History of Fayette County, Pennsylvania : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 153

Author: Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Philadelphia : L.H. Everts & Co.
Number of Pages: 1314

USA > Pennsylvania > Fayette County > History of Fayette County, Pennsylvania : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men > Part 153

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1878 .- William Phillips, H. MeLaughlin.

1879 .- John F. Hogsett, Andrew Bryson, Jr.

1880 .- Samuel Carter, Henry Thomas.

1881 .- John Hankins, Ewing B. Hare.

SOLDIERS' ORPHANS' SCHOOL.

The following sketch of the Soldiers' Orphans' School, located at Dunbar's Camp, in North Union, is taken from an account of its establishment furnished by James Paull, and published in "Pennsylvania Soldiers' Orphans' Schools."

On the 7th of May, 1866, the Hon. Thomas H. Burrowes, ex-superintendent of conimon schools, and to whom the labor and responsibility of organizing a system of soldiers' orphan schools had been intrusted, wrote the Rev. A. H. Waters, who had just retired from the school superintendency of Butler County, Pa., earnestly requesting him to look out a suitable loca- tion for a soldiers' orphan school somewhere in the western counties of the State not already furnished with a school. After considerable inquiry and search without success the efforts were about to be abandoned, when circumstances rendered it necessary for him to visit this county in the discharge of another duty. While here his attention was called to the Madison College buildings, then used only for a small day- school, and owned by the Hon. Andrew Stewart. Having found Mr. Stewart very desirous to have the property used for that purpose, and Dr. Burrowes warmly approving of the location, the buildings were secured and arrangements made for opening the school. On the 19th of September, 1866, the first scholar was admitted, and in a few days large acces- sions were made on order and by transfers from other schools. The first year of the school's history was attended with many difficulties and discouragements. The want of adaptation in the buildings, and the great uncertainty of the continuance of the system, made it hazardous to incur any great expense in the erec- tion of additional buildings. After a year of struggle the system was made permanent, and by the erection of new buildings and changes in the old the school was placed upon a solid footing, and started on a career of gratifying prosperity. Credit was due to Mr. Stewart for his devotion to the interests of the school, which was shown by his willingness to con- tribute to the necessary changes, and his generous contribution of six hundred dollars annually-being one-half of the annual lease-as rewards to merito- rious pupils.

After nearly eight years of encouraging success, and when from the nature of the case this, as well as all the other schools, must soon begin to decline, for various reasons it was thought advisable to change its location. After giving the matter due consideration, . and with the consent of the State superintendent, it was determined to move to Dunbar's Camp, four miles

and a half east of Uniontown, on Laurel Hill. This point was selected on account of location, command- ing one of the finest natural scenes to be found in the country ; and, also, because it was sufficiently re- moved from the influence of a large town. Accord- ingly, in the fall of 1874 work was begun, and in April, 1875, large and convenient buildings were so far completed as to enable the school to move into them. The 8th of April in that year was memorable in its history, as on that day it was transferred from the old home in Uniontown to the new one at Dun- har's Camp.

The change has been demonstrated to be a wise one. The children are healthier, have more freedom, and are happier. They breathe the pure air of an altitude of two thousand five hundred feet, and drink the pure mountain water. It is claimed that there is no finer location for a school in the State, and it is hoped that when this school shall have finished its noble work an educational institution may still be continued in this charming spot.

The school has continued in a very prosperous con- dition, containing at present (July, 1881) one hundred and eighty pupils. It is still under the efficient man- I agement of the Rev. A. H. Waters.

RELIGIOUS SOCIETIES.

The Bethel Presbyterian Chapel congregation in North Union is a branch of the Laurel Hill Presby- terian Church in Dunbar township. A small chapel was built for its nse near the Youngstown Station in 1877.

The congregation of the Methodist Episcopal Chapel in this township is a branch of the Uniontown Meth- odist Episcopal Church. The society in North Union built a chapel in 1877 near the Youngstown Station and adjoining the Presbyterian Chapel.

