THE BOTANISTS OF PHILADELPHIA. 79 



was married to Sarah, daughter af Joseph Pennock, of West 

 Marlborough, in Chester County. After his marriage he 

 took charge of his father's farm, near the west branch of the 

 Brandy wine. He seems about this time to have turned his 

 attention earnestly to the acquisition of knowledge, evincing 

 a decided partiality for astronomy and natural history. As 

 an evidence of his devotion to literary and scientific pur- 

 suits, it may be mentioned, that his name is found, written 

 with his own hand, so early as 1753, in Coles's Latin Diction- 

 ary ^ Quincy's Medical Lexicon, Gerard's Herbal, and in a 

 Treatise on Navigation, and several other works of similar 

 character, which he had procured about that period. 



That he possessed the confidence of his fellow-citizens 

 is shown by his appointment to be County Treasurer, in 

 1762, in which office he was continued until the year 1766, 

 inclusive. 



In 1764 it became expedient to enlarge the dwelling in 

 which he resided with his parents. This addition was built 

 of brick, and the entire work of digging and tempering the 

 clay, making and burning the bricks, and building the walls, 

 was performed by Humphry himself. He also erected a 

 greenhouse adjoining the dwelling, which was, doubtless, 

 the first conservatory of the kind ever seen or thought of 

 in Chester Country. 



At his father's death, in 1767, Humphry Marshall 

 came into full possession of a large portion of the patri- 

 monial estate, which he had previously held as a tenant, 

 paying a moderate annual rent. He now erected a grist- 

 mill, and made other considerable improvements on the 

 premises, and continued thereon until 1774, when he 

 removed to his newly-erected dwelling on a tract of land 



