USA > Pennsylvania > Carbon County > History of Carbon County, Pennsylvania; also containing a separate account of the several boroughs and townships in the county, with biographical sketches, 2nd ed > Part 33
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Kistler, Dr. Grant M., a Lansford physician, is one of the descendants of John George Kistler, who was one of the pioneer settlers of what is now Berks county.
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Grant M. Kistler is the son of John M. and Mary (Moser) Kistler, and was born on his father's farm in West Penn township, Schuylkill county, August 3, 1865. He was educated at the Kutztown and Keystone State Normal Schools.
After teaching school for three terms, he began the study of medicine in the office of Dr. Charles B. Dreher, of Tamaqua. Entering Hahnemann Medical College, he was graduated with the class of 1889. Locating in Lansford, he established himself in the practice of his profession, and soon built up a good general practice.
Dr. Kistler is a director and the vice-president of the Citizens' National Bank of Lansford. He was married in October, 1889, to Rosa V., daughter of Reu- ben and Caroline (Dreisbach) Heintzleman, of Schuyl- kill county. Their children are: Mary G., Helen C. and John C. Both daughters are products of Kutz- town State Normal School, and are now teachers in the public schools of Lansford. John is a student at La- fayette College.
Dr. Kistler is a member of the Carbon County Med- ical Society, the Schuylkill County Homeopathic Med- ical Society, and of the Homeopathic Medical Society of Pennsylvania. He is also a member of Panther Val- ley Lodge, No. 677, Free and Accepted Masons.
Kistler, Dr. Ralph G., a well-known Lehighton den- tist, was born at Andreas, Schuylkill county, August 17, 1884. He is the youngest of the eight children of David H. and Lydia (Hoppes) Kistler, five of whom survive. The father conducted a large grist mill in West Penn township, Schuylkill county.
The family name is an old and honorable one in the annals of Pennsylvania. The progenitor of the Kis- tler family in America was John George Kistler, a native of the Palatinate, Germany, who on October
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5, 1737, came in the ship "Townshead" from Am- sterdam to Philadelphia. After a stay of ten years in Goshenhoppen, in what is now Montgomery county, accompanied by his wife, Anna Dorothea, and their children, he took up his residence in Albany township, Berks county, where he spent the remainder of his life. The vicinity was referred to as "Allemangel," which may be interpreted as " All Want," being then wild and barren.
John Kistler was a Lutheran, and served as an elder in the Allemangel-now known as the Jerusalem- church, located near the border line of Berks and Le- high counties. The archives of Pennsylvania show that the descendants of John Kistler served in the Revolu- tionary War; others participated in the war of 1812 and in our subsequent wars. They are to-day estab- lished in practically every State in the Union. Many of them have become successful business and profes- sional men. An unusually large number are physicians and ministers of the gospel.
Ralph G. Kistler was educated at the Berwick high school and at the Bloomsburg State Normal School, graduating from the latter with the class of 1901. After teaching school for two years, he matriculated as a student in dental surgery at the Medico Chirur- gical College, of Philadelphia, completing his course in 1907. During the following year he established him- self in the practice of his profession at Lehighton, where he has achieved success.
Doctor Kistler was married on September 19, 1909, to Mayme E., daughter of Nathan Zimmerman and his wife, Harriet, of the Mahoning Valley. They have one son, Paul Zimmerman Kistler, aged seven. Doctor Kistler's father is still alive at the age of eighty-three, residing with the family of his son. The doctor is ac-
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tive in fraternal society circles in Lehighton, and is a member of the alumni association of the dental depart- ment of the Medico Chirurgical College, being also a member of the Susquehanna Dental Society.
Kline, C. Fred, cashier of the First National Bank of Lansford, is the son of Charles F. and Hannah (Hart) Kline. His father is a native of Summit Hill, and is now a general merchant at Lansford, while his mother came from New Jersey.
C. Fred Kline was born at Summit Hill on December 4, 1869. He attended the public schools until his four- teenth year, when he began life as a clerk in his fa- ther's store. During the spring of 1888 he entered the service of the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company, becoming the chief clerk of the company. For about ten years he also held the position of cashier of that corporation. His duties brought him into intimate contact with the workmen of the company, and for a period of fifteen years he assisted in the pleasant duty of paying them their wages.
Early in 1911 he resigned to accept the cashiership of the First National Bank, of which he was one of the organizers. He has been a member of the board of directors of this institution since its inception.
