Biographies from Historical and Biographical Annals by Morton Montgomery

GREGG, DAVID MCMURTRIE(
(GEN.)

p. 334

Surnames: McMURTRIE, WALKER, SCOTT, POTTER, McLANAHAN, CURTIN,
MITCHELL, IRVIN, WILSON, KINNEY, TUCKER, CATHCART, CHAMBERS,
PATTERSON, STEWART, HAMILTON, ELLIOTT, BRYAN, GREEN, McKNIGHT,
FISHER, CARPENTER, PATTON, JACKSON, GWIM, McCONNELL, ORBISON,
DORSEY, BRISCOE, DENNISON, McCAHEN, WHITTAKER, HERR, ZIMMERMAN,
RUFFNER, SHEAFF, ALLISON, ASHMAN, HAINES, MUHLENBERG, HIESTER,
SHULZE, PATTON, JACKSON, MCCONNELL, ORBISON, DORSEY, DENNISON,
MCCAHEN, BRISCOE, WHITTAKER, AVERILL, WEBB, RUGGLES, COMSTOCK. GWIN

General David McMurtrie Gregg, one of the most distinguished and
widely known residents of the city of Reading, occupies an enviable
place in the esteem of the people of the county and State as one of
the best and most efficient officers from Pennsylvania in the Civil
War. Educated at West Point and trained by actual experience in the
United States regular army for a number of years, he was fully
prepared to perform his part in preserving the Union. And in thus
acting the part of a patriotic son of the nation, he rose to a high
rank, creditable alike to his early training and his natural
ability as a director and leader of men. General Gregg served
during the entire war, and won promotion after promotion being
finally breveted Major General U. S. Volunteers, Aug. 1, 1864.

General Gregg was born in Huntingdon, Pa., April
10, 1833, son of Matthew Duncan and Ellen (McMurtrie) Gregg. On
both sides of the house he comes of ancestors of whose records in
civil and military life he may well be proud. The Gregg, Potter,
McMurtrie and Elliott families, from whom General Gregg is directly
descended, all settled in the colony of Pennsylvania at a very
early date, and had much to do with the development and improvement
of the Keystone State. The first Gregg ancestor of whom there is
any sure knowledge was David Gregg, who was born at Ayrshire,
Scotland, about 1630. He was a Captain in Cromwell’s army in 1655,
and was within the walls of Londonderry during the great siege of
1688-89 as a faithful supporter of the Prince of Orange, William
III., against the exiled King of England, James II. Both David and
his son John, who was born near Londonderry in 1665, were killed by
a party of Roman Catholics in one of the conflicts that were
constantly occurring between the Orangemen and the Romanists in the
North of Ireland.

John Gregg’s two sons, David and Andrew, and
their sister Rachel, Mrs. Solomon Walker, and her husband, came to
America in 1726, first settling in New Hampshire, where David
remained. Andrew and Mr. Walker, becoming dissatisfied, left there
and landing at Newcastle, Del., finally located on a tract at
Chestnut Level, Lancaster county, Pa. In 1748, he purchased and
moved to a plantation near Carlisle, where he remained until his I
death, that event occurring in 1789. His first wife having died at
Chestnut Level, leaving six children, he married Jean Scott
(1725-1783). To the second union were born Andrew and Matthew.

Andrew Gregg, grandfather of General Gregg, was
born June 10, 1755, near. Carlisle, Pa., and died May 30, 1835, at
Bellefonte, Pa. He received his early training at Rev. John Steel’s
Latin school in Carlisle, and completed his education at Newark,
Del. While a resident of that place he served a considerable period
in the militia of the Revolution. In 1779, he accepted a tutorship
in a college, now the University of Pennsylvania. In 1787 he
married Martha Potter, daughter of General James Potter, and in
1789 removed to Penn’s Valley, Center county. In 1791, he was
elected to the Lower House of Congress, and remained a member until
1807, when he was chosen United States Senator, his term of office
ending in 1813. In 1826, he was appointed Secretary of the State of
Pennsylvania by Gov. Joseph Hiester, and in 1823 he was nominated
for Governor on the Federal ticket in opposition to John Andrew
Shulze, but was defeated in the ensuing election. There were born
to Andrew Gregg and wife, Martha Potter, ten children, as follows:
Mary married William McLanahan; Jean m. Roland Curtin (of their
children, Andrew Curtin was the war Governor of Pennsylvania);
Martha m. Dr. Constans Curtin, brother of Roland; Eliza m. David
Mitchell; Juliana m. General James Irvin; Andrew m. Margaret Irvin,
sister of General Irvin; James P. m. Eliza Wilson; Matthew Duncan,
Gen. Gregg’s father, m. Ellen McMurtrie; Sarah m. Henry Kinney; and
Margery m. Rev. Charles Tucker. The mother of this large and
illustrious family, Martha (Potter) Gregg, was born April 10, 1769,
and died Aug. 20, 1815.

John Potter, grandfather of Martha (Potter)
Gregg, emigrated from County Tyrone, Ireland, in 1741, being
accompanied by his sister Isabella, and her husband John Hamilton.
They landed in Newcastle, Del., in September, 1741. In 1746, Mr.
Potter settled in Antrim township, Franklin county, Pa., near the
village of Greencastle. He was the first sheriff of Cumberland
county. In September, 1756, he became a Captain in Lieutenant
Colonel Arm-strong’s expedition against Kittanning. The date of his
death is unknown. His wife died in 1778. Of their eight children,
James was born on the bank of the Fovie, Tyrone, Ireland, in 1729,
and came to America with his father in 1741. On Feb. 17, 1756, he
was commissioned ensign in his father’s company, Lieut. Armstrong’s
Battalion, and served in the Kittanning expedition, in which
campaign he was wounded. He was promoted to the position of Captain
Feb. 17, 1759, and commanded three companies on the northern
frontiers. Captain Potter removed to Sunbury in 1768, In 1775
occurred the stirring events of Lexington, Concord and Bunker Hill,
which aroused every patriotic son of Pennsylvania, and hurried them
into a conflict which finally resulted in the recognition of
American Independence. Captain Potter was among the first to offer
his services for the struggle then so doubtful, and on Jan. 24,
1776, he was elected Colonel of the Upper Battalion, and in July of
that year he became a member of the Constitutional convention. He
was in command of Battalion of Northumberland County militia in the
battle of Trenton, Dec. 26, 1776, and at Princeton Jan. 3, 1777;
and on April 5, 1777, was appointed third Brigadier General of the
militia of the State, commanded a brigade at Brandywine and
Germantown, and served in the outposts at Valley Forge. In 1780,
when residing at Middle Creek, Snyder county, he became a member of
the State council, and on Nov. 14, 1781, was elected Vice President
of Pennsylvania. He was unanimously elected Major Gen-eral May 23,
1782, and in 1784 was elected a member of the council of Censors.

General James Potter first married Elizabeth
Cathcart. His second wife was Mrs. Mary Chambers, daughter of James
and Mary Patterson. Mary Patterson, whose maiden name was Stewart,
was a granddaughter of George Stew-art, who settled in Conestoga
township, Chester county, in 1717. To General Potter and his wife
Mary were born three daughters and one son; of this family Martha
became the wife of Andrew Gregg, and was the grand-mother of
General David McM. Gregg. At his death General Potter possessed an
immense landed estate in Penn’s Valley, Center county.

Matthew Duncan Gregg was born April 5, 1804, in
Penn’s Valley, Center county, and fitted himself for the legal
profession, being admitted to the Bar at Huntingdon in 1825. In
1828, he was united in marriage with Ellen McMurtrie, daughter of
David and Martha (Elliott) McMurtrie, of Huntingdon. From that
place he moved first to Pine Grove Mills, Center county, and in
1838 took up his residence in Bellefonte, where he engaged in the
iron business. In 1845, in connection with his brother James P.,
and his brother-in-law David Mitchell, he purchased the Potomac
Furnace, in Loudoun county, Va. Nine children were born to the
union of Matthew D. Gregg and Ellen McMurtrie, as follows: Martha,
born May 28, 1829, m. Richard R. Bryan; Andrew, born May 28, 1831;
Gen. David; Mary, born Aug. 20, 1834, m. G. Dorsey Green; Ellen,
born Dec. 24, 1836; George, born Feb. 10, 1838; Henry H., born
March 19, 1840, m. Rose Mitchell; Thomas I., born Oct. 8, 1842, m.
Bessie D. McKnight; and Olitipa, born Aug. 10, 1844, died Dec. 28,
1848. On July 25, 1845, Matthew Duncan Gregg died, and in August of
the same year occurred the death of his brother, James P., both
being buried in a churchyard between Leesburg and Point of Rocks,
Va. Ellen Gregg, the mother, died at Bedford, Aug. 17, 1847, and is
buried at Huntingdon, Pennsylvania.

