History of Wayne, Pike, and Monroe counties, Pennsylvania, Part 167

Author: Mathews, Alfred, 1852-1904. 4n
Publication date: 1886
Publisher: Philadelphia : R.T. Peck & Co.
Number of Pages: 1438

USA > Pennsylvania > Monroe County > History of Wayne, Pike, and Monroe counties, Pennsylvania > Part 167
USA > Pennsylvania > Pike County > History of Wayne, Pike, and Monroe counties, Pennsylvania > Part 167
USA > Pennsylvania > Wayne County > History of Wayne, Pike, and Monroe counties, Pennsylvania > Part 167

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

with the following field offieers : Horatio G. Siekle, colonel ; John B. Murray, lieutenant- colonel ; Edwin A. Glenn, major. On the 19th, the regiment proceeded to join the army of the Potomae in front of Petersburg, Va., and upon its arrival was assigned to the First Brigade, First Division of the Fifth Corps, and joined it at a point on the Weldon Railroad. Soon after its arrival Colonel Siekle was placed in command of the brigade and Lieutenant-Colo- nel Murray succeeded to the command of the regiment. At the battle of Peebles' Farm, which opened on the 30th, the regiment partie- ipated, and in the engagement which occurred on October 2d the regiment suffered a loss of one killed and five wounded. On the 27th it moved with the eorps for a demonstration upon the South Side Railroad. On the 6th of De- ecmber it was engaged with the corps in the destruction of the Weldon Railroad. Lienten- ant-Colonel Murray was relieved on account of physical disability on the 27th of December, and the command devolved on Major Glenn. The next engagement participated in by the regiment was at Hateher's Run, February 6 and 7, 1865, resulting in a loss to the regiment of three killed and thirteen wounded. In the aetion known as the battle of Lewis' Farm, on March 25, 1865, the regiment sustained griev- ous losses. Major Charles I. Maeeuen and Captain George W. Mulfrey were killed ; Gen- eral Siekle, Captains Samnel Wrigley, Benja- min F. Gardner and Thomas C. Spokeman, Lieutenants Jeremiah C. Keller and William E. Miller wounded. The entire loss was three hundred and eleven ; twenty-eight were killed. On the morning of the 31st it again moved off and met the enemy at White Oak Swamp, and in the engagement that followed sustained a loss of six killed and forty-six wounded. Soon after the conelusion of the battle the regiment moved towards Five Forks, joining with Sher- idan's cavalry, and in the engagement which followed suffered the loss of their eommander, Major Glenn. The loss to the regiment was one killed and fifteen wounded. On the 15th of May the regiment eommeneed its mareh homeward and remained at Arlington Heights until June 3d, when it was mustered out.

1027

MONROE COUNTY.

COMPANY M .- This company was mustered in from October 10 to 15, 1864, and mustered out June 4, 1865.

Officers .- Captains, William S. Flory, John M. Barclay ; First Lieutentant, Mordecai E. Morris ; Second Lieutenant, Charles F. Colwell ; Corporal, James Clark.

