USA > Pennsylvania > Crawford County > Our country and its people. A historical and memorial record of Crawford County, Pennsylvania. > Part 97
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OUR COUNTY AND ITS PEOPLE.
A. B. Youngson was born March 20, 1849, in Pittsburg. and as early as 1862 he entered upon his career as a railroad man. At first he was em- ployed in the shops of the Atlantic & Great Western Railway, but in 1864 was promoted to the position of fireman on a locomotive. In 1866 he was made an engineer, and for twenty-three years he faithfully served in that capacity. In October, 1890, he was elected to the place of assistant chief en- gineer in the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers, and still retains that office. Socially he stands high in the various Masonic bodies of Meadville, and is a member of the Mystic Shrine, at Cleveland, Ohio. In 1886 he was elected and served for one term in the common council of Meadville.
On the 18th of November, 1875, Mr. Youngson was united in mar- riage to Miss Clara E. Taylor, a daughter of William Taylor, of this city. She died November 4, 1894, and left three children, namely : Laurina, Will- iam C. and Elizabeth.
D. O. Stewart .- The Stewart family came to Rome township in 1833. There were five brothers,-Charles, John, Joseph. David and Marcus, who were farmers, and some of their descendants are now living in the town.
Francois Jeanney, of Randolph township, came into the county in 1854. from the department of Doubs, France, where he was born October 27, 1827. He settled in Randolph and the next year married Matilde, daughter of Francis and Pearl Gaudlot, of the same township. He settled on his farm of sixty acres about twenty years ago, and is also the owner of another farm of fifty acres which is cultivated by his son-in-law, Frank Brown. The , second generation of the family in this county includes Mary, wife of Charles Muenzenberger ; Frank; Emil; Louise, wife of Victor Bardy; Phoebe, wife of George Brunot ; Gustine, wife of Frank Brown : Emilia : Clara : Anna, wife of Fred Roueche : Joseph and Valerie.
Henry Cole, of Spring township, was born in Canandaigua, Ontario county, New York, in June, 1841. His education was obtained in the com- mon schools, and early in life he came to this state and was a railway car- penter. On November 24, 1866, he married Rebecca N. Bartley, formerly of Macomb county, Michigan, and they have seven children,-Henry. Nellie. Mary E., Jennie. Brady, Orphy and Hattie. Henry married Rachel Carnes, and they reside in Linesville and have one son, Clayton C. Nellie married George Williams, and they have three children,-Dale G., Dee H. and M. Christy. Mary E. married Grant Faust, and they have two sons,-Clair J. and Clyde H. (twins). Jennie married Burt White, and they have one son, -James N.
Mrs. Cole's father, Robert Bartley, was born in the north of Ireland, 58
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about 1822, was well educated, and came to the United States when a young man, first locating in Ohio and later in Michigan, where he married Rachel Holmes, of that state. They had seven children,-Robert W., Rebecca N., Mary E., Wilson A., John F., Ezra I. and Myler, who are living. Mr. Bartley was drowned in 1882, and Mrs. Bartley died on January 25, 1865. The family are Congregationalists. Ancestry of family, English, Dutch and Scotch.
Jacob M. Hipple, of Randolph township, was born in Perry county, Pennsylvania. in 1823, and married Angeline, daughter of Joseph and Mary Bryant, of Lawrence county, Pennsylvania. They removed to Ohio but came into this county in 1867. Their children are: Frances Lorinda, wife of Ezekiel Daniels; Harvey ; Mary, wife of Jerry Thurston ; Charles, Lorenzo, John W., Eva. Asa, and Pluma, wife of John Burse. Mr. Hipple removed from Troy township four years ago to his present home, a place of twenty- five acres on the Oil Creek road. He is a member of the church called The Saints.
