5. WILLIAM CASS, 1807 - Apr. 2, 1883
b. Calverley. Hill, Yorkshire, England d. North East, Pa.

JANE POLLAM, 1805 - Oct. 4, 1882
b. Probably in Yorkshire, England d. North East, Pa.
Married - date unknown - probably in England

William Cass came to America at a later date than did his brother John, for whom he worked for a time, after which, with Benjamin Grimshaw as a partner, he started a woolen factory near North East, Pennsylvania, at the mouth of Sixteen - Mile Creek near Orchard Beach, which is now popular for its bathing beach, camping and picnic facilities.

It is probable that he and his brother, John Cass, carried on similar lines of business and the following advertisements of the two brothers which appeared in Beers' Atlas of Erie County in 1865, serves to show the nature of their work.

"North East Woolen Factory, Cass and Grimshaw, Proprietors, Keep Constantly on Hand All Kinds of Woolen Cloths, Flannels and Yarn. Give Us a Call."

"Harbor Creek Woolen Mills, Manufacturer of Broad Cloths , Full Cloths, Tweeds, Broad and Narrow Flannels; John Cass, Proprietor, Harbor Creek, Erie County, Pennsylvania. N. B. Particular Attention to Custom Spinning, Carding and Cloth. Dressing."

A picture of the factory of Cass and Grimshaw appears on page 72 of the Everts, Ensign and Everts Atlas of Erie County, Pennsylvania, which was published in 1876. This picture is of a three and a half story frame building and is accompanied by the following advertisement, "W. A. Grimshaw and Co., Woolen Cloths, Flannels and Knitting Yarn.

William Cass, like his brother John, was an ardent Abolitionist and an active agent for the Underground Railroad. An interesting adventure story of the Underground Railroad, in which William Cass and his neighbors of the Crawford family were connected and in which his name is mentioned, appears in the footnotes on pages 380 to 382, inclusive, of Volume I of "A Constitutional History of the American People" by Francis Newton Thorpe. This history is available in the public libraries.

Mr. and Mrs. William Cass had no children but adopted Mrs. Cass's niece, Sarah Ann, who became the wife of Benjamin Grimshaw. Incidentally, the first of the Grimshaws came from Calverley, Yorkshire, or its vicinity, which was near the English home of the Cass family. The members of the Grimshaw family who are now living at North East are descendants of this family.

Mr. and Mrs. Cass were buried in the North East Cemetery. Their monument, while plain, is unusual in that it consists of two stones rising from the same base. It is located near the stone of Benjamin Grimshaw, who died April 11, 1873, aged 45 years.

HOME........ Return to Outline Index