Portrait and biographical record of the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Part 77

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 77

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The marriage of the captain was solemnized January 1, 1855, with Margaret Wheeler, of the eighth district, and a son and a daughter came to cheer their hearts. Sally, the elder child, is the wife of William P. Beckwith, who has an ex-

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cellent position as a teacher in the academy at East New Market. Josephi H., Jr., is still at lione with his parents, and is a great help in the operation of the farm. He is a young man of good principles, and is a rising young farmer of the community. The family are identified with tlie Episcopal Church of Cambridge, and are lib- eral contributors to its support.

OUIS LACEY BEATTY, school examiner for Queen Anne's County, Md., is one of the best known educators of the Eastern Shore of Maryland. His paternal grandfather was born in County Tyrone, Ireland, October 10, 1780. He immigrated to the United States when quite young and settled in Newcastle County, Del., where he married Catherine Bradford, April IO, 1803. His death occurred August 14, 1859. Catherine Bradford was born in Newcastle Coun- ty, Del., May 6, 1773, and died December 31, 1831. Both were buried in Salem Cemetery, near Cooch's Bridge.

Louis Hunter Beatty, father of our subject, was also a native of Newcastle County, Del., his birth having occurred October 5, 1814. He was educated at Newark Academy, was graduated in medicine from the Jefferson Medical College of Philadelphia, and settled at Ingleside, Queen Anne's County, Md., where for many years he was a successful practitioner and farmer. In April, 1839, he married Catherine Amelia Robin- son, of Denton, Md. From1 1847 to 1849 Dr. Beatty occupied the chair of obstetrics and dis- eases of women and children in the Philadelphia College of Medicine. He died August 17, 1871, from injuries resulting from a fall, and was buried in the Sudlersville (Md.) Cemetery. His wife, Catherine A. Robinson, was born March 25, 1822, a daughter of Peter and Sallie R. (Mitch- ell) Robinson. She is still living ( December 14, 1897). Her brother, the late Jolin Mitchell Rob- inson, was very prominent in Maryland, being chief judge of the circuit court for nearly thirty years, and chief justice of the court of appeals of

the state of Maryland at the time of his death, in January, 1896. To Louis H. Beatty and his wife were born the following children: Josephine A., Sarah R., Laura, Arthur J., Louis Lacey, Ralph R., Frederic W. and Eugene Mitchell.

Louis Lacey Beatty was born at Ingleside, Queen Anne's County, Md., August 3, 1850, and received liis education at Dickinson College, at Carlisle, Pa. From 1881 to 1886 inclusive, he was county surveyor of Queen Anne's County. In the latter year he was chosen county school examiner or superintendent of the public schools, also treasurer and secretary of the school board of the county. For six years he was a member of the state board of education of Maryland, and has been interested in public education nearly all his life, especially in his native county. Decem- ber 9, 1896, he married Mary Morling Sudler, daughter of the late J. Morling Sudler, of Sud- lersville, Queen Anne's County. Mr. and Mrs. Beatty now reside at Centreville, the county seat of Queen Anne's County, where he has his pub- lic offices.

SCAR M. PURNELL, one of the editors and proprietors of the Democratic Messen- ger at Snow Hill, the official paper of Wor- cester County, was born in the city where he now resides, October 20, 1858. His parents, Stephen D. and Mary J. (Laws) Purnell, were natives of this county, where the former died in 1879, at the age of fifty-three years; the widowed mother, a lady of seventy years, still resides in Snow Hill. In her family there were originally twelve children, and of these the following survive: William Matthew, Stephen L., James L., Oscar M., George E., John W. and Mary K. The eldest, William M. Purnell, owns and occupies a farmi that was taken up by one of three brothers, who came together from England in the seventeenth century, bringing with them their personal effects, furniture, stock, etc., in a boat. They settled within the present con- fines of Worcester County. Another of the sons, Ralph C., graduated from the medical depart-

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ment of the University of Maryland in April, 1887, at the age of twenty-one. On July 26 of the same year, he was drowned at Scott's Beach. Of the surviving brothers, Stephen L. is a mer- chant in Snow Hill and a judge of the orphans' court in Worcester County; James L. is gen- eral manager for the Home Sewing Machine Company at Cleveland, Ohio; George E. is a dentist at Guadalajara, Mexico, and is also sec- retary and treasurer of the Jalisca Packing Company; and John W. is a dentist in the city of Mexico, while Mary K., the only daughter, resides with her mother in Snow Hill.

