History of Bucks county, Pennsylvania, from the discovery of the Delaware to the present time, Vol. III, Part 45

Author: Davis, W. W. H. (William Watts Hart), 1820-1910; Ely, Warren S. (Warren Smedley), b. 1855; Jordan, John W. (John Woolf), 1840-1921
Publication date: 1905
Publisher: New York ; Chicago : The Lewis Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1040

USA > Pennsylvania > Bucks County > History of Bucks county, Pennsylvania, from the discovery of the Delaware to the present time, Vol. III > Part 45

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The maternal ancestors of Mrs. Sny- der were no less distinguished than her paternal ancestors. John Hunter, the progenitor of the family in America, was a strong churchman, and was in the Protestant army, under William of Orange in the battle of the Boyne, where he commanded a troop of horse and was wounded in the hip. He was a native of Durham, England, and a de- scendant of the Hunter family of Mad-

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IIISTORY OF BUCKS COUNTY.

omsley Ilall, Gateshead, where many of his ancestors are buried. Upon the ac- cession of James II, he fled to Rath- drum, county Wicklow, Ireland, where he married Margaret Albin, who bore him ten children. He came to Ameri- ca in 1722, and a year later settled in Newtown township, Delaware county, where he died in 1734 at the age of sev- enty years, and lies buried at old St. David's. Radnor, of which church he was one of the founders and a member of the first vestry. He was accompa- nied to America by Anthony Wayne, the grandfather of Mad Anthony Wayne, of the Revolution, the former being his su- perior officer in the battle of the Boyne, and the two families were closely asso- ciated. John Morgan Hunter, the grand- father of Mrs. Snyder, was a descend- ant in the fifth generation from John Hunter, the pioneer. His mother's sis- ter, Elizabeth Edwards, married Peter Penn-Gaskill, who claimed descent in the sixth generation from William Penn, the founder. John Morgan Hunter mar- ried Eliza Rhodes, by whom he had five children,-Rachel, Hannah, Samuel, Em- ily, (the mother of Mrs. Snyder), and Sarah.

JOSEPH W. SHELLY, for the past five years District Attorney of the coun- ty of Bucks, was born in Milford town- ship, Bucks county. March 26, /1864. on a farm that had been the property of his ancestors for a century and a quar- ter. The family of Shelly, now very numerous in Upper Bucks. is descended from Abraham Shelly, who emigrated from the Palatinate, Switzerland, or northern France, about 1730. On Janu- ary 29, 1739. Thomas and Richard Penn. proprietaries of Pennsylvania, conveyed to him fifty acres of land in Milford township, adjoining other land on which he was already settled, showing that he was already located in Milford at that date. In 1740 he purchased of Morris Morris 260 acres additional, a portion of which was occupied by his descend- ants. the lineal ancestors of the subject . of this sketch, until 1873. In February, 1761. he and his wife Elizabeth entered into an agreement to convey to their son Michael Shelly 135 acres of this tract, butt Abraham died before the conveyance was completed. They also conveyed a portion of their land to their son Jacob in 1760. Abraham and Elizabeth Shelly were the parents of six sons .- Abraham, Jacob, Joseph. Christian, John and Michael. from both the first and last of whom the subiect of this sketch is de- scended through the inter-marriage of a grandson of the former with a grand- daughter of the latter.

Abraham Shelly. Jr., purchased land adjoining his father in 1753. which he later conveyed to his son Joseph. The

date of the death of Abraham Shelly and Eve his wife has not been obtained, nor a full list of their children, though it is known that their two sons were Joseph and Christian ..

Joseph Shelly, son of Abraham, Jr., as above related, received from his fath- er a portion of the homestead. He was a farmer, and followed that vocation in Milford township until his death in No- vember, 1818. He married Jannie Yo- der, and they were the parents of the following children: Jacob, Abraham, Jo- seph, John, Mary, wife of Michael Lan- dis; Eve, wife of Peter Moyer; Anna, wife of Jacob Moyer; Barbara, wife of Peter Schneider; and Fannie, 'wife of John Fretz.

