History of York County Pennsylvania, Volume II, Part 4

Author: Prowell, George R.
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: J. H. Beers
Number of Pages: 1390

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As vice-president and later president of the Pennsylvania Bankers Association, Mr. Hersh has long been one of the best known bankers of the State, and he is at the present time a member of the executive council of the Ameri- can Bankers Association, in which relation, as well as in his present incumbency, he has the privilege of association and co-operation with the leading financiers of America. It is typi- cal of the spirit of the day that so young a man

should have been selected for so high an office. In addition to the extensive interests already mentioned, it is likely that the Maryland Trust Company will have charge of the Pennsylvania Railroad interests in and around Baltimore.

Some account of Mr. Hersh's family and social connections will be of interest. He is of typical Pennsylvania ancestry, among his fore- bears being representatives of three races which have had distinctive bearing on the civil- ization and prosperity of the State-the Ger- man, the Scotch-Irish and the Friends. In the direct maternal line he is the great-grandson of a Revolutionary soldier, Col. David Grier, after whom Mr. Hersh was named, and who was colonel of the 7th Pennsyl- vania Régiment in the Revolution, and was "mortally wounded at the Massacre of Paoli." Ensign Barnitz, who lost a leg at the battle of Long Island, was also one of his an- cestors. Through his mother, Margaret Lewis, Mr. Hersh is also a great-grandson of Major Lewis, who also bore arms in the Revolution, for which he was dismissed from meeting. In this line his earliest ancestor was Nathanieli Newlin, who was a member of the council in: 1685, when Penn was governor. The Lewis: family were related to Roland Ellis, who estab- lished the Merion tract near Philadelphia. Mr. Hersh's Scotch-Irish connections are found among the Griers, McPhersons, McClellans, McLains, and other families whose names are inseparably associated with the history of Pennsylvania. Col. McPherson was in the Revolution and long before was captain of a company which marched with Forbes against Fort Duquesne in 1756; he was also a member of the Provincial Assembly which met in Car- penter's Hall. Of the McLains, Archibald Mc- Lain was the chief assistant of Mason and Dix- on when they ran the famous line.

Thus Mr. Hersh's Revolutionary ancestry is well authenticated, and by virtue of same he has membership in a number of Revolutionary and Colonial societies. He has likewise been prominent in other social organizations, having been the principal factor in the formation of the Lafayette Club, of which he was the first president, and which includes in its member- ship the leading business and professional men of York. He was so zealous in the organiza- tion and success of the York Country Club, of which he became president, that he built the clubhouse and leased it, with the grounds, to the

HISTORY OF YORK COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

club. He introduced golf into York, and is of 140 square miles. He was a member of the himself an enthusiastic player, having golf York County Medical and Pennsylvania Medi- cal Societies and the American Medical Asso- ciation. To his efforts were due, in a great measure, the maintenance of good roads, the incorporation of Dillsburg into a borough, the building of the Dillsburg and Mechanicsburg railroad, of which he was a director, and the acceptance by York county of the free school system. [See report of Pennsylvania Superin- tendent of Public Instruction, 1887.] He was an earnest supporter of schools and education, as is shown by the fact that his five sons and two daughters were graduated from reputable col- leges and universities, and those living are occupying honorable positions in the commu- nities in which they reside. links on his home grounds, which are admira- bly adapted for the purpose, comprising three hundred acres. The homestead, built by his great-grandfather nearly a century ago, is in the southern part of the city of York, and has long been the pride of the locality as well as of the family, being in fact one of the finest old places in the State. Indeed, one of the chief regrets Mr. Hersh's fellow-citizens feel in his acceptance of the presidency of the Maryland Trust Company is his separation from their social life, in which he has had such an active and agreeable part. Mr. Hersh will retain his property and personal interests in York, though his residence be in Baltimore. He. was mar- ried in 1887 to Miss Julia L. Mayer, daughter of the late Jolin L. Mayer, of York, who in his «day was one of the eminent and most eloquent attorneys at the York county Bar.

Mr. Hersh has a well rounded character, particularly well balanced, perhaps, because of the different elements which have entered into its composition. He is a business man of the highest standing without being a slave to money-making ; a man of the highest social at- tainments, finding refreshment and recreation in his social duties and pleasures; a scholar without being a pedant, owning the finest pri- vate library in York. He is known as a man of deep information, is popular as a public speak- er, and as a writer is well known as the author of valuable articles on finance, as well as of a history of the Scotch-Irish in Pennsylvania. Mr. Hersh gave cordial assistance in raising funds for the families of soldiers of the Span- ish-American war, having the spirit of his an- cestors in regard to supporting his country in time of need.

