Indiana County, Pennsylvania, her people, past and present, Volume I, Part 120

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 120

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HISTORY OF INDIANA COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

selves. Needless to say Mr. Scott's vigilance minie ball, which he carried in his body the and solicitude have had much to do with caus- ing this attitude on the part of the community. His characteristic thoroughness in attending to all matters intrusted to his care has marked his career in business circles as in the field of his profession.

Mr. Scott is also a public-spirited citizen, who has always given much of his time and money for the furtherance of public projects looking toward the advancement and general good of the community. He is an active mem- ber of the board of trustees of the Indiana Normal School, and has lately been influential in having persons of wealth by large indi- vidual gifts make possible the establishment of the Indiana Hospital, a much needed in- stitution for the town and county. He is also one of the directors of this hospital.

In every capacity to which he has been chosen he has devoted himself with a direct- ness of purpose and decision which have made his work particularly valuable. In politics Mr. Scott has always been a Republican, and he has been an energetic worker in the inter- ests of his party. In fraternal connection he is a Mason. His religious association is with the Presbyterian Church.

In 1899 Mr. Scott married Edith Young, daughter of Professor J. Young, and they have three children : John, Florence, and Al- bert. The family home is at the corner of Seventh and Water streets, Indiana borough.

CAPT. GEORGE HILL OGDEN was at the time of his death serving as treasurer of Indiana county, and had been a resident of Homer City from the close of his service in the Civil war. He was one of the best-known citizens of that place. Captain Ogden was a native of Westmoreland county, Pa., born Aug. 15, 1839, in the Ligonier valley, and was a son of Joseph and Jane Anne (Hill) Ogden. His maternal grandfather, after whom he was named, was Rev. George Hill, a pioneer min- ister of the Presbyterian denomination in this section of the State.

Up to the time of the Civil war Captain Ogden worked at the carpenter's trade, which he had learned in youth. On Oct. 4, 1861, he enlisted in Company E, 11th Regiment, Penn- sylvania Volunteers, under Capt. H. B. Piper. The regiment, known as Col. Dick Coulter's, was in the thick of many of the hardest fought battles of the war. At the second battle of Bull Run, Aug. 30, 1862, he was struck by a

rest of his life. He received an honorable discharge from the service on account of his wounds Oct. 29, 1862, and returning home found that he was physically unfit to con- tinue work at his trade. Accordingly, locat- ing at Phillipps Mills, now a part of Homer City, he formed a partnership with J. H. Devers and bought out the general store of John Mullen and Robert Phillipps. They conducted the business successfully for a num- ber of years, and eventually Captain Ogden bought the interest of Mr. Devers and con- tinued it alone. Then he removed it to the location it was still occupying at the time of his death, at which time he was associated with his sons. Meantime he had acquired other interests, being appointed agent for the Pennsylvania Railroad Company at Homer City and serving as such for a number of years, and for over twenty years he held the position of postmaster. In the fall of 1890 he was honored with election to the office of treasurer of Indiana county, and had served but five months of his term at the time of his death, June 8, 1891. He died suddenly, while going from his office to a fire in Indiana, Pa. He was buried in Oakland cemetery, at Indiana.

In 1869 Captain Ogden organized a com- pany of militia in Homer City and Center township, and was its first captain. He was also well known in his active connection with the Presbyterian Church, of which he was long a member, being identified with both church and Sunday school work. On June 1, 1884, he was elected elder, discharged the duties of that office conscientiously and was prominent in all church enterprises, was for many years superintendent of the Sunday school, and at the time of his death was serv- ing as assistant superintendent. It was said of him then : "His voice was always heard in defense of the right and in condemnation of wrong. He was a gentleman at all times. Of courtly demeanor, pleasant, affable and kind-hearted, he held his friends with bands of steel. He was a man of deeds and not of words, and from the generous promptings of his heart many a good deed was performed. His death leaves a void that cannot be filled and the place made vacant will remain so for all coming time. He leaves a name behind him fragrant with good deeds, and his mem- ory will ever be green in the hearts of the

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HISTORY OF INDIANA COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

many who have shared his generosity and superintendent's office of the West Penn divi- friendship."

