USA > Pennsylvania > Historic homes and institutions and genealogical and personal memoirs of the Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania Vol. I > Part 54
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MAURICE Z. KISTLER. The Kistler family, which numbers among its members many well known and prominent citizens of the Lehigh Valley, is of Swiss origin, and dates back to George Kistler, who was among the Palatinates who, during the period between the years 1735 and 1745 removed from Falkner Swamp and Goshenhoppen, now Montgomery county, to Lynn township, and settled in the vicinity of what is
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now called Jerusalem church. George Kistler was the father of six sons and three daughters, namely : George, Jacob, John, Samuel, Philip, Michael, Barbara, Dorothea and Elizabeth Kistler.
Samuel Kistler (great-great-grandfather) was born September 20, 1754, and died April 24, 1822. His first wife was Mary E. (Ladich) Kistler, who became the mother of three children -Barbara, Jacob S. and Samuel. By a second marriage with Catherine Brobst the following named children were born to him : John S., Mich- ael, Christian, Daniel S., David, Jesse, Charles, Levi, Maria, Elizabeth, Catherine, Salome and Magdelene.
Jacob S. Kistler (great-grandfather) was born in Lynn township, Pennsylvania. He was a farmer by occupation, was prosperous and suc- cessful in the management of his estate, and pos- ยท sessed a large amount of this world's goods. He held the office of justice of the peace, and also a number of other important positions in the town- ship. His death occurred about the year 1836. By his first wife, whose maiden name was Miss Carl, he had two sons, John and Jacob. His sec- ond wife was Catherine (Baush) Kistler, no issue. His third wife was Anna Baush, a sister of his second wife, and both daughters of Henry Baush, and she bore him the following named children: Nathan, Stephen, David J., Reuben, Jonas J., Charles, Salome, Mary, Lydia, Cath- erine, Anna F., Helenah, Elizabeth and Samuel J.
John Kistler (grandfather) was born August 21, 1802, died January 27, 1862, and his remains are interred at the Jerusalem church. He was united in marriage to Lucy Fetherolf, and their children were : John, Dr. Nelson, Wilmer, Milton and Allan.
Henry F. Kistler (father) was born in Al- bany township, Berks county, Pennsylvania, March 30, 1859. He was reared and educated at Mosesville, Lehigh county, whither his parents removed, and upon attaining young manhood he turned his attention to farming, which occupation proved a profitable source of income for a num- ber of years. In 1887 he changed his place of residence to Lehighton, Carbon county, and
shortly afterward entered into partnership in & mercantile business with Josiah T. Krum. By close application to business and faithful adher- ence to honorable methods the firm succeeded in building up a large and lucrative patronage, and in winning a prominent place among the business houses of the borough. He was a zealous mem- ber of the Lutheran church, in which he held the- office of deacon, and in the community he was. universally admired and esteemed. His death oc- curred January 27, 1901. In 1882 Mr. Kistler was married to Emma Geary, daughter of Nathan and Eliza (Seibert) Geary, and the issue of this. union was one son : Maurice Z. Kistler.
Maurice Z. Kistler was born August 23, 1883, at Mosesville, Lehigh county. He attended the schools of Lehighton in which he graduated, and. Allentown, Pennsylvania, thereby gaining a prac- tical education which prepared him for the activ- ities of life. Although only in his eighteenth year when his father died, he has succeeded to the place occupied by the latter in the business. firm, and is endeavoring to the best of his ability to follow in his footsteps. He is one of the bright and promising young men of Lehighton, who- have the opportunity of carving out for them- selves a career (both in the business and social world) which shall be an honor and credit not. only to themselves but to posterity.
JOHN S. LENTZ. The simple record of a man's life spent in honest and honorable pursuits is the best and most lasting monument that one man can erect to the memory of another. It is. therefore not our purpose to attempt an elaborate story of "what might have been," but to give a few of the plain unvarnished facts in the life of John S. Lentz, and those who preceded him. No. family is more widely known and no man is more highly respected in the borough of Lehighton, Carbon county, Pennsylvania, than Mr. Lentz, who has climbed from the bottom of the ladder to his present position of master car builder of the Lehigh Valley Railroad. Company. His an- cestors were of noble birth and blood and held high positions in their native country. The pio- neer ancestor, Nicholas Lentz, a school teacher,
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immigrated to this country in 1777, and settled in what is now known as Whitehall township, Northampton county. His family was large, and well and tenderly reared.
