Samuel K. Foulk (born March 22, 1827, in Perry County, Pennsylvania – died April 25, 1910, in Huntington Township, Adams County) was a craftsman-entrepreneur who lived most of his adult life in Gettysburg, Adams County. Best known as a carriage maker and blacksmith, Foulk later in life also farmed the land. He witnessed the upheaval of the Civil War on his doorstep and helped raise a bonded child in his household. Below is a detailed historical and genealogical profile of Samuel K. Foulk, his occupations, family, and connections in Gettysburg before, during, and after the Civil War.

Early Life and Move to Gettysburg (Pre-1850)

Samuel was the son of John Foulk and Louisa (Klineyoung) Foulk of Perry County, PA. The middle name “Klineyoung” came from his mother’s family, suggesting a proud maternal lineage. Little is recorded of Samuel’s youth in Perry County, but he likely learned the blacksmith and wheelwright trades in his early years – either from his father or as an apprentice – which would prepare him for his later career. By the late 1840s, Samuel relocated to Gettysburg, a growing town where his skills would be in demand. On February 21, 1850, he married Hanna Phillipine “Hannah” Sell in Gettysburg, establishing his household there at age 23.

Gettysburg in 1850 was a bustling transportation hub, and many local industries revolved around the carriage trade. Carriage makers worked alongside carriage trimmers, wheelwrights, blacksmiths, and livery stable operators to support the era’s horse-drawn transport economy. Samuel Foulk entered this economic milieu as a young craftsman ready to make his mark.

Carriage-Making Business and Occupations

By the early 1850s, Samuel K. Foulk had established himself as a carriage manufacturer in Gettysburg. Contemporary evidence of his venture appears in local newspapers. For example, in late 1852 he placed an advertisement announcing that he was “engaged in the Carriage-making business, and is prepared to put up work in the most satisfactory manner.” He offered to build popular conveyances of the day – “Rockaway, Buggy, Boat-body or Square Carriage” – and to perform repairs “at short notice, on moderate terms.” His shop was located “between East Middle and East High streets, in the rear of the Compiler office” in Gettysburg. The same ad reveals Foulk’s need for skilled help, as he solicited “an Apprentice to the Coach-smithing business.” This suggests that business was brisk enough to require training an additional hand.

Foulk’s skills spanned multiple related occupations. He is described in records as a blacksmith, and indeed blacksmithing was integral to carriage construction (for forging iron fittings, wheel rims, etc.). He was essentially a coachsmith – a craftsman building and repairing horse-drawn coaches and wagons. One modern account notes that “he was a carriage maker in town with a number of businesses,” implying that Foulk’s enterprise went beyond a single forge. In addition to his main carriage shop, he acquired property and engaged in farming.

During the 1850s, Samuel owned a town lot on Baltimore Street in Gettysburg (across from the Wade family home) and also purchased a sizable farm on the northwest side of town. This dual holding suggests a measure of success; Foulk had the resources to invest in real estate and agriculture. He may have resided on the farm while maintaining his shop in town, effectively straddling two livelihoods. In any case, by the eve of the Civil War he was an established local businessman. Gettysburg’s thriving carriage industry provided a solid customer base for Foulk’s services, and his 1850 census listing already showed him owning real estate (valued at $2,000) at a young age – a marker of prosperity.

Life in Gettysburg During the Civil War

When the Civil War came to Gettysburg in 1863, Samuel Foulk and his family were living in the direct path of danger. They had settled at a farm site near the Chambersburg Pike, just northwest of the town center – an area that became a fierce battleground on the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg (July 1, 1863). As fighting raged along that road, the Foulk family sought safety underground. Hannah Foulk and the children huddled in the cellar of their home while battle violence swept near their property on July 1, 1863. Confederate and Union forces clashed nearby during that first day’s engagement on the western edge of Gettysburg. Fortunately, the family survived the ordeal. (It was not uncommon for Gettysburg civilians to hide in cellars; many neighbors did the same during the three-day battle.)

The extent of damage to Foulk’s property from the battle is not fully documented, but like many Adams County residents he later filed a claim for compensation. Records show that Samuel K. Foulk submitted a claim (#3360) for wartime damages, which was eventually adjudicated by state commissioners in the post-war years. This indicates that military forces likely seized or destroyed some of Foulk’s goods or crops (a common occurrence, as armies in July 1863 requisitioned horses, feed, and food from local farms). Gettysburg civilians often received only partial compensation, if any, and Foulk’s claim was among those reviewed in Harrisburg and Washington. Surviving lists from the 1860s–1880s confirm his claim was considered, though the payout (if any) is not recorded in that index.

