USA > Iowa > The United States biographical dictionary and portrait gallery of eminent and self made men, Iowa volume > Part 7
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While practicing at Anamosa in 1865 and 1866 he prepared and published a " Digest of Iowa Re- ports," being a continuation of the work begun by Judge John F. Dillon in 1860. The two volumes of " Dillon and Hammond's Digest " were long in high favor with the profession, but are now superseded by the later work of Messrs. Withrow and Stiles. In 1867 he originated the "Western Jurist," a well- known legal periodical published at Des Moines, and was its editor-in-chief until the summer of 1870, Since that time his contributions to other legal peri- odicals have been numerous. He has also pub- lished several synopses of his lectures in the law schools for the use of his students. For some years he has been a vice-president and an active member of the American Social Science Association, and read papers on legal education at the meetings of that body in Detroit, May, 1875, and in Saratoga, September, 1876. Other publications, articles from his pen, appeared in "Putnam's " and "Harper's " magazines in 1855 and 1856; in the "Continental Magazine " and "Round Table," 1863 and 1864;
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introduction to American edition of "Sander's Justinian," Chicago, 1875. There have also been published a number of lectures and addresses, sep- arately printed for private distribution.
In 1871 Mr. Hammond was appointed one of the three commissioners to revise and codify the laws of Iowa under an act passed by the legislature of 1870, his associates being Hon. W. H. Seevers, the present chief-justice of Iowa, and Hon. W. J. Knight, late mayor of Dubuque. The result of their labor may be found in the present code of Iowa, adopted by the legislature at the session of 1873. He received the degree of LL.D. from Iowa College, at Grinnell, in 1870, and from Amherst Col- lege, Massachusetts, in 1877.
In religious views, he is an Episcopalian, and be- longs to the " broad church."
Mr. Hammond was educated in the democratic school of politics, but left that party in 1854 and took an active part in the formation of the repub- lican party, and with it he has since acted, though of late taking no active part in partisan matters.
He was twice married : in 1852 to Lydia B. Tor-
rey, daughter of Hon. Joseph W. Torrey, formerly a distinguished lawyer of Detroit, Michigan; in 1865 to Juliet M. Roberts, daughter of the late Rev. William L. Roberts, D.D., of Hopkinton, Iowa. They have one child living, a daughter (Juliet) seven years old.
Mr. Hammond is gifted with a strong constitu- tion, which alone could have borne him through the labors of his past life and sustained him through trials that would have discouraged a less energetic man. In personal appearance, he is above the me- dium height; in manner, grave and dignified; a man of sterling worth, generous and genial, liberal in his sentiments and social in his nature. As an instructor, he is characterized by independent thought and logical reasoning, and in the position he fills has the happy faculty of inspiring his stu- dents and infusing into them his own enthusiasm, and by his manly and dignified demeanor does not fail to command their esteem. He is very favorably known throughout the country, and bids fair to stand in high places among the foremost of the legal profession.
HON. AUSTIN ADAMS,
DUBUQUE.
OF F all the professions none affords greater op- portunity for the development of native ability than the law; for here one is led into the investigation of subjects most vital to the interests of his fellows, and may, if he will, become versed in the grandest questions of his country and state. A fair proof of this statement is seen in the successful career of Austin Adams. He was born at Andover, Windsor county, Vermont, on the 24th of May, 1826, and is the son of Jerry Adams and Dorcas nee Austin, both natives of New England. He commenced life as a farmer boy, being trained to habits of economy and industry, qualities which have been invaluable to him in all his subsequent life.
After closing his studies in the common schools, he, in his fourteenth year, entered Black River Academy, to complete his preparatory studies, and in his nineteenth year entered the sophomore class of Dartmouth College, at Hanover, New Hampshire, from which he graduated in due course. Of a studious disposition, he had, from boyhood, inclined to the legal profession, and his desire for it was
increased by frequently attending the courts and listening to the arguments of the advocates. After leaving college he accepted the situation of principal of the academy at West Randolph, Vermont, em- ploying his leisure in studying law. Afterward he for a short time attended the Harvard Law School, and was admitted to practice at Windsor, Vermont, in January, 1854, being examined by the Hon. Jacob Collamer, since United States senator, and before that time postmaster-general in Taylor's cabinet.
