Portrait and biographical record of the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Part 74

Author: Chapman Publishing Company
Publication date: 1898
Publisher: New York, Chapman pub. co.
Number of Pages: 906

USA > Maryland > Portrait and biographical record of the Eastern Shore of Maryland > Part 74

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).

A life-long Democrat, Dr. Todd has been hon- ored by his party with election to numerous of- fices of trust. In 1869 he was chosen a member of the board of county commissioners and served until 1871. He was auditor of the circuit court for about twelve years, and until 1891. In 1895 he was elected county treasurer, being the first treasurer elected under the law of 1894, which empowered Wicomico county to elect its county treasurer, instead of having same appointed by the board of county commissioners. He is the oldest elder in the Presbyterian Church of Salis- bury, of which his father and brother George W. were also elders; and another brother, W. I., holds the same position in the congregation. He

was baptized and christened the day the first Presbyterian Church was dedicated in Salis- bury. Among the people with whom his life has been passed he is honored as a man of strict- est integrity and more than ordinary ability.

IGSBY T. WRIGHT, who is one of the well-to-do citizens of Cambridge, is a self- made man in the truest sense, as his for- tune has been accumulated entirely through his own indomitable energy and persistence in well-matured plans and correct business methods. His pronounced success dates back some twenty- five years or so to the time when he directed his attention to the lumber business. In 1873 he bought the celebrated and historic farm known as Horn's Point, it being situated delightfully on the bank of the Choptank River a few miles from this place. He continued to make his home there until the year 1892, when he re- moved to Cambridge. His residence is on Locust street and is a model of elegance and excellent taste. It is constructed in modern style in wood and is most approved and up-to-date architecture.

Mr. Wright was born in that portion of the Eastern Shore that is now comprised within the boundaries of Wicomico County, but was then called Somerset. He is a son of Joseph W. Wright and wife, formerly Sarah P. Harris, both natives of this county and very well known in the community in which they dwell, Secretary, Md. They reached the fifty-eighth anniversary ' of their marriage, at which time the mother of our subject was buried. The father is still living. Of their twelve children nine grew to maturity, and of these R. T. is the eldest, he having been born October 20, 1839. Having gained a good education he engaged in teaching for a few years in this county prior to arriving at his majority.

The first mercantile venture of Mr. Wright was in 1862 in partnership with John H. Bacon. Together they carried on a store on the Nanti- coke River for a period of five years, or until

676

PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

1868. In 1871 he purchased a sawmill and be- gan sawing out timber, and has moved the mill a number of times to uncut timber tracts. For more than thirty years he had led a life which has been very taxing to his physical powers, but notwithstanding, he is a man of remarkable en- durance and bids fair to out-rival his parents in longevity. At present his mill is located about a mile from Cambridge, and in his planing fac- tory finished lumber is manufactured. He is a consistent Republican and served as commis- sioner of Dorchester County in 1881 and 1882.

Mr. Wright was married in May, 1870, to Miss Edith Giles, daughter of Isaac and Sarah E. (Hosea) Giles, of Laurel, Del., both now de- ceased. They were connected with many of the old families of Delaware and were members of tlie Presbyterian Church. Mr. Giles was a suc- cessful business man and accumulated a good property. He was a prominent and influential Democrat. Three children came to grace the union of Mr. and Mrs. Wright, but one of the little family circle was summoned from their midst by death. Hubert H. is still at home. Sa- rah G. is the wife of L. S. Dail, of Cambridge. Mr. Wright is a man who bears a most enviable reputation for integrity of word and deed, and in all his dealings with his fellow-citizens and others his conduct has ever been characterized by strict fairness and impartiality. He is one who takes commendable interest in the general wel- fare, and his influence is always to be found on the side of law and good government. Such men give high standing to any community and are largely responsible for the general prosperity.

A LEXIS A. PASCAULT, of Easton, is a member of a prominent French family that has been identified with American history since the illustrious Lafayette came to our coun- try to assist the colonists in their struggle for freedom1. Among the officers who came with him was Col. Louis C. Pascault, who participated in the Revolution and became known as a brave and

gallant soldier. In his family there were three daughters of great beauty, who were known as the "Three Graces." One of these became the wife of James Gallatin, a wealthy and influential citizen of New York. Another married Colum- bus O'Donnell, a leading citizen of Baltimore and the first president of the Baltimore & Oliio Rail- road. They had three daughters; one became the wife of Adrian Islin, of New York, a banker on Wall street; one married Solomon Hillen, ex- mayor of Baltimore, a prominent citizen of that city; one married a Mr. Lee of Baltimore.