David McMurtrie, Ellen McM. Gregg’s grandfather,
was born at Ayr, Scotland, about 1709, and came to America in 1735,
settling in Philadelphia, where he en-gaged in selling merchandise.
On March 18, 1754, he married Margery Fisher at Cooper’s Ferry, now
a part of Philadelphia, and his children were as follows: William,
born May 15, 1757; David, Jan. 14, 1764; Charles, July 21, 1766;
and James, Dec. 16, 1768. Just before the Revolution David
McMurtrie moved to Bedford, now Huntingdon county, and began the
improvement of large tracts of land owned by him on Shaver’s creek
and in the town of Huntingdon. He died in 1782.

David McMurtrie, the son of the above mentioned
pioneer, was born in Philadelphia and went to Hunting-don with his
father, where he became a merchant carrying on his business first
in Huntingdon, then in Peters-burg, and again in Huntingdon. He was
a member of the General Assembly of Pennsylvania in 1802. He
married Martha Elliott, daughter of Benjamin and Mary (Carpen-ter)
Elliott, and they had the following children: James E.; Anna m.
(first) Ed. Patton, (second) Thomas Jack-son; Mary m. James Gwin;
Ellen, born Jan. 3, 1802, m. Matthew D. Gregg, and died Aug. 17,
1847; David m. Martha McConnell; Benjamin E. (first) m. Sarah H.
Orbison, and (second) Mrs. Ellen Patton Dorsey; Mar-gery; Robert
Allison m. (first) Sarah Briscoe, (second) Mrs. Maria Dennison;
Martha m. James McCahen; and William m. Margaret Whittaker.

Robert Elliott, great-grandfather of General D.
McM. Gregg’s mother, through Martha Elliott McMurtrie, was born
prior to 1730, but it is uncertain whether his birth- place was in
America or Ireland. His home was in Peters township, Cumberland
(formerly Lancaster) county. He was twice married, the issue of his
first marriage being two sons: Benjamin and George and his two
daughters: Barbara and Jane. Benjamin Elliott was born in 1752, in
Peters township, Cumberland (now Franklin) county, and became a
resident of Huntingdon in 1775. When but twenty-four years of age,
he was elected one of the delegates from Bedford county, Huntingdon
being then in that county, to the convention, which met July 15,
1776, at Carpenters Hall, Philadelphia, for the purpose of framing
the first constitution of the Common-wealth of Pennsylvania. He was
sheriff of Bedford county in 1784-85, and became the first sheriff
of Huntingdon county in 1787. In that year he was also elected a
delegate from Huntingdon county to the Pennsylvania convention
which ratified the Federal constitution. He was elected a member of
the Supreme Executive Council from Huntingdon county, Oct. 31,
1789, and served until Dec. 20, 1790, when the Council’s term of
office expired by reason of the election of Governor Mifflin. He
held several county offices in Huntingdon county, including that of
Associate judge. He died in Huntingdon, March 15, 1835, and was
laid to rest in Fairview cemetery. He was thrice married. His first
wife was Mary Carpenter, daughter of Jacob and Elizabeth (Herr)
Carpenter, and a granddaughter of Heinrich Zimmerman, who was born
in Switzerland, in 1675, and who made his first trip to America in
1698, returning to his native place in 1700. This gentleman married
Salome Ruffner. Being a physician, he practiced his profession
until 1706, when having engaged in a conspiracy against the
government he was compelled to flee the country for safety. He
accordingly came to America, where he settled in Germantown. In
1710, he began to acquire lands in Lancaster county, and in 1717,
he moved there. He died about 1750, leaving a large estate to his
heirs. Benjamin Elliott and his wife Mary had three children,
namely: Martha, born in 1779, m. David McMurtrie, and died in 1841;
Mary, born in 1781, m. Robert Allison; and James prepared for the
legal profession, but died young and unmarried. Benjamin Elliott’s
second wife was Sarah Ashman, and his third Susan Haines.

General Gregg spent his earlier boyhood with his
father’s family in Bellefonte, Harrisburg and Hollidays-burg. In
April, 1845, the family removed to Potomac Furnace, Loudoun county,
Va. When, in the following Ju-ly, the father died, the widowed
mother, with her nine children returned to Hollidaysburg; her death
occurred at Bed-ford in August, 1847. David then became a member of
the family of his uncle, David McMurtrie, living in Huntingdon, and
for two years attended the school of that excellent teacher, Mr.
John A. Hall. From this school he went to Milnwood Academy, in the
lower end of Huntingdon county, and a year later joined his elder
brother Andrew at the University at Lewisburg. While at the
University be received an appointment as cadet at the United States
Military Academy at West Point. which he entered July 1, 1851. He
graduated in June, 1855, standing eighth in a class of thirty-four
members; among, his classmates being Generals Averill, Webb,
Rug-gles and Comstock, all prominent officers in the Union Army in
the War of the Rebellion, and General Nichols, of the Confederate
army. He became Second Lieutenant of Dragoons, July 1, 1855, and
served in garrison at Jef-ferson Barracks, Mo., in 1855-56, being
commissioned Second Lieutenant of First Dragoons, Sept. 4, 1855. In
1856, he was assigned to frontier duty in the West and on the
Pacific coast, and remained there until the outbreak of the Civil
War recalled him to the East. He was stationed at Fort Union, New
Mexico, in 1856, took part in the march to California in the same
year; was at Fort Tejon, Colo., in 1856-57; Fort Vancouver, Wash.,
in 1857-58; and at Fort Walla Walla, Wash., in 1858. He took part
in the Spokane expedition of 1858, being en-gaged in a desperate
combat with the Indians at To-holsnimme, Wash., May 17,1858; was
present at the combat of Four Lakes, Wash., Sept. 1, 1858; and
skirmish on Spo-kane river Sept. 8, 1858. He was on frontier duty
at Fort Walla Walla, in 1859; at Fort Dallas, Oregon, 1859-60; was
scouting against the Snake Indians in 1860, being engaged in a
skirmish near Hamoy Lake, Oregon, May 24, 1860. The winter of
1860-61 was spent in duty on the Warm Spring reservation.

General Gregg became first Lieutenant of the
First Dragoons on March 21, 1861, and was made Captain in the Sixth
Cavalry on May 14, 1861. During the first months of the war he saw
duty in the defenses of Washington, D. C., and throughout the
remainder of the war was connected with the Army of the Potomac.
From Oct. 12, 1861, till January, 1862, he was on sick leave. He
became Colonel of the Eighth Regiment, Pa. Vol. Cavalry, Jan. 24,
1862, and took part in the Virginia Peninsular campaign. He was
engaged in the battles of Seven Pines and Fair Oaks, May 31 and
June 1, 1862, skirmishes at New Kent Courthouse, Savage Station,
Bottom’s Bridge, and White Oak Swamp, June, 1862, battle of
Glendale, June 30, 1862, Malvern Hill, July 1, 1862, and covering
the movement from Harrison’s Landing to Yorktown, August, 1862. He
was in the Maryland campaign of the Army of the Potomac, which
extended from September to November, 1862, being engaged in several
skirmishes on the march to Falmouth, Va., in October and Novem-ber.
On Nov. 29, 1862, General Gregg was commissioned Brigadier General
U. S. Volunteers. From December 1862 to June 1863, he commanded a
Division of Cavalry, being engaged in the skirmish at Rappahannock
bridge, April 4, 1863, and “Stoneman’s Raid” toward Richmond, April
13 to May 2, 1863. The Pennsylvania campaign of the Army of the
Potomac was participated in by General Gregg still as a division
cavalry commander; he was engaged in the combat of Brandy Station,
June 9, 1863, skirmish at Aldie, June 17, Middleburg, June 19,
Upperville, June 21, and the battle of Gettysburg, July 1, 2 and 3.
He was in the skirmish at Shepherdstown, July 16, and took part in
the pursuit of the Confederates to Warrenton, Va., closing the
campaign in the latter days of that busy month.

