History of Venango County, Pennsylvania : its past and present, including, Part 96

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 96

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G. M. SHEFFER, manufacturer, was born in Venango county, June 19, 1847. He is the second child of Jacob and Sarah (Lynn) Sheffer, both of whom are still living in Rockland township. They are natives of West-

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moreland and Lycoming counties, respectively. Their family consists of the following children: Mary, married to Henry Webber; G. M. ; John B .; Bar- bara Ellen, deceased wife of Clark Cummings; Hannah M., wife of William Criswell, of Iowa; Charles M .; Benjamin F .; William M, deceased, and Ulysses Gary. Jacob Sheffer came to Venango county with his parents, John and Barbara (Best) Sheffer, in 1822, at the age of eight years, his birth having occurred January 20, 1814. They located in that part of Clarion formerly included in Venango. With the exception of two years he has been living in this county ever since. Our subject was reared a farmer and re- ceived his education in the country schools. February 17, 1864, he enlisted in Company L, Fourth Pennsylvania Cavalry, and joined the Army of the Potomac at Arlington, in June following. Before getting into active service he was taken down with typhoid fever and sent to the hospital at Gysbor- ough Point. Recovering he spent some time at home on furlough, and re- turned to his command, and was put on duty in Washington. He was discharged in June, 1865. After the war he worked on a farm for several years, then engaged in drilling oil wheels until 1878, when he began his pres- ent business of engine repairing, first at Pickwick, Clarion county, whence he removed in 1882 to Emlenton. Mr. Sheffer was married April 22, 1875, to Miss Sarah Eleanor, daughter of William N. and Jane (Armstrong) Myers. They have had six children: Hattie L., deceased; Bertha F. ; J.A.G. ; Stella; Plumer N., and William O. B. Mr. and Mrs. Sheffer are members of the Methodist Episcopal church and also of the Royal Templars of Temperance. He is an Odd Fellow, and in politics a Prohibitionist.

J. R. DONNELLY, grocer, son of James and Maria (Frew) Donnelly, was born in Chartiers township, Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, June 25, 1842. His father was a native of Ireland and came to America in 1817. He was the second in a family of four sons and three daughters: Hugh; James; John; Charles; Martha Jane, deceased wife of William Davis of Ashta- bula, Ohio; Maggie, married to Mr. Sykes of the same city; and Eliza, who married Joseph Lenhart of Meadville, Pennsylvania. The only survivor is Maggie. The family of James Donnelly consisted of three daughters and one son, as follows: Martha Emma, married to Benjamin Day of Olmstead county, Minnesota; J. R., of Emlenton; Eliza Jane, deceased wife of John Lytle of Franklin, Pennsylvania, and Elizabeth Ann, who died in Cleveland, Ohio.

J. R. Donnelly lived on a farm in Allegheny county until eight years of age, then removed with his parents to Butler county, three years afterward to Mercer county, and finally to Venango. His primary education was ob- tained in the common schools of these several counties. He also attended New Lebanon Academy for about a year and a half, and likewise took a commercial course at Iron City College, at Pittsburgh, after the war, his funds being the savings of his army life. He entered the Union service

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HISTORY OF VENANGO COUNTY.

April 27, 1861, and spent several months at Camp Dennison, Ohio. On the 12th of July, 1862, he entered Company A, One Hundred and Twenty-First Pennsylvania Volunteers, and participated in the following important engage- ments: Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg. He was at Ford's theater in Washington at the time of the assassination of President Lincoln, and witnessed that terrible tragedy. His discharge bears date August 28, 1865. He taught in the schools of Mercer and Venango counties from 1858 to 1862, and subsequent to the war from 1866 to 1872. In the latter year he began business in Emlenton, where he has since continued.

