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Henry Alexander Colwell
HENRY ALEXANDER COLWELL, president of the National Kittanning Bank and vice
president and superintendent of the Kittanning Iron and Steel Manufacturing
Company, the former one of the leading financial institutions of that borough,
the latter one of the most important industrial concerns of Armstrong county,
is a citizen whose value has been demonstrated through his long and intimate
connection with affairs affecting the welfare of this entire section.The members of the Colwell or Caldwell family have used various spellings
of the name, the form Caldwell prevailing among a large number for several
generations. It is also found written Coldwell and Coaldwell. Caldwell applied
to place and family is traced in England, Scotland, Ireland and France, and
from England, Scotland and Ireland emigrated many of the name to New England.
Again, Coldwell as applied to place and family appears as remotely as in the
time of the Conqueror, 1066-87, whom it is said the family accompanied to
England, participating in the stirring events of that day. In Scotland the
Caldwells, of Calswell in Ayrshire, had become a prominent family as early as
1349, at which date it furnished a chancellor of Scotland.William Colwell, the grandfather of Henry Alexander Colwell, was the first
of his ancestors to settle in America, coming from Ireland. His elder brother,
Alexander, had preceded him to this country, and lived at Kittanning among the
early residents of that place. In 1814-15 he was engaged in the manufacture of
nails at Kittanning. He married Margaret Henry. William Colwell was a farmer
by occupation. He and his wife, whose maiden name was Bingham, settled in what
is now East Franklin township, Armstrong Co., Pa., and they lived to advanced
age. They were Presbyterians in religious faith. Among their children were:
James, William, John Alexander, Mark and two daughters, Mary A. (who died when
a young girl) and Mrs. John Barnett. Mark Colwell’s widow lives on a farm two
miles west of Kittanning over the river.John Alexander Colwell, son of William, was one of the leading citizens of
his generation in Armstrong county. A native of the North of Ireland, born
(Possibly in county Derry) in 1812, he was twelve years old when he came to
this country, with the rest of the family. He lived in Kittanning with his
uncle Alexander, who was engaged in business as a merchant, and was associated
with him as clerk and partner in the store. In 1844, in the Mahoning Furnace
on Mahoning creek, in Pine (now Mahoning) township, Mr. Shunk withdrawing from
this association in 1845. This was one of the first places where pig metal was
made, and though it was not the first establishment of the kind in Armstrong
county, Mr. Colwell may be regarded as one of the pioneer iron manufacturers
of this region. He continued with his uncle until the latter died, about
1866-67, leaving his interest to his daughters, who sold it to John Alexander
Colwell and his son Henry Alexander Colwell, the business being still
conducted under the name of J. A. Colwell & Co. until 1878, when they
abandoned the plant. In October, 1879, father and son joined James E. Brown,
James Mosgrove and Charles T. Neale, of Kittanning, and several Pittsburgh men
associated under the style of Graff, Bennett & Co. (John Graff, James I.
Bennett, Robert Marshall and Henry King), in the organization of the
Kittanning Iron Company (Limited), with a capital of $150,000. Purchasing the
property of James E. Brown, Trustee, they enlarged the facilities and began
the manufacture of iron on an extensive scale. Within a few years great
improvements had been effected and many additions made to the plant, the
latter including a large blast furnace, part of the product of which was sold
and part manufactured by the company into muck bar. New puddling furnaces were
constructed and old ones repaired, and all necessary machinery for the
manufacture of iron in all its forms was installed. In its early days the
company spent fully $100,000 (then an immense sum) in tracks, etc. Moreover,
about a year after organizing they purchased a gas well three miles west of
the works, to which the gas was conveyed in large pipes for use in puddling.
