USA > Kentucky > A history of Kentucky and Kentuckians; the leaders and representative men in commerce, industry and modern activities, Volume III > Part 116
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 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91 | Part 92 | Part 93 | Part 94 | Part 95 | Part 96 | Part 97 | Part 98 | Part 99 | Part 100 | Part 101 | Part 102 | Part 103 | Part 104 | Part 105 | Part 106 | Part 107 | Part 108 | Part 109 | Part 110 | Part 111 | Part 112 | Part 113 | Part 114 | Part 115 | Part 116 | Part 117 | Part 118 | Part 119 | Part 120
Brought up on the parental homestead, James M. Todd, as a boy, developed a strong love for horses, and has since devoted his en- ergies to farming and horse breeding and rais- ing. As a young man he kept one of the best training stables in Shelby county, and dealt extensively in trotting and saddle horses, selling and shipping to various points. In 1863 and 1864 he was appointed inspector of Government horses, and also bought many horses for the United States Government. Mr. Todd has owned some noted racing horses, among others having been "Maggie Sherman," which won a two-year-old record of 2.10, and was subsequently exported to France, where it sold at a big price. He fol- lowed the trotting circuits for many years, and has probably owned more saddle and trot- ting horses of value than any other one horse- man. He has sold saddle and carriage horses all over the South, and has helped make Ken- tucky famous for its blooded horses. Since his retirement from active business, four or five years ago, Mr. Todd has made his home in Shelbyville. True to the religious faith in which he was born and reared, he is a trust-
1710
HISTORY OF KENTUCKY AND KENTUCKIANS
worthy member of the Presbyterian church, in which he has served as an elder for a full quarter of a century.
Mr. Todd married, February 4, 1864. Mar- tha J. King, a daughter of John F. King, a wholesale merchant of Louisville, who subse- quently removed to Shelby county, where he lived retired until his death, when but fifty- one years of age. Three children were born to Mr. and Mrs. Todd, namely: John King, of whom a brief personal record is given else- where in this volume; Ida Mary, wife of James H. Dale, of Shelby county; and Orrin W., who is associated with the Louisville Wa- ter Company.
JOHN KING TODD .- A prominent attorney- at-law, John K. Todd, junior member of the firm of Willis & Todd, of Shelbyville, pos- sesses a vigorous mentality and great versatil- ity of talent, while exactness and thorough- ness characterize his legal work and attain- ments. He was born in Shelby county, Jan- uary 1, 1865, a son of James M. Todd, Jr., in whose sketch, which appears on another page of this work, a brief parental and ancestral history may be found.
Taking advantage of the excellent school privileges afforded him as a youth, he laid a substantial foundation for his broad educa- tion in the public schools, and was graduated from the Kentucky University with the class of 1888. Subsequently turning his attention to the study of law, he was admitted to the bar in 1901, and has since been actively and successfully engaged in the practice of his chosen profession. The firm of Willis & Todd, of which he is a member, has attained a high position at the bar, and has been con- cerned in much important litigation. This firm represents four railway companies; the interests of the American Tobacco Company in six counties; the International Harvester Company in an equal number of counties ; the Cumberland Telegraph and Telephone Com- pay in as many; and as attorney for the Citi- zes' Bank, of which Mr. Todd is a director. has been a winner in many hard-fought legal battles.
Mr. Todd is officially identified with vari- ous organizations, being president and secre- tary of the Shelbyville Water and Light Com- pany ; a director of the Shelbyville Public Li- brary; and for the past few years has served as treasurer of the Kentucky State Bar Asso- ciation. He is a Democrat in his political re- lations, and for twelve years served as dep- uty county clerk.
Mr. Todd married, December 4, 1890, Susie Beall, a daughter of David and Mary J. ( Swinney) Beall, formerly of Crestwood, Oldham county, Kentucky. Mr. and Mrs.
Todd have one daughter, Evelyn Todd, an accomplished young lady. In his religious views Mr. Todd is a Baptist, while Mrs. Todd worships at the Methodist Episcopal church.
WILSON J. THOMAS .- The Thomas family in Shelby county, Kentucky, has been one of prominence and influence in this section of the state since the early pioneer days. The various representatives of the name have de- voted the major portion of their time and attention to the great basic industry of agri- culture, but they have also been active fac- tors in banking and packing circles, and as business men and citizens they have contrib- uted in generous measure to all matters pro- jected for the good of the general welfare.
