History of the County of Westmoreland, Pennsylvania, with Biographical Sketches of Many of its Pioneers and Prominent Men, Part 168

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USA > Pennsylvania > Westmoreland County > History of the County of Westmoreland, Pennsylvania, with Biographical Sketches of Many of its Pioneers and Prominent Men > Part 168

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1 The name Loyalhanna, according to the best authorities, is derived from an Indian compound word, La-el-han-neck, and means Middle Creek. It was known to the Americans and to the French by this name before the arrival of Bouquet. It would appear also, not directly it is true, but by necessary implication, to have been so designated or known from the narrative of Capt. James Smith, who was taken pris- oner when he was one of the party who were sent to open the road from Bedford to Cumberland in the time of Braddock, some three years prior to the arrival of Bouquet there. This matter would scarcely bear repetition were it not to dispel some wide-spread and very erroneous no- tions and accepted opinions as to the etymology of this word. It is in its origin an Indian not an English word.

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that the few traders who ventured out into these fron- tiers, and the early settlers who located in now Indiana County, about Kittanning, and in Derry township of Westmoreland County, passed and repassed. In some places along these Indian paths, when the army first came out, the marks of the horses' hoofs which car- ried the stores of the Indian traders or agents had not yet been worn out.

After the defeat of Braddock in 1754, the English, it will be remembered, organized an army at Phila- delphia, with the object of making another attempt to capture Fort Duquesne. This army was under Gen. Forbes. The advance-guard, under Col. Bou- quet, cutting their way from Bedford, about the 1st of September, 1758, arrived at the Loyalhanna, on the western side of Laurel Hill. Here Bouquet, erecting a stockade for their protection in case of an attack from the French and Indians, awaited the arrival of Forbes and Washington. Forbes could not advance hastily with the main body of the army on account of his physical inability, he being very frail and shattered in constitution, although he was by no means an old man. It was during the interval between the arrival of Bouquet here and the arrival of Forbes, some eight weeks after, that the expedi- tion under Maj. Grant and Capt. Bullit was sent out to reconnoitre about Fort Duquesne, and following the unfortunate termination of which was made the attack on the stockade by the French and Indians under De Vetre, of which we have made mention in our general history.

Forbes, with the rear division of the army, arrived about the 1st of November (1758) at the camp on the Loyalhanna. In a council of war it was then deter- mined not to advance farther till the next spring, when this arrangement was changed by the return of several prisoners who had been captured and held by the Indians, from whom was found out the true con- dition of the garrison at Fort Duquesne, which in- duced the British and Americans to advance and secure that post shortly after.

FORT LIGONIER.

The stockade erected here by Col. Bouquet was called Fort Ligonier, in honor of Sir John Ligonier, under whom Bouquet had served in the wars on the continent of Europe. Sir John Ligonier was a Protes- tant Frenchman, a Huguenot, who having been ban- ished from his native country on account of his religious belief engaged in service in the English army. He commanded the British cavalry at Lauf- feld, near Maestricht, where the English and Dutch, with the Austrians under Marshal Bathiany, encoun- tered the French under Marshal Saxe. Being taken prisoner by the French he was treated with the greatest distinction and consideration, and was sent back by the king, Louis XV., and Saxe to confer with the Duke of Cumberland (son of George II., and com- mander-in-chief of the British army) to make offers

of peace. The peace which then ensued was subse- quently ratified by the treaty of Aix-la-chapelle, that great landmark in the history of Continental Europe and of North America, 1748.'

EARLY SETTLERS AND FIRST INDUSTRIES.

Gen. James Ramsay, of Franklin County, bought at sheriff's sale Sept. 2, 1794, the "Ligonier Tract" of 660 acres, also 12 acres adjoining the same, the Indian field and mill creek, for £721. This was the site of Ligonier, and it was all sold as the property of Thomas Galbraith, deceased, at the suit of Jasper Moylan and Gen. Arthur St. Clair. Capt. George Eager and George Kelso lived in 1794 on the upper surveys, near Matthias Stockberger, Daniel Armor, and Henry Buzzard. William Jamison bought another large tract adjoining the Ligonier, as the property of the same defendant, in 1796.

The oldest house now standing in the town is the one occupied by William Dice. Gen. Ramsay's house was a half-mile from town, where Harrison Gilbraith now lives. The turnpike was built through here in 1817-18. The first house erected after the town was laid out was built by Samuel Adams, where now David Shoefall's carriage-shop is. The second was built by James Seaton on the lot now owned by John Bowser, and the third on the lot where James Lawson lives. The latter was built by Hugh Deever, who kept in it the first store. It was a log structure, weather-boarded, and is now used by Squire Black as a magistrate's office. Frederick Myers kept the first tavern where McMillan's tannery is; William Carnes early built a house; Samuel Adams was the first blacksmith; and James McMillan the first cabinet-maker.

