USA > Georgia > Fulton County > Atlanta > History of Atlanta, Georgia : with illustrations and biographical sketches of some of its prominent men and pioneers > Part 9
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Progressive and public spirited, Mr. English has borne a leading part in all the enterprises which have aided the upbuilding of Atlanta. He is a large property holder in the city, and all his interests are linked with the city's wel- fare. He was a director in the first cotton factory established here, and was one of the original promoters of the Atlanta Female Institute, and under him, as chairman of the building committee, the school was built and equipped. He also contributed toward the erection of the Kimball House, and to the
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various expositions which have been held here. In the various enterprises with which he has been connected, he has been remarkably successful, and in that success Atlanta has been enriched in numerous ways. In business and financial management he has proven himself to be a force in this community, while the integrity of his course, both publicly and privately, command respect and esteem.
A USTELL, ALFRED. Conspicuous among the ablest financiers of Geor- gia, stands the name of General Alfred Austell, who, for many years, was one of the most prominent and widely known citizens of Atlanta. He was born in Jefferson county, East Tenn., January 14, 1814, and was a son of William and Jane W. Austell. He was reared on a farm, and was trained to manual labor, acquiring a practical knowledge of farming, a pursuit to which he was ardently devoted in after life, and which he successfully prosecuted, as he did whatever he undertook. Like most country boys of that day, he at- tended the old field school and gained some knowledge of the elementary branches of learning. Yet the educational advantages and opportunities of young Austell were small and limited, and his boyhood and early youth were chiefly spent in work on the farm. The mode of life, however, gave hin a ro- bust and vigorous constitution, and inured him to habits of diligent and patient labor that clung to him during his whole subsequent career. But his naturally ambitious nature did not permit him to be content with the slow, plodding life of a farmer, and before he had attained his majority he left home to seek his fortune.
We come now to an event that displayed the strong personality, the inborn spirit, high aspiration and firm resolve of the young man, and constituted a turning point in his life. This was a determination that he formed and carried into execution, to leave his father's house, forsake a course of labor on the farm, and embark in some other pursuit, with a view of promoting his own in- terest and fortune more rapidly and prosperously than he was likely to do at home.
The Rev. J. H. Martin relates the following : " Some years ago I met with an Ohio lady, who related an incident in the early manhood of the prominent politician of that State, the Hon Benjamin F. Wade. He was poor, but aspir- ing and ambitious. He felt the promptings of a stirring impulse within. His occupation was that of a woodcutter. One day he threw down his ax, declar- ing that he was born for a higher employment and position, vowing that he would quit that kind of work, go to school, get an education, and endeavor to gain eminence and honor. As a parallel case of the workings of an ardent, earnest soul, fettered by its surroundings, and throbbing with desires and as- pirations for a wider theater of action and the accomplishment of greater things, I immediately adduced the example and related the story of young
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Austell, which I had heard from his own lips. One day he cast down his hoe with which he was at work in a field, went to the house, put on his best suit of clothes, and told his father that he was going away in search of other em- ployment. He went to Dandridge, presented himself to an old merchant of the place, made known his desire and plan, and asked for a situation as clerk in his store. Although he failed in securing immediate employment, yet he inflexibly adhered to his purpose and went to Spartanburg, S. C., and here be- gan his business career as a clerk, etc."
He went to Spartanburg, S. C., and here began his business career as a clerk in the store of his brother William. After a few years his brother retired from business, and in 1836 young Austell was obliged to seek new fields of activity for his energetic and enterprising nature. He left South Car- olina and migrated to Georgia, locating in Campbellton, the county seat of Campbell county. Here he embarked in business as a village merchant. Sub- stantial success rewarded his efforts, and his increase in capital he invested in lands. In a few years he became the owner of several plantations, and raised extensive crops of cotton. In 1858 he moved to Atlanta, where he already possessed property. At this time he had accumulated a large fortune, and was regarded as a shrewd, careful business man of rare ability. In the com- paratively young city of Atlanta he soon became a marked figure in financial affairs. He became connected with a bank, and in its management displayed that rare business judgment and tact which, in later years, gained for him such wide distinction. At this period the war feeling was at its height, and General Austell, without equivocation, arrayed himself on the side of peaceful meas- ures. He vigorously opposed secession, and by voice and vote did all he could to prevent the fearful catastrophe of war. During the struggle, which his clear foresight easily foresaw would end in the overthrow of the rebellion, he remained in Atlanta until the evacuation of the city by order of General Sherman.