The paternal grandmother of him whose name forms the caption for this article was Mary ( Poage) Thomas, who, in company with her parents, came to Harrodsburg, Kentucky, under Colonel Harrod. She was a daughter of William Poage, whose wife, Ann, was three times married. William Poage was killed at the old fort at Harrodsburg and sub- sequently Ann Poage married a Mr. Lindsay, who met his death at the battle of Blue Licks. Her third husband was Mr. McGinty. At a very early day two brothers, John and Os- wald Thomas, who were born in Pennsyl- vania and who were reared to maturity on the south branch of the Potomac river, came as young men to Harrodsburg. Oswald drifted to Bardstown, where he remained but a short time, eventually returning to Harrodsburg, where was solemnized his marriage to Miss Mary Poage (mentioned above). Very soon after their marriage, about the year 1796, they came to Shelby county, locating on Fox Run, where they secured quite a tract of land -upwards of one thousand acres-and where they continued to reside until their respective deaths. Mary (Poage) Thomas' mother kept a public house at Harrodsburg for a number of years. As court was held there, a number of prominent young men, including lawyers and judges, stopped at her place. Oswald Thomas was summoned to the life eternal at the age of eighty-four years, about the year 1851, and his cherished and devoted wife passed away a few years later, at the age of eighty years. Prior to his demise Oswald Thomas was a stockholder in the Frankfort, LaGrange & Louisville Railroad, which lie helped to build and which he lived to see com- pleted. He was a great friend of Tom Smith, president of the road. John Thomas, brother of Oswald, remained at Harrodsburg, where he owned and operated a tan yard, where lie made boots and shoes. He gained a com- petency before his death and a large estate was divided between his children; none of the
1711
HISTORY OF KENTUCKY AND KENTUCKIANS
land is now in his family possession, however.
Oswald and Mary (Poage) Thomas were the parents of six children, namely,-Thomas, Morris, Lindsay, John A., Preston and Wil- son, all of whom lived and died in Shelby county. Morris became a pork packer in Louisville, being a member of the old firm of Maxey & Thomas, one of the oldest packing concerns in Kentucky's metropolis. A num- ber of Shelby county farmers were deeply interested in a financial way in that packing company. Wilson Thomas, father of Wilson J., of this review, was born on Fox Run, in Shelby county, in the year 1806, and in 1832 he purchased a tract of three hundred acres of most arable land on the east fork of Clear Creek, paying for the same fifteen dollars per acre. This farm is now included in the large estate owned and operated by Wilson J. and Daniel Allen Thomas, In 1832 Wilson Thomas was united in marriage to Miss Nancy Gulick Johnston, who was born in Loudoun county, Virginia, in 1807, and who accompanied her parents to Shelby county as a young girl. Settlement was made on Fox Run, one mile north of Scott Station, where her father engaged in agricultural pursuits. The mother died en route to Shelby county, her remains having been interred at May's Lick, in 1810. The old Johnston estate is now owned by Wilson J. Thomas. John Johnston, in addition to farming, owned and operated a mill and distillery on Fox Run and he was called to eternal rest at the venerable age of eighty years.
Wilson Thomas passed his entire active life on the homestead farm now in the possession of the subject of this review and he died, at the age of eighty-two years. in 1888, his wife surviving him until 1901, at which time she had attained to the patriarchal age of ninety- four years. Mrs. Wilson Thomas retained in much of their prestine vigor the splendid phy- sical and mental qualities of her earlier days. her sight and hearing having been excellent up to the time of her death. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson Thomas were consistent members of the Christian church, in which he was a leader, and for a number of years he was one of the most influential officials on the Shelby county school board. He was never incumbent of any political office, strictly speaking, but was ever on the alert to do all in his power to advance the well being of the community. He was a heavy stockholder in the Farmers' & Traders' Bank at Shelbyville, in which he was a member of the board of directors, and he was also a charter member of the old Farm- ers' & Drovers' Bank in the city of Louisville, that substantial financial institution being now known as the Southern National Bank. In
addition to the above interests he was a stock- holder in a number of local pikes. He and his wife became the parents of four children, -Stephen N., who died in early manhood; Wilson J., who is the immediate subject of this review; Sallie, who is the wife of Jona- than Layorn and. who resides in Shelby county ; and Daniel A., who is now associated with Wilson J. in the general supervision of the immense farm conducted by them.
