USA > Illinois > Cook County > Chicago > The biographical dictionary and portrait gallery of representative men of Chicago, Minnesota cities and the World's Columbian exposition : with illustrations on steel. V. 1 > Part 29
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51
For nearly forty years the name of Samuel W. Allerton has been connected with this prosperous industry, and to him more than to any other mer-
chant may be given the credit of placing within the boundaries of this city the greatest stock mar- ket of the world.
Samuel W. Allerton was born in Dutchess county, New York, in the year 1829. He was brought up on his father's farm and received such education as could be obtained at that date on a farm in Northern New York. He remained on the farm until he was eighteen years of age, working during the summer and at- tending school in the winter. About this time he commenced farming on his own account, and was very successful, particularly in raising stock, and in a couple of years had accumulated the hand- some sum of four or five thousand dollars. He was young, energetic and enterprising, and he de- cided to go West, where he hoped to find a new and wide field for his ambition. He first visited Buffalo, N. Y., then Cleveland, O., and last Chi- cago. He soon after invested his savings in a cattle ranch near Piatt county, Ill., but continued to attend the Chicago markets. By close attention to business and by untiring energy he soon be- came known as one of the most successful stock- men of the West, and by his own unaided efforts created and guided a most extensive and lucra-
282
BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY AND PORTRAIT GALLERY.
tive business. From that carly date to the pres- ent the business has continued under his individ- ual management, and has grown and spread its branches to St. Louis, Omaha, Kansas City and many other Western cities. Mr. Allerton is also the owner of many farms and ranches and is financially interested in the principal stock yards on this continent.
Quiet, unostentatious and kind-hearted, he is always ready to help the deserving and the needy. His large wealth he invests with care and bestows with generosity. The city of Chicago feels proud of such men, whose honor, integrity and sterling character have done much for it and for the de- velopment of the resources of the West.
The appointment of Mr. Allerton as a member of the Board of Management of the World's Co- lumbian Exposition was a high compliment to his experience and ability, and has given satisfaction generally. Mr. Allerton's thorough knowledge of finance, organizing ability, and practical knowl- edge of stock and farming and its claims, point
him out as a most useful accession to the World's Fair Directory.
Mr. Allerton is a director of the First National Bank of Chicago, one of the largest and most suc- cessful institutions of the kind in the United States, and great credit is due to the directory for bringing this great banking house to the front rank of financial institutions. Mr. Allerton is also a director of the Chicago City Railway Company, and is interested and identified with nearly all the great undertakings for the benefit of the city.
In 1860 Mr. Allerton married Miss Paduella W. Thompson, of Peoria. They have a family of two children, one boy and one girl-Robert H. and Katy R. His first wife died in 1880. He mar- ried a year later to Agnes C. Thompson, a sister of his first wife. In the quiet and sunshine of his happy home on Prairie avenue Mr. Allerton finds rest and repose after the cares and anxieties of his business, and in companionship of his accom- plished wife and affectionate children he spends his happiest hours.
NELSON THOMASSON,
CHICAGO, ILL.
T HE life of him whose name heads this sketch represents an eventful and interesting career. Integrity, activity and energy have been the crowning points of his success. Few men are wider and more favorably known in the city of Chicago than is Nelson Thomasson. He is a na- tive of Kentucky, and was born October 15, 1839, the son of William Poindexter and Charlotte (Pierce Leonard) Thomasson.
His father was born in 1796, and was in the war of 1812, although very young. Afterward he located in Corydon, Indiana, became a member of the legislature, and subsequently was prosecuting attorney ; and while holding this office he prose- cuted the murderer of the present United States Judge Gresham's father, who was at the time sheriff of the county. (See history of Indiana about the early life of W. P. Thomasson, by Gov. Wm. H. English, just published.) Corydon was at that time not only the capital of the State of In- diana, but in reality the capital of the whole Northwest Territory.
