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 > Part 35
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In 1864 he located permanently in Mauch Chunk, at first devoting his energies to the trade he had learned. On January 1, 1871, he established a stationery, wall paper and paint store at No. 61 Broadway; this he successfully managed in connection with his other in- terests during the remainder of his life.
In 1865 he was married to Miss Mary A. DeRemer, a daughter of Peter and Mary M. (Quick) DeRemer. Four children were born to them: Albert H., Hattie L., wife of A. W. Hooke; William F. and Charles E.
Mr. Luckenbach was one of the prime movers in the organization of the Upper Mauch Chunk Water Com- pany in 1872. Being elected as its secretary, he con- tinued in that capacity for forty years. In March, 1899, President Mckinley appointed him as postmast- er of Mauch Chunk, the duties of which position he discharged with energy and ability until his death, which occurred on March 3, 1912.
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Mr. Luckenbach was at one time a member of the town council of Mauch Chunk and served as its secre- tary. He was also a charter member of L. F. Chapman Post, No. 61, Grand Army of the Republic, twice serving as its commander, while being identified with the Royal Arcanum and the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.
As a citizen he was public spirited and progressive, always actively co-operating in any movement calcu- lated to promote the welfare of the town of his adop- tion.
As a mark of respect to his memory, all business was suspended in Mauch Chunk on the day of his funeral.
Luther, Dr. John W., who is at the head of the Palmerton Hospital, the only institution of its kind situated in Carbon county, is a native of Berks county, having been born in the city of Reading, May 21, 1875. His family originally came from Lancaster county. Peter Luther, a Lancaster county druggist was his paternal grandfather, while William Behm, a Reading hotel man, was his maternal grandfather. Martin and Diller Luther, brothers of Peter Luther, were promi- nent medical practitioners in Berks county.
Thomas M., the father of John W. Luther, was a native of Reading, while his brother, R. C. Luther, de- ceased, of Pottsville, was the superintendent of the Philadelphia & Reading Coal and Iron Company and was first vice president of that corporation.
Doctor Luther is a graduate of the Reading high school, class of 1894. After spending a year at Drexel Institute, Philadelphia, he entered the medical de- partment of the University of Pennsylvania, from which institution he graduated in 1899. He then served as interne at the Reading Hospital for nine months, later holding the same position at the Univer-
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sity Hospital for eighteen months. For one year he was the chief resident physician in the same institution, after which he practiced his profession on his own account in Philadelphia. He was appointed instructor in gynecology at the University of Pennsylvania and was assistant gynecologist at the University Hospital, as well as obstetrician at the Maternity Hospital.
In January, 1908, Doctor Luther took charge of the Palmerton Hospital, having since been appointed as a surgeon of the Central Railroad of New Jersey.
When Palmerton was organized as a borough, in 1912, he was honored in being chosen as the first chief burgess of the town. He is also the president of the Palmerton Co-operative Association, president of the Carbon County Medical Society, secretary of the Le- high Valley Medical Association, and holds member- ship in the Pennsylvania Medical Society and in the American Medical Association.
He belongs to Slatington Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, and attends the Lutheran church. His wife was Aletta A. Artley, of Savannah, Ga., whom he mar- ried in July, 1903.
Mack, William B., who was one of the pioneer resi- dents of East Mauch Chunk, and a railroad man of many years' experience, was born in Ulster county, New York, September 15, 1825. His parents were George and Margaret (Boggs) Mack, the father being a well-known contractor.
Coming to Mauch Chunk when a boy, the subject of this memoir began life as a printer in the newspaper offices of that place.
His long career as a railroad man began in 1845, when he entered the service of the Beaver Meadow Railroad, being appointed as its road master about five years later. When this company was absorbed by
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the Lehigh Valley he continued in the service of the latter, and in 1869 his authority as road master was extended to include the Mahanoy Division. He retired about 1893, after a continuous service of nearly half a century.
When Mr. Mack built his residence in East Mauch Chunk there were but four or five other houses in the place. His connection with the financial interests of Mauch Chunk antedated the establishment of the na- tional banking system. He was a director of the old Mauch Chunk Bank, which was organized in 1855, and was similarly identified with the First National Bank of Mauch Chunk and the Mauch Chunk National Bank, of which the first named institution was the prede- cessor. He was also associated with the Mauch Chunk Water Company for many years, serving as its presi- dent.
