James English was born in Ireland in 1844. The first certain record we have is from the 1860 census for the Frostburg district of Allegheny County, Maryland (page99). It lists:

Name	Age	Profession	Place of birth
Mary English	38	Laundry?	Ireland
James English	16	Laborer	Ireland
Hugh English	15	Mechanic?	Ireland
Mary English	11	n/a	Ireland
Maurice English	9	n/a	Maryland
Joseph English	6	n/a	Maryland
Female English	3	n/a	Maryland

We suspect that the family came from Ireland during the famine. They must have arrived in 1849, 1850 or 1851. We have a record of an English family arriving on the ship Repeater at the port of Baltimore in August 1850. The names are similar but there is some confusion regarding the ages.

They were probably a poor family. The census indicates that Mary could not read or write. There is no father shown on the census but someone was impregnating Mary after she arrived in Maryland. Three of her children were born there.

Sometime in the 1860’s James and his brother Maurice (Morris) came to Fayette County Pennsylvania. James married Sarah White, Daughter of Henry and Elizabeth (Giles) White of Bullskin Township.

The 1870 federal census for Pennsylvania (roll 1342- Connellsville, Fayette County, Page 62; taken July 2,1870) lists:

James English

Age- 26

Occupation- House Carpenter;

Place of birth- Ireland

Value of Real Estate $1000.00.

Sarah English

Age-25

Occupation- Keeps house;

Place of birth- Illinois

Maurice English

Age 3

Hugh English

Age 1

Morris English

Age 19

Occupation Apprentice Carpenter

Place of birth- Maryland.

We believe that "Morris" is James’ brother who is listed as Maurice on the 1860 census. We have no idea how they came to Pennsylvania.

The 1880 census for Upper Tyrone Township (E424 vol. 35, sheet 40 E.D. 58 line 4). lists:

James English (age 36) b Ireland.

Sarah English (age 35) b Illinois.

Maurice (age 13).

Hugh E. (age 11).

Estella (age 9).

Hellena (age 7)

James (age 4)

Rose (age 1)

According to the family’s oral history, James was a contractor who met with some success. He built homes for steelworkers in the Pittsburgh are in the 1880’s. The legend is that he became an alcoholic, passed out with his arm on a railroad track and was killed by a passing train. Another story is that Maurice and Hugh threw him out when he began to abuse Sadie. He froze to death under a water tower.

We do not know the exact date of James’ death. However he is listed in the Pittsburgh City directories from 1883 through 1890. His profession was "carpenter". There is no listing in 1891. In 1893 Sarah is listed as his widow.

On August 29, 1883 James purchased a lot (lot 445 section O) in St. Mary Cemetery which is located at the intersection of Penn Ave. and Friendship Ave. between St. Francis Hospital and Allegheny Cemetery in Lawrenceville. Four members of the family are buried there: Estella who died 1926, James Jr. who was "kicked by a horse" and died on August 28, 1883, Harry died 1890 at the age of 2 and Sarah who died 1929.

The graves of Stella and Sarah are marked. In a well marked plot nearby, James and Sarah’s son Robert and his family are buried.

Sarah White English was born in on July 21, 1844 to Henry White and Elizabeth Giles White. Several census records indicate that she was born in Illinois. However, the White family were early settlers in Bullskin Township in Fayette County, Pennsylvania.

The 1850 for Bullskin Township in Fayette County, PA census lists:

Henry White Age 51 Carpenter born Pennsylvania.

Elizabeth White Age 48 born Pennsylvania.

David S. White Age 15 born Pennsylvania.

Eliza E. White Age 14 born Pennsylvania

Henry B. White Age 12 born Pennsylvania

Mary E. White Age 10 born Pennsylvania

Edward Y. White Age 8 born Pennsylvania

Sarah J. White Age 6 born Illinois

Minerva E. White Age 4 born Pennsylvania

The 1860 census for Bullskin Township lists

Henry White Age 61 Miller

Elizabeth White Age 58

David White Age 25 Carpenter

Edward White Age 18

Sarah White Age 16

Minerva White Age 14

Leroi Firestone 17

Dolly Jiles Age 98

We believe that Sarah White married James English in 1865 or 1866.

