USA > Kentucky > Biographical cyclopedia of the commonwealth of Kentucky > Part 104
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Grant Green, second son of this noble woman, began active life as a teacher in the school in which he had been a pupil, taking the place of teacher before his former classmates of his own age had finished their school days. In this he was very successful, and gave great satisfaction to pupils and patrons. His uncle, William Green, was Sheriff of the county in 1848, and he gave up teaching, reluctantly, to serve as deputy sheriff, which occupied him for two years; was then dep- uty clerk of the County and Circuit Courts and served until 1851, when he was nominated by the Democratic party for representative in the Legislature and elected. The sessions of that body were noted for the arduous labors, keen foresight and wisdom of the members. It was the second session following the adoption of the new constitution and the laws then existing had to be modified and changed and new laws enacted to conform to the Constitution. This Legisla- ture was one of the ablest that ever met in Frank- fort, performing its labors in a most satisfactory manner.
Mr. Green was appointed Assistant Secretary of State February 26, 1852, and afterward Secre- tary of State, by Governor Powell, who had defeated Archibald Dixon, the Whig candidate, and a cousin of Mr. Green. He served in that office until the expiration of Governor Powell's term of office, September 3, 1855. In the mean-
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time he was a member of the Democratic State Central Committee, and in 1855 he was nomi- nated for Superintendent of Public Instruction, but the entire Democratic ticket was defeated by the Know-Nothing party in that campaign, and Mr. Green returned to Henderson and began the prac- tice of law with H. F. Turner; was elected County Judge in 1858; was elected State Auditor in 1859, and, resigning his seat on the bench, returned to Frankfort, January 1, 1860; and during the try- ing times of the war he managed the state finances with ability and giving universal satisfaction. The Legislative committee appointed at his request to examine his office at the close of his term made a very complimentary report of the management and condition of the office. He was defeated for a second term only through the interference of the Federal troops in the election (1864), and even then by a very small margin.
Returning to Henderson in 1864 he was en- gaged in the tobacco business for two years, when he associated himself with others in banking un- der the firm name of Green, Marshall & Co., and in May, 1868, was appointed cashier of the Farm- ers' Bank of Kentucky, at Frankfort, a position he has held for twenty-eight years, and in which he may continue as long as he lives or cares to give his attention to business. The stock of the Farmers' Bank was worth eighty-three cents on the dollar, when he took charge, and it was not long until it was worth its face value, and the bank is to-day one of the strongest in the state. This is the record, in brief, of one of the best men living in Kentucky to-day. It would be superflu- ous to add words of praise or comment upon a career that has been and is an open book. His life and his work have been largely in the service of the public, and he has performed every duty with fidelity, integrity and singleness of purpose, leaving no page in his history upon which he can- not look and point others to with pride and satis- faction.
Mr. Green was united in marriage February 28, 1855, with Kate S. Overton of Fayette County, Kentucky, a member of a distinguished family in Virginia, Kentucky and Tennessee. They have four children living: Henry Dixon, the oldest son, was drowned in the Ohio river at Hen-
derson in 1867, at the age of ten years; Eliza Overton, the oldest daughter, married George B. Alexman of Greenville, Mississippi, and has one child, Grant Green Alexman; Grant Green, Jr., marricd Joe Gray of Woodford County, and they have four children; Dr. Waller O. Green, the third son, is a practicing physician in Louis- ville; Kate Overton, the second daughter, mar- ried William Raymond Worrall of New York; John Taylor, the fourth son, is pursuing his studies in Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Ten- nessee.
Martha Dixon Green (mother) was a daughter of Captain Henry Dixon, who was born in Cas- well County, North Carolina, in 1777. He was a brother of Wynn Dixon, who was the father of Governor Archibald Dixon (see sketch of Dr. Archibald Dixon in this work). Captain Hal Dixon, as he was better known, came to Ken- tucky in 1808 and lived in Henderson County until 1853, when he removed to Union County, and died at Sulphur Springs in November, 1858. He was a remarkably large and muscular man, weighing ordinarily from 225 to 250 pounds; a man of indomitable will and absolutely without fear; very industrious and attentive to business; was for Jackson, against Clay and served one term in the legislature, but was not much in- clined to politics. He married Mary John- son of Virginia, who bore him twelve children, of whom the mother of Grant Green was the second child. The children of John Green and Martha Dixon were: Dr. Dixon Green (deceased), who married Miss Lambert of Arkansas, and second Miss Swift of Tennessee; Grant Green; John W. Green, who married Miss Randolph of Hender- son County, and Mary Ann, deceased, who mar- ried Theodore Hall.