In July, 1873, his partnership with D. D. Moriarty ceased to exist on account of the destruction of their business house by fire. In the autumn of the same year he started in business for himself and carried it on till March, 1888, when he was again burned out, but has since rebuilt. Mr. Donnelly was married September 26, 1867, to Miss Mary E. Calvert of Venango county. Four children are the fruits of this union: Charles Dixon, deceased; Lynn Otis; Maggie Amelia, and Mattie Cecilia, twins, the first being dead. Mrs. Donnelly died May 26, 1882. Politically he is a Repub- lican, a member of the G. A. R., I. O. O. F., and A. O. U. W., and the family belong to the Presbyterian church.

ERNEST L. GODFREY, grocer, was born in New York city, February 14, 1854. His father was Louis Godfrey and his mother Anna (O'Neal) God- frey. The former was born in Paris, France, in 1816, and his wife in Bel- fast, Ireland, in 1832. She died in Broad township, Huntingdon county, Pennsylvania, in 1862, aged thirty years. Louis Godfrey fled from France in 1850 to avoid the persecution of Louis Napoleon, he being Republican in sentiment and consequently obnoxious to the new ruler of the French people. Arriving in America he began business in New York city, and was very suc- cessful in increasing the liberal sum of money with which he came to this country. While in New York he met and married Miss O'Neal, in 1852 or 1853. He died in New York in 1854, from heart disease brought on through a sudden shock from the loss of his wealth by unwittingly lending a large sum of money on Sunday, thus invalidating the claim. Ernest L., the sub- ject of this sketch, removed with his mother at the age of one year to Huntingdon county, Pennsylvania, where he lived with her until her death in 1862. He then worked as a miner for twenty-two years, with the excep- tion of a brief period in 1864-65 when he carried bread from Charlestown to Camp Piatt in West Virginia, for the Union soldiers. He then came to Venango county in 1874, and has been a resident thereof ever since, a por- tion of the time as a farmer, and during the last few months as a grocer in Emlenton. He was married June 10, 1879, to Miss Sarah, daughter of William Hagerty, of Emlenton. They have had four children, three of whom are living: Agnes E .; Martha Pearl, and William Earl. Mr. God- frey and wife are members of the Reformed church and politically he is a Republican.

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BIOGRAPHIES OF EMLENTON.

ANDREW CRUMLEY, oil producer, was born in Frederick county, June 13, 1845, the son of Henry and Adaline Crumley. He has been a resident of Venango county for eight years, and of Emlenton one. Mr. Crumley was married July 15, 1879, to Miss May, daughter of Addison and Mary Hud- son, of Clarion county, Pennsylvania. This union resulted in the birth of three children: Annie, Alonzo, and Allen. Mr. Crumley's ancestors were Quakers. He is not a member of any church, but his wife is a Methodist. He is a Republican, and one of the well-to-do citizens of the borough.

J. M. MCCLELLAND, medicine dealer, was born near Apollo, Armstrong county, Pennsylvania, December 5, 1833. His ancestry is Irish Presby- terian, his grandparents being representatives of that stock. His paternal grandparents came from the Eastern part of the state in 1798, and located in what is now Indiana county, between Saltzburg and Elder's Ridge. Their family consisted of four children: Samuel; John; James, and Rachel. John, the second child, was married to Hannah Kerr, by whom he had these children: Elizabeth Ann, deceased; J. M. ; Margaret, married to Samuel Alcorn; Martha E., wife of John Shoemaker; William K .; Hannah M., mar- ried to Joseph Fulton, and Thomas, deceased. The father died in September, 1873, in his eightieth year. Our subject is the second child of John and Hannah McClelland, and received a limited education in the rural schools of his native county. He lived on a farm until 1864; from 1864 to 1869 he was engaged in the grocery business in Indiana, Pennsylvania; from 1869 to 1877 he followed farming on the old homestead, and since the latter date has been a resident of Emlenton, traveling much of his time for the Emlenton Medicine Company. He was married March 22, 1856, to Miss Julia A., daughter of John G. and Jane E. (Jamison) Thompson, of Clarksburg, Indiana county. John G. Thompson was the oldest son of Moses Thompson by his first wife, Jennie Jamison, the second son being Robert. John G. was married twice; by his first wife, Eliza (Kincaid) Thompson, he had two children: William M., and Edwin E. By his second wife, Jennie (Jamison) Thompson, he had eight children: Julia A .; Emma J .; Martha L .; Jessie J .; Harriet R .; Maria L .; Nancy J., and Teresa K. Mrs. Thompson died in 1881 in her seventieth year, and her husband in 1883, in his eighty-fifth year. The marriage of Mr. and Mrs. McClelland has been blessed with six children: Lou E .; J. T .; Ida M .; Howard J .; Jennie F., and J. B. The family are adherents of the Pres- byterian church. Mr. McClelland is a member of the I. O. O. F., and politically an ardent Prohibitionist.

