Butler citizen. [volume] (Butler, Pa.) 1877-1922, 1906-06-14
The Cunningham Brothers
Founders of Butler.

ydru OF DuUitE Was dH cFcAe OaiSuAasSN
to make deep impression upon all or-
people, but more especially upon the
defendants Of the early citizens of our
town. While the remains of many had
heretofore been removed to new resting
places, yet there were still reposing
there the dust of some of the early
pioneers and, in one case, of that OF one
of the founders of the town itself. In
most of such cases the descendants OF
these ancestral dead were either scatter
cd afar. or perhaps themselves dead.
To preserve their memory an element
of sentiment arose which said, that even
if no bones or dust of theirs be found
vet their names should be rescued from
oblivion and not permitted to perish
from the earth. In this noble and
| worthy sentiment our School Board,
who have been given control of the old
ground for school purposes and who
! were charged with the care and remov-
al of its dead, heartily shared, and we
have every assurance from them that
| the new homes of these dead will be
/, marked by suitable grave stones placed
at their head. Among them will be that
of John Cunningham, whose name ap
pears on the deeds as giving two Of the
three lots composing this old burial
ground, and who died in Butler in the
year 1905, and was buried upon one Of
the lots he, in part, gave. The removal
of lis dust, last October or November,
came Just about one hundred years
| from the time of his burial there OF
him. who ne was and what he did for
| the town and county of Butler, in con-
! junction with brother, it is the desire
and principal object of the writer OF
| this to give some account, as he has
learned the same by tradition, and az
handed down to him from father to son.
| Two brothers, John and Samuel Gun
nipgham were among the first white
men who came to and settled within the
limits of the present borough of Butler
after the Indians had left this section.
AS General Wayne's victory over and
treaty of peace with the Indians was III
1895. the white man began to come here
soon after. From all we have learned
the Cunningham brothers came here IL
1896 or 1891. Butler county was not
then organiZed-lt was taken from ALE
ebeny county in 1900. So when they
came there was neither county or towT
in being. They came from the eastern
mart of this State. Lancaster county II
| is said. but they seem to have had some
acouaintance in and about Philadelphia
What first attracted their attention tt
this point was, very probably. informa
ton of it derived from an elder brother
lanes Cunningham, who had been on,
! of the Surveyors of the State, appointed
!, | to survey and lay out into tracts thu
State lands in Western Pennsylvania
MANY of these tracts had become thu
. property of Robert Morris, the dis
fineuished Patriot of Philadelphia il
Revolutionary times, and who did 81
,, much for the cause of independence
lanes Cunningham, it would seem, be
came the agent of Mr.. Morris for tn
Hands in the district he surveyed. Thl
! district extended from line north o
, Butler about four miles to the Allie
ghenv river ON the south. and was an'
still il known as "Cunningham's Dis
| trict of Depreciation Lands. TIL
norton of this District that fell int
Butler county, after it was taken from
, Allegheny county, embraces part OF ou
present Centre and Oakland townships
| ali. or nearly ALL of Butler, Summit
Jefferson, Penn, Middlesex and Clinto
townships, and about half of Buffalo
, Winfield, Clearfeld and Donegal town
, ships. The town of Butler is includes
in Butler township.
| The lands within this District wer
| not in fact depreciation lands, bu
were so called because of certain scrl
or certificates issued to the soldiers o
, the Revolution for their services hav
, ing become deprecated. The law al
i foWen ufle soldiers 10 obtain st,'l pay 70
these lands in this deprecated scrip o
money. and hence the name of tn
lands Robert Morris, in aid of and il
sympathy with the soldiers. gave then
good and full money for this scrip, an
TO such an extent that with other simi
| lar losses, helped to bring about hi
financial ruin. All his lands in thi
] section of the State were sold at
Judicial sale held at Bedford, Pa, il
| the year 1907, and Stephen Lowry, Esq.
| of Baltimore, became the purchaser o
MANY of them in this section. Afte
that they were called Lowry lands.
By Mr.. Lowry's will he devised theu
J | to his daughter Sarah, who became tn
, wife of Thomas Collins, and hence tn
lands became known as collins lands,
or Sarah Collins lands Sarah Collin
} lived in Butler in its early days ant
/ was we'll known to its early people. Th
late Mrs. Judge Mcclure and the lat
Mrs. Judge Wilson McCandless of Pitts
; burg were daughters of Sarah Collin
and inherited most of her lands here
about, some of which, east of town, re
main in their heirs to the present time
i The lands were divided into tracts o
about 800 acres each. The particula
! tract upon which Butler is was frs
known as the "Tressler tract. that be
! | ing the name of the man to whom
warrant had first been issued for it. t,
this tract the attention of the Cunning
ham boys, or men, seems to have beel
directed. They settled upon it, obtain
ed a patent, deed, for it and changed it
name from "Tressler' to that of "But
ler". SO called in honor of Genera
Richard Butler, brave soldier of tn
Revolutionary war, and who afterward
, fell fighting the Indians in the battl
with them in the west known as ''St
Clairs' defeat, Nov, 1891, Our count,
l and our town were named after thi
llamented Gen. Butler. and to the Gun
. ninghams, tradition says, is due tn
honor of suggesting the name.
John and Samuel Cunningham, as w
say, became the owners of this tract 0
300 acres that they called Butler. Wha
directed their attention. or fancy proba
bly,, to it was no doubt the peculia
formation in the creek here. The,
were millers, or had knowledge of tn
milling business, and may be wer
looking about for good mill site t,
erect a mill. This they found here
The creek here on south end of tow
: flows in nearly western course unit
|, it strikes what was known as 9TH
Rocks, where it turns 70 the north
One tier of these rocks lay directly il
the creek, forming kind of half circle
From this the creek escaped by chan
mel so deep and narrow that singh
! timber of forty feet as foot log coul,
span it. Another row Of huge rock
; was Immediately behind and vest o
: the row in the creek. This made
! formation such as was no where els
known in or on the Connoquenessin,
] creek. 1t was wild, unique and pictur
esaue, and well calculated 10 attract at
) tention as rare and without it's like, Bu
one Of all these 'rocks" now remain
, entire. Most of the back row wer
, / ~.