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 22
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General John Gill, son of Richard Wardsworth and Anna Franklin (Deale) Gill, was born in Annapolis, Maryland, August 15, 1841, died, while sojourning for the benefit of his health on the New Jersey coast, at Ventnor, Atlantic City, July 2, 1912. He was in his eleventh year when his honored father died, but this did not interfere with his plans for an education. After preparation at St. John's College, Ann- apolis, and four years at Lawrenceville, New Jersey, whence he was graduated in 1859, he entered the University of Vir- ginia in 1860. Less than a year after matriculation he left the university to enlist in the Confederate Army, he then being in his twentieth year. He was one of the first students to re- spond to the call of the South, joining the Maryland Guard. This regiment did not go to the front immediately, however, and filled with enthusiasm on behalf of the South, and eager to face the hardships and danger of a soldier's life, he, with a few companions, made his way to Richmond. There he enlisted in Captain William H. Murray's Company, in the First Maryland Regiment, Confederate States Army. He served for more than a year in that regiment and took part in many battles. After receiving a slight wound in the cheek at the battle of Cross Keys, Private Gill left the infantry to join Company A, Maryland Cavalry, and served through the war with that command. He was brought frequently in contact with Lee, Jackson, Early, and other Confederate leaders, and soon earned for himself an enviable reputation for bravery, intelligence and resourcefulness. He was engaged in the bat- tles of Manassas, Front Royal, Winchester, Cross Keys, Seven Days, Cedar Mountain, Spottslyvania Court House, the Wil- derness, Sharpsburg, Gettysburg, Trenlinns Station, Yellow Tavern, Brandy Station, Culpeper, and the final struggle about Richmond, when Lee surrendered to Grant. General Gill's coolness under fire and his faithful performance of duty
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won for him frequent commendation from the Southern lead- ers. General Fitzhugh Lee, General Commander of Cavalry of the Army of Virginia, on whose staff he was, and under whom General Gill served for three years, said, in an auto- graph letter which was one of General Gill's treasured posses- sions, that he "would have been glad to lead five thousand men like John Gill against ten thousand of the enemy."
At the termination of the great struggle General Gill returned to Maryland, his native State, to take up the struggle for life, and to assist in the reconstruction of the South. After carefully studying the field, General Gill decided upon the mercantile profession and immediately identified himself with the grain trade. He associated himself with James Knox, under the firm name of Knox & Gill, and this firm probably did more than any other to establish for Baltimore the reputa- tion of being one of the greatest grain markets in the country. This partnership was dissolved in 1871, General Gill con- tinuing in the business under the name John Gill & Company, but after two years the General associated himself with Charles D. Fisher, under the firm name Gill & Fisher. The history of this firm has been the history of the grain trade of Balti- more, its activities continually expanding and its prosperity increasing, carrying the name of Baltimore as a grain market far and wide.
When in 1887 General Gill became president of the Mer- cantile Trust & Deposit Company, he retired from the firm, Gill & Fisher, and severed his connection with the grain trade, although his successors still retain the name. In 1880 General Gill with a number of other local capitalists formed the Mer- cantile Trust & Deposit Company. He then became its presi- dent and continued to serve in that office until two years before his death, when he resigned. In the beginning the company did business in a few small rooms in a basement on South
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street, about where the First National Bank now stands. Under the stimulus of General Gill's vigor the present commodious home of the company at Calvert and German streets was built, and under his direction the company prospered. In building it up General Gill drew around him some of the ablest finan- ciers of the city. Among those associated in the company's development were the late William Wallace Spence (his father-in-law), Alexander Shaw, Bernard Cahn, Louis Mc- Lane, Andrew Reid, John A. Hambleton, William H. Black- ford and Charles D. Fisher. As a business man General Gill was shrewd and successful, with a keen intuitive judgment as to propositions submitted to him. He left nothing half done, but when dealing with a business went straight to the bottom, and when his mind was made up he was hard to swerve. It is said that he rarely went wrong in his judgment of men or of business propositions. Outside of serving as a director of several banks and other financial institutions, General Gill confined his activities to the Mercantile Trust & Deposit Com- pany, and became a power in financial circles. On April 8, 1909, the twenty-fifth anniversary of his connection with the company, the officers and employes arranged a demonstration of the esteem in which they held their president, and pre- sented him with a handsome silver loving cup, which was highly prized.