The first resident physician was Dr. Thomas Rogers. John Hargnett was the first postmaster. The latter was born within two miles of town, and came about 1825 to clerk in Mr. Klopper's store. He was after- wards in the mercantile business as a partner.with Mr. McGowan, then Dr. Miller, then Mr. Breniser, and later with Mr. McGowan again. Col. John McFar- land was born within a mile of the town in 1801, and has resided in it for many years. His parents and ancestors settled near here at an early period. Col. McFarland, Mr. Hargnett, and Conrad George are the three oldest citizens in the borough. Mr. George was born Jan. 1, 1804, and recollects the site of the town before it was laid out or had any buildings upon it. He is the son of Conrad George, who came, when a boy eight years old, with his father, Adam George, before 1780 and settled in the county.

Among the first to settle in the town when it was laid out by Col. Ramsay in 1817 were Samuel Adams, Hugh Deever, Mr. Myers, Mr. Reed (tavern-keeper), Henry Ankenny (tavern-keeper), Samuel Knox, Thomas Wilson, Noah Mendell (tavern-keeper), and George Matthews. The latter was the first tanner,

1 For services of Sir John Ligonier see Knight's Popular History of England, chap. clix., et seq.

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and George Scott the second. The first mill was operated by Mr. Miller, and the second by Hugh Deever.

After the town was laid out in 1817 the lots were sold by the proprietor, Gen. Ramsay, in accordance with the following plan :

"Conditions or terms of the public mule of lots to be sold in the town of Ligonier agrecably to a plan on the ground, March 3, 1817, vis. : All minore or servants are hereby prohibited from bidding at this sale (as well as insolvent persons).

"Second, For the amount of purchases of each and every Lott three equal different payments will be required of six, twelve, and eighteen months each, the purchaser to come forward withiu twenty-four hours and give his obligations with approved security, or otherwise to be sub- jected to have their Lott or Lotts again set up and sold at public sale, when they must sustain the lom if any is thereby accrued.

" Third, The highest bidder to be the buyer.

"Fourth, Any person or persons purchasing either of the corner lost in the Diamond (or main cross street) will be hereby obliged to build on such Lott within the space of seven years a two-story house of either brick or frame painted, or otherwise to forfeit the sum of one hundred dollars to be appropriated towards the erection of Public Buildings in case a new county can be obtained and Ligouier made its soat of justice, or in case of said town not becoming a sent of justice, then the above for- felture is to be paid to the proprietor and to be disposed of at his option. Those who buy any corner lott on Main Street, and not complying with the aforesnid requisition, must forfeit the sum of fifty dollars to be ap- plied as aforesaid. Any person buying any other Lott on Main Street and not complying as aforesaid must forfeit the sum of thirty dollars, to

applied as aforeenid. Any person purchasing a Lott on the main croes street (or Market Street) and not complying as aforesaid must forfeit the sum of twenty dollars to be applied as aforesaid ; and any person or persons purchasing any Lott on any other cross street or back street and not building thoreon within seven years must forfeit the sum of ten dollars to be applied as aforesaid.

"Fifth, The proprietor reserves a bid in all cases ; he also reserves his old Barn, his young Apple Trees, and all movable property within the limits of said town. These conditions to be lodged with James Clark, Esq., where regular conveyance will be made within four weeks to all mich an apply [or] who have complyed with the terms of sale. "JOHN RAMSEY."

BOROUGH ORGANIZATION.

The town of Ligonier, as it is called in the act, was erected into a borough by the Assembly on the 10th day of April, 1834. The boundaries were those which were included in a plot referred to as being on record in the recorder's office. The officers of the borough were those which were prescribed for the borough organizations, and their duties and powers were set out at length in the same act. The inhab- itants entitled to vote were to meet at the place where they had usually met to vote for members of the General Assembly on the first Monday of May then next.

By act of 11th April, 1848, the limits of the bor- ough were further extended so as to include William Atcheson, Robert Galbreath, Robert Graham, Joseph Moorhead, and Andrew Bellinger on the east end of the borough, including the lands on both sides of the turnpike, described by certain metes and bounds, and Henry Lowry on the west.

The limits were again extended by act of March 15, 1872.

Borough Oficers .- The records from 1834 to 1866 are lost. The officers in the latter year were: Bur- gess, James S. Black ; Clerk, John Murdock ; Treas-

urer, John Hargnett; Constable, J. H. Murdock ; Street Commissioner, John Mitchell; Collector, Wil- liam Carns; Assessor, James Moore.

