USA > Maryland > Men of mark in Maryland Johnson's makers of America series biographies of leading men of the state, Volume III > Part 12
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RILEY E. WRIGHT
teaching in which he earned the sufficient sum to pay his expenses in Dartmouth College, which he left to enter Middlebury College. He was in his sophomore year at college when the outbreak of the Civil War carried him into the Union Army where he served as captain of Company H, 15th Vermont Infantry. After what is known in history as St. Albans raid, he was placed in command of the post at Derbyline, Vermont. He had decided to enter the legal profession and as opportunity permitted had read law. Upon his discharge from the army in April 1865, he located in Baltimore and was admitted to the bar and began practice. In the intervening years he has stead- ily followed his profession broken only by one term of service as chief judge of the orphans court of Baltimore from February, 1897, to November 30, 1899.
On September 11, 1866, Judge Wright married Miss Mary E. Collier, daughter of Isaac Collier, of Vermont.
Judge Wright is a member of the Masonic fraternity, of the Society of Protection to Children being a member of the board of managers of that Society, and is identified with the Grand Army of the Republic in which he holds the position of judge advocate general.
His political affiliations are with the Republican party. Out- side of his legal studies he has always been partial in a literary way to biographical and historical matter. He finds his recreation ina very unusual way. His hobby, if it may be called a hobby, which possesses for him so much fascination as to be really a healthful pursuit, is numismatics.
Another branch of the Wright family has made a most distin- guished record in Maryland; yet another in Georgia; yet another in Tennessee; Judge Wright coming from the New England family and settling in Maryland, has upheld most worthily the traditions of the various branches of the Wright family, which have worked so worthily and well in the making of this republic.
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JOSHUA FREDERICK COCKEY
J OSHUA FREDERICK COCKEY, president of the National Bank of Cockeysville, Baltimore County, Maryland, was born on August 26, 1840, in the town where he now lives. His father, after whom he was named, was a farmer by occupation, prominent in the life of his generation, serving his county for six years as county commissioner, and for twenty-four years as chief judge of the orphans court. He was a man of sterling character and strong intellect. He married Henrietta Dorsey Worthington. and it was of this marriage that the subject of this sketch was born.
The first known ancestor of this family in America was William Cockey who came from Devonshire, England, and settled on the Magothy River, Anne Arundel County, Maryland, in 1679. There is known to be a family of this name in Scotland, where the spelling is Cockie, but the family appears to be more numerously represented in Great Britain in the form of Cockey.
Mr. Cockey's family has been honorably known in Maryland since his first ancestor came over, and in his ancestral line is found General Mordecai Gist who led the famous Maryland Line during the Revolution and was one of Washington's trusted officers. Joshua F. Cockey was fortunate in his parentage. His father was a man of strong character, to whom he could look up, and he possessed a mother who was a woman of good intellect and fine spiritual char- acter, whose care he repaid with strong affection. He had the best of educational advantages and abundant good books at his com- mand and good schools in reach. From the country schools he went to the Cumberland Valley Institute at Mechanicsburg, and from there to Calvary College at New Windsor, Maryland. Arriving at man- hood, Mr. Cockey elected to be a merchant and established himself in his native town in 1866 as a general merchant, which business he pursued with success for twenty-five years. When in 1891 the National Bank of Cockeysville was organized, he became president of that institution, and has served in that capacity up to the present. His life has in the main run along the lines of private citizenship,
Mors truly Joshna+ Gorkey
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and he has not sought public places. He was, however, appointed election supervisor by Governor Frank Brown, and served in that capacity.
His religious affiliation is with the Protestant Episcopal Church; and since 1885 he has been a vestryman of the Sherwood Episcopal Church at Cockeysville. He is partial to fishing and gunning as furnishing the needed recreation from the cares of business. In political life, he is an independent, believing it to be the duty of every American citizen to act upon his own political convictions, and not chain himself down by a blind adherence to some political machine.
On April 8, 1868, Mr. Cockey was married to Miss Sarah J. Denmead. Of this marriage, four children were born, three of whom are living. Sometime after the death of his first wife, he married on October 22, 1896, Miss Anna Buchanan Bussey. They have two sons.
