The Biographical encyclopaedia of Kentucky of the dead and living men of the nineteenth century, Part 106

Author: Armstrong, J. M., & company, pub
Publication date: 1878
Publisher: Cincinnati, J. M. Armstrong
Number of Pages: 946

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his election, when, at the earnest solicitations of his friends, who were desirous of placing him in a field which afforded a wider scope for the exercise of his talents, he consented to become a candidate for Con- gress, from his district. He received the nomination upon the Democratic ticket ; made the canvass, and took his seat as a member of the Forty-third Congress, by an overwhelming majority; and was re-elected at the expi- ration of his term. Such was the high estimation in which he was held by his fellow-citizens, that, upon the expiration of his second Congressional term, they ur- gently requested him to again occupy the station he had so creditably filled; but, having resolved to retire from public life, he respectfully declined the proffered honor, and returned to the duties of the private citizen, accom- panied by the best wishes and highest respect of his numerous friends. He is a member of the Order of Odd-fellows, and, also, is a Mason in good standing. He was married, in 1850, to Miss Sallie Royster, daugh- ter of George Royster, of Gallatin, Tennessee. They have one son, a young man of rare ability, who is one of the proprietors and editors of the " Franklin Pa- triot." Mr. Milliken is a gentleman of unquestioned ability; and his natural talents, combined with his tem- perate and industrious habits, have gained for him a success which is well-merited. His public career was marked by strict fidelity to his trust; and his conduct met with the hearty approbation of all classes of citi- zens. In his profession, he has achieved considerable prominence; and possesses great powers as an advocate ; and is worthy of the high position he occupies in the community,

HOMPSON, CHRISTOPHER, Lawyer, was born November 19, 1841, in Logan County, Kentucky. His father, James Thompson, is of English descent, and was born in Muhlenburg County, from which he removed at an early age to Logan County, where he followed the occupation of a farmer for many years. His mother was of Scotch origin, her maiden name being Mary J. Arnold; the family were early residents of Kentucky. He obtained a fair primary education, and entered Bethel College, Russellville, at an early age; at which place he received the greater part of his learning. He graduated in 1859, and began life as a school-teacher ; he taught school until the war broke out, when he was constrained to leave the school-room for the battle-field. He took up arms with the Confederates, joining the Tenth Kentucky Cavalry, under Col. Adam Johnson, participating in several minor engagements, but did not take part in any of the more important battles. At the close of the war, returning to his home to pursue the more ennobling occupations of a peaceful life, he chose

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the profession of the law, in which he was destined to obtain eminence. He entered a law school at Bloom- ington, Indiana; and, after graduating, in 1866, was admitted to practice in Kentucky, opening an office at Morgantown, Butler County. He was chosen to the office of County Attorney, and served creditably until he left the county, in 1867, to take up his residence in Greenville. In 1868, he was nominated for the office of District Attorney of the Fourth Judicial District, having for his opponent Hon. C. W. Milliken, of Franklin, who defeated him by a very small majority. In the Presidential contest of 1872, he, with his colleague, M. D. Hay, was strongly opposed to the Liberal candi- date, Horace Greeley, and warmly advocated the elec- tion of Charles O'Connor. He took charge of the edi- torial columns of the "Independent," published in Greenville, and conducted it with such spirit and abil- ity as to cause general comment throughout the dis- trict. He has always been a Democrat, and is a valu- able aid to his party, taking a great interest in all matters concerning its welfare. He was elected to the office of County Judge of Muhlenburg County, in 1874, and still retains that position. He was married, in 1869, to Miss Nannie Christian, daughter of a worthy farmer, M. H. Christian, now deceased. Mr. Thomp- son is a man of great firmness of character, a conscien- tious lawyer, and an upright judge; and is held in high esteem by the community.

HOMAS, DANFORD, A. M., LL. D., Pro- fessor of Languages in Georgetown College, was born September 20, 1817, in Winthrop, Maine. The family is of English origin; his grandfather was a clergyman in Maine, and his father, William Thomas, was a mechanic in comfortable circumstances. He enjoyed excellent edu- cational advantages, taking his preparatory course for college at Kent's Hill Seminary, and at Waterville, Maine; in his seventeenth year, entered Colby Univer- sity, at Waterville, graduating, in 1838, with the degree of A. B. Among the teachers of that time were Prof. Patterson and Prof. Keely (both since deceased), and Prof. Loomis, now of Lewisburg University, Pennsyl- vania; and one of his classmates was the notorious Gen. Benjamin Butler. In 1839, he was appointed tutor in Colby College, and, a year after, was called to the position he now occupies-that of Senior Professor of Ancient Languages and Literature at Georgetown Col- lege, Georgetown, Kentucky; his specialty being ancient languages, but he also teaches the German classes. In 1876, he received from Colby University the honorary degree of LL. D., having previously received from his Alma Mater the degree of A. M. He united with the

