Biographical and historical memoirs of eastern Arkansas, comprising a condensed history of the state, a number of biographies of distinguished citizens of the same, a brief descriptive history of each of the counties named herein, and numerous biographical sketches of the prominent citizens of such counties., Part 83

Author: Goodspeed Publishing Company
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. ; St. Louis [etc.] : The Goodspeed Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 836

USA > Arkansas > Biographical and historical memoirs of eastern Arkansas, comprising a condensed history of the state, a number of biographies of distinguished citizens of the same, a brief descriptive history of each of the counties named herein, and numerous biographical sketches of the prominent citizens of such counties. > Part 83

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Indian Bay, a small village in the southern part of the county, contains three general stores, two cotton-gins, grist and saw mills, and a small population.

Pine City, a station on the Arkansas Midland Railroad, a few miles east of Holly Grove consists of a large saw-mill, where extensive quantities of pine timber is cut into lumber. There are a few small residences.

The following statistics given in the last pub- lished report of the State superintendent of public instruction will serve to show the progress of the free school system in Monroe County. Scholastic population: White, males, 999, females, 892, total 1,891; colored, males, 1,449, females, 1,384, total 2,833; number taught in the public schools, white,

males, 487, females, 424, total, 911; colored, males, 853, females, 803, total, 1,656. School districts, 38, of which only 26 made any report. Teach- ers employed: Males, 45, females, 13, total, 58. Amount expended during the year to support the schools: Teachers' salaries, $8,401.50, building and repairing, $2,718.97, purchasing apparatus, $79.55, treasurer's commissions, $112.55, other purposes, $200.65, total, $11,513.22. By compar- ing the scholastic population with the number re- ported attending the schools, it will appear that a very large percentage of the children of school age did not attend, but a greater percentage than shown by the figures undoubtedly attended, as twelve of the districts failed to make report.

Of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, there is the Clarendon and Brinkley Station, with a membership, as shown by the last Conference minutes, of 166, with Rev. S. L. Cochran as pastor; the Brinkley Circuit, with a membership of 172, and W. W. Hendrix, pastor; the Holly Grove Cir- cuit, with a membership of 111, and N. E. Skin- ner, pastor; the Cypress Ridge Circuit, with a membership of 228, and T. Rawlings, pastor; the Howell and Cotton Plant Circuit, with a member- ship of 168, and M. B. Umstead, pastor. About one half of the latter circuit lies in Woodruff County. All of these belong to the Helena Dis- trict of the White River Conference.

The Baptist Churches of Monroe County, as shown by the minutes of the session of the Mount Vernon Baptist Association, held at Salem Church in Phillips County, in October, 1888, are as fol- lows with their respective pastors and memberships: Clarendon, G. C. Goodwin, pastor, 45; Mount Gilead, M. A. Thompson, pastor, 23; Brinkley, R. G. Hewlett, pastor, 52; Lone Chapel, G. C. Goodwin, pastor, 35; Ash Grove, S. D. Johns, pastor, 52, and Philadelphia, G. C. Goodwin, pas- tor, 78.

The Cumberland Presbyterians have four church organizations within the county, one at Brinkley, with a membership of 25, and Rev. A. B. Forbess, pastor; one at Clarendon, membership 50, and Rev. R. V. Cavot, pastor; one at Valley Grove in the southern part of the county, membership 75,

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and Rev. Cavot, pastor; the other on Cypress Ridge about twelve miles southeast of Brinkley, membership about 50, and Rev. Stewart, pastor. The organization at Brinkley has a new $2,500 brick church edifice, and the one at Clarendon has a fine frame building with the Masonic hall on the upper floor.

The Presbyterians (Old School) have an organ- ization at Clarendon with a membership of about 70, and Rev. W. C. Hagan, pastor; another at Holly Grove with a membership of about 25, and Rev. Hagan, pastor; also an organization at Brink- ley with a small membership, Rev. S. I. Reid, of Lonoke, pastor.

The churches in the towns in general have Sunday-schools connected with them, and some of the country churches also conduct Sunday-schools. There is a large Catholic Church with a strong membership at Brinkley; Father McGill is the priest. The people of the county are moral and hospitable, and persons seeking new homes will do well to visit this section of country.

