Historical and biographical encyclopaedia of Delaware. V 2, Part 27

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Publication date: 1972
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Number of Pages: 776

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OWLAND, HENRY AUGUSTUS Farmer, near Middletown, was born six miles from his present residence, at Nowland Place, on the Bohemia River, March 6, 1838. The founder of the family in America was Desmond Nowland, who came from Ireland, about 1680, and settled near the Warwick Catholic Church. The prop- erty he patented has always remained in the possession of his descendants, and is now owned by Mr. Alfred C. Nowland, uncle of the subject of this sketch. The father and grandfather of the latter were born on this property. His grandfather, Dennis James Nowland, the fifth in descent from the founder, was a farmer, an Episcopalian, and died in 1807. His wife, Mary.Mansfield (Foard) Nowland, was born, January 19, 1777, and they were married, October 3, 1795. Remark- able portraits of them both are in the posses- sion of Mr. Henry A. Nowland. The father of the last named, Augustus James Nowland, was also a farmer, and was born in 1800. In 1849 he moved with his family to Kent county, Md. He was a man of great gen- erosity, and widely respected for his integ- rity and high sense of honor. He was a mem- ber of the Episcopal church, and died, Febru- ary 5, 1879. He married Mary, daughter of Henry and Francina (Wirt) Sluyter. Her grandfather was Harry Sluyter. This family was founded by Dr. Peter Sluyter, who came from Amsterdam, Holland, in 1683, and set- tled on Bohemia Manor. He was the founder of the colony of Labadists, previously noticed in this work. His large estate lay on the west side of Mill Creek, extending from the present St.Augustine Church to the Bohemia river. Of this, his nephew, Henry Sluyter, by purchase or otherwise, became sole possessor in 1716, and the descendant of the last named in the fifth generation, Benjamin Fletcher Sluyter, is now the owner of this extensive property. Mr. Henry A. Nowland was educated in the common schools, and entered Washington

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College at Chestertown in 1853. In 1855, at term at the Hoopes Academy, in West Ches- the age of nineteen, he left College, after which he was engaged in teaching for four years. In 1864 he commenced farming jointly with his father, and the following year they removed to "Achmester," a farm of nearly 400 acres, two and a half miles north of Mid- dletown. Mr. Nowland has been largely en- gaged in the peach culture, having about 8,000 trees in bearing, but owing to the repeated failure of that fruit, is now mostly engaged in raising wheat and corn. He has taken con- siderable interest in public affairs and in the success of the Democratic party, to which he is allied. Elected in 1874 to the State Legis- lature, he was for two years a useful and popu- lar member of that body. He has also for several years been a member of the State and County Executive Committee of the Demo- cratie party, and frequently attends the State and county conventions. He is a vestryman in the Protestant Episcopal Church, and junior warden, He was married, October 25, 1876, to Miss Lizzie, daughter of William H. and Maria (Hepburn) Blackiston, of Middletown, and niece of the celebrated physician, Dr. Curtis Hepburn, of Yokohama. They have one child, Maria Hepburn Nowland.

HOMPSON, LEWIS, Collector of Cus- toms for the District of Delaware, was born in Mill Creek hundred, June 24, 1816. His father, Daniel Thomp- son, a farmer, married Jane Gawthrop, of the family of that name well-known in Wil- mington and Chester county, Pa. The founder of the family was John Thompson, who came to this country from England in 1678, and settled near Salem, in New Jersey. His grandson, James Thompson, removed to Delaware in 1734, and purchased the property in Mill Creek hundred, which is still in the possession of his descendants. He was the great-grandfather of the subject of this sketch. The Thompson family were of that sturdy Quaker stock who have always stood undauntedly on the side of human rights and freedom of opinion, and have exerted a strong and lasting influence in the communities in which they lived. Mr. Thompson received only such education as could be obtained at the public schools, with the addition of one