General Gill was always an active though independent worker in the Democratic party. He never accepted political office, but his influence in the direction of the party's affairs was considerable. He was an anti-Bryan Democrat, and fought the Commoner and his policies at every turn. In 1896 General Gill was elected delegate-at-large to the Democratic Convention at Chicago. When Bryan was nominated, General Gill went promptly against him. He refused to neutralize his influence as the majority of the other Democrats did by
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supporting Palmer and Buckner, but actively worked for the election of William McKinley, the first Republican he has ever supported for high office. He again fought Bryan and supported Mckinley in 1900, and when the Nebraskan was again nominated, in 1908, although General Gill did not take an active part in the campaign, he refused to lend his name for Bryan's support. In 1904 he published a book of remi- niscences of the four years' struggle in which he bore so hon- orable a part. While it was the work of his leisure hours and not intended for general distribution, the book is regarded as a valuable addition to the literature of the war; copies are highly prized, and are now unobtainable. He ever retained a deep interest in his comrades of the army and many were the needy ones he aided. He served on the military staffs of Governors McLane, Hamilton and Lloyd, was an active mem- ber of Maryland Line Confederate Veterans, and belonged to the Maryland and to the Merchants' Clubs. He was identi- fied with many of the associations working for civic better- ment, and aided generously in all that tended to make a better Baltimore.
He was very fond of travel, and of the State of Cali- fornia, visiting the Pacific coast several times. After his retirement from the executive management of the trust com- pany, in 1910, he went abroad with his family, hoping to regain his health. He spent a year at Vichy, France, and dur- ing that time many interesting travel letters from his pen appeared in a Baltimore newspaper. He returned from abroad in November, 1911, apparently benefited. It was but temporary, however, the end coming the following July.
General Gill married, November 27, 1868, Louise Wal- lace Spence, daughter of William Wallace Spence, who sur- vives him with four daughters: Charlotte Morris, married G. Blagden Hazelhurst; Olivia Murray Bispham; Mary Esther, married Lloyd Richardson Macy ; and Agnes.
EDGAR HILARY GANS, LL.D.
GF REAT lawyers are almost as much the product of nature as poets, and Mr. Gans' mental equipment could not have been better suited for his profession had he deliberately selected in advance the intellectual qualities necessary to pro- duce a great lawyer. For analytical power, luminous and forcible reasoning, ability for striking and effective presenta- tion of his facts and his arguments, Mr. Gans had no superior among his contemporaries or for many years prior to his appearance at the bar. He belonged to a younger generation of lawyers than did Bernard Carter, John P. Poe, Teackle Wallis or Colonel Charles Marshall, but the high legal standards and traditions those great lawyers represented, did not suffer at his hands, and his name will be remembered among the strong men who have given distinction and author- ity to the Maryland bar. No lawyer in the State achieved greater distinction at the bar than Mr. Gans. His opinions were sought in the most intricate cases and he was regarded by the bench as one of the most eminent legal authorities appearing before them. This opinion was also entertained by the leading lawyers of the State and by so distinguished an authority as the late Senator Isidore Rayner, who recom- mended Mr. Gans to President Taft for appointment as Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, a recom- mendation endorsed by the Maryland bar.
Conversant with every phase of legal jurisprudence and thoroughly informed in every detail, Mr. Gans, unlike most great lawyers, did not make a specialty of any branch of the law. It mattered not whether he was engaged to conduct a criminal case or one affecting the millions of a corporation, he was equally well equipped, and, with his case prepared to the hour, was a tower of strength to the cause he advocated.
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Thoroughly democratic and unassuming, he made no preten- tious appearance, but in a quiet, modest way, performed an immense amount of work without attracting attention, for his services were in constant demand. When not in court he was at his office, even reading testimony while riding home and there burning the midnight oil in study and preparation of a case, his devotion to his clients' interest leading to exces- sive overwork and resulting in a sudden breakdown in health. Besides his immense court practice, he was in constant demand in consultation, his advice on semi-legal business propositions was considered as of the very best. As a lecturer on Criminal Law at the Law School of the University of Maryland, which function he assumed in 1883, he was very popular with the students. His lectures were clear, terse, and directly to the point, and it was rarely a student "cut" his class. His "Sylla- bus on Criminal Law" is regarded as one of the best and shortest avenues to accurate and comprehensive knowledge of criminal procedure, and is an authority eagerly sought by law students.
