Israel Lewis 1717-1770

4th great grandfather of my stepfather

Israel Lewis

Son of David Lewis, a preacher from Wales

Born 1717

Died March 05, 1770

Married

Jane Drew

Daughter of William & Christian Drew

Born 1725

Died April 19, 1804

Children:

Israel Lewis 1748 – 1820

David Lewis 1750 – 1835

Jane Lewis 1751 – 1841

Leyson Lewis 1755 – 1821

George Lewis 1756 – 1830 m. Drusilla Howlett

Robert Lewis 1760 – 1827

James Lewis 1762 – 

Mary Lewis 1765 – 

Time Line:

1717 - Israel Born

REVEREND ISRAEL LEWIS was born about 1717, and died March 05, 1770. He was the son of DAVID LEWIS, a preacher from Wales. ISRAEL LEWIS married JANE DREW May 13, 1745 in St. Luke, Old Street, Finsbury, London. She was born 1725, and died April 19, 1804. - Gillian Rickard

The closest record I could find is this one - it is possible that Israel's middle name is David, but I have no way of knowing - 
David Lewis
10 Mar 1717 10 Mar 1717 Saint Benet Pauls Wharf,London,London,England Parents - David, Ann

1725 - Jane is baptized
Name: Jane Drew
Gender: Female
Baptism Date: 2 Nov 1725
Baptism Place: Wendron,Cornwall,England
Father: William Drew
Mother: Cristian

FHL Film Number: 90273

1745 - Marriage

Name Israel Lewis
Spouse Jane Drew
Marriage 13 May 1745 - St Luke, Finsbury, Middlesex, England

Name: Israel Lewis
Marriage Date: 13 May 1745
Parish: St Luke, Finsbury
County: Middlesex
Borough: Islington
Spouse: Jane Drew
Record Type: Marriage

Register Type: Parish Register

1748 - Freedom

Freedom: 1748, Maidstone Freemen Index 1734-1787, Purchase Index

 By purchase: the index includes the surname, forename and occupation of the purchaser and the year freedom was granted. Usually this cost £15. Freedom by purchase ended in 1771.

Scroll down to Research to see more about the Maidstone Freeman Index.

1770 Death

England & Wales, Prerogative Court of Canterbury Wills, 1384-1858
Name: Israel Lewis
Probate Date: 19 Jun 1770

Residence: Maidstone, Kent, England

Burial - 
Name: Israel Reverend Lewis
Gender: Male
Burial Date: 10 Mar 1770
Burial Place: All Saints, Maidstone, Kent, England
FHL Film Number: 1736877
Reference ID: Item 1

Name: Jane Lewis
Gender: Female
Burial Date: 27 Apr 1804
Burial Place: Maidstone
FHL Film Number: 1736877
Reference ID: BK1/DCB/BT1/152/992

Research:

About the  Maidstone Freemen Index 1598 - 1842 -
An index of persons granted freedom of the Borough of Maidstone, Kent.

Freemen had certain advantages in the town. They had the right to vote for the town's two Members of Parliament. The 1832 Reform Act gave the vote to all men who occupied property in the town worth £10. Freemen retained their votes for life provided they lived within 7 miles of the town. In 1835 the Municipal Corporations Act reduced the size of the corporation (council) and these were to be elected by all male ratepayers. Source: "The History of Maidstone" by Peter Clark and Lyn Murfin.
Persons usually gained their freedom in one of three ways: apprenticeship to a freeman, because their father was a freeman, or by purchasing their own freedom. Some of the entries come from calendars only and further information is not available. There were no freedoms given between 1742 and 1747 because of the loss of the towns charter of incorporation and borough status due to political disputes.

1. By apprenticeship: the index includes the surname and forename of the apprentice, the year freedom was granted, the surname, forename and occupation of their master who was himself a freeman. Usually, the name of the father of the apprentice can be obtained from the Apprenticeship Enrollment books (Md/Ra1/1-3) which cover 1692-1812. In addition the information listed in the full index is repeated a separate masters index. This is useful for identifying all the apprentices of a particular master except his own sons.

2. By patrimony: the index includes the surname and forename of the son, the year freedom was granted, the name and occupation of their father who was himself a freeman. If it is stated in the record that someone was apprenticed to their father, this is stated in this full index. They are not included in the masters index.

3. By purchase: the index includes the surname, forename and occupation of the purchaser and the year freedom was granted. Usually this cost £15. Freedom by purchase ended in 1771.


