History of Bradford County, Pennsylvania, with biographical selections, Part 70

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

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HISTORY OF BRADFORD COUNTY.

wife, and two daughters, Julia Eliza and Essy. He is at present in charge of the parish of old St. Mathews in the township of Pike.

WILLIAM BOSTWICK, farmer, of Wysox township, P. O. Wysox, was born in Susquehanna county, Pa., April 1, 1840, a son of Madison and Amanda (Griffis) Bostwick, natives of Connecticut and Pennsyl- vania, respectively. In his father's family there were five children, of whom he is the third. When he was thirteen years of age he went to live with William Griffis, at Rummerfield, and when Mr. Griffis was elected sheriff, he lived in Towanda, and remained in the family some time. On August 12, 1862, he enlisted at Rummerfield, in Company I, One Hundred and Forty-first P. V. I., and was discharged on surgeon's certificate of disability, December 29, 1862; in 1877 he engaged with R. M. Bostwick in mercantile business at Rummerfield, where he remained five years ; he was two years foreman for the Lehigh Valley Railroad, and in 1883 he purchased his present home where he has since resided and given his attention chiefly to farming. Mr. Bostwick was married, October 30, 1873, to Esther, daughter of Hiram and Lodoiska (Huyck) Vannest, natives of Pennsylvania, and of Dutch origin. They have five children, as follows : Amelia Rahm, born February 22, 1875; Elizabeth E., born September 7, 1876; Jennie L., born October 8, 1879; William, born December 14, 1881, died September 18, 1882; Esther H., born April 14, 1890. Mr. Bostwick is a member of the G. A. R. Post at Rome; is a Republican in politics and has been school director in Wysox, and was postmaster at Rum- merfield from 1879 until 1882.

E. E. BOSWORTH, merchant, Wyalusing township, P. O. Wya- lusing, was born in Smithfield township, this county, May 11, 1846, son of Dr. Henry C. and Maria (Bosard) Bosworth, natives of New York. His father was a graduate of the Geneva Medical College and practiced many years, being remarkably successful, but he gave up the practice of medicine about fifteen years prior to his death, and devoted his attention to mercantile pursuits at Osceola, where he died, December 5, 1870, aged fifty-eight years. Dr. Bosworth had a family of three children : E. E. (our subject) ; U. A., a farmer of Osceola, and C. H., a physician, of Osceola. E. E. passed his boyhood at Osceola where he received an academical education, then entered the University of Geneseo, N. Y., and after two years spent there, returned home and entered the mercantile business, becoming a partner in a hardware store at Osceola in 1870. He remained there until 1877, when he sold out and for two years was engaged in settling accounts and settlement of an estate, still conducting the postoffice there; then, in 1879, he came to Wyalusing and entered the firm of Bosworth, Stone & Company, which purchased the store and stock of H. S. Ackley. This firm began the operating of a general store, also the purchasing of hay, grain and all kinds of country produce, and dealing in salt, lime, coal, etc. The senior member of the firm was N. P. Bosworth, uncle of our subject, who died August 4, 1886. The firm continued with E. B. Stone, until 1889, when Mr. Stone went out and assumed control of the produce and grain depart- ment, and C. R. Stone became a member of the firm. E. B. Stone is

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HISTORY OF BRADFORD COUNTY.

now head of the firm of E. B. Stone & Co., dealers in hay and grain, of which our subject is also a member; their business, taken collect- ively, is the largest in this section ; in their store they carry a large line of groceries and provisions, dry goods, clothing, boot and shoes, grain and seed. The business has increased more than $10,000 per year over what it was when the firm purchased it. Besides his mercantile interests Mr. Bosworth owns two-thirds of the store building and an elegant residence. He was united in marriage, January 7, 1880, with Adelaide Bosard, daughter of Arthur Bosard, a farmer, of Osceola, Pa. They have an adopted child-Catherine. The family worship at the Presbyterian Church ; he is a member of the Masonic Fraternity, and has taken the degrees of the Scottish Rite, is connected with Union Lodge, No. 108, Towanda, and is a Republican in his political preferments.

