648 



HISTORY or BUCKS COUNTY. 



the grammar school at the corner of 

 Eightli and Thompson streets, in Phil- 

 adelphia. In his early manhood he ac- 

 cepted a position with C. W. Walton & 

 Company, mannfacturers of hats and 

 caps in Philadelphia. He rose through 

 successive and well merited promotions 

 from the position of general utility boy 

 to a place of marked trust and responsi- 

 bility, but failing health caused him to 

 resign, and he then returned to Bucks 

 county and entered his father's carriage 

 shop in Holicong. The business was 

 there carried on extensively, and even- 

 tually Mr. Gilbert succeeded his father in 

 the ownership and conduct of this indus- 

 trial enterprise, with which he was as- 

 sociated for seventeen j'ears, meeting 

 with very gratifying success. He then 

 disposed of his factory and purchased a 

 commission business which he conducted 

 for twelve years, and in the spring of 1898 

 he purchased his present farm in Buck- 

 ingham township, upon which he has 

 since resided. He votes with the Re- 

 publican party, and is a well known cit- 

 izen of his native township, having the 

 favorable regard of those with whom he 

 has been associated. 



Mr. Gilbert was married, February 2, 

 1876, to Miss Elizabeth Lear, a daughter 

 of Robert and Ann (McVaugli) Lear, of 

 Bridge Point. Her father is well known 

 as the operator of a saw mill and a man- 

 ufacturer of rakes at Bridge Point. Mr. 

 and Mrs. Gilbert have no children of 

 their own. but have reared three, and two 

 of them. Charles and Hiel, are now stu- 

 dents in Cornell University. Clara, who 

 was legally adopted, is now the wife of 

 Ralph Oppie, a chemist of Philadelphia, 

 Pennsylvania. 



WILLIAM D. KRATZ, a farmer of 

 Hilltown township, was born in Rock- 

 hill township, Bucks county, November 

 27, 1859. His paternal grandfather, Will- 

 iam Kratz, was a resident farmer of this 

 county, and in connection with gen- 

 eral agricultural pursuits engaged in the 

 commission business, attending the Phil- 

 adelphia market. He wedded Mary Ros- 

 enberger, a daughter of Henrj^ and Han- 

 nah (Detweiler) Rosenberger. Their 

 son, Henry R. Kratz, was born in Hill- 

 town township in February, 1827, and he 

 too made farming his life work, always 

 following that pursuit in support of his 

 family. He married Sarah Delp, a 

 daughter of George Delp, and they had 

 four children: Mary, who married Daniel 

 Bright, of Bethlehem, of Pennsylvania; 

 William D. ; Clayton, who died in Ohio; 

 and Kate, who is the wife of Levi Fluck, 

 of Coopersburg, Pennsylvania, and has 

 one child. Following the death of Mrs. 

 Sarah Kratz, Henry R. Kratz married 

 Lavinia Fluck, and they had three chil- 

 dren, namely: Harry, who married Car- 

 rie Smith; Ella, deceased; and Martha, 



wife of James Romey. The father died 

 in February, 1902, in the seventy-fifth 

 year of his age. He was a member of 

 the Brethren church. 



William D. Kratz is indebted to the 

 public school system of his native 

 county for the educational privileges he 

 enjoyed. He was reared by Joseph Wim- 

 mer, with whom he remained until he 

 attained his majority, and later began 

 farming on his own account and has al- 

 ways followed that pursuit, meeting with 

 fair success in his business ventures. He 

 has followed the religious teachings of 

 his ancestors, and is a member of the 

 Brethren church. Mr. Kratz was married 

 January 2, 1882, to Miss Susan Rosen- 

 berger, who was born May 16, 1866, a 

 daughter of Jacob D. and Eliza (Swart- 

 ley) Rosenberger. Mr. and Mrs. Kratz 

 became the parents of nine children: Lu- 

 cretia, who was born in 1882, and is now 

 deceased; Jacob R., born August 29, 1884; 

 Lavinia R., born November i, 1886; 

 Henry C. R., November 28, 1888; Arte- 

 mus R., December 16, 1890; Elizabeth 

 R., February 5, 1893; Mary Ann, No- 

 vember 17, 1894; Franklin R.. October 

 25, 1896; and Catharine R., October 19, 

 1903- 



CHARLES WILDMAN, who is now 

 (1905) leading a retired life at his com- 

 fortable home in Langhorne, Middletown 

 township, surrounded with peace and plenty, 

 and realizing to the full that there is no 

 reward so satisfactory as the consciousness 

 of a life well spent, was born in Fallsington, 

 Falls township, Bucks county, Pennsylvania, 

 December 29, 1839. He is a lineal de- 

 scendant of Martin and Ann Wildman, who 

 in 1693, accompanied by their six children, 

 emigrated to America, locating in !Middle- 

 town township, Penns3dvania. Among 

 their children was a son Joseph, who mar- 

 ried ; John, son of Joseph Wildman, 



was united in marriage to Mary Tomlinson, 

 and among their children was a son John, 

 who married Mary Knight, and they were 

 the parents of a son Charles, who married 

 Susanna Shoemaker Albertson, daughter of 

 Benjamin and Ann (Knight) Albertson, the 

 latter named being the daughter of Benja- 

 min and Susannah (Shoemaker) Albertson. 

 Charles and Susanna S. (Albertson) Wild- 

 man were the parents of seven children, as 

 follows : Chalkley Albertson, John Knight, 

 Mary Ann, Benjamin Albertson, Charles, 

 whose name appears at the head of this 

 sketch ; Ellwood, and Jane, who died in 

 infancy. 



Charles Wildman obtained his. early edu- 

 cation in the public schools of Bensalem, 

 and this was supplemented by a course at 

 Brj-ant & Stratton's Commercial College. 

 He gained his first practical experience in 

 the general store of William T. Hop- 

 kins, at Burlington. New Jersey, as 

 clerk, remaining for a period of five 

 vears. He then entered into the whole- 



