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Biographies for all names have not been completed yet.
ALEXANDER NEAL
Pg 628
Alexander Neal was a well-known
agriculturist of Lawrence County,
Pennsvlvania, and in his death, which occurred
December 30, 1898, Pulaski Township
lost one of its leading and most respected
citizens.
Mr. Neal was born in Pulaski Township,
July 22, 1844, and was a son of Alexander,
Sr., and Nancy (Mayers) Neal, his father
a native of Mercer County, Pennsylvania,
and his mother of Trumbull County, Ohio.
He was reared on the farm now owned and
occupied by his widow, and received his
education in the public schools. He had a
farm of 144 acres, well improved and under
a high state of cultivation, and followed
general farming and stock raising.
He was exceptionally successful as a stock
raiser and dealer, buying and selling extensively
throughout his active career. He
was a man of public spirit, and was ever
among the foremost in promoting the interests
of the community.
Mr. Neal was married February 22,
1893, to Miss Sarah J. Heasley, who was
born in Pulaski Township December 24,
1865, and is a daughter of Eli P. and Josephine
(Davis) Heasley, her father being
a native of Mercer County and her mother
of Lawrence County, Pennsylvania. Mr.
Heasley passed from this life in May, 1901,
and his widow, who still survives him, resides
at Youngstown, Ohio. Of the children
born to Eli P. Heasley and wife, seven
survive, namely: Flora L., widow of Frank
Wellington, resides in Youngstown; James
E., of Warren, Ohio; Sarah J., widow of
Alexander Neal; Emma E., wife of Harry
Brown, of Pulaski Township; Homer, of
Sharon, Pa.; Chauncey A., of Akron, Ohio,
and Charles N., of Poland, Ohio.
Alexander and Sarah J. Neal became
parents of three children, as follows: Clarence
A., Pearl M. and Harold L. Politically,
Alexander Neal was an active supporter
of the Republican party. In religious
attachment he was a consistent member
of the Hopewell Presbyterian Church.
Mrs. Neal resides on the home farm of 144
acres, and has displayed unusual business
ability in the management of the place. She
is a woman of most estimable qualities, and
has a host of friends throughout this community
where she has lived so many years.
Religiously, she is a member of the Hopewell
Presbyterian Church.
JAMES NEAL
Pg 474
James Neal was one of the foremost
citizens of Pulaski Township, Lawrence
County, Pennsylvania, of which he was a
lifelong resident. He owned a farm of 166
acres, on which his widow now lives, and
was extensively engaged in farming,
stock raising and stock dealing. He
was well known to the people of the
county, among whom he had dealt so many
years, and his death, which occurred September
12, 1906, was felt an irreparable
loss to the community in which he lived.
Mr. Neal was born in Pulaski Township,
June 18, 1841, and was a son of Alexander,
Sr., and Nancy (Mayers) Neal, the former
a native of Mercer County, Pennsylvania,
and the latter of Trumbull County, Ohio.
Alexander Neal, Sr., was a soldier in the
War of 1812. At an early age he settled in
the woods of Pulaski Townsliip, Lawrence
County, and there became a large land-owner,
his home farm being that now
owned by the widow of his son, James. He
was an important figure in the business
and social life of the community, and his
death was sadly felt by his fellow men. He
died August 1, 1878, and his widow some
two years later, on August 29, 1880. Of
their children but two now live, Benjamin
of Pulaski Township, and Sarah A, widow
of James Stevenson.
James Neal was reared on the home
farm and attended the common schools.
Except for the time spent in the Union
Army during the Civil War, he had always
lived on this farm, and was exceedingly
active in business affairs. He raised stock
and was an extensive live stock dealer,
having transactions with the people
throughout this section of the state. He
was ever honest and straightforward in his
dealings, and there were none who held
the confidence and respect of his fellowmen
to a higher degree than did he. He erected
a fine home and good substantial outbuildings
on the home farm, having one of
the most highly improved estates to be
found in the township. He was ever active
in the affairs pertaining to the development
of the community, being especially
interested in raising the standard of the
schools. He was a friend of the cause of
education, and was ambitious that his children
be given greater educational advantages
than had been his own.
