History of Butler County, Pennsylvania, Part 144

Author: Brown, Robert C., ed; Leeson, M. A. (Michael A.); Meagher, John, jt. comp; Meginness, John Franklin, 1827-1899, jt. comp
Publication date: 1895
Publisher: Chicago : R. C. Brown
Number of Pages: 1658

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BENJAMIN DOUTHETT was the fifth son of Joseph and Rosanna Douthett, and was born in Armagh county, Ireland, in 1772. He came with his parents to Pennsylvania, and throughout his life followed agricultural pursuits. He married Jane Smith, and by this marriage they were the parents of the fol- lowing children : Joseph; John; William ; David; Benjamin : Alexander ; Samuel: Mary, who married James Magee, and Martha J., who married William Dodds, ill of whom are dead except Alexander and Martha J. The mother died in IS17.

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and the father in 1:50. and both are buried in the Douthett family cemetery upon the old homestead. Mr. Douthett owned 500 acres of land. which he divided among his children, but the old homestead is that now owned by Samuel Dou- thett's heirs.

JOSEPH DOUTHETT, eldest son of Benjamin and Jane ( Smith) Douthett, was born October 6, 1807, upon his grandfather's farm, in what is now For- ward township. His education was obtained in the old log school house near where he was reared, but after reaching manhood he was a constant reader and a student, and thus became self educated, and taught for many years. He settled in Penn township, and became one of its extensive farmers. He learned the stonemason's and brick laver's trades, in youth, and followed them in connection with agriculture.

Politically, he was a Whig. and afterwards a Republican, and was recognized as an influential member of his party in this county. He was a justice of the peace for Penn township, waselected county commissioner in 1847, and was a school direc- tor for many years, always taking a deep interest in the prosperity of the public schools. He married Rebecca. daughter of James Magee, a resident of Jackson township, and they were the parents of seven sons and one daughter who grew to maturity, asfollows: Benjamin, of Kansas; James M., of Jackson township; John who resides in Pittsburg ; Robert, a resident of Illinois; David B., of Forward township : Joseph. of Penn township, and Jane, widow of Robert Miller. In early life Mr. Douthett was a member of the Covenanter church, but later joined the United Presbyterian church. He died July 23, 18%1; his widow survived until August 17, 1885. dying at the ripe old age of eighty-two years.

DAVID DOUTHEFT. fourth son of Benjamin and Jane Douthett, was born July 1. 1811. on the farm now owned by Samuel Douthett's heirs, in Forward township. Here he grew to manhood. but subsequently settled upon the farm where his grandfather located in 1799, and in the old log cabin erected by his grand- father were born and reared his family. This building is standing to-day, and occu- pied by Walter S. Douthett. one of David's sons. Mr. Douthett followed farming until arriving at old age, then retired to Brownsdale, where he died May 23. 1885. He married Jane E., daughter of Joseph Brown.one of the pioneers of Forward township. She survives him and resides at the village of Brownsdale, in Penn township. This union was blessed with the following children : Agnes J. wife of J. B. Dodds : Benjamin W. : Joseph P .. deceased : James M. ; Walter W., deceased : David K., a physician residing in lowa ; Delorma M., a resident of Nebraska: Mary E .. wife of J. F. Brittain ; William G., of Butler ; Adam M. a merchant of Brownsdale: Walter S. of Forward township, and Braden G., deceased. Mr. Douthett was the first postmaster of Brown-dale, and was one of the early school directors of his locality. In politics, he was a Whig until the formation of the Republican party, when he became a member of that organiza - tion, and was quite an influential man in local political matters. He was one of the founders and original members of the United Presbyterian church of Browns- dale, and throughout his long and useful life contributed liberally toward the sup- port of that congregation. He was a man of strict integrity, upright and straight- forward in all his dealings with his fellow men, and won the respect and confi- dence of the best people of Butler county.