On the farm where he was born October 20, 1858, the early life of our subject was unevent- fully passed. At the age of eighteen he gradu- ated from the Snow Hill high school. He entered Washington College immediately after- ward in 1876 and took the four years' classical course in that institution, graduating with the class of 1880. On his return home he began to read law with Upshun & Purnell, with which firm he remained until he was admitted to the bar in 1882. He practiced his profession from that time until January, 1887, when, in partner- ship with C. L. Vincent, he bought the Demo- cratic Messenger. The young men are inde- fatigable workers and the paper which they publish is pronounced by many well-posted men to be one of the best county papers in the state.

Mr. Purnell was one of the founders of the Equitable Building and Loan Association of Snow Hill, an institution that was established in December, 1894, and is rapidly becoming one of the most solid financial institutions on the Eastern Shore. Fraternally he is Past Grand in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and a member of the Tribe of Red Men, being a char- ter member of Nassawango Tribe of Snow Hill. He is a decided Democrat in opinions, but has never sought political distinction, being content with the management of his business interests. He has represented his county in local and other conventions, the most notable of these being the memorable judicial convention in the First Judi- cial Circuit of Maryland, when six thousand bal- lots were taken before a decision was reached .

(For full particulars of this convention see life of C. J. Purnell.) In 1883 he was united in marriage with Miss Emma J., daughter of Thomas D. Purnell, register of wills for Worcester County. They are the parents of two daughters, Eloise and Julia, and in religious connections both are members of the Makemie Memorial Presbyterian Church of Snow Hill, of which Mr. Purnell is treasurer. Mr. Purnell was appointed auditor in chancery by Judge Charles F. Holland in 1885, but resigned the position after purchasing the Democratic Messenger in 1887, in order to devote his entire time to writing for his paper, its im- provement and the advancement of its interests. He had personal supervision of the books and subscription list and increased the number of subscribers from about three hundred to fifteen hundred annual bona fide readers.

REDERICK A. ADAMS, M. D., resides upon the estate in Somerset County that lias been occupied by the Adams family during the entire period of the nineteenth cent- ury. It is situated in Brinkley's district and consists of one hundred acres, devoted to the raising of general farm products. While super- intending the cultivation of the place, the doctor gives his time principally to professional work; he has a valuable practice among the people of his locality and in addition thereto is medical examiner for the New York Mutual Life Insur- ance Company, Heptasophs and Ancient Order of United Workmen.

Upon the home farm, where our subject was born in 1840, the birth of his father, James F. Adams, occurred in 1811. The latter was a descendant of English ancestors who came to Somerset County in an early day; by occupation a farmer, he owned a large and valuable planta- tion and also had in his possession a number of slaves. He voted the Democratic ticket but was not active in politics. During the Civil war he was proprietor of an inn at Rehobeth, and when the conflict ended he went to Kansas City, where

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lie embarked in the live stock business, remain- ing in that city until his death, at fifty-eight years of age. He was a son of Josiah Adams, a native and life-long resident of Somerset County, a large farmer and slave owner, and a sergeant in the war of 1812. The wife of James F. Adams was Elizabeth Wilson, a lady of energetic dis- position and Christian character; she died at fifty-eight years of age.

Of a family of four children the doctor is the only survivor. He was reared in Brinkley's district and received his education at Washing- ton Academy, Princess Anne, and in a private school in Baltimore, where he was a student for two years. During the period of the war he remained in the south. In 1865 he came back home and soon afterward began the study of medicine in Jefferson Medical College, Philadel- phia, where lie graduated in 1867 with the de- gree of M. D. He then returned to the old home, where he has since engaged in the practice of his profession. 'He is a member of the Ancient Order of United Workmen and the Improved Order of Heptasophs, and with his family attends the Episcopal Church. In 1868 he married Sallie W., daughter of Jephtha Hayman. They have one son and three daughters, James F., Gertrude E., Lucille H. and Marie H.

