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 2 > Part 36
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uncle of Judge Glenn, were in the Indian war, the father being on Gen. Scott's staff, serving as guide. He married his wife in Abbeville dis- trict, S. C., in 1839, riding there and back on a horse. He died Septem- ber 14, 1889, while she still lives among her children. He was a mem- ber of the first constitutional convention after the war, and was a man of
- great influence in affairs. In the family there were nine children, viz. : Ellen, deceased wife of P. E. Barnett, of Glenville, Ala. : E. Herndon, named above; Sallie, deceased; Clarence, of Eufaula, Ala .; Addie J., wife of Rev. A. Z. Dowling, of Calera, Ala .; Julia, wife of A. P. Birch, Blount Springs, Ala. ; Claude, deceased; Edgar M., Methodist minister at Birming- ham, Ala .; Lucy, single, lives at Eufaula. Judge Glenn was born in Glenville, and had the advantages of good home, schools and Glenville Collegiate and Military institute. In 1861 he went to the university of Alabama, and reached the junior class, when he joined the army and remained in the service of the Confederate States until the surrender of Greensboro, S. C. He entered company C, Forty-fifth Alabama infantry, as a private soldier and as drill master of the regiment, and was pro- moted in 1863 to be sergeant-major of the regiment. In 1864 he was . made adiutant of the first Alabama, his own regiment having consoli- dated with the first. He served in the battles of Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, and in the Atlanta campaign; did not go back with Hood to Ten; nessee, but joined him after his return, in June, 1865, he returned to his father's old plantation, studied law with Ex-Gov. Gill Shorter, and was admitted to the bar in 1867. In March, 1872, he was appointed register in chancery for Russell county, and moved to Seale, where he has since resided. He was register until 1886, when he was elected probate judge, which office he still holds. He was married February 8, 1877, in Vilula, Russell county, to Sallie V. Evans, daughter of John Q. Evans, by whom he has one child, E. Herndon, Jr. Politically, Judge Herndon is a demo- crat, and is a master Mason. He is a member of the A. O. U. W., and of the Methodist Episcopal church, south, and he has been a steward of that church ten years. Judge Glenn is one of the most popular men in the county. He has a fine home at Seale, and comes of an excellent family. His grandfather, James E. Glenn, was born in North Carolina, raised in South Carolina, and moved to Alabama in 1834, settling near Hatchechubbee creek, four miles north of the present site of Glenville. In 1835, he removed to the site of Glenville, and built the first frame house in that place. He owned a large estate, and died in 1851. He had nine children, four of whom are living. He was a Methodist minister. His wife was Ann Elizabeth Robinson. She died in 1869.
MASON J. JONES, planter of Marvyn, Ala., is a son of Taliaferro and Hannah (Giddings) Jones. The former of these two people was a native of Wilkes county, Ga., and was born in 1805. By occupation he was a farmer. At the age of maturity he married and moved to Harris county, Ga., where he lived until his death, which occurred July 2, 1859. He
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gave considerable attention to politics, and represented his county in the Georgia legislature two terms. He was an energetic and thrifty man, and accumulated a considerable fortune. He was of strong religious convictions, was a class leader in the Methodist church, and was very charitably dis- posed. He was married, in Wilkes county, to Miss Hannah Giddings, by whom he had ten children, three of whom are now living: Mary J., wife of William H. Echols; Sarah P., wife of Dr. F. J. Wells, and Mason J., who is the eldest of the three. The mother of the family died in 1870. Mr. Jones was born in Harris county, March 7, 1833. He became a farmer at the age of twenty-one, and has followed that noble occupation all his life. During the war, while he was not in the regular service, yet he served at Atlanta with the state troops. He represented Russell county in the legislature one term, being elected in 1876. He was married in 1884 to Miss Roalia Simpson, by whom he had one child, who died in infancy. Mrs. Jones died in 1886. The loss of both wife and child within such a short time was a severe blow to Mr. Jones. Politically Mr. Jones is a democrat. He is a royal arch Mason, and is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. south. Mr. Jones is also a member of the Farmers' Alliance, and is president of the lodge at Marvyn. He is a director in the alliance warehouse and store at Opelika. He is intelligent and well informed and takes great interest in the issues of the day.