After his admission to the bar he formed a part- nership with ex-Governor Coolidge, which, however, continued but a short time. The State of Iowa being fast settled up, he, in the fall of 1854, joined the western tide of emigration and settled in Du- buque, and being pleased with the location and prospects of the place, determined to make it his future home. Engaging at once in his profession, he soon built up a remunerative practice, and in- spired in his fellow-citizens confidence in his ability, wisdom and honor, and was strongly urged by them to enter political life ; and notwithstanding his mod-
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est preference to avoid the perplexities of public life and live in retirement, he was, in October, 1875, elected judge of the supreme court of Iowa for a term of six years.
Politically, he has always been identified with the republican party, but has taken no active interest, more than to perform his duties as a citizen. He has been for some years a regent of the State Uni- versity of Iowa, and in his own city was for a time president of the board of education.
He was formerly a member of the Congregational
church, but with thought and study became more liberal in his views, and is now a Unitarian.
He was married in 1857, to Miss Mary Newbury, a daughter of Rev. Samuel Newbury, a Presbyterian clergyman. As a judge, he has gained a wide popu- larity, being known as a man who enters with his whole soul into whatever he engages, and to this may be attributed his success. Personally, Judge Adams has many rare qualities, and by his upright course of life, his manly independence of character, has made for himself an enviable reputation.
JOHN McD. BURROWS,
DAVENPORT.
PROMINENT among the citizens who have passed the ordeal of a pioneer life in the west, and whose early struggles well deserve a place in these memorials, is the subject of this sketch, John McDowell Burrows, who was born in the city of New York, on the 8th of May, 1814. His parents were David and Anna (Mulford) Burrows, natives of Elizabethtown, New Jersey. The ancestors of the family on both sides came from England four generations ago and settled in New Jersey, where many of their descendants still remain.
In the course of events it fell to the lot of the mother of our subject to educate and support a family of eight children. She was a woman noted among her friends for her piety, remarkable energy and devotion to her children. Her life was fragrant of good deeds and holy living, and her memory is a treasured keepsake with her family and all who knew her.
At the age of fourteen John removed with the family to Cincinnati, Ohio. After the usual primary education it was resolved by his pious mother and an uncle, Stephen Burrows, that he should be- come a minister of the gospel, and with this end in view he was sent, at the age of seventeen years, to Lane Seminary, Ohio. However, after remaining in that institution about two years, he became con- vinced that he lacked several essential elements of success in that profession, and accordingly aban- doned his purpose. This closed his educational career, and his mother sent him to learn the trade of wood turner, at which he continued till the fall of of 1838. He made and sold furniture to western merchants along the Mississippi river, and consigned
on commission to others. In the spring of 1837 he made a trip to St. Louis and the upper Mississippi, to look after his business interests. His ardent and · energetic mind was soon awakened on beholding the beauty and magnitude of the Mississippi valley ; he seemed to comprehend at once the prospects for the future of this promising land, and decided on removing hither .. There were others in Cincinnati at that time turning their attention in the same direc- tion, and accordingly, in the spring of 1839, in com- pany with John Owens, Wm. S. Collins and Mr. Ganet, he removed to Davenport. Three of the gentlemen who then accompanied him are still liv- ing, honored citizens of Davenport,- the first named, John Owens, died at Davenport on the 27th of Sep- tember, 1876. Mr. Owens and our subject made the trip together in a one-horse buggy, and occupied ten and a half days in the journey. Davenport was at that time in the territory of Wisconsin. They purchased a claim of eighty acres, long known as the Owens and Burrows tract, a part of which is still owned by our subject, and upon it his beautiful dwelling now stands, amid grounds tastefully laid out, covered with vineyards, shrubbery and the choicest fruits, planted by his own hands. They also, as was the custom in those days, took each of them a "claim " of three hundred and twenty acres of prairie land. This claim was the entire section, seventeen, lying back of West Davenport on Duck Creek. They drew lots for choice of halves, divid- ing the section north and south. Mr. Burrows drew the east half, nearest the town. In order to secure the claim against being "jumped," they employed a man to plow five furrows around the entire tract, at
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a cost of fifteen dollars. Some two years after this, when the land was brought into market and offered for sale, these two speculators held a consultation as to the entry of the land at government price,- whether the prospects would warrant such an in- vestment. Upon mature deliberation Mr. Owens abandoned his at once; while Mr. Burrows gave his half to a Dr. Hall, on his refunding the fifteen dol- lars paid for the breaking. Alas for the shortness of human vision! The same land soon after sold for one hundred dollars per acre.
