Jefferson County, Pennsylvania : her pioneers and people, 1800-1915, Volume II, Part 58

Author: McKnight, W. J. (William James), 1836-1918
Publication date: 1917
Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers
Number of Pages: 972

USA > Pennsylvania > Jefferson County > Jefferson County, Pennsylvania : her pioneers and people, 1800-1915, Volume II > Part 58

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was not later than 1820, and the place was in what is now Beaver township. Frederick, his eldest son, was assessed in 1820 in Pinecreek township, which then embraced everything north of Little Sandy. A little later Jacob Hetrick moved up Little Sandy, where by act of Assembly in 1826 elections for Perry town- ship were fixed at his house. This territory was Pinecreek, 1804 to 1817; Perry township, 1817; Young, in 1826; and Rose, in 1828. There Jacob Hetrick died and was buried in 1834, on the farm where he lived, in what is now (since 1851) Oliver township, at the northeast end of Mauks Tunnel. His tomb- stone inscription is as follows : "In memory of Jacob Hetrick. Departed this life Dec. 4, 1834. Aged 73 years i mo. & 9 days." John C. Hetrick, son of Jacob and grandson of Jacob, now living in Knox township, tells that he and Jacob, his father, made this stone and set it up. Jacob Hetrick had at least fifty grandchildren who grew up to manhood and womanhood and left families, mostly in Jef- ferson county, and eight of these grandehil- dren are now (1916) living, among whom (and to whom the writer is indebted for impor- tant facts herein) are John C. Hetrick, of Knox township; Jacob Hetrick, of Summer- ville, and John Black, of Ridgway. We have the following record of Jacob Hetrick's fam- ily: (1) Frederick, born 1785, is named in a complete list of taxables made for Jefferson county in 1820, along with the names of Sum- Baldwin, Euphrastus Carrier, Moses Knapp and Solomon Fuller-all residing in what is now Clover township. His name also appears in the lists of 1827 and 1836. In 1826 he lived at Coder Dam, just west of Brookville, where he was elected a county commissioner that year. In 1834, 1836 and 1839 he was appointed road viewer by the courts of Jefferson county. In 1830 he was a candidate for sheriff, but lost by a vote, the returns being 130 and 129. Soon after this he moved just west of what is now Summer- ville, where he was appointed and served sev- eral years as justice of the peace. In 1835 he moved to what is now Polk township. where he was assessed among the taxables of Snyder in 1836, and at his house the first election for Polk was fixed by Act of Assembly in 1851. He and his brother Jacob were great hunters, killing many bears, wolves, deer, wild- cats, foxes, and other wild beasts right here in the county. The writer well remembers hearing the hunter's horn blown by Jacob, calling his dogs, ringing clear and shrill in the early morning air, from the hills of Clover

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township, for many years. Frederick Het- rick had children: Adam, Mrs. Eliza Carrier, Mrs. Margaret Vandervort, Mrs. Magdalena Vasbinder, Mrs. Susan Conger, Henry, Mrs. Esther Carrier, Mrs. Eve Long, Mrs. Anna Davis, Mrs. Mary McAninch. Mrs. Catherine Lucas, Mrs. Hanna Shaffer Osborn, and Wil- liam. (2) Mrs. Elizabeth Black, daughter of Jacob, born 1791, had John Black (of near Brockwayville or DuBois) and Jacob McFad- den (of Polk township, deceased). (3) MIrs. Abigail Miller, born 1794, had children : Jesse, Philip, Abe, Mike, Kate, Christena and Sarah. (4) Mrs. Catherine Parson, born 1795, had children : Sofie, Mrs. William Fishel; Susanna or Frena, Mrs. Peffer; Betta, Mrs. Smith; Daniel; and John, of Marchand, Pa. (5) Christena, born 1797, married Christofel (or Stoffle) Hetrick, and had: Frederick. Adam, Philip, Peter, Jacob, Mrs. Susana Shaffer, Mrs. Sophia Brosious and Mrs. Margaret Knapp. (6) Jacob is mentioned below. (7) Samuel, born 1801, was not married. (8) Philip, born Sept. 19, 1803, had children : Darius, Steven, Eli, Paul, Mariah, Mrs. Agnes Weaver, Rebecca and Mrs. Rachael Schoofner. In 1843 Philip Hetrick and his brother John appear in the first list of taxables for War- saw. (9) John, born 1808, had children: Adam, Ephraim, Hiram, Philip, George, Mrs. Sarah Wolfgong and Mrs. Maggie Smith. In 1836 John Hetrick, son of Jacob, joined the "Jefferson Blues," and marched, drilled and paraded as a soldier.

