Jefferson County, Pennsylvania : her pioneers and people, 1800-1915, Volume II, Part 91

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 91

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(7) Frederick died in young manhood.

MALVERN H. MORRIS, a merchant of Punxsutawney during the greater part of his business life, one of the leading dealers in clothing in that part of Jefferson county, has taken the part in the commercial and social development of that horough which might naturally be expected of a member of the fam- ily to which he belongs. For three generations its representatives have exercised a distinct influence in shaping the progress of the various communities in this county in which their ma- terial interests have caused them to settle, and

their efforts have always been directed toward the betterment of conditions, for the spread of religious and educational opportunities, the es- tablishment and maintenance of good govern- ment, and all the other circumstances of en- vironment which go to make life worth living and provide local attractions sufficient to hold the most ambitious. True to the characteris- tics of his race, he has been one of those whose foresight has given them courage to go for- ward steadily, making the way clearer for others.

The Morris family has long been established in Pennsylvania, Obed Morris, the grandfather of Malvern H. Morris, having been born in Bucks county, this State, in 1792. He was reared and married in Northampton county, P'a., where his wife, Mary ( Bowman), was born in 1791. In 1820 this couple moved to western Pennsylvania, first locating in Indiana county, and a few years later becoming pio- neers in Jefferson county, where they settled in Young township, upon a timber tract of 106 acres which he had purchased from the Hol- land Land Company. Mr. Morris began his improvements by building the usual log house and barn, and then set to work to clear the land and develop a farm, which he cultivated successfully for many years, remaining thereon until his death, which occurred in September, 1885. He is buried in the Oliveburg cemetery in Oliver township. Mr. Morris had served as a soldier in the war of 1812, and he was just as patriotic in the ordinary duties of citizenship. becoming one of the prominent residents of his section by reason of his activity in all good movements. But he was particularly zealous in bringing religious enterprises into the lo- cality, and was one of the organizers of the first Presbyterian Church at Punxsutawney. founded in 1826, being one of a dozen earnest workers who labored for that purpose. When, in 1836, he and his wife with others dissolved their connection with the old church and founded the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, Obed Morris presided over the meeting. His son, James M. Morris, later a ruling elder in the Olive C. P. congregation, was the last sur- vivor of those who joined the new church during the first year of its existence. Obed Morris served as an officer in the original church started in 1826. His wife died in Feb- ruary. 1859. Of the seven children born to them, the two daughters predeceased her, one. Mrs. Williams, dying shortly after her mar- riage, leaving no family. The five sons were as follows : ( 1) James M., born Feb. 14, 1815. in Northampton county, was reared on the

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homestead in Jefferson county, and after his marriage to Phoebe J. Williams purchased a farm in Perry township, this county. Later he traded that for the farm in Oliver township where he settled. He reared five children : Mary E., Mrs. Enos Nolph : William P., who married and lived in Oliver township until his death in 1895; Emily, deceased, Mrs. R. J. Crissman ; Charles A., who married and set- tled on his father's farm in Oliver township ; and C. L. (2) Theodore, born in March, 1819, married Matilda Gibson, and settled in Young township. (3) Charles R. B., born in August, 1821, married and settled at Frostburg, this county. (4) Joseph B. was the father of Mal- vern H. Morris. (5) Moses .A., born Jan. 29, 1830, married a Miss Means, of Whitesville, Pa., and died many years ago. (6) Elizabeth married Hiram P. Williams. (7) Mary B.

died in childhood.

Joseph B. Morris was born Aug. 11, 1827. on the old homestead in Young township, and passed his youth under the ordinary circum- stances of rural life in those days, having such educational advantages as the country schools afforded when the terms were short and the instruction confined to the simplest branches. However, his practical training was more thor- ough, his father being a capable farmer, and he learned the lessons of thrift and industry as well the details of agricultural work. When he reached his majority he went into the lumber business on his own account, and followed it for the next twenty years. For three years he was in the mercantile business at Punxsu- tawney. being associated in that line with the late Dr. Shields, as dealers in dry goods, gen- eral merchandise and drugs. Later he re- turned to the farm in Young township where he had been born and reared, purchasing the property in 1854 and making his permanent home there, giving a large share of his time to its cultivation, in which he was highly suc- cessful. In 1848 he opened a vein of coal there, which proved to be well worth working, and operated it for many years. The place became thoroughly developed under his ex- cellent management, increasing steadily in value.

