USA > Pennsylvania > Beaver County > Genealogical and personal history of Beaver County, Pennsylvania, Volume I > Part 19
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He married Sarah Wolf, born in Butler county, Pennsylvania, March 10, 1842, daughter of John and Catherine (Shelly) Wolf. John Wolf was born in Hesse Darmstadt, Germany, and came to the United States in 1832, locating in Butler county, Pennsylvania, his father, Henry Wolf, accompanying him upon the voyage, his mother, Mary, having died in the homeland. They were the joint owners of a farm in Butler county, Henry Wolf falling dead while performing his regular duties in connection with the farm work. John Wolf prospered in his business, retiring about twenty-five years before his death, spending the last quarter of a century of his life in ease and comfort on the acres from which he had wrought a competence. John Wolf had a son, Abraham, who fought in the Union army throughout the Civil War, receiving a wound in the leg at the battle of Fredericksburg. Children of Samuel (2) and Sarah (Wolf) Geer: J. Henry, of whom further; Samuel, died in infancy.
(III) J. Henry Geer, elder of the two sons of Samuel (z) and Sarah (Wolf) Geer, was born in Lancaster township, Butler county, Pennsyl- vania, June 6, 1860. As a boy he attended the New Brighton public schools, in Beaver county, and for a life trade he decided upon that of steel roller, and for twenty-three years served the Beaver Falls Steel Company in that capacity. Since coming to New Brighton from Butler county with his mother in 1868 that place has been his residence, with the exception
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of three years when official duties necessitated his living in Beaver. In 1899 he was elected sheriff of Beaver county, taking the oath of office on January 1, 1900, the representative of the Republican party, upon whose ticket his name had appeared. Since that time he has been much in the public eye, serving as a member of the New Brighton council for two terms, one year in the state office of inspector of state highways, besides filling the unexpired term of John G. Hillman as county treasurer, the latter having died while in his office. On May 21, 1912, Mr. Geer re- ceived the governor's appointment as superintendent of state highways of the thirteenth district, and as such serves at the present time. He is a director of the Beaver County Building and Loan Association, and belongs to the Junior Order of United American Mechanics, the Royal Arcanum, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, and the American Road Builders' Association. He has attained a position of prominence in the public and political life of the county and of the state, and his service in the various positions to which he has been called has been of a high order, his efforts redounding to the benefit and credit of the district which he represents. His actions have been such as to gain the confidence of his people, the final test of a man whose entire career is open to those among whom he lives.
Mr. Geer married, April 1, 1880, Julia B. Mitchell, of New Brighton, Pennsylvania. Children: 1. Ida M., married John F. Weller, and lives. in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the mother of two children, Frances E. and John Francis. 2. Sarah M., lives at home. 3. John Henry Jr., lives at home. 4. Frederick S., married Elithia Hewlett, of New Brighton, and. has one child, Sarah Mildred. 5. Mary J., lives at home. 6. Charles. Allen, lives at home. 7. Juliet M., lives at home. 8. Evelyn, lives at home.
HUTCHINSON For over three-quarters of a century members of this. branch of the Hutchinson family have been residents of Pennsylvania, while in New England those of the name have been in that region since the earliest days of its settlement. William Hutchinson, the first of whom record is herein given, was born in Ireland and in that country became a follower of the cabinet-maker's trade, in which he had served a regular apprenticeship and in which he was a skilled workman. About 1830 he and his family emigrated, coming to the United States and settling in the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where William Hutchinson learned and followed the pattern-maker's trade, the demand for work of that nature being greater than for that in the line of which he was master. His mechanical genius was innately strong, and he was able to earn journeyman's wages in his new craft soon after engaging in it, without enduring the dreary and profitless years of an apprenticeship, Pattern-making remained his business throughout his active years, his death occurring when he had reached an advanced age. He was a member of the Reformed Presbyterian Church, in which faith
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his children were all reared, his wife also being of that persuasion. He was thrice married, all of his issue being by his first wife, Margaret. Children of William and Margaret Hutchinson: 1. William, of whom further. 2. Samuel, a follower of the trade of his father, lived all his life in Pittsburgh. 3. Robert, a machinist, Pittsburgh being his residence and place of business. 4. Eliza, married Edward Armstrong, and lived in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 5. James, a resident of Allegheny City, a ma- chinist.
