The Biographical encyclopaedia of Kentucky of the dead and living men of the nineteenth century, Part 15

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

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BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPÆDIA.

Sir William Alexander, and his brother had the entail broken by the enabling act of Parliament, of 1848. The mineral products of the Airdrie property have been somewhat reduced, in late years, yet the present propri- etor of Woodburn has an annual income, from that source, of thirty-five or forty thousand dollars. The an- nual public and private sales of blooded stock doubtless average from seventy-five to a hundred and thirty thou- sand dollars, at Mr. Alexander's estate in Kentucky, al- though, probably, not so great as in the life-time of his brother. Although a breeder of racers and trotting- horses, he is not a turf-man, and no entries on the race- course are ever made by him, in person or by proxy ; yet he well maintains the former fame of the Woodburn stock-farm. In 1873, at a famous sale of fine stock, in New York, he paid twenty-seven thousand dollars for the Tenth Duchess of Oneida, a calf six months old ; and nineteen thousand for the Seventh Duchess of Oneida, a yearling. He recently sold to George Fox, of Cheshire, England, two head of young cattle for thirty thousand dollars. (See sketch of Robert Aitcheson Al- exander for many general statements as to Woodburn stock-farm.) He is a man of culture, somewhat re- served and dignified in manners, but without the least tendency to display of any kind; is unflichingly honora- ble in his dealings with men, and is noted for the great purity of his private life. Religiously, he is connected with the Presbyterian Church. His delicate health, and want of a more vigorous constitution, have, no doubt, prevented his appearing in publie in other ca- f pacities than as one of the great stock-breeders of Amer- ica. Mr. Alexander has been twice married. His first wife was Miss Lucy Humphreys, daughter of David Humphreys, of Woodford County, Kentucky. She died several years ago. His present wife was a Miss Fuller- ton, of Chillicothe, Ohio. He has one living child.

UKE, BASIL C., M. D., Physician and Sur- geon, was born March 31, 1815, near Orange- burg, Mason County, Kentucky. His parents were Dr. Alexander and Mary M. (Broome) Duke, both natives of Calvert County, Mary- land. His father, Dr. Alexander Duke, came to Kentucky, and settled in Mason County in 1810, where he now resides, at the age of eighty-seven. He has practiced medicine, and carried on his farming in- terests in Mason County, for nearly three-quarters of a century. In the war of 1812, he was surgeon of a Ma- ryland regiment, and, in the late civil war, was surgeon of the Fifth Alabama Confederate Regiment. IIe is of Scotch-English descent. Basil C. Duke received his edu- cation mainly in the private schools of Mason County ; and, in 1831, went to Baltimore, and began the study

of medicine, under Professor N. R. Smith; continued his preparation for three years, and graduated from the medical department of the University of Maryland in 1834; in the same year, located for the practice of his profession at Mayslick, Kentucky, where he has since resided, actively engaged in a large and valuable med- ical practice. In 1861, he entered the Confederate army, as a private in the Fifth Kentucky Volunteer Infantry, under Col. John S. Williams; was soon after promoted surgeon of the regiment; was subsequently pro- moted Brigadier-General; in 1862, was made Medical Director of South-western Virginia, East Tennessee, and Eastern Kentucky, under the command of Gen. Hum- phrey Marshall, and performed the duties of this position until the close of the war, participating in the leading engagements in Virginia and Tennessee. At the close of the war, he returned to Mayslick, and resumed the practice of his profession with great skill and success, and stands in the front rank in the medical profession of the State. He was, probably, a Clay Whig, during the existence of the Whig party, and, in 1860, voted for Bell and Everett. He is now a Democrat. Religiously, he is associated with the Episcopal Church. Dr. Duke was married, November 13, 1835, to Miss L. M. Mitchell, daughter of Aaron Mitchell, and granddaughter of Sanford Mitchell, one of the early pioneers of Mason County.

