History of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, with biographical selections, Part 188

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

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GEORGE D. PRICE (deceased) was born in Llanelly, Carmarthenshire, South Wales, July 14, 1824, and was a son of Evan and Mary (Powell) Price. In their family there were ten children, two of whom reached majority, viz .: Eliza, who married John Leonard, a jeweler in Swansea, Glamorganshire, South Wales; and George D. Our subject, who had been a miner in his native country, came to America in 1868, and located in Providence, Pa., where he boarded with his sister- in-law till his family came in 1869, when he removed to Miners Mills; here he also followed mining till 1882, when he engaged in the insurance business, which he fol- lowed till the illness preceding his death. Mr. Price was married, April 14, 1849, to Miss Cecilia, daughter of David and Lydia (Evans) Nicholas, natives of Glamor- ganshire; nine children were the fruit of this union, two of whom are living, viz. : Evan A. and Llewellyn. The last named, who is unmarried and resides with his mother, is fire-boss in the Prospect Colliery; he is a member of the I. O. R. M., Ivorites, and the Miners Mills school board. Another son, David, was killed in the mines in Wales at the age of eighteen years. Mr. Price was a member of the Welsh Congregational Church, in which he was local preacher, deacon and trustee; he took the initial step in founding churches in Mill Creek, now, and Plains; he also helped found the church at Parsons, of which he was a member at the time of his death, which occurred May 25, 1891, at Miners Mills. The family are Republicans in their political views. Mrs. Price is a member of the Welsh Congregational Church.

HARRIE BERTSCH PRICE, secretary and treasurer of the Upper Lehigh Coal Com- pany, Upper Lehigh. This gentleman is a native of Carbon county, and was born Sep- tember 25, 1857, a son of Judge S. B. Price, of Mauch Chunk, and Harriet (Bertsch) Price, the former of whom was born in Hunterdon county, N. J. He was chief

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clerk for the Upper Lehigh Coal Company for several years, and previous to being elected judge, in 1889, he held the office of treasurer of Carbon county. The Price family is of German extraction. Mrs. Judge Price is a native of Mauch Chunk, and of German lineage also. On January 28, 1887, Judge Price resigned his position as chief clerk of the Upper Lehigh Coal Company in favor of Harrie B., and at the death of Fisher Hazard, secretary and treasurer of that company, which occurred September 7, 1888, Harrie succeeded him also, and has since held both positions. In the Price family there were three children, viz .: Harrie B .; Samuel, a coal oper- ator in Johnstown; and John, assistant cashier of the First National Bank of Hazle- ton. Our subject was educated at Swathmore College, from where he came directly to Upper Lehigh, and accepted his present position. He was united in marriage October 27, 1884, with Margaret Smith, of Cornwells, Bucks Co., Pa. There have been born to them three children, viz. : Marion, Harrie and H. Katherine. Mr. Price is a member of the Presbyterian Church; socially he is a Knight Templar; politically he is a Democrat.

WILLIAM C. PRICE, druggist, Pittston. This gentleman was born in Wilkes- Barre June 19, 1849, and is a son of John and Ann Price, both natives of Luzerne county, and now residents of Plains township. Our subject received his education in Wilkes-Barre, and at the age of seventeen began work in the drug-store of Blakely Hall, at Pittston, remaining with him about fourteen years, when Mr. Hall went out of business. Mr. Price then went to Luzerne, where he remained until 1880, when he came to Pittston and opened a drug-store, where he has since enjoyed a very lucrative patronage-in a word, he is the leading druggist of the city, and a moment's observation of any practical druggist will convince him that his stock is as nearly complete in every respect as it is possible to be. Mr. Price was married, in 1877, to Miss Emma Warner, of Wilkes-Barre, and they have had one child, Laura Eugena (deceased). He is a member of the I. O. O. F. and Knights of the Golden Eagle. Mr. Price has many friends in Luzerne county, and, truly, it is no surprise that he should have friends, for he is at all times a gentleman either in a social or business way, and kind and obliging at all times.

