History of Armstrong County, Pennsylvania, Part 100

Author: Smith, Robert Walter
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Chicago : Waterman, Watkins
Number of Pages: 790

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THE petition of divers inhabitants of Buffalo and Sugar Creek townships was presented to the proper court of this county, at June sessions, 1830, setting forth that they labored under great inconvenience because these townships were " en- tirely too large for the convenience of their inhabi- tants ;" that, by laying out a new township to be composed of parts of both of the old ones, the proposed new one would be a great accommo- dation to the people inhabiting it ; and prayed the court to appoint "three impartial men to inquire into the propriety of granting the prayer of the petitioners," and that they should make a plot of the proposed township. The court appointed Elisha Davis, John Shields and John Templeton, whose report in favor of organizing the township of Franklin, signed by two of the viewers, Davis and Shields, was filed December 23, 1830. At the same sessions a remonstrance of some of the in- habitants of both of these old townships against the organization of the proposed new one was presented and filed, setting forth : "That by an application of a few of the inhabitants of said townships an order for the erection of a new town- ship ont of parts thereof hath been granted," etc. They, therefore, remonstrated against the con- firmation of the report because the old township of Sugar Creek would be left quite a narrow strip of its poorest parts, "incapable of supporting the poor, if any should unfortunately be so reduced, and it is generally believed that four or five paupers will shortly have to be supported by Sugar Creek township, and it appears as if the rich and wealthy parts were endeavoring to throw that burden on a few who are comparatively poor."

Franklin township was, nevertheless, organized with the boundaries reported by the viewers : " Beginning at a sugar tree on the bank of the Allegheny, being the southeast corner of a tract of land in Sugar Creek township, formerly owned

by John Orr, but now by Archibald Dickey; thence west 11 miles 26 perches to the Butler county line ; thence by the Sugar Creek [line] 6 miles and 28 perches to a post on the south bank of a large run "-the one next north of Rough run-" thence east in part along the line of Franklin election district 9 miles 110 perches to a post on the bank of the Allegheny river, 20 perches below the north- east corner of William Phillips' land ; and thence by the Allegheny river, being the boundary of Kittanning township, the several courses and distances thereof to the beginning." That Franklin election district was formed in 1829 out of parts of Buffalo and Sugar Creek townships : “Begin- ning at the place where the southern boundary of depreciation tract No. 283"-conveyed by William Linley to David Reed in 1815 - "crosses Glade run; thence west to the Butler county line; thence by the line of said county to a point thereon west of the northwest corner of the tract on which Davis' mill was erected ; thence east to the line of the election district of the borough of Kittan- ning ; thence by said line to the place of begin- ning." The record of the first township election in Franklin is not accessible to the writer. At September sessions, 1857, was filed and read the petition of divers inhabitants of Franklin and Sugar Creek townships, for the organization of a new township out of parts of those two old ones, and Hugh Campbell, Joseph McCartney and James Stewart were appointed viewers, whose re- port in favor of the organization of the township of Limestone was filed and read, and the court, September 16, ordered a vote of the qualified electors of Sugar Creek township, of those resid- ing both within and without the territory sought to be embraced within the new township, on the second Tuesday of November. That election was held, and resulted thus : Against the new town- ship, 101; for it, 91. The boundaries of Lime-

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WEST FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP.

stone township were to have been : From the lower side of the mouth of Limestone run, past John Ambrose's house, west of an old house then on William McClatchey's land, to include the village of Middlesex, on to the land of Moses Dickey, on the line between the two old townships and through the territory of Sugar creek to J. Ellen- berger's spring, and thence to a point on the Alle- gheny river near the foot of Earley's riffle, and thence along the river to the place of beginning, containing about 25 square miles.