In 1859 Mr. Mack was united in marriage to Jean, daughter of James R. and Ellen B. (Tolan) Struthers, of Mauch Chunk. Her father was a prominent lawyer, and was the first district attorney of Carbon county. They became the parents of eight children, three of whom survive.
Mr. Mack departed this life on February 16, 1911, in the eighty-sixth year of his age.
Martyn, John, Sr., for many years identified with the coal mining industry in Carbon and the neighboring counties of Schuylkill and Luzerne, a prominent churchman and Sunday school worker, and one of Car- bon county's grand old men, was born in St. Hillary Parish, Cornwall, England, May 16, 1832. His grand- father was Roger Martyn, a mining engineer, while his father, John Martyn, was a mine captain in Corn- wall. He was born in 1805, and, at the age of twenty- three, was united in wedlock to Mary Gilbert. They
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became the parents of four children: Samuel, John, Elizabeth T., who became the wife of William Carter, and Mary, who died in infancy.
Samuel was the first postmaster of Audenried, and died while serving his third term as the superintendent of public schools of Prince William county, Virginia. The father of the family died in 1844.
John Martyn attended the parish schools in the place of his birth until he became twelve years of age, when he entered the copper mines, where he worked until his sixteenth year, when, in the spring of 1848, he accom- panied the rest of the family to America. They set- tled in Tamaqua, Schuylkill county ; John there became a practical miner, being employed in that capacity for ten years. He then went to Stockton, Luzerne county, where he became inside foreman for the firm of Packer, Carter & Company. At the expiration of four years Mr. Martyn was made the general superintendent of Coleraine colliery, removing to Beaver Meadows, in 1862. This position he held for eight years, when he became a member of the firm of Ely, Martyn & Com- pany, securing a lease from Coxe Brothers & Company, and opening and developing a coal property near Bea- ver Meadows.
At the end of several years Mr. Martyn disposed of his interest in this venture to the remaining members of the firm, again assuming the superintendency of the colliery at Coleraine for a short period.
Since 1883 he has lived in partial retirement, look- ing after his real estate interests in Beaver Meadows, and being occasionally called upon to pass expert judg- ment on coal properties, both in the anthracite and the bituminous fields.
Mr. Martyn has been thrice wedded. His first wife was Jane Carter, a daughter of William Carter, a well-
a. M. Masonhermen
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known coal operator. The children of this marriage were: John, who became an accountant and telegraph operator; he died in 1898; William C., of Allentown; Mary T., widow of Samuel Graham; Margaret, who became the wife of Hon. Thomas H. Williams; she died in 1892; Grace C., who is the second wife of Thomas H. Williams; Charles S., a Dauphin county physician, and Jane Martyn, residing in Hazleton.
Mrs. Martyn died in 1871, and two years later Mr. Martyn became the husband of Elizabeth W. Jeffries, of Philadelphia, who passed away ten years subse- quent to that date.
In 1886 Mr. Martyn wedded Susanna E. Thompson, a daughter of Alexander and Elizabeth Thompson, of Berwick, Pa.
He has been an independent in politics, refusing to kneel at the shrine of party regularity, but has always been a militant foe of the liquor traffic. In 1886 he was the Republican nominee for the office of associate judge of Carbon county, but was defeated by a narrow mar- gin. He has repeatedly been chosen as a delegate to the state and national conventions of the Prohibition party.
Mr. Martyn has been a member of the Methodist Episcopal church since 1848, while he has been elected and served as superintendent of the Sunday school of that denomination at Beaver Meadows for forty-five consecutive years.
For several years past Mr. and Mrs. Martyn have spent their winters in Florida.
Masonheimer, Rev. A. M., Ph.D., pastor of Salem's Reformed church at Weatherly, is the son of John Masonheimer, a native of the Palatinate, who emi- grated to America in 1827, establishing his home in
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Lehigh county. He was married to Barbara Rockel, a native Pennsylvanian, and they had seven children.
Alfred M. Masonheimer was born near Allentown, Lehigh county, October 25, 1853. Leaving the public schools at the age of twelve years, he drove a horse and cart about the iron mines near his home until he reached the age of sixteen. He then attended the Key- stone State Normal School and Palatinate College.