Samuel Foulk, about 36 years old during the battle, did not serve as a regular soldier in the war. It appears his role was that of a stalwart civilian. He may have been enrolled in the local militia or home guard – for example, many Gettysburg men joined emergency state militia units when Confederate invasions loomed – but there is no specific record of Foulk’s military service. Instead, his wartime contribution was keeping his family safe and rebuilding his business afterward. Gettysburg’s carriage industry rebounded in the post-war period (in fact, the late 1860s saw continued demand for wagons and buggies). Foulk resumed work as a blacksmith and carriage-maker, likely repairing war-damaged wagons and shoeing horses for Reconstruction-era Gettysburg.

Later Years: Farming and Family Life

After the Civil War, Foulk gradually shifted more fully into farming. By the 1870s–1880s, he was spending more of his time managing his land. The farm on the northwest outskirts of Gettysburg remained in the family for some years. Eventually, Samuel and Hannah moved a bit further north within Adams County. By 1900, the elderly couple was living on a rented farm near York Springs, PA, in Huntington Township. (York Springs is about 12 miles north of Gettysburg.) This suggests that Samuel might have sold his Gettysburg-area holdings and relocated to a quieter rural setting in his retirement. Even in his seventies, however, he stayed active in agriculture alongside his adult children.

Census records in 1900 found Samuel (then 73) listed as a farmer, with three grown children still at home helping on the farm. Notably, Samuel’s lifelong skill in metalwork did not go to waste – his son Samuel “Norval” Foulk had followed in his footsteps. Norval became a blacksmith and carriage artisan in his own right, undoubtedly learning the trade from his father. (In fact, Norval would continue the family’s traditional occupations well into the 20th century – he was known to be a blacksmith, carriage maker, and farmer, and he never marriedfindagrave.com.)

Hannah P. Foulk (Samuel’s wife) passed away on February 1, 1900 at age 75, shortly after that census, leaving Samuel a widower. Samuel lived on for another decade. He died on April 25, 1910 at the age of 83f, while still residing in Huntington Township. The widowed patriarch was likely cared for by his children in his final years. Samuel and Hannah Foulk are buried in Adams County (their graves are in Evergreen Cemetery, Gettysburg, according to family records).

Family and Descendants

Samuel K. Foulk and Hannah (Sell) Foulk raised a sizable family. They had at least five children who survived to adulthood, listed below. (The Foulks may have had other infants who died young, but the following were the main surviving offspring recorded.)

Child	Lifespan	Notes (Spouse / Occupation)
Rev. David Ziegler Foulk	1852–1915	Eldest son; became a Lutheran minister. Married (had a family of his own). One of his sons was Paul L. Foulk, co-author of Adams County in the World War (1921).
Anna M. L. Foulk	1853–1931	Daughter; never married. Lived at home and later with siblings. Died in Adams County.
Alice J. Foulk	1857–1923	Daughter; never married. Lived at home; died in early 1920s. (Her middle name is recorded variously as Jonnetta/Janetica.)
Samuel “Norval” Foulk	1858–1942	Son; carried on his father’s trade as a blacksmith and carriage maker, and farmed land. Never married; remained in Adams County.
Sarah Elizabeth “Sallie” Foulk	1864–1910	Youngest daughter; married Benjamin Franklin Eichelberger in 1889. They had several children (e.g. a son, Ivan D. Eichelberger, born 1892). Sallie died in September 1910, just five months after her father, and is buried under the name Sarah Foulk Eichelberger.

(All the Foulk children were born in Gettysburg, Adams County, PA.)

From the above, we see that two of Samuel’s children married and had families (David and Sallie) while the other three remained single and stayed close to home. In fact, the 1900 census entry shows Anna, Alice, and Norval Foulk living with their aging parents on the York Springs area farm. The family unit was close-knit. After Samuel’s death in 1910, the unmarried siblings likely continued to live together or near one another in Adams County. (For example, in 1910 Norval Foulk, then about 51, is found as the head of household with his sisters in Huntington Twp.) Norval’s longevity allowed him to be a living link to Gettysburg’s 19th-century craft traditions well into the World War II era – he died in 1942 at age 83, having seen the world change from horse-and-buggy days to the automobile age.

It is worth noting that Samuel Foulk’s descendants maintained the family’s local legacy. His son David’s ministry meant the Foulk name was respected in Lutheran church circles of Pennsylvania, and his daughter Sallie’s marriage into the Eichelberger family connected the Foulks to another prominent Adams/York County family. (Sallie’s husband B. F. Eichelberger was from a well-known line; interestingly, one Percy S. Eichelberger – likely a relation of Sallie’s – later partnered with David’s son Paul Foulk to write a book on Adams County’s WWI soldierscupola.gettysburg.edu.) In short, Samuel K. Foulk’s lineage became entwined with the social fabric of the region.

