The Biographical encyclopaedia of Kentucky of the dead and living men of the nineteenth century, Part 25

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

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Bell and Everett, and was a Union man during the civil war. He was married, December 31, 1816, to Sarah Huston, of Lexington, Kentucky, daughter of William Huston, one of the pioneers of Fayette County. They had thirteen children, only two of whom survive them. Mr. January died, on the IIth of June, 1877, at his resi- dence in Maysville, Kentucky.

OUTHGATE, RICHARD, Lawyer and Mer- chant, was born in the year 1773, in New York City. He was educated at William and Mary College, Virginia; studied law in Albany, New York; came to Kentucky in 1795, and located in Newport ; made his home for several years with Gen. James Taylor; was married to Miss Anna Winston Hinde, a cousin of Gen. Taylor, and resided in Newport until his death, which occurred July 17, 1851. In 1803, he was elected to the Lower House of the Legislature, from Campbell County ; in 1817, he was elected to the State Senate ; was again elected to the Senate, in 1833, serving eight years as Senator. He en- joyed the friendship of Henry Clay, and warmly espoused his party principles. He was one of the most successful and influential lawyers and business men Newport ever had ; and by his energy, skill and management, accu- mulated a large fortune. He was quiet and unobtrusive in his social habits ; humane and generous; and was uni- versally esteemed as one of the most worthy and valua- ble men of his day. Three of his children, all daugh- ters, still survive him, and reside in Newport.

ARRISON, JAMES O., Lawyer, was born April II, 1804, at Mount Sterling, Kentucky. His parents were Micajah and Polly Harrison, both Virginians by birth. His father came to Ken- tucky in 1786; at first located in Fayette, but subsequently removed to Montgomery County ; was, for nearly thirty years, clerk of that county; par- ticipated in the Indian campaign, under Gen. Wayne; and died in 1842. His mother was the daughter of Rev. William Payne, a clergyman of the Baptist Church. James O. Harrison was liberally educated, graduating at Transylvania University, in 1822. He chose the profes- sion of law, and, in the same ycar, began his studies; in 1824, graduated from the law department of Transyl- vania; at once entered upon the practice of the law at Lexington; from 1835 to 1840, was engaged in his pro- fession at Vicksburg, Mississippi; from 1840 to 1860, continued his residence and law practice at Lexington ; for the next three years, resided in New Orleans; and afterwards, till the close of the war, at Richmond, and

other places within the Confederacy; in 1868, he re- turned to Lexington, and has since been actively en- gaged, with his usual skill and success, at the bar. In 1827, he was elected County Attorney of Fayette County; was re-elected, holding the office until 1835; was appointed Commonwealth's Attorney, in 1832, by Gov. Breathitt ; was reappointed by Gov. Jas. T. More- head; in 1835, was tendered the position of Secretary of Legation to Spain, by President Jackson, but de- clined; during the latter part of the administration of President Pierce, in January, 1857, he was notified, by a member of the President's Cabinet, that Mr. Pierce desired to appoint him Chief-Justice of Kansas; and, thinking that the office was vacant, replied that he would accept it, although desiring no such appointment, and being unwilling to make any effort to secure his con- firmation; his nomination was presented to the Senate, but, in the absence of a vacancy, the power of the President to create one gave rise to some discussion; and the close of the administration prevented any further action on the subject, a result which was agreeable to him, as he preferred to devote himself to the duties of his profession, in which he has been very successful, and deservedly ranks among the leading lawyers of the State. In 1870, he was elected to a professorship in the law department of Kentucky University; was, for a long time, chairman of the school committee in charge of the public-schools of Lexington, devoting several years of his life to upbuilding the schools, which, during his energetic and enlightened management, arose to their highest state, and were patronized by all citizens. His name has been associated with many of the leading in- terests of Lexington; has not only been distinguished for his legal attainments, but also for his literary culture and great integrity of character, and is one of the most public-spirited and valuable men of Lexington. In poli- tics, he has always been a Democrat. Mr. Harrison was married, July 20, 1830, to Miss Margaretta P. Ross, of Fayette County, Kentucky.