The book Biographical and Portrait Cyclopedia of Fayette County Pennsylvania

Editorally managed by John M. Greshem, assisted in the compilation by Samuel T. Wiley. 1889 (pages 482 and 483), contains the following biographical information on Sarah’s brother, Edward.

"Edward Y. White, of Connellsville, was born April 21,1842, in Bullskin township, Fayette county, Pa., and is the son of Henry and Elizabeth (Giles) White.

Stouffel White ( grandfather) came from Germany in 1750, and was among the first settlers in Bullskin township. He came to the site of Gillmore's Mill and built a grist mill and distillery. He owned two mills, eight farms and eight hundred acres of land in Ohio. He married Pegg Poe, a niece of Andrew Poe, the celebrated Indian fighter. To their union were born seven children: Henry, David, Peter, George, Sarah, Peggy and Mary.

Henry White (Sarah’s father) was born January 2, 1799. He was a miller by trade, and married Elizabeth Giles, on August 14, 1826. Their children were as follows:

Christopher C., born May 27, 1827; engaged in work on a boat that plied he Mississippi river and was never heard of after leaving home;

Samuel B., born November 23, 1828, died May 2, 1880; he was a contractor at Connellsville;

George W., born October 27, 1830, a patternmaker, resides at McKeesport;

Elizabeth A., born November 3, 1832, wife of John McCormick and lives in Illinois;

David S., born December 9,1834, was a carpenter by trade;

Eliza C., born April 30, 1836, wife of John Kerr of New Haven;

Henry B., born February 24, 1838, tank and rig builder at Findlay, Ohio;

Mary E., born July 29, 1840, wife of John Trader, lives at Pennsville.

Edward;

Sarah J., born July 21, 1844, wife of James English, resides in Pittsburgh;

Minerva E., born August 20, 1846, the widow of H. J. English, and lives in Birmingham, Ala.

(Is it possible that Minerva married James’s brother, Hugh?)

Samuel Giles (Sarah’s maternal grandfather) whose father was killed at Braddock's defeat at Braddock's Fields, was born in 1766; came to Fayette county in 1811, and married Dorotha Day. Their children were eight in number: Anna, Dolly, Mary, Sallie, dead; John, Thomas, Elizabeth (Sarah’s mother) and Samuel.

Edward Y. White was educated in the subscription schools of the county. He enlisted August 12,1862, in Company H, One Hundred and Forty-second Pennsylvania Volunteers, commanded by Captain J. M. Du Shane, and was mustered out May 15, 1865. He fought in the battles of Fredericksburg, Wilderness and Gettysburg; at the latter place he was wounded in the leg and taken prisoner; when exchanged he went back to his regiment then before Richmond; on June 18, 1861, in a charge on Fort Hell, he was again wounded in the leg and entirely disabled for active service.

He married on April 27, 1868, Florence Henrietta, daughter of John K. and Elizabeth Brown of Connellsville, a lineal descendant of General Warren of Revolutionary fame. Three children have been born to them: Alice Kate, born April 29,1869; John Henry, born August 13, 1871, and Samuel Basil, born March 15, 1884.

Edward Y. White was engaged in the confectionery business in Connellsville for seven years; he is now a traveling salesman for the firm of Boyts, Porter & Co., of Connellsville. He has been a supervisor of the construction and operation of coke works for Hutchinson & Bro., McClure & Co., Colonel J. M. Schoonmaker, and A. 0. Tintsman. He served in the N. G. P. for five years and was first lieutenant at the expiration of his term of service

He has passed the chairs in General Worth Lodge, No. 386, 1. 0. 0. F., and in Council, No. 346, of R. A.; he also belongs to Lodge No. 239, K. P., and is a Master Mason. He is a man of extended business experience, and his services are always in demand."

 

 

Sarah, who was known as Sadie, lived on in Pittsburgh after James’ death. My father’s recollection is that in her later years Sarah supported herself as an ‘herb doctor". My father remembers a 1922 family visit to Pittsburgh. She was living then on a small plot of land, which included a springhouse. In the summer, she made "applejack spiked watermelons" and put them away for Christmas treats.

