Historical and biographical encyclopaedia of Delaware. V 2, Part 40

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Publication date: 1972
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 776

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ULLEN, HON. ELISHA, Lawyer and Statesman, was born at Millsboro, Sussex county, April 23, 1799. His ancestors were from Scotland, and among the earliest settlers of Kent county ; some members of the family however emigrated directly to the south. His parents were Charles M., and Elizabeth (Harris) Cullen. Charles M., was a merchant miller many years at Lewes. He was a leading citi- zen of the county which he represented in the Legislature, where he was prominent and in- fluential. He died in 1828, aged about sixty- five years. The subject of this sketch was educated at Princeton College, studied law with Peter, afterwards Judge Robinson, and was admitted to the bar, Oct. 9, 1821. He then settled in Georgetown, and assiduously devoted himself to the duties of his profession

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till his death, which occurred, Feb. 8, 1862. In | wide reputation and popularity. His practice 1854 he was elected a member of Congress on is general, and he conducts criminal cases the American ticket, in which body he greatly distinguished himself, and won a national repu- with great ability, but his preference is for questions of law before the bench. His scru- tation. He made many speeches, which for | pulous sense of honor, and kindly and gener- ous qualities of heart make him many friends and a general favorite with his professional brethren. In politics he is a Democrat, but he has never sought or accepted office. For many years he was an Odd Fellow. He is a member of the Presbyterian church. He was married, May, 6, 1853, to Miss C. Virginia Waugh, daughter of Bishop Waugh of the Methodist Episcopal church. Their four chil- dren are, Elisha Beverly, engaged in agri- culture in Florida, Mary Virginia ; Charles West, and Catherina Margaret Cullen.

their ability and cogency of reasoning, not only produced a marked effect upon Congress, but commanded the attention of the whole · country. The most noted of these was on the Kansas and Nebraska question then con- vulsing the nation, on hearing which, the joy of John M. Clayton was unbounded at "his wonderful speech." It a was masterly legal argument on the relation of the States to each other under the constitution. Mr. Cullen was remarkable for his simplicity of character and life. He was fond of literature, and was a profound student of law, theology and human nature. It is said he had no superior in the State as a lawyer, and was a man of might be- fore the court. He was regarded as the father of the Democratic party in Sussex. He was an humble and practical christain, and a ruling elder in the Presbyterian Church. He married, April 11, 1822, Margaret, daughter of Robert West of Lewes, by whom he had six children, three of whom survived him, and two are now living .; Charles M., a lawyer of Georgetown, and Mary Cullen.

ULLEN, CHAS. MASON, Lawyer, was born in Georgetown, where he has always resided, June 14, 1828, the son of Hon. Elisha D., and Margaret (West) Cullen. A sketch of his father has been given. Mr. Cullen pursued his pre- paratory studies at the Academy in his native town, and entered the third term of the Freshman class at Yale College, in May, 1845, graduating with distinction in 1848. He then studied law in his father's office and was ad- mitted to the bar, October, 1852, when he became his father's partner in the practice of the law, till the death of the latter in 1862. Mr. Cullen has a considerable landed estate adjoining Georgetown, but is devoted to his profession, in which he has risen to deserved distinction as one of the ablest and most successful members of the legal profession in the State. His profound knowledge of the law, his acute and logical mind and his supe- rior forensic powers have not only secured him a large and respectable clientage, but a | his own teacher, studied nights, and thoroughly

OBERTS, JOSEPH, Farmer and Sur- veyor, was born in Appoquinimink hun- dred, June 7, 1829. He now resides in the house where his father, James Roberts, lived for twenty years before his death in 1855, on the farm known as "Levels Parcel" near Middletown. James Roberts was born on the eastern shore of Maryland, and was brought when a boy, to the above vicinity by his parents. He had but a limited educa- tion but was a man of more than ordinary ability and energy, and possessed a remarkable memory. He married Anna Maria, daughter of John and Maria (Hyatt) Hickman, and left six children ; Mary, now widow of Zachariah Jones, of Middletown ; Samuel, a farmer near Smyrna ; Joseph, Elizabeth, Martha and Anna Maria, residing in Middletown. James Roberts, died in 1855, in his sixty-sixth year, and his wife, March 27, 1878, aged eighty-three. The father of James was John Roberts, born on the western shore of Maryland, and re- moved to Delaware about 1794 He was en- gaged in the oyster trade, and died in 1803, at about sixty years of age. He had seven chil- dren. He was the son of the original settler, three brothers, John, Thomas and William, having come from Scotland about 1730, and settled on the western shore of Maryland. Mr. Joseph Roberts received only a common school education, but by reading and private study he has made himself well informed, and educated in the best sense of the word. He learned surveying after he was married ; was

