Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 3, Part 84

Author:
Publication date: 1900
Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co.
Number of Pages: 1000

USA > Pennsylvania > Pike County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 3 > Part 84
USA > Pennsylvania > Wayne County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 3 > Part 84
USA > Pennsylvania > Susquehanna County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 3 > Part 84
USA > Pennsylvania > Monroe County > Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 3 > Part 84

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD

tle Meadows, Penn., leaving a number of sons, now scattered. (8) Erastus was born and reared in Onondaga county, N. Y., and after his marriage settled on a farm there. He died leaving several children, who still reside in that county. (9) Bird, born in New York State, married and moved to Iowa. He enlisted in the 5th la. Vol. Cav. during the Civil war and died of wounds received at Knox- ville, Tennessee.

As a boy our subject attended the schools near the old homestead in Onondaga county, and he also took a course in Homer Academy, in Cortland coun- ty, N. Y., where he graduated. He became a success- ful teacher, spending twelve years in that work in New York State and Michigan. He learned the carpenter's trade in early manhood. In 1844 he married a Miss Sarah Thayer, of Skaneateles, N. Y., the daughter of Sanford Thayer, and a member of an old and highly respected family of Connect- icut and Onondaga Co., N. Y. For about a year they resided in Michigan, and in 1852 they removed to Lanesboro, where our subject engaged in busi- ness as a carpenter and joiner, but his work was interrupted in 1861 by his enlistment under the three-months' call in Company K, 6th Penn. Re- serves. At Camp Curtin the regiment enlisted for three years, being mustered into the United States service at Washington in May, 1861. At his first engagement, December 20, 1861, at Drainsville, Va., the enemy was defeated with heavy losses, and while there his company elected him first ser- geant. In December, 1862, he was wounded in the hip at Fredericksburg and captured, and the next three months were spent in Libby prison. The hardships and privations endured there so reduced his strength that he was sent to a hospital at Annap- olis after his exchange. On his return to his regi- ment he was promoted to the rank of commissary sergeant, as he was not able to perform the duties of post sergeant, and as such he participated in the engagement at Mine Run, Peebles Farm, Spottsyl- vania C. H., North Anna, and other battles. His term having expired in May, 1864, he remained with his regiment until the end of its term, but in the meantime (December, 1863), re-enlisted as a veteran, and when the Pennsylvania Reserves were mustered out in May, 1864, the veterans were con- solidated into two regiments, numbered 190 and 191. He was apppointed first lieutenant of Company E, 19Ist P. V. I., on June 6, 1864, and promoted to captain in August following. He was again wound- ed while on picket duty. While in hospital both the 190th and 19Ist were captured at Weldon R. R. On his return he took command of four com- panies, and at the battle of Hatcher's Run he had command of the regiment as senior-captain. He was engaged in all the battles of the Wilderness. and around Petersburg, and in February, 1865. was engaged in the Weldon R. R. raid. His regiment was in the 5th Corps under Gen. Warren. From that time he was constantly engaged in fighting, the severest battles being at Hatcher's Run, White

Oaks Road, Gravelly Run, and Five Forks, where Gen. Warren was relieved of his command. Here the Major earned and received brevet honors. With four men he captured a redoubt of eighteen men with their guns, marching them in as prisoners. The battle of Five Forks occurred on April 1, 1865, and resulted in the capture of 7,000 prisoners, of which the above mentioned were the first taken. In recognition of his bravery and gallant conduct in this battle he re- ceived the appointment of brevet major of United States Volunteers. On April 9, 1865, he was en- gaged at Appomatox. and was present at the sur- render of Gen. Lee which ended the war. Politi- cally he is an Independent, and he has held all the offices in the township, serving as justice of the peace for fifteen years.