JAMES W. BOSWORTH, farmer, Pike towhship, P. O. Le Rays- ville, was born on his present farm, August 25, 1822, a son of Reed and Amarilla (Peck) Bosworth, natives of Connecticut and of English and Irish descent, respectively. In their family there were six chil- dren, of whom James W. is the youngest ; the other children being Nelson P., Henry C., Harriet, Susan and Elizabeth P. James W. Bosworth began life for himself at the age of twenty-one, farming and dealing in stock, driving large droves to Connecticut and southern Pennsylvania, though his trade has been chiefly in the home market. He now owns and superintends one of the finest farms in the county, the nucleus of which was settled by his father in December, 1812. Mr. Bosworth married Laura, daughter of John and Mary (Harkness) Bird, of Smithfield, this county, where they were early settlers, com- ing from Vermont. Mr. and Mrs. Bosworth have two children : Martin B., born December 23, 1859, a commission merchant in Trini- dad, Col .; and Nelson E., born April 14, 1862, engaged in farming with his father. Mrs. Bosworth died January 1, 1891. Mr. Bosworth is an independent voter, and is pledged to no political party.

JASPER P. BOSWORTH is a merchant of LeRaysville, Pike town- ship, where he was born, November 5, 1842, a son of John Frank Bosworth, also a native of Pike township, and who was the son of Josiah Bosworth, a native of Connecticut and one of the pioneers to Bradford county. Josiah Bosworth was a son of Joseph Bosworth, an Englishman. Josiah and his brothers came to Pike township about 1798, settling three miles south of LeRavsville, and in a little while Josiah opened his log tavern called the " Half-Way House," because it was about half-way between Towanda and Montrose; he conducted this noted early-day hostelry many years, carrying on at the same time his large farm. In the 1812-15 war with England, Josiah Bosworth raised a company of men to go to the front. They organized, making him captain, and embarked and went down the river to Danville, when the end of the war was announced, and " Johnny came marching home." Josiah Bosworth, who was one of thirteen children, was born in Litchfield, Conn., November 25, 1779, and died at the old family home, September 22, 1858, aged seventy-nine years. His family consisted of thirteen children, eleven of whom grew to maturity. His

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HISTORY OF BRADFORD COUNTY.

grandson, J. A. Bosworth, now resides on the old homestead; James Bosworth, a nephew of Josiah, lives three miles south of LeRaysville. An episode in Josiah's pioneer life is related: On one occasion, on his return from church through the woods, he espied a bear, gave chase and treed him ; in order to keep him from coming down, while he went for his gun, was a problem he settled by tying his shirt around the tree ; so Bruin had to patiently wait until Josiah's return, who then dispatched him, and that bear's skin was a family trophy as well as a good winter cover until there was little or no fur left on it. John F. Bosworth opened the first drug store in LeRaysville, and also the first hardware store, in course of time associating in his business his son, Jasper P. Bosworth. They sold the drug store and grocery business in 1874, when John F. Bosworth retired from active business life : he died December 10, 1889. His strong characteristics during a long and busy life were high integrity, a sleepless energy and a physical endurance that never tired or became worn out. At the age of seventy-five, he was elected collector, and was the first incumbent in that office after the constitutional change in the law for collection of taxes-a trying position for even a young man, but he filled it promptly and ably. He had received a common-school education, and learned the harness, trunk and saddle-maker's trade, and followed the latter at LeRaysville, also carrying on the tannery store until 1853, when he opened a harness store in Waverly, when he was burned out in the great fire there. He opened his drug store in LeRaysville in 1863, under the firm name of J. F. Bosworth & Son. His partner in the hardware store was James Gorham, and this was carried on three years, when Mr. Bosworth sold his interest to LeRoy Coleman. His wife was Ruth Ann Perkins, and they have had seven children, as follows : George and Elbert (both died young) ; Lucilla (Mrs. Stephen C. Carpenter); Jasper P .; Amie (Mrs. Dr. R. S. Harnden, of Waverly, N. Y.); Sarah (wife of C. F. Chaffee, druggist, Waverly, N. Y.) and Dellie (Mrs. Dr. R. J. McCready, Allegheny City, Pa.).