Baptist Church, at the age of fourteen; is an active and consistent member; and is an earnest, indefatigable worker in the Sabbath-schools and foreign mission in- terests of his Church ; is liberal in his donations to the Church; prompt and exact in business relations; is genial and hospitable, and entertains his friends ele- gantly. He has long been Chairman of the Baptist Sabbath-school Board for Kentucky. Prof. Thomas is also a farmer, and devotes his leisure time, with great success, to his agricultural interests. He was married, in 1840, to Mrs. Sarah Waller Smith (née Birch), sister to the wife of the late John C. Breckinridge. Of their four children, two are now living.

EED, CHARLES, was born on the 4th of No- vember, 1842, in Paducah, Kentucky. His father, W. H. Reed, was a contractor of that town, and a well-known citizen. Charles Reed received, during his youth, the best education the schools of his native town could afford. At the early age of twelve years, he was compelled to leave school, to labor for his sustenance. He became an apprentice in the tobacco trade, and worked at this until the breaking out of the war. At the beginning of the rebellion, he was a mere boy of eighteen years; but he entered the Confederate army, and served in many of the great battles of the war. He was with the Third. Kentucky Regiment, Breckinridge's Division, and under the command of Gen. Lloyd Tilghman. He partici- pated in the battles of Shiloh, siege of Corinth, and Harrisburg. During the last two years of his service, he was in Gen. Forrest's Division, and was with that gen- eral in all his celebrated raids through Kentucky and Tennessee. At the close of the war, he found himself without means to' commence business ; but, being enter- prising and energetic, he set diligently to work to pro- cure the funds to enable him to establish himself. After a time, he entered into partnership with John Segen- felter, of Paducah, in the hotel business; and they opened the European Hotel, in that town. He met with such success in this undertaking that, in 1876, he was enabled to purchase a half-interest in the Richmond House, the finest hotel in Paducah; and is now one of the proprietors of that well-known and prosperous estab- lishment. In 1872, he formed a business connection with Messrs. Hobbs and Morton, in the conduct of a woolen factory, the firm being known by the name of Hobbs, Morton & Reed. This mill furnished employment to forty hands, and did considerable business. He was a member of this firm for a period of three years. Mr. Reed is public-spirited, and has done much toward im- proving his native town. He is a Democrat, in political preferences, and was elected to the City Council, in

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1871 ; and was honored with a re-election to his seat in that body, three years later. He was married, in 1868, to Miss Jessie B. Woods, daughter of the late Capt. Elijah Woods, one of the most popular and successful steamboat captains ever engaged on the Ohio and Mis- sissippi rivers. They have one child.

ARR, JAMES ARTHUR, M. D., was born January 2, 1819, in Montgomery County, Ten- nessee. His parents, James and N. M. Carr, were both Virginians, and moved to Tennessee, in 1816. His family is of English origin, and is one of the old families of the country. Dr. Carr received a good education, mainly under private teachers, one of whom was John D. Tyler, a Virginian, who was one of the first teachers of his time, in Ken- tucky. In 1841, he graduated in medicine at the Uni- versity of Louisville, after taking two full courses of lectures, and at once began his profession, at Princeton, Caldwell County, Kentucky, where he has since resided, in active and successful practice, and is widely known as one of the most enterprising and valuable physicians of his section. He has taken an active interest in all matters of importance in his community; has been one of the leading workers and speakers in the reform move- ments; was, for a number of years, trustee of the town; is one of the Trustees of Cumberland College, at Prince- ton ; has been repeatedly one of the school trustees; is a member of the South-western Medical Association ; member of the State Medical Society; and is Chairman of the Board of Medical Examiners for his district. In politics, he was a Whig; during the war, was a Union man, and has lately been identified with the Democracy. He is a prominent working member of the Episcopal Church. Dr. Carr was married, November 30, 1843, to Miss Jane M. Dallam, daughter of N. S. Dallam, of Princeton, and by this marriage had six children. Their son, L. D. Carr, is a merchant of Cincinnati. In 1860, he was married to Miss N. Overbey, of Meck- lenburg County, Virginia, and one child lives from this marriage.