(II) William, son of William and Margaret Hutchinson, was born in Belfast, Ireland, in 1820, died in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1855. When he was a boy he was brought by his parents from the land of his birth to the United States, the family home being in the city of Pittsburgh. In that place he grew to manhood, obtaining his education in the public schools, and learned the pattern-maker's trade under the able instruction of his father, much of whose aptitude for mechanics he inherited, He later branched out from this business and became a proficient engine builder, for many years serving in the employ of Reese and Company. He, his father, and his father's brother-in-law, Joseph L. Lowry, are credited with having constructed the first steam fire-engine, of any model, in the United States. His death was sudden and premature, he being at the time but thirty-five years of age. It is probable that had his term of life been longer, he would have fathered inventions of merit and usefulness in a mechanical way, for his studious mind was always exploring new and hitherto untraversed channels, testing the practicality of the various unusual ideas that occurred to him. Many of the plans for the fire engine he and his relatives constructed were his individual work, and he would in all likelihood have perfected that machine beyond the first model had not he received his final summons so early in the day of life. Both he and his wife were communicants of the Presbyterian faith.
He married Sarah Lowry, born near Belfast, Ireland, in 1822, died in St. Louis, Missouri, in 1862, who, after the death of her parents in the homeland, came to the United States with a party of relatives and friends from the same part of the country in which she lived. After the death of William Hutchinson, she and her family moved to St. Louis, Missouri, where she married William Lowry, and there died. William and Sarah (Lowry) Hutchinson were the parents of: 1. William, died aged twenty- seven years, unmarried. 2. Edward Lowry, of whom further. 3. Frank, died aged forty years, being, at the time of his death, cashier of the Allegheny National Bank, of Pittsburgh.
(III) Edward Lowry, second of the three sons of William and Sarah (Lowry) Hutchinson, was born in Pittsburgh, Allegheny county, Penn- sylvania, August 28, 1852. His father died when he was a child of three years, and he first attended school in St. Louis, whither his mother had gone upon the death of her husband. When his mother's death left him an orphan he returned to Pittsburgh and entered the home of his Aunt
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Eliza Armstrong, his two brothers making their home with Grandfather William Hutchinson. The dependency of his position filled him with a desire to make his own way in the world, and in gratification of this feeling he obtained a position as messenger boy in a hatter's store in that city, where he worked for six years, then spending eight years more in the city of Pittsburgh, his employment being of different natures. In 1878 he came to Beaver county, where he has since resided, and accepted a position in the office of Emerson, Ford and Company, of Beaver Falls, manufacturers of saws. The company, when he began relations therewith, was but four years old, organization having been effected in 1874. Ten years after its formation and six years after he had entered its service, a reorganization was made, the name being changed to Emerson, Smith and Company, Limited, Mr. Hutchinson being placed upon the officiary as sec- retary and becoming owner of some of the company's stock. In 1913, through the death of Julius Kurtz, Mr. Hutchinson was elected chairman and treasurer, Thomas Carroll succeeding to his former position. He affiliates with the Masonic order, is a trustee of the Presbyterian Church, and in politics is a Republican, having served for six years as a member of the school board of Beaver Falls.
He married, November 3, 1881, Clara B. Perrott, born in Fallston, Pennsylvania, daughter of Thomas and Mary (Edgar) Perrott. Thomas Perrott was born in county Antrim, Ireland, and came to the United States with his parents when he was but twelve years of age, the family locating at Elder's Mills, on Little Beaver Creek, Beaver county, Penn- sylvania, where his mother died, aged ninety-five years. Thomas Perrott was the youngest of three children, having one brother, Richard, who was identified with him in business, and a sister Sarah, who married Moses Sharp, and lived in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, for a half a century. When Thomas grew to manhood he operated the old Elder's woolen mills for many years in partnership with his brother, Richard, later, about 1850, moving to Fallston, where his death occurred. Mary Edgar, his wife, was born in Beaver county, Pennsylvania, September 30, 1816, died March 4, 1903, and was the eldest of a family of eight, the others all of whom are deceased, being: 1. James, proprietor of a livery in New Brighton, Beaver County, Pennsylvania. 2. John, a miller of Fallston, Pennsylvania. 3. Robert, a merchant of New Brighton, Pennsylvania. 4. Nancy, married James Duncan, and lived in New Brighton. 5. Margaret, married William Reed, proprietor of a grocery store in New Brighton. 6. Louisa, married S. S. McFarren, for many years postmaster of Beaver Falls. 7. Adeline, married George Fields, an instructor in the Brighton High School. Chil- dren of Thomas and Mary (Edgar) Perrott: 1. John, a resident of Bucy- rus, Ohio. 2. Nancy, maried Jacob Parkinson, both deceased, and lived in Beaver Falls. 3. Sarah, married Jacob Ecki, deceased, and lives in Beaver Falls. 4. James P., a merchant of Beaver Falls. 5. Edgar, died aged eight years. 6. Thomas, died aged seven years. 7. Richard, an
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employe in the Howard Stove Works, of Beaver Falls. 8. Mary, unmar- ried lives with her sister, Mrs. Edward L. Hutchinson. 9. Clara B., of previous mention, married Edward Lowry Hutchinson. 10. Jennie, mar- ried Israel Bollinger, and lives in Pittsburgh. Children of Edward L. and Clara B. (Perrott) Hutchinson: 1. Juliet, born November 12, 1884, mar- ried W. B. Todd, and has one daughter, Lucile, born February 24, 1912. They live with Mr. Hutchinson in his home at No. 1005 Fifth avenue, Beaver Falls. 2. Mary Lucile, born March 7, 1890, married Charles C. Martin, and lives at No. 611 Ninth street, Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania.
