.

Socially Mr. Blakeslee is a member of the Sons of Temperance, and politically he is a prominent representative of the Democratic party. He has been honored with a number of local offices, having been auditor two terms, school director two terms, assessor eight years and census enumerator one year. At one time his name came before the con- vention for nomination for representative in the State Legislature. There was a tie between the candidates and the choice was left to a referee, who decided in favor of Dr. Shull, of Stroudsburg. Both Mr. and Mrs. Blakeslee are active and promi- nent members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, of which he is a local preacher, and he has also served as trustee and Sunday-school superintend- ent.

HENRY B. COURTRIGHT, proprietor of "Mountain Cottage," has selected an ideally beau- tiful spot for his home, and an appreciative group of guests from the neighboring cities make a practice of spending the summer months amid its attractions. The house, which was recently com- pleted with all modern improvements, will accom- modate about twenty boarders, and the farm of 100 acres provides a bountiful supply of fresh fruits, vegetables and other seasonable food for the table. As it is only two miles from Cresco station, on the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western railroad, it is easily accessible, being only three hours' ride from New York City and four from Philadelphia. Lo- cated on Pocono Mountain, 2,000 feet above the level of the sea, the air is healthful and invigorating, while charming views in all directions tempt the visitor to long walks or drives, carriages and horses being ready at all times.

Mr. Courtright belongs to a well-known pio- neer family of this locality. His grandfather Courtright built the first stone house in Monroe county, near the Delaware river, and in the vicinity of the present village of Shawnee, where he made his permanent home, his death occurring there. His wife died at the home of one of their daughters in Luzerne county. This worthy couple had five children, namely: (1) Oliver is a farmer near Shawnee, on the New Jersey side of the Delaware river, and has five children. (2) John (deceased) was formerly a resident of Lackawanna county. He married and had six children. (3) Jacob is a farmer in Mountain Valley, Luzerne county, and

has two daughters. (4) Susan married George W. Ace, of Luzerne county, and has two sons-Will- iam and Verne, who are both married and engaged in farming. (5) George is referred to farther on.

George Courtright, our subject's father, was born in Smithfield township, Monroe county, and was reared as a farmer boy, receiving a limited education in the local schools. In early manhood he learned the shoemaker's trade, but after his mar- riage they settled upon a farm in Smithfield town- ship. He was drowned while attempting to cross Twelve-Mile Pond on the ice. His wife, Maria (Huffman), survived him and afterward married Abram Hatterman, of Paradise township, but is now deceased. She had three children, all by the first marriage, who were: (I) Benjamin (de- ceased), formerly a resident of Hyde Park, married Miss Eva Wheeler, of Scranton, and had three chil- dren-William and benjamin, who reside in Scran- ton, and Stella, a resident of Mountain Valley. (2) Henry B., our subject, is mentioned more fully farther on. (3) Sarah died at the age of two years.

Our subject was born in September, 1860, at the old home in Smithfield township, Monroe coun- ty, and after his mother's second marriage he re- sided for some years at the Hatterman homestead, Paradise township. At eighteen he engaged in blacksmithing, which he followed for some time, and later he was engaged for two years in farming. In 1880 he established a mercantile business at Swiftwater, where he remained eight years. He sold the business to Mr. Hatterman and later it passed into the hands of Mr. Ace, who now con- ducts it. In 1888 Mr. Courtright removed to Pen Argyl, Northampton county, engaging in general mercantile business there, and purchasing a resi- dence, but in 1893 he sold out and bought his pres- ent homestead in Paradise township, Monroe coun- ty, formerly known as the Tobias Sutzer farm. His management of the place shows rare business judgment, and he has already won a place among the substantial citizens of the community.

In 1883 Mr. Courtright was married to Miss Emma Shook, daughter of Samuel and Sarah Shook, natives of Northampton county, and now highly esteemed residents of Paradise township, Monroe county. Mrs. Courtright, who was edu- cated in Northampton county, is a woman of re- finement, and has been an able helpmeet to her hus- band in his enterprise. They have five children, namely: Laura M., Bertha M., Floyd P., Verlo H. and Albert M., who are all attending the public schools. The Courtright family has always been active in religious work, and Mr. Courtright and his wife are leading members of the Evangelical Church in Paradise township, Monroe county, to which he gives liberally of his time and means. At present he is a trustee, and for some time he has been superintendent of the Sabbath-school. His genial and kindly manner has made him a host of friends, and as a citizen he is held in high esteem. Polit- ically, he is a Republican, and he is actively inter-

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ested in local affairs ; he has frequently been chosen to office, being at present overseer of the poor and school director.