The James Wade Connection – A Bonded Child in the Foulk Household

One fascinating chapter in Samuel Foulk’s life is his connection to James A. Wade, a child from a less fortunate Gettysburg family whom Samuel and Hannah took into their home. James was the son of Captain James Wade and Mary Kuhn of Gettysburg. Due to family hardship in the 1840s – Captain Wade faced legal troubles and poverty – young James (born about 1840) ended up in the county poorhouse (almshouse) as a child. In 1847, when James Jr. was around seven years old, the county arranged for him to be “bonded out” to the Foulk family. Being “bonded out” was a form of apprenticeship/child welfare common in that era: the county paid Samuel Foulk’s household to take in young James, who in turn would work for the family and learn a trade, effectively earning his keep. This practice was akin to foster care, except that the child’s labor was expected in exchange for support. It spared James from growing up in the almshouse, giving him a chance at a normal family environment.

Why the Foulks? It appears that Samuel Foulk and the Wade family were acquainted and on friendly terms, which may have led Samuel to step forward as James’s guardian. In fact, there was a likely practical business connection: James Wade and the Skellys frequently did tailoring for some of the carriage makers in town. Captain Wade’s wife Mary Ann (and her daughters) were skilled seamstresses, including young Jennie Wade (James’s half-sister, who later became famous as the only civilian killed during the Battle of Gettysburg). It is possible that Hannah Foulk had Mary Ann do upholstery, canvas, or trim work for Samuel’s carriages. This mutually would have beneficial relationship fostered goodwill between the families. Thus, when James Wade needed a home, the Foulks took him in, and he grew up alongside the Foulk children in the 1850s. The 1850 U.S. Census for Gettysburg indeed shows James “Wade,” age 9, living in Samuel K. Foulk’s household as an apprentice or ward (listed right after Samuel’s own young siblings).

By all accounts, the arrangement worked out compassionately. James Wade was treated as part of the family rather than merely cheap labor. He learned skills (perhaps helping in the blacksmith shop or on the farm) and formed an “affectionate relationship” with his foster family. In later years, James remained close with his foster siblings and with Jennie Wade as well. This positive outcome was not always the case in bonded-child situations – many such children suffered neglect or abuse – but in the Foulk household James apparently found kindness and stability. (Tragically, his half-sister Jennie Wade would be killed by a stray bullet during the 1863 battle, but James himself survived the Civil War era, forever grateful to the Foulks for their care. He named one of his daughters after Jennie in later years, reflecting the family bonds.)

It is notable that James A. Wade was likely the only “bonded” child living with Samuel Foulk’s family in 1850, as no records suggest the Foulks took in others under formal indenture. However, in 1860, the family had an 18-year-old boarder living with them—Cornelius Calvin Beecher, a local boy from a nearby family. Cornelius would have been doing similar labor to that James might have done. James remained with the Foulks into his teens, and by the 1860s he was able to live independently (he served in the Union army during the Civil War and later married). The experience highlights Samuel Foulk’s character as a community-minded man willing to help a neighbor’s child in need. This connection to the Wade family also ties Samuel into one of Gettysburg’s poignant civilian stories – through James and Jennie Wade.

Conclusion

Samuel Klineyoung Foulk’s life spanned from the horse-and-carriage age to the dawn of modernity. He built a livelihood with hammer, anvil, and wagon wheels, becoming one of Gettysburg’s many skilled carriage makers in the mid-19th century. His business ventures – a carriage shop in town, real estate on Baltimore Street, and a working farm – paint the picture of a hardworking, savvy individual who achieved a measure of prosperity. During the Battle of Gettysburg, Foulk and his family endured the terror of combat literally at their cellar door, an experience that no doubt left lasting impressions. In the aftermath, he sought compensation for losses and carried on, contributing to Gettysburg’s recovery.

In family life, Samuel and his wife Hannah raised a next generation that continued their local legacy – a minister son, devoted daughters, and a son who carried on the blacksmith trade. His willingness to take in James Wade as a bonded child also speaks to his sense of duty and compassion within the community network of 19th-century Gettysburg. Samuel K. Foulk died in 1910 at a ripe age, respected as an “old resident” who had witnessed Gettysburg’s most famous moment in history. Today, he lies at rest in Gettysburg’s soil, and the story of his life intertwines with the larger tapestry of Gettysburg’s civilian history – one of artisanship, family, war, and community ties.