LOGAN The quest for the emigrant ancestor of the Logans of Beaver county carries one back no further than the second genera- tion, to John Logan, who was born in county Derry, Ireland, where he grew to manhood. He was married in that country and there several of his children were born, the family coming to the United States in 1836, settling in Clarion county. He was a farmer by occupation and his property was located about five miles from Parker's Landing, where he spent his entire American life, and where he died. In Ireland the family religion had been the Episcopal, but in this country they were strict adherents to the Presbyterian faith. He had not long been a resident of Clarion county before he began to learn the political methods and the manner of government of his adopted land, and from the casting of his first ballot he was an ardent sympathizer with the cause of Demoracy. The children of John Logan and his wife, Susanna Rogers, who was also born in county Derry, Ireland, and died in Clarion county, Pennsylvania, at the extraordinary age of one hundred and two years, were: I. George, deceased, lived in Clarion county, and for a time employed on boats plying the Allegheny river. 2. James, deceased, owned and cultivated a farm in Clarion county. 3. Elizabeth, deceased, married John Harshaw, and lived in Clarion county, Pennsylvania. 4. Samuel, a farmer of Clarion county, deceased. 5. Mary Jane, married Houston Gibson, and lived in Armstrong county, Pennsylvania. 6. John, deceased, farmed in both Clarion and Beaver counties. 7. Margaret, married Samuel Banks, deceased, and for a time lived in Butler county, now in Beaver county, Pennsylvania. 8. Matthew, of whom further.
(II) Matthew, youngest of the eight children of John and Susanna (Rogers) Logan, was born in Clarion county, Pennsylvania, March 6, 1843, died in Chippewa township, Beaver county, Pennsylvania, May 18, 1907. He grew to maturity on his father's farm in Clarion county and in boyhood attended the sessions of the public schools. He remained on his father's farm, assuming most of the actual operation, until his marriage, when his father made him a gift of a ninety acre tract in Clarion county, on which he lived until 1876. In that year he sold the property he had received at his marriage, and purchased land one hundred and thirty-seven acres
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in extent in Chippewa township, Beaver county, Pennsylvania, there engaging in general operations until his death, aged sixty-four years. A Republican in politics, he held numerous township offices, but despite the fact of his public service he was not a lover of public or political life, discharging the duties laid upon him from a strong sense of the require- ments of good citizenship. Although the companionship of his many friends was agreeable to him, he found a much keener enjoyment and a far deeper pleasure in his home circle, surrounded by those whom he loved and who returned his affection measure for measure. To the very hour of his death there was none privileged to know him who could with justice aim a blow at the fair reputation for uprightness, honor, and integrity that he had acquired in the three decades of his residence in that locality, and in the innermost depths of his life naught could be found to make him fearful to stand before his final Judge.