ON. THOMAS LE COMPTE, who was judge of the orphans' court from 1881 to 1889, a period of eight years, and during his second term was chief judge, comes from one of the oldest and representative families of Dor- chester County. His celebrated ancestor, An- thony Le Compte, was a Frenchman by birth, as his name would imply, but was forced to flee from his native land during the religious perse- cutions of the early part of the seventeenth cent- ury. His estates were confiscated and he, taking refuge in England, took up arms against his mother country, which had served him so cruelly, and for his valor and bravery in the service of the British king he was knighted and given a coat

of arms and other evidences of the high esteem in which the sovereign held him. He married a certain Esther Doatloan, whose acquaintance he made in London. They had a common country and a common grievance against France, for she was also a Protestant, compelled to seek a home in a foreign land. Anthony Le Compte, with his charming young wife, decided to try his fortunes in America, and upon arriving here in 1654 settled upon land to which he held grants under Lord Baltimore. This property is now in the possession of Charles Mitchell. (For further particulars of the Le Compte ancestry see sketch of J. S. Shepherd. )

The subject of this article owns a part of the beautiful and historic farm known far and near as Castle Haven. It is situated about nine miles from Cambridge, near the mouth of the Choptank River, which is about two miles wide here. The peninsula, of which Castle Haven is a part, affords from its deeply indented shores fine views of the beautiful river and bay, and is as pictur- esque a spot as can be easily found upon the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake. The farm which belongs to Mr. Le Compte is a tract of one hundred acres, with a substantial residence and good barns and other buildings. The place was purchased by him about 1856, and he has since devoted his energies to its improvement and cul- tivation with gratifying results.

Judge Le Compte was born near Castle Haven April 22, 1820, being a son of William G., a na- tive of the same place and a soldier of the war of 1812. In the annals of this locality it was recorded that a British regiment was landed here with the object of plundering the surrounding farmers and then proceeding to Cambridge, but that for some reason their plans were changed as far as the town was concerned, and they re- embarked in a short time. The paternal grand- father of the judge was Isaiah Le Compte, who was born, lived and died at Castle Haven. Our subject grew to manhood upon the old farm, learning, when quite young, to properly dis- charge all the duties resting upon the man who would be a successful agriculturist. In his youth he formed habits of industry and perseverance in

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whatever he undertook that have been the basis of his later prosperity. For a great many years he has been a member of the Protestant Episcopal Church, and has the satisfaction of knowing that the acquaintances of his whole lifetime esteem him very highly, and have the greatest confidence in his sterling qualities of heart and mind.

In 1840 the marriage of the judge and Miss Margaret Cook was solemnized. Eight children blessed their union, and those who lived became worthy and respected citizens of the communities in which they took up their abode. Three of the children died in infancy, and the others are, viz .: Thomas I., a merchant of this district; Daniel H., a merchant of Cambridge; Samuel E., a merchant of Hills Point and sheriff of Dorchester County; Mary L., wife of John L. Spedden, a farmer near Hills Point; and Margaret N., wife of George E. Hearn. The latter reside upon the farm with the judge's family.

T ISAAC J. STREET. Among the reliable busi- ness men and trustworthy citizens of Tyaskin district, Wicomico County, is this respected agriculturist. He is quite well-to-do from a finan- cial standpoint and owns nearly four hundred acres of land here. He has made many substan- tial improvements upon the place where he dwells and endeavors to keep everything up in a thrifty condition. He is a practical and progress- ive farmer and usually meets with good success in his monetary ventures.

The Streets have been residents of the Eastern Shore for several generations and have been noted for their honesty, industry and persever- ance along agricultural lines. They have been trusted always by their neighbors and acquaint- ances, who know them to be uniformly upright, just and law-abiding. Though ordinarily they quietly pursue "the even tenor of their way" they are of the stock that would suffer any loss or endure any sacrifice in the defense of their be- loved fatherland, and particularly would they place their all upon the altar of their own dear

Maryland should it ever become necessary to protect her rights with their property or lives. They have resided here so long that it is not definitely known when they cast in their destinies with our people, but the father and grandfather of our subject were both natives of this county. The first-named was Capt. Thomas Street, who followed the life of a sailor for years and finally becanie master of a ship that plied the Chesa- peake Bay. His home and headquarters were upon a farm which he cultivated or supervised when away from home part of the time. His wife bore the girlhood name of Ann Williams, and she, too, was a native of eastern Maryland. Of their six children but three are living, viz .: Thomas, Isaac J. and Sallie.