After teaching school for a number of years, he en- tered Ursinus College. Later matriculating at Yale University, he was graduated from that institution with the degree of B.D. The degree of doctor of phil- osophy, pro merito, has been conferred upon him by Allegheny College.
Being licensed to preach the gospel in 1880, he was stationed for a year at Orange, Vermont. In 1881 he accepted a call to the Weatherly charge of the Reform- ed church, which also includes St. Matthew's church, in Packer township, and St. John's Reformed church at Rockport. He preaches at the two last named places on alternate Sundays.
During his long pastorate Doctor Masonheimer has left a lasting impression on the lives and characters of the people among whom he has labored, his broad, sym- pathetic and kindly nature, coupled with thorough equipment for his work, peculiarly qualifying him for the discharge of his duties as a pastor.
He has also been greatly aided and strengthened in carrying out his life's work by the ministrations of a sensible and devoted wife who always faithfully assists him in his pastoral duties, and who is greatly beloved by all who know her. She bore the maiden name of Catharine Ritter, being a daughter of Jeremiah and Lucy Ritter, of Egypt, Lehigh county, Pa. Their mar- riage was solemnized on March 25, 1881.
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Since coming to Weatherly, Rev. Masonheimer has administered the rite of baptism to eleven hundred and seventy persons, confirmed nine hundred and thirty- five, and performed over five hundred marriages. He has also conducted nearly seven hundred and fifty fu- nerals. The total membership of his charge is six hun- dred.
He has interested himself, too, in the business and industrial welfare of the borough, being a director of the First National Bank, and having a voice in the af- fairs of the Weatherly Foundry and Machine Com- pany, the Weatherly Water Company, and other con- cerns.
He is a member of Hazle Lodge, No. 327, Free and Accepted Masons, of Hazleton, and of Sodi Lodge, No. 80, Knights of Pythias, of Weatherly.
Mr. and Mrs. Masonheimer are the parents of three children, all of whom are graduates of the Weatherly high school. Elva, the eldest is also a graduate of, the Allentown College for Women, and is now a teach- er in the public schools of Weatherly. Williard is a product of Lafayette College, and is at present a stu- dent in the medical department of the University of Pennsylvania. Alfred, having graduated at the Hazle- ton high school, is now a sophomore at Franklin and Marshall College.
McCabe, P. H., principal of the schools of East Mauch Chunk and one of the successful educators of Carbon county, was born at Nesquehoning, April 6, 1857. His father was Patrick McCabe, who was born in County Cavan, Ireland, in 1820. He emigrated to the United States in 1849, locating in New York city, where for a number of years he supported himself by doing clerical work. Coming to Nesquehoning he be-
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came a coal miner, which occupation he followed the re- mainder of his life.
He was married to Mrs. Sarah Bradwell, a native of Sunderland, England. She came to America in 1832. James, deceased, and Patrick, were their only children.
Patrick H. McCabe received his elementary educa- tion in the schools of Nesquehoning, and at the age of fourteen entered the mines. In 1876 he went to Mil- lersville State Normal School, after which he taught school for a number of terms. Later he attended Val- paraiso University, where he graduated in the Latin scientific course with the class of 1883. He is also a graduate of Eastman Business College, of Poughkeep- sie, N. Y.
Prof. McCabe has devoted all his time and energies since reaching man's estate to educational work. He taught school at Coalport, Summit Hill and at Nesque- honing, serving for thirteen years at the last named place. For eighteen years he has been principal at East Mauch Chunk, and the schools under his supervi- sion have steadily increased in efficiency and excellence during that period, the majority of the graduates lead- ing successful lives in their various fields of endeavor.
On June 30, 1887, Mr. McCabe was wedded to Emma Grover, daughter of Nathan Grover, of East Mauch Chunk. A boy and a girl, both of whom died in in- fancy, were born to them.
McCay, William N., who was a well-known resident of Banks township, was born at Americus, Ga., on March 6, 1851, the son of Isaiah R. and Jane M. (Righter) McCay. He was a relative of Charles Fran- cis McCay, the noted American astronomer.
His father was a physician and when William was four years of age the family removed to Beaver Mea- dow, Carbon county, where the doctor practised his
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profession for a short time. His death occurred in Mexico, in 1857, whither he had gone on a mission for the United States government.
