Continued from last month: Ner Middleswarth

In 1812 he raised a company of men locally and went into service as captain of this company against the British while attached to the Eighth Pennsylvania Rifles under Colonel Irvin. In 1814 he raised another company, and this time he was attached to Colonel Uhl’s regiment which was part of General Cadwalader’s division stationed at Marcus Hook.

His long and honorable career as a legislator began in 1815 when he was elected to the Pennsylvania House of representatives on the Whig ticket. He remained the local representative for thirteen terms, two of which he served as Speaker of the House. In 1848 he was a state senator. In 1858, at age 72, he was elected to the Thirty-Third Congress of the United States for a two year term. He was considered more dynamic even at this advanced age, than Clay, Webster, or Calhoun, all of whom admired Ner very much, even though he was a freshman member. Besides military and political affairs, Ner followed business and agriculture throughout his life. At one time he owned a grist mill, two sawmills, a clover mill, a store in Port Ann, two distilleries, an iron furnace, and seventeen farms around Beavertown. In 1860 he was worth $130,000 which was a very large sum of money for that time. His only real setback, but a true test of his highly principled character, came about as a result of being a partner in the Beaver Furnace at Paxtonville. This business made good money, and was turned over the be run by an inept foreman who soon had the business ready for receivership. Even so Ner paid all of the unpaid bills and satisfied every creditor in full. This act took most of his wealth accumulated over his long lifetime, and he carried the burden of it to his grave. in his later years he served in many local offices until he died on June 2, 1865. He was an ardent Unionist, and was gratified to be able to live to see the successful conclusion of the Civil War. He is buried with his wife, Christina, in the old Union Cemetery in Beavertown. Unfortunately, some years after his death the old homestead was destroyed by fire in which most of the valuable papers of his life were destroyed. What remains is this unembellished record of one of Snyder County’s most beloved and honorable servants. His good works alone have etched his name forever in the annals of what he would have loved most -- local history!

To be continued next month