History of Bradford County, Pennsylvania, with biographical selections, Part 101

Author: Bradsby, H. C. (Henry C.)
Publication date: 1891
Publisher: Chicago, S. B. Nelson
Number of Pages: 1340

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GEORGE S. HOMET, farmer and stock-dealer, P. O. Homet's Ferry, was born in Wyalusing township, January 7, 1851, and is a son of Francis and Ada (Chamberlain) Homet. His father, who was a son of Charles Homet, Jr., was born in Asylum township, August 28, 1820, and passed his life in the vicinity of Homet's Ferry; he was an extensive farmer and lumberman, also a contractor on the North Branch Canal and the Lehigh Valley Railroad, and lost his life while removing a derrick, after the completion of the railroad bridge across Wyalusing creek, the derrick falling and crushing him, killing him instantly; his death occurred September 11, 1867. He was twice married; first to Mary Gilbert, by whom he had one child, Mary, who died in infancy ; his wife died March 11, 1844, and he was married, the second time, to Ada Chamberlain, a daughter of William Chamberlain, of Wyalusing, August 28, 1845. This union was blessed with three chil- dren : Mary, born August 13, 1847, married to George W. Fell, loco- motive engineer, now in the employ of the B. & M. railroad, residing at Harvard, Neb .; George S .; Rachel, born March 3, 1856, married to William N. Wells, a farmer of Wyalusing. The subject of this sketch resides with his mother on the old homestead, which originally con- sisted of 160 acres, of which 100 acres remain, and is owned by this gentleman ; here he passed his boyhood, and he was educated in the common schools and the Collegiate Institute, Towanda. His father's death occurred when he was but sixteen years old, and from that time forward he had the management of the farm ; he was engaged in

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dealing in cattle, buying and collecting droves which he drove to Wilkes-Barre ; he has been engaged in that business from 1870 until the present time. For many years he rented the farm, but in the spring of 1890 he moved back on the old place, and there, with his mother, has a cozy and comfortable home. The farm has four dwell- ing houses and one store-room on it, and is as beautifully located and as fertile as the county affords; he has the farm well stocked with horses and cattle, and does a general farm business. He is a Repub- lican in politics; but, while taking an active interest in politics, has never been an office-seeker, and would never accept an office. In business he has been quite successful, and occupies a prominent place among the young farmers and stock-men of the county.

SETH HOMET, farmer and stock-dealer, P. O. Homet's Ferry. His father, Charles Homet, Jr., was the eldest of four children of Charles and Maria Theresa Homet. Charles Homet, the grandfather, was among the French refugees who came to this country during the Revolution of 1793; in Paris he had been steward in the household of Louis XVI., and fled from the city with others about the time the king made that unfortunate attempt to escape from France; they came in a French war ship, and were chased three days in their voy- age by an English vessel, but made their escape. Mrs. Homet, whose family name was Scheilinger, was born in Strasbourg, and was once one of the waiting maid's of the unfortunate Marie Antoinette; they took passage in the same vessel, becoming acquainted while on voy- age, and were married soon after their arrival in this country, and for a year or more lived at a place called Battle Hill, N. J., now known as Madison. Here Charles was born, May 7, 1794. Mr. Homet, Sr., then removed to Asylum township, and soon after to the settlement in the western part of Terry township, where it will be remembered arrangements had been made for the reception of the king and queen of France; after a year or two Mr. Homet, Sr., returned to Asylum, where he bought several lots of the Asylum company ; when the French people left Asylum he and Mr. La Porte purchased the greater part of the lands there. Mrs. Homet died here in 1823, at the age of sixty-three. Mr. Homet, Sr., married again in 1827; he had one daughter by this marriage, the wife of E. T. Fox, of Towanda; Mr. Homet was a very successful farmer; accumulating a large fortune, he cleared quite a large farm. He was a member of the Methodist Epis- copal Church in his later years. After marrying his second wife he removed to Wysox, where he died in December, 1838, at the alloted age of three-score years and ten. By the first marriage there were born to him four children : Charles, Francis, Harriet and Joseph. Francis, who was born at Asylum, married Lucy Dodge, and settled on part of the old homestead, where he died in 1890; he had no children, was a farmer by occupation, and an active member of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Harriet married Simon Stevens, of Standing Stone, and was the mother of five children, viz .: Charles, George, Ellen, Harriet, Mary. Joseph was married to Oris Brown, and resides at and owned the Homet's Mills; about 1840 he sold and removed to Monroeton, the former home of his wife, he also was a farmer and a