ter. In 1841 he married Lydia Pusey, daugh- ter of the late Jacob Pusey, of Wilmington, and the following year they obtained posses- sion of a farm in Mill Creek hundred, a part of which belonged to the original purchase. Here he spent the greater part of his life, and by industry and economy cleared his farm from debt and acquired a competency. Six children were born to them: Mary T., now the wife of Henry Gawthrop, of Philadelphia; Annie, who married Thomas B. Hoopes, and died in 1870; Hannah M .; Emily T., wife of Joel A. Seal, of Philadelphia ; Henry Thomp- son, residing on the home farm, and George Rolandson Thompson, a graduate of Cornell University. Mr. Thompson was always an uncompromising anti-slavery man, and from early life took an active interest in public affairs. He was originally a Whig, and was elected on that ticket, in 1844, to the State Legislature. The succeeding term he was re- elected and became Speaker of the House at its session in 1847. In 1858 he was again elected to the Legislature, and a fourth time in 1872. In 1849 he was appointed Trustee of the Poor by the Levy Court of New Castle county, and served three years. He was among the first to espouse the cause of the new Republican party, and actively assisted in its organization in Delaware. He was chosen a delegate to the first National Convention of the party held in the city of Philadelphia, in 1856, and was also a delegate to the memora- ble convention held in Chicago, in 1860, when the lamented Lincoln was made the standard bearer, and again a delegate to the convention held in the same city, in 1868, when the soldier and statesman, U. S. Grant, was nominated by a unanimous vote for the Presidency. In 1876 Mr. Thompson was appointed by President Grant, Collector of Customs for the District of Delaware, and is now serving a second term of four years, having been re-appointed by President Hayes in 1880. Mr. Thompson is a worthy representative of a family who have for generations been regarded as exemplars of the highest virtues. He is a gentleman of large, physical proportions, his years seeming to sit lightly upon him, and he bids fair to con- tinue in life and to be useful for many years to come. His record and services are an honor to the State.

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MITHERS, HON, NATHANIEL | of that party. He was appointed Secretary of BARRATT, LL. D., Lawyer and ex- State in 1863; was elected as a Representa- tive in the 38th Congress, where he served with credit to himself and his constituency, being a member of the "Committee on Elec- tions," and the "Select Committee on recon- struction," and the author of the amendment to the then existing law which abolished commutation in money for military service, and made it obligatory that a party drafted in [ such service should either go himself, or fur- nish a substitute, and thereby assured the quota needed to fill up the depleted ranks of the Union Army. Throughout the dark days of the Rebellion,he was an ardent and uncom- promising Unionist, and ever ready to answer all demands upon his time, talents, or purse to pro- mote his country's cause. He was a member of the National Republican committee from 1860 to 1868 ; and represented his state as a delegate at the National conventions at Baltimore in 1864, and at Chicago in 1868 and 1880, respect- fealty to his party, and been outspoken and determined in his political convictions, he has enjoyed in an eminent degree the respect of his political opponents, who were ever ready to attest the conscientiousness of his motives and the integrity of his purpose. And although, in the heat of partisan strife, he may have been subjected to severe criticisms by his adver- saries, it was never charged that . member of Congress, son of Nathaniel and Susan F. (Barratt) Smithers, was born in Dover, Oct. 8, 1818. He received his early education in his native place, and was prepared for College in the Academy at West Nottingham, Cecil county, Md. Entering La- fayette College in the spring of 1834, he grad- uated with distinction in 1836. He then en- tered the Law School at Carlisle, Pa., at that time under the direction of Hon. John Reed, and remained one year, when he assumed charge of the Snow Hill Academy, Maryland. Returning to Carlisle after teaching a year, he completed his course and was admitted to the bar in 1840. He remained, however, another year assisting Mr. Reed in the Law School. He then returned to Dover where he has since resided, and in the spring of 1841 was admitted to the bar of Kent county, which then boasted some of the ablest lawyers of the State and of the time ; yet from the first his research, ively. While he has always been earnest in scholarly attainments, rare powers of analysis and peculiarly accurate discrimination, com- bined with his remarkable forensic ability and and perspicuity of expression, commanded the respect of the profession and the confidence of laymen, and very early gave him an enviable status at the bar and in society. Mr. Smithers entered the political arena in 1842 as a Whig, and was elected Clerk of the House of Rep- resentatives in the years 1845 and 1847. In "He sold the truth to serve the hour," 1850 he was active in organizing the Inde- or gave his approval to the moral heresy that doubtful or dishonest methods could be sanctified by the result to be attained. For more than forty years Mr. Smithers has been actively engaged in the practice of his profession, and his professional life has been characterized by diligent research and the careful examination and preparation of his cases, and exhaustive argument of the questions involved in them. Possessing a mind peculiarly adapted to the law, and having cultivated habits of thought which enabled him quickly to discern and properly to estimate the critical points of a case, he invariably came to the trial thor- oughly equipped ; and even if he happened to be erroneous in his conclusions, it was al- ways dangerous for his adversary to admit his premises. His legal eminence is recognized by bench and bar, and his opinions are received with great respect and confidence. The judi- pendent Temperance party, which continued as a distinct organization during that year and 1852. Although always opposed to the Demo- cratic Party he would not join the "Know Nothings' nor affiliate with those constituting that organization, until it resolved itself into the "Open American Party" in 1854. This again gave place to the " People's Party," and he gave his efforts to promote its success. In 1860 he took decided ground in favor of send- ing delegates to Chicago and of organizing the Republican party in Delaware, and having long been an earnest advocate of the princi- ples of which that party was an outgrowth, he had the courage of his convictions and contrib- uted in a very large degree to its organization in the State. He was sent as a delegate to the memorable Convention at Chicago and has ever since been actively identified with the interests

