BIO: E. Rankin Huston, Cumberland County, PA

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History of Cumberland and Adams Counties, Pennsylvania.
Containing History of the Counties, Their Townships, Towns, Villages, 
Schools, Churches, Industries, Etc.; Portraits of Early Settlers and 
Prominent Men; Biographies; History of Pennsylvania; Statistical and 
Miscellaneous Matter, Etc., Etc.  Illustrated.  Chicago: Warner, Beers 
& Co., 1886.
http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/cumberland/beers/beers.htm
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                                PART II.

             HISTORY OF CUMBERLAND COUNTY. PENNSYLVANIA.

                             CHAPTER XXXIX. 

                        BOROUGH OF MECHANICSBURG.

417  BOROUGH OF MECHANICSBURG.

  E. RANKIN HUSTON, the leading painter of the eastern portion of 
Cumberland County, is a son of William Huston, who was a most excellent 
farmer and worthy citizen, and on his mother's side a direct descendant 
of the historic Enders family of Dauphin County.  Samuel Huston, the 
paternal great-grandfather, emigrated from Scotland in the early part 
of the eighteenth century; was a farmer and settled in what was then 
East Pennsborough Township, but which is now included in the township 
of Silver Spring.  The tract of land on which the original house was 
built has been known since as the Huston homestead, and occupies a 
pleasant site some three miles north of the village of Hogestown.  His 
maternal great-grandmother was Isabella Sharon.  Samuel Huston died in 
1800, and his widow, Isabella, in 1804.  Both are buried in the Pine 
Hill burying-ground.  They had two sons:  John and Jonathan.  His 
paternal grandfather was Jonathan Huston, a farmer, whose wife was 
Margaret Rankin McIntire, a native of Ireland.  They had eleven 
children:  Rebecca Eckels, John, John, Samuel, Samuel, Isabella, 
Isabell (Shafer-King), William, Jane C. Talbert, Mary Swiler and 
Margaret Eckels.  The father of this family died November 10, 1830, 
aged seventy years, and the mother, August 24, 1846, aged seventy-six 
years, and both are buried at Silver Spring.  William Huston, the 
father of our subject, was born on the old homestead, on the original 
settlement, December 19, 1799.  He spent his youth on the farm; learned 
the carpenter's trade, and for a number of years enjoyed quite a 
reputation as a bridge-builder in the western part of this State.  
March 29, 1838, he married Mary Ann, daughter of Peter and Catherine 
Phillips, nee Enders.  William Huston was not only a model farmer and 
ingenious mechanic, but a gentleman of sterling character and great 
physical endurance.  He was a descendant of that class of Scotch-Irish 
settlers who came into the Cumberland Valley from the eastward, and who 
have left everywhere the unmistakable evidence of thrift and 
enterprise.  Perhaps to them more than any other class this portion of 
the Cumberland Valley owes its superiority, its fine sense of right and 
high standard of moral excellence.  He died April 29, 1883, and his 
remains repose by the side of his parents, in Silver Spring.  Mary A., 
his wife, was born September 22, 1817.  She was a member of Trindle 
Spring Lutheran Church, and her life bore the testimony of the 
sincerity of her profession.  Gifted by nature with qualities which 
were rare and desirable, she was appreciated by all who knew her.  She 
was amiable and kind, and in the consistency of her life an ornament to 
Christianity.  She died October 7, 1881, and was buried at Silver 
Spring.  They had one daughter, who died in infancy, and one son, E. 
Rankin Huston, who was born September 28, 1843, at the old homestead, 
and spent his earlier years on a small farm, one-half mile north of 
Mechanicsburg.  During the winter season he attended the public school 
of the district until he had mastered all the branches embraced in its 
curriculum.  He subsequently entered the Pennsylvania College of Trade 
and Finance, from which he graduat- 

418  BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES:

ed in the class of 1867.  Afterward he gave himself up to the study of 
painting and decoration, and his marked success evidences the wisdom of 
his choice.  December 4, 1873, he married Mary E., youngest daughter of 
Daniel and Margaret (Weibley) Walters, who was born January 22, 1850.  
Two children are the results of this union: Carrie I., born September 
11, 1874, and Mary E., born August 10, 1878.  Mr. Huston has resided in 
Mechanicsburg since 1872, and is held in deservedly high esteem by his 
fellow-townsmen.  He is a member of Eureka Lodge, No. 302, F. & A. M.; 
treasurer of Samuel C. Perkins Chapter, No. 209, R. A. M., of 
Mechanicsburg; St. John's Commandery No. 8, K. T. of Carlisle; Grand H. 
R. A. Chapter of Pennsylvania; Mechanicsburg Lodge, No. 215, I. O. O. 
F.  His great-grandparents on his maternal side were Jacob and Mary 
Phillips, who were born in Germany and immigrated to Pennsylvania, 
Jacob Phillips was a soldier in the Revolutionary war three years; was 
wounded in the head and face, and died in 1783.  Mary, his widow, died 
in 1807, and both are buried in the Catholic cemetery at Carlisle.  
Peter Phillips, his grandfather, was born in Cumberland County May 8, 
1781.  In his younger days he learned the carpenter's trade.  He 
enlisted as a private in the war of 1812.  His eminent qualities as a 
soldier were fitly recognized in his rapid promotion, having become, 
soon after entering the service, first lieutenant.  He participated in 
the battles of Chippewa, Lundy's Lane, and various other engagements 
with the English and their Indian allies, narrowly escaping on several 
occasions from falling in the hands of the savage foe.  He was wounded 
by Indians lying in ambush.  Returning to his home in the fall of 1814, 
he again resumed his trade.  April 6, 1806, he married Catharine, 
daughter of Philip C. and Anna Enders.  She was born March 18, 1783, in 
Lancaster County, and died November 28, 1844, and is buried near 
Belleville, Ohio, leaving behind her tender memories of her kindness of 
heart and graces of character.  Peter Phillips died October 5, 1860, 
and was buried at Trindle Spring Church.  The Enders family, of which 
our subject is a lineal descendant, was quite distinguished in the part 
of Germany in which it resided.  Philip C. Enders, the great-
grandfather of E. Rankin Huston, was born July 22, 1740, in 
Braunsigweilen, Germany.  After completing his education he entered the 
military service of his sovereign, and participated in numerous battles 
of the seven years' war.  For gallantry and other soldierly qualities 
he was promoted to a captaincy in the royal cavalry.  He resigned his 
commission, and on May 13, 1764, married Anna, a daughter of Conrad 
Degen, and a few months later came to America.  His first settlement 
was in Philadelphia, and later he moved to Lancaster County.  In 1788 
he purchased a tract of over 1,300 acres in Upper Paxton, Dauphin 
County, and moved there with his family, where he continued to reside 
until his death, February 26, 1810.  Anna, his wife, died in 1796.  He 
was in many respects a remarkable man, and has left his mark on the 
subsequent history of Dauphin County.  He was the founder of 
Fetterhoff's Church, erected the first sawmill in the valley, organized 
and taught the first school in that section of country, and was the 
leading spirit in all public enterprises.  It is thus seen the family 
of which E. Rankin Huston is a representative, is one of the original 
and leading families of this part of the State, and closely identified 
with all movements of its general prosperity.