USA > Pennsylvania > Schuylkill County > Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania; genealogy-family history-biography; containing historical sketches of old families and of representative and prominent citizens, past and present, Volume II > Part 75
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Mrs. Ditchey was born in Shenandoah, daughter of Adolph Kline, a native of Germany, where he grew to manhood and learned the trade of shoemaker. Mr. Kline came to Schuylkill county, Pa., in 1860, and in 1863 settled at Shenandoah, where he opened a shop at the corner of White and Centre streets and followed shoemaking. Later he became a miner. He mar- ried Theresa Boneberger, who died Oct. 25, 1915, and Mr. Kline made his home with his daughter Mrs. Ditchey, until his death, Jan. 17, 1916. He is buried in the Annunciation Cemetery at Shenandoah. They had the following children besides Mrs. Ditchey: Michael, who was formerly a steam shovel engineer (he is not married) ; and Charles, member of the firm of Kline & Coyle, tobacco manufacturers of Shenandoah (he married Anne Woods, and they have children, Charles, Margaret, Julia, Peter and John).
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WILLIAM J. BROWN occupies an honorable position among his fellow citizens in Shenandoah, serving them at present in the capacity of chief burgess, to which office he was elected in 1913. He has proved his title to their confi- dence by the observance of the utmost integrity in all his relations with them during a long residence in the borough, and his attitude on every question concerning the local welfare has been so consistently public-spirited that he may well be considered worthy of the highest honor in their gift. His official acts have in no way impaired the good opinion he won in private life.
Mr. Brown is a native of Minersville, Schuylkill county, born July 2, 1864. He is of Irish descent, his father, Michael Brown, having been born in County Mayo, Ireland. He died when comparatively a young man, being killed on the railroad, and is buried in the Catholic cemetery at Minersville. By his marriage to Margaret Brown (no relation) he had one child, William J. The widow remarried, becoming the wife of Henry Pugh, a miner, of Minersville, and to this union was born one son, James, now a mine foreman at Mount Carmel, Pa .; he married Martha Griffith. Mr. Pugh died at the age of seventy years, Mrs. Pugh at the age of sixty, and they are buried in the Protestant cemetery at Minersville.
Mrs. Margaret ( Brown) Brown was born at Minersville, where her father, James Brown, a native of Scotland, settled after his arrival in this country. He was a miner all his life. He is buried at Minersville, but his wife, Jane (Gilmore), is interred at Mount Carmel. They were married in Scotland, and had children as follows: William, who was killed while serving in the army during the Civil war; Jane; Agnes; and Margaret. James Brown was a member of the Episcopal Church.
William J. Brown was reared by his maternal grandmother. He had public school advantages at Jonestown (near Minersville), but was only nine years old when he commenced work at the Wadlinger breaker, at Forestville, picking slate there for three years, until the breaker was burned. His next employ- ment was at the Kitty Drift, owned by the Philadelphia & Reading Company, at what was known as Woodside, where he was under the foremanship of Thomas James, and was engaged in pushing coal. From there he went to Thomaston (Heckscherville valley), this county, where he drove mules for two years, the inside foreman there being then Monroe Sheffler; this was also a Philadelphia & Reading property. When he left this place he went to Helfen- stein and walked over the mountains to Locust Gap, where he was employed in loading dumpers under the breaker for six months, changing then to the Spring colliery, where he did inside work, with Charles Richman as fore- man. He commenced regular mining when between sixteen and seventeen years old, working in the breast as miner's assistant for one year and then taking charge of a breast for three years at the Spring colliery at Locust Gap. Removing to Mount Carmel, he found work in the Bells Tunnel colliery, owned by Mr. Bickel, and after his day's work in the mines was over put in his evenings, for six months, serving an apprenticeship to the barber's trade during the four years of his residence there. He was next located at Ashland, where he was in the hotel business one year, meantime marrying, and on his return to Mount Carmel he opened a tea store, also selling groceries, fish, oysters, etc. This business he carried on for one year, until attacked by an illness which kept him in the hospital for a month. For a short time thereafter he was in Philadelphia, where he worked three months for the Mansey Transfer Company in the Pennsylvania freight depot, on Fifty-second street. During Vol. II-33
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that time his family remained in Mount Carmel. In November, 1891, Mr. Brown settled at Shenandoah, opening the barber shop which he carried on successfully for the next twenty years, selling it out in 1911. He combined other lines profitably with his main business, selling picture frames, taking orders for framing, and handling cigars. In August, 1911, he took a pleasure trip to Boston, remaining there until January, 1912, and upon his return to Shenandoah assisted his son for a time in the laundry business, being so en- gaged until November, 1912. Then he resumed his old occupation, mining, at the Turkey Run slope, No. 8, having charge of the repairmen, and retained the position until he assumed the duties of chief burgess of Shenandoah, to which office he had been elected in November, 1913. He took office on Jan. 5, 1914, and has filled the responsibilities of chief executive of the borough in a dignified, intelligent manner, giving practically all his attention to his official duties. However, he carries on a wholesale trade in cigars, having many patrons in this section of Schuylkill county. Mr. Brown owns a fine property on West Oak street, Shenandoah, where he resides. He deserves great credit for the position he has attained, for he has advanced entirely by his own efforts, and all who know him concede that he merits all he has gained. He is a Democrat and a Catholic, his religious connection being with the Church of the Annunciation at Shenandoah; socially he affiliates with Division No. 2, Ancient Order of Hibernians, and with Shenandoah Lodge No. 1179, of the Loyal Order of Moose.