Central Virginia then became the scene of
operations for the Army of the Potomac, and General Gregg there
participated in the action at Rapidan Station, Sept. 14, Bever-ly
Ford, Oct. 12, Auburn, Oct. 14, and New Hope Church, Nov. 27, 1863.
From March 26 to April 6, 1864, General Gregg was in command of the
Cavalry Corps of the Army of the Potomac, and in the Richmond
campaign from April 6, 1864, to Feb. 3, 1865, was in command of
the. Second Cavalry Division of the Army of the Potomac, being
engaged in the skirmishes at Todd’s Tavern May 5-7, 1864, where he
was in command, Ground Squirrel Church May 11, combat at Meadow
Bridge May 12, battle of Haws Shop May 28, skirmish of Gaines House
June 2, battle of Trevillian Station June 11, action of St. Mary’s
Church June 24, where he was in command, skirmish at Warwick Swamp
July 12, combat of Darbytown July 28, skirmish at Lee’s Mills July
30, 1864. On Aug. 1, 1864, General Gregg came into command of the
cavalry of the Army of the Potomac, being brevetted on that date
Major General U. S. Volunteers, for “highly meritorious and
distinguished conduct throughout the campaign, particularly in the
Reconnaissance on the Charles City road.” On Aug. 17, 1864, he was
in the action at Deep Bottom, skirmishes and battle of Ream’s
Station Aug. 23-25, combat of Peebles’ Farm Sept. 29 and 30, of the
Vaughan Road Oct. 1, Where he was in command, the battle of Boydton
Plank Road Oct. 27, destruction of Stony Creek Station Dec. 1, and
skirmish at Bellefield Dec. 9, 1864, which terminated General
Gregg’s active work in the army. He resigned from the service Feb.
3, 1865.

General Gregg’s brothers, Henry H. and Thomas
I., were both in the Union army and served three years, the former
as Captain in the 125th Pa. V. I., and as Major in the 13th Pa. V.
C., the latter as Lieutenant in the 6th Pa. V. C., and as
Aide-de-camp on his brother’s staff.

In February, 1874, President Grant appointed
General Gregg U. S. Consul at Prague, Bohemia, which position he
resigned and returned to Reading in the following August, where he
has since made his home. In 1891, he was nominated by the
Republican party as its candidate for Auditor General of
Pennsylvania, was elected, and made a splendid record in his three
years of service. He was elected Commander of the Pennsylvania
Commandery of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United
States in 1886, and was continued in office by successive elections
every year until 1904, when he was elected Commander-in-Chief of
the Order. He is President of the Board of Directors of the Charles
Evans Cemetery Company of Reading, and is a member of the Board of
Trus-tees of the State Lunatic Hospital at Harrisburg. General
Gregg has the right to append LL D. to his name, that honor having
been conferred on him by the Pennsylvania Military College, at
Chester, Pennsylvania.

On Oct. 6, 1862, General Gregg married Ellen F.
Sheaff of Reading, a great-granddaughter of Frederick A.
Muhlen-berg, and also of Gov. Joseph Hiester. They have two sons,
namely: George Sheaff and David McMurtrie.

Thus is presented in measurably full detail the
career of one of the most noted of Reading’s citizens, belonging to
Reading first, but in a larger and better sense to the State and
nation. With a glorious record of duty faith-fully done, General
Gregg is serenely passing the evening of life amid the scenes of
its former activities, and is showered on every side with the
plaudits of a grateful people.

GREGORY, GEORGE ROBERT

p. 469

Surnames: GREGORY, WIEGNER, JONES, MACK, BETTY, FOIGE, RHOADS,
KURTZ, GEHRIS, SWARTZ, FINCH, WIAND, WEINMAN, MESTER, GERY, HENRY,
ARNOLD, SEIP, SNYDER, YODER, RAUCH, SEISHOLTZ, ROTHENBERGER, HAUK,
KECK, MABRY, KEMMERER, DUMN

George Robert Gregory, register of wills of Berks county, Pa., is a
representative of the sixth generation of the Gregory family in
America. He was born in Hereford township, Dec. 19, 1869, son of
Nathaniel and Matilda (Wiegner) Gregory.

(I) As far as can be ascertained, the first of the Gregory family
to come to America was Richard Gregory, who settled in Hereford
township, Berks county, Pa., possibly as early as 1725. He died in
1765. He was the father of fifteen children: John, Richard, David,
Andrew, Jacob, George, Christian, Mrs. Mary Jones, Mrs. Elizabeth
Mack, Mrs. Judith Rhoads, Mrs. Anna Betty, Mrs. Margretha Foige
(who settled in Longswamp township), Mrs. Elizabeth Kurtz, Sarah
and Hannah. In 1759 among the taxables in Hereford township were
Richard Gregory, Sr. (15), Richard Gregory, Jr. (6) and John
Gregory (12).

(II) Jacob Gregory, son of Richard the pioneer, married Catharine
Gehris, of Hereford township, daughter of Jacob Gehris (the
executors of whose will were Peter Hauk of Allentown, and Peter
Gehris of Hereford township). They went to North Carolina, where
they were living when he received the legacy of his father Richard
in 1782 (the father’s estate apparently was not finally settled
until 1782 when the release was filed in the Recorder’s office at
Reading). He later removed to Green township, Columbiana county,
Ohio, and was there living when he inherited property from his
father-in-law Jacob Gehris, in 1822.

(II) John Gregory, eldest son of Richard, died in 1784. He was a
Captain in the French and Indian War. His children were: John,
Peter, Richard (resided in Longswamp township, and had a son John),
Mary (m. John Swartz), Mrs. Christina Finch, Susannah (died
unmarried in 1808, and her brother John administered her estate),
Elizabeth and Nancy.

(III) John Gregory, son of John, was born Sept. 16, 1751, and died
Dec. 24, 1835. His wife, Maria Elizabeth, was born June 6, 1753,
and died Aug. 6, 1837. Their children were: Philip (settled in Erie
county, Pa.), Peter, Samuel (born Dec. 26, 1790, and died unmarried
in Hereford township, Jan. 18, 1866), Richard, Robert (born March
31, 1795, died April 29, 1877, married Catharine Wiand, born Jan.
6, 1804, died Nov. 19, 1887), David (of Monroe county, Pa.),
Catharine (Mrs. Conrad Weinman, of Erie county, Pa.), Elizabeth
(Mrs. Jacob Gery), Judith (Mrs. Henry Mester) and Lydia
(1801-1851). Letters on the estate of Lydia Gregory, a single
woman, late of the township of Hereford, Berks Co., Pa., were
granted to her brother Samuel in 1851. In 1790 in Hereford
township, there is record of a Jacob and a John Gregory, both heads
of families.

(IV) Peter Gregory, son of John, died in 1852, the father of John,
Henry, and Anna Margaret.

(IV) Richard Gregory, son of John, was born in Hereford township
Berks county, but settled in Chestnuthill township, Monroe county,
Pa. He became the father of four sons and two daughters: (1)
Thomas. (2) Cornelius resided in Iowa county, Wis., at the time he
inherited a legacy from his uncle Samuel Gregory in 1869. (3) John
Gregory was living in Chestnuthill township, Monroe county, at the
time he inherited from his uncle Samuel in 1869. (4) Samuel lived
in Burlington, Des Moines Co., Iowa, when he received the legacy
from his uncle Samuel in 1869. (5) Susanna married Reuben Henry,
and died the mother of Mary Jane, Annetta, Alfred, of whom Mary
Jane married Emanuel Arnold. All of these resided in Monroe county,
Pa., and all received from the estate of Samuel Gregory. (6) Clara
died leaving no children.

(IV) Robert Gregory, son of John and Maria Elizabeth, was born
March 31, 1795, and he died at 11:00 a.m., April 29, 1877. He
married Catharine Wiand, who was born Jan. 6, 1804, and who died
Nov. 19, 1887. Their children were: William, who left no issue;
Nathaniel; Lydia, Mrs. Seip, who died leaving a son, Edward G., now
of Longswamp township, Berks county; and Sarah, Mrs. John M.
Snyder, of Upper Milford township, Lehigh county, whose children
were-Allen, Jacob, and Katie (Mrs. Yoder).

(V) Nathaniel Gregory, son of Robert, was born in Hereford
township, April 1, 1838. He was reared to farming and followed it
for many years. About 1880 he engaged in the hotel business at
Harlem, and in this he has since continued. His stand was formerly
known as “Gery’s Hotel,” and the village was called Perryville. In
politics he was a Democrat, and for many years he served as school
director. He was a delegate to many county conventions, and he has
always been actively interested in his party’s success. He is a
member of the Reformed congregation at Huff’s Church, and has been
both deacon and elder. Since the institution of Harlem Castle, K.
G, E., at Harlem, he has been keeper of the Exchequer. His wife,
Matilda Wiegner, was born April 7, 1836, daughter of George
Wiegner, of Hereford township, who owned the old historic Wiegner’s
Mill on the Perkiomen. Their children were: (1) George Robert. (2)
Eugene Harvey m. Lizzie Gery. No children. (3) Howard William m.
Mary Rauch, and has two children, Annie and Elsie. (4) Diana m.
Adam Seisholtz, and had children, Calvin, Herbert, Annie, Mamie,
Gertie and Florence.

