A

 

HISTORY

 

of

 

THE IRON INDUSTRY and ALLIED BUSINESSES

 

of

 

THE IRON BOROUGH

 

CATASAUQUA PENNSYLVANIA

 

compiled by

 

Dale Charles Wint

 

1993


 

This version of Dale Wint's  "A History of The Iron Industry and Allied Businesses of the Iron Borough, Catasauqua Pennsylvania" was converted from the original typewritten version to formats that will provide the capability to reproduce the history in a format suitable for searching and for use on the web. Only very minor changes have been made where necessary. An index to the names of persons has been compiled and added as an Appendix.

 

This compilation has been made for the Historic Catasauqua Preservation Association.

 

John B. McVey

The Hopkin Thomas Project

http://www.thehopkinthomasproject.com./HTIndex.html
jb.mcvey@roadrunner.com


 

 

CONTENTS

 

PREFACE  

FORWARD

 

PART ONE  --  CRANE IRON WORKS

 

PART TWO  --  ALLIED BUSINESSES

Union Foundry and Machine Company

Thomas Iron Company

Catasauqua Manufacturing Company

Davies and Thomas Company

Catasauqua Boiler Works

Lehigh Car, Wheel and Axle Works

Lehigh Fire Brick Company

Bryden Horse Shoe Company

Globe Metal Works

McIntyre Foundry

Empire Steel and Iron Company

Hercules Metal Works

Catasauqua Casting Company

Fuller Company

Graver Tank and Manufacturing Company

Catasauqua Machine Work

 

 

PART THREE  --  TRANSPORTATION

Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company

Crane Railroad

Lehigh Valley Railroad

Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad

Ironton Railroad

Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad

 

 

PART FOUR  --  BIOGRAPHICAL and GENEALOGICAL RECORD

Horace Boyd

Charles W. Chapman

Daniel Davies Family

Noah Davis Family

Emanuel Family

John Fritz

Fuller Family

Holton Family

William P. Hopkins

Hunt Family

Captain William R. Jones

Milton O. Knauss

Richard O. Kohler

Leibert Family

McKee Family

Daniel Milson

Leonard Peckitt

Jacob Roberts

Benjamin F. Swartz

David Thomas Family

Hopkin Thomas Family

Weaver Family

David Williams Family

PART FIVE  --  REMINISCENCES

 

EPILOGUE

SOURCES

 

APPENDIX - List of Names


 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PREFACE

 

At the beginning of the year 1839, along the east bank of the Lehigh River laid a small hamlet known as Biery's Port, surrounded by tilled fields and primeval woods. Within a year and one half the first stack of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works' furnaces would be belching smoke and lighting the mid-night sky.

 

Around the furnaces a community developed, which was re-named Craneville, that was in every sense of the word a company town, and long after it had matured into an incorporated borough the Crane Iron Works played an important role in the affairs of the town.

 

The name of the village was again changed in 1845 to Catasauqua and in 1853 the town had grown in size to be incorporated as Lehigh County's second borough. With the success of the furnaces, other iron related industries were soon started within the immediate area and for many years the Borough of Catasauqua was fondly called "The Iron Borough."

 


 

 

FORWARD

 

The first commercially and technologically successful blast furnace to use exclusively anthracite coal in the production of pig iron in America was established at what is now known as Catasauqua. As the company flourished other furnaces were soon erected throughout the Lehigh Valley and other industries were started in Catasauqua and the surrounding area to manufacture finished products from the pig iron which was produced at these furnaces.

 

Because of the fact that pig iron could now be produced in large quantities and at reasonable prices the American Industrial Revolution was then on its way. From this modest beginning the United States would in a few years out produce Great Britain, then the supreme iron producer in the world.

 

The men who first learned their trade at the furnaces in Catasauqua would soon take their knowledge to other plants, allowing the infant industry to grow into the envy of the world. Some of the finest minds of the industry got their start at the Catasauqua furnaces or the other allied businesses.

 

Iron implements discovered by archeologists in Egypt date from about 3000 B.C., and iron ornaments were used even earlier. The alloys that were made until about the 14th century A.D., are what would today be classified as wrought iron. They were made by heating a mass of iron ore and charcoal in a forge or furnace having a forced draft. Under this treatment the ore was reduced to a sponge of metallic iron filled with a slag composed of metallic impurities and charcoal ash. This sponge of iron was removed from the furnace while still incandescent and beaten with heavy sledges to drive out the slag and to weld and consolidate the iron. After the 14th century, the furnaces used in smelting were increased in size, and increased draft was used to force the combustion gases through the "charge," the mixture of raw materials. The basic materials used for the manufacturing of pig iron today are iron ore, coke and limestone. The coke is burned as a fuel to heat the furnace and in doing so gives off carbon monoxide, which combines with the iron oxides in the ore, reducing them to metallic iron. The limestone in the furnace charge is used as an additional source of carbon monoxide and as a "flux" to combine with the infusible silica present in the ore to form fusible calcium silicate. Without the limestone, iron silicate would be formed, with a resulting loss of metallic iron.

 

A typical modern blast furnace consists of a cylindrical steel shell lined with firebrick. The shell is tapered at the top and at the bottom and is widest at a point about one quarter of the distance from the bottom. The lower portion of the furnace, called the "bosh," is equipped with several tubular openings of "tuyeres" through which air blast is forced. Near the bottom of the bosh is a hole through which the molten pig iron flows when the furnace is tapped, and above this hole, but below the tuyeres is another hole for draining the slag. The top of the furnace, which is about 90 feet in height, contains vents for the escaping gases and a pair of round hoppers closed with bell-shaped valves through which the charge is introduced into the furnace.

 

Blast furnaces operate continuously and raw materials are fed into the furnace in small charges that are introduced into the furnace at approximately fifteen-minute intervals. Slag is drawn off from the top of the melt about every two hours, and the iron is tapped about five times a day. The process of tapping consists of knocking out a clay plug from the iron hole near the bottom of the bosh and allowing the molten metal to flow into a bricklined gutter and thence into a large brick-lined metal bucket, or ladle. Any slag that may flow from the furnace with the metal is skimmed off before it reaches the ladle. When the ladle is full it is lifted by a crane and carried to the pig-casting machine.

 

The air used to supply the blast in a blast furnace is preheated to temperatures between 1000 and 1600 degrees Fahrenheit. The heating is preformed in "stoves," cylinders containing networks of firebrick. The bricks in the stoves are heated for several hours by burning blast furnace gas, the waste gases from the top of the furnace. Then the flame is turned off and the air for the blast is blown through the stove. The weight of the air used in the operation of a blast furnace exceeds the total weight of the other raw materials.

 

In the early iron making practice the plug was knocked out and the molten iron was directed into a casting trough and thence to the pig beds. A refractory-brick, sand-covered dam was constructed about eight to ten feet from the tap hole with a skimmer directly above it. As the level of the pool of iron built up behind the dam, the skimmer was raised to allow the iron to flow over the dam and at the same time divert the slag into a cinder trough or runner. This slag trough was built slightly higher than the iron trough and would lead out a doorway of the casthouse to the waiting cinder cars. The casthouse floor was arranged so that the molten iron was conveyed by gravity flow. The iron trough would carry the iron to the "sows," a molded sand trough, slightly lower than the iron-casting trough. The smaller sand molds, formed on the casting floor, connected to, but slightly lower than the sows, were called the "pigs." The sows and pigs were so named because of their resemblance to a row of suckling piglets, hence the name pig iron was derived. The sows and the pigs were broken apart after the iron had cooled to a temperature immediately below solidification, but before it had acquired significant strength. The pigs were broken from the sow by applying a crow bar at the junction of the two and the sows were then broken into manageable pieces with a sledgehammer.

 

The iron industry in the Lehigh Valley was practically none existent at the dawn of the nineteenth century, with only one blast furnace in operation at Durham on the Valley's southern end. Three charcoal furnaces were built during the early part of the new century, the Hampton Furnace, constructed in 1809 at Sigmunds; Lehigh Furnace, built in 1826, at the base of the huge timber reserves of the Blue Mountains; and the Catherine Furnace, which was built at about the same time near Nazareth, at Jacobsburg in Henry's Woods.

 

These early furnaces used charcoal as fuel and were therefore dependent upon heavily forested ridges and valleys. British ironmasters had used coke as a fuel as early as 1709 and by the mid-eighteenth century, with Britain's forests becoming nearly depleted after centuries of shipbuilding and charcoal production, ironmasters throughout the British Isles were operating their furnaces with coke. Good quality coking coals were not discovered in the United States until the 1840's and were not seriously exploited until the late 1860's, and for this reason attention was turned to the use of anthracite coal as a fuel. As early as 1803, Joshua Malin, of Philadelphia, used anthracite mixed with a substance described as coke to heat wrought iron. The experimentation with anthracite was sporadic at best because of the extreme difficulty in getting the coal to burn.

 

James Beaumont Neilson, of Scotland, manager of the Glasgow Gas Works developed the concept of using hot blast in the production of iron around 1825. After experimenting with his idea at the Muirkirk Iron Works, he obtained a patent in 1828 for this process. Before that time all blowing engines used unheated air to force blast into the furnaces. The hot blast not only improved production in coke-fueled furnaces, but enabled Scottish ironmasters to use raw coal and by 1835, hot blast was in general use throughout Great Britain.

 

Frederick W. Geissenhainer applied the hot blast concept to making iron with anthracite coal and on September 5, 1831, he filed for a patent on his process; the patent being granted on December 19, 1833. In order to prove out his theory on a practical scale, Mr. Geissenhainer erected the Valley Furnace, northeast of Pottsville, Schuylkill County in 1836. He operated the furnace for only two months, August and September, 1836, before his machinery broke down. Only a small quantity of iron was produced and shortly afterward he became ill, dying on May 27, 1838. Other attempts were made by several different parties, but none of the experiments proved successful from an engineering and commercial stand point.

 

While Mr. Geissenhainer was constructing his trial furnace, George Crane, owner of the Yniscedwyn Iron Works, near Swansea, South Wales, and his superintendent, David Thomas, were thinking along the same lines. Mr. Crane applied for a British patent on September 28, 1836, and it was granted March 28, 1837. George Crane and David Thomas proved out their theory on February 7, 1837, when they successfully produced good quality iron using anthracite alone as fuel.

 


 


PART ONE

 

THE CRANE IRON WORKS

 

 

 

 

 

Software: Microsoft Office

 

 

Solomon W. Roberts, nephew of Josiah White, went to Cardiff, Wales, in 1836, as an inspector of rails that were ordered by the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Company. In May 1837, he visited the Yniscedwyn Iron Works near Swansea, Bracknockshire, South Wales. There he met George Crane, proprietor of the Yniscedwyn Works, and David Thomas, his superintendent. On February 7, 1837, they had successfully produced good quality iron at the rate of 34 to 36 tons per week using anthracite coal alone as fuel. Solomon W. Roberts returned home in November 1837, and he brought details of Crane's plans and specifications illustrative of the process to his uncle, Josiah White. Upon hearing the news, Josiah White along with Erskine Hazard renewed their interest in producing iron with anthracite coal. As early as 1825, they had been experimenting with the practicability of smelting iron with this coal.

 

On October 2, 1838, in anticipation of the organization of the Lehigh Crane Iron Company, and to promote the development of other coal consuming enterprises along the Lehigh River, the directors of the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company offered the valuable water privileges of the river from Swartz's (Hokendauqua) Dam to the Allentown Dam to any persons who would expend $30,000 in the erection of a furnace and run it successfully for three months by the exclusive use of anthracite coal. The Lehigh Crane Iron Company, consisting of members of the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company, was then informally organized and in November, 1838, Erskine Hazard along with his eldest son, Alexander, traveled to Wales to engage some competent person to come to this country in their interest, and to superintend the erection of furnaces.

 

Upon his arrival, Erskine Hazard contacted George Crane to discuss royalties on his patents and to ask his advice about engaging someone who could duplicate Crane's achievement in Pennsylvania. For this purpose, George Crane suggested his superintendent, David Thomas. At first, Thomas was reluctant to leave his native land, but, influenced by a liberal offer, besides the consideration that his sons would have better opportunities in America than they could hope for in Wales or Great Britain, he consented, and on the night of December 31, 1838, he entered into an agreement with Mr. Hazard.

 

The text of the agreement, together with a supplement made in Philadelphia, are as follows:

 

"Memorandum of Agreement made the thirtyfirst day of December 1838 between Erskine Hazard for the Lehigh Crane Iron Company of the one part and David Thomas of Castle Dhu of the other part.

 

"1. The said Thomas agrees to remove with his family to the works to be established by said company on or near the river Lehigh and there to undertake the erection of a blast furnace for the smelting of iron with anthracite coal and the working of the said furnace as Furnace manager, also to give his assistance in finding mines of iron ore, fire clay, and other materials suitable for carrying on iron works, and generally to give his best knowledge and services to said company in the prosecution of the iron business in such manner as will best promote their interests for a term of five years from the time of his arrival in America, provided the experiment of smelting iron with anthracite coal should be successful there.

 

"2. The said Hazard for the said company agrees to pay the expenses of the said Thomas and his family from his present residence to the works above mentioned on the Lehigh and there to furnish him with a home and coal for fuel - also to pay him a salary at the rate of Two hundred pounds sterling a year from the time of his stipend ceasing in his present employment until the first furnace on the Lehigh is got into blast with anthracite coal and making good iron and after that at the rate of two hundred and fifty pounds sterling a year until a second furnace is put into operation successfully when fifty pounds sterling shall be added to his annual salary and so fifty pounds sterling per annum additional for each additional furnace which may be put into operation under his management.

 

"3. It is mutually agreed between the parties that should the said Thomas fail of putting a furnace into successful operation with anthracite coal that in that case the present agreement shall be void and the said company shall then pay the said Thomas a sum equivalent to the expense of removing himself and family from the Lehigh to their present residence.

 

"4. In settling the salary four shillings and six pence sterling are to be estimated as equal to one dollar.

 

"In witness whereof the said parties have interchangeably set their hands and seals the date above written

 

"Erskine Hazard [SEAL]

"for Lehigh Crane Iron Co.

 

"David Thomas  (SEAL]

"Witness" Alexander Hazard

 

It is further mutually agreed between the Lehigh Crane Iron Company and David Thomas the parties to the above written agreement that the amount of the said Thomas salary per annum shall be ascertained by taking the United States Mint price or value of the English Sovereign as the value of the pound sterling - instead of estimating it by the value of the dollar as mentioned in the 4th article and that the other remaining articles in the above written memorandum of agreement executed by Erskine Hazard for the Lehigh Crane Iron Company and David Thomas be hereby ratified and confirmed as they now stand written. "In witness whereof the President and Secretary of the Lehigh Crane Iron Company by order of the Board of Managers and the said David Thomas have hereunto set their hands and seals at Philadelphia the second day of July 1839.

 

"David Thomas (SEAL]

"In presence of "Timothy Abbott."

 

The organization of the Lehigh Crane Iron Company, prior to Mr. Hazard's going abroad, had been only an informal one, and on the 10th of January 1839, it was perfected. The first meeting of the board of directors was held in Philadelphia at that time. The board consisted of Robert Earp, Josiah White, Erskine Hazard, Thomas Earp, John McAllister, Jr., and Nathan Trotter. They organized by electing Robert Earp president and treasurer, and John McAllister, Jr., secretary. On April 23, 1839, they entered into articles of association, which were as follows:

 

"Articles of Association of the Lehigh Crane Iron Company, made and entered into under and pursuant to an act of the Legislature of Pennsylvania entitled an act to encourage the manufacture of Iron, with Coke, or Mineral Coal, and for other purposes passed June the sixteenth, One thousand eight hundred and thirty-six.

 

"Witness, that the subscribers, citizens of Pennsylvania, whose names are hereto affixed have associated themselves, under and pursuant to the act aforesaid for the purpose of making and manufacturing Iron, from the raw material with Coke or Mineral coal, and do certify and declare the articles and conditions of their association to be as follows:

 

"Article 1. - The name, style or title of the Company, shall be 'Lehigh Crane Iron

Company.'

 

"Article 2. - The lands to be purchased by the Company shall be in Northampton, or Lehigh County, or both.

 

"Article 3. - The capital stock of the company shall consist of One hundred thousand dollars divided into two thousand shares of fifty dollars each, the whole of which has been subscribed for by the subscribers hereto in the numbers, of shares, set opposite their respective names.

 

"Article 4. - The sum of twenty-five thousand dollars being one-fourth percent, of the whole capital stock, subscribed for, has been actually paid in.

 

"Article 5. - The remaining installments on the stock, already subscribed for shall be called in in such sums, and at such times and with such forfeiture for non-payment thereof as the Board of Directors, may prescribe.

 

"Article 6. - The Board of Directors shall consist of such a number of persons as the stockholders, may from time to time prescribe.

 

"Article 7. - This company shall be in all things subject to and governed by the provisions of the Act of Assembly, under which it is created and shall have the same, and no other, or greater powers, privileges, and franchises than are conferred upon it by virtue of the said act.

 

"Philadelphia, April 23, 1839.

Josiah White

Erskine Hazard

Thomas Earp

George Earp

Signed           John McAllister, Jr.

Robert Earp

Theodore Mitchell

Nathan Trotter

 

A charter for twenty-five years was granted to the Lehigh Crane Iron Company on May 16, 1839, under the June 16, 1836, Act of the Legislature referred to in the Articles.

 

In the Spring of 1839, Samuel Glace, while inspecting the canal along Biery's Port, noticed a number of men standing on the east side of the canal, which led him to think that there might be a leak in its bed, and so he asked the lock-tender, Jonathan Snyder, who they were. He then recognized Owen Rice and Frederick Biery, and they introduced him to the strangers as gentlemen from Philadelphia. Shortly afterwards, he received orders from Mauch Chunk, to ascertain if their were any quick-sands along the canal at Biery's Port.

 

A tract of land was then purchased from Frederick Biery by the Lehigh Crane Iron Company, which ran from the canal to Howertown Road and laid between what later became Church and Wood Streets.

 

During the first week of May 1839, David Thomas and his family left Swansea on a coastal steamer for Liverpool. From there they sailed on May 13, 1839, on the sailing packet "Roscius" and on the 5th of June they arrived at New York, after 23 days at sea.

 

The first month on American soil David Thomas spent in New Brighton, Staten Island, where he laid ill with fever. On his recovery, David Thomas traveled to Philadelphia, with his eldest son Samuel, where he had been called to attend a meeting of the Lehigh Crane Iron Company Board. There, on July 2, 1839, he signed the supplement to the agreement he made with Erskine Hazard. He returned to New Brighton on July 4th, and two days later David Thomas and his family began their journey to the Lehigh Valley. They traveled by train via Jersey City and New Brunswick, at that time the terminus of the road. From New Brunswick the journey was continued by stage, first night was spent at Easton, and Allentown was reached on July 9, 1839.

 

On July 11, 1839, Mr. Thomas and his son, Samuel, walked to Biery's Port to see where it was proposed to erect the new furnace. When he reached the top, of Frederick's (Packer's) Hill, he stopped "to view the landscape o'er." In the distance he saw the Blue Mountains whose blue outline extended along the horizon.

 

The residence of George Frederick was at the foot of the hill, and a few hundred feet to the north of it, near the entrance to Biery's Bridge were the house and red barn of William Miller; while just across the river from Frederick's was the residence of Jacob Deily (George Taylor House); and at the far end of the bridge was the hamlet of Biery's Port, where two farm houses on a large plain seemed to be the only habitations directly north, and woods extended as far as the eye could reach to the right.

 

While the prospecting Welshman and his son stood there, a loud noise from the vicinity of the hamlet startled them. Little Samuel, while in the great city of London, on the way to their new home beyond the sea, with the foresight which was characteristic of him in later years, had provided for such a supposed emergency by purchasing a gun, but, alas, at that moment of apparent peril, he recalled that it was among the family effects somewhere in a canal-boat on the Morris Canal, slowly moving towards this point and not just then available. After discovering the cause of the explosion, they decided to venture forward and soon reached the bridge which they found to be constructed of chains, anchored at both ends and in the center to heavy stone piers. They each paid a big copper penny to the toll gatherer, Daniel Tombler, who later died from injuries received while re-erecting the bridge after the freshet of 1841. Proceeding farther across the canal bridge, they reached the hamlet, which consisted of a gristmill, sawmill, fulling-mill, and several dwelling houses.

 

The middle stone building on the north side of the road was the hotel of the place, and Frederick Biery, the village nabob, sat there on a bench. Mr. Thomas entered into a colloquy with him and soon learned from him where the proposed furnace was to be erected. Hardly had he gotten this information, when suddenly, that terrifying report again broke the prevailing quiet of the village, and turning around quickly the agitated pedestrians in wonderment learned that it was caused by an upright saw in yonder mill, ripping into slabs, by means of water power, a large log on the skids.

 

Thence they walked to the site of the proposed new enterprise, and after several hours, of making measurements from which to work out plans for the construction of the plant, they returned afoot, late in the afternoon, to their hotel in Allentown, Haberacker's, later called the Hamilton. A house was then rented for Mr. Thomas and his family and there they made their home for four months, until the two-story frame dwelling, located at the southeast corner of Front and Church Streets, was completed for them by the Lehigh Crane Iron Company.

 

 

 

Before leaving England, David Thomas had had the blowing machinery and castings for the hot-blast made, and all were shipped except the two blowing cylinders, which were too large for the hatches of the ship. So when the other machinery arrived the investors in the works were as badly off as if none had been sent. There was not at that time a foundry in the United States large enough to cast such cylinders as were needed. There were small ones at Allentown and Bethlehem. The company applied to the Allaire Works of New York and the Alger of Boston, but neither of them could bore a five-foot cylinder without enlarging their works, which they were unwilling to do. David Thomas then went to Philadelphia to the Southwark Foundry of S. V. Merrick and J. H. Towne, who enlarged their boring machinery and made the five-foot cylinders required. Firebrick were imported from Wales, there then being none manufactured in this country.

 

On or about August 1, 1839, construction began on the furnace of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works. The stack was 45 feet high from the base of the hearth to the trunnel head, with a chimney extending about 12 feet above the trunnel head. It was constructed of limestone, 30 feet square at the base and tapering to about 23 feet square at the top. The furnace was lined with courses of nine-inch-thick firebrick, with a two-to-three-inch-thick clay packing between the lining and the limestone to provide for the expansion of the lining. The hot-blasts consisted of four stoves of 12 arched pipes each, 5 inches interior diameter, 1-1/2 inches thick in the legs and 2 inches thick in the arch. They were built on the ground and fired with coal, having deep closed ash-pits, into which blast was introduced for active combustion, in lieu of a draft stack.

 

The blast was heated to about 600 degrees and compressed by a breast-wheel 12 feet in diameter and 24 feet long; the fall of about eight feet between the canal-levels at Lock No. 36 furnished the power. On each end of the wheel were segments on its circumference, of 10-inch face, geared into pinions on double cranks, these driving two blowing-cylinders having a five foot diameter and a six foot stroke, with parallel motion, and worked by beams on a gallows-frame. The blast from the cylinders was conducted underneath the canal through an 18-inch cast-iron pipe; this being the only receiver, the strokes of the cylinders could be counted at the furnace-tuyere as easily as in the wheelhouse.

 

 

Sketch showing configuration and dimensions of No. 1 Furnace at the Lehigh Crane Iron Company.

From Transactions of the American Institute of Mining Engineers, Vol. XXIX, 1899.

 

The first load of ore brought to the works was delivered April 30, 1840, by Henry Hoch. This was hematite from Jacob Rice's (brother of Owen Rice) mine in Hanover Township, Lehigh County. The first magnetic ore brought to the furnace in 1840 was from Mount Hope mine in Morris County, New Jersey.

 

 

Artist's view at the first furnace built at Catasauqua by David Thomas in 1840.

From Popular Science Monthly, Vol. 38, No. 4, 1891

 

Water-powered blowing engine for Furnace No. 1 at the Crane Iron Works Catasauqua.

From Transactions of the American Institute of Mining Engineers, Vol. XXIX, 1899

 

After many difficulties and discouragements, the furnace was finally blown in at five o'clock in the evening on July 3, 1840 and the first run of iron was made the 4th of July 1840. The proportion of ores used was one-third magnetic and two-thirds brown hematite (limonite). The keepers in charge of the furnace during the first heat were William Philips and Evan Jones.

 

On January 7th and 8th of 1841 a great freshet occurred in the Lehigh River. After a period of intense cold weather at years end, rain with a warm southern wind began on Wednesday, January 6th and continued during Thursday, January 7, 1841. This brought on a sudden thaw and the river and streams rose rapidly to an unprecedented height.

 

Recorded in one of the books of the Lehigh Crane Iron Company, was the handwritten note by David Thomas:

 

"On Thursday, January 7th, at nine o'clock in the evening the river rose so that the back water prevented the wheel from turning, at half after ten covering the tow-path of the level above Lock No. 36. At twelve it was two feet over the banks, and was one foot over the bottom of the hearth of the furnace. At 1:20 the water was at its height, and thirty-four inches in the furnace. It was at this height until 3:30 o'clock, when the river began to fall. The water wheel was muddied all over, and the water was nine inches over its top. The dam and canal bank was broken, so that when the water fell in the river it was too low to turn the wheel, though every effort was made to fill up the banks, - but they could not succeed, and were obliged to throw the furnace out on Monday the 11th of January.

 

"David Thomas.

 

During the six-month period that the furnace operated before the freshet, one thousand and eighty-eight tons of pig iron were produced. The largest output for one week was fifty-two tons. The furnace was blown in again on May 18, 1841, and continued in blast until August 6, 1842, producing in this period 3,316 tons of pig iron.

 

The main offices of the corporation were maintained at Philadelphia from 1839 to 1895. Theodore Mitchell was elected president in 1845, succeeding Robert Earp, who was then elected vice-president. The office of secretary, originally filled by John McAllister, was taken by John A. McAllister in 1844, and Benjamin Leedom in 1848. Plant offices were established in Catasauqua on the east side of Front Street, between Wood and Church Streets. David Thomas served as superintendent of the new enterprise, with Owen Rice serving as Cashier.

 

During 1842, Furnace No. 2 was erected, with a height of 45 feet and a 13-foot 4-inch bosh, and it was blown in on November 4, 1842, remaining in blast until March 17, 1844, producing five thousand and thirteen tons of iron. The main difference with this furnace and Furnace No. 1 was that the hot blast was heated by waste gas instead of by a separate heating apparatus on the ground. Also in 1842, an additional water-wheel was added of the same size as the first, to which it was geared, and in 1844 an additional blowing power was added by the introduction of two turbine wheels eight feet in diameter, which drove two horizontal cylinders of five feet diameter and six feet stroke; the wheels and all machinery connected with them being built by Merrick and Towne, of Philadelphia.

 

 

 

When Furnace No. 2 was built at Catasauqua in 1842, the hot blast was heated by waste as instead of by a separate heating apparatus on the ground, as was used for No. 1 Furnace

From Transactions of the American Institute of Mining Engineers, Vol. XXIX, 1899

 

About 1845, the Lehigh Crane Iron Company felt the necessity of a separate bridge for its use, because iron ore beds were discovered at different places in South Whitehall Township and the hauling of the ore around by way of the Biery Bridge came to be considered a serious item, with the enlarged toll bill from the bridge company.

 

The statute law of Pennsylvania, however, forbade the erection of a bridge so near an existing bridge. To circumvent this statute, the company purchased land on both sides of the river and thus were in a position to construct a private bridge for themselves.

 

After its erection there were times when teams hauling the ore became so numerous that they extended in a continuous row from approximately where the entrance of Fairview Cemetery is now located, across the bridge to the plant offices on Front Street.

 

During the 1840's, the company built 80 two-story brick houses for their workers, located on Wood, Church, Peach and Limestone Streets. A well was sunk by the company opposite the furnaces on Front Street, and a "Municipal pump" was installed, whence the whole community drew water. After Furnace No. 1 was put in blast a pump was attached to the blast wheel, with a reservoir being placed on top of the works.

 

At a suggestion of David Thomas, a meeting of the villagers was called, November 4, 1845, for the purpose of organizing a fire company. Thirty-seven men were in attendance and they adopted the name, "The Humane Fire Company." A charter was granted on March 14, 1846, and a hand force pump was purchased, which was then housed in a frame building on Crane Iron Works property on the east side of Second Street, near Church Street. The company then erected a brick fire hall on Front Street, close by the old "Municipal pump."

 

The No. 3 furnace was put on line in 1846 and its height was 47 feet, with a bosh of 17 feet 4 inches. It was blown by two cylinders of five and one half feet diameter and a six-foot stroke, which were driven by two engines with steam cylinders of twenty-six inches diameter and six-foot stroke. All of the furnaces were fitted with iron stoves, and the three furnaces had a total weekly capacity of about 420 tons.

 

With the completion of No. 3 furnace new water pumping apparatus was constructed, and four-inch pipes were laid from the engine-house to Wood Street, up Wood Street to Second Street, north on Second Street to Church Street, and from thence to a basin, which was located on the north side of Church Street, near Howertown Road.

 

Furnaces No. 4 and No. 5 were completed during 1849, with heights of 45 feet and eighteen-foot boshes. The blowing cylinders for each of these furnaces were nine foot stroke and seven foot diameter, and they were operated by two engines, the steam cylinders of which had a nine foot stroke, while their diameters, originally thirty-six inches, were afterwards enlarged to forty-eight inches. The company also increased its property size by purchasing more land north to what is now Gas Street, between Front Street and the canal.

 

The Lehigh Valley Railroad, whose tracks were laid on the west bank of the Lehigh River, was completed in the fall of 1855. With its arrival at Catasauqua the Lehigh Crane Iron Works became less dependent on the canal as a means of procuring raw materials for their furnaces.

 

The Lehigh Crane Iron Company assisted by the Thomas Iron Company sought a charter from the State for a railroad from Catasauqua to Fogelsville. After prolonged efforts, the railroad charter was secured and construction on the Catasauqua & Fogelsville Railroad began in the spring of 1856. The formal opening of this line was during the summer of 1857.

 

The Lehigh Crane Iron Company also maintained a standard gauge and a narrow gauge railroad on their property to transport coal, iron ore, cinder, etc. The company continued to expand its plant railroad, which eventually included a narrow gauge line running south of the borough to a cinder dump in Hanover Township, located between the canal and the Lehigh River.

 

David Thomas relinquished the superintendency of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works in 1855, fifteen years after he successfully blew in the first furnace at Catasauqua and during his tenure he erected and successfully operated four other furnaces. David Thomas continued to serve the company as Cashier and he served as such until 1865, when he was succeeded by John Williams, who served in this capacity until his death in 1892. John Thomas, second son of David Thomas, was appointed to succeed his father as superintendent and he served as such until 1867, when he left the employ of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works to become superintendent of the Thomas Iron Company.

 

During the flood of 1862, on the 4th and 5th of June, with the river rising twenty-four feet above its usual level, the engineer of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works stayed in the engine-room, and was instrumental in rescuing two persons from drowning. Many of the canal boats that were loaded with ore were lost. When morning dawned persons were discovered taking refuge upon cinder banks, in trees and in the archway of Biery's Bridge. Superintendent John Thomas assembled some of the plant's carpenters together and had a flat-bottom boat built, in one hour and a half, for the occasion and all persons were brought to shore safely by eight o'clock. The Crane Bridge across the Lehigh River was completely destroyed and was soon after replaced.

 

The destruction, by fire, of the machine shop in 1865, demonstrated the inefficiency of the fire apparatus of the Humane Fire Company, which soon after disbanded and on April 23, 1866, the Phoenix Steam Fire Company No. 1 was organized and they then occupied the fire hall on Front Street, which had been built for the old Humane Fire Company by the Lehigh Crane Iron Works.

 

George A. Wood was elected president of the corporation in 1868 and in 1869 George T. Barnes was elected secretary. Joshua Hunt, who had entered the employment of the company as a bookkeeper in 1843 and had married on the 13th of April 1844, Gwenilian Thomas, daughter of David Thomas, succeeded John Thomas as superintendent in 1867. He had served as assistant superintendent under his predecessor. Joshua Hunt's son, Thomas Hunt was then made assistant superintendent and he served as such from 1867 to 1872.

 

In 1868, No. 6 stack, 60 feet high, with a bosh diameter of 17 1/2 feet, was erected; it was the last Crane furnace built with iron pipe stoves. During 1872, when an increase was being made in the Capital Stock, the corporate name of the Lehigh Crane Iron Company was changed to "The Crane Iron Company." On June 22, 1872, Thomas Hunt was severely injured by a premature explosion of nitroglycerine used in cleaning out one of the furnaces and he expired from his injuries on July 9, 1872. Joseph Hunt, brother of Joshua Hunt, then became assistant superintendent.

 

By 1872 the growth of the borough and the requirements of water for six furnaces taxed the reservoir, located on Church Street to its utmost capacity. Buildings in portions of town of a great elevation were unable to obtain a water supply, and this, coupled with the rapidly growing bounds of the borough, induced Superintendent Joshua Hunt to bring the matter before the Board of Directors of the Crane Iron Company. The sum of twenty-five thousand dollars was appropriated and plans were drawn up. Work commenced during 1873, with new and larger lines being laid under the borough's streets and a new reservoir was constructed on a lot purchased by the Crane Iron Company at the northwest corner of Walnut and Currant Streets, which was the highest point of ground then in the borough limits.

 

The Crane Iron Company purchased a fire engine steamer from the Southwark Hose Company No. 9, of Philadelphia and on February 4, 1873, the Southwark Hose Company No. 9, of Catasauqua was organized, with all the charter members being employees of the Crane Iron Works. The steamer was originally housed in the pattern shop of the Crane, located at the northeast corner of Front and Wood Streets. A two-story fire hall, was built by the Crane Iron Works on their property at the southwest corner of Second and Church Streets for the comfort and pleasure of the members.

 

 

During 1878, George A. Wood resigned the presidency and the office was then filled by Samuel Dickson, Esq. Secretary George T. Barnes was also elected treasurer in 1876, and he then served in both capacities. The No. 5 stack was rebuilt in 1877 and was equipped with three Whitwell regenerative firebrick stoves.

 

 

In 1879, No. 3 stack collapsed while out of blast, leading to the decision to remove the three oldest stacks and erect new ones on the sites of No. 1 and No. 3, and to place Whitwell firebrick stoves on the ground formally occupied by stack No. 2. The old furnaces were torn down in 1880 and were replaced by modern furnaces, with iron shells and firebrick stoves, designed by the assistant superintendent Joseph Hunt. The new No. 3 furnace was completed and blown in in November 1880. The furnace was 65 feet in height, with a seventeen-foot bosh and was built at a cost of $96,211.10. The new No. 1 completed in 1881, was also 75 feet high, with an 18-foot bosh and cost $103,461.74. Also at this time the old boilers, which had been in use from the original erection of the plant and were no longer safe, were replaced with new steel boilers and a new boiler house was erected at a total cost of $84,410.23. With these improvements, the capacity of the five furnaces became approximately 100,000 net tons per year.

 

On December 31, 1881, Joshua Hunt retired as superintendent of the Crane Iron Works and on January 1, 1882, Joseph Hunt was appointed superintendent of the plant. The increased capacity of the new furnaces required additional blowing engines, and two new engines were furnished by the I. P. Morris Company and put in operation in January 1884, at a cost of $31,283.43.

 

The members of the Board of Directors of the Crane Iron Company serving in 1884 were as follows: Samuel Dickson, Charles L. Bone, Henry Winsor, Samuel R. Shipley, Fisher Hazzard, Robert Lenox, Charles S. Wurtz, and Alexander Biddle.

 

William R. Thomas I became superintendent of the works in March 1887 and he served as such until 1891. Leonard Peckitt became associated with the Crane Iron Company in 1887 as chief chemist and in the fall of 1888 he was chosen assistant superintendent of the works, and at the same time he also took charge of the Edge Hill Furnace, in Montgomery County, and the furnace at Macungie, both of which had been leased by the Crane Iron Company. In 1889, No. 3 furnace was raised to 75 feet and it was then continued in blast until the later part of 1913, when it was dismantled. The No. 4 stack was blown out in July 1890, and a few years later was dismantled. Leonard Peckitt was appointed superintendent in 1891, succeeding William R. Thomas, and by 1893 the four remaining furnaces had a combined capacity of 130,000 tons per annum. The leased furnaces at Macungie and Edge Hill, being smaller, had a capacity of about fifty thousand tons per year.

 

During the economic turn down caused by the Panic of 1893 the failure of many large steel works that were indebted to the Crane Iron Company crippled the resources of the latter to the extent that they went into the hands of receivers, one of whom was Leonard Peckitt. Leonard Peckitt was then serving as general manager and in 1894 he was also elected president of the firm. All property, rights, franchises and privileges of the Crane Iron Company were transferred on January 30, 1895, to the Crane Iron Works, the existing corporation. The company's main offices were transferred from Philadelphia to Catasauqua in 1895 and were then located in the plant office building on Front Street. For many years the revenues of the water system were not given close attention, and with the reverses coming to the company, the receivers returned the water rights of the company back to the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company.

 

 

 

 

 

By 1893, the Crane Iron Works was using two-thirds anthracite coal and one-third coke as fuel for smelting ore in their furnaces. They manufactured all the different grades of pig iron, including ordinary foundry iron, branded "Crane;" special, branded "Castle;" ordinary Bessemer, branded "Michigan;" and the basic iron used in steel works, branded "Pottstown."