Mrs. Norton, who has been for more than fifty years an efficient aid to her husband in his enter- prises, is a lady of culture and public spirit, and her self-sacrificing devotion to the Union cause was shown in her assumption of all the responsibilities and cares of the home during the Major's long ab- sence at the front. Of their four children all have been educated in the schools of Susquehanna: (1) Leander, who was born in Michigan, taught school successfully for a number of terms and is now a car- penter in Susquehanna. He is not married. (2) Lenora, born in New York State. married first Jason Morse, of Jackson, who died in Lanesboro, leaving one daughter, Mabel, now the wife of Dwight Twain, of Binghamton, N. Y. Mrs. Morse later married Frank Whitmarsh, now a resident of Binghamton, and they have one daughter. Ethel. (3) Flora, twin of Lenora, married Dexter S. Car- penter, of Harford, since moved to San Francisco, where he held a lucrative position as cashier of the Pacific Coast S. S. Co. Mrs. Carpenter died in 1896, leaving one daughter, Caro. (4) Andrew, born in Susquehanna in 1854. went to California in early manhood. For some years he was principal of a school, and he is now located at Monteroy as man- ager of a steamship company. He married a Miss Berry, now deceased.

JACOB W. PALMER, a retired farmer of Franklin Forks, Susquehanna county, has by shrewd judgment, excellent management, untiring industry, and fair business transactions, acquired sufficient property to enable him now, in his declining years. to give up business cares, and enjoy the results of his former labors.

Mr. Palmer was born in Gilboa, Schoharie Co .. N. Y., May 9, 1837, a son of James and Hulda (Vorris) Palmer, natives of Connecticut and New York, respectively. The father, who was a teani- ster by occupation, died at Deposit, N. Y., in May, 1857, aged forty-eight years, the mother in Dela- ware county. N. Y., in 1878. aged sixty. In their family were the following children : Helen, deceased wife of John Martin; Emma, wife of Peter Pulver, of Trout Creek, N. Y .; Jacob W., our subject ; Kise, deceased; Martha, wife of Alexander Lock-

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wood, of Broome county, N. Y .; Rosalie, wife of George Darling, of Delaware county, N. Y .; and Mary, wife of Frank Mackey, of the same county. The paternal grandfather of our subject, Jonathan I'almer, was a native of Connecticut, and a carpen- ter by trade, while the maternal grandparents, Ja- cob and Triphena Vorris, were natives of Germany.

At the age of thirteen years, Jacob W. Palmer commenced his business carcer as a teamster, and was thus employed until 1856, when he came to Susquehanna county, and there worked as a farin hand until the outbreak of the Rebellion. In August, 1862, he joined the boys in blue as a member of Company H, 14Ist P. V. I., under Capt. Casper W. Tyler, and was mustered into the United States service for three years at Montrose, Penn. The regiment was assigned to the First Brigade, First Division, Third Corps, Ariny of the Potomac, and participated in the battles of Fredericksburg, Chan- cellorsville, Gettysburg and Mine Run. At the last named engagement, November 27, 1863, Mr. Palm- er was shot through the right thigh by two buck shots and a minie ball, and after spending one night in the field hospital was sent to the hospital at Alexandria, Va., but it was a week before his wound was properly dressed. He remained in the hospital for thirteen months, and for eight months of that time was confined to his bed. On being discharged from the hospital, he was on wagon watch for the government at Washington, D. C., and drove a government team until honorably discharged from the service in June, 1865.

On September 16, 1857, in Franklin township, Susquehanna Co., Penn., Mr. Palmer married Miss Sarah E. Stockholm, and they now have a family of six children, namely : William J., of Sidney, N. Y., married Ida Robertson and has four children- Floyd, Erle, Guy and Bessie; Walter, of Michigan, married Agnes Rowe, and has six children-Isey, Charles, Kise, Selena, Nettie and Alice; Charles, living in Franklin Forks, married Minerva De- pew, and has four children-Halsey, Byron, Keron and Selma; Frederick, of Lestershire, N. Y., married Cora Gonsalus, and has one daughter- Ethel; Albert, of Unadilla, N. Y., married Louella Ackerman; and Ernest is at home.

