USA > Pennsylvania > Lycoming County > Genealogical and personal history of Lycoming County, Pennsylvania. Volume II > Part 6
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41
70
LYCOMING COUNTY
of the railroad. The mother of these children died May 31, 1898. Mr. Gross chose for his second wife, Lizzie App, daughter of Mathias and Crusella (Lemon) App, and their children are as follows: Elmer, William, Emily, Mary C., Albert, Edward, Elizabeth and John L.
HERVEY SMITH.
Hervey Smith, president of the First National Bank of Montgom- ery, and otherwise prominently identified with the financial and commer- cial interests of the town and county, is of a German ancestry of long establish ment in Pennsylvania. His paternal grandfather, John Smith. emigrated from Germany when a young man, and settled in Muncy, Pennsylvania, whence he removed to Center county, where he died about 1856. He was a weaver by occupation. He married Saloma Treon, and their children were: I. Charles, who became a physician and prac- ticed near Lockhaven, in Clinton county, where he died. 2. Ezekiel, to be further mentioned hereinafter. 3. Peter, who was also a physician, practicing in Center hall, Center county, where he died. 4. Mary (de- ceased), who married Jacob B. Herbst, a farmer near Muncy Station. 5. Levina (deceased), who became the wife of James Smeck, a farmer near Montgomery. 6. George, who was a farmer near Montgomery, where he died.
Ezekiel, second son and child of John and Saloma (Treon) Smith, was born in Muncy, in January, 1816, and died there in September, 1895. He served an apprenticeship to a tailor, and followed that calling near Montgomery for seventeen years, when he retired to a farm near Muncy Station. He married Catherine Metzger, who was born in 1819, in Clinton township, near Muncy Station, where she died in 1893, two years before the death of her husband. She was a daughter of George
71
LYCOMING COUNTY
and Susan (Deitrick) Metzger. Her father was the son of a German immigrant, and was born in the southern part of Pennsylvania. To Ezekiel and Catherine Smith were born the following children: I. Harriet, married Percival Weigle, in South Williamsport, where they reside. 2. Caroline, married Samuel Bastian, and they reside in South Williamsport. 3. Ellen, married J. B. Dershem, and they reside in Union county. 4. Hervey, to be further referred to hereinafter. 5. Sarah, married J. J. Ranck, and they reside in Union county. 6. Susan, married John App, and resided in South Williamsport, where she died. 7. Anna, married Pierson App, and they reside near Muncy Station. The family were Lutherans in religion, and Mr. Smith was a Democrat in politics.
Hervey Smith, fourth child and eldest son of Ezekiel and Catherine (Metzger) Smith, was born in the suburbs of Montgomery, Lycoming county, Pennsylvania, February 10, 1850. He began his education in the public schools in Muncy, and attended schools in Union county, leaving with such ample preparation that he was called to school room work as a teacher, a calling which he successfully followed for three years in the last named county. He then engaged in various occupa- tions-conducting a farm, and also dealing in grain, and for a number of years handling practically the entire product of the region tributary to Montgomery. He was at the same time extending his activities into other fields, and was just entering upon a career of wider usefulness and greater prominence. In 1888 he had become a member of the board of directors of the West Branch Mutual Fire Insurance Company, and he had shown such ability and wise judgment in connection therewith that on January 1, 1895, he was elected vice-president and acting presi- dent. From time to time he had been elected to various local offices, and in the autumn of 1896 he was elected county commissioner, and served
72
LYCOMING COUNTY
most efficiently as such during a three-year term. He aided in the or- ganization of the First National Bank of Montgomery, which was ef- fected November 26, 1900, when he was called to the presidency of the institution, a position which he has occupied with entire acceptability to the present time, and much of the credit is due him for the safe and pru- dent management which has characterized the administration of its affairs. In 1905 he aided in the organization of the Penn Manufactur- ing Company, of which he was made president at the initial meeting of the directorate. The company are manufacturers of sideboards, with a capital of forty-three thousand dollars, and have already built up an ex- tensive business. April 1, 1895, Mr. Smith erected his beautiful resi- dence in Montgomery, which he at once made his abode, and since that time his attention has been altogether directed to the large business en- terprises with which he is so prominently identified. His business abili- ties are of a high order, and he is widely recognized as a most useful and public-spirited citizen, and of unsullied integrity. With his family, he holds membership in the Lutheran church, and he is a Democrat in politics.