Emerging from the war with a largely reduced estate, General Austell em- barked with characteristic resolution, courage and energy in the work of re- pairing his losses, rebuilding and advancing his business interests. He pos- sessed the unlimited confidence of President Johnson, and during the early part of the reconstruction period rendered invaluable services to the State by his intercession with the president. He was often called upon for advice and counsel, where his thorough knowledge of the needs of the State and the tem- per of the people did much to secure their favorable consideration at Wash- ington.
September 1, 1865, he organized the first national bank ever organized in the Southern States, known as the Atlanta National Bank. Of this institu- tion he was elected president, a position he held without interruption up to the time of his death. In the management of this bank he took especial pride,
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and through all the years of his connection with it no financial institution in the South enjoyed more fully the confidence of the business public. Through all the financial revulsions which occurred after the war, its standing was never shaken.
He also established, in connection with William H. Inman, a cotton com- mission house, in New York, under the name and style of Austell & Inman, that subsequently expanded into the well-known firm of Inman, Swann & Company, the largest cotton dealers in the world.
Railroad building was another enterprise in which successfully were di- rected the energies of this active business man. He was connected with the construction of numerous railroads as a heavy stockholder, but was especially prominent in the building of the Air Line road connecting Atl inta and Char- lotte, North Carolina, and the Spartanburg and Ashville roads. Having, when a young man, left the valley of East Tennessee, crossed the Alleghany Mountains to Spartanburg, and thence removed to the section of Georgia in which Atlanta is now situated, he was desirous of seeing constructed a railroad from this city to Spartanburg, and thence to East Tennessee, so that he might travel back to his birthplace in a railway passenger car, following, in reversed order, the same general route that he then pursued. This was a favorite and cherished scheme of his mind. This desire and plan were almost realized be- fore the close of his life, and has since become an accomplished fact. In aid- ing and forwarding these plans, General Austell was earnest and persistent, and thus became an invaluable factor as a promoter of the commercial interest of the entire State, and particularly of Atlanta.
As a business man, General Austell was noted for his sound, practical judgment, prudence, sagacity and diligence. Connected with these qualities were the traits of justice, integrity and absolute fidelity to every obligation. He was kindly in disposition, but reserved in manner. His ways were gentle and winning, while he was a man of remarkable decision and firmness of char- acter. Few men, in a quiet and practical way, took greater interest in the welfare and advancement of young men, and it is no exaggeration to say, that to no single individual, who has ever lived in Atlanta, are more men indebted for their start in life, than to General Austell. His devotion to his friends was loyal and steadfast. A friend once said to him : " General, I have heard you were unerring in your actual business transactions, and seldom incur a loss, ex- cept when your friendship is involved." " That is true," he replied ; "but I prefer the feeling without the money, than the money without the feeling." This was typical of the innate kindness of the man. He never made any pa- rade of giving, and bestowed his charities in an unostentatious way. He pos- sessed a warm, affectionate nature, was a pleasant, genial companion, fond of the society of his friends, lively and entertaining in his conversation, and was described in a journal, at the time of his death, as a " man of many lovable
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traits, strong in his attachments to friends, without vindictiveness towards those with whom he may have had differences. He was self-sacrificing in his love for, and devotions to, his family, providing them always with every luxury their tastes desired."