Mr. Thomasson soon after removed to Louisville, Ky., and was for many years a member of Con- gress from the Louisville district. On his father's side, Nelson Thomasson can trace his genealogy back to the Huguenots (see Dupuy family tree), and on his mother's side to the Pilgrim Fathers. A Captain Pierce commanded the Mayflower on several of her voyages (see the Pierce book). The name Thomasson is essentially English, and prom- inent in the nation. There is to-day (1892) a Thomasson in the English parliament. Nelson re- ceived a good education, attending private schools and the academy at Louisville, and when eighteen years old removed to Chicago and became a stu- dent and clerk in the law office of Messrs. Morris, Thomasson & Blackburn, and later held a similar position in the office of Mr. John G. Rogers, after- ward Judge of the Circuit Court of Cook County for several terms. Nelson Thomasson attended the law lectures of Louisville, Kentucky, during the junior class of 1859 and '60, and attended the law lectures of 1860 and '61 in Chicago, and his
Thomaston Nelson
285
BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY AND PORTRAIT GALLERY.
name is in the catalogue of the first year's grad- uates of the Chicago Law School, Judge Henry Booth delivering him the diploma. At the open- ing of the War of the Rebellion, he abandoned his law studies, and enlisting in the army, entered the United States service as a member of the "Sturges Rifles," one of the most noted companies that Chicago sent to the war, and being one of the only two companies in the Union army not connected with a regiment. These companies were mustered into the service for a special purpose, and were mustered out at the time General McClellan was relieved of his command. Mr. Thomasson was promoted to the regular army after the campaign in Western Virginia, becoming a member of the Company E, Fifth Regiment U. S. Infantry. He was at once ordered to his regiment in New Mexico, and when on the way to the regiment, he was retained to drill and instruct recruits ; first at Fort Leavenworth and afterward at Fort Riley. During his five years' stay in New Mexico, he was an almost daily companion of the famous Kit Carson. After joining his regiment he served in the campaign against the Texans, said Texans were commanded by the rebel Generals Sibley and Bailey, and. against the numerous Indian tribes of Arizona, Colorado and New Mexico, there being in his command besides his regiment, several of the regular army, three Colorado regi- ments, four California regiments and one regiment of regular artillery. It was during this time that occurred the celebrated Navajo campaign, led by the famous fighter, General James H. Carle- ton. His entire command was engaged in this campaign some three years, and he removed the Navajo tribe of Indians from West of the Rio Grande to Fort Sumter, one-hundred miles East on the Pecos river, and kept them there until they became semi-civilized, when General Sher- man had them returned to where they are now, at Fort Wingate, on the Rio Puerco. On several occasions during the war, Mr. Thomasson's regi- ment was ordered to return to the States, but the orders were countermanded by General Canby upon the plea that he could not spare it from his command. As to Captain Thomasson's history during his army service, it is too long to incorpo- rate here, and we will have to refer the reader to Colonel Guy V. Henry's able book on army ap- pointments, published in the "seventies," also
the many complimentary orders and reports in the War Department at Washington. After the close of the war, Mr. Thomasson was engaged in the recruiting service for one year at Chicago, and another year at Newton Barracks, after which he was ordered to join his regiment on the Western plains, where he continued in service until De- cember, 1870. Upon the reduction of the regular army about that time, Mr. Thomasson resigned from the service, receiving one year's pay in ad- vance, as six hundred other regular army officers did at this time. Upon retiring to private life, he took up his abode in Chicago, and at once en- gaged in the real estate business, meeting with marked success from the start. One of his first real estate transactions was the purchase of a tract of one-hundred and sixty acres lying south from Chicago, now known as " Pitner's Subdivision," in which Judge Gwynn Garnett was associated with him. They paid for this land one hundred and forty dollars per acre, and sold it for four hundred dollars per acre, thus realizing from this one tran- saction a snug little fortune. His unusual success continued uninterruptedly until the financial crisis of 1873 swept over the country, when, like so many others, he lost nearly everything that he had made ; but fortunately was enabled to meet his obligations and pay his debts dollar for dol- lar. During the several years succeeding this panic, when real estate business was paralyzed, and the values were depreciated, and trade in all lines was dull, he never lost heart, but with strong determination to regain his losses worked with a will, much of the time at his daily duty fourteen hours per day.
With the return of prosperous times, Mr. Thomasson's business revived, so that he not only regained his former financial standing, but far surpassed it, and now (1892) is counted among the wealthy real estate owners of Chicago. In connection with an extensive brokerage business, he handles much of his own property, and with facilities unsurpassed, is always prepared to buy, sell, lease or exchange city or suburban property of every description. His long experience ren- ders his opinions of great value to those seeking his counsels.
