History of Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, Vol. II, Part 5

Author: Boucher, John Newton, 1854-1933; Jordan, John W. (John Woolf), 1840-1921
Publication date: 1906
Publisher: New York, Chicago, The Lewis publishing company
Number of Pages: 860

USA > Pennsylvania > Westmoreland County > History of Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, Vol. II > Part 5

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).

Jolin Steel, the grandfather, acquired the old homestead in Mount Pleas- ont township, and in 1826 purchased the Robert Hanna farm on which was located Hannastown, the former county seat of Westmoreland county, which then embraced all western Pennsylvania. This property became the home- tead farm of John Steel, the father of Judge Steel. To John Steel and Martha Walker were born nine children: Sarah, intermaried with Heny Byers, of Grapeville, Pa .; Eliza, intermarried with Andrew Machesney, of Greensburg, Pa .; James, intermarried with Elizabeth Hanna, Pleasant Unity, Pa .; Joseph Walker, intermarried with Malinda Brechbill, of Greensburg, Pa .; John, intermarried with Susan Geiger, Beatty, Pa .; Margaret, intermarried with James M. Steel, her cousin, Salem township, Westmoreland county, Pa. ; Mary J., intermarried with Henry T. Hanna, of Smithton, Pa .; Martha inter- married with Major David P. Mechling, of Greensburg, Pa .; and William Steel, intermarried with Sarah Jane Brown, of Hannastown, Pa. All of these are now deceased, except Mary J. Hanna and William Steel. John Steef, the grandfather, died May 22, 1860, being one of the foremost business men and largest land owners of his county. He is buried at the Congruity Presbyterian church.

William Steel, the father of Judge Steel, was born October 1, 1833, and was married to Sarah J. Brown, April 3, 1860. He is a large owner of valu- able real estate and coal land, has always been identified with farming and stock- raising interests of the county, was Westmoreland's pioneer in the rearing of shorthorn cattle, and one of western Pennsylvania's foremost importers and breeders of pure bred draft horses. William and Sarah J. Steel, are both liv- ing at the Hannastown farm. in Salem and Hempfield townships. this county, and their children are : Hon. John B. Steel, of Greensburg, Pa. : Mary Herron,

HISTORY OF WESTMORELAND COUNTY.

intermarried with George Coleman, East End Pittsburg, Pa .; Eliza Martha, intermarried with Samuel C. Patterson, near New Alexandria, Pa .; Agnes Beatty, intermarried with George S. Barnhart, near Greensburg, Pa .; Helen Milligan intermarried with Samuel C. Hugus, near New Alexandria, Pa. : Mar- garet Elder, intermarried with Samuel B. Moore, near Latrobe, Pa. ; Clara Ma- linda, unmarried, residing at home; William Oliver Steel, deceased; Joseph Walker Steel; Sarah Jane Steel, unmarried and residing with their parents ; and Henrietta Marie, intermarried with L. A. Nichols, of Wilkinsburg, Pa.

On the maternal side the ancestry of Judge Steel is also Scotch-Irish ; they came from Scotland with numerous other Covenanters, under King James' con- fiscation act, settling in county Donegal, Ireland. Matthew Brown, the seventh grand-ancestor, was a captain in Colonel George Walker's famous Derry Reg- iment which rendered such valiant service to the cause of civil and religious liberty at the siege of Londonderry, and at the battle of the Boyne. His sword is still preserved an a precious relic by Howard Brown and William Brown, his descendants in Pittsburgh. His grandson, also Matthew Brown, by name, left county Donegal with his family in 1774, and came to America in company with the Reverends Dobbin and Lynn, who afterwards founded an academy at Gettysburg and taught the first abolition doctrine on the very field where ninety years after freedom received her crowning laurel. He settled at Green Castle, Franklin county, and was there buried, leaving to survive him five chil- dren : David, the great-great-grandfather of Judge Steel; John, intermarried with Catharine Foster, sister of Robin Foster, of near New Alexandria, Pa. ; moved to Sugar Creek township, Armstrong county, Pa. ; Andrew, of Arm- strong county, Pa. ; Samuel Brown said to have moved to Virginia : Mary, in- termarried with James Watt, Franklin county.