4. Not available: Some persons were listed in the indexes to the freedom lists but further information was not recorded. The index gives surname, forename and the year freedom was granted. There are separate books of Apprenticeship Enrollment (Md/Ra/1-3) which would give further information on any who were apprenticed from 1692. All entries prior to 1694 are of this type.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Surname           Forename          Year    Type         Surname of Master/Fath   Forename M/F      Occupation

Lewis             Daniell           1711    Purchase                                          Threadtwister
Lewis             David             1780    Patrimony       Lewis                 Israel            Clerk
Lewis             Israel            1748    Purchase
Lewis             Israel            1773    Patrimony       Lewis                 Israel            Clerk dead
Lewis             James             1712    NA
Lewis             Leyson            1781    Patrimony       Lewis                 Israel            Clerk dead
Lewis             Robert            1793    Patrimony       Lewis                 Israel            Gent. dead
Lewis             Thomas            1674    NA
Lewis             William           1644    NA

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Also, we have the initial history of the Descendants of Israel Lewis, the father of George Lewis, prepared by Gillian Rickard:

Descendants of Israel Lewis

Generation No. 1

  1. REVEREND ISRAEL LEWIS was born about 1717, and died March 05, 1770. He was the son of DAVID LEWIS, a preacher from Wales. ISRAEL LEWIS married JANE DREW May 13, 1745 in St. Luke, Old Street, Finsbury, London. She was born 1725, and died April 19, 1804.
  Burial: March 10, 1770, All Saints, Maidstone
  Freedom: 1748, Maidstone Freemen Index 1734-1787, Purchase Index


More About JANE DREW: 
Burial: April 27, 1804, All Saints, Maidstone

Children of ISRAEL LEWIS and JANE DREW are:

  i. ISRAEL LEWIS, b. 1748; d. December 28, 1820; m. SARAH SMITH; d. 1785.

  Burial: Anabaptist Burial Ground at Tovil, Kent
Christening: August 07, 1748, Earl St. Presbyterian Chapel, Maidstone
Codicil: March 20, 1807
Freedom: 1773, Maidstone Freemen Index 1734-1787, Patrimony Index
Probate: May 09, 1821
Will: December 13, 1805 
More About SARAH SMITH: 
Burial: February 15, 1785, All Saints, Maidstone



ii. DAVID LEWIS, b. 1750; d. after 1830. 
  Christening: April 22, 1750, Earl St. Presbyterian Chapel, Maidstone
Freedom: 1780, Maidstone Freemen Index 1734-1787, Patrimony Index
Residence: 1835, London, Maidstone Freeman's Roll 1835

  iii. JANE LEWIS, b. 1751; d. 1841. 

iv. LEYSON LEWIS, b. 1755; d. after 1821. 

v. GEORGE LEWIS, b. 1756; d. 1830. 

vi. ROBERT LEWIS, b. 1760; d. September 13, 1827. 
  Burial: Anabaptist Burial Ground at Tovil, Kent
Christening: May 13, 1760, Earl St. Presbyterian Chapel, Maidstone
Codicil: August 28, 1827
Freedom: 1793, Maidstone Freemen Index 1788-1842, Patrimony Index
Will: August 28, 1827

  vii. JAMES LEWIS, b. 1762. 
  Christening: October 15, 1762, Earl St. Presbyterian Chapel, Maidstone

  viii. MARY LEWIS, b. 1765; m. WILLIAM ELLIOTT.
  Christening: March 03, 1765, Earl St. Presbyterian Chapel, Maidstone



Generation No. 2 

2. JANE LEWIS was born 1751, and died 1841. She married THOMAS COOPER, April 26, 1774 in All Saints, Maidstone. He died after 1805.

  More About JANE LEWIS:

  Burial: February 08, 1841, All Saints, Maidstone

Christening: December 25, 1751, Earl St. Presbyterian Chapel, Maidstone

More About THOMAS COOPER:

Parish: 1774, Allhallows

  The children of JANE LEWIS and THOMAS COOPER are: 

i.LEWIS COOPER, b. 1776; d. October 28, 1842. 

ii. JAMES COOPER, b. 1792; d. May 24, 1820. 

More About JAMES COOPER: 

Burial: Anabaptist Burial Ground at Tovil, Kent

Christening: June 24, 1792, Earl St., Presbyterian Chapel, Maidstone

  iii.GEORGE COOPER, b. 1795; d. after 1827.

