lived and died in Bridgeville, Pennsylvania.
(IV) John McMillen, son of Andrew (2) and Rachel (Estep) Mc-
Millen, was born in Bridgeville, Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, in 1834,
died in 1878. He was reared on the home farm, and finding agricultural
WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA 253
operations strongly to his liking he purchased proi>erty and established in-
dependently. Discovering coal upon his property he began to develop the
resources of the deposit, realizing a substantial income from this manner
of dealing, and also became a general contractor, performing contracting
work of all kinds in the neighborhood, including county work on the roads.
His life was cut short by a most unfortunate accident when he was forty-
four years of age, a fall of slate while he was at work in his mine causing
his death. At various times he had been the incumbent of numerous county
offices, always as the successful candidate of the Republican party, and
was a member and regular attendant of the Methodist Episcopal Church.
He married (first) Eleanor Ewing, born near Monaca, Beaver county^
Pennsylvania, in 1839, died in childbirth in 1864, daughter of Thomas and
Ellen (Estep) Ewing, her father of Dutch descent, born in Lancaster
county, later settling in Beaver county, Pennsylvania ; her mother a sister
of Rachel, wife of Andrew McMillen. He married (second) Martha
Ewing, a sister of his first wife, who died three years later. He married
(third) Margaret Mack, who later married a second time, her second hus-
band being John Trimble, their present home Bridgeville, Pennsylvania.
Children of John McMillen's first marriage: i. Margaret, married Benja-
min Rosser, deceased; resides in Carnegie, Pennsylvania. 2. Andrew W.,
of whom further. 3. Eleanor, married H. J. Dietrich ; lives in Carnegie.
4. Rachel, deceased ; married Michael McQuade ; their home was in Car-
negie. Child of second marriage of John McMillen: 5. Sarah, deceased;
married James D. Watton. Child of third marriage of John McMillen :
6. Maud St. Clair, married Crawford J. Caldwell ; resides in Greensburg,
Pennsylvania.
(V) Andrew W. McMillen, son of John and Eleanor (Ewing) Mc-
Millen, was born in Bridgeville, Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, June 9,
i860. Until he was fifteen years of age he attended the public schools
of the place of his birth. He then obtained employment on a farm near
Canonsburg. Washington county, Pennsylvania, where he remained for
one year. He then passed one year engaged in labor of the same sort on a
farm near his home, later becoming an employee in Byers Sheet Iron Mill
in Pittsburgh, South Side, whence he went to Swartz's Mill, working for a
few months as shearsman. The Pittsburgh & Lake Erie Railroad then
claimed his services as a carpenter, after which he became one of the first
crew to man the new steamboat, "Harry Brown," which was launched on
the Ohio river and put into commission on the Ohio and Mississippi rivers.
Leaving river work, he was for the following summer employed at farm
work, then was employed as a carpenter by William A. McMillen, after-
ward following mining until 1882. He once more became a carpenter, work-
ing on the Panhandle Railroad, subsequently in Carnegie, and was next a
brakeman on the railroad. In March, 1884, he was elected to the office of
constable of Chartiers borough, later becoming chief of police, and in May,
1888, was elected to his present position of justice of the peace of Carnegie,
his last commission expiring in 1920. His political party is the Republican,
254 WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA
which he has actively supported all his life. He and his wife are com-
municants of the Methodist Episcopal Church, while he holds membership
in the Royal Arcanum and the Loyal Order of Moose. Mr. McMillen is a
respected and highly regarded citizen of Carnegie, his affable and hearty
manner making him an agreeable addition to any gathering. His wide ex-
perience and relation with men of different classes and callings have given
him a deep insight into human nature and motives that has stood him in
good stead, and he instinctively trusts or distrusts those with whom he
comes into contact with no other guide than his highly acute intuitive
powers.
Mr. McMillen married, January ii, 1888, Ellen Callahan, born at
Ewingville, Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, daughter of WilHam and
Bridget Callahan, her father a native of Ireland, a miner in Pennsylvania.
Children of Andrew W. and Ellen (Callahan) McMillen: i. Eleanor
Pearl, married Charles Ray, who was killed in a railroad accident ; she
lives at her parents' home. 2. William Glenn, unmarried ; resides in Staples,
Minnesota; he was for two years a student in Yale University and served
a two year term in the United States navy. 3. Leonard H., married
Eleanor Cole ; lives in Carnegie, Pennsylvania.
