Biographical and genealogical history of the state of Delaware, Vol. I, Part 48

Author: Runk, J.M. & Co
Publication date: 1899
Publisher: Chambersburg, Pa.
Number of Pages: 1482

USA > Delaware > Biographical and genealogical history of the state of Delaware, Vol. I > Part 48

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William II. Marvill was married April S, 1874, to Katie Rusling, daughter of Joseph R. and Kate (Holloway) Keim. Their chil- dren are: I. Lilian Rusling (Mrs. John II. HImbbs), born January 13, 1876, resides in Germantown, Pa .; II. Horace Keim, born August 18, 1878. Mr. William Marvill, his wife and family are members of North Broad Street Presbyterian church, Philadelphia, Pa.

SUSSEX DELAWARE DAVIS, ESQ., Philadelphia, Pa., second son of Col. Samuel Boyer and Sally (Jones) Davis, was born at Delamore Place, near Wilmington, Del., De- cember 30, 1838.

The progenitor of the Davis family in America was Rev. Samuel Davis, a native of County Armagh, Ireland, and a Presbyterian minister. He came to this country about 1692, under the auspices of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts, and was the pastor of the first Pres- byterian church built in Sussex county, Del., within the present limits of the town of Lewes.

The Jones family, the maternal ancestors of Mr. Davis, settled first in Snow Hill, Md., but removed about 1750 to Wilmington, Del.

The parents of Col. Samuel Bover Davis were John and Elizabeth (Boyer) Davis. Ile was born March 25, 1766, at Lewes, Del., and was the only one of two sons who attained to mature years. John Davis was a soldier in the Continental army; he was taken prisoner during the Revolution, and suffered so severe- ly from the exposure and hardships of cap- tivity, that he died soon after being released. About 1783, Mrs. Davis removed to Phila- delphia, where her son Samuel was for a short time employed in a counting-house. He then indulged his preference for a sea-faring life,

and made a number of voyages, several of which were to France. In that country he became acquainted with Rose Elisabeth, daughter of Baron Pierre de Boisfontaine; this lady he married, and for some time after his marriage served in the French navy, hold- ing the rank of captain. Then came revolu- tionary days, to shake France and all its insti- tutions to their very foundation. To escape the agitation and the painful uncertainty of the times, Captain Davis, about 1796, threw up his commission and returned to his native land. Settling at New Orleans, he served un- der the Spanish government, then still in pos- session of Louisiana, as Capitano del Porto; and when, in 1800, the territory was ceded to the French, his talents were called into requi- sition by the new government as Juge de paix of the parish of St. Bernard. From the emoluments of these offices and the profits ob- tained from his plantation of sugar-cane, C'aptain Davis accumulated a considerable fortune; enough to make him rank, in those times, among wealthy men; he accordingly retired from active life. But not for many years; the difficulties between our country and Great Britain, which led to the war of 1812. appealed irresistibly to one of his enterprising nature and patriotic sentiment. He made a tender of his services to the United States government, which was accepted; and it was not long before he enjoyed an opportunity to render signal aid to the American cause. A British fleet, under Admiral Beresford, had been sent late in 1812 to enforce the block- ade of the ports and harbors in the Delaware bay. In March, 1813, Admiral Beresford de- manded supplies of the people of that vicinity, and to his amazement, found his levy sternly and persistently opposed. For several weeks he continued to hesitate and to threaten Lewis- town with bombardment: meanwhile, Gover- nor Haslet took measures for defence; he sunt- moned the militia, and the citizens rallied at the call with the greatest alacrity. On renewal of Sir John Beresford's demand, he firmly ro- peated the refusal already made. On the sixth of April, Commodore Beresford sent Captain Byron, in command of several vessels, the Belvidere being the principal one, to make an attack. After firing a few heavy rounds, with the view of persuading the citizens to submit, Captain Byron sent a note, under a flag of truce, renewing the requisition, and protest-

