USA > Pennsylvania > Beaver County > Genealogical and personal history of Beaver County, Pennsylvania, Volume I > Part 63
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John McClure, presumably a brother of Robert McClure, was the first one in direct line of the branch herein considered of whom we have record. He was born in Scotland, 1696, died October 9, 1757, aged sixty- one years. He came to Pennsylvania, in 1713, from Antrim, Ireland, with his father, Matthew McClure, who was appointed coroner of Cumberland county, October 4, 1737. The family fled from Scotland to Ireland on ac- count of religious persecution. John McClure settled at Letort Spring, near Carlisle, where he purchased a large estate and built a substantial stone residence which is still standing (1914), which he called Willow Grove. He sold 342 acres of his farm as part of the town site of Carlisle, for which he received 362 pounds. He was appointed coroner of Cumber- land county by the council of Philadelphia, October 4, 1754, and reappointed to the same office by the same authority, October 5, 1756. He was ruling elder in the New Side Church, Carlisle, which stood at the corner of Hanover and Pomfret streets, Rev. Mr. Duffield, pastor. He married Janet McKnight, born in 1702, died January 20, 1780, aged seventy- eight years. Children: 1. Richard, who was captain or colonel in the war
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against the French in Canada; he was wounded in the face (a piece of his nose being cut off) disfiguring him for life, at the storming of Quebec, and through the services of this ancestor the female descendants of the family are eligible to membership in the Society of Colonial Dames; he never married. 2. John, served in the same war as his brother Richard; married, October 5, 1756, Elizabeth Deal; two children, who lived and died near Winchester and Staunton, Virginia. 3. Catherine, married a Mr. Calhoun, and left a son and daughter. 4. Charles, of whom further.
Charles McClure, youngest son of John and Janet (McKnight) Mc- Clure, was born in Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, 1739, died February 8, 1811, aged seventy-two years. He shot a deer in the woods southwest of Carlisle, called The Rocks, and was skinning it when two British officers saw, through the trees, something moving. Supposing it was a deer they shot at it, wounding Mr. McClure in the arm and cheek. His arm was also disabled during his service in the Revolutionary War, and in consequence he was transferred from service with the line and became an officer in the department of subsistence. He was appointed quartermaster of the Second Battalion of Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, July, 1777, and was as- sistant commissary of purchases for the army in Cumberland county in August, 1780. He owned the lot at the northeast corner of Hanover street and the Public Square, also a lot on the northwest corner of High and East streets. Though physically a delicate child, he had a strong and well cultivated mind, a true and generous heart, and withal a firm and decided will. He was an intelligent gentleman, and well read theologian. The Greek Testament was his valued and constant companion and among his works were the massive and solid Institute of Turretin in Latin and other old books of like character, some of which as a present from the family have been in the library for many years. He was a pronounced Presby- terian; the Confession of Faith he understood, appreciated and cordially accepted, and his life was a beautiful confirmation and illustration of his simple and steadfast and practical trust in Christ and the soul's transform- ing and elevating power of inspired truth accompanied by the efficacious grace of its Divine Author. He belonged to the First Presbyterian Church in Carlisle, which he joined in October, 1793, and he lived to see it firmly established and in a prosperous condition. He lived and died on his farm near the head of the Letort Springs, called Willow Grove, and on either side of the spring extended his landed possessions. His remains were in- terred within a brick wall enclosure in the Carlisle graveyard.
