USA > Alabama > Memorial record of Alabama. A concise account of the state's political, military, professional and industrial progress, together with the personal memoirs of many of its people. Volume II pt 1 > Part 41
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JONATHAN MCDAVID CUNNINGHAM. state senator from the first dis- triet, composed of Lauderdale and Limestone counties, was born in Laud- erdale county. July 4, 1842. He is a son of Jonathan McDavid Cunningham, a native of Laurens district. S. C., born in 1806. He mar- ried Olivia Nance, who was born in Rutherford county, Tenn., in 1815. Her people were from North Carolina. The father of Jonathan MeDavid
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Cunningham, Sr., was John Price Cunningham, a pioneer of Madison county, Ala., of Scotch ancestry, who settled in that county in 1818. He served in the legislature of Alabama in 1830. He removed to Lauderdale county in 1822, in which county he followed planting for the rest of his life. His son, Jonathan McDavid Cunningham. was engaged about ten years in making a re-survey of Alabama after the burning of the records at Huntsville, and he was subsequently county surveyor of Lauderdale county. In the meantime he was engaged in planting. He was married in Lauderdale county in 1834. and both he and his wife died in 1871, he in August, she in September. They were the parents of three children. two of whom still survive. Of these two sons, Jonathan McDavid was the younger. He was reared on the farm and attended the country schools until the beginning of the war. He was mustered into the Confederate service in Florence, January 9, 1862, as first lieutenant of company I, Twenty-seventh Alabama infantry. Col. Jackson succeeding Col. Hughes,' and served in that regiment until the close of the war, surrendering at Meridian, Miss., May 18. 1865. After the war he returned to Lauderdale county and engaged in farming. He was married in 1869 to Miss Susie P. Taylor, of Lauderdale county. In 1876 Capt. Cunningham was elected to represent the county of Lauderdale in the legislature, and was again elected in 1888. During this term of service he introduced the bill to increase the appropriation for public schools, and secured its passage, by which there was appropriated $100,000 in excess of the usual amount. In 1892 he was elected to the state senate to represent the first district. He was nominated by Lauderdale county and received 583 majority over his opponent at the primaries. Capt. Cunningham has seven children, and he and his family are members of the Methodist Episcopal church, south.
GRORGE P. JONES. a leading citizen and prominent attorney of Florence, Ala., and a member of the well known law firm of Simpson & Jones, was born near Russellville, Ala .. January 11, 1850. He is a son of Hon. Henry C. Jones, one of the oldest and most prominent of the Florence bar, who since 1874, has filled the office of solicitor for the eighth judicial district. George P. Jones was educated in Florence, and after reading law with Chancellor Keyes, was admitted to the bar in 1871. In 1872, he began the practice of law, and has ever since then continued to follow it with suc- cess. At the present time he is recognized as one of the leading members of the bar. The firm of Simpson & Jones was formed in 1555. Mr. Jones is president of the board of directors of the state normal college, to which position he was elected in 1557. and he is regarded as one of the most public-spirited citizens of northern Alabama.
HENRY C. JONES, a prominent citizen of Florence, and solicitor for the eighth judicial district of Alabama, was born in Franklin county, January 23, 1821. He is a son of William S. and Ann (Coy) Jones, both natives of Virginia, and of English descent. Thomas Jones, grandfather
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of Henry C., was a colonel in the Revolutionary war, and William Jones, father of Henry C., came to Alabama in 1813, locating in Madison county, and removing thence to Franklin county, in 1819, where he died in 1974, at the age of seventy-six. Henry C. Jones was educated primarily at the county schools, and then attended La Grange college, graduating in 1840. He next read law under Prof. Tutwiler of La Grange college, and with Hon. Daniel Coleman of Athens, was admitted to the Franklin county bar in 1841. During the same year he was elected probate judge of of Franklin county, and held the office for eighteen months. Being then elected to the legislature, he resigned his judgship and served in the leg- islature with distinction, both in the lower house and in the senate. His work in both branches of the legislature gained him prominence all over the state. In 1856, Judge Jones settled in Florence, and continued the practice of his profession. In 1860, he was a Douglas elector, and was a member of the state convention called up on the election of Abraham Lincoln to the presidency. In that convention he vigorously opposed secession, yet when the state had seceded. notwithstanding his vigorous opposition, to a secessional policy, he was elected to the Confederate provisional congress, in which body he served one year. During the war he was engaged in the manufacture of cottons and woolens in Mississippi, under a contract for the Confederate governmant. After the war he returned to Florence, and resumed the practice of law, taking rank with the leading members of the bar. Judge Jones has always taken an active part in politics, and has given his services freely to the party in time of need. During the period of reconstruction he was for five years chairman of the democratic central committee. In 1876, he was the Tilden elector for his district, and made speeches throughout northern Alabama. In 1874, Judge Jones was elected. by the legislature, solicitor for the eighth district, and he has been re-elected to that position at each election since. He is now serving his third term, which expires in 1892, and intends to retire with its expiration. Judge Jones was married in Athens to Martha L. Keyes, who died in Florence, May 6, 1887.