Like his father, Joseph B. Morris was a public-spirited citizen. but he took a more ac- tive part in public affairs, having been chosen to a number of important offices. He was county auditor, jury commissioner, and for thirty years justice of the peace, and filled a number of minor positions also, giving to the duties of each the same scrupulous attention which his private concerns received. For

many years he was a member of the State militia, and served as a captain in the State Guards. In political opinion he was a Repub- lican. His religious connection was with the Cumberland Presbyterian Church of Punx- sutawney, in which he served as a ruling elder from 1882 until his death. Before his death Squire Morris moved from the farm to the West End, Punxsutawney, and died in June, 1909, at the home of his son Malvern H. Mor- ris. He is buried in the Olive cemetery.

In the spring of 1853 Squire Morris mar- ried Julia Murray, who was born in Ireland, and who died in 1857, leaving no children. In 1858 he married ( second) Catherine Crissman, of Hamilton. Jefferson county, who was born in 1837 in Indiana county, Pa., daughter of Enoch Crissman, who came from Huntingdon county, this State ; her mother's maiden name was Jordan. Mrs. Morris died in 1887, and is buried in the Olive cemetery. She was the mother of five children, namely : Malvern H .; Ida L., deceased wife of J. Clayton North, of Punxsutawney ; Joseph Lindsay, who was for- merly in partnership with his brother Malvern, now in the United States marine service, sta- tioned on the flagship "San Diego;" Clarence . O., a graduate of Waynesburg ( Pa.) College, now a practicing attorney located in Kittan- ning, and at present district attorney of Arm- strong county ; and Lucy C., a trained nurse, in Pittsburgh. On Jan. 2, 1890. Squire Mor- ris married ( third) Mrs. Margaret Miller, of Bloomington, Illinois.

Malvern H. Morris was born May 4, 1863. in Young township, on the home farm not far from Punxsutawney, and remained there until nineteen years old. Meantime he had excel- lent advantages in the public schools of the neighborhood, which had improved in keeping with its development, and in the winter of 1881-82 he was a student at the National Nor- mal University, Lebanon, Ohio, winning a di- ploma in the commercial department. During his early years he had engaged in farm work at home, and he was subsequently occupied in teaching and at various other employments until the fall of 1884, when he became a clerk in a mercantile house in Pittsburgh. Here he acquired his first practical training in mer- chandising, and upon his return to Punxsutaw ney entered business on his own account in partnership with his brother-in-law, Mr. North, dealing in clothing and men's furnish- ings. After three years in that connection he sold his interest and went West, going to Portland, Oregon, where he spent one year. But he concluded the opportunities were just

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as favorable in his home county, and he came back and went into business at Clayville ( which is now a part of Punxsutawney ). He contin- ued his store there until January, 1896, when he and his brother J. L. Morris started a cloth- ing business at Punxsutawney, the association, however, lasting but a short time, since when 31. H. Morris has carried on the business alone. flis establishment in the Pantall block is one of the best equipped and best stocked of such stores in this section, in a region where the trading facilities are unusually good and stand- ards accordingly high. From the beginning Mr. Morris has commanded his full share of the most particular custom in and around the borough, and he has an appreciative list of patrons who have found that the goods and service in his store compare favorably with those to be found anywhere. He has always made it a rule to keep in advance of the de- mands of his trade, his stock including the best the market affords and a wide range of all leading lines of merchandise in his field. Most of his business hours have been devoted to the development of this business, though he has had other interests, and for two years he was a member of the board of directors of the County National Bank of Punxsutawney, from which he resigned. His social connections are with the Masons, Elks, and Country Club of Punxsutawney. As a Mason he holds mem- bership in John W. Jenks Lodge, No. 534, F. & N. M., and in Coudersport Consistory, thir- ty-second degree. Ile is a Republican in polit- ical sentiment.

Mr. Morris married Ida Weaver Kirschner. daughter of William and Sophia Kirschner, of Pittsburgh. She died May 7, 1916, and is buried in Mount Royal cemetery at Pittsburgh.