During the first year Mr. Burrows cultivated seven acres of his forty-acre homestead, and also rented a small tract that had been broken on the Dubuque road, near Duck Creek. Here he labored faithfully the first season, and succeeded in raising a crop, walking to and from his work with his little tin dinner-pail, eating his lonely meal on the banks of the creek. At that time the "herd law" was un- known in Iowa, and a little before harvest the cattle of "the town " broke in and destroyed his entire crop. With winter approaching the prospect looked dreary enough, but his energies and ambition were ever adequate to the emergency. With fresh thought and new courage he began building a storehouse in the town, and in the spring of 1840, in partnership with R. M. Prettyman, a former clerk, began busi- ness as a merchant in a little frame house on Front street, under the firm name of Burrows and Pretty- man. They began on a small scale, selling goods on commission for Cincinnati houses; and in the fall of 1840, there being for the first time a surplus of wheat in the county, they purchased and shipped wheat to the east, Mr. Burrows buying and shipping the first bushel that ever left the county. This was the beginning of the produce business in Davenport, a business into which, in later years, he entered very largely. Nearly all produce at that day was shipped up the river, for the supply of military posts and the Indian trade. He also bought and packed the first pork that was ever sold in Davenport. This he took, in 184t, with the hams and shoulders, to Prairie du Chien, and sold to Rice and Dawsman, Indian traders, receiving his pay in the only currency then known - silver dollars and half-dollars, with a little gold coin. The amount formed a large and heavy package, and as he had neither trunk nor valise - such conveniences not being in general use in those days - it proved both burdensome and annoying. His business concluded, he found that there was no boat for Davenport for several days, but by travel-
ing some twelve miles across the country and cross- ing the Wisconsin river he would reach a place where the stage passed. Burdened with several packages, into which, for convenience, he had divided his coin, he set out on his homeward journey, and after ex- periencing much difficulty in crossing, in an Indian canoe, the Wisconsin river, which was much swollen, he arrived at the stage station to find that it had left. Nothing daunted at this disappointment, he at once determined to pursue his way on foot to Dubuque. It was late in the afternoon and the country was very sparsely settled, but when nearly dark he came to a small farm house. His load had become very heavy and his weary limbs sought rest, but where to deposit his treasure for the night was his greatest trouble. He feared robbery but wanted shelter, which was cheerfully accorded him, such as it was, by the proprietor of the hut. At supper three dark-visaged, unshaven men appeared at the table, whose presence much excited the already anxious and burdened mind of our subject. He had removed a portion of his coin from his pocket to his hat, which he kept close by his side. The dim light of the cabin but partially revealed the outlines of the com- pany with whom he was destined to spend the night, and robbery and murder were uppermost in his thoughts. All were seated, and the divine blessing in the name of Jesus Christ was invoked upon the frugal meal, when a heavy weight rolled from his heart, greater than that he had carried through the day,-he was beneath the roof of a disciple of Christ. His supper was eaten with a keen relish, and his sleep was sweet and refreshing. In the morning at an early hour he pursued his way, and reached Du- buque at ten o'clock the night following, traveling the whole distance of seventy-five miles, on foot, in twenty-eight hours. Such were the difficulties and dangers incident to a pioneer merchant and trader of that not very distant day. Thus he progressed steadily, and from 1845 till 1860 the firm of Burrows and Prettyman, of which he was the senior member, was second to but few in the west in the extent of its operations and in the character and standing of its credit.