Charles McClure married (first) March 9, 1779, Mary Blair, who died December 19, 1779. He married (second) May 7, 1783, Amelia Blair, a cousin of his first wife; she died February 1, 1793, aged twenty-eight years. They had four children, two of whom lived, namely: I. John, born April 17, 1784, died October 9, 1857; he married Jane Blair, who bore him six children, the first two dying in infancy, and the others being: John, who graduated at Dickinson College in 1845, joined the Second Pres-
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byterian Church, commenced attending medical lectures in Philadelphia, but declining health compelled him to relinquish this work and his death occurred in Carlisle in 1847, aged twenty-one years; Catherine, never mar- ried; Amelia, married Adam Holliday, of Carlisle, now of Wisconsin; Mary, married, as the second wife of J. F. D. Lanier, of New York City; the daughters were members of the Second Presbyterian Church of Carlisle. 2. Mary B., born in 1786, died in 1870; married Joseph Knox, aforemen- tioned in this sketch. Mr. McClure married (third) Rebecca (Blair) Parker, widow of Major Alexander Parker, a grandson of Richard and Janet Parker, who came to America from Ireland, in 1725, and acquired lands on the Conodoguinet creek, three miles west of what is now Carlisle, then in Lan- caster county, Pennsylvania, in 1730, about the time when the first white settlements were made in Cumberland Valley west of the Susquehanna. They were the parents of six children: John, Thomas, James, William, Susanna and Martha, all of whom married but Martha. John Parker mar- ried Margaret McClure and they were the parents of seven children: Richard, Mary, Elizabeth, Agnes, Margaret, Alexander, Andrew. Alex- ander Parker had large estates in West Virginia, north of the Little Kana- wha river, which he laid out and named Parkersburg. He held an official position in the army, was eminently brave and patriotic, and one of the original members of the Society of Cincinnati founded in 1783. He mar- ried Rebecca Blair, of Carlisle, daughter of Andrew Blair, who died in Carlisle, in 1861, aged seventy-two years. Major and Mrs. Parker had four children, two of whom died in early life, and in the old graveyard at the Meeting House Springs there is a large slab with the following inscrip- tion: "Sacred to the memory of Major Alexander Parker and his two children Margaret and John." Another daughter died subsequently and was buried in the old graveyard within the borough limits, and on her head- stone is the following inscription: "In memory of Anne Alexander Parker who died Apr. 1809, aged 18 yrs." His surviving daughter, Mary, became the wife of the late General William Robinson Jr., of Allegheny, Penn- sylvania, the first mayor of that city ; he was the first white child born where Allegheny City now stands, then his father's farm. Mrs. Rebecca McClure, a woman noted for the beauty of her person and the excellence of her Christian character, bore her second husband four children. She died of apoplexy in the old Seceder Church, April 23, 1826, aged sixty-three years. Children: 1. Charlotte, born January 7, 1800, died June 24, 1880; she married in her seventeenth year Dr. Adam Hays, and they took their wedding journey from Carlisle, Pennsylvania, where they were married, to Chillicothe, Ohio, on horseback; Dr. Hay's colored man, who was also his body servant during the war, rode a horse from Chillicothe to Carlisle, on which the bride returned with her husband to their new home, where they remained until after the birth of their second child; Dr. Hays was an army surgeon in the War of 1812; he resigned after the war and settled in Chillicothe among army friends, General MacArthur and Colonel Worth-
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ington, for a few years practice; he then removed to Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and later to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he practiced medicine for many years; he was always interested in educational affairs, and was one of the first trustees in the University of Pennsylvania at Allegheny City; their children were: Joseph, married Rebecca Dennison; Rebecca, married Jesse Whitehead; Charles, William, Ellen, Mary, all unmarried. 2. Rebecca, married a Mr. White, of Baltimore, Maryland; they had one child, Char- lotte, married Rev. F. T. Brown, and their children were: Hubert, Rebecca, Charlotte, Mary, all foreign missionaries. 3. Charles, a lawyer by profes- sion, a member of congress from 1838 to 1841 from the thirteenth district of Cumberland, Perry and Juniata counties; he married Margaretta Gibson, daughter of a chief justice of the Pennsylvania court; children: i. Charles, who was paymaster in the United States army; married a daughter of Major General Getty, and had children: Eva, George, Charles, Gibson, Anita, William, Margaretta; the father of these children is buried at Arling- ton Cemetery, Washington, D. C. ii. George, paymaster's clerk, unmarried. ili. William, a banker in New York City; married, no children. 4. William B., a lawyer by profession, served as presiding judge of the Pittsburgh courts; he was greatly honored and respected; he married Lydia Collins, of Pittsburgh; children: Sarah, unmarried; Valeria, married a Mr. Sulli- vent, a lawyer, one son, William B .; Rebecca, married (first) John Riddle, of Philadelphia, who died fifteen months after their marriage, married (sec- ond) Judge C. E. Flandrau, of St. Paul, Minnesota, one son, John Riddle, by her first husband, and two sons, C. E. and William B. Flandrau, by her second husband.
WERNER To Germany we are indebted for many of our most in- dustrious and energetic citizens, and a case in point is the Werner family, now of Monaca, Beaver county, Pennsyl- vania, which furnishes an excellent example of this statement.
(I) George Werner was born in Germany, where he died in 1868. He married Lizzie Meffert, also born in Germany, and died there in April, 1913, and they had children: Louise, Frederick, Mary, Caroline, Valentine, Lizzie, Robert Karl, see forward.