Jacob Shelly, son of Joseph and Anna (Yoder) Shelly, married Barbara, only child of Michael and Elizabeth (Mus- selman) Shelly, and granddaughter of Micheal Shelly, youngest son of Abra- ham the emigrant. The land purchased by Michael, Sr., of his father, in 1761, was devised by Michael to his son John, who, dying without issue in 1770, de- vised it to his brother Michael, the fath- er of Barbara, and he, dying in 1790, de- vised it to his only daughter, who later married Jacob Shelly, her second cousin. Elizabeth, the mother of Barbara Shelly. died in 1793, while her daughter Barbara was yet a minor. Jacob Shelly died in September, 1847, and his wife Barbara in February. 1852. They were the parents of ten children, viz .: Michael; Fannie, wife of William H. Oberholtzer; Joseph S .; Elizabeth, who became the wife of Rev. Samuel Moyer: David: Susanna, who married Samuel K. Harley: John and Mary. who died young: Jacob: and Barbara, who married Levi S. Shelly.

Joseph S. Shelly. second son of Jacob and Barbara, was born in Milford town- ship, Bucks county, December 20, 1809, and died there in 1872. By proceedings in the orphans' court in 1848, the property which had descended to his mother was adjudged to him, and he continued to own it until his death. He married Elizabeth Bauer, daughter of Andrew and Elizabeth (Bechtel) Bauer, who was born in Douglas township, Montgomery county. Pennsylvania, October 30. 1809, and they were the parents of four chil- dren .- Andrew B .: Susanna, wife of Da- vid Stauffer; Marv. wife of Tohn Bleam Bechtel: and Elizabeth, who died in childhood.

Rev. Andrew B. Shellv. the father of the subject of this sketch. was born in Milford township. September 23. 1824. He received his early education at the public and parochial schools of that vi- cinage, and at the age of eighteen vears began teaching school in the winter months. devoting the summer to study in connection with assisting his father on the farm. In 1854 and 1857 he was a student at Freeland Seminary (now Ur-

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HISTORY OF BUCKS COUNTY.

sinus College) at Collegeville, Montgom- cry county. In 1864 he entered the min- istry and became the pastor of East Swamp, West Swamp, and Flatland, Mennonite congregations, to which he has since ministered. He has from a youth been one of the active leaders and teachers in the doctrine of the Mennon- ite church, bringing to bear upon this work, as upon all that he has under- taken, an energy, earnestness and fidelity to principle that has characterized his whole life. He has filled many promi- nent positions in the church, being for many years president of the general triennial conference, and a prominent member of the foreign missions and publication boards of the church. He was for fifteen years editor of the "Men- nonitche Friedensbote," a church paper published at Milford Square, and for many years associate editor of the "Christliche Bundesbote." a paper pub- lished in the interest of the Mennonite church at Berne, Indiana. He has also been for many years one of the editors of "The Mennonite," an English church paper published in Philadelphia.

He married, October 16, 1858, Fannie Weinberger, born March II, 1834, daugh- ter of Joseph and Mary (Shelly) Wei- berger, and also a descendant of Abra- ham Shelly, Sr., her mother being a great-granddaughter of Jacob Shelly, son of the pioneer, Abraham. This uni- on was blessed with the following chil- dren: Mary Elizabeth, wife of Isaiah T. Clymer, of Quakertown; Adeline, wife of Uriah S. Stauffer, editor of "Quaker- town Free Press"; Joseph W .; Menno and Oswin.

The Shelly family have nearly all been farmers and from their arrival in Amer- ica, have nearly all been adherents of the Mennonite church, and true to the ten- ets of that faith, have taken little part in active politics or affairs of State, though taking an active interest in lo- cal affairs, in their respective neighbor- hoods. They have almost invariably given their political support to the old Whig and later to the Republican party.