CCALLISTER, JOHN ENEAS, Retired Farmer, was born in Henderson County, Kentucky, Oc- tober 14, 1805. His ancestors were of Scottish origin. His father, Eneas McCallister, was a native of Pennsylvania. His mother's maiden name was Kinkeid, and she was also from Penn- sylvania. His parents emigrated at an early day to the West, and settled in a fertile part of Kentucky, where his father followed agricultural pursuits. John Eneas McCallister was ambitious during his youth to obtain a

thorough education, but met with many obstacles in en- deavoring to gratify his early aspirations to knowledge. He attended the common-schools of his home, until he had mastered all the branches taught in the country schools of those early days. His father could not fur- nish him the means to enjoy the advantages of a course in the more advanced colleges of the country, but he con- trived to raise funds sufficient to enable him to obtain tuition in the high-school at Bowling Green, Kentucky. Here, he made great progress in his learning, giving par- ticular attention to the study of Latin. Having for a long time entertained the desire to become a lawyer, he was at last enabled to begin the study of his chosen profession, in 1826, in the office of George Morris, at Henderson, Kentucky. After passing two years in the preliminary study, he was duly admitted to the bar, and, in 1828, went South- to establish himself in his profes- sion. But, after a short absence, he was taken sick, and was obliged to return to his home. Upon his re- covery, he was reluctantly compelled to abandon his pro- fession of the law, and thereafter engaged in occupa- tions more conducive to the enjoyment of physical vigor. About this time his father died, and a large family was left in destitute circumstances. He at once went to the assistance of his widowed mother, who was left struggling with adversity; and, by his indefatigable efforts, and the help of his brothers, the family soon rapidly advanced in prosperity. He embarked in the business of a flat-boat trader in produce, along the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. He remained in this business for about seven years, with great success. Upon leav- ing the flat-boating on the rivers, he purchased a large tract of land, and entered upon its cultivation; and soon became the leading farmer of his vicinity. His great ability and numerous excellent qualities gained for him the highest respect of all his neighbors; and such was the 'confidence reposed in his judgment and sagacity, that he was constantly called upon to dis- charge the duties of some responsible trust, in which his management always met with the unqualified ap- proval of all parties concerned. He possessed consid- erable knowledge of medicine, having devoted some time to the study of this science; and thus was able to act as the physician of his locality. He was the largest land-holder of his region of the country; and all his farms were models of excellence, and conducted upon the most approved methods of agriculture. He was freely consulted by the neighboring farmers in regard to the planting, and disposal of their crops in the best markets, and his counsel was invariably fol- lowed. With his acquaintance of the law, many accomplishments, unquestioncd integrity, and rare judg- ment, he became the confidential adviser of the citi- zens for a large area of country surrounding his home, and the utmost reliance was placed in his decisions.

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His high standing in the community and his eminent ability well fitted him for a seat in the councils of his State, and he was accordingly selected by his fellow- citizens to represent them in the State Legislature, being chosen to that body in 1846. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Farmers' Bank of Henderson, Kentucky. He was married, in 1832, to Miss Elizabeth Scott, a native of Wilmington, Delaware; but suffered the misfortune of losing his wife, by death, after having been married but ten months: Hc was again married, in 1838, to Miss Elizabeth Talbott, daughter of Benja- min Talbott, a worthy farmer of Henderson County; and had three children by this marriage, none of whom survive. He was again married, in December, 1867, to Mrs. Fanny Stanley, daughter of Josiah Jenkins, of Buffalo, New York. He is a prominent member of the Episcopal Church, and evinces the deepest regard for the welfare of his Church. Mr. McCallister is a highly cultured and refined gentleman, possesses a kindly dis- position and great suavity of manners. Throughout his long and eventful career, he has always shown the great- est philanthropic and benevolent spirit, ready with his assistance, and willing to make sacrifices to promote the well-being of others. His course has won for him the highest esteem and veneration of his fellow-men.