George D. King was born in Utica, Oneida county, New York, on Jan- mary 30, 1834. His parents moved to New York city when he was two years old and to this state when he was six years old. Here he was edu- cated, in the select schools. He early showed appreciation of the fine points incident to cattle and horses of a high grade and became a dealer in live stock. For many years now he has dealt exclusively in fine matched carriage horses for the trade in New York city and in the other chief cities of the United States, and also in Mexico, Cuba and other foreign countries. The firm name in recent years has been George D. King & Son. They import first-class breed- ing stock from England and France, and their fine barns at Hillside ( Spring- boro) are under the personal and capable supervision and superintendence of the son, Fred P. King. The firm does a safe and reliable business of from forty thousand dollars to fifty thousand dollars yearly. Mr. King stands high in the community for his business qualities. his publie spirit and lib- erality and his gentlemanly courtesy. In politics he is a Republican.
Mr. King's oldest son. Fred P., the junior member of the firm, is the only son of Mr. King's first wife, whose maiden name was Levantia Pond. He married Hattie, an adopted daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Charles A. Welch, of Spring township, and their children are Frank W. and Fred P. King. Mrs. Levantia King died in 1879. and Mr. King married on November 25, 1881, Emma Hart of Girard. Erie county, this state. They have two daughters, Bertha Helen and Edith Hart King.
Jotham B. King, father of George D., was born at Norwich Corners, Oneida county. New York, a son of Jotham King, a native of Connecticut,
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in May, 1810. He received a good education, became a contractor and was a sub-contractor on the Croton water-works, built to supply New York city. He married Amanda Dickson, of his native county. They had five children,-George D., Hiram D., Cornelia A., Henry C. and Jotham M. Mr. King died in 1875 and Mrs. King in 1873. Mrs. Emma ( Hart) King is in the ninth generation of the Hart family of the United States. Her father, Leffert Hart, was born in Hartford county, Connecticut, on December 12, 1802. He was well educated, was a merchant in Waterford in Erie county. this state, and later a contractor. He came to Girard to reside in 1839. He was twice married, first to Nancy Woodford on September 12, 1826, by whom he had seven children, five daughters and two sons. Mrs. Nancy Hart died on June 5. 1847, and Mr. Hart married Eliza Dempsey, of Girard, on July 25, 1848, and they had seven children. Mr. Hart died on December 20, 1874, in his seventy-third year. Mrs. Hart is now ( 1897) living. Ancestry of family, New England, of Welsh, English and Scotch extraction.
William F. Johnson .- Among the agriculturists whose labor and enter- prise have been largely instrumental in bringing Crawford county into the front ranks of the counties of Pennsylvania is William F. Johnson, of South Shenango township, whose long and useful life was brought to a close Decem- ber 18, 1897. His place in the community where he was an old resident and pioneer cannot be easily filled and the numerous friends whom he had endeared to himself by the sterling traits of his character, by his goodness of heart and his love and sympathy for his fellow-men, will ever treasure his memory. For about half a century he was a member of the Methodist Protestant church, doing all within his power to promote the interests of the denomination and putting into daily practice the noble faith in which he believed. He was a sincere Christian, a kind and helpful friend and neighbor and a loving hus- band and father.
A native of New Jersey, W. F. Johnson was born May 17, 1818, and passed the first eight years of his life in that locality. He then removed with his parents to Dryden, New York, and there lived upon a farm, learn- ing from practical experience the various duties of agricultural and business life. At length he came to South Shenango township, Crawford county, and from that time until his death he remained a resident of this vicinity. Be- ginning in a humble way, he gradually acquired a goodly fortune and be- came one of the prosperous men of affairs of this neighborhood, as a just re- sult of the well-directed energy and industry which he always displayed. He left an estate comprising nearly one thousand acres of improved farm land, situated in this and adjoining counties. For years he was extensively en -. gaged in raising live stock and in this manner made much of his wealth. Though a loyal Republican and interested in the success of his party, he was
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OUR COUNTY AND ITS PEOPLE.
not an office-seeker and preferred to give his whole time and attention to other duties. Fraternally, he was connected with the Meadville Lodge, A. F. & A. M.