In 1847 the firm began the manufacture of flour, which was an undertaking of no ordinary kind in that day, and was entered upon with many fears, but with stout hearts. They erected the largest and most perfect mill of its kind in the west, and for ten years manufactured five hundred barrels of flour daily. In the year 1855 they made eighty thousand
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barrels of flour, grinding four hundred thousand bushels of wheat. In this year their transactions amounted to over seven hundred thousand dollars. They also conducted a large pork-packing establish- ment, and during the above-named period bought and packed more hogs than any other establish- ment north of St. Louis. In the year 1854 they slaughtered nineteen thousand hogs. During that time they also bought, sold and shipped more grain than any other firm in the state. In the financial panic of 1857-9, however, their losses were very great. In the disastrous failure of Cook and Sar- geant they lost heavily, and were obliged to close business, compromise with their creditors and dis- solve partnership. In the following year Mr. Bur- rows commenced anew, with a fair prospect of suc- cess, and for three years did a reasonable and mod- erately paying business; but in 1863 he met with another serious misfortune, the entire destruction of his mill by fire. This swept from him everything he had accumulated, for he had no insurance, and he was once more penniless. His credit, however, was good, and by the aid of friends he built a new mill, which he operated successfully for three years more, during which time he paid the entire cost of
its construction, when suddenly and mysteriously it also caught fire and was burned to ashes, and he was again reduced to where he began. But Mr. Burrows has a will and an energy that are irrepress- ible; he is again engaged in business as a produce and commission merchant, with a fair prospect of regaining his lost fortune.
On the Ist of December, 1836, he married Miss Sarah Meeker Gamage, of Cincinnati, Ohio, a most excellent woman, who shared in meekness and thank- fulness his prosperity, and, without murmur or com- plaint, his adversity. She was ever noted for her undissembled piety and hearty benevolence. She died in January, 1876, mourned by all who knew her. Of the eleven children who were born to them only one, Elisha, is now living. He is engaged in business with his father.
Mr. Burrows was raised a Presbyterian ; has al- ways been a consistent member of that church, and expects to die in that faith.
He has never taken an active part in politics ; was a "Henry Clay whig," and, after the death of that party, opposed the extension of slavery, and is now keenly sensitive to the shortcomings and partisan trickery from which no party seems to be free.
HON. RUSH CLARK,
IOWA CITY.
T HE life of Rush Clark presents one of those numerous examples to be found in the United States of rapid personal progress from humble be- ginnings to a substantial and honored position. It is conceded also that of all the different professions none affords greater opportunity for the develop- ment of native ability than that of law. A fair proof of this is evidenced in the successful career of the subject of our sketch. He was born at Schellsburg, Bedford county, Pennsylvania, on the Ist of October, 1834, and is one of a family of nine children of John and Mary (Smith) Clark. He was educated at the Ligonier Academy, and later at Jef- ferson College, taking a classical course and gradu- ating in 1853, at eighteen years of age. His tastes early turned to the medical profession, and before graduating he studied medicine in the office of Dr. Ealy in his native town. In the spring of 1853 he removed to Iowa, studying law with his brother, George W. Clark, Esq., and was admitted to the
bar at Iowa City. Before commencing his practice he temporarily took editorial charge of the "Iowa City Republican," then the whig organ, and being published at the then state capital wielded a large influence. While in charge of this paper, in 1854, the republican party was organized, which, in con- vention, nominated Hon. James W. Grimes for gov- ernor (afterward United States senator), and in the campaign which followed he, through the columns of his paper, took an active part in the issue which changed the politics of the state. After the can- vass he confined his energies to building up of a law practice, in which he was eminently successful, and has enjoyed a large and lucrative business built up by patient energetic work, and has gained for himself no inferior rank among the leading members of the Iowa bar. In the summer of 1861 he was appointed on Governor Kirkwood's staff, with rank of lieutenant-colonel, and was active in mustering troops and rendezvousing them preparatory to tak-
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ing the field. In 1859 was elected to the general assembly on the republican ticket, though his county was considered democratic, and by reëlection served two terms. In 1862 he was elected speaker of the house and received the highest encomiums of both parties for his impartial decisions, from which there never was an appeal. At the expiration of his term of office he returned to his practice, and gave it his entire attention until 1875, when he was again elected to the general assembly. In June, 1876, he was nominated for congress, and afterward elected in his district. He was educated in the Presbyterian faith, and is still an attendant upon that church.
