USA > Pennsylvania > Genealogical and family history of the Wyoming and Lackawanna Valleys, Pennsylvania, Volume II > Part 86
USA > Wyoming > Genealogical and family history of the Wyoming and Lackawanna Valleys, Pennsylvania, Volume II > Part 86
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W. J. Burke, son of John and Annie
(Judge) Burke, was born in 1858, in Minooka, and on the termination of his school days began to work in the mines, advancing step by step un- til he reached the position of miner. From that time he was constantly engaged in the produc- tion of coal until eight years ago, when he re- ceived the appointment of postmaster of Mi- nooka. This office he has since held with credit to himself and satisfaction to the government. He is a member of the Ancient Order of Hiber- nians, and for four years has held the office of county secretary of this organization. While not a politician, he is deeply interested in the progress of the Republican party, to the prin- ciples of which he strictly adheres. Mr. Burke married Margaret, daughter of John and Win- ifred (Handley) McDonnell, and the following children have been born to them, all of whom are now living: Annie, Thomas, John, William, Edmond, Sarah, Margaret, and Genevieve. Both as a private citizen and a public official Mr. Burke possesses the full confidence and sincere regard of his neighbors.
JOHN COSGROVE. In all Lackawanna county there is no more trusty and reliable man connected with the coal industry than John Cos- grove, of Old Forge. Mr. Cosgrove's father, also John Cosgrove, was born in Ireland, and in 1860 emigrated to the United States and set- tled in Archbald, Lackawanna county. In 1870 he moved to Old Forge. He was a miner and was in the service of Jackson, Jermyn and oth- ers. His wife was Bridget Ryan, also a native of Ireland. They were married at Pittston, Schuylkill county, and their children were: Thomas. John, mentioned hereafter: Francis, Delia, Michael and Margaret. Mr. Cosgrove, the father, died in 1887. He was an honest. in- dustrious man, and was respected by all who knew him. His widow survived him but one year, passing away in 1888.
John Cosgrove, son of John and Bridget (Ryan) Cosgrove, was born in 1862, in Arch- bald, Lackawanna county, and was eight years of age when his parents moved to Old Forge. There he received his education, and at an early age entered the service of the Delaware, Lacka- wanna & Western Company. After working for several years as track-hand he became driver- boss, a position which he held for eight years. He has been employed in the same capacity by the Jermyn Company for the last thirteen years, his post of duty being at shaft No. 2. By his. attention to the interests of the company and
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his honorable and upright behavior to the men under his control, he has won the highest esteem of both employers and employed.
Mr. Cosgrove married, December 22, 1886, Mary E. Hannon, and ten children have been born to them: Edward, deceased; Lillian, Isa- bella, Thomas, Helen, deceased; James, de- ceased ; Lucille, John J., Helen (2), and Leo. Mrs. Cosgrove is the daughter of James Han- non, who was born in Ireland in 1824, and in 1850 emigrated to the United States. For four- teen years he followed his trade, which was that of a tanner, and for about seven years was in the service of the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Company. He subsequently moved to Susquehanna county, where he bought a farm, On which he lived until 1884, when he moved to Old Forge. There he became breaker-boss, but in 1898 retired from active labor. Mr. Hannon married in 1866, Catherine Murphy, also a na- tive of Ireland, where she was born in 1836. About 1850 she came to the United States. Mr. and Mrs. Hannon were the parents of the fol- lowing children: Mary E., who was born in Scranton, and became the wife of John Cos- grove, as mentioned above; Thomas, James, and Margaret.
LEMUEL S. OPLINGER, a farmer of Newport township, was born in Plains, Luzerne county, Pennsylvania, July 18, 1847, son of Reuben and Ella (Warden) Oplinger, and grandson of George Oplinger, who served in the Mexican war, and would willingly have offered his services in the war of the Rebellion, but ex- treme old age prevented him from taking any active part in that great conflict. Lemuel Op- linger's father, Reuben Oplinger, was of German descent, a native of Northampton county, Penn- sylvania. He removed to Bath, Pennsylvania, where he followed farming, attended by much success. He married Ella Warden, a native of New York state; eleven of their thirteen children grew to maturity, and nine are living (1905) : Mary, Ezra, Henry, Lemuel S., Annie, Thomas, Reuben, George W., and Frank.
