JUDGE WILLIAM PIATT, eldest son of John Piatt, III and Elizabeth Cline, was one of the representative men of the Brady Township, PA. He was born on January 29, 1795, and died, January 6, 1876. His father, John Piatt, III came from New Jersey. He was a tanner by trade and followed that business until the close of his life. William Piatt learned the trade with his father and followed it during his lifetime. He prospered with just five months of formal education. When he grew to manhood he took much interest in politics. In 1830 he was elected a member of Assembly, and again in 1832 and 1833. In 1855 he was chosen an associate judge and served a full term of five years. In addition to these offices, he at one time was elected county auditor, was president of the Loyalsock Turnpike Company and was president of the Uniontown Bridge Company. Judge Piatt was married three times. His first wife was Hannah, daughter of Sheriff John Brady. By this marriage he had four sons and three daughters. McCall, one of the sons, resided on the old homestead, which was one of the finest in the township. Mrs. Piatt died, April 26, 1847. His second wife was Lucy C. Oakes, whom he married in 1849. She died, September 15, 1860, and September 10, 1862, he married Sarah Oakes, a cousin to his second wife. Judge Piatt lived and died on the farm where he was born. Near the spot where their first house or log cabin was erected stands an old apple tree with decaying trunk and gnarled branches, that was planted by his father. In 1891 it bore a fair crop, which was gathered by McCall C. Piatt; Find A Grave Memorial #107080897, grandson of him who planted it (John Piatt, III). Although no such stirring events as those under the famous apple tree at Appomattox have occurred beneath its shade, it is undoubtedly older. Indeed there is little doubt that it is the oldest tree of the kind in the county. Judge William Piatt was also involved in the Watsontown Bridge Company and was very active in the old Presbyterian Church. He engaged the Rev. Isaac Grier, Sr., to preach to the congregation. Judge Piatt also had a taste for the military and he raised the first troop of horse in Lycoming County and served as captain for more than twenty years.It was called the First Lycoming Troop, and an act approved April 18, 1843, authorized the Adjutant General to furnish the "Lycoming Dragoons, a volunteer company of cavalry, with holsters, pistols, sabers, and belts." Training days for the militia which occurred twice a year were great events and the talk of the country side for miles around. He was later commissioned Major in the Pennsylvania Militia. Some of Judge Piatt's children migrated to Tipton, Iowa, in search of greener pastures, and their letters home are quite pathetic with accounts of their struggles in a new and unsettled land. One son reported that interest rates ran as high as 25%, although he was only paying 12%, when his father came to his rescue with a nice 6% mortgage. When Judge Piatt died he was buried in a private lot, which he had selected on a high knoll, in one of his own fields, overlooking the country for miles around. By his side are also buried several members of his own family. The outlook from his tomb is exceedingly grand the winding river and the receding hills are seen in the distance; in the foreground appear the well tilled fields and neat buildings of the ancestral estate, while at the base of the hill is Road Hall, the old time inn, and the home of the late William Sedam. It is now within the boundaries of the Susquehanna Ordnance Works, surrounded by a high stone wall, and marked by two tall cedar trees bent with the winds of many a year. Unless they have lately blown or been cut down they can still be seen by the motorist as he journeys along Route 15. By his side rest several members of his immediate family. Piatt Township, Lycoming County, PA is named in honor of Judge William Piatt. According to the Lycoming Law Association Historical Sketch, "John Piatt, Jr., the father of Judge William Piatt, was the son of John Piatt, Sr. John Piatt, Sr. was born at Six Mile Run on July, 1740. He married Jane Williamson and had three sons, John, Jacob and William and three daughters, Catherine, Frances and Jane. John Jr. first moved his family to Northumberland County, near Milton, and then to White Deer Valley. He was a boot and shoe manufacturer while in New Brunswick, NJ. He died at a town laid out by the Piatt family now divided by U. S. Route 15, in Brady Township, in 1819, and is buried in the old Presbyterian graveyard now known as the Stone Church, the Christ Lutheran Stone Church Cemetery in Allenwood, Lycoming County. This was included later in the tract taken over by the U. S. Government as a part of the Susquehanna Ordnance Works. The Stone Church was sold to the Lutherans and Reformeds between 1830-40, when the Presbyterians built the Washington Presbyterian Church and Cemetery at Allenwood. The Christ Lutheran Stone Church Cemetery at Allenwood is one of the oldest in the county and contains the remains of many pioneers who died before and after the Revolution. John Piat, IV (1793-1828), the son of John Piatt, III, is also buried at the Christ Lutheran Stone Church Cemetery in Allenwood, Lycoming County, Pennsylvania.
SOURCES:
Angelfire
Lycoming Law Association
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28 Nov 2022, contributor 46845672 shared birth location of Washington Township (Brady Township was formed from Washington Township on 31 Jan 1855), Lycoming County, PA. In addition, suggested edit included changing his location of death from 'Lycoming County, PA' to White Deer Township, Union County, PA' (White Deer Township is bordered by Lycoming County).
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