HIRAM RALEIGH KENNEDY. M. D .. one of the most prominent physi- cians of Lauderdale county, and a representative of that county, in the state legislature, was born on his father's farm, on Cow Pen creek, three miles from Green Hill post office, and fourteen miles from Florence. Sep- tember 30, 1-53. He is the son of Rev. E. R. Kennedy, who was a native of North Carolina, and came with his parents to Alabama, when eight or ten years old. He followed farming as a vocation, and also ran a mill, and beside these preached for the Methodist Episcopal church. His death occurred April 7, 1857, in his sixty-fifth year. His wife was Louisa J. Chisholmn, who was born in Alabama. She still lives. They were the parents of eight children, seven of whom survive, three sons and four daughters. Dr. Kennedy was reared on the farm, and attended the country schools. In 1874 he entered the Normal school at Florence, and
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remained there in attendance about two and a half years. He then read medicine under Dr. James Kyle, who resided near Florence. He attended a course of lectures at the Louisville university in 1877-78, and again in 1879-80, graduating in 1850. Returning to his home in Lauderdale county, he located in his old neighborhood. and again the practice of medicine, at the same time carrying on farming. He owns a farm of about 500 acres of land. Dr. Kennedy is a member of the Lauderdale Modical society, of which he was vice-president one year. In 1892, he was elected as a rep- resentative in the legislature from Lauderdale county. He was married in December. 1880. to Miss Mary E. Bretheriek, daughter of Benjamin I. Bretherick of Lauderdale county, and to this marriage. there have been born children, as follows: Oscar Yandell. Edgar Leslie, Eva Estella, Reba Louisa, and Hiram Raleigh.
FELIX GRUNDY LAMBETH, a well known citizen of Florence. Ala., and postmaster of that city, was born in Hardiman county, Tenn., March 9, 1846. His father, Alfred Moore Lambeth, was born in North Carolina, in 1799, and went to west Tennessee with a colony, in the early days. The wertern part of the state at that time was full of Indians. He was a planter by occupation, and followed that vocation until his death, in 1886. He was then eighty-seven years old. His wife was Caro- line Eliza Campbell, who was born in Tennessee about 1819, and died in 1884. Felix Grundy Lambeth was reared in Hardiman county. Tenn., and he was educated in the country schools of that county. His education was interfered with by the breaking out of the war. He remained on the farm during the period of the war, and in 1866 took a position as clerk in his brother's store at Middleton, Tenn., where he remained until December 18, 1870. He then removed to Florence, and in 1871 engaged in mercantile business in that city. The next year he sold out his business and became a clerk in the office of the probate judge of Laudedale county. He remained in that office until November, 1874. In 1877 he went to Denver. Col .. and spent the winter, returning to Florence in 1875, and became a clerk in the postoffice. remaining thus engaged until 1862. In the meantime, he became engaged in business with John B. Price, the firm name being Lambeth & Price. In 1883 he purchased Mr. Price's interest in the business, and continued to carry it on alone until 1886, when he sold out and engaged in the real estate business. In 1889 he was appointed postmaster of Florence, taking charge of the office November 1, that year. He still retains the position. Mr. Lam- beth is a republican in politics, and takes great interest in the party. He has served as chairman of the Lauderdale county republican execu- tive committee for a number of years, and is a member of that committee at the present time. He is a member of the Knights of Honor, and Legion of Honor. He was married, in west Tennessee, December 18, 1870, to Miss Susan Allington, daughter of Thomas T. Allington, who was at one time probate judge of Lauderdale county, and for eight years,"
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postmaster of Florence. To this marriage five of the eight children born are living.
