Biographies from Historical and Biographical Annals by Morton Montgomery

PILGERT,
HENRY P. (J. P.)

p. 1014

Surnames: PILGERT, FEIGLEY, ECK, SCHOEDLER, HOWE, BITTING, JACOBS,
SMITH, KETTERER, REESER, FRITCH, DANKEL, STAUFER

The Pilgert family is descended from:

(I) George Pilgert, who was born in Longswamp township, and who
died in 1872, and was buried in the Mertztown Church Cemetery. He
was a tailor and farmer by occupation, and a lifelong resident of
Longswamp township, at what is known as Pilgert’s schoolhouse, of
which he was supervisor for many years. George Pilgert married
Diana Feigley, a daughter of Henry Feigley, born April 19, 1774,
who died at the age of ninety-seven years. She was born 1805, in
Longswamp township, and died at the advanced age of ninety-five
years and is buried in Mertztown Church Cemetery. They had eight
children: Isaac; Willoughby m. Mary Eck; Henry E.; Reuben m.
Sarah Schoedler, deceased; George M., deceased, m. Maria Howe;
Judith died unmarried; Isabella m. a Mr. Bitting, deceased;
Rebecca m. William Jacobs.

(II) Henry E. Pilgert, father of Henry P., was born on the
homestead Nov. 20, 1831, and is now seventy-seven years old and
still active, working every day. He was a cigar maker by trade, but
did not follow it after the Civil war. He did not serve in the war
on account of a small defect in his ankle. His two brothers, George
M. and Willoughby, served, however, for some time, and later were
pensioned. On May 31, 1857, Henry E. Pilgert married Maria Smith,
born May 31, 1838, died May 3, 1891.They had six children: Sarah
died at the age of fifteen years; Helena m. George W. Ketterer, of
Allentown, and died at the age of forty-two; Henry P.; Catharine,
born Sept. 5, 1868, m. William E. Ketterer, and resides at Reading
; George E., born Feb. 11, 1874, m. Maleria Reeser, and they reside
at Allentown, where he is a bookkeeper for the Trexler Lumber
Company; Maria Isabella, born Aug. 22, 1876, m. Luther P. Fritch,
and they live at home.

(III) Henry P. Pilgert was born in Mertztown March 9, 1864, and was
educated in the local schools of the district, and later at the
Keystone State Normal School at Kutztown. For some years he was a
public school teacher, and for two years he clerked in a wholesale
dry goods house in Philadelphia. In the spring of 1891 he took
charge of the station of the Philadelphia & Reading Railroad as
agent and telegrapher, at Mertztown, and at the same time acted as
postmaster, from 1893 to 1897. In 1901 he entered the coal, grain
and lumber business which he has been conducting successfully ever
since. In 1900 he was elected justice of the peace, and this office
he still holds with credit, his commission not expiring until 1910,
which will complete his two terms.

On Oct. 22, 1887, Mr. Pilgert married Ella J.
Dankel, a daughter of Reuben Dankel, and his wife Sophia Staufer.
Mr. and Mrs. Pilgert have two children: Henry Payne, born May 11,
1902; Julia Frances, born March 27, 1908. In politics Mr. Pilgert
is a Democrat, and he has held various minor offices, such as
school controller, treasurer of the board of supervisors, as well
as the other offices already mentioned. The family are members of
the Lutheran and Reformed churches at Mertztown and Longswamp, and
they are very highly respected.

PLANER, GEORGE

p. 959

Surnames: PLANER, HARTIG, STANTON, BOWMAN, REISSMILLER, HART,
LORAH, LUDWIG, PRICE, ZEIBER, KERNS

George Planer, a citizen of Mount Penn borough, Berks Co., Pa.,
residing in his home on Perkiomen avenue, was born March 24, 1837,
in Hollenbach, Oberamt-Kunzelsau, Kingdom of Wurtemberg, Germany,
son of Frederick Planer.

