Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1, Part 64

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 64
USA > Pennsylvania > Monroe County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 64
USA > Pennsylvania > Susquehanna County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 64
USA > Pennsylvania > Wayne County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1 > Part 64

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JOHN M. HOFFMAN, a well-known and promi- nent agriculturist of Dingman township, was born on what is known as Newmans Hill February 14, 1842. In 1863 he purchased the farm he now lives on, and also the property known as the Alfred Hazen property, and another farm known as the James Hazen property. John M. Hoffman married Martha C. Cole, June 13, 1866, and from their union there are four children : Richard J., Mary, John A. and Ira D. John M. Hoffman married Julia A. Predmore June 5, 1882, and from their union there is one daughter, Marian. Fraternally Mr. Hoff- man is a Master Mason, and politically is a Demo- crat. Like his father he has ever taken a prominent part in public affairs, has been honored with nearly all of the township offices, and in 1886 was elected sheriff of Pike county, a position he filled for three years with credit to himself and to the entire satis- faction of his constituents.

EDWARD B. SCOTT, a well-known and honored citizen of Springville township, Susque- hanna county, traces his ancestry back through several generations to Thomas Scott, one of the original proprietors of Hartford, Conn., and a pio- neer settler of that section. In his family were three children, one son and two daughters.

Edmund Scott, the son, was made a freeman at Farrington, Conn., in 1669, and became one of the proprietors of that place in 1672. He died be- tween January 21 and June 2, 1690. He married Sarah Porter, and to them were born nine children. One of these, George Scott, wedded Mary Richards, and they too became the parents of nine children. Their son, Obadiah Scott, married Hannah Buck, and of their children, Zebulon Scott married Eliza- beth Warner. This worthy couple were the great- grandparents of our subject. The grandfather, Simon Scott, married Lucy Hickox, and to them were born ten children, whose names and dates of birth are as follows: Jennie, November 21, 1775; Joel, May 15, 1777; Prue, October 4, 1778; Eliza- beth, March 19, 1780; Daniel, March 7, 1782 ; Mark, September 30, 1783; Titus, September 7, 1785; Jesse, June 10, 1787; Prudence, March 7, 1789 ; and Linus W., March 27, 1791.

Jesse Scott, our subject's father, was born near Waterbury, Conn., June 10, 1787, and was mar- ried in that State to Miss Susan Downs, who was born January 7, 1793, and died March 25, 1860, his death occurred October 22, 1873. Some years after his marriage he came to Susquehanna coun- ty, Penn., and located in Springville township when it was almost an unbroken wilderness. With his- brother, he purchased 100 acres, built a log house thereon, and made his home there for many years.

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

Later he removed to the village of Springville, where he purchased property and engaged in black- smithing, which trade he followed throughout the greater part of his life. The house he erected there in 1833 is still in a good state of preservation. He was a supporter of the men and measures of the Democratic party, and both he and the mother of our subject were consistent members of the Episcopal Church. The children born to them were as fol- lows: (1) Ira, born March 15, 1812, died in Kent county, Del., February 2, 1883. He first married Emily E. Parish, who died in Springville, Penn., March 25, 1866, leaving two sons and one daughter, but one of the sons, Jesse, died in February, 1875. He was again married, in April, 1870, his second wife being Margaret F. France, by whom he had one son. (2) Ursilla, born May 16, 1814, died June 7, 1838. (3) Spencer, born July 9, 1817, was married,, July 19, 1843, to Susan M. Mason, who died June 15, 1867, and their daughter Susan died May 6, 1882. He died in Bridgewater township, Susquehanna county, in September, 1894, leaving a daughter who now resides in Chicago, Ill. (4) David, born January 22, 1822, is now a farmer of Kent county, Del. He was married, January 31, 1854, to Eliza Jane Johnson, and has two sons. (5) Albert L., born April 22, 1825, is now in the com- missioner's office in New York. He was married, July 20, 1852, to Ella T. Coyle, who died May 12, 1882, leaving one son and three daughters. (6) Julius, born October 15, 1827, was a speculator and hotelman of Kent county, Del., where he died in 1891. He was first married July 9, 1861, to Frances A. Porter, who died November 8, 1863, and on July 18, 1866, he wedded Asula Baldwin. (7) Edward B., our subject, is next in the order of birth. (8) One child, born October 7, 1835, died in infancy. The father of this family was again mar- ried, April 2, 1865, his second union being with Mrs. Maria Root, who died November 4, 1873.