He of this line of Smith with whom this chronicle opens, the
SMITH grandfather of John P. Smith, gave of the best years of his
life to the military service of the Kingdom of Saxony, for
twenty-nine years being a soldier in the army of that country, leaving the
service with the rank of colonel. He was a man of magnificent build, more
than six feet in height, a figure that, at the head of his troops, inspired
his men to noble courage and deeds of bravery. Among the campaigns in
which he saw active service were those against the army of Napoleon. He
did not marry until he forsook military life, at which time he was well ad-
vanced in years, and received a pension from the government in recogni-
tion of his faithful and valuable services. He was the father of: i.
John T., of whom further. 2. Nell, died in Germany. 3. Frederick, died in
his native land.
(II) John T. Smith was born near Neidoff, Saxony, Germany, in
1807, died in 1885. In young manhood he apprenticed himself to and
learned the tailor's trade, following that occupation until middle life. At
this time, through the deaths of one of his daughters and her husband, he
inherited a farm, on which he lived the remainder of his years, rearing
his grandchildren to maturity. Both he and his wife were communicants
of the Lutheran Church. He married Anna Greeman, born near Neidoff,
Saxony, Germany, in 181 1, died in 1887, daughter of Lutheran parents who
passed their entire lives in Germany. Children of John T. and Anna (Gree-
man) Smith: i. Mary, married a Mr. Blochman ; resides in Saxony, Ger-
many. 2. Helen, died unmarried in her native land. 3. Agnes, married
a Mr. Dunnout ; lives on a farm in Saxony. 5. Andrew, accidentally killed
when eighteen years of age while driving a horse drawing a load of stone
WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA 255
from a quarry, the horse becoming frightened and running away. 5. John
P., of whom further.
(III) John P. Smith, son of John T. and Anna (Greeman) Smith, was
born in Neidoff, Saxony, Germany, October 10, 1846. Until he was four-
teen years of age he attended the public schools, after which he drove a
milk wagon for a dairyman for nine months. At the expiration of this
time he was apprenticed to the wagon-maker's trade under the preceptor-
ship of Andrew Snyder, of Neswicks, Saxony, mastering this occupation
in three years. The few following months he remained at home, in 1866
serving the government as mechanic at the front during the six months of
the Austria-Prussia War, his duties including the repair of guns, gun-
carriages, provision and ammunition wagons, and the like, which are as
necessary to the welfare of an army as sufficient food or powder. Work
at his trade kept him in the town of Theressa, Germany, for two years and
on May 15, 1869, he left his home and embarked for the United States, the
sailing vessel on which he had engaged passage consuming fifty-three days
in making the passage across the Atlantic. Proceeding directly to Pitts-
burgh, Pennsylvania, he was employed at his trade by Neville Gould for
five years with no considerable continuity, and for the three following
years he was in the service of J. G. Weir, later opening a shop independently
in Emsworth, Pennsylvania. In 1882 Mr. Smith's business connection with
Carnegie, which endures to the present time, began, when he bought a lot
and erected thereon a shop at No. 432 Chartiers street. He is the oldest
business man in point of years of established trade in Carnegie, and is now
a manufacturer and dealer in wagons and carriages, doing repair work and
rubber-tiring, employing a force of about seven men. He has prospered
materially and has converted a wide practical knowledge of his trade,
gained under a most competent instructor in his homeland, into large profits,
his experience combined with business instinct of a high order having
brought him well-deserved prosperity. He and his wife are members of
the Methodist Episcopal Church.
He married, November 27, 1872, Dorothy L. Hittner, born in Allegheny
City, Pennsylvania, daughter of John and Margaret Hittner, her father
a native of Germany, a farmer by calling. Children of John P. and Dorothy
L. (Hittner) Smith: i. John Edward, an employee of the Westinghouse
Electrical and Manufacturing Company; married Catherine Perring; lives
in Wilkinsburg, Pennsylvania. 2. George F., a foreman in the employ of
the Superior Steel Company ; married Anna Householder ; resides in Car-
negie. 3. Mabel, lives at home, unmarried. 4. William Andrew, of whom
further. 5. Grace V., a bookkeeper, lives at home. 6. Mary A., unmarried,
a bookkeeper and stenographer. 7. Perry, a tariff clerk of Pittsburgh;
married a Miss Woodburn. 8. Hazel, unmarried, bookkeeper, lives at home.
9. Helen, married Cort McCauley, a telegraph operator ; resides in Rochester,
Pennsylvania. 10. Beulah, unmarried, a student.