(VI) George Robert Gregory received his early education in the
public schools of his native district, and later attended the
Normal School at Kutztown, graduating therefrom in 1892. When
eighteen years old he began teaching in the public schools of Pike
township, his first certificate being granted by Prof. D. S. Keck.
He taught in all nine terms, eight of which were in Hereford
township. Since he was nineteen Mr. Gregory has taken a great
interest in Democratic politics. For four years he served as
committeeman from Hereford township, and he has been delegate to a
number of county conventions. In 1896 he was made assistant clerk
in the county commissioner’s office, a position he ably filled
three years. He then became a clerk in the office of the Register
of Wills, Levi S. Mabry (1899-1901), and at the end of two years
was appointed deputy register, serving one year more under Mr.
Mabry. He continued to fill that office under the administrations
of William R. Kemmerer (1902-1904) and also under Wilson M. Dumn
(1905-1908), when Mr. Gregory became Register of Wills himself,
having been elected by the remarkable primary vote of 8,011, and
general election vote of 16,024. His long service as deputy fitted
him for his position, and he is a very obliging and able official.
He resided in the Twelfth ward of Reading from 1902 until the fall
of 1908, when he purchased his handsome residence No. 1634 Mineral
Spring Road in the Sixteenth ward.

Mr. Gregory has been connected with a number of
secret societies. At the present time he is Worshipful Master of
St. John’s Lodge, No. 435, F. & A. M.; member of Reading Lodge
of Perfection 14th degree; Oley Lodge, No. 218, I. O. O. F., in
which he is Past Grand; East Greenville Lodge, No. 232, K. of P.;
Cashmere Temple, No. 37, D. O. K. of K.; Court Victory, No. 123,
Foresters of America; Harlem Castle, No. 335, K. G. E., in which he
is past chief; and Mt. Penn Commandery, uniformed rank, K. G. E. In
the Eagles he has been District Grand Chief of District No. 2,
since 1905, and has also served as Second Grand Guardsman. He is
one of the few men in the Order who have committed the entire
Ritual, and he has taken an active interest in everything that
tended toward increasing the membership and the finances.

Mr. Gregory married June 13, 1901, Sallie A.
Rothenberger, and they have had three children: Homer L., George W.
and Matilda R., the last named dying Dec. 22, 1907.

GREISS,
JACOB F.

p. 1481

Surnames: GREISS, RAUCH, FRY, GANGLER, KEHS, YEAKEL, MOYER,
FENSTERMACHER, GEHRIS, SELL, WEND, EVANS, ROTHENBERGER, GERY,
MILLER, MENSCH Jacob F. Greiss, school teacher of Hereford
township, Berks county, was born on his father’s farm in Hereford
Jan. 4, 1879, son of Jacob, grandson of George and great-grandson
of Jacob Greiss.

Jacob Greiss, the great-grandfather, was a
charcoal burner and laborer in Hereford township, living between
Perryville (now Harlem) and the Devil’s Hole. In his later years he
moved to District township, where he died during the fifties. He
and his wife are buried in unmarked graves at Huff’s Church. Her
maiden name was Rauch, and they were the parents of ten children,
namely: Peter lived in Hereford; his wife was a Fry, and they had
children-David, Henry, Adam, Elizabeth, who married John Gangler,
and Lucinda, who married Samuel Kehs. George is mentioned later.
Philip, who married a Yeakel, was a laborer in Upper Milford
township, Lehigh Co., Pa. David lived in the Blue Mountains, where
he was engaged as a charcoal burner. John (1817-1902) lived in
District township, where he had his own home and worked as a
laborer; he married Sallie Moyer (1820-1905) and they are buried at
Huff’s Church. Polly married a man named Fenstermacher, and lived
in Longswamp township, where he kept a hotel know as “Grinders
Hotel,” near Topton. Peggy never married. Catharine married Abraham
Gehris, and they lived in Hereford, where he was a laborer; they
are buried at Huff’s Church. Barbara (Bevvy) married Benjamin Sell
and lived in Longswamp township. There was another daughter named
Elizabeth (Betzy).

George Greiss, son of Jacob, was a weaver and
wove all kinds of linens. He owned his own home and eight acres of
land, on which property his shop was located. He married Sarah
Gehris, and they lived in Longswamp township, but they are buried
at Huff’s Church, in Hereford township. They were the parents of
several children, as follows: Jacob, who is mentioned later;
Philip, who was a tailor at Womelsdorf, Berks county; George, who
lived at Alburtis, Pa.; Peter, a blacksmith in Hereford, who
married a Catholic woman and himself became a Catholic (he was the
father of Jermanius and James, the latter of Pottstown); Daniel,
who settled out West, and died there; Sarah, who married Henry
Wend; and John, who lived in the State of Delaware and who married
Mary Jane, daughter of Capt. J. and Sarah Evans (she is buried at
Huff’s Church).

Jacob Greiss, son of George, was born March 7,
1837, in Longswamp township, Berks county, and died in Hereford
township Jan. 26, 1905, aged sixty-seven years, ten months,
nineteen days. He and his wife are buried at Huff’s Church. In his
earlier years he worked at the ore mines around Siesholtzville, and
later farmed in Hereford township for some years, after which he
followed the carpenter’s trade during the summer months and in
winter did butchering among the farmers in his locality. For many
years he lived near Sigmund, in Hereford township, where he owned a
tract of forty-five acres which he cultivated in addition to his
other work. He married Mary Rothenberger, daughter of Reuben
Rothenberger, born June 13, 1842, died April 9, 1890, in her
forty-eighth year. Their children were: Emma L., who married
William L. Gery, of Siesholtzville; Lizzie J., who married Wilson
Miller and died at the age of thirty-two years; and Jacob F. Mr.
Greiss and his family were Reformed members of Huff’s Church. He
was a Democrat in politics. Benjamin Sell Jacob F. Greiss spent his
boyhood days under the parental roof, and his early intellectual
training was obtained in the public schools of his native township.
In the spring of 1895 he began attending the State Normal School at
Kutztown, and the following year took a course in the Perkiomen
Seminary at Pennsburg, Pa. In the winter of 1897-98 he returned to
the Normal School, where he continued his studies until he was
graduated, with the class of 1900. In the fall of that year he
began teaching in his home township, being engaged during the terms
of 1900-01, 1901-02 and 1902-03 in the home school at
Siesholtzville; the following two terms he was at the Traub school,
and since the fall of 1906 he has been the teacher at Huff’s
Church, in Hereford township. In 1902 he was granted the State
master diploma. His excellent work as an instructor is best
evidenced in his long continuance in the one neighborhood, where he
has the respect and confidence of all who know him.

In 1900, Mr. Greiss married Miss Lizzie Mensch,
daughter of Adam Mensch, who has conducted the Mensch Mill in
Hereford township for many years. Three children have been born to
Mr. and Mrs. Greiss: Lloyd A., Lola M. and Leon J. The family
occupy a neat home in Siesholtzville which Mr. Greiss owns. They
are members of the Reformed congregation of Huff’s Union Church,
and Mr. Greiss is active in the Sunday-school of that congregation.
He was long a pupil in the Sunday-school, then teacher, and since
1906 has been serving as superintendent. In political faith he is a
Democrat, and in the spring of 1906 he was elected to the office of
township auditor, in which he is still serving.

GRESH, JAMES
B.

p. 1369

Surnames: GRESH, BAKER, GRESCH, REIFSCHNEIDER, HOFFMAN, HANDWORK,
SASSAMAN, HARTRANFT, FOX, HORNATER, YODER, HATFIELD, MOSER, YERGEY,
SANDS, BOWER, LEH, ANDERSON, EAGLE

James B. Gresh, justice of the peace and real estate agent at
Little Oley, Douglass township, Berks county, was born on the Henry
Gresh homestead, July 24, 1867, son of Urias F. and Rebecca (Baker)
Gresh.

Johann Georg Gresch (to use the old spelling of
the name) was the founder of the family in this country. He was
born in Germany, Oct. 18, 1724, and was twenty-five years of age,
when in 1749 he came to America, and shortly after he located in
Douglass township, Berks Co., Pa. He was a farmer, and it is likely
that he was unmarried when he came to this country. He died Oct.
29, 1788, and both he and his wife Esther, born Sept. 22, 1738,
died Jan 31, 1827, are buried in the Fritz burying ground near
Little Oley, where also sleep many other members of the family.
They had sons: Georg, Johann Adam and Nicholas.

The village of Greshville perpetuates the name.
It is located in Douglass township, and was named after Johann Adam
Gresch, son of the pioneer. The postoffice was established in 1853,
and was continued for fifty years.