GEORGE R. ADAM, editor of the Brock- wayville Record, has given his town an exam- ple of journalism in its best functions, but it is only fair to allow the community credit for manifesting a congenial spirit of progress in its appreciation of his efforts. Mr. Adam has tried to make the Record an ideal country newspaper, carrying to its readers full infor- mation of local affairs, with impartial opinions on matters of general interest and importance, as well as a report of national and interna- tional events of the day. From the editorial and business standpoint it has attained a posi- tion of influence most gratifying to the owners, and it is quite typical of Mr. Adam's prac- tical nature that the same standards should prevail in the mechanical department. His connection with the Record dates from r899, 29

with the exception of the interval during which he was postmaster at Brockwayville.

Born May 31, 1877, at Arnot, Tioga Co., Pa., Mr. Adam is a son of Andrew W. Adam and grandson of James Adam. The latter lived and died in Scotland. Andrew W. Adam was a native of Glasgow, whence he came to the United States about fifty years ago with his young wife and one son, landing at New York. They settled at Fall Brook, in Tioga county, Pa., and he followed contracting about the mines, principally in new construction work, while at that point. Then for some years he lived at Arnot, later removing to Reynolds- ville and Brockwayville, Jefferson county. His death occurred at Brockwayville, April 9, 1903, when he was seventy-three years old, and he is buried in the Beechwoods cemetery. For a number of years he was an elder in the Brockwayville Presbyterian Church. In politics he gave his support to the Republican party. His wife, Isabelle ( Findlater), born in Edinburgh, Scotland, daughter of James and Margaret Findlater, came of a family of physicians. She is a descendant of the Earls of Mar, and therefore of William Wallace and Helen Mar. In 1910 she went to Denver, Colo., to make her home with her daughter, Mrs. Mackley, and died at Denver, Dec. 19, 1916. She was buried in the Beechwoods cem- etery, in Washington township, on Dec. 29th. Eight children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Andrew W. Adam: James, who is a merchant at Sayre, Pa., married Anna Fleming ; Wil- liam G., of Waverly, N. Y., in the service of the Lehigh Valley Railroad Company, married Sarah French; Andrew W., who is a retail shoe dealer at Trinidad, Colo., married Wilda Blose : Thomas F., owner of the Adam Shoe Company of Reynoldsville, married Inez Brown; George R. is next in order of birth; Margaret is the wife of Edward M. Mackley, of Denver, Colo .; Alexander F., a retail shoe dealer at Clearfield, Pa., married Anna Mc- Gill; John B., in the retail shoe business at Fort Collins, Colo., married Irene Cooksie.

George R. Adam lived at his native place until twelve years old, and had such education as was obtainable in the common schools of that small mining town. He had difficulty with numbers, which he did not like, but en- joyed the other common branches and history and grammar. His parents removing to Rey- noldsville, his schooling was continued there for three years, until he began work, as "devil" in the printing room of the Reynoldsville Star. While acquiring familiarity with the various branches of the printing business he was tak-

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ing advantage of every opportunity for edu- cational improvement. studying at home and attending night school. After eleven months' employment at the Star office he went over to the Volunteer, to become foreman of the print shop, and during the five years of his connec- tion therewith not only did the mechanical work, but also handled the local news, getting considerable experience in the other end of the business, in which direction his ambitions lay. Having decided to make a change he went to New Bethlehem (Pa.) for six months, meantime keeping on the lookout for a desir- able opening to enter the business on his own account. He found what he wanted at Brock- wayville, where he purchased the Record, be- coming its nominal owner Feb. 17, 1899, though his father was financing the enterprise. It was not long before. under his vigorous manage- ment, the plant was entirely rejuvenated. The paper had been printed on an old Washington hand press-that is, the part printed at Brock- wayville, for half of it was run at Pittsburgh. Mr. Adam installed new machinery practically throughout, retaining only so much of the old equipment as he thought profitable. The cylin- der press he put in was the first of its kind in the borough. All his time was given to the development of the paper and its growth as a business venture until he received the appoint- ment of postmaster of Brockwayville April 6, 1906, under Roosevelt's administration, and in 1908, finding that it was impossible to do justice to both positions, he sold his interest in the Record to F. T. Wilson in order to de- vote himself to his public duties. His term expired April 25, 1910. Meantime, on March 24, 1910, the old I. O. O. F. building in which the paper had been published was destroyed by fire, and Mr. Adam, having organized a stock company which bought back the Record in February of that year. immediately set to work to secure new quarters and rehabilitate. The present location was decided upon, and a complete new equipment was installed. the first issue from the new office appearing May 6th. For several years Mr. Adam was asso- ciated with Dr. B. B. Brumbaugh and others in the ownership of the Record, during which time he had the active management as well as the editing, and all the progress made is the result of his endeavors alone so far as actual work is concerned. Recently he acquired full ownership of the Record plant, and he is now the sole owner and proprietor. The paper has been enlarged from four pages to an eight- and twelve-page publication, and the paper has improved steadily in quality as well as size.