The first marriage of Mr. Johnson was to Miss Mandana Highland, of New York. She died, leaving four children, two of whom are deceased, while the others, George and Hile, are both enterprising farmers of this county. The second wife of Mr. Johnson was twenty years his junior. her birth having occurred September 7. 1838. She bore the name of Mary J. Word before her marriage and was a daughter of Jacob Word, a farmer of this township. He was a native of New York state. but came to this county when young and here passed the rest of his days, his death occurring when he was in his forty-eighth year. He was a prosperous and progressive farmer and enjoyed the high regard of all who knew him. To some extent he followed the trade of shoemaking, which he had learned in his youth. His wife was a Miss Delila Bowman in her girlhood, and the Empire state also was the state of her nativity. She lived to the advanced age of ninety-four years. Though a lovely Christian woman she never identified herself with any church. Mrs. Mary Johnson was born and reared to maturity in this township, and with her five brothers and sisters attended the district schools. By her marriage she became the mother of thirteen children, two of whom died in early life. Ollie C. became the wife of Robert P. Marshall, whose sketch will be found elsewhere in this volume: Emma is the wife of Horace French: William P. and James H. are farmers, the first-named in this township, the other in Ohio : Minnie is Mrs. Frank White: Alta married Charles Neal; Word. Frank E. and Arthur are farmers of this township: Maude and Howe are still at home. The family occupies a high position in the community and are always relied upon to cast in their influence on the side of whatever makes for good government, order and progress.
Judson P. Ames, of Athens township. is a son of Amos and Achsah ( Thomas) Ames, and was born in Cambridge township. May 27. 1841. About 1856 he came to live in Athens township. In 1861 he enlisted in Com- pany I, Eighty-third Regiment. Pennsylvania Volunteers, and served three years : was wounded in the battle of the Wilderness and lost one thumb. He is a farmer. He married Violetta Bly. daughter of Warren Bly, of Beloit. Wisconsin. He has two children .- Fred and Avis.
Philipp Bender, son of Peter and Margareta (Bushman) Bender, was born in 1842 in Germany and was educated in the public schools of that coun- try. In 1866 he came to America and located at Meadville, where he was employed in a stove factory and later was employed in a grocery store. In 1868 he married Lena Oster. daughter of John Oster, and has four children :
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OUR COUNTY AND ITS PEOPLE.
Margaret, wife of Power Burkhart, editor of Ottawa Democrat, Ohio ; Louise, wife of Dr. Elword; C. Linderman: Dr. Charles D. Bender and Emma are members of the Evangelist Protestant church. In 1869 he opened a restau- rant and followed that business twenty-four years.
Reuben L. Kendall, Springboro, was born in this place on July 31, 1856, educated in the public schools and learned the blacksmith's trade of his father, being now of the third generation carrying on the business in the same shop. On July 23. 1879, he married Lillie A. Ross, of Spring township. They have one son, Ross C., born May 13, 1886. Mrs. Kendall's father, Nelson W. Ross, was born in Penfield, Monroe county, New York, on August 17, 1824, and came with his parents to Crawford county, when three years of age. He was educated in the schools of that early day and followed the honorable occupation of farming. On March 25, 1852, he married Elizabeth H. Rice, who was born June 10, 1829, and they had six children,-Laura. J., Lebbeus, Frank W., Lillie A., Stephen V. and William H. Mr. Ross died on July 30, 1896, and his wife on May 25. 1890. Mr. and Mrs. Kendall are members of the Christian church. Mr. Kendall is a thorough Republican. The ancestry of family is French and Scotch. (See another page of this work for an ac- count of Mr. Kendall's father, Stephen Kendall. )
James II. Russ .- One of the respected citizens and enterprising young business men of Rome township. Crawford county, is James W. Russ, who is a son of James and Laona ( Tarbox) Russ. The father volunteered his ser- vices to his country in the war of the Rebellion, served in a Wisconsin regi- ment. and died soon after his return home.