Privates .- Lorenzo Bird, Thomas Blackearn, Ed- ward L. Baker, John W. Burnett, Leonard Broad- stone, Isaac G. Buck, Jacob Beck, Jolın Bugless. John W. Burke, William Barth, Philip Butz, Wil- liam Benner, William G. Carr, Joseph Crinsmore, W. M. Carpenter, Dennis Dugan, Patrick Dempsey, Jon- athan Davidson, Francis Diehl, Dominick Dougherty, Seeley S. Drake, Samuel O. Dietrich, Peter Edinger, James Farral, George Fogt, Patrick Fitzgeral, James Fagan, Thomas Goheen, Thomas Griffin, Swayze Gorden, Anthony Hetzel, Samuel A. Houser, Frank Horms, George Hammer, Jacob High, George A. Houser, Michael Hofaleck, William B. Hammond, George Jacobs, George H. Johnson, Francis Kelly, John Kembler, Daniel E. Kimble, Lewis Keinast, Daniel F. Kettra, William Leahey, William Leaver, Frederick Lendower, Hugh Lunney, Charles Linder, Franklin Livezey, Lewis Muller, William Miller, David Meese, Benjamin Miles, Elias Morehouse, Isaac Miles, Patrick Meckell, Henry Maniske, William S. Miller, Edward McDonough, Thomas McCauley, Charles T. Orner, Adolph Ochs, Daniel Pugh, Beri- hard Peter, Abraham R. Rhoads, Willian Rich, Matthew Russell, John Richards, William Roberts, Jeremiah Ring, Evan B. Shaler, W. H. Shoemaker, Charles Surgent, William Slichter, Christian Schnei- der, James Simpson, Sydenham Staples, Edward A. Slack, Edwin Staples, William Stewart, Robert Smith, George Sholly, Isaiah Strouss, Samuel Smitlı, John Thomas, Roma R. Tiel, Daniel Titus, William Waugh, Lewis Wells, John Wireman, Michael Ward and Conrad Wentzel.

The following is the roster of the colored recruits from Monroe County (three years' service) :

Charles Adams, Walter Jackson, Stephen Henry, Jacob Boyd, Co. G, 22d U. S. Colored Regiment ; must. in June, 1863 ; must. out Nov., 1865 ..

Amos Huff, Ogden Huff, Moses Washington, Dan- iel Washington, Co. K, 8th U. S. Colored Regiment ; must. in Sept., 1863; must. out Nov., 1865.

John A. Quake, Jr., Co. H, 25th U. S. Colored Regiment; must. in Feb., 1864 ; must. out Dec., 1865.

SOLDIERS NOT IN FULL COMPANIES.

Lt. Theodore B. Staples, adjt., 174th P. V. Col. John Schoonover, 1st and 11th N. J. V. Ist Lt. Chas. S. Detrick, q.m., 174th P. V. 1st Lt. M. M. Kistler, Co. I, 48th P. V. M. Arthur H. Davis, Co. D, 129th P. V.

P. S. Williams, Co. D, 129th P. V .; Co. 1, 80th N. Y. V. A. C. Junken, Co. H, 30th P. V. M.

Geo. Jansen, Co. H, 30tl P. V. M. Josephus Williams, asst. act. surg. U. S. Navy.

Edward P. Melick, Co. G, 132d P. V.

B. F. Dungan, Co. G, 121st P. V.

Stephen Gerish, Co. D, 112th P. V., Co. D and 121st.

Amos K. Miller, Co. D, 2d P. V. Art. Gerret Rumsay, Co. F, 3d P. V. Art.

Amos Slutter, Co. K, 47th P. V. Theodore D. Douns, Co. G, 29th P. V.

Evi Rosenkrans, Co. C, 48tl P. V. Wn. Stone, Co. F, 2d P. V. Art. Joseph T. Walton, 1st lieut. Co. F, 19th P. V.

John A. Stone, 2d P. V. Art.

Benj. F. Butts, Co. A, 105th P. V.

Rev. John L. Staples, chaplain, 16th P. V.

Chevis Waters, Co. C, 48tl P. V. M.

Geo. Shackelton, Co. C, 48th P. V. M. Samuel Hinkle, Co. A, 97th P. V. Harry Puterbaugh, Co. A, 143d P. V. Emery Price, Co. D, 2d P. V. H. Art. Geo. M. Primrose, Co. F, 3d P. V. Art. J. B. Van Why, Co. F, 3d P. V. Art. Theodore Frederick, Co. F, 11th P. V. Lewis Van Vleit, Co. H, 15tlı N. Y. Andrew Pipher, Co. M, 18th P. V. Elrazer Price, Co D, 2d P. V. Art. Uriah Transue, Co. K, 90th P. V. Levi Zigenfus, Co. H, 27th P. V. M. John L. McCarty, Co. G, 2d P. V. Commodore Price, Co. D, 97th P. V. Henry H. Feiter, 3d P. V. Art. Barnet Metzger, Co. I, 21 st P. V. Jacob L. Ruth, Co. I, 147th P. V. Nelson Bisbing, Co. C, 167th P. V. Martin V. Smith, Co. B, 169th P. V.