John Lentz, son of Nicholas Lentz, was born in Whitehall township, Northampton county, Pennsylvania, in 1795, and died in 1875. He was a shoemaker by occupation, a profitable trade in those days, but he subsequently abandoned it and removed to Mauch Chunk, where he was the pro- prietor of a hotel. Later he changed his place of residence to Weissport, where he conducted a hotel, but becoming dissatisfied he returned to Mauch Chunk, and finally went down the river and settled at Parryville. During all this period of time he was an extensive contractor, was closely associated with Asa Packer, and they were the first to run a boat on the Lehigh Canal after its completion. He was an active factor in the movement that caused the division of North- ampton county into other counties, namely : Mon- roe, Lehigh, Carbon and Northampton. He was associate judge of the Carbon county court, and later was elected by a large majority of his fel- low citizens to the office of sheriff of the same county. He was commissioned a colonel in the war of 1812, served his country well and faith- fully, and was ever afterward known as Colonel Lentz. Luring the war of the rebellion he or- ganized a company to stem the onslaught of the rebel host as they invaded his native state. Col- onel Lentz was a man who was universally es- teemed and admired, and his grip on the hearts of the people was strong and lasting. He was a member of the Reformed church, in which he held several offices, and to the support of which he contributed liberally. He was an honored member of the Masonic fraternity.
Colonel Lentz was married three times. His first wife bore him six children, all of whom are deceased but Lafayette Lentz. For his second wife he married Mrs. Barnet, who bore him one child, who is living at the present time ( 1904), and the widow of William C. Morris. His third wife, Elizabeth (High) Lentz, bore him three children : John S., Alice, deceased ; and Franklin P.
John S. Lentz, eldest son of Colonel John and Elizabeth Lentz, was born at Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania, in 1847. He acquired a good Eng- lish education in the schools of his native town, after which he became a messenger boy in the employ of the Lehigh Valley Company, with which corporation he has served in various ca- pacities for the past thirty-nine years. From messenger boy he was promoted to the shop store,. which he conducted for some time ; he was then made chief clerk ; the next promotion was as- sistant to the master car builder, then superin- tendent of the car department, then assistant su- perintendent of motive power, and then to his present office of master car builder, which posi- tion he has filled since 1900.
He is a prominent member of the Master Car Builders Association, which he served as presi- dent for two terms, in 1895 and 1896. He has been a resident of the borough of Lehighton for forty-three years, and during this long period of time has served as director of the First National Bank of Lehighton, and president of the Lehigh- ton Water Company. He has also held the office of school director in the borough. He holds membership in Lehighton Lodge, No. 621, Free and Accepted Masons : Lilly Chapter, No. 181, Royal Arch Masons; and Packer Commandery, No. 23, K. T.
Mr. Lentz was married, in 1869, to Martha J. Lazarus, and to this union was born one child, Robert P., now employed as a real estate and in- surance agent. After the death of his first wife, Mr. Lentz was married to Elizabeth Kramer, and the issue of this union was one son, John, now a member of the firm of Kramer & Lentz, merchants in Weissport, Pennsylvania.
DAVID McCORMICK, editor of the Lc- highton Press, is one of the rising young news- paper men in the Lehigh Valley, and it is largely through his instrumentality that the paper has become the leading weekly in Carbon county, and the success which it has attained is only the forerunner of what it will achieve in the near fu- ture. He has based his business principles and actions upon strict adherence to the rules of
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industry, economy and unswerving integrity, and his enterprise and progressive spirit have made him a typical American in every sense of the word. By constant exertion and good judgment he has raised himself to a prominent position, having the friendship of many and the respect of all who know him.
David McCormick (paternal grandfather ) was of Irish birth, but a descendant of a Welsh and Scotch ancestry. He was born in 1800, immi- grated to this country in 1828, and located in New Jersey, where he assisted in the completion of the Morris Canal, and subsequently was appointed superintendent of the entire canal, which was one hundred and one miles in length. In 1851 he removed to Carbon county, Pennsylvania, and thereafter was engaged in the lumber business. He married Mary Lockwood, a native of Con- necticut, born March 15, 1813, who bore him the following named children: William C., George W., Theodore, Thomas, Mary A., David, Andrew J., and Margaret A. David McCormick, father of these children, died March 23, 1854, and hi- wife survived him for many years, passing away April 28, 1900. Mary (Lockwood) McCormick was the granddaughter on the maternal side of Baltzer Tomer, a native of New Jersey, whose family consisted of the following named children : Margaret, Polly, Sallie, Diana, Eliza, Catherine, James, and Quinn, who served as a private in the war of 1812. Of these children Margaret was the mother of Mrs. McCormick ; she was born in New Jersey, in 1790, and subsequently became the wife of Gersham Lockwood, a native of Con- necticut, to whom she bore the following named children : Elizabeth, Matilda, Sarah, Mary, Cath- erine, Margaret, Andrew and George W. Lockwood.