A petition of numerous citizens of Franklin township was filed in the court of quarter sessions of this county, March 17, 1866, praying for a division of their township by a line beginning at a point on Daniel Shaffer's farm, and at the corner between schoolhouses Nos. 4 and 7, and running in a northerly direction, so as to follow the dividing line between the subdivisions of territory repre- sented by schoolhouses Nos. 4 and 7, 6 and 9, and 5 and 8. Viewers were appointed the same day. This matter was continued June 9, and their re- port was filed and read September 4, and Decem- ber 8 the vote of the qualified electors of the town- ship was ordered to be taken on the third Friday of January, 1867, the return of which was filed January 19, showing 180 against, and 176 for the division. Another petition for the division was filed April 8, and viewers or commissioners were appointed, whose report in favor of the division was filed May 25. The court, June 6, ordered the vote of the qualified electors of the district to be taken on the first Saturday of August, the return of which was filed November 6, showing 191 votes for and 33 against the division. The court, Janu- ary 27, 1868, decreed, ordered and adjudged that Franklin township be divided, the new or eastern, to be called East Franklin, and the other or west- ern part, to be called West Franklin, the area of the former being about 28 and that of the latter 26} square miles. Schoolhouse No. 11, commonly called Moore's, was designated by the decree of the court as the place for holding elections in East Franklin, and the house of Andrew Sample, in the borough of Worthington, in West Franklin.

At the first election held in West Franklin the following township officers were elected : Justice of the peace, William Claypoole; constable, R. J. Atwell ; supervisors, Peter Kerr, J. T. McCurdy ; school directors, Christopher Leard, for 3 years ; J. C. Minteer, for 2 years ; Peter Kerr, for 1 year ; overseers of the poor, Christopher Leard, James Minteer; assessor, J. Y. Minteer ; judge of elec- tion, J. C. Morrison ; inspectors of election, James Claypoole, J. A. Minteer ; auditors, John F.

Brown, Samuel Dumm ; treasurer, John Craig, Jr .; clerk, William Claypoole.

Turning to that portion of the Gapen map, in what is now the northwestern part of this town- ship, is seen the eastern and minor part -the major part being in what is now Butler county - of a tract surveyed by John Gapen to Mahaffey " 401 " acres, the eastern portion of which on the other map bears the name of Hugh McElroy, 91 acres and about 51 perches of which, in this county, partly in Sugar Creek adjoining the Gapen surveys to Martha Craig. John Bond, William B. Clymer and Amos N. Mylert agreed, September 6, 1852, to sell to Dennis Boyle, which agreement was after- ward consummated, and Boyle conveyed the last- mentioned quantity to Edward Boyle, August 22, 1870, for $400. The northwestern corner of this parcel is now occupied by C. Harrigan.

East of that Mahaffey tract there is an extensive vacant space N. E. and S. on the Gapen map, but on the other is an octagonally-shaped tract, the north- ern part of which is in what is now Sugar Creek township, 229 acres and 18 perches, on which Bryan Kelly made an improvement and settlement in July, 1799, which was surveyed to him by George Ross, April 29, 1802. His name does not appear in any of the records of this county, unless he was identical with "Barney Kelly," who was assessed with 100 acres, 2 horses and 1 cow, in 1805, at $31, and in 1806, at $51. He must have resided on the northern part of his tract, for after the organiza- tion of Sugar Creek township his name is on its assessment list until 1812, when he removed to Butler county. For several years he packed iron, salt and other merchandise from east of the Alle- gheny mountains. The records of this county do not show the transfer of his interest in this tract of land to any one else.

Adjoining the Kelly tract on the east, on the Lawson & Orr map, is the tract, about 400 acres, surveyed in the olden time to Cornelius Sweeney, on which Thomas Hindman settled probably in the latter part of the last century. He was assessed with that quantity of land, 1 horse and 2 cows, as early as 1805, at $202, the next year at $252, and continned to be assessed with a greater or less quantity until 1839. Two patents were granted to him, dated respectively February 23, 1836, and July 5, 1839. He and his son John conveyed 17 acres and 140 perches included in the first of the patents to James Brown, November 1, 1839, for $124. John conveyed 115 acres included in the same patent to Thomas McKee, August 12, 1840, for $924 ; 97 acres and 35 perches (in Sugar Creek) included in the second patent to Daniel Boyle, June

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HISTORY OF ARMSTRONG COUNTY.

