Chap XV - Part III: 20th Century History of New Castle and Lawrence County Pennsylvania and Representative Citizens
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CHAPTER XV - Part III
TOWNSHIPS AND TOWNS
[Original land warrants and patents can be seen on the Survey Maps,
and
land owners can be seen on the 1872 Atlas.
]
NORTH BEAVER TOWNSHIP.
[p. 272] This is the largest subdivision of Lawrence County, and was one
of its original townships. In area it is about 26,800 acres. The surface
is varied, being in places much broken by hills and ravines, and in
others approaching nearer to a level. The latter is the case in the
southern and western portions. For agricultural purposes the township is
not excelled in Lawrence County. The finest varieties of fruit are also
grown, and the crop is nearly always a certainty. Numerous streams
abound, affording the necessary water facilities, and on some of them
there is excellent power. The principal streams are the Mahoning and
Beaver Rivers and Hickory Creek.
The northeast corner of the township is crossed by the old Lawrence
Railway, now the Ashtabula, Youngstown and Pittsburg division of the
Pennsylvania Railway. The Beaver Valley division of the Erie and
Pittsburg Railway crosses the Mahoning near its mouth, and follows the
valley of the Beaver River the remaining distance across the township.
The only station on this road in North Beaver is Moravia, where a small
village has sprung up since the road was built. The most important
village in the township is Mount Jackson, and, aside from these two, the
inhabitants are almost exclusively engaged in agricultural pursuits.
EARLY SETTLERS.
Asa Adams came from Washington County, Pennsylvania, some time previous
to the War of 1812, and settled a mile from the State line, in the
western part of the township.
Major Edward Wright came from Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, in the
spring of 1797, and settled on the farm now or was lately owned by his
grandson, William Williams. He was originally from New Jersey, and while
living there, before he was married, he had bought the 200-acre tract on
which he afterward settled, for a horse, bridle and saddle, and was
soundly berated by his mother for so doing, The [p. 273] investment,
however, proved to be a good one, and the farm is now among the best in
western Pennsylvania. Major Wright built the fourth house that was
erected within the limits of North Beaver Township. It was 16 by 18 feet
in dimensions, was built of round logs, and was located near a spring
just west of Mr. Williams' residence. It had a common bed-spread or
quilt hung up for a door, and a hole left in one comer of the roof
through which the smoke could pass. He died on this farm May 7, 1849, at
the age of eighty years.
Major Wright brought to the township the first apple trees that were set
out within it. He hauled forty-five of them from Washington County in
1799, on a "slide car, made of poles. He set out forty of the trees on
his own place, gave two of them to a neighbor (Jonathan Leslie,
afterwards a Presbyterian minister), two miles west, and three to Bryce
McGeehan, living near what is now Newburg, in Little Beaver Township.
Mr. Wright's only child, Sarah, was married to John Williams, in
September, 1805, a few months before she was fifteen years old. Mr.
Williams came from near the Warm Springs, in Virginia, and settled on a
farm which his father, Thomas Williams had bought for him some time
before, and which lay a mile west of the Wright place. After his
marriage he lived for some time with his father-in-law, Major Wright. He
moved to his own farm in the spring of 1812. His brother, Thomas,
settled, in 1802, on a farm northeast of Wright's and lying partly in
Mahoning Township. Thomas Williams, Sr., never settled in the county.
The farms all along the old county line, now the boundary between North
Beaver and Mahoning Townships, lie partly on each side of the line.
Thomas Cloud settled on the farm later owned by Matthew Davidson, and
built one of the first four houses in the township.
Walter Clarke came to the farm afterwards owned by Joseph and Sarah
McCollum, on the 20th day of October, 1802. He came from near what is
now Lewisburg, Snyder County, Pennsylvania, with two unmarried
daughters, and others of his children and grandchildren, and his
son-in-law. He bought 450 acres of land and divided it among them. His
son, John, was married, and had two children; and one daughter was also
married and had two children. Her husband's name was Benjamin Wells.
There were also two orphan grandchildren, and thus the party was quite
large. John Clarke's son, Samuel D. Clarke, lived on a part of the old
farm, west of Mount Jackson. The portion later owned by the McCollum
estate became the property of Walter Clarke's granddaughter, Eunice
Shearer, who was married to William Adair. Ephraim Phillips owned it
next, and Mr. McCollum's wife was one of Mr. Phillips' daughters, and
the place became her share of the property. It is familiarly known as
the "Old Phillips farm."
In 1803 John Clarke left his father's house and settled for himself on
the portion of the 450 acres now or recently owned by his son, Samuel D.
Clarke.
One of Walter Clarke's daughters married John Nesbit, who was the first
settler on the land now occupied by the village of Mount Jackson, and
who laid out the town.
William Woods settled just west of Mount Jackson in 1801. He came from
Ireland with his brother in 1798, and first located in Westmoreland
County. He was married in 1801, after he came to North Beaver, to Miss
Elizabeth Davidson, who was living with her relatives where the borough
of Wampum now stands. Mr. Woods' son, William, born in 1808, lived near
Westfield Presbyterian Church, southwest of Mount Jackson. He held the
rank of major in the "cornstalk" militia of the township. William Woods,
Sr., built a carding mill on his place on Hickory Creek, (at that time
called Sugar Creek, owing to the great number of "sugar trees" [p. 274]
which grew along it), in 1813; a fulling mill in 1817, and a distillery
in 1821. The carding machine and fulling mill were run until about 1840.
James Kiddoo was an early settler east of Mount Jackson. He owned a
distillery on Hickory Creek, and also had a small mill for grinding the
grain he used.
William McCord came originally from Ireland, and, after the Revolution,
settled in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. About 1805-6 he came to what
is now North Beaver Township, and settled on a 250-acre tract of
"donation land."
Francis Nesbit came, with his family, in 1802, and settled on Hickory
Creek, south of Mount Jackson. The family consisted of his wife, five
sons, and two daughters. The sons were John, Francis, William, James and
Allen; and the daughters, Elizabeth and Anna. They came from Cumberland
County, Pennsylvania, although the Nesbits were originally from Scotland.
William Espy who married Elizabeth Nesbit, settled in 1801. His son,
Thomas Espy, afterward went to North Carolina, and died there. A
daughter of his afterward married Governor Vance, of that State. Wiliam
Espy had made arrangements to build a mill, and Mr. Nesbit, who had also
been out in 1801, brought out the mill gearing with him in 1802, and he
and Espy built the mill. They located on Donation tract, number 1786,
supposed to contain 400 acres, but a survey showed that it contained
over 500. Mr. Nesbit sold his interest in the mill to Espy, and took all
but 100 acres of the land. Mr. Nesbit died in September, 1802, and was
the first person ever buried in the cemetery at Westfield Presbyterian
Church. A man named Charles Clarke was the second person buried in it.
He was killed while helping John Hunter raise a "still-house" in 1805
near the church. Francis Nesbit divided his land up among his sons
before he died. His wife died in 1823. Allen Nesbit, the youngest, born
in 1796, was given the old homestead. He finally became a physician of
the botanic or Thompsonian school, and got his medical education
principally from his sister's library. She married a Presbyterian
preacher, who afterward died. Dr. Nesbit, in later life, lived with his
grandchildren, on the old place. John Nesbit, the eldest son of Francis,
died in 1869, and left his share of the place to his son, James, who
afterward sold it and went to Missouri.
Francis Nesbit, Jr., died on the farm, in 1816. William Nesbit lived on
his place until his death, which occurred in 1847 During his life he was
a prominent man. He was a Presbyterian elder, a justice of the peace for
a long time, and afterward one of the associate judges of Beaver County.
After William Espy became sole proprietor of the grist mill mentioned,
he traded it for a farm, about 1806, to a man named Wylie, who owned it
about four years, and traded it to a man named James Boyes. Boves kept
it some eight years, and sold it finally to Elder John Edgar, from
Westmoreland County, who had previously started a distillery near
Westfield Church. Edgar also put a still in operation, in connection
with the mill, and was at one time collector of the excise tax. He sent
a large lot of whisky to Erie, Pa., for sale, and finally shipped it on
a vessel to Canada. The vessel was lost, and Edgar was broken up in
consequence, and sold out by the sheriff?the whole property (100 acres
of land, the mill, distillery and all.) being purchased by James Wallace
for $800.
