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MERVIN L. SHOEMAKER,
a prominent farmer of Madison township, owns and occupies
the old homestead where he was born Sept. 29, 1879, son of
Joseph B. and Margaret A. (Ferguson) Shoemaker.
George Shoemaker, his great-grandfather, with
six brothers John, Solomon, Adam,
Simon, Samuel and Daniel, emigrated from
Germany to America prior to 1770, and first settled in
Loudoun county, Va. In 1798 or 1800 George
Shoemaker settled at Cochrans Mills, in what is now
Burrell township, Armstrong county. His wife was
Margaret Miller, and their children were: Isaac;
John; Peter; Daniel; George;
Jesse; Joseph; Catherine, Mrs.
Blogher; Margaret, Mrs. Hind; and
Hannah, Mrs. Uncapher. Of these,
Peter Shoemaker was the grandfather of
Mervin L. He settled in what is now Mahoning
township, Armstrong county, near Oakland, in 1824, having
purchased 200 acres of land from his cousin Philip
Shoemaker, who had settled there in 1814. He
cleared and improved this property, and became a prominent
and successful man of affairs. His death occurred in
1872. He married Sarah Ringer, who bore
him twelve children, ten of whom grew to maturity: Isaac,
William, Peter, Jesse, Joseph B.,
George, Mary (who married. Thomas
Montgomery), Catherine (who married Samuel
Young), Margaret and Sarah.
Joseph B. Shoemaker was born on the old
homestead in Mahoning township July 31, 1839, and there was
reared to manhood. He settled in Madison township in
1864, owning a tract of land of about 160 acres there, which
he cleared and improved, and died there Mar. 13, 1900, in
his sixty-first year. He was a prominent farmer of his
day, and his farm was considered the most valuable in
Madison township. He owned the first combined reaper
and mower brought to the town ship. In early life
Mr. Shoemaker was a member of the German Baptist
Church, but later he became a member of the Free Baptist
Church at Deanville, of which he was a deacon for many
years. He held various township offices, was a
Republican in political sentiment, and an advocate of
prohibition. He married Margaret A. Ferguson,
whose death occurred May 19, 1912. She was the
daughter of Samuel Ferguson, a native of
Ireland, who was a pioneer of what is now Mahoning township,
clearing and improving the farm now owned by Joseph
Ferguson; his death occurred there. Mr. and
Mrs. Shoemaker reared a family of seven children, as
follows: Carrie, wife of F. E. Claypoole;
Homer H.; Ora A.; Junie F., wife of
Adam Shindledecker; Bertha G., wife of
John Shindledecker; Mervin L., and
Claude C.
Mervin L. Shoemaker received his education in
the schools of Deanville. With the exception of two
years, when he worked as clerk in his brother Homer's
store, he has always lived on the homestead, and came into
full possession of the property in March, 1912. He has
always followed farming as an occupation, being one of those
industrious men who have found success by untiring effort
and perseverance. He is prominent in his community and
well liked by all who knew him.
On May 3, 1903, Mr. Shoemaker married
Myrtle, daughter of Robert and
Catherine (Smith) Sherrieb, of Madison
township, and they have two children, Blair and
Joseph B. He is a member of the Free Baptist
Church and has always been a stanch adherent to the
principles of the Republican party.
Source: Armstrong County, Pennsylvania, Her People, Past and
Present in two volumes Illustrated - Vol. I - Chicago: J. H.
Beers & Co., 1914 - Page 496 |
