USA > Pennsylvania > Clearfield County > History of Clearfield County, Pennsylvania : with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 77
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In 1856 Mr. Irwin moved to Lick Run, Goshen township, where, in company with his brother, William F. Irwin, he had a lumbering business, and where our subject still lives and conducts that business, although at the advanced age of eighty-two years ; still
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HISTORY OF CLEARFIELD COUNTY.
hearty, reasonably strong, in the enjoyment of good health and the comforts of life, earned fairly and honestly in the busy fields of life, with a consciousness of having done well and right. In 1872 Mr. Irwin was appointed postmaster at Lick Run Mills, and has held that position ever since.
In the month of February, 1881, after a married life of more than fifty-four years, Hannah Irwin, the esteemed and devoted wife and companion of Ellis Irwin, was called from earth. She was a woman loved and admired for her true worth and endearing qual- ities ; possessed of a quiet and gentle disposition, true Christian character and all wo- manly virtues.
M AXWELL, JAMES ANDREW, M. D., the youngest but one of six children, sons and daughters of Andrew B. and Isabella (Smith) Maxwell, was born at Newport, Perry county, Pa., on the 22d day of March, in the year 1840. At the age of twelve years he entered the office of the Holidaysburg Register, intending to learn the printing trade. At the same time he attended the academy at Holidaysburg. He remained at this place for about four years, after which he returned home. The family then moved to Chambersburg, Franklin county, where James finished his trade on the Franklin Re- pository, but at the same time went to school at the academy at the latter place. He then determined to enter the medical profession, and, to this end, in the spring of 1861, he commenced a course of medical study with Dr. A. H. Senseny, which continued about three years. During his studies, however, and in the years 1863-64 he attended a course of lectures at the Jefferson Medical College, at Philadelphia.
In April, 1864, he received an appointment as medical cadet in the regular army, and was stationed at the Post Hospital, at Chambersburg, but was afterward trans- formed to the McClellan U. S. Hospital at Philadelphia. He was so occupied for about one year and managed, during the time, to devote considerable attention to study. He then returned to the college and finished his course, graduating in the spring of 1866, and receiving the degree of M. D. For one year he practiced in Franklin county, after which he came to Curwensville and made a permanent location.
In the practice of medicine and surgery Dr. Maxwell has been successful; nor is this success undeserved, for he has been found ready at all times to attend to the duties of his profession, and, rich or poor, the patient is treated without distinction of position. This, with a thorough understanding of his profession, has brought to him an extensive and remunerative practice, and that which is more to be desired, the respect and confi- dence of the entire community. In the year 1869, then having been a resident of Cur- wensville for about two years, Dr. Maxwell married Rebecca L., daughter of Thomas Ross, a respected resident of the place. Eight children have been born of this marriage, five of whom are now living.
TRVIN, HON. ALEXANDER. On the 18th day of January, in the year 1800, Al- exander Irvin was born. He was the third child and second son of William and Margaret (Johnston) Irvin, who, at the time of the birth of our subject, were residents of Centre county. In the year 1820 Alexander came to Curwensville, where he was em- ployed as clerk in his brother's store, and otherwise engaged in business of various kinds, and acquired a thorough understanding of each in general and in detail. After a resi- eence of about five years in Curwensville, he moved to the county seat, where he en- gaged in the mercantile business, and also that of a mill-contractor, building mills in
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ALEXANDER IRVIN. - AARON W. PATCHIN.
various localities throughout the county. The year following that in which he became a resident of Clearfield town (1826), he married Elizabeth, daughter of William Bloom, an old and highly respected resident of Pike township. From this time forward, Alex- ander Irvin was one of the foremost men in the affairs of Clearfield county. In busi- ness life he was entirely successful, but unfortunately he possessed not the faculty of retaining that which he made; in social and political life, he made friends and always retained them. He had superior intellect and business qualifications, but they were to him of little avail. The political problems of the day he could grasp and solve to a nicety ; his power of foretelling the result of a campaign was something remarkable, yet he was never boastful of his abilities in this direction, or accustomed to ridiculous or exaggerated statements. " He was a man," says the Clearfield Republican, " of unassum- ing manners, but of wonderful personal popularity, and thereby vanquished every rival he met on the political battle-field. Although he held numerous public offices, he did not possess the faculty of making money. He was an ardent supporter of the old Whig party, and was one of the organizers of the Republican party, although never the candi- date of the latter. In 1872 he was a delegate to the Cincinnati convention, and then supported Mr. Adams; but, upon the nomination of Mr. Greeley, he fully endorsed and supported him as a presidential candidate. After the excitement occasioned by this independent movement had passed away, Mr. Irvin returned to the Republican party.