His official associates adopted the following resolutions on his death :

Taught by the Christian philosopher who believed death to be the opening door to a happier life and prayed with rhythmic beauty,

"Life Then steal away, give little warning; Choose thine own time. Say not good-night but in some brighter clime Bid me good morning,"

We may not complain at the sudden taking off of our friend and associate Capt. George Hill Ogden, but howing in reverence

Resolved, That it is hard to recover from the shock- ing reality that we have seen for the last time on earth our agreeable companion, who was every day gaining in our confidence and esteem. The better we knew him the better we liked him. As a friend he was sincere, true and steadfast; as an associate in public business he was patient, intelligent and con- siderate; as a public official he was attentive, oblig- ing and growing in popular esteem; as a husband and father he was devoted, affectionate and dutiful; as a man we believed him to be a Christian gentle- man. His sudden death is lamented by the people of the county, and is a great grief in the community in which he resided.

Resolved, That the stricken family of the deceased has our tenderest concern and deserves our sympathy not only in words but in every practical way we can give it.

(Signed) HARRY WHITE, A. H. BRAUGHLER, JAMES MCGREGOR, JOHN A. SCOTT, Com.

On May 1, 1866, Mr. Ogden was married, in Center township, to Nancy H. Dickie Mul- len, daughter of George and Jane (Dickson) Dickie, and widow of Hugh Mullen, and they had two children, George Dickie and Joseph Clark. Mrs. Ogden is a woman of intelligence and Christian character, devoted to her home and family. She is a member of the Pres- byterian Church. Mr. Ogden was a Republi- can in political matters.

George Dickie Ogden, eldest son of George Hill and Nancy H. (Dickie) Ogden, was born May 16, 1868, in Homer City, and there re- ceived his early education in the public schools. Later he attended the Indiana nor- mal school, and Washington and Jefferson College. Upon leaving school, which he did at the age of eighteen, he assumed the duties of railroad station agent at Homer City, suc- ceeding his father in that position June 1, 1887, and was transferred to Allegheny City yard as night yard clerk in October, 1890, and to the position of transportation clerk in the 40

sion in November of the same year. In May, 1891, he was transferred to Butler as freight and ticket agent, in February, 1895, to Mc- Keesport as freight agent and yardmaster, and on Jan. 1, 1898, to Harrisburg, as freight agent. He was promoted to division freight agent at Altoona Jan. 14, 1901, and trans- ferred to the Buffalo & Allegheny Valley di- vision at Pittsburg in the same capacity on June 1, 1903, and on March 1, 1906, was ad- vanced to the position of assistant general freight agent, east, at the general offices in Philadelphia. On May 8, 1912, he was pro- moted to be general freight agent of the Penn- sylvania Railroad Company. In 1903 Mr. Ogden married Mary B. McCandlass, daugh- ter of Judge Charles MeCandlass, of Butler, Pa. They have one daughter, Katharine Z.

Joseph Clark Ogden, younger son of George Hill and Nancy H. (Dickie) Ogden, was born Nov. 8, 1870, at Homer City, and began his education in the public schools there. He also attended Kiskiminetas Springs Academy, at Saltsburg, Pa. For a time he was employed by the Pennsylvania Railroad Company at Blairsville, Indiana county. He is now liv- ing with his mother at Homer City.

REV. JAMES DAY BROWNLEE, D. D., the oldest minister in years of continuous ser- vice in Indiana county, has been pastor of the United Presbyterian Church in Indiana, since 1877. Dr. Brownlee was born Feb. 4, 1842. in Washington county, Pa., and is of Scotch descent, his great-grandfather, the first of this line of Brownlees in the United States, hav- ing been born in Scotland.

James Brownlee, his grandfather, was born in Chester county, Pa., and came to Washing- ton county when a boy. He was a farmer by occupation. In religion he was a member of the Associate Presbyterian Church.

John Brownlee, son of James, died in 1874, and his wife, Mary (Day), died in February, 1885. They were the parents of the following children: Sarah died when six years old ; Malcolm P. served in the Civil war as a sol- dier of the 15th Pennsylvania Cavalry, and died in April, 1863; Maria A. died when six years old; John Calvin is a farmer of Wash- ington county, Pa .; Mary E. is the wife of William Lindley ; Ella W. is the wife of David Henry, of New York City; Rev. H. H. is principal of the Silliman Collegiate Institute, at Clinton, La. (he was pastor at Port Gib- son, Miss., for sixteen years) ; Laura A., who died in August, 1912, was the wife of Rev. A.

