History of the Markley Family

Family Histories

By H. W. Strawbridge, submitted by Penny Haylett Kulbacki

Presented at the annual Markley family reunion held at the Donald Markley home in Titusville on Sunday, July 31, 1960.

The Markley family is of German descent. The name as we spell it today is MARKLEY. However, in Germany it was MERKLE. Our ancestor, Jacob Merkle, who sailed from Germany to America, used the spelling MERKLE throughout his entire life. Even his tombstone has that spelling on it. Throughout his history I shall use the present spelling and pronunciation, MARKLEY, and later tell the story of how it was changed in this family. 

Jacob Markley was born in Germany on Jan. 12, 1827. I have been unsuccessful in finding the names of his parents and other information about them. It is a possibility that Jacob’s father was a blacksmith. 

Jacob, as a young man, came to America with his young wife. The time of their voyage was in January, 1847. That’s the month that their oldest son, Frederick, was born, and he was born on the ocean. Record doesn’t seem to indicate the length of time it took for the voyage, but in that day it was three months anyway. 

Jacob also had a brother, Martin Markley, and three sisters, Mrs. Swartz, Mrs. Minnie Benz and Mrs. Grider, who came to America, too.  Whether they came over on the same voyage as did Jacob and his wife isn’t known. 

Martin Markley jumped onto the boat in Germany, in a hurry, it is said. It was the custom to have compulsory military training for youths in Germany then, and Martin had no desire for that, so he ran to the waterfront where he took a small boat and sailed out to catch the big ship which had already left the harbor.  Destination, America.  The military officials were just a few minutes late. They reached the harbor just as Martin was about to board the big ship. 

All five brothers and sisters ventured to Buffalo, N. Y., where some remained the rest of their lives. Martin became a policeman there. 

Jacob, our ancestor, was a traveling blacksmith in Germany. By traveling around the country is how he met his future wife. He was married in Germany probably in 1846 to Miss Barbara Christine Langiaer, who was also born in that country. The date of her birth was Aug. 5, 1826, and her parents were Jacob and Barbara Klepper Langiaer. 

Barbara was one of a family of eight sisters and one brother. Her father was evidently a German farmer.  The family lived in a stone house to which the cow stable was attached. That was the custom in Germany then. The women and girls took care of the cattle and milked them, as well as scrubbing the stable. 

In this country Jacob and Barbara Markley lived in what was called “Black Rock”. It was within the present confines of Buffalo, N. Y. Jacob earned 25¢ a day working in a blacksmith shop there. It was there that he also operated a cooper sop for years. Thus he was able to eventually buy a couple of acres which would presently be in the center section of Buffalo. 

They had four children, the last three of whom were born in Buffalo. The children were: Frederick Jacob Markley, George Markley, Rachel Catherine Markley, and another younger daughter, Mary Markley, who died at the age of three. A cross rooster had picked on her leg and she got infection and died. More mention of these children will be made farther on. 

Jacob and Barbara Markley lived in Buffalo perhaps 20 years. It was between 1865 and 1868 that they moved to Troy Township, Crawford Co., Pa. It is said that the oil excitement brought them to this region. They first lived in a small house at Schreiners Corners in eastern Troy Township. During their residence there of a few years, Jacob operated a cooper shop which sat south of the present George Bradley buildings. Therefore he made barrels necessary for the oil industry. 

From there the family moved to a farm located one mile southeast of Troy Center. They paid $1000 for this place from one Moses Cochran who lived in Shelby Co., Mo. This land was all woodland. They cut down trees to build their first house. The men used to stay up all night burning big chestnut logs in heaps. This farm was mostly chestnut and oak. Jacob made quantities of barrel staves from the oak wood. There was also a swampy section of the farm that contained quite a bit of pine timber. Jacob sold this portion later to John Loker, who moved a mill onto it and sawed lumber. 

At this point I shall tell of the change in the spelling of the family name.  It was custom in Germany that young lads under 21 years of age had to turn over their earnings to their fathers. Jacob thought this should hold true over here, too, but his second son, George, didn’t like the idea at all. So he went to Erie where he got employment, changed his name from Merkle to Markley, and earned enough money in order to get married. 

Jacob Markley was a busy man in more than one occupation. Besides his farming and cooper activities, he had a blacksmith shop.  He also had a cider mill situated in his blacksmith shop which sat on a slope across the road from the house. Jacob ran the cider mill by horsepower. Two horses walked round and round a unit. He had bought this cider mill from either Jasper Hays or Cobby Sterns of Troy Township. He ground up a lot of apples for different people who came to have cider made. 