William C. McCormick (father) was born in New Jersey, March 23, 1834. He was reared and educated in his native town, and in 1851 removed with his father to Carbon county, Pennsylvania, where for a period of time he was engaged in the lumber business. Subsequently he confined him- self to the trade of millwright for a number of years, and in both these occupations he achieved a large degree of success. During the dark period
of the Civil war, when his country was in sore need of courageous men, he enrolled as a private, March 16, 1864, in Company G, Third Regiment Pennsylvania Heavy Artillery, which was at- tached to the Army of the James. He was soon promoted to the rank of commissary sergeant, and was later commissioned as second lieutenant by Governor Curtin, but as no opening appeared before his discharge in November, 1865, he never served as such. He had been honored with elec- tion to many offices in the township previous to his removal to Lehighton in 1876, and during his residence in that borough he held the offices of councilman and president of the school board, and was a member of the Cemetery Association. During twenty-six years of his residence in Le- highton he was engaged in the manufacture of emery wheels. He is past master in Lehighton Lodge, No. 621, Free and Accepted Masons, and past post commander of Lehighton Post, No. 484, Grand Army of the Republic.
On August 20, 1860, William C. McCormick was united in marriage to Elizabeth Arnold, who was born in Monroe county, Pennsylvania, May 28, 1832, and died August 27, 1880. Their chil- dren were: Agnes, deceased; James, deceased ; Thomas, deceased; William, chief of police of Lehighton ; Edwin, foreman for the Lehigh Val- ley Railroad Company at Packerton : Mary E., David, Amanda A. and Ann, deceased. On De- cember 22, 1881, Mr. McCormick married Emma E. Christman, and the issue of this union was two children : Lillian and Ella McCormick.
David McCormick, fifth son of William C. and Elizabeth (Arnold) McCormick, was born in Carbon county, Pennsylvania, April 21, 1873. He was reared and educated in his native town, and like the majority of boys took an active part in various pursuits. He always manifested a tendency for newspaper work, which was con- genial to his tastes and inclinations, and like most men he succeeded in the line of work in which he took the deepest interest. In 1888 he entered the employ of Corporal O. B. Sigley, of Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania, who edited a paper in that town. After completing his apprentice- ship he was employed as a journeyman in the city
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of Philadelphia for one year, after which he re- turned to Mr. Sigley, and became his foreman and local reporter. After serving in this capacity for two years he was proffered a position as fore- man of the Lehighton Press, and this he filled for a period of three years. With his varied experi- ence as journeyman, reporter and foreman, com- bined with a firm determination to succeed, he purchased the entire outfit of the Lehighton Press, November 16, 1896, and became its pro- prietor and editor. The paper has a circulation of about three thousand copies, and is a ten and often a twelve sheet paper, and since 1896 the cir- culation has trebled that which it was before he became its editor. The plant is equipped with both gasoline and electric motor power, has facil- ities for job printing that can not be surpassed by a larger plant or in a town of more dense popu- lation. Mr. McCormick was the first to introduce the type setting and folding machine in Carbon county. He is a past master in Lehighton Lodge, No. 621, Free and Accepted Masons, a past com- mander of J. D. Bertolette Camp No. 95, Sons of Veterans, and a member of other organizations.
Mr. McCormick was married, October 14, 1896, to Bertha Hollenbach, daughter of Elias F. and Mary Hollenbach, and their children are Robert D. and Mary E. Mr. McCormick is a zealous member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and has served as assistant superinten- dent and librarian of the Sunday school con- nected with the same, filling the latter named office for fifteen consecutive years with much credit to himself and the school.