The birth of Isaac J. Street took place Novem- ber 17, 1846, upon the parental homestead, where his next few years were passed. His education was such as could be gained in the district schools, which he attended during a part of each year. The rest of the time he helped in the work of the farm and was trained in habits of in- dustry and business methods. Since reaching man's estate he has been interested in saw- milling and has carried on this enterprise in con- nection with regular farming. Summing up his life thus far from a worldly point of view he has been very successful when one takes into due consideration that he has met with many difficul- ties and obstacles, but has bravely overcome them one by one. He is a Knight of Pythias, being a member of Nanticoke Lodge No. 81, of Nanti- coke village. Both he and liis family have long been connected with the Methodist Episcopal Church and have taken an active part in further- ing its many admirable departments of useful- ness. In his attitude upon political issues he is to be found on the side of the Democracy, in which party he thoroughly believes.

Realizing that a good wife is the crown of a man's life Mr. Street won for his bride Miss Mary W. Catlin, of this county, their marriage taking place November 17, 1870. They became the parents of six children, one of whom died in infancy. The others in the order of their birth are: Hattie L .; Mary A .; Amos R .; Lena A.,

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wife of Charles Parks; and Adah L. Hattie I. is the wife of Marcellus Windsor and their fam- ily comprises Isaac W. and two infants, Langford and Matt, who, with a brother that died at about three months old, were triplets. The faithful wife of our subject was called to the home beyond April 15, 1884, in the fifteenth year of her mar- ried life, and aged but thirty-five years. She had been a true helpmate, sharing the joys and sor- sows of her husband and helping him in an end- less variety of ways to bear the burdens that rested upon his shoulders.

ENJAMIN S. PUSEY, a much-respected citizen of the second district of Wicomico County, has been occupied extensively in farming, dairying and operating a sawmill here for years, and is successful and well-off. Upon political questions he sides with the Republican party, and has the courage of his convictions. This county being Democratic, he has not been elected to office, though he has been a candidate for the positions of sheriff and commissioner on his own party ticket. He is an advocate of all movements which he believes to be for the good of the country in general and for his own commu- nity in particular, and is a man who considers the welfare of others before his own.

Elijah J. Pusey, a most worthy man and father of our subject, was a native of Sussex County, Del., and was possessed of an excellent educa- tion. He was married in May, 1846, and had taught school in Delaware for several years pre- viously. After this event he settled in Laurel, Del., where he carried on a store until 1855, when he bought the farm now the homestead of his son Benjamin. He continued to dwell here until shortly before his death, in April, 1878. While a resident of his native state he had served his fellow-citizens as their representative in the state legislature, having been elected upon the Whig. ticket. An honorable Christian gentleman, he won the love and respect of all who knew him, and for years he was superintendent of the Sun-

day-school of the Methodist Episcopal Church, to which he belonged. His good wife, Margaret, was a daughter of Benjamin Sheppard, of Shep- pardsville, Wicomico County. She died in March, 1897, her loss being deeply and sincerely mourned by her hosts of warm friends. Of her children, the following are yet living: S. E. is the wife of John I. Scott, of Philadelphia, and L. H. is the wife of W. J. Johnson, of Salisbury; Benjamin S. is the subject of this article; and E. J. is a citizen of this neighborhood.

Benjamin S. Pusey was born in Laurel, Del., January 23, 1850, and was a student in the pub- lic schools of his home district. Since leaving school he has given his whole time to farming, and is a thorough and practical man of business. He owns the old homestead of one hundred and ninety-seven acres, and besides this he owns six hundred acres elsewhere. For a quarter of a cent- ury he has been a valued member of the Meth- odist Episcopal Church. February 22, 1880, Mr. Pusey married Letitia J., daughter of Levin M. Wilson, and they have had three children, Elihu W., Mary E. and Margaret J.

I SAAC H. COULBOURN is a member of a family long connected with the history of the lower peninsula. The ancestral records show that in 1732 a grant of seventeen hundred acres was made to William Coulbourn, who founded the family in Somerset County, and established his home upon property that still remains in the possession of his descendants. This is said to have been the first grant taken in Somerset County, as well as one of the first in the southern part of the peninsula. When William came to this country from England, he was accompanied by a brother, Isaac, of whose subsequent settle- ment and history, however, nothing is known. The grandfather of our subject, Isaac Coulbourn, was born on the old homestead and there spent his entire life, engaged in farm pursuits, dying there when eighty-two years of age. During the war of 1812 he was a member of the home guard.