WEN, COL. ABRAHAM, was born in 1769, in Prince Edward County, Virginia. He settled in Shelby County, Kentucky, in 1785. He served in the campaign under Gen. Wilkinson, in 1791; was a lieutenant, and fought at "St. Clair's Defeat," in the same year, receiving two wounds in that engagement; accompanied Col. Hardin in his expedition to White river; commanded the first militia company raised in Shelby County; was surveyor, and one of the magistrates of Shelby; afterwards became a colonel of militia; was elected to the Legislature from his county; was a member of the Constitutional Conven- tion, 1799; in 1811, offered his services to Gen. Harri-

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son, at Vincennes; and fell, while acting as aid to that general, in the famous battle of Tippecanoe. In honor of him, Owen County, Kentucky, was so named. He was universally mourned, as one of the most useful, worthy, and valuable men of Shelby County. He left a large family, who were among the most respected citizens of Henry and the adjoining counties.

UNLAP, HON. GEORGE W., Lawyer and Poli- tician, was born February 22, 1813, in Fayette County, Kentucky. His parents were both natives of the same county, of Virginia ancestry. His father, George Dunlap, followed agricultural pursuits through life ; held various county offices, and was prominently identified with the interests of his community. He died in 1851. His mother, Mary (Downton) Dunlap, was the daughter of Thomas Down- ton, an early settler of Fayette County. George W. Dunlap received a liberal education, graduating at Transylvania University, at Lexington, in 1834; chose the law, but, while preparing for his profession, spent some time in teaching school; attended law lectures at Transylvania University, and graduated in 1837; located in the following year at Lancaster, Garrard County, and entered upon a law practice, which he has continued ever since with great success. In 1843, he was appointed Master Commissioner for Garrard Circuit Court; was continually reappointed, holding the position uninter- ruptedly until 1874; was elected to represent Garrard County in the Legislature, in 1853; in May, 1861, was a member of the famous Border State Convention, which met at Frankfort, and, as a member of that assemblage, used all his influence on the side of overtures for avert- ing the impending civil war, and establishing sectional fraternity ; in the same year, was elected to represent his district in the Congress of the United States, serving through the Thirty-seventh Congress as member of the Committee on Accounts, and Chairman of the Committee on the Navy Department; and distinguished himself by a warm support of the national cause, and by voting with the friends of the Government for "men and money" to prosecute the war against the rebellion. He is now a conservative or independent in politics, but belonged to the old Whig party until its dissolution, and, at the election preceding the war, voted for Bell and Everett. He is a man of sterling traits of character, great integrity, a valuable and useful citizen, and ranks as one of the first lawyers at the bar of Central Ken- tucky. Mr. Dunlap was married, May 28, 1839, to Miss Nancy E. Jennings, daughter of John Jennings, a farmer of Garrard County, and granddaughter of William Jen- nings, an early settler and prominent citizen of that county.

AKER, HON. RICHARD TARVIN, Lawyer, Politician, and Farmer, was born September 13, 1816, in Campbell County, Kentucky. His parents were Samuel and Elizabeth (Arm- strong) Baker; the former a native of West- moreland County, Pennsylvania, and the latter of Mason County, Kentucky. They raised a very large family of children, of which he was the fourth. His father came to Kentucky, when quite a boy, with his parents, and located in Fayette County; but, about 1790, they settled in Campbell County, where he be- came a prominent farmer and citizen; held some offices of importance in the community; was of Scotch-Presby- terian extraction, and died in 1873. His mother was a daughter of John Armstrong, one of the early pioneers and business men of Mason County. R. T. Baker was raised on the farm, and received his education in such schools as were then supplied in the neighborhood. In 1838, he was appointed Deputy Sheriff for the county, and held the position three years. In 1841, he began reading law under his own direction; and, in the Winter of 1842, attended a course of lectures at the Cincinnati Law School, and graduated in the following March. For some time subsequently he was engaged in the office of the county clerk, but, in 1844, entered upon the practice of his profession at Alexandria, the seat of Campbell County, where he has since resided. In 1846, he was elected County Attorney, and held the position two years; in 1849, he was first elected to the Legisla- ture, and was, therefore, a member of one of the most able and distinguished Legislatures of the State, that which adopted the present or new Constitution; in 1860, he was elected to represent Campbell and Pendle- ton Counties in the State Senate; was re-elected in 1865, serving eight years; in 1863, he was the Republi- can candidate for Governor, but was defeated by John S. Helm; and again, in 1867, he made the race for Gov- ernor, but was defeated by John W. Stevenson, of the Democratic party. In 1870, he was again elected to represent his county in the Legislature, and served one term. He cast his first Presidential vote for Gen. Har- rison, and was a member of the old Whig party until its dissolution. At the election preceding the war of secession, he voted for Bell and Everett, the so-called Union candidates. He has since been identified with the Republican party, and was noted, during the war, as a bold and aggressive supporter of the National Govern- ment. He is, what is styled a self-made man, purely; is a man of great natural talent; is thoroughly read; has great independence of character, adhering to his convic- tions of right and his avowed principles at all hazards, and yet seldom without peculiar suavity and courtesy ; is a fine, versatile political speaker; has uncommon abil- ity before a jury, carrying additional influence in his person and manners; is able as a lawyer, and stands in

