History of Venango County, Pennsylvania : its past and present, including, Part 102

Author: Bell, Herbert C. (Herbert Charles), 1868-
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Chicago : Brown, Runk & Co.
Number of Pages: 1323

USA > Pennsylvania > Venango County > History of Venango County, Pennsylvania : its past and present, including > Part 102

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JAMES VOGUS, farmer, was born in Clinton township July 31, 1834, and is a son of William and Eleanor (Allison) Vogus. The progenitor of the Vogus family of this county was John Vogus, a German, who settled on the land where William Vogus lives about 1796. He had one son, Francis, from whom the present Vogus family are descended. Francis was married to Catharine Baker who bore him the following children: John; Catharine; William; Jacob; Adam; Philip; Francis; Mary; Nancy; Peter, and Joseph, of whom six are dead: John; Catharine; Jacob; Philip; Nancy, and Joseph. He lived upon the old homestead until old age, then removed to Irwin town- ship and there died. His son, William, was born in 1813, and was twice married. His first wife died in 1866 leaving three children: James; Sarah, who was twice married, first to George McMurdy, and then to Robert Jones, and Ellen, wife of Philip Stoopes, of Missouri. His second wife was Mrs. Sarah (Atwell) Jamison who has borne him one son, William B. Our subject was born on the old homestead, and in 1868 removed to Oil City and engaged

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HISTORY OF VENANGO COUNTY.

in teaming. In 1876 he located on a farm in New Vernon township, Mercer county, where he remained until 1886 and then purchased his present home- stead in Clinton township. He was married in 1862 to Miss Freelove, daugh- ter of Jacob F. Hoffman of Irwin township, who is the mother of two chil- dren: John W., engaged in the sale of agricultural implements for Walter A. Wood & Company, of Hoosick Falls, New York, and Hezekiah. Politi- cally Mr. Vogus is a Democrat.

CYRUS R. COULTER, farmer, was born August 26, 1843, and is a son of John and Elizabeth (Baird) Coulter. His grandfather, Patrick Coulter, was a native of County Derry, Ireland, and settled in Huntingdon county, Pennsylvania, whence in 1804 or 1805 he removed to what was then Scrub- grass township. He was three times married, his first wife being Nancy Finley, by whom he had two sons: John and William; and three daughters, all of whom are dead. John Coulter was born in Huntingdon county, Penn- sylvania, June 15, 1787, studied medicine with Epaphroditus Cossitt of Mercer, and was one of the first practicing physicians in the county. He was also one of the leading pioneer farmers. He was twice married, his first wife being Achsah (Riggs) Coulter, who bore him six daughters, three of whom are living: Eliza, wife of William Moyn; Caroline, wife of Joseph A. Allen, and Achsah, wife of James B. Witherup. By his second wife he had three children: Mary A., wife of Thomas J. Eakin; Martha, who resides at home, and Cyrus R. Mr. Coulter died June 13, 1849, and his widow re- sides with her son. Our subject lived upon the homestead farm until the beginning of the war, when he enlisted in Company E, Sixteenth Pennsyl- vania Cavalry, and served until the surrender of Lee at Appomattox, which he witnessed. He is a member of Alexander Welton Post, G. A. R., and in politics a stanch Republican.

JAMES MCKINLEY emigrated from Westmoreland county about 1837, and located in what is now Clinton township, upon a tract of land west of Clin- tonville where his descendants now reside. He was a descendant of an Irish Presbyterian family of Westmoreland county, and was born in 1791. He was a carpenter and followed that business for a number of years in connection with farming. He married Elizabeth McKelvey, who died in 1871, and he followed her to the grave the next year. They were the parents of eight children, two of whom died young. Those living to maturity are as follows: Martha, who married Robert C. Weakly; Mary, married to Thomas Baird; John; James; Nathaniel H., and Marvin A.

NATHANIEL H. MCKINLEY, farmer, was born November 26, 1826, grew up and has followed farming all his life on the homestead where he now resides. He was married in 1857 to Miss Catharine Daugherty, of Clinton township, by which union one son, H. J., was born in 1860, and is now engaged in farming. The family are members of the United Presbyterian church.

