History of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, Part 91

Author: Bell, Herbert C. (Herbert Charles), 1868- ed; John, J. J., 1829-
Publication date: 1891
Publisher: Chicago, Brown, Runk
Number of Pages: 1424

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Pottsville, Penn.

Yours, etc. COSMOPOLITE.

This letter shows that while Morse's telegraph depended on an electro- magnetic force, the plan of Mr. Cleaver is entirely electrical.

Mr. Cleaver also invented a very ingenious car box, designed to econo- mize oil in the lubricating of car axles; the spiral shute; the coal hammers, designed to supersede rollers in the preparation of coal; a cast-iron lock for canals, and a new mode of framing in place of mortise and tenon, which he carried out in the erection of two first-class model breakers at Locust Gap. A few months prior to his death, while engaged in sinking shafts and driving tunnels on the Luke Fidler property, Mr. Cleaver formed the design of pre- paring a work on the mining of coal, in which he proposed treating the sub- ject in both a geological and practical manner. Had he lived to publish the book it would doubtless have been of great advantage to the mining inter- ests. The fruits of his mechanical genius entitle him to a prominent posi- tion in the list of great American inventors, and as long as the rugged mountains yield the sparkling anthracite to enliven and make comfortable the firesides of millions of homes, as long as they furnish the material for generating the motive power which propels the machinery of thousands of industrial works, his name will live and be held in grateful remembrance.

Mr. Cleaver did not possess the elements essential to political success in these latter days, but would have been admirably adapted to the Jeffersonian age, when honesty and capacity were the standard that measured a man's fit- ness for office. He was honest, not because it was the best policy, but because it was right. He would rather suffer a hundred defeats than com- promise a single principle. He had no such word as expediency in his vocabulary, but in its place in shining letters was to be found that other word, principle. Had Mr. Cleaver lived in the early days of the Republic, his talents would have been better appreciated and rewarded, but during his career his honesty was a bar to those in power, who always sought to defeat him. He was no office seeker. His ambition ran not in that direction. He preferred the quiet walks of life. But, having identified himself with the Native American party at the time of its organization, he was soon regarded as one of its leaders, and was frequently nominated for offices which he never sought and never would have accepted had he not been actuated by the laud- able motive of promoting his party's welfare. He often in a laughing mood styled himself "the stereotyped candidate." In 1852 his party nominated

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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.

him for Governor; in 1853, for surveyor general; in 1854 he was the Ameri- can candidate for Congress in the Eleventh district, and in 1855 he was nom- inated for canal commissioner. For each of these offices, though defeated, he received a highly complimentary vote. In 1856 his name was placed on the Fillmore electoral ticket of Pennsylvania. During this time he published his views on protection, which were well received, and his name fills a promi- nent place in the politics of his native State. He was the presiding officer of the State camp, United Sons of America, a leading member of the camp at Shamokin, and a devoted friend of the Junior Order of the same name.

The following extract from the Mining Register of Pottsville will show how he was esteemed in his private relations: "In private life he was uni- versally esteemed. Possessed of strict integrity and habits of industry and attention to business, his life among us won for him the good opinion of all. But for his fondness for retirement and his native modesty, his fame, both public and private, must have been much more generally acknowledged. He was emphatically more than an ordinary man, and his departure will leave a void in the social and scientific circle of our country not easily filled."

Kimber Cleaver's chief fault seems to have been his generosity. Of him it can be truly said he was "generous to a fault." He could not refuse the needy, and many who received assistance from him remember him kindly to this day. He confided too implicitly in the honor and honesty of men, and was on several occasions defrauded by those who profited by his brain and skill. While intent upon work which was the foundation of the pros- perity of others he had no time to shape up his own financial affairs against disaster, and his death made necessary the sale of most valuable coal lands which have since yielded the owners great wealth.

In appearance Mr. Cleaver was of medium stature, slender build, brown hair, and gray eyes. He had the tastes of a student, and a most kindly face. He was an enthusiast in his profession, and his brain and hands were busy many hours while others slept. He was a total abstainer from alcoholic beverages, and was known far and wide as an earnest advocate of temper- ance.