In December, 1871, Mr. Smith married Miss Catherine Walter, daughter of William and Elizabeth (Wolf) Walter. She was born in Snyder county, but was reared and educated in Union county, whither her parents removed during her infancy. To Mr. and Mrs. Smith have been born four children. Walter E. died September, 1879, aged seven years; all of the living ones have entered upon useful and honorable stations in life. Elizabeth is the wife of J. R. Glass, a prominent lumber manufacturer and dealer of Dauphin county, Pennsylvania, and to them was born a daughter, Catherine. Minnie, third child, is the wife of E. G. Hartranft, a shipper in the Montgomery Table Works; they are
73
LYCOMING COUNTY
the parents of one child, Elizabeth. The only son of Mr. and Mrs. Smith, William A. Smith, is manager of the Penn Manufacturing Com- pany of Montgomery, of which his father is president ; he is unmarried.
JOHN P. WERTMAN.
In Clinton county, Pennsylvania, lies a pleasant and finely tilled farm, which has been the property of John P. Wertman since 1900, and on which he now resides. He was born in Northumberland county, Pennsylvania, April 6. 1857, a son of Isaac H. and Rachel (Brobst) Wertman, the former named having been a native of the same county, the year of his birth being 1835. John P. was their only child.
John P. Wertman, like all the farmer boys, pursued his studies in the common schools of the neighborhood. When starting out in life for himself, he chose the quiet but useful calling of agriculture, which he followed for the long period of nineteen years in Northumberland county, after which he disposed of his property there and came to Clinton township, Lycoming county, purchasing the A. R. Glaze farm in 1900, which he has since cultivated and improved to a high state of perfection. He has led an honorable and upright life, which has won for him the regard and good will of a large circle of friends and acquaintances. In politics he adheres to the principles of the Democratic party.
On January 27, 1881, Mr. Wertman married Anna M. Bastian, born October 5, 1857, daughter of George and Elizabeth (Shafer) Bas- tian, who were the parents of five other children, as follows: Maria E .. born August 7, 1851 ; William S., born in 1853; Benjamin H., born in 1855; Samuel A., born in 1859; and John W., born in 1861. Four chil- dren were the issue of the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Wertman, namely :
74
LYCOMING COUNTY
Rachel E., born December 10, 1881 ; Mary A., born February 7, 1883, became the wife of Reuben Fordsman, and resides at Watsontown ; Fan- nie L., born July 15, 1884; and William I., born August 1, 1886.
VICTOR PIOLETTE CHAAPEL, M. D.
Dr. Victor P. Chaapel, of Newberry, Lycoming county, Pennsyl- vania, who has gained an extensive and lucrative practice through his skill and ability along the line of medicine and surgery, traces his an- cestry to George Chaapel, who came to the new world from London, England, in the ship "Christian," in the year 1635, when he was twenty years old, accompanied by his wife Margaret, and settled in New Lon- don, Connecticut, where so many of his descendants reside at the pres- ent time. They were the parents of three children: Mary, Rachel and John. Some members of the family moved to Berkshire county, Massa- chusetts, in 1760.
Isaac Chaapel, great-grandfather of Dr. Chaapel, was born in Sandisfield, Berkshire county, Massachusetts, February 28, 1761, mid- way between the Hudson and Connecticut rivers. He came with his wife, Tomassin Wilcox Chaapel, and four children to Towanda (then Meansville), Bradford county (then Luzerne), Pennsylvania, in March, 1800. He erected a log house on the bank of a little brook near where the Episcopal church now stands, residing there two years. He then moved his family to a farm in Le Roy, the journey being performed with sleds and an ox team, most of the way being through a dense wil- derness. Isaac Chaapel was known as "Captain" in his native town of Massachusetts, and the supposition is that he enlisted in the Revolution- ary war when fifteen years of age, serving during the whole seven years' conflict for freedom. In 1804 he was assessed in Burlington township
Z
Mucher ! (
V. P Chachel
.
75
LYCOMING COUNTY
(now Le Roy) with forty-eight acres of land, two improved, one house at fifteen dollars, one horse, two oxen and one cow. He was commis- sioned a justice of the peace for Burlington and Wysox townships (then Luzerne county) by Thomas Mckean, then governor of Pennsylvania. The commission was dated November 20, 1804, and was to continue during good behavior or as long as he lived, as was the custom of those times. He held the commission and fulfilled the duties of office until his death, May 1, 1817, at the age of fifty-six years.
