Peter Michael McKernan

Peter McKernan

1. Biographical notes:

Born 22 June 1803 in County Monahan, Ireland. Died 14 October 1867; interred Dushore Catholic Cemetery. Emigrated from County Monahan, Ireland to America, working 1st in the vicinity of New Orleans, Louisiana. May have been supporting himself doing road work as he worked his way north. Settled at Laddsburg, Albany Township, Bradford County, Pennsylvania.

2. Wife: Mary “Polly” Stevens (photos)

Daughter of Seth and Polly (Lee) Stevens and sister of Emma (Stevens)(Place) Irvine, who married (2nd), as his 3rd wife, John Irvine (3).

3. Children:

a. Ellen McKernan: (photos) Born 15 October 1848. Died October 1922. Married Henry Knowles (photos)(more info) and had 5 children, including the following son:

(1. John Knowles: (photos)

b. Theresa C. McKernan: See generation 1, below.

c. Katherine “Kate” McKernan: Born 24 March 1855. Died (12?) December 1924. Married William Bowman French “Bowman” (b. 3/5 Aug 1854), perhaps son or grandson of Oscar French of Litchfield near Windham Center and 1st cousin of Lucy A. (Dowd) Irvine (wife of Washington Irvine; their mothers were both Schraeders), on 11 April 1874. Bowman was a “sawyer” and traveled all over the country fixing saw blades in sawmills. Katherine and Bowman had the following children:

(1. Anna French: Born 11 April 1875. Died 1875, age 4 months.

(2. William Wallace French: Born 7 April 1877. Died August 1924. Married Mary Verbeck (b. 7 Jun 1870?), niece of Esther Verbeck, who married Edwin Burr Barns and had Leslie Edwin Barns, who married Caltha Elizabeth Camp, 3rd child of Betsey Biles (and Calvin Camp), who was the 14th child of Alexander Patterson Biles. No children left.

(3. Theresa Maud French: Born 22 July 1879. Died April 1939. Married Clarence Victor Kinney about 1898; no children survived their mother.

(4. Oscar French: Born 2 July 1881. Followed in his father’s business as a “sawyer,” traveling widely to repair commercial application saw blades. Married Nellie Morley.

(5. Jennie French: (photos) Born 7 March 1883. Died 26 August 1961. Married (1st) Daniel “Dan” Wagner (b. 7 Nov 1880) in July 1912. Married (2nd) Henry Delaney (b. 2 Mar 1874) on 8 February 1938. No children mentioned.

(6. Katherine French: Born 26 June 1885 at (perhaps) Wichita, Kansas. Died about 1932/33. Married John Brown and had 4 children who lived to have children of their own.

(7. Bowman French, Jr.: Born 18 August 1889. Married (1st) Fanny Doane, who, along with a child, died young. Bowman married 3 more times; “no legitimate children survived.”

(8. Miles French: (photos) (more info) Born 3 August 1891 at East Towanda, Bradford County, Pennsylvania. Died 27 January 1973, age 81, at Robert Packer Hospital, Sayre, Bradford County; interred Nichols Cemetery. Resided in Windham Township (RD #2, Athens), Bradford County. Employed as a farmer at Windham Summit. Married Mildred Dell Morrell (b. 7 Jun 1889), daughter of Peter Merrill, on 14 February 1915 at the Towanda Courthouse and had 9 children, including the following:

(a. Clarence French: Born 22 February 1916. Resided at RD #2, Nichols.

(b. Miles French, Jr.: Resided at RD #1, Sayre, Bradford County, Pennsylvania.

(c. Dorothea “Dorothy” French: Married Kenneth Folk and resided at RD #2, Nichols.

(d. Bernice French: Married (1st) Henry Brown and resided at RD #2, Athens, Bradford County, Pennsylvania. Married (2nd) (?) Austin and resided at Nichols.