Jacob Hetrick, son of Jacob and Lydia (Shaffer) Hetrick, was born in 1805 on French Creek, and died in 1888. His wife, Elizabeth, born in Jefferson county about 1805, died in her eighty-sixth year. in 1891. They had the following children: Rebecca, Mrs. Carrier ; Elizabeth : Andrew ; Catherine : John C. ; Mar- garet and Priscilla, both deceased; Esther, now (1916) seventy-three years old; and Jacob, now seventy-one years old. The two last named reside at Summerville.

John C. Hetrick, son of Jacob and Eliz- abeth Hetrick, was born in Jefferson county, and is now (1916), at the age of eighty years, living retired in Knox township. He was formerly a resident of Clover township. For a number of years he was engaged in the lumber woods and at rafting, and for several years he followed farming. During the Civil war he served in the 105th Pennsylvania Regiment. Mr. Hetrick was married at Summerville, Jan. 1. 1863, to Louisa C. Richards, also of Clover township, the ceremony being performed by B. S. Weyson, Esq. Mrs. Hetrick was born

March II, 1845, daughter of Abraham and Elizabeth ( Stuvor) Richards, who were born, respectively, Dec. 10, 1807, and 1809, and were married Feb. 20, 1829. Mr. and Mrs. Het- rick became the parents of a large family, viz. : Elizabeth, born Sept. 20, 1863, died in infancy ; Edgar, born Oct. 29, 1864, is living at home ; Mary, born Jan. 11, 1867, is the wife of Wil- liam Lee, and is living at Pennfield, Clearfield Co., Pa .; Cora, born April 2, 1869, is the widow of Samuel Hetrick and is living in Knox township; Harry, born Jan. 6, 1871, married Mabel McAninch, and they are living in Knox township; Frank B. is next in the family ; Wilson, born May 30, 1875, married Edna Ford, and they are residing at Kittan- ning, Pa .; Maude, born Aug. 30, 1877; is un- married and lives at home; John, born Nov. 24, 1879, now a resident of Wisconsin, mar- ried Mary Austin (deceased ) and (second) Lillian Fairweather; Bessy, born April 17, 1882, is the wife of William Shugarts, of Luthersburg, Clearfield Co., Pa .; Kitty, born Feb. 16, 1884, is married to David Neal, of Pinecreek township; Ralph, born May 25, 1887, married Alta Johns; Eva, born in November, 1889, is unmarried and living at home.

Frank B. Hetrick was reared in Knox town- ship, where he had such educational priv- ileges as the public schools afforded. His early employment was in the lumber woods, and he continued to be so occupied until 1899, when he turned to his present vocation. In 1900 he came to Brookville. where he has since made his home, his work being principally in Jefferson and adjoining counties. Mr. Het- rick has familiarized himself with the most up-to-date processes and appliances used in drilling, particularly in making tests for coal, to which he gives special attention. He is a member of the firm of Mehrten, Chitester & Co., whose reputation is deservedly high. He is a member of the Methodist Church.

On Dec. 15, 1898, Mr. Hetrick was mar- ried to Edith Chitester, daughter of David Chitester. and member of a worthy family mentioned elsewhere in this work. They have had one child. Rhoda, who died an infant.