WILLIAM W. PRICHARD, farmer, P. O. Prichard, was born in Plains township, this county, July 2, 1839, a son of Leonard and Elizabeth (Dodson) Prichard, the former of whom was born in Connecticut, March 28, 1806, the latter in Ohio Sep- tember 19, 1808. Leonard Prichard was a son of Benjamin Prichard, also a native of Connecticut, and who served in the war of 1812. He removed from the East to Susquehanna county, Pa., where he lived the remainder of his life, dying at the age of eighty-five years. His family numbered seven children, two of whom are now living. His son Leonard began his active life in the town of Springville, Susque- hanna county, Pa., where he manufactured wooden clocks and also guns. He remained in Springville until 1836, in which year he removed to Mauch Chunk, where he fol- lowed blacksmithing. In 1838 he came to Plains township, Luzerne county, and here followed the same business until 1847, when he removed to Union township, where he purchased a mill property and blacksmith shop. He subsequently traded this off for a farm of 100 acres, on which was very little improvement. During his lifetime, however, he made many needed improvements on and about his farm, causing the golden harvest to succeed the forest. He was a first-class mechanic, a very energetic and tireless worker, a man of considerable influence in his township, and he held several offices in same. He was a stanch Abolitionist before and during the Civil war, and freely presented his three sons as an offering on the altar of his country, the eldest of whom was killed at the battle of the Wilderness. His education was above the average, of deep thought and refined mind. He died in 1881, at the age of seventy-five years, his wife in 1880, at the age of seventy-three years. There were five children born to them, three of whom are now living, viz .: W. W., John H., and Mrs. R. A. Harter, of Kingston township. W. W. is the second by birth, and was reared and educated in Union township, and also at Wyoming Seminary. He is by occupation a wheelwright, having served his time

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during his minority, and he worked at same until 1881, when, after the death of his father, he took charge of the farm. In 1861 he became a private in Company L, Ninth Pennsylvania (Lochiel) Cavalry, for the term of three years, during which period he participated in all the principal battles of the army of the Cumberland. He re-enlisted in the same company and regiment as a veteran, for three years more, thus showing his patriotism and pluck. During his service, he worked his way up, step by step, from private to first sergeant, and at the expiration of the war was tendered a lieutenant's commission, which he declined. During his camp life he never lost two weeks' service, never entered a hospital as a patient, and he has never applied for a pension. On December 26, 1866, Mr. Prichard married Miss Helen, daughter of Shadrach and Elizabeth Gregory, and to them were born nine children, all of whom are living: Mason S., Mary, Herbert G., Kate A., Elizabeth, Leonard, Robert, Walter, and John S. Mason S. married Miss Estella Hunt, daughter of Jacob Hunt, of Kingston township. Mrs. Helen Prichard was born in Union town- ship, June 10, 1843, and taught school many years previous to her marriage. Mr. Prichard is a man of marked intelligence, was correspondent in the army for the Louisville Journal, and Record of the Times, writes extensively for the press now, and is a practical, thorough-going gentleman. He is a stanch Democrat, and has been justice of the peace for ten years, and school director for three. He estab- lished the postoffice at his place, which is called after him, and he is an influential man in his township. He is a member of the Farmers' Alliance.

WILLIAM R. PRITCHARD, inside foreman at the Honora Colliery, Laflin, was born in South Wales, August 16, 1853, and is a son of William and Ann (Watkins) Pritchard. The family came to America in 1855 and resided at Shamokin, Pa., six years, and Hyde Park, Pa., thirteen years, and have since made their home at Larksville, same State. His father, who is a miner, reared a family of five children, three of whom are living, viz. : William R., John and Sarah (Mrs. Albert Avery.) The subject of this sketch was educated in the common schools, and at an early age began working about the mines, which vocation he has since followed, including eight years mining and two years fire-bossing at Plymouth; he removed to Laflin in October, 1889. Mr. Pritchard was married, March 12, 1881, to Sarah A., daughter of Isaac and Elizabeth (Jones) Evans, natives of Wales. They have three children, viz .: William W., Frank and Cora. Our subject and wife attend the Baptist Church, of which she is a member. He is a member of the I. O. O. F. and the Ivorites; he is a Republican in his political views, and has held the offices of tax collector and school director, serving his third term in the latter office.

