USA > Maryland > Genealogical and memorial encyclopedia of the state of Maryland, a record of the achievements of her people in the making of a commonwealth and the founding of a nation, Volume II > Part 11
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A brother of Bernard Gilpin was William Gilpin, from whom the Baltimore branch of the family is descended. He married Elizabeth Washington, of Hall Heal, a collateral ancestress of George Washington, first president of the United States. William Gilpin died and was buried at Kendal, January 23, 1577.
(I) Thomas Gilpin, of Warborough, was a colonel in the Parliamentary army and fought at the battle of Worcester, September 3, 1651. He afterward joined the Society of Friends, and for forty years was a preacher.
(II) Joseph Gilpin, son of Thomas Gilpin, was the founder of the American branch of the family. He was born in 1664, and, like his father, was a Friend. In 1696 he emi- grated to the Province of Pennsylvania and settled in Chester county, his home in England having been in Dorchester, county of Oxford. In the new land, Joseph Gilpin, after the manner of Friends, lived in perfect harmony and friendship with his Indian neighbors. It has been believed and handed down that his philanthropy and patriotism were not surpassed by any in the country. Great numbers of emigrants, princi- pally Friends, on coming over, were kindly received and enter- tained at his house week after week, and he cheerfully de- voted a good portion of his time for several years in assisting them to find suitable situations and to get their lands properly cleared. Part of his house is still standing, and the last of the property passed out of the family less than fifty years ago. It was situated at Birmingham meeting-house, on the Brandy- wine, and the house is said to have been the headquarters of General Howe. Joseph Gilpin married, February 23, 1692, Hannah Glover, and among their children were two sons: Samuel, from whom was descended William Gilpin, a gov- ernor of Colorado; Joseph, mentioned below. Joseph Gilpin, the emigrant, died November 9, 1741.
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(III) Joseph (2) Gilpin, son of Joseph (I) and Hannah (Glover) Gilpin, was born March 21, 1704, and in 1761 re- moved to Wilmington. He married, December 17, 1729, Mary Caldwell, and they were the parents of twelve children, in- cluding a son Gideon, mentioned below. Joseph Gilpin, the father, died December 31, 1792.
To this generation of the Gilpins belongs a name illus- trious in art, that of Benjamin West, who succeeded Sir Joshua Reynolds as president of the Royal Academy. John West, the father of Benjamin, was the son of Thomas and Ann (Gil- pin) West, the latter the sister of Thomas Gilpin, of War- borough, the Parliamentary colonel.
It is probable that to this generation belongs also George Gilpin, a descendant of Joseph Gilpin, the emigrant. George Gilpin settled in Alexandria and was a friend of Washington. At the breaking out of the Revolutionary War he was made colonel of the Fairfax Militia and was present at the battle of Dorchester Heights. After the war he was interested with Washington in some navigation experiments on the Potomac, and at the funeral of the first president George Gilpin was one of the pall-bearers.
(IV) Gideon Gilpin, son of Joseph (2) and Mary (Cald- well) Gilpin, was born December 4, 1738, and married, De- cember 1, 1762, Sarah Gregg. They were the parents of eight children of whom the eldest was Bernard, mentioned below. Gideon Gilpin died August 20, 1825.
(V) Bernard Gilpin, son of Gideon and Sarah (Gregg) Gilpin, was born October 27, 1763, and about 1800 removed from Chad's Ford, Pennsylvania, to Maryland, the homestead he founded there having been ever since in the possession of the family. He married (first) August 21, 1793, Sarah Thomas, who at her death left seven children. Mr. Gilpin married (second) August 24, 1807, Letitia Gilbert, and of
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their nine children the youngest was Bernard, mentioned be- low. Bernard Gilpin, the father, died August 18, 1847, in the eighty-fourth year of his age.
(VI) Bernard (2) Gilpin, son of Bernard (1) and Letitia (Gilbert) Gilpin, was born March 5, 1826, at Sandy Spring, a Friends' settlement, in Montgomery county, Maryland. His early education was such as would have fitted him to follow the calling of a farmer, but as this line of work did not appeal to him he went to Baltimore at the age of seventeen years to seek other employment. His first position was as a clerk in the retail drug business of C. B. Barry, and in 1846 he entered the service of E. H. Stabler & Company. Some years later he established himself in the wholesale drug business in asso- ciation with James Baily, later becoming a member of the firm of Canby, Gilpin & Company, with which he was connected for many years. He was a broad-minded man and interested in widely diversified objects. One field of public benefit in which he was an active participant was the furthering of plans for inducing emigrants to settle in Maryland, but the West seemed to offer such superior inducements that he finally abandoned his ideas in this direction. He traveled extensively through the United States, making several trips to the Pacific coast, and his letters during these trips show literary ability of no mean order.