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the front rank in his profession in the State. Mr. Baker has been twice married; in 1841, to Miss Sarah B. Bell, native of Campbell County, daughter of Benjamin B. Bell, for many years Clerk of Campbell County Court, and a prominent citizen of the county. She died in 1844; and, in 1853, he was married to Mary J. Orr, also a native of that county, and daughter of Dr. John Orr, an old and worthy physician of Alexandria.

AWES, HON. RICHARD, Lawyer, son of Richard and Clara (Walker) Hawes, was born February 6, 1797, in Caroline County, Virginia. His father was a native of the same county; mainly followed agricultural pursuits through life; came to Kentucky, with his family, in 1810; after residing in Fayette and Jefferson Counties for a while, finally settled in Daviess County, where he died, in 1829. He was, for several years, a member of the Virginia Leg- islature; and held other positions of trust in that State. The Hawes family were among the pioneer English emi- grants to Virginia ; and were somewhat conspicuous in its early history. Samuel Hawes, his uncle, was a colo- nel in the war of the Revolution; Albert, another uncle, was, for three terms, member of Congress, from Culpep- per district. His mother, also of English origin, was a native of Spottsylvania County, in which her ancestors early settled. Richard Hawes received a liberal educa- tion, obtained chiefly at Transylvania University, where he remained three or four years; and in Jessamine County, at the school of Professor Samuel Wilson, a teacher of distinction in his day, to whom quite a number of gen- tlemen, who became prominent in Kentucky, owe their early training. In 1814, he began reading law, under Charles Humphreys, in Lexington; finished his legal studies with Robert Wickliffe; in 1818, was admitted to the bar, and at once entered upon the practice of his pro- fession, associated with Mr. Wickliffe. In 1824, he re- moved to Winchester, continuing his profession, and also engaging in the manufacture of hemp; in 1843, located in Paris, where he resided during the remainder of his life ; established a large and valuable legal practice ; be- came one of the noted men of the country, and took a front rank among the lawyers of the State. In 1828, he was elected to represent Clarke County in the Legisla- ture; was re-elected, and again elected in 1836; in 1837, was elected, from the Ashland district, to the Congress of the United States; in 1839, was again elected to Con- gress, serving two terms. He cast his first political vote for Henry Clay; and was a Whig until 1856, when he voted for James Buchanan ; and was, from that time, a Democrat, voting for John C. Breckinridge, in 1860. In 1861, he was one of the Committee of Six appointed by the Legislature, with a view to harmonizing the two

parties in favor of armed neutrality; in the same year, after the failure of Kentucky to assume and continue an armed neutrality, he entered the Confederate army, with the rank of major; and served for several months as brigade commissary, in the commands of John S. Will- iams and Humphrey Marshall. In May, 1862, he was compelled to accept the office of Provisional Governor of Kentucky, to which he had been chosen by the Con- federate Council for the State; was formally inaugurated on the fourth day of October in that year, by Gen. Bragg, at Frankfort; and, although the position at Frankfort was not long maintained, he held the office of Provisional Governor until the close of the war. In this position he became a conspicuous figure in the his- tory of the rebellion. In 1865, he resumed the practice of his profession, in Paris; in the following year, he was elected Judge of Bourbon County; was re-elected in 1870, and again, in 1874, holding the position until his death, which occurred near Paris, May 25, 1877. He was of a quiet and dignified demeanor, winning and retaining the confidence of all who came in contact with him. In his aspirations, his usual motto was, "honesty, candor, and independence," never stooping to trickery of any kind; and, during his last political canvasses, he almost discontinued his usual friendliness, for fear his motives might be misconstrued. His whole life, was one of uprightness, and he passed away universally respected. Judge Hawes was married, in November, 1818, to Hettie Morrison Nicholas, daughter of Col. George Nicholas, of Albemarle County, Virginia, who, also became one of the most distinguished lawyers and citizens of Kentucky.