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ing against the "cruelty" to the helpless inhabi- tants of the town of refusing to comply with it. Col. Davis, now in command of the de- fences, having been commissioned lieutenant colonel of the Thirty-second Infantry March 17, 1813, maintained the positive refusal of the citizens, and to the suggestion of the British officer that the women and children should be immediately removed from the town, returned the reply that they had al- ready been cared for. The town was then subjected to a spirited bombardment of about twenty-two hours, but no lives were lost. An attempt to land, made by Captain Byron on the following day, with the intention of seiz- ing the required provisions, was promptly frustrated. Thus foiled at every point, the commander of the blockading fleet lingered for nearly a month, under vigilant watch on the part of Colonel Davis, and at the end of that time dropped down the bay to Newbold's ponds, where he hoped to obtain fresh water; but being once more driven back within his "wooden walls," he withdrew his fleet to the Bermudas.

Commodore Beresford did not fail to appre- ciate the gallantry and military skill of Col. Davis, and requested the favor of his acquaint- ance. An interview was accordingly arrang- ed, which proved mutually agreeable. At its close, the two commanders, who were both amateur artists of some skill, exchanged water- color sketches. The one given to Colonel Davis by Commodore Beresford is still in the possession of the family. During the bom- bardment of Lewistown, Col. Davis was wounded in the face by a fragment of a shell and had his ankle shattered by a splinter; no lameness resulted from the latter casualty.

On May 6, 1813, Lient. Col. Davis was transferred to the Forty-fourth Infantry, and was afterwards promoted to the coloneley of the same regiment, and placed in command of the fortifications at Sandy Hook, defending the entrance of New York harbor. In 1814, he sat as one of the judges in the court-mar- tial in the celebrated trial of Gen. Hull for his unfortunate surrender of Detroit, in 1812. This service rendered, he was at once ordered torejoin hisregiment and to set out immediate- ly for New Orleans. The route, as faras Wheel- ing, Va., was traversed on foot, the regiment halting for a night at Wilmington, and cu- camping about a mile west of the city, on the many pleasant recollections.

property of William Warner. From Wheel- ing, the force was transported in boats, by way of the Ohio and Mississippi rivers, to the place of their destination, but did not arrive until after the battle of New Orleans had been fought, January 8, 1815. Col. Davis was then placed in command of Fort Philips, below New Orleans, whither he repaired with his regiment.

Soon after the close of the war, Col. Davis purchased Delamore Place, the late residence of Hon. Thomas F. Bayard. This property had been the camping-ground of the regiment, before it was ordered to the south, and the beauty of the site had inspired the colonel with the desire to possess it as a home. A dwelling had been erected upon the land dur- his stay in the south. Col. Davis called his new acquisition Delamore Place, and here he continued to reside during the summers until the year 1830, spending his winters on his Louisiana plantation. About 1830, he took up his abode in Philadelphia, where he soon became active and prominent in public affairs. HIe represented the city in the Pennsylvania legislature, sessions of 1831-'32, '32-33; was a candidate for the national legislature in 1834, but was defeated. In the state of Delaware, to which he returned shortly after the death of his first wife, Col. Davis never held any publie office, but was nevertheless warmly in- tereste1 and influential in all current ques- tions and matters of importance to the com- monwealth. ITis valuable services to the state and to the country were always held in grate- ful remembrance. In 1837, he was presented by the state of Delaware with a gold sword; and Lewistown never failed to testify to her appreciation of his valor in her defence by greeting him, on his visits to the town, with a salute of cannon. His political opinions were those of General Jackson, and, like that heroic and intrepid leader, he was character- ized by an unswerving devotion to the Union. Of commanding height, of graceful military bearing, possessing a manner at once dignified and engaging, the personality of Col. Davis was most attractive. His varied experiences combined with his rare intellectual' powers and fine memory, enhanced the charms of his conversation: and those who shared the gene- rous hospitalities of Delamore Place, among whom were many persons of distinction from other counties, found themselves the richer by

