MRS. LILLIE M. AXTELL is the daughter of John Gregg, and granddaughter of John and Nancy Gregg. Among the early settlers of Washington county, whose deeds are an undying monument to their memory, were the ancestors of this well-known family. In 1790 three brothers -- Henry, William and John Gregg -- left Ireland, the country of their birth, and crossed the ocean to America. After a voyage of sixteen weeks, they all came to Washington county, Penn., and settled in East Pike Run township, where Henry secured a tract of 349 acres called the "Burning Mine," now owned by a Mr. Duvall. Henry Gregg served as justice of the peace in 1796. He was married to Jane Dowler, and of their children were: John, Henry, Thomas and Edward. The parents died in 1834 in West Pike Run township. The second brother of the three who emigrated from Ireland was William Gregg, and he married in the old country to a lady, who bore him the following children: Henry, John, William, Andrew, Robert, Christina (wife of John Crow) and Mrs. Jackman. John Gregg, the younger brother of the three who came to America in 1790, married in 1794, Miss Nancy Gregg, a native of Ireland. The names and dates of birth of their children are: James, August 8, 1795; Eleanor, May 22, 1797; Andrew, April 9, 1799; Mary, September 8, 1801; Henry, April 28, 1804; Sarah, September 8, 1806; Ann, November 9, 1808; John, January 23, 1811; Margaret, February 8, 1813; and Elizabeth, February 11, 1815. The father died July 20, 1841, followed by the mother April 14, 1844; she was a member of the M. E. Church. The three brothers who first settled in America were all members of the M. E. Church, and in politics affiliated with the Whig party. John Gregg, son of John and Nancy Gregg, was born in Washington county, Penn., on the pioneer farm in East Pike Run township, where his boyhood was passed. On September 25, 1851, he was united in marriage with Sarah Conway, who was born August 31, 1824, and they were the parents of the following children: William H., born August 21, 1853; John E., born May 30, 1856; Simeon, born February 3, 1858; James, born June 3, 1861; Nancy J., born November 9, 1863; and Lillie M., whose name opens this sketch. Of these the four sons are all married, and live on farms in Vernon county, Mo., while Nancy J. lives with her sister, Mrs. Lillie M. Axtell, on the home place in East Pike Run township. The father passed his entire life on the homestead, and was an active worker in the Republican party. He died March 15, 1879, the mother on May 6, 1891. She was a member of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. Lillie M. Gregg was born January 23, 1865, on the home farm in East Pike Run township, and remained with her parents during girlhood. On April 28, 1886, she was united in marriage with Luther M. Axtell, a son of Rev. Luther Axtell, a Presbyterian clergyman, who was born and reared in Washington County, Penn., and there married to Sarah Lincoln. Since his death, which occurred March 23, 1886, his widow has resided in Coal Centre. She is a member of the Presbyterian Church. Luther M. Axtell was born January 9, 1855, in Greene county, Penn., and was reared and educated in the town of Coal Centre, this county. He graduated at the Southwestern State Normal School, California, Penn., in 1880, and afterward founded and conducted private schools with great success for several years, and became principal of the West Brownsville public schools, also serving in succession, and with the same degree of capability, as principal of the Burgettstown and Coal Centre schools. As an instructor in the public schools, he has never been surpassed. "He introduced into his school some of the finest points of the 'New Education,' and with the introduction came his marvelous success, which was the result of a determined and powerful intellect. He ended his brilliant career as a teacher at Grandville, Penn., and from the school at that place will come many who will show the power of his intellect," In 1891, he was elected county recorder on the Republican ticket, having from early life taken an active interest in politics. Mr. Axtell died March 18, 1891 at Washington, Penn. (whither he had moved soon after his election), leaving a widow, and one daughter, Sarah, who was born March 17, 1889. He had a long and severe illness, which he bore with Christian fortitude, and the end came quickly and peacefully, he remaining conscious until the last. His remains repose in Howe cemetery, near Coal Centre. Mrs. Axtell has a well-cultivated farm of 136 acres in East Pike Run township, where she has resided since the death of her husband.

Text taken from page 538 of: Beers, J. H. and Co., Commemorative Biographical Record of Washington County, Pennsylvania (Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co., 1893). Transcribed March 1997 by Victoria Smith of San Jose, CA as part of the Beers Project. Published March 1997 on the Washington County, PA pages at http://www.chartiers.com/.

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