History of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, with biographical selections, Part 187

Author: Bradsby, H. C. (Henry C.)
Publication date: 1893
Publisher: Chicago : S. B. Nelson
Number of Pages: 1532

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SAMUEL POLLOCK, farmer, P. O. Belbend, was born in Salem township June 25, 1835, and is a son of William and Elizabeth (Freeman) Pollock. His paternal grandfather was John Pollock, a native of Montour county, Pa., and a son of Samuel Pollock, a native of Ireland, whose wife was Margaret Johnston, and who were pioneers of Montour county, Pa. John Pollock, whose wife was Mary Scout, settled in Salem township in 1822, where he died the same year; he had eight children, and William, father of subject, was the second child and second son. He was a farmer, and cleared the farm on which he resided until his death. His wife was a daughter of Edward and Elizabeth (Garrison) Freeman, of Salem township, and by her he had six children who grew to maturity: Lavina (Mrs. Joseph Walton), Edmund, Mary (Mrs. Lewis Lacher), Samuel, Benjamin F. and Alfred. Our subject was reared in Salem township, where, with the exception of two years of his life, he has always resided, engaged in farming. In 1861 he married Caroline, daughter of John and Susan (Seybert) Cope, of Salem township, and has five children: Effie, Lizzie, Martha (Mrs. Charles Cooper), James and Henry. Mr. Pollock is a member of the Evangelical Church; in politics he is a Democrat, and has held several local offices.

AMOS T. POOLE, lumberman, of Forty Fort borough, was born September 30, 1818, in Hanover, Plymouth Co., Mass., a son of William and Sarah (Pachard)

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Poole, and a grandson of Deacon S. Poole, who was born in Abington, Mass., August 27, 1736, and lived to be ninety-four years of age. Our subject is the youngest in a family of eleven children, three of whom are now living. He was reared in Massachusetts, educated in the common schools, and in August, 1837, he moved to Philadelphia. thence in January, 1838, to Luzerne county, Pa. At the age of twenty-two, he engaged in the lumber business which he carried on till the fall of 1861, when he enlisted in the United States Army, in Company F, Fifty-third Regiment, P. V. He participated in the following battles: Fair Oaks, Savage Station, White Oak Swamp, Malvern Hill, Antietam, and other minor engagements. He received a sun stroke, also fell and injured his back while on duty, and was discharged Feb- ruary 14, 1863, on account of disability. He then came to Dallas, Luzerne county, but was unable to work for three years, at the end of which time he was then placed in charge of the machinery at the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad shops, at Kingston, where he remained ten years. After his second marriage he moved to Forty Fort, where he now resides, retired from active life. Mr. Poole was married June 14, 1840, to Melissa, daughter of Oliver and Sarah (Kent) Knox, natives of Vermont and Connecticut, respectively, and of English origin. By this union there were seven children, five of whom we have record of, as follows: Maria L. is wife of Phinney Watt, outside foreman at the East Boston Mine; William P. is a contractor, married to Nellie Furgason (deceased); George W. is a contractor, married to Jean- nette Hutchinson (deceased) (for his second wife he married Nenie Stewart); Francis H. is an engineer on the Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad, and is married to Virgie Keeler; Melissa E. (deceased) was married to Melvin Lake, a general workman. The mother of this family dying November 26, 1871, Mr. Poole married his second, in March, 1873. . Mr. and Mrs. Poole are Spiritualists. He is a member of the I. O. O. F, and in politics is a Republican.

