Historical and biographical encyclopaedia of Delaware. V 2, Part 48

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Publication date: 1972
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Number of Pages: 776

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548

HISTORY OF DELAWARE.

tical, not speculative. He was no theorist, but applied the rule of common sense to every subject that he discussed. Never partial to legal metaphysics, he would go direct to the pivotal point of a case, and with a clear ap- prehension of the facts, in all their relations, apply the law to the only issues to be de- cided. He had a remarkable power of lucid and methodical statement, and was distin- guished for the accuracy and precision with which he discussed every question. Though positive in his opinion, he was not obstinate, and never approached that stubborn pride which refuses to rectify an error, when con- vinced that one has been committed. He would not tolerate evasions or subterfuges, or ·permit, if it could be prevented, the spirit of the law to be perverted by technicalities, and yet no one could more adroitly enforce a technical rule when the object was to ex- tend mercy or secure justice. He died sud- denly, of angina pectoris, and the event was the occasion of a spontaneous and unniversal expression of sorrow and admiration through- out the State. For fully fifty years he had been before the people of Delaware, and for the larger portion of them officially con- nected with the administration of justice. In all this time he had borne himself with such constant honesty, faithfulness and ability, as to command the respect and confidence of all classes. The present bar of the State of Delaware regard his memory with the highest veneration for his ability and virtues. At a bar meeting, held shortly after his death, one who had been his fellow student spoke of him as "a gentleman whose conduct had always been that of an honorable, upright, moral man-a man whose habits and course of life commended themselves to every one." To those who knew him intimately, his most prominent trait appeared to be a conscien- tious sense of duty, and this principle con- trolled his thoughts, and governed his acts on all occasions. In domestic life, he was tenderly affectionate and considerate, dis- pensing his bounty with a liberal hand to all who depended on him. He was an humble believer in the Christian religion, and a mem- ber of the church of the New Jerusalem. He was married, March 15, 1842, to Miss Elenora Adelaide La Mott, whose death preceded his own by eighteen months. Only one child, a daughter, survived him.

IGGS, HON. BENJAMIN T., member of the Fortieth and Forty-first Congress from Delaware, was born in New Castle county, Oct. 1, 1821. His father, John Biggs, was a farmer, born in Cecil county, but resided most of his life in Pencader hundred, and his mother was Diana Bell, born in Cecil county, Md. A sketch of the family is found in the notice given of W. P. Biggs in this volume. He was early an attendant on the public schools of his neighborhood, and at the age of nineteen, was sent to the New Jer- sey Conference Seminary where he continued two years, and then taught for other two years, when he went to the Wesleyan Uni- versity at Middletown, Conn. Upon his return home, he engaged in farming, on land owned by his father, and continued to reside on the estate for twenty years, and follow the culture of peaches and growing cereals. This, to him congenial employment, he has made the call- ing of his life ; but his early capacity of public speaking drew him often into the field of lit- erary and public, or patriotic assemblies, and finally into public life. In 1846 he was com- missioned, by Gov. Wm. Temple, Major of the Delaware Regiment, which it was intended to raise for service in the Mexican war, in antici- pation of a call for troops by the U. S. Gov- ernment. In 1852 he was elected on the Whig ticket a member of the Constitutional Convention, called for the purpose of amend- ing the State Constitution. When the Whig party ceased to exist and was succeeded by the " Know Nothings," he refused to join that party, because of its proscriptive character. In 1854 he acted with the Democratic party, finding that his former party affiliations could not lead him to countenance the doctrines of the so called American party, and he has since been closely identified with the history of the Democratic party in the State, and has taken his share of work in each campaign as a public speaker. In 1860 was nominated for Representative in Congress on the Demo- cratic ticket, but defeated by Geo. P. Fisher, by 247 votes. In 1867 he was elected a director of the Queen Annes and Kent R. R., and in 1874, was made its President, which position he still occupies. In 1868 he was again nom- inated for Congress, and elected by a majority of 3,300 ; and renominated and elected in 1870 by a majority of 2,525, thus serving for two

B.7. Briggs

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BIOGRAPHICAL DEPARTMENT.