The Nesbit family, as before stated, came originally from Scotland. They
were followers of John Knox, and, like other dissenters, suffered
persecution from the English Church. Portions of the old families went
to Belfast, Ireland. John Nesbit, the father of Francis, was born in
Roxburghshire, in 1702, and came to Philadelphia, previous to the
American Revolution, finally settling in Cumberland County.[p. 275]
Francis Nesbit had four brothers?John, James, Allen and William?and all
served more or less during the Revolutionary War, in the American army.
"At the time when the Nesbits came here, there were but two houses (log
ones) in Darlington, one of them a tavern partly chinked and daubed.
There was then but one house betwee n Darlington and Alount Jackson, and
not a dozen families in the bounds of what is now North Beaver, and a
part of them were I squatters,' who soon moved away. But during the next
two or three years twenty or thirty families came in, principally from
Cumberland County.
"The load of 'moving' which the Nesbits brought with them consisted
principally of the iron and other fixings for a grist and sawmill, a
barrel of salt, and one of flour, two sets of china cups and saucers,
two sets of pewter plates, two pewter dishes and a pewter mush-basin, a
cedar churn and a tub. In affectionate memory of the olden time, they
brought with them a singularly-built arm chair, that had been brought
from Scotland about seventy years before. They soon began to build mills
having to give $18 per barrel for flour, at Beaver Falls, twenty cents
for meat, and $1.25 per gallon for the whisky, that seems to have been
one of the things indispensable at that day, and that was furnished to
the hands with the regularity of the bread and meat.
"A bill of fare for breakfast then embraced bread, butter and coffee, a
small allowance of pork and of preserved wild plums or crab apples, pone
or Johnny cake, milk, butter, and perhaps a wild turkey, or leg of
venison, or chunk of bear's meat, or a roasted raccoon, for dinner; and
corn meal mush, out of that pewter basin, with butter and milk, for supper.
"Then there were no meeting houses, no preaching, and no graveyard.
Francis Nesbit died six or seven months after he came to the county, and
was buried in the then woods, where the Westfield graveyard now is.
Perhaps this was the first funeral in the township. Near that spot a
small log meeting house was soon built, and in it there was occasional
preaching.
"The appearance of the country was truly beautiful. The rich, loamy
appearance of the soil, the density of the forests and thickets, the
wonderful multiplicity, variety and gorgeousness of the blossoms and
flowers, the exhilarating perfume they sent forth, the continual singing
of the birds, the chattering of the many squirrels, the beautiful
plumage of the vast flocks of turkeys, and the nimble skipping of the
deer and fox, produced a sublimity and a grandeur far beyond anything we
have now in the cleared fields and meadows into which these forests have
been transformed.
"Ere long came the vast profusion of wild fruits. Leading the van came
the service-berry, growing luxuriantly on bottoms, flats and hills, and
on the shelving banks small bushes bending to the ground with their
loads of fruit. Men, birds and animals were fully supplied, and a great
many left. Then the strawberry, plum, huckleberry, haw, cherry and
grape, each added its share to the richness that nature afforded,
together with the vast amounts of delicious nuts. The woods abounded in
native (crab) apple, said by the Economites to be the best fruit for
wine on this continent."
There was a wonderful variety of medicinal herbs, many of whose virtues
in curing disease were not well known, neither are they now appreciated
as they ought to be. Then, in thick and broad patches, with its
beautiful flower of every conceivable color, and moccasin shape, stood
the admirable Cypripedium Pubescens of Linnaeus, known to the people
then by the name of "ladies' slipper," and by the Indians "moccasin
flower." There, too, was the Verticillati (golden seal), with Virginia
snake-root, ginseng, and many others of greater or less medicinal value.
For a few years the settlers in the [p. 276] northern part of Beaver
County were principally from Eastern Pennsylvania, and some from
Allegheny and Washington Counties mostly of Scotch and Irish extraction.
Soon, however, people came in from Virginia, Maryland, Delaware, New
Jersey, and from different countries of Europe, most of whom were
respectable, while some were ignorant and degraded, and not calculated
to improve society.
In 1802 there were twenty-four families living in the township, and the
first township election was held that year.
Among those who came to North Beaver in 1801 were William Barnet, Robert
Lusk, William Espy, William Mercy, Nicholas Bryant, Leonard Dobbins,
William Woods, Joseph Pollock, John Dunnon, James Applegate, Samuel
Semple, John Clelland, James McKinley, Joseph Jackson and William
Ritchie. Of these, the last five families were Finns, and were all
related to each other. They formed a kind of clan, and came out
together. Jackson was a stone mason, and built chimneys, and Semple
carried a case of lancets and did bleeding for the settlers whenever his
services were called for.
All the tragical deaths which have occurred in the township were purely
acccidental, and not a murder has ever been committed within its
limits?the whites coming after the Indians were mostly gone.
A distillery was built by Lawrence Dobbins in 1801, in the northeast
corner of the township. As early as 1817 there were upward of a dozen
distilleries in the township. Nothing in that business has been done for
more than eighty years, and for nearly that length of time there has
been no place for selling liquor in the limits of the township.
In 1876 there was a population of 2,500, with 750 church members and
four congregations and thirteen schools.
William Carson came from Virginia in the fall of 1799, and stayed that
winter in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. In the spring of 1800 he
brought his family, consisting of his wife and ten children, to the farm
in North Beaver Township, now owned by John Alexander. He had hired a
hand in Pittsburg to help him, and they built a cabin and made other
improvements. The youngest child, James, was born after they came out,
in 1802.
James Bowles came in 1796, and settled on the Beaver River, on what was
afterward known as the Zeigler farm. He left the country previous to the
War of 1812.
Joseph Pollock came to the township in 1800, and located on one of two
farms near where Westfield Presbyterian Church now stands. He afterwards
moved across the Beaver River into what is now Taylor Township. When he
removed from North Beaver, he cut his own road through the woods, and
the track he made was afterwards called "Pollock's road."
John Dunnon settled the tract next south of the old Pollock (Wood's)
place, in 1801.
John Coleman settled on a tract south of Mount Jackson, in 1801 or 1802.
His land laid next north of a tract settled by John Patterson. Mr.
Coleman lived to be about 100 years old, and was buried "with the honors
of war" in the United Presbyterian graveyard at Mount Jackson. He had
been in one or two skirmishes in the Revolutionary War, and had taken
the notion that he must be buried with the honors of war, and
accordingly his whim was gratified.
But two men settled in North Beaver Township on land they had served for
in the Revolution. They were Jacob Justice and Jeremiah Bannon, the
latter settled on a place in the northeast part of the township.
The Justice family was originally from Wurtemburg, Germany, from which
country John Justice came to America, at some period prior to the
American Revolution, and settled probably in Franklin County,
Pennsylvania. Jacob Justice was one of six brothers, sons of John
Justice. He was [p. 277] born in Franklin County, in 1757. He enlisted
in the Sixth Pennsylvania Battalion of the Continental Line on January
20, 1776 (he being then nineteen years of age), and served until the
close of the war with England. After the independence of the Colonies
was established, he returned to his home in Franklin County and remained
there until 1797, when he removed West, with the intention of settling
in what is now Lawrence County; but on account of Indian troubles he
stopped in Washington County for about two years, and in 1799 carried
out his original design, and settled in the southeastern part of North
Beaver Township, on land which he drew for his services as a
Revolutionary soldier. His family consisted of his wife and seven
children, six sons and one daughter?James, John, Joseph, George,
Matthew, Scott and Eliza.
James Justice married Esther Hopper, a daughter of Robert Hopper, who
came to North Beaver Township from Ireland in 1797. Mr. Justice died in
1815, leaving a wife and three daughters, Margaret, Elizabeth and
Esther. His wife, although but twenty-eight years old at the time of his
death, remained true to his memory until her demise in 1870, having been
a widow fifty-five years.
In 1813 Joseph Justice went to the new town of New Castle, and became
prominently identified with the early history of that place.
George Justice married a Miss Douglass, and, with his wife, went West,
where he lived to a ripe old age. Scott Justice, the youngest son, met
his death by being kicked by a horse.
Jacob Justice lived on his farm in North Beaver Township until his
death, which occurred in April, 1829, he being seventy-two years old. He
was buried in the graveyard of the Westfield Presbyterian Church.
Nicholas Bryant, who came to the township in 1801, settled on a farm in
the northwestern part now owned by the heirs of Alexander Steele. Mr.
