West Family Tree

Submitted by Arthetta's husband Gorden, [Private].

THE CHALLENGES OF MOTHERHOOD

Blessed is the mother...
Who can hold on to her children while letting them go;
Who puts a tranquil home ahead of an immaculate house;
Who knows a kind act will be remembered longer than an easy word;
Who really believes that prayer changes things;
Whose faith in eternity sweetens the present;
Whose Bible never needs dusting,
Whose sense of humor is alive and well.

~Selected

Originally published in Pulpit Helps - May 1988

The following is Arthetta's Reflections On My Life. It has been edited to protect the privacy of living family members. - Gorden, [Private]

[Page 1]

A.J.G's OUTLINE

1. Highlights
2. Early Years
3. Grades (1-12)
4. Advanced Education To 3/17/56
5. Married Life

[Page 2]

REFLECTIONS ON MY LIFE

by

Arthetta Jane (Wolford) Gorden

This information is for Gorden, [Private], Osborne, [Private], Gorden, [Private], Gorden, [Private] and Gorden, [Private] Gorden in addition to succeeding descendants of mine.

Anything I have accomplished in my life was done only with the help of the Lord. I could not have done it alone.

I have written these reflections for the following reasons:

So that my present family and future families will know more about my life. I would liked to have had information such as this about my ancestors.

To give you an idea of how times have changed.

I hope I have written something that will help you in some way.

The following are the highlights in my life that are most dear to me:

1. My acceptance of Jesus as my Lord and Savior and baptism.

2. Eighth Grade Graduation which included graduates from all of the Ligonier Township Schools. I was given a speech to memorized for that occasion because of my scholastic achievement.

3. My mother's funeral. I was just a teenager at the time, and was already missing my mother so very much, and yet I consider this as a highlight in my life because I knew my mother was in a much better place.

4. Valedictorian of my High School graduating class.

5. Graduation from Robert Morris Secretarial School.

6. My job as a Secretary at American Locomotive Co. (ALCO) for 4-1/2 years prior to our marriage.

7. Marriage to Gorden, [Private] Gorden.

8. Birth of Gorden, [Private] Gorden.

9. Gorden, [Private]'s graduation from Tri-State College (Now Tri-State University).

10. Gorden, [Private]'s graduation from high school, college, and seminary.

11. Gorden, [Private] and Osborne, [Private]'s wedding.

12. The births of Gorden, [Private], Gorden, [Private], and Gorden, [Private] Gorden.

13. Participation with the wives in The Gideons International.

14. Being a part of SOWERS (Servants on Wheels Ever Ready).

I was born on November 8, 1932 at home in the house now owned by Glenn Betz at 1330 Route 271S, Ligonier, Pa. (Near Waterford in Ligonier Township)

My father's name--Arthur Miller Wolford--Born 5/1/1897
My mother's name--Mabel Elizabeth (Ankney) Wolford--Born 4/18/1899---Died 5/23/1950
My sisters' names--Genetta Blanche Wolford--born 9/17/1919
Wolford, [Private] (Wolford) Smeltzer

My parents were married on 12/14/1918--1 month and 3 days after the Armistice was signed ending World War I.

 

My early years--To First Grade

I was born during the Great Depression which started in 1929. In order for us to have the necessities, my father taught school, and during the summer he worked in the coal mines in Wilpen, several miles from our home. We had a large garden in addition to a cow, a couple of pigs, and some chickens. My mother did a lot of the work in regard to these things in addition to selling milk, cream, butter (which she made by using a and hand-operated churn), eggs and also cakes, pies, cookies, candies and beautiful bouquets of flowers. Her customers were several couples who were quite affluent in the Pittsburgh area. One of them had stopped somewhere in Waterford, and asked where they could find a good cook who might be interested in selling them some of the above-mentioned items. All of these people owned cottages near Waterford (most on what was then known as the Mill Rd.) and would spend their weekends there during the summer. Eventually my mother had the following customers: Dr. & Mrs. Watson--Surgeon, Mr. & Mrs. Stevens--Bank Vice-Pres., Mr. & Mrs. Spear--Bank Officer, Mr. & Mrs. Donath--Patent Attorney for several large companies, Mr. & Mrs. Martin, and Mr. & Mrs. Matthias. During these years many, many people were out of work, and wages were very, very low. The prices of the items my mother charged were very, very low, also. My mother had taught school before and shortly after her marriage at Willow Grove School on the hill between Waterford and Laughlintown. It was a one-roomed school with all 8 grades. My mother rode a horse for the 8 miles to the school, and "boarded the horse" at a farm near the school. She had "skipped" one or two years of school because of her high grades and after completing "Normal School" she was qualified to teach. Her teaching years occurred while she was still a teen-ager. The school was a nice brick one, and when it was sold quite a few years later, my parents bought it since they had both taught there. They did quite a lot of repair work to the school, sold it, and today after renovations people are living in it. My father had received a low classification from the Draft Board because he was needed on his parents' farm so he did not serve in World War I. When my parents got married, my mother was teaching at Willow Grove and after getting pregnant, my father finished out teaching the school year for her and continued teaching for 23 years. My mother told me stories regarding her teaching years (including discipline problems with boys who were her students who were older and much bigger than she was) and other true stories. Books were scarce in our home then, and when I wanted to hear stories, I would ask my parents to tell me stories about "when they were young". Those were the words I used.

Another memorable item I remember is when my mother would take me during the day and we would walk out the dirt road by our place for a walk of a mile or so to visit her parents. This was before we moved to the upper end of Waterford. I would get tired walking and my mother would stop occasionally and let me pick strawberries near the road. One time I was picking strawberries across the road from my grandparents' home. My mother and grandmother were sitting on the porch swing, and just as I was about ready to pick a large strawberry, a snake's head suddenly appeared right beside the strawberry. Needless to say, I didn't pick the strawberry, but called to my mother as I ran toward the front porch. Since my grandfather was out working in one of the fields, my mother and grandmother proceeded to try to kill the snake. They had almost accomplished this task when Dick Riffle came driving down the hill in his big red truck. He was coming to my grandparents' house to pick up the 5 gallon milk cans which were filled after the cows were milked (by hand, in those days). The cows were milked in the morning and in the evening, the milk poured through a separator and into the cans, after which the cans were stored in the "spring house" until Dick Riffle picked them up. He would take them to Ligonier, the milk would be bottled, and he would bring the empty cans back. My grandparents never had a car. Anyway, Dick saw us out in the middle of the road, so he told us he would run over the snake several times to make sure it was dead. He told my father later that the snake was between 5 and 6 feet long. I know it looked very long to me. I saw black snakes and also rattle snakes quite often when we lived in that area. I believe this was a rattler because I heard a noise like the make right before I saw it. So if I hadn't seen it as I was about to pick the strawberry, I could have been in serious trouble. I remember my mother telling me to always be on the look-out for snakes.

About this same time I remember my parents "kept" boarders for awhile. These were men who worked up in the mountain between Waterford and Johnstown for an oil company, drilling for gas. They slept in our "spare" bedroom. Before they left for work in the morning, my mother would prepare their breakfast for them, and also pack their lunch for them. They would be back to eat the evening meal. One of the last times my parents boarded men like this was when one group left to work an another job, my mother discovered a very nice blanket was missing. She felt badly because in those Depression Days, this meant quite a loss, because they couldn't pay much for their room and board.

 

Another vivid memory I have about those pre-school days, was a day when we had a very bad thunderstorm. It had rained very hard all morning, and about an hour or so before my father was due home from teaching school, he walked in, and told us that the schools had been dismissed because of so much flooding. He had been told that there was a bad flood in Johnstown which was about 17 miles from our home. My parents went to Johnstown via Westmont so we could look down over the hill into Johnstown. I believe this was St. Patrick's Day in 1936. At the bottom of the hill, firemen were stopping all cars, and not allowing them to go any further. The water there was several inches deep. In downtown Johnstown, the water was high enough to do alot of damage to stores even on the second floor. there was alot of damage and people were killed, but it was not as bad as the flood there in the late 1880's. I remember the car we had then--a black 1936 Chevrolet. 20 years from that day Gorden, [Private] and I were married. On that day we experienced a very bad snow storm. Another vivid memory I have of my life before I started to school was that of my only playmate I had before moving to the upper end of Waterford several months before starting to school. His name was Clarence Eisaman, and they were our next door neighbors. My one cousin (about my age) lived further away, but I really don't have memories of being with her very often because my parents were very busy Mon.--Sat., and on Sun. mornings and evenings we were at church unless sickness prevented this. Sonny was Clarence's nickname, and he called me Naney. When he started to talk, he couldn't say Arthetta and since my middle name is Jane, his mother wanted him to call me Janey, but he couldn't pronounce the "J" so he called me Naney. There was a fence between our yard and Eisaman's, and Sonny and I were not allowed to climb over the fence. The only way we could get into each other's yard was to go down over the front yard (both were quite hilly) walk a short distance along the busy highway which was definitely a "no-no" and up the hill to the other one's back yard. Our mothers were very busy, and this was each knew where their child would be unless they disobeyed. I can never remember Sonny's running off into our yard but I remember I did it once. I went down over our hill in the front yard walked along the highway a short distance, and was walking up their hill in the font yard. I knew I was not to do this, and I kept watching for my mother. She had the ability to do her many chores, and watch me, too. Before I got to Sonny's back yard, I saw my mother coming out of the house after me. She gave me a smacking, brought me home, and made me promise never to do that again because I could have easily gotten seriously injured or killed because Route 271 was a main highway over the mountain from Waterford to Johnstown, and there was alot of car and truck traffic over that route. I remember my mother telling me that she trusted me that I would keep my promise, and I did, and never ran off after that.

Sonny and I spent alot of time making mud cakes, talking, etc. We had very few toys. One thing that really stands out in my mind about those days was hearing my mother telling Sonny's mother that when I knew my mother had cookies baking in the oven, I would ask permission to take one out for Sonny when they were baked and cooled. Sometimes they weren't very cool because I was anxious to give him one of those cookies. When the cookies were baked, my mother would give me two cookies--one for Sonny and one for me. I remember running to the fence and calling "Sonny" all along the way. I would keep calling until he came outside to get the cookie. He would do the same for me when his mother made cookies.

When me moved to the upper end of Waterford before I started to school, I was either 5 or almost 5 and Sonny was a year younger. My mother's brother, Charley Ankney helped us move by hauling each load in his old blue truck. When the last load was ready to be taken I remember my mother and Jessie Eisaman (Sonny's mother) were saying good-bye and Sonny and I were crying. I can see him yet as he walked over to me and said, "Don't cry, Naney. Soon we will be in school together, and when I grow up, I am going to marry you." Obviously, this never occurred (the marrying part).

Our move to the upper end of Waterford occurred for several reasons. One was that I had had pneumonia which made me quite thin and weak. Also, I had had several childhood diseases and had been having serious ear infections every winter. My parents and our doctor agreed that I was not physically able to walk over a mile each way to school each day especially in the winter when the weather was often well below zero. My father had to leave for the school where he was teaching much earlier than the time our school building was unlocked in the morning, and didn't get home until much later after our school was locked in the afternoon. Another reason was that my sister, Genetta, was going to be going to college and teaching after that, and at that time only one person per family could teach in Ligonier Township, so the plan was for us to move to Waterford, build a general store, and when Genetta started teaching, my father would resign his teaching job. My parents bout the old colonial brick home formerly owned by Louis Bush which was sold at sheriff's sale because of unpaid back taxes. I don't know if anyone else wanted the house which needed so many repairs. The house had been vacant for a long time. The windows were broken out, birds lived in several of the rooms, the grass in the front yard was taller than my father, etc. I remember his cutting it with a long handled--long bladed scythe before he could cut it with a push lawn mower. For the next several months, my father would take my mother and me up to the house early each morning (Mon.--Fri.). My mother would pack lunches for us, and she would work at the house all day until late in the afternoon when my father would pick us up after getting home from teaching school. I helped do alot of little jobs. The house had a large basement, first floor, second floor, and large attic. My mother had to remove several layers of wallpaper from each room because the prior owners kept papering over the layers of paper underneath. The plaister underneath the bottom layer of paper was in very poor condition so my mother had alot of plaistering jobs to do and alot of other repairs to make which women don't ordinarily do. The attic floor had never been finished, and she did alot of that after which she laid linoleum over the entire surface so we would have a finished attic floor and a surface that could be easily scrubbed which my mother would o at least twice each year--Spring and Fall. When all of the work was done, the house was beautiful. New grass was growing, alot of the flowers were planted, pine trees were planted along the front and one side of the property, a front porch was built, a long concrete walk was laid in front, shutters were installed, a white picket fence was installed along the front and side of the property, and a very, very large garden was planted. It was so large that all of the garden area is now a separate property with a house on it. We still had a cow and two pigs each year. A barn was built behind the house. What was used for pasture land for the cow is now the property which my father had a house built on several years after my mother died and my father had remarried. They wanted a smaller house. During the years my mother lived, our home and yard were so attractive especially with the many flowers that people from Pittsburgh taking drives out our way on Sunday afternoons would often stop and admire our home. Some said they would like to buy it. It has been rented and sold several times, and today you would hardly know it is the same property. It is now in very poor condition.

 

Grades 1--12

After moving to the upper end of Waterford, I started to school at the Waterford school house, and attended school there for 8 years. The school (which was torn down quite a few years ago) was a building with 3 classrooms. One was fro grades 1--3, one for grades 4--6 and the other one for grades 7 and 8.

For me, my first day of school had to have been the most traumatic day during the 8 years I attended school there. I was very bashful to begin with, I had lived in the area for a short period of time, and knew very few children my age. The few I knew were in my Sunday School Class, and I only saw them on Sundays, and was too bashful to say very much to them.

My sister, Genetta, was busy getting ready to leave for her first year in college (Juniata College in Huntington, Pa.) the day I started to school. My mother made sure I was ready for school on time after which she and Genetta were going to make sure that all of Genetta's clothes were washed so that she could pack them to take to college. I was not very happy about leaving home to go to school which as almost directly across the road from our home, but I wasn't sure what I was going to do about it. I didn't think crying would help very much, but I did some of that. Then my mother talked to me about how I would like school ( which was very true eventually) and how I would make alot of friends which I wasn't interested in. Finally, realizing she was not making much progress with her talking, she offered to take me to school which I thought was a good idea, so off we went on our little walk. My mother talked with Miss Robb, my teacher, for a few minutes, and then left. But that didn't solve my problem. I remember Miss Robb's standing before the 1st, 2d, and 3rd graders and explaining what we would be doing. First, she said she would be reading the Bible, then we would say the Lord's Prayer, after which we would learn the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag. When we had finished with that, she said she would pass out pencils and paper for the day, and the first graders would start their classes. Then she announced that if any of us had to go to the bathroom during the day that we were to put up our right hand and after she acknowledged the same, we were to say, "Please may I go out, Miss Robb?" This would mean that we had permission to go to one of the outside toilets. There were two of them behind the school building--one for girls and one for boys. I didn't hear much of the Bible reading, although I did say the Lord's Prayer, but didn't learn very much of the Pledge of Allegiance to the flag that day. I was too busy thinking what I would do before the teacher gave me a pencil and paper. After the Pledge of allegiance to the flag, I immediately raised my right hand. I can still here Miss Robb say, "What do you want, Arthetta?" I replied, "Please may I go out, Miss Robb?" to which she replied, "Yes, you may, Honey." Those were sweet words to my ears. Up until the time I kept the tears back because I didn't want anyone to see me crying. but I couldn't tolerate this situation much longer. I walked slowly to the back door which we were told to use for such exiting and also for going in and coming back from recess times (15 minutes each A.M. and P.M.). As soon as I got outside, you guessed it, I ran as fast as I could across the highway and into our front yard. I wasn't sure what I would say or do after I got inside the house. I knew what the situation would be when I got into the kitchen, but I wasn't sure how to handle it. Sure enough my mother and Genetta were still washing clothes using the old ringer-type washer. I go the impression that they weren't exactly expecting me. After wiping away some tears, my mother told me again that she was sure I would like school eventually, and that I would get to know all of those nice little girls and boys. I am sure she said more things, but this is what has stood out in my mind even to this day. Then my mother gave me another reason to go back to school. She was sure Genetta would be willing to walk back to school with me. So off we went. You can imagine what happened next. After a short time I appeared in the kitchen of our home again. My mother was busy taking clothes out of the boiling water in a very large container on the old "cook stove". This was the procedure for washing white clothes and keeping them white in those days. and I remember our white clothes were always very, very white. The white clothes remained in the water on the stove as it boiled for a certain length of time, and the clothes were then transferred into the ringer washer using a big stick. The white clothes were washed first, then succeeding loads of clothes according to colors--white to dark. Each Monday (weather permitting) about 6 large loads of clothes were washed for our family. In the winter time when the clothes would freeze if hung out on the clotheslines in our back yard, lines were put up in our large hall upstairs so that the clothes would dry there. That location would only accommodate about 1/2 of the clothes at a time. We had a large coal furnace in the basement of our home and a fireplace in one of the rooms downstairs. At that time we didn't know anything about plastic items or wash and wear clothes. It took a long time to do the ironing. All sheets, tablecloths, towels, clothes, etc. were ironed. Dress shirts, cotton dresses and many other items were heavily starched, dried, dampened for a couple of hours, and then ironed. When I showed up at home for the second time, my Mother was transferring the boiling hot white clothes into the washer, and asked Genetta to take me back to school. Genetta said she was too embarrassed to take me back again, and said, "It's your turn, Mother." So my mother took time out from her work, and took me back to school. She apologized to Miss Robb about my behavior, but Miss Robb told her this was quite common out in the country when children started to school. Many times they didn't have many playmates before starting to school, and being put in a classroom with about 40 or more children that they didn't know seemed to overwhelm them. When my mother taught school most of the first graders were in a one-roomed school, and had sisters or brothers (or both) in the same room with them. Miss Robb told my mother that she thought I would stay this time (which I did). Then Miss Robb turned to me and said, "We are going to get along just fine." That day did seem so long to me even though we had an hour off for lunch and the children (including me) who lived nearby went home for lunch. After the first day I got used to being in school. Miss Rob told me I did just fine after the first day because some children ran home for several days. Miss Alice Robb was like a second mother to her students. I donít know of any of the students who didn't like her. She was my teacher for 2nd grade, also, and I was very glad. My teachers for grades 3--8 were as follows: Mrs. Esther Klingensmith (3d), Miss Dorothy Gates (4th), Mrs. Thelma Nicely (5th and 6th), Mrs. Bessie Donaldson (7th), and Mrs. Elizabeth Gill (8th).

During my first grade year (1938--39) I got pneumonia, and was very sick. When I had almost recovered from that, I got another type of pneumonia and had what they called double pneumonia. The one night the doctor did not expect me to live during the night, and suggested that Genetta come home from college. She came to Johnstown by train, and my father met her there. My parents were up with me all night, but in the morning I was still living, and my condition was somewhat improved. During that time we didn't have the many medication we have today. For pneumonia I was given bitter red medicine from a bottle that sat on one of the dressers in the bedroom. When that was used, there was a second one just like it for me to take. It was a long, slow recovery for me which also included ear infections. As a result I missed over half of my school year, but my mother helped me with extra homework I had so that I could complete the work in order to pass on to second grade. That year I had pneumonia and ear infections again and missed almost as much school as the year before, but was able to pass on to third grade.

During my vacation in the summer between second and third grade, I had to have my tonsils removed and also my adenoids. That operation was performed in the doctor's office which was also a common practice in those days. The doctor thought that might end the ear infections, but it didn't. He then said he hoped that I might just gradually outgrow the episodes of both pneumonia and ear infections which I did. I did not have pneumonia again until January of 1950 when I was a senior in high school.

I was born at home, and the name of our doctor was Dr. Hamill from Ligonier. Dr. Ambrose was our family doctor after that until about the time I started to high school. His office was also in Ligonier. Dr. McGregor was the only doctor in Ligonier who would remove tonsils and adenoids in his office, and my sister, Genetta, and I had that done the same day in August of 1940.

The fact that I was not expected to live that night during the time I had pneumonia reminds me of the fact there have been several other times during my life that I was not expected to live, recovered from several serious surgeries, and was involved in two automobile accidents in which I could have been killed. I am convinced that each time it was the Lord who had a reason for me to live. The night Gorden, [Private] was born neither of us were expected to live, and that was over 38 years ago.

As I write about Miss. Robb, I am reminded about another little incident pertaining to her. Each year we exchanged names at Christmas time at school. In either first or second grade, she "got" (the expression we used) my name. She gave me a little multi-colored beaded purse. I thought it was so beautiful, and I used it for a long time until it wore out.

During my grade school years and even into the high school ones we would have and evangelist at our church each summer for one week. We were always the family with which the Evangelist stayed during those years except for one time when he was only with us for part of the week. Since the mother of the home had to do most of the work (washing of clothes, getting the meals, etc.), the women in my mother's Sunday School Class (the class which she taught) would be asked who would be willing to have the Evangelist in their home for the week, and except for one time, no one volunteered so my mother said the Evangelist could stay at our home. She and my father always discussed this ahead of time. My mother was so busy, but was always willing to do this. One year Catherine Kinsey volunteered to have the Evangelist for the week, but shortly after he arrived, Dorla Dean (one of Herman and Catherine's daughters) was diagnosed with Scarlet Fever so he ended up at our place. I remember some of the ministers' names--Roy Forney, Wilber Neff, and Rev. Snavely. Some of them came back several times.

After moving into the old colonial brick house across the road from the school I attended, my parents had "Wolford's Superette Market" built and also a home behind the store. My parents drove over to Johnstown, and looked at new homes that were being built, and my mother would draw interior house plans to suit exterior homes they saw and liked. She would draw them "to scale", and they finally decided on a plan. The house was connected to the store. The store consisted of a large area, then you could walk up 3 steps to a platform. At the one end was a rest room and toward the other end was a swinging door into our kitchen. On the platform were hundred pound bags of feed for livestock, 9' x 12' rolls of linoleum which was used in kitchens then, and occasionally used in other rooms. My father would roll it our on the grass in our yard when someone wanted to buy some, and he would cut it however they wanted it done. It was very hard to cut. You needed a very sharp knife (a large one) a good bit of pep, and sharp eyes to be on the look-out to make sure you were cutting the linoleum straight and not your fingers. I watched my father do this many times. Since the store faced the highway (Route 271) and our home was connected to the store, the one side of our home faced the side road which was between the store, and the old brick home we lived in before moving into our new home. The house was very cute inside with a living room, dining room, kitchen and large pantry downstairs and a large storage area (since we had no attic), a large bedroom for my parents, and 3 smaller bedrooms. There was a door in Genetta's bedroom which opened out onto a deck. Decks were popular in those days. People would take chairs and sit out there when they wanted to relax outside. The deck was above the front entrance of our home. We had a nice basement. The floors were all cement. That was about the time new homes had cement floors in their basements. Prior to that they were dirt floors. One room was the coal cellar because we still had coal furnaces for heating rather than oil and gas which came later, especially in the country. We did have a very nice fireplace in the living room.

I have many memories of the years my parents owned the store. Those years spanned my grade school years and until I was a Junior in High School. The store was open at 6 A.M. until 10 P.M. at night, 6 days a week. We all worked in the store. It kept everyone busy with the store and the work involved with living at the new house for several years, both of my parents wanted to rent that house and move back across the road where we lived before. My parents missed not having a cow and pigs, a very large yard and many flowers, along with a very large garden. While we lived in the new home, the older one was rented to the Samuel Austin Family. We became good friends with them. One daughter, Lois, was my age; we have remained good friends. When we moved back into the older brick home, we rented the house behind the store to Mr. and Mrs. H. H. Saxman. They were people from Pittsburgh. Mr. Saxman had just retired. We became very good friends with them, also, and when they found out that the store and home were for sale, they were very sad, they said, and didn't know what they were going to do. So my mother designed a very nice two-story house for them. My parents had it built, and the Saxman's were very happy there.