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BIOGRAPHIES OF CLINTON.

SOLOMON THORN was born three miles from Sunbury, Butler county, Pennsylvania, November 23, 1823. He is the son of George and Catharine (Barnhart) Thorn and grandson of John Thorn, a native of Dauphin county, Pennsylvania, and one of the early settlers of Butler county. George Thorn was born in 1796, spent his early life upon the homestead farm, and in April, 1823, located on a farm on the line of Armstrong and But- ler counties, on the head-waters of Sugar creek, where he died in 1868. He was twice married, his first wife dying in 1830, and leaving five chil- dren. His second wife was Catharine (Stewart) Thorn, by whom he had four children. At the age of seventeen our subject was apprenticed to Henry Barnhart, of Millerstown, Pennsylvania, to learn the mill-wright trade. After he acquired a knowledge of his trade Mr. Thorn engaged in the business and for many years was employed in erecting mills throughout northwestern Pennsylvania. He was also a partner of Amos Dotterrer in equipping furnaces, saw and grist mills with machinery. In 1850 he located in Scrubgrass township, and built a saw mill on Little Scrubgrass creek which he operated for sixteen years. In 1866 he purchased the hotel in Clintonville, enlarged it, and for sixteen years was its landlord. In 1882 he was appointed steward of the county farm, and filled that position for eighteen months, resigning it on the death of his son again to take charge of the hotel. Mr. . Thorn was married February 1, 1849, to Miss Alvira, daughter of Thomas Perry, an early resident of Scrubgrass township. Eight children have been born of this union, three of whom are living: Willaim N .; Harry, and Emma, wife of S. C. Frye. Mr. Thorn is an enter- prising citizen, has led an active business life, and has always taken an act- ive interest in the social and material interests of Clintonville. He is a member of the Presbyterian church, and a firm adherent of the Republican party.

WILLIAM N. THORN, proprietor of the Clinton house, is the eldest living son of Solomon Thorn, and was born July 19, 1853. At the age of twenty- three he engaged with Phillips Brothers, and was in their employ for nine years. In 1883 he purchased the Clinton house, and has since con- ducted the business. He was married June 25, 1884, to Miss Olive, daugh- ter of James Osborn of Clinton township, and has three children: Clarence R .; Lewis A., and Cora. In 1886 Mr. Thorn was elected a member of the borough council, which position he has since filled, and is also president of the school board. He is politically a Republican, a member of the I. O. O. F., and an adherent of the Presbyterian church.

GEORGE W. BERINGER, farmer and oil producer, was born March 23, 1837, in Franklin, Pennsylvania. He is a son of George and Margaret (Davis) Beringer. George Beringer, Sr., was born in 1809 in Bedford county, and is a son of John and Jane (Leim) Beringer. In 1836 he came to Venango county, and was employed at the old Van Buren furnace. In 1840 he

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HISTORY OF VENANGO COUNTY.

removed to Clinton township and engaged in farming. In 1850 he pur- chased the farm where he now resides, in Clinton township. He was the first road commissioner elected in Clinton township. He is the father of twelve children, six of whom are living: Elizabeth J., Mrs. James Shiner; George W .; David, of Crawford county; Sarah, Mrs. David Hovis; Jesse, and Martha, Mrs. Jacob P- -. Our subject was educated in the common schools, and his early life was spent upon the farm. In 1860 he engaged in the construction of derricks for the oil producers; later on he commenced operating for himself, and at the present time he has eleven producing wells, and also conducts a farm of four hundred acres. Politically Mr. Beringer and his father are life-long Democrats. Our subject was married in September, 1862, to Miss Nancy J., daughter of Andrew Shiner, of Sandy Creek township, and by this union they have nine children: Andrew C., born November 17, 1863; Margaret J., born March 21, 1865, the wife of William J. C. Bumgardner; Artlyssey, born February 26, 1867, wife of Francis Davis of Clinton township; George B., born November 21, 1868; John F., born December 12, 1872; Amelda M., born December 1, 1874; James W., born October 4, 1879; Grace S., born December 24, 1882, and Grover Cleveland, born August 17, 1884.