Lemuel S. Oplinger, son of Reuben and Ella (Warden) Oplinger, was reared and educated in the common schools of his native place. Dur- ing early life his attention was occupied chiefly in agricultural pursuits, and he subsequently settled down to a farmer's life, in which he has been thoroughly successful. His present farm consists of one hundred and sixty acres of land, which he has operated for twenty-eight years. In politics he is a stanch Democrat, is a member of
the Junior Order of United American Mechanics, and served on the school board for a period of time. In religious affairs he affiliates with the Lutheran faith. January 12, 1873, Mr. Oplinger was united in marriage to Catherine A. Belles, daughter of William and Mary (Bridenger) Belles, born in Newport township, September 13, 1854, a descendant of an old and worthy family whose ancestors were early settlers in the Wyo- ming valley. The following children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Oplinger: 1. Harvey, a brake- man on the Pennsylvania Railroad, who met his death by accident while in the discharge of his duty in 1901 ; married Anna Titus, and to them were born two children: Charles and Earl. 2. Harry. 3. Charles, a graduate of Bloomsbury State Normal, was married to Miss Edith Gluyes, to whom one child was born, Edna. 4. Walter, married Susan Titus, and two children were born, Clyde and Erma. 5. Adam R., at home. 6. Bella, who is the wife of Harry Womelsdorf, one child, Lemuel Arl. 7. Ar- thur, at home. 8. Lemuel, Jr., at home.
JAMES W. HOLCOMB. Among the en- terprising and prosperous business men of West Pittston may be mentioned the name of James WV. Holcomb, a native of Trucksville, Luzerne county, Pennsylvania, born September 2, 1838, a son of Albert W. and Sarah ( Williamson) Holcomb, also of Trucksville.
James W. Holcomb resided in his native town until he attained his majority, in the meantime attending the public schools thereof, and Wyo- ming Seminary, Kingston, Pennsylvania. At the age of twenty-one years he began the vocation of teaching, and for two years continued along that line. He then went West, but after a residence of almost three years there returned East and en- tered the mercantile business at Orange, Lu- zerne county, Pennsylvania, conducting success- fully a general store up to 1872. He then changed his place of residence to West Pittston and began marketing, which business he has con- tinued up to date, and which has proven exceed- ingly remunerative. Mr. Holcomb stands high in the estimation of all with whom he is brought in contact, either in business or social life, and is regarded as one of the substantial citizens of the town, willing to bear a full share in the promo- tion of community interests. He served two terms as tax collector, rendering capable and efficient service. He is a Prohibitionst in politics, and for many years has held membership in the order of Free and Accepted Masons.
Mr. Holcomb married, December 6, 1862,
-
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THE WYOMING AND LACKAWANNA VALLEYS.
Mary Elizabeth Perrin, born April 25, 1842, eld- est child of George and Charlotte ( Ferguson) Perrin. (A full account of the history of Mr. Perrin and his ancestors appears in the preceding sketch of Calvin Perrin). Their children are: I. Leland Perrin, born September 2, 1863, chief clerk in the recorder's office, Wilkes-Barre; he takes a great interest in politics. He married Lillian Kunkle, and they are the parents of eight children : They reside in West Pittston. 2 Charlotte, born March 6, 1865, married H. F. Brandow, and had three children; they reside in West Pittston. 3. Charles, born May 10, 1871, died April 21, 1872, buried in West Pittston cemetery. 4. Alice, born July 28, 1875, married Frank Rorapaugh. Issue, two children ; they re- side in West Pittston. 5. George, born March Iv, 1878, died August 6, 1879, buried in West Pittston cemetery. 6. Clyde B., born Novem- ber 14, 18So, died November 12, 1889, buried in West Pittston cemetery.