ICKETT, THOMAS EDWARD, M. D., son of Thomas J. Pickett, was born January 1I, 1841, at his father's residence, near Maysville, in Ma- son County, Kentucky. Dr. Pickett received his early education at the Maysville Seminary ; studied four years at Centre College, Danville, where he graduated in 1860; for the next year or two, pursued a special course of study, under private tutors; in 1862, began the study of medicine with Dr. H. Lenox Hodge, of Philadelphia, and matriculated at the Univer- sity of Pennsylvania in the same year; while a student, served as a surgical assistant in the Peninsular campaign, . during the Summer of 1864; and took his degree in medi- cine at the University of Pennsylvania, in the Spring of 1865. After spending a year in hospital and dispensary service in Philadelphia, he settled to the practice of medicine at Maysville, in his native State. While at- tending closely to the duties of his profession, he has taken an active interest in public affairs; has been a fre- quent contributor to the press; has served, successively, as City Physician, as member of the State Board of Medi- cal Examiners, and as Chairman of the Municipal Board of Health. Ife has, also, received honorable recognition as a student of science. In 1871, he was elected mem- ber of the Anthropological Institute of New York; in 1875, a corresponding member of the American Ethno-

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logical Society; in August, 1876, a member of the Ameri- can Association for the Advancement of Science; and, in the September following, was made one of the Vice- Presidents of the American Anthropological Association, which was organized at Philadelphia during the Centen- nial year. He was a special contributor to the Revised Edition of Collins's History of Kentucky; and, in 1875, published a scientific monograph, entitled "The Testi- mony of the Mounds." Dr. Pickett was married, in 1873, to Miss Abbie Gray, daughter of the late Hamil- ton Gray, of Maysville; and still resides in his native county, actively discharging the duties of his profession, and manifesting at all times a characteristic interest in public affairs.

MITH, HON. DABNEY HOWARD, State Auditor, was born November 24, 1821, near Georgetown, Scott County, Kentucky. His father, Captain Nelson Smith, was a native of Louisa County, Virginia, and emigrated to Kentucky with his father, Captain William Smith, in 1783, settling in the neighborhood of Bryant's Station, near Lexington, Fayette County. His mother's name was Sarah Kerr (Carr) ; she was the daughter of a Revolutionary soldier, Captain David Kerr, the son of James Kerr, of one of the old Scotch-Presbyterian fami- lies of Virginia. His maternal grandmother was Doro- thy Rodes, daughter of Clifton Rodes, one of the ear- liest and most prominent settlers of Fayette County; and his father's mother was .Mary Rodes, the sister of Clifton Rodes. From these sources have sprung some of the most distinguished existing families of Kentucky. Captain David Kerr, his grandfather, was a native of Albemarle County, Virginia, who served honorably in the war of the Revolution, and, after its close, between 1790 and 1795, came to Kentucky, and settled in Scott County. D. Howard Smith, who derives his name from both sides of his family-the Dabney belonging to the mother's, and Howard belonging to the father's, side- is commonly known, in Kentucky, as "Howard Smith." His educational training was begun under J. J. Flournoy, a teacher of distinction in that day. He afterwards en- tered, and remained two years at, Georgetown College, and finally finished a regular course at Miami University, Oxford, Ohio. Near the close of the year 1841, he be- gan the study of the law with J. H. Daviess, an eminent lawyer, then resident in Scott County; attended lectures in the law department of Transylvania University, and graduated, in 1843, under Judges George Robertson, Thomas A. Marshall, and Aaron K. Woolley, in a class with Gen. Francis P. Blair, Jr., Hon. James B. Clay, and others of scarcely less distinction. He soon after located at Georgetown, and entered actively upon the practice of his profession. In 1849, he was elected to