September 20, 1866, Mr. Neal was united
in marriage with Miss Rebecca E. Stevenson,
who was born in Pulaski Township,
October 30, 1838, and is a daughter of
Elisha M. and Nancy (Dawson) Stevenson.
Her grandfather, James Stevenson, was
a soldier in the War of the Revolution, and
at an early date located in the woods of
Pulaski Township. He remained but a
few years, then moved to Mahoning
County, Ohio, where he died. Elisha M.
Stevenson was born in Pulaski Township,
but was reared in Poland Township, Mahoning
County, Ohio. When a young man
he engaged in the mercantile business at
Hookstown, Beaver County, Pennsylvania,
where he was married to Nancy Dawson,
who was a native of that county. They
later moved to Pulaski Township, Lawrence
County, where they passed the remainder
of their days.
James and Rebecca E. Neal became parents
of six children, of whom five are living:
Alice N.; Frank D., superintendent
of the public schools at Leechburg, Pennsylvania;
Leonora N., wife of Alva J.
Calderwood, professor of Latin in Grove
City College; Nellie N.; and Florence. All
are graduates of Grove City College, and
all teachers except Mrs. Calderwood. Mr.
Neal was an ardent Prohibitionist in politics,
and was at one time party nominee for
county commissioner, and for the House
of Representatives in Pennsylvania. Religiously,
he was a member of the United
Presbyterian Church at New Bedford.
JAMES NESBIT,
Pg 472
James Nesbit, a representative citizen
of North Beaver Township, residing on
his well-cultivated farm of 150 acres, which
is situated on the Enon road, about one
mile southwest of Mount Jackson, was born
on an adjacent farm, April 14, 1831. His
parents were James and Nancy (Harrah)
Nesbit.
Francis Nesbit, the grandfather of
James Nesbit, the younger, came from the
eastern part of Pennsylvania to North
Beaver Township, then a part of Beaver
County, in 1795. He had been a soldier in
the Revolutionary War. He secured a half
section of land which is the site of the village
of Mount Jackson, and on this he lived
until his death in 1802. His son, James
Nesbit, was born in the eastern part of
Pennsylvania in 1794, and as a youth of
eighteen years he participated in the War
of 1812. With his brother William he settled
on the farm which is now the possession
of his son James, it then consisting of
200 acres. James cleared the west end of
the property and William settled on the
eastern portion. James Nesbit lived to be
ninety-two years of age and it was a remarkable
coincidence that his wife survived
to the same unusual age. His death
took place in 1886 and her's in 1893. She
was born in Columbiana County, Ohio, and
was a daughter of William Harrah. Of
their seven children, the two survivors are:
James and Nancy A., the latter being a
resident of Mount Jackson.
James Nesbit was reared on the west
end of the present farm and he has devoted
his best energies to agricultural pursuits
through a long and busy life. On
October 14, 1858, he was married to Matilda
Jane Henry, who was a daughter of
William Henry, and they had three children:
Blanche, who is the widow of Robert
Sharp Fullerton, who died in 1881;
Jennie, who is the wife of Thomas Alvin
Gilkey, has two children, Pauline and Cornelia
Jane; and Lucy Annetta, who is the
wife of James N. Fullerton, of Allegheny,
Pennsylvania. They have one child,
Frances Nesbit. Mrs. Nesbit died in 1893,
leaving behind a large circle of mourning
friends.
After his marriage, James Nesbit moved
to a farm one mile south of his present
one and lived there until 1870, when he
took possession of his present place. He
has made many substantial improvements,
erecting the large frame residence in 1874
and the commodious barn in 1883. His
son-in-law, Mr. Fullerton, rents the farm
but does not operate it himself, sub-letting
it. Mr. Nesbit has been active in everything
that has been of benefit to his community
for many years. He has helped to
increase the influence of the Westfield
Presbyterian Church, not only being a
faithful member, but since 1886 has been
one of the elders.