covering an unusually broad field. Consider- able space is given to metropolitan, national and world news, nevertheless it maintains its character as a distinctly local paper, present- ing town, county and State news reliably and attractively. The policy of the editor has been to operate a paper of real service to the public and his home town and county, who have re- paid his loyalty to their interests with warm support and encouragement. Mr. Adam has the great satisfaction of knowing that his edi- torials get the serious attention of his read- ers, and he is sincere in his efforts to merit their confidence. He has strict principles regarding the responsibilities of leadership which should appertain to an influential paper, and exemplifies them in his stand on public questions. The Record was one of the first papers in Jefferson county to own a linotype machine, and throughout the management has been equally up-to-date, maintaining an estab- lishment wholly creditable to the town and county.

Mr. Adam was married at Brookville, Pa., Oct. 14, 1903, to Flora Wilson, who was born in that borough in 1882 and educated in its public schools, graduating from the high school. She is a daughter of Hiram and Har- riet (Faulkner) Wilson, the former of whom died at Brookville in April, 1916. Mr. and Mrs. Adam have had two children: Virginia Harriet, born Aug. 24, 1909, and Anna Mar- jorie, born Oct. 4, 1910. Mr. Adam affiliates with the Knights of Pythias; Odd Fellows : International Geographic Society of Research ; Pennsylvania State Editorial Association ; and Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. He is secretary of the Brockwayville Board of Trade.

WILLIAM MI. FAIRMAN, for over forty years a practitioner at the Jefferson County bar, has been one of the conspicuous members of the legal profession here. IIis specialty has been criminal law, in which field his reputation has been State-wide. Though now one of the oldest lawyers in the county, being an oc- togenarian, Mr. Fairman continues practice with no abatement of enthusiasm or shrewd- ness in the handling of his clients' interests, or of his own in either professional or business pursuits, which latter have occupied a large share of his time and attention.

Mr. Fairman was born at Brookville, Jef- ferson county, Oct. 31, 1836, son of James Fairman and grandson of David Fairman. His father was born in Indiana county, Pa .. located with his wife at Brookville in 1832, and

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followed sawmilling for a time, later teaching school. He died of consumption in 1839, and his widow, Catherine ( McConnahey), remar- ried, dying in February, 1885. She, too, was a native of Indiana county.

When ten years old William M. Fairman went West to Illinois with his paternal grand- father, who brought him up. For four years he attended school at Decatur, Ill., later taking an academic course in a school at Jacksonville, that State, after which he taught in Macon and Shelby counties, following that profession until 1861. When the war broke out he returned to Pennsylvania and joined the Union forces from his native State, as a member of Com- pany I, 62d Pennsylvania Volunteers, remain- ing in the army to near the end of the war and seeing a goodly share of field service. He was wounded at Gaines' Mills, Va., in 1862. After being mustered out at Pittsburgh, Pa., in 1864, Mr. Fairman came to Punxsutawney, where he has since made his home. For a few years after settling here he was engaged at his for- mer profession during the winter season, fol- lowing lumbering in the summer time, until 1870. Then he took up the study of law, enter- ing the office of Jenks & Winslow, and it is but just to say that he became one of the most creditable students of those competent instructors. Having been admitted to the bar in 1874, he started independent practice at once, and attracted such favorable notice from the beginning that in 1876 he was elected dis- trict attorney, filling the office creditably until 1880. His private practice and business inter- ests have reached such proportions as to de- mand all his energies since. For a number of years Mr. Fairman had the unique distinction of having defended every homicide in the county from the time he began practice, with only one conviction among his clients. Though Mr. Fairman has never cared for office, pre- ferring to confine his political influence within the sphere of choosing proper officials, he has twice received the nomination of the Demo- cratic party for Congressman from his district, declining it on the second occasion.