(IV) William Andrew Smith, son of John P. and Dorothy L. (Hittner)
Smith, was born at Emsworth, Pennsylvania, July 30, 1877. In his youth
256 WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA
he was a student in the pubhc schools of Chartiers borough, now Carnegie,
Pennsylvania. When he was fifteen years of age he began a connection
with the Superior Steel Company, of Carnegie, that continues to the present
time. Learning all of the processes in cold steel rolling he was for eleven
years foreman of the cold steel rolling department, in June, 1913, becoming
superintendent of that department, an office he now holds. His long rela-
tion with the Superior Company has taught him nothing but loyalty to its
interests and has gained him a trusted and responsible position. Universal
confidence is reposed, not only in his ability, but in his judgment and his
capacity for meeting circumstances of unusual aspects, his daily discharge
of his duties as superintendent worthily substantiating this trust. For
four years he was a member of the Carnegie council, three years of that
time as president, an office he held through election as candidate of the
Republican party, which he has always supported. His church is the
United Presbyterian. His residence is at No. 210 Fifth avenue, Carnegie,
Pennsylvania. He married, November 29, 1900, Julia M. Langenecker,
born in Charleroi, Belgium, accompanying her parents to the United States
when three years of age. Mr. and Mrs. Smith are the parents of: i.
William Andrew, Jr., born July 30, 1902. 2. Raymond Edward, born
March 12, 1907.
Settlement was made in Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, by
COOPER the parents of John Cooper, the first of their line to leave
the family home near Belfast, Ireland, and to take up foreign
residence. Although since that time many of the descendants have followed
paths that have led them from this locality, the name is still a numerous
and common one in Allegheny county. The parents of John Cooper, who
brought him with them to this country, owned land in Moon and Findley
townships, the family home being near Clinton. John Cooper followed for
a time his father's occupation, farming, later moving to Pittsburgh and
learning the trade of bookbinder, at which he was employed until his prema-
ture death at the age of thirty-three years. He married Sarah Agnew,
born at Canonsburg, Washington county, Pennsylvania, daughter of Robert
Agnew, her parents natives of New Jersey. Robert Agnew was a soldier
in the Continental army, seeing a great deal of active service in that conflict.
He fought under General Wayne in the battle of Three Rivers, under
General Morgan at the battle of Cowpens, and at the battle of Three
Rivers was captured by his British foes and confined for a considerable
period on a prison ship. He also served under Colonel Crawford in his
Indian campaign in Sandusky, Ohio. His martial duties at an end, he
moved west to Washington county, Pennsylvania, settling near Canons-
burg, later making his home upon a large farm in Moon township, Allegheny
county, Pennsylvania, where his death occurred in 1840, when he had at-
tained a greatly advanced age. He was of Scotch descent, a Covenanter in
religion, and married Esther Carnegie. Children of John and Sarah
(Agnew) Cooper: i. William, of whom further. 2. Helen, married Wil-
WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA 257
liam S. Haven, a printer of Pittsburgh. 3. Robert, a book-binder, spent the
greater part of his life on his farm in Cresson township, Allegheny county,
Pennsylvania. 4. Maria, married Samuel Martin, and lived in the Twentieth
Ward of Pittsburgh.
(II) William Cooper, son of John and Sarah (Agnew) Cooper, was
born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in April, 1812, died in 1887. His active
life was spent in the pursuit of the book-binder's trade in the city of Pitts-
burgh, in which place he grew to manhood and where, as a boy he obtained
instruction in the calling that he afterward made his business. In his early
years he purchased a farm in Moon township, Allegheny county, Penn-
sylvania, to which he retired, there leading a quiet and peaceful existence
until he received his final summons, having then attained more than the
Biblical span of years. His religious convictions were those of the United
Presbyterian Church. He married Nancy Gilchrist, born on the Isle of
Whithorn, county of Wigtown, Scotland, in 1815, died in 1900, daughter of
James and Janet (Martin) Gilchrist. Her parents were both born on the
Isle of Whithorn, Scotland, at that time a flourishing and important sea-
port, where her father was a building contractor. He and his family im-
migrated to the United States in 1821, landing at Philadelphia, the voyage
having consumed six weeks, and proceeded thence to Pittsburgh by wagon.