Mr. Kline served as secretary to the directorate of the Middle Coal Field Poor District for about six years. In the autumn of 1892 he was married to Ella C., daughter of J. B. Rickert, the veterinary surgeon of the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company at Lans- ford. He is a member of various Masonic bodies, and is a communicant of the Methodist Episcopal church.
Kresge, George D., a representative business man of Lehighton, was born at Stemlersville, Carbon coun- ty, Pa., on October 17, 1867. His father, Paul Kresge,
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was a native of Gilberts, Monroe county, the year of his birth being 1840.
On November 3, 1862, he enlisted in Company F, One Hundred Seventy-Sixth Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, and was honorably discharged as a corporal on August 17, 1863. Re-enlisting on March 7, 1865, he became a member of the Second Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer Cavalry, and was finally dis- charged on July 6th of the same year.
Soon after the close of the Civil War, Mr. Kresge took up his residence at Stemlersville, Carbon county, where he conducted a general store and engaged in farming pursuits. He was also postmaster at Stem- lersville and was a justice of the peace for many years.
In 1879 he was the nominee of the Democratic party for the office of sheriff of Carbon county, but was de- feated by the narrow margin of fourteen votes.
Mr. Kresge was also one of the organizers of the Citizens' National Bank, of Lehighton, and was one of the first directors of that institution. He was married to Mary, a daughter of Daniel Stemler, and they be- came the parents of nine children. Mr. Kresge died September 2, 1908, leaving behind him the record of a life of usefulness and honorable conduct.
George D. Kresge, after leaving the public schools, attended Broadheadsville Academy and the Polytech- nic Institute, both Monroe county institutions. He taught school for two years, and, in 1885, located at Lehighton, opening a general store, which he has con- ducted with growing success to the present time.
Mr. Kresge has been a member of the school board of Lehighton for a dozen years, in which capacity he has taken an active and intelligent interest in educa- tional work. He is also a director in the Lehigh Valley Building and Loan Association. He is a member of
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the Masonic fraternity, of the Independent Americans, and of the Knights of Malta, while being an adherent of the Reformed church.
On November 30, 1889, George D. Kresge was united in marriage to Glendora, a daughter of David Beltz, of Franklin township. Their children are: Mary, Eva, Myrtle, and Russell Kresge.
Kressley, Daniel, a veteran of the Civil War, and a farmer of Mahoning township, was born at Lynnport, Lehigh county, Pa., on January 18, 1844. His parents were Jonathan and Elizabeth (Brobst) Kressley, both natives of Pennsylvania.
When Daniel was six years of age, the family re- moved to Mahoning township, Carbon county, where he grew to manhood. He was one among thirty-seven, in one manner or another connected with the public school at New Mahoning, who volunteered in the war for the preservation of the Union.
First enlisting as a private in Company F, One Hun- dred Thirty-Second Regiment, P. V. I., on August 9, 1862, he was discharged on account of disability on January 17, 1863, having been sick with typhoid fever in a Washington hospital for nine weeks.
Re-enlisting as a corporal in the Two Hundred and Second Pennsylvania Regiment he served until honor- ably discharged, August 3, 1865.
Among the wartime memories which stand forth prominently in his mind are the battle of South Moun- tain, where he participated in a parting volley which wrought havoc in the ranks of the enemy, and the Bloody Lane of Antietam, where he was wounded. He also recalls with vividness an encounter between his regiment and the command of the celebrated Mosby, at Salem Heights, Va., in which the Confederates were worsted.
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HISTORY OF CARBON COUNTY.
After the war Mr. Kressley returned to Mahoning township, where, during the winter months he taught school for thirteen years. Between terms he was em- ployed as a car builder by the Lehigh Coal and Navi- gation Company and the Lehigh Valley Railroad Com- pany.
Since 1884 he has devoted his energies to agricul- tural pursuits on a farm which he had previously pur- chased.
On April 21, 1867, he was married to Mary A., daughter of Gabriel Dilcher. They have eight surviv- ing children, two sons and six daughters. Both sons are preachers of the Reformed church. Clement Dan- iel, the eldest, is located at Higens, Schuylkill county, Pa., while Thomas M. is stationed at Pine Grove, in the same county.
Mr. Kressley is connected with the Lutheran church. He is a charter member of John D. Bertollette Post, No. 484, G. A. R., of Lehighton, Pa.