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JAMES M. DOUTHErT. JR., was born in Forward township. Butler county, January 15, 1550, son of David and Jane E. ( Brown) Donthett. and grand- son of Benjamin Douthett. He was reared upon his father's farm, and received his education in the public schools. Hle was married December 31, 157B. to Elizabeth Crowe. a daughter of David B. and Sarah J. ( Dodds) Crowe, both members of pioneer families of Butler county, and of Irish descent. Her parents are residents of Forward township. Mr. Douthett located upon his present farm in 1891, which contains 102 acres, and is well improved. He is quite an active worker in the Republican party, and is an earnest member of, and a liberal con- tributor toward the United Presbyterian church.

JAMES M. DOUTHETT was born in what is now Forward township, Febru- ary 1, 1831, and is the second son of Joseph and Rebecca ( Magee ) Douthett. He was reared principally in Jackson township, and educated in the district schools. Ile married Lucinda Magee, daughter of Robert and Martha Magee, of Jackson township, settled upon his present farm, in the same township, and has since resided upon it. Three children were born to this union : Allison L., of Evans City ; Martha, wife of Frank Kelly, of Jackson township, and Rebecca. Mr. Douthett is a member of the Reformed Presbyterian church at Mars, and is an elder in that society. Ile is one of the representative farmers of the community.

ALLISON J. DOUTHETT, Son of James M. and Lucinda (Magee) Donthett, was born in Jackson township, Butler county. July 27. 1856, received a good common school education, and grew to manhood on the homestead farm. In 1878 he engaged in drilling water wells, and 1542 he became a tool dresser for Charles Neely, and subsequently followed the same business with Johnson. Brothers. J. P. Fishel, and others. In Isss he commenced drilling and pro- ducing in the oil fields of western Pennsylvania, and has operated in Armstrong county, and in the Petersville and Callery fields. Butler county : Duff City and Wild wood. in Allegheny county. and also the Harmony field, in Butler county. He was a member of the Evans City Oil Company, and is now connected with the Boggs Oil Company, operating in the Brownsdale and Evans City fields. Mr. Douthett was married October 25. 1-77. to Letitia. a daughter of David B. Crowe. of Forward township, and they are the parents of four children, as fol- lows : Scott H. : James C .: David D. and Orrin R. In politics, he is a Republican, but devotes little attention to political matters. In February, 1891. he was elected a member of the borough council. and also of the school board of Evans City, which offices he is now filling.

HON. DAVID B. DOUTHETT, fifth son of Joseph and Rebecca ( Magee) Douthett, was born in Forward township, Butler county. October 12, 1810, and was educated in the common schools and at Witherspoon Institute. He was engaged in teaching in the public schools of the county from ISST to 1861. when he enlisted in Company II. One Hundred and Second Pennsylvania Volunteers, and served in the Army of the Potomac until the close of the war, under MeClel- lan, Burnside, Hooker. Meade, and Grant. The principal battles in which he participated are named as follows: Williamsburg. Fair Oaks, White Oak Swamp, Charles City Cross Roads, Malvern Hill, Second Bull Run, Chantilly,

