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 39
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sioned third lieutenant, and was almost immediately afterward promoted to first lieutenant. During eighteen months of this time he was detailed as assistant surgeon. Returning to his command he continued on the line until November 29, 1864, when he was wounded in the right leg just below the knee, the ball going in the front and lodging in the leg, but the doctor cut it out himself without assistance. He was also wounded in the right thigh. Among the battles in which he was engaged may be mentioned the following: Chattanooga, Shell Mound, Tazewell and Cum- berland Gap, and he was then in line of battle thirty-seven days while marching through Kentucky. He was then in the battles of Murfrees- boro, Vicksburg, Chickasaw Bayou, Warrenton, Port Gibson, Baker's Creek, Edward's Station, Black River and Vicksburg, where he was cap- tured, and afterward paroled and exchanged. Upon the re-organization of his regiment he went to Chattanooga, and was with his company in all its engagements until the close of the war: Lookout Mountain, Mis- sionary Ridge, Ringgold, Rocky Face Mount, Crows' Valley, Resaca, New Hope Church, Marietta, Atlanta, Jonesboro, the second battle of Resaca, Florence, Ala., Mount Pleasant, Tenn., and Columbia, Tenn., where he received the wound which terminated his fighting during the war of the rebellion. He was then transferred to Nashville, and thence to Louisville, where he was paroled, and thence came to his home. In 1852 he was married to Elizabeth B. McAdams, daughter of James McAdams. To this marriage there have been born ten children, six of whom are living, viz. : David F., William A., Mary E., Joseph A., Clar- ence and Jessie I. The mother was born in Shelby county, Ala., and is a member of the Baptist church. Dr. Edwards is a member of the Masonic fraternity, and has been justice of the peace of beat No. 9 the past fourteen years.
R. FELL, one of the most thoroughgoing business men of Helena, Ala., was born in Wheeling, W. Va. He is a son of Richard and Harriet (Standiford ) Fell. Richard Fell's grandparents came to this country with Lord Baltimore, and at one time owned the Point, near Baltimore city, in which city Richard Fell was born. At an early day he removed to Wheeling, where, as stated above, R. Fell was born. Remaining in Wheeling only a short time, he removed to Nashville, Tenn., and took charge of a rolling mill for Hillinan, Van Leer & Co., remaining with them until after they removed the mill to Lyon county, Ky., on the Cum- berland river. After working with them six or seven years there, he took charge of the Cumberland Iron works, about twenty-five miles below Clarksville, Tenn., and then went into a blast furnace in Hickman county, same state, where he remained three years. For the next three years he had charge of the rolling mill at Paducah, Ky., whence he went to St. Louis for a short time, and then removed to Alabama, where he took charge of the Shelby Iron works for about three years. He then built a mill for Huckabee & Shepherd at Brierfield, Ala,, remaining with them
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until it was confiscated by the government of the Confederate States dur- the war, when he went to Montgomery, Ala., and had charge of the rolling mill there until the close of the war. He then built a rolling mill at Atlanta, remaining there about eighteen months, and then removed to Memphis, built a rolling mill, remained a year, and then removed to Chattanooga, Tenn., where he was engaged five years as superintendent of iron works. He then came to Helena, Ala., in 1872 and organized a stock company with a capital of $40,000, composed of R. W. Cobb, B. B. Lewis, Richard Fell and his three sons, Charles, Albert and Richard, Jr. From the time of its organization until 1889, this company was known as the Central Iron works, and then it was re-organized under the name of the Shelby Rolling Mill company, and was composed of G. H. Dudley, R. B. Miller and R. Fell. This company ran its works about a year and then closed down. Mr. Fell was with his father during all these different , removals and changes from the time he left Wheeling to his father's death, November 25th, 1889. In the meantime, however, he received a good common school education, and attended Jackson college, at Colum- bia, Tenn. In 1882 he married Dora Cobb, daughter of Judge R. W. Cobb, whose history appears elsewhere in this volume. Mr. and Mrs. Fell are the parents of four children, viz .: Fannie, Marguerite, Charles and Rufus. Mrs. Fell was born in Shelby county. Mr. Fell, in 1861, enlisted in Seldon's battery, and was detailed to go to Brierfield to assist in building the iron mill. He served one year in the army. In politics he is a democrat, and he is a member of the Masonic fraternity, of the Odd Fellows and of the Knights of Pythias. Mr. Fell is an energetic, industrious man, and is highly esteemed by all who know him.