EGENFELTER, JOHN, was born August 30, 1825, in Saxony, Germany. His parents em- barked for this country when he was twelve years of age; and, upon their arrival, stopped in Baltimore, Maryland. After a short sojourn they started for the West, settling in the more fertile and richer portion of the State of Tennessec. In 1838, he suffered the loss, by death, of his father, which affliction he felt sorely. Soon after this, he removed to Paducah, Kentucky, which has been his residence, with but slight intermissions, ever since. He came into the possession of a farm, situated in Pope County, Illinois, and spent the year 1858 in improving his property. His land happened to have upon it several springs, the waters of which were found to possess remarkable me- dicinal properties. These waters have been used with uniform success, particularly in disorders of the digest- ive functions, and his place is likely to become popular as a resort. Upon his return to Paducah, he engaged in the bakery business, and subsequently became employed upon the elegant passenger steamers navigating the Mississippi river. He succeeded in accumulating a fund sufficient to enable him to purchase a considerable inter- est in several steamers, and continued in the river busi- ness until it was broken up by the opening of the war. After peace was restored, and the channels of trade freed from all restraints, he returned to Paducah and

embarked in the restaurant business, with Charles Reed as a partner. The undertaking proved successful, their patronage increasing rapidly from year to year. In 1872, they became the proprietors of the European Hotel, of Paducah, and not only conducted it in a most efficient and satisfactory manner, but also had the gratification of seeing their labors meeting with their just reward. Mr. Segenfelter was married, in 1868, to Miss Bella Winchester, daughter of an old and worthy citizen.

CORNWALL, WILLIAM, Manufacturer, was born February 27, 1814, in the province of Ulster, Ireland. In 1826, he came to Lexing- ton, Kentucky, with his father's family, and in that city, his father, John Cornwall, died, in 1828; and his mother, in 1833. Their remains are interred in the Episcopal burying-ground, at Lex- ington. After spending two or three years as clerk in the dry-goods business, William Cornwall entered the aca- demical department of Transylvania University, where he graduated, in 1834. He thien spent several years in traveling and study, and, in 1838, in connection with his brother, began the manufacture of lard oil and stearine candles, in Lexington. In 1843, he changed from the manufacture of stearine to that of stearic acid or star candles. In 1844, his factory in Lexington was destroyed by fire, and in the same year he removed to Louisville, and, in a few months, built, and had under operation, his new works, which he has successfully carried on since, and made one of the most valuable in- terests of Louisville. In 1851, he visited England and France, and purchased the best machinery known in Europe connected with his business, at the same time in- troducing the most recent process of manufacturing, and continually modifying it to suit the growing demands of. the times. In 1866, he went to Philadelphia, and had constructed some new machinery, under the direction of the patentee of the new process, designed to produce the decomposition of fats into fat acids and glycerine, by water with a small admixture of lime, at a high tem- perature and pressure, which he now uses successfully. Through all the changes made in his line of manufac- ture, he has not only kept abreast of the advance in mechanical and chemical science, but also has been one of the first to introduce new and valuable modes of manipulation, long having been known as one of the leading and most thoroughly well informed men in his line of business in the country. While his manufactur- ing interests were new, and necessarily circumscribed, in Lexington, he carried on a banking business, buying and selling uncurrent notes of the State banks; and, during the bank suspension between 1840 and 1843, he dealt considerably in gold and silver. Since establish -.

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ing their business in Louisville, he has given his entire attention to its interests, until, within a few years, his two sons have largely taken control. Although never having sought or held public office, he has taken an active part in movements looking to the advancement of the best interests of the city; and, since 1852, has writ- ten a great deal for the newspapers, chiefly on matters pertaining to the growth and prosperity of the city, and in defense of the Church and Christianity against infi- delity. Until the division between the Old and New School of the Presbyterian Church, he was an earnest member of that denomination; but, subsequently, from a thorough investigation of fundamental religious and doctrinal principles, he united with the Episcopal Church, and has since filled all positions known to its lay mem- bership, having, for the last nine years been a reader, regularly appointed to that work, in his Church; and has been a member of the general convention since 1859, and of most of the conventions of the Diocese of Kentucky since 1846. Mr. Cornwall was married, in 1844, to Miss Mary Baldwin, niece of Judge A. K. Wooley, of Lexington, Kentucky. She died in 1870, leaving three children, and was a woman of many noble Christian qualities. June 27, 1875, he was again mar- ried, to Miss Eliza Booker, a lady of high social posi- tion and pleasing manners, adorned by a Christian life.