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Antietam, South Mountain. Williamsport, Second Fredericksburg, Salem Heights. Chancellorsville, Gettysburg. Mine Run and the Wilderness. He was wounded at Williamsburg. a minie-ball passed through his hat at Fredericks- burg. and at the Wilderness, May 5, 1861. he was severely wounded, being shot through the left thigh with a minie-ball. He was sent to Findlay Hospital, Washington, D. C .. afterwards to MeClellan Hospital. Philadelphia, and then to Pittsburg, whence he returned to his regiment before Petersburg. Ile took part in the final campaign under Grant, and was mustered out of the service near Washington, D. C., June 28. 1865. Returning to his home Mr. Douthett was elected justice of the peace of Forward township. and filled that position ten years. He also served as school director for twelve years, and was president of the Butler County School Directors for a long period. He was postmaster at Brownsdale for three terms, was mercantile appraiser in 1890. and in 1891 was appointed by Governor Pattison a delegate from Pennsylvania to the Farmers National Congress, at Sedalia, Missouri. In 1892 Mr. Douthett was elected, on the Republican ticket. to which party he has always belonged, a member of the legislature, receiving 225 more votes than any other candidate on the ticket, and running 100 votes ahead of the national ticket. While serving in in the House he secured the passage of a bill to regulate and estab- lish uniform fees to be charged by the justices of the peace, aldermen, magistrates, and constables in Pennsylvania. In November. 1894. he was re-elected for at second term. Ile is a member of Capt. William Stewart Post, G. A. R., of Evans City, and of Encampment, Number 15, U. V. L. For many years he has been one of the leading members of the United Presbyterian church, and has been foremost in his community in every good work. He was married in 1861. to Sarah. B., a daughter of Joseph Brown, of Forward township. and has two children : Ida, wife of Dr. H. S. MeClymonds, of Renfrew and Marshall B. Mr. Douthett has been an active participant in local polities for many years, and his rewards by popular vote attest to the estimation in which he is held.

MARSHALL B. DocrisTa. - on of David B and Sarah B. ( Brown ) Douthett, was born upon the homestead farm in Forward township. Butler county. Decem- ber 29, 1-70. He obtained a common school education and afterwards attended Slippery Rock State Normal School, and Actual Business College, graduating from the last mentioned institution in 1886. Ile taught school four years, and in January. 1891, he was appointed deputy sheriff. and reappointed in January. 1891. Hle is a member of the United Presbyterian church, and in politics, a Republican. Mr. Douthett is a charter member of Lincoln League, of Butler county, and has always been an earnest worker in his party.

JOSEPH ASH was one of the early settlers of Forward township, Butler county, coming hither from Kentucky. He is supposed to have been a native of Wales, or of Welsh parentage. About 1804 he settled upon a tract of 212 acres. where his grandson, James .A. Ash, now resides. He cleared a farm here and lived upon it until his death. Mr. AAsh was one of the pioneer mail carriers between Pittsburg and Erie, and it is said that a pocket handkerchief did duty as a mail bag. He died in 1813. and was buried upon the homestead farm. In

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1893 the remains of himself and wife were removed to the Evans City cemetery. In his religious belief, he was a Baptist. His children were as follows : Rachel. who married Robert Mckinney; Sylvester; Elizabeth, who married Joseph Dodds. and Isaac, who died at Evans City.

SYLVESTER ASH, eldest son of Joseph Ash, was born in Isos, upon the homestead farm, in what is now Forward township, Butler county. He grew up amid the scenes of pioneer days, and obtained such education as the schools of that period afforded. He learned the carpenter's trade and followed that busi- ness in connection with farming. He built the first farm house upon the home- stead, on the site of the one now standing, added fifty-two acres to his father's original purchase, and owned other properties in Evans City. In early life be was a Whig, but afterward joined the Republican party, and took quite a lead- ing part in political affairs in this vicinity, but would never accept any public office. Ile was reared in the Baptist faith, and though a regular attendant and a liberal supporter of that denomination, he was not a member of the church. Mr. Ash married Martha, daughter of Robert Boggs, the first settler on the site of Evans City. Seven children were born of this union, five of whom grew to maturity, as follows : Joseph, of Evan- City ; Isaac, a well known lawyer of Oil City ; Robert, of Allegheny ; Lizzie, wife of Lewis Gansz. and James A. Mr. Ash died in 1882 : his widow survived until 1886.

