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Third Generation
24. Coombs
ACKLEY was born on 17 Jan 1828 in Salem, Cumberland , New Jersey.1,15,40,41,47,53,54,72
LDS also list JUN as month of birth
Grave records has year as 1825 On 14 Jun 1860 he was Sawyer at Pittsgrove, Salem
, New Jersey.47 He was living
between 1860 and 1920 in Pittsgrove, Salem , New Jersey.15,40,47,53 On 27 Jul
1870 he was a farmer at Pittsgrove, Salem , New Jersey.15 On 24 Jun 1880 he was a lumber dealer at Pittsgrove,
Salem , New Jersey.40 On
20 Jan 1920 he was Retired Lumberman at Pittsgrove, Salem , New Jersey.72 He died about 1922.17,41,54 He was buried in Union Grove Cemetery, Almond Road,
Pittsgrove, Salem , New Jersey.17,41 He appeared in the census 1860,1870,1880,
1900 & 1920 in New Jersey. Biography of73 Coombs Ackley Coombs Ackley resides at Ackley's mill,
formerly known as Parvin's mill, near Centerton, Salem County, and is one of
the most highly respected and popular men of this section. He was born in January,
1828, in a log house near the Maurice River, the eleventh family of fourteen
children. His parents were Uriah and Sarah (Coombs) Ackley, who were among the
first settlers of this locality. Uriah, of sturdy Scotch ancestry, bought, in
1815, about one hundred and fifty acres of timber land and swamp at the junction
of the Maurice river and Muddy run. Here he built a substantial log house for
his family and began clearing his land, cutting large quantities of lumber, hoop-poles
and wood. He found a ready market for this produce in Millville and Bridgeton,
whence it was shipped. Another industry, that demanded a great deal of labor,
was the burning of charcoal on the adjoining land, known as the Cumberland Coaling,
the present site of Vineland, the coal produced being used in the Millville furnance.
In a few years good crops of corn, rye and grass were growing on the cleared
land, and large numbers of cattle, sheep and hogs were raised. These ran at large
during the summer season, thus procuring their own living during a part of the
year. Deer, rabbits and foxes were abundant and an occasional bear was seen,
all of which made fine sport for the gunner. By industry and perserverance Mr.
Ackley was soon in good circumstance and prospered as the years passed. He enjoyed
the confidence of the community in which he lived, was at one time a freeholder
and held other township offices. With the assistance of a few neighbors, a schoolhouse
was built and a teacher hired for three months or a quarter of the year. Here
religious services were held every Sunday, and when the Cumberland circuit was
formed an itinerant minister preached for the people on a weekday once in two
weeks. Uriah Ackley was also a local minister of the Methodist Episcopal chuech,
taking a strong stand against the liquor traffic. His labors called him to different
parts of Cumberlans, Cape May and Salem counties, where he was widely known and
beloved. He died in 1854, at the age of seventy-four years. Sarah Coombs, his
wife, was the daughter of Joshua Coombs, of the vicinity of Millville and of
a family widely known and respected. She was quiet and gentle in manner, a true
mother and helpmeet. She died in 1879, at the advanced age of eighty-seven years.
There were born to Uriah and Sarah Ackley fourteen children, seven sons and seven
daughters, all of whom lived to the years of maturity and were married. The deceased
are Samuel, who died at the age of eighty years; William at the age of eighty-six
years; Joseph, at the age of eighty years, Rachel, at the age of sixty-eight
years; Hannah at the age of seventy-seven years; Jane, at the age of forty-five
years; and Sarah at the age of seventy years. The seven still living are Ann,
aged eighty-one; Mary, seventy-nine; John, seventy-seven; Jessie, seventy-five;
Coombs, seventy-two; Ruth, seventy; and George, sixty-five, making an average
of the children a little more than seventy-three years. The descendants reaching
the fourth generation are well scattered over southern New Jersey, and many have
gone to other states. Coombs Ackley received in the public school what education
he obtained, and assisted his father in the farm until 1849, when he was married
to Miss Jane Parvin, now deceased, a daughter of Lemuel Parvin, then the owner
of the mill property. The next year he began work for his father-in-law in the
sawmill, and continued in his employ for seventeen years, or until 1867, when
he purchased the mill property of one hundred and fifty acres. The work done
in the mill at that time was with the old "up-and-down" (vertical)
saw; and though the work was done more slowly than in these days of circular
saws there was a ready market for all kinds of lumber and it brought good prices,
so that the property was paid for in a few years; and from seven to eight hundred
acres have been added, seventy acres being used for farming. The pond or lake
situated on Muddy run covers an area of one hundred acres or more, and is one
of the prettiest bodies of water in south Jersey. It has become a popular resort
of Sunday-school and lodge picnics, as it is where a quiet, restful day is sought
in the woods and where boating is a favorite pastime. Coombs and Jane Ackley
had five children, four of whom are still living. Their names are William, deceased;
Christianna P.; Sarah J.; Emma S,; and Ida P. In politics Coombs Ackley is a
Democrat. He served the county as a freedolder in 1863-4-5, during the civil
war, when large sums of money had to be raised for bounty. He has also served
at various times as a member of the township committee and commissioner of appeals,
is quiet and unassuming in manner, never seeking office or popularity. He is
a trustee and steward of the Union Grove Methodist Episcopal church, of which
he is an honored member and liberal contributor, always interested in the promotion
of any good work and held in respect and esteem by his neighbors and many friends.
Coombs ACKLEY and Jane PARVIN were married.1,15,17,40,41,47,74,75 Jane
PARVIN (daughter of Lemuel PARVIN and Living) was born on 26 Feb 1828 in
New Jersey.15,40,41,47,54 She died
on 31 Oct 1893.17,41,54 She was
buried in Union Grove Cemetery, Almond Road, Pittsgrove, Salem , New Jersey.17,41
She appeared in the census 1860, 1870 & 1880 in New Jersey. Coombs
ACKLEY and Jane PARVIN had the following children:
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