ROBERT A. HUTCHISON, oil producer, was born in Butler county, Penn- sylvania, February 4, 1843, and was reared and educated in that and Venango counties. He is a son of Robert and Ann (Seaton) Hutchison, natives of Westmoreland and Butler counties, respectively, and of Scotch Presbyterian ancestry. He early engaged in the oil and lumber business, and on the breaking out of the war enlisted, September 13, 1861, in Company L, Fourth Pennsylvania Cavalry, and served until February 8, 1865, when he was mustered out of the service. He participated in all of the battles along the peninsula, at Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg; and on the retreat from the battle of Sulphur Springs, October 12, 1863, was captured, with three hundred others of his regiment, and taken to Belle Isle, and subsequently to Andersonville prison, where he remained from March, 1864, until the following September. He was then sent to the prison at Millia, Georgia, and there paroled, November 20, 1864, forwarded to Savannah, Georgia, and subsequently discharged from the service. He returned to Venango county, and located in Oil City, and for three years was engaged in the oil and lumber business. He then commenced oil pro- ducing in Butler county, where he remained until 1883, when he returned to Venango, and purchased some wells close to his present location, and one year later bought the five wells he is now operating. He was married in 1870 to Miss Elizabeth, daughter of Thomas Henderson, of Clinton town- ship, who has borne him eight children: A son who died in infancy; Luella A .; Bessie B., deceased; Delilah A .; Mary E .; Thomas A .; William J., and Loyd L. Mr. Hutchison is a member of the G. A. R., politically a Repub- lican, and an adherent of the Church of God.

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BIOGRAPHIES OF CLINTON.

H. J. McGILL, oil producer, was born in Butler county, Pennsylvania, August 13, 1843. His parents, James and Eliza Jane (Watt) McGill, were born in Butler county, Pennsylvania, and Trumbull county, Ohio, respectively. Our subject was reared and educated in Butler county, and there learned the blacksmith trade. In 1861 he enlisted in Company I, One Hundred and Third Pennsylvania Volunteers, of which the history is given in a previous chapter of this work, and was discharged August 11, 1864, for disability. Returning to his home he engaged in the oil business, and was employed by various companies in Venango and Butler counties. In March, 1883, he purchased wells Nos. 11 and 12, Plumer farm, which were drilled by W. B. Parsons and Reuben Bligh. They originally produced about four hundred barrels daily, and are still in successful operation. Mr. McGill was married in 1879 to Miss Edna D. Anderson, of Spartansburg, Crawford county, Pennsylvania, and daughter of George M. Anderson, by which union they have four children: Lois A., George E., Allen L., and James R. Politically Mr. McGill is a Republican. He is a member of John M. Phipps Post, G. A. R., and also of the A. O. U. W.

D. W. AULT, oil producer, was born in Lawrence county, Pennsylvania, December 28, 1844, and is a son of the Reverend J. C. and Catharine (Sherrard) Ault. His grandfather, Adam Ault, was an officer in the Rev- olutionary war, and married a sister of Colonel William Crawford, who was burned to death by the Indians at Sandusky Plains in 1782. He was a pioneer of Mercer county. The birthplace of his maternal grandmother is part of the battle field of Winchester, Virginia. The mother of our subject was born upon the land whereon was fought the battle of Gettysburg. He attended the common schools of his native county, and at the age of seven- teen, September 7, 1861, enlisted in the One Hundred and First Pennsyl- vania Volunteers and served three years. At the expiration of his term of enlistment he re-enlisted and served until the close of the war. Mr. Ault participated in the battles of Williamsburg, Seven Pines, Fair Oaks, Seven Days' fight, Malvern Hill, Black Water, Kingston, White Hall, Goldsboro, Foster Mills, Wilmington and Plymouth, North Carolina, where he was taken prisoner and sent to Charleston, and thence to Andersonville. At the time of his entrance into Andersonville it contained only four hundred prisoners, but ere he left it there were thirty-six thousand within its picket line. He was sent from there to Florence, South Carolina, where he re- mained until the close of the war; he was paroled at Charleston, South Caro- lina, and mustered out at Annapolis, Maryland. Returning to his home, he soon afterward entered Iron City College, Pittsburgh, where he graduated. He then engaged in the oil business, spending several years in Butler and Ve- nango counties, and from 1869 to 1872 followed contracting in New Castle, Pennsylvania. He subsequently engaged in the oil business in Butler county, and in 1876 came to Venango county and entered the employ of