J. T. Andrews, planter at Cotton Plant, is one of the leading planters of Monroe County. Born in Limestone County, Ala., in 1837, he is the son of Daniel and Mary (Morris) Andrews, natives of Virginia and North Carolina, and born in 1814 and 1815, respectively. The parents were married in 1836 and to their union were born two children, a son and daughter: J. T. and Dionitia F. (wife of T. L. Westmoreland). Daniel Andrews died in 1841 and Mrs. Andrews was married the second time in 1843 to J. H. Deaver. By this union she became the mother of five children: Mary A. (wife of Dr. J. W. Westmoreland), Thomas M., Martha J. (widow of Saul Salinger), Bettie M. (wife of H. C. McLaurine) and D. J. (wife of J. R. Whit- field). J. H. Deaver died in 1853, and Mrs. Deaver, who survives her husband, now lives with her widowed daughter, Mrs. Salinger, at Cotton Plant. She is, and has been for many years, a consistent member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. J. T. Andrews started in business for himself in 1858 by farming his mother's land in Tennessee,

but left that State and immigrated to Arkansas in 1860, locating in Poinsett County. His mother purchased 240 acres of land, which he farmed un- til the breaking out of the war, when he enlisted in the infantry under Capt. Westmoreland and served until July 9, 1863. He was then captured at Port Hudson, taken to Johnson's Island, and there held until February 9, 1864, when he was transferred to Point Lookout. He was there re- tained until March 3, when he was sent to City Point and was there paroled. After the war he resumed farming and also operated a cotton-gin in Woodruff County. He selected as his companion in life, Miss Martha A. Westmoreland, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas A. Westmoreland, and was united in marriage to her in 1858. This union has been blessed by the birth of three children, but only one now living: Sam (who married a Miss Cattie Keath and resides on a farm in this county). The children deceased were named: Edward and Minnie. Mrs. Andrews was born in Giles County, Tenn., in 1836. Her father died in 1865 and her mother in 1887, both members of the Methodist Episcopal Church. Mr. Andrews is a member of the I. O. O. F. Lodge No. 76, and he and wife have been members of the Methodist Episcopal Church for seventeen years. Mr. Andrews is one of the enterprising farmers of the county, and is the owner of 230 acres of land in Woodruff County, Ark., with 120 acres under cultivation and his principal crops are corn and cotton.

Judge H. B. Bateman, judge of the county and probate and of the court of common pleas of Mon- roe County, Ark., has been a resident of the county all his life, having been born one and one-half miles from Clarendon, in 1857, and is a worthy descendant of an old and highly respected family. His parents, Baker H. and Jane E. (Harvick), Bateman, were born in North Carolina, but owing to their early removal to Arkansas, they were mar- ried in Monroe County. The father died in this county in 1861, aged about forty years, and the mother's death occurred in 1874, aged forty-eight years. She was married three times, Mr. Bateman being her third husband, and by him she became the mother of two sons: H. B. and Thomas T., the

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latter being the present deputy sheriff of Monroe County. After passing many of the important years of his life on a farm, and in attending the common schools and the schools of Searcy, Judge H. B. Bateman began clerking in a country store, continuing one year, and in 1879 established a drug store in connection with J. B. Chapline, at Clarendon, the firm continuing business until 1889, under the title of Bateman & Chapline, at which time G. A. Franklin succeeded Mr. Chapline, and the firm is now Bateman & Franklin. Their stock of drugs is valued at $900, and their labors in this direction have met with substantial results, as they have the reputation of being safe, thorough and reliable business men. Judge Bateman has a fair share of this world's goods, and in addition to owning a fine farm of 350 acres, the most of which is under cultivation, he has a fine brick business block in Clarendon. His first presidential vote was cast for Hancock in 1880, and for some years he has been quite prominent in local political mat- ters, and, besides being justice of the peace for about six years, he was elected to his present office in 1884, and has held it by re-election up to the present time. He has made a very efficient officer, and is respected and esteemed for his sterling in- tegrity, sound judgment, broad intelligence and liberal progressive ideas. He is a man whose de- cisions are not made without careful and pains- taking study of the evidence, and all feel that his judgment can be relied upon. He belongs to Cache Lodge No. 235, of the A. F. & A. M., and he is also a member of the Chapter and Council of Clarendon.