FRED J. POPE, a leading merchant, of Nanticoke, ranks among the enterprising business men of Luzerne county. He was born in Cornwall, England, October 20, 1862, a son of James and Elizabeth (Nuncorrow) Pope, both of whom are natives of England. They emigrated to this country in 1866, and settled at Rockaway, N. J., where they resided until their deaths, the mother passing away in 1878, the father in 1881. Our subject is the youngest in a family of twelve children, and received his educa- tion in the public schools of New Jersey. At the close of his school days he engaged in clerking at Rockaway, which occupation he followed three years, when he went to Port Oram, N. J., at that place working in the iron mines. He followed this voca- tion about nine years, when he went to Ely, Va., where he worked in the copper mines for a time, after which he went to Sherbrooke, Canada. Here he was employed in the Gilbert River Gold Mines until 1885; in this year he came to Nanticoke and worked in the coal mines about one year, at the end of which time he engaged in clerking for B. Jackson, in whose employ he remained for three years. In 1888 he engaged in the grocery business with a Mr. Boone, under the firm name of Pope & Boone. They conducted a prosperous grocery business until January, 1891, when Mr. Pope bought out Mr. Boone's interest, and has since been sole owner and manager. His business has continued to prosper until he has become the leading grocer of Nanti- coke. Mr. Pope was united in marriage December 9, 1891, with Miss Josephine, the accomplished daughter of John Post, of Cambra, Pa. Our subject is a member of the American Legion of Honor, the I. O. O. F., the K. of M., and the F. & A. M. His political propensities are of the regular Republican type.

MERRITT H. Posr, wholesale and retail dealer in harness and trunks, Wilkes- Barre, was born in Fairmount township, this county, April 30, 1834, a son of Gideon and Anna (Dodson) Post. His paternal grandfather, Gideon Post, a native of Con- necticut and a soldier of the Revolution, was a pioneer of Huntington township, this county, where he resided until his death. His children were Gideon, James P., Josiah, Lewis, Betsey (Mrs. Charles Barrett) and Sabry (Mrs. Merritt Harrison). Of these, Gideon, the eldest, and the father of the subject of this memoir, was a native of Connecticut. He was reared in Luzerne county, and in early manhood

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HISTORY OF LUZERNE COUNTY.

located in Fairmount township, where he cleared and improved a farm, and resided until his death, which occurred December 6, 1875, when he was in his eighty-fourth year. His wife, Anna, was a daughter of Squire John Dodson, a pioneer of Hunting- ton township, and by her he had eight children: Sylvina (Mrs. Philip Fritz), Josiah D., Nancy (Mrs. Vastine Boom), John, Gideon, Sally A. (Mrs. Elisha Myres), Mer- ritt H. and Eliza (Mrs. D. G. Larnard). Our subject was reared in Fairmount township until seventeen years of age, receiving his education in the common schools and Kingston Seminary. In 1852 he came to Wilkes-Barre, where he served an apprenticeship of three years at the harness trade with James D. Laird; he located in Plymouth in 1856, where he carried on the harness business up to 1862, in that year returning to Wilkes-Barre, where, with the exception of two years, he has since been in active business. Mr. Post married on August 24, 1869, Anna L., daughter of Samuel and Margaret (Lines) Pell, of Hanover township, by whom he has four children: Edward H., George S., Grace A. and Florence May. Mr. Post is a mem- ber of the First M. E. Church, in which he is also steward. Politically he is a Republican.

WASHINGTON B. PousT, clerk, in the employ of the Pennsylvania Railroad Com- pany, P. O. Shickshinny, was born at Muncy, Lycoming Co., Pa., October 2, 1841. He is a son of John and Julia A. (Shrarer) Poust, natives of Pennsylvania, of Ger- man descent. He was reared in his native county until sixteen years of age, receiv- ing his early education in the common schools, and afterward taking a commercial course at the Iron City Business College, Pittsburgh, Pa. When sixteen years of age he entered upon an apprenticeship at the printing trade, but after serving two years gave it up on account of ill health, and engaged as clerk in a general store in Muncy, remaining there until October 6, 1861. On that date he enlisted in Com- pany B, Eighty-fourth P. V. At the second battle of Bull Run he was taken to the hospital with typhoid fever, which developed into rheumatism, and December 5, 1862, he was honorably discharged on account of disability. Since the war he has been employed in railroad business; nine years as station agent at Shickshinny; ten years as station agent at Bloomsburg; two years in the car department at Buf- falo, N. Y., Delaware, Lackawanna & Western Railroad, and, since 1887, with the Pennsylvania Railroad Company at Mocanaqua. He married, February 22, 1865, Mary B., daughter of Lot and Rosaline (Gordon) Search, of Shickshinny, and has four children: Harry S., Harvey L. and J. Howard (twins) and Edith M. Mr. Ponst is a member of the Presbyterian Church; in politics he is a Republican, and has held nearly all the local offices in Shickshinny, being at present a member of the borough council; he is a member of F. & A. M. and G. A. R.

