MARY ROBERTS LIVEZEY, daughter of Hugh and Alice A. Roberts, is a native of Wilmington, Delaware, where she was born Tenth-month (October) 25, 1847. Her earlier years were spent in that city, in Cecil county, Maryland, and in Bucks, Philadelphia, and Montgomery counties of Pennsylvania, the family having changed their location from time to time. She attended the public schools in these various localities, and also obtained such knowledge as was gained in the schoolrooms where she was engaged in the instruction of pupils of various ages and acquirements.

In 1861 Hugh Roberts, having sold the farm in Maryland which he had owned for several years, removed to Bucks county, Pennsylvania, and thence after two years to Philadelphia, locating in Gwynedd, Montgomery county, and still later to Norristown.

Mary Roberts became a teacher in the public schools at Franklinville, in Whitpain township, in the fall of 1866, it being located near the farm on which the family resided for nearly twenty years. Meeting with much success in her calling of teacher, she remained in that position six years, when she became principal of what was later the Audenried school, in Cheltenham township, where she remained another six years. In this position one of her directors was Thomas Williams, for many years president of the Cheltenham school board and an active friend Of education, and a friendship was formed between the two which lasted until his death, a few years ago. In Eleventh-month, 1877, Mary Roberts became the wife of Samuel Livezey, son of Thomas and Rachel (Richardson) Livezey, of Plymouth Meeting. They have one child, Thomas Hugh Livezey, born Tenth-month 18, 1879, who is employed in a responsible position at the Pencoyd Iron Works. He married "Tenth-month 1, 1902, Joanna M., daughter of William (deceased) and Caroline R. Miller, of Blue Bell.

Samuel Livezey was employed for many years in one or another of the great packing houses of Chicago, and thither he removed again with his family soon after the birth of their child, remaining there several years but returning again to Plymouth Meeting and locating finally in Norristown, on Marshall street, above Stanbridge (No. 908), Norristown. Their son resides a few doors above, at No. 928 Marshall street. Samuel Livezey has been for some nears retired from business.

Mary R. Livezey has taken a very active part in aiding the Montgomery County Historical Society to clear of debt its property on Penn street, adjoining the public square, having officiated as chairman of five annual suppers held for that purpose on Washington's birthday, and having, with the aid of an organization of women whole she called around her, raised about two thousand and five hundred dollars in this way.

She has also been active in the Society of Friends, taking an active part in Philadelphia Yearly Meeting and in First Day School and Philanthropic work generally, as well as in the movement for equal rights for women, of which she is an earnest advocate, holding that the antiquated idea that man is a superior being and woman is inferior is an error that should be Vanished from the statute books of the state by appropriate legislation of a more liberal character than that note existing. The society of Friends has always recognized the equality of the sexes and its influence has been exerted for the two centuries and a half Of its existence in favor of the enfranchisement of women.

Educated in such a school, Mary R. Livezey has profited by its lessons and is au able and fearless advocate of other reforms, including temperance, personal purity and kindred objects. She has been useful and effective in these and other channels, taking her stand with the progressive and earnest men and women of the day in efforts to enlighten the public mind, break down the authority of tradition and superstition and point the way to a better era than any which the world has ever seen.

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SAMUEL NOBLE, dealer in dairy products at Jenkintown, Pennsylvania, is a member of an old family long resident in that section of the state of Pennsylvania. He is the son of Samuel W. and Elizabeth H. (Mather) Noble. He is a native of Abington township, having been born at the old homestead, now the grounds of the Golf Club, November 18, 1849.

William Noble and his wife Frances, who were the progenitors of the family, were natives of the city of Bristol, England, where, being consistent members of the Society of Friends, then proscribed on account of their religious faith, they suffered persecution. Their son Abel, in 1684, when he was not yet of age, emigrated to America and settled in Philadelphia. He learned the trade of a cooper, and subsequently followed it for a time, but. subsequently became the owner of an extensive tract of land in Bucks county, on which he settled. Among his children was Joseph, great-great-grandfather of Samuel Noble, the subject of this sketch. Joseph Noble married Mary, daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth (Lovett) Smith, her father having been one of four brothers who emigrated from England and settled in Burlington county, New Jersey, where they founded the city of Burlington.

They were long known as the "Burlington Smiths", the designation attaching also to their descendants, the family being owners of the ground on which the city now stands, and also of much valuable property adjacent. Samuel and Mary Noble, the latter becoming Mrs. Samuel Wetherill, were children of Joseph and Mary Noble. Samuel married Lydia, daughter of Isaac Cooper, of New Jersey, in 1746. Their children were eight in number, several of them dying young. Those who grew to maturity were Hannah (Mrs. William Norton), Samuel and Richard. Samuel was born in 1766. He married, in 1792, Elizabeth, daughter of Robert Tompkins, of Philadelphia. Of their children, Joseph, born in 1799, died in 1854; Dr. Charles, born in 1801, died 1873; Lydia, married Thomas Longstreth, died in 1876. Samuel Noble's first wife, Lydia, dying, he married a second time, in 1817, Sarah, daughter of Samuel Webster, of New Jersey. The children of the second marriage were Samuel W. and Richard.

Samuel W. Noble, father of Samuel Noble, was born August 15, 1818, in Philadelphia. His father was at that time engaged in business in that city as a tanner and currier. Samuel W. resided there until he was about seventeen years of age, meanwhile attending school and acquiring a good English education. Developing a fondness for agricultural pursuits, he removed to Byberry, where he became proficient in the occupation of farming. In 1838 the father purchased a farm of eighty acres in Abington township, Montgomery county, and subsequently an additional thirty-five acres immediately adjoining the other.

In 1839 Samuel W. Noble removed to this farm, and upon it his entire life ever after was spent in agricultural pursuits and in the nursery business. He married, October 30, 1844, Elizabeth H., daughter of John and Martha P. Mather, of Cheltenham township. Their children: Henry A., born in 1845, now a resident of Philadelphia; Sarah, died young; John M., born in 1848, deceased; Samuel, born in 1849; Clara, deceased; Howard, born in 1852, teller of the Jenkintown National Bank; Lydia L., deceased; Franklin, born in 1855, now residing in New York; Thomas L., born in 1857, residing in Abington; Charles M., born in 1859, now a resident of Idaho; Mary T., born in 1861, married Joseph Lippincott: Anna, born in 1862; Elizabeth, deceased.

Samuel W. Noble was an active man in his community, being a consistent member of the Society of Friends, and ever attentive to his religious, social and other duties. He devoted much attention to his chosen pursuits, farming and horticulture. He was for many years a member of the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society. He was in 1875 elected president of the Jenkintown National Bank, of which he was one of the incorporators. He was secretary and treasurer of the Cheltenham and Willow Grove Turnpike Company, and at one time was president of the Union Mutual Fire Insurance Company of Montgomery county. He was for more than forty years treasurer of the Abington Library Company, an institution that was organized in 1804 and was very useful and popular. He was influential in every neighborhood enterprise that tended towards the advancement of the interests of the public. He was a Republican in politics, and served as a school director for a number of years, but was in no sense an office seeker. The family have been Friends for seven generations, and are now members of Abington Meeting, one of the oldest in the country. Samuel W. Noble died in 1887, at the age of sixty-nine years.

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Samuel Noble was educated in Abington Friends' School and the Friends' Central School, Philadelphia, under the care of Aaran B. Ivins, a very thorough teacher. He spent his early life on the homestead farm, remaining there until 1899, when the farm was sold and he purchased a farm in Buckingham township, Bucks county, Pennsylvania, where since that time he has engaged in agricultural pursuits and in dairying. He has filled the position of school director.

 

 

JAY COOKE, a resident and citizen of Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, honored throughout the nation and favorably known to the entire civilized world for his eminently useful and patriotic services during the Civil war, was to the nation in that tremendous struggle what another masterly financier, Robert Morris, was to it in its infancy, during the battling for independence.

He is a native of Ohio, born in Sandusky, August 10, 1821. He is of Puritan ancestry, and his father, Eleutheros Cooke, was an early settler in that state. The elder Cooke located at what was then called Portland, which was then changing from an Indian village to what is now known as the city of Sandusky, and there built the first stone house in the village. He was the leading lawyer in that region, and represented his district in the legislature for a number of years, both before and after he had served in congress, (1831-33) and was primarily instrumental in procuring the granting of the first railroad charter in the world, in 1826. Mr. Cooke was a mail of great public prominence, and was orator on the occasion of a visit by President Harrison (1835) and other of the great men of that day.

Jay Cooke, after completing his education, entered the banking house of Enoch White Clark & Company, in Philadelphia, in 1838. He soon gave evidence of that masterly ability which was afterward to stamp him as the foremost financier of the world in his day, and before attaining his majority was made the confidential clerk of the firm, with power of attorney, and personally conducted many of its most important transactions. On his twenty-first birthday he was admitted to partnership, and was a member of the firm for sixteen years. During this period he personally effected the sale of the Western, Northern, Wyoming & Delaware Divisions of the Pennsylvania Canal, and assisted in the negotiation of the government loans required to carry on the Mexican war. This special experience served to fit him for the masterly part he was to take in financiering the much more important conflict of 1861-65.

Early in 1861 Mr. Cooke associated with himself William G. Moorhead in the banking firm of Jay Cooke & Company. The firm opened houses in New York and Washington City, under its own name, and established a branch house in London in connection with Hugh McCulloch Company, under the firm name of Jay Cooke, McCulloch & Company. This banking business, probably the most extensive in the country, was carried on with entire success, including the building and financing of nearly all the older railroads of the country, and until the setting in of the panic of 1873, the inevitable revulsion from the unprecedented inflation of the period immediately following the war. The era of shrinkage and liquidation had come, and many hitherto prosperous banking establishments went down in the general crash. Jay Cooke & Company were heavily involved in consequence of their effort to carry through the construction of the Northern Pacific

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Railroad, the most stupendous and important enterprise of the times. Their suspension was a national calamity, and expressions of regret were universal, the fact being generally recognized that their failure was consequent upon their making possible the construction of that great transcontinental line which promised so much to the prosperity and development of the west and of the nation at large. It is gratifying to note that Mr. Cooke, with wonderful courage and indominatable will, set himself to the work of self-restoration, and in a few years had retrieved his shattered fortune.