The store was opened at 6 A.M. for several reasons. It was about that time that the traffic to and from Johnstown was noticeable, and quite a bit of gasoline could be sold at that time. Also, if men from Waterford who worked in Latrobe or Johnstown discovered they needed a lunch cake or something else in their "dinner bucket" (metal lunch containers--usually black), they would depend on our store being open. As late at 9:30 P.M. and later, women would still be coming to the store for items for the mensí lunches for the next day. By purchasing lunch cakes each day, they would always be nice and fresh. Three bakeries delivered items to our store. Those items were mostly bread, lunch cakes and some hamburger and weiner buns. Harris-Boyer from Johnstown, Schaller's from Greensburg, and Vance's from Ligonier delivered baked goods to our store. Some people in Waterford had old refrigerators and some still had ice boxes so the lunch meat couldn't be kept very long. There were no packages of pre-cut cold cuts then, so we sliced the lunch meat loaves using an electric meat slicer. Jumbo bologna (the large version of it) was then called minced ham, and was the most popular kind of lunch meat sold. I remember the women coming into the store in the evening and asking for 10¢ worth of minced ham. They received quite a few slices for that price because the price for a pound was 19¢. That was also the price for a gallon of gasoline. We sold Amoco gasoline--regular and high test.

My first jobs in the store were picking papers, etc. off the floor, doing some straightening up, etc. The floor was wooden, and had to be swept quite often with so many customers coming in and out and things getting spilled, etc. The job I liked the best was the one I had on busy evenings, especially Saturday evenings. From the time I started to school, my father would give me the brown money bag which contained the money from the cash register from the day before, which was Saturday. It contained alot of change and bills and also checks since alot of grocery bills were paid on Saturdays when my father made weekly delivery of groceries to some of the customers and also sold alot of groceries on credit. The latter would be paid each Friday or Saturday or every other week, depending how often the men were paid. So I usually spent alot of time on alot of Sunday afternoons counting the money in different combinations, and playing both customer and clerk after I got tired of just counting the money. I would pay for the items in exact change or use larger bills, and count the change. Starting in second grade I got my big job in the store. Since I was too short to stand behind the counter, and be the cashier, my father would set a stool behind the cash register, and I would sit there on busy evenings, and be the cashier. He would add up the price of each item, give me the paper, I would make the change, and give the customer the receipt after I saw what the total was. I really liked this job. It kept my busy, and I was helping my parents and sisters who would be busy "waiting on" customers. Since stores were not self serve then, the clerks had to go and get each item the customer wanted to purchase. On Saturday nights, especially, there would be customers standing in line waiting to be served. Since I had the job of cashier, my parents and sisters didn't have to do this, but could take care of the customers faster. This wasn't work for me; it was entertainment. I remember many times a stranger would come into the store. He would be traveling to or from Johnstown and would stop for gas. In those days the customers did not pump the gas. Often times they would have to come in to the store and get their change, and who would they meet up with as the cashier? A young child who probably looked like she didn't know very much. My parents or sisters would say, "That's O.K. She will know how much change to give you."

During World War II, it was very difficult to buy alot of products. As a result, many products were rationed, and "stamps" were issued to each family by the government. The red and white stamps were for foods that were rationed, and the others were for various products. Canned goods were rationed, one reason being that metal was in short supply for the cans. That was the reason it was very difficult to buy cars during the war. Metal was needed for planes, guns, etc., for fighting the war. Sugar was rationed because not as much was being imported into the U.S. We had to collect stamps from people before they could purchase the rationed products. Then there were special 8-1/2" by 11" sheets for pasting them on because we couldn't purchase the products rationed unless we had enough stamps. So, you guessed it, no doubt. I pasted many, many hundreds of stamps on those sheets during World War II. I don't know where they got the name*, but the Office of Price Administration issued the stamps to the families, depending on how many children you had. My parents were quite startled when they received word from the O.P.A. that they were wanted in Pittsburgh for a hearing because they were purchasing items for our store using counterfeit rationing stamps. They went to the hearing, and after answering alot of questions, convinced O.P.A. that they were not buying counterfeit stamps--that it had to be a customer of ours who was using them. They knew it couldn't be our relatives, neighbors or friends. They didn't know such stamps even existed. They figured it out that it was someone who was buying gas from us each week and not other products because it was some of the gasoline stamps which were the problem. Finally, my parents figured it out. A fellow from Pittsburgh had bought a farm about a mile from our home. He didn't do any farming, but he and his friends would spend the weekends there, and they did alot of coming and going which just wasn't possible with gas rationing. The man's name was Mr. Stroop. He also owned a tavern near Ligonier. The O.P.A. wanted names from my parents, and his was the only one they could think of, so they submitted his name to them. Sure enough. He was the culprit. The O.P.A. notified my parents that they were exonerated, and that Mr. Stroop would be jailed and fined. We don't know if he was or not because he sold the farm soon after that, and we didn't see him anymore. *This agency probably had something to do with ceiling prices on some products during the war.

This week while in HillsGorden, [Private], Michigan, on a volunteer assignment, we have seen alot of programs on T.V. concerning the battles leading up to the end of World War II which began for the U.S. in 1941, and ended in 1945. I remember going to church on Dec. 7, 1941, and being told by someone in Sunday School that they had heard on the radio earlier that morning that Japan had attacked Pearl Harbor. After many, many battles, V-E Day, meaning Victory in Europe, occurred in May of 1945 and V-J Day, meaning Victory in Japan, occurred in August of 1945; thus ending World War II. This week, in commemorating Victory in Japan, they don't refer to it as V-J Day, Victory in Japan, but rather Victory in the Pacific because there were so many battles on so many islands as they moved toward Japan; therefore, more than Japan was involved in speaking of the location of the battles. I remember I was in 7th grade when Victory in Europe was declared, and someone came to our school and told us. We were on vacation from school when V-J Day occurred three months later.

During World War II there were many fellows (and a few girls) from the Ligonier Valley Area in the military. Telegrams were sent to their families when they were reported wounded, missing or killed. In rural areas many of the farms were so far apart, and there were not enough personnel available to deliver the many, many telegrams. In that case a town like Ligonier was chosen and a businessman would be chosen to accept the telegrams from the War Department in Washington, D.C. for that area and see that they were delivered. Mr. Moonly, who owned a drugstore in Ligonier, accepted the telegrams for Ligonier and the vicinity. We knew so many people from this area since my father had taught school near our home, in Boucher, Wilpen, and in Ligonier. Some weeks during the war, it seemed that almost every day someone would come into our store and tell us about another telegram that had been received about someone we knew. Usually when a telegram was received "Wounded in Action" or "Missing in Action", it would be followed by one about two weeks later announcing the person "Killed in Action". One of my first cousins, Ralph Wolford, was killed during the war. Several second cousins of mine were also killed. My Uncle Roy and Aunt Rosie Wolford had two sons who were in the Army. Ralph was killed during the battle of Okinawa in the Pacific off the coast of Japan. The first telegram arrived announcing Ralph was wounded in action. Most of the time from Monday until Friday, Uncle Roy would be working out in one of the fields of their large farm in Wilpen. At that time their 8th child, Shirley was a baby, and Aunt Rosie would be alone in the house with her since the other children would be in school. When the first telegram arrived about Ralph, my parents were expecting another one to arrive, so my father called Mr. Moonly, and asked him not to have anyone deliver another telegram that came from the War Department for my aunt and uncle because he wanted to do it. Sure enough, about two weeks later the second one arrived, so my mother stayed at our store, and my father delivered the telegram to my uncle whom he found working out in one of the fields and together they took it to Aunt Rosie.

I was a 7th grader during part of the war. So many of the male school teachers were drafted, and in order for all of the schools to have teachers, many accepted teaching positions who had not taught for many years. We had one of those teachers when I was in 7th grade. Her name was Mrs. Bessie Donaldson. She had not taught school for a long time, and was not up to date on what was being taught, so we spent alot of time doing patriotic things. We learned all of the war songs, Over There, The Marines Hymn, Anchors Aweigh, The Army Air Corp, etc. We spent many, many hours knitting 8" square patches which in turn were knitted together to form an afghan. We sent quite a few afghans to the Red Cross to be sent to the military hospitals overseas. All of us in the "big room" (made up of 7th and 8th graders) had to learn to knit--even the boys most of whom really disliked to knit. We also learned alot of hymns that Mrs. Donaldson liked. All of this was not a bad idea in itself, I guess, but we spent most of our days that school year not doing much else. As a result, we were so far behind going into 8th grade, and if we hadn't had a teacher like Mrs. Gill to get us caught up, most of the class would not have passed the county tests and could not have gone to high school the next year. She worded so hard, but alot of the students didn't want to do two years of work in one year, so quite a few did not get to start to high school when the rest of us did. When I was in 7th grade, I remember that both oaf my grandfathers died within a week after my 12th birthday.

During the war when Genetta was teaching 1st, 2nd, and 3rd graders at the Waterford school while I was in the upper grades, one of her students, Vivian Kinsey, got sick and was diagnosed as having Polio. Genetta's classroom had to be fumigated and the books burned because the disease was known to be contagious. That was before the Salk vaccine was discovered, and Vivian was in the hospital for a long time. Mr. T. I. Phillips, a Vice-President at Westinghouse Electric Corp. owned a large home up the Mill Road which was near our school. Vivian's father was the Caretaker of the estate. Mr. and Mrs. Phillips owned a large home in Pittsburgh, but had their property in Waterford maintained for their use year round by Wilson Kinsey who had always lived in Waterford. When he was employed by Mr. Phillips, he and his wife, and daughter, Vivian, lived in the Caretaker's house. After Vivian was discharged from the hospital, Mr. Phillips arranged for her to be taken to the D. T. Watson Home for Crippled Children in Pittsburgh so that she could receive all of the therapy she needed. She was there for quite awhile. She has been crippled ever since, but would not have recovered so well if she had not had that special care which her parents could not afford.

When I graduated from 8th grade, I was chosen to give one of several speeches at the graduation ceremonies which honored all of the 8th grade students from all of the schools in Ligonier Township. I had to memorize the speech, and while I was reciting it, I was so scared I thought I would faint. I had never stood up in front of so many people. I was also afraid I might forget some of the speech, but I got through it O.K. with the help of the Lord. Each of the several speeches which were not written by the students who gave them, were a continuation of the first and succeeding speech. I remember most of my speech I gave that evening in May, 1946. The first line was, "Again in 1899 the nations of the world, meeting together at The Hague, formed an international court of union for the purpose of preserving peace."

At about this time I was becoming actively involved in church work. We attended Sunday School and Church services in addition to Wednesday Evening Prayer Meeting and Sunday Evening Services. I had joined our Church of the Brethren in Waterford by Triune Immersion on June 4, 1944. I was baptized in the baptistry in the Church of the Brethren in Greensburg by Rev. M. J. Brougher. My parents were Deacon and Deaconess in our church, and when I was growing up, my mother was very active in church work such as Sunday School and Church Pianist for many years (the church organ was not purchased until a good many years after her death), Women's Class Teacher, Cradle Roll Sup't., Home Dept. Sup't., etc. As part of the latter office, my mother would purchase potted plants for the shut-ins at Easter time, and she and a couple of the other women would deliver them to the homes. Also as part of that job, she would fill a good sized basket for each shut-in at Christmas time. In the basket were several kinds of fruit and some delicious cookies and fudge which she made. From the time I was very young, I can remember going with here many times when she delivered the baskets. The shut-ins were always very appreciative of the baskets. We would stay and visit with each one. I liked to attend Vacation Bible School each summer and eventually helped with this. I became a member of the choir when I was old enough and was a part of that until Gorden, [Private] and I got married in March 1956 and I moved to Angola, Indiana where he was attending college. For awhile I was Sunday School Secretary, Jr. High Sunday School Teacher, Church Clerk, etc.

A few days ago, I read that The National Cash Register Co. was no longer in business because cash registers were no longer wanted in stores because of new methods being used. It reminded me of the days when I was the little cashier in our grocery store. My father had purchased a used National Cash Register which was used all the time my parents owned the store. I pressed those keys many times to bring up the amounts (above the keys) of the customers' orders. These cash registers are now collectors items as are so many things we used when I was growing up.

High School days for me started in September 1946. Those were busy years for me. I enjoyed my studies in grade school, and continued to do so in high school, and eventually in business school. I enjoyed studying and learning new things which was fascinating and challenging for me. In addition to our assignments we received from each teacher each day, I was a member and officer of several clubs (Spanish Club, Secretarial Club, Student Council, etc.) During my Senior year, any of the teachers who wanted a Secretary could choose one of the students who were in second year Typing and Shorthand classes. I was chosen by Miss Marie Martin who gave more work to her secretary than any other teacher did. My work included alot of typing, duplicating of various papers, keeping a card file of all 6 classes of students (English) to make sure all had handed in a book report each month, etc. I corrected alot of papers, but Miss Martin did so, also. She really kept me busy as Secretary and student. Each evening each of her students received homework as follows: reading, outlining, answering of assigned questions, etc. Each month we had to turn in a book report (an approved book from her list) and also had an oral report of some sort. We would have at least one test each week and a six-week test. Also, we had alot of memorization to do each evening when we were studying the various writings of Shakespeare and others. In class we would have to write these memory passages with the book closed, and each punctuation mark that was wrong would be deducted from our score. Miss Martin taught most of the Freshmen, Junior and Senior Class English students. I learned alot from her classes, but it took alot of work. If you didn't want to keep up, you were thrown out of her class and told to go down to the principle's office and talk with Mr. Wylie and you were then sent to another English teacher who wanted you. I was also Home Room President my Senior Year. Guess whose home room it was? Miss Martin's. So I had some more work to do for her. I could not refuse to do work Miss Martin wanted done. She didn't accept excuses.

The first two things I remember about my first day at high school were that we were given instructions about how we as Freshmen were to dress for Initiation Day several days later, and were told what we would have to do during that day like carrying the Senior's books, etc. We were also given the assignment of writing a paper entitled "My First Day of High School". That came from Mrs. Martin. She told us she wanted to get an idea about how much we knew about term papers which we had to write every six weeks thereafter. I neglected to mention this in the prior paragraph. The way we were to dress for Initiation Day was half boy and half girl. A picture of me dressed as such is in the picture album of ours that starts with pictures of some of our ancestors and ends with pictures of our family The day Gorden, [Private] graduated from Biblical Theological Seminary in Hatfield, Pa.

I received no favoritism from Miss Martin for the work I did for her nor did I want any. She made a little speech to our Senior English Class that she had chosen a Secretary who would have alot of work to do, but it would be good training. I listened, but was very surprised when she said my name. I didn't think I could live up to her expectations. She was right about the work and training. It was good training for business school and my first job which lasted for 4-1/2 years before I got married and moved to Angola, Indiana. Miss Martin once told us, "You are in my class to work". Truer words were never spoken.

Our high school student body was comprised of students from Ligonier Borough School District and Ligonier Township Schools which consisted of Waterford, Hillsview, Wilpen, and Laughlintown and also the schools in Fairfield Township. All of the students from the two township school districts (and I did omit Oak Grove School from the Ligonier Twp. group) rode on school busses each morning and evening. This was started just a couple of years before I was in high school. All of the years before that, there was no way to get to high school unless you could get a ride or walk several miles or more each way to Ligonier. This was why alot of students in Ligonier Valley did not attend high school before the busses were available. When we left our home room class after lunch, we had to carry all of our books we needed for afternoon classes with us in addition to others we had to take home that night because of assignments from them. It was quite a load because had alot of homework which meant books, workbooks, notebooks, tablets, etc. had to be carried home each night. We had to leave the building immediately after our last class in the afternoon because our bus would usually be waiting for us, and when the last student in sight got on the bus he was to ride, the bus left. Occasionally we would get out of our last period late, and that meant walking home. For me that was little over 4 miles. There would be others walking to Waterford, usually, but it was a long walk. By the time I was a Junior in High School, my father was a salesman, and did alot of traveling in Pennsylvania, W.Va., etc. and he wasn't home in time to come and get me if I missed the school bus.

I do not know who the person was, but I was told that someone from Waterford was talking to Mr. Gonder, President of Mellon Bank in Ligonier, and mentioned about how I was able to be a cashier in our grocery store. Years later when I was in high school and my father was in the bank one day, Mr. Gonder asked him if I were in high school. When my father said I was, Mr. Gonder wanted to know my plans after graduating. My father told him I planned to attend Robert Morris Secretarial School in Pittsburgh. Mr. Gonder told my father to tell me that from what he had heard about me when I was very young and worked in the store and because I planned to graduate from Robert Morris (which was considered to be a very good school) that he would be willing to hire me as a cashier at the bank. Before graduating from Robert Morris, I got in touch with Mr. Gonder, thanked him for the opportunity, but told him I was interested in secretarial work. He said he had hoped I would make a career of being a Bank Cashier. I thought this was a unique incident, all because of my fascination of Math at an early age.

When I had pneumonia in January of 1950, I was so sick and my mother suggested that a new doctor in Ligonier (Dr. Shutter) be called because this was only four months before she died, and our family doctor was still telling her that even though she had alot of pain since her operation in June of 1949 that everything was alright. Dr. Shutter came out to our home, and within a few days later I was feeling much better. My mother go the impression that he was caring and really cared about his patients. As a result, she became his patient. He thought she had cancer, but suggested she see a specialist in Greensburg. He told my father she did have cancer, and it was throughout most of her body. My mother was not told right away, and Dr. Shutter took very good care of her. During the last few weeks she lived, Dr. Shutter suggested she remain at home. (She was in the hospital in April, but all they could do was give her something for the pain.) He said he thought that would be better for her, and he said he would be willing to come to our home day or night when my mother needed shots for pain. He did this up until the morning she died because the pain became so severe. I am mentioning this because I do not believe this to be a coincidence. I do not believe the Lord works that way. I believe I had that pneumonia to lead Dr. Shutter to our home which ultimately resulted in better medical care for my mother during the last few months of her life.

I have happy memories of my high school days, but some sad ones, too, like all of us do. One happy memory of mine was the day I was called down to the office by Mr. Wylie, our High School Principal. This was almost one month prior to my high school graduation ceremonies. He informed me that all of the Seniors' grades had been averaged, and that I was Valedictorian of my class for the four years; therefore, I was expected to give one of two speeches to be given that evening. I was given the subject to write the speech, and of course had to memorize it. That was in the morning, and I didn't tell anyone about the honor, but later found out that quite a few or the Seniors were hoping to give that speech and were inquiring about it at the office that day. As a result, I remember two remarks that were made to me other than the usual congratulations. The first one that stands out in my mind was made to me during lunch hour by Lois Austin. She is the girl I mentioned earlier whom I knew since my early grade school days when her parents rented the old brick house where we used to live. We always referred to the large brick house as the old brick house as opposed to the new brick house meaning the newer one which was built behind the store. When my grandmother was in her eighties in the 1950's, she had remembered our older brick house when she started to first grade in the first Waterford school. She said it didn't look any older in the 1950's than it did when she was in first grade. The bricks were hand made, and the interior walls were 3 brick thick. Getting back to my friend, Lois, she told me she heard that I was Valedictorian of our class. She asked me if I had been working for the title since our Freshman year. I told her, "No, I just did my assignments and learned what I was told to accomplish." she said, "I have worked for the title since my first day in high school, and although I was told I ended up in the top 10% of our class, scholastically, you did much better than I did." Then she said what made me the happiest--"I liked you the day I met you. We have been such good friends and have never had an argument, and since I couldn't be Valedictorian, I am happy you have that title. I couldn't say that about anyone else in our class. This meant so much to me because I thought she was being so unselfish, and thought she was a great friend to say that. I will refer to the second remark on the next page.

And now I come to the saddest event that occurred during my high school days. My mother had been sick for quite awhile, but our family doctor at the time kept treating her for intestinal problems which he said she had. She experienced excruciating pain one night, and the doctor had to be called. His diagnosis then was that she had 2 tumors. The operation was done a couple of days later. The surgeon assured my father that even though both tumors were malignant as a result of the tests, "They got all of the cancer", he said. This did not prove to be the case. Even though a precaution was taken (radium treatments), she died 11 months later after much suffering. That 11 months occurred just one week before my high school graduation and 5 days before our baccalaureate service. My mother died on May 23, 1950 and the funeral was 2 days later. She did know that I was Valedictorian, having received all A's except one (which was a B) during my 4 high school years.

As I think back over my happiest and saddest memories from my high school days, I realize that I only attained the honor I received with the help of the Lord. I did not attain it on my own, and with alot of help from the Lord, I was able to cope rather well, considering all of the circumstances. I was very busy at school, had more to do at home those last few months my mother lived, and had what was her inevitable death on my mind constantly. Then there was the grieving after her death. This was alot to cope with for a 17 year old girl whose mother was her best friend, also. As Gorden, [Private] says about his grandmother who helped him through many rough times and showed him so much love--"If there were ever a saint on earth, my grandmother was one", I can truthfully say that about my mother. At the age of 62, Gorden, [Private] sometimes has tears in his eyes when he talks about his grandmother, and I, too about my mother. My mother didn't live long enough to meet her two sons-in-law and her grandchildren. I wish these people could have met her. AS a person once told me, "You will hurt every time you think about your mother even if you live to be 100".

I told my mother about the speech I was to write and recite for the graduation service, and even though she was too sick to get out of bed without help, she was so determined to be at the high school the night of my graduation. She knew she could not sit in the auditorium the night of the services but, but she wanted to be in the building (somewhere) with me. She was showing one of her virtues --her unselfishness--even when she was so sick. She planned for my father to ask Mr. Wylie's permission to make up some accommodation where she could like down in one of the classrooms and have the P.A system on so she could hear the service.

When Mr. Wylie informed me about the speech I was to give, I told him my mother was very ill and may not be living by that time, and I wanted him to have the Salutatorian to give my speech and the person with the third highest grades give her speech. He said he was afraid I might regret that it years to come, and that I was to think it over for a couple of days. That was Friday, and I returned to his office on Monday morning and told him I had not changed my mind. I wanted the other girls to have plenty of time to prepare for the their speech. Mr. Wylie said he would announce the night of the graduation who the Valedictorian really was and why I was not giving the speech (either because my mother was too sick to attend the ceremonies like she had planned which might be the case or perhaps she had died which she had). I never told my mother I was not going to give the speech. I didn't think she would be living by that time, and I knew she would feel badly if it were because of her condition that I felt I couldn't give the speech. Mr. Wylie never made the announcement.

for the 4 years I was in high school (also, before and after that), the students (or I should say most of the them) from Ligonier resented the students from Ligonier Twp. and Fairfield Twp. attending what they called "their school". The latter were considered a bunch of "farmersí' kids" and not good enough to attend "their school" --meaning that it was located in Ligonier. This was sad, but true. All of the teachers were from Ligonier, too, in addition to the Principal and Assistant Principal. I mentioned in the first paragraph of the previous page that I remembered two remarks that were made to me the day Mr. Wylie told me that I was Valedictorian. I related the one made by Lois Austin. The other was made by Keith Boyd from Waterford on the way home from school that same day. After all of the students got on the bus that afternoon, he said, "We all know that the students from Ligonier are given preferential treatment many times, and sometimes the township kids deserve compliments, honors, and awards they don't receive, but Arthetta is Valedictorian, and that is one title that can't be taken away from her because she earned it with her grades which no one else had." Mr. Wylie never made the announcement he said he would make about me the night of graduation; therefore, many of the high school students and guests there that night never knew I had received the title which I did. I never asked him about his, but alot of my friends from the township were upset that here was another example of his not wanting to give a township student credit deserved.

