The Biographical encyclopaedia of Kentucky of the dead and living men of the nineteenth century, Part 57

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

USA > Kentucky > The Biographical encyclopaedia of Kentucky of the dead and living men of the nineteenth century > Part 57

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

325

BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPÆDIA.

was married to Miss Julia A. Peck, daughter of Elder John Peck, of Madison County, New York, and, in two weeks, started for his new field, at Crawfordsville, In -- diana, where he at once began to preach and teach. For a year or more he taught a female school, and for several years rode over the country, preaching and build- ing churches; but, his health breaking under the climate, in 1845, he became pastor of the First Baptist Church, at Lexington, Kentucky, and removed to that city. He remained in charge of that Church for seventeen years. He was Corresponding Secretary of the Board of the General Association for Kentucky; and, the duties of the office becoming arduous, in 1862, he resigned his pastorate of the First Church, and devoted himself to the business of his office, and to preaching to several country Churches. In 1869, he removed to New Albany, Indiana, and was, for two years, pastor of Bank Street Baptist Church. He then bought a home on Broadway, in the city of Louisville, Kentucky, and for a while preached for the Broadway Baptist Church, and after- wards for the Walnut Street Church, and at the same time was connected with the wholesale book business. But, finding mercantile engagements interfering with his professional duties and inclinations, in 1871, he disposed of his interests in the book trade, and took charge of the Church at Shelbyville, Kentucky, and is now tem- porarily residing there. During his long residence in Fayette County, he was, for many years, School Com- missioner of the county ; also had charge, while there, for some time, of the Sunday-school and Book Concern of the Baptist denomination; and has, for years, been connected with the educational interests of the Church at Georgetown and elsewhere. In 1858, Madison Uni- versity, his Alma Mater, conferred on him the degree of D. D. During the rebellion, Dr. Pratt was an uncondi- tional Union man, and is now, politically, a Republican. He is an unpretending man, independent in his thoughts and manners, industrious, and usually conquers what he undertakes; has done a vast amount of hard work for his Church; and, although he has never made a charge for preaching, but has required his Churches to ful- fill their voluntary engagements, he has never lost a cent that was promised him by any Church. He is a man of fine personal appearance, greatly over medium stature, and of extraordinary powers of endurance. Dr. Pratt was again married, March 4, 1846, to Miss Mary E., eldest daughter of Rev. R. T. Dillard, D. D., of Fayette County, Kentuckey. They have five children, one of whom, William D. Pratt, is editor of the Logans- port (Indiana) "Journal;" and one daughter, Lizzie, is wife of William B. Dale, a farmer of Shelby County, Kentucky. Dr. Pratt is a man of fine business ability ; is an able speaker, having few cquals in his Church as a pulpit orator, and is also one of the most scholarly' min- isters of his denomination.

OGERS, COLEMAN, M. D., Physician and Surgeon, was born March 6, 1781, in Culpep- per County, Virginia, and was brought by his father, when six years old, to Fayette County, Kentucky. He was the seventh of twelve children, eleven of whom were boys; and, al- though being over six feet high, and weighing ncarly two hundred pounds, was the smallest of his father's family. He was educated with Dudley, Wickliffe, Fishback, Rowan, and Grundy, and, at the age of twenty-one, began the study of medicine at Lexington, under Dr. Samuel Brown, the first medical professor in Transylvania University, and was afterwards the special favorite and pupil of Dr. Charles Caldwell. In 1803, he entered the University of Pennsylvania, and attended two full courses of lectures, when, on account of lack of funds, he was compelled to return home before receiving his diploma, under the rigid terms there exacted. He located at Danville, and was taken into partnership by Dr. Ephraim McDowell. In 1810, he removed to the neighborhood of Lexington; in 1816, he returned to Philadelphia, and attended a thorough course of lec- tures ; in the following year, received the degree M. D .; on the organization of the medical department of the Transylvania University, and in the same year, was ap- pointed Adjunct Professor of Anatomy. In the twelve years of practice, he had acquired considerable experi- ence and skill in surgery and anatomy, and, added to his natural ability and fine qualifications as a teacher, his commanding person and fine address gave him great advantages in the outset of the new school. He soon resigned that position, and removed to Cincinnati, hav- ing been invited by Dr. Daniel Drake to unite with him in the practice of medicine; and this union seemed a fitting one, as he was practical, and aspired to surgical distinction, while Dr. Drake was a writer and projector, and sought eminence as a general practitioner ; and, al- though he was one of the corporators and one of the first professors in the Ohio Medical College, for some cause the connection was not congenial, and, after a single course, he threw up his appointment in the school. In the Spring of 1823, he removed to Louisville, where he soon found himself in the midst of a laborious prac- tice, which never slackened while he was able to pursue it. He took great interest in the Marine Hospital, and was one of its surgeons; in 1833, in connection with Professor Powell and some other medical men, procured a charter for the school called the Louisville Medical Institute, in which he was appointed to the Chair of Anatomy. His success as a general practitioner was very great, and, besides accumulating considerable prop- crty, he was enabled to educate, in a most liberal manner, one son and five daughters. His mind was robust, like his body ; he was bold, frank, manly, independent, and possessed of great dignity of manncr; was quick to rc-