ABIATHAR B. POWELL, supervisor of Plains township, Plains, was born in Blooms- burg, Pa., October 10, 1857, and is a son of Abiathar B. and Mary (Daniels) Powell, natives of South Wales, whence his grandfather emigrated when the father of our subject was but a year and a half old. Abiathar B. Powell, Sr., who was a miner and mine-contractor and is now engaged in mining in Dunmore, Pa., reared a fam- ily of fige children, four of whom are living, viz .: Eliza, married to Philip Fritz, a harness-maker, of Wilkes-Barre; Mary, married to Jacob Lought, and after his death to a Mr. Pratt (she is living in Providence, Pa.); Abiathar B., who is the subject of this sketch; and William, a miner, in Dunmore; there is also a half brother by his father's second marriage, George, who is engaged in mining in Dunmore. The subject of this memoir received a common-school education, and at the age of twelve years began working about the mines, which occupation he followed till 1892, doing all kinds of work. He built his present residence in 1885. Mr. Powell was mar- ried, December 21, 1881, to Miss Mary Ore, who was born in Honesdale, Pa., March 17, 1859, daughter of John and Catharine (Scofield) Ore, natives of Ireland. Mr. and Mrs. Powell have had six children, as follows: George W., who died at the age of seven years; Hattie E., who died at the age of five years; John O., who died at the age of two years; Walter R .; Harry E., and May. Our subject is a member of the P. O. S. of A. and the I. O. O. F .; he is a close adherent of the principles of the Republican party; he was elected to his present position in 1892.

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HISTORY OF LUZERNE COUNTY.

CHARLES POWELL was born October 13, 1843, in the parish of Ystradfellte, in Breconshire, South Wales, and is the youngest of nine children, eight boys and one girl. His father's name was Roderick Powell, and his mother's name was Elinor Llewellyn, daughter of William Llewellyn, and granddaughter of Morgan Reese, of Caven Mais Car Ddyfynog, Breconshire, who was of a very honorable and wealthy family. About the time of Charles' birth, his father, who was a wealthy farmer, met with great financial disaster by endorsing some papers for an acquaint- ance, involving thousands of dollars, which he had to pay, and which completely ruined him and his family for life. In the spring of 1846, Charles' father moved with his family to Glynthynog Glynneath, Glamorganshire, and here Charles, under great difficulty, received a common-school education, but, at a very early age he was compelled to work in the mines, owing to the death of his father. When sixteen years of age he had saved enough money to enable him to go to school for one term, which was a great benefit to him in after years. In July, 1866, he joined the Glamorganshire Constabulary, and served four years, but, owing to an attack of pneumonia, he was compelled to resign and leave his native country in order to recruit his health, and in September, 1870, he landed in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada; and from there he proceeded to Boston, Mass., thence proceeded to New York, ultimately arriving in Providence, Lackawanna Co., Pa. (where he visited his brother Morgan who had preceded him to this country about twenty years, and who died July 30, 1891).

