Death of an Old Pioneer
One by
one, the forms who have been familiar to us for years are passing away.
One by one, the links in the chain of old remembrances are severed.
Today, we are called upon to record the death of James J. Mossman, an
early settler in this section, who died March 6, 1878, aged 81 years, 2
months, and 15 days.
Deceased was born in Baltimore County,
Maryland Dec. 19, 1796 and removed to West Salem Township, this County,
with his parents, John Mossman and wife, in November 1807, traveling in
a wagon and stopping at Adam Miller’s near where the Salem Presbyterian
Church now stands on the Mercer and Greenville road, being obliged to
stay there until they could cut a road of sufficient width for the
passage of the wagon through the timber, it being the first wagon that
had come into this portion of the County, then a dense forest. They
spent the winter on land now owned by T. M. Gillis, and in the spring
of 1808, they removed to lands whose subsequent ownership descended to
the subject of this sketch, and which have been occupied by him and his
family ever since.
The deceased James J. Mossman, was married to
Elizabeth Thompson, also of Baltimore County, Maryland, July 28,
1835. Soon after their marriage, they united with the old
Seceder, now the U. P. Church of Greenville. Probably the most
prominent traits of his character were his reverence for the Word of
God and his ardent attachment to the church of his choice, though his
failing health and the long distance from the house of worship had for
many years, prevented his attendance upon it. Among his fondest
memories were the meetings held in early days at his home by Father
McLane, where neighbors and friends for miles around would gather. The
62nd and 103rd Psalms were special favorites with him and with eyes
grown dim and failing breath, he could say,
In God my glory placed is,
And my salvation sure,
In God the rock is of my strength,
My refuge most secure.
He
leaves a wife and six children to mourn the loss of a kind and loving
husband and an indulgent father. The funeral services were conducted by
Rev. R. J. White, after which his remains were conveyed by a large
procession of friends and neighbors to the old family burial place,
where in 1802, a spot on the little hillside was cleared for the burial
of his grandfather, who had attained the age of 93 years.
James
J. Mossman was one of the last of his generation and name who occupied
the old homesteads extending for a distance of three miles. S. G.
McN.
(Source: A scrapbook belonging to the former Frank Booth. Original source is unknown.)
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