ROBERT H. NESBITT
Pg 975
Robert H. Nesbitt, a prosperous
truck gardener and grower of small fruits,
is a well known resident of Neshannock
Township, Lawrence County, Pennsylvania.
He is a native of that township,
was born November 20, 1868, and is a son
of Thomas and Nancy (Stinson) Nesbitt.
The Nesbitts came from Scotland, and at a
later period were established in Ireland.
Thomas Nesbitt, great-grandfather of
the subject of this sketch, was a native
of Scotland, as was also his wife,
who in maiden life was Jennie McDowell.
He moved to County Antrim,
Ireland, where he became a prosperous
farmer and the owner of considerable
land. Among their children was
one, Robert, who was born in County Autrim,
Ireland, and died in that county in
March, 1873, aged sixty-two years. He was
in his younger days a linen weaver, and
later turned his attention to farming, becoming
the owner of a small farm. He
was united in marriage with Nancy Rankin,
who was born in Dundee, Scotland, and
was a daughter of Robert Rankin, a manufacturer
of hosiery, who moved to Ireland
during the reign of Queen Mary, in
order to gain religious freedom. Nancy
was about ten years of age at the time of
their removal, and was married at the
early age of sixteen years. Her death occurred
September 1, 1905, at the advanced
age of ninety-two. Robert and Nancy Nesbitt
became parents of eleven children, ten
of whom grew to maturity. Religiously
they were members of what is known as
the United Presbyterian Church in this
country.
Thomas Nesbitt, fourth child and oldest
son of Robert and Nancy Nesbitt, was born
in the same house as his father, in County
Antrim, Ireland, September 15, 1843. He
was reared and educated in that country,
and at the age of twenty-two years learned
the trade of linen weaver. He emigrated
to America in 1866, late in the year, and
spent the first winter in Allegheny, Pa. He
was then located at Clinton Station, Beaver
County, Pennsylvania, until the fall
of 1867, at the end of which time he located
in Neshannock Township. He worked at
coal shipping some time, and became
owner of ten acres of woods near the
Painter schoolhouse about 1871. This he
cleared and set out an orchard, and erected
a house and stable. He lived in this house
a period of fifteen years, during which
time he worked by the day. He sold that
property in 1886, and purchased his present
farm of seventy-eight acres, which he
devotes to general farming. His first marriage
was with Nancy Stinson, in 1868,
she also being a native of County Antrim,
Ireland, but their accquaintance was begun
in America. Her father was John Stinson.
Three children were born to them, of
whom two grew to maturity, namely: Robert
H., and Nancy, wife of George Falls, of
New Castle. Mrs. Nesbitt died in 1871,
and Thomas later formed a second union
with Mrs. Margaret McKee, nee Hanna,
daughter of Alexander Hanna, of New
Castle. As a result of her first marriage,
she had three children, as follows: W. E.
McKee, of New Castle; Alexander McKee,
deceased; and Robert McKee, of New Castle.
Thomas and Margaret (Hanna) Nesbitt
became parents of eight children, five
of whom grew to maturity, as follows:
Thomas, of Neshannock Township; Margaret,
wife of Hugh Jamison, of New Castle;
Minnie; David, of New Castle, and
Nathaniel. Religiously, all are members
of the United Presbyterian Church.
Robert H. Nesbitt was reared in Neshannock
Township, and attended the public
schools. He remained on the home farm
until his marriage, then rented a farm for
some years. About 1902 he purchased his
present farm of forty-six acres, and has
been successfully engaged in the culture
of small fruits and the growing of potatoes
and table vegetables. He is a man of great
energy and industry, and by capable management
has won a high degree of success.
Mr. Nesbitt was united in marriage with
Miss Nellie Pearl Smith, a daughter of
George S. Smith of Neshannock Township.
She died August 26, 1904, at the early age
of twenty-eight years, leaving three children:
George Vernon, Elmer David, and
Charles Robert. Religiously Mrs. Nesbitt
was a devout member of the Free Methodist
Church. Mr. Nesbitt attends the United
Presbyterian Church, of which he is a
liberal supporter. He is a Republican in
politics.