James W. Russ of this sketch was born in Wisconsin on the 3d of June, 1864. In his youth he commenced working in the oil regions of Pennsyl- vania and for several years has been employed at oil wells, having charge of the pumps. He thoroughly understands his business, and is a faithful and reliable employee.
James W. Russ married Miss Violet M. Stearns, a daughter of Charles and Violet ( Henderson) Stearns, and granddaughter of Charles Stearns, Sr., who was one of the early settlers of this township. Three children have been born to our subject and wife, namely : Alminta M., Charles W. and James R.
Mrs. M. Jennie Parker, of Spring township, is a daughter of Andrew S. Stevens, who was born in Greene county, New York, in 1802. Receiving a common-school education, he came to this county when a young man and married Hannah S. Dearborn, of this place. Thirteen of their children at- tained maturity,-Eleanor, Keziah, Ira L., M. Jennie, Anna M., William H.,
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OUR COUNTY AND ITS PEOPLE.
Melissa, Emory W., Lodina, Lucy A., Annette, George B. and Ava L. Mrs. Stevens died in January, 1886, and Mr. Stevens in December of the same year.
Mrs. M. Jennie Parker has been twice married. first to Ansel V. Baldwin, who was born in Spring township in October, 1837, and died in October. 1885. Educated in the district schools, he developed business qualities and engaged in various occupations, and was also a merchant and a commercial traveler. He was prominent in the Masonic order and was a Knight Templar. Mrs. Baldwin married Calvin A. Parker, formerly of Cortland county, New York. on November 21, 1893. He also was a Freemason. Their married life was of short duration, as Mr. Parker's death occurred on May 23, 1894. Mrs. Parker's ancestry is Dutch and English.
Samuel Hart, of Athens township, is a son of David Hart, and was born in North Kingston, Rhode Island. He moved to Chautauqua county, New York, in 1836, and in 1839 he married Sally Adams, daughter of William Adams. In 1852 he moved to Athens township, where he now resides as a farmer and has three children.
John T. Farner, of Oil Creek township, was born October 28. 1838. at Penn's Valley, Center county, Pennsylvania, a son of John and Mary (Stiver ) Farner. Mr. Farner began life on a farm with his father, where he remained 1111til 1861, when he enlisted in the Fifteenth Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry. At Winchester, Virginia. he was taken prisoner and spent a year at Libby Prison and also at Salisbury. North Carolina. In 1863 he was exchanged and returned home, remaining there until the close of the war in 1865. when he removed to Oil City and began work in the oil field. Mr. Farner's ventures in oil proved quite successful and in 1885 he came to Crawford county, locat- ing at Hydetown. Mr. Farner is a member of the National Oil Company at Titusville.
On July 2, 1879, he was united in marriage with Jennie, a daughter of Samuel and Maria Fulmer, of Hydetown. They have no children. Mr. Farner is a member of the Oil Creek Lodge, No. 303, F. & A. M. ; Rose Croix Commandery, K. T .; and Chase Post, G. A. R.
H. D. Walker, a farmer of East Fairfield township, was born February 28. 1833. in that township, on the farm he now owns, where he has resided since boyhood. He was a son of John and Mary (Dodge) Walker, natives of Ireland, and was the fifth child of a family of eight children reared on this farm. viz .: William, deceased; Jane, wife Washington McClenn, of De Kalb. Illinois: Elizabeth, wife Anson Schrader: Margaret, wife of Henry Heath, of Lafayette county ; Henry D., our subject: Mary, wife of Thomas Wilson : Precilla, widow of Wells Sheldon ; and D. J. Walker, of Oil City.
