Historical and biographical encyclopaedia of Delaware. V 2, Part 5

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Publication date: 1972
Publisher:
Number of Pages: 776

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HISTORY OF DELAWARE.

9 ACALLISTER, COL. SAMUEL A., Lawyer and ex-City-Solicitor of Wil- mington, was born in. Philadelphia, Sept. 10, 1840. His father was Samuel Macallister, a journalist, and connected with the Daily Sun of that city. His mother Isabella Macallister, died when Samuel was three years old, and his father, in 1850. Thus when only in his tenth year he was left an or- phan and is the only one of five children of his parents who survives. When but ten years old he came to Delaware, and was placed on a farm in Kent county, his opportunities to obtain an education being limited to an attendance at the public school in the winter months for three consecutive years. After this period he never again attended school. But there are some minds which rise above the most untoward circumstances, and in defiance of ob- structions and outward surroundings, take hold of knowledge. Such a mind was that of Mr. Macallister. At the age of fourteen years he began going to sea, and being away in summer, came back to spend his winters on the farm. He took every opportunity to study and im- prove himself, more especially in mathematics and navigation, under the direction of the mas- ters of vessels. His first voyage was to Rio Janeiro, S. A., when in his fifteenth year. He subsequently went to France and England, but was mostly employed in the West India and coast-wise trade. Upon the breaking out of the war of the rebellion he enlisted as a private and was mustered into Co. F, first Delaware Regiment, Col. John W. Andrews. His sol- dierly bearing and courage soon won him pro- motion in the field, and by successive steps he rose to non-commissioned, then to commis- sioned officer, until he reached the rank of Ist Lieutenant of his company, and adjutant of the Regiment. He was detailed and appointed an Aid-de-camp on the staff of the lamented General Thomas A. Smyth of Wilmington, and was within a few paces of the General when a minnie ball gave him the wound of which he died in less than twenty-four hours thereafter. He served on staff duty until he was mustered out, July 13, 1865. Col. Macallister was wound- ed three times, first at Fredericksburg, then at Antietam, and severely at Bristow station. Upon his return to civil life he settled in the city of Wilmington, and still suffering from his injuries, sought such employment as was

suitable to his physical condition. The posi- tion of Assistant Assessor of Internal Revenue for the District of Delaware, was tendered to him, and he served in this position creditably from 1869 to 1872. During this period he em- ployed his leisure in the study of the law, under the direction of Anthony M. Higgins, Esq. He was admitted to the Bar at the December term of the Court, 1872, and imme- diately entered on the practice of his profes - sion in that city. From the first he met with a good degree of success, which continued increasingly remunerative. In 1877 Colonel Macallister was elected by the city council Solicitor of Wilmington, and was re-elected to the same position for three years in May, 1878. In this position, it is not too much to say that he won the confidence of men of all parties, and made an admirable record as the law officer of the city. He has been the President and a director of the Wilmington In- stitute for the last ten years and has served for three years in the Board of Public Education. He has taken a large share of interest in the organization of the militia of the State, and for two years the Colonel commanding the troops of the State, resigning that position in November, 1881, and was succeeded by Col. S. M. Wood. He is now devoting his time exclusively to his law practice. In politics he has always voted and acted with the Repulican party and is very pronounced, though courte- ous, in his advocacy of its claims. Few men of his years in this or any other State have begun life under more inauspicous and saddening circum- stances, and his career is full of instruction to those youths who are left with the task before them of hewing out their path to an honorable and successful future. He has been repeatedly spoken of as a suitable man to fill the responsible position of Mayor of the city, and as far back as 1875, in a list of seven persons who were candidates for nomination by the Republican party, Col. Macallister had the second highest number of votes for his nomination, although he made no effort to obtain it. In 1882 he again was largely sup- ported for the Mayoralty of the city. He was married in April 1872, to Miss Sadie A., daughter of Joshua A. Conner, Esq., of Chester county.Pa. Three children have been born to them : M. Isabella, Ada V., and J. Letitia Macallister.

amadalasley

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BIOGRAPHICAL DEPARTMENT.