CAPT. M. H. FOWLER, a prominent and successful. farmer of Shelby county, was born November 1, 1830, in South Carolina. He is a son of William B. and Elizabeth (Hainey) Fowler, both natives of South Caro- lina. The paternal grandfather of M. H. Fowler was a native of Ireland and lived to the remarkably advanced age of 104. The captain's oldest brother, Benoni Fowler, was a soldier in the Florida war. The captain was raised on the farm in South Carolina, attended the common schools in the neighborhood, and in 1852 married Sarah A. Shannon. daughter of Robert and Mrs. (Crawford) Shannon, both of South Carolina. To this marriage were born ten children, eight of whom are living, viz. : Lou- isa Jane, wife of. William J. Dearman of Alabama; William W., Martin M., Arminda, James M., Robert Lee, Natie and the captain. Mrs. Fowler was born in South Carolina, in July, 1834. In 1853, M. H. Fowler moved to Georgia, and engaged in the blacksmithing business. which he con- tinued until 1858. He then came to Alabama and followed farming until 1861. In 1862 he enlisted in company K, Forty-fourth Alabama infantry, as a private soldier, and was regularly promoted until he became captain in 1863, and commanded his company in twenty-three battles, among which may be named Gettysburg, the Wilderness, Sharpsburg, Chicka-
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mauga, Cold Harbor, Spottsylvania Court House, and New Market Heights. He was never captured, though he was in thirteen battles, while a private soldier, beside the twenty-three others alluded to above. He served under Gen. Lee most of the time, and was with that general at the time of the final surrender, and out of 100 men that had belonged to his com- . pany, there were eleven men paroled. He was always at his post of duty, and never lost a drop of blood during the entire war, although he was hit three different times with spent balls. After the war he returned to Alabama and followed farming one year. He then moved to Calhoun county, where for ten years he worked at his trade as blacksmith. Dur- ing three years of this time, in connection with his trade, he engaged in merchandising, but discontinuing the latter business, he carried on black- smithing alone until 1887, when he again returned to the farm in Calhoun county. Here he lived until the latter part of the year, 1890, when he removed to Shelby county, where he again retired to the quite life of the farm. He has a well improved farm of 400 acres, within one-half mile of Wilsonville. He served one term as county commissioner of Calhoun county. He is an uncompromising democrat, and on two different occa- sions, he rode twenty miles to take the oath of allegiance, in order that he miglit vote the democratic ticket. He is among the straight-out leaders of the democratic party in Shelby county, and can always be relied upon to vote that ticket. He is also a member of the Masonic fra- ternity, and he and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church, south.
C. J. HAZARD, secretary and treasurer of the South Calera Manufact- uring company, and one of the oldest settlers of Shelby county, is a native of Washington county, Ala., having been born there in 1829. He is a son of John B. and Mary F. (Aylett) Hazard. John B. Hazard was a native of Connecticut, but at an early day came to Alabama, settling at St. Stevens. Originally he came to this state as a clerk, but soon afterward he engaged in merchandising for himself, and served also as cashier of the Tombig- bee bank, at Fort Stevens. He remained at this place until his death. His father was Charles Hazard, a ship captain. Mary F. Hazard was a native of Virginia, and was a daughter of William Aylett, who at an early day came to Cahaba as a receiver of the land office, and was one of the prominent attorneys of the state. C. J. Hazard being left without a father when quite young, his mother removed to Tuscaloosa. There he attended the common school, and at the age of fourteen years he became a clerk in the store of Henry A. Snow & Co., at Tuscaloosa, where he remained six years. He was then engaged in the mercantile business for himself at Mobile, ten years. He was then for three years cotton com- mission merchant in New Orleans. In 1861, he enlisted in company C. Con- federate regiment, raised for the defense of New Orleans and its approaches. Joseph Ellison was his captain, J. F. Girault his colonel, C. R. Railey lieutenent-colonel, and John I. Noble major. On the breaking up of his
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company he came to Shelby county, and accepted a position as book- keeper for the Shelby Iron company. In 1864 he was elected secretary of the company, and remained in their employ, in all, twenty three years. In 1886 he went to Oxford, Calhoun county, remaining one year, and then to Texas, where he remained a short time, when he returned to Alabama. In 1888 he became interested in the South Calera"Land and Improvement company, and in the South Calera Manufacturing company, of which lat- ter he has been secretary and treasurer since he came to this place. In 1865, he married Elizabeth M. Davis, by whom he has one child now liv- ing, Walter C. Mrs. Hazard died in 1873. In 1878 Mr. Hazard married Margaret George, by whom he had four children, viz. : Mary F., George A., Belle G., and Anna M. The mother of these children is a native of Ala- bama, and is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, south. Mr. Hazard is one of the most prominent democrats in the county, and has ' served as chairman of the county executive committee. He is also a member of the Masonic fraternity, and stands high in the estimation of his fellow-citizens.