. (II) Robert Karl Werner, son of George and Lizzie (Meffert) Werner, was born in Germany, June 6, 1865. He received an excellent and prac- tical education in his native land, in which he remained until he was about twenty years of age. In 1885 he took passage for the United States, ar- riving at New York City, May 15. For a period of two months he worked in Philadelphia, in a china factory, then removed to Pittsburgh, Pennsyl- vania, where he found employment with the Macbeth-Evans Glass Company, with whom he remained until late in 1886. He then came to Monaca, Beaver county, Pennsylvania, and there formed a connection with the Phoe- nix Glass Company, and in 1904 he was advanced to the position of man- ager of the decorating department, an office he has filled in a very satisfac-
pour floyd
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tory manner since that time. He is the owner of a fine residence which he erected in 1887 on Washington street. Mr. Werner is an Independent in his political opinions. He is a member of the Monaca Turnverein, and of Rochester Lodge, No. 283, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks. Mr. Werner married, in Pittsburgh, 1886, Lizzie Nordheim, born in Germany, and they have had six children: Anna, who married Elmer Hicks, has one child, Robert; Clara, Frederick, Matilda, Albert, Edith.
Wales, nestled among the mountains of Great Britain, has given LLOYD generously of her inhabitants to swell the population of Penn- sylvania, although other localities have received a larger share than Beaver county, greatly to their advantage. This record begins with a member of the Lloyd family who was a native of Wales, his parents having died in that land before he came to the American shore.
(I) John Lloyd, came to the United States in 1814, coming almost im- mediately to Pittsburgh, where he obtained employment as a wire drawer, fifteen years after his arrival coming to Fallston, Beaver county, Pennsyl- vania. In this latter place he was employed for forty years at the business he learned in Pittsburgh, Townsend & Company being the firm with which he was associated. He was a skilled workman, as his long term of con- tinuous service signifies, and in Fallston died, having been, with his wife, a lifelong member of the Presbyterian Church. He married Elizabeth, daughter of John and Elizabeth (Munks) Woods, born in Germantown, a suburb of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, her parents having both been natives of England. Upon arriving in this country they located near Philadelphia, later moving to Pittsburgh, where John Wood's death occurred, his wife surviving him thirty years, all of which period of time was spent in the home of her daughter and son-in-law, John Lloyd. Children of John and Elizabeth (Woods) Lloyd: Samuel, who served one year as a soldier dur- ing the Civil War from Pennsylvania; Elizabeth; Henry, served for three years in Company H, Ninth Regiment Pennsylvania Reserve Corps, was taken prisoner at the second battle of Bull Run, but was soon afterwards paroled; David, served for three years in Company A, Ninth Regiment Pennsylvania Reserve Corps, at the end of that time re-enlisting in Cooper's Battery of Artillery, in order that, as he expressed it, he might "take care of William," his youngest brother; Mary; Joseph, for three years a member of Company P, Ninth Regiment Pennsylvania Reserve Corps; William, of whom further; Harriet; Emma; Lydia; Sarah; Alice.
(II) William Lloyd, youngest of the five sons of John and Elizabeth (Woods) Lloyd, was born in Fallston, Beaver county, Pennsylvania, Sep- tember 22, 1844. The public schools of his birthplace supplied him with an education, and as a youth he learned the machinist's trade under the teaching of M. and H. S. Darrah's, with whom he remained for about four years. He was then employed in various places, finally entering the service of the M. T. and S. Kennedy Company, with whom for eighteen
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years he was associated. He is a Republican in politics and has ever been active in local affairs, having for seventeen years filled the office of tax collector for the borough and schools of New Brighton, having been re- cently elected for another four-year term. For the seven years previous to his assumption of the duties of tax collector he was a member of the council and for the nineteen years between 1892 and 1911 he was assessor of the borough of New Brighton. In his youth, as soon as he had attained the age that would make him eligible for army service, he enlisted in Com- pany E, Fifty-sixth Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, his term of enlistment being for three months, and at its close he re-enlisted, joining Cooper's Battery of Artillery from Lawrence county, serving as a member of that body until the close of the war, when he received an honorable dis- charge. In spite of the fact that he was under fire in many of the hardest fought and bloodiest battles of the war, he was but twice hit by a hostile shot, the extent of the damage both times being but a slight flesh wound, one of which was so inconsiderable that he never reported it in the list of casualties. His brothers who were in the army escaped even more safely than he, for although bullets passed through their clothing in uncomfortable proximity to vital spots, none were wounded in the slightest degree. Mr. Lloyd sustained some thrilling experiences during his years of soldier life, one that is recalled with much vividness taking place while he and a com- panion were engaged in foraging in the enemy's territory, when they were called upon to halt and surrender by five Confederate soldiers. Such sub- mission was not to their taste and they made a dash for safety, both escaping unharmed. Mr. Lloyd is a well regarded member of the New Brighton com- munity, having proved his worth and dependability by years of faithful and able service. His integrity is unquestioned and none would consider ques- tioning his motives in the slightest degree. Mr. Lloyd is a member of Union Lodge, No. 259, Free and Accepted Masons, and has advanced to the fourteenth degree in that order; he is also a member of E. M. Stanton Post, No. 208, Grand Army of the Republic, of New Brighton, and is post commander. Mr. Lloyd married, September 21, 1871, Caroline Jackson, of New Brighton, Beaver county, Pennsylvania. Children: Ada, died in 1897; W. Stanley, lives at home.