CAPTAIN SOLOMON YEAKEL, of Weissport, is a descendant of David Yeakel, a native of Germany, and a member of the society known as the Schwenkfelders, so called in honor of Caspar Schwenkfeld. David Yeakel emigrated to America in 1734, establishing his home in Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, his farm also extending into the lower part of Lehigh county. He was the father of eight children, six sons and two daughters : Christopher, Abraham, Balthasar, Jeremiah, Hans Heinrich, Caspar, Susan and Resina. Balthasar Yeakel was born in 1713, and
died January 28, 1762. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Barbara Warmer, and was born November 24, 1737, passed away February 25, 1808. Their children were: Susanna, Anna, David, George, Caspar and Caspar, there being two of that name. Caspar Yeakel, the next in line of direct descent, was born January 6, 1748, and died on the 11th of July, 1804. He married Anna Yeakel, a daughter of Christian Yeakel. Their marriage occurred August 10, 1775, and, long surviving her husband, she passed away on the IIth of May, 1838. Their children were: Baltha- sar, Maria, Jeremiah, Esther, Regina, Elizabeth, Susanna, Abraham, Benjamin and Anna.
Abraham Yeakel, the next in direct line, was- the father of Captain Solomon Yeakel, and was born in Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, Au- gust 28, 1790. He was a millwright by trade, and one of the best mechanics of his day. He took an active interest in public affairs, was a stanch Whig, and because of his opposition to slavery he assisted in the conduct of the "under- ground railroad" service. He was married April 17, 1814, to Miss Sarah Miller, and his death occurred October 27, 1865; his wife, also de- ceased, was born May 10, 1793. They were the parents of the following named : Edward, Joseph, Anna, Hiram, Maria, Levi, Nimrod, Solomon and Sarah.
The maternal grandfather of Captain Yeakel was Michael Miller, who was a native of Ger- many, and became one of the pioneer settlers of Berks county. He learned the cooper's trade and followed it for many years, but in later life be- came blind. His family numbered seven chil- dren : Adam, Michael, Henry, Sarah, Hannah, and two whose names have not been learned.
Captain Solomon Yeakel was born in Lehigh county, Pennsylvania, November 22, 1828, and was reared and educated in that locality. After putting aside his text books he learned the trades of a millwright and a miller, and followed these pursuits for about twenty years. In 1853, at- tracted by the discovery of gold in California, he made his way to the Pacific slope, where he re- mained for about five years, or until 1858, during which time he was engaged in mining. At the
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time of the Civil war, however, he put aside all business and personal considerations enlisting in the army, in which he fought bravely for the de- fense of the Union. He was slightly wounded in an engagement, and he participated in many im- portant battles, including the seven days' fight before Richmond, Malvern Hill, Chantilly, Harp- er's Ferry, Sandy Hook, Antietam, Chancellors- ville, Salem Heights, Banks Fort, Gettysburg and Mine Run. He was honorably discharged on the expiration of his three years' term of service, April 23, 1864. Having faithfully served in de- fense of the old flag, his meritorious conduct and valor upon the field of battle won him promotion to the rank of captain. After his return from the war he resumed work at his chosen pursuit, which he followed in Lehigh county, until 1879, when he came to Weissport, where he has since made his home. Here he turned his attention to the manufacture of lumber, and continued in that business until about 1896, when he retired from active life and has since enjoyed a well merited rest.
Captain Yeakel was married to Miss Amanda Allbright, a daughter of John Allbright, on the 23d of June, 1866. She died February 18, 1894, leaving two children. The daughter, Laura A., whose birth occurred January 24, 1868, passed away October 24, 1884. The son, Asher A., born February 1, 1870, married Ella Snyder, and is now an employe of the Lehigh Valley Railroad Company.
R. FRANK GOULD, general yard master and general forwarding agent for the Lehigh Val- ley Railroad Company at Packerton, Pennsyl- vania, has had a wide and varied experience as a railroad man, and this fact is a guarantee for his competency in filling his present position of trust and responsibility. While not a college bred man, Mr. Gould has studied men and observed events as they have changed and passed before the foot- lights of the stage of time, and in this manner has secured a fund of useful and valuable informa- tion which is essential in the majority of profes- sions and occupations adopted by men.