MITH, JAMES EDWARDS, Politician and Farmer, son of William H. and Mary R. (Walker) Smith, was born January 4, 1826, near Flemingsburg. His father was of En- glish origin, born in Mecklenburg County, Vir- ginia; emigrated to Fleming County, in this State, in 1818, with his father, Redmond Smith, who had been an active participant in the entire war of the Revolution. He was a farmer; and died in 1869. Mary R. Walker, his mother, was also a native of Mecklen- burg County, Virginia; her father, Aurelius Walker (a near relative of Wade Hampton, of South Carolina), as early as 1814, emigrated to this State, and afterwards settled in Georgia, where he died in 1836. The subject of this sketch was brought up on the farm, schooled in its hardships and its moral, industrious, and independent habits, and has through life mainly devoted his time and energies to agricultural pursuits. His school edu- cation was not very extensive, but he has always been a close and careful reader and observer, and few men of his community are more generally well informed. In 1866, he was elected Sheriff of Fleming County; was re-elected in 1868, and served four years. He was clected County Judge of Fleming County in 1872, and re-elected in 1874, now holding that position. He was a Clay Whig, but, since the dissolution of that party, he

has been connected with the Democrats. For ten years he has been Chairman of the County Democratic Execu- tive Committee; in 1875, was appointed member, for the Tenth Congressional District, of the State Execu- tive Committee, and was reappointed in 1876, by the State Convention of that year. At the age of sixteen, he joined the Christian Church, and has, for many years, been an officer in the Church, and taken a prom- inent part in its affairs. He is a man of marked strength of character ; he never forsakes a cause that he conscientiously espouses as true and right ; is a man of fine personal and social habits, and stands deservedly high in the community. Judge Smith was married, September 1I, 1850, to Miss A. J. Thompson, a native of Fleming County, and daughter of Matthew Thomp- son, a farmer of that county.

ONGMOOR, WOODFORD WOODNUT, Clerk of the Circuit and Criminal Courts for Harrison County, was born June 21, 1840, in Kenton County, Kentucky, about six miles from Cov- ington. His father, George Longmoor, was a farmer, born in Bourbon County, but moved to Kenton, where he lived until his death, in 1847. His mother was Amanda (Hammett) Longmoor, a Kenton County woman by nativity, and daughter of Samuel Hammett, a farmer of that county. The subject of this sketch left the farm, in 1854, to attend school in Cincin- nati, where he remained five years, the last two of which were spent at the Farmers' College. In 1859, he took a course of business instruction at Bartlett's Commercial College, in Cincinnati, and afterwards spent some time, as a clerk, in Haven & Co.'s foundry, in that city. In 1861, he enlisted in Company H, Second Kentucky Con- federate Infantry, and remained in the regiment only three months, being compelled to return home to re- cover from injuries received in a fall; after recovering, he assisted in organizing two companies, under the com- mand of Capt. Corbin, of Boone County, and accom- panied them as far as Mt. Sterling, where they were routed, and several of their number killed, by the Fed- erals, who were concealed in the court-house and the dwellings of the town. In attempting to escape, he was captured by the Winchester Home Guards, and confined in the Clarke County jail; from there was sent, the next day, to Lexington ; afterwards to Covington and Cincinnati, from whence he was removed to Camp Chase, and finally to Johnson's Island; and, after sev- eral months' imprisonment, was exchanged, in the Fall of 1862, at Vicksburg. He then made his way to Mur- freesboro, where hc found Col. Hanson, of the old Sec- ond Infantry, and was placed by lim in Company B, of the Second Cavalry, and remained with that regiment

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until after the battle of Cynthiana, in June 17, 1864. He participated in all the raids and engagements of the regiment ; was captured in the Ohio raid, and, after four months' imprisonment at Camp Douglas, made his es- cape, and joined his regiment at Wytheville, Virginia, undergoing a perilous trip through Ohio and Kentucky. On June II, 1864, at Cynthiana, he was wounded in the thigh, making the amputation of his leg necessary. For nearly two years he was unable to move about; but, in 1866, he actively engaged in the dry-goods business, at Burlington; after eight months, came to Cynthiana, and embarked in the hardware business with his brother; and, in 1868, went into the furniture trade, in which he continued until 1874. In that year, he was elected Clerk of the Circuit and Criminal Courts for Harrison County, which position he now holds. In 1872, he was a candidate for county judge, but was not successful. Mr. Longmoor was married, February 5, 1867, to Miss Louisa Adams, a native of Harrison County, daughter of Dr. Abram Adams, deceased, of Cynthiana.

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The Biographical encyclopaedia of Kentucky of the dead and living men of the nineteenth century, Part 106

Author: Armstrong, J. M., & company, pub Publication date: 1878 Publisher: Cincinnati, J. M. Armstrong Number of Pages: 946

Author: Armstrong, J. M., & company, pub
Publication date: 1878
Publisher: Cincinnati, J. M. Armstrong
Number of Pages: 946