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The children of Col. Samuel Boyer Davis, by his marriage with Rose de Boisfontaine, were: I. Horatio, captain in the Thirty-second U. S. Infantry, afterwards brigadier-general of Louisiana troops during the Mexican war, married Naomi du Bourg, niece of the Right Reverend du Bourg, Roman Catholic bishop of Louisiana, died in New Orleans in Novem- ber, 1857; II. Oscar, lieutenant U. S. Navy, died in 1840; III. Alonzo Bertrand, born in 1810, died in Wilmington, in September, 1854, was a lieutenant in the U. S. Navy, was married in 1843 to Lydia, daughter of Rev. Andrew Prestinan, a clergyman of the Episco- pal church. The second wife of Col. Davis, to whom he was married in Wilmington, in 1837, was Sarah, daughter of Edward P. and Jeannette ( Moore) Jones; her father was a Master in the U. S. Navy. Their children are as follows: I. Delaware, born near Wil- mington, October 17, 1837, inherited Dela- more Place from his father, but now resides at Haymarket, Prince William county, Va., mar- ried Annie, daughter of Edward Warner, for- merly of Baltimore, Md., and Mary (Berry- hill) Warner, of Nashville, Tenn., has child- ren, i. Blanche, who married William W. Cur- rie, formerly of Canada, ii. Edward Warner, born April -, 1864, married Miss Ash- burner, ili. Sussex D., born October , 1871, iv. Bettine, born in 1877, v. Sallie, born in 1881; II. Sussex Delaware;

III. Lieutenant Kent Delaware, born January 17, 1840, graduate of Princeton Univer-ity in 1861, Second Lieutenant U. S. Marine Corps, June, 1864, married October 27, 1864, to Elise, daughter of Col.

and (Mayhew) Woodruff, died January 12, 1865, without issue;

IV. Elizabeth Victoria, born August 5, 1844, married September --- , 1865. to Charles II., son of Wyndham H. and Sarah (Ostrander) Stokes, and had children, i. Wyndham H., born July 6, 1866, graduate of Lehigh University and the University of Vir- ginia, was for some years a civil engineer, is now a member of the bar of Me Dowell county, W. Va., ii. Bettine, born October, 1867, married in November, 1889, to Robert E. Ed- wards, iii. Mand, born August, 1868, iv. Ethel, born 1869, married Herbert Fairfax Wallace, has one child, v. Samuel Davis, born in 1872, a graduate of the University of Vir- ginia, member of the barof Me Dowellcounty,

W. Va. Charles II. Stokes died August 20, 1873. Mrs. Stokes was again married in Oc- tober, 1875, to Hampden P. Morris, of Lonisa county, Va .; their children are, i. Caroline, born 18 -- , ii. James, born 18-, iii. Sallie, born 18-, iv. Kent D., born 1883. Mrs. Morris died near Gordonville, Va., March 4, 1884;

V. Harriet Harper, born November, 1848, married January 21, 1871, to William Bishop MeKean, captain U. S. --. Capt. MeKean was a great-grandson of Thomas MeKean, governor of Pennsylvania, 1799-1808, grand- son of Hon. Joseph B. MeKean, Judge of the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia, and son of Commodore William W. MeKean and Davis Rose (Clark) MeKean, grand-niece of Col. Sanmel B. Davis; Capt. MeKean died in Albermarle county, Va., in August, 1879, and was interred at Binghamton, N. Y. Mrs. Me Kean survives, with one child, Bettine Da- vis MeKean, born October, 1871, mar- ried - Rogers, of New Castle, Del., has one child.

Colonel Samuel Boyer Davis died Septem- ber 6, 1854, after a short illness, and was bur- ied in Brandywine Cemetery.

The second son of this family, Sussex Dela- ware Davis, Esq., attended St. Mary's R. C. College, Wihnington, Del., prepared for col- lege under the tuition of William R. Me- Adam, A. M., of Philadelphia, and entered Princeton University in 1857. After his graduation, in 1859, he read law in the office of Hon. George M. Wharton, of Philadelphia, at that time United States District Attorney; he was admitted to the bar in 1862. In 1872, Mr. Davis received from Chief Justice Chase the appointment of Register in Bankruptcy. The nomination for State Senator for the Sev- enth District, on the Republican ticket, was offered to him in 1882, but was declined. He has several times been urgently recommended by members of the bar as a candidate of special qualifications for a judicial position. Mr. Da- vis was counsel in Philadelphia for the Union Pacific Railroad, during the presidency of the late Thomas A. Scott. As Register in Bank- ruptey, Master, Auditor, and Referee, he has served in a number of very important cases, notably in the suit in bankruptcy of the the Franklin Savings Fund, and as master in the Connecting Railroad case. This case was a controversy between the Philadelphia and