Engr by G Bacher 3 San Blelyn , N.Y.

N.B. Smithers

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cial reports of the State abound in evidence of he had become the owner of 696 acres of land his professional attainments. Amid the pres- sure of professional duties, Mr. Smithers has found recreation in classical literature, and translated quite a number of Latin hymns- among them the " Dies Irae" --- which are pecu- liarly notable for the careful preservation of the measure and spirit of their authors, as well as the elegance of the translation. Mr. Smithers possesses peculiar facilities for imparting in- struction, and in no sphere was he more suc- cessful than in the preparation of young men for the bar. He is always ready to aid his brethren with his advice and the result of his research, and his kind offices are often in- voked. He still resides in Dover, and pursues his profession, though not as actively as in for- mer years. His title of Doctor of Laws was conferred by his Alma Mater.

sold by the Orphans' Court, of Sussex county, being the land on which the town of Lincoln has since been built. He laid out the town in 774 building lots, part of which were sold. The railroad was not then completed further than Milford. Since that time several industries have been started, and they have been quite successful, particu- larly those of A. S. Small, T. R. Smith, and A. S. Small & Son, and the town has grown to 400 inhabitants. To Colonel Small the com- munity is indebted for this prosperity. He sometimes has 150 persons engaged in his canning factory, his fruit drying factory, and in the steam saw mill and box manufactory. He is fond of fast horses, and has become known throughout the State for the interest he has taken in the introduction of valuable road horses and trotters. As an agriculturist, also, he has been of great benefit to that por- tion of the State, having introduced all the improvements of the day. He is a man of great energy, intelligence and enterprise. Ile was first married in 1842, to Miss Elizabeth, daughter of William Bryan, of Pemberton, N. J., who died in 1854, leaving three children ; Alphonso, of the firm of A. Small & Son, whose attention is occupied in merchandizing in connection with the canning business at Lincoln ; William B., who serving as a soldier in the late war, contracted the disease which finally terminated his life in 1877, and Charles E., who conducts the business of the steam saw, planing and box-making mills at Lincoln. In 1862 he was again married, his second wife being Miss Lizzie, daughter of Robert Parham, Esq., of Philadelphia. Of this marriage there are three children ; Robert P., Eugene A., and Bessie Small.

MALL, COL. A. STOKES, of Lincoln, was born in Burlington county, N. J., July 25, 1821. His father was Abel Small, a farmer of that county, who died in 1858, aged eighty-three years. His mother was Rebecca, daughter of Benjamin Pine, of the same county. She died, July 21, 1825. They had four children. It was the desire of his father to give this son a clas- sical education, but his determined aversion to books prevented the accomplishment of this purpose. At the age of fifteen he was placed in a store in Philadelphia, and after two years, at a Friends' School, in Moorestown, N. J. After a time he was again a clerk, until 1842, when he married, and began merchandising on his own account at Pemberton. After two years he became proprietor of the hotel known as the Washington House, Moorestown, re- moving next to Bridgeboro, on the Rancocas, and for the two years following was en- gaged in conducting a summer resort and in OUPER JAMES, Sr., of Christiana, was born in Leith, Scotland, in the year 1734. His parents were Scotch Pres- byterians of the old school, and he was carefully trained to the studious habits, and high morality inculcated in that church. Sixteen years before the Declaration of Independence, and while the whole of Del- aware was known as "as three counties of Pennsylvania," he emigrated to this State, set- farming. He then removed to Philadelphia, and was on the special police force of the city under Mayor Gilpin, and was then elected Superintendent of the Blockley Almshouse, which position he resigned after two years, greatly to the regret of the Board of Guardians of the Poor. In 1862 he became a member of the firm of Wester & Small, clothing manu- facturers, Philadelphia. His partner died in 1864, and he continued alone until 1868, when | tling in White Clay hundred, and for many he sold out and came to Lincoln, Del. In 1865 | years lived an upright life in the village of