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member of the Baptist Church, and was the father of three children who lived to attain maturity, viz .: Jewett G., Marion and Lydia. Charles was married to Lucy Stevens, and had the following children : Theresa, married to U. P. Stone, an influential farmer near Camp- town. Jonathan, Edward, Milton and Charles S., all prominent farmers, and live neighbors to each other. Volney is a physician, and resides in Wyalusing borough. Joseph A. resides in Towanda. Seth, the subject of this sketch, was born March 13, 1836, on the farm he now occupies, in the old house which stood near the ferry, attending the common schools of his district, and a few months spent at the Towanda Academy constituted his educational privileges ; upon reach- ing his majority he engaged in farming until October 16, 1862, when he was drafted and enrolled in Company D, One Hundred and Seventy-first Regiment Pennsylvania Drafted Infantry, was promoted to quartermaster-sergeant, November 18, 1862. He served faithfully until the expiration of his term, August 8, 1863, and was discharged; he then returned home and resumed farming, which he has since fol- lowed. He was drafted a second time, but purchased his exemption. He now owns 140 acres of finely improved and highly cultivated farm land, and does a general farm business ; the residence he occupies was built by his father the year he (Seth) was born. His father was a lumberman, and followed rafting many years ; his elder brothers have made several trips on rafts, but he made but one; his farm is well stocked with grade Durham cattle and horses. He was united in marriage, March 4, 1864, with Elizabeth, daughter of Moses and Marietta (Bacon) Eilenberger; her parents were natives of Monroe county, but passed the greater portion of their lives in Asylum and Terry townships, this county ; her father was born in 1812, and died December 26, 1876; her mother was born in 1820, and died February 15, 1875. Mr. Eilenberger was a farmer and one of the largest lum- berman of this county ; they had a family of ten children, of whom Elizabeth is the eldest. To Mr. and Mrs. Homet has been born a family of five children, three of whom survive: Marietta, born March 5, 1865, married to A. D. Nesbit, M. D., and residing at Tekamah, Neb .; Charles, born October 6, 1867, is a graduate of the Collegiate Insti- tute, Towanda, of the class of '88, has followed teaching several years, and attended Miller's School of Commerce, Elmira ; Cora, was born October 21, 1869, and when ready to graduate from the Collegiate Institute was taken ill and died, May 10, 1888 ; Anna, born April 16, 1877, died in infancy ; Geraldine, born June 29, 1879. In his religious views Mr. Homet is a Universalist, and is a Republican in politics. Among the successful farmers and business men of Bradford county Mr. Homet ranks well toward the front ; he makes a study of his busi- ness, and thoroughly understands what are the best means to achieve the best results, and then pursue them to success ; he has been success- ful, and as a friend and neighbor none stand higher than he and his excellent wife.

W. H. HOMET, manufacturer and dealer in lumber and shingles, P. O. Lime Hill, was born in Wyalusing township, March 22, 1862, a son of C. S. Homet. He was reared on a farm, and educated at the

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HISTORY OF BRADFORD COUNTY.

