Hurley Family Tree

Waynesburg, Greene County, Pennsylvania, about 1827 (background)
In 1827, Waynesburg served as the county seat of Greene County, Pennsylvania, a role it had held since the county's formation in 1796. The town had been laid out in 1796 on a tract of land originally purchased from Thomas Slater, featuring a central grid of streets and alleys, many named after local agricultural and distillation activities, such as Cider Alley and Whiskey Alley. Incorporated as a borough in 1816, Waynesburg was a small but growing rural hub by the 1820s, with an economy centered on agriculture (including grain, hay, corn, flax, and timber harvesting), livestock breeding (sheep, horses, cattle, and swine), whisky distillation, mercantile trade, tanning, leather production, and early milling operations like flouring and grist mills. Transportation relied on highways connecting to Pittsburgh and the Monongahela River, with the nearby Cumberland Road (completed around 1820) facilitating broader trade, though it bypassed Waynesburg itself.

Population specifics for Waynesburg in 1827 are not documented, but the town was described as a modest settlement with log and emerging brick structures, including a brick courthouse built in 1800 that stood until 1850. Early settlers included families like the Hays, Cotterrel, Hoskinson, and Pollock, many of whom were involved in farming, mercantile businesses, and local governance. Institutions included basic common schools with log or frame buildings, and religious organizations such as the Unity Presbyterian Church (organized in 1814 with a frame structure in the 1820s) and Methodist Episcopal congregations dating back to 1803. The Cumberland Presbyterian Church was established around 1828, just after this period. No major events are recorded specifically for Waynesburg in 1827, though the nearby town of Jefferson (about 10 miles east) was incorporated as a borough that year with a population of around 700. The community reflected a mix of German, Irish, English, and Scottish-Irish influences, emphasizing thrift, morality, and pioneer self-sufficiency amid the transition from frontier life.