 

On December 5, 1894, the Crane Iron Works sold a plot of ground, located on the west side of Howertown Road by Peach Street, to the Catasauqua School District for $3,500 and on April 30, 1896 an additional lot, adjoining the former, was sold to the district for one thousand dollars.

 

In 1897, Thomas Edison, a personal friend of Leonard Peckitt, selected the Crane Iron Works to test the suitability of his iron ore concentrate, which he produced from low-grade ore at a plant near Franklin, New Jersey. After much experimentation, Mr. Edison had devised a method of concentrating ore by combining the use of massive rock crushers with magnetic separation. Twenty-five thousand tons of the concentrate was used with great success during the late 1890's. However, the high cost of Edison's concentrate relative to the newly developed Masabi ores caused his plant to be shut down.

 

In 1899, Leonard Peckitt took an active part in the formation of the Empire Steel and Iron Company, of which he was elected president. The company incorporated under the laws of the State of New Jersey on March 13, 1899 and located their main offices in New York City. The new company acquired and operated blast furnaces in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Virginia and North Carolina, one of which was the Crane Iron Works at Catasauqua. The General Offices of the Empire Steel and Iron Company were transferred from New York City to Catasauqua on June 1, 1900.

 

In 1901, No. 1 stack was rebuilt to 77-1/2 feet, with a bosh diameter of 17 feet 4 inches, and it was equipped with three modern Cowper stoves to heat the blast. The No. 5 furnace was torn down in 1908 and a furnace designated as No. 2 was erected on the same site, 80 feet in height, with a 17-1/2 foot bosh and it was also equipped with three Cowper stoves.

 

In 1904, the Crane Iron Works built a new plate girder railroad bridge across the Lehigh River to replace the old wooden covered bridge. In order to extend certain tracks and to save a large outlay of cash for transfer and shifting of cars by and from other roads, the company applied for and was granted a charter for the Crane Railroad Company, July 28, 1905.

 

The Empire Steel and Iron Company erected a three-story brick office building at 124 Bridge Street, at a cost of $20,000 and in 1908 the offices of the Empire Steel and Iron Company and the plant offices of the Crane Iron Works were moved to the new building. On October 8, 1908, a perpetual charter was granted the Crane Iron Works and in December 1911, Milton 0. Knauss was made superintendent of the plant, succeeding H. R. Hall.

 

The Crane Railroad Company received permission from the borough council in November 1909, to construct a tunnel from Second Street eastward past Howertown Road. Right-of-ways were purchased for the railroad tracks, and land was acquired, including 23 plus acres in Kurtz Valley, for the purpose of establishing a cinder dump. Construction commenced on March 21, 1910 and was completed by November 1910. The Crane Railroad Company was purchased by the Lehigh and New England Railroad Company in July 1914.

 

In February 1914, Furnace No. 6 was torn down, leaving the plant with two furnaces, No. 1 and No. 2, with a combined annual capacity of approximately 130,000 tons. During the Old Home Week Celebration, June 28th thru July 4th of 1914, which had a dual purpose in being both a homecoming for families and friends and also a celebration of the 75th anniversary of the founding of the Crane Iron Works, the furnaces remained operating and visitors were allowed to tour the plant and to watch the iron making process.

 

Commencing with the United States involvement in World War I, America's iron and steel industry did a thriving business and the Crane Iron Works was no exception, but, with the war's end and a "return to normalcy," the company's fortunes began a slow withdrawal from which there would be no return.

 

During 1920, No. 2 furnace was completely rebuilt at a height of 90 feet, with a 20-1/2 foot bosh. More powerful blowing engines were installed and the plant's capacity was raised to 185,000 tons per year. The Cowper stoves were replaced in 1921, with four Roberts stoves, three with dimensions of 90 by 18 feet, and the other 100 by 20 feet. A pig-casting machine, manufactured by the Pittsburgh Coal Washer Company, was also installed at that time.

 

The Replogle Steel Company was incorporated in Delaware, October 30, 1919, for the purpose of acquiring the entire capital stock of the Wharton Steel Company, incorporated in New Jersey, November 8, 1907, which controlled the Wharton and Northern Railroad Company. On November 6, 1919, the Replogle Steel Company took control of the Wharton Steel Company and on March 1, 1922, the latter was merged with the former. On April 10, 1922, the Replogle Steel Company acquired control of the Empire Steel and Iron Company, with Leonard Peckitt then being elected president.

 

The Warren Pipe and Foundry Company, organized in New Jersey in 1856, was acquired by the Replogle Steel Company in August, 1924, and on March 29, 1927, the stockholders of the Replogle Steel Company approved a re-capitalization plan and a change of the corporate name to Warren Foundry and Pipe Corporation, which was then incorporated in Delaware on April 8, 1927.

 

The No. 1 stack was dismantled in December 1922, and the capacity of the sole remaining stack was 135,000 tons. On February 1, 1924, the Crane Iron Works sold a tract of land, located from beneath the Pine Street Bridge, north to Gas Street and laying between Front Street and the tracks of the Lehigh and New England Railroad, to the F. W. Wint Company. The company homes owned by the Crane Iron Works, located on Wood, Church, Peach and Limestone Streets, were put up for sale and sold to private individuals in 1926.

 

The American Legion acquired a plot of the company's land on Second Street and there they erected their Home during the year of 1924, and in November 1928, Leonard Peckitt, acting for the Crane Iron Works, donated an adjoining lot for the World War I Memorial.

 

The No. 2 furnace, while as modern as any operating at the Bethlehem Steel Company, was only operated sporadically throughout the 1920's. In 1930, the Warren Foundry and Pipe Corporation had the Crane Iron Works' last furnace dismantled and in 1938, the remaining Catasauqua property was disposed of, ending almost a century of existence.


 

 

PART TWO -- ALLIED BUSINESSES

 

 

UNION FOUNDRY and MACHINE COMPANY

 

The Union Foundry and Machine Company was established in 1851 by John Fritz, together with his brother, George Fritz, and brother-in-laws, B. F. Stroud and Isaac E. Chandler. The foundry, located at the southeast corner of Front and Pine Streets, was the first foundry in the Lehigh Valley, and one of the first in the nation to produce cast iron columns for construction purposes. After John Fritz removed to Johnstown in 1854 to serve as superintendent of the Cambria Iron Works, the foundry was acquired by William Michel and David Thomas. The establishment then passed into the hands of David Thomas, who, in 1869, sold the business to Oliver Williams, David Williams and William P. Hopkins.

 

 

The plant was enlarged in 1882 to meet the demands of increasing business. William P. Hopkins sold his interest in 1891 and David Williams died on May 26, 1894, from injuries received during a fall at his home. The business was shortly afterward incorporated with Oliver Williams as president, and his nephew, J. Arthur Williams, as secretary and treasurer.

 

In 1901 the firm was obliged to locate elsewhere so as to secure larger quarters. They accordingly established a plant along the north side of Race Street, between the canal and the Lehigh River, on seven acres of ground. Oliver Williams passed away on September 17, 1904 and the company ceased operations in 1905.

 

 

 

THOMAS IRON COMPANY

 

A meeting was held February 14, 1854, at Mr. White's tavern on Center Square, Easton, Pennsylvania, to discuss plans for the organization of an iron company, and it was attended by the following persons: David Thomas and Samuel Thomas, of Catasauqua; Edwin A. Douglass, of Mauch Chunk; Charles A. Luckenbach, Michael Krause, and John P. Scholl, of Bethlehem; Benjamin Clark, of New York; Ephraim Marsh and William H. Talcott, of New Jersey; and Dr. Henry Detwiler, Peter S. Michler, John Drake, Derrick Hulick, Russel S. Chidsey, John T. Knight, Daniel Whitsell, and Carman F. Randolph, of Easton.

 

A resolution was adopted calling the new enterprise "The Thomas Iron Company" in honor of David Thomas who projected it, and in recognition of his work as pioneer in the successful manufacture of iron by the use of anthracite coal. The capital stock was fixed at two hundred thousand dollars, with 4,000 shares at fifty dollars a share issued. The following subscribers were elected to the Board of Directors: Edwin A. Douglass, William H. Talcott, Ephriam Marsh, Peter S. Michler, John Drake, Russel S. Chidsey and Charles A. Luckenbach. Samuel Thomas then was selected as superintendent and put in charge of erecting two blast furnaces.

 

David Thomas was authorized to purchase the Thomas Butz farm situated on the west bank of the Lehigh River, near Swartz's (Hokendauqua) Dam, as the most eligible site for the works. The farm contained 185 acres 90 perches and the price paid for it was $37,112.50, with the deed being passed July 7, 1854. Other land was acquired bringing the total acreage to 294 acres 65 perches, with a total cost of $120,502. A special charter from the State of Pennsylvania was granted and approved on April 4, 1854.

 

The following persons also became stock subscribers in 1854, making up the total subscription of $200,000: Jacob Singmaster, John Thomas, William Reed, John Brown, B. I. Leedom, Augustus Wolle, I. V. Williamson and Thomas Butz.

 

At a meeting of the Board of Directors, June 8, 1854, the name of the site of the furnaces was selected and adopted. The suggestion had been made to call it Coplay, the town above it being called "Schriber's" at that time. But after some discussion David Thomas' suggestion of Hokendauqua, derived from the creek, was adopted. On November 9, 1854, the town was laid out by the company and lots were donated for a schoolhouse and for a Presbyterian Church and over two hundred company homes were later erected.

 

The furnaces were substantially built, each 60 feet in height, with an eighteen-foot bosh, with contract for the masonry work given to Samuel McHose of Allentown. A contract for the first two boilers was made April 7, 1854, at a cost of $9,353 on the wharf at Brooklyn; and for two beam blowing engines on boat at Cold Springs, New York, at $42,600. The engines had a steam cylinder of 56-inch diameter, and the blowing cylinders of 84-inch diameter, with a nine-foot stroke.

 

Furnace No. 1 was put in blast June 1, 1855, followed by Furnace No. 2 on October 23rd. They were a complete success from the first blast, and the pig iron was equal to the best in the country.

 

In 1855, additional subscribers of company stock were as follows: Joshua Hunt, Charles H. Dexter, William H. Sayre, Sr., Valentine W. Weaver, Thomas McKeen, Enoch Ketcham, John D. Locke, John F. Starr, Enoch Loche, Augustus G. Richey and John W. Quincy.

 

United with the Lehigh Crane Iron Company, the Thomas Iron Company established the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad in 1856, subscribing 40 percent of the original cost. The Lehigh Valley Railroad had already arrived on the west bank of the Lehigh River in 1855, allowing the Thomas Iron Company access to the coal fields to the north and the iron ore deposits in New Jersey.

 

During 1857, No. 1 furnace produced 9,731 tons of iron and No. 2 furnace produced 8,366 tons. Furnace No. 3 was built in 1862 and was blown in on July 18, 1862, with No. 4 furnace following on April 29, 1863. Samuel Thomas, who earlier had been appointed a director, was elected president of the company on August 31, 1864. After resigning the superintendency of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works, John Thomas became superintendent of the Thomas Iron Company in 1867.

 

The Lock Ridge Iron Company, of Alburtis, acquired a charter on December 26, 1866, with Samuel Thomas as president and J. H. Knight as secretary-treasurers the same positions that they held with the Thomas Iron Company. Construction began in 1867 and the first furnace was put in blast on March 18, 1868; the second furnace was blown in on July 9, 1869. On May 1, 1869, the entire capital stock was acquired at par value by the Thomas Iron Company.

 

Furnace No. 5 at the Hokendauqua plant was blown in September 15, 1873 and No. 6 furnace was put in blast January 19, 1874. All of the six furnaces were of the traditional masonry stacks and employed iron pipe stoves.

 

In 1882, the Thomas Iron Company secured complete ownership of the Ironton Railroad, for hauling the ore, coal, limestone and iron, for their operations at Hokendauqua. Also on April 1, 1882, the Keystone Furnace, located at the Borough of Glendon, was purchased and on December 13, 1884, the Thomas Iron Company purchased the Saucon Iron Company, near Hellertown, for $300,000.

 

With these purchases the Thomas Iron Company operated eleven furnaces and they were designated as No. 1 through No. 6 at the Hokendauqua plant, Nos. 7 and 8 at Lock Ridge, No. 9 at Keystone, and Nos. 10 and 11 at Saucon; and from March 22, 1886, until December 15, 1887, the Thomas Iron Company operated under lease the Lucy Furnace at Glendon.

 

 

Samuel Thomas resigned as president on September 22, 1887 and he was succeeded by Benjamin G. Clarke, who served as such until 1892, when he was succeeded by John Knight. John Thomas retired from active business in 1893.

 

In 1891, three regenerative stoves, 65 by 17 feet, were added to No. 6 stack. The old No. 1 furnace was demolished after its last blast on February 7, 1893, and replaced with a new sheet iron stack, 80 feet high, with a 17-foot bosh, which was blown in on August 1, 1894. This furnace was operated with Durham pipe stoves until January 8, 1898, when it was equipped with three Taws and Hartman regenerative stoves.

 

B. F. Fackenthal was elected president on January 19, 1893, succeeding John Knight, who had served only two months before his death. The No. 2 furnace was abandoned on August 13, 1893 and the old No. 3 stack was blown out on October 26, 1897, and replaced with a new sheet iron stack similar to the rebuilt No. 1. The new No. 3 furnace was equipped with three regenerative stoves, which were duplicates of those added to Furnace No. 1. The new No. 3 stack was put in blast on October 26, 1899.

 

The No. 5 furnace, which had been abandoned in 1897, was revived in 1899 and in 1903 was equipped with Durham pipe stoves. Furnace No. 4 was abandoned after its last blast on May 20, 1902, and during 1905 two new Allis-Chalmers cross-compound blowing engines were added to stacks No. 1 and No. 3, and in 1906 a fourth regenerative stove was added to each of these stacks.

 

On May 1, 1913, B. F. Fackenthal left the presidency and on August 1st, Ralph H. Sweetser was elected president. By 1915, No. 5 furnace and No. 6 furnace, both old stone stacks, had been abandoned, and the only remaining stacks were No. 1 and No. 3. William A. Barrows, Jr., succeeded Ralph H. Sweetser as president in 1916, and on June 28, 1917, the Thomas Iron Company sold the Keystone Furnace to the Northern Ore Company of Philadelphia.

 

The two remaining stacks at Hokendauqua, No. 1 and No. 3, were continually updated through the early 1920's. Additional, and larger, regenerative stoves were added and a Pittsburgh Coal Washer Company double-strand pig-casting machine was installed. Operations at the Saucon Iron furnaces, near Hellertown, ceased in late 1921 and soon thereafter the whole plant was sold and dismantled for scrape. The Lock Ridge furnaces ceased operations in December 1921 and the entire property was sold to William Butz, of Alburtis, for scrap.

 

The Thomas Iron Company's stock was sold to Drexel and Company on June 30, 1922, and they subsequently sold the railroad stock to the Lehigh Valley Railroad, the Central Railroad of New Jersey, and the Reading Railroad and the other property and assets to the Reading Iron Company.

 

By 1924, Furnace No. 1 had been abandoned and in 1927 No. 3 stack, which had been renamed the Mary Furnace, was also blown out. In September, 1924, the Reading Iron Company put the 238 company homes in Hokendauqua up for sale, with an average asking price of $2,000, also at that time company land that had been leased for farming was also disposed of. In the mid 1930's the works was sold to the Bethlehem Steel Company, which dismantled the entire plant for scrap. Samuel R. Thomas surrendered the company's charter to the State in June, 1942, fifteen years after the last furnace was blown out.

 

 

 

CATASAUQUA MANUFACTURING COMPANY

 

The Catasauqua Manufacturing Company was originally incorporated on February 20, 1863 as the Northern Iron Company, for the manufacture of armor plate for war vessels, and also rails; and a mill was erected along the canal, north of Pine Street. The company was capitalized at $100,000, which was afterwards increased to $500,000. David Thomas was elected president; with Charles G. Earp, secretary and treasurer; and David Eynon, superintendent. Just as the plant had gotten ready to start production the Civil War ended and the mill changed to manufacture tank and boiler plates, afterward adding sheet-iron. In 1866, William P. Hopkins was elected superintendent, and a change was made in the nature of the manufacture, an eighteen-inch bar-iron train and a ten-inch guide mill train being added to the plant. During 1867, Oliver Williams was elected general manager, and John Williams, secretary.

 

In 1864, a rolling mill had been erected at Ferndale (Fullerton) by the East Penn Iron Company, under the charter of the Eastern Iron Company, and its name subsequently changed to the Lehigh Manufacturing Company. In 1868, this mill was leased and on October 1, 1870 sold to the Catasauqua Manufacturing Company for $100,000. Edward Edwards was elected superintendent for the Ferndale plant in 1868. The Ferndale plant produced bar and skelp iron.

 

David Thomas served as president of the company the greater part of the time from 1863 until 1879, though the office was also administered by Samuel and John Thomas, his sons, during that period. On David Thomas' resignation in February, 1879, Oliver Williams was elected president and about the same time Henry Davis, who had been with the company from the start was elected treasurer. The firm also built twenty-four company homes, known as "Puddler's Row," on Front Street and Railroad Street, between Almond and Arch Streets.

 

In 1882, the total production of the two mills was 36,000 tons, with 600 employees; and the estimated value was $2,000,000. A small mill was erected south of the mill near Pine Street, which was named Mill C, and another was erected north of the Ferndale plant, which was named Mill D.

 

During 1892, a severe and prolonged strike caused a cease in operations and with the economic turn down caused by the Panic of 1893 this great company failed. The Catasauqua plants were dismantled and the property later became part of the F. W. Wint Company. The Ferndale plants were sold to James W. Fuller II, who organized the Lehigh Foundry Company.

 

 

 

DAVIES and THOMAS COMPANY

 

Daniel Davies had learned the iron trade in Wales, his native land, and for fifteen years held a responsible position with the Lehigh Crane Iron Company. In 1865, with his son, George Davies and William Thomas, Daniel Davies purchased an old planing mill in East Catasauqua, on Race Street by the Catasauqua Creek, and fitted it up as a foundry and machine shop. The concern traded under the name Davies, Thomas and Company. The business continued until 1868, when William Thomas sold his interest to his partners and returned to Wales. The company was then renamed Daniel Davies and Son. The business carried on until the death of Daniel Davies on April 8, 1876, after which it was shut down because of poor business conditions.

 

The works were shut down until February, 1879, when James Thomas, brother-in--law of George Davies, bought a half interest in the business and the partnership of Davies and Thomas was formed for the manufacture of general foundry and machine work, vertical and horizontal engines, car castings and appliances for furnaces, mills and mines. The plant covered twenty acres of ground and comprised a number of buildings covering a floor space of 35,000 feet. Five vertical engines supplied the motive power; and the employees numbered between one hundred and seventy-five to two hundred.

 

George Davies passed away on October 1, 1894 and the firm was then organized into a chartered company, with a capital of one hundred thousand dollars, on December 21, 1894. The stock was afterwards increased to three hundred thousand dollars. The general agent of the company was A. R. McHenry until his death in 1898, when Charles R. Horn, son-in-law of James Thomas, was appointed to succeed him at the company's general offices in New York City.

 

James Thomas served as president of the newly chartered company until his death on December 18, 1906, and he was succeeded as president of the company by his son, Rowland D. Thomas, at a meeting of the company in January of 1907. Leonard Peckitt was elected president in November 1911 and Charles R. Horn served as secretary, with Harry E. Graffin, son-in-law of George Davies, serving as treasurer. Hopkin Thomas, son of James Thomas, held the position of general manager until his death on March 23, 1924. The company had an estimated value of five hundred thousand dollars in 1914; and the Board of Directors was made up as follows: Leonard Peckitt, President; Rowland D. Thomas, Hopkin Thomas, Harry E. Graff in and George Davies, Jr. The firm employed between two hundred and fifty and five hundred men, depending upon conditions of the trade.

 

This company was a pioneer in the manufacture of iron plates for lining tunnels under rivers by the shield method. Starting in 1905, with the Pennsylvania Railroad Tunnel, it supplied the extensive tubes for the sub-aqueous tunnels at New York City. Some of the more well-known and prominent transportation projects in which extensive quantities were used were the Holland (1923), Lincoln (1937), Queens-Midtown (1936-1940), and Battery-to-Brooklyn (1945) vehicular tunnels, and the Pennsylvania Railroad, Harlem River and MacAdoo Tunnels for railroad traffic.

 

In 1923, while in the process of furnishing cast-iron lining for the Holland Vehicular Tunnel, the George H. Flinn Corporation of New York, the master contractor, came into control of the Davies and Thomas Company, with S. M. Rutledge of that firm becoming president.

 

A few years later the ownership again changed when the United States Pipe and Foundry Company of Burlington, New Jersey, acquired control and elected George Davies, Jr., to the presidency. George Davies, Jr., had been serving as general sales agent at the Davies and Thomas Company headquarters in New York City for many years. On or about 1945, Mr. Davies secured control by purchase of stock held by the United States Pipe and Foundry Company, and during the intervening years to 1947, the company fulfilled a contract for cast-iron lining for the Battery-to-Brooklyn Vehicular Tunnel. Operations were thereafter suspended; George Davies, Jr., then disposed of the plant by selling all of the physical assets to the Schneider Associates of Allentown, in October of 1947.

 

 

 

CATASAUQUA BOILER WORKS

 

Daniel Milson came to Catasauqua in 1854, and found employment at the Lehigh Crane Iron Works as a boilermaker. In 1865 he embarked in business for himself, renting the shop from the Lehigh Crane Iron Works, which was located near Front and Willow Streets. He continued to operate the business, which employed fifty men, until his retirement in 1890.

 

In April 1901, Samuel McCloskey, a long time employee of Daniel Milson, established the Catasauqua Boiler Works in the old Crane Iron Works building. After a successful career of two years Samuel McCloskey's three brothers, John, William and James, came from the far vest in order to join their brother in business. With the increase in orders the old shop became to small, and the company, therefore, bought the site of the old rolling mill property of the Catasauqua Manufacturing Company, at Brick and Lumber Streets. The firm then employed approximately forty men.

 

During 1907, the partnership was dissolved, and the property was sold to the F. W. Wint Company. The following year Samuel McCloskey re-rented his original shop from the Crane Iron Works and carried on a small business, employing fifteen hands, until the venture was abandoned in 1917 due to unfavorable conditions.

 

 

 

LEHIGH CAR, WHEEL and AXLE WORKS

 

The Lehigh Car, Wheel and Axle Works was formed on or about March 13, 1866 by Charles D. Fuller and William R. Thomas I, to engage in the manufacture of railroad car wheels. A tract of land was selected on the line of the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad west of the "Roundhouse," but, upon further investigation, it was thought advisable to erect the plant on the main line of the Lehigh Valley Railroad. This industry was then established on a tract of about eight acres of land purchased from Jacob Lazarus, which was located between the Lehigh Valley Railroad and the public road to Allentown, a mile south of the Biery (Race Street) Bridge. The plant originally had a capacity of fifteen wheels per day.

 

In 1868, James W. Fuller II, along with James H. McKee and others organized the firm of McKee, Fuller and Company and they became proprietors of the plant, with James W. Fuller II serving as president of the concern. Within ten years the only remaining partners were James H. McKee and James W. Fuller II. The company struggled along with varying success until 1880, when a contract was obtained to supply the Erie Railroad with eight-wheeled railroad cars. In order to complete this contract, McKee, Fuller and Company purchased from the National Bank of Catasauqua the vacant Frederick and Company car shops, which adjoined the south end of their plant. The plant immediately became busy and at one time the lumber arrived so fast that every siding was blocked with laden cars between Allentown and Catasauqua, and for a time fifteen hundred men were employed and Ferndale (Fullerton) became a thriving village. From this time on the success of the firm was assured and on February 13, 1883, William W. McKee and Benjamin Franklin Swartz were admitted to the firm. At about the same time a forge to forge the axles was added, and the business increased so fast that in the first six months of 1883 they built, complete, eighteen hundred and forty-nine eight-wheeled cars. This business amounted to $2,800,000 for the year. The capacity of the works in 1884 was sufficient to do a business of $4,000,000 per annum. The size of the plant continued to increase to sixty acres and the buildings extended along the road for nearly a mile from Ferndale station to Gap Junction. In 1891 the manufacture of cars was abandoned and for a time the business of the plant was directed toward car-wheels and general castings.

 

 

With the death of James H. McKee on November 5, 1895, the interest of his several heirs was placed on sale and acquired by the remaining members of the firm. It became a necessity, owing to the large interests involved, so as to prevent jeopardy to the interests of the others in case of the death of a remaining partner, to incorporate the plant. A charter was obtained February 5, 1901, and the business continued under the name of Lehigh Car, Wheel and Axle Works.

 

The type of business changed with the new century and the plant became engaged in manufacturing castings and crushing machinery, and the "Lehigh Fuller Pulverizing Mills" used by cement companies. The deaths of William W. McKee occurred on January 28, 1905 and B. Franklin Swartz on April 8, 1909. James W. Fuller III had entered the employ of the Lehigh Car, Wheel and Axle Works as an apprentice and he subsequently became a salesman, treasurer, general manager and with the death of his father, James W. Fuller II on January 15, 1910, president of the company. Joseph S. Elverson, brother-in-law of James W. Fuller III, served as secretary and treasurer of the company.

 

During a reorganization of the company in 1918 its name was changed to Fuller-Lehigh Company. About this time the firm purchased the patent for a pneumatic pump developed by Alonzo C. Kinyon. The pump, used to convey pulverized materials, was marketed as the Fuller-Kinyon pump, which became standard equipment in cement mills all over the world. In January, 1926, James W. Fuller III sold the Fuller-Lehigh Company rights, patents and properties, with the exception of the Kinyon pump patent, to the Babcock and Wilcox Company for $3,000,000. The Babcock and Wilcox Company continued to operate the Fuller-Lehigh plant until 1936, when operations were transferred to Barberton, Ohio.

 

 

 

LEHIGH FIRE BRICK COMPANY

 

Until 1854, all the refractory brick required to line the furnaces and stoves of the local iron furnaces were imported from Europe or elsewhere in the United States. However in that year Samuel McHose, the mason who supervised the construction of nearly all the early furnaces throughout the Lehigh Valley, and Oliver A. Ritter established a firebrick factory at the foot of Gordon Street in Allentown.

 

During 1868, Samuel McHose and Oliver Ritter were joined by David Thomas in starting the Lehigh Fire Brick Works, in a frame building located at the northwest corner of Spring and Brick Streets. In 1872 the plant was destroyed by fire and was immediately replaced by a two story stone structure, with five kilns of large capacity. The firebricks were manufactured from Woodbridge clay and were produced in every shape, for all purposes, - furnaces, ovens, arches, linings, jams, boshes, cupolas, etc.

 

David Thomas acquired total control of the business in 1873; he then became associated with his sons, Samuel and John Thomas, and son-in-law, Joshua Hunt. With the death of David Thomas on June 20, 1882, the company was incorporated on January 1, 1883, and Joshua Hunt then served as chairman until his death on July 18, 1886. David Hunt, son of Joshua Hunt, who had entered the employ of the company in 1879, then served as supervisor of the plant.

 

 

In November, 1885, Lucius H. McHose, son of Samuel McHose, came to Catasauqua as foreman of the Lehigh Fire Brick Works and during 1892, in the company of David Hunt, leased the plant and continued the manufacture of a superior firebrick. David Hunt passed away on February 24, 1898, and the concern was re-incorporated during 1903, with the same capital, $60,000. Lucius McHose became president of the firm in 1911 and by 1914 the plant had two kilns in operation, with an annual production of one and one half million firebrick. The directors and officers of the company in 1914 were as follows: Lucius H. McHose, President; Charles T. Evans, Secretary and Treasurer; and D. George Dery, Director. By the early 1920's the local iron furnaces were being shut down one by one and without a local market for their product the Lehigh Fire Brick Company ceased operations.

 

 

 

BRYDEN HORSE SHOE COMPANY

 

The history of the Bryden Horse Shoe Company begins in 1882, when the firm was organized with capital of sixty thousand dollars for the purpose of manufacturing horse shoes under the patents issued to George Bryden, of Hartford, Connecticut. The Bryden shoe was formed complete under blows of a heavy hammer, whereas all other machine-made shoes were rolled, and the heel and toe-caulks were then welded on by the blacksmith.

 

The company was organized with Joshua Hunt being president; Oliver Williams, secretary and treasurer; and P. F. Greenwood, superintendent. A one-story brick building was erected on the northwest corner of Railroad and Strawberry Streets, and the plant was equipped with two forge-hammers. About thirty men were employed for several years and the daily product was from two and one-half to three tons. The bar-iron was received from the Catasauqua Manufacturing Company, with which Mr. Williams was prominently identified. During 1884, Oliver Williams was elevated to the presidency of the firm, while remaining as the treasurer of the company.

 

With the passing of streetcar horses, the company was obliged to seek other outlets for its product and to do this it became necessary to increase the plant accordingly. In 1888, this was accomplished and the capital stock was increased to one hundred thousand dollars. The company purchased land on the west side of Front Street, straddling the northern boundary of the borough. The land was purchased from the Faust family, early settlers to the area. A larger plant was erected in 1889 at this site. Jacob Roberts of Poughkeepsie, New York, co-owner of the Phoenix Horse Shoe Company of that city, was engaged to equip the new plant for the manufacture of pattern shoes used by the general blacksmith trade. In August 1889, Mr. Roberts severed his connection with the Phoenix Horse Shoe Company and became superintendent of the Bryden Horse Shoe Company. A rolling mill was installed at the new plant for the manufacture of bar-iron.

 

 

The company continued with success and enlargements to the plant were made to meet the demands and the capital of the company was increased to six hundred and twenty-five thousand dollars. During the Boer War of 1899-1900, the company supplied the British War Department with about a carload of horse and mule shoes weekly.

 

Oliver Williams passed away on September 17, 1904 and he was succeeded by George E. Holton, his son-inlaw, as president and treasurer. Tilghman F. Frederick continued to serve as secretary until his death on March 31, 1909, when H. Morley Holton succeeded him as secretary. Jacob Roberts had passed away on November 18, 1905, and Paul E. Miller then became General Manager.

 

On February 10, 1913, George E. Holton departed this life and his duties as president were taken over by his widow, Jessica (Williams) Holton. H. Morley Holton then served as both secretary and treasurer of the company. The plant grew steadily and by 1914 it occupied about seven acres of ground, and its daily production was from forty to fifty tons of horseshoes, and about three hundred men were employed by the company at that time.

 

In 1928 the Phoenix Horse Shoe Company of Poughkeepsie re-organized as the Phoenix Manufacturing Company and a great expansion program went into effect. At that time the Phoenix Manufacturing Company purchased four other horseshoe companies, one of which was the Bryden Horse Shoe Company of Catasauqua, which then operated under the name of Phoenix Manufacturing Company.

 

During 1939 it was decided to discontinue the rolling mill at the Catasauqua plant and to convert the plant into a drop forging plant. The concern continued to grow, that by 1953 it was equipped with twenty-one board hammers, ranging from 1,200 pounds to 4,000 pounds, a complete die-room and production machine shop and the firm employed two hundred and seventy-five persons.

 

In 1957, the Union Tank Car Company purchased the Phoenix Manufacturing Company, all divisions and subsidiaries, which included the Catasauqua plant. The Trans Union Company, successor of the Union Tank Car Company, sold all the Phoenix facilities in 1971, except the Catasauqua plant, which was then renamed the Phoenix Forging Company. The Trans Union Company continued to improve the plant. Two large 6-station, 5-die cold heading machines, capable of progressively forming parts from coil stock, were installed. The old wooden southern end of the shop had fallen into disrepair over the years and was finally raised in 1977, and a new modern metal structure was erected in its place.

 

In 1981, the Marmon Group, Inc. purchased Trans Union Company and with it, the Phoenix Forging Company. After a long and bitter strike the plant was sold to Barco Industries of Reading in 1985. The company's operations were then under Oven W. Blum, president; John Rodgers, vice-president and secretary-treasurer; and Larry Dildine, vice-president of operations.

 

 

 

GLOBE METAL WORKS

 

The Globe Metal Works was established at Fullerton by Clinton H. Fuller in 1883. Three large buildings were erected and the business engaged in scrap-iron, buying up second hand boilers, engines, etc. Orange M. Fuller, brother of Clinton Fuller, became a partner in the firm for a period of two years after which Clinton H. Fuller assumed control of the entire business.

 

In 1889 the Fullerton plant was disposed of and the firm removed to Catasauqua were Clinton H. Fuller with his brother, Abbott Fuller, established a successful furnace. The plant was located on Race Street, between the canal and the Lehigh River. The plant was fitted out with five furnaces, operated by electric motors. The company produced Globe bronze and Viola and Crane Anti-Friction Metal.

 

Abbott Fuller sold his interest in the firm during 1890 to Clinton H. Fuller, who conducted a profitable

business until 1900, when a fire destroyed the entire plant.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

McINTYRE FOUNDRY

 

In 1893, Robert J. McIntyre leased the foundry of the Crane Iron Works, which was situated at the foot of Willow Street along the canal. The foundry produced all kinds of rolling-mill, furnace, and architectural castings, besides filling orders from the Crane Iron Works. After three years he closed the foundry and removed to Allentown.

 

Robert J. McIntyre had previously been a foreman at the New York City Iron Works and he had also served as superintendent of the Union Foundry and Machine Company at Catasauqua.

 

 

 

EMPIRE STEEL and IRON COMPANY

 

On March 13, 1899, the Empire Steel and Iron Company received a charter in the State of New Jersey. The formation of the company was mainly through the efforts of Leonard Peckitt, who was elected president, and within one year of its organization, the Empire Steel and Iron Company had acquired control of the Crane Iron Works at Catasauqua, Pennsylvania; the Macungie Furnace, Macungie, Pennsylvania, which was operated until 1913 and briefly reactivated in 1917-1918; the Henry Clay Furnace, Reading, Pennsylvania, operated until 1913; the Topton Furnace, Topton, Pennsylvania; Nittany Furnace, Bellefonte, Pennsylvania; the Oxford Furnace, Oxford, New Jersey, operated until 1921; the Gem Furnace, Shenandoah, Virginia; the Victoria Furnace, Goshen, Virginia; and the Cherokee Furnace, Greensboro, North Carolina. The combined annual capacity of these furnaces was 378,000 gross tons. The southern furnaces were retained for only a few years, and the Allentown Iron Company was operated under the management of the Crane Iron Works of the Empire Steel and Iron Company from 1900 to 1904.

 

In 1899, the company purchased the Mount Hope Mining Company, consisting of a 1,700-acre tract with magnetic ore mines and a concentrating plant, with an annual capacity of 225,000 tons. The company also controlled the Mount Hope Mineral Railroad Company, a 4-1/2 mile line, which connected with the Central Railroad of New Jersey and the Delaware, Lackawanna and Western Railroad at Wharton, New Jersey. Twenty-five hundred acres of iron-ore land at Oxford, New Jersey and mineral rights on another 8,000 acres, and the Victoria Coal and Coke Company, which owned 1,500 acres of coal lands and 135 beehive coke ovens at Caperton, West Virginia, were also controlled by the Empire Steel and Iron Company.

 

The General Offices of the Empire Steel and Iron Company were maintained at New York City until June 1, 1900, when they were removed to Catasauqua. In 1908, the company erected a three-story brick office building at 124 Bridge Street at the cost of twenty thousand dollars. In April of 1922 the Empire Steel and Iron Company was acquired by the Replogle Steel Company, which was the predecessor of the Warren Foundry and Pipe Corporation.

 

 

 

 

 

HERCULES METAL WORKS

 

On January 1, 1904, J. Arthur Williams embarked in the business of manufacturing high-grade brass, bronze, copper and machine castings, including a line of trolley wheels. He first leased the foundry of the Crane Iron Works, located at the foot of Willow Street, and conducted the business there for three years; then in 1907 he leased the northern part of the abandoned Johnson Steel Mill, located on the West Side, a short distance south of the Race Street Bridge. The plant was operated by J. Arthur Williams until his death on May 12, 1934.

 

 

 

CATASAUQUA CASTING COMPANY

 

The Union Foundry and Machine Company plant, located on Race Street, between the canal and the Lehigh River, remained idle for two years when a new operation was effected there in 1907, which was called the Catasauqua Casting Company. The plant was placed under the management of Frederick Conlin and it manufactured all kinds of castings. Richard O. Kohler, son-in-law of Oliver Williams, was prominently identified with the undertaking as the chief executive officer. The company continued in operation until 1912, when it suspended all operations.

 

 

 

FULLER COMPANY

 

With the sale of the Fuller-Lehigh Company in January 1926 to the Babcock and Wilcox Company, James W. Fuller III remained with the later as chairman of the board for a few months. He then resigned and on March 11, 1926, he incorporated the Fuller Company to handle the Fuller-Kinyon pump system for conveying pulverized materials. As president of the company, James W. Fuller III purchased the former offices of the Empire Steel and Iron Company, at 124 Bridge Street. The general offices and an engineering department were established there and also the executive offices of the Allentown Portland Cement Company were then transferred to the building.

