USA > Pennsylvania > Historic homes and institutions and genealogical and personal memoirs of the Lehigh Valley, Pennsylvania Vol. II > Part 19
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 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89
Frank Jacobs spent the early years of his life in attendance at the public schools of Reading, Pennsylvania, and completed his education in the Presbyterian York Collegiate Institution. He then came to Allentown, Pennsylvania, entered the law office of Robert Wright, and studied un- der his instruction from 1887 to 1889. He was admitted to the bar of Lehigh county, June 6, 1889, at once established an office of his own for the general practice of law, and is now one of the leading lawyers in the city. In religion, he is a Presbyterian, and in politics, a Republican. He holds membership in the Order of Free and Accepted Masons, and the Livingston Club.
Mr. Jacobs married Florence L. Lance, daugh- ter of John P. and Kate Lance. Mr. and Mrs. Jacobs have one daughter.
MISS CELIA GRIM, a well known and highly respected resident of Allentown, Lehigh county, Pennsylvania, and a lineal descendant of one of the families who have long been resident in this section of the state, is a woman of rare intellectual attainments and nobility of character.
The earliest ancestors of the family of whom there is any authentic information were Jacob and Elizabeth Hatten (Stein) Grim, who reared a family of children, among whom was a son Jesse, whose wife, Mary (Knapp) Grim, daugh-
ter of Daniel and Mary (Herbein) Knapp, bore him the following named children: I. Ephraim, married for his first wife Susan Eckert, and for his second wife Sarah Mowry. The issue of the first marriage was William and Sarah, and that of the second was Mary, who became the wife of Henry Mosser. 2. Deborah, who married Will- iam Eitleman, and six children were the issue of this marriage. 3. Jacob, mentioned hereinafter. 4. William, who married Eliza Ludwig, and they were the parents of two sons, Alfred and Henry Grim. 5. Allen, who died unmarried. 6. Walter Jesse, who married Elizabeth Dresher, and their family consists of four children, George, de- ceased; Ida ; John, who died single ; and Charles, who is single.
Jacob Grim, father of Miss Celia Grim, was united in marriage to Mary Siegfried, daughter of John and Hannah (Grim) Siegfried, the former named having been a son of John and Catherine (Fetherolf) Siegfried. Two children were born of this union: Celia, unmarried, and a son who died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Siegfried, parents of Mrs. Grim, reared a family of children, as follows: I. Mary A., aforemen- tioned as the wife of Jacob Grim. 2. John G., who married Catherine Grim, and their children are as follows : Hannah C., wife of Jacob Edel- man, and mother of three children-Debora G., Catherine and Marie; John, unmarried : Joshua, unmarried ; Mary, wife of Peter Christman, and the issue of this marriage was six children-Paul, John, Esther, Clara, Wallace, and Mary ; Susan, unmarried ; Celia G., unmarried ; and Jacob S., unmarried. 3. Jesse, who married Rosa Scholl, and their son Harry, married Etta Campbell, and they are the parents of one child, Florence Sieg- fried. 4. Alfred, who married Caroline German, and three children have been born to them- Henry, who married Mary Henrich, and they have one child, Mary Henrich ; James, who mar- ried Mary Schroth, and their family consists of four children-Albert, Raymond, Pauline, and Walter ; Robert, who married Laura Bitzer, and they have three children, Harold, Arnon and Florence. 5. Hannah, wife of Samuel Roth, and the children born to them are as follows: Mary,
-
-
-
ALLENTOWN IN 1803.
DRAWN BY RUTH GRIM FROM AN OLD PRINT IN POSSESSION OF HER FATHER, WILLIAM J. GRIM.
107
GENEALOGICAL AND PERSONAL MEMOIRS.
unmarried; James, who died unmarried; John, unmarried ; Annie, unmarried; George, unmar- ried ; Lillie, unmarried; Helen, wife of Herman Kostenbater, and their children are-Dorothea and Carl Kostenbater ; Harry, who married Annie Bogert.
Jacob Grim, father of Miss Grim, was en- gaged in the lumber business in Allentown for about twenty years, retiring two years before his death. He was a member and one of the found- ers of St. Michael's Lutheran church, and one of its most liberal supporters. He was a Repub- lican in politics. He was an excellent citizen, and interested himself in all matters of public concern.
ARTHUR F. BIGELOW, general superin- intendent of the Gas Company in the city of Allentown, Lehigh county, Pennsylvania, was born in Marlboro, New Hampshire, and is the son of Albert S. and Lydia M. (Buss) Bigelow, the latter named having been the daughter of John Buss.
