USA > Pennsylvania > Crawford County > Our country and its people. A historical and memorial record of Crawford County, Pennsylvania. > Part 99
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ing," "Modern Social Life," and "Theater-Going, Dancing and Card Play- ing."
Dr. Flood is the author of a book published by Estes & Lauriat, of Bos- ton, entitled "A Hundred Ministers, and How They Switched Off." In 1876 the Ohio Wesleyan University conferred upon him the degree of Master of Arts. In association with M. Bailey, of Jamestown, New York, Dr. Flood, in 1875, founded the Chautauqua Assembly Daily Herald, the official organ of the Chautauqua meetings, and in 1880 became sole editor and proprietor. Mr. Flood, with the Rev. J. W. Hamilton, of Boston, Massachusetts, pub- lished a book, "Lives of the Methodist Bishops," from the standpoint of an active episcopacy. It contains a sketch of the life of every deceased bishop in every branch of Methodism, with a steel engraving of each one.
Mr. Flood was elected a member of the general conference of the Meth- odist Episcopal church, which met in May, 1880, in Cincinnati. Ile received the degree of Doctor of Divinity from Mount Union College, at Alliance, Ohio, in 1881. In 1880 he established at Meadville the Chautauquan, a monthly magazine, the organ of the Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle. which, during its first year, attained a circulation of fifteen thousand.
Dr. Flood served as pastor of the Meadville church for three years, after which he was stationed at Oil City, where he officiated as pastor of Trinity church for two years. He then spent a year in Titusville, and in October, 1882, he retired from the pulpit, in order to devote his full attention to his business interests. In December. 1883, he purchased the Meadville Daily and Weekly Republican, a leading newspaper of Crawford county, of which he made his son, Harry C. Flood, editor. Dr. Flood was elected, in 1883, the second time, delegate to the general conference of his church, at the head of the delegation. In 1883 Dr. Flood purchased a handsome residence on the Diamond, where he now resides. In 1892 he was the Republican candidate for congressman from the twenty-sixth congressional district, but was de- feated by Hon. Joseph C. Sibley, of Franklin.
Dr. Flood was married, June 20, 1862, in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, to Miss Annie M., daughter of David Black, Esq., of that town, and by this union were born two sons and one daughter : Harry C., Ned A. and Rebie M. ( Flood) Irvin.
Nels A. Johnson, merchant tailor, Titusville, was born in Holland, Swe- den, June 3, 1852, son of Johnson and ( Pettronelila) Johnson. The former is still living, in Sweden, at the age of seventy-six years, and the latter died in 1886, at the age of sixty-five years. Mr. Johnson began as an apprentice at the age of thirteen years, at Svanbenson, his native place, and came to America in 1871, first locating in Penfield, Clearfield county, this state. A short time afterward he removed to Corry, also in this state; there he still
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continues at his trade. He came to Titusville in 1878 and formed a copart- nership with C. Holtz, which existed for one year. In 1883 he formed a co- partnership with L. J. Cederquist, which continued until February, 1897, when it was dissolved, and he continued business on his own account.
August 15, 1875, he married Louise B. Jacobson, of Holland. Sweden, and they have ten children : John A., Carrol. Oscar, Edith P., Alger, Han- nah, Emma. deceased, Ogalmer, Clarence, deceased, and Helder.
William Tenney Dutton, civil engineer at Meadville, was born at Hart- ford. Connecticut, on June 7. 1852, received his early education in his native town, and at the age of eighteen received an appointment as a cadet in the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis. He resigned, however, two years later, and entered the Chandler Science School, of Dartmouth College, where he was graduated in the engineering course in 1876. For two years after graduation he was engaged in professional work, but in 1878 accepted a position as teacher of mathematics in the Brooklyn Polytechnic and Colle- giate Institute. where he remained two years. He was next called as a teacher ih state normal schools .- from 1881-86 at Shippensburg, and from 1886-90 at Edinboro. In 1800 he was elected professor of civil engineering at Alle- gheny College, which position he still fills. He is an efficient instructor, and has recently had added to his duties the charge of several classes in mathemat- ics. Personally, Mr. Dutton is a most genial gentleman, and has made many friends during his life in Meadville. It is safe to say that there is no man in the college faculty a greater favorite among the students than Professor Dutton. Politically, he is a Democrat.
