History of Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, Part 91

Author: edited by John F. Meginness
Publication date: 1892
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : Brown, Runk
Number of Pages: 1650

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faithful to the interests of his client. He conscientiously discharged the duties devolving upon him as attorney and counselor, in a way that met the approbation and won the confidence of his fellow-citizens, and stamped him as a man of the highest honor.

For many years Mr. Allen was one of the most prominent Democrats in this section of the State, and wielded a great influence in the councils of his party. In. 1874 he was elected to the State Senate from the Twenty-fourth senatorial district for the short term under the new Constitution, and was then re-elected as his own successor for the full term of four years. During his two terms in the Senate he commanded the admiration of his contemporaries, and was recognized as one of the ablest and most fearless members of that body. Though subsequently urged to accept the nomination of his party for Congress, and prominently mentioned on several occasions as a Democratic candidate for Governor, he always refused his friends to present his name. In 1883 he was a member of the State Executive Committee, and in 1884 he represented the Sixteenth district in the national con- vention at Chicago, which nominated Grover Cleveland for the presidency. In 1885 he was temporary chairman of the Democratic State convention, and was ever fore- most in supporting and defending the measures and principles of his party.

Outside of his profession Mr. Allen was prominently identified with many of the leading business institutions of Williamsport, and loyal to the best interests of the whole community. He served as a director of the Lumberman's National Bank, and was president of the Susquehanna Trust and Safe Deposit Company, the Williamsport Water Company, the Brandon Park Commission, and the Williamsport Cemetery Company; was ex-president of the Williamsport Street Passenger Railway Com- pany, and a director of the Market Street Bridge Company, the Williamsport Hospital, the Williamsport Gas Company, and the Central Pennsylvania Telephone and Supply Company. He was also a member of the Board of Trade, and solicitor of the Philadelphia and Reading and Fall Brook Railroad Companies, and several other corporations.

On the 5th of January, 1864, Mr. Allen married Ellen E., daughter of Gen. Robert Fleming, his first law preceptor, who survives him. Three sons and four daughters were the fruits of their union, as follows: Clara A., wife of John G. Read- ing, Jr. ; Rachel P .; Robert Fleming; Charles; Nellie; Esther E., deceased, and Porter. Mr. Allen was a member of the First Presbyterian church, and an officer in that organization. He was a trustee of Lafayette College from 1881 up to his death, and took a deep interest in the growth and progress of educational and religious institutions. His uniforin good nature, genial manner, cheerful disposition, strong friendship, and strict fidelity to every cause which he espoused, made him universally respected and fearlessly trusted.

SETH T. MCCORMICK was one of the best known members of the Lycoming county bar throughout his long residence in Williamsport, and his prominent association with the municipal affairs of that city made his name a household word in every part of the West Branch valley. The family is of Irish origin, and came from the North of Ireland to the Cumberland valley, whence Seth McCormick, grandfather of our subject, removed to White Deer valley prior to the Revolution. In 1778, when the settlers along the West Branch fled before the scalping knife of

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the ruthless savage, in what is familiarly known as the " Big Runaway," the MIc- Cormick family took refuge for a time at Fort Augusta, which stood on the site of Sunbury, whence they returned to White Deer valley after the danger had passed. His father. Seth McCormick. was born, lived, and died within the limits of Lycom- ing county, and the name is closely interwoven with the growth and progress of this . section of the State throughout its history.

Mr. McCormick was born in Washington township, Lycoming county, on the 17th of January. 1817, received a common school education, and spent his early life in the work of a farmer and lumberman, which pursuits he followed in White Deer valley until he was forty-four years of age. He was married in March, 1837, to Ellen, daughter of William Miller, of Washington township, who bore him a family of seven children, five sons and two daughters, as follows: Sarah E., who married William D. Oakes of Ogle county. Illinois; Henry Clay, of Williamsport; William M., of Philadelphia; Horace G., a physician of Williamsport; Hannah, wife of Thomas L. Painter of Allentown, Pennsylvania; Frank H., and Seth T., both of whom reside in this city. In 1861 Mr. McCormick determined to study law, and with that intention in view, he removed to Williamsport. He entered the office of W. W. Willard, and applied himself to the study of the law with such diligence and assiduity that he was admitted to practice in 1862. By his indomitable per- severance and energy, backed by a close application to business, he soon built up a large and lucrative practice, and in February, 1867, he took his son, Henry Clay, into partnership with him, and thus formed the well known law firm of S. T. & H. C. McCormick, which stood in the foremost rank of the legal profession.