The educational advantages enjoyed by Arthur F. Bigelow were obtained in the public schools of Greenfield, Massachusetts, and after his graduation from the same at the age of fif- teen years secured employment as clerk in a dry goods store. This position he retained for three years, then took up his residence in Keene, New Hampshire, where he was employed in the Keene National Bank, first as clerk and later as teller. During his nine years connection with this insti- titution he was also interested in the manufacture of water-gas, and served in the capacity of sec- retary, treasurer and manager of the Keene Gas Company. In 1883 he went to Coney Island as the manager of a gas plant there, and during his residence of one year in that famous resort the enterprise was placed on a paying basis. The following year he went to Duluth, Minnesota, as- sumed the management of the gas and water com- pany in that city, and after completing his work in 1885 went to St. Albans, Vermont, and from thence to Yonkers, New York. In the spring of 1887 he located in Allentown, Pennsylvania, to fill the responsible position of superintendent
of the gas company in that city. The capacity of the plant at that time was about 150,000 feet per day of twenty-four hours, and under his man- agement it has increased to 750,000 feet, with prospects that the capacity of the plant will be doubled in the near future. Although his time has been so fully occupied with his business pur- suits, Mr. Bigelow is not unmindful of his du- ties and obligations as a citizen, and the esteem in which he is held by his fellowmen is evi- denced by the fact that he was elected to the common council in 1898-1899, and again in 1902-1903. Mr. Bigelow holds membership in the Livingston and Clover Clubs, the most prom- inent social organizations in the city of Allen- town, Pennsylvania.
Mr. Bigelow has been married twice. His first wife was Anna M. Ellis, daughter of George W. and Louisa (Farwell) Ellis. His second wife, Lavina (Giess) Bigelow, is a native of Allentown, and one of the five children born to William and Mary Giess, their names being as follows: Alice M., wife of C. Fred Stiles, a sketch of whom appears elsewhere in this work; Emma, wife of John Berkinstock; Lavina, men- tioned above as the wife of Mr. Bigelow ; Blanche, unmarried ; and William Giess.
EDWIN F. MILLER, owner and proprietor of Miller's Hotel, South Allentown, Pennsyl- vania, where he has catered successfully to the wants of his guests and the general public since 1891, a period of thirteen years, is recognized in the community as an able and intelligent citizen, one worthy of confidence and esteem. He is a descendant of an old and honorable family whose arrival in this country dates back about one hun- dred and fifty years.
William Miller (1), great-grandfather of Edwin F. Miller, emigrated to his country from Germany and shortly after his arrival settled in Whitehall township, where he, like other thrifty natives of his country, purchased a large tract of land which he cultivated and improved to a high state of perfection, and by unceasing labor, hon- esty and economy amassed quite a fortune by means of which his declining years were spent in
108
HISTORIC HOMES AND INSTITUTIONS.
ease and comfort. He married and reared a fam- ily of children, among whom was a son, William Miller.
William Miller ( II), grandfather of Edwin F. Miller, was a lifelong resident of Whitehall township, a man of wealth and influence in his day, and ranked among the successful and influ- ential men of the county. He was the first to discover iron ore in his neighborhood, and this discovery was the means of making Catasauqua and Hokendauqua the thrifty towns they now are, the greater part of their residents being en- gaged in the iron industry. He subsequently owned what was known as the Maria Furnace, named in honor of his wife, Maria (Powell) Miller. Their family consisted of nine children : Powell, a prominent iron manufacturer ; William, mentioned hereinafter ; Joshua, a prosperous agri- culturist ; Polly, Catherine, Mary, Deborah, La- vina, and Sarah Miller.
William Miller (III), father of Edwin F. Miller, was born in Whitehall township, Lehigh county, in 1812. During his entire lifetime he was an honest, industrious and worthy man, an-1 his business career, which was devoted to agri- cultural pursuits, was most successful and fully repaid him for his arduous labor. He was the owner of one hundred and fifty acres of arable farming land which was devoted to the produc- tion of a general line of farm produce which found a ready sale in the nearby markets. His wife, Catherine (Brodst) Miller, bore him five children, as follows : Edwin F., mentioned here- inafter ; Catherine, deceased : Mary, wife of Jo- seph Shoemaker: Matilda, deceased ; and Eliza, widow of Joseph Anthony.