Johann Adam Gresch, son of the emigrant Johann
Georg, was born in Douglass township, March 19, 1778, and died May
28, 1831. He was a prominent business man in the very early days of
Douglass township, having a store, tavern and distillery, his place
being a very busy business center. In 1796 he married Anna Maria
Reifschneider, born March 30, 1779, and died Feb. 29, 1864, after a
married life of sixty-eight years. They had three sons and two
daughters, among whom were: Elizabeth, 1799-1805; Charles
1802-1849; and Adam, 1804-1846.

George Gresh, great-grandfather of James B., was
born Oct. 16, 1767, and died Nov. 3, 1823, passing his entire life
in Douglass township. He was a farmer and owned considerable land.
His remains were buried in a private burial ground, known as
Fritz’s Burial ground, on the farm now owned by Warren Hoffman. He
married Elizabeth Handwork, and their children were: George, Henry;
Jacob; Isaac; Aaron; Elizabeth, m. to Jacob Moser; Joseph, of
Monocacy; Susan m. to John Sassaman; Sarah, m. to Samuel Fox;
Polly, m. to Henry Hartranft; and several whose names are not
recalled.

Henry Gresh, son of George, was born Jan. 20,
1800, and died in 1880, and is buried in Fairview cemetery at
Boyertown. He was a farmer and also operated a saw and oil mill.
His farm, which consisted in his time of 103 acres, has been cut up
into two tracts, and the mill property is now owned by James G.
Hartranft. He married Catharine Fox (1803-1871), and she too, is
buried in Fairview cemetery. Their children were: Urias F.; Sarah,
m. to Frederick Hornater; Henry who lived in Douglass township;
David, a shoemaker in Douglass township; Jeremiah, who died in
infancy; George, a willow basket maker living at Iron Stone Creek;
and Mary Ann and Catharine, twins, the former the widow of William
Yoder, and the latter the widow of Milton Hatfield.

Urias F. Gresh, son of Henry and father of James
B., was born in Douglass township Oct. 24, 1830. His earlier life
was spent upon the Gresh farm near Little Oley, where he lived for
thirty years, and operated the saw and oil mills, the latter for
fifteen years, making flax seed oil. After the establishment of the
free schools he taught at Manatawny two years, at Mock’s school two
years, and at the old eight corner school in Douglass two years. In
1866 he opened the first business house at Little Oley, and carried
on a general merchandise business there until 1906, when his son
Jacob succeeded him. He established the Little Oley postoffice in
1871, and was made postmaster, an office he has since continued to
fill. His business has so increased that he was obliged to build an
addition to his store. In politics he is a Democrat, and for forty
years was a justice of the peace, at the end of that time being
succeeded by his son, James B. He also served as auditor and school
director. He and his family are Lutheran members of the Boyertown
church, and he has been an officer of the Sunday-school. In 1862 he
married Rebecca Baker, daughter of Jacob Baker and his wife who was
a Miss Eagle, of Earl township. To this union have been born twelve
children: Maggie, m. to Henry Yergey; Miss Emma, at home; James B.;
Jacob B.; Thomas B.; Katie, m. to Irwin Sands; Bessie, m. to Harvey
Bower; Mary B., m. to Orlando Leh; and four died in infancy.

James B. Gresh received a good education in the
public schools. At the age of sixteen he learned the cigar making
trade, and at nineteen became a cigar manufacturer, following this
business ever since. He has a factory at Little Oley, and employs
five hands, making the well known “Graso,” a five-cent cigar, which
has a good local trade, and as well in the towns of Schuylkill
Valley, between Reading and Conshohocken. The capacity of the
factory is 200,000 per annum. Mr. Gresh is thoroughly familiar with
the raising of tobacco, and has made a study of the different
grades and stages. In 1906 he began growing it, and at present
raises about three acres a year. He built his two-story brick
factory at Little Oley in 1889, and his modern residence in 1894.

In politics Mr. Gresh is a Democrat, and has
held several local offices. In the spring of 1907 he was elected a
justice of the peace. In 1908 he was treasurer of the supervisors
of his township. He and his family are Lutherans. Mr. Gresh is a
member of Aerie No. 626, F. O. E., of Pottstown.

In 1892 Mr. Gresh married Lizzie Anderson,
daughter of James and Catharine Anderson, and they have three
children: Clarence, Grace and Paul.

GRETH
FAMILY

p. 1612

Surnames: GRETH, GRETT, BALTHASER, BAVER, DUM, GIBSON, GILGERT,
OBOLD, REIFSNYDER, MCCALLISTER, MILLER, FISHER, ULRICH, HIESTER,
LINDERMAN, GRIMES, KRICK, BAER, KNORR, RIEGEL, ROTH,, REININGER,
FINCHER, SCHAEFFER, SHOWER, WENRICH, HARNER, PALM, NAFTZINGER,
GRIME, REBER, GOTTSHALL, BURKEY, HIMMELBERGER, WHITE, HIMMELREICH,
OCHS, LEINBACH, YODER, YOH, BRENDEL, TRUPP, MINT, SALLADE, SCHILDT,
DUNKELBERGER, STITZEL, BUSSLER, ZERBE, FORNWALD, SCHIDT, YOUNG,
HIESTER, YOUNG, KLINE, KENNEY, KOCH, HAIN, FINCHER, KINTZER, KURTZ,

The Greth family has given to Berks county some of its most
substantial and industrious citizens, and among these may be
mentioned Isaac C. Greth, who resides near State Hill, Charles A.
Greth, of near Wernersville, and the late Samuel U. Greth, a farmer
in the vicinity of Wernersville.

(I) Andreas Greth (or Grett) was the ancestor of all of the name of
this section of Pennsylvania. He was a native of southern Germany,
and on coming to the New World settled in Windsor township, Berks
Co., Pa. In 1771 he obtained a warrant of land from the proprietors
of the Commonwealth, for forty-five acres. In 1780 he paid a
federal tax of 20, and owned 235 acres in that township. His sons
were: (1) Daniel is mentioned farther on. (2) John lived in Bern
township in 1784, at that time owning sixty-five acres of land. In
that year his family consisted of four persons. (3) Nicholas Grett
lived in Windsor township on the homestead. He died advanced in
years in 1845, and his will is recorded in Will Book IX, p. 64. His
executors were John Grett and Jacob Balthaser. His children were:
Susanna; Barbara Baver, widow of John Baver; Hannah, who married
(first) Thomas Dum, and is now the widow of Henry Gibson; John;
Molly, widow of Jacob Balthaser, of Bern (now Tilden) township;
Eve, wife of Jonas Gilgert [Gilger]; Christian; Samuel, of Lebanon, Pa.; and
Andrew, who married Rebecca Obold, and had children-Amelia (who
lives at St. Joseph’s Hospital, Reading), Amanda, Mary, Rebecca,
Matilda, Louisa, Joseph, Darius, William, Israel, Phoenas and John.

(II) Daniel Greth, son of Andreas, was a resident of Lower
Heidelberg township. He is buried in a Catholic (private) burying
ground at Hetrichstown, in Penn township, his death taking place
about 1848, when he was quite advanced in years. The maiden name of
his wife was Polly Reifsnyder. Their children were: Samuel, born
1808, died 1882; John, born 1811, died 1874; Daniel had
children-Adam, Amanda, Joshua, Clorinda, Daniel, John and Frank;
Emanuel had children-Eliza, Mary, Sarah, Adam and George; Betzy
married James McCallister; Matilda m. Philip Miller; Mary m.
William Fisher.

(III) Samuel Greth, son of Daniel, born Feb. 10, 1808, died Oct.
16, 1882, when he was aged seventy-four years, eight months, six
days. His occupation was that of a stone-mason, and he had in his
employ some four or five men. He also owned a tract of sixty acres
of land in Lower Heidelberg township, and while he gave necessary
attention to the cultivation of this, the major portion of his time
was devoted to his trade, and he laid the foundations for many
buildings, and as well built many stone houses and barns. In his
religious faith he was a Roman Catholic, and he is buried at Hain’s
Church. He m. Kate Ulrich, born June 4, 1808, died Sept. 29, 1872,
aged sixty-four years, three months, twenty-five days. Twelve
children were born to them: Richard, Catharine, Rebecca, Maria,
Samuel U., Caroline, Sarah, Levi, William, John (died young) and
the twins, Darius and Frank.