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June 27, 1861, Mr. H. D. Walker was united in marriage with Jane, daughter of Phillip and Sarah ( Hill) Record, of Wayne township. The former died April 6, 1865, at the age of sixty-seven years, and the latter August 10, 1886, aged eighty-four years. Mrs. Walker is the fifth child of a family of seven children, as follows: Benjamin, of Cambridge, Illinois; Mary, wife of John Bell, residing in Wayne township; Agnes and Esther, deceased ; Jane, wife of our subject ; Archibald; and Sarah Ann, widow of Jacob Resinger. II. D. Walker's children are: William A., who married Carrie Kiser, daughter of Jacob Kiser, of Mead township : Jennie S., widow of William Marsteller ; WVil- son M., who married Harriet Kiser : John R. ; James Norman ; Mary Elizabeth, and Stewart F. Walker. The grandchildren are: Hugh Chester, born March 21, 1885; Eva Jane, in July, 1886; Mabel, in February, 1888; Florence E., in 1890; Saralı E., in 1892; Percy, in 1894; and Otis Leroy, in 1896, chil- dren of William and Carrie Walker ; Jessie Day and Esty May, twins, born March 15, 1892, children of Jennie and William Marsteller, and AAda L., born March 2, 1895, a daughter of Wilson and Harriet Walker.
John Walker, father of our subject, settled in East Fairfield as early as 1805, and found only one tree cut to mark the spot around which he began his home, and which he later developed into one of the fertile farms of his township. The homestead farm has been conducted by the present owner ever since the fall of 1867.
John M. HJart, a farmer of Athens township, is a son of Samuel H. and Sarah ( Adams ) Hart, and was born in the town of Chautauqua, New York. in 1840. His father moved to Athens township, about 1854. He married Rosa A. Hall, a daughter of Erastus W. Hall, and they have two children,- Oren C. and Fred E.
Orson A. Chapman, of Spring township, was born in Beaver township. this state, on June 19, 1840, and came to Spring township with his parents in 1850. He was educated in the public schools, learned the carpenter's trade and has been an operator of portable engines in the oil regions for many years. On December 31. 1863, he married Julia J. Hall, of Springboro, and they have three children,-Harriet L., Bessie E. and Lewis W.
Mr. Chapman's father. Lewis K. Chapman, was born at Saratoga Springs, New York, on October 31, 1814, was educated there and in the vicinity of Rochester, same state, whither his parents had removed. From there they came to this state, in May, 1836. Just one year afterward. in May, 1837, Mr. Chapman married Robey Thompson, whose father, Alexander Thompson, came from Warsaw, New York, to this county in 1835. They had eleven children,-Orson A .. Fannie E., Millie J., Helen M., James H .. Lewis K. (killed in railway service at Rome, Ohio, in 1873), Sarah A .. Peter
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M., Frank E., Robey L. and John E. Mr. Chapman conducted saw and grist mills for many years, was the first man to establish common schools in Beaver township, and was school director for twenty-eight years. The family moved to Spring township in 1850. Mr. Chapman held the office of justice of the peace for twenty-five years from his first election in 1856, and was notary public many years. He died in 1889 and his widow in 1891.
Mrs. Chapman's father. Lyman Hall, was born in Connecticut May 6, 1811, and came to this section at an early day. On April 12, 1838, he mar- ried Lovisa Wetmore, of Spring township. His father. Captain Benjamin Hall, was a soldier of the war of 1812. He settled here in 1820, coming with ox teams and cutting road-ways through the wilderness. Fisher's drug store is on the corner of the farm upon which they settled. Two of their five chil- dren survive,-Julia J. and Catherine D. (Mrs. John P. Barr). Their brother Scott was a sailor on the United States gunboat Cohasset in the civil war, and was wounded in an action on James river, was taken prisoner, exchanged, and discharged for disability. He died in 1866. Mr. Hall died August 17. 18 -; his widow now ( 1897) survives him. Mr. Chapman is a member of Western Crawford Lodge of Freemasons at Conneautville. All of his im- mediate ancestors held residence in this county from pioneer days. The family attends the Christian church, of which Mrs. Chapman is a member. Ancestry of family. English, Scotch and Welsh.