The third of the "Three Graces" was married to General Rubell, of Paris, who came to America on the staff of the brother of the famous Napoleon Bonaparte. When Jerome Bonaparte, after a ro- mantic courtship, married the beautiful Baltimore girl, Miss Patterson, General Rubell and Miss Pascault were also united in marriage, and the latter became the inaid of honor to Madame Bona- parte, in whose tragic fortunes she afterward shared, accompanying her on the voyage to France, where, however, they were not allowed to land. Jerome Bonaparte was made king of Westphalia by his brother on condition that he give up his American wife, to which condition he acceded, and the two, who had bade each other adieu in the hope of an early meeting, were des- tined never again to meet on earth.

Louis C. Pascault, son of Colonel Pascault, and father of our subject, was born in Baltimore in 1790; and in 1828 removed to Queen Anne's County, Md., where he devoted himself to agri- cultural work. He died on Kent Island in 1885. In religious belief he was a Catholic. His wife, Anne E., was a daughter of Charles Golds- borough of Talbot County, and she died in 1855, thirty years before her husband's death. Of their ten children our subject alone survives. He was born in Sykesville, Md., near Baltimore, March II, 1822. In 1848 he removed from Queen Anne's to Talbot County, where he engaged in farming, but at this writing he is an agent and collector. He has settled many large estates and has had in charge trusts of an important nature. Among the positions held by him have been those of president of the town council and presi-

CAPT. WILLIAM E. SEWARD.

679

PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

dent of the Dover Bridge Company. In spite of advancing years, he is still quite hale and robust, with eyesight unimpaired, and in full possession of his faculties. Like his forefathers, he is of the Catholic faith. November 9, 1848, he married his cousin, Maria E. Goldsborough, daughter of Henry Goldsborough, of Talbot County. Five children were born of their union, of whom two sons survive, Alexander G. and Henry G., both of Easton.

APT. WILLIAM E. SEWARD, who has operated a fine farm in Cambridge district, of Dorchester County, for the past quarter of a century or more in a most creditable manner, was formerly a seafaring man, and is well known at most of the ports along Chesapeake Bay. He is a quiet, unassuming character, and those who have known him a lifetime place the utmost reli- ance in his genuine worth and unselfish generosity of soul. He was a poor boy, without money or influential friends, when he set forth to make his own way in the world, and by industry and un- flagging effort he at last won a competence and a respected position among his associates.

The captain was born in the eighth district, adjoining this, March 13, 1831, being a son of Levin Seward, who was a native of the same locality. The mother was Mary Wheatley in her girlhood, and to this estimable couple the following children were born: John H., deceased; Sarah R., wife of Thomas Keys, a farmer of the eighth district; Richard, whose home is in East Cam- bridge; Capt. W. E .; Charles H., a farmer of the eighth district; Jane, wife of Edward Bromwell, also of that district; Thomas, of Cambridge; Frances, wife of Alexander Greenwell; George, owner of a schooner and a resident of Baltimore; and Columbus, deceased.

Capt. W. E. Seward was reared upon his father's farm, and remained there, assisting in the management of the place, until he was about twenty years old, when he shipped on a sailing- vessel as a common sailor. Two years had hardly elapsed, however, ere he became part

owner in a ship and was made captain of her. The following twenty-one years he sailed the seas in command of this ship, his principal stopping points being on Chesapeake Bay, between Balti- more, Norfolk and Washington. For about nine years the cargoes with which his ship was loaded were pine lumber chiefly, destined for building purposes in the great cities mentioned.

After living the life of a bachelor for over forty years, the captain decided to settle down in a little home of- his own, and chose for his com- panion and helpmate Miss Laura Stevens, of Castle Haven, in the eighth district. They began housekeeping in their pleasant home upon the farm which the captain had purchased about a year prior to their marriage, which latter event traspired March 13, 1873. The well cultivated homestead, comprising two hundred and forty acres, is now rented out to responsible tenants. Captain Seward has been enterprising and wise in his investments, and now has ample funds for the support of himself and devoted wife through- out the rest of their lives. In his political faith he is in accord with the principles advocated by the Democratic party.