the Legislature by a large majority, at a time when the political sentiment of that county was strongly opposed to his own. During his service in the Legislature, which was esteemed an able one, being composed of such men as John C. Breckinridge, Presley Ewing, and James P. Metcalfe, he won enviable distinction, and proved of substantial value to the interests of the State, as well as to his constituency. In 1853, he was elected State Senator, without opposition, from the district com- posed of the counties of Scott and Fayette, the latter being the home of Henry Clay. He served four years in this body, adding to his reputation by faithful atten- tion to his duties, and intelligent action in securing substantial benefits to his people. He was a prominent candidate for the Speakership, and, as shown by the journal of the Senate, of 1853-4, received the highest vote, on the first ballot, for that office. The balloting continued three days, and he would probably have been elected, but was magnanimous enough to promote har- mony by withdrawing from the contest. At the expira- tion of his term, his health failing, he declined further public service, and retired from the active practice of his profession. Up to the opening of the civil war he was a member of the Whig party; a zealous friend to Henry Clay, with whom, being in the same district, he was often brought in familiar contact. After the death of Mr. Clay, and the rise and fall of Know- Nothingism (which he strongly opposed), he became an active advocate of the Democratic policy, to which he has since closely adhered. Although in favor of the Union, and opposed to secession, when the war actually commenced, his identification with, and affec- tion for, the South, induced him, at once, to range himself on the side of his section. He took part with fervor in the discussion preceding actual hostili- ties, and, when the issue was fairly made, he raised the Fifth Kentucky Cavalry for the Confederate serv- ice, was elected its Colonel, and entered the field, serving during the war, a part of the time with the Army of Tennessee, and afterwards with the Army of West Virginia. In 1863, after having endured some of the hardships of service, and participating in a number of battles, in the brigade of Gen. Abe Buford, his regi- ment was transferred to the cavalry division of Gen. John H. Morgan, under whose command he realized the extreme privations and vicissitudes of the severest cam- paigns. He bore himself well in every attitude in which he was placed during this unfortunate contest, forced upon the country. At Greasy Creek, where the Fed- eral troops were driven across the Cumberland river, and Southern Kentucky for the time given to Confed- erate control, he greatly distinguished himself and his gallant command, by intelligent, courageous, and timely action. He complied with the command of Gen. Mor- gan, to "drive the enemy from his position," with

Eng d & Pid Iny Homer Les & Co NY

Faithfully yours

BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPÆDIA.

vigor and expedition. He was then in charge of two regiments-his own, the Fifth Kentucky, and the Ninth Tennessee. The charge was a fearful and desperate one, but it proved a coup de main, and saved the day. On the 2d of July, 1863, he started with his command,, under Morgan, on the famous raid through Indiana and Ohio, engaging heavily in the terrible contests at Green River Bridge, the details of which are too voluminous to be given in this brief sketch, but which prove it to have been one of the most desperate and bloody engagements of the whole war, taking into consideration the number of troops engaged on each side. He was also promi- nent in the noted fight at Lebanon Depot, which re- sulted in the capture of the Federal Colonel, Charles S. Hanson. The enemy was intrenched in the railroad depot, and it had to be taken by assault, Col. Smith moving in the advance, through open grass lots, and exposed to a galling fire. Col. Hanson, finding that he could not resist the Confederate approach, threw out a white flag, in token of surrender. His sword was de- livered to Col. Smith in person. They had been old- time friends, and the meeting was generous and cordial; both were gentlemen, and both soldiers of the true stamp. After the surrender, an attempt was made by the soldiery-infuriated from some cause-to assassinate Col. Hanson, and his life was saved by Col. Smith, only by the exposure of his own. This incident, though one of the most fearful at the time of its occurrence, has always been held by Col. Smith as one of the most satisfactory of his life, and particularly so, as it was remembered with such gratitude by Col. Hanson, during his life. The bond of friendship between them, by this act, was cemented forever. The full details of the raid through Indiana and Ohio, and of the final capture of Morgan's command, at Buffington's Island, belong to the history of the country, and must be looked for elsewhere. The hardships of that unparalleled ride are still fresh in the memory of many survivors of Morgan's cavalry. Colonel Smith was taken to the Ohio Penitentiary, where, through the intervention of Colonel Hanson, his condition was much alleviated; and, in February, 1864, through the same kind agency, he was sent to Fortress Monroe, to report to Gen. Butler, and take measures to effect his own exchange. This he ac- complished, on the 6th of March, 1864, and was returned to Richmond, Virginia, in exchange for Col. Dulaney. Meantime, Morgan had effected his remarkable escape, and they were both soon in the field, at the head of the remnants of their forces. He shared the victories of Morgan, on his last raid into Kentucky, as well as his disastrous defeat at Cynthiana. He was not with Gen. Morgan at Greenville when his death occurred, or pos- sibly that cruel event might have been forestalled. The advance into Tennessee, at that time, was not in accord- ance with his judgment. By the death of Morgan, as