Chauncey Chaapel, grandfather of Dr. Chaapel, was united in mar- riage to Lury Crofut, and among the children born of this union was a son, Franklin Chaapel, father of Dr. Chaapel, who married Mahala Wheelan, and their children were as follows: Van Amberg, unmarried. Lura, who became the wife of J. R. Calvert, and their children are : Frank and Charles (twins), Eugene, Preston, Lizzie and Hattie Cal- vert. Lucy, who became the wife of Warren G. Winner, and their chil- dren are: Cora, Herman and Alice Winner; Mrs. Winner is now de- ceased. Chauncey, who married Emma Folk, and their children are : Emerson, Harry and Anson Chaapel. Victor Piolette, mentioned at . length hereinafter. William L., who married Mary Plank, and their children are: Earl, Mary, Anice, Mahlon, Bryan, Van Amberg and Elezabeth T.
Victor P. Chaapel was born in Le Roy, Bradford county, Pennsyl- vania, March 25, 1865. He received his early education in the public schools and then pursued a course of advanced studies in the Muncy Normal School in Lycoming county, after which he taught in the public schools of the county seven years. He matriculated in the College of Physicians and Surgeons at Baltimore, Maryland, from which he was graduated with the class of 1892. He then took a post-graduate course in the New York Polyclinic College during the winter of 1896-7. He
76
LYCOMING COUNTY
first located in Irvona, Clearfield county, Pennsylvania, where he en- gaged in the practice of medicine and surgery, but after a period of four years and three months removed to Newberry, Lycoming county, and since then has been one of the leading physicians of the city of Will- iamsport. He has been a member of the Lycoming County Medical Society, the Pennsylvania State Medical Association and the American Association since 1893, and is also a member of the board of directors of the Bank of Newberry, Pennsylvania. In political affairs he has always been an adherent of the principles of the Democratic party. He is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows.
Dr. Chaapel married Jennie Campbell, eldest child of John L. and Matilda (Black) Campbell, whose family consisted of five other children, as follows: Sarah, wife of Dr. J. R. Robinson and mother of two children, Mary and Lula; William, who married Myrtle Stierchstr, no issue; Katherine, who married John Snowden; John A., a member of the medical profession, who married Jennie Black, has one daughter, Gean; Frank, unmarried. Dr. Chaapel and his wife are the parents of two children, Victoria and Eloise. The family reside in a commodious and beautiful home, and are members of the Presbyterian church.
ALEXANDER BARBOUR WORTHINGTON.
Alexander Barbour Worthington, an extensive furniture manufac- turer and general dealer at Muncy, Pennsylvania, is the son of Henry B. Worthington, a native of Bucks county, Pennsylvania, who was born about 1816. Alexander B. was born in Plunkets Creek township, Ly- coming county, Pennsylvania, August 21, 1843. His father early in his life followed lumbering, but later settled on a farm. He married Mar-
77
LYCOMING COUNTY
garet Barbour, born February 10, 1820, the daughter of John and Jane Barbour. The family line of the Barbours runs as follows :
1. Peter Barbour lived in Edinburgh, Scotland, and his son was named John.
II. John Barbour, son of Peter Barbour I, was born March IO, 1729, and he had a son John.
III. John Barbour, son of John Barbour II, born February 2, 1777, and came to Muncy, Pennsylvania, with his wife, whose maiden name was Jean Whyte, somewhere between 1816 and 1820. They were married in Parish of Bieth, Paisley, Scotland, March 6, 1809, on Mon- day
Alexander Barbour Worthington was educated in the common schools of Pennsylvania and Muncy Creek townships. He became a contractor and lumber dealer and followed that for about eighteen years. In 1881 he was one of the organizers of the Hughesville Furniture Com- pany, of Hughesville, Pennsylvania, and was the superintending man- ager for ten years, disposing of his interest in 1891. He was one of the organizers of the First National Bank, of Hughesville, Pennsylvania, organized in 1886. He took charge of the Muncy Manufacturing Com- pany as treasurer and general manager, April 1, 1891, and is still operat- ing in such capacity at this date, March, 1905. He has been highly suc- cessful in his business operations. Among other financial concerns with which he is connected may be named banking. He was one of the organizers of the Muncy Banking Company, Muncy, Pennsylvania, and is a director and vice president of the same. He was councilman from the first ward in Muncy, from 1903 to 1905. He has mining interests in Deadwood, South Dakota, he being treasurer and director of a mining corporation of that locality.
Politically Mr. Worthington is a Republican. He served as school
78
LYCOMING COUNTY
director in Hughesville, Pennsylvania, from 1888 to 1890. At present he is associated with the Muncy Banking Company; First National Bank of Hughesville, Pennsylvania, and the Muncy Manufacturing Company (limited). In religious faith he was a member of the Meth- odist Episcopal church up to 1904, but is now identified with the Pres- byterian church.