LLOYD PROTHEROE, merchant, Miners Mills, was born in Pittston, Pa., September 25, 1863, and is a son of Morgan and Catharine (Richards) Protheroe, natives of South Wales. His paternal grandparents were David and Mary Protheroe, and his maternal grandparents were Owen and Mary Richards. The father of our subject, who was a miner, came to America in 1849, and located in Pittston, where he fol- lowed mining for twenty-five years, and then removed to Miners Mills; he worked in the mines till 1875, when he engaged in the mercantile business. He died Janu- ary 22, 1892, at the age of seventy-two years; his wife, who survives him, is living on the old homestead. Their family consisted of nine children, five of whom are living, viz .: Mary (Mrs. Edward Bowkley, of Pittston), Roderick, Owen, Lloyd and Irene (Mrs. John W. Ruche, of Pittsburgh); they all attend the Welsh Congrega- tional Church. Our subject, who is unmarried, resides with his mother in the old homestead; he is a member of the I. O. R. M., and is a Republican.

REUBEN PRUTZMAN, farmer, P. O. Huntsville, was born in Monroe county, Pa., March 2, 1841. He is a son of John and Julia (Walp) Prutzman, both of whom were born in Monroe county, and were descendants of German people. John moved from Monroe to this county about 1844, locating in Pittston. He is a pros- perous farmer, now residing in Luzerne borough. His family consisted of ten chil- dren, seven of whom are living, Reuben being the fourth in the family. The sub- ject of this sketch was reared and educated in Wyoming at the common schools, and

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HISTORY OF LUZERNE COUNTY.

worked on his father's farm until he was twenty-two, when he married Miss Eliza- beth, daughter of John and Rachel Anderson, by whom he had four children, three of whom are living: Asa, Ada and Walter. Mr. Prutzman is a general and indus- trious farmer, who, by hard and patient toil, has accumulated a competence for his old age. His farm consists of 114 acres, all improved. On October 19, 1883, he had the misfortune to lose his barn by fire; he soon replaced it, however, with a better and more commodious one. In 1872 he moved from Kingston to Jackson township, where he has since resided. He is honored and respected by all his fellow-citizens, who have honored him with several responsible township offices. Mr. Prutzman is not a member of any church, but has a preference for Methodism.

ARTEMUS PURSEL, liveryman, Wilkes-Barre, was born at Wyoming, Luzerne county, June 6, 1841, a son of Peter and Mary C. Pursel, natives of Pennsylvania. His parents came to this county in 1835, and the father followed banking and lum- bering until the time of his death. They had four children. Our subject, the second in the order of birth, was educated at the Wyoming Seminary, and, in 1865, engaged in the livery business, which he has continued up to the present time. In 1867 Mr. Pursel married Miss Mamie Rosanna Gallagher, who died in 1878. In 1879 he married Miss Fannie Nilson, and by her has three children: Harry, a reporter on the Evening Times; Ada, aged four years; and Mamie, aged three months. Mrs. Pursel is a member of the Presbyterian Church. In politics our subject is in sym- pathy with the Democratic party.