As an energetic business man and a citizen seriously in- terested in the public welfare, Mr. Gilpin's influence was felt in numerous directions. The assistance which he gave to all charitable enterprises, in personal activity as well as financial contributions, endeared him to the hearts of many. In manner he was quiet and unobtrusive, but his dignity and force of character made him a power to be reckoned with in all mat- ters with which he was concerned. His political affiliations were with the Whig party until its dissolution, when he joined
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the Republicans. His parents having been Friends, Mr. Gil- pin had been trained in the doctrines of that denomination, but his opinions were liberal and non-sectarian, and he be- lieved that the true part of religion was toleration and good will toward all mankind.
Mr. Gilpin married, November 19, 1851, Mary Bernard, of Baltimore, and they became the parents of three sons : Henry Brooke; Bernard, Jr., who went to the Rocky Moun- tains as an explorer and surveyor for the United States gov- ernment when he was but seventeen years of age, settled at the eastern base of the mountains; and Frank.
In appearance Mr. Gilpin strikingly resembled the great ancestor whose name he bore, Bernard Gilpin, "The Apostle of the North." Portraits of the two men show the same type of feature, and it is worthy of remark that the race of the Gil- pins has to an unusual extent transmitted, through many gen- erations, the same facial characteristics.
Mr. Gilpin died May 7, 1897, at his home in Baltimore. For half a century he was honorably known in the financial, social and commercial circles of the Monumental City, and has left behind him the revered memory of a useful and un- selfish life, in all respects worthy of the noble stock from which he sprang.
WILLIAM KEYSER
THERE is no particular period in the life of William Keyser, long one of Baltimore's noblest citizens, which can be selected as the most important and conspicuous, but if it were possible to do so, the period 1871-1881, during which he was a vice-president of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad could be named. This period is not only remarkable for the important part he took in the extension of the road to Chi- cago and in the great improvements in its physical condition, but for the spirit of consideration and mutuality he instilled into the management and the spirit of loyalty he inspired in the men. He had been engaged in business and in manufac- turing on a large scale, and when he assumed the second vice- presidency of the Baltimore & Ohio, he brought to the office the viewpoint of the merchant, the manufacturer and the shipper, something unusual in a railroad official at that time. Thus, when apparent deadlock would arise between the com- pany and shippers, it was Mr. Keyser's intimate knowledge of the rights and needs of both parties to the argument, his spirit of fairness, and love of justice that was depended upon to harmonize the conflicting elements and bring peace with honor. His genial humor and kindly disposition endeared him to the men, and in 1877, when a great railroad strike paralyzed the nation, he went from point to point on the Baltimore & Ohio system conferring with the men, and it was largely through his personal, friendly relations with them that the difficulties were adjusted as far as his own road was con- cerned. He often appeared before the legislatures of states and councils of cities in behalf of the road, and the town of Keyser, West Virginia, is one of the monuments to this period of his life.
To a business career of great achievement, Mr. Keyser
V
THE NEW YORK JR .. CARARY
. . CNOX ANA DEN FOUNDATIONE
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added public service of unusual value, holding to high ideals and standing like a rock against corruption and narrow part- isanship, yet he was never a candidate for office, although for many years a leading figure in local politics. He did not often appear upon public platforms, but wielded a trenchant pen, and could always be found using his influence in behalf of good measures before Legislature or Council and opposing those he deemed detrimental to the public good. When Baltimore lay prostrate after the great fire of 1904, he at once planned to rebuild the structures he had lost, and as general chairman of the Emergency Committee, appointed by the Mayor, he was indefatigable in his efforts to have that committee successfully perform its duties. There was no phase of Baltimore's business, educational or civic life, which did not appeal to him, and his civic pride ran high.
Mr. Keyser traced in direct paternal line to the Keysers of Raab, a town on the Danube in Hungary, where they were known to have resided in the sixteenth century. One of the family, a priest, became a convert to the principles of Luther and Zwingli, was tried for heresy and burned at the stake at Scharding, Bavaria, in June, 1527. The family, to escape persecution, fled to Crefeld on the Rhine, later locating in Amsterdam, Holland, where four generations were merchants and manufacturers. Dirck Gerritsz Keyser, a Morocco leather manufacturer of Amsterdam, son of Dircksz Keyser, married Cornelia, daughter of Tobias van den Wyngaert, a Mennonite minister, one of the signers of the third Mennonite Confession in 1632. They were the parents of Dirck Keyser, the founder of the family in America.
