USA > Pennsylvania > Allegheny County > Memoirs of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, personal and genealogical with portraits, Volume II > Part 32
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In all generations the Quaills have been noted for their public spirit and patriotism. In every war in which the United States has played a part the family has been represented. They have also taken a' great interest and an active part in the settlement of political questions. George Quaill, Sr., after the death of the whig party became an ardent republican, and continued with that party to the day of his death. Capt. John McClelland, who married Elizabeth Quaill, commanded Company E, 63d Pennsylvania volunteer infantry, during the Civil war. Rev. James M. Swan, who married another sister, Isabella A. Quaill, was an orderly sergeant in Company F, 30th regiment, Ohio volunteer infantry, and William Roberts Quaill served through the war in the 123d Pennsylvania infantry, commanded by Colonel Clark. Mention has been made of Robert Quaill, Jr., who was shot while a prisoner in the hands of the enemy during the Mexican war. Casper Reel, the father of Elizabeth (Reel) Quaill, took part in the American Revolution and some of the minor Indian wars. When war was declared against Spain, in the spring of 1898, Theodore Thomas Quaill, a son of George Ferris and Hannah (Kidd) Quaill, grand- son of George and Elizabeth (Reel) Quaill, and great-grandson of Casper Reel, was one of the first to enlist in the regiment organ- ized at Canton, Ohio, and afterwards known as "Mckinley's Own." There must be something pleasant for the present gen- eration in the thought that their ancestors were among those who went fearlessly into the trackless forest and changed a wilderness into a "country of homes." The mere contemplation of the deeds of valor of these ancestors is the best lesson in patriotism, and it is certainly a source of great gratification to know that their swords were drawn in defense of the homes they had labored so assidu- ously to build up, and the principles that our forefathers inculcated in the Declaration of Independence. Not all of the Quaills were warriors, however. Most of the family led the quiet, uneventful lives of farmers. But they were made of that fiber that impels men to forsake the plow for the rifle, and the peaceful fireside for the tented field, whenever any invasion of their rights is threat- ened. To conquer the forces of nature, to make two blades of grass grow where but one grew before, to actively assist in the maintenance of pure political institutions, are acts as worthy of praise and emulation as the victories won by the sword, and are doubtless what were meant by him who said: "Peace hath her vic- tories, no less renowned than war."
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DAVID H. CUNNINGHAM (de- ceased) was born on the old homestead in Baldwin township, Allegheny county, March 10, 1817. His father was George Cunningham, a native of Scotland, who came to America in 1802 with his wife, Jane Moore, and two children. He took up 218 acres of land, an estate which is still in the possession of the family. George Cunningham was the father of twelve children, of whom the subject of this sketch was the last survivor, his death DAVID H. CUNNINGHAM. occurring July 19, 1902. Mr. and Mrs. Cunningham were members of the Leb- anon Presbyterian church. Politically, he, like his son, was an ardent republican. His son, David, was first a whig, a supporter of William Henry Harrison, then a republican, casting his last vote for William Mckinley. He never lost a vote from his first one till the year 1900. David H. Cunning- ham came to Ross township in 1835, learned the blacksmith trade with his brother, William, and followed it success- fully for thirty-four years, after which he turned his attention to agriculture and at the time of his death was one of the lead- ing farmers of his township. He was married first to Martha Hiland, daughter of Robert and Sarah (Dixon) Hiland, the father coming here in 1798, the mother a daughter of William and Jane Dixon. Robert Hiland was a justice of JOSEPH CUNNINGHAM. the peace for many years, and otherwise officially connected with the county. He was an elder in the Pres- byterian church at the time of his death. To Mr. and Mrs. Cun- ningham were born five children: Alfred, William, Robert, Sarah and Joseph. He was married the second time to Mary Givan, daughter of William Givan, having no children by this second marriage. In religious belief, Mr. Cunningham was a Presby- terian.
