USA > Pennsylvania > Beaver County > Genealogical and personal history of Beaver County, Pennsylvania, Volume II > Part 36
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(I) William Roden, the first of whom we have mention, spent his entire life in Ireland. He married Mary McCarroll, who was born in Ireland, and also died in that country.
(II) James Roden, son of William and Mary (McCarroll) Roden, was born in county Derry, Ireland, January 7, 1832. He was educated in his native land and lived there until 1867, when he emigrated to the United States. He made his home at New Brighton, Pennsylvania, where he has since that time resided. Having found employment with the W. P. Town- send Nail Mill, this connection remained uninterrupted for a period of twenty-eight years, when Mr. Roden retired from active labors, and has since lived retired, a matter of twenty years. He is the owner of a fine residence at No. 1427 Penn avenue. He is a Democrat in political affiliation, and he and his wife are members of the Presbyterian Church. Mr. Roden married in Ireland, in 1860, Sarah, born in county Derry, Ireland, in August, 1832, daughter of Archibald and Mary (Aull) Gibson, both of whom were born and died in Ireland. Mr. and Mrs. Roden had children: Sarah Ann, who died at the age of fourteen years; Robert John, born in 1864, un- married, lives with his parents; Samuel Aull, of further mention.
(III) Samuel Aull Roden, son of James and Sarah (Gibson) Roden, was born in county Derry, Ireland, May 28, 1866. As he was but one year of age when his parents came to this country he is in all, except the actual fact of birth, an American citizen. He received his education in the public schools of New Brighton, and since he was eleven years of age has been in the employ of the Sherwood Brothers Pottery Company, a very honorable and creditable record for employee and employer. He is a Repub- lican in political affairs. His wife is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. His fraternal connections are numerous, and are as follows : Union Lodge, No. 259, Free and Accepted Masons; Harmony Chapter, Royal Arch Masons; Beaver Valley Commandery, No. 84, Knights Templar; New Castle Lodge of Perfection, No. 14; Pennsylvania Consistory of Pittsburgh ; Thirty-second Degree Mason; Roberts Lodge, No. 450, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of New Brighton; Social Lodge, Knights of Pythias, of New Brighton.
Mr. Roden married, in 1898, Florence Ann Varley, born in Yorkshire, England, March 28, 1874, and they had one child: James Edward, born May 2, 1899, died in November of the same year. Joseph Varley, father of Mrs. Roden, was born in Yorkshire, England, October 1, 1839, and came to the United States in 1881. He made his home in New Brighton, Penn- sylvania, where he became a woolen manufacturer, a line of business he had also followed in his native land. He and his wife are members of the
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Methodist Episcopal Church, and now reside in Enon Valley, Lawrence county, Pennsylvania. Mr. Varley married, in 1860, Ann Lee, born in York- shire, England, March 24, 1843, and they had children: John, deceased ; Sarah Elizabeth, deceased; Joseph; Martha Hannah; Herbert; Florence Ann, who married Mr. Roden, as above stated; Mary Alice; William Ewart.
DALBEY The early history of this family, like that of many others, is clouded by doubt and uncertainty. Few records were. kept in the early days, and of these few, many were destroyed by fire and other agencies and thus lost to posterity.
(I) Josiah Dalbey married Ruth Poe, and had children: John Clark, of further mention; Andrew Poe, Elizabeth, Hiram. All of these children are now deceased.
(II) John Clark Dalbey, son of Josiah and Ruth (Poe) Dalbey, was born in Hookstown, Beaver county, Pennsylvania, October 6, 1818, died in Mercer county, Pennsylvania, in 1904. His education was acquired in the district schools near his home, and after farming in his native county for some years he removed to Mahoning county, Ohio, in 1840, and lived on a farm he had purchased there until 1868. He then removed to Mercer county, Pennsylvania, where his remaining years were spent. Mr. Dalbey married (first) Mary Bell, (second) Sarah Mayers, born in Mercer county, Penn- sylvania, July 14, 1828, died in the same county, December 12, 1913. She was a daughter of William Mayers, born in Ireland, died in Mercer county, Pennsylvania, in 1868. At the age of seven years he came to the United States with his parents, landing at Philadelphia, and they were early set- tlers in Mercer county, Pennsylvania. He was a farmer, and in early days a cattle drover, taking his cattle to Pittsburgh to market, a distance of sixty miles, and making the return trip on foot in one day. He married (first) Mary Walker, and had children: Sarah, who married Mr. Dalbey, and Mary Jane. He married (second) Catherine Hill, a widow. By his first marriage Mr. Dalbey had children: Clara Isabel and William Lumsden. By his second marriage he had: Mary Jane, deceased; Josiah, of further mention ; Ruth; Albert; Homer, died November 15, 1913; Elizabeth; Mar- garet, died August 10, 1888; John Andrew, died in 1894; Hiram Francis, twin of John Andrew, was killed in 1903 on the Wabash Bridge, at Pitts- burgh.
