Wesley Pontious
The grandparents of Wesley Pontious*, on both sides, were
from Germany. His father and mother, Jacob and Elizabeth Pontious, who were
born, respectively November 3, 1783, and September 15, 1789, came from east of
the mountains to Wayne Township, Armstrong County, in 1816, Mr. Pontious
having been out the year previous and purchased 400 acres of land, over a
portion of which Dayton borough has since extended. Mr. and Mrs. Pontious were
the parents of nine children, whom they lived to see raised to industrious and
moral habits, and respectably settle in life. Their names, with dates of
birth, were as follows: Elias, born December 25, 1811; Wesley, July 31, 1813;
Ezra, December 15, 1814; Mary Ann, April 20, 1817; Eliza Jane, July 12, 1819;
Catherine, July 16, 1821; Maria, March 20, 1823; Margaret, November 15, 1826;
and John, January 30, 1828. Of these, Mary Ann, Eliza Jane, Maria and John are
now deceased. Jacob Pontious, the father, died in 1845, and Elizabeth, his
wife, in 1842.At the time when the elder Pontious made his settlement in Armstrong County
the region around his location was very sparsely peopled, and but little
improvement had been made. Many of the settlers gave more attention to hunting
than to clearing their lands. Jacob Pontious did not, however, belong to that
class�he was an industrious and enterprising man, and his children inherited
those characteristics. He started a tanyard upon his farm, taking into
partnership a young man who knew the trade. When Wesley Pontious was about
sixteen years of age, he went to work under this man, and worked with him for
five years; he then carried on the business for five years more for his
father. Than, at his father’s request, he went on the farm, which he managed
to his father’s satisfaction. When his father died in 1845 he left no will,
but his son Wesley administered on the estate, and settled it up
satisfactorily. He bought the old homestead, and by diligent labor paid for it
and laid the foundation for this present independent condition in life. He was
judicious in his farming, as he has been in the conduct of his other business,
and slowly but surely (though he met with some losses, chiefly through the
fault of others) accumulated considerable property. He still retains about
fifty acres of his original farm, and lives in comparative retirement in
Dayton, adjoining which village his land lies. He was one of the original
stockholders of the Dayton Solders’ Orphans’ school, and is one of the board
of managers of that institution. During the war of the rebellion he took the
enrollment in Wayne Township, on which the draft was based, and he has before
and since held various offices in the gift of his townspeople. He is held in
high esteem by all who have been associated with him as a conservative citizen
and conscientious man in all the relations of life. At present, and since
1880, he has had, besides other investments, an interest in the general store
conducted by the firm of C. S. Marshall & Co. Mr. Pontious is a member of
the Methodist Episcopal church.Upon the 26th of May, 1846, Wesley Pontious was united in marriage with
Hannah Jane, second daughter of Thomas Travis, and old citizen of this county,
in the neighborhood of Dayton. There were three children by this marriage, of
whom two are living, as follows: Mary Ann (wife of Rev. James B. Gray) and
Rebecca C. (wife of Charles H. Gray).His first wife dying March 18, 1870, Mr. Pontious married, October 24,
1872, Miss Louisa A. Funk._______________
*Transcriber’s Note: The name is also spelled as Pontius.Source: Page(s)
230,
History of Armstrong County, Pennsylvania by Robert Walker Smith, Esq.
Chicago: Waterman, Watkins & Co., 1883.
Transcribed February 2001
by Alice J. Gayley for the Armstrong County Smith Project.
Contributed by Alice J. Gayley for use by the Armstrong County Genealogy
Project (http://www.pa-roots.com/armstrong/)Armstrong County Genealogy Project Notice:
These electronic pages cannot be reproduced in any format, for any
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