WILLIAM W. PURSELL, carpenter, Berwick, was born near Simcoe, Canada, April 8, 1855, a son of Daniel and Experience (Young) Pursell. His paternal grandfather, Jonathan Pursell, was a native of Columbia county, Pa., and was a blacksmith by trade. He resided in that county for many years, and died in Canada. The maternal grandfather of our subject was Abram Young, of Canada. Daniel R. Pursell, who was born in Montour county, Pa., was a farmer, and spent some years in Canada, dying in Luzerne county, Pa. His children were Benjamin O., Abigail, Emma A. (Mrs. George Johnson), Jonathan, William W. and Robert B. Our subject was reared in Pennsylvania from the age of one year, and received a common-school edu- cation. He learned the carpenter's trade at Berwick, which he still follows, and he has also been in the picture-frame business in that town since 1891. He is a natural genius, and has given to the world several inventions for which he has secured United States patents. On July 16, 1890, he married Catherine L., daughter of A. F. and Laura P. (Frisbie) Bachman, of Mauch Chunk, Pa., and a descendant of participators in the Wyoming Massacre. Mr. Pursell is a member of the Presby- terian Church, of the I. O. O. F. and K. of M., and in politics is a Republican.

JOHN B. QUIGLEY, constable, Freeland, was born in Philadelphia, in March, 1848, a son of Bernard and Anna (Galligher) Quigley, natives of Ireland. His father was a carpenter by trade, and died in New Philadelphia the year after his son John came to Jeddo, when the latter was about twenty-one years of age; his mother died when he was ten years old. John was educated at New Philadelphia, and at the age of twenty came to Jeddo, where he engaged at work in the mines, remaining there until 1885, in which year he removed to Freeland, where he has since resided. In 1888 he was elected constable, and has been re-elected once since; at present he is also a member of the Freeland police force. Mr. Quigley was married December 25, 1869, to Miss Harriet Amon, of Jeddo. There have been born to them eleven children, five of whom are living, viz. : Anna E., James B., Thomas, William and Leo. He and his family are members of the Catholic Church; bis political views are decidedly Democratic.

THOMAS F. QUIGLEY, merchant, Miners Mills, was born in Carbondale, Pa., Sep- tember 27, 1847, and is a son of Patrick and Mary (Farrell) Quigley, natives respect- ively of Counties Roscommon and Queen's, Ireland. They came to America in 1829, and were soon after married, locating in Carbondale, where the father worked at his trade, that of shoemaker, till his death, which occurred in 1850, when he was aged thirty-five years. The family consisted of three children, viz .: Mary A. (Mrs. Daniel

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Trolan, Rose Bud, Wash.), Margaret (Mrs. Murthy Moore, Highland, Wis.) and Thomas F. Our subject received a common-school education, and worked about the mines until the Civil war broke out. On September 6, 1862, he enlisted at Harris- burg in Company K, Forty-fifth Pennsylvania Volunteers. He was with Gen. Burn- side chiefly while in the service, and was discharged July 25, 1865, when he returned to the Taylorville coal region, thence moving to Wilkes-Barre in 1866, and afterward locating in Plains township, where he worked in various mines until 1876. He was then elected assessor and tax collector in Plains township, which offices he held three years; then engaged in contracting and building, and dealing in real estate, which he carried on extensively in Plains township till 1884, when, upon being appointed the first postmaster at Miners Mills, he built his present place and engaged in mer- cantile business, having now a very large trade. Besides his real estate and other interests in Miners Mills, Mr. Quigley is treasurer of the Economic Printing Company of Wilkes-Barre. He was married March 30, 1880, to Miss Eva, daughter of Detrick and Mercy (Evans) Rines, natives of Germany and New Jersey, respectively; her father, who followed lumbering, and, later, farming, came to Luzerne county in 1835. This happy union was blessed with five children, viz. : Edgar (deceased in infancy), Mary, Eva, T. Francis (a bright, promising little fellow, and the only son, who died at the age of two years, deeply mourned by his parents) and Margaret. Mr. and Mrs. Quigley are members of the Catholic Church, she being a convert. He is an active Democrat, and has much county and State political influence; he was the first burgess of Miners Mills borough regularly elected for full term, and has been a member of the council. He took an active part in the world-renowned arrest and conviction of "Red-nosed Mike," pleading his case before the justice, securing his acquittal, and afterward obtaining the most exhaustive confession made by the doomed man.

