A biographical history of eminent and self-made men of the state of Indiana : with many portrait-illustrations on steel, engraved expressly for this work, Volume I, Part 98

Author:
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Cincinnati, Ohio : Western Biographical Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1038

USA > Indiana > A biographical history of eminent and self-made men of the state of Indiana : with many portrait-illustrations on steel, engraved expressly for this work, Volume I > Part 98

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).

REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF INDIANA.

[7th Dist.

ing and social nature make him companionable and | he had sustained. His was not the nature to bow down frank with all who know him. With character above reproach, he is regarded as one of the most gentlemanly citizens residing at this elegant capital of the state.

OUGLASS, ROBERT, of Indianapolis, descends from a long line of Scottish ancestors. The grand- parents of his father, James Douglass, were strong

5 types of this nationality, and represented a hardy, long-lived, muscular, and intelligent race. His mother, Elizabeth Wallace, though a native of Ireland, and born near Cookstown, County Tyrone, was of the same Scotch origin. Robert Douglass was born in the beautiful val- ley of the Juniata, state of Pennsylvania, and when but a child removed with his parents to Wayne County, Ohio, where the remainder of his youthful years were spent, and where he grew to manhood. His father was a farmer of great industry, and distinguished not more for his integrity and honesty than for his moral and up- right life; while his mother was of unusual intelli- gence, and illustrated in an eminent degree the amiable and pious virtues of an exemplary Christian woman. Mr. Douglass remained with his father on the farm, performing the severest labor, until he passed his ma- jority, availing himself during the winters of every facility of education, and subjecting himself to a process of self-culture, which, in its ultimate results and bearing upon subsequent life, is superior to all other forms of education. At the age of twenty-one he was thoroughly

qualified to take charge of a country school, in which he acquitted himself with credit. But the life of a school-teacher, or any strictly rural life, was not suited to the exercise of powers which demanded a wider sphere of activity. He therefore identified himself with some of the leading publishing houses of New York City and Cincinnati, and for years energetically labored to advance their interests. In these enterprises he was uniformly successful, winning by his industry and integ- rity the confidence of his employers and associates, and by scrupulous fidelity to his duties constantly placing

himself in the line of promotion. Having acquired considerable capital, he embarked in commercial pur- suits in Ohio, where his prosperity was uniform, and where he established a reputation as a practical and sagacious business man. In 1861 he went to California, where he remained until 1868. Here he was variously engaged, and among other results of his ambition were adventures in mining projects, the excitement then run- much nerve proved disastrous to him, and his losses ning high. In these adventures the fatalism of too

were large and severe, for a while deranging his calcu- lations. This "conjunction of hostile planets," instead of unmanning him, only incited him to repair the losses

to disaster. It served rather to whet the edge of his resolution, and, while other men would have yielded to a discouragement, he was rebuilding the edifice. He returned from California in 1868, and in 1871 became a partner of General A. D. Streight, who was then en- gaged in the book-publishing business in Indianapolis. His sagacity in this sphere of activity was the prelude to his financial prosperity, and in 1874 he purchased the remaining interest of the house, and since has been the sole proprietor. His business is extended and ramified, and has familiarized him with book men throughout the entire Union. It is conducted wholly upon the subscription basis, his publications all being of a standard character, the copyrights and plates in most cases being owned exclusively by him. He was married, February 6, 1879, to Miss Melissa J. Lewis, daughter of the late Doctor Andrew Lewis, of Princeton, Indiana, a lady of great refinement and intel- ligence. As a business man, Mr. Douglass is conspic- uous for the method, exactitude, and promptness of all his transactions. All his energies, thoughts, impulses, and intuitions, like so many satellites, revolve around and concentrate in this circle. In all executive details he observes fixed rules. His candor and integrity per- meate all its multiplied ramifications. His business necessarily brings him into contact with many men, and he invariably succeeds in winning their confidence, and this, too, by no artifice or blandishments, but by the result of fair dealing and unfaltering loyalty to his engagements. His word has the sanctity of an obliga- tion, and his reputation is guarded by the divinities of honor and truth. Men who know him trust him, for he allows no suspicion to come near. His life has been directed by the genius of industry and perseverance, and his success has rather been the result of this than of any remarkably brilliant passages. He has caution, prudence, and penetration; moves with great deliber- ation, but in the hour of action is firm, decisive, and positive. He accepts the admonition of the philosopher, who said: "Measure thy cloth ten times; thou canst cut it but once." He is courageous and sanguine-for his temperament is such-and is not afraid to venture upon enterprises from which more timid minds would shrink; yet he assumes no hazards without the approval of his best judgment, and the most patient and critical analysis. He inclines to rely upon himself, although he accepts suggestions from friends with courtesy and frankness. His mind is mathematical and calculative, his conceptions clear and keen, and he is a good judge of human nature; his faculties of observation are well developed, and proceed both from the eye and mind. "Some men will learn more in the Hampstead stage than others in the tour of Europe," Doctor Johnson said to a distinguished friend who had just returned from