For some time Jacob also had an old pepperbox thresher. This was also run by the same horsepower unit, except that he used two teams, or four horses, instead of two horses. 

Both Jacob and Barbara liked flowers. He raised big dahlias in what was the wood yard and built a board fence around them to keep the chickens out. She had her flower garden in front of the big part of the house. Behind the house there was a large grape arbor under which it was cool to sit during hot summer days. There was a flat stone walk in front of the house, and also in front was a drilled water well within a dug well. It was of course cased off. 

The old couple kept several cows and a flock of chickens. She often went to town to peddle her butter and eggs. They also took produce to the Troy Center store, too, and instead of accepting cash, they would take what they called a “due bill”. After receiving several of these “due bills”, or credit statements, they would get several sacks of flour or other groceries at that store. 

When Barbara got ready to churn butter, she occasionally gathered some of her grandchildren around the big churn and have them go round and round while she sang Dutch songs.  When she finished singing her last song, the butter was all churned. Barbara was a good cook. It is remembered that their sauerkraut and smoked hams were unexcelled. 

The old couple raised some turkeys.  One fall they had some bad luck. Forty-four of their turkeys came up missing and were never found. She had them about ready for marketing too. This was a discouraging event. 

Jacob kept the largest yoke of oxen in that area. They were red durhams and the pair weighted an amazing 4400 pounds. When these huge beasts would hit a stone while plowing, they would continue right on, showing no signs of being jerked or stopped when the plow point struck the stone. 

Jacob also grew his won tobacco. He had a large bowled pipe with a long, crooked stem. He kept pine sticks in front of the stove to light his pipe. After lighting it he would smother out the fired stick by pushing it into the ashes. 

Another item that Jacob liked was bees. He kept several hives of bees and had plenty of honey. 

Jacob had a pocket watch with a solid silver case which he bought in Germany. It is said to have cost around $140. This watch is presently owned by a grandson, Frank J. Markley. Frank also has a .32 Red Jacket derringer which had belonged to Martin Markley, Jacob’s brother. 

Jacob and his sons were also enthusiastic hunters. Jacob’s muzzle-loading gun had been shot so often that the end of the barrel was thinned down to nearly nothing. They hunted fox and lynx in the Indian Hollow region of eastern Troy Township in the earlier years after moving there. Jacob kept fox hounds. 

At one particular time the hounds treed a lynx along Indian Hollow. The Markleys had shotguns but no rifles with them. They were afraid a shotgun charge wouldn’t kill the beast. Soon a fellow from Griffin Hill happened along with his muzzle-loading rifle, but he had only one charge for it.  He took careful aim, fired, and missed! So, Jacob decided to try the shotgun after all. He aimed, fired, and down came the lynx. It not sooner hit the ground until the two hounds grabbed it, one on each and pulled against each other. The men were scared for fear the cat was still alive and would start ripping and tearing the dogs. Fortunately, the cat was dead. Upon close examination it was discovered that one of the buckshot penetrated an eye and passed into its brain, causing sudden death. It was indeed a lucky shotgun blast. 

At another time Jacob, his sons, Fred and George, went fox hunting in Indian Hollow. It was a bitter cold day.  An old stone chimney stood somewhere along the middle of the hollow. Fred, who had a rifle, was assigned to stand against the chimney, while Jacob and George, who had shotguns, traveled on the slopes of the hollow, one on each side.  Soon the foxhounds routed a fox and put it through the hollow right past the chimney. There were not shots and nothing happened. Jacob and George puzzled about it, but went over to see why Fred hadn’t shot at it.  Fred wasn’t there. He got so cold that he had left for home before the fox traveledby. 

A final little hunting experience will be related now. Jacob and George were hunting in the huge Gerow lot of 530 acres one day. Besides these 530 acres there were several hundred more acres surrounding it. Towards the end of the day when it came time to leave the woods, Jacob and George got lost and argued as to which direction to take. (The sun wasn’t out that day). Finally George went by the moss on the north side of the trees and struck a road, after which he came out where he had intended. Jacob went his own way and came out by Oil Creek, the opposite side of where he wanted to come out. 

Jacob Markley was a fairly large man and weighted about 200 pounds. He was probably five feet, ten inches in height. He became rather stooped in his later years. He was a stern man and didn’t cater to joking. He was not what we would call a refined, soft-spoken man, but instead an individual who came right to the point and also unhesitatingly gave forth his opinion on any subject. He possessed a strong German accent. He had received an education and could read and write very well. In fact, he subscribed for a German newspaper all his life. He seldom attended public functions. 