WILLIAM B. MCCLURE, probate judge of Lauderdale county, was born near Lexington. November 27, 1854. He is a son of James I. and Sarah E. (Smithson) MeClure. the former of whom was born in South Carolina, in 1833. He was the son of William MeClure. Mrs. Sarah E. MeClure was born in east Tennessee in 1836, and was the daughter of Hezekiah P. Smithson. About 1535 the MeClure family came to Alabama, and located in Lauderdale county. About one year later William McClure died. James I. MeClure was reared on the farm. During the war he served in the Sixteenth Alabama infantry, and died May 5. 1882. His widow still survives. They were the parents of ten children. only two of whom are now living. William B. McClure was the eldest of the family. He was reared on the farm and attended the common schools. In 1877 he began teaching. and taught until 1883. In 1880 he was elected magistrate of the Lexington precinct. and in 1884 he was elected tax assessor of the county. He was re-elected in 1888, and served in all, in that office, eight years. In 1892 he was elected probate judge of the county and took charge of the office on November 1. of that year. His general vocation has always been that of farming, and he now owns a farm in the Lexington beat, about twenty-one miles northeast of Florence. He was married in 1871 to Miss L. McGee, daughter of Jacob McGee, of Lauderdale. To their marriage have been born nine children. Judge McClure is a member of the farmers' alliance. He is, in every sense of the word, a self-made man .. He owes his present position entirely to his own efforts. He began life with only a common education, and no patrimony, and now he is well off and highly respected.
WILLIAM T. MITCHELL. tax collector of Lauderdale county, and one of its best known citizens, was born in the central part of the county, June 4, 1841. He is a son of N. G. and Rebecca (Richardson) Mitchell. both of whom were born in Lauderdale county. The father was a planter and merchant. and died about 1852. His widow died in 1978. The father of N. G. Mitchell was Robert Mitchell, who was one of the pioneers of Lauderdale county. The father of Mrs. Rebecca Mitchell was John R. Richardson. also one of the early settlers of the county. William Thomas Mitchell was reared on the farm, and received but a common school edu- cation. He remained on the farm until the beginning of the late war. and in 1861, he enlisted in company I. Ninth Alabama infantry. and served throughout the war. He was sergeant of his company for a time, and in 1864 was appointed, by President Davis, adjutant of the Thirty-fifty Ala- bama infantry. He was neither wounded nor captured during the war. At the close of hostilities. he engaged in farming in Lauderdale county, and has since continued so engaged. In 1º84 he was elected tax collector of this county. was re-elected in 1558, and again in 1892. Mr. Mitchell is a Mason. a member of the order of Knights of Honor, and of the Ancient
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Order of United Workmen. He was married. in 1874, to Miss Emma Ken- nedy, of Lauderdale county, daughter of Enoch Kennedy. To their union seven children have been born, two of whom are dead. The names of those living are: Susan A. ; Ula; Vernon; Ola and Rutledge. Mr. Mitchell has acquired his property by his own efforts. being left after the war with nothing, but he now has a comfortable competency.
ZEBULON P. MORRISON, one of the prominent citizens of Florence, Ala .. and one of the oldest citizens of the place, was born in Rockbridge county, Va .. June 16. 1818. He remained on the farm in his native county until he reached the age of fourteen, and then he went to Lexing- ton, Va., and was bound out to a cabinet maker to learn the trade. After serving his apprenticeship. he left Lexington November 7, 1837. and went to Holly Springs. Miss., and next year went to Tuscumbia. Ala., where he remained two years. In 1940 he removed to Florence, where he has resided ever since. He carried on the cabinet maker's trade in Florence for many years. taking also large contracts in building and bridge work. He built the old synodical college and the normal col. lege in Florence. For the past few years he has been in the undertaking business. In 1853 Mr. Morrison was elected an alderman of Florence, and for twenty-seven consecutive years he was re-elected. In 1880 he was elected mayor of the city, and for eleven years he was re-elected to this position. without opposition. In 1591 he retired from the office of mayor of his own accord. and the same year his friends prevailed upon him to run for alderman, and, being elected, he is a member of the board at the present time. His administration as mayor was conducted on sound business principles, and was considered a success from first to last. His work as an alderman has been of great value to the city of Florence, his acknowledged sound judgment having great weight with his fellow-aldermen. Mr. Morrison is a member of the Blue Lodge. chapter and council of the Masonic fraternity. and he is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. south. At the present time there are but four persons living in Florence who were there when he located in the place in 1840. Mr. Morrison is a self-made man; beginning with noth. . ing, he has accumulated a competency, and is now one of the wealthy and influential men of Lauderdale county.
