Notes and queries historical, biographical, and genealogical, Vol. I, Part 77

Author:
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: s.n.
Number of Pages: 618

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the county are gentlemen and ladies who ought to take a great interest in this organization. We be- lieve the Society has begun right, having made a selection of active workers in the field of history as its officers. The Rev. Dr. Dubbs is president, Prof. Wicker- shamand 'Squire Evans vice presidents, with Messrs. Hostetter and Griest as sec retaries. The executive committee is a strong one. Until 1785 our county of Dauphin formed a portion of that noble old county and the prior history thereof is a part of our inheritance. As such we have studied it-and as such we have a full and high appreciation of the services of all whocontr.bute to it. Success waits upon the Lancaster County Historical Society.

THE FIRST STEEL SKATES ON THE SUSQUEHANNA.

Some of the Seneca Indians still live on a small plat of land in the lower part of New York State, near the Pennsylva . nia border. One of the old men of the tribe was visited by a reporter not long ago, and in telling of the extremely cold winters experienced by him he related a

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very odd and interesting story of the Susquehanna river. According to the old Seneca's narrative there once lived in a Seneca village on the upper Susquehanna a tall, bright lad named Sau we nau. One autumn Sau we nau accompanied a number of chiefs to Philadelphia, the ob ject of the visit being 10 trade as well as to see the sights. While in Philadelphia Sau-we nau, who at that time was twelve years old, was given a pair of skates-the first skates with steel runners he had ever seen. He prized them very highly and, strapping them together, hid them in the folds of his blanket, so that the envy of Other Indian lads might not be stirred. But it so happened that some boys of the Nanticoke tribe which had just mi- grated from the Chesapeake Bay up the Susquehanna to a point beyond where Harrisburg stands, learned about Sau- we-nau's prize, and on the night of the departure of the Nanticokes Sau-we-nau missed his skakts. Without saying a word he slipped away with the expecta . tion of overtaking the Nanticoke lads before morning. In this he was disap. pointed, for the Nanticoke boys learning that they were pursued, left their elders and pushed on ahead across the country now traversed by the Pennsylvania Rail- road. Sau we-nau passed the Nanticoke chiefs and kept on the trail of the boys until about noon the next day. Then he was so faint and hungry that he had to rest and find food. He gathered enough berries to satisfy his appetite, and, chew- ing bits of sweet roots as be ran, he kept on the trail until sundown. Then he saw the waters of the Susquehanna and knew that the Nanticoke boys soon would reach their homes. Spurred by this, Sau. we-nau dashed along the river for an hour or more, when he suddenly came upon the Nanticoke boys sitting at the roots of a riverside tree. Sa uwe-nau tapped the soles of his moccasins to tell the Nanticokes what he wanted, but they laughed and tapped their foreheads to indicate that he must be erazy. The Seneca and Nanticoke tongues were so different that Sau. we nau tried

to address the boys in English, of which he had a bare smatter- ing. He told them that the Senecas and Nanticokes were at peace and that the

latter shouldn't bring a winter war over such a small matter as a pair of skates. He demanded that the skates should be returned at orce and that the Nanticoke boys should give him the broken head of an arrow as an acknowledgment of their submission. Sau we naa's speech pro- voked still louder laughter and almost before he knew it Sau we nau was over- powered and bound. He was taken to the Nanticoke village just above and there kept a prisoner until far into De- cember. The Senecas in Philadelphia had missed Sau-we-nau on the morning after a long search had made complaint to the Governor, but no one suspected the cause of his disappearance or his real whereabouts In November they hastened to return to their village, fifty miles above the present city of Williamsport, giving Sau-we-nau up 'as lost to the tribe for ever.

As a prisoner Sau we nau was made to work on arrows, moccasins and pelts, and indeed to do drudgery that no Nanticoke lad would think of doing. He waited for an opportunity to escape, but the Nanticoke boys watched him so closely, night and day, that cold weather came and he was still kept in a tent with old squaws. When ice covered the Susque- hana the Nanticoke boys bound him and led him to the river bank trat he might see them use his skates. Sau-we-nau not only was disgusted with his unhappy situation, but it made him doubly miser- able to see the poor skating of the Nanti- cokes. The latter had never been ac- customed to skates, because they had come from a milder climate, while Sau- we-nau had used skates with wooden runners ever since he could walk.