When it was time to go shopping for a new dress for me for the Baccalaureate Service and one for the Graduation Ceremonies--even though we wore the traditional cap and gowns, also--I informed my sisters that I could not attend either service since Mother's funeral was on a Thursday, and that Sunday evening and the next Tuesday evening were when the service would be. They tried to persuade me otherwise. I still didn't agree with what they said. A couple of hours later they came back and said that I would regret it if I didn't change my mind when I thought back on it in years to come. I still didn't agree with them. Then one of them got an idea and said, "What would mother want you to do"? I thought about that for a little bit and decided I would attend the services. So I ended up with a nice two-piece orchid dress for the first service and a nice yellow one for the second service. On Page 2 of our largest picture album, you will see a picture of Genetta, Wolford, [Private], and Myself standing in front of a brick building. That building was and is still standing in New Windsor where Gorden, [Private] , Osborne, [Private], Gorden, [Private], Gorden, [Private] and Gorden, [Private] are now living. That was the day we took Genetta to New Windsor, Maryland, to begin her one year service assignment as a volunteer from Brethren Volunteer Service (B.V.S.). In that picture I am wearing my yellow high school graduation dress.

I felt more sad than happy while attending the above-mentioned services, but ended up being glad I attuned the ceremonies. Mother would have wanted that.

The main reason I have typed this much detail of these 2-1/2 pages is mainly this--There are some lessons I believe my descendants can learn from these experiences. This is also true of various other sections of my "Reflections". More importantly, is the fact that we all experience happy times as well as unhappy times in our lives. I am no exception, but remember this--As Christians we have the Lord beside us whatever our experiences are, happy or sad. This is one of our greatest blessings given to us by our Lord, the greatest being that he promises us Eternal Life in Heaven with no sadness there, if we believe on the Lord and His Son and the words of the Bible.

Some of the saddest moments during my high school graduation was when a soloist sang "You'll Never Walk Alone". It seemed so sad for a few moments while I was thinking how alone I felt even though my classmates were sitting all around me, but then I thought, "I'll Never Walk Alone. The Lord will always be with me."

Another reminder of this fact is when every Labor Day Weekend, Jerry Leis sings "I'll Never Walk Alone" at the end of the Muscular Dystrophy Telethon. With a the physical problems I am experiencing now including Muscular Dystrophy, I'll Never Walk Alone. We have our families, but they may not always be with us, and we can depend on the Lord that he will be.

The poem, "Footprints in the Sand" has meant so much to me, and also hymns such as "Because He Lives".

Sept. 1950--March 17, 1956

In Sept. 1950 I began studies at Robert Morris Secretarial School on Grant Street in Pittsburgh, Pa. I completed their 12 month Secretarial Course at the end of Aug. 1951. Before enrolling at Robert Morris, I had discovered that it was very difficult to rent a room near downtown Pittsburgh. I found out that there were three locations that would be best, and had my name put on the waiting list at each place. Those locations were at the Salvation Army Home on the Boulevard of the Allies where on of their buildings (a very large building) was made up of rooms they rented to girls who were going to school or working in Pittsburgh. My name never came to the top of the list until about the time I graduated from Robert Morris. The second location was the Y.W.C.A. which was several blocks from the school (a little closer than the Salvation Army Home), and the third location was the Methodist Home a 2000 Fifth Ave.--20 blocks from downtown.

Before school started, the Methodist home location became available for me. I had found out that a girl from Ligonier who graduated from high school in my class was also interested in Robert Morris so we ended up sharing a room for the next 12 months. We got along very well during that time. After living at the Methodist Home for 3 or 4 months, we were able to move to the "Y"--16 blocks closer to school. We were glad to be able to move because we had to be ready to leave (walk) early in the morning from the Methodist Home in case the streetcar was late. In the winter if there was too much ice on the tracks and they could not be used, we had to walk 20 blocks to and from the Methodist Home. We didn't want to miss school since the courses were advanced Secretarial Science courses.

I enjoyed attending Robert Morris and the studying involved. Although I enjoyed school, I wanted to attend secretarial school rather than college. Shortly after I started to first grade, I often went to Johnstown with my father as he went there each week to buy alot of things for our store that he wanted but couldn't get delivered. He had a 1941 Willys Station Wagon, and there was hardly room in that station wagon for he and I when we left Johnstown. He always ended up with a 100# bag of feed (for chickens or livestock) on each of the two front fenders when we started home. There was no room inside for them. One time we discovered we had lost one 100# bag of feed. My father thought it must be around a very sharp curve as we were coming up the mountain on the Johnstown side before coming down the mountain to Waterford. We went back to that location and quite a ways beyond that, but evidently someone saw it and picked it up. When we went to the various businesses, we would stand in line before my father paid the bill. I would watch those girls typing, and it really fascinated me. How could they type so fast, and how could everything come out right on those sheets when they didn't look at the typewriter keys? I would tell my father on the way home that I was going to work in an office when I grew up. I'm sure he must have thought I would change me mind, but I never did.

As it came near to our graduation from Robert Morris, the Dean of Women called each one of us into her office, and explained to us that she would set up interviews with Pittsburgh companies if we wanted to avail ourselves of these services. If not, we were on our own. I asked her to set up one interview for me, and said I planned to have two in Latrobe, and then I would decide which location I wanted to work. And interview was set up for me at Kopper's on Grant Street in downtown Pittsburgh. At that time it was a very large company, and the office building was one of the two highest buildings in Pittsburgh. I went to the interview and found that I had to take quite a few tests--Typing (on a typewriter, the likes I had never seen before, and like the rest was timed), Shorthand, I.Q. and others. I waited nervously while several employees corrected the tests and discussed my interview with them among themselves. Finally I was told I had the job if I wanted it. They knew I had planned to have two interviews the next day (Saturday) in Latrobe. I asked if I could call them on Monday with my answer, and they said that would be fine.

The next day I had an interview with the Personnel Manager at Latrobe Steel Co. in the morning and in the afternoon with Mr. Harman at ALCO (American Locomotive Co.). I was offered both jobs, and asked permission to let them know on Monday to which they each agreed. I went home and did alot of praying and thinking. The job at Kopper's would pay more, but at that time it was not very safe for girls to be living in Pittsburgh by themselves, and the cost of living was very high. The job Latrobe Electric offered me was a Stenographer's position, and when a Secretarial position became available, I would be among others who could apply for that job. Since the salary was higher at Alco, and I would be stating in as a Secretary, I chose that job. It involved being a Secretary to both Mr. Harman who was the Assistant Plant Accountant and his boss, Mr. Weber, who was the Plant Accountant.

Mr. Harman wanted me to start working on Monday and make up my work somehow at Robert Morris. I told him I didn't think that would be possible, but I would try to do my last two weeks of assignments in one week if the school agreed, and start working then. He agreed with this, and so did the school, so I started working in one week.

Our graduation exercises were held at Carnegie Music Hall in Oakland (near downtown Pittsburgh) near the campus of the University of Pittsburgh.

Gone were my school days and the riding of busses to high school and Pittsburgh. Unlike my high school days, if we got our of Robert Morris a few minutes late on Friday afternoons, we might miss the Greyhound bus to Ligonier, but all we had to do was walk across the street and ride on the train to Latrobe, and change trains to Ligonier. It is approximately 50 miles from Pittsburgh to Waterford.

I worked at Alco a little more than 4-1/2 years until my marriage. I learned alot, and enjoyed my job, but I was very busy. I very seldom took a break, and some days I didn't do anything except type numbers on large forms that the home office in New York wanted. I though at first that I would go "nuts", but eventually got used to typing numbers all day at certain times of the month. Pounding out those numbers using an old Underwood typewriter and having to make 8 copies was not easy.

March 17, 1956 (Marriage)--

Gorden, [Private] has written quite abit concerning the years we have been married so I will try not to repeat much about what he has written.

We were married on March 17, 1956 at 7:30 P.M. at a beautiful candlelight ceremony in the Waterford Church of the Brethren. I had joined that church when I was 12 years old, having attended that church since I was born. this Waterford on Highway 271, 4 miles from Ligonier should not be confused with Waterford in Erie County in Northern Pa. this latter Waterford has always had a post office. Our Waterford in Westmoreland County in Western Pa. has never had a post office. When I was growing up our address was R.D., Ligonier (meaning Rural Delivery). The church address now is 1204 Route 271 South. During the St. Patrick's Day on which we were married, we had a very bad snowstorm. That afternoon Gorden, [Private] and several relatives and friends had alot of snow to shovel so that there would be room for cars to be parked near the church. I was very pleasantly surprised to see that the church was filled with people when I walked down that aisle for the last time as an unmarried girl.

Our wedding occurred on Saturday evening, and on Monday morning we were on our way to Angola, Indiana where Gorden, [Private] was a Junior at Tri-State College (now Tri-State University). Since there was a shortage of rental housing for the students, especially the married couples (many with families), the college had purchased an area near Cameron Hospital where there had been army barracks built during World War II. Before we were married, Gorden, [Private] rented a room along with some other students at a professor's home. So our first home was in one of the converted army barracks buildings. There were several rows of buildings and each row consisted of several buildings. Each building in the married couples' area consisted of a living room, kitchen, bedroom and bathroom. The only furniture we had in the bedroom was the bed Gorden, [Private] made when he was in high school which we have given to Gorden, [Private] and Osborne, [Private]. The closet was all we had for our clothes. Those which weren't hung up were folded and the shelf above them was our dresser. We bought a very old refrigerator and metal table and wooden chairs for the kitchen (the apartment size gas range was furnished) and an old washing machine. For the living room we had a very old sofa and chair, and we bought a large metal desk from the college for Gorden, [Private] to use to study.

From the last week in March of 1956 until the first part of December of that year I worked as a Secretary for McFarland Engineering from Binghamton, New York. They had the contracts for the first three sections of the Indiana Toll Road starting at the Ohio/Indiana line. Those were sections C-1, C-2, and C-3. That is the reason I only worked for them for that period of time. After that they moved on to somewhere else where they had been awarded contracts for road construction. Jobs were scarce in Angola, and that coupled with the fact that when I was laid off from McFarland when they left town and I was 4 months pregnant, I could not find a job because at that time you didn't see many pregnant girls working in offices. with Dad recieving benefits for schooling which covered some of the school expenses, and our saving some money while I worked, we were able to survive (with the bare necessities) until Gorden, [Private] was hired by Westinghouse, without having to borrow any money. Gorden, [Private] had worked to pay for his schooling in Chicago for the most part and paid back the rest while he was in the Navy. He worked before we were married, but had to quit because he was completing 4 years of college in 3 years, and had too much school work to continue working. While he was in college before we were married, he had borrowed $1,400.00 which we started to repay from Gorden, [Private]'s first paycheck from Westinghouse. We bought mostly used furniture for our home in Greensburg, Pa. where we moved after Gorden, [Private] graduated from college. That furniture was purchased in Angola from a young couple who were moving and thought they would save money by not moving the furniture and buying new instead. After taking out our tithe money from Dad's check, we paid $100 per month for 14 months on the school loan. For those 14 months and quite a while after that, we still did not buy much other than necessities. We were buying a home, paying for new furniture, etc., and about the time we had paid the school loan, our car was totaled in an accident. We didn't recieve much for the car because it was several years old, but the mileage was low. So we had to buy another car at that time.

Our home in Greensburg was purchased from my sister and brother-in-law, Wolford, [Private] & Smeltzer, [Private]. They had moved to Philadelphia, and hadn't lived in it very long. They sold it to us for what they had paid--$9,500.00. It had a combination living and dining room, kitchen, two bedrooms, bathroom, and unfinished attic, and a full basement with the garage being a part of the basement. It was and still is on Grandview Ave. With the used furniture we had which was in very good condition and the new refrigerator and living room furniture, we were very pleased with this home. We also purchased a new crib from Penney's shortly after we moved into the home. Gorden, [Private] had to sleep in an old "baby buggy" while we were living in Angola. By the time we moved to Greensburg, Gorden, [Private] was 6-1/2 months old, weighed 21 pounds, and was about to outgrow the bed in the old "buggy" We were so happy to be able to get the new crib for him. He surely deserved it because he slept in the old "buggy" and didn't cry much. For that reason, several of Gorden, [Private]'s married buddies would come over to our apartment in Angola and study in the evenings because their small babies cried a good bit and they had trouble concentrating, but Gorden, [Private] didn't cry much, and they could study at our place.

Going back to the time my father married my step-mother, the former Blanche O. Berkebile, I know that no step-mother can take the place of a mother. At lease that has always been my idea. If I were a stepmother, I would love the step-children, but I could never be their biological mother. I was hoping for the same, but I was disappointed. My step-mother never showed me any love. I tried to do everything I knew to be a good step-daughter, and I have forgiven my step-mother for the absence of love shown to me. She had real problems getting along with people. The only way to achieve that with her (meaning getting along with her) was to go more than 50/50 with her--more like nearly 100% of the way she wanted things. As a teen-ager who had recently lost her own mother, this lack of love from a step-mother really hurt, but at least through it all for the next 39-1/2 years, I can truthfully say I never argued or said an unkind word to her (letting her have her own way because I didn't want to interfere with the marriage in any way). As a result, we got along better than her friends, neighbors, and family did with her. I am not criticizing her in any way, but I want to make a very important point which Gorden, [Private]'s grandmother once said to Gorden, [Private], "Don't marry someone who is not a Christian" and someone else who said, "Take enough time to get to know the person you intend to marry before you marry them". I want to give this same advice to our descendants. I think it is very important. I saw this first-hand with the second marriage of my father. He only knew my step-mother for about three months before they got married, and not long before that they were engaged and made their wedding plans. I saw a 39-1/2 year marriage happy for a few months and quite unhappy for the rest of the time. I am not blaming everything on my step-mother. I am saying it was very sad to witness such a sad marriage, and I think all of those years of sadness could have been avoided if they had taken time to get to know each other. My father old me, "I never really got to know Blanche before we were married." He only saw her once or twice a week for a little over two months before they planned to get married. Even when you know someone well before marriage, the marriage will not be perfect, but you will have alot more happiness if you take a little more time.

When Gorden, [Private] and I got married, I was determined to be a good daughter-in-law. I knew first hand that my new mother-in-law was much like my step-mother, but again I thought that if I did everything I could to be a good daughter-in-law. Again I showed love to this person, and tried my best to get along with her. During the first few months that Gorden, [Private] and I were married, I thought I wasn't changing anything because we didn't see my in-laws very often since we were in Angola, and Gorden, [Private] was very busy with schoolwork. I found out when Gorden, [Private] got his job with Westinghouse that I definitely was not accepted by Gorden, [Private]'s parents because they blamed me for "taking Gorden, [Private] to Pennsylvania" even though that was not true, and Gorden, [Private] told them they were wrong each time they cast it up to me. Those in the relationship who believe Gorden, [Private]'s parents about this didn't accept me, either. Gorden, [Private] had had interviews with several companies, and Westinghouse offered him the type of job he wanted. They were one of the companies who interviewed Gorden, [Private] in Angola while he was still in college. This was the job and location he wanted, and I did not disagree. So for almost 25 years after we were married until her death, Gorden, [Private]'s mother never accepted me for that reason, and Gorden, [Private]'s father another family members agreed. One year before her death, Gorden, [Private]'s mother made that call that Gorden, [Private] has referred to, and Gorden, [Private] and his family were disowned if they would not give up their God which we couldn't do. Gorden, [Private] was told to make the decision for our family. He had to make the decision to give up his God and have his family or the opposite. He knew that the three of us could not give up our God. It was a decision he should not have had to make, and it really hurt him alot to give up his family. We have forgiven all of them for the decision they made concerning us.

We lived in Greensburg from Dec. 1957 until July 1960. During that time we attended the Church of the Brethren in Greensburg, Pa. I had been baptized in that church when I was 12 years old. Gorden, [Private] and I had always attended the Church of the Brethren (he in LaPorte, Ind. and I in Waterford, Pa. (Ligonier R.D.). Although we had dedicated Gorden, [Private] to the Lord before he was born, we dedicated him to the Lord publicly in the Waterford Church of the Brethren in Aug. of 1957 during his first visit to Pa.

Just about one year to the day that we moved to Greensburg, Pa., my sister, Wolford, [Private] Smeltzer was visiting us from Philadelphia, Pa. After Gorden, [Private] got home from work, he and I got ready to buy groceries at a store just about a mile from our home. We bought groceries once every 2 weeks. Wolford, [Private] offered to take care of Gorden, [Private] since it was below zero outside and we would be gone until after he should be in bed for the night. We agreed. On the way home from the grocery store, we were in a very bad accident. Five cars were stopped at a red light (we were the fifth in line). A fellow from England who was visiting a friend in Greensburg had borrowed his buddy's mother's truck, went out for the evening and got drunk. He told the police that he never saw any of the 5 cars; therefore, he never applied the brakes. He hit our car so hard that we pushed 3 cars in front of us in to the first car in line. Our car was completely demolished. Other than a few cuts and bruises. I was the only one who was hurt. The steering wheel protected Gorden, [Private], but I was thrown forward and hit the dash and windshield resulting in neck and back injuries from which I have pain to the present time. Those were the days before seat belts in cars. Our front seat was close to the dash, the back seat was up against the front seat, and the groceries in the trunk were on the floor of the back seat. Children's car seats then were nothing like they are today. Most people didn't use them, but we had bought a combination car seat/car bed for Gorden, [Private] when we drove from Ind. to Pa. when Gorden, [Private] graduated from college and we were moving to Greensburg, Pa. In an upright position it served as a car seat and opened out flat it was a bed. We had left Angola, Ind. after Gorden, [Private] had his bottle and asleep for the night. We reached Waterford, Pa. about 8 hours later, and he was still sleeping. Prior to the accident mentioned above, we still had the car seat up front where Gorden, [Private] and I sat. The back of the car seat fit over the back of the front seat. Since Gorden, [Private] was getting older (he was 18 months old at the time of the accident), we had decided to put the car seat in the back seat. That way Gorden, [Private] would have more room and see our of the windows better. In order to make the car seat more secure, Gorden, [Private] had gone to the hardware store and bought several of the largest bolts I have ever seen, and bolted the car seat to the back seat. I was standing on the sidewalk waiting for the police to take me to the hospital. Gorden, [Private] was trying to get a few things out of our car. As a fellow from Spitz Auto Wreckers was getting ready to get our car in place to tow it away, I heard him say to the fellow who was helping him, "This is the type of accident I dislike to see most of all. Look at that badly crumpled up car seat on the dash partly stuck in all of that glass from the broken windshield. I'm sure that little one was killed." You can imagine how a mother would feel! I knew Gorden, [Private] was safe with Wolford, [Private], and I was so thankful. I was so cold because it was below zero, and I was really hurting from my injuries, but I managed to tell the fellow that Gorden, [Private] and not been with us that night. The Lord spared my life that night and also Gorden, [Private]'s as he had on the night Gorden, [Private] was born and the doctors had not expected either one of us to live. The doctor had also spared my life when I was 6 years old and had double pneumonia and he did not expect me to live through the night. Later the Lord spared my life for the fourth time during a trip home from visiting Gorden, [Private], Osborne, [Private], Gorden, [Private] and Gorden, [Private] in York, Ala. when we had a blowout (front tire--driver's side) and Gorden, [Private] could not control the car and we were thrown across one lane of traffic, off the road and into a ditch. Just before that I had made a remark to Gorden, [Private] about so much oncoming traffic--practically bumper to bumper. Yet in that instant when we were thrown across that lane, the next car was not near to us. Gorden, [Private]'s life was spared again when he was in seminary and his parked car was completely demolished within a few minutes after he got out of it. His car was pushed down the street, into a tree, and on down the street.

We moved to East McKeesport, Pa. in July of 1960 for a couple of reasons. Gorden, [Private] had to drive 25 miles to work each way. Even though he was in a car pool and only drove on Thursdays, he had to drive the same distance if he were called into work during the night. This occurred many times. He received most of those calls from the Supervisor on the Test Floor (Mr. McCurdy). Some nights Gorden, [Private] would stay until he was sure everything would be alright until he got to his work the next morning, but when he got back to Greensburg, I would be waiting for him at the front door to tell him that Mr. McCurdy had called because someone hadn't followed Gorden, [Private]'s instructions, there was a problem, and no one could solve it. I would watch for Gorden, [Private] because Mr. McCurdy would tell me what time Gorden, [Private] left Westinghouse in East Pittsburgh, and I would know about what time he would be home, and would give him the message so he wouldn't bother to drive the car into our garage. This happened many times after we moved to East McKeesport, also, and at Gorden, [Private]'s retirement dinner the M.C. mentioned that the joke on the test floor was when they called Gorden, [Private] during the night (we then lived 3 miles away from Westinghouse), when they hung up the phone, Gorden, [Private] was coming in the door.

The other reason we moved to East McKeesport was that the morning after Gorden, [Private] was born, the doctor called Gorden, [Private] into his office, and said he was sure I wouldn't survive another pregnancy, and that Gorden, [Private] was going to have to decide whether he wanted to adopt a wife or a child. During the time we lived in Greensburg, we tried to adopt a baby. We had wanted to have 3 children. We soon found out that not many babies were available for adoption. We were told by an adoption agency in Westmoreland County where we lived that if we moved to Allegheny County, we probably wouldn't have as much trouble because it was in the Pittsburgh area, and more babies should be available. So we decided to move to Allegheny County (East McKeesport). We applied at 3 agencies in Pittsburgh. They each had long, complicated screening processes. We were finally accepted at all 3, and decided to work with Family and Children's Service which was the largest and in checking with references, they seemed to be the most reputable. We finally got third from the top of the list. Then our troubles started. Since we had been able to have one child, we could not adopt a baby until all those who couldn't have any of their own adopted one. So our name moved up and down and up again for over 5 years. Finally I got a call one day that a baby was available for us, and we could get it within a few days. One of us was to come in to East Liberty to the office, and get the details to make the final arrangements. I went in right after Gorden, [Private] got home from work so he could eat and relax a little bit from working all day, and also stay with Gorden, [Private]. In the meantime I would go and get back before church that evening. I was so thrilled on the way to East Liberty, but very surprised and disappointed to find out when I got there that our name was No. 2 on the list because someone had applied and had already been accepted and so we didn't get that baby. Gorden, [Private] had mentioned several times prior to that evening that since our names would get to the top of the list and then go down so many times when others couldn't have a child of their own, that if I got discouraged he would agree to have our names taken off the list. As I said, this had gone on for over 5 years. I was determined each time to try again, but that night I told Gorden, [Private] I had prayed and thought about the situation, and had decided to have our names removed from the list. We had been trying so hard to make it possible for Gorden, [Private] not be raised as an only child, but by then he was about 8-1/2, and I was wondering how much of a companion a baby would be for him. The agency coached us to take a foster child, but none of those available would ever be adoptable for various reasons. It would only be a matter of time until we would have to give up that child. It would be hard for us, but we thought it would be best not to take a foster child since the agency told us that at some point in time Gorden, [Private] would have to give up his brother or sister. We found out later on that there was alot of politics involved in adoption at that time. Most of the agencies were partially funded by the United Way. Most of the Westinghouse employees contributed to United Way, and as a result some Westinghouse employees were able to adopt babies through the agencies, but there was a quota for the companies.

During the 16 years we lived in East McKeesport, Pa. we attended the East McKeesport Church of the Brethren. Gorden, [Private] joined that church. These were busy years for us. In Gorden, [Private]'s "Impressions of Gorden, [Private] I. Gorden", he lists various church offices, Gideons International, Township Commissioner, Campaign Manager for State Senator Jack McGregor, Arlington Volunteer Fire Dept., Christian Businessmen's Club, etc., in which he was a very active participant. During these years, much more traveling was involved as part of his job at Westinghouse. I was busy as Sunday School Pianist, Wednesday and Sunday Evening Pianist, and Church Organist. I also spent alot of time typing for Gorden, [Private] involving his volunteer work for the community, his church offices which he held, and typing done for him in the evenings when he brought work home. After he had the work done, I typed same, so he could hand it in when he got to work in the morning and didn't have to wait for the secretary to do it. Many times it was very urgent typing that had to be sent to different companies, etc. During this time Gorden, [Private] continued to attend evening classes at the University of Pittsburgh and Carnegie Mellon University in Oakland, a suburb of Pittsburgh.