Edwin F. Miller was born in Whitehall town- ship, Lehigh county, in 1834. When he was fif- teen months old his parents removed to Lehigh township, Northampton county, and in this vi- cinity he was reared and received a common school education, devoting his leisure time from school to agricultural pursuits. Upon attain- ing young manhood he located in Scranton, Penn- sylvania, and during his residence there he en- gaged in mercantile pursuits. In 1871 he re- moved to Allentown, Pennsylvania, and at once
engaged in the baker business, which he success- fully conducted for a number of years. He then turned his attention to the butcher business, in which he was equally successful, and in 1891 he became the owner of a hotel at South Allentown, which has since been known to the traveling public as Miller's Hotel. The secret of the suc- cess which has attended this enterprise is that it is pleasantly located, equipped with every con- venience which will conduce to the comfort of guests, the cuisine is excellent, and Mr. Miller, being of a genial and kindly disposition, is there- fore an ideal proprietor. In addition to his hotel property, Mr. Miller is the owner of an exten- sive block on Broad street, several single houses, and one hundred acres of valuable land in Salis- bury township, some of which produces a fine quality of building sand which finds a ready sale in Allentown. Mr. Miller is a member of the Order of Golden Eagles. He is in every respect a worthy and law abiding citizen.
In 1866 Mr: Miller married Elizabeth Selvies, daughter of Henry Selvies, of Monroe county, Pennsylvania. Their children are as follows : William H., Franklin A., Ellen J., wife of Charles Minnich, and mother of two children, Blanche E., and William E. Minnich; Minnie, wife of Jacob Wisser ; Edwin C. W., single.
STEPHEN ALBION REPASS was born in Wythe county, Virginia, November 25, 1838. The residence of his parents was two miles west of Wytheville, the county seat of Wythe county.
The great-grandfather of Stephen A. Repass was Daniel Repass. (Some of the older methods of spelling the name were Repas, Repatz, Respes, Respas.) Tradition has it that he emigrated from Northampton county, Pennsylvania to south- western Virginia in the last quarter of the Eigh- teenth century. He is, moreover, believed to have served as a soldier in the Revolution of 1776, moving to Virginia at the close of the war. The following sons were born to him: Samuel, Fred- erick, Daniel and John. Of these sons, Samuel settled on Walker's Creek, in what is now known as Bland county, the other sons in Wythe county. No information concerning the wife of Daniel
Stephen A. Ropas.
109
GENEALOGICAL AND PERSONAL MEMOIRS.
Repass is obtainable ; nor of any daughters that may have been born to the marriage. He was a minister of the Reformed church, serving con- gregations in Wythe county. His remains lie buried in the old cemetery of St. John's Lutheran church, near Wytheville, Virginia. He was the head of his generation in the state of his adoption ; and from him has sprung a large number of descendants who continue to reside in and near the old family seats. It cannot now be deter- mined whether he emigrated from Germany him- self or his father before him. His earlier life would fall within the period of the heavy immi- gration from the fatherland in the second half of the Eighteenth century.
John Repass, the son of Daniel Repass, and the grandfather of Stephen Albion Repass, was married to Katie Harkrader, wh belonged to one of the old families of Wythe county. The following children were born to this marriage; Mary, Elizabeth, Katharine, Christina, William, (who was a soldier in the Mexican war), Jesse, Rufus, Jacob (who died in early manhood), Sallie and Ann. Of these children Mary was married to Robert J. Brown ; Elizabeth to Abram Neff ; Katharine to Adam Cassell; Christina to John Palmer ; William, twice married, first wife, Miss Harkrader, second wife Christina Brown ; Jesse to Lydia Brown ; Rufus to Salome Brown ; Sallie to Joseph Fisher ; and Ann to James Fisher. John Repass, the father of these, was a farmer, and owning large tracts of land within the county. At the time of his death he was able to leave to each of his children a farm of several hundred acres. The children after marriage had large families born to them, and became the progen- itors of a numerous offspring. They were a gen- eration of farmers and were among the most re- spected and substantial citizens of that section of Southwestern Virginia. While not distin- guished in letters, art or science ; or leaving great names to posterity, their solid character and ster- ling virtues have contributed, though silently, to- ward making a generation of noble men and women. These children of John Repass all re- sided in Wythe county, where many of the de- scendants are still living.