David Brown, the great-great-grandfather of Judge Steel, was married to Margaret Oliver, whose mother was an Erskine, of the house of Erskine, Scot- land ; he purchased in 1802 the land now owned by John Oliver Brown, his de- scendant, at the mouth of the White Thorn Run, near New Alexandria, Penn- sylvania. To them were born six children : Mary, intermarried with Nathaniel Alexander, Allegheny township, Westmoreland county, Pa. ; Thomas Oliver Brown, grandfather of Judge Steel; Elizabeth, intermarried with Thomas Gailey. Clarksburg, Pa. : David, intermarried with Maria Beatty, Salem town- ship ; Margaret. intermarried with Jolin Coleman, Elders Ridge, Pa .; James, intermarried with Margaret Elizabeth Wilson, of Salem township. On the death of David Brown he was buried in the New Alexandria Covenanter church- vard, and his real estate became the property of Thomas Oliver Brown, grand- father of Judge Steel, and James Brown.

Thomas Oliver Brown was married to Nancy Beattie Brown, a daughter of Robert Beattie and Martha (Welsh) Beattie, and a granddaughter of Will- iam Beattie, of Knock Bracken, near Belfast, Ireland, and came from a fam- ily several of whose members were banished for participation in the Irish rebellion of 1798. Their children were: Martha Welsh, intermarried with Major D. P. Marshall, Arkansas : David Oliver Brown, intermarried with Mary Stewart. Saltsburg. Pa. : Sarah Jane Brown. intermarried with William Steel ; Margaret Erskine, intermarried with John Elder, Derry township, Westmore- land county, Pa. : Nancy A., intermarried with Henry Scanor, of Winfield, Kansas: Mary Elizabeth, intermarried with James Monroe, of Saltsburg, Pa. ; Thomas Oliver Brown is buried in the Reformed Presbyterian churchyard at New Alexandria, Pa. All of his children except Sarah Jane Steel are now de- ceased.

HISTORY OF WESTMORELAND COUNTY.

Judge Steel is distinctively a self-made man, worked on the farm, and attended district school and academy during his early life, and later entered Geneva College as a classical student and graduated from that institution in 1885. He read law with Judge James A. Hunter, was admitted to practice in the several courts of Westmoreland county, August, 1888, opened an office for the practice of his profession with Hon. Welty Mccullough, and on the return of the latter from congress in the spring of 1889 the law firm of Mccullough and Steel was formed, which continued until the death of Mr. Mccullough, six months later. He afterwards continued the business of the firm at their former offices, and at once sprang into full practice at a bar composed of some of the leading legal minds of western Pennsylvania. Later he took into part- nership with him H. Clay Beistel, who read law at Dickinson law school and in his office. He has always been a staunch Republican, and for many years has been one of the leaders of his party ; he was the chairman of the organiza- tion in 1894, was the candidate of the Republican party for president judge of the court of common pleas in 1899, and was defeated by one hundred and sev- enty-one votes, by the then present incumbent, Judge Doty, after a most des- perate contest in which almost thirty thousand votes were polled. He was put forward by his county and section of the state as a candidate for congressman at large against Hon. Galusha A. Grow, and was elected by the Republican state convention as a delegate at large to the Republican national convention that selected Mckinley and Roosevelt. On the creation of the Separate Or- phans' court judgeship in Westmoreland county in 1901, Judge Steel was ap- pointed, on April 26, of that year, as president judge of the Separate Or- phans' court, to fill said position ; he was conceded the nomination by his party, and was elected by a large majority at the November following for the ten years' term beginning first Monday of January, 1902. He is one of the trus- tees of the First Presbyterian church of Greensburg, Pennsylvania. He has helped to organize and is director in a number of the leading banks of his county, is the owner of and interested in the development of coal in Wash- ington and Westmoreland counties; is one of the directors of the John W. Pollins Company, the Greensburg Finance Company, the Pittsburgh and South- western Coal Company, and is a large owner of coal, farm and town properties.