 

The officers of the company in 1926 were: President, Colonel James W. Fuller III; Vice President, Alfred E. Douglass, Sr.; Treasurer, Ralph S. Weaver; Secretary, Earl A. Jones; with the Board of Directors as follows: James W. Fuller III, Alfred E. Douglass, Sr., Ralph S. Weaver, and James W. Fuller IV. The General Manager was also Alfred E. Douglass, Sr.; with Peter F. Stauffer serving as Sales Manager; Joseph H. Morrow, Chief Engineer; George Kemp Engelhart, Engineer and Patent Attorney; Irvin Cressman, Purchasing Agent; Stanley Danner, Bookkeeper; Richard Howell, Engineer and Salesman; Jose Alonzo, Engineer and Salesman; Herbert Lenhart, Research; Edward McNabb, Office Manager; Warren Greene, Carl Mark and Rollin McKeever, Draftsmen.

 

In 1928 the firm experimented with a "baby buggy," a hand operated portable unloader of bulk cement. Through a series of improvements, the firm designed a buggy that could be operated by a control wand.

 

With the death of Colonel James W. Fuller III in San Francisco on April 4, 1929, Alfred E. Douglass, Sr., assumed the position of president of the company. The stock of the company was then divided between the Colonel's two sons, with James W. Fuller IV receiving sixty percent of the company and Charlton Thomas Fuller receiving forty percent of the stock upon reaching the age of twenty-seven. Prior the Colonel Fuller's death he had purchased the building then being used by the post office, northeast corner of Bridge and Railroad Streets, and in September, 1929 the company moved into the third floor of the building and by 1935 they occupied the entire building.

 

In 1929 Fuller Company acquired the Guarantee Construction Company of New York, the manufacturers of the "Airveyor," a high velocity suspension-type pneumatic conveyor, and in 1931, Fuller Company purchased the rights to the French multi-vane rotary design compressor. The Breerwood process was marketed in 1934. This process allowed the manufacture of cement from inferior limestone and silicious material.

 

The rights for what became the Fuller-Fluxo System were acquired in 1935 from the F. L. Smidth Company. This system was used as a substitute for the Fuller-Kinyon system when conveying cement and abrasive materials over great distances.

 

The Fuller Company established a small machine shop in a portion of the Lynch and Dugan Garage, located at the southwest corner of Pine and Railroad Streets, in October 1936. The one-man shop was used for the company's first in house production. In June of 1939, Fuller Company purchased ten acres along the west side of Front Street, at the site of the former Crane Iron Works, then owned by the Borough of Catasauqua. The research, machine, carpentry and electrical shops were set up in three buildings of the former Crane Iron Works.

 

In November 1939 the president's position passed to James W. Fuller IV, with Alfred E. Douglass, Sr. becoming chairman of the Executive Committee. By 1945 the company's demand for plate work was so great Fuller Company erected its own plate shop along Front Street, which had an original work force of twenty-two men. Business continued to increase and in 1946 Fuller Company purchased the Manheim plant. By 1951, after twenty-five years of existence, Fuller Company was a leading supplier of pneumatic conveying equipment to the cement industry. The company employed approximately 800 people and had annual sales of approximately $8,000,000. The firm had offices in Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles.

 

Fuller Company was sold by James W. Fuller IV and C. Thomas Fuller to General American Transportation Corporation (GATX) in August of 1954, and the officers of the company at that time were: James W. Fuller IV, President; C. Thomas Fuller, Vice-President; Alfred E. Douglass, Sr., Chairman of the Executive Committee; Joseph H. Morrow, Vice-President in Charge of Engineering; George Kemp Engelhart, Vice-President in Charge of Sales; Channing O. Davis, General Manager; Harold C. Wolbach, Treasurer; and Alvin S. Heffelfinger, Secretary.

 

Alfred E. Douglass, Sr. was re-named president and he continued to serve in this capacity until January 1957. A new engineering building was erected at the corner of Front and Willow Streets, which enabled the consolidation of eight engineering groups. During this time Traylor Engineering and Manufacturing Company of Allentown was purchased by Fuller Company. With the retirement of Alfred E. Douglass, Sr. in 1957, Channing O. Davis was elected president of the firm.

 

In 1965, GATX built a two-story office building at 118 Bridge Street, naming it Building No. 3 and in 1966 Building No. 1 (Empire Steel and Iron Company) and No. 2 (old post office) were given facelifts to resemble the new structure.

 

Harlan J. Thompson succeeded Channing O. Davis as president of Fuller Company in January 1967, and he served as such until February 1972. Mr. Thompson was followed by Frank W. Homer, who served until 1977; Kenneth A. Krick, 1977-1982; and Elmer D. Gates, 1982-1990.

 

With increasing demands for office space, Fuller Company headquarters were moved to new facilities in the Lehigh Valley Industrial Park I, Bethlehem, during 1976.

 

In 1986 a Fuller management group led by Fuller Company president Elmer D. Gates and a New York investor, Eli S. Jacobs, purchased Fuller Company from General American Transportation Corporation. After four years of operations, they sold the company in 1990 to the F. L. Smidth Company, then owned by FLS Industries A/S of Denmark.

 

 

 

GRAVER TANK and MANUFACTURING COMPANY

 

The Graver Tank and Manufacturing Company Inc. of East Chicago, Indiana, started a plant at Catasauqua in 1933. The original Graver operations were started in 1858 by William Graver, in Allegheny, for the fabrication and erection of tanks for storing petroleum products. Operations were subsequently moved to the Chicago area.

 

The Eastern division with plant and headquarters at Catasauqua operated at the site of the former Lehigh Fire Brick Company, northwest corner of Spring and Brick Streets.

 

The local plant manufactured tanks ranging in size from five hundred and fifty gallon storage capacity to large field tanks over six million gallon storage capacity. The large tanks were shipped and erected and welded in the field by crews of workmen in a territory extending from Maine to Florida.

 

The work force at the Catasauqua shop consisted of about one hundred and thirty employees and was under the supervision of F. H. Burchfield. Graver Tank and Manufacturing Company closed the Catasauqua plant during 1956 and moved the operations to Edgemoor, Delaware.

 

 

 

CATASAUQUA MACHINE WORKS

 

In October, 1939 Frederick J. Walker and Milton O. Knauss, then secretary and manager, respectively, of the Davies and Thomas Company, with some out-of-state interests, formed the Catasauqua Machine Corporation, with S. M. Rutledge, of the George H. Flinn Corporation of New York, as president; Milton O. Knauss, vice-president; and Frederick J. Walker, secretary and treasurer.

 

The machine shop of the Davies and Thomas Company was leased, and the firm proceeded to do jobbing machine work, including the manufacture of complete assemblies from material furnished by the customers, along with the normal repairs and maintenance requirements of the Davies and Thomas Company.

 

In 1943, Frederick J. Walker and Milton O. Knauss purchased all of the outstanding stock and continued the business as a partnership under the title of Catasauqua Machine Works. During October 1950 all physical assets were sold and the business liquidated.


 

 

PART THREE  --  TRANSPORTATION

 

 

 

LEHIGH COAL and NAVIGATION COMPANY

 

The navigation of the Lehigh River was a subject of discussion for many years, and as early as March 9, 1771, an act was passed declaring it a common highway and appointing commissioners to improve the navigation of the stream. Other acts were passed in 1791 and 1794, and on February 27, 1798, an act was passed appointing William Tilghman, Godfrey Haga, and John M. Taylor, of Philadelphia; John Barnet, Joseph Horsefield, and Nicholas Kern, of Northampton County; and Matthais Hollenbach, Rosewell Welles, and Lord Butler, of Luzerne County, commissioners, who were authorized to receive subscriptions for stock, at $100 a share, in the Lehigh Navigation Company and also authorizing the sum of $10,000 to be raised by a lottery, the proceeds to be employed in the improvement of the river.

 

The Lehigh Coal Mine Company had been organized February 13, 1792, by Col. Jacob Weiss, Michael Hillegass, Charles Cist, William Henry, and others and secured about 10,000 acres of land, the greater part containing coal deposits. Owing to the difficulties of transporting the coal, the mines remained neglected until 1806, when William Turnbull constructed an "ark" (a rough timber boat, 16 feet wide and 20 feet long) in which he conveyed two or three hundred bushels of anthracite coal to Philadelphia. Boats of this pattern, somewhat larger, were afterwards made to carry on the business, and continued in use until 1831.

 

Josiah White, who, with Erskine Hazzard and George F. A. Hauto, had secured a twenty-year lease from the Lehigh Coal Mine Company, at an annual rental of one ear of corn, had a new act passed authorizing them to improve the navigation of the river, and organized on the 10th of August, 1818, the Lehigh Navigation Company. On October 21, 1818, the Lehigh Coal Company was formed and on April 21, 1820, the two companies were consolidated under the name of the Lehigh Navigation and Coal Company. By an Act of Assembly passed February 13, 1822, the company was incorporated as the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company.

 

"Bear trap" dams were designed and built by Josiah White and in 1819 twelve of these dams and sluices were built. The "Bear trap" dams were built to form pools of water, and when the water overflowed them long enough to fill the river-bed below to its ordinary flow, the "sluice-gates" were let down and the current thus created would move the "arks", collected in the pool, down the artificial flood to the next "Bear trap" dam. After the incorporation of the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company, they were empowered to commence a slack water navigation upon the Lehigh River within a year from the dated of the act.

 

On January 27, 1827, the same year in which operations were begun on the canal, a railroad was constructed, nine miles in length, from the mines at Summit Hill to Mauch Chunk, on a wagon road laid out in 1819. The elevation of Summit Hill was 936 feet and the cars of coal descended by gravity. Mules rode down with the coal and brought the empty cars to the mine, the trip taking three hours. In 1845, a back track was completed for returning the cars, known as the famous "Switchback Railroad."

 

Work on the canal was commenced during the summer of 1827 with thirteen hands, under the direction of Canvass White, at the mouth of the Nesquehoning Creek; which number soon increased to seventy, and afterwards to many more. Two scows (14 by 35 feet) were rigged for lodging and feeding the men; one was built for the manager's counting-house, store-house, and dwelling; and another for a kitchen and bakery. As work was finished on the way down the stream, these four scows were floated down from point to point. The construction of the canal was made while the country north of Lehigh Gap was still a wilderness and the working people came from many different nations. Payments were made by check so as not to encourage violence. The work was completed to Easton in 1829, a total distance of 46 miles; the ditch was approximately five feet deep, 60 feet wide at the top and 45 feet wide at the bottom. There were 44 lift locks and 8 guard locks located at the eight dams that were erected. On account of the heavy grade in the course of the river, Catasaauqua had to be well locked. Swartz's (Hokendauqua) Dam and a guard lock placed north of the borough line and eight-tenths of a mile south was the Catasauqua Lock (No. 36), with a lift of 7.4 feet. "Rohn's" or "Koehler's" Lock (No. 37) laid one and three tenths of a mile south of the Catasauqua Lock. This lock also had a lift of seven and four tenth feet.

 

On June 26, 1829, a gate was opened and water from the Lehigh River flowed into the last leg of the Lehigh Canal, completing the entire length from Mauch Chunk to Easton. The next afternoon at Easton, the packet boat "Swan" made its first trip, a three-mile excursion up the canal. On June 29th, the first boats arrived at Easton loaded with anthracite coal. By the end of July, the "Swan" and "Independence" were making scheduled runs from Easton to Mauch Chunk. The first excursion to Biery's Port was on an "Ark" run from Allentown, June 26, 1829. The "Ark" was decorated with U. S. flags and it was drawn by two horses. Eleven year old, Clarissa Miller, daughter of Henry Miller and future wife of James W. Fuller I, was one of the members of that merry party.

 

In 1835, the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company decided to extend the canal 26 miles north from Mauch Chunk to White Haven. To accomplish this, Edwin A. Douglass built 29 locks and 20 dams and the work was completed in 1838. The upper division of the canal was in operation until the flood of June 4th and 5th, 1862 destroyed many of the locks and dams.

 

 

A double canal was maintained at Catasauqua because of the amount of canal-boat traffic caused by the operations of the Crane Iron Works' furnaces. Opened in 1839 the second canal ran from just south of the guard lock at Swartz's (Hokendauqua) Dam to the Catasauqua Lock (No. 36), by the furnaces. This canal remained open for a number of years, but with the iron company relying more on the local railroads for transportation the canal was filled in near the end of the nineteenth century, and in 1905 the Crane Railroad Company extended their tracks north, over the filled in canal, to connect with the Central Railroad of New Jersey.

 

From 1845 to 1865 two boat yards were maintained for building and repairing purposes at Catasauqua. Bogh Brothers was located just above Spring Street (below the Phoenix Forging Company) and Ginder and Rehig conducted their business at the bottom of Willow Street.

 

Although by the 1920's the railroads had gradually taken the canal's place in local transportation, the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company continued to operate the canal until the autumn of 1931. Short sections of the canal continued to operate between Laury's Station and Easton, until the flood of 1942, which washed away buildings and canal boats, and put to an end the commercial life of the canal.

 

The local section of the canal was used by the residents for fishing, ice-skating and other recreation throughout the 1940's and 1950's. In 1962, the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company began selling its assets and in 1964, Edwin H. Koons purchased the Catasauqua section of the canal and it then fell into disuse.

 

 

 

CRANE RAILROAD

 

A plant railroad was established on the property of the Crane Iron Works in the late 1840's for the purpose of transporting iron ore, limestone, coal, slag, etc. to and from their furnaces. The company operated both standard and narrow gauge railroads and in December 1904, the Crane Iron Works maintained a roster of seven steam engines, four standard and three narrow-gauge.

 

Over the years the Crane Iron Works continued to expand their trackage, which included a narrow gauge line running along the tracks of the Central Railroad of New Jersey to a slag bank south of the borough in Hanover Township, between the canal and the Lehigh River. An engine-house was erected at the southwest corner of Front and Bridge Streets for the maintenance of their engines. During 1857, the Crane Iron Company Bridge was reinforced and strengthened in order to carry the company's locomotive, "The Hercules", and the ore-cars brought in by the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad. In 1904, the company removed the old wooden covered bridge and erected a new plate girder bridge, capable of supporting the weightiest and most massive rolling stock.

 

In order to extend certain tracks the Crane Iron Works applied for a charter for the Crane Railroad Company, July 28, 1905. Tracks were then extended northward along the course of the canal until they connected with the Central Railroad of New Jersey.

 

The company then decided to extend their tracks eastward into Kurtz Valley for the purpose of establishing a cinder dump. In November 1909, the Borough Council of Catasauqua approved the company's request to construct a tunnel from the west side of Second Street, behind the company homes on Wood Street, to the east side of Howertown Road. Rights-of-way were purchased and construction began on March 21, 1910. The tunnel was actually dug out forming a cut and a concrete arched liner was put in place and filled over. The tunnel was completed by November 1910 and on March 11, 1911  a spur was completed from the Davies and Thomas Company to the Crane Railroad tracks east of the tunnel near the cinder dump. The Crane Railroad Company then had a total trackage of 3.31 miles.

 

The Lehigh and New England Railroad Company, which was owned by the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company, announced in May, 1913, plans to build a spur from their branch line, which ran from Bender's Junction, by way of Bath, to Bethlehem. Work commenced on June 1, 1913 and the last spike was driven in on March 14, 1914, connecting the Lehigh and New England Railroad with the Crane Railroad at the east end of the borough. On Monday, March 23, 1914, the spur was formally opened when officials of the Crane Railroad Company and the Lehigh and New England Railroad Company entered town in a special train.

 

The Crane Railroad was purchased by the Lehigh and New England Railroad Company in July 1914, and on December 1, 1914, full control of all the Crane Railroad's tracks, rolling stock and assets were assumed by the Lehigh and New England Railroad, which renamed the line the Catasauqua Branch. A freight station for this line was built on the southwest corner of Front and Pine Streets in 1916.

 

The Lehigh and New England Railroad ceased to service Catasauqua in October 1961, when the freight station was closed. The tracks coming into the borough were removed shortly afterward and in 1964 the tunnel was sealed at both ends.

 

 

 

LEHIGH VALLEY RAILROAD

 

The first railroad to arrive at Catasauqua was the Lehigh Valley Railroad, which lay on the west side of the Lehigh River.

 

The Lehigh Valley Railroad was originally incorporated under the name of the Delaware, Lehigh, Schuylkill and Susquehanna Railroad Company, by an Act passed by the legislature of Pennsylvania on April 21, 1846. The Act was passed against a strong and determined opposition, and the commissioners named in the Act were: William Edelman, Casper Kleckner, George Probst, Stephen Balliet, John D. Bauman, Thomas Craig, Henry King, Benjamin Ludwig, Christian Pretz, Peter Huber, James M. Porter, Peter S. Michier and Abraham Miller. These commissioners advertised for subscriptions of stock on June 2, 1846, but it was not until August 2, 1847, that a sufficient amount could be secured, with 5,002 shares subscribed at five dollars per share.

 

The letters patent were issued September 20, 1847, and the election of officers was held on October 21, 1847, with James M. Porter Esq. elected president.

 

During the fall of 1850 the first survey was made by Roswell B. Mason along the Lehigh River from Easton to the Mahoning Creek. Work began on March 10, 1851 on the first sixteen miles from the Delaware River to a point near Allentown, under the direction of Dr. Jesse Samuels, civil engineer, of Allentown.

 

On April 4, 1851, Asa Packer became identified with the enterprise, and during the following October he secured a large amount of the original stock and inaugurated earnest movements towards the construction of the road. A year afterward Mr. Packer submitted a proposition to build that portion from Mauch Chunk to Easton for a certain price to be paid in bonds and stocks of the company, which was accepted; and about that time Robert H. Sayre was appointed chief engineer. On January 7, 1853, the name of the company was changed to the Lehigh Valley Railroad Company. The construction of the railroad was completed by September 24, 1855, and then it was accepted by the company from the contractor, Asa Packer.

 

In the fall of 1855, a locomotive, known as the "General Wall", with one car attached, conveyed a contingent of entrepreneurs from the coal and iron industries and also members of the financial market as far as the Crane Iron Company Bridge. An impromptu parade was formed and the march made across the bridge to the Eagle Hotel (northeast corner of Front and Bridge Streets). After a dinner at the Eagle, the party proceeded to Hokendauqua to view the furnaces of the Thomas Iron Company, which were just erected.

 

 

The Lehigh Valley Railroad located their station between its track and the Lehigh River, just north of the Crane Iron Company Bridge. A new station was built during 1906 and was completed in May 1907. This served as both a freight and passenger station until June 30, 1933, when the Lehigh Valley Railroad discontinued the agency at Catasauqua; the waiting room remained open for several years, but no trains stopped regularly, and the station was finally torn down in the fall of 1941. In May, 1904, the Lehigh Valley Railroad began conducting freight business on the east side of the river, on the Crane Railroad sidings near Front and Bridge Streets and in December, 1904, they opened a freight office at that location, which was they conducted for approximately ten years.

 

The Lehigh Valley Railroad built what was known as Biery yard about 1911, which was located on the site of one of the Thomas Iron Company's cinder dumps, perpendicular to their main line, along the north side of the Coplay Creek, lying beside the tracks of the Ironton Railroad.

 

The Lehigh Valley Railroad continued to operated on the west side of the river and in 1972 they acquired the main line of the Central Railroad of New Jersey in Pennsylvania. With the formation of Conrail the Lehigh Valley Railroad passed into history.

 

 

 

CATASAUQUA and FOGELSYILLE RAILROAD

 

The Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad Company was the second railroad to transverse Lehigh County. The application for a charter was presented to the Legislature by James W. Fuller I, who had been engaged by David Thomas, acting for the Lehigh Crane Iron Company and the Thomas Iron Company. His efforts were met with intense opposition and indignation. The efforts of the "Black Republicans" were bitterly denounced and it was claimed that a railroad would cut up and destroy the beautiful farming districts of the Jordan Valley.

 

By perseverance and tact Mr. Fuller succeeded at last in securing a charter, for construction of a plank road, on April 5, 1853. After prolonged efforts, the railroad charter was secured on April 20, 1854, and in 1856 the Act was amended, allowing the railroad to be extended into Berks County.

 

Construction of the railroad began in the summer of 1856. The route was laid out by Lansford F. Chapman and his brother, Charles W. Chapman. The railroad's first terminus was at Chapman's, eight and one-half miles from Catasauqua, which had been named after the brothers and the line was opened on July 14, 1857.

 

The erection of the "Iron Bridge" was necessitated at the crossing of the Jordan Creek by the length and depth of the Jordan Creek valley. The extreme length of the "Iron Bridge" was 1,165 feet. The iron superstructure was 1,100 feet in length, consisting of eleven spans of 100 feet each, with a height of 104 feet above the bed of the creek.

 

 

The Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad erected their Catasauqua station directly across the tracks from the Lehigh Valley Railroad station, on the west side of the Lehigh River.

 

In 1860, the tracks of the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad reached Trexlertown and the line arrived at Alburtis in 1864, connecting with the East Penn Railroad. The railroad continued to Rittenhouse Gap in Berks County, a total length of 17 miles; sixteen miles, of which, were in Lehigh County.

 

A small barn-like round-house and a shop were erected above the entrance of Fairview Cemetery and a railroad yard was maintained west of Water Street and south of Eberhard Road.

 

On November 29, 1875, Charles W. Chapman, superintendent and engineer of the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad, announced that passenger trains on this line would run in connection with the Lehigh Valley Railroad at Catasauqua and the East Penn Railroad at Alburtis.

 

The morning train departed Catasauqua at 7:00 A.M., with the arrival of the Lehigh Valley Railroad local passenger train from Easton, Bethlehem and Allentown; arriving at Alburtis at 8:05 A.M., by way of Seiple's, Jordan Bridge, Guth's, Walberts, Chapman's, Trexlertown, and Spring Creek, connecting with the East Penn Railroad train for Reading, Pottstown, Harrisburg, and also a train for Allentown, Bethlehem, Easton and New York City.

 

The morning train east departed Alburtis at 9:21 A.M., after connecting with the East Penn Railroad train from Allentown, and arrived at Catasauqua, 10:36 A.M., connecting with trains on the Lehigh Valley Railroad for Mauch Chunk, Wilkes-Barre and Scranton, and also Philadelphia and New York City.

 

The afternoon train departed Catasauqua at 1:15 P.M. and arrived at Alburtis at 2:30 P.M., connecting with a train on the East Penn Railroad, and an evening train departed Alburtis at 5:03 P.M., with the arrival of a train from Allentown and a train from Reading, and arrived at Catasauqua at 5:58 P.M., connecting with a local passenger train on the Lehigh Valley Railroad headed for Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton.

 

In November 1890, the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad Company, which in 1869 had leased the Eastern Pennsylvania Railroad, better known as the East Penn Railroad, secured the sixty percent of the stock of the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad that had been owned by the Crane Iron Company. The other forty percent of the stock was owned by the Thomas Iron Company. The Philadelphia and Reading Railroad expanded the railroad yard at Catasauqua in 1910, located south of Eberhard Road.

 

The "Iron Bridge" would begin to create weight restriction problems near the turn of the century and during the World War I era the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad would fill over the structure with slag from the furnaces, in a project that took several years to accomplish.

 

In 1952, with the erection of the new Pine Street Bridge the old railroad station was moved over along the Reading yard, by the entrance of Fairview Cemetery.

 

On May 8, 1959, the Reading Railroad operated a special school trip for the students of Catasauqua. An old steam engine and several old styled cars were used to transport about 550 students and chaperons to Hershey, Pennsylvania. Leaving from the Reading yard the train traveled on the old Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad line to Alburtis, where it connected with the East Penn line of the Philadelphia and Reading Railroad to Hershey.

 

 

 

IRONTON RAILROAD

 

The Ironton Railroad was formed in 1859 for the construction of a railroad from Hokendauqua and Coplay to Ironton. The Thomas Iron Company, the main backers of this venture, contracted with Tinsley Jeter and his associates to build the railroad.

 

A charter was obtained on March 4, 1859 and Eli Saeger was elected president of the company. The grading of the roadbed was commenced at Ironton on August 2, 1859. In spite of a sever winter, the road was thoroughly blasted by spring; and the first trainload of cars passed over it on May 24, 1860.

 

Just west of Stiles the railroad forked, with one leg going to Coplay and the other following the Coplay Creek toward West Catasauqua, where it connected with the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad near Eberhard Road. The main track of the Ironton Railroad continued along the creek to Water Street, there it headed north behind Dark Town to the furnaces of the Thomas Iron Company, where it then connected with the Lehigh Valley Railroad.

 

A three-mile branch was established in 1861 from the main line near Ironton to Siegersville and Orefield. This branch was in use until the end of the nineteenth century, when the mining operations in that area were discontinued.

 

The entire capital stock of the Ironton Railroad was purchased by the Thomas Iron Company on February 1, 1882. In 1884, the first of the ten large cement plants was established along this railroad. For many years, this railroad was the most profitable of any in the world in proportion to length and investment. Passenger service was established on November 1, 1898 and continued for some time. In 1922, the Thomas Iron Company's stock was purchased by Drexel and Company, and they subsequently sold the railroad stock to the Lehigh Valley Railroad, Central Railroad of New Jersey, and the Reading Railroad.

 

 

 

LEHIGH and SUSQUEHANNA RAILROAD

 

The destructive flood of June 1862 along the Lehigh River and the great damage to the canal of the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company led to the construction of the Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad. A charter was granted on March 4, 1863, to the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company for the purpose of building a railroad from White Haven to Mauch Chunk in lieu of rebuilding the damaged locks and dams along this leg of the canal. In 1864, an Act was passed authorizing the railroad to be extended from Mauch Chunk to Easton, there to connect with the Central Railroad of New Jersey.

 

Accordingly, this railroad was built along the east bank of the Lehigh River in 1867 and was operated by the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company until 1871, when a lease was secured by the Central Railroad of New Jersey for nine hundred and ninety-nine years.

 

The Central Railroad of New Jersey operated a station between the canal and the Lehigh River, just north of the Crane Iron Company Bridge. This served as a freight agency and passenger station. Access to this station could be made across the canal bridge, by the Crane Iron Works and after the erection of both the old and new Pine Street bridges, by steps coming down from the bridges. Passenger business formally ended in 1948 and the freight agency ceased to operate in 1952. The depot was dismantled during the later part of 1955 and the early part of 1956.

 

In 1892, the Central Railroad of New Jersey built a short spur from just below the Race Street, running east and slightly northward along the Catasauqua Creek, reaching the Davies and Thomas Company. The Central Railroad of New Jersey also maintained a small railroad yard, between Race Street and the Crane Iron Company Bridge. During 1972, the Lehigh Valley Railroad acquired the Central Railroad of New Jersey's main line in Pennsylvania.

 

 


 

PART FOUR  --  BIOGRAPHICAL and GENEALOGICAL RECORD

45

 

 

HORACE BOYD

 

Horace Boyd, son of Alexander Reed Boyd, was born at Catasauqua on August 31, 1862. The father, Alexander R. Boyd, son of Copeland Boyd, was born in Goshenhoppen, Montgomery County in 1826. He accepted a clerkship with the Lehigh Crane Iron Works and for upward of a quarter of a century he filled various important and responsible positions with this company. He left the employ of the Crane Iron Works to become treasurer of the Chestnut Hill Iron Company at Columbia, Lancaster County. He then removed to Hellertown and was employed by the Thomas Iron Company at their Saucon furnaces as an accountant, and in this capacity he continued until his death in 1889. While residing at Catasauqua he served as borough treasurer for a number of years, and he was also a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Catasauqua and his political affiliations were with the Republican Party. Alexander R. Boyd married Mary Louise Fuehrer, daughter of Henry Fuehrer, and this union was blessed with three children: Ellen Dale (Ella), born June 26, 1856, married Edwin Thomas, died July 25, 1932; Horace, of further mention; and Mary L., married Edward L. Tait, of Easton.

 

Horace Boyd attended the public schools of Catasauqua, graduating from high school in 1879. His business career commenced at the age of seventeen, when he entered the carpenter shop at the Lock Ridge Furnace. Later he worked at the Philadelphia Navy Yard and he then removed to Columbia, Pennsylvania, and became connected with the Chestnut Hill Iron Company, working as a master mechanic. On December 13, 1884, the Thomas Iron Company acquired the Saucon Iron Company at Hellertown, and they appointed Horace Boyd superintendent of the plant. On October 1, 1890 he resigned the superintendency and removed to Coplay, where he became general manager of the Coplay Iron Company and there he remained until the plant was liquidated. On July 1, 1895 he returned as superintendent of the Saucon furnaces of the Thomas Iron Company and he remained there until March 3, 1903, when he was transferred to the Hokendauqua plant and made manager. In 1908, Horace Boyd became general superintendent of the Thomas Iron Company, and he continued in that position until 1913, when he retired. In his latter years he was associated with Dr. H. D. Heller in a stone quarry business. He was also affiliated with Burkner and Howard Knecht in the Percarrio Coal Company, and he was president of the Greenwich Manufacturing Company at Lenhartsville.

 

On October 18, 1887, Horace Boyd was united in marriage with Miss Emma E. Diehl, daughter of Joseph and Mary (Weaver) Diehl, of Hellertown, and a daughter, Marion, blessed this union. Horace Boyd was a member of Porter Lodge No. 284, F. and A. M., of Catasauqua and in political opinions he was a loyal advocate of Republican principles. He was a member of the Salem Lutheran Church, Bethlehem. Horace Boyd died at his home, 447 East North Street, Bethlehem, on January 16, 1955. Emma (Diehl) Boyd had passed away in April, 1942 and their daughter, Marion Boyd died in 1943.

 

 

CHARLES WOOLEY CHAPMAN

 

A native of Carbon County, Charles W. Chapman was born in Mauch Chunk, June 29, 1836, being the son of Joseph H. and Martha (Wooley) Chapman. The father was born in 1807, being a native of New London, Connecticut, and after learning the carpenter's trade in his youth he settled in Pennsylvania

46

and found employment with the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company and later he served as superintendent of the Canal Department at Mauch Chunk, which position he held at the time of his death, in 1889, at the age of eighty-two years. Mrs. Martha Chapman being from Philadelphia, and of English descent, died in 1887, at the age of sixty-nine years. Of their five children, the eldest Major Lansford F., a civil engineer, enlisted as Captain of Co. E, 28th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, was promoted to be Major of the Regiment, and was killed May 3, 1863, at the battle of Chancellorsville; Mary, married Butler Worthington, removed to Des Moines, Iowa; Willard, killed by falling off a train on the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad; Grace, the youngest, married John S. Shaffer, resided at Homestead, Pennsylvania.

 

Charles W. Chapman was reared at Mauch Chunk, and obtained his primary education in the schools of his native city. In 1853-1854, when the Lehigh Valley Railroad was being constructed through the valley Lansford F. Chapman was in charge of a corps of engineers, and Charles W. Chapman entered the employ of the same company, learning surveying. During this period he gained a practical knowledge of railroad construction. When the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad was projected in 1856, he and his elder brother laid out the route. After the railroad was completed to its first terminus at Chapman, named in their honor, they opened a lumber and grain business there, which they continued for about one year. In the year 1858 he went on the survey of the Northern Pennsylvania and Delaware Railroad line from Freemansburg to Delaware Water Gap, by way of Easton. In 1859, Charles W. Chapman accompanied contractor Robert McIntyre to Washington, D. C., and did the engineering work on the Cabin John Viaduct, which carried the water supply over the Potomac, to the Capital. This stone-arch structure was the largest of its kind erected in the world at that time. In 1860 he returned to Mauch Chunk and entered the employ of the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company, and in the fall of 1865, he went with the engineering corps to Broad Top, Huntingdon County, as superintendent of the Broad Top Coal and Iron Company, and in the two following years he opened up several mines. In July 1867, coming to Catasauqua, he was made superintendent of the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad and he continued as such until his death.

 

On November 13, 1860, Charles W. Chapman was married to Miss Annie Philips, daughter of William Philips of Catasauqua. They were blessed with two sons: Lansford Foster, born February 2, 1866, died December 25, 1943; and Edwin, born May 9, 1869, died December 20, 1946.

 

Charles W. Chapman enlisted in Co. E, 28th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, being mustered in at Philadelphia as Second Lieutenant on July 6, 1861. He was promoted to First Lieutenant February 1, 1863, and mustered out at Atlanta on July 30, 1864.

 

In politics Mr. Chapman was a conservative Republican and he served as Borough Engineer for many years and for seventeen years he was a prominent member and president of the Catasauqua School Board, serving from 1876 to 1893. Fairview Cemetery had been laid out by him and for many years he was superintendent of the same and president of the association, never accepting any pay for his services. Socially he was a member and Past Master of Porter Lodge, No. 284, F. and A. M., and a Companion of Catasauqua Royal Arch Chapter, No. 278, and a member of Beacon Council, No. 422, Royal Arcanum of Allentown. Mr. and Mrs. Chapman resided at 534 Fourth Street.

 

Charles W. Chapman departed this life on March 13, 1904 and his body was laid to rest at Fairview Cemetery. Annie (Philips) Chapman had passed away on April 24, 1900 and her remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery.

47

DANIEL DAVIES FAMILY

 

DANIEL DAVIES, who was born in Wales in June, 1812, married Mary Philips and to this union were born the following children: John, born September 29, 1835, died October 19, 1862; George, born April 9, 1837, of further mention; and Mary Ann, born January 19, 1839, married James Thomas, died July 16, 1921.

 

Daniel Davies, who was a moulder by trade, left Wales accompanied with his family in June, 1846, and arrived in New York in July of the same year. He found employment as a foundryman in the Novelty Works, New York city and afterwards he was employed in Jersey City, New Jersey, and Phoenixville, Pennsylvania. He later went to Tamaqua, where he entered the employ of Hopkin Thomas, who was then serving as master mechanic of the Beaver Meadow Railroad and Coal Company. In the early part of 1849, Mr. Davies left Tamaqua and went to Weatherly, and in July of 1850 came to Catasauqua, entering the foundry of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works. Severing his connection with the Lehigh Crane Iron Works in 1865, he entered into partnership with William Thomas in the foundry business, purchasing the property of the old Knauss and Harwig planing mill, which had recently been burnt down, located in East Catasauqua on Race Street, by the Catasauqua Creek. There they started their enterprise, Davies and Thomas Company, and three months later George Davies was admitted into the partnership. After two years the firm of Davies and Thomas was dissolved, Mr. Thomas withdrawing his interest and returning to Wales. The company then traded under the name of Davies and Son, and continued as such until the death of Daniel Davies, which occurred on April 8, 1876. A member of the Presbyterian faith, his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

GEORGE DAVIES, son of Daniel and Mary (Philips) Davies, was born in the village of Merthyr Tydvil, Glamorganshire, South Wales on April 9, 1837. Emigrating to America with his parents in 1846, he later settled at Catasauqua in 1850, where he worked as a moulder for two years at the Lehigh Crane Iron Works, after which he served an apprenticeship of five years in the shops of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works, at the trade of machinist, first under the tutelage of David Jones and then in 1853 under Hopkin Thomas. He was then employed as a master mechanic in Belvidere, Camden and Amboy, New Jersey; and the Novelty Works, New York City.

 

In 1861, in company with Thomas Jones, he entered Eastman's Business College at Poughkeepsie, New York, and graduated with honors from that commercial school. Mr. Davies was then employed as a master mechanic at Parryville, Pennsylvania, and in 1865 he became associated with Davies and Thomas Company, of Catasauqua, the firm being re-named Davies and Son in 1868. George Davies remained at Catasauqua until 1871, when he returned to Parryville to take charge of the Carbon Iron Works, and there he remained until 1876. With the death of his father he returned to Catasauqua, taking charge of the family business. In 1879, his brother-in-law, James Thomas purchased one-half interest in the foundry and machine shop and the firm then traded as Davies and Thomas Company, and this business relationship continued until the death of Mr. Davies. George Davies was also a director of the Wahnetah Silk Company, a principle stockholder in the Electric Light and Power Company of Catasauqua, and a director in the Bethlehem Light and Power Company.

 

On August 4, 1864, in Catasauqua, George Davies was united in marriage to Miss Mary A. Evans, daughter of Thomas R. Evans, and to this union were born the following children: John M., born September 26, 1865, died October 30, 1885; Elizabeth, born May, 1867, married Harrison E. Graffin,

48

died 1945; Rowland T., born March 24, 1869, of further mention; George, born 1874, died 1875; George, born 1876, of further mention; and James T., born November 2, 1879, of further mention.

 

In 1863, while at Parryville, George Davies enlisted as first sergeant of Captain James Thomas' company, Thirty-fourth Pennsylvania Emergency Volunteers, mustering in June 3, 1863 and serving until his discharge, August 24, 1863. He was identified with the Masonic fraternity, holding membership in Porter Lodge, No. 284. He was a staunch adherent to the principles of the Republican Party, and in 1892 he was elected to the Catasauqua school board, serving as a member at the time of his death.

 

He was a member and liberal contributor to the Grace Methodist Episcopal Church of Catasauqua, in which he served as trustee, steward and class-leader. Mr. and Mrs. Davies resided at the northeast corner of Second and Race Streets.