JOHN R. CUBBISON, carpenter, was born in Venango county, May 1, 1835, the son of Alexander and Sarah (Ritchey) Cubbison. His parents were early settlers of Richland township where his father was a miller by trade. Our subject was married January 10, 1856, to Miss Addaline Mid- dleton of Scrubgrass township. The result of this union is the birth of

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HISTORY OF VENANGO COUNTY.

eight children, two of whom are dead. The living are: Mary, married to . Edward Birtcil of Franklin, and E. H., editor of the Emlenton News; Fi- delia, married to S. H. Fowler; Alice; Lizzie, and Blanche. Mr. Cubbison is a Republican in politics.

E. H. CUBBISON, editor and publisher of the Emlenton News, was born August 7, 1863, and educated in the public schools. He learned the print- ing trade in his native town and started the News, which he has since edited and published, May 14, 1885. He married Miss Alice Pendlebury April 10, 1886. Mr. Cubbison is recognized as one of the enterprising, en- ergetic, and successful young journalists of the Allegheny valley.

URIAH SLOAN, lumber dealer and manager of planing mill, was born in Venango township, Butler county, Pennsylvania, September 27, 1840. He is a son of Joseph and Eleanor (Leslie) Sloan. His father was a member of a family consisting of nine sons and two daughters: Samuel; James; John; David; Henry; Robert; Joseph; Thomas; Andrew; Elizabeth, who married Alexander Grant, and Jane, married to James Jolly. The family of Joseph consisted of five sons and three daughters: Marilda, married to Robert Crawford; George; James Washington and Samuel Ephraim, twins; Uriah; Mary Ann, married to E. C. Parks; Eliza Jane, married to William Scott; Finley, and Ephraim, killed at Five Forks, Virginia, in March, 1865. Uriah Sloan received his education in the schools of Cherry Valley, Butler county, and lived on a farm until 1858, when he learned the trade of wagon making. In 1859 he began to drill for oil, and continued in the business until the breaking out of the Rebellion. He entered the Union service Sep- tember 24, 1861, as a member of Company B, One Hundred and Third Pennsylvania Volunteers. He served in the Army of the Potomac and in the sub-district of the Albemarle, North Carolina. He was with Mcclellan in the Peninsula campaign, 1862, and subsequently participated in the battles of Kingston, Goldsboro, and White Hall, North Carolina. April 20, 1864, his entire regiment was captured at Plymouth, North Carolina, and he suffered a loathsome imprisonment at Andersonville, Georgia, and Charlestown and Florence, South Carolina, until February, 1865. His time having expired he returned to his home in Butler county. He was married May 6, 1868, to Miss Sarah, daughter of David E. Perry, of Scrubgrass township. The fruit of this union is eight children: Frank L. ; Norman P. ; Warren L .; Hattie E .; Hill and Forrest, twins; Alonzo, and an infant daughter. In 1867 he began milling in Emlenton, and in 1875 he bought the old Presbyterian church and converted it into the factory which he has since operated. He is a member of the Presbyterian church, a Republican in politics, and belongs to the G. A. R.