His first appearance in the field of politics was made in the year 1836, when he was elected to the State Senate over Governor Packer, the candidate of the democracy. In 1842 he was elected prothonotary of Clearfield county, and in 1846 was the· successful Whig candidate for congressional honors, he being the first representative in Congress chosen from Clearfield county. Still later, in 1846, he was appointed United States marshal for the Western District of Pennsylvania, during the administration of Presi- dent Taylor.
During his several political holdings Mr. Irvin was never looked upon as an espe- cially brilliant man ; he possessed not, nor did he claim to possess, superior ability as a legislator, nevertheless, his vote could always be found representing the best interests of his constituents, and his argument was logical and common-sense. His success as a politician lay in his popularity with the people, and his remarkable power as an organ- izer, in knowing what ought to be done to insure success, and then, how to do it. After his services as U. S. marshal had ceased, Mr. Irvin returned to Clearfield, where he lived during the rest of his life, and where he died on Friday, the 20th day of March, 1874, being aged seventy-four years, two months and two days.
PATCHIN, AARON W. It has frequently been remarked that the " Yankees," from New York and New England, showed the Pennsylvanians how to make lumber, and how to get it to market. Be this as it may, it is nevertheless certain that the " Down- easters," whether Yankees or not, brought into the lumbering country of the " Upper " Susquehanna some of the most enterprising, go-ahead and prosperous people that ever settled and improved any locality. John Patchin and his descendants were excellent types of the class of people referred to, the father, John, having come to this region in 1836, and started in the lumber business in the vicinity of Burnside township, and so continued down to the time of his death in 1863.
Aaron Wright Patchin, the fourth of eight children, sons and daughters of John and Elizabeth (Wright) Patchin, was born in the town of Hague, Warren county, New York
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HISTORY OF CLEARFIELD COUNTY.
State, on the 15th day of August, 1822. He was brought up to the lumber business in the vicinity of Lake George, N. Y. (his father's former residence), near the foot-hills of the famous Adirondacks, and here his early life was spent, when, in 1847, he followed his father and came to the " Upper" Susquehanna. He, with other brothers, engaged extensively in the lumber business, a part of the time under the firm name and style of John Patchin & Sons. Upon the death of the father, Aaron, who seems to have been his father's chief assistant and advisor during life, acquired most of his father's real estate, having fully compensated the other heirs for their interests, and by him the vast business was successfully continued. He also was one of the executors of his father's will, his co-executor being Jackson Patchin. The extent of the lands acquired by our subject, upon his father's death, numbered some thousands of acres, but in enlarging his lumber- ing interests he has purchased much other lands, and now owns several thousands of acres scattered about in various localities, and much greater in amount than that origi- nally given him. He, too, became the owner of the mercantile business, at Patchinville, which he has ever since continued, this being the only store in the immediate vicinity. He is the owner of the extensive saw-mill at that place. During the month of April, 1887, Mr. Patchin established an extensive works at Camden, N. J., for the manufacture of spars, the material therefor being cut from his lands in this locality. At the same place he also has a lumber saw-mill. Aaron W. Patchin has not been in any sense a public man ; he had neither the disposition nor the time to indulge in the worry of polit- ical life, although frequently pressed to become the candidate of his party-the Republi- can ; he sought no office nor station except that to which he was clearly entitled-that of a leading business man in the county. Upon this record is he content to live, seek- ing no other position but enjoying fully in his rural home, surrounded by family and friends, the fruits of years of honest toil.