Joseph W. Shelly was born on the old Michael Shelly homestead (purchased by his great-great-great-great-grandfather in 1740) March 25, 1864. He received his early education at the public schools of his native township, and the Quaker- town High School, and finished his ele- mentary education at Ursinus College. On leaving college he taught school at Quakertown, in the meantime entering himself as a student at law in the office of the late Charles F. Meyers. Esq., at Doylestown. He was admitted to the Bucks county bar December 1. 1890, and formed a partnership with his precept- or, which continued for five years, since which time he has practiced alone. He was admitted to practice in the supreme court of Pennsylvania in 1893. Mr. Shel-

ly is a Republican in politics, and has from the time of attaining his majority been actively identified with the organi- zation of his party, serving as secretary of the county committee for several years, and as its chairman for six years. He is also a member of the Union Re- publican Club of Philadelphia. He was elected to the office of district attorney of Bucks county in 1900, and was re- elected in 1903, being the only liv- ing member of the bar to serve two terms in that office, the only other instance of a re-election being that of the late Nathan C. James, re-elected in 1857. As prosecuting attorney of the county, Mr. Shelly has made a good rec- ord, and he enjoys the confidence and es- teem of the court and his fellow mem- bers of the bar. In religion he conforms to the faith of his ancestors for many generations, and is a member of the Mennonite Church.

DR. OLIVER STOUT. Jacob Stout, the pioneer ancestor of the subject of this sketch. was born in Germany, Rhine Province, in the year 1710, and came to Pennsylvania in the ship "Samuel," ar- riving in Philadelphia on August 30, 1730. He was accompanied by two broth- ers, John and Abraham Stout, of whom little is known. Jacob Stout locat- ed in Bucks county near the present site of Perkasie, where John Lacey (who had emigrated from Germany with his wife Anna, nee Miller, in the ship "Ad- venturer" in 1732) had purchased a tract of two hundred acres in 1735. Lacey died in 1738, and in 1739 Jacobs Stout married the widow Anna. He probably remained on the Perkasie plantation with his wife and her two sons by La- cey, for the next ten years and later came to what became Williams town- ship. Northampton county, where he purchased a tract of 213 acres on Sep- tember 9. 1750, which remained the property of his descendants for several generations, descending through his son, Isaac Stout, the father of the famous physician and surgeon. Dr Abraham Stout. Jacob Stout was a potter by trade. and seems to have followed that vocation both at Durham and at Perka- sie. How long he remained at the for- mer place does not appear, but in 1753 he purchased a mill property and tract of land at Church Hill, in Rockhill township. In 1759 his step-sons, John and Henry Lacey, having come of age, Jacob Stout conveyed to them 266 acres in Hilltown, which he had purchased in 1757, and they in turn conveyed to him the 200 acres in Rockhill, originally taken up by their father. This tract em- braced a large part of the present bor- ough of Perkasie, and it remained the residence of the ancestors of the sub-

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HISTORY OF BUCKS COUNTY.

ject of this sketch for at least three generations. Here Jacob Stout resided the remainder of his life, becoming a prominent man in the community and an extensive landowner. In 1767 he pur- chased the Pine Run mill property, one mile north of Doylestown, which in 1770 he conveyed to his son-in-law, Ab- raham Freed. In 1774 he purchased 150 acres in New Britain, on which he set- tled his daughter Catharine, who had married Jacob Schlieffer. Jacob Stout died April 30, 1779, at the age of sixty- eight and one-half years, and is buried beside his wife and several of their chil- dren and grandchildren in a neat little family burial lot within a few rods of Perkasie station on the N. P. R. R. on a part of the old plantation. The children of Jacob and Anna (Mil- ler-Lacey), Stout were as follows:I. Abraham, an account of whom fol- lows: 2. Isaac, who settled on his fath- er's Northampton county tract and reared a family, among whom were Dr. Abraham Stout. 3. E. Salome. who married first Abraham Freed, and after his death, in 1773. Gabrielle Swartzland- er, and lived and died at what was known for a century as "Swartzlander's Mill" one mile north of Doylestown, and left many descendants. among whom is Dr. Frank Swartzlander, of Doylestown. 4. Catharine, who married Jacob Schleiffer, and lived and died in New Britain.