To young men who wish to attain true success in life, Mr. Cockey commends frugality, industry, perseverance, and absolute integrity.
In the maternal line, Mr. Cockey is descended from the old English family of Worthington, originally located at Worthington, County Lancaster, England. It is a very ancient family, and from the original stock have come the Worthingtons of Shevington, the Worthingtons of Blainscough, the Worthingtons of Crosshawe, the Worthingtons of Sandiway Bank. Apparently all of these branches of the family came from one stock, for the same coat of arms is found in each family with slight variations in the crest or motto. It is one of the few English families in which there appears to have been maintained such a close connection with the parent house.
Mr. Cockey lives at the beautiful old homestead where he has resided for more than thirty years. The grounds are spacious and well laid out with lovely trees and shrubbery. From his residence, which occupies a commanding position, he enjoys a beautiful view of the country for miles around. Besides his banking and various other business interests, he has also some of the finest farming lands in the vicinity of Cockeysville and takes a hearty and active interest in every- thing pretaining to the development, advancement and improvement of the community.
Mr. Cockey is a close observer, studying carefully business con- ditions at home and abroad. In order to keep himself thoroughly in touch with business developments of the country, he occasionally
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takes trips abroad, and thus becomes acquainted at first hand with business conditions in foreign countries, and this with his accurate knowledge of conditions in this country enables him to wisely pro- mote the various interests with which he is identified.
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WILLIAM GISRIEL
W ILLIAM GISRIEL, SR., member of the firm of William Gisriel and Son, brass founders, is a native Baltimorean; born on March 29, 1853, son of Frederick and Rosina Gisriel. His father was a baker by trade, industrious, economical, and of limited education.
Young Gisriel as a boy enjoyed good health, attended the pub- lic schools up to the age of twelve. and was taught work at home by being utilized in such little matters as sawing and splitting wood, taking care of the horse and cow, cleaning wagon and carriage, and looking after the premises. He thus started out in life with a good training along the line of industry. With a touch of humor, Mr. Gisriel relates that a very strong influence at this period was his mother's slipper.
At the age of twelve his schooling ended and he began work. He lost his father when he was about fifteen years old, and was entered as an apprentice in Henry McShane's brass foundry, to learn the trade of brass molder. Even at that early period the boy had made up his mind to accomplish something in the world. He states that even then as an apprentice, sitting around the stove eating cold lunch and laughed at by the men, he told them that he would some day give them all a job, which has literally come true. The forty- two years which have elapsed since he entered McShane's brass foundry as an apprentice, have been years of steady, unremitting labor, and conscientious devotion to duty. As a result of this labor, reinforced by natural capacity, he is now at the head of a strong con- cern, said to be the best of its kind in the city. The fact that he was thrown on his own resources at an early age, has contributed much to making him the man that he is.
While Mr. Gisriel has made a substantial success in a material way, he is even more prominent in the moral and religious life of the city. He has been a very useful citizen in such public work as the improvement of Jones Falls, the making of a proper civic center, and the introducing of natural gas into the City of Baltimore.
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At one time a Democrat in his political affiliations, he became an independent with Prohibition proclivities, on account of the tariff and the liquor questions.
His code has been a simple and a practical one, even if the stand- ard has been high. It may briefly be summarized as a determination to keep every promise; a refusal to put any labor into work which did not bring with it some pleasure as well as gain; no set hours for work; an honest effort to do the work in hand better than it had ever been done before; politeness to all, and gratitude for all kindness shown. This code has proven for him a practical and a very profit- able one.
He is a devoted member of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and has been exceedingly active in the work of that great religious denomination. In 1885 he was made president of the Summit Grove Camp Meeting Association, of Pennsylvania. In his business life in 1873 he became president of the Maryland Brass Metal Works, when he was barely a man grown. In 1908 he was elected president of the Winks Railroad Safety Appliance Company. He is affiliated with the Masonic fraternity, the Methodist Union, the Presbyterian Union, the Merchants' and Manufacturers' Club, and the Old Town Merchants' and Manufacturers' Association.
