Noah Sharp

- Noah, the youngest of the family, was well versed in scripture and more pretentious and less cooperative than his brother. He decided he would wear a full beard including a mustache which was forbidden by the Ordnung. The bishop wanted to excommunicate him but another preacher contradicted him by saying there is no scripture to that effect. After two all day congregational meetings, D. H. Hooley wrote in his diary that he believed the mustache problem had been resolved. For his individualism and lack of submission, Noah was refused communion.

In addition to farming his few stony acres, Noah made knives and repaired rifles. Like his brother Gideon, Noah was known to be an excellent marksman. His triple-barreled gun is on display at the Heritage Center. It was said he had seven deer hanging in his barn at one time. Mattie and Noah remained single and lived together for more than 29 years after their mother died on the farm with a "big view and a small income".

On a whim Noah went looking for bear cubs to tame as pets. On Sharp's Trail, leading to the flat, he noticed a tall stump with fresh claw marks. He gathered some dried leaves, tied them with twine, climbed to the top of the hollow stump, lit the leaves with a match and lowered his makeshift lantern into the hole. Sure enough there were two cubs at the bottom. Noah shinnied down to the bottom to snatch the cubs. As he gathered them in his arms, the mother bear came home. She climbed up the stump, then turned and shuffled backwards down into her lair. What was Noah to do? Surely his life was at an end. But ever resourceful, he pulled his knife and with all his strength he thrust the knife deep into the bear's hindquarters. Mother Bear yelped, scrambled back up the stump, down the outside, and disappeared. Noah shinnied up and out of the stump and hurried home - without the cubs. A neighbor remembered other idiosyncrasies. One could always recognize Noah's buggy approaching by the jingle of chains which he used in place of leather traces. After building a stone culvert for the lane, he remarked that the culvert would remain long after he was gone. He was right; it still remains. Noah died of pneumonia just five months after his Sister Mattie's death. Peter, Gertrude, Gideon, Mattie & Noah are buried in Long Lane cemetery. On a whim Noah went looking for bear cubs to tame as pets. On Sharp's Trail, leading to the flat, he noticed a tall stump with fresh claw marks. He gathered some dried leaves, tied them with twine, climbed to the top of the hollow stump, lit the leaves with a match and lowered his makeshift lantern into the hole. Sure enough there were two cubs at the bottom. Noah shinnied down to the bottom to snatch the cubs. As he gathered them in his arms, the mother bear came home. She climbed up the stump, then turned and shuffled backwards down into her lair. What was Noah to do? Surely his life was at an end. But ever resourceful, he pulled his knife and with all his strength he thrust the knife deep into the bear's hindquarters. Mother Bear yelped, scrambled back up the stump, down the outside, and disappeared. Noah shinnied up and out of the stump and hurried home - without the cubs.

A neighbor remembered other idiosyncrasies. One could always recognize Noah's buggy approaching by the jingle of chains which he used in place of leather traces. After building a stone culvert for the lane, he remarked that the culvert would remain long after he was gone. He was right; it still remains. Noah died of pneumonia just five months after his Sister Mattie's death. Peter, Gertrude, Gideon, Mattie & Noah are buried in Long Lane cemetery. (John Sharp)

- Died of pneumonia after a short illness. - Noah Sharp was born June 17, 1837; died Dec. 8, 1915; aged 78 y. 5 m. 21 d. He died just 5 months and 6 days after his Sister Mattie's death. These two had lived together for more than 26 years. Pneumonia and a weak heart were the cause of his death. Neither brother nor sister was ever married. They had many warm friends and are greatly missed in the home and in the community, but we trust our loss is their eternal gain, and may our end be as theirs. A Niece. (GH - Dec 1915)* Reference: RootsWeb's WorldConnect - SmartCopy: Sep 25 2017, 21:39:24 UTC