STEPHEN BITTENBENDER, one of the earliest settlers and wealthy citizens of Shamokin, Pennsylvania, died in that borough, February 19, 1885, in the seventieth year of his age. He was born at Nescopec, Luzerne county, Pennsylvania, April 19, 1815, son of Jacob Bittenbender, a farmer of that county. His vigorous constitution may be attributed to the plain living, early rising, and constant toil which characterized the German farmers of that period. At thirteen years of age he left his father's home and went to live with his grandfather. In 1833 he went to Tamaqua, where he learned the trade of carpenter, and in 1838 we find him in business for himself, with over one hundred men in his employ, erecting houses which to-day remain to attest his ability and honesty as a contractor. In 1838 Mr. Bit-

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HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.

tenbender came to Shamokin, and with the exception of the years from 1848 to 1850, when he resided in Schuylkill county, he made his home in this borough up to his death. He was married, June 25, 1839, to Harriet, daughter of Philip and Salome (Young) Stambach, of Northumberland county. Thirteen children were born to this union, six of whom grew to maturity: John S. and Cyrus G., both deceased; Alice S., wife of C. E. Hughes, of Shamokin; Martin L., of Wilmington, Delaware; Isadore M., wife of George M. Ditzler, and Laura M., wife of S. C. Wagenseller, mer- chant and postmaster of Shamokin.

In youth his educational advantages were meager. He never attended public school except three months at a German country school in his native county. This, with one summer's instruction on Sabbath morning after service by appointment with a neighbor, under an oak tree, completed his education. But through the passing years he obtained that knowledge of men and events which can not be gained inside the walls of a school room. Mr. Bittenbender possessed qualifications which rated him high in the esti- mation of business circles. In 1838, Patrick Reilly, master mechanic of the Little Schuylkill railroad, came to Shamokin to assume a like position with the Danville and Pottsville Railroad Company: He induced Mr. Bitten- bender to locate in this borough, where he found lucrative work in building cars, putting in machinery, turn-tables, etc., for the railway. Mr. Reilly and Thomas Sharpe, the first superintendent of the Danville and Pottsville rail- road, were the owners of a patent for a spiral car spring, and they employed Mr. Bittenbender to construct a car with these springs, which was the first ever run over the Reading railroad. Among the public buildings which he erected was the old frame Catholic church in 1839, and the First Presby- terian church in 1847. In 1851 he purchased the Shamokin foundry, and in 1855 the machine shop and car shop, carrying on the business for over sixteen years, employing a large number of men and turning out an immense amount of work. He was prominent in the movement to establish the Shamokin Herald, in founding the old Shamokin Lyceum, and in the organ- ization of the Shamokin Bank in 1857. He always took an active part in the conventions for furthering and increasing the railroad facilities of the coal region. In 1864 he opened up the Burnside colliery, which he operated until 1871, and thus amassed a fortune. In 1865 he put down, at a cost of several thousand dollars, cast-iron water-pipes through a portion of the borough from a reservoir built by his own enterprise, and subsequently was one of the charter members of the Shamokin Water Company. Mr. Bitten- bender was a man of great energy and public spirit, and took an active interest in the progress and development of his adopted home. In 1875 he presented to the Friendship Fire Company the ground on which their hose house stands. Politically he was a Whig up to 1860, when he voted for Abraham Lincoln, and ever after was an unswerving Republican.

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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.

SAMUEL JOHN, one of the pioneers of Shamokin, was born in Shamokin township (now Ralpho), Northumberland county, Pennsylvania, February 27, 1807. He was the seventh son of Abia and Martha John, who settled in this county in 1795. His early youth was passed on the homestead farm, and at the age of twenty-six he married Angelina, second daughter of Abra- ham and Mary John, of Catawissa township, Columbia county, who, al- though of the same name, was not a blood relative. Mr. John resided on the old homestead in Shamokin township, passing his time in farming, sur- veying, conveyancing, etc., and also operated the old forge below Shamokin. In April, 1839, he moved to Shamokin, and engaged in merchandising, and operated what was then known as Buck Ridge colliery. He was also en- gaged in conducting the Shamokin foundry, manufacturing stoves, plows, hollow ware, etc., which at that early date was looked upon as quite an en- terprise. In 1844 he was appointed by President Polk postmaster of the borough, and served two years. He also assisted Kimber Cleaver in locat- ing what was then known as the Eastern railroad, and was an active agent in procuring the southern outlet to Baltimore by which the products of the Shamokin coal field could reach the South by rail. He was a director in the Shamokin Town Lot Association, which had for its object the promotion of manufacturing industries. In the year 1863 he leased Green Ridge coll- iery, which was named by him Green Mountain colliery, and seeing that the western market for coal would be the best and most desirable outlet, he as- sisted in procuring a charter for the Enterprise railroad. In 1867 he was one of those who procured a charter for a railroad leading from Shamokin to Trevorton. Both these roads are now owned and operated by the Phila- delphia and Reading Railroad Company. He took an active interest in the development of the Shamokin coal field, and in the introduction of rail- roads into this vicinity, and as far back as 1832 the legislature of Pennsyl- vania appointed him one of the commissioners of the Danville and Potts- ville railroad. Mr. John was cashier of the Shamokin Bank at one time, and for years a director of the Shamokin Banking Company, the only bank in Shamokin which withstood the financial panic of 1877. He was the founder, editor, and proprietor of the Shamokin Register, the second newspaper pub- lished in the borough. Merchandising seems to have been specially adapted to his liking, as at one time he operated stores at Mt. Comfort and Mt. Car- mel, and for years had a general store in Shamokin, and followed this branch of business for a period of twenty-five years. He took a prominent part in establishing an almshouse in Coal township, served many years as a school director in Shamokin township, and always manifested a deep interest in the growth and progress of the public school system. He was a member of the Shamokin Lyceum and took part in its discussions. In poli- tics he was a Whig and afterwards a Republican, but throughout his long business career he avoided office seeking. The positions of justice of the