MRS. MARY ELIZABETH MILLER is a lady of more than ordinary business ability and marked intelligence, and is distinguished for the tact and energy she has displayed in the management of her farm in Jackson township.

Mrs. Miller was born January 6, 1838, in Jack- son township, Monroe county, and is a granddaugh- ter of John Wolbert, one of the pioneers of the county. He was born and reared near Philadel- phia, and when young came with his parents to Mon- roe county, locating in Hamilton township, where his father purchased land and engaged in farming. In that township John Wolbert married Polly Meizner, a native of Hamilton township; soon after his marriage, however, moving to Jackson township and taking up a tract of 500 acres of wild land, which he commenced to prepare for farming pur- poses. He was a Democrat in politics, and he and his wife were members of the Methodist Church. She died in 1842, aged sixty years, and he departed this life in 1863, at the extreme old age of ninety- three. They were the parents of eleven children, six sons and five daughters, of whom Joseph Wol- bert, father of our subject, was the youngest. He was born in Jackson township in December, 1818, and on reaching manhood engaged in farming there for many years. In his native township he married Elizabeth Setzer, who was born in Hamil- ton township, Monroe county, October 16, 1820, a daughter of Henry and Catherine (Kerr) Setzer, also natives of Hamilton township, where they spent their entire lives; they were farming people. To Mr. and Mrs. Wolbert were born two children: Mary E., our subject; and Charles, who is repre- sented elsewhere, and with whom the parents now make their home.

At the age of fifteen years Miss Mary E. Wol- bert was united in marriage with Levi Miller, and to them were born two children: Franklin, who is mentioned below ; and Mary E., who is represented elsewhere. For thirty years Mrs. Miller has pro- vided for her own support, spending nine years of that time in New York City. In 1894 she returned to Jackson township and received her portion of the old homestead, on which she has built a house and now resides, while directing and assisting in the operation of her farm of thirty-one acres. Mrs. Miller is assisted in this labor by Henry Vande- water, who was born in New York City May 23, 1845, and there grew to manhood. For two years during the Civil war he was a soldier in the Union army, first as a member of Company E, 12th New York State Militia, and later as a member of Com- pany L, 13th New York Cavalry. He participated in twenty-five engagements, and was captured in 1862 at Harper's Ferry, being nearly starved to death during his imprisonment. During his youth he learned the printer's trade in New York City,

where he followed same for thirty years, and later he was employed on several of the Stroudsburg papers for some years. In political belief he is a Democrat His father, Henry Vandewater, a whole- sale grocer of New York City, married Caroline Bell, a daughter of Henry W. Bell, a veteran of the war of 1812.

Franklin Miller, son of our subject, was born January 12, 1861, in Jackson township, where he was reared, and he began his business career in the lumber woods of the northern part of Monroe. county, where he was engaged for five years. He then bought ninety-nine acres of land in Jackson township, and still owns eighty-eight acres, on which he now resides, his time being devoted to general farming and stock raising. He has placed fifty acres under excellent cultivation and is meeting with good success in his undertakings. He was married at Stroudsburg, Monroe county, in 1889, to Miss Anna Laura Workeisher, a native of Tannersville, Penn., and a daughter of James and Sally (Daily) Workeisher. They have had children as follows : El- mer, Harvey Arlington, Edith Catherine, May Ethel and Cora Alice. The parents both hold member- ship in the Reformed Church; Mr. Miller is a stanch Republican, but he has never been an as- pirant for political honors.

C. D. MILLARD. Among the well-to-do farmers of Lathrop township, Susquehanna county, men who have clung to the soil and won indepen- dence and success and who rank high in the commun- ity, any list would be incomplete that did not con- tain the name of our subject. For three genera- tions the family has been identified with Susque- hanna county.