Edgar H. Gans was a son of Rev. Daniel and Margaret (Schwartz) Gans. In the early eighties, Rev. Daniel Gans was a minister of the Reformed church in Baltimore, and his entire family became converts to the Catholic faith. After his retirement from the ministry, Daniel Gans studied law, was admitted to the bar and was elected a judge of the Orphans' Court, an office he held until his death. Edgar H. Gans was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, November 24, 1856, died in the city of Baltimore, September 20, 1914. In 1870 the family moved to Baltimore, where Edgar H. continued his studies in the public schools, completing the high school course, then entered City College, whence he was graduated with the highest honors, class of 1875. Deciding upon the profession of law, he entered the Law Department of the
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University of Maryland, receiving his degree Bachelor of Laws, class of 1877. He at once began practice in Baltimore in the office of John P. Poe, quickly gaining recognition at the bar, and, in 1879, two years after beginning practice, was appointed by Charles G. Kerr, Deputy State's Attorney, an office he filled for eight years. The training of the State's Attorney's office was most valuable to the young lawyer. He conducted a number of the most important cases in the crim- inal court and became noted as one of the most aggressive cross examiners in the profession. He secured convictions in some very important cases, and became a terror to evil doers, as, no matter how strong a defendant was in political influ- ence, it was not recognized by Mr. Gans, who prosecuted with- out fear or favor. At the close of his second term as deputy, in 1887, Mr. Gans had no doubt political aspirations, but he was not of the temperament necessary to become a successful politician. He was strongly urged for the office of State's Attorney in 1887, it being the impression that Mr. Kerr, the incumbent, did not desire a renomination. Mr. Gans an- nounced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination, but later Mr. Kerr decided that he desired another term and was nominated by the Convention. Mr. Gans, not feeling that he had been fairly treated, ran as an independent candidate, but was defeated. This marked the end of his career as an office holder, although he ever continued to manifest a deep interest in public affairs. Until the advent of William Jennings Bryan into national politics in 1896, Mr. Gans was a consistent Demo- crat. After that time he acted independently in State and local politics, but was always opposed to party machines, fight- ing the Democratic organization the harder, because it was the more powerful. He did not make a political speech for a number of years before his death, but, when he was "in the harness," he was regarded as one of the most convincing speakers upon the hustings.
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After his retirement from the State's Attorney's office, he began private practice and his services were sought in a num- ber of criminal cases. He did not enjoy that line of practice, however, and soon abandoned it for a general civil practice, later corporation law attracting his greatest attention, and perhaps his reputation in that branch of the law is his greatest claim to legal fame. However, he was not a specialist, but a lawyer, learned and skilful in all branches. In 1889 he formed a partnership with B. Howard Haman, who had been his classmate at law school, and as senior member of the firm of Gans & Haman, continued in active practice until his death. Younger men were admitted to the firm in later years, but neither the firm name nor its directing head was ever changed while Mr. Gans lived. He was connected with many of the important cases brought before the Maryland courts during the years 1889-1914; few, indeed, but his name ap- peared either as plaintiff or defendant. One of the important cases in which he was senior counsel was that affecting the validity of the "Grandfather" clause in the Maryland elec- tion law. This case was tried in the United States District Court before Judge Morris (now deceased ), Mr. Gans argu- ing the law was unconstitutional. He won his case, but an appeal was taken to the United States Supreme Court, where he delivered a powerful argument in opposition to William L. Marbury. The favorable decision of the Supreme Court was rendered after his death.
The last great work of Mr. Gans was the preparation of a brief prepared as counsel for the Regional Bank Committee of Baltimore, for presentation to the Federal Reserve Board. This brief, one of the ablest legal documents ever prepared in the State, was in support of Baltimore's claim to be selected as the location of a Regional Federal Reserve Bank. When the committee selected Mr. Gans as their counsel, he an-
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nounced he would take up the fight vigorously, and he did, his death proving a severe blow to those who relied upon him to force Baltimore's claims against those of Richmond before the Federal Reserve Board. Another case in which the public was interested was in 1910 and 1911, when, with the late Judge William Shepard Bryan, he defended the Police Commis- sioners of Baltimore in the charges brought against them by Governor Crothers, who was represented by Thomas G. Hayes and Attorney General Isaac L. Straus. Such noted cases show how great a reputation Mr. Gans had gained in the last quarter of a century of his life. Amongst a number of cases which first called public attention to him was the leading case of The State vs. The Baltimore News Publishing Company, a libel suit instituted at the instance of certain politicians in connection with the exposition made by the "News" of the policy playing evil. His life ended on the topmost round of professional success. Personally he was reticent and conserva- tive, but, in the practice of his profession, most aggressive and formidable. Young lawyers frequently consulted him and he always helped them willingly with advice, giving them valuable opinions for which he made only a nominal charge. Many of his arguments in court were regarded as master- pieces of reasoning, his wonderful analytical mind and untir- ing industry in preparing his facts forming a combination of rare power.