(III) Josiah (2) Dalbey, son of John Clark and Sarah (Mayers) Dal- bey, was born in Mahoning county, Ohio, September 13, 1856. His earliest years were spent in his native county, then for a time he resided in Law- rence county, Pennsylvania, and at the age of ten years removed with his parents to Mercer county, Pennsylvania. He was the recipient of an excel- lent education which was acquired in the public schools and at Grove City Seminary. At the age of seventeen years he commenced teaching, a pro- fession with which he was identified for fifteen terms. In 1887 he removed to New Brighton, Pennsylvania, and has since resided in that town. In
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his youth he had also learned the carpenter's trade, a calling he followed successfully for a period of a quarter of a century, and has amassed a moderate fortune. He is the owner of two houses in New Brighton. The public affairs of the township have always had his serious attention, and he has given his political support to the Republican party. For a period of ten years he was a valued member of the board of school directors of New Brighton, is a member of the Protective Home Circle, the American Insur- ance Union and the Carpenters' Union. He and his wife are members of the United Presbyterian Church.
Mr. Dalbey married, October 27, 1886, Mary Elizabeth Black, born in Lawrence county, Pennsylvania, February 10, 1860. She is a daughter of Adam and Delilah (Stoner) Black, the former born in Lawrence county in 1828, died on the old homestead in 1871, the latter born in Lawrence county in 1837, and living there at the present time. Mr. and Mrs. Black had chil- dren: John Calvin, Mary Elizabeth, who married Mr. Dalbey ; Margaret E., Almon Benton, Ada Zillah, Thaddeus Wade, James Byron. Mr. and Mrs. Dalbey have had children: Gladys Eula, born July 21, 1889; John Leslie, born January 13, 1894, graduated from the New Brighton high school, mar- ried, September 13, 1913, Catherine Knapp Jope, of New Brighton; Sarah Margaret, born September 17, 1899, a student in the public schools; Theo- dore Everett, born December 9, 1904.
The Shaw family has been identified with the agricultural
SHAW interests of the state of Pennsylvania for some generations, the original bearers of the name in this country having come from Scotland.
(I) William Shaw, a native of Scotland, came to this country with his parents when he was nine years of age. The family settled in Alle- gheny county, Pennsylvania, where Mr. Shaw became well known as a prosperous farmer and extensive land owner. He was married, probably in Allegheny county, to Mary Wallace, who also came to this country from Scotland with her parents. They had children: Andrew, see forward; William, a farmer in Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, where he died; George, also a farmer until his death in Allegheny county, Pennsylvania ; Lowry, a farmer, died in Jasper county, Iowa; Samuel, a farmer of Al- legheny county, Pennsylvania, until his death; Eleanor, married James White, and died at Braddock, Pennsylvania.
(II) Andrew Shaw, son of William and Mary (Wallace) Shaw, was born in Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, November 12, 1807, died July II, 1889. He was a farmer in Indiana township, where he owned more than one hundred acres of land, taking possession of this in May, 1845. He and his wife belonged to the United Presbyterian Church. Politically he was a Republican. Mr. Shaw married, April 6, 1849, Susan Neff, born October 9, 1826, died January 11, 1908. She was the daughter of Peter and Jane (Ream) Neff, who were of Pennsylvania Dutch stock and
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born in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania. They removed at an early date to Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, where they were large land owners and engaged in farming. Both were members of the Presbyterian church. They had children: Maria, married Thomas Moon; Eliza, married Gary McCutcheon ; Jane, married Samuel Reed; Anna, married Abram Carnegie; Susan, married Andrew Shaw, as stated above; Matilda, married John Kerr; Sarah, died in young womanhood; Abram, died when he had at- tained young manhood; John, died in early childhood. Andrew and Susan (Neff) Shaw had children: William, who was a member of Company K, Seventy-seventh Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, during the Civil War, is now retired and lives at Bellingham, Washington; Samuel J., a wholesale candy merchant, resides in East Mckeesport, Pennsylvania ; Andrew Neff, see forward; Jane Mary, married Robert Kerr, and lives in Allegheny county, Pennsylvania.
