Indiana County, Pennsylvania, her people, past and present, Volume I, Part 100

Author: Stewart, Joshua Thompson, 1862- comp
Publication date: 1913
Publisher: Chicago, J. H. Beers & co.
Number of Pages: 930

USA > Pennsylvania > Indiana County > Indiana County, Pennsylvania, her people, past and present, Volume I > Part 100

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).

Some of the old settlers of the township were: Jolin Park settled on the ground where Marion Center now stands about 1800. James Brady occupied the farm afterwards owned by John A. Mabon, 1804. He was a cousin of Capt. Samuel Brady, the Indian fighter. Wil- liam Work came from Cumberland county to the foot of "Squirrel Hill," not far from the present site of New Florence, 1801, and in 1804 he located on the tract owned by Moses T. and Elijah I. Work, East Mahoning town- ship. John Leasure, one of the scouts sent to guard the houses of the settlers along Crooked creek, came to the farm occupied by Samuel T. Brady. The patent of the farm bears the date of January 17, 1802, and it contained The citizens of this township have always been interested in education. For fifty-seven years Marion Center has had select schools, a description of which will be given under an 396 acres. William McCreery came and settled on the Hugh Speedy farm. In remov- ing his goods from Mifflin county to Cone- maugh township he made nineteen trips on account of the borough. In 1808, a house

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which became unfit for a dwelling house, near lage of Graysville, on a small stream called "Fowler's run."

Marion Center, on the Meanor farm, close to the present road, was converted into a school- house, and "Big Robert" Thompson, so called to distinguish him from two or three other Thompsons of the same name, taught in it for two or three years. It is said that he was remarkably good in mathematics. North of Marion Center, in the Work and Leasure set- tlement, early schools were conducted.

The number of school districts has not changed, but the names have changed. The Lowman district was called the Beatty dis- triet. Pickering Run district was called "Owl Hollow." The Brandon district was called the Lighteap district. Upper Creek district was called Work district. Hamill was called Simpson district. On the west central part of the township, along the South Mahoning line, an independent district was formed, and the children of the district attended the Smyrna school in South Mahoning township. The Georgeville independent school district is in East Mahoning township.

North of the Brandon school on the Indiana and Punxsutawney road was located the the grown persons, but they did not affect me. "Half Way" house, kept by R. T. Brady. It I have no recollections of feeling any regret at leaving the old place. I had only pleasant an- ticipations of the new sights I would see. It seemed to me like a holiday excursion. I did not realize the greatness of the change we were making. I little thought that in a few months I would be longing for a sight of the mountain top, the brook, and the big willow, where I used to make whistles and flutter wheels. was for many years a noted stopping place for teamsters traveling between Indiana and Punxsutawney. For many years goods were hauled from Indiana to Punxsutawney. Many lumbermen in the vicinity of Punxsutawney hauled boards to Indiana and exchanged them for dry goods, groceries, salt, etc. J. N. Simp- son conducted a hotel called the "Union" on the north side of the Little Mahoning creek, on the road leading from Indiana to Punxsu- tawney.

Very few changes have been made in East Mahoning township. There are but few for- eigners, for the reason that the coal interests have not been developed. An opening has been made near Savan, but very little has been accomplished.

The following is an account given by David W. Elder of the journey of the Elder family to Indiana county and also a description of their home, in his own words :

It was on Monday, about noon on the 6th day of April, 1835, that we-that is, Robert Elder and his family-started on our journey from our old home in Franklin township, Huntingdon Co., Pa., to our new home in Indiana county. If any inquisitive person should wish to discover the place from which we started, he will find it near the foot of Tussey mountain, half a mile above the vil-

Our family consisted of father, mother and seven children, Jane, J. Reed, David W., Mary Ann, Elizabeth, Robert B. and Margaret; the children ranging in age from eighteen years to seven months.

