My Genealogy Hound

REV. CYRUS B. HATCH, post office Dravosburg, was born April 25, 1848, near Franklin, Venango county, Pa. The progenitor of this family was Col. Joseph Hatch, from the county of Kent, England, who came with Gov. Winthrop and the one thousand families and settled the city of Boston, Mass. His descendants are to be found in many states of the Union, and many of them have won distinction in political, commercial or military life. His great-grandson, Ebenezer, a mechanic, resided at Falmouth, Mass., and married Statira Blanchard. The progenitor of the Blanchard family was Thomas, a native of England, who settled in North Yarmouth, Mass., where his large progeny became wealthy shipbuilders and commanders of vessels. Of his three sons — Solomon, John and David — Solomon married Elizabeth Loring and had four sons: Solomon, Nathaniel, David and Joseph. Of these Nathaniel was the father of Statira, who was a remarkably intelligent woman. She had three sisters: Mrs. Mary True, Mrs. Betty Buxton and Mrs. Alice Kenny. Statira Hatch had five children: Eunice, Elizabeth, Joseph, Davis P. and Nathaniel. The last named married Jane L. Kingan, a daughter of John Kingan, of County Down, Ireland. Nathaniel was an esteemed member of the Pittsburgh bar, and died April 25, 1879, aged sixty-three years. His widow died May 5, 1885, aged seventy-eight years. Their only son, the subject of this sketch, is a graduate of the Western University, class of 1869, also of the Allegheny U. P. Theological Seminary, class of 1872. For a period of three years each was pastor of the Mifflin U. P. Church, Mansfield and Irwin station. His talent as an organizer was recognized by the U. P. Board of Missions, who sent him to Denver, Col., where in less than two years he secured a valuable church property and an organization of seventy members, besides a flourishing Sabbath-school. Returning to Dravosburg, he took charge of the church there of forty-five members; his work was blessed abundantly, and within a year the church numbered two hundred members. Mr. Hatch married Agnes S., daughter of Hezekiah and Rosannah (Frew) Nixon, former of whom, was one of the first elders of the First U. P. Church of Allegheny, also first mayor of that city, serving two terms, and afterward was recorder of the county; his daughter, who was remarkably well qualified for the position of a pastor’s wife, died March 20, 1873. Mr. Hatch’s present wife is Bessie S., a daughter of David and Elizabeth (Ross) Foster, of Mansfield, Pa. To her devoted and untiring cooperation is to be attributed much of Mr. Hatch’s success in later years. Of Mr. Hatch’s children only two survive: Blanchard Ross Foster, born June 5, 1881, and Bessie Eunice, born June 27, 1888.