Daniel Bush, Co. C, 167th P. V.

Morris Henry, Co. C, 167th P. V. Ed D. Miller, Co. C, 167tlı P. V.

John Spring, Co. B, 5th P. V. Cav. Luther Gordon, Co. H, 30tl P. V. M. Chas. Hillyer, 2d N. J. Cav. Morton B. Smith, Co. K, 132d P. V.

John Coolbaugh, Co. K, 132d P. V. Conrad Warnick, N. J. Lancers. Wm. Taylor, N. J. Lancers.

Jacob S. Buskirk, 51st P. V.

Linford Ruth. Samuel Stone. Milton Brown, Co. K, 132d P. V.

Peter McDonough, Co. G, 121st P. V.

Michael McDonough, Co. G, 121st P. V.

SIXTY-SEVENTH REGIMENT PENNSYLVANIA VOL- UNTEERS, COMPANY E .- Solomon Kintner, George Mount, Aaron Culberson, Lewis Freeland, James Heller, George Brewer, Theodore Brewer, Morris Nauman, Benjamin Remhart, Edward Remhart,

1028

WAYNE, PIKE AND MONROE COUNTIES, PENNSYLVANIA.

Charles Remhart, Morris Decker, James Murray, John Coffrey, Valentine Deck, William Jones.

COLORED MEN (United States Colored Regiments).

EIGHTH REGIMENT, COMPANY G .- Robert Smith, Jake Boyed, Moses Washington, Daniel Washington, Amos Huff, William Smith, John Jones, Bernier Haines, Sanford Haines, Benjamin Ray, O. H. P. Quacko.

TWENTY-FIFTH REGIMENT, COMPANY G .- John Quacko, John A. Quacko, William Anderson, Solo- mon Frister.

TWENTY-FOURTH REGIMENT, COMPANY E .- Geo. Ray, James Ray, Stephen Henry, Charles Adams, Jolın Lee, Walter Jackson.

Two HUNDRED AND FOURTEENTH REGIMENT PENNSYLVANIA VOLUNTEERS, COMPANY C .- Edward Baltz, August Baltz, Hezekiah Daily, Ananias Fel- ker, Nathan Hofford, Abraham Hofner, Alexander Harps, Gustavious Houck, Andrew Keller, E. B. Marsh, Simon Frach, A. B. Van Buskirk, Enoch Wer- keisher, Abel Williams, William Wise, Charles Walter, Jerome Brewer, Ed. Bossard, Freman Kresge, George Snyder, Isaiah Snyder, Moses Swink, Freman Werkheiser, Josiah Werkheiser, John W. Yinger, John Daly, John M. Snyder, Hesekiah Daily, Samuel Gower, Joseph Snyder, Ananiah Felker, John Mc- Neal.

Two HUNDRED AND FIFTEENTH REGIMENT PENNSYLVANIA VOLUNTEERS, COMPANY G .- Sam- uel Reinhart, Owen Gower, J. B. Smiley, Joseph L. Hallott.

Two HUNDRED AND FOURTEENTH REGIMENT PENNSYLVANIA VOLUNTEERS, COMPANY I .- John A. Transue and George S. Brown.

Two HUNDRED AND FOURTEENTH REGIMENT PENNSYLVANIA VOLUNTEERS, COMPANY H .- Jacob Buskirk, Edwin A. Levering, William H. Brink, Charles Christian, John H. Brush, Samuel S. Brewer, Charles Frederick, Samuel Frederick, Josiah C. Houck, Alfred Metzger, Daniel Serfass, Henry Slutter, P. E. Williams, William H. Young, Jacob Phillips, John H. Burch and Peter Kratser.

FORTY-EIGHTH REGIMENT (MILITIA), COM- PANY C .- This company was mustered in July 2 and 8, 1863, and mustered out August 26, 1863.