The company acquired another important adjunct to the business in the
ownership of several thousand acres of iron land, and leased several thousand
more, in the Allegheny valley, in Armstrong and Clarion counties, using the
ore therefrom in the blast furnace without admixture. The pig iron for the
puddling furnace was taken from the blast furnace to the rolling mill and was
there converted into muck iron. About five hundred pounds of Lake ore was used
in addition to the pig iron to produce one gross ton of muck iron. A part of
the coke used was made at the works from coal mined in the vicinity. Thus it
will be seen that a great plant was built up by this enterprising concern, and
the fact that it afforded employment to several hundred men, about four
hundred in the neighborhood and three hundred elsewhere, chiefly at the ore
mines, made it one of the valuable institutions of this part of the State. It
has had a continuous existence to the present, and with increased capital and
equipment is now conducted under the name of the Kittanning Iron and Steel
Manufacturing Company. A branch has also been established at Pittsburgh. Henry
A. Colwell is now the only survivor of the original organizers. The
establishment is the only one of its kind in Armstrong county. John A. Colwell
continued to be prominently connected therewith until his death, which
occurred in February, 1902. He was an able business man, one who gained and
held the confidence of his associates. He was a member of the Masonic
fraternity and of the Presbyterian Church. He and his wife, Rebecca (Pritner)
Colwell, had a family of seven children, five of whom are yet (1913) living.
Wilson, the first born, died in infancy, and Mary, wife of Edward H. Jennings,
president of the Colonial Trust Company of Pittsburgh, Pa., is also deceased.Henry Alexander Colwell was born July 15, 1844, in Kittanning, Armstrong
Co., Pa. He attended school at Mahoning Furnace, Pa., later was a pupil in the
academy at Sewickley, Pa., for two years, and for one year attended school at
Elder’s Ridge, Pa. In 1861 he found employment at Kittanning as a clerk in the
general mercantile establishment of McConnell & Campbell, with whom he
remained about eighteen months. He next entered the employ of R. L. Brown
& Co., who had an iron and rolling mill business at Kittanning, remaining
with them about two years, and in March, 1865, took the position of
superintendent at the Mahoning iron furnace. So well did he look after the
affairs of that company in this responsible capacity that he became his
father’s partner and remained there until the plant was abandoned, as before
related, in the spring of 1878. In 1879 he became a partner and foreman of the
coal and iron mines of the Kittanning Iron Company (Limited), of which his
father was one of the organizers, this concern in time becoming the Kittanning
Iron and Steel Company. He has since been associated with this business, of
which he has been one of the owners since 1879, and he is now the last
survivor of the original group who organized this company. Upon the
reorganization, when the concern took its present title, Mr. Colwell became
vice president and superintendent, which position he has since filled. About
three hundred hands are now regularly employed, a fact which makes the
prosperity of the plant of the utmost importance to the well-being of the
locality. Mr. Colwell is an all-around business man, and in addition to his
manufacturing and banking interests has valuable holdings of farm lands in the
county, which he has managed with the same good judgment which marks his
conduct of other affairs. He is prominently associated with local financial
institutions, being president of the National Kittanning Bank and a director
of the Farmers’ National Bank.On Jan. 16, 1867, Mr. Colwell married Phebe Bratton Mosgrove, daughter of
James and Rebecca J. (Brown) Mosgrove, of Kittanning, and they have three
children: (1) James Mosgrove, who died at Salem, Va., April 26, 1913, was
married twice, his first wife being Marion Hyde, his second Ida M. Sparry.
There was one son by the first marriage, James Mosgrove Colwell, and by the
second there were two sons, Craig Alexander and Henry Alexander. (2) John A.
Married Helen Wally, of Troy, N. Y., and they had two children, Phoebe
Mosgrove, wife of John D. Bibb, of Montgomery, Ala., and Henry Alexander. The
father died Aug. 6, 1913, at Anniston, Ala. (3) Henry Clifford is unmarried
and lives at home in Kittanning.Mr. Colwell is a Mason, belonging to Blue Lodge No. 244 at Kittanning, and
he is a member of the Pennsylvania Society of New York. He and his wife attend
the Episcopal Church.JOHN MOSGROVE, grandfather of Mrs. Henry Alexander Colwell, was born in
Ireland, and was quite young when he came to this country. He was one of the
first settlers at Kittanning, Armstrong county, having come to this region
about the time this place was laid out. He continued to live there until his
death, following his trade, that of carpenter, during the greater part of his
residence at Kittanning. He married Mary Gillespie, daughter of John
Gillespie, a pioneer of Armstrong county. She was a cousin of James G. Blaine.