AMM, PLEASANTON, Merchant and ; and was conspicuous for piety, and devotion to Fruit Grower of Cowgill's Corner, was born in Camden, Feb. 23, 1812. Hisfather, Benjamin Hamm, died in 1816,in Camden. His mother was Ann Pleasanton, a de- scendant of Henry Stevens, a large landholder : in Little Creek Neck and among the early set- tlers of this part of the county. The family is

her church. She died March 4, 1843 in the eighty-second year of her age. The grand- parents of Henry were Jacob and Rebecca Cazier, whose four sons were John, Jacob, Henry and Matthias. The ancestors of the family were French Huguenots. They were large land owners as early as 1760, and patents and still in possession of numerous articles of deeds are still in existence showing their pos- - household furniture, which were brought from England by the ancestors of Mrs. Hamm. The subject of this sketch attended the schools of his vicinity until he was sixteen years of age when he entered the Gazette Office at Wil- mington to learn printing. and continued there for four years. On leaving he followed his trade for ten years when he removed to his present home at Cowgill's Corner, and engaged in mercantile pursuits, which he has continued ever since. He inherited from his grandfather a farm of 114 acres situated in Little Creek Neck, and in 1880 he purchased an adjoining farm of 70 acres. Giving his attention partly to his land he has been successful both as a mer- chant and a farmer. In the culture of fruits he has engaged largely, raising peaches, straw- berries, etc., very successfully. In politics he is a Democrat. He has been twice married, first in 1834, to Miss Abigail, daughter of Judge Christopher Sickler, of New Jersey. Two chil- dren of this marriage grew to maturity ; Laura Virginia, now wife of Rev. William. F. Talbot of the Wilmington Conference, Mary Anna, who married, first, Mr. Gideon Waples, of Sussex county, and afterwards, Mr. Alexander Taylor, of Dover. After the loss of his wife, Mr. Hamm married, in 1849, Miss Sallie E., daughter of William Porter, of South Milford. The three children of this marriage are Pleasonton Jr., Kate P. and Lizzie Hamm. Favored in his undertakings, his efforts crowned with success, Mr. Hamm enjoys the evening of a quiet, use- ful and pleasant life.

AZIER, HENRY, Farmer, late of "White Hall," was born in New Castle county. June 14, 1799. His father, Jacob Cazier,a farmer of the same county, died, May 2, 1807. Jacob Cazier married Mrs. Charity, widow of Rev. James McCoy, a clergy- man of the Presbyterian church, May 9, 1795. Her maiden name was Charity Benson; she was a woman of great energy and business ability, -

session of large tracts of land on the St. Augustine Creek, traversing a broad area from the waters of the Chesapeake Bay, on the Bohemia Manor,to the mouth of St. Augustine Creek on the Delaware Bay. A large portion of this property is yet in the hands of J. B. Cazier. Henry Cazier grew up on the farm adjoining Mt. Vernon Place, the estate of Jacob B. Cazier. Although his early educational ad- vantages were limited,he nevertheless acquired a large fund of business and historical knowledge When of age he came into possession of 400 acres of land,and such was his industry and business management that at the time of his death he was the owner of seven iarge farms aggregat- ing 3000 acres of valuable land in Delaware and Maryland, which was devoted, chiefly, to ce- reals. Mr. Cazier joined the Presbyterian church about 1830, which event produced a marked change in his life and character. He . became ardent in his attachment to every form of aggressive christianity, which he was ready at all times to sustain by liberal con- tributions from his growing means. He was identified with the temperance cause from its rise, and was a devoted advocate of total abstinence, visiting various points and speaking with great effectiveness in Maryland and Delaware. In politics, Mr. Cazier was an old line Whig, a great ad- mirer of Henry Clay, and a personal and political friend of Hon. John M. Clayton. He would never allow his name to be used for any office of profit or honor in the state, yet no man was more interested or active in his party than he, during the life of Henry Clay, at whose death he ceased to take so large a share of interest in public and political affairs, yet continued to act and vote with, at first, the American, and then with the People's party until the period of his death, which occurred Nov. 5, 1859, at the age of 61 years. Few men have better illustrated than he, the virtues of industry, self reliance, and devotion to moral

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HISTORY OF DELAWARE.

and religious conviction. He was united in | Cazier took away all of the old family resi- marriage on the 23d of December 1828, to Miss dence but a portion of the outside walls, and rebuilt it in modern style, after plans of his own, making of it one of the most commodious, richly finished, and elegant mansions in the state. Mr. Cazier is influential and popular; is a prominent member of the Peninsula Agri- cultural and Pomological Society. In politics he is an independent Republican, and a ster- ling advocate of a strong government, but has no aspirations for political honors. He was married in December, 1878, to Miss Hannah Brinton, daughter of William Magins, late of Wilmington. Sarah Johnston, of New York, by Rev. T. McDuley,in Rutgers church in that city. Mrs. Cazier died August Ist, 1877, in her eighty-first year. She possessed rare natural endowments and was an educated and devoted christian lady. Her death was a great loss to the church and community in which she had lived for nearly half a century. The following children were born of this marriage; Catherine Eugenia, who married Rev. Samuel Dickey of Oxford, Pa., October 8, 1850; she died March 16, 1862 ; Sallie Eugenia, born August 11, 1853 ; Mary Irvine, born August 21, 1857, and Jacob Benson Cazier.

