Part of the American History & Genealogy Project

Anna Scott Block

Wife of Colonel Williard T. Block, is a daughter of William P. Scott, and Mary Piper, his wife. Mr. Scott is a descendant of Hugh Scott, who came to America prior to 1720, and settled in Lancaster County, Pa., and whose descendants have had much to do with the making of this country in civil, military, political and industrial affairs. In 1748 some of the Scotts moved from Donegal Church, in Lancaster County, and took up land in Adams County, upon part of the land over which in 1863 the great battle of Gettysburg was fought

Mrs. Block's ancestor, Rebecca Scott, married Captain James Agnew, who commanded a company of associates in 1756, among whose descendants were Colonel Thomas A. Scott, late president of the Pennsylvania Railroad, also president of the Northern Pacific Railroad, Union Pacific Railroad, Kansas Pacific Railroad and Texas Pacific Railroad, the latter road owned by him, when he sold it to Jay Gould.

Colonel Scott was appointed by President Lincoln assistant secretary of war in 1861, and was placed in charge of all the railroads needed for military operations of the war. Colonel Scott was Mrs. Block's uncle.

Other descendants of Captain Agnew and his wife Rebecca Scott were Dr. D. Hayes Agnew the celebrated surgeon. Another descendant was David A. Stewart, a former partner of Andrew Carnegie, and president of the Carnegie Steel Company.

The great-grandmother of Mrs. Block, Sarah Agnew, was married to Archibald Douglas, a descendant of Lord Douglas of Scotland. Mrs. Block's grandmother, Rebecca Douglas, married Thomas Scott, whose father John Scott was a pioneer in the settlement of Franklin County, Pa., and served in the Revolution.

Mrs. Block's great-grandfather on her maternal side was General John Piper of Bedford County, Pa., who served his state in 1763 as lieutenant in the French and Indian Wars, provincial justice in 1775 and 1776. June 18, 1776, was a member of the provincial conference held in Carpenter Hall, Philadelphia, which conference took steps to form a new government to denounce George III. The conference signed the declaration on June 18, 1776, that the state of Pennsylvania was willing to concur in a vote to the Congress declaring the colonies free and independent states.

Colonel Piper was a member of the convention of 1776 that formed the Constitution of Pennsylvania. In 1776 Colonel Piper was appointed lieutenant-colonel of Bedford County, Pennsylvania, with free military power reporting to the president of the assembly.

In 1777 he was appointed lieutenant of western Pennsylvania. From 1779 to 1783 he represented Bedford County in Supreme Executive Council, and a member from 1785 to 1789 of the general assembly, member of the convention of 1789, and one of the framers of the Constitution of 1790, a justice from 1796 to 1801, a senator from 1801 to 1803, presidential elector in 1797, major-general of state militia in 1801 until his death in 1817.

Upon the organization of the Daughters of the American Revolution, Mrs. Block was one of the charter members, her number being 337, and a charter member of the Chicago Chapter, her number being three, also a member of the first board of management.

Mrs. Block represented her chapter several times as a delegate at Annual Congress and at the Congress of 1911. She presented before Congress a plan to raise money to pay off the debt on Memorial Continental Hall, and to start a fund for its maintenance by designing a beautiful and artistic certificate that could be sold at one dollar each to every Daughter and descendant. Her plan as suggested by her was so simple, so effective, that it was unanimously adopted by the Congress and Mrs. Block was appointed chairman of a committee to carry out her idea. This she is now employed in doing.

She is a member of the Daughters of 1812, the Second Presbyterian Church of Chicago, and The Woman's Athletic Club of Chicago.

Women of America

Source: The Part Taken by Women in American History, By Mrs. John A. Logan, Published by The Perry-Nalle Publishing Company, Wilmington, Delaware, 1912.