At the threshold of his maturity he left the Reformed church and joined the Roman Catholic church, and till the end of his life he never ceased to be one of her devoted and enlightened sons, joining to the simplicity of the faith of a child, that broad culture, that sense of accuracy and precision, which was indeed one of his main characteristics. At the time of the separation of Church and State in France, he was asked by, and prepared for, the Baltimore "Sun" an account MD) .- 41
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of the "Separation Bill" in France. That article, which was later published in pamphlet form, obtained a wide circulation among clergy and laity, and drew the attention of thinking men both in this country and in Europe. In affairs of legal importance he was the trusted adviser to Cardinal Gibbons and the Catholic clergy. In 1900 he received from Loyola College and from Mount St. Mary's College the degree of Doctor of Laws.
Mr. Gans married, in 1884, Elizabeth V. Wall, of Balti- more. They were the parents of eight children, seven of whom survive their honored father. His three sons, J. Edgar, James D. and Hilary W., are now wearing the United States uniforms. The four daughters are : L. Dolores ; M. Margaret, who married Lieutenant Reilly; Elizabeth V., married Cap- tain Austin, and Anna Katherine.
Very Truly Yours. HermanStump
COLONEL HERMAN STUMP
A LAWYER by choice and thoroughly devoted to the pro- fession he adored, Colonel Stump had from youth a de- cided taste for public affairs and for military life. He rose to eminence in his profession, was twice elected Congressman, served as Commissioner General of Immigration, and attained the rank of Colonel of Militia, thus proving his versatility and his genius. He did well everything he undertook, and when, about 1902, he laid aside professional cares and retired to the quiet of "Waverly," near Harford county, his Belair estate, he carried with him the love and esteem of his contemporaries of the bar and official life. It is the special function of the lawyer to actively participate in the affairs of his community, to be its spokesman on special occasions, its leader in the reform of abuses and for the enlargement of its functions, and to act as the motive power in its educational, moral and charit- able work. Such was Colonel Herman Stump, and in the life of Belair he will be sorely missed.
The Stumps of Malmesbury, Wiltshire, England, claim that the Stumps came from Prussia to England in 1500, during the reign of King Henry VII. To parents whose names are yet unknown were born two sons: Heinrich, who appears not to have emigrated to this country, and Johann, of further men- tion.
Johann Stumpf, born probably in Prussia, emigrated to the Colony of Pennsylvania, married in Christ Church, Phila- delphia, November 11, 1726, Mary Catherine Bakerin, and before 1730 moved to Cecil county, Maryland, where he died in 1747. John Stump (as he was always known in Mary- land) had by his wife two sons: John, of further mention; and Henry, born January 5, 1731, died in August, 1814. He married, about 1755, Rachel, daughter of William and Eliza-
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beth Perkins, and moved to the Valley of Deer Creek, Har- ford county, then a part of Baltimore county. There he pur- chased an estate and resided until death, leaving issue. De- scendants are numerous in both Harford and Cecil counties, and he is the ancestor of many men of note, including Judge John H. Price, Judge Henry Stump, Judge Frederick Stump, Judge H. Arthur Stump and others.
John (2) Stump, son of Johann (John) (2) and Mary Catherine (Bakerin) Stump, was born May 6, 1728, died in March, 1797. He inherited his father's estate in Cecil county and there resided until shortly before his death, when he sold his property and that inherited by his wife, consisting of several farms, and removed to Harford county, presumably to be near others of his family who had married and settled there. He married Hannah Husband, born March 27, 1722, daughter of William and Mary Husband, and a descendant of Augustine Herman, of "Bohemia Manor." It was through this relationship that the name Herman became a familiar one in the Stump family. John and Hannah Stump were the parents of three sons and three daughters: I. John, of "Stafford," of further mention. 2. Herman, married, June 20, 1793, Elizabeth Smith Dallam, daughter of Josias William and Sarah (Smith) Dallam. She survived him and married (second) Abram Jarett, and died October 24, 1825. 3. Han- nah, born 1762, died November 20, 1824; married, March 14, 1786, John Stump, of "Perry Point," Cecil county, her cousin, son of Henry and Rachel (Perkins) Stump. 4. Nancy, married George Coulson. 5. William, died unmarried. 6. Martha, married (first) Thomas or William Johnson, (sec- ond) John Creswell. Of these children, John, Herman and Hannah survived their father.