Officers .- Captain, William S. Florry ; First Lieu- tenant, Augustus G. Kester; Second Lieutenant, Peter A. Bossard ; First Sergeant, John Allen ; Ser- geants, Samuel Williams, William Kiser, Thomas D. Barry, William Taylor; Corporals, Edward H. Rhodes, Isaac Larue, George Fox, Samuel Bisbing, Theodore Saylor, Charles L. Waters, John F. Barry, Thomas L. Scauman ; Musicians, Harrison L. Wolfe, Edwin Wolfe.

Privates .- Richard R. V. Adams, James Arnold, Jacob S. Burskirk, William H. Beltz, Nelson Cook,

John A. Clements, R. Cress, George Dutat, Morris L. Drake, Robert Eilenberger, Lewis Fetherman, Jolını J. Fetherman, Swayze Gordon, Emanuel Heller, Sep- temius Heller, Thomas E. Heller, Horace Huston, David Huntzman, George P. Johnson, John C. Kleckler, Lewis Keimst, Edward E. Levering, George M. Lane, Jacob Nixsell, John McCarty, Constantine McHugh, Josiah Newton, George Philman, Jolin Philip, Jolin Rouch, Evi Rosenkrans, Morris E. Stone, John O. Saylor, Edward W. Slack, Charles E. Smiley, Henry Smith, Jr., James Shiffer, John H. Smith, Peter Shafer, Edward A. Schiroch, William H. Wolfe, Thomas G. White, Elam Williams, John White, Charles Werkheiser, William H. Werkheiser, Madison R. Williams.

MICHAEL M. KISTLER .-- Michael M., son of Michael and Magdalena (Brobst) Kistler, was born on the homestead, in Lynn township, Lehigh County, April 14, 1833. At the age of fifteen he began learning the trade of a tanner with his brother Joel, in his tanneries at Kistler's Valley and at Ringtown, Schuylkill County, where he remained for six years, re- ceiving therefor his board, clothes and one year's schooling. He had formed the acquaint- ance, while at Ringtown, of Miss Catherine Rumbel, a daughter of John and Margaret (Andrews) Rumbel, whom he married upon reaching his majority. She was born in 1823, and her parents both died where they resided. Their children are Albert Franklin, a cigar manufacturer at East Stroudsburg; Mary Ma- randa (1858-82) was the wife of Sylvanus Warner, of the same place ; Hiram Wilson, a lumber merchant of East Stroudsburg ; Lucy Elmira, Stephen Bird and Lillie Irene Kistler.

After his marriage he started a small tannery at Ringtown, which he successfully carried on for six years, when, loyal to his country's de- mand for men to preserve the Union, he re- linquished his business and went to the front. In the summer of 1861, upon the first call for three years' men, a company was formed at Ringtown on the condition that Michael M. Kistler would command it. The matter being presented to him, he finally accepted and took ten days to prepare for his departure and close up his business. Upon reaching Harrisburg, he, however, declined the honor of the cap- taincy of the company, but accepted, upon its completion, the position of second lieutenant.

MONROE COUNTY.

1029

The company became a part of the Forty-eightlı Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers, Company I, and left Harrisburg for Fortress Monroe on August 20th ; thence to Hatteras Island, N. C., where the regiment joined Burnside's fleet, and proceeded to Roanoke Island, where they took the fort and captured some three thousand prisoners on February 14, 1862, destroying the rebel gun-boats. Thence the fleet went to New- bern, N. C., and stormed successfully the rebel

of Mcclellan's army in affording protection to Washington. While at Fredericksburg Mr. Kistler, for meritorious services, was promoted to first lieutenant. This threatening danger now being evaded, the army had a skirmish with the enemy at Slaughter Mountain, whence it pro- ceeded to Kelly's Ford, on the north side of the Rappahannock, where for two weeks the Union men remained constantly on the alert, and were engaged in numerous skirmishes with