Wyalusing Academy and State Normal School of Mansfield, P'a .; after leaving school he engaged in teaching a short time, and in 1885 took charge of his present business, where, with the exception of one year, he has been constantly engaged. The mill was built by C. S. and Edward Homet in 1885, and has a capacity of 24,000 feet of lum- ber per day and 100,000 shingles, both cut and sawed ; they employ ten men in the business. Mr. Homet was married October 17, 1889, to Adelia L. Mitten, daughter of James Mitten, a prominent farmer of Herrick township; this union has been blessed with one child, Harold. Mr. Homet is a member of White Lilly Lodge, No. 808, I. O. O. F., Wyalusing ; politically he is a Republican.

NATHANIEL HONEYWELL, farmer, P. O. Sugar Run, was born near Wilkes-Barre, Pa., October 20, 1841, and is a son of Isaac and Betsey (Wandell) Honeywell, natives of New Jersey, and of New Eng- land parentage. He began life for himself at the age of seventeen, as a general farm laborer, but September 6, 1861, he enlisted at Scranton in Company G, Eighty-eighth P. V. I., and was in the following battles : Spottsylvania Court-house, the Weldon raid, Hatcher's Run, and several minor engagements; was honorably discharged June 10, 1865, and returned to Wilmot township, where he engaged in farming, which he has since followed. Mr. Honeywell was married October 2, 1869, to Miss Ella, daughter of Sterling Quick, of Wilmot, and they have six children, as follows: Sterling Penn, born December 3, 1870; Etta May, born June 14, 1872 ; Gertrude W., born March 2, 1878; Albertie K., born October 30, 1879 ; William Archie, born April 25, 1886, and Corey B., born June 1, 1888. Mr. Honeywell is a member of the G. A. R. Post at Wyalusing, and politically is in close sympathy with the Dem- ocratic party, though he votes purely on principle and independent of any party influences.

AUGUSTUS S. HOOKER, Troy, was born at Leona, Bradford Co., Pa .. January 9, 1840, the youngest child of Clark and Flavia (Smith) Hooker, natives of Massachusetts. The ancestry is of English descent, Rev. Thomas Hooker, the celebrated Divine coming to Massachu- setts Bay in 1633, and afterward making the noted emigration to found Hartford, Conn., in 1636. The immediate descendants settled along the Connecticut Valley. To John Hooker, of Greenwich, Mass., three sons were born : Benjamin, Joseph and John. Clark Hooker was the son of Benjamin, who married Esther Woodard. Joseph became the father of Professors Charles and Washington Hooker, of Yale College, the latter of whom was a noted author. Clark Hooker was born at Green- wich, Mass., in 1795, and was married, January 1, 1821, to Flavia Smith, of Hadley, Mass., the "Ox-Bow Village" of Beecher's story of "Norwood"(she was descended from Lieut. Samuel Smith, who came to New England in 1634, and was the daughter of Justin Smith, of Hadley, her mother's name being Anna Fields). In 1824 they moved to Springfield, Bradford county. Their children were : Mrs. Esther Van- Horn, of Granville, this county ; Charles C. Hooker, of Leona; Mrs. Delia Miller, of Leeds, Mass. (deceased); Dr. Carlton C. Hooker, of Alba (deceased); John, of Dana, Ind .; Frederick, of Addison, N. Y., and A. S. Hooker. of Troy, Pa. The subject of this sketch was early