senior officer, Col. Smith was entitled to the command; but, with a spirit of magnanimity which has always act- uated him, and a desire to do honor to a gallant and brilliant young officer who was second in command, he wrote to the Secretary of War, waiving his rank, and urging the appointment of Col. Basil Duke. This un- selfish and patriotic action elicited the highest encomium from Gen. Lee, who, it is said, recommended his ap- pointment as brigadier-general. Throughout his military career, Col. Smith was distinguished as well for his com- petency in managing and subsisting his command, as for his superior skill and personal courage upon the field. At the close of the contest, a paroled soldier, broken in fortune, and almost without hope, he returned to his home, and resumed the practice of his profession. He managed to earn a livelihood, and, in 1866, became a candidate for Clerk of the Court of Appeals, and would, in all probability, have been nominated; but, under a conviction that the election of a Confederate at that time would be impolitic, he withdrew his name. In 1867, he was nominated almost by acclamation for Audi- tor of Public Accounts, and was elected by an almost unprecedented majority. In 1871, he was again elected, and this time without opposition in his party. In 1875, after a close contest with one of the most popular Demo- crats in the State, he was, for the third time, triumph- antly elected, and is still the State Auditor of Kentucky. As a State officer, Kentucky has never had his superior. He brings to his aid, in civil duties, the same admirable traits which characterized him as a soldier, and no man has ever conducted the affairs of this arduous and re- sponsible office with more skill and integrity, or more to the satisfaction of the people of the State. Outside of his official duties, he finds time to take an active interest in many things which relate to the general good. He is an active member of the Baptist Church, and freely gives his aid to every worthy cause. In personal appear- ance, Col. Smith will compare favorably with the best specimens of Kentucky manhood. He is over the medi- um height, well proportioned, upright in his walk, and having the bearing of a soldier and a gentleman. His manner is genial, his conversation easy, and he possesses the elements of popularity and dignity in fine balance. He is justly recognized as one of Kentucky's first and most substantial men. He was married, in 1843, to Miss Josephine Lemon, daughter of Capt. Joseph I. Lemon, a soldier of the war of 1812, and a prominent gentleman and farmer of Scott County. His wife is a handsome and highly accomplished lady, a thorough gentlewoman, a devout Christian, an amiable and excellent mother. They have reared and educated a number of children, ornaments to society now, and giving promise of future worth and usefulness. Col. Smith, being little past the prime of life, and vigorous as in earlier manhood, bids fair to continue his useful career for many years.

BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPÆDIA.

UCHANAN, DR. JOSEPH, Physician, Author, and Editor, was born August 24, 1785, in Wash- -ington County, Virginia. He spent his boy- hood in Tennessee, where he astonished a gram- mar-school by mastering the Latin language in nine months; came to Lexington in 1804; in 1805, finished his education at Transylvania University; studied medicine under Dr. Samuel Brown, in Lexing- ton; located at Fort Gibson, on the Mississippi, in 1807, to practice medicine, for the purpose of obtaining means to complete his education, and, while there, wrote a vol- ume on fevers, which, although never published, gave him considerable notoriety; went to Philadelphia, to attend lectures, but was too poor to graduate; returned to Lexington, afoot, in twenty-seven days; continued his medical studies, and resumed the practice of his pro- fession ; in 1809, became Professor of the Institutes of Medicine in Transylvania Medical School; abandoned the medical profession ; went East and studied the Pes- talozzian system of education, and returned to Ken- tucky, where he taught that system for many years. In 1812, he published his work, the " Philosophy of Human Nature;" in 1817, studied law, but never practiced ; assisted in editing the Lexington "Reporter," also the "Palladium," at Frankfort ; and the "Western Spy and Literary Cadet ;" and, in 1826, founded the "Focus," at Louisville, which he edited until his death, in 1829. At the time of entering Transylvania University he was deli- cate and diffident; and is said to have passed for a sim- pleton, until he detected and offered to demonstrate an error in his text-book, which brought him in contact with the mathematical professor; and, during the vaca- tion, he published a mathematical work of a few pages, demonstrating the sufficiency of gravity, and pointing out some defects in the speculations of Sir Isaac New- ton. He invented a capillary steam-engine, with spiral tubes for boilers; and, in 1825, made a steam land-car- riage, which ran over the streets of Louisville; and dis- covered, as he thought, a new motive principle, derived from combustion, without water or steam.

