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Thomas Newton McKee
THOMAS NEWTON McKEE, M.D., an eminent physician and surgeon of Kittanning,
belongs to old pioneer stock of Sugar Creek township, Armstrong county, where
he was born Nov. 18, 1867, on his father�s farm—the old homestead place of
his grandfather. His parents were Thomas Vincent and Mary (Craig) McKee, and
on both sides he belongs to the hardy Scotch-Irish race which has done so much
for Pennsylvania.The Doctor is a great-grandson of Andrew McKee, who was born in 1747, in
Ireland, and coming to America prior to the Revolution settled in Cumberland
county, Pa., near Carlisle. He served in the Revolutionary war from the
beginning to the close, in two regiments, in March, 1776, becoming a private
in the company of Captain Adams, Colonel Irwin�s regiment, Pennsylvania
troops, with which he served sixteen months. In June, 1780, he again enlisted,
this time in Captain Zeigler�s company, Colonel Stewart�s regiment, and
served till the end of the war. Afterward he came to Allegheny county, Pa.,
settling at what is now McKeesport, named after another branch of this family.
After several years� residence there he moved to Armstrong county, first
living in what is now East Franklin township, near where Montgomeryville now
stands, and there building what was originally known as McKee�s mill, later
the Christman mills. He settled on a heptagonal tract of 403 acres, 136
perches, probably about 1797, and in 1805 and 1806 was assessed at $131, 400
acres, one horse and one cow. By virtue of his improvement, settlement and
residence on that tract he had a joint interest in it with Francis Johnston,
and in the partition between them McKee took the southern part, most of which
is now in East Franklin township. In the latter part of 1814, or early in
1815, McKee and John Christman agreed to sell and purchase the former�s
interest, and the latter built his gristmill on Limestone run, with which, 400
acres, one horse and one cow he was first assessed in the last mentioned year,
at $307. He built his sawmill five years later. McKee obtained the patent
April 19, 1820, and conveyed to Christman 201 acres, 148 perches, June 27, for
$1,100. Charles Campbell conveyed to Robert Orr, Sr., and John Patton 100
acres, 36 perches, which he had agreed to sell to James Fulton, in trust for
the persons claiming under Fulton, which they conveyed to Andrew McKee, Sr.,
Dec. 25, 1820, who had agreed to purchase, and had paid the purchase money for
the same. It appears 140 acres of this tract was vested in John Brown, for he
conveyed that quantity to Andrew and Thomas McKee, Oct. 25, 1819, for $775,
which became vested in the latter, who conveyed 115 acres to his son, Thomas
V. McKee, July 17, 1855, for $800. Andrew McKee conveyed 100 acres, 36
perches, to Andrew Rodgers Dec. 27, 1830, for $800, which with another parcel,
his heirs conveyed to Joseph and Samuel Rodgers, Nov. 17, 1849, for $1
“as well as other good considerations.” By his will, dated Dec. 11,
1860, and registered March 13, 1862, he devised his real estate equally to his
daughters. The Johnston purport is chiefly in what is now Washington township.
McKee�s name appears in several land transactions in Sugar Creek township.
From East Franklin township Andrew McKee removed to West Franklin, settling
where his grandson, James B. McKee, now lives (and which place is now owned by
his great-grandson, James H. McKee) and where he died in 1835, when
eighty-eight years of age. He held several local offices of trust. He had a
large funeral, all who attended riding horseback or walking; the roads to the
cemetery at Cowansville, four miles distant, were so bad that the remains were
hauled on a half wagon, the front wheels, on which was a bed on which the
coffin was placed. His grave is decorated by the Sons of the American
Revolution of the State of Pennsylvania; he was a gallant patriot. McKee
married Mary Blanford, who is buried beside him, and she was by act of
Pennsylvania Assembly, December, 1838, granted a pension as the widow of a
soldier of the Revolutionary and Indians wars. They had children: (1) William,
his eldest son, was the first man buried in the Union cemetery at Cowansville.
His father, Andrew McKee, lies beside him; the former was accidentally killed
at a barn raising. (2) John. (3) James made an improvement and settlement in
East Franklin township on a tract of 434 acres, 134 perches, about 1797. In
1805 he was assessed with 400 acres as a single man, at $100, and the next
year, as married, and with one horse and one cow, at $121. Philip Anthony
conveyed 108 acres to McKee for $400, which he conveyed to Anthony Montgomery,
Oct. 17, 1812, for $600, who reconveyed to him 108 acres of the southwestern
part, May 20, 1813, for five shillings and his bonds for $500. (4) Joseph
settled on a tract of over 400 acres lying principally in Washington township,
partly in East Franklin township, and was assessed with 400 acres of it in
1804 at $80. He was later assessed with a smaller quantity, the last time in
1810, with 200 acres. In Will Book II, page 15, of Armstrong county, may be
found the will of Joseph McKee, dated Aug. 1, 1851: “First I give and
bequeath to my son Thomas McKee all the farm we now live on, to my beloved
wife Jane, should she survive me, all the household furniture, etc. and the
house in which I live during her natural life, cows, brass clock, etc., to
dispose of as she sees fit. I direct that my son Thomas McKee pay unto my
daughter Sarah Davis, one dollar, to Ann Rasher one dollar, to Joseph McKee
one dollar, to Margaret Kelly one dollar, and to Martha Hart one dollar.”