Edward B. Scott, whose name introduces this sketch, was born in Springville township. March 23, 1830, and during his boyhood and youth was given the advantages of a good common-school edu- cation. For several years he operated his father's farm on shares, and on leaving the parental roof at the age of twenty-four, he purchased a farm in Springville township, and embarked in general farming on his own account. There he was mar- ried January 5, 1854, to Miss Elizabeth Stephens, a daughter of Philander and Myra (Thatcher) Stephens. Mrs. Scott died June 4, 1889, at the age of fifty-four years. Of this union one son was born, Almon S., whose birth occurred June 23, 1858. He is now living in Wilseyville, N. Y., and is engaged in the creamery business. He first married Grace Dickinson, who died February 18, 1894, leav- ing one child, Walter Clinton, born in October, 1884. For his second wife Almon S. Scott married May Goodwin, by whom he has one daughter, Elizabeth, born in 1898. Our subject was again married October 19, 1894, his second union being

with Mrs. Amanda (Clark) Kresge, a daughter of John G. and Susan Jane ( Hunter) Clark, both na- tives of Orange county, N. Y. The father was born in 1812, and died January 17, 1894, while the moth- er was born in 1813 and died in April, 1896. Soon after their marriage, Mr. and Mrs. Clark removed to Falls township, Wyoming Co., Penn., where he followed farming. In their family were twelve children, six sons and six daughters: Samuel and Leonard, both deceased ; William ; Amanda, wife of our subject; Solomon and Jennie, both deceased ; Elizabeth; Henrietta; John; Rebecca; Ella; and Russell.

Almost the entire life of Mr. Scott has been passed in Springville township, but he spent one year in the turpentine woods of North Carolina, and about the same length of time in a store in Petersburg, Va. Returning to Susquehanna coun- ty, Penn., he has carried on the butcher business in the village of Springville and engaged in general farming and cider making in Springville township, operating a cider-mill that he has conducted for thirty-six years. He is now the owner of a fine farm of sixty-three acres, a part of his original pur- chase. He is a stalwart supporter of the Democratic party and its principles, and has most efficiently filled the offices of constable, collector two years, and treasurer of the school board. Socially he is a charter member of Maple Lodge No. 992, I. O. O. F., and both he and his wife belong to Rebecca Lodge No. 187, Vesta Degree, of Springville. They are widely and favorably known, and have a host of warm friends in the community where they make their home.

HON. GEORGE P. HELLER, deceased. The Heller family, which has long been prominent in this section, is of German origin, and its mem- bers in every generation have shown the sterling qualities of character which distinguish that race. The subject of this memoir, formerly a leading citizen of Milford, Pike county, was of the sixth generation in this country, being a descendant of Christopher Heller, who was born in Germany in 1688. He came to America in 1738, arriving on September 5th of that year in the ship "Winter Galley," Edward Payntor, master, from Rotterdam, last from Deal. He was accompanied by his entire family, six sons, and settled in Northampton coun- ty, Penn., making his home in Lower Saucon town- ship. He died in 1778.

II. Simon Heller, the next in the line of de- scent which we are now tracing, was born June 18, 1721, at Petersheim, Germany, in the Palatinate. He became a prominent and influential citizen of his day, his name appearing in the Pennsylvania archives, second series. He and his wife Louise had sixteen children. Simon Heller died May 20, 1783.

III. John Heller, son of Simon II,, was born October 29, 1756, in Northampton county, and served as a member of the Third Pennsylvania

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Regiment during the Revolutionary war, under Capt. Lenox and Col. McGaw. In early manhood he removed to Bushkill, Pike county, where he ac- quired a large property, and for some years con- ducted a hotel. In 1812 he removed to Wayne county, and later to Richland county, Ohio, where he purchased 1,600 acres of land. He died in that State. [The date of his decease is not known, but he was living as late as February 26, 1833.] He married Susan Hammond, and had nine sons and five daughters.

IV. John Heller, our subject's grandfather, was born November 25, 1786, in Northampton county, it is believed, and for some years resided at Bushkill. Thence he removed to Ohio, and, later, to Illinois, dying near Cuba, Fulton county, that State, on November 30, 1863. He was twice mar- ried, and John M., the father of our subject, is be- lieved to have been the only child born to the first union.