EDWARD ASBURY O'NEAL. ex-governor of Alabama. and one of Lauder- dale county's most distinguished citizens, was born in Madison county, Ala. He is the son of Edward and Rebecca (Wheat) O'Neal, the former of whom was a native of Ireland. and the latter of South Carolina, but of Huguenot extraction. Edward O'Neal. soon after his marriage in South Carolina, settled in Madison county. Ala., and died there when Edward Asbury was but three months old. His widow survived him some years, dying in Madison county, in 1-56. There were two sons born to them, viz. : Basil Wheat O'Neal, who was a planter in Texas for many years, and died there in 13-1. and Elward Asbury O'Neal. After receiving an
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academic education, including English literature and the classics, Edward A. O'Neal entered La Grange college, and graduated from that institution in 1836, with the degree of bachelor of arts, and with the first honors of his class. He was a law student with Hon. James W. McClung, of Hunts- ville, and was admitted to the bar in 1840. He was associated in the practice of the law, at different times, with Robert Armstrong, William Basil Wood and John E. Moore, the latter, an elder brother of Col. Sydenham Moore. In his first case, one before Daniel Coleman, he greatly distinguished himself. and sprang at once into popular favor. In 1941 he was elected. at a called session of the legislature, solicitor of the fourth judicial circuit, to fill out the unexpired term of George S. Hous- ton, and served four?years. From that time forward, for many years, Mr. O'Neal devoted himself exclusively to the practice of the law. He was a strong believer in the right and justice of secession, and advocated that course for the state prior to its culmination in war. When this height was reached, he had the courage to accept the wager of battle, and to take up arms for the purpose of making it a success. But it is a remarkable thing that of the many who distinguished themselves as advocates of secession in northern Alabama, only Mr. O'Neal, and not to exceed four others, had the consistency to go to the front when the war came on. On June 4. 1-61. Mr. O'Neal left Florence, commissioned as captain. for Richmond. Va .. in command of three companies of soldiers. Upon reach ing Richmond. he was at once mnade major of the Ninth Alabama infantry, and became lieutenant-colonel of it in the fall. In March. 1862, he was · appointed colonel of the Twenty-sixth Alabama infantry, and commanded this regiment at Yorktown, Williamsburg. Seven Pines, and the battles around Richmond. At Seven Pines, he had his horse killed under him, and he was himself severely injured by a piece of a shell. At Chancel- lorsville, his command won the honors of the day. In 1-63, he com- manded Rhode's division, and led it in the battles of Gettysburg and Mine Run. in which battles he distinguished himself for courageous bearing. Early in 1564, his regiment was sent back to Alabama to recruit its depleted ranks, but it was not permitted long to remain. It was ordered to Dalton, Ga., where Col. O'Neal took command of Cantey's brigade. This brigade he led during the remainder of Gen. Johnston's famous retreat before Gen. Sherman to Atlanta, and after Gen. Hood was placed in command of Johuston's army, Col. O'Neal was relieved and served on detached duty the rest of the war. A commission of brigadier general was issued to him, but .on account of irregular mail communi- cations, it never reached him. He was mustered out of service just four years after leaving. Florence, in 1861, for the war. Returning home. he resumed the practice of the law. In 1874, Gen. O'Neal entered into the political fight, which resulted in the restoration of the democratic party to power in the state. In August, 1575, he was elected to the constitu- tional convention and served in that convention as chairman of the com-
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mittee on education. As such chairman, he framed and secured the adoption of section nine. article thirteen, which authorized the re-organi- zation of the entire educational system. public and private. of the state. In 1880, Gen. O'Neal was an elector on the Hancock ticket, and made speeches throughout the state advocating his elcetion to the presidency. In 1882. he was elected governor of the state, and was re-elected in 1884. Upon his retirement from office, his administration of the affairs of state received nothing but commendation and praise. and is believed to have been, in fact. one of the strongest and best the state has ever had. Gov. O'Neal was married at Huntsville. Ala. April 12, 1-38. to Miss Olivia Moore, eldest daughter of Dr. Alfred Moore. To this marriage there were born nine children, two of whom died in infancy. One of these children, Emmet O'Neal, was for a long time associated with his father in the practice of the law. He was born at Florence, Ala., September 29. , 1833. He was educated at the Florence Wesleyan university, at the univer- sity of Mississippi and at the university of Alabama, graduating from the latter institution in 1873. He at once entered upon the study of the law in the office of his father, and was admitted to the bar in 1876. Since his admission to the bar. he has given his exclusive attention to the practice of the law. In 1-80. he was a delegate to the convention that nominated Gen. Hancock for the presidency of the United States. He has served as a member of the state democratic executive committee. and as an alderman of Florence. He is a director in the W. B. Wood Furnace company. and in the Sheffield Marble and Phosphate company. He is a member of the Knights of Honor and of the Knights of Pythias. He has been a delegate to the various state conventions for several years, and in 1892, was elector at large of the state on the Cleveland ticket. He is, at the present time. city attorney of Florence. He was married at Tuscaloosa. July 24. 1-1, to Miss Lizzie Kirkinan. daughter of Samuel Kirkman, Esq., of Florence. To this marriage there have been born two children. viz. : Lizzie K. O'Neal and Kirkham O'Neal.
