City Directories and History: William Martin was born in the Wylie’s Mill section of eastern Chester County in 1841, near the present day town of Richburg. His parents were Samuel Martin (1805-1851) and Malinda Wylie Martin (1807-1895). The Martin family immigrated to America in 1768. Samuel’s father James Martin was age six at this time and sailed with his parents, James and Jane, and four siblings. James’ tombstone, located at Union Associate Reformed Presbyterian (ARP) Church at Richburg, states that he was born in the parish of Drumaull, County Down, Northern Ireland. It is not known where the immigrants James and Jane lived or where they are buried. It is believed that Samuel’s father James (1761-1844) and wife Mary (possibly Graham or Ferguson) (1768-1842) lived at Wylie’s Mill. They had several daughters, but Samuel was the only son to live to adulthood. Samuel’s wife Malinda was the daughter of John Wylie (1770-1851) and Martha Ferguson Wylie (1771-1852). Both of them are buried at Union ARP Church, where John served as an elder for many years.
Samuel and Malinda Martin had at least ten children. Samuel died in 1851 at the age of 46, so Malinda was left to raise the younger children on her own. Three sons served in Co. A of the 17th Regiment of South Carolina Volunteers, a Chester County unit. Joseph (who began his service in another unit) was wounded at Manassas but recovered. Samuel was wounded at Fort Steadman. Joseph attempted to bring him home, but he died on the way in Danville, VA. William, the subject of this sketch, was wounded and captured at the Battle of the Crater and spent the remainder of the war as a prisoner of war at Elmira, New York. His captain, W. H. Edwards, described him as “…an ideal soldier, always present for duty, faithful, brave, and never complained or grumbled, no matter how arduous the service he was called on to render.” (Chester Reporter, January 24, 1913).
William Martin returned home after being released from Elmira and settled on the family land at Wylie’s Mill, where he became a farmer. Within a few years, he married Elizabeth Thomas, a daughter of Capt. James Alexander Thomas and Charlotte Anne (Annie) Ferguson Thomas. Captain Thomas was a veteran of the Mexican War, where he lost an arm. He later helped to organize a company for the Civil War but did not see active service. He served as Treasurer of Chester County. William and Elizabeth Thomas Martin had nine children, six girls and three boys.
About 1890, the family moved from Wylie’s Mill to the Neely’s Creek – Harmony section of York County. William sold his share of the Martin land to his brother Joseph and purchased land from the Samuel Wylie family for $9 per acre. For a short time, they lived on this farm in a small house. The Rock Hill Herald reported on February 8, 1893, “It was reported that Mr. William Martin has the contract let out for a new house to cost $1,000. The brick is on hand and the lumber will be at the station [probably Harmony Depot] in a few days.” The two-story frame house was in the folk Victorian style. On this farm of about 150 acres, William Martin farmed for the rest of his life. The soil in this section has an unusual mixture of sand, leading to the local name of Santuc. This enabled Martin to raise some crops that were not usually successful in Piedmont farms, such as tobacco and watermelons. He had chosen a good location for the farm. Not only was the land productive, but it was near a rail station at Harmony and only seven miles from Rock Hill, a growing and progressive town. The Rock Hill Record reported on November 21, 1910, “Mr. William Martin, a progressive farmer of this county, who lives between Neely’s Creek Church and Harmony Station, had the misfortune to lose his barn last night by fire. It happened some time during the mid-hours of the night and is supposed to have been of an incendiary nature. We are unable to learn just what the loss was, but the building, together with a horse and mule, was burned.”
When they moved to York County, the family joined Neely’s Creek ARP Church. The children were able to attend local schools, some at Harmony Station and others at the school at Neely’s Creek. Several of the daughters were able to attend Winthrop Normal and Industrial School (now Winthrop University), which located in Rock Hill in 1895. Two daughters, Annie and Maud, won a county-wide competition for a scholarship to Winthrop. William Martin, in his older years, suffered from what today would be called age-related dementia. He was confined to the state mental hospital in Columbia for a time. A search of their records shows the diagnosis as “hardening of the arteries.” He died on Christmas Day in 1912. The Rock Hill Herald reported on December 26, 1912, “News was received here today of the death yesterday at the State Hospital in Columbia of Mr. William Martin of Harmony…Mr. Martin was a well-known farmer of the Harmony section and leaves a wife and a number of children.”
Elizabeth Thomas Martin continued to live at the home until her death in 1943. Also residing there was son Joseph Cornwell Martin, who farmed the land until his death in 1953. In later years, Annie Martin Smithwick and James Alexander Martin lived in the house. “Alex” had worked in Detroit for many years at Ford Motor Company, and came home in retirement. In the late 1970s, while Alex was living there, the house burned. There is a modern house on the site with the address 2860 Harmony Road. The remainder of the farm is now a residential subdivision.
Researched and written for R&R by Paul M. Gettys, 2023
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