Maj. John B. Baxter is a real estate and insur- ance agent at Brinkley. In all business communi- ties the matter of insurance holds a prominent place and deservedly so, for it is a means of sta- bility to all commercial transactions, and is a main - stay against disaster should devastation by fire sweep property away. He was born in Wilson County, Tenn., in 1839, and is a son of George W.and Rebecca A. (Hooker) Baxter, who were born in North Carolina and Tennessee, respectively, and were married in the latter State, their union taking place in Wilson County, about 1833, when the

father was nineteen years of age and the mother fifteen. They remained in Wilson County until after the birth of our subject, then removed to La Grange, Tenn., and here the father died May 25, 1844, having been a farmer throughout life. George Baxter, the maternal grandfather, was of Scotch-Irish descent, and was born in North Caro- lina, but died in Tennessee. Joshua Hooker, the maternal grandfather, was also born in North Carolina, but after residing many years in Wilson County, Tenn., he removed in 1840 to Fayette County, Tenn., and in 1851 he came to Monroe County, Ark., where he died of small-pox in 1866. He was the father of a large family, a farmer by occupation, and was a soldier in the War of 1812, and was with Jackson at New Orleans. Our sub- ject came with his mother to Monroe County, Ark., in 1851, but soon after removed to Des Arc, where they resided until the opening of the war, then returned to Memphis, where the mother's death occurred in July, 1867, she being in full com- munion with the Methodist Church at that time. Maj. John B. Baxter is the fourth of six children, and only he and his youngest brother, Hon. George W. Baxter, of Hot Springs, Ark., are now living. The former received his education in the common schools of Tennessee and Arkansas, and upon the opening of the war in 1861, he joined Company K, Fifth Arkansas Infantry, and operated in Kentucky. He soon after assisted in organizing Company F of the Twenty-third Arkansas Infantry, of which he remained a member until the fall of Port Hudson, when he was captured and impris- oned at Johnson's Island, Point Lookout, Fort Delaware, Morris' Island off Charleston, Fort Pulaski off Savannah, Ga., and was returned to Fort Delaware just before the close of the war. He was released in June, 1865, and at once went to Memphis, Tenn., where his mother was still liv- ing. In 1866 he traveled in Arkansas for a Memphis cotton and wholesale grocery house, but before his marriage, in April, 1866, to Josephine, daughter of William A. and Mary Pickens, he re- moved to Cotton Plant, Ark., but removed shortly afterward to Clarendon, from which place he en- tered the army, where he followed mercantile pur-

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suits. He next engaged in farming near Cotton Plant, but since 1872 he has lived at Brinkley, and until 1882 was engaged in the practice of law, having prepared himself for this profession prior to the war. He has been a prominent politician since his residence here and served several terms as sergeant-at-arms of the lower house of the State legislature, and in 1882 was elected to rep- resent Monroe County in that body, and was re- elected in 1884, serving four years. He has been mayor of Brinkley several terms, and in 1887 was chosen sergeant-at-arms of the State senate, being elected by the Democratic party to his various of- ficial positions. His first presidential vote was cast for Breckenridge. He is Worshipful Master of Brinkley Lodge No. 295, A. F. & A. M., and is Dictator of Brinkley Lodge No. 3127, K. of H., being also a member of the K. & L. of H. Maj. Baxter is one of only three of the original settlers of Brinkley, who are now residing in the town. His wife was born in Mississippi, but her parents were Tennesseeans who moved to that State, and in 1859 came to Cotton Plant, Ark. They both died here during the war.

William L. Benton is a farmer and blacksmith, of Pine Ridge Township, but was born in Jack- son County, Ga., in 1834. His parents, Thomas and Sarah (Norman) Benton, were Virginians, spending most of their life in Georgia, in which State Mr. Benton died, September 1, 1889, at the age of eighty-six years, his wife's death occurring in 1872 or 1873, when sixty-seven years old. They were farmers, and of Irish descent. The paternal grandfather, Reason R. Benton, died in Georgia before the war, aged eighty-seven years, and the maternal grandfather's (Joseph Norman) death oc- curred in the State of Mississippi. William L. Benton is the sixth of fourteen children, and al- though his educational advantages were of a very limited description, he became a well-informed young man, and when twenty-two years of age went to Mississippi. He was married there in 1857, to Catherine Eavenson, but her death oc- curred in 1863, after having borne two children, only one now living, named Andrew. His second marriage took place in December, 1865, his wife

being a Miss Eliza Latimer, but he was called upon to mourn her loss by death in 1878, she hav- ing borne him three sons and three daughters. Mr. Benton's third marriage was consummated June 14, 1884, his wife being a Mrs. Catherine (Aldridge) Graham, by whom he has one son. Mr. Benton resided in Mississippi until 1870, when he came to Monroe County, and in 1872 purchased a woodland farm, comprising 160 acres, of which seventy-five acres are in a state of cultivation. In 1862 he joined Company H, First Mississippi Par- tisan Rangers, and operated with his command in Mississippi, Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia, and participated in nearly all the leading battles of those States, among others the battles of Shiloh, Franklin, Nashville, and was all through the Georgia campaign, and in the siege of Vicksburg, and during his entire service was never captured or wounded, surrendering at Selma, Ala. He is a conservative Democrat in his political views, and his first presidential vote was cast for Buchanan, in 1856. He belongs to Clarendon Lodge No. 2328, of K. of H., and was formerly Vice Dictator in Oak Grove Lodge. He and wife belong to the Christian Church,