In this city he became a building contractor, later moving to a farm near
Youngstown, Ohio, where his death occurred. He and his family were
Seceders in religion, being members of Dr. Presley's church in Allegheny
City. After the death of his first wife in Allegheny City, James Gilchrist
married again, the given name of his second wife being Grace. Children
of first marriage of James Gilchrist: i. Isabelle, married Robert Morris,
and resided in Freeport, Pennsylvania. 2. James, married a Miss Shafifer,
and lived in Freeport, Pennsylvania. 3. Alexander, married and passed his
life in Pittsburgh, a carpenter. 4. Nancy, of previous mention, married
William Cooper. 5. Ellen, married Thomas Kirk, and resided at Sandy
Lake, Mercer county, Pennsylvania. Children of second marriage of
James Gilchrist: 6. James, a professor in a college at Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
7. Rebecca, married James Brown Lee, and lives near Struthers, Ohio. 8.
Mary, deceased, married Davidson Shields. Children of William and
Nancy (Gilchrist) Cooper: i. William M., unmarried, cultivated the home
farm until his death in 191 1. 2. James, a book-binder and paper-ruler;
married Elizabeth Patrick, and lives in Pittsburgh. 3. Sarah, married Hugh
McCormick, deceased. 4. Charles A., of whom further. 5. John R., lives
in Glenosborne ; a real estate dealer of Pittsburgh; married (first) Ella
Wainwright, (second) Josephine Donnell.
(III) Charles A. Cooper, son of William and Nancy (Gilchrist)
Cooper, was born in Moon township, Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, No-
vember 25, 1845. After attending the public schools of his native township
he took a course of study in civil engineering in a private school in Pitts-
burgh, under the instruction of Professor Vandernalen. He obtained two
years of practical experience in his profession as a member of the govern-
258 WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA
ment engineering corps surveying the lower course of the Ohio river, and
then surveyed the eastern end of Pittsburgh with Mr. Kennedy, a commis-
sion taking a year and a half to complete. He was next employed as a
surveyor for the new water works of Pittsburgh, his superior in office being
Air. Chesbro, of Chicago. In 1871 Mr. Cooper formed a partnership with
William A. Edeburn under the firm name of Edeburn & Cooper, surveying
and general engineering, an association that continued pleasantly until its
dissolution in 1899, after which time Mr. Cooper persisted along the same
line until his retirement from active business in 1907. Aside from his pro-
fessional connections Mr. Cooper has devoted much time to business trans-
actions, among them mining and oil production. He was one of a company
who were the owners of extensive and valuable oil properties in Oklahoma
and Illinois, still having their holdings in Oklahoma, having a few years
since disposed of a share of their holdings to the Standard Oil Company, one
million and a half dollars being the consideration. At the present time Mr.
Cooper is one of the stockholders and president of the Republic Bank Note
Company of Pittsburgh, and a director of the Minnetonka Oil Company.
Numerous other companies claim him as adviser and close confidante, and
he is interested in desirable mining property in Mexico. His investments
have been made with the wise calculation of the far-sighted financier, and
the favorable results, that have attended them have brought him more than
independent prosperity, and are eloquent tributes to his soundness of judg-
ment and keen business acumen. His church is the Presbyterian, and he
was an officer of an organization of that denomination in Pittsburgh. Since
1897 Mr. Cooper has been a resident of Coraopolis, having built a handsome
and commodious house of modern design at No. 1000 Highland avenue,
on the crest of an eminence overlooking the valley of the Ohio river. The
grounds surrounding the house are extensive and well-kept, the smooth
lawns dotted with shrubs and flower-beds and intersected by wide drive-
ways; in the rear a greenhouse where fragrant plants blossom the year
round.
Mr. Cooper married, September 16, 1870, Margaret J. Meek, born in
Moon township, Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, daughter of Bazaleel and
Nancy (Hood) Meek, both deceased, her father a farmer of Moon town-
ship. Charles A. and Margaret J. (Meek) Coopers are the parents of: i.
Frederick Meek, born in April, 1872 ; a resident of Coraopolis ; succeeded
to his father's business in Pittsburgh ; married Bessie Oglesby, and has
children, Martha and Charles A., Jr. 2. Mary, married Robert J. Davidson,
president of the Columbia National Bank, of Pittsburgh ; lives in Coraopolis.
3. Ethel, married Obed D. Robinson; resides in Coraopolis; Mr. Robinson
is president of the Riverside Oil Company and conducts extensive oil produc-
mg operations, owning several compressing plants and marketing large
quantities of gasoline. Mr. and Mrs. Cooper had three children who died
in infancy: Chauncy G., Nettie, and one child, unnamed.
("The Meek Line").
Joshua, John and Jacob Meek were among the early settlers of Moon
WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA 259
township, Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, coming from Virginia about 1769.