ISAAC SHAKELY, blacksmith, born August 21, 1842, in Parker township, Butler county, Pennsylvania, is a son of John and Catharine (Reep) Shakely, natives of Butler county, of German descent. His father's family con-

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BIOGRAPHIES OF EMLENTON.

sisted of five brothers and two sisters: David M .; Isaac; John C .; Solo- mon R .; Fannie E .; Sarah Jane, and Simon M. His father died on the homestead in April, 1852, and his mother in November, 1884. Our subject lived on the farm with his parents until he went to learn the blacksmith's trade in Middlesex, Armstrong county, in 1859. During his youth he at- tended the country school and secured the rudiments of an education. He continued to work at his trade until he went into the army, in August, 1862, as a member of Company B, One Hundred and Third Pennsylvania Volun- teers. His army life was quite eventful. Enlisting at Kittanning he was sent to join his regiment at Suffolk, Virginia, where it was serving under Generals Gilmore and Foster, in the department of North Carolina. He was with his regiment in the engagements at Black Water, Virginia; Kings- ton, Whitehall, and Goldsboro, North Carolina, and was finally captured with his entire brigade at Plymouth, North Carolina, April 20, 1864, an ac- count of which appears in another chapter. He was taken to Andersonville prison, where he remained until September 10th, thence to Charleston, South Carolina, thence to Florence, where he was paroled December 10th of the same year. When he entered Andersonville he weighed one hundred and eighty-eight pounds, but when he left Florence he tipped the scales at sixty - two pounds. His health was much impaired by his prison life. After pa- role and recuperation in parole camp at Annapolis, Maryland, he rejoined his regiment at Newbern, North Carolina, in April, 1865, and was mustered out June 21st of that year. Returning from the army, he located in Em- lenton and resumed his trade. Mr. Shakely was married February 14, 1867, to Miss Sarah Jane Shoup, of St. Petersburg, Pennsylvania. From this union have sprung twelve children, eight of whom are still living: Ninna V .; Carry E .; Frederick Morton; Nettie N .; Frank Z .; Wade B .; Chester A. A., and Meade E. He has served as constable, councilman, and school director in the borough, and is an ardent member of the Republican party and an adherent of the Reformed church.

N. MACKIN, oil producer and proprietor of the Moran house, was born in Oneida county, New York, November 22, 1836, his parents being Michael and Mary ( McLaughlin) Mackin. Both his father and his grandfather, whose names also were Michael, came from County Longford, Ireland, his parents arriving in this country about 1825. Mr. Mackin's early life was spent on a farm. He attended the common schools for a time and then took special training in a select school under Professor H. P. Willard, of Boone- ville, Oneida county, New York. From 1860 to 1865 he taught in Weston, Oneida county. In 1869, after having spent four years as assistant clerk in the Continental hotel, Philadelphia, he came to Pithole, Venango county, and has ever since been engaged as an oil producer in Venango, Warren, Clarion, Bradford, and Butler counties, Pennsylvania, and Allegany county, New York. Mr. Mackin was married November 25, 1880, to Mrs. A. C.

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HISTORY OF VENANGO COUNTY.

Moran, widow of Timothy Moran, founder of the Moran house, Emlenton. Mrs. Mackin is a daughter of Judge John Keating, one of the most promi- nent pioneers of the town, where he resided many years. Politically Mr. Mackin has always acted with the Democratic party, his first vote having been cast for Stephen A. Douglas in 1860. On the 10th of December, 1888, he was appointed postmaster of Emlenton by President Cleveland, but the senate failing to approve the appointment, he never held the position. He bears strong testimonials from Governors A. G. Curtin and Horatio Sey- mour as to his personal worth and ability. Mr. Mackin has always been a strong friend and advocate of education, and both he and wife are members of the Catholic church.