A. D. NEWELL
Pg 833
A. D. Newell, member of the Select
Council of New Castle, chief of the fire department
of Mahoningtown and a member
of the fire commission of New Castle, has
been in business as a general merchant, on
the corner of Liberty and Wabash Streets,
since 1903. He was born at Mahoningtown,
January 3, 1858, and is a son of
Archibald and Mary (Frisbee) Newell.
The grandfather, Archibald Newell, died
in Ireland, and there the second Archibald
was born and reared to the age of nineteen
years. He then crossed the Atlantic
Ocean to Canada, later made his way to
Pennsylvania and there became a member
of the engineering corps that assisted in
making the survey for the old Erie Canal.
He later established his home at Mahoningtown,
where he embarked in a general
mercantile business, about 1841, being one
of the pioneers in that line in the village.
While residing there he married Mary
Frisbee, who was a daughter of Samuel
Frisbee. Mr. Frisbee was of New England
birth and was an early settler in Taylor
Township, Lawrence County. He built
the first substantial steamboat ever constructed
in Pittsburg, having been sent
there by Robert Fulton. The Kate Frisbee
was originally intended for service on
the Sacramento River, in California, and
was taken there by a sailing ship around
Cape Horn, but for some reason it was
never devoted to that service, and after its
return it was utilized for many years on
the Lower Mississippi River. His second
wife was Jane Davis, whose family owned
all the land around the present village of
Davisville, Allegheny County. Mr. Frisbee
owned a farm, purchased from a Dr.
Pollock, which now adjoins West Pittsburg,
but he was not satisfied with the
quiet of an agricultural life and shortly
afterward returned to Pittsburg, where his
activity continued until his death.
Archibald Newell was the leading merchant
at Mahoningtown for many years.
In 1870 he built the store building that his
son, A. D. Newell, now occupies, and continued
in business for some ten years following,
when he retired. At this time his
sons, A. D. and J. D. F. Newell, took over
the business and three years later A. D.
sold his interest. For a short time he
lived in Colorado, but made no permanent
investments there, and after his return to
Pennsylvania he worked for his uncle, J.
D. Frisbee, at Connellsville, for about eight
years. In 1883 his brother, J. D. F. Newell,
died and Mr. Newell took charge of the
business. It has been reorganized, with
I. R. Zaniser as a partner, and is now conducted
under the firm style of A. D. Newell & Company.
Mr. Newell is the only survivor of the
family of six children born to his parents.
His father died at the age of seventy-six
years and the mother when aged eighty-two
years. She was well preserved and
when almost eighty years of age did not
hesitate taking a trip to California alone.
Mr. Newell married Wilhelmina Lemley,
who is a daughter of G. Lemley, who is
vice-president and manager of the Youngstown
Carriage Works. They have one
daughter, Elizabeth C.
Mr. Newell has been very active in public
life and is a leading Democrat. He was
postmaster at Mahoningtown during the
second administration of President Cleveland.
In the spring of 1908 he was elected
a member of the Select Council. He was
the first man appointed chief of the fire
department of Mahoningtown. Mr. Newell
is a Knight Templar Mason.
ANDREW J. NEWTON
Pg 886
Andrew J. Newton, a successful
and highly respected farmer, of Shenango
Township, who has also had much practical
experience in carpenter work and other
handicrafts connected with the building
trade, was born on the place he now occupies,
December 20, 1865. He is a great-grandson
of John Newton, who settled at
an early date on 300 acres of land in
Wayne and Shenango Townships, this
county, of which property Mr. Newton's
present farm forms a part. This early
settler, by his wife, Margaret, whose
maiden name was Houk, had a family of
eight sons and four daughters, of whom
the second-born child was John, born
March 4, 1801; died December 3, 1880.