Mr. Worthington was married March 21, 1866, to Henrietta Ber- rey, at Muncy, Pennsylvania. By this union have been born : I, James Harrison, born February 6, 1868, at Hughesville, Pennsylvania, and died in 1870; 2, Charles Cleon, born November 3, 1869, at Hughes- ville, Pennsylvania, and is married to Stella Schenck; 3, Milton Clyde, born September 19, 1872, at Hughesville, Pennsylvania, married Ida Boak, who is now deceased; 4, Howard K., born January 14, 1882, at Hughesville, Pennsylvania, single. Mr. and Mrs. Worthington's sons, not unlike their father, are enterprising, business-like young men, asso- ciated in business with their father.
In reviewing the career of one like Mr. Worthington, the reader cannot fail to comprehend the fact that, starting with a laudable ambi- tion in early life, and by pursuing the never-ceasing course of honest industry, though much hard work be attached thereto, and the keeping true to moral and temperate habits, will ever crown one with a compe- tency and surround him with a legion of friends.
THOMAS W. KAHLER.
The Kahler family, of which Thomas W. Kahler, of Hughesville, Lycoming county, Pennsylvania, is a worthy and honored representative, is of German origin. The pioneer ancestor was Christopher Kahler, who upon his arrival in the new world located in the city of Philadelphia,
79
LYCOMING COUNTY
from whence he removed to Easton, and subsequently to Bloomsburg, residing in the latter town until his decease in 1823. During his resi- dence in Philadelphia he was married, and had the following named children : Christian, mentioned at length hereinafter; John, Charles, Samuel, Margaret, Elizabeth and Sarah. The mother of these children passed away in the year 1850, having survived her husband- many years.
Christian Kahler was born at Easton, Pennsylvania, February 18, 1798. He attended the common schools in the neighborhood of his home, and in early life learned the trade of tailor at Bloomsburg, whither his parents removed when he was ten years of age. In 1827 he took up his residence in Hughesville, Lycoming county, and engaged in the merchant tailoring business, continuing the same for a number of years. Subsequently he purchased a farm, just beyond the borough limits, which he cultivated and improved, residing thereon for many years, but prior to his death, December 22, 1884, returned to Hughesville. He took an active interest in public affairs, and was chosen by his fellow citizens to fill the office of justice of the peace in Wolf township, also serving in a similar capacity for twenty-eight years in the borough of Hughes- ville. He was a member and deacon in the Lutheran church, and an adherent of the principles of Democracy. On March 18, 1823, Mr. Kahler married Sarah Keller, who died in 1860, and they were the parents of seven children: John; Margaret, who became the wife of Peter Sevison; Thomas W., mentioned hereinafter; an infant, deceased ; Annie R., who became the wife of Theodore Hill; Sarah, who became the wife of Fleming Webster; and Pearson D. Kahler.
Thomas W. Kahler was born in Hughesville, Pennsylvania, April 12, 1829. He received a practical education which qualified him for the activities of life in the common schools of his birthplace, and later
80
LYCOMING COUNTY
turned his attention to gaining a livelihood for himself. He engaged in the cigar business, and the success which has been achieved in this line of work is the direct result of industry, ability and reliable transactions. In 1878 Mr. Kahler was elected justice of the peace, and by his faithful and conscientious performance of the duties pertaining thereto, has been the incumbent of the office ever since, a period of twenty-six years. He is a member of the Lutheran Church of Hughesville, to which organiza- tion he contributes liberally both of time and means.
In 1862 Mr. Kahler married Savilla Doctor, and to them have been born two children: Sarah R., who resides with her father; and Martha, deceased. The mother of these children died at her residence in Hughesville, December 16, 1901.
LEANDER I. MEYER.
Among the representative business men of Montoursville, Lycoming county, Pennsylvania, who have gained a large degree of financial success and won an enviable reputation through their reliable methods and honorable transactions, is Leander I. Meyer, a native of Perryville, Lycoming county, the date of his birth being January 10, 1856. Mr. Meyer resides at Williamsport, Pennsylvania.