David C. Dunn, son of Renselear K. and Rebecca (Compton) Dunn, was born April 17. 1845. in Hayfield, educated at the common schools at Mead- ville, studied dentistry with Dr. D. R. Greenleaf, and opened a dental office in Meadville in 1869. In 1868 he was united in marriage with Elizabeth Hays, and to this union were born five children: Williami C. was born in 1869. studied dentistry with his father. and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania (dental department). In 1800 he became a partner with his father, under the firm name of D. C. & W. C. Dunn. He married Emma Brown, daughter of R. B. Brown, and has one child, Helen.
Ellis M. Farrelly, physician. Townville, Pennsylvania, was born in Mead- ville, Pennsylvania, June 13, 1843, a son of John W. and Louisa ( Ellis) Far- relly, natives of Crawford county, who had a large family, of whom the subject of this sketch is the only survivor. He was educated in Meadville, read medicine with Edward Ellis, M. D., of the same place, as his preceptor. and attended lectures in Ann Arbor. Michigan. He entered the army as a
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medical cadet August 18, 1862, served two years, then as acting assisting sur- geon until March, 1865, when he resigned. While stationed at Louisville, Kentucky, in 1864, he graduated at the Kentucky School of Medicine, and he began practice in Franklin, Pennsylvania, in 1865; and in the following year went to the western states, where he followed his profession about four- teen years. In 1878 he settled in Townville, Pennsylvania, where he continues the practice of medicine.
In 1880 the Doctor was married to Mrs. Ettie C. Sayre, widow of Frank WV. Sayre and daughter of George and Caroline Bowman, who were early settlers of Crawford county. Dr. Farrelly is a member of Gleason Post, No. 96, G. A. R., and in politics is a Democrat.
Thomas Shafer, proprietor of the Shafer House, at Cochranton, was born in Mead township, September 5, 1835, and is a son of Philip and Elizabeth (Knierman) Shafer. His parents were natives of Germany, and in 1830 located in Mead township, Crawford county, Pennsylvania. There the father engaged in farming for three years, after which he removed with his family to Greenwood township, where he purchased land which had been only par- tially cleared. This he improved, making his home thereon until his death. His six children were Henry, Thomas, Phillip, George, John and David.
Thomas Shafer was reared on his father's farm and was educated in the public schools. In 1856 he went to California, where he engaged in mining for three years. In 1859 he returned to this county, locating in Union town- ship, where he engaged in farming until 1871. In that year he removed to Cochranton and opened a hotel. He has since engaged in that line of busi- ness, and in addition to his duties as proprietor of the Shafer House he ex- tended his field of labors, in March, 1894, by embarking in the wholesale liquor business, dividing his attention between the two interests until Febru- ary, 1897, since which time he has conducted the hotel alone.
In November, 1863, Mr. Shafer was united in marriage to Fanny, dangh- ter of James and Rebecca ( Robinson) Martin, of Cochranton. To this union were born five children, but only one is now living. Mr. Shafer has filled a number of minor offices, including that of burgess, and takes a public-spirited interest in all that pertains to the general welfare.
James Burrows, a respected citizen of Sparta township, Crawford county, comes from good old New England stock, and in him are embodied many of the industrions, upright, just and honorable qualities that were noticeable in his ancestors. He is a great-grandson of Asa Burrows and grandson of Benjamin Burrows, while his parents were Amasa and Phiana (Nowlin) Burrows. The father was a farmer by occupation, his home being in Otsego county, New
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York, and during the war of 1812 he went forth to serve his country against the British foe.
James Burrows was born upon the parental homestead at Butternuts, in Otsego county, New York, October 6, 1824, and also grew up there. He attended the common schools of Guilford, New York, and later went to Ox- ford Academy, at Oxford, New York, and there completed his studies in the English branches,-mathematics, chemistry, philosophy, etc. When he was about five years old he fell from a log and broke his left arm, and five years later a brother accidentally dealt out to the unfortunate youth a dreadful stroke of ill-luck, for he almost severed the left hand of James from the arm. only some cords and tendons and some flesh holding the two members together. After a fashion the two grew together again, but when the young man was twenty he fell from a load of hay and broke his left arm, and after this he abandoned active work on the farm for a long time. He had always been studious and had no difficulty in obtaining a certificate to teach. He taught for two terms in Yale Settlement, Chenango county, New York, and at inter- vals, here and there, conducted classes for a term or more, meeting with gratifying success. As his time was not fully occupied, however, he concluded to enter some other vocation, and commenced selling watches, silverware and jewelry for the firm of R. I. Johnson & Company, of Norwich. At the end of five years, the health of Mr. Burrows becoming somewhat impaired, he went out west, partly to see something of that portion of the United States, then so much talked about ( 1853). Returning, he clerked in a general store in Warren county, Pennsylvania, for some time, and then engaged in rafting and in selling humber on the Ohio river, going as far as Cincinnati, and also in teaching. In 1862 he purchased a farm in Sparta township, Crawford county, and has since been a resident of this immediate locality. As an agri- culturist he has been very successful, and in almost every enterprise he has undertaken he has been prosperous. Among his neighbors and acquaintances he stands very high, and they have called upon him, time and again, to fill offices of trust and responsibility. From 1863 to 1873 he was a justice of the peace, at various times he has been assessor, collector two years, auditor, etc .. and he has never failed to discharge his duties with a promptness and thorough- ness which has won the approval of all concerned. Politically, he is a Demo- crat of the old school, and is not a believer in holding the Philippine islands, excepting to have only a naval station.