J. HOWARD PATTON, prominent in the business enterprises of Greensburg and Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, is a descendant of fam- ilies, many members of whom have been important factors in the settlement and upbuilding of this commonwealth. He was born July 29, 1851, at Union Furnace, Huntingdon county, Pennsylvania, and descends through the follow- ing lines of ancestry.

(I) John Murray, a native of Scotland, came to America late in life with his two sons, William and John, and their families.

(II) William Murray, a native of Scotland, born February 24, 1690, emi- grated to America in 1732, accompanied by his father and brother John. They settled on the Swartara in the Province of Pennsylvania. He married Isabella Lindley, of Scotland, who bore him five sons: Samuel, William, James, John, and Thomas. William Murray ( father ) died on his farm, July 24, 1773.

(III) James Murray, born in Scotland. in 1729, accompanied his parents to America in 1732. He was the owner of a farm adjoining the borough of Dauphin, Dauphin county, Pennsylvania, for which he entered an application in the land office in 1768. He was chosen to represent Upper Paxtang town- ship in 1775, in the committee of safety for Lancaster county, and attended the

Howard Galton

HISTORY OF WESTMORELAND COUNTY.

meetings of the committee in Lancaster on November 8, 9, and 10. At that time he was a captain of a company of footmen, of the Fourth Battalion of As- sociators in the county of Lancaster. At a military convention representing the fifty-three battalions of Associators of Pennsylvania on July 4, 1776, he was present as a captain. With John Rogers and John Harris, on July 8, 1776, by appointment of the Provincial Conference, he superintended the election at Garbers Mill, for the sixth district of Lancaster county, to choose delegates to the convention that assembled on the fifteenth of the month, which framed the first constitution of the commonwealth. During the remainder of that and the following year he was almost in constant active military service with his con- pany. His company, a roll of which appears in Dr. Egles notes and queries, first series, page 7, and in Pennsylvania archives, second series, volume XIII, page 310, went into the continental service in July, or early in August, 1776. In a return of the troops quartered in and near Philadelphia, made August 27, of that year, it is reported sixty strong. It participated in the battles of Tren- ton and Princeton. He commanded one of the companies of the Tenth Bat- talion, Lancaster county militia, and was with the expedition up the West Branch in 1779. The exposure to which Captain Murray was subjected during the revolutionary struggle brought on an attack of rheumatism, from which for many years prior to his death he was a constant sufferer. He married Re- becca McLean, a native of Scotland, who died August 7, 1795. His death occurred in his farm adjoining the borough of Dauphin, Dauphin county, Feb- ruary 15, 1804. The remains of both rest side by side in the old Dauphin cem- etery. Their oldest daughter was:

(IV) Margaret Murray, born 1756, in Paxtang township, Lancaster county, (now Dauphin county) Pennsylvania, died April 27, 1826, at Hunting- don, Pennsylvania. She was married May 7, 1776, by the Rev. John Elder, to John Simpson, (see page 800, Vol. 8, Penn. Archives) born 1744, in Bucking- ham township, Bucks county, Pennsylvania. His parents, John and Mary Simpson went south and were residents of North Carolina in 1783, and Georgia in 1791. The son learned the trade of blacksmithing, and in 1763 set- tled on the Susquehanna in what was then Upper Paxtang township, Lancaster (now Dauphin) county. He was commissioned second lientenant by Captain James Murray's Company, on August 15, 1775, in the Fourth Battalion of As- sociators of Lancaster county. Lieutenant-Colonel Cornelius Cox, of the bat- talion, ordered him to remain in the continental smith shop at Bristol on Jan- uary 28, 1777. He served during the greater port of the Revolution, towards its close in command of a company of militia, and then returned to his farm. In the spring of 1793 he removed to Huntingdon, where he passed the re- mainder of his days. Their eldest daughter was:

(V) Rebecca Simpson, born April 8, 1777, in Paxtang township, Lancas- ter county, Pennsylvania, died October 13, 1845, in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. She married, April 16, 1801, John Patton, born December 25, 1757, in Franklin county, Pennsylvania, died May 23, 1836, on his farm in Woodcock valley, Walker township, Huntingdon county, Pennsylvania. In his carlier years he resided in the town of Huntingdon, and the following is taken from the records there: He was the second sheriff of the county, being appointed by the Free Men of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, David Redick, vice-president. October 29, 1788; again, November 6, 1789, by Thomas Mifflin, president of council : December 3. 1790, by Thomas Mifflin, president of council ; December 3. 1791, by Thomas Mifflin, governor ; December 3. 1794, by Thomas Mifflin, governor ; November 5, 1800, by Thomas Mckean, governor; October 27,

HISTORY OF WESTMORELAND COUNTY.