D APT. THOMAS J. THOMPSON has re- sided upon his present homestead in Queen Anne's County since 1850, when, a child of ten years, he accompanied his parents from Dor- chester County. His has been an active and useful life, devoted principally to the oyster busi- ness, though in addition he superintends the management of the place where he resides. Among the residents of Kent Island he is well known, and he enjoys the confidence of all who respect a man of earnest character and energetic disposition.

Captain Thompson was born in Dorchester County in 1841, and in the schools of his native place he obtained the rudiments of his education. In 1850 he came with his parents to Kent Island and here grew to manhood. Early in youth it became necessary for him to earn his own liveli-

680

PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

lood and also to assist in the support of the fam- ily, and this work lie bravely took upon himself, discharging liis duty to liis parents with filial af- fection and caring for them as long as they lived. After the death of his father, in 1869, he married Mary A. Baxter, and at the same time built the house that he has since occupied. He and his wife are the parents of seven children, named as follows: Charles V .; Annie, wife of William Thomas; Carrie; Thomas-E., Kirby, Howard A. and Celia M.

When a mere lad our subject began life upon tlie bay, sailing from Baltimore and working at dredging along the Eastern Shore. For his life- work he has engaged in tonging and oystering, in which he has met with success. He owns a farmi comprising eighteen acres, upon which there is a valuable peach orchard. By industry and economy he has acquired an independence and financial prosperity that make him one of the prominent men of lis neighborhood. The prin- ciples of the Democratic party always receive his active support, and in fraternal relations he is identified with the Improved Order of Hepta- sophs.

ON. THOMAS B. TAYLOR is identified with many of the important interests of Wicomico County, for, though to some ex- tent retired from active business pursuits, he still lias sufficient to occupy his attention in the man- agement of his various investments. In partner- ship with James E. Bacon, he owns the well- known Mardela Springs and hotel. In the early days of Maryland's history, when the red men still roamed through its forests and in its valleys, the Indians knew of the existence of this spring and frequently resorted to it. As early as 1795 a hotel was built on the grounds by Major Russum, and from that time to this the place has been visited by health-seekers. The water is a strong alkaline chalybeate and aids digestion, besides being of val- ue in the treatment of chronic diseases. It is car- bonated and bottled at the springs and its virtues

are those endowed by nature only. It contains the essentials for building up the vital forces after mental strain or overwork. Testimonials from the leading physicians of Baltimore indicate that its use is curative in many diseases wliere other waters liave failed.

Mr. Taylor was born near Mardela Springs September 5, 1823. His grandfather, Levin Taylor, was born in Barren Creek district, then Somerset County, and, with his four brothers and their father, James, rendered brave service in the Revolution. James was a son of William, who came to Maryland from England and settled in Somerset County, where succeeding generations have dwelt. Thomas, the father of our subject, was born on the old homestead in Barren Creek district and was a soldier in the war of 1812. Throughout active life he was a sailor, and while following that occupation died of yellow fever in Key West in 1832. He married Eliza Smith, of Delaware, who died at the birth of our subject. She left three children, Ellen, who married Henry Vickers, of Baltimore; Uriah and Thomas B.

At the age of nineteen, having completed his education, our subject began to teach school, and that occupation he followed for three years. He then secured employment as clerk in a store. In 1850 he purchased his employer's stock of goods, and from that time until 1890 he carried on the store at Mardela Springs, meeting with financial success in the enterprise. After a mercantile ex- perience of forty years he sold out and retired from the business. Besides this line of work he has done considerable surveying. He is the owner of five farms, aggregating about twelve hundred acres, and also has some valuable town property. He is a Democrat in his political be- lief, and on that ticket was elected a member of the board of county commissioners in 1869. In 1883 he was elected a member of the state legisla- ture, serving one term, and was more than once offered the nomination as judge of the orphans' court, but declined. Religiously a member of the Methodist Protestant Church, in which he serves as a trustee, he has also been superintend- ent of the Sunday-school for twenty-one years. He is a member of the Masonic fraternity, Temple

681

PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

No. 170, of Sharptown; also a member of the In- dependent Order of Odd Fellows, Goodwill Lodge No. 112, of Mardela Springs, and of the Hepta- sophs, of Salisbury.

