BIOGRAPHY: Robert BARCLAY, Cambria County, PA Contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by Lynne Canterbury and Diann Olsen. Portions of this book were transcribed by Clark Creery, Martha Humenik, Betty Mirovich and Sharon Ringler. USGENWEB ARCHIVES (tm) NOTICE All documents placed in the USGenWeb Archives remain the property of the contributors, who retain publication rights in accordance with US Copyright Laws and Regulations. In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, these documents may be used by anyone for their personal research. They may be used by non-commercial entities so long as all notices and submitter information are included. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit. Any other use, including copying files to other sites, requires permission from the contributors PRIOR to uploading to the other sites. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/cambria/ ____________________________________________________________ From Wiley, Samuel T., ed. Biographical and Portrait Cyclopedia of Cambria County, Pennsylvania. Philadelphia: Union Publishing Co., 1896, p. 176-7 ____________________________________________________________ ROBERT BARCLAY, burgess of Roxbury, this county, was born in Somerset county, June 27, 1834, and is a son of Thomas and Eliza (Daugherty) Barclay. His paternal grandfather was a native of Scotland, while his maternal grandfather was of Irish origin, and served as a soldier in the patriot army in their struggle for liberty in the war of the Revolution, and was the first man buried at Stoyestown, Somerset county, with military honors. Thomas Barclay, father, was born in 1805, in Westmoreland county, educated in the district schools, spent his early life in Westmoreland county, and when a young man, went to Somerset county. In 1846 he came to Cambria county, and was in the employ of the Cambria Iron company most of the remainder of his life. In political faith he adhered to the school of Clay and Harrison, was an old-line whig, and a republican from the organization of the Republican party until his death, and although he took a lively and intelligent interest in the subject of politics, yet never sought office. He was a consistent member of the Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Barclay's early life was spent in various pursuits. He is one of the few now left who operated on the Pennsylvania canal and old Portage railroad, a thoroughfare then of great importance, but which now lives only on the page of history and in the minds of those who witnessed its rise and fall. In 1855, after his marriage, he went to work for the Cambria Iron company and remained continuously in the employ of that company until 1878. We next find him serving on the police force of the borough of Johnstown, and, later, as weighmaster two years. He then teamed for a number of years and served for a time as watchman at the Gautier works of the Cambria Iron company until 1889. In 1888 he removed to Roxbury and has resided there ever since. The Barclay family certainly did its patriotic duty in that crisis extending from 1860 to 1865, in which the life of the nation was threatened; for, in addition to serving ten months as quartermaster in the Army of the Potomac, he has five brothers who saw duty in that memorable conflict. Mr. Barclay was a strong anti-slavery man and abolitionist, hence upon the organization of the Republican party he became one of its original supporters, and has continued to vote with his first love to the present time, believing that upon the whole, it stands for those principles and has advocated those measures best adapted to the needs of the country, and in 1894, upon the organization of the municipal government of the borough of Roxbury, was chosen it first burgess, and is a director and member of the executive committee of the Roxbury Park association. On January 5, 1855, he married Mary, a daughter of Michael Barnhart, and to this union have been born eleven children, seven boys and four girls, of whom four boys and three girls are yet living.