JACOB B. PHILLIS. The Phillis family were among the earliest residents of Smith township, Washington county. On May 10, 1776, Joseph Phillis received the first genuine land title which was issued in Smith township. He was born in Ireland, about 1744, and was married in that country to Elizabeth Little. In 1775 he came to America, locating in this county, near the present site of McDonald village. He raised the first crop of corn in that part of the county, which crop yielded fifty bushels to the acre, then considered a very large average. Joseph Phillis was a soldier in the Revolutionary war, and after its close located on a part of the Hougland and Crawford tract in Smith township, which has since been in the possession of the Phillis family, a portion of the old farm being now owned by the widow of Andrew Phillis. Before the first crops were raised, the family came near starving, and driven to desperation they decided to watch a cow and see upon what kind of vegetation she subsisted. After observation they made "greens" the food of the family, and so managed to exist until the grain was ripened to replenish the empty larder. Indians were numerous and hostile in those early days, and wild animals were plenty. The home of these early pioneers was known as the "Dunmore War tract," and under careful cultivation the wild land soon assumed an air of comfort and civilization, becoming in time a valuable piece of property. Joseph Phillis died in 1830, at an advanced age, his wife having "gone before" in 1827, leaving the following cbildren: John (who died in Guernsey county, Ohio, was the father of sixteen children), James (deceased in the lumber regions of Pennsylvania), Joseph (passed the latter years of his life in Columbiana county, Ohio), Charles (deceased in Ohio), Jacob (mentioned farther on), William (deceased in youth), Thomas (passed his entire life in Smith ownship), Nancy (wife of David Alexander. a farmer of Smith township), Elizabeth (married to Thomas Cherry, of Mt. Pleasant township), Jane (wife of Joseph Walker) and Catharine (Mrs. Gilbert Hallick, of Smith township). Jacob Phillis was born April 8, 1792, and reared on the home farm in Smith township, receiving a subscription-school education. Ann B. Phillis wife of Jacob Phillis, born July 13, 1798, was a daughter of Robert Bruce. She bore him children as follows: Andrew (deceased), Joseph (deceased farmer of Smith township), Elizabeth (deceased wife of William Hammond), Nancy (wife of Thomas Pyles, of Guernsey county, Ohio), John (deceased at Cairo, Ill. ), Mary (wife of Ephraim Wallower, of Ohio, now living in Des Moines, Iowa), Margaret (deceased wife of William Vance, Elizabethtown, Ky.), Jacob (deceased in early manhood), Jane (deceased wife of Isaac James), and Ellen (deceased wife of Talbert Shipley). After his marriage Mr. Phillis made a permanent home on a part of the original farm, and successfully pursued agriculture. He died in 1847, and his widow passed away December 17, 1871. Andrew Phillis, son of Jacob and Ann (Bruce) Phillis, was born February 5, 1818, on the old homestead in Smith township, where his boyhood days were passed, receiving his education at the country schools. In 1857 he was united in marriage with Mary M. Leech, who was born in 1828, daughter of James Leech, Esq. , of Smith township. His wife died August 1, 1864, having borne him two children: James P. (deceased at the age of four years), and Jacob B. (whose name opens this sketch). The mother was laid to rest in the United Presbyterian cemetery at Burgettstown. On August 28, 1867, Andrew Phillis married, for his second wife, Mary A. Logan, who was born March 6, 1834, in Hancock county, W. Va., daughter of William Logan, a native of Ireland. The children born to the union of Andrew and Mary (Logan) Phillis were as follows: Margaret S., John L., Lizzie May, Annie M. and Ella J., all of whom are living at home. Andrew Phillis always resided on the home farm, where he died April 18, 1890. He was formerly a Whig, then united with the Republican party. In religion he was connected with the United Presbyterian Church at Burgettstown, this county. He was a successful and respected farmer, and his widow and children have managed the place since his death.

Text taken from page 672 of: Beers, J. H. and Co., Commemorative Biographical Record of Washington County, Pennsylvania (Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co., 1893). Transcribed March 1997 by John R. Mort of Salt Pointe, NY as part of the Beers Project. Published March 1997 on the Washington County, PA USGenWeb pages at http://www.chartiers.com/.

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