But it was as a business man that General Austell was best known. His achievements as such place hini among the ablest financiers Georgia has ever had. He had wonderful executive ability and the power to forecast business events. By his admirable judgment and sagacity he accumulated one of the largest private fortunes in the State, but by purely legitimate business gener- alship. He held the leadership in financial matters in Atlanta, through all the ups and downs of latter-day finance, by the mere force of superior and well- recognized ability. He was implicitly trusted, and he never disappointed or lost the confidence of any man with whom he had business relationship. The thousand and one temptations that beset men of fortune and capacity had no power to even tempt the rugged honesty of his character. He was scrupu- lously honest in all things, and connected with many of Atlanta's most import- ant enterprises he came out of each with a record above criticism or reproach.
He had no taste for political life, and beyond discharging the duties every private citizen owes to the public, he took no part in political affairs. He was for a time a member of the board of education, elected by the common council to manage the system of public free schools in the city of Atlanta at an im- portant period in the history of popular education. His name was often men- tioned in connection with politics, and he was at one time prominently pro- posed as a candidate for governor of Georgia, but he never figured in the po- litical arena by asking for an election to any civil office. His military title was acquired as commander of militia.
He was ever a friend to churches, and from the time of settling in Atlanta a regular attendant at the First Presbyterian Church, but it was not until the latter end of his life that he made a public profession of religion and became a member of the church named. He contributed largely to the building of the present church edifice of this denomination, and assisted the various schemes of benevolence connected therewith, as well as being generous to the Third Presbyterian Church, the Bible Society, Theological Seminary and the build- ing of a colored Presbyterian Church. He also aided in building churches in other parts of the country, both in Georgia and Alabama, as well as in Ten- nesee.
General Austell was in the very prime of his usefulness when the summons of death came. He died at his home in Atlanta, December 7, 1881, and al- though he had been in poor health for several months, his death was not ex- pected, and only the day preceding his fatal stroke of paralysis, had been at his place of business. He died with the armour of life upon him, his weapons of daily warfare in his hands, his face set in the direction of victory. In the
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death of General Austell, Atlanta lost an active, public spirited, high minded citizen, a man of strict integrity, and whose word or personal honor could not be questioned. Numerous testimonials, both public and private, show that his worth was appreciated. The Atlanta Constitution expressed the general feel- ing of the community when it said:
" In the death of General Austell, Atlanta loses one of its best known and most prominent citizens. General Austell has, for years, been a financial leader in Georgia, and dies as one of the wealthiest men in the State. His career was an eminently successful one, illustrating the strong record of self-made men, only possible in America. Wise, prudent and sagacious he carried the enter- prises, of which he was the head, through storm and sunshine, amassing for- tunes for those who were connected with him, and standing as a bulwark of Atlanta's finances. Better than all this, General Austell dies in the fullness of integrity, without a blot on his name, leaving his children the legacy of an honest and stainless name."
The Atlanta Sunday Gazette paid his memory the following: "General Alfred Austell died at his residence on Marietta street, in this city, at 5:45 P. M. on December 7th, in his sixty-eighth year, of paralysis. For several months he had been in feeble health, and there was but little hope of his restoration, but none of his friends were prepared for the fearful shock of his sudden death. In a few minutes, without pain or previous warning. his spirit took flight. To the youth of the country his example is worthy in the highest degree of imita- tion. His life has been a busy one. Starting a poor boy in Campbell county, he has struggled hard, and by force of energy and intellect, accumulated a for- tune second to but few in the State of Georgia, and yet leaves behind him what is better than all, the inheritance of a spotless name.
"True to his friends, true to his family, true to honor and every obligation that rested upon him, he turned his face heavenward as life's twilight gathered around him, and laying aside the implements of earthly labor, retired to his eternal rest. He was so modest and retiring that few, even of his friends, had any idea of the extent of his benevolence. How many struggling fellow-men he has lifted over rough and rugged places in life's pathway, no one will ever know.