ARCHIBALD IRWIN was a native of Pennsylvania, and came to Butler county about the year 1810. He had lived in Crawford and Allegheny counties prior to coming here, and followed the trade of blacksmith. He located upon the farm in Forward township where his grandson, John A. Irwin, now resides. He was a man of good education, and one of the pioneer school teachers of the township. In 1845 he removed to Pittsburg, and died at the home of his son Thomas in that city. In a letter written by George W. Irwin, in 1853, to his son, John A., we find the following record of the Irwin genealogy : "In your last you wished to know something of your ancestry. My great-grandfather Irwin was an Episcopalian preacher in Ireland. My grandfather was his ellest son, and came to this country when young, married in Pennsylvania, and had two sons and one daughter, my father being the eldest. My grandfather served in the Colonial forces under General Grant. and was present at the battle between the English and French. known as Braddock's defeat. For his services in the army he was granted a tract of land in the vicinity of Fort Pitt, now Pittsburg. but allowed the grant to go by default, as land was then of little value. He afterwards served under Washington in the Revolution. My father being young then had his share of the difficulties of the Revolutinary period. He learned the blacksmithing trade with a Mr. Porter, at Redstone, Pennsylvania. He assisted in electing General Washington as first president of our country. His last vote was cast for James K. Polk for president. He claimed to be a Democrat all his life, and was eighty-three years of age when he died. My maternal grandpar- ents, Thomas Fletcher and wife, came from Scotland to Pennsylvania, and became wealthy farmers. They were of the Seceder persuasion, and were well thought of. Your maternal grandfather, W. M. Hanna, came from Ireland, settled in Lancaster county, Pennsylvania, and was a wealthy farmer. Your

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grandmother Hanna, was the daughter of W. M. Thompson, a native of Scot- land, who settled in Allegheny county. Pennsylvania, was a justice of the peace, and a prosperous farmer. They were all Presbyterians in religious faith."

GEORGE W. IRWIN. son of Archibald Irwin, was born near Meadville, Penn- sylvania, April 15. 1800, removed to Pittsburg with his parents in 1806, and thence to Butler county. In 1812 he went to Pittsburg for the purpose of learn- ing the blacksmith's trade, and at the age of nineteen years was employed in one of the iron works of that city as superintendent of the blacksmithing department. Ile was later engaged as an engineer on the Ohio river. Hle afterwards embarked in the manufacture of boilers at Pittsburg, and also carried on a paper mill in Ohio. In 1817 he engaged in the manufacture of boilers at Nashville, Tennessee, where he remained until the war commenced. When the Federal troops captured Nashville they took charge of his plant and thus destroyed his business. Being a stanch Union man, he fought in the battle of Nashville as a Union soldier. In 1868 he returned to Pittsburg, and thence to Butler county, where he was engaged in farming until his death, May IS, 1875. Mr. Irwin was prominent in the iron industry of Pittsburg for many years and was well known among the manufacturers of that city. Politically, he was a Republican. He married Ozilla Hanna. a daughter of W. M. Hanna, of Lancaster county. She died at Nashville in 1868. Their family consisted of ten children, eight of whom grew to maturity.

JOHN A. IRWIN. fourth son of George W. Irwin, was born at Cadiz, Ohio. April 21. 1832. and was reared in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. He obtained a com- mon school education, learned the book-binder's trade, and embarked in business at Louisville, Kentucky, in 1852. He later went into the book-binding business at Memphis, Tennessee, where he remained until the breaking out of the Rebell- ion. Being a U'nion man, he came north to escape service in the Southern army, and became employed with Wells, Riddle & Company, of Pittsburg, which posi- tion he filled from 1861 to 1867. In 1868 he established a book -binding house in Pittsburg. which he has since carried on successfully. His homestead in For- ward township is one of the richest oil properties in this part of the county, and is one of the best improved farms in the township. Mr. Irwin married Margaret P'. Colvin, to which union have been born the following children : Ozilla ; Sarah ; William; George; Robert, and Margaret. Politically, he is a Republican, and in religious faith. an adherent of the Methodist Episcopal church. For over forty years Mr. Irwin has been a member of the 1. O. O. F., and is State manager of the Odd Fellows Endowment Association. He has also been connected with the A. O. C. W. for more than twenty-one years, and is a member of the Hep- tosophs.

