Hiram A. Voorus and Melvina L. Watson

---

---

Husband Hiram A. Voorus ¹

---

           Born: Dec 1856 - near Syracuse, Onondaga Co, NY 2
     Christened: 
           Died: 
         Buried: 

---

         Father: Andrew Voorus (      -      ) 2
         Mother: Hannah Tibbits (      -      ) 2

---

       Marriage: 1886 2

---

---

Wife Melvina L. Watson ³

---

           Born: 
     Christened: 
           Died: 
         Buried: 

---

         Father: Robert Watson (1845-1907) 4
         Mother: Delilah Spangler (      -      ) 4

---

---

Children

---

1 M Grover Archie Voorus ²

---

           Born: 
     Christened: 
           Died: 
         Buried: 

---

2 F Lena B. Voorus ²

---

           Born: 
     Christened: 
           Died: 
         Buried: 

---

3 M Robert A. Voorus ²

---

           Born: 
     Christened: 
           Died: 
         Buried: 

---

4 F Bessie B. Voorus ²

---

           Born: 
     Christened: 
           Died: 
         Buried: 

---

5 F Blanche Voorus ²

---

           Born: 
     Christened: 
           Died: 
         Buried: 

---

6 F Dorothy Voorus ²

---

           Born: 
     Christened: 
           Died: 
         Buried: 

---

7 F Elizabeth Voorus ²

---

           Born: 
     Christened: 
           Died: 
         Buried: 

---

8 M Marion Milton Voorus ²

---

           Born: 
     Christened: 
           Died: 
         Buried: 

---

9 M Philip Voorus ²

---

           Born: 
     Christened: 
           Died: 
         Buried: 

---

---

General Notes: Husband - Hiram A. Voorus

---

He became interested in the Venango County area of Pennsylvania through Mr. Beebe, his uncle, who visited his people in New York. Accordingly he came to Pleasantville when a young man, and having been brought up in a region famous for its rich farms and dairy stock he was asked by Mr. Beebe to instruct the latter's tenant in the care of stock, for which his thorough early training well qualified him. His efforts were successful, the ten­ant accepting the new ideas and adapting them to the great satisfaction of Mr. Beebe. Mr. Voorus was engaged in farm work there for several months, returning to New York to assist his father, and remaining at his old home for a year and a half. He had decided to secure a tract of land in Venango County, being influenced largely by the attitude of the local papers, who declared that with proper handling all the territory could be made to yield oil in paying quantities, even though there was a sentiment in some quarters that it had been drained out. So upon his return to the county he obtained one hundred acres, paying from eight to twelve dollars an acre for the place, which to many did not look particularly promising. There were some old oil wells on it, abandoned, and the most valuable timber had been taken off, and as it was his desire to improve it for agricultural purposes he began to clear off the brush. As he had no capital to finance his labors, he made his living mostly by teaming for several years, hauling oil, giving up outside work as the returns from his land increased sufficiently to make it worth while to devote all his time to it. He had valuable farm experience in his youth, and found plenty of need for it in his independent work, but he went farther and kept in touch with the newest methods evolved in experiments by scientific agriculturists, especially at State College, whose activities were a great assistance in his work. Some of his neighbors thought he was wasting his time trying to make a productive farm out of “sand,” but he had faith in its properties, and by having the soil analyzed and using proper fertilizer he soon proved that abundant crops were possible under skillful cultivation. He added to his area as prosperity enabled him to do so, eventually having two hundred acres, one half of which was cleared and about sixty acres under close cultivation. The main part was located advantageously, and its sandy loam soon was second to none in Venango County in fertility, while in attractive arrangement, buildings, etc., it compares favorably with the most desirable farm properties in that section of Pennsylvania. He built a new house, and his barn was commodious, modern and well kept up, equipped in up-to-date style and furnished with a silo of proper dimensions for the quantity of stock which he kept regularly.
Mr. Voorus made a specialty of stock, and gave much attention to the improvement of cattle, with such excellent results that few herds of the same size anywhere surpassed his in milk yield. He always had enough stock to utilize all the hay and grains raised on the land, an economical arrangement which made it unnecessary for him to market many of his valuable crops, his profits coming from the dairy products, for which there was always ready sale. His hogs were the Ohio Improved Chester strain.
When he felt that he could spare money for the venture he began to drill for oil, in that as in his agricultural operations following scientific knowledge of the territory he had to deal with. He made a careful study of local geological formations before he entered into this work, and was well repaid for the time he spent in that way, having a profit­able yield from every well sunk on his property. [HVC 1919, 1006]

1 Charles A. Babcock, Venango County, Pennsylvania, Her Pioneers and People (Chicago, IL: J. H. Beers & Co., 1919), Pg 1005.

2 Charles A. Babcock, Venango County, Pennsylvania, Her Pioneers and People (Chicago, IL: J. H. Beers & Co., 1919), Pg 1006.

3 Charles A. Babcock, Venango County, Pennsylvania, Her Pioneers and People (Chicago, IL: J. H. Beers & Co., 1919), Pg 1038.

4 Charles A. Babcock, Venango County, Pennsylvania, Her Pioneers and People (Chicago, IL: J. H. Beers & Co., 1919), Pg 1037.