MANUFACTURING INDUSTRIES. LEMONT FURNACE.

In pursuance of an arrangement made early in the spring of 1875 hetween Ewing, Boyd & Co. and the Lemont Furnace Company, Lemont Furnace was begun and hastened to completion as rapidly as labor and material could secure that end. It was started on the 1st of January, 1876, and has been in blast continuously ever since, except a few months during which its lining was renewed and its power repaired. The stack is sixty feet high, with a maximum diame- ter of twenty-two feet, it is sixteen feet in the bosh, and has a capacity of fifty tons per day, running mostly on native ores. It has two hot-blasts, two large blowing-engines, four boilers sixty feet long by three and a half feet in diameter, also stock- and casting-houses of adequate capacity to meet the wants of the furnace.

The tramways to the mountain and coal ore mines, as well as to the limestone-quarries, and switches to the coke-ovens, furnish every facility for cheap and

UNIONTOWN SOLDIE DUNBAR PROPERTY OF REV. A. G.

ORPHAN SCHOOL, CAMP. ITERS. FAYETTE CO., PA.

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NORTH UNION AND SOUTH UNION TOWNSHIPS.

expeditious delivery of all material in the stock- house. As both the Baltimore and Ohio, and South- west Pennsylvania Railroads pass within a short dis- tance on either side of the furnace, it has ample connections to secure for it the fullest advantages of competitive freight rates.

The fornace property consists of two thousand acres, all underlaid with several veins of ore yielding from thirty-five to forty-two per cent. of iron. Its fine limestone-quarries and large coal-fields, on which one hundred and fifty coke-ovens are now in opera- tion, supplying fuel to the furnace, together with its other advantages, assure Lemont Furnace an inde- pendence which but few such establishments enjoy.

The present owners of Lemont Furnace are Robert Hogsett (one-half interest), James P. Hanna, and Thomas H. Rabe.

STEWART IRON COMPANY'S COKE-WORKS.

This company, who have iron furnaces at Sharon. Mercer Co., Pa., as well as in other parts of the country, began the manufacture of coke in North Union for the purpose only of supplying those furnaces. On the 8th of November, 1880, they purchased here one hundred and seventy-one acres of coal land of the heirs of Gen. H. W. Beeson, and commenced work in the opening of the slope and the erection of one hundred and twenty ovens, which are completed and now in operation. The slope has been extended to six hun- dred feet, with two flat headings, one of three hundred and one of five hundred feet.

MOUNT BRADDOCK COKE-WORKS.

A company, composed of Robert Hogsett, T. W. Watt, W. H. Bailey, John Taylor, and Hugh L. Ran- kin, commenced these works in 1871 on four hundred acres of land purchased of Robert Hogsett. One hun- dred and twenty-seven ovens were built, and all the coal mined manufactured into coke. For the first two years their coke was sold to Dewey, Vance & Co., of Wheeling, West Virginia, but afterwards was dis- posed of in open market.

In the spring of 1881 the works were sold to A. O. Tinstman, of Pittsburgh. The product of the ovens at the present time is fifteen car-loads per day. The works are located on the extreme northeastern border of the township, on the line of the Southwest Penn- sylvania, and Baltimore and Ohio Railroads.

THE YOUNGSTOWN COKE COMPANY'S WORKS.

This company was organized Sept. 29, 1879, the corporators being John Stambaugh, Henry O. Bon- nell, Augustus B. Cornell, and Thomas W. Kennedy, who constitute the board of managers. Operations on their lands in North Union were commenced very soon after the organization of the company. They now own five hundred and four acres of coal and one hundred and forty-eight acres of surface, their coal- right extending under lands of John Jones, B. V. Jones, Samuel McClean, George Swearingen, and

Elizabeth Canon. They have now in operation two hundred and forty coke-ovens, with all the necessary machinery and appliances, and have also erected twenty-four double dwelling-houses and a large store- house. The main slope of the mine is 1250 feet, with six flat headings varying from 300 to 500 feet. The daily production of coal is about 500 net tons, making about 380 tons of coke. John Shipley is the mining engineer.