The subject of this sketch, Jasper P. Bosworth, was educated in the common schools, finishing at the Waverly Institute. For a short time thereafter he clerked ; then entered his father's store as a partner, and when they sold out in 1875, he purchased his deceased father-in-law's interest in the firm of Gray & Lyon, changing to the present style of firm in the general store of Bosworth & Lyon. Mr. Bosworth is regarded as one of the prominent and leading men of this part of the county. In 1869, he was united in marriage with Anna A. Gray, eldest daughter of Cyrus W. and Dollis H. (Everett) Gray, and the fruits of this marriage are three children, viz. : Winifred, who died in infancy, Marjorie Lee, born in 1885, and Charles Herman, born in 1888. The family worship at the Congregational Church, of which Mr. Bosworth is treasurer. He is past master in the Masonic Fraternity, and is a member of LeRay Lodge, No. 417, A. Y. M .; is treasurer of LeRays- ville Assembly, No. 213; treasurer of the school board, and was secretary of the same three years ; was borough anditor three years.

J. ALONZO BOSWORTH, farmer, Pike township, was born on the farm where he now resides, November 13, 1836, and is the eldest

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HISTORY OF BRADFORD COUNTY.

in a family of eight children of J. K. and Mary A. (Codding) Bos- worth. His grandparents, Mr. and Mrs. Josiah Bosworth, came from Connecticut in 1798, and settled on the farm where he now lives, which was then a dense wilderness; the grandfather built the barn in 1803, which is still standing on the old homestead, and the house in 1817, making all the nails by hand, and bringing the iron from Wilkes-Barre on horseback. Josiah Bosworth was a man of much military ability, and an officer in the War of 1812. The subject of this chapter spent his boyhood on the farm, until he reached the age of twenty-five. August 13, 1862, he enlisted in Company B, One Hundred and Forty-first P. V. I .; during the battle of Chancellors- ville he saved the old flag, and carried it from the field after four men had been shot down with it, for which act of gallant bravery he was presented with a cross as a token of such rare and sterling hero- ism. At Gettysburg he received a wound in the right leg, which disabled him for a time from active service; but as soon as able he returned to his regiment ; he lay wounded on the field nearly forty- eight hours without food or drink. Beside the battles mentioned he · was in Fredericksburg and many other important engagements, and fought with unusual bravery, until his regiment was mustered out, when he returned to his farm in Pike township, where he has since been engaged in farming. Mr. Bosworth was married February 13, 1866, to Miss Lillian A., daughter of George and Susana (Scott) Lacey, and they have had four children. Mr. Bosworth is a member of the G. A. R. Post at LeRaysville, in which he takes a very active part, and is a strong Republican.

LEWIS ALBA BOSWORTH, farmer, of Pike township, P. O. LeRaysville, was born at Stevensville, this county, May 30, 1835, a son of Lewis Luckey and Sarah A. (Hancock) Bosworth, natives of Pike township ; the former is of Irish and New England descent, and the latter of Dutch and New England. The father was a farmer and later a merchant at Stevensville, and from 1846 to 1886 lived at LeRaysville ; was appointed postmaster during Lincoln's administration and held the position for twenty years; in his family were three children : Lewis Alba, Sarah Catherine (married to E. T. E. Becker, a lawyer at Mt. Carroll, Ill.), and Martha Arabella (married to E. M. Bailey, a merchant and manufacturer, of LeRaysville). Lewis Alba has lived on the farm, which he now owns, since he was six years old, and was educated in LeRaysville and Holland Patent academies. He began life for himself at the age of twenty-five, and in 1870 purchased the homestead of his father. He enlisted at Harrisburg, September 1, 1864, in Company E, Twelfth Pennsylvania Cavalry ; was in the Engineer Corps on coast survey, and was mustered out at Washington, June 5, 1865 ; then resumed farming, which he has since followed. Mr. Bosworth was married November 27, 1866, to Miss Elbertine L., daughter of Jesse and Louisa (Gerould) Sumner, of Smithfield, natives of Bradford county. This union has been blessed with six sons : Jesse Lewis, Harry Alba, Guy Sumner, Hugh, Ray Luckey (deceased) and Arthur. Mr. Bosworth is a member of Spalding Post, G. A. R., No. 33.