THE WALDRON FAMILY of Butler county are descendants of Baron Resolved Van Waldron, a native of Harlam, Holland, who immigrated with Peter Stuyve- sant, one of the early governors of New York, in 1647. Baron Van Waldron was born in 1606. He obtained a patent from the Dutch government for the land that now embraces what was originally Harlem. New York. He served as magistrate for seventeen years, and laid out that part of the City of New York, known as Harlem, extending from Seventy-fourth street. on East river, to One Hundred

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and Thirtieth street, North river. consisting of 10,000 acres. In 1660 he built Waldron Ilall, one of the carly buildings of Harlem, which was occupied by his descendants down to 1800, Ile was a lineal descendant of Baron Rudolph Van Waldron, who was granted a coat of arms in 1128, by the government of Holland, for valor on the plains of Palestine, and in the capture of Jerusalem, in 1099. Baron Resolved Van Waldron married Lady Taneka Van Nagle, April Jo. 1658, and was the father of four sons and four daughters. The fourth son. Samuel. was born in New Harlem, October 10, 1670, and married Lady Margaret Bloodgood. of Flushing, Long Island. in March. 1692, to which union were born nine chil- dren. The second son of Samuel Van Waldron, Francis B .. born November 10. 1697. married Catherine Brumneal, of New Harlem. December. 21. 1721. 1 1730 Francis B. removed to Clover Hill, Hunterdon county, New Jersey. He was the father of ten children, the fourth son being Samuel B., born at New Harlem. March 3, 1729. Samuel B. married Catherine Van Ness. of Hunter- don county, New Jersey, in 1751, to which union were born eight children. The eldest. Samuel V., born August 19, 1752, served five years under Washington and Marion, and was at the battle of Brandywine. and other historic engage- ments of the Revolution. He married Magdalena Simpson, of Morris county, New Jersey. April 26. 1771, and lived near Trenton until 1795, when he removed to Washington county, Pennsylvania. In 1796 Samuel V. Waldron. removed to Mercer county, Pennsylvania, and settled upon the farm in Wolf Creek township. now owned by Simeon D. Waldron. He died upon that farm in January, 18 19. He was a millwright, and erected one of the pioneer mills in that locality.

JOHN WALDRON, Second son of Samuel V. and Magdalena (Simpson ) Wall- ron, was born near Trenton, New Jersey, April 17, 1785, and grew to manhood on his father's farm in Mercer county, Pennsylvania. He was twice married, his first wife being Maria, daughter of Mexander Lindsey, of Crawford county. Pennsylvania, to whom were born the following children : Margaret : Isabella ; Jemima : Alexander : Samuel ; John L. : Susan, and William S. His second wife was Jane Davidson. of Venango county. Mr. Waldron served in the War of 1812, in Perry's Lake Erie squadron. In [816 he came to Butler county, and purchased a farm where his son. William S., now lives. He was engaged in farming nearly all his life, but was also one of the pioneer teachers, and a good mechanic. He died April 5. 1963. For forty years he was an eller in the Pres- byterian church.

WILLIAM S. WALDRON. youngest son of John S. and Maria ( Lindsey) Waldron, was born upon his present homestead in Forward township, June 23. 1823. Ile received a good English education, and taught for several years in the public schools. In 1848 he was principal of one of the public schools in Peoria, Illinois. In 1852 he purchased the old homstead. and two years 'afterward remodeled and improved the buildings. Mr. Waldron was married September 3. 1846, to Eliza MI., daughter of John and Susan ( Kline) Bellis, of Luzerne county, Pennsylvania, who settled in Butler county in 1>12. Their children are as follows: O. K., a dentist of Butler : Susan O., wife of Nelson B. Duncan : Theodore C .; William S .. deceased : Laura II .. wife of R. M. Kinnear : J. C. :

