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	HISTORY OF CAMBRIA COUNTY.	479
mained six or seven years. In 1839 he settled on a farm one mile west of Mineral Point, on which he passed the residue of his days, living at the viaduct and working on the farm. He engaged largely in contracting. He was a Democrat and a Roman Catholic. Mr. Bracken married, before coming to this country, Mary Coughlin, and the following children were born to them: 1. Bridget, wife of John Eagen. 2. Maria., wife of Thomas McCabe. 3. Margaret, single. 4. Catharine, wife of John T. Cooney. 5. Patrick, married Maria Brayden, had three children: Joseph, Walter, and Mary, wife of John Fleming. 6. Bernard, single, lived at Conemaugh and Johnstown, and died at Gallitzin. 7. Michael, of whom later. Mrs. Bracken died in 1844. Like her husband, she was a member of the Roman Catholic church. The death of Mr. Bracken occurred in 1863.     Michael Bracken, son of Michael and Mary (Coughlin) Bracken, was reared on the homestead and educated in the common schools. In 1852 he contracted for laying rails on the new Portage railroad. In 1855 he engaged in the lumber business in Conemaugh township, and in 1864 moved to Gallitzin township, carrying on the business there and in Allegheny township. He furnished the lumber for and built nearly one-half the houses of his borough, and also erected the fire-brick school house and the opera house. He leased large tracts of timber and by means of his portable saw mill manufactured all the lumber he handled. He built one mill at Cress Spring and another at High Bridge, and during the time that he was engaged in the business had four saw mills and one planing mill destroyed by fire. From 1885 to 1895 he conducted a general store in Gallitzin. In 1903 he retired from the lumber business. In 1889 he was the chief mover in the organization of the Gallitzin Water Company, in which he was the largest stockholder. For twelve years he served as councilman and for thirteen years as school director. The Democratic party receives his vote and influence and he is a member of the Roman Catholic church.     Mr. Bracken married, in 1866, Louisa, daughter of Martin Christie, of Blair county, and they have been the parents of the following children: 1. Francis B., born January 29, 1869. 2. James H., born October 28, 1870, married Margaret McNeal, has one child: Louisa. 3. William C., born June 5, 1872, single, at home. 4. Joseph L., born May 22, 1874, died at the acre of two years. 5. John P., born December 5, 1875, married Elizabeth Paul, of Carnegie, has one child, Mary P. 6. Paul, born September 18, 1877, married Sarah Bick, has one child, Haden. 7. Michael J., born February 26, 1879, single, at home. 8. Lewis C., born December 13, 1880, killed by the cars at twelve years of age. The mother of these children died in 1881, and in 1891 Mr. Bracken married Anna Storm.     WILLIAM R. KIRBY, proprietor of a flourishing general store in Summer Hill, Cambria county, Pennsylvania, traces his ancestry to Ireland, and is a member of a family which has been prominently identified with the public affairs of the district for several generations.     John Kirby, Grandfather of William R. Kirby, and of the first generation to settle in this country, emigrated from Ireland about 1850 and settled in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, where he established a wholesale and retail flour and feed business. He took an active and intelligent interest in the affairs of the township, was elected county commissioner, and served three terms very acceptably. He raised the following-named children: Patrick F., of whom later; Thomas; Polly; William, who, with his wife,

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