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HISTORY OF BRADFORD COUNTY.

JAMES L. BOTHWELL, insurance agent and coal dealer, Troy, was born in Troy township, this county, November 29, 1830, a son of James A. and Phebe (Blackwell) Both well, and is of English and Scotch- Irish descent. His father was a native of Granville, Washington Co., N. Y., a son of Lebbens and Nancy (Smith) Bothwell. His grand- mother, Nancy Bothwell, married, for her second husband, Samuel Rockwell, and came to Bradford county about 1818; the issue of this union was one son, Lewis. By her first marriage she had five children: Alexander, James, Justin, Nancy (Mrs. W. S. Dobbins) and Mary (Mrs. Ephraim Case), of whom James Both well, born in 1806, father of subject, was reared in Bradford county from twelve years of age. On attaining his majority he engaged in farming in Troy township; later removed to Canton township, and cleared and improved the farm on which he resided fifty years; his wife was a daughter of Thomas Blackwell, a native of England, who died in Burlington township, this county, and by her he had six children : James L., Thomas B., Nancy (Mrs. George Foss), Sarah (Mrs. D. B. Crandall), Lucy (Mrs. C. C. Paine) and Harriet (Mrs. J. W. Warren). James L. Bothwell was reared in Canton township, and educated in the common schools. He cleared and improved a farm in that township on which he resided up to 1870, when he removed to Canton borough, and for six years was employed at bridge building for the N. C. R. R. Company, then was engaged in draying up to 1885, when he removed to Troy, and embarked in the coal business in which he still continues; he has also conducted an insurance business since 1889. In 1852 Mr. Bothwell married Sally, daughter of James and Caroline (Gilmore) Warren, of Canton town- ship, formerly of England, and the issue of this union was three children : Helen (Mrs. G. F. Krise), Mary (Mrs. Morgan Baldwin) and Fred (deceased). In 1888 Mr. Bothwell married (the second time) Sarah, daughter of Stephen Stiles, of Burlington township, by whom he has one daughter, Phoebe T. Mr. Bothwell is a member of the Disciple Church and of the I. O. O. F. Politically he is a Democrat.

LYMAN C. BOUGHTON, farmer, of South Creek township, P. O. Gillett, was born in Columbia township, this county, February 22, 1837, and is a son of Daniel and Maria (Bailey) Boughton, the former of whom was born near Wellsburg, N. Y., the latter being a native of England. Daniel Boughton was born in 1810, and is now eighty-one years of age; he came to this county about 1825, locating in Colum- bia township, where he purchased a farm of 100 acres of unimproved land, on which he built, and cultivated fifty acres of it; he sold this farm, and moved to South Creek township, on what is now known as " East Hill," where he bought a farm of 100 acres, six acres of which he cleared and improved by hard labor; after selling this to advantage, he moved to Gillett, where he possessed himself of another farm in need of improvement, which, by his continual and intelligent skill, has become one of the finest in the neighborhood, consisting of 112 acres of fertile land, all under good cultivation. Daniel Boughton, after a long and useful life of eighty-one years, and sixty years of hard and incessant labor to subdue the wilderness, has accomplished his task, and thus far the forest has yielded to his ax, and the earth to his plow.

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He is now retired from active life, and is living with his sons ; his fam- ily consisted of five sons and five daughters, nine of whom grew to maturity, and eight are now living. Lyman C. Boughton was reared and educated in South Creek township, and has always confined him- self to farming, like his father; at the age of twenty-four years, he enlisted in Company G, One Hundred and Seventy-first P. V. I., served nine months and was honorably discharged ; in 1863 he again enlisted, this time in the Twelfth N. Y. I. B., serving to the close of the war, at which time he was honorably discharged. On September 4, 1869, he married Miss Cornelia Adams, of Columbia, and by this union there have been five children born to them, all yet living, viz .: Nina, Gracie, Arthur, Earnest and Blanche. Mr. Boughton is an extensive farmer, having a fine farm of 165 acres, his principal crop being hay; he also carries on dairying and general farming. He has lived on his present farm since 1865; has held the office of school director, and is a member of the G. A. R. Mrs. Boughton is a mem- ber of the Baptist Church.