OMEGYS,GOVERNOR CORNELIUS P., was born of Maryland parents, in Kent county, of that State, Jan. 15 1780. His father was Cornelius Com- egys, and his mother was of the Par- sons family and named Hannah. At an early age he was placed as a clerk in the counting house of the Messrs. Hollingsworth, of Balti- more, where he displayed such excellent qualities that, at the age of nineteen, he was sent by them in one of their West India tra- ders, to the island of St. Bartholomew, as su- percargo. His counting house training quali- fied him especially for the discharge of the du- ties of two of the offices, one private and the other public, which he afterwards held. Soon after he attained his majority, he came to the State of Delaware to reside permanently, and shortly married Anne Blackiston, daughter of Benjamin Blackiston, of Duck Creek hundred in Kent, and became a farmer upon her father's mansion farm (still in the Blackiston family) the property of her brother William. After a marriage of about a year, his wife died leaving him with a daughter who survived her mother only a few days. He married a second time on Feb. 16, 1804, his wife being Ruhamah Marim, the eldest daughter of John and Han- nah (Stevens) Marim, of Little Creek Neck in the last named county. Her age at that time was seventeen. That year he continued to re- side on the Blackiston land ; but at the close of it he removed to Cherbourg, the family seat of the Marims, four miles east of Dover. Soon after his removal, he and his wife became the owners, severally, of separate parcels, and al- together of the whole estate which contained about three hundred and seventy six acres. He continued here for thirteen years working his land intelligently and profitably, for those

consecutive terms. He left his farm in 1877 | times ; and by his good taste adding greatly and removed to Middletown, to the handsome to the appearance of the property. Although residence which he had erected as a home in that town. Major Biggs was married, May 18, 1853, to Miss Mary S. Beekman, of New Jersey. Five children have been born to them, of whom three survive .: John, who is a gradu- ate of Princeton, studied law with Victor DuPont, admitted to the bar, Nov., 1879, and settled in Wilmington ; Jennie, a graduate of Wesleyan Female College, in the class of 1876, and Willard Biggs. a Federalist in politics, and therefore strongly opposed to the war with Great Britain, he yet felt it his duty as a citizen to aid his country in the struggle, and he enrolled himself among the State's troops, becoming in due time a Ma- jor, and ultimately Lieutenant Colonel. As Ma- jor he had a command at Lewes while the frig- ate Poictiers lay in the roads and harassed the bay-side with her armed barges ; and was encamped with troops in Little Creek Neck, near his home, when peace was proclaimed in 1815. At the close of the war he be- came an agent for Brandywine millers to purchase grain, and was tempted to risk his own means by the extraordinary wheat prices of 1816, and suffered loss thereby from which his finances never entirely recovered. About this period, also, he became engaged, for a short time, in mercantile business, and was part owner of vessels trading to Philadel- phia, but gained nothing by this enterprise. All the time, however, his farming business went on, and he had a large stock, and also a working family of bond and free. His engag- ing manners and agreeable address, together with his then ample means and known qualifi- cation for business, drew attention to him from men of influence and wealth in other parts of the county. Accordingly he was elected a director of the Commercial Bank of Delaware, which transacted its principal busi- ness at Smyrna. Being a person of ardent temperament and strong convictions, he natur- ally became very much attached to his party, and, therefore, a politician, but never, on that account, experienced any abatement of per- sonal friendship for his opponents. At the annual election of 1811, he was chosen a mem- ber of the House of Representatives, and at the ensuing session of January, he was elected Speaker of that body. He was re-elected in each of the four succeeding years and made Speaker at every session. Before the session of 1816, the dower of widows was subject to to their husband's debts, whenever con- tracted ; but the Legislature convened at that time passed the act which made dower par- amount to debts contracted after the inter- marriage, and his vote decided the question. He frequently spoke of this vote, which he re- garded as one of the most important acts of

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HISTORY OF DELAWARE.