LEWIS T. WILLIAMS. A worthy repre- sentative of the Welsh element in Luzerne coun- ty is Lewis Williams, of Old Forge, a son of Wil- liam and Mary (Bevan) Williams, both of South WVales. Of their fourteen children two emi- grated to the United States: Margaret (Mrs. Powell), and Lewis T., mentioned hereafter. Mrs. Powell has since returned to her native country.
Lewis T. Williams was born in 1855, in South Wales, where for fourteen years he worked as a miner, becoming thoroughly familiar with every branch of his calling. In 1879 he emigrated to the United States and settled in Hyde Park, Scranton, where he remained for eight years. In 1887 he moved to Old Forge, of which he has since been a continuous resident. Since his ar- rival in this country Mr. Williams has been en- gaged in mining and has served faithfully and well the Sibley and Jermyn coal companies. He is now in the service of the latter company. He is a popular and respected citizen, possessing the fullest confidence of his neighbors, by whom he has been chosen a member of the county com- mittee, and has also been elected to various minor township offices.
Mr. Williams married in 1873, Annie Mor- gan, also a native of Wales, and of the fifteen children born to them the following are living : William, proprietor of the Williams Hotel in Old Forge ; Margaret A., wife of Charles Sears ; Ben- jamin, married Lizzie Herbert ; Lewis, Mary, and John. The residence of Mr. Williams is one of
the most attractive and comfortable in Old Forge, and is the centre of social intercourse for a large circle of warm and sincere friends.
WILLIAM F. COURTRIGHT. Among the representatives of the old county families Wil- liam F. Courtright, of Taylor, occupies a promi- nent place. The Courtright family is of Dutch origin and was resident in the Wyoming Valley prior to the Revolutionary war, in which they took an active part. Some members of the family lost their lives in the massacre, which in 1778 laid waste that beautiful spot. This fact is not only recorded in the history of the Wyoming Valley, but their names are inscribed upon the monument dedicated to the victims of that dread- ful slaughter. After the valley became more populous the Courtrights settled in Plains. Mil- ton Courtright, a distant relative of William F. Courtright, was one of the pioneer postmasters.
Cornelius Courtright was born in 1777, in Luzerne county, and was a farmer, owning con- siderable land. His wife was a Miss Winters, a native of Jenkins township. They were the parents of a numerous family, among them a son Lyman, mentioned hereafter. Mr. Courtright, the father, died in 1857 at the age of eighty.
Lyman Courtright, son of Cornelius Court- right, was born in 1822, at Plains, followed the carpenter's trade and was also engaged in the lumber business. In this he was successful, but had the misfortune to see the results of his labors totally destroyed by fire. He married Anna Seigal, a native of Northampton county, Penn- sylvania, and five of their ten children are now living : William F., mentioned hereafter ; H. C., Alice (Mrs. Killgannon), Ellen (Mrs. Halpin). and Lydia (Mrs. Pearson). The death of Mr. Courtright, who was a man universally respected, occurred in 1867. at the comparatively early age of forty-five. His widow still survives him, hav- ing reached her seventy-eighth year.
William F. Courtright, son of Lyman and Anna (Seigal) Courtright, was born May 23, 1848, at Stoddartsville, Pennsylvania, and re- ceived a limited education in the schools of Plains, to which place his parents moved in 1862. He first worked as a miner in the Burris colliery in Plainsville, and from there went to the Enter- prise colliery. In 1869 he was made assistant foreman, becoming foreman in 1872. In 1874 he was made district foreman of the Sibley and Greenwood collieries, a position which he re- tained until 1892. In that year he joined Messrs. Merham and Law in forming the Taylor Coal
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THE WYOMING AND LACKAWANNA VALLEYS.