March 2, 1862, Mr. Burrows married, in Centerville, Pennsylvania, Miss Melissa R. Phillips. Two sons and two daughters have blessed their union, namely: Maud, born February 6, 1863; James, September 18. 1864: C. Cooper, November 15, 1866; and Georgia A., August 10, 1871. The family has a pleasant home, provided with many of the luxuries of refined life and progress, and it is the constant aim of each member of the household to pro-
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mote the happiness of all with whom their lot is cast and to lend a helping hand to those less fortunately situated than himself.
Orson Hopkins, a farmer and lumberman of Steuben township, is a son of Daniel and Margaret ( Kingsley) Hopkins, and was born in Steuben town- ship, Crawford county, Pennsylvania, August 21, 1850. Daniel Hopkins and his wife, Margaret, came from the town of Ellington, Chautauqua county, New York, in 1838, and settled on a tract of land in Steuben township, about two miles from Townville. At that time this section of country was an almost unbroken wilderness. A few settlers had here and there cleared away patches of timber and made the beginnings of farms. Here, where they first located, they made themselves a home and reared a large family of children, the young- est of whom is the subject of this sketch. He remained on the old homestead after his older brothers and sisters married and moved away, gradually, as his parents advanced in years, assuming the responsibilities of home manage- ment until the death of his father, Daniel, in 1872, since which time he has carried on the work of the farm and engaged quite extensively in the sale of farm implements and in lumbering. In 1872 he married Alice Winston, youngest daughter of Horatio and Minerva Winston, early settlers in Rich- mond township, this county. To this union four children have been born : Grace, Ethel, Earl and Elsie.
David R. Baugher, an honored veteran of the Civil war, is a worthy citi- zen of Athens township, Crawford county. A native of Steuben township, same county, he was born May 24, 1844, his parents being Michael D. and Charlotte F. (Waggoner) Baugher.
The boyhood and youth of the subject of this sketch were passed in this his native state, and when twenty years of age he enlisted in Company B, Twelfth Regiment of Pennsylvania Cavalry, and served throughout the re- mainder of the war of the Rebellion, then being given an honorable discharge.
D. R. Baugher married Miss Laura Tefft, who died in 1879, leaving three children to mourn her loss. They are still living and are named respeet- ively Florence, Martin J. and Blanche E. Subsequently to the death of his first wife Mr. Baugher re-married, the lady of his choice being Sarah Winans.
Samuel L. Gardner, deceased, of Meadville, was born in Wilmington, N. C., in 1823, and died in Meadville, December 5. 1890. He spent his early life in Alabama ; was a carpenter by trade ; was employed as a bridge builder ; served in the Union army as a scout under General Mitchell, and mustered out September 15, 1865. After the close of the war he removed to Cleveland, Ohio, and in 1867 came to Meadville, where he gained a livelihood from a
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fruit stand located where the Methodist Episcopal church now stands. He afterward established the general store on North Main street which is still conducted by Mrs. Gardner. In 1869 he married Anna, daughter of Samuel and Rachel Green, natives of Clarion county, Pennsylvania, and to this union were born five children, viz .: Edward; George; Henry, a resident of Buf- falo, New York; Eva and Blanche Gardner.
Patrick William Egan, burgess of Valonia, was born March 17, 1843, at Mohill, county Leitrim, Ireland. When thirteen years of age he came to America with his sister Ellen, who was sixteen years of age. They went to live with an uncle at Jackson, Scioto county, Ohio. Mr. Egan remained there but a year, when he went to work in the iron mines of Kentucky. In 1863 he came to Meadville and commenced working under A. D. Guisley. superintendent of construction of the Atlantic & Great Western Railway, em- ployed on various jobs, spending one year in Cincinnati, Ohio. Mr. Egan returned to Meadville in 1870 and started as brakeman for the railroad. In 1872 he was given a conductorship and to-day holds that position in the service of the Erie Railroad Company.