One day when the ice was in fine con- dition the Nanticokes took Sau we-nau to the river to torment him. They bound his legs together with thongs and for the first time strapped the skates to his feet. Sau we nau couldn't stand, of course, and his ridiculous tumbles and rolls caused all the boys, warriors, women and children in the village to gather around him on the ice and shout with laughter. As the fun continued it grew more and more barbarous, and at last two strong war- riors began to play "shinny" with poor Sua we-nau, tossing him here and there

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on the ice, in the midst of the most up- roarious merriment. But the Seneca hoy was patient nnder the buffeting. He felt better with the skates under his mocca. sins than he had felt at any time during his imprisonment. Indeed, he thought he saw how a bold stroke could set him free and, while making believe

to be unconcerned, he kept his

purpose of escape well in hand.

The merry - making Nanticokes completely surrounded him, leaving a circle on the ice just large enough for the two warriors to send him sliding and sprawling from one to the other The warriors had tossed him so many times that both were almost out of breath. Sau we nau saw this and noticed, too, that it took longer for him to piss be. tween the Warriors than at first. Could he get a knife ? Yes; he thought he saw the point of one sticking beneath the belt of one of his tossers. Could he cut the thong and gain his feet while passing between the warriors? Yes; he thought he could. Anyhow, he would try. So when he was seized for perhaps the twentieth time Sau-we-nau slipped his hand into the tosseis belt and in a twinkling secured the knife. The hundred ;hy standers saw the movement and yelled to the tosser to hold to him, but the toss had been given, and while the whole crowd was rushing for- ward Sau we-nau was slashing the thongs that hound him and gaining his feet. Oh, how strong he felt when freed from the thongs. He darted here and there he tween the yelling Nanticokes dodging blows, and striking with his knife until in a few seconds he cleared the crowd and shot away up the Susquehann. Ar. rows sped after the flying Sau. we-nau, but he escaped them. Every man and boy in the village ran after him, but in an hour he left them out of sight and leisurely skated toward the camp of the Senecas, near the headwaters. When he reached the camp, two days later, Sau- we-nau told the story of his hardships, and the Senecas declared war against the Nanticokes. The war was waged for two years and many Nanticokes and Senecas were slain.

SOME GENEALOGICAL NOTES.

McGOWAN.

John McGowan, of Martick township, Lancaster county, d. October, 1775, leav- ing issue:

i. Thomas.

ii John.

iii Arthur.

iv. Ellen.

v. Jan. vi Mary.

MOORE.

I. William Moore, of Paxtang, son of Adam and Jennett Moore, d. June, 1776, leaving a wife Agnes, and children :

i. [a dau. ]; m. John Davidson, and had Elizabeth, Agnes and Robert.

ii. Margaret; m. Thas Mays,

iii. [a dau. ]; m. James Murdoch, of Rowan county, North Carolina. II. Agnes Moore, of Paxtang, d. Octo- ber 1784, leaving her estate to My brother John Forster.

My sister Sarah Forster.

To Agnes and Mary, daughters of my brother John Forster.

MCCLENAHAN.

William M'Clenahan, of Paxtang, d. September 1783, leaving a wife Margaret, and issue:

i William.

ii. James.

MONTGOMERY.

Sarah Montgomery, widow, of Pax- tang, d. October, 1784. leaving her estate to her children as follows: (see N. & Q. cxxxi )

i. Mary; m. - - Durcan. ii William; d. prior to 1784.

iii. Elizabeth; m. John Gallagher; and had Sarah and Thomas.

iv. David. v. John.

vi. Hugh; m. and had Sarah and Mary.

O'NEAL.

Charles O'Neal, of Paxtang, and lately of Ireland, d. September, 1770, leaving issue :

i. William; in 1770 residing in Ireland. il. Elizabeth.

iii. Prudence.