ANDREW T. MCCLURE is another of the native sons of of Jefferson county specially entitled to consideration in this history. As a business man he has shown marked versatility. initiative ability and executive finesse, well evi- denced in his record as virtually the first man in America to build up a substantial and far- reaching jobbing business in the handling of

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window glass. with the manufacturing of which he was formerly identified. His busi- ness is conducted until the title of the A. T. McClure Glass Company, and the headquar- ters of the important enterprise are in the vigorous little borough of Reynoldsville, whose commercial prestige has been notably enhanced by the well ordered activities of Mr. McClure.

Andrew T. McClure was born on his father's farm in Winslow township, this county, son of Richard and Mary Jane (Smith) McClure. The parents were born and reared in the North of Ireland, where their marriage was solemnized and where the first five of their children were born. The lineage of the McClure family is traced back to stanch Scotch origin, its earliest representatives in Ireland fleeing from their native land to avoid religious persecution, their religious faith hav- ing been that of the Presbyterian Church. Richard McClure came alone to America and purchased a farm near the present village of Pancoast, in Jefferson county, Pa., and after having here provided a suitable home for his family he was, in about two years, joined by his wife, with their children and his father, who had remained in the Emerald Isle until such provision could be made. The five children born before the immigration to the United States were: Jane, Margaret, Bell ( who died in infancy). Bell (the second of that name) and Elizabeth, and thus there were four who accompanied the mother to America. The first of the five children who were born in the United States was Sallie, who became the wife of C. H. Goodlander ; the next two died in infancy ; Andrew T. is the only son ; Mary Ellen is the widow of Frank Hendryx.

Richard McClure, a man of superior men- tal and moral forces, gained in his day and generation secure place as one of the most pro- gressive farmers and most loyal and public- spirited citizens of Winslow township, and both be and his wife remained on their fine old homestead farm until they died, both attaining the age of seventy-one years. Mrs. McClure was an earnest and zealous member of the Presbyterian Church.

Andrew T. McClure gained his early educa- tion in the schools of Winslow township, and during the winter of 1873-74 attended school at East Liberty, a suburb of the city of Pitts- burgh. After his return to the parental home he continued his active association with suc- cessful agricultural enterprise in Winslow township until 1895, when he formed a part- nership with F. D. Smith, under the firm name

of Smith & McClure, and engaged in the hardware business at Reynoldsville. They developed the largest and most important hard- ware and implement trade centered at Rey- noldsville, and in that connection erected two large and substantial buildings for the accom- modation of their ever-expanding business, the first having been constructed in 1898 and the second in 1903. With this solid commercial enterprise Mr. McClure continued his associa- tion until 1904, when the firm disposed of the business. Meantime, in 1900, he had engaged in the manufacturing of window-glass at Reynold'sville, but in time he arrived at the conclusion that a broader field of enterprise could be developed working up the jobbing trade in window glass. Accordingly, in 1907, he initiated operations in this line, and the success that has attended his efforts has fully justified the course which he chose. At Rey- noldsville he has erected for the accommoda- tion of his large stock a commodious fireproof warehouse, and from this point as headquar- ters he has developed a jobbing trade which extends into many different parts of the United States. Ilis is the only definitely successful jobbing business of the kind established in a smaller city. Mr. McClure has not hedged himself in with the limitations of mere per- sonal advancement, and business success has only served to show him to be one of the most liberal and progressive citizens of his town. Though he has manifested no desire for politi- cal influence or public office, he served for a time as a member of the board of education. His political allegiance is given to the Repub- lican party. He commands a secure place in the popular confidence and esteem, and is es- sentially worthy of designation as one of the representative business men of his native county. Both he and his wife are zealous members of the Presbyterian Church at Rey- noldsville, and the family is one of prominence in the representative social life of the com- munity.