(5) Rev. Andrew. (6) Thomas (7) Polly married a Stewart. (8) Jane married a
Mr. Henry of Armstrong county. (9) Nancy married a Mr. Hanna, a river captain.Thomas McKee settled in Sugar Creek township. He was born March 1, 1790, in
Cumberland county, Pa., and died Aug. 8, 1865. He became a farmer when a young
man, and after his marriage to Margaret Blaine, daughter of James and Deborah
(Baird) Blaine, he purchased the farm now owned by William Foster, near Adams
post office. About 1828 he moved from there to Sugar Creek township, and
purchased a farm adjoining Robert Hays, afterward his son-in-law. On Sept. 15,
1831, Thomas Foster conveyed to Thomas McKee 265 acres, 135 acres for $450,
five acres, two perches, of which he conveyed to Thomas Templeton, April 28,
1832, for $14. Mr. McKee resided there until his decease, opening his store
there prior to 1860. He died intestate, and in proceedings in partition the
inquest valued the residue of this parcel, 264 acres, as surveyed by J.E.
Meredith, Feb. 2, 1867, at $8,740, which was not taken by any of the heirs at
the appraisement, but all of them expect one having conveyed their interests
to Thomas V. McKee, the court decreed June 3, 1867, that this land be awarded
to him.Mrs. Margaret (Blaine) McKee was born Aug. 5, 1793, and died Sepy. 17,
1859. Thomas and Margaret (Blaine) McKeee raised fourteen children, seven sons
and seven daughters, namely: (1) Deborah Jane married Robert Hays, and they
became the parents of Hon. Thomas Hays, of Butler county, Pa. (2) Harvey
followed farming and later became a merchant in what is now Cowansville, in
East Franklin township, where he died. He married Phebe Foster, daughter of
Alexander Foster. They left no children. (3) James B., now (1913) ninety-three
years of age, is a farmer, residing on the place where his grandfather, Andrew
McKee, lived and died. He rode one of the two horses that drew the two-wheeled
hearse on which his grandfather was carried to his grave. He married Catherine
Patton. (4) William, a farmer, married Miss Martha Pence, and he and his life
died in Lathrop, Mo. (5) Mary Ann is the wife of David Reed, a farmer of East
Franklin township; his nephew, Hon. Thomas Hays, owns his old farm. (6) Ellen
married James Herron, a farmer of East Franklin township (near Worthington),
and they moved to a farm at Joplin, Mo., where they died. (7) Nancy became the
wife of James Templeton, and they moved to near Altoona, Ill., where they
engaged in farming and died. (8) John B. went to California in 1849, and in
1874, had four thousand acres in wheat and barley near Salinas Ca., where his
family reside. He had children late in his life. (9) Thomas Vincent is
mentioned below. (10) Margaret married John Patton and resided in Sugar Creek
township. She and her husband are both deceased. They left a family. (11)
Eliza is the widow of William Cowan, a farmer, and is now living with her
children at Coal Town, Ill. (12) Joseph married Mary Munson and moved to
California, where she died; his death occurred in Oregon. Their son, Munson
McKee, lives in Pittsburgh. (13) Rachel, twin of Joseph, married Samuel J.
Gibson, and they were engaged in farming near Galvia, Ill., where their family
now reside. (14) Cryus K. enlisted in the 103d Regiment, Pennsylvania
Volunteer Infantry, during the Civil War, became sergeant, and died soon
afterward in North Carolina, in 1864, while a prisoner of war. He married
Elvira Fulton, who resides in Worthington, Armstrong Co., Pa., with her
daughter, Mrs. Stella (McKee) McCulley.Thomas Vincent McKee, born May 11, 1829, in Armstrong county, followed
farming in both Washington and West Franklin townships. His father died
intestate, as previously related, and he became possessed of the homestead in
Sugar Creek township, which is still owned by the McKee family. The 115 acres
which Thomas McKee conveyed to his son Thomas V. McKee July 17, 1855, for
$800, was conveyed by the latter Oct. 2, 1866, to William Leard, for $3,300.
Thomas V. McKee served two terms as county commissioner. On March 9 (29),
1854, he was married, at the Craig homestead, to Mary Craig, who was born
Sept. 26, 1835, at the old Craig homestead, daughter of John and Eliza
(Huston) Craig, and died April 17, 1907. Mr. McKee died Jan. 3, 1899. They
were members of he Worthington Presbyterian Church, and both were buried in
the cemetery adjoining that church. Ten children were born to this union, as
follows: (1) Eva E. married George Ross of Kittanning, and had: May Van
Antwerp, deceased Nov. 13, 1906, who married Marcus D. Wayman; Capt. James G.,
United States engineer at Memphis, Tenn.; Elizabeth M.; Thomas V. McKee;
Washington M., and Helen Josephine. (2) Harvey C. died at the age of forty-two
years in South Dakota. He married Mary Leard, and they had three children,
Nora, Agatha and Herbert, who live, as does their mother, at Bonesteel, S. Dak.
