USA > Maryland > Portrait and biographical record of the Sixth congressional district, Maryland V. 2 > Part 26
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Ignatius Fulks, our subject's father, was born in Maryland, and was about eighteen years old
when the family removed to the Old Dominion. He engaged in agricultural pursuits there, but upon the death of his father he returned to Montgom- ery County, where he continued farming. He took an active part in elections and was a stanch Whig. His wife, Henrietta, was a native of Anne Arundel County and a daughter of Capt. James Saunders, who took part in the second war with England, and defended Baltimore when that city was threatened by the British forces; his name is engraved on the soldiers' monument in Baltimore.
The four children of Ignatius and Henrietta Fulks were: Dr. James S., deceased; William R., a farmer residing in Gaithersburg District; Ig- natius Thomas and Mary Elizabeth. Our sub- ject, the youngest of the sons, was educated in the public schools and Rockville Academy. For about ten years he taught in the schools of Mont- gomery County, after which he embarked in the mercantile business at Gaithersburg as a member of the firm of Ward & Fulks. The partnership lasted for twenty-five years, until the death of Mr. Ward, and afterwards Mr. Fulks carried on the business alone for two years. The firm car- ried a stock of general merchandise, hardware, groceries, etc. They did much to give a start to the building enterprises of the town, as they erected many houses, thus furnishing work for carpenters, masons, etc.
Upon selling out his store Mr. Fulks bought the establishment of J. Sprigg Poole, at the de- pot, and engaged as a dealer in grain, fertilizer, machinery, etc., with Henry C. Miller as man- ager. Five years later the business was merged in the Gaithersburg Milling and Manufacturing Company, in which he is still a large stockholder and the president of the company. While con- ducting the business, before the incorporation of the company, the necessity of having a bank in Gaithersburg was broached, and Mr. Fulks fa- vored the establishment of such an institution. On its incorporation he was made a director, in which capacity he has since acted. For six years he was a director in the Standard Lime and Stone Company, of Frederick County. For several years he has been a member of the city council,
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and has served as its president. He was one of the incorporators of the town. While in the mer- cantile business he purchased a tract of one hun- dred and six acres on the Frederick road and fifty-four acres from Captain O'Toole, which he has since superintended, in addition to managing his other interests. Later he bought the place known as Summit Hall, comprising one hundred and seventy-three acres, where he now resides and carries on farming.
Prior to the war Mr. Fulks was a Whig, but since then he has been independent in politics, preferring to cast his vote for the best man, though leaning toward Republican principles. Since thirteen years of age he has been identified with the Methodist Episcopal Church, in which he has long been trustee and steward. For many years, when a younger man, he served as Sunday- school superintendent. In 1869 he married Eliza- beth M., daughter of the late Samuel Gloyd, of Montgomery County. Seven children were born of their union, and of these five are living, namely: Thomas Irenius, who is assistant man- ager of the mill; Edgar; Oscar F., who is en- gaged in the mercantile business at Washington Grove; Charles Algernon and Rosa Blanche.
M ATTHEW FIELDS, deceased, came of an old and honored family of Montgomery County and here his career, from the cradle to the grave, was almost wholly enacted. Dur- ing his life, an unusually active and useful one, he was frequently honored by his neighbors and friends in being chosen to occupy high positions of public trust and responsibility and never did he in the slightest degree abuse such trust. Loved and looked up to in life, he was deeply mourned when death put an end to his labors and in recognition of the warm place he occupied in the hearts of his fellow-citizens, business was entirely suspended on the day of his obsequies in Rockville, an honor that has been accorded to no other man in the county.