Though he has never taken an active part in politics, his strong stand upon the question of the prohibition of the liquor traffic has led to his nomination by the Prohibitionists for the city council, for mayor, for judge of the orphans' court, for legislator, for Congress, and in 1904 for governor.
He has cooperated in all the great evangelistic meetings held in the city of Baltimore during the past twenty years, under such leaders as Sam Jones, Ostrom, Gipsy Smith and others. He was instrumental in bringing the National Holiness Convention, with Bible Conference and other similar meetings, to Baltimore, and actively assisted in organizing and managing the Evangelistic meet- ings held in the city during the General Conference held in May, 1908. The Laymen's Missionary Convention held in November, 1909, had his active assistance, and he was one of the managers.
He now holds position of trustee for Asbury College, Wilmore, Kentucky; Taylor University, Upland, Indiana; Madison Square M. E. Church, Baltimore; treasurer Brass Founders' Association. Baltimore; director in First National Bank, New Freedom, Pennsyl-
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vania. On May 10, 1903, he was elected life member of the Maryland Commandery of the Knights Templar.
Mr. Gisriel finds his chief recreation in boating, fishing and travel.
On April 27, 1871, he married Miss Martha Washington Cor- nelius. Of this marriage ten children have been born, of whom eight are now living.
Mr. Grisriel presents in his own person a splendid example of those strong, clean men contributed by the German people to our country to the number of millions during the last seventy-five years. He is of the very best type of American business man. Believing thoroughly and heartily in the system of Christian ethics, he has made the Bible the guide of his daily life and practice. To the young man starting out in life and earnestly desirous of attaining to true success, he lays down very briefly a few things which he knows by practical experience to be of value. He thinks it is well as a start- ing point, for the youth to earn their own money, and thereby learn its value; to associate only with clean Christian men and women; to always stand firmly on the side of right; to guard against selfishness; to value one's word above all things; to be hospitable and charitable. He makes one suggestion of great value and often overlooked, when he says: "Do not turn down every friend who may appeal for help. You may miss a chance of doing great good."
The life of this man illustrates the value not only of industry, but of Christian character, and proves that even in these days of sordid commercialism, character counts for most, and that to him who puts first, service for God and fellowman, will come all good things.
T
THOMAS FOOTER
T HE world moves because here and there are found men who can create things. The average man is a mere follower of readymade customs, and if the world had to depend for its progress on the average man, it would stand still or slide back. But fortunately there are born. into this world a certain percentage of men who are never content with what is, and whose souls are con- centrated upon the idea of doing something more or something better than has been done heretofore.
To this class belongs Thomas Footer, now a leading citizen of Cumberland, who in his brief sixty-three years of life has accom- plished a really monumental work.
Mr. Footer was born in England on March 8, 1847. His parents were James and Mary (Sparks) Footer. His father was a paper manufacturer. Thomas Footer lost both parents in childhood and began the work of life very young. The name was originally Futter, and was found in Norfolk, England, as early as 1563, and at that time in the possession of coat armor. In its origin, the name is undoubtedly German, and the English family was probably founded by emigrants from Germany.
Mr. Footer's education was mostly acquired, after the work of the day, in night schools. He has had a partiality through life for the study of history and chemistry, and this taste for chemistry has probably been the controlling factor in the character of his life work.
"He was married on March 17, 1866, to Miss Elizabeth Booth, and to them have been born nine children, of whom five are living.
