Minnie Sara Curry Cummins' Letter to Richard Wallace Cole, July 1947

(Copy of letter from M.S. Cummins to R.W. Cole, July 1947)

    There is a tradition that the family started in France.
According to the tradition Sir Philip de Comyn moved from
France to Ireland, and his descendents moved to Scotland.
The settled first in York County, later Huntingdon County,
Pennsylvania.  Your great grandfather Cyrus Cummins was born
in York County.  I am not sure whether he was the eldest.
He had brothers named Robert and Sterrett.  His mother's maiden
name before marriage was Sterrett.  There were at least two
sisters--Nancy, who married a Mr. Wilson; and Mary, whose
married name I cannot remember.
    Cyrus, like the prodigal son, asked that he might be
given his portion of this world's goods that he might seek
an education leading to the ministry.  He came to Jefferson
College in Canonsburg.  (Jefferson College merged with Washington
College to become Washington and Jefferson College about 1868.)
After his college course he went to Xenia, Ohio for theological
training.  There he met Nancy Collins, whom he married.  He
had two ministerial charges in Ohio.  The first was at Caesar's
Creek; the second, at Jamestown, Ohio.  All the children were
born in Ohio.  Your grandfather Robert and his younger brother
John were born at Jamestown.  I believe that Archibald and Mary,
the eldest, were born at Caesar's Creek.  From Ohio he came
to Mount Jackson, Pennsylvania, early in the Civil War.  He
was pastor to the U.P. congregation there and later at Bethel
near West Middlesex.  He retired and died in the fall of 1887.
Mary lived with Grandmother until the latter's death in 1920
and died in the same house in December 1925.
    Archie started out on his own career at the age of fourteen,
if I have it correctly.  He worked for the Packard Company in
Greenville, who kept a large general store--merchandise, farm
implements, etc.  I believe that Uncle Archie was on an express
route from Greenville to Erie for a short time.  He then went
to live with his Aunt and uncle who lived in Allegheny(now
Northside) in Pittsburgh.  They were Colonel J.B. Clark and
Lydia Collins Clark.  Col. Clark was pastor of an Allegheny
U.P. church but had enlisted in the Civil War.  While staying
with the Clarks he entered Newell Institute, Penn Avenue,
Pittsburgh and later the law office of the Bell brothers.
He studied with Professor Lewis Bradley, of whom you have
heard.  he was at the Allegheny Observatory.  About the time
Uncle Archie and my sister Annie were married, Bradley resigned
from the observatory and went to Michigan to start a fruit
farm.  For some reason Bradley's farm was not a success, and
Uncle Archie advanced him money at times.  At his heath Bradley
bequeathed his astronomical possessions.  You have the telescope
and some of the books.  there were a planisphere, a celestial
globe, and many books.  Many of the books went to Caryswood in
Virginia.  My sister Annie died in 1899.  In 1903 he married
Anna Williams of Lynchburg, who is still living at Caryswood
near your Uncle Alden's farm on the Shanandoah River.

    To continue the sketch of the Cummins family: Your
grandfather Robert Wallace--like the others born in Jamestown,
Ohio, came into Pennsylvania with his family at about the
age of six.  He lived a happy, active childhood in Mt. Jackson,
near New Castle.  He went to the public schools.  Having a
mechanical taste, he, with some of his companions, built
shacks, wagons, and other things.  They swam in Hickory
Creek.  They cut down young hickory trees and steamed the
wood to make wagon wheels.  He and "the boys" seemed to have
very good times.
    His father then accepted a church at Bethel about three
miles from the We4st Middlesex railroad station, which had
more accommodations then than now.  The family had a find,
handsome horse called Morgan, which was of the Morgan breed
from Vermont.  Morgan was a great standby in the family.  He
was used for clerical visits.  Aunt Mary, Robert, and John
all used him.  At that time Archie was no longer at home but
living in Pittsburgh.  There is still in 1946 a dilapidated
store building at Bethel in which Robert and John served as
clerks.  They also worked at a saw mill in the neighborhood.
    At the age of 17 or 18 your grandfather Robert came to
Pittsburgh.  His brother Archie by this time was a full-fledged
lawyer.  (I shall hereafter refer to your grandfather as Robert
and his brothers as Archie and John.)  On coming to Pittsburgh
Robert began tutoring with Professor Bradley (Latin, geometry,
history).  He also did clerical work in his brother's office--
taking documents to the court house to be entered, learning
to examine titles of properties.  They boarded at a rather
nice place in Hazelwood, out on the B. and O. railroad.  In
the meantime Archie was very interested in my sister Annie
in McKeesport, 10 or 11 miles further south on the B. and O.
After a few years they were married.  They lived at the Bingler
house in Hazelwood.  As there was no school in McKeesport
for me to go to, it was arranged that I also should live wit
them and enter the Pittsburgh High School.  After finishing
there I went to school at Hollidaysburg.  In the meantime your
grandfather had been admitted to the Allegheny County Bar.
Soon there came a financial break.  As funds were far from
abundant, Robert went to the Laughlin steel mill below
Hazelwood, later going to the steel works in Braddock, of
which you have heard.  He remained there less than two years.
Affairs began looking up.  Archie became greatly interested
in coal lands and geology.  Robert went into H.A. Miller's
office as an assistant.  He stayed there until he was offered
a position with the Forest Oil Company.  That was not until
after we were married.  The Forest Oil Company was purchased
by the South Penn Oil Company, a subsidiary of Standard Oil.
At the time of his death he was secretary or legal vice
president of South Penn Oil.
    While working for S.P.O. he traveled rather extensively.

He went annually to Kansas, since the Prairie Oil Company
was a subsidiary of the S.P.O.  He often went to Kentucky,
because that company was also an adjunct.  These various
subsidiaries of Standard Oil were all separated by the government
during Theodore Roosevelt's administration.  However, they
made more profit after the dissolution that before.  John
became an engineer for the S.P.O. and went to Lexington,
Kentucky.  Although he was the youngest of the family, he
died first, of a heart affliction after having gone to a fire in Lexington.

                                         (signed)
                                         (Minnie Sara Cummins)