326

BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPÆDIA.

sent offenses against himself or his profession; was scrupulous in the observance of every duty, to his brethren and to society, and was one of the most noted physicians of his day in Kentucky. He died in Louis- ville, February 16, 1855. Dr. Rogers was married, No- vember 3, 1805, to Miss Jane Farrar, who lived to share his fortunes and lighten his cares, until his children were all grown.

ATTERSON, PROF. JAMES KENNEDY, A. M., President of Agricultural and Mechani- cal College, Kentucky University, was born March 26, 1833, in Glasgow, Scotland. His father emigrated to America in 1842, and set- tled on a farm in Indiana in the following year. His ancestors figured prominently in the affairs of Scotland ; and the flag which some of them carried in the battle of Bothwell Bridge is still in existence. Before arriving in America, James K. Patterson had re- ceived but the merest rudiments of an education, and, from 1842 to 1849, passed the greater part of his time in study at his father's home. In 1851, he entered Hanover College, at Hanover, Indiana ; paid his own way by teaching, and graduated in 1856. From 1856 to 1859, he was Principal of the Greenville Presbyterian Academy, at Greenville, Kentucky ; in the latter year was elected Adjunct Professor of Languages in Stewart College, Tennessee; and, in the following year, Pro- fessor of Ancient Languages in the same institution. From 1861 to 1865, he was Principal of Transylvania High-school, at Lexington, Kentucky; and, on the con- solidation of Transylvania and Kentucky Universities, in the latter year, he was elected Professor of the Latin Language and Literature in the Kentucky University, which position he filled, with great distinction, till 1869, when he was appointed President of the Agricul- tural and Mechanical College, which office he still holds, in connection with the Morrison Professorship of Meta- physics and Civil History. In 1875, he was appointed, by Gov. Leslie, to represent Kentucky in the second meeting of the International Congress of Geographical Science, held in Paris, France, in the Autumn of that year. On his return, he made a report to the Legisla- ture, nine thousand copies of which were published at the expense of that body. In that year, he received the honorary degree of Doctor of Philosophy from his Alma Mater. In 1867, he declined the Chair of Greek in Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, and, in 1876, that of Latin, at Center College, Danville, Kentucky. Long prior to his appointment to his present position, he had given his leisure hours, with great success, to the study of Sanskrit, French, German, old High German, Anglo-Saxon, Gothic, and Hebrew; and these, with ethnology, have, of late years, occupied much of his

attention. He is a member of the Société Internationale des Sciences Géographiques. He has been a laborious student, and probably few men in the State at this day possess finer literary attainments; while, as a teacher, he probably has no superior in the country. From the commencement of his career, he has been prominently identified with the educational interests of Kentucky, and perhaps no scholar deserves or fills a higher place in the confidence of the people of the State. Few men possess a greater range of information, or more ability to bring it readily into use. His prominent position, so long held, as one of the heads of the first institution of the State, and his varied learning and ability as an ac- complished writer, give him rank among the first schol- ars of the day. He is a man of great culture and' re- finement of taste; of agreeable and attractive manners ; an open and declared Christian, in principle and prac- tice ; simple and exceptional in his habits, making no display of himself ; stands deservedly high among his associates, and in the community, in which he has long been prominent; and is possessed of those traits and qualifications which would give dignity to any position. Prof. Patterson was married, in 1859, to Lucelia Wing, daughter of the late Capt. Charles F. Wing, of Green- ville, Kentucky, a lady of fine literary taste, and one of the most elegant writers of the State. They have one living child.

