James W. Hopkinson

JAMES W. HOPKINSON. The paternal great-grandfather of James W. Hopkinson, of Sutersville, was William Hopkinson, a man of wealth and influence in Derbyshire, England, where he was the proprietor of an inn and the owner of extensive farm lands. His son, also William Hopkinson, was a native of Derbyshire, and married Ann Bracknell, born in Nottinghamshire, which was also the birthplace of their son, James Hopkinson, in 1826. He was reared on the farm and educated in the public schools, afterward taking up the study of veterinary surgery and becoming one of the best known veterinarians in that part of England, having charge of many of the royal stables. He belonged to the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and was for many years an active worker and officer in the Plymouth Methodist Episcopal church.. James Hopkinson married Ann H., born in 1827, daughter of John and Ann Horsepool, of Calverton, Nottinghamshire, where the former was a prosperous manufacturing confectioner. He and his wife were the parents of two sons, John and Thomas, who were in the marine service of the British army. The deaths of both were the result of wounds, and their bravery met with recognition from the government. John is buried at Bengal, and Thomas in the Ascension Islands, Africa. Of the nine children born to Mr. and Mrs. Hopkinson six survive: John T., of Gratztown; Sarah, of Nottinghamshire, England; James W., mentioned hereafter; William, of Gratztown; Thomas, of Nottinghamshire; and Samuel, associated in business with James W. Mrs. Hopkinson, the mother, only surviving member of her family, resides in Hucknall Toakard, Nottinghamshire. The death of the father occurred in 1898.

James W. Hopkinson, son of James and Ann H. (Horsepool) Hopkinson, was born April 16, 1863, in Calverton, Nottinghamshire, and received his education in the common schools and at boarding schools. His father wished him to go to college, but the youth himself was not inclined to it, and having begun work in the brickyards learned the arts of making and burning bricks. At the age of nineteen he went to work in the mines, where one year later he successfully engaged in contracting. In 1887 he emigrated to the United States, landing on June 6 in Philadelphia, whence he proceeded to Gratztown, where he became a contractor for the Penn Gas Coal Company. He gained the good will of the workingmen, became a power in the coal mines union and for years was state delegate for the mines. He was one of the first members of the Widows' and Orphans' relief committee of the Mines Union of Great Britain. His influence with the miners caused him to be laid off by the coal operators, and in 1893 he became manager of the store at Blackburn owned by Thomas A. Sprague, of Pittsburg. For two years he retained this position, and in 1895 engaged in business for himself in Sutersville. In 1900 he opened the Brown Hotel, which he has since successfully conducted. He belongs to the Knights of Pythias, the Mystic Chain, and the Sons of St. George, supports and advocates the principles and candidates endorsed by the Democratic party, and is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. Mr. Hopkinson married, July 28, 1890, Mary, daughter of George Leah, of Gratztown, now of Greensburg, and five children have been born to them, three of whom are living: James, Amy Ruth, and Ann H.

Source: History of Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, Volume II, by John N. Boucher. New York, The Lewis Publishing Company, 1906, Page 292-3.
Transcribed by Carol C. Eddleman for the Westmoreland County History Project.
Contributed for use by the Westmoreland County Genealogy Project (http://www.pa-roots.com/westmoreland/)

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