He belonged to a German organization or lodge with the initials, D. O. H., which I haven’t learned for what they stand. Jacob was one of the very last members of this lodge, and was honored as such in 1903 when he went to Buffalo with his son, George, to receive this honor. He didn’t have one cent of expense on this trip. Everything was free gratis.  He once walked into a Buffalo store to buy a new hat. After he picked out his hat and got ready to pay for it, the proprietor said; “Nothing doing, the hat is yours, free of charge”. That trip may have been the only time he ever got any distance away from his home area after moving there in the 1860s. 

He had his own expressions in talking, as does everybody. For example, he would not say: “I’m going to cut down that piece of hay tomorrow”.  Instead, he would say: “If I live, I’ll cut down that piece of hay tomorrow”.  He generally had that clause, “If I live”, in his sayings. He pronounced the word “live” with a long I. 

Barbara was a good-hearted individual and was loved by her family. She was thrifty and an excellent farmwife in all respects. It was their custom to have a little lunch between breakfast and dinner, and also between dinner and supper. 

Eventually the old couple moved to Hydetown where they bought a property. An interesting anecdote will be related at this point. As before mentioned, they got “due bills” at the Troy Center store, then traded them for several sacks of flour. At this particular time they had just gotton their flour when they were moving to Hydetown. A grandson, G. C. Markley, and a neighbor, John Loker, moved them. When they finished moving, Mr. Loker told the old couple: “Well, we’ll be here to move you back on the farm while you’re on your last sack of flour”. Lo and behold, if that didn’t turn out to be the truth. When G. C. Markley and John Loker moved them back, they were using their last sack of flour. 

After living awhile on their Troy farm again, they removed to Titusville about May, 1908, living at 109 E. Spring St. Three months later, on Aug. 22, Barbara died of a dysentery condition of about three weeks duration. 

Jacob died in the same home on Feb. 26, 1911 of influenza and bronchitis. He was ill about two weeks. 

Both are buried in the Greenwood Cemetery located between Titusville and Hydetown. 

There are no buildings standing anymore on the Jacob Markley farm in Troy Township. They fell in years ago. 

Now some remarks will be given about their three children and grandchildren. In that day the children had to learn a verse of the Bible each day during their schooling in Buffalo. 

Frederick J., the oldest, was born on Jan. 23, 1847. He was a cooper and a farmer, and lived for years on the old home farm. He married Miss Emma Swanson about 1872. Squire Conners of Titusville performed the marriage rites. She was born Nov. 9, 1852, in Sweden. She died Jan. 20, 1928, and Frederick died at 118 W. Bloss St., Titusville, on Feb. 9, 1935, following an illness of six years when he suffered a paralytic stroke.

They had six children as follows: Frederick Markley, Jr., Charles Markley, Oscar W. Markely, Mrs. Amelia Vogt, Mrs. Ella Richardson and Mrs. Emma Avery. Of these, three are living. They are Amelia, Ella and Emma. 

George Markley, second son of Jacob and Barbara Markley, was born on Feb. 13, 1850. He was gifted at several occupations, such as being a cooper, blacksmith, farmer, carpenter and an agent for fertilizer and dynamite. He married Miss Mary Eddy of Troy Township on Jan. 11, 1871, at Erie. She was born March 17, 1850 in Plum Twp. They lived on a farm that adjoined his father’s farm. George died at the home of his son, Frank Markley, on Feb. 23, 1928, two weeks after having a stroke. Mary died on Sept. 22, 1938.  They had eight children as follows: Abiel E. Markley, William H. Markley, W. Leonard Markley, George C. Markley, Mrs. Mae Whitman, Mrs. Edith Strawbridge, John G. Markley and Frank J. Markley.  Of these four are living. They are George, Edith, John and Frank. 

Rachel, the only surviving daughter of Jacob and Barbara Markley, was born March 28, 1851. She was married to Daniel Wagner and they lived for a few years in Ohio where he was a coal miner. They had eight children as follows: Mary Ann Wagner, Mrs. Kate Perrette, Frederick Wagner, Mrs. Carrie Sanford, George Wagner, Mrs. Mary Smith, John Wagner and Mrs. Elizabeth Dalyrimple. Of these three are living. They are Carrie, John and Elizabeth. Little Mary Ann died July 30, 1869. 

Rachel, the mother was married a second time to Joseph Jacobs, who operated a restaurant in Titusville. They had twin sons, Edward Jacobs and Albert Jacobs, both of whom are living. Rachel died Aug. 28, 1914. Mr. Jacobs has been deceased for a number of years too. 

Jacob and Barbara Markley also reared Jacob Grider, who was a nephew of Jacob. He had a hardware store in Hydetown and was quite a fisherman. He did about 1927.