124 



HISTORY OF BUCKS COUNTY. 



Eliza, born i mo. 14, 1854. John Yardley 

 during the later years of life was a mem- 

 ber of the firm of Yardley & Justice, 

 coal and lumber merchants, at Yardley, 

 .Pennsjdvania. He died at Yardley, 5 

 mo. 24, 1874. 



Mahlon Yardley was born in Make- 

 field township, 2 mo. 24, 1824, where his 

 early boyhood was spent. He graduated 

 at Lafayette College, Easton, Pennsyl- 

 vania, in the class of 1843, and at once 

 began the study of law at Easton. He 

 was admitted to the Bucks County bar 

 February 2, 1846, and began the practice 

 of law at Doylestown. At the organiza- 

 tion of the Republican party he became 

 an ardent advocate of its principles. In 

 the fall of 1851 he was its nominee for 

 state senator from the Sixth district, 

 and, although the district was then over- 

 whelmingly Democratic, was elected, de- 

 feating the late General Paul ApplebacH, 

 of Haycock. The term at that period 

 was three years, and he was therefore in 

 the state senate at the breaking out of 

 the war. 



When in April, 1861, the Doylestown 

 Guards were on their way to the front, 

 they were met at the station at Harris- 

 burg by Senator Yardley and two col- 

 leagues and a bountiful supper served 

 to them. When General W. H. H. Da- 

 vis recruited and organized the 104th 

 Pennsylvania Regiment at Doylestown, 

 September, 1861. Mr. Yardley enlisted 

 and was commissioned^rst lieutenant of 

 Company K. He was with the regiment 

 at the siege of Yorktown, and in the be- 

 ginning of the hostilities along the 

 Chickahominy. In the skirmishes at Sav- 

 age's Station and Seven Pines, prelimin- 

 ary to the battle of Fair Oaks on May 

 24, 1862, he narrowly escaped being 

 killed. General Davis, in his "History of 

 the 104th Regiment," says, in speaking 

 of this engagement: ''There were many 

 narrow escapes. Lieutenant Yardley 

 moved his head to one side just in time to 

 prevent a shell that passed along, from 

 taking it off. A soldier named Brown, 

 immediately back of him. was struck in 

 the head and instantly killed. After the 

 battle the regiment M^as encamped on 

 the edge of a dense swamp, and many of 

 the men were taken sick with fevers. 

 Among these was Lieutenant Yardley. 

 In the latter part of the month he was 

 carried home by some friends who were 

 on a visit to the regiment, and never 

 rejoined the command. When sufficient- 

 ly recovered he was placed in the re- 

 cruiting service and was subsequently 

 appointed provost marshal for the Fifth 

 District, with headquarters at Frank- 

 ford." 



Mr. Yardley never fully recovered 

 from the severe attack of typhoid con- 

 tracted in the Chickahominy swamps, 

 and was ever thereafter afflicted with a 

 severe cough, which no doubt hastened 

 his death. After being in bed for about 



four months, he opened a recruiting of- 

 fice at Doylestown. On April 10, 1863, 

 he was appointed provost marshal for 

 this district, then comprising three 

 wards of the city of Philadelphia, and 

 promoted to the rank of captain. At the 

 close of the war he was appointed in- 

 ternal revenue collector for the same dis- 

 trict, a position he filled until his death. 

 He died June 23, 1873. His wife, whom 

 he married 12 mo. 11, 1850, was Eliza- 

 beth, daughter of Stephen and Mary 

 (Jones) Brock. The Brocks are one of 

 the oldest families in Bucks county. The 

 emigrant ancestor of the family was 

 sheriff of the county in 1685, and his son, 

 Thomas Brock, held the same office for 

 the term 1693-5. Stephen Brock, father 

 of Mrs. Yardley, was twice elected 

 sheriff of Bucks county, in 1821 and 

 again in 1827. 



John Yardley, the only child of Mah- 

 lon and Elizabeth, was born in Doyles- 

 town, June 15, 1852. He was educated at 

 private schools in Doylestown, and en- 

 tered Lehigh University in 1868, remain- 

 ing two years, after which he entered 

 the silk house of Watson & Jan- 

 ney, of Philadelphia, as clerk. He re- 

 turned to Doylestown in the autumn of 

 1872 to assist his father in the revenue 

 office. On February i, 1873, he was 

 appointed a clerk in the Doylestown Na- 

 tional Bank, and remained in the em- 

 ploy of the bank until 1896, when he 

 resigned to accept the position of treas- 

 urer of the Doylestown Trust Company, 

 which position he still fills. Mr. Yard- 

 Ity has always been active in everything 

 that pertains to the best interests of the 

 t»iv,n he lives in. He was for many 

 years a member of the S'chool board and 

 has h^ld other borough offices. He was 

 one of the organizers of the Doyles- 

 town Electric Company and of the 

 Doylestown Gas Company, and has been 

 a director of both companies from their 

 organization. He has also been inter- 

 ested in several other local enterprises. 

 He is a member of Doylestown Lodge, 

 F. and A. M., No. 245; Aquetong Lodge, 

 No. 193. I. O. O. F.; Doylestown En- 

 campment, No. 25, I. O. O. F.; and Len- 

 ape Council, No. 11 17, Royal Arcanum. 

 He married. October 19, 1876, Emma, 

 daughter of David and Lucy "(Lear) 

 Krewson. Their only child is Mahlon, 

 born May 19, 1878, who resides with his 

 parents. 



SAMUEL YARDLEY. of Edgewood, 

 Lower Makefield township, was born in 

 Upper Makefield township. Bucks coun- 

 ty, October 19. 1834, and is a son of 

 Joseph H. and Esther B. (Knowles) 

 Yardley. and is without doul:)t of the 

 same lineage as Tliomas Yardley, son of 

 Thomas Yardley. of Rushton Spencer. 

 Staff'ordshire, England, the former of 

 whom came to Bucks county in 1704, as 



