WILLIAM W. JACKMAN, one of the oldest citizens of East Pike Run township, is a native of the same, having been born December 10, 1814. He is a son of William Jackman, whose father was Robert Jackman, a native of Ireland. Robert Jackman came, when a young man, to America with three brothers, and located in Washington county. In March, 1784, he obtained from the Pennsylvania land office a warrant for the land now the sites of the towns of California and Coal Centre, on the waters of Pike run. These tracts were surveyed and enrolled in Patent Book No. 15, page 255. The tract on the east side of the creek was called "Allybar," and that on the west side, "Ararat." Robert married Sarah Whittiker, and afterward Ann Dixon. Of his nine children, two were born to the first wife and seven to the last wife. They are named as follows: Robert(born May 16, 1772), Henry (born August 7, 1774, married Sarah Sphar), Ruth (born May 7, 1779, married William Gregg), Sarah (born May 15, 1781, married Joseph Nealan), Samuel (born February 8, 1784), William (born January 4, 1786, married Nancy Steele), Dixon (born April 5, 1789, married Elizabeth Phillips), John (born January 5, 1792, married Miss Stockdale), James A. (Born September 1, 1794). Many members of this family finally settled in Indiana, Illinois and Iowa. The father died in Washington county, and was buried in the cemetery at California.
William Jackman was married to a daughter of William Steele, and she bore him one son, William. For his second wife Mr. Jackman selected Ann Wilkins, a native of Washington county, and they had two children: Ann (wife of William Reeder) and William W. The father followed farming all his life until drowned in the Monongahela river.
William W. Jackman received a limited education in the subscription schools of the home neighborhood, then at the juvenile age of twelve years began life for himself. He worked at various occupations, and at the age of eighteen took a boatload of coal down the river to Maysville, Ky.; continued in that business for several years, also acting as pilot for boats to Louisville, Ky. In 1839 he was married to Ruth, daughter of William Morgan, one child having been born to their union, Louisa, wife of Alexander Carlisle. The mother died a short time after the birth of this daughter. For his second wife William W. Jackman married Eliza Jane, daughter of William Miller, a resident of Greene county. To this union nine children were born as follows: Leroy, Dora, Arabella, Lena (deceased wife of Charles Minehart), Albert, William E., Calvin, Santford and Louis S. Of these, Leroy, William E. and Louis S. Are living. After laying out the town of California, and before the lots were sold, William W. Jackman joined the advance army of "Argonauts" from "the States" in " '49" for the Sacramento Valley, Cal., for which the Pennsylvania town was named. In 1849 Mr. Jackman, in company with Job Johnson, Abram Fry, George Hornback, Samuel Ashmade and John Woods, purchased 311 acres in East Pike Run township, laid out the town of California, and divided the upland tract among themselves, the share of Mr. Jackman being fifty acres. He has been a Whig and Abolitionist in politics, and is deeply interested in educational progress, having been a prime mover in the Southwestern State Normal School at California, to which he has contributed largely.
Text taken from page 799 of:
Beers, J. H. and Co., Commemorative Biographical Record of Washington County, Pennsylvania (Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co., 1893).Transcribed January 1997 by Julie Jolly of Knob Noster, MO as part of the Beers Project.
Published January 1997 on the Washington County, PA USGenWeb pages at http://www.chartiers.com/.[ [Back to Beers Table of Contents] [Back to Beers Project Page]