DR. GEORGE L. SHEARER was born in 1801 near Littlestown, Pa. His ancestors, Philip Eichelberger and Valen- tine Shearer, emigrated to Pennsylvania from Germany previous to 1750 and his ancestry on both sides includes Revolu- tionary soldiers. He attended school in Dillsburg, Pa., 18II, and was graduated in medicine from the University of Maryland in 1825. He began the practice of medicine the her death, in 1895.

On March 8, 1827, 'Dr. Shearer married Eliza Eichelberger, daughter of Jacob Eichel- berger, of York, Pa. She was a granddaughter of Peter Dinkle, who was a son of Johan Daniel and Maria Ursula Dinkle, who were dis- tinguished residents of Strasburg, Germany. Many of the leading families of York are their lineal descendants. The copper plate of Johan Daniel Dinkel executed by a noted artist in Germany, 1723, and the prayer book of Maria Ursula, printed in Strasburg, Germany, 1733, are in the possession of the Shearer fam- ily. Mrs. Shearer was a highly cultured and intellectual woman and contributed in no small degree to make their home the hospitable abode of teachers and ministers of every denomina- tion. Dr. Shearer was a member of the Re- formed and Mrs. Shearer of the Lutheran Church, but they were liberal supporters of the Presbyterian and Methodist Churches, which were the only denominations having buildings in Dillsburg. On March 8, 1877, Dr. and Mrs. Shearer celebrated their golden wedding an- niversary. Among the many guests present were two who were present at their marriage in 1827.

The death of Dr. Shearer occurred June 4, 1878. His funeral was largely attended, and he was widely mourned as "The Beloved Phy- sician", as he was often called. Four years after his death Mrs. Shearer removed to York, the place of her nativity, where she resided until

same year in Dillsburg and continued it in the JAMES MITCHELL SHEARER, their eldest same locality from 1825 to 1878. He en- son, who grew to manhood, was born Dec. 25, joyed a very large practice, covering an area 1833. He received the degrees of A. B. 1853

BIOGRAPHICAL

1857. He began the practice of medicine the same year in Dillsburg. At the breaking out of the Civil war he was appointed examining sur- geon for York county, which position he re- linquished to enter the service as acting as- sistant surgeon at the U. S. A. General Hos- pital, York, Pa. Later he was appointed sur- geon to one of the regiments of Pennsylvania Reserves. He was afterward made surgeon in charge of the Soldiers Rest, Washington, D. C., which position he held until the close of the war, when he resumed the practice of medicine in Dillsburg. He was a member of the York County and Pennsylvania State Medical So- cieties, the American Medical Association and the American Academy of Medicine, of which he was a charter member. In 1857 he was married to Miss Georgia Cowen, of Elmira, N. Y., who died in 1902. Dr. J. M. Shearer died in Dillsburg in 1881, in the forty-eighth year of his age.

GEORGE LEWIS SHEARER was born Oct. 16, 1835. He received from Lafayette College the degree of A. B. 1857, A. M. 1860, and D. D. 1883 ; was graduated from Princeton Theologi- cal Seminary in 1864; was licensed to preach in April, 1864, and ordained in October, 1865, by the Second Philadelphia Presbytery. He

was connected with the United States Chris- tian Commission and rendered service on many battlefields in Virginia. He organized schools for the contrabands in Washington, D. C .; en- tered the service of the American Tract Society in 1862, occupying in it many offices of trust until in 1872 he was made general secretary of the Society in New York City, which posi- tion he is filling at present. He was one of the founders of the Presbyterian Union of New York, a trustee of Lafayette College and vice- president of the Evangelical Alliance. On Dec. 27, 1865, he was married to Miss Mary L. W. Ketcham, of Clyde, New York.

FREDERICK EICHELBERGER SHEARER Was born March 27, 1838. He was graduated from Princeton University in 1864, received the de- grees of A. B. and A. M. from that institution, and was graduated from Princeton Theological Seminary in 1866. He received the degree of D. D. from Highland University, Kansas, in 1886; was licensed by the Presbytery of Hun-

and A. M. 1856 from Dickinson College, and tingdon at Clearfield, Pa., 1865, and ordained M. D. from the University of Pennsylvania, by the Presbytery of Long Island, 1866. He was pastor of the Presbyterian Church at Southampton, N. Y., 1867 to 1870. During the Civil war he was superintendent of the operations of the United States Christian Com- mission, with headquarters at Washington, D. C., and special agencies on battlefields, includ- ing that of Gettysburg. At present he is stated clerk of the New York Presbytery, with offices at No. 156 Fifth Avenue, New York. He was married in 1866 to Katharine Baker Russel, of Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

MARIA HENRIETTA SHEARER was born April 5, 1840. She was graduated from Cot- tage Hill College with high honors in 1858. In 1865 she was married to Ensign Logan Dy- son, U. S. Navy, who died in 1866. Later she married E. S. Wagoner, of Mechanicsburg, Pa., and died in 1882.