Mr. Fairman was married. at St. Louis, Mo., to Lizzie Jefferson, a native of Delaware. Mrs. Fairman is a member of the Christian Church.

JAMES ALEXANDER HAVEN, M. D., formerly of Summerville, now of Brookville, is a native of Jefferson county, having been born at Summerville, then part of Clover town- ship, June 21, 1858. His father was Clark B. Haven and his paternal grandfather Hiram Haven. The latter lived and died at Empor-

ium, Cameron Co., Pa., at which place the father, Clark B. Haven, was born and reared to manhood on the old home farm. But about 1847-48, while traveling with a circus in the capacity of teamster and violinist, he came to Jefferson county, and being taken ill while the circus was in the county remained permanently, finally settling at Summerville, where he earned a livelihood by doing day's work. Dur- ing the Civil war he served three years on the Union side as a member of the 105th Penn- sylvania Volunteer Regiment, and received a gunshot wound which eventually caused his death. Mr. Haven was joined in marriage to Maria Alexander, a native of New York and a daughter of the late Capt. John Alexander, a captain in the war of 1812, the second war with Great Britain. From this union came the following children : Samuel P. and Frank Herbert, now of Summerville; Dr. James Alexander; John C., who died in infancy ; Wallace W., who grew to manhood and died ; Lucinda J., who died in young womanhood ; and Mary, now Mrs. R. M. DeHaven, and a resident of Summerville. Mr. Haven died at Summerville in the year 1893, at the age of sixty, and Mrs. Haven died April 26, 1895.

James Alexander Haven, whose ancestry has been just briefly traced, had educationally only the advantages afforded by the common schools in his youth, and was variously em- ployed in his early life, but his natural ability and desire for improvement impelled him to become something more than a common laborer. So, when but eighteen years of age, he secured a position in the telegraph office at Summerville, learned telegraphy, and in time was made operator there, which position he held for twelve years. In the meantime his success as telegraphist whetted his ambition to further achievements, and while succeeding in the one work he occupied his spare time by tak- ing up the study of medicine under the guid- ance of Drs. R. B. and J. K. Brown, father and son, respectively. He made such good progress that in 1887 he was ready to enter the Western Pennsylvania Medical College, at Pittsburgh, where he completed his course, graduating March 27. 1890. Immediately upon graduation he formed a partnership with his former instructor, Dr. J. K. Brown, and they practiced together for one year at Summerville, when Dr. Haven moved to Clarion and prac- ticed one year, then returning to Summerville and resuming practice in partnership with Dr. Brown for five or six years. Later, upon Dr. Brown's removal to Brookville, Dr. Haven was in practice by himself or in partnership with

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Dr. W. W. Carrier until he moved to Brook- ville, April 1, 1908.

While Dr. Haven has acquired an enviable reputation in the medical field, yet it is by no means the sum total of his achievements. When the telephone was a rarity, and scarcely known outside the larger towns, and when the possibility of hearing and recognizing a friend's voice for a distance of miles held much of doubt and mystery to the majority of the people, he became interested in telephony and conceived the idea that Summerville should have a telephone. Failing to receive help in this regard from the established company, he and a number of others decided to install a telephone service of their own, and in the face of strenuous opposition from organized teleph- ony a system with a few telephones was established in Summerville. A narrative of the details of this early effort would no doubt make interesting and amusing reading, but from this small beginning has developed the Summer- ville Telephone Company, one of the most enterprising and up-to-date independent tele- phone corporations in the State. For about twenty years Dr. Haven has been one of the foremost figures in promoting the interests of this company. His training as a telegraph operator particularly qualified him to take the initiative in the development of the telephone business and the executive duties connected therewith, and on Dec. 1, 1897, he was selected as general superintendent of the company, which position he has filled ever since. The general supervision of the development of the interests of the company, both as to the con- struction of the plant and its business policy, has been largely intrusted to him, and he has handled it all ably, adapting himself to its con- stantly increasing volume of business with a readiness which betokens unusual capacity. Since 1914 he has also been a director of the company.

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Jefferson County, Pennsylvania : her pioneers and people, 1800-1915, Volume II, Part 91

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