USA > Pennsylvania > Crawford County > Our country and its people. A historical and memorial record of Crawford County, Pennsylvania. > Part 77
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September 4, 1857, lie was united in marriage with Ann Draper, of Worcestershire, England. Four children have been born to this union : William J., Clara Elizabeth, now the wife of E. Allen; May, wife of R. W. Playford, and Charles Edward, who died January 1, 1892, at the age of twenty-five years.
Mrs. Juvia O. Hull .- The musical world of Meadville is greatly indebted to the genius and energy of Mrs. Juvia O. Hull, not only for many an even- ing of rare enjoyment, when, as listeners, large audiences were held spell- bound by her pure, beautiful voice, but, moreover, for the cultivation and up- lifting of the general public to a keener appreciation of fine art, as expressed in music.
For eleven years, or from 1887 until June, 1898, Mrs. Hull held the position of director of the Meadville Conservatory of Music. During this period over four hundred pupils have been enrolled, and under the skillful training of Mrs. Hull many of the number have developed into successful teachers and singers of great ability and popularity. Since the establishment in the Conservatory of the department devoted to the culture of the voice, Mrs. Hull has been in charge of the same, and has won high praise for the thoroughness and efficiency of her teaching. The Philharmonic Society of Meadville, both in its inception and wonderful growth in power and distinc- tion, owes much to Mrs. Hull, who has been untiring in her exertions to bring it to its present standard of undoubted excellence. With great reluc- tance the board of the Meadville Conservatory accepted her resignation in June, 1898, and in September following Mrs. Hull opened a private studio in voice culture at Erie, Pennsylvania.
Coming of a musical family, Mrs. Hull's whole life has been devoted to
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her glorious art, and even in her girlhood she won laurels by her charming voice. Her sisters, Mrs. John Porter, now deceased, and Mrs. John Dick, also gained wide celebrity for their powers as songstresses when they were young. Mrs. Hull's voice is specially adapted for oratorio singing, and, though she has never been connected with any company, she has been called upon, time and again, to sing in oratorios in Cleveland, Pittsburg, Buffalo, Worcester (Massachusetts), New York, and many other cities, under such eminent lead- ers as Theodore Thomas, Walter Damrosch, Carl Zerrahn and W. S. B. Mathews. Her voice is sweet, sympathetic, powerful and of great compass, and under the complete control of the happy possessor, whose technique is faultless.
John Maynard, the founder of the Maynard family in Crawford county, was an early settler and prominent citizen here. A native of Massachusetts, he removed to Vermont in his boyhood, and continued to reside there until his marriage to Miss Sarah Niles. Soon after that event the young couple located in Genesee county, New York, and in 1834 the family came to this county. At first they dwelt in Spring township, but at the end of four years they re- moved to Rome township, settling on the farm now owned by Stephen Ather- ton. John Maynard was a successful farmer and lumberman, selling his tim- ber as rapidly as he hewed it down, and eventually developed a fine farm from the wilderness. His children were eight in number, namely: George W., Mary, John, Prudence, William N., Hannah, Ephraim and Orace.
William H. Maynard, who, following in the footsteps of his father, is a farmer of Rome township, was born December 19, 1820, in Pike, New York. The wife of his youth was Abigail Southworth, a daughter of Hiram South- worth, and their early married life was spent in Centerville, Pennsylvania. She died May 17, 1877, leaving five children, namely : John V., of Meadville; Alzina, wife of Dudley Dalrymple; Edgar B., of Bluffton, Ohio; Orace, Mrs. Martin Sperry, and Arthur S., of Cyclone, Pennsylvania. The second wife of our subject was formerly Mrs. Phoebe (Chapel) Hook, whose first hus- band was John Hook, a son of Orrin and Lorissa (Gilson ) Hook, and he was a prominent citizen of Glade Run, Warren county, Pennsylvania.
Sylvester McGuire, of Sadsbury township, is a son of Thomas and Mar- garet (Tinney) McGuire, and was born at Harmonsburg, Crawford county. September 12, 1844. His grandfather, Philip McGuire, with his family, were among the early settlers in Beaver township, and afterward moved to Sum- mit township, and resided upon the farm upon which the Catholic church now stands. Mr. McGuire donated the land for the church and cemetery and also a hundred acres in Beaver township, which was to be sold, the proceeds going toward the erection of the church. They came from Ireland and located
47
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on two hundred acres of land near Harmonsburg. Sylvester is the second son of five children, all of whom are living. Sylvester was married April, 1872, to Mantie A., daughter of Almon Whiting, of Harmonsburg. They have five children, as follows: Blanche, Minnie, Claud V., Don Leo and Thomas Paul.