On the 26th day of June, 1862, Aaron W. Patchin married Elizabeth, daughter of George Barrett, of Indiana county. Of this marriage ten children have been born, eight of whom are still living.
IRVIN, WILLIAM. About the year 1820 William Irvin, jr., as he was then known, came to the mouth of Anderson's Creek, at a point now occupied by the borough of Curwensville. Here his father had purchased a tract of about three hundred and thirty acres of land, built a dam across the West Branch, and erected a mill. In the year 1828 William, jr., and John Irvin purchased this mill property from their father and managed it for two years, when, in 1830, John bought William's interest. The latter then engaged in the mercantile business, conducting a large general store, and also became an exten- sive lumberman. His investments were remunerative, and he acquired large means. There being no banking-houses in the vicinity during a greater part of his business life, Mr. Irvin invested his surplus funds in real estate, which brought him handsome returns in later years, and left an exceedingly valuable estate to be divided among his heirs at his decease.
William Irvin is remembered as a man of excellent business qualifications, possessing good judgment, honest in every transaction, correct in his habits, unassuming in man- ner, and inclined to be conservative, yet generous and enterprising in all that pertained to the welfare of his town, county, and its people. In the various enterprises that con- tributed to the development and improvement of the county, he was a leader, and gave largely both of his time and means. For the construction of the Tyrone and Clearfield
Paderno
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WILLIAM IRVIN- RICHARD SHAW.
railroad he contributed liberally, and was made one of the directors, although he did not live to see the road completed ; but his estate contributed twenty thousand dollars after his death in accordance with his wish. Out of his own funds he caused to be built a brick school-house at Curwensville, and, for a time, paid the expenses of its mainte- nance. He was a man of broad views on all subjects ; possessed a mind capable of grasp- ing large enterprises and conducting them to successful issues ; far-seeing judgment, and a character founded upon principles of justice and integrity. It cannot be said that any good work ever appealed to him in vain; at the same time his best deeds were not done in a manner to draw attention to himself, his chief aim being to be considered one of the staunch business men of the town, and to so order his daily life as to secure the respect and esteem of his townsmen. All religious organizations received his sympathy and material aid. He was an earnest worker in the political field, on the Republican side, though never for his own advancement; he never sought an office, and accepted but one, that of United States marshal of the Western District, but his time and means were always ready for the good of the party, and when the government was threatened with internecine foes, none was more active and liberal in its support than he.
In 1860 Mr. Irvin was succeeded in the mercantile business by his son, Edwin A. Irvin, but, in the year following, the latter entered the army, and during his absence the father managed the store. Aside from this, Mr. Irvin may be said to have retired from active business in the year 1860, and thereafter, and until the time of his death, Decem- ber 29, 1869, his time was given to the care and management of his estate.
William Irvin, jr., of whom the above is written, was born in Penn's Valley, on the Ist day of December, in the year 1801. His father, William Irvin, sr., was a native of Ireland, and came to this country in the year 1789. He married Margaret Johnston, by whom he had nine children, William, jr., being the fourth child and the third son. In the year 1830, March 2, William Irvin, jr., married Jane Patton. The fruit of this mar- riage was fifteen children, four of whom died in infancy. Of the life and Christian exam- ple of Jane Patton Irvin, enough might be written for a complete chapter. She was a woman of fine intelligence and great force of character. To her husband and children she gave her unbounded love, her greatest earthly affection, every attention, every thought, every care. In time of trial she proved a comfort, and in time of triumph a joy ; her force of character, her patience, her resignation, and her very presence were, in themselves, noble examples ; her worthy charities, dispensed here and there among the poor and the afflicted, quietly and without display ; her loyal devotion to country and the Union arms that led her thrice within the lines, administering help to the sick and wounded, and comfort and consolation to the dying comrades, can never be forgot- ten ; and finally her patient resignation to her physical suffering during the last sixteen years of her life, were traits of her character that endeared her to a large circle of friends and relatives; and in her death the whole community lost a dear friend. She died September 4, 1881, having survived her husband nearly twelve years.