In 1880 Mr. McClure wedded Libby Smith. a daughter of that honored and well known citizen, the late Deacon William Smith, of Beechwoods, Washington township. Mrs. Mc- Clure passed to eternal rest in 1888. The fol- lowing children were born of this union : William A., John R. and Mary, the last named dying in February. 1915. The second mar- riage of Mr. McClure was solemnized in 1800. when Anna R. Hawthorne became his wife. she being a daughter of Joseph Haw- thorne, of Knox township, this county. Of the children of this union, Anna Bell, a grad-

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uate of the Allegheny General Hospital train- ing school for nurses, is now engaged in the practice of her profession as school nurse at Monessen, Pa. ; Margaret was graduated from the Reynoldsville high school and at the time of this writing is a student in the Pennsylvania State Normal School at Indiana, a member of the class of 1920; Robert B. is attending the Reynoldsville high school: Thomas H. is a student in the graded department of the public schools of his home town.

JOSEPH L. LONG has been a resident of Sykesville some thirty years, and during most of that time one of its prominent citizens, a business man and public official who stands firmly in the confidence of his fellow towns- men, a leader in social enterprises for the bet- terment of the community in general, and a religious worker who has been tireless in pro- moting Christianity and giving aid to its churches. For more than twenty years he has been a justice of the peace, and he has filled other responsible positions as well, honoring every trust by his high conception of its duties and endeavors to perform them well. In 1914 he was chosen chief burgess, the highest honor in the gift of the people of Sykesville borough.

Mr. Long's paternal ancestors were Ger- man. His father. John B. Long, was born in Pennsylvania, and married Jane Sherley, also a native of this State, of Scotch-Irish descent. Their early married life was spent near Kit- tanning, Armstrong county, whence in 1852 they removed to Jefferson county, settling in Gaskill township. The father engaged in farming and lumbering during his active years, dying in 1885. at the age of seventy-two. He was a Democrat, and with his wife belonged to the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. She died in 1872, aged sixty-eight years, and is buried with her husband in Mount Pleasant cemetery, this county. They were the parents of nine children: Tobias J., who became a farmer in West Virginia; Robert. of Gaskill township; John S., a Union soldier during the Civil war, who was wounded at the battle of Petersburg and died in hospital a month later : Joseph L .; Alexander D., a farmer of Clear- field county : Sarah E. and Marl, deceased in childhood ; David W., a farmer of Minnesota ; and Maria Jane, Mrs. William G. Estes, of Minnesota.

Joseph L. Long was born May 30. 1850, in Armstrong county, and lived at home until twenty years old. He was given such educa- tional advantages as were possible, and helped his father with the agricultural work and lum-

bering, which he continued on his own account for about ten years after embarking upon his independent career. In December, 1880, he removed to Troutville, where he took a posi- tion as clerk in the drug and general store of Dr. J. M. Lydic, but after a year's experience in that line resumed the lumber business, to which he gave all his time until 1887. At that time he removed to Sykesville and embarked in the grocery and meat trade, which he continued for a few years, giving it up in 1891 to engage in the real estate business and in the fall of that year starting a livery busi- ness, conducting the latter until the spring of 1893. As it was necessary for him to make a trip to Ottawa, Ill., he then sold his stock to Estes & Long, of Sykesville. About the time he went into the real estate business he was appointed agent for the Shaffer estate, and in that capacity directed the laying out . of the town of West Sykesville in 1891. In December, 1893, he was commissioned notary public, but gave up that commission when appointed justice of the peace, May 4, 1895; at the expiration of his appointed term he was elected to the office, which by re-election he has held continuously since, a mark of esteem which he has deserved by his faithful efforts to use the powers of his position wisely. In connection with his other interests, Mr. Long also handled the products of the McCormick Implement Company, of Chicago, as agent in his locality.

Mr. Long has been a Republican since 1880 and has always been a valued worker in the party, which has shown him various honors. His election to the office of chief burgess of Sykesville in 1914 was an expression of the appreciation of the townspeople for his able service in other capacities and their faith in his ability and qualifications for higher duties.