Mr. and Mrs. McGuire began life on the farm. Later he was a dredge operator in the construction of the Pittsburg & Erie canal. In this work Mr. McGuire, appreciating the many advantages offered by Conneaut Lake, con- ceived the idea of making that pretty lake a summer resort. In partnership with B. F. Parker, in 1878, he purchased an acre of land on the site of his pres- ent hotel, "Hotel Oakland," and erected a one-story hotel and dancing pavil- ion. This building was enlarged and improved from year to year. In 1888 Mr. McGuire purchased his partner's interest and has since conducted the hotel alone. He added to his property and has now ten acres with a front- age of twelve hundred and fifty feet on the lake. In 1894 Mr. McGuire erected Oakland Beach Hotel. He was a member of the company that placed the first steamboat, called the Tuna, on the lake after it was lowered.
Barnard Albel came to Church Run, near Titusville, in April, 1865, and operated in oil in the Church Run district and in Tidioute. He was superin- tendent for the New Yorket Petroleum Company, which failed in 1866. He then became engineer for Bryan, Dillingham & Company at Titusville, in which city he died, in 1868, leaving four children : William G., Barnard, Rob- ert P., deceased, and one daughter, now Mrs. J. D. Kuhl, of Titusville.
William G. Abel learned his trade at the shops of Bryan, Dillingham & Company, where he was employed as a journeyman machinist for sixteen years. Afterward he started a shop at Fostoria, Ohio, where, however, he continued only a year. In 1866, with others, he founded the Keystone Brass Works on South Washington street, in Titusville, and he is now sole proprietor of the establishment.
Mr. Abel has served the city as a member of the common council, also as a member of the school board. In 1893 he was elected one of the triennial assessors for the city, and re-elected in 1896.
He married Miss Dora Paulman, who has borne him four children,- all sons,-two of whom are machinists.
Barnard Abel, the second son of Barnard Abel, whose sketch is given elsewhere, was born in New York city, January 4, 1865, and came to Titus- ville with his parents in 1865. In 1868 he started as an office boy with Bryan, Dillingham & Company, and continued with them for three years. He then
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went into the machine shop and served an apprenticeship at the machinists' trade. In 1866, when Ames & Boughton had charge of the establishment, he was promoted to the foremanship of the machine department, which posi- tion he held until 1891, when he was appointed superintendent of the entire works, now owned and operated by the Titusville Iron Company, one of the largest manufacturing institutions in northwestern Pennsylvania. At this time Mr. Abel has been connected with this establishment over thirty years.
He was an active member of the Titusville volunteer fire department, and for several years he was foreman of the Drake Hose Company. He has represented the fourth ward in the common council, serving as a member of the water board and chairman of the fire and water committee. He has also been a member of the Titusville board of health.
In 1881 he was married to Miss Ellen Emno, of Nunda, New York, and their children comprise one son and two daughters. Mr. Abel is a prominent member of the Titusville Baptist church.
Joseph Smith, whose seventh ancestor settled in Hanson, Plymouth county. Massachusetts, in 1630, was born in 1830 in Hanson, the son of Joshua and Saba (Drew) Smith. His father was chiefly employed as a sea captain. Until the age of eighteen years our subject was employed on the farm and attended school. In 1848 he became the assistant of a civil engineer on the Fitchburg & Worcester Railroad, and in the situation he received his first education in mechanical engineering, and in five years he had charge of railroad construction. He engaged in that vocation until after the breaking out of the civil war.
In 1862 he enlisted in Company D, Thirty-eighth Regiment of the Massa- chusetts Volunteer Infantry, being mustered in as eighth corporal and after- ward promoted to the rank of sergeant. He continued in service with the Thirty-eighth until February 16, 1864, when he was commissioned captain in the Fourth Engineers' Corps. March 22, 1864, he was appointed captain of Company K of the Ninety-eighth United States Colored Infantry, and con- tinued in the service until nearly a year after Lee's surrender, performing provost duty in Louisiana, and was mustered out January 20, 1866.
Returning to Massachusetts, he was engaged in civil engineering until 1869, when he came to Titusville and has since continued in the same vocation here. In 1871 he was elected by the common council city engineer and held the office one year ; later he was appointed for two years, and in 1881 he was again appointed and has held the position to the present time.
In 1854 he was married, in Massachusetts, to Miss Helen Estes, who has borne him four children, three of whom are now living. Mr. Smith is a mem- ber of the Universalist church.