Company, of which he is now manager. From 1878 to 1888, in company with J. B. Winslow, he conducted a general merchandise store. In 1885 he became a resident of Taylor, where he is the owner of several buildings. He has been honored with the office of school director, which he has filled judiciously and wisely. He and his family are members of the Protestant Episcopal Church.
Mr. Courtright married in 1871, Zelpha, daughter of Allen and Almeda Winslow, and five children were born to them, two of whom are living: Martha, wife of Thomas J. Davis ; and Ida, married Thomas Evans.
One of the deceased brothers of Mr. Court- right was Peter Courtright, who during the Civil war served in Company G, Fifty-second Regi- ment, Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, having previously served as a member of the Allentown Independents. He fell a victim to black fever, passing away at Hilton Head. South Carolina, thus giving his life for his country.
JAMES TASKER. Few men have had longer or more varied experience in connection with the coal industry than has fallen to the lot of James Tasker, of Moosic. He is a son of John and Sarah (Horton) Tasker, both natives of England. Their children were: James, men- tioned hereafter: Sarah, deceased; William, Kate, and Susan. Mrs. Tasker died in 1870 in her native country. In 1882 the father and chil- dren sought a home in the new world.
James Tasker, son of John and Sarah (Hor- ton) Tasker, was born in 1859, in England, and received his education in the common schools. At a very early age he was apprenticed to the master of a coasting vessel, whom he served for four years. At the expiration of his apprentice- ship he became a deep-sea sailor, and for ten years spent his time in making voyages to and from the principal seaports of the civilized world. After a few trips to the United States he decided to make his home in the land whither his father, brother and sisters had repaired, and accordingly settled in Duryea, in the vicinity of which he has since resided. He abandoned his life as a sailor, and after ten years' work in the mines perceived the advantages as well as the necessity of a thor- ough knowledge of mining, and therefore took a course in mine engineering, in which he passed a creditable examination and was granted a cer- tificate. In 1894 he became mine foreman in the Spring Brook colliery of the Delaware & Hud- son Company, a position which he still holds. In 2-28
this colliery there are five openings in which are employed two hundred miners who are under the special control and management of Mr. Tasker, who considers the interests of his employers and the welfare of the men with conscientious impar- tiality. The output of this mine is about sixty thousand tons per annum. During his previous career as a miner Mr. Tasker worked for a num- ber of the leading coal companies, including the Austin Coal Company, the Wyoming Land & Coal Company, thie Moosic Mountain Coal Com- pany, and the Spring Brook Coal Company, now owned by the Delaware & Hudson Company. He is a member of Kingsbury Lodge, No. 464. F. and A. M.
Mr. Tasker married, April 13, 1885, Mary E., also a native of England, daughter of William and Ann Rumford. Children are: Ada, Eva, deceased ; Frederick, James, Junior ; Nellie, Ethel and Hilda.
JESSE B. CARPENTER, deceased, who won a good reputation in the business circles of Pittston, Luzerne county, Pennsylvania, through earnest and honorable effort and reliable methods, was a native of Kingston, Pennsylvania, born January 23. 1840, a son of John S. Carpenter, who was one of the organizers of the Pittston Ferry Bridge Company, of which he was presi- dent for a number of years and a director until his death in West Pittston, 1898, at eighty-six. The mother died December 4, 1903.
Jesse B. Carpenter obtained a practical educa- tion which prepared liim for the activities and duties of life in the common schools of his native town, and Kingston Seminary. In 1865, upon the retirement of his father from active pursuits, he took possession of the old homestead farm in Exeter township and began truck farming, which he successfully conducted up to his death. In 1888 he built a greenhouse and engaged in the florist business, which steadily increased both in volume and importance during the intervening years until he was one of the most extensive pro- ducers in the vicinity of Pittston. He has served the township of Exeter in the capacity of audi- tor, and from his election in 1890 was a member up to his death of the council of Exeter, the old- est in point of service: As a citizen he was ever alert, earnest and conscientious, keenly alive to everything which concerned in any way the well being of the township and county, and the posi- tions to which he was called afforded ample evi- dence of the high estimate placed upon his abili- ties and character by his fellow-citizens. He has
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THE WYOMING AND LACKAWANNA VALLEYS.