Kressley, James Franklin, one of Weatherly's fore- most citizens and a prominent member of the Grand Army of the Republic, was born at Lynnport, Lehigh county, on November 29, 1846. His father, Jonathan Kressley, who was a carpet and linen weaver, was also a native of Lehigh county. He chose as his life com- panion Elizabeth Brobst, who came from a family well known in that section of the state. They became the parents of two sons and three daughters.
When James was still a child the family removed to New Mahoning, Carbon county, and at the age of nine he began to earn his own way by working for a farmer. In June, 1863, when the call was issued for volunteers to repel Lee's invasion of Pennsylvania, Mr. Kressley, thongh but little past sixteen years of age, enlisted for the required period of three months. Later he re-
I'MPressley
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enlisted for three years, or during the continuance of the conflict, becoming a member of the One Hundred and Sixteenth Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteer In- fantry, and serving until the close of the war. He was honorably discharged as a sergeant in June, 1865.
Returning to civil life, he fitted himself as a teacher by attending the Carbon Academy at Lehighton for five months. He taught school for two years, after which he came to Weatherly, where he served in the general store of W. W. Blakslee in various capacities for sixteen years.
In 1885 Mr. Kressley established himself as a dealer in hardware and lumber at Weatherly, selling out the business two years later to J. C. Sendel, and removing with his family to Birmingham, Alabama, for the ben- efit of his wife's health. After a sojourn of a year in the South he returned to Weatherly, and soon there- after purchased the general store of J. G. Eadie, con- ducting the business for six years.
He spent a year in aiding to organize the Weatherly Foundry and Machine Company, acting as the secre- tary of the company, and becoming a member of its board of directors. He was then chosen as the presi- dent of the Allen Candy Manufacturing Company, in which capacity he is still serving. He has given his best efforts to the building up of the business of this company, the affairs of which are in a prosperous con- dition.
Mr. Kressley has been an independent in politics and has been a leader in the movement for the abolition of the liquor traffic. Some years ago he was elected to the office of chief burgess of Weatherly, which he filled for a single term. For many years he has been the su- perintendent of the primary department of the Sun- day school of the Centenary Methodist Episcopal
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church. He was a prime mover in the erection of the Soldiers' Monument, dedicated at Weatherly in 1906.
Mr. Kressley was united in marriage to Sallie, a daughter of John Derr, of Weatherly, in 1870. They are the parents of two sons, Walter and Robert Kress- ley.
Kuehner, Eugene V., deputy clerk of courts for Car- bon county, and for thirteen years a teacher in the public schools, is one of the nine children of Augustus and Christiana (Eckhart) Kuehner, of Towamensing township. His father followed the vocation of a farm- er, having been married in 1859.
Eugene V. Kuehner was born on March 6, 1870, in Towamensing township; he attended the district schools until his seventeenth year, and later attended Muhlenberg College at Allentown, being also a gradu- ate of Palm's Business College, of Philadelphia. In addition to this he attended a number of select and summer schools.
Mr. Kuehner served as a justice of the peace in Towamensing township for a number of years, later becoming deputy prothonotary and clerk of courts under W. J. Zerbey in 1901. This office was di- vided by act of the legislature during the incumbency of Mr. Zerbey, who served three terms as clerk of courts, but Mr. Kuehner held both deputyships until November 6, 1909, when he relinquished his duties in the office held by Mr. Zerbey, but continued in the of- fice of the prothonotary until January, 1910.
He was himself a candidate for the Republican nom- ination for clerk of courts in 1909, being defeated by a narrow margin at the primaries, but was appointed as the deputy of that officer in January, 1910.
Mr. Kuehner was wedded to Sabina A. Anthony, of Little Gap, Carbon county, on October 23, 1893. Elsie Kuehner is their only child.
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Mr. Kuehner is a member of the Patriotic Order of Sons of America and of the Independent Order of For- esters.
During the presidential campaign of 1912 he sup- ported the candidacy of Theodore Roosevelt. He as- sisted in organizing the Washington party in Carbon county, and was chosen as the first secretary of that party in the county. Mr. Kuehner is the Mauch Chunk correspondent for a number of daily metropolitan journals.
Kunkle, Harry F., conducting a general store at Trochsville, is the son of Harrison and Amanda (Dory) Kunkle, the former a native of Monroe county, and the latter of Northampton. The father was born in 1839, and when a young man engaged in the lumber business. Later he came to Trochsville, Carbon coun- ty, establishing himself in the mercantile business. He served as the tax collector of Towamensing township and as a member of the school board, besides holding a number of other offices.
