CHARLES THOMAS IREDELL. The name of Charles Thomas Iredell, for more than half a century an honored citizen of Bristol, will ever be inseparably associated with the financial interests and institutions of Bucks county. The name of Iredell is a very ancient one and the following origin has been ascribed to it: "In an old Norman manuscript, mentioned is made of this family. Sir Pierre d’Ancoma followed William the Conqueror and was present at the battle of Hastings. The king, being very pressed, and in danger of his life, Sir Pierre is stated to have rescued him by slaying those around him, to whom the king said, ‘Sir Pierre, thou has given me air (Eyre) to breathe,’ from hence the crest. On a wreath of colours, a dexter arm embossed in armour proper garnished and charged, in the hand a sword." The Conqueror subsequently gave Sir Pierre large tracts of land about Dale, and by royal license the family name was changed to that of Eyre-Dale, modernized about the fifteenth century to Iredell. The founder of the family in this country was Thomas Iredell, who came here in 1700. He belonged to the branch of the family living near Carlisle, England, and brought with him to the Monthly Meeting of Friends in Philadelphia the following certificate:

Certificate of Removal

On behalf of Thomas Iredell, taken from the Records of Philadelphia Monthly Meeting.

"From our Monthly Meeting upon Parshaw Cragg, Cumberland, ye 27^th of ye 6^th month, 1700, to Friends in Pennsylvania and other parts of America: Dear friends and brethren, ye tender salutation of our dearest love in ye truth always continues and reaches forth to you. Ye account we have to give to you is on behalf of a young man, the bearer hereof, Thos. Iredell, who this day layd before us ye transporting of himself into Pennsylvania, requesting our certificate along with him.

"We therefore certifie to all where he may come, that he hath of late years come frequently amongst Friends. His carriage appears to be sober and truthlike. Those that know him ye best give no other account but well. He comes with consent of his Mother, though no Friend, and enquiry hath been made of his clearness in relation to marriage, but nothing appears to ye contrary.

"We need not to further inlarge, but subscribe ourselves. Your friends and brethren on behalf of ye aforesaid Meeting.

Thos. Griffin, John Burngeat & others."

Thomas Iredell settled at first in Philadelphia, and afterward bought of Samuel Carpenter two hundred acres of land, in Horsham township, adjoining Friends’ Meeting property at that place, on which he erected a dwelling. In an iron knocker on the door was drilled, "T. I., 1720," supposedly the date of building. Before leaving Philadelphia he married, Third month, 9^th, 1705, at Friends’ Meeting-house, corner of Second and Market streets, Rebecca Williams, also of Philadelphia.

Robert Iredell, presumably the son of Thomas and Rebecca (Williams) Iredell, married Hannah Luckens, who was descended in the third generation from Jan (or John) Lucken (or Lukens), who came from Holland in 1683, and was one of the thirteen original settlers of Germantown, who took up the land from Francis Daniel Pastorius. Jan Lucken was one of the overseers of Friends’ Meeting established in that neighborhood, the members of which were a progressive and far-seeing people, inasmuch as they made at that early day—1688—the first protest against slavery and presented it to the yearly Meeting, which, however, did not act in the matter. This action on the part of the Germantown Friends antedated by many years the agitation which finally cleared the Society of any complicity in the evil.

Charles Iredell, son of Robert and Hannah (Lukens) Iredell, married Phoebe Cadwallader, and they were the parents of a son, Joseph, who was a merchant in Philadelphia. Joseph Iredell married eleventh month, 9^th, 1804, Hannah, daughter of Mordecai and Elizabeth (Jarrett) Thomas. The Thomas family was of Welsh origin.

Charles Thomas Iredell, son of Joseph and Hannah (Thomas) Iredell, was born 9 mo. 11, 1805, in Hatboro, Pennsylvania, and in his early boyhood his parents moved to Philadelphia, where he attended school, later becoming a pupil at the Westtown Boarding School. Until 1827 he was employed in a drug-store, and in that year entered the Farmers’ Bank of Bucks county, afterward the Farmers’ National Bank of Bucks county. He was connected with the institution first as clerk and subsequently as cashier. For more than fifty years he was at his post, faithful to his trust, with integrity as the key-note of his character. This trait, together with his clear penetration in regard to business matters and his indefatigable energy, were fully appreciated throughout the wide circuit having dealings with the bank. He was treasurer of several building associations. In politics he affiliated with the Whigs and later with the Republicans, having a warm feeling for the principles through which the party appealed for its support to the country, but he kept aloof from the vortex of politics and never sought or held an office. He and his wife were both birthright members of the Society of Friends, as had been their ancestors for many generations, and both were standard-bearers of its principles. Mr. Iredell held many positions of trust and usefulness in the Bristol Meeting, in which he served as trustee, treasurer, elder and clerk, while Mrs. Iredell was for many years an acknowledged minister of the Society.