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Reading and the Pennsylvania railroads con- cerning the right of the latter to run passenger and freight trains over a portion of the con- necting railroad, claimed by the P. R. R. as its exclusive property. Mr. Davis was also mas- ter in the foreclosure suits brought against the Buffalo, New York and Philadelphia R. „R., involving over $30,000,000. Mr. Davis is a member of the Rittenhouse Club, and has for years been a member of its Board of gov- ernors; was one of the founders of the Junior Legal Club, formed in 1871, now known as the Legal Club, and has been since its forma- tion a member of its executive committee; is Chairman of the Executive Committee of the Century Club, and is also a member of the Penn Club. He holds membership with the Sons of Delaware, and in the Pennsylvania Historical Society. His political views are Republican.

Sussex Delaware Davis was married, Feb- ruary 12, 1874, at St. James P. E. Church, Philadelphia, by Rev. Henry Morton, D. D., Rector, to Mary Fleeming, eldest daughter of Robert Harford and Caroline (Fleeming) Hare, of Philadelphia. Their children are: I. Samuel Boyer, born March 9, 1875, a grad- uate of Princeton University, and a student at law of Harvard University; II. Caroline HIare, born July 20, 1876; III. Robert IIare, born August 16, 1877, a graduate of Prince- ton University; IV. Sussex D., Jr., died in in- fancy. Mr. Davis is a vestryman of St. Luke's Protestant Episcopal Church of Philadelphia.

Mary Fleeming (Hare) Davis is a descend- ant of Robert Hare, son of Richard and Mar- tha Hare, of Limehouse, near London; said Robert came to Philadelphia in 1783, married 1775 Margaret Willing, daughter of Charles and Anne Shippen Willing. Charles Willing was one of the leading merchants of Philadel- phia of that day and was the son of Thomas Willing, of Bristol, England, whose wife, Anne Harrison, was the granddaughter on her paternal side of Major General Thomas Harrison, and on her maternal side of Simon Maine, both members of the Court which con- demmed Charles the First. Mary Fleeming Hare Davis was the daughter of Robert ITar- ford Hare and Caroline Fleeming Hare. For extended pedigree of Hare and Fleeming an- cestry see Provincial Councillors of Pennsyl- vania, by Charles P. Keith, Philadelphia, 1883, to be found in Pennsylvania Historical

Library, at Philadelphia. On her mother's side Mary Fleeming Hare Davis was descend- ed from Joseph Roteh of Salisbury, England, who died in New Bedford, Mass., 1784. Ilis grandson William Rotch, son of Thomas Roteh, married on July 17th, 1782, at Leices- ter, Elizabeth Rodman, fifth in descent from John Rodman of New Ross, Ireland, banished in 1655 to the Barbadoes for being a Quaker. For extended pedigree of Rodman and Rotch families see Genealogy of the Rodman Fam- ily, by Charles Henry Jones, Esq., 1886, in Historical Society of Pennsylvania, at Phila- delphia.

GEORGE DAVIS ATKINS, Philadel- phia, Pa., son of William Kendal and Eliza- beth (Voss) Atkins, was born in Milford, Kent county, Del., December 2, 1850.