Dirck Keyser, the American ancestor, was born in Amster- dam in 1635, and married at Buickesloot, near Amsterdam, November 22, 1668, Elizabet ter Himpel. He was a manu- facturer of silk there until 1688, when, having lost his wife,
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he joined a party coming to America, and the same year set- tled with his three children at Germantown, then a suburb, now a part of the city of Philadelphia. The party with which he came purchased a large tract from William Penn and divided it into fifty portions of fifty-five acres each, Dirck Keyser receiving lot No. 22 on which he built a stone house yet standing. He acquired other lands and was one of the leading men of the village. He died there in 1714.
Pieter Dirck Keyser, born in Amsterdam, November 26, 1676, married, September 4, 1700, in Germantown, Pennsyl- vania, Margaret Souplis, born 1682, daughter of Andrew Souplis, a burgher of New York, and his wife, Anneke Souplis, and died in Germantown, in 1724.
Dirck Keyser, born September 26, 1701, died January 8, 1756. He married, in 1725, Alitje de Neuss, daughter of Jan and Elizabeth de Neuss.
Michael Keyser, born August 30, 1745, died October 5, 1825. He married, November 25, 1767, Catherine Knorr, who died July 28, 1828.
Samuel Keyser, born December 3, 1778, in Germantown, died November 6, 1839, in Baltimore. He married, in 1804, Mary Stouffer, daughter of John Stouffer, of Baltimore, formerly of York county, Pennsylvania.
Samuel Stouffer Keyser, father of William Keyser, was born February 18, 1805, and died February 18, 1871. He married, 1834, Elizabeth Wyman, daughter of William Wy- man, of Lowell, Massachusetts.
On his mother's side, Mr. Keyser was descended from Francis Wyman and Elizabeth Richardson (married 1614), of West Mill, near Buntingford, Hertfordshire, England, whose son, Francis, born 1617, together with his brother John, emigrated to America and settled first at Charlestown, Massa- chusetts. He was one of a party appointed to explore the
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country north of what is now Boston, and one of the original settlers of Woburn, Massachusetts, in 1640. He was a large land owner in that town, fought in the Indian wars, and had a son killed in King Philip's War in 1676. He married Abigail Read, in 1650, and died at Woburn, 1699. Their son, William Wyman, born at Woburn, 1656, died 1705, married Prudence Putnam, of Lynn. Their son, Joshua Wyman, born at Woburn, 1692, died 1770, married Mary Pollard. Their son, William Wyman, born 1739, married, 1765, Mary Griggs, and died at Roxbury in 1820. He was a captain in Patterson's regiment at the battle of Bunker Hill. Their son, William Wyman, of Lowell, was born in Roxbury, 1782, married, in 1806, Ruth Davis, daughter of Colonel Aaron Davis, of Roxbury, and died in Lowell, 1864. Their daugh- ter, Elizabeth Wyman, born in Lowell, 1812, married Samuel Stouffer Keyser, 1834, and died in Philadelphia, February 18, 1886.
The children of Samuel Stouffer and Elizabeth (Wyman) Keyser were: 1 and 2. Samuel and William, twins, born No- vember 23, 1835; Samuel married Julia Therese Keyser, 1868, and died in New York, April 7, 1906. 3. Henry Irvine, born December 16, 1837, married Mary Washington, 1864, and died May 7, 1916. 4. Sarah Elizabeth, born November 17, 1839, married John Worthington Williams, of Philadelphia, 1863.
William Keyser, of the eighth generation, son of Samuel Stouffer and Elizabeth (Wyman) Keyser, was born in Balti- more, Maryland, November 23, 1835, and died at his country estate, "Brentwood," near Reisterstown, Baltimore county, Maryland, June 3, 1904. He was educated in private Balti- more schools and St. Timothy's School at Catonsville, be- ginning his long and eminent business career in the counting room of his father's firm, Samuel S. Keyser & Company, iron
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importers of Baltimore, in April, 1852. His father's health having become impaired, he soon became the leading spirit in the business, and two years later his brother, Henry Irvine Keyser, joined him. In 1857 Samuel S. Keyser retired; the style of the firm was changed to Keyser, Troxell & Company, and the place of business moved from Pratt and South streets to Calvert and German streets, then known as Lovely lane. A large three-story warehouse was erected upon the old site which stood until destroyed by the fire of 1904, when the site was taken by the city in the widening of Pratt street and the new docks. In addition to his large private business, William Keyser, about 1857, when twenty-two years of age, was ap- pointed receiver of the Laurel Cotton Mill, a trust he admin- istered so ably that the mill regained its former financial stand- ing. About the same time he was associated with Horace Abbott in the affairs of a shipbuilding firm, having a con- tract to build a war sloop, the "Dakota," which contract Mr. Keyser completed satisfactorily and the vessel became a part of the United States Navy.