Samuel Langley Black, planter, Indian Bay, Ark. Of that sturdy and independent class, the planters of Arkansas, none are possessed of more genuine merit and a stronger character than he, whose name stands at the head of this sketch; he has risen to a more than ordinary degree of success in his calling of an agriculturist, and wherever known he is conceded to be an energetic and pro- gressive tiller of the soil, imbued with all these qualities of go-aheadativeness which have charac- terized his ancestors. Mr. Black is the son of John D. and Susan (Langley) Black, the father a native of Virginia and of English descent, and the mother a native of Kentucky. Samuel L. Black owes his nativity to Fayette County, Tenn., where his birth occurred March 22, 1842, and received his education in the high schools of that coun- ty, finishing at Bethel College, MeLemoresville, Tenn. At the age of eighteen years he commenced the study of law at Clarendon, Ark., in the office of Oates, Cocke & Wilburn, there remaining until

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1861, when he enlisted in Capt. James T. Harris' company, organized at Clarendon, this being the first company organized in this county, and served in the capacity of junior lieutenant in Patrick R. Cleburne's regiment. This regiment was the first one organized in the State for the War of the Re- bellion, but through error of the officer, the services of the regiment were tendered to the State service instead of the Confederate State Government, thereby losing the opportunity of being credited with being the first regiment of Arkansas organized in that State, Gen. Fagan's regiment securing that distinction. At Bowling Green, Ky., Mr. Black was made captain of his company in 1861, and his first battle was the famous battle of Shiloh, where, by his bravery and meritorious conduct, he won his spurs. He was immediately elected to the office of lieutenant-colonel of the regiment, and was ap- pointed to the staff of Lieut. - Col. Hardee as in- spector-general of his corps, in which capacity he served the balance of the war. He participated in Gen. Bragg's invasion in Kentucky, which cul- minated in his retreat to Knoxville, Tenn .; was at the surrender of the Federal force at Munfords- ville and the battle of Perryville. He took a lead- ing part in the battle of Murfreesboro, and was with the Army of Tennessee until its retreat to Chatta- nooga. He went from there to Enterprise and Me- ridian, Miss., and served for a time upon the staff of Gen. Joseph E. Johnston. He was ordered back to the Army of Tennessee after the battle of Chickamauga, participated in the battle of Mis- sionary Ridge and the retreat to Dalton, and was in all the fights and skirmishes of the Army of Ten- nessee from Dalton to Atlanta, including the bat- tles around Atlanta and Jonestown. After Hood took command of the Army of Tennessee, he was released with Gen. Hardee and went with him to Charleston, S. C. He was in front of Gen. Sher- man in his march from Savannah through the Car- olinas; was captured by a squad of his cavalry, but escaped after a few hours by a bold ride. He participated in the battle of Bentonville and soon after surrendered with the balance of the army at Greensboro, N. C., in May, 1865. He returned home on July 4 of the same year, went to work

for a firm in Memphis, Tenn., and subsequently was united in marriage to Miss Rosa E. Beas- ley, daughter of John P. and Eveline T. Beasley. Only one child, John S., was the result of this union, his birth occurring on September 28, 1866. Mr. Black has been constantly engaged in agricult- ural pursuits since, and was also a member of the firm of Martin & Black from February 1, 1882, to February 1, 1889, when he sold out. Mrs. Black died on June 1, 1886. He has never held any civil office, but at one time was a candidate for the office of secretary of State.

Mrs. Bena Black, widow of the late Maj. Will- iam Black, of Brinkley, was born in the State of New York in 1843, and her parents, John and Matelina (Leanhart) Colless, were natives of Ger- many. They were married in their native country, and three daughters were the result of this union: Catherine (wife of George Guisler), Julia (wife of John Bowers, of New Orleans), and the subject of this sketch. John Colless died in New Orleans in about 1847, and his wife afterward married a Mr. Frederick Buck, of New Orleans, and became the mother of five children, two sons and three daugh- ters, all of whom are living in New Orleans. Maj. Black was born in Toronto, Canada, November 22, 1836, came to Memphis, Tenn., in 1856, and worked at ship carpentering for awhile, after which he went into the grocery business on Jefferson Street. He carried this on successfully, but subse- quently disposed of this business and built a saw- mill just south of Brinkley, which business increased so rapidly that a more suitable and convenient place for handling lumber had to be selected, hence the mill was moved to what is now known as "Old Mill," east of town. Again it was located on the site it now occupies, and the present corporation formed, The Brinkley Car Works & Manufact- uring Company, which, in the meantime, owing to its excellent business management, has devel- oped into the largest manufacturing concern of its kind in the State, and one of the largest in the South. It at several times had large railroad con- tracts, building about twenty-five miles of the Little Rock & Memphis Railroad, and about forty miles of the St. Louis, Arkansas & Texas Railroad.