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Francis Henry Sinning, M. D., the son of George and Margaret Sin- ning, was born in Washington county, Ohio, February 8, 1855, the second of seven children. His father was a practical tanner, who previous to having works of his own worked as a journeyman at the trade. Francis H. was educated at the common schools, and at the age of seventeen started out for himself, relying upon his own efforts for advancement in life. At this early age he began to earn money by working at any respectable business that he could find, in eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania. In 1879 he conceived the purpose of fitting himself for a professional life, and, having decided upon this course, he studied day and night, gathering instruction from books and treasuring up in his memory whatever came from personal observation and reflection. He was twice graduated at the American Eclectic Institute at Cin- cinnati, Ohio, and began the practice of his chosen calling in that city, contin- uing for about two years. Afterward he went to Wilkesbarre, Pennsylvania, and next to Pittsburg, where he practiced two years. Then, for rest and recre- ation, he went on a fishing tour to Forest county, this state, and there first met the young lady who subsequently became his wife. She was Emma Sarah, the daughter of G. W. Elder, of Clarington, Forest county, a lumberman.
In 1891 he came to Titusville and has since practiced his profession here. He has a preference for treating special diseases, but accepts general practice when called in urgent cases. He is enthusiastic in his professional work, exerting himself to the extreme of his ability in relieving the afflicted entrusted to his care.
Joseph L. Chase for many years in the early history of Titusville was the foremost merchant of the place. He was the oldest son of Rev. Amos Chase, who, on the next day after peace was ratified between Great Britain and the United States, with six sons and five daughters, left Litchfield, Con- necticut, and came west, with teams.
Joseph L. was born July 17, 1799, at Litchfield, and in his early years in the east he drove and sold cattle. On coming to Titusville he first became a clerk for William Sheffield in the first store opened in the place. Sheffield, who had been a sea captain, came from New Haven, Connecticut, built a saw- mill in Troy township, and when young Chase came he put him in charge of his Titusville store. Not long afterward young Chase became a partner in the concern. The building was a log structure, on the southwest corner of Spring and Franklin streets. Later the store was moved across to the northwest corner, into another log building, and on this corner the store was kept many years. Captain Chase sold his interest in the store and Thomas H. Sill became a partner in the firm of Chase, Sill & Company. The company built and operated many years a gristmill and sawmill at East Titusville. About 1846 Joseph L. retired, but re-engaged in trade in 1858; in 1866 he
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retired permanently. He owned many city lots in Titusville, and as the town was built up his property came into market, so that after 1866 his time was occupied in real-estate matters.
In 1833 he sent to Philadelphia the first barrel of crude petroleum, "Seneca oil," ever shipped from the oil regions. The claim that Samuel Kier of Pittsburg was the pioneer oil-producer is not sustained by authentic history.
In November, 1825, Joseph L. Chase married Susan Jane, the oldest daughter of Jonathan Titus and the oldest white child born in Titusville. The children of this union were as follows: Mary, who married Samuel A. Tor- bett, of Meadville, Pennsylvania, and died in 1848, the husband dying in 1871 ; Joanna, who married Jonathan Watson, and died in March, 1858, Mr. Watson dying June 16, 1894: Joseph Titus, who was born June 17, 1829, and died February 26, 1897: Cornelius S., captain of Company K, Fifty-seventh Regi- ment Pennsylvania Volunteers, who died June 17, 1862, from wounds re- ceived at Fair Oaks; Thomas S., who died June 21, 1865; William Wirt, now residing at Everett, near Boston, Massachusetts; Susan Emma, who died in infancy; Edward B., now a merchant of Titusville; Adelaide, who married John L. Dalzell, now living in Allegheny City, Pennsylvania, and George A., an attorney-at-law in Titusville. Joseph L. Chase died April 23, 1879, and his wife died December 17, 1877.
Joseph Titus Chase was born June 17, 1829, and when a young man he was a clerk in his father's store, and later assisted in the lumber business. In December, 1847, he went to Meadville, and was a clerk there several years. He was elected prothonotary of Crawford county in 1860, and held the office three years. He returned to Titusville in 1864, and in 1866 he was elected to the legislature, and served in Harrisburg one year. He has been engaged in the oil business and in other enterprises. He was notary public about twenty years. In March; 1853, he was married to Miss Elizabeth, the daugh- ter of Robert Adrain, of Meadville, who bore him two sons and three daugh- ters, all of whom are living. Mrs. Chase died in October, 1874, and Joseph T. died February 26, 1897. The children are Herbert Adrain, who married Miss Rose V. Shank; Jeannette Marion, who married Charles Edwin Mar- tin; Fannie Lanman, married to Benjamin F. Kraffert: Cornelius Wirt, who married Miss Blanche Harley; and Lizzie Adelaide.