NILES HARRISON SHEARER was born March 29, 1842. He received the degrees of A. B. and M. D. from the University of Maryland, 1864, and A. M. 1867 from Dickinson College 1866. He was connected with the Medical Department of the United States Army from 1864 to 1866. In 1866 he took charge of one of the oldest drug stores in York, Pa., in which position he continues at the present, being as- sociated in the business with his brother, E. Y. Shearer. He is a member of the York County and Pennsylvania Medical Societies and the American Academy of Medicine. He is the secretary of the York County Bible So- ciety, of which his grandfather, Jacob Eichel- berger, was the first secretary. He has been a director and secretary of the First National Bank of York, Pa., for over thirty years.

JULIET GAMBRILL SHEARER was born Jan. 7, 1844. She was graduated from Cottage Hill College, York, Pa., in 1860, and received the degree of M. D. from Howard University, Washington, D. C., 1881. She holds a respon- sible position in the United States Treasury.

EDGAR YOUNG SHEARER was born May 19, 1848, and was graduated from Dickinson Col- lege, 1870. He received the degree of A. M. 1873, from the same institution and Ph. G. from the New College of Pharmacy, 1873. He was in the drug business in New York City from 1870 to 1896, since which time he has been associated with his brother N. H. Shearer

HISTORY OF YORK COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

in business in York, Pa. He has traveled ex- paign. Although he was not elected, his ability tensively.

The family of Dr. G. L. Shearer had more to do with the history of Dillsburg in the cen- tury past than any other family in that locality.

JEREMIAH SULLIVAN BLACK, law- yer, son of Chauncey F. and Mary (Dawson) Black, was born Oct. 20, 1869, at the home of his maternal grandfather, John L. Dawson, Friendship Hill, Fayette Co., Pa. He spent his boyhood at Willow Bridges, the home of his parents in Spring Garden township, a short distance southwest of York. He obtained his preliminary education at the York Collegiate Institute and at St. Paul's School, at Concord, N. H. In 1887 he entered Princeton Univer- sity and was graduated from that institution as one of the leaders of huis class in 1891. Sooil after leaving the University he decided to en- ter the legal profession, in which his ancestors had won fame and distinction. He pursued his studies in the office of A. N. Green, mem- ber of the York county Bar, and was admitted to the practice of law at York in 1894.

Having inherited strong intellectual en- dowments, and possessing a mind capable of grasping the intricacies of the law, Mr. Black soon rose to prominence in his chosen pro- fession. His ability and attainments became recognized after a few years of practice before the local courts and brought him a large cli- entage. Early in his professional career his counsel and his services were employed in some of the most important causes tried before the York county courts, as well as the Supreme courts of Pennsylvania and the Federal courts. Mr. Black has been a close and diligent student of the law ever since he entered the Bar. His analysis of legal questions and his earnest and forceful manner of presenting points of law to court or jury have marked him as a natural leader in his profession. During the past few years he has won distinction for his legal acumen, his thorough comprehension of the law and his success at the Bar. In 1906, while representing York county as a delegate to the Democratic State Convention at Harrisburg, he received the unanimous vote of the conven- tion for the office of lieutenant-governor of Pennsylvania. He at first declined the prof- fered honor, but was persuaded to allow his name to be placed on the ticket. He was one of the ablest speakers of that eventful cam-

was universally recognized throughout the State, in nearly every city and town of which he spoke to large audiences.

Mr. Black was married in 1891 to Isabel, daughter of Frederick Edwin Church, of New York. They have four children: Mary, Isa- bel, Louise and Jeremiah S. Mrs. Black's father was a noted artist. At an early age he painted the Falls of Niagara on the Canada Side. This painting formerly belonged to the John Taylor Johnston collection, and was later sold to the Corcoran Art Gallery at Washing- ton for $12,500. Among the other famous paintings executed by Mr. Church are Andes of Ecuador, Icebergs, Chimborazo, Damascus, The Parthenon, and Evening on the Sea. Soon after their marriage Mr. and Mrs. Black took up their residence at Willow Bridges, the for- mer home of his parents. In 1903 they erected a handsome residence near the summit of Webb's Hill, and called it Rural Felicity, at which delightful home they have since resided.