John Stambaugh is president of the Briar Hill Iron and Coal Company ; Augustus B. Cornell, man- ager of the Himrod Furnace Company ; and Henry O. Bonnell, manager of the Mahoning Valley Iron Company, all of Youngstown, Ohio. Thomas W. Kennedy is also manager of an iron company's works . in the same place. And it was for the purpose of supplying these several furnaces and iron-works with fuel that the Youngstown Coke Company effected its organization and established its works in this town- ship.

THE PERCY MINING COMPANY'S WORKS.

In the spring of 1879 this company, composed of A. W. Bliss, G. C. Marshall, A. B. De Saulles, and Maurice Healy purchased one hundred and forty-two acres of coal-land in North Union, and commenced the mining of coal and ore, and the manufacture of coke. They have now sixty-nine ovens in operation, and from thirty to fifty tons of ore is mined daily. Their coal, coke, and ore are shipped by rail and sold in open market.

The Lemont Furnace Company have one hundred and fifty coke-ovens in blast, as is mentioned in the account of their iron-works.

The fire-brick works in this township are under lease to Messrs. Bliss and Marshall, of the Percy Mining Company. These works, which were first put in operation in 1874, now produce daily from four thousand to ten thonsand fire-bricks, which are prin- cipally used in the construction of coke-ovens in this part of the county.

SOUTH UNION. EARLY SETTLEMENTS.

According to tradition Wendell Brown and his sons1 were the earliest settlers in South Union town-

1 Veechi gives the following in reference to the Browns : " It is well known that while the Indians held undivided sway in the region they had one or more lead-mines in our mountains, the localities of which they guarded with inviolable secrecy. The discovery of these by the Browns would have been an invaluable acquisition to their venatorial pursnits. Many efforts did they make to find them, and many sly at- tempts to follow the Indiansin their resorts to the mines, but all in vain. And more than once did they narrowly escape detection, and consequent death, by their eagerness to share the forbidden treasure. Abraham Brown [grandson of Wendell] used to relate of his uncle Thomas that, having offended the Indians by some tricks played upon them (perhaps in contrivances to discover their lead-mines, and by repeatedly escaping from them when taken prisoner), he once escaped being burned only by the timely interposition of a friendly chief; but that eventually they caught him when no such intercessor was high, and knocked out all his teeth with a piece of iron and a tomahawk. This was savage cruelty. Now for savage honesty. In a season of scarcity some Indians came to

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HISTORY OF FAYETTE COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA.

ship. Judge Veech, in his "Monongahela of Old," says, " When Washington's little army was at the Great Meadows, or Fort Necessity, the Browns packed pro- visions, corn, and beef to him; and when he surren- dered to the French and Indians, July 4, 1754, they retired with the retreating colonial troops across the mountains, returning to their lands after the rein- statement of the English dominion by Forbes' army in 1758." The Browns had originally located on Provance's Bottom, on the Monongahela, but after their return settled in what is now South Union and Georges townships. Upon finally making permanent settlement here, Adam Brown located on three hun- dred and twenty-seven acres of land which was war- ranted to him June 14, 1769. Maunus Brown had three hundred and six acres warranted to him the same day. Adam Brown was in his earlier life a lieutenant under the king, and served with the Vir- ginia provincials in the French and Indian wars. He induced many of the former acquaintances of the family to come to this section, and they located lands now lying in both Georges and South Union town- ships, as is shown by the records, which give the titles of the tracts, number of acres contained therein, and