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He built what is known as the W. & B. R. V. Railroad as far as Tupelo, Ark. He built the Brinkley & Helena Railroad, and at the time of his death was busily engaged in extending the road through to Indian Bay, about twenty miles of which was ready for iron. He was a director and stockholder in the Little Rock & Memphis Railroad, was president and principal owner of the Brinkley Car Works & Manufacturing Com- pany, president of the Monroe County Bank, vice- president of the Brinkley Oil Mill Company, and principal owner of the business of T. H. Jack- son & Co., the largest mercantile firm in Eastern Arkansas. About five years ago, through his great business sagacity, he saw an opportunity to start a lumber business in Memphis, and as a result, owned the Brinkley Lumber Company of that city, which is, without doubt, the leading lumber estab- lishment of Memphis, receiving and selling more lumber and doing through his exertions a large and extensive business. Maj. Black served through the war with distinction, participating in all the battles in and around Memphis. Soon after the war he moved to what is now known as Brinkley, then a dense forest. At that time he had to walk twenty miles to the nearest railroad, which was the Mem- phis & Little Rock, at Palestine, while now, by his indomitable energy, Brinkley can boast of four railroads. Maj. Black was fifty-three years, nine months and twenty-six days old when he returned from Waukesha Springs, and looked the picture of health and vigorous manhood, with the exception of a large carbuncle on the back of his neck near the base of the brain, which caused much uneasi- ness among his friends, but were met with hopeful assurance from the friends of the family. There were in attendance the most eminent surgeons of Memphis and Little Rock in consultation with local physicians, and all felt hopeful until the fatal day, September 18, 1889, when at the close of a surgic- al operation, at about 1 P. M., he breathed his last. When the sad news spread among the people that Maj. Black was dead, a hush fell upon the town that will long be remembered. Business houses were closed, a Sabbath-like calmness rested upon the streets and in the dwellings, as if each one paused

in the busy walks of life to commune with himself on the uncertainty of life and the awful change, death. On Thursday, September 19, the obsequies took place, and seemingly the whole city followed in mourning to the cemetery where they carried this honored and much-respected citizen. The funeral services took place at the Catholic Church, and were conducted by Rev. Father McGill, after which the K. of H. lodge took charge of the burial ceremonies. . A procession was formed at the church, headed by members of the K. of H., fol- lowed by the carriages of the family and immediate friends; next came the employes from the mill, numbering about 100, and as the procession reached the school-houses it was joined by the teachers and pupils from both schools, numbering about 200. After them came numberless carriages and many on foot, variously estimated at from 600 to 1,000 persons. The ceremonies at the grave were im- pressive, and at their close the school children were each permitted to place a handful of flowers on the coffin-a most touching tribute. Those most intimably acquainted with Maj. Black knew best his noble traits of character, for, though pos- sessed of wonderful business acumen, yet he was modest and retiring to an unusual degree. Though so active, he never neglected those delicate court- esies which beautify life, but paid the strictest deference to the feelings of all his business asso- ciates, instances of which will be kindly remem- bered by them in years to come. He never took a very active part in politics, although at one time he represented this senatorial district in the State Assembly. He was the founder and leader, as it were, of this flourishing city, and his death pro- duced a shock on every side, making all feel, in the presence of such a calamity, as if the ordinary pursuits of life were vain. When his death was announced at a meeting of the Memphis Lumber Exchange, remarks of profound regret were made, and resolutions of sympathy adopted and sent to the bereaved family-commending his many virt- ues and his noble life as an example to those whom he left behind. He was the father of twelve chil- dren, eight of whom are living at the present time, two sons and six daughters: Lena (wife of T. H.

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Author: Goodspeed Publishing Company Publication date: 1890 Publisher: Chicago, Ill. ; St. Louis [etc.] : The Goodspeed Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 836

Author: Goodspeed Publishing Company
Publication date: 1890
Publisher: Chicago, Ill. ; St. Louis [etc.] : The Goodspeed Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 836