(e. Oscar William French: Resided at RD #2 Athens, Bradford County, Pennsylvania. Married (?) and had the following children: (one born January, the other November of the same year)

(1) Oscar William French, Jr.: (photos) (more info) Apparently enlisted in the US Air Force.

(2)

Oscar, Sr. and his wife were subsequently divorced.

(f. Mildred French: Married Claude Arnold and resided at RD #2, Athens, Bradford County, Pennsylvania.

(g. Ruthanna French: Married Perry Brown and resided at Warren Center/Windham Summit.

(d. Norman French: Resided at RD #2, Nichols.

(e. Lloyd French: Resided with his parents at RD #2, Athens, Bradford County, Pennsylvania.

(9. Floyd French: Born 24 September 1893. Employed as a machinist. Married Rose Van Riper (b. 15 Mar 1895) and had the following children: (6 by another account; 3 had children)

(a. Nelson French: Resided at Barton. Apparently had the following daughter:

(1) Daughter.

(b. Althea French: Resided at Barton and had the following children:

(1) Son.

(2) Daughter.

(c. Arthur French: Never married.

(d. Wilma French.

(e. Theresa “Tessie” French: Married (1st) (?), but subsequently divorced. Married (2nd) (?). Had several children.

(f. Charles French.

(f.

(10. Blanche Rhea French: Born 31 July 1895. Died about age 19.

d. Mary McKernan: Born 5 January 1858. Died December 1937. Married Frank Evans and had 3 children, including:

(1. Daughter. (photos)

e. Luke Patrick McKernan: (photos) Born 30/20 March 1860 in Albany Township, Bradford County, Pennsylvania. Died 7 May 1923. Resided at the old McKernan “home place” at Laddsburg, Albany Township, Bradford County, Pennsylvania. Married Laura Chapman in 1887/88 and had the following children.

(1. Byron James McKernan: Born 1888. Kept honey bees that produced buck wheat honey. Married Anna C. Jeffries and had the following son

(a. Byron James McKernan, Jr.: (more info) Born about 1925 at Sayre, Bradford County, Pennsylvania. Died 1972, age 47, in Jersey Shore Hospital from complications of heart disease; interred St. Mary’s Cemetery, Lock Haven, Clinton County, Pennsylvania. Graduated 1942 from Towanda High School, Towanda, Bradford County. Served in the US Army in Europe during World War II. Subsequently graduated from Penn State University with BS and MS degrees majoring in psychology. Taught and supervised high school special education and also served as a clinical psychologist. Married Betty Ayers and resided at McElhattan, Clinton County, Pennsylvania. Byron and Betty had 2 daughters and 4 sons.

(2. Elyda McKernan: Married (1st) (?) Cummisbey and had 3 children, each of whom had children. Married (2nd) (?) Sando and had 3 children, each of whom had children.

(3. Lola McKernan: Married Clear (sp) Loomis and had 3 children, including:

(a. David Luke Loomis.

(b. Laura Chapman Loomis.

(4. Kathryn “Kate” E. McKernan: (photos) (more info) Born 6 June 1893 at Laddsburg, Albany Township, Bradford County, Pennsylvania. Died 1 March 1978, age 84, at the Bradford County Manor; interred Epiphany Cemetery, Sayre, Bradford County, Pennsylvania. Married Thomas McMahon (photos) (d. 1969) on 12 September 1917 at St. Basil’s Church, Dushore, Sullivan County, Pennsylvania and initially resided at Sayre, Bradford County, Pennsylvania. Two years later moved to 211 W. Pine Street, Athens, Bradford County. Thomas was employed as a Lehigh Valley Railroad engineer. Kate and Thomas had the following children:

(a. Thomas McMahon: In 1967 resided at New York City, New York.

(b. Nora McMahon: Married (?) Jewell and in 1978 resided at Athens, Bradford County, Pennsylvania.

(c. James McMahon: In 1978 resided at Sayre, Bradford County, Pennsylvania.