m.m Kiste

breast-works on the Ncuse River, capturing, on the rebels, who were on the other side of the river. This led to the second battle of Bull Run, which was fought by the army under General Reno, August 28, 29 and 30, 1862. Lieutenant Kistler received a bullet through his coat eollar and had his sabre scabbard knocked off. On September 1st, following, General Reno and his brave army fought the battle of Chantilly, where the brave and daring Generals Kearny March 14, 1862, four thousand prisoners and sixty-eight cannons ; thence to Fort Macon, N. C., where, after two weeks' battering, they took the fortress, which surrendered with one thousand five hundred men. Thence the army proceeded to reinforce General Mcclellan's army on the Peninsula, but arriving too late for action, proceeded via Aquia Creek and Fredericksburg, Va., and formed the advanee | and Stevens fell. On September 14th the

1030

WAYNE, PIKE AND MONROE COUNTIES, PENNSYLVANIA.

army under General Mcclellan, with General Burnside commanding the left wing, fought the battle of South Mountain, where General Reno was killed, and on the 17th the memorable battle of Antietam, by Generals Mcclellan and Burnside, was fought. At this latter engage- ment Lieutenant Kistler received a bullet wound, the ball entering by his shoulder strap, passed through his right lung and lodged near the back-bone under his shoulder blade, where most of it remains at the writing of this sketch, in 1886. After four months' leave of absence he returned to his regiment at Fredericksburg; thence proceeded with it to Lexington, Ky., when, by the advice of Dr. Carpenter, of Potts- ville, Pa., then superintendent of the hospitals in the Ohio Department, he accepted the posi- tion of military aid to the Medical Department of Dennison, United States Army General Hospital at Camp Dennison, Ohio, whither he went and remained until April, 1866. At this camp he had charge of the quartermaster, commissary and ordnance departments, and also of the sick, wounded, muster, pay and de- scriptive rolls. On October 1, 1863, he was mustered as commanding officer of the First Company, Second Battalion, in the Ohio De- partment of the Veteran Reserve Corps, sta- tioned at the same camp. To this latter position he was appointed by Secretary of War Stanton and received his commission from President Lincoln. In April, 1866, he was ordered to proceed to his home and await further orders, and on June 30th, following, he was mustered out, as his services were no longer needed.

In 1867 he established himself in mercantile business with his brother, Stephen, at Bartons- ville, Monroe County, Pa., and after three years opened another store at Tannersville. They continued the two for ten years there- after, besides adding to their business the manufacture of shoe-pegs, clothes-pins and chair stock at Tompkinsville. In 1872 he purchased a lot on the corner of Washington and Cortland Streets, in East Stroudsburg, and the following year built thereon the fine four-story " Kistler Block." In 1878 he removed to East Strouds- burg, where he bnilt his present brick residence in 1883, on Cortland Street, corner of Alley

" C." Upon the death of his brother Stephen, in 1880, the partnership was dissolved, their common property divided, and he retired from active business except to oversee his farm in Tunkhannock township and take care of his other property. Lieutenant Kiestler's life has been an active one, and withal his integrity of purpose in life's work, and his accumulation of a competency, his pride still lingers in the great honor of fighting for the preservation of the Union, and in his sacrifice for his country when in its greatest peril. Both himself and wife and the older members of his family are members of the Lutheran Church.

His father, Michael (1796-1880), was a resident of Kistler's Valley, Lehigh County, was a farmer and tanner, and both himself and wife, Magdelena Brobst (1801-81), were buried at Jerusalem Church. Their children are Stephen, a man of large business capacity, a tanner, merchant and large rcal-estate owner, died in 1880; Parry, a farmer in Lehigh County ; Sarah is the wife of Stephen Snyder, of Perryville, Carbon County ; Jacob, a retired farmer of Lehigh County; Joel, a tanner and farmer in Lehigh and Schnylkill Counties, died in 1884 ; Polly married Eli Sechler, of Lehigh County, and died about 1856; Mary, wife of Charles Foust, of Albany township, Berks County ; Daniel, of West Penn, Schuylkill County, farmer and tanner ; William, a grocer of Strondsburg ; Michael M., subject of this sketch ; Angeline, wife of Peter Seip, of Weisen- berg township, Lehigh Connty ; and Catherine, who married a Mr. Brobst, and died in 1858.