John and James Henthorn were brothers-in-law of David Jennings, and settled here when he did. John's land was a body of 363 acres called "Choice Tract," directly east of " Fear Fax," which he took up under warrant No. 3485, dated June 14, 1769, and which was surveyed Sept. 27, 1769. The property east of his belonged to his brother James, David Jennings was on the west side, Richard Parr on the north, and the farm on the south was at one time owned by Col. the date upon which they were warranted. Of these Thomas Collins. John Henthorn spent his life upon settlers one was William Downard, who took up two hundred and ninety-three acres of land on the waters of Brown's Run, adjoining the tracts of Adam and Maunus Brown. This property was warranted to this farm, and died in April, 1784. aged forty-three years. Another John Henthorn died in 1799, aged sixty-six years. They, with David Jennings and his son David, were buried in a family cemetery on John him June 14, 1769, under the name of " Walnut Hill." . Henthorn's farm, which now belongs to Jasper M. David Jennings came to this section in 1768, se- lected a desirable tract of land, and then returned to his home in the eastern part of the State to persuade others to come here and settle with him. John and James Henthorn, two brothers of his wife, came back with Mr. Jennings, and all three of the men entered Thompson. James Henthorn had 346 acres adjoin- ing the farms of his brother and Adam McCartney, which was surveyed Sept. 28, 1769. At a later day it was owned by James Veech, and at the present time belongs to William E. Caruthers and John C. Bread- ing.

the Browns for provisions. The old man sold them eight rows of corn. Ile afterwards found they had taken just eight rows, and not an ear Diore.

" Adam Brown-' old Adam,' as he was called-boasted of having been a king's lieutenant in his early days, having probably served with the Virginia provincials in the French and Indian wars. For his services he claimed to have had a royal grant of land of nine miles square, ex- tending from near Mount Braddock along the face of Laurel Hill south- ward, and westward as far as New Salem I have seen a large stone, standing a little southwest of the residence of Daniel (or William) Moser, in George township, which the late John McClelland said was a corner of Adam's claim. The old lientenant, it was said, induced many acquaintances to settle around him on his grant,-the Downards, Greens, McDonalds, McCartys, Brownfields, Henthorus, Kindells, Scotts, Jen- niogses, Higginsons, etc., and out of abundant caution he and his brother Mannns and they entered applications for their lands in the Pennsyl- vania Land-Office on the 14th of June, 1769, and had them surveyed soon after. They seem to have been quiescent in the boundary contro- versy. But it was said that early in 1775, Adam and some of his associ- ates had employed an agent to go to London to perfect the royal grant ; when, upon the breaking ont of the Revolution, which ended the king's power in this country, they gave up the effort, and in due time perfected their titles under Pennsylvania. From this and some other grounds arose the current allegations that ' Old Adam' and sundry of his neigh- bors were unfriendly to the canse of American independence, but we believe they were never guilty of any overt acts of toryism. . . . The Maunus Brown branch of the family has always been considered free of the taint charged to ' Old Adam,' and has been productive of good citi- zens."

applications at the land-office for tracts they had chosen. David Jennings' tract, named " Fear Fax," contained 308} acres. It was given him by warrant No. 3459, dated June 14, 1769, and surveyed Septem- ber 26th of the same year. He lived upon this prop- erty until his death, March 29, 1824, at eighty-three years of age, when his two sons, David and Benja- min, inherited it. David Jennings, Jr., who died May 23, 1851, aged seventy-seven years, sold his share to Samuel Moxley, who again disposed of it to Jasper M. Thompson. This gentleman also became possessor of the other part of the Jennings farm through Johnston Van Kirk, to whom Benjamin had sold it. The stream that crosses this property is called Jennings' Run.

Thomas Gaddis was one of those pioneers who had applications for land in the land-office awaiting the first issue of warrants, which were dated April 3, 1769. The warrant issued to Mr. Gaddis was No. 1690, which shows the great number of applications that had been filed before that date. He had been in this section several times in previous years, but was frightened away by the Indians, and did not make a permanent settlement until 1769. The land which he located was described as being in the " Redstone Settlement, Cumberland County, the new purchase," and was surveyed Sept. 25, 1769, under the name of " Hundred Acre Spring." In 1789, Mr. Gaddis was carrying on a distillery upon his place. In the early days a Settler's Fort was built upon the tract, and the portion of it still standing was the residence of the late Basil Brownfield. The farms adjoining the one in question were owned in the pioneer time by Isaac Sutton, Edward Brownfield, and James Hamilton. From his first appearance in this vicinity Thomas Gaddis was active and prominent in the expeditions against the Indians, and in all civil and military county affairs. He was second field-major in the

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NORTH UNION AND SOUTH UNION TOWNSHIPS.