Mr. Egan was first elected burgess of the village of Valonia in 1888, and is now serving his third term in that office. He has also served as school director of the village. On February 3. 1867, he was married to Miss Jane Rogers, of Meadville, Pennsylvania. They have two daughters,-Mollie L., and Abigail C., wife of Harry Stenger, at Allegheny City, this state.
C. C. Il'est, engineer and machinist, Meadville, was born December 26, 1839, and is a native of New York. He is a son of Joseph B. and Eliza (Crumb) West, of English and Welsh extraction, who were natives of Onon- daga county, New York. Joseph West died in April, 1896, aged eighty-six years. He reared a family of eight children,-three boys and five girls. Our subject learned the machinist's trade in Corry, Pennsylvania, and came to Meadville in 1872. where he was employed at his trade at the Phoenix Iron Works and the Erie Railway shops until 1890, when he accepted the position of engineer and general mechanic in the establishment of Flood & Vincent. which position he now holds. He did valiant service for his country in the Civil war, enlisting in June, 1861, in the Thirty-ninth New York Regiment. After the close of the war he was for five years in the employ of the New York, Pennsylvania & Ohio Railroad. In October, 1863, he was united in marriage to Miriam, daughter of Absalom and Anna (Wormwood) Goodell, of New York. To this union have been born two children: Cora D. and Ferd D. West. Our subject is a member of Peiffer Post, No. 331, G. A. R .; Veterans' Union : Lodge, No. 234, A. O. U. W .; Knights of Honor, Alpha Lodge, No. 42; Knights and Ladies of Honor, and the Methodist Episcopal church.
FrpRoberts
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Luther Chase, a venerable citizen of Rome township, Crawford county, is a son of Luther and Polly (Aldrich) Chase, the former a soldier of the war of 1812. The subject of this sketch was born in Spring Creek, Warren county, Pennsylvania, in 1813, and when arrived at maturity he married Matilda Graves, daughter of Henry Graves, the ceremony which united their destinies being performed on the 3d of February, 1836.
Luther Chase and his devoted wife settled in Sparta township, and for many years the home of the former has been in Rome township. He has made a business of agriculture and carpentering, and has been successful. Mrs. Chase died in 1875 and left four children.
Joseph T. First, of Vernon township, was born July 31, 1837, in Wayne township, Crawford county, where his parents, Christopher and Lydia (Probst) First, settled at an early day. Joseph was of a family of twelve children. For many years he remained with his father on the farm, at the same time assisting Andrew Mills in his sawmill near the First homestead. In 1860 Mr. First was married to Silvia Gilbert, by whom he had two children,- Elmer E. and Mertie. Mrs. First died in 1870 and several years later Mr. First married Rebecca, daughter of Reuben Brown. They have three children : Sarah M., William D. and Albert J. Mr. First is a member of the A. O. U. W .; Lodge No. 980, I. O. O. F., at Conneaut Lake, and the E. A. U. Mr. First is one of the county commissioners of Crawford, having now served sey- eral terms in that office.
W'alter Brooke Roberts, whose portrait is given on the opposite page, was for many years one of the most prominent figures in the oil regions. He was born in Moreau, Saratoga county, New York, May 15, 1823, and like most of our men of mark spent the early years of his life on a farm. Here hie attended the district school, which together with his father's library laid the foundation of his education. At the age of seventeen he accepted a clerk- ship in a banking office at Albany, New York, but dissatisfied with its con- fining duties he determined to qualify himself for teaching and entered the academy at Evans' Mills in Jefferson county, New York. A few months later we find him in charge of a district school in his native county, at a monthly salary of eleven dollars. For the next four years he continued to teach, devoting the summer vacations to the study of mathematics at the Glens Falls Academy, and the study of medicine under the instructions of Dr. Sheldon of that place.
Finally turning his attention to dentistry, he acquired a thorough knowl- edge of this science in all its branches, and in the summer of 1845, with an ample outfit for the practice of his new art, he traveled through New Hamp- shire. Such was his success that he determined to return to Poughkeepsie,
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New York, and establish himself permanently. At this juncture an attack of typhoid fever came to upset all his plans and incapacitate him for a long time. When feeling strong again he opened an office, in connection with his brother, Dr. Charles H. Roberts, at Poughkeepsie, but he found at the end of a year's confinement to practice, which had grown rapidly on his hands, that his declining health necessitated some change. With this idea he sailed, in February, 1850, for the West Indies and spent some months on the island of Cuba. Partly restored to health, he returned by way of New Orleans and soon disposed of his interests in Poughkeepsie, preferring to practice his profes- sion in many of the principal towns of Dutchess county, taking healthful out- door exercise and developing the rugged manhood which he afterward retained.