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PETER IVORY (deceased), son of Peter and Catharine (Rogers) Ivory, was born in Pittsburg, Feb. 19, 1819. In the fall of 1819 he removed with his par- ents to Ross township, where his boyhood days were spent on his father's farm, and where he received his education in the district schools. Growing to manhood, he became a stock dealer for a number of years, and at the opening of the Civil war was appointed an official of the com- missary department, which position he held during the war. Politically, he was a strong advocate of the Jeffersonian democracy. Mr. Ivory was a man who had the confidence of the public, having held all the different offices in his own township, and served as justice of the peace for twenty-five years. He was postmaster at the time of his death, and was succeeded by his son, T. Conway, who still holds that position. Mr. Ivory was one of the organizers of the Alle- gheny & Perrysville plank road company, of which he was presi- dent and secretary for more than thirty years. He was the first president of the Pine Creek & Wexford road, and at the time of his death, his son, T. Conway, succeeded him in that office. In religious belief he was a devoted member of the Roman Catholic church. On June 5, 1863, Mr. Ivory was married to Joanna Conway, of Conway, Beaver county, who belonged to one of the pioneer fam- ilies of that county. She is a sister of the late Capt. J. J. Conway, who went into the war with the rank of lieutenant and was pro- moted to the rank of captain, winning this honor by his important service in the second battle of Bull Run. He was severely wounded in the battle of Fredericksburg, but after recovering resumed his service, and continued until the close of the war. Mrs. Ivory is also a sister of the well-known John Conway, of Rochester, Pa., who has a large private bank, and is well known in business circles throughout the State. To Mr. and Mrs. Peter Ivory were born five children: Peter Ivory, Jr., a graduate of the Union business college, now manager of the Park & Falls street railroad; T. Conway, a popular business man of Allegheny county ; Minnie; Mrs. Catharine (Ivory) Grant, of West View, and Eleanor M., wife of Dr. A. M. McCabe, of Allegheny. Peter Ivory, the father of the subject of this sketch, was born in the county of West Meath, Ireland, and came to America in 1817,
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settling first in Pittsburg. Removing two years later to Ross township, he purchased a large farm, on which he lived until his death, Nov. 10, 1849. He, like his son, was a democrat and a member of the Catholic church. He was the father of two chil- dren, Peter and Mrs. Mary (Ivory) Good, who died April 21. 1901. At the time of the death of Peter Ivory, Jr., May 20, 1896, he was the owner of a tract of 400 acres of land adjoining the city of Alle- gheny, the estate being still in the possession of the family. Mr. Ivory was noted for his charity and good works; his kindness of heart was known to many, no one in trouble appealing to him in vain. He was a man of sterling integrity, honest and upright in all his dealings; in fact, the highest tribute that could be paid to a man's honesty was to say he was as honest as "Squire Ivory."
S. A. BRINEY, one of the trusted fore- men in the Tarentum steel works, has devoted his whole life to the iron business and has mastered all the details of this useful industry. He is a son of David and Sarah E. (Jack) Briney, the former of Armstrong county and the latter a native of Iowa. The father has been an iron-worker all his life, but is now retired. He and his wife are members of the Lu- theran church. They have two sons and three daughters living and two sons dead. S. A. Briney, one of the two living sons, was born in Armstrong county, Pa., Aug. 18, 1879, and received but limited schooling during his youth. At the early age of eleven years he began work in the steel mill at Apollo, and at various periods subsequently was engaged in the same line in New York, Wheeling, W. Va., Leechburg, Ford City and Vander- grift, Pa. In 1901 he came to Tarentum and engaged with the Allegheny steel and iron company, in which establishment he now holds the position of foreman of the pickling department. He is progressive in his views, votes the republican ticket as a matter of conviction, and is regarded as a competent and reliable mechanic. On Oct. 15, 1902, Mr. Briney was united in matrimony with Miss Marie M., daughter of the late Herman Bockle, of Brackenridge. Mrs. Briney is a member of the Cumberland Presbyterian church and both she and her husband have many friends in the community where they reside.