In August of 1976, we decided to sell our home, recreational vehicle, etc., and other investments. We purchased 2 apartment complexes, one in Homestead Park and one in Wilkinsburg, in addition to a home in Lincoln Place. We moved into one of the 14 unit apartments that we purchased in Homestead Park. We lived at this location for 2 years so that we could better manage both apartment complexes in the future from Wilkinsburg. We never moved into the Lincoln Place property because of our long range plans. We moved to the Wilkinsburg, Pa. 10 unit apartment complex at the end of 1978. Gorden, [Private] had graduated from East Allegheny High School in June of 1975 and entered the University of Pgh. in Sept. 1975 while we were still living in East McKeesport. After we moved to Homestead Park, Gorden, [Private] completed his Sophomore Year at the University of Pittsburgh and transferred to Cedarville College in Cedarville, Ohio. While we were still living at 312 Lawrence Ave., East McKeesport, Pa., a new Post Office was built in Eastland Shopping Center, and our address was changed to North Versailles, Pa. We had lived in North Versailles Twp. which was comprised of 7 wards which surrounded East McKeesport. Gorden, [Private] was Township Commissioner of 2nd Ward where we lived. 2nd Ward was known as Arlington. Until the new post office was built, our address was East McKeesport because the township did not have a post office.

We did not move directly into one of our apartments in Homestead Park when we moved from North Versailles. There were no vacant apartments in either of the complexes when we purchased them, and we knew that one tenant would be moving from Homestead Park in 2 months because of a job transfer, and we didn't want to ask him to move early so we rented an apartment in nearby Squirrel Hill.

We lived at 530 Kelly Ave., Wilkinsburg, Pa. from 1978 until Gorden, [Private] was transferred to Orlando in June of 1983. From the time we bought the apartments in 1976 until we moved to Orlando in 1983, Gorden, [Private] and I were busy. Gorden, [Private] was in college and seminary during these years. While we lived in North Versailles I had to take the place of 2 parents because of Gorden, [Private]'s busy job, traveling, etc. (already mentioned). This started during the time we still lived in Greensburg when I spent time each day reading the Bible and Bible stories to Gorden, [Private]. I was once asked why I read Bible stories to him starting shortly after we moved to Greensburg. I didn't think he would understand the Bible at that very young age, but I knew that at some point in time he would understand the Bible stories, and I wanted to be reading them to him at that time.

During the year that we owned the apartments, Gorden, [Private] took care of the maintenance and most of the repairs. My responsibilities were the following: (1) Weekly cleaning of halls (including windows), laundry rooms, 4 garages in Wilkinsburg and doing similar cleaning except for garages in Homestead Park on Saturdays with Gorden, [Private]. (2) Cleaning apartments (with Gorden, [Private]'s help) when tenants moved. (3) Making and receiving telephone calls. (4) Advertising when we had vacant apartments. (5) Payment of bills. (6) All bookkeeping (incl. most of the Federal and State income Tax work. (6) Showing apartments to prospective tenants and screening same. (7) Choosing new tenants with Gorden, [Private]'s help., etc. Gorden, [Private] helped with the work when he was home from Cedarville and seminary. More work is involved when owners live in the same building as the tenants, but management is better. An example of this is that you find you about various problems which are easier to correct before they get worse.

The building at 530 Kelly Ave. was only several years old when we purchased it. It was a brick building and the apartments were large with other amenities such as steel doors and an intercom in each apartment and other security. No one could enter the building without the tenants' permission. We had looked at apartment buildings that were for sale off and on for 2 years before purchasing the ones which we did. We had planned to keep the one at 530 Kelly Ave. indefinitely and live there after Gorden, [Private] retired. Our plans changed in 1980 when Gorden, [Private] was told that the mother plant in East Pittsburgh, Pa. would be closed within a few years. Some of the office personnel were chosen to be given the opportunity to move to Orlando while some were transferred to Texas and other locations. Some of the personnel were laid off and the rest stayed on until the plant was closed and would no longer have a job. After 3 trips to Orlando and much prayer and discussion, we decided to move to Orlando. By the time we moved in 1983 we had sold both apartment properties because we didn't want absentee management by us or any of the local management properties that we checked out to do the managing. We didn't know for awhile after the 1980 announcement was made concerning the move as to where Westinghouse would be building the new office building. They checked out several locations. None of the plant personnel were transferred to Orlando.

During the last week in June in 1983 we moved into Palm Valley Mobile Home Park one mile from Gorden, [Private]'s new job location in East Orlando. We were going to have a new home built, but decided otherwise when we heard there may be lay-offs eventually. So we moved into a new, large Shult double-wide mobile home. Gorden, [Private] started to work on July 1, and on September 1, 57 of the newly located personnel were laid off. During the 33 years Gorden, [Private] worked for Westinghouse (being on 24 hour call during that time), he did the best job he could and never refused to travel as some did. This was part of the reason he was fortunate not to be laid off as many were during those years.

In Gorden, [Private]'s "Impressions" he mentions about his taking early retirement at age 58, etc. so I shall not repeat this info.

After Gorden, [Private] retired we moved to Apopka, Fla. where we presently live at 3000 S. Clarcona Rd. #658 in Sun Resorts Park. Last year in March 9, 1994 I was diagnosed as having FSH (Facioscapulahumeral) Muscular Dystrophy which as progressed quite rapidly since that time.

Although physically I cannot do the work of SOWERS (Servants On Wheels Ever Ready) as long as I am able to travel and Gorden, [Private] is able to do the work, he can be an active participant.

Arthetta J. Gorden

Excerpts on the Ankney Family From:

 

Some of the Ancestors and Descendants of Dewalt Ankeny
By Helen S. Ankney
Format altered to match that used in the Lawrence Jenkins books (incomplete)
R. J. Bergman 3-7-2007

"...As you go through the manuscript you will find that the previous writer and I agree that the name of the first (1st) wife was Catherine and not Mary Jane Domer as many have led us to believe. In those days a man did not venture very far from his place or home and thus the idea of going to Maryland for a wife seems a little out of line. Miss Jean Woods of Clear Springs, Md. also agrees with our assumption. Furtherrmore, none of the children were named Mary or Jane. The name of his first female was Catherine, which according to families in those days was generally the name of the wife. In the case of the name Mary, my Great- great- great grandmother came the closest to having been named Mary. Her name was Anna Maria Ankeny who married John Chorpenny. In this case the name has been changed by Henry, her son to Chorpenning, probably due to the number of different spellings of the name in the Estate papers. Some of the data on Christian Ankney comes from the work of Chester L. Shaver in his resume of George Shaver, father of Christian's first wife and one of the Executors of the Estate of George Shaver. Others is from the manuscript of Rev. Albert N. Corpening, who published a manuscript on John and Anna Maria Ankeny Chorpenning. He is a descendant of Albert, the brother of John who settled in North Carolina and still uses the original spelling of the name. More will be said of this family in its section. As the previous writer expressed himself, I also hope the effort is appreciated.
Lawrence W. Jenkins
Harrison City, Pa.
August 27, 1981

In writing my share of this manuscript to make it easy to understand, I have used numbers and g to indicate generations. The second number indicates their rotation according to birth. (HAS) An example: 1A indicates 1st generation, 1st child; 1B indicates 1st generation, 2nd child. I have worked on this a number of years. The information on the Norman B. Ankney, Lemon Orange Ankney Family and their descendants are mine, with the help of several family members...

M indicates marriage
HSA --------Helen Sites Ankney
CRS---------Charles Ross Shultz
LWJ---------Lawrence W. Jenkins
CLS---------Chester Lewis Shaver
GAR---------Grand Army Republic
Twp---------Township
DAR---------Daughters of the American Revolution
SAR---------Sons of the American Revolution
Unm. -------unmarried
Inf.--------information
Twp---------Township
Cem---------Cemetery
C or Cir ---Approximately
Dau.--------daughter...

A SKETCH OF THE LIFE, AND SOME OF THE DESCENDANTS OF DEWALD ANKENY
Born in Germany 1728
Came to America 1746
Settled first in Lancaster County, now Lebanon County, PA
Moved about 1726 to MD
Settled at Clear Spring
Died there in 1781

Collected and arranged by Charles Ross Shultz, a great-great-great-grandson of the pioneer. December 1948.

One of the Pioneers in the later Colonial Period of Pennsylvania and the father of other Pioneers, of the Revolutionary Period is the subject of this sketch, Dewald Ankeny, an immigrant who arrived on these shores in the year 1746. This fact is found in the list of immigrants or passengers on the Ship Neptune, which arrived at the Port of Philadelphia on October 25, 1746. The name given there was Dewalt Ancony. (We shall find that both his names were given in those early days under various spellings.) On the same ship was one Caspar Dewalt, said to be an uncle,, a brother to his mother. In the list of those who took the oath of allegiance to the king on the same date, his age was given as 18; so from that we get the date of his birth as the year 1728. The list of immigrants can be found in the book of immigrants from the Rhine Palatinate, and Switzerland, by Strassburger_Hinke. From the same list of Immigrants is also found the name of Johann Nickel Angne, age 47 and his wife, Anna Catherine, age 38, as having come to America in 1736.The name appears later in the Bucks County, Pa. records as Nicholas Onkeny, and will be referred to again. Also the list of Immigrants reveals the name Theobald Angane as having come to America in 1753. Both of these names are found in the sketch of Joseph Ankeny, a grandson of Dewalt, in a book "Prominent Iowans' by Brigham, as brothers of Dewalt, but this statement is probably not correct as will be shown hereafter.
By tradition the Ankeny family originated in Phalzburg, Alsace - Lorraine, France and the name is said to be Enghen at that time. The early members of the family were Protestants and followers of the Prince of Conde and Admiral Coligny, that is they were Huguenots. Persecution forced them into exile, and they later appear in the Rhine Palitinate. In the proceeding of the Pa. Folklore Society, edited by the late Rev. Dr. John Baer Stoudt, is found data pertinent to this sketch from the Bavarian State Archives, found at Speyer, Germany, and other sources. In Volume 1, page 105 Stoudt refers to several immigrants from various towns in Zweibrucken in the Palitinate, or The Pfalz, as it is sometimes called. One of these was Peter Heyderick, of Oberalba, who left there in 1738 for Pa., and who afterwards lived as a neighbor to Dewalt Ankeny, in Lancaster County, Pa. In 1736 he points out one John Nickel Agne, of Eineth, left for America. In the same list was one Theobald Kieffer, the change from Theobald to Dewald being significant, as indicated later. Also from the same Oberant (District), in 1746, came Theobald Agne and his sister Magdalena Agne of Lambsborn. The reference is without a doubt to our Dewald Ankeny who came in that year. (as Nicholas and Dewalt came from different towns and ages are quite different, they were probably not brothers, as given in the account referred to above.) Also in Volume 3, page 19, Pa. Folklore Society Proceedings, items from German Newspapers which are of interest to us are quoted. on September 30, 1758, a notice by John Theobald, who had come to America in 1752, and had settled 3 miles from Ephrata, Pa. advertised for the whereabouts of his brother, Caspar Theobald, who had come to America 15 years earlier, The article said John was accompanied by his sister Catherine who had married on shipboard, (married name not given) Dr. Stoudt again in a footnote, refers to
the dates of entrance of John Dewalt and Caspar Dewalt, as given in the lists of immigrants referred to above. He also mentions that Johan Dewald was born in Hahspeyer, Germany. In the preceeding two paragraphs, the writer has given the data on which he bases his conviction that the names, Theobald and Dewalt are the same, or were used thus at that time. Hence, he believes that the Theobald Angena who came to America in 1753 was actually Dewald returning from a visit to his former home. He signed his name to the ship's register as Theobald Angnee (with an X as he could not write.) and we find the name spelled thus in church records in Somerset County when Dewald's children settled there. Again we find in a church record of Salem Church, near Hagerstown, Md. where he settled. This item: Born to Theobald Angena and wife, a daughter, Elizabeth, December 4, 1772, and christened February 28, 1773. Also in the same record it is found that Theobald Angena and wife, Margaretha were witnesses at christening of a son David born to John Schaff and Fronica, the latter being a daughter of Dewalt's wife, Margaretha by her 1st marriage. It can also be stated here that later in the church records of Somerset Co., it is found that a son was born to Peter, son of Dewalt Ankeny, and was christened as Theobald. Thus the writer is convinced that Theobald is none other than “our" Dewald, wherever the name may be found in those early records. Many instances can be found where the ministers of that period usually used the name Theobald, rather than Dewald, though the latter was generally used colloquially. Regarding John Nickel Angne who came to America in 1736 and was probably an uncle of
Dewald, it appears he settled in Bucks Co., Pa. and the name soon became Onkeny.His descendants lived in Bedminster Township, according to records of the county histories as well as the Historical Society of Bucks County. Christian and Jacob Angeny are mentioned in the latter, and in the county history it is found that Nicholas Onkeny settled in the "Deep Run" section in 1741, and is mentioned as one of the Tohickton settlers. In the 1790 census, one finds the names Jacob Onkeny, Sr. and Jacob Onkeny, Jr. The Pa. Archives, series 3, volume 13, page 304, refers to a David and a Christopher Angeny, all of whom were taxed during 1781 - 1787. There was an Angeny Mill on Deep Creek in 1785, the earliest mill in that section. Thus it appears this family has a "Posterity", though it is not clear as to whether the name Angeny or may perhaps become Ankeny. A recent item has been found in the Congressional Library, Wash., DC, in which it appears one Jacob Ankeny who had married Mary Slifer, who was a grandson of Jacob Angeny, born in 1740, who had married Elisabeth Wismer in 1762. He was the son of Jacob Ankeny who had married Barbara Gehman, and the other children were named Elisabeth; Abraham; Samuel; William and David. Also, his children were named Joseph of New Britain, Pa; Jacob of Dublin, Pa.; and Nancy. So it is possible some of the Ankeny names found in various localities may be traced back to Nicholas Angne, rather than Dewalt Anconi (See supplement page)

Now turning to the subject of this manuscript, it is found that Dewald settled in Lancaster Co., Pa., somewhat west of Ephrata, now Lebanon Co, Pa. A letter from the Director of the Pa. Land Office (South Office Bldg, Harrisburg, Pa.) states a Warrant for 50 acres of land was granted to Dewalt Angena on February 14, 1750, and a survey of the tract was made, and returned 121 acres, 120 perches. (Pa. Archives , Series 3, Volume 24, Page 352.) He also stated the land was in Hanover Township, Lancaster Co. but now is in Union Township, Lebanon Co., a short distance west of Swatara Creek, midway between Jonestown and Licksdale, Pa. (History of Lebanon Co., by Egle, page 179,) It is found that he was taxed in East Hanover Township in 1756 under the name of Dayvolt Angony and he was not one of the settlers that fled because of Indian Attacks. A church record in the Jonestown Reformed Church shows this item: Christian, son of Dewalt Annias, (as translated) and Catherine, was baptized December 23, 1750 and witnessed by Christian Lang and Anna Maria, daughter of Peter Hedrick. This is an interesting item for several reasons; Peter Hedrick came from the same District in the Palatinate as did the Ankeny's. Also on the same ship with Nicholas Angne, there was one Nickel (Nicholas) Lang, and this man was a member of the Jonestown Church as early as 1742, at which date he had a daughter baptized there. These two men may or may not have been related to Dewalt; possibly one was a brother-in-law but at least all of them seemed to settle together. As the name Dewalt is not common and the name Annias is not known to have existed, it's almost certain the item refers to the subject of this manuscript and further evidence of that likelihood is the fact that Dewalt did have a son, Christian, was born December 25, 1749 and the christening at that time was quite likely. Reference to the name Catherine in the above
item will be made in a later Paragraph. But another item comes from the Host Church on the Big Swatara near Jonestown. Here we find that Rebecca was born to Theobald Angne on July 5, 1755, christened August 17, 1755, witnessed by Peter Heitherick and Rebecca Lang, both single. As the sponsors are from the same families, and from the similarity of names, it's clear both items refer to Dewalt. From the tax records we know he lived in that section and no other name like his is found.
Tradition has it that Dewalt had married Mary Jane Domer and she was the mother of the older children. This name is found in the account of Joseph Ankeny given in ”Prominent Iowans”, already referred to. Here it is stated she was a daughter of Thomas Domer and the first two sons were named for two brothers, Peter and Christian Domer. We know the Domers lived in Md. where Dewalt later lived but it is not known they ever lived in Pa. Also we know some of the names used in the account were not entirely correct. So far as the writer (Charles Shultz) is concerned, there is a question as to the verity of that tradition. From the above item it appears the wife of Dewalt and mother of Christian was named Catherine. Her family name is not evident but may possibly be Lang or Hederick. It is noted that none of the daughters of Dewalt were named Mary Jane but nearly all of them did have a daughter named Catherine. And Dewalt’s first daughter was named Catherine. And we are quite sure the items mentioned refer to Dewalt and it must follow the first wife was Catherine, not Mary Jane, and probably not Domer. Tradition has it that she died at an early date from injuries she received from their burning barn when trying to save some of the cattle. The exact date is not known. Before leaving the matter of names, It might be noted that one of the members of the Jonestown Church was William Lang, whose wife was Magdalena; that was also the nameof Dewalt's sister, who came with him to America in 1746. These two Magdalina’s may be be the same person. Living near them at the time was a man named Noah Frederick who on October 12, 1756 was killed by the Indians in one of the frequent attacks that they made on the frontier settlements. Also several of the children were carried off by t hem. The widow of Frederick was left with two small daughters, and several months later a son was born to the widow. About 1758 Dewalt married this widow, Margaret Becker Frederick and perhaps adopted the posthumously born son as his own. This son was named Johann George, born March 27, 1757 and christened May 8, 1757 as recorded in the Bethel Church in that district. A Lancaster
Co. Court record shows that on January 16, 1759, Dewalt Ancony and his wife, Margaret, (Frederick), widow of Noah Frederick were appointed to administer the estate of Noah Frederick. The 2 daughters of Noah and Margaret Frederick were Veronica, born 1752 and Christina, born 1754. The Court in 1762 appointed a guardian for them, and in 1766 a different man was appointed until they became of age.

It appears that Margaret may have been the 2nd wife of Noah Frederick and so the older children who were carried off by Indians were not hers, only stepchildren. It was about this time that Dewalt and Margaret Anconi moved to Md., settling in a
place called Clear Springs, in the Conococheague District (Valley.) Here he bought a small tract of land in 1764 and on January 19, 1773, it is found in the Maryland Records, that Duval Anconi had a warrant for 500 acres, the tract he named " Well Pleased" He lived here for the remainder of his life and became one of the wealthy men of the region. He later took out warrants for (or purchased) 4 tracts of land in what was then Bedford, now Somerset Co., Pa. where several of his sons settled. Very likely all the children, the ones born to the first wife and several of those born to the second wife came before he left Pa. and were probably baptized there. At any rate, only the christening of his last child, 7th in the 2nd family, is shown in the old church records. This is found as already mentioned, in the Salem Church where the records show Elisabetha was born to Theobald and Margaretha Angena, December 4, 1772, and was christened February 28, 1773, the witness being Ruffin.
It is interesting to note, in referring to these early records how many different spellings are found for both the first and last name of our subject. Dewalt is written as Dewald; Dayvolt; Duval and Devault. The last name comes in even more spellings: Anconi; _ncony; Angne; Agnee; Angena; Acconi, etc. It is generally spelled Ankeny, Ankeney or Ankney as some of the families in the second family spell the name. Ankeney is the spelling usually used by the families who lived in Md. and their descendants who live in the West. And regarding the form, Theobald, it might be mentioned that one of the sons of John, oldest of the second family of Dewalt was named Dewalt for his grandfather but in Greene Co., Ohio where he spent most of his life, he was known as Theobald Ankeney. The subject of this manuscript died in 1781.

He left a will in which he directs that he was to be buried in the orchard by the graves already there. Just who is buried there is not clear, possibly several infants who's names are not recorded. This burial plat has been lost and plowed over; so today there is only a Memorial stone set up at St. Paul's Church on highway US # 40, a mile or two east of Clear Springs, Md., this cemetery being on his original estate and given for burials by his son, John. The inscription on this stone is: To the memory of Dewalt Ankeny, the first of this name and the founder of that name in America, one thousand seven hundred forty six, Born 1728, Died 1781 at Clear Springs, Md., Lawrence Jenkins, a descendant of Anna Maria, youngest daughter of his first wife has a baptismal record from the town of Lambsborn, Germany, which states Johan Theobald Angne was baptized in January 1727, thus he was born in early 1727 or 1726. In his will which is very interesting in many ways, especially as to his specific directions for the dividing of his properties and the caring of his widow, Dewalt refers several times to his "12 children", or the " seven sons and five daughters". As he names individually the seven in the second family, it is clear there were 5 children in the first family, two sons and three daughters. Another odd feature of the will is that he provides for giving his property in Md., divided into two farms, to two of his sons "by the casting of lots", though the two who got these lots were to pay out to the others according to the value, and the others were to each have one tract in Somerset, then Bedford Co., Pa. This will is published in JOURNALS of AMERICAN HISTORY, Vol. 2, pages 661 - 662, under the heading "The Will of A Wealthy Colonial American of 1781.” Most of the larger libraries are likely to have a publication.

He took the Oath of Allegiance to the Colonial Cause before John Barnes, Justice of the Peace in Washington County, Maryland, on February 28, 1778, as found in the UnpublishedRecords, Vol. 3, page 39, of the Daughter of the Revolution, and from the Maryland Historical Magazine, Vol. 12, page 345, it is found he was one of 54 persons named to relieve the distress among the inhabitants. His name is given here as Devault Anchony. A record of grants in his name is found in Scharff's History of Western Md., Vol. 2, page 985, and in the Pa. Archives, series 3, Vol. 24, Page 352. References to him is also found in Memorials of the Huguenot, by Rev. A. Stapleton, as follows: "North or South Mountain, in the limits of Washington Co., Md., the first settlements were made by Pennsylvania Germans prior to 1735, in the vicinity of Clear Springs, Md. Among the settler with Huguenot Antecedents was Dewalt Ancony who arrived in Phila., Pa. from Europe in 1746 and
died at Clear Springs, Md. in 1781 at a very advanced age of 53. (Today we would hardly call 53 an advanced age)

If the first wife of Dewalt was really a Domer, this paragraph may be of some interest. Tradition says that a sister of Mary Jane Domer married Joseph Fiery, and a daughter of that union was married to Dewalt's son, George. The following is found in a Maryland record: Joseph Fyers (Fiery ?) married Anna M. Dommer, August 3, 1762. Others of this name who are shown by the 1790 census to have been in Washington Co., Md. then are Ludwig, John and Christian. In Hagerstown or nearby in 1776 were Michael Domer and wife, Anna, sons Michael, Jr. and Frederick. The name is also common in Somerset Co.,, Pa. and in Tuscarawas Co., Ohio. In the latter county one of the first settlers was a Frederick Domer from Somerset Co., Pa. known as "Judge Domer" and was a Dunkard Preacher. Brothers of his were George and Jacob. Also, Michael Domer settled in Holmes Co., Ohio, adjoining Tuscarawas Co. Jacob and George at a later date went to Elkhart, Indiana. Michael died in 1845 and left sons John, Jacob and George and six (6) daughters. The sons and sons-in-law of Dewalt Ankeny were among the first settlers in that part of Bedford Co., Pa., which later became Somerset County, Pa. when the county was divided in
1795. Christian, the oldest of the family was listed in there in 1775 and Peter in 1776. In the Pennsylvania Archives it is found that Dewalt, Christian and George, a son of Christian had taken out Warrants for lands in that part of Bedford Co., Pa. on September 6, 1774, the amount of lands being 250 acres, 150 acres, 150 acres, respectively. Altogether the family; father, sons and grandsons had taken out Patents for a total of over 3,000 acres. Probably most of these tracts were later surveyed and patented to them. They also purchased other lands, either by Warrants or Deeds, as for instance, the lands of Ulrich Bruner, who had laid out a town plan called Milford, and of his sons, Henry and George which was purchased by Peter Ankeny and more lots were laid out on portions of this land by him. This was the beginning of the town of Somerset.