(IV) Samuel U. Greth, son of Samuel, born on the Greth homestead in
Lower Heidelberg township June 18, 1841, died December 5, 1907,
aged sixty-six years, five months, seventeen days. He was reared to
manhood on the home farm, giving to his parents the benefit of his
labors until he was twenty-three years of age. He then learned
boat-building from William Hiester, at Unionville, in a yard owned
by Daniel Linderman. This occupation engrossed his attention for
four years, and then for a period of ten years he assisted in the
building of coal cars in the Mellert shops at Reading, receiving
excellent wages. For several years he engaged at carpentering, and
for fourteen years burned lime at Wernersville, burning as high as
30,000 bushels in one year. His trade was large and profitable. In
1888 he moved to Main street, Wernersville, where he owned a
comfortable residence and fine farm. His tract of fifteen acres was
very productive under his capable management, and he was a regular
attendant at the local market. In his political faith he was a
Democrat. He and his family all attended the Hain’s Reformed
Church, in which he served as deacon and elder for a number of
years. In 1867 he m. Matilda Grimes, daughter of Israel and Sarah
(Krick) Grimes. Four children blessed this union, namely: George
died in 1887, at the age of nineteen years, and is buried at Hain’s
Church; Sallie died in infancy; Samuel died aged seven years; Mary
m. Howard Baer, then of Sinking Spring but now of Wernersville, and
has one child, Marion C.

(III) John Greth, son of Daniel, born Aug. 5, 1811, died July 18,
1874, aged sixty-two years, eleven months, thirteen days. He passed
his life engaged in farming in Lower Heidelberg township. He m.
Elizabeth Knorr, born March 6, 1808, died Jan. 2, 1885, aged
seventy-six years, nine months, twenty-six days. To this union were
born children as follows: Israel, Sallie, John D., (m. Amanda
Heister) and Amanda (m. first Frank Riegel, and second James
Schaeffer).

(IV) Israel Greth, son of John and Elizabeth, was a farmer in Lower
Heidelberg township, and also followed the stone-mason’s trade He
m. Sarah Shower, daughter of Isaac and Polly (Wenrich) Shower,
farming people of Heidelberg township, whose other children were:
Mary Ann m. Augustus Harner; Eliza m. Isaac Palm; Isaac m.
Catharine Naftzinger; David never married. To Israel Greth and wife
were born these children: Frank m. Sallie Grime; Isaac C. is
mentioned below; Lizzie m. Henry Reber; Annie m. Lewis Gottshall;
Kate m. James Burkey; Emma m. (first) Tyson Himmelberger, who is
deceased, and (second) John White; Maria Agnes remained unmarried;
one died in infancy. Mr. Greth died Feb. 29, 1904, aged sixty-nine,
and his wife died March 1, 1903, aged seventy years.

(V) Isaac C. Greth, son of Israel, was born in Lower Heidelberg
township, Nov. 26, 1868. He was educated in the township schools
and his early training was along agricultural lines. When but
fourteen years of age he began assisting his brother Frank in his
general store at State Hill, and after remaining with him for six
years he and Henry H. Reber purchased the store and carried it on
for a year. He was next employed at butchering and huckstering for
three years, at the end of that time engaging in business for
himself and meeting with great success to the present time. In 1898
he purchased the store stand and store at State Hill, which is
situated on the thoroughfare from Reading to Bernville, and carried
it on for seven years in connection with his regular business. Then
he sold the store stock in order to devote all his time to
huckstering, but retained the ownership of the stand. While in the
store business he officiated as postmaster at the Lorah office. He
still attends the weekly market at Reading, as he has regularly
since he was a mere boy of ten years. In 1894 he purchased the old
Greth homestead; in 1903 the old and well-known “Dry Tavern”
property; and in 1904 the old Deppen homestead, situated on the
Bernville road. Having then decided to establish his residence on
the “Dry Tavern” property, one mile west of State Hill, he in 1905
erected a commodious house with all modern improvements, which is
generally recognized as the finest home in this section of the
country. It occupies an elevated position and commands a
magnificent view of the surrounding country for many miles. His
career in business has been very successful, and by his
straightforward course he has won the respect and confidence of the
entire community.

In 1891 Mr. Greth m. Kate Himmelreich, daughter
of Adam Himmelreich, a farmer of Lower Heidelberg, and nine
children have been born to them: Walter I.; Israel P., Adam D.,
Warren S., Elda S., Edna M., Erma A., Isaac C. and Elmer L.

Adam Himmelreich, father of Mrs. Isaac C. Greth,
m. Catharine Ochs, daughter of Charles Ochs, a farmer of Bern
township, and they had children: Kate m. Isaac C. Greth; George
married Ida Leinbach; Maggie m. David Yoder. Adam Himmelreich died
in 1893, aged forty-nine years.

Nathan Himmelreich, father of Adam, m. Mary Yoh,
daughter of John Yoh, and had seven children: Samuel m. Catharine
Reininger; Adam m. Catharine Ochs; Catharine m. Elias Brendel;
Ellen m. George Roth; Emma m. Wilson Trupp; Alice m. George Mint;
Isabella m. George Sallade.

Charles Ochs, maternal grandfather of Mrs. Isaac
C. Greth, a farmer of Alsace township, m. Catharine Schildt, and
became the father of four children: Catharine m. Adam Himmelreich;
Susan m. Jacob Dunkelberger; Cornelius remained unmarried; Henry m.
Elmira Stitzel. He died in 1878, aged sixty-nine years, and his
wife died at the age of seventy years.

Frederick Ochs, father of Charles, was a farmer
in Bern township. He m. Susan Bussler, and they had five children:
Jeremiah m. Catharine Zerbe; Henrietta m. Isaac Fornwald; Harriet
and Lydia remained unmarried; Charles m. Catharine Schildt.

(IV) John D. Greth, son of John and Elizabeth, was born in Lower
Heidelberg township in August, 1842. He was a huckster for many
years, also for a long time drove a milk route, and is now engaged
in selling liquor for A. M. Young, of Womelsdoft, a business he has
been engaged in since 1902. He owns his own home, and is quite
popular in his community. In politics he is a Democrat. He and his
family all belong to Hain’s Reformed Church, in which he has served
as deacon. He m. Amanda Hiester, daughter of John Hiester, and they
have eleven children: Henry, an insurance man at Reading, was for
many years a school teacher in Lower Heidelberg township; Kate m.
William Kline of Philadelphia; Charles A. is mentioned below;
Robert and John live in Reading; Ellen m. Ed. Kenney, of Heidelberg
township; Calvin and Lemuel are in Lower Heidelberg township; Reily
is in Illinois; Irwin, in Reading; Tillie m. William Koch, of
Robesonia.

(V) Charles A. Greth, son of John D., a prosperous truck farmer
residing near Wernersville, in Lower Heidelberg township, was born
there Dec. 25, 1869, and was educated in the township schools. When
sixteen years of age he went to learn spinning at the mills near
his home, and the business of spinning and carding he followed in
the same mill (conducted by J. Ulysses Hain) for a period of
fifteen years. He then farmed for two years, and for two years more
followed the painter’s trade. In 1904 he purchased the Jeremiah
Fincher place near Hain’s Church, and this tract he has since
farmed. It consists of eighteen acres, all of which is devoted to
truck farming. He attends the Reading market, having a stand at the
west Buttonwood market-house.

On Oct. 15, 1890, Mr. Greth m. Annie M.,
Kintzer, daughter of Michael and Matilda (Kurtz) Kintzer. They have
become the parents of six children, as follows: Paul, Ellis, Luke,
Leroy, Michael and Margaret.

GRIESEMER, CLAYTON B.

p.
1713

Surnames: GRIESEMER, GUILDIN, GRAEFF, REITER, LUDWIG,HOCH, VAN
REED, BERTOLET, DEISHER, RITTER, KLINE, NEIN, BROWN, BABB, HOFFMAN,
BOYER, MARCH, GEIGER, DEETER, HERFLICKER, BERTOLETTE

Clayton B. Griesemer, a native son of Amity township, Berks county,
who is engaged in farming there, was born near the Exeter township
line Jan. 27, 1867.

Casper Griesemer, the emigrant ancestor of this
old family, came to America from Alsace, France, with a brother, in
1730. This brother, John Valentine by name, first located in the
Goshenhoppen, in Montgomery county, Pa., but at an early date moved
to Hereford township, Berks county, where many of his descendants
still live. There is also a tradition that there was a third
brother, Peter, but if so his place of settlement is unknown.
Casper Griesemer made his last will and testament June 23, 1791,
and it is on record in Will Book A, page 293. He lived in Oley at
the time of his death in 1794. He had settled there at an early
date, being one of a number of Huguenots who chose the fertile Oley
Valley as their home. He disposed of his large estate in a just
manner, and one item in his will relates to his wife Rebecca: His
“beloved wife shall have as follows: the household and kitchen
furniture, bedding, linens, all ready money, bonds and notes, book
debts and other debts,” etc. He bequeathed each of this five
daughters the sum of 500 pounds in gold and silver; and to Abraham,
son of his deceased son Valentine, he gave 250 pounds, and to his
granddaughter Catharine, daughter of his deceased son Abraham, he
gave also 250 pounds. The children of Casper Griesemer were:
Valentine and Abraham, who died prior to 1791; John; Peter; Jacob;
Elizabeth (Guldin); Anna Maria (Graeff); Anna Margaret (Reiter);
Susanna; and Eva (Ludwig).