Eighteen hundred and seventy found him located in Cumber- land, a young man of twenty-three with a young family. He saw the need of better dyeing and cleaning facilities than then existed. He established a small business and started out with the purpose that he would not only treat his customers honestly, but would do better work than anyone who had preceded him. In these forty years since 1870, he has done a marvelous work. He has built up the largest, best equipped and most complete dyeing and cleaning plant in the
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THOMAS FOOTER
United States. He did not trouble himself to seek for a better loca- tion. He had that rare quality of genius which told him that the peo- ple would come to the man who did things best. It is not the purpose of the biographer to enter into every small detail of a man's busi- ness life or professional record, but the work done by Mr. Footer in Cumberland has been such as to justify some mention of details. To-day the vast plant incorporated under the name of Footer Dye Works consists of a series of great four-story buildings covering many thousand square feet of surface, with every possible facility that the business can demand, and kept in most immaculate condi- tion. Evidently the president of the company believes that "clean- liness is akin to godliness," for the entire plant is kept as spotless as a lady's parlor. From the heaviest fabrics to the finest and most expensive lace curtains, everything can be, and is handled with neat- ness and without damage to the most delicate fabric. It takes nearly five hundred people to run this immense plant, and the payroll runs up into thousands of dollars weekly. The office alone requires a clerical force of a dozen or more men. Cost is not taken into account where any improvement is needed. For example, Mr. Footer saw the need of two machines and their accessories, used on the continent of Europe, which would facilitate his work. The cost was $30,000. He never hesitated a moment, but put them in. And that is the keynote of the business, nothing is too small or unim- portant, and nothing is too big or important for this plant. In the dye house, men only are used. For cleaning hats, gloves and feathers, there is a separate one-story building. Two hundred girls are employed on waists and skirts. It takes five massive boilers to run the plant, which consumes one hundred tons of coal weekly; and in addition to this there is an electrical power plant. The hygienic and sanitary appointments of the plant are as perfect in detail as money and skill can make them, and four janitors are steadily at work keeping the place in perfect order. The comfort of the employees has been provided for by a well-lighted and comfortable dining room, where meals are served at cost. It would take many pages to give a thorough description of this model plant, but enough has been said to indicate to the thoughtful reader the magnitude of the work which has been done. Mr. Footer's three sons are all following in his foot- steps and are actively interested in the business. Mr. Harry Footer is secretary and treasurer; Mr. Joseph W. Footer is vice-president,
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and Mr. Edmund B. Footer is manager of the dye works. One of his sons-in-law, Mr. C. H. Gloss, is in charge of the dry-cleaning depart- ment and superintendent of the finishing department. His remain- ing daughter is now Mrs. Spitzna.
With all of this, Mr. Footer is an unassuming man, with a strong aversion to notoriety. While he supports the Republican party in politics, he takes no active part in political life. He is a Mason of high standing, having served as Junior Grand Warden of the Grand Lodge of Maryland. He is a director of the Citizens National Bank; president of the Maryland Theater Company; president of the Board of Trade, and has served as a member of the city council. As indi- cating somewhat the character of the man, it may be mentioned here that though the work he has done in Cumberland has attracted much attention, and numerous articles have appeared concerning it in current periodicals, he has never preserved a clipping. With him, the work is everything-the man is nothing. The value of such men to a community cannot be measured, and our country has been exceedingly fortunate in the fact that in every section there are found these hard-working, steady-going, creative men consumed with a desire to do things well, and of this class Thomas Footer of Cumber- land is a most honorable illustration.
Yours Sincerely
LOUIS WHITE GUNBY
O NE of the strong men in the business circles of the Eastern Shore at the present time is Louis W. Gunby of Salisbury. Mr. Gunby was born at Forktown, Somerset County, Maryland, (now Wicomico), March 5, 1854; son of John K. and Charlotte (Somers) Gunby. His father combined the occupations of merchant and miller. He was a man of excellent education for those days; served in the General Assembly as a representative from Somerset County and on the Governor's staff from 1845 to 1854 The Gunby family has been identified with Maryland since 1660, coming from Yorkshire, England. The name is an illustrious one in the annals of Maryland, due to the Revolutionary record of Colonel John Gunby, who was commissioned colonel of the Seventh Maryland Regiment of the Continental Army on April 17, 1777. Later he was transferred to the command of the First Maryland Regiment and led that famous organization in Green's Southern Campaign. At the battle of Guilford Court House in 1781, the First Maryland