With a view of entering mercantile pursuits, Dr. Roberts in 1853 visited Nicaragua, and on his return home organized a company, under the firm name of Churchill, Roberts, Mills & Company, of which he was one of the principal partners and business managers. The business of the company was the importation of hides from Central America, and the undertaking soon proved to be highly successful. Dr. Roberts next returned to his profession, and in connection with his brother, E. A. L. Roberts, opened dental parlors in the city of New York. A year later he purchased his brother's interest, and locating in Bond street continued to practice until 1868. He took high rank in his profession, receiving from the American Institute of New York the first medal for the best artificial teeth. He labored assiduously to ad- vance the science of dentistry. During the period of his professional practice in New York he was the editor and proprietor of the New York Dental Jour- nal. published in that city. He helped to establish the New York Dental Col- lege and was for a long time one of its trustees.
The internal feuds of Central America had at length grown into a fearful civil war, destroying values and wrecking business, so that the trading com- pany to which Dr. Roberts belonged found it necessary to close their relations with that country, and delegated him to revisit Nicaragua for this purpose. After months of hardship, endured in traversing swamps, mule paths and un- broken jungle fields, with hairbreadth escapes from bullets, banditti and yellow fever, he succeeded in accomplishing the objects of his mission and returned home much impaired in health from the effect of the climate and exposure.
In the spring of 1863 Dr. Roberts was delegated by Rev. Dr. Bellows, president of the National Sanitary Commission. to visit General Hunter's division. then having its headquarters at Beaufort, South Carolina, to examine the condition, sanitary and otherwise, of that part of the Union army. The report of his investigations was published in full in the New York Dental Journal and widely copied and commended by other journals. It abounded
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in practical suggestions for the amelioration of the condition of the soldiers in the camp, on the march and on the field.
In the fall of 1866 Dr. Roberts was elected to the common council of the city of New York and served two terms. Although in the political minority in that body, he was the leader of his party and a candidate for their president. the vote standing thirteen Democrats to eleven Republicans.
In 1864 he was induced to subscribe to the stock of an oil company. It was, like many others of that day, a fraud, as Dr. Roberts soon found on visit- ing the oil regions soon after. His visit, however, he turned to good account by making an examination of the producing regions. Believing from this sur- vey that there was money to be made in producing oil, he returned to New York and sought to enlist his brother, Colonel E. A. L. Roberts, in his plans. For answer the Colonel disclosed to Dr. Roberts the nature of an invention lie had recently perfected for increasing the production of an oil well by ex- ploding a torpedo in the oil-bearing rock, and offered him a half interest for exploiting and developing the invention. Dr. Roberts was at once convinced of the value of the invention and put in the necessary capital, and formed a company in New York for the introduction of the invention under the name of the Roberts Petroleum Torpedo Company.
In the meanwhile application for a patent had been filed and Colonel Rob- erts sent to Titusville with six torpedoes to test their merit and efficiency. It was no easy matter to persuade the owners of oil wells to allow the experi- ment, but in January, 1865, two torpedoes were exploded, and the success of the invention established beyond question. Immediately other applications for the invention of the torpedo came pouring into the patent office and only after a protracted fight of two years with interference suits was the patent finally issued. In 1866 Dr. Roberts was elected secretary of the Torpedo Company, and the following year its president, which position he held until the company was absorbed by the firm of E. A. L. & W. B. Roberts. The contest before the patent office in regard to the torpedo patent was but the beginning of a desperate struggle, in which the Roberts brothers were forced to fight every inch of ground gained and at times against allied asso- ciations of the producers. Never up to that time had a patent been so in- fringed upon nor such an array of suits brought. The Bell telephone cases offer the only parallel in recent times. In every instance the claims of the patent were sustained, but the controversy and suits were still going on when, in 1883, the patent expired and all parties dropped the matter. In 1868 these suits had assumed such proportions that Dr. Roberts gave up his professional practice in New York and removed permanently to Titusville. He was the directing power of the Torpedo Company in all its litigation and its business manager during his life. (Further account of the torpedo is given in the life of Colonel E. A. L. Roberts. )
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