(3) Margaret I. married James J. Titley, of Chicora, Pa., where he is engaged
in the oil business. They have six children, Blanch, Arthur, Ralph, Walter,
Helen, and Leroy. (4) Ella M. married James L. Garroway, a manufacturer, of
Butler, PA, and they have six children, Jessie, Grace, Blanch, Lucille, James
and Ruth. (5) Nannie L. married Preston Smith, who is now deceased, and she
resides at Leechburg, Pa. She has one son Paul P. (6) Dr. Thomas Newton is
mentioned below. (7) Jean M. is the wife of Dr. H.R. Kenneston, of Bonesteel,
S. Dak., and they have one son, Hampton Ray, Jr. (8) John Wilbert, D.D.S., is
the leading dentist of Butler, Pa. He married Mary B. Clark, and they have
three children, Genevieve, Clark and Edgar. (9) Arthur Vincent, attorney at
law, of Butler, married Lila Grubbs and they have two children, Arthur V. and
Mary V. (10) Raymond L., D.D.S., at present engaged in farming on his place
near Worthington, married Margaret Henry, and they have five children,
Gertrude, Mildred, Wilbur, Margaret, and Thomas C.Thomas Newton McKee began his education in the public schools of the home
district, and later attended Deanville Academy, to prepare himself for
teaching. For the following four years he taught public school, and then began
the study of medicine with Dr. C.J. Jessop, of Kittanning. While under Dr.
Jessop�s instruction, he was favored with exceptional opportunities for
acquiring experienced knowledge, especially along anatomical lines, and in the
dissecting room. Entering the University of Pittsburgh, he was graduated from
the medical department of that institution March 27, 1890, and then served a
year as resident physician at the West Pennsylvania Hospital. The following
year he located at Ford City, Pa., remaining there a few years, not only
engaging in active private practice but also as physician and surgeon for the
Pittsburgh Plate Glass Company. In the spring of 1894 he removed to Dubois,
Pa., where he remained about eighteen months, on Feb. 4, 1896, making another
change–coming to Kittanning, where he has since been located, building up a
large and constantly increasing practice. He has served as county medical
inspector, under the State board of health of Pennsylvania, and was
subsequently appointed county medical inspector, when the Pennsylvania
department of health was created in 1905, which office he still holds. He is
physician-in-charge of the Pennsylvania State Tuberculosis Dispensary, No. 24,
and has been a member of the medical staff of the Kittanning general hospital
since its organization. A prominent member of the Armstrong County Medical
Society, he has served as its president, and in 1910 was elected vice
president of the Pennsylvania State Medical Society. He was one of the vice
presidents of the International Tuberculosis Congress, which met in September,
1908, and delivered a lecture on Tuberculosis before the assembly.On Nov. 17, 1892, Dr. McKee was married by Rev. J.H. Southerland, now
chaplain in the United States army, to Mary Blanche Wayman, of Ford City, who
was born in Louisville, Ky., Sept. 15, 1873, and five children have been born
of this union: Marcus Vincent, born Sept. 18, 1893, was accidentally drowned
in the Mississippi river, near Caruthersville, Mo., Aug. 18, 1910, when within
a month of being seventeen years old; he was a high school boy of great
promise, and was preparing to take up engineering. Earl W., born Aug. 24,
1895, is just completing his high school course. Margaret M., born Nov. 4,
1897, is in high school. Thomas Craig was born July 16, 1901. Kenneth N. was
born July 14, 1903. Dr. and Mrs. McKee and their family are members of the
first Presbyterian Church. The Doctor�s ancestors have long been staunch
supporters of that denomination, and all his uncles on both sides, McKee and
Craig, served as Presbyterian elders. Mrs. McKee is a daughter of M. D. and
Margaret (Mongavin) Wayman, now living at Tarentum, Allegheny Co., Pa.; Mr.
Wayman, now retired, was a glass manufacturer of Pittsburgh during his active
career. He and his wife are Methodists in religious connection. Mrs. McKee
received her higher education at the Pennsylvania College for Women,
Pittsburgh, at the time Helen Pelletreau was principal of that institution.Fraternally Dr. McKee is a high Mason, being a member of Kittanning Lodge,
No.244 (of which he was master in 1901); Mount Moriah Council, No. 2, R. &
S. M.; Orient Chapter, No. 247, R. A. M. (high priest 1903); Pittsburgh
Commandery, No. 1, K.T. (held all the offices in that body and was installed
as eminent commander April 8, 1913); Pennsylvania Consistory, A. A. S. R.
(thirty-second degree, which he joined in 1902); and Syria Temple, A. A. O. N.
M. S.Dr. McKee�s ancestry in the Blaine and Craig lines is given fully
elsewhere in this work. (See Blaine and Craig family sketches.)Source: Pages 301-324 Armstrong County, Pa., Her People, Past and
Present, J.H. Beers, & Co. 1914
Transcribed September 1998 by Donna Sheaffer 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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