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HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.

peace and postmaster were given him by appointment, unsolicited, and after filling them in a creditable manner he resigned both offices. At one time he was a candidate for Congress in this district, but the nomination was given to a candidate from Schuylkill county.

Mr. John was a man of abstemious and temperate habits, and often spoke of this as one of the characteristics to which he owed his activity and good health. Upon the anniversary of his seventieth birthday, in the pres- ence of his family and a few chosen friends who had responded to an invita- tion to celebrate the event, he spoke as follows: "I have no recollection of ever spending an evening at a dance, a frolic, or any other place of dissipa- tion or foolery. I never used strong drink, ale, or porter as a beverage, because I knew it was dangerous. I never used tobacco in any way, as I knew it was a filthy practice and detrimental to health. I never played a game of cards or chance or hazard, as I felt it was demoralizing." Mr. John was a member of the Masonic order, and an attendant of the Methodist Episcopal church. While close and exacting in his business relations, he was a man who always kept his contracts and fulfilled his obligations to the letter.

To Samuel and Angelina John were born five sons and five daughters: Laertes P., deceased; U. F., a lawyer of Shamokin; Kersey T., a merchant of Mt. Carmel; J. M., deceased; Samuel L., deceased; Vienna A .; Clara E., wife of William Bird, of Shamokin; Angelina R., wife of William H. Shipe, of Minnesota; Mary A., widow of William E. Raver, and Sarah L. Mr. John died, July 23, 1877, in the seventy-first year of his age. His widow is living at the age of eighty years, and although feeble with the infirmities of a ripe old age is in the full possession of all her mental faculties.

JONAS L. GILGER, retired, was born in Ralpho township, Northumberland county, May 6, 1818, son of Adam and Elizabeth (Repley) Gilger. The former was a son of John Adam Gilger, a native of Germany and a pioneer of Ralpho township, where he settled midway between Elysburg and Bear Gap. Jonas L. was brought up in his native township, and learned the carpenter trade. He came to Shamokin on the 20th of March, 1838, and has since resided here. During the first three years of his residence he was employed as a journeyman by George Martz. He then engaged in business individually, and was for some years a builder and contractor on an exten- sive scale. In 1840 he married Susanna, daughter of John and Margaret (Colquet) Boughner, who bore him six children, all of whom are now living: Darius S .; Rebecca J., wife of Isaac Raup; William F .; John A .; David M., and Elizabeth, wife of H. H. Keiser. She died in 1853 and in 1857 he married her sister, Charity Boughner, by whom he had two children: Charles, and Emma, wife of Albert Chillson. Mr. Gilger is a member of the Methodist church and a Republican in politics. He was the second burgess of Shamokin and served as a member of the school board fourteen years.

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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.

