Oil brought the Hastings family West.
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| family tree of Mary Hazel Wolfe Nevis |
Mary Hazel Wolfe's mother was Jennie Hastings. Like her husband James Tarr Wolfe, Jennie and her family were from Pennsylvania, perhaps Oakdale (near Pittsburgh).
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| Jennie Evelyn Hastings |
Jennie's siblings include John, Cyrus, Laura, Alfaretta "Allie", Jesse, Emma, Elwood, William, Quincy, Frank, and Wayne. Since Quincy's middle name is Dickson, he might the "Dick" in the photo below:
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| Jennie Hastings, Allie Hastings, Frank Hastings, Wayne Hastings, and Dick Hastings |
The Hastings family was already in Venango County by 1850 at the time of the oil boom there. Although the family set themselves up as farmers, they were enterprising and got into other businesses such as barge work, transporting goods such as oil barrels down stream to Pittsburgh or Cincinnati. Frank Tuller Hastings (Mary Hazel's uncle) got into the oil business, which took him from Venango County to New Mexico, California, Montana, and Alberta. When Frank was still in Albuquerque, in the second decade of the 1900s, his sister Jennie and her husband James Tarr Wolfe had moved there, too. After Jennie died in New Mexico in 1924, her husband relocated to Los Angeles with their daughter Hazel's family. Hazel's brother Leslie moved to nearby San Bernardino, California, and their brother Ellwood to Las Vegas.  | ||||
| Merrill Hastings on "Pride", Hastings Farm, Pennsylvania |
(Merrill Hastings is Wayne's son, Hazel's cousin. The photo would be from the first decade of the 1900s, as Merrill was born in 1899.)
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| believed to be Mary Davidson Wolf, perhaps 1870s |
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| Leslie H. Wolfe, 1917, U.S. Navy, World War I |
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| J. Ellwood Wolfe circa 1920 |
The Nevis family lore says that William Guy Wolf and Mary Davidson's son James Tarr Wolfe (1864–1936) was a farmer but had also invested in a company drilling for oil; his wife Jenny Hastings Wolfe (1867–1924) and mother-in-law Mary Jane McQuaid Hastings (1832–1915) complained after a while that the company was not striking any oil and they nagged him into selling his shares. Three weeks after the share sale, that company struck oil. Arnold maintained that James Wolfe never recovered from the "theft" of his good fortune and never forgave his mother-in-law. After Jennie died, he panned for gold in California certain his luck would return.
(On the other hand, the Canal Best web site says that James Tarr Wolfe's great grandfather John Brookmire Hastings (1797–1872) "owned land near Franklin [Pennsylvania] which became a valuable oil field — after he sold it" so I wonder if the generations got mixed up a bit and Jenny Hastings Wolfe and her mother Mary Jane McQuaid Hastings got a bad rap unfairly here in the family legend.)
Another myth from the Hastings side of the family involves ancestors of Jenny Hastings. There is indeed a line of noble Hastings in British history: Francis Hastings (1560–1595), son of the Earl of Hastings (George Hastings, 1540–1604), who was himself son of Francis Hastings, 2nd Earl of Huntingdon (1514–1561), the son of George Hastings, 1st Earl of Huntingdon (1488–1544), son of Edward Hastings, 2nd Baron Hastings (26 November 1466–1506), son of William Hastings, 1st Baron Hastings (circa 1431–1483), and so forth. So the peerage is beyond dispute, and frequently their wives' lineages are even more distinguished, but unfortunately there is little evidence of this ancestry for the Hastings family of Pennsylvania, though I suppose it is not out of the question either, through perhaps some younger brother who did not inherit the title, estate or wealth, or was exiled in disgrace to the colonies.
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| a family tree for Mary Hazel Wolfe Nevis, sketched circa 1970 |
Instead, Hazel's great grandfather John Brookmire Hastings was born out of wedlock to Mary Sutley and John Hastings. A Wikitree entry for Mary Sutley shows a deed book entry describing a case of John Hastings having knocked up Mary, who sues him for child support after her marriage to another man, John Brookmire:
Venango County, PA Deed Book A, pp. 59Whereas MARY BROOKMIER, daughter of Christian SETLEE(sic), formerly of Franklin County and state of Pennsylvania, now of the county of Venango and state aforesaid, about 9 years ago at the town of Chambersburg did enter an indictment against a certain John HASTY(sic) for unlawfully begotten her, the said Mary, with child...and the said John Hasty found guilty and judgement being entered in favor of said Mary (for certain sum or sums of money supposed to be 50c per week for a space of __years and $14. for expenses at birth of said child)....and whereas the said Mary having since entered into the marriage state with a certain John BROOKMIER and in order to bring about a final close of said business and to receive the remainder sum of money due in consequence of the decree aforesaid, the said John Brookmier becomes party to these presents..... Appoint George Setlee(sic) of Venango County, as their true and lawful attorney to demand the money from John Hasty.....
John Brookmire Hastings, the same one that sold his land before oil was discovered on it, was raised in the Brookmire family, but retained his biological father's surname. I could find nothing further of his father, the scoundrel John Hastings — no family history, no later activity.
The family religion (Presbyterian) comes down through the Anglo-Irish branch of the family: the McQuaids, the Duffields, and the McClintocks, but it appears that all of Hazel's ancestors were Protestants of some sort. The German side of her family emigrated from the area near the Rhine — they were Protestants fleeing the many wars devastating that region, particularly the Thirty Years War. And through her grandmother Hannah Smith, the lineage goes back to the early Plymouth Colony leader Thomas Prence and church deacon Henry Cobb.
next post Flashback: Arnold's early years
previous post Flashback: Plumer, Venango County, Pennsylvania
first post in Arnold's Story July 1943
first post in blog Leonard's Story: May 29, 1943