Henry Dixon, father of Captain Hal Dixon, was a Colonel in the Revolutionary War; was highly complimented for gallantry at the bat- tle of Camden and died from wounds received in the battle of Eutaw Springs. Judge Schenk in his History of North Carolina, 1780-81, calls him "the Chevalier Bayard of the Revolution- ary War," and compliments his action in the battle of Camden in these words: "Perhaps the most brilliant officer whose services enriched
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the annals of that memorable invasion was Major Hal Dixon, whose daring and impetuous course was so splendidly displayed among the scattered legions of Yates at Camden. He refused to fly when his comrades had been driven from the field and his devoted band had been left exposed to the bayonet charge on the front and flank. With a fine spirit, he faced his battalion to the charge from either side and fought as long as a cartridge was in his belt, then resorting to the bayonet himself, he cut his way through the attacking forces and made good his retreat."
H ORACE W. TWISS, attorney for the Watts Steel and Iron Syndicate of Middlesboro, Kentucky, son of Quintin Twiss and Fannie Covey, was born in London, England, March 24, 1865, was reared in London and educated at Kings School in Canterbury; after leaving school he traveled in France and Germany for two years; returning to his home, studied law and was ad- mitted to practice in London; became solicitor in 1890 and continued in the practice of law in his native city until 1892, when he came direct to Middlesborough, where millions of dollars of English money have been invested, and engaged in the practice of law in the new city. He is especially qualified for the legal work of the corporations doing business in and developing the great resources of Middlesborough and vi- cinity, and is employed especially as attorney for the Watts Steel and Iron Syndicate of Middles- borough. He has found other business in the practice of his profession and is now thoroughly established in his new home, the surroundings of which are in striking contrast with the scenes of his youth in the great city of London.
Before coming to America Mr. Twiss was married (1892) to Lilian Simms, daughter of Henry Simms of Bath, England, and they are members of the Episcopal Church of Middles- borough.
Quintin Twiss, father of Horace W. Twiss, a native of London, England, was employed in her majesty's treasury for thirty-five years, and is now retired and living in London, in the sixty- first year of his age. He is a devout member of
the Church of England, as is his wife, who is also a native of London.
Horace Twiss (grandfather), also a native of London, was a distinguished barrister of the Queen's Council; was a member of Lord Bea- consfield's government, and came from a talented family. John Kemble was this grandfather's un- cle, and Mrs. Siddons, the greatest actress Eng- land ever produced, was his aunt.
William Covey, the maternal grandfather of Horace W. Twiss, a native of Oxbridge, was a very prominent physician of London, where he died in 1888, aged seventy-five years.
This modest sketch of a scholarly gentleman of the highest legal attainments is intended to introduce Mr. Twiss to the people of Kentucky, with whom lie has become identified in the de- velopment of the hidden resources of the mount- ains.
JOSEPH BARBOUR of New Castle, ex-Judge D
of the Superior Court of Kentucky, son of Joseph Barbour and Nancy Marshall Samuels, was born in Carroll County, Kentucky, in April, 1844, and educated at the Male High School, Pa- ducah, Kentucky, and at Poughkeepsie, New York, but did not graduate from any literary in- stitution. In 1866 he entered the Louisville Law School, from which he graduated in one year, and commenced the practice of law at New Cas- tle, where he resided until 1886, when he was elected Judge of the Superior Court, never hav- ing previously aspired to office. He was re-elected in 1890 and was on the Superior bench until that court was abolished by the new Constitution, January, 1895. He then resumed the practice of law at New Castle, and is one of the leading law- yers in Kentucky. He is an active and a deeply interested politician, having been a delegate to many state conventions, and is a writer of great force and ability, wielding a ready and trenchant pen ; was associated with J. D. Carroll in the com- pilation of the statutes of Kentucky, and is the author of Barbour's Digest of Kentucky De- cisions, considered an authority by the bench and bar of the state. Mr. Barbour was married (first) in 1874 to Mary Webb, daughter of Hon. J. W.
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Webb, a native of Henry County, and a promi- nent lawyer and politician. She was born and educated in New Castle. There were four chil- dren by this marriage: Levine, Webb, Nannie and Willie. In 1887 he was married (second) to Mrs. Sallie Chenault, whose maiden name was Webb, widow of Dr. Walker Chenault of Rich- mond, Kentucky.
Joseph Barbour (father) was a native of New York, but of Virginia ancestry. He was born in 1795 and educated in New York, and came to Carroll County, Kentucky, in 1840, where he had a contract to build the locks and dams on the Kentucky River. In the summer of 1844 he moved to Paducah, built large mills and was en- gaged in the milling business for a number of years. After that he was extensively engaged in farming in Marshall County. He was a man of broad public spirit and brought his remarkable energy to the furtherance of every public enter- prise. He was a Whig in politics and also a strong secessionist, belonging to that old school of politicians denominated "fire-eaters" because of their extreme views. He died just at the be- ginning of the Civil War, April 8, 1861. He was married in 1842 to Nancy Marshall Samuels, whose grandfather was a nephew of Chief Jus- tice Marshall.
TUDGE FONTAINE TALBOT FOX, late distinguished lawyer and jurist of Danville, Boyle County, Kentucky, son of William and Sophie Irvine Fox, was born January 28, 1803, near Richmond, Kentucky. He was educated at Nich- olasville, at an academy taught by a Scotchman by the name of Reed, and studied law under Hon. Charles Cunningham. He was admitted to the bar in 1824 and commenced the practice of law at Somerset, but afterwards removed to Stanford, Lincoln County, Kentucky. In 1831 he was ap- pointed by Governor Metcalfe to the office of Commonwealth Attorney for the Twelfth Judi- cial District. He was afterwards elected to this office by the people and held it many years, but after he gave it up he would never accept a case to prosecute any man. He was during his life- time concerned in an immense amount of litiga- tion extending over the entire state of Ken-
tucky, and it is said of him that he probably made more money from the legitimate practice of law than any man of his time in the state. He lived lavishly, but did not accumulate a fortune be- cause of his sympathetic, benevolent nature. In 1834 he ran for Congress as a Whig against Sher- rod Williams, but was defeated because of the Whig vote being divided by Adam Beatty, run- ning as an independent. In 1836 he represented Pulaski County in the Legislature and Lincoln County in 1844. In 1855, having removed to Danville, Kentucky, he consented reluctantly to become the standard-bearer of his party-the Know-Nothings-in the Congressional contest, his opponent being the Hon. Albert Gallatin Tal- bot; but was again defeated. There was a bitter fight made against him by the Catholic and for- eign element, and an immense amount of money used on the opposing side. There is a belief to this day in the district that he was rightfully en- titled to the office.
In 1862 he was elected Circuit Judge of the Eighth Judicial District, which office he held un- til he resigned it in 1881. As an indication of his hold upon the people of his district, after he had resigned the office of Circuit Judge on account of age and feeble health, and when he was not a candidate for the office various county precincts voted for him solidly for Judge, declaring they would have no other.
Judge Fox was a man of incorruptible and ex- alted public and private character and possessed a personality as unique and clear cut as some mas- terpiece of art. He was never heard to utter an unkind word of any human being, choosing to be silent when he could not speak favorably, and with him friendship was a sentiment beautiful in its tenderness and phenomenal in its fidelity. As a citizen his heart and hand to a fault were re- sponsive to every project for the public good. He was devoted to his family, often riding sixty-five and seventy miles on horseback over rough mountain roads in order to spend the Sabbath day with them and joining in the sports of his children with the zest of a boy. As a lawyer he had an exalted conception of the system of jurisprudence, recognizing its divine origin and prerogatives, and was faithful to the uttermost de-
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tail of its responsibility. He was called the widows' and orphans' friend, and the friend of the friendless, his heart of womanly tenderness bleed- ing or rejoicing over the misfortunes or welfare of his clients. As a jurist from a purely judicial standpoint, a cotemporary in the legal profes- sion said, "That his judicial rulings, compared with the common run of judicial rulings, was like a clear stream of water running beside a muddy one."
In his personal responsibility as a jurist his character can best be summed up in his own words, when he delivered his decision in the fa- mous Center College case of 1866: "My preju- dices, my interests, my desires and my hopes are with the plaintiff, but my decision is a judgment in favor of the defendant."
As an orator he was magnetic and persuasive, and as a pleader at the bar, he possessed won- derful influence over a jury. In his social at- tributes, his conversational powers clear, epigram- matic, forcible, sparkling with wit and humor and anecdote and mellowed by sentiment, he was without a peer. In politics Judge Fox was origi- nally an old-line Whig, but after the fusion of that party with the Republican he became an ardent Democrat.