JOSEPH SNYDER, the pioneer hotel keeper of Shamokin, was born in New Jersey, October 10, 1796, and grew to manhood in his native place. He received a fair English education. He married Annie Heller, also a native of New Jersey, born September 18, 1794, who bore him the following children: Amelia, who was twice married, first to Joseph Enoch, and after his death to Jonathan Farnsworth; Harmon, deceased; Rachel, deceased wife of Alem Sechler; Eleanor; David, deceased, and John B. In 1818 Mr. Snyder came to Northumberland county, Pennsylvania, and settled in Rush township, where he engaged in farming. He afterwards opened a hotel at Snufftown, and in 1835 located in Shamokin with the intention of keeping a hotel. He, however, remained only a brief time, as there was nothing for him to do in that line, and no apparent prospect of the hotel business becoming any better. He returned to Snufftown, but in January, 1836, again came to Shamokin and took possession of the same building, now a part of the Hotel Vanderbilt, which he conducted several years. He then accepted the office of resident land agent, which position he held for many years. Towards the close of his life he purchased the farm now owned by his son John B., lived upon it two years, and then returned to Shamokin, where he resided until his death, February 1, 1867, in the seventy-first year of his age. His widow survived him until August 6, 1881, dying in her eighty-seventh year. She was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and a very worthy woman. Politically Mr. Snyder was a stanch Democrat, and filled several minor local offices. He was one of the organ- izers of the First Presbyterian church of Shamokin, and was largely instru- mental in the erection of the first church built by that denomination in 1847. He was a good citizen, a man of plain, unpretentious character, and straight- forward in all his dealings with his fellow-men.

JOHN BOYD SNYDER, farmer and plasterer, was born in Shamokin, Penn- sylvania, April 3, 1836, on the site of the Hotel Vanderbilt. He is a son of Joseph and Annie Snyder, and was the first white child born within the limits of the borough. He is therefore the oldest native resident of the town. John C. Boyd, the proprietor of the town, had agreed to deed a lot to the first white child born on its site, and soon after the birth of our subject Boyd requested his father to select the lot. Mr. Snyder chose a corner lot in the northeast part of the village, and, true to his promise, Boyd made out the deed to John Boyd Snyder. That gentleman has ever since owned it, and still resides in the house which he erected thereon many years ago. He grew up in Shamokin, and received such education as the schools of that period afforded. He learned the trade of plasterer, which business he fol- lowed until the death of his father, when he inherited the homestead farm and has since been engaged in farming and working at his trade. In 1861 he enlisted in Company A, Eighth Pennsylvania Volunteers, and served until honorably discharged. Mr. Snyder was married, January 1, 1857, to Mary,

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HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.

daughter of Daniel Maury, of Shamokin. They are the parents of eight children: Annie, deceased wife of Matthias Neely; George Mcclellan; John H .; Edward A., deceased; Bessie; Rebecca; Emma, and Joseph W. Mr. Snyder is a member of Shamokin Lodge, No. 255, F. & A. M., and politically he is a "dyed in the wool" Democrat.

BIRD FAMILY .- James Bird, a native of Warren county, New Jersey, was an early settler of Rush township, Northumberland county, and a farmer by occupation. He married in New Jersey, and had a family of nine children: John; Rachel, who married Jacob Shipman; Sarah, who became Mrs. Scott; Susanna, who married William Kimball; Ziba; James; Joseph; William, and Sylvanus. Their father died in Rush township on the farm which he first settled.

SYLVANUS BIRD, youngest son of James Bird, was born in 1796 and reared in Rush township, where his early life was spent on the farm. He learned the trade of carpenter, and was employed by his brother Ziba, who was superintendent for John C. Boyd, the founder of Shamokin. Our subject located at Shamokin in 1838, and built many of the early houses of that bor- ough. In 1852 he was appointed postmaster, which office he filled until his death in March, 1856, excepting from January to December, 1855; he held the office of justice of the peace twenty years. In 1816. he married Lena, daughter of Robert Tietsworth; she left the following children: Pemberton; Eliza, deceased; John W., deceased; William W. and Joseph F., deceased; Angelina, widow of George W. Raver; Matilda, deceased wife of Peter Heim; Robert T., deceased; Josiah F., of Shamokin, and Sarah J., deceased.

PEMBERTON BIRD, eldest son of Sylvanns Bird, was born in Shamokin township in 1817. There he acquired the rudiments of an English educa- tion, and learned the trade of carpenter. He was clerk for Boyd & Rosser eight years, for Joseph Bird ten years, and for the Bird Coal and Iron Com- pany. In 1842 he was ordained a local preacher, and in 1846 he was ap- pointed to the Elysburg circuit by the Baltimore Conference of the Methodist Episcopal church, continuing in the active ministry eleven years at various points. For a period of six years he was president of the Bird Coal and Iron Company, with which he still retains official connection as vice-presi- dent. In 1838 he married Mary, daughter of Jacob Arnold, of Snydertown. Five children were born to them: William B .; Annie, widow of C. W. Young; Sylvanus, deceased; Joseph F., of Missouri, and Charles, of Harrisburg. His second wife was Sarah E., daughter of Michael E. Deiterly, who is the mother of three children: Henry D .; Wellington H., and Della R. Our sub- ject has been a member of the borough council, borough clerk, and for a number of years school director. He is one of the original members of the Methodist Episcopal church at Shamokin, and politically he is a Republican. Mr. Bird is one of the oldest living representatives of one of the pioneer fam- ilies of the county.