A peculiar tribute is due Mr. Cooke for his great services during the Civil war period. The story is one which in a sense belongs to a past age, and only one who lived through the tremendous conflict which absorbed the energies of the American government and of the people for nearly five years can form an adequate idea of the vastness of his task and of the necessities which called into exercise his magnificent abilities as a financier. Without the successful negotiation of the government loans, the war could not but have proved a failure, no matter how brave the soldiers of the Union upon the field of battle, or how skillful their generals. When President Lincoln issued his initial call for seventy-five thousand men, following the assault upon Fort Sumter, the national treasury was practically bankrupt, and the credit of the country was at low ebb. President Buchanan had been obliged to pay twelve per cent interest for a loan to carry on the government upon its ordinary basis during the latter part of his administration. The enormous sums of money required to equip and maintain the army and navy, in fact to create them, were not to be had until the genius of Mr. Cooke was invoked to aid in the sale of the government bonds whose issuance was imperatively necessary as the sole resort. To Mr. Cooke, as the fiscal agent of the government, was entrusted the great task of negotiating the loans, and nobly did he fulfill the trust, devoting to it his undivided attention and weighing himself down with a vastness of responsibility which would have crushed one of less heroic mould. Appealing to the patriotism of the American people and enlisting the aid of their local leaders in every walk of life, he achieved a remarkable success, negotiating all the great government loans, amounting to the stupendous shin of more than two thousand million of dollars, and at a less compensation that his firm had received for negotiating the Mexican war loans of less than seventy million dollars. At one critical time he saved to the United States Treasury one hundred millions of dollars, at the same time elevating the national credit to a higher point than that of any nation on earth, and making possible the death-stroke to the great rebellion. It is not too much to say that Mr. Cooke was in the field of these, his stupendous transactions, as necessary to this great result as was Lincoln in the presidency, Grant on the field, and Farragut on the sea.

During all the years of the great conflict, Mr. Cooke enjoyed confidential relations with the principal public men of that day. He made repeated visits to Washington for conference with President Lincoln, Secretary of the Treasury Chase, Senators Fessenden and Sherman, and General Grant, besides many others, and all the great men named visited him from time to time at his home near Philadelphia.

For many years past Mr. Cooke has resided in Montgomery county, in the serene enjoyment of a happy and well earned retirement upwards of eight. years of age, he preserves his mental faculties unimpaired, keeping closely in touch with the events of a period less stirring than was his own, and secure in the affection of his family and of a troop of friends who hold him in honor for the usefulness of his life and the nobility of his character. Soon after the war he erected the palatial residence which is his home in Cheltenham township, at Ogontz, so named for the Indian Chief of the early days of Ohio, his father's chosen friend, upon whose shoulder he had been carried as a child.

 

 

ANDREW KEEL ARGUE, a leading real estate and insurance agent of Jenkintown, Pennsylvania, is a native of Philadelphia, where he was born January 14, 1860. He is the son of George W. and Hannah M. (Keel) Argue. His maternal ancestors were of German origin. On his father's side they were probably of French-Huguenot extraction, although at an early date they emigrated to Ireland. It is believed that the grandfather, Robert Argue, was the progenitor of the family in this country. He located at Evansburg, in Montgomery county, Pennsylvania. He was a veteran of the war of 1812. He resided in Evansburg until near the close of his life, when he went to reside with his son, George W., in Philadelphia, and he and his wife both died in that city.

He married Sarah Parks. He had a brother, David, who was a resident of Philadelphia, where he was engaged in business as a contractor, he having two sons and two daughters. Of the sons, William resided in Washington, and Robert in Philadelphia.

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George W. Argue was the only son of his parents. He was born in Evansburg, and spent his early life on the homestead farm. He subsequently became a locomotive engineer, and a resident of Philadelphia because of his employment in that city. The latter part of his life was spent in Norristown, where he died. He married Hannah M. Keel, of an old Montgomery county family. Their children: Theodore, died in infancy; Robert David, who married first Sarah Barr, and had one child, May, wife of Charles Felter, his second wife being Gussie Richter, by whom there were no children; Andrew K., subject of this sketch; Annie E., Sarah J., wife of George McCoy, who resides in Norristown.

Andrew K. Argue acquired his education in the public schools of Philadelphia. After leaving school he engaged with C. H. Royal in the leather business. He was next employed with McNeely & Co., as leather assorter, and then for a time with Costello, Covey & Co., as assorter and traveling salesman. He was also engaged with Francis Haggerty in a similar capacity, the duties of general manager being added, and with Selser, Meurer & Co.

In 1889 he engaged in the leather business on his own account in Philadelphia. In 1896 he retired from it, and established a fire and life insurance business in the borough of Jenkintown, to which somewhat later he added real estate.

Mr. Argue married, in Philadelphia, May 9, 1882, Mary E., born October 8, 1858, daughter of Andrew Watson. Their children are: 1. Andrew S., born February 8, 1883; 2. Theodore E., born July 23, 1884, died June 22, 1885; 3. Grace born February 11, 1886, died November 7, 1890; 4. Elsie K., born October 12, 1887; 5. Mabe1 A., born August 15, 1889, died November 17, 1890; 6. Robert E., born Juh1 4, 1891; 7. Edith H., born November 18, 1892; 8. Harold S., born May 2, 1894; 9. Arthur C., born June 15, 1896; 10. Mary E., born May 28, 1899, died August 2, 1899; 11. Ruth, born March 6, 1901, died July 25, 1901.

 

JOHN H. REX. The Rex family are of German origin, having come to this country a century and a half ago. Levi Rex (great-grand father was a resident of Chestnut Hill. He married Catharine Ritter, the couple having a large family of children. Among his children was John Rex (grandfather), who married Sarah Lentz. The couple lived on a farm in the Whitpain township which descended to him from his father, Levi Rex. John Rex was an active Whig, and on retiring from the farm, removed to Norristown, where he lived at the location on Main street afterwards occupied by Dr. Louis W. Read, and now by Dr. A. H. Read and sister.

John S. Rex (father) married Charlotte Hobensack, a member of a well known family in that section of Montgomery county. John H. Rex was born in Whitpain township, September 18, 1870. He attended successively the public schools of the neighborhood; Sunnyside School, Ambler, conducted for many years by the Misses Knight; the William Penn Charter School, a Friends' institution, founded more than two centuries ago and located on Twelfth street below Market, Philadelphia; the University of Pennsylvania, in the Arts Department, where he studied two years preparatory to the law course, entering the law department in 1890. After some time spent in study, his health became impaired and he went west, residing at Colorado Springs for a year or more. Having recovered completely, he returned to Montgomery county and became a law student under the late Charles Hunsicker, and on his death, continued his legal studies with the late Henry R. Brown.

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He was admitted to the bar in June, 1896. About five years ago he located with Mr. Brown in Historical Hall where he has continued his legal practice with considerable success. In 1900 he was elected a member of the town council of Norristown, serving for three years, and resigning during the term because he has been nominated and elected a member of the house of representatives of Pennsylvania, on the Republican ticket, in November, 1902.

Mr. Rex, as well as his parents, took up his residence in Norristown more than a dozen years ago, they occupying elegant residences on West Main street. Mr. Rex married Emily, daughter of Dr. George T. Harvey, and Mary, his wife (deceased), of Doylestown, Pennsylvania. The Harveys are an old Bucks county family, their ancestors being among the early settlers of that part of the state. The couple have one child, Robert Bertram, born June 24, 1902.

As a member of the town council Mr. Rex was progressive, public spirited and an earnest advocate of borough improvements of every kind. He was one of the most active as well as most useful members of that body. In the legislature Mr. Rex took a very active part in business, being a member of several important committees and introducing many notable measures.

In politics Mr. Rex has made a reputation as an earnest and aggressive Republican, a pleasing and powerful speaker, and an indefatigable worker for party success. During the campaign of 1902, when he was a candidate for assemblyman, he visited all sections of the county, speaking in behalf of the election of Samuel W. Pennypacker for governor, and his party ticket, contributing greatly to the splendid majority recorded in November of that year. His ability as a public speaker was generally recognized by his party associates and by Republican leaders.

In addition to his labors in law and politics, Mr. Rex has engaged very successfully in building houses in West Norristown, as well as in other sections of the borough. Either alone or in conjunction with others, he has erected elegant residences on Lafayette, Oak, Main, George and Kohn streets, and Forest Avenue, in the sale of which he has been remarkably successful. Mr. Rex is a member of the Masonic order, the B. P. O. E. and of the Historical Society of Montgomery county, Pennsylvania. He is also a member of the Protestant Episcopal church.

 

 

HAMILTON CLAYTON, proprietor of the hotel at Branch town, in the Twenty-second ward of the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, is a representative of one of the oldest, best known and most prominent families in Montgomery county. He was born in Moreland township, in the lower section of Montgomery county, and adjacent to the rural portion of Philadelphia, September 14, 1832, a son of Ezekial and Ann (Snyder) Clayton.