John (3) Stump, eldest child of John (2) and Han- nah (Husband) Stump, was born in Cecil county, Mary-
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land, June 5, 1752, and by industry, enterprise and thrift, accumulated a large estate called "Stafford," near the mouth of Deer creek, where he died full of years and honors. He was a member of the Cecil County Committee of Observation, and was active in the collection of supplies to Northern suf- ferers through the blockade of their ports by the British ships during the early years of the Revolution. He and John Archer (their descendants intermarrying) were chosen, in 1776, by popular vote, "Electors of a Senate of Harford County." He became a man of large means for his day and left each of his seven children well endowed with this world's goods. He married, October 17, 1779, Cassandra Wilson, daughter of Henry and Priscilla (Gover) Wilson, her father a member of the Society of Friends, but nevertheless full of patriotic zeal during the Revolution and a man of influence. John (3) and Cassandra Stump were the parents of five sons and five daughters : 1. William, born December 2, 1781, died March 28, 1821 ; married, December 10, 1817, Margaret Miller. 2. Hannah, born April 6, 1784, died unmarried. 3. Ann, born January 29, 1786, died August 19, 1867; married, November 16, 1802, John Archer. 4. Priscilla, born August 6, 1787, died July 16, 1865, unmarried. 5. Mary, born April 20, 1789, died 1872; married, September 22, 1808, James W. Williams. 6. John, born December 25, 1790, died in in- fancy. 7. John Wilson, of further mention. 8. Herman, born May 10, 1794, died in infancy. 9. Hannah Cassandra, born July 18, 1796, died May 7, 1858; married, October 16, 1817, James W. Williams, cousin of James W. Williams, mentioned above. 10. Herman, "of Stafford," born August 13, 1798. died March 13, 1881, unmarried.
John Wilson Stump, seventh child of John (3) and Cassandra (Wilson) Stump, was born in Cecil county, Mary- land, February 23, 1792, died at his estate, "Oakington," on
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Chesapeake Bay, Harford county, Maryland, October 21, 1862. He was a planter and an extensive land owner, also head of an important commercial enterprise in partnership with his brother-in-law, James W. Williams, who, in 1842, and prior to that year, represented Harford and Cecil coun- ties in Congress. Mr. Stump was in France when war broke out with Great Britain in 1812, and on his return home the vessel on which he sailed narrowly escaped capture by the British fleet in the Chesapeake, but, eluding them, reached Baltimore in safety, Mr. Stump taking part in the defense of that city as aide to General Stricker. He married, January 13, 1814, Sarah Biays, born October 26, 1794, died May 19, 1876, daughter of Colonel James and Sarah (Jackson) Biays, of Baltimore. Colonel James Biays was a large vessel owner and shipping merchant of Baltimore, through whose enter- prise and public spirit the commerce of that port largely benefitted. He commanded the American cavalry at the bat- tle of North Point, and in official reports he was highly com- mended for his bravery and efficiency. John Wilson and Sarah Stump were the parents of five sons and seven daugh- ters: I. James Biays, born December 17, 1815, died Decem- ber 4, 1839, unmarried. 2. Priscilla, born October 14, 1817, died August, 1907; married, June 26, 1837, John Griffith. 3. Cassandra, born August 20, 1819, died June 18, 1865; mar- ried, May 27, 1837, Septimus Norris. 4. Mary Biays, born September 23, 1820, died September 23, 1826. 5. Sarah, born June 13, 1822, died March, 1918; married, January 31, 1838, James Murray. 6. John Wilson, born October 15, 1824, died May 21, 1867; married, August 23, 1854, Mary Birdsall. 7. Mary Biays, born November 14, 1826, died November 21, 1881, unmarried. 8. Margaret Ann, born May 12 or 22, 1828, died May 22, 1828. 9. William, born September, 1829, died August 15, 1862; married, September 2, 1857, Mary
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