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WHO WAS - Samuel Hays, Sr.
in Plum Township
Venango County, Pennsylvania
By Howard Strawbridge Sept. 9, 1958

This biography concerns a true patriarch of the village of Sunville and the father of a staunch Presbyterian family, namely Samuel Hays, Sr.

He was born in Donegal, Ireland, on March 17, 1776. Although it is not known for sure, it is the supposition that the Hays family immigrated from Scotland into Ireland because of religious persecution.

In 1793 Samuel sailed with his father's family from Ireland to America. Two of his sisters died of yellow fever on the voyage over. A brother, John Hays, was one of the family coming over too.

They first settled in Mifflin County, Pa, then later moved into Berrie Township, Huntingdon County, Pa. Samuel was granted his citizenship papers at Huntingdon on Aug. 9, 1808 - 150 years ago. One of the witnesses was Samuel Hamphill who had been a resident of the United States since June 18, 1798.

In 1806 Samuel married Mary Watson who was born Jan. 31, 1784. They lived several years near McAlevy's Fort and were members of the Presbyterian Church at Manor Hill, which was quite commonly called "the Old Stone Church." Samuel had been a chorister in that historic church.

In 1835 the family moved to Venango County, making the journey in primitive style with the household goods stored in a covered wagon. Their destination was reached Oct. 25, 1835. This was near Waterloo, now Polk, where they established a new home.

Started To Build House

In 1837 the family moved to Sunville and bargained for land there. That was the same year that the village was laid out by W. W. Davison. According to old assessment records, Samuel Hays, Sr. was listed on tract No. 1152 which was just northwest of Sunville. Tradition states that one of the Hays men, either Samuel, Sr. or one of his two sons, started to build a house on a bank above a "soapstone" spring located on this tract. For some reason he quit and never finished it. This soapstone spring had very soft water. Possibly Samuel, Sr.'s family first lived on this tract, but it is definitely known that he lived his last several years right in the Sunville village on the lot now owned by Mrs. Rose Messner. Later assessments show him assessed for one house and three lots.

Samuel and Mary were the parents of seven children. All were probably born in Huntingdon County. There were: Mrs. Mary Campbell, James Hays, Mrs. Elizabeth McClelland, Mrs. Nancy Russell, Samuel Hays, Jr., Mrs. Sarah Jane Allen and Mrs. Rebecca Davison.

Mary, the oldest, was a very fleshy woman. She married John Campbell and was his second wife. They lived on the hill southwest of Bradleytown. John was a sufferer from asthma in the worst form and Mary was able by knitting to earn a little money for their support. John had a son, Joseph, and a daughter, Hannah, by his first wife, Fannie Emery. Fanny died in 1841 and the son died of wounds received at the Battle of the Wilderness in May, 1864. Mary Hays Campbell died in 1881.

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The daughters of Sam Hays Sr.
James Was Postmaster

James Hays married Eliza Gilliland. He was the first postmaster of the Sunville postoffice when it was established on May 21, 1842. He kept this position about five years and was succeeded by his brother, Samuel, Jr., who was postmaster less than a year. In 1847 James' family moved near Polk and he transferred his church membership to Millcreek. A few years later he joined the Presbyterian Church in Polk and became an elder in it. He died in 1884 and is buried at Polk.

Elizabeth married Samuel McClelland. She, too, was a fleshy woman, though not quite as heavy as her sister Mary. Elizabeth died in 1891. She and her husband are probably buried at Transfer, Pa.

Nancy married James Russell and they lived at Cooperstown. They had 3 children. Nancy died in 1894.

Samuel Hays, Jr. married Harriet Bradley and they remained lifelong residents of Sunville. Both were active Presbyterians and they had six daughters that reached maturity. He was a carpenter. He died during the winter of 1902.

Sarah Jane first married James J. Gilliland. Her second husband was William Allen. She was dismissed from the Sunville Church to the church in Franklin in 1840 - the year after the Sunville one was organized. She died in 1888.

Rebecca married Isaac Davison and they lived on the road from Sunville to Bethel. They, too, were active Presbyterians. She was the last survivor of her brothers and sisters, having died in the winter of 1908 at the age of 85.

All these brothers and sisters except James and Elizabeth are buried at Sunville.

Helped Organize Church

On June 12, 1839, the Sunville Presbyterian Church was organized in the home of Samuel Hays, Sr., by a Presbyterial committee with Rev. Thomas Anderson as moderator. Samuel and Mary Hays were two of the 27 charter members along with four of their children, Nancy, Mary Jr., Sarah Jane and James. James and W. W. Davison were ordained as elders at the time of the organizing. On March 16, 1849, when the church received its deed for the land from W. W. Davison, Samuel Hays, Sr. was one of the three trustees named. He and his son Samuel, Jr. helped to build the second church edifice in 1855.

Samuel, Sr. was a talented musician. As mentioned before, he was a chorister in the Old Stone Church at Manor Hill, and he led the music in the Sunville Church. He taught singing schools and played the violin until old age and palsy caused his hands to tremble so that he became unable to play.

He had the misfortune to lose his wife, Mary, by death on Jan. 26, 1844. She had brought with her "across the mountains" a rose which she prized. Her youngest daughter, Rebecca, inherited the bush, and she in turn bequeathed it to her daughter, Mrs. Fannie Gray. It was know to be growing in the former Gray garden at Sunville several years ago.

Carpenter By Trade

Samuel, Sr., was a carpenter and did much work in this respect. Record shows he helped to do a lot of threshing grain in the pioneer style in the period of time around 1819. This would of course be in Huntingdon County.

As his photograph shows, Samuel looked the early pioneer style. He had long coarse hair and wore a suit with its customary old style black necktie.

Much of the Hays family history is in records kept by Mrs. Virginia Shriver of Petrolia, Pa. Her late husband, Robert H. Shriver, who passed away this past April 21, was a great-grandson of Samuel Hays, Sr. Incidentally Mrs. Shriver has an Eli Terry "Grandmother's Clock" which was said to be a wedding gift to Samuel and Mary Hays in 1806. This Grandmother's Clock is a rather wide mantle clock which is around two and a half feet high, unlike the tall "Grandfather's Clock." Eli Terry & Sons merged in 1816, thus proving this particular clock was manufactured before Terry merged with his sons.

Samuel Hays, Sr. took down with his last illness at the age of 95. Just shortly before, he went with his daughter, Mrs. Campbell, to her home after church services, stayed a day or two, then decided to walk back to his home, five miles distant.

The old gentleman died on Jan. 22, 1872, following a serious illness of at least two weeks duration. His grave in the Sunville Cemetery was located only 14 yards from his beloved Presbyterian Church (which is today the Methodist Church).

Transcribed by Penny Kulbacki Minnick
minnick862@verizon.net

Disclaimer:there may be errors due to transcription ofinformation from both early and late (current contributors) work.