Everyone knows about the Pierce family and how they survived the Civil War within Gettysburg. Let’s explore the Alleman’s and more importantly, how they found more hardships in their lives after the Civil War.
Horace was born in Dauphin, Pennsylvania in 1847. He was the son of his mother Ann Elizabeth Holman (1825-1909) and his father Samuel Alleman (1818-1881) and he was the oldest of all the children. His brother, Charles, was born in 1850, and died suddenly in Hanover, Pennsylvania in 1873. His sister, Sarah Elizabeth Alleman, died in Selinsgrove at 17 years old in 1870. His youngest brother, John Sylvanus Alleman was born in 1855 and died in 1906. John’s family tree would continue through the 1980s, thus ending the Alleman family tree line.
Picture of Samuel Alleman on the steps of the Snyder Mansion
His father, Samuel Alleman was quite busy moving the family from Middleburg to Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania. In January 1865, his father and the rest of the family moved into the Governor Snyder Mansion in town. From within the Mansion, his father practiced his attorney practice within the household.
Studio portrait of Selinsgrove Attorney Horace Alleman, taken about 1873.
Prior to the Civil War, Horace attended Pennsylvania College, (which is now currently known as Gettysburg College) He was also a veteran of the 30th Pennsylvania, Company I, and the 18th Pennsylvania, Company D. In both companies, he served as a Private. After the Civil War, he graduated from Gettysburg College in Law, and then went off to Columbia University in Washington D.C. and graduated there with a Law degree. Horace and Tillie met in Gettysburg and developed into a romantic relationship and married on September 28, 1871.
Almost right after the wedding, Horace and Tillie moved into the Mansion that Horace’s father and mother lived in. The Mansion was so large that they could co-exist in the Mansion. However, prior to their first child that happened in 1873, the newly married couple had to survive and go through multiple events that occurred in Selinsgrove. Horace was an attorney that was working with his father within the law firm.
On February 21, 1872, there was a major fire that occurred near the Mansion. It was the largest fire in city history and it destroyed 30 buildings. These buildings included 13 houses, 5 stores, a Baptist church, and 12 stable barns. The losses from this fire caused over $ 100,000 dollars in damage in 1873. This would be approximately $ 2.75 million dollars. The fire was bounded by Market, Pine, Water, and Walnut streets. The fire spread due to the poor fire fighting facilities that hindered the work of the firemen. Three days later, the president of the city council, Samuel Alleman, secured an “act of assembly” and bonded for ten thousand dollars for fire maintenance. Two to three weeks later, they obtained a steam fire engine called the Susquehanna on March 16th.
The two chimney’s above the trees is the Governor’s mansion
A little more than two years later, on October 30th, 1874, another fire ripped through Selinsgrove. The fire started in George Schure’s barn which was on the northwest corner of Pine and Market streets. The fire wiped out the heart of the town, and would have caused more damage, but the Mansion blocked the fire, but there was roof damage that caused about $2500. This fire caused over fifty structures to be destroyed. This same year, Horace, was appointed the county attorney, and was reappointed in 1885. He continued his lawyer business out of the Mansion as his wife Tillie and young son Henry enjoyed the town.
Many joyous occasions happened at the Mansion. Their other two children were born in 1878 and 1880. Tillie’s first publication of her book from her experiences from the battle of Gettysburg happened in 1888, and with the second publication that we read today was in 1889. They celebrated their 25th wedding anniversary within the Mansion in October 1896. At the time of their anniversary, here are the people that lived within the Mansion:
- Horace Alleman – 49 years old
- Tillie Pierce Alleman – 48 years old
- Henry Pierce Alleman (first son) – 23 years old
- Anna Margaret Alleman (first daughter) – 18 years old
- Mary Cotta Alleman (2nd daughter) – 16 years old
- Ann Elizabeth Holman (Horace’s mother) – 71 years old
