Biographical Sketches of Leading Citizens
Lawrence County Pennsylvania 1897
[p. 136] one of the substantial men of Mahoning township, and who has proven very successful at his vocation of farming, entered this world May 8, 1827. He first saw the light of day on the same estate which he now owns, and where he makes his residence. Mr. Miller was a son of Alexander and Amelia (Carpenter) Miller, and a grandson of James Miller, a West Virginian, who removed from his native State and became one of the first settlers of Mahoning township. He built a log house on the place where John R. Miller, his descendant, now lives, and in time cleared upwards of one hundred acres, dying at an advanced age possessed of a very handsome property. His children and heirs were: Alexander; John; James, who retained the homestead; Elizabeth; Margaret; Jane; and Annie.
Alexander Miller was born Oct. 30, 1790, and was married, Dec. 22, 1810, to Miss Amelia Carpenter, who was born March 4, 1787. He purchased a farm, adjoining his father's homestead, and put up buildings, some of which are in use to this day. This farm comprised about one hundred acres, but as fortune smiled on his efforts and prosperity came to be present with him, he purchased additional property, so that when the suitable times arrived, he was glad and able to give each of his children a good start in life. For fifteen years Alexander Miller was a justice of the peace, and in this period settled many estates, and performed a great amount of semi-legal work. He was a man of exceedingly sound and correct judgment, and seldom did he err in his estimate of men and things; his counsel was much sought after, and it was at all times freely accorded. In politics, Mr. Miller was first a Whig, and later a Republican. In his day he held may [sic] offices, and there are few men, indeed, who were as useful to the community as was he. He died in his sixty-fifth year, but his widow lived to the extreme age of eighty-six. Their children were: Elizabeth, born Aug. 23, 1811; Thomas, Feb. 5, 1813; Alexander, May 19, 1816; Polly, July 31, 1819; John, Aug. 1, 1822; Amelia A., March 27, 1825; Frederick Carpenter, May 8, 1827; and Jane, Aug. 15, 1830. The ter was burned to death in the old house when four years old.
Frederick Carpenter Miller tenderly cared for his aged parents all through their last days, and succeeded to the homestead. In time he purchased the Carpenter farm of two hundred acres, which adjoined, and in 1882 erected a new residence. In 1887, new barns were added, and all the while and at every season of the year, the large estate was kept in prime condition, clearly giving the best of evidence as to the thrifty character and methodical, business-like habits of the owner. Mr. Miller has followed the line of life laid down by his honored and worthy father; he is not only a keen, up-to-date farmer, but also a clear-headed business man. He is held in the highest respect by all who know him, and their name is legion. On Sept. 29, 1853, he led to the altar of Hymen Miss Julia S. Kincaid, daughter of John W. and Rachel S. (Craven) Kincaid, and there they uttered the mutual vows of fidelity, honor and love that have bound them in perfect amity these many years. She was ever a good and loving wife, a faithful helpmeet, and a kind mother, to whom the welfare and happiness of her children was a paramount desire.
The father of Mrs. Miller, John W. Kincaid, was born in the State of Delaware, and was a son of Isaac Kincaid, a New Jerseyman, and a grandson of William Kincaid, who was Scotch by parentage and birth. Isaac Kincaid was a successful farmer, and the father of three children—John W., William, and Rebecca. John W. was born Feb. 13, 1796, and early in life learned the carpenter's trade, and carried on contracting and building in Philadelphia for a time. On May 21, 1822, in Salem, New Jersey, he was married to Rachel S. Craven, and kept the Craven Hotel there until 1833, when he came to Hillsville, Mahoning township, and bought the farm, now commonly known as the Henry Smith place. He continued farming until about 1854, when he started for California by the way of Central America to join his son, John E., who had preceded him. He got as far as Nicaragua, where he was detained; falling sick of Panama or yellow fever, he died and was buried in that distant land. His widow, born Dec. 8, 1803, lived until June 28, 1889. Thirteen children were born to this couple: Richard C., born Aug. 21, 1823; William, Oct. 7, 1824; Maria E., July 27, 1826; John E., Nov. 27, 1827; Amanda D., Oct. 8, 1829; Julia S. (Miller), March 20, 1832; Edward S., May 14, 1833; Mary J., March 25, 1835; Albert, July 14, 1838; James C., Feb. 30, 1839; Ferdinand, Aug. 25, 1841; Rose Ann, Feb. 23, 1843; and Adaline R., Feb. 20, 1845.
To Mrs. Julia S. (Kincaid) Miller and her husband there were given these five children: Rachel Adaline, who died when an infant, seventeen months old; Edna A., married H. D. Smith of Lowellville, Ohio, and bore her husband three children, Freda M., Grace J., and Henry M.; Julia, the wife of George Sweesy of Philadelphia, and the mother of one child, Frederick C.; Mary E., who wedded Henry Schiffert, and has two children, Carl V., and Elsie E.; and Alexander C., who married Sadie E. Kincaid, a cousin, and has charge of his father's varied interests, residing in a home that he built for himself on a part of the estate. Alexander C. Miller is the father of four children—Lester G., Alexander C., Jr., Fred W., and Elizabeth J. He is a very active person, and is devoting his best energies to the work of caring for the extensive interests in his care. He is already one of the leading spirits of the section, and is ably carrying out the plans laid down by his father.
Our subject can safely be termed a successful man. He had the early advantage of a close association with his father, who knew what hidden springs to touch in order to bring a flow of prosperity. He has become a man of means, and still has retained to a remarkable degree the affections of those in every walk of life; the fact that he has done well and utilized his talents has caused no one pains or jealousies. Mr. Miller has found time in his long and eventful life to devote to matters outside of the sphere of his own business affairs. He is a stanch Republican, proud of his life-long connection with the Grand Old Party, and has had much to say and to do in the guidance of that party in his section. He has held many public offices, among them that of supervisor, overseer of the poor, and school director. As to his religious views, he has always been liberal and fair-minded. The leaning of the family is toward the Baptist Church, of which the beloved mother is a memher. Mr. Miller has now about completed life's battle, and stands among his family and friends a victor in the struggle, surrounded by the fruits of his foresight, his toil, and his skill.
Biographical Sketches of Leading Citizens Lawrence County Pennsylvania
Biographical Publishing Company, Buffalo, N.Y., 1897
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