Mr. Atkins' father, William K. Atkins, house carpenter, was born in Milton, Sussex county, Del. He was a skilful mechanic and worked at his trade in Milton, Del., and in Philadelphia, Pa., where he spent the latter part of his life. The children of William Kendal Atkins by his first marriage are: I. Sarah J. (Mrs. Godfrey Seeler) of Philadel- phia, Pa., has eight children, i. Mary, ii. Ida, iii. Annie (Mrs. Ellis Kerby), iv. Godfrey, Jr., v. Frank, vi. Kate, vii. Florence, viii. Elizabeth; II. Annie (Mrs. John Hiles), of Philadelphia, has one daughter, Elizabeth. Mr. Atkins' second wife was Elizabeth Voss. Their children are: I. Cynthia ( Mrs. Alexis Merritt), of Philadelphia, has three children, i. Frederick, ii. Clara (Mrs. William E. Gaunt), iii. George, all residing in Philadel- phia; IT. George Davis; TII. William J., of Dover, Del., married Catherine Tucker, has one child, William J., Jr. ; IN. John W., mar- ried Jennie Clegg, has two children, i. Ed- ward, ii. Bessie. Mr. William K. Atkins died at his home in Philadelphia, in 1883; his widow died in the same city, in 1885.

George Davis Atkins was six years old when his parents removed to Canterbury, Kent county, Del. He attended the public schools of that district until he reached his fourteenth year, when his family removed to New Castle county, Del. For three years he stud- ied in the schools of New Castle county, and completed his course in the public schools of Bucks county, Pa., whither his parents remov- ed in 1867. In 1868 the family returned to

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Delaware, and settled in Wyoming, Kent county. Two years afterwards, George At- kins sought employment in New Castle county, Del., and in 1871 removed to Phila- delphia, Pa., where he became a skilled ma- chinist. For a number of years Mr. Atkins was in charge of the public buildings in Phila- delphia. For eleven years he has been chief engineer and superintendent of Brown Broth- ers & Co.'s building, discharging the duties devolving upon him promptly and efficiently. Hle is a Republican, interested in political af- fairs. Mr. Atkins is a member of Reliance Lodge, No. 149, A. O. U. W.

George Davis Atkins was married in Phil- adelphia, January 7, 1874, to Caroline, daugh- ter of John and Rebecca Bradford, of New Castle county, Del., where Mrs. Atkins was born, July 8, 1852. Their children are: I. William K., born December 15, 1874, died at the age of eight years; II. George D., Jr., born December 27, 1877; III. Elsie Gordon, born July 22, 1886. Mr. Atkins, his wife and fam- ily, are members of the M. E. church at the corner of Eighteenth and Wharton streets. IIe is an active and energetic worker in the church, a member of the board of trustees and superintendent of the Sunday school.

LEWIS F. B. CLAWSON, Philadelphia, Pa., son of Dr. James E. and Mary E. (Lync) Clawson, was born in Smyrna, Kent county, Del., August 11, 1858.

Jacob Clawson, great-grandfather of James E. Clawson, and founder of the American branch of the Clawson family, was one of the early settlers of Delaware. Authentic family records have not been preserved, but it is sup- posed that he was born in Holland. Jacob Clawson settled in New Castle county, Del., but afterwards removed to Cecil county, Md. Towards the latter part of his life he returned to New Castle county, where he became prom- inent in the affairs of the county, and was highly esteemed and respected. Mr. Clawson finally returned to Holland.

Emory Clawson, grandfather of Lewis F. B. Clawson, was born in Caroline county, Md., in 1802. His life was devoted to hus- bandry and was spent in his native county. Emory Clawson was married to Nancy, daughter of James and Ann Starr, both na- tives of Maryland. The children of Emory and Nancy (Starr) Clawson are: I. Sarah A.,

widow of Jonathan Scotton, residing in Queen Anne county, Md .; II. James E. Emory (lawson died at his home in Caroline county, Md., in September, 1828, aged twenty-six.

James E. Clawson, M. D., father of Lewis F. B. Clawson, was born in Caroline county, Md., October 21, 1828. He attended the public schools of Queen Anne county, Md., and completed his scholastic course at Dick- inson College, Carlisle, Pa., graduating in 1863. James E. Clawson matriculated at the University of Maryland, Baltimore, Md., gra- duating as physician and surgeon in the class of 1855, and at once opened an office in Baltimore, Md. In 1857, Dr. Clawson re- moved to Smyrna, Del., and practiced there successfully until 1876, when he removed to his present home in Philadelphia, Pa. He is still active in the beneficent profession to which he has devoted his life. Dr. Clawson is highly esteemed in professional circles; he is a member of the State Medical Society, of which he has been president.