6, 1843, for $900 ; 98 acres and 14 perches of second patent to Th. McKee, May 13, 1846, for $864.06, and 150 acres of first patent to William Ramsey, Sep- tember 8, 1856, for $3,000. McKee conveyed 115 acres and 80 perches to Andrew H. McKee, De- cember 25, 1852, for $630, and 108 acres and 14 perches to James B. McKee, July 17, 1855, for $-, who conveyed the same to Augustus Uhl, the present owner, April 1, 1856, for $1,800.

Adjoining the Thomas Hindman tract on the southeast was one, 392 acres and 126 perches, on which Manassah Coyle made an improvement and settlement, probably about 1800. It was surveyed to him by Judge Ross, May 7, 1807, in whose notes of survey it is described as being adjoined on the northwest by Cornelius Sweeney and Thomas Hindman. Coyle was assessed, as early as 1805, with 400 acres, 2 horses and 1 cow, at $216. He was assessed the last time with the land in 1808, and then at $427. It is noted on the assessment list of Sugar Creek township, in which this tract then was, "Transferred to Miles McCue." The patent to Coyle is dated June 5, 1811. August 19, 1812, he conveyed 140 acres to McCue for $590, and 196 acres to Enos McBride for $250. McCue, by his will, dated August 19, 1812, witnessed by his neighbors, Patrick McBride and Edward Wiggins, and proven by them and registered March 13, 1821, devised his parcel of the Coyle tract to his sons Neil and Roger, 21 acres and 117 perches of which they conveyed to James Brown, November 19, 1839, for $87.38. Neil and his family continued to occupy the residue until he conveyed it to his son William P., the present owner, November 9, 1863, and a portion of it there- after until his death. The consideration for that conveyance was one of those mutual domestic arrangements by which the grantee agrees to maintain the grantor and his wife. In this in- stance the grantors, or parents, were to be fur- nished by the grantee, annually, with certain speci- fied quantities of provisions, and allowed the use of certain rooms in the mansion-house, a certain quantity of pasturage and various other privileges, during their natural lives. In the description of the parcel thus conveyed, the Hindman tract is mentioned as the " Cornelius survey "-the scrive- ner probably inadvertently omitted " Sweeney"- " and so mentioned in the Coyle patent," that is, as an adjoiner. The place of beginning in the boundaries of this parcel is at a corner on the line between the Wiggins and Coyle tracts, " ten rods west of the old Reu corner, including the Reu tract." The eastern portion of the Coyle tract included at least a part of what appears to be "Jo-

seph Irwin's claim" on the Gapen map, and a nar- row strip of it extends on the other map, across or to the eastern side of Little Buffalo creek. The parcel which Brown purchased from the McCues and Hindmans he conveyed to A. L. LeDoo, 139 acres and 114 perches, April 1, 1852, for $2,300, which, as containing 148 acres, more or less, he conveyed to James P. Hartman, March 29, 1865, and he to J. T. Hohn, the present owner, March 12, 1866, for $4,500. There was a schoolhouse on this Hohn parcel when Robert Brown lived in this neighborhood; Herman Cook, teacher. Among the pupils were J. E. Brown and the late Neil McCue. McBride conveyed 50 acres of his parcel of the Coyle tract to Nathaniel Patterson, Sep- tember 8, 1828, for $220, and 149 acres to John Y. Stewart, July 4, 1839, for $500, which his admin- istrator conveyed to Philip Templeton, June 30, 1849, for $1,005.75. Patterson was first assessed with 100 acres and 2 cows in 1820, at $37, with a sawmill in 1822, and with that 50-acre parcel and a gristmill in 1826, and was assessed with the latter until 1861.