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POER;

Alexander Pocr, of Paxtang, d in 1739, leaving a wife Margaret and several children, names not given. His cxecu- tois were James Harris, Robert Harris and James Morrison, all of them proba bly sons. in law.

PFOUTZ.

Michael Pfoutz, of Warwick, Lancas- ter county, d. about the last of May, 1769, leaving a wife Catharine and children:

i. Jacob.

ii. John.

iii. Michael.

iv. Ca harine.

Hc also makes a bequest to his mother, Ursula Pfoutz.

REED

I. Thomas Read, of Estuarara. d. July, 1734, leaving a wife Mary, and children:

i. John.

ii. Nithan.

iii. Eleanor.

iv. Alexander.

v. Thomas.

vi. Mary. vii. James.

II. Adam Reed, of Hanover. d. in January, 1769, leaving a wife Mary, and children:

i. Eleanor; m. Robert Whitehill.

ii. Mary; m. John Harris.

The witnesses to the will were John Williams, John Young and William Stewart, and the executors, William Hamilton, Esq., and Samuel Holliday.

III. John Recd, of Upper Paxtang, d. May, 1777, leaving a wife Margaret, and children :

i. Elizabeth. ii. Willi.m.

He makes a bequest to his brother James, Samuel Cochran and George Clark were his executors.

STEWART.

William Stewart, d. May, 1748, leav- ing a wife, and issue :

i. Isabel.

He makes bequests to his brother Thomas and sister Ann.

STUART.

John Stuart, d. October, 1749, leaving a wifc Ann, and children :

i. George.

ii. Suit.

iit. Jean.

SEMPLE. Hugh Semple, d. in May, 1749, leaving a wife, and issuc :

i. Mary. He makes bequests to his brother-in . laws, James and Samuel Graham.

STURGEON.

Samuel Sturgeon, of Paxtang, d. in March, 1750, leaving a wife, and children: i. Jean. == Thomas.

iii. Sarah.

The executors were his brothers Henry and Jeremiah Sturgeon.

A CENTURY OF GOVERNORS.

THE EXECUTIVES OF THE COMMON- WEALTH FROM 1790 TO 1890. .

Brief But Comprehensive Sketches of Pennsylvania's Chief Magistrates from Thomas Mifflin to James A. Beaver. An Interesting Bit of Biography.

The inauguration of a new Governor for the State of Pennsylvania, who, should he fill up the term for which he was chosen, will close a century of worthies who, by the voice of the people, occupied the Executive chair of our Com. monwealth. From 1681 to 1776 our gov- ernment was a Proprietary one, or, in other words, Pennsylvania was simply a Province whose deputy governors were appointed by William Penn or his de- scendants. With the dawn of the Revo- lution this feudal system ended, and the State of Pennsylvania organized a gov- ernment which it placed in the hands of an Executive Council, the presiding of- fcers of which were termed Presidents. With the close of the war for Independ- ence, a newer constitution was formed with the present system of Executive authority. Twice since

1790 the fundamental Ja w

the Common-

wealth has

becn modified. Under

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that of 1790, three terms were allowed- that of 1837-8 limited it to two terms, while under the Constitution of 1873-4, a single term of four years was the require- ment. During the Revolution. the Pres . idents were Thomas Wharton, jr., Joseph Reed, Williamn Moore, John Dickinson, Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Mifflin. The latter held the office when the Con - stitution of 1790 went into effect, and was elected the first Governor of the Com- mon wealth