The first American ancestor of Mr. Black came to the Marsh creek region near Gettys- burg with the early Scotch-Irish emigration, to what was then part of York county. Shortly after the Revolution they migrated to Somer- set county, Pa., where his great-grandfather, Henry Black, was a prominent lawyer and was elected a member of Congress as a Whig in 1841. His grandfather, Jeremiah S. Black, became chief justice of the Supreme court of Pennsylvania, and was an associate in the same court with his lifelong friend, the distinguished jurist, John Bannister Gibson. Judge Black served as attorney general and later as Secre- tary of State in the cabinet of President Bu- chanan. After retiring from this position he took up his residence at York, and for a period of twenty-five years was one of the leaders of the American Bar, engaging entirely in the practice of law before the State Supreme courts and the Supreme court of the United States, until his death, in 1884. Chauncey F. Black, father of the subject of this biography, was a distinguished journalist and served as lieutenant-governor of Pennsylvania from 1882 to 1886. He was well known through- out the country as an ardent supporter of the political policies and principles promulgated by Thomas Jefferson, and for a period of ten years was president of an association of Demo- cratic clubs in the United States. Mr. Black's

gs. black

BIOGRAPHICAL

maternal grandfather, John L. Dawson, was a representative in Congress from Fayette and other western counties in Pennsylvania for a period of eight years. He was United States attorney for the Western District of Pennsyl- vania, and was governor of the Territory of Kansas under Pierce's administration.

GEORGE R. PROWELL, author, educa- tor and journalist, was born in Fairview town- ship, York Co., Pa., Dec. 12, 1849. He ob- tained his education in the public schools, in the State Normal School at Millersville, Pa., and the University of Wooster, Ohio. After teach- ing a private academy, for a short time, at Goldsboro, he was elected assistant principal of the York High School, and later served as principal of the High School at Wooster, Ohio, instructor at the York County Academy and superintendent of public schools at Hanover. These positions gave him a varied experience in educational work. While residing at Woos- ter, Ohio, he studied law with Hon. Martin Welker, who during that time was appointed United States Judge for the Northern District of Ohio. He acted as private secretary for Judge Welker, at Cleveland, and during his residence there was engaged as a newspaper correspondent. His attention then was di- verted from the law to literary pursuits, which he continued while filling positions as a teacher and a superintendent of schools. His interest in newspaper work secured for him a position on the staff of the Philadelphia Press and other journals. He spent six years at Washington, D. C., and four years at Philadelphia, engaged in the preparation of a cyclopedia and as a cor- respondent for different metropolitan journals.

In 1884-85 Mr. Prowell was associated with Hon. John Gibson in the preparation of a comprehensive "History of York County." After the completion of this work he was the literary editor of several local histories in Pennsylvania, published by L. H. Everts & Company, of Philadelphia. In 1887 he wrote and published the "History of Camden County, New Jersey," a large octavo volume which in- cluded the history of what was originally known as the Province of West Jersey. Many of the chapters of this volume contain original research relating to the early history of the the York School of Business.

Everts in 1889. During the years 1890-94 he was an associate editor, engaged in the prepa- ration of the "National Cyclopedia of Ameri- can Biography," published in twelve volumes, and now found in all the large public libraries. It fell to his duty to prepare, for this work, the biographies of several of the presidents and their cabinet officers, all the justices of the Supreme Court of the United States, and the members of the United States Senate, from the foundation of the Republic to 1894. He also wrote the lives of all the governors of half a dozen of the leading States of the Union, in- cluding Pennsylvania, and the history of the University of Pennsylvania in the lives of its presidents and faculty. He then returned the second time to educational work and served three years as superintendent of public schools at Hanover. In 1898-99, while engaged as a contributor to "Lamb's Dictionary of Ameri- can Biography," he spent eight months in New England and the Southern States in pre- paring the history, growth and develop- ment of the cotton manufacturing industry in the United States. During the next two years he prepared and published the "His- tory of the 87th Pennsylvania Volunteers," a regiment largely composed of York county troops which served for a period of three years in the Civil war, and the "7Ist Pennsylvania," known in the annals of the Civil war as the "California Regiment." In 1902, at the solici- tation of the Historical Society of York Coun- ty, he began to collect and build up a museum, library and various collections of historic views and portraits for that organization, which oc- cupies a large room on the third floor of the new court house at York. His literary studies have covered the whole range of American his- tory and biography, but he has devoted special attention to local history, which led to the prep- aration of the first volume of this work, en- titled "History of York County." He has been a contributor to literary magazines and has prepared numerous historical papers and vari- ous publications. He is curator and librarian of the Historical Society of York County, member of the National Geographic Society and the American Historical Association. Since 1904 he has been principal and owner of