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noted for intellectual development and scholarship. In 1855-56 he attended a select school at East Troy, and was the daily companion and friend of P. P. Bliss, the noted singer and composer, and early showed his tastes by great proficiency in study. He later engaged in teaching, and attended the Troy Academy. In October, 1859, he went to Illinois, and spent a year and a half teaching near Paris, and then a similar period at Indianapolis, Ind., in the same work. During this time he contributed many articles to newspapers, which attracted attention, and made the acquaintance of many people of intellect. In 1862, he entered the Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, at Lima, N. Y., and later Genesee College (now Syracuse University), pursuing his studies until the close of the junior year. He afterward taught in several village schools, and in August, 1866, became editor of the Troy Gazette, which position he has since held. It was a difficult matter to conduct a paper where so many had failed, but perseverance had its reward. In 1867 Mr. Hooker was married to Miss Anna McBeath, of Bath, N. Y., who died March 1, 1871; and, in 1872, he married Miss J. C. Doane, of Leona. Ever since he engaged in his work, he has been active in every intellectual and moral work, as superintendent of Sunday-school, president of Chautauqua classes, writer on miscella- neous and political themes, and lecturer on a great variety of subjects. He is the author of a large number of poems and stories, and of several volumes, among them being "Practical talks to Amateurs on Art," "Select Readings," "The Leona Stories," and a comprehensive volume entitled "Great Earthquakes and their Phenomena," the most complete volume ever published in the United States on the subject. Besides these, he has several other volumes nearly completed. To his imme- diate neighbors, among whom are the whole people of Bradford county, he is better known as a promoter of our graded schools, and as a publisher and editor of one of the county papers, than otherwise. In that wider range that reaches out to the scholarly world of letters, Mr. Hooker is probably really better known than by hisimmediate next-door neighbors. Culture of the mind and trained thinking have been the goal that ever has invited him on and on, and his life has been an nnostentatious one, never even self-asserting, much less courting notoriety. He has made his indelible impress upon the newspaper business of the county, and while always a Republican, has never hesitated at honest and fearless criticism of Republicans when the hour demanded it.

EARL W. HORTON, farmer and salesman, Hornbrook, was born in Sheshequin township, September 21, 1851, a son of U. E. and Sallie (Elliott) Horton. He was reared on a farm, and attended the schools of the vicinity, about the usual time of a pioneer's boy; he remained with his father until twenty-three, then found employment as travel- ing salesman for an agricultural implement house, making regular trips through New York and Pennsylvania, and is now in that employ. Mr. Horton was married October 28, 1874, to Mary, daughter of Franklin and Lucy (Horton) Blackman, residents of Sheshequin, and they have three children: Landon, aged thirteen; Blanche, aged eleven, and Hullie, aged six. Mr. Horton has owned the farm he now occupies fifteen years, and has built all the improvements; the house is a

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modern, eight-room building ; the farm contains seventy-five acres all under cultivation. He is a Master Mason, and a member of Union Lodge, No. 108, Towanda, also a member of the I. O. O. F., Valley Lodge, No. 446, and has passed all the chairs ; a member of the Patri- otic Order Sons of America, Washington Camp, No. 190, and in politics he is a Republican.

ELIJAH H. HORTON, farmer, P. O. North Towanda, was born in Sheshequin township, this county, November 12, 1808, and is a son of Stephen and Susan (Mayhew) Horton. His paternal grandfather, Elijah Horton, a native of Connecticut, was one of the first settlers of Sheshequin, where he cleared a farm and died on the same; he was a soldier of the Revolutionary War; his children were as follows : Rich- ard, Joshua, Isaac, Elijah, Gilbert, Stephen, William, Betsey (Mrs. Benjamin Brink), Fanny (Mrs. Seeley Hayes), Esther (Mrs. Timothy Stratton) and Phoebe (Mrs. John Smith). The father of our subject was born in Sheshequin township, where he spent the most of his life, engaged in farming, and he died at the residence of our subject in North Towanda. His wife, Susan, was a daughter of Richard Mayhew, a captain in the Revolutionary War, and a pioneer of Lycoming county, Pa. By her he had eight children, namely : Elijah, Hiram, Shepherd, Mayhew, Elizabeth (Mrs. George Williams), Mary (Mrs. Benjamin Lyons), Catherine (Mrs. Hiram Goff) and Anna (Mrs. R. Fox). Elijah H. was reared in Sheshequin and settled in what is now North Towanda township, in 1828 ; he resided in Monroe township thirty years, where he cleared and improved a farm, but in 1868 returned to North Towanda, where he has since resided. In 1830 he married Polly, daughter of Abial and Mary (Means) Foster, of this county, by whom he had five chil- dren who grew to maturity, viz .: Orville, Bishop, Ellen (Mrs. Benja- min Carrick), Elma and Mary (Mrs. Salathiel Braund). Mr. Horton is one of the oldest citizens of Bradford county and is a member of the Methodist Church, and in politics is a Republican.