The tract, 340 acres, adjoining the one last above noticed, was settled and improved by Peter Pence about 1800-probably two or three years before. As early as 1805 he was assessed with 300 acres, 2 horses and 1 cow, at $181, and the next year, with the same and an additional cow, at $186. By his will, dated November 2, 1811, and registered March 2, 1812, he did not devise any part of this tract to any one. It was assessed to his son Henry until he and the rest of his co-heirs conveyed their respective interests therein to Joseph Shields, March 9, 1833, for $50 each, except John Pence, who conveyed his interest to Shields, for the same amount, June 7, 1834, which the latter, by his will, dated June 17, 1852, and registered May 16, 1857, devised to his son David, who had conveyed 234 acres, including propably 30 acres of the tract east of Little Buffalo, to James B. McKee, March 31, 1850, for $2,600. There is an apparent discrepancy between the dates of the will and the last-men- tioned conveyance. It is recited in the latter that Joseph had conveyed the land to David, Novem- ber 2, 1845, and that the patent was granted to Joseph, December 20, 1813. The probability is that the patent for this tract was granted to Joseph and John Shields, June 9, 1836, for 330 acres and 156 perches, and the latter released his interest in 204 acres and 71 perches to the former, June 2, 1842, for $50, and that Joseph had either sold or agreed to sell the last-mentioned quantity to David, which he afterward devised to him.

On the Lawson & Orr map, adjoining the Pence

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WEST FRANKLIN TOWNSHIP.

tract on the south, is a narrow one of considerable length from east to west-its western portion some- what narrower than its eastern, and forming with its western adjoiner two angles, the southwestern one acute, and its northwestern one obtuse, con- taining about 170 acres, on which John Shields settled and established his tannery in 1816. The patent for this tract was granted to him March 7, 1828. By his will, dated September 10, 1862, and registered March 7, 1864, he devised his mansion- house and 170 acres and 114 perches of land to his wife, and a tract of 146 acres, adjoining that one on the north, to her during her life, which latter tract his executors, James Brown, of Slate Lick, and John Craig (of Samuel) conveyed to Martin Guiser, September 8, 1866, for $2,700. He directed his executors to sell a lot of 5 acres and 70 perches, partly in Worthington and partly in the township, and pay the proceeds of the sale to the elders of the Free Presbyterian church of Worth- ington at the rate of $40 annually, "for supporting the pastor, or supplies to the church for preach- ing the gospel." The amount paid to the elders for that purpose was $200.50. He directed that what remained, after satisfying various legacies, to be paid to the treasurer of the American Mis- sionary Society in the city of New York, to be ap- plied to its charitable uses and purposes. If there should not be enough to pay all the legacies for which he had provided, he directed that the farm, on which John Stewart then lived, be sold as soon after his wife's death as could be reasonably done, and whatever remainder there might be, after dis- changing the legacies, to be paid over to the Iberia college, Morrow county, Ohio, under the control of the Free Presbyterian church. His widow, Mrs. Mary Shields, by her will dated December 6, 1864, and registered January 26, 1866, authorized her executors, John Boyd and John Brown, to sell all her property, personal and real, and, after satisfying her debts, expenses and divers legacies, to appro- priate the balance to the trustees of the board of education of the Presbyterian church of the United States, to be "applied to the education of young men for the gospel ministry." Her execu- tors conveyed 170 acres of her real estate to Find- ley Wilson, August 3, 1866, which he conveyed to Joshua Nickle, the present owner, June 29, 1868, for $3,000.