Rober

Aglass

Very respectfully FPDrake

REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF INDIANA.

7th Dist.]

Italy. This faculty of penetrative vision in Mr. Doug- lass is strongly marked; it reaches down under the sur- face of things, grapples with phenomena, develops distinctions, institutes comparisons, and, finally, puts the lever under the rock to ascertain the underlying idea. In his mining experiences, the exercise of this faculty made him almost unconsciously a practical chemist. He possesses both independence of mind and character; is self-poised, self-possessed, self-dependent; and, though somewhat diffident and of retiring disposition, has force, self-assertion, and powerful individuality. He has strong convictions of right and duty ; but is most secretive on matters which require it. His habit is to finish all he undertakes, and he has great faculty for minutiæ; he expresses himself in few and crisp words, and talks from the center to the rim. He has immense physical and vital power to support his mental activities, and these, combined with strong will, enable him to drive his busi- ness. He is dignified, yet accessible; indulgent, yet exacting ; generous, yet fortified with judicious re- straints. As a citizen, he is identified with the public welfare. To all charitable and educational enterprises he contributes his share without parade. He despises humbugs and fictions, but desires to see all worthy enterprises move along. He likes to see the wheel on dry ground, and is willing to put his shoulder to the chariot and see it move. Socially, he is agreeable, courteous, complaisant. He is slow to form friendships, but when once established they are lasting. To his per- sonal friends he is warmly, if not passionately, attached. The link between him and his family is of polished gold.

RAKE, COLONEL JAMES PERRY, son of Albrittain Drake and Ruth Collins, was born in Robeson County, North Carolina, September 15, 1797. His parents, planters of considerable means, removed to Muhlenburg County, Kentucky, when he was eleven years of age. His father served in the Rev- olutionary War in the North Carolina Light-horse, as a lieutenant, entering the service at the age of fifteen, and serving for seven years. James, the son, remained in his father's country home until he was seventeen, where he received such education as was possible in so new and sparsely settled a district. He was then sent by his father to Greenville, the county seat of Muhlenburg County, to be employed as clerk in a dry-goods and supply store. Here he remained two years, when his employer sent him with a stock of goods to Cynthiana, Posey County, Indiana, where the county seat had just been located. This was an arduous undertaking, as the goods had to be wagoned through a dense wilderness, without roads or bridges. On arriving at Cynthiana the scattered population gathered from all directions, C-3

with rifles on shoulders, and many in buckskin suits, to see the store. Whisky was free, and they would gen- erally spend the day amusing themselves in hopping, jumping, and running foot-races, etc. Yet, withal, they were fearless, frank, confiding, and honest; locks, keys, and burglars were not known. Here the boy, now nineteen, found himself immediately burdened with arduous duties. Excepting the county clerk and re- corder, who was in bad health, there were few men who could write more than their names legibly. His busi- ness faculties were now all called into active service ; he performed most of the duties of the clerk and recorder, county agent, and postmaster, the post-office being in his store ; his writing was done chiefly at night. Here he was elected colonel of a militia regiment. In 1818 he was appointed agent of the county, and postmaster at Springfield, by President Monroe. In the fall of the same year he was elected clerk and auditor of Posey County, which then embraced Vanderburg, and was also elected brigadier-general of militia. About this time he studied law, with a view to making it his pro- fession ; but, owing to constant official duties, he deferred applying for admittance to the bar, which in his after life he always regretted. During these years he was brought into intimate business and social relations with the New Harmony community, under the management and control of the Rapps, father and son, which was then in a flourishing condition. After the transfer of the lands, tenements, and appurtenances of this commu- nity to the Scotch philanthropist, Robert Owen, he nec- essarily held the same intimate relations with the Owen association. These two communities, so alike and yet so unlike, each striving in its different way to benefit humanity, undoubtedly had much to do with broad- ening his views and making his after life tolerant and charitable. He himself said that it was here he first got his idea of woman's perfect equality with man. In 1829 he was appointed by General Jackson receiver of public moneys at Indianapolis. After resigning the offices of brigadier-general and clerk and recorder, he moved to that place, but in after life he often remarked that "the people of the ' Pocket' had a little the warmest place in his heart." January 33, 1831, at Lawrenceburg, Indiana, he was married to Priscilla Holmes Buell, youngest daughter of Judge Salmon Buell and Johanna Sturdevandt, both of Cayuga County, New York. Miss Buell's father was a man of much intellectual vigor, and held several im- portant offices in his state, serving in the Senate with De Witt Clinton and Martin Van Buren. Her two eldest brothers were engaged in the War of 1812. Seven children were the fruit of his marriage with Miss Buell, two sons and five daughters. The eldest son died of consumption while a West Point cadet, the youngest in infancy. The daughters are still living. Mrs. Drake,

REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF INDIANA.

[7th Dist.

who was fifteen years his junior, was his partner for forty-five years, and yet survives. She partook of his liberal views in politics, religion, and social questions. They together worked with Robert Dale Owen, during the Constitutional Convention, to remove the legal dis- abilities that surrounded the women of this state. Their united efforts secured an expression of the latent restive feeling of many noble mothers of Indiana, by the pres- entation of an artistically designed silver pitcher to Mr. Owen, in gratitude for his gallant defense of their cause. The donations were limited to one dollar cach, in order that a few might not monopolize the privilege. This happy couple lived to see the fruit of their gener- ous labor, in reformed laws and more liberal customs with regard to women. There are but two grandchil- dren grown-Ruth Drake and Olive Torbitt-whose musical genius, with rare culture, are the result of their grand-parents' noble teachings of freedom in the selec- tion of professions, without regard to sex. Miss Ollie excels upon the violin, a fact that is rarely true of either sex. Miss Ruth performs also upon the violin, and both are charming young ladies, devoted to the musical profession. In 1832 Mr. Drake was appointed brigade inspector. At the breaking out of the Black Hawk War he raised a company of mounted riflemen, composed of the best citizens of Indianapolis, was elected captain, and served during the campaign. In 1834 he was ap- pointed receiver of public moneys at Vincennes by Gen- eral Jackson, an office he held four years, after which he removed with his family to South-western Missouri, and located in Rives County, now Henry. Here he was very soon honored by his friends and neighbors by being elected Judge of the Probate Court. In 1841 he- was called to Indianapolis by the effects of the finan- cial crisis, and found it necessary to remain. Soon after this he was elected director of the State Bank and commissioner of the sinking fund by the Legisla- ture of the state; was also elected trustee of the Deaf and Dumb Asylum, which office he held until the breaking out of the Mexican War. IIe then raised a company of volunteers, was elected captain, and, at the general rendezvous of the three Indiana regiments at New Albany, was elected colonel of the first. While in Mexico he was made civil and military Governor of Matamoras, and commander of all forces of the Lower Rio Grande. On his return to Indianapolis he was made receiver of public moneys by President Polk, but was removed by President Taylor soon after his inaugu- ration. He was afterwards sent to the Legislature from Marion County, and then elected Treasurer of State. In 1855, with his wife and daughter, he traveled in Europe, and was appointed by Governor Wright com- missioner from Indiana to the Paris Exposition; and on leaving the city of Rome was made by Mr. Cass bearer of dispatches to the embassies of Turin and London.