GEORGE RABER, farmer, P. O. Nescopeck, was born in Salem township, this county, December 25, 1828, a son of Michael and Susan (Hess) Raber. His pater- nal grandfather, George Raber, a native of Northampton county, Pa., born of Ger- man parentage, settled in Salem township in 1814; he was a cabinet maker by trade, which he followed in connection with farming. His wife was Margaret Sny- der, and their children were Jonas, Michael, Margaret (Mrs. Samuel Smuthers), Betsey (Mrs. Henry Thomas), Polly and Lydia (Mrs. William Harter). Michael Raber was reared in Salem township, was a weaver by trade, which he followed during the winters for fourteen years, making grain cradles in the summer time. He was the first lock-tender on the Pennsylvania Canal at Beach Haven, and held that position about fifteen years. In 1842 he settled in Nescopeck township, on the farm occupied by our subject, on which he made all the improvements in buildings; there he died November 25, 1891, at the age of eighty-four years. He served as one of the commissioners of Luzerne county for one term, and was an honored and respected citizen. His wife was a daughter of Jeremiah Hess, of what is now Conyngham township, and was the youngest of twenty-four children. The children of Michael and Susan Raber were George, William, Margaret (Mrs. John W. Seely), Sarah J. (Mrs. Albert Smith), Lydia A. (Mrs. Thomas H. Smith). Our subject was reared in Salem and Nescopeck townships, and educated in the common schools. He has resided in Nescopeck township since 1842, has always followed farming, and succeeded to the homestead at his father's death. He was twice married, his first wife being Mary, daughter of Jacob Bittenbender, of Nescopeck township, and by her he has one son living, Michael F. His second wife was Ellen, daughter of John Shoemaker, of Shickshinny, Pa., by which union there were two daughters, Alice and Florence. Mr. Raber is one of the substantial farmers of Nescopeck town- ship. He is a member of the Lutheran Church, and in politics he is a Democrat.

REV. JAMES LEE RACE, clergyman, Duryea, was born in Richmond, Yorkshire, England, July 4, 1830, and is a son of Rev. Daniel (a Methodist minister) and Mary (Lee) Race, natives of Scotland. They reared a family of six children, of whom James L. is the fourth in order of birth. Our subject was educated in the Rich-

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mond Grammar School, and in 1846 received a license to preach four years before leaving school, being known as the "boy preacher." He left school in 1850, and received a charge in London. On February 22, 1858, he arrived in America, and since that time has served the following charges in the Wyoming Conference: Lackawaxen, Moscow, Paupac, Thompson, Damascus, Bethany, Beech Pond, Way- mart, Tunkhannock, Nicholson, Smyrna, Plains, New Milford, Marathon, Mehoo- pany, Lehman and Lackawanna, his present charge. Rev. Mr. Race was united in marriage September 9, 1851, with Jane, daughter of Thomas and Jane Humble, natives of Yorkshire, England. She died March 15, 1868, leaving the following issue: Jabez W., born June 27, 1852; John H., born March 10, 1862, a graduate of Princeton College, and at present professor of rhetoric in the Wyoming Semi- nary; and Ulysius G., born May 10, 1864. Our subject was married again, on Oc- tober 22, 1868, to Hattie E., daughter of Samuel A. and Ann (Brentnall) Abbot, natives, respectively, of Nottingham and Derby, England. This union was blessed with two children, namely; William F., born December 19, 1870, and Lillian, born November 28, 1874. Mrs. Race also has a son by a previous marriage, who is a professor of music in Havre-de-Grace, Md. His name is Charles E. Wright, and he was born June 1, 1860. Our subject is a member of the F. & A. M., and is a Prohibitionist.

