332 



HISTORY OF BUCKS COUNTY. 



the trade of organ-builder was not a 

 popular one with the people of this 

 country at that time, who considered 

 that time wasted that was spent in "pro- 

 ducing sounds" from an instrument. 

 However, Mr. Burner persevered in his 

 work and has been attended with great 

 success, as is demonstrated by the large 

 and well-equipped factory in Quaker- 

 town, to which place he removed 

 his business in 1861. The first organ ^Ir. 

 Durner built was valued at seven hun- 

 dred and fifty dollars, the building of 

 which occupied Mr. Durner for nearly 

 a year, the compensation he received be- 

 ing the munificent sum of about fifty 

 cents per day. His means being lim- 

 ited, he began with foot-power, which 

 was superceded by steam as his business 

 developed, and he is now at the head 

 of one of the largest and most com- 

 pleteh' equipped organ factories in 

 Pennsylvania. In 1876 he built an or- 

 gan for the Centennial exposition at 

 Philadelphia, which won for him the 

 Tiighest honors. Though small in size, 

 (compared with many others on exhibi- 

 tion) it was considered in volume and 

 sweetness of tone and perfection of me- 

 chanism superior to many other organs 

 on exhibition, the production of more 

 pretentious establishments. His instru- 

 ments also received the first premium at 

 the State fair in 1878. Mr. Durn^r's 

 business has extended over the greater 

 part of eastern Pennsylvania, and his 

 handiwork is highly appreciated where- 

 ever seen. Mr. Burner's political affilia- 

 tions are with the Democratic party, and 

 while he takes much interest in local 

 affairs, he has little to do with politics, 

 beyond the influence of his opinion as 

 expressed in his vote. He is a member 

 of St. John's Lutheran church, and is 

 especially interested in religious work, 

 and was a trustee for many years. 



In 1862 jMr. Durner was united in 

 marriage to Miss Mary Jane Speaker, 

 daughter of William and Lydia (Poor- 

 man) Speaker, of Center county, Penn-, 

 sylvania. Immediately after his mar- 

 riage Mr. Durner and his wife removed 

 to Quakertown, settling in the house 

 where they now reside. The following 

 named children were born to them: 

 Charles Edward, September i, 1863, 

 spoken of at length hereinafter; 2. Anna 

 Elizabeth, born January 5, 1866, married 

 Calvin F. Heckler, lawyer, son of John 

 and Victoria (Fluck) Heckler, farmers 

 •of Hilltown township, Bucks county, 

 Pennsylvania. 3. Mary Katherine, un- 

 married, and lives at home. INIrs. Dur- 

 ner died January 5, 1893, in the seventy- 

 first year- of her age. 



CHARLES EBWARB BURNER, 

 •eldest child of Charles Frederick and 

 Mary Jane (Speaker) Burner, attended 

 the common schools of his native place 

 until his sixteenth year. He then de- 



voted himself to learning the trade of 

 organ-building with his father, with 

 whom he is still engaged at the organ 

 factory in Quakertown, on the corner of 

 F"ront and Juniper streets, one of the 

 largest and most prosperous of its kind 

 in that section of the country. Mr. 

 Burner and his father have worked 

 themselves up to a very high place in 

 the world of business, and theirs is an 

 example of what perseverance, indom- 

 itable will and unfailing energy can ac- 

 complish in the way of assisting men to 

 attain the highest success. In political 

 affairs, Mr. Charles E. Burner helps 

 support the Bemocratic party, and al- 

 though he never aspired to public office, 

 takes a lively interest in the welfare of 

 that organization. He is a member of 

 St. John's Lutheran church, in the af- 

 fairs of which he has always taken an 

 active part. He was a member of the 

 church council for fourteen years, and 

 for a period of thirteen years was sec- 

 retary of that bod3^ 



June 17, 1889, Charles Edward Burner 

 was united in marriage to Miss Emma 

 Jane Fluck, daughter of William Ben- 

 jamin and Catherine (Hager) Fluck, of 

 Quakertown. She is a descendant of an 

 old German family who emigrated to 

 this country under Richard and Thomas 

 Penn, settling in Bucks county. Penn- 

 sylvania. After their marriage, Mr. and 

 Mrs. Burner settled in Juniper and 

 Third streets, in a house that they had 

 had erected previous to their marriage. 

 The following named children were 

 born to them: Harold Frederick, born 

 October 25, 1890, lives at home and at- 

 tends the Quakertown schools; and 

 Laura Catherine, born ]\Iarch 22, 1893, 

 also lives at home, attanding school in 

 Quakertown. 



CALVIN F. HECKLER. The early 

 ancestors of Calvin F. Heckler, both di- 

 rect and collateral, settled in the south- 

 eastern counties of Pennsylvania more 

 than one hundred and fifty years ago. 

 Mr. Heckler is a descendant of George 

 Heckler, a Redemptioner, who arrived 

 in Philadelphia on the ship "Neptune," 

 September 30, I7S4- He was purchased 

 by John Steiner of North Coventry 

 township, Chester county, near Potts- 

 town. George Heckler was the son of 

 ^lichael Heckler, and was born in 1736 

 in the province of Lower Alsace, on the 

 Rhine. He was obliged to work on a 

 farm for three years in order to redeem 

 his passage, and afterwards married 

 Christiana Freed, daughter of Peter 

 Freed, of Lower Salford township, 

 Montgomery county. He died August 

 28, t8t6, aged eighty years, and by his 

 thrift and industry had acquired consid- 

 erable property. At the beginning of 

 the .American Revolution George Heck- 

 ler bought a two hundred acre farm on 