Since then the burgesses have been : 1867-69, James S. Black ; 1869, James Lawson ; 1870, no record; 1871, Thomas A. Seaton ; 1872, Peter Lenhart ; 1873, R. C. Breniser; 1874, James W. Ambrose; 1875, W. H. Co- vode; 1876, W. D. McGowan; 1877, J. W. Kepper; 1878, C. S. Vannear; 1879, W. H. Dice; 1880, Thomas M. Brady ; 1881, Alexander Glessner and Jacob Blan- set, the latter acting part of the time.

The officers in 1882 are : Burgess, William J. Potts; Clerk, Andrew Grove (for six years); Council, J. H. McConaughy, Andrew Grove, Michael Keffer, C. A. Lowry, John H. Frank, Noah M. Marker; Consta- ble, John Glessner; Treasurer, J. H. McConaughy ; Street Commissioner, H. F. Hartley.

GROWTH AND PRESENT STATUS.

The chief place of interest in both a historical and a business view in Ligonier Valley is Ligonier town. It is the only place of importance in the township of Ligonier, and is located-speaking in general terms- near the centre of the township, and on the north bank of the Loyalhanna. The situation of the town is delightful and romantic. It lies in the valley, having on the east and northwest the blue line of Laurel Hill for the rim of partial amphitheatre, on the southwest the Chestnut Ridge, the pleasant valley of the Loyalhanna extending down towards the west until it loses itself in the gap in the Ridge, and northwestward the lower valley itself rolling and hilly in all its extent from here to the Conemaugh.

The Ligonier Valley Railroad from Latrobe to Li- gonier is a narrow-gauge road completed in 1878. It had been graded in 1872-73 for a standard gauge road, when the panic of that year put a stop to its further building. Its length is ten and a third miles. Its president is S. H. Baker. Its completion has con - tributed largely to the development and growth of the town, converting it from a village of the olden type to a village of the modern type. There could be no stronger evidence of the effect of innovation than there is in this town. Before the construction of the railroad running from the Pennsylvania road at Latrobe to Ligonier as terminal points, the busi- ness of the place, although fully equal to that of any other place of the same size within the county, has largely increased in volume and changed in character. The commercial commodities of the region, which largely consist of timber and its products, such as railroad ties, posts, sawed lumber, and bark, have here found a market for sale and a point of shipment.

The population of the town from 1870 to 1880 in- creased about one hundred per cent. It now is prob- ably about seven hundred and fifty. This rapid increase, spasmodic in its character, is to be attributed to the completion of the railroad rather than to any other cause. The sudden rise in population was made

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up in great part of business men, who expected an unwonted impetus to be given to business of all kinds, such as had been evidenced by the rapid growth in population, and in the volume of business in those new towns which had suddenly sprung into existence along the line of the Southwest Railway. With this accession and this fresh start began a spirit of im- provement which took hold of the older inhabitants, not seriously it is true, but moderately. For while most of the citizens and inhabitants showed a spirit of reform and a disposition of progress, it is apparent from the appearance of some portions of the town that this spirit has not been universal or too general in its manifestations. The most complainable objec- tion, and the one which meets the inquirer from all directions, is as to the disposition in many of the property-holders not to improve, nor to dispose of an- tiquated and decaying buildings at reasonable prices to those who even with limited means have inclina- tion and disposition to make thrift and taste go hand in hand.

For a number of years before the completion of the Ligonier Valley road the village of Ligonier was re- garded as an agreeable summer resort for the middling classes of Pittsburgh, and a desirable point for pleas- ure parties at all seasons of the year from the sur- rounding towns. It is in summer-time at this day a Mecca for those who are attracted by the beauties of nature, the grandeur of mountains, and the placid sweetness of the silent summer fields. The "valley" in its physical topography is in itself composed of many smaller valleys or vales, lying between hills more or less abrupt. The numerous streams that rise in the mountains on either side, forming runlets and small creeks, flow through these smaller valleys, and these make many agreeable prospects.

The drive between Youngstown and Ligonier on the old Stoystown and Greensburg turnpike, notwith- standing the bad condition in which it has latterly been kept, is, for natural scenery, for changeful and varied beauty, perhaps the finest in the county. The high mountains on the one side are, in their season, covered with foliage to their very tops, in which all the trees and shrubs indigenous to this latitude blend in the harmony peculiar to American forests; the great family of ferns, the rugged rocks, monsters of an ancient world, now hoary and lichen-covered; the endless murmuring of the Loyalhanna down beneath the road-bed as it is, through the intermediate part of the gap; the walls of hills beyond and behind; the ever-changing views and prospects more resemble a picture than they do the landscapes which are ordi- narily designated with the conventional term pic- turesque.