Mr. Long was the founder of the First Bap- tist Church of Sykesville, which had its origin in a Union Sunday school that he organized June 14, 1885, in what was then called the Shaffer schoolhouse. He was elected super- intendent. It was so successful that it was decided to continue it all winter, it being the first winter Sunday school held in this section. In December, 1885, Mr. Long purchased what was then known as the old rink building, and with the assistance of a few other devoted workers had it remodeled for a house of wor- ship. The funds gave out when the work was about completed except for the seating, but an old friend of Mr. Long's who became interested in the enterprise just then con- tributed the necessary assistance on Feb. 4,

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1886, and on Feb. 7th the "Baptist Bible School" held its first session in the new build- ing. The school having been supplied with literature by the American Baptist Publishing Society of Philadelphia, became a Baptist organization, and a missionary for the Clear- field Baptist Association commenced a series of meetings on Feb. 6th which continued for about three weeks. Meanwhile, under his auspices, the First Baptist Church of Sykes- ville was organized Feb. 15th as Bethel Church, with Mr. Long as one of the constituent mem- bers and one of the first deacons. In June. 1891. through his agency, ground was pur- chased for the erection of a new church build- ing, the cornerstone was laid June 26, 1892, and the building was completed and dedicated June II, 1893, free of debt. Mr. Long had united with the First Baptist Church of Punxsutawney in February, 1864. and in 1872 took his letter to the Soldier Run Baptist Church at Prescottville, which was more con- venient for him to attend, though seven miles distant from his home. On Feb. 12, 1886, he received a letter of church fellowship from the latter congregation to organize the Bethel Church, with which he has had so many years of pleasant and useful association.

Mr. Long was a charter member of Sykes- ville Lodge, No. 185. K. P., was elected first prelate, passed all the chairs. and has long been a past chancellor : he has also been master of work. In July, 1892, he was elected to represent his home lodge in the grand lodge meeting held at Reading, and has always been an enthusiastic member of this fraternity.

On July 3, 1870, Mr. Long was united in marriage to Hannah E. Estes, the ceremony being performed by Rev. Samuel Miles, at Punxsutawney. She was born April 6, 1851. in Jefferson county, daughter of Abraham and Margaret ( Hall) Estes, and granddaughter of Philip and Damie (Vosburg) Estes, natives of Luzerne county, Pa. Her maternal grand- father. James Hall, was born in Ireland, and settled at Milesburg, Center Co., Pa. Four children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Long : (1) Samuel B., who is engaged in the lumber

business at Sykesville ( formerly a member of the mercantile firm of Estes & Long), mar- ried. Cara Nichol, and has four children, Vesta, John, Martha and Frank. (2) Joseph Earle, for many years an engineer with the Cascade Coal Company at Sykesville, married Ida Phil- ippi, daughter of Henry Philippi, and they have had four children. Roy (deceased). Helen, Catherine and Harry. (3) John Percy is a conductor on the Bloomsburg & Sullivan

railroad and lives at Galeton, Pa. Ile married Cordelia Carpenter and has two children. (4) Ethel is the wife of Ray Null, of Sykes- ville, and has three children, Fred, Ruth and Fanny.

DANIEL McGEE, a lifetime resident of Bell township and one of its influential citi- zens, has a record of official service which does him the highest credit. His frequent selection for public responsibilities constitutes the best testimony regarding the value placed upon his ability by his fellow men. In every office he has discharged his duties with the same careful attention which his business interests have received, with a diligent regard for detail which deserved the reward of suc- cess. Though past seventy years of age he is carrying on his various enterprises as usual, and is serving his fifth term as justice of the peace.