His grandfather, Jacob Kistler, settled on the old homestead in Kistler's Valley, where he reared an interesting family of children, Philip, Jacob, Daniel, Michael (father of our subject), Solomon, Catherine and Magdalena. His great- grandfather was George Kistler, who, among a number of Palatinates or Swiss, moved, between 1735 and 1745, from Falkner Swamp and Goshenhoppen (present Montgomery County, Pa.) up to Lynn township, and settled in the vicinity of what is now Jerusalem Church, formerly called Allemangel Church, Lehigh County. He was elder of this church about 1755 to 1768. The names of his children were

1031

MONROE COUNTY.

George Kistler, Jr., who afterwards resided near Kutztown ; Jacob Kistler, grandfather of our subject ; John Kistler; Samuel Kistler ; Philip Kistler ; Michael Kistler ; Barbara mar- ried first a Brobst and afterward Michael Mosser, of Lowhill ; Dorotea married Michael Reinhart ; and Elizabeth married a Keller, near Hamburg, Pa.

CHAPTER VI.

RAILROADS.

THE DELAWARE, LACKAWANNA AND WES- TERN RAILROAD was the earliest, and is yet the principal, thoroughfare of steam travel in Monroe County. It had a very early inception, and Henry Drinker, a strong and prominent character in the hereulean pioneer projects of Northeastern Pennsylvania, was the originator of this great line of traffie which built up the city of Scranton, and in the territory which is the especial province of this volume gave rise to many minor improvements brought into ex- istenee thriving East Stroudsburg and gave an outlet to New York.

The original Drinker family were old Qua- kers prominent in Philadelphia. Soon after the Revolutionary War Henry Drinker, tlie great-grandfather of Joe, was interested, with Benjamin Rush, George Clymer, Samuel Mere- ‹lith, Robert Morris and others, in the purchase of Pennsylvania wild lands. This portion of the State was then an entire wilderness, and in 1789-91 Henry Drinker purchased from the State twenty-five thousand acres of land in what are now the counties of Lackawanna, Wayne, Pike and Susquehanna. A great por- tion of this land was on the head-waters of the Lehigh River, in the first-named county, then a part of Luzerne.

To open this isolated settlement to the outside world and make the region accessible, Heury built, in 1819, the first turnpike road into the Lackawanna Valley. This he had chartered as the Philadelphia and Great Bend turnpike. It was sixty miles long and extended from Stan- hope, N. J., to Drinker's Beach. It is known

as the " Old Drinker road " to this day, and is a landmark in fixing boundary lines.

In 1819, also, Drinker became aware of the presence of anthracite eoal in the valley, and, although it was then comparatively valueless, efforts to introduee it having, up to that time, met with little sueeess, he believed in its actual importanee, and foresaw the advantages of a better communication between the Delaware and Susquehanna Valleys. His idea was a railroad, although there was not one in existenee in the world at that time, except the crude English mine tramways. Drinker blazed with an axe a route from the mouth of the Lackawanna, now Pittston, through the unbroken forest, aeross the lofty Poeono Mountains to the Water Gap, a distance of sixty miles, and satisfied himself that such a seheme as lie proposed was feasible. In 1826 he obtained a charter from the Pennsyl- vania Legislature for the Susquehanna Canal and Railroad Company. The commissioners appointed by the aet were Henry W. Drinker, William Henry, Jacob D. Stroud, Daniel Stroud, A. E. Brown, S. Stokes, James N. Porter and John Coolbaugh.

Drinker's idea was a railroad with ineline planes or a eanal, horse-power to be used if a railroad, between the planes, and water-power to raise the ears upon the planes. He inter -. ested a number of prominent men in his projeet and in 1831 a survey of the route was made. The engineer employed, Major Ephraim Beaeli, reported that the road could be built for six hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars.