HAW, RICHARD. There was, perhaps, no man who occupied a more prominent
S position, or took a more active part in all that pertained to the general welfare of this county during the days of its infancy, than Richard Shaw. In every project look- ing to the advancement of the interests of the county and the prosperity of its people, he was foremost, and at the same time fully mindful of his duties to himself and his fam-
87
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HISTORY OF CLEARFIELD COUNTY.
ily. Mr. Shaw was born in the county Derry, Ireland, February 2, 1792. He was the second of eight children, sons and daughters, born to Archibald and Mary Shaw. Each of these children grew to manhood and womanhood.
The settlement of the family in this county dates back to the year 1810, at which time Archibald Shaw and family located on the Mount Joy ridges, a few miles north from Clearfield town.
On the 14th day of May, in the year 1816, Richard Shaw united in marriage with Mary Irwin, daughter of Henry Irwin, who also was one of the pioneers of the county, and one of its respected men. The children of this marriage were eleven in number, and are elsewhere mentioned in this volume.
Soon after marriage Mr. Shaw moved to Bradford township, on a hundred-acre tract known as the Bird lands. Here he lived but four years, when he located on land at the mouth of Montgomery Creek, in Lawrence township, but soon again moved further up the river to the site of the present farm of Leander Denning. The places last named were not owned by Mr. Shaw, his interest being only a leasehold.
Having purchased the extensive tract of lands which have subsequently been known as the Shaw lands, situate on the west side of the river, opposite Clearfield town, he moved there and made that his residence during the remainder of his life. As a farmer, merchant, and lumberman he was energetic, thrifty, and consequently prosperous. As his means accumulated he invested them in real estate, and watching the gradual growth of the county seat, made most of his investments in that locality. In 1840 he became the owner of the property known as the " Red Mill," which he owned, or controlled, up to the time of his death. His investments in Clearfield were, too, quite extensive, and by various purchases he became sole owner of all the property on the north side of Market street, that lay between First and Second streets, with a considerable frontage on either of the last named thoroughfares. This land lay in the heart of the town, and rapidly increased in value, and, as occasion seemed to require, he caused to be erected thereon buildings suitable for mercantile and other purposes; besides these lands he made extensive purchases in other localities, each of which was improved and turned to good purpose.
While thus actively engaged in his personal affairs, Mr. Shaw was not neglectful of the interests of his children, but gave each of them the benefits of his own business ex- perience, and a good start in life on their attaining a proper age.
In political affairs he always took an active interest and warmly advocated the doc- trines of the Democratic party. He was at one time appointed justice of the peace for Lawrence township, and still later chosen to fill the more elevated and dignified office of associate judge of the county, his colleague on the bench at that time being Dr. John P. Hoyt. From his incumbency of this office, Mr. Shaw was ever afterward known by the title of "judge."
For many years he was a member of the Presbyterian Church, in the interests of which he took an active part, contributing both of his attention and means for the wel- fare of that society and its members. In this as in other respects, his example has been followed by a majority of his descendants.
Richard Shaw died on the 17th day of August, 1876, having passed the eighty-fourth year of his life. His remains were interred in the Shaw family burying-ground, opposite the borough of Clearfield.
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ALEXANDER MURRAY.
M URRAY, ALEXANDER. During the infancy of Clearfield county there were but few of the pioneer families that settled within its borders but that were sub- jected to untold hardships and privations for many years ; and of those who made the attempt none, or at the greatest, but very few, hoped for any greater acquisition than a comfortable living. In the year 1821, John Murray and Mary, his wife, with a family of small children, came from Huntingdon county and took up their abode in that part of the county that was, in later years, erected into Girard township, upon lands for which the father had a contract of purchase, but for which no payment had then been made. After three years passed in clearing the land, for it was a dense forest, and erecting a cabin in which to live, the head of this family was taken away by the hand of death, leaving to the widowed mother the care of the children, and with no hope for fu- ture comfort save her great mainstay and support,-faith and trust in God. Armed with these, and being possessed of much courage and energy, she commenced the battle for life. She was a woman of much force of character, and is kindly remembered by many of the older people of the county, to whom her sterling worth, and her faithful struggle to keep together and maintain her children, were well known. She lived to an advanced age, and died April 7, 1871, which was the fiftieth anniversary of her advent to this county.
