Major John ZENTMYER

1808 - 1891  (82 years)

• Name	John ZENTMYER
  Title	Major
  Birth	24 Mar 1808	Washington County, Maryland
  Gender	Male
  Death	13 Mar 1891	Porter Twp., Huntingdon Co., Pennsylvania
  Burial	Alexandria Presbyterian Cemetery, Alexandria, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania
  Notes	From various sources he have good data that John was quite the entrepreneur. He farmed, bought and sold logs, and mined iron ore, having located his residences near the Springfield Furnace, Huntingdon Furnace, and the Juniata Iron Works, early blast furnaces in Huntingdon County. "John Zentmyer was born in Franklin County, Pa., near the South Mountains, not far from Pen Mar, about 1806. (probably 1808 -Ed) In 1831 he went to Springfield Furnace, Blair County, (actually Huntingdon County, Blair County was not formed until 1846 -Ed) where he remained for some time, (four years -Ed) after which he moved to Spruce Creek valley to the farm now owned by the heirs of Robert L. Henderson. He then rented one of the farms of the Huntingdon Furnace Company, and in 1866 bought a farm in Porter township, Huntingdon county, where he resided until his death." -Commemorative Biographical Encyclopedia of the Juniata Valley: Comprising the Counties of Huntingdon, Mifflin, Juniata and Perry, Pennsylvania, Containing Sketches of Prominent and Representative Citizens and Many of the Early Settlers. Chambersburg, Pa.: J. M. Runk & Co., 1897, pages 118-119. "He was well known as Major Zentmyer, having held that rank in the State militia. He married Margaret Gates, of Blair county, (see Blair Co. note above -Ed) who died about 1889. Mr. Zentmyer died in 1891; he and his wife are buried in a small graveyard on the farm." (However, there are currently no Zentmyer headstones in the farm cemetery, now called the Huyett Cemetery. The headstones are located in the Alexandria Presbyterian Cemetery, indicating a likely relocation of the graves. -Ed) "Their children are: Isabella, wife of David Kinch, of Altoona; David; (who died at the Battle of Fredricksburg -Ed) Frank, enlisted in Company I, Fifth Pennsylvania Reserves, was wounded at Fredericksburg, and died in Libby Prison; Priscilla, wife of E. C. Kinch, resides near Altoona; Porter, secretary and treasurer of the Clearfield Manufacturing Company; Miles, attorney in Schuyler, Neb.; Margaret, wife of David C. Stine, Bellefonte, Pa.; John W., insurance solicitor, resides in Blair county; Benjamin, on the homestead; and George, who died young." - article provided by Dante Hebert, Kingston, Washington "After a brief illness, Major John Zentmyer died on Wednesday evening at his home in Hartzlog [sic] Valley, Potter township, Huntingdon county. While the deceased had not resided in Blair county for some years past, yet he was well known throughout the county and especially among the older citizens. Born near Williamsport, Md., March 24, 1808, he came to what is now Blair, but was then Huntingdon county, in the year 1832, settling at Springfield Furnace. There in the same year he was married to Margaret Gates, who preceded him to the tomb some three years, after a long and happy married life. Major Zentmyer's death was sudden, for he had been always very strong in health. Some ten days ago, however, he contracted a heavy cold, which resulted in typhoid pneumonia, and this disease was the cause of his demise. He removed from this county to Hartslog Valley in 1866. To Mr. and Mrs. Zentmyer, nine children were born. The living children are: Isabella, wife of David Kinch, of Altoona; Priscilla, wife of E. C. Kinch, of Sinking Valley; Maggie, wife of D. C. Stone, of Bellefonte; Miles Zentmyer, esq., an attorney of Schuyler, Neb.; Porter R., superintendent of the Clearfield Creek Coal company, Madera, Pa., and John and Benjamin, residing on the old homestead. In politics Major Zentmyer was a staunch democrat and during the war was a candidate on that ticket in Huntingdon county for the legislature. He was not successful, however. In religion he was a Reformed and was a member of the church at Alexandria. Funeral will take place at noon to-day and the interment will be in the family burying ground on the farm." Morning Tribune, Altoona, Pa., Friday, March 13, 1891 It is almost certain that John Zentmyer knew Alfred Crewitt, whose daughter Jane would marry John's son Miles in Huntingdon, as they both worked in the iron industry in Huntingdon County and were both Presbyterians. Webmaster Gary Zentmyer
  Person ID	I1856	Zentmeyer Main Tree
  Last Modified	10 Jan 2026

  
  