In early life, William McCay was employed on an engineering corps of the Lehigh Valley Railroad at Hazleton. Subsequently he served for a time as a clerk in the store of W. T. Carter and Company at Beaver Meadow. Later he became a foreman at Coleraine col- liery, operated by the same firm, continuing in that ca- pacity for nearly a quarter of a century. For a long period he also served as the general store-keeper at this operation, now owned by the estate of A. S. Van Wickle.
On October 28, 1874, he was married to Mary, a daughter of George Reinmiller, of Beaver Meadow. They became the parents of four sons and three daugh- ters.
Mr. McCay was a man of broad sympathies and many fine personal traits. He died on September 5, 1910.
McCormick, David, editor and owner of the Lehigh- ton Press and postmaster of Lehighton, was born at Hickory Run, Carbon county, on April 21, 1873. He is the son of William C. and Elizabeth (Arnold) Mc- Cormick, and has lived in Lehighton virtually all his life.
He acquired his education in the public schools of the borough, and early manifested a liking for news- paper work. When but a lad of fifteen he entered the service of O. B. Sigley, the well-known Mauch Chunk printer and newspaper man, as an apprentice. Having mastered the art which he chose to follow, he proceed- ed to Philadelphia, where he was employed for a year as a journeyman, after which he returned to accept a position as foreman and local reporter for Mr. Sigley.
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After a period of two years, he was induced to take the place of foreman for the Lehighton Press, which had then but recently been established ; this position he held for two years.
Having, by this time, attained a thorough and practi- cal knowledge of the business in its various details, and being possessed of energy and ambition, Mr. McCor- mick, on November 16, 1896, purchased the Press and the printing establishment that was conducted in con- nection therewith. He immediately proceeded to build up and improve the property of which he was now the sole owner, and his efforts have been crowned with excellent results. Not only has the paper been enlarged to twice its former size, but its circulation has been more than trebled since he assumed control.
Mr. McCormick was the first to introduce the type- setting and folding machine in Carbon county, while his establishment has facilities for job printing that would do credit to the plant of a larger town than Le- highton.
The Press is issued weekly, and faithfully mirrors the important happenings of the region in which it circulates. The trenchant pen of its editor has given the paper a commanding position among the journals of the Lehigh Valley.
Mr. McCormick was appointed postmaster of Le- highton early during the year 1911; immediately upon assuming the duties of the office, his progressive spirit was made manifest in the remodeling of the interior of the postoffice and in the introduction of new furnish- ings and a more modern equipment, adding to the com- fort and convenience of the employes of the office and the public alike.
He has been an active member of Lehighton's oldest fire company for many years, being the treasurer of
CAPT. WILLIAM C. MCCORMICK.
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that organization; he is also a member of the Masonic order, of the Sons of Veterans, and of various other organizations.
On October 14, 1896, Mr. McCormick was married to Bertha Hollenbach, daughter of Elias F. and Mary Hollenbach. Their children are: Robert D. and Mary E. McCormick.
McCormick, William C., a veteran of the Civil War, and a foremost citizen of Lehighton, was the son of David McCormick, who was of Irish birth, but the de- scendant of a Welsh and Scotch ancestry.
David McCormick was born in the year 1800, immi- grating to America at the age of twenty-eight, and set- tling in New Jersey. He assisted in constructing the Morris Canal, connecting the Delaware river with the harbor of New York, and was subsequently appointed to the superintendency of the canal, which was more than a hundred miles in length. In 1851 he came to Carbon county, being thereafter engaged in the lumber business. He married Mary Lockwood, a native of Connecticut, who was thirteen years his junior, and who bore him six sons and two daughters. The father of these children died on March 23, 1854, while his wife survived him nearly half a century, passing away April 28, 1900.
William C. McCormick was born in New Jersey on March 23, 1834. He was educated in his native town, where he grew to maturity, and, in 1851, he removed with the family of his father to Carbon county, where for a short period he followed lumbering. Later he learned the trade of a wheelwright, which he pursued successfully for some years.
He saw service in the cause of the Union during the Civil War under two separate enlistments. He was first a member of the One Hundred and Eighty-eighth
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Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers, and upon re-en- listing on March 16, 1864, was enrolled as a private in Company G, Third Regiment Pennsylvania Heavy Artillery, which was attached to the Army of the James. He was soon advanced to the rank of quarter- master sergeant, being subsequently commissioned by Governor Curtin as a second lieutenant, with the rank of captain, though he never served in that capacity, due to the fact that the opportunity did not present itself before his discharge, in November, 1865.