We had been "just a going" to start for several days, but could not get ready. Even on that morning, it wasn't certain that we would go. It had rained some, and the weather was threatening. What influence set ns in motion I know not, but about nine o'clock it was decided that we should go, and from that time all was hurry and bustle. I have little recollection of particulars. I re- member that we children had our faces washed and were fixed up as if we were going to church. I remember seeing the men carry- ing out heavy articles of furniture and pack- ing them in the bed of the four-horse wagon that was to carry us over the mountains. I remember the crowd of neighbors that came to see us off, and bid us good-by. The fare- wells were doubtless serious enough between

Some of the men and boys came with us a considerable distance to, help drive the cows and get them trained to follow the wagon. After we passed the church, and got into "the barrens," they gradually left us. Mr. George Fry drove the wagon the first day, and his son Levi, a gawky, good-natured boy, was the last of the boys to leave us, and would not have turned back then but for a positive order from his father. He left reluctantly, bidding us all good-by.

We crossed the little Juniata, where Spruce Creek station on the Pennsylvania railroad now is, hut there was no railroad there then. We stopped for the night in the little town of Waterstreet. The next morning George Fry returned home, and Uncle David Elder drove the team the rest of the journey. We followed the turnpike passing through Canoe valley, getting into Hollidaysburg in the even- ing. We had intended to stop there that night, but could not get accommodations for our stock and went a mile farther toward the

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HISTORY OF INDIANA COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

mountain, and stopped at a public house kept and our progress slow. I can recollect but by a Dutch farmer named John Widensall. few of the incidents of that part of our jour- This day I first saw a canal boat and a rail- ney. On our way we met some of our neigh- road car.

The following day we went over the moun- tain on the turnpike, and were often in sight of the cars of the Portage railroad, which then crossed the mountain at Blair's Gap. We lunched at the "Stone Tavern" on the summit of the mountain. We hoped to reach Ebensburg that night, but failed to do so, and had to put up at Wherry's, "a very uncom- fortable place," a mile or two from Ebens- burg.

Early in the forenoon of the next day we passed through Ebensburg, and here we left the Northern turnpike, and entered on what was called the Clay pike, leading to Indiana. As this latter road was not macadamized, and the ground was wet, and the load heavy, the wagon made slow progress. Stopping at a country tavern at noon, kept by an old Welsh- man, named Griffith Rowland, we reached Strongstown on the edge of Indiana county at dusk, and put up for the night. I was so tired that night that I fell asleep in the bar- room behind the door and was not missed till the landlord went to close the door after all the rest had retired. There were two or three other flittings at the inn, and the landlord in- quired which of them had lost a boy. The family roll was called. I was missing, and was restored to my proper place. It took us all the next day to get to Indiana, where we put up at the hotel now called the "Indiana House" (though it has been rebuilt since that time).

On Saturday morning we left behind us not only macadamized roads, but even clay pikes, and entered on the rough, hilly and muddy road of the "backwoods." When we started on Monday we had hoped to reach our journey's end by Saturday evening, but it was now plainly impossible. At noon we reached "Katy Buchanan's," a public house between Indiana and Punxsutawney. (The old "Wall's" Tavern, five miles south of Punxsutawney, was opened a few years be- fore.) A little before sunset we reached the house of Joseph McPherson, an old acquain- tance of my father's. He took us in, and hospitably entertained us until Monday. On Sabbath we attended Mahoning Church, where we met many of our new neighbors, and gave them notice of our coming.

On Monday morning we began the last stage of our wearisome journey. It had rained the night before, and the roads were heavy

bors coming to meet us. We made a stop at the house of Seroggs Work. Here a path led through the woods to the cabin. Reed was sent by that route to kindle the fire at the house, while the wagon went by a more cir- cuitous route. The public road at that time ran directly past Scroggs Work's house, and kept its course south of, and nearly parallel with, the present line of the public road, and nearly a hundred yards distant therefrom. From a point where the end of the lane now is, a road, or rather a path, ran up to the house, passing along nearly the same route that the lane does now. Some young men had cut a way for the wagon that morning, but a four-horse wagon was a conveyance be- fore unknown in that region, and their road was too narrow. Men and boys with axes cut a wider passage, and the wagon moved forward a few rods at a time as a way was made for it. It was just about noon when we reached the house, and just a week from the time we started.