The Ligonier Valley Railroad is the modern luxury of travel to the tourists through these regions in which nature has been so lavish. Hence, after Ligonier was brought into direct communication with the great out- side world the advantages which so many people

having the means are ready and willing to pay for were readily and fully appreciated. Thus Ligonier, by no great effort of a few public-spirited persons who were interested in the matter, of whom perhaps Judge Mellon and Mr. John Hargnett Frank were the most conspicuous, became a public place of resort for those who spend the season away from home and business. Its chief distinction among the villages and towns of our county at this time lies in this: Having every natural advantage it was fortunate in possessing citi- zens of spirit and enterprise, who realizing this brought their worldly means and their experience into requisition in offering and affording suitable and attractive accommodations to this class of patrons. The public accommodations have latterly been inade- quate for the wants of the public, so that in the sum- mer season many private boarding-houses are fitted up, and the business of these is dependent on the summer visitors. Its public-houses have a reputation of being more than ordinarily good. The excursion- ists or the denizens who abide there during the sum- mer season can have every attention, every conveni- ence, and every luxury which taste and judicious outlay can provide.

ORDERS AND SOCIETIES. LIGONIER LODGE, No. 331, F. AND A. M.,

was chartered March 7, 1859. The first officers were : W. M., George S. Kemble; S. W., Joseph Moorhead; J. W., John McClintick. The Past Masters of the lodge have been Noah M. Marker, William H. Lowry, Joseph W. Moorhead, Joseph Clifford, John G. Al- bright, Noah M. Weller, William C. Knox, William A. Hall, John Ashcom, John McClintick, John A. Miller, John C. Fagan, Daniel F. Steck, D. Wilt, William Hall, Dr. M. M. McColley, W. E. Thatcher, Dr. J. A. Ashcom. The officers in 1882 are : W. M., Dr. M. M. McColly ; S. W., W. E. Thatcher; J. W., N. M. Marker; Sec., Dr. J. A. Ashcom ; Treas., An- drew Grove. Its meetings are held on the Friday evening preceding full moon of each month.

LIGONIER LODGE, No. 960, I. O. O. F.,

was chartered April 1, 1879. The officers in 1882 are : N. G., A. F. Fowler ; V. G., William Robb; Sec., Schell Marker; Treas., T. M. Brady. The Past Grands have been Thomas M. Brady, M. W. Miller, John T. Robb, Dr. J. A. Ashcom, H. L. Jones. The charter officers were: N. G., Thomas M. Brady ; V. G., Scott Martin ; Sec., A. F. Fowler; Asst. Sec., Schell Marker ; Treas., A. C. Breniser. It meets every Monday evening; number of members, seventy- five.

LIGONIER LODGE, No. 1224, KNIGHTS OF HONOR,

was chartered Sept. 17, 1879, but instituted Nov. 7, 1878, by special dispensation. The charter members were J. C. Culp, Andrew Grove, N. M. Marker, G. W. Ambrose, D. A. McColly, Dr. J. A. Ashcom, G. R. Murdock, William H. Covode, C. A. Lowry, J. W. McFarland, William Bush, M. B. Smith, Dr. M. M.

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McColly. The officers in 1882 are : D., J. W. Am- brose ; Rep., J. M. Graham ; Fin., Dr. J. A. Ashcom ; Treas., Andrew Grove; P. D., C. C. Griffith ; V. D., Dr. M. M. McColly ; G., John Ray ; S., M. B. Smith ; Guide, C. A. Lowry ; Chap., Rev. A. C. Johnson. It meets on alternate Thursdays, and has twenty-five members.

LIGONIER COUNCIL, No. 501, ROYAL ARCANUM,

was instituted July 17, 1880, with the following char- ter members : M. W. Miller, H. L. Jones, J. S. Ber- key, H. S. Denny, Andrew Grove, T. M. Brady, D. C. Zimmerman, L. A. Dennison, J. H. Ream, William H. Covode, J. F. Laughery, Benjamin Deeds, Noah M. Marker, J. G. Nicely, C. R. Withow, G. R. Mur- dock, Hamilton Smith, W. E. Thatcher. The officers in 1882 are : R., William H. Covode; V. R., M. W. Miller ; O., J. S. Barton ; P. R., L. A. Dennison ; Sec., H. L. Jones; Treas., N. M. Marker; Col., An- drew Grove. It has a membership of twenty, and meets alternate Thursday evenings.

BOROUGH SCHOOLS.