W. H. KIDD, a prominent citizen of Vincent, was born in Shelby county, Ala., in 1856. He is a son of John and Ann ( Posey ) Kidd. The father was born in Elbert county, Ga., in 1812, and was a member of one. of the pioneer families in Shelby county, coming here in 1819, settling near Cresswell and remaining there until his death. He served as tax assessor three years, and as treasurer of Shelby county eight years. He was one of the leading and most worthy citizens of Shelby county. He enlisted in the Confederate service in the late war and was elected col- onel of his regiment, but was on detached duty the most of the time. He married Avaline Moore, daughter of Col. E. Moore, who lived only a short time after the marriage. He then married Mary O'Neal, daughter of Benjamin O'Neal. Mr. Kidd was both a Mason and a Baptist. W. H. Kidd was reared in Shelby county, receiving but a limited education. He served as county surveyor for five years. In 1882 he was elected tax assessor of Shelby county, and holds that office at the present time. He is a prominent member of the people's party, and one of the leading cit- izens of the county. During most of his life he has followed farming. In 1879 he married Lula Pitts, daughter of Maj. Pitts, by whom he has six children, viz. : Ethel, Edgar, Anna, Mary, John and May W. Their mother was born and reared in Shelby county, and is in every way a very excellent lady. She is a member of the Presbyterian church, while Mr. Kidd is a member of the Baptist church.
NEEDHAM LEE, one of the oldest citizens and also one of the most prominent men of Shelby county, was born in east Tennessee, December 10, 1808. He was a son of Needham and Susan (Bailey) Lee. Needham Lee, Sr., came to Alabama in 1816, settling in Cahawba valley, Shelby county, where he lived until his death in 1820. The second year after his arrival he was a candidate for the legislature, and was defeated only
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by a majority of one. He served as justice of the peace in the first court ever held in Shelby county, and held that office until his death. When he came to Alabama he floated down the Tennessee river in a flat boat to Gunter's Landing, and from there walked 100 miles to his place of settlement. He had two sons in the war of 1812, Thomas and William C. There were seventeen children in his family, all of whom attained their majority, and all of whom raised families but one, who died shortly after reaching his manhood. Of these children there are now living but four, three brothers and one sister. Needham Lee, whose name heads this paragraph, is eighty-four years old; Henry R. is eighty-two; Mary is seventy-six and James F. is seventy-two. Mr. Lee was raised upon the farm, and never had any opportunity of attending school, but - notwithstanding the disadvantages of his early youth, he has, by constant attention to what is passing in the world, became a well-informed man. He was married May 13, 1829, to Miss Nancy, Wharton they finding it necessary to vary the monotony of life by an elopement. Miss Wharton was the daughter of Stephen and Sarah (Griffin) Wharton, both natives of South Carolina, who came to Alabama in the twenties. Stephen Wharton's father was a colonel in the Revolu- tionary war. By his marriage with Miss Wharton, Mr. Lee became the father of ten children: Edward F., Stephen W., Susan J., William, James L., Parthena, Anna P., Hellen N., Martha M., and Josephine. Of these only Edward F., James L., Anna P., Hellen N., and Martha M., are now living. The following ones served in the late war: Edward F., Stephen W., William, and James L. William entered the army as second lieutenant, but was soon promoted to a captaincy, and served in this capacity until wounded at Richmond, dying shortly afterward. The mother of these children was a native of South Carolina, was born August 10, 1809, and died December 24, 1869. She was a consistent member of and one of the most earnest workers in the Cumberland Presbyterian church. On February 2, 1871, Mr. Lee married Mrs. Martha Broadenax, daughter of Aaron and Susan Stripling. Both Mr. and