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HISTORY OF INDIANA COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

H. Crosbie of New York City; James Day have been born to this union : James Day, Jr., completes the family.

James Day Brownlee attended public school in Washington county, Pa., later going to Washington College and to Westminster Col- lege, at New Wilmington, Pa. He took his theological course at the United Presbyterian Seminary at Allegheny, Pa., graduating in 1869. In 1870 he took his first pastorate, the United Presbyterian Church at Wellsville, Ohio, where he was located for six years. Ow- ing to illness resulting from a wound he re- ceived while serving in the army during the Civil war, he then retired from the ministry for one year. On Oct. 1, 1877, he resumed his ministerial work as pastor of his present con- gregation at Indiana. When Dr. Brownlee came here the church had a membership of but two hundred seventy, which has now in- creased to over five hundred, and the work of the congregation has broadened accordingly. A second congregation has also been organ- ized. The affairs of the church are now in most encouraging condition. Dr. Brownlee is an earnest and forceful preacher, endowed with oratorical powers which continue to draw large audiences to his sermons. His sincerity and energy in and out of the pulpit have won him the good will and respect of the entire community, and his long and happy service in this field has made him widely known.

On June 4, 1861, Dr. Brownlee enlisted for service in the Union army, becoming a private of Company K, of the 8th Pennsylvania Re- serve Regiment, and served until January, 1863, when he was discharged by reason of disability, having been wounded Sept. 14, 1862, at the battle of South Mountain. He was in the Patent Office hospital at Washing- ton, D. C., for several months, and has never fully recovered from his injuries ; he still car- ries the bullet in his body.

On Sept. 5, 1866, Dr. Brownlee married Isa Vance, daughter of Samuel R. Vance, of Law- rence county, Pa., and they became the par- ents of the following children : Arthur A., a graduate of Princeton University, who re- sides in New York City; Mabel I., who grad- uated from the State normal school at In- diana, and died at the age of twenty-six years ; and Paul Vance, who died when twenty years old. The mother of this family died March 21, 1873, and on Sept. 27, 1877, Dr. Brown- lee married (second) Catherine Smith, daugh- ter of Alexander and Margaret (MeGregor) Smith, of Wellsville, Ohio. Four children

a graduate of Princeton University, now an attorney at law, of Indiana, Pa .; Charles S., a civil engineer, married to Mabel McCreight, now residing in Oregon; May, who is a gradu- ate of the Indiana State normal school and of Wilson College, taught school three years at Mount Pleasant, Pa., and has attended Col- umbia University, New York City, taking a master's degree; and Bertha, a graduate of the Indiana State normal school, now engaged in teaching in Arizona.

J. WILLIS WILSON, Treasurer of Indiana county, the duties of which office he assumed Jan. 1, 1912, is a native of this county, born Nov. 9, 1865, son of Joseph and Levina (Mc- Cartney) Wilson. His grandfather, Joseph Wilson, was also born in Indiana county, and was a farmer by occupation. His wife's maiden name was Wilkie. He was a member of the United Presbyterian Church.

Joseph Wilson, father of J. Willis Wilson, was born and reared in Indiana county, and received a public school education. He was engaged in business as a dealer in live stock. During the Civil war he served in the Union . army as a member of a cavalry regiment for a short time, being discharged by reason of disability. He married Levina McCartney, daughter of George and Nancy (Adams) Mc- Cartney, the former of whom was born in Indiana county and was a farmer by occupa- tion. The McCartney and Adams families were both among the pioneer settlers in In- diana county. Joseph Wilson died in 1868, his wife, who survived him many years, pass- ing away Jan. 24, 1912. They were members of the United Presbyterian Church.

J. Willis Wilson, only son of Joseph and Levina Wilson, began his education in the common schools, later attending the State Normal School in the borough of Indiana. He then became a clerk in the store of A. W. Wilson, at Indiana, and for about twenty years continued his connection with the mer- cantile business there in the employ of var- ious firms. He then became associated with the Travelers' Insurance Company, and has engaged in the insurance business, in connec- tion with other business interests, ever since.

In 1909 Mr. Wilson was elected burgess of the borough of Indiana, and he held that of- fice until he resigned, in December, 1911, to become treasurer of the county, to which of- fice he had been elected Nov. 8, 1911. A man of progressive disposition, modern standards

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HISTORY OF INDIANA COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

and the ability to put his ideas into execution, der the efficient management of Mr. Dugan, he gives every promise of making a satisfac- tory record in the important office which has been intrusted to him. He is well known in the local fraternities, being a member of the B. P. O. Elks, and Woodmen of the World, and also belongs to the Cosmopolitan Club of Indiana. His religious connection is with the United Presbyterian Church.