In Blackburn's History of Somerset and Bedford Counties, Vol. 2, Page 128, reference is made to a letter written by request apparently by Joseph Ankeny, son of Peter to David Husband in 1870. Quoting this letter after he refers to his Uncle Christian who came first to Somerset in 1772 or 1773, and settled on the Fritz Farm near Pine Hill. Then the letter says, he later returned to Somerset where " Christly" settled on the John Schrock farm west of town, and Peter on the Hugus place where he built a log cabin and planted an orchard. Peter went back to Washington Co., Md. for the winter and returned in the spring with his wife, oldest child and household goods, including a stove. Then he says, to quote directly, “My impression is that Uncles, Chorpenning and Walter did not come until 1780. Uncle Chorpenning's first improvement was on the same ground still occupied by the Buildings on the "Old Chorpenning Farm. Walter's, I am not able to describe.” (Thus he must have been referring to John Chorpenning as his uncle, as there are no other Chorpenning families in the county except John and his family) He adds that he thinks that Harmon Husband came the next summer, 1781, when he rode a sorrel horse and had one son, Isaac, whom he called "Trippy" along. He went by the name, Harmon Scapedeath, came often to Ankeny's as he and his son had kept "Batchelor's Hall" and he enjoyed the cooked meals. (Again one might mention that in 1781 he was just returning from the general flight of 1778, due to the Indian Scare. He had been to Somerset Co. much earlier and had made surveys prior to that time)

Thus it seems probable that in the early years the men raised the crops on the frontiers in the summers and returned to Md. in the winters. But in 1784, both Christian and Peter were included in the list of residents of Somerset County, each with a family of seven children. There are also Records of baptism of their children in Somerset even earlier than that date. Catherine Ankeny, the oldest sister of Christian and Peter, had married Michael Walter and had lived for several years in or near Hagerstown, Md., and had also moved to Somerset by that date or earlier; and possibly several of the other sons,half brothers had settled there, too, as well as the other son-in-law of Dewalt referred to above as Joseph's Uncle Chorpenning. In the records of Berlin Church, both Lutheran and Reformed at that time, entries are found giving baptismal dates of children of all the following: Peter and Christian Ankeny, Michael Walter, Jacob, and David Ankeny, and John Schaff, husband of Dewalt's stepdaughter, Veronica. In 1789, according to the Pa. Archives, Christian, Peter, Jacob and David Ankeny were all registered for military service, as well as Gillian Gary, who after the death of Michael Walter in 1785 had married Catherine,
Michael's widow. The Census of 1790 gives all the above names as residents of that part of Bedford Co., which will later become known as Somerset Co., Pa. Children of John and Anna Maria Ankeny Chopenning were also found in the baptismal records of the Berlin Church. You will note that an earlier parenthetic statement referred an uncertainty in regard to the Ankeny relationship to a member of the Corpenning family. The spelling was originally spelled thus, and by tradition again, it is said one of three brothers had married one of the Ankeny girls. It is said by some that Elizabeth Ankeny had married George Corpenning and had gone to North Carolina to live with the oldest of the sons, Albert Corpenning. He was one of only two as we now know, married Barbara Probst on June 23, 1774 and had gone to that state, although they were detained in the state of Va. the first winter by a storm. Correspondence with members of the family now living in N.C. has brought out the fact they know of no George in the original family of Hendrick Kourpening who came to America in 1751 on the ship "Duke of Bedford" with his two sons, Albert and John Kourpening. Albert had a son, George. Dewalt's grandson, Joseph in the statements quoted above clearly established the fact that he had an uncle by that name, and the description of the farm definitely refers to the other brother, John, though he does not use the name. The trouble indentifying this Corpenning uncle may have come from a statement from a sketch of the family of John Corpenning written some years ago by J. Harry Fritz, an attorney of the Somerset bar, who should have known how to base his writing on facts but apparently did not. In this account he says that John Corpenning, (the spelling of the name was changed to Chorpening by the oldest son, Henry after the death of John and Anna Maria Korpenning), probably due to the several spellings of the name in the estate papers of both
in 1804 and 1806. John had married Anna Maria Ingrason. So far as known, he did not give the source of his information; but one can assume he found the name in an old Bible or an early church record. If so, the name was probably written in German and the form at that period would add the letters "in" to the name of a woman to make it feminine. Thus the Ankeny name would appear “Angnesin". This would look much like the name Ingrasin in the German script, and anyone not skilled in translation of the German names as written 150 years ago might readily make this error. At any rate, all evidence we can get clearly shows that it was John Corpenning who married Anna Maria Ankeny, the youngest daughter of Dewalt's first family. Further reasoning for taking this view comes from the fact that in the census, taken in Hagerstown, Md. (then called Elizabeth Hundred) in August 1776, as given in a photostat in the History of Western Md., by Brumbaugh; the names and ages of
Michael Walter and his wife, Catherine are given and immediately following each (men and women were given separately) comes the name John Corpenning and his wife, Mary, and their ages. Apparently they were living together or next to each other as would be natural for two sisters. The date given for the marriage of the Corpennings was March 1776, so they might well have lived together with members of the family until then. Another striking bit of evidence is the practice of having the christenings witnessed when possible by parents, brothers or sisters. We find that in the case of the Ankeny, Walter and Corpenning families, members of these families frequently, or generally did that for each other. Thus John and Mary Corpenning were witnesses twice for Ankeny children, and the Ankney's or Walter and his wife witnessed four times for the Corpenning children. This is for only a part of the children as the records are not all given.

Also when John Corpenning died at an early age and left most of his children still minors, several of them were guardians for some of the children, and were also on the administers bond. This mass of evidence makes it evident that Fritz errored when he gave the name of Mrs. Corpenning as he did. In addition, the name Ingrasin can not be found in any of the lists of names of that period; so there can be no reasonable doubt that John Corpenning was a son-in-law of Dewalt Ankeny.
In this sketch of the family, we shall take up the children in the order of their ages, so far as that order is known. Then we shall give the same data for the stepdaughters, Veronica and Christina. The children of the first wife were Christian, Peter, Catherine, Rebecca and Anna Maria(Mary) The seven of the second marriage were John (apparently adopted by Dewalt as his own), Henry, Jacob, Margaret, George and Elizabeth *Ankeney (*latter family seemed to all spell their name Ankeney. Margaret may have been older than one or both of the two brothers named ahead of her. But otherwise the order seems to be correct. We shall give pertinent facts about each as to where each lived, died and is buried, if known. Also, something
about their activities, the names of their children, in some cases, down to the present generation.

The children of Dewalt shall be numbered according to generations, second number shall be their rotation of birth.(where known) (example; 1B, thus 1st gen., 2nd child, g denotes generation) Signatures on the bond for the administration of the estate of Noah Frederick, in Lancaster Co., Pa., January 16, 1759, of Dewalt and Margaret Ancony were made by their marks, thus:
Dewalt (X) Angeny
Margaret (X) Angeny
The signature to the ship’s roll and Oath of Allegiance,
September 14,1753. This relates to a literate man of which the above item in Lancaster
County, Pa, show that our Dewalt was not. His will also shows that he could not write.
(LWJ)
Catherine Ankeny.
Elisabeth Ankeny.

An addition to the discussion of the names Dewalt and Theobald, given earlier in this Account, comes from a Circular #6, recently sent out by the Historical Society, of York County, Pa., on the confusion of names among the Pennsylvania German families. In this list of confused names given by the Circular is:

Dewald, 18th century German form, is the same as Theobald, the correct English translation. Then follows that the name is often confused with the name David.

Anna M. Angeny, 600 Market St. Perkasie, Pa., a grand-daughter of Samuel Angeny, who was a grandson of Nicholas Angeny, an older brother, or uncle, of Dewalt Angeny, (Anconi - Ankeny). A letter from her to Mrs. Foster was seen and returned to Mrs. Foster. It is not certain that Samuel was related just as stated above, but he was a son of Jacob, who was possibly a son of Christopher, a son of Nicholas. At any rate she is of the line of Nicholas, reference to whom was made in the early pages of the Dewalt Ankeny account.

---------------------------------------------------------

This is the end of the discussions by Charles Ross Shultz. The present writer will attempt to add to and update this work as I proceed. This is not an attempt to use the work of another for my own gain but to correct errors and bring the work to a more fuller advancement of the work. I will use the initials of the person who did the research before me to identify his work and my own to identify mine. All of those who gave of their information and help I cannot begin to thank enough. As there are many I cannot list each one personally so shall use an asterisk before the name of an informant when I get to a part given by them. Some of the information in the family of Christian will be the work of Chester L. Shaver in his manuscript on the family of George Shaver. If I make errors I am sorry and say, pardon.
Sincerely,
Lawrence W. Jenkins.

 

Dewalt Anconi, A Colonial Pioneer
Addenda

In order to understand the name Ankeny, one has to remember they were French Huguenots (Protestant) by religion, therefore the name and spelling has changed over the years.

Originally the name was Engken, and another version states the name as Anguenet. One can choose either one and it is still French. One of the occupations of the Anguenet family was that they were swordbearers for the Duke of Origny, and Huguenot adherents of Prince Conde, and Admiral Coligny. Gaspard De Coligny was Admiral of France, and a beloved leader of Navarre; (King Henry 1V); who issued the Edict of Nantes guaranteeing a measure of security and freedom to the Huguenots. Following the death of King Henry IV; and the elevation of Louis XIV to the throne; the Edict of Nantes was annulled. Religious persecution followed with severe prison sentences handed down to those who did not repent. 14 years was the sentence in the galleys as oarsmen; and if they still did not repent, 14 more years and then death if they still persisted. This caused a mass exodus of the Huguenots to England, Germany, Switzerland and other nations where they could serve God in an apparent degree of safety. Eventually they heard of the British Colonies and the religious freedom enjoyed there and they joined other groups in an emigration to America.

Dewalt Anconi was one of them. Altogether France lost over 400,000 Huguenots, referred to by some Historians as "Some of the best intellects and skilled Artisans in France" who were forced into exile and their property confiscated.

Many have stated that Dewalt was born in 1728 in Wurtemburg, Germany. This statement has been proven to be false due to a copy of the Baptismal Certificate that was copied and sent from Germany by Gustav Angne, Mainz, Germany.

Translated it reads thus:

Johan Theobald, son of Johann Heinrich Agne and Christina; legitimate son of both of them from Lambsbor. He was brought for Holy Baptism on 16th day of January 1727. The witnesses were Johann Abraham Muller, Johann Theobald Trautmann (Michael Trautmann's son), Anna Elizabeth, Johann Michael Trautman (the elders wife) and Anna Barbara, wife of Johannes Agne, both from here.

Two other names are on the record and the start of a fourth. A copy of the Baptism record follows the addenda.

From the Laurel Messenger, February 1978, Page 8; (Publication of the Somerset Historical Society, Somerset, Pa.,) under title " Ankeny Antecedents in Europe" A. Abel Anguenet’ of Phalzbourg, Alsace - Lorraine, France (Lorraine, Duchy 1532, parts taken by France 1552 and 1661, annexed to France 1766) He married Angelica Vinon (Vinot) of Pfalzburg. She was of the Vitry-le- Francois Family. The Ankeny family was Huguenot with some members being Reformed Church Ministers. Peter Anguenet, evidently left France and went to the town of Zweibrucken, and from there to the village of Lambsborn, some time before 1673. Persecutions were prevalent in France at the time and culminated in 1685, when King Louis XIV revoked the Edict of Nantes. This religious intolerance led to many of the Huguenots leaving France for Germany, Switzerland and England, as the Ankeny family did. In Lambsborn the Anguenet family came into contact with the Trautmann family and Peter Agne married Otillia Trautmann.

2A. Peter Johan Agne was baptized at Pfalzburg, (now Pfalzbourg), in the Moselle area of the Lorraine section of France about 1650. He emigrated to the Duchy of Zweibrucken (Twin Bridges) Germany cir1670.A carpenter and mill builder by trade. He married Otillia Trautmann cir 1674, a daughter of George and Elizabeth Romer Trautman She was baptized May 6, 1665 in Lambsborn Reformed Church. She died February 21,1730 in Lambsborn. He died cir. 1702 in Lambsborn, Germany. (age 52)

3A. Johann Heinrich Agne was born March 2, 1698 in Lambaborn, Germany and died December 25, 1727 in Lambsborn at age 29. He married Christina Cantor on January 19, 1723 in Lambsborn. She was born 1696 in Sana Canton, Bern, Switzerland, a daughter of Johannes Cantor, a Tanner by trade. Johann died while his son Johann Theobald (Dewalt) was still an infant. John Jacob Bachlein married Christina on July 13, 1728, six years before she died on February 17, 1734 at age 38. These are from European Records, Lambsborn Reformed KB

The Family of Otillia Trautmann
A. Jacob Trautmann, Sr., the Stammvater (ancestor) of the Trautmann Family was born 1535, married -----------Schneider, daughter of Hansen R. and Otillie Beyer Schneider.He lived in Lambsborn, Germany, died 1589. (at age 54)
2A. Jacob Trautmann, Jr., born 1558, was a student at Hornbach Gymnasium (High School) from 1573 - 1581; a student of Theology at Straussburg; Lutheran Minister, 1573- 1593; and again from 1595 - 1609. From 1593 - 1597, a farmer in Lambsborn, Germany, Jacob Trautmann died 1609 (age 51). M. Barbara------- Their children included
3A. Jacoby Trautman
3B. Theobald Trautman
3C. Frederich Trautman
3D. Peter Trautman
3E. Joes Trautman
3F. Rosina Trautman Jacoby Trautmann (3A) , married Margred ------.
4A. George Trautmann was born in Vogelbacherhoff, near Lambsborn, Germany. He married Elisabetha Romer of Kashofen, a daughter of Daniel Romer. He was a farmer and Schultiess (Village Mayor) of Vogel-Bacherhoff, He died November 4, 1680,
The children of George and Elisabeth Trautman were:
5A. *Otillia Trautman; baptized in the Reformed Church May 6, 1655, in Lambsborn. She died February 21,1730. *Our Ancestor's grandmother.
5B. Michael Trautman
5C. Ruprecht Trautman
5D. Jean George Trautman
5E. Anna Elizabeth Trautman
5F. Anna Catherina Trautman
5G. Agnes Trautmann.
This brings us to Dewalt Anconi, our ancestor and progenitor in America and early Anguenet’ came from the German work of Gustav Angne, Mainz,References for the material shown on the Trautmann Germany.

It also shows the many ways the name has been spelled over the years. Anguenet’ Agne; Agni; Angne; Angenet’; Angony; Anconi; Ankeny; Ankney; and Ankeney are just a few of them.

 

The Last Will and Testament of Dewalt Anconi
The Will of a Wealthy American in 1781

In the name of God Amen: The 11th day of March in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and eighty one. I, Dewalt Anconey, of Washington Co., Md. State; being sick in body but of good and perfect memory, thanks be given to Almighty God and calling to Remembrance the uncertain Estate of this Trancetory Life and that all flesh must yield to death when it shall please God to call, do make constitute ordain, and declare this my Last Will and Testament in manner and form following, revoking and annuling by these presence, all and every Testament and Testaments, Will and Wills heretofore by me made and declared either by word or writing, and this is only to be taken only for my Last Will and Testament, and none other, and first being penitent and sorry from the bottom of my heart for my sins past, most humbly desiring forgiveness for the same. I give and commit my soul unto Almighty God, my Savior and Redeemer in whom, and by the
merits of Jesus Christ, I trust and believe assuredly to be saved and to have full remission of all my sins, and that my Soul with my body at the General Day of Resurrection shall rise again with joy, through the merits of Christ's Death and Passion, possess and inherit the Kingdom of Heaven, prepared for His Elect and Chosen, and my body to be buried within my orchard fence by the graves that is already therein and now for the settling of my Temporal Estate and such goods, chattels, and debts as it hath pleased God far above my deserts to bestow upon me, I do give and dispose the same in manner and form following; that is to say:

First I will that all those debts and duties as I owe in right to any manner of person or persons whatsoever shall well and truly be 0aid within convenient time after my decease by my executors hereafter named --- Item, I give and bequeath three hundred acres of land, the lower part of the original whereon I now live with all the meadows and improvements thereunto belonging to which two of my sons it shall fall to by a fair drawing of tickets for the same by my seven sons, hereafter named; Christian, Peter, John, David, Jacob and George Anconey, the advantage of the water within the meadow to be equally advantageous each to the other, and further the said three hundred acres of land is to be justly appraised and valued in hard money or the exchange at the time of the appraisement by my sons which have come of age, and them the said sons, shall find and give to my beloved wife, Margaret Anconey yearly and every for the term of six years if in case the younger is
not properly educated, the two sons aforesaid is to give to the said Margaret Anconey yearly, twenty five bushels of good merchantable wheat, each ten good bushels of rye each, also ten bushels of good Indian corn, also ten bushels of good buckwheat each, also fifteen bushels of potatoes each, likewise, the sons is to find the said Margaret Anconey one ton of good first crop hay, each also one ton and a half each of second crop hay and the whole to be delivered by said sons in good order into the barn or stable which she shall think proper and the aforesaid sons that get the land is to move the old house from where it now stands on the other side of the upper spring, and to repair the same in such manner as she, the said Margaret Anconey may live warm and decently in the same, also they are to put into the said house my forge stove which now stands in my room with the pipe thereto and she, the said Margaret Anconey, is to have the said house and stove during her natural life if she chooses. Likewise my wife is to have the said negro girl called Rachael during her natural life, then after her decease the said girl, Rachael is to be sold and the money or price of her is to be divided amongst the whole children, seven boys and five girls; the sons is to chop and have all the firewood for said Margaret Anconey during the time she shall have occasion for it. Likewise the said sons shall find said Margaret Anconey one year old hog each yearly and every year fit for fatting, also fifteen pounds of hackled hemp each and fifteen pounds of good ton, (tow) each likewise all I have with her saddle and bridle, the saddle and bridle to be found by her said sons, likewise she is to have three cows, the choice being of the Penn.

Item: I give and bequeath two hundred acres of land it being the remaining part of my original tract called "Well Pleased" lying Northeast of the three hundred acres to any of my seven sons as aforesaid whichever one shall draw it by a fair draft of tickets aforesaid for the other three hundred acres it also being appraised or valued by my sons as before mentioned and at the expiration of six years the appraisement money of the said two hundred acres of land is to be equally divided amongst my twelve children to be paid in equal payments every year within the term of four years after the said appraisement of said land, likewise the before mentioned three hundred acres the value of which is to be equally divided amongst my children and paid them within or at the expiration of four years as before mentioned by whichever two sons get it, but if in any case my son, Peter Anconey should draw one of the improved places in the original tracts whereon I now live, it is my desire that he would let one of his younger brothers have the place where he now lives, according to the appraisement of each or as they may otherwise agree but if my son, Peter Anconey should not be willing to agree with his brother it is my desire that he will
purchase one for his brother that may be adequate to the appraisement.

Item: Whichever of my sons as does not draw a piece of land in my original tract shall each one have one tract of land lying in Milford Township, ye state of Pennsylvania at the first cost. One bought of Michael Huff $55.00. One bought of John Shoff at $143.00, One bought of Matthias Ditch at $36 10. One bought of Jacob Houke $110.00 hard cash. Item: I give to my beloved wife to take of her choice of four ewes of the best of my flock, likewise all my household furniture during her natural life and after her decease it is to be sold and the money equally divided amongst the children except the three cows and their increase after her decease is to be given to my youngest daughter Elisabeth. Moreover I do ordain that my beloved wife shall have the privileges of pasturage for her stock in the same pasture with my two sons stocks that gets the places, also my beloved wife is to have the privilege of what apples as she may think necessary and proper for the use of her
house. Moreover after the expiration date of six years which the two sons gets the places they are and shall find my beloved wife yearly and every year a good and sufficient maintenance of meat and drink and clothing and other necessaries which she will stand in need of.

Item: I do order and ordain that all my stock and farming utensils except what I have already bequeathed shall be sold at Public vendue and the money arising there from shall be equally divided among my twelve children and my beloved wife Margaret. Likewise, sixty pounds good money which I received with my wife Margaret by our marriage which sum I appoint to be divided said wife and the children she had by me (viz) my sons; John; Henry; David; Jacob and George Anconey and my daughters, Margaret and Elisabeth Anconey, by her first husband Franey and Christina Frederick, all in equal shares, and if God in his Providence should call me off the stage of life before my younger children should receive their learning in the Dutch (Deutch) school I appoint that my wife shall receive twenty pounds of good money from the vendue money for to school the said children and I ordain and appoint my beloved wife Margaret and my son Christian Anconey my executor of this my Last Will and Testament for the true intent and meaning of the same whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal the day and year above writing.
his
Devault X Anconey { seal }
mark
Signed, Sealed, Published and Pronounced, and Declared by the said Devault Anconey as his Last Will and Testament in the presence of us the subscribers.

N.B. I give to my beloved wife to be found by her by the beforehand mentioned sons all the necessary clothing for my youngest for the term of six years and also for the negro girl, Rachael and money to be drawn by said sons from the Vendue of my stock.

Joseph Brewer; Henry Gerbach; Thomas Van Swerigan, Washington County, Maryland, SSt
April 7, 1781.

On the back of the original will and the following indorsements, to wit Washington County, Maryland, Sst April 7, 1781.Then came Margaret Anconey and Christian Anconey and made oath on Holy Evangels of Almighty God that the within instrument of writing is the and Whole Will and Testament of Devault Anconey late of the said county, deceased, that have come to their hand or possession and that they do not know of any other.

Certified by Thomas Belt, Register Washington County, Maryland; SSt April 1781.

Then came Joseph Brewer, Henry Gerbach and Thomas Van Swerigan, the subscribing witnesses to the Last Will and Testament of Devault Anconey late of said County, deceased and severally made oath on the Holy Evangels of
Almighty God that they did see the Testament therein named Sign, and Seal this Will andthat they heard him Publish, Pronounce and Declare the same to be his Last Will and Testament; that the time of so doing he was to the best of their apprehensions of sound and disposing mind, memory and understanding and that they respectively subscribed their names as witnesses to this Will in the presence and at the request of the Testator and in the presence of each other.

Certified by Thomas Belt, Register

(Will Book of Washington County, Maryland: Liber "A" folio

--------------------------------

Naturalization and Allegiance of Devold Angene;
Source: Wyand, Jeffery and Florence; Colonial Maryland Naturalization C1975.
Page 54, Item 292 Date of Naturalization: Date of Communion:
Angene Devold, September 11, 1765
Ash Henry
*** St.Anne's Witness, Phillipp ---
*** Three hyphens indicate an illegible name.
Source of Volume and Page;
Provincial Court Judgements Libers on Deposit, Hall of Records DD9. Page 2.
*** Appendix; Page 77, Love, Dacid, Church of England, Rector All Hallow Parish, Anne
Arundel County, Established 1692, Parish located in Annapolis, Maryland.
Received from Marie Friedline of Chicago, Ill., March 12, 1980.

 

Will of George Shaver, Sr.

In the name of God Amen: I, George Shafer of Washington County and State of Maryland am sick and weak in body but of perfect mind and memory and calling to mind the mortality of my body knowing that it is appointed for all men once to die, I do make and ordain this my Last Will and Testament, that is to say: Principally and first of all I give and recommend my soul unto God that gave it; and for my Body I recommend to the earth to be buried in a Christian manner at the discretion of my Executors, nothing doubting but at the General Resurrection I shall receive the same again by the Mighty Power of God, and as touching as such worldly Estate where with it hath blessed me in this life. I give and dispose of the same in the manner following:

First: I give and bequeath to my beloved wife Barbara, all the profits, rents, and income of my land and plantation purchased from the late Samuel (sic) Stuky, deceased during her widowhood in my name.

Item: I will and bequeath to my wife the black riding mare, two cows and a heifer, one bed, bedstead and all and all thereto belonging, in her lieu of Dowry.