Ezekial Clayton (father) was a native of Moreland township, Montgomery county, and his entire life was spent in that vicinity. He was extensively engaged in agricultural pursuits, from which he derived a lucrative income. He married Ann Snyder, daughter of Christian and Sarah (Bennett) Snyder, the former named having been elected to the position of sheriff of Montgomery county in 1825, and served in that capacity for three years. Ten children were the issue of this marriage, the majority of whom attained years of manhood and womanhood, married, and reared families. The surviving members of the family are: Hamilton, mentioned at length hereinafter; and Jonathan Clayton.

Hamilton Clayton resided in his native township until he was about thirty years of age, assisting his father on the farm in his boyhood days, and attending the schools of the neighborhood, in which he succeeded in obtaining a fair education. Not being desirous of making farming his life work, he served an apprenticeship at the trade of harness making, and after thoroughly mastering the details of this line of industry he followed it successfully for a number of years. Later he engaged in the business of stage driving, which prior to the introduction of steam railroads was an occupation of some importance and a lucrative means of livelihood. For almost half a century, however, he has been the proprietor of the Branch town Hotel, located on the Old York road, and dating back considerably more than a century. He is of a genial and cheerful disposition, attentive and considerate to the wants and wishes of his patrons, and therefore enjoys the distinction of being the most popular and obliging host in the section of the city in which he resides. He is also a reliable and public-spirited citizen, promoting the interests of his city, state, and nation to the best of his ability.

Hamilton Clayton was married May 30, 1860, to Margaret Shelmire, who was born January 3, 1843, a daughter of George F. and Sarah H. (Clayton) Shelmire, both of whom were natives of Montgomery county, Pennsylvania. Their children were: 1. Eleanor, born August 21, 1861, became the wife of George Childs Homiller; 2. Josephine B., born October 9, 1864, became the wife of Walter B. Nimmo; 3. Emma, born December 31, 1865; 4. Montgomery B., born December 27, 1867, died September 24, 1883; 5. Jennie, born March 8, 1869.

 

 

ALFRED P. HALLOWELL, M. D. The Hallowells are an old family, in Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, dating back to the time of William Penn, the founder of the province. John and Mary (Sharpe) Hallowell emigrated to Darby, Pennsylvania, from Nottinghamshire, England, about 1682, and in 1696 settled at Abington, where he purchased six hundred and thirty acres of land. John had been married twice, his first wife being Sarah, who bore him one child. His second wife, Mary (Sharpe) Hallowell, bore him nine children, three of whom were born in England, the others in America: They were Sarah, 1677; Thomas, 1679; 'Mary, 1681: John, 1685; Elizabeth, 1687; Hannah, 1689; Samuel, 1692; Benjamin, 1694; and Jane, 1696. Thomas Hallowell, second child of John and Mary Hallowell, married, in 1702, at Darby, Pennsylvania, Rosamond Till, and became the progenitor of a numerous and influential family. Their children were: John, born in 1703; Mary, 1705; Thomas, 1706; William, - ; Rosamond, 1709; Elizabeth, 1711; Sarah, 1714; Thomas, 1715; Samuel, 1717; and Joseph, 1719.

William Hallowell, son of Thomas and Rosamond (Till) Hallowell, was twice married. His first wife was Margaret Tyson, who bore him twelve children. She was born in 1708, died in 1753, and was a daughter of Matthias or Matthew and Mary Tyson. Their children were: Thomas, born in 1730; Rosamond, 1731; Matthew, 1733; William, 1734; John, 1736; Tynear, 1739; David, 1740; Mary, 1742; Isaac, 1744; John, 1746; John 3d, 1749; and Joshua, 1751.

John Hallowell, son of William and Margaret (Tyson) Hallowell, was born in 1749. He resided on the old homestead which has been in the possession of the family since 1783, when he purchased it from its previous owners, Robert Paul and his wife, Rachel Paul, the deed being dated April 19, 1783. He resided on this farm until his death in 1792, which was caused by yellow fever contracted while on a business trip to Philadelphia, it being then epidemic in that city. Prior to the Revolutionary war he owned and operated a mill on the Pennypack creek. He married, November 3, 1774, Martha Roberts, who was born March 9, 1753, daughter of Thomas, Jr., and Letitia Roberts, of Milford township, Bucks county, Pennsylvania. Their children were: Isaac, born in 1776, married Mary Fletcher; Israel, mentioned hereinafter; Ann, born in 1781, became the wife of Joseph Williams; and John R., born in 1785, who married Ann Jarrett.

Israel Hallowell, second son of John and Martha Hallowell, was born November 8, 1777. He purchased the old mill and homestead from his brother Isaac, who inherited the property, and resided there until his death, December 22, 1853. He married Mary Jarrett, who was born June 5, 1781, died January 6, 1867. Their children were Ann L., born September 23, 1806, died July 4, 1882; she was the wife of Isaac Mather, of Jenkintown, probably the oldest resident of Montgomery County, a sketch of whom appears else where in this work. Martha, born March 8, 1809, died July 5, 1880; she was the wife of Samuel Parry, father of Franklin. John, born June

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25, 1811, died January 6, 1890; he was married to Rachel Williams, who was born July 23, 1812, and long deceased. Tacy, born October 22, 1815, died in March, 1891, was the wife of David Eastburn. W. Jarrett, mentioned hereinafter. Harry W. Israel, born February 18, 1819, married Rebecca Williams, Mary, born December 21, 1821, died April 23, 1897. Jonas, born April 10, 1824, died December 25, 1899; he married Esther Fenton.

W. Jarrett Hallowell, second son of Israel and Mary Hallowell, was born on the homestead on June 8, 1816, and lived there his entire life. His active career was devoted to farming and milling. He was a very useful man in his community, and was held in high esteem by all who knew him. He was united in marriage to Lydia A. Lloyd, who was born in Moreland township, a daughter of John and Sidney (Paul) Lloyd. Their children were: Mary J., born April 3, 1850, died July 19, 1850; John L., mentioned hereinafter; Ella L., born December 23, 1852; Mary J., second, born February 28, 1855, became the wife of Morris Williams, and died March 21, 1883, leaving one child, Mary Williams; Tacy J., born July 11, 1858. W. Jarrett Hallowell died February 20, 1897.

John L. Hallowell, only son of W. Jarrett and Lydia A. Hallowell, was born April 21, 1851, on the old homestead where he still resides. He was educated at the Abington Friends' School; at Loller Academy, a somewhat celebrated school at Hatboro, at Friends' Central School, at Philadelphia; and Pierce's Business College, in Philadelphia, where he pursued a year's course. Since leaving school he has devoted himself to farming and milling, residing all his life on the homestead. He is a Republican in politics, and served as supervisor in 1891, and township auditor for several terms.

In Horsham township, Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, October 14, 1875, Mr. Hallowell married Laura Phillips, who was born September 3, 1852, a daughter of Alfred and Mary F. (Conlly) Phillips. Their children are: Walter, born November 1, 1876; and Alfred P.

Alfred P. Hallowell, second son of John L. and Laura Hallowell, was born in Bethayres, Pennsylvania, March 18, 1878. He was educated in the Abington Friends' School, and after completing his studies there began the study of medicine in the Hahnemann Medical College at Philadelphia, graduating therefrom in 1900. For eighteen months thereafter he was the physician in the Children's Homeopathic Hospital. He began the practice of his profession at Ashbourne in 1902, and since that date has been engaged with building up a large and lucrative practice, which is constantly increasing in volume and importance. He is a popular citizen, and is highly esteemed in the community in which he resides.

 

 

DR. DAVID GASTON HARVEY, a popular physician and surgeon of Moreland township, residing at Huntingdon Valley, is a native of Philadelphia. He was born in that city, September 16, 1873. He is a son of David and Sarah (Kelley) Harvey, both residents of that city and natives of Pennsylvania.

Dr. Harvey was educated in the public schools of Philadelphia, and in the Manual Training School. He read medicine in the office of Dr. James S. Shoemaker for one year. He next took a preparatory course before entering the Hahnemann Homeopathic Medical College, and after three years of study in that institution he graduated with honors, May 8, 1894. After his graduation he spent one year in the Children's Homeopathic Hospital in Philadelphia. Since 1895 he has been continuously engaged in the general practice of medicine in Huntingdon Valley, Bethayres, and elsewhere in that vicinity. Dr. Harvey, is a reliable physician, and is generally regarded as a successful and skillful practitioner. He is held in high esteem for his careful attention to his patients and his many excellent qualities. He is a member of the Alumni Association of Hahnemann College, and also of the Twenty-fourth Ward Medical Society of Philadelphia. He is also a member of Eagle Lodge, No. 222, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, of Huntingdon Valley. He is a progressive citizen, manifesting an active interest in whatever is calculated to promote the prosperity of his section of the county, and is deeply interested in public affairs. In politics he is a Republican, although too much engrossed in his practice of his profession to devote much time or attention to politics. In religious faith, Dr. Harvey is a Presbyterian, being a member of that church.

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Dr. Harvey married, April 24, 1891, Jane T., daughter of ex-county treasurer Henry W., and Margaret (Thomson) Hallowell, well known Friends of that vicinity. The couple have two children, Elizabeth, born June 1, 1902, and Henry W. Hallowell, born February 23, 1904. (For a full account of the Hallowell family, see the sketch of Henry W. Hallowell, elsewhere in this work.)

 

 

WILLIAM J. BINDER, editor and proprietor of the Daily Pottstown Ledger and the Montgomery Ledger of Pottstown, was born in East Nantmeal township, Chester county, Pennsylvania, September 30, 1843. He is the son of John and Anna Mary (Steltz) Binder.

John Binder (father) was born at Yellow Springs, Chester county. He learned the carpenter trade, following it to some extent. He also farmed for a few years. The greater part of his life, however, was spent in teaching school. He was reared mostly in Montgomery county and in 1835 returned to Chester county where the remained until 1856, when he removed to Pottstown, where he died. He taught in the schools of both counties and after going to Pottstown conducted a private school there. During his residence in Chester county he taught school and farmed at the same time, spending his winters in the former occupation and his summers in the latter. He owned a farm in East Nantmeal township. He died in 1866, at the age of fifty-eight years. His wife died in 1878, at the age of seventy-six years. Both were members of the Methodist Episcopal church, in which he took an active part. He was a Democrat until the time of the Civil war when he became a Republican and remained so until his death.