N. W. E. LONG, is a son of Nimrod W. and Catherine (Davis) Long. Nimrod was a native of Baldwin county, Ga., born in 1800. He was raised and married in Houston county, Ga. The Davis family was origin- ally from North Carolina. Nimrod W. Long lived in Twiggs and Upson counties until 1835, when he moved to Russell county, about ten miles northwest of Seale; in 1868, he moved to Columbus, Ga., where he was living at the time of his death, which occurred in 1875, while he was on a visit to one of his sons. The subject's mother died in 1840, and his father married twice afterward. He served in the Seminole war in Flor- ida, and was burnt out while living in Russell county, in 1836. He rep- resented Russell county in the legislature in 1837 and in 1845. He was a whig in politics. and was a member of the Baptist church. He raised a family of twelve children, nine by his first wife, of whom only two sons are now living, our subject and Dr. M. L. Long of Hurtsboro. Also three daughters, Mrs. Hurt, of Atlanta; Mrs. Walton of Florida and Mrs. Jack- son of Montgomery. Our subject was born in Upson county, Ga., March 25, 1834, and graduated from the university of Georgia in 1854. He followed civil engineering until the war came on, and enlisted as a private soldier, in 1862. in company B, Fifty-first Alabama cavalry, serv- ing mostly in the Western army, fighting Murfreesboro, Chickamauga, in the Atlanta campaign, and then following Sherman around into the Caro- linas. He was a member of a scouting company most of the time. Since returning home he has been engaged in farming and merchandising. He followed farming for about ten years, and then moved to Hurtsboro and
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there becamed engaged in the mercantile business, which he carried on in connection with farming. He represented Russell county in the legis- lature from 1884 to 1888, two terms. He was married in 1860, at Perote, in Bullock county, to Martha J. Gamble, and has had seven children: George D., died in infancy; Jackson E .; Jesse L., deceased, was a book- keeper at Columbus, Ga., died in 1890, unmarried; Nimrod W., died while attending university of Alabama, in 1886; Anne Frances, single, living at home; Lunsford, died in 1890, at home; Queenelle, a miss, at home; Jackson E., mentioned above in the list, was educated at Vanderbilt uni- versity, and at the university of Alabama, where he graduated in law, in 1885. He settled at Eufaula, Ala., for the practice of the law, and in three or four years, moved to Birmingham, where he was rising rapidly in his profession, when he was taken sick and died in April, 1891. He had married Nancy B. Dent, daughter Capt. S. H. Dent, of Eufaula, whom he left with three children. Nimrod Long is the heaviest owner of real estate, and one of the most substantial citizens of the county. His landed interests extend outside of Russell county, into adjoining counties. He lives at Hurtsboro, and is highly respected.
FRANK LE CONTE NISBET, planter of Oswichee, Ala., is a son of F. A. and Arabella C. (Alexander) Nisbet. F. A. Nisbet was a native of Georgia, born in Franklin county, in 1816. He was a lawyer by profes- sion, having graduated from the law department of Yale college. He followed his profession for a time in Columbus, Ga., and in 1840 removed to Russell county, Ala., settling near where Mr. Nisbet now lives. The remainder of his days he passed as a planter. He took a great interest in public affairs, and represented his county twice in the legislature. He was a member of the last constitutional convention to revise the constitu- tion of the state. He was a reserved and quiet man, but thrifty, and of considerable influence. He gave all the members of his family a good education. He was a man of fine literary tastes, and a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. The Nisbets were of Scotch descent, and, as far as known, always lived in Georgia after coming to this country. A brother of Frank Le Conte Nisbet's father was, at one time, a member of the supreme court of the state, and two other brothers were prominent law- yers. Grandfather Alexander was a native of Virginia, but removed to Put- nam county, Ga., where he reared his family. Later in life he moved to Rus- sell county, Ga. Mr. and Mrs. Nisbet, father and mother of Frank LeConte Nisbet. were married in Putnam county in 1839, and reared ten children. of whom three only, are now living: William L., a farmer living near Colum- bus, Ga .; Frank Le Conte and Robert A., twins. Robert A. is a clerk of the superior court at Macon, Ga., and has been a representative of his county in the legislature. The father died in 1886, and the mother in 1887. Frank Le Conte Nisbet was born March 20, 1848. At home he received a common school education. He then taught school till he saved money to attend the A. & M. college at Auburn, Ala. He attended
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this school two years, but could not complete the course, because he had to take charge of the farm. He was married October 27, 1875, to Miss Bettie L., daughter of E. B. Whittaker. They have had five children : Mason Lane, Frank L., Jr., Wilson W .. William L. and Ely E. Mr. Nisbet owns a plantation of 430 acres. In 1888. he was elected to the legislature, and served one term. In 1890, he was again elected to the same position. While in the legislature he was a member of several committees, and was chairman of the committee on agriculture. From 1886 to 1890, he was treasurer of the State Agricultural society, and during the same time he was superintendent of education for this county. Politically, he is a democrat, is a master Mason, member of the Knights of Husbandry, a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, south, is secretary of his . church, and superintendent of its Sunday school. Mrs. Nisbet is a teacher of fine ability and reputation, intelligent and refined. Mr. Nisbet is a man of great influence and highly esteemed.
