HISTORY OF BUCKS COUNTY. 



669 



1897 to 1901, a period of four years. In 

 addition to the various enterprises in 

 which he has been engaged, he faithfully 

 and efficiently performed the duties of 

 postmaster, having been appointed the 

 incumbent during Grover Cleveland's ad- 

 ministration as president of the United 

 States. Since attaining his majority Mr. 

 Lippincott has cast his vote w^ith the 

 Democratic party, for whose interests 

 he has zealously worked. 



Mr. Lippincott was married, July 30, 

 1879, to Cathrine Bunting, daughter of 

 Joseph Bunting, and their children are: 

 I. Harry S., born May 8, 1880, a resident 

 at Cornwells, who was married in Oc- 

 tober, 1900, to- Anna Simonds, and they 

 are the parents of one child, Alvin, born 

 February 6, 1902. 2. Alvin T., born Sep- 

 tember 9, 1882, who for the past four 

 years has been an accountant with the 

 American Pipe Manufacturing Company 

 of Philadelphia. 3. Raymond, who died 

 in infancy. 



CHARLES WESLEY SHARPLESS. 

 The pioneer ancestor of the Sharpless fam- 

 ily, worthily represented in the present 

 generation by Charles Wesley Sharpless, of 

 Langhorne JNIanor. was John Sharpless, 

 who was born in Cheshire, England, in 1624, 

 married Jane Moor, emigrated to America, 

 settling near Chester, Pennsylvania, and 

 died April 11 1685. The ime of descent is 

 as follows : James, who married Mary Edge ; 

 David, who married Priscilla - Powell ; 

 David, who married Sarah Moore; Benja- 

 min, who married Mary Cowan ; David, 

 who married Mary Ann Stedman, parents 

 of Charles Wesley Sharpless, who was born 

 in Philadelphia, April 22, 1842. 



Charles W. Sharpless, after completing 

 his education in the public schools of his 

 native city, engaged under his father in the 

 card manufacturing business, of which the 

 latter was general manager for A. M. Col- 

 lins, card manufacturers, later A. M. Col- 

 lins, Son & Co., and subsequently the A. M. 

 Collins Manufacturing Company. Mr. Sharp- 

 less continued in this concern as superin- 

 tendent up to the time of his father's death, 

 when he was promoted to the position of 

 general manager, the place vacated by the 

 death of his father, in 1866, and this connec- 

 tion has continued from then up to the pres- 

 ent time. The A. M. Collins Manufacturing 

 Company is the largest of its kind in the 

 United States, and by honorable transac- 

 tions has gained an international reputa- 

 tion. Mr. Sharpless takes considerable in- 

 terest in political affairs, is a Republican 

 from conviction, and at the present time 

 (1905) is chief burgess of Langhorrie 

 Manor. He is a member of the Masonic 

 fraternity, affiliated with Kensington Lodge, 

 No. 211'; Girard Mark Lodge. No. 214; 

 Palestine Chapter, No. 241 ; and Mary Com- 

 manderv. No. 36. He is also a member of 

 the Veteran Association of Pennsylvania; 

 of Fidelity Lodge, No. 138, Independent 



Order of Odd Fellows; United Brothers' 

 Encampment, of Philadelphia, and Delta 

 Castle, No. 216, Knights of the Golden 

 Eagle. 



Mr. Sharpless married May 3, 1863, 

 Delinda Dover Conn, of Philadelphia, ana 

 their children were as follows : i. William 

 C, born August 12, 1864, died December 2, 

 1865. 2. Alfred Collins, born June 22, 1870, 

 was educated in the public schools of Phil- 

 adelphia and Pierce's Business College and 

 is now a clerk in the department store of 

 Lit Bros, of Philadelphia. He married, Au- 

 gust II, 1900, Kate Spieler, of Philadelphia, 

 who was born December 12, 1869, a daugh- 

 ter of Charles H. and Elizabeth Spieler, the 

 former named having been born in Wurtem- 

 berg, Germany, December i, 1828, died 

 January 24, 1886, aged fifty-eight years, 

 and the latter was born in Philadelphia, 

 September i, 1831, now seventy-three years 

 of age. Alfred C. and Kate (Spieler) 

 Sharpless are the parents of one child, 

 Delinda Elizabeth, born August 27, 1902. 

 3. Ella H., born November 9, 1873, died 

 August 21, 1874. 4. Charles Wesley, Jr., 

 born August 30, 1877, was educated in the 

 public schools of Philadelphia and at 

 Pierce's Business College, and is now super- 

 intendent in the A. M. Collins Manufac- 

 turing Company, in which his father is serv- 

 ing in the capacity of general manager. He 

 married Gabrielle Houpt, of Philadelphia, 

 daughter of Dr. Houpt, and they are the 

 parents of one child, Eleanor. Mrs. Sharp- 

 less, the mother of these children, died, and 

 on April 3, 1903, Mr. Sharpies? married 

 Gertrude Bowen, daughter of William S. 

 and Elizabeth (Torton) Bowen, and grand- 

 daughter of Thomas and Ann (Duerr) 

 Torton on the maternal side. 



HENRY Y. PICKERING, of Lower 

 IMakefield township, Bucks county, was 

 born in Philadelphia, January 9, 1854, and 

 is a son of Thomas Elw^ood and Mercy 

 (Paist) Pickering. His ancestors have 

 been residents of Bucks county for over 

 two centuries, his first paternal ancestor 

 of w'hom we have any distinct record be- 

 ing Samuel Pickering, who married, in 

 1712, Mary Scarborough, daughter of 

 John Scarborough, of Solebury, and 

 granddaughter of John Scarborough, of 

 the parish of St. Sepulcre, London, Eng- 

 land, who purchased land in Bucks 

 jounty in 1682, and gave a power of at- 

 torney to his son John, of Solebury, 

 Bucks county, Pennsylvania, in 1696 to 

 convey the same. Samuel Pickering 

 died in Solebury 8 mo. 19, 1727. His wife 

 Mary survived him nearly sixty years, 

 dying i mo. 10, 1787, aged nearly one 

 hundred years. They were the parents 

 of five children : John, Isaac, Samuel, 

 William and Grace. 



John Pickering, eldest son of Samuel 

 and Mary CScarborough) Pickering, was 

 born in Solebury in 1714, and died on the 