John Binder married Anna Mary Steltz, daughter of Valentine Steltz, of New Hanover township, Montgomery county. She was born at Falckner's Swamp, New Hanover township, Montgomery county. They had four children Aaron M. (deceased), a soldier in the Civil war, of Company A, Second Minnesota Veteran Infantry, Fourteenth Corps; Elizabeth, wife of David Herst, of Easton, Pennsylvania; Tamsen, widow of Jeremiah H. Binder, of Pottstown; and William J. Binder.

Jacob Binder (grandfather) was born in Pennsylvania and was a farmer. He died well advanced in years. His wife was Susanna Binder, who lived to a very great age. They had a large family. The father of Jacob Binder was Jacob Binder, Sr., (great-grandfather). His father was Moses Binder (great-great-grandfather). His father was Casper Binder (great-great-great-grandfather), and his father was Rohland Binder ( great-great-great-great-grandfather) . Moses Binder was the emigrant and the founder of the family in America. He came from Wurtemberg, Germany, in the ship Francis and Elizabeth, and landed at Philadelphia, September 21, 1742. He located near Sassamansville, New Hanover township, where he died and was buried in the Lutheran cemetery at Falckner Swamp. He was an active member of that church.

The maternal grandfather, of William J. Binder was Valentine Steltz, a native of Pennsylvania. He had eight children. He married the second time and had other children. He was a farmer and died at an advanced age. He was buried at Sassamansville.

William J. Binder lived in Chester county until he had reached the age of thirteen years, when he removed with his father's family to Pottstown and has lived there ever since. He attended the country schools while living in Chester county and graduated at the Pottstown high school, afterward entering the Hill school at Pottstown, then conducted by its founder, Professor Matthew Meigs, LL. D.

At the age of seventeen years he began to learn the printing trade in the office of the Montgomery Ledger, founded October 1, 1843, and served an apprenticeship of four and a half years. In 1863, Mr. Binder enlisted in the Twenty-sixth Emergency Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers, Colonel Jennings commanding. He also saw service in the One Hundred and Ninety-seventh Pennsylvania Regiment in 1864, and early in 1865 was a private in Company E, One Hundred and Fifth Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers, Colonel Miller commanding. Altogether he served eleven months. He was at Petersburg and participated in the operations culminating in the surrender of the army of northern Virginia, under General Lee at Appomattox Court House. He was honorably discharged in June, 1865.

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After the war he returned to the printer's trade in Indianapolis, Indiana, and in April, 1866, purchased a half interest in the Montgomery Ledger, of Pottstown, Pennsylvania, from William L. Williamson, and thirteen years later, in September, 1879, became the sole proprietor of the paper, and has conducted the business ever since. October 1, 1873, he established the Pottstown Ledger, in partnership with Lewis H. Davis.

December 26, 1867, William J. Binder married Mary A. Hilton, daughter of James and Margaret (Walmsly) Hilton. They had nine children, as follows: Hilton S., assistant editor of the Ledger; Mary E., a stenographer; Ella M., a clerk in the Ledger counting room; Bessie A., at home; Edith H., a teacher in the public schools of Pottstown; Laura D., who died at the age of six years; John K., a reporter on the Ledger; Florence M., at home; and Chester a printer in the Ledger office.

Mr. and Mrs. Binder belong to the Methodist Episcopal church, where he is an official member and has local deacon's orders. In politics Mr. Binder is a Republican.

He is a member of the Royal Arcanum, and also of M. Edgar Richards Post, No. 595, Grand Army of the Republic. He resides at No. 267 King street, in his own residence, and also owns the property at the corner of High and Charlotte streets, where his printing office is established. He published a "History of Methodism in Pottstown and in the neighboring regions," in 1902.

James Hilton, Mrs. Binder's father, came here from England when he was twenty-one years of age and was a woolen manufacturer at Manayunk, Philadelphia, and afterwards at Glasgow, Pennsylvania. His wife, Margaret Walmsly, was brought here a babe in arms. They had six children who are living: William; Mrs. Binder; Joseph, of Philadelphia; Elizabeth, wife of A. W. Shick, of Orwigsburg, Pennsylvania; James, of Philadelphia; and Ella M., widow of Colonel H. A. Shenton, of Pottstown. Mrs. Binder's father died in Glasgow, this county, in 1872, at the age of fifty-six years. Her mother died in 1900, at the age of eighty-three years.

 

 

ANDREW LINDSAY, M. D., of Bryn Mawr, Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, is a lineal descendant of a family of Scotch-Irish origin whose residence in the state of Pennsylvania antedates the arrival of William Penn. The pioneer members of the family located in the region now known as Aston, Delaware county, and for more than two centuries their descendants have also made their home in the territory included in that boundary. John Lindsay, father of Dr. Lindsay, was born and reared in Haverford township, Delaware county, the birthplace of his father, although the latter subsequently removed to Philadelphia county. He received a good common school education, and his business career was devoted to agricultural pursuits which he followed until his advanced years forced him to retire from the activities of life. He was a strong advocate of the old Whig party, and frequently spoke in public on the issues of the day. He was chosen to represent Delaware county in the state legislature during the years 1830 and 1831, and these duties were performed with great credit to himself and his constituents. He married Miss Sarah Brooke, daughter of General William Brooke, of Delaware county, who won distinction in the Revolutionary war, and his ancestors were natives of England, who emigrated to America early in the seventeenth century, and several of the members served as officers and soldiers in the war of 1812. Their children were: William, James, Eliza, John, Sarah, Margaret and Andrew. John Lindsay, father of these children, died at his home in Haverford in 1860, at the advanced age of eighty-eight years.

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Andrew Lindsay was born on the old homestead in Delaware county, Pennsylvania, June 11, 1829. He was educated in the private schools of Norristown, Pennsylvania, at Delaware College, Newark, Delaware, and Union College, graduating from the latter named institution in 1852, and during his term there was a classmate of the late Governor Hartranft. His tastes and inclinations led him to adopt the profession of medicine as his life work, and accordingly he matriculated at Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, graduating therefrom in 1856. After eight years active practice in the city of Philadelphia he made an extended tour of Europe, whereby he gained a fund of practical and valuable information and experience, and upon his return to his native country in 1865 he located in Radnor, Montgomery county. Subsequently he removed to Bryn Mawr, in which town he has made his homey for the past twenty years, and where he is regarded as a model citizen, having taken a keen and active interest in professional, political and social life. He is a staunch adherent of the principles of Republicanism, but has never sought or desired political office. He is affiliated with the Masonic Order.

Dr. Andrew Lindsay was married, December 15, 1859, to Miss Hannah L. Fox, daughter of Charles Fox, a manufacturer of brick in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Their child, Catherine F. Lindsay, died at the age of six years. Mrs. Lindsay died at her home in Bryn Mawr on March 18, 1903.

 

 

ABRAM WENTZ. The progenitors of the Wentz family of Whitpain and adjoining townships of Montgomery county were among the early settlers of that section of Pennsylvania. They were of German origin. They located in Whitpain township long prior to the Revolutionary war. Abram Wentz was born on the old homestead, a short distance below Centre Square, February 14, 1827. He is the son of Abraham and Charlotte (Tyson) Wentz, daughter of Joseph Tyson, of Worcester township, well known residents of Whitpain.

Abraham Wentz (father) was born in the building known as Wentz's, or the Rising Sun, tavern, a Revolutionary inn dating back to 1764. He was a man of great worth, respected by all who knew him. The house in which the hotel was kept until 1867, when it was closed to the public, is still standing. It is in good condition, having been built with heavy brick walls, two-stories in height. In the days of wagon travel from the interior to Philadelphia it was an important stopping-place for teams, and was known as "the wheat market," because the millers from along Wissahickon and elsewhere would meet the farmers there and purchase their grain. At the Wentz hotel the general elections were held from 1831 to 1867. Abraham Wentz was mentioned as an innkeeper in the list of taxables in Whitepain in 1762, indicating that a public house was kept prior to the erection of the brick building. Abraham Wentz was a Democrat in politics, and held several minor township offices. He died in September, 1870, at the age of eighty-four years. His wife, Charlotte, died in December, 1881, in her ninety-third year. Her family was one of the oldest in Montgomery county, she being the daughter of Joseph Tyson. The Tysons were also of German origin, settling at or near Germantown, and spreading over the lower end of Montgomery county, where they are still quite numerous. The children of Abraham and Charlotte Wentz: Joseph Tyson, who engaged in the lumber business in his younger days, and lived retired the latter part of his life in Norristown, where he died a few years ago at an advanced age; Hannah and Mary (deceased); Elizabeth, who is a resident of Norristown; Barbara and John (deceased); Abram, subject of this sketch; and Henry, also deceased.

Colonel John Wentz (grandfather) was a leading citizen of Whitpain township. He commanded a regiment under the old militia laws of the state, and was ever afterwards known by that title. He not only stood high in military matters, but in civil office as well. He was for many

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years a justice of the peace, and his docket containing the record of the business which came before him is still in a good state of preservation, and is now in the possession of the Montgomery County Historical Society. His books were kept in the neatest and most businesslike manner, being a model of accuracy in every respect. He married many couples, as was the custom with leading justices of the peace in his clay. His influence was exerted in the direction of discouraging unnecessary and trivial litigation.