Mr. McGee was born in Bell township Aug. 4. 1843, son of Robert McGee and grandson of James McGee, who was of Scotch-Irish extraction. The latter came from Centre county, Pa., in pioneer days, locating near Punxsutawney, in what is now Bell township, where he and his wife Elizabeth passed the rest of their lives. They had two sons, Rob- ert and .Isaac, the latter settling in Young township, where he made a permanent home.

Robert McGee was born near Bellefonte, Centre county, and as a young man accom- panied his parents to western Pennsylvania, becoming a farmer in Bell township, where he bought a tract of wild land which he con- verted into a good farm, living there until his death in 1882, when he was sixty-seven years old. He married Catherine Graffius and to their union were born eleven children, those who reached maturity being: William. who settled in Gaskill township. Jefferson county ; Samuel, a veteran of the Civil war, who set- tled in Bell township; Daniel; George, who settled in Gaskill township: James, who be- came a foreman on the Buffalo, Rochester & Pittsburgh railroad at DuBois: Robert C., who located at Clayville; Mary A., who mar- ried Urias Peace, a farmer of Bell township: and Scott, of Cloe.

Daniel McGee was reared upon the parental homestead in what is now Bell township, and obtained his education in the local public schools. He was well trained in the duties of the farm and work in the woods. For a few vears after his marriage Mr. McGee was located near Winslow, where he followed lumbering and rafting square timber down

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Mahoning creek to Pittsburgh. In 1871 he bought a part of the I. C. London property along Mahoning creek, in Bell township, about two and a half miles east of Punxsutawney. During his ownership the place has become one of the most valuable in the neighborhood, a productive farm and desirable home in every respect. Some of the timber had been cut on this land. but Mr. McGee had to remove the stumps, and he has cultivated the ground so wisely and chosen his crops so carefully that the soil has improved, yielding in abundance. Besides erecting a commodious dwelling he put up substantial barns and outbuildings. In 1891 he purchased a part of the old McGee homestead. as also farming and coal lands in Banks township. Indiana county. In addition to farming and lumbering he was for a num- ber of years engaged extensively in hutcher- ing. having built a slaughter house upon his home farm in 1888, marketing meat in Punx- sutawney.

There are few details of the administra- tion of township government with which Mr. McGee is not familiar. He has served as supervisor, auditor (nine years). school director and justice of the peace, having been first elected to the latter office in 1881. and re-elected. repeatedly. now serving his fifth term, his sense of responsibility, conscien- tious regard for the spirit of the law. and good judgment accounting for his continued retention. In political sentiment he has always been a Democrat. Socially he is an Odd Fel- low, belonging to Punxsutawney Lodge, No. 672. He has a host of friends and well- wishers, with extensive acquaintanceship. his unostentatious bearing and kindly disposition winning steadfast regard.

In 1866 Mr. McGee married Mary A. Williams, daughter of Reuben and Lucinda Williams, of Perry township. She died Sept. 15. 1915. Their surviving children are: Ida . C., born in Gaskill township in 1867. married C. A. Leasure, of Indiana county, and thev live in Albion ; John, born in Gaskill township in 1869, is a carpenter at Cloe : James, born at his father's present farm, married Caddie Grinder, and lives at Punxsutawney (they have several children) : Lucy is the wife of Elmer McElwain, of Bell township: Ethel is Mrs. Blair. Grube ; Pearl married Sadie Burns. and operates his father's farm: Harry mar- ried Laura Grube, and lives at Cloe (he is in the employ of the B. R. & P. R. R. Co.) : Ralph married Ruth Fletcher, and is a fireman on the B. R. & P. R. R. at Punxsutawney. Mr. McGee and his family belong to the Cumber-

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Jefferson County, Pennsylvania : her pioneers and people, 1800-1915, Volume II, Part 58

Author: McKnight, W. J. (William James), 1836-1918 Publication date: 1917 Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers Number of Pages: 972

Author: McKnight, W. J. (William James), 1836-1918
Publication date: 1917
Publisher: Chicago : J.H. Beers
Number of Pages: 972