While Mr. Thomasson owns a large amount of real estate, his investments have extended into other channels as well. He is a large stockholder
286
BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY AND PORTRAIT GALLERY.
in all the Chicago street railway companies, and owns a large amount of stock in various buildings, among which are the Chemical Bank building, and also in many of the industrial companies.
Mr. Thomasson is a man of fine personal and social qualities, and is exceedingly popular among his wide circle of friends and acquaintances. Mr. Thomasson is a Republican-not a partisan nor a sycophant ; but he is content to work hard at every election for the success of good officers and honest government, but says he has been an office- holder for ten years of his life, and is satisfied to let others scramble for offices.
He is a member of the Oriental Lodge, No. 33, and also of the Apollo Commandery of Knights Templar. He also belongs to the Loyal Legion, and to the Union League and Washington l'ark clubs, and also the Union Club on the North Side. Mr. Thomasson is a man of fine literary attain- ments, and in his elegant library has probably the
finest collection of Napoliana and Americana in Chicago.
He is an interesting conversationalist and ready thinker, and well posted on all topics of the day. In stature, slightly above the medium height, stockily built, quick and active in his movements, and possesses a decidedly military bearing.
His success in life is due mainly to his own unaided efforts. He has earned for himself a name that will always be identified with the his- tory of Chicago.
Mr. Thomasson was married in 1873 to Miss Nanniene Mason Norton, of Louisville, Kentucky, who descended from the well-known Douglass families of Virginia and originally from Scotland. This little lady is very popular among her many admiring friends, and when she gives receptions, few, if any, regrets are ever sent. They have three children-Leonard, Nelson and Nanniene Thomasson.
EDWARD F. LAWRENCE,
CHICAGO, ILL.
T HE person whose name stands at the head of this sketch was born on the 29th of Oc- tober, 1835, at Groton, Middlesex county, Massa- chusetts, which was the home of several previous generations of his family. His father was Benja- min F. Lawrence, and his mother, Elizabeth Fenelly Staples. In 1837 they moved to Belvi- dere, Boone county, Illinois, where their boy attended the public schools. He afterwards studied under Rev. Arthur B. Fuller, brother of Margaret Fuller, Countess of Ossoli, for about two years, and in 1847 he was sent to Lawrence Academy, Groton, Massachusetts, of which Rev. James Means was the principal. He returned home in 1849, and was placed by his father in a country store, conducted by Henry Loop and Sons, where he spent the winter of 1849-50.
In the spring of 1850, he was in the employ of Honorable Robert WV. Waterman, now Governor of California, at Genoa, DeKalb county, Illinois, and in the summer of the same year he moved to Sycamore, same county, and went into the em- ploy of J. S. and J. C. Waterman, brothers of his former employer. The experience of those
years was all gained in what are known as " coun- try stores," dealing in everything usually kept in such establishments, and tended to prepare him for other fields of labor.
In the fall of 1850, Mr. Lawrence's father was in Boston, purchasing goods for his own store at Belvidere, and while there, apprenticed his son to Messrs. Whitney and Fenno, one of the leading dry goods jobbing houses of that period. With this house Mr. Lawrence remained six years, dur- ing the several changes which took place in the firm name, gaining experience and business train- ing, and winning the confidence and esteem of his employers. A portion of his term of service was spent as a salesman of the firm, in traveling through a scope of country of which Chicago was one corner, St. Paul and Minneapolis, then St. Anthony's Falls, another, Rock Island another, and then across country by way of the Illinois river, back to Chicago. In those days railroads were few, and sleeping cars unknown, the distances be- tween different places being made, except on the Mississippi and Illinois rivers, by horses. In the winter the vehicle was a sleigh, and at other sea-
289
BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY AND PORTRAIT GALLERY.
sons a wagon. Many ludicrous incidents occurred, one of them, which Mr. Lawrence relates to the writer, will serve as an illustration. While mak- ing a trip through Wisconsin in a covered wagon, with two other drummers (that being the name by which parties traveling to solicit trade are known), each representing different lines of busi- ness, they were crossing the Wisconsin river, just before reaching Prairie du Chien, when they met a St. Louis drummer who had stopped his horse at a hole in the ice for the purpose of letting him drink. Noticing that he had a singular outfit with which to make his journey, they hailed him and he responded. His horse was so poor as to cause them to wonder whether he would be able to stand alone when taken from his harness. The harness consisted of a few ropes, with the necessary knots here and there to keep it from falling off. His vehicle was a sleigh, of the kind called by half-breed Frenchmen, " a train." The whole outfit, including the horse, if put up at auc- tion, would not have brought ten dollars. Mr. Lawrence was the spokesman of his party, and after learning that he had been from home nearly six weeks, asked him how and where he had come by that turnout. His reply was, that when he left St. Louis he had a fine pair or horses, new harness, Buffalo robes and new leather top buggy. His desire for trading was so great that he had begun to swap horses, and had indulged in that luxury from time to time, and before them was the result. He concluded by advising Mr. Law- rence to beware of horse traders.