Harry F. Kunkle was born at Trochsville on May 31, 1882. He was educated in the common schools, at the Polytechnic Institute, Gilberts, Monroe county, and at Schissler's Business College, Norristown, Pa. After leaving school he took a half interest in the business of his father, acquiring full control of the same through purchase in 1909. He was the postmaster of Carbon until the elimination of the office in 1911.
Mr. Kunkle was married on March 13, 1903, to Tillula, the daughter of Dennis Moyer and his wife Amanda, of Trochsville. Stanley, their only son, was born in June, 1904.
Mr. Kunkle is a member of the Reformed church, and has been the superintendent of the Sunday school of that denomination at Trochsville for several years.
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He is identified with the Patriotic Order of Sons of America, and is a believer in the principles advocated by the Republican party.
Kutz, Wilson L., a physician and surgeon, of Weiss- port, was born in Berks county, Pa., May 9, 1854, the fourth son of Samuel D. and Caroline (Dry) Kutz. He grew to maturity on his father's farm, receiving his preliminary education in the district schools and at Kutztown State Normal School, where he graduated in 1870.
Enrolling as a student at the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, he completed his course in 1874. Choos- ing the profession of medicine, he entered Jefferson Medical College, from which he was graduated with the class of 1878. After practising in Philadelphia for two years he located at Parryville, Carbon county, where he remained for six years.
In 1887 he came to Weissport, forming a partnership with Dr. J. G. Zern, under the firm name of Zern and Kutz. This partnership was dissolved after about fif- teen years, since which time Doctor Kutz has practised quite successfully on his own account.
In 1891 he was elected as coroner of Carbon county, and he has held most of the offices in the gift of the people of Weissport. He is a member of the Carbon County Medical Society, having served as president of that body, being also identified with the Lehigh Valley Medical Association and the American Medical So- ciety. For some time past he has been a surgeon for the Lehigh Valley Railroad.
He is a member and past officer of the Masonic fra- ternity at Lehighton, Lilly Chapter and Packer Com- mandery, at Mauch Chunk, and is connected with Irem Temple, Order of the Mystic Shrine, of Wilkes-Barre, while belonging to a number of other organizations.
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In 1872 Doctor Kutz was married to Victoria Diehl. They have two sons, Leroy and Harry Cooper Kutz.
Larkin, Rev. Thomas J., rector of the church of the Immaculate Conception, of Mauch Chunk, was born in Ireland, March 1, 1864. Emigrating to America at the age of eighteen, he matriculated at Mt. Saint Mary's College, Emmitsburg, Md., from which institution he was graduated with the degree of B. A. in 1884. Two years later his alma mater conferred upon him the de- gree of Master of Arts. He prepared himself for the priesthood at St. Charles Seminary, Overbrook, Pa., being ordained May 20, 1888.
For fifteen years he served as a curate in various churches in Philadelphia, receiving the appointment as parish priest at Mauch Chunk in October, 1903.
The magnificent church of the Immaculate Concep- tion was built during his pastorate, being dedicated with imposing ceremonies on October 4, 1908. Father Larkin has won a warm place for himself in the hearts of the people of Mauch Chunk.
Leibenguth, James H., cashier of the Citizens' Na- tional Bank, of East Mauch Chunk, began life as a tele- graph operator, in which capacity he served the Lehigh Valley Railroad for years. His father was Joseph Leibenguth, a native of Northampton county, while his mother, before her marriage, bore the name of Eliza- beth Smith.
Mr. Leibenguth was born at Cherryville, Northamp- ton county, April 11, 1859, and was educated in the public schools and at Weaversville Academy, North- ampton county. Having served his apprenticeship as a telegrapher, he was given a position as operator for the Lehigh Valley at Laurys, near Allentown. Later he held similar positions under the same corporation at Mahanoy City and at Delano, where he was in the
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office of division superintendent Blakslee. During the eighties he was made freight agent for the company at East Mauch Chunk, in which position he continued until September, 1906, when he and others organized the bank of which he has since been the cashier and a member of the board of directors.
Mr. Leibenguth has been twice married. His first wife was Julia B. Reeder, daughter of George Reeder, of Easton. Two children were born of this union: Nettie Elizabeth and Lola Leibenguth. Mrs. Leiben- guth died in 1907, and two years later Mr. Leibenguth was wedded to Mrs. Carrie Jeffries, of East Mauch Chunk. He is a member of the Odd Fellows and at- tends the Methodist church.