- USSELL, JEHIEL LAMSON, M. D., son of Charles Russell, of Ohio, was born December 31, 1817, at Lebanon, Ohio. His father was a Virginian by birth ; went to Ohio at the begin- ning of the century, and died at Wilmington, in 1874. His mother, Mary McNabb, was a na- tive of the Isle of Man, and was brought, during child- hood, by her parents, to Ohio. He received a good education, and started out as book-keeper for his father, at the age of eighteen; wrote for several years in the office of the Clerk and Recorder of Clinton County, Ohio; in 1841, was married to Mary A. Crosby, daugh- ter of John Crosby, an extensive farmer of Mason County, Kentucky ; in the same year, began to read medicine, at Wilmington; continued his studies for two years, under the direction of the Warren County Medi- cal Institute; attended lectures at the Medical College of Ohio, and received his degree; and subsequently at- tended lectures at the Jefferson Medical College, Phila- delphia. But, in 1844, he entered regularly upon the practice of his profession, in his native town; in 1847, removed to Covington, Kentucky; in 1851, located at Maysville, Mason County, where he has since resided, actively devoted to the duties of his profession. He has given much special and successful attention to brain and nervous, and all chronic diseases, and stands de-

327

BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPÆDIA.

servedly high among the skillful physicians of Northern Kentucky. Dr. Russell has been a member of the Christian or Disciples' Church since boyhood, and has always been a man of exceptional personal and social habits. In politics, he has always been a Democrat, and was for many years, before the war, Chairman of the State Democratic Central Committee.

NDER WOOD, HON. WARREN LEWIS, Lawyer, was born August 17, 1808, in Gooch- land County, Virginia. William Thomas Un- derwood, his great-grandfather, came to this country from England in 1608; engaged in mer- cantile pursuits, and amassed a large fortune; his second wife was a Miss Taylor, and Thomas, the eldest child by this marriage, also married a Taylor for his second wife, and their second son, John Underwood, was the father of the subject of this sketch. His mother was Frances Rogers, a member of the well- known family of that name in Virginia and Kentucky. Both his father and grandfather represented Goochland County in the Legislature for many years, during the most eventful period in the history of that State. He received his early education in the schools of his native county ; came to Kentucky at the age of seventeen ; was subsequently sent to the University of Virginia, where he graduated in 1830, in both the literary and law de- partments, having obtained the first honors in law, mathematics, and modern languages in that institution. Soon after graduating, he located at Bowling Green, Warren County, Kentucky, and entered upon the prac- tice of the law. In 1833, he visited Texas, remaining in that Republic until 1840. He was appointed, by President Lamar, Attorney-General of the eastern dis- trict of Texas; declined a place in the Cabinet of Gen. Houston; returned to Bowling Green, in 1840, where he permanently located, and achieved marked success as an advocate, and took rank as one of the first politicians of the country. IIe was an active and influential leader of the old Whig party, and was an orator of high type. In 1848, he was elected to represent Warren County in the Legislature, and, in 1849, was elected to the State Senate, where he distinguished himself as a parliament- arian and debater; in 1855, after an exciting canvass, he was clected, over Hon. James P. Bates, to Congress, from the Third District; in 1857, was re-elected, defeat- ing Hon. Joseph H. Lewis, of Barren County, and was noted in his Congressional career as an able spcaker and legislator. In 1862, he was appointed, by President Lincoln, Consul to Glasgow, Scotland, holding the position two or three years; and, on returning from that office, located, with his family, in San Francisco. In 1866, he returned to his old home in Bowling Green,

Kentucky. In February, 1866, he was stricken with paralysis, and suffered more or less until his death, which occurred March 12, 1872. He was a man of strong convictions and undeviating purpose; was distinguished for his urbane and genial manners ; was a lawyer of more than usual legal acquirements ; as a politician, he was devoted to the maintenance of the great principles of constitutional law, and the liberties of the people, and was every-where generous, upright, and public-spirited ; and was one of the most valuable men of his day in Southern Kentucky.