Shortly after arriving in this country, our subject was offered a position as night watchman at Bregg's Shaft, under the Lackawanna Coal & Iron Company, at Scranton, and was employed there during the great and memorable strike of 1870 and 1871, which lasted six months, and which was a great struggle between capital and labor. While employed here he learned the engineering trade, and finally leaving, was employed by William H. Richmond, at Dixon City, as breaker engineer; leaving Dixon City, he was employed as engineer by the Delaware & Hudson Coal Company, at Mill Creek, Plains, in July, 1872. On January 1, 1873, Mr. Powell married Mary Jane, the eldest daughter of Henry Wedeman, of Fell township, Lackawanna Co., Pa. As far as known, Mrs. Powell's forefathers came from Ger- many, and her mother's forefathers, whose name was McDonald, came from Ireland. In September, 1873, Mr. Powell left the employ of the Delaware & Hudson Coal Company, and was employed by J. H. Swoyer, at the Enterprise Colliery. Here he was employed for ten years, off and on, being obliged to lay off at times, owing to ill health. In 1879 he visited his native Wales, for the benefit of his health, and returned in three months greatly improved. After his return from Europe he was employed by the Lehigh Valley Coal Company as engineer at the Prospect Mines, but, engineering not agreeing with him, he resigned and embarked in the book busi- ness which he carried on with great success. When he became known, the popular publishers, Hubbard Brothers, of Philadelphia, induced him to sign a contract for one year to sell their publications, which he accepted, and carried on the business with great profit to himself and his patrons. After the expiration of the contract with Hubbard Brothers, he was sent for by C. D. Simpson, Esq., general superin- tendent of the Enterprise Colliery, to return as engineer for the shaft engine, which he accepted, remaining there nearly four years; while here he surpassed all records for hoisting coal, on two occasions hoisting the greatest amount of coal in ten hours that was ever hoisted at this colliery. The Scranton Republican the next day pub- lished the account, and termed it "extraordinary."

Mr. Powell remained here until the great cave-in and the drowning of the mine with water. He then left and was employed by the Lovell Manufacturing Company, of Erie, Pa., as agent and collector, and where, owing to his honesty and integrity, he gained great respect. When leaving he was urged to remain, being offered a splendid salary; but, preferring to go in business for himself, he declined. He is now dealing in all kinds of household supplies, and is doing well. Mr. Powell has three children, two girls and one boy, viz. : Ella A., aged eighteen; Anna May,

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aged sixteen; and Charles Henry, aged fourteen, all born in Plains. Mr. Powell is a member of the M. E. Church, and has served as steward and trustee in the same. He has been a member of Sodi Lodge No. 670, I. O. O. F., for over nineteen years; is a member of Star of America Encampment No. 214, I. O. O. F., and is secretary and trustee of the last named lodge, is also a member of Valley Lodge No. 499, F. & A. M. at Pittston, Pa. In politics he is a Republican.

DANIEL D. POWELL, driver-boss in Pine Ridge Colliery, Plains, was born in South Wales, October 19, 1864, and is a son of Thomas J. and Mary (Davis) Powell. The father, who was a fire-boss, came to America in 1872, locating at Wilkes-Barre, and working in the Baltimore Mine; he removed to Plains in 1880, and worked in the Wyoming Mine, and died, March 21, 1891, at the age of sixty-seven years. The family consisted of nine children, eight of whom are living, of whom the sub- ject of our sketch is the sixth; he embarked in life picking slate in the Baltimore, and has since been employed about the mines, including three years mining, being promoted to his present position in 1889. He removed to his present residence in 1880. Mr. Powell was married, June 6, 1888, to Miss Sarah, daughter of Joshua T. John, and to their union have been born two children, viz .: Gertrude and Elizabeth. Our subject is a member of the I. O. R. M. and the Ivorites, and in his political views is a Republican.

JOHN POWELL, butcher, Larksville, was born in Pottsville, Pa., in January, 1849, a son of Walter Powell, a miner by occupation, who became a resident of this county. He had but one child, John. Our subject was reared and educated in Plymouth township, and followed farming until he was twenty years of age, when he learned the painter's trade which he pursued for twenty years. This work not agreeing with him he abandoned it to work in the mines, and for the last two years, has been successfully engaged in the butcher business. In 1871 he married Miss Elizabeth, daughter of J. R. and Jane Lynn, and of this union were born three children: James, Jennie and Blanche. Mr. Powell owns three houses in Larksville and is a practical business man. He is a member of the Improved Order of Red Men, and Knights of the Golden Eagle. Politically, he is a Republican.