  More About GEORGE COOPER:

Christening: July 31, 1795, Earl St. Presbyterian Chapel, Maidstone

  iv. ANN COOPER, d. after 1827; m. WILLIAM GREEN; d. after 1827.

  v.DAVID COOPER, d. between 1821 - 1827.

  vi.ELIZABETH COOPER, d. after 1827. 

vii.LEYSON COOPER, d. after 1805; m. ELIZABETH NEWSON, October 01, 1810, St. Saviour, Norwich, Norfolk (per LDS); b. about 1779; d. 1851.

  More About ELIZABETH NEWSON: 

Burial: May 25, 1851, All Saints, Maidstone 

viii.ROBERT COOPER, d. after 1827. 

ix.SARAH COOPER, d. after 1827; m. BENJAMIN SEATON; d. after 1827.



LEYSON LEWIS was born in 1755, and died after 1821. He married ELIZABETH "ELVY" HARRIS, June 23, 1784 in All Saints, Maidstone. She was born about 1761, and died 1827.

  More About LEYSON LEWIS: 

Christening: March 23, 1755, Earl St. Presbyterian Chapel, Maidstone

Freedom: 1781, Maidstone Freemen Index 1734-1787, Patrimony Index

Parish: 1784, St. Peter Mancroft, Norwich, Norfolk

  More About ELIZABETH "ELVY" HARRIS: 

Burial: January 25, 1827, All Saints, Maidstone 

The children of LEYSON LEWIS and ELIZABETH HARRIS were:



i. JANE LEWIS, b. about 1787; d. 1816.

ii. LEYSON> LEWIS, b. 1788; d. 1825.

More About LEYSON LEWIS:



Burial: March 24, 1825, All Saints, Maidstone

Christening: August 22, 1788, Octagon - Presbyterian, Norwich, Norfolk, per LDS



ii i.ISRAEL HARRIS LEWIS, b. about 1792; d. 1878.



iv.ELIZABETH LEWIS, d. after 1840; m. JOSHUA WILLIAM ALDER, August 26, 1819, St. Bartholomew Exchange, London, England (per LDS); b. about 1789, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, England; d. September 11, 1837, Muncy Creek Township, Pennsylvania.



More About JOSHUA WILLIAM ALDER:



Graduation: Princeton, at age of 16



v.P HOEBE LEWIS, d. after 1827; m. JOHN HODGES, July 24, 1820, East Farleigh, Kent, England (per LDS); d. after 1827.



GEORGE LEWIS was born 1756, and died 1830. He married DRUCILLA HOWLETT after 1804. She died after 1840.

More About GEORGE LEWIS:
Burial: New York
Christening: November 16, 1756, Earl St. Presbyterian Chapel, Maidstone

The child of GEORGE LEWIS and DRUCILLA HOWLETT was an unknown female Lewis.



Generation No. 3



LEWI S COOPER was born 1776, and died October 28, 1842. He married MATILDA HAYWARD, January 15, 1799 in All Saints, Derby, England (per LDS). She was born 1783, and died June 17, 1854.

More About LEWIS COOPER:



Burial: Anabaptist Burial Ground at Tovil, Kent



M ore About MATILDA HAYWARD:



Burial: Anabaptist Burial Ground at Tovil, Kent



T he child of LEWIS COOPER and MATILDA HAYWARD was EMILY COOPER, b. 1802; d. September 10, 1877.



More About EMILY COOPER:



Burial: Anabaptist Burial Ground at Tovil, Kent



D AVID COOPER died between 1821 - 1827. He married LOUISA ________.



The children of DAVID COOPER and LOUISA __________ were:



i.ELIZA COOPER, b. about 1814; d. 1838.

More About ELIZA COOPER:



Burial: July 06, 1838, All Saints, Maidstone



ii. FEMALE1 COOPER, d. after 1827.



iii.FEMALE2 COOPER, d. after 1827.



iv. FEMALE3 COOPER, d. after 1827.



v. FEMALE4 COOPER, d. after 1827.



vi. FEMALE5 COOPER, d. after 1827.



vii.FEMALE6 COOPER, d. after 1827.



JANE LEWIS was born about 1787, and died 1816. She married ______ ALDER.



More About JANE LEWIS:



Burial: April 01, 1816, East Farleigh Parish, England



The child of JANE LEWIS and ________ ALDER was:



J ANE ALDER, b. about 1814; d. 1816.

More About JANE ALDER:



Burial: June 07, 1816, East Farleigh Parish, England



ISRAEL HARRIS LEWIS was born about 1792, and died 1878. He married after 1821 in England.

