James Fulmer was born in Westmoreland county, Pennsylvania, June 12, 1810. When he was a year old his parents, Nicholas and Tenna Fulmer, came to this county and located near where he now lives, in South Bend township. He grew to manhood here, enjoying the limited educational and other advantages afforded at that time, and about the time he attained his majority, April 19, 1831, married Miss Sarah Smith, who was born November 5, 1806. She was the daughter of Michael and Elizabeth (Shidler) Smith, who were early settlers of South Bend township. They had eight children -- Jacob, Isaac, Michael, Abram, Conrad, Annie, Sarah and Margaret, of whom the first and the last named are dead.

 Mr. and Mrs. Fulmer were the parents of ten children, namely Labauna W., Silas, Diana, Sylvester, Ralston, George W., Elizabeth Jane, Teanan, Margaret and Robert S. These children are all living except Diana, George W. and Margaret.

During the first few years of their married life, Mr. and Mrs. Fulmer resided upon a rented farm in this township. The first eight years that they lived on their present farm it was leased. Mr. Fulmer then purchased 120 acres, and to that original farm he has added lands from time to time, until now he has about 350 acres, which is well improved.

When he bought his land it was all heavily timbered, and it has been cleared and brought to its present beautiful condition chiefly by his own hard labor. His progress from comparative poverty (if that state can be called poverty in which a man has health, energy and industry as capital) to his present independence has been slow but sure, the result of well-directed toil and thrift. Just after he bought his first 120 acres of land he built upon it a plain log cabin and a small stable. Twenty years afterward, when he had become able to do so through industry and economy, he erected his present homelike frame house and improved outbuildings. In the spring of 1878 Mr. Fulmer purchased the Maysville flouring and saw mill, which he carried on successfully for four years. He sold them, however, and now devotes his whole attention to farming.

Source: Page(s) 395, History of Armstrong County, Pennsylvania by Robert Walker Smith, Esq. Chicago: Waterman, Watkins & Co., 1883.
Transcribed June 2000 by James R. Hindman for the Armstrong County Smith Project.
Contributed by James R. Hindman for use by the Armstrong County Genealogy Project (http://www.pa-roots.com/armstrong/)

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