RTHUR B. COCHRANE is the senior mem- ber of the firm of A. B. Cochrane & Co., of Crisfield, Somerset County. This firm owns the largest lumber yards in the place and keeps in constant operation two mills for the manufacture of all kinds of finished and rough lumber. They carry a full line of sash, doors, moulding, etc., in short, everything required by builders or the gen- eral trade. They own a sawmill situated on the Pocomoke River, in this county, and also import great quantities of lumber from other parts of the southern states.

The father of our subject was James L. Coch- rane, who died a few years ago in Kent County, Del., where he had resided from the time of his retirement from the commercial world. He was a native of Massachusetts and there spent his early life. He followed the occupations of contracting and building in the Bay State and later in New York City, and was very successful. When about sixty years old he retired to enjoy the competence which he had laid aside for the purpose in his vigorous prime, and in quiet contentment the re- mainder of his days, some eighteen years, were passed. His father, also James by name, was a native of Massachusetts and lived to the extreme age of ninety years. He was of Scotch extraction and served in the war of 1812. He was an agri- culturist as had been many of his ancestors. The mother of our subject was a Miss Mary Hallock in her girlhood. She was born in England and is now in her seventy-ninth year. Of her four children Robert W. is a resident of this town; Addie is the wife of John W. Thawley; and Lucy is Mrs. J. Edward Cahill, of Caroline County, Md.

Arthur B. Cochrane was born May 27, 1862, in Windham County, Conn. He remained there until he was nine years old, when with his

parents he removed to Brooklyn, N. Y. He re- ceived a public-school education, supplemented by a commercial course of training in Bryant & Stratton's Business College. Soon after passing his majority he came to Somerset County and was interested in a saw mill business here up to 1893. At that time he took charge of a lumber yard and sawmill, as manager, and in 1893 entered into partnership with I. H. Coulbourn and George W. Long (see sketch of former printed upon another page. ) in the same line of business. He is still acting as manager of the plant and is doing well.

A Master Mason, Mr. Cochrane belongs to Chesapeake Lodge No. 147, F. & A. M., of Crisfield. He is a stanch Democrat and quite a worker in the party. Religiously he is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church and is a teacher in the Sunday-school. In 1892 Mr. Cochrane married Miss Amy Coulbourn, daugh- ter of Joseph Coulbourn, of Lawson's district, and they have two children, Stanley and Ada.

M ACKENZIE GOLDSBOROUGH is now living retired from the arduous duties which rest upon the active participants in the battles of the world of commerce, and enjoys his quiet retirement in the society of ltis loved ones in their beautiful and cultured home. This country seat is called Ammere, and consists of a tract of well-improved land, numbering sixty-two and a-half acres, in the first district of Talbot County. The pretty and accomplished wife of the subject of this notice is a charming hostess and delights to extend a cordial welcome to the many sincere friends of herself and husband.

The father of Mr. Goldsborough, James N., was born in this county, upon the place known as Ottwell, and was a son of Nicholas Goldsborough. The chief occupation of James N. was that of agriculture, in which he was quite successful. He was a vestryman in the Episcopal Church, and died strong in the faitli he had professed many years, in 1870. He was twice married, his first wife being Mary, daughter of Commodore Ken-

682

PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

nedy, of Norfolk, Va. She died, leaving seven children, of whom our subject is the youngest. His brothers, Dr. E. K., R. H. and A. T., are all residents of Washington, D. C., and a sister, E. T., is the wife of Dr. J. H. H. Bateman, of Easton. The second wife of James N. Golds- borough was Emily Johnson, and to them were born four children, those now living being: Mrs. A. L. Sharp, of Easton; James N., of Pitts- burg; and Miss Madge, of Easton.

The birth of Mackenzie Goldsborough took place upon his parents' homestead, Woodstock, in this county, November 12, 1856. After finish- ing his preliminary education he entered the Maryland Agricultural College, taking a two years' course. Then he was employed in a drug store in Easton, as a clerk, for about four years, and next was in the same line of business in Centreville for a like period. Becoming a resi- dent of Baltimore in 1886, he was interested in the wholesale drug trade as a salesman with J. J. Thompson two years, and his next venture was to settle, in Washington, D. C., where he went into the real-estate business with his brotlier.

