Eventually I plan to have a great deal more info here regarding this family, but like the rest of this site it is a work in progress. For now, I have the following information that comes to me from a visitor to this site regarding the Rebecca Bozarth buried in the graveyard at Pleasant Mills.
William Austin Bozarth married Rebecca Birkett/ Gaunt. (Rebecca's first husband was John Gant or Gaunt). Evidently, she did not live with William for several years prior to her death. Her daughter from the first marriage was Rebecca Ann Gaunt, married her son from her second marriage, Abel Austin Bozarth. They were the parents of William Austin Bozarth II, about who more will be told below.
From the marriage of William Austin Bozarth and Rebecca Gaunt there was also a daughter, Mary Jane (b. 8 June 1832, d. aft 1884). She married Evan B. Johnson.
As for William A. Bozarth II, he was born 22 Dec 1844 and died 22 May 1864.
He enlisted in H Co. 10th NJ at Beverly on 23 Feb 1864. When he went to Trenton for induction, he came down with the measles. His father, Abel Austin Bozarth, came and took him back to Pleasant Mills, where he died. Death records indicate cause of death as "chronic dysentery and diarrhea". In later years, his parents (apparently no longer married) both applied for his $12.00 a month Civil War pension.
The following was transcribed from the Bible record of William Austin Bozarth:
William Austin Bozarth, son of William & Rachel (Norcross) Bozarth born December 22, 1792 On November 11, 1818 he married Abigail Downs, daughter of Samuel Downs Abigail Downs who was born September 16, 1800 and died 19 Feb 1828.
Children:
I have heard it said that there was an Abel Austin Bozarth that worked at the mill at Batsto in the late 19th century. I have never seen this fellow on any of the censuses for Washington Township, although he could have lived outside of Batsto and just worked there. The man mentioned above lived in Mullica Township, right outside of Batsto, as late as 1860, but by 1880 he was in Trenton. An article from the Batsto Citizen's Gazzette places an Abel Austin Bozarth at Batsto in 1883, however. (The Batsto Citizens Gazette Vol XXVIII, No. 1 - Winter/Spring 1994). This article only cites "letters", presumably in the collection of Wharton papers at Batsto.. All it says about Bozarth is the following:
| In 1883, every effort was being made to increase the production of wood products at Batsto. The recent employment, by owner Joseph Wharton, of George Wright as manager at Batsto was meant to raise production and hence profits. Wright, who was apparently not knowledgeable about lumbering or sawmills, quickly began to improve the sawmill operation, leaning heavily on Batsto sawyer Abel Austin Bozarth for advice. Bozarth, a Millwright, earned the respect of Wright with his valuable advice on much needed new machinery for the sawmill. |
The article goes on to say:
"As quickly as possible, Wright and Bozarth upgraded the sawmill. They were looking for a joiner and a planer to improve
the products fo the mill and were also in the market looking for a new butting saw, another shingle saw, and a new edging saw.
Letters indicate that Bozarth was not satisfied with the first planer, as it was "too slow for our purpose". Another planer was
found and installed but correspondence notes that the machine was taken "on trial" and would not be paid for unless it proved
more satisfactory than the first one installed at the Batsto mill."
It is noteworthy that the article refers to George Wright several times, although it also refers to him as Elias as well. To my knowledge the manager of Batsto under Joseph Wharton was an Elias, not a George Wright. Small detail, I know, but it does make one doubt the writer's fact checking. However, it does seem likely that there was a Bozarth involved in sawing at the Batsto mill at that time; whether or not he is the same as the man above it still uncertain.
On a side note, this page has a nice photo of Elias Wright's headstone.
As for the possibility of Abel Austin Bozarth working at Batsto, a recent visitor to this site, Robert Bozarth, informs me that:
I noticed that you were unsure if Abel Austin Bozarth was the sawyer mentioned in the article in the Batsto Citizen's Gazette. I can't confirm that directly, but it does ring true. William Austin Bozarth operated the Bozarth Lumber Company in Williamsburg and owned timberlands throughout the South in the early twentieth century. Bozarth Lumber Company provided much of the lumber for the reconstruction of Colonial Williamsburg in the late 1920's and 1930's. As a child I was puzzled by the 8X10 photos of Williamsburg fences and benches that my father kept. They were projects that he worked on while in high school and college.
William Austin Bozarth married his second wife Rebecca Birkert Gant (a widow) daughter of John and Ruth Birkert on April 6, 1831. Children:
This page was last updated on February 16th, 2003