(III) Andrew Neff Shaw, son of Andrew and Susan (Neff) Shaw, was born in Indiana township, Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, October 31, 1857. He was educated in the public schools and his early life was the usual one of a farmer's son. His education, however, was supplemented by attendance for a time at the academy. He was engaged in farming on the homestead until March 14, 1913, when he removed to Beaver county, Pennsylvania, where he had purchased seventy-two acres of land in Chip- pewa township, and resides on this at the present time. He devotes con- siderable time to the growing of fruit, four acres of his land being utilized exclusively for this purpose. For many years he has affiliated with the Re- publican party, greatly to the benefit of that organization, and has capably filled a number of township offices, among them being those of auditor and treasurer. He and his wife are members of the United Presbyterian Church.
Mr. Shaw married, April 10, 1880, Jane Logan, born in Butler county, Pennsylvania, a daughter of Joseph and Margaret (McCandless) Logan, and they have been blessed with children as follows: James L., a minister in the United Presbyterian Church; Robert F., lives with his parents; Erastus N., resides in New Kensington, Pennsylvania; William Raymond, at present a student at Franklin College; Gladys Margaret, at home; John Logan, died in infancy; two who died unnamed.
The Haley family, of Beaver county, Pennsylvania, undoubt- HALEY edly is an offshoot of the family of H'Alée, of France, who came to England with William the Conqueror, and from that country migrated to Ireland, whence members finally came to this country, where they have become highly esteemed citizens.
(I) Patrick Haley, who was born in county Tipperary, Ireland, in 1818, came to the United States in 1849. For a short time he lived in New York, then came to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and finally made his home in Beaver county, Pennsylvania. He commenced his upward course
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in this country at the very lowest round of the ladder, becoming a common laborer. Being of an ambitious and enterprising nature, he was not satis- fied with this humble position, and soon commenced as a peddler of jewelry, traveling over a large extent of the country. He then worked on the Penn- sylvania Railroad for a time, and then took up farming in Darlington township. Beaver county, where he died in 1884. His widow followed him in 1898, and as none of their brothers or sisters ever came to America, and as they never re-visited their native land, all intercourse with their respective families was broken off. He was a Democrat in politics, and his religious affiliations were with the Catholic Church. He married Margaret O'Keefe, born in county Carlow, Ireland, about 1828, was a member of the Established Church in her native country, and affiliated with the Pres- byterian Church in the United States. They had children: Thomas, re- sides in Indianapolis, Indiana ; William Cochran, see forward; Edward M., lives in Beaver county, Pennsylvania; Margaret, unmarried; Catherine, married John Kelloway, lives in Beaver county, Pennsylvania; John A., a farmer of Beaver county, Pennsylvania; Evelyn, married John Davidson, and lives in Beaver county, Pennsylvania.
(II) William Cochran Haley, son of Patrick and Margaret (O'Keefe) Haley, was born near New Galilee, Beaver county, Pennsylvania, Feh- ruary 12, 1853. He was educated in the public schools, and from his earliest years has been engaged in farming. In 1885 he bought a farm of one hun- dred and six acres in Chippewa township, of which he subsequently sold twenty-two acres. He lived on the remaining eighty-four acres, making continued improvements, until his death in June, 1904. He and his wife lived a quiet and retired life, and were members of the United Presbyterian Church at Darlington. Mr. Haley married, in 1878, Elizabeth Taylor, daughter of Jonathan and Elizabeth Taylor, of Beaver county, Pennsyl- vania, and they have had children: Laura Edna, married George Louthan, lives in Chippewa township, and has had three children: Carl, Ruth Eliza- beth and Charles Myron; George, born in Lawrence county, Pennsylvania, March 28, 1885, successfully manages the homestead farm for his mother, married Margaret Balzer, has one daughter, Dorothy Margaret, born June 2, 1913 ; Blanche E., with mother.
BUCHANAN The date of the arrival of the Buchanan family of Scot- land in America is unknown, but it was in all probability prior to the Revolutionary War. There is likewise no record of the port of entry.