He was one of the number to whom was assigned the duty of guarding Jefferson Davis during the time when the president of the fallen Confederacy was confined as a prisoner in Fortress Monroe. The calm resigna- tion and lofty fortitude displayed by the former south- ern leader in his hour of defeat and humiliation excited the admiration of Captain McCormick, between whom and Davis a feeling of mutual respect and friendship sprang up.
Mr. McCormick held most of the offices in the gift of the people of Kidder township, where he lived prior to his removal to Lehighton in 1876. During his resi- dence here he also filled many positions of trust and responsibility. He was a member of town council for nine years, and served for the same period of time on the school board, of which he was the president for a time. He was elected to the office of burgess of Le- highton in 1906. In the discharge of the various duties of these offices, his conduct was always characterized by progressiveness and a desire for the public good.
For more than twenty-five years Captain McCormick was prominently identified with the Lehigh Valley Emery Wheel Company, which was engaged in the manufacture of emery and corundum wheels at Weiss- port.
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He was married on August 20, 1860, to Elizabeth Arnold, a native of Monroe county, who was born May 28, 1832. They became the parents of the following children : Agnes, deceased; James, deceased; Thomas, deceased; William, Edwin, Mary E., David, Amanda A., and Ann, deceased. The mother of these children died on August 27, 1880, and on December 22, 1881, Mr. McCormick wedded Emma E. Christman. Two children were born of this union: Lillian and Ella McCormick.
Captain McCormick was a member of the Masonic fraternity, and was honored with the position of com- mander of the Lehighton Post of the Grand Army of the Republic. His death occurred on March 14, 1909.
McGinley, John J., clerk of courts of Carbon county, is a native of Summit Hill, where he was born on Jan- uary 10, 1877. He is one of the ten children of Dennis and Bridget (McCullion) McGinley. His father, who was a miner, died in 1894 of the complaint which short- ens the lives of so many underground toilers,-miners' asthma.
John left school at the age of eleven years to earn his livelihood as a slate picker on the breaker. Subse- quently he availed himself of the opportunity of at- tending night school, however. Having grown to ma- turity, he became a brakeman on the Panther Creek Valley Railroad. Unfortunately, in 1903, while put- ting on a brake, the chain broke, and he was precipi- tated to the roadbed, having both legs cut off. After many legal delays, subterfuges, and court trials, he finally succeeded, in 1912, in placing the responsibility for the accident upon the company owning the car, and was awarded a substantial verdict.
In 1906 Mr. McGinley was chosen as tax collector of Summit Hill, and three years later he was elected as
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the Democratic candidate to the office of clerk of courts, which he is now filling.
He is a member of St. Joseph's Catholic church, of Summit Hill. Of his brothers and sisters, Katie and Edward alone survive. They live at Summit Hill, which is also the home of his widowed mother.
McMahon, Patrick J., landlord and owner of the Eagle Hotel at Nesquehoning, was born in County Cavan, Ireland, on October 10, 1861, the son of John and Margaret (McGarry) McMahon. The family came to the United States in 1863, settling at Nesquehoning.
At the age of nine years Patrick began life as a slate picker. During his eighteenth year he went to Provi- dence, R. I., where he learned the trade of a carpenter, which he pursued until 1896. He then purchased the hotel at Nesquehoning which he is now conducting. This is one of the best known landmarks in the town, and was built by Andrew Mccabe about seventy years ago.
Since Mr. McMahon acquired the ownership of the hotel, it has been entirely refitted and modernized, making it one of the most homelike and popular hostel- ries between Mauch Chunk and Tamaqua. It adjoins the spot where St. Patrick's Roman Catholic church formerly stood.
Miller, George W., one of Weatherly's oldest and best known merchants, the son of George and Eve (Kocher) Miller, was born in Maine township, Colum- bia county, Pa., on December 15, 1844. His grand- father, Henry Miller, was a farmer, following that oc- cupation first in Berks county and later in Columbia. The farm which he owned in the latter county is still in possession of his descendants. His son, George, the father of the subject of this notice, who was also a farmer, was born in 1803. He became the father of
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