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PHILIP FAULK, a resident of Ross township, son of David and Elizabeth (Glass) Faulk, was born in the district of Elsis, county of Waslon, France, May 15, 1821, and was given a good, practical education in his native country. His boyhood days were spent on a farm, but as he became a man, the farm limits were too narrow for him, and at the age of nineteen he sailed for America in the "Albany." His voyage was long, and would have been tedious, had it not been for his three associates, Charley and Louis Hammel and Jacob Gyre. After sixty-two days on the sea, he landed safely in New York, went by water from New York to Philadelphia, and after staying there a few days, continued the journey on foot over the mountains to Pittsburg, where he arrived in December, 1840, being eleven days on the road. The time of year was such as to insure much bad weather; often did he find the snow four feet deep. Mr. Faulk arrived at Pittsburg between Christmas and New Year's, and after spending a few days in visiting his relatives, and being anxious to learn the English language, he began to inquire among the English people for employment, which he found with Judge William Boggs, of Pittsburg. At the time of the great fire in 1845, he helped draw the fire engine from Alle- gheny to Pittsburg. In the same year he began business in part- nership with his brother, Michael, as a truck gardener. They were located on Locust street, fronting the river in Manchester, near what is known as Sampson's landing. About three years later he removed to Ross township, where he purchased a farm of twenty acres, on which stands an old pioneer log cabin, one room and an attic making up the whole house. This old cabin is still preserved by Mr. Faulk, and is one of the oldest marks of pioneer history in the county, having been built over 100 years. Mr. Faulk was mar- ried, in 1847, to Agnes Craig, daughter of William Craig. She was born in Wigtonshire, Scotland, April 5, 1830, and died Jan. 6, 1900. Mr. and Mrs. Faulk were married in Manchester, Rev. Wm. Gordon officiating. In 1849 they moved from Manchester to the farm on which Mr. Faulk still resides. To this marriage were born eleven children : Robert, David, Maggie J., Agnes, William J., Louis P., Ellen C., Walter, Lizzie, Oscar A. and Albert C., Robert, the eldest, being a soldier in the Civil war. Mr. Faulk is
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one of the respected citizens of this township, and by his energy and industry has worked himself up among the best farmers of his township. He and his three sons, Walter, Oscar and Albert, have formed a partnership under the firm name of P. Faulk & Sons, florists, fruit and berry growers, and make a specialty of fruit. Mr. Faulk is one of the oldest producers of berries in the county, having started in as early as 1847. Mr. Faulk is now in his eighty- third year, and is still in excellent health.
LEWIS OLIVER CAMERON, a resi- dent of Bellevue, son of James and Rachel Cameron, was born June 14, 1818, in Shippensburg, Cumberland county. His father, James Cameron, was the son of Calvin Cameron, who came from Scot- land, near Lochaber, with his two brothers, James and John, and settled in Lancaster county in 1763. Lewis Oliver Cameron was educated in the schools afforded by the times, in the days when the old log schoolhouse was prominent. He lived on his father's farm until he was fourteen years of age, and then began looking out for himself, his first job being that of deck hand on the Pennsylvania canal. From this he drove a boat, later owned a boat himself, becoming known as Captain Cameron, and followed this business for two years. Having previously learned the trade of the times, he went to Pittsburg in 1845, and represented the Pennock & Mitchell com- pany for five years, as manufacturer for their wares. In this he was very successful from a financial standpoint, and began manufacturing stoves, tin cups and sheet iron, on Liberty street, opposite Seventh street. He suffered on account of panic, but through good management cleared some money, enabling him to enter the oil business, in which he was engaged for several years. Later he became interested in real estate, and still follows that vocation. Mr. Cameron is one of the oldest oil men in the county, and the first man to refine it. While under contract for the Pennock & Mitchell company, he had spent much extra time in trying to improve the old lard and fat lamps, and after much experimenting succeeded in producing the clear oil from the black, thick product of the earth. Mr. Cameron has a long and success- ful career to look back upon, and that he was a man of a versatile
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character is shown by the different patents bearing his name. One, "the little heater," is widely known; painters know the value of Cameron's mixed gloss paints, and the patent combination globe street lantern is a wonderful improvement in the lighting of a city. Mr. Cameron's record as a soldier is one of the best, and among his greatest treasures one may find two letters from "Head- quarters at Richmond," dated April 4 and 7, 1865, which thank him for the good work he did during those days of bloodshed. He was very prominently connected with the occupying of Richmond, the first flag waved in that city after the war being at his request. Mr. Cameron was in hearty sympathy with the last war, and was greatly pleased over Cuba's freedom and the inauguration of President Palma. Mr. Cameron is a very active man for his age, and although he has passed three score and ten, few young men can outwalk him.
