Surnames: Baird, Reeves, Porter, Ewing, DeBoisson
Robert Baird Sr was the eldest son of Moses Baird Sr of New Jersey and was born in the year 1756. He came to this county first in the year 1777, a young man, and bought the lands in the southeastern part of what is now Luzerne township and southwestern part of Redstone township, now owned by Jeremiah Baird, heirs of Uriah Higinbotham, Samuel M Baird and others, in all six hundred acres or more. He returned to New Jersey, married Miss Elizabeth Reeves and came back with his young bride, bringing their household goods on horseback over nearly three hundred miles. They had a good cabin near a large spring amidst the almost trackless wilderness of sugar, black walnut, oak, etc. He was an energetic man and soon had several acres cleared. His brothers an dsisters came after a few years, and afamily by the name of Frame who settled on the next farms south. His brothers John Baird, Moses Baird and James Baird soon married and moved to Ohio, and did also his younger sister. Moses Baird was the father of Mrs James Ewing of Uniontown. His sisters Jane Baird and Margaret Baird married Charles Porter and John Porter of this county. The
former was associate judge for many years.Robert Baird Sr and his wife were very industrious and frugal and raised a family of four sons and four daughters, all of whom married and raised large families. He was a man of true Christian merit and stood among the best of men in his day. His wife's brothers, Manassah Reeves and Michael Reeves, dame to Western Pennsylvania soon after and settled near to where Belle Vernon, Penna, now stands. Some of their descendants are in that section yet.
Mrs Elizabeth Baird died in 1826 and Robert Baird Sr married for his second wife, Mrs Sarah McClelland of Greene County, Penna. He lived until October 5, 1835,. His oldest son, Alexander Baird, inherited that part where the widow of Uriah Higinbotham now lives and where Samuel M Baird lives; his second son, Aaron Baird the part where Mr Grove now lives; and his son Moses Baird, where Jeremiah P Baird now lives. His youngest son, Rev Robert Baird DD was educated at Jefferson College, Jefferson, Penna, and at Princeton, New Jersey, where he married Miss Fermine O A De Boisson. Dr Baird was for a long time corresponding secretary of "The Foreign Christian Alliance," during which time he crossed the ocean fourteen times and visited eighteen different crowned heads. He could converse in many languages and was the author of several works. His "Travels in Northern Europe," "Religion in America " (written in French and afterwards translated into English), with many smaller works live after him. He died in 1861 leaving a wife, who died a year
afterwards, and four sons: Rev C W Baird DD of Rye, New York; Rev H M Baird DD, professor of Greek in New York University; Judge E P Baird of New York City; and William W Baird Esq of the same place. Among the descendants of Robert Baird Sr now living there are six ministers of teh
gospel, five ruling elders of the church, and many that are useful mechanics and farmers.