Bryant's son, Stephen, is said to have been the first white child ever
born in North Beaver Township.
Robert, James and Ebenezer McGowan (sometimes spelled McGoun) came about
1806-08, and Robert and James bought a 200-acre tract of land northeast
of the present site of Mount Jackson. Ebenezer located on a farm still
farther north, lying partly in what is now Mahoning Township, at that
time in Mercer County.
Nathaniel White came from Washington County, Pennsylvania, about
1804-07, and settled on the farm now owned by his grandson, James White,
who lives on the old homestead. Mr. White had nine children in his
family altogether, of whom two are yet living?Samuel and Elizabeth, the
latter in Ohio. He originally settled 200 acres.
Richard Shearer settled early in the northwestern part of the township.
The Whittenbergers also came early and located in the western part. Hugh
McKibben came about 1805-06, and purchased several hundred acres of land
in the southwestern part of the township. He was quite an old man when
he settled, and divided his farm up among his children. James Davidson
was also among the early settlers. He located on a farm which had been
frequented so much by wild pigeons that it had been styled "pigeon roost."
The Pitts family came early, and William, Jacob and John bought 479
acres of land.
William McWatty came about 1824-25, and located on land in the western
part of the township, purchasing it of James Alcorn. One of the
McWattys, Rev. Robert, was pastor of the Second United Presbyterian
Church, at Mercer County, in 1876.
Elijah Lower came from Center County, Pennsylvania, about 1822-23, and
located on a farm west of the Martin farm. Mr. Lower bought the land of
a man named Painter, who had had some improvements made upon it. The
first man on the farm was a squatter, one Shuman, who had no [p. 278]
title. Elijah Lower was born in Philadelphia, and lived to be a little
more than 100 years of age.
Hugh Martin came from the Buffalo Valley, in Union County, Pennsylvania,
to North Beaver Township, in 1829, and located on the farm later owned
by David and Catherine Martin his children. He had visited the country
in 1805. After he settled, he lived on the place until his death, which
occurred about 1865, when he had reached the age of eighty-two years.
The first actual settler on the farm was William McCreary, who came in
the neighborhood of 1810.
Samuel Poak came about 1804, and settled on the farm subsequently owned
by Robert Brewster. He afterwards owned several hundred acres of land in
the vicinity. He came from Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, and brought
with him his sister, his wife and two children (twins), a boy and a
girl. Thirteen children were born altogether. Robert Brewster's house
stands a few rods northeast of where Mr. Poak's old dwelling stood. Mr.
Poak had the first title, and was the first actual settler, although a
squatter had been on the place and built a small shanty, which was
standing when Mr. Poak came.
Henry Weon owned a tavern on what is now called the Mount Jackson (or
Pitzer's) Hill. This place seems to have been largely patronized.
Dr. Alexander Gillfillan was born in Ireland in 1784. His grandfather
Gillfillan was one of the many driven from Scotland by religious
persecution. The doctor's father, James Gillfillan, came to America with
three sons and two brothers, Alexander and Thomas, and settled in
Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, in 1788. Alexander Gillfillan, Sr.,
remained there, and Thomas went South. James moved to Mercer County.
Afterward, Alexander Gillfillan, Jr., went back to Allegheny County, to
his uncle Alexander's, and while living there received his education
under Dr. Peter Mowry, of Pittsburg. Dr. Gillfillan began to practice in
Franklin, Venango County, Pa., and in 1812 came to New Castle, being the
second regular physician who located at that place. The doctor became a
popular man, and was very successful in his profession. When quite young
he united with the Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church. He purchased
the lot in New Castle upon which the First United Presbyterian Church
now stands, and lived upon it during his life in that place. October 21,
1813, he was married to Elizabeth Patterson, of North Beaver Township,
and their first child, a son, James Harvey Gillfillan, was born August
3, 1814. The child only lived three months, dying of croup. December 2,
1815, a daughter was born. She married Samuel R. Vance, of North Beaver.
Her oldest daughter became the wife of Robert Brewster, living east of
Mount Jackson. The second daughter was married to Rev. J. D. Brownlee,
September 4, 1866, and died March 21, 1873, of pneumonia, leaving three
children, two boys and a girl. The third daughter married J. E. Nevin,
of Allegheny City. Two of Mrs. Vance's children, both girls, died during
one summer with diphtheria.
Dr. Gillfillan went out as surgeon to Black Rock, during the War of
1812. A fever broke out among the soldiers, which was known as the
"Black Rock Fever," and proved fatal in almost every case, until Dr.
Gillfillan, by hard study night and day, discovered a cure and a
preventive. He furnished the prescription to all the leading surgeons in
the army, without receiving any compensation therefor. Many of the men
who had contracted the disease in the army took it home, and their
families were attacked with it also. Hearing of Dr. Gillfillan's great
success in the treatment of it, they sent for him "from far and near."
Dr. Gillfillan was drowned in the Neshannock Creek, at New Castle, just
below Raney's mill, June 17, 1815, while helping haul a fishing seine. A
number of the leading [p. 279] men in the place were also in the party.
The late Joseph Justice nearly lost his life on the same occasion, while
endeavoring to rescue the doctor. His death was deeply mourned by all
who knew him, and those who were then living and were acquainted with
him fondly cherished his memory. His widow, in 1821, was married to
Benjamin Blackburn, who lived in Ohio, and the couple lived together
fifty-four years. Mr. Blackburn died in 1875. His widow lived to be
almost ninety years of age. In her life she had seen seven generations
in the family.
John Patterson, a wheelwright by trade, came to the township in 1801,
and settled south of what is now Mount Jackson, on the farm now owned by
the heirs of the late Major James Patterson. One of his daughters,
Elizabeth, as before mentioned, married Dr. Gillfillan. Mr. Patterson,
after some time, put up a blacksmith shop. No coal was then known, but
finally a bank was discovered near Lindsay Robinson's place, and not
knowing there was coal in his own neighborhood, Mr. Patterson took a bag
and went after coal to that bank, bringing it home on horseback.
The first chimney he built was of logs, and only extended a few feet
from the ground. Nearby the coal bank was a sandstone quarry, and there
Mr. Patterson procured stone, and hired a man named Thompson to build a
second chimney for him.
The first table the Patterson family had was an old chest, which was
used for some time, and finally Mr. Patterson procured a couple of
walnut boards, and with them made a table. He also made some chairs,
some of which were in use not many years ago. Their first floor was
simply the convenient one of earth, and their bedstead made of split
chestnut timber, with feet in. Finally, a puncheon floor was laid, a
table and a cupboard manufactured, and other improvements made as fast
as he could get to them.
Robert Brewster came originally from Ireland and settled in Washington
County, Pennsylvania, where he was married. In the neighborhood of 1800,
he came to what is now Little Beaver Township, Lawrence County, and
stayed there until about 1806-08, when he removed to North Beaver, and
located on 100 acres of land which he bought. When Mr. Brewster was
"coming through the wilderness," he slept on the frosty ground, and
exposed himself to such a degree that he contracted rheumatism which was
finally the cause of his death. He died October 22, 1850, in his
eightieth year.
The farm now, or formerly, owned by S. R. Vance was originally improved
by Caleb Jones, who had squatted on it, thinking it was a vacant tract,
which it finally proved not to be. Jones had a grist mill on the place,
which he built previous to 1812, and operated for a number of years,
doing a large business. The mill was a log structure. Before Jones found
out that he was not on a vacant tract (which was not till the summer of
1838) he had made arrangements to build another mill, and had commenced
to tunnel the point of the hill, intending to put a mill-race through.
The tunnel would have been some ten or fifteen rods long, and he would
have had a powerful fall of nearly eighty feet. He was obliged, however,
to quit the place, as an owner had been found. Mr. Vance purchased a
portion of the tract in 1839, including the mill site. He took the
machinery out of the mill and put in a set of cards, and operated the
carding-mill for about seven years.
Mr. Vance's grandfather, Robert Vance, was a major in the Revolutionary
Army, and served seven years. He at one time raised a company during the
Revolution, and from their uniform they were called "Bucktails." From
that circumstance it is said that the Pennsylvania regiment known as the
"Bucktails" during the rebellion, took its name. Robert Vance settled
[p. 280] in Allegheny County after the revolution, probably about 1790,
and was from the Shenandoah Valley, in Virginia.