The 1900 census (vol 6 ed 115 sh 9 line 18) shows:

Sadie English age 55 born July 1844

Joseph English born July 1881

Robert English born March 1884

Estella English born march 1871

Rosemond born July 1878

Walter Wilcox son in law age 27 married 6 years.

Nellie M. Wilcox born march 1873 age 27

Walter R. Wilcox Grandson born 1899

The 1910 census (vol 27 ed 394 family unit 89) shows:

Sadie English age 64 born Illinois

Joseph English age 28 born PA.

Estella English age 30 born Maryland.

The 1920 census (vol 39 ed 691 sh 12 line 74) shows:

Sadie English age 75 born Illinois

Stella English daughter age 40 born PA.

Joseph English son age 38 born PA.

In the 1927 Pittsburgh city directory there are two people listed at 1208 Orchard. Jas clk Arbuthnol-Stephenson, and Sadie (wd Jas). I do not know who the other person is. Perhaps a boarder. Stella had lived with Sarah up to her death in 1927.

Sarah White English died in Pittsburgh on October 17, 1929. Her obituary reads as follows:

" Funeral services for Mrs. Sarah W. English, 85, who died at her home 1208 Orchard Street, North Side, Thursday, were to be held from the Aeberli Funeral Home, 122 East North avenue, today. She was the last living child of Henry and Elizabeth White of Connellsville, descendants of Capt. Thomas Field and William Penn. She leaves two sons, E.A. of Philadelphia and Joseph English, and two daughters, Mrs. Nellie Wilcox and Mrs. Glenn Blackburn.

The funeral record indicates that Sarah was buried at Saint Mary’s Cemetery, Pittsburgh. The service was held at Saint Peter’s R.C. Church. The funeral was charged to Glenn Blackburn.

Maurice J. English was born to James and Sarah on December 29, 1866 in Connellsville, PA. He was baptized at the Church of St. Peter in Brownsville, PA on April 7, 1867. The sponsors were James and Jane McGrath.

Maurice married Cora McKenry ( b February 23, 1870) in Pittsburgh on December 24, 1890. The family is listed on the 1900 census at Warble street in Pittsburgh. Maurice was a carpenter. There were four children:

Edith C. (b Oct. 1892),

Elmer H. (b Sept. 1894),

Ethel A. (b July 1896),

Estella M. (b Sept. 1898).

Cora is listed in the 1908 city directory at 7906 Susquehanna street. On the 1910 census she is on Dersam Street. She is shown as married but Maurice is not listed. This record indicates that she had 13 children, only six of whom were living. Of the six, only Elmer (age 15) was living with her. In that same census five other of her children are shown as inmates on the "Home for the Friendless" an orphanage on Pittsburgh’s north side. They were:

Edith (age 17),

Ethel (age 14),

Estella (age 12),

Edward (age 8),

Eveline (age 5).

There is a Harry English also listed at the home. This could be Elmer H. who may have been counted twice.

On the 1920 census, Cora is shown as a widow. Edith, Elmer, Edward and Eveline were living with her at 1142 Wilkinsburg.

Hugh Edward English was born to James and Sarah on October 21, 1868 in Connellsville, PA. No record of his baptism has been found. He married Elizabeth (Lizzie) Gribbin (born July 15, 1876) in 1897 or 1898. No marriage record has been found. They lived with his mother for a while in Pittsburgh. My father remembers references to "East Liberty".

According to my father, Hugh and Elizabeth met on a horse drawn trolley. Hugh was a conductor. He later became a bricklayer. He gained acceptance in the union’s apprentice program through friends of his father.

The 1900 census for Pittsburgh PA. Shows:

Hugh English, age 30, born Allegheny County;

Elizabeth, age 24, born Glasgow, Scotland;

Delma age 3.

They lived on Sunny Side Street.

Hugh is listed in the 1908 city directory at 7316 ½ Susquehanna street, a neighbor of Cora’s. He is described as a bricklayer.

Hugh Edward English worked for U.S. Steel. He and his family moved around a lot. They lived somewhere in Ontario, Canada and then in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. They moved to Philadelphia around 1910 to settle for good. They lived at 13 Torresdale Avenue in 1914 when my father was bornThey moved to 7028 Vandike Street around 1915 and in 1926 to 3403 Tyson Street.