" As founder and president of the Atlanta Bank, one of the first, not only in regard to organization, but also for unquestioned financial standing and fair dealing in all the land; as the possessor of princely fortune, as a father, a friend a Christian and as a citizen he came up to the full measure of his duty, and died as he had lived, an honest man, the noblest work of God."
General Austell took especial pride in the management of the affairs of the Atlanta National Bank, of which he was so long the honored president, giving to it all the ability, experienced labor and strength of which he was possessed. His acquaintance, his personal popularity, his good judgment, were all freely
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laid at its service, and no man could have been more loyal to a delegated trust than was he to the position he had agreed to fill. That his work was appre- ciated and understood by his official associates is amply shown in the tribute paid by the directors of the bank on the occasion of his death. Among other things of like character, they said : "In the death of General Austell the State of Georgia and the South loses one of its ablest financiers, and one largly in- terested in the development of his native section. In all the relations of public and private life, as the head of a family, as a bank president, as a public-spir- ited citizen, and as an humble member of the church of his choice, General Austell brought into action those traits of character, honesty, fidelity, loyalty to friends, and regards for the rights and happiness of others, which were so successful in winning to himself the hearts of those about him, and in building up so many lasting friendships, which death alone could sever."
The above tribute from those who knew him best, express but feebly the strong hold General Austell had upon the admiration and affections of the peo- ple of this community, among whom he had so long resided, and with whom he had been so intimately associated. His character and success in life was in every sense unusual and remarkable, and worthy of imitation. Loved, trusted and honored, he left his earthly accounts all canceled, every obligation filled to the letter of the law, he passed to the presence of the Great Accountant, and leaves behind him the gracious memory of a wholesome, symmetrical Christian char- acter.
General Austell was married in 1853 to Miss Francina Cameron, who still survives her husband, and resides in Atlanta. They had six children, four of whom are still living. The eldest, William W. Austell, who as co-executor has the management of his father's estate, was the organizer and president of the first refrigerator car company ever formed in the South. The remaining children are, Janie, wife of James Swann, member of the firm of Inman, Swann & Co., of New York, and president of the Atlanta National Bank; Leila, wife of A. E. Thornton ; and Alfred Austell.
B OYD, WILLIAM WALLACE, a son of William Wade and Harriet (Brem) Boyd, was born in Spartanburg, South Carolina, August 17, 1843. His father was a merchant tailor, and in 1850 moved with his family to Marietta, Ga., where for many years, in addition to an ordinary business he owned the military store, and furnished all the uniforms, etc., worn by the ca- dets at the Georgia Military Institute. At this military school the subject of this sketch was educated, and at the breaking out of the war, he, for a short time, accompanied his father, who was colonel of the Nineteenth Georgia Regi- ment. In 1863 he enlisted in Company B, Sixty-fourth Georgia, but was soon after appointed quartermaster-sergeant, and assigned as acting quartermaster and commissary of the regiment. The first service of the regiment was in Flor- 5.
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ida, but after the battle of Ocean Pond it was ordered to Virginia, and took a prominent part in all the memorable battles of the Virginia campaign, to the siege of Petersburg. Mr. Boyd was captured at High Bridge, Prince Edward county, Va., April 7, 1865, and after the surrender of Lee was paroled at Farmville, Va.
After the war Mr. Boyd located at Thomasville, Ga., speculated there for a while, and then went to Charlotte, N. C., and secured a position as a book- keeper with Brem, Brown & Co., and to learn the mercantile business. At the end of a year he removed to Atlanta, Ga., where his parents then resided, and here engaged in various speculations. In 1868 he removed to Mobile, Ala., where, for six years, he served as bookkeeper. He returned to Atlanta and engaged in trading, following a general speculative career, marked with shrewd business foresight, which resulted in success. In 1880 he purchased a half interest in the machinery works of E. Van Winkle, which has since been continued under the firm name of E. Van Winkle & Co. Since his connection with this enterprise Mr. Boyd has devoted his whole time and attention to its promotion, and has been particularly identified with its financial management. The growth of the business and the high financial standing of the firm, have been due to the watchful care and management of both partners. Mr. Van Winkle devotes himself almost exclusively to the supervision of the mechanical department, for which by practical experience, inventive genius, and education he is so admirably adapted, while the office details fall upon Mr. Boyd. This combination of trained capacity, with the perfect harmonious relationship which have ever existed between the partners, have resulted in putting this manufac- turing establishment among the most successful in the South.