The house stood a few feet south of the frame house now standing. It was a log cabin, 18 by 16 feet, and a story and a half high. The longest dimension was from the lower to the upper side, although the gables faced north and south, so that the ends of the house were longer than the sides. The logs were unhewn, the roof was made of clap- boards, kept in place by weight poles. The door was in the south end, and the chimney in the upper side. The jambs were about six feet apart, and the chimney was on the out- side. It was a wooden chimney, built of logs and sticks protected from the fire at the lower part by stones, and at the upper part by clay. The drip of the upper half of the roof fell upon the chimney just above the mantel, and to protect it a section of a hollow log was put under the eave to serve as a spout. The only window was in the north end, and contained six lights of 8 by 10 inch glass. There was no staircase, and the loft could be reached only by a ladder.

The barn stood ou a little rise in ground between two spring draughts, about forty yards south of the house. It was a double log cabin barn, two bays with an intervening space for a threshing floor, though I think there was no floor there. It had a clapboard roof with weight poles. A little springhouse built of poles, with a sloped roof, stood just below the spring head. The farm contained

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HISTORY OF INDIANA COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

about ninety acres, of which only about twelve acres were cleared. All the land lying west- ward of the present lane or road running through the farm was in woods. The flat land just below where the buildings stood was a swamp so deep that adventurous cows in the springtime, seeking the grass and herbs grow- ing there, sometimes stuck fast and had to be pried out with rails or poles. This swamp was the abode of numerous frogs and their music ( ?) on a warm evening in springtime was deafening. was William Work. His house stood by the roadside about the same place where stands the house now occupied by J. C. Work. Next above William Work lived John Work. The next was Aaron Work, whose house was on the south side of the road just opposite the large frame house now occupied by Mrs. Robert H. Work, Sr. About thirty rods above Aaron Work's house on the south side of the road, in a small hewed log house, lived Allan Craw- ford. Solomon Leasure lived on the farm later occupied by his son David. Solomon The flat land at the southeastern corner of the farm was covered with sugar, hickory, linden, aslı and elm trees. The land up the run on the hillside was covered with oak and chestnut, except a portion of the hillside at the northeast corner of the farm, which had no timber on it, but was covered with scrubby bushes and was called the "Bald Knob." The farm had been unoccupied for a year when we came and was greatly out of order. lived in a small frame house, the only one in the neighborhood. David Simpson lived on a farm which included what is now the vil- lage of Richmond. He had the only flouring- mill in the neighborhood. Simpson lived in a double log cabin across the road from the mill, but a little lower down. At Simpson's the settlement virtually ended. The public road extended no farther. An almost un- broken wilderness extended to the line of Our nearest neighbor was Scroggs Work, who lived about one hundred rods to the southwest of us. His house stood where later stood the frame house occupied by his son, Elijah Work, Jr. His family consisted of himself, his wife, Margaret, nee Brown, and five children: Miriam, John, Rachel, Marga- retta and William, who was fourteen months old. Our next neighbor down the creek was Allen M. Work, who owned the farm after- wards occupied by his son Ephraim. Allen's house stood below the creek road, and also below the road leading across the creek at that point. The next below was Sylvanus Ayers, the blacksmith. The Ayers farm ex- tended over the creek and included the land Clearfield county. A few adventurous pio- neers, indeed, had gone into this wilderness and made improvements, and kept up com- munication with the settlements by bridle paths through the woods. Among these were Daniel Brewer, William White and James Black. In some sense these people were our. neighbors, as they were obliged to depend on the people of the settlement for assistance in many things. To the northward of us there was an unbroken belt of woodland extending nearly to where the village of Marchand now stands, containing several thousands of acres. This woodland was, in fact, an arm of the great wilderness to the east of us already men- tioned. Cattle and sheep pastured on it in afterwards owned by Robert Loughry. The the summer. Hogs grew fat on it in the au- Ayers building stood near where the present tumn, and in some parts of it huckleberries and rattlesnakes abounded in their season. buildings are; the shop stood near the cross- ing of the creek road and the Indiana and The people who lived beyond this belt of woodland on what we called "the ridge" were not regarded as neighbors. We met them oc- casionally at church and at military training, but we did not have intimate relations with them. Punxsutawney road. Up the run north of Sylvanus Ayers lived Jonathan Kinnan, on the farm afterwards occupied by David Pol- lock. His house stood on the eastern side of the hollow, where the Indiana and Punxsu- tawney road used to run. Down the creek It would be monotonous to describe separ- description will answer for all. The house was a log cabin of about the same dimensions as the one on our farm. Sometimes the logs were hewed, oftener they were not. Each house was a little above one story in height, and none was fully two stories. In most cases the roof was of clapboards kept in place by weight poles. Each honse consisted of one room below and a loft above, which was road below Sylvanus Ayers, on the farm ately the houses of the settlers. A general owned by William Hamill, lived Hugh Col- gan, who came to the farm in 1835. The farm on the creek where the Indiana and Punxsu- tawney road crosses it was taken possession of by John Simpson about the same time we came here. Colgan sold the farm to John Simpson, and then put up buildings on what is now the Hamill place, to which he then re- moved. Up the creek road our next neighbor