JOHN W. RAEDER, blank-book manufacturer, Wilkes-Barre, was born at White Haven, November 8, 1858, a son of William and Maria (Baltz) Raeder, natives of Germany. They were the parents of five children, of whom John W. is the eldest. Our subject received his education between the ages of five and eight years, having for his instructor the late William Dow. On October 21, 1872, he started out as an apprentice in a blank-book making establishment, in the old Slocum building on the Public Square, now Brown's bookstore. On April 6, 1881, he branched out for himself, and at this writing has the largest plant in northeastern Pennsylvania; in fact it is larger than all the rest combined. He is recording secretary of the Y. M. C. A., also of the First Presbyterian Church Sunday-school, of which he is a mem- ber. He is a member of the Masonic Fraternity, belonging to Landmark Lodge No. 442, and holds several other positions.

WILLIAM LA FAYETTE RAEDER is a son of John and Melinda (Wendell) Raeder, the former of whom was born in Hesse Darmstadt, Germany, and emigrated to America in 1841, coming direct to Luzerne county, Pa. He has lived alternately at White Haven, Ransom, Pittston and Wilkes-Barre, finally achieving a competence. At Pitts- ton he was a director of the bank, and of the Street Roadway Company; in Wilkes- Barre, since 1873, he has owned and conducted the " Washington Hotel," on North- ampton street. The Wendell family from which Mrs. Raeder is descended is among the oldest and best known in what was once New Amsterdam (now New York), where the founder of the American branch, Everett Jansen Wendell, came from Hanover (now a Province of Prussia) in 1642. Very many distinguished men and women have traced their lineage back to this man. William La Fayette Raeder was born at Ran- som (then in Luzerne county, now in Lackawanna), November 27, 1854. His father having removed to Pittston, our subject attended the public schools at that place, and the West Pittston Seminary. Later he took the course of civil engineering at the Lehigh University, and after graduating he served for a term as a civil engineer under the Wyoming Valley Coal Company. In 1877 he began the study of law in the office of E. P. and J. V. Darling, and was subsequently admitted to practice in the several courts of Luzerne county in June, 1881. Meanwhile, in conjunction with L. C. Kinsey, he organized the Wilkes-Barre Telephone Exchange (since merged into the Northern Pennsylvania Telephone & Supply Company), and until his admis- sion to the bar was employed as its solicitor and collector. Mr. Raeder is the pub- lisher of the Real Estate Intelligencer. He married, February 17, 1885, Elizabeth, a daughter of George and Eunice Worrel, of Elmira, N. Y. The Worrels were among the earlier settlers of lower Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Mr. and Mrs. Raeder have two children, both daughters. In politics, Mr. Raeder is a Democrat.

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OTTO K. RAEUCHLE, proprietor of the " Lehigh Valley House," Wilkes-Barre, was born in Wurtemberg, Germany, April 3, 1849, a son of John and Dorothea (Bollin- ger) Raeuchle. He was reared in Germany, where he served a three years' apprentice- ship at the confectioner's trade, in Stuttgart, and later worked as a journeyman two and one-half years in that city. In 1869 he sailed for America, landing in New York City July 3. He remained there a little over a year, then removed to Philadelphia, where for nearly eight years he was employed as cook in some of the leading hostel- ries of that city. In December, 1878, he located in Wilkes-Barre, where for seven years he was employed as cook in the "Wyoming Valley House." In 1885 he embarked in the hotel business, in which he has since continued, occupying his present stand since 1887. He was married, June 21, 1874, in Philadelphia, Pa., to Miss Anna, daughter of William and Margaret (Schneider) Koehler, of Germany, and by her has three children living: William, Annie and Charlie. Mr. Raeuchle is a member of the German Protestant Church, of the K. of P., the Mystic Chain, the O. R. M., I. O. O. F., the Schuetzenverein, and of the Saengerbund and Concordia Societies. In politics he is a Republican.

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History of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, with biographical selections, Part 188

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