COATES, Moses, produced a certificate to Haverford monthly Meeting from Carlow, Ireland, dated 3,8,1717, which stated that he had been brought up there from a child, and had taken his wife from among Friends in the province of Munster.  In 1731 he purchased land at the site of Phoenixville, in Charlestown, and settled there.  The name of his wife was Susanna, and among his children were Samuel, Moses, Jr., Benjamin, Jonathan, Aaron, and Elizabeth, married to John Mendenhall.

Samuel married, 3,11,1743, Elizabeth, daughter of Aaron Mendenhall, of East Caln, where he also settled and left three children, viz.:  Aaron b. 4,6,1744; Moses, b. 12,4,1745/6; Isaac, b. 2,1,1748, d. 4,3,1809.

Isaac married Hannah Stalker, daughter of Thomas and Grace, and had children,--Beulah, Grace, Lydia, Rebecca, Seymour, Amy, Zillah, Israel and Lindley.  The descendants are largely represented in the neighborhood of West Grove.

Moses Coates married 4,26,1770, Hannah, daughter of Thomas Musgrave, of Lancaster County, who died 4,5,1775, leaving two children.  Moses was married again 5,6,1777, to Mary, daughter of Peter Vickers, of Plumstead, Bucks Co.  His children were Elizabeth, m. to Jesse Kersey; Hannah; Isaac, m. to Mary Gilbert, 1801; Ann, Caleb, Esther, Elisha, Sarah, Mary, Moses,
Aquilla, Amos, and Jesse.

Moses Coates possessed considerable inventive genius, and towards the close of the last century he contrived and constructed a curious apple-paring machine, which was at once simple, convenient, and highly useful in domestic economy.  With some slight modifications the instrument is still in popular use.  He also invented a self-setting saw-mill, which attracted much notice at the time, but of its practical importance at the present day we are unable to speak.  He likewise claimed the invention of a horse-rake, among other ingenious implements.  That instrument, however, was afterwards greatly improved and brought nearly to perfection in the intellectual community of Kennet Square and vicinity, where agricultural machinery of various kinds is produced on an extensive scale; but as the inventors and machinists are yet living and flourishing, their memoirs must await the historic efforts of some future county Plutarch.

Dr. Jesse Coates, the youngest son of Moses, was born 3,4,1796, and died 8,3,1868.  The village of Coatesville was named for his father, but became a town in the son's time.  Owning a great portion of the land, he sold much of it to enterprising men, and assisted in other ways in advancing the interests of the place.  He was a highly esteemed citizen.