Alexander Murray, the subject of this sketch, then being in the twelfth year of his age, did much to help in the care of the family. He cultivated a little land and farmed some with one horse. The mother was skilled in the art of weaving and made the cloth for her family wearing apparel, and for other families as well, receiving as compensation commodities for home consumption. Young Alexander soon grew strong and worked at Karthaus in the winter. When fifteen years old he drove team and received the same pay as older men. But little cash found its way to the family purse, only food and clothing being paid as wages, and that at very high figures. The first money received by our subject he earned by building sixty rods of the old Milesburg and Smithport turnpike. For this he got $50 cash and an order for $45 more, the latter, however, was never paid, owing to some default on the part of the treasurer of the company.
Mr. Murray then commenced lumbering on a small scale, and saved some money with which he paid for the homestead and bought more land, and never thereafter did the family suffer for the necessaries or comforts of life.
On the 23d day of February, 1843, Alexander Murray married Isabella M., daugh- ter of Thomas Holt, of Bradford township. Of this marriage nine children were born, five of whom are still living : Warren P., the oldest son, now living at home ; Thomas H., of Clearfield ; William E., who died in his twenty-first year ; Alfred A., who man- ages the farm ; Martha A., the oldest daughter, who married Dr. W. S. Gilliland ; Sarah B., who married Robert C. Gilliland, of Snow Shoe, Pa. The other children died young. On the Ist day of October, 1879, after a pleasant journey along life's path of nearly two-score years, marred by no unhappy event save the loss of four children, the wife of Alexander Murray died: a devoted companion, a loving and affectionate mother, a kind and Christian friend and neighbor. Three years later, January 19, 1882, Mr. Murray married Mrs. Ermina J. Spackman, a lady of gentle manners and loving disposition, and with whom he hoped to pass his remaining years ; but the destroyer was not idle, for on the 5th day of May, 1885, she, too, was called from earth, leaving her husband, now on the shady side of life, not rich, nor poor, but with a glorious hope of an inheritance in heaven that is incorruptible and fadeth not away. A man of temper-
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HISTORY OF CLEARFIELD COUNTY.
ate habits and correct life, and though full of years, he is an exceedingly well-preserved person, and a good type of that sturdy class who have endured so much privation, and contributed so largely to the growth and well being of the county.
POTTER, DR. J. W. Johnson W. Potter, son of John and Nancy (Thompson) Potter, was born in Clarion township, Clarion county, on the 6th day of March, 1835. Until he attained the age of eighteen years young Potter lived with his parents on the farm, where he was employed at work, and in attending the common schools of the county, but he then went to Indiana county where he obtained a clerkship in a store, and worked there about one year. He then came to this county. For two win- ters he taught school in Lawrence township, and during the summer months read medi- cine with Dr. Matthew Woods, then a leading physician of the county. After a short time spent in the West, Mr. Potter, through the influence of Gov. Bigler, received an ap- pointment for instruction at the National Medical College, an institution under the sup- port of the government at Washington, D. C. Here he pursued his studies and at- tended lectures during the years 1859-60, but the building and premises were then taken by the national authorities for military purposes, and have never since been re- vived for collegiate use.
In the early part of the year 1860 Dr. Potter located at Mulsonburg, in this county, and commenced the practice of medicine. Here he remained eight years, when, his health failing, and seeing better results in the lumber business, made investments therein and started a mercantile business at Three Runs, Karthaus township. In this new occu- pation Dr. Potter engaged extensively, and, in connection therewith, built a saw and grist- mill, which he still owns, although now retired from active business life. In the year 1877, having, through energy and good management, acquired a comfortable fortune, he came to Keewaydin, Covington township, and purchased a finely located farm of about fifty acres, upon which he built an elegant residence and other fine buildings. In 1883 he built a commodious hotel at Karthaus village, and established a mercantile business at the same place, the latter now being owned by his son.
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