always affiliated with the Republican party, mem- ber of the I. O. O. F., No. 314. Pittston, Penn- sylvania, past grand and filled all chairs; F. & A. M., St. Jolin Lodge; Pittston Chapter. No. 242; Wyoming Valley Commandery, No. 57; Nugent Post, of Pittston, G. A. R. Dur- ing the Civil war Mr. Carpenter enlisted as pri- vate in Company N, Twenty-eighth Pennsylvania Regiment, served eighteen months; was in the battle at Antietam.
Mr. Carpenter married (first), June 13. 1872, Charlotte Laird, and they had four children : Fanny, died in infancy; John, died at fifteen years of age; Elizabeth, married William Ken- nedy, of Dubuque, Iowa; Jesse B., Jr., resides at home. Mother of these children died October 26, 1893. He married (second), June 13, 1904, Mary A. Kern, born in Port Jervis, New York, daughter of John B., who was born in Heidel- berg, Germany, came to America at the age of twenty-two, and located at Port Jervis, New York, where he resided up to 1855. He served eighteen months in the Mexican war. Later came to Pittston, Pennsylvania, where he resided twenty-five years previous to his death.
Mary A. Kern, mother of Mary A. (Kern) Carpenter, was born in Wertenberg. Germany, died in Pittston, Pennsylvania, 1894: had seven children, three of whom are living: Mary A., (Mrs. Carpenter), Mrs. Louis T. Weiscarger, Mrs. Christian Schultz.
HIRAM MCALPINE HONEYWELL, born March 18. 1848, on the old homestead in Dallas township, is the son of William J. and Sarah Ann (Perry) Honeywell, of whom see sketch else- where in this work.
Hiram McAlpine Honeywell spent his early days on the old homestead, was educated in the public schools of the township, and at the age of fourteen years began work on the farm for his father, continuing same until eighteen years of age, when he also engaged in lumbering, a busi- ness which his father was also engaged in. Hiram at times conducted the lumber mill, continuing the two occupations for about three years, when the mill was sold, after which he followed the occupation of farming and lumbering for about twenty-seven years, when he took up the occupa- tion of butchering and droving, continuing in this for about three years in Dallas and vicinity. The next three years he was in the employ of the Oneonta Lumber Company and the Lombard & Clay Company, in Kentucky, railroading and lumbering, and since then (during the last four years) in the employ of the Lehigh Valley Coal
Company as carpenter. In 1882 he went to Mex- ico and there followed lumbering one year. He now resides in Parsons, Pennsylvania. Mr. Hon- eywell is a Republican in politics, and for three years was a school director in Dallas. In relig- ion he attends the Methodist Church in Parsons, of which Mrs. Honeywell is a member. He was a member of the I. O. O. F. of Dallas for over thirty years, and was also a member of the Im- proved Order of Red Men of Dallas.
Hiram McAlpine Honeywell married. No- vember II, 1868, Martha J. Shotwell, born No- vember 6, 1848, daughter of Joseph and Acca (Fulkersin) Shotwell, of Dallas township, form- erly of Warren county, New Jersey. Hiram and Martha J. had the following children : I. Estella, born December 4, 1869, married, February 27, 1890, William Whitebread, of Dallas, and had four children : Claude, Clarence. Floy, Ralph ; they reside in Wilkes-Barre. 2. William Edgar, born March 10, 1871. married Clara Lewis, of Sutton Creek, Luzerne county, resides Parsons, Pennsylvania. 3. Walter J., born August 16. 1875, married Elizabeth Williamson, of Dallas, and had two children : Leland and Elizabeth : re- side in Luzerne, Pennsylvania. 4. Granville George, born April 6, 1879. married Laura Shaw, of Wilkes-Barre, formerly from Lambertsville, New Jersey, and had two children: Pearl and Hazel ; reside Jamaica, Long Island, New York.