As young men, Wilson J. and Daniel A. bought up the rights of the other heirs in the old homestead and they have worked and re- sided on the old place to the present day. They have never kept personal accounts but have drawn on the general fund and they are now the owners of some three thousand acres of fine Bluegrass lands, the same including the old Johnston estate of three hundred acres and the old Thomas estate of five hundred acres. For the additional land from thirty dollars up to as much as one hundred dollars per acre was paid. About two hundred acres of the land is devoted to the raising of to- ·bacco and large tracts are given over to grazing lands for their cattle, sheep and hogs. They have been interested in the breeding of short-horn cattle for the past fifty or sixty years, the original herd having been estab- lished by their father. They are interested in the tobacco warehouse trade at Louisville, and Wilson J., who succeeded his father in the latter's interest in the old Farmers' & Drovers' Bank, was one of the organizers of the South- ern National Bank, in which he is a director at the present time. He has served as vice- president and as president of that institution, having been incumbent of the latter position for a period of two years.
Both Wilson J. and Daniel A. Thomas were born in Shelby county, Kentucky. Both were reared to the sturdy influence of the old home- stead farm and they received their educa- tional training in the neighboring schools. In 1900 they erected a mansion of a home some five miles northeast of Shelbyville and here is dispensed that generous hospitality for which the entire South, and Kentucky in par- ticular, are so widely renowned. Neither of the brothers has ever participated actively in politics. Wilson J. served the greater part of four years under Morgan in the Civil war and he participated in a number of the most important conflicts marking the progress of that sanguinary struggle. He was never wounded but was captured on the Ohio raid, eventually making his escape at the Half Mile island. The Thomas family lineage is of Scotch origin with an Irish cross.
Wilson J. Thomas married Miss Mary Thomas, of Owen county, Kentucky. She is.
1712
HISTORY OF KENTUCKY AND KENTUCKIANS
a daughter of John Walker Thomas, a mem- ber of an old Virginia family but a native of Kentucky and of the same name but no kin- ship. There have been no children born to this union. Daniel A. Thomas wedded Miss Nettie Stout, a daughter of John Stout, of Woodford county, Kentucky. She died at an early age, leaving one son, Daniel Allen Thomas, Jr., who has been raised by Mrs. Wilson J. Thomas. The Thomas family have supplied homes for a number of other or- phaned children and in every manner possible have helped along those who have been less fortunate in the way of the world's goods than themselves. In their religious faith they are devout members of the Cropper Christian church, in the different departments of which they have always been most active and zeal- ous factors and to whose charities and benev- olences they contribute most liberally. In fra- ternal and social organizations of a local na- ture the brothers are prominent members and everywhere they are accorded that wholesome confidence and esteem which is called forth by true citizenship.
. HUBBARD LUTHER STEVENS .- The family of which our subject is a member has al- ways been connected with enterprises and in- dustries which from the commanding position they have naturally been placed in has im- parted a breadth of view and largeness of character which has its exemplification in the career of Hubbard Luther Stevens, who in the course of his lifetime has executed some en- terprises of great importance and in some measure has carried out extensive plans in- augurated and started by his father.
Mr. Stevens was born at Boonesboro, Ken- tucky, April 9, 1846, the son of John and Martha Jane (Martin) Stevens. The father was born at Boonesboro, Kentucky, and died January 15, 1893, aged seventy-eight years, and the mother was born on Howard's Creek in Clark county and died in 1890, aged sixty- five years. They were the parents of five children, of whom two are living, one being the subject of this sketch and the other, Thomas H., living in Fayette county, where he is engaged in the occupation of breeding race horses. Before we resume the history of our immediate subject, it will be in order to make a few remarks upon his near ances- try. Mr. Stevens' grandfather, Joseph Ste- vens, was a native of the state of Virginia, and came to Boonesboro, Kentucky, shortly after Daniel Boone made his settlement there. The mother of our subject was a relative of Hubbard H. Kavanaugh, the first Bishop of Kentucky. John Stevens, our : subject's father, at an early age was apprenticed and learned the saddler's trade at Richmond, Ken-
tucky. About the time he became of age he purchased the Boonesboro ferry and operated that for fifty years, and at the time of his death was next to the oldest ferryman on the Kentucky river. He was a successful man and possessed the foresight to invest in prop- erty, his good judgment being distinctive in the knowledge that a great future was in store for this country, and at his death he owned six hundred acres of land. He led a quiet, uneventful life, was no seeker after office, and was a member of the Presbyterian church for years, his wife being a member of the Meth- odist Episcopal church all her life.