The 1920 census contains the following listing on Vandike Street in Philadelphia:

English, Hugh E. - Head of Household; age 52.

Elizabeth - Wife age 43

Delma - Daughter age 22

Edward - Son age 19

Elizabeth - Daughter age 15

Annabel - Daughter age 12

Norman - Son age 12

Lawrence - Son age 6

James - Son age 4

Sarah - Daughter age 3

Gribbon, Conrad – Father in law age 62

Gribbon, Anna – Mother in law age 59

This census listing is a mystery. My father, Lawrence, was known as the "baby". He has no recollection of younger siblings. However he does recall that his mother spoke of having given birth to ten children, only six of whom lived to be adults. He also remembers impoverished relatives on his mother’s side visiting the family in the 1920’s. The Gribbins shown here could not have been Mother and father in law. The ages are wrong. I have no idea who the younger children were.

In Philadelphia Hugh worked for Disston’s Saw Mill as supervisor of maintenance. He retired sometime after World War II. He died on June 24, 1951. Elizabeth died on January 4, 1959. Funeral services for both were conducted by Fleurs’ funeral home on Cottman Ave. in Philadelphia. Both are buried in Our Lady of Grace cemetery. The grave is in row 9, section 2, which is just north of the intersection of St. Patrick Ave and St. Boniface Ave. The cemetery is just off Route 1, two miles north of exit 28 from the Pennsylvania turnpike, near Neshaminy, Pa.

Elizabeth and Hugh had 6 children who grew to be adults:

Agnes (known as Delma)-Born 1897, died? Married Charles Kempf. They had one child also Charles (known as Chick).

Hugh Edward Jr. (known as Ed)-- Born 1901, died December 3, 1979. Ed married Pearl Shadle, the daughter of William and Karen Shadle. William was a friend of Hugh Edward Senior. Ed and Pearl had one child, Edward.

Elizabeth (known as Betty) Born 1904, died May 22, 1975. She married Ray Eggert. Eggert was a "character". He had a musical talent and once appeared on an early Television variety show. Among other things, he played the piano with his nose.

Charles Norman (known as Norm)--Born August 4, 1908, died? Norm married Katherine (known as Kitty) Wall from the Paradise section of Philadelphia. They had one child, Norman.

Anna Isabel (known as Annabel) --Born August 4, 1908, died July 24, 1976. She married William Torpey. They had one child, William.

Lawrence (known as Larry) born July 5, 1914 (my father). Married Margaret Weeks. They had four children, Lawrence Jr., Thomas Richard (known as Rick), Lynn and Judy.

 

Estella English was born in 1871 in Maryland. She died on January 7, 1926 of Brights disease. She never married.

Hellena English (Nellie) was born on March 1,1872 in Maryland. She married Walter Wilcox on November 9, 1894. Walter was born in Pittsburgh on November 1, 1872. He was the son of William R. Wilcox and Blanch Cooper Wilcox. William was born in England on June 14, 1842. William Wilcox served in the Civil War and died in The Danville Illinois Soldiers home on December 23, 1918.

Walter and Nellie had at least three children.

Walter R. Wilcox married Anna Flanagan on August 15, 1923.

Neva Wilcox married Harry A. Flack on January 26, 1923.

Paul A. Wilcox.

 

James English Jr. was born on April 15, 1876. He died in an accident in 1883. The records of the Diocese of Greensburg indicate that Joseph English was born to James and Sarah on April 15, 1876. However, this birth date would match the age of the child called James in the Census and other records. That child was baptized at Saint Aloysius Church in Dunbar, PA on May 7, 1876. The sponsors were Peter Rice ad Margaret Brennan. This child was almost certainly James.

My father’s recollection is that he was dragged under a huckster’s cart. The records indicate he was "kicked by a horse".

Rose English was born on July 11, 1878. She married Glenn Blackburn (3/4/82-6/27/39) in January 1906. My father has clear recollections of his Aunt Rose. Rose and Glenn had two children:

Enez Eleanor Blackburn (12/10/14-8/10/99). She married Francis Bernard McGrath on September 10, 1940. They had one child Francis Barry McGrath (b4/24/41). Enez was known as Eleanor. Enez settled in Wakefield MA. She wrote for the Wakefield Item and the Belmont Herald.