NDERSON, JAMES A., Lawyer, was born January 19, 1832, in Garrard County, Ken- tucky. . His father, James Anderson, was a Virginian, came to this State in 1798, with his parents, and was a farmer. His mother, Sallie Edmondson, was a native of Garrard County, and daughter of John Edmondson, one of the pioneers from Virginia. James A. Anderson was educated chiefly at Lancaster Academy. In 1853, he began to write in the offices of the Clerk of the Garrard County and Cir- cuit Courts ; was so engaged for two years, passing his leisure in reading law; in 1855, went to Richmond, and continued his law study under Major S. Turner; in the following year, was admitted to the bar; in 1857, began the practice of his profession at Lancaster, associated with Mr. Turner, his preceptor; continued that connec- tion until 1861; in 1863, was first appointed and there- after elected County Attorney ; was re-elected in 1867, holding the office nine years. At the Presidential elec- tion preceding the war, he voted for Bell and Everett, and was county elector on that ticket. He is now iden-

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tified with the Democratic party. He is prominently con- nected with the Masonic fraternity ; stands high in his profession, and is noted for his integrity of character ; is strictly a self-made man, and an example of what can be accomplished by industry and a fixed purpose of mind. Mr. Anderson was married, November 20, 1860, to So- phia L. Dunlap, native of Shelby County, Kentucky, and daughter of Thomas G. and Catharine Dunlap.

IMPSON, CAPT. JOHN, Lawyer and Soldier, settled in Lincoln County, Kentucky, at a very early day, and was a native of Virginia. He first appears in the annals of Kentucky, and the border wars, in 1794, under Gen. Wayne, at the battle of Fallen Timbers. He subsequently located in Shelbyville ; studied law, and acquired con- siderable prominence in his profession. He was elected to the Legislature from Shelby County, in 1806; was several times re-elected, and, in 1811, was Speaker of the House. In 1812, he was elected to Congress; and, at the breaking out of the second war with England, entered the regiment of Col. John Allen, as captain of a company, and went to the re-enforcement of General Hull, at Detroit. He fell, bravely fighting by the side of Col. Allen, at the river Raisin.

COTT, JOHN, M. D., Physician, was born Au- gust 12, 1809, in Jessamine County, Kentucky. He was the fourth child of Thomas B. and Frances Scott, the former a native of Pennsyl- vania, and the latter of Baltimore, Maryland. His grandfather, John Two-Nine Scott, was an Irish Presbyterian ; came to America in 1775, and settled in Jessamine, then a part of Fayette County, Kentucky; was with Gen. Wayne in the Indian wars; and repre- sented Jessamine County in the State Legislature. He gave himself the peculiar name of "Two-Nine," by reason of his having commenced life with two shillings and ninepence. Thomas B. Scott, his father, led a quiet life as a farmer, never filling any public positions, but those of Assessor and Sheriff of his county. He died in 1850. His mother was the daughter of Dr. Richard Sappington, who was a surgeon in the war of the Rev- olution, and, after independence was established, prac- ticed medicine in Baltimore, Maryland, until his death. The subject of this sketch was raised on a farm, and re- ceived a thorough education in the best schools and academies of his county. In 1833, he commenced read- ing medicine at Nicholasville, under Dr. John L. Price; in 1834, '35, and '36, attended lectures in the medical department of Transylvania University; graduated in

the latter year from that institution; in the same year, located for practice at Kirksville, Madison County; in 1838 and 1839, practiced at Richmond; from 1850 to 1856, at Kirksville; from 1856 to 1864, in Randolph County, Missouri; in the latter year, returned to Rich- mond, where he has since resided, actively and success- fully engaged in the practice of his profession. He has contributed largely to the medical journals, and been one of the most progressive, active, and valuable physi- cians of the country. He has always been a Democrat in politics, and, during the civil war, took the side of the South in feelings and principles.

LACKBURN, LUKE P., M. D., Physician and Surgeon, was born June 16, 1816, in Woodford County, Kentucky. IIis father, Edward M. Blackburn, was educated as a lawyer, but soon abandoned the law, and became one of the most considerable farmers and stock-raisers in the State. His thorough-bred horses, and their descend- ants, have long been celebrated in America. The sub- ject of this sketch graduated in medicine in Transyl- vania University, and commenced the practice of his profession in Lexington, Kentucky; and there married Miss Ella Guest Boswell, daughterof Dr. Joseph Bos- well, of that place. When the cholera broke out, in 1835, at Versailles, Kentucky, and some of the resident physicians were dead, and others had fled from the town, he alone, for days, answered the call to Lexington for medical aid. His efforts were so successful, and his work so self-sacrificing, that, when the scourge had passed away, he was warmly pressed by the people of Versailles to locate among them. This dangerous serv- ice rendered the citizens of Versailles was without pecuniary compensation, and brought him deserved dis- tinction at the very beginning of his professional career. He removed to Versailles, and soon established an ex- tensive and lucrative practice. His circumstances be- came so favorable, that he also went into the manufac- ture of bagging and rope; but the financial depression of 1839 stopped his operations, and greatly involved him. In 1843, he was elected to the Legislature, de- feating his opponent by a large majority. In 1846, he removed to Natchez, Mississippi; and, although without means, soon acquired a very large and valuable practice, and gained considerable distinction over a great part of the South. In 1848, when yellow fever appeared in New Orleans, he was Health Officer at Natchez, and the city authorities directed him to establish quarantine, which he did effectually, and became so interested in the sufferings of the marines, for whom the General Government did not provide, as well as hundreds of others, that he built a hospital, at his own expense, in