 

George Davies passed away at his residence on Monday evening, October 1, 1894, after an illness of two days. The remains were interred in the family plot at Fairview Cemetery. His widow, Mary (Evans) Davies departed this life on April 17, 1923 and her remains were consigned to the Davies family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

ROWLAND T. DAVIES, son of George and Mary A. (Evans) Davies, was born in Catasauqua on March 24, 1869: He attended the local public schools, graduating from Catasauqua High School in 1885. He later became a pupil of Alexander N. Ulrich Esq., of Catasauqua, who conducted a private school for the preparation of boys for college. He subsequently attended Lehigh University, but left this institution prior to his graduation, and at once began his business career at the Davies and Thomas Company. After working in the shops for two years, he entered the office of the works, and with the incorporation of the firm, after the death of his father, he was appointed vice-president, in which capacity he served until January, 1909. Rowland T. Davies retired from the Davies and Thomas Company in 1912, but he remained active in his other business enterprises. He served as an officer of the Lehigh Valley Electric Company, successor of the Electric Light and Power Company of Catasauqua, which later was absorbed by the Pennsylvania Power and Light Company. He was a director of the Wahnetah Silk Company, National Bank of Catasauqua, and the Catasauqua Building and Loan Company. For a number of years he also served as a member of the Fairview Cemetery Association.

 

Rowland T. Davies married Miss Mary Alice Lambert on June 15, 1898, and three weeks after the wedding, July 4, 1898, she died. Her remains were interred in the George Davies family plot at Fairview Cemetery. He later married, for a second time, Miss Annie Fuller, daughter of Orange M. and Jane (Glick) Fuller.

 

Mr. Davies was a member of Grace Methodist Episcopal Church of Catasauqua, and he served as president of the board of trustees. He was also secretary-treasurer of the Sunday school of the church. He was a Republican in politics, and upon the death of his father he filled his unexpired term as a member of the school board. He was appointed receiver of taxes for Catasauqua in May 1911, serving the unexpired term of David Tolan, deceased.

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Fraternally Mr. Davies was a member of Porter Lodge, No. 284, F. and A. M.; was treasurer of the Catasauqua Royal Arch Chapter; Allen Commandery No. 20, Knights Templar; Rajah Temple, of Reading; and the Catasauqua Club.

 

Rowland T. Davies passed away in his home, 235 Bridge Street, on April 24, 1933 and his remains were interred in the Fuller family plot at Fairview Cemetery. His widow, Annie (Fuller) Davies departed this life on August 21, 1940 and her remains were also interred in the Fuller family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

GEORGE DAVIES, Jr., son of George and Mary A. (Evans) Davies, was born at Catasauqua in 1876. He was educated in the public schools of his native borough, graduating from high school in 1892. He was also a graduate of Lehigh University. He served as superintendent of the Westchester Lighting Company at White Plains, New York for two years. He then became associated with the Davies and Thomas Company, and he later took charge of the company's New York City office, where he was responsible for contracts for tunnel lining segments in which the firm specialized. During 1923 the Davies and Thomas Company came under the control of the George H. Flinn Corporation, of New York City, and George Davies, Jr. remained with the firm.

 

On or about 1933, George Davies, Jr. was appointed president of the Davies and Thomas Company, which was then under the ownership of United States Pipe and Foundry Company. Through the purchase of stock, Mr. Davies acquired control of the company in 1945, and he fulfilled all the company's orders. Operations were thereafter suspended and in October 1947, George Davies, Jr. disposed of the plant by selling off all its physical assets.

 

George Davies, Jr. was married to Miss Mary Julia Schwab, daughter of Joseph H. and Marietta (Young) Schwab. On April 15, 1955, George Davies, Jr. passed away at his home at Bronxville, New York and the funeral services were held in New York City.

 

 

JAMES T. DAVIES, son of George and Mary A. (Evans) Davies, was born at Catasauqua on November 2, 1879. He was educated in the Catasauqua High School; the Beltz Academy, at Stamford, Connecticut; the Stiles' Preparatory Academy, at Ithaca, New York, and at Lehigh University. He then entered the shops of the Davies and Thomas Company, where he followed the machinist trade for three years, after which he transferred into the office, where he served as assistant purchasing agent, continuing in that position until February, 1911. He then conducted a cigar, tobacco and confectionery business at the corner of Front and Bridge Streets.

 

In 1903, James T. Davies married Miss Elizabeth S. Snyder, daughter of William T. and Eliza R. (Yoder) Snyder. This union was blessed with two children: Mary E., born July 12, 1903, died January 2, 1983; and William S., born January 4, 1907, died January 30, 1986.

 

Mr. Davies was a member of Grace Methodist Episcopal Church of Catasauqua. He was a member of Porter Lodge, No. 284, F. and A. M., and Catasauqua Chapter, No. 278, Royal Arch Masons.

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After being in ill health for several years, James T. Davies passed away in his home at 530 Walnut Street on June 2, 1947 and his remains were interred in the Snyder family plot at Fairview Cemetery. Elizabeth S. (Snyder) Davies died on April 1, 1965 and her remains were also interred in the Snyder family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

NOAH DAVIS FAMILY

 

NOAH DAVIS was born on May 20, 1810, in Glamorganshire, South Wales. He emigrated to America and settled in Carbondale, Pennsylvania, where he worked as a blacksmith. He then removed to Beaver Meadows, where he married Margaret Gwynne, who was also a native of Glamorganshire, being born on January 1, 1820. This union was blessed with the following children: Samuel, born 1841, removed to Dover, New Jersey, where he served as superintendent of the Port Oram Mines. He and his wife, America, were the parents of the following children: (Mary, 1867-1953; Robert, 1871-1873; Harriet, 1873-1954). Samuel Davis passed away in 1927, and his body was interred at Fairveiw Cemetery; Daniel, born March 12, 1842, of further mention; David, born April 5, 1845, of further mention; Henry, born February 28, 1846, of further mention; William O., born October 31, 1848, died June 28, 1852; Mary, born June 5, 1850, died June 27, 1925; Sarah, born July 22, 1853, died November 5, 1883; John B., born March 25, 1855, of further mention; Hannah, born December 5, 1857, died October 14, 1933.

 

Noah Davis moved to Catasauqua in 1846 and there he accepted the position of boss blacksmith for the Lehigh Crane Iron Works. He departed this life on May 21, 1859 and his remains were interred at Fairveiw Cemetery. His widow, Margaret (Gwynne) Davis passed away on August 3, 1891, and her body was also buried at Fairveiw Cemetery.

 

 

DANIEL DAVIS, son of Noah and Margaret (Gwynne) Davis, was born in Hazelton, Pennsylvania on March 12, 1842. He came to Catasauqua with his parents in 1846 and there he attended the public schools, being one of the first students to attend the Bridge Street School building when it first opened. He left school to work in the blacksmith shop of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works. At the outbreak of the Civil War he enlisted in Company C, 46th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry. Mustering in on August 17, 1861, he reenlisted at the end of his three-year enlistment and he then served until the end of the war, mustering out on July 26, 1865, with the rank of Sergeant.

 

Upon returning home to Catasauqua he became an agent for the Central Railroad of New Jersey. He served in this capacity until November 5, 1879, when he received the superintendency of the Keystone Furnace at Chain Dam and when the Thomas Iron Company acquired the Keystone Furnace in 1882 he remained there as superintendent. On March 1, 1885 the Thomas Iron Company appointed Daniel Davis the superintendent of the Lock Ridge furnaces at Alburtis and from there he retired in 1909.

 

Daniel Davis married Gwenny Williams and to them were born the following children: Margaret, born 1872, died 1919; Walter, employed by the Westinghouse Electrical Company, Pittsburgh; Mary, born 1879, died 1920; John, born 1879, died 1889; Gwenny, born 1881, died 1883; George; Rachel, born 1887, died 1889; and Emma U., born 1889, died 1890.

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Daniel Davis was a life long Republican, casting his first ballot on the battlefield for Abraham Lincoln. He was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Catasauqua and he served as a trustee. He was also a member of the Porter Lodge, F. and A. M., 284 of Catasauqua. Daniel Davis passed away in 1918 and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. Gwenny (Williams) Davis also died in 1918 and her body was interred next to that of her husband.

 

 

DAVID DAVIS, son of Noah and Margaret (Gwynne) Davis, was born in Pottsville, Pennsylvania on April 5, 1845. He was brought to Catasauqua by his parents in 1846, and there he attended the public schools until the age of eleven, when he began working in the shops of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works. On January 1, 1860, he entered the office of the company as an errand boy and he was later promoted to a clerkship. Over the years he worked his way up to chief clerk and in 1892, with the death of John Williams, he was appointed Cashier of the Crane Iron Works.

 

With Lee's invasion of Pennsylvania in 1863, David Davis enlisted in Company B, 38th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry and he serve until the expiration of his period of enlistment of three months service.

 

David Davis married Miss Annie McKibbon of Philadelphia, in 1869 and this union produced the following children:

 

Bessie, born August, 1870, died 1939; Willard, born 1874, employed by the Lehigh Valley Railroad, Philadelphia, died 1932; Mabel, born August, 1876, died 1954; Martha, born September, 1878, died 1934; Charles L., employed as an Assistant Master Mechanic of the Carnegie Steel Company at Rankin, Pennsylvania; and Sallie, born 1885, died 1891.

 

David Davis served as a member of the Catasauqua School Board from 1874 to 1911, and he also was elected to a three-year term as Recorder of Deeds of Lehigh County in 1905. He was a member of the Porter Lodge, F. and A. M.; Fuller Post No. 378, G. A. R.; and the Southwark Hose Company No. 9, serving as president for a period of thirty years. He was a member of the Presbyterian faith and an advocate of the principles of the Republican Party. David Davis passed away in 1917 and his remains were buried at Fairview Cemetery. His wife, Annie (McKibbon) Davis had passed away in 1916 and her remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

HENRY DAVIS, son of Noah and Margaret (Gwynne) Davis, was born February 28, 1846. He was employed by the Lehigh Crane Iron Works as an accountant for several years and in 1866 he became the bookkeeper of the Catasauqua Manufacturing Company. In 1874 he became treasurer of the firm and he held that position until the company ceased operations in 1893.

 

Henry Davis was elected Chief Burgess of Catasauqua in 1878 and he served as such thru 1880. He was also appointed postmaster of Catasauqua by President William McKinley in 1898 and he served in this capacity until his death.

 

Henry Davis married Sarah Wilson in 1870, and to this union were born the following children: Samuel W.; Gwynne; Ruth, born July, 1874; Hope H., born 1878, died in infancy; Ross, born March, 1881;

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Clyde, born April, 1883; Homer, born May, 1885; Morgan, born 1888, died 1889; and Genevieve, born 1890, died in infancy.

 

Henry Davis died on November 30, 1899 and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. His widow, Sarah (Wilson) Davis departed this life on September 14, 1903 and her remains were also interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

JOHN B. DAVIS, son of Noah and Margaret (Gwynne) Davis, was born in Catasauqua on March 24, 1855. He spent his youth in the borough and he was later employed as a clerk in the offices of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works. A life long bachelor he passed away in the old family home at 207 Bridge Street on February 17, 1909. His body was interred in the Davis family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

 

EMANUEL FAMILY

 

MORGAN EMANUEL was born in North Wales in 1805. He was the son of a sea-faring man, his father being a shipmaster. Morgan Emanuel also began his business career as a seaman, but later he left that occupation and became engaged with the iron works at Dowlais, Wales in contracting and furnishing supplies.

 

Morgan Emanuel was first married in Wales to Mary Jenkins, and they had one child that lived to maturity, Morgan Emanuel, Jr., born March 18, 1831. Mary (Jenkins) Emanuel died in Wales and Morgan Emanuel, Sr. left for America in 1844. He first settled near Pottsville, Pennsylvania where he engaged as a mining contractor. About 1846, he came to Catasauqua and became connected with the Lehigh Crane Iron Works, his business being to supply the furnaces and to inspect the ore. He also contracted supplies for other furnaces and he was a stockholder in the Thomas Iron Company.

 

At Easton on February 22, 1856, Morgan Emanuel married for a second time, Miss Elizabeth Miller, daughter of Robert and Jane (Maddah) Miller. From this union the following children were born: Margaret, born 1858, died 1924; Thomas, born 1861, died 1892; and Jane, born 1862, died in infancy.

 

Mr. and Mrs. Emanuel resided in their beautiful home at 226 Pine Street, which they had built in 1868. Morgan Emanuel was a faithful member of the Presbyterian Church and in politics he was a staunch Republican.

 

Morgan Emanuel, Sr. passed away on April 11, 1884 and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. Elizabeth (Miller) Emanuel died on March 17, 1894 and her remains were also interred in the Emanuel family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

MORGAN EMANUEL, Jr., son of Morgan and Mary (Jenkins) Emanuel, was born in Glamorganshire, Wales on March 18, 1831. At the age of twelve he entered the mines, continuing there until coming to America in 1847 on the sailing vessel "Columbia." He followed his father to

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Catasauqua, where he attended the local schools for a couple of years. Later he obtained employment at the Lehigh Crane Iron Works and under the instruction of Noah Davis became a practical blacksmith.

 

In March 1854, going to Hokendauqua, he assisted in erecting the first building of the Thomas Iron Company. He was the foreman of the blacksmith department until the completion of that plant, when he then removed to Weatherly and for a year worked in the railroad shops of the Lehigh Valley Railroad.

 

Returning to Catasauqua Morgan Emanuel, Jr. became engaged in contracting for furnace furnishings, and for several years he was the agent for the Lehigh Crane Iron Company's limestone quarries. He next opened a quarry of building stone, for the construction of the new No. 3 and No. 4 furnaces at Hokendauqua.

 

During the spring of 1861, he started a powder business and he received patents on a blasting powders the main ingredient of which was Chile saltpetre. Along with William R. Thomas I, he then organized the firm of Thomas and Emanuel, and they erected a powder-house on the west side, near the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad round house, for the purpose of manufacturing this blasting powder. After four years the plant was destroyed by an explosion and never rebuilt. In April 1865, Morgan Emanuel commenced traveling as a general agent for the Smith and Rand Powder Company, of New York. This company was afterward consolidated, becoming the Laflin and Rand Powder Company. In construction of the Union and Pacific Railroad from Cheyenne to Ogden he furnished most of the powder used in blasting. For four years he maintained his headquarters and office in Denver, and he also had the agency for the Rand Drill Company, of New York.

 

Mr. Emanuel was the first person to introduce dynamite into the Lehigh Valley, and also the first in the introduction of Megneto, or Leyden jar and electric batteries, for firing fuses. William G. Lewis entered the employ of Morgan Emanuel, his uncle, and after a time the firm of Emanuel, Lewis and Company was organized for the selling of powder and other explosives to local mines and quarries. In 1897, after the death of Mr. Lewis, the firm was renamed M. Emanuel and Son.

 

At Mauch Chunk, on October 9, 1855, Morgan Emanuel, Jr. married Miss Margaret Lewis, daughter of Herbert and Elizabeth (Herring) Lewis, a native of Wales. This union was blessed with the following children: Mary L., born November 18, 1856, graduated from the Ladies' Seminary at Pittsfield, Massachusetts, and died a year later in 1878; Emily, born 1859, died in infancy; William H., born 1860, of further mention; Emily J., born 1863, died 1864; and David L., born July, 1865, of further mention.

 

In 1863, Morgan Emanuel enlisted for three months' service in Company B, 38th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry. He owned a farm of one hundred and four acres in Northampton County, adjoining Catasauqua. The farm was known as the Crystal Hill Dairy and Emanuel and Son also operated the Crystal Hill Creamery, located on Second Street. He was a member of the Masonic society and he also belonged to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Morgan Emanuel was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Catasauqua, being a Ruling Elder. In politics he was a strong Republican.

 

On March 2, 1901, Morgan Emanuel left New York on a Cunard Line steamer, traveling to his native land. After a pleasant and enjoyable voyage across the Atlantic, he spent several days with the parents of George E. Holton, at Liverpool. He then traveled to Merthyr Tydfil, Glamorganshire, South Wales, the home of his birth, and there on March 28, 1901 he passed away. The body was returned by steamer and

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his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. His wife, Margaret (Lewis) Emanuel had died in June 1900 and her remains were also buried in the Emanuel family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

WILLIAM H. EMANUEL, son of Morgan, Jr. and Margaret (Lewis) Emanuel, was born in Catasauqua in 1860. He attended the public schools of the borough, graduating in 1877. He pursued his studies in the Chemistry Department of Lafayette College, graduating from that institution of learning in 1880. Soon after graduating he was appointed to the position his father had occupied, as general agent of the Laflin and Rand Powder Company, with his headquarters at Denver, Colorado. He then became engaged in the general agency of mine and mill supplies, representing such concerns as the Frazer and Chalmers Rand Drill Company, the Trenton Iron Works, and he also served as president of the National Fuse Powder Company.

 

Accompanied by his wife, William H. Emanuel returned to Catasauqua to attend the funeral of his father. While staying in the Emanuel family home at Third and Strawberry Streets, he fell ill and there he died one month later. His remains were interred in the family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

DAVID L. EMANUEL, son of Morgan, Jr. and Margaret (Lewis) Emanuel, was born July, 1865. He was engaged in general contracting for the furnaces and was also a partner with his father, in the Crystal Hill Dairy and Crystal Hill Creamery. During January, 1904, David L. Emanuel organized Emanuel and Company for the manufacturing and crushing of blast furnace slag for roofing and concrete work.

 

David L. Emanuel married Winifred Williams, daughter of Oliver and Anna (Heilig) Williams, and to them the following children were born: Paul Williams, born October 30, 1890, served in World War I, married Elizabeth Brown, died August 4, 1957, interred Fairview Cemetery; and Grace, born June 10, 1895, married Charles Eneu Johnson II, died October 16, 1970, interred Fairview Cemetery. David L. Emanuel and his family resided on the west side of Fourth Street, above Bridge Street in an English Tudor styled home. Winifred (Williams) Emanuel passed away on April 21, 1931 and her remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

 

JOHN FRITZ

 

Born Johannes Fritz on April 21, 1822 in Chester County, he was the son of George and Mary (Meharg) Fritz. The father, George Fritz was born in Hesse-Cassel, Germany, while the mother, Mary Meharg was of English and Irish descent, and this union produced seven children that reached maturity, four of these were: Johannes (John); George, employed as general superintendent of the Cambria Iron Works at the time of his death, August, 1873; Katherine, wife of Isaac E. Chandler; and a daughter, married B. Frank Stroud.

 

John Fritz spent his youth working on his father's farm and in 1838 he was apprenticed to a blacksmith and mechanic. In 1844 he found employment at a Norristown iron mill, owned by James Moore and Mr. Hooven, and he remained there for six years. In 1851, John Fritz, in the company of his brother, George Fritz, and his brother-in-laws, Isaac E. Chandler and B. Frank Stroud, started the Union Foundry and

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Machine Company in Catasauqua. During 1854 John Fritz left Catasauqua and removed to Johnstown, where he served as superintendent of the Cambria Iron Works until 1860. While superintendent of that plant he developed the "three high" rail mill, which revolutionized the rail-making process. Put into operation on July 29, 1857, it proved to be an immediate success and on October 5, 1858, he was awarded a patent on this mill, enabling him to control the use of his invention. After leaving the Cambria Iron Works in 1860, his brother, George Fritz became superintendent and there he remained until his death. John Fritz, along with the rights to his invention, then came to Bethlehem at the request of Robert Sayre and there he became superintendent of the Bethlehem Rolling Mill and Iron Company (Bethlehem Steel Company). During his years of management, the plant increased in size and the steel making process was added to the plant facilities. John Fritz retired from active business at the end of 1892.

 

John Fritz married Ellen Maxwell and from this union was born a daughter, Gertrude, born 1853, died, 1860.

 

John Fritz had two buildings erected in South Bethlehem, one was the Fritz Memorial Methodist Church, donated in honor of his father and mother; and in 1909, the Fritz Engineering Laboratory at Lehigh University, designed by Mr. Fritz himself. On February 13, 1913, at the age of 91, John Fritz died in his sleep.

 

 

 

FULLER FAMILY

 

The ancestry of the Fuller family can be traced back in direct line to Robert Fuller, whose eldest child, Edward Fuller, was the founder of the family in America. Edward Fuller was baptized at Revenhall, Norfolk, England. About the year 1607 or 1608 he fled to Holland with his brother, who was a physician and deacon. The name Edward Fuller appears as the twenty-first signer of the "Mayflower Compact" drawn up aboard ship previous to landing at Plymouth Rock in November, 1620. His first wife, Anne, died soon after their arrival in the new world. They had two children: Matthew, who died at Barnstable, Massachusetts, 1678, and whose wife was Frances Fuller; and Samuel.

 

SAMUEL FULLER, son of Edward Fuller, was born in Leyden, Holland, in 1612, and was brought to America on the Mayflower by his parents. He became a freeman in 1634, and was married in Scituate, Massachusetts, April 8, 1635, by Captain Miles Standish to Jane Lathrop, a daughter of the Rev. John Lathrop. This union was blessed with the following children: John, Hannah, Samuel, Elizabeth, Sarah, Mary, Thomas, and John. Samuel Fuller departed this life on October 31, 1681.

 

John Fuller, the youngest son of Samuel and Jane (Lathrop) Fuller, was born between the years 1650 and 1656. He married Mehitable Rowley, and afterward wedded Elizabeth Fuller. Their children were as follows: Thomas, born 1679; Samuel, born 1682; Shubael, born 1688;Thankful, born 1688; Deborah, born 1689; Edward, born 1691; Elizabeth, born 1693; John, born 1697; Joseph, born March 1, 1699, of further mention; Benjamin, born October 20, 1701; Anne, born 1703; and Mehitable, born April 6, 1706.

 

Joseph Fuller, son of John and Elizabeth Fuller, was born March 1, 1699, and he married Lydia Day on December 22, 1722. They were the parents of the following children: Joseph, born 1723, of further mention; Rachel, born 1723; Zachariah, born 1725; Grace, born 1726; Jeremiah, born 1728; Lydia, born

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1729; Mindwell, born 1730; Ruth, born 1735; Abraham, born October, 1737; Jacob, born 1739; and Isaac, born 1741, married Sarah Kelsey, November 5, 1769. After the death of his first wife, Joseph Fuller wed Mrs. Serviah Noble in Connecticut on January 8, 1766.

 

Joseph Fuller, son of Joseph and Lydia (Day) Fuller, was born in 1723, and he married Zerviah Hill on August 10, 1752. He removed from Connecticut and bought land in Stockbridge, Massachusetts, from the Indians, June 19, 1767. He later emigrated to Pennsylvania, and his will is recorded at Wilkes-Barre. To him and his wife were born nine children: Joshua, born July 11, 1754; Benajah, born June 4, 1756; Lydia, born April 23, 1758; Joseph, born December 19, 1760; Jehiel, born December 15, 1763, of further mention; Abigail, born May 16, 1766; Ruth, born September 3, 1769; Zerviah, born May 24, 1774; and Jeremiah, born February 24, 1776.

 

 

JEHIEL FULLER, son of Joseph and Zerviah (Hill) Fuller, was born in Sharon, Connecticut on December 15, 1763. He removed to Stockbridge, Massachusetts with his parents and in 1769 he accompanied them to Pennsylvania, settling at a place called Centermoreland, where he died. Jehiel Fuller married Hannah Hill, who after his death went with her younger children to Illinois, dying at Elmira, Illinois about six years later. Their children were as follows: Chauncey D., born June 20, 1799, of further mention; Orin, Ambrose, Harry, Jehiel, Malinda, and Hannah.

 

 

CHAUNCEY D. FULLER, son of Jehiel and Hannah (Hill) Fuller, was born on June 20, 1799. He came to the Lehigh Valley area from the "Plains" above Wilkes-Barre soon after construction on the Lehigh Canal commenced and he found employment with the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company for a number of years. Chauncey D. Fuller subsequently followed his eldest son, J. W. Fuller to Catasauqua, and there he served as Justice of the Peace from 1855 to 1865.

 

Chauncey D. Fuller married Sarah Abbott and to this union were born the following children: James Wheeler, born August 22, 1821, of further mention; Charles Dorrance, born September 9, 1823, of further mention; Orlando, born 1826, served as a private in Co. F, 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War. He later removed to Bethlehem, Pennsylvania; Abbott, born 1828; and Lieutenant George W. Fuller, born September 1, 1839, of further mention.

 

Chauncey D. Fuller departed this life on October 5, 1870 and his earthly remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

JAMES WHEELER FULLER, son of Chauncey D. and Sarah (Abbott) Fuller, was born at Forty Fort, Pennsylvania on August 22, 1821. He came to Craneville during the year 1842, and he spent his early years running boats on the canal. In 1849 he took over the operations of the canal store, No. 2 Race Street. James W. Fuller was then employed by David Thomas, operating for the Lehigh Crane Iron Company and the Thomas Iron Company, to secure from the Legislature of Pennsylvania a charter for a railroad to extend from Catasauqua to Fogelsville. He served in this capacity from 1852 to 1854, when the charter was finally approved.

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In 1858, Mr. Fuller purchased 6 acres and 110 perches of land in South Whitehall (now Whitehall) Township, from Robert McIntyre and Peter Miller, for the purpose of starting a cemetery. He employed Charles W. Chapman to lay out the land into burial lots, 10 by 20 feet, and named the place Fairview Cemetery.

 

During the Civil War, James W. Fuller became prominently identified with the political and military affairs of Pennsylvania and his influence with the Republican administration was generally recognized. During Lee's invasion of Pennsylvania during the summer of 1863, James W. Fuller enlisted as a private in Co. B, 38th Pennsylvania Volunteers.

 

Early in the war he became a large-scale horse dealer with the federal government; in 1863 he was the second highest income earner in Lehigh County, with earnings of $13,000. He also worked as a contractor during his business career.

 

On November 8, 1840, James W. Fuller married Clarissa Miller, daughter of Henry and Catherine (Sterner) Miller, and to them were born the following children: Orange M., born April 9, 1841, of further mention; James W. II, born March 16, 1843, of further mention; William F., born January 31, 1845, died April 21, 1852; Clarissa, born January 31, 1851, married Ogden Frederick, died December 11, 1922; Abbott F., born 1855, of further mention; and Clinton H., born July 24, 1858, of further mention. Mr. and Mrs. Fuller resided 131 Front Street.

 

James W. Fuller departed this life on November 22, 1872 and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. Clarissa (Miller) Fuller passed away on December 24, 1902 and her remains were also interred in the Fuller family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

ORANGE M. FULLER, son of James W. and Clarissa (Miller) Fuller, was born on April 9, 1841, and he attended the Wyoming Seminary at Kingston, Luzerne County. He worked for a time as a teller in the National Bank of Catasauqua, and during the eighteen-sixties he became associated with Edward Schlauch in the firm of Fuller and Schlauch, dealers in books and stationary. The business was located at 407 Front Street, what was then known as the Fuller block. Later Orange M. Fuller purchased his partner's share in the business and he then conducted the firm as O. M. Fuller and Company. During 1891, Mr. Fuller sold the firm to Charles E. Sheckler, Jr. He also engaged in the real estate business and continued with this enterprise until his death. He laid out part of the village of Pleasant Hill (West Catasauqua), and he also sold many of the building lots in the village.

 

Orange M. Fuller married Jane Glick, daughter of Aaron and Mary Glick, and to them the following children were born: Annie, born March 28, 1868, married Rowland T. Davies, died August 21, 1940; Edgar, born January 6, 1874, died July 15, 1874; Willard B., born November 27, 1875, of further mention; and Marion, born September 14, 1883, died December 14, 1885. Orange M. Fuller and his family resided at 235 Bridge Street. Orange M. Fuller was a member of the Republican Party and he served as a member of the borough council for several years.

 

Orange M. Fuller died at his home on January 20, 1902 and his mortal remains were consigned to the family plot at Fairview Cemetery. Jane (Glick) Fuller passed away on January 19, 1917 and her remains were also interred at Fairview Cemetery.

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WILLARD B. FULLER, son of Orange M. and Jane (Glick) Fuller, was born in Catasauqua on November 27, 1875. He was a graduate from Lehigh University, with the Class of 1898. Throughout his life he never engaged in activities other than those of his family. He held membership in Grace Methodist Episcopal Church of Catasauqua, and he passed away at his home, 235 Bridge Street, on September 2, 1957. His earthly remains were interred in the Fuller family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

JAMES WHEELER FULLER II, son of James W. and Clarissa (Miller) Fuller, was born on March 16, 1843. In his youth he attended the public schools at Catasauqua and private schools at Weaversville, Norristown and Kingston, Pennsylvania. At the age of eighteen he enlisted in Co. F, 47th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, under the command of Captain Henry S. Harte. He was promoted to sergeant and on October 30, 1861 he was elevated to adjutant, with the rank of Lieutenant. After a protracted illness he was honorably discharged from active service on January 9, 1862. He then moved to Philadelphia, where he worked as a salesman in a queensware house.

 

After returning to Catasauqua, in 1868 he organized, in the company of his brother-in-law, James H. McKee, the firm of McKee, Fuller and Company, which then purchased the Lehigh Car, Wheel and Axle Works located at Ferndale (Fullerton). James W. Fuller II laid out the streets for the village of Ferndale in 1870 and the town was renamed Fullerton in his honor during 1894.

 

James W. Fuller II also served as president of the Catasauqua Manufacturing Company; vice-president of the Empire Steel and Iron Company; and he served as a director of the following companies: Thomas Iron Company; Wahnetah Silk Company, which he helped organize; Lehigh Valley Trust Company, Allentown; Ironton Railroad Company; Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad Company; and Lehigh Foundry Company. He also owned three farms, containing approximately two hundred acres where he raised Guernsey cattle, one of which was Fuller Grove, 57 acres purchased in 1885 and located east of Fourth Street to Howertown Road and north of Liberty Street to Grove Street.

 

James W. Fuller II married Katherine Maria Thomas, daughter of Hopkin and Catherine (Richards) Thomas, during the year 1864. This union was blessed with the following children: Maud Miller, born September 18, 1865, married Joseph Sketchley Elverson, issue: (Joseph Fuller Elverson, and James F. Elverson), she was an active member in the volunteer fire department of Catasauqua, resided at 533 Fourth Street, and died October 8, 1938; Blanche, born 1867, married Dr. Louis A. Salade, removed to Medford, Oregon; George Liewellyn, born July 27, 1867, died June 23, 1890; Mary Louise, born 1872, married Hiram D. McCaskey, removed to Medford, Oregon; and Lt. Col. James W. III, born April 2, 1873, of further mention.

 

James W. Fuller II and his family occupied an elegant residence on the north side of Bridge Street, located between Fourth Street and Howertown Road. The home was built of a native granite. Mr. Fuller was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Catasauqua, and he was a member to the Republican Party.

 

James W. Fuller II died in his home on January 15, 1910 and his remains were interred in the Fuller family plot at Fairview Cemetery. Kate M. (Thomas) Fuller passed away on February 25, 1920 and her remains were buried at Fairview Cemetery.

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LIEUTENANT COLONEL JAMES WHEELER FULLER III was born in Catasauqua on April 2, 1873. He was the youngest son of James W. II and Katherine (Thomas) Fuller. He received his early education in the local public schools and then at the Haverford (Pa.) Preparatory School, after which he entered the shops of the Lehigh Car, Wheel and Axle Works as an apprentice in the machinists' and moulders' trades. He served his apprenticeship throughout the practical departments of this firm, and he subsequently became a salesman, treasurer, general manager, and, in 1913, president of the company, continuing in the last-named capacity until 1926. The company was re-organized in 1918 and the named of the firm was changed to Fuller Lehigh Company. On January 4, 1926, James W. Fuller III sold the Fuller-Lehigh Company rights, patents, and properties, with the exception of the Kinyon pump patent, to the Babcock and Wilcox Company for $3,000,000. He remained as chairman of the board for a few months before resigning on April 1, 1926. James W. Fuller III had organized Fuller Company, on March 11, 1926, to handle the Fuller-Kinyon pump system. As president of this company he purchased the old Empire Steel and Iron Company building at 124 Bridge Street, and there he maintained the company's offices.

 

James W. Fuller III also controlled and was president of the Allentown Portland Cement Company from 1910 until his death and president of the Valley Forge Cement Company from 1927 until his death. He served as a director of the Railway Spring Company and member of the executive committee of the Empire Steel and Iron Company prior to their sale. He was a director of McDermott Brothers, Wahnetah Silk Company and the Lehigh County Agricultural Society.

 

James W. Fuller III was married twice: first in Bethlehem, June 18, 1902, to Emily Meyers, daughter of George Henry Meyers of Bethlehem, and to this union were born two children: James W. IV, born December 18, 1903, of further mention; and Emily Meyers, born 1910, died in New York City, 1958. His second marriage took place in Newark, New Jersey, March 23, 1917, to Dorothy Marie Stalcup, daughter of Seth Alfred Stalcup of Denver, Colorado, and this marriage produced one son: Charlton Thomas, born 1919.

 

James W. Fuller III erected a fine dwelling house at the southwest corner of Bridge Street and Howertown Road. He was a member of the Republican Party and he served on the military staff of Governor John K. Tenor, holding the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Catasauqua. He was also a member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, American Society of Chemical Engineers, American Mining and Metallurgical Society, American Iron and Steel Institute, International Railway Fuel Association, Pennsylvania State Chamber of Commerce, Engineers Club of New York City, Manufacturers and Racquet clubs of Philadelphia, Germantown Cricket Club, Livingston Club of Allentown, the Lehigh, Northampton and Saucon Valley Country clubs, Westchester-Biltmore Country Club of Rye, New York, and the Congressional Country Club of Washington D. C.

 

Colonel Fuller accumulated approximately 1,300 acres of land in Allen and Hanover townships, which he named "Willow Brook Farms." The land was acquired by the purchase of existing farms owned by several different families, namely: Emanuel, Gogle, Deily, Brienig, Holton and Schaden. At his Willow Brook Farm he bred horses and maintained a herd of Guernsey cows, and, along with General Harry Trexler, he was a prime mover in breeding and stocking the Chinese ringneck pheasant in this area.

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Lt. Colonel James W. Fuller III was stricken with some strange malady while returning by ship from Hawaii, which the ship's surgeons were unable to successfully combat. Arriving at San Francisco, he was immediately removed to St. Luke's Hospital and there he was diagnosed as having a form of encephalitis, known as 'sleeping sickness." After several days of unconsciousness he passed away on Thursday morning at one o'clock, April 4, 1929. His remains were returned home and were interred in the Fuller family plot at Fairview Cemetery. His widow later remarried a Mr. Allen and on March 2, 1953, Dorothy (Stalcup) Fuller Allen passed away and her remains were also buried in the Fuller family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

JAMES WHEELER FULLER IV, son of Lt. Colonel James W. III and Emily (Meyers) Fuller, was born in Catasauqua on December 18, 1903. He became a director of Fuller Company upon its founding in 1926, and with his father's death in April, 1929 he inherited sixty percent of the company; the remaining shares were inherited by his brother, C. Thomas Fuller. In November 1939, James W. Fuller IV was elected president of Fuller Company and he served as such until August 1954, when the concern was sold to General American Transportation Corporation (GATX). He served as vice-president of Allentown Portland Cement Company and owned forty percent of its stock until its purchase by National Gypsum Company in 1959. He also served as a director of the National Bank of Catasauqua and after its merger in 1960 he served as a director of the First National Bank of Allentown.

 

James W. Fuller IV married three times: first to Marguerite Myers, issue: Marguerite, removed to Berkeley, California, married a Mr. Harms; Mary, married first, Rodney Baker of Catasauqua, and second, Dr. Robert Panzer of Ocala, Florida; and James W. V, born July 14, 1936, died December 29, 1936. In December, 1943, Mr. Fuller married a second time, Lucy M. Wint, daughter of Charles J. and Amanda (Stecker) Wint, issue: James Charles, born November 11, 1944. The third marriage was to Florence Steiner, no issue.

 

James W. Fuller IV resided in the Fuller family home at the southwest corner of Bridge Street and Howertown Road. After the sale of Fuller Company he moved to his beloved Rocky Hill Farms in Allen Township and he then spent the winter months at Boca Raton, Florida. He was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Catasauqua, and over the years he provided several major gifts to the local community with a minimum of publicity. He also was an active member of the Fairview Cemetery Association.

 

James W. Fuller IV passed away in Muhlenberg Hospital Center on August 13, 1986 and his remains were interred in the Fuller family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

ABBOTT F. FULLER, son of James W. and Clarissa (Miller) Fuller was born at Catasauqua in 1855. In his early years he was associated with his brother, Clinton H. Fuller, in the Globe Metal Works. After selling his share of the business in 1890 to his brother, Abbott F. Fuller then engaged in the oil business at Catasauqua. Abbott F. Fuller removed from Catasauqua around the turn of the new century, living first at Emmaus and then residing in West Philadelphia, where he died on January 21, 1941, being survived by a wife, one son and two daughters and a number of grandchildren, all of whom resided in Philadelphia. His mortal remains were returned to his native borough and buried in the Fuller family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

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CLINTON HENRY FULLER, son of James W. and Clarissa (Miller) Fuller, was born at Catasauqua on July 24, 1858. He was educated in the public schools at Catasauqua and he attended Muhlenberg College. In 1883 he established yards at Fullerton, where he engaged in the scrape iron business. He later took in as a partner his brother, Orange M. Fuller, the partnership existing for two years, when he assumed control of the entire business again. Clinton H. Fuller disposed of his Fullerton plant in 1889 and with his brother, Abbott F. Fuller, he established the Globe Metal Works, which was located on Race Street, between the canal and the Lehigh River. During 1890 he purchased his brother's interest in the firm and he then conducted the business until 1900, when a fire destroyed the entire plant. Clinton H. Fuller then organized the Fuller Oil and Supply Company in Catasauqua, which he continued to operate until his death.