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Eva M., wife of J. B. Evans : Reuben O. : Maria B., wife of F. B. Dodds : Fred V .: Elizabeth A. J .: Ulysses S. G. : Ada M., wife of B. S. Buhl, and Leota E .. wife of O. S. Sutton. In politics, Mr. Waldron was first a Whig, and since the formation of the Republican party he has been prominent in the local councils of that organization. For fifteen years he was one of the school directors of For- ward township, and served three years on the school board of Evans City. In 1856 he was elected a county auditor, and in 1872 was elected to the legislature. both of which positions he filled with credit. He is a member of the Presby- terian church, and is connected with Harmony Lodge, F. & A. M., is past master of that lodge, and its only living charter member in the county. He is also a charter member of Evans City Lodge. I. O. O. F., and connected with the encampment of that fraternity. M. Waldron is a man of broad views and liberal opinions, who keeps well up with the progressive spirit of the age. Through the passing years he has accumulated a goodly share of this world's riches, and can be safely classed as one of the substantial, enterprising and public-spirited citizens of his native county.

ADAM BROWN, SR., a native of Germany, was a son of Adam Brown, who immigrated to America prior to the Revolution, and served as a packhorse driver in the Continental army. His father located at Big Spring. Cumberland county. Pennsylvania. after the war, where he resided until his death. Adam, came to Butler county in the last decade of the Eighteenth century, and located in what is now Middlesex township. He subsequently settled upon a 400-acre tract of land near the site of Brownsdale, which he cleared and improved. He married Agnes Holmes, a native of Ireland. and a resident of Cumberland county. Both died early in the present century. Their children were as fol- lows : John, who died upon a portion of the original farm ; Adam ; Joseph, who also died upon a part of the old homestead ; Thomas R., who died in Pittsburg ; Elizabeth, who married James MeCandless, and died in Butler county ; Martha, who became the wife of Johnson White, and also died in this county, and Mar- garet, who married William White, and died in Ohio. Adam Brown, Sr., was one of the early constables of the county, and in politics, he was an adherent of the Whig party. He was a Presbyterian, in religion, a man of fair education, in both English and German, and wielded considerable influence among the pio- neers. He was interred in the old Presbyterian cemetery in Middlesex township.

ADAM BROWN, JR., was born in Cumberland county, Pennsylvania, and grew to manhood upon the homestead farm in Butler county. He was the sec- ond son of Adam Brown. Sr., and at the death of his father he was appointed executor of the latter's estate. He received the homestead as his share of the estate, and lived upon it until 1833. when he purchased the mill and farm where his son Robert Il. now resides. The mill was an old frame structure, but he tore it down, and rebuilt a new frame mill, and added a saw mill, which he con- ducted until 1861. In that year he retired from active business and settled upon a farm he then owned, but now the property of Walter C. Boggs, in Forward township. lle married Sarah, daughter of 'Squire Robert Brown, to whom were born thirteen children, ten of whom grew to maturity, as follows : Nancy, who married James Hammel; Robert HI. ; Adam; Ruth, who married C. E.

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Anderson : Sarah, deceased wife of Asa Leason: Margaret, deceased wife of Wesley Henderson ; John, and William C., both deceased; Joseph, who married a daughter of Thomas Gray, and is now residing in Penn township, and Nathan, who married a daughter of Mr. Emery, and who now resides in Harrisville, But- ler county. Thomas R., Betsey and Nelson, died in infancy. His second wife was Mrs. Elizabeth Johnson, who survives him. Politically. he was first a Whig and afterwards a Republican.

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History of Butler County, Pennsylvania, Part 144

Author: Brown, Robert C., ed; Leeson, M. A. (Michael A.); Meagher, John, jt. comp; Meginness, John Franklin, 1827-1899, jt. comp Publication date: 1895 Publisher: Chicago : R. C. Brown Number of Pages: 1658

Author: Brown, Robert C., ed; Leeson, M. A. (Michael A.); Meagher, John, jt. comp; Meginness, John Franklin, 1827-1899, jt. comp
Publication date: 1895
Publisher: Chicago : R. C. Brown
Number of Pages: 1658