Item: I will and bequeath to the heirs of my eldest son George Shafer, Jr., deceased each of them an equal share of the portion of my Estate after my decease his son David only excepted, who shall have but one Spanish Dollar for his share and each of the rest shall have the sum of Forty Pounds to be paid to them by my executors at age of Twenty one years.

Item: I give and bequeath to my son Paul all the land and *Plantation in the State of Pennsylvania whereon he now liveth in lieu of his portion or expectancy of my Estate.
*Farm located in Montgomery Township, Franklin County, Pa.

Item: I give and bequeath unto my son David the sum of One hundred pounds in lieu of his portion of expectancy of my Estate.

Item: I give and bequeath unto my son Henry the sum of Two Hundred Pounds current money beside his portion or expectancy of my Estate.

Item: I give and bequeath unto my daughter Catherine *Werstone or her heirs two hundred pounds currency. *Anglization of the German surname Wertzstein.

Item: I give and bequeath to my three daughters, Viz; Elisabeth Ankeney; Eve Lander (Lauder) ?), and Ann Mary*Hayin each and every of them an equal share with my son Henry, after the two hundred pounds above mentioned are paid to the said Henry.
*German feminine ending.

Item: It is further my will that my Negro Jack shall be free and for himself in six months after my decease and if he will and can pay to my heirs or Executors the sum of fifty pounds currency for the freedom of his wife Racchel, she shall likewise be free also.

Item: I give and bequeath unto the heirs of my son deceased their fathers equal share or portion with Henry; Elisabeth; Eve; and Ann Mary above mentioned the two hundred pounds aforesaid, except for Henry and it is further my Will that my Executos as soon as it conveniently can be shall sell at Public Sale the Land and Plantation where I now live together with all the goods and chattel and movable Estate, as also the land and Plantation adjoining Conococheague Creek where my son Peter lived and likewise my land in the Glades in Pennsylvannia; and I nominate and appoint my son Paul and son- in- law, Christian Ankeney Executors of this my Last Will and Testament, revoking and annulling all former Wills by me heretofore made ratifying and confirming this and none other to be my Last Will and Testament.

In Witness whereof I have hereunto set my Hand and Seal this eleventh day of July in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and ninety six. 1796.
his X mark
George Shafer (Seal)
Signed sealed published and declared by George Shafer the above named Testator as and for his Last Will and Testament in the presence of us who at his request and in his presence have subscribed our names as witnesses thereto.
Phillip Krigg; - John Gilless; - Jesse Jones
Washington County, SS:On the 30th day of July 1796, came Paul Shafer and Christian Ankeney and made Oath that the within instrument of Writing is the true and whole Will and Testament of George Shafer late of said County, Deceased that hath come to their hands or possession and that they do not know of any other. And at the same time came Phillip Krigg and Jesse Jones two of the subscribing witnesses to the within last Will and Testament of George Shafer of the said
County, deceased and made Oath on the Holy Evangels of Almighty God, that they did see the Testator herein named sign and seal this Will, that they heard him Publish, pronounce and declare the same to be his Last Will and Testament, that at the time of his so doing he was to the best of their apprehensions of sound and disposing mind, memory and understanding and they respective ly subscribed their names as witnesses to the Will in his presence and at the request of the Testator and in the presence of each other, and that they saw John Gilless the other subscribing Witness do the same.

Certified by Thomas Belt, Register.
On the 27th day of August 1796 came Barbara Shafer the widow of George Shafer deceased and quited her claim to the several bequests and devises made to her in the Will of her said Husband Deceased, and elected in lieu there of her dower or third part of the deceased's Estate both real and personal.

Certified byThomas Belt, register.
(Will Book of Washington County, Maryland, Liber "A" Folio 344)Ankneytown, Berlin Township, Knox County, Ohio.

 

"Ankneytown, or Squeal" as it is more commonly called for the sake of euphony, is noted from the fact that when the Steamhorse first made it's appearance there, "his squeal" so terribly alarmed the natives that they came out armed capapie with gun and blunderbuss, to capture him, and some worthy German denizens attempted to stop him in his travel by tearing up the rails; the history of which fully and at large appears in the records of Knox Common Pleas Court; Pages 307- 308.

 

Among the Justices of the Peace of his Township were George Ankeny in 1836, 1839, 1842; George Shafer in 1848; and Joseph Ankeny in 1850, 1853, and 1858. Page 309.
From A. Banning Norton; " A History of Knox County, Ohio" from 1779 to 1862 inclusive.

 

(Columbus: Richard Nevins, Printer; 1862George Shaver Synopsis and Service:
Copied from the Long Grapevine, November or Fall Edition 1978. Mrs. Alice Long Wiatr of Mt. Clemens, Michigan gave permission December 19, 1978 to use it in the Ankney Manuscript. She also gave the Hiram Brubaker information found later in the Christian Angeny Chapter. As the name Ankeny is spelled different in several places, it is done to show the spelling of the name of that person and some of them are taken from their tombstones Washington County, Maryland

 

A. *George Shaver, (Shafer; Shaffer; Shover; Scheffer; Schafer; etc.) was born in Germany Cir.1725 He settled first in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania and *died July 11 1796, in Washington County, Maryland. *Date taken from Will and date of filing. (CLS)

His naturalization record show he received the Sacrament in Frederick County, Maryland, August 16, 1764, and took the Oath of Allegiance on September 24, 1764. It is recorded in the Maryland Judgement Book DD6, Page 286, Hall of Records, Annapolis, Maryland.

George Shaver married three times;
M#1. Elisabeth Miller, Cir 1747 and they had 10 children.
M#2. Margaretha----? Eiteneiuer, widow of John, of Washington County, Maryland.
M#3. Barbara ------, a widow of Simon Stukey. Barbara survived George.
*name Simon from work of Chester L. Shaver.

George Shaver crossed the Delaware River with George Washington. He was a Revolutionary War Soldier who enlisted September 25, 1776, as a 2nd Lieutenant in Daniel Burchardts Company, of Colonel Nicholas Hauseggers, Continental Troops. This Battalion was formed in compliance with resolutions of Congress, May 25, 1776 and June 27, 1776, which provided that a battalion of Germans be raised for the service of the United Colonies, and that four Companies be raised in Pennsylvania and four Companies in Maryland.

While serving with Col. Hausegger's Regiment, George Shaver was one of those soldiers who attacked the Hessians on Christmas night in Trenton, N.J. 1776; after crossing the Delaware River in one of the small boats; (Durham Boats) with Gen. George Washington. The defeat of the Hessians were followed by *2 more victories which gave new hope to the sagging spirits of the exhausted, hungry and nearly frozen Colonial Troops--- their first real victories of the war.
*(Second Battle of Trenton, and the Battle of Princeton,) For a more complete account of these Battles, " The Winter Soldiers" by Richard M. Ketchum; Pages 290 & 341 for reference to Col. Hausegger's Regiment.

George Shaver was mustered as 1st Lieutenant in Capt. Boyer's Company, August 1777, and served in that capacity in Capt. John Lorah's Company, commanded by Lt. Col. Ludwig Weltner, from August to November 1777.

His military record on file in the National Archives contain Muster and payroll receipts, which prove he was present and received pay fron December 1, 1776 to March 1, 1776, while serving with Col. Hausegger's Regiment. Other orders may be found in the Archives of Maryland, XVIII, folio 182, Hall of Records and NSDAR# 551278.

Mr. Shaver was an influential and affluent person and resident of Washington County, Md., being owner of several tracts of land there and in Somerset County, Pa. At that time it was part of Bedford County, (Somerset County not having been founded until 1795.) When he died some of the land was in production, and with unharvested crops. It was 13 years before his Estate was settled. His will, which was written July 11, 1796 and probated July 30, 1796 and is recorded in Hagerstown, Md. in the Wills Library, "A" folio 345. In it he mentioned his wife, Barbara and these children.
2A. George Shaver Jr was born 1756, eldest son, deceased, his heirs each received an equal share.
2B. Paul Shaver,.All the land and Plantation in the State of Pennsylvania, whereupon he liveth. Paul Shaver later moved to Franklin County, Pa. and died October 1807. The children named in his Estate were: George; Paul; Henry; Peter; John; Catherine and Mary.
2C. David Shaver received 100 Pounds.
2D. Henry Shaverreceived 200 pounds in addition to his share.
2E. *Elisabeth Shaver, eldest daughter was born July 14, 1748,.married to Christian Angeny.
2F. Eve Shaver married to Jacob Laud. He died before October 23, 1812, in Somerset Co, Pa.; They had four children named: Maria, born March 3, 1774, baptized July 10,1774 Witnesses were: George and Elisabeth Shaver.(Salem Reformed Church, Washington Co.,, Md); Elisabeth married John Shull Jacob, Jr. and Peter.(CLS)
2G. Anna Maria Shaver was born September 13, 1754, married Simon Hoh, (Hay), Each of the three daughters were to receive and equal with Henry, minus the 200 Pounds. (CLS)
2H. Peter Shaver, deceased, his heirs to have their father's share. Peter had land and a Plantation adjoining Conococheague Creek. M. Elizabeth Earhart and they had 5 children:
3A. Phillip Shaver, born November 11, 1786, married Sarah Smith.
3B. Phillip Shaver was born August 1790 and married Rosina Ankeny.
3C. Mary (Polly) Shaver was born Nov., 17,1792 and married Christian Ankeny, Jr.
3D. Jacob Shaver was born June 15, 1793.
3E. Catherine Shaver married to Matthias Whetstone.
3F. Phillip Shaver.
The last two were not mentioned in George Shaver's Will. He named his son Paul and his son-in-law Christian Angeny as his Executors. It is signed by mark, and witnessed by Phillip Krigg, John Gilless, and Jesse Jones.

It is interesting to note that 67 years before President Lincoln issued his famous Emancipation Proclamation, George Shaver, the owner of two slaves, chose to Emancipate them in his Will with these words: Item- "It is further my will that my Negro, named Jack shall be free and for himself, in six months after my decease , and if he will and can pay to my heirs or Executors the sum of Fifty Pounds Currency , for the freedom of his wife Rachel, she shall likewise be free also.
A. George and Elisabeth Shaver,Our double descent from George and Elisabeth Shaver:
2A. Elisabeth Shaver was born July 14, 1748, died 1816, interred on the original Christian Angeny farm, now known as the Derencin farm, M. Christian Angeny and they had 10 children. He was born December 25, 1749, died March 17, 1824, interred in Brant Cemetery, Ligonier Township, Westmoreland County, Pa. They had 10 children:.
3A. George Ankney
3B. David Ankney was born 1774, died Oct. 10, 1805, Estate # 10, Somerset Co., Pa.
M#1. Elizabeth Capp and had 6 children. She died March 12, 1864.
M#2. David White was her 2nd husband and they had 6 children. (no names mentioned)
3C. Henry Ankney
3D. Elizabeth Ankney
3E. Christian Ankney, Jr
3F. Rosina Ankney
3G. Anna Maria Ankney
3H. (Mary) Margaret Ankney
3I. Jacob Ankney
3J. -------------
4A. John Ankney
4B. Michael Ankney
4C. Rebecca Ankney4D. Rosina Ankney
4E. David Ankney
4F. *Elisabeth Ankeny was born April 19, 1806, died September 30, 1893, interred in
Emanuel Cemetery (Lichty), Lincoln Township, Somerset County, Pa.
M. Joseph Brubaker.
He was born December 15, 1796, died December 11, 1863 in Somerset Township.
5A. *Hiram Brubaker was born January 15, 1832, died March 13, 1892.
M. *Elisabeth Hoh (Hay).
She was born June 27, 1837, died March 4, 1906.
2G. Anna Maria Shaver was born Dec. 19,1754, died May 25,1818 at Hay's Mill, Pa
M. Simon Hoh, (Hay) and had 11 children.
He was born in Sweibrucken, (Twin Bridges), Germany on April 18, 1742 and died
February 3, 1842, age 99 years, 9 months, and 15 days.
3A. Michael Hay
3B. Jacob Hay
3C. Valentine Hay
3D. *George Hay
3E. Susanna Hay
3F. Anne Mary (Anna Maria) Hay
3G. Elisabeth Hay
3H. Eve Hay
3I. Simon Hay
3J. Peter Hay
3K. Catherine Hay
3D. *George Hay was born May 7, 1781 and died June 18, 1844.
M. Mary Countryman on April 16, 1806 and they had 11 children.
She was born Sept. 21, 1789, baptized February 10, 1790, died March 14, 1872.
4A. Simon Hay
4B. *Benjamin George Hay
4C. John G. Hay
4D. William G. Hay
4E. George G. Hay
4F. Harry G. Hay
4G. Herman Hay
4H. Jacob Hay
4I. Elisabeth Hay
4J. Harriet Hay
4K. Mary Ann Hay4B *
4B. Benjamin George Hay was born June 1809 and died February 8, 1874.
M. Susanna Wingert and they had 8 children.
She was born March 24, 1818, died September 5, 1871.
5A. Roseann Hay
5B. William Frank Hay
5C. *Elizabeth Hay
5D. Lydia Harriet Hay
5E. John Ephriam Hay
5F. Samuel P. Hay
5G. William G. Hay
5H. Susan Hay
5A. *Hiram Brubaker and Elizabeth Hay Brubaker
6A. Martha Jane Brubaker was born October 10, 1861.
M. Henry William Shaffer was born October 6, 1855.
7A. Marion Irene Shaffer was born November 7, 1879.
M. John Wagner Long was born August 14, 1879.
8A. Frank Wesley Long was born May 26, 1903.
M. Mildred Irene Schragel was born November 23, 1907.
9A. Alice Louise Long was born April 23, 1926.
M. Edward Wiatr was born December 26, 1921.
10A. Diana Darleen Wiatr was born September 2, 1944.
M. Gordon Graham was born December 5, 1941.
10B. Linda Janet Wiatr was born August 21, 1945M. David C. Kelley was born December 30, 1942.
10C. Rebecca Tansy Wiatr was born December 8, 1944.
M. Steven A. Evans. He was born May 21, 1947.
10D. Bonnie Jean Wiatr was born July 4, 1950.
M. James E. Fischer was born August 6, 1947.

George Shaver Land Deeds; Somerset County, Pa.
Somerset County Deeds:
Volume 3, Page 548. George Shaver, Warranted 1744, 290 acres in Milford Township, June 20, 1744, Surveyed September 10, 1787, #640. Paul Shaver and Christian Angeny Executors of George Shaver, June 30, 1804, sold to Jacob Haines; adjoining properties of Christian Angeny, Frederick Wiemer, Paul Ernsberger, John Prinley, John Schoaff, Jacob Raines, and Gillian Gary, in presence of John McClean, Jacob Schneider and Henry Shaver.
Volume 3, Page 555, April 27, 1805, Henry Shaver of Somerset County, Pa., sold Tract in Milford Township containing 112 1/2 acres called "Emsworth" Christian Weyandt of Washington County, Maryland for $337.50, adjoining lands of Joseph Haight, Joseph Warral, Cornelius Marteeny, John Martiny and John Crossley.

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Quit Claim Deed of Phillip Shaver
Vol. 3, Page 326 Deed Book of Somerset County, Pa.

Know all men by these presents; that I, Philip Shaver now of Somerset County, in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania; one of the sons of George Shaver, late of Washington County, Maryland, deceased, do hereby acknowledge that I have this day had and received of and from Christian Angeny; Simon Hay; and Henry Shaver; three of the heirs of the said George Shaver, deceased; the sum of One Hundred Pounds, lawful money of Pennsylvania, in full satisfaction and payment of all such sum of money, or sums due and coming to me, as one of the heirs, of the said George Shaver, deceased; and therefore I the said Philip Shaver, do by these presents, release, acquit, and for ever discharge the said Christian Angeny; Simon
Hay; and Henry Shaver; and also all and every of the heirs of the said George Shaver, deceased, his Executors and Administrators, of and from all actions, suits, payments, accounts, reckonings, claims, and demands whatsoever, for and by reason thereof, or of any other act, matter, cause, or thing, whatsoever, from the beginning of the world, to the date of the day of these present and further do I hereby release, acquit, and forever quit claim all of my right and title to all of the Estate, both Real and Personal of the said deceased, especially to all the lands and Plantations of the said deceased, situate in the State of Md; one of them now in the tenure of Jacob Seibert; one other in the tenure of Barbara Shaver, widow of the said deceased; one other in the possession of Paul Shaver; and also two tracts of land situate in Somerset County, Pennsylvania; and also any other property whatsoever, left by the said deceased. In witness whereof I have hereunto set my
hand and seal, this twenty-sixth day of October in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and three

Signed; Philip Shaver (Seal) Sealed and delivered in the Presence of Otho Shrader- Eva Shrader.
Copied by Alice Long Wiatr from The Long Grapevine Volume II Fall 1978, Pages 25-27

 

Dewalt Ancony, A Colonial PioneerChristian Angeny:, 5th Generation
5A. Christian Angeny was the oldest son of Johann Theobald (Dewalt) and Catherine Anconi, born December 25, 1749 in Hanover Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. He was baptized in the Jonestown Reformed Church, December 23, 1750. Christian's mother died in 1757 when he was 8 years old and his father remarried Cir 1758 to Margaret Becker Frederick, widow of Noah Frederick, who was killed by Indians and left his wife a widow. She was pregnant at the time and evidently Dewalt claimed him as his own.also were two stepdaughters, Veronica and Christina Frederick. Shortly after this, the family moved in 1762 to Maryland, settling in the Conococheague Valley, near what would become Clear Springs, Md. The family attended the St. Paul's Reformed Church, that was founded in 1747, and there were also records of the family at the Salem Reformed Church, further east near Hagerstown, Maryland. Dewalt Anconi owned a large tract of land that he called, “Well Pleased".

In 1771, Christian Angeny married Elisabeth Shaver, (Shaffer) She was born July 14, 1748, a daughter of George and Elizabeth Miller Shaver (some say Anna Maria Shaver) of Washington Co., Md.

George Shaffer died in 1796 and left a will which is recorded in Hagerstown, Md. in that he named his son Paul and his son-in-law, Christian Ankeny as executors. It is known also, from the will of Conrad Miller, of Cumberland Co., Pa. that Shaffer
was married to a daughter of Miller Soon afterwards, like other members of their families, they settled in Somerset County, (then Bedford) Pennsylvania. They became members of the Samuel's Reformed Church of which is located West of the town of Somerset. Christian Angeny owned several tracts of farmland and was an active member of the Pioneer community. He served in the Revolutionary War as a First Lieutenant and a Court Martial Officer. He erected the first Grist Mill near Somerset and later built a Fulling Mill.

His wife, Elisabeth Shaver Angeny died in 1816 in Somerset County, and was buried on their farm (referred to now as the Derencin farm). On April 7, 1817, in Somerset County, Pa. Christian Angeny married Mary (Polly) Kooser, a sister of the early settlers, John and Jacob S. Kooser. Shortly after, the family moved to Donegal Township, Westmoreland County, where Christian Angeny had two tracts of land. He died in the Township on March 17, 1824, and his obituary notice was carried in the March 26, of Donegal Twp, formerly of Somerset Co., who died March 17, 1824, aged 72 years, 2 months 1824 issue of the Greensburg Gazette, Westmoreland Republican newspaper: "Christian Angeny and 9 days. Christian Angeny was buried in the Brant's Cemetery adjacent to the old German Reformed Church. Later his daughter and son-in-law John William and Anna Maria (Polly) Ankeny Weaver; and his son and daughter-in-law Christian and Mary (Polly) Shaver Ankeny Jr., and other
members of the family were buried beside him in Brant's Cemetery. The location of the grave of his second wife, Mary Kooser Angeny who died in 1847, is unknown.
*Later several members of the family were disinterred and their remains were moved to Pleasant Grove Cemetery It is located about 3 miles south of Brant's cemetery. I have copied the above item from the George Shaver work of Chester L. Shaver.
*The part on the removal of the remains is my Addenda. (LWJ). The names of the members are spelled as they appear on tombstones.Dewalt Anconi, a Colonial Pioneer Elisabetha Shaver Angeny, 5th Generation. Elisabetha Shaffer, eldest daughter of George Shaffer, Sr., was born July 14, 1748, in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania and died in 1816, in Somerset County, Pa. The following Record is the earliest reference to her that has been discovered this far:

"1769, the 10th February, was born to Nicholas Shafer a daughter, and was on the 4th of July 1770, publicly baptized by the Pastor Henlop, the godmother was Georg Shaffer’s first daughter, Elisabetha. The child received the name Susanna." This baptism occurred at Salem Reformed Church, west of Hagerstown, in Washington County, Md. Records of the church also indicate the birth of Elisabeth Shaver Angeny's oldest child:

George, born 16th October, 1772, baptised 12th November
Parents: Christian Angena; Mother Elisabetha
Both married Sponsor Georg Schaefer

 

Elisabetha Shaver married Christian Angeny, son of Theobald (Dewalt) and Catherine Anconi, at an unknown date, probably Cir 1771. By 1772, Christian Angeny had started to clear a tract of land in Somerset County, formerly Bedford until 1795 and family tradition relates that he worked and cleared the land in the spring and summer months and returned to the Conococheague District for the winter. Obviously, he was back by fall of 1772 when his first child was baptized. The family spent the winter in Maryland and then went by pack horses in the spring to Somerset Co., Pennsylvania. Although the mothers of the young couple were both deceased by this time, their fathers were still living- George Shaver dying in July 1796; and Dewalt who was baptized in 1727 in Lambsborn, Germany, living on his farm `Well Pleased’ near Clear Springs, Maryland, until his death in March or April 1781.During the Revolutionary years, Christian Angeny served as a Lieutenant in the Conflict.

Elisabetha Shaver Angeny died in 1816 (Dates taken from her tombstone) and was buried on the original Christian Angeny farm, now known as the Durencin farm, a few miles south of Somerset, Pennsylvania, on the Water Level Road leading to Rockwood, Pennsylvania. Her husband remarried and moved to Donegal Township, Westmoreland County, Pa, where his death occurred on March 17, 1824. (Greensburg Gazette obituary 1824, March 24) His estate was probated in both counties Somerset and Westmoreland, and he was buried in the Brant's Cemetery, located south of Ligonier on a farm adjacent to Route 711. This small Cemetery has 86 burials and contains the graves of many early Ligonier Valley Settlers, some of
whom, like Christian Angeny, fought in the Revolutionary War. His name was spelled "Angeny" on the grave marker which is probably illegible now, (1981) and is located in the Weaver plot. His second wife was Mary (Polly) Kooser who died in 1847. Her place of interment is not known.Christian and Elisabetha Shaver Angeny,5th Generation.
The 9 children of Christian and Elisabetha Shaver Angeny were:
6A. George Angeny
6B. David Angeny
6C. Henry Angeny
6D. Elizabeth Angeny
6E. Christian Angeny, Jr
6F. Rosina Angeny
6G. Anna Maria Angeny
6H. (Mary) Margaret Angeny
6I. Jacob Angeny
6A. George Ankeny was born October 16, 1772, near Hagerstown, Md. as recorded in the record of the Salem Church, where he was baptized November 12, 1772, and witnessed by George Shaffer, died at age 78 on November 28, 1850 in Milford Township, Somerset Co., Pa., probably on the tract which his father had taken out in his name in 1774.He was the George Ankeny to whom Paul Shaver and Christian Angeny sold the tracts belonging to George Shaver, Sr., his grandfather in Milford Township, Somerset Co., Pa. M. Magdalena (Mary) Putnam in 1794 and they had 9 children. She was born September 30, 1773, a daughter of John Putnam, and the niece of Adam Schneider, a joint founder, and of Henry Bruner original owner of most of the------. She died October 2, 1858 and both are buried in the New Centerville Cemetery It is stated in an account of the Putnam family, by an author named Williams, the Book being in the Hagerstown Library, that John Putnam, her Father was a veteran of the Revolution but the writer has no other data on that point, that George Ankeny was married to a daughter of Putnam is found in Penna. Germans, Vo;. 10, and in the Estate Papers in which Putnam’s widow, Sara, and his son-in-law,
George Ankeny, made July 5, 1846, there is a list of heirs given, nine children being named.
6B. David Ankeny was born 1774, died October 10, 1805, (age 31). M. Elisabeth Capp and they had 6 children. Two of his children, Sarah and Maria Margaretha were baptized in Samuel's Reformed Church in Somerset County, Pa.
6C. Henry Ankeny was born 1776. M. Susanna Koontz and they had 8 children.
6D. Elizabeth Angeny was born November 28, 1779, died May 8,1863 and is buried in Cole’s cem., near Rector, Westmoreland Co., Pa
M. Martin Phillippi, Sr., and had 10 children. He was a son of Francis Phillippi, a Revolutionary War soldier.
6E. Christian Ankeny Jr; was born August 12, 1783, (Tombstone states his birth as May 13, 1782), died June 1, 1864, (age 81).
M. Mary C. Shaver, his first cousin. She was the daughter of Peter and Elisabeth Earhart Shaver. They had 9 children.
6F. Rosina Ankeny was born November 4, 1784, M. Peter Gunderman (Countryman) and they had 11 children.
6G. Anna Maria Ankeny was born February 8, 1787, died May 9, 1855 (age 68) M. William Weaver and they had 15 children. .
6H. Margaret Ankeny was born August 4, 1789, died August 6, 1886, (age 97). M#1. Jacob Sanner and they had one son, Michael. M#2. Bernard Connelly Jr. and they had 5 children.
6I. Jacob Ankeny was born February 21, 1792, died January 21 1873, (age 87). M#1. Sarah (S Sally) Young Friedline M#2. Christine Knable and they had 9 children.