Abraham Stout, eldest son of Jacob and Anna, born at Perkasie, August 17. 1740, was probably the most promi- nent and best educated Pennsylvania German of his day. Most of his educa- tion was acquired at the famous Ger- mantown Academy. for years the rival of the College of Philadelphia, later the University of Pennsylvania, under the tuition of Hilarius Becker, profes- sor of German, and David J. Dove as in- structor in English. Abraham Stout thus acquired a thorough knowledge of the English language, an accomplish- ment exceedingly rare at that date and for a century later among the descend- ants of the German colonists of upper Bucks, as well as a thorough scientific training. He was an excellent account- ant and penman, a surveyor and con- veyancer, as well as an excellent busi ness man, and transacted practically all the public business for his German neighbors far and near. Most of the deeds, wills, petitions to the courts, etc., on file among the papers of the several county offices from 1770 to 1812. are in his handwriting, as well as num- berless account of administrators and executors, (he having served very fre- quently as auditor in estates) and are models of brevity, neatness and execti- tion. At the death of his father his brothers and sisters conveyed to him the old Perkasie homestead, and his whole life was spent thereon. At the begin-

ning of the protest against the oppres- sive acts of the mother country in 1774- 75, he was foremost in the neighborhood in organizing for the protest, and was named as the member of the committee of safety from Rockhill in 1775. When, however, it became apparent that a re- sort to arms would follow, he resigned from the committee and thereafter held aloof from active participation in the struggle. The reason for this was, no doubt, owing to religious convictions on the subject of the war, as there is evidence to show that his sympathies were with the patriot side. . Though later generations of the family were members of the German Reformed church, it is probable that he was reared in the Mennonite faith. When his fath- er, Jacob Stout, took the oath of alle- giance in 1751, his name appears among the list of "Quakers and others who from religious conviction conscientiously scruple to take the Oath on the Holy Evangelists and having complied with the terms required by the Act of Par- liament took and subscribed the qualifi- cations required." Again. the German- town Academy was in its inception a Mennonist institution, and he probably imbibed ideas of non-combativeness that prevented his participation in a sanguin- ary struggle. The war having ended, he became. however, a prominent figure in public affairs. He was one of the dele- gates from Bucks county in the consti- tutional convention of 1790. and took a prominent part therein. His career of usefulness ended with his death on the eve of the second struggle with the mother country, June 8, 1812, and he is buried beside his father in the old bury- ing ground at Perkasie. He married, October 21, 1773, Mary Magdalen Hart- zell, daughter of Henry Hartzell, an- other prominent Pennsylvania German in Rockhill township. She died Novem- ber 8, 18TI. Abraham and Magdalen (Hartzell) Stout were the parents of seven children, viz .: I. Nancy, who mar- ried Jacob .Hartman. 2. Jacob, the grand- father of Hon. Mahlon H. Stout, president judge of the courts of Bucks county. 3. Henry H., the great-grandfather of the sub- ject of this sketch. 4. Abraham. 6. Mar- garetta, who married. Tobias Ruhl, and 7. Magdalen, who married John Gearhart.

Henry H. Stout, second son of Ab- raham and Magdalen (Hartzell) Stout, was born on the Perkasie homestead, June 3. 1776. He was a lifelong farmer and resided for some years after attain- ing manhood on a portion of the old homestead, but later settled in Hilltown, where he owned considerable land. He was a member of the German Reformed church at Tohicken and an influential man in the community. He married. May, 1798, Elizabeth Kern, daughter of Christian Kern, of Hilltown. She was born May 10, 1778, and died June 5.

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HISTORY OF BUCKS COUNTY.

1871. Henry H. Stout died January 12, 1854. Both are buried at Tohincon. Their children were: Catharine, born 1798; Mary, born 1800; Samuel, 1802; Magdalene, born 1805: Hannah, born 1807: Elizabeth, born 1809: Enos, born April 17, 1813; Lydia, born January 18, 1815; and Annie, born 1821.