Josiah Millard, the grandfather of our subject, lived for some years in Lenox township and died in Lathrop township, aged seventy years. Stephen J. Millard, the father of our subject, was born in 1819, in Lenox township, and was there reared on the farm. He married Polly Felton, daughter of Jacob and Abigail (Stephens) Felton, and farmed through life a tract of 100 acres which was wild land when he acquired it. In politics he was a Democrat. He died in 1859, aged forty years, and his wife survived until 1897, when she died at the age of seventy-nine years. Their children were as follows: Sally, wife of P. R. Carpenter, of Hall- stead; C. D .; F. C., a farmer of Wyoming county ; Edwin P., who died when four years of age; and F. M., of Glenwood.

C. D. Millard, our subject, was born in Nicholson township, Wyoming county, December 25, 1843. He was reared on a farm in Lenox town- ship. He enlisted March 30, 1864, in Company G, 187th P. V. I., and served until the close of the war, participating in the active campaign before Peters- burg and on the Weldon Railroad. He married Miss Louisa C. Felton, a native of Lathrop town- ship, and the daughter of William and Elsie (Stephens) Felton, and to them have come six chil-

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dren, namely: Bert, a carpenter, of Scranton ; Edwin R., at home; Bell, who died at the age of fourteen years; Elsie, at home; Agnes, who died young; and Merrill, at home. Since the age of sixteen our subject has won his own way in the world. He had attained that age when his father died, and as the eldest boy of the family responsi- bility fell early upon his shoulders. He not only was obliged to look out for himself, but for other mem- bers of the family as well. For nine years he con- tinued to operate a small farm, and the labors and cares of his young manhood developed those sterling traits of character which have since materi- ally aided him in his career. He first bought a farm of forty acres in Lenox township, one-half of it being cleared, and in 1890 he moved to Lathrop township, where he now owns fifty-seven acres and where he is engaged in general dairy farming and in teaming. He is a member of Bellup Post, No. 392, G. A. R. In politics he is a Republican and he has filled various local offices, including those of supervisor in Lenox township, and school director in Lathrop.

MRS. CLARA LABES, a most estimable lady, now successfully conducting a hotel in Tafton, Pike county, was born in Prussia, Germany, July 8, 1860, the youngest child of Gustaf and Lena (Rosencky ) Schultz.

Mrs. Labes' father was born near Berlin, Prussia, September 29, 1820, where he grew to manhood and followed the shoemaker's trade for several years. In Prussia he was married, May 4, 1845, to Lena Rosencky, a daughter of Frederick and Carrie (Giese) Rosencky, her family being Polish people of noble birth who were driven out of their native land during the Polish wars. With their family Mr. and Mrs. Schultz emigrated to America, landing in New York June 21, 1864, and they made their home in that city until 1879, which year witnessed their arrival in Palmyra township, Pike Co., Penn. There the father died November 3, 1889. The family consisted of children as follows : Lena, wife of Robert Gantzberg, a business man of West Hoboken, N. J., has one daughter, Laura ; Oscar died in Hoboken, N. J .; Hugo died in Ger- many, while young; Gustaf and Richard also died in that country ; Clara, Mrs. Labes, is our subject.

Mrs. Labes was only four years old when brought by her parents to the United States, and in New York City she grew to womanhood. She was married, at Tafton, Palmyra township, Pike Co., Penn., to Otto Labes, a son of Otto and (Funblessingh) Labes. Otto Labes was born in Germany January 31, 1856, and served as a lieuten- ant in the German army, in which his father held the rank of colonel. He was a musician of marked ability, and lost his life in the burning of a theatre February 20, 1888, while filling an engagement at Hoboken, N. J. Five children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Labes, namely: Lena, born September 4, 1880, is at home ; Martha, born March 9, 1882, died

September 5, 1882; Otto, born March 5, 1884, died January 12, 1888; and Clara, born October 8, 1885, and Agnes, born October 21, 1886, are both at home.

A woman of more than ordinary business abil- ity, Mrs. Labes has met with excellent success in the management of her hotel at Tafton. It attracts many city boarders, as the accommodations are first- class and ample, and the scenery of the surrounding country both wild and beautiful. Mrs. Labes and her eldest daughter hold membership in the Ger- man Lutheran Church at Hawley, Penn., and are held in high regard by all who know them.