Benjamin Blum (deceased) was born June 20, 1851, and died in 1894. He was a son of Abram and Fannie (Ticknor) Blum; the latter died in 1897, at the age of seventy-four years. . Mr. Blum was the second child of a family of six children : Hattie, Benjamin, Louisa, Bertha, Emma, and Samuel. In 1884 he married Josephine, daughter of Morris and Minnie (Heiman)
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Hirsch of Franklin, Pennsylvania. One daughter, Lorraine F .. was born to this union July 6. 1887.
Mr. Blum was a native of Crawford county, educated in the public schools of Meadville, and as a public-spirited citizen was identified with the city of Meadville in its municipal government, and was for some time treas- urer of the State Fair Association.
Miss Sara M. Johnson .- One of the popular young business women of Meadville is Miss Sara M. Johnson, who has an office in the New Derrickson block, and is engaged in the practice of stenography. She is a daughter of Henry R. and Mary J. (Benedict) Johnson, the former of whom, a native of Rhode Island, died in 1880, while the latter, whose birth occurred in Alle- gany county, New York, is still living.
Miss Johnson received a liberal education in the excellent public schools of Meadville, and subsequently she pursued a course in the Commercial Col- lege of this place, graduating in the class of 1893. Since that time she has followed the business of stenography, and has attained a high degree of pro- ficiency in general amanuensis and reportorial work. In December, 1897. she received the appointment to the position of notary public.
Franklin Moulthrop of Conneautville was born in the town of Madison, Lake county, Ohio, on October 12, 1819. His father dying when he (our subject) was very young, he went to Conneaut, Ohio, to learn the molder's trade : two years later to Erie, Pennsylvania, and from there in 1839 to Win- nebago, Illinois, returning, however, and locating in Conneautville in 1840; and here he has since resided.
He erected a foundry and machine shop on the corner of Canal and Center streets, where he manufactured all kinds of agricultural implements. After some years he sold that property, purchasing land on the corner of Jefferson and Canal streets, and here he has continued the same business, associated with various partners at different times. Charles Hammond was first with him, constituting the firm of Hammond & Moulthrop. Mr. Ham- mond died in 1867, and then Mr. Moulthrop's sons. George F. and Harrison B., became partners and the firm name Moulthrop & Sons. George F. dying about 1887, the younger son, Henry C., succeeded him in the same firm.
In June, 18440, Mr. Moulthrop married Amy Bliss of Conneaut, Ohio. Of their seven children one died in infancy and six survive. The names of all are: Harrison B., George F. (died in 1887), Clara E., Mary E., Alma C., Henry C., and Flora E. Harrison B. and George F. enlisted in June, 1863. in Company A, Fifty-sixth Pennsylvania Volunteers, and were honorably discharged at the close of the war. Harrison B. married Isabel Frith and has two children,-Catherine and Frank E. George F. married Florence
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Lints and their only daughter was Grace M. Henry C. married Ada Oaks.
The ancestry of family were English and Scotch. Mr. Moulthrop's father, Timothy, came from his native state, Vermont, to Ohio about 1815; married Polly Ormsby, also of Vermont, and their children were Mary, Jon- athan, George, Franklin, and Emeline. Timothy Moulthrop died in 1824, his widow in 1887. Franklin Moulthrop has held nearly all the offices of the borough, including that of burgess, and he and his wife are members of the Universalist church. Mr. Moulthrop is a member of the Royal Templars and helped establish the council in Conneautville.
J. J. McCrea, proprietor of the American House at Titusville, was born in Hannibal, Oswego county, New York, February 19, 1869, a son of James I. and Evlyn ( Hyatt) McCrea, natives of that county. Mr. McCrea removed with his parents to Tidioute, Warren county, during the period of the oil excitement. His father ran the Oil Exchange Hotel in Triumph for a time, and afterward the Scott House in Fagundus. In the spring of 1880 he removed to Derrick City, Pennsylvania, where he ran the Derrick House for ten years.
At the close of this period he removed to Titusville, where he was em- ployed by the New York and Pennsylvania Telephone and Telegraph Com- pany as manager, first at Corry and later at Bradford. Ile was in the employ of this company as special agent for one and a half years and assumed charge of the American House soon after the death of his father, which occurred January 17, 1897, when he had reached the age of fifty-three years.