John Newton was a farmer, carpenter and
stone mason. He married Mary Wilson,
daughter of William Wilson, and had
twelve children, of whom he and his wife
reared eleven. The record of this family
in brief is as follows : Nancy is the widow
of William Montgomery, and resides in
Shenango Township; Margaret married
John Houk, and is now deceased, as also
is her husband; Philip, now deceased;
Christina, mother of the subject of this
sketch, born January 21, 1830, who is living
in a good state of health, on the old
homestead with her sister, Euphemia;
William, John N., and Mary Ann, who are
deceased; Euphemia, mentioned above,
who is residing on the old homestead;
Elijah, a resident of Wayne Township;
Sarah, now deceased, who was the wife of
B. Franklin Houk, of Shenango Township;
and Arthur, who is now deceased.
Andrew J. Newton was educated in the
schools of Shenango Township, and has
always resided on his present property,
which is a part of the old Newton homestead.
Besides operating this farm, he
also takes care of that part of the old estate
belonging to his mother and her sister,
having the entire property under excellent
cultivation. His principal products
are corn, oats, wheat and hay. When
a young man he picked up a knowledge of
carpentering, mason work and brick-laying,
at all of which he has worked at different
times, being a skillful workman at
almost any of the building trades. Since
1892, in addition to farming, he has been
engaged in operating a coal bank, having
a three-foot vein, and hauling to New Castle
yearly about 1,000 bushels of the "black
diamonds."
Mr. Newton married Ida L. Newton,
who, though having the same surname, is
no relation of his. Of this union there
have been three children: John Thurman,
Lillie Ellen, and Leander.
Mr. Newton is a member of the Presbyterian
Church. In politics he is a Democrat,
and, it may be added in particular,
a citizen who is respected throughout the
township and beyond for his sterling integrity,
industry, and life-long devotion to
duty and principle.
ISAAC NEWTON
Pg 499
Isaac Newton, general merchant at
Energy, and the owner of a fine farm of
seventy-seven acres, which is located in
Slippery Rock Township, was born June
26, 1842, in Shenango Township, Lawrence
County, Pennsylvania, and is a son of
David and Rebecca (Hazen) Newton.
David Newton was born in Wayne
Township, Lawrence County, and died in
Shenango Township in December, 1897,
aged eighty-four years. He was a farmer
all his active life. About the time of his
marriage he bought property in the southern
part of Shenango Township, on the
old Pittsburg road, and this farm is now
owned by his son, Jacob Newton. He married
a daughter of John Hazen, of Shenango
Township, and they had nine children,
eight of whom grew to maturity,
namely: Elizabeth; John, who lives on the
homestead; Isaac; Benjamin, who lives in
Beaver County; Lydia, who is the wife of
J. Wesley Honk, of Hazeldale; Rebecca
J., who is the wife of Lyle Cameron, of
Wayne Township; Jacob; and Margaret,
deceased, who was the wife of Henry Sumner.
The mother of the above family is
now in her ninety-third year and enjoys
fine physical health and her mind is unimpaired.
The paternal grandfather,
John Newton, came to Lawrence County
and settled in Wayne Township prior to
1800. He was a native of New Jersey.
Isaac Newton spent all his early life
on the farm, and since his marriage, in
1864, has combined farming and merchanchsing.
In the fall of 1896 he built his
residence and store building at Energy,
closing the store on the farm in Slippery
Rock Township, and was postmaster before
the establishment of the rural mail
route.
On June 2, 1864, Mr. Newton was married
to Mary Emily Montgomery, who was
born in Lawrence County, February 27,
1848, and is a daughter of William H. and
Sarah (Sweeting) Montgomery. William
H. Montgomery came to Lawrence County
and settled here when the country was
covered with forests. He had followed the
blacksmith business at Ashtabula, Ohio,
and for two years conducted a shop at
Waggletown, and later a store where Mr.
Newton's store now stands. He married
Sarah Sweeting, who was born in Derbyshire,
England, who was brought to
America by her parents when she was
eight years old. They had six children,
as follows: John Milton, who resides at
Boulder, Colo.; David Byron, who was
killed during the Civil War, at Louisville,
Ky., when aged eighteen years; Mary
Emily, who became Mrs. Newton; Anna
Melissa, who married George Strider, resides
in Califorhia; William L., who lives
at New Castle; and Steward Anderson,
who lives at Hulton Ferry, Allegheny
County. The parents were faithful members
of the Center United Presbyterian
Church.