James McCombs, of Oil Creek township, is a son of William and Jane (Kerr) McCombs. and was born in Oil Creek township, just north of Titus- ville, August 30, 1825. The farm then comprised three hundred and sixty acres, part of which is now occupied by the fair grounds. James remained at home and followed farming. He was united in marriage with Laura, daughter of Hezekiah and Laura (Dunham) Sperry. Mrs. McCombs was born March 7, 1833. They had four children : Harriet J., who died January I, 1893: Robert K. ; William P .; and the other child dying in infancy. Mr. McCombs died January 24, 1893. He is survived by his widow and two children, who reside on the old homestead, a part of which was erected over eighty years ago.
George WV. Hecker, of Meadville, was born at Allentown, Pennsylvania, on the 8th of February, 1824. When he was but four years of age his family removed to Reading, this state, and in the fall of 1828 came to Crawford county, finally locating at Saegerstown, in 1830. During boyhood he worked with his father in the tailoring business, gaining a good fundamental educa- tion, and at times reading law in the office of John W. Farrelly, at Meadville. When twenty-one years of age he was admitted to the bar, and returned to Allentown with the intention of locating there permanently, but soon returned
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to Meadville and formed a partnership with W. H. Davis. In 1846 he re- moved to Ridgeway, where he was appointed deputy attorney-general for Elk county by Hon. John Reed, and was reappointed by Benjamin Campneys. At the expiration of his term of office, in 1848, he removed to Clearfield. where he was appointed deputy attorney-general for Clearfield county. In May, 1849, he returned to Meadville, where he practiced law successively in the offices of D. C. McCoy, William R. Scott. H. C. Johnson and J. W. Mc- Closkey. In 1852 Mr. Hecker was elected district attorney for Crawford county, serving three years. Since the expiration of his term of office he has been engaged in the practice of law in Meadville.
In 1875 Mr. Hecker published, as a result of life-long research and study, a valuable legal work on "Warrantee in the Sale of Personal Property." Mr. Hecker is at present the oldest practicing attorney at the Crawford county bar.
David Blatchley, formerly Blackly, was a resident of Connecticut in 1752. According to records in possession of Stephen Blatchley, of Concord, Erie county, Pennsylvania, a son of Daniel married Elizabeth Hubbard, who was a native of Connecticut. He moved to Broome county, New York, with his team and wagon at an early date and settled at Windsor, where he afterward died. His son David married Phebe Edson, daughter of Seth and Desire (Comstock) Edson, who were natives of Massachusetts, and settled in Broome county. In 1835 he moved to Cattaraugus county, same state, and in 1836 to Chautauqua county, that state, where he engaged in his trades as carpenter, builder and farmer, and from there he removed to Erie county, Pennsylvania, where he settled on the farm his son now owns in Concord township, and where he died in 1892; his wife died in 1886. Their children were Stephen, Elizabeth ( Mrs. Lorrin Bates), and Electa ( Mrs. Charles Rosaback), of Spartansburg.
Delmer Houts, a farmer, of East Fairfield township, was born in Wayne township. Crawford county, November 9, 1859. son of Henry and Phoebe J. ( Stockton) Houtz, natives of Dauphin county, this state, who came to south- ern Crawford at an early day and settled in the adjoining township. Henry Houtz was the son of William and Polly Houtz; the latter still survives, at the age of thirty-three years. He is the oldest of the following named children : Delmer, subject : Anna, wife of W. B. Teed; Effie, wife of John McDaniel ; Jeanette, wife of Samuel Gourley; Albert, deceased ; Theodore: Nannie, and Henry Ellis Houtz. December 14, 188.4, he married Mina, the second child of John and Esther (Clough) Heffernan, of Venango county, Pennsylvania. The children of this family are John, Mina ( wife of subject). Ida Belle, Myrtle, Cass and Hamilton. Three children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Houtz. viz. : Ada, Winnie Pearl and Francis Leroy Houtz. Mr. Houtz
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