his whole life. The brilliant achievement of | January, 1818, he was elected cashier of the Captain Jacob Jones in the battle between his vessel, the Wasp, and the British ship the Frolic, drew from the Legislature of 1813, a joint resolution of admiration and thanks, with a provision for the presentation to him of a piece of plate of the value of five hundred dollars, to commemorate the victory. A committee of three was appointed by that body to carry the resolutions into effect. Wil- liam Hill Wells, of Sussex, George Read, Jr., of New Castle, and Cornelius P. Comegys, of Kent, were appointed that committee, and discharged their trust as soon as the exi- gencies of the service brought the distin- guished officer within their reach. Afterwards when the great victory of McDonough over the British fleet on Lake Champlain, had filled the nation with transports of exultation, and shed unfading lustre upon the escutcheon of his dear little State, the Legislature, at the session of 1815, passed resolutions to express their gratification at the event, and chose a committee to present him with a piece of plate in honor of his heroism, and request that he sit for his portrait to adorn the Senate chamber : the same resolutions also directed the committee to procure a portrait of Jones. to be hung on the walls of the House. Cæsar A. Rodney, of New Castle, Jesse Green, of Sussex, and Cornelius P. Comegys, were ap- pointed that committee. This trust they faithfully discharged, and the paintings were executed by the famous Sully,-McDonough being represented as at the moment of his or- der for CLOSE ACTION. A further honor. One of the bravest officers in the war, which immor- talized Jones and McDonough, was Colonel James Gibson, who fell gallantly fighting, at the sortie of Fort Erie. The Legislature, not forgetting his bravery, and to render a proper tribute to his memory, passed resolutions of the usual nature, and appointed a commit- tee to carry a copy of them to the widow of the deceased, and to have painted a portrait of the hero to ornament the Senate Chamber. Cornelius P. Comegys was one of that com- mittee ; his associates being John M. Clay- ton and Judge Peter Robinson. The duty imposed was duly performed, and the portrait hangs in the State House. At the annual meeting of the General Board of Directors of the Farmers' Bank, on the first Tuesday of

principal bank at Dover, which he filled with great credit to himself, until the January meet- ing in 1829, when he was removed on account of his politics. The previous campaign (the Jackson and Adams contest) was marked in Delaware, as elsewhere, by an inten- sity of bitterness, and spirit of proscription, theretofore unknown in party warfare. He shared the views of all the Adams men, that Jackson's election would be an enormous evil by the elevation of a military man to the chief magis- tracy ; and distinguished himself, in opposi- tion, by all the zeal and activity in which his ardent nature prompted. His party's defeat was very severe to him ; but the blow that fell upon him and deprived him of an important source of support and means for the education of his large young family, well nigh crushed him. It was so unexpected as to be at first stunning ; but his fine health, and the almost universal sense of the injustice done him, ex- pressed warmly by political adversaries as well as friends (for he had no enemies of a personal kind) enabled him to recover from it and de- vote himself to his old pursuit. He removed at once back to Cherbourg, after such a leave taking by citizens of Dover of every rank, who waited upon him on the evening before his de- parture, as no man had experienced before. The legislature being in session at this time, he was chosen one of the State Directors of the Bank ; and in a few days after he had been thrust from the cashiership, he took his seat at the Board alongside of those who had pro- scribed him. Not all his political opponents however had voted for his removal. At the next legislative session he sat as a member of the House, having been elected the previous year ; and during the session he was elected State Treasurer-an office which he had held by three legislative appointments in the years 1820, 1821 and 1822. He was re-elected at the sessions of 1830, 1831, 1832 and 1833. It is needless to say that he filled the office with integrity and fidelity. So strong was public sentiment in his party, that he should be fur- ther compensated for the great wrong it was conceived had been done him by the directors of the bank, that his name was brought for- ward as a candidate for Governor, in the year 1832, for the first quadrennial term. The nomination, however, was given by the con-