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HISTORY OF VENANGO COUNTY.

Phillips Brothers at Bullion, with whom he remained four years. In 1883 he purchased the 'Alshouse well No. 23, and Shirley No. 112, and has since drilled another, all of which are now producing. Mr. Ault was married November 4, 1869, to Miss Charlotte Greir, of New Galilee, Beaver county, Pennsylvania. Her father, George Greir, being the only son of George Greir, the founder of what was once Greirsburg, now Darlington, Beaver county; her maternal grandmother, Mrs. Elizabeth (O'Brien) Holmes, was a daughter of Commodore Richard O'Brien of Revolutionary fame. Com- modore O' Brien was captured by the Turks in 1785, and held in the service of the dey of Algiers for seven years. He was the father of eight children, four of whom were born while he and wife were captives, Mrs. Holmes be- ing one of the number. He was the first United States consul to Barbary. In 1810 he settled in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, and was a member of the leg- islature from that place. * He died in Washington city in 1824. Mr. Ault is a member of the G. A. R., the I. O. O. F., and Union Veterans' League.

SAMUEL BEATTY, pumper and oil producer, was born in 1845, in the city of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and is a son of William and Mary (English) Beatty, of Scotch-Irish ancestry. William Beatty was a member of a regi- ment that was raised in Pittsburgh to serve in the Mexican war, and was killed in one of its hardest battles. Our subject received his education in the public schools of his native city, and was employed in the iron mills there until March 29, 1864, when he enlisted in Company H, One Hundred and Sixteenth Volunteers, and served until the close of the war. He was wounded at Cold Harbor June 3, 1864, and on recovering was transferred to Company I, Sixteenth Reserves. After being mustered out he returned to Pittsburgh and engaged in farming in the vicinity of that city, subse- quently removing to Lawrence county. In June, 1877, he came to Venango county, and engaged in coal mining for Findley Surrenna, and afterward worked for the Phillips Brothers, oil producers, with whom he remained four years. In 1882 he entered the employ of J. N. Hovis, with whom he has since remained, being interested in two producing wells. He was mar- ried in 1863 to Sarah B. Haslet, who died in 1873 leaving four children: William J. ; Andrew S .; Samuel W., and Thomas J. In December, 1876, he was married to Mrs. Miranda E. Jacobs nee Surrenna, and by this union has one son, Edward E. Mr. Beatty is a Republican and a member of John M. Phipps Post, G. A. R.

DANIEL C. McLEAN, oil producer, was born in Allegheny county, Penn- sylvania, September 29, 1853, and is a son of Charles and Elizabeth (Ewer) McLean, natives of Columbiana county, Ohio, and Butler county, Pennsylva- nia, respectively. Our subject is a native of Allegheny county, received a good common school education, and at the age of eighteen the family re- moved to Monroe county, Ohio, where his father died. Mr. McLean fol-

George Beringer

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BIOGRAPHIES OF CLINTON.

lowed farming until 1874, when he went into the oil fields of Butler county, and engaged as a tool dresser and driller. In May, 1877, he came to Ve- nango county and entered the employ of the McCalmont Oil Company, with which he remained three years. He then engaged with T. P. Thompson as pumper on the lease, where he now is working, and October 18, 1883, purchased the wells, and is now operating five producers. He was married in 1876 to Miss Bella Kirkwood, daughter of John Eckles, of Westmoreland county, and by this union five children have been born to him, two of whom are living: Algernon D. and Alma E. Mr. McLean is a member of the Masonic fraternity and the A. O. U. W., and belongs to the Presbyterian church of Clintonville.