Mr. McCormick was an excellent business man, and acquired a comfortable estate. He took an active interest in the development of every legitimate enterprise tending to promote the interests of his chosen home. He did a great deal of work in the effort to secure the location of the Middle district penitentiary in Williams- port. He was the compiler of the book of the charter, laws, and ordinances of the city, published by the council, and the very full indexes of the work bear testimony to the thoroughness of his labors.

In early manhood Mr. McCormick was a Whig, with strong Abolition tendencies, and in 1856 he joined the Republican party, and supported Fremont for the pres- idency, and also voted for Lincoln in 1860. But he was strongly opposed to the course of that party at the breaking out of the civil war, solely on constitutional grounds, and in 1861 he became a Democrat, and he remained a stanch advocate of Democratic principles up to his death. His prominent connection with the fight for honest muni- cipal government is still vividly remembered in every part of the county. In 1869 he was elected to the common council, to represent the Second and Eighth wards, and he took such a bold and decided stand against the Nicholson pavement swindle, and was such a thorn in the side of its abettors, that he was legislated out of office by an act of the legislature, passed hurriedly in 1870, with that intention, abolishing the common council. In 1871 he was the Democratic nominee for city recorder, and made a good race, but the city was heavily Republican, and he was defeated by a small majority. In 1872 he was elected to the common council from the Eighth ward. and was continuously re-elected to a seat in that body up to the day of his death. Most of the time he was chairman of the finance committee, and his careful-

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ness saved the city thousands of dollars. In the council he was the recognized leader of the party that fought corruption and extravagance, and no man wielded more influence or commanded more respect from his associates. The following tribute to his memory is an editorial from the Gazetle and Bulletin of December 2. 1878:

Iu the death of S. T. McCormick, Esq., Williamsport has lost one of her most valuable and . . truly representative citizens. As a member of the common council for years, he had familiarized himself thoroughly with the laws, and no member of that body ever took a deeper interest in municipal legislation, nor worked harder to promote the welfare of the city. Having been honored with repeated elections to council. he appreciated the confidence reposed in him by his constituents, and looked after their interests with sleepless vigilance. It is safe to say that for nearly ten years past three-fourths of the ordinances were drawn by his own hand, and as chairman of the finance committee he labored incessantly to guard the city treasury. He was a positive as well as representative man, and always ready to give, as well as to take blows in the advocacy of what he deemed to be right. In the course of a long public career, and in the many heated discussions which arose over matters of public policy, it would be strange if he did not make some enemies; but we venture to say that those who may have fought him with the. most energy in life will be among the first to forgive and forget, now that he sleeps the last sleep. As a local legislator he was a recognized leader-the " great commoner " of Williamsport-and his absence from the council will be severely felt, for where is the man in that body who can fill his place? We say this in all sincerity, because we believe it to be true, and we doubt if there will be a dissenting voice, in or out of council, to the declaration.

The common council passed the following resolutions on his death:

Resolved, That in the death of S. T. McCormick his constituency have lost the services of an able and upright representative, the city a faithful servant, and this council a diligent mem- ber. his associates a friend and a wise counselor, who was, by his integrity and unswerving fidelity, rendered especially dear.

Resolved, That by the constant care and watchfulness of deceased, the city of Williams- port rested safely from corruption, and that while others fell 'before temptation, he stood firm- Sustained by his high sense of honor and duty to the public, he was never once charged with even a compromise with wrong or the people's rights. Fearless in the discharge of his duty, he stood in front guarding the public good.

The bar of Lycoming county also passed appropriate resolutions, two of which we here give:

Resolved, That we have learned with profound sorrow of the death of Seth T. McCormick Esq., who for many years has been a member of the bar, and was entitled to and enjoyed the highest measure of respect for his ability and esteem for his virtues.

Resolved, That in his death we fully realize that our bar has lost one of its best and most faithful members, that this community has lost a man whose indomitable energy. inflexible honesty aud integrity, and spotless moral character, commanded the entire confidence of all who knew him, and his family has lost a kind and devoted husband and father.