Crawford expedition, and was a prominent leader in the Whiskey Insurrection of 1794. In 1816 he sold the farm npon which he had lived for nearly half a century to John Miller and John Kennedy, and emi- grated to the " Miami country," Ohio.

Charles Brownfield was a native of Scotland, who, with his brother James, emigrated to this country and lived for a time near Winchester. His wife was Bet- sey, the sister of Col. James Burd, and when they came to this township they located a tract of land containing 300 acres, which, in a deed of later years, is described as "near Laurel Hill, on one of the head branches of the Redstone, including my im- provement made in the year 1769." Warrant No. 3456, dated June 14, 1769, was given for this land, and the survey was made in September of that year. In 1783, Mr. Brownfield sold this property and re- moved to Kentucky. Alexander McClean made a second survey of it at this time, and one entry upon the records says, "Said Brownfield removed to the Kentneky country, having sold the above part to Benjamin Brownfield, his son, and the residne to Moses Sutton and George Troutman." In the same connection he further says of this survey, that he " resurveyed the same as by the different purchas- ers."

Charles Brownfield had eight sons, - Edward, | Charles, Robert, Thomas, Empson, Richard, Wil- liam, and Benjamin. There was bnt one daughter, Sally, who married Raphael Naylor, of Philadel- phia, whither she went to reside, and where she died. Edward Brownfield settled upon a tract of land at the same time his father did, and adjoining that of his father, which contained 250 acres, and was called " Mount Pleasant." Several years later, when the general exodus from this section to Kentucky took place, he removed with his family to the place called " Bear Grass," where John Brownfield, a son of his brother Benjamin, now lives. Empson Brownfield took up 295 acres of land on the waters of Georges Creek, but near the waters of Redstone Creek, partly on the dividing ridge and on the road leading from the gap of the mountain to Cheat River, in Georges township. This land was surveyed Dec. 23, 1785, " by virtue of certificate from the Commissioners of Monongalia, Yohogania, and Ohio Counties for 400 acres of land on the waters of Redstone Creek, to in- clude his settlement made in 1770."

In the year 1776, Empson Brownfield's name ap- pears in the list of purchasers of lots in Uniontown, or Beesontown. In 1784 he purchased a lot in Union- | town, upon which he later built and kept a tavern. It is said that he was the first to start a store in Uniontown, for which he brought the goods over the monntains on pack-horses. After a few years he, too, removed with his family to Kentucky. Charles and Robert Brownfield both settled at Smithfield. The descendants of Charles are all dead. Robert was with Crawford's expedition. His son Basil settled

on the old Gaddis place in 1820, and lived there until his death, Ang. 21, 1881.1

Thomas Brownfield settled upon a farm between Monroe and Uniontown, and his grandson, Isaac " Brownfield, now occupies the place. Richard Brown- field lived near Morgantown for a few years, and then emigrated to Kentucky. William also removed early to Kentucky. Benjamin, the son to whom Charles Brownfield sold his pioneer home on his re- moval to Kentneky in 1783, always remained npon the farm and died there. His son, Col. Benjamin Brownfield, died there March 28, 1880, at the remark- able old age of one hundred and one years. The property is now owned and occupied by a grandson, Marion Brownfield.

