John Krepps    

The first ferry across the Monongahela River within the boundaries of Bridgeport was established by John Krepps before 1794, as the court records of Fayette County show that in that year a petition was presented for “a road from Krepps’ Ferry to the bridge at the mouth of Dunlap’s Creek.” The ferry landing on the Bridgeport side of the river was at or very near the foot of Spring Street (or Alley), northeast of the residence of Solomon G. Krepps. This ferry remained in operation until some time after the completion of the Monongahela bridge, and towards the last of its existence a ferry-boat propelled by steam was used upon it.

The original owner of this ferry, John Krepps, always lived on the west side of the Monongahela; but his sons, Samuel J. and Solomon G. Krepps, settled on the east side of the river, the latter being a resident of Bridgeport as early as 1813, when he built the brick house which is now the residence of his nephew (his brother Samuel’s son), Solomon G. Krepps. He (Solomon G. the elder) was a merchant in Bridgeport in 1816, as is shown by the assessment-roll of tha.t year. He lived in Bridgeport until his death, and was for many years one of the prominent citizens of the place. In 1832 he, with Zephaniah Carter, built the “Friendship Paper-Mill” in Bridgeport, but died soon after, and before the mill was in full and successful operation. He served one term in the State Legislature, and was several times elected burgess of Bridgeport; also served as a member of the Borough Council. His brother, Samuel J. Krepps, settled in Bridgeport about 1823, where Eli Leonard now lives, and carried on the saw-mill at the Jonah Cadwallader dam on Dunlap’s Creek, also operating the coal-banks on that property. In 1832 he built a residence in Brownsville (the same which is now kept as the “Monongahela House” by the widow of his son, John B. Krepps), and removed to it. In 1834 he built the “Valley Mills” on Dunlap’s Creek, in Bridgeport. He, like his brother, Solomon G. Krepps, was a prominent and public-spirited citizen, and identified with the business interests of both boroughs for many years. About 1846 he removed to the old Krepps homestead, west of the Monongahela, and soon afterwards to the Neal Gillespie farm, where he died March 6, 1866. In 1854 he was elected to the Legislature from Washington County.

The other children of the old ferry-owner, John Krepps, were John, who lived and died in West Brownsville; Christian, who went West, and whose subsequent history is unknown; and Helen, who became the wife of Judge Eli Miller, of Mount Vernon, Ohio.

History of Fayette County, Pennsylvania : with biographical sketches of many of its pioneers and prominent men Philadelphia: L.H. Everts & Co., 1882, pages 472-473. View the image of this page online - Free Trial  More Fayette County History Books  Search Hundreds of 1880s-1890s Pennsylvania County History Books for biographies and historical information on your ancestors.  View the book page images on line and print them out for your genealogy file!  Free Access to the old history books - plus birth & death records, census images and ALL other records at ancestry.com

.