Peter Griesemer, son of Casper and
great-great-grandfather of Clayton B., was a farmer in Oley
township, where he built a stone house that is still standing. He
was an executor of his father’s will in 1794. He married a Hoch,
and both are buried at Oley Churches. They had six children:
Abraham; Catharine m. Daniel Van Reed; Daniel; Jacob; John, who
lived in Oley, died in 1817, leaving a large estate and survived by
his wife Catharine (they had no children); and Mary m. Daniel
Bertolet. Daniel Griesemer, son of Peter, lived along the Oley
turnpike, where he owned four large farms. He married Catharine
Deisher, daughter of John Deisher, and both are buried at Oley
Churches, as are also all of their six children-Benneville, Peter,
Henry, Daniel, John and Hettie. The town of Griesemersville, in
Oley, was named after Peter Griesemer, second son of Daniel and
Catharine (Deisher).

Abraham Griesemer, son of Peter, was born Oct.
26, 1782, and died Dec. 1, 1847. He was a farmer in Amity township,
and he and his wife are buried at Amityville. He married Catharine
Ritter, born June 26, 1788, died Jan. 18, 1859. They had seven
children, as follows: David, 1810-1847; Samuel; Sarah m. David
Kline; Esther m. David Kline; Joseph died in California; Mrs.
Daniel Bertolette; and Reuben, born Jan 2, 1826, on Nov. 18, 1847,
m. Polly Nein, and they have been farmers in Amity all their lives,
both now past eighty years of age (they had one child, still born
in 1849).

Samuel Griesemer, son of Abraham, was born in
Amity township June 28, 1812. He was a miller and conducted the
well known Griesemer mill on the Monocacy until about 1871, when he
gave up that work to devote himself to farming on the land he
bought in Amity. He sold the mill to George Brown. After farming
some years he retired, and moved to Exeter, where he died March 15,
1902, and he is buried at Amityville. He was a prominent man in his
time, and was public spirited and progressive, standing high in the
estimation of the community. He was one of the founders and
organizers of the Amityville cemetery, and was liberal in his
donations to the church. He was of dark complexion, and was five
feet and nine inches in height. He married Matilda Babb, who died
Aug. 16, 1896, aged eighty-one years, six months, fourteen days.
Their children were: Catharine, 1837-1905, died unmarried; Franklin
born 1839, is unmarried; Abraham is the father of Alexander F. of
Reading; Ezra B.; Louisa died young; John died in Amity township,
leaving a widow and two sons, Samuel and Harvey.

Ezra B. Griesemer, son of Samuel, is a farmer
near Stonersville, in Exeter township. By trade he is a carpenter,
and for some years followed that occupation regularly. He has a
farm of about eighty-five acres, which he now cultivates. He
married Mary Boyer, daughter of Jacob Boyer, of Amity township, and
they have seven children: Clayton B.; Kate m. Jacob Hoffman, a
farmer of Exeter; Ezra is a carpenter in Exeter; Stella m. Walter
Kline, a farmer of Exeter; John is a Reformed minister; and Mame
and George are at home.

Clayton B. Griesemer has been familiar with
farming from his early boyhood, and in the spring of 1894 he began
for himself in Amity township, near Baumstown, where he remained
one year. He then went to a farm belonging to his grandfather,
Samuel Griesemer, in the same township, and for two years devoted
himself to its care and cultivation. The next six years were passed
on Isaac March’s farm, also in Amity, and in the fall of 1902 he
purchased the John Geiger farm near Amityville, moving on it in the
following spring. It consists of 106 acres of good land, and the
stone house is in excellent condition. He has two silos and is
progressive and up-to-date in his methods. In politics he is a
Democrat, and for six years served as school director, a part of
the time being president of the board. He and his family belong to
the Reformed Church at Amityville.

On Aug. 24, 1891, Mr. Griesemer married Kate
Deeter, daughter of Amos and Mary (Herflicker) Deeter, of Exeter
township, and they have one son, Owen D.

GRIESEMER, ELI B.

p. 1421

Surnames: GRIESEMER, POTT, BOONE, GULDIN, GRAEFF, REITER, LUDWIG,
HOCH, RITTER, KLINE, NEIN, LORAH, DEYSHER, CARRAGAN, HERTZOG,
KNABB, SCHAEFFER, ALTHOUSE, HILL, YODER, ZECHMAN, CLEAVER, PYLE,
STAPLETON, KIEFFER

Eli B. Griesemer, manager of the Pleasantville Creamery, was born
in Oley township, Berks county, Aug. 24, 1874, son of Peter K.
Griesemer, hospital steward of the Berks County Almshouse.

Casper Griesemer, who died in 1794, lived in
Oley township. His will, to which John Pott, Jr., and Joshua Boone
were witnesses, was made June 23, 1791. In this he gives to his
wife, Rebecca, the household and kitchen furniture, bedding,
linens, all ready money, bonds, notes, book debts, etc. To each of
his five daughters was given 500 pounds in gold and silver. These
daughters were Elizabeth Guldin, Anna Maria Graeff, Anna Margaret
Reiter, Susanna Griesemer and Eva Ludwig. His sons living at that
time were: John, Peter and Jacob. Other items in the will were: To
“My grandson Abraham (son of my deceased son Valentine), 250
pounds.” To “My granddaughter Catharine (daughter of my deceased
son Abraham) 250 pounds.

Peter Griesemer, son of Casper, was married to a
Hoch, and they had a son, Abraham, who died in 1847. Abraham m.
Catharine Ritter, and their children were: David died in 1847;
Samuel; Sarah m. David Kline; Esther m. David Kline; Joseph died in
California; Reuben, born Jan. 2, 1826, m. Polly Nein, Nov. 18,
1847, had one child still-born 1849, and both are living in Amity
township since their retirement from farming.

Jacob Griesemer, great-grandfather of Eli B.,
was a lifelong resident of Oley township, also owning the old home
farm and also the old Griesemer mill. The original mill was
destroyed by fire prior to 1850. Jacob Griesemer was tall, weighed
over 300 pounds, and was exceedingly strong. He married Elizabeth
Lorah and they had three sons and four daughters, namely: Daniel,
who lived on a part of the homestead; Sally, m. to John Deysher;
Elizabeth, m. to John Deysher; Susan, m. to William Carragan; Jacob
L.; Mary, m. to Jacob Hertzog; and a son who was drowned in
boyhood.

Jacob L. Griesemer, son of Jacob, was born in
1812, and lived all his life in Oley township, where he owned the
Griesemer homestead of about 200 acres. He was a useful and
respected man in his district. He died in March, 1885. His wife,
Cordelia Knabb, was a daughter of John D. and Hannah (Schaeffer)
Knabb. Their children were: John and Jacob died young; a son died
in infancy; Cordelia died young; Deborah K. m. Milt. Althouse;
Peter K.; Ammon K.; Mary Ann died unmarried; William K; Hannah K.
m. Darius Y. Hill, and both are deceased; Kate K. m. Ellis Yoder.

Peter K. Griesemer, son of Jacob L. and father
of Eli B., was born at Griesemer’s Mill, in Oley township, March
30, 1844. He was reared on his father’s farm on which he lived,
engaged in farming, until his sixty-third year, when he became
hospital steward of the almshouse. He owns the old homestead, which
belonged to the emigrant ancestor of that name.

Politically Mr. Griesemer is a Democrat, and
takes an active interest in the success of his party. He was
township auditor and supervisor for nine years. On New Year’s day,
1907, he was appointed to his present position at the Almshouse. He
has been a director of the Oley Turnpike Company since 1887, and
one of the influential men of Oley township. He is a member of
Council No. 18, Jr. O. U. A. M., of Oley; Oley Castle, No. 119, K.
G. E., of Oley; and Lodge No. 1109, I. O. O. F., of
Griesemersville.

He and his family are Reformed members of Oley
Church, of which he was deacon for five years and trustee for many
years. His children were: Ida. m. to George A. Kieffer; Eli B.;
Elmer; John; George; Charles; Oscar, who died when one year old;
Howard; Mary; Chester, and Peter.

Eli B. Griesemer was educated in the township
schools, Oley Academy, and the Normal School at Kutztown. He was
licensed to teach in the public schools of Berks county by Prof.
William M. Zechman, and taught his first term in the fall of 1893,
in his native township, after which he taught at Brumbach’s school
four terms. In the spring of 1898 he became the manager of the
Pleasantville creamery for Frank F. Cleaver, and operated it for
him two years, when Mr. Cleaver died and was succeeded by his son,
its present owner. This creamery averages 9,000 pounds of milk
daily, and has been a very successful enterprise. Mr. Griesemer
thoroughly understands the business, and his efficient work has
been an important factor in its success.