Abraham Wentz (great-grandfather) is the person of that name who was assessed as an innkeeper in Whitpain township in 1762. He then owned 150 acres of land. The ancestral homestead continued in the possession of the family for nearly a century and a half. The Skippack road, on which the Wentz tract is situated, was laid out in 1713. The Wentz family belonged to Boehm's Reformed church, at Blue Bell.

Abram Wentz grew to manhood on the homestead, attending neighborhood schools, and assisting his father in farm work in the intervals of study. He followed the occupation of farming until he was about fifty years of age, when he removed to Norristown, where he now resides, having since lived retired. He is a Democrat in politics, but never sought or held office, preferring a quiet life to the excitement of political strife, except that he filled for a number of years the position of township auditor. He has been for many years a member of the board of directors of the Montgomery National Bank of Norristown. In religious faith he adheres to the Reformed church, like his ancestors. He married, April 30, 1858, Miss Louisa Castner, daughter of Jesse and Parthena Castner, well-known residents of Gwynedd township. Their children were: 1. Tyson, who died in his tenth year. 2. Walter, who died in his fifth year. 3. Chester, who died in infancy. 4. Earl C., still surviving, who was born October 27, 1885.

The Castners are an old Montgomery county family, also of German descent though long domiciled in this country, Mrs. Wentz's father, Jesse Castner, lived near Gwynedd station, and followed all his life the occupation of farming. He died September 9, 1883, in his seventy-second year. Mrs. Wentz's grandfather, also Jesse Castner was in his ninety-second year at the time of his death. Her great-grandfather, Samuel Castner, died in his ninety-eighth year. Her mother died May 15, 1881.

 

 

THE DAVIS FAMILY. The first ancestor of whom we have any authentic information was Samuel Davis, born in Wales in 1710, who with three brothers came to America and settled in Plymouth township, where he purchased a large tract of land.

May 24, 1736, he married Jane Rees, daughter of John and Hannah Rees, and their children were: David, born February 4, 1737; John, born September 6, 1738; Stephen, born October 3, 1740; Hannah, born July 1, 1743; Katherine, born July 3, 1744; Samuel, born January 1, 1747; Mary, born October 19, 1750; and Daniel, born May 3, 1751. The mother of these children died in giving birth to her youngest child.

In 1753 Samuel Davis married Susannah Hughes, a widow, and their children were: William, born March 25, 1754, died in infancy; and Thomas, born August 9, 1756.

Stephen Davis, son of Samuel and Jane Davis, married Mary Shafer, and their children were Susan, born June 18, 1766; Rees, born October 13, 1769; Stephen, born July 18, 1777; Catherine, born 1767; Daniel, born June 6, 1772; Betsey, born 1775; Samuel, born 1782; Mary, born 1784; and Hannah, born 1785. Stephen Davis, father of these children, died November 11, 1808, survived by his widow, who passed away September 21, 1829. Rees Davis, son of Stephen and Mary Davis, married Rebecca Roberts, and their children were Thomas, Rebecca, William, mentioned hereinafter, and Daniel.

William Davis, son of Rees and Rebecca Davis, was born in Plymouth township, Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, February 25, 1793. He was reared and educated in his native county, and during his active years of life was extensively engaged in wagoning and hauling freight to and from Philadelphia during the erection of the buildings of Girard College, and he hauled much of the marble building stone from Upper Merion township to the college grounds. The latter years of his life were spent in West Conshohocken, where he was regarded as an exemplary citizen. He married Phoebe Supplee, born March 13, 1791, daughter of John and Rachel Supplee, and their children were: Jane, born January 6, 1812, died young; Rachel, born September 7, 1814, died young; Rebecca, born September 21, 1816, became the wife of Godfrey M. Young; Evan, born September 13, 1818, died young; Mary, born June 4, 1820, became the wife of David Horton; Catherine, born April 11, 1823, died young; Mark, born May 3, 1825, died young; William, born September 13, 1826; Charles, born December 2, 1828; Rees, born October 23, 1830, died young; George W., born July 13, 1832; and Andrew, born May 7, 1835, died young. The mother of these children died November 24, 1862.

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Mr. Davis chose for his second wife Lydia Supplee, born February 28, 1797. There was no issue of this marriage. Mr. Davis died August 15, 1878, aged eighty-four years. Mr. Davis and also his son, William Davis, Jr., were instrumental and rendered important service in the organization of and procuring the franchise for the erection of the Matsonsford bridge across the Schuylkill river at West Conshohocken.

William Davis, Jr., son of William and Phoebe Davis, was born near the old Swede church in Upper Merion township, Montgomery county, September 13, 1826. When about the age of three years he came with his parents to West Conshohocken, where he was reared to manhood and attended the schools of the neighborhood. He remained under the parental roof until about the age of twenty, when he began business on his own account in the anthracite coal trade. In 1850 Mr. Davis engaged in mercantile business at West Conshohocken in partnership with his brother, Charles Davis, and his brother-in-law, David Horton, under the firm name of William Davis, Jr. & Co. This business arrangement was successfully continued up to 1860, when the firm wag reorganized, William Davis, Jr., and his brother, George Davis, constituting the firm, which then engaged in the lumber and coal trade, in addition to the mercantile department, at West Conshohocken, and continued up to 1870. In that year George Davis withdrew from the firm, and William Davis, Jr., conducted the business alone up to 1877, when he admitted his two sons-William Egbert and Reese P.-into partnership. This arrangement was successfully continued by the father and sons, and under their united and well directed efforts the business was developed to one of the most important enterprises in West Conshohocken, the firm name of William Davis, Jr. & Co. becoming well and favorably known for their straightforward and honorable business methods. In 1902 the firm relinquished the mercantile department of their business and has since entirely confined their efforts to their lumber and coal trade, which has now attained to considerable magnitude.

William Davis, Jr., has proved himself worthy of commendation, and by his enterprise and progressiveness has contributed to the material advancement of the neighborhood in which his active years of life have been spent. He was one of the charter members of the First National Bank of Conshohocken, and served as a member of the board of directors for many years; he also served for many years as treasurer of the Merion Building and Loan Association. For about a quarter of a century he was a member of the school board, taking an active interest in the advancement and improvement of the educational system, and in fact it can be truthfully said that Mr. Davis gave liberally of his time and substance for every enterprise that had for its object the advancement of the material and moral welfare of the community. During recent years, owing to the impairment of his hearing, he partially relinquished active business pursuits, leaving the details of his business interests to others.

On June 1, 1853, Mr. Davis was married to Emily Yocum Egbert, daughter of David N. and Maria (Yocum) Egbert, of Lower Merion township, and her birth occurred May 13, 1826. Their children were: Julia D., born April 7, 1854, died April 2, 1863; William Egbert, born July 7, 1855; Reese P., born August 30, 1857; Francis M., born August 17, 1859, died April 3, 1863; Emily Yocum, born November 27, 1866; and Clarence H., born September 16, 1869; died in 1874.

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Reese P. Davis, son of William and Emily Y. Davis, was married October 6, 1887, to Jennie J. Henderson, born November 16, 1861, died August 10, 1895, daughter of Charles and Mary Emily (Rambo) Henderson, of Upper Merion township, Montgomery county. To this marriage were born two children: John Kersey, born February 24, 1891; and Emily Mary, born December 19, 1894. On September 13, 1898, Reese P. Davis married Virginia N. Dunglison, who was born March 15, 1860, daughter of J. Robley and Bella (Wallace) Dunglison, and granddaughter of the celebrated Dr. Robley Dunglison, who came from England by request of Thomas Jefferson to take charge of the Medical Department of the University of Virginia, and who later became dean of the Jefferson Medical College of Philadelphia. Dr. Dunglison became famous as a writer and lecturer, and was the author of the "Dunglison Medical Dictionary," which has become known the world over. Two children were the issue of the marriage of Reese P. and Virginia Norris (Dunglison) Davis, namely: Norris Dunglison, born July 5, 1899; and William, born March 11, 1901.

 

 

JESSE JARRETT KIRK, a well known farmer of Whitemarsh township, for many years one of its supervisors, was born in Horsham township. He is the son of James and Tacy (Jarrett) Kirk, and was born January 6, 1827.

The Kirks are one of the oldest families in Montgomery county. The ancestor of the family came from Scotland in 1687, and settled in what is now Delaware county, Pennsylvania. In the line of descent from him was the grandfather of the subject, Jesse Kirk, who was a native of Horsham township, in Montgomery county. He was educated at the schools in the vicinity of his home, and after spending a few years in the occupation of a farmer engaged in the hotel business in connection with his farming interests. He was a successful business man, and accumulated a competence, leaving considerable wealth. Among his children was James (father), who was born on the homestead in Horsham township. He obtained a good education at the neighborhood schools, and after farming for a time decided, like his father, to enrage in the hotel business. He located at what was known as the old Haymarket Hotel, on Sixth street, between Coates and Green streets in Philadelphia. He conducted that establishment for some time, was very successful, and became widely known and popular.

In politics he was a Republican, doing all that was possible to promote the success of its candidates. He married Tacy Jarrett, daughter of Jesse and Elizabeth Jarrett, of the same township. Their children were: J. Edwin, Elizabeth, Hymen, Mary, John, Jacob, William H., Ellwood, Harry and Jesse J., the last named the subject of this sketch.

Jesse J. Kirk was educated in the neighborhood schools, including what was known as the Eight Square School, in Whitemarsh township, where he studied under Margaret Farou, a teacher of some note. On leaving school he engaged in farming, but did not long continue in that occupation. When he was quite young his father removed to Upper Providence township. At the age of fifteen years Jesse entered the Plymouth Meeting store in Whitemarsh township, remaining there for five years in the position of clerk and general manager. He then engaged in similar pursuits at Spring Mill, in the same township, remaining there a year.