DANVERS BOURNE, lumberman and farmer, P. O. Burlington, was born in Richmond, Cheshire Co., N. H., February 15, 1817, a son of Hosea and Amy ( Martin) Bourne, the former of whom was a son of Stephen and Sylvia (Bump), and the latter a daughter of Wilderness Martin, who was the first white male child born in the above named town, both families being of English ancestry. The paternal great- grandfather of our subject was an Englishman and a sea captain. Hosea Bourne was born in 1796 in New Hampshire, was a farmer by occupation and in 1831 removed to Otsego county, N. Y., where his family of five children were reared. Danvers Bourne came to Brad- ford county in 1837, and engaged in teaching school, at which he con- tinued twelve years. In 1849 he purchased a large tract of land in West Burlington township, where he has since been extensively engaged in the lumbering business and farming ; he manufactures lumber, shingles and lath, and has a fine planing and grist mill and a farm of over two hundred and thirty acres of prime land. Mr. Bourne was married November 8, 1842, to Marilda Riggs, of New Jersey, who died September 2, 1888, and he has three children living, as follows : Hester B., widow of C. W. Smith ; Ophelia M., wife of Clarence E. Brigham, and Ellery L., married to Sophia Spencer; he is a partner in his father's business, and is in reality manager. Mr. Bourne is a Re- publican, was nine years commissioner of the town, and one term auditor of the county. He is an active member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, as was also his wife, and has been superintendent of the Sunday-school twenty-one years, also an officer of the church since his connection with the same. He is much respected by the community and a wide circle of friends.

ANSON H. BOWEN, farmer, of Warren township, P. O. Warren Centre, is a native of Warren township, this county, born June 25, 1848, a son of William Clark and Angelina P. (Corbin) Bowen, Penn- sylvanians, also born in Warren township. William C. was a son of William and Abagail (Case) Bowen, natives of Massachusetts and of English descent, farmers who migrated to America in the early days,

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HISTORY OF BRADFORD COUNTY.

and located in Warren township, where the father of William C. died in 1852, and the mother in 1851; they had ten children, of whom Wil- liam C. is the fourth. He commenced life when a young man as a blacksmith, and this and farming he followed during life, he having purchased the old family homestead. He was married in 1844 to Angelina P. Corbin, daughter of Penwell Corbin. Mr. and Mrs. Wil- liam Clark Bowen make their home with their son, Anson H. They had born to them four children, as follows: Abbie A. (Mrs. Burr Decker), of Binghamton; Anson H .; Sarah M. (Mrs. Lafayette Dick- enson), who died in 1872; William G., who died in 1876. The subject proper of this sketch, who was reared and educated in Warren town- ship, owns the old family homestead, inheriting part and adding thereto; it contains one hundred and forty-five acres, is handsomely stocked with improved breeds of horses and cattle, and of the latter has some fine Holsteins. Mr. Bowen was married in Warren town- ship, in 1871, to Cornelia, daughter of Edward and Louisa (White- head) Stephens, natives of Vermont, of English stock ; (their family comprised ten children, all daughters, of whom Cornelia was the eighth). To Mr. and Mrs. Bowen were born three children, as follows : Archie B., Angie L. and Merton E. Mr. Bowen is a Demo- crat; and has filled the office of town clerk.

BRAINERD BOWEN, tanner, Troy, was born in Pittsford, Rut- land Co., Vt., November 21, 1828, a son of Laban and Esther (Crippen) Bowen, natives of Rhode Island and Vermont, respectively, of Welsh and Scotch descent, and who settled in Troy township, this county, in 1833, locating on what is now known as the Keyon farm; this his father cleared and improved, and resided thereon until 1843, when he removed to Troy village, and purchased the "Trojan Tannery," which he conducted until his death in 1849 ; his children were four in number : Brainerd, Lucy J. (Mrs. James Ballard), Mary A. (Mrs. Rev. William J. Reed) and Annette (Mrs. John Creque). Our subject was reared in Troy from eight years of age, and received a common-school education, he learned the tanner's trade with his father, and in 1851 became part proprietor of the "Trojan Tannery" with which he has since been connected, alone and with others, and also has an interest in a tannery at Lansboro, Susquehanna Co., Pa., since 1889. Mr. Bowen has been thrice married ; his first wife was Harriet Bird, of Potter county, Pa. ; his second wife was Emeline Tracy, of Smithfield, and his third wife was Harriet, daughter of John Birchard, of Susquehanna county, and by her he has two children : Mary and Nettie. Mr. Bowen is a member of the Presbyterian Church ; he has always taken an active interest in the welfare of Troy, and in politics he is a Republican.