NATHAN PARKINS. one of the leading members of the Lauderdale bar. was born of Quaker ancestry, in Augusta county. Va .. June 20. 1863. He is the son of John H. and Ella (Moorman) Parkins. John H. Park- kins is a native of Virginia. born January 15. 1930. in Winchester. Freder- ick county. He is the son of Nathan Parkins, who was also a Virginian. The wife of John H. Parkins was born in Lynchburg. Va .. April 29. 1543, and is the daughter of Thomas Terrell Moorman. a native of Lynchburg. Va. John H. Parkins was born and reared at the home of his father, "The Old Stone Mill," near Winchester, a locality well known to the soldiers of the late war. He received a common school education. He served in the war at first with Gen. Garnett's brigade. and later with Gen. Early. Since the war he has followed farming, manufacturing and contracting. He has served his state in various offices of trust and honor. among which offices were those of member of the board of directors of
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the State Insane asylum at Staunton, and State Director of the Winchester and Staunton turnpike. He is now residing on his farm at Fort Defiance, Augusta county, Va., where he is highly honored and esteemed as a citi- zen. Nathan Parkins is the eldest of eight children. He was reared on his father's farm at Fort Defiance. Va., and was given a liberal education. When eleven years of age he entered the Augusta Classical and Military academy. and graduated from that institution when in his eighteenth year. He then entered the university of Virginia, attending during the sessions of 1863 and 1>>4. graduating in Latin, French. and German. After leav- ing the university he taught school at Williamsville, Va., one year, and then spent two years on the farm. Returning to the university of Virginia, during the sessions of 18-7 and 1838, he took the course in law. and was admitted to the bar in Staunton. Va., June 25. 1888. After a brief practice in Staunton he removed to Florence. Ala .. in October of the same year. He was admitted to the bar October 30, 1888. and at once began the practice of his profession at Florence. Since that time he has been admitted to practice in the state, supreme, and federal courts. Though Mr. Parkins' residence in Florence has been comparatively brief, he has taken rank as one of the most prominent members of the bar of northern Alabama. Politically, Mr. Parkins is a republican. He is of whig ancestry, his father and grandfather having been members of that grand old party while it existed. He is liberal in his views and not by any means a partisan in the strict and narrow sense of that term, and has both weight and influence in the councils of his party. He has thoroughly identified himself with the industrial development of his town, and is a member of the boards of directors of several development companies. He is attorney for Bradstreet's commercial agency at Florence. and is a member of the order of Knights of Pythias.
RICHARD ORICK PICKETT, a prominent lawyer of Florence. Ala., was born in Fauquier county. Va .. August 22. 1523. He is the son of Steptoe and Sarah O. (Chilton) Pickett. both natives of Virginia. the former of French ancestry, and the latter of English. Steptoe Pickett brought his family to Alabama in 1529, and settled in Limestone county, where he and his wife lived the remainder of their lives. They reare l a family of six sons and three daughters, Richard O. being the second son. He was educated in the common schools of the county, and first began life as a mer- chant, but not succeeding to his desires, he entered the law office of Hon. James Irvine. as a student in 1-13, and was admitted to the bar in 1845. He immediately began to practice law at Moulton, and represented Lawrence county in the legislature in 1-49. He remained at Moulton till the outbreak of the war. In 1-52 he raised a company of soldiers in Lawrence county to serve his state for twelve months, but owing to a change in the law, requiring enlistment to be for three years or during the war. his command was not received into service and was immediately disbanded. Mr. Pickett then raised a company which became company H,
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