On account of ill-health he was advised by his physician to engage if possible in some outdoor employment. He therefore purchased a team and engaged in hauling for some time. He next engaged in the digging of iron ore in Plymouth and Whitemarsh townships, there being an immense quantity near the surface in that vicinity. He so continued until the furnaces ceased operations and there was no further demand for the product. He then betook himself to farming as a healthy outdoor occupation, and has followed it ever since. In 1872 he removed to his present home in Whitemarsh township.

On November 9, 1849, Mr. Kirk married Miss Margaret Freas, born February 11, 1825, daughter of George and Rachel Freas, of Whitemarsh township. They had the following children Emma, born January 6, 1851 who married George W. Keys, who has been for a number of years in the office of the recorder of deeds at Norristown, either as recorder or as deputy; Mary R., born October 3, 1852, unmarried, and is housekeeper for her father; William A., born December 1, 1859, married Annie Vandyke, and has seven children. Mrs. Kirk died March 17, 1892.

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Mr. Kirk is a thoroughgoing Republican. Although not an office seeker, he has held the office of assessor four years, and supervisor for nearly twenty years, having been named by both parties for the latter position on several occasions. He is a member of the Masonic order. In religious faith he affiliates with the Society of Friends, although not a member. He is connected with Fort Washington Lodge, No. 308, F. and A. M.

John Kirk, the immigrant, located in what is now Upper Darby, in Delaware county, Pennsylvania. He was a member of the Society of Friends, and was married the same year he located in Darby, to Joan, daughter of Peter Elliott. He died in 1805. They had a family of ten children. Most of those in Montgomery county are descended from John, the second son of John and Joan Kirk, including Jesse J. Kirk. He was born January 29, 1692.

In 1712 he purchased from John and Sarah Ironmonger Zoo acres of land in Abington township, Montgomery county, adjoining Upper Dublin township, on which he spent the remainder of his life. He paid 26o pounds for the entire tract. He subsequently made another purchase of 500 acres of land in Upper Dublin township. He was a stone mason by trade, and in 1722 built the stone mansion, for Sir William Heith on Graeme Park, in Horsham township. In the same year he married, in Abington Meeting, Sarah, daughter of Rynear Tyson. John and Sarah Kirk were the parents of eight children. The Kirks have intermarried with many prominent families of lower Montgomery.

 

 

WALTER COULSTON. The Coulston family, which is of Welsh descent, is one of the oldest and most prominent in Montgomery county, Pennsylvania. The earliest ancestor of whom there is any authentic information was William Coulston (great-grandfather), who was born on the old homestead in Whitemarsh township, and was known as one of the most successful farmers of the vicinity. His children were Charles, William, John, Thomas, Mary (Mrs. William Kettler), and Sarah (Mrs. Jacob Rorer), all of whom are now deceased. Thomas Coulston and Mr. and Mrs. William Kettler owned a fine farm in Gwynedd township, Montgomery county, and resided thereon the greater part of their lives.

William Coulston (grandfather) was a native of Whitemarsh township, born August 9, 1797, He was educated in the common schools of the vicinity, and his, entire active career was devoted to farming pursuits. He married Ann Meredith, who was born October 29, 1802, daughter of Joseph and Hannah Meredith, the former named having been a descendant of an old family of Welsh descent, the immigrant having been David Meredith, who came to Pennsylvania in 1700, and settled in Plymouth township, Montgomery county. Three children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Coulston, namely: James Meredith, Elizabeth, and Hannah. William Coulston died April 17, 1863, in his sixty-sixth year, and his wife, Ann (Meredith) Coulston, died March 25, 1833, in her thirty-first year.

James Meredith Coulston (father) was born near the old homestead in Whitemarsh township, January 27, 1831, and when about three years of age he accompanied his parents to the farm on which he spent the remainder of his life. He assisted in farming during the summer months, and attended school in the winter months according to the usual custom among farmers. On the death of his father he inherited his portion of the estate, and later purchased the remainder from his sisters. He was an active Republican, always standing by the candidates and the policy of the party. He served a number of years as a member of the Whitemarsh school board, and also held other township positions, but was in no sense an office seeker. He was a director in the Montgomery Mutual Fire Insurance Company, and in other ways was active in promoting the interests of the community in which he resided. He usually attended Plymouth Friends' Meeting, although not a member of the society. He was affiliated with

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Marble Hall Lodge, Independent Order of Odd Fellows. On April 7, 1856, James M. Coulston married Tacy Amanda Freas, born December 19, 1836, daughter of Joseph and Ann (Nyce) Freas, and their children were: 1. Annie F., born July 4, 1857, became the wife of Daniel H. Maguire, and their children are: Dora, James C., and Edna Maguire. 2. Alice H., born October 30, 1858, became the wife of Harvey W. Lentz, and their children are: J. Howard, Walter, Joanna, Frederick, and Tacy C. Lentz. 3. William C., born June 16, 1860, married Kate C. Ambler, who bore him one child, Alice L. Coulston; William C. Coulston died September 30, 1900. 4. Elizabeth C., born January 17, 1862, became the wife of William Potts Jones, and their children are Evan D., Frances C., and L. Elizabeth Jones. 5 and 6. Thomas C. and Sarah R. (twins), born July 12, 1863; the former died in infancy, in the autumn of 1863. 7. Frances C., born January 29, 1868. 8. Joseph Percival, born April 25, 1870, mentioned at length hereinafter. 9. J. Warren, born November 12, 1871, died November 18, 1871. 10. Walter, born February 2, 1873, mentioned hereinafter. 11. Russell L., born January 12, 1880, died April 18, 1880. James M. Coulston, father of these children, died March 24, 1901. Few men were so much respected in their neighborhood as he, his kindly manner and genial disposition making him a universal favorite.

Mrs. Coulston, widow of James M. Coulston, who occupies the old homestead with her son, Walter Coulston, is a member of an old Whitemarsh family, of German origin, whose name was originally spelled Fries. George Freas, grandfather of Mrs. Coulston, married Barbara Wolf, and their children were: John, George, Samuel, Jacob, Benjamin, Daniel, Joseph, William, Mary (Mrs. Samuel Roberts), and Catherine (Mrs. William Freas). Joseph Freas, father of Mrs. Coulston, was born May 6, 1794, on the homestead in Whitemarsh township. His youth was spent on the farm with his parents, he receiving such education as the neighborhood schools afforded at that time. He decided to learn the trade of blacksmith, and became an apprentice to his brother, Samuel Freas, at Plymouth Meeting. He remained at his trade for some years, but farming being more to his taste he abandoned the pursuit of his trade and returned to Whitemarsh. He purchased the home farm from his father and cultivated it for many years. In politics he was a member of the Whig party, but he never sought or held office, preferring to devote his time and attention entirely to his business. He married, January 15, 1818, Ann Keely, born November 17, 1792, daughter of Henry and Elizabeth Keely, of Philadelphia county. Their children were: Henry, born in 1818; Joanna, born in 1820: Walton, born in 1822; Issachar, born in 1824; Elizabeth, born in 1826; John Quincy, born in 1828; Orlando, born in 1830; Caroline, born in 1834; Tacy Amanda, born in 1836, widow of James M. Coulston; Barbara A., born in 1839. Joseph Freas died November 22, 1879, survived by his wife, who passed away December 21, 1888.

Joseph Percival Coulston, third son of the late James M. Coulston and his wife Tacy Amanda (Freas) Coulston, was born on the family homestead in Whitemarsh, Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, April 25, 1870. He was educated in the public schools of the township, and also attended the Norristown high school, where he completed his education and from which institution he was graduated. Returning to his home he assisted in farming the homestead, and later leased a fine farm in the same vicinity, which he has cultivated and improved to a high state of perfection, and on which he has resided continuously up to the present time (1904). He has won the reputation of being a model farmer, and he is also one of the well known and prominent citizens of the community, taking an active interest in all enterprises that have a tendency toward the progress and development of his township and county. He is a Republican in politics, and active in the support of party interests. In 1896 Mr. Coulston married Anna M. Miller, born June 7, 1876, daughter of George and Mary (Markley) Miller, the former named being one of the prosperous farmers of Whitemarsh. They are the parents of one child. Hannah Coulston, born May 28, 1901. Mr. Coulston and his family attend the Lutheran church, at Barren Hill, Pennsylvania.

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Walter Coulston, fifth son of the late James M. Coulston and his wife Tacy Amanda (Freas) Coulston, was born in Whitemarsh township, Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, February 2, 1873. He obtained his early education in the public schools of Whitemarsh and Norristown, and this was supplemented by attendance at the Pierce Business College, Philadelphia. After pursuing the course in that institution he returned to the farm, where he has since remained, engaged in agricultural pursuits, of which he is especially fond, and universally recognized as a practical and progressive farmer. In politics he follows in the footsteps of his father, being a staunch Republican. He is a member of the Patriotic Order of Sons of America, and of the Junior Order of United American Mechanics. He attends the Lutheran church at Barren Hill, Pennsylvania, is a man of the highest honor and integrity, is faithful in the performance of his duty to his mother, with whom he resides, and is highly respected by all who enjoy his acquaintance. Mr. Coulston is unmarried.

 

 

MICHAEL PIERCE O'BRIEN was descended from an old and eminently respectable family of County Meath, Ireland, where his grandfather, Michael O'Brien, was born, who was an only child of his parents, and was educated and reared to manhood in his native county, where he was a merchant for many years and an extensive land owner. He married and had an only child, Christopher O'Brien, who was given a practical education and was reared to manhood on his father's estate. He married Catherine Gugarty, and to this union were born the following named children: 1. Michael, whose name introduces this review, and who was baptized Michael Pierce O'Brien; 2. John, who married Mary A. Tracy; 3. Rosanna, deceased; 4. Margaret, who married James Tracy; 5. Maria; 6. Elizabeth; 7. Matthew, who married Margaret Ryan; 8. Henry. Of these children, Maria, Elizabeth and Henry reside at present at Conshohocken, Pennsylvania. Both the parents Christopher and Catherine (Gugarty) O'Brien lived to be over three score years of age, the father having died in his native land.