JOHN S. BENNETT is one of the success- ful agriculturists of Susquehanna county, being the owner of a fine homestead of 128 acres in Gibson township, and another farm of 124 acres in Clifford township. He belongs to a well-known family, and was born December 24, 1839, in Gibson township, a son of James Bennett.

James Bennett, a highly-respected pioneer of Gibson township, is now passing his declining years upon the homestead, which he cleared in the midst of the wilderness, and his memory covers the entire period of the development of that locality. He was born January 26, 1811, in Chenango county, N. Y., and his ancestors were early settlers in that State, his paternal grandparents having been residents of Orange county. Levi Bennett, his father, was born and reared in Orange county, removed in early manhood to Chenango county, and in 1814 settled in Gibson township, Susquehanna county, clearing a farm and engaging in agriculture. He died there July 8, 1854, aged eighty years, and his wife, Lida (Belcher), who was also a native of Orange county, N. Y., died March 5, 1853. Their remains were interred in a private cemetery in Gibson township, Susquehanna county. Of their large family of chil- dren, John died in Kirkwood, N. Y .; Betsey mar- ried William Moore, of Kirkwood; Mary Ann mar- ried Willard Walker, of Kirkwood; Abby married Isaac Maxson, of Gibson township, Susquehanna county ; Nancy married Richard Lewis, of Kirk- wood; Jane married Charles Davie, of Wisconsin ; William died in Michigan ; James, who is mentioned more fully farther on, is the only survivor; and George died in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

As the son of a pioneer farmer, James Bennett was trained to hard work. Leaving home at the age of twenty, he settled in Clifford township, Sus- quehanna county, and cleared a farm for himself. In 1841 he located at the site of his present home- stead, and since improving that he has cleared an- other farm, making three valuable estates redeemed from the wilderness by him. Notwithstanding his advanced years, he is in excellent health, and his sight is remarkably good. His years of industry have brought him their due reward, and in his last days he is surrounded by comforts of which he knew nothing in youth. Politically he is a Republican, and for many years he has been a leading mem-

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ber of the Free Will Baptist Church, in which he held the office of deacon.

On June 2, 1831, Mr. Bennett was married, in Clifford township, Susquehanna county, to Miss Juliette Sweet, a native of New Milford township, that county, who died in 1889, at the age of eighty years, and was buried in Gibson cemetery. She was a member of a well-known family, and her parents, John and Eliza Sweet, were prominent res- idents of New Milford township. Nine children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Bennett, as follows: Edwin B. married Rosannah Kinne; Levi F. oper- ates his father's old homestead ; William M. married Mary Wells, and died in February, 1864, from black fever; Mary E. married Robert Ellis, of Gib- son township; John S. is mentioned farther on; Sarah I. married Isaac Morgan, and died Decem- ber 2, 1897; Julia A., born July 9, 1845, married Morris Davis, a blacksmith of Uniondale, Penn .; Amanda A., born May 14, 1848, is the deceased wife of Merwin Taft, a farmer of Wayne county ; and Harriet A., born July 31, 1852, married Dennis Card, of Uniondale, Pennsylvania.

During his boyhood John S. Bennett became familiar with the details of farm work, and when twenty-five years old he took charge of the home- stead. At twenty-eight he purchased his present homestead in Gibson township, where he is regarded as an excellent citizen, and where he has been promi- nent in educational affairs, serving six years as school director. In politics he affiliates with the Republican party.

In 1864 Mr. Bennett was married to Miss Esther Reece, and the following children have brightened their home: Arthur R., born March 24, 1866, married Miss Anna Decker, and resides upon a farm in Clifford township; Grace A., born Jan- uary 28, 1869, died January 31, 1869; Leona M., born October 5, 1871, is engaged in the millinery business at Factoryville; Harry T., born August 9, 1874; Wertley E., born July 3, 1876; Hortense A., born October 31, 1877, resides in Factoryville ; Vidie, born August 25, 1879, is a school teacher in Gibson township; and Portia G., born November 3, 1880, and Daisy D., born September 3, 1882, are at home. Mrs. Bennett, who is an efficient help- meet to her husband, was born November 7, 1841, at Carbondale, Penn., daughter of Thomas Reece. Her paternal grandparents, John and Elizabeth Reece, natives of Wales, were early settlers in Lackawanna county. The grandfather, who was a farmer by occupation, died in Blakely, Penn. Thomas Reece, Mrs. Bennett's father, was born in Wales, and came to Susquehanna county in 1858, locating on a farm in Gibson township, where he died in 1879, aged sixty years. He was married, at Carbondale, to Mary Harris, a native of Wales, whose parents, John and - Harris, lived and died in the old country. She died in 1869, aged fifty-one, and the remains of both now rest in the cemetery at Carbondale. They were devout members of the Congregational Church, and their children were