PATRICK CRATON, proprietor of St. Cloud hotel, Emlenton, was born in County Clare, Ireland, January 18, 1840, the son of John and Margaret (Killin) Craton. In 1844, the entire family came to America and settled in East Troy, New York. In 1853 the family removed to Lock Haven, Penn- sylvania, where they kept a hotel. In 1864, John died leaving a widow who still survives him and is now a resident of Napoleon, Pennsylvania, likewise six sons and two daughters: Michael; Mary Ann; Thomas; Johanna; John; Patrick; James, and Cornelius. Two had died in Ireland: Daniel and Margaret. Of those who came to America, all except Mary Ann and James are still living. Patrick, our subject, left Lock Haven in 1866, and came to Emlenton. For six years he was in charge of a section on the Allegheny Valley. railroad. In 1872 he purchaced the old Exchange hotel, which had been erected by James S. Hagerty some twenty years pre- viously. It burning down in 1879, he at once began its rebuilding under the name of the St. Cloud hotel, a larger and grander structure on the same site. It has been owned by him ever since, and except the years 1883 and 1884, has been managed by him. January 31, 1869, he was married to Miss Bridget Casey, of Franklin. They have had eight children, five of whom only are living: John M. ; Margaret E .; Thomas M .; Patrick H., and Cor- nelius. Mr. and Mrs. Craton are both members of St. Michael's Catholic church. He was formerly a Democrat, but cast his first Republican vote in 1888 for Harrison and Morton.

H. K. STEVENS, oil producer, was born in Tarentum, Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, February 6, 1843, the second child of L. M. and Mary (Tingley) Stevens, of Tarentum. His father's family consisted of five chil- dren: Emaline, married to Thomas Wellsby, of Rockland, Venango county; H. K .; Henry Louis, deceased; Lawrence, and Robert. The parents are both living in Tarentum, the father being extensively engaged in the lum- ber business. Our subject lived in Tarentum, and attended the high school until June 3, 1863, when he enlisted in Company F, Sixty-First Pennsylvania Volunteers. He served with the Sixth corps in the Army of the Potomac, participating in the following engagements: Rappahannock Station, Wil-

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BIOGRAPHIES OF EMLENTON.

derness, Spottsylvania, Cold Harbor, and Petersburg. The corps was then placed under command of Sheridan and served with him around Washing- ton and in the Shenandoah valley, engaging in the battles of Fort Ste- phens, Winchester, Fisher's Hill, and Cedar Creek. It then returned to Petersburg, engaging in the remaining battles of the east. Mr. Stevens was wounded twice, first in the Wilderness and next at Cold Harbor. Dur- ing the latter part of his service, he held the rank of sergeant. He was discharged at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, July 3, 1865. In 1867 he went to Pleasantville and engaged in tank building for some twelve years. During the last ten years he has been operating in oil in Mckean, Venango, and Butler counties. June 8, 1876, he was joined in marriage to Miss Lizzie Maybee, daughter of James and Ellen Maybee, of Great Valley, New York. Mr. Stevens is connected with the G. A. R., and affiliates strongly with the Republican party.

H. E. BRADLEY, supervisor on the Allegheny Valley railroad, son of Henry and Mary A. (Leet) Bradley, was born in North Haven, Connecticut, May 16, 1833. The original Bradley family came from the North of Eng- land early in the last century, and consisted of four brothers, who settled in Connecticut. The paternal ancestors of our subject were Henry, the son of Whiting, the son of James, the son of Nathaniel Bradley. James Brad- ley married a Miss Alcott, an aunt of Bronson Alcott, of national fame as author and philosopher. The father of our subject was a son of Whiting and Elizabeth (Parker) Bradley, whose family consisted of the following children: Jesse; Henry; Harriet, who married L. L. Bishop, and Abijah. Henry Bradley was married to Miss Mary A. Leet, daughter of George Leet, of Leet's island, Connecticut, who was born in the original house in which Governor Leet lived, and of whom he was a direct descendant. From this union sprang four children: a daughter who died in infancy; Henry E .; Annie B., married to Nelson W. Hine of New Haven, and Fred- erick C.

