Page:Historical and Biographical Annals of Columbia and Montour Counties, Pennsylvania, Containing a Concise History of the Two Counties and a Genealogical and Biographical Record of Representative Families.pdf/496

 COLUMBIA AND MONTOUR COUNTIES township. Columbia county, on (he farm after­ wards owned by his grandson, Jam es Depew Pursel. H e cleared tnc land he took up. and devoted the remainder o f his active years to its improvement. His first w ife. Nancy ( K itchen), was the mother o f all his children, l i e p a s s ^ his closing years on the Depcw Pursel farm. T o quote from an earlier ac­ count ( 18 8 7 ) : "T h e fan n on which Sylvester lives w*as owned by his maternal ancestor, whose name w as Green, and who later sold it to his son-in-law, Daniel Pursel. Shortly after this he died, and the w ife o f Jonathan Pursel dying about (he same time also, the two old people married, and lived on the Depcw Pursel farm .” Daniel lAirsel. son o f Jonathan, w as bom Dec. 19, 17 7 1, learned the trade o f blacksmith, and also engaged in fanning. Though he started life a poor man, by industry and hard work, and with the help o f a capable and de­ voted w ife, ho prospered and succeeded in accumulating a competence. From his father he bought the farm where his son Sylvester I>assed all his life, and in 18 16 built the stone house upon (hat place. H e also acquired own­ ership of the farm now* ow*ned by his son Isaac G . Pursel. H e w as a man o f high character, a member of the Episcopal Church at Bloomsburg. and one of the respected citi­ zens of his community. H is death occurred Feb. 17 . 1854. Daniel Pursel married M ary Green, who was also from N ew Jersey, and who sur*ived him, dying during the Civil war, aged ninety-one years, one month. A year tofore, though ninety vears old, she had Imitted a large number o f stockings and mittens for the soldiers. Daniel and M ary (Green) I^ursel are buried in the Rosemont cemetery at Bloomsburg. Of the twelve children bom to them one died in infancy, and the others w ere bom as follow s: John, Jan . 2 2 . 1793 (died at the home o f his son in M ontour county when ninety-three years o ld ); Dennis, Dec* L 1793 (died aged ninety-one y e a r s ): lonathan, Dec. 20. 1795 (died in C an ad a); Kohert. M ay 9, 1799 (settled in Michigan and attained very advanced a g e ); Daniel, Aug. 5, i8o( (died at an advanced a g e ) : Hester, Ja n. 4. 1804 (m arried Samuel K ahlcr and died in Lycom ing c o u n ty ); W illiam, A pril 9, 1808 (livct. 8, 18 1 j, was the randfather o f Frank P. Pursel. H e followed arming in Hemlock township, where he passed his active years, spending the end o f his life in retirement at Huckhorn. Columbia count)*, where he died Feb. 19, 1898. in his cighcy-third year. H is w ife, Mar>* (W ilson ), died March 2 1. 1876, aged sixty years, four months, eighteen days, and they arc buried at Bloomsburg. Three children were bom to them : Wellington B.» 1 'homas Wilson and Dennis. Wellington B . .Pursel, son o f Isaac G ., was torn in Hemlock township, Columbia county, Dec. 3, 1836. and died Nov. 15, 1864, in his twenty-eighth year. On March 24, 1859, he m arried Sarah E . Patterson, daughter o f Jam es and Sarah (E v e s) Patterson, and she survives, making her home at Bloomsburg. Mr, and Mrs. I'ursel had two children, Frank P. and Gcorgiana. Frank P. lAirsel w as bom Feb. 3, 1863, in H emiock township, Columbia county, and there obtained his early education at public school. L ater he w as a student for a time in the State Normal School at Bloomsbuig, but he was still very young when he com­ menced work as a clerk in the grocer)* store o f T. W. Conner at Bloomsburg. ,Aftcrward.s he w as sim ilarly employed by M r. Hartman, with whom he remained for a considerable eriod, and then entered the establishment o f . W. M cKclv)*, one of the oldest merchants in the town. B y faithful work and intelligent attention to his duties he received promotion to the head of the dry goods department, tak­ ing full charge o f that end of the business. H e continued in M cK elvv’s employ for four­ teen years, at the end o f which time he and Samuel H . Ilarm an bought the business for themselves, conducting it under the finu name o f Pursel & H am ian. T hey were associated for five years, until M r. Pursel purchased M r. Harman $ interest, and has since been doing business alone. H e has a fine thrce-story and txisement building, 46 by ( 12 feet in dimen­ sions, at the com er o f Main and Market streets, and an addition for warehouse pur­ poses 28 by 40 feet. M r, Pursel carries a comprehensive and well assorted stock o f dry gooas, shoes, furniture, crockery, groceries, etc., and his patrons appreciate the excellent service to be had in his establishment, where their accommodation is alw ays the foremost consideration. Mr, Purse! anticipated the satisfaction which the Introduction o f many of the new features would give to his custo­ mers. and the .store is not only a credit to his

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