USEY, ROBERT B., M. D., son of Joel and Anna (Roop) Pusey, both Marylanders, was born September 24, 1836, in Meade County, Kentucky. He was educated at Brandenburg, in this State, and at the age of ninetecn began the study of medicine, with his brother, Dr. H. K. Pusey, of Garnettsville. With him he spent three years ; and, in 1858, entered Jefferson Medical College, at Philadelphia, where he graduated in 1860. In the same year he located at Elizabethtown, Kentucky, where he has since resided, with a large, growing, and success- ful practice. He is a member of the Hardin County Medical Society, and is an occasional contributor to the medical literature of the day. Several of his brothers are physicians, and one or two of them were educated in medicine by him. He is a man of fine habits, fine ability ; a hard worker; of quick perception, and most active temperament ; is hardly ever still ; a man who would stand among the leaders of his profession ; and, being barely in the prime of life, the profession and the community may expect much from him. He is promi- nent in some of the social organizations of the day, and a member of the Methodist Church. Dr. Pusey was married, in 1864, to Miss Belle Brown, daughter of A. M. Brown, of Elizabethtown.

OOT, HON. IRA, Lawyer, was born May 4, 1806, in Piermont, New Hampshire. He came West at the age of eighteen; first settled in Ohio; completed his education at Miami Univer- sity ; afterwards located in Newport, Kentucky ; studied law ; was admitted to the bar, and prac- ticed his profession successfully up to a few months be- fore his death. Mr. Root was married, December 25, 1834, to Sarah Ann Perry, daughter of David Perry, of Newport, Kentucky. He was a man of fine talents; was distinguished as an orator, at the bar and in the public assembly; filled high positions in his adopted State; was often elected to the Legislature; and was a

328

BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPÆDIA.

member of the Constitutional Convention of 1849, which framed the present Constitution of Kentucky. He was always a pronounced advocate of emancipation, and a determined enemy to slavery. While a member of the Kentucky Legislature, he distinguished himself by lay- ing the foundation for the present common-school system of the State. He was the friend of education, and de- voted a great deal of his time and attention to the sub- ject in his own community; and, from the time the New- port common-schools were organized to the last years of his life, he was some way connected with their manage- ment, as examiner, member, or presiding officer of the Board. Although greatly devoted to Kentucky, as his adopted State, he never forgot or ceased to respect New Hampshire, where he was born, and passed the first years of his life. Mr. Root was loyal to our Government dur- ing the great civil war. He died, at his residence in Newport, February 12, 1868, greatly regretted and cs- teemed by a large community, in which he had long been a prominent and useful member.

RAY, BEN B., Deputy Collector of Internal Revenue for the Fifth District of Kentucky, son of Robert B. Gray, and one of the most energetic business men of Henry County, was born October 11, 1837, in Trimble County, Kentucky. He was chiefly educated, like his father, in the private schools of the county, but after- wards took a partial course in Henry Male Seminary, at New Castle. He worked on the farm with his father ; imbibed his principles, and learned to imitate his busi- ness habits; and during the great rebellion, in which men of grit and force were brought to the surface, and sought for as men for the emergency, he was made Pro- vost-Marshal of Henry County, and filled the position during the entire war, with great credit to himself. He is now a Justice of the Peace in his county, and has held the position for several years. Without pretense, he is a politician of ability. In politics, as in every thing else, he goes in to win, and his efforts are directed to that end. He has been for many years proprietor of the Gray House, at New Castle; superintends the work on his farm, and conducts the business of his collectorship, and other interests. He is Chairman of the Republican Executive Committee, and is virtually leader of that party, in the county. He was the only man in Henry County who advocated the re-election of Gen. Grant ; and, in 1872, was a delegate to the National Convention in Philadelphia, where President Grant was re-nomina- ted. He is a man of great executive ability and per- sonal daring ; of unflinching devotion to his principles, which he is free to announce and defend ; is decidedly a

man of spirit, and one who would make his mark, even in the piping times of peace and social stagnation. Ben B. Gray was married to Miss Mattie A. Pollard, of Henry County, March 14, 1861. They have two children.

URNER, HON. THOMAS, Lawyer, was born September 10, 1821, at Richmond, Madison County, Kentucky; and was the son of 'Squire Turner, a distinguished lawyer of his day. His grandfather, Thomas Turner, was a soldier in the war of the Revolution. Thomas Turner received his early education at Richmond Academy, and afterwards entered Centre College, where he graduated, in 1840, with distinction as a scholar, and with the highest honors of the Chamberlain Society of that insti- tution. He studied law with his father; was admitted to practice in 1841; graduated in Transylvania Law School in the following year; remained at Richmond, actively engaged in his profession, until in the Fall of 1854, when he located at Mt. Sterling, where he has since resided. From 1846 to 1849, he was Common- wealth's Attorney ; and, from 1861 to 1863, was a mem- ber of the Lower House of the State Legislature. He went out during the Mexican War, and, under Col. Humphrey Marshall, served with credit at the battle of Buena Vista. He is a prominent member of several social organizations; is a fine public speaker; is a lawyer of ability, and stands among the first members of his profession in Central Kentucky. Mr. Turner has been twice married: first, October 25, 1854, to Miss Mary B. Everitt ; and to his present wife, Miss Henrietta Rob- ertson, December 31, 1857. From the first marriage, he has one daughter living, and, by the last, seven sons and one daughter.