He had during these years become well known in the business world and his responsibilities were numerous and weighty. In 1865 he became one of the incorporators of the Abbott Iron Company, operating a large rolling mill and plant at Canton near Baltimore, and as chairman of its execu- tive committee was potent in the successful management of the plant, then employing one thousand men in making rails, boilers and armor plate. He was connected with the company for several years, then transferred his activity to the Baltimore Copper Company, became its president and directed its affairs, organizing a special partnership of Pope, Cole & Company of which John W. Garrett, Johns Hopkins and himself were the special partners. During this period he took a part in the establishment of the first Baltimore line of transatlantic line
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of steamers, an enterprise which failed, but fifteen years later Mr. Keyser took an active part in establishing the successful Johnston Line. In 1870 the firm of Keyser, Troxell & Com- pany reorganized as Keyser Brothers & Company, and a new warehouse, fronting on German street, just east of Calvert, was erected. He was elected president of the Northwestern Vir- ginia Railroad Company, better known as the Parkersburg branch of the Baltimore & Ohio system, in 1870, and at the same time was offered the second vice-presidency of the Balti- more & Ohio Railroad Company, but declined. He accepted election to that post in 1871, his friendship with John W. Garrett, president of the road, and Johns Hopkins, the great Baltimore financier, causing him to accept the post previously declined.
As second vice-president, besides being in charge of the physical condition of the road, his duties were largely main- taining friendly and amicable relations with official bodies and officials of the various states through which the road passed. He thus made the acquaintance of many public men and ac- complished a great work in popularizing the company through his fair dealing with the various communities. He also spent much time on the road in charge of the construction of the Chicago extension and acting as president of subsidiary lines. He personally conducted the negotiations with the strikers, in 1877, was continuously on the line for three weeks, meeting angry men face to face and retaining their respect, although obliged to deny their demands. It was a most congenial work in which he found himself engaged, having the confidence of the management of the road and the good will of the men. In 1880 his health began to fail, and under the advice of his doctor he took a trip to Europe, and in 1881 he retired from the service. During his railroad career he was from 1870 for several years a director of the Western Maryland Railroad Company and chairman of the finance committee.
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After retiring from the Baltimore & Ohio, he made an extended tour of Europe, and upon his return the business of Keyser Brothers & Company was wound up and the ware- house at German and Calvert streets was changed into an office building. In 1885 he organized the Baltimore Copper Smelting & Rolling Company, became its first president and held that office until his death. He also accepted the presi- dency of the Old Dominion Copper Company owning mines and smelters in Arizona, and for fifteen years was closely identified with the copper industry ; established close relations with the Anaconda Copper Company of Montana, the product of the great Anaconda mine being refined at the works of the Baltimore Company and sold through their agencies. At the Canton plant of the company, copper ores from all over the world were smelted, and in the conduct of his business Mr. Keyser made frequent trips West and abroad. He was closely associated with James B. Haggin, the Montana Copper mag- nate, and in 1889 represented the Anaconda Company in its negotiations with the Secretan Copper Syndicate in Paris, be- ing in Paris at the time of the dramatic failure of the Syndi- cate. In 1892 he organized the Baltimore Electric Refining Company at Canton, one of the largest electrolytic refineries of copper in the world, the superior product of the company going principally to Europe. Later that company was com- bined with the Baltimore Copper Smelting & Rolling Com- pany. He was the first president of the South Baltimore Car Works, with a plant at Curtis Bay, was a director of the West Virginia Central & Pittsburgh Railroad, also returned to the Baltimore & Ohio as a director, was a director of the Western Maryland, serving for some time as chairman of the finance committee, served on the directorates of the National Me- chanics Bank, the National Union Bank of Maryland, and other corporations. These are the bright lights only in a busi-
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ness career of nearly half a century during which Mr. Keyser became a power in finance and manufacturing, and a whole- some, elevating, influence. His conservatism rendered him a factor of safety in the business world, and he often took occasion to warn his friends of various dangerous speculations. He was much sought for in advice, and from his rich ex- perience he gave freely. His genial, kindly, humorous nature made him a most pleasant man with whom to transact business, his associates esteeming him very highly. As the years swept on he gradually withdrew from active business, and from 1895 until his death he gave himself chiefly to his private invest- ments and real estate interests, not from a desire to retire but on account of his failing health.
