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From: "Candace Roth" <>
Subject: Fw: Edwin DEAL [part 1 of 2]
Date: Fri, 19 Nov 2004 20:21:01 -0500


Please forgive if you are receiving this twice - apparently a goodly portion of the list did not receive it....

----- Original Message -----
From: Candace Roth
To: SOMGEN-L
Cc: Enfinger Cyndie ; Hepburn Carol ; Eddleman Carol
Sent: Saturday, November 13, 2004 1:48 PM
Subject: Edwin DEAL [part 1 of 2]


History of Bedford and Somerset Counties, Pennsylvania" Bedford County by E. Howard Blackburn; Somerset County by William H. Welfley; v.3, Pub. The Lewis Publishing Company, New York/Chicago 1906, ppg. 128-133

"Edwin DEAL
Edwin Deal, an honored and respected citizen of Meyersdale, Somerset county, Pennsylvania, who is now in his eighty-third year, is a remarkable example of good health, energy and mental faculties, well preserved by a life replete with usefulness and good will toward his fellow creatures. His pleasant face and cheery manner are known and have endeared him to young and old, and his numberless acts of charity and kindness are known to but few outside of the immediate family circle. He is descended from an old family of Virginia, whose thrift and industry bore their due share in building up the prosperity of the country.
Peter Deal, grandfather of Edwin Deal, was born in the state of Virginia. He was a clever millwright and an exceptionally skilled worker in woods. He built windmills of the old-time wooden construction, cider presses, spinning wheels, looms and all kinds of wooden machinery. He removed to Greenville township, Pennsylvania, after his marriage, and then added farming to his manifold occupations. A number of the grist mills in various parts of the county were of his construction. He married Margaret Stein and their children were: Peter, Jacob, see forward; George, Joseph, Abraham, Eve, married Jacob Fair; and Hannah, married John Findley. Peter Deal died in 1828 at an advanced age.
Jacob Deal, second son and child of Peter and Margaret (Stein) Deal, was born near Sheppardstown, Virginia, September 17, 1790. He was about fifteen years of age when his family removed to Somerset county, Pennsylvania, and as he had inherited the mechanical skill of his father, it was but natural that he should adopt the same line of work. He was thrifty and industrious and soon owned a farm of considerable extent, which he cleared and cultivated. He erected a sawmill on his land and in this the virgin forest was converted into lumber with a large amount of profit. He was a man of deep religious conviction, and he and all the members of his family were members of the Lutheran church, of which he was a deacon and elder. His political support was given to the Democratic party, he being what was known as a "Jackson Democrat." He was active in his support of the party and held several political offices. His death occurred November 4, 1869, and he and his wife are bur!
ied in the churchyard of the Union Lutheran and Reformed church, in Greenville township. He married Susanna Engle, who was born and raised at what is still called Engle's Mills, near Salisbury, Pennsylvania, August 18, 1790, died April 30, 1860. Their children, fifteen in number, were as follows: Mary, born May 3, 1813; Isaiah, January 22, 1815; Sally, September 11, 1816; Margaret, February 14, 1818; Jeremiah, July 8, 1820; Leah, December 3, 1821; Edwin, see forward; Julia Ann, March 9, 1825, married Abraham Derrimore, of Iowa; Levi, December 1, 1826; Lucinda, March 13, 1829, married Alexander Kelly, of Kansas; Joel, May 27, 1831, is a farmer in Montana; Hettie, June 30, 1832; Jacob, December 14, 1833; Harriet, December 31, 1835; and Lavina, January 12, 1838, married Alexander Lint, of Iowa.
Edwin Deal, third son and seventh child of Jacob and Susanna (Engle) Deal, was born on the farm of his father in Greenville township, Somerset county, Pennsylvania, October 11, 1823. This farm adjoined that of his grandfather, Peter Deal, and it was here that all the children of this family were born. His education was as complete as the time and the schools of the district afforded, and at an early age he displayed marked aptitude in handling tools of all descriptions. Until he was twenty-one years of age his life was spent in assisting his father in clearing and cultivating the land in their possession, in attending to the sawmill and helping in the shop. By this time he had acquired great skill in his work and commenced the business of millwright and builder in his own right. He purchased a complete set of woodworking tools, fitted them with handles of his own manufacture, as was the custom of those days, and undertook his first contract. This was the building of !
a mill for Moses Yoder--the first overshot water-wheel mill in the township, all previously built having been of the under "flutter wheel" style. About 1850 he built for Daniel Lepley two mills--a sawmill and a gristmill--and these were considered models of their kind. After his marriage he became the manager of these mills and remained in this capacity for a number of years. Subsequently he bought the farm and mill properties in Larimer township, and later acquired other farms and timber lands until he owned about nine hundred acres, some of which is still in his possession. Mr. Deal resided on the farm he had acquired and personally conducted the mill operations until 1888, when he removed to Meyersdale, Somerset county, Pennsylvania. There he erected a gristmill and several dwelling houses, in one of which, an attractive brick residence on Center street, he now lives. He has practically retired from active participation in his business affairs, giving, however, cons!
iderable time to a general oversight of the various interests. He has been a lifelong member of the Lutheran church, in which he was baptized at the age of eight days, and has consistently devoted much time and effort to the furtherance of the church interests. He has held various offices in the church, including those of deacon and elder in the county church, and since his residence in Meyersdale has served as elder continuously. Although he would gladly resign this office, he has been earnestly solicited to continue his good work. His wife was and his children with their respective families are communicants at the same church. Politically Mr. Deal was for many years a staunch Democrat, but for the past seventeen years he has given his allegiance to the Prohibition party as being more in accord with the principles to which he has adhered throughout his long and useful life. He has always been firm in his belief in total abstinence from all intoxicants and narcotics, an!
d attributes his long life and excellent health to this cause. He has also served Larimer township as school director and as justice of the peace."...

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