EPPEN, JOHN L., Merchant, was born July 19, 1824, in the town of Hopster, Westphalia, Prussia; and was the son of George Henry Deppen, a clothier of Hopster. He received . his early education in Prussia, and afterwards attended school, for several years, in Ohio, to which State his father had emigrated. In 1842, he went to Louisville, and began clerking in a clothing-house for his brother Henry, remaining with him five years. In 1849, he began business, as a clothier, for himself, on the corner of Market and Fifth Streets, and succeeded far beyond his most sanguine expectations. In 1856, he removed to the corner of Fourth and Market Streets, and has continued there, with a steady growth of busi- ness, until his ranks among the largest clothing-houses and merchant tailoring establishments in the South- west. In 1873, he took his son in as a partner, and

329

BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPAEDIA.

now the house is known as J. L. Deppen & Son. They publish a paper, called "Deppen's Monthly," which has reached a circulation of ten thousand copies. John L. Deppen is extensively known as a safe merchant; he has never been sued, nor has he ever been a witness in court ; always cautious and active, never having a note protested, or suffering a bill to be presented that he could not pay. He never indorsed or went security for any one, nor asked such a favor. He commenced life with nothing, and, through his economy, enterprise, and shrewd business tact, has accumulated a fortune. He is one of the Directors in the German Bank of Louis- ville; is a member of the Catholic Church; and is highly respected and esteemed by the community. Mr. Deppen was married, in February, 1847, to Miss Sarah Givens; after her death he was married, in 1859, to Miss Henrietta Breckmann.

RVINE, COL. WILLIAM, was a native of Virginia, and one among the early settlers of Kentucky. He built Irvine's Station, in Mad- ison County ; took part in most of the bloody encounters with the Indians; was engaged in "Estill's Defeat," at Little Mountain, in Mont- gomery County, in 1782, in which he was severely wounded ; and, although living for thirty-eight years after that fatal engagement, the balls were never ex- tracted from his body. On the organization of Madison County, he became Clerk of the Quarter Sessions and County Courts; was afterwards made Clerk of the Cir- cuit Court, and continued to hold the offices until his death ; was elected to the Legislature of Virginia from the district of Kentucky ; was a delegate to the conven- tions held at Danville, looking to the organization of the new State ; was a member of the convention of 1799, which framed the second Constitution of the State; and was, at several times, Presidential Elector. He died in 1820, and was one of the most beloved and valuable men of his day.

OOLFOLK, EDMUND TAYLOR, Lawyer and Merchant, was born July 4, 1828, in Oldham County, Kentucky. His father, Samuel Wool- folk, was a lawyer of some distinction in Meade and Hancock Counties, and is still living. His family emigrated from Virginia, where they were among the old residents of Caroline County. E. T. Woolfolk received a liberal education, which he com- pleted at Centre College, Danville, Kentucky, in 1844. After leaving college, he commenced business as a banker and merchant, and, in 1846, entered the army, in the war with Mexico; served under Gen. W. O. But-

ler, and participated in the battles of Monterey, Equa Frio, and other engagements, and, in 1848, returned to mercantile pursuits, in Louisville, Kentucky ; from 1852 to 1857, he was engaged in river business; at the break- ing out of the civil war, entered the Confederate army ; was, a great part of the time, on general staff duty, serving under Gen. Clebourne, Gen. Polk, and other of- ficers, and participating in most engagements of the Army of the Tennessee, and was finally surrendered at Greensburg, North Carolina. In 1865, he began farm- ing, near Paducah, with a view to recovering his broken fortunes, and, in 1866, was elected Judge of McCracken County Court, to which position he has been continually re-elected, during the greater part of the time being also justice of the peace. Mr. Woolfolk was married, in 1850, to Miss M. Enders, daughter of Robert Enders, long one of the most influential business men of Padu- cah. They have one living child.

Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.

The Biographical encyclopaedia of Kentucky of the dead and living men of the nineteenth century, Part 57

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