M. L. PATTERSON, planter, of Oswichee, Ala., is a son of Edward and Mildred (Lewis) Patterson. William Patterson was the father of Edward Patterson, was a Virginian, and a Revolutionary soldier. He married Elizabeth Morris, and raised a family of eleven children. Late in life, in 1801, he moved to South Carolina, settling in Spartanburg district, S. C. M. L. Patterson's father was the youngest of the eleven children, and was born in 1791. He was reared in South Carolina, and married in North Carolina. He and his wife passed their married life in Spartan- burg district. He was a planter by occupation, and was a nullifier, serv- ing as colonel of a regiment raised to resist the Federal government in the collection of the revenue. He died in 1841, and his wife died in 1855. The Lewis family were from North Carolina, where M. L. Patterson's mother was born and raised. Her father was a Virginian, and of Welsh descent. The family is connected with many of the best people of the state. Mr. Patterson's father and mother were married, about 1816, in Spartanburg district, and raised thirteen children, ten of whom are now living. The children were: Harriet, widow of E. S. Chambers, Gaines- ville, Ga .; M. L., William D., of Shelby, N. C .; Adeline, widow of Jacob A. Walker, of Hatchechubbee, Ala. ; Giles J., deceased; June, deceased ; Mary, widow of Lawson Wilson, Gastonia, N. C. ; Hester C., wife of Mr. Heath, of Cureton's Store, S. C .; Robert H., deceased, died in Camp Douglas during the war; Albert E., Hatchechubbee, Ala. ; Anna, single, lives with her brothers and sisters; Laura, widow of Mr. Cuthbertson, Monroe, N.C .; Dora, widow of John Smith, Yorkville, S. C. M. L. Patterson was born September 28, 1820, in Spartanburg district, S. C. He was raised there, and received a good education. He studied law in the office of Henry & Bobo, Spartanburg, and at the age of twenty-four came to Columbus, Ga., where he was admitted to the bar. He followed the profession of the law in Columbus for about twenty years. During the war he served some time in the Confederate militia, being called out at the time Atlanta
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was captured. After the war he removed to Alabama, settled on a plan- tation, and has lived thereon ever since. He was married in Harris county, Ga., in 1852, to Augusta P. Benning. The Bennings were a prominent family in Georgia, Henry L. Benning, brother of Mrs. M. L. Patterson, having been one of the judges of the supreme court of that state. Mrs. Patterson was also a sister of Richard E. Benning, and Car- oline M. Benning, the latter marrying Benjamin Y. Mastin. They were the children of Pleasant M. and Melinda L. Benning. To the marriage of Mr. and Mrs. Patterson were born five children: Pleasant, at home; Edward N., druggist in Columbus, Ga .; Mildred L., at home; Jerome A. and M. L., Jr., both at home. Mr. Patterson is one of the wealthiest planters in the state, and his family on both sides is well connected. He is a republican in politics. He and his entire family are members of the Catholic church. He lives in a fine old plantation home, and is highly respected by all.