Mr. Brown was married to Catherine Cecilia Gibbons, who was born May 15, 1869, at Mount Carmel, Pa., where she spent her early life and received her education. She remained at home until her marriage, engaged as a dress- maker and designer. Mrs. Brown is one of the leading workers in the Church of the Annunciation at Shenandoah, a member of the Sacred Heart Society, and of the Sodality of the Blessed Virgin Mary. At present she is serving as county vice president of the Ladies' auxiliary of the Ancient Order of Hibernians, was president of the organization for two years, and had already been financial secretary four years when reelected in December, 1915, for two years more. She is also a member of the Daughters of Isabella.
Mr. and Mrs. Brown have had the following children: (1) Mary, born Feb. 15. 1889, died when six months old. (2) William Leo, born April 11, 1890, received his early education in the public schools at Shenandoah, and while here was employed at the mines, throwing chains, and doing other work of the same kind. But he was ambitious to get ahead, and leaving home he went to Boston, Mass., where he attended Franklin Institute. He has become an expert electrician, now holding the important position of inspector for the Edi- son Electric Company in that city. He married Alta Sheflott, of New London, Conn., and they have two children, Leo and William. (3) John Francis, born Jan. 7, 1892, was educated in the public schools of Shenandoah, attending high school, and is now engaged as manager of Clark Brothers' grocery store at Shenandoah. (4) Jean, born Nov. 16, 1893, died March 2, 1904. (5) Anna Gertrude, born June 20, 1895, was educated in the borough schools. She is now a trained nurse, having graduated from St. Agnes Hospital, Phila- delphia, in June, 1915, and is at present supervising nurse of the Visiting Nurses Association of Shenandoah, Pa. (6) Walter James, born Jan. 26, 1897, was educated in the home schools and is now employed in Clark Brothers' store. (7) Margaret and (8) Henry, twins, born May 26, 1898, died when two
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months old. (9) Raphael David, born Jan. 9, 1901, and (10) Catherine Agnes, born Jan. 17, 1903, are attending school.
Walter Gibbons, Mrs. Brown's grandfather, was a native of County Mayo, Ireland, and passed all his life in that country. His occupation was farming. He and his wife, whose maiden name was Barrett, are buried in County Mayo. They were Roman Catholics in religious faith. Their children were: Patrick, who married Mary Lee, is a farmer in Chester county, Pa .; Catherine is the wife of Michael Dorsey, superintendent of the gas works at Wilmington, Del .; Mary, unmarried, lived in West Chester, Pa .; John was the father of Mrs. Brown.
John Gibbons, son of Walter, was born in Newport, County Mayo, Ire- land, and received his education in his native land. He was a man of remark- able intelligence and excellent character, a great believer in temperance, and endeavored to carry out his ideas in his domestic life and his relations with all his fellows. His family was brought up in a high moral atmosphere, and Mrs. Brown has taken pride in following his example in the training of her own children. When a young man John Gibbons went to England, and there, as in his own country, did farm work. He was married in Yorkshire, England, and after his marriage settled at Hull. On coming to America he landed at New York and thence proceeded to Locust Gap, Pa., where he entered the mines as a contractor, being so engaged for a few years. He then bought land on East avenue, Mount Carmel, and built a home at that place, where he resided the rest of his life, continuing to follow mining. He died when fifty-three years old, of injuries received in the mines, at which time his daugh- ter, Mrs. Brown, was eleven years old. Mr. Gibbons supported the Demo- cratic party in politics, in which he took considerable interest ; he served as tax receiver at Mount Carmel. He and his wife were members of the Church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel, and are buried in the cemetery of that church.