Our subject lived in the village of North Haven, where he attended the public schools and assisted his father in a general store until the breaking out of the Rebellion. In August, 1862, he joined Company D, Fifteenth Connecticut Volunteers, and served with various commands in Virginia for fourteen months, when he was discharged for disability at Portsmouth. During the latter part of his service he acted as foragemaster, receiving and shipping the feed for six thousand animals. When the war closed Mr. Bradley took charge of a part of the work of building Fort Hale, in New Haven harbor. In December, 1867, he came west, and was appointed super- visor on the Allegheny Valley railroad in January following, which posi- tion he has ever since held. His successive residences have been Kittan- ning, Franklin, and Emlenton. April 13, 1870, he married Miss Sarah B., daughter of Alexander and Margaret (Graham) Henry of Kittanning, Penn-

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HISTORY OF VENANGO COUNTY.

sylvania, who has borne him the following children: James Harry, Nellie Graham, and Bessie Hine. Mr. Bradley has served as burgess of Emlen- ton one term, and fourteen years as councilman. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity, a Republican in politics, and with his wife belongs to the Presbyterian church.

A. D. GATES, liveryman, is a son of Jacob and Jane (Downing) Gates, and was born at Gates' Landing, Venango county, February 28, 1835. His father was a native of Bellefonte, Pennsylvania, and his mother of Clarion county, and they were married in Venango county. Jacob was a great hunter and made much money shipping furs to Pittsburgh, returning in his canoe with salt and flour. In later years he was a lumber and shingle dealer. He had two brothers and four sisters: John; George; Jane; Nancy; Polly, and Mary. His family consisted of the following children: Mary Ann and William, deceased; Martha; John, deceased; Catharine; G. W., deceased; Jacob R. ; A. D .; Nelson, deceased; R. D., and S. T. Mr. Gates lived at Gates' Landing until the day of his death, which occurred about 1844. Our subject from early youth was accustomed to life on the Alle- gheny river, finally became a pilot, and served in that capacity until the decline of steamboating on that stream. When the oil excitement began he was caught in the craze, he and his brother sinking a well on the old home- stead and securing sufficient oil to produce a sale of the farm for thirty-five thousand dollars. He followed farming until 1871, since which time he has been a resident of Emlenton. He dealt in real estate and oil lands for three years and then opened a shoe store. He continued in the business about nine years, was afterward in the oil business about two years, and then bought the livery stable of J. A. Boozel, and is still engaged in that busi- ness. He was married April 26, 1866, to Miss Elizabeth, daughter of Sam- uel and Rachel Mckinney, who has borne him one child, John F. Mr. Gates is an Odd Fellow, politically a Republican, and a member of the Cumberland Presbyterian church.

JOSEPH BAISH, shoemaker, was born in York county, Pennsylvania October 17, 1830, the second child of Garrett and Susan (Pentz) Baish. His father was born in Adams county; his mother, in York. Both were of Ger- man descent, their ancestors of several generations ago having come from Germany. They were the parents of ten children: Elizabeth; Joseph; Catharine, deceased; Jacob, deceased; Mary Ann; William and Sarah, twins; Ephraim; Eliza Jane; and Garrett. Mrs. Baish died December 21, 1855, her husband surviving her until April 25, 1879. Our subject was reared in the village of Franklintown, Pennsylvania, where he attended subscription school, and learned his trade with his father. He resided in that village until 1858. On the 16th of September, 1852, he married Miss Leah, daughter of Reverend Samuel and Elizabeth (Stump) Enterline, a native of Berks county. In 1858 he removed to Clearfield county, and in 1862 en-

David Hovis

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BIOGRAPHIES OF IRWIN.

listed in Company B, One Hundred and Forty-Ninth Pennsylvania Volun- teers. He served with the Army of the Potomac in the battles of Chancel- lorsville, Gettysburg, Wilderness, Laurel Hill, Petersburg, Weldon Railroad, and Hatcher's Run, besides numerous skirmishes. He was captured at Gettysburg, July 1st, and paroled July 3, 1863, was wounded at Laurel Hill May 8, 1864, confined in hospital for two months, and discharged June 24, 1865. In 1864 his family removed to Orrstown, Franklin county, and in 1871 he came to Emlenton where he has since resided. Mr. Baish's family consists of four children: Samuel Garrett, deceased; Jeremiah J .; Martha Jane, and Curtin E. He is an Odd Fellow, a member of the G. A. R., and votes the Republican ticket. His family are identified with the Methodist Episcopal church.

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History of Venango County, Pennsylvania : its past and present, including, Part 96

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