Southwest of the Kelley and Coyle and north- westerly of the Pence and Shields tracts, on the Gapen map, is one nearly a trapezoid in shape, on which are inscribed " Robert Jordan," " 407. 63 " -- its southeasterly end being 221 and its north- westerly 144 perches long, traversed southwesterly

by two parallel runs, the easternmost one nearly through the center, and the other one between it and the northwestern end of the tract. On the other map the same tract has the inscriptions "Edward Wiggins, 408"," who made an early improvement and settlement on it. He was assessed with it, 1 horse and 1 cow, in 1805, at $111, and the next year, with an additional horse and cow, at $140. The patent for this tract was granted to McCall and Wiggins, November 5, 1819, They made partition and released to each other, June 25, 1823, McCall to Wiggins, 216 acres and 77 perches, and Wiggins to McCall, 191 acres and 86 perches. Wiggins conveyed 112 acres of his purpart to his son-in-law William Blaine, January 7, 1843, for the proper and sufficient maintenance of himself and his wife during the rest of their lives. Blaine conveyed his entire parcel to Will- iam Denny, February 25, 1853, for $896, 39 acres and 155 perches of which he conveyed to Patrick Denny, June 21, 1864, who conveyed the same to James Kinsley, the present owner, May 21, 1866, for $425. William Denny conveyed the residue of his parcel, 72 acres, to Geo. S. Ross, the present owner, October 2, 1873, for $1,900.

The McCall purpart, containing by a later sur- vey 201 acres and 64 perches, was included in the sale by McCall's heirs to Brown, Gilpin and Johnston, 163 acres of which Johnston conveyed to Peter Graff, October 5, 1857, for $1,304, and which the latter conveyed to Andrew Hindman, the present owner, October 27, 1864, for $2,100.

The northwestern end of the Jordan-Wiggins tract on the Gapen map is adjoined by the John Jordan tract 4033 acres, about three-fourths of its territory being in what is now Butler county-the portion of it in this county making, with the county line, a heptagon in shape. This tract was improved and settled by John Donaldson, probably ahout 1797. He was assessed with 400 acres, I horse and 1 cow, in 1805-6, at $121. The patent for this tract was granted to him and McCall November 23, 1827. They having made partition, McCall con- veyed 150 acres and 53 perches, mostly on this side of the county line, to Donaldson, November 3, 1830, which the latter conveyed to Andrew Minteer, May 17, 1836, for $700, who conveyed the same quantity to James Minteer, November 17, 1840, for $700, on which he built a sawmill, in 1854, which was operated until 1859.

South of that tract was one for which a patent was granted to Samuel Milligan, March 6, 1838, who conveyed it to John Milligan, Sr., July 12, and he to John Milligan, Jr., subject to the main- tenance of Joseph Milligan, who conveyed 30 acres

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HISTORY OF ARMSTRONG COUNTY.

and 40 perches to John Beemer, March 31, 1856, ! $200, which he conveyed to Archibald Mccullough for $360, on which he afterward built a limekiln.

Southeast of the John Jordan tract, and south- west of the Jordan-Wiggins tract, is a vacant area on the Gapen map, except the inscription "John Ellis," which in some of the records is written " John Elliott." On the other map is a long, nar- row, rather irregularly-shaped tract, 367 acres and 96 perches, the central part of which is traversed in a southeastern course by the Buffalo creek, on which James Hindman made an improvement and settlement in March, 1797, and which was surveyed to him by George Ross, December 15, 1801, to whom the patent for 368 acres and 40 perches was granted January 23, 1816, on warrant dated March 7, 1807. He was assessed in 1805 with 350 acres, 1 horse and 3 cattle, at $173. By his will dated July 9, 1845, and registered May 6, 1846, he devised the land in this tract and the parcels which he had por- chased from John Griffin and Samuel S. Harris to his sons, Andrew, George, John and William, to each a specified quantity. John appears to have lived on the northwestern part of this tract, now occupied by Joseph Baker, to whom John had probably in his lifetime sold or agreed to sell 106 acres, reserving 134 acres for the benefit of his minor child, Margaret. The conveyance therefor to John appears to have been mislaid or lost, for his son, Joseph, and his daughters, intermarried with Philip Griffin and John P. Milligan, and their husbands undoubtedly intended to supply the want of that conveyance by making one to Baker, who singu- larly is the party of the first instead of the second part in their deed, which is not signed Griffin and his wife ; and, again, those who signed that deed dated December 14, 1867, receipted for the purchase money, $900, to themselves. Perhaps an inad- vertent contretemps of the scrivener.