He married Eliza J. Banks, born in Clarion county, Pennsylvania, May 13, 1843, who has been a member of the Presbyterian Church for a period of time lacking but one year (in 1914) of half a century. She is a daughter of Matthew and Elizabeth (Rogers) Banks, both natives of county Derry, Ireland. Matthew Banks immigrated to the United States about 1836, when but a young man, making Clarion county, Penn- sylvania, his place of settlement, and after his marriage to Elizabeth, daughter of Samuel and Margaret Rogers, who had brought her from Ireland to Perry township, Clarion county, Pennsylvania, moved to Butler county, where he purchased a farm. During the oil excitement he sold this property at a figure greatly in advance of that which he had originally paid for it, both oil and gas having been struck thereon, and came to Brighton township, Beaver county, where he lived until his death in 1894, seven years after that of his wife. Children of Matthew and Elizabeth (Rogers) Banks: 1. Samuel Rogers, deceased, a farmer of Brighton township, Beaver county. 2. Eliza J., of previous mention, married Matthew Logan, and, after her husband's death, remained on the farm until 1912, when she rented the property and moved to Beaver Falls, Beaver county, where she now lives at the home of her daughter, Margaret, No. 1307 Fourth avenue. 3. Matthew, lives retired in Beaver Falls. 4. Margaret, married Robert Gaily, an oil operator of Beaver, Beaver county, Pennsylvania. 5. Rebecca, deceased, married Alexander Blair. 6. Mary, married William Barkley, and lives in Oklahoma. 7. William, deceased. 8. Robert, proprietor of a laundry in Portland, Oregon. 9. Rosetta, married John Long, and lives at College Hill, Pennsylvania. Children of Matthew and Eliza J. (Banks) Logan: I. Elizabeth, married Edward Haley, and died aged thirty-seven years. 2. Martha, married Jonathan Failor, and lives in East Palestine, Ohio. 3. John, an attorney and real estate dealer of Long Beach, California, mar- ried Ella Foster. 4. Nora, died unmarried, aged thirty-nine years. 5. Iva, married C. E. Blackburn, and lives in Beaver, Pennsylvania. 6. Weltha, married William Rowan, and died aged twenty-four years. 7. Emma,
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married George McBride, and lives in Beaver Falls, Beaver county, Penn- sylvania. 8. Minnie, married Richard Marlatt, and lives in Lawrence county, Pennsylvania. 9. Clara, married Fred Morris, and lives in Beaver, Penn- sylvania. 10. Wilber, married Sylvia Russell, and lives in New Brighton, Beaver county, Pennsylvania. 11. Margaret, married Charles K. Miller, and lives in Beaver Falls, Beaver county, Pennsylvania. 12. Samuel, died aged twelve years.
The first Davidson resident in Pennsylvania was also DAVIDSON a resident of Beaver county, that being the part of the state to which John Davidson, the emigrant ancestor of the family herein recorded, came immediately after his arrival in this country from Ireland, the land of his birth. He cultivated a farm in Rochester township, prospered and acquired a great deal of real estate in that locality. He married and was the father of: William, of whom further; John, Samuel, Alexander, Jane, married a Mr. Mitchell; Nancy, married a Mr. Heinz.
(II) William Davidson, son of John Davidson, was born in Rochester township, Beaver county, Pennsylvania, in 1805, died in that county about 1871. He grew to manhood on his father's farm, working thereon in the time not devoted to the obtaining of an education, and after his marriage settled at Bridgewater. He was a skilled, competent miller, and erected three mills on the Beaver river, a grist, saw and planing-mill, over all of which he maintained active supervision, being master of all branches and operating all the mills with equal facility. He also conducted an extensive business in the building of boats. He remained in business until about two years before his death. His home was a large brick edifice on an eminence that commanded a view of the country-side traversed by the Beaver for many miles, an outlook of charming beauty. This building was erected about 1835, was the scene of the family home life, and is standing to the present day. He laid out that part of West Bridgewater known as North Bridgewater, about 1831. Both he and his wife were members of the Presbyterian Church, and in politics he was an ardent supporter of the Democratic party. He married (first) Margaret Wolf, born in Brighton, Pennsylvania, daughter of John Wolf, a native of eastern Pennsylvania, he and his wife being among the pioneers of Beaver county, where both lie buried. He married (second) Mary Wilson. He married (third) Nancy Ann Elliott, who survived him, dying in Beaver, Penn- sylvania. By his first marriage he was the father of eleven children, of whom four died in infancy, and by his second and third marriages he had three, none of whom attained maturity age. The children of his first marriage who grew to manhood and womanhood: 1. Thomas Jeffer- son, of whom further. 2. William, a dealer in coal, died in Beaver Falls, Pennsylvania. 3. John, married, and died aged twenty-seven years. 4.
