[p. 901] of the firm of J. Greer & Son, a leading real estate and insurance firm of New Castle, located at No. 14 East Long Street, was born at West Middlesex, Mercer County, Pennsylvania, in 1857, where he obtained a good common school education.
The parents of Mr. Greer were John H. and Martha J. (Cunningham) Greer. They were among the early settlers of western Pennsylvania, and were of the Scotch Irish descent. He was a stone mason and bricklayer by trade. When the Civil War broke out he was one of the first to respond to Lincoln's call for three-year volunteers, becoming a member of Company B, Tenth Pennsylvania Reserve Volunteer Cavalry, and served three years and four months. After being mustered out he returned to West Middlesex, where he died in 1894. He was also one of the old Erie and Pittsburg canal men, and operated all through the Shenango Valley. Mrs. Greer died in 1878, while in Kentucky, and was buried in that State.
When sixteen years of age Mr. Greer went to the vicinity of Grayson, Carter County, Kentucky, where he remained until August 31, 1883, when he returned to western Pennsylvania and came to New Castle. He was in the employ of A. M. Robbins, in furnace work, for a short time, and then went with the Aetna Iron Company, and continued with that and its successor, the Atlantic Iron and Steel Company, for thirteen years. From there he went to the New Castle Seamless Tube Company, with which he remained until 1898, when he embarked in the real estate business at New Castle, under the style of J. Greer. In 1902, when his son, John P. Greer, was admitted to partnership, the firm name became J. Greer & Son, which engages in a general real estate business, platting, building and selling, and also handles fire insurance. The firm is one of recognized business integrity and occupies a leading position among the representative concerns of this city.
In 1874 Mr. Greer was married to Miss Elizabeth Cook, who was born in Kentucky. Her parents were Virginians by birth, and her father, who held the rank of captain, was killed near Abbington, Va., during the Civil War. Mr. and Mrs. Greer have nine children: Winfield S., Fannie L., John F., Mary A., Albert M., Kate, Frank J., Fred and Elizabeth Fern, all residing at New Castle.
John F. Greer, who is a member of the firm of J. Greer & Son, was born in Kentucky, but was educated at New Castle. For three years of early manhood he engaged in newspaper work. When the Spanish-American War broke out he joined Company B, Sixteenth Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, and was located at Camp Meade, Pa., and at Newport News, Va., being confined to a hospital at both points, suffering with intermittent fever. This made a furlough necessary, and after his return to his home he had a spell of sickness that continued after his company was mustered out of the service. In the spring of 1899 he went into the recruiting service of the United State Regular Army, and during that period was located at Cleveland. For three years afterward he worked in the tin mill, and then went into the real estate business as indicated above. On Christmas day, 1902, he was married to Miss Elizabeth R. Clark, who was born and reared at New Castle, and is a daughter of H. B. Clark. They have two children: John H. and Mary E. Mr. Greer is a member of Grace Methodist Episcopal Church. He belongs to the order of Knights of Pythias, and for five years has been sent as a representative to the Grand Lodge.
Josiah Greer is a leading Republican of Lawrence County, and is a member of the Republican County Committee. He belongs to the Knights of Pythias and to the Pathfinders. The firm has membership in the Business Men's Exchange, the Lawrence County Board of Underwriters and the New Castle Real Estate Association.
20th Century History of New Castle and Lawrence County Pennsylvania and Representative Citizens Hon. Aaron L. Hazen Richmond-Arnold Publishing Company, Chicago, Ill., 1908
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Updated: 24 Jan 2002