South of that part of the John Jordan-McCall- Donaldson tract, mainly in this county, including, perhaps, parts of "McNitt's Claim " and "Im- proved Land " on the Gapen map, is a long, narrow tract on the other map, whose southeastern end projects eastward like the foot of the letter L, with the inscription, " A. Smith, 400ª." It was im- proved and settled by Mary Gallagher, whom Smith married. It, 1 horse and 1 cow were first assessed to him on the Buffalo township list in 1812, at $26, and the next year at $226. Smith and his wife, March 22, 1831, conveyed the southeastern end of this tract, supposed to contain 150 acres, "to be laid off by running a line along the fence that runs from the shop, near the turnpike road, in the direction of the said fence across the said tract." They conveyed that parcel to John Donglass for

as containing 105 acres and 74 perches, March 1, 1837, for $527, to whom the patent for it was granted April 14, 1838. He conveyed it to James Walker, March 14, 1846, for $800, and the latter to Nicholas Clark, April 3, 1850, for $2,200. The 300 acres remaining after the sale to Douglass were divided by inquest, heretofore mentioned,* into six purparts which, though varying somewhat in quantity, were each valued at $396.37. No. 1 was taken at the appraisement by James Minteer, as guardian of Andrew McCoy Smith, a minor child of James G. Smith, who conveyed it to Nicholas Clark, February 18, 1854, for $300 ; No. 2 by John, the eldest son of Abraham Smith, who conveyed its 37 acres and 138 perches to Nicholas Clark, February 9, 1850, for $700; No. 3 by William Smith ; No. 4 by George Morrison, alienee of Mary Van Horn, née Smith ; No. 5 by Hugh Daugherty alienee of H. N. Lee, who was the alienee of Joseph B. Smith, and No. 6 by Abraham Smith, Jr., by whom it is still occupied.

Southeast of the James Hindman and east of the Abraham Smith tract is unsurveyed territory on the Gapen map, but on the other the Patrick Mc- Bride, an irregularly shaped one, 384 acres and 91 perches, which was surveyed by George Ross to McBride, April 28, 1802, by virtue of his previous improvement and settlement. Its southeastern part is crossed by Big Buffalo creek. The patent for this tract was granted after Patrick's death, June 23, 1838, to Michal McBride for himself and in trust for the rest of the legal heirs of his father. Hugh McBride sold his interest in this tract to John Gillespie, who conveyed 116 acres and 100 perches to Nicholas Clark, June 2, 1848, for $1,000; 71 acres and 106 perches of which Clark conveyed to James Blain, April 2, 1858, for $925. Michael McBride conveyed about 20 acres to John McBride May 13, 1841, which the latter conveyed to Will- iam Blain, March 28, 1842, and which he conveyed to James Blain, February 16, 1863, for $300. Michael also conveyed 120 acres to John Blain, June 27, 1849, for $1,060.

South of the western half of the John Shields and east of the James Hindman and Patrick Mc- Bride tracts, on the Gapen map, is the tract sur- veyed by Gapen to " Thomas Jordan," " 4183 " acres, an octagon in shape, and traversed in a sontheasterly course by the Big Buffalo creek, with three tributaries nearly parallel to one another, flowing into it from the north-northeast. On the other map are inscribed: "A. McCall and Sam'l Taylor, 400ª." Taylor probably made an improve-

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History of Armstrong County, Pennsylvania, Part 100

Author: Smith, Robert Walter Publication date: 1883 Publisher: Chicago : Waterman, Watkins Number of Pages: 790

Author: Smith, Robert Walter
Publication date: 1883
Publisher: Chicago : Waterman, Watkins
Number of Pages: 790