It was while identified with the interests of the nation's capital that Mr. Goldsborough formed the acquaintance of the lady who now bears his name and who became his wife September 14, 1888. She was formerly Miss Julia P. Flem- ing, from a fine old family in Washington. Her mother was a Miss Lee before her marriage, was a cousin of Gen. Robert E. Lee, and was from a distinguished family of Virginia. Her grand- father, Richard Bland Lee, was a soldier of dis- tinction. Four children have been born to Mr. and Mrs. Goldsborough: Lee Kennedy, Philip Francis, Julia Fleming and Mary Lee.

HILIP A. M. BROOKS is a worthy repre- sentative of one of the pioneer families of Maryland and is managing a portion of his ancestral estates, which have descended to him by inheritance. The Brooks family has been

noted for many most admirable traits of character and disposition, and the men have always been remarkable for strengtlı and straightforwardness of purpose in life. The founder of this branch in Maryland was an Englishman who held grants under Lord Baltimore and settled upon a fine plantation comprising fourteen hundred acres. Since that date, 1725, the property has always been in the hands of some of his descendants.

The birth of our subject took place upon the old homestead of his forefathers in 1861 and he was scarcely a twelvemonth old when death de- prived him of a loving father's care and protec- tion. George C. M. Brooks, for such was the name he bore, was likewise born in Kent County and passed his whole life on the farm now owned by our subject. He not only possessed large es- tates, but owned many slaves as well, up to the time of the emancipation. He did not live to see the termination of the great and mooted ques- tion, as he was claimed by deatlı in 1862, when but twenty-five years old. His widow, whose maiden name was Sarah Rasin, is still living and is a resident of Virginia. Her father, McCall M. Rasin, was a native of this county, and was a representative in the state legislature one term. He owned a large tract of land and also several slaves.

Philip A. M. Brooks was an only child, and as his father had been wealthy and prosperous the lad received the best possible advantages in the matter of education and general training that a fond widowed mother's heart could suggest. After completing his elementary studies in the public schools here he entered the high school at Alexandria, Va., which was under the Episcopal Church's supervision, and in 1880 finished a prac- tical course in the Maryland Agricultural Col- lege, whither he went that he might be better qualified to meet the requirements of his future life upon the farm. He then returned to his old home, and has since devoted himself with zeal to the management of the estates, which comprise about seven hundred acres.

Politically Mr. Brooks is affiliated with the Democratic party, but has never been desirous of holding public office. He delights in a quiet life

683

PORTRAIT AND BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD.

and takes his chief pleasure in the domestic cir- cle. His hospitable home is presided over by his pretty, cheerful wife, formerly Miss Susan E. Massey. They were married in 1883 and have had two children, Philip M. and Grace E., who are now attending school. Mrs. Brooks is a daughter of the late Dr. C. H. B. Massey, who was well known in this section of the state. The Brooks family are attendants upon the services of the local Protestant Episcopal Church, and are liberal in their support of religious and charitable enterprises.

ILLIAM WALLACE SPENCE, the pop- ular and well-known cashier of the Talbot Savings Bank, is one of the most promi- nent young men of Easton, a leader in social and musical circles. The business interests of the city are also well represented by him, and whether in public or private life he is always a courteous, genial gentlemen, well deserving the high regard in which he is held. He is the pos- sessor of a fine tenor voice and is a cornet player of unusual ability.

Mr. Spence was born September 20, 1869, on a farm five miles from Easton, in Talbot County, and is a son of James McFarland Spence, whose birth occurred in Dundee, Scotland, February 21, 1829. On attaining his majority he came to America and first located in Winchester, Va., whence he went to Harford County, Md., and from there came to the Eastern Shore. For some- time he was a leading florist of Washington, D. C., and by the general government was offered $1,500 and expenses to go to Japan to name rare flowers and plants, but finally, after making all arrangements, he refused to go. He was one of the best-posted men in his line in the country. He died very suddenly of apoplexy at his home in Talbot County, in October, 1893. In religious belief he was a Presbyterian, but as there was 110 church of that denomination in his community he attended the Methodist Protestant Church. He was liberal almost to a fault, and was highly respected by all who had the pleasure of his ac-

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.

Portrait and biographical record of the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Part 74

Author: Chapman Publishing Company Publication date: 1898 Publisher: New York, Chapman pub. co. Number of Pages: 906

Author: Chapman Publishing Company
Publication date: 1898
Publisher: New York, Chapman pub. co.
Number of Pages: 906