He was born in Castile, Wyoming county,
New York, September 30, 1858. He was reared and educated in his native place up to the year 1870, when he entered the service of the Erie Railroad Company at Hornellsville, New York, as a call boy. In 1875, at the age of seventeen years, he was promoted to the office of assistant yard master at East Buffalo, New York, and the following year was promoted to the position of passenger conductor, with a run from Buffalo to Elmira, New York. He was the incumbent of this office up to 1882, when he resigned in order to accept the position of general yard mas- ter with the Detroit, Lansing & Northern Rail- road, and was located at Ionia, Michigan. In December, 1884, he resigned this for the position .of train master with the Chicago & Western In- diana Railroad, and was stationed at Chicago, Illinois. In 1886 he resigned this for a position as general yard master with the Chicago and At- lantic Railroad at Huntington, Indiana, and in the fall of 1889, resigned this in order to accept a similar position with the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad at Covington, Kentucky. In 1898 he was engaged in the same capacity with the Great Northern Railroad at Minneapolis, Minnesota, and on October 1, 1899, he resigned this for his present position, which he has filled to the entire satisfaction of the Lehigh Valley Railroad Company.
In his life of thirty-four years of railroading he has passed through many accidents, but was only severely injured once, when he was struck by engine No. 720, while standing on the platform at Lehighton. This incapacitated him for active 'service for several weeks, during which time he was confined in a hospital. While in the employ of the Erie Company he had a collision on the Buffalo Division, and in October, 1881, he ex- perienced a rear-end collision at Griswold, New York, in which twenty-four persons were killed and fifty-two injured, besides burning the station and part of the train. Since he has been employed at Packerton, Pennsylvania, he has organized and inaugurated what is known as the Lehigh Valley Hospital Association, of which he is president. This was put in operation in 1901, and serves the purpose for which it was intended, a hospital on
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wheels. Mr. Gould is a member of the Order of Railroad Conductors; Lafayette Lodge No. 35, Knights of Pythias, the Uniformed Rank at Charleston, West Virginia ; Independent Order of Odd Fellows, No. 82, at Montgomery, West Virginia ; Thomas Wildey Encampment, No. 141, at Montgomery, West Virginia ; and the Frater- nal Order of Eagles, at Lehighton, of which he is worthy vice.
Mr. Gould was united in marriage, August 28, 1888, to Rachel C. Handwork, of Huntington, Indiana, and their children are: Harry R., born April 4, 1892; and Edna R., born August 15, 1893.
HARRY T. PETERS, who follows mer- chandising in Parryville, is connected with the business that has long been conducted under the name of Feters, it having formerly been the prop- erty of his father, Jacob Peters. Representatives of the name have long been known in the Le- high Valley, the family having been established here at an early day. The ancestors of Mr. Peters were prominent in the growth and devel- opment of this part of the state, aiding in laying the foundation for the present prosperity and progress in their respective communities. Henry Peters, the grandfather, was a native of Carbon county, and in early life learned the blacksmith's trade, which he followed in connection with farm- ing. He possessed excellent mechanical ability, and as an agriculturist he likewise won success. He married Miss Hannah Balliet, and to them were born eleven children : Hyman, now deceased ; William, Jacob, Joseph, Charles, Cornelius, La- vina, Matilda, deceased; and two who died in infancy.
Jacob Peters, the father, was born in Lower Towamencin township, Carbon county, in 1834, and was reared and educated in East Penn town- ship. In early life he engaged in clerking for a short time, during which period he became ac- quainted with methods of merchandising, and in 1862 he opened a general store in Parryville, but the freshet of that year swept away his entire stock, thus causing him great losses, as it did to the other settlers of the locality. Fortunately for
him, however, he had a new supply of goods upon the way, being brought by canal. It had reached Easton about that time, and through friendly efforts was saved from destruction. With this supply and goods which he secured else- where, Mr. Peters began business life anew, de- termined to retrieve his lost possessions. Here he continued to sell goods for many years, his patronage constantly increasing, and he stood high in the regard and favor of his fellow men, who recognized the correctness of his business principles and his fidelity to the ethics of com- mercial life. He continued in the trade until the Ist of April, 1903, when he was succeeded by his son Harry, and he is now living a retired life in Allentown, Pennsylvania, enjoying the well earned fruits of his former toil. While in Parryville Jacob Peters filled various offices of trust. He was chief burgess of the borough, a member of the town council, a school director, and was also postmaster for twenty-four years. He was a conscientious member of the Metho- dist Episcopal church, gave valuable assistance to the organization in its various lines of activity, and was superintendent of the Sunday-school for twenty-six years. He also filled the office of church trustee, and took an active part in present- ing the gospel to the people of the community, having been authorized by the quarterly confer- ence to fill the office of local preacher. He is a member of the Patriotic Order of the Sons of America, and his political allegiance is given to the Republican party.
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