Major Vance's son, David Vance, was one of the notable rivermen of early
times, and operated a keel-boat line between Pittsburg and
"Limestone"?now Maysville, Ky.?making occasional trips to Cincinnati,
Louisville, New Orleans and other points on the rivers. His cousin,
Aaron Hart, was his partner in business. Hart's brother, John Hart, of
New Jersey, was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence.
Major Robert Vance commanded a battery at the battle of Brandywine,
September 11, 1777.
Robert Hopper, a weaver, and his wife, Margaret (Watson) Hopper, with a
large family of children, came from County Down, Ireland, about 1790,
and settled in Westmoreland County. About 1797-98 they moved to Hickory
Creek, near Mount Jackson, North Beaver Township, and began clearing 200
acres of virgin forest land. He built as his residence a double log
house, with a chimney in the middle, which structure stood for years as
a landmark.
He reared a large family, all of whom were born in Ireland with the
exception of the two youngest. Of his children, Esther became the wife
of James Justice, son of Jacob Justice, who settled near Moravia; Martha
married George Leslie, and Jane, the third daughter, was the wife of
Samuel D. Clarke; John married Anne Hamilton, and James married Maria
Wilson. The last named, James, was proprietor of a general store at
Pulaski, Lawrence County. About 1835-36 he started East to buy goods for
his store, and was never again heard of. It was supposed he had met with
foul play, as he carried money.
James Fullerton came from Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, with his wife
and a colored girl, in the spring of 1801, and settled the farm where
his son, the later Robert Fullerton, lived until his death. Mr.
Fullerton had been here in 1800, and built a cabin. The first child born
in the family was a daughter, Mary, whose birth occurred in the latter
part of the year 1801. In 1802, Mr. and Mrs. Fullerton went horseback
across the mountains on a visit, and the jaunt was so hard on the babe,
which they carried with them, that it did not grow any for a year or
more, and was always delicate afterward.
John Sterrett bought seven acres of land of James Fullerton, about
1812-15, and started a tannery, but never made it profitable. Several
others tried it, with a like result, until 1834, when Mr. Fullerton's
son, Robert, took it, and, with the exception of the time from about
1859 to 1865, ran it successfully until his death.
John and George Douglass came not long after Mr. Fullerton, and settled
on farm north of him. John Douglass afterward went to Petersburg,
Mahoning County, Ohio, and opened a tavern. James Hope settled south of
the Fullerton farm about 1799 or 1800.
COAL, IRON ORE, LIMESTONE.
These mineral products, with fire clay, and oil, are found in the
township, also occasional floating quantities of galena or lead ore. The
latter does not abound in large quantities, so far as discovered. Coal
has also been found and worked to some extent. The iron ore is found in
several veins, and of three different qualities?the red, blue and
honeycomb. Petroleum is known to exist, in greater or less quantities,
in the Hickory Creek region.
Previous to the time roads were cut through, the only paths were trails
through the forest, or tracks along which the trees were blazed so the
people might not lose their way. These were especially the kind the
children had to follow in going to and coming from school, sometimes two
or three miles away.
EARLY ROADS.
The oldest road in the township which was put through by white
people?the New Castle and Beaver road, commonly called [p. 281] the
"Beaver road"?was opened as early as 1800, and ran along the bottom
lands on the west side of the river.
What is known as the "Small's Ferry road" was laid out very early, and
was the first one in that part of the township. It was opened by Major
Edward Wright, Bryce McGeehan and others of the people then living, and
crossed the Mahoning River at Small's Ferry, which gave it its name.
This was previous to the War of 1812. People passing between Youngstown
and Beavertown traveled the road, which was very crooked, and laid to
accommodate the settlers along the route.
SCHOOLS.
A log schoolhouse was built in 1802 or 1803, just across the line in
Ohio, opposite the southwest corner of what is now Mahoning Township. A
Methodist preacher named Ross taught in it. On the same ground a second
house, also of logs, was built about 1818, and afterward another one,
which was a frame building, and used until about 1840, when the location
was abandoned for school purposes.
A log schoolhouse was built on the Alsworth tract, the land now owned by
Mrs. Hannah, about 1805-6. The first teacher was James Leslie.
In 1802 a log schoolhouse was built in the Mount Jackson neighborhood,
near the site of the Westfield Church. Bears were so thick that some of
the families would not allow their children to attend after the first
week, for fear some prowling beast might come upon them.
A schoolhouse was built on John Patterson's place about 1805-6, also of
logs. Peter Boss, who boarded with Mr. Patterson, was the first teacher.
About 1810-12 a schoolhouse was built of round logs on what was some
years ago the Daniel Davidson property. The building was erected by the
McCrearys, who before this had schools in their own houses. McCreary had
a still house near by, and during intermissions the teachers in the old
schoolhouse were accustomed to go to the still and take their regular
drams, a custom which happily does not prevail nowadays.
Another schoolhouse was built of hewed logs in the same vicinity, and
taught by James White. It was heated by a "tenplate stove," one of the
first in the vicinity.
A log schoolhouse was built about 1806-7, near the Bethel United
Presbyterian Church, and was probably used afterward. as a "session
house" by the Bethel congregation.
Another log schoolhouse was built on the farm then owned by John and
Archibald Stewart, and afterwards by Robert Fullerton. This was built
about 1804-5, and a man named Hassan taught in it.
In 1908 there were sixteen schools in the township, with an enrollment
of 373, and seventeen instructors were employed, at a cost of $5,910.
The total expenditure for school purposes was $7,902.57. The average
number of months taught is seven.
Westfield Presbyterian Church is located in North Beaver Township, one
mile and a half west of Mount Jackson. It is the oldest church in the
township. It was organized in the spring of 1803, by a committee of the
Presbytery of Erie. At its organization it consisted of twenty-two
members, including thirteen families. The forming of a church in this
community was first "talked over at a log-rolling, or the raising of a
log house." The ground upon which the church building now stands was
donated for church and burial purposes in the year 1802, by Messrs.
Charles and Walter Clark.
HOUSES OF WORSHIP.
There had been erected on this ground, and near the same spot, no less
than six different houses or places of worship. The first was a
round-log cabin, 20 by 24 feet. The fathers built this in the year
1803-4. It was covered with clapboards, had puncheons for floor and
seats, and was [p. 282] without either fireplace or stove. Before long
the log church was too contracted to hold the congregation. This led the
people at an early date to erect what was called "The Tent." This was a
structure constructed of lumber, sufficiently large to protect the
ministers from the sun and storms, while the congregation sat on logs
under the trees.
In 1817 or 1818 steps were taken toward the building of a frame church.
This house was not finished until 1823. Its dimensions were 36 by 40
feet. It was heated with a ten-plate stove, and was quite comfortable in
its arrangements, for that day. Money was exceedingly scarce about this
time, and all the subscriptions for completing the house were either so
many feet of boards, so many bushels of wheat, corn or rye, or so many
gallons of whisky.
The congregation increased, the frame building was soon too small to
contain the worshipers. In the year 1829 it was resolved to build a new
and more commodious house. After three years of toil and difficulties
and drawbacks, a large brick church, 45 by 70 feet, was completed. This
was at that time considered one of the finest houses of worship in this
section of the country. But after thirty years it became somewhat
dilapidated.
In 1862 a frame church of more modern style was erected. This church was
dedicated the 8th of January, 1863, and on the 8th of January, 1872,
just one year to the day, after the burning of the former house, and
just ten years, to the day, after its dedication, the present house was
dedicated to the worship and service of the living God. Its dimensions
are 45 by 85 feet. It is a frame building, and finished inside with
natural woods. It is Gothic in architecture, has stained glass windows,
and is heated by furnaces. It has a spire and Meneely bell, contains two
vestibules, and a lecture and session room. It is better arranged, more
commodious, and much more handsome than any of its numerous predecessors.
The first pastor of the Westfield Presbyterian Church was the Rev.
Nicholas Pittinger. He labored in this church one-half of his time, from
October 24, 1804, until September 13, 1809. The Rev. James Wright, the
second pastor, began his labors, for half the time, June 26, 1816. In
1831 he gave up Poland congregation, his other charge, and gave
Westfield all his time. His health failing, he resigned January 12,
1842, after a pastorate of nearly twenty-six years. His death took place
in the following year?March 30, 1843. The next pastor was the Rev.