J. C. POWELL, of the firm of Powell & Johnson, proprietors of the Wilkes-Barre Record, Wilkes-Barre, is a native of Pennsylvania, born in Lansford, Carbon county, in 1854. He had no unusual advantages in the time of his youth, but when still young was a qualified teacher, and taught school in Schuylkill county for a contin- uous period of seven years; then being determined to push his education further, he attended the Millersville State Normal School, Chittenden College, Philadelphia, and the Bloomsburg State Normal School. He was then offered and accepted a desk in the office of the Shenandoah Herald, where he remained eight years. Sub- sequently he helped to establish the Colliery Engineer, now a prosperous publica- tion in Scranton. In 1883 he came to Wilkes-Barre to find a more congenial and broader field, and from that time to the present has been one of the proprietors of the Record. At this writing Mr. Powell is making a tour of Europe, and frequently the columns of his paper bear evidences of his discriminating powers aud facile pen.

SAMUEL POWELL, justice of the peace, Nanticoke, is a native of Minersville, Schuylkill county, and was born October 8, 1852, a son of John and Choice Powell, both natives of Wales. Our subject was educated in the public schools of his native county, and when a youth began working in the mines as door-tender, which he fol- lowed for a short time, later working in various capacities, and it was not long before he became a miner. In 1867 his parents removed to Luzerne (now Lackawanna) county, near Scranton. He then engaged in boating between New York and Balti- more, up the Hudson river, and various other places. After spending four years of his life on water, he returned to Taylorsville and again engaged in the mines, where he remained about six months, at which time he removed to Nanticoke, where he has since resided, with the exception of one year that he lived at Sugar Notch. During his first nine years at Nanticoke he was engaged in the mines. In 1887 he was appointed justice of the peace of Nanticoke borough, as successor to L. C.

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Green (who then removed to Colorado), and in 1888 he was re-elected, his term expiring in 1893. In 1887 he was elected burgess of Nanticoke, and served as such one term; he has also served one term on the school board of the borough. Mr. Powell was married, August 19, 1875, to Miss Sarah Williams, of Sugar Notch. This union has been blessed with six children, four of whom are living: Choicey, Lizzie, George and Artimus. He is a member of the I. O. O. F. and the Red Men. In politics he is a Republican.

WILLIAM POWELL, JR., general inside foreman for the Upper Lehigh Coal Com- pany, Upper Lehigh, is a native of Wales, and was born May 24, 1842. He is a son of William and Elizabeth (Morgan) Powell, who now reside at Upper Lehigh. The family came to America the same year that William was born, and he received his education at Pottsville. William Powell, Sr., is one of the veteran miners of the anthracite coal regions; he worked in the iron mines and throughout the anthracite coal regions, and in 1865 located in Upper Lehigh, where he was general inside foreman until 1886, in which year he retired, being succeeded by his son William, Jr. Our subject is a self-educated man, and has not only trained himself in the common English branches, but has made an extensive study of the higher sciences and mathematics. At the age of six he began his career around the mines as a slate- picker at Lansford, where he remained seven years, working in various capacities. He then quit the mines for a short time, and went to Danville, where he worked for about eighteen months in a rolling-mill, when he went to Eckley and again engaged in working in the mines. Here he remained until September 1, 1861, when he enlisted in Company K, Eighty-first Pennsylvania Volunteers. During his term of military service he participated in the Seven Days' Fight, and was also in the Pen- insula Campaign; he received two serious gun-shot wounds, and was then discharged on account of disability. He re-enlisted in Company F, Veteran Reserve Corpe. On October 27, 1865, he was again honorably discharged, when he returned to Upper Lehigh and accepted a position as assistant mine foreman, which position he has since held. On May 14, 1864, Mr. Powell was united in marriage with Miss Jane Aubery, of Eckley, which union has been blessed with children as follows: William, of the firm of Powell & Harris, in Hazleton; Thomas, a physician in Wilkes- Barre; John, clerk for the Upper Lehigh Coal Company, at Upper Lehigh; Jacob, an operator in Wilkes-Barre; Elizabeth and Jane (the latter being deceased). Mr. Powell is a stanch Republican, and is a member of the F. & A. M. and the American Legion of Honor.