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Our subject's father, William Coulbourn, was born on the home farm, where he grew to man- hood. For about forty years he followed the oc- cupation of a mariner, owning several vessels that engaged in trading on the Chesapeake Bay. Later he retired to the old homestead and there he remained until his death, at eighty-two years of age. In politics a Republican, he was elected to the legislature on the party ticket in 1872 and 1876, and also served for one term as sheriff of Somerset County. He held the rank of lieuten- ant in the old militia. Religiously he was inter- ested in the work of the Methodist Episcopal Church and contributed liberally to the building of the Old Side Church. His wife, who bore the maiden name of Henrietta Robinson Berry, was born in Middlesex County, Va., August 18, 1825, and is now living on the homestead in Somerset County. She is a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church and is quite active for one of her years. In her family there are two sons and two daughters, namely: Clara L., wife of J. W. Richardson, of Washington, D. C .; Isaac H .; Addie M., who married F. A. Gunby, a farmer of Somerset County; and William R., who is engaged in the drug business in Roanoke, Va.

In Lawsons district, Somerset County, our subject was born August 21, 1852. At the age of fourteen he entered Dickinson Seminary, where he was a student for three years, and later he took a commercial course at Williamsport, Pa. For two years afterward he was employed as clerk in a general store at Crisfield and for a similar period he engaged in the mercantile business here. In 1874 he embarked in the oyster busi- ness on a small scale, becoming a member of the fırın of Brown, Coulbourn & Co., with which he was connected for two years. For three years afterward he carried on the concern alone, and then formed his present co-partnership, as a member of the firm of Long, Coulbourn & Co. They own a large hardware store in Crisfield and also do a large business as dealers in and pack- ers of oysters. Mr. Long attends to the former business and Mr. Coulbourn superintends the latter.

In 1876 Mr. Coulbourn assisted in establishing

the firm of Coulbourn, Moore & Co., manufact- urers of ice, and he remained with the enter- prise when, in 1892, it was merged into the Cris- field Ice Manufacturing Company, of which he is now the vice-president and a director. Though not active in politics, he is stanch in his allegiance to the Democratic party. He is a Christian in belief and contributes to the support of the Meth- odist Protestant Church, with which his wife is connected. Fraternally he is a member of the Improved Order-of Heptasophs and the Knights of Pythias. By his marriage to Jane E., daughter of Willianı Roach, of Somerset County, he has two sons and two daughters: William H., a bright young man of seventeen years, now a medical student in the University of Maryland; Caroline V., Hugh A. and Ethel Henrietta.

5 EORGE L. HICKS, M. D., has long been in active practice as a physician and surgeon in Dorchester County, and has his office and residence on Mill street, Cambridge, where he continues his practice. He is a man of fine presence and inspires confidence from the first acquaintanceship. With his charming and cult- ured wife he delights to entertain his friends, and the social circles of Cambridge have, indeed, made a pleasing acquisition in obtaining them for citizens.

The doctor is a native of Alexandria, Va., born January 3, 1839. His father was a native of Baltimore and was one of the defenders of that city in the memorable battle of North Point during the war of 1812. The mother was a Miss Elizabeth Bayne in her girlhood, and of their large family, comprising thirteen children, the doctor was next to the youngest. His early education was ob- tained in St. John's Academy, of Alexandria, one of his tutors having been Rev. James Kirk, of that celebrated institution of learning. Later he took up the study of medicine and graduated from the Columbian University, Washington, D. C., in the class of 1866. He won extended experience in the southern army, where he rose to be an

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assistant to a leading surgeon. After the war was concluded, he settled in Baltimore County, at a place now called Rossville. While a resi- dent in that place, his parents came to pass their remaining years with him, and died under his roof. I11 1868 he removed across the Chesapeake and opened an office at Cornersville, Dorchester County, and there spent the most active years of his professional career. From that point, where over a quarter of a century had been passed in arduous work, his calls taking him upon many a long country drive in all sorts of inclement weather, he decided to come to beautiful Cam- bridge, and give up such laborious work. He was influenced in this by his own health, which was fast breaking down under the strain that had so long been imposed upon it. The rest and change have been beneficial to him and he is now more robust than a few years ago. He has always en- deavored to do his full duty as a citizen, and has been especially interested in the cause of educa- tion. For nearly ten years he served as president of the school board of Dorchester County, begin- ning with 1869, when he was elected by the people under the Van Bocklyn law, and later was appointed by the judges of this county and by the board elected president. Politically he had always been a Democrat.

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Portrait and biographical record of the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Part 77

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