More About ISRAEL HARRIS LEWIS:



Christening: April 15, 1792, Octagon - Presbyterian, Norwich, Norfolk, per LDS



Th e child of ISRAEL HARRIS LEWIS and his unknown wife was:




L EYSON LEWIS, b. 1828, Gallants, East Farleigh, Kent; d. 1896; m. ISABELLA MARTINEAU, October 05, 1853, Norwich, Norfolk; b. March 19, 1832; d. 1900.

Zeigler Line to Lester E. Lewis

In most instances, I found the spelling to be  before i - but I did find it both ways.  Zeigler/Ziegler.  Barnhart Ziegler came to America when his daughter Elizabeth was 12, so around 1846/7.  I did find a ships list with a Barnhart arriving in 1846 to Baltimore, but belive it or not, Barnhart Zeigler is not a completely unique name, so I can't be sure it is him.  I find no trace of the family until 1849, when Elizabeth is baptized in a church in Lycoming County.  Her brothers Frederick and Henry are even more elusive, there is not much I could find on the family as a whole, but I have not been to the Lycoming Genealogy room to see what might be there, and I have not looked at any wills yet. Charles Zeigler, son of Barnhart, was born here in America, in Lycoming County PA.  He had 11 children, and 6 of them never married.

Many of the Zeiglers are buried at Oak Lawn Cemetery, a trip there to view the tombstones may add additional information.


George Michael Zeigler
Married
Kristina Knottel

Barnhart Ziegler

Married

Elizabeth 1820 – 1892

Charles Ziegler 1854 – 1930

 married

Mariah "Jennie" Arp 1856 – 1928

Maude M. Zeigler 1880 – 1958

Married

William Franklin Henry 1875 – 1931

Anna J. Henry 1903 – 1954 

Married

Charles Francis Lewis 1896 – 1955

Lester Eugene Lewis 1922 – 1982

married

Mary Ellen Shook 1927 – 2011

George Lewis 1756-1830

The Lewis Genealogy To Lester Eugene Lewis

George Lewis
son of Israel & Jane (Drew) Lewis
Birth 1756 in Maidstone, Kent, , England
Death 1830 in died in England, buried in New York
Married
Drusilla Howlett
daughter of
Born
Died 1840

Children of George & Drusilla
Daughter

Housekeeper - Priscilla Forwood
Daughter of Jacob & Martha (Warner) Forwood
Birth 6 February 1783 in Maryland
Death 19 May 1872 in Lycoming County PA

Child of George Lewis & Priscilla 
William Lewis 1808-1891 m. Mary Jane Casteline

Priscilla Married:
Married 1st - Joseph Coleman
Married 2nd - Abram Woolever
son of
Born 1777 in New Jersey
Died May 7, 1843

Children of Priscilla & Woolsey:
Edwin Warner Woolever 1818 –
Priscilla Ann Woolever 1829 – 1902 m. Thomas Chapman

Time Line:

1756 George is Born, and Baptized

Maidstone, Kent, , England

Name: George Lewis
Gender: Male
Baptism Date: 16 Nov 1756
Baptism Place: Earl St -Presbyterian,Maidstone,Kent,England

FHL Film Number: 0596912 (RG4 936)


Name: George Lewis
Event Type: Baptism
Baptism Date: 16 Nov 1756
Baptism Place: Maidstone, Kent, England
Denomination: Wesleyan

Piece Title: Piece 0937: Maidstone, Union Street (Wesleyan), 1822-1838

1790 - Lewis importing house established in NYC

Age: 34

New York City

Source - Egle’s Notes and Queries

1790 - Census

Age: 34

New York City East Ward, New York, New York, United States

2 males, 1 female, 1 slave

1794 - Residence & Occupation

Age: 38

New York City

Worked with brother James at importing house in NYC, a branch of a London house conducted by two other brothers

1794-Purchased land for $1 per acre

Age: 38

Muncy Luminary, 8/27/1964, p. 14

Purchased 10,217 acres (Mount Lewis) from Charles Walstoncraft

"Once part of William Penn's lands, the area was owned by Charles Walstoncraft of Philadelphia in 1794. He associated with Joseph Priestly, Jr. (son of the discoverer of oxygen), General Gates, and George Lewis. Lewis, a wealthy Englishman who was residing in New York at the time, was commissioned by the English business establishment to buy real estate in America. At a dinner attended by these men in 1794, it is believed Priestly described the area to Lewis.