Michael Pierce O'Brien was born on his father's estate, February 18, 1829. His early mental training was acquired in the schools of the neighborhood and under private tuition, and this was supplemented by a course at Maynooth College, a celebrated institution of learning of those days in the city of Dublin, Ireland. At the early age of nineteen the young student, being desirous to satisfy his ambition in life, decided to come to the United States and accordingly in 1848-49 sailed for Philadelphia with many others, sons and daughters of the Emerald Isle.

Upon his arrival here the ambitious youth at once made his way into the valley of the Lehigh in Pennsylvania. Here he found employment, and became connected with the Lehigh Valley Railroad Company, where he remained for some time, subsequently coming to Conshohocken, where he accepted the position of general agent for the railroad company, and here it may be said that the company could have had no better representative than Michael P. O'Brien. He was the soul of honor and integrity, and by diligence, perseverance and husbanding-his resources he was enabled to engage in other enterprises in Conshohocken, becoming identified with Colonel James Boyd, of Norristown, and Charles H. Stinson, of the same place, under the firm name of the East Conshohocken Quarry Company, which was engaged in the quarrying of Conshohocken stone, probably the finest in the country for building purposes. This enterprise proved very remunerative under the judicious management of these gentlemen. Later Mr. O'Brien became engaged in building and real estate enterprises in Conshohocken and vicinity, which under his capable management proved very profitable.

He was a man of exceedingly kindly and amiable disposition, thinking evil of none, but quick to call to order anyone who did wrong, and possessing a native courage which made him fear no man. He was the man for any emergency that might arise; he rose rapidly in every position in which he was placed, with the faculty of accumulating money in every enterprise with which he became identified, and soon became recognized as an able financier. He filled many positions of trust in connection with banking and other institutions, serving for many years as president of the First National Bank of Conshohocken, of which he was one of the organizers. He was also a director of the Norristown Trust Company, a director of the Norristown and Germantown Railroad, and a director of the Plymouth Railroad, in both of which latter named institutions he took an active and earnest interest. It will thus be seen that his interests were varied and numerous, constantly demanding much of his time and thought. He, however, found time to take an active interest in civil and local affairs. Politically he was an ardent Democrat, but received the votes of men of all parties when he was a candidate for public office, and he was therefore an exceedingly hard man to defeat; indeed, few men in any community have ever been so much respected for their sterling qualities.

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Michael P. O'Brien was married March 18, 1853, to Mary Fox, who was born May 22, 1835, at Stanton, Leicestershire, England, a daughter of Thomas and Anna (Chesterton) Fox, and to this marriage were born the following named children: 1. Harriet Clark (Mrs. David H. Tracey); 2. Catharine (Mrs. James Bullock). now deceased; 3. Anne (Mrs. Horace Hallowell); 4. Thomas C., deceased; 5. Margaret, deceased; 6. Mary, deceased; 7. Mary Louise; 8. Madaline (Mrs. Anthony N. Bullock); 9. Elizabeth Eustace (Mrs. Edward D. Britt); 10. Michael Pierce, Jr.; 11. Jane, deceased; 12. Louis Henry. The father of these children, Michael P. O'Brien, passed to his reward August 24, 1900, beloved and esteemed by all who knew him. He was a consistent christian of the Roman Catholic faith, and carried with him his religion into all the transactions of his daily life, performing every thing conscientiously in regard to the rights of others. He was a good citizen, a loving husband, and an indulgent father to his children. Mrs. Mary (Fox) O'Brien is among the last of this generation of the descendants of George Fox, the well known founder of the Society of Friends. She came to this country when but seven years of age.

 

 

PERCIVAL K. GABLE, whose energies throughout his business career have been directed toward the conduct of various hotels, and who has thereby attained most gratifying success, is a representative of a family that through many generations has been thus numbered among the public entertainers. The name of Gable figured conspicuously in connection with the hotel business through more than a century, and is also found in the early annals of the state in connection with the transfer of property and the recording of deeds, which indicates that they were land owners, and belonged to the class which constitutes the substantial citizenship of a community.

It is definitely known that all of the Gables in America do not trace their ancestry to one source, for there is authentic record of the arrival of Peter and Maria Gabele in 1732, of Hendrick Gaabell a little later in the same year; of Conrad Gable in 1738; of John Philip and Johan Frederick Gabel, brothers, in 1739; Anthony Gabel in 1751; John Peter Gable in 1752; Philip Henry and Sebastian Gabel in 1753; Johannes Gabel in 1754; and Conrad Gabel in 1773. Various differences in the orthography of the name appear, as there does in the place of location of these various emigrants to the American shores.

It is to Johan Philip Gabel that Percival K. Gable traces his ancestry. Johan Philip Gabel was a son of Johan Jacob and Maria Margaret Gabel, who were residents of Rabach, in Zweibreucken, the Pfalz, Germany. There the son was born in 1698, was there reared, was married in 1735, and in 1739 came to America. He sailed on the ship "Samuel" from Rotterdam, Captain Hugh Percy in command of the vessel, and eventually landed safely at Philadelphia. He was accompanied by his brother, Johan Frederick Gabel, and the original ship list gives the age of the former, on August 27, 1739, as forty-one years, and that of the younger brother as thirty-seven. Johan Philip Gabel settled in Upper Salford township, Montgomery county, Pennsylvania, where he soon became recognized as a prominent and influential citizen. He was chosen an officer in the old Goshenhoppen church, being in 1774 one of four who signed for the Lutheran congregation a joint contract with the Reformed congregation for the occupation of the church, built jointly in that year.

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He is mentioned among the taxpayers of Upper Salford township, Montgomery county, in 1769, as the owner of one hundred acres of land, and his name appears among the taxpayers of 1774, where he is recorded as "Philip Gabel, Sr.," in order to distinguish him from his son of the same name. As his name does not appear in the tax list of 1779, it is evident that he must have died between 1774 and 1779, and was at least seventy-six years of age at the time of his death.

His wife, Elizabeth Catherine Gabel, was a daughter of Heinrich and Maria Barbara Culman, and was born in Greselbach, Hernbasch, Germany, August 13, 1705. She became the wife of Johan. Philip Gabel in 1735, and with two infant sons, Johan Frederick and Johan Peter, accompanied her husband to America. Their other children were Johan Philip; Catherine Elizabeth, born March 15, 1741; Margaret, born June 6, 1743; and Maria Catherine, born November 3, 1744.

Captain Johan Philip Gabel, the third son of Johan Philip and Elizabeth Catherine Gabel, was the great-grandfather of Percival K. Gable. He was born in Upper Salford township, Montgomery county, Pennsylvania; on the 27th of October, 1739, exactly two months after his parents landed at Philadelphia. He, too, became active in public affairs, and his labors aided in shaping the early policy, and in formulating the history of his community. Early identified with the Lutheran church, he became an elder in the congregation, and did much to advance the cause of the church in this locality. He became a large landowner, a successful merchant and also a noted hotelkeeper, being the proprietor of the old Gabel House in the Springhouse and Sunneytown turnpike, about two miles north of Salfordville, which is still standing. That he was married in 1766 is indicated by the inscription on his tombstone that he "lived thirty-six years in wedlock, and five and one-half years as a widower," or a total of forty-one and a half years after his marriage, which reckoned back from the date of his death, January, 18, 1808, fixes the date of his marriage about July, 1766. His wife Margaret died September 5, 1802, aged seventy-seven years, nine months and five days, according to her tombstone, which would fix the date of her birth at November 30, 1724. Captain John Philip Gabel was her second husband. She was a daughter of Nicol and Maria Elizabeth Bittel, and on the 19th of November, 1745, she became the wife of Killian Gouckler.

By that marriage she had eight children: John George, John Michael, Mary Elizabeth, Catherine, John Nicholas, Anna Margaret, Christina Barbara and John Gouckler. The mother and all of the children are mentioned in the will of Killian Gouckler, which was proved September 9, 1765, his wife being designated as his executrix. He was the owner of two hundred and ninety acres of land, on a part of which still stands the old Gable House in Upper Salford. It is referred to in the will as a tract of two hundred and eighty acres, but after the Gouckler estate became the property of Captain John Philip Gabel, through his marriage to Mrs. Gouckler, and the purchase of the interests of the other heirs, it was resurveyed, and found to contain ten acres more than the will designated. The draft and a memorandum of the resurvey for Philip Gabel are now in possession of Percival K. Gable.

Prior to 1757 the Gouckler-Gabel estate belonged to "Jacob Nuss, late of Upper Salford township, in the county of Philadelphia," as the old Deed-Poll recites, and this property, "a certain message or tenant plantation and two hundred and sixty acres of land situate in Salford township," under a court writ dated March 8, 1757, was seized by James Coultas, high sheriff of Philadelphia county, to satisfy a debt of four hundred and forty-two pounds (English), one shilling and six pence, owed by Jacob Nuss to Adam Clampffer, and was bought at public sale by William Clampffer, of Philadelphia, and transferred to him February 28, 1758. On the 9th of

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March, of the same year, William Clampffer sold the property to Killian Gouckler, with an addition which made the tract, as found upon resurvey, to contain two hundred and ninety acres. Captain Philip Gabel not only became the possessor of this property, but also owned land adjoining which he obtained from the Gouckler estate. There is extant a deed of sale of two tracts owned by Michael Royer, one of which is described as "by late Christopher Hanckband, now Philip Gabel, the younger's land." On the 9th of November, 1778, he bought for nineteen hundred and fifty pounds "a certain messuage or tract of land situate on the south side of Main street, in Germantown," in the deed for which he is described as "Philip Gabel, of Upper Salford township, Innkeeper." On the 7th of April, 1794, this Germantown property was sold by "Philip Gabel, of Upper Salford township, late of Philadelphia county, but since the division in the County of Montgomery and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Innkeeper, and Margaret, his wife." It is probable that what is known as the old Gabel House was built by Killian Gouckler, if not by the preceding owner, Jacob Nuss, and that Mr. Gouckler, as well as Mr. Gabel, conducted a tavern. Family tradition has it that the house was built either two years before or two years after the first church building of "Old Goshenhoppen," which would make the date of its erection either 1742 or 1746, at any rate it has stood for more than a century and a half, a silent witness of the events which have made history, sheltering many an one whose acts have aided in shaping the annals of the state. Captain Philip Gabel prospered in his business undertakings as a farmer and innkeeper, and as opportunity afforded increased his realty holdings.