Algernon Sydney McMaster. His pastorate continued from April 12, 1843,
until November 9, 1854. The Rev. Thomas B. Scott was pastor from
September 8, 1857, until June 19, 1860. He is at present preaching near
Galesburg, Ill. The fifth pastor was the Rev. William M. Taylor. He was
ordained and installed by the Presbytery of Beaver (now Shenango) June
12, 186l. His was the longest pastorate, he continuing in charge until
his death, January 1, 1903, at an advanced age. He was followed by the
Rev. Albert Joseph McCartney, who served until the present pastor, Rev.
Robert E. Porter, assumed the duties of the pastorate in the present
year, 1908.
The present roll of session (1908) consists of A. M. Hope, James Nesbit,
Elihu Ruthrauff (clerk), R. N. Gibson, John B. Woods, J. R. Miller,
William H. Martin, William J. Duff and Laurence Nesbit.
Board of deacons: Milton Fullerton, James Adams, George W. Gibson,
William H. Wiley, James Hayes, William A. Clarke, William H. Gilmore,
Charles R. Sherer, Gilbert A. McCreary.
During the pastorate of Rev. Albert Joseph McCartney Westfield
congregation celebrated the one hundredth anniversary of the founding of
their church. At this celebration, a memorial tablet to the memory of
the Rev. William M. Taylor was unveiled.
The church has also grown in her benevolent contribution and spiritual
activities. [p. 283] The pastor is liberally supported, and hundreds of
dollars are given each year to aid in various missionary operations.
Besides a flourishing Sunday-school, there are at present connected with
the church, a Young Men's Christian Association, a Young People's
Christian Endeavor Society, and Ladies' Missionary Society, and eight
regular prayer meetings.
BETHEL CONGREGATION?UNITED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH.
The congregation of Bethel was organized by Charities Presbytery under
the name of Little Beaver in the year 1798. There is no record of the
number of members when organized. The people were mostly of Scotch-Irish
descent. The elders chosen at the time of organization were Thomas Hogg,
Boyce McGeehan and Charles Morrow. Their successors in the session were
William Miller, Nathaniel Hamill, Samuel Hopper, Robert Ramsey and
Thomas Dungan, these persons being probably chosen and ordained at
different times in the progress of the church. William Miller
subsequently?about 1823 or 1824?joined the Associate Reformed Church of
Mt. Jackson (now United Presbyterian) at its organization. In 1848 we
find that Robert Ramsey was enjoined to stop keeping tavern, in
accordance with a minute on the church records which states that "No
church member can keep a tavern or public house consistent with his
profession and his duties to God." Subsequently we find the word
"Removed" marked against his name. Thomas Dungan was one of the leading
spirits in the session in those early days. He was active and benevolent
beyond his means, and in his old age he had lost none of his enthusiasm,
and his heart was wholly devoted to his Master's service. His death is
recorded July 10, 1873. It will be unnecessary to enter into a detailed
history of the session and it would be impossible yo do so as for
thirty-six years there were no records. We find the names of Robert
Sherer, Robert Gailey and David Forbes as ordained in 1844. Elder Gailey
subsequently united with the New Castle congregation. In 1852, Joseph
Hope, David Ramsey and Samuel Mayne were chosen elders; William H.
Leslie and James Brester, in 1857; Duncan McGeehan, William F. Davidson
and William Carson in 1861.
The first pastor of Bethel Congregation, then Little Beaver, was Rev.
James Duncan, who was a prominent member of the Associate Presbytery of
Ohio, and who was moderator at the organization of Charities Presbytery
in 1801. He was released in 1804 and was succeeded by Rev. David Imbrie,
who was installed September 3, 1806, his charge including Little Beaver,
Brush Run and Big Beaver. His pastorate in these two first named charges
lasted for thirty-six years and was productive of a goodly harvest of
souls. He died suddenly on June 13, 1842.
It was not until two years later that Mr. Imbrie's successor, Rev. John
W. Harsha assumed the duties of the pastorate. He resigned the charge in
1852 to teach in Westminster College, but there overstudy brought on
nervous prostration and reduced him to the condition of a helpless
invalid. In April, 1855, Rev. Samuel Alexander accepted a call from
Little Bethel and was ordained and installed pastor August 21 of that
year. He was a man of decided convictions and vigorous mind and a good
teacher, but was not at all times in full accord with all the members of
the congregation. Owing to this lack of agreement he was not fully
sustained and the work consequently was not carried on in a thorough and
hearty spirit. He resigned February 20, 1872, the congregation, in spite
of accessions, being then much diminished in numbers. He died in 1895
after seven years' lingering illness.
The congregation was vacant two years when a call was moderated
September 29, 1873, for Mr. J. S. Dice, a licentiate, of Mercer
Presbytery, which he accepted at New Galilee, February 17, 1874. Mr.
Dice [p. 284] has remained the faithful and capable pastor of Little
Bethel up to the present time. An interesting sketch of his life may be
found in the biographical portion of this work. The present membership
of the church (1908) is forty-six families, 145 members. Robert S.
Clark, W. P. Kelso and William McCalla are the ruling elders. The
trustees are Albert J. Gwin, William E. Patterson and George L. Stewart.
The superintendent of the Sabbath-school is Fred W. Dixon; Grace Paden
is secretary; Thomas Cover, treasurer. The school membership is
seventy-five.
MOUNT JACKSON.
This village was laid out by John Nesbit, on his share of the old farm,
about 1815. It was named in honor of General Andrew Jackson, who had, on
the 8th of January of that year, gained a signal victory over the
British troops under General Packenham, at New Orleans, in which battle
the British leader was killed. The first house on the town plat was
built by William Henry, who had been living on Hickory Creek, west of
the place where Dr. Allen Nesbit afterwards lived. When the town was
laid out, he removed to it, built a house, and opened a store in it.
George Eccles began blacksmithing soon afterward, and was the first
blacksmith in the village. Joseph Hughes probably had the first wagon
shop, and Robert McCandless opened the next one.
Benjamin Wells started the shoemaking business, and Samuel Lane (a
descendant of the Finns, who, in company with the Swedes, settled in
Delaware in 1638) came at nearly the same time. Lane was a tall, slim
man, and exceedingly polite.
The second house in town was built by Matthew A. Calvin, who opened a
tavern there. He was a lame man and had been teaching school previous to
this, in New Castle. After keeping the tavern for about twenty years, he
removed to Mercer County, where he had a son who was a physician.
"All the early taverns kept bars; and a well known gentleman, who at one
time had a tavern in the place, agreed to sign the pledge, and quit
selling liquor at his house, if the people would buy the stock he had on
hand, and pay him for it. This they did, and emptied the liquor out on
the snow, and tried to burn it. It was fire-proof, however, and the boys
who were fond of their sups came and ate the snow to get the whisky out
of it."
Robert Tait came to Mount Jackson about 1831 and in 1835 opened a
tavern; he also carried on the hatting business. Before be came, William
Miller had a shop also, and worked at the hatting business, but finally
discontinued it. Mr. Tait carried it on a number of years, making
several varieties of hats, from fur to silk. Journeymen hatters were
always kept at work. For one year David McConahy worked at the business
with Mr. Tait.
Mr. Tait's father, Samuel Tait, came from Ireland, and in 1809 or 1810
located on the farm now owned by Joseph Dickson. Mr. Tait was the first
settler on the place.
A postoffice was established at Mount Jackson about 1817, with William
Henry as the first postmaster. Before the office was established it was
necessary to go to New Castle, five miles distant, for mail. Mount
Jackson was laid out purposely to secure a postoffice. John Ferguson
held the office of postmaster after Henry.
The first physician in the place was a mineral doctor named Robert
Smith. Following him came Dr. Robert McClelland, also a mineral doctor.
Dr. McClelland was an old schoolmate of Dr. Allen Nesbit, and was
persuaded by him to come to the place. Dr. Nesbit began practicing on
the Botanic or Thompsonian system, while Dr. McClelland was at the
place, and kept, up his practice until about 1865.
Thomas Ferguson, a brother of John Ferguson, came from Steubenville
about 1828-30 and conducted a shoe shop until 1885.[p. 285]
About 1822 John Justice built the first tannery in the vicinity, it
being located about a mile south of the town. He afterward removed to
Ohio. Another tannery was built about 1832 by William Alcorn.
A log schoolhouse was built about 1815-16, where Louis Etter's wagon
shop formerly stood, and was the first one in the town. The ground was
reserved by John Nesbit for school purposes when he laid out the town.