Frederick Planer was a farmer in Germany, owning
a tract of eighty acres, a tavern in the town of Hollenbach, and a
small brewery, in which he manufactured the beer used in the
tavern. He was born about 1794, and died in 1860. At the time of
the latter event his son George was sought, and advertisements
placed in the newspapers of this country to locate him, but he was
not found until it was too late for him, as oldest son, to claim
his father’s property. Frederick Planer’s first wife died when
George Planer was eight years old. She was the mother of George :
Barbara, who remained single; and Sophia, who died aged four
years. Mr. Planer’s second wife’s name was Barbara, and they had
six children, of whom Karl and Sophia are the only surviving
members.

George Planer was educated in the German schools
of his native country, and after leaving school at the age of
fourteen years, he worked for his father for four years, driving a
four-horse team, hauling freight. He started for America Feb. 22,
1856, and after a seventy-two days voyage- sixty days of which were
very stormy, during which time thirteen sailors were swept
overboard and one of them drowned- he finally landed at Castle
Garden, N. Y. He immediately started for Kittanning, Armstrong Co.,
Pa., where he learned the cabinet making trade from Godlieb Hartig,
serving the regular apprenticeship of three full years. For the
next three years he traveled from Pittsburg to New Orleans, along
the Ohio and Mississippi and up the Wabash river for 100 miles,
following cabinet making and carpentering, repairing steamships and
building houses. When the war broke out Mr. Planer was in the
neutral State of Kentucky, which finally became unpleasant for
those following the pursuits of peace and he removed to
Philadelphia, where he enlisted in the Union army, although he had
been offered $500 in gold to become a Confederate soldier. He
enlisted as a private in Company F, 5th Pa. Cav., Aug. 4, 1861, for
three years or during the war, and served his full term of service,
a part of which time he was detailed by Hon. Edward M. Stanton,
Secretary of War, for special duty in erecting of telegraph lines.
In this work he rendered faithful and valuable service to his
adopted country.

After the war Mr. Planer followed carpentering
for several months in Philadelphia, and in 1866 located in Reading,
where he worked at his trade for ten years, building houses for
himself and working for others, but in the fall of 1876, the day
after the Presidential election, he located upon a fifty-two acre
farm in Exeter township, below Neversink Station, a property he had
purchased some time before. Here he resided twenty-seven years, and
on July 26, 1903, he removed to his present home on Perkiomen
avenue, Mount Penn, where he has since lived. Mr. Planer is
independent in politics, and he and his family are members of the
German Lutheran Church of Reading.

On Sept. 3, 1866, Mr. Planer married Lydia
Bowman, daughter of Peter and Rebecca (Reissmiller) Bowman, and to
them were born eleven children as follows: Pauline m. John Hart, an
iron worker of Seibert’s Rolling Mill; William P., who is
railroading in Reading, m. Alice Lorah; George died in infancy;
Harry F., who is an iron worker of Seibert’s Rolling Mill, m. Clara
Ludwig; Edward, who is a blacksmith of Naomi, Berks county, m.
Nora Price; Thomas, who is a carpenter of Reading, m. Marguerite
Zeiber; Alfred O., single, is a puddler; Maggie m. Tobias Kerns,
a barber of St. Lawrence, Pa.; Miss Clara is at home; Irwin died
aged eleven months, fifteen days; and Paul S. is single and
resides at home.

PLANK,
CHARLES M.

p. 467

Surnames: PLANK, MOLL, LANNING, PHILLIPPI, WINGERD, ALTHOUSE

Charles M. Plank, a lawyer of Reading, who has been somewhat
prominent in Republican politics for a number of years, is
descended from French-Huguenot stock. His grandfather, Jacob Plank,
resided in Cambridge, Lancaster county.

Adam Plank, father of Charles, was a farmer in
Lancaster county in the early part of his career, but later moved
to Reading, where he was in business until his death, in 1880, at
the age of seventy-two years. He married Joanna Moll, daughter of
John and Elizabeth Moll, of Salisbury township, Lancaster county.
Of their eight children, five are deceased, as follows: Winfield
Scott, who died when four years old; Margaret; Elizabeth, who
died at the age of twenty-one; Catharine, who died aged fifty;
and Mary. The survivors are : Jennie P., wife of James A. Lanning,
of Camden, N. J.; Ida M., wife of Henry M. Philippi, of Reading;
and Charles M.