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vention to Dr. Arnold Naudain, and the Whigs | of his official life ; henceforth he pursued, at lost the election-the old Revolutionary sol- Cherbourg, the business of a farmer until dier, Major Caleb P. Bennett being his Demo- financial embarrassments required that he cratic opponent. Being the real choice of the [ should surrender all to his creditors. After people for the nomination, it was hoped by the this calamity assailed him, (against which none of his children were then able to interpose,) he retired entirely to private life, losing his faith- ful partner on the 20th day of September, 1848, and dying, himself, in Dover, in his daughter's house, on the 27th day of January, 1861,-sev- enty-one years old. The Legislature being then in session, appropriate resolutions were passed by both Houses, the members of which attended the funeral in a body. It was impos- sible to know Governor Comegys and not feel a warm attachment for him. His manners, and all his intercourse and con- duct were those of a perfect gentleman ; and his social disposition, benignity of tem- per, liberality of heart profuse hospitality, charitableness for all faults, and unselfishness to the extent of real sacrifice, made him the most popular man of his day. The cry of distress never failed to arouse his active sympathies, his ample benevolence; and where money could relieve, he freely offered it when it was in his power to do so. When the hand of death fell upon him, it smote one of nature's noblemen ; and he passed from earth respected, nay, beloved, by all who knew him, leaving to his posterity a character without a stain. A large family of children survived him-eight of the twelve his wife bore him- all of which survivors are living, except the eldest son, William, viz: Sally Ann, the widow of the Hon. Henry M. Ridgely, Wil- liam, Joseph P., Chief Justice of Delaware ; Cornelius, George, M. D., Cincinnati, O .; Ben- jamin, President of The National Bank of Philadelphia ; Mary Elizabeth, the widow of Dr. Benjamin F. Chatham, Maria, and John. other side that he and his friends would give only a lukewarm support to the nominee ; but in this they were disappointed, for he and they exerted themselves, vigorously, in behalf of their party candidate. When four years rolled round, he was, virtually, the only one thought of for the nomination, which hereceived. His opponent, Nehemiah Clarke, of Kent, also, was a gentleman of great popularity, naturally -being affable, amiable, and good hearted in an uncommon degree. The result of the elec- tion was the choice of the Whig candidate by a most unexpected majority. As with respect to the other offices, the duties of that of Gov- ernor were faithfully and conscientiously dis- charged. In his Inaugural message, delivered on the 17th of January, 1837, he recommended to the favor of the Legislature the following measures : The encouragement of free schools, and support of Newark College, enterprises for public improvement, agriculture, abol- ishment of imprisonment for debt, of the whipping post and pillory, and of the sale of persons for fines, costs and prison fees. In his annual message to the Legislature, delivered on the Ist of January, 1839, he renewed his recommendation with respect to free school education, and the College ; also. imprison- ment for debt, with a suggestion of a peniten- tiary system. His last message, that of Jan., 1841, urged education and the free school system, again, upon the Legislature ; reform of the criminal code and a penitentiary system ; in- creased aid for.the poor ; and abolishment of imprisonment for debt. One thing is certain, that the man who made those recommenda- tions, while not in the least a visionary, as his whole life showed, yet felt and recognized the impulse of the current of enlightened thought then just beginning to flow under the hitherto suppressed influence of christianity, and gave expression to his sentiments, at the expense of loss of some former friends, whose views did not accord with his own. It required a great amount of moral courage at that day to recommend the repeal of long established penal laws. The close of the official term of the subject of this sketch was the end

RAY, ANDREW, A. M., Planter and Legislator, was born in Kent county, in December, 1771, and in early life graduated from the University of Penn- sylvania. Endowed with natural abil- ities of a high order, and the possessor of a large landed estate, his abundant means enabled him to spend his life in the culture of his literary tastes, and to give that time and thought to the welfare of his country, and to his duties as a patriot and a citizen, which he

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HISTORY OF DELAWARE.

felt was required of him. He was the author of many elaborate treatises on the most pro- found questions of government and political economy, which taxed the powers of states- men and scholars in the early days of the Re- public, and no one was more deeply interested in the growth and prosperity of the country, or maintained, with greater vigor, the neces- sity of protecting, by sufficient tariffs, our in - fant, struggling industries againt the cheap labor products of the Old World. He was a constant contributor to the public press, and many volumes in manuscript are still pre- served as mementoes of his studious habits and high attainments. For many years he repre- sented his county both in the Senate and House of Representatives, and was a leading member in each. He was one of the founders, tors of that Company until the road was

and, for a large part of his life, a trustee of Delaware College. He was married, in Feb., 1801, to Miss Rebecca Rodgers, of Maryland. A sketch of his son, Andrew C. Gray, will be found on page 224. Mr. Gray lived to a good old age, closing his noble and worthy life in Wilmington, Jan. 19, 1849.

TOCKLEY, CHARLES C., Retired Merchant, ex-Sheriff, and Governor- elect of Delaware, was born, Nov. 6, 1819, in Sussex county, where he has resided all his life. His father, Jehu Stockley, was a native of the same county, and one of its most popular, prominent and influential citizens. He held several public offices, and discharged the duties attending them with great credit to himself and satisfac- torily to the people. He died in August, 1830, at the age of forty-three years. The mother of Governor Stockley, previous to her marriage, was Hannah Rodney Kollock, whose mother was a sister of Daniel, Caleb and John Rod- ney, who were prominent and influential citi- zens of the State. Daniel was elected Gov- ernor, and Caleb became the acting Governor by the death of Governor John Collins, he being, at that time, Speaker of the State Sen- ate. Mrs. Stockley died in 1856, in the sixty- sixth year of her age. Charles C. Stockley received his education in Sussex, and at a private or select school in Philadelphia, chiefly after the death of his father. He began his business life as a clerk in Georgetown, and afterward in the same capacity in Philadel-