This is the record of Chester L. Shaver.

Revolutionary War Service of Christian Angeny; 1st Lieutenant under Captain Rhoads, 1st Battalion Pa. Riflemen.Under Colonel Smith; Under Captain Black he was Court Martial Man (Turkeyfoot Militia) Ref, Eagle (Pennsylvania in the Revolution) Pages 646-656.

Court Cases Addenda:
Henry Shaver, Plaintiff, versus Christian Angeny:
Court of Common Pleas: Somerset County, Pennsylvania: Number 50, September Term; 1803.
Henry Shaver vs Christian Angeny et al; Executors of George Shaver. Filed the 7th day of September 1803:
Christian Angeny, late of Somerset County, one of the executors of the Goods and Chattles, Lands and Tenements of George Shaver, late, deceased, was summoned to answer unto Henry Shaver of a Plea of Trespass upon the case etc.
And whereupon the said Henry Shaver, by Samuel Shelby, his attorney Complains that whereas the aforesaid George Shaver in his lifetime to wit: on the first day of January in the year of our Lord Seventeen Hundred and Ninety Four, at the County, aforesaid, was indebted to him the said Henry Shaver, in the sum of One Hundred and Twenty Pounds, Lawful Money of Pennsylvania, for the like sum of money by him the said George for himself the said Henry and to his use before that time had and received and being thereof Indebted the aforesaid George then and there faithfully promised that he the aforesaid George, the aforesaid sum of money, to him the said Henry when afterwards he should be there unto required, would well and truly content and pay. Nevertheless the aforesaid George in his lifetime and the aforesaid Christian Angeny since the death of him the said George, the promise and assumption so as aforesaid of the aforesaid George in his lifetime so as aforesaid made not regarding, but minding, and fraudulently intending the same Henry Shaver in this part; craftilly, and subtilly to deceive and defraud, the aforesaid sum of money, or any part thereof to the same Henry Shaver in his lifetime, nor the said Christian
Angeny, since the death of the aforesaid George hath contented or paid; (although so to do the afore said George hath afterwards to wit: on the day and year aforesaid at the County aforesaid, and the said Christian Angeny since the death of the said George to wit: on the first day of January in the year of our Lord Eighteen Hundred and Three and often afterwards at the County aforesaid by the same Henry have been requested) but the aforesaid George in his lifetime and the aforesaid Christian Angeny since the death of him the aforesaid George; the aforesaid sum of money or any part thereof to the same Henry to pay or tender for the same or in any manner to content or pay hath altogether refused, and the said Christian still doth refuse to the damage of him the said Henry in the sum of Two Hundred Pounds money as aforesaid and therefore brings suit etc.
John Doe
Pedgers Pro &
Richard Roe.
(This Document filed in the Prothonotary’s Office, Somerset, County, Pa.) Continuous
Docket, Volume 2, Page 195, shows as follows:
No. 50. September Term, 1803;
Shelby Henry Shaver vs. Christian Angeny and Paul Shaver
for Shaver executors of George Shaver deceased; Summons case
writ paid by attorney, served, 7th, September.
Shrader 1803. Rule to plead in six weeks or Judgement
for Angeny Narr (I.E. Narratie or plaintiff’s bill file)
for Shaver deceased; Summons case writ paid by attorney, served, 7th, September 1803.
Rule to plead in six weeks or judgment.
Shrader Narr (I.E. Narratie or plaintiff's bill) file continued: for Angeny October 17th, 1803: Shrader appears for Christian Angeny, prayseyer of the writ and pleads nonassumpsit, and non-assumpsit infra six Annos, and leave to give the special matter in evidence.
Rule to take Depositions of the Witnesses to be read in this cause in Washington County, Maryland., exparte 10 days notice at the house of Henry Creager, between the hours of 10 O'clock in the forenoon and 5 O'clock in the evening, of the 28th day of November 1803.
Same day Rule 2: for agreement filed November 17, 1803: It is agreed the depositions of witnesses residing in Maryland be taken before any Justice of the Peace of the State ofMaryland to be read in Open court and provided exparte rule plaintiff; gives two days notice of the time and place to Christian Angeny, lef'd plaintiff. Re lies that he did assume within six years Issue and Rule for trial. Continued: February Term, 1804: May Term,
Continued: on payment of costs this term. Costs paid leave to amend. (In the margin: "20 Rule. March 804 to take Depositions of witnesses to be read in this cause at the home of Henry Ankeny, Psqr and before him in Washington County, Maryland., exparte 10 days notice.
September Term: non-suit with leave to move at next Term to set it aside. December Term:
Non Suit absolute, Costs paid".)

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Number 68: September Term, 1805: Henry Shaver vs Christian Angeny:
Christian Angeny late of Somerset County, yeoman was summoned to answer to Henry Shaver (Shaffer) of a Plea of Trespass on the case etc: And whereupon the said Henry Shaver, by Samuel Shelby, his attorney Complains whereas the said Christian Angeny on the first day of August in the year of our Lord Eighteen Hundred and Five at the County, aforesaid was indebted to him the said Henry in the sum of one hundred and ninety pounds lawful money of Pennsylvania, for the like sum of money by him, the said Christian for him the said Henry, and to his use before that time had and received and being so thereof Indebted; the aforesaid Christian afterward to wit: on the day and year last aforesaid, at the County, aforesaid in consideration thereof upon himself assumed and the said Christian then and there faithfully promised that he the aforesaid Christian, the afore said sum of money to him the aforesaid Henry when afterwards he should be thereunto required would well and truly content and pay: And whereas the aforesaid Christian afterwards to Wit: on the day and year aforesaid last, at the County, aforesaid, was indebted to him the said Henry in another sum of the Hundred and ninety pounds by him the said Henry, at the special instance and request, and to the use and behoof of him the said Christian Angeny, before that time laid out expended and said, and so being thereof Indebted, the aforesaid Christian afterwards to it on the day and year last aforesaid,at the County aforesaid, in consideration of the promises upon himself assumed, and to the said Henry, then and there faithfully promised that he the said Henry, then afterwards he should be thereupon required should well and truly consent and pay. And whereas the aforesaid Christian afterwards to wit: on the day and year last aforesaid, at the County aforesaid, was indebted to him the said Henry Shaver, in another sum of One Hundred and Ninety Bounds, to him the said
Christian, by him the said Henry, at the special instance and request of the said Christian, before the time lent and delivered, and so being thereof Indebted the afore said Christian, in consideration thereof afterwards to wit: on the day and year last aforesaid, at the County aforesaid, upon himself assumed and to the said Henry then and there faithfully promised that he the said Christian the last aforesaid sum of money to him the said Henry when afterwards he should be thereunto required would well and truly content and pay. Nevertheless the aforesaid Christian his several assumptions and promises aforesaid, so as aforesaid made not regarding but minding and fraudulently intending by him the said Henry Shaffer, in this behalf, craftilly, and subtilly to deceive and defraud the aforesaid several sums of money, or any part of either of them to him the said Henry Shaffer, hath not contented or paid (although so to do the aforesaid Christian Angeny was afterwards to wit: on the day and year last aforesaid and often afterwards at the County aforesaid, by the said Henry requested) but the same or any part of either of them to content or pay he hath altogether refused, and still doth refuse to the Damage of him the said Henry, in the sum of Two Hundred Bounds money as aforesaid, and therefore he brings suit and so forth.
Samuel Selby for Plaintiff.
1.Count Money had and received.
2 Money paid, laid out & expected.
3.Money lent.
Filed September 26th, 1805.
(This Document filed in the Office of the Prothonotary, Somerset County, Pa.)
Continuance Docket, Volume 3, Page 98, shows the following:
No. 68: (September Term), 1805: Henry Shaffer vs Christian Angeny. August 22nd, 1805.Summons case served. Appears Praysoyer of writ count and Special information, Narr.
filed. Continued December Term. Rule to plead by the first day of next term or judgment.
1806. February Term. Defendant pleads non assumpsit infra six annos and leave to give the special matter in evidence. Report of the defendant non-solvit and that he did assume within six years. Issued and rule for trial. By consent rule that a commission issue to Otho Williams Esq. of Washington County, Maryland to take depositions on Interrogation filed 12th May, 1806. Continued by Plaintiffs attorney, and rule by consent for trial by proviso and that plaintiff pay the costs of the term. Non-suited at August Term 1806.
The Court Cases are from the Manuscript of Chester L Shaver.

Court Cases, Etc.
Volume 5, Orphans Court Docket Pages 208-212: Westmoreland County, Register of Will's Office, Greensburg, Pa. Page 208:
At an Orphans Court, held at Greensburg, in and for Westmoreland County, twenty second day of November, in the year of our Lord, one thousand eight hundred and twenty-four; present Judge, John Young, President & John Lobingier, & Thomas Pollech, his associates, Justices of said court.
CHRISTIAN ANKENY Dec'd;
Christian Ankeny came into court and presented a petition in the manner following to wit: To the Honorable John Young, and his associate Judges, of the Court of Common Pleas, and composing an Orphans Court, in and for the County of Westmoreland.
The petition of Christian Ankeny, humbly showeth, that your petitioner's father Christian Ankeny, lately died intestate, at said County, leaving a widow named Polly; and several children, and grandchildren, to wit: George Ankeny; the children of David Ankeny, son of said Christian, and who died in the lifetime of his father, to wit: John Ankeny; Michael Ankeny, Peggy married to George Emmert; Rosanna, married to John Martiny; David Ankeny; and Elizabeth Ankeny, which two last are in their minority; Henry Ankeny; Elisabeth intermarried with Martin Phillippi; Christian Ankeny, your petitioner, Rosanna intermarried with Peter Countryman; Mary intermarried with William Weaver; Margaret intermarried with Bernard Connelly; and Jacob Ankeny. That the said intestate at the time of his death was seized in his demesne, as of fee and of two tracts of land in Donegal Township, Westmoreland County, adjoining lands of Henry Baly; William Weaver; Seymore Moses; John
Harbeson; and others, and adjoining to the other each other. One of them containing one hundred and ninety acres, be the same more or less, and the other containing two hundred and sixty-six acres more or less with the appertenances, both of them held by Patent. Your petitioner prays your Honor to award an inquest to make partition of the said two tracts of land, to and amongst the children and Representatives of the deceased, if partition can be made without prejudice to or spoiling the whole. But if said partition cannot be made then to value and appraise the same, and make return thereof to this Honorable Court, he will pray, viz;
His
In the presence of Christian X Ankeny
J.B. Alexandere Mark
which petition having been read and heard the court thereupon awarded an inquest, agreeably to the prayer of the petitioner returnable at the Orphans Court to be held in and for the said County, on the third monday of February, Eighteen Hundred and twenty-five. Whereupon a writ was made out directed to the Sheriff of the said County, commanding him that taking with him twelve honest and lawful men of his Bailiwick he should go to and open the said premises, and there by their oaths or solemn affirmations in the presence of the parties aforesaid by him to be warned, if upon being warned, they should be present.value there of that he should on a report thereof to and among the widow and children of the said intestate in such manner and proportioned as by the laws of the Commonwealth is directed if such partition can be made without prejudice, to or spoiling the whole, and that if the said inquest by him to be summoned as aforesaid should be found the said plantation or tract The said partition or tract of land with the appertenances having respect to the true of land, could not be divided to and among the widow and kin aforesaid of the Intestate without prejudice to or spoiling the whole that then they should
value and appraise the same according to law and that they should enquire and report whether the same plantation or tract of land would conveniently accommodate more than one of the children of the intestate aforesaid, without prejudice to or spoiling the whole, and if they so found then they should ascertain and report how many of the children (Page 209) of the said intestate the same would as conveniently accommodate describing the same by bounds and returning a just appraisement thereof,. and that that partition be made out after valuation, he distinctly and openly should have before the Justices of Greensburg at an Orphans Court, there to be held for the County of Westmoreland aforesaid the thirdMonday of April in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and twenty-five, at which day as set of said court holden at Greensburg, for said county, before John Young, John Lobingier Judges for said court; 3 John Niccolls, high sheriff of the said County, came into court and made known of said visit with the following returns endorsed, thereon, that is to say.To the judges within named, I do respectfully certify that by virtue of the within visit by me to the parties being first duly notified, I took with me twelve free, honest, and lawful men of my bailiwick, and went to the lands and all and singular the premises therein mentioned and by their oaths and affirmations finding that the same could not be parted and divided among the same, all the parties of the said writ named without prejudice to or spoiling of the whole.
The execution of this writ appears by a certain schedule annexed, so answered.
John Niccolls.
Inquisition indented and taken at the dwelling house, late of Christian Ankeny, in Donegal Township, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, on the eighth day of February, eighteen hundred and twenty-five, before John Niccolls Esq., high sheriff, of the County of Westmoreland, by virtue of a writ of Partition or valuation, to him directed, and to this inquisition and by the oaths and affirmations of William King; John Campbell; Seymour Moses; Leonard Samuel Mathews; William Gaibreath, David Henry; James Henry; John Wissing; Lavan E. King; Jacob Roadman, twelve free and lawful men of his bailiwick who on their oaths and affirmed aforesaid respectively do say that they went to and upon the land and tenements whereupon Christian Ankeny died seised in said writ contained on the day and year aforesaid and here and there did find that the said lands, and tenements with the appertenances could not be parted, and divided to and among all the heirs and children of the said deceased, without prejudice to or spoiling the whole thereof and the jury aforesaid, upon their oath and affirmations aforesaid, do further find, that the said lands and tenements with the appertenances will accommodate two of the children of the said
deceased, that is to say, that part of said lands and tenements included in and bounded by the following courses and iistances to wit: Beginning at a hickory, thence by part of the original tract, (whereof this is a part) South forty and one half degrees, West fifty four perches to a black oak, South sixty nine and three quarter degrees, West seventy one perches and three tenths to a white oak, thence by other lands of the said estate, South seventy and one half degrees, West sixteen perches and five tenths to a white oak, South sixty six degrees and a quarter, West ninety perches and six tenths to a white oak, thence by other lands of the said estate, South thirty three degrees and one half, East one hundred and seventy two perches to a post, South two and a half degrees, East seventy eight perches to a locust, South twenty seven and an half degrees, East twenty four perches and eight tenths to a post, thence by land of William Weaver, North eighty three degrees, East seventy one perches and two tenths to a white oak, North thirty degrees, West nine perches and seven tenths to a post, North forty five degrees, East sixty one perches and three tenths to a white oak, North eighty five degrees and a half, East ninety nine and three tenths to stones, North five degrees, West sixty two perches and three tenths to a post, thence by lands of Henry Yealy, South eighty four and three quarter degrees, West fifty eight perches and five tenths to a post, North two degrees and a half, West one Hundred and fifty two perches to the place of beginning; containing two hundred and seventy five acres and allowance of six percent and marked in the annexed diagram, No. 1., will accomodate one of the children of the said deceased. And that other part and residue of the lands and tenements of the said deceased in said writ contained including in and bounded by the following courses and distances that is to say: Beginning at a white oak and hickory,
thence by land of John Harbison, John Withrow and Martin Philippi, South sixty two degrees and an half, West two hundred and two perches and three tenths to a white oak, thence by Seymour Moses's land, South fifty degrees and three quarters, East one hundred and fourteen perches to a maple stump, South nine degrees and a half, East eighty five perches and eight tenths to a stump, thence by land late of Samuel Shannon, North sixty one degrees, two hundred and two perches and eight tenths, to a post, thence by the lower tract, North thirty three degrees and a half, West one hundred and eighty two perches to the place of beginning; containing two hundred acres and the usual allowance and marked as annexed
diagram (Page 210): No. 2., will accommodate one other of the children of the said deceased, and the jury aforesaid upon their oaths and affirmations aforesaid, do value andappraise that part of the said property contained in and described, by the diagram hereunto annexed and marked No.1, appraised for the sum of Nine dollars and sixty cents lawful money of the United States for each and every acre thereof; and the said inquest' upon their oaths and affirmations aforesaid, do value and appraise that other part of the said property in said writ contained, described, by one of the diagrams hereunto annexed and marked number 2., at and for the sum of Seven dollars and twenty cents lawful money as aforesaid per acre for each and every acre.
In testimony whereof the said Sheriff as well as the inquest aforesaid to the inquisitions in the names of the Parties interested have interchangeably set their hands and seals the day and year aforesaid.
John Niccolls, Sheriff, {Seal}
William King {{Seal}} Hugh Larrimer {Seal} James Henry {Seal}
John Campbell {Seal} Samuel Matthews {Seal} John Wirsing Jr.
Seymour Moses {Seal} William Galbreath {Seal} {Seal}
Leonard Meterich {Seal} David Henry {Seal} Samuel Singer {Seal}
Jacob Roadman {Seal}
Situated on Loyalhannah Creek in Donegal Township, Westmoreland County, containing Two hundred and sixty three and one hundred and forty three perches, and allowance; and is part of two tracts of land, Viz: James Milligan 439 acres on order No. 7., by lands of Arthur St. Clair 412 acres on order, No.19, the former dated 7th April 1764, the latter dated 9th February 1769, and both patents to Arthur St. Clair dated 10th October 1788, Surveyed 12th March 1818, and the variation of that time (ie) the then county offered to this draught by John Wills. Page 211: Orphans Court Docket of Christian Ankeny Sr., Dec'd At an Orphans Court held at Greensburg in and for the County of Westmoreland on the twenty-seventh day of May in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and twenty six by John Young, Esq, President, and John Lobingier, and Thomas Pollock, Esquires, his associate judges, of the said County.
On a motion of Joseph H. Kuhns, Esqe, rule on the heirs and legal representatives, of Christian Ankeny late of said County of Westmoreland, deceased, that they be and appear at an Orphans Court, to be held at Greensburg, in and for the said County, on the third Monday of August, next, then and there to accept or refuse the Real Estate at the evaluation and appraisal of the inquest.
Page 211: Orphans Court Docket of Christian Ankeny, Sr., Dec’d At an Orphans Court, held at Greensburg, in and for Westmoreland County, on the eigh-teenth day of October in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and twenty-six, Present John Young, Esq, President, and John Lobingier, and Thomas Pollock, Esquires, Associate Judges of the said court On the motion of Joseph H. Kuhns, Esq. the rule granted on the twenty-sixth day of May upon the heirs and legal representatives of Christian Ankeny, dec’d continued to appear at an orphans Court, to be held at Greensburg, on the third Monday of November, next. At an Orphans Court held at Greensburg, in and for Westmoreland County, on the twenty- first day of November in the year of our Lord, one Thousand eight Hundred and twenty- six, Present, John Young, resident, and John Lobingier and Thomas Pollock, Esq’s, associates judges of the said Court. Proof having been made of the service of the above rule upon the proper persons and now the said heirs of the said deceased, having appeared, Peter Countryman, in right of his wife Rosanna, one of the children of said Christian Ankeny, deceased, came into court and requested that part of his real estate of the said ceased, numbered 2 in the diagram annexed to the inquisitions, holden on the said estate described as following to wit: Beginning at a white oak and hickory tree, thence by land of John Harbison, John Withrow and Martin Philippi, South sixty- two degrees and a half, West two hundred and two perches and three tenths to a white oak, hence by Seymour Moses land, South fifty degrees and three quarters, East one hundred and fourteen perches, to a maple stump, South nine degrees and a half, East eighty-five Perches and eight tenths, to a stump, thence by the land of the late Samuel Shannon, North sixty-one degrees, East two hundred and two perches and eight tenths to a post, thence by the lower tract, North thirty-three degrees and a half, West one hundred and eighty two perches to the place of beginning, containing two hundred acres and usual allowance, should be assgned to him in right of his wife as his several property, at the valuation thereof, made by the said inquest and agreed to pay thesame in the manner and proportions required by law in one year from this date to the other heirs and legal representatives with interest on the several heirs from this date,
whereupon it is ordered by this court, that upon payment of the several shares as prescribed by law, in one year from this date to the other heirs and legal representatives with interest on said several shares from this date and paying to Polly Ankeny, widow of said deceased, yearly and every year of her natural life the interest of the third part of Fifteen hundred and forty dollars, the amount of the valuation of the third part of the real estate in the order described and at the death of the said Polly, paying to the heirs or legal representatives their respective portions of said third part all right of said widow, heirs and legal representatives be forever named and cease and the aforesaid two hundred acres of land with the appertenances be the sole property of the said Peter Countryman as fully and as for such estate as the said Christian Ankeny deceased, in his lifetime held the same. And William Weaver being offered as security is approved as such. Peter Countryman held in the sum of $3080.00, William Weaver held in the sum of $3080.00 The above named Peter Countryman and William Weaver jointly and severally acknowledge themselves to owe and stand indebted to Polly Ankeny, the widow; and to George Ankeny; and to John Ankeny, Michael Ankeny, George Emmert and Peggy, his wife, in right of said Peggy, John Martiny and Rosanna, his wife in right of said Rosanna, David Ankeny and Elizabeth Ankeny, children of David Ankeny, deceased; and to Henry Ankeny; Martin Philippi and Elizabeth, his wife, in right of said Elizabeth; Christian Ankeny; William Weaver and Mary, his wife in right of said Mary; Barney Connelley and Margaret his wife, in right of said Margaret; and Jacob Ankeny, in the sum of three thousand and eighty dollars, for their respective interests in the same. ON CONDITION that if the above named Peter Countryman shall well and faithfully perform and comply with the terms of the above written order then this recognizance to be void, otherwise in force. Acknowledged in open court at an Orphans Court held for said County the twenty-second day of November 1826.
D. Marchand, Clerk.
At an Orphans Court held at Greensburg on the 20th day of August 1827 On motion of Mr. Kuhns, Esq., upon the heirs and legal representatives of Christian Ankeny dec'd, to appear at an Orphans Court to be holden for the said County on the third Monday of November next, and show cause why the real estate of said deceased remaining undisposed of should not be sold agreeably to the Act of Assembly in such case made and provided. At an Orphans Court held on 20th day of November 1827, on motion of Joseph H. Kuhns, Esquire, to the Court to continue the above rule until the next term. At an Orphans Court held at Greensburg on the 18th day of February 1834, Christian Ankeny son of and one of the heirs at Law of Christian
Ankeny came into court and accepted and agreed to take that part of the real estate of said dec'd marked No.1 in the diagram annexed containing 275 acres and usual allowance valued and appraised at $9.60 per acre and desired that the same might be assigned to him. Whereupon it is adjudged by the Court that the said Christian Ankeny shall and may upon payment of and securing to be paid the several shares as prescribed by Law in one year from this date to the other heirs of said deceased, with interest on the several shares from this date, and his paying to Polly, the widow, yearly and every year during her natural life, the interest on the one third of the valuation of Inquest of said Real Estate, and at her death paying to the other heirs or legal representatives their respective portions of said third part. All eight of the other heirs or legal representatives of said deceased in the above mentioned part of the real estate be forever barred and ceaseand the said tract
of land with the appertenances be the sole property of him, the said Christian Ankeny as fully and as for such estate as the said Christian Ankeny deceased in his lifetime held the same and Joseph Matthews offered as his security for the payments thereof is accepted by the court.
ChristCChristian Ankney, of Somerset County, Joseph Matthews, of Ligonier Township each acknowledged themselves to owe and stand jusstand justly indebted to Polly Ankney, the widow, George Ankney, the children of Dawid ow, George Ankeny, the children of Ankeny, dec'd to wit: John, Michael, Peggy married to George Emart, Rosanna, married to John Martiny, and Elizabeth Ankeny; Henry Ankeny; Elizabeth Ankeny intermarried with Martin Phillippi; Rosanna Ankeny married with Peter Countryman; Mary married with William Weaver; Margaret married with Bernard Connelly; and Jacob Ankeny in the sum of Five thousand two hundred and eighty dollars $5280.00 to be made and levied of their Respective goods and
chattels, lands and tenements, upon condition of the said Christian Ankeny shall in allthings faithfully perform and comply with the terms of the above order Then these recognizances to be void, otherwise in full force and intact. Taken and acknowledged in open Court, this 18th day of February A.D. 1834
Randell McLaughlin, Clerk his mark
Joseph Matthews, et, ul Christian x Ankeny