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mastered his profession, which he has followed | who was a farmer in the vicinity. James H. to the present time, and is the principal sur- veyor in that part of the State, having sur- veyed all through New Castle county, and Kent, and in Kent and Cecil counties, Md. He also did a great deal of surveying for the Chesapeake and Delaware canal. He took charge, in 1852, of the home farm, which he still cultivates. It contains 1723 acres, and he has beside a tract of 47 acres of woodland and ten acres of chestnut timber, all of which he bought from the estate for $12,000. His father bought the same property, in 1855, for $2,200. He has had 3200 peach trees, has now 1600, hardly thinks it a paying interest, having had but two crops in ten years. He is an excel- lent farmer, an enterprising and prosperous man, and owes his success in life entirely to his own efforts. He has been for several years a Notary Public. In politics he has always been allied to the Democratic party and takes a deep interest in public affairs. He joined the Odd Fellows about 1850. His preference is for the Presby- terian church, which he attends. He was mar- ried, Jan. 11, 1859, to Miss Catharine Emily, daughter of Hon. Henry Davis of Middletown. They have two children ; Anna Laura and Henry Davis Roberts.

EVERIN, JAMES HENRY, A. M., Lawyer, Philadelphia, was born at Lit- tle Creek Landing, near Dover, April 21, 1844; son of James L. and Priscilla (Stytes) Heverin. His father was many years a well known merchant and busi- ness man in the above place, and accumulated considerable landed property. About 1860 he removed to Dover, where he became an extensive dealer in grain, and where he still continues to reside. His eleven children, all living, are Alphonsa, wife of Elias S. Reed, lawyer, formerly of Dover, now of Philadel- phia; William Stytes, a merchant at Little Creek Landing ; James Henry ; Lotta L., wife of W. Eastman Cotter of Wilmington ; Mary L., wife of Charles Denny, a farmer at Little Creek Landing ; Annie E., wife of James A. Shakespeare, lawyer of Philadelphia; Eliza S., wife of William Shakespeare of Dover ; Emma, wife of Benjamin Shakes- peare ; Charles L., oil merchant of Philadel- phia, and Joseph Comegys Heverin. The father of James L., was Outten L. Heverin,

Heverin attended school till the age of twelve years, when he went into the store of his uncle Henry, in his native place. Soon after his uncle died and his father took the store and settled up the estate, he having previ- ously devoted himself to farming and other business. In Sept. 1859, his son, James H., was sent to a boarding school at Village Green Pa., and the next year attended Mount Holly Seminary, New Jersey. In September, 1861, he entered the Sophomore class at Princeton, graduating, A. B. in 1864. During his senior year he registered as a law student with Hon. Joseph P. Comegys, now Chief Justice of Del- aware. In the autumn of 1864 he entered the middle class of the Harvard Law school, where he remained a year, after which he con- tinued his studies in Boston till 1866, when he was admitted to the bar in Delaware and after- wards in Philadelphia, and spent from January, 1867, to January, 1868, in the office of John O'Byrne, Esq., in familiarizing himself with Pennsylvania practice. He then opened the office in the Public Ledger Building, which he has occupied to the present time. One room at first suffieed, but now he and his partner, Mr. J. H. Shakespeare, have four of the most eligible offices on the ground floor of that building. In 1869, the office of Assistant Dis- trict Attorney becoming vacant, it was offered by Mr. Shepherd, the District Attorney, to Mr. Heverin, who accepted and filled it till the term expired, but declined a reappoint- ment. During the first month in this office he disposed of over seven hundred cases. Many of these were of great importance, requiring a vast amount of labor, and the remarkable energy, ability and learning which Mr. Heverin displayed in conductieg them, brought him into immediate prominence, and his steadily increasing reputation and success were from that time assured. His practice, while Assist- ant District Attorney, bringing him into con- stant connection with criminal jurisprudence, he afterwards naturally drifted into prac- tice in the criminal courts, in which he has made a reputation equalled by few men of his age in our time. Not one of the thirty-eight persons charged with capital offenses, whom he has defended, has suffered the extreme penalty of the law. He is one of the busiest men of his profession, which has