Charles M. Plank was born Sept. 23, 1860, and
was reared in Reading, where he received good school advantages. He
graduated from the high school in the class of 1876, and for three
years thereafter taught school. Having decided upon the law as his
life work, he began to study in the office of the late Daniel H.
Wingerd, passed the examination in 1881, and at once began
practice. In the ensuing years he has acquired a very comfortable
clientele and been admitted to the Superior, Supreme, United States
District and United States Circuit courts. He has confined himself
principally to private practice, yet at various times he has been
engaged in legal work in the public service, for four years acting
as assistant city solicitor, for three years as solicitor for the
school board and for three years as deputy collector of Internal
Revenue.

Mr. Plank has given considerable attention to
public affairs. He is a good “mixer,” and a valuable man in
Republican councils. He has been chairman of the Republican county
committee for ten years and his face is a familiar one in all the
local conventions of his party, and in State and national
conventions as well, he having been delegate to State conventions
nineteen times. He was a delegate in 1896 to the national
convention in St. Louis which nominated McKinley. Mr. Plank’s name
has given strength to the local Republican ticket in several
elections, and in 1896 he was the candidate of his party for State
senator. He was leading a known forlorn hope, however, so that his
defeat was not a disappointment. He came out of the contest with
the rather startling record of having carried the city of Reading
by a plurality of 2,380 votes, and he came within 1,382 votes of
carrying the district. Mr. Plank is a communicant of the Episcopal
Church, with membership at Christ Cathedral in Reading.

Mr. Plank married Sept. 29, 1897, Helen A.
Althouse, daughter of the late Franklin A. Althouse, who for
forty-one years was in the railroad service.

PLANK,
ISAAC

p. 976

Surnames: PLANK, FRANEY, KAUFFMAN, LOOK, HART, WILLET, MEREDITH,
LEE

Isaac Plank, who was actively and successfully engaged in the
mercantile business, at the “Half-way House,” in Maiden-creek
township, Berks county, was born Aug. 23, 1830, in Caernarvon
township, this county, and died at Blandon, May 11, 1908.

His great-grandfather, Dr. Jacob Plank, was as
far as is known the pioneer physician of Berks county. He was a
French Huguenot and settled in Oley township soon after the first
settlement of that region, where in 1729 he signed a petition with
other early settlers asking for the erection of that township. It
is not known who his wife was, but he had four sons : Michael,
John, Peter, and Jacob.

Peter Plank, the grandfather of Isaac, was born
in Oley township, in 1748, and some years prior to the Revolution
moved to the head-waters of the Conestoga, in Caernarvon township,
where he purchased a large tract of farming land, and followed
agricultural pursuits all his life. He was married to Frances
(Franey) Kauffman, daughter of John Kauffman, a leading farmer of
Chester county, and they had these children: Maria, born in 1783;
Jacob, in 1785; John, in 1787; Christopher, in 1789; Christian,
in 1791; Elizabeth, in 1793; Anna, in 1798; Samuel, 1801, and
David in 1804. In religious belief Peter Plank was an Amish
Mennonite, and for fifty years prior to his death served as a
bishop, having charge of all the congregations in Berks, Chester,
and Lancaster counties.

Christian Plank, father of Isaac, married
(first) a Miss Look, by whom he had no children, and (second) Mary
Hart, there being three children born to the latter marriage: Isaac
; Samuel, who resides at Joanna; and Peter, deceased.

Isaac Plank was educated in the Friend’s School
of Maiden-creek township, and later attended Thomas Willet’s pay
school and Captain Meredith’s school. After completing his
education he hired out to George Lee, of Chester county, with whom
he learned coach-making; and in 1855 went to Maiden-creek township
and engaged in a mercantile business at Evansville. In 1860 he
located at the “Half-way House” and conducted a store business
there until 1894, when he retired and then established his
residence at Blandon, a mile distant, where he lived in retirement
until his decease. During his business career he showed great
fondness for travel, having made several trips to California, and
attended expositions at Chicago and Buffalo. Mr. Plank was made a
Free Mason in Lodge No. 62, F. & A. M., at Reading, in 1872,
and manifested an active interest in the welfare of lodge for many
years. On numerous occasions he drove to Reading from the Half-way
House to attend the meetings, and being of a friendly, sociable
nature enjoyed them very much. He was highly regarded for his
superior character, and showed a generous disposition to worthy
persons, but without ostentation.