Mrs. Lee are members of the Presbyterian church, he having been a member since 1828. In 1839 Mr. Lee was elected justice of the peace for Helena beat, No. 6, and served as such justice continuously until 1888. Very few of his decisions were reversed, and Mr. Lee prides himself upon being familiar with all the laws of the state, and upon having been called upon to write all kinds of legal instruments. In 1847, while still holding the office of justice of the peace, he was a candidate for tax collector, because the candidate of the opposite party was a man who could not otherwise be defeated. The result of the election was that Mr. Lee carried every beat in the county but one, and in that one he was beaten only six votes. He was urged many times to become a candidate for the legislature, for. sheriff or for probate judge, but he always declined, preferring the quiet of the farm to the excitement and unsatisfactory results of holding office
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When he was first married he was very poor; in fact, he had to borrow $100 with which to make his first land entry, paying therefor twenty-five per cent interest. He soon afterward sold this farm at a good profit, and bought the farm upon which he has lived ever since. He was an extraordinarily strong man and a hard worker, and when the war came on he owned a strip of land three miles long and one mile wide, beside twenty slaves. The slaves of course he lost through the result of the war, and, as he had gone security for an other man's debts. his land had to go to pay them. He was therefore left without property, but not without energy and pluck, and he has since then bought back 300 acres of the old farm, which he now owns, and he is now one of the substantial citizens of Shelby county. He is a leading democrat, a member of the Masonic fraternity, and at the venerable age of eighty-four is a veritable pillar of society and a highly esteemed member of the community.
JOHN S. LEEPER, a prominent citizen of Shelby county, was born in April, 1843. He is a son of Samuel and Elanora (Stone) Leeper. The father of Samuel Leeper, James Leeper, was a native of Tennessee, moved to northern Alabama at an early day, and followed farming there the rest of his life. Samuel Leeper, after reaching his majority, moved to southern Alabama, and there engaged in mercantile business several years, afterward moving to Talladega county, where he engaged in teach- ing and studied law. In 1848 he removed to Columbiana and entered upon the practice of the law, and remained in that place until his death. He was a prominent man in his day, being elected three terms to the state legislature. He was the father of the Sunday school in Columbiana, organizing the first Sunday school and serving as its superintendent many years. When the war came on, he opposed secession, and canvassed the county in behalf of the candidates representing the Union side of the question. He was an old line whig, before the war, but after the war he allied himself with the democratic party, and strongly advocated its principles until his death. He was one of the founders of the Presby- terian church at Columbiana, and was an elder for many years. He was a Mason of the royal arch degree and was also an Odd Fellow. He was also a member of the Sons of Temperance, and had much to do in build- ing up that order in the city. And it will surprise no one, in view of what has already been said of him, that he was a strong prohibitionist, perceiving no other way to bring about practical temperance throughout the country. John S. Leeper was raised in Columbiana, and received the benefits of a common school education. His father being a poor man, and the war coming on when it did, his opportunities for completing his education were not such as he could have desired. In 1861 he enlisted in company E, Tenth Alabama infantry, and served until the close of the war, except while in prison. He was in many battles, one of them being the second Manassas, others being Sharpsburg and Gettysburg. At the latter battle he was captured, and was a prisoner of war eighteen months.