(I) In the latter part of the eighteenth and the early part of the nine- teenth centuries John Buchanan was a farmer of Hancock county, West Virginia, his lifelong home. He was the owner of a small farm, which he cultivated until his death in 1830. His brother, Joseph, was a minister of the Presbyterian Church, and spent his life in the discharge of pastoral duties, his life being a model of self-effacement and a living sermon on the
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gospel of service. John Buchanan married Margaret Chambers, who died in 1833, surviving her husband three years, daughter of James and Jane (Miller) Chambers. The method of immigration employed by James Chambers was somewhat out of the ordinary and therefore possesses more than usual interest. He was a soldier in the army of Cornwallis, and fought in the British army throughout the Revolution, and was present at the final surrender at Yorktown, which marked the death of British domin- ion in the colonies and the freedom of liberty from the fetters of oppres- sion. While he had done the duty of a good soldier and had obeyed every order of his superiors with the promptness that marks true discipline, his heart had not been in sympathy with the side for which he was fighting, and he resolved to stay in America, to cast his lot with his former foes, and to endeavor to blot out whatever wrong he may have committed by an allegiance false to his convictions by earnest co-operation with his fellows in the erection of the new government that should follow English rule. In the army of the King he had been enrolled as James Chalmers, the form of his name in his native land, but to escape detection until the troops had sailed for England he changed the spelling to the form now used by the family, Chambers. His desertion was discovered but he suc- cessfully evaded his comrades and soon after came to Hanover township, Beaver county, Pennsylvania. Here he purchased two hundred and forty acres of land, cleared it, erected suitable buildings, and there resided until his death. The ground of his original purchase has ever since been owned by one of his descendants and is still known as the "Chambers farm." He possessed all of the intensity of purpose that characterizes those of Scotcli blood and ever lived to atone for the injury he did the cause of Indepen- dence by taking up arms against it as a hireling. So great were his efforts. toward the public good and so unselfish his devotion to public trusts that even the most bitter of his neighbors came to realize and appreciate the depth of sincerity of his repentance, and received him into their midst upon equal footing with the most loyal of patriots. He married Jane Miller, who died January 2, 1834, his own death occurring about ten years later. Both were buried in the old Mill Creek Burying Ground, and a few years ago his remains and those of his wife and son, William, were moved to the Mill Creek Hill Cemetery, where they lie in eternal sleep. Children of James and Jane (Miller) Chambers: I. Thomas, died in the west. 2. Samuel, lived and died on the old homestead, married, and had issue. 3. James, a carpenter and contractor of Pittsburgh, where he died. 4. Nancy, married William Scott, and died in West Virginia. 5. John, a farmer of Richland county, Ohio, there died. 6. Margaret, of previous mention, mar- ried John Buchanan. 7. Jane, died unmarried, buried in Mill Creek Hill Cemetery. 8. William, died young. They were also the parents of two other sons, both of whom died in infancy. Children of John and Mar- garet (Chambers) Buchanan: I. James Ross, a soldier in the Union army during the Civil War; married, had a large family, and died in Nebraska.
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2. Thomas Chambers, one of a party who started for the gold fields of California at the time of the gold discovery of 1849, died while journeying up the Platte river; he married Eliza Mayhew, and had two children, John M., a resident of Beaver, and Georgianna, married Henderson Wiley, and lives in West Virginia. 3. John F., a carpenter, lived and died in Hannibal, Missouri; he married (first) Jennie Greenfield, (second) Mary Elligood; by his first marriage he was the parent of two daughters, Margaret Cham- bers and Jennie Greenfield; by his second, one daughter, Mary; John F. Buchanan was so unfortunately afflicted that he was deprived of the use of two of his senses, hearing and speaking. 4. Joseph Kerr, of whom further.