Lewis bought the Lake and 10,217 acres from Walstoncraft in September, 1794. Turn-of-the-century historians note that Lewis was deeply impressed by the health aspects of living on the mountain, far removed from the yellow fever epidemic ravaging New York at the time. In 1803, he settled near the lake. Lewis surveyed the lands, designed a community, and by 1808 operated a glass works on the south end of the lake using the sand found on the lake's north end, the present site of "the beach." Sand was floated across the lake on barges to a glass factory located on what became known as "Lewis Hill." Difficulties in transporting the finished glass and the end of the War of 1812 brought financial ruin to the operation." http://www.livingplaces.com/PA/Sullivan_County/Eagles_Mere_Borough/Eagles_Mere_Historic_District.html

1798 - Glass factory erected

Age: 42

Present Day Eagles Mere, Sullivan County Pa

The Journal of the Lycoming County Historical Society, Fall 1874, p. 32

1803 - Visited Mount Lewis site for 1st Time

Age: 47

Present Day Eagles Mere, Sullivan County Pa

stayed for six weeks. Muncy Luminary, 8/27/1964, p. 14, Egle’s Notes and Queries

1803 - Returned to NY to find many friends had died of Yellow Fever

Age: 47

New York

Muncy Luminary, 8/27/1964, p. 14, Egle’s Notes and Queries

On returning to his home in the city, he found that the yellow fever had prevailed during his absence and that very many of his friends had died in consequence. He was so impressed with the feeling that his life had been spared from his remaining in this mountainous wilderness that he resolved to build him a home along the shores of the lake. 

When it was found to be a quality suitable for glass making, Mr. Lewis from his mercantile business relations well understood the very best advantage that was likely to be derived from the home manufacture of glass, and resolved to embark in the undertaking.   - EGLE'S NOTES AND QUERIES by William Henry Egle (1830-1901)

           

 1808 -Son William born

5 Jun

Age: 52

Mount Lewis, Present day Eagles Mere, Sullivan county Pa

Wife Drucilla living in NY, William born to housekeeper Priscilla Forwood

Priscilla Forward was from Salisbury, Maryland.  She went to Lewis Lake where she was employed as a housekeeper for George Lewis.  She gave birth to a son, William Lewis, who was born out of wedlock.  She later became the wife of Abraham Woolever.  She rests in Oaklawn cemetery in eldred township.

1808 - Built warehouse in Muncy

Age: 52

corner of Water & Main st, Muncy, Lycoming County PA

Muncy Luminary, 8/27/1964, p. 14

        

                

1812 - Purchased farm from John Burrows

Age: 56

Pennsdale, Pa

Purchased farm from John Burrows in Pennsborough (Pennsdale) for $4000

      While the war with Great Britain continued the glassworks of George Lewis at

  the lake, although situated far from the market for his glass at Philadelphia,

  and with no other means of transportation except by wagons over poor roads, was,

  nevertheless, profitable; but when peace was declared, and English glass was

  imported in large quantities, with low duties, the manufacture of glass so far

  in the interior was impossible except at a loss, and Mr. Lewis was compelled to

  suspend operations. His farming business, however, continued. The farm was

  large, and was in a state of good cultivation. At one time he had a flock of

  four hundred sheep, a fine stock of cattle, raised a good deal of grain, and had

  an abundance of fruit. In 1822 he was living at the lake with his family, but

  the tenant houses were empty, and most of the laborers gone.  - History of Sullivan County Pennsylvania  by Thomas J. Ingham

1814- Labor Strike at Glass Works

Age: 58

LABOR STRIKE IN GLASS FACTORY

The 1888 Volume of the Sullivan Review carries the story back in 1814 of labor troubles in the Lewis Glass Works at Eaglesmere. Dissatisfied workers threw foreign substances into a molten mixture to be used in making transparent plate glass; resulting in a worthless mass of many shapes and colors. After seventy four years an enterprising citizen unearthed this rubble, cut it into small pieces and sold it to tourists for souvenirs

1817 -Glassworks Ceased Operations

Age: 61

The glass works continued in operation about five years. During that time an extensive trade had been opened north with towns along the New York State line, a large amount of potash coming from that direction. 

            “From Lewis glass works two panes of glass have been preserved that were  found in a house erected at Muncy in 1813 by George Webb, and are described as follows: Not exactly square, but about 7 x 7 inches; thre-six-tenths of an inch thick at the edge and three-quarters of an inch in the bull’s eye, smooth and clear, although not quite flat, of pale green color.”