V. John M. Heller, the father of our subject, was born at Bushkill, November II, 1806, and died at Port Jervis, N. Y., March 3, 1857. He was a leading citizen, active in political affairs, being frequently chosen to important offices in Pike coun- ty, and was elected sheriff in 1838, and county treas- urer in 1849. Mr. Heller was possessed of good business capacity and indomitable will, was a man of strict integrity, and could rise superior to busi- ness calamities and discouragements that would dishearten most men. He had the first wheel- wright's shop in Milford, and later, unaided and alone, he embarked in the wagon-manufacturing business at Bushkill and Milford, Penn., and at Port Jervis, N. Y., where he settled in 1852. He was very successful in business and one of the best of men. On January 21, 1827, he married Mar- garet Winfield, who died October 26, 1832, aged twenty-seven years. She was a daughter of Abra- ham Winfield, a Revolutionary soldier, and a lineal descendant of Robert De Wingfield, of the Manor of Wingfield, Letheringham, County of Suffolk, England, 1087. Four children were born of this union. George P., our subject; Harvey R., born in 1830, who was drowned December 25, 1852, in the Gulf of Mexico, from the ship "Three Bells"; John W. and Margaret (twins), born in 1832, of whom the former married Delila Danly, and the latter died unmarried at the age of fifty. By a second marriage, to Nancy Newman, John M. Hel- ler had four sons: Ira B. N., deceased; Martin V., a resident of Port Jervis, N. Y .; Thomas A., living at Salamanca, N. Y., and Isaac L., deceased. VI. George P. Heller, the subject of this sketch, was born at Milford, August 22, 1828, and when a mere child removed with his parents to Bushkill, Penn., remaining there until he was about thirteen years old, when the family returned to Mi !- ford. There he made his home continuously until the close of his life. In 1852, when the family re- moved to Port Jervis, he took absolute charge of the carriage, wagon and sleigh manufacturing busi-

ness at Milford formerly owned by his father, oper- ating the factory on Vandermark creek, which he continued to manage until 1865. He was success- ful as a business man, but did not have a large fortune, as he was too liberal to accumulate much. Like all of his family, he took an intelligent interest in public questions, and from his early years identi- fied himself with the political life of his section, joining the Democratic party. He was a shrewd and active political worker, a power in the county, and at times held important offices. In 1865 he aspired to the associate judgeship, was elected, and had he survived until the fall of 1881 would have completed fifteen years of service in that capacity. He filled the position with the utmost satisfaction, and was considered one of the ablest associate judges on the Bench in Northern Pennsylvania. At one time he served as justice of the peace. He was widely known and highly esteemed as a right- eous judge and an honest man, and had an extent- sive acquaintance among the prominent men of his day. He was a cousin of Gov. William Bross, of Illinois. Socially he was identified with the Ma- sonic fraternity, being an active member of Milford Lodge No. 344, F. & A. M., also of Corinthian Chapter No. 169, of New York City, and his widow now treasures as a relic a Masonic emblem formeriy worn by him. It was presented to him by Max Somerville, of Philadelphia, and in the center is a piece of marble taken from King Solomon's temple. Judge Heller died at Milford May 10, 1881, uni- versally respected, and his remains were laid to rest in the cemetery at that place. On March 2, 1852, he was married at Milford to Miss Helen Eliza- beth Wallace, who survives him, and of this union eight children were born. John W., residing in Chicago, Ill., married Miss Alice Marquiss, on Sep- tember 25, 1884, and they have two children, Wal- lace M. and Edmund G .; Margaret E. was married in 1876 to Otto Pelz, of Long Branch, N. Y., a recorder of sales for Fields, Chapman & Co., and they have four children, George V., Reginald H., Blanch B., and Margaret; Mary E. died December 13, 1857; George D. died September 10, 1859; James Harvey married Janie Clark, and they have had three children, George B., Helen and Wilmer C .; Helen married J. N. Lanchantin, a bookkeeper in New York, and has two children, Helen G. and Edna M .; William B., a salesman in New York, married Miss Lillian May Harris, and they have two children, William and Robert McKoon; and Bessie D. is the wife of Warren Chol, of Milford, and has two children, Maria R. and Margaret L.

Mrs. Heller, who is a lady of fine mental and social gifts, was born at Milford, November 25, 1834, and now resides in the home where her father, John H. Wallace, was born, and in which he lived and died. Her great-grandfather, William Wal- lace was born, it is supposed, in Scotland, whence at an early day he emigrated to America, settling in Cecil county, Md. He married Mary Crawford, and they had six children, namely: John, James,

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'COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

William, Robert, Mary and Jane, of whom Robert settled in Philadelphia, Penn .; James in Milford, Penn .; and John, William, Mary and Jane in Orange county, New York.