From the above list of public services, beginning before he was twenty-one years of age and continuing until he left his adopted state, it is unnecessary to say that he was a man of such sterling qualities, both of head and heart, as to command the respect and love of all those with whom he was thrown; for his fellow-citizens showed their appreciation by placing him in positions of trust in the court, the hall, and the field. Though a Demo- crat and of strong political attachments, he had many warm friends in the opposite party. Of strong physical health, he had great energy and industry. His philoso- phy of life was to "make duty a pleasure." He loved his country first and last, and considered it every man's duty to come at her call. In the war with the South he declined taking up arms on either side, as he said he could not divide his love, nor fight against those with whom he had fought for his country. A good and respected citizen, he was, more than all, the best and most beloved husband and father. At the death of his father he came into possession of some slaves, and, not wishing to sell old family servants, he still owned them when, in 1861, on account of sickness in the fam- ily and financial trouble, he concluded to move South. After remaining awhile in Tennessee he finally located near Huntsville, Alabama, where he remained until his death, August 12, 1876, when he passed away, solaced by the affectionate care of wife, children, and grand- children, at the ripe age of seventy-nine years. The following stanzas, from a poem addressed to him by Mrs. Sara T. Bolton after his death, faithfully describe the beauty and nobleness of his nature:

Thy pathway lay not always in the light ; . But come what would thy great undaunted soul Was true to its conviction of the right, As the magnetic needle to the pole.

Thou didst not learn the truth from seer or sage,

From cabalistic lore or sacred page ;

It was thy guiding star from youth to age.

And charity was of thy life a part ; It touched and turned the fibers of thy brain, Folded its snow-white pinions in thy heart, And sung to thee alway love's sweet refrain. The homeless turned to thee in their distress, The helpless widow and the fatherless;

The stricken aged named thee but to bless."

UNBAR, HON. HAMILTON J., deceased, of Greenfield, was born near Hancock County, Indi- ana, September 13, 1846, and died September 5, 1876. His parents, Jonathan and Mary Dunbar, were respectively of Scotch and Irish descent. His fa- ther possessed wonderful business capacity, great energy, and zeal for education. He was public-spirited and en- terprising beyond the habit of his time. His mother, a patient, pious, old lady, is greatly loved for her supe-

REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF INDIANA.

7th Dist.]

rior qualities of head and heart. She numbers among her friends many who have been her associates for over half a century. The early life of young Dunbar was characterized by love of amusement and fondness for athletic sports. He early developed a taste for intel- lectual culture, and was a fervent admirer of the beau- tiful, both in nature and in art. He availed himself of the educational advantages of the schools of Green- field in his youth; but, these not meeting the require- ments of his ambition, he entered Asbury University, at Greencastle, where, in the class of 1866, he graduated with high and special honors, and immediately there- after began the study and practice of law in his native town. To show the esteem in which Mr. Dunbar was held by the people who knew him best, we make the following excerpt from a highly eulogistic sketch of his life, published in the Hancock Democrat, of Greenfield :

" During his college days, and afterward, he studied law, partly at this place and Indianapolis. Being a diligent student, he soon mastered the rudiments of law, when he commenced its practice in this place. He soon gained a solid reputation as a good and safe lawyer, since which his progress toward a leading position in his profession in the county, circuit, and state was rapid and merited. Had he been permitted to live a few years longer, we feel safe in saying that his native talent and energy would have placed him in the front rank of the best legal minds of the state. But a higher power deemed otherwise, and our young friend has gone down to the grave at a time when he should have been in the prime of life and vigor of early manhood, and our en- tire community sincerely mourns his untimely cutting down."

On the thirty-first day of March, 1868, he was mar- ried to Miss Florence M. Jones, an intelligent, amiable, and accomplished young lady, daughter of Doctor John Jones, late of Greencastle, Indiana, who survives him, living still in the home of their early married life in Greenfield. As an evidence of the professional standing of Mr. Dunbar, and the personal regard in which he was held by his brethren of the Indianapolis bar, we subjoin the following extract from the Indianapolis Journal, which appeared on the day following his demise :

" Yesterday news came of the death of one of Indi- ana's most promising young men, Hamilton J. Dunbar, of Greenfield. He early associated himself with the institutions of our state, and through his short but brill- iant career shed luster not only upon his own name, but upon those whose careful training laid a firm foun- dation for a future greatness. He was a graduate of the class of 1866 at Asbury, where his college days were spent. Always a leader and achieving constant suc- cesses, he yet softened the sharp edges of defeat by sharing the glory of conquest with the vanquished foe. His ambition at college brooked no rival, yet he was distinguished for fairness and honor in debate. Upon finishing his college course, in 1866, he commenced the study of the law in Greenfield, and it was not long before his seniors learned to admire his talents and re-