Rufus Repass was born in this same county near the opening of the Nineteenth century, 1805. At that early period the educational advantages possessed by children living in the country were few and meager. He had and enjoyed no more that the rudimentary training of that period. The place of his birth was on a farm near to that which became subsequently his permanent resi- dence, and where all his children, with the ex- ception of his first son and oldest child, John C. Repass, were born. Rufus was a farmer, owning a plantation of about 350 acres, and lying on the main road leading from Wytheville to the Taze- well Court House. The residence was built by his father, John Repass. The material is of stone quarried from the farm, large and strongly built, having walls nearly two feet in thickness. It has always been known and spoken of as the "Rock House." Although little less than a cen- tury since erected the "Rock House" is still stand- ing, a well preserved monument to the sturdy character of the builder. The homestead is now owned and occupied by Granville B. Repass, the son and youngest child of Rufus Repass. At his death it will pass to his only son and heir, George.
In politics Rufus Repass was a staunch Dem- ocrat. While not a politican in the common acceptation of that term he cherished clear and intelligent convictions on the current principles of government, and was bold and conscientious in avowing them. Modest and quiet in spirit and manner he never sought or held office, preferring the retirement of his home life, and devoted to the peaceful pursuits of agriculture. He declined to permit his name to be placed in nomination as a candidate for the Legislature of Virginia at a time when "good men and true" were sought for that position. Of the arts of modern politics, he knew nothing. Positive in all his con- victions, both yielding and demanding obed- ience and respect where these were due to others or to himself, he held his family and household under firm and yet gentle govern- ment. While the owner of slaves the writer never knew him to exercise injustice or cruelty to any. Nor did he ever sell or buy slaves, except as these came into his possession by inheritance. He be-
IIO
HISTORIC HOMES AND INSTITUTIONS.
longed to that large class of Southern men whose treatment of their slaves was considerate and kind and in no sense characterized by severity or cruelty.
In religion he was a Lutheran, as was his father before him. He was a member of St. John's Lutheran church for a period of above fifty years, and was actively identified with all its interests. He held the office of elder in the congregation for many ye rs, and frequently served as the delegate to Synodical Conventions. It is not invidious to say that he was in all re- spects among the most influential of what was at the time a large and most flourishing body of Christians, and along with his family exercised a controlling influence in the congregation. The same could be truthfully said of others, but of none with more justice or truth than of Rufus Repass. He passed out of this life in 1878, leaving to his children and the community the heritage of a truly noble name and character,
Salome, the wife of Rufus Repass, was the daughter of Christopher and Anna Maria Brown. She was born in Wythe county, Virginia, in 1807. Her grandfather, Christopher Brown, emigrated to Virginia from Pennsylvania between 1780 and 1785. He settled in Wythe county four miles west of Wytheville. Two sons, Christopher and Michael, were born to this marriage. Christopher, a son of Chirstopher Brown, married Miss Annie Maria Roeder. The following children were born to their union: Daniel, Salome (wife of Rufus Repass), Lydia Rosanna, James A. and Asa Brown. James A. was a Lutheran clergy- man and for many years served congregations in his native county, a man greatly esteemed and beloved by all who knew him. Daniel became a member of the State Legislature of Virginia, and Asa was an intelligent and highly honored cit- izen. Of the three daughters, Salome married Rufus Repass ; Lydia, Jesse Repass ; and Rosanna, Stephen Repass. The father Christopher was a wealthy land owner, and belonged among the best citizens of the county, exerting a large in- fluence in the community, and in the Lutheran congregation (St. John's) of which he was a member. His slaves, of whom he owned a num-
ber, were proud of the prominent position held by their "ole master." He is distinctly remem- bered by the writer of this sketch, who was no more than a child at the time of his death, as a man grave and dignified in his manner and bear- ing, and withal of kind and gentle disposition. Salome (commonly known as Sallie) and who became the wife of Rufus Repass, was a true help- mate to her husband. She had enjoyed some edu- cational advantages above those had in common by most of the young women of that time, having attended a special school in Wytheville. She was of medium stature, very quick and active in her movements and possessed of a naturally bright mind. She ruled her household well, imparting something of her own energy to her children. She survived her husband a number of years, and dying at the age of eighty-four bequeathed to her children the legacy of a good name, and a strong womanly character. Her children and grand- children rise up to call her blessed and affection- ately revere her memory.
The children born to these parents were the following: John C., married to Annie Creger ; Eliza A. to Michael Cassell ; Lizzie M. to Stephen Peery ; James A. (died at Roanoke College while in prepartion for the Christian ministry) ; Maria L. to Reuben Sharitz ; Stephen A. to Frances E. Hancock ; Lydia E. to Martin Kegley ; Sarah H. to Thomas Peery; Ella N. to Jacob Fisher ; and Granville B. to Rosa Morehead.