 

Clinton H. Fuller was a member of the Republican Party and he served as a member of the borough council for one term. He was a member of Porter Lodge, F. and A. M.; Allen Commandery, No. 20, Knights Templar, of Allentown; Philadelphia Consistory, No. 320; Lulu Temple, Philadelphia; and Allentown Lodge of Elks.

 

On November 5, 1893, Clinton H. Fuller was united in marriage to Miss Emma B. Bortz, daughter of David and Mary (Fegley) Bortz, of Shamrock, Pennsylvania. During 1904, he erected a colonial style mansion at the northwest corner of Eighteenth and Turner Streets, Allentown and there he resided the remainder of his life. Mr. Fuller was very active in the development of the West End of Allentown. On June 19, 1909, Clinton H. Fuller passed away in his home and his earthly remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. His widow, Emma (Bortz) Fuller, married for a second time, on November 29, 1913, Leonard G. Sefing. She departed this life on August 8, 1933 and her remains were interred in the Fuller family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

CHARLES DORRANCE FULLER, son of Chauncey D. and Sarah (Abbott) Fuller, was born on September 9, 1823. He followed his elder brother, James W. Fuller, to Catasauqua, and there he was engaged throughout his life as a contractor, being an eminent builder of bridges and large structures. One of his projects was the replacement of the Crane Iron Company Bridge after it had been swept away during the Flood of 1862. He was appointed postmaster of Catasauqua in 1862 and he served as such until 1865. He also served as a member of the Catasauqua School Board during the year of 1863. Early in 1865, Charles D. Fuller was one of the organizers of the Catasauqua Oil Company, which purchased land in Venango County for oil speculation. In 1866, in the company of William R. Thomas I, he organized the Lehigh Car, Wheel and Axle Company at Fullerton, which was in turn acquired by the firm of McKee, Fuller and Company.

 

Charles D. Fuller married Harriett Harris and to this union were born the following children: Joseph, born 1850, removed to Slatington; Irene, born December 30, 1853, died June 15, 1908, married Alexander Ulrich Esq., issue: Charles N. Ulrich Esq.; Dr. Harry C., born October 19, 1855, removed to Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania, died November 19, 1927; Irving S. Franklin, born June 27, 1857, died January 22, 1858; Chauncey O., born October 15, 1859, of further mention; George W., born August 27, 1861, died October 22, 1894; Hattie, born May 2, 1864, died October 18, 1864; Charles D., born July 15, 1865, of further mention; and Marion Louise, born February 28, 1867, died December 2, 1896.

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During the invasion of Pennsylvania in the summer of 1863 by Lee's Army of Northern Virginia, Charles D. Fuller enlisted as a private in Co. B, 38th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry. He and his family resided in their fine residence, located on the north side of Bridge Street, between Fourth and Crane Streets.

 

Charles D. Fuller passed away on September 16, 1873 and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. His widow, Harriett (Harris) Fuller departed this life on March 26, 1897 and her remains were also interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

CHAUNCEY ORLANDO FULLER, son of Charles D. and Harriett (Harris) Fuller, was born at Catasauqua on October 15, 1859. He was employed by the Bryden Horse Shoe Company as a bookkeeper for a period of twenty-five years. During the year of 1913, he helped organize the Crystal Ice Company, which was located at the southeast corner of Peach and American Streets. Chauncey O. Fuller was elected secretary-treasurer of the firm and he held this position until his death.

 

Chauncey O. Fuller resided for fifteen years at the Eagle Hotel, Front and Bridge Streets, and there he died of typhoid pneumonia on January 8, 1915. His remains were interred in the Fuller family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

CHARLES D. FULLER, Jr., son of Charles D. and Harriett (Harris) Fuller, was born at Catasauqua on July 15, 1865. He was educated in the public schools of Catasauqua and he received his higher education at Lafayette College. Charles D. Fuller removed to Latrobe, Pennsylvania and found employment with the Railway Steel Spring Company, where he advanced to head the chemical and furnace departments of the company. He also wrote several books on the subject of chemistry.

 

Charles D. Fuller was united in marriage to Stella McKerina of Slatington. He passed away at Latrobe on March 20, 1929 and his earthly remains were brought home to the place of his birth and interred in the family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

LIEUTENANT GEORGE W. FULLER, son of Chauncey D. and Sarah (Abbott) Fuller, was born on September 1, 1839. He came to Catasauqua with his parents in his early years. With the outbreak of the War Between the States he enlist in Company F, Forty-seventh Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, under the command of Captain Henry S. Harte. He mustered into service on August 30, 1861 and was elected 1st Lieutenant. He was discharged on a Surgeon's certificate on June 22, 1864, because of injuries he sustained during the war. Lieutenant George W. Fuller died at Dry Tortugas, Florida on September 29, 1864, and his body was shipped home and interred at Fairview Cemetery. The Grand Army of the Republic post organized at Catasauqua after the war was named in his honor.

 

 

 

 

 

HOLTON FAMILY

 

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The patriarch of this family was George Holton, who married Miss Hope Mary Coumbe, and they were the proud parents of six children, as follows: George Edward, born April 24, 1868, of further mention; Edith, who taught English in the royal family of Czarist Russia; Lucy; Maude, married a Mr. Guteman; H. Morley, born July 15, 1879, of further mention; and Ellen, married a Mr. Simpson.

 

 

GEORGE EDWARD HOLTON, elder son of George and Hope Mary (Coumbe) Holton, was born in London, England, April 24, 1868. He received a scientific education in the schools of Norwood, Survey and London, and he emigrated to America in 1886. Mr. Holton then entered the employ of the Pencoyd Iron Works, of Philadelphia. In 1889 he became inspector for G. W. G. Ferris and Company, of Pittsburgh, in the eastern territory, and had charge of the inspection and testing of the cast iron segments used in the construction of the first tunnel under the Hudson River, known as the Hoboken Tunnel. In 1892 he was hired by Oliver Williams as a salesman for the Bryden Horse Shoe Company and he established sales agencies in all parts of the country. His remarkable business ability gained for him rapid advancement to the offices of vice-president and sales manager, and upon the death of Oliver Williams in 1904 he was elected president and treasurer of the company, and in this capacity he remained until his death.

 

George E. Holton married Miss Jessica Williams, daughter of Oliver and Anna (Heilig) Williams, and from this union were born the following children: Oliver Williams, born 1895; Kathryn; and Jessica Williams. The Holton family resided at the old Williams residency at 616 Second Street.

 

Mr. Holton served as a member of the borough council; a director of the National Bank of Catasauqua and the Cement National Bank of Northampton; and president and treasurer of Emanuel and Company. He was a member of the Catasauqua Club; Northampton Country Club; vice-president of the Lehigh Country Club; Livingston Club, of Allentown; Bryden Gun Club; the Railroad and Engineers Club, of New York City; and vice-president of the Lehigh Valley Symphony Society.

 

On February 10, 1913, George E. Holton passed away at St. Elizabeth's Hospital, New York City, and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. His widow, Jessica (Williams) Holton departed this life on February 16, 1955 and her remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

H. MORLEY HOLTON, son of George and Hope Mary (Coumbe) Holton, was born at Grangy, near London, England, on July 15, 1879. At the age of seventeen he followed his elder brother to America, first settling in Brunswick, New Jersey for three years. In 1899 he removed to Catasauqua and found employment at the Bryden Horse Shoe Company, and in 1909 he became secretary of the firm upon the death of Tilghman Frederick. With the death of his brother, George E. Holton, in 1913 he took over the duties of treasurer and he later assumed the position of general manager. In 1928, with the purchase of the Bryden Horse Shoe Company by the Phoenix Manufacturing Company, H. Morley Holton was appointed plant manager, and he then directed the plant's activities for about ten years. Upon his retirement he subsequently became an agent for the Equitable Life Assurance Society and he remained the local agent until his death.

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In 1901 at Brunswick, New Jersey, H. Morley Holton was united in marriage to Miss Anna Kane. Mr. and Mrs. Holton resided at 326 Bridge Street until 1943, when they removed to 307 South Fifteenth Street, Allentown. During 1952 he returned to Catasauqua, residing at 1125 Fifth Street.

 

During World War I he was president of the Catasauqua Chapter, American Red Cross, and in 1942 he served as chairman of the United Appeal campaign. H. Morley Holton served the borough as Burgess for two terms, 1926 to 1934. He was a director of the National Bank of Catasauqua and he was also one of the original members of the Catasauqua Rotary Club, and a member of the Lehigh Country Club. He was affiliated with Holy Trinity Memorial Lutheran Church and he served on its council.

 

H. Morley Holton passed away in the Sacred Heart Hospital on December 12, 1956 and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. Anna (Kane) Holton had died on July 28, 1948 and her remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

 

WILLIAM P. HOPKINS

 

William P. Hopkins, son of John and Anna (Powell) Hopkins, was born in South Wales, near Neath, in Glamorganshire, March 24, 1832. At the age of eight he entered the employ of the local rolling-mill, and upon reaching his eighteenth year he went to Workington, Staffordshire, Wales, where he made the first sheet of tin ever manufactured out of puddled steel. For this he received a watch from his employer with the inscription: "Presented to William Hopkins for meritorious services by James Spence, Workington, January 1, 1859." In 1860 he emigrated to America on the sailing-vessel "Middlesex," which consumed thirty-nine days in crossing the Atlantic. Upon landing on American shores Mr. Hopkins immediately went to Conshohocken, and for four years worked in the sheet-iron mills of the Allen Wood Company.

 

In April 1864, William P. Hopkins removed to Catasauqua and found employment in the rolling-mill of the Catasauqua Manufacturing Company. In 1866 he was appointed superintendent of the plant and he had the honor of manufacturing the first plate and the first sheet ever rolled in the Lehigh Valley. In 1882 Mr. Hopkins erected a large rolling mill at the company's Ferndale plant, Mill D, and at the same time a smaller mill was added to the Catasauqua plant, Mill C. During 1869, William P. Hopkins, in company with Oliver Williams and David Williams, purchased the Union Foundry and Machine Company, and he remained associated with that firm until 1891, when he sold his share to his partners. Although a stockholder and superintendent of the Catasauqua Manufacturing Company he resigned from the company in February 1890, in order to organize the Slatington Rolling Mill Company, which was capitalized at $70,000, and he then served as General Manager.

 

William P. Hopkins was married in Wales, in 1855, to Miss Elizabeth Thomas, daughter of Thomas Thomas, and this union was blessed with the following children: John W., born 1858, served as Chief Burgess of Catasauqua during 1888-1890, removed to New York; Thomas E., born June 14, 1860, died April 19, 1876; Louis P., born 1864, engaged in business with his father at Slatington; David S., born July 31, 1866, died December 10, 1866; Winefred, born August, 1867; Elizabeth, born November, 1873; Samuel D., M.D., removed to Denver, Colorado; and two children that died in 1863.

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William P. Hopkins served in Company F, 43rd Pennsylvania Militia, enlisting on June 29, 1863, serving with the Army of the Potomac during Lee's invasion of Pennsylvania, discharged August 13, 1863. While residing in Catasauqua he and his family made their home at 713 Front Street and they attended the Presbyterian Church. In politics Mr. Hopkins was a staunch Republican and he enjoyed a wide reputation among iron merchants all over the United States as one of the leading manufacturers.

 

William P. Hopkins departed this life on October 17, 1901 and his remains were interred in the family plot at Fairview Cemetery. His wife, Elizabeth (Thomas) Hopkins had passed away on May 26, 1888 and her remains were also interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

 

HUNT FAMILY

 

The ancestor of the Hunt family who first arrived in America was Roger Hunt, having come from Birmingham, England. He settled in Chester County with his wife, Esther Aston, daughter of George and Elizabeth Aston. Among their sons was Samuel Hunt, whose birth occurred on November 29, 1745. He was united in marriage to Mary Beale, daughter of William and Mary Beale, and from this union were born five sons and three daughters, one of which was Thomas Hunt, whose birth occurred on December 19, 1791, and he married Rachel Evans, daughter of William and Elizabeth Evans, of Lancaster County. This union was blessed with the following children: Elizabeth, wife of Aaron Baker; Mary, wife of Josiah Philips; Joshua, born May 14, 1820, of further mention; and Joseph, employed by the Lehigh Crane Iron Works, serving as both assistant, superintendent and superintendent.

 

JOSHUA HUNT, son of Thomas and Rachel (Evans) Hunt, was born in Chester County on the 13th of May 1820. He spent six years in Philadelphia, where he attended the Quaker Boarding School at Westtown, Pennsylvania. In 1836, he began his active business career at Harrisburg as superintendent of a rolling-mill erected by his father. This property having been consumed by fire in 1842, he returned to Philadelphia, and entered a rolling-mill there, which was being operated by his father. After one year, in 1843 he removed to Catasauqua and entered the office of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works.

 

After a brief interval at Pougkeepsie, he returned to Catasauqua, and became assistant superintendent of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works, in which capacity he acted until 1867, when he was tendered the superintendency, and he served as such until December 31, 1881, when he severed his connection with the firm.

 

In 1873, Joshua Hunt became associated with the Lehigh Fire Brick Company and he later served as its chairman. He was an early stockholder in the Thomas Iron Company, and he was one of the founders of the Bryden Horse Shoe Company in 1882 and he served as president of the firm until 1884. He also served as a director of the National Bank of Catasauqua; president of the Catasauqua Gas Company, which he helped organize; chairman of Baker Lime Company, Limited; and for a time acted as president of the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad.

 

On the 13th of August, 1844, Joshua Hunt was united in marriage with Gwenllian Thomas, daughter of David and Elizabeth (Hopkins) Thomas, and from this union were born the following children: Thomas, born August 18, 1845, served as assistant superintendent of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works from 1867

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to 1872, died July 9, 1872 from injuries received from a premature explosion at the iron works; Samuel, born October 7, 1847, died March 12, 1871; John, born January 22, 1850, died July 14, 1875; Elizabeth, born April 29, 1852, married Robert Hopewell Hepburn, died October 3, 1926; David, born August 26, 1854, of further mention; Joshua, born June 26, 1856, died September 1, 1912; Roger, M.D., born November 9, 1858, died February 18, 1890; William, born May 21, 1860, died June 19, 1873; George, born September 6, 1863, died September 11, 1879; Joseph, born August 9, 1865, died September 9, 1865; and Gwenllian, married William Vollner. Gwenllian (Thomas) Hunt passed away on October 23, 1875 and her remains were placed in the Thomas vault at Fairview Cemetery. Joshua Hunt was married, a second time on May 4, 1880, to Mrs. Hannah L. (Romig) May, daughter of Dr. John Romig, of Allentown and widow of Cyrus B. May. Joshua Hunt and his family resided at their estate, located on the north side of Bridge Street, lying between Second and Railroad Streets.

 

With Governor Curtin's call for men during the emergency caused by Lee's invasion in the summer of 1863, Joshua Hunt enlisted in Co. B, 38th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, being elected Captain of the company. In politics he was early a Whig, and subsequently he became a Republican. He was elected to the Catasauqua School Board, serving from 1858 thru 1863. Joshua Hunt was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Catasauqua, in which he officiated as an elder. Joshua Hunt departed this life on July 18, 1886 and his remains were also placed in the Thomas vault at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

DAVID HUNT, son of Joshua and Gwenllian (Thomas) Hunt, was born in Catasauqua on August 26, 1854. in his early years he attended the public schools of the borough and he spent three years in Swarthmore College in Chester County and one year in Lafayette College.

 

In 1876 he went to Oxmoor Furnace, Alabama, then under the management of James Thomas. In 1878, he joined the Mackey, Scott and Company expedition to Brazil as a mechanical engineer to construct a railroad along the Madeira River. This enterprise proved a failure and David Hunt returned to Catasauqua, and, in 1879, entered the employ of the Lehigh Fire Brick Company as manager. In 1892, David Hunt in the company of Lucius H. McHose leased the plant and continued to manufacture firebricks.

 

David Hunt was married April 7, 1880, at Mobile, Alabama, to Miss Anna Manning, daughter of Hon. Amos R. Manning, who was for many years Judge of the Supreme Court of Alabama. This union was blessed with the following children: Roger, removed to Arizona; Gwenllian Thomas, born October 1, 1885, died June 2, 1974; David, born September 27, 1887, died March 21,1891; Stilwell, born August 10, 1889, died August 11, 1890; Martha Manning, born August 25, 1890, died July 8, 1916; Lewis, died November 4, 1893; Grace Manning; and Elizabeth, born May 27, 1896, died May 30, 1896.

 

David Hunt was a member of the Southwark Hose Company No. 9 from its organization in 1873 until his death. In political views he was a Republican and was firm in his allegiance to party principals. David Hunt passed away on February 26, 1898 and his remains were placed in the Thomas vault at Fairview Cemetery. His widow, Anna (Manning) Hunt departed this life on June 16, 1909 and her remains were also deposited in the Thomas vault at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

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CAPTAIN WILLIAM RICHARD JONES

 

Captain William R. Jones was born February 23, 1839, in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. He was of Welsh descent, his father, the Rev. John G. Jones being born in Brecon, Breconshire, Wales on February 12, 1806. With his wife, Magdalene, who was born in Ystradgynlais, Breconshire, Wales on February 26, 1809, and two children, he emigrated to America in 1832, and first settled in Pittsburgh. The family removed from Pittsburgh to Scranton, and later to Hazelton and Wilkes-Barre and finally to Catasauqua.

 

Rev. John G. Jones was the religious and intellectual leader of the Welsh community in the village of Catasauqua. He earned his living as a pattern-maker for the Lehigh Crane Iron Works and he resided in one of the "company homes" at No. 315 Church Street. He was an educated man and he possessed a personal library of one hundred and fifty volumes, the largest collection in the village. They were mainly historical books, such as Plutarch and Josephus, with Shakespeare and other miscellaneous classics. The Rev. John G. and Magdalene Jones were blessed with the following children: David, born 1831, married Mersena Peter, daughter of John Peter; Mary, born 1835; Margaret, born 1837; William R., born February 23, 1839; Rebecca S., born 1841; Sarah M., born 1843; John, born 1845; and John born December 16, 1846, died September 18, 1847. Magdalene Jones passed away on September 12, 1847 and her remains were interred at the church-yard cemetery, they were later re-interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

Rev. John G. Jones was in ill health for several years and he passed away on April 27, 1853 and his remains were later interred along with those of his wife at Fairview Cemetery. Several years before his death, Captain William R. Jones erected a granite monument over their graves at Fairview Cemetery.

 

William R. Jones obtained a rudimentary education in the public grade schools of Catasauqua and through the use of his father's personal library he continued his own education. While attending school the young "Bill" Jones wrecked the schoolhouse, because the teacher had unjustly whipped one of his schoolmates.

 

Owing to his father's ill health he was compelled to commence work during the year of 1849, at the age of ten years. He was apprenticed to the Lehigh Crane Iron Works in the foundry department and later was placed in the machine shop of the company, under the tutelage of Hopkin Thomas. By the time he arrived at the age of fourteen, in 1853, he was receiving the full wages of a regular journeyman machinist.

 

William R. Jones and James Thomas left Catasauqua and for several months they entered the employ of William Millens, who operated a machine shop at Janesville, Luzerne County. In 1856, they moved to Philadelphia, and worked as machinists in the shops of I. P. Morris & Company, where they worked on two large blast engines for the Lehigh Crane Iron Works, and they were sent to Catasauqua with the force of men to erect the same. After the completion of this work William R. Jones returned to Philadelphia. The Panic of 1857 compelled him to search for other employment and he engaged himself to a lumberman by the name of Evans, going with him to Clearfield County. He remained with Mr. Evans, as a farm hand, lumberman and raftsman, until the spring of 1858, when he entered the employ of a farmer named Ricketts. He then was employed as an engineer by the firm of Gibson Bros., near Glen Hope, Clearfield County, and later in the same capacity for William Levis, at Beccarja Mills. In the spring of 1859 he removed to Johnstown, and worked as a machinist for the Cambria Iron Company,

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under John Fritz, then general superintendent of the company. After working there three months he was offered the position of master-mechanic by Giles Edwards, who was engaged to build a blast-furnace at Chattanooga, Tennessee. He accepted the offer and removed to Chattanooga, where he remained until the out break of the War Between the States, when because of his outspoken loyalty to the Union he was compelled to travel north with his young bride. Returning to Johnstown, in 1861, William R. Jones was again employed by the Cambria Iron Company as a machinist.

 

On April 14, 1861, William R. Jones and Miss Harriet Lloyd were wed at Chattanooga, Tennessee. Four children were born to this union: the eldest Ella, died in 1864; William M. C., was employed by the Edgar Thomson Steel Works as an engineer and surveyor; Cora; and Charles, who died at a young age.

 

On July 31, 1862, William R. Jones enlisted as a private in Co. A, 133rd Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers, and on August 5, 1862, he was mustered in for nine months' service and was promoted to corporal. The regiment was incorporated into the 5th Corps of the Army of the Potomac and participated in the Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville campaigns, being mustered out of service on May 24, 1863. He returned to Johnstown, and, as skilled workmen were becoming very scarce, was induced by George Fritz, the general superintendent of the works, to again enter the employ of the Cambria Iron Company. Becoming dissatisfied with remaining at home and impelled by his patriotic impulses, he organized Co. F, 194th Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers, and was mustered in as captain of that organization on July 20, 1864, for one hundred days' service. On October 10, 1864, three weeks before the regiment's date of mustering out, he was transferred to the 97th Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers. He served as captain of an independent company made up of men from the 193rd and 194th Regiments, Pennsylvania Volunteers and he served as such until the company was mustered out on June 17, 1865.

 

Upon returning home Captain William R. Jones again entered the employ of the Cambria Iron Company as assistant to George Fritz. While in the employ of the Cambria Iron Company Captain Jones assisted in the construction of the company's Bessemer steel-converting and blooming-mill plants. With the death of George Fritz, in August of 1873, Daniel N. Jones was appointed superintendent over Captain "Bill" Jones. Daniel N. Jones had learned his trade at the Lehigh Crane Iron Works in Catasauqua and he also trained as a master-mechanic under Hopkin Thomas. Captain "Bill" Jones resigned his position at the Cambria Iron Works and left Johnstown. He was then hired as a master-mechanic by the Edgar Thomson Steel Company at Braddock, near Pittsburgh, to help erect their steel works and rail-mill. Upon the completion of the works, the owner, Andrew Carnegie, hired Captain "Bill" Jones as the general manager and afterwards he was given the full charge of the engineering department.

 

In 1875, surrounded by his faithful men from Johnstown, Captain Jones began to show the world how to make steel. He broke all the records for steel production, not only in America but also in Great Britain. In his first fifteen months of steelmaking, Captain "Bill" Jones turned out nearly twice as much steel as any one had made before with a plant of equal size. He continued to increase his production and to set new records for production year after year. When the British Iron and Steel Institute met in 1881, a paper written by Captain William R. Jones was read by its secretary. In the paper Captain Jones modestly ascribed his success to the following five causes:

First, the employment of men who were young and ambitious.

Second, the "strong but pleasant rivalry" between different plants.

Third, the employment of mixed nationalities.

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Fourth, the eight-hour day. "Flesh and blood cannot stand twelve hours of continuous work."

Fifth, the use of the most up-to-date machinery.

 

Captain "Bill" Jones asked for and received "a hell of a big salary" from Andrew Carnegie, who's known policy was not to pay any employee more than five thousand dollars per annum, but to bind the worker to the company by issuing him shares in the company. Captain Jones was rewarded with a salary of twenty-five thousand dollars, a salary equal to that of the President of the United States, and along with a percentage on the product of the mill, his income was almost fifty thousand dollars a year.

 

During his tenure at the Edgar Thomson Works he built Furnaces A, B, C, D, E, F, and G, and H and I were in the course of erection at the time of his death. The improvements and inventions that Captain William R. Jones produced there made those furnaces the finest in the world. Captain "Bill" Jones' inventions were numerous; the first was patented on June 12, 1876, for "Washers for Ingot Molds." His other important patents were a devise for operating ladles in the Bessemer process and an "Improvements in Hose Couplings," both patented December12, 1876; "Fastenings for Bessemer Converters," December 26, 1876; "Hot Bed for Bending Rails," April 10, 1877; "Process and Apparatus for compressing Ingots while Casting," September, 1878; "Ingot Molds," October 1, 1878; "Cooling Roll Journals and Shafts," July 5, 1881; "Feeding Appliance for Rolling Mills," April 27, 1886; "Art of Manufacturing Railroad Bars," October 12, 1886; "Appliance for Rolls," May 15, 1888; "Apparatus for Removing and Setting Rolls," June 26, 1888; "Housing Caps for Rolls," May 15, 1888; "Roll Housing," August 21, 1888; "Apparatus for removing Ingots from Molds," January 1, 1889. His last and most important invention was a method and a device for mixing metal taken direct from several blast-furnaces, and charged into two large receiving-tanks, each capable of holding eighty tons of molten metal. After the metal is thoroughly mixed it is poured into ladles and taken to the converting-works. The device, known as the "Jones Mixer" was put into operation in September of 1888, and letters of patent were allowed but were not yet issued at the time of his death.

 

Captain William R. Jones was a liberal giver to charities, and widows and families of deceased employees, giving away approximately ten thousand dollars a year. The day after the Johnstown Flood on May 31, 1889, Captain "Bill" Jones took three hundred of his men, at his own expense, to the wrecked city, where they worked for two weeks to help restore the property that had been destroyed.

 

In 1887, Captain 'Bill' Jones and James Thomas arranged a gathering of the friends who had lived in Catasauqua thirty years past. The meeting took place at Onoko Glen and on the preceding day, the group went to Mauch Chunk and took a trip over the "Switchback Railroad." From there the group went on to Onoko Glen, where a fine dinner was partaken of at the Wahnetah Hotel, after which the evening was spent in reminiscing.

 

Captain William R. Jones was a member of the American Institute of Mining Engineers, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, the Society of Western Pennsylvania, and the Iron and Steel Institute of Great Britain. He was a prominent and active member of the G. A. R. and in 1888 was chosen Senior Vice Department Commander of Pennsylvania, and he was a member of the Masonic fraternity. In politics he was an unswerving Republican, but in local politics he was a believer in the man rather than the party. In religious matters he was a liberal, and was not connected with any church organization, and although reared a Presbyterian, he was a supporter of the Methodist Evangelical Church.

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On Thursday evening, September 26, 1889, Captain William R. Jones accompanied Superintendent James Gayley to Furnace C, which had not been working properly all day. Several of the employees were tapping the cinder, in an instant a section of about a foot in dimension about seven feet above their heads, fell out, and a stream of hot coal and metal poured upon the group. Captain Jones in his endeavor to escape fell between a stone wall and a cinder car, striking his head on the car. His face and hands were also severely burned. One of the employees at once shut off the blast to the furnace, and the flame ceased. James Tolan, formally of Catasauqua, was in the machine shop nearby, and when he saw Captain "Bill" Jones lying amongst the cinder, he ran in and carried him out. Captain Jones was carried to the company office where he conversed in a dazed manner, while physicians were dressing his burns. He was then taken to the Homeopathic Hospital in Pittsburgh and upon his reaching the hospital his mind commenced to wander, and he remained in a semiconscious state until he died at 10:30 o'clock Saturday night, September 28, 1889.

 

The funeral of Captain William R. Jones was held at 2:30 o'clock on Wednesday, October 2, 1889, and was attended by General Alger, National Commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, and his staff and Commander Stewart and his staff of the Department of Pennsylvania; approximately ten thousand workmen; widows and orphans; and the greatest steel manufacturers of the country came to pay their last respects. From the Lehigh Valley were Superintendents John Fritz and Owen Leibert, of the Bethlehem Steel Works; Samuel, John and David H. Thomas, of the Thomas Iron Works; George Davies and James Thomas of Davies and Thomas Company; Daniel Milson of Catasauqua, while Rev. Cornelius Earle D. D., of the First Presbyterian Church of Catasauqua, assisted in the funeral ceremonies, and spoke of the Captain's early manhood.

 

The honorary pall-bearers were Andrew Carnegie, New York; Henry C. Frick, Pittsburgh; Robert W. Hunt, Chicago; Owen Leibert, Bethlehem; Andrew Hamilton, Johnstown; and James Thomas, Catasauqua. The casket, which remained close, was borne by employees of the Edgar Thomson Works, amongst who was James Tolan. The remains were placed in a vault at the Monongahela Cemetery.

 

 

 

MILTON O. KNAUSS

 

Milton O. Knauss, son of George F. and Annie (Hittle) Knauss, was born at Macungie, Pennsylvania, February 19, 1885. He was educated in the East Macungie public schools, and in July 1898, he began learning the profession of chemistry in the laboratory of the Crane Iron Works. After serving about one year he accepted a position of chief chemist with the Allentown Rolling Mills, but after he filled this position for three months, Leonard Peckitt, president of the Empire Steel and Iron Company, asked him to accept a similar position with his company in the laboratory of the Crane Iron Works at an advanced salary. He filled this position satisfactorily until he was promoted to the superintendency of the Macungie furnace, then owned by the Empire Steel and Iron Company. In September 1911, the company sent him to start up their furnace at Topton, and he continued there until December 1911, when he was appointed superintendent of the Crane Iron Works, and he served as such until 1923, when the furnace was put out of blast. He then became foreman in the plate and machine shop of the Fuller-Lehigh Company, remaining there for two years, when he accepted a position as foreman in the pipe foundry of R. D. Wood and Company at Florence, New Jersey. Milton O. Knauss returned to Catasauqua and was appointed general manager of the Davies and Thomas Company, and in

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1939, in the company of Frederick J. Walker and S. M. Rutledge, he formed the Catasauqua Machine Works, and he remained connected with this firm until October 1950, when the company ceased operations. He then became foreman in the machine shop of the Fuller Company, remaining there until retiring in 1956.

 

On September 24, 1904, Milton O. Knauss was wedded to Ada DeLong, daughter of Tilghman and Angelina (Fenstermacher) DeLong, of Topton. From this union were born the following children: a Daughter, died January 1, 1908; Mabel Isabella, married Meade Detweiler; Rhea A., born 1913, died 1916; Jeanne, married Theodore Redman; and a Son, died November 17, 1920.

 

Milton O. Knauss served the borough in various capacities, as a member of the school board, of which he was president; borough council and the Board of Health; and as a member of the board of managers of the Fairview Cemetery Association. Mr. and Mrs. Knauss reside for a time at 507 Walnut Street and later at 323 Bridge Street, and they were members of St. Paul's Lutheran Church.

 

Milton O. Knauss passed away in Northampton Hospital on November 16, 1966 and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. Ada (DeLong) Knauss preceded her husband in death by two days dying on November 14, 1966 and her remains were also interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

Howard A. Knauss, born October 14, 1876, son of George F. Knauss, and older brother of Milton O. Knauss, learned telegraphy and chemistry at the Macungie furnace, after which he was employed in the laboratory of the Crane Iron Works, becoming chief chemist. He was later appointed assistant superintendent and then superintendent of the Crane Iron Works, continuing there for eight years. Afterwards he became superintendent of the Northern Iron Company's furnace at Standish, New York, remaining there seven months. He then became re-associated with the Empire Steel and Iron Company at their Henry Clay Furnace at Reading, Pennsylvania, and in 1909 he was appointed superintendent of the Reading Iron Company's furnaces. While residing at Catasauqua he was a member of the borough council and he served as its president for two years.

 

 

 

RICHARD OTTO KOHLER

 

Richard O. Kohler was born in Chemnitz, Germany, October 27, 1872. He was educated in the schools of his native town, which afforded him an excellent advantage for his chosen vocation, that of a business career. In June 1893, he emigrated to America and found employment as a clerk in the Unicorn Silk Mill. He subsequently engaged with the Bryden Horse Shoe Company, and for several years he served as general manager of the Catasauqua Casting Company. For a very short period he acted as general sales agent of the Lehigh Clutch Company and traveled extensively in locating their sales.

 

On October 31, 1902, Richard O. Kohler wed Miss Grace Williams, daughter of Oliver and Anna (Heilig) Williams, and this union was blessed with one daughter, Anna H., born May 24, 1904, married a Mr. Eastman, issue: (Grace Eastman, born January 14, 1930; and Charles Kohler Eastman, born October 3, 1931), died June 8, 1975.

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Richard O. Kohler was a prominent official of the Holy Trinity Lutheran Church of Catasauqua and a member of Porter Lodge No. 284, F. and A. M., and of the Catasauqua Club. He and his family resided at Fourth and Pine Streets, southeast corner, and they spent three months during the summer of 1913 traveling Europe and in visiting his brother, who resided in Chemnitz, Germany.

 

Richard O. Koehler died in the German Hospital, Philadelphia, on October 30, 1913 and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. Grace (Williams) Kohler later married Pelham Harding and she passed away on October 10, 1945, her remains being buried at Fairview Cemetery. Mr. Harding departed this life on June 2, 1947 and his remains were also interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

 

LEIBERT FAMILY

 

 

JOHN LEIBERT, son of Henry and Catherine (Knauss) Leibert, was born at Leibert's Gap, in Milford Township, Lehigh County, on October 3, 1807. He married Catherine Ovens Tice, daughter of John and Marian (Hackett) Tice. She was a native of New York City and was born on March 22, 1808. This union produced the following children: Mary Ann, born June 6, 1830, married James Nevins, died December 6, 1882; William Henry, born 1835, master mechanic for the Bethlehem Iron Company; Owen F., born August 27, 1836, of further mention; Sarah Jane, born January 21, 1841, died November 23, 1916; and Gwenny Pauline, born August 31, 1843, married Jonathan Price, died June 9, 1881.

 

John Leibert resided near Koehler's Lock (Lock No. 37), located south of Biery's Port. He was employed as a boss carpenter for the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company, repairing canal boats at their boat-yard near the lock. He later was employed as a mill-wright and miller at Biery's Port, and when the furnaces were erected he was hired to take charge of the water power machinery, used to operate the blowing engines for the hot blast and to pump water to the company's reservoir. He removed his family to Wood Street in 1841, and on the day he moved to Catasauqua, he was asked by Samuel Glace where he was going. He answered rather ironically "Oh, to Craneville, and now I suppose my daughters will marry Irishmen." His eldest daughter became the wife of James Nevins.

 

John Leibert died on April 1, 1845 and his remains were interred at Schoenersville Cemetery. His widow, Catherine Leibert built a home at 221 Front Street and there she resided until her death on February 25, 1898. Her remains were interred in a family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

OWEN LEIBERT, son of John and Catherine (Tice) Leibert, was born in Hanover Township, Lehigh County on August 27, 1836. His earliest years were spent near Koehler's Lock (Lock No. 37), south of Catasauqua, and he removed with his family to Catasauqua proper in 1841. There he attended the local public schools until he was eleven years of age, when he was obliged to go to work. On the death of his father, in 1845, he was not yet nine years old, and David Thomas, superintendent of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works, became his legal guardian. He worked under the guidance of that gentleman and his sons, Samuel and John Thomas, from the age of eleven until he was twenty-one years old. At the age of thirteen he entered the blacksmith shop to learn the business, and in a short time he became foreman of the shop. He then went to Norristown and there he engaged in manufacturing.

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On January 16, 1863, Mr. Leibert removed to Bethlehem, where he found employment as a blacksmith for the Bethlehem Iron Works, and later he worked as a machinist with his elder brother, William Henry Leibert, who was employed as a master mechanic at the Bethlehem Iron Works. On or about 1871 he returned to Catasauqua and there he was employed as a foreman in the car shops for sixteen months, on the expiration of which time he when back to Bethlehem and became a draftsman for the Bethlehem Iron Company, and afterward foreman in the steel works, where he was employed for twelve years. He next went to Wheeling, West Virginia, where he was employed by the Riverside Iron Works for nine months. In 1886 he received the position of assistant engineer to John Fritz, under whom he had served off and on from 1863 to 1892, during which time Mr. Fritz was general superintendent and chief engineer of the Bethlehem Iron Company. Owen F. Leibert was appointed general superintendent of the Bethlehem Iron Company in January 1893, upon the retirement of John Fritz.

 

In Germantown, Pennsylvania, January 28, 1864, Owen F. Leibert was united in marriage with Miss Mary M. Warner, daughter of Benjamin Warner. Mr. and Mrs. Leibert resided in a fine mansion on Market Street, Bethlehem. In politics he voted with the Republican Party, and he held an interest in the First National Bank of Bethlehem and was a stockholder in the Bethlehem Iron Company.

 

 

 

McKEE FAMILY

 

JAMES HARPER MCKEE was born on February 14, 1818. He was a member of a prominent Luzerne County family and in 1868, in the company of his brother-in-law, James W. Fuller II, formed the firm of McKee, Fuller and Company, which then took over the operations of the Lehigh Car, Wheel and Axle Works at Ferndale (Fullerton).

 

James H. McKee was united in wedlock to Miss Mary Thomas, daughter of Hopkin and Catherine (Richards) Thomas, and from this union were born the following children: Katherine Sarah, born February 10, 1849, died October 27, 1849; Joseph J., resided at Bethlehem; William Weir, born December 27, 1852, of further mention; Mary Norton, born August 6, 1856, died October 19, 1912; Llewelyn T., resided at Philadelphia; Helen Thomas, born June 28, 1864, died August 5, 1876; and Edith, born January 2, 1868, married Louis Duncan, died March 3, 1946.