Martin W. Meyer, father of Leander I. Meyer, was born in Phila- delphia, Pennsylvania, October 22, 1830, a son of Martin and Anna Margaret (Blyler) Meyer. He was educated in the public schools of his native city, and in 1850, at the age of twenty years, came to Ly- coming county and joined his father and Isaiah Hayes in the lumber business. The following year he built a store at Perryville, Lycoming county, and successfully conducted a general mercantile business until
81
LYCOMING COUNTY
January, 1890, in the meantime devoting considerable time and attention to farming and lumbering. In February, 1889, he took up his residence in Montoursville, same county, and became actively identified with the mercantile firm of L. I. Meyer and Company, becoming a partner therein. He was an active, energetic man, capable and thorough-going in his business affairs, and well merits the prosperity which attended his efforts. He was a member of Montoursville Presbyterian Church, in which he served as elder. He was a Republican in politics, but never sought or held public office, preferring the quiet routine of business life to the excitement of the political arena. In September, 1850, he married Miss Rozella R. Hayes, daughter of Isaiah Hayes, and the issue of this union was three children: Mary A., who became the wife of Abraham Losch ; Margaret E., unmarried, and Leander I. Meyer.
Leander I. Meyer received a practical English education in the high schools of Williamsport, and the Williamsport Commercial College. In 1885 he became a member of the firm of Hayes, Meyer and Pidcoe, millers, at Montoursville, and in February, 1889, engaged in mercantile pursuits. In 1892 he began the manufacture of clothing. His enterprise met with success from the beginning, and his patronage has steadily increased from year to year, this being the result of handling nothing but the best goods, and of paying careful attention to the wants and wishes of his numerous patrons. Mr. Meyer advocates the principles of the Republican party, and he has cast his vote for the candidates of that great organization since attaining his majority. He is a member of Eureka Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, and Lycoming Royal Arch Chapter, and Baldwin II Commandery, and Howard Club, Knights Templar.
In 1877 Mr. Meyer married Miss Annie Trumbower, daughter of 6
82
LYCOMING COUNTY
P. M. Trumbower, who bore him three children: Della, Howard and Perry. Mr. and Mrs. Meyer are members of the Presbyterian Church of the Covenant, Williamsport.
ALEXANDER S. WILLIAMS.
Alexander S. Williams, who is now leading a retired life at his home in Montoursville, Pennsylvania, surrounded with peace and plenty, and realizing to the full that there is no reward so satisfactory as the consciousness of a life well spent. He was born in Loyalsock township, Lycoming county, Pennsylvania, August 16, 1819, a son of Joseph and Letitia (Sutton) Williams.
The educational advantages enjoyed by Alexander S. Williams were obtained in the subscription schools of the neighborhood, and up to his nineteenth year he resided on the homestead, assisting with the work thereof. After working for a period of time on the Williamsport & Ralston Railroad, he served in the capacity of clerk for the mercantile firms of J. L. Abrams & Company, Lindsey, Mahappey, and others in the city of Williamsport. After gaining a thorough knowledge of the details of business life, he engaged in the mercantile business at Montoursville, continuing the same with a large degree of success for a number of years. In 1850 he embarked in the lumbering business on Loyalsock creek, and by paying the closest attention to every minor detail of this line of work was enabled to accumulate a fair share of this world's goods during his thirty years' connection with the same. In addition to this enterprise he was also extensively engaged in farming, which proved a most lucrative source of income.
During the administration of Franklin Pierce, Mr. Williams was appointed postmaster at Montoursville, discharging the duties of the
83
LYCOMING COUNTY
responsible office in a manner creditable to himself and satisfactory to all concerned. He has also served as a member of the school board and justice of the peace, having been the incumbent of the latter named office for several years. Mr. Williams cast his first presidential vote for Martin Van Buren, and was identified with the Democratic party until 1856, when he voted for John C. Fremont, and in 1860 for Abraham Lincoln, and has ever since been an ardent supporter of the principles of the Republican party. As a citizen he has ever been public-spirited and progressive, and has contributed much toward the development and upbuilding of the best interests of the community.
In 1850 Mr. Williams married Catherine Kramer, daughter of Michael Kramer, former proprietor of the Eagle Hotel of Williamsport, and six children were the issue of the union, four of whom are now living: Sarah, wife of Huston Jackson; Emma R., wife of John A. Bennett; Samuel L. and Mary Margaret Williams.
WILLIAM B. KONKLE.
Prominent among the men who have accumulated sufficient capital from their agricultural pursuits to allow them to retire from their labors and spend their declining years in ease and comfort is William B. Konkle, of Montoursville, Pennsylvania. He is a native son of the state in which he resides, his birth having occurred in Fairfield township, Lycoming county, September 26, 1818.
Adam Konkle, father of William B. Konkle, was born January 19, 1786, a son of Peter Konkle, a native of Bucks county, Pennsylvania, one of the pioneer settlers of Fairfield township, and an early and con- sistent member of the Montoursville Methodist Episcopal church. During the war of 1812 he was drafted, but was not called into service. He was
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.