Mr. Boyd was married in March, 1868, to Jeanie E. Sadler, of Charlotte, N. C. They have had nine children, seven of whom are living-three boys and four girls.
By residence and business interest Mr. Boyd has become thoroughly iden- tified with Atlanta. He has helped to bring about the era of prosperity the city now enjoys, and is relied upon to promote every public enterprise which may be conducive to the city's material growth. He has no inclination toward pub- lic position, and although often solicited to become a candidate for official sta- tion, he has steadily declined such honors. His reputation as a careful, hon- orable and conservative business man is well established, and no citizen enjoys more fully the confidence and respect of Atlanta's business community. A man of the most exemplary habits, he leads a consistent Christian life, and for sev- eral years has been a member of the First Presbyterian Church. Few men are more domestic in their tastes, or more thoroughly attached to their homes. He finds his chief enjoyment within the family circle, where after the business hours of the day he is always to be found. During the last few years he has applied himself very closely to his business, and his application has met sub- stantial and well merited reward.
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BIOGRAPHICAL.
C OKER, FRANCIS MARION, banker of Atlanta, Ga., was born in Elbert county, Ga., and is a son of John and Nancy (Bellinger) Coker. His pa- ternal grandparents were of Welsh and Holland descent, while on his mother's side he represents Scotch ancestry. When he was fifteen months old his pa- rents moved to Coweta county, Ga., where they lived about four years, when they again moved to Upson county, Ga., about five miles south of Barnesville. Here young Coker passed his earlier boyhood, and his first distinct recollec- tions pertain to this locality. Here he began and carried on his studies at school, principally under the instruction of an old English gentleman, David G. Pugh, who proved to be his great benefactor, and from whom, first and last, he received the most of his education ; most of it gratuitously, and often in- cluding both board and clothing. He looks back to this old friend and pre- ceptor with due love and gratitude, as the best friend he ever had, and con- siders he owes more to him than to any one else, except his own wife, for what success he has attained in life. While residing in Upson county, when not at school, young Coker labored on the farm.
In the winter of 1842-3 his parents moved again to Plains of Dura, Sumter county, Ga., arriving there on the first day of January, 1843, and carrying the effects of the family in an ox-cart, his father having suffered reverses in the financial crash of 1837, and being subsequently reduced by borrowing money, upon which he was compelled to pay twenty per cent. But they left their old home with no unpaid debts behind them; took no homestead, and his mother had no more than his father. At Plains of Dura he labored on the farm, and went to school alternately, as necessity required or opportunity offered.
On the 10th day of April, 1846, he bade adieu to his father's home, and went to work in a new field, going to Americus, Ga., and beginning his busi- ness career as a clerk in the store of White & King, then the largest merchants in the place. His duties covered the entire range of business : he slept in the store, swept out in the morning, sold goods during the day, and kept the books at night. His wages for the remainder of his first year were ten dollars a month and board, and for the next three years he received $150 a year and board. His wages, until he was twenty-one years old, went to the credit of his father's account. As business grew better he obtained better wages. On the first day of October, 1854, he began keeping books for McBain & King (the latter his first employer), in the first warehouse ever established in Amer- icus. The Southwestern Railroad had just reached the town.
On the 17th day of May, 1855, he was married to Miss Sallie A. R. John- son, daughter of Dr. Green Johnson, of Putnam county, Ga. At that time he was receiving a salary of one thousand dollars a year, without board, and con- sidered himself abundantly able to support a wife.
On the first day of October, 1857, he began banking as agent for the
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