spect his discussion of the law. He was always accurate in legal statement, and yet, with commendable vanity, polished the rough points with the touch of a rheto- rician. He leaves to mourn him a widow and one child, in whose hearts he is enshrined, not as the promising lawyer and polished debater, but as a kind father and affectionate husband. His wife is a niece of the Hon. D. W. Voorhees, and as a widow she is one of a sad widowhood -her mother and grandmother being left, like herself, alone to sail the sea of life. The deceased was yet quite young, not thirty, and his death resulted from overwork in his profession. Upon hearing of his demise a meeting of the Indianapolis bar was called, at which Mr. John A. Finch presided, with W. A. Ketcham as secretary. Upon motion of Mr. C. W. Smith, a com- mittee was appointed to draft resolutions expressing the regret of the bar, and offering such condolence as might be appreciated by the widow of their departed brother. The committee appointed consisted of the following gentlemen : C. W. Smith, Edwin H. Terrell, W. A. Ketcham, John A. Finch, and Hon. Solomon Blair, of the Indianapolis bar, who, at the afternoon meeting pursuant to adjournment, reported the following reso- lutions :

"""The members of the Indianapolis bar, having learned with sorrow of the early demise of our late friend and brother, Hamilton J. Dunbar, Esq., of Green- field, and being desirous of making a proper record of the high esteem and love in which we held the departed, do spread upon the records of the courts of Marion County the following tribute :

" ' Hamilton J. Dunbar, in his practice at the bar of Marion County and at the bar of the Supreme Court of this state, has, by his conspicuous ability and eminent legal talents, added brilliancy to the reputation which rare eloquence had gained for him among his fellows at his own bar; he has, by his winning manners and uni- form courtesies, won the highest regard of the members of this bar. His rapid rise to the eminent position which he had already attained at his own home was but an earnest of the future, which beckoned him to yet severer exertions and to their reward, as the brilliant and successful lawyer, which attended such talents as he possessed, and such labor as he was wont to bestow upon the matters intrusted to him by loving and admir- ing clients. It is seldom that one so young as he had won so extended a practice at the bar, and yet more seldom that one so young had won so deep a hold upon the hearts of those about him, and wielded such an in- fluence in the community in which he lived.

" ' As a bar we will remember his talents and success with pride, and seek to emulate his many virtues. In his early death we see but another illustration of the sad results of overlabor, of the straining beyond their utmost tension the nerves of the practicing lawyer. It is with inexpressible pain that we tender to the widow of the deceased our heart-felt sympathies in this, the hour of her bereavement; and as a further token of our esteem we appoint the Hon. Robt. N. Lamb, Hon. U. J. Hammond, Major Eli F. Ritter, Hon. John Hanna, and Hon. Robert E. Smith to attend the funeral of the deceased, as representing this bar, and to bear a copy of this tribute to the bar of Hancock County and to the family of the departed. C. W. SMITH, .

" EDWIN H. TERRELL, "W. A. KETCHAM, " JOHN A. FINCH, "SOLOMON BLAIR.' "

REPRESENTATIVE MEN OF INDIANA.

[7th Dist.

" Remarking upon the resolutions, Mr. Smith testi- fied to the integrity and high purpose of the deceased; of his matchless yet popular career in college, of his subsequent rise, and the sadness of his untimely fall. Mr. Hanna, another friend in college, moved with the recollection of those happy, busy days, referred with great feeling to his college life and subsequent profes- sional efforts, said he fell a martyr to his ambition to make a name and bring to justice the conspirators who ruined his father. He was warm-hearted and honor- able. Mr. John Finch added more in praise, and then the resolutions were adopted."

It is eminently fitting that we close this sketch of a young, brilliant man, struck down in the full bloom of youth by the icy hand of death, with the following beautiful poem, composed by his intimate friend, J. W. Riley, and read before a meeting of the bar of Green- field and neighboring counties:

"Dead ! Dead ! Dead ! We thought him ours alone ; And none so proud to see him tread The rounds of fame, and lift his head Where sunlight ever shone ; But now our aching eyes are dim, And look through tears in vain for him.

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.

A biographical history of eminent and self-made men of the state of Indiana : with many portrait-illustrations on steel, engraved expressly for this work, Volume I, Part 98

Author: Publication date: 1880 Publisher: Cincinnati, Ohio : Western Biographical Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 1038

Author:
Publication date: 1880
Publisher: Cincinnati, Ohio : Western Biographical Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 1038