Eminence in business life carried with it other responsi- bilities, and these Mr. Keyser gladly assumed as presented. In his earlier life he was a member of the Franklin Literary Society; a director of the Maryland Institute when twenty- one years of age; also the Mercantile Library; a trustee of the McDonogh Fund, interested in the school maintained by that fund, connected with the Enoch Pratt Library, and the Hannah More Academy at Reisterstown, the latter holding his interest all through life, one of his favored objects of aid. In 1898, with his cousin, William Wyman, each donating sixty acres, he began the Homewood movement in the interest of Johns Hopkins University, and during the ensuing five years he gave much time and energy to the development of Home- wood and the adjacent Wyman Park. After the great fire of February 7, 1904, he was appointed chairman of the Emer- gency Committee and threw himself unreservedly into the work of rehabilitation. He was himself a heavy loser, but with cheerful optimism he at once planned to rebuild, began the crusade for wider streets in the burnt district while the fire was still raging, and the first land acquired by the city in the street widening plan was donated by William Keyser.
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He was a great reader and student, acquiring an intimate knowledge of both French and German, spoken and written, after passing his thirtieth year. He traveled a great deal both on business and pleasure bent, visiting Europe frequently and going to both Egypt and the Holy Land. He kept his private yacht "Kaleda" and made many cruises with his family and friends south and north along the Atlantic coast. The country appealed to him, and from 1885 his home was beautiful "Brentwod," a farm near Reisterstown, Baltimore county, situated on a hill above the upper Patapsco River. There he spent his summers, Baltimore his winter home.
A Democrat in politics, he was extremely independent, and with other reformers of the city waged long and relentless warfare against the Democratic organization and all "powers that prey." He was a prominent figure notwithstanding he never would accept office. He made his appeal to civic pride and patriotism, and he brought about results in government most beneficial to city and State. In 1882 he was one of the committee of five in charge of the New Judge movement, the first successful effort to break the power of the Democratic Ring after the Civil War. In 1883, in an attempt to accom- plish "reform within the party," he served as chairman of the Democratic City Committee. He accomplished much through the Reform League organized in 1885; he became chairman of its executive committee in 1894, and in many campaigns was foremost with the League in battling for purity of the ballot box and the election of the best men. He held exalted ideas of good government and civic virtue, and to him may largely be traced the downfall of ballot box stuffing, roughing the polls and other practices and crimes frequent during the halcyon days of Ring rule in Baltimore, now happily passed into oblivion. He ever evinced a fondness for political life, and while vice-president of the Baltimore & Ohio, directed
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the political policy of the company. As chairman of the Dem- ocratic City Committee he gained close knowledge of gang political methods, and when he came into conflict with the same powers he was thoroughly furnished for the fray. The "New Judge" fight was one of the most remarkable campaigns ever waged in the city and in it Mr. Keyser was closely allied with Robert T. Baldwin, president of the Mechanics Na- tional Bank, John K. Cowen, and other prominent citizens. He was active in the campaign of 1885 and in successive cam- paigns until 1897, when as chairman of the executive com- mittee of the Reform League he joined with many other prominent men in supporting the Republican nominees, a course of action which resulted in the final overthrow of the Democratic managers. After accomplishing that result, he undertook the task of bringing new men to the front in that party, and to that end urged the nomination and supported the election of Thomas G. Hayes for mayor. He was bitterly opposed to the election law passed at a special session of the Legislature in 1901, and never ceased his opposition to the Democratic managers responsible for its passage. During the campaigns of 1901 and 1903, he openly supported and worked hard for the Republican nominees. In 1903 he brought about the nomination of Robert M. McLane for mayor, and during the session of the Legislature, 1903-04, he appeared frequently at Annapolis in opposition to the proposed law abolishing spring elections in Baltimore and to the Wilson Disfranchising Bill. He was president of the Reform League at the time of his death, had also been vice-president of the Maryland Civil Service Reform Association, and in 1898 was one of the leaders of the New Charter Union. He gave largely of his means as well as of his time to the cause of reform, was always ready to respond to any deserving call made upon him, no good work sought his co-operation in vain, but he was most unosten-
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