LEASE The life of Frederick Leander Lease is an illustration of the
success that attends perseverance and industry and the con- scientious discharge of the duties which come to hand. He is the fourth son of Charles Frederick and Melinda (Towler) Lease, natives of Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolkshire, England. Mr. Lease Sr. was born in that picturesque town in the year 1782, and here he met and wooed Melinda Towler, twenty years his junior, she being his second wife. Here, also, they were married and spent the major portion of their lives, Mr. Lease following the profession of teacher, and together rearing their family of six children. In 1845 the family migrated to America and settled in
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Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where Mr. Lease, retired from active occupation, lived quietly until his death nine years later. In 1864 Mrs. Lease removed from Pittsburgh to West Bridgewater, where she died in 1885 at the ad- vanced age of eighty-three. The children born to him were: Theodore Lorenzo, deceased; Henry Charles Turner, deceased; Leander, deceased; Frederick Leander, of whom further; Laura Susannah, now in an old ladies home at the age of eighty-three; Jane Melinda, deceased, was the wife of John Musgrave.
Frederick Leander Lease was born in England, June 9, 1842. He was three years old at the time of his parents' arrival in America, and spent his childhood and youth in Pittsburgh, where he obtained his education in the public schools. At the age of twenty-two he accompanied his mother to their new home in West Bridgewater, where he has since resided. He engaged for a number of years in the occupation of gardener, and in 1878 entered the green-house business. In politics Mr. Lease is of that higher type of citizenship which refuses to be bound by partizen considerations, placing the good of the community before party, and consequently casts an inde- pendent vote. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. Lease was married, in 1888, to Sarah J. Heilman, of West Bridgewater. They have no children. Mr. Lease is a man of considerable property in his town, owning there, besides his house, a large tract of land.
Three generations of this branch of the Jope family in America JOPE have resided in Western Pennsylvania, the first of these being John W. Jope, born in London, England. He came to the United States in early manhood, settled in Philadelphia, where he built the first shot tower in that city. For several years he was engaged in the manu- facture of shot in that city in partnership with Paul Beck. Later he located in Pittsburgh, where he became prominent in business as a wire manufac- turer. He was a man of great business ability, high character and of most excellent standing in business and social life. By his first wife, John W. Jope had: Jane, married George B. Jones, of Pittsburgh; Mary L., mar- ried George L. McEwen. He married (second) Phoebe Everhart, who bore him: James M., of whom further; Phoebe, married Herman West; De- borah, married Benjamin W. Jones; Sarah, died young; Isaac.
(II) James M. Jope, eldest son of John W. Jope and his second wife, Phoebe (Everhart) Jope, was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1815, died at New Brighton, Pennsylvania, in July, 1893. He obtained his educa- tion in the public schools of Pittsburgh, and for nearly fifty-four years was engaged in business in that city in association with the Townsends. He was a manufacturer of wire, rivets, and kindred articles, an expert in his business, the details of manufacture having been mastered by him in a thor- ough course as a practical worker in the mills during his earlier life. This practical knowledge combined with rare executive ability placed him in the front rank of the manufacturers of his period and brought him both repu-
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tation and fortune. He was a leading member of the Baptist Church, which he served in an official capacity for many years. He married Pamelia L. Johnson, who died about 1867. Her father came to Philadelphia from Dublin, Ireland, early in life, married a Miss Cressman, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and had issue: Mary E., Pamelia L., Eliza, who married John Elliott, a banker of Erie, Pennsylvania. Children of James M. Jope: Two sons, died in infancy; George W., died aged fifty-two years, for several years was engaged in iron manufacturing; William P. T., who for more than thirty years was associated with Hubbard & Bakewell, axe and shovel manufacturers of Pittsburgh, and is now engaged in the grocery business; Charles, now agent for a medical firm; James M., of whom further.