ABSALOM BUMGARDNER, blacksmith, was born September 5, 1821, in But- ler county, Pennsylvania, and is a son of John Bumgardner of that county. At the age of sixteen he was apprenticed to the blacksmith trade, and served until his majority. In 1846 he located in Franklin, where he worked at his trade four years, and then opened a shop in Scrubgrass township. In 1856 he removed to Findley township, Mercer county, where he carried on busi- ness until 1859 and then returned to Scrubgrass township. In 1860 he engaged in making tools for oil operators, and in 1861 enlisted in Company H, Fourth Pennsylvania Cavalry, and served until the close of the war. He then located at Kennerdell, where he carried on business until 1877, and then removed to his present location. He was married in 1846 to Elizabeth, daughter of Peter Karner of Franklin, Pennsylvania. They have four living children: Elizabeth, wife of Peter Walter; George, of Butler county; Will- iam, and John E. Mr. Bumgardner is a member of the Cumberland Pres. byterian church, and also of John Welton Post, G. A. R., of Kennerdell.

HENRY L. CUNNINGHAM, farmer and shoe manufacturer, Clintonville, is a son of William and Margaret (Wymer) Cunningham, and was born in Law- · rence county, Pennsylvania. His father removed to this county in 1855 and purchased the Walter farm in Clinton township. He was three times married, and is the father of seven children. He died in 1878. Our subject was the second child of the second marriage. He received a common school education, and was afterward apprenticed to the shoemaker's trade. In 1870 he formed a partnership with E. Borland of Franklin, Pennsylvania, and engaged in the boot and shoe business in that city. In 1875 he sold .his interest and went to the Black Hills. Returning the following autumn he settled in Bradford and carried on the shoe business in that city for two years, when he returned to his farm. In the spring of 1889 he engaged in the shoe business at Clintonville, which he still carries on. Mr. Cunningham was married in 1878 to Elizabeth, daughter of Eli Hovis of Clintonville, who is the mother of two children: Frank W. and Paul E. Politically he is a Republican, and a member of the K. and L. of H. lodge of Clin- tonville.

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HISTORY OF VENANGO COUNTY.

RICHARD E. MAJOR, farmer, was born in 1858 and is a son of Richard S. Major and Mary (McClaran) Major. His paternal grandfather, James Major, was born September 10, 1782, and married September 9, 1802, to Elizabeth Shorts, who bore him nine children: William; Sarah; Richard S. ; Jane; Mary; Nancy; Elizabeth; Julia A., and Margaret, of whom all lived to be married, the death of the father being the first in the family. He died May 18, 1844. At present the children are all dead except two: Elizabeth Davidson, of Iowa, and Margaret Arnold, of Ohio. Mr. Major was a Ger- man who came to Venango county at an early date and conducted a tavern known as the "burnt house" in what is now Victory township. He was a veteran of the war of 1812 and a great hunter. Richard S. Major was born September 24, 1807, and married January 19, 1830. He died April 24, 1875, and was the father of eleven children, four of whom are now living: Martha; Elizabeth; Mary A., and Richard E. His widow lives on the home- stead of her father, the late John McClaran. She was born April 9, 1812. Our subject, the youngest of the family, was reared and educated in the town- ship. December 18, 1879, he was married to Nancy L. Welton, the mother of five children of whom three are living: Henrietta E .; Margaret J., and Martin F. Mr. Major is a member of the Church of God and politically a Democrat.

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BIOGRAPHIES OF FRENCH CREEK.

CHAPTER L. BIOGRAPHIES OF FRENCH CREEK, SANDY CREEK, MINERAL, AND VICTORY.

FRENCH CREEK.