SAMUEL R. PITTS, merchant and planter of Pittsboro, Ala., is a son of Richard M. and Maria (Calhoun) Pitts. The father of Richard M. Pitts was John Pitts, who was born somewhere in the northern part of the United States. In early life he was a sailor, and while on a voyage to England he met there and married an English lady by the name of Ingram, brought her with him to the United States, and settled in Charlston, S. C. They afterward moved to Sumter district, where Richard M. Pitts was born in 1805. The family afterward moved to Washington county, Ga., where John Pitts and wife died. In Wash- ington county Richard M. Pitts was raised. He afterward went to Macon, Ga., where he married Maria Calboun, daughter of John Calhoun, a rela- tive of the great John C. Calhoun. After living there a short time he moved in 1837 to Stewart county, Ga., where he lived until 1842, and then removed to Russell county, Ala., where he and his wife still reside, three miles from Seale, he at the advanced age of eighty-seven years, and she at the age of seventy-seven. He past through this county in 1818, when it was nothing but a wild forest. He has always been a man of strong religious convictions, but has never given much attention to politics. He has been a member of the Methodist Episcopal church nearly all of his life, uniting with that church when quite young. The family consisted of seven sons and two daughters, all living but one. The first death in this family in forty-nine years, occurred recently. The children were as follows: Samuel R., of Pittsboro; Lucy, single; John, died in the spring of 1892; William H., Frank P., Lillie, single, living at home; Bragg and Beauregard, twins, and Robert N., a physician at Pittsboro. Several brothers of the father of this family went to Texas before it became a state, and figured prominently in its development. They were engaged in the war with Mexico, and one of them, taken prisoner, was held eighteen months. He was required to draw beans for his life, and fortu- nately drew a white bean. Samuel R. Pitts was born May 20, 1837, in
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Stewart county, Ga. He enlisted in the Columbus Guards in April, 1861, as a private soldier for twelve months. At the end of that time he re. enlisted and was elected first lieutenant of company C, Second Georgia volunteers. He served through the war in that capacity, surrendering at Appomattox with Gen. Lee. He was in the seven days' fight, second Manassas, Federicksburg, Sharpsburg, South Mountain, Gettysburg, the Wilderness, where he was badly wounded, and in the trenches around Richmond and Petersburg. After the final surrender he footed it home, and has since lived the life of a planter. He owns a plantation of 3,000 acres. He was married January 15, 1874, in Russell county, to Emma Anderson, daughter of Thomas Anderson, who belonged to an Edgefield, S. C., family. Politically Mr. Pitts is a democrat; is a master Mason, a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, south, and has been a steward of the church fifteen years. He is a man of considerable influence in the com- munity, is in favor of whatever tends to enhance its prosperity, and has recently laid out and started the new town of Pittsboro, named after himself.
JOHN V. SMITH, attorney of Seale, Ala., is a son of John W. and Mar- tha W. ( Patrick ) Smith. John W. Smith is a native of Greene county, Ga. He was a farmer before the war and a very large slave holder. He was judge of the inferior court of Harris county, Ga., for a number of years. During the war he was a captain of a company of state troops. He moved to Chambers county, Ala., in 1866, settled on a farm and lived there until 1872. He then moved to Auburn, Ala., to educate his children. After two years he moved to Dadeville, and is now living in Seale. He is a quiet, retired man, and an upright christian gentleman. He has a family of six children, viz .: W. P., a druggist in Atlanta, Ga .; Mary, single, lives in Atlanta; John V .; Fannie, wife of John Henderson, La Grange; Charles O., a physician at Atlanta, and Mattie. Both father and mother still live. John V. Smith was born in Harris county, Ga., March 15, 1860. When he was six years old his parents moved to Cham- bers county, Ala., and when he was twelve years old he entered the A. & M. college at Auburn, Ala. He left this institution when he was a junior, and in 1880 and 1881 taught school in Russell county. He then read law with Col. Lyman W. Martin, and was admitted to the bar in the fall of 1881. However, thinking that further study would be beneficial to him, he studied one more year, and began practice in October, 1882, at Rutledge, Crenshaw county, Ala., continuing there until April, 1885. While engaged at Rutledge in the practice of his profession, he was active in politics, serving as chairman of the democratic executive com- mittee. On the date last mentioned, he moved to Seale, where he has remained ever since. He was chairman of the democratic executive com- mittee in the summer of 1886, and in November he was appointed register in chancery. He held that position until March. 1892, when his practice pressed him so that he resigned. In 1888 he was elected by his party to
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represent his county in the legislature, and was re-elected in 1890. While thus serving in this capacity he was a member of the judiciary committee, was chairman of the committee of engrossed bills, and during his second session he was chairman of the committee on counties and county boundaries. He was married September 12, 1880, to Miss Cor- nelia E., daughter of William C. McTyeire, who is a brother of Bishop Mc- Tyeire, of the Methodist Episcopal church, south. Mr.and Mrs. Smith have two children, Holland M.and Corrie E., the former nine and the latter seven years of age. Mr. Smith is, in politics. a democrat, and during the mem orable campaign of 1892, he stumped the state in behalf of his party when R. F. Kolb led his famous revolt against organized democracy He is at present W. M. of Seale lodge, No. 451, F. & A. M. He is a mem ber of the Methodist Episcopal church, south, and takes great interest in the Sunday school. He has acquired a fine reputation as a criminal and civil lawyer. One of his achievements in the legislature, not mentioned in connection with his service in that body, was the adjustment of the long unsettled question of the boundary between Russell and Lee coun- ties. The Sunday Herald, of Columbus, Ga., spoke of Mr. Smith in the following terms: "There is, perhaps, no man of his age in the state who has won more reputation as a criminal practitioner than Mr. Smith, and he ranks with the sagest attorneys at the Alabama bar. For several terms he has represented his county in the halls of the state legislature, and he has done so with distinguished ability. In the sessions of 1890-1891, he won the honorable distinction of being the leader on the floor of the house, and it is generally conceded that he has made more reputation than any member of that august body." Mr. Smith was elected solicitor of the third judicial circuit of Alabama, in November, 1892, defeating Hon. Alto V. Lee, who had filled the office with marked ability for about twenty-two years, by a vote of seventy-nine to twenty-six before the general assembly of the state.