(III) James M. (2) Jope, youngest son of James M. (1) and Pamelia L. (Johnson) Jope, was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, April 21, 1846. He attended private schools until twelve years of age, then entered the public schools, finishing his studies at Duff's Business College, of which he is a graduate. He began business life with Bradstreet's Commercial Re- porting Agency in Pittsburgh, remaining with that well known agency until 1880, when failing health forced his retirement. He then located his resi- dence in New Brighton, Pennsylvania, which is yet his home. Mr. Jope is a member of the Fourth Baptist Church of Pittsburgh, and in political faith a Republican. He married Catherine, daughter of Henry Hunneshagen, of German descent, but born in Allegheny, Pennsylvania.
Barnhart Yost was born in Germany and came to the United YOST States when he was twelve years of age, with his parents. They went to Meigs county, Ohio, where Mr. Yost was a farmer, and there the remainder of his life was spent. Two of his brothers, William and Henry Yost, are also living in Meigs county. He was a staunch Re- publican in political matters, and he and his wife were members of the German Lutheran Church, but after his death she affiliated with the Metho- dist Church. She is still living on the homestead which was cultivated by her husband. Mr. Yost married Caroline, born in Germany, daughter of John Baschicker, who died at the age of ninety-two years. She was but three years of age when she came to this country. They had children: I. William, deceased. 2. Laura, unmarried, lives in California. 3. Sophia, unmarried, lives in California. 4. John H., see forward. 5. Robert F., an engineer, lives at Freedom, Pennsylvania; married Laura Fresch and has children : Lee, Pearl, and Robert Charles. 6. Charles R., twin of Robert F., lives on the homestead farm in Meigs county, Ohio. 7. Bertha, also lives on the homestead.
John H. Yost, son of Barnhart and Caroline (Baschicker) Yost, was born in Meigs county, Ohio, March 5, 1878. He received his early educa- tion in the public schools of his native township, but he is for the most part self-educated, as he only attended school until his twelfth year. He
John H yort
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remained on the homestead farm until he had attained his majority, then was for nine months in the employ of a farmer in Plymouth county, Iowa. In 1902 he entered the employ of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company as fireman, with headquarters at Freedom, Beaver county, Pennsylvania, and in January, 1910, he was advanced to the responsible post of engineer, and still holds that position. He removed to Rochester in 1905, where he pur- chased a residence at No. 467 Case street, in which he now lives. He is a member of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, and of the Knights of Pythias, the latter of Racine, Meigs county, Ohio. Mr. Yost studied nights to prepare himself for the examinations he was obliged to pass before he was appointed to his present position, and he deserves considerable credit for the success which has attended his efforts at self-education. Mr. Yost is not married. He is the owner of considerable property in the town of Rochester, Beaver county, Pennsylvania.
The pioneer ancestor of the Kaszer family was born in Wurt- KASZER temberg, Germany, and came to this country when it was yet sparsely settled in many sections. He located in the state of Pennsylvania, where his death occurred after a life of industry and use- fulness. He was a cabinetmaker by trade.
(II) John Kaszer, son of the preceding, was born at Dutch Town, Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, and died in Rochester, Beaver county, Pennsylvania. He was for twenty years a cigar maker. He took a promi- nent part in the councils of the Republican party in the community, and for two terms served as tax collector for the town of Rochester. He was a member of the First Baptist Church of Rochester. He married Mary Molter, daughter of Jonas Christian Molter, who came from Germany and located in Bridgewater, Beaver county, Pennsylvania, and held the office of justice of the peace; he was the owner of canal boats and coal bunks, and his son Oliver was sheriff of the county. He had five sons: Peter, Henry, Oliver, Daniel, Christian; and daughters: Margaret, Mary, Fannie, Lida. Mr. and Mrs. Kaszer had children: Jonas C., see forward; Estelle B., Walter A., Joseph H., William H. E., Alice E.
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