phia. Returning to Sussex, he taught school from 1839 to 1846, and occasionally assisted as clerk in the stores of the vicinity. In 1846 he engaged in mercantile business for himself, and opened a general store at Millsborough, where he continued until 1852, when he was appointed County Treasurer, which office he held for four years. In 1856 he was elected Sheriff of the county, and filled that office for the constitutional term. In 1873 he was elected State Senator from Sussex, and during the - second term was Speaker of that body, dis- charging his duties with efficiency and great popularity. About 1860, he became inter- ested in and connected with the Junction and Breakwater railroad, and was an active and efficient member of the Board of Direc-

completed. He also was active in procuring the charter for the Frankford and Breakwater and Worcester Railroad Companies, which are important links in the chain connecting the Frankford and Breakwater and the Worcester roads with the Junction and Breakwater road. After his nomination for Governor, he severed his connection with these roads, except the Wor- cester road, in which he is yet a stockholder and director, having been President of the Frankford and Breakwater railroad for several years before his nomination. He is President of the Farmers' Bank of the State of Delaware at Georgetown, which position he has held for several years. Mr. Stockley has always been a strong friend and advocate for public schools and has done a great deal for their promotion in the State. He is very kind and benevolent, has a strong mind, is remarkable for quickness of perception, and generally correct in his con- clusions in reference to all business matters, and honest and honorable in all his transac- tions, public and private. He is true to his friends, and incapable of ingratitude. He was nominated for Governor by the Democratic party, Aug. 22, 1882, and was successfully elected. He never sought the nomination, nor did he make any effort to obtain it, leav- ing it to the people, or his party, to make the selection which might be considered the best one for the public interest. Of that he did not presume to judge ; the vote he received, and his administration yet to be seen, will, it is confidently believed, show the wisdom of the selection. He was united in marriage, in

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Chastforkly

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BIOGRAPHICAL DEPARTMENT.

1859, to Miss Ellen W., daughter of James An- | which recognized the independence of the derson, a highly respected citizen of Sussex .United States, and later the commercial county, who was, for many years, president and afterwards cashier of the Farmers' Bank at Georgetown. His sketch will be found in this volume. Mr. and Mrs. Stockley have but one child, a daughter, Hannah Stockley. treaty of 1786, with Great Britian. For these services he was made Councillor of State and Inspector General of Agriculture and Com- merce. In 1787, he was Secretary of the As- sembly of Notables, and instigated and drew up the famous memorial upon abuses, which Ca- lonne laid before it. On the fall of this min- ister, the personal interference of Louis XVI, saved him from another banishment. Member of the States General from Nemours, in 1789, and later, of the Constituent Assembly, of which he was twice president, he was a stead- fast advocate of constitutional monarchy, and opposed the extreme revolutionists. For his opposition to the issue of assignats he was mobbed on leaving the Assembly, and his life was, with difficulty, saved by the national guard. Upon the dissolution of the Constit- uent Assembly, he exered himself to resist the excesses of the revolution, but was marked for destruction after Aug. 10, 1792, when he went, armed, to the palace with his son, to defend the King. He succeeded in escaping to the country after being hidden in the ob - servatory for several weeks by the astronomer Lalande, and while in concealment, wrote his Philosophie de l'univers. Finally arrested and imprisoned in La Force, the death of Ro- bespierre saved him from the guillotine. As soon as he was liberated he renewed his strug- gle against the Jacobins, and helped to organize the unsuccessful revolt of the sections. He was elected member of the Council of Ancients from Loiret, and became presi- dent of the council on the success of the reactionary party in the elections of 1797. When the Republicans broke up the coun- cils with Augereau's troops, DuPont's house and property were destroyed by the mob, and he narrowly escaped transportation to Cayenne. In 1799 he emigrated with his family to America, where he was received with much consideration. Returning to France in 1802, he declined the various appointments which Napoleon offered him, but as a friend of both countries was instrumental in bringing about the treaty of 1803, by which Louisiana was sold to the United States. During the empire he published a work on the bank of France (1806), and Memoires sur différents su-

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Historical and biographical encyclopaedia of Delaware. V 2, Part 48

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

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