GEORGE A. BOWEN, proprietor of creamery, P. O. Herrick, was born in Susquehanna county, Pa., March 3, 1859; his father, Robert S. Bowen, was born in Warren township, Bradford county, July 13, 1832 ; his grandfather, Abner Bowen, a native of Rhode Island, came with his father, James Bowen. to this county some time previous to 1800, being the first settlers in Warren township; Bowen Hollow was named after them, and afterward changed to Warren Centre. There are two apple trees now in Warren Centre which were planted by

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HISTORY OF BRADFORD COUNTY.

James Bowen, the seed having been brought with him from Rhode Island in his valise; these trees are on the farm now owned by J. D. Kinney, and are supposed to be the oldest apple trees in this county. R. S. Bowen, his son, was educated in the district school; he first pur- chased a farm in Warren Centre, which he afterward sold, and then purchased the farm on which he now resides. George A. Bowen was born on this place, and attended the district school until his twentieth year, when he went to work on his father's farm seven years ; then worked in his brother-in-law's creamery in Warren Centre one year, after which he commenced his present business, opening a creamery in Ballibay in 1887. By hard work and honorable dealing with his patrons he has made it a decided success and a necessity in the community ; his business for 1890 was twenty-five per cent more than for 1887. Mr. Bowen married, January 2, 1884, Anna F., daughter of John M. and Catherine (Sleeper) Currier ; she is the eldest of five children, all of whom are still living. Mr. and Mrs. Bowen have had four children, viz .: Iva, born December 9, 1884; Lucy, born January 31, 1886; Harley, born April 19, 1887, and Amy, born April 7, 1889. The family are members of the Baptist Church, Warren Centre, and are among the best known and well respected people in the county. Mr. Bowen in his political preferences is a Democrat.

GEORGE WARREN BOWEN, retired farmer, Warren, is a native of Seekonk, born February 28, 1811, a son of George and Sarah (Allen) Bowen, natives of Rhode Island, of Welsh and English stock. The father who was a farmer and shoemaker, immigrated to this county in May, 1811, and located in Warren township, being one of the earliest settlers in that dense wild wood, where with his own hands he girdled and felled the trees for his clearing; in 1827 he bought of his brother a gristmill, and in 1830 added thereto a sawmill; he was the second in a family of nine children, and was the first of the family to come to this county, his four brothers following later- William in 1815, Noah and Brown in 1816, and Caleb in 1824; the brothers had altogether twenty-nine sons and daughters. George Bowen had one child which was seven months old when he came here, and this child is the subject of this sketch; the father died February 14, 1844, the mother, September 1, 1858; they had twelve children-five sons and seven daughters-as follows: George War- ren, Noah C., who is now the oldest living person born in Warren township; Allen, who died in 1889, leaving a widow and four chil- dren, four now living; Martha (Mrs. Henry T. Newman, who has two children) ; Maria (Mrs. Josephus Sleeper, who died, leaving seven chil- dren ; Mr. Sleeper then married her youngest sister, Mary, the twelfth of the family, and he died in 1890, leaving a widow and two children); Nancy (Mrs. Nathan Young; Mr. Nathan Young died in 1890, leaving one son); Lucinda (Mrs. Nelson Pratt, of Boston, has two children); Jacob, who died in 1846, leaving a widow and three children ; Romanda (Mrs. Jesse Newman; Jesse Newman died in 1890 without issue); and Joanna (Mrs. David Brainard), who resides in Warren township. As stated, George W. was but seven months old when his father came to the county. Here he grew up a pioneer

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History of Bradford County, Pennsylvania, with biographical selections, Part 70

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