Mr. and Mrs. Newton have had five children,
all of whom survive and bear the following
names: Sarah, who married McClelland Hogue,
of Slippery Rock Townsliip,
has seven children; Minnie Olive,
who married George Young, of Allegheny
City; James H., who resides at Wurtemberg;
Cora Edna, who lives at home; and
Elmer M., who, with his brother, James
H., is engaged in a mercantile business at
Wurtemberg. Mr. Newton has a tenant
living on his farm. In partnership with
his son-in-law, McClelland Hogue, he owns
another farm of eighty-five acres, in Slippery
Rock Township. While neither he
nor his wife have identified themselves
with any particular religious organization,
they have not felt its necessity, proving by
their lives the possession of Christian attributes.
They are people universally respected
and thoroughly esteemed.
JAMES H. NEWTON
Pg 725
James H. Newton, proprietor of
the largest general store at Wurtemburg
and auditor of Wayne Township, has been
established over eight years in business in
this place and is identified with many of
its interests. He was born January 12,
1874, in Shenango Township, near Energy,
in Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, and is
a son of Isaac and Emma (Montgomery)
Newton.
Isaac Newton was also born in Shenango
Township, a son of David Newton, a
substantial farmer of that section. Subsequently,
Isaac Newton purchased a farm
in Shenango Township and there conducts
a general store. He married Emma Montgomery,
who is a daughter of William H.
Montgomery, formerly a well-known blacksmith
in Shenango Township. Isaac Newton
and wife had five children born to
them, namely: Sadie, who married Mc-
Clellan Hogue, of Slippery Rock Township,
had seven children; Minnie, who
married George Young, resides at Allegheny;
James H.; Cora E., who lives at
home, and Elmer, who resides at Wurtemburg,
married Tessie McCowen, and is in
partnership with Mr. Newton.
James H. Newton attended the schools
of Shenango and Slippery Rock Townships,
spent three years in school at Volant
and took a business course at the Iron
City Commercial College, after which he
taught school through this section of the
county for seven years. He made many
friends during this period and was considered
a very successful educator. About
1900 he established his general store at
Wurtemburg and has developed a business
that is a leader in its line in this village.
Mr. Newton married Carrie Swartz, who
is a daughter of Louis Swartz, who is a
well-known farmer in Perry Township.
Politically, he is a Democrat and has taken
a somewhat active part in local politics.
ELMER PATTERSON NORRIS, M.D.
Pg 586
Elmer Patterson Norris, M.D.,
one of New Castle's successful young physicians
and surgeons, with convenient offices
on the second floor of the M. H. Henderson
Block, on the corner of Washington
and Mercer Streets, was born in this city,
October 28, 1871, and is a son of Charles
P. and Elizabeth (Roberts) Norris.
Charles P. Norris is a highly respected
retired resident of New Castle. For many
years he conducted a furniture business
here and during the years of his activity
he was a representative citizen.
Dr. Norris obtained a public school education
at New Castle and later attended
the Edinboro State Normal School. In
1892 he entered old Jefferson Medical College
at Philadelphia and was graduated
from that noted institution in 1896, being
for a part of his course a special student
under Drs. Kyle and Da Costa, who were
eminent scientific specialists connected with
St. Agnes', Blockley and Jefferson Hospitals.
Dr. Norris spent a year in these
hospitals and annually goes back to take
post-graduate courses, during these periods
of from six weeks to two months enjoying
advantages for scientific investigation
which he could scarcely hope to obtain
elsewhere. Dr. Norris practiced for
three years at Hillsville before coming to
New Castle in 1902. He is an enterprising
and progressive member of his profession
and in his practice makes use of the latest
discoveries in medical science. He is a
member of the Knights of Pythias and is
surgeon of the Fourth Regiment Uniform
Rank of the order, with the rank of major.