Hubbard Luther Stevens was reared on a farm and received his education in the public schools, remaining with his father until he married, when he began farming on Combs Ferry pike on his father-in-law's farm in 1869. Sometime later Mr. Stevens and a brother bought four hundred acres of this land and still later Mr. Stevens bought out his brother. It was a large undertaking for a young man, but with ambition to urge him, determination to gain and hard work, which was willingly performed with such an object in view, he suc- ceeded in paying for it, thus becoming the owner of a fine piece of property constantly increasing in value. He also run the · ferry at Boonesboro for several years, in addition to which he conducted a general store, which he still operates. In 1858 Mr. Stevens' father built a saw mill on the Clark county side, op- posite Boonesboro, with borrowed money, and as soon as our subject became of age he as- sisted his father in operating it and putting it on a paying basis. This mill is owned and operated to-day by Mr. H. L. Stevens, a fine piece of property and valuable, having a ca- pacity of eight thousand feet per day. Mr. Stevens has added to his realty property until he has acquired nine hundred acres of fine land, which he operates, following general farming. He also owns a fine line of good horses for breeding and makes quite a spe- cialty of this line of business. In fact he has not confined himself to one kind of business alone and in whatever he has undertaken he has met with success, showing him to be a man of resourceful business ability. Every movement or measure which elicits the ap- proval of Mr. Stevens also receives from him his earnest support and he is known as an active member of the Republican party, on which ticket he was elected as state repre- sentative in the fall of 1901, in which office he served two terms.
Mr. Stevens takes an active interest in and is a valued member of the Elks and the Ma- sonic order at Winchester. In 1866 Mr. Ste- vens married Emily Hampton, who died in
1713
HISTORY OF KENTUCKY AND KENTUCKIANS
1890, aged forty-one years, and leaving four children born of this union: Hattie, at home ; Ella, deceased; Albert, at Richmond, Ken- tucky, and Etta, widow of Frank Trivett, at home. In 1892 Mr. Stevens married Mar- garet Clelland, a native of Mercer county, Kentucky, born in 1859. Mr. Stevens is a member of the Presbyterian church and built a church of that denomination on his farm, which was dedicated by Bishop Cavanaugh in 1882.
FIRMAN B. HENRY .- A farmer and stock- dealer of note in Nicholas county, Kentucky, is Firman B. Henry, who owns and operates a farm of one hundred and sixty acres, eligibly located one mile distant from Carlisle. He was born in this county on the 31st of De- cember, 1856, and is a son of James and Nancy (Boardman) Henry, the former of whom was born in Bourbon county and the latter of whom claimed Nicholas county as the place of her nativity. James Henry was born on the 3d of January, 1819, and was summoned to the life eternal on the 31st of December, 1900, and his cherished and devoted wife was born on the 17th of November, 1824, and passed away in December, 1893. They became the parents of ten children, namely,-Mary E,. deceased; John W., a resident of Nicholas county ; Ella, the wife of T. M. Squires, of Carlisle; Abner, of Carlisle; George and James R., both of Nicholas county; Firman B., the immediate subject of this sketch; Jos- eph, deceased; Benjamin T., who maintains his home in Nicholas county; and Lutie, the wife of Robert Dalzell, of Nicholas county. John W. Henry, grandfather of him whose name initiates this review, was born in Bour- bon county, Kentucky, and served as a gallant soldier in the war of 1812. He married Miss Nancy Barnett, a native of Maryland, who died in 1868, at the venerable age of eighty years. Andrew Henry, father of John W. was born in Virginia and was a close relative of Patrick Henry and was an early pioneer in Bourbon county. John W. was summoned to eternal rest about 1825. The maternal grandfather of Firman B. Henry was Abner Boardman, who was born in Nicholas county and who wedded Mary Cross, of Bourbon county. She was one of fourteen children, in- cluding two pairs of twins, and she was one of a pair. The great-grandfather Boardman was born in England, whence he immigrated to America and settled in Kentucky, where he became a pioneer in Nicholas county.
James Henry, father of Firman B., was the third in a family of six children-four sons and two daughters-and he was reared and educated in his native county, continuing to re- side at the parental home, caring for his wid-
owed mother, until he had attained to the age of twenty-one years, at which time he removed to Nicholas county, where was solemnized his marriage and where he lived with his father- in-law for a period of two years. Later he purchased a small farm in this county and there reared his family, still caring for his aged mother in his own home until her death in 1868, and here he continued to reside for fifty-four years. He was a most success- ful farmer and at one time owned as much as three hundred acres of most arable land. He took an active interest in Democratic poli- tics and gave efficient service as chairman of the Democratic committee for several years. He and his wife were devout members of the Christian church, and they held a secure place in popular confidence and esteem.