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HISTORY OF INDIANA COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

reached by a ladder. The chimney was some- in which they taught: William H. Fairbanks, times on the outside, and sometimes on the a three months' spring term, and a three inside, but always had a wide fireplace. Stoves were unknown, and wood the only fuel.

Scarcely any one of these houses was visible from another. Each settler had cleared a small opening around his buildings, whilst a broad belt of woodland lay between him and his neighbor, shutting out the view. It was only by climbing a hill that one could see that the country was inhabited.

The only gristmill in the neighborhood was Simpson's. The nearest store was Henry Kin- ter's, near Georgeville. The nearest post office was Mahoning, at what was then Ew- ing's, now Stear's, mill, seven miles down the creek. It was supplied by a weekly mail car- ried on horseback. The only churches within ten miles were Gilgal and Mahoning, and the ministers of both churches resided outside of the congregation.

There was a little schoolhouse on the creek road about a quarter of a mile below Scroggs Work's. It stood in the woods below the road. It was about fifteen feet square, built of un- hewn logs, and had a clapboard roof. It was one story high, and the joists were high enough for a tall man to stand straight under them. The door was about five feet high, hung on wooden hinges and fastened with a pin. The two windows were merely widened cracks between the logs with no glass in them. The lower floor was of loose boards. The upper floor was of still looser boards. The fireplace consisted of three flat stones in one corner of the room, one horizontal for a hearth, and two perpendicular in the angle of the walls to serve as jambs. An opening in the floor above served as a flue, and cracks in the gable and roof furnished an exit for the smoke. The only furniture in the house was a bench made by driving four stout oaken pegs into the round side of a slab about eight feet in length. Another bench was extemporized by putting one end of a loose board into a crack in the wall and resting the other end on a log of wood on the hearth. The building had been used only for a summer school and had to be refitted before winter school was held in it. The first term was taught by Polly Work in 1833, and the second term by her in the sum- mer of 1834. Allen N. Work taught first in the summer of 1835, and was the only teacher until 1839, when Jane Campbell taught the last term in this old schoolhouse.