(II) Joseph Kerr Buchanan, youngest child of John and Margaret (Chambers) Buchanan, was born in Hancock county, West Virginia, Jan- uary 23, 1830, died in Beaver county, Pennsylvania, August 30, 1894. His father died in the year of his birth and the lad was left an orphan at the age of three years. He was then, as was the custom of the times, bound out to Aaron Moore and his wife, Polly, of Hanover township, Beaver county, Pennsylvania, they pledging themselves, in return for his services, to see that he "be taught to read and write and cipher to the single rule of three." Deprived of the tender care of a mother and the sterner guidance of a father's hand, life would have looked dark for the youth had be fallen into less considerate and less Christian hands than those of Mr. and Mrs. Moore, who received the boy as their son, educated him as well as the limited facilities of the time would permit, and in all things made his life happy and care-free, never letting him want for the parental love that so often makes a man's career. He, in turn, rewarded them with a son's fidelity, and as, in the evening of life, the steps of his foster parents became slower and more uncertain, he repaid to the full their watchful care over him by a devotion as simple and whole-hearted as that of Ruth to Naomi, and smoothed for them the way to the grave, keeping them free from any of the material ills so often accompanying decrepitude. The last kindness of Aaron Moore was the bequest of his farm and mill, to which Mr. Buchanan added adjoining land, continuing to acquire surrounding property until he was the owner of seven hundred and seventeen acres in one body, land still owned by his sons. The dwelling on the original prop- erty was erected by Aaron Moore in 1840 and is still in excellent condition, James B. Buchanan using it at the present time as a residence. Mr. Bu- chanan was the chief promoter of the Mill Creek Hill Cemetery, a charit- able enterprise, and labored so diligently in behalf of that project that it was finally successfully incorporated and is now one of the institutions of whose history the region may well be proud. He was a Democrat in political persuasion, never gracing public office, and was a member of the Presbyterian Church, of which, from an early age, he was a trustee. A devout Christian, he was nevertheless extremely practical in his church serv- ices, and while seldom heard at a gathering of the church, his wise execu-
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tive ability and his careful thrift were important factors in determining its material welfare, as were his generous contributions. For many years he was superintendent of the Sunday school of the church, and in this capacity took the greatest interest, preferring Sunday school work to any other de- partment of church service. With a personality that attracted those of youthful age, he was fond of all children, especially boys. To many lads he pointed out the safe course to pursue through life, and ever mindful of his own boyhood, assisted others in much the same manner as he had been helped, his sympathetic advances always meeting with a friendly re- ception, the object of his attention never failing to recognize in him a kindred spirit and one with whom he had much in common. In 1869 he was chairman of the building committee, the result of their efforts taking the form of a substantial brick house of worship.
Mr. Buchanan married, February 16, 1855, Martha Bigger (see Bigger III). She was born April 19, 1830, died January 16, 1909, in Hanover township, the place of her birth. Children of Joseph Kerr and Martha (Bigger ) Buchanan: 1. Rev. Aaron Moore D.D., a graduate of Washington and Jefferson College, class of 1879, has for twenty-eight years been a minister of the gospel at Morgantown, West Virginia, and four years previously at Hebron, Pennsylvania ; he conceived and directs the religious work that is at present such a tremendous force in university and college life all over the country ; beginning in a modest way, it has steadily increased in magnitude until it is now a national movement for the advancement of the Kingdom; he married Sarah Wiley, of Washington, Pennsylvania, and is the father of three children; Joseph Kerr and Margaret, both living, and Mary Bigger, who died aged eight years; his twenty-eight years of pastoral service have been spent at Morgantown, West Virginia, his present charge. 2. James Bigger, of whom further.
(III) James Bigger Buchanan, second son of Joseph Kerr and Martha (Bigger) Buchanan, was born in Hanover township, Beaver county, Penn- sylvania, September 2, 1863. He attended the public schools in his youth and was also a student at the Clinton Academy, receiving his entire educa- tion in these institutions. He immediately began the management of the- home farm and has ever since so continued, conducting operations upon the whole seven hundred and seventeen acres. His principal charge, to which he gives most of his personal attention, is the raising of blooded Jersey cattle, his herd ordinarily numbering about thirty-five head. Breeding is the department of this enterprise in which he specializes, and many of his products have commanded high prices in the open market. A few of these are: "Crantara's Gertie," who recently brought $400 at an auction sale at Fairmount, West Virginia; "Mayari B.," who sold for $375; and "Maiden's Pretty Golden Lass," who commanded $325. Besides the finan- cial gratification derived from this occupation, Mr. Buchanan takes genuine- pleasure in watching the development of his stock from the awkward, clumsy calf to the full-grown, perfectly formed, proud, cow or bull. Since
James B. Buchanan
HETTie Swearingen Buchanan.
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his father's death Mr. Buchanan has filled his place upon the board of directors of the Mill Creek Hill Cemetery. He is a strict Prohibitionist in politics, practicing the policy of his party in a temperate life, and for three years has been township auditor. His religious faith is Presbyterian and for seventeen years he has been an elder of that church, having been first elected to that office in 1896. For three years he was superintendent of the Sunday school, making the second of his family to fill that responsible position. Mr. Buchanan is one of the most highly regarded citizens of that locality, worthily respected for his many excellent qualities, and well upholds the honorable reputation achieved by his father.
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