In 1875 John L. Camblin built a planing mill a short distance east of
town. Mount Jackson is located on the summit of one of the highest hills
in the neighborhood, having a steep descent on the west and south
towards Hickory Creek, and stretching off on a comparative plane towards
the east and north. The place contains several stores, and has some neat
and cosy residences and a substantial school building. Until the present
two-story school building as constructed, the house originally erected
by the members of the Free Presbyterian Church was used as a school
building and was located at the forks of the road where the John
McGinness residence has since been built.
The United Presbyterian Church, at Mount Jackson, was organized about
the year 1820 or 1822 by a number of persons who had elsewhere been
members or adherents of what was then called the "Associate Reformed
Presbyterian Church of North America." These persons occasionally
secured the services of itinerant ministers, who would preach a day or
two at a time in a barn or private house to those who were disposed to
attend. From such small beginnings, in the course of two or three years,
a congregation of perhaps twenty-five members was organized. About 1825
the services of a missionary?one John Norwood?recently from Ireland,
were secured for one-third of his time. After serving for one year in
this capacity, he was settled as permanent pastor for one-third of his
time. There were then about thirty or thirty-five members, among them
being the Millers, Chambers, Kyles, Hammils, Davidsons, Alcorns and
Blackburns.
During the summer of 1825 the first church building was erected. It was
a frame structure. Mr. Norwood resigned his charge in 1833, and for four
years subsequently the congregation was without a pastor. In October,
1837, John Neil, a young man from Washington County, Pennsylvania, who
had just finished his theological studies, became pastor and remained
until 1860. Under his pastoral care the congregation increased from
thirty-five members to 140, and became able to support a pastor for his
whole time.
In 1857 a new frame church building, 40 by 50, was erected at a cost of
between $2,000 or $3,000. In the year 1858, at the consummation of the
union between the Associate and Associate Reformed Presbyterian
Churches, this congregation, in common with all others in the Associate
Reformed Church, became a United Presbyterian Church.
After Mr. Neil gave up the charge, the congregation was without a pastor
for over a year, when the Rev. Cyrus Cummins became pastor, and for
eight years faithfully performed the duties devolving upon him. He then
resigned, and was followed, after an interval of about one year, by the
Rev. Hugh R. McClelland, who took charge of the congregation in October,
1870. He has been followed by other pastors, and although the
congregation has suffered much at different times from death and
removals it has increased in numbers and good works. The church edifice
is located half a mile south of the village, on the south side of
Hickory Creek.
The Free Presbyterian Church was organized in 1846 by the members of the
Presbyterian Church at Westfield. The new organization numbered about
fifty members in full communion. The Civil War which followed the
secession of the Southern States, having resulted in the [p. 286]
abolition of slavery, and the action of the general assemblies of the
Presbyterian Church, which met in 1864, 1865 and 1866, having, in some
measure, removed the causes of the separation, the members of the Free
Church almost unanimously resolved to dissolve their organization and
unite with other sister churches. The above resolution was adopted in
June, 1866, after having maintained their organization for nearly twenty
years. Nearly all the members went back to the church from which they
had separated.
Methodist Episcopal Church. ? The pioneer Methodist, at Mount Jackson,
was Jacob Bear, who came from Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, with
his family in 1825. Mr. Bear was born in the Buffalo Valley, in Union
County. Through Mr. Bear's efforts, a class was organized at Mount
Jackson about 1838, by Rev. Rufus Parker. Previous to its organization
meetings were held as early as 1828 at Mr. Bear's house. Mr. Bear was
one of the first associate judges of Lawrence County, the other being
Charles T. Whippo. When the Methodist class was organized, its first
leader was Richard M. Bear, and William Marrs was the second. The class
was organized some three or four years before the church was built. A
Sabbath-school was organized early, and has been kept up most of the
time since.
The church, a frame building, was erected about 1842, on land purchased
from John Nesbit, who laid out the town. It has since been repaired and
remodeled, and is yet standing.
MORAVIA.
This place is the site of the old Moravian missions, founded in 1770,
and originally located on the broad bottomland on the east side of the
river. It is said that when the missionaries and their converts were
coming up the Beaver they passed, near where Newport now stands, a
village of Indian maidens who were all single, and pledged never to
marry. The village was moved from the east to the west side of the
river, because the former locality was too low and unhealthy. The
western town stood a short distance north of the present Moravia
station, and there the Moravians stayed until 1773, when they removed to
the Tuscarawas Valley, in Ohio. Long after the Christian Indians had
left the locality, and after subsequent Indian troubles, the region was
again settled by whites, and this time permanently.
About 1798 William Forbes settled just below the present village, and
soon after built a grist mill and a sawmill on the Beaver River. The dam
was nearly half a mile above the mill, and the construction of it and
the digging of the mill-race must have required an immense amount of
labor. Mr. Forbes held the office of justice of the peace and died some
time before the War of 1812.
James Alsworth came from Franklin County, Pennsylvania, in November,
l804, with his wife and six children. Three children were born in the
family after they arrived. The youngest of the six children who came
with their parents was William Alsworth. James Alsworth settled a
200-acre tract and made the first improvements upon it.
The village of Moravia was laid out by David W. D. Freeman, about
1863-64, soon after the New Castle and Beaver Railway was opened for travel.
The town has a fine location on the hill above the river, commanding a
view both up and down the stream and across the fertile "bottoms" on the
eastern shore. The Erie & Pittsburg Railway affords shipping and
traveling facilities, and the town, though yet small, has a wide future
before it, in which to become equal in importance to its sister towns in
the county.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
PERRY TOWNSHIP
[Original land warrants and patents can be seen on the Survey Maps,
and
land owners can be seen on the 1872 Atlas.
]
[p. 286] This was one of the thirteen original townships of Lawrence
County, its position being the southeast corner, on the east side of
Slippery Rock Creek. Owing to [p. 287] the creek being the boundary
line, the township is somewhat triangular in shape. The surface is
generally uneven, the hills rising to a height of several hundred feet
above the waters of the Slippery Rock, and the valleys between them are
usually narrow.
The soil is generally fertile, and the different grains and fruits which
the country produces are here grown in profusion. The township is
watered by numerous streams, most of which are branches of Slippery Rock
Creek. The most important of the smaller streams is Camp Run, which
flows in a southerly direction through the eastern portion of the
township, and enters the Conoquenessing Creek in Franklin Township,
Beaver County, Pennsylvania. The stream affords considerable power. It
takes its name from the fact that the settlers along it had a great many
"sugar camps," the "sugar trees" standing very thick in the valley.
Hickory timber was also plenty, and the name "Hickory Run" would have
been just as applicable.
Along all the streams are rugged and precipitous banks, and in many
places the scenery partakes of a wildness and grandeur beyond
description. "Along Slippery Rock Creek the frowning bluffs rise to a
height of 400 feet, their sides covered with huge fragmentary masses of
sand rock and a dense growth of hemlock. Away down below, the waters of
the stream rush impetuously over a rock bed, and occasionally foam and
dash down a steep and narrow rapid, or tumble with angry commotion over
a low ledge, each particular drop of water seemingly furiously
struggling with its might to become first among its sisters whirling
onward to the sea. In every spot along the Slippery Rock the scenery is
delightful, and it is by no means necessary for the inhabitants of the
land to go beyond its banks to find a grand culmination of nature's
beauties. The gray old sandstone, with its mossy surface, occasionally
shelving and forming a gloomy recess underneath, the ragged fragments,
piled in reckless confusion, the somber hemlocks and humbler, though not
less beautiful, laurel, the occasional dripping brooklets, their waters
falling carelessly over the rocky banks, the larger stream, with its
swift rushing waters dashing madly down the deep and narrow gorge,
combined, make a picture worthy the pencil or brush of the artist, and
one that, once seen and appreciated, is not easily forgotten."
Much of the territory along Slippery Rock Creek was leased by oil
companies, and a number of wells bored, the result not always realizing
expectations, however.
An Armstrong iron bridge, manufactured at New Brighton, Beaver County,
Pennsylvania, was built across the creek, at the wells, about 1870, and
is a strong, substantial structure.
Coal abounds throughout the township, and except where the vein
approaches Slippery Rock Creek, is of an exceedingly fine quality. The
upper vein averages about four feet in thickness, except as it
approaches the creek, where it becomes thinner. It has been worked in a
number of places to good advantage.