In the tax list of 1769 for Upper Salford township, Philadelphia county, he is assessed for one hundred and fifty acres of land, four horses, six head of cattle, and one servant; in the list for 1774, for two hundred and sixty acres of land, four horses, four head of cattle, and one servant; in 1780 his taxable property was valued at five thousand and fifty pounds; and in 1783 he is taxed for two hundred and eighty-five acres, four horses, four head of cattle and eight sheep. He managed his business affairs in a most systematic manner, keeping a set of books, and his old ledger, displaying his beautiful penmanship, is now in possession of Percival K. Gable, of Norristown, as is the old hotel license, granted September 25, 1787, and deeds for his farm of three hundred and forty acres.

Aside from his business, he not only took a deep interest in church but also in military affairs, and was captain of a company of the First Batallion of Philadelphia county militia, commanded by Colonel Daniel Heester (Heister) during the Revolutionary war.

John Philip Gabel, the grandfather of Percival K. Gable and the only child of Johan Philip and Margaret Gabel, was born July 29, 1768, in Upper Salford township, Montgomery county. He was not only a worthy successor of his father in business, but also developed still greater business enterprises, and became even more widely known as a merchant, hotel proprietor and extensive land owner. He, too, conducted the Gabel House, and in addition to his tavern and his home in Upper Salford he owned at the time of his death fifty-nine acres of land in Skippack and Perkiomen, a tavern and six acres of land at Whitemarsh, a tavern and twenty acres in Gwynedd, and four acres of wood land in Frederick, making a total of four hundred and forty-four acres, his estate being appraised at fifty thousand dollars. The same devoted following of Christian teachings and the same fidelity to the church that were numbered among the strong characteristics of his ancestors were also manifest in him, and he served as elder and treasurer in the old Goshenhoppen church. His death occurred October 4, 1835. His wife, whom he had married December 3, 1797, bore the maiden name of Catharine Schneider. She is a descendant of Conrad and Catharine Schneider, natives of Germany. Their son, Conrad Schneider, Jr., was born in Germany in 1699, and was married there in 1724 to Catharina Detz, who was born in that country in 1700, and was a daughter of Sebastian and Eva Detz. Conrad and Catharina (Detz) Schneider came to America on the ship "Johnson," landing at Philadelphia. September 19, 1732.

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It was their son Henrich and his wife Christina Schneider who were the parents of Catharine Schneider, the wife of Philip Gabel. She was born April 5, 1776, and died February 1, 1822. The children of Philip and Catharine Gabel were: Charles, born April 9, 1799, and died November 27, 1879; Sarah, born February 13, 1800, and became the wife of John Groff; Esther E., born May 18, 1803, and married John Smith; Philip, born April 21, 1805; Margaret, born November 17, 1807, and married Michael Reiff; Elizabeth, born July 30, 1810, and married Abraham Groff; Anna Catharine, born May 6, 1812, and married Zachariah Leidy; and Jesse.

The last named, Jesse Gable, born December 29, 1816, followed the same business pursuit which had engaged the attention of his ancestors. He was first proprietor of the Upper Hotel at Skippackville, then another lower down until about 1850, and in 1851 he built the lower hotel in the same place, this being now the Valley House. From 1868 until his death, which occurred September 16, 1874, he was proprietor of the Farmers' Hotel at Norristown, and his life labors returned to him gratifying success. In the affairs of the community he manifested a public spirited interest, giving to many measures for the general good his hearty cooperation and financial support.

His fellow townsmen, recognizing his worth and ability, called him to public office, and he served as treasurer of Montgomery county from 1851 until 1853, while at the time of his death he was president of the board of prison inspectors. He was married June 18, 1843, to Mary Kemmerer, daughter of Jacob and Susan (McNoldy) Kemmerer, of Red Hill, Pennsylvania. She was born January 27, 1821, and died September 27, 1896. They had twelve children John Philip, born January 17, 1844, died October 9, 1857; Oliver, born May 3, 1845, died May 22, 1852; Caroline, born October 27, 1846, died October 1, 1896; Catharine Ann, born May 17, 1849, died March 24, 1852; Jesse, born July 14, 1851, died February 28, 1853; Mary, born July 14, 1851, is the wife of Aaron H. Harley, proprietor of a hotel in Philadelphia, and they have six children; Emma Louisa, born April 30, 1853, died December 15, 1881; Rosa, born December 19, 1854, was married in 1878 to Hiram Pierce Beerer, and they had two children; Elizabeth, born October 18, 1856, died June 23, 1857; Allen Nelson, born April 5, 1858, died June 29, 186o; Percival Kemmerer is the next of the family; and Charles, born May 18, 1863, died October 26, same year.

Percival Kemmerer Gable, born in Skippackville, Pennsylvania, February 27, 1860, pursued a public school education, and in early life developed a native talent for hotel-keeping, inherited from a long line of ancestors who had been identified with this department of business activity almost from the time of the establishment of the colony of Pennsylvania. That Mr. Gable entered upon a work for which he was eminently fitted is demonstrated by the success which has continually attended his efforts. His work has broadened in scope, his business increased in magnitude, and he has largely followed the methods of the pioneer who works upon new and original lines, and accomplishes a task which is of benefit to his entire locality.

Mr. Gable first became proprietor of the Valley House of Skippack, which had been built for his father, and after conducting it for a time took charge of the Hartranft House of Norristown. Atlantic City next became the scene of his labor, where he conducted Hotel Appledore, and later he was proprietor of the Central House of Lansdale, Pennsylvania, and then of the Red Lion, of Quakertown, this state.

On the 13th of May, 1895, he took charge of the Rambo House of Norristown, of which he has since been proprietor, and has made it one of the popular hostelries of this part of the state, thoroughly equipped with all modern conveniences and splendidly adapted for the entertainment of the traveling public. Studying the demands of the public throughout his business career, he has become thoroughly conversant with modern methods of hotel-keeping, and because of his progressive ideas and earnest efforts to promote the comfort of his guests he receives a liberal patronage.

His citizenship is of that character which prompts cooperation in all measures for the general good, and while in Quakertown he served as president of the town council. His political allegiance is given the Democracy, and in 1887 and again in 1893 he was a delegate to the Democratic state convention. He is identified with various benevolent, fraternal and social organizations.

He belongs to Warren Lodge, No. 310, F. and A. M., of Trappe; Norristown Chapter, No. 190, R. A. M.; Hutchinson Commandery, No. 132, K. T., and Lulu Temple of the Mystic Shrine. He is also a member of Lansdale Lodge, No. 997, I. O. O. F., of Lansdale, Pennsylvania; Milford Castle, No. 165, Knights of the Golden Eagle, of Trumbauersville, Bucks county; Norristown Lodge, No. 171, B. P. O. E.; Beaver Tribe, No. 62, I. O. R. M.; Norris Lodge, No. 111, Brotherhood of Union; Hartranft Conclave, Order of Heptasophs; Knights of the Royal Arch; and Camp No. 114, Patriotic Order of Sons of America. He is identified with the Newtown Masonic Relief Association, with the Deutsch Amerik; the Norristown Maennerchor, of which he is the treasurer; the Norristown Rifle and Gun Club, of which he is also the treasurer; and the Pennsylvania Gun Club. He is also connected with Beneficial Section, N. M., of which he is treasurer. He is a member of the Fairmount Fire Company, and he has deep interest in whatever tends to promote a spirit of fraternity, of mutual helpfulness and of desirable social relations among men. Mr. Gable has been twice married. He wedded M. Levina Kohl, a daughter of John and Levina Kohl. Mrs. Gable died April 16, 1882, and the only child of that marriage died in infancy. On the 23d of April, 1885, Mr. Gable married Ella J. Kulp, who was born January 3, 1861. She is a daughter of Professor Henry D. and Matilda (Johnson) Kulp, of Lucon, in Skippack township, a granddaughter of John and Susan (Detwiler) Kolb; and a great-granddaughter of Henrich and Barbara (Hunsicker) Kolb, of Skippack, Pennsylvania. Hendrich Kolb was a son of Henrich and Elizabeth (Cassell) Kolb, of Skippack, and the ancestry is traced back still further to Jacob Kolb, who was born in Germany, May 21, 1685, and came to America in 1707. He was a son of Dielman Kolb, of Aolfsheim, Baden, Germany, who married a daughter of Peter Schuamacher, who settled in Germantown, Pennsylvania, in 1685. Jacob Kolb married Sarah Van Sinterm and came to America in 1707. Mrs. Gable is numbered among his descendants in the sixth generation. By her marriage she has become the mother of three daughters: Rosa Linda, born March 5, 1887; Elsie Irene, born May 1, 1888; and Mary Kulp, born September 19, 1889. The family are members of the Reformed church of Norristown. He is thus identified with the material, social and moral development of his borough and among the popular and public-spirited citizens he is numbered.