1806, by William Findley, governor ; November 3, 1812, by Simon Snyder, governor ; October 26, 1818, by William Findley, governor, for a term of not less than three years, and possibly six years, covering a period of over thirty years as sheriff. He was an efficient public officer.

(VI) George W. Patton, son of John and Rebecca (Simpson) Patton, was born September 6, 1817, and died March 7, 1882, in Philadelphia. He was one of the lessees of Union Furnace and manager at Blair Furnace. He re- moved to Altoona in 1852, and in 1854 was chosen first chief burgess of the town, re-elected in 1855, and in 1861 was appointed postmaster, serving eight years, and in 1870 was elected associate judge of Blair county, subsequently re- moving to Philadelphia. He was twice married ( first) June 10, 1845, to Mary Burket, who died March 28, 1856, and had issue: T. Blair Patton, general superintendent of the Pennsylvania industrial school, Huntingdon : William A. Patton, assistant to the president of the Pennsylvania railroad, Philadelphia ; and J. Howard Patton, of Greensburg, Pa. Mr. Patton married ( second) December 19, 1861, Emma J. Hawksworth, of Altoona, and had issue: Mary \. Patton, wife of Harold A. Freeman, St. David, Pa. ; and Margaret Murray Patton, who died December 15, 1889.

( (VII) J. Howard Patton, born July 29, 1851, moved to Altoona with his parents in 1852. After receiving his education in the public schools, he entered the service of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company in 1870, spending ten years in the general superintendent's office. He moved to Claridge, Westmoreland county, in 1885, where he engaged in the mercantile business, and was inter- ested in and opened up the Claridge Gas Coal Company's works of which he still has charge. He moved to Greensburg in 1889, where he organized and is president of the following companies: Atlantic Crushed Coke, Lucesco Coal, Huron Coal, Howard Gas Coal, Hempfield Foundry, Greensburg Storage and Transfer, and other coal interests in Westmoreland county. Politically Mr. Patton affiliates with the Republicans. He is a Lutheran in his religious faith. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity, being advanced to the degree of a K. T.

Mr. Patton has been twice married ( first) April 13, 1880, to A. Lonisa Cunningham, of Holdensburg, Pennsylvania, who bore him one child, Howard C. Patton, born February 15, 1881, who atended the Ohio Military Institute, at Cincinnati, and is now the superintendent of the Huron Coal Company and Howard Gas Coal Company, in which his father is actively interested. Mrs. Patton died November 24, 1882. For his second wife Mr. Patton married Jessie R. Geiger, youngest daughter of the late Judge Levi Geiger and his wife, Rosalinda Geiger, of Urbana, Ohio. While Mr. Patton is a busy man of af- fairs, he is not so absorbed in business as to forget the better things of life- the enjoyment of friendship and his family and fireside ties-and is ever ready to take part in any matter of general interest to the public and for the better- ment of mankind.

MICHAEL JOSEPH RORKE, proprietor of the Hotel Cope, at Greensburg, Pennsylvania, was born in Dublin, Ireland, September 2, 1866, the son of Thomas and Jane (King) Rorke, both of whom are deceased. died when their son Michael J. was quite young. and thus he was left to fight the conflicts of life alone. When seventeen years of age, in company with a cousin, John Finnegan, Michael J. Rorke came to America, landing in New York City, February 4, 1883. The same year he found employment at the Blue Rock quarry, near Connellsville, Fayette county, Pennsylvania, making "Belgium

HISTORY OF WESTMORELAND COUNTY.