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which he again established a reputation for personal daring, professional skill, and genuine philanthropy. Gov. Albert Y. Brown, member of Congress from Mis- sissippi, presented the card of Dr. Blackburn in Congress, and stated that the necessities of a marine hospital at Natchez were so great, that one of his constituents, at his own expense and risk, had taken charge of large numbers of the sufferers. A bill was at once passed, providing for the erection of the Natchez Hospital, and, finally, resulting in the establishment of ten other simi- lar institutions over the country. This result, of course, was largely due to his individual risks, and the value the Government attached to them. He was appointed surgeon to the new hospital, and, for many years, held that position, both in the State and Marine Hospital. He early advanced the theory of exemption from Asiatic Cholera, by the use of pure soft water; and has long been a believer in the transmissibility and infection of yellow fever ; and, in 1854, protected Natchez from that disease, by a rigid quarantine, when it prevailed in the surrounding country. The Legislature of Mississippi commissioned him to visit the Legislature of Louisiana, and urge that body to establish a quarantine below New Orleans. He presented his cause ably before both branches of the Louisiana Legislature, and was author- ized to establish, below New Orleans, the present quar- antine system. In 1855, his wife died; and, in 1857, he visited the principal hospitals of England, Scotland, France, and Germany. In Paris, he met Miss Julia M. Churchill, of Kentucky, to whom he was married, in November of that year, on their return to America. He then located in New Orleans, and resumed practice, with his usual exceptional success and popularity. When the war broke out, he had, far in advance, es- poused the cause of the South, and was the political friend and physician of Gen. J. A. Quitman, and, in fact, one of the original secessionists. He was at once attached, as surgeon, to the personal staff of Sterling Price, and the Legislature of Mississippi put fifty thou- sand dollars in his hands, to be applied to the benefit of the suffering soldiers of that State, wherever he might find them. Gov. Pettis now commissioned him to go to the borders, to superintend the furnishing of supplies by the blockade runners. He joined his family in Canada,

for the purpose of carrying out his commission. In 1864, by request of the Governor-General of Canada, he repaired to the Bermuda Islands, to look after the suffer- ing citizens and soldiers; and on his way was very flat- teringly received by the Governer-General of New Bruns- wick and Nova Scotia, also, by Sir Admiral Hope, of the British squadron ; and his services afterwards favor- ably recognized by the Queen's Court of Admiralty. In 1856, the yellow fever spread among many families in the vicinity of Fort Washington, on Long Island, from an infected ship; and Dr. Blackburn, then being

on a visit to New York, was invited, by the Mayor, to give his aid to the afflicted district, which he did, refus- ing all proffered compensation for his services. In 1867, he returned to the United States, and engaged in plant- ing, in Arkansas, where his wife has a plantation. In 1873, he returned to Kentucky, and now resides at Louisville, in the active practice of his profession. When the yellow fever last visited Memphis, he vol- unteered his aid, and rendered great service to the suffering of that city. This has been one of the great pleasures of his life, to aid those in extremest dangers; never having failed to respond to the call of the sick and distressed; and has actually combatted more epi- demics of cholera and yellow fever than any other living physician ; and probably no better authority on those fatal diseases is now known in the medical profession. Although somewhat beyond the prime of life, he is ac- tive and vigorous, and of splendid personal appearance, warm and quick in his impulses, but is never separated from his native dignity and courtesy. His brother, Hon. J. C. S. Blackburn, is a member of Congress from Ken- tucky; his brother, Maj. James Blackburn, is a member of the Kentucky Senate; and his only child is Dr. Cary Blackburn, a successful physician of Louisville.

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The Biographical encyclopaedia of Kentucky of the dead and living men of the nineteenth century, Part 25

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