Lentz, Lafayette, one of Carbon county's grand old men and a well-known coal operator, living at Mauch Chunk, is one of the descendants of Conrad Lentz, who settled in Lehigh county prior to the Revolution. This pioneer was a school teacher, and he died in early life. Among his children was Colonel John Lentz, the father of the subject of this memoir, who was born in Lehigh county in 1793. He began life as a shoemaker, but later became a hotel keeper. He was also a successful contractor, and was one of the builders of the Lehigh Canal.
While still a young man, he removed to that portion of Northampton county which was in 1843 set apart as the county of Carbon. In the subdivision which was then made he was a prime mover. Having previously served as a commissioner of Northampton county, he was later elected to the offices of commissioner and of sheriff in Carbon county.
Taking a keen interest in military affairs all his life, he enlisted for service in the war of 1812, when but a lad. Among the first to volunteer at the breaking out
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of the Rebellion, he was rejected on account of his ad- vanced age. His title as Colonel was obtained in the State Militia. When Lee invaded Pennsylvania in 1863, he recruited a company of reserves at Lehighton, and, as their captain, led them to Harrisburg in de- fense of the country.
Colonel Lentz was thrice married. His first wife was Mary Lacier, his second, Julia Winter Barnett, widow of John Barnett, and the third Mrs. Elizabeth Metzgar. His death occurred at Mauch Chunk in 1875 at the age of eighty-two years.
Lafayette Lentz was born of the first marriage, at Lehigh Gap, Carbon county, in 1828. Beginning life as a clerk in a store at Parryville, he subsequently en- gaged in railroad construction work, being one of the original contractors in the building of the Lehigh Val- ley Railroad. He also built important stretches of the North Pennsylvania, Easton and Amboy, and Mor- ris and Essex railroads, and was the builder of the Vosburg tunnel, in Wyoming county.
Mr. Lentz began his career as a coal operator near Mahanoy City, about 1869. He is now the senior mem- ber of the firm of Lentz and Company, operating a large colliery at Park Place, Schuylkill county.
Cheerful, benevolent, and democratic, he has always enjoyed great personal popularity. He has been a great lover of the life out-of-doors, and has been an enthusiastic hunter and fisherman, retaining his vigor of mind and body to an unusual degree for one of his advanced years.
His wife, whose maiden name was Mary Swartz, was the daughter of John Swartz, a farmer and inn- keeper of Northampton county. They became the par- ents of five children: John, James, and Lafayette,
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who died in infancy; William O., the manager of his father's coal interests, and Horace De Y. Lentz.
Horace De Y. Lentz, who is a member of the Carbon county bar, was born at Mauch Chunk, where he still resides, on February 24, 1867. He was educated in the schools of his native town, the Preparatory School for Lehigh University, Adams Academy, Quincey, Mass., and at Harvard University, graduating from the latter institution with the degree of B.A. in 1891.
Choosing the law as his profession, he entered the offices of Hon. L. H. Barber and Frederick Bertolette, at Mauch Chunk, as a student in 1893, being admitted to the bar in 1896.
As the first agent of the Palmer Land Company, Mr. Lentz played an active part in the establishment of the now thriving town of Palmerton. He is a believer in the principles advocated by the Democratic party, but has never sought office, save on one occasion, having been a candidate for the nomination for Congress in the Twenty-sixth District in 1912.
He has been a consistent friend of the Young Men's Christian Association of Mauch Chunk, and was for a time a vestryman of St. Mark's Episcopal church. He is a member of the University Club of Philadelphia, and is one of the directors of the Mauch Chunk Trust Company.
In 1893 he was married to Jennie McCreary Alsover, a daughter of the late Jabez Alsover, prominent in legal circles in Carbon and Luzerne counties.
Leslie, Harry, one of Palmerton's enterprising young business men, was born at Towanda, Bradford county, Pa., on August 25, 1870. He is the son of John and Sarah (Houser) Leslie. When Harry was eight years of age, his father, who was a locomotive engineer, was accidentally killed, and the family re-
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moved to Summit Hill, where, two years later, he began life as a slate picker on the breaker, subsequently en- tering the mines.
Learning the trade of a tailor, he pursued his voca- tion at Mauch Chunk and other places until 1906, when he came to Palmerton and opened an establishment, soon attracting a large patronage. Recently he moved into larger and more handsome quarters, where he car- ries a complete line of up-to-date furnishing goods for men.
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