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Christiana. In 1773 he was united in marriage with Jane Eakin, of Delaware. They had but one child, James, of whom a sketch is preserved in this volume, and whose superior character and abilities reflected great credit on his parents and his home. James Couper, Sr., was from early life a member of the Presbyterian Church, and was greatly respected in the community in which he lived, as a man and as a Christian. He departed this life at the ripe age of 86 years.

ORE, HON. CHARLES BROWN, A. M., Lawyer and ex-Attorney General of Delaware, was born in Odessa, March 16, 1831. His parents were Eldad and Priscilla C. (Henderson) Lore. Mr. E. Lore was in early life a farmer, but later was engaged in the wood and lumber business. He was a man of great excellence of character and .sterling probity, and noted for his benefi- cence and encouragement to the aspiring poor. He died in 1850 at the age of fifty-three. The Lore family came to this country in the seven- teenth century, and were among the early settlers of Cumberland county, Pa. About the same time four Henderson brothers emi- grated to America and settled in New Jersey. The families on both the maternal and paternal side were people of intelligence and social po- sition. Charles B. Lore obtained his early education at the common school of his native town, and at the Middletown Academy. He entered Dickinson College, at Carlisle, in 1848, graduating A. B., with the honors of his class in 1852, and was valedictorian on the occasion. The same year he commenced the study of law with Judge John K. Findlay, of Philadel- phia, with whom he remained six months, and finished his legal studies with Hon. Daniel M. Bates, late Chancellor of Delaware, being ad- mitted to the bar in November, 1861. He settled in Wilmington in the practice of his profession, in which place he soon rose to dis- tinction, and where he still continues to reside. In 1861 he was was nominated for the Legis- lature by the Democratic party but the ticket was defeated. In 1862 he was appointed by Governor Burton, Commissioner of the Draft for New Castle county, to raise troops for the Union army. He accordingly canvassed the county for that purpose. On the 29th of Sep- tember, 1869, he was appointed by Governor Gove Saulsbury, Attorney General of the

State for a term of five years. During this time he was counsel in many cases which at- tracted much attention throughout the coun- try. Among them was the case of Goldsbor- ough, for the murder of Charles Marsh. He was sentenced to be hung, but escaped from jail and fled South. Also that of Dr. Isaac C. West, charged with killing and skinning a negro named Turner. The celebrated case of the Delaware Bank burglars was conducted by Mr. Lore. They were five in number, four of whom were caught and convicted. They were whipped, fined and sentenced to five years' imprisonment. In all these cases the ablest lawyers in the State were employed in the de- fense, and the reports being widely published in the press of the country attracted great attention. He was also called to act upon the disputes between the States of Delaware and New Jersey, regarding the water boundary of the Delaware and the fishing business claimed by both States. His legal practice is, how- ever, chiefly civil. He is a strong reasoner, a logical thinker, and presents the points of his case clearly, forcibly, and very eloquently. His practice is large and remunerative, and he has invested largely in real estate in Wilming- ton and other parts of the State. Mr. Lore is one of the incorporators and a trustee of the Home for Friendless Children in Wilmington. In 1867 he was made a trustee of Delaware College. He is one of the leaders of the Democratic party in the State, and in the Convention at Dover, in July, 1882, was nomi- nated, by acclamation, as their candidate for Congress, to succeed Hon. Edward L. Martin, and the campaign is now (October) in progress. He is an indefatigable worker, a warm hearted friend, popular with the people and a valuable and leading citizen of the State. He was mar- ried, in 1862, to Rebecca A., daughter of Josiah Bates, a Friend, of Mount Holly, N. J., and has one child ; Emma Lore.