            Soon after closing the glass works in the year 1817 Mr. Alder and Isreal Lewis resigned their positions, the cause for which appears to be, from its becoming evident to them that the work could no longer be carried on at Mount Lewis successfully, and consequently making it doubtful as to Mr. Davis being able in the end to afford them the pecuniary reward for their services that they had reason to anticipate when they engaged in the business. 

They soon after engaged in business in Muncy, and established the first store in that place, erecting a brick building at the location of the Muncy Insurance office. Mr. Alder built for himself at the time the house now occupied by Mrs. Morris Ellis. The business proved successful, but Mr. Lewis, desiring in 1821 to return to England, Mr. Alder soon after decided to engage extensively in farming, sold his store and village property and moved to his farm, about one-half mile east of Muncy, where he resided until his death in 1837. -  ENGLE'S NOTES AND QUERIES by William Henry Egle (1830-1901)

1820 - Attempt to Organize the County

Age: 64

Present Day Eagles Mere

It was to be called Lewis County, and the county seat was to have been Mount Lewis, the present Eagles Mere.

1820 - Residence

Age: 64

Shrewsbury, Lycoming, Pennsylvania, United States

1822 - Things Begin To Fall Apart

Age: 66

1822 - Residence

History of Sullivan County by Ingham, p. 19

Living at lake with family, but tenant houses empty and most of the laborers gone

1824 - 4th of July Celebration at the Glass Works

Among the notable events which took place here was a Fourth of July

  celebration at the glassworks in 1824. Preparations were made on a grand scale,

  and almost the entire population of the surrounding country gathered at the

  place to give utterance to their patriotic feeling, which had been rekindled by

  the visit of General Lafayette to this country. After this date Mr. Lewis'

  health began to fail. He had met with severe financial losses, not only in the

  stopgage of his glassworks, but by investments made in New York and elsewhere,

  and in the purchase of such large bodies of wild lands, which were taxed but

  produced no income. History of Sullivan County Pennsylvania

                          by Thomas J. Ingham

            

1829- Placed Property in William Elliot, to be sold

Age: 73

Present Day Eagles Mere, Sullivan County Pa

Placed property in hands of William Elliot to sell. Proceeds to be used to pay creditors

Returned to England on business and/or to regain health

In 1829 he placed his real estate of twelve thousand and two

  hundred acres of land, in Sullivan county, and seven thousand and five hundred

  acres, in Franklin county, New York, in the hands of William Elliott, his

  brother-in-law, and Ithiel Town, to be sold for the benefit of his creditors. He

  soon afterward went to England on business, and there, in 1830, died. In his

  will he gave direction for the removal of his body to Mount Lewis for burial,

  and his directions were followed to the extent of shipping his remains to New

  York, where they were buried. The difficulty of removing the body to Mount Lewis

  in warm weather, without railroad facilities, no doubt prevented his wishes from

  being carried out. The glassworks, with about two thousand acres of land, were

  sold at public sale in June, 1831, and purchased by John J. Adams, of

  Washington, District of Columbia. - History of Sullivan County Pennsylvania

                          by Thomas J. Ingham

The Lewis Glass Works era lingered to 1829, when Lewis returned to England and died there in 1830. Only one building, the former "Lake House," a boarding house, survives from the Lewis settlement. Constructed by 1803, it is now the rear section of the Lewis S. Smith cottage [constructed 1879].  = http://www.livingplaces.com/PA/Sullivan_County/Eagles_Mere_Borough/Eagles_Mere_Historic_District.html

The events furnished the writer after this date were less pleasurable to record. Mr. Lewis’ health began to fail. He had met with heavy losses, not only in the stoppage of the glass works, but also in investments made in other places, and with failing health he was led to make an effort to dispose of the property. This evidently was attended with feelings of deep regret, as all the statements corroborate in the life long attachment of Lewis to this place, and that among his last requests was that his remains might be buried on the shores of the lake. In 1829 he entered into a contract for the sale of this property, amounting then to 12,200 acres (several tracts having been added to the original purchase). He had a tract of land in Franklin county, New York, of 7,500 acres. This, together with Mount Lewis property was valued at $55,000.  William Elliott, the husband of his sister, resided in Washington City, and Ithial Town, of New York City, were to make advances to Lewis on the property and to be allowed a liberal deduction for services and expenses in making sale. Mr. Lewis gives his residence at the time as Mount Lewis, Shrewsbury township but afterwards as New York City. The account given to the writer of his departure by the Hon. Wm. Smith who was then in his employ, was that he contemplated going to England. He well remembered conversations between Mr. Lewis and his wife relative to making the voyage in a steamer, she being at the same time opposed to it. -   ENGLE'S NOTES AND QUERIES by William Henry Egle (1830-1901)

