[p. 742] who is a substantial citizen of Wayne Township, is engaged in the carriage and manufacturing business at Chewton, Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, where he was born May 8, 1839, and is a son of John and Rachel (Davidson) Cunningham.
Mr. Cunningham belongs to a family that has been identified with the interests of Lawrence County for a period covering 112 years. Many Indians still occupied this section of Pennsylvania when the Cunningham and Davidson families came to Lawrence County from Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, in 1796. There were twelve householders in the colony that came at that time and built their log cabins close together on a small cleared tract. The sturdy pioneers left their families behind until the following year, when they returned and brought them to the new homes in what was then a veritable wilderness. As there were no roads at that time, over which conveyance could move, the journey back and forth had to be made on horseback, and blazed Indian trails had to be followed. In this colony were William and Benjamin Cunningham, the two Hermon brothers, the Houks, the Smileys and the Davidsons.
Benjamin Cunningham, grandfather of Oliver P., settled in 1796 on the farm in Wayne Township which is now owned by J. N. Fallis, of New Castle. While building his first house he subsisted, as did the numerous Indians of the locality, on fish and the wild game, which was very plentiful in the forests. There were but two other settlers outside of the colony mentioned, in all this stretch of country at that time. Robert Davidson, the maternal grandfather of Oliver P., settled on the land where the flourishing town of Wampum now stands. He owned a very large tract of land, a part of what was called The Donation, the same having been formerly set apart for the surviving soldiers of the Revolutionary War. Prior to 1830, Robert Davidson built a large brick house on his land, which still stands and is still utilized. This Wampum property belongs to the Davidson heirs. The town was named in honor of Chief Wampum, an Indian of the time and section, who befriended the white settlers.
Benjamin Cunningham married Margaret Morton, who was a daughter of Joseph Morton, another pioneer, and they became the parents of a large family, seven of whom reached maturity. Four of this number bore the following names: William, Benjamin, Anna, John T., the latter of whom was the father of Oliver P. William married a Miss White and moved to Venango County, where he died. Benjamin married and later moved to Portsmouth, Ohio, where he died. Anna married John Smiley, and they resided at what is now Slippery Rock, Lawrence County, where they died.
Hon. John T. Cunningham was a very prominent citizen of Wayne Township, Lawrence County. His home was in the village of Chewton, where he served for twenty years in the office of justice of the peace. In 1844 he was elected a member of the Pennsylvania State Legislature, but his public career was cut short by his death after a brief illness in the spring of 1845. He was a man of systematic habits and exceptional judgment. His docket, while justice of the peace, covering two decades, shows 640 cases, and is without blot or blemish. John T. Cunningham married Rachel Davidson, daughter of Robert Davidson, and four sons were born to them: Robert, Benjamin W., Oliver P. and Harvey.
Robert Cunningham resided in Venango County, Pennsylvania, where he died, leaving a family. Benjamin W. Cunningham married (first) Miss Clara Allen, who was a daughter of John M. Allen, of Shenango Township, Lawrence County. His second marriage was to Mrs. Elizabeth Hoagland, a widow, and they reside in Wayne Township. Harvey Cunningham, the youngest of the sons, died in 1904, leaving a widow, who was formerly a Miss Loefler.
Oliver Perry Cunningham is the oldest native resident of the village of Chewton. He remained at home until he reached manhood, obtaining his education in the district schools, and then went West, and during his residence in Iowa was first married, the lady being Miss Amanda Hennon. She was a daughter of John M. Hennon, of Wayne Township, where she was born and reared and at the time of her marriage, in January, 1865, was visiting in Iowa. She died in September of the same year.
In 1857, Oliver P. Cunningham entered the employ of Ralph Reed, with whom he learned the wagon and carriagemaking trade. About the time of the opening of the Civil War he went to Pittsburg and was employed there by James Hemphill, who had the contract for building wagons for the Government. Mr. Cunningham was an exellent workman and he remained for some time at Pittsburg, after which he returned to the old homestead at Chewton, where, since late in 1861, he has been interested in the manufacturing business until the present. As a reliable maker of carriages and wagons, he is known all through this section, at all times having as many orders as he can fill. His business is one of the oldest in the town.
Mr. Cunningham has been notably one of the township's leading men and has been identified with the enterprises which have built up this section to a large degree, and has furthered to the extent of his ability all things which have promised to advance his community. He owns considerable real estate at Chewton and is justly considered a man of ample fortune. He is the oldest Odd Fellow connected with the Wampum lodge, having joined the order in 1865, and is a charter member.
The second marriage of Mr. Cunningham was to Miss Susan Kennedy, who is a daughter of Henry and Susan Kennedy, old residents of Slippery Rock Township, where her grandfather was one of the earliest settlers. Two children were born to this marriage, Jennie C. and Audley L. The former married Thomas M. Eckles, who is a druggist at Ellwood City, Lawrence County. The latter married Miss Cora Turner, who was born in Ellwood City, and they have one daughter, Audrey. In political sentiment, Mr. Cunningham is a Republican, and although no longer an active one, takes a deep interest in the success of his party. For a period of five years he served as a justice of the peace in Wayne Township, and at the close of his term was re-elected, but declined to serve longer. Both he and wife are members of the Christian Church at Chewton, of which he has been a liberal supporter for many years. As the oldest resident of this section, Mr. Cunningham has witnessed wonderful changes take place and his reminiscences of old times and old families of Lawrence County are both interesting and instructive.
20th Century History of New Castle and Lawrence County Pennsylvania and Representative Citizens Hon. Aaron L. Hazen Richmond-Arnold Publishing Company, Chicago, Ill., 1908
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