My Genealogy Hound

ARCHIBALD KUHN, farmer, post office New Texas, was born near his present farm, Sept. 2, 1805, a son of Archibald and Martha (Stotler) Kuhn. His father was born in the Susquehanna valley in 1771, came to Plum township with his father and was married here. He was a cavalry soldier at the time of the whisky rebellion; was a surveyor on the frontier; was justice of the peace from 1809 till 1815; a member of the legislature, and in 1815 refused a second term. He was father of eight children: Michael, Jacob, Nancy, Archibald, David, Katharine, John Morgan and William Henry Harrison. The eldest three are deceased. Our subject’s great-great-grandfather was coming with other emigrants from Germany to America, but the vessel they were coming in was taken by a British privateer into the port of Derry, and during their stay there his great-grandfather, Adam Kuhn, was born, and after a while the emigrant vessel was allowed to proceed on its voyage to America, and landed at New Holland—now New York city. There the family remained until Adam was grown to manhood and was married to a young lady who shortly before this time had come from Holland. Her Christian name was Eve, her surname not being known. This couple had three sons, viz.: Nicholas, Michael and Mansfield. After these were grown to manhood and two of them were married he (Adam) came to Western Pennsylvania, about 1768, to what is Allegheny county and what is now Patton township, made an improvement and planted an orchard. After remaining here a few years he sold out and moved to what is now West Virginia, where Eve, his wife, was killed by the Indians, and where he remained during the rest of his life. His grandfather, Michael Kuhn, married Catharine McClarty, a Scotch lady, and lived in the Susquehanna valley for a number of years. The Indians being very troublesome there at that time, and being burnt out by them, he moved down the valley past where Harrisburg now stands some ten or fifteen miles, and settled near a stream called Swatara. Here he remained until about 1782 or 1783, and then came to Western Pennsylvania and located near Ellrod’s fording on the Youghiogheny river until 1788, when he came to what is now Plum township, and bought a farm, on which he and his wife lived during the rest of their lives. He was by occupation a weaver. He had five sons and three daughters. In faith he was a Presbyterian and all his children belonged to some branch of the Presbyterian Church. Sam. McMahon now owns the farm which Michael Kuhn owned and where he died at the age of seventy-five years. The subject of this memoir, at the age of eighteen, began to learn the scythe and sickle-making trade, at which he remained five years. Machinery then took the place of hand labor, and he returned home and worked at rough carpenter work, and later on he built a saw mill, which he operated about forty years. He then rented the mill, built his present home and has since superintended his farm. He married, Nov. 17, 1836, Mary Craig King, of Plum township, born in 1812, a daughter of Robert and Nancy (Davidson) King. Mr. Kuhn has seven children living and three deceased. The living are Nancy D. (Mrs. Joseph McCready), Martha S. (Mrs. Logan Stotler), Jacob, Anna (now Mrs. Austin Dildine), Susan (Mrs. Immanuel Alter); Mary Loisa and David Brainard reside on the place. The deceased are William W., killed in the army; James King, who died aged thirty-two years, and Robert, who died in infancy. Mr. and Mrs. Kuhn are members of the Presbyterian Church. Mr. Kuhn has been supervisor, school director, auditor and treasurer of the county money. He was the first republican in the township, and was sent to the first republican convention. He and Mrs. Kuhn have celebrated their golden wedding.