Occasionally the monotony of the trip was varied by a break-down, and one was recalled which, at the time, bade fair to be a serious and uncomfortable accident. Fortunately, it hap- pened near a house. The break was in the whiffle-tree. A new one was a necessity, the ironing of which required the boring of holes. The only tool on the place was an axe-not at all handy for boring a half-inch hole --- that being the size needed. Neither Lawrence nor his com- panions knew how to get out of the trouble, nor could the host give the necessary information. Fortunately, deliverance was near at hand, for, later in the evening, Elder Bronson, a Methodist Episcopal preacher, on his circuit, arrived at the house. This man, who had been on the frontier as a missionary for more than fifty years, knew
what to do. He first ordered a big fire in the open fireplace, and in it threw the old whiffle-tree, iron work and all. The wood was soon consumed and the irons released. But how to bore the holes with an axe was the difficulty for Mr. Law- rence and his companions. To the Elder it was perfectly easy. He took one of the hot irons and soon made a hole by burning. By midnight the job was finished, and, while not so handsome as the broken whiffle-tree, the new one was stronger and carried them safely through. Then Mr. Law- rence and his companions expressed their thank- fulness, and united with the Elder in prayer and praise for their deliverance.
Mr. Lawrence came to Chicago in 1858, and has resided there ever since. He has been engaged in various lines of business, and has been a mem- ber of the Chicago Board of Trade since 1859. He is one of the directors of the World's Colum- bian Exposition, and has been for more than twenty years a director of the First National Bank of Chicago. As a business man, he has been suc- cessful beyond the ordinary lot of men, and en- joys the reputation in the commercial world of being clear-headed. He is cool and deliberate in his judgments, a good judge of men, and is uni- versally esteemed for his integrity, his hospitable nature, and engaging, social qualities. A marked characteristic throughout his life has been his ready adaptation to circumstances and environ- ments; and a rule of his life has been to make the best of everything. He is a man of even temperament, and while prosperity has never caused him to be elated overmuch, misfortunes and disappointments have not cast him down. In his business relations and in his private life he has sustained a manliness and nobility of character that have won for him universal confi- dence and esteem.
In politics he has always been a Democrat, and takes great interest in the success of his party. At the same time, he extends to those who differ with him in political faith, that toleration which he demands for himself.
Mr. Lawrence married Mary, the youngest daughter of David and Agnes Ballentine, of Wau. kegan, Lake county, Illinois, on the twenty-third day of May, 1861. They have one son, Dwight.
Mr. Lawrence is a man of fine presence, being large in stature, and robust in constitution. He
290
BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY AND PORTRAIT GALLERY.
is courteous and dignified, kind-hearted and gen- many others, regards it rather in the light of crous. He inherits from the ancestors of liis a relic than a possible source of addition to his mother a French spoliation claim, but, like fortune.
BENJAMIN F. JACOBS,
CHICAGO, ILL.
