William "Tailor Billy" McCandless
Immigrant from Ireland 1794
"Tailor Billy, the third of the first group of three brothers, married Jane (Surname unknown). He was a tailor by trade, hence the nickname given him to distinguish him from another William McCandless who lived about the same time and in the same community. Tailor Billy lived on his farm in Franklin Twp., on the road leading from Hickory Corner to Isle, about one-half mile from the Hickory Corner school house. On this farm he built a stone house in which he lived. Tailor Billy and his wife were buried in a private cemetery on his own farm, as are also his son James, James' wife and about thirty-five others."
From pg. 53, "The McCandless and Related Families, Pioneers of Butler County Pennsylvania", 1977, by Joseph A. Ferree, Jr.
| Date | Location | Notes | Sources | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birth | Ireland | Scottish descent | [2] | |
| Marriage | To Jane Unknown | [2] | ||
| Death | ||||
| Death | private cemetery on his farm |
Ancestry chart segment
Generation 7 Generation 8 Generation 9
+--Unknown McCandless I
| (????-????)
+--William "Tailor Billy" McCandless--+
| (????-????) |
Moses McCandless--+ +--Unknown
(????-????) | (????-????)
+--Jane Unknown
(????-????)
Sources: [2]
Children
(all children with Jane surname unknown)
| Name | Gender | Date of Birth | Birthplace | Spouse | Notes | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Moses McCandless | M | Jane Hockenberry | Direct line | [2] | ||
| James "Jimmy" McCandless | M | Unknown | [2] | |||
| Elizabeth McCandless | F | Joseph Hockenberry | [2] | |||
| Mary McCandless | F | "Swamp" Robert S. McCandless | [2] | |||
| Margaret McCandless | F | John "Jack" McCandless | [2] |
Places of Residence
| Location | Dates | Notes | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ireland | birth- ~1894 | [2] | |
| possibly Southampton Twp, Cumberland Co, PA | by 1800 | [1] | |
| Franklin Twp, Butler Co, PA, stone house on his farm 1/4 mile from Hickory Corner schoolhouse on road from Hickory Corner to Isle |
by 1796 | [2][3] |
Photo Gallery
The gravestones of John and Margaret McCandless were found in the upper cemetery at Muddy Creek. Both stones are broken, with the upper half of each propped by their lower half.
The upper half of Margaret's stone says "In Memory of Margaret wife of John McCandless...". When found and photographed, this portion of the stone had been partially buried in the ground to hold it erect; mud was scraped away to reveal "John McCandless" (her husband's name). It is expected that the death date was below that level, in the ground. The researcher chose not to dislodge the stone. The standing lower half of Margaret's stone appears to be inscribed "April 18--" at the break, and below that, says "Aged 58 Yrs".
The lower portion of the gravestone of John McCandless is partially illegible, but inscribed "Died April 9th 1811".
Sources
| Ref. Num. | Description | Image of original |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1800 United States Census, Southampton Twp., Cumberland Co. PA, ancestry.com pg 1. Undated. Line 3: William McCandless household with 1 male age 10-16, 1 male age over 45, 2 females age 10-16, 1 female age 26-45. Uncorroborated; unsure whether this is our ancestor. If so he was born before ~1755, his wife born 1755 -1776, a son & 2 daughters born 1784-1790. From other sources we believe William "Tailor Billy" McCandless immigrated in 1794. From other census we know that his son Moses McCandless was born 1780-1790, in PA. and was in Butler Co. PA by 1820. Southampton Twp. is located around present day Shippenburg. |
 |
| 2 | McCandless and Related Families, Pioneers of Butler County Pennsylvania , 1977, researched & compiled by Joseph A. Ferree, Sr.; ed. & publ. by Joseph A. Ferree, Jr., Natrona Heights. PA.
|
See ( William "Tailor Billy" McCandless) See (First Group of Three Brothers) See (Immigration of John & Jane Carothers McCandless family & 3 McCandless nephews) |
| 3 | 1895 History of Butler County PA p. 587, Franklin Township First Settlers. "In 1796 a branch of the Centre (township) colony drew lots for the cabins built west of the line...At the same time...the two William McCandless, Robert McCandless (& others), all natives of Ireland, located here. One of the McCandless settlers was a tailor and farmer, the other a distiller and farmer. Both were named William, and in order to distinguish between them the former was known as "Tailor Billy" and the latter as "Stiller Billy". | (See text) |
| 4 | 1895 History Butler County PA p. 52, Connoquenessing Township Taxables of 1803: William McCandless (tailor) - 400 acres, 1 cow, valuation $410, Tax $1.23. | |
| 5 | Early bounty Hunters of Butler County, Pennsylvania 1934, ed. David K. Webb & John M. Stevens, Chillicothe, OH pg 16.Wm. McCandless Sept. 18, 1835 - 2 foxes. p.17 Wm. O. McCandless Feb.3, 1837 - 1 red fox; Wm. McCandless Mar. 16, 1837 - 6 red foxes p. 23 Wm. McCandless Jan. 15, 1841 - 1 red fox & 1 grey fox. | |
| 6 | Personal correspondence from Elizabeth Wilson Williams. | N/A
|
Source notes
- Joseph Ferree notes in "The McCandless & Related Families" that Elizabeth McCandless, daughter of Tailor Billy, married a Joseph Hockenberry but does not give the parentage of Joseph Hockenberry. Horace & Edith Renick, in "Peter Hockenberry & Descendants of His Son John", list a Joseph Hockenberry, (son of John Hockenberry and Hannah Kelly) as married to Elizabeth Unknown. Their source is not given, and may well be the 1850 census of a household of Joseph Hockenberry age 65, wife Elizabeth age 57, and two children. See John Hockenberry. Without a will or other specific primary source, we cannot with certainty say that John Hockenberry is the father-in-law of Elizabeth McCandless. The relative number of Hockenberry families in the township & area is not known; Joseph Hockenberry could be a name shared by more than one cousin...
Conjecture
Research Wishlist
- will of William Tailor Billy McCandless
- death record or obituary of Joseph Hockenberry, to possibly establish wife & parents
