May the 29th, one thousand eight hundred and sixteen, before me the subscriber, one of the justices of peace in and for the said county, came the parties to the within indenture and severally acknowledged it as their act and deed. Given under my hand and seal the day and year above mentioned.
Benjamin Roberts. [Seal.]
All the covenants and agreements of this quaint document were faithfully kept on the part of William Hatfield. Benjamin Roberts, the Justice of the Peace, before whom the instrument was acknowledged, was the father of William B. Roberts, who led the company from Uniontown to engage in the Mexican war, and upon the organization of the second regiment of Pennsylvania volunteers was elected colonel, and served as such until his death, which occurred in the city of Mexico. The old justice lived on a small farm in Menallen township, Fayette county, Pennsylvania, north of and adjoining the Searight farm, and Col. Roberts, his distinguished son, was born there.
One mile west of Hatfield’s is the old Peter Colley stand. It is a stone house on the south side of the road. Peter Colley was the father of Abel Colley, and an early settler. He kept a tavern on the old road before the National Road was made. He was a money maker, and owned the land on which his tavern was erected, in fee. He was probably the first man on the National Road who acquired the fame of having a barrel of money. Old pike boys said he kept his money in a barrel. Peter Colley was well advanced in years when the National Road was made, and did not long enjoy the profits of the new highway. At his death his tavern passed to the hands of his son George, who kept it for many years, and until he followed his father to the unknown world. George Colley lived to see and lament the decline of business on the road, and after his death his house was discontinued as a tavern. The hills on either side of this old house are among the highest on the road, the summit of the western range being twelve hundred and seventy-four feet above the level of the sea. In the olden time, as before stated, extra horses, called “the postilion,” were required to aid the stage coaches in ascending these hills.
A little over a mile further west a plastered stone house, on the north side of the road, was kept as a tavern at intervals, during the prosperous era of the road. It is not, however, to be classed among the old taverns of the road. It was first kept as a tavern previous to 1840 by Arthur Wallace. Isaac Baily subsequently kept it for a brief period, and enjoyed a good measure of patronage. Baily afterward became postmaster at Brownsville, and finally a member of the Fayette county, Pennsylvania, bar. He was a shrewd Yankee, and an active local politician. His wife was a daughter of Solomon Colley, of the large family of Colleys of the vicinity. George Craft once lived in this house, and occasionally entertained strangers and travelers, but was not a regular tavern keeper. This was also the residence at one time of “Jackey Craft,” known as an eccentric character, who was in the habit of starting out over the road in a sleigh with bells, when there was no snow on the ground. Before his mind became unbalanced, “Jackey” was a pushing, money making citizen, but his life went out under a cloud of mental derangement, causing deep regret among his many friends.
A few hundred yards further west on the south side of the road, is the red tavern, so called, because in early days it was painted red. It is a wooden building, weather-boarded. This house had a large wagon custom, and, what may be considered strange without explanation, was more largely patronized by wagoners going west than east. This was owing to the means of ingress to and egress from the house. It is located near the summit of a hill, a short distance from the road, and immediately in front of it, adjoining the road, is a steep embankment. To drive to the house going west, a way leads off from the summit of the hill, which is level, but to drive out to the road the descent is steep, and wagoners coming east could not reach the wagon yard without driving up this steep grade, and, in many instances, preferred driving on to Colley’s rather than pressing their teams against such an obstacle. Despite the disadvantage mentioned, this tavern, as before stated, was a popular resort for wagoners. It was first kept by Cuthbert Wiggins, father of Harrison Wiggins, and at this house Harrison Wiggins was born. It was next kept by George Richards, whose widow became the wife of John Gadd. Cuthbert Wiggins was at this house as early as 1812. John Gribble succeeded Richards as early as 1836, and continued to keep this house for many years, making money in the business, and ultimately buying a farm in the neighborhood, ceased tavern keeping and became a successful farmer. He has been dead many years, but is well remembered as a worthy citizen. Upon the retirement of Gribble, this house passed to the management of Fielding Frasher, a steady-going man, who had been a wagoner on the road, and knew how to keep a tavern. He was an uncle of Capt. L. H. Frasher, of Uniontown, ex-District Attorney of Fayette county. Fielding Frasher had a good custom while keeping this house, but did not continue long in the business, and was succeeded by Huston Todd, a well known citizen in his day. He was a brother-in-law of Judge Hatfield, father of Ewing Todd, for many years a leading citizen of Brownsville, now deceased, and grandfather of William Hatfield Todd, a popular and efficient postal clerk on the route between Pittsburg and New York. Peter Williams, oldest son of the late Gen. William W. Williams, married a daughter of Huston Todd. The reputation of this old house was fully maintained while under the control of Huston Todd. Peter Frasher next took charge of this house. He was a brother of Fielding Frasher, and a typical pike boy, bright, active, and popular. He had been a wagoner, and knew the road from Baltimore to Wheeling. The house, while he kept it, was crowded with guests, but his generous nature prevented him from exacting full payment of bills at all times, and as a consequence his coffers were not as much swollen as those of many of the tavern keepers, more mindful of the chief end of tavern keeping. George Friend succeeded Peter Frasher, but remained only a short time, when he gave way to Parker McDonald. McDonald was the last man who conducted this house as a tavern. He was active, attentive, and popular, but the glory of the road had departed, and the business of tavern keeping was a thing of the past. The old red tavern and the farm adjacent belong to the old and wealthy Bowman family, of Brownsville.
JOHNSON-HATFIELD HOUSE.
A short distance west of the red tavern a stone house was kept by Wilkes Brown, before the National Road was made, and derived its trade for the most part from the old road. It is still standing, but not immediately on the National Road. Wilkes Brown was of the family of Thomas Brown, the founder of Brownsville.