GEORGE H. REYNOLDS. The family, of which this gentleman is an honored member, is well known and highly respected in South Strabane township, and the name has been an honored one from the time of the settlement of the family on American soil. About the year 1676 James Reynolds, in company with a brother, emigrated from England to the New World, and settled near Shippensburg, Cumberland Co., Penn., where the old landmarks of that noted family still remain. One son of this pioneers, also named James, was a famous Indian fighter in his day. He had a family of six sons and four daughters, and at the commencement of the Revolution five of these sons enlisted in the patriot army, serving all through the war under Gen. Washington. One son, Benedict, who was born near Shippensburg, served in Capt. Potter’s company, and was at the battle of Bunker Hill, remaining with Washington all through the many trials and privations until the close of the war. A few years after the conclusion of peace he married Elizabeth Harmon, and a year later took up his residence, along with four of his brothers, near Baltimore, in Anne Arundel county, Md. In 1785, in the early spring, he and his wife, two small children (the eldest but three years old) and one of his brothers, set out from Maryland with all their goods and chattels, including four horses and a cart, to cross the Alleghany mountains into western Pennsylvania. When they reached where now stands the town of Cumberland, near the old fort built by Gen. Washington, one of the horses died, so they had to abandon the cart and carry their household effects on the other horses, in pack-saddles. Thus they continued their journey over the mountains, frequently meeting with snow blockades and Indians, until they reached where is now Hopwood, in Fayette county. Here they met one of Mr. Reynolds’ old friends, and together they all pushed forward into Washington county, landing in Amwell township, near what was called Mount Nebo, a landmark now obliterated. One year later Mr. Reynolds purchased from the Darby estate the farm on which he permanently settled and passed the remainder of his days. With the exception of his three horses he had no property whatever, but by energy and perseverance he succeeded in securing a home, which he worked and cleared up, paying for same in rye and corn, as there was but little or no money in circulation at that time, and soon he became comfortably settled. He reared a family of nine children in a log cabin having but one room 16 x 20 feet, afterward building an addition. As there were no school houses in those days in that region, he used a part of his cabin for school purposes, and here his son Zachariah, then but sixteen years old, taught subscription school, receiving from each scholar as a fee for one term’s tuition (about three months) a bushel of rye. Seven of the nine children born to this brave old pioneer were Henry, Zachariah, Mary, Susan, Lloyd, Benedict and Sarah, all now passed away, Sarah dying in 1885, the last of the nine. Mr. Reynolds was generous and kindhearted to a fault, ever willing and liberal in helping immigrants to make a start in his neighborhood, and he was always anxious to see the community in a prosperous condition. As a citizen he was honored, and, being an old soldier, was readily recognized as a friend among veteran comrades he might chance to meet; indeed, he would rather recount reminiscences of the Revolutionary war to his friends than talk on any other subject. He would never accept office, but was always looked to for advice in matters requiring judgment and care. At the advanced age of ninety-one years he passed from earth, a lifelong Democrat. [Written by his grandson, Col. George H. Reynolds.] Henry, the eldest son of Benedict Reynolds, lived in a house that was put up by a man named Kirk, one of the earlier settlers in the county. It was built of brick in 1800, one of the first of the kind in the county, and is still standing. Henry Reynolds’ family, born and reared in this house, were Isaiah, Joseph, Sarah, Elizabeth, Belinda, Emily, Rebecca, Margaret and Benedict. Major Zachariah Reynolds, second son of Benedict the pioneer, was born in Anne Arundel county, Md., and was about two years old when the family crossed the Alleghanies. He was reared in South Strabane township, and was self-educated. At the early age of sixteen he commenced teaching school, a vocation he followed for forty years, the schoolhouses and their furnishing during a portion of that time being of the most primitive description. The floors and seats were made of puncheons, the windows of greased paper, and a log was made into a bench, while a plank fastened against the wall with wooden pins served as a writing desk. At the age of eighteen, during the days when all the men between the ages of eighteen and forty-five were enrolled in the militia, he was chosen captain of his district, and was called out to muster and drill at least three or four times every year. Finally he rose to the rank of major, his commission being signed by the governor of Pennsylvania, in the year 1810 or 1812, and was held in reserve in the war of 1812-1815. During the period Major Reynolds, being a self-made man, roused the admiration of the citizens of Washington county, and as a consequence was elected to many positions of trust. He was a fine penman as well as an active business man, and in 1836 was appointed county treasurer, which office he filled for two terms of three years each, after which he served as prothonotary in 1839. Mr. Reynolds was twice married: first to Mary, daughter of Moses Little, of South Strabane township, but she died a little over a year after her marriage, leaving one child, David L., now residing on the farm then owned by his grandfather. Mr. Reynolds, for his second wife, was united in marriage with Mary Raney Huston, whose father, Joseph Huston, settled on and owned part of the site where the borough of Washington now stands. After this marriage Mr. Reynolds retired into private life on the farm in South Strabane township, and there passed the remainder of his heretofore busy life, dying November 8, 1865. He was a Democrat in politics, and liberal in church matters. The children by his second wife were named George, H., Mary E., and Seth H. George H. Reynolds, eldest son of Maj. Zachariah and Mary (Raney) [sic] Huston Reynolds, was born in Washington, Penn., in 1840, was educated in the common schools, and reared to agricultural pursuits on the home farm in South Strabane township. During the war of the Rebellion he enlisted in Company F, Twenty second P. V. C., known as the Ringgold Battalion, and served until the close of the struggle. He served in the army of West Virginia, and participated in many of the battles and engagements in which his battalion was concerned. On April 1, 1869, he married Rachel Austin, a native of Bellaire, Ohio, daughter of James Austin and granddaughter of Gen. Charles De Hass. The children born to this union are Frank S. De Hass, Eva Maud, Blanche, Birdella, Lizzie Artemesia and Georgia Pearl. Col. Reynolds is a Democrat in his political preferences, following, in this, in the footsteps of his forefathers. He has been engaged in various occupations, and at the present time is general manager for the Electric Belt Co., of Washington, Pennsylvania.

Text taken from page 307 of: Beers, J. H. and Co., Commemorative Biographical Record of Washington County, Pennsylvania (Chicago: J. H. Beers & Co., 1893). Transcribed May 1997 by Barbara Bower of Yorktown, VA as part of the Beers Project. Published June 1997 on the Washington County, PA USGenWeb pages at http://www.chartiers.com/.

[ [Back to Beers Table of Contents] [Back to Beers Project Page]