Mrs. Palmer was born in Dutchess county, N. Y., September 16, 1839, a daughter of William and Charlotte ( Brown) Stockholm, also natives of that county. They removed to Binghamton, N. Y., in 1850, and in 1852 took up their residence upon the farm in Franklin township, Susquehanna Co., Penn., where their son George Perry now resides. The father followed the occupation of farming throughout life, was a Republican in politics, and both he and his wife were members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. The former died in October, 1878, aged sixty-seven years, the latter in April, 1883, aged sixty-nine years, and both were buried in Lawsville cemetery. In their family were the * following children : Abby J., wife of Charles Maury, of Hallstead, Penn .; Rachel A., deceased; Aaron

E., a farmer of Liberty township; Sarah E., wife of our subject; John J., a merchant of Hickory Grove, Susquehanna county ; George P., a farmer of Franklin township; Mary Ella, deceased; Kate L., wife of Gus Howser, a confectioner of Bing- hamton, N. Y .; Francis M. and Lottie E., both de- ceased; Henrietta, wife of Nathan Jones, a farmer of Middletown, Penn .; Albert, who died in Hall- stead, Penn .; and Ida L., wife of Charles Miller, of Paterson, N. J. Mrs. Palmer's paternal grandpar- ents were Aaron and Martha ( Griffin ) Stockholm, and her maternal grandparents were Joshua and Nancy Brown, all of Dutchess county, New York. The first year after the war Mr. Palmer spent in resting and recuperating, and then turned his attention to farming, having purchased a farm in Liberty township, Susquehanna county, which he operated for three years, and then retired, leaving it to the management of his son. He continued to reside thereon, however, until 1888, when lie re- moved to his present farm in Franklin township, and sold the former place in 1897. He affiliates with the Grand Army of the Republic and is an earnest member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Po- litically he is identified with the Republican party, and he most efficiently served as school director in Liberty and Franklin townships for three years each.

GEORGE BROTZMAN, who is engaged in farming in Auburn township, Susquehanna county, owning fifty acres of good land, was born July 9, 1830, in Blairstown, N. J., son of Samuel and grand- son of Jacob and Susanna Brotzman, natives of Ger- many, who died at Blairstown. Jacob Brotzman was a farmer by occupation.

Samuel Brotzman was born in Blairstown, N. J., and was married, at Easton, Penn., to Miss Eliza Moser, a native of that town, daughter of George and Susan Moser, who were natives of Germany. The young couple took up their residence in New Jersey, and thence in 1837 came to Susque- hanna county, Penn., locating in South Auburn, where they ended their days.

Their children were : George, whose name intro- duces this sketch; Jacob, a farmer in Auburn town- slup; Gabriel, who died young; Edward, engaged in farming in Wisconsin; Susanna, wife of Lyman Carter. a retired farmer of Waverly, Penn .; Sam- uel, a farmer in Wisconsin and a soldier in the Civil war ; Isaac, who died at Annapolis, Md., ot diph- theria, while a prisoner, he too having enlisted in the Union service; William, who joined Company L, 13th P. V. C., and was killed while in the service ; and Anthony, farming on the old homestead in South Auburn. The father passed away in 1890, at the advanced age of eighty-two years, the mother in 1860, at the age of fifty-two; they were buried at South Auburn.

During his boyhood George Brotzman attended the common schools and assisted his father, remain-