FRED SCHWITTER, proprietor of Schwitter's sweet cream dairy, in Ross township, was born in Canton Glarus, Switzerland, in 1847. On attaining his majority, he came to America, landed at New York, and without food, money or friends, made his way to Allegheny county. In his native land, Mr. Schwitter was a silk dyer, but in this country he found it difficult to get employment at his trade, so he turned his hand at whatever he could find to do. With true Swiss pluck, he worked at various occu- pations until 1871, when, having saved a few dollars, he started in the dairy business on a small scale, prospering from the first. After ten years he was able to purchase a farm of his own, and, in 1881, bought the old Morrow homestead, five miles from Allegheny city. This farm contains seventy-five acres, and since it came into his possession, has become one of the finest in the county. During the thirty years that he has been a purveyor of milk and cream to the people of Allegheny city, he has never allowed the quality of his goods to depreciate, and his dairy is known all over the county for the purity of its products. Mr. Schwitter has recently pur- chased a fine home in his native city, the property of the first mil- lionaire of Glarus. He has leased his property in Ross township, known as the Highland farm, for a term of five years, and will
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make his residence for a time in his new home in Switzerland. Mr. Schwitter is a very public-spirited citizen, and though he loves his native land, as all his countrymen do, yet he is deeply interested in all that conduces to the welfare of his adopted country, and has been prominently identified with the public works of the county. His name was among the organizers of the Perrysville & Bellevue land company, and he was instrumental in getting the street rail- way extended to his home. Mr. Schwitter is a republican in poli- tics, but does not take an active part in party affairs. He is a member of the Catholic church.
JOHN H. POWER (deceased) was born in Pendleton county, Ky., Oct. 5, 1822. His father was Hiram Power, born in Montgomery county, Ky., Jan. 27, 1796, and died in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1832. He was a carpenter and farmer, and had several brothers who were Methodist ministers. The paternal grand- father was also named Hiram, and was a pioneer settler of Kentucky, of Irish descent. The mother of the subject of this sketch was Hester (Parker) Power, born in Westmoreland county, Pa., Nov. 7, 1803. After the death of the first husband, Hiram Power, she married Rev. Isaac Smith. Reverend Smith died May 17, 1869, and his wife on Feb. 3, 1889. John H. Power was reared in Kentucky until his fifteenth year, receiving a common-school education. He then removed to Norwalk, Ohio, and from there went to Salem, Ohio, where he was for a time a clerk for his uncle, J. H. Power. He also learned the blacksmith trade, and followed this vocation a number of years. He was for sixteen years employed on the Lake Shore railroad, being located at Norwalk, and then came, in 1869, to Pittsburg, and became manager of A. French & Co.'s spring works, remaining with this firm until January, 1873. On Feb. 6, 1873, he became foreman for the Allegheny Valley railroad, and in 1876 went to Verona, but after the borough was divided, he was a resident of Oakmont, where he retired from active life in 1901, and where he died May 20, 1903. Mr. Power was always actively con- nected with the Methodist Episcopal church. In politics he was a republican, and served as burgess of Verona in 1881 and 1882. He was a member of Verona lodge, No. 548, F. and A. M. Mr.
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Power was married, Nov. 22, 1844, to Miss Roxanna M. Haskell, of Huron county, Ohio, and had by this marriage four children. The first two, Helen Evaline and Ellen Adaline, were twins. Helen Evaline is now deceased, as are two later children, Charles Beard and Mary, but a number of grandchildren and great-grand- children are living. Mrs. Power died Aug. 6, 1890, in Oakmont, at the age of sixty-four. Helen Evaline married Thompson Smith, of Fairfield, Ohio, and had two children, John A. and Lillie B. John A. is married and has two children, and Lillie B., now .Mrs. Clarence D. Taylor, has one son, Edmond George. Ellen Adaline Power, the only living child of this family, is now the wife of John F. Weirs, and has three children, Charles, Courtland and Jennie.