Edmund Blackburn. (b1906). He married Mame? In 19??. They had one child, Eddie (?)

 

Frank McGrath remembers his grandmother and mother visiting Elvira, Vera and Nora in Philadelphia in the 1950’s. Vera was a good friend of his mother's and he thinks Vera was the second of Nell Wilcox's three daughters. She thinks Blanch was the oldest and has no clue as to the third. Elvira was a friend of Vera's.

Rose died early in 1964 in Wakefield MA. She was buried in the Congregational Church.

Joseph English: born July 17, 1881. He died on May 30, 1957. Joseph never married. He worked as a "presser", brick mason and laborer. He lived with his mother for quite a while. Enez, Rose’s daughter, remembers him as an alcoholic and the "black sheep" of the family. At the time of his death he lived at 823 Sandusky Street in Pittsburgh. His death certificate shows his occupation as a retired shipper. He is buried in N.S. Catholic Cemetery in West V. (?), PA.

Robert English: born March 10, 1884 and died May 20, 1923. He married Annie (Nannie) Olene Braun (7/30/85-1/13/65) on January 7, 1907. He worked as a real estate agent in Pittsburgh. Robert had four children:

Gertrude was born August 5,1908). She passed away on May 12, 1998. She was childless and she left the family a considerable amount of money as her husband, Edgar "eggs" Stewart was a stock broker and he invested well for her.

Elva was born in 1910. She was strikingly beautiful. She had three husbands; Sly Anthony was the first. That marriage was annulled. The second husband was Robert Hill. They had a son Robert Hill, who now lives in Cincinnati and teaches at Xavier University. Robert senior deserted Elva and she married John Solosky. They had no children. Elva died of colon cancer in 1979.

Anna Helen was born in 1912. She never married. She cared for her widowed mother

Robert was born in 1914 and died in 1994. Robert Jr. was married in 1943 to Mary (Longmore) English and they had five children. Robert Lee, Jr. October 4, 1945; Maura Patricia May 21, 1947; James Richard Sept 04, 1948; Barbara Anne July 5, 1950 ; and John William August 16, 1953.

 

Harry English: born on August 15, 1888. He died on July 24, 1890.

GRIBBIN FAMILY

Elizabeth Gribbin English (July 15, 1976- January 4, 1959)

Elizabeth Gribbin, known friends as Lizzie and to her grandchildren as "Nana", was the daughter of Neil and Annie (nee McWilliams) Gribbin. Neil was born in Ireland circa 1847. He was said to be a rebel who had to flee to escape the British. Annie was also born in Ireland circa 1850. Neil and Annie were married at St. Mary’s Church in Jersey City, NJ on June 1, 1869. Somehow Elizabeth was born in Scotland seven years later (in 1876). Her birth certificate lists the place of birth as McPherson’s land, Coathridge(?). We do not know why Neal and Annie were in Scotland during 1876, 1877 and 1878.

The 1880 census for Hamburg, Dauphine County, Pa. Lists:

Neil Gribbin--Age 33; Occupation-Laborer: Place of birth- Ireland.

Annie Gribbin--Age 30; Wife.

Hugh--Age 10; Place of birth- New Jersey.

Elizabeth--Age 4. Place of birth- Scotland.

Annie--Age 2. Place of birth-Scotland.

Ella --Age 6. Place of birth- Pa.

According to my father’s recollection, Annie Gribbin died at a young age leaving four girls and a boy. Elizabeth was the oldest girl. Her sisters were Helen, Annie (born in Scotland in 1878) and Isabelle (Nellie or Ella?). On the same 1922 visit to Pittsburgh, my father remembers visiting them. Nellie (Ella?) was married to a man named Connley who was thought to be a bootlegger. Connley and Nellie had two children. One was called Christine.

Elizabeth’s brother, Hugh, who was born in New Jersey in 1870, ran away from home and was never heard from again. There were thought to be two other children of Neil left behind in Ireland who were raised by their grandmother.

My father believes that Neil Gribbin worked as a policeman in Pittsburgh. He was said to be a rogue who killed a man in a steel mill in western Pennsylvania. Ultimately he became an alcoholic.