 

James H. McKee passed away at his home in Philadelphia on November 5, 1895 and his earthly remains were laid to rest at Fairview Cemetery. Mary (Thomas) McKee had passed away on January 14, 1891 and her remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

WILLIAM WEIR McKEE, second son of James H. and Mary (Thomas) McKee, was born December 27, 1852, in Jersey City, New Jersey. His parents moved to Philadelphia where he spent his boyhood days. After graduating with honors from a Polytechnic School in Philadelphia, he went to Germany where he was enrolled in the University of Freilberg as a student in mining engineering, graduating after two years of study.

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Upon returning from Germany, William W. McKee found employment with the Eckley Coxe Coal Company as a mining engineer. After some years of efficient service with this enterprising company he associated himself with the Lehigh Car, Wheel and Axle Works and in 1883 he was taken in as a stockholder.

 

On April 8, 1890, William W. McKee married his cousin, Ruth Thomas, daughter of James and Mary Ann (Davies) Thomas. This happy union was blessed with the following children: Ruth Thomas, born November, 1891, married John McVey, died November 3, 1965; James H., born May 25, 1893, served in the U. S. Army as a Second Lieutenant, ordnance during World War I, died July 14, 1919; Katherine, born April 24, 1895, died April 25, 1895; and Mary, born February, 1899, married Thomas Day Shannahan, died May 1, 1967.

 

William W. McKee and his family resided at 605 Fourth Street, and socially he was affiliated with the Porter Lodge, No. 284, F. and A. M., and was a Grand Master. He was also a member of the Lulu Temple, Philadelphia, and the Catasauqua Club. In politics he was a staunch Republican.

 

William W. McKee departed this life on June 28, 1905 and his mortal remains were interred in the McKee family plot at Fairview Cemetery. His widow, Ruth (Thomas) McKee continued to reside in the family home at Fourth and Pine Streets until she passed away on March 1, 1966 and her remains were also interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

 

DANIEL MILSON

 

DANIEL MILSON was born in Neath, Glamorganshire, South Wales, February 28, 1830, a son of Charles and Rachel (Thomas) Milson, he was reared in his native country and educated in the common schools of his native town. At the age of sixteen he arranged with his maternal uncle, Joseph Thomas, to learn the boiler-making trade. Becoming one of the best mechanics in his own shire, he found employment at the Neath shipyards and remained there until 1852, when he left his native land for America. Landing in New York after a long voyage of more than three months, he removed to Philadelphia, where he entered the employ of Merrick and Son, and later he entered the service of the United States naval yard as a boilermaker.

 

In 1854, Daniel Milson came to Catasauqua and for two years was employed by the Lehigh Crane Iron Works, and after dissolving this connection he was employed by the Thomas Iron Company in the erection of their furnaces at Hokendauqua, becoming a stockholder in the company in 1862. In the later part of the year 1863, in company with David Thomas, Jr., he went to Ohio, where they erected a furnace of which he served as assistant superintendent until 1865. In the later part of that year Daniel Milson returned to Catasauqua and he leased the boiler shop of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works and there he opened a shop on his own account, employing fifty men. He supplied the furnaces in the Lehigh Valley with the finest production of his skill and he operated the business until his retirement in 1890.

 

In 1861, Daniel Milson was united in marriage to Elizabeth Davies, a native of Wales, who bore him eleven children, as follows: Thomas H., born 1862, was employed as a steel pipe maker at Paterson, New Jersey; Charles Edwin, M.D., born August 10, 1863, died January 1, 1949, married Camilla Deily,

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issue: (Ruth D., born March 2, 1884, died April 4, 1980; Gertrude, born 1888, died 1984; Helen, born July 22, 1892, married E. Sommerville Johnson, died January 6, 1951; and Marie, born September 6, 1895, died May 15, 1903); Annie N., born September 25, 1865, married John W. Thomas, died June 4, 1938; Elizabeth, born February 5, 1868, died May 5, 1946; David Thomas, born December 25, 1869, drowned in the canal, May 11, 1877; Minnie, born 1871, married William R. Thomas, Jr., died 1924; Joseph, born June 30, 1873, died October 24, 1972; Daniel, born July 22, 1875, operated a coal business in South Catasauqua, died June 29, 1957; Henry D., born February 7, 1878, died August 23, 1892; Mabel, born 1879, married James S. Stillman, died 1975; and Eleanor, married John M. Fritzgerald.

 

Daniel Milson and his family resided at the southeast corner of Second and Chapel Streets and they were members of the First Presbyterian Church of Catasauqua. In politics Mr. Milson was a staunch Republican. Daniel Milson passed away on February 9, 1905 and his remains were buried at Fairview Cemetery. Elizabeth (Davies) Milson had passed away on January 11, 1894 and her remains were buried at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

 

LEONARD PECKITT

 

Leonard Peckitt was born April 17, 1860, at Canton Hall, Yorkshire, England. He was the eldest of nine children comprising the family of Leonard F. and Frances (Quickfall) Peckitt. His early training was by private tutor and he later studied at Masham Grammer School, after which he spent four years under the tutelage of Professor W. F. Stock, County Analyst at Darlington, Durham County.

 

In June of 1882, Mr. Peckitt crossed the Atlantic, and arriving in Philadelphia, was soon engaged by the Reading Iron Works as their chemist. After that firm failed in April 1886, he spent a month in the employ of the Allentown Iron Company as a chemist. Later he took charge of the laboratory of the Crane Iron Works and he served as chemist for approximately one year. In the fall of 1888 he was chosen assistant superintendent, and at the same time he also took charge of the Edge Hill Furnace, in Montgomery County, and the furnace at Macungie, both of which had been leased by the Crane Iron Company. In 1891 he was promoted to superintendent and in 1894, after the company had been put in the hands of its receivers, he was elected president. In 1899, Mr. Peckitt took an active part in the formation of the Empire Steel and Iron Company and he was elected president of this enterprise, which proceeded to acquire furnaces, and iron ore and coal reserves, one of which was the Crane Iron Works. On April 10, 1922, the Empire Steel and Iron Company was taken over by the Replogle Steel Company, with Leonard Peckitt then being elected president. In his business affairs he also served as a director and vice-president of the National Bank of Catasauqua, director and president of the Davies and Thomas Company, director of the Bryden Horse Shoe Company, director of the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad, director of Lehigh Valley Transit Company, and vice-president of the Pottstown Iron Company.

 

In Reading, in 1889, Leonard Peckitt was united in marriage with Hattie Madeline Weilder, daughter of Emanuel Weilder. This union was blessed by one child, a son, Leonard Carlton Peckitt, born November 16, 1890. He was known as Carl" to his friends and he attended Lafayette College and Cornell University. During 1914 he became ill with bronchial pneumonia and he traveled to Arizona for his

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health. After returning home he died on January 15, 1916, and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

Leonard Peckitt and his family, while living in Catasauqua, resided at 234 Walnut Street. He was an organizer and leader of St. Stephen's Episcopal Church of Catasauqua and he served as senior warden for fifty years. He served as a trustee of St. Luke's Hospital, trustee of the Allentown State Hospital, vice-president of the Lehigh Country Club, and president of the Old Home Week Association. He was also a member of the American Iron and Steel Institute, American Institute of Mining Engineers, Iron and Steel Institute of Great Britain, and he held a fellowship in the Chemical Society of London, England.

 

Leonard Peckitt and his wife removed from Catasauqua and took up residency at 2145 Livingston Street, Allentown, and there he passed away on July 21, 1952 and his remains were interred at Fairveiw Cemetery. His widow, Hattie M. (Weilder) Peckitt departed this life on November 19, 1952 and her remains were also interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

 

JACOB ROBERTS

 

Jacob Roberts was born in Marbletown, Ulster County, New York, on October 3, 1832 and he attended the local common schools. He supplemented his education by reading standard works on various subjects, chiefly mathematical and mechanical. He then taught school for several years, after which he entered the ranks of mechanical scientists and spent fifteen years acquiring a practical knowledge of blacksmithing, carpentering, painting and machinery. He was engaged for some years in the carriage-making business and also indoor blind and sash manufacturing, in Brooklyn, New York, and for a time he served as a consulting engineer and mechanical expert in the cities of New York and Brooklyn.

 

In 1883, he purchased the Hudson River Rolling Mill at Poughkeepsie and, in company with Charles Miller and the Crossman Brothers of New York City, organized the Phoenix Horseshoe Company and began the manufacture of horse and mule shoes. In August 1889, Mr. Roberts severed his connection with the Phoenix Horseshoe Company of Poughkeepsie and became superintendent of the Bryden Horse Shoe Company, and there he remained until his death. During his tenure the company met with phenomenal success and more than once the company had to double the capacity of the plant in order to meet the demand for its product.

 

On September 18, 1855, Jacob Roberts was married to Miss Catherine L. Relyea of Clintondale, New York, and their married life was blessed with the following children: Frances D., born May 11, 1856, died December 19, 1930, married Woodruff H. Simonson, issue: (a daughter who married a Mr. Hamilton, issue: a son, born at Montclair, New Jersey, March 16, 1916, named John Hamilton, a.k.a. Sterling Hayden, died May 23, 1986); William B., born December 2, 1861, died January 7, 1937; Eva M., died in infancy; Ida T., died in infancy; and Vina, born February 22, 1867, married Austin A. Glick, Esq., died July 21, 1944.

 

Jacob Roberts was a member of the Grace Methodist Episcopal Church of Catasauqua, and he departed this life on November 18, 1905. His remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. His widow, Catherine

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(Relyea) Roberts passed away on October 26, 1920 and her remains were also interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

 

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN SWARTZ

 

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN SWARTZ was a direct descendant of Nicolaus Schwartz, the progenitor of this family in America, who took the oath of allegiance at Philadelphia on September 3, 1739, and he settled in Longswamp Township, Berks County, near the present borough of Topton, in 1740, purchasing three hundred acres of land from the Penn heirs. He was a shoemaker by trade. Nicolaus Schwartz and his wife were the parents of the following children: Daniel, born April 14, 1746, died January 7, 1815; Sarah; Christian, of further mention; Nicholas; Mary Elizabeth; John; and Samuel.

 

CHRISTIAN SCHWARTZ, son of Nicolaus Schwartz, was born in Longswamp Township. During the year of 1787, he removed to Northampton County and settled along the Lehigh River, near Dry Run. He was a member of St. John's Reformed Church at Howertown. Christian Schwartz was the father of John Swartz, born May 2, 1786, of further mention.

 

JOHN SWARTZ, son of Christian Schwartz, was born at Longswamp on May 2, 1786, and he came to the area later known as "Swartz's Dam" with his parents while still an infant. During his business career he was a farmer and a tavern-keeper. John Swartz was a member of St. John's Reformed Church at Howertown, and he was a Whig in politics. John Swartz served as a captain of the Allen Light Horse during the War of 1812.

 

John Swartz was twice married, first to Sarah Mickley, with whom he had four children: William; Joseph, born 1812, died 1883, he came to Catasauqua in 1856 and with his half-brother, James W. Swartz, operated a dry-goods, notions, grocery and hardware store, which traded under the name J. and J. W. Swartz; Isabella, born October 2, 1814, died May 6, 1880, married Samuel Glace, issue: (William H. Glace Esq. and Amanda Glace, wife of Dr. Daniel Yoder); and Nathan. The second marriage was to Catherine Heller and to this union were born the following children: Eliza, born August 21, 1818, died November 13, 1889, married Hon. Joseph Laubach, issue: (James Laubach: Mary Laubach, married Dr. Molton E. Hornbeck; and a daughter, married Congressman Edward Klotz); Rebecca; John, first photographer (daguerreotypes) in Catasuqua, died 1852; Owen, born February 24, 1823, died November 17, 1876, started a lumber business on Front Street in 1853, which later became F. W. Wint and Company; Edwin, died in infancy; Daniel, died in infancy; Polly; Selinda, born June 18, 1831, died December 11, 1912, married Rev. Christian Bliem of Allentown; James W., born 1833, died 1890, partner with his half-brother in the emporium of J. and J. W. Swartz; Christian, born 1836, died 1909; Benjamin Franklin, born April 7, 1838, of further mention; and Sarah. John Swartz departed this life on October 5, 1854 and his remains were interred at Greenwood Cemetery, Howertown.

 

 

BENJAMIN FRANKLIN SWARTZ, son of John and Catherine (Heller) Swartz, was born, April 7, 1838, on the family farm at "Swartz's Dam," below Dry Run. He obtained a fair education in the district schools, and with the death of his father he began clerking in a store at Hokendauqua at the age of sixteen. A year later he was thus employed for six months at Bloomsburg and at the expiration of that

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time he came to Catasauqua and took charge of William Miller's store for a period of six months. He then entered the Wyoming Seminary, where he carried on his studies during the winter of 1856-1857, after which he went to Allentown. During the fall of 1858 he went to Ohio, where for two and one-half years he clerked in a store in Wyandot County. He then established his own firm in partnership with a Mr. Peck. He carried on this business at Carey, Ohio, until the fall of 1865, when he disposed of his interest and formed a partnership with his brother, Christian Swartz. The firm then traded as B. F. & C. Swartz, and they engaged in the dry-goods business. B. F. Swartz left Ohio, coming to Catasauqua in 1869, and there he was engaged by McKee, Fuller and Company as their traveling salesman. During 1883 he was taken into the company as a stockholder and he remained connected with this firm until January 1, 1909, when he retired from active business.

 

On November 27, 1861, Benjamin Franklin Swartz was united in marriage to Miss Anna Louise Dow, daughter of Alvin Dow of Carey, Ohio. This union was blessed with two children: Maude O., born August 14, 1865, married George W. Graffin, died March 6, 1935; and Alvin Franklin D., born June 16, 1881, died April 17, 1886.

 

During the Civil War, Benjamin Franklin Swartz showed his devotion to his country by volunteering in the 144th Ohio Volunteer Infantry, and he was promoted to sergeant major of that regiment. B. F. Swartz was a member of Grace Methodist Episcopal Church of Catasauqua, and in politics he was an ardent Republican. He also served as a director of the Lehigh National Bank of Catasauqua. Mr. and Mrs. Swartz resided on Third Street, at the Chestnut Street intersection, southeast corner.

 

On April 8, 1909, Benjamin Franklin Swartz departed this life and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. His widow, Anna Louise (Dow) Swartz passed away in 1928 and her remains were also interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

 

DAVID THOMAS FAMILY

 

DAVID THOMAS, who was born on November 3, 1794, was the son of David and Jane Thomas, of Tyllwyd (Grey House) Farm, in the parish of Cadoxton-juxta-Neath, Glamorganshire, South Wales. David Thomas, the father, was a small farmer, but a highly respectable man in his parish, and, although a Dissenter, he held the office of church-warden for some years, and was overseer of the poor of his parish for sixteen years. He was a consistent and exemplary member of the "Independents" Religious Community at Maesyrhaf Chapel, Neath, for forty years, and his wife, who survived him twenty years, was for sixty years a member of the same organization. Both were buried in the burying-ground attached to the above-named place of worship. David and Jane Thomas were the parents of four children, three daughters and one son, David Thomas.

 

The younger David Thomas' religious and moral training was, therefore, of the strictest kind, and being the only son his parents afforded him the best education their means would allow. He attended schools in both Alitwen and Neath, and he applied himself with industry and perseverance, outstripping all of his schoolmates. His thirst for knowledge and improvement had awakened an ambitious feeling, which farming operations failed to satisfy. He, therefore, sought employment at seventeen years of age at the Neath Abbey Iron Works. For five years he worked in the fitting-shops and at the blast furnaces,

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asserting his superiority and intelligence. He performed his duties so well that in 1817 he was invited by Richard Parsons, owner of the Yniscedvyn Iron Works in the Swansea Valley, to be his superintendent of his works, including the company's coal and iron mines. Almost immediately after he obtained this position, Richard Parsons and his brother, Samuel, suffered financial difficulties and the works were taken over by Mr. Haines, a banker from Swansea, who was the mortgagee. During this period the furnaces were only operated sporadically, and in 1823 the works were sold to George Crane of Broomsgrove, Worcestershire. David Thomas remained as superintendent throughout all of these changes and he served as such for a total of twenty-two years

 

As early as 1820, David Thomas was experimenting with anthracite coal as a fuel for his furnaces, but with little or no success. After James Neilson's invention of the hot blast, both David Thomas and George Crane renewed their interest in the use of anthracite coal, and after obtaining plans and a license from Mr. Neilson to use his hot blast process, Mr. Thomas, with Mr. Crane's consent, went to work and built ovens for heating the blast in September, 1836. They declared on February 7 1837, the problem of production of iron with the use of anthracite coal practically solved. The Yniscedwyn furnaces produced from thirty-four to thirty-six tons of iron per week.

 

The Lehigh Crane Iron Company, which had been formed by members of the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company, sent a representative, Erskine Hazard, to Wales to investigate and study the operation of the hot blast process. Mr. Hazard entered into an agreement with David Thomas on behalf of the Lehigh Crane Iron Company on the thirty-first day of December 1838, to come to America and to erect and to operate blast furnaces, suitable for anthracite coal, on the Lehigh River.

 

David Thomas landed at New York on June 5, 1839, and shortly afterward arrived at Catasauqua, where he erected the first commercially and technologically successful furnace in the United States to use exclusively anthracite coal as fuel. He remained in charge of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works until 1855, and during that period he erected and operated five furnaces. After retiring from the office of superintendent, he remained with the company as cashier until 1865.

 

Mr. Thomas was instrumental in the organization of the Thomas Iron Company in 1854, which was named in his honor. In 1854, with William Michel, he purchased the Union Foundry and Machine Company, later acquiring total ownership. He sold this enterprise to Messrs. Williams and Mr. Hopkins in 1869. David Thomas was one of the founders of the Catasauqua Manufacturing Company in 1863 and he served as president from its founding until 1879.

 

During 1868, David Thomas, along with Oliver Ritter and Samuel McHose, organized the Lehigh Fire Brick Company, and in 1873, after Messrs. Ritter and McHose retired from the firm, Mr. Thomas then associated with his sons and son-in-law, Samuel Thomas, John Thomas and Joshua Hunt, and he retained a financial interest in the firm until his death. In addition to his interest in the Lehigh Crane Iron Works and the Thomas Iron Company, Mr. Thomas was also a stockholder in the Carbon Iron Company at Parryville, Pennsylvania. He served as president of the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad for many years, and he also served as a director of the Lehigh Valley Railroad. He was a trustee and executive member of St Luke's Hospital, and a trustee of Lafayette College. In 1857 he was one of the organizers of the National Bank of Catasauqua, in which he had a large amount of stock, and he served for many years as one of its directors.

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David Thomas was united in marriage to Miss Elizabeth Hopkins, daughter of John Hopkins, and to this union were born the following children: Jane, born May 1, 1820, died October 11, 1899; Gwenllian, born February 28, 1824, married Joshua Hunt, died October 23, 1875; Samuel, born March 13, 1827, of further mention; John, born September 10, 1829, of further mention; and David, born February 5, 1837, died November 10, 1862. Mr. and Mrs. Thomas resided first in a two-story house built by the Lehigh Crane Iron Company, located at the southeast corner of Front and Church Streets. In 1856 he erected his own home at the southeast corner of Second and Pine Streets. He later erected another dwelling at the southeast corner of Third and Pine Streets for members of his family. Always active and concerned with the welfare-of the community, Mr. and Mrs. Thomas were fondly called "Father" Thomas and "Mother" Thomas.

 

Shortly after his arrival in 1839, David Thomas set out to organize a church to attend to the spiritual needs of the village. The First Presbyterian Church of Catasauqua was then organized and established on the north side of Church Street, near Howertown Road. Church services were held in Mr. Thomas' home until the completion of the chapel on March 22, 1840. After several years the church became to small, and David Thomas again became instrumental in erecting a new and larger edifice at the northeast corner of Second and Pine Streets, which opened for worship in 1856. David Thomas was particularly solicitous of establishing the practice of temperance in the growing community and in 1845 two lodges were organized one for adults called the George Crane Division, and the other for boys, called the Crystal Fount Section, No. 2. The organizations were active for twelve years, before disbanding in 1857.

 

Through the encouragement of Mr. Thomas the Humane Fire Company was formed in 1845, and he also played an important role in the formation of both the Phoenix and Southwark fire companies. He was a principle backer of the Academy, a private-school erected at the southwest corner of Bridge Street and Howertown Road in 1851, and he served as a trustee of the school until it was purchased by the Catasauqua School District in 1856.

 

In 1847, David Thomas purchased the land of Henry Breisch and in 1851 he bought the remainder of the undeveloped acreage of the John Peter farm. Mr. Thomas sold very few lots initially, which later allowed for the erection of many fine residences between Second Street and Howertown Road and from Bridge Street to Walnut Street, now known as the "Mansion District."

 

The Borough of Catasauqua was incorporated by a degree of the Court of Quarter Sessions of Lehigh County on February 1, 1853, and in the first election Mr. Thomas was honored by being selected to serve as the first Burgess of Catasauqua. He was also elected to this post in 1856 and 1857, and he also served as a member of the local school board during the year of 1855. In 1866 he was a Republican candidate for Congress, but declining on principle to take part in the canvass he was not successful.

 

In 1872, David Thomas was honored by being elected the first president of the newly formed American Institute of Mining Engineers, and in 1874 he was selected .the president of the Iron Masters Convention held in Philadelphia. He was affectionately styled the "Father of the American Anthracite-Iron Industry" by James Swank, a contemporary, and secretary and general manager of the American Iron and Steel Association.

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David Thomas departed this life on June 20, 1882, after a full and rich life. He was a man of extraordinary abilities and accomplishments and with his passing the borough lost its father, mentor, benefactor and friend. His earthly remains were deposited in the Thomas vault at Fairview Cemetery.

 

During 1882 a number of Welsh families living in Catasauqua were determined to organize a congregation for themselves, known as the Bethel Welsh Congregational Church, and "Mother" Thomas donated a lot of ground at the northwest corner of Fourth and Pine Streets for this purpose and she also made a liberal contribution to the cause. Elizabeth (Hopkins) Thomas passed away on July 9, 1888 and her remains were also deposited in the Thomas vault at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

SAMUEL THOMAS, son of David and Elizabeth (Hopkins) Thomas, was born March 13, 1827, in Yniscedwyn, Brecknockshire, South Wales, and in 1839 he emigrated with his parents to America. He had in his native country acquired the rudiments of an English education, and on reaching Pennsylvania became a pupil at Nazareth Hall in Northampton County, where two and a half years were spent in study. On returning to Catasauqua he was determined to follow the vocation of his father, and entering the blacksmith and machine shops of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works, spent four years in acquiring a. thorough knowledge of the business.

 

At the age of nineteen Mr. Thomas took an active part in the management of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works and the development of the mining interests of the company. In 1848, at the age of twenty-one years, he went to Boonton, Morris County, New Jersey, where he was for nine months engaged in the erection of a furnace for the Boonton Iron Company. This he put in blast and successfully started, after which his connection with the Lehigh Crane Iron Works was resumed. Much of the burden and responsibility of the business was thrown upon Mr. Thomas. He participated actively in the erection of the No. 4 and No. 5 furnaces during 1849, and assisted largely in the development of the extensive mining property of the company.

 

Samuel Thomas was appointed superintendent of the newly formed Thomas Iron Company on March 1, 1854, and under his management two furnaces were erected and put into blast at Hokendauqua. He filled the position of general superintendent for a period of ten years, and on August 31, 1864, he was chosen a director and elected president of the Thomas Iron Company. He organized the Lock Ridge Iron Company at Alburtis and erected the first furnace in 1867, and on May 1, 1869 the plant was acquired by the Thomas Iron Company. Samuel Thomas was also associated with the Catasauqua Manufacturing Company and the Lehigh Fire Brick Company, both of Catasauqua.

 

In company with his father, Samuel Thomas visited Jefferson County, Alabama in May 1868, for the purpose of exploiting. In August of the same year he returned and purchased large tracts of mineral lands. In the spring of 1886, Samuel Thomas, along with his son, Edwin Thomas, started the construction of a blast furnace in Jefferson County, four miles west of Birmingham, at a place afterwards named Thomas, Alabama. Mr. Thomas resigned the presidency of the Thomas Iron Company on September 22, 1887, while remaining a director of the firm until his death, in order to devote himself to the establishment of this new enterprise. Furnace No. 1 was put in blast in May 1888, and construction of another furnace was then commenced, which was completed in the early part of 1890. The two furnaces, coke ovens, and coal and iron mines were operated under the name of the Pioneer Mining and Manufacturing Company by the Thomas family until 1899, when the plant was sold to the

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Republic Iron and Steel Company. Samuel Thomas then retired from active participation in business affairs.

 

In March, 1848, Samuel Thomas married Miss Rebecca Mickley, daughter of Jacob Mickley, and to this union were born two children: Gertrude, wife of Dr. Joseph C. Guernsey of Philadelphia; and Edwin, born April 9, 1853, of further mention. Mrs. Thomas departed this life on November 16, 1891 and her remains were placed in the Thomas mausoleum at Fairview Cemetery. In the spring of 1894, Samuel Thomas married, a second time, Miss Julia M. Beerstecher, a native of Neuveville, Switzerland. In his later years Mr. Thomas resided in the Thomas Mansion," at Second and Pine Streets.

 

Mr. Thomas was a keen student, a close observer and an able writer. His masterpiece was written on "Reminiscences of the Early Anthracite Iron Industry" and read by him before the American Institute of Mining Engineers at a California meeting in September 1899. Like his father, Mr. Thomas took an active and effective interest in community affairs in Hokendauqua as well as Catasauqua. He was actively identified with the Presbyterian Church of Hokendauqua, in which he filled the office of trustee for a number of years, and he also served as an Elder in the First Presbyterian Church of Catasauqua. He contributed liberally toward the erection of the Soldier's Monument in Fairview Cemetery, made from designs approved by him, in memory of the men from Catasauqua, who fought in the Civil War. Samuel Thomas served as a director of the National Bank of Catasauqua, and although he took a live interest in political affairs and voted with the Republican Party, he never aspired for office.

 

On February 21, 1906, Samuel Thomas departed this world after a long and fruitful life. His earthly remains were deposited in the Thomas vault at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

EDWIN THOMAS, son of Samuel and Rebecca (Mickley) Thomas, was born at Catasauqua on April 9, 1853. He received his early education in the public schools of his native borough and he completed his education at Swarthmore and then Lafayette College. After finishing his studies he entered the employ of the Thomas Iron Company at Hokendauqua as a machinist, and there he remained for three years. On April 7, 1877 he was appointed superintendent of the company's Lock Ridge furnaces at Alburtis, and he served as such until April 1, 1880. He then accepted the position of general manager of the Chestnut Hill Iron Company at Columbia, Pennsylvania, remaining there for two years. He returned to the Hokendauqua plant of the Thomas Iron Company in 1882 and he then served for four years as purchasing agent and manager of the mechanical department. In the spring of 1886, Edwin Thomas went to Jefferson County, Alabama, near Birmingham, and there he assisted his father, Samuel Thomas, in erecting furnaces, coke ovens and coal and iron mimes, under the name Pioneer Mining and Manufacturing Company. Upon the completion of the plant he was appointed general manager, after which he was made vice-president and in 1892 he was elected president, which office he held until the time of the company's purchase in 1899 by the Republic Iron and Steel Company. Under the new ownership he served as manager for one year, when he resigned and returned to Catasauqua, and he then retired from active management of furnaces, although he retained financial interests in the same. For a brief time during 1915 and 1916 he served as vice-president of the Thomas Iron Company.

 

Edwin Thomas was united in marriage with Miss Ellen (Ella) Dale Boyd, daughter of Alexander Reed and Mary Louise (Fuehrer) Boyd. From this union were born the following children: Samuel Boyd, born May 20, 1879, died September 12, 1888; Reed Dale, born January 25, 1883, died July 5, 1883; Edgar

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Mickley, born March 10, 1884, died March 11, 1884; H. Dale, born June, 1885; Gertrude, born July 27, 1889, died March 14, 1890; and Ruth, born February, 1892, married Darwin Lathrop Gillette, removed to Westfield, Massachusetts. After returning to Catasauqua in 1900, Mr. and Mrs. Thomas resided first at 543 Third Street and later at the old family estate at the southeast corner of Second and Pine Streets.

 

Edwin Thomas was elected president of the National Bank of Catasauqua in 1903 and he served as such until his death. He was president of the Nescopee Coal Company; director of the Upper Lehigh Coal Company, Wahnetah Silk Company, Thomas Iron Company, Hazel Brook Coal Company, and the Virginia Coal and Iron Company. He also served as a trustee of St. Luke's Hospital, and he was a member of the American Institute of Mining Engineers. He was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Catasauqua and for many years he served as an Elder.

 

Edwin Thomas passed away on August 17, 1924 and his mortal remains were deposited in the Thomas vault at Fairview Cemetery. His widow, Ellen (Ella) D. (Boyd) Thomas departed this life on July 25, 1932 and her remains were also entombed in the Thomas vault.

 

 

JOHN THOMAS, son of David and Elizabeth (Hopkins) Thomas, was born at Yniscedwyn, Brecknockshire, South Wales on September 10, 1829. When a lad of ten years of age he was brought by his parents to America. He received his early education at Allentown and later he became a pupil at Nazareth Hill, Northampton County, where he completed his studies. He then determined to secure a practical knowledge of the business of an iron-master, so entering the shops of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works he mastered the work of the various departments, gaining a thorough knowledge of the industry. He assisted his father, at the Lehigh Crane Iron Works until his retirement in 1855, after which he succeeded him in the superintendency. John Thomas served in this capacity with great ability until 1867, when he resigned to accept a like position at the Thomas Iron Company's plant at Hokendauqua. Under his management two new furnaces were installed by the company, No. 5 in 1873 and No. 6 in 1874. He remained in this position until early in 1893, when he resigned the general superintendency and retired from active business. John Thomas was also associated with his father, David Thomas, and his brother, Samuel Thomas, in the Catasauqua Manufacturing Company and the Lehigh Fire Brick Company. On May 7, 1855, John Thomas took as his bride Miss Helen Thomas, daughter of Hopkin and Catherine (Richards) Thomas. This union was blessed with the following children: David Hopkins, born January 21, 1857, of further mention; Blanche, born April 18, 1859, died August 23, 1861; Harry J., born May 7, 1861, died June 6, 1861; Miriam, married Colonel Perry Harrison, removed to Minneapolis, Minnesota; Bessie Hopkins, born June 8, 1866, died October 4, 1927; Samuel Richard, born March 7, 1869, of further mention; Catherine, married Elisha Packer Wilbur, removed to Bethlehem; Captain John W., born February 15, 1874, of further mention; and Helen, born July 7, 1877, died July 7, 1877. After moving to Hokendauqua, Mr. and Mrs. Thomas resided in their mansion, located on Front Street, below North Street.

 

John Thomas served as a director of the National Bank of Catasauqua, and he was a follower of the principles of the Republican party. He was an active and liberal supporter of the Hokendauqua Presbyterian Church.

 

John Thomas passed away in his mansion at Hokendauqua on March 17, 1897 and his earthly remains were deposited in the Thomas mausoleum at Fairview Cemetery. His widow, Helen (Thomas) Thomas

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departed this life on March 25, 1921 and her remains were also deposited in the Thomas vault at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

DAVID HOPKINS THOMAS, son of John and Helen (Thomas) Thomas, was born at Catasauqua on January 21, 1857. He entered the machine shop at the Hokendauqua plant of the Thomas Iron Company on June 21, 1875, and on April 1, 1880 he was appointed superintendent of the Lock Ridge furnaces, remaining there until March 1, 1885, when he resigned and went to Alabama, where he managed a furnace plant for a short time. He then accepted a position as general superintendent for the Troy Steel and Iron Company of Troy, New York, and he constructed three large blast furnaces for that company on Breaker Island, New York. On April 1, 1888 he was re-employed by the Thomas Iron Company and served as superintendent of the Hokendauqua plant until March 1, 1893, when he succeeded his father as general superintendent of the Thomas Iron Company, and he remained as such until 1897.

 

David H. Thomas married, first, Jennie Rader of Easton, who passed away on January 25, 1890, and they were the parents of three children: David R., born May 10, 1885, died April 24, 1954; Elizabeth, born September 6, 1881, married a Mr. de Varona, removed to Point Lorna, California, died August 9, 1946; and John Rader, born January 26, 1885, died December 2, 1930. David H. Thomas later married Katherine Ruhe, who passed away on June 30, 1943, no issue.

 

Mr. Thomas was a life long Republican and he was very active in politics, serving Lehigh County as Register of Wills for one term, during the years of 1910 and 1911. On or about 1914, David H. Thomas and his second wife removed from the Lehigh Valley, settling in Los Angeles, California, and there he died on January, 29, 1934. His mortal remains were returned and deposited in the Thomas family vault at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

SAMUEL RICHARD THOMAS, son John and Helen (Thomas) Thomas, was born at Hokendauqua on March 7, 1869. He was educated in the local public schools and the private school of Professor Alexander N. Ulrich, Esq., at Catasauqua, and he graduated from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute of Troy, New York, in 1891. He then entered the employ of the Thomas Iron Company and he became connected with their Ironton Railroad Company. He served in various capacities and in 1907 he was made superintendent of the line, and later he was also elected president of the Ironton Railroad Company, serving as such until 1939. In June 1942, Samuel R. Thomas returned the charter of the Thomas Iron Company to the State, fifteen years after the last furnace was in blast.

 

On October 14, 1893, Samuel R. Thomas was united in marriage to Miss Bessie M. Laury, daughter of Alexander C. P. and Mary (Hirst) Laury, of Laury's Station. Unto Mr. and Mrs. Thomas was born an only daughter, Miriam Thomas, born August 25, 1895, married Edward F. Price of Danville, died August 21, 1951.

 

Samuel R. Thomas was affiliated with the Republican Party and he served the Hokendauqua independent school district as president from 1907 to 1911, when it was discontinued and merged with the Whitehall school system; he also served as township commissioner. He and his family were members of the Hokendauqua Presbyterian Church, which he served as a member of the trustee board.

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He was a director of the National Bank of Catasauqua, and a member of the Livingston Club, Allentown.

 

In their later years, Samuel R. and Bessie Thomas resided at 128 N. 15th Street, Allentown, and on May 19, 1947 he passed away in the Sacred Heart Hospital and his remains were entombed in the Thomas mausoleum at Fairview Cemetery. Bessie (Laury) Thomas departed this life on April 22, 1948 and her remains were also deposited in the Thomas vault.

 

 

CAPTAIN JOHN W. THOMAS, son of John and Helen (Thomas) Thomas, was born in Hokendauqua on February 15, 1874. His early years were spent in the employ of the Crane Iron Works and he was appointed manager of their furnaces. On December 1, 1900 he became manager of the Hokendauqua furnaces of the Thomas Iron Company and there he remained until March 9, 1903, when he was appointed by the company to be superintendent of the Keystone Furnace near Chain Dam. John W. Thomas was then transferred to the Lock Ridge furnaces, and there he served as superintendent until 1912. He had learned the trade of mechanical and electrical engineering, and he entered into business for himself, operating an electrical shop on North Seventh Street, Allentown.

 

John W. Thomas was united in wedlock with Miss Florence Snyder and this union was blessed with a son, John, who served as a Lieutenant in the U. S. Army during World War II. John W. Thomas had served during World War I with the 109th Engineers, attaining the rank of Captain. He was a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, and a member of the Hokendauqua Presbyterian Church. John W. Thomas passed away in the Allentown Hospital on June 23, 1943 and his remains were entombed in the Thomas family vault at Fairview Cemetery. Florence (Snyder) Thomas died on April 15, 1951 and her remains were also deposited in the Thomas family vault at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

 

HOPKIN THOMAS FAMILY

 

HOPKIN THOMAS was born at Glamorganshire, South Wales on December 19, 1793. He spent his childhood on his parent's farm until reaching his sixteenth year, when he was apprenticed to the Neath Abbey Works, near Neath, South Wales, to acquire the trade of a machinist. After fulfilling his apprenticeship he rapidly attend a high position among his fellow workers.

 

In the year 1834 he emigrated to America with his family and upon landing at Philadelphia, he found employment with the Baldwin Locomotive Works. He later entered the shops of Garrett and Eastwick, and from there he engaged with the Beaver Meadow Railroad and Coal Company as a master mechanic of their railroads and mines, and while thus employed he developed mechanical inventions and appliances. Through one of these inventions anthracite coal was first made available for use in locomotives, and he invented and successfully used the chilled cast-iron car-wheels, he also developed the most improved and successful mine pump and machinery of the day.

 

Hopkin Thomas removed to Catasauqua in 1853, on being appointed master mechanic of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works. During his employment with this company he became noted for his development of some of the finest mechanics of the day. The list contains the following: Philip Hoffecker, who became

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master mechanic for the Lehigh Valley Railroad, at Waverly, Pennsylvania; William R. Thomas, superintendent of both the Crane Iron Works and the Thomas Iron Company furnaces, at Hokendauqua; James Thomas and George Davies, proprietors of Davies and Thomas Company; Owen F. Leibert, superintendent of the Bethlehem Iron Company, South Bethlehem; Captain William R. Jones, superintendent of the Edgar Thomson Steel Company, Braddock, Pennsylvania; Samuel Davis, superintendent of the Port Oram mines, Dover, New Jersey; and Daniel N. Jones, superintendent of the Cambria Iron Works, Johnstown, Pennsylvania and the Colorado Coal and Iron Company, Pueblo, Colorado.