Enos Stout, only son of Henry H. and Elizabeth (Kern) Stout, was born and reared on the Hilltown homestead, a part of which he purchased on attaining manhood. and erected buildings there- on. At the death of his father he pur- chased the remainder and lived thereon, during life. He was a prominent and influential man in the community, and a memebr of the German Reformed church. He married, November 13, 1834, Catharine Kratz, daughter of John and Magdalena (Swartlander) Kratz, of Plumstead, his cousin, her mother being a daughter of Gabriel and Salome (Stout) Swartzlander. Catharine was born May 2, 1809, and died March 31, 1890. Enos Stout died December 6, 1886. Their children were: Lewis K., born December 22, 1835; John Henry, born July 22, 1838; Reuben, born March 28, 1841; Allen K., born May 21, 1843: Edward Clayton, born March 3. 1846; died January 28, 1862; and Wilhelmina, born 1850, died 1862.

Lewis K. Stout. eldest son of Enos and Catharine (Kratz) Stout. and the father of Dr. Oliver Stout, was born on the Hilltown farm, and educated at the public schools. He taught school in Hilltown, Bedminster and Rockhill town- ships, in all eight years. He was a jus- tice of the peace of Rockhill township for five years, 1874-1779. In April, 1886, he removed to Philadelphia, where he resided until May I. 1903, when he re- moved to Perkasie, Bucks county. Penn- sylvania, where he still resides. He mar- ried, October 28, 1865, Lavina M. Alt- house, born August 23, 1844. daughter of Samuel and Sarah (Mitman) Alt- house. of Bedminster, Bucks county, and they are the parents of seven chil- dren, viz .: Henry Erwin, born Septem- ber 15, 1866, died April 8. 1874; Annie A., born January 14, 1868, unmarried; Oliver A .. the subject of this sketch: Edward Clayton, born August 12, 1872, graduate of the College of Pharmacy, Philadelphia, a druggist at 4628 Wood- land avenue, Philadelphia: Charles A .. also a graudate of the College of Phar. macy and now a druggist at Eighth and Diamond streets, Philadelphia; Philip Samuel, born August 20, 1877, gradnat- ed at the College of Pharmacy, Phila- delphia, class of 1899, graduate of Uni- versity of Pennsylvania, class of 1904, now demonstrator in pathology in the University; Benjamin Franklin, born January 18, 1880, a graduate of the Col- lege of Pharmacy in 1903, a druggist at Tonopah, Nevada.

DR. OLIVER A. STOUT, second son of Lewis K. and Lavina M. (Althouse) Stout, was born in East Rockhill town- ship, Bucks county, Pennsylvania, No- vember 11, 1869. He was reared in Rock- hill, and received his elementary educa- tion in the Rockhill public schools, sup- plemented by two years at the Perkasie high school, entered the College of Pharmacy, and graduated from the three years' course in 1891. He entered the medical department of the University of Pennsylvania, from which he graduated in 1893. He was drug clerk for J. How- ard Evans; at

Sixth and Venanga streets for one year; then located at Twentieth and York streets, where he practiced medicine for two years. In 1896 he purchased the drug store at Fifth street and Glenwood avenue, of J. Howard Evans, where he is still lo- . cated. He is a member of Welcome Lodge, No. 453, F. and A. M., of Phila- delphia, of the Jr. O. U. A. M., the For- esters of America, and the P. O. S. A. He married, June II, 1902, Gail Louise. Simpkins, daughter of Samuel Robert and Louise (Patterson) Simpkins, and they are the parents of one child, Lou- ise Martindale, born June II, 1903.

ANNIE COMFORT. The ancestry of Annie Comfort can be traced back to John Comfort, the first of the name known in Bucks county. He brought a certificate from the Friends of Flushing, Long Island, to the Friends' monthly meeting held in Falls township. Decem- ber 15. 1719. Pleased with this portion of the country he settled in Amwell, Hunterdon county, New Jersey, where he continued to follow farming through- out his active life. On the sixth day of August. 1720, he married Miss Mary Wilson, and they had three children: Stephen. Sarah, and Robert.

(II) Stephen Comfort. eldest son of John Comfort, was married August 25, 1744. to Mercy Croasdale, and they had nine children: John, Ezra, Jeremiah, Stephen, Grace, who became the wife of Jonathan Stackhouse: Mercv, who be- came the wife of Aaron Phillips; Moses, Robert, and Hannah.