Mr. Prowell was married, at Stamford,

State of New Jersey. In 1888 he wrote the "History of Wilmington," and the chapters re- Conn., in October, 1878, to Virginia, daughter lating to the early settlements found in the of Col. John and Sarah (Tillman) Dean. They "History of Delaware," published by L. H. have three children, Nellie B., Edna D. and

HISTORY OF YORK COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

Dean Prowell. Col. Samuel Dean, grandfather of Mrs. Prowell, commanded a regiment of militia, from the State of Connecticut, in the Revolution, and participated in the battles of Long Island, White Plains, Trenton, Prince- ton and Monmouth.

Mr. Prowell is of Welsh descent. His first American ancestor, James Prowell, came to Pennsylvania with the early Welsh immigrants and settled in Chester county, near Philadel- phia. Thomas Prowell, his youngest son, was married in October, 1752, to Rachel Griffith, in Old Swede's Church, Philadelphia, soon af- ter that church was transferred to the Episco- palians. He died in 1765, leaving two sons, Joseph and William, both of whom were offi- cers in the American Revolution. Their biog- raphies appear in the first volume of this work. William Prowell, who served as a captain in the Revolution, settled in Warrington town- ship soon after the war had ended and later moved to Fairview township, where he died in 18II. By his first marriage, with Mary Nel- son, he had three children, Joseph, Samuel and Jane. Joseph Prowell married Mary Nichols, daughter of John Nichols, and granddaughter of William Nichols, who served as an ensign in Colonel Irvine's Regiment, Captain Grier's Company, in the first Canadian expedition, in 1775. In 1777-78 he was a captain in Colonel Hartley's Regiment. He died in Fairview township in 1812. Joseph Prowell died in 1838, leaving five children : Samuel N., James, Hi- ram, Elizabeth and Mary. Samuel N. Prowell, the eldest son and father of George R. Prowell, married Sarah, daughter of William Reeser, founder of the borough of Manchester.

HORACE BONHAM (deceased), whose contributions to the world of art brought him well-deserved fame, was descended from an ancestry that has left an indelible impress on the history of the country .. Among the passen- gers of the "Mayflower" was Edward Fuller, and his granddaughter, Hannah Fuller, was married in Barnstable, Mass., to Nicholas Bon- ham.

Nicholas Bonham with his wife and several children moved to New Brunswick, N. J., where he built a home and had a farm. Other settlers located near him, and the town of Bon- hamton was formed and named.

Hezekiah Bonham; only surviving son of Nicholas, was one of the founders of the Bap- tist Church in New Jersey. He was a very

religious man, and in Hunterdon county, N. J., founded the large Seventh Day Baptist Con- gregation. The Bonhams owned the greater part of the land between Bonhamton and Eliza- bethtown. Hezekiah Bonham was twice mar- ried. His first wife was Mary Dunn. Chil- dren were born of both marriages, and one son, Rev. Malachi Bonham, died in New Jersey.

Maj. Absalom Bonham, grandfather of the late Horace Bonham, moved from New Jersey to Maryland, locating near Frederick. He was accompanied by his wife, and probably by chil- dren. When the storm cloud of the Revolu- tion lowered in 1776, he went back to New Jer- sey and enlisted, as did also his sons, Malachi and James. Malachi enlisted with an uncle Malachi in a Maryland regiment, while James (whose mother had died, and who resented his father's subsequent marriage to Miss Rebecca Morris, of New Jersey) ran away from home, and enlisted under General Greene, serving un- til the close of the war. When peace had again settled over the land Maj. Absalom Bonham moved to Lincolnton, N. C., where he died in about 1794. He was buried in full regimentals. His second wife survived him many years and died at an advanced age. By his first wife Maj. Bonham had three children, Malachi, James and a daughter; by his second wife: Samuel Cox; and Sarah, who married a Mr. Ross, of Georgia.

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History of York County Pennsylvania, Volume II, Part 4

Author: Prowell, George R. Publication date: 1907 Publisher: J. H. Beers Number of Pages: 1390

Author: Prowell, George R.
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: J. H. Beers
Number of Pages: 1390