January 15, 1888, he was united in marriage with Laura M., daughter of J. R. and Margaret ( English) Miller, and their children are Grace I. and James R. Mr. McCrea is a member of the Maccabees, Keystone Tent. No. 12; of the Elks Lodge, No. 264, Titusville; and was a member of the Regi- mental Board for four years.
William Hurd Maxwell of Meadville, born in Mansfield, Ohio, October 20, 1855, died at Ravenna, Ohio, September 30, 1891. He was employed as a road foreman or traveling engineer, and was instantly killed in a wreck at Ravenna, Ohio. He was a son of Dr. A. W. and Minerva Maxwell. Dr. Maxwell was a son of William Maxwell of Mansfield, Ohio, of Scotch de- scent. On the 18th of October, 1883, he married Delia, daughter of James R. and Rachael ( Brooks) Irons. The former was born September 19, 1821, and died January 19, 1894. The latter was born in Conneaut township, this county, and died April 30, 1882. Mrs. Maxwell was the youngest child of the family of seven children: Joseph Findley; Mary Eliza, wife of Henry B. Rushmore of Conneaut township; Lois Ann, wife of Charles F. Thayer of Atlantic; Joel Bradford of Erie, Pennsylvania, married to Clara Ann
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Sterling. Dicksonburg; James Myron, Chicago, married to Clara Jane Seely; Rachael Lee, wife of William Bradt, of Conneaut township; and Delia B., widow of the late William Hurd Maxwell. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Maxwell are three in number, namely: James Wallace, born Sep- tember 28, 1884; William Hurd, September 17, 1887; and Frederick Brooks, November 13, 1890.
Hiram A. Austin .- Following in the footsteps of his patriotic father, H. A. Austin, the subject of this sketch, and a highly respected citizen of Summit township, Crawford county, shouldered arms and went forthi to the defense of his loved country when danger threatened the Union. His father was a soldier of the war of 1812, with England, while he, alas! had to do battle with his brothers,-with those who had bravely fought under the same starry banner as had his father and had maintained the rights of our nation against the foreign foe. In 1862 H. A. Austin enlisted in the One Hundred and Sixty-ninth Regiment of Pennsylvania Volunteers and served for nine months in the company commanded by Captain Meyers of Meadville. He was made orderly sergeant and was stationed for the most part at Fort Keyes, on garrison duty. In the fall of 1864 he entered the service of the United States Navy at Evansville, Indiana, and was assigned to duty in the fleet then operating on the upper Mississippi, under Commodore Porter. He served well and faithfully for nearly a year, being discharged by general order in June, 1865, after the war had been brought to a close. He was ward- room steward on the vessel to which he was assigned, it being one of the boats employed in the task of convoying Hood's army to the mouth of the Red river in that difficult and brilliant campaign against the enemy. The same spirit of self-sacrifice when duty led the way has been a marked charac- teristic of Mr. Austin's life and entitles him to the praise and admiration which are so freely accorded him by his friends and neighbors.
The blood of sturdy New England ancestors flows in the veins of H. A. Austin, whose birth took place in Hartford, Connecticut, October 25, 1837. He passed nineteen years of his life in the east and in 1856 came to this state, with whose destinies his own have since been closely interwoven. His hon- ored father, Elijah P. Austin, spent his last years here also, and died in 1872. at the age of seventy-two years. He had served for two years and eight months in the war of 1812, and in time of peace and war alike was a true patriot and public-spirited citizen. In his native state our subject had learned the butcher's trade, but after coming to Pennsylvania he followed the busi- ness of manufacturing staves, and for a period was engaged in manufactur- ing lumber at Steamburg, Ohio. When he returned from the war he settled on the farm which he still owns and cultivates, in Summit township. In 1866 this property was a wilderness and bore little resemblance to the finely
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improved homestead that it is to-day. Under the judicious care and constant attention of the owner it has become one of the most desirable and valuable places in the township. It comprises one hundred and twenty acres, divided into fields of convenient size by well kept fences. Good farm buildings are ttpon the place and everything is maintained in a neat and thrifty way that refleets great credit upon the proprietor. Until of late years, when he had to give up the business on account of his health, Mr. Austin was one of the largest shippers of dressed poultry in this county, averaging over two thou- sand pounds per week, aside from what he shipped during the holiday season, at which time he sent a car-load to the city markets. During the winter sea- sons for years he fed cattle for the markets, and thus in more than one direc- tion he has been enterprising and industrious. In polities he has ever been a straightforward Republican, and for years he has been an honored member of the Grand Army of the Republic, belonging to Linesville Post.
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