In 1896 Mr. Wilson married Maggie Wiles, daughter of D. Wiles, of Sharpsville, Mercer Co., Pa. They have had three children,. namely : Margaret, Joseph H. and Dewalt, the last named deceased.

THOMAS DUGAN, general manager of the Dugan Glass Company, of Indiana, one of the home industries upon which the prosperity of that borough depends, over two hundred finding employment at the plant or in cou- nection with its business, has himself been associated with the glass business practically throughout his working years. He was born in 1865 in England, son of Samuel and Fan- nie (Sneyd) Dugan, and attended public school in his native land. When a youth he came to the United States, in 1881 locating at Pittsburg, Pa., where for a short time he took whatever employment he could find. Eventually he found work with a glass com- pany of Wheeling, W. Va., where he remained until 1883, in which year he returned to Pitts- burg and took employment with another glass company. He was with that concern until 1886, meantime learning the details of manufacturing so thoroughly that he had be- come fitted for the responsible part of the work with which he was later to be intrusted. His next removal was to Martins Ferry. Ohio, where he was engaged in a glass works for about three years. Then he went to Elwood City, Pa., to work for his former employers. and was promoted to the position of foreman of their plant, which he held until he came to Indiana in 1896. Here he accepted the posi- tion of manager with the Glass Company of Indiana, which at that time was owned by the National Glass Company. In 1904 the con- cern was sold and reorganized, under the name of the Dugan Glass Company, whose stock is owned by citizens of the borough of Indiana, Judge Elkin being president, Sher- iff H. W. Thomas secretary, and Mr. Dugan general manager and treasurer. The com- pany has been successful from the start un-

who is a recognized authority and expert in his line. The product of the plant is shipped to both coasts and there is also considerable export business, the reputation of the com- pany having extended to various foreign coun- tries. The magnitude of the output may be judged from the fact that employment is given to about two hundred thirty hands in all departments, from which it will be seen that the establishment is quite important in its relation to the local industrial situation. The superior quality of the goods turned out, and the strictly upright methods of dealing with customers, have gained for this concern the highest standing in the business world, which insures a regular market for its out- put and steady employment for its help. Much of the success of the company is justly attributed to the complete knowledge Mr. Du- gan has of the various phases of the business, for he is not only an excellent judge of work- manship and finished goods, but he also un- derstands the marketing question, keeps abreast of progress in every department of this branch of manufacturing and upholds the standards for which his concern has become noted in every respect.

In 1888 Mr. Dugan married Emily Dorsett, daughter of Joseph Dorsett, of Allegheny county, Pa., and they have two children : Emily L. and Thomas.

Mr. Dugan belongs to the Royal Arcanum and the B. P. O. Elks, being particularly prominent in the latter organization; he was one of the organizers and charter members of the Elks lodge in Indiana and has passed all the chairs in that body, being a past exalted ruler. He was one of the committee of five which supervised the building of the Elks Home in Indiana.

DAVID IRWIN CUNNINGHAM, of Homer City, Indiana county, member of the firm of Cunningham Brothers, lumber manu- facturers, is a native of Brushvalley town- ship, this county, born Ang. 24, 1869, and belongs to a family of Scotch extraction whose first representative in Indiana county was William Cunningham, his grandfather.

William Cunningham was a native of the State of New York. He came west when a young man, locating in Wheatfield township, Indiana Co., Pa., where he made a permanent home. He owned a small farm, but he drove stage on the old turnpike between Ebens-

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HISTORY OF INDIANA COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

burg, Armagh and Blairsville for some years, tration. He has served Brushvalley township and later drove stage between Butler and as school director and tax collector, being a man who believes thoroughly in each citizen's responsibility and duty to the community. He has also been active as a member of the U. P. Church, in which he is serving as elder. In politics he is a Republican. Pittsburg. He was a patriotic Union man dur- ing the Civil war, and not only gave his own services in behalf of the cause but also had five sons who entered the army, one of them falling in battle. William Cunningham also gave up his life on the battlefield, dying in an In 1864 Mr. Cunningham married Cather- ine Campbell, who died in July, 1909, at Heshbon, and is buried in the Bethel Church cemetery. She was a member of the United Presbyterian denomination. Mr. and Mrs. Cunningham had the following children : William, who is a merchant at Mechanicsburg, Indiana Co., Pa .; Robert, partner of his brother in the lumber business, who resides at Heshbon; David Irwin; Luennette, who is married to William Corson, of Garfield, Pa .; Harry G., who resides in Iowa; Ada E., wife of Joseph Wagner, residing in East Wheat- field township; Ethel, who married H. R. Fa- loon, now a merchant at Heshbon ; and Flora, deceased. engagement in South Carolina, at the age of fifty-six years. He was buried there. His wife, Esther (Hutchinson), a native of Wheat- field township, died in East Wheatfield town- ship and is buried in the cemetery of Bethel Church, in East Wheatfield township. They were the parents of eight children: Robert fell at Fort Donelson while serving as a mem- ber of the 40th Illinois Regiment during the Civil war, and died of his injuries; John re- sides in Johnstown, Pa .; David is mentioned below ; Samuel, who also served in the Civil war, is now an attorney at Indiana, Pa .; Jo- seph, a soldier of the Civil war, is a minister of the Evangelical Church; Albert, a soldier of the Civil war, is now a resident of Johns-' town, Pa .; James is engaged as a merchant at Seward, Pa .; Alphonse resides on the old homestead.