Matthew Fields, editor and public official, was born in 1813 near the county seat of Montgomery County, and was reared in this vicinity. Upon attaining his majority he went to Washington, D. C .; Wheeling, W. Va .; Cincinnati and St. Louis, spending several years in these various cities engaged in business. In August, 1855, he established the Montgomery County Sentinel, which for nearly a half-century has been one of the representative newspapers of western Mary- land. Under his able management the journal speedily found its way into public favor, gaining a well-deserved place, which it holds to the pres- ent day. Prior to and during the Civil war Mr. Fields was an ardent sympathizer with the southern cause, and his paper was an apt expo- nent of his views, and a stanch supporter of Democratic principles as long as he lived. Owing to his open and avowed sentiments he was twice arrested by the military authorities of the United States and was confined in the old Capitol and Carroll prisons. His newspaper was also sup- pressed for a brief period. Since his demise the Sentinel has been owned by his widow and ably conducted by their sons, Charles W. and Henry C.
Among the local offices which Mr. Fields filled with great credit to himself and constituents were those of mayor of Rockville and sheriff of Mont- gomery County. His bond for the last-named position was the largest ever given by any sheriff of this county, a fact which plainly evinced the thorough confidence which was reposed in him by his associates and contemporaries.
The marriage of Mr. Fields and Miss Rebecca Georgiana Beckwith was solemnized December 30, 1850. Mrs. Fields is the youngest daughter of the late Charles Beckwith, of Montgomery County, whose ancestors were numbered among the earliest settlers of Maryland. By special warrant, dated London, England, September 8, 1641, they were granted one thousand acres of land lying along the banks of the Patuxent River. The Beckwiths are allied with some of the noblest houses of England.
Two daughters, the elder unmarried and the younger the wife of David H. Warfield, a de- scendant of one of the oldest Maryland families,
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and four sons survive their honored father, Matthew Fields. Three of the sons are unmar- ried and the other chose for his wife Miss Marian Virginia Rabbitt. The sons are enterprising business men, worthy scions of a noble father.
OHN B. DIAMOND, secretary and treasurer of the Gaithersburg Milling & Manufactur- ing Company, of Gaithersburg, Montgomery County, is known far and wide as one of the most progressive and enterprising business men of the county. Public-spirited to a marked degree, he advocates all improvements and institutions cal- culated to benefit the community and is largely interested in many of the leading concerns of this section.
The Diamond family is of English origin. The paternal grandfather of the above-named gentle- man was John Diamond, who emigrated from England to Philadelphia, Pa., in early life and there engaged in mercantile pursuits. His son, William C., father of our subject, was born in the Quaker city and became a resident of Montgom- ery County when he was a young man. He was successful and energetic, and accumulated a large property, something over one thousand acres. He died, at the close of a long and useful career, at his home in this county in 1873. To himself and wife, Josephine Jenkins, daughter of John Jenkins and a native of the city of Baltimore, four children were born, but three of the number' are deceased.
John B. Diamond, the only survivor of his father's family, was born on the old homestead in this county, March 25, 1857. He grew up in the neighborhood of Gaithersburg and was edu- cated in the local schools and in Rock Hill College, Ellicott City, Md., from which he was graduated in 1873. He has been prospered in his numerous investments in land and business enterprises, and as a promoter and organizer of the same. In 1892 he was one of the founders of the First National Bank of this place and has
since served as its vice-president. In 1896 he became the secretary and treasurer of the Gaith- ersburg Milling & Manufacturing Company. The mills of this important concern are located at Derwood and Gaithersburg, the latter one having a capacity of one hundred and fifty barrels per day and the former one hundred barrels per day. Besides the regular milling business the company do a very extensive business in all kinds of mill products, and handle a line of agricultural sup- plies, fertilizers, implements, seeds, etc., as well as wagons, buggies, lime, lumber, etc. The estab- lishment of this plant here has made Gaithersburg the most important grain market in the county. Mr. Diamond was one of the organizers of the Perpetual Building and Loan Association, and the Gaithersburg Seminary and Improvement Company, and is a director in these corporations. In political matters he takes an active interest and is a member of the Democratic party. Re- ligiously he is a Catholic.
November 7, 1877, Mr. Diamond married Miss Grace Ranney, daughter of Judge Israel Ranney, of Delaware, Delaware County, Ohio. Their family comprises four promising sons: William Carroll, John B., Herbert and Douglas.
