ca 1776. Teenager John Campbell arrives in Philadelphia from Scotland, perhaps as a boy apprentice tailor. He later opens a tailor shop, and by 1800 becomes a land agent there.
ca 1800 -1802. Newlyweds Samuel Hazlett and Sarah "Sally" Campbell, John's niece, arrive in the US and settle in Lancaster Co., PA., perhaps accompanied by younger brother John Hazlett. Sam was born in Scotland. Sally and John were either born in Scotland or N. Ireland. Sam and Sally lived in N. Ireland before coming to America.
At he same time, or perhaps a couple of years later, Sally's siblings, John, Mary, and Elizabeth Campbell (who later became nephews and nieces of the above mentioned John Campbell) come from N. Ireland to Lancaster Co. and settle there.
1803. Archibald Hazlett is born in Lancaster Co. to Sam and Sally.
1804. In Glouchestershire, the Rev. John Hey [the infamous one, not the famous one] forms "The English Company" to invest in wilderness lands in Pennsylvania. The Blackwells, who own textile mills, invest. Enoch Blackwell's 28 yr. old brother, Joshua Blackwell, accompanied by Enoch's son, Wm. Perrin Blackwell (then 10 yrs. old) are sent to accompany Rev. Hey to assist him (or to keep an eye on him).
ca 1804. Sally's brother John Campbell marries Pennsylvanian Elizabeth Bell and moves near Pittsburgh, PA. (It gets confusing with all the different John Campbells, Joseph Campbells, John & Sam Hazletts, etc.)
1805. The "English Company" buys 110,000 acres of wilderness in Lycoming & Tioga Cos., PA -- apparently sight unseen. Thomas Clinch, wife Sarah Lugg , and baby Ann Clinch leave Avening in Gloucestershire, sail from Bristol, England and arrive in Philadelphia. On the same ship, also from Avening, are widower Enoch Blackwell, his children, and several of his siblings. Thomas Clinch dies in NYC of yellow fever. His widow, Sarah LUGG Clinch marries Enoch Blackwell and moves to Pine Twp., Lycoming Co. Sarah leaves daughter Ann Clinch with Enoch's brother, Joshua Blackwell and his wife, to be raised by them near New Hope, Bucks Co., PA.
The Campbells and Hazletts were staunch Presbyterians and the Luggs and Clinches were Anglicans. Some, perhaps all, of the Blackwells were Baptists.
1806. Sally's sister Mary Campbell marries N. Irelander John Hazlett (as far as we know unrelated to Sam and John), in Lancaster Co. Mary Blackwell is born in Pine Twp. to Enoch Blackwell and Sarah Lugg.
ca 1806. A pioneer, Daniel Strait, briefly settles in Tioga Co., PA near a Cowanesque River island owned by a family named Beecher. Strait builds a cabins and saw mill, but moves on. Sam Hazlett begins buying his land. Subsequently, Sally's uncle, John Campbell, in Philadelphia and her father, Joseph Campbell, still in N. Ireland, begin buying the island, and land on the south bank of the Cowanasque, from the Beecher family. Sam's land is a little to the east, on the north side of the river, along what is now called Strait Creek.. At that time, only a few, small clearings had been made and there were no roads. The small community that grew up there, not surprisingly, came to be called Beecher's Island. Later, for reasons unknown, when the first post office was opened, postal officials named it Nelson. The name Beecher's Island gradually died out. It long continued as the name of the Presbyterian church, but even there, newspapers eventually began referring to it as the Presbyterian Church of Nelson.
1810. Sam completes his purchase of land from Daniel Strait. By this time Sam and Sally, have two more children, Mary (1807) and Jane Hazlett (1810). Sally's parents, Joseph and Mary HARPER Campbell, and their younger children --- Jane, Joseph, and James --- sail from Londonderry, N. Ireland to Perth Amboy, NJ, arriving in Oct. and make their way to Sam's farm believed to be near Stroudsburg, where they are joined by Uncle John Campbell from Philadelphia. In late 1810 or early 1811 they all set out for Beecher's Island, forming their own wagon train and accompanied by all their livestock. Reportedly they arrived on New Year's eve. We know they did encounter deep snow during the trek, they found Daniel Strait's cabin just a shell, and only a few rusted remnants of the saw mill. But the Beecher's cabin apparently was intact. See Nelson map.
1811. John Hazlett marries Jane Campbell, Sally's sister. Some time after that, Sam sells or gives or sells the land on the north side of the river, along Strait Creek, to John, and relocates to Thornbottom Creek, west of Beecher's Island, and builds a saw mill there. As does James Campbell.
1814. Enoch Blackwell is born in Jersey Shore, PA to Enoch and Sarah LUGG Clinch Blackwell. (Enoch "Sr" also had a son Enoch by his first wife.)
1816. Enoch Blackwell "Sr." dies. Subsequently, we don't know when, Sarah marries her 3rd husband --- former tailor John Campbell. Sarah and her two younger children, Mary and Enoch Blackwell, move to Beecher's Island. At some point, John builds a grist mill and a fulling mill (hammers cloth to make felt).
1821. Sarah LUGG Clinch Blackwell writes to daughter Ann Clinch, suggesting she marry Sarah's nephew, Joseph Campbell.. Ann Clinch marries Joseph Campbell. A week later, her half-sister, Mary Blackwell, marries Joseph's brother, James Campbell.
1824. Mary CAMPBELL Hazlett dies in Lancaster Co. Afterwards, her husband ("the other" John Hazlett) and their children move to a farm next to brother John Campbell's. At that time, it was near Pittsburgh. Now their properties are within Pittsburgh's North side.
1830. Sarah LUGG Clinch Blackwell Campbell's youngest brother, Charles Byron Lugg, and his family come to Tioga Co., PA from Gloucestershire. They initially settle in Elkland, but soon relocate to Thornbottom Creek, just west of Beecher's Island.
1831. C.B. Lugg and family move back to England.
1833. C. B. Lugg and family return to Tioga Co. --- this time for good. They settle in Farmington Twp.
Last revised. Feb. 17, 2022. Copyright 2000, 2001, 2011, 2012, 2017, 2018, 2022 by William B. Thompson. Commercial use prohibited.