COTT, DAVID, Farmer, and one of the proprietors of the canning establish- ment at Houston, in Kent, was born in the town of Springville, Susquehanna county, Pa., January 22, 1822. His pa- rents, Jesse and Susan (Downs) Scott, were both nalives of Waterbury, Conn., and were of old Puritan stock. The original ancestor, Thomas Scott, came from Ipswich, England, in the good

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ship Elizabeth, in 1634. He brought with | bore the name of D. Scott & Co., for the can- him his wife Elizabeth, aged 40, his daughters --- ning of fruits and vegetables. They erected a fine establishment for their business which ¡ has been in successful operation for three sea- sons. Houston now contains over twenty- - one families and has a good school, it being the centre of a new district, recently laid out. In whatever Mr. Scott engages his energy and ability insure success. He belongs to the Democratic party, but takes no active part in political affairs. He was appointed Postmas- ter at Houston, March 9, 1875. This office he resigned in the autumn of 1880. He joined the Patrons of Husbandry in 1875, and has been Master of Milford Grange, No. 6. From 1875 to the summer of 1880, he was station agent, at Houston. He was married, January 31, 1854, to Eliza Jane, daughter of Garret and Amanda Johnston, of Pennsylvania. They have two children : Julius Edward Scott, one of the proprietors and publishers of the Mil- ford Chronicle, and Irving Johnston Scott, still living at home. Elizabeth and Abigail, aged, respectively, nine and seven years, and son Thomas, aged six | years. The latter was one of the original proprietors of Farmington, Conn., and had a son Edmund and two daughters. Edmund was one of the first twelve settlers of Waterbury, and had a son George and other children, and died at an advanced age. George Scott,son of Edmund.had a son Obadiah, born, April 5, 1692, and died in 1735. Zebulon,son of Obadiah, died, May 12. 1798, aged seventy-nine years. Simeon, son of Zebulon, died August 28, 1828, aged seventy-eight years. He had six sons and three daughters, all of whom lived to an advanced age-from sixty to ninety- four years. Jesse Scott, son of Simeon, lived to eighty-six years. He was a farmer and blacksmith, and had seven children: Ira, a farmer, residing at Houston, Delaware; Ursula, deceased; Spencer, residing with David, the subject of this sketch, and the third son; Albert Lewis, of Baltimore, en- gaged in the canning business; Julius, pro- OODWIN, JOSEPH ADDISON, M. D., of Kenton, was born near the Trappe, Montgomery county, Penn., November 16, 1827. His parents were William and Sarah (Hanes) Goodwin. His father was a hotel keeper, a very active and in- fluential politician, but would never accept office. He belonged to the Democratic party, and was a prominent member of the order of Odd Fellows. Born in 1800, he died in 1858. His wife survived him until November, 1877. Only three of their seven children are living. Three daughters died when young ladies, and one son, William, died at the age of twenty- eight. Dr. Goodwin has two sisters. Mrs. An- dorah Brownback, of Trappe, and Mrs. Mary Hoyer, living near the same place. He was educated at the public schools of the Trappe, and at the Academy known as Washington Hall, and in 1847, commenced his medical studies with Dr. Dickensheed. In the fall of that year, he entered the University of Penn- sylvania, graduating M. D., in the spring of 1850. He practiced with his preceptor till August, when he removed to his present resi- dence at Kenton, Del. He soon gained great popularity and built up a large and lucrative practice. He has long stood in the front rank of his profession in the state, and has for thirty prietor of the Eagle Hotel, Pittston, Pa., and Edward B., who occupies the old home- stead at Springville, Pa. David Scott attended the public schools of his native place, and for a short time the Franklin Academy at Harford, in the same county. After attaining his major- ity he was engaged for two years in farming, following which he was in the grocery busi- ness at Mauch Chunk, Pa, for four years. In 1849 he went South, and was Captain of a steamer four years on the Cape Fear river, North Carolina, after which he was engaged for thirteen years in agriculture, near the old homestead. He was attracted to Delaware in 1866 by its reputation for profitable fruit grow- ing and general farming. In partnership with Rev. Willard Richardson he purchased 900 acres of land, where Houston now stands, but the partnership was soon dissolved. He divided the land into small farms, obtained a grant from the Legislature to vacate the old roads and lay out new ones, made many improvements, set out fruit and sold off about a dozen moderately sized farms besides building lots, and retained 500 acres on which he has 4000 peach trees and six acres in small fruits, all of which he has made profit- table. In 1879 he organized a company which

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Historical and biographical encyclopaedia of Delaware. V 2, Part 27

Author: Publication date: 1972 Publisher: Number of Pages: 776

Author:
Publication date: 1972
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 776