OHN T. WHITE, A. M., principal of the Allegany County High School No. 1, was born in Middletown, Frederick County, Md., June 13, 1856. His father, John W. White, a native of Montgomery County, Md., was for many years a merchant of Middletown, and for some time served as president of the board of school commissioners of Frederick County. He died March 31, 1882, at the age of sixty-three. His marriage united him with Sarah J., daughter of Peter Young, and a native of Frederick County. She is living at the old homestead and is now seventy-eight years of age. They were the parents of six children, viz .: Charles E., cashier of the National Bank of Washington; George C.,
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of Bloomington, Ill .; Charlotte, widow of M. C. Davis; Sarah F. McBride; William H., also a resident of Bloomington, and John T.
The education of our subject was obtained in the public and private schools of Middletown and in Mercersburg (Pa.) College, from which he graduated June 26, 1878. From September of the same year until June, 1879, he served as a tutor in Latin and Greek at Mercersburg College, after which he was principal of the grammar school at Mauch Chunk, Pa., for two years, principal of the high school .in the same place for four years, principal of Union street school, Cumberland, from September, 1885, to June, 1888, and principal of Allegany County High School No. I, at Cumberland, from 1888 to the present time (1898). He also has the distinction of being president of the Maryland State Teachers' Association.
August 27, 1879, Mr. White married Miss Alice A., daughter of Dr. Henry N. Eberly, of Mercersburg. They are members of St. Mark's Reformed Church, and are popular in the best social circles of Cumberland. Fraternally Mr. White is connected with the Ancient Order United Workmen; Maryland Council, National Union; Ohr Lodge No. 131, A. F. & A. M .; and Chosen Friends' Lodge, I. O. O. F.
Not only has Mr. White gained prominence as an educator, ranking among the best in the city of Cumberland, and, indeed, as one of the most successful in the entire state, but he is also gifted in other lines of mental activity. As a poet he is known throughout the state. He is also fond of poetry of the great men of all ages, and has collected his information pertaining to them in a lecture entitled "Immortelles in Poetry," which he has delivered at various places, to the delight of every audience before whom it has been given. One of his well-known poems is "The Birth of Christ," which he published, as a gift book, in a neat booklet form, attractively bound, tastily printed and fastened with ribbon. Another of his poems is "Maryland, My Maryland," which is sung by his school to the tune of the favorite state song of Maryland. It is such a beautiful tribute to the state every Marylander loves that
we give it here entire, only regretting the im- possibility of also presenting his "Gettysburg " and other poems in this permanent form.
"MARYLAND, MY MARYLAND."
We dedicate our song to thee, Maryland, my Maryland,
The home of light and liberty, Maryland, my Maryland.
We love thy streams and wooded hills,
Thy mountains with their gushing rills, Thy scenes-our heart with rapture fills-
· Maryland, my Maryland.
In twain the Chesapeake divides Maryland, my Maryland,
While oceanward its water glides, Maryland, my Maryland.
Yet we in thought and purpose one,
Pursue the work so well begun,
And may our State be ne'er outdone, Maryland, my Maryland.
Proud sons and daughters boast of thee, Maryland, my Maryland.
Thine is a precious history, Maryland, my Maryland.
Brave hearts have held thy honor dear,
Have met the foeman far and near,
But victory has furnished cheer, Maryland, my Maryland.
"Sail on, sail on, O ship of State!" Maryland, my Maryland. May we, thy children, make thee great, Maryland, my Maryland. May gratitude our hearts possess, And boldly we thy claims express, And bow in loving thankfulness, Maryland, my Maryland.
CUMBERLAND, MD., Jan. 23, '94.