1 SAINT CLAIR COUNTY.
MAJ. E. A. CRANDALL is a resident of the quiet burg of Springville, Ala., and has long been connected with the railroad interests of the state. He is a New Yorker, having been born near Utica, that state, in 1818. As he grew to manhood his mind inclined toward the profession of civil engineering, and in the year 1836 he came south to engage in railroading. Since that time he has been actively engaged in the construction of rail- roads throughout Georgia and Alabama, and has occupied many positions of trust under their various managements. at one time having been presi- dent of one of the divisions of the Georgia Central. Since 1878 he has been district land agent for the Alabama Great Southern, with head- quarters at Springville, his district comprising the counties of Saint
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Clair, Blount, Marshall and Etowah. He is a trusted and efficient officer and well and favorably known to all the roads in the south.
JOSEPH J. EDMONDSON, the leading merchant of Steel's Depot, Saint Clair county, Ala., was born May 17, 1848, in Montgomery county, Tenn., and is a son of Robert and Lucy A. (Roberts) Edmondson, both natives of Montgomery county, the father having been born about 1818. Seven children were the result of this uniou; they were all reared and named as follows: Samuel H. (deceased); William (deceased) ; Joseph J., Benjamin F. (deceased); John S., Reuben S. and George S. (the last-named being also deceased). The mother of this family departed this life August 30, 1861, and the father married for his second wife, Allie Brewton; to this marriage there were also seven children born. The father was a trader, merchant and county surveyor, and died February 7, 1885, and the Clarks- ville Chronicle, the week following his death, in an obituary, thus referred to him: "But perhaps his crowning virtue was his open-handed generosity and his compassion for the needy and the suffering. His ear was always open to the cry of distress and his hand always ready to relieve it as far as he could. He was a Christian in profession and practice, and died strong in the faith." The Edmondsons are of English descent and settled in Virginia in the colonial days, the father of Robert removing to Tennessee when a young man. Joseph J. Edmondson was quite a young lad when the Civil war broke out, and he could take no active part in warfare; but he was patriotic and traveled with an artillery company, taking all the risks, but receiving no compensation. In 1868 he began mercantile business at a point then known as Maddox's mill, in St. Clair county, Ala., and was quite prosperous until 1872, when he removed to Steel's Depot, where he has since been favored with good fortune as a merchant, in farming and in saw milling. In politics he is a democrat, and in 1880, ran for the office of tax assessor of the county against a very strong opponent, but was defeated by the small majority of sixteen in favor of his competitor. The marriage of Mr. Edmondson took place February 8, 1872, to Miss A. Cooke, a lady residing near Steel's Depot, Ala., but a member of a Tennessee family. Five children have been born to this marriage and are named, Carrie B., wife of M. S. Putman, Avondale, Ala .; Lucy A., Beulah C., Robert M., and Malcolm S. The family are being trained in the Methodist faith, Mr. Edmondson having been for several years a steward in the Methodist Episcopal church, south. A singular accident has maimed Mr. Edmondson for life, and is worth relating. November 13, 1878, while hunting with a double-barreled gun, he discharged one barrel and wounded a turkey; he ran in pursuit of the disabled bird, caught it, and in order to check its struggles, placed his foot upon it; but the turkey slipped from under his foot, flew upward and struck the trigger of the loaded barrel of the gun, discharging the, con-
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