Blocks." Here he labored for one year and then engaged in the hotel business, clerking at the Yough House, at Connellsville, Pennsylvania, where he remained five years. He then took charge of a hotel at Scottdale for two years, then pur- chased a hotel in Homestead, Pennsylvania, which he operated for ten years, after which he sold the same and leased the Hotel Cope at Greensburg, which he is now managing in a highly successful manner. Two years after his arrival in the United States his brother Nicholas followed him, and has been associated with him in business the greater part of the time since. Nicholas Rorke is mar- ried and the father of three children. Michael J. Rorke obtained a common school education, and this was supplemented by attendance at Duff's Business College of Pittsburg. He is a member of the Roman Catholic church, and a Democrat in politics. At Homestead, Pennsylvania, in 1896, he was elected by a majority to the position of inspector of elections, and was a member of the Fire Company. He is a member of the O. of E. Lodge, No. 511, at Greens- burg ; the fire company at Greensburg ; the C. M. B. A. and the "L. and H." at Homestead. Mr. Rorke was married January 7, 1890, to Sarah O'Neill, daughter of Bernard and Mariah O'Neill, of Scottdale, Pennsylvania, where she was reared.

ALBERT H. BELL, a prominent member of the bar of Westmoreland county, was born in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, November 20, 1857, and is a represen- tative of an old Westmoreland county family. While born in the then far west, he was reared in the Ligonier valley, removing to Greensburg in 1880, where he is now engaged in the practice of his profession.

David Bell ( grandfather) was a native of Westmoreland county, and was a brother of Judge James Bell, one of the early associate judges of the county. David Bell was a school teacher during the greater part of his life ; in politics he was a Democrat, and he took a lively interest in supporting his party. He married Mary Robinson, also a native of Westmoreland county, a daughter of John Robinson, who was one of the pioneer settlers, and a soldier in the Revolu- tionary war, and whose wife was Isabella Guffey, a sister of John Guffey, the ancestor of the numerous and widely dispersed Guffey family.

John R. Bell, son of David and Mary ( Robinson ) Bell, was born in West- moreland county, December 17, 1824. He was a man of considerable ability and served the public in various important positions. He was a school teacher for a number of years ; served as justice of the peace in Donegal township, and in 1879 was elected clerk of the county courts, a position which he acceptably occupied for three years. After 1883 he lived a retired life. He was a staunch Democrat, and always took an active part in political affairs. His first wife was Margaret Singer, a daughter of Samuel and Jane (Matthews) Singer. Their children were: Mrs. Emma Lenhart, of Greensburg ; Albert H., and Mrs. May M. Cairns, deceased. The mother of these children having died, Mr. Bell married Margaret Kalp, and to them were born three children, among whom was James E. Bell, secretary and treasurer of the Merchant's Trust Com- pany of Greensburg, Pennsylvania.

Albert H. Bell, second child and only son of John R: and Margaret ( Singer ) Bell, attended the public and private schools of Westmoreland cunty, laying an excellent foundation for advanced studies in Mount Union College, which he entered at the age of nineteen years, and where he pursued a two years course. Following the example of his father and grandsire, he was a school teacher in his early manhood, teaching for seven years in Westmoreland county, and conducting a normal class at Mount Pleasant for one year. Dur-

HISTORY OF WESTMORELAND COUNTY.

ing his father's term of service as county clerk, from 1880 to 1883, he served as deputy clerk, entering upon his duties with the advantage of a previous six months experience (in 1876) as clerk in the office of the prothonotary. While faithfully discharging his duties as deputy clerk, he was also at the same time engaged in the study of law under the preceptorship of James S. Moorhead and Hon. John B. Hench, judge of the superior court, beginning his reading in the same year in which he entered upon his official duties. He was admitted to the bar in 1884, since which time he has been successfully engaged in the practice of his profession. He is well equipped, industrious, and takes rank with the foremost of his professional colleagues. He is a member of the United Presbyterian church of Greensburg, in which he has long served as an elder. He has always been deeply interested in education, served six years on the school board of Greensburg, five years as secretary, and for the past nine years a member of the board of trustees of Westminster College. He is also a member and past officer of the State Educational Association, and is a life member of the board of trustees of the Morrison Underwood Donation Fund, a trust created for the benefit of the Greensburg High School. Mr. Bell married, March 19, 1885. Mary C. Clarke, of Greensburg, a daughter of Judge James C. Clarke. Their children were: James Clarke and Mary M. Bell, now pursuing their studies in Westminster College, and Albert H. Bell, Jr.