Mr. Iredell married, 10 mo. 8, 1829, Rebecca Newbold, and they were the parents of the following children, all of whom were born in Bristol: I. Hannah Ann, who became the wife of Nathan Spencer Thomas, of Philadelphia, later of Elmira, New York. Their children are: Rebecca Iredell, who married George Pickering and has three children, Dorothy Iredell, Ruth Thomas, and Hannah Rowlette; Anna Abbott, who died in her fourteenth year; and Charles Iredell. Mr. Thomas, the father, died in 1890. 2. Louisa. 3. Joseph, who died in infancy. 4. Samuel Newbold, who resided many years in Titusville, and married Margaret Monier Spangler, of Philadelphia. Their children were: George Spangler, who married Orinda Corson Fausette, of Trenton, New Jersey, and has one son, Leslie Newbold; Harriet Louisa; William Miller, who died on the eve of manhood; Charles Francis, who married Elizabeth Hyde, of Titusville, and has four children, Francis Raymond, Henry Hyde, Helen Margaret, and Elizabeth Mae; Marian Oakford; Henry Volkmar, who married Margaret Valeria Mahoney, of New York city; Rebecca Catharine, and Florence Newbold. Mrs. Iredell died in 1899, and her husband passed away in 1902. 5. Abbie Newbold. 6. Rachel, who died in infancy. 7. Mary Howell. 8. Charles, who married Annie Maria Erwin, of Painted Post, New York, where they resided for some time, and then moved to Elmira, New York. They had one son, Arthur Erwin, who married Isabella Paxson Rogers, of Bristol, and has two children, Charles Vernon and Frances Barrett. Mrs. Iredell died in 1898. 9. Susan Trump. 10. Elizabeth Newbold.

Mr. Iredell was actively engaged in his duties at the bank until within six weeks of his death, which occurred Sixth month, 16^th, 1882. The officers of the bank unanimously passed resolutions expressive of their high appreciation of his services; of their sorrow at his decease; and of their sympathy with his bereaved family. One of the directors of the bank thus wrote of him in the columns of a local paper: "Above all was his devotion to rectitude as an inward principle to which all other things were made to yield. During the longer period of his connection with the bank his integrity of conduct and friendly attention to those dealing with the bank were impressed upon all and contributed to exalt the character and credit of that excellent and popular institution. And amidst the numerous instances of recreancy to their trust which have occurred amongst officers of moneyed institutions, that fidelity which never faltered in the worst, or wearied in the best of times, has made his example more distinctly marked and highly appreciated. At his post of duty, in the fullness of his years and the maturity of his character, he has passed away, leaving behind him a name and an example to be respected and followed by generations of his countrymen."

Mrs. Iredell was descended from Michael Newbold, who came from Yorkshire, England, in 1679, and settled on the Assiscunk creek, just above Burlington, New Jersey. He had numerous descendants and among them Joshua Newbold, who married Rebecca Atkinson. Their son, Samuel Newbold, married Abigail, daughter of Samuel and Susanna (Hanson) Howell. The former was descended from John Howell, who came from Wales with his three children in 1690. The eldest of these children, Jacob Howell, married Sarah, daughter of Randal Vernon, who, with his two brother, Robert and Thomas, had allied himself with the Friends’ cause in this country a short time before the arrival of William Penn. They belonged to a family of note in England, being sons of James Vernon, who was secretary of state for Great Britain from 1697 to 1700, and brothers of Admiral Vernon, in honor of whom the Washington estate received its name. Thus it will be seen that the marriage of Samuel Newbold and Abigail Howell united two old families. Mr. and Mrs. Newbold were the parents of a daughter, Rebecca, who was married at Friends Meeting, Byberry, Pennsylvania, to Charles Thomas Iredell, as mentioned above. The death of Mrs. Iredell occurred 4 mo. 23, 1893.

Text taken from page 363-364

Davis, William W. H., A. M. History of Bucks County, Pennsylvania [New York-Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company, 1905] Volume III