The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1895-07-03

was woman greaty loVeu py al Mho
| knew her and was blessed with sterling
qualities OF mind and heart, which de-
scended to her children, and 20 .theW
children in turn.
George, the eldest son Of John sigglns,
was born In County Sligo In IT'S, and was
Is years OF age when he came to America.
In 1900 he married Jean Young, daugh-
ter OF Rev. William and Jean Young, that
family having emlgrnted from ireland in
company with the Slggins family.
In 1901, after his fathers death, George
Siggins removed to Pithole where he
bought a tract Of land from the Holland
Land Company. This country was then
even wilder than Center county.
The severe winters and frosts made Il
hard to get along. Sometimes they were
short OF flour and had to cook the unripe
grain.
There were seven families at stuart's
Run beside the Siggins-they were: Two
Dawsons two Allenders, two Kinnears
and one Middleton. They were all Metho-
dists, and held meetings from house TO
house George Sigglns being their class
leader. From Pithole he moved to a farm
below Tidoute. now owned by his grand
son, John Siggins, our manager.
In ISIS he moved for the last time to
Hickorytown, where he spent the rest Of
his life.
Recognizing the advantages of improve
ment he never failed to have a care to
that end, and wherever he went there
we find orchards and other evidences OF
his forethought
At Hickory he was instrumental in
having a little meeting house built and
school house, the seats and desks OF
which were made of slabs and the win
dows OF oiled paper. lie organized debat-
ing clubs, and encouraged his sons in
taking part thus training them to public
speaking, which in later life proved n
most useful requirement.
the h,l
license to exhort. There are still people
living who can recall his kindly words
as he stood up before the meeting address,
Ing them as my dear children"
This good man died January II. 1885
leaving a family of six sons and two
daughters. The sons. John, William, Ma
thaniel, Hord, George, Simpson and James
married young and raised large families.
all OF whom live in this part OF the coun-
try. Isaac Connolly Siggins remained sin
gle; They all were farmers, all were men
| OF high morals and fine taste.
John, the second son Of John and Sarah
| Siggins, came from Center county in
| company with his mother, and also went
| with her from Pthole to Brokenstraw.
| In May, 1873. when about 25 years OF age
ne lett home to go down the Allegheny.
! He fell a victim to yellow fever and died
on the Ohio river and was buried on Le-
tart Island.
Sarah Siggins the younger daughter.
married Isaac Connolly, an exhorter Of
remarkable eloquence. They settled at
| Gotham and raised a large family. most
OF whose children still live in that neigh
| borhood.
We have an interesting account of the
NE OF william, best known as Judge Sig
gins, written by himself in his S5th year.
He was born May r. 1852 and was but
four years old at the time OF their emf
| grafton.
He stayed in Center county, till 1904
when he went to Pithole with his brother
| George. He went to school. using as text
books, Webster's spelling book and the
| new testament
In March. 1907 when the snow was three
| feet deep. he went to Brokenstraw, where
| for some time he had a saw-mill running
his lumber to Pittsburg. At one time a
man from Allegheny, offered him four
acres of land for his raft. This offer was
at once refused. He says: What a fool
ish man l was. l suppose that land is
| now worth a million dollars"
Some time after this he and Judge Con-
nelly bought a grist-mill on Stuarts Run
They had to bring their mill irons from
| Belleforte.
| In 1872. he married "a little girl named
| Polly Wilson. She was sixteen years OF
age, fair and handsome"
| He was appointed Justice of the Peace
in 1927. and during his term he entered
| about four thousand judgments none of
| which was reversed by the court. He was
later appointed associate Judge OF War
| rem county. He served as justice of the
| Peace twenty-five years. and was a grand
| jury man at the first rourt held in War
rem county in 1919, in all serving GO years
| in Venango and Warren county courts
| The life of this useful man ended July l5
| 1875 in his seth year. He had a family OF
| eight sons and four daughters. Alexander
the youngest son of John Siggins was
born on the voyage to America in l7S3
| Whar ha ha Nro A. %
| blacksmith at which he worked till the
| last year of his life. Being a man of in
dustrious and steady-going habits he be-
| came quite well-to-do He bought tract
Of we'll timbered land. and in process Of
| clearing cut down the fine oak trees and
| burned them with the brush. In 1916 he
| married Margaret Kinnear whom he had
| known since childhood. she being the
daughter OF Henry Kinnear, one OF their
fellow pioneers at Pithole. Alexander
Siggins was a man of serene temper and
calm judgment. In 1858, Alexander Sig
gins died. having large family to honor
| his memory
Twice within the period OF this history
did our country call for soldiers. The firHt
| time was In the war of 1872 when men
were needed to reinforce Commodore Per
ry, at Erie. in 1913. There were then the
four sons OF John Sigglns to respond. They
were William Siggins, who was first SER
| geant, George. John, and Alexander. They
| TnaTCueQ 10 fEle DGl were not CAlleQ upon
for active service.
In the late war there was a good repre-
sentation of the family, Notwithstanding
their desserts as brave soldiers to a full
account OF their heroism. II is only poss-
ible to give a brief mention OF each one,
and 1t is hoped that none are here omit
ted. or the grandsonB of George Biggins,
there were Nathaniel Simpson SigginB,
James Patterson Siggins, who was wound
ed, Isaac Wilson Siggins. William Young
Sigsins and William Parker 6iggins, a
soldier honored for his dauntless courage.
Sarah Connelly's grandsons Isaac and
Wilbur Magee also served In the war.
Judge Siggins had two sons, Nathaniel
and Irvine, and two grandBonB, Irvine and
walter Mead. Alexander 6iggins son. John
and his grandson. Vincent Trask also. OF
these who married into the family are
Captain Ferry and Captain Peter Grace,
Of jamestown, Colonel w. c. Howe, OF
Montpelier. Ind. Clinton Smith, John Gill
Allan and Cyrus Richardson.
But there are other names which though
no longer often on the tongues of men,
are yet above all deserving OF our tender
memory:
They are Augustus Trask, killed al
White mountain; Isaac Richardson, killed
In the battle OF the wilderness; George
Siggins, died in the hospital OF wounds re-
ceived at Dallas. Georgia.; Captain Ben
Jamin Smith, killed at Hatches Run; JEFF
ferson Magee and Porter Siggins, killed
at Atlanta, Ga. the bible in his pocket
not being sufficient TO stop the fatal hul-
let on its way TO that young heart
AT present the descendants OF John Sig
gins are scattered from Canada to Mexico
from the Atlantic TO the Pacific. while Ire
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