BIO: John McFarren BUCHANAN, Beaver County, PA Contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by Judy Banja & Joe Patterson Copyright 2005. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/beaver.html http://www.usgwarchives.net/pa/beaver/bios/bbios.htm Index for this bio book. _________________________________________________________________ BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES. This Volume Contains Biographical Sketches of Leading Citizens of Beaver County, Pennsylvania. Buffalo, N.Y., Chicago, Ill.: Biographical Publishing Company, 1899, pp. 391-393. _________________________________________________________________ JOHN McFARREN BUCHANAN, son of Thomas C. Buchanan, and Eliza A. Mayhew, his wife, was born near Florence, Washington County, Pennsylvania, April 25, 1851. His father dying of cholera, June 18, 1852, on the overland route to California, his mother removed to Fairview, Virginia (now West Virginia), in 1856, near where her father, John Mayhew, was living. Our subject remained here with his mother and sister, Georgiana, until June 1, 1858, when he was taken by a paternal uncle, Joseph K. Buchanan, to his home in Hanover township, Beaver County, Pennsylvania, where he attended the district school and worked in vacation upon the farm of his uncle. In the fall and winter of 1864-65, he attended The Collegiate Institute, East Liberty, Pennsylvania, taught by Rev. J. P. Moore, a brother-in-law of his uncle above-named. In the winter of 1866 he recited in the evenings to Thomas Nicholson, Esq., a famous teacher and well known citizen of Frankfort Springs. In April, 1867, he entered Washington and Jefferson College, then under the presidency of Rev. Jonathan Edwards, D. D. Mr. Buchanan was aided in his efforts by his uncle, Joseph K. Buchanan, and by his mother, and by tutoring and teaching and the like through college, graduating in the class of 1869. On December 1, 1869, Mr. Buchanan was entered as a law student in the law office of Sam B. Wilson, Esq., one of the most eminent lawyers that ever graced the Beaver Bar, and was admitted to the Bar September 2, 1872, the committee being Edward B. Daugherty, Frank Wilson and E. P. Kuhn, all now deceased. In November, 1874, Mr. Buchanan received the Democratic nomination for District Attorney in the strong Republican county of Beaver and was elected by 94 votes, and in 1877, was re-elected by 303 majority. During the six years of office, Mr. Buchanan never had an indictment quashed nor amended in a single word; nor did he have a grand jury sit over two days at a time, - the Quarter Sessions Court and Grand Jury then sat at the same time. Since that time Mr. Buchanan has enjoyed a large and lucrative practice. He is president of the First National Bank, Beaver, Pennsylvania, and of the Beaver Valley Traction Company, the Beaver & Vanport Electric Street Railway, a director in the First National Bank, Rochester, Pennsylvania, in the Bridgewater Bridge, Sharon Bridge, New Brighton Water Company, The Valley Electric Light Company and in various other companies. He is also attorney for the Pennsylvania Company. Mr. Buchanan has taken an active part in keeping Beaver County to the front in every good work. He is a member 392 BOOK OF BIOGRAPHIES of the First Presbyterian Church of Beaver and active in its councils. In 1896, Mr. Buchanan was the nominee of the Democratic party for Judge of the Thirty-sixth Judicial District of Pennsylvania, and received the largest vote ever received by a Democrat in that District, but failed in the election in this strong Republican district. The ancestor of this branch of the Buchanans first in the country was Walter Buchanan, who was of Scotch-Irish origin, and emigrated to America from the northern part of Ireland, settling in Little Britain township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in 1745. He was a farmer up to the time of his death, which occurred in Lancaster County, in 1790; his remains lie buried in the Churchyard of Little Britain Presbyterian Church in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. He was active in church and state, and was one of the signers to the petition found on page 310, Vol. 32 Ser., Pennsylvania Archives. The home of Walter Buchanan was blessed with three sons and three daughters, namely: Gilbert; John; James; Jeannette; Mary; and Sarah. Gilbert, the eldest, settled near Poland, Ohio, and became a tiller of the soil. John, the second son, settled near Paris in Washington County, Pennsylvania, and also followed the occupation of a farmer. He was a member of the Associate Presbyterian Church, and served as elder of that denomination. His remains lie buried in the Associate Burial Ground at Paris, Washington County, Pennsylvania. James, the third son, was the great-grandfather of our subject. In 1791, he located in Hanover township, Washington County, Pennsylvania, about two miles from Florence. James was born May 23, 1761, in Little Britain township, above-named. He served for some months as a member of Captain James Morrison's Company, Porter's Battalion, in the Revolutionary War, and died on the twenty-fifth day of November, 1823. He married Margaret Ross, a relative of George Ross, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. Mrs. Buchanan was of Scotch-Irish ancestry, and was born March 23, 1769, a native of Chester County, Pennsylvania, a member of the Associate Presbyterian Church. She survived her husband for thirty-five years, passing away July 20, 1854, and her remains now lie buried in the Presbyterian Churchyard at Slippery Rock, Lawrence County, Pennsylvania. This highly esteemed and worthy, couple reared the following children: Elizabeth, born April 5, 1789, and died September 24, 1855, - she became the wife of John Mitchell, and now lies buried in the United Presbyterian Churchyard at Sharon, Ohio; Walter, born July 14, 1791, and died July 19, 1869, is buried at New Brighton, Pennsylvania; Hannah, born October 21, 1793, and died March 6, 1866, - she married John Smith, and is buried at Sheakleyville, Pennsylvania; Nancy, born January 1, 1796, died October 26, 1873, - she became the wife of Hugh Smith, and is buried at Duncanville United Presbyterian Church, Crawford County, Illinois; John, grandfather of our subject, will be mentioned later; James, born May 29, 1800, and died February 19, 1840; Moses Ross, born Octo- BEAVER COUNTY 393 ber 6, 1803, and died at De Witt, Iowa, July 22, 1878; Joseph Smith, born October 31, 1806, a graduate of Jefferson College and a minister in the United Presbyterian Church for nearly fifty years, died March 31, 1887, at De Witt, Iowa; Margaret, born January 29, 1808, and died June 17, 1876; Mary, wife of Mr. Caldwell, was born May 9, 1813, and died June 18, 1893; and George Black, born September 14, 1815. John Buchanan, grandfather of our subject, was born on the twenty-eighth day of May, 1798, in Hanover township, Washington County, Pennsylvania, was a farmer, purchasing a farm just across the line in Virginia, where he spent the remainder of his life, and where his death took place, May 6, 1830; his remains lie buried in the Presbyterian grounds in Fairview, West Virginia. He married Margaret Chambers, a daughter of Thomas Chambers, a native of Scotland, who came to America as a Scottish soldier in Cornwall's Army. Mr. Chambers settled in Hanover township, in 1789, on a farm which is now owned by our subject. Mrs. Buchanan survived her husband four years, dying July 25, 1834, at the age of thirty-one years. This worthy couple left four sons, orphans, to mourn the loss of their parents; James, born in 1824 and wedded Mary A. Craig; Thomas Chambers, father of our subject, heretofore mentioned; John F., born in 1828, and twice married, - his first wife being Jane Greenfield, his second, May Elligood; and Joseph Kerr, born in 1830 and married Martha T. Bigger.