 

Hopkin Thomas was united in marriage with Miss Catherine Richards, of Merthyr-Tydvil, South Wales, and this union was blessed with the following children: William R., born May 30, 1829, of further mention; Mary, born January 31, 1831, died January 14, 1891, married James H. McKee, issue: (Katherine Sarah McKee, Joseph J. McKee, William W. McKee, Mary N. McKee, Llewelyn T. McKee, Helen T. McKee, and Edith McKee); Helen, born April 22, 1833, died March 25, 1921, married John Thomas, issue: (David Hopkins Thomas, Blanche Thomas, Harry J. Thomas, Miriam Thomas, Bessie Hopkins Thomas, Samuel Richard Thomas, Catherine Thomas, Captain John W. Thomas, and Helen Thomas); James, born September 22, 1836, of further mention; and Katherine, born August 21, 1841, died February 25, 1920, married James W. Fuller II, issue: (Maud Fuller, Blanche Fuller, George Liewellyn Fuller, Mary Louise Fuller, and Lt. Colonel James W. Fuller III).

 

Hopkin Thomas resided with his family at the southwest corner of Third and Walnut Streets. On May 12, 1878 he passed away and his body was buried at Fairview Cemetery. His widow, Catherine (Richards) Thomas departed this life on August 7, 1879 and her remains were also interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

WILLIAM R. THOMAS, son of Hopkin and Catherine (Richards) Thomas, was born at MerthyrTydvil, South Wales on May 20, 1829. He came to this country with his parents during his youth and he received his primary education in the public schools at Beaver Meadow, Pennsylvania. At the age of sixteen he learned the machinist trade from his father and upon reaching the age of twenty he went to New York City, where he received special instruction in the navy-yards. After working there for two years he emigrated to La Salle County, Illinois and then in 1854 to Amboy, where he engaged as an engineer on the Illinois Central Railroad, running between that city and Centralia.

 

After a service of two years on the road Mr. Thomas' health failed, and he returned east, rejoining his family at Catasauqua. After regaining his health, he entered the employ of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works as master mechanic, remaining with them until 1866, when he became associated with the Lehigh Car, Wheel and Axle Works, serving as superintendent. In 1861 he also entered into partnership with Morgan Emanuel, in the firm of Thomas and Emanuel, manufacturers of blasting powder. After four years the plant, located on the west side, near the round house of the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad, was destroyed by an explosion and never rebuilt. With the founding of the Coleraine Iron Company at Redington, Pennsylvania in 1868, William R. Thomas then became connected with this firm, in building of furnaces, and managing the workshop until 1875. That year he went south to Georgia, where he built the Rising Fawn Iron Furnace in Dade County. From there he went to Helena, Alabama, and superintended the operations of the Helena coal mine for a month. Returning north in 1879 he accepted the superintendency of the Coleraine Iron Company for one year, after which he went to Hokendauqua

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to fill the same position for the Thomas Iron Company. After seven years in their employ he resigned and in March 1887, he was made superintendent of the Crane Iron Works, and he continued in this position until 1891, when he became associated with Clinton H. Fuller in the Globe Metal Works. With this enterprise he was associated for one year after which he became connected with the Davies and Thomas Company, working as a mechanical engineer, and continuing in the employ of this firm well past his eightieth year.

 

At Janesville, Pennsylvania in 1856, William R. Thomas married Martha Mayhew, a native of England, and a daughter of Francis Mayhew. This union was blessed with the following children: Frank H., born July 14,1856, of further mention; James J., born November 11, 1858, of further mention; John W., a chemist, removed to Littlestown, Pennsylvania, where he served as burgess for several years; Katherine, born March 11, 1860, died August 18, 1907, married a Mr. Agthe, issue: Frank Agthe; Mary, married John Corsa, removed to Amherst, Massachusetts; Ida, married Oliver E. Hawkins, removed to Kingston, Pennsylvania; Helen, born September 4, 1867, died February 3, 1949; William R., Jr., born July 15, 1870, of further mention; and Fritz, born August 27, 1875, of further mention.

 

During the Civil War William R. Thomas enlisted in Co. C, 46th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, mustering in on August 17, 1861. He was elected to the rank of 1st Lieutenant and on April 4, 1862 he was discharged. With the Army of Northern Virginia's invasion of Pennsylvania, he re-enlisted as a private in Co. B, 38th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, serving from July 1, 1863 thru August 7, 1863. William R. Thomas and his family resided at 24 Second Street, and he was a member of the Methodist faith and politically he was affiliated with the Republican Party. He was also a Free and Accepted Mason, a Royal Arch Mason and Knight Templar.

 

William R. Thomas passed away on April 13, 1917 and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. His wife, Martha (Mayhew) Thomas had passed away on August 17, 1898 and her remains were also buried at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

FRANK H. THOMAS, son of William R. and Martha (Mayhew) Thomas, was born at Catasauqua on July 24, 1856. He entered the employ of the Coleraine Iron Company at an early age, rapidly advancing himself. He then entered the employ of the Thomas Iron Company at their furnace at Chain Dam, and from there he went to the Rising Fawn Furnace, Dade County, Georgia, his father being the superintendent. He later removed to Oxmoor, Alabama, where he found employment with the Oxmoor Iron Works, remaining there until 1883. Frank H. Thomas then traveled north and accepted the position of furnace manager of the Franklin Iron Manufacturing Company, of Franklin, New York, serving in this capacity until his death.

 

In 1886, Frank H. Thomas married a Miss Hall, of Utica, New York, there being no issue. He was a member of the Knights Templar; Clinton Lodge, F. and A. M.; and the Utica Chapter, Royal Arch Masons.

 

In the early part of December 1891, he accidentally thrust one of his legs into a tank of steam heated water at the furnace, and before he could extricate it the limb was severely scalded. Being a diabetic, complications set in and he finally succumbed to blood poisoning on December 22, 1891. His earthly remains were laid to rest at the New Forest Hill Cemetery, Utica, New York.

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JAMES J. THOMAS, son of William R. and Martha (Mayhew) Thomas, was born in Catasauqua on November 11, 1858. During his early years he learned the machinist trade and for many years he was employed by the Wahnetah Silk Company of Catasauqua. James J. Thomas was of the Methodist faith, and he resided with his brother, William R. Thomas, Jr., at 502 Pine Street and there he passed away on January 17, 1946 and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

WILLIAM R. THOMAS, Jr., son of William R. and Martha (Mayhew) Thomas, was born on July 15, 1870. He was educated in public schools and at the University of Pennsylvania, graduating in 1894. He became connected with the Wahnetah Silk Company as assistant superintendent, and in 1896 he was made the general manager, and he was elected president of the company in 1907. He was a director of the National Bank of Catasauqua and a director of the Allentown Hospital.

 

William R. Thomas, Jr. was active in the Liberty Bond sales during World War I and he was a member of the executive committee and chairman of the ways and means committee for the Welcome Home Celebration in 1919 for the returning Catasauqua servicemen. In 1928 he presented to Catasauqua a granite memorial in honor of the men and women of the community who had served in World War I. The tablet was placed on a memorial plot adjoining the American Legion Post.

 

William R. Thomas, Jr. married Minnie Milson, daughter of Daniel and Elizabeth (Davies) Milson, on March 27, 1901. They were the parents of two sons: William R. III and Daniel Milson. Mr. and Mrs. Thomas resided with their family at 502 Pine Street.

 

During the year 1916 he and his wife became prime movers in the organization of the playground system of Catasauqua and he continued his interest in the program until it was taken over by the Catasauqua School District in 1930. Because of this interest, the new football field that was built in 1932 was named Thomas Field in honor of the late Mrs. Thomas.

 

William R. Thomas, Jr. was elected Burgess of Catasauqua in 1922 and he served as such thru 1925. He was a member of the Porter Lodge, No. 284, F. and A. M.; and a member of the Phoenix Fire Company. He was also a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Catasauqua. He was known throughout Catasauqua as "Butch" Thomas.

 

William R. Thomas, Jr. passed away on May 24, 1956 and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. Minnie (Milson) Thomas departed this life in 1924 and her remains were also interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

FRITZ W. THOMAS, son of William R. and Martha (Mayhew) Thomas, was born on August 27, 1875. He was educated in the Catasauqua public schools. Fritz W. Thomas served as superintendent of the Chesauqua Silk Company, of Chester, Pennsylvania, for several years before he was forced to retire because of failing health. He moved back to the family home and there he resided until his death on August 22, 1925. His remains were buried in the Thomas family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

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JAMES THOMAS, son of Hopkin and Catherine (Richards) Thomas, was born in Philadelphia on September 22, 1836. In 1853 he accompanied his parents to Catasauqua, and there he spent a short period in the public schools and. a few terms at the Weaversville Academy. He then entered the shops of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works and there he learned his trade as a machinist, under the tutelage of his father, Hopkin Thomas. In 1859 he became superintendent of the Carbon Iron Works at Parryville, Pennsylvania, in which position he remained until 1871. He then removed to Jefferson County, Alabama, and became manager of the Irondale Company at Irondale, and afterwards manager of the Oxmoor Iron Company at Oxmoor, Alabama. During his labors in Alabama he enjoyed the distinction of having made "the first coke iron" in the state.

 

In February, 1879 he returned to Catasauqua and formed a partnership with George Davies in the foundry business, under the name Davies and Thomas Company, which continued until the death of George Davies in 1894. The following year James Thomas and the heirs of George Davies incorporated the firm under the laws of the State of Pennsylvania, and he was then elected president of the company, serving as such until his death. He was one of the principle owners of the Electric Light and Power Company of Catasauqua, and he was also president of the Wahnetah Silk Company, and he served as director of the National Bank of Catasauqua.

 

On June 11, 1861, James Thomas was united in marriage with Mary Ann Davies, daughter of Daniel and Mary (Philips) Davies, and sister of George Davies. This union was blessed with the following children: Blanche, born 1863, died 1952, married Charles R. Horn, issue: (Isabella Horn, Mary Horn, Catherine Horn, James T. Horn, Blanche Horn, and Blanche Horn); Mary C., born January 4, 1866, died December 21, 1893; Rowland D., born October 28, 1868, of further mention; Ruth, born April 1, 1870, died March 1, 1966, married William W. McKee, son of James H. and Mary (Thomas) McKee, issue: (Ruth T. McKee, James H. McKee, Katherine McKee, and Mary McKee); Helen, born 1871, died 1968, married Dr. James L. Hornbeck, issue: (Thomas M. Hornbeck, James L. Hornbeck, and Dorothy Hornbeck); Catherine, born November 5, 1874, died March 31, 1890; and Hopkin, born April 16, 1876, of further mention.

 

While living at Parryville, James Thomas organized Co. F, 34th Militia and he was elected its Captain. The company was mustered in on June 3, 1863 and discharged on August 24, 1863. James Thomas was a strong Republican and he served as a member of the Catasauqua School Board from 1886 thru 1891. He was also a delegate to the Republican National Convention at Minneapolis in 1892. He was connected with all the bodies of the Masonic fraternity. In his religious beliefs he was a member of the Grace Methodist Episcopal Church of Catasauqua. He and his wife resided in their mansion at 545 Fourth Street and after his death his widow built a home at 510 Walnut Street.

 

James Thomas departed this life on December 18, 1906 and his remains were interred in the family plot at Fairview Cemetery. His widow, Mary Ann (Davies) Thomas passed away on July 16, 1921 and her body was also buried at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

ROWLAND D. THOMAS, son of James and Mary Ann (Davies) Thomas, was born at Parryville, Carbon County on October 28, 1868. He was educated in the public schools and at Catasauqua High School. He learned the machinist and moulding trades at the Davies and Thomas Company, with which

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he became a member in 1894. In 1906 he became secretary and treasurer of the firm and he was also appointed general manager. With the death of his father, he was elected president of the company in January 1907 and he served as such until November 1911. He remained connected with the business and he continued to serve as a member of the board of directors.

 

Rowland D. Thomas married Miss Clara Hopkins, daughter of John and Mary Hopkins, on October 27, 1897. They resided at 234 Pine Street from 1906 until their deaths. Socially he was a member of the Catasauqua Club, Porter Lodge, No. 284, Free and Accepted Masons, and a past high priest of the Catasauqua Royal Arch Chapter. He was a member of the Grace Methodist Episcopal Church of Catasauqua and he served as a trustee. He was a Republican in politics and in 1911 he was elected to the Catasauqua School Board and he was also a member of the board of health, serving as president for several terms.

 

Rowland D. Thomas died in his home on March 26, 1952 and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. Clara (Hopkins) Thomas passed away on April 8, 1959 and her body was also interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

HOPKIN THOMAS, son of James and Mary Ann (Davies) Thomas, was born in Oxmoor, Alabama on April 16, 1876. He was educated in the public schools and graduated from Catasauqua High School in 1895. He then became associated with the Davies and Thomas Company and in 1911 he was elected vice-president of the firm. He served in this capacity until September 1913, when he was appointed general manager of the company. Mr. Thomas was a member of the Catasauqua Club, and Porter Lodge, F. and A. M. He was also a member of the Grace Methodist Episcopal Church of Catasauqua. A life long bachelor, Hopkin Thomas resided at 510 Walnut Street. He died on March 23, 1924, at the home of his sister, Mrs. Ruth McKee, 605 Fourth Street. The mortal remains of Hopkin Thomas were buried in the Thomas family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

 

WEAVER FAMILY

 

 

The emigrant ancestor of this family was FREDERICK WEBER, who arrived in America prior to 1727. He was granted several warrants, dated June 8, 1743, for one hundred acres in Lower Saucon Township, then part of Bucks County. Frederick Weber and his wife, Catherine, were the parents of five children: Jacob, born 1727; George, born April 4, 1731, died 1770; Michael, born September 29, 1738, died December 24, 1826; Ann Margaret, married John Arnold Eberhard of Egypt, May 3, 1757; and Catherine.

 

 

GEORGE WEBER, son of Frederick Weber, was born on April 4, 1731. He and his wife, Anna Barbara, had a son Valentine Weber, who was born in Lower Saucon Township on September 12, 1766.

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VALENTINE (WEBER) WEAVER learned the tanner and currier's trades and upon completion of his apprenticeship, he located at Easton, where he engaged in the tanning and currying business until 1805, when he removed to Stockertown and established a tannery. He was the first to anglicize the family name and on December 4, 1788, he married Christiana Weygandt, daughter of Captain Jacob and Catherine (Nowlane) Weygandt. Valentine and Christlana Weaver had children, as follows: Daughter, born December 5, 1789, died December 5, 1789; Jacob, born January 12, 1791, associated with his father and succeeded him in the tanning and currying business, died October 3, 1870; George, born June 15, 1793, tanner by trade, died May 2, 1854; John, born November 21, 1795, tanner by trade, died May, 1877; Michael Joseph, born April 21, 1798, died July 3, 1799; Charles, born March 8, 1801, of further mention; Michael, born November 21, 1803, tanner by trade, died April 17, 1876; Susan, born February 7, 1807, married Thomas Kreidler, died March 17, 1879; Christina, born March 5, 1810, married Jacob Haenchen, died January 19, 1890; Catherine, born December 9, 1812, married John Price, died September 12, 1882; and Mary, born October 15, 1818, married Adolph Groetzinger, died February 24, 1846.

 

Valentine Weaver was an officer in the Lutheran church and a member of the Democratic Party, and in 1814 he was elected a Northampton County Commissioner. He also was a member of the 71st Regiment, Pennsylvania Militia during 1808. Valentine Weaver died at Stockertown on October 25, 1838 and his remains were interred at Forks churchyard, a mile distant.

 

 

CHARLES WEAVER, son of Valentine and Christiana (Weygandt) Weaver, was born on March 8, 1801. He was a tanner and currier by occupation and for some time he was in partnership with his brother, Jacob, at Richmond, Northampton County. He served in the State Militia and in 1835 was a candidate for brigade inspector. Charles Weaver was for some years a local preacher in the Methodist Episcopal Church. On March 24, 1825 he married Catherine B. Hummel and they were blessed with four sons and five daughters: Valentine Weygandt, born January 9, 1826, of further mention; Anna Elizabeth, married Isaac W. Hales; Charles Carroll, born April 12, 1830, ore-mine operator and later street commissioner of Allentown, died May 15, 1905; Benjamin Hinds, born August 21, 1832, of further mention; Malinda Louise, married John F. Brown; Mary Catherine, married Martin A. Thomas; Philip Hilgart; Frances Rebecca, married James R. McMurry; and Emma Beulah, married Henry L. Christ. Charles Weaver died at Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania on September 2, 1870. His widow, Catherine (Hummel) Weaver passed away on July 2, 1891.

 

 

VALINTINE WEYGANDT WEAVER, eldest son of Charles and Catherine B. (Hummel) Weaver, was born at Richmond, Northampton County on January 9, 1826. His boyhood days were spent in Northampton County and he attended the county schools. He later clerked in stores at Berlinsville, Milton, Easton and Catasauqua; at the age of twenty he apprenticed in the Lehigh Crane Iron Works and upon learning the trade of machinist he acted as agent of their mining interests at Catasauqua and vicinity. He left the employ of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works to become assistant superintendent at the Thomas Iron Company, working under his brother-in-law, Samuel Thomas, who was then acting as superintendent. With the latter's advancement to president in 1864, Valentine W. Weaver succeeded him as superintendent and he served in this position until he was called upon to supervise the construction of the Lock Ridge furnace in 1867, and he became its first superintendent. In August 1873, he left the Lock Ridge furnaces and for a while managed the Thomas Iron Company's iron mines at Pine Grove,

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Cumberland County. He left the employ of the Thomas Iron Company and became superintendent of the Millerstown Iron Company, Macungie, which he left after a short time and in July 1879, he became the superintendent of the Coplay Iron Company, where he remained until retiring in 1884.

 

Valentine W. Weaver was married in 1848 to Miss Mary Mickley, daughter of Jacob Mickley. To this union were born eight children: Charles, died in infancy; William Mickley, born July 18, 1851, of further mention; James W., born November 3, 1852, of further mention; Anna Elizabeth born 1854, married a Mr. Yerkes, of Hatboro, Pennsylvania; Valentine Weygandt, born August 29, 1857, died January 21, 1901; Katherine May, born May 5, 1859, married Dr. Edward E. Berry, of Allentown, died December 20, 1929; Mary Jane, born 1860, married H. S. Bachman; and Emily R., born January 9, 1861, died January 19, 1889.

 

Valentine W. Weaver was a director of the Macungie Iron Company, a director of the National Banks of Catasauqua and Slatington, and a director of the Hokendauqua Bridge Company. In politics he was a Republican and in his religious affiliations he was a Presbyterian. Valentine W. Weaver passed away at Catasauqua on October 11, 1893 and his body was interred at Mickley's Cemetery. Mary (Mickley) Weaver passed away on November 25, 1901 and her remains were also interred at Mickley's Cemetery.

 

 

WILLIAM MICKLEY WEAVER, son of Valentine W. and Mary (Mickley) Weaver, was born at Catasauqua on July 18, 1851. He received his preliminary education in the local schools and at Williamsport; then entered the Baldwin Locomotive Works at Philadelphia for the purpose of becoming an expert in mechanics, and after spending three years there in learning the trade he received the appointment as superintendent at the Lock Ridge Furnace as successor of his father, on October 16, 1873. Only twenty-two years of age at the time of his appointment he was the youngest furnace superintendent in Pennsylvania. On April 7, 1877, William M. Weaver then moved to Macungie and again succeeded his father as superintendent of the Millerstown Iron Company. The company was re-organized on December 31, 1879 as the Macungie Iron Company and there he served until his death.

 

William M. Weaver married Ella Singmaster, daughter of James Singmaster, in 1881 and they had two children: William Singmaster, born 1886; and Edna May, married Walter G. Linton.

 

William M. Weaver while at Alburtis assisted in organizing and establishing the Presbyterian Church and he continued his membership and support until his death. He took an early interest in photography and became the first amateur photographer of distinction in Lehigh County. William M. Weaver died at the age of thirty-eight on March 19, 1890.

 

 

JAMES W. WEAVER, son of Valentine and Mary (Mickley) Weaver, was born at Catasauqua on November 3, 1852. He became employed by the Thomas Iron Company in 1867 and he served the company for many years. He began his career as a machinist at Hokendauqua and then as a clerk and telegraph operator at Lock Ridge. In 1872 he became employed at the Pine Grove Furnace, Cumberland County, as assistant cashier. He then served as a conductor on the South Mountain Railroad, and in 1879 he removed to Coplay and found employment as cashier of the Coplay Iron Company. On June 23, 1883 he was re-employed by the Thomas Iron Company as bookkeeper, a position he held until February 9,

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1893, when he was promoted to the position of secretary-treasurer of the company and he served in this dual capacity until 1915.

 

On September 3, 1873, James W. Weaver married Miss Emily Givler, daughter of Thomas Givler, of Carlisle. From this marriage the following children were born: Bessie May, married William C. Hood, of Stroudsburg; Emily M., married Stanton Godley, of Easton; James William; Helen A.; Charles Valentine; and Elizabeth Givler.

 

 

BENJAMIN HINDS WEAVER, third son of Charles and Catherine B. (Hummel) Weaver, and younger brother of Valentine W. Weaver, was born at Richmond, Northampton County, on August 21, 1832. He spent his youth on his father's farm and his educational training was received in the local public schools. He clerked for two years in the store of Hallenback and Reets in Wilkes-Barre.

 

In 1859 he came to Catasauqua, and was employed by the Lehigh Crane Iron Works as a mining agent. After several years he severed his relationship with the Lehigh Crane Iron Works and he then continued in the same business for himself.

 

On November 4, 1864, Benjamin H. Weaver was united in marriage to Miss Mary Duff, daughter of David Duff and Isabella D. (Steel) Duff, who served as postmistress of Catasauqua, 1865-1871. From this union were born four sons and four daughters, as follows: Jessie Lincoln, died May 8, 1884; Harry B., born December 9, 1867, of further mention; Gertrude B., died April 9, 1871; Ralph Steele, born November 3, 1872, of further mention; Mary Naomi, died January 5, 1957; Margaret Duff, died May 22, 1889; Adrian B., employed as a sales agent for Rogers, Brown and Company, of Chicago; and Cooper F., employed as a draughtsman for the American Steel and Iron Company, of Lebanon.

 

In 1861, Benjamin H. Weaver responded to the call of President Lincoln for volunteers, and he enlisted in Co. A, 1st Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, with a term of enlistment of three months. Later in the same year he enlisted for a term of three years in Co. C, 46th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, attaining the rank of 1st Sergeant. He served one year and a half, when he was wounded during the Battle of Cedar Mountain and he was honorably discharged because of physical disability on October 21, 1862.

 

Mr. Weaver was a member of the Republican Party and a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Catasauqua. Benjamin H. Weaver passed away on February 13, 1919 and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. Mary (Duff) Weaver had departed this life on July 28, 1903 and her remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

HARRY B. WEAVER, son of Benjamin H. and Mary (Duff) Weaver, was born at Guth's Station, South Whitehall Township on December 9, 1867. When twelve years of age he removed with his parents to Catasauqua and there he received his education in the borough schools. In 1889 he entered the laboratory of the Crane Iron Works as a chemist's apprentice and from this start he became sufficiently familiar with the manufacture of pig iron that he was entrusted with the charge of the following furnaces: Macungie furnace, at Macungie; Wharton furnace, at Wharton, New Jersey; Lehigh Iron Company furnace, at Allentown; Durham Iron Works furnace, at Riegelsville; and Burden Iron Company furnace, at Troy, New York. In 1907, Harry B. Weaver became associated with James K.

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Bowen, of Allentown, in organizing the Allentown Iron Manufacturing Company, located at the corner of Brick and Furnace Streets, along the west side of the Lehigh Valley Railroad tracks, for the purpose of manufacturing cold blast charcoal iron. He was elected treasurer and general manager of the company, and he remained connected with this enterprise until 1931. In August 1914, the firm of Lehigh Smelting Company, of Allentown, was started for the manufacture of oxide and zinc, with Mr. Weaver serving as president.

 

Harry B. Weaver was united in marriage with Miss Linnie M. Erdman, and to this union were born the following children: W. Erdman; Harry B., Jr.; Thomas E., Esq.; a daughter, married R. L. Whitney, removed to Sharon, Pennsylvania; a daughter, married R. J. Burger, removed to Allentown; and a son.

 

While residing at Catasauqua Mr. Weaver served as a member of the Catasauqua School Board, and he took a very active part in the Old Home Week Celebration during 1914, serving as chairman of the Educational Committee. Fraternally he was a member of the Masons. Harry B. Weaver removed to Macungie, and there he served as a member of the school board. In his later years he was a breeder and raiser of beef cattle. Being in ill health for one month, Harry B. Weaver passed away at his Macungie home on October 2, 1943. His wife, Linnie (Erdman) Weaver had passed away in 1910.

 

 

RALPH STEELE WEAVER, son of Benjamin H. and Mary (Duff) Weaver, was born was born at Jersey Shore, Pennsylvania on November 3, 1872. As a youth he came to Catasauqua with his parents and there he attended the local public schools, graduating from Catasauqua High School in 1888 with honors. His first position immediately upon graduation was with the National Bank of Catasauqua as a clerk. He then served as superintendent and general manager of the Catasauqua Gas Company, which position he relinquished to become superintendent of the Port Jervis, New York, Gas and Electric Company. Returning to Catasauqua about 1903 he then became associated with Colonel James W. Fuller III, serving in his interest in various positions. Through this association he became connected with Fuller Engineering Company, Lehigh Pulverizer Mill Company and Fuller-Lehigh Company. Ralph S. Weaver also served as superintendent of the Allentown Portland Cement Company and he was affiliated with the Valley Forge Cement Company, and with the organization of Fuller Company in 1926 he was appointed treasurer and served as a member of the board of directors. Subsequent to the death of Colonel Fuller in 1929, Ralph S. Weaver became president of the Allentown Portland Cement Company, Valley Forge Cement Company and Willow Brook Farms Company. He was also one of the executors of the estate of Colonel Fuller, as well as guardian of the Colonels youngest son, Charlton Thomas Fuller. Mr. Weaver also served as a member of the board of directors of the Allentown-Bethlehem Gas Company.

 

In 1898 during the Spanish-American War he served as a corporal in Puerto Rico with Co. B, Fourth Regiment Infantry, National Guard of Pennsylvania. During his residency at Catasauqua he lived at 540 Fourth Street. Mr. Weaver was a member of the Portland Cement Association for thirty years, during which time he served on many of their committees, and for a period of years was a member of the board of directors. Socially and fraternally he was a member of Porter Lodge No. 284, F and A. M.; Catasauqua Royal Arch Chapter 278; Delaware Commandery No. 44, K. T., Port Jervis, New York; B. P. O. Elks No. 645, Port Jervis, New York; Camp George H. Schwartz No. 2, U. S. W. V.; Lehigh Country Club; Livingston Club, Allentown; and the Catasauqua Club.

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Ralph S. Weaver passed away in his home on October 27, 1939 and his earthly remains were interred in the Weaver family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

 

DAVID WILLIAMS FAMILY

 

DAVID WILLIAMS was born in South Wales during the year of 1793. He emigrated to America in 1833 with his wife, Gwenney, and children and located in Schenectady, N. Y. He traveled extensively in this country and Mexico and he published a series of articles entitled "Cymro in Mexico." These articles gained for him a national reputation.

 

David Williams settled in Craneville in 1840, and found employment as a moulder with the Lehigh Crane Iron Company. He became active in the affairs of the first Presbyterian church of the village, located on Church Street near Howertown Road. He was elected an elder of the church and he served as such until his death.

 

David Williams and his wife were blessed with the following children: Thomas Philips, born August 24, 1816, of further mention; Walter, born 1820, died August 3, 1845; David, born January 27, 1821, of further mention; John, born November 20, 1824, of further mention; and Oliver, born April 23, 1831, of further mention.

 

David Williams being of poor health for several years passed away on May 1, 1845. His remains were first interred in the churchyard cemetery of the old church; and later they were removed to Fairview Cemetery, being re-interred in the Williams family plot. Gwenney Williams died on April 26, 1855, and her remains are now interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

THOMAS PHILIPS WILLIAMS, son of David and Genney Williams, was born in Landore, South Wales, on August 24, 1816. He came to America with his parents as a young man during the year of 1833. He resided in Schenectady, N. Y., until he traveled west, settling in Wisconsin.

 

Thomas P. Williams married and he and his first wife, Jennet, were parents of a son, David, born 1844, died July 10, 1871. Thomas P. Williams married for a second time Caroline Marcks, and they were the parents of the following children: Sarah, born February 22, 1847, married Charles Corwin, died December 24, 1915; Maria, born April 10, 1851, married Edmund Randall, died August 19, 1923; John Arthur, born March 22, 1857, of further mention; Oliver D., removed to Boston, Mass.; and Emma, married a Mr. Coleman and removed to Lawrence, Ind.

 

Thomas P. Williams and his family moved back east in 1868, settling in Catasauqua. Thomas P. Williams was killed on the railroad February 22, 1872, and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. Caroline (Marcks) Williams passed away on April 23, 1913, and her remains were also interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

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J(OHN) ARTHUR WILLIAMS, son of Thomas P. and Caroline (Marcks) Williams, was born in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, on March 22, 1857. He came to Catasauqua with his parents during the year of 1868 and he later went to work at the Union Foundry and Machine Company, located at the southeast corner of Front and Pine Streets. He later became general manager of the company and in 1891 he was appointed secretary-treasurer of the firm. He continued with the firm until all operations were ceased in 1905.

 

On January 1, 1904, J. Arthur Williams began the operations of the Hercules Metal Works, located on the West Side, below the Race Street Bridge. The company was in the business of manufacturing high-grade brass, bronze, copper and metal castings.

 

In June, 1885, J. Arthur Williams married Ida E. Corwin, daughter of Charles and Mary Elizabeth Corwin. This union was blessed with the following children: Mabel, born April 13, 1886, died April 19, 1886; Dorothy, born April, 1887, married a Mr. Kimble; Mildred, born October, 1892, married a Mr. Lathrop; and John A.

 

J. Arthur Williams served as treasurer for the Borough of Catasauqua and was an active member of the Trinity Lutheran Church of Catasauqua. He and his family resided at 567 Howertown Road.

 

J. Arthur Williams passed away on May 12, 1934, and his body was buried at Fairview Cemetery. His wife, Ida (Corvin) Williams died on September 18, 1922, and her remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

DAVID WILLIAM, Jr., son of David and Gwenney Williams, was born in Landore, South Wales, on January 27, 1821. He came to this country with his parents in 1833 and first resided at Schenectady, N. Y. He arrived in Craneville during the year of 1840 and he found employment with the Lehigh Crane Iron Company. In partnership with his brother, Oliver Williams, and William P. Hopkins, they purchased the Union Foundry and Machine Company from David Thomas in 1869. David Williams was appointed superintendent of the foundry, which was located at the corner of Front and Pine Streets. During Lee's invasion of Pennsylvania in 1863, David Williams served as a private in Company B, 38th Pennsylvania Volunteers.

 

David Williams and, his first wife, Mary were the parents of two sons: Robert, born 1850; and Walter C., born November 17, 1853, he was employed by the Union Foundry and Machine Company, becoming an invalid for several years before his death on April 2, 1903. Mary Williams died on July 28, 1855, and her remains were interred in the Williams family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

David Williams married a second time, his bride being Lucinda Snyder, daughter of Jonathan and Mary Snyder. This union was blessed with the following children: Gertrude, born 1861, died 1934; Emma Caroline, born 1862, died 1863; John, born January 12, 1864, of further mention; Mary Cosgrove, born 1865, died in infancy; Agnes, born April, 1866, married a Mr. Bennett, issue: (Chester, Ruth and David Bennett); Susan, born 1867; Laura, born November, 1870; Lillian, married William A. James, removed to Buffalo, N. Y.; Lulu, born 1874, died 1879; Gwenifred, born April, 1876, died 1948; and Charles S., born 1877, served in the Spanish-American War and served with the Y. M. C. A., Training College during World War I removed to Gary, Indiana.

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David Williams was killed May 26, 1894, by falling out of a third floor window at his home, located at the southeast corner of Second and Bridge Streets. His remains were interred in the Williams family plot at Fairview Cemetery. Lucinda (Snyder) Williams passed away on June 19, 1903, and her remains were also interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

JOHN WILLIAMS, son of David and Lucinda (Snyder) Williams, was born on January 12, 1864. He was employed by the Union Foundry and Machine Company as a pattern maker. He married Emily J. Dredge and from this marriage were born the following children: Floyd M., born October 6, 1890, died April 5, 1909; D. Russel, born June 5, 1892, died December 5, 1903; David H., born August 28, 1894, died December 4, 1903; Oliver C., born June 19, 1896; died April 2, 1921. John Williams and his family resided at No. 207 Bridge Street. He was a member of the Trinity Lutheran Church of Catasauqua and he also was also a member of the I. O. O. F., No. 269.

 

John Williams passed away on March 13, 1931, and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. His wife, Emily J. (Dredge) had preceded him in death, dying on December 22, 1903, and her remains were also interred at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

JOHN WILLIAMS, son of David and Gwenney Williams, was born in Landore, South Wales, on November 20, 1824. He was brought to America by his parents in 1833 and he resided with them at Schenectady, N. Y. At the age of fourteen he entered the employ of John Fullagar of that city, as a clerk. In 1845, he followed his family to Catasauqua and he entered the office of the Lehigh Crane Iron Company on November 14, 1845. His first duties were to weigh the ore and limestone that was used to feed the furnaces. During 1849, he was promoted to the position of Assistant Cashier; and in 1865 he was elevated to the office of Cashier, performing these duties until his death.

 

John Williams was actively connected to other enterprises in the borough. He participated in the organization of the Catasauqua Manufacturing Company in 1863 and he was elected secretary of the firm in 1867, serving as such until operations were ceased in 1892. He served as Passenger Agent for the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad for many years and was a Director and later President of the Catasauqua Gas Company. He was a Director and at the time of his death Vice-President of the National Bank of Catasauqua, and President of the Fairview Cemetery Association.

 

John Williams was elected Chief Burgess of Catasauqua in 1861, and he was re-elected each year thru 1869. After a two-year hiatus he was again elected to this office in 1872 and he served as such thru 1873. He was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Catasauqua and was elected an elder in 1872; he also served as Superintendent of the Sunday School for many years.

 

John Williams was united in marriage to Emma Caroline Heilig, daughter of Rev. George Heilig, on September 14, 1852. This union was blessed with the following children: David, born June, 1854, died September 24, 1855; Elizabeth, born October 1, 1856, married Frank M. Horn, died March 30, 1925; Ella, born June 13, 1861, died February 8, 1875; Annie, born April 15, 1863, married Edward D. Boyer, died March 12, 1938; John T., born December 10, 1865, of further mention; Edward, born May 10,

98

1868, died May 5, 1869; Roger, born March 1, 1869, died November 16, 1885; and George H., born December 17, 1871, of further mention.

 

John and Emma (Heilig) Williams first began housekeeping on Church Street in one of the Company homes. They then set up house in the old David Thomas home, located at the southeast corner of Front and Church Streets, in 1856. During the year of 1870 they erected a large home at 325 Bridge Street, located on the south side of Bridge Street, between Howertown Road and Crane Street.

 

John Williams passed away on May 24, 1892, and his remains were interred in the Williams family plot at Fairview Cemetery. Emma C. (Heilig) Williams died on September 29, 1913, and her body was also buried at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

JOHN T. WILLIAMS, son of John and Emma Caroline (Heilig) Williams, was born on December 10, 1865. He was employed by the Crane Iron Company as a weigh master, serving as such until his retirement.

 

John T. Williams wed Lillian Metzgar, daughter of Thomas and Susan Metzgar, of Allentown. From this union were born the following children: Kenneth, removed to Wheeling, West Virginia; David, served in World War I, removed to New York City, where he worked for the New York Sun; and Naomi, married a Dr. Heller and moved to Kansas City. John T. Williams and his family resided at 540 Fourth Street.

 

John T. Williams passed away on November 2, 1926, and his body was buried at Fairview Cemetery. Lilliam (Metzgar) Williams died on May 17, 1919, and her remains were also buried at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

GEORGE HEILIG WILLIAMS, son of John and Emma Caroline (Heilig) Williams, was born on December 17, 1871. After leaving school he was engaged in various enterprises, but because of an illness of heart disease he lived retired for some years. In 1905, George H. Williams along with Rowland T. Davies and Winifred (Williams) Emanuel formed a limited partnership under the name of the Catasauqua Real Estate Company, and as such in 1906, erected sixteen fine brick dwelling-houses along Pine Street, between Limestone and Third Street; Third Street, between Pine and Walnut Street; and Limestone Street, between Pine and Walnut Street.

 

George H. Williams died at the Pennsylvania Hotel, northeast corner of Second and Bridge Streets, on March 7, 1919, and his remains were interred in the Williams family plot at Fairview Cemetery.

 

 

OLIVER WILLIAMS, son of David and Gwenney Williams, was born in South Wales on April 23, 1831. When he was a lad of two years his parents brought him to America, settling at Schenectady, N. Y. He came to Craneville with his parents in 1840, where he attended the local schools. During 1843 he attended the old Allentown Academy, then under the care of Professor McClenachan.

 99

He then learned the trade of iron moulder at which he worked until 1849, when he entered the optical establishment of McAllister and Co., of Philadelphia, which he served for three years. In 1853, he joined James W. Queen in establishing the J. W. Queen Company.