David Cunningham, son of William, at- tended the schools of the home township and worked at home upon the farm until he was of age. When twenty-three years old he rented a farm in West Wheatfield township which he continued to cultivate until his en- listment, in July, 1864, in Company H, 206th Pa. V. I., under Captain Grear and Colonel Brady, the command being attached to the Army of the James. He was in the service eleven months, and was mustered out at Rich- mond, Va., after the close of the war. Return- ing home he went to work at teaming in West Wheatfield township, and followed that line for two years. He then settled in Brushvalley township, where he began farming on a tract of 235 acres, which he operated and improved, doing general farming and stock raising un- til he withdrew from such work, in 1890. That year he removed to the village of Hesh- bon, where he became engaged in a general mercantile business. This he carried on for a period of twenty years, in 1910 retiring and turning the business over to his son-in-law, H. R. Faloon, who has since conducted it. For eleven years, while engaged as a merchant, Mr. Cunningham was postmaster at Heshbon, being appointed under the Garfield adminis-

David Irwin Cunningham, son of David, ob- tained his education in the district schools of Brushvalley township. At an early age he began to help with the work about the home place, continuing thus until eighteen years old, when he learned the trade of carpenter. After following it for a short time he went to work in the sawmill of Samuel Shafler, in West Wheatfield township, being with him for over a year, and then worked for Joseph Cramer, on his portable sawmill. In 1889, just after the Johnstown flood, he went to Johnstown to work as a carpenter, remaining there for a year, and in 1890 he joined his brother Robert and E. E. Kunkle in the con- duet of a sawmill, under the firm name of Kunkle & Cunningham. This association lasted until 1892, when Mr. Kunkle sold out his interest, and the brothers have been to- gether ever since under the present name, Cunningham Brothers, manufacturing rail- road ties and other lumber. They have cut off large timber tracts in Brushvalley, East and West Wheatfield and Buffington town- ships, Indiana county, and in Somerset county, this State. In 1906 Mr. Cunningham established himself in business in Homer City as a dealer in lumber and building supplies, in addition to his manufacturing business, but he sold out his interests in that line after three years in order to give all his attention to manufacturing. He resides in Homer City. His interests are very extensive, and steadily

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HISTORY OF INDIANA COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA

increasing under his excellent management. ings, died in Lancaster county, Pa., in 1777. He was one of the organizers, and became a His children were as follows: John, Lydia, member of the first board of directors, of the Patience, Sarah, Job and Enoch. First National Bank of Blacklick. Though busy with his own affairs he has found time to serve as school director of Homer City for three years. He is a Republican on political questions, and with his wife holds member- ship in the U. P. Church at Homer City.

On Sept. 22, 1896, Mr. Cunningham mar- ried Mary E. Duncan, who was born in Cen- ter township, daughter of Morgan M. Dun- can, and they have a family of four children : Iva M .. Flora K., Myrtle M. and Areta C.

The Duncan family, to which Mrs. Cunning- ham belongs, is of Scotch origin. Her grand- father, George Duncan, was a native of West- moreland county, Pa., and was one of ten sons born to Samuel Duncan, who came from Scot- land. George Duncan followed farming in Center township, Indiana Co., Pa., where he owned a tract of 100 acres, which he continued to cultivate throughout his active years. He died in Allegheny county, this State. His wife, Emily (Snyder), of Brushvalley town- ship, died in Blacklick township, Indiana county. They had nine children: Ellen, James, David, Almira, Samuel, Susan Mary, Morgan M., John and Daniel.

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Indiana County, Pennsylvania, her people, past and present, Volume I, Part 120

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