Fraternally he is a member of Oley Castle No.
119, K. G. E.; Camp No. 121, P. O. S. of A., of Oley Line; and
Griesemersville Lodge No. 1109, I. O. O. F. Politically he is a
Democrat, and was school director of the only independent school
district in Berks county, called Pleasantville Independent
District. He and his wife belong to the Oley Church.

Mr. Griesemer married Annie P. Stapleton,
daughter of Samuel and Cassie (Pyle) Stapleton, late of Oley. They
have had six children, namely: Florence E. (died in infancy),
Lottie M., Ida C., Eva A., Amy O., and Annie L.

GRIESEMER
FAMILY

p. 1377

Surnames: GRIESEMER, MABERRY, FETHEROLF, GRASSLEY, SCHULTZ, URFFER,
KRIEBEL, ROBERTS, SALLADE, HUBER, FRY, TREICHLER, GERY, FABER,
FREDERICK, GRIM, WENDLING, MILLER, STRASSER, ASHER, GROSS, JACOBY,
MESCHTER, HEIMBACH, KRIEBEL, MOLL, BITTENBENDER, MERTZ, SCHULTER

The ship “Thistle,” which in 1730 arrived at Philadelphia, had on
board three “Gresamere” brothers, Casper, John Leonard and Peter.
The name Griesemer has been variously spelled. In Oley township the
village of Griesemersville perpetuates the name. Casper Griesemer
located in Oley township, where his descendants reside to the
present time. He died in 1794, the head of a large family. His
sons, John and Peter, were the executors of his last will and
testament, which is recorded in Will Book A, p. 293. Peter
Griesemer located in the Goshenhoppen Valley, Montgomery county.
There Valentine Griesemer had also located for a few years, but
before the organization of the county in 1752 he had settled in
Hereford township, Berks county. He became a prominent factor in
that township, and was one of the three largest land owners there,
the township having been erected in 1753. Thomas Maberry, an
Englishman, Peter Fetherolf, a Hollander, and Valentine Griesemer,
a French Huguenot from Alsace, owned nearly the entire eastern part
of Hereford, the Griesemer land comprising about 600 acres, and
including the present farm of Joseph M. Griesemer (who is of the
fifth generation of the family in this country), the Benjamin
Grassley farm, the Samuel S. Schultz farm, the tract owned by the
Mary Urffer estate, part of the Henry Kriebel farm, the James
Roberts tract, the William H. Sallade farm, the F. W. Huber farm,
all of Treichlersville, and the Ambrose H. Huber farm, the Albert
Fry and Elmer Huber tracts, besides parts of other farms along the
eastern end of the township. Thomas Maberry owned the land about
Mensch’s Mill, the David G. Treichler farm and the Daniel N.
Schultz farm, besides considerable other lands. Peter Fetherolf
owned the land to the east and southeast of Siesholtzville, and he
is buried in a private burial ground on the late Samuel
Bittenbender’s farm. Valentine Griesemer erected the first set of
buildings on the tract now owned by Joseph M. Griesemer. In 1878,
Gabriel G. Griesemer tore down the old log house that Valentine
Griesemer built long before the establishment of Berks county.
Valentine Griesemer is buried at New Goshenhoppen Church, but the
inscription on his sandstone tombstone is no longer legible. He was
a member of the German Reformed congregation. Among his children
were Leonard and Gertrude (m. Jacob Gery).

(II) Leonard Griesemer, son of Valentine, was born in 1733, and
died Jan. 5, 1821, and is buried at New Goshenhoppen Church. He was
a farmer. He also established a pottery on the farm now owned by
his great-grandson, Joseph M. Griesemer, about fifty yards
southeast of the present stone residence. The pottery was conducted
by Gabriel Griesemer as late as 1865, when it was destroyed by
fire. Leonard Griesemer was a public-spirited and enterprising. In
that early day he was greatly interested in the intellectual
development of the community and was officially connected with the
establishment of the primitive pay schools that marked the
beginning of the present great school system. During the war of the
Revolution he did hauling for the Continental army, and suffered
the loss of a valuable team. On the farm now owned by Joseph M.
Griesemer, he built a barn in 1811, and added to the stone house,
but the barn has since been remodeled. He married Elizabeth Faber,
born Oct. 14, 1739, died Jan. 14, 1814. They had children: John
Jacob, George, Abraham, Isaac, and Catharine (m. Abraham Mertz).

(III) Jacob Griesemer, son of Leonard obtained the lands now in the
farms of Benjamin Grassley, Samuel S. Schultz, and the Mary Urffer
estate, besides thirty-five acres of woodland located in Upper
Milford township, Lehigh county. He was a farmer and also conducted
a pottery which was located on the Benjamin Grassley farm, about
fifty years northwest of the present residence. The pottery
represented an important industry many years ago, and even as late
as 1850 Jacob Frederick operated it, but in 1865 or 1866 it was
torn down, though fragments of the foundation are still to be found
below the surface of the ground. On Nov. 25, 1809, Jacob Griesemer
purchased of his parents two tracts of land in Hereford township,
containing altogether 145 acres. On Sept 10, 1810, Jacob Griesemer
and his wife, Sarah, sold this land to John Gery, of Upper Hanover
township, Montgomery county. On Sept. 13, 1816, John Gery sold it
to Samuel Gery, of Hereford township; and on April 5, 1834, Samuel
Gery and wife, Susanna, sold it to David Schultz, of Upper Hanover
township, for $10,500. In 1873 title passed to the present owner,
Samuel S. Schultz, but the tract known as the homestead was
accepted by Manoah S. Schultz, who in 1905 sold same to Benjamin
Grassley. Samuel S. Schultz received forty-two acres of this same
tract.

(III) Abraham Griesemer, son of Leonard, became the father of six
children: John, located in Ohio; Julia; Mrs. Grim; Mrs. Wendling of
Pennsburg; Mrs. Miller; and Abraham, born in 1821, and still
living, located in Allentown, where he was the first dentist. (He
married and had two children: Elizabeth, wife of Thomas A.
Strasser, a specialist in diseases of the eye, ear and nose, and an
inventor of note, at Reading; and Dr. Asher, who died in 1885, the
father of Mark, Asher, Paul and Robert).

(III) Isaac Griesemer, son of Leonard, was born on the homestead in
1777, and died in 1872, and is buried at the Reformed Church in Old
Zionsville. He was a farmer and owned the old original homestead,
consisting of ninety acres. He was well built physically and
possessed of great strength. He was very fond of attending
battalion meetings, and could well take care of himself and his
friends. In politics a Democrat, he served as township supervisor.
He married Catharine Gross, of Maxatawny township, born May 23,
1773, died Oct. 2, 1839. He married (second) Catharine Jacoby. His
children, all by the first marriage, were: Joseph, Solomon, Isaac,
Peter, Gabriel and Hettie (died unmarried).

(IV) Gabriel G. Griesemer, son of Isaac, was born Dec. 27, 1813, on
his father’s farm, and died in Hereford in 1895, and both he and
his wife were buried at Goshenhoppen Church. He was a farmer, and
operated the pottery, making roofing tile. He built the present
large substantial stone residence in 1878, containing twelve large
rooms with a wide hallway, and he also remodeled the barn. He and
his family were Reformed members of New Goshenhoppen Church. On
Sept. 2, 1841, he married Regina Meschter, daughter of George and
Susanna (Heimbach) Meschter, and their children were: Elizabeth m.
Henry Kriebel, deceased; Susanna is unmarried and lives with her
brother, Joseph M.; Sarah, deceased, m. Henry Schulter; Matthias,
died in infancy; Owen is a school teacher at Walnutport, Pa.; Mary,
deceased, m. Levi Moll, also deceased; Percival, lives to Goshen,
Ind.; and Joseph M.

(V) Joseph M. Griesemer, son of Gabriel G., was born at the family
home March 17, 1857, and was educated in the township schools and
later in the Keystone State Normal School at Kutztown. He early
became thoroughly versed in farming duties, and this vocation he
has continued to follow to the present time. He owns the old
homestead farm, which is one of the best in the township, the
buildings and improvements being first-class in every respect. Mr.
Griesemer is one of the influential Democrats in his district, and
he has frequently served as delegate to county conventions under
the old system. In 1903 he was a delegate to the State Convention
at Harrisburg, and he is active in the political affairs of the
county, many a successful candidate owning his success to Mr.
Griesemer’s influence. In the spring of 1906 he was elected one of
the supervisors of his township under the new road law, and this
office he continues to hold. He belongs to the Reformed
congregation at Goshenhoppen Church. He has been committeeman since
1899.