John Gillespie conveyed 116 acres and 100 perches to Nicholas Clark in West
Franklin township, June 28, 1848 for $1,000; 71 acres and 106 perches Clark
conveyed to James Blaine, April 2, 1858, for $925. Five children were born to
their union, two sons and three daughters, namely: James is mentioned below;
Andres J., an attorney by profession, entered the united States volunteer
service during the Mexican war and died while in the army; Margaret married
Thomas B. Storey; Phebe Isabella married Judge Jackson Bogg; Anna Jane married
Simon Truby.HON. JAMES MOSGROVE, son of John and Mary (Gillespie) Mosgrove, was born
June 14, 1821, in Kittanning. When a youth he took a position as clerk in the
Buffalo Furnace in Armstrong county and from the first showed such remarkable
qualities in the way of business ability and trustworthiness that he rose
rapidly in the confidence and esteem of his employers, who within a
comparatively short time gave him the management of the furnace. About the
time of his marriage he entered into partnership with his brother-in-law,
James E. Brown, of Kittanning, becoming part owner and active manager of the
Pine Creek Furnace, with which he was connected in that capacity from 1845 to
1880. During that period he experienced many phases of the prosperity of the
iron business, and he also acquired extensive interests in other lines, his
versatility and superior judgment making him a desirable associate in whatever
field he chose to enter. He was engaged extensively in the production of oil,
was president of the Kittanning Iron Works, and was also prominently connected
with the First National Bank of Kittanning, which he served as president from
the death of James E. Brown until its charter expired in July, 1882; he was
one of the organizers of that institution. He also served as president of its
successor, the National Bank of Kittanning, being the largest stockholder in
this bank.Mr. Mosgrove was also prominent in public life, and in politics was always
associated with the Democratic party. He was, however, nominated for Congress
by the Greenbacks in 1878, not because he had joined the party but because he
had for so many years been a champion of its financial doctrines. The
Democrats did not indorse the nomination, as was expected, so although he ran
far ahead of the normal Greenback vote he was not elected. In 1880 he was
again the Congressional nominee, this time of both the Democratic and
Greenback parties, and though the district was Republican won the election by
756 votes. In 1882 he was renominated, but he declined to run. His service was
characteristic of the man, intelligent, efficient and faithful, and the
Twenty-fifth district felt honored in sending so creditable a representative
to Congress. He never sought an office of any kind, the honor coming to him
entirely without any activity on his part. During his period in Congress and
after he came home took an active interest in advocating pensions for
soldiers’ widows. He was a senior warden and took active interest in St.
Paul’s Episcopal Church.In 1845 Mr. Mosgrove married Rebecca Jane Brown, daughter of Robert Brown.
In an old volume printed in 1801, “Baronets Created by King James
I.,” we find under “Musgrave of Eden-Hall, Cumberland,” created
baronet June 29, 1611, that the family is of great antiquity and reputation,
and came into England with the Conqueror, settling at Musgrave in
Westmoreland.Arms: Azure, six annulets, or 3, 2, and I (that is, three annulets in the
top row, two in the next and one in the lower). Crest: Two arms in armor,
proper, gauntleted, and grasping an annulet, or. Motto: Sans changer.Seats: Eden-Hall, Cumberland, and Kempton-Park, Middlesex. There are also
Musgraves of Myrtle Grove, County Cork, Ireland; Tourain Cappoquin, County
Waterford, Ireland; Ashby, Musgrave and Hartley Castle, County of
Westmoreland, England; Norton Conyers, County Cork, Ireland.In “Ancedotes of Heraldry, in which is set forth the origin of the
armorial bearings of many families,” by C. N. Elvin, M. A. (1864), we
find the story of the six rings, as follows:The family of Musgrave is of German origin, and they are said to have
obtained their arms in the following way: Sigismund, grand duke of Austria,
had a daughter distinguished for beauty and accomplishments, whose hand was
sought by two of the generals, Musgrave being one of them. As they were of
equal rank and had both rendered him important service, Sigismund was very
unwilling to prefer one to the other; but finally, at the suggestion of the
lady, who secretly loved Musgrave and was aware of his skill as a lance, he
decided that the two should run six courses at the ring-a game then very much
in vogue-and that whichever of them should bear it off the greater number of
times should become the husband of his daughter. The candidates accepted these
conditions gladly, and when the day of trial came Musgrave showed the lady
that her confidence in him had not been misplaced; for with a degree of skill
utterly unprecedented he bore the ring six times following to the utter
confusion of his opponent, who however could not repine at the fulfillment of
conditions which he had himself accepted. The Grand Duke accordingly gave his
daughter to Musgrave, and for arms commemorative of the event six annulets or
on a field of azure; with crest, two arms armed proper holding an annulet.Mrs. Henry A. Colwell has a representation of the arms, done in color.