Mr. Gibbons married Mary Gibbons, who was born near Westport, in County Mayo, Ireland, daughter of David and Mary (Moran) Gibbons, but of a different clan than that to which her husband belonged. David Gibbons belonged to a family of shipbuilders in Ireland, where some of the name are still in the business. He was a native of County Mayo, where he followed farming until his death, which occurred when he was yet a young man. His widow lived to be over eighty years old. They had a family of seven children, viz .: Bridget married Michael McGuiness (both now deceased) and had five children ; Mary married John Gibbons, and died at the age of eighty-five years ; Thomas, who now lives in St. Paul, Minn., married Mary Ann Reynolds (de- ceased), and of their children one son, Thomas, is a priest (St. Mary's parish, St. Paul, where he is very popular ; he was one of the youngest priests at the time of his ordination), John is a lawyer, Ann is Mrs. Crawford (her husband is a lawyer in Virginia ), Martin went to the State of Washington, and Ella is Mrs. Farley (her husband is in the restaurant business in Missoula, Mont .; they have two children, Mrs. Sarah King, whose husband is a railroader in St. Paul, and Mrs. Mary Martin, of the State of Washington) ; Ellen married Edward Muldowney ( both are deceased), but had no children ; Anne married Hugh McDonald (he is deceased) and had eight children; Martin mar- ried Bridget O'Donnell ( both deceased) and had a large family; Michael married and had one child, John. The family were Roman Catholics. Mr. Gibbons is buried in County Mayo. His widow came to America, lived for a time at Locust Gap and later at Mount Carmel, and is buried at Ashland,
1
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Schuylkill Co., Pa. In her younger days she was an expert fisher, being as competent as any man.
To John and Mary Gibbons were born children as follows: Margaret, born in Yorkshire, England, married Thomas Neary, and they became the parents of sixteen children; she is deceased. Annie, born in Hull, England, lived at Mount Carmel, where she followed dressmaking and designing; she married Edward Breslin, who survives her, now living in the South, and they had two children. Patrick, who is superintendent for the United Gas and Improvement Company, in Philadelphia, married Mary Bowen and has a family of eight children. John, a leading citizen of Mount Carmel, Pa., engaged in the in- surance and real estate business, married Mary Quinn, and they had seven children, five of whom are living. Ella is the wife of Stillman Wells, a farmer at McGraw, N. Y. Catherine Cecilia is the wife of William J. Brown.
John Gibbons, Mrs. Brown's father, inherited a landed estate in Ireland from his parents, but the property has been lost.
JOSEPH LINDERMUTH, now living retired, has been a resident of Schuylkill county since 1865. He is a veteran of the Civil war, during which he served the Union faithfully for over three years. Mr. Lindermuth is a native of Berks county, and belongs to one of the old families of that part of Pennsylvania. The name was originally spelled Lindenmuth, and has long been honored in that county, its members having been characterized by industry and honesty, conscientious fidelity to duty and untiring labor in religious and public life.
Michael Lindenmuth came from the German Palatinate to America, quali- fying at Philadelphia Sept. 22, 1752. Soon thereafter it appears that he located in Windsor township, Berks county. In 1790 he settled in that part of Bern township now known as Tilden. In the Pennsylvania Archives his name is given as Johan Michael, and on his tombstone it is John Michael, while in the Federal government records of the Revolutionary war he is referred to as Col. Michael. He was a leading figure in Berks county in the struggle for inde- pendence. On May 6, 1780, he addressed a letter to the council in reference to the murder of some of the inhabitants beyond the Blue Mountain, and the moving of certain families to the Little Schuylkill. He asked for arms from the stores at Reading for self defense. On the roth President Reed replied, stating that he had directed Colonel Morgan to supply the necessary arms. Michael Lindenmuth was colonel of the 4th Battalion of Berks county militia. By the following action of the Supreme Executive Council, Dec. 31, 1778, it would appear that Col. Michael Lindenmuth and his battalion were in active service outside of the county : "Ordered that the Secretary write to the Lieu- tenant of Berks County to call upon Colonel Lindenmuth or his Lieutenant- Colonel, stationed last summer at Fort Jenkins, in Northumberland, for five rifles taken from one Webb, charged with disaffection." In the Stoever record of marriages in western Berks county it is found that June 17, 1760, Michael Lindenmuth married Maria Eva Noecker. In the will of Martin Noecker (see Pennsylvania Historical Society, Book 365, Page 521) is this item: "To the children of Michael and Magdalena Lindenmuth, the children of my deceased daughter, Eve, deceased wife of Michael Lindenmuth," whence it would appear that Magdalena was his second wife. In the will of Margaret, widow of Eberhart Geschwind, of Bern township, is this reference: "I give and bequeath unto my daughter Catharine, wife of Michael Lindenmuth," who
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apparently was the third wife of Michael Lindenmuth. The number of his children is not known, but by his wife Catharine he had a son John Jacob, mentioned below. In a diary left by Col. Michael Lindenmuth (but subse- quently destroyed by his children) it was stated that the government owed him a large sum of money which he had advanced the commissary department, and for the services of himself and men. While en route to Washington for settlement he died at Baltimore. The delay in the settlement had ruined him financially.
