John Penrod

The following is from the book Penrod Family History Volume 1 by Harold R. Penrod, the Preface written by Bessie Y. Keetch. It is copied with permission from the author. The following can be found on pages v-viii of the original text. The text is quoted verbatim, with minimal mechanical corrections.

This John Penrod and his son John Penrod Jr., and a son-in-law, John Vansel were among the small group of hunters who left their families in Maryland and went into the wilds of Pennsylvania in what is now Somerset County, and were among the first to settle in Cox's Creek Glades. The Glades were named after Isaac Cox, an early hunter to this same area. Much of the history of this area is preserved because a man kept a diary and mentions the Penrod's many times in it. The following is a direct quotation from his diary.

This valley is what properly may be termed rolling in its general features, divided into hills, bottoms, and glades; generally densely timbered, and with little underbrush, the bottoms open, and sodded with a short, fine grass.

As to the glades: Nothing could exceed in beauty and luxuriance these plains when vegetation was at its full growth. In many places for acres, grass was as high as a man, of a bluish color, with a feathery head of blueish purple. But after the permanent settlement it was found that this original grass disappeared under pasturage, and was supplanted by the broad-bladed sour grass except in places that were never reached by stock.

The streams usually rise in the hills, and worm their way through the glades, wthen break between high banks through the dark forest. The native Choke cherries, wild cherries, plums, and haws were found in the bottoms ripening to perfection in their proper season. On the upland and the mountains were found in equal profusion, blackberries, raspberries, whortleberries and similar fruits. The hunting season began in October and the beaver trapping in December, continuing until April. After this their fur becomes loose and worthless. Deer and bear were hunted for their skins. Panthers were destroyed by the hunters whenever encountered. Wolves were seldom killed, and were very numerous, and always followed in the wake of the hunters to devour the offal and carcasses that they left, making the night hideous with their howls and prowling around the very doors of the camps.

Although the Penrod's and John Vansel continued to trap until the spring of 1773, they did not bring their families and make a permanent settlement there until that summer (1773). It was the custom of the hunters to make an annual visit back to their homes and families in the spring of each year, carrying with them as much of their stock of furs and skins as they well could, the remainder of their stock being traded to packers who came in later and carried them away. Even when they brought their families in 1773 there were no roads and all they could bring was what could be put on pack animals. Two other families came in the summer of 1772. The hunters were said to have been hunting this area for three or four years before this.

During the Revolutionary War the settlers had very trying times, their young men were called away to serve in the army and yet they had to guard constantly against Indian attacks. The sttlers of Cox's Creek were blessed that they were never directly attacked as were many of their neighboring settlements, but there was always the constant worry. Some settlements to the east of them were even attacked. After the destruction of Hannastown, in Westmoreland County, on July 15, 1782, by a party of savages and renegade white men, led by Simon Girty; many of the settlers were afraid their settlement would be next and fled eastward until it was safe to return. When the writer of the diary returned the next year he recorded that a very small number of the families had clung to their homes in spite of the last year's Indian alarms and the general exodus that had taken place. These had chiefly been of the early hunters.

This same John Penrod Sr was a Ranger on the Western Front, protecting homes against Indian attacks during the Revolutionary War. John Penrod Jr., Tobias, and David, sons of John, were soldiers in the Revolutionary War. Much of the history of this area reads like an interesting novel, and to think it is our Penrod's in it is surely an inspiration. The call letters at the Genealogical library are 974.87; H2b "Blackburn and Welfley's History of Bedford and Somerset Counties Pennsylvania" beginning on page 80. (Somerset County was made from Bedford County.)

In the 1790 Census of Bedford County we find John Penrod and his sons, John Jr., Peter, David, Emanuel, and Israel. His son, Samuel, was found in Westmoreland County, one county west of Somerset and a little north. (Samuel was our ancestor.)

In 1795 Somerset County was formed from Bedford and here John Penrod Sr. died in 1799 and was buried at Ed Pritt's farm, Millford Township, Somerset, Pennsylvania. He lived twenty-six years after bringing his family to Pioneer this area. This John is the farthest ancestor of which we have record on our Penrod line.

We have a copy of the will of this John Penrod which is very interesting, it was admitted to probate 13 April 1799 so it appears he died earlier in that year. As you read it you feel that he must have been a very spiritual man, and that he had a great deal of love for his family. It sounds as though he were quite well-off for those days.

Nothing is known to us as to why the Penrods in Pennsylvania went to Pioneering again, or where they traveled to get there; but sometime between 1812 and 1818 they came to Illinois. We don't find them there in the 1812 Census but in the 1818 Census we find Samuel Penrod Sr., the father of Lewis, and two of his brothers, David and Solomon; and five of his sons, Lewis (Louis), the father of our David, Andrew, Emanuel, John, and Samuel Jr.