James McCoy settled in Sonth Union in 1769, when, with many others, he made application for a tract of land in the valley east of Uniontown. He was a native of Ireland, and when about fifteen years of age ran away from home and came to America. He had been attending the races with his father, who had entered a favorite colt, and which, at the close of the races, James had been sent home with. On the way he and some other boys ran the horses, when by some mishap the colt stumbled and fell, breaking one of its legs. This so frightened him that instead of going home he started for the coast, where he shipped on board a vessel and worked his passage to America. He remained in the East until twenty- four years of age, when he came to this county, as stated. The warrant for Mr. McCoy's land bears date June 14. 1769, and the order of survey was made Sept. 23, 1769. The property was named "Flint Hill," comprised 305 acres, and an allowance of six per cent. was made for roads. This tract of land is recorded as adjoining those of Thomas Brownfield and Isaac Sutton. Another tract of 221 acres adjoining was surveyed to him the same date, Sept. 23, 1769.

Before leaving the East, Mr. McCoy had married Ann Bruce, who was like himself born in Ireland, and who came to this country when but twelve years old. Upon locating here he built a log cabin, which was sitnated at the foot of the Bailey orchard. Very soon, however, this cabin was reconstructed and made into " McCoy Fort," which was the rendezvous for all the immediate neighbors in times of danger, the "Col. Thomas Gaddis Fort" being two miles away to the southwest. Mr. McCoy then built for his own residence a honse of hewn logs, which stood upon the site of the brick house afterwards built by Eli Bailey.

1 An obituary notice of Basil Brownfield, published at the time of his death, contained the following : " Mr. Brownfield was born near Smith- field, this county, in 1795. His ancestors came here from Apple-pie Ridge, Shenandoah Valley, Va. IIe was a man of strong will and ag- gressive disposition, as the result of which be was well known, and had acquired a large amount of valuable estate. His connections by blood and marriage are very extensive. He leaves four sons and four dangh- ters living, two of these being in Texas, one of the latter being Mrs. William Core. Mr. Brownfield's wife was Sarah Collins, daughter of Joseph Collins, one of the original settlers of Uniontown."

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HISTORY OF FAYETTE COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA.

The original property, which was quite extensive, has been divided and sold at different times, until but comparatively little of it remains in the hands of Mr. McCoy's descendants. A tract of nine or ten acres was leased by himself to Thomas Brownfield for ninety-nine years for a mill-site. A large portion of the land is now the property of the Chicago Coke and Coal Company, sold to them by Eli Bailey, who hought it of the heirs of McCoy after his death. His death occurred in 1803, and he was buried in the churchyard of the South Union Baptist Church, of which he was long a worthy and consistent member. The children of James and Ann McCoy were Wil- liam, George, Isaac, Jobn, Rachel, Ann, Sarah, and Mary. John married and lived on the old home- stead, dying there when fifty-two years of age. His wife was a daughter of Col. Thomas Gaddis. Of their several children, John, the eldest, is still living on the old place, and is eighty-three years of age. George, who never married, went to Ohio to live, and died there. Isaac married, lived, and died near his father's home, and left a family of five children. Rachel and Ann married and removed from the State. Sarah be- came the wife of Samuel Sutton, son of Moses Sutton. They lived on the farm one mile southwest of the Redstone Coke-Works, which has since been owned by John Hagan. Mary McCoy married Thomas Brownfield, son of Charles Brownfield. The farm on which they lived is now owned by their son, Isaac Brownfield. William McCoy became a Baptist min- ister. He was married in Uniontown, and in 1789 removed to Kentucky. His son Isaac, born in this place in 1783, became a noted Indian missionary. He was but six years of age when, with his parents, he removed to Kentucky. While living there in 1803 he also married, and very soon after emigrated to Fort Wayne, Ind., to preach and labor among the Indians.

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History of Fayette County, Pennsylvania : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men, Part 153

Author: Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885 Publication date: 1882 Publisher: Philadelphia : L.H. Everts & Co. Number of Pages: 1314

Author: Ellis, Franklin, 1828-1885
Publication date: 1882
Publisher: Philadelphia : L.H. Everts & Co.
Number of Pages: 1314