GEORGE H. HORTON, merchant, Sugar Run, was born August 8, 1844, and is a son of Elmore and Mary I. (Stone) Horton, the former a native of Pennsylvania, and of English descent, the latter of Pennsylvania, and of New England origin. Mr. Horton was educated in the common schools, and in the high school of Freeport, Ill. He commenced mercantile business, in 1873, at Sugar Run, this county, where he has since remained, and has a well-established trade in produce and general merchandise. Mr. Horton was married, Decem- ber 25, 1877, to Miss Emma, daughter of Josiah and Mary (Long) Horton, of Rome, and they have had three children: Sadie R., born October 4, 1878; Georgie H., born October 13, 18 -; Mary, born December 5, 1883, and died December 5, 1888. Mr. Horton is a member of the Masonic Lodge at Towanda, and in politics is a stanch Democrat.

GEORGE L. HORTON, farmer and stock-grower, Sheshequin township, P. O. Hornbrook, was born on the farm he now occupies, the old homestead, August 5, 1838, a son of David and Hannah (Newell) Horton, and grandson of Richard Horton, one of the early pioneer settlers of this county. His grandfather located on this

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farm when he came to Bradford county, and it has continued in the family. His father was a farmer and spent his entire life on the old homestead ; he built and operated two mills in the township, one on the river near the village of Sheshequin, the other on the river nearly opposite the present residence of Horace Horton; the one at Sheshe- quin was a grist and saw mill, the other a sawmill. His father was born in 1790 and died in June, 1875, leaving a family of fourteen children, of whom the following are living: Adaline, widow of Charles Chaffee; Hannah, wife of Dr. Cole; David, Jr .; Benjamin ; William P .; and George L. Our subject's boyhood was spent on the farm with his father, attending the schools of Hornbrook and Wysocking, and received a good common-school education; working on the farm for twenty-five years, he then rented the farm from his parents until their death, after which he bought out the heirs; it con- tains 100 acres, extending from the river to the main road, all sus- ceptible of cultivation, and is well stocked. He has a herd of Holstein and Jersey cattle, and he keeps a dairy of ten to twelve cows ; and cultivates, about 35 acres of grain. He was married, December 23, 1863, to Lucinda M., daughter of U. E. Horton, and they have four children: Jessie L., married to W. W. Horton, of Towanda; Emma A., died in infancy ; Ulysses D., a student at the Susquehanna Collegiate Institute, at Towanda, and Wallace C., aged fifteen, assistant bookkeeper at G. A. Dayton's mill, Towanda. The family are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church, Hornbrook congregation ; Mr. Horton's political views are Republican.

HORACE HORTON, farmer and stock-grower, of Sheshequin township, P. O. Quarry Glen, was born on the farm now owned by his brother, M. E. Horton, in Sheshequin, September 25, 1834, a son of William B. and Melinda (Blackman) Horton, and his grandfather was Elijah Horton, a native of Long Island. The earliest record of the Horton family begins with Barnabas Horton, who immigrated to the United States from England in 1659 or 1660, and located at South- hold, Long Island, and built a house there in 1660, a photograph of the same being now in the possession of his grandson. This immigrant had seven sons, as follows: Richard, Daniel, Elijah (grandfather of the subject), Gilbert, Joshua, Stephen and William. Elijah was among the first settlers of this county, and located at what is now Union Corners, and purchased a farm; two of his brothers, Gilbert and Isaac, came to the county about the same time, and bought farms adjoining. William B. Horton's family consisted of the following: Harry, a banker, of New York; Elizabeth, married to P. H. Kinney, whom she survives; Arazilla, married to H. C. Kinney, is a widow ; Mary, wife of William M. Shores ; M. E., who owns and resides in the old homestead farm ; Hortense R., married to T. G. Smith, and Horace who grew to manhood on his father's farm, and in 1860 purchased a farm of 150 acres, which adjoined his father's, and which he still owns, on which he made all the improvements, and has it well improved and well stocked, and has a fine herd of Jerseys. He was married, October 15. 1866, to Mary, daughter of H. C. and Sarah (Webb) Smith. Mr. Horton is a member of the National Grange, and of the Free-