I. THOMAS MIFFLIN, 1790-1799.

THOMAS MIFFLIN was born in Philadel- phia, in 1744, of Quaker parentage. On the completion of his education in the Philadelphia College, he entered a count- ing house. He visited Europe in 1765, and returning, entered into mercantile pursuits. In 1772, he was chosen to the Assembly from Philadelphia; and in 1774, a delegate to the first Continental Con- gress He was appointed major of one of the first Pennsylvania battalions; accompanied Washington to Cambridge, as aid de camp: in August, was made . quarter-master general; shortly after- wards adjutant general; brigadier general, March 16th, 1776; and major general, Feb. ruary 19th, 1777. He commanded the covering party during the retreat from Long Island. After the battle of Ger mantown, he resigned his position in the army. In 1782, he was elected a delegate to Congress, of which body he was presi - dent in 1783. He was a member and speaker of the Legislature in 1785; a delegate to the convention to frame the Federal constitution in 1787; President of the Supreme Executive Council from October, 1788, to December. 1790; and Governor of the State from 1790 to 1799. It was during his term of office that the famous, but little understood, so-called Whiskey Insurrection took place. Gov. Mifflin died at Lancaster, January 21st, 1800, while serving as a member of the Legislature, and lies interred close by the wall of Trinity Lutheran church, in that city.

II. THOMAS MCKEAN, 1799-1808.

THOMAS MCKEAN, son of William Mc- Kean of Scotch-Irish ancestry, was born in Chester county, March 19th, 1734. After an academic and professional course

of study, he was admitted an attorney, and soon after appointed deputy attorney . general for Sussex county, Delaware. In 1757 he was elected clerk of the Pennsyl- vania Assembly, and from 1762 to 1769 was member thereof for the county of New Castle. In 1765 he assisted in fram- ing the address of the Colonies to the British House of Commons. In 1771 he was appointed collector of the port of New Castle; was a member of the Continental Congress in 1774, and annually re-elected until February, 1783. In 1778 he was a member of the convention which framed the Articles of Confederation; and 1781 president of Congress. In addition to these duties, in 1777 he acted as President of Delaware, and until his election as Governor, from 1777 to 1799, held that office, and also executed the duties of chiet justice of Pennsylvania. He was a pro- moter of and signer of the Declaration of Independence; commanded a battalion which served under Washington in the winter of 1776-77. He was elected Gov- ernor of Pennsylvania three terms (1799 to 1808) under the Constitution of 1790, of the convention framing which he was a member He died at Philadelphia, on the 24th of June, 1817.

III. SIMON SNYDER, 1808-1817.

SIMON SNYDER was born at Lancaster, November 5th, 1759. His father, An- thony Snyder, was a native of Oppenheim in Germany, emigrating to America in 1748. He apprenticed himself at the age of seventeen to the trade of a tanner at York, and during intervals pursued his studies. In 1784 he removed to Selins- grove, where he entered into mercantile pursuits. He was early elected a justice of the peace, which office he held for twelve years. He was a member of the con vention which framed the Constitution of 1790; and in 1797 was elected a mem- ber of the House of Representatives, of which he was chosen Speaker in 1802, serving in that position for six successive terms. With him originated the arbitra- tion principle incorporated with other wholesome provisions for the adjustment of controversies brought before justices of the peace, in a law commonly called the "hundred dollar law." In 1808 he was elected Governor of Pennsylvania,

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and served for three terms. Upon re- tiring from that office in 1817, he was chosen to the State Senate, but died while a member of that body, November 9th, 1819. He was interred at Sclinsgrove, and by direction of the Legislature a neat stone marks the last resting-place of this first of the German Governors of our State.

IV. WILLIAM FINDLAY, 1817-1820.

WILLIAM FINDLAY, the son of Samuel Findlay, was born at Mereersburg, Franklin county, June 20th, 1768. His ancestors were Scotch Irish. He received a good English education, and was in- tended for the law, but owing to the pecuniary embarrassments of his father, who met with a severe loss by fire, a collegiate course, then considered neces- sary, was denied him. After marrying, in 1791, he began life as a farmer. He was appointed a brigade inspector of Franklin county, the first office he held. In 1797 he was elected a member of the House of Representatives. In 1803 he was again chosen to that office, and suc- cessively until January, 1807, when, hav. ing been elected State Treasurer, he re- signed his seat in the House. For ten years he filled the latter position. In 1817 he was elected Governor over General Joseph Hiester. He served one term At the session of the Legislature, in 1821-22, Governor Findlay was chosen United States Senator for six years. At the ex- piration of the senatorial term, President Jackson appointed him Treasurer of the United States Mint. He died at Harris- burg, November 12th, 1846; and is there buried. His daughter became the wife of Governor Shunk.