(III) John Comfort, eldest son of Stephen Comfort, removed from Mount Holly, New Jersey, in 1793, and settled upon the farm where his descendants are still living. He married Miss Mary Woolman, a daughter of John and Sa- rah (Ellis) Woolman, and six children were the issue of this marriage: Samuel, John, Stephen, Mary, who became the wife of Moses Doan; Ellis, and Joseph. John Comfort was the father of another child. Ezra, by a second marriage. John Woolman, father of Mrs. Comfort, was. a very noted man in his day in the So-

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ciety of Friends, also a well known anti- slavery man, and it was largely through his efforts that the Friends Society took strong steps against slavery and gave up the slaves that were in their posses- sion. He spent a considerable portion of his time in religious work and writ- ing. His book, "The Journal of John Woolman." is a representation of the man; it has a very lengthy introduc- tion by John Greenleaf Whittier, the celebrated poet, and Charles Lamb, an Englist poet and essayist, is of the opin- ion that every one should memorize the words of John Woolman.

(IV) Samuel Comfort, the eldest son of John and Mary (Woolman) Comfort, was born near Mount Holly, New Jer- sey, in 1776. When fourteen years of age he removed to the home now occu- pied by his granddaughter, Annie Com- fort, whose name heads this sketch, in Falls township, Bucks county, Pennsyl- vania, and there he remained until his decease, giving his entire attention to agricultural pursuits. His influence was a recognized factor for good in the community in which he resided for so many years. He was a preacher in the Society of Friends, as was also his sec- ond wife, and when his son. George Comfort, took possession and manage- ment of the old homestead, he devoted most of his time to religious work, trav- eling and preaching throughout many states. being accompanied by his second wife, and in this way they were enabled to perform a large amount of good work. Mr. Comfort married Miss Rebecca Moon, and they were the parents of six children : Martha, who became the wife of Mark Wright; Mary, who died unmarried; Sarah, who became the wife of Ezekiel Combs : George, mentioned hereinafter ; Re- becca, who became the wife of James Law- rence ; and Ann, who became the wife of John Simpson. Three years after the death of Rebecca (Moon) Comfort, which oc- curred in 1836, Samuel Comfort married Mrs. Elizabeth Cox, who was a minister in the religious society of Friends. She survived him a number of years.

(V) George Comfort, son of Samuel and Rebecca (Moon) Comfort, was born on the old family homestead in Falls township, Bucks county. Pennsylvania, in 1808. For a few years after attaining manhood he taught a private school in the city of Philadelphia, but later re- turned to Bucks county and took pos- session of the old homestead, giving his entire attention to the quiet but useful calling of agriculture until his death. He was a man of the strictest integrity and took an active part in everything that tended to the betterment of the neigh- borhood, rendering efficient aid in every enterprise, whether of a religious, edu- cational or social character. He was held in peculiar honor by his fellow citizens for his many noble and manly

characteristics, and his daily walk and conversation was well worthy of emu- lation. He was a true friend to all who were in distress, giving liberally of his substance, and throughout his lifetime followed and obeyed the scriptural proverb "It is more blessed to give than to receive." He was one of the direc- tors of the Fallsington Library, and for the long period of thirty-five years served in the capacity of school direc- tor of Falls township. He was a regular attendant and stood high in the Friends Society. In politics he was an adherent to the principles of the Republican party. Mr. Comfort married

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History of Bucks county, Pennsylvania, from the discovery of the Delaware to the present time, Vol. III, Part 45

Author: Davis, W. W. H. (William Watts Hart), 1820-1910; Ely, Warren S. (Warren Smedley), b. 1855; Jordan, John W. (John Woolf), 1840-1921 Publication date: 1905 Publisher: New York ; Chicago : The Lewis Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 1040

Author: Davis, W. W. H. (William Watts Hart), 1820-1910; Ely, Warren S. (Warren Smedley), b. 1855; Jordan, John W. (John Woolf), 1840-1921
Publication date: 1905
Publisher: New York ; Chicago : The Lewis Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1040