EVAN A. PRICE, inside foreman at the Prospect Colliery, Plains, was born in Glamorganshire, South Wales, October 28, 1851, and is a son of George D. and Cecilia (Nichols) Price. The father, who was a miner in Wales, and, later, in Amer- ica, reared a family of eight children, two of whom are living, viz .: Evan A. and Llewellyn, the latter of whom is a fire-boss, in Miners Mills. Our subject began working in the mines at the age of nine years; he came to America in 1870, locating at Mill Creek, where he did Company work for six years, and then came to the Prospect Colliery, where he was driver-boss for seven years, and in 1883 was promoted to his present position. Mr. Price wae married, September 10, 1874, to Miss Mar- garet, daughter of Reese and Catherine (Lewis) Richards, of Wales, and to their union have been born eight children, six of whom are living, viz .: David N., Catherine, Cecilia, George, Lydia and Evan B. Mr. Price is a member of the Ivorites, and is a Republican in his political views.

FRED H. PRICE, proprietor of the "Grand Central Hotel," Wilkes-Barre, was born in White Haven, Pa., February 18, 1860, and is a son of John Henry and Louisa C. (Fuelir) Price. The father was born in Hamburg, Germany, January 19, 1834, and at the age of sixteen became an apprentice to learn cabinet making and stair building, serving four years. Two years later he married his wife, who was born in Heidhoff by Dermetz, Germany, May 10, 1829. They emigrated to Amer- ica in the fall of 1858, coming to White Haven, where he was employed in the boat yard until the Lehigh land freshet in the spring of 1862. Then he was employed

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in the Lehigh & Susquehanna Railroad car-shops at that place, where he remained until 1864, at which time he engaged in the cabinet making and undertaking busi- nesses, which he carried on successfully until 1881. He then sold out, removed to Wilkes-Barre and accepted a position with M. B. Houpt (the leading contractor and builder) as carpenter, where he remained for seven years, or until 1888, and then connected himself with Philip R. Raife, contractor and builder, in the capacity of carpenter-boss, where he still remains. They were the parents of five children, as follows: Mary S. (Mrs. Garman), born in Germany, March 4, 1858; Fred H .; Louisa C., born June 22, 1864; Annie, born September 6, 1868, and John Henry, born in 1862, and died in 1864. Fred H. Price was educated at the public schools of White Haven, also at Wyoming Seminary, and at the Commercial College at Kingston, attending the latter in the fall of 1880 and spring of 1881. He was also clerk at the "Wyoming Valley Hotel" (ex-Sheriff J. B. Stark, proprietor), from Octo- ber 25, 1878, till May 1, 1884, and then accepted the position of chief clerk for ex- Sheriff Aaron Whitaker, at the "Exchange Hotel," where he remained until April 1, 1892, when he embarked in his present hotel business. On October 23, 1884, Mr. Price was united in marriage with Miss Emma J., daughter of William H. and Mary C. (Shiber) Tennant, natives of Pennsylvania, and of this union there are (1892) three children, as follows: Pearl Patience, born February 11, 1885; Etta May, born August 7, 1887, and Flora Henrietta, born July 30, 1889. Mr. Frice is a member of the German Lutheran Church, his wife of the Franklin Street Method- ist Church. He is a member of Wilkes-Barre Lodge, No. 61, F. & A. M. ; Wilkes- Barre Lodge No. 704, I. O. O. F .; Germania Castle No. 72, A. O. K. of M. C .; Wash- ington Camp No. 408, P. O. S. of A. of Wilkes-Barre, and Diamond Council No. 132, Jr. O. U. A. M. at White Haven. In politics he affiliates with the Republican party, and was elected on February 18, 1890, at the age of thirty years, the first councilman of the Sixteenth Ward of the city of Wilkes-Barre, and he is, perhaps, the youngest man that ever was elected to such an important office; and, besides, he is nothing if not enterprising for he has erected eighteen tenement houses in that progressive city for himself within the past five years, and still only a young self- made man.

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History of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, with biographical selections, Part 187

Author: Bradsby, H. C. (Henry C.) Publication date: 1893 Publisher: Chicago : S. B. Nelson Number of Pages: 1532

Author: Bradsby, H. C. (Henry C.)
Publication date: 1893
Publisher: Chicago : S. B. Nelson
Number of Pages: 1532