  Father	David ZENTMYER,   b. 28 Dec 1781, Cumberland Twp, York Co., Pennsylvania d. 27 Jan 1867, Hagerstown, Washington Co., Maryland (Age 85 years)
  Mother	Eve Ann WELTY,   b. 21 Jul 1782   d. 1 Aug 1858 (Age 76 years)
  Marriage	23 Jul 1803	Leitersburg, Washington Co., Maryland
  Family ID	F282	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Margaret GATES,   b. 28 Mar 1810, Pricetown, Berks, Pennsylvania d. 14 Jul 1888, Alexandria, Porter Twp., Huntingdon, Pennsylvania (Age 78 years)
  Marriage	29 Mar 1832
  Children	+ 1. Isabella ZENTMYER,   b. 17 Jun 1833, Springfield Furnace, Franklin, Huntingdon, Pennsylvana d. 11 Jan 1923, Altoona, Blair, Pennsylvania (Age 89 years)   2. David ZENTMYER,   b. 7 May 1835, Springfield Furnace, Franklin, Huntingdon, Pennsylvana d. 13 Dec 1862, Fredericksburg, Virginia (Age 27 years)   3. Major Franklin ZENTMYER,   b. 13 Sep 1836, Spruce Creek, Franklin, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania d. 27 or 31 Dec 1862, Libby Prison, Richmond, Virginia (Age 26 years) + 4. Priscilla M. ZENTMYER,   b. 20 Dec 1838, Spruce Creek, Franklin, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania d. 9 Mar 1909, Juniata, Blair, Pennsylvania (Age 70 years) + 5. Porter B. ZENTMYER,   b. 11 Aug 1840, Spruce Creek, Franklin, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania d. 9 Jun 1919, Clearfield, Clearfield, Pennsylvania (Age 78 years) + 6. Miles ZENTMYER,   b. 25 Jun 1842, Spruce Creek, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania d. 18 Sep 1911, Schuyler, Colfax, Nebraska (pronounced 'Skyler') (Age 69 years)   7. Margaret Odessa ZENTMYER,   b. 11 May 1845, Spruce Creek, Franklin, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania d. 17 Jul 1930, Altoona, Blair, Pennsylvania (Age 85 years)   8. John ZENTMYER,   b. 11 Jul 1848, Spruce Creek, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania d. 21 Apr 1932, Lewiston, Mifflin, Pennsylvania (Age 83 years) + 9. Benjamin ZENTMYER,   b. 5 Sep 1850, Spruce Creek, Franklin, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania d. 29 Jun 1925, Huntingdon, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania (Age 74 years)   10. George ZENTMYER,   b. 1852, Spruce Creek, Franklin, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania d. Bef. 1870 (Age 18 years)
  Family ID	F290	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	4 May 2015

  
  

• Photos » Slide Show		Springfield Furnace Since John and Margaret lived at Springfield Furnace, a company town, John likely worked in iron production there, a business he would continue to be involved with throughout his life. Image by Gary Zentmyer
  		Springfield Furnace today The actual blast furnace is all that remains of the iron ore operation, although the Royer Mansion is intact and is now owned by the Blair County Historical Society. Image by Gary Zentmyer
  		Spruce Creek, Pennsylvania Miles Zentmyer's birthplace is listed as Spruce Creek, although at the time the family was living a short distance away from town on a farm owned by the Huntingdon Furnace Co.
  		Article attesting to John's offspring's literary talent 1860
  		Newspaper Item From 1863 The year was 1863, and the nation was in the midst of the Civil War. John's sons David and Franklin had died at Fredericksburg the previous year, and John was understandably upset. John was running for a seat in the State Legislature, and was questioned as to his loyalty to the Union cause.
  		Map showing John Zentmyer's Farm John Zentmyer's farm, near the corner of Sipes Road and Mitchell Lane in Hartslog Valley, Porter Twp., Huntingdon, Co., Pennsylvania which he purchased in 1866. From Pomeroy's Atlas, published 1873. Interestingly, this map also shows an Iron Ore operation (left side) about five miles from the farm, identified as J. Zentmyer. It was also about five miles from the iron diggings to the Juniata Iron Works, a blast furnace, which operated until the mid 1870s. Image by Gary Zentmyer
  		John Zentmyer Diggings A photo of one of several open pits taken at the area indicated on the 1873 map, which we visited in 2009. Image by Gary Zentmyer
  		Foundations of John Zentmyer's Farm Buildings Foundations of John Zentmyer's farm buildings, a two story barn and separate house. Property address is 9649 Sipes Rd., Huntingdon, PA 16652. This property is currently (Spring of 2026) occupied by Bryan Hearn, son of Roger Hearn, who showed me around the property in 2009. Roger's phone was (814) 643-5652 in 2009. Bryan's email is hearngeneralconstructionllc@gmail.com Image by Gary Zentmyer
  		Major John Zentmyer Obituary From the Altoona Morning Tribune, 13 Mar, 1891
  		Headstones for John Zentmyer and his wife Margaret Gates Zentmyer In the Alexandria Presbyterian Cemetery, Alexandria, Huntingdon, Pennsylvania. Contemporary newspaper articles said they were buried in a graveyard on the Zentmyer farm. We visited the Zentmyer farm graveyard in 2009, and found many headstones but no evidence of Zentmyer graves, so these graves were possibly exhumed and reburied from the farm at some point. Inquires were made in 2026, but Alexandria Cemetery could not confirm a reburial. Photo by Gary Zentmyer