The Meek patent was dated April 7, 1788, and the warrant for survey dated
September 15, 1784. They were of Welsh descent. They were obliged to
flee on account of the Indians some time after coming here, and went to old
Fort Redstone, where they remained for several years. Joshua Meek was
riding home one night across his lands shortly after his settlement, and drew
reins to let his horse drink at a spring. Suddenly a gun snapped, and his
horse whirled and ran away with him. An examination of the ground the
next day revealed by the moccasin tracks that an Indian had been concealed
in the bush. He had snapped his gun, but the powder had flashed in the
pan, thus saving the life of his intended victim. The Joshua Meek old log
house was recently standing on the land now owned by his grandson. W. J.
Meek.
Mrs. Meek also had a narrow escape from death by the tomahawk
of an Indian. She had attained fame as a midwife, and one night was called
to Vances Fort. Accompanied by a man from the Fort, she and he dis-
covered that they were followed by Indians. Being on horseback, they
struck a faster gallop, but one of the savages got close enough to throw his
tomahawk, which narrowly missed Mrs. Meek, striking a tree near, the
bark of the tree striking Mrs. Meek in the face.
In 1802 there was an action taken in the courts by the heirs of Colonel
George Croghan for the ejectment of settlers on lands embracing 100,000
acres of land. Among those whom this act would afifect was Joshua Meek.
He and a neighbor, Mr. Vance, put up a strong resistance, and warned away
the surveyors who thought it wise to obey ; and by putting up a fight Mr.
Meek and others saved their houses.
(I) Joshua Meek was born in Virginia about 1730, and died at eighty-
six years of age. His mother was a member of the Lee family of Virginia.
He was a farmer and an extensive landowner. He brought four slaves
with him to Pennsylvania, two of whom ran away ; the others remained and
died with their master. He was twice married. There were no children
by his first wife. His second marriage was with Margaret Mitchell, a
young woman who lived to be eighty-seven years of age, there being a
diflference in their ages of thirty-seven years. She bore him ten children,
the last when her husband was eighty years of age. Children : Elizabeth,
born August 16, 1791 ; Sally, June 11, 1793; Rachel, February 25, 1795;
Hannah, April 6, 1797; Jane, April 29, 1798; Joshua, June 8, 1800; Nancy,
October 20, 1802; Jeremiah, March 6, 1804; Susannah, November 20,
1806; Bazaleel, of whom further. Joshua Meek was an Episcopalian, and
his old prayer-book, well thumbed, is now in the possession of his great-
grandson, Frederick Meek Cooper. This book was printed in 1795.
(II) Bazaleel Meek, the youngest child, was reared and spent his
entire life on the farm on which he was born, and died at the age of ninety-
four years. He was a farmer, and cleared much of his farm. In religion
he was a member of the Presbyterian Church. He married Nancy Hood,
of Moon township. She bore him two children : William J., who resides
260 WESTERN PENNSYLVANIA
on the old homestead; and Margaret J., wife of C. A. Cooper, of Coraopolis,
Pennsylvania.
This branch of the Clark family was founded in Pennsyl-
CLARK vania by George Clark, who came from Ireland in 1812 with
his elder brother, John, who brought with him his wife and
two small children. George Clark was born in county Antrim, Ireland,
about 1790, died near Carnegie, Pennsylvania, aged sixty-five years. He
grew to manhood in his native county where he learned the blacksmith's
trade. His family were members of the Seceder Church. He remained
in Ireland until about of legal age, then in 1812 came to the United States
with his brother, John, as stated, the latter continuing his journey to
Guernsey county, Ohio, settling at Indian Camp, where descendants yet
live. George Clark remained in Pittsburgh, worked at his trade, built a
shop on an old pike, then much used but now out of existence, passing the
present borough of Carnegie about one mile to the westward. There he
carried on a successful business until 'his death, the locality being known as
"Hudson's Hollow." He was a member of the United Presbyterian Church,
and a Democrat in politics, a man of industry and high character, a good
workman, held in respect by all.
He married, in Robinson township, Allegheny county, Pennsylvania,
Abigail Caldwell, born in Ireland, of a well-known Scotch-Irish family.
She died in 1875, aged seventy-seven years. Children: i. George, of whom
further. 2. John, deceased ; at his death a retired butcher of Mansfield
Valley ; married Esther Morrison. 3. Hugh, a carpenter ; now residing on
Beechwood avenue, Carnegie. 4. Hannah, married Rev. Robert Boyd.
George (2) Clark, son of George (i) and Abigail (Caldwell) Clark,
was born at what was then Rich Valley Post Office, Robinson township,
Allegheny county, Pennsylvania, now part of the borough of Carnegie,
October 25, 1826, died October 30, 1887. His youth was spent in Robinson