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He was then paroled. exchanged, and returned to his command, remaining in active service until the surrender of Johnston. He served all the way through as as a private soldier. In 1873 he married Fannie Woodruff, a niece of Howard Ware, the pioneer iron man of Alabama. From this marriage there were born three children, Nora, George and John. The mother of these children was born in Bibb county, Ala., in 1843, and died in July, 1891. Both Mr. Leeper and his wife are members of the Presby- terian church, he having been an elder for about ten years. He is also a Mason, a worthy member of society, a gentleman of high standing, and all the property he now possesses was acquired by his own enterprise and industry: Judge James T. Leeper, deceased, a brother of John S. Leeper, was born September 23, 1832, in Moulton, Lawrence county, Ala. While he was still very young his parents removed to Talladega county, where he grew to manhood and received a good education. After spend- ing two years in Shelby county, young Leeper removed to Talladega county, and accepted a clerkship in the office of the probate judge, which he retained for eighteen months. He then returned to Shelby county and was employed in the same capacity under Judge Miles H. Pope. While not at work in the office he read read law and was admitted to the bar in 1854. In 1856 he was appointed register of Shelby county by Chancellor James B. Clark, of Eutaw, and in connection with his duties as register he entered upon the practice of law in partnership with his brother, Samuel Leeper. In 1865 he was elected a member of what is known in history as the "Parsons Convention" and the same year was appointed solicitor for this circuit. In 1868 he was appointed register in chancery for the district of Jefferson, Saint Clair and Shelby counties, and in 1869 he was appointed judge of probate. He was afterward elected to the same posi- tion three times, but died before the expiration of his last term. As judge of probate, Judge Leeper possessed the unbounded confidence of his con- stituency and his rank in that office was second to none before the supreme court of the state. He was frank, open, easy and social in man- ner, his courtesy being unvarying and attractive to men of all degrees. No man who ever lived in the county ever exerted a wider influence. He was an ardent prohibitionist, and it was by his firm, calm and determined espousal of that cause that it carried Shelby county. Prior to the war Judge Leeper was a whig in politics. He opposed the secession of Ala- bama and took no part in the prosecution of the war, but immediately after the close of the war he allied himself with the democratic party and remained an unflinching democrat until the day of his death. He had joined the Presbyterian church in 1867, and remained in that connection all his life. He was also a royal arch Mason and an Odd Fellow, and . stood very high in the estimation of his fellow-citizens.
HON. A. P. LONGSHORE. one of the leading attorneys of Columbi- ana, Shelby county, was born September 16, 1854. His father was Levi Longshore, a native of South Carolina, who came from that state with
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his parents when but a small child. He was brought up on the farm, and adopted farming as his vocation, following it until the breaking out of the war. He responded to the call for troops, and in 1862 enlisted in the Confederate service as a private soldier, serving until the close of the war. He then returned to his native county, where he remained only a short time, when he removed to Tallapoosa county, where he followed his vocation as a farmer until 1885, when he removed to Shelby county, settling in Columbiana, where, in connection with farming, he engaged in merchandising, and is now recognized as one of the leading merchants of Columbiana. Hon. A. P. Longshore received his primary education in the common schools of Chambers and Tallapoosa counties, having been born in the former, but removed to the latter when a small boy. In 1873 he entered Washington and Lee university, but, owing to his lim- ited means at that time, he was compelled to leave, after two years, in order to raise the money necessary to pay his expenses in finishing his education. He did this by teaching school at Alexander City, where he remained two years, during which time he was extremely diligent in the study of the law, At the close of his last term here he entered the law office of Osceola Kyle, of Wetumpka, and in 1878 was admitted to the bar, returning at once to Alexander City, and establishing himself in practice there. He remained in Alexander City until 1881, when he removed to Dadeville, and accepted the position of county solicitor, filling the posi- tion with credit and honor until December, 1835, when he removed to Columbiana, where he has since devoted himself to the practice of the law. . He has a strong legal mind, has a natural love for the law, and devotes himself to its study and practice as a searcher for the truth. Until 1888, he lived a more or less retired life, though he was always deeply interested in the public welfare, and the moral and intellectual progress of society. In the year last given, he was elected as a demo- crat to the legislature from Shelby county. He, however, did not con- sider himself as a mere party member of that body, but strove to serve the entire body of the people who had entrusted him with their interests. The people of Shelby county manifested their appreciation of his services by re-electing him to the same body in 1890, and although his right to the seat was contested, he was adjudged to have been elected, and served his second term. In 1883 he was married to Miss Fannie Jennings, by whom he had the following children: Lallage, Grover H., A. P., Jr., and Anna Laura. The mother of these children was a daughter of William Jennings, now a large and prosperous planter of Texas. He served as a soldier in the late war. Hon. A. P. Longshore is one of the foremost lawyers of Shelby county. He is a member of the Knights of Pythias, and also a member of the Baptist church.
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