reared in the same faith. Their family consisted of Elizabeth, widow of G. A. Williams, of Olyphant, Penn .; John, who died in Carbondale; Ann, who married William Hughes, a farmer of LeRoy, Kans .; Esther, wife of our subject; Harriet, wife of Joshua Richards, of Peckville, Penn .; Jane, who married Thomas E. Reynolds, of Scranton, Penn .; Henry and Benjamin, residents of Olyphant; and Permilla, who died at the age of four months.

JOSEPH H. PAGE, a prominent railroad con- tractor and a highly-esteemed citizen of Brooklyn township, Susquehanna county, where he is also en- gaged in agricultural pursuits, was born July 29, 1834, in Boston, Mass.

Mr. Page is a son of Augustus and Mary (Wise) Page, also natives of Boston, whence they removed to West Fairlee, Vt., in 1835, making their home there throughout the remainder of their lives. The father, who was a farmer by occupation, died in 1857, and the mother in 1841, the remains of both being interred in Vermont. Their children were: Mary A. died unmarried; Hannah is the wife of a Mr. Stiles, a retired farmer of the State of New York; Francis, a railroad contractor and builder, died in Scranton, Penn .; Walter died in 1899, at Bath, N. Y .; Caroline is also deceased ; Maria is the wife of Joseph Brown, a contractor and builder of Boston, Mass .; Plumber, a railroad contractor and builder, died in 1899, at Scranton ; and Joseph H. is our subject.

The subject of this sketch remained on the home farm until thirteen years of age, and then commenced working in a cotton factory in Bos- ton. At the age of fifteen he entered the employ of the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad Co., and remained with them until 1897, making new roads, laying switches, etc. He also ran a gravel train for three years. Since October, 1864, he has made his home in Brooklyn township, Susquehanna county, though he spent one year as a railroad en- gineer at Chattanooga, Tenn. Since leaving the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad Co. he has continued to engage in contract work, and is now employed on the construction of the new rail- road between Carbondale and Honesdale, Penn. In business affairs he is prompt and notably reliable, and commands the respect and confidence of all with whom he comes in contact. Politically he is identified with the Republican party, and socially he affiliates with the Masonic Order.

On July 4, 1860, at Montrose, Penn., Mr. Page was united in marriage with Miss Sarah Fish, and , to them were born four children, namely: Lillis, now the wife of Tennyson Tingley, a railroad man of Hop Bottom, Penn .; Herbert, who married Etta Harding, and is engaged in farming in Brooklyn township; Hayden, who married Marie McMillen, and is now station agent at Poyntelle, Wayne Co., Penn .; and Lena, who died at the age of two and a half years.

Mrs. Sarah (Fish) Page was born in 1837,

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in Lathrop township, Susquehanna county, a daugh- ter of Frederick and Ancy (Race) Fish, the for- mer a native of Groton, Conn., the latter of Luzerne county, Penn. Both died in Brooklyn township, Susquehanna county, the father in 1882, aged sev- enty-seven years, the mother in 1853, aged forty- one, and they were laid to rest in the Universalist cemetery. Frederick Fish was a farmer by occu- pation, and in his family were four children, namely : John is deceased; Malena is the wife of L. B. Tif- fany, of Brooklyn township; Sarah (Mrs. Joseph H. Page) ; and William is a farmer of East New Milford. Mrs. Page's paternal grandparents, An- thony and Hannah (Chipman) Fish, came from Groton, Conn., to Brooklyn township, Susquehanna county, in 1813, and spent the remainder of their lives here as farming people. Her maternal grand- parents, William and Abigail (Loomis) Race, were natives of New York State and early settlers of Lackawanna county, Penn., where they continued to reside throughout life. Mr. Race was also a farmer by occupation.

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Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1, Part 409

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