Iron ore is also found, in quality very rich. Below the upper coal vein
is a vein of fire clay, averaging some three feet in thickness, and
below that both bog and kidney ore are found.
Limestone also abounds, but owing to its lying next the iron, and being
more or less impregnated with and gradually merged into it, is worth but
little for burning, and is valueless for building purposes.
A large proportion of the lands in Perry Township are in what was known
originally as the "Chew district." Benjamin Chew, of Philadelphia, had
secured a tract of land in the southern part of what is now Lawrence
County, including portions of Big Beaver, Wayne, Shenango, Slippery Rock
and Perry Townships. It was surveyed into 400-acre tracts, and each
[p. 288] settler on a tract was entitled to half for settling. The
balance was sold at a small price and in quantities to suit purchasers.
The Chew tract was four or five miles in width and some eight or ten
miles in length.
When the territory in western Pennsylvania was first surveyed, a body
consisting of eight tracts of 400 acres each?two tracts north and south,
and four east and west?was put down on the surveyor's map as
"depreciated lands," or lands not fit for settling. These became known
as the "eight tracts," a name they still retain, and were located
principally in the northern part of what is now Perry Township. As these
lands are equal, if not superior, to any in the township, it is possible
that the surveyors, with an instinctive knowledge of their future value,
reported them in the manner they did in order to deceive settlers, and
some time settle on or speculate in the tracts themselves. But if such
were their designs they were speedily frustrated when the settlers began
to come in and choose those tracts first of all. It is a fact that the
earliest settlements in the township were made on these same
"depreciated lands," and some of the best improvements today are in this
locality.
EARLY SETTLEMENTS AND SETTLERS.
About the year 1796 Matthew Murray settled on Tract Number Four, 200
acres, and was the first settler on the place. Mr. Murray came from
Maryland, with his wife and seven children. Five children were born
after he made his settlement, the first one, Thomas, very soon after
they came, said to have been the first white child born on Slippery Rock
Creek. Mr. Murray served in the Revolution, and was in the Light Horse
under "Light Horse Harry Lee." Two of Mr. Murray's sons, Matthew and
William, were out at Black Rock during the War of 18l2, and two others,
James and John, were with General Harrison, at Fort Meigs and vicinity.
Matthew Murray, Sr., died in 1827; his wife died in 1812 or 1813.
During the years 1797 and 1798 a number of settlers came in, and after
that the filling up of the township proceeded more rapidly.
James Stewart, Robert Young, William Scott, Thomas and Marvin Christy,
and Robert Stewart, came during the two years above mentioned, and
settled in the same neighborhood. The Christeys and Robert Stewart
settled just across in Butler County, and the others in what is now
Perry Township, Lawrence County.
James Stewart came in 1798. He was originally from what was then Adams
County, Pennsylvania, and for a while stopped in the valley of Pigeon
Creek, Washington County. When he came to Lawrence County he located on
a farm in the northern part of Perry Township. Mr. Stewart was a tall,
athletic man, and could stand and jump over "anything he could lay his
chin over." His father, Matthew Stewart, had served in the Revolutionary
War, and though not as tall as his son, was fully as active and very
quick. James Stewart's daughter, Joanna, born April 24, 1801, was the
wife of William Gealey, Sr., who lived in Plain Grove Township, Lawrence
County.
Robert Young was from Ireland, and he and William Scott made a
settlement on the same tract. For a long time there was considerable
strife between them as to which one the tract belonged to. They finally
settled the dispute by dividing it, and afterwards lived amicably as
neighbors. Young had made improvements near the center of the tract, and
when the division was made, Scott took a strip off each side in order to
allow Young to keep his improvements.
William Scott's oldest son, John, served in the War of 1812.
A peddler, named John Fulton, came in 1797, and settled on the east side
of Slippery Rock Creek, at the spot where the stream is crossed by what
is known as [p. 289] "Harris' Ford." Fulton was in some way connected
with the Harris family, from whom the ford derives its name.
James Stewart, a different personage from the man already mentioned,
came from Peter's Creek Valley, Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, and
settled on the farm recently owned by Andrew Powell, in 1796 or 1797. He
came with his father and mother. His father, John Stewart, served in the
Continental Army during the Revolutionary War, and fought in the battle
of Brandywine, September 11, 1777. James Stewart was not married when he
came with his parents, but some time previous to the War of 1812, he
married Nancy Morrison, whose parents lived on Camp Run. John Stewart
lived a number of years after the settlement, and died aged over seventy
years. James Stewart served as captain in the War of 1812. He was a
great hunter, and took extreme delight in the sports of the chase. He
had a rifle which he called "Old Danger," which carried a ball weighing
nearly an ounce.
A man named Hawkins was the original settler of the farm afterwards
owned by Andrew Elliott, and later by William Curry, of Pittsburg.
Hawkins must have been out previous to the year 1800. He made the first
improvements on the place, sold it to Elliott, and left the country
before 1812. Mr. Elliott located on the place the 2nd day of May, 1807,
and in 1812 taught school in a log schoolhouse which was built on his
place. The original tract, as settled by Hawkins, consisted of 200 acres.
Among the first settlers in the southern portion of the township were
Charles Dobbs, William Morton, and others, who located along the line at
present dividing the two counties of Beaver and Lawrence.
Job Randolph settled on Camp Run about 1805. He was at that time a young
man, and was married after he came to the township. He, with his
parents, when but eight years of age, came from near Princeton, N. J.,
the family settling first in Washington County, Pennsylvania, and
afterwards removing to Beaver, now Lawrence County. His son, John
Randolph, laid out the town of Princeton, naming it after the old
dwelling place of the family. John Randolph was one of the first
commissioners of Lawrence County.
Some time previous to the War of 1812-15, probably about 1810, Amos Pyle
came with his family from Peter's Creek Valley, Allegheny County,
Pennsylvania. The family consisted of himself, his wife and six
children, and four more children were born after his settlement, making
ten in all. Mr. Pyle had been here about 1807-8, and made some
improvements on the place, and also built a sawmill on Camp Run. After
he brought his family, he built a log grist mill on the run, on the site
of the mill then owned by Caleb Pyle. Mr. Pyle's brother, Caleb Pyle,
Sr., came with him, and served as a lieutenant in the War of 1812. The
Pyles were originally from England, and settled first in Chester County,
Pennsylvania. Amos Pyle's wife was an eye-witness of the battle of
Bunker Hill, and her father, William Wright, was in the ranks of the
Americans that day, fighting manfully for "Liberty and Independence. "
Edward White came early to the township, and settled on a 400-acre
tract. White built a couple of small cabins and a barn, all of logs, on
the tract, and then left it. A colored man, named Cæsar Mercy, then got
a man named Sturgeon, living in Pittsburg, to go and make further and
better improvements. White returned and tried to hold the place by
virtue of the improvements he had made, but Mercy's (or Sturgeon's)
improvements were superior, and White had no show for at least a part of
the tract.
In 1825 John Weller purchased 200 acres of Mrs. Sturgeon, and located on
the land. The balance of the 400-acre tract is now, or was formerly
owned by George H. Magee, William Weller, James Brandon and J. H.
Mitchell.[p. 290]
George H. Magee, owning a part of this tract, came to the township about
1837, and purchased 200 acres of Robert Aiken, locating and residing
upon it until his death. He had previously lived on the Conoquenessing
Creek, in Butler County.
Robert Aiken came from the Youghiogheny Valley, seven miles above
McKeesport, in April, 1804, bringing four children with him. Purchasing
land of Edward White, he located upon it, near where the present
residence of George H. Magee stands. Mr. Aiken raised four children
after he came to the township, viz.: Robert, Margaret, John and Eliza
Jane. The other children were Ann, born in 1798, at the old home on the
"Yough"; James, Andrew and William. Mrs. Aiken died in 1835, aged
sixty-six years, and Mr. Aiken in 1850, at the age of eighty.
Jacob Van Gorder came from New Jersey about 1806, and, settled on
Slippery Rock Creek. He built a sawmill some time after he came, and
some time between 1845 and 1850 erected a grist mill, which was later
operated by his sons.
Elias Van Gorder, brother to Jacob, came in 1808, and settled on a farm
owned by Smith, Collins & Co., a Philadelphia oil firm. He brought three
or four children with him. He went to Erie in Captain Kildoo's company,
during the War of 1812, and died there. This company was raised in the
neighborhood, and had members from Perry, Slippery Rock, Wayne, and
other townships, and probably some from Butler County.