First Family of Dewalt Anconi:
4A. *Dewalt Anconi was born Cir 1726, Baptized on January 16, 1727, died 1781 (age 55) M. Mary Catherine ----, Cir 1748 Her maiden name could have possibly been Hedrick. Two of the sons were named after sons named Christian and Peter. The fathers name was also Peter. Although this is not proof it is at least evidence concerning the names of the sons of Dewalt.
5A. *Christian Angeny (Sr.) was born December 25, 1749, in Lancaster Co., Pa. He was christened at the Jonestown Reformed Church there on December 23, 1750. He died March 17, 1824 (age 75), in Donegal Township, Westmoreland Co., Pa. and buried in the Brants Cemetery, about two miles South of Ligonier, off the West side of Route 711 and near Slater Road.
M#1. Elisabetha Shaver, (Shaffer) Cir. 1771 and they had 10 children; five sons and five daughters. She was born July 14, 1742, daughter of George Shaver of Washington Co. Md. died. 1816. (age 74) in Somerset Co., Pa. and is buried on the orignal Christian Angeny Farm, now referred to as the Derencin Farm. Her father died in 1796, and left a will which is recorded in Hagerstown, Md., where he named his son Paul and his son-in-law Christian as Executors. It is also known from the Will of Conrad Miller, of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania., that George Shaver was married to a daughter of Miller.
M#2. Mary (Polly) Kooser on April 7, 1817 and they had no children. She died 1847; her place of interment is unknown. Her Estate was settled by her nephew, David Shultz. She was a sister of John and Jacob S. Kooser, and of Catherine, wife of Conrad Shultz, all prominent citizens of Somerset County, Pa. Christians name is spelled Angney on the grave marker, and this is the way it is spelled in other instances. The inscription on his marker reads: Christian Angeny, born the 25th of December 1751, died the 17th of March 1824. For some reason there was an error of 2 years in the year of his birth; as his younger brother, Peter was born in March 1751. (CRS) From the appearance of the lettering it seems that the
stone may have been renovated and the error made in the recutting. His Estate was settled with his Executors being Christian Ankeny Jr, and Conrad Shultz. It was probated in both Somerset and Westmoreland Counties. Christian was an active citizen and had many interests. He served in the Revolutionary War as First Lieutenant in the Company of Captain Rhoads in the First Battalion of Pennsylvania Riflemen, under Command of Colonel Thomas Smith. He was also Courtmartial Officer in the Company of Captain Black, of Turkeyfoot Township. (Militia).
References for this data is from Pennsylvania in the Revolution; by Egle, Pages 646 and 656.
He was the owner of several tracts of land in Somerset County, and later in Westmoreland County, as well as land in Ohio. (At the end of the Christian Angeny family see probate of Christian in which settlements were made and the tracts of
land mentioned.) He was the builder of the first gristmill near Somerset, this being on his tract of land about a mile south of the Town of Somerset. It was a large log structure, and he later built a fulling mill at the same place. Up until then all grain had to be packed to Hagerstown, Md to get their grain ground into flour and meal. The latter passed in 1842 into the hands of John F. Kantner, whose father was a pioneer in the same industry near Stoystown, Pa. He was also active in Samuel's Church about three miles west of Somerset. **Most of the above narrative is the work of Charles Ross Shultz and his Initials are used to denote his work.
The 10 children of Christian, Sr. and Elizabeth Ankeny were:
6A. George Ankeny
6B. David Ankeny
6C. Henry Ankeny
6D. Elizabeth Ankeny
6E. Christian Ankeny, Jr.6F. Rosina Ankeny
6G. Anna Maria Ankney
6H. Jacob Ankney
6I. Margaret Ankney
6J. ---------------------

 

An article from the book BEDFORD AND SOMERSET COUNTIES found at the Historical Society, Somerset, Pa.
BridgesError! Bookmark not defined.

Once that roads began to be laid out that were something more than mere bridle paths, bridges in time also followed in their wake. But the earliest of these were over the smaller streams. The first bridge that we can find any account of in the comissioners’ records was built across Laurel Hill Creek, near the mill that had been built on one of it’s tributary streams by William Jones. The time was in 1797 and the locality was in what is now Jefferson Township On March 19, 1798, the commissioner’s contracted with Jacob Harbaugh and John Weimer, Jr. to build a bridge across Laurel Hill Creek on what in their minutes is called the Middle Road. The price agreed on was $283.00

On Sept. 18, 1798, the commissioner wrote advertisements inviting proposals for the building of a bridge across Cox’s Creek, where the Berlin road crossed it near Ankeny’s Mill This was south of Somerset. This contract was let to Christly A Aho received $140.00 for doing the work. In 1802 another bridge was built across Cox’s Creek, on the Bedford Road. This is what is popularly called Town Bridge, east of Somerset. Of course, it has been renewed several times since 1802 In 1811 Conrad Will and Peter Kimmel built a bridge across Laurel Hill Creek, in Somerset Township, as the minutes read, but it was probably near the present village of Bakersville, and now in Jefferson Township The Castleman’s River is a good sized stream where it enters Somerset County about 3 miles South of Salisbury. In it’s course of upwards of 40 miles through the county it receives the water of many tributary streams.which go to swell it’s own volume of water The various bridges which span this stream are all of them of the largest and most expensive in the county. At this day it looks as though at that time the county commissioners were slow in responding to the demands that must have been made for at least some bridges where important roads crossed the river on account of the heavy expense that they would have entailed on the county. It was until considerable sums had been subscribed by the citizens most directly interested in having bridges at several places that the county gave any help toward building any of them. But in 1815 a contract was let to John Anawalt, John Webster, Jacob Blocher and Jacob Ankeny in which they were to receive $799.00 for building a bridge across Castleman’s River at or near Green’s fording; a part of this money was made by subscriptions made by the citizens. This bridge in time became known as the Harnedsville Bridge. In 1832 it was washed away, but was presently rebuilt by John Mong at a cost of $900.00.

In 1816 the commissioner’s contracted with John Anawalt, John B. Webster Jacob Ankeny and John Gebhart to build a bridge at or near John Shoaff’s fording. This bridge was known for many years afterward as Shoaff’s bridge and is where the town of Rockwood now is. The contract price for the original bridge was $1,350.00, seven hundred dollars of which was subscribed by the people interested. In letting the contract for both of these bridges, the commissioner’s were careful to say that the contractors would have to collect the money subscribed themselves, and that they would have to assume all risks of any part remaining unpaid

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The Christian Angeny Family:
Christian Ankeny, Jr: --6th generation.
6E. Christian Ankeny, Jr. was born May 13, 1782, died June 1, 1864. M. Mary Shaver in 1808.
She was born April 12, 1792 and died February 11, 1863.
Christian Ankeny, Jr. married his first cousin; a daughter of Peter and Elizabeth Earhart Shaver. She was born in Washington County, Maryland. If her birthdate is correct she was born prematurely. One of the birth dates is recorded in the Ankeny - Phillippi files as April 12, 1791. Charles Ross Shultz in his book on the “Genealogy of the Descendants of Dewalt Ankeny” states “1791” for her birth. In family records prepared by the Ankney - Irwin families (Mrs. Retta Irwin Leichliter) the date November 18, 1792 is given for her birth. Since her brother George Shaver was born August 31, 1790, the April 12, 1791, birthdate, would mean she was born prematurely; since her brother Jacob Shaver, wo evidently died in infancy was born on June 15, 1793; so the November 18, 1792 date could also be open to question. On her tombstone in the Pleasant Grove Cemetery (Presbyterian Churchyard) near Ligonier, Pennsylvania, it states that Mary Ankney died February 11, 1863, aged 71 years, 10 months and 25 days. This would indicate she was born March 17, 1792, which would seem to be the most plausible birthdate; in light of the births of her brothers.

She spent her early years in the Conococheague District and by 1800, had moved with her two brothers, George and Philip Shaver, and her mother and step-father John Winders, to the town of Somerset, Pa.She married cir 1808 her first cousin,
Christian Ankeny, Jr., the son of Christian and Elizabeth Shaver Ankeny of Somerset, Pa. They lived in Somerset and later moved to Cook Township, Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, Christian Ankeny, Jr. was a farmer and owned farms in both Somerset and Westmoreland Counties. He was a veteran of the War of 1812. He died June 1, 1864, in Westmoreland County, and both he and Mary were originally interred in the Brant’s Cemetery which was adjacent to the old reformed
church; and is now on the farm of John and Betty Leichliter McElveen, of f Route 711, South of Ligonier, Pa. They were later removed from Brant’s Cemetery to the Pleasant Grove Presbyterian Churchyard. Christian Ankeny, Jr. died at the age of
82 years.

Pleasant Grove Cemetery, where the couple is buried is one of the oldest Presbyterian Churches in Ligonier Valley and was originally called the Donegal Church. During the 1850’s the name was changed to Pleasant Grove. The first two churches were log edifices and the stone church which stands today was built in 1832.On May 13, 1809, Christian Ankeny, Jr. and his wife Mary, of Somerset Township, Somerset County, Pennsylvania, sold a tract of 60¼ acres in Somerset Township to Ulrick Ellenberger of Somerset Township for $693, which tract had been conveyed to Christian Ankeny Jr. on May 9, 1808; by Killian Lichtenberger and his wife Catharina. (Deed Book of Somerset County, Volume 5, page 102) Ellenberger is buried in Ankeny Square with his tombstone reading “Ulrick Ellenberger died May 20,1831, aged 59 years, 2 months, and 15 days.This sketch on Mary Shaver comes from the George Shaver Manuscript; which was tendered to the Somerset County
Historical Society by a descendant of Professor Chester L. Shaver, deceased.

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The Christian Angeny Family
Christian Ankeny, Jr.
7G. Peter Ankney was born January 14, 1824, died January 17, 1892.
M#1. Nancy Beatty and they had 7 children.
She was born August 15, 1819, died October 11, 1865. Her birth date is computed from the age marked on her tombstone in Pleasant Grove Cemetery. She was the mother of (7) seven children, two of whom grew to maturity. The age on her tombstone states her age to have been 46 years, 1 month, and 26 days. She evidently died in an epidemic as certain deaths of her children show. Isaac's family at this time is the work of Charles Ross Shultz.
M#2. Alice Fry and they had 19 children. There are 26 children between the 2 marriages.
(Whew!!!, all letters of the alphabet.) HSA
8A. Isaac Ankney
8B. David B. Ankney
8C. Emanuel Ankney
8D. John W. Ankney
8E. Amos Ankney
8F. Mary Ankney
8G. Catherine Ankney
8H. Freeman Ankney
8I. Della Mae Ankney
8J. Elwood Beltz Ankney
8K. Sarah S. Ankney
8L. Lawrence Albert Ankney
8M. Nettie Rachel Ankney
8N. Gilbert Peter Ankney
8O. Watson M. Ankney
8P. Ella Norah Ankney
8Q. Jacob Harry Ankney
8R. Josiah Ankney
8S. Charles A. Ankney
8T. Ratie A. Ankney
8U. Stella E. Ankney
8V. Clida B. Ankney
8W. Herman Henry Ankney
8X. James Henry Ankney
8Y. Eli H. Ankney
8Z. Infant Female _____ Ankney

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8H. Freeman Ankney was born January 5, 1868, died 1944 M. Jennie Perkey on November 16, 1892 and had 4 children. She was born 1872, died December 16, 1958.
9A. Charles Harry Ankney
9B. John Gilbert Ankney
9C. Raymond Winfield Ankney
9D. Mabel E. Ankney

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9D. Mabel E. Ankney was born April 18, 1899, died May 23, 1950.
M. Arthur Miller Wolford on December 14, 1918. They had 3 children.
He was born May 1, 1897
At the time of their meeting they were school teachers.
Information and family stories on this family came from Genetta Wolford.
They live in Waterford, Pa.

BORN AGAIN
HAPPY BIRTHDAY JOHANNAH

Dear Johannah,
Tears of joy flowed when your Daddy told us that you have the spiritual understanding and have accepted Jesus Christ as your LORD and Savior. This is always a joyous time for those who love the Lord. Did you know that about 80% of those claiming Jesus as Lord have a problem of unfruitfulness as is mentioned in Matthew 21:18-20? When you love HIM you joyfully bear fruit, and serve HIM as we find in Matthew 7:15-23 and John 15:1-5.
We have prayed for this great day since your Mommy and Daddy notified us of our becoming Grandparents. So we now see GOD answering one more of our prayers. This truly is he greatest joy one can receive and know that one more of our family has accepted the Lord and will be with us while we serve GOD throughout eternity.
You are now one of GOD's warriors. The war is against the "old nature" by our "new nature". The old nature (habits and human characteristics) will war against your new nature (Fruit of The Spirit - See Galatians 5:22-26). Christians make themselves look good on the outside by doing so many things to their appearance but we must work each day on what we look at (T.V., Books etc.), what we listen to (radio, what our friends tell us ex. gossip, Jokes etc.) and what we think about. Matthew 23:13-36 tells us what we should guard against, keeping in mind that God sees your heart. Each Christian is to look closely at their motives, urges, memories, and attitudes. Once we have done this we will find our cup and dish clean on the inside.
[W?]e have been a child of GOD for fifty years but no one told us how to "walk the walk" with Jesus and have each year's experience a "closer and richer" one. Some of the "Spiritual Tools" that we have found helpful will not stop you from sinning (stumbling) at times but you will stop sinning habitually. You will be closer to Jesus in many ways. Jesus knows your strengths and weaknesses. You are now indwelt with the Holy Spirit and nothing can separate you from the love of Jesus. With much love we are now listing what we find very important in our daily walk with God. No matter how old you are you will find life full of trials and tribulations with many "pot holes" that one can fall into when we take our eyes off Jesus. No matter how deep and difficult we find the valley experience Jesus Is Always There With Us.

"Grandma & Grandpa Gorden's Helps"

I Fellowship With Our Lord in Prayer Daily.
A. Repent Of All Sins Daily
B. Put On The Full Armor Of God (Ephesians 6:10-20) Daily.
1. Refer To Attached Prayer We Use Daily
2. Refer To "Winning The War Within" By Charles Stanely.
C. Salvation and Physical Healing For Those On "Daily Prayer List".
II Read And Study Of Both Old & New Testaments Daily.
III Self Evaluation Of Christian Character Daily.
A. Strengths/Weaknesses.
B. Plan For Year And Goal Review.
1. Plan Of Action For Christian Growth.
2. Completion Date -Evaluation.
3. List Areas of Completion And Any Action Required.
4. List Areas Where GOD Is Not First.
5. Set Priorities Of Obedience And Dependance Which Are Essential To Real Change.
6. Ask The Tough Questions And Face The Hard Issues So That You Do Not Miss A Transforming Encounter With God.
7. Be Honest And Look At What Is Happening In Your Life With GOD.
C. Mirror Vision Test
1. Deal With The Fact That You Are Saved From The Penalty And Power Of Sin (The Old Nature) Must Be Remembered.
2. Look Closely At Your Motives, Urges, Memories, And Attitudes. (Deep Longings And Wrong Strategies Are Seen In Jeremiah 2:13).
3. Be Sure That You Are Not Just Coping With Life. Changing As Jesus Describes It Involves More Than Cleaning Up Your Visible Act. Jesus Tells Us To Climb Down Into The Sewers And Do Something About The Filth Beneath The Concrete (Dark Regions Of Our Soul). Jesus Wants Us To Face Reality As It Is, Including Fears, Hurts, Resentments, Self Protecting Motives That We Work Hard To Keep Out Of Sight And To Emerge As Changed People. Most Of Us Insulate Ourself From The Feedback Of Others Who Find Us Unloving And We Deny The Evidence In Our Soul, That More Is Wrong Than We Know How To Handle.

There is much more that could be said but you should know that each day we hold you and your family up in prayer, that what you experience as a new Christian others have had the same problems. Don't look to man as a hero or a "Great Example". because man/woman will mess up a one car funeral. Only Jesus is to be your "Great Example". Only with the Holy Spirit guiding and warning you of danger, only with God's word defending, comforting, teaching and prevailing against the power of the devil and Jesus interceding for you each day, will you have that joy of hearing Jesus say Well Done My Good And Faithful Servant.
With much love we send this letter. Pray for us each day. We are no different than you Johannah, we are no better than you. We are down the pathway of life farther than you and this letter is full of one thing that is love for our Granddaughter who has been blessed with God's Greatest Gift which is SALVATION.
Love In Christ Jesus,
[Missing Text. Would be signed "Grandpa and Grandma Gorden" or something similar.]

"Prayer Partner Letter No. 4" 7/11/94

Dear Ones,

Since the 5/18/94 update we have lived in clinics, therapy centers, doctor's offices and hospitals. A "base of tests" have been completed for future reference as Arthetta's body adjust to the termini changes of Muscular Dystrophy. The "LIMITED THERAPY" (Physical and Occupational) consist of how to do various movements with the minimum of pain. Keep in mind that pain is being caused by Osteoarthritis, Rupture Of Five Spinal Discs, and Muscular Dystrophy. Presently she is wearing a Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS) Unit for pain relief. On Monday, Wednesday and Friday she will be at the Florida Hospital Rehabilitation Center for some "limited" therapy. We Received good news that steroid medication would not be given. My/Our request from you is to pray daily for Arthetta with regard to God's Will for the following: 1.) Healing 2.) Pain Relief, and 3.) Being Able To Cope. We thank our Lord and Savior each day for so many things but you can be assured that the prayer partners are on the top of the thank you list.

We have been in much prayer about what should we do no that the tests are over until sometime in 1995. We are sure God wants us to to our best for Him so on July 18, we will start our travels to the North. After many rest stops we will get some grandchildren and children therapy. We just heard last week that in Feb. 95 we will be grandparents again. You see God just keeps filling [Began underlining] our [Ended underlining] cups daily. I will complete two volunteer assignments with SOWERS (Servants On Wheels Ever Ready Servants) in PA. and Virginia (If God Wills It). We plan on returning to Florida Oct 3. Again if God wills it, I will do one more SOWER project in November 94.

If any of you have any questions about what information is listed in this letter just ask. Our mail will be forwarded to us. Love you all in the name of our Savior Jesus Christ.

In His Arms,

Dale I. Gorden [In cursive]

P.S. Arthetta will not be working on the SOWER projects so she asked that the letter show that she was not working on the various projects.

12/2/02

Dear ____,

Greetings in the precious name of JESUS CHRIST. GOD continues to be so very good to Arthetta and I. We both turn 70 years old this year. It is so exciting to start our last 50 years on this earth unless GOD has other plans. We never miss praying for you. Our goal is to alway stay focused on serving and glorifying our LORD JESUS. [Began underlining] We have found that the greatest adversity produces the greatest blessings. James 1:2 has truly become very vivid in our life. [Ended underlining] On Page 2 of this "Christmas Letter" is our favorite legend. We give it to you for your [Began underlining] daily encouragement [Ended underlining] source. Arthetta's Mom read this story to their three girls 68 years ago. The older we get the more we experience and many of these same experiences direct us to inter-related experiences. As an example of this fact we will use Arthetta's experience with Muscular Dystrophy (M.D.).

1. Year 1982 - We started seeing upper body changes plus experiencing constant back pain.
2. Year 1990 - Dale took early retirement at age 58 due to this concern.
3. Year 1990 - We resigned after 18 years with the Gideons Intl. We joined the Servants On Wheels Ever Ready Servant [First letter of each word underlined] (SOWERS) organization. Both organizations were [Began underlining] great spiritual highs. [Ended underlining] [Began underlining] What a Joy. [Ended underlining]
4. Year 1992 - Arthetta was diagnosed with M.D. (F.S.H. Type). 95% of all her body muscle was gone based on biopsy.
5. Year 1994 - Sold the Airstream/Suburban Tow Vehicle and purchased a Motorhome (M.H.) because of two reasons: (a.) Arthetta's loss of muscle caused severe pain in her arm sockets. (b.) Arthetta's need to exercise while traveling.
6. Year 2000 - Sold our Florida home and moved into M.H.
7. Year 2001 - Arthetta fell 4 times with no known reason. Four major changes resulted from these falls: (a) Resigned from SOWERS after eleven plus [Began underlining] great [Ended underlining] years. (b.) Sold M.H. (c.). Purchased home at (126 College View Blvd. Westminster, MD) GOD willing we'll be here May [Began underlining] Thru [Ended underlining] October. (d.) Purchased/Built home on R.V. Lot #660 in Apopka, FL. GOD willing we'll be here November [Began underlining] Thru [Ended underlining] April.
8. Year 2002 - October 22, Arthetta experienced permanent damage from an M.D. Stress Attack resulting in 75% Loss of all strength.

Arthetta's fourth cancer surgery will occur 12/18/02. Jesus is in the valleys and mountain tops. [Began underlining] Arthetta is my hero. [Ended underlining]

(OVER)

[Second page is missing]

"To ALL PRAYER PARTNERS" 1/3/04

We covet your prayers for Arthetta. At age of 50 years (1982) she started seeing the effects of M.D. (Type FSH) and in 1992 Shands Medical Center found she had lost 95% of her muscle in body. To this day she has various changes occurring. Prayers of the family of Jesus Christ is [Began underlining] all [Ended underlining] that makes it possible for her to cope. GOD is so good to us.

In addition to the M.D. Arthetta has experienced the following.

1. 1998 - 1st Mastectomy with loss of right arm and loss of immune system. [Note: This means that the movement of her arm and the here immune system were both impeded]
2. 2001 - Started falling without known cause.
3. 2002 - 1st Heart Attack and Loss of Swallowing Abiltity. [Note: Grandma's swallowing was made very difficult, but not impossible. She continued eating on her own until shortly before she died.]
4. 2003 - 2nd Mastectomy.
5. 2003 - 2nd Heart Attack.
6. 2003 - Arms and Legs Spasms.

Starting in 1982 and each year there after, tests show her chest cavity to get smaller which affects her lungs and heart. I did fail to list the 1991 stroke she experienced.

Please understand we are [Began underlining] not [Ended underlining] complaining about any of these changes. Our Lord Jesus is the one that suffered for us big time. We just ask for a few moments each day of your time. We thank you and may GOD BLESS [Possible missing text from photocopying]