1830 - Will 

28 May

Maidstone, Kent, England

Record of will at Maidstone, Kent

The next record found is that of his will, May 28, 1830, at Maidston, Kent county, England.  His wife Drucilla Howlett Lewis is named as executrix with full control of all real and personal property during her lifetime, and Wm. Elliott, Ithial Town, Samule Coon (a merchant of New York)), and Samuel Rogers, a Senator of the U.S., from Pennsylvania as executors. He bequeathed to each of the executors 100 pounds sterling, about $500. for the trouble for the trouble that might be given them.  After the decease of his wife, the property to be divided between Mr. Elliott and two of his wife’s nephews, Thomas L. Dewitt and George Lewis Dewitt, both at the time minors, but not to come in possession until they became of full age. Other bequests were made of 100 pounds each to an old friend, James Smith, of Maidston, and his brother, David Lewis. The Mount Lewis farm and glass works were probably at the time left in charge of Charles Howlett, who remained upon the property until 1832. Mention is made of debts to be paid before his executors are permitted to pay bequests named. We will here remark that among the records of the title papers of the estate is found a mentioned deed from George L. Dewitt and Thomas L. Dewitt for their interests in Hunter’s lake mill property acquired them by will of George Lewis to Emile C. Geyelin, consideration $725.

  

1830 - George Died

Age: 74

died in England, buried in New York

Name: George Lewis
Birth Date: 1756
Birth Place: England
Death Date: 1830

Death Place: Fordwich, England

Burial

Wished to be buried at Mt Lewis, but due to the heat, after body arrived in NY, he was buried there instead.

1831 - Glass Works Sold

 Continuing the records, we find that the glass works, with about 2,000 acres of

land, were sold at auction in June, 1831, and bid in by John J. Adams, of Washington, D.C.  The sale was made conditional upon a reservation of a life interest of Mrs. Lewis to the mansion house, garden and yard, consideration $7000 - $500 at date of sale and balance in partial payments. He at once took possession of the property, moving to Mount Lewis with his family. The cottages were again all filled with families and glass manufacturing re-established. The business to all appearances moved on well for three or four years. Mr. Adams is represented by those who knew him to have been a resolute man, enforcing sobriety and good morals in the community. The business is, however, believed to have required the strictest economy and care to make it pay expenses, and doubtless would have been continued much longer had it not been for some evil disposed persons, who, during the absence of those in charge, spoiled a large amount of material, making the loss so heavy that work could not be immediately resumed. The property having been purchased largely upon credit, heavy payments had become due, conflicting interests of executor rendered were every way annoying and vexatious. Litigation had to be met, this resulted in Mr. Adams abandoning the property.

  In January, 1839, a levy was made upon the property by Wm. Cox Ellis, an attorney for Mrs. Drucilla Lewis, from the record of which describe a large frame dwelling house, two stone dwelling houses, nine small dwelling houses, a large stone barn, outhouses and a glass house for the manufacture of glass, with about 300 acres of cleared land, a great part of which is fenced with stone. The property was bid in by George Roberts, of Muncy, for $3,555, and was conveyed bys said Roberts to George M. Kein, of Reading, soon after. He held the property until 1842, then conveyed it to Susan Mayer, who conveyed it to J.R. Jones, September 26, 1845. George Roberts, George Kein or Susan Mayer did not reside on the property. After the Mt. Lewis property was abandoned by Mr. Adams, we are not able to give a connected statement as to its occupancy. But two families are named, although it is well known that others lived upon the property. - ENGLE'S NOTES AND QUERIES by William Henry Egle (1830-1901)

Research:

Lewis' Lake

Midway between Laporte and Forksville and on top of the mountains, lies this splendid sheet of water some four miles in circumference. About three fourths of a century ago a Mr Lewis, an Englishman, located here, built glass works and several residences, all of stone (red shale), felled the timber and charred it into coal for smelting, used the sand from the bed of the lake, and in this way spent a large fortune and produced but a limited quantity of glass in return. The works are now a heap of ruins, reminding one of another Troy washed by the lake instead of the river Seamander. Near these smoldering heaps, and on the banks of these placid waters, are erected several cottages as summer resorts. A peculiar feature of this lake is that while its outlet empties into the Muncy creek on its south side, a tributary of the Loyalsock runs near its northeast side, from which a marsh extends quite to the outlet. A few feet of excavation for a distance of forty rods would turn its waters from the first and empty them into the latter named stream, where they apparently originally belonged.