(d. Michael McMahon: In 1978 resided at Sayre, Bradford County, Pennsylvania.

(e. Joseph Paul McMahon “Paul”: In 1978 resided with his parents at Athens, Bradford County, Pennsylvania.

(5. Mabel McKernan: Born 4 June 1895. Married Thomas “Tom” Shaffer and had 5 children.

(6. Dessie McKernan: Died as a baby.

(7. Rodney McKernan: Died young.

(8. Martin McKernan: Born 1901/02.

(9. Mary McKernan: Married James Sluyter/Sluitur/Slyter (d. 2 Nov 1956, age 55, in an auto accident). No children of their own, but did adopt a daughter.

(10. Evelyn McKernan: Married (?) Mahoney and resided at Towanda, Bradford County, Pennsylvania. Evelyn and her husband had 3 daughters, who had children.

(11. Josephine McKernan: Born 1907/08. Married (?)_ Sullivan and resided at Towanda, Bradford County, Pennsylvania. Josephine and her husband had 2 children, both married.

(12. Joseph McKernan: Married Laura Haflett (a nurse) and resided at Towanda, Bradford County, Pennsylvania. Joseph and Laura had 6 children.

(13. Bernard McKernan: Married a widow with 4 children and in 1978 resided at Rome, Bradford County, Pennsylvania.

f. John McKernan: (photos) Born 23 August 1862. Died 13 April 1929. In 1942 resided at the McKernan “home place” in Laddsburg, Albany Township, Bradford County, Pennsylvania. Married Teresa/Theresa McDermit/McDermott (more info) (b. Albany Twp, Bradford Co., PA, d. there 1951? at home), daughter of Henry and Helen (Cummiskey) McDermott, about 1893 and had 8 children, including: (order uncertain)

(1. John H. McKernan: Resided at Buffalo, Erie County, New York.

(2. Gregory McKernan: Resided with his parents.

(3. Gerard McKernan: Resided at Elmira, Broome County, New York.

(4. Daughter: Married Joseph Sando and resided at Elmira, Broome County, New York.

(5. Daughter: Married J. T. Marshall and resided at Dushore, Sullivan County, Pennsylania.

(6. Daughter: Married William Ryan and resided at Elmira, Broome County, New York.

(7. Daughter: Married Raymond Bigger and resided at Hughesville, Lycoming County, Pennsylvania.

Note: John and Teresa (McDermit) McKernan had a daughter, Rose.

g. Emma McKernan: Born 30 May 1865. Died February 1898. Married Wesley Sylvester Steafather and had the following children:

(1. Clinton Steafather: Moved to California with his father and brother about 1899. No known further contact with his sister, Grace.

(2. Grover Steafather: Born 3 July 1893. Died at Lopez, Pennsylvania. Moved to California with his father and brother about 1899. Drove east from California to visit his sister, Grace, and her family in Pennsylvania at least once.

(3. Grace Steafather: Born 31 January 1895. Died 18 November 1972. After her mother’s death Grace was raised by her Aunt Theresa (McKernan) Biles and Theresa’s family. Married Earl Denver Young. Of interest, Grace’s oldest child, Charles, sensed as he grew up that his mother was not totally and warmly welcomed by Theresa’s husband, James, who struggled to support his own family and, thus, was not always happy with the arrangement. However, Grace definitely felt her two, unmarried step sisters, Emma and Anna Biles were very good and kind to her, encouraging her growth and development in every possible way. In their later lives, when Emma and Anna needed help, Grace tried her best to reciprocate. For further details on Grace, see paragraph 4.C.3.h. of the Jacob Place Biles page.

h. Anna was born 8 months after the death of her father Peter Michael McKernan, so she never knew him.

Anna “Ann” McKernan: (photos) Born 30 June 1868. Died 24 June 1932. Married Frank Height (photos) and had 2 children, including:

(1. Roy Height.