AZIER, JACOB BENSON, Retired Farmer, near Kirkwood, New Castle county, son of Henry Cazier, was born on White Hall farm, the old homestead. Dec. 25, 1833. He attended the schools of his neighborhood till his fourteenth year, when he was sent to the Academy at Newark, then in charge of Rev. Matthew Meigs, now consul to Greece. After a thorough prepara- tory course of two and a half years, he entered Delaware college, where he remained till about the middle of the senior year, when he left for the purpose of making a general tour of the United States, and spent about twelve months in visiting the principal cities, and points of in- terest in the northern, western and southern portions of the Union. Returning home he entered upon the duties of life as an agricul- turist, on the old homestead farm. In 1859, (after the decease of his father,) he retired from the practical pursuits of farming and removed to the beautifully located farm, " Mount Ver- non place," where he still resides. In this farm Mr. Cazier has taken great pride, and has made of it one of the most productive and val- uable estates in the country. He owns, also, the old homestead. "White Hall," and in 1873 purchased the lands devised by his father to his father's brother, John Cazier The three tracts of land being contiguous, make one solid body of about thirteen hundred acres, bounded on the south by the Chesapeake and Delaware canal. He has, besides, other farms, in all, amounting to about two thousand acres flour inspector in Wilmington. He died in of improved and valuable land, which he devotes, principally, to cereals. In 1878, Mr.

AYLOR, ANDREW D. DEACON, Merchant of St. George's, was born in Philadelphia, Feb. 11, 1828. His father, David Deacon Taylor, born in Wilming- ton, in the year 1800, was a machinist by trade, and in early life removed to Phila- delphia, where he took Philip Garrett, a Quaker, into partnership, the firm bearing the name of David D. Taylor & Co. In May, 1827, he married Elizabeth, daughter of John Warwick of Philadelphia, who came from England to America in early life, was a patriot during the Revolution, and died in 1864, at the great age of one hundred years. He was very wealthy, owning a large amount of property in Phila- delphia, and after his death a chest, he had carefully guarded, was found to contain two hundred and fifty thousand dollars in conti- nental money. David D. Taylor had two daughters, who died in childhood, and he died at the early age of thirty-one. His father, Andrew Taylor, was born in Germantown, Pa., about 1755. He married Elizabeth Deacon, of New Jersey, sister of Commodore David Deacon of the United States Navy, who died at sea on board the man of war Brandywine. They had a large family, seven living to maturity ; George W., of Wilmington ; Augustus; David Deacon ; Alexander, living near Springfield, Illinois ; Rev. William W. Taylor, a Presbyterian Clergy- man residing in Wilmington; Edward T, treasurer of the Artizan's Bank, Wilmington, and one daughter, Mary Ann, who married Thomas C. Aldrich of Wilmington, and died in 1855. Andrew Taylor was for many years, 1840, at about the age of eighty-seven years. The family came, originally, from Germany,

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BIOGRAPHICAL DEPARTMENT.

where their name was Schneider, which, after | their emigration to this country late in the 17th their arrival in America, was changed to its English equivalent, Taylor. Mr. Taylor was educated in the public schools of Philadelphia till the age of fifteen, when he became a clerk in a dry goods store in that city, and was thus engaged till 1850, after which he was, for seven years a clerk in a drug store. He then took a partner and engaged in the retail drug busi- 'ness. In July, 1863, he entered the Quarter- master's department of the United States Army at Fortress Monroe, in which position

he continued till 1868, when he settled in St. George's, New Castle county, in mercantile business, In this he has been very successful, and has become the leading merchant of the town. He has gained, also, the entire respect and confidence of the people of the place, as a man of character and worth. In politics he was formerly an old line Whig and a staunch

defender of that party, and is now an equally pronounced Republican. He is now and has been for two terms previously, a. member of

the Town Council, of which he is Treasurer,

and is also, Treasurer of the Town Library.