months' fall term; A. N. Work, two months' winter term; A. Hinman, two months' fall term; James E. Work, three and a fourth months, winter and fall term; A. Hinman, a three months' spring term ; A. N. Work, three months' fall term; A. Hinman, three months' fall term; A. N. Work, a three months' fall term; Hezekiah Wood, three months' winter term ; George Richardson, Jeremiah B. Work, D. W. Elder, A. N. Work, J. R. Elder, John L. Work, Silas Warren, Jeremiah B. Work (two terms), James M. Work, J. Smith Work, Robert Cook, Thomas Hindman, Mr. Wimer, Thomas Hindman, Harriet Work, Maggie Kinter, Mary E. Allison and Nancy P. Hamil- ton, Susan Meanor, Lizzie Simpson, Mary Mc- Ginity, Naney P. Hamilton, Ada Brady, Mary J. MeCreery, Maggie McCreery (two terms), William Meanor, W. E. Simpson, John Cal- derwood, Jennie Black, Almira Hopkins, Allen Work, Alex. McGough, Allen Work (two terms), Samuel Hamilton, Robert Me- Isaac, Josiah Work, Alda Baylor, Josiah Work, Lizzie Work, M. E. McCreery, Olive Nichol, Viola Lewis, Etta M. Work, Frank B. Hastings, Hattie M. Work, W. C. Work, Mar- tha Work, Marie Moore, Martha Wyncoop, Virgil Zeanor, Horace M. Hudson, Genevieve Morrison (two terms), Marie Moore, J. S. Ross and Ebert Simpson, Vernie Mottern, Rachel Meanor, Lulu Dilts, Mary McCon- aughey and William Moore, Leland Kepler, Vada Walker, Bertha Work, Eugene Elder, Jacob Brilhart, Eugene E. Elder (the last two terms).

The following who were educated in this school became teachers : J. R. Elder, Mary A. Elder, John B. Work, Nancy J. Work, Allen S. Work, George Hall, Miles Walker, David W. Elder, Etta M. Work, Eugene E. Elder, Ethel G. Work, Hattie M. Work. Of this school, John B. Campbell became a physician, Robert H. Work a lumberman, Moses T. Work a professor of music, Elija Work a merchant, A. W. Steele a commissioner of Indiana county, M. C. Simpson a stock dealer, A. W. Elder a justice of the peace for fifteen years, Norman Hamilton an architect and contrac- tor, and Glen Kuntz a bookkeeper.

There were no carding machines, fulling mills or woolen factories in the neighborhood, and there was probably not a steam engine within thirty miles of the place. Scarcely a farmer along the creek had a wagon, the haul-

The next school house was located on what is now the farm of Phineas A. Work's heirs. The following teachers are given in the order ing being done with sleds. Of course, reapers,

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HISTORY OF INDIANA COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

mowers, grain drills and hoisting forks had not then been invented.

The following East Mahoning boys found their work along professional lines: David Elder, attorney, Pittsburg, Pa. (deceased) ; James M. MeCreery, State Senator, Greeley, Colo .; Rev. W. H. McCreery, United Presby- terian minister, Loveland, Colo .; Dr. Hubert Work, physician, founder of sanitarium, Pueblo, Colo .; Rev. Jeremiah Work, professor of Bible, Tarkio, Mo .; Rev. St. Clair Stuchell, Presbyterian minister, Washington, D. C .; Luther A. McQuown, editor of the "Rafts- man's Journal" and State Senator, Clearfield, Pa .; Rev. Samuel B. Lafferty, M. E.minister, Saltsburg, Pa., and Rev. Joseph Lafferty, M. E. minister, formerly of New Kensington ; Rev. George Rowe, M. E. minister, Mckees- port, Pa.

Among the elderly residents of the town- ship are the following : David B. Work, Wil- liam Hamill, James M. Loughry, T. H. Craig, Milton Work, Alex. Streams, A. S. Work, H. P. Lewis.