WILEY G. REEL, of the firm of Louden, Reel & Call, is a resident of Bellevue, Pa., and is one of the promis- ing young business men of the county of Allegheny. He is the son of William V. and Elizabeth (Spence) Reel and was born on Aug. 1, 1868. Until he was nine- teen years of age he worked on a farm and attended the township and Bellevue pub- lic schools, in which he acquired a good education. When he arrived at the age of nineteen, he went into the shops of Thomas Carlin & Sons, of Allegheny city, to learn the trade of a machinist. After working at this business for a time, he went into the oil field located on the David Reel farm, in Ross township, Allegheny Co., Pa., where he remained until 1898. That year he was sent by some Boston capitalists to Cape Breton island, and after his return to Allegheny in the fall, he began operations as an oil well driller in Armstrong county, Pa. The following year he formed a partnership with W. A. Louden, under the firm name of Louden & Reel, to carry on the business of drilling oil and gas wells throughout the Pennsylvania field. In the fall of 1902 the firm name was changed to Louden, Reel & Call, and its operations were extended to Allegheny, Wash- ington and Armstrong counties in Pennsylvania, and to Tyler county in West Virginia. Mr. Reel is also a stockholder in, and, after the death of R. M. Hays, July 6, 1903, was president of the Lustre oil company, which operates in Ohio and Indiana: and a
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stockholder and manager of the Bellevue and Homestead oil and gas company. He is also interested in the Reel combination gas and steam engine company, of Pittsburg, Pa. He is a thirty- second degree Mason, holding membership in the following differ- ent Masonic organizations: Bellevue lodge, No. 530; Allegheny chapter, No. 217; Allegheny commandery, No. 35, Knights Templars; Pittsburg consistory, and Syria Temple, Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He is also a member of Col. T. M. Bayne lodge, No. 1098, Independent Order of Odd Fellows; West Bellevue council, No. 240, Junior Order of United American Mechanics, located at Avalon, Pa., and of the Bellevue Methodist Episcopal church. Politically he is a republican, and, although he takes an interest in public questions, he never "talks politics" at the expense of his business. Few men at the age of thirty-five have accomplished more in a business way, and none have brighter prospects for the future. In September, 1903, he was elected director and manager of the Ilo oil company, and on September 15th of the same year, was sent to Fairmount, Ind., to take charge of their territory in that State.
HARRY L. RIBLET, sheet steel roller in the employ of the Allegheny steel and iron company, of Brackenridge borough, was born in Mercer county, Pa., March 15, 1867, son of James H. and Catharine (Stivenson) Riblet, the father a native of Mercer county, and the mother of Armstrong county, Pa. James H. Riblet, born May 23, 1841, by vocation a farmer, is now retired from active life, and lives with his wife, who was born May 2, 1849, in Scottdale. In politics he is a republican. In religion he and his wife are Presbyterians. They are the parents of four children, all living, who are: Harry L .; Blanche, wife of Charles Kistler, of Canton; Rose, wife of Harry Beale, of Tarentum, Pa., and Mabel, wife of Frank Renouf, of Port Vue, Pa. James H. Riblet's father was John Riblet, who was born in Hagerstown, Md., came to Mercer county in an early day, and died there at the age of seventy, while his wife was a daughter of William Stivenson, a native of Armstrong county, whose father was one of the first settlers of that county. Harry L. Riblet was reared and educated 11-24
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in Mercer county, and has worked in steel works since he was fourteen years old. He formerly worked for some years at Apollo, Pa., and in 1901 came to Tarentum. He has proved himself a capable and faithful workman, and has been roller for the past eleven years. He is a stockholder in the Tarentum savings and loan company, and owns, besides a comfortable residence on Third avenue, Tarentum, considerable other property. In politics he is. a republican. Mr. Riblet was married, in 1891, to Miss Nellie Wilmot, of Apollo, and has had six children, viz. : Mildred, Pauline (deceased), Olivette, Blanche, John and Jeanette. Mrs. Riblet is. a member of the Presbyterian church.
WILLIAM H. HEATH, of Greenock, Pa., a successful lumber dealer and con- tractor, was born at Greenock, Elizabeth township, Allegheny Co., Pa., Aug. 29, 1866, son of O. M. and Sarah (Speckman) Heath, his father having been one of the oldest and most respected residents of that township. The elder Heath enlisted in the 155th regiment of Pennsylvania. infantry, which was a zouave organiza- tion, and served throughout the Civil war with fidelity and courage. William H. Heath was reared and educated in Alle- gheny county and on leaving school devoted his attention to car- pentering at Greenock, where all of his business career has been devoted to that occupation. In 1895 he began the lumber and con- tracting business and since has followed the same with much suc- cess, in which lines his practical knowledge of carpentering stands. him in good stead. He was married, in 1888, to Jennie, daughter of Capt. W. B. and Mahala (Morton) Harrison, of Mckeesport, and they have three children, viz. : Earl S., Pearl U. and Ross D., the two eldest attending the local schools. Mr. Heath has been identified with public affairs in a prominent manner and served as auditor and clerk of the township for four years. He is closely and prominently connected with the republican party, has served as committeeman and otherwise taken an active and intelligent interest in its advancement and success. Mr. Heath is also a mem- ber of the Knights of the Mystic Chain, and is widely known as a man of sterling character and splendid business ability.
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