com- manded by Gunby, with John Eager Howard as his lieutenant-col- onel, bore the brunt of the battle. Gunby's supports failed him at the critical moment, and Green's lines were thrown into disorder. The main body of the British Army was thrown against the First Mary- land. Gunby and Howard with their command made as stubborn a stand as is recorded in history. Three times the British charged, and three times they were met by counter charge. A little battery of two guns over which they were contending was taken and retaken three times, and the gallant and stubborn stand of the First Mary- land Regiment enabled Green to reform his lines and draw off his forces in good order after having inflicted upon Cornwallis a much larger loss than that sustained by his own army. General Henry Lee in his memoirs of the war, always conservative in his expression, accorded high praise to the First Maryland Regiment and its com- manding officers for its splendid service on that critical day. From th's John Gunby, Louis W. Gunby is descended in the direct I'ne. The family was founded in Maryland by three brothers: James,
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John and William Gunby, who came from Yorkshire about 1660 and settled on the Eastern Shore; James in Salisbury; John and Wil- liam in Forktown (now Fruitland). Each had large families. The children scattered after maturity to other sections, and their descend- ants are now found as far west as Missouri, and as far south as Geor- gia. The larger fraction of the heirs, however, remained on the Eastern Shore of Maryland. In the maternal line, Mr. Gunby is descended from the famous Somers family, of which Captain George Somers was the founder. Captain George Somers was a famous navigator in the early days, and while returning to England after bringing a shipload of colonists to Virginia, was wrecked on the Bermuda Islands. On board his ship were a number of hogs which were saved, and from these hogs came the hog-raising industry of the Bermuda Islands, and the first money used on the Islands was called "hog money." For generations the Bermuda Islands were known as the "Somers Islands" in honor of the old sea captain who became profoundly attached to them and spent the remainder of his life there. Because of his great work in colonizing the western lands, the English government requested of him the privilege of interring his body in Westminster Abbey when he should die. The captain agreed on the condition that his heart should be buried in the Bermuda Islands, and this was done.
Mr. Gunby therefore is descended from two famous colonial families. He was a healthy boy, reared in the country, and his earli- est tendencies were toward a professional life. His father died in his early youth, and the lad after obtaining a moderate degree of education in the Salisbury Academy, took up work in order to be of assistance to his widowed mother. He was but fourteen years old when he began as a clerk in a hardware store conducted by John H. White. In 1872, while yet a minor, he bought Mr. White out and has conducted the hardware business from that time to the present. Mr. Gunby developed superior business capacity. Year by year he extended his borders and enlarged his operations, until now he con- ducts the largest wholesale and retail hardware business south of Wilmington, Delaware. He also has a large machinery and auto- mobile department. The business was run in his own name until 1903, when it was incorporated as the L. W. Gunby Company, and four of his employees taken in as stock-holders. Outside of his busi- ness, his operations have been equally successful, and he now ranks
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financially as one of the wealthiest men of the Eastern Shore. He is president of the L. W. Gunby Company; president of the Salisbury Permanent Building, Loan and Banking Association, of which he has been a director since its organization in 1884; a director in the Farm- ers and Merchants Bank; the Salisbury Realty Company, and owner of the Poco-Wico Manufacturing Company, large manufacturers of crates and baskets for the fruit and trucking trade. He is also part owner of the schooner Salisbury which sails out of Baltimore. Mr. Gunby is an active member of the Salisbury Board of Trade. In politics he is classed as an "Independent," and one could most heart- ily wish that in that direction at least his tribe may increase. He is a very active member of the Presbyterian Church, in which he s an elder, and for which he has been Sunday school superintendent dur- ing twenty years.
On September 18, 1876, Mr. Gunby was married to Fannie Alice Graham, daughter of Colonel Samuel A. Graham of Wicomico County. Nine children have been born of this marriage: Graham; Alice Somers; Louise Collier; Louis W .; Frances M .; Ruth Lyon; Louis W. (II.); John Kirk and James Young Gunby. Of these, six are living.
The Gunby blood has lost nothing in martial ardor since the days of the old Revolutionary soldier. Mr. Gunby had two brothers and a sister, the brothers being John W. and Frank M., and the sister, Clara L. They were all ardent sympathizers with the South during the late war. The sister was so pronounced in her Southern sympa- thies, that she was banished to the South, and went to Richmond, where she was received by President Davis and extended a great many courtesies by the leading citizens of the Confederate capital. The two brothers enlisted in the Confederate Army in 1861, and served until the close of the war.
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