DANIEL A. ARTER, one of the leading physicians of Greensburg, Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, was born in Salem township, Colum- biana county, Ohio, October 26, 1828, the son of Colonel Simon and Elizabeth ( Burger) Arter. He is of English descent. His grandfather, Abraham Arter, was born in Maryland. He led a quiet, exemplary life, and was a con- sistent church member. He removed in 1802, to Columbiana county, Ohio. The wife of Abraham Arter was Magdalena Hahn, and among their children was a son, Simon Arter.

Simon Arter, the father of Daniel A. Arter, was born near Strasburg. Maryland, where he was reared and trained to the life of a farmer. In political belief he was a Whig, and afterwards a Republican, and was noted for being upright and liberal in his dealings. He was an active member of the Evangeli- cal Lutheran church, and was elected colonel in a militia organization. He married, in 1824, Elizabeth Burger, daughter of Daniel Burger, of Bedford county, Pennsylvania. Mrs. Arter was born in 1806. Her grandfather, Nicholas Burger, emigrated to this country from Switzerland, settling in Bed- ford county, and in 1806 removed to the section that is now Columbiana county, Ohio. Seven sons and four daughters were born to Colonel and Mrs. Arter, among them Dr. Daniel Arter. The death of Colonel Arter occurred February 27, 1883, after a useful and well spent life.

Daniel A. Arter attended the public schools of his native place, and later the New Lisbon Academy from which he was graduated in 1847. Having de- termined to become a medical practitioner, he entered into the study of medicine under the preceptorship of Dr. D. Springer, of New Lisbon, Ohio. He con- tinued the study of his chosen profession in the Cincinnati Eclectic Medical College, where his industry and earnestness soon won for him an honorable place in his class. He entered into practice in Blairsville, Indiana county, Pennsylvania, and after a five months residence in that place he removed to Lockport. Dr. Arter removed, August 2. 1851, to Greensburg, Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, where he was recognized as one of the leading physicians

D. A. Mitet 16. 2.

Paul Hugues Faither

HISTORY OF WESTMORELAND COUNTY.

of the town, conducting an active and prosperous practice. There has probably been no other physician in this part of the state that had a larger clientele, his operations extending throughout Westmoreland and into the counties of Indiana, Armstrong, Cambria, Fayette, and Allegheny, and which is an evi- dence of his widespread popularity and thoroughness as a physician. He has been a hard and incessent worker, but with all this he is well preserved, hale and hearty-looking many years younger than he is. He was one of the or- ganizers of the Westmoreland National Bank, and stockholder in same; also served as director of the Greensburg Building and Loan Association from De- cember 3, 1877, to December 4, 1882; as president from December 4, 1882, to October 5, 1885. He resigned the presidency, was re-elected director De- cember 5, 1886, and has been a director ever since. Dr. Arter is pre-eminently a self-made man. Beginning with no capital but ambition and a determination to win, he soon acquired a lucrative practice and an honorable place in the world of his profession, and is the owner of considerable valuable real estate, having handled considerable property. His political affiliations are with the Republican party, and he takes a deep and lasting interest in the welfare of that organization. He is a member of the Jr. O. U. A. M., R. A., A. O. U. W., and Philanthropy Lodge, No. 225, F. and A. M., and trustee of Masonic Fund of Greensburg, Pennsylvania. He is a consistent member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and has constantly held the office of trustee since 1865 except about fourteen months.

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 Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, Vol. II, Part 5

Author: Boucher, John Newton, 1854-1933; Jordan, John W. (John Woolf), 1840-1921 Publication date: 1906 Publisher: New York, Chicago, The Lewis publishing company Number of Pages: 860

Author: Boucher, John Newton, 1854-1933; Jordan, John W. (John Woolf), 1840-1921
Publication date: 1906
Publisher: New York, Chicago, The Lewis publishing company
Number of Pages: 860