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ing under the parental roof until he was of age, after which he worked for other farmers until com- ing to his present farm, in the spring of 1857. He purchased the property from Nelson Roberts. On September 12, 1852, he was married, in Auburn township, to Miss Adelia Bump, who was born September 26, 1830, in Bradford county, Penn., daughter of George and Theodosia ( Beeman) Bump, the former of whom was born in Fishkill, N. Y., son of Jacob and Millicent ( Waterson) Bump, natives of England and Connecticut, respect- ively, who died at Wyalusing, Penn. ; Jacob Bump was a farmer by occupation. Mrs. Theodosia ( Bee- man) Bump was born in Rocky Forest, Wyoming Co., Penn., daughter of Nathan and Esther ( Beer- ley) Beeman, of Connecticut, both of whom died in New York State. George Bump came to Susque- hanna county in 1809, locating first in Forest Lake township, subsequently lived in Bradford county for a time, and finally, in 1838, settled in Auburn town- ship, where he passed the rest of his life. He was engaged in farming pursuits. He passed away April 3, 1862, at the age of seventy-seven, and was interred in the Camptown (Penn.) cemetery; his wife, who died December 3, 1880, at the advanced age of eighty-five, is buried in Bradford county. They were the parents of nine children, as follows : Lovisa, Mrs. Isaac Greek, deceased; Isaac and Es- ther, both of whom died at the age of three years ; Adelia, Mrs. Brotzman; Hannah, Mrs. Ransford Ford, deceased ; Harriet, who died at the age of four ; Aaron, a farmer of West Auburn township (he was a soldier in the Civil war); Jacob, who died at the age of two years ; and Dennis L., a farmer of Evergreen, Penn. Mr. and Mrs. Brotzman have had four children, namely: Elmer P., who is a farmer of Foster, Penn. (lie married Sarah Swack- hammer) ; Harvey T., a farmer of LaPlume, Penn. (he married H. Eliza Warner) ; Emma E., who died at the age of twenty-three years ; and George L., who lives with his parents ( he served during the late war with Spain as a member of Company G, Thirteenth P. V. I.) The parents are members of the M. E. Church. Politically Mr. Brotzman is a Republican.

This sketch would be incomplete without some mention of Mr. Brotzman's war record. He enlist- ed, in September, 1862, for nine months, at Mont- rose, Penn., in Company A, 151st P. V. I., First Brigade, Third Division, and was honorably dis- charged July 29, 1863, at the expiration of his term, at Harrisburg, Penn. On July 1, 1863, he was wounded in the right thigh at the battle of Gettys- burg and was taken to the hospitals at Little York and Gettysburg, being disabled for three months. On March 18, 1864, he re-enlisted, at Scranton, Penn., this time in Company H, 4th P. V. C. On September 19, 1864, he was wounded in the left breast by a fragment of a shell and was sent to lios- pital at Winchester, Va., being transferred thence to Wilmington, Del., and he was unfit for duty for about five months. In October, 1864, he was given a

twenty-days' furlough, and in February, 1865, at Chapin's Farm, he was transferred to Company E, 54th P. V. 1., being detailed as stretcher-bearer in the ambulance corps and serving as such for two months. In April, 1865, he was captured, at High Bridge, and he was paroled and sent to Annapolis, MId., where he was honorably discharged from the service on May 31, 1865. Mr. Brotzman took part in the battles of Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Lynch- burg, Snicker's Gap, Berryville, both engagements . at Winchester, and the memorable Lynchburg raid, when his command marched 600 miles. His feet were swollen and covered with blisters, rheuma- tism set in, and the long and severe march would probably have proved fatal to him had it not becn for the kindness of his comrades, who shared their provisions with him to . keep him from starving. As it was he was so weak that they bid him good- bye more than once, never expecting to see him again, but he lived through all the hardships. He has engaged in farming since his return from the war, on his place of fifty acres in Auburn township. which yields him a comfortable living. He is highly respected in the community, where he is well known. Mr. Brotzman has had two rather serious accidents : On February 22, 1886, while drawing wood. he had his right leg broken, being incapacitated for about a year, and in the fall of 1892, while drawing wood, his sled tipped over when he was about a mile from home and he had his right shoulder broken ; he un- hitched, however, and drove the horses home.

NOBLE L. THOMAS, justice of the peace for Harmony township, Susquehanna county, is a leading lumberman and agriculturist of that locality, owning a large tract of land near Stevens Point. As a citizen his sound judgment and integrity make him deservedly popular, and his fellow townsmen frequently call him to fill offices of responsibility.