Joseph Shotwell, father of Mrs. Honeywell, was born in Warren county, New Jersey, June 28, 1806, and was a son of Samuel and Phoebe Shotwell, also of Warren county. Joseph was a stone mason and came from Warren county, New Jersey, to Pittston, Pennsylvania, where he fol- lowed his trade until 1857. He then settled on a farm in Beaumont, Wyoming county, Pennsyl- vania, and farmed in connection with his other work of stone mason for the remainder of his life. Josephi and Acca Shotwell were the par- ents of six children : Charles, Jolin, George, Ja- cob. Sarah, and Martha J .. wife of Mr. Honey- well. Joseph Shotwell died at Dallas in Octo- ber, 1868, aged sixty-two years, and was buried in Beaumont cemetery. Mrs. Acca (Fulkersin) Shotwell died at Beaumont, April 6, 1871, and was also buried in Beaumont cemetery. Mrs. Shotwell was a daughter of John and Sarah Fulkersin, of Warren county, New Jersey, and one of four children : Jolin, Samuel, James and Acca (Mrs. Shotwell).
THOMAS W. EVANS. A list of the lead- ing market-gardeners of Lackawanna county would be incomplete without the name of
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THE WYOMING AND LACKAWANNA VALLEYS.
Thomas W. Evans, of Scranton. Both by birth and parentage Mr. Evans is a Welshman and has displayed in his career many of those sterling traits of character which are the source of much of the success which has attended his countrymen in the United States, and especially in the state of Pennsylvania.
William Evans was born in Wales and mar- ried Mary Walters, a native of the same country. There were eight children born to them, among whom were four sons : Henry, Daniel, David, and Thomas W., mentioned at length hereafter. The mother of these children died in her native' country, and in 1865 Mr. Evans emigrated to the United States, accompanied by the four sons mentioned above. After his arrival in this coun- try he married again and settled in Pittston, Pennsylvania. The sons established their father as a market-gardener on a small scale, and in 1871 associated themselves with him in the busi- ness under the firm name of Evans Brothers. In 1879 Mr. Evans died at the age of eighty-four years. He was an honest, industrious man, hav- ing the respect of all who knew him.
Thomas W. Evans, son of William and Mary (Walter) Evans, was born in 1848, in Wales, and was seventeen years old when he accompa- nied his father and brothers to the United States. In the years during which he was associated in business with his brothers, he acquired a fund of experience and a thorough knowledge of every detail of his calling, which have gone far toward rendering him the successful man he is. In 1900 Mr. Evans moved to Scranton, where he pur- chased of the Lackawanna Coal Company twenty-three acres of valuable land, upon which he raises all kinds of vegetables suited to this climate. His product has a high market value because of its freshness and purity and com- mands the highest prices. He has two hot- houses, one twenty by forty and the other twenty- eight by one hundred and four feet, or four thousand and thirty-two square feet of glass, under which he raises his plants. He has also erected on his land two fine dwellings. As a citi- zen Mr. Evans possesses the sincere respect of his neighbors and is loyal to the interests of his home city. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, in which he has served effi- ciently as superintendent of the Sunday-school. Mr. Evans married in 1874, Lucy Griffith, a na- tive of Wales, and of the twelve children born to them ten are now living: Ebenezer, who is a music teacher ; David, who has studied and prac- ticed osteopathy and is now a physical director
in the Young Men's Christian Association in York, Pennsylvania : Hannah, who is the wife of John Savage; Miriam; Eva, wife of Archibald Reese ; Sara ; Daniel ; Ethel ; Lucy ; and Eleanor. The home of Mr. and Mrs. Evans, brightened as it is by so many youthful faces, is the centre of much domestic happiness and social enjoy- ment.
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