Biographical & Historical Cyclopedia of Indiana & Armstrong Counties - Wiley

BIOGRAPHICAL AND HISTORICAL CYCLOPEDIA OF INDIANA AND ARMSTRONG COUNTIES. 1891 (Reprint) by Samuel T. Wiley. "Nothing...was done in the counties of the Keystone State toward the collection of biographical history, beyond securing a few sketches of public men who had passed away, until 1889, when the publisher of this work compiled and published the first cyclopaedia of biographies that was ever issued in Pennsylvania...In the preparation of the historical part of this work over a thousand volumes were consulted in the great libraries of the United States, besides a careful and tedious examination of public records and state archives. On account of the limited space many events of local history were condensed from the present histories of the two counties, and the sickness of S. T. Wiley, the historian and editor in charge of the work, preventing their verification from court records and other authentic sources of information." (The above was taken from the preface of this book by the publisher, written February 28, 1891.) This book is not indexed, but contains an alphabetical listing of biographical sketches. 636 pages, 8 1/2 x 11 hardcover