S7^ 



HISTORY OF BUCKS COUNTY 



stead, a part of which he purchased of 

 his father in 1826, and later purchased 

 200 acres of land adjoining. He was a 

 blacksmith by trade, and followed that 

 vocation at what is now South Perkasie 

 until 1838, after which he devoted his 

 attention to his farm in Rockhill town- 

 ship, where he died in April, 1855. He 

 married Mary Magdalen Stout, daugli- 

 ter of Jacob and Elizabeth (Barndt) 

 Stout, and they were the parents of 

 eleven children, six of whom lived to 

 mature age, viz. : Owen : Isaac S., the 

 father of Dr. James E. Groff, of Doyles- 

 town; Charles S., the subject of this 

 sketch; Abraham; Mary, wife of Josiah 

 Shearer; and Jacob. Jacob Groff and his 

 family were Mennonites. In politics he 

 was a staunch Whig, and took an active 

 interest in the affairs of the community 

 in which he lived. 



On the maternal side Charles S. Groff 

 is a descendant of Jacob Stout, who was 

 born in Germany in the year 171 1 and 

 came to this country at the age of twen- 

 ty-six years. He was a potter by trade, 

 and located first jn Durham township, 

 removing later to the present site of 

 Perkasie, where he owned the greater 

 part of the land upon which the present 

 town stands. He became a very large 

 land owner in Bucks, and a very prom- 

 inent man in the community. He died 

 April 30, 1779, and he and three gener- 

 ations of his descendants lie buried in a 

 neat little family burying ground near 

 Perkasie railroad station, on part of his 

 original plantation. He married in 1739 

 Anna Leisse (Leicy), widow of John 

 Leisse, an early German emigrant, her 

 maiden name being Miller, and they were 

 the parents of four children: Abraham; 

 Salome, who married (first) Abraham 

 Freed, and (second) Gabriel Schwartz- 

 lander, (great-grandfather of Dr. Frank 

 Swartzlander, of Doylestown); Isaac, of 

 Williams township, Northampton coun- 

 ty, _ (father of the distinguished phy- 

 sician and surgeon. Dr. Isaac Stout) ; and 

 Catharine, wife of Jacob Schlieffer, of 

 New Britain. 



Abraham Stout, eldest son of Jacob 

 and Anna, was probably the most prom- 

 ient Pennsylvania German of his day 

 in Bucks county. He was educated at 

 the famous Germantown Academy, and 

 received a fine English education. He 

 was for many years a justice of the 

 peace, and did a very large amount of 

 public business. At the outbreak of the 

 revolution he was a member of the com- 

 mittee of safety of Bucks county, and 

 served as a member of the Constitutional 

 Convention in 1790, as well as filling 

 numerous other positions of trust and 

 honor. He married Mary Magdalen 

 Hartzell, and they were the parents of 

 seven children. 



Jacob Stout, third son of Abraham 

 and Magdalena (Hartzell) Stout, was 

 born on the Perkasie homestead, Janu- 



ary 9, 1775, and died there August 15, 

 1820. He married Elizabeth Barndt, 

 born November 27, 1778, died November 

 7, 1821, and they were the parents of 

 eight children: Isaac; Abraham; Jacob 

 B., the father of Judge Mahlon H. Stout; 

 Samuel; Sarah, who married Charles 

 Leidy; Anna, who married Isaac Drum- 

 bore; Mary Magdalen, the mother of the 

 subject of this sketch; and Elizabeth, 

 who married Enos Kile. 



Charles S. Groff was reared and edu- 

 cated in Rockhill township, and early 

 in life learned the balcksniith trade with 

 Charles Bissey. He followed his trade 

 until 1862, when he purchased the farm 

 upon which he still resides, m Rockhill, 

 near South Perkasie. He has always 

 taken an active interest in all that per- 

 tains to the best interests of the com- 

 munity in which he lived. He filled the 

 office of school director of Rockhill 

 township for three years, and in politics 

 is a Republican. He and his family are 

 members of the Reformed church. He 

 married in i860, Caroline Shettlcr, daugh- 

 ter of John Shettler, and they are the pa- 

 rents of six children : Maurice, who 

 married a Mrs. Drummond, of Philadel- 

 phia, and has two children; Calvin, who 

 married Emma Moyer, and has one 

 child; Franklin, a large landowner in 

 North Dakota; Ella, wife of Charles Alt- 

 house; Katie, wife of Mahlon Dimming, 

 of Springfield township; and Martha, 

 wife of Ambrose Pfleiger, of Perkasie. 



HENRY R. SHADDINGER. Four 

 generations of the Shaddinger family have 

 resided in Bucks county, the great-grand- 

 father, a native of England, having been 

 the founder of the family in the new world. 

 He became a resident of Plumstead town- 

 ship. Jacob L. Shaddinger, the grandfa- 

 ther, was born in Plumstead township and 

 in early life learned the business of lime 

 burning, which he followed for many years 

 in Buckingham township. He possessed 

 keen business foresight and was recognized 

 as one of the enterprising business men of 

 his community. He married Elizabeth 

 Leatherman, and they became the parents 

 of six children, namely: Edward, Charles, 

 Elias, Mary Ann, Sophia and Sallie. 



Edward E. Shaddinger, eldest son of 

 Jacob Shaddinger, was born in Solebury, 

 Buckingham township, and when a boy 

 accompanied his parents on their removal 

 to Plumstead township, where he acquired 

 his education in the public schools. After 

 his marriage he purchased a farm in New 

 Britain township and there carried on agri- 

 cultural pursuits until his death, which 

 occurred October 29, 1884, when he had 

 reached the age of thirty-one years, ten 

 months and eight days. His wife, who bore 

 the maiden name of Anna Rosenberger. died 

 November 6, 1888, at the age of thirty- 