Since 1853, he has been a member of Phoenix Masonic Lodge of Philadelphia, No. 130. He

is a member of the Presbyterian Church and

Treasurer of the Board of Trustees. Mr. Taylor was married, in 1853, to Miss Sarah I., daughter of Joseph Keen, of Philadelphia. His eldest son, Henry Clay, is his partner in busi- ness. The only daughter, Ella Yardley, is the wife of Oliver V. Jamison, a farmer of St. George's hundred, and they have one other child, William Keen Taylor, eight years of age.

ATMAN, CHARLES, JR., Merchant, Middletown, was born about ten miles west of Milford, Sussex county, Feb- ruary 17, 1820. His father, Cyrus Tat- man, born in the same place, November 13, 1789, owned a small farm and grist mill, from which he supported his family. His wife was Elizabeth Dushane, whom he married in Feb- ruary, 1813. They had eight children, of whom four are still living. The father of Cyrus was Purnell Tatman, a native of the same county, and a farmer. He married Bathsheba Griffith, who was a member of an extensive family of that name in Sussex county. Purnell Tatman raised a large family and died in 1826. The . family is of English origin, and tradition places

century. The descendants are now scattered through Delaware, and the Western and South- ern States. The subject of this sketch was brought up to work on his father's farm and in the mill, attending for a limited period the schools of the neighborhood, which were few and poor. At sixteen years of age he became a clerk in the store of Edwards & Hazel in Mid- dletown. In six months the firm dissolved and he became a clerk with Tatman & McKee, at Cantwell's Bridge, now Odessa. Mr. Tatman, who is still living, is his uncle and a younger brother of his father His sketch and portrait are to be found in this volume. As his name was also Charles, Mr. Tatman affixed "junior" to his name, which he has since retained. . He remained with that firm till 1843, and thoroughly mastered the business which he has made the vocation of his life. Returning to Middletown he was a clerk for Mr. Richard Lockwood for three years, and in 1846, form- ing a partnership with Philip Le Compt ; they purchased the stock and business of his late employer. In less than a month Mr. Le Compt died, although Mr. Tatman continued the business under the firm name of Le Compt & Tatman till 1848. At that time his old em- ployer, Mr. Lockwood, became his partner by the purchase of Mr. Le Compt's interest. Lockwood and Tatman continued to do a large and prosperous business till 1865, when Mr. Tatman bought out his partner, and has since managed his affairs with equal success in his own name. He is one of the most substantial and prosperous men of the town. By close attention to business, and by a course of strict integrity and honor, he has not only accumu- lated a handsome fortune, but has won for himself the respect and confidence of the community with which he has so long been identified. He was originally an old line Whig in politics and cast his first vote for Henry Clay. He held the office of Postmaster under Presidents Taylor and Fillmore from 1849 to 1854. He has also served as Town Commis- sioner, and as a school officer. During the late war he was a pronounced Union man, contributing heavily and exerting his influence to the utmost to assist the Republic in its struggle with rebellion. His principles and convictions naturally allied him with the Re- publican party, of which he is an earnest sup-

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HISTORY OF DELAWARE.

porter. He is an attendant and supporter of the Presbyterian Church, and for many years has been a member of its Board of Trustees. He has never married, but for twenty-five years was the entire support of his parents. His father's health failing, he brought them to Middletown, furnished them a home as long as they lived, and ministered to their declin- ing years with the most tender and loving care. Mr. Tatman has enjoyed remarkable health, having had but one period of slight indisposition of about two week's duration. since he was ten years of age. He is of a genial disposition, naturally quiet and retiring, but a man of superior intelligence, and one of the most highly respected members of the community.

UNCAN, JEREMIAH WOOLSTON, deceased, was born in Baltimore, Md., July 21, 1810, and was the third son of John and Elizabeth (Woolston) Dun- can, of whose family an account is given in a preceding sketch. He received, in com- mon with all the other members of his father's family, a good English education, but his active and enterprizing nature early asserted itself, and while still but a boy in years, he proceeded of his own volition to Philadelphia, where he became a clerk in a hardware store, remaining till he was twenty years of age. He then went into partnership, in Wilmington, with his brother, John A. Duncan, in the hardware business. In 1830 he withdrew from the firm and went into the lumber business with Baudy Simmons and Company, of Wilmington. He afterwards retired, also, from this firm and went into the West India trade and wholesale grocery business, in partnership with Matthew and Andrew Carnahan, in the same place. He next erected a steam saw mill on the "Old Ferry" property. In 1850 he removed to Chicago, where he engaged extensively in the lumber business. He owned large tracts of land in Michigan, near the straits of Mackinaw, and the town of Duncan, in that vicinity, was named in his honor. But the life he now led subjected him to frequent and severe exposures, and carried away by his activity and energy, he paid too little regard to his health. It thus happened that in the prime of his vigorous and most valuable life he contracted a fatal sick- ness. He returned to Wilmington and died,