Addison Davidson
Thoo. & Savidown
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Samuel, died unmarried in Bridgewater, Pennsylvania. 5. Sarah Jane, married Walter C. Dunlap. 6. James, died at the home of Addison David- son, his brother, unmarried. 7. Addison, of whom further.
(III) Thomas Jefferson Davidson, son of William Davidson, was born in West Bridgewater, Beaver county, Pennsylvania, September 17, 1836. He was educated in the public schools of Beaver and in Beaver Academy. Upon completing his education, he engaged in the lumber and oil business in which he met with great success. He has also been a large investor in real estate and at one time owned over seven hundred acres. He still has large holdings in and about West Bridgewater besides a two hundred acre farm in King George county, Virginia. Mr. Davidson is a man of influence and importance in the community. He is a Democrat as was his father before him, and on that ticket has twice been elected to the council.
Mr. Davidson married (first) in 1864, Caroline Hall, daughter of David Hall, of Beaver county, Pennsylvania, where he is engaged in farming. To Mr. and Mrs. Davidson were born five children of whom two died in infancy. The living are: Lewis H., a railroad engineer, residing in Ala- bama; Alpha, now Mrs. James H. Wilson, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Herbert, also a railroad engineer, residing in Alabama. Mrs. Davidson died in 1878. A year later Mr. Davidson married (second) Anna Bell, a native of Columbiana, Ohio. Of this second union there is no issue.
(III) Addison Davidson, youngest child of William and Margaret (Wolf) Davidson, was born at Bridgewater, Beaver county, Pennsylvania, June 25, 1847, died in Beaver Falls, Beaver county, Pennsylvania, Septem- ber 27, 1910. His education was obtained in the public schools of Bridge- water and Tidioute, and for a time after completing his studies he worked in his father's mills. In 1868 he and his brother, William, formed a partnership under the name of Davidson Brothers to engage in the coal business, their field being not simply confined to operating or dealing but embracing both, the coal which they sold at retail being mined in property owned by them and all transactions between miner and consumer being conducted by them. The death of William, about 1872, broke up a prosper- ous working combination, harmony and strict accord, inspired by the respect of each for the other's ability, marking all of their business career as a firm. Addison Davidson then purchased his brother's interest in the business from the beneficiaries of William Davidson's will and until his death conducted it independently, being at that time one of the few first residents of the place still living in Beaver Falls, the town being then known as Old Brighton. Mr. Davidson was a Democrat in politics, a strong supporter of all the principles of that party's platform, and at one time held membership in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias. As Mr. Davidson's material prosperity increased, so likewise did his opportunities for helping his fellow men, and his charities and benevolences, mostly conducted in private, were widely and wisely dis-
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tributed, and in the raising of the fallen or in the assisting of the afflicted he found the true joy of service. His gifts were not heralded in glaring headlines, nor was public acclaim made in his honor, but in the joy and gratitude of those who were strengthened by him to make a new fight or whose lives were brightened by his deeds, he received an abundant reward. Among his fellows, in social, business or public life, he was the courteous and kindly gentleman, holding the true regard of his many friends, as well as their sincere respect. To all things that led to the public benefit he gave his ready and willing support, and the weight of his influence was frequently felt in opposition to anything he felt would lower the high social and moral standard of the town.
He married, January 1, 1876, Anna Rebecca Springer (see Springer line), born in New Sheffield, Raccoon township, Beaver county, Pennsylvania, September 3, 1857, daughter of John and Catherine (Kronk) Springer. Chil- dren of Addison and Anna Rebecca (Springer) Davidson: I. Margaret, a graduate of Indiana State Normal School, of Indiana, Pennsylvania; mar- ried James Arbuthnot; lives in Buffalo, New York; they are the parents of one daughter, Margaret. 2. William, a graduate of Ohio Northern Univer- sity ; a civil engineer ; lives at Mount Washington, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 3. Sarah, died unmarried, aged twenty-seven years. 4. Addison Jr., manages the coal business established by his father and uncle; married Mildred Car- son ; lives at College Hill; they have two children, Addison, third, and Mar- ion Elizabeth. 5. Lettie, a graduate of the Indiana State Normal School; a school teacher; lives at home. 6. John, lives at home; a member of the city fire department. 7. Elizabeth, a graduate of Indiana State Normal School; a teacher in the public schools. 8. Ethel, died November 17, 1912. 9. Charles, engaged in the coal business in partnership with his brother, Addison Jr. 10. Harold.
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