James Wallace, son of William and Mary (Crawford) Wallace, was born in 1774, and at an an early date came from Maryland to Milford, Penn., where he commenced mercantile life, open- ing a store. He was an enterprising man, and by strict integrity and fair dealing gained a good trade, and became a wealthy man for his day. He was elected the first superintendent of the Presbyterian Sunday-school organized in Milford in 1823, and was one of the organizers of and a ruling elder in the Presbyterian Church organized in 1825. Throughout his life he was one of its main pillars, and his house was a regular home for the itinerant ministers of the early day. He never ceased to be kind to the poor and the wayfarer, and was a good citizen and a truly good man. He was noted for his generosity, and so strict was his regard for the Sab- bath that he would entertain strangers in his own house, free of charge from Saturday to Monday, or pay their bills at the village hotel, rather than let them travel on that day. He was a resident of Milford October 4, 1806, as he voted at a general election held that day. He was postmaster for sev- eral years, treasurer of Pike county from 1823 to 1825, and county commissioner from 1828 to 1831, inclusive.

On February 26, 1804, James Wallace married Elizabeth DeAerts Smith, daughter of Doctor Smith, of Smithfield, and they had seven children : John H .; Amanda, who married James Phillips ; James S., who married Helen Amanda Wells; Ma- tilda, who married (first) Benjamin Alden Bid- lack, and (second) Charles S. Miner, the historian of the Wyoming Valley; William, who died at the age of fifteen years; Francis B., who married Mar- garet Beeler ; and Helen M., who married John T. Cross. The father of this family passed away Oc- tober 13, 1846, at Milford.

Elizabeth (DeAerts) Smith Wallace was a daughter of Dr. Francis Joseph Smith, or Josephus Jacobus DeAerts, eldest son of Jean Baptiste De- Aerts, Lord of Opdorp and Immerseele. He was born in Brussels, the capital city of the Austrian Netherlands. He changed his name in 1777, when he arrived in America, and by a special act of Con- gress was appointed an officer in the American army. Mrs. Wallace was also a granddaughter of Garret Brodhead, who served first as a private and afterward as a sergeant in the Revolutionary war. And she was fifth in descent from Capt. Daniel Brodhead, born in Yorkshire, England, who was an officer in the army of King Charles II, and accom- panied the expedition under Col. Sir Richard Nic- olls, which was sent out from England by the Duke of York in 1664. He settled in Kingston, Ulster Co., N. Y. (then known as the Esopus), and was appointed commander-in-chief of the military forces at that place September 14, 1665.

John H. Wallace, son of James and Elizabeth DeAerts (Smith) Wallace, was born October 3, 1805, at Milford, Penn. He was a man of great energy and enterprise, possessed of good common sense, and much native force of character, and com- manded the respect and confidence of the entire com- munity in which he lived. He was an elder in the Presbyterian Church for many years, and was one of its chief financial supporters. He was a noble man in every way, and an example of all that was dignified and good in human character. By his hon- esty and integrity in business dealings, he accumu- lated much wealth and a standing which few men attain. He was related to the Wallaces of Phila- delphia, Penn., and Orange county, N. Y., and the family has always been largely identified with the progressive and social affairs of the places in which they have lived. John H. Wallace was thrice mar- ried, (first) to Miss Adelaide Grier, by whom he had one son, deceased in infancy: On January 2, 1834, he married (second) Emeline Dildine, and to this union came three children, of whom Helen E., the eldest, married Judge George P. Heller ; James was born November 1836, and died in 1850; Emeline died in early infancy. For his third wife he married, January 2, 1840, Mrs. Elizabeth Dildine Freese, a sister of his second wife, and widow of Abraham Freese. She was born August 1, 1801, the daughter of Abram Dildine, a native of Scotland, and died in October, 1891. John C. Wallace, mentioned below, was the only child born of the last union. John H. Wallace passed away at Milford, Penn., Janu- ary I, 1872. Emeline (Dildine) Wallace, the second wife of John H. Wallace, descended from the Budd, Ogden and Shotwell families. John Budd, one of her ancestors, was a planter in Rhode Island, in 1638. The progenitors of the Ogden and Shotwell families are too well known to require special men- tion herein.

John C. Wallace was born at Milford, October II, 1840, and in 1864 became a partner in his fa- ther's business. At the death of his father he was made administrator of the estate, and he has con- tinued to conduct the store and the farm for a num- ber of years, being one of the leading business men of the village. In 1875 he built a new brick store, but in 1878 he sold out to H. S. Mott and retired on account of ill health. At present he is at the head of the Milford Water Co., which was organized in 1875 with a capital of $18,000. He has always been active in local affairs, and was the first chief burgess of Milford after the incorporation of the village. Since the age of nineteen he has been a member of the First Presbyterian Church, in which he holds the office of elder. On March 2, 1864, he was mar- ried at Milford to Miss Bella K. Quick, and his only son, Albert Q., who was employed for a time in the Philadelphia Custom House, now resides at home, and assists in the management of the business. Mrs. Bella K. Wallace was born in Milford May 21, 1844, a daughter of Emanuel and Catherine (Pennis) Quick, natives of New Jersey, who settled in Pike .

