252 



HISTORY OF BUCKS COUNTY. 



his father, in 1861, wlicn the family moved 

 to Port Kennedy, jMontgomery county! lie 

 attended the school of that section for one 

 winter, 1861-62, and in the spring of tlie 

 latter named year went to Piiiladclphia and 

 entered an apprenticeship to learn stove- 

 plate molding with Cox, Weightman & Cox, 

 founders. Here he remained for one year, 

 but on account of labor troubles was com- 

 pelled to give up learning the trade at that 

 place. He went to Stuyvesant, New York, 

 and entered the employ of the Columbia 

 Company, where his brother, Lewis E. Rob- 

 erts, was engaged as moulder, and here com- 

 pleted his term of apprenticeship, serving 

 one and one-half years with this firm. He 

 worked as a journeyman for the same com- 

 pany until the fall of 1865, when he was 

 Employed by his brother, Lewis E. Roberts, 

 who had established a stove plate foundry 

 at Quakertown, Pennsylvania, in 1864, in 

 conjunction with David H. Thomas, who 

 Tiad erected a small shop near Strawn's 

 Mill. In 1867 the firm felt the necessity of 

 enlarging their facilities to meet the de- 

 mands of their constantly increasing busi- 

 ness, and accordingly located on Broad 

 street, near Third street, Quakertown, 

 where they erected a large foundry and 

 stove fitting room, taking possession of the 

 same in that year. William P. Roberts 

 continued with them as a floor worker until 

 1875, in which year he was engaged as fore- 

 man of the molding department, and con- 

 tinued in that capacity until the destruction 

 of the plant by fire in 1880. The firm then 

 leased the American Stove Foundry, at 

 Second and Mifflin streets. Philadelphia. In 

 1881 William P. Roberts joined with several 

 other former employes of Roberts & Thomas 

 and purchased the 'ruins of that firm at 

 •Quakertown, and under the title of Rogers, 

 Roberts, Ecypes & Co. started the plant in 

 February, 1882. Since then there have been 

 some changes in the personnel of the firm, 

 but Mr. Roberts has kept his place, and to- 

 gether with William P. Winner and Francis 

 Cavanaugh form the firm of Roberts, Win- 

 ner & Co., master mechanics in their lines, 

 all of them, and during this latter partner- 

 ship the business has gained in volume and 

 importance until at the present time (1905) 

 the stoves of Roberts, Winner & Co. can 

 be found at the homes of people from the 

 Atlantic to the Pacific. The firm gives em- 

 ployment to about one hundred hands in 

 its various departments, and is thus an im- 

 portant factor in the industrial life of the 

 town. Mr. Roberts is actively interested in 

 local political affairs, has served on the 

 Quakertown board of education, and also in 

 other positions of usefulness to the citizens 

 of that town. His views coincide with 

 those of the Republican party. 



Mr. Roberts was twice married. His first 

 wife was Anna Rawlings, daughter of 

 Franklin and Martha ("Roberts) Rawlings. 

 of Quakertown. who died M^rch 24. 1882. 

 Their children were : Rachel, born May 

 23, 1871, attended the public schools 



of Quakertown, is unmarried, and re- 

 sides at home. Warren, born Sep- 

 tember I, 1873, died December 6, 1873. 

 Thomas, born August 12, 1876, died 

 August 12, 1876. William Arthur, born 

 June 13, 1879, attended the public 

 schools of Quakertown, also the George 

 School, at Newtown, Bucks county, and 

 then entered the dental department of the 

 University of Pennsylvania, graduating 

 with the class of 1902. He practiced for a 

 time at Ambler, Pennsylvania, but is now 

 traveling through the south, west and 

 Mexico. In 1884 Mr. Roberts married Le- 

 titia K. Kinsey, daughter of Nathaniel and 

 Elizabeth (Morgan) Kinsey, of Quaker- 

 town. Their children are : Linford Brook, 

 born December 15, 1885, attends the 

 Quakertown public school. Nathaniel Jo- 

 seph, born October 25, 1888, attends the 

 Quakertown public school. Marian Eliza- 

 beth, born September 7, 1890, also attends 

 the Quakertown public school. The family 

 are members of the Society of Friends. 



JAMES VANSANT RANDALL, of 

 Newtown, one of the best known and 

 largest carriage manufacturers in Bucks 

 county, was born in Byberry, Philadel- 

 phia county. December 10, 1831, and is 

 a son of Eber and Rachel (Vansant) 

 Randall. 



The- Randall family have been resi- 

 dents of Bucks county for over two cen- 

 turies, and are of English descent. Nich- 

 olas Randall, a carpenter by trade and 

 a native of England, settled in South- 

 ampton township, Bucks county, where 

 he purchased 250 acres of land in 1698. 

 His son, Nicholas Randall, Jr., married 

 in 1738 Agnes Comly, daughter of 

 Henry and Agnes (Heaton) Comly, of 

 Middletown, and later removed to More- 

 land township. George, Joseph and 

 William Randall, supposed to be sons 

 of Nicholas, became members of Buck- 

 ingham Meeting of Friends in/ 1722. 

 They lived for a time near Newtown, re- 

 moving later to Southampton. Joseph 

 removed to York county with his fam- 

 ily in 1755. Both George and Joseph 

 married Doans. daughters of Daniel 

 Doan and Mehetabel his wife, who 

 came to Middletown, Bucks county, 

 from Sandwich, Massachusetts. George 

 married (second) Mary Harding, widow 

 of Thomas Harding, Jr., and another 

 daughter of Henry and Agnes (Heaton) 

 Comly. 



The paternal grandfather of the sub- 

 ject of this sketch was Amos Randall, 

 said to have been a grandson of Jacob 

 Randall, eldest son of George by his 

 second marriage with Mary (Comly) 

 Randall. Jacob was married in 1753 to 

 "a woman of another perstiasion" and 

 was disowned by the Friends. Amos 

 Randall was a carpenter by trade and 