Mr. McCormick died in the prime of mature manhood, on the 1st of December. 1878, and his remains were followed to their last resting place in Wildwood cemetery, by many of the best and most representative citizens of his native connty.

HON. HENRY CLAY MCCORMICK, attorney at law, and ex-member of Congress from the Sixteenth district, composed of the counties of Lycoming, Clinton, Tioga, and Potter, comes from a long line of worthy ancestry. He was born in Washington township, Lycoming connty, Pennsylvania, June 30, 1844, and is the eldest son of Seth T. and Ellen McCormick. £ He worked on his father's farm during his boy- hood years, and received in the district schools of his native township the rudiments

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of an English education. In 1861 his parents removed to Williamsport, and for the next year he was one of the most industrious students in Dickinson Seminary. In 1863 he attended Eastman's Business College, Poughkeepsie, New York, and gradu- ated with high honors. After his return home he engaged in keeping books for a local firm, and subsequently taught school. In October, 1864, he began to study law, and also taught school at the same time until his admission to the bar, August 28, 1866. He then went to Iowa with the intention of locating in that State, but after a few months' stay he returned to Williamsport and entered into partnership with his father, under the firm name of S. T. and H. C. McCormick.

From February, 1867, until the death of his father, December 1, 1878, the busi- ness was so continued and conducted, and since January 1, 1882, his younger brother, Seth T. McCormick, has been associated with him in the practice of the law, the firm being H. C. & S. T. McCormick. During the past twenty-five years Mr. McCormick has practiced his profession with marked success. In 1869, when barely twenty-five years of age, he was elected solicitor of the City of Williamsport, and in 1879 he was re-elected for his second term. In the latter year he was strongly urged for the appointment of United States district attorney for the West- ern District of Pennsylvania, and was endorsed generally by the bench and bar for the position. Mr. McCormick was one of the originators of the Lycoming Law Association, and its secretary for many years. His abilities as an attorney have become so fully recognized that no lawyer at the bar enjoys a more lucrative prac- tice, including cases of the most important character that come before the courts for adjudication. The industry, research, method, and skill with which he prepares his cases for court have not only been favorably commented upon for years, but they have afforded the explanation of the uniform success which he has enjoyed. As a speaker, both in court and on the platform, he has shown himself well equipped, forcible, logical, and effective.

Although Mr. McCormick had never been a candidate for any public office, in the congressional contest of 1882 he was asked by nine of the eighteen conferrees of the Sixteenth district, then composed of the counties of Lycoming, Tioga, Sullivan, Potter, Cameron, and Mckean, to stand as a candidate. For three weeks he steadily received these votes, and finally his supporters, at his request, voted for W. W. Brown of Mckean county, and nominated him. On the 1Sth of August, 1886, after a protracted dead-lock of many weeks' duration, Mr. McCormick was nomi- nated for Congress by the Republican conferrees on the 253d ballot, to represent the Sixteenth district. That was only ten days prior to the election, but no previous candidate in the district ever received so handsome a majority, which was 4,826. He carried the Democratic county of Lycoming, which but recently had given over 2,500 majority for the Democratic district attorney-elect, by a majority of 847, the only time in the history of the county that it ever gave a majority for a Republican candidate for Congress. Mr. McCormick took his seat in the Lth Congress, Decem- ber 5, 1887, and was placed on the Committees of Railroads and Canals, and Mili- tia. He delivered his maiden speech in Congress, May 5, 18SS, in opposition to the free importation of lumber. After the House had voted to put lumber on the free list by passing the Mills bill, he appeared before the sub-committee on finance in the Senate, and it was largely through his instrumentality that the committee

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reported in favor of retaining the duty, thus protecting the lumbermen against Canadian competition. In the Lth Congress the Republican party was in the minority. and much of the work done by Mr. McCormick did not appear on the sur- face. But he proved a decided acquisition to the Republicans of the Pennsylvania delegation, and gained prestige second to no other first-term member of the House. At the subsequent meeting of the Republican congressional conference of his dis- trict, his course was strongly endorsed, and he received the thanks of those engaged in the lumber industry for his efforts in opposition to the Mills bill.