Firman B. Henry was reared to the sturdy discipline of the home farm and after due preliminary educational training in the com- mon schools of the county he was matricu- lated in the Carlisle Normal School, in which institution he was a student for two years. Thereafter he taught school for a few terms and Mr. Henry looks back on this experience as one of the most valuable in his entire life. He intended preparing himself for some pro- fession and recalls now that he felt it must be one in which he could make more marked success. However, various things arose to change the trend of his ambitions and in course of time he became deeply interested in busi- ness affairs. After leaving the pedagogic pro- fession he was a clerk and bookkeeper in a clothing store at Carlisle for a short period. He then returned to the parental home, where he continued to reside until twenty-nine years of age, at which time, in 1885, he was elected deputy sheriff of Nicholas county. In the fall of 1888 he was elected sheriff and in this office he served for two terms, of two years each, his entire official career being one of distinct credit to himself. After his marriage in 1892, he purchased an interest in a lum- ber and coal business conducted under the firm name of Henry & Dorsey, and he con- tinued to be identifid with this line of enter- prise for a period of five years, at the expira- tion of which he disposed of his interest in the same and engaged in farming and trading. He now operates his farm of one hundred and sixty acres in Nicholas county and is a dealer of considerable note in live stock. He is strictly a self-made man and no one in Nich- olas county is held in higher esteem or has more friends.
In his political convictions Mr. Henry ac- cords a staunch allegiance to the cause of the Democratic party and in 1902-3 he was ap- pointed master commissioner of this county
1714
HISTORY OF KENTUCKY AND KENTUCKIANS
by Judge James J. Osborn. For a number of years he has served as a member of the school board and he manifests a deep interest in edu- cational affairs. He and his wife are devout members of the Christian church, in which he is serving as one of the official board, and they are popular factors in connection with the best social activities of the community.
On the 14th of December, 1892, was re- corded the marriage of Mr. Henry to Miss Lydia Fisher, who was born in Carlisle on the 17th of January, 1871, and who is a daughter of Ambrose R. and Frances (Rogers) Fisher, Mrs. Fisher being the daughter of the late Elder Samuel Rogers, one of the pioneer preachers of note. Mr. and Mrs. Fisher have both passed to their reward. For two years prior to her marriage Mrs. Henry was a popu- lar and successful teacher in the schools at Carlisle. Mr. and Mrs. Henry have five chil- dren, whose names are here recorded in re- spective order of birth,-Fisher B., Jo, James S., Katie B. and Robert Osborn, all of whom remain at the parental home.
ROBERT GAY .- One of Montgomery county's worthy citizens and well-known agri- culturists is Robert Gay. He is one of the veteran representatives of the honorable pro- fession with which he is identified, his birth having occurred October 13, 1827, in Clark county. He belongs to the Blue Grass state by the strong ties of birth and ancestry, the father, John D. Gay, having first seen the light of day in Clark county, on March 15, 1804, his death occurring in 1865, while the mother was born in Madison county in 1810 and died in 1900. The maiden name of the latter was Nancy Catherine Gardner. The preceding generation finds the Gay family in Virginia, the grandparents, James and Eliza- beth (Dunlap) Gay, both being natives of the Old Dominion. These good people were the parents of seven children, the subject's father being the youngest. The Gay family immi- grated to Kentucky about 1800, making the journey on horseback, and they located on Stoner Creek, Clark county. A few years later they removed to the Nelson Gay farm in Montgomery county. James Gay served his country throughout the period of the Rev- olutionary war.
John D. Gay was reared in Clark county and there married. He took up farming for an occupation on a small estate which he ulti- mately increased to six hundred and thirty acres, a part of which he later disposed of. He never took part in politics, except to vote and to keep in touch with questions concern- ing the public welfare.
Robert Gay was reared upon the farm and removed to Montgomery county when a lad
about ten years of age. He received a good common school education and in 1849 started to farm for himself on his father's land. In 1858 he made a longer step toward indepen- dence and bought one hundred and forty-five acres on the Paris pike, his home being sit- uated there. He has improved this acreage, which he has increased to two hundred, and all in all he has been very successful and has had the great pleasure of assisting all his chil- dren to make a start in life. In addition to his material success he enjoys the confidence of his neighbors.
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.