He joined the republican party at its organization, and has always been an active partisan and an able advocate of its principles.
He was married in 1863, to Miss Eugenia Orr, of Iowa City, who died in 1867. She was a lady of high attainments, and distinguished for a marked excellence of womanly and christian virtues. Mr. Clark was again married in 1868, to Mrs. Sidney Robinson, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
While a self-made man, and generally engaged in the activity of a professional life, yet he has found time to devote to general literature, and is well read in the current events of the age. As a public speaker he is eloquent, earnest and convincing ; as an official, is courteous, kind and obliging, and has the entire confidence of his constituents. He is known as a man of sterling integrity, decided character and un- tiring energy, and has every promise of a prosperous and honorable career.
HON. G. C. R. MITCHELL,
DAVENPORT.
H ON. G. C. R. MITCHELL, late judge of the fourteenth judicial district of Iowa, was born on the 6th of December, 1803, at Dandridge, Jefferson county, East Tennessee. His parents were Nathaniel and Anna (Rea) Mitchell, the former born in Virginia, in 1777, and the latter in the same state, in 1787, of Scotch ancestry. Nathaniel served in the war of 1812, and was a colonel in militia. After the war he settled in Knoxville, Tennessee, where he carried on merchandising for a few years. Large colonies of the family still reside in Alabama, Ten- nessee, Indiana and Missouri.
Judge Mitchell was educated at East Tennessee College (now East Tennessee University), in Knox- ville, Tennessee, and was a member of its first gradu- ating class in 1822. His parents having removed to Lawrence county, Alabama, he proceeded thither after leaving college, and commenced the study of law under the direction of A. F. Hopkins, Esq., of Mobile, and was admitted to the bar in 1825. He practiced successfully in Alabama until 1834, and was several years clerk of the circuit court, and was at one time candidate for circuit judge, but was de- feated; afterward he spent one winter in a tour among the eastern cities. In the spring of 1835 he removed west, and after visiting St. Louis, Chicago, Galena and Dubuque, he decided to settle in Daven- port. Liking the climate and anticipating the result of its admirable location, he purchased a "squatter's "
right -the tract of land upon which he afterward built a beautiful residence in which he passed the greater part of his life. At that period what now constitutes Iowa was a part of Michigan, and until Wisconsin was formed there was neither law nor offices of any kind west of the Mississippi river. For several years after, the principal professional busi- ness of lawyers in the territory was connected with litigation regarding "squatters'" claims. Judge Mitchell added considerably to this species of prac- tice in the courts of Rock Island county, which were at that time organized. In 1843 he was elected to the house of representatives of the Iowa territorial legislature. He was nominated as congressional rep- resentative from the state in 1846, but was defeated. He was elected mayor of Davenport in 1856, and served in that capacity one year. In 1857 he was nominated by a meeting of the bar, and elected judge of the fourteenth judicial district, composed of the counties of Scott, Clinton and Jackson. He was elected to this office by a handsome majority, although a strong party candidate was run in opposi- tion to him, and although every other nominee of the opposite party was elected by overwhelming ma- jorities. He held the office, however, but a short time, being compelled by ill health to resign it a year later, intending to return to the south. This purpose, nevertheless, he did not carry out, rest and relaxation bringing for a time the needed relief.
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In politics, the judge had been always a whig until that party dissolved, or became allied to free- soilism and other principles which characterized the later years of its existence. Subsequent to that period he acted with the democratic party, having full faith in the nationality of its principles.
In religion, he had been raised in the nominal pale of the Presbyterian church, but later in life influences were brought to bear upon him that drew him into the Roman Catholic church, in the com- munion of which he died.
In April, 1852, he married Miss Rose A. Clarke, of Brown county, Ohio, daughter of a native Irish- man. They had six children, two sons and four daughters, only one son and one daughter of whom survive.
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