The school board in 1882 consists of : President, Dr. M. M. McColly ; Secretary, John Hargnett; Treas- urer, A. F. Fowler, and David Marker, R. M. Graham, C. A. Lowry. The teachers are J. M. Graham (prin- cipal), Room No. 3; C. C. Griffith (ten years teach- ing here), No. 2; Miss Nannie E. Horrell, No. 1.

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH.

JOHN POLLOCK.

About the year 1760 five brothers, bearing the name of Pollock, settled in Cumberland County, Pa. They came from Ireland, whither they had emigrated from Scotland a few years previous. One made his permanent home in Cumberland County, and ex- Governor James Pollock is the only representative of his family known to the writer. Of the others, one returned to Ireland, two settled in Erie County, and one, James, came to Ligonier Valley with some In- dian traders, and with his hatchet marked a tract of land for his future home. He returned to Cumber- land County, where he married Mary Herron, and in

1767 they settled upon the farm which he had lo- cated. Here they spent their lives, diligently per- forming whatever work their hands found to do. Mr. Pollock was prominent in both Church and State. He brought with him to Westmoreland County a com- mission as justice of the peace, which office he held until incapacitated for its duties by old age. He was elected a member of the State Legislature, and at- tended the opening of the session, but soon returned home, where he remained and gave his attention to his farm. He was long a member of the Presbyterian Church, and was an elder in the same, but afterwards united with the Seceder Church, in which organiza- tion he was an elder. He and his wife were endowed with strong intellects, and were noted for their intel- ligence and piety. Their son John, whose portrait is here given, was born Oct. 8, 1783, in Mount Pleasant, where his parents had taken refuge be- cause of an incursion of Indians into Ligonier Val- ley. He learned the business of farming upon his father's farm, where he spent his entire life. He never attended "school," and his vast fund of knowledge was obtained by his own exertion and the assistance of his mother. He was in the true sense "self-taught," and consequently well taught. Although he never learned a rule from a book, his knowledge of mathematics was such as enabled hit to solve readily the most intricate and diverse prob- lems in that science. He was an elder in the United Presbyterian Church, and was a frequent contributor to the religious periodicals of the day. He took an active part in politics, but would never accept an office. His clear, well-balanced mind, amiable dis- position, and gentle Christian life made him a worthy exemplar.

He married Elizabeth Hamill, Sept. 15, 1807 Their children are David, who married Jane John- son (both now dead); Ann S., married to Robert Graham (both now dead) ; James, dead; Robert, who was a United Presbyterian minister, and married Jane H. Scroggs (now dead); Thomas C. married Martha J. Barnett, and resides on the old homestead; Mary married Rev. Moses Arnot; and Jane E., who is un- married.

John Pollock died March 16, 1862. His wife, Eliz- abeth, died Feb. 15, 1864.

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LOYALHANNA TOWNSHIP.

THIS township was formed out of portions of the territory of Salem, Derry, and Washington town- ships, the inhabitants of which section began their efforts for a new township in 1831, as appears from the following, taken from the records of November session of that year :

" Upon the petition of a number of the Inhabitants of Derry, Salem, & Washington Townebips, praying the Erection of a new Township thereout, with the following boundaries, to wit: Beginning at the tun- nel on the Connemauth, in Derry Township, thence to Robert Foster's on the Loyalhannah Creek, in Salem Township, from thence to inter- sect the line between Salem & Washington Tps. at or near Wm. Cald- well's, & fr. that place to Richards's Dam on the Kiskaminites, & fr. thence up the Kiskaminites & Conemaugh Rivers to the place of Begin- ning; & praying the Court to appoint Viewers according to Law. The Court thereupon appoint John Horel, of Derry, James McCutcher, of Salem, & Michael Kunkle, of Wash. Tps." [Nov. 23, 1831].

Loyalhanna township was organized by the court in 1888, and received its name from the Loyalbanna River, which flows through its central part. Its boundaries are north by the Conemaugh River, east by Derry, south and southwest by Salem, and north- west by Bell townships.

It is watered by the Loyalhanna and a few minor

streams that are tributary to the same. The North- western Pennsylvania Railroad runs along its north- ern boundary, with a branch called Fairbanks' Ex- tension, which intersects the main line, and runs to the famous Fairbanks Company Coal-Works, a dis- tance of about two miles. Coal exists in abundant quantities in most parts of the township, and is in many places developed.

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History of the County of Westmoreland, Pennsylvania, with Biographical Sketches of Many of its Pioneers and Prominent Men, Part 168

Author: George Dallas Albert, editor Publication date: Publisher: Number of Pages:

Author: George Dallas Albert, editor
Publication date:
Publisher:
Number of Pages: