Collins historical sketches of Kentucky. History of Kentucky: Vol. II, Part 94

Author: Collins, Lewis, 1797-1870. cn; Collins, Richard H., 1824-1889. cn
Publication date: 1874
Publisher: Covington, Ky., Collins & Co.
Number of Pages: 1654

USA > Kentucky > Collins historical sketches of Kentucky. History of Kentucky: Vol. II > Part 94

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Colonel DEVALL PAYNE was born on the 1st of January, 1764, in the county of Fairfax, Virginia, within seven miles of the city of Alexandria. He was the son of William Payne, whose paternal ancestor accompanied Lord Fairfax from England when he came over to colonize his grant in Virginia. At the time Gen. Washington was stationed in Alexandria as a colonel of a British regiment, before the war of the revolution, an altercation took place in the court-house yard, between him and William Payne, in which Payne knocked Washington down. Great excitement prevailed, as Payne was known to be firm, and stood high, and Washington was beloved by all. A night's reflection, however, satisfied Washing- ton that he was the aggressor and in the wrong, and in the morning he, like a true and magnanimous hero, sought an interview with Payne, which resulted in an apology from Washington, and a warm and lasting friendship between the two, founded on mutual esteem. During the revolutionary war, whilst Washington was on a visit to his family, Mr. Payne, with his son Devall, went to pay his respects to the great American chief. Washington met him some distance from the house, took him by the hand, and led him into the presence of Mrs. Wash- ington, to whom he introduced Mr. Payne as follows: " My dear, here is the little man, whom you have so frequently heard me speak of, who once had the courage to knock me down in the court-house yard in Alexandria, big as I am."

Devall Payne was married to Hannah, youngest daughter of Major Hugh Brent, of Loudon county, Virginia, December Ist, 1785. In 1789 he removed to Ken- tucky and settled near Lexington. Shortly afterwards he joined Captain Ken- neth M'Coy's troop of cavalry, and served under Governor Charles Scott in his campaign against the Weaw Indians on the Wabash. He was with Captain M'Coy when he was wounded, and assisted him from the battle field. During the engagement, as his horse leaped a log in the charge, he encountered an In- dian chief who was laying beside it. Payne instantly dismounted and grappled with the Indian, determined, if possible, to take him prisoner. The Indian was armed with gun, tomahawk and butcher knife, and resisted furiously. Payne pres- sed him so closely, and was so active and athletic, that the Indian could not use his weapons. The contest was very severe, and lasted for several minutes, ex- citing the interest and admiration of half a dozen soldiers, who had collected around to witness the struggle. Payne finally conquered, having thrown the Indian down three times before he would surrender.

In 1792, he removed to Mason county, and settled on his farm, on Mill creek, where he resided till his death. He was twice shot at by the Indians, near his own house, and had his horses stolen out of his stable. He was an active and resolute woodsman, and was one of almost every party in pursuit of the enemy. He was a scientific and practical surveyor, and for many years a member of the bench of magistrates for the county. His tastes, however, were decidedly mili- tary ; and, as an officer of the militia, he took great pride in their drill and disci- pline. In 1813, when Col. R. M. Johnson raised his regiment of mounted rifle- men for service in the north-west, he received the appointment of major com- manding the first battalion ; and, on the 10th of October of that year, at the battle of the Thames, he, at the head of his battalion, charged through the British line, and, after the surrender, by special order from the general-in-chief, led in pursuit of Proctor. Mounted on a splendid charger, with Capt. Charles S. Todd, Maj. Wood, and John Chambers, Esq., one of Gen. Harrison's volunteer aids, close behind him, he dashed off with the battalion at his heels,-which, however, was soon left far in their rear,-and did not rein up till they had gone ten miles be- yond the battle-field. The pursuit was so hot, that Gen. Proctor was forced to abandon his carriage and take refuge in the swamp, leaving all his baggage and his papers, public and private, which fell into the hands of the victors. In the report of this battle, it is stated that " Maj. Devall Payne, of the first battalion, inspired confidence wherever he appeared."

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After this campaign, Col. Payne retired to private life. He was extremely popular in his county-was, for a long series of years, a member of the lower house, and, for eight years, in the senate, of the Kentucky legislature, where he was distinguished for his strong common sense and practical view of legislation ; and was always elected, when he would consent to serve. He was a member of every electoral college from the time of Jefferson till his death, except the one which cast its vote for Jackson. A democrat of the Jeffersonian school, he was associated with Hughes, George Nicholas, John Breckinridge, Judge Coburn, Gen. Bodley, and other leading men of the olden time in Kentucky ; and, in his political course, was firm and inflexible in his own principles, yet tolerant of the opinions of those opposed to him.

Affectionate, tender and assiduous as a husband and father, he was benevolent and gentle in all his social relations. He was bold, resolute, and perfectly hon- orable in his purposes ; fearless and ready in the discharge of all his duties. Tall and erect, with fine symmetry of form, a lofty brow, dark and piercing eyes, and a Roman contour of face, his personal appearance was very commanding.

He died on the 25th of June, 1830, having been a member of the Baptist church for about two years before his death.

Judge JOHN COBURN was a native of Philadelphia, where he received an excel- lent education, and was bred to the bar. In 1784, under the advice of the distin- guished Luther Martin, Esq., of Baltimore, who cherished a deep interest for him, young Coburn emigrated to Kentucky. Abandoning the profession to which he had been reared, however, he located himself in Lexington, and commenced the mercantile business, which was at that time very lucrative. In August, 1786, he married Miss Mary Moss, of Fayette county. He seems to have been successful in mercantile operations, and remained in Lexington till about the year 1794, when he removed to Mason county ; and, in partnership with Dr. Basil Duke, continued his mercantile pursuits. Shortly afterwards, he was appointed judge of the dis- trict court of Mason ; and, upon the reorganization of the courts, became a judge of the circuit court, which office he held till the year 1805.

He was appointed, by Mr. Jefferson, judge of the territory of Michigan, which office he declined, and was subsequently appointed to the judgeship of the terri- tory of Orleans, and held his courts in St. Louis. This office he resigned in 1809, and was afterwards appointed, by Mr. Madison, during the late war, col- lector of the revenue for the fourth district of Kentucky. This office, which he held for several years, was his last public employment.

Judge Coburn was a man of most decided political principles, and stood high in the confidence of the democratic party. As early as 1785,-a few months after his arrival in the State,-he was elected a member of the convention, called at Danville in that year, to take preliminary steps to procure the admission of Ken- tucky into the Union, and for other purposes. In 1796, he was appointed a com- missioner, in conjunction with Robert Johnson, to run and settle the boundary line between Virginia and Kentucky, upon which subject he made a very able report. Upon its being intimated to the citizens of St. Louis that Judge Coburn intended to resign his office as judge of the Orleans territory, they addressed him a peti- tion complimentary of his "talents, industry, and conciliating manners," and urging him to relinquish the idea of resigning his office.

In 1813, Governor Shelby wrote him an urgent invitation to accompany him and become a member of his military family, which was accepted by the judge, although he held that post for only a short period.

To the able and indefatigable efforts of Judge Coburn is to be attributed, in a great degree, the act of Congress appropriating one thousand acres of land to Col. Daniel Boone. The judge was an ardent friend of the old pioneer, and address- ed to Congress some powerful appeals in his behalf.

Judge Coburn never practised law, although he took out license in 1788. He was one of the most indefatigable, efficient and accomplished political writers of his day, and was in close correspondence and intimate relationship with the lead- ing democratic statesmen of Kentucky. So high an estimate was placed upon his ability, that, as early as 1800, he was spoken of in connection with the ex-

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alted station of senator in the congress of the United States ; but he declined his pretensions to that office in favor of his friend, the distinguished John Breckin- ridge, who was elected to the senate at the succeeding session of the legislature. Judge Coburn died in February, 1823, aged about sixty years.

AARON H. CORWINE, a portrait painter of much character, was born on the 31st day of August, 1802, at his father's farm, on what is called Jersey Ridge, in Ma- son county, Kentucky. His father, Amos Corwine, emigrated to Kentucky from .Huntington county, New Jersey, at a very early day, and settled in Mason county, where he resided until the period of his death. About the same time, the father of 'Thomas Corwin, late governor of Ohio, and also a member of the United States' senate from that State, removed with his family from the same State, and settled in Mason county, near Mayslick. Preferring, however, to go further into the in- terior of Kentucky, he moved with his family to Bourbon county, where Thomas Corwin was born. Aaron H. Corwine was the youngest son, and early evinced a genius in drawing and sketching. It is said that in his tenth year, so fond was he of drawing, he marked and scored his father's board fences and barn with gro- tesque figures of men, beasts and fowls. So faithful and striking were some of these figures as likenesses, they attracted his father's attention, and induced him to inquire which one of his boys had drawn them. Before then, young Aaron was a ploughboy, for which he never showed much taste, and had scarcely been off of the farm. His father determined to give him an opportunity to pursue the inclination of his mind ; and, after bestowing upon him as good an education as could be acquired, at that early day; in Kentucky, in a country school, he placed him with a portrait painter then located in Maysville, whose name was Turner. But he did not remain with him long. He soon mastered all that Mr. Turner knew, and, by the advice of that good man, he was induced to seek other sources of instruction, and a wider field in which to pursue his profession. Cincinnati was then the largest town in the west, and even at that early day was famed for the fostering care her wealthier citizens extended to young artists. Whilst he was yet in his teens, young Corwine sought a home in the Queen City. Like the majority of the children of genius, he had but a scanty proportion of this world's goods, when he reached his new home ; no knowledge, whatever. of men ; and no friends whose wealth and influence could bring him business, or make him known to those who would encourage him by giving employment to his yet im- . mature pencil. Nothing daunted at this gloomy prospect, young Corwine applied himself assiduously to such business as was thrown in his way, until his glow- ing and life-like pictures attracted the attention and won the admiration of those citizens of Cincinnati who were able and willing to contribute their means, and loan their influence, to lift the young artist into notoriety and business. Amongst these was Nathan Guilford, Esq., who was the first friend of the young artist in that city. These early friends never deserted him ; and as he rose, step by step, in his profession, they stood by him-cheering him with their smiles, and strength- ening him with their counsel, in the devious and slippery pathway to fame. By their advice, he sought the instruction of that master in his profession, Thomas Sully, then residing in Philadelphia. After a few years spent in the studio of Mr. Sully, young Corwine returned to Cincinnati, where he continued to ap- ply himself to his profession until the year 1828. About this time it was found that his close application to his easel for many years, had seriously impaired his health. For the twofold purpose of improving his health and studying the mas- ters in the old country, he departed for Europe. When he reached London. he deposited all his means with a banker of reputed wealth, who soon after failed, leaving Corwine in a strange city, without means and wholly destitute of friends, to struggle for the necessaries of life. His courage and his genius rose with the occasion. He visited all the galleries in London, that were accessible to one so poor and friendless. He caught the spirit of the mighty masters, and soon his own canvass was made to glow with the genius and taste of Italy and England's mighty dead. The high-born and the noble of England sought his rooms, and the faithful likenesses. the accurate delineations, and the animated and life-like coloring of the young American, were appreciated, and he was rewarded by nu- merous orders for the most costly pictures. But the close application consequent upon this state of the affairs of Mr. Corwine, was too much for his already en

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feebled constitution, and his friends were pained to see him gradually wasting away under the influence of disease. He turned his face towards his native: land, to die amongst his friends and in the arms of his kindred. But, alas ! this last and dearest hope he was destined never to realize. When he reached Philadelphia, he was borne from the vessel to his lodgings, and, after a few days' struggling, died in that city, on the 4th day of July, 1830, in the twenty-eighth year of his age.

Many of the early productions of Mr. Corwine adorn the parlors of his Cincinnati patrons. Had he lived a few years longer, Mr. Corwine would have stood at the head of his profession.

Dr. DANIEL DRAKE, distinguished as physician, professor, and author, was born at Plainfield, New Jersey, Oct. 20, 1785, and died at Cincinnati, Ohio,. .. Nov. 5, 1852, aged 67 years. Brought to Mason co., Ky., June 10, 1788, before he was three years old, he grew up with that spirit and self-reliance which marked his whole life, receiving all the education the little village of Mayslick and surroundings could give him, theoretical and practical. In Dec., 1800, aged 15, he went to the village of Cincinnati with its population of 750 (now the "Queen City " of the Ohio valley, with over 300,000) inhabitants, and became its first medical student-so faithful that, in after life, no med- ical man was more useful or reflected upon that city more varied renown. In . May, 1804, aged 19, he began the practice of medicine in Cincinnati; spent the winter of 1805-06 as a student in the Pennsylvania University, at Phila- delphia, and the succeeding year in practice at his old home in Mayslick. Returning to Cincinnati in 1807, he made it his home for life, although much of his time was spent as a professor in Kentucky. In 1817, became profes- sor of materia medica and medical botany in Transylvania University, Lex ington, Ky .; Nov., 1820, founded and established the Medical College of Ohio, at Cincinnati, from which, after a bitter controversy, his connection was suddenly sundered, May, 1822; resumed his professorship at Lexington, 1823-27; declined the professorship of medicine in the University of Vir- ginia, 1830; was professor in Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, Nov., 1830-31; again in the Medical College of Ohio, 1831-32; founded a new medical school, as a department of Cincinnati College, June, 1835-39; was professor in the Louisville Medical Institute, afterwards known as the Uni- versity of Louisville, 1839-49; when he resigned, and accepted a chair in the Medical College of Ohio, 1849-50. In 1827, he became editor of the Western Medical and Physical Journal, through which he continued to write for many years. His " Notices concerning Cincinnati," published 1810, en- larged as " The Picture of Cincinnati," 1815, were remarkable works. The great literary event of his life was his "Treatise on the Principal Diseases of the Interior Valley of North America," published 1850, an original work, a wonderful monument to American medical science. Quite a number of his medical lectures, and historical or scientific addresses, have been published.

WILLIAM NELSON, major general of volunteers in the U. S. army in the late civil war, was born in Mason co., Ky., in 1825, and killed in Louisville, Sept. 29, 1862, aged 37. Educated at the Maysville Seminary until 15, he was then appointed to a cadetship in the naval academy, Annapolis; and, upon graduating, midshipman in the U. S. navy. His first service was on the sloop-of-war Yorktown, in the Pacific commission. He was attached to the frigate Raritan as passed midshipman, 1846; acting master of the war- steamer Scourge, under Com. Perry, 1847; won distinction by his courage and skill in the command of a naval battery at Vera Cruz, in the war with Mexico, March 22, 1847 ; was acting master of the war-steamer Mississippi, when dispatched by the U. S. government, in accordance with the resolution of the senate, to convey to America as the nation's guest, the great Hungarian ex-governor and agitator, Louis Kossuth, 1851; received him on board, at a port of Turkey in Asia, where he had sought refuge, Sept. 1, 1851, and reached New York Dec. 5, 1851-touching en route at the ports of Smyrna, Spezzia in Italy, Marseilles in France, and Southampton in England. During this voyage, Nelson became an intimate acquaintance and friend of the eloquent Magyar, and participated in the enthusiastic receptions awarded him abroad,

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and in several of the earliest in the United States, at New York, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington city, and Annapolis. He was promoted to the rank of master, 1854, and ordered to the frigate Independence, and four years after to the Niagara.

At the beginning of the civil war, he was on ordnance duty in Washington city, and was detailed to command the fleet of gun-boats on the Ohio river ; but was soon transferred to the army, for the purpose of securing volunteers in his native state. He was the chief instrument (assisted by Hon. Garret Davis, Rev. Robert J. Breckinridge, D. D., and others) in introducing arms into the state for the " Home Guards"-an organization which was used in many instances to oppress and outrage their neighbors who entertained dif- ferent political views. In August, 1861, he established "Camp Dick Robin- son," in Garrard county, Ky., which became a rendezvous for Union troops (see Collins' Annals of Kentucky, pages 92, 97, 101, and 110, vol.i); was appointed brigadier general, Sept., 1861 ; Nov. 8th, fought the small battle of Ivy Mountain, in Pike co., Ky., one of the first of the war; was the first high officer to enter Nashville, as the Confederates retired southward, Feb., 1862. Was the commanding officer in the advance of Gen. Buell's army, April 7, 1862, which pressed forward to the battle-field of Shiloh or Pittsburgh Land- ing, just in time to retrieve the terrible defeat of Gen. Grant's troops, the day before. Indeed, to Gen. Nelson, acting under the advice of his able and indefatigable engineer, Gen. Jacob Ammen (formerly professor in Georgetown college, Ky.), there is strong reason to believe-from conversations with persons present, and from the circumstantial history of the battle-is due, more than to any other man, the glory of having saved the Federal army, and converted a humiliating defeat into a victory of tremendous importance. He was promoted major general, July 17, 1862.

August 30, 1862, the Confederate general E. Kirby Smith defeated the Federal troops in the battle of Richmond, Ky., which was brought on con- trary to Nelson's orders. It was one of the most remarkable victories of the war. Gen. Manson's troops, in the advance (mostly raw, while the Confed- erates were trained,) were quickly beaten, and fled panic-stricken from the field. Several of the bravest officers were killed, while still struggling to rally their flying forces, and Nelson himself was badly wounded (see page 110, vol. i.) He retreated with his troops to Louisville, and was in command of the state, fortified that city in the rear, and, expecting a desperate battle, on Sept. 22, ordered the women and children to be sent out of the city; but the attack on the city was prevented by the sluggish movements of the Con- federate general Bragg, and the rapid march of his opponent, Gen. Don Carlos Buell. A few days later, Sept. 29th, Gen. Nelson was shot and killed, in the Galt House, in Louisville, by the Federal Brig. Gen. Jefferson C. Davis (of Indiana), in sudden resentment for a gross indignity offered him by Nelson, who insulted him with words and slapped him in the face. Davis was never indicted nor tried by the civil authorities.

Gen. Nelson was a man of culture and literary attainment, a naval officer of great skill and high standing, and as a military officer, strict, brave, and able. By nature rough and high tempered, the rigid discipline of the navy had made him harsh, exacting, and overbearing. While this made some of his officers (whom he too often did not spare) fear and hate him, he protected and was kind to his soldiers, and they loved him. Not a few of them, after- ward when Gen. Davis was riding by the brigades of Nelson's late command, resented his death, so far as they dare without exposure, by growling between their teeth, " Nelson's murderer, Nelson's murderer!"

Judge ELIJAH C. PHISTER was born in Maysville, Ky., Oct. 8, 1822; a student of the Maysville Seminary ; graduated at Augusta College, Aug., 1840; studied law at Philadelphia, with Hon. John Sergeant, one of the ablest jurists and purest public men in the United States, and with Payne & Wal- ler, leading practitioners of the Mason bar, and began the practice, June, 1844; was elected mayor of his native city, Jan., 1847, and re-elected Jan., 1848; circuit judge, 1856-62; representative in the Kentucky legislature, 1867-69, and re-elected, 1869-71, in which body he took a distinguished

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part; appointed by Gov. Leslie one of the commissioners to revise the stat- utes, 1872, but declined.

His profession, the idol of his early love, Judge Phister has followed with an inflexibility of purpose which seldom fails to be awarded the very highest positions in the judiciary. For a place in the engraving of eminent Kentucky judges, opposite page 000, he was suggested by gentlemen prominent in the profession as one of the ablest, firmest, and purest of living judges. Thou- sands of admiring friends are looking to his promotion at an early day to the court of appeals bench, as one who would adorn it by his clear, comprehen- sive, and profound appreciation of legal rights and responsibilities. He has little of the ambition characteristic of the politicians and statesmen of the day. Of somewhat stern but withal commanding presence, he is popular and successful as an advocate and public speaker, always earnest and eloquent, - frequently brilliant and sparkling-quick to catch, and powerful to present, the strong points of his case. As a writer he is terse, yet perspicuous, vigor- ous, and logical; in 1849, wrote occasionally for the press; but since, has confined himself to the demands of his profession. Now (1873) in his 51st year, he is just in his prime.

Col. WM. HENRY WADSWORTH-the fifth, in direct line, from Gen. Joseph Wadsworth, of Charter Oak memory-was born in Maysville, Ky., July 4, 1821; was a fellow-student at the Maysville Seminary, with Ulysses S. Grant, now president of the United States; graduated and took the degree of A. B. at Augusta College, 1842; studied law with Payne & Waller, and began the practice at the Maysville bar, 1844; was elected to the senate of Kentucky from Mason and Lewis counties, 1853, for 4 years; elected to the 37th con- gress, June 20, 1861, taking his seat at the extra session ; was aid to Gen. Nelson, with rank of colonel, at the battle of Ivy Mountain, Nov. 8, 1861; elected, Aug., 1863, to the 38th congress ; retired March 4, 1865, according to a purpose announced at re-election ; elector for the state at large on the Grant and Colfax ticket, but defeated, Nov. 1868; appointed, April 23, 1869, commissioner under the U. S. treaty of July 4, 1868, with Mexico, which office he still holds, and has filled with distinguished ability and great acceptance. (See portrait among eminent Kentucky judges, opposite page 000.) On dit, that President Grant had previously tendered him the mission to Vienna, envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary to Austria, but which he positively declined.

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Collins historical sketches of Kentucky. History of Kentucky: Vol. II, Part 94

Author: Collins, Lewis, 1797-1870. cn; Collins, Richard H., 1824-1889. cn Publication date: 1874 Publisher: Covington, Ky., Collins & Co. Number of Pages: 1654

Author: Collins, Lewis, 1797-1870. cn; Collins, Richard H., 1824-1889. cn
Publication date: 1874
Publisher: Covington, Ky., Collins & Co.
Number of Pages: 1654