James E. Clawson, M. D., was married in Carlisle, Pa., September 17, 1855, to Mary E., daughter of John P. and Susan Lyne. Their children are: I. Lewis F. B .; II. Aquilla S .; III. John Lyne; IV. Annie C. (Mrs. William Keen), of Philadelphia, Pa .; V. Mary W. (Mrs. Albert L. Roop), of Up- land, Pa. Dr. Clawson and his wife are mem- bers of Grace M. E. church.

Lewis F. B. Clawson was educated at Smyr- na Academy. In 1875 Mr. Clawson secured a position in Philadelphia, with the Eagle Spice Company; the company being disband- ed in 1880, Mr. Clawson succeeded to the business. In 1881 he admitted his brother, John L. Clawson, to a partnership, which lasted until 1883, when the present company was formed. Mr. Lewis F. B. Clawson is an energetic, efficient merchant, vice-president of the Clawson Company, well-known and re- spected by his fellow-citizens. He is interest- ed in politics and is a member of the Republi- can party.

Lewis F. B. Clawson was married in Phila- delphia, Pa., May 17, 1888, to Cornelia, daughter of James and Elizabeth Whitaker, of Philadelphia. Their children are: I. James; II. Lewis Frederick; III. Edith Fos- ter; IV. Albert Edward; V. William. Mr. Clawson and his wife are consistent members of St. Paul's P. E. church at Overbrook. Mr.

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Clawson was one of the founders of this tend the church of the Holy Communion church and has been actively engaged in the (Lutheran) of which Mr. Clawson is a devout member. work of the church and Sunday school, of which he is superintendent.

The Whitaker family settled in Pennsyl- vania in 1812. They introduced the weaving of cotton cloths, and thus became promi- nently identified with the business interests of "Pennsylvania. This business is still carried on at Cedar Grove, near Philadelphia, Pa.

JOHN LYNE CLAWSON, Philadelphia, Pa., third son of Dr. James E. and Mary E. (Lyne) Clawson, was born in Smyrna, Del., November 4, 1862.

John L. Clawson's educational advantages were obtained in a private academy in Smyrna, Del. In 1876 Mr. Clawson removed to Philadelphia, Pa., where he filled a position with the Bradstreet Commercial Agency. In 1881 he resigned his position, and forming a partnership with his brother, Lewis F. B. Clawson, began business under the firm name of Clawson Brothers, manufacturers and deal- ers in spices and grocers' supplies. The part- nership lasted until July 1, 1885, when an in- corporated association called the Clawson Company was formed. The officers of the company are: president, John L. Clawson; vice-president, Lewis F. B. Clawson; secretary and treasurer, J. Harvey Barndt. The com- pany does an extensive business as importers, exporters, and manufacturers of spices, vanilla beans, flavoring extracts and grocers' sundries. Mr. Clawson is an intelligent, progressive busi- ness man; he has been prominently identified with the street railway interests of Philadel- phia, and in 1894 was elected one of the board of directors of the Electric Traction Company. He is actively interested in all that concerns the welfare of the city, and is a member of the Citizens' Municipal Association, the Trades League, and the Sons of Delaware, of Phila- delphia. Mr. Clawson is a Republican.

John Lyne Clawson was married in Phila- delphia, November 26, 1889, to Adele 1., only daughter of William and Margaret Eisenbrey, a native of Philadelphia. Her parents, who are dead, were by birth Pennsyl- vanians. John and Ada (Eisenbrey) Clawson have one child, Margaret Eisenbrey, born July 15, 1891. Mr. Clawson and his wife at-

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Biographical and genealogical history of the state of Delaware, Vol. I, Part 48

Author: Runk, J.M. & Co Publication date: 1899 Publisher: Chambersburg, Pa. Number of Pages: 1482

Author: Runk, J.M. & Co
Publication date: 1899
Publisher: Chambersburg, Pa.
Number of Pages: 1482