Plum twsp special - Thomas Green

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WHO WAS WHO in PLUM TOWNSHIP
~ Titusville Herald ~
Nov. 2, 1960
By H. W. Strawbridge

Thomas Green

Thomas Green, a pioneer resident near Wallaceville, was born Jan. 22, 1810. The whereabouts of his birth is unknown. Neither are the names of his parents known. In fact nothing at all is known about his youthful years. The only description of his stature is that he was �a good sized man.�

He was married to Miss Millicent McIntosh, who was born in Franklin County, O., on Sept 15, 1812. Her father was William McIntosh, who was an early settler of Venango County. Millicent, one of at least four sisters, was a young girl when her father settled in Venango. She was commonly known throughout her life as �Millie� Green.

Thomas Green arrived in Plum Township around 1832. He was first assessed for one mare and a yoke of oxen. It appears that he first settled on the southern half of tract No. 1128, which was situated south of Wallaceville (on lands presently owned by Isaiah and Lloyd Proper). He sold this land in 1838 to Peter Ware for $500. Then he bargained for 200 acres of land northeast of Wallaceville from the Fletcher family.

52 Acres for $700

He also bought 52 acres in 1856 from J. I. Daugherty for $700. Adjoining this were 25 acres which he bought from John Bigham in 1870. These two pieces were his northern most lands and they were bounded by the old Grove gristmill road.

In 1860 Thomas bought 112 acres from Robert J. Brown which was situated immediately north of Wallaceville. This was the old Hawthorn farm.

Thus, around Civil War times, Thomas Green was one of the larger land holders in Plum Township. He maintained his own home on the large section of land slightly more than a mile northeast of Wallaceville.

He did, however, sell some land to other individuals besides Ware. This included 59 acres to A. J. McIntosh, besides minor acreages to J. H. Alsbaugh, Hiram Miles and Charles Krantz.

A little road which now has been long non-existent, led straight from Thomas� home to the house on his northern farm (Daugherty farm). It was exactly one mile between the two houses. Then, there was a house on the Hawthorn farm. Probably some of Thomas� children lived awhile in these two other houses after their marriages.

Had 7 Children

Thomas and Millie were the parents of the following seven children: Robert J. Green (1839), William M. Green (1841?), Mary Ellen Green (1843), Philo G. Green (1845), John H. Green (1849), Shields S. Green (1852), and Sarah Katherine Green (1858).

Robert served in the Civil War. He was mustered in Company 12 Pa. Infantry, as a private on Aug. 23, 1862. He later took sick and was brought home where he died on Aug. 25, 1863, at the age of 24. Robert was an intent Christian young man and belonged to the Wallaceville Methodist Church. After Robert�s funeral his pastor, Rev. George M. Eberman, penned the following in the old church record across from Robert�s name: �Robert Green enlisted in the Army, was taken sick after some months, was brought home and after a protracted illness of several months, died in great Peace Aug. 25, 1863. G. M. E.�

William was married Nov. 13, 1859, to a girl whose first name was Annie Maria. The writer doesn�t know her maiden name. William and she had operated a store, probably in Wallaceville. In May, 1870, they went with G. W. Beers to the Greeley Colony in Colorado. The Greens remained there the rest of their lives. William had both prospected for coal and engaged in ranching. Annie wrote a book entitled, �Sixteen Years on the Great American Desert,� which was widely read. A copy is still possessed by Mrs. Estella Morse of Titusville. Greens had at least three children: Sissy, Mary and Frank.

Resided at Fairview

Mary Ellen was married to James L. Peebles on May 31, 1870. They lived their married life on the eastern side of Plum Township at Fairview. They were lifelong farmers. They had four children: Thomas V. Peebles, Wert Peebles, Mrs. Sylvia Alcorn and Mrs. Nellie McCurdy, all of whom are deceased. Mary Green Peebles died at their home on Feb. 24, 1908, and her husband followed in death one year later.

Philo, as a young man, made two trips out West prior to his marriage. In 1866 he went to the Rocky Mountains. In 1870 he went to Utah and Montana and mined for gold in the latter state. Philo married Miss Nettie Grove of Wallaceville and they resided in the Wallaceville vicinity. She died unexpectedly on May 13, 1889. Distraught, Philo went West. He died at the home of his brother, William, at Greeley, Colo., in the summer of 1894, and was buried there.

John was married to Miss Fannie Carpenter of Wallaceville on Sept. 10, 1881. They went to Pittsburgh on their wedding trip where she possibly contracted the typhoid germ. She died at Wallaceville on Nov. 7, slightly less than two months after their marriage. John never remarried. He remained on the old homestead and for a few years a Ware family also resided there with him. He sold the old home in October 1926, to the late W. P. Keenan, a teacher in Cleveland. John died in Titusville on Aug. 4, 1931, shortly after an operation.

Shields married Miss Teressa Proper of Diamond. For several years they lived on the north (Daugherty) farm. About 1913 Shields sold this farm to Jacob Acel. They then lived the remainder of their lives in Titusville. Shields and Teressa were great followers of the Spiritualist faith. Shields died in 1934, and Teressa died sometime afterward, the date of which cannot be found by this writer.

Sarah Katherine, or �Kate�, married Acquilla C. Miles on March 6, 1879. They lived just north of Wallaceville at the sharp curve in the road. This was the Hawthorn farm. Although no buildings stand there now, it was once a place with a dandy spring-well noted for its unusually strong flow of water. They farmed. A. C. and Kate had two daughters, Mrs. Bessie Seely, who died in 1918, and Mrs. Lizzie Thompson, who lives part of the time in Seneca. Kate Miles died July 2, 1899, and A. C. died May 27, 1925.

Record on Harvest

An interesting little record about Thomas Green�s harvest one year has been found. It used to be quite common that farmers stacked their various grain crops then threshed them all at once, generally in cold weather. In January 1847, Thomas threshed 96 bushel of oats, 77 bushel of rye and 86 bushel of wheat. In that day it probably took a few days to thresh out that amount of grain.

Three members of the Green family were charter members of the Wallaceville Methodist Church which was organized in 1851. They were Thomas, William and Robert Green. Thomas and Robert held memberships until their deaths, while William transferred his sometime after his removal to the West. Thomas Green is recorded as having been a steward in his church around 1870. His oldest daughter, Mary Peebles, also joined the same church at a later date.

Thomas served often as a roadmaster. His district was No. 8. He must have had several miles of road to care for because in 1866 his duplicate amounted to $93.71--second highest in a total of 15 roadmasters. In 1869 his duplicate of $136.11 was the highest out of a total of 18 roadmasters that year.

Thomas Green is said to have been a man who never touched liquor. The writer found it impossible to find a photograph of either man or his wife, but did find this photograph of their son, John which belongs to Donald Seely of Oneida, N. Y. Mr. Seely�s mother was Mrs. Bessie Seely, daughter of Kate Green Miles. (Photo not included with this transcript)

Thomas made his will on April 30, 1880. The farms were willed to his wife, Millie, sons, John and Shields, and daughter Kate Miles. The other three, William, Philo and Mary Peebles, received cash bequests. His wife also received money.

Thomas died at his home on Dec. 20, 1881. He was buried at Wallaceville on Dec. 22, and his service was attended by several Titusville citizens, besides a number of relatives and neighbors.

Mrs. Millie Green died at the old home on July 23, 1894, of congestion of the lungs. Her illness was brief, having been confined to her bed less than a week. She was buried from her home the next day.