ROADS.
The first road in the township was one which was intended to run through
old Harmony Village, in Butler County. Its route was from the spot where
the iron bridge at the oil well now stands, through to the old Freeman
farm, at the Butler County line, thence on to Harmony. It was cut
through Perry Township to the county line, but was never met from the
other side, and consequently was never finished. Trade went in those
days almost exclusively to Harmony, and when a road was opened it was
well traveled, but finally business took a start in New Castle, and was
pushed so briskly that Harmony lost much of its custom, which went to
New Castle, and the old road grew up to brush. A petition was afterwards
circulated for a State road, which was finally viewed from New Castle to
Zelienople, Butler County, and partially cut through, on a part of the
same track the old road followed.
Another State road was located on nearly the same line, varying a little
from it in some places, but a petition was gotten up, and the road
annulled and vacated, and a road laid running from the oil works down
along the hollow, up the hill past the site of the old Covenanter
Church, and on to Zelienople.
The Wurtemberg and Portersville State road was laid out about the time
the county of Lawrence was created, 1849-50.
Matthew Stewart built a grist mill on the "run" which flowed through his
farm, very early, and a road was laid south and southwest from it,
probably intended to go through to Beaver town. Part of the road is
still in the "Eight Tract settlement." The old mill contained one run of
stone, and succumbed to the ravages of time years ago.
MILITARY RECORD.
The early comers to the township had among their number several veterans
of the Revolution?those who fought to keep alive the spark of that
liberty which had been so boldly asserted as the rightful possession of
the colonists?and their children roused themselves to action, and
preserved the honor of their country and the fame of their sires when
the English aggressions brought on the struggle of 1812-15.
After that war was over and peace once more "spread her wings 'neath the
banner [p. 291] of stars," militia organizations and volunteer rifle
companies were kept up for several years.
About 1820 a rifle company called the "Rifle Hornets," or "Hornet
Rifles," was organized under the law which exempted the members from
further military duty after a continuous service of seven years. The
company had a membership of from forty to fifty men, armed with common
rifles, each furnishing his own uniform and arms. The uniform was a blue
capote, or frock, with red facings and white fringe, red sash, citizen's
hat with white plume, and white pants. Alexander Morrison and J. H. Van
Gorder were at one time officers of this company, the former ranking as
captain and the latter as second-lieutenant. The company was made up of
men from the immediate vicinity.
During the War of the Rebellion, the township was largely represented.
In this war of a nation's children?a war between brothers?many who
entered the service from Perry were maimed for life, and others await
today the final trump from the grassy graves on Southern fields, when
they shall gather once more with the dear ones who mourn them.
SCHOOLS.
In the fall of 1805 a schoolhouse was built of round logs just across
the line in Beaver County, on land owned by William Thompson. This was
the first schoolhouse in the neighborhood, but, owing to some dispute,
it was burned down before it was ever occupied.
Another one was built immediately on the same site, also of round logs,
and stood for a number of years. The first teacher was John Ker (or
Kerr), who was living on the Sturgeon place with his mother, and owned
no land. He was of Irish descent, and was not very popular, though a
good-hearted man. Owing to the scarcity of teachers he was welcomed,
however. His greatest fault was gross mispronunciation.
A schoolhouse was built, about 1812, on land then owned by Andrew
Elliott, who was the first teacher in the building. The settlers in the
neighborhood had two sites picked out for the location of the
schoolhouse, and it was agreed among them that the one that had the most
pupils subscribed should be the place to build it. Robert Aiken settled
the matter when it came his turn to subscribe, by putting down five
pupils for the Elliott location, and there the schoolhouse was built.
The children who attended this school were dressed in blue linsey, and
were familiarly called the "Eight-tracts Blues." Mr. Aiken was as good
as his word, and sent five children.
Some time previous to the year 1808 a house was built on land owned by
Samuel McElwain. It was built for a dwelling, and used for school
purposes, about 1809-10. The first teacher was an Irishman named Samuel
Sterrett. School was only kept in this building two or three terms.
At an early date a schoolhouse was built on the west side of Camp Run,
in the Southern part of the township. A man named John Hines was
probably the first teacher.
Another one was built of logs on the old Robert White farm. This was
later, about 1825-26. James H. Van Gorder taught in it six months, and
others taught both before and after him. It was used until 1834, when
the law establishing free schools was passed, and it was abandoned.
After the school law came in force, schoolhouses were built twenty feet
square, the first one being north of the old James Morton farm. Teachers
at that time were scarce, and but few of them were competent, and people
hired what they could get, from sheer necessity.
The second schoolhouse, under the school law, was built about 1836-37,
on the State road leading from Wurtemburg to Portersville, about two and
one-half miles from Wurtemburg. It was built "on the [p. 292] bounds of
the road," and no land was leased or bought upon which to erect it. The
next one was built on the Armstrong farm, but was moved to a more
central location, on the Andrew Elliott land, where the present
schoolhouse stands. The house is now known as the "Elliott schoolhouse."
Another was built on the southeast side of the creek, at Wurtemburg, one
on Camp Run, and another in the northeastern part of the township.
In 1908 there are five schools in the township, with the same number of
teachers, and an enrollment of 328 pupils. Total expenditures,
$2,139.28; estimated value of school property, $3,750.
CHURCHES.
Mountville United Presbyterian Church was organized as an Associate or
Seceder Church, in 1808 or 1810, probably by Rev. McClintock, who had
preached in the neighborhood as early as 1798. After this, Associate
Reformed preachers occasionally held forth in the neighborhood also, and
the early meetings were held at private houses?at Mr. Young's, Mr.
Scott's and other places, and, during warm weather, in barns. Among the
founders of the Associate congregation were Robert Young, William Scott,
Thomas Christy, Robert Aiken, John Frew, Job Randolph, James Stewart and
James Vance, who were all pioneers in the settlement of the neighborhood.
About 1810 a small church was built of round logs, on land subsequently
owned by Daniel Thomas, which was the farm next adjoining the John
Fulton place.
The log church was used until 1822, when a frame church was erected. A
more commodious edifice was erected in 1840, on the hill west of the
residence of James Aiken. The ground was donated by Robert Aiken, and
included four acres. Additional ground for burial purposes was
subsequently purchased by the society.
The first settled pastor was Rev. Alexander Murray, who preached as
early as 1809, but was probably not settled until a later date. Rev. Mr.
McClintock possibly preached a few times in the old log church, as an
assistant to Mr. Murray. The latter preached to the congregation until
1845, when he died, in the thirty-seventh year of his ministry. He was
buried in the present graveyard.
After Mr. Murray died, the church was supplied by different ministers,
until Rev. Joseph McClintock was settled, which was in 1847-48. He
stayed nine years, and after him came Rev. Andrew Irons, who became
unable to preach soon after he was settled, through failing health. Mr.
Irons came in the spring or summer of 1857, and after his health failed
had the church supplied for a while out of his own wages. He died near
the close of December, 1863.
Rev. John Donaldson was the next pastor; he came in June, 1865, and
ceased his labors with the congregation in 1869. After this the church
was supplied until the summer of 1874, when Rev. John Patterson was
called, under whose charge the church flourished. Rev. J. J. Ralston
became pastor in 1889, and served with great devotion for seventeen
years, when he resigned, June 26, 1906. This congregation has now been
without a regular pastor for more than a year. The church has sixty-five
members and the Sabbath-school an enrollment of sixty-eight. The church
was named "Mountville," by Rev. Alexander Murray, soon after it was
built. It had previously been known as the "Eight Tracts Church."
About 1840 a Covenanter, or Reformed Presbyterian Church was built, the
first pastor of which was probably Rev. Thomas Guthrie. In 1859 this
congregation removed to Wurtemburg, in Wayne Township, and organized as
a United Presbyterian Society, which is still continued.
Part of the village of Wurtemburg lies in Perry Township, and the
postoffice has, at different times, been kept on this side also, but is
now in that portion of the Village which lies in Wayne Township. Some
[p. 293] fine residences and one store are located in "South Wurtemburg."
The bluff on the south side of Slippery Rock Creek, at the bend opposite
Wurtemburg, is 390 feet high, and very steep.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
20th Century History of New Castle and Lawrence County Pennsylvania and
Representative Citizens Hon. Aaron L. Hazen Richmond-Arnold Publishing
Company, Chicago, Ill., 1908
Updated: 15 Mar 2002