V. JOSEPHI HIESTER, 1820 1823.

JOSEPHI HIESTER, the son of Jobn Hies- ter was born in Bern township, Berks county, November 18th, 1752 In 1775 he raised a company of eighty men, and received his commission as captain. When the battalion was formed he was appointed major. He participated in the battle of Long Island, severely wounded, was taken prisoner, and suf. fered a year's confinement in a British prison ship. After his exchange be again joined the army and was wounded at Germantown. He was for many years

a member of the Legislature; served in the Pennsylvania convention to ratify the Federal Constitution ot 1787; was dele- gate to the Constitutional Convention of 1790, and was a member of Congress from 1797 to 1805, and again from 1815 to 1821, when he was elected Gover- nor of the State, which station he filled one term. He died June 10th, 1832; and his remains rest in the Charles Evans cemetery at Reading.

VI. JOHN ANDREW SHULZE, 1823-1829.

JOHN ANDREW SHULZE, son of the Rev. Christopher Emanuel Shulze, a Lutheran clergyman was born July 19th, 1775, at Tulpehoeken, Berks county. He re- ceived a classical education He was or - dained in 1796 a Lutheran minister, and for six years offici ated as pastor of several congregations in Berks county. Owing to a rheumatic affection he forsook the church and entered upon mercantile pur suits at Lebanon. In 1806 he was elected to the State Legislature and served three years. In 1813 Governor Snyder appointed him Surveyor General of the State, which office he declined, but accepted the prothonotary ship of the new county of Lebanon which office he filled eight years In 1821 he was again chosen a Representative, and the year fol owing a State Senator. In 1823 he was elected Governor, and in 1826 re-elected by a vote of 72,000, his opponent only receiv- ing 1,000 votes in the whole State. In 1840 he was a member of the Electoral College. In 1846 he removed to Lancas- ter, where he died November 18th, 1852, and there buried. He was a man of superior ability and considerable schol- arly attainments.

VII. GEORGE WOLFE, 1829-1835.

GEORGE WOLFE the son of George Wolfe, was a native of Allen township, Northampton county, where he was born, August 12th, 1777. He received a classical education, Before his majority he acted as clerk to the prothonotary, at the same time studying law under John Ross. President Jefferson appointed him post- master at Easton, and shortly after Gov- ernor Mckean commissioned him as Clerk of the Orphans' Court, which of- fice he held until 1809. In 1814 he was chosen member of the Legislature, and

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in 1822 a representative in Congress, a position he filled for three terms From 1829 to 1835 he occupied the executive chair and left his mark upon the progress of the State He was the author of the Common School system, though sub-e- quently it was shaped by Governor Ritner into a more effective mold. He was an uncompromising Democrat. He believed in the people and sought their welfare. The only public schools in the State at that date existed under a law passed in 1809. They were intended only for the children of the poor, and were maintained as a charity and not as a right; and he sought to place education upon the basis of citizenship. The period of his execu- tive life was full of striking events. The Pennsylvania canal system was begun during his executive career; while the fi- nancial difficulties which followed Gen. Jackson's attack on the United States Bank greatly affected Pennsylvania. In Governor Wolte's second term the excit- ing troubles arising from the attempt of South Carolina at nullification made State politics almost as lively and exciting as they became when the Republican party was organized. General Jackson ap- pointed him comptroller of the Treasury in 18.6, and President Van Buren col- lector of the port of Philadelphia in 1838, He died at Philadelphia, March 11. 1840. His remains lie in the cemetery at Har- risburg.

VIII. JOSEPH RITNER, 1835-1839.

JOSEPH RITNER, the son of John Rit~ ner, an emigrant from Aisace-on-the- Rhine, was born March 25th. 1780, in Berks county. He was brought up as a farmer, with little advantages of education. About 1802 he removed to Washington county. Was elected a member of the Legislature from that county, serving six years, and for two years was Speaker of the House of Representative. In 1829 he ran against Governor Wolfe, but was defeated. In 1835 he was elected Gov- ernor of Pennsylvania, as the Anti- Masonic candidate He was an earnest advocate of the common school system, so successfully inaugurated during the administration of Governor Wolfe, and it was his fortunate task to maintain the system and perfect it through sagacious legislation. To his services in this di-

rection was added his unquestioned de- votion to and bold avowal of sympathy with the anti-slavery movement. In 1848 he was nominated by President Taylor, director of the mint, Philadel- phia, in which capacity he served for a short time. He died on the 16th day of October, 1869, at his farm near Mount Rock, Cumberland county, and is there buried.