TN this materialistic age, an age in which almost every one seems imbued with but one idea, that of the rapid accumulation of wealth, it is re- freshing occasionally to meet with one who has other ambitions, other thoughts and immeasurably higher motives in life. The business men of Chi- cago have the reputation of being wide awake and enterprising, but too much devoted to business. While this may be true, there are yet to be found among our representative business men a few at least who manage to devote time and thought to some great movement of worthy cause, be it edu- cational, charitable or religious. Among the most prominent of this class in the city of Chicago is the subject of this sketch. Benjamin F. Jacobs, the son of Charles P. and Eliza (Pelton) Jacobs, was born in Paterson, N. J., September 18. 1834. His father's family were from Rhode Is- land, and formerly from England. His mother was of French extraction, a descendent of the Hugue- nots. Upon leaving school he entered his father's store, and in April, 1854, with much courage and little cash, he came to Chicago. Acting as clerk for several years (until 1861), he formed a partner- ship and engaged in the grocery, fruit and pro- vision business on South Water street. In 1868 he associated his brothers with him, continuing business in the same place until the great fire of 1871 stripped them of nearly all their possessions. Meanwhile, in 1869, Mr. Jacobs began to operate in real estate, and in 1870 he left the other busi- ness in the care of his brothers and devoted him- self to this new avocation. After the fire of 1871 he extended his operations and was engaged in building one of the suburbs of the city, when overtaken by the panic of 1873. Though suffer- ing in common with others severe reverses as the result of this financial crisis, nevertheless he con- tinued his business, and to-day is numbered among the successful and prominent real estate dealers of this city. Energy and determination, combined
with integrity and good business methods, have won for him ultimate success.
But it is as an educator, as an organizer and as a tireless worker and manager, that the subject of this sketch has perhaps gained his highest, and in a certain sense a remarkable, reputation. Coming to Chicago in his twentieth year, he united with the First Baptist Church and entered the Sunday- school as a pupil, and soon after became a teacher. In 1856 he was elected superintendent of the First Mission Sunday-school, under the care of Baptists, and the Third Mission school of the city. Subsequently he became the superintendent of the home school, which made for itself a notable reputation throughout the country. He was at the same time the teacher of an adult class that numbered five hundred. After the fire of 1874 had destroyed the building of the First Church, Mr. Jacobs organized a down-town mission, from which grew the Newsboys' Mission, afterward called the Waifs' Mission. In 1881 he united with others in the organization of the Immanuel Bap- tist Church, and became superintendent of its school, which office he retains. He is now serv- ing his thirty-sixth year as a Sunday-school super- intendent.
Hle was one of the organizers of the Young Men's Christian Association, in 1858, of which he was president in 1863-4, and is one of the life trustees. At the breaking out of the war, in 1861, he was made one of the Army Committee, and for four years was secretary of the Northwestern branch of the United States Christian Commis- sion. In this capacity he was often on the battle- field, beginning with Fort Donelson, in 1862, and ending at Nashville in December, 1864. He also traveled over the Northwest, holding meetings and raising money and supplies for the troops.
At the close of the war, with Mr. Moody and others, Mr. Jacobs turned his efforts to the work of Sunday-school organization. He was elected
BTJacobo
293
BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARY AND PORTRAIT GALLERY.
president of the State Sunday-School Convention in 1868, and chairman of the State Executive Committee in 1873. He has been annually re- elected to the latter office, and is now serving his twentieth year. In 1867 he began to urge the adoption of the uniform or International plan of Sunday-school lessons, which has since given him world-wide fame. Of him and his connection with this great work, Miss Frances E. Willard writes in the Sunday-School Times: "Ours is a day in which each great movement has for its central figure some personality that incarnates its method and idea. Organization being the watch- word, there must be organizers; and it is safe to say that each of the guilds now so numerous is a success according to the vigor and devotion of its chief. Men will not rally around vacancy, but they will around a leader. He must be born, he cannot be made. He must have a hand of iron in a glove of velvet. He must believe in and must work for their best interests without haste and without rest. He must fling himself into the move- ment with it to sink or swim, and he must be loyal to the unfolding purpose of God as he under- stands it, even unto death.
" A man who was to develop after this fashion until he became the central figure of the World's Sunday-School movement now lives in the Elec- tric City, otherwise Chicago, and his name is Benjamin F. Jacobs."
The National Sunday-School Convention which met at Indianapolis, Indiana, in 1872, adopted the plan of uniform lessons, and a committee was chosen to select the first course of lessons for seven years; the second committee was chosen at Atlanta, Georgia, in 1878; the third commit- tee at Louisville, Kentucky, in 1884, and the fourth committee at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, 1890. The fourth committee's term of office is from 1894 to 1899. Mr. Jacobs has from the be- ginning been a member of this committee. In 1881 he was elected chairman of the Executive Committee of the International Sunday-School Convention He was re-elected in 1884, 1887, and in 1890 to serve until 1893. He planned the World's Sunday School Convention, held in Eng- land in 1889, and secured the attendance of 428 delegates from America, a steamship being char. tered to convey them across the Atlantic. He declined the presidency of that convention, but
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.