After considerable work, Henry Drinker indueed George and Seldon Seranton, of Ox- ford, N. J., to become partners in the scheme, associating them with the projeet, after indueing the Morris Canal Company to take one hundred and fifty thousand dollars' worth of stock, a road known as the Lackawanna and Western Rail- road was built from Seranton to Great Bend, by the Scrantons, Drinker dropping out on ac- count of severe losses which he had sustained in opening up the country with roads, and endeav- oring to develop the coal and iron resourees so abundant in that region.1 This was completed

1 Henry W. Drinker, by the sale of his lands, which in - creased in value with the advent of the railroad and the

1032

WAYNE, PIKE AND MONROE COUNTIES, PENNSYLVANIA.

in 1851. Until that time all travel to New York had been by stages to Middletown, N. Y., or across Wayne County to Narrowsburg, N. Y., where connection was made with the Erie. The journey required two days. The completion of the Lackawanna and Western reduced the time to one day, although the journey was twice as long. This was an ontlet formed by groping blindly among the hills in the wrong direction, and apparently diverging towards Great Bend, sixty miles away, before starting for New York.

A practical movement was made in the right direction in 1849, when, chiefly through the in- fluence of the Scrantons, a company was char- tered to run a road from the Delaware Water Gap to some point on the Lackawanna, near Cobb's Gap, called "The Delaware and Cobb's Gap Railroad Company." The commissioners named in the act and invested with anthority to effect an organization were Moses W. Cool- baugh, S. W. Shoemaker, Thomas Grattan, H. M. La Bar, A. Overfield, I. Place, Benj. V. Rush, Alpheus Hollister, Samuel Taylor, F. Starbird, Jas. H. Stroud, R. Bingham and W. Nyce. It will be noticed from this list of names that the people of Monroe had an active hand in promoting this enterprise. It was at Strouds- burg, at Jacob Knecht's, that the first meet- ing of the commissioners was held, November 28, 1850, and the first meeting of the stock- holders was held at the same place at the house of Stroud J. Hollinshead, December 26, 1850. They chose Colonel George W. Scranton, a man in whom the people had entire confidence, president of the company. He had been the owner of the original charter of the old Drinker Railroad, and this the company purchased of him for one thousand dollars, in 1853. A joint application was then immediately made by the Delaware and Cobb's Gap Railroad Company and the Lackawanna and Western Railroad Company, for an act of the Legislature consolidat- ing them, and such an act was passed March 11, 1853. Thus was consummated a union under the present name of the Delaware, Lackawanna

development of the coal trade, died October 13, 1866, leaving a large fortune.

and Western Railroad, and a solution of the problem of connecting Scranton and its coal mines with the New York market was assured. Colonel Scranton was elected as president of the consolidated company, and long continued by repeated re-elections to hold that responsible office.

Measurcs were immediately adopted to con- struct the road from Scranton to the Delawarc River, at a point five miles below the Water Gap. The necessary surveys had been pre- viously made by E. McNeill, chief engineer of the company, who, by indefatigable labor, had pro- cured crestline and other preliminary surveys, which enabled hin to establish a favorable line with easy grades, practicable for a heavy traffic over the barren heights and perplexing undu- lations of the Pocono.

Books were opened for subscriptions to in- crease the capital stock, which had at the time of the consolidation amounted to $1,441,000, and such was the confidence felt in the success of the enterprise, not only by the original stock- holders, but by other capitalists, that the whole sum required, $1,500,000, was obtained in a few days.

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

History of Wayne, Pike, and Monroe counties, Pennsylvania, Part 167

Author: Mathews, Alfred, 1852-1904. 4n Publication date: 1886 Publisher: Philadelphia : R.T. Peck & Co. Number of Pages: 1438

Author: Mathews, Alfred, 1852-1904. 4n
Publication date: 1886
Publisher: Philadelphia : R.T. Peck & Co.
Number of Pages: 1438