He was born August 26, 1825. in Litchfield county, Conn., where his ancestors in both paternal and maternal lines settled in an early day. Starr Thomas, our subject's father, was born in Connecti- cut in 1798, and married Miss Annie Stoddard. also a native of that State, born in 1805. In 1837 he re- moved with his wife and family, then consisting of seven children. to Great Bend township, Susque- hanna county, the journey being made with wagons. He purchased a tract of wild land and cleared a farm which hic sold a few years later to our subject and his brother. For some time he made his home in Hickory Grove, where he built a residence, but his remaining years were spent with his children. He was active in local politics, first as a Whig and later as a Republican, and for many years he and his wife were leading members of the Methodist Epis- copal Church in their locality. He died in 1873. and his wife survived him about ten years. Of their large family of children: (1) Murat settled in Ohio, where he died leaving a widow, formerly . Miss Mary Moore, of Oakland, Susquehanna coun- ty. They had three children-Charles, who re- -

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COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

sides with his mother in Oklahoma, and Oscar and Noble, both deceased. (2) Noble L., our subject, was next in the order ot birth. (3) Edgar engaged in farming at New Milford, and then removed to Red Rock, but later became interested in the flour and feed business at Susquehanna. For five years he followed lumbering at Bethel Hill, Susquehanna county, where he bought a tract of timber, and he afterward settled at Lanesboro, purchasing the Jona- than Taylor property. His death occurred there in 1802. He and his wife, formerly Miss Sallie A. Taylor, of Great Bend, had the following children- Cora, deceased, who married Le G. Benson, cashier of the City National Bank, of Susquehanna; Ida, wife of H. W. French, of Lanesboro, and Mary and Emma, who both died in childhood. (4) Har- riet, born in Connecticut in 1829, married James Vlc Elwee, of Ulster county, N. Y., and for some time they resided on the Thomas homestead. Later they removed to New Milford, where he died; Mrs. McElwee died in Lanesboro some years after- ward. They had two children, Walker, a railway engineer, who resided in Hornellsville, N. Y., and Celia, wife of Josiah Brown, of California. (5) Jerome, born in Connecticut in 1832, married Miss Mary Mayo, of Great Bend, and is now living in retirement at Clyde, near Chicago, Ill. He was a soldier of the Civil war from New York State, and served to the close of the struggle. He has two children-Flora Thomas, born in Great Bend, mar- ried Thomas Jerman, and now resides in Clyde, where he is engaged in business; and William, single, who also resides in Clyde, Ill. (6) Caroline died in Connecticut when five years old. (7) James, horn in Connecticut in 1836, married Miss Eliza Brown, of Great Bend, where they settled for a short time. He then returned to Connecticut for a time, but later settled in Lanesboro, where he was foreman in Fulmer's tannery for five or six years and at present he is foreman for a lumber firm at Binghamton, N. Y. He has one son, Ray, who is a clerk in one of the leading stores of Binghamton. (8) Mary A., born at Great Bend, married Will- iam Thompkins, of Liberty, and died soon after, leaving no family.

Our subject was educated chiefly in the dis- trict schools of Great Bend, and as a young man hecame interested in lumbering. In 1851 he bought real estate at New Milford, where he followed farm- ing and lumbering for five years, and on selling his property he removed to Hickory Grove, where he remained four years. In 1860 he settled at Bethel Ilill, and for eighteen years he was engaged in lumbering and farming there. In 1874 he lo- cated in Lanesboro, building a handsome residence, which he now rents. and since 1888 .he has resided at his present homestead, where he has built a mill and does an extensive business in sawing lumber. 1 berts. Monroe county.

He is a steadfast Republican politically, and he served some time as supervisor, auditor and school director, while as justice of the peace he gives en- tire satisfaction to the community. His public spirit

has been shown in many ways, and he is active in religious work as a member of the Methodist Church, and has given liberally to the support of that denomination.