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proved lucrative, and enables him to gratify in died in 1871, when in his seventy-fourth year. an uncommon degree, the many generous im- pulses of his large and liberal nature. A man of great energy and force, he pusbes forward whatever business he has in hand, with a ve- hemence and strength that carries all before it. He is devoted to his profession, possesses a clear and logical mind, an easy flow of lan- guage, a kindly heart, and in speaking is im- passioned and eloquent. He was appointed Assistant Counsel of the Court of Commission- ers on " Alabama Claims," Nov. 15, 1882. His popularity was shown on the only occasion on which he has appeared before the people for their suffrages In the fall of 1871, he was nominated and elected as a Delegate at large to the Convention, to amend the Constitution of the State. Many of the oldest and most influential lawyers were candidates, but al- though Mr. Heverin was the youngest mem- ber of the nominating convention, and almost a stranger, he was nominated by a large ma- jority, was voted for by the whole city, and was triumphantly elected by the largest Democratic majority ever given in Philadel- phia. He took an active part in the debates of that very able body of men, was on several important committees, and succeeded in se- curing the adoption of a number of important measures of reform. Mr. Heverin was married, in 1866, to Miss Ada C. Cator, daughter of Dr. Harvey C. Cator, of Syracuse, New York.

MITHERS, ELIAS PRIMROSE, LL. B., Lawyer of Philadelphia, was born in South Milford, July 31, 1843. His father, Elias Smithers, a sea captain, sailing from Milford and other American ports, was a strong Whig and anti-slavery man, and was once a member of the Legislature. By his first wife, Catherine Primrose, he had one child, Capt. Wm. H. Smithers, of Milton, who died in 1864. His second wife, Elizabeth, daughter of Elias Primrose, is still living. By her Mr. Smithers had five children, who grew to maturity ; Emma ; John P., in the ranch business in southern California, formerly con- nected with the San Francisco Bulletin and Chronicle ; Elias P .; Hettie A., wife of George W. Staats, of Philadelphia, and Theodore Smithers, a wood engraver in the same city. Capt. Elias Smithers left the sea in 1860, and removed to the city of Philadelphia. He 64

His father was John Smithers, a prominent farmer of Murderkill hundred, who married a daughter of Waitman Sipple. Their children were, Waitman and Elias, sea captains ; Caleb, of Frederica, a member of the Legislature and Sheriff of Kent county, and Sarah, widow of Mason Bailey. John Smithers died very early in the present century. Elias P. Smithers was brought up in North Milford, and attended the Academy of that town, where he exhibited great proficiency and made rapid progress in Latin, Greek and French. In 1860, his parents removed to Philadelphia. He had previously united with the M. E. church, and his talents were regarded by his friends as directing him to the ministry, to which, also, he was himself much inclined. He graduated from Crittenden Commercial College in 1860, and while still pursuing his studies, was for some years a prac- ticing conveyancer in the city. In 1866, he was licensed as a local preacher, and was recommended to the conference for a charge, but having become interested in the study of law, and his health not good at the time, he declined the charge, but accepted the license, of which he still frequently avails himself. He graduated LL. B., from the law department of the University of Pennsylvania, and in the same year was admitted to the bar. From that time Mr. Smithers has devoted himself closely to his protession, in which he has been very successful, and achieved a high reputa- tion. He confines himself mostly to civil cases. In 1872, he was appointed Assistant City Soli- citor, by General H. T. Collis, and was con- tinued in that position by the appointment of William Nelson West, till April, 1881, when the demands of his private business compelled him to resign. His name has been urged on different occasions for the appointment of Judge of the Orphans' Court, and he was a candidate for the City Council on the Reform ticket in 1881, receiving a very heavy vote. He is a strong Republican and is prominent and influential in the councils of the party ; is Vice-President of the "Young Republicans," and is a member of the Civil Service Reform Association. He is deservedly popular and enjoys the highest reputation for integrity and fairness. His talents and learning give him great prominence among the members of his profession. He is a member and trustee of

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the Union M. E. Church ; was for many years superintendent of its Sunday school, and is one of the Board of Managers of the Historical Society of his denomination. He was mar- ried in July, 1870, to Miss Anne L., daughter of Thomas T. and Margaret (Mclaughlin) Mason of Philadelphia.