In religion, he was a Presbyterian. He died April 7, 1887, and is buried at Danville, Ken- tucky. He married Eliza J. Hunton, daughter of Thomas and Ann Bell Hunton of Albemarle County, Virginia, where she was born Novem- ber 21, 1809. Her father died soon after she came to Kentucky, leaving his widow in affluent circumstances.
Her three brothers were equally distinguished in the legal professions of Missouri and Louis- iana.
Judge Logan Hunton was the author of the celebrated Allison letter that is accredited with the election of General Zachary Taylor, Presi- dent of the United States. He declined a cabi- net position under General Taylor, which was offered him in recognition of his services, and was made United States District Attorney for the state of Louisiana, a position more agreeable to himself and family. He amassed a large fortune.
Mrs. Fox is a woman of the old school, the
type so rapidly passing off the stage of action. Womanly, home-loving, with great strength of mind and character dominated by religious prin- ciple, her influence for good is recognized and appreciated by all. She is a consistent member of the Presbyterian Church and was for many years president of the Ladies' Aid Society of her church. They had ten children who grew to maturity- the first, Thomas Fox, lawyer by profession, liv- ing at Danville. He was married, first, to Henri- etta Clay Wilson, a widow and daughter of Judge Gist of Montgomery County, Kentucky. By this marriage he has two daughters: Eliza, now Mrs. John Rogers, living near Lexington, and Susan Fox, who resides at Danville. Mr. Fox was mar- ried, second, to Mary Moberly of Boyle County, Kentucky.
William McKee Fox (deceased), lawyer, repre- sented Pulaski County in the Legislature for two terms and ran for the nomination of his party for Attorney-General of Kentucky, against Rodman, the incumbent. He also made a race for the Con- gressional nomination in 1878 and was defeated by a proxy vote. He was drowned in the Cum- berland River. He was a man of brilliant mental parts with an all pervading personal magetism. It was said of him editorially in the Courier-Jour- nal: "A typical Kentuckian, brave, impulsive, generous to a fault; genial, eloquent, ready, equally strong in society as in his profession, the man never lived with bigger heart or brighter in- tellect. He bent himself seriously to nothing that he did not illumine and wherever he ap- peared he was surrounded with a host of admir- ing associates."
Peter C. Fox (deceased), lawyer, was Major of Scott's Louisiana Cavalry on the side of the South during the war of the states. After the war he became a turf man and elevated his voca- tion-was extremely popular.
Judge Fontaine T. Fox, lawyer of Louisville, Kentucky, was elected to the Board of Alder- men in 1868; was Assistant City Attorney 1870- 1873; appointed Vice-Chancellor by Governor McCreery in 1878. In 1886 he ran for Governor of Kentucky on the Prohibition ticket. He is the author of two works: "Fire Insurance Con- tracts," and "The Woman's Suffrage Movement
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in the United States." He has been pronounced by English and American critics as a writer of the purest English. He married Mary Barton, daughter of the late Professor Samuel Barton, who for many years was professor of mathematics at Center College, Danville. She died in October, 1894. He has five children.
Dr. Samuel Fox, a leading physician of Texas, has five children.
Felix G. Fox, attorney-at-law at Danville, Ken- tucky, a man of fine legal attainments.
Sophie Fox Sea (writer), author of a very popu- lar story for children, a hymn that has obtained a national reputation and a number of short stories and poems of local celebrity. Mrs. Sea is the wife of Captain Andrew McBrayer Sea of the Confederate service, a commission merchant of Louisville, Kentucky, and a ruling elder in the First Presbyterian Church of that city. He is highly educated and springs from notable pio- neer and Scotch-Irish ancestry. He inherited a liandsome fortune from his father. John Oliver Fox (deceased) was a civil engineer. Charles C. Fox, City Attorney of Danville, and Master Com- missioner of his district. He is a ruling elder in the First Presbyterian Church of his town and married Mollie Allen, daughter of Albert Allen of Fayette County, Kentucky, and niece of Madison Johnson. They have three daughters.
Annie Bell Fox Caldwell, wife of Jerry Cald- well of Danville, a descendant of the celebrated Clemens, Wickliffe and Caldwell families. He is a successful farmer, is president of the Farmers' National Bank of Danville and one of the ablest financiers in the state. They have five children.
William Fox (father) was born in Hanover County, Virginia, March 1, 1779. He clerked in company with Henry Clay in the office of his (Fox's) uncle, Peter Tinsley, of Hanover County, Virginia, and received from him a thorough train- ing in penmanship and the practical branch of law. After he came to Kentucky with his par- ents he went to Pulaski County in company with Chief Justice Samuel McKee. They kept bach- elor hall together for ten years, when McKee re- turned to Madison County. William Fox served as county and circuit clerks for forty-seven years. He was a man of rare qualities of mind and char-
acter and reverenced to an extraordinary degree by the people among whom he lived. He married (first) Sophie Irvine, daughter of David Irvine and Jane Kyle, and sister to the pioneers, William and Christopher Irvine. They had seven chil- dren. He married (second) Mary Irvine, daugh- ter of Hail and Elizabeth Talbot of Luter Island, Missouri. William Fox died in Somerset, Octo- ber 19, 1855. He had a large landed estate and many negroes.
Samuel Fox (grandfather) came to Kentucky from Hanover County, Virginia, about 1783. He settled in Madison County on the present site of Foxtown. He inherited a large estate under the old primogeniture law of succession. His wife was Rhoda Pickering, daughter of Richard and Lucy Pickering of Virginia. They lived together as man and wife for seventy-five years and had thirteen children. They were never known to have but one quarrel. He died in 1844; she died in 1841. They are buried at Fox's.
THOMAS JONES BIGSTAFF, a leading lawyer of Mt. Sterling, son of James M. and Mary (Jones) Bigstaff, was born in Bath County, December II, 1862. He received his education at Georgetown College, from which he was grad- uated in 1884. Then for one year he attended Eastman's Business College at Poughkeepsie, New York, and was then a clerk in a bank for one year.
In 1886 he began the study of law with Judge B. J. Peters and with the law firm of Young, Mitchell & Young, and was admitted to the bar in 1887. About this time he was appointed at- torney for the Traders' Deposit Bank at Mt. Sterling. In 1888 he formed a partnership with Edward C. O'Rear, the firm name being O'Rear & Bigstaff, of which he is still a member. They make corporate law a specialty and are attorneys for a number of turnpike companies, Eastern cor- porations and insurance companies.
Mr. Bigstaff is a member of the Board of Trustees of the city schools. In politics he is a Democrat and in religion a member of the Baptist Church.
He married in 1894 Alexine Benton, daughter of Hiram and Maria Crumb Benton. She was
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reared in Michigan and educated in Olivet and Albion Colleges, and graduated in the Chautau- qua Course. They have one child, James M. Bigstaff, Jr.
James M. Bigstaff (father) was born in Bath County, Kentucky, May 20, 1842, and was edu- cated at Owingsville and in the country schools. He left home at the age of fourteen to make his living; began as deputy in the circuit clerk's office at that age and served until he was nineteen, at which time he was engaged in general farming and stock-raising in Bath County; removed to Newport, Kentucky, in 1863; remained there a short time and then returned to Bath County and resumed farming, and in 1872 he removed to Mt. Sterling. His wife inherited eight hundred acres of land, which, by good business manage- ment and enterprise, Mr. Bigstaff has increased three-fold. He was president of the Exchange Bank for three years; resigned that position in 1884, organized the Traders' Deposit Bank and has been its president since its organization. He is a member of the Baptist Church and in poli- tics a Democrat. He was married in 1862 to Mary E. Jones, a native of Bath County, Ken- tucky. She was educated at the Georgetown Seminary and is a member of the Baptist Church. Their children are: Thomas Jones, Sarah Fen- ton, Elizabeth Iles and Odd Samuel.
Odd Samuel Bigstaff (grandfather) was born in Bath County, Kentucky, and although almost self-educated, was a very highly cultured man and had a fine library, selected and purchased by him- self. He was a physician and had a large prac- tice extending from Bath County to the Ohio river. He was a thoroughly good and useful man, highly respected and beloved. He married Mrs. Fenton Arnold, widow first of John Arnold and then of David Arnold. Her maiden name was Fenton Bean, and she was born in Mason County and educated at Maysville. At the age of twenty-seven she had been three times married. She was truly a help-meet to Dr. Bigstaff; was companionable with him and assisted him greatly in his work; their children were: Sarah, who married John Hines; Richard, Benjamin, Sam- uel of Newport, Kentucky, and James M. Big- staff. The Bigstaff family came to Kentucky
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