Stephen Albion, the son of Rufus and Sa- lome Repass, after receiving such advantages as were then offered in the country schools entered Roanoke College at Salem, Virginia, in the au- tumn of 1858. Near the close of the session in 1861, he entered the service of the Confederate army, remaining in it until the close of the war. He participated in the battles of the Army of Northern Virginia under General Robert E. Lee, holding the rank of lieutenant. He was a sol- dier in the division of General Pickett, and was in command of a company in the terrible charge of that division at Gettysburg, on the third day of July, 1863. He was captured and was held a prisoner of war on Johnson's Island for twenty- one months. After the close of the war he re-
III
GENEALOGICAL AND PERSONAL MEMOIRS.
turned to college in the autumn of 1865, gradu- ating in June, 1866. In the fall of the same year he entered the Theological Seminary of the Evan- gelical Lutheran church at Philadelphia. Gradu- ating in the spring of 1869 he was ordained to the office of the Lutheran ministry and was in- stalled pastor of the College Lutheran church at Salem, Virginia. He served in that capacity for three years and three months, which position he resigned in order to take charge of the Theologi- cal Seminary of the General Snyod of the Lu- theran church, South. After serving in that po- sition for twelve years, the seminary having been discontinued, he became pastor of Christ's Evan- gelical Lutheran church at Staunton, Virginia. At the end of one year he was called in 1885 to the pastorate of St. John's Lutheran church at Allentown, Pennsylvania, a position he is still occupying. He has been actively identified with the interests of Muhlenberg College, an institu- tion under the care of the Evangelical Lutheran Ministerium of Pennsylvania. For a number of years he has been President of its Board of Trus- tees ; also an instructor in the Evidences of Chris- tianity. He is a frequent contributor to church reviews and periodicals, and has published a number of pamphlets on special subjects. He received the honorary degree of Doctor of Theo- logy in 1876.
In June, 1870, Stephen A. Repass was united in marriage to Frances Emily Hancock, of Wy- theville, Virginia. She was the daughter of Lewis D. and Elizabeth F. Hancock. Her father was for many years a merchant in Wythe county, Virginia, and during that time was elected to serve as a member of the State Legislature. He was held in high esteem by a very large number of friends. Frances was educated at the Wythe- ville Female College. There were born to this marriage five children: Lewis H., Elizabeth B., Bernard (a Lutheran clergyman), Nannie S. (de- ceased), and Mary Repass. All were born dur- ing the residence of their parents in Salem, Vir- ginia. Lewis (married to Miss Baker, of Allen- town, Pennsylvania), is the Purchasing Agent of the Atlas Cement Company, located in Lehigh county : Bernard graduated from Muhlenberg
College, and the Lutheran Theological Seminary, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and now serving a parish in Venango county, Pennsylvania. The daughters, Elizabeth and Mary, were educated at the Maryland College for Women, near Balti- more.
The following grandchildren have descended from the marriage of Rufus and Salome Repass : To Rev. John C. Repass, married to Annie Cre- ger, were born James Winton, Daniel Brown, George Rufus, Luther Kurtz, Rhoda Jane, Wil- liam Marion, Albion Phlegar, Emory Snaffer. Sarah Araminta and John Calvin. To Eliza Annie, married to Michael Cassell, George Stew- art, Alice Victoria, Emory Hawkins, Ella Jane, Marion Michael (all dying when young) and Mary E., Stephen Sidney and Charles willis. To Elizabeth, married to Stephen Peery : Marion, Eugene, Ella and George. To Maria S., married to Reuben Shantz: Oregon and Newton. To Sarah H., married to Thomas Peery : Emory Wil- lis, Rufus Benton, Walter Stuart, Nora Kate, Anna Salome, John Carnahan, Josephine Re- pass, Maude Cassel, Mary Elizabeth and George Gose. To Ella N., married to Jacob Fisher : Charles, Lina, George and Clare. To Granville B. Repass, married to Rosa Horehead, one son, George. The children of Stephen A. Repass, married to Frances E. Hancock, are named above.
HENRY S. CLEMENS, M. D., numbered among the honored dead of Allentown, was for many years a leading medical practitioner of Lehigh county, but it was not alone his scientific skill nor his financial success that won him prom- inence in public regard, but the inherent force of his character, his broad humanitarianism, his fidelity to upright principles-elements which formed the inspiration for his entire career. He thus endeared himself to people of all classes, counting his friends by the score among young and old, rich and poor.
The Clemens family of which he was a rep- resentative was established in Pennsylvania in colonial days. His grandfather, Christian Clem- ens, was a native of Doylestown, Bucks county,
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.