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BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES.

JOSIAH F. BIRD, insurance agent, was born, March 14, 1833, son of Syl- vanus and Lena (Tietsworth) Bird. He received his education at the public schools of Shamokin borough, and subsequently engaged in teaching. After a brief experience in mercantile pursuits he was superintendent for a num- ber of years at the Big Mountain colliery, and afterwards at the Henry Clay colliery. He established his present business in 1868, and is general agent for many of the large fire, life, and accident insurance companies. In 1857 he married Hannah, daughter of Jacob Scholl. He is a member of the United Brethren church, in which he has served as Sunday school superintendent twenty years. He is a Republican in politics, and has held the offices of overseer of the poor and deputy postmaster of Shamokin.

JOSEPH BIRD, deceased, was born in Franklin township, Columbia county, Pennsylvania, in 1814, son of Ziba and Hannah (Metze) Bird. He was reared to manhood on his father's farm and obtained a limited education at the local schools. He began his active career as a farmer on a tract of land owned by his father in Mayberry township, Montour county. After leaving the farm he went to Shamokin and acted as clerk and general assistant to his father, who had charge of the various interests of John C. Boyd at that place. He first entered the coal trade at Ashland on a small scale, but returned to Shamokin a year or two later and became associated with Dr. J. J. John in the drug business, also operating what was known as the flat vein near the corner of Spurzheim and Pearl streets, selling the product to local consum- ers entirely. In 1856 he entered into partnership with Dr. J. J. John and John B. Douty, under the firm name of Bird, Douty & John; they operated Big Mountain colliery, one of the most valuable properties in the Shamokin coal field, of which, by the retirement of his partners, Mr. Bird ultimately became sole lessee. After operating individually eight years he disposed of his lease to the Bird Coal and Iron Company, in which he was largely in- terested. He also acquired valuable real estate at Shamokin, Northumber- land, and elsewhere, and was regarded as one of the most successful coal operators of the Shamokin region. About the time his mining interests be- came vested in the Bird Coal and Iron Company he removed to Northumber- land, where he resided the remainder of his life, serving as president of the Northumberland County Agricultural Society several terms. Mr. Bird was three times married. His first wife was Rebecca, daughter of Jacob Kram, a pioneer hotel keeper of Shamokin, by whom he had three children, one of whom is now living, Elizabeth, wife of Patrick Gillespie, of Shamokin. After her death he married Catherine, daughter of George Hill, of Shamokin township, who died without issue. As his third wife he married Christiana C. Kram, who survives him. His death occurred on the 18th of June, 1882.

FRANKLIN A. CLARK, deceased, was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, in 1813. He left home at an early age and learned the trade of machinist. About the year 1837 he located at Sunbury, and in 1839 removed to Shamo-

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HISTORY OF NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY.

kin, and was engaged in hotel keeping seven years, and in connection with that business was engaged in hauling coal from the mines. He then pur- chased land and was occupied in farming four years, after which he accepted a position with the owner of the Lancaster colliery to put in the machinery, where he remained four years. He was then engaged in the clothing busi- ness a number of years, when he embarked in a general store. In 1865 he engaged in the drug and hardware business, which he continued until his death in 1872. He married in 1837, Louisa Eisely, and they were the par- ents of eleven children: John W .; Frank A .; Angelina, deceased; Emma, deceased, who married J. Trible; Ellen P., deceased, who married G. F. Holshue; Henry S., who died in the regular army; Valentine; Alice, wife of R. G. Eisenhart; George S .; Flora, deceased, who married William Buchanan, and Katie, deceased. Politically Mr. Clark was a Republican, and served as coroner, and as a member of the borough council. He was a consistent member of the Methodist church. His wife survives him, and resides in Shamokin.

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History of Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, Part 91

Author: Bell, Herbert C. (Herbert Charles), 1868- ed; John, J. J., 1829- Publication date: 1891 Publisher: Chicago, Brown, Runk Number of Pages: 1424

Author: Bell, Herbert C. (Herbert Charles), 1868- ed; John, J. J., 1829-
Publication date: 1891
Publisher: Chicago, Brown, Runk
Number of Pages: 1424