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masons, having taken the degree of Master of Amity Lodge, No. 108, Towanda. Is also a member of the I. O. O. F., and has passed all the chairs, and State Encampment; in his political views he is a Republican; has held nearly all the township offices, and is now constable and tax collector.

J. B. HORTON, merchant and farmer, Terrytown, was born in Terry township, this county, January 8, 1842, a son of Dr. G. F. and Abigail (Terry) Horton, the former of whom was also a native of Terry township, a son of Maj. John Horton, who served as wagoner in the Revolutionary Army, because of being too young to act in any other capacity. Maj. Horton built the first wagon, and fanning-mill in Terry township. The Hortons are a numerous family, and are men of business qualities, holding offices of trust in this and other States ; they were the first settlers of Terry township; they removed to this country from England in 1635, locating in Rhode Island in 1638. Dr. Horton studied medicine at the Van Rensselaer Medical College, New York, and in 1829 began his profession in Terrytown, his native home, where he built up an extensive practice ; he was a member of the Constitu- tional Convention of the State of Pennsylvania, also one of the most active members of the Bradford County Medical Society, and wrote the report of the Society which, accompanied with a map, was published in the transactions of the year ; also wrote the genealogy of the Horton family. He died December 20, 1886, at the age of eighty-one, a strong advocate of temperance; he was married to Miss Abigail Terry, by whom he had eight children, seven of them growing to maturity- two sons and five daughters. The subject of this memoir resides on his father's farm which he now owns ; he is an extensive business man, having been in the lumber business as a successful dealer many years, in connection with which he has a large store which he has kept with profit to himself and his customers nearly twenty years. His farm is an extensive one of 200 acres, one-half of which is under improvement ; his farming is mixed, but he gives preference to grain and stock, some of the latter being registered. Mr. Horton's house which stands on the site of the Doctor's residence is palatial in dimensions, being fitted up in the most modern style. As a merchant he carries a full line for country trade ; also deals extensively in farming machinery of all kinds. He has held the office of postmaster eight years. Mr. Horton married, February 24, 1875, for his first wife, Miss Eva L., daughter of James S. and Lemira Tupper, by which union there was one son, Arthur Roe, now fourteen years of age. Mr. Horton's second wife was Angie, widow of W. S. Holmes, and daughter of Rev. D. Trumbull, the marriage taking place May 18, 1887. Mr. Horton enlisted as a member of the Thirty-Fifth Pennsylvania Emergency Troops, Company A, serving the prescribed term, and was honorably discharged. Politically he is a Republican.

J. P. HORTON, farmer, P. O. New Era, was born July 13, 1807, and was reared and educated in Terry township, this county ; he is a son of Ebenezer and Mary (Terry) Horton, the former born in Goshen, . N. Y., or in Connecticut, a son of Maj. Horton, an officer in the Revolutionary War. The Hortons, who are very early settlers in this

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HISTORY OF BRADFORD COUNTY.

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History of Bradford County, Pennsylvania, with biographical selections, Part 101

Author: Bradsby, H. C. (Henry C.) Publication date: 1891 Publisher: Chicago, S. B. Nelson Number of Pages: 1340

Author: Bradsby, H. C. (Henry C.)
Publication date: 1891
Publisher: Chicago, S. B. Nelson
Number of Pages: 1340