ERTOLETTE, LEVI A., of Wilming- ton, Justice of the Peace and Notary Public, in and for New Castle county, was born in Oley Township, Berks Co., Pa., Aug. 28, 1836. He is descended in the sixth generation from Jean Bertolette or Bertholet, who emigrated to America from France in the year 1726, with his wife, two sons and three daughters, and settled in that portion of Philadelphia county, afterwards erected into Berks county. The descendants of Jean Bertolette are quite numerous, and have generally settled in Pennyslvania, and all the Bertolettes in this country so far as known are from this ancestry. Levi J. Berto- lette, the father of the subject of this sketch, now resides upon a portion of the same tract of land, originally purchased and occupied by his paternal ancestor, Jean Bertolette. Mr. Bertolette the subject of this sketch, was reared upon his father's farm, and attended the schools of the vicinity until the age of four- teen, when he was sent to Williston Seminary at Easthampton, Mass., here he remained one year, and, though the opportunity was offered him to remain and continue a regular course through college, he declined and returned home. After a few years' stay at home he left for a journey through the western states, ex- tending his trip through the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Iowa, traveling the greater portion of the route by private con- veyance, and remaining and engaging in such occupations as the towns of the west at that time afforded, and returned to Pennyslvania in 1855. He then engaged in the mercantile business near his home, and at the age of twenty-one, was united in marriage to Miss Rebecca Louisa, daughter of Ezekiel Rhoads of Amity Township, Berks county. He con- tinued in mercantile pursuits until 1865, when he went with an elder brother to the mining regions of Colorado on a prospecting and mining trip. Two years were occupied in the gold mines of the Territory, and in in-

| vestigating and exploring the north and mid- dle parks, and the mountain range extending through the centre of Colorado. During these expeditions the parties engaged varied from two to twelve persons, and were out in the Ute Indian country, as much as three months upon a single trip, and were in daily communi- cation with bands of that tribe, who were friendly at that time. These explorations afforded an excellent opportunity of learning the vastness of the resources, both mineral and agricultural, of that grand and romantic country. After two years of mountain life, Mr. Bertolette went northward to the line of the projected Union Pacific Railroad, and aided in building up and preparing the new city of Cheyenne, for the reception of the first locomotive in December, 1867. Railroad com- munication being now established, he again returned to his family, and soon after his re- turn he was appointed an Assessor of Internal Revenue, by Andrew Johnson then President of the United States, and held that position until the close of his administration. In 1870 he removed with his family to Wilmington, and has resided in that city ever since. He engaged in various business connections until 1878, when he was appointed and commis- sioned a Justice of the Peace and Notary Public, by Gov. John P. Cochran. Mr. Berto- lette is an ardent and zealous Democrat though not a violent partizan ; he is a gentle- man of genial manners and is very popular, both as a man and in his official capacity.

'ERRIS, JOHN, was born in Wil- mington, September 21, 1801. He was the only child of John Ferris, who fell a sacrifice at the early age of twenty- four, in his devotion to the cause of humanity. When the yellow fever in 1802 was so fatal that few escaped it who were exposed to its deadly influence, this young man, on the threshold of a bright and prosperous career, with a loving wife by his side and dear friends around him, turned away and entered the abodes of the poor, and with untiring and sleepless attention to their wants never left them till death struck him down, we may say, at their very feet. Little did she then know that that child who leaned helpless upon her bosom would one day be a comfort to her so dear. She saw him, year after year, in all the trials,