 

During the year of 1855 Oliver Williams removed to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he came in contact with Chester A. Arthur through whom he met R. L. Hardenburg, who induced him to enter the leather business in Chicago in 1858. He remained in Chicago until 1867, when David Thomas, a life long friend of his and his family, offered him a position of general manager of the Catasauqua Manufacturing Company. He was elected as President of the firm in 1879 and he served this company continuously for twenty-five years until all operations ceased in 1892.

 

In 1869, along with his older brother, David Williams and William P. Hopkins, they purchased the Union Foundry and Machine Company from David Thomas; and he served as President of this firm until his death. He was also one of the organizers of the Bryden Horse Shoe Company in 1882 and he served this firm as Treasurer and in 1884 he was elected president, serving as such until his death. He was also Vice-President of the Whitehall Portland Cement Company at Cementon and President of the Cement Nation Bank at Siegfried (Northampton).

 

Oliver Williams was united in marriage with Anna Heilig, daughter of John Heilig, Germantown, Pa. This union was blessed with the following children: Winifred, born June, 1864, married David L. Emanuel, issue: (Paul Williams Emanuel, born October 30, 1890, served in World War I, died August 4, 1957; and Grace Emanuel, born June 10, 1895, married Charles Eneu Johnson II, died October 16, 1970), died April 21, 1931; Mabel, born March 22, 1866, died April 1,1879; Grace, born July 16, 1868, married first Richard Otto Kohler, issue: (Anna Kohler, born May 26, 1904, married Charles Eastman, died June 8, 1975), married second Pelham Harding, died October 10, 1945; and Jessica, born March, 1870, married George Holton, issue: (Oliver Williams Holton, Kathryn Holton, Jessica Williams Holton), died February 16, 1955; and two sons that died in infancy.

 

Oliver Williams and his family resided at 616 Second Street and he was an active member of the Trinity Lutheran Church of Catasauqua. Oliver Williams passed away on September 17, 1904, and his remains were interred at Fairview Cemetery. His wife, Anna (Heilig) Williams died on November 29, 1904, and her remains were also interred at Fairview Cemetery.


 

 

PART FIVE  --  REMINISCENCES

 

A young man by the name of John Thomas, a relative of David Thomas, fell from the top of the first furnace, soon after its completion, and his body was interred in the rear of the Presbyterian Church on Fifth Street in Allentown. He was borne on a bier on the shoulders of relays of fellow employees, who wore high hats draped with long streamers of crepe, as was the custom in Wales in those days. A long procession of men and women followed the cortege on foot to the grave. After the completion of the Thomas vault at Fairviev Cemetery the body was then deposited in it.

 

Many prominent visitors came to view the operations at the Crane Iron Works, some of which were: Simon Cameron, U. S. Senator and Lincoln's Secretary of War; Horace Greeley, journalist and political leader; Sir Morton Peto; and Dom Pedro, Emperor of Brazil. For years it was the custom of the villagers to come out to watch the evening cast.

 

Alonzo W. Kinsey, an Englishman, was the first chemist at the furnaces. He also served as a teacher in the public schools of the borough and he would astonish his students and friends by washing his hands in a certain solution and then into molten iron, which he splashed about him with his hands uninjured. At the request of Captain "Bill" Jones, he went to the Carnegie Works, where he married a second time, the mother of the wife of Charles M. Schwab, founder of the Bethlehem Steel Corporation.

 

The first machinist at the Lehigh Crane Iron Works was George Jenkins, who later accepted the position of superintendent of the Boonton Iron Works, in New Jersey.

 

In the early days, coal for the furnaces was piled by the canal, now opposite the Phoenix Forging Company, in immense quantities. It was brought by canal-boats, and in the winter placed on barrows, which were then taken on huge scows to the furnace. This was done night and day throughout the entire winter. On one of the mid-night trips, Hugh Dougherty was missing, and found drowned. This was the first Catholic funeral in the town and the interment was made at Easton.

 

Isaac E. Chandler, brother-in-law of John Fritz and co-partner in the Union Foundry and Machine Company, also operated a blacksmith shop at the corner of Front and Bridge Streets, later the engine-house of the Crane Railroad was erected there. In the first election after the incorporation of the borough in 1853, he was elected Judge of Elections.

 

In 1900, a company was organized for the manufacture of a new metal out of a secret combination of coppe and other materials, which was to be harder than steel. A plant was erected and equipped with machinery along the Catasauqua Creek by Wood Street; but after some experimentation the enterprise proved a total failure and much money was lost. The O'Brien Rubber Thread and Webbing Company was then organized, which secured the building and operated the plant for several years and in July of 1913, the Leicester Rubber Company, of New Jersey, purchased the building and equipment, but this venture was short lived when a fire completely destroyed the building.

 

On the morning of October 3, 1893 a Crane Iron Company locomotive was backing six empties west through the Crane Iron Company's wooden covered bridge, with the signal supposedly in its favor, when a Lehigh Valley coal extra struck the Crane locomotive at the rear driver, killing the fireman. The watchman on duty at the crossing at the time went home and committed suicide. Herbert James, employed by the Crane Iron Works as a locomotive engineer, was permanently crippled from the accident.

 

The name Catasauqua was adopted by the community from a suggestion made by Owen Rice, Cashier of the Lehigh Crane Iron Works. He had written deeds for many people in and about town. Through these services, he learned from drafts made as early as 1735, and from later drawings, that the creek flowing through the village was called 'Cattosoque.' In the dialect of the Lenni-Lenape tribe of Indiana who first inhabited this section of the country, it was named 'Gattoshoci, ' which is said to mean 'wants rain. ' Others have defined the term as signifying 'dry' or 'burnt ground, ' and as 'sinking waters. '

 

After hearing that a countryman by the name David Thomas was running the Lehigh Crane Iron Works, Morgan Emanuel, Sr. was then determined to come to town in quest of a job. While walking down Front Street, just above Church Street, he met Mr. Thomas and accosted him in Welsh, "Are you Mr. Thomas?" Mr. Thomas replied, "Yes, and who are you?" "I am Morgan Emanuel and came from the coal regions in hope that you would give me a job." Mr. Thomas said, "I am sorry, my friend, but we do not have much work at present." "Oh, that is all right, I do not need much work." Upon this rejoinder Mr. Thomas employed him at once.

 

For a number of years George W. Bogh and his brothers operated a corn-whiskey distillery in East Catasauqua, on the north side of Race Street next to the Catasauqua Creek. This afforded the farmers of the community a good market for their corn, and a very desirable place for hog feeding. Farmers marked their pigs and brought them to the distillery where they were fattened and when fit for slaughter they were brought home and butchered. During the fall and winter seasons there were as many as a thousand hogs in the pens of the distillery at one time. This is why years ago the nickname 'Hogtown' was given to the Third Ward. At one time cholera broke out among the hogs and they died like flies. Their carcasses were hauled to an old ore mine near Schoenersville. Exorbitant taxation and growing restrictions caused the proprietors to desist from distilling any more 'Bolinky.' About 1860, John H. Knauss and a Mr. Harwig associated together as Knauss and Harwig, to conduct a planning mill business at this site. They operated the plant for several years, then Mr. Knauss became sole owner; but he had just assumed the ownership when it was destroyed by fire through little children playing with matches around the mill, and it was a total loss because the insurance policies were not promptly transferred to him. After the fire the site was secured by Daniel Davies in 1865 for a foundry and machine shop.

 

Alexander F. Hazard, eldest son of Erskine Hazard, and who had traveled with his father to Wales and witnessed the agreement signed by David Thomas on the 31st of December 1838, removed to Catasauqua on or about 1890. He had been a resident of Philadelphia for many years, where, at one time he conducted a wholesale drug house, he having in his earlier days studied pharmacy. Arriving in Catasauqua he found employment at the Crane Iron Works as a watchman, and he resided alone on Wood Street; his eccentricities kept him away from his relatives, who endeavored to bestow every comfort on the old man. After a short illness, Alexander F. Hazard passed away in 1910, in his 87th year, at the home of John Hopkins, Second Street. He was survived by a son Dr. Alexander Hazard, of Philadelphia, and two sisters, Mrs. Samuel Dickson and Mrs. Coxe, of Philadelphia, and his remains were interred in the family plot at Laurel Hill Cemetery, Philadelphia. With his death, the last connecting cord to the original participants in the founding of the Lehigh Crane Iron Company was severed.

 

James Gayley, superintendent of the Edgar Thompson Works at Braddock, and who had been with Captain "Bill" Jones at the time of his fatal accident, had served as a chemist at the Crane Iron Works, leaving the employ of the said company in 1880.

 

The railroad tower, located on the West Side, south of the iron railroad bridge, was abandoned on April 16, 1958. The neglected tower was totally destroyed by an intense fire late in the evening of May 7, 1960.

 

With the expansion of the iron works it was found necessary to move the canal bridge to the north. The question then was how to remove the bridge to the new location, and Samuel Glace, who at that time was an experienced superintendent on the canal, solved it. He waited until the boating season was over; then he placed two empty boats under the bridge and drew the water from the canal, which put the boats on the ground; then he placed long blocks on the boats and covered them with planks; then the water was let into the canal, which raised the boats and put the bridge up in the air and then the bridge was easily drawn to its new position.

 

In 1856, Captain Joseph Matchette became a fireman on the Crane Railroad's first locomotive (Hercules), which was used to carry materials to the furnaces. He was then given a position on the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad, where he fired the 'Catasauqua,' afterwards running this engine and later the 'Macungie.' Shortly before the outbreak of the Civil War he began work in the machine shops of the railroad. After returning home in 1865, from the war, he was soon appointed superintendent of the Catasauqua and Fogelsville Railroad, serving as such until 1867, when he resigned and was replaced by Charles W. Chapman.


 

 

EPILOGUE

 

The Crane Iron Works provided the Borough of Catasauqua with the sobriquets of the "Iron Borough" and the "Million Dollar Town," but other businesses also played an important role in the history of the borough. Along with the allied iron businesses, there were two breweries, several lumber yards and planing mills, brick works, an ice plant, a rubber works and five silk mills that either were located in the borough or associated with residents of the town. The community also had several coal yards and numerous small businesses that employed many of the citizens of the borough.

 

Although most of the buildings are now gone and the rails and ties have been replaced with weeds, a person can still walk the streets of the borough on a warm summer night and visualize what was, and wonder what if?

 


 

 

SOURCES

 

Allentown Morning Call (micro film)

 

Bartholomew, Craig L. and Lance E. Metz, "The Anthracite Iron Industry of the Lehigh Valley," Center for Canal History and Technology, Harmony Press, Phillipsburg, NJ, 1988

 

Burkhardt, Roberta, and Gemmel, Judy, "A Profile of the Boroughs - Catasauqua & North Catasauqua," 1992

 

Catasauqua Dispatch (micro film)

 

Glace, William H., "Early History and Reminiscences of Catasauqua in Pennsylvania," Searle and Dressler Co. Inc., Allentown, Pa, 1914

 

Illustrated Atlas of Lehigh County - Map of Catasauqua 1876

 

Jordan, J. W., E. M. Green, and G. T. Ettinger, "Historic Homes and Institutions and Genealogical and Personal Memoirs of The Lehigh Valley," The Lewis Publishing Co., New York, 1905, Vols 1 and 2.

 

Lambert, James F., and Reinhard, Henry J., "A History of Catasauqua in Lehigh County Pennsylvania," Searle and Dressler, Allentown, 1914.

 

Matthews, Alfred and Austin N. Hungerford, "History of the Counties of Lehigh & Carbon, in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania," Everts & Richards (Lippincott), Philadelphia, 1884.

 

"Our Town, Centennial History of Catasauqua, Pennsylvania," 1953

 

"Portrait and Biographical Record of Lehigh, Northampton and Carbon Counties," Chapman Publishing Co., 1894

 

Roberts, C. R., J. B. Stoudt,  T. H. Krick, and W. J. Dietrich, "History of Lehigh County Pennsylvania and a Genealogical and Biographical Record of ItÕs Families," Lehigh Valley Publishing Company, LTD., Allentown, Pa., 1914, Vols 1-3

 

Yurko, Joe, "Catasauqua - Crossroads of the Anthracite Railroads," Flags, Diamonds and Statues, Issues No. 23 and No. 24, Published by the Anthracite Railroads Historical Society, Inc., 1986

 



APPENDIX -LIST OF NAMES


 

This index to names contains the names of individuals cited in Part Four - Biographical and Genealogical Record.  Citations are given for all names excluding those for which only a partial name is given and those for whom complete name cannot be implied from the text.


For purposes of using this List of Names on the web version of this document, page numbers have been inserted in the section on Biographical and Genealogical Records. The page numbers are on the right side of the text. To search for a name, find the page number associated with that person and search downward from that page number.

 

Abbott, Sarah                                                  56

Agthe, Frank                                                   87

Arthur, Chester A.                                            99

Aston, Elizabeth                                              65

Aston, Esther                                                  65

Aston, George                                                 65

Bachman, H. S.                                               92

Baker, Aaron                                                   65

Baker, Rodney                                                 60

Beale, Mary                                                    65

Beale, William                                                65

Beerstecher, Julia M.                                        82

Bennett, Chester                                              96

Bennett, David                                                96

Bennett, Ruth                                                  96

Berry, Edward E.                                             92

Bliem, Christian                                              77

Bortz, David                                                   61

Bortz, Miss Emma B.                                       61

Boyd, Alexander R.                                          45

Boyd, Alexander Reed                                      82

Boyd, Copeland                                               45

Boyd, Ellen (Ella) Dale                                 45,82

Boyd, Joseph                                                  45

Boyd, Mary L.                                                45

Boyd , Horace                                                 45

Boyer, Edward D.                                            97

Breisch, Henry                                                 80

Brown, Elizabeth                                             54

Brown, John F.                                               91

Burger, R. J.                                                   94

Carnegie, Andrew                                    68,69,70

Chandler, Isaac E.                                            54

Chapman, Charles W.                                       57

Chapman, Charles Wooley                                45

Chapman, Grace                                               46

Chapman, Joseph H.                                         45

Chapman, Lansford F.                                       46

Chapman, Martha                                             46

Chapman, Mary                                               46

Christ, Henry L.                                              91

Corsa, John                                                     87

Corwin, Charles                                          95,96

Corwin, Ida E.                                                 96

Corwin, Mary Elizabeth                                    96

Coumbe, Hope Mary                                        63

Crane, George                                                  79

Davies, Daniel                                             47,89

 

Davies, Elizabeth                                     47,74,88

Davies, George                               47,48,70,86,89

Davies, James T.                                         48,49

Davies, John                                                   47

Davies, John M.                                              47

Davies, Joseph H.                                            49

Davies, Mary Ann                                   47,74,89

Davies, Mary E.                                               49

Davies, Rowland T.                                 48,57,98

Davies, William S.                                          49

Davies, Jr, George                                            49

Davis, Bessie                                                  51

Davis, Charles L.                                             51

Davis, Clyde                                                   52

Davis, Daniel                                                  50

Davis, David                                               50,51

Davis, Emma U.                                              50

Davis, Genevieve                                             52

Davis, George                                                  50

Davis, Gwenny                                                50

Davis, Gwynne                                                51

Davis, Hannah                                                 50

Davis, Harriet                                                  50

Davis, Henry                                               50,51

Davis, Hope                                                    51

Davis, John                                                     50

Davis, John B.                                            50,52

Davis, Mabel                                                   51

Davis, Margaret                                               50

Davis, Martha                                                  51

Davis, Mary                                                    50

Davis, Morgan                                                 52

Davis, Noah                                                50,51

Davis, Rachel                                                  50

Davis, Robert                                                  50

Davis, Ross                                                    51

Davis, Ruth                                                    51

Davis, Sallie                                                   51

Davis, Samuel                                             50,86

Davis, Samuel W.                                            51

Davis, Sarah                                                    50

Davis, Walter                                                  50

Davis, Willard                                                 51

Davis, William O.                                           50

Day, Lydia                                                      55

Deily, Camilla                                                 74

Delong, Ada                                                    71

Delong, Tilghman                                            71

Detweiler, Meade                                             71

Diehl, Emma                                                   45

Diehl, Emma E.                                               45

Dorrance, Charles                                             56

Dow, Alvin                                                     78

Dow, Alvin Franklin D.                                    78

Dow, Anna Louise                                           78

Dow, Maude O.                                               78

Dredge, Emily J.                                              97

Duff, David                                                     93

Duff, Mary                                                      93

Duncan, Louis                                                 73

Earle, Cornelius                                               70

Eastman, Charles                                             71

Eastman, Charles                                         71,99

Eastman, Charles Kohler                                   71

Eastman, Grace                                                71

Eberhard, John Arnold                                      90

Edwards, Giles                                                68

Elverson, James F.                                           58

Elverson, Joseph Fuller                                     58

Elverson, Joseph Sketchley                                58

Emanuel, David L.                                  53,54,99

Emanuel, Emily                                               53

Emanuel, Emily J.                                           53

Emanuel, Grace                                           54,99

Emanuel, Jane                                                 52

Emanuel, Margaret                                           52

Emanuel, Mary L.                                            53

Emanuel, Morgan                                        52,86

Emanuel, Paul Williams                               54,99

Emanuel, Thomas                                            52

Emanuel, William H.                                       53

Emanuel, William H.                                   53,54

Emanuel, Winifred (Williams)                            98

Emanuel, Jr. , Morgan                                      52

Erdman, Linnie M.                                           94

Evans, Elizabeth                                              65

Evans, Mary A.                                               47

Evans, Rachel                                                  65

Evans, Thomas R.                                           47

Evans, William                                               65

Fegley, Mary                                                   61

Fenstermacher, Angelina                                    71

Frederick, Ogden                                              57

Frederick, Tilghman                                         63

Frick, Henry C.                                               70

Fritz, George                                               54,68

Fritz, Johannes (John)                                       54

Fritz, John                                         54,68,70,73

Fritz, Katherine                                                54

Fritzgerald, John M.                                         75

Fuehrer, Mary Louise                                   45,82

Fullagar, John                                                 97

Fuller, Abbott F.                                         57,61

Fuller, Abigail                                                 56

Fuller, Abraham                                               56

Fuller, Ambrose                                               56

Fuller, Anne                                                    55

Fuller, Annie                                              48,57

Fuller, Benajah                                                56

Fuller, Benjamin                                              55

Fuller, Blanche                                            58,86

Fuller, Charles D.                                        61,62

Fuller, Charles Dorrance                                    61

Fuller, Charlton Thomas                               59,94

Fuller, Chauncey D.                                         56

Fuller, Chauncey O.                                         61

Fuller, Chauncey Orlando                                  62

Fuller, Clinton H.                                        57,60

Fuller, Clinton Henry                                       61

Fuller, Deborah                                                55

Fuller, Edward                                                 55

Fuller, Elizabeth                                              55

Fuller, George Liewellyn                               58,86

Fuller, George W.                                   56,61,62

Fuller, Grace                                                   55

Fuller, Hannah                                            55,56

Fuller, Harry                                                   56

Fuller, Harry C.                                               61

Fuller, Hattie                                                   61

Fuller, Irene                                                    61

Fuller, Isaac                                                    56

Fuller, Jacob                                                   56

Fuller, James Charles                                        60

Fuller, James W.                                             61

Fuller, Jehiel                                                   56

Fuller, Jeremiah                                           55,56

Fuller, John                                                    55

Fuller, Joseph                                         55,56,61

Fuller, Joshua                                                  56

Fuller, Lydia                                               55,56

Fuller, Malinda                                                56

Fuller, Marguerite                                            60

Fuller, Marion                                                 57

Fuller, Marion Louise                                       61

Fuller, Mary                                               55,60

Fuller, Mary Louise                                     58,86

Fuller, Matthew                                               55

Fuller, Maud                                                   86

Fuller, Mehitable                                             55

Fuller, Mindwell                                              56

Fuller, Orange M.                                        48,61

Fuller, Orin                                                     56

Fuller, Rachel                                                  55

Fuller, Robert                                                  55

Fuller, Ruth                                                    56

Fuller, Samuel                                                 55

Fuller, Sarah                                                   55

Fuller, Shubael                                                55

Fuller, Thankful                                               55

Fuller, Thomas                                                55

Fuller, Willard B.                                            57

Fuller, William F.                                           57

Fuller, Zachariah                                              55

Fuller II, James W.                                  57,73,86

Fuller III, James W.                            58,59,86,94

Fuller IV, James Wheeler                              59,60

Fuller V, James W.                                          60

Gillette, Darwin Lathrop                                    83

Givler, Emily                                                  93

Givler, Thomas                                               93

Glace, Amanda                                                77

Glace, William H.                                            77

Glick, Aaron                                                   57

Glick, Austin A.                                              76

Glick, Jane                                                 48,57

Glick, Mary                                                    57

Godley, Stanton                                               93

Graffin, George W.                                           78

Graffin, Harrison E.                                           47

Groetzinger, Adolph                                         91

Guernsey, Joseph C.                                         82

Gwynne, Margaret                                        50,51

Hackett, Marian                                               72

Haenchen, Jacob                                               91

Hales, Isaac W.                                                91

Hamilton, Andrew                                            70

Hardenburg, R. L.                                            99

Harding, Pelham                                          72,99

Harris, Harriett                                                 61

Harrison, Perry                                                83

Harte, Henry S.                                                58

Hawkins, Oliver E.                                           87

Hazard, Erskine                                                79

Heilig, Anna                                      54,63,71,99

Heilig, Emma Caroline                                     97

Heilig, George                                                 97

Heilig, John                                                    99

Heller, Catherine                                              77

Hepburn, Robert Hopewell                                 66

Herring, Elizabeth                                            53

Hill, Hannah                                                   56

Hill, Zerviah                                                   56

Hirst, Mary                                                     84

Hittle, Annie                                                   70

Hoffecker, Philip                                              85

Holton, Ellen                                                  63

Holton, George                                            63,99

Holton, George E.                                            53

Holton, Jessica Williams                              63,99

Holton, Kathryn                                          63,99

Holton, Lucy                                                   63

Holton, Maude                                                63

Holton, Oliver Williams                               63,99

Hood, William C.                                            93

Hopkins, Clara                                                90

Hopkins, Elizabeth                                       65,80

Hopkins, John                                        64,80,90

Hopkins, Mary                                                90

Hopkins, William P.                               64,96,99

Horn, Blanche                                                 89

Horn, Catherine                                               89

Horn, Charles R.                                              89

Horn, Frank M.                                               97

Horn, Isabella                                                  89

Horn, James T.                                                89

Hornbeck, Dorothy                                           89

Hornbeck, James L.                                          89

Hornbeck, Molton E.                                        77

Hornbeck, Thomas M.                                      89

Hummel, Catherine B.                                      91

Hunt, David                                                    66

Hunt, Elizabeth                                           65,66

Hunt, George                                                   66

Hunt, Grace Manning                                        66

Hunt, Gwenllian                                              66

Hunt, Gwenllian Thomas                                  66

Hunt, John                                                      66

Hunt, Joseph                                                   66

Hunt, Joshua                                          66,79,80

Hunt, Martha Manning                                      66

Hunt, Robert W.                                              70

Hunt, Roger                                                65,66

Hunt, Samuel                                                  65

Hunt, Samuel                                              65,66

Hunt, Stilwell                                                 66

Hunt, Thomas                                                 65

Hunt, William                                                 66

Hunt , Lewis                                                   66

James, William A.                                           96

Jenkins, Mary                                                  52

Johnson, E. Sommerville                                  75

Johnson II, Charles Eneu                               54,99

Jones, Charles                                                 68

Jones, Cora                                                     68

Jones, Daniel N.                                          68,86

Jones, David                                               47,67

Jones, Ella                                                      68

Jones, John                                                     67

Jones, John G.                                                 67

Jones, Magdalene                                             67

Jones, Margaret                                                67

Jones, Mary                                                    67

Jones, Rebecca S.                                             67

Jones, Sarah M.                                               67

Jones, Thomas                                                47

Jones, William M. C.                                       68

Jones, William R.                                       67,86

Kane, Anna                                                     64

Kelsey, Sarah                                                  56

Klotz, Edward                                                 77

Knauss, Catherine                                            72

Knauss, George F.                                       70,71

Knauss, Howard A.                                          71

Knauss, Jeanne                                                71

Knauss, Mabel Isabella                                      71

Knauss, Milton O.                                       70,71

Knauss, Rhea A.                                              71

Kohler, Anna                                                   99

Kohler, Anna H.                                              71

Kohler, Richard O.                                           71

Kohler, Richard Otto                                        99

Kreidler, Thomas                                             91

Lambert, Mary Alice                                         48

Lathrop, Jane                                                   55

Lathrop, John                                                  55

Laubach, James                                                77

Laubach, Joseph                                               77

Laubach, Mary                                                 77

Laury, Alexander C. P.                                     84

Laury, Bessie M.                                             84

Leibert, Gwenny Pauline                                   72

Leibert, Henry                                                 72

Leibert, John                                                   72

Leibert, Mary Ann                                            72

Leibert, Owen                                                  70

Leibert, Owen F.                                     72,73,86

Leibert, Sarah Jane                                           72

Leibert, William Henry                                 72,73

Levis, William                                                67

Lewis, Herbert                                                 53

Lewis, Margaret                                               53

Linton, Walter G.                                            92

Lloyd, Harriet                                                  68

Maddah, Jane                                                  52

Manning, Amos R.                                          66

Manning, Anna                                                66

Marcks, Caroline                                              95

May, Cyrus B.                                                66

May, Hannah L. (Romig)                                  66

Mayhew, Francis                                              87

Mayhew, Martha                                              87

Mccaskey, Hiram D.                                         58

Mchose, Lucius H.                                           66

Mchose, Samuel                                              79

Mcintyre, Robert                                         46,57

Mckee, Edith                                              73,86

Mckee, Helen T.                                              86

Mckee, Helen Thomas                                      73

Mckee, James H.                                 58,74,86,89

Mckee, James Harper                                        73

Mckee, Joseph J.                                         73,86

Mckee, Katherine                                         74,89

Mckee, Katherine Sarah                                 73,86

Mckee, Llewelyn T.                                     73,86

Mckee, Mary                                               74,89

Mckee, Mary N.                                               86

Mckee, Mary Norton                                         73

Mckee, Ruth T.                                               89

Mckee, Ruth Thomas                                       74

Mckee, William W.                                 73,86,89

Mckerina, Stella                                               62

Mckibbon, Annie                                             51

Mcmurry, James R.                                          91

Mcvey, John                                                   74

Meharg, Mary                                                  54

Metzgar, Lillian                                               98

Metzgar, Susan                                                98

Metzgar, Thomas                                             98

Meyers, Emily                                                 59

Meyers, George Henry                                       59

Michel, William                                              79

Mickley, Jacob                                            82,92

Mickley, Mary                                                 92

Mickley, Rebecca                                             82

Mickley, Sarah                                                77

Millens, William                                             67

Miller, Charles                                                76

Miller, Clarissa                                                57

Miller, Elizabeth                                              52

Miller, Henry                                                  57

Miller, Maud                                                   58

Miller, Peter                                                    57

Miller, Robert                                                 52

Milson, Charles                                               74

Milson, Annie N.                                             75

Milson, Charles Edwin                                     74

Milson, Daniel                                   70,74,75,88

Milson, David Thomas                                     75

Milson, Eleanor                                               75

Milson, Elizabeth                                             75

Milson, Gertrude                                              75

Milson, Helen                                                 75

Milson, Henry D.                                             75

Milson, Joseph                                                75

Milson, Mabel                                                 75

Milson, Marie                                                 75

Milson, Minnie                                           75,88

Milson, Ruth D.                                              75

Milson, Thomas H.                                          74

Myers, Marguerite                                            60

Neilson, James                                                79

Nevins, James                                                 72

Noble, Serviah                                                 56

Nowlane, Catherine                                          91

Panzer, Robert                                                 60

Parsons, Richard                                              79

Peckitt, Leonard                                          70,75

Peckitt, Leonard Carlton                                    75

Peckitt, Leonard F.                                           75

Peter, John                                                      67

Peter, Mersena                                                 67

Philips, Annie                                                 46

Philips, Edwin                                                46

Philips, Joseph                                                65

Philips, Joshua                                                65

Philips, Josiah                                                 65

Philips, Lansford Foster                                    46

Philips, Mary                                                  65

Philips, Mary                                                  89

Philips, William                                              46

Philips , Mary                                                 47

Powell, Anna                                                  64

Price, Edward F.                                              84

Price, John                                                      91

Price, Jonathan                                                72

Quickfall, Frances                                             75

Rader, Jennie                                                   84

Randall, Edmund                                             95

Redman, Theodore                                           71

Relyea, Catherine L.                                         76

Richards, Catherine                             58,73,83,86

Ritter, Oliver                                                   79

Roberts, Eva M.                                              76

Roberts, Frances D.                                          76

Roberts, Ida T.                                                76

Roberts, Jacob                                                 76

Roberts, Vina                                                  76

Roberts, William B.                                         76

Romig, John                                                   66

Rowley, Mehitable                                           55

Ruhe, Katherine                                               84

Rutledge, S. M.                                               71

Salade, Louis A.                                              58

Schlauch, Edward                                             57

Schwab, Mary Julia                                          49

Schwartz, Christian                                          77

Schwartz, Nicolaus                                           77

Sefing, Leonard G.                                           61

Shaffer, John S.                                                46

Shannahan, Thomas Day                                   74

Sheckler, Charles E.                                         57

Simonson, John Hamilton                                 76

Simonson, Woodruff H.                                    76

Singmaster, Ella                                              92

Singmaster, James                                            92

Snyder, Elizabeth S.                                         49

Snyder, Florence                                              85

Snyder, Jonathan                                              96

Snyder, Lucinda                                               96

Snyder, Mary                                                  96

Snyder, William T.                                          49

Stalcup, Dorothy Marie                                     59

Stalcup, Seth Alfred                                          59

Stecker, Amanda                                              60

Steel, Isabella D.                                              93

Steele, Ralph                                                   93

Sterner, Catherine                                             57

Stillman, James S.                                           75

Stroud, B. Frank                                              54

Swartz, Benjamin Franklin                                77

Swartz, Daniel                                                 77

Swartz, Edwin                                                 77

Swartz, Eliza                                                   77

Swartz, Isabella                                                77

Swartz, James W.                                            77

Swartz, John                                                   77

Swartz, Joseph                                                 77

Swartz, Mary Elizabeth                                     77

Swartz, Nathan                                                77

Swartz, Nicholas                                              77

Swartz, Owen                                                  77

Swartz, Polly                                                  77

Swartz, Rebecca                                               77

Swartz, Samuel                                                77

Swartz, Samuel Glace                                       77

Swartz, Sarah                                                  77

Swartz, Sarah                                                  77

Swartz, Selinda                                                77

Swartz, William                                              77

Tait, Edward L.                                               45

Thomas, Bessie Hopkins                                   83

Thomas, Blanche                                    83,86,89

Thomas, Catherine                                       83,89

Thomas, Daniel Milson                                    88

Thomas, David                          65,72,78,80,83,99

Thomas, David H.                                           70

Thomas, David Hopkins                           83,84,86

Thomas, David R.                                           84

Thomas, David S.                                            64

Thomas, Edgar Mickley                                    82

Thomas, Edwin                                      45,81,82

Thomas, Elizabeth                                       64,84

Thomas, Frank H.                                            87

Thomas, Fritz                                                 87

Thomas, Fritz W.                                            88

Thomas, Gertrude                                        82,83

Thomas, Gwenllian                                      65,80

Thomas, H. Dale                                             83

Thomas, Harry J.                                         83,86

Thomas, Helen                                   83,85,86,89

Thomas, Hopkin           47,58,67,68,73,83,85,89,90

Thomas, Ida                                                    87

Thomas, James                 47,66,67,69,70,74,86,89

Thomas, James J.                                        87,88

Thomas, Jane                                              78,80

Thomas, John                            70,79,80,83,85,86

Thomas, John Rader                                         84

Thomas, John W.                           64,75,83,85,87

Thomas, Joseph                                               74

Thomas, Katherine                                       86,87

Thomas, Katherine Maria                                  58

Thomas, Martin A.                                          91

Thomas, Mary                                    73,86,87,89

Thomas, Mary C.                                            89

Thomas, Miriam                                   834,84,86

Thomas, Rachel                                               74

Thomas, Reed Dale                                          82

Thomas, Rowland D.                                   89,90

Thomas, Ruth                                             74,83

Thomas, Samuel                  70,79,80,81,82,893,91

Thomas, Samuel Boyd                                     82

Thomas, Samuel D.                                         64

Thomas, Samuel Richard                              83,84

Thomas, Thomas                                             64

Thomas, Thomas E.                                         64

Thomas, William R.                                        86

Thomas, Winefred                                            64

Thomas I, William R.                                      61

Thomas III, William R.                                    88

Thomas, Jr, David                                           74

Thomas, Jr. William R.                           75,87,88

Tice, Catherine Ovens                                       72

Tice, John                                                      72

Tolan, David                                                   48

Tolan, James                                                   70

Trexler, Harry                                                  59

Ulrich, Alexander                                             61

Ulrich, Alexander N.                                         84

Ulrich, Charles N.                                            61

Vollner, William                                             66

Walker, Frederick J.                                         71

Weaver, Adrian B.                                           93

Weaver, Anna Elizabeth                                91,92

Weaver, Benjamin Hinds                              91,93

Weaver, Bessie May                                         93

Weaver, Catherine                                            91

Weaver, Charles                                          91,92

Weaver, Charles Carroll                                    91

Weaver, Charles Valentine                                 93

Weaver, Christina                                            91

Weaver, Cooper F.                                           93

Weaver, Edna May                                           92

Weaver, Elizabeth Givler                                   93

Weaver, Emily M.                                           93

Weaver, Emily R.                                            92

Weaver, Emma Beulah                                      91

Weaver, Frances Rebecca                                   91

Weaver, George                                               91

Weaver, Gertrude B.                                         93

Weaver, Harry B.                                         93,94

Weaver, Helen A.                                             93

Weaver, Jacob                                                 91

Weaver, James W.                                       92,93

Weaver, James William                                    93

Weaver, Jessie Lincoln                                      93

Weaver, John                                                  91

Weaver, Katherine May                                     92

Weaver, Malinda Louise                                    91

Weaver, Margaret Duff                                       93

Weaver, Mary                                                  91

Weaver, Mary Catherine                                    91

Weaver, Mary Jane                                           92

Weaver, Mary Naomi                                        93

Weaver, Michael                                              91

Weaver, Michael Joseph                                    91

Weaver, Philip Hilgart                                      91

Weaver, Ralph Steele                                        94

Weaver, Susan                                                 91

Weaver, Thomas E.                                          94

Weaver, Valentine                                            91

Weaver, Valentine W.                                  92,93

Weaver, Valentine Weygandt                         91,92

Weaver, W. Erdman                                         94

Weaver, William Mickley                                 92

Weaver, William Singmaster                             92

Weaver Jr, Harry B.                                          94

Weber, Ann Margaret                                        90

Weber, Catherine                                             90

Weber, Frederick                                              90

Weber, George                                                 90

Weber, Jacob                                                   90

Weber, Michael                                               90

Weilder, Emanuel                                            75

Weilder, Hattie Madeline                                   75

Weygandt, Christiana                                       91

Weygandt, Jacob                                              91

Whitney, R. L.                                                94

Wilbur, Elisha Packer                                       83

Williams, Annie                                              97

Williams, Charles S.                                        96

Williams, D. Russel                                         97

Williams, David                                              95

Williams, David                             64,95,97,98,99

Williams, David H.                                          97

Williams, Dorothy                                           96

Williams, Edward                                            97

Williams, Elizabeth                                          97

Williams, Ella                                                 97

Williams, Emma                                             95

Williams, Emma Caroline                                 96

Williams, Floyd M.                                         97

Williams, George H.                                        98

Williams, George Heilig                                   98

Williams, Gertrude                                           96

Williams, Grace                                          71,99

Williams, Gwenifred                                         96

Williams, Gwenney                                          95

Williams, Gwenny                                           50

Williams, J(ohn) Arthur                                    96

Williams, Jennet                                              95

Williams, Jessica                                         63,99

Williams, John                                   51,95,96,97

Williams, John A.                                           96

Williams, John Arthur                                      95

Williams, John T.                                       97,98

Williams, Kenneth                                           98

Williams, Laura                                               96

Williams, Lillian                                             96

Williams, Lulu                                                96

Williams, Mabel                                              96

Williams, Mabel                                         96,99

Williams, Maria                                              95

Williams, Mary                                               96

Williams, Mary Cosgrove                                 96

Williams, Mildred                                           96

Williams, Naomi                                             98

Williams, Oliver                    54,63,64,71,95,96,98

Williams, Oliver C.                                         97

Williams, Oliver D.                                         95

Williams, Robert                                             96

Williams, Roger                                              98

Williams, Sarah                                               95

Williams, Susan                                              96

Williams, Thomas Philips                                95

Williams, Walter                                             95

Williams, Walter C.                                         96

Williams, Winifred                                      54,99

Williams, Jr., David                                         96

Wilson, Sarah                                                 51

Wint, Charles J.                                              60

Wint, Lucy M.                                                60

Wooley, Martha                                               45

Worthington, Butler                                         46

Yoder, Daniel                                                  77

Yoder, Eliza R.                                                49

Young, Marietta                                               49