PLANK, J.
L.

p. 1552

Surnames: PLANK, EVANS, FOREMAN, KURTZ, DUCHMAN

J. L. Plank, who for a number of years has held the office of
justice of the peace in Caernarvon township, is a substantial
agriculturist of Morgantown, where he owns a valuable property. Mr.
Plank was born Sept. 21, 1848, son of David K. and Susan H. (Evans)
Plank, and the grandson of Jacob Plank. David K. Plank, who was
born Oct. 21,1821, was for many years connected with the Keystone
State Bank of Reading, Pa., and was a well-known and highly
esteemed citizen. Two sons were born to David K. Plank and his
wife: J. L.; and Charles M., who is yardmaster of the Philadelphia
& Reading Railroad, at Mahanoy City.

J. L. Plank received his education in the common
schools of Lancaster county, and early in life engaged in
agricultural pursuits, which he has followed successfully to the
present time. He has been prominent in Republican politics, having
for some years been a school director and justice of the peace. He
and his family are members of the Morgantown Methodist Episcopal
Church, where he is serving as trustee.

Mr. J. L. Plank was united in marriage with Miss
Jennie Foreman, born April 1, 1850 and to them there have been born
five children. (1) Wanita Florence; (2) Harry F. m. Sara Adella
Kurtz, by whom he has two children: David K., born June 30, 1901;
and Luther, born July 20, 1906. (3) Edward H. m. Eva Duchman, by
whom he has four children- Grace Mildred, Ethel D., Frederick and
Donald. (4) D. Ralph. (5) A. Earl.

PLOWFIELD,
FRANK

p. 1346

Surnames: PLOWFIELD, GRAEFF, MILLER, HUNSBERGER, HARTENSTINE,
BANDLES, BUSH, KELLER, MERKLE, NOLL

Frank Plowfield, of Reading, who is engaged in the manufacture of
artificial ice at No. 227 West Green street, was born Feb. 7, 1865,
in Morgantown, Pa., son of Frederick and Christiana (Graeff)
Plowfield.

Frederick Plowfield was born in Wurtemberg,
Germany, and in his native country served in the standing army.
When a young man he came to America and settled first in the
Conestoga Valley, and later at a place where he engaged in farming
and lime burning for several years. Later he purchased a farm near
Joanna Furnace, and there the rest of his life was spent, his death
occurring in February, 1891, at the age of seventy-two years. His
widow survived him until 1894, and she passed away in her
seventy-second year. They were members of the Lutheran Church, and
the parents of children as follows: Mary, born in 1847, m. George
Miller, Joseph, born in 1848, Jacob, born in 1850, Ludwig, born in
1853, Eliza, born in 1854, m. William Hunsberger; Catherine, born
in 1855, m. John Hartenstine; Annie born in 1857, m. Herman
Bandles; Emma B., born in 1859, m. Theodore Bush; William, born in
1861; John born in 1863; Frank; Ella, born in 1867.

Frank Plowfield was educated in the common
schools of his native locality and his first employment was on a
farm, on which he worked until about twenty-four years old. In 1889
he moved to Gibraltar, Berks county, where he drove a team until
1891, and in the latter year located in Reading and engaged as a
driver for the Excelsior Bottling Works. After one year at this
occupation he engaged in the coal and flour business with Francis
Keller, and in this continued for four years, in 1897 engaging in
the ice business, in which he has continued to the present time. He
has two delivery teams, using the extra one for afternoon service,
and employs three assistants. He has a storage plant, although he
buys the ice direct from the manufacturers, and his trade is large
and constantly increasing. Mr. Plowfield owns a valuable residence
at No. 1230 Oley street, Reading, in which he resides.

In 1891 Mr. Plowfield married Sarah H. Merkle,
daughter of William and Mary A. (Noll) Merkle, and to this union
have been born two children: William F. and Harvey H. In religious
belief Mr. And Mrs. Plowfield are Lutherans. He is a Republican in
politics and his fraternal connections are with the Foresters of
America; Harmony Fire Relief Association and Schuylkill Fire
Company.