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all the vicissitudes of life, a model man, in | any value escaped him. With a memory sel- honor, in affection, in wisdom and in his devo- dom equaled by others, he made himself ac- quainted with the arts and sciences, with history, government, biography, travels and general literature. What a lesson his life should be to every fatherless boy. Will you not learn from him, that prosperity and honor, and the profound respect and love of others cannot be conferred upon you by family, by friends or by fortune, equal to that which can be won by industry, by self reliance, and a decent regard for all the feelings-all the re- finements of society. We cannot close this sketch without a few words upon the kindness of his heart. Honest and sincere charity never appealed to him in vain. And there was scarcely a little child, or horse, or dog in his neighborhood, that did not know him well, and did not listen, with evident pleasure, for a pleasant word from him as he passed them by. This was the result of the harmonious development of all the noble faculties of his nature. He was certainly a remarkable man. His self government seemed absolute and perfect. The passions and propensities of the mind were held in stern subjection by an in- domitable will. Hence the more you asso- ciated with him the more you learned to love, honor and respect him. To the stranger this picture may seem too strongly drawn, but not so to those who were intimately acquainted with him. And who should know better about him than I do ? His mother was a sister of my fath- er, and from that cause alone we were thrown very much together. My affections had no brother but him all the days of my life. He was the first to teach me to fly a kite, to set a snare, to sail a miniature frigate upon the placid waters of my rural home. He died in the city of Wilmington on the 2d day of Sept., 1882. - tion to her lonely home. After spending a few years at the common schools he was sent while a mere boy to Philadelphia to learn a mechanical business, because he had manifested an early fondness and a remarkable skill in the use of tools. But what is a city life to an apprentice boy ? It has many roads. The paths of dissipation, of idleness and ruin are open to all. But these had no attractions for him. There are nobler walks that attract the few. These he found and loved and followed. Young Ferris, even in early life, had a massive development of the intellectual and moral regions of the brain. To minds of this cast schools are not essential. The boy educates himself. Access to a good library is all he asks. When his task was finished in the city and he came to his native place to establish himself in business, he was astonished to find that his reputation as a man of high moral worth and stern integrity had reached the town before him. He was offered, without solicita- tion, all the money he needed to engage in busi- ness. He succeeded beyond his most sanguine anticipations. He had scarcely passed the prime of life when an ample fortune induced him to retire from his profession. But not to rest ! Then, as it ever will be, I presume, many widows needed a wise, honest and patient counselor. And wherever they in- quired for one they were generally advised to go to John Ferris. And these were his clients that kept him busy even to the last month of his eventful life. Without compen- sation, in the storms of winter, and in the heats of summer, he was ever faithful, ever watchful of their interests and welfare. His extensive learning, his unquestioned ability, and great experience enabled him to answer CHARLES HARLAN, M. D. many abstruse questions, which perplexed and worried even astute lawyers. He spoke from an intuitive comprehension of what the law should be, and after days of toil among their books, the lawyers to their surprise, generally found that he was correct. With a mind ca- pable of moulding into harmony the discord- ant elements of an empire, he turned from all worldly preferment and in the seclusion of a happy home, every moment, not absorbed by business or company, was devoted to the acquisition of knowledge. Scarcely a work of

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ORTER, CAPTAIN DAVID H., was born in New Castle county, Feb. 19, 1805. He was a nephew of the late Commodore Porter of the U. S. Navy. Capt. David H. Porter served in the U. S. Navy un- til he had attained the rank of Lieutenant. He entered the Mexican Navy while that country was engaged with Spain in her strug- gle for independence. On the 10th of Feb. 1828, while commanding a brig of war of twenty-two guns and one hundred and thirty-

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six men, he engaged two Spanish brigs of su- | aggregated over $300,000 annually. It was perior force, and was victorious over their united finally made hazardous by the continued re - strength. On the same day a Spanish frigate, bellion in Cuba, and Mr. Treat turned his at- of fifty-four guns, and five hundred men, at-

tention to the south where he believed enter- tacked him while in a crippled condition, and prises could be started that would be attended after a desperate action of two hours and; with less risk. He had proceeded as far as twenty minutes, his ammunition being ex- hausted, Capt. Porter surrendered to save his brave crew. The frigate continued her fire. As the colors of the brig had been twice shot | away, Captain Porter was in the act of hoist- ing them, when he was killed by a grape shot passing through his body. He fell in the twenty-third year of his age, after as gallant a battle as history records. His remains rest in the new cemetery of Wilmington, Del.

GREAT, CHARLES HENRY, of the firm of Huxford and Company, Frank- ford, was born in Frankfort, Maine, July 15, 1841, the eldest son of Henry and Abby (Treat) Treat. His father, an extensive commission merchant at the city of Cardenas, Cuba, is a gentleman widely known and highly respected. His wife died in 1843. The Treat family have always been hardy, enterprising and intelligent, and for genera- tions have exercised much influence in the State. Many of them have filled high official stations. Charles H. Treat showed, at an ex- tremely early age, a great fondness for books, but it was the desire of his father that he should devote himself to a strictly business career. His strong natural bias could not, however, be controlled, and he had decided when very young, that whatever was his busi- ness in life he would yet have a good educa- tion. He prepared for college at the East Maine Conference Academy, at Huxford, op- posite Fort Knox. In 1862 he entered the Sophomore class of Dartsmouth, College and graduated A. B., in 1865. During his vaca- tions he taught with great success. He was now about entering Harvard Law school, it having been his long cherished desire to enter the legal profession, when he yielded to the entreaties of his father to take charge of a large business enterprise, which was the manu- facture of hogsheads, shooks and boxes, and of lumber, exporting them from Maine to Cuba and importing in return cargoes of sugar and molasses. In a few years he had over 250 hands under his control, and the business

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Historical and biographical encyclopaedia of Delaware. V 2, Part 40

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

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