"RADDOCK, HON. GEORGE WASHINGTON, Lawyer, was born June 7, 1814, in Hart County, Kentucky. He is the oldest son of Jesse Crad- dock, who died in Munfordville, in that county, on the 28th of February, 1847. Jesse Craddock was born in South Carolina, December 25, 1794, and was brought to Kentucky by his parents about the year 1796, and raised in the county of Hart, at a time when there were scarcely any opportunities of receiving an education in that region of country. The early por- tion of his life was spent in hunting the deer and other wild game, which at that time were found in great

abundance in that section of the State. In the war of 1812, he joined the army, and served two campaigns, one under McArthur, and the other under Hopkins. In the year 1813, after his return from his first term of service in the army, he was married to Miss Drusilla Earles, who was also born in South Carolina, and came to Ken- tucky when she was quite young. After three children had been born of this marriage, Jesse Craddock came to the conclusion to move to Munfordville, the county- seat of the county in which he was residing, and study law, with the view of practicing it as a profession. With scarcely any education, not being able to read a single page of Blackstone correctly, with a growing and help- less family upon his hands, poor in fortune, and un- aided by family or influential friends, he attacked the science of law, with the firm determination of mastering it, which he did with great rapidity, and within a few years became the peer at the bar, both in pleading and debate, of his contemporaries, Ben. Hardin, Richard A. Buckner, John Calhoun, J. R. Underwood, S. T. Logan, Cyrus Walker, and many others, who have honored the bench and the bar of Kentucky. He was endowed with extraordinary natural ability ; was forcible, logical, and effective in debate. Although he took a deep interest in the current political questions of his time, and was a Whig, and co-operated with the Whig party, an ardent admirer of Henry Clay, yet he seldom engaged actively in political canvasses, attending closely to the practice of his profession, in order to support and educate a large and growing family. He represented his county in the Lower House of the Legislature in the year 1828, where he gave earnest and efficient support to the system of common-schools, which was then, in Kentucky, in its infancy. In 1840, having previously removed to Elizabethtown, in Hardin County, he was elected to the State Senate, for a term of four years, but did not serve more than two years of his term. The great-grandfather and great-grandmother of G. W. Craddock came to this country from Wales, at a very early period, and settled . in Virginia. His grandfather left home when quite a boy, not more than thirteen years of age, and, with a party of movers, went to the State of Georgia, where he grew up to manhood, principally in a fort. After attaining to sufficient age, he was employed as a scout, and kept a watch upon the movements of the Indians, so as to be able to give the settlers notice of the ap- proach of parties of them upon their expeditions of plunder and murder. He was thus employed for a period of about seven years. He afterward moved to South Carolina, and thence to Kentucky, where he dicd at a very advanced age. The name was originally known and spelled, as is claimed, Caradock. G. W. Craddock, under somewhat unfavorable circumstances, there being but few facilities for obtaining an education at the time when he grew up, at the age of sixteen was appointed

BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPÆDIA.

Deputy Clerk of both the County and Circuit Courts of Hart County, which position he held for about four years. While thus engaged as deputy clerk, he availed himself of the time not necessarily required in discharg- ing the duties of his position in the improvement of his knowledge of the ordinary branches taught in the coun- try schools of that day. His preceptor, George T. Wood, who was the clerk of the two courts, was em- inently qualified for the position he held; was method- ical and careful in business, and kind to the young men employed in his offices who showed any disposition to improve, and become useful citizens. During his term as deputy clerk, young Craddock commenced reading law, taking up first the old works upon the English com- mon law; and, by a careful study of these, he, in the course of time, became familiar with the elementary principles and the reasons of the law. These studies he pursued with but little aid from his father, who was constantly occupied with the practice upon the circuit. He received his license to practice law in the year 1835, and, in 1840, was elected to represent his county in the Lower House of the General Assembly, and was re- elected, in 1841, serving two years with his father, who, at the same time, was a member of the Senate. He was elected as a Whig, although his county was strongly Democratic. At the close of the session of the General Assembly, in the month of May, 1842, he settled in the city of Frankfort, and entered into a partnership, in the practice of law, with the Hon. James Harlan, which continued for several years. He applied himself assidu- ously to the practice and study of his profession. His ability as a lawyer is recognized and acknowledged throughout the State. Upon his removal to Frankfort, he ceased to take an active part in politics, although he co-operated with the Whig party, and, while especially was he an admirer and ardent supporter of Henry Clay, it was rare, however, that he engaged in public discus- sions of the political issues which divided the Whig and Democratic parties. In regard to one question which entered largely into the discussions of that period, he was antislavery in his views, but, at the same time, was a resolute opponent of what was known, at that time, as the Abolition party. He was in favor of the adop- tion, in Kentucky, of a system of gradual emancipation,

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The Biographical encyclopaedia of Kentucky of the dead and living men of the nineteenth century, Part 15

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