IX. DAVID R. PORTER, 1839-1845.

DAVID RITTENHOUSE PORTER, the son of General Andrew Porter, of the Revolu- tion, was born near Norristown. Mont- gomery county, October 31st, 1788 He received a good classical education. When his father was appointed surveyor . general, young Porter went as his assist . ant. During this period he studied law, but his health becoming impaired, he removed to Huntingdon county, where he engaged in the manufacture of iron. In 1819 he was elected member of the As- sembly, serving two years In 1821 Governer Hiester appointed him prothon . otary of Huntington county. In 1836 he was chosen State Senator, and in 1838 was elected Governor under the new organic law which went into effect that year. He was re elected in 1841. During h's term of office the first great discussion over the introduction of railroads occurred in this State. The Governor's course was marked with liberal views and he saga- ciously promoted the new power when- ever he could. He also proved himself a wise friend and defender of common schools. He was a man of marked ability. He died at Harrisburg August 6, 1867, and there buried.

X. FRANCIS R. SHUNK, 1845-1848.

FRANCIS RAWN SHUNK, the son of John Shunk, was born at the Trappe, Montgomery county, August 7th, 1788. He became a teacher at the age of fifteen, and in 1812 received the appointment as clerk in the surveyor general's office under General Andrew Porter. In 1814 he marched as a private soldier to the defence of Baltimore. In September, 1816, he was admitted to the practice of the law. He filled the position of assist- ant and then princiral clerk of the House of Representatives for several years; next became secretary of the Board of Canal

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Commissioners; and in 1839 Governor Porter appointed him Secretary of the Commonwealth. In 1842 he removed to Pittsburg, engaging in his profession. In 1844 be was elected Governor of Penn. sylvania, and re elected in 1847. Shortly after he was stricken with a fatal sickness and resigned, leaving the office to be filled hv the President of the Senate, William F. Johnson, until a new election could be had. Gov. Shunk died on the 30th of July, 1848, and was buried at his request at the Trappe, the place of his birth. It may be herc stated of Gov. Shunk, that he was a man, sincere, honest and upright, pure in his private morals, and no less so in his public character.

XI. WILLIAM F. JOHNSTON, 1848-1852.

WILLIAM FREAME JOHNSTON, son of Alexander Johnson an officer of the British army, who emigrated to Pennsyl- vania in 1796, was born at Greensburg, Westmoreland county, November 29th, 1808 With a limited academic education, he studied law and was admitted to the bar in May, 1829. Removing to Arm- strong county, he was appointed District Attorney, a position he held until 1832. He represented Armstrong county for several years in the Lower House of the Assembly, and in 1847 was elected a member of the Senate from the district composed of the counties of Armstrong, Indiana, Cambria and Clearfield. At the close of the session of 1848, he was elected Speaker of the Senate for the in- terim, and on the resignation of Governor Shunk on July 9th following, assumed the gubernatorial functions according to the provisions of the Constitution. At the general election in October, he was elected for the full term, serving until January 20th, 1852. Governor Johnston in politics was a Whig, with a decided leading to anti-slavery views. The com. promise measures of 1850 and the fugi. tive slave law were passed during his tenure of office. In his messages to the Legislature he took strong grounds against the latter and helped materially to prepare the way for the political movements against the extension of slavery. His advanced position on these subjects was very naturally followed by a reaction, which placed in power a

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Notes and queries historical, biographical, and genealogical, Vol. I, Part 77

Author: Publication date: 1884 Publisher: s.n. Number of Pages: 618

Author:
Publication date: 1884
Publisher: s.n.
Number of Pages: 618