In 1849 Squire Thomas married Miss Pamelia J. Taylor, who was born at Great Bend in 1833, and was educated in the schools of that locality. Her parents, William and Elizabeth Taylor, came from Vermont in pioneer times, and were among the leading residents of Great Bend township. She was a devout member of the Methodist Church, a consistent Christian, and her death, which occurred at Lanesboro in 1888, was mourned by a large circle of friends. The two children of this union were born at New Milford, and died at Bethel, Susque- hanna county. Sidney F., born in May. 1850, died at the age of twenty-one. He was educated in the schools of Lanesboro, and was a most promising young man, taking an interest in his father's busi- ness, and in the work of the Methodist Church, with which he united in boyhood. Alice A., born in September, 1851, attended school in Susquehanna, and hier death, in 1867, at the age of fifteen, cut short a life that seemed full of bright hopes.

SEBASTIAN K. BRONG. For four genera- tions the name of Sebastian Brong nas been promi- nent in life and local history of Monroe county. The subject of this sketch is the fourth in direct line of descent from the original pioneer of the name in this county, and each ancestor worthily bore the name and added to its honor and public esteem. Our subject was a veteran in his country's service dur- ing the Civil war, and has, since his honorable dis- charge, won for himself a home and competence, and gained a position of prominence and high respect among his fellowmen, amid the scenes of ancestral history.

His great-grandfather. Sebastian G. Brong, was born in Germany, and in the Colonial days of Penn- sylvania, accompanied by a brother, left the Father- land and sought freedom in the New World. The two brothers settled in Bucks county. While there the fires of the Revolutionary struggle burst forth, and Sebastian took up the cause of his adopted land. and served faithfully in the artillery depart- ment of the military forces. His brother remained in Bucks county, where some of his descendants re- side to this day ; others reside at Allentown, White- hall and various parts of Lehigh Co .. Penn. But Sebastian, filled with the enthusiasm and courage of the pioneer, migrated to what is now Chestnut Hill township, Monroe county, but which was then a part of Northampton county. Here he remained through life, and died leaving to his children the heritage of industry and integrity, and his remains rest in the Reformed Lutheran cemetery near Gil-

Sebastian Brong, his son. the grandfather of our subject, married Barbara Horn, and. like his pioneer father, remained in Monroe county through life, following the vocations of a farmer. He had

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seven children : Adam, Sally, Sebastian (3), Peter, John, Jacob, and Barbara ( Mrs. Jacob Dorsheimer ). Sebastian Brong (3), the father of our sub- ject, was born in Chestnut Hill township in 1804. He was reared among the privations of the agricul- tural life of his time, but conquered conditions and became a citizen of prominence in the community Besides engaging in farming he was a sawyer, and in the surrounding forests he found ample oppor- tunity for the exercise of his willing and effective energies. He was a leading member of the Re- formed Church, and held various township offices. He married Margaret Kresge, the daughter of Philip Kresge, a prominent settler of Monroe county, and to Sebastian and Margaret Brong were born the following children: Philip, a bachelor, living with his brother, subject of this sketch; Sally Ann, who married Samuel Weiss, of Brodheadsville and is now deceased; William, who died in infancy; Barbara, who died young; Amelia, wife of Willian Dorsheimer, a railroad telegrapher at Wilkes Barre, Penn .; Angeline, who married Jerome Mansfield, of Stroudsburg, Penn., and is now deceased; Se- bastian K .; Elizabeth, wife of Jacob Lanter, a mer- chant of Weatherly, Penn .; Elias, who married Margaret Motz, and is now deceased; Oliver, who died unmarried; and Emma. wife of Wilson Kresge, a farmer and butcher of Chestnut Hill township. The father died February 25, 1879, aged seventy- five years; the mother in 1894, aged eighty-three years, and their remains rest in the Brodheadsville cemetery.

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Commemorative biographical record of northeastern Pennsylvania, including the counties of Susquehanna, Wayne, Pike and Monroe, Pt. 3, Part 84

Author: Publication date: 1900 Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co. Number of Pages: 1000

Author:
Publication date: 1900
Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers & Co.
Number of Pages: 1000