D OCTOR CHRISTOPHER HEYDRICK .- The career of Doctor Hey- drick as a physician belongs not so much to the history of Venango county as to that of the city of Philadelphia and of the county of Mercer, in which sketches of his life are found. But as a pioneer, in the sense that he visited Venango county before it was fully organized, and acquired property therein, and caused one of the oldest and best farms within its borders to be opened up and improved, he is worthy of notice here. He was born in Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, on the 7th of April, 1770. His father, Abraham Heydrick, was a farmer and merchant in Springfield township, Montgomery county, near Chestnut Hill, now a suburb of Philadelphia. His grandfather, Balthasar Heydrick, to escape religious persecution, fled from Silesia to Saxony in 1726, and emigrating to Pennsylvania in 1734, settled in Montgomery county, where he bought land of the Penns. Doctor Heydrick was educated privately at home, under the direction and with the friendly assistance of David Rittenhouse, the eminent philosopher, mathe- matician, and patriot, He studied medicine with Doctor Benjamin Say, of Philadelphia, and was graduated from the medical department of the Uni- versity of Pennsylvania in 1792. After his graduation he was physician to the Philadelphia hospital, and a member of several of the most prominent learned societies of the time. He continued his practice at Chestnut Hill until 1819.

In 1802-3 he made a visit of inspection to lands owned by his father in the third, fifth, and sixth donation districts. Delighted with the tract on French creek at the mouth of Deer creek, then the site of an Indian village known as Custaloga's Town, he purchased it from his father, intending some day to make it his home. In 1819 he removed to Mercer and there practiced his profession. Part of his French creek tract had been for years cultivated by the Indians, and he gave an improvement lease to James Mar- tin, son of John Martin, Sr. Martin erected buildings and enlarged the Indian improvement. The farm had been fairly opened to cultivation, and was now in possession of his son, Charles H. Heydrick. Advancing years

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HISTORY OF VENANGO COUNTY.

admonished the doctor that he must soon abandon his profession. So he removed to the farm and passed the remainder of his days with his son.

Doctor Heydrick, April 13, 1793, married Mary, daughter of Captain Peter Case, Sr., of Philadelphia. His death occurred on the 9th of February, 1856. His children were Harriet, married to Nathaniel P. Hood, of Phila- delphia; Caroline, married to Thomas J. Brown, of Mercer county, and Charles H. To a mind vigorous and receptive by nature, the subject of our sketch added the thorough culture of the schools and that wisdom which comes from observation and contact with his fellow men. He lives in the memory of those who knew him as a genial old gentlemen, ripe in knowl- edge and experience, which he was always willing to impart for the benefit of those around him. - A. P. W.

CHARLES H. HEYDRICK, son of Doctor Christopher Heydrick, was born at Chestnut Hill, Philadelphia, March 5, 1799. He was educated at the Univer- sity of Pennsylvania and studied medicine with his father, but never prac- ticed. He came to Mercer, Pennsylvania, with his parents in 1819. Seven years later he removed to his farm on French creek, where he resided until his death on the 16th of November, 1883. In 1826 Mr. Heydrick married Mary, daughter of James Adams, who owned a large tract of land at the mouth of Mill creek, a part of which is now the borough of Utica. Six children were the fruits of that union: James A., Christopher, Jesse, Peter C., Charles W., and Harriet. Mrs. Mary (Adams) Heydrick died in 1838. The sons are all living. His second marriage with Ann Adams, daughter of Jesse Adams, of Mifflin county, Pennsylvania, gave him four children: Mary, Joseph H., Caroline, and Thomas B. The two latter are dead.

In 1842 he was elected county auditor. January 22, 1845, he was appointed by the surveyor general of Pennsylvania deputy surveyor for Venango county, and reappointed May 29, 1845, holding the office until it became elective. He was elected in 1853, and again in 1856, and his official records during all of that time are models of neatness and accuracy.

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History of Venango County, Pennsylvania : its past and present, including, Part 102

Author: Bell, Herbert C. (Herbert Charles), 1868- Publication date: 1890 Publisher: Chicago : Brown, Runk & Co. Number of Pages: 1323

Author: Bell, Herbert C. (Herbert Charles), 1868-
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Chicago : Brown, Runk & Co.
Number of Pages: 1323