John Jacob Lindenmuth was born Aug. 24, 1766, and died Sept. 17, 1839. His wife, Catharine, was born Nov. 22, 1768, and died April 17, 1852, and both are buried at Hamburg. His tombstone inscription says he was the father of sixteen children. Among these were: John; Thomas, who moved West; George, who was killed in the stone quarry at Bern Station; and Sam- nel, who died in 1870, at his home in Stouchsburg, the father of Sarah, Catharine, Mary, Lydia, Samuel (who had a daughter Agnes), Nathaniel, Elizabeth and John.
Joseph Lindermuth, one of the sons of John Jacob, was the father of Joseph Lindermuth and grandfather of Horace D. Lindermuth, of Auburn, Schuylkill county. He was a native of Berks county, and with the exception of about ten years spent in Dauphin county, Pa., passed all his life there. By trade he was a stonemason. His death occurred near Hamburg, Berks county, and he was buried at St. Michael's Church. His wife Theresa (Harper) died while they were living in Dauphin county, and was also buried in the cemetery of St. Michael's Church. They had the following children: Reuben died in Berks county, Pa .; Sybilla married a Mr. Rhoads; Lavina married John Starr; Joseph is mentioned below; Daniel is living at Centreport, Pa .; Emma married Frank Potteiger; Catherine died unmarried; Alfred is living at Auburn : Sarah married John Bickle; Louisa married Henry Frantz ; Jonathan is deceased.
Joseph Lindermuth was born Nov. 12. 1838, near Hamburg. Berks Co., Pa., and was reared on a farm in Upper Bern township, that county. In 1857 he began to work at the miller's trade, which he followed for one year, when he resumed farming at the old Hamburg station. On July 13, 1861, Mr. Lin- dermuth enlisted for three years' service in the Civil war, becoming a mem- ber of Company L, Ist Regiment, Pennsylvania Reserve Cavalry. He was discharged Sept. 9, 1864. at Philadelphia, Pa., with an honorable record, hav- ing taken part in all the battles in which his command was engaged throughout his term.
In 1865 Mr. Lindermuth came to Schuylkill county, settling in West Brunswick township, where he followed farming for two years. For the next two years he farmed at Auburn, after which he lived at Friedensburg, and also at Mahanoy City for a time, returning to Auburn. On July 2, 1872, Mr. Lindermuth entered the service of the Philadelphia & Reading Railway Com- pany, in whose employ he remained continuously for thirty-seven years, thirty years of which time he was an engineer. In 1909 he was retired with a pension. Mr. Lindermuth has led an industrious, useful life, and bears an unblemished reputation.
He married Elizabeth Wingert, daughter of Daniel Wingert, who died and was buried in Mahanoy City, Pa. Ten children were born to this union : Ellen : Elizabeth ; Alice ; Charles Edward, deceased; Horace D .; Leon, de- ceased; John H., deceased; Amy ; Emma, deceased ; and Velma, deceased.