Mr. McCormick has always been an earnest advocate of liberal pensions, believ- ing that the government should care for its defenders, and those dependent upon them. In a letter to the Commander of Post No. 141, G. A. R., of Bradford, Penn- sylvania, under date of October 23, 1886, in answer to a query as to his position on pensions, he wrote as follows: "Permit me to say that in my belief the time has arrived when every honorably discharged soldier and sailor should receive sub- stantial recognition by the government, without being obliged to prove that he was physically or mentally disabled in the service. The granting of pensions to all sol- diers of the late war is, in my judgment, only a question of time, and I think the time should not be delayed. These are my views, and they have not been acquired simply since I have been a candidate for Congress, but have been expressed publicly, and privately many times." On the 5th of January, 1888, he introduced in Congress a bill which he had prepared, to give every soldier who served four months or over a pension of $8 per month, but the bill was smothered in committee and never saw the light. In 1888 Mr. McCormick was renominated as the Republican candidate, and was re-elected by the handsome majority of 4,664, leading the presidential ticket 254 votes, which was a substantial recognition of his worth and popularity, and a marked approval of his course during his first term. In the LIst Congress he was made chairman of the Committee on Railways and Canals, and a member of the Judiciary Committee, and the Committee on Education, and was recognized as one of the ablest members from Pennsylvania. His second term expired, March 4, 1891, and since that time he has given his principal attention to the practice of his profession.

As a business man Mr. McCormick possesses the same successful traits and quali- fications that have made him one of the leading lawyers of the State. For the past decade and more he has been closely allied with the material advancement and pros- perity of Williamsport. In 1873 he helped organize the Lycoming National Bank, of which he was a director for fourteen years. In April, 1887, he severed his con- nection with that bank to help found the banking house of Cochran, Payne & McCormick, a concern of great financial strength and popularity. Mr. McCormick has been for years a member and director of the Board of Trade. He also was the prime mover in organizing the Edison Electric Illuminating Company, was president of the company the first two years of its existence, and since then has been a director. In February, 1892, he was elected president of the Williamsport and North Branch Railroad Company, and has taken an active part in the promotion of many other public enterprises.

Mr. McCormick was married, October 21, 1875, to Ida, daughter of John W. Hays of Erie, Pennsylvania, and has two children, Ellen and John. The

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family, like the ancestry for several generations, is Presbyterian in religion, and Mr. McCormick and wife are members of the First Presbyterian church of Williamsport.

SETH T. McCORMICK, attorney at law, was born in Washington township, Lycom- ing county, August 28, 1860, and is the youngest son of Seth T. and Ellen McCor- mick. He was reared in Williamsport, and received a good public school education. In January, 1878, he began reading law with S. T. & H. C. McCormick, and was admitted to the bar, September 1, 1881, and has since been admitted to the State Supreme, and United States circuit and district courts. He formed a partnership with his brother, January 1, 1882, and the firm of H. C. & S. T. McCormick has existed up to the present. He has devoted his whole attention to the practice of his profession, and as junior member of this widely known law firm, is recognized as an able and successful young lawyer. Politically he is a Democrat, but has never been a candidate for any office, and has no ambition for official preferment. He has always taken an active interest in the success of his party, and gives a hearty sup- port to its measures and principles. Mr. McCormick is a director in the Williams- port Land and Lumber Company, and is secretary of the Williamsport and North Branch Railroad Company. He is a charter member of the Ross Club, and one of the organizers of that institution. He was married, October 21, 1886, to Belle, daughter of Frank L. Herdic of Williamsport, and has one daughter, Myra.