Mrs. Colwell’s mother, Rebecca J. (Brown) Mosgrove, was a half-sister of
James E. Brown, partner of James Mosgrove in the Pine Creek Furnace and of him
and the Colwells in the Kittanning Iron Company. It is said no other person
was so closely connected with the growth and development of Armstrong county.
The ancestry of the Brown family had been traced back over two hundred years,
to the James Brown who was killed at the battle of the Boyne, and there has
been a James in every generation from him since, James E. Brown being the
fifth generation to have that Christian name. This soldier was a Scotchman,
and was a member of the Farmers’ regiment known as the Enniskillen dragoons,
composed entirely, according to the old song, of men “six feet two
without a shoe”. His son James had two sons, John by his first wife and
James by his second, Grazilla (Kennedy), and these brothers, John and James,
were the great-grandfather and grandfather of Charles E. Brown, the former in
the paternal and the latter in the maternal line. John Brown had a son John,
who married Margaret Eaton and by her had nine children, Betty (Mrs.
Thompson), Jane (Mrs. Hughes), Nancy (Mrs. Montgomery), John, Joseph, Robert,
George, James and William. By his second wife, whose maiden name was Irwin, he
had Thomas, Frank, Irwin, Margaret and Mary.Robert Brown, father of James E. and son of John (2), was born in Ireland
in 1775, and came to this country about 1795. Soon afterward he married
Rebecca Brown, daughter of James Brown, mentioned formerly as uncle of John
Brown (2), who was fourteen years older than his uncle. James Brown served as
a soldier in the Revolutionary war. He was living in Carlisle, Pa., at the
time of his daughter Rebecca’s marriage. After marriage Robert and Rebecca
Brown settled near Ebenezer, in Indiana county, PA., and there their son James
E. was born May 5, 1799. For his second wife Robert Brown married Phoebe
Bratton, and she was the mother of Rebecca J., who married James Mosgrove,
they becoming the parents of Mr. Henry Alexander Colwell.Mrs. Phoebe (Bratton) Brown was a daughter of James Bratton, a
Revolutionary soldier, who was a native of Ireland and rented a large tract of
land in Mifflin county, PA. Among the “killed, wounded and missing”
in Colonel Armstrong’s Company, Of Kittanning, 1756, we find Ephraim Bratton,
wounded. in 1768 James Bratton married Isabella Bratton, and they had six
children: Jane (Mrs. Parks), William, Elizabeth (Mrs. Starks), George, Phoebe
(born March 13, 1788, married Robert Brown, as his second wife) and Robert,
James Bratton’s widow married Alexander Stolford, by whom she had one
daughter, Margaret, Mrs. Stuart.Mrs. Colwell has her sampler, worked beautifully in silk, on which we read:
“Phoebe Bratton, daughter of James and Isabella Bratton, was born March
13, 1788, and made her sampler in Mrs. Armstrong’s school, Lancaster, (Pa.),
in the year of our Lord 1805. Teach me the measure of my days thou maker of my
frame. I would survey lifes narrow space and learn how frail I am.”Source: Pages 560-563, Armstrong County, Pa., Her People, Past and
Present, J.H. Beers & Co., 1914
Transcribed December 1998 by Connie Mateer for the Armstrong County Beers
Project
Contributed for use by the Armstrong County Genealogy Project (http://www.pa-roots.com/armstrong/)Armstrong County Genealogy Project Notice:
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