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HORACE D. LINDERMUTH was born at Auburn, Sept. 11, 1877, and has re- sided there continuously. He has always taken an interest in local affairs, is a member of several secret organizations, was elected a member of the borough school board at the age of twenty-one, and has been a member since, serving as secretary during this time. For sixteen years Mr. Lindermuth had charge of the office work of the Delaware Seamless Tube Company, at Auburn, and in August, 1913, accepted a position as traveling auditor under the auditor general of the State. He has always been an ardent Republican in politics, having been an active worker for the party in this section of the county even prior to attaining voting age. In 1912 he was elected one of the national delegates from Schuylkill county to the Republican convention at Chicago, having announced himself as a supporter of Colonel Roosevelt, he and his colleague, T. R. Edwards, of Shenandoah, decisively defeating the Taft candidates after a spirited contest. He followed the wishes of Colonel Roose- velt throughout the memorable convention, and joined with the Roosevelt forces in organizing the Progressive party at Chicago in August. 1912, and making him their candidate for president. He became an ardent supporter of the new party and its principles, and his work in its interest was publicly recognized in a speech by Colonel Roosevelt on a visit to Auburn on a tour of the State, in October, 1914.
In 1902 Mr. Lindermuth was married to Minnie Mengle, daughter of George and Rosa (Hoffman) Mengle, of Auburn, and is the father of two daughters, Dorothy and Rose Elizabeth.
ANDREW B. FAUST, late of East Union township, though taken from life before he reached his prime, had accomplished much and made his way entirely by his own exertions. His business was lumbering, clearing land under contract and operating on his own holdings, and he bore the highest reputation with all who had dealings with him. The same was true of his personal standing. Liberal and broad-minded, interested in all that affected the welfare of his township and county, willing to aid a good cause generously with both means and influence, he was deservedly popular, and is held in esteemed memory by the many with whom business or social activities brought him in contact. He led a useful life, and left a name of precious worth to his family and friends.
Mr. Faust was born in Union (now East Union) township April 18, 1860. son of Daniel Faust and grandson of Henry Faust. £ The grandfather was born April 8, 1780, probably in East Brunswick township, and died June 6. 1871. He is buried at the Old White Church near Ringtown, and his wife, whose maiden name was Mengle, is buried at Weissport, Carbon Co., Pa. It is supposed they were farming people. Mr. Faust was a Democrat in political sentiment. His children were: James, who married Levina Moyer; Frank, whose wife was Dorothy ; Michael : Daniel : Elizabeth, deceased, who married Jacob Trout : and Catherine, widow of Henry Eisenhart, living at Browns- ville, Pennsylvania.
Daniel Faust, father of Andrew B. Faust, was born near McKeansburg. in East Brunswick township, Feb. 27, 1828, and was there reared and edu- cated. During his young manhood he worked out among farmers, and in time bought a farm of his own, at Brandonville, in East Union township, Schuylkill county, upon which he followed agricultural pursuits the remainder of his life. His death occurred Oct. 11, 1910, and he is buried with his wife,
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Carolina (Bitting), at the Old White Church near Ringtown. She was born Oct. 6, 1835, daughter of Charles and Margaret ( Beaver) Bitting, and died Aug. 1, 1914. They had the following children: Hannah Malinda married Jacob Brobst, and they live at Hazleton, Pa .; Amanda Elizabeth is the wife of Frank Scott, of Brandonville, this county; Andrew B. is next in the family ; Margaret Catherine is the wife of James Lorah, of East Union town- ship; Daniel Wesley married Rebecca Bolander, and they live at Hazleton; Silas Mayberry married Charity Creasy, and they reside at Forks, Columbia Co., Pa. The father of this family was a Democrat and a Lutheran, belonging to St. John's Church in East Union township, which he served as deacon.
Andrew B. Faust attended public school at Brandonville, and spent his early life on the home farm, working for his father until he attained his majority. Later he found employment in the lumber woods, for a number of years with William and Elder Spangler in the vicinity of Audenried, Pa. Then for a few years he lumbered for the Lehigh & Wilkes-Barre Coal Com- pany, at Green Mountain, in East Union township, clearing their lands of timber under contract, and eventually he bought four hundred acres all in timber, located in East Union township, from John Arnold, of Hazleton. He had his own sawmill, and was occupied in the operations on this tract until his death, Oct. 9. 1897. He produced principally rough sawed lumber, mine props, ties, etc., for which there is a good market in this region.
Mr. Faust was one of the most energetic members of St. John's Lutheran Church, and when the Lutheran and Reformed congregations erected the present house of worship he donated all the rough lumber for the structure, served on the building committee, and furthered the work in every possible way. At the time of his death he was filling the office of deacon, and he was always a liberal contributor to the support of the church and its enter- prises. He was a charter member of the Brandonville Union Sunday school. Fraternally he was an Odd Fellow, holding membership in Ringtown Lodge, No. 287 ; in politics he did not bind himself to the support of any party, voting as he thought best.
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