JAMES M. GAMBLE, second son of Judge Gamble, was born at Jersey Shore in 1844. He received a good public school education, and graduated at Yale College in 1867. Soon after graduating he commenced studying law with his father, was admitted to the bar in 1870, and immediately entered into partnership with Robert P. Allen. The firm of Allen & Gamble existed about ten years, when Mr. Gamble retired on account of poor health. In October, 1875, he married Mary L., daughter of Henry White, of which union two daughters and a son were born to him. He was elected superintendent of the Finley Sunday school in January, 1875, which under his management grew to be one of the largest Sunday schools in the city. At the end of ten years he retired. Mr. Gamble was also an elder in the First Presbyte- rian church for five years, and took an active interest in the erection of the present church edifice. He took a deep interest in whatever was calculated to improve and benefit the city, and represented the Second ward for one term as a member of the select council. He filled the office of president of the Williamsport Water Company, and was a director of the Williamsport Passenger Street Railway Company, the Bald Eagle Valley Railroad Company, and the Lycoming National Bank. He was one of the executors of his father's estate, and executor of the wills of his uncles, John A. and Mathew Gamble. Some five years before his death he became interested in Eaglesmere with several other gentlemen, and was prominent in laying out and beautifying that summer resort. Among his last acts was his assistance and super- vision of the erection of a chapel for religious worship at that place, which he lived to see completed and dedicated. He died, July 16, 1888, at the age of forty-four. He was a man of fine natural ability, and his early demise was mourned by a large circle of friends.

JOHN ARTLEY BEEBER, lawyer, and president of the First National Bank of Will- iamsport, was born in Muncy, Lycoming county, Pennsylvania, April 6, 1845, and is the eldest son of Teter D. and Mary (Artley) Beeber. He is a descendant of one of

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the pioneers of the West Branch valley, and the family has lived in what is now Lycoming county since 1783. His great-grandfather, John Beeber, was a native of Germany, who immigrated to Bucks county, Pennsylvania, prior to the Revolution, and served through the war of Independence. At its close he took up a soldier's claim on Muncy creek, built a cabin in the unbroken forest, and commenced pioneer life in his new home. He married soon after coming to this county, reared a large family, and died upon the old homestead. Jacob Beeber, grandfather of our sub- ject, was one of John Beeber's sons. After reaching maturity he married Mary Dimm, who bore him a family of six children. After his wife's death, he married her sister Elizabeth, of which union three children were born. He located on a farm in Muncy Creek township, in the vicinity of the original settlement, and spent his life in agricultural pursuits. His eldest son, Teter D. Beeber, was born and reared in that part of the county. He married Mary J., daughter of John and Christiana Artley, of Muncy township, and was the father of three sons, as follows: John Art- ley, of Williamsport; Thomas R., pastor of the First Presbyterian church of Norris- town, and Dimner, a lawyer of Philadelphia. T. D. Beeber was a farmer and black- smith, and lived in the borough of Muncy, where both he and wife died. They were members of the Lutheran church, to which faith the ancestry adhered.

The subject of this sketch was reared in his native town, and there received a public school education. He afterwards spent four years at Pennsylvania College, Gettysburg, where he graduated in 1866. He then commenced reading law in the office of Hon. William H. Armstrong, of Williamsport, and was admitted to the bar in May, 1868. Since his admission he has been engaged in the active duties of his profession, and his practice extends into the several courts of the State. He is one of the best known members of the Lycoming county bar, and is recognized as a safe, careful, and judicious lawyer. Mr. Beeber is a stanch Repub- lican, and has always taken an active interest in public affairs, as well as in the social and material development of Lycoming county. During Lee's invasion he served in the Twenty-sixth Regiment, Pennsylvania militia. He was city solicitor in 1875 and 1876, which is the only public office he has ever held. He was one of the organizers of the Board of Trade, is a member of the Brandon Park Commis- sion, is one of the managers of the Williamsport Hospital, and is president of the Ross Club. For several years prior to 1884 he was a stockholder and director in the First National Bank, and May 1st of that year, he was elected president, suc- ceeding Abraham Updegraff, the first president of that institution, which is the old- est national bank in this part of the State. He has held the presidency for the past eight years, and has filled the position with credit and ability. Mr. Beeber was married, June 21, 1870, to Alice, daughter of Daniel and Catherine. Clapp of Muncy, Pennsylvania. Two children, Mary J. and William P., are the fruits of this union. The family are adherents of the First Presbyterian church. Though quiet and unassuming in his character, Mr. Beeber is one of the most progressive and representative citizens of his native county.

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History of Lycoming County, Pennsylvania, Part 91

Author: edited by John F. Meginness Publication date: 1892 Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : Brown, Runk Number of Pages: 1650

Author: edited by John F. Meginness
Publication date: 1892
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. : Brown, Runk
Number of Pages: 1650