Miles Avery

Miles Avery was born December 28, 1791, at Tunkhannock, Pa. He was the eldest son of Cyrus Avery, who came from Norwich, Conn., to Pennsylvania about 1790, and there married Lydia Marcy, a daughter of Colonel Zebulon Marcy, whose father came from Dover, Dutchess county, N. Y., as early as 1770, with the Connecticut colony, and is said to have built the first cabin at Pittston, near Old Forge, in 1772. This claim he sold to Ebenezer, his brother, who came the same year to Tunkhannock, and aided in organizing Putnam township and allotting it to the Connecticut settlers. Zebulon raised here a family of eight children, all of whom became prominent. Prior to the Wyoming massacre he moved his family to Forty Fort, and there his daughter Sarah, who married John McCord, was born June 1, 1778, nine days before the slaughter of the settlers by the British and Indians. After this event the family returned to Dutchess county, N. Y., using a cow as a beast of burden, as well as a milk-giver during the journey. A few days before the massacre, while Marcy and a few others were scouting for British or Indians, an English Tory's wife discovered them, and called to her husband, "Shoot, Adam, shoot!" That worthy fired and struck a tobacco box in Marcy's pocket, which box is now in Porter Marcy's family at Tunkhannock. The return fire wounded Adam, and he died soon after. As soon as safety was insured Zebulon returned and settled on the farm where Porter Marcy resides, and resided there until his death, September 2, '31. After the marriage of Cyrus Avery and Lydia Marcy they settled on 500 acres at the confluence of the Tunkhannock and Susquehanna, on the south and east sides of the respective rivers; and later inclosed "Avery Mountain" On this farm all their children were born — Miles, December 28, 1791; Zebulon, May 12, 1793; Zebulon (second), July 7, 1791; Solomon, July 28, 1796; Nicholas, September 19, 1797; Jerusha, December 3, 1798; Sally, February 5, 1801; Cyrus H., November 11, '05; Humphrey, November 14,'05; Lydia, March 5, 'O8; Abel M., July 29, '11; Punderson, July 31,'14, and Joseph O., June 9, '17. Miles Avery married Elizabeth, daughter of Jonathan Smith, July 26, '12. He died April 28, '48, and his wife followed him May 16, '49, both being buried in Cyrus Avery's cemetery at Tunkhannock. After their marriage they bought of Joseph and Samuel Dailey 196 acres in Falls township, Wyoming county, Pa., six miles south of the mouth of the Tunkhannock on the east side of the Susquehanna, where their twelve children were raised. He was a farmer, but speculated in lumber, work cattle and real estate, at one time owning over 5,000 acres in the county and also a saw mill and foundry at La Grange. At the age of sixteen he joined a military company, and held every office from corporal to brigade inspector, the latter for seven years; was commissioned justice of peace by Governor Ritner and served twelve years, and was generally known as "Colonel" or "'Squire" Avery. The children of Miles Avery are named as follows: Lydia Ann, born May 1, '13; Ziporah, October 28, '14, died at Neponset, Ill.; Solomon, September 8, '16, died April 6, '39; Esther, May 17, '18, died July 30, '83, at South Eaton, Pa.; Major Cyrus, March 8, '21 ; Miles, June 3, '23, died October 10, '84; Humphrey, July 4, '25, a resident of Penn township; Elizabeth, May 15, '27, died July 24, '29; Samuel G., May 3, '29; Hannah, November 4, '32, died November 14, '32, and Courtney, July 18, '34, died May '13, '36.