The Gilgal Presbyterian, the Mahoning United Presbyterian, Covenanter, and Metho- dist Episcopal and Baptist of Georgeville are the churches of East Mahoning township.

The first election in East Mahoning town- ship was held Friday, February 6, 1846, at the house of widow Ayers, where the follow- ing officers were elected: Justices of the peace. Peter Brewer and Allen W. Work (seven candidates) ; constable, James Lydick; assessor, Samuel Brady ; judge of election, Peter Sutton; inspectors, Peter Riddle and John M. Henderson; auditors, Henry Kinter, Hugh Hamilton, Samuel D. McCreery ; school directors, Gawin Adams, A. S. Work, S. H. Thompson, James McCreery, John Craig, Charles Bovard; township clerk, A. I. T. Crawford; assistant assessors, John Work and Robert Hopkins ; supervisors, John Brady and Robert Elder; fence appraisers, Samuel H. Thompson and John Allison ; overseers of the poor, James Lydick and John Simpson ; elec- tion officers-judge, Jonathan Doty; inspec- tors, Reuben Hastings and Christopher Stuchel. The greatest number of votes polled for any candidate was 81.

The assessor's book for 1913 shows the fol- lowing in East Mahoning township: Number and value of horses assessed, 350-$12,175; cows, 265-$3,985; taxables, 326; taxable real estate, $273,557 ; acres of cleared land, 17,371; acres of timberland, 1,393; money at interest, $44,802; cost of assessment, $51.20.

MARION CENTER BOROUGH.

Marion Center is situated on a tract of land which originally embraced 408 acres, the pat- ent of which was issued to James Johnston, deputy surveyor, on the 31st of January, 1798. In the patent the tract is called "Greenland" and is described as situated on the waters of Pine run.

In 1795 John Park came to this portion of Pennsylvania to make surveys under the direction of Mr. Johnston. In 1798 he pur- chased the "Evergreen" body of land, though he did not get his deed until the 2d of De- cember, 1803. In 1799 he erected a log cabin 16 by 20 feet in what is now the southwest end of the village, on the site where now stands the house of the Richey farm, now owned by J. H. Rochester. This was the first house erected in this section north of Penn's purchase line. Elisha Chambers, Hugh Thompson, William MeHenry, Fergus Moor- head, Jacob Shallenberger and five friendly Seneca Indians assisted in the raising. The Indians, according to tradition, would not work until the bottle of whisky was passed and each had drunk a portion thereof. Then, upon a signal from the chief, who shook ener- getically a gourd partly filled with corn, they went to work with much awkwardness, but good-naturedly, and the first building on the present site of the thriving borough of Marion Center was erected. After the raising they all went to Hugh Thompson's place, abont two and a half miles down Pine run, where the Indians and the whites had a grand frolic. The red men danced to the music of the shaken gourd and there was naught to disturb the harmony of the hour.

It is said that when Mr. Park first came to this region he encamped on the site of his cabin. Near it was a fine spring. On the opposite side of the run was a party of Indians who had erected their wigwams there, no doubt, on account of the spring, as well as the abundance of game in the surrounding forest. The next comer in this neighborhood was James Johnston, a nephew of the sur- veyor, who located about half a mile west of Mr. Park. The next was Daniel Davis, the grandfather of Clark Davis, who settled about a mile south of Mr. Park. William Smith, called "Old Billy," and his son William, termed "Big Billy," with their families were the next arrivals. They occupied Mr. Park's cabin until he arrived in 1808 with his family, and then they removed to the farm now occu- pied by Benjamin D. Rochester.

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Indiana County, Pennsylvania, her people, past and present, Volume I, Part 100

Author: Stewart, Joshua Thompson, 1862- comp Publication date: 1913 Publisher: Chicago, J. H. Beers & co. Number of Pages: 930

Author: Stewart, Joshua Thompson, 1862- comp
Publication date: 1913
Publisher: Chicago, J. H. Beers & co.
Number of Pages: 930