December 31, 1854. Mr. Duncan was a man highly respected in all his wide circle of ac- quaintance, and warmly regarded among his friends. His activity and energy were remark- able, and the results proportionate. He mar- ried, in 1833, Mrs .. Elizabeth S., widow of Samuel Woolston, and daughter of David Brinton. She died in 1859. Their children were, Richard B ; Charles, (deceased); Henry B .; John A .; William R., and Elizabeth Duncan.

ERKINS,DR. AND REV. JOHN DAY, an eminent physician and preacher of Smyrna, was born in Kent county, Md., August 20, 1790. His father was Thos. Perkins of that county, who died in 1833. His mother was Mary Kettridge, daughter of John Malden, an emigrant from England, who settled at Turkey Point, Cecil Co., Md. She died in Baltimore, at the age of eighty-four, having removed there in the childhood of her son, John Day, and he grew to manhood in that city. He graduated at the Pennsylvania University after having attended three courses of lectures, and began the practice of his profession in part- nership with Dr. Thomas Emerson Bond, after- ward the able editor of the Christian Advocate and Journal of New York. After a short time, Dr. Perkins removed to Sudlersville, Queen Anne's county. Md., and there practiced medi- cine for fourteen years. In May, 1828, he re- moved to Smyrna, Delaware, and for twenty- four years was engaged in a large and success- ful practice. For eight years before his death he suffered from partial paralysis, which greatly affected both his body and mind. Doctor Perkins was one of nature's noblemen, in physi- cal form and presence as well as in character. His genial manners made him a favorite, and he won the esteem and confidence of his patrons, by his unwavering integrity and hon- orable life. In very early life he became a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and after some years was licensed as a local preacher of that church, which office he filled for many years, greatly to the acceptance of the people. He married in 1813, Mrs. Eliza- beth, widow of James Kennedy, of Millington, Kent county, Md. The following are their surviving children ; Mary J., widow of Colonel George Davis; Francis A., widow of George Biddle, of Cecil county, Md .; Thomas J., of

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Tallahasse, Florida ; Ellen Franklin, residing in Baltimore, and Dr. William Charles Perkins, a physician of West Philadelphia, Pa., of whom see sketch in this volume. John Bradshaw Perkins, the fourth child and second son of Dr. Perkins, died at Harper's Ferry, Va., during the late civil war.

UMMINS, DAVID JAMES, President of the National Bank at Smyrna, was born in that town, March 16, 1824 His ·father was John Cummins, a distin- guished citizen and merchant of Smyrna. He had seven sons, of whom the subject of this sketch was the fifth. Mr. D. J. Cummins was brought up in the place of his nativity, has spent his life there, and still resides in the house in which he was born. His early edu- cation was obtained in the schools of the town,and in 1839 and 1840 he was sent to the Friends' school in Wilmington, then under the direction of Mr. Bullock. After his return he went into the store of his brother George, (of whom also see sketch,) for the purpose of acquainting himself with all the details of mer- cantile business. He continued as clerk for four years, and in 1845 became a partner with his brother in the general merchandise and vessel business They built a number of vessels and shipped grain to Phil'a, New York, Providence and Boston, and were large buyers, also, of bark, staves, wood, lime and commercial ferti- lizers, and manufactured bricks. Mr. Cum- mins, retired from this business in 1853, in order to devote himself to his four farms, com- prising twelve hundred acres of land; and immediately went into the business of raising peaches. Of this now large interest he was one of the pioneers of his vicinity, and has led the way, and helped and encouraged others by his success. Also the general interests of agriculture in his locality have claimed a large share of his attention, and his advice and opinion are held in high esteem. In 1854 he was made a director of the New Castle county National Bank of Odessa, which posi- tion he held for twenty years. In 1876 he was elected President of the National Bank of Smyrna, having been for two years, previously, one of its directors, and still retains this hon- orable and responsible position. In all his large and varied interests, as a business man, and in all the relations he has sustained to

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Historical and biographical encyclopaedia of Delaware. V 2, Part 5

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

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