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

county early in life. His father died in February, 1880, aged sixty-five, and her mother now resides in Milford. This worthy couple had three children : Edgar, a resident of Leadville, Colo .; Albert, of Caldwell, Kans .; and Della K., Mrs. Wallace.

JAMES HARVEY HELLER, commissioner of Pike county, is one of Milford's most prominent citizens. He was born September 5, 1860, at the old homestead on Vandemark creek, at Milford, and is a son of Hon. George P. Heller and his wife Helen E. (Wallace), whose biography ap- pears above. On leaving home, in 1883, he set- tled upon a farm on the banks of the Delaware river, in Dingman township, Pike county, where he remained twelve years.

During this time Mr. Heller was active and influential in local politics, being a leading worker in the Democratic organization, and he served in nearly all the township offices. In November, 1893, he was elected county commissioner, and in 1896 he was again chosen to that office for the term of three years. Since 1895 he has made his home in Milford. He and his family are prominent in the best social circles of the village, and he is an active member of the I. O. O. F., Vandermark Lodge, No. 828.

On November 7, 1883, Mr. Heller was mar- ried, at Hainesville, N. J., to Miss Janie M. Clark, and three children brighten their home: George B., Helen E., and Wilmer C.

EUGENE O. BOILLOTAT, the well-known and popular proprietor of the "Silver Spring House," located on the Raymondskill road three miles from Milford, Pike county, is a native of Switzerland, born at Sanquart, May 12, 1859. His parents, Eugene and Pauline ( Voucher) Boillotat, never left that country, where the father, who was born in 1828, is still engaged in watch making. The mother departed this life in 1863, at the age of forty-five years. In their family were the following children: James is a lithographer in Paris, France, and is married ; Eliza is the deceased wife of Melcho Cursh; John married a Mrs. Mason, and is employed in a watchcase manufactory in Switzerland; Leonie, Leah and Rochelle are all liv- ing in Paris, France; and Eugene O. completes the family.

At the age of twelve our subject entered a watchcase factory in his native land, where he was employed as an engraver until he attained his ma- jority, when he decided to come to America, and try his fortune on this side of the Atlantic. He first worked at his trade in Newport, Ky., for three months, and then was similarly employed in New York City for one year. At the end of that time he came to Milford, Pike Co., Penn., where he served as foreman in a watchcase factory until it was closed in 1894.

At Milford, Mr. Boillotat was married, Octo- ber 19, 1884, to Miss Julette Bournique, by whom

he has two children: Eugene and Desire. Mrs. Boillotat is a native of Milford, and a daughter of Desire Bournique, whose sketch appears elsewhere. When the factory closed Mr. Boillotat located on the old Loreaux farm, comprising 140 acres, and there erected a fine hotel containing forty rooms. He tore down the old brewery, and now has one of the most beautiful places used as a summer resort in his locality. It is supplied with good water, there is excellent fishing-in fact, everything needed for a first-class summer resort is there found. In his political views the genial landlord is a Democrat.

FREDERICK W. KIEFER is one of the wor- thy citizens of Rush township, Susquehanna coun- ty, that Germany has furnished to the New World. He left his native land in early life, and coming to the "land of great possibilities," has realized the promises which it has always held out to the hand of industry, and is now one of the well-to-do farmers of his community.

Mr. Kiefer was born in Baden, Germany, Oc- tober 3, 1841, a son of Jacob and Catherine ( Miller) Kiefer, who spent their entire lives in that coun- try, the father being engaged in shoemaking throughout his business career. He died in 1876, aged seventy-four years, the mother in 1882, at the same age. In their family were the following chil- dren : Jacob, who died in Germany ; Catherine, wid- ow of Philip Schoelaub, of St. Joseph, Mo .; Er- nest, who is still living in Germany; Frederick W., our subject; Christine Fisher, still living in Ger- many; Caroline, wife of Mr. Bagley, a farmer of Colorado; and Louisa, wife of Lewis Mockworth, of St. Joseph, Mo. Our subject's paternal grand- father was Ernest Kiefer, also a lifelong resident of Germany.

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Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 1, Part 64

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