The Glass Factory

    The first industry in what is now Sullivan County was a glass factory located at Lewis Lake, now called Eagles Mere. It was built and operated by an Englishman, George Lewis, whose business brought him to New York, where he met Joseph Priestly, Jr. Priestly was interested in the sale of thousands of acres of Central Pennsylvania land that was owned by the his family.  His glowing description of the mountain forest induced Lewis to buy 30,000 acres.

     In 1880, he had the tract surveyed, and two years later he spent six weeks near the crystal water he named Lewis Lake. During this time, yellow fever raged in the city and he felt he owed his life to this time he spent on the mountain. Later, recalling the pure white sand of the beach it seemed to him an ideal place for making glass. He decided to do that, and to make his home there.

By 1808, he built not only the glass factory, but also a grist mill, dwelling for his workmen, a store, and his own residence. The factory was located on Mount Lewis, now the site of the McCormick and Young cottages, at the southeast corner of Laporte and Eagles Mere Avenues. Sand was hauled from the upper end of the lake by flat boats, and one old resident says that it was also dredged from the lower end of the lake and brought out by six-horse teams.

     Stones from the ruins of this old factory have been used in the foundation of the Presbyterian Church and in cellar walls of a number of houses in the borough. Moreover, one of the old mill stones is found today in the Episcopal Church, where it serves as a baptismal font. Relics of glass have been found in fragments of amber, blue, red and light green.  There are a number of pieces of hollow ware still in existence, all privately owned. The few pieces remaining today are said by experts to be of excellent quality.

     The glass was shipped from the lake to Muncy in hogsheads and was packed with straw from the Robert Taylor farm, eight miles away.  From Muncy it was reshipped to Reading, Lancaster and Philadelphia. Conestoga wagons weighing 3,000 lbs and drawn by eight horses were used and, due to the very bad road conditions, there was always considerable breakage.

     But the business flourished until after the second war with England.  Glass was then imported and sold cheaper than Lewis could deliver it. Consequently, Lewis’ business failed. Then, too, his health was poor, so he returned to England in 1830, leaving his affairs and his unsold land in the hands of his brother-in-law.  Soon after reaching England, he died.  Because it had been his wish to be buried at the lakeside, his body was shipped back to New York. The month was August, and the heat intolerable; so it was found necessary to make interment in New York.

     In 1831 the glass works was sold to John J. Adams, of Washington D. C. Meanwhile, the workmen had found employment elsewhere and most of them moved away.  There is no record of the number of men employed.

     The next account of the business appears in an advertisement, saying the stock had been bought by N. G. Lyon and Thomas Wells, and that they had leased the works for three months.  Nothing more is known until the year 1838, when a nephew of Mr. Lewis came to the lake to settle up the property.  The glass business had ended.

      Ruins of an effort to manufacture glass was found near the ghost town of Thorne Dale and gave the name to Glass Creek. No records of legends of this small industry seem to have survived.

Abram Woolever - 

Notes for ABRAHAM  WOOLEVER :From "History of Lycoming County" by John Meginness, 1892 ed.

Edwin Woolever - son of Abraham and Priscilla (Forward) Woolever, natives of New Jersey and Maryland, respectively. His parents removed from Sullivan county to Muncy, and subsequently to what is now Gamble township, where the father engaged in farming and lumbering. Abraham Woolever died May 7, 1843, followed by his widow, May 19, 1872, aged seventy and eighty-nine years, respectively. Three of their children are living: Edwin Warner; Priscilla Ann, who married Thomas Chapman, and Edwin

Sources:
ENGLE'S NOTES AND QUERIES by William Henry Egle (1830-1901)

William Henry Egle, State Librarian of Pennsylvania for twelve years, published his Notes and Queries: Historical, Biographical and Genealogical, relating chiefly to Interior Pennsylvania, 1700’s-1800’s,  first from 1879-1895, as a series of articles in the Harrisburg Daily Telegraph, and subsequently, from 1896-1900 as yearly editions. The entire collection was later reprinted as a twelve volume set. This transcription is taken from that set as found in the Library of Congress.  The actual contributors are unknown, and the writing styles vary.