OHN G. ENGLAND. No citizen is more highly esteemed and honored in the town of Rockville than the gentleman whose name has just been given. His friends and neighbors, appreciating his true worth and public spirit, have called upon him, time and again, to occupy of- fices within their gift, and he has invariably won their appreciation and praise for the able and
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painstaking manner with which he has carried out their wishes in the administration of said positions. Among other offices that he has ca- pably filled in this place are that of mayor, councilman, postmaster and commissioner of schools; he is now president of the board.
The birthplace of John G. England is on the old family homestead, about one mile from Rock- ville, and the year of his birth 1847. His boy- hood was passed on the farm, his education being obtained in Rockville Academy. When about fifteen years of age he left home, and going to Washington, D. C., he took a position as a sales- man in the dry-goods house of R. W. Carter, in whose employ he continued some three years. He then became an employe of the firm of Barnes & Mitchell, of the same city, and thoroughly learned the details of the business. Immediately after his marriage, April 23, 1867, to Miss Annie L. Griffith, he came to Rockville and established a mercantile house of his own, and for thirty-one years has successfully managed the enterprise.
Notwithstanding his busy and energetic com- mercial life, Mr. England has found time for matters of public moment, and has been very ag- gressive in everything tending to promote the good of his fellow-citizens. In 1869 he was ap- pointed postmaster of Rockville by President Grant, and continued to occupy this office until the summer after Cleveland was inaugurated, a period of sixteen years. In 1894 he was elected mayor of the place, and was then tendered the office for a second term, but owing to the fact that he had accepted an appointment from Gov- ernor Lowndes on the board of public education, he was rendered ineligible for the other position. He is now serving in the last-named office, his term being for a period of six years. A few years ago he was made a life trustee of Rockville Academy, and no one better qualified for this im- portant place could be found, nor one who takes more interest in the cause of education. In pol- itics, it is needless to say, he is a true and stanch Republican. In the election of 1898 he was once more honored by his neighbors, who elected him to serve as a member of the city council.
There are thirteen children in the family of
John G. and Annie England, namely: Rev. Howard G., a minister of the Episcopal Church, now pastor of charges in Wickliffe, Va., and Ripon, West Va. (just over the state line); Henrietta W .; Emily Howard, who is named in honor of her grandmother; Edward W., deputy in the county clerk's office in Rockville; Eliza- beth, a teacher in the Rockville high school; Annie L., Elsie M., Lillian C., John A., Ma- tilda O., Carrie C., Harrison L. and Maude R. Mrs. England is a daughter of Uriah H. Griffith, a prosperous farmer of Laytonsville, Md. Dur- ing the war he held a position as deputy collector of internal revenue and later occupied a place in the Baltimore custom house. Mr. and Mrs. England are members of the Episcopal Church, the former having been a vestryman in the same for twenty years.
John G. England is the youngest of the six children of Maj. John G. and Emily (Howard) England. The father was a native of Frederick County, Md., but from the time that he arrived at mature years he made his home in the vicinity of Rockville. Soon after coming here, March 30, 1830, he was admitted to the bar, and within a few years he had succeeded in building up a very extensive practice and had earned a most enviable reputation in his profession. As a public speaker and orator he had few equals, and upon various questions of national and local moment his voice was heard with no uncertain sound. He was a strong Union man, and an earnest advocate of the principles of the Republican party. In early life he was a Whig, and was elected to the Mary- land legislature in 1839, having among his col- leagues, William Ligion Gaither, Richard R. Waters and Robert T. Dade. He was re-elected at the expiration of his term, and served upon several important committees. At one time he was nominated for the state senate, but was de- feated by a few votes, his opponent being Gen. W. L. Gaither. Afterward Mr. England was twice tendered the nomination to the senate, but declined to run for the position. For many years prior to his death he was a valued mem- ber of the board of trustees of Rockville Acad- emy, and one of his marked characteristics was
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his friendship for young people and his constant desire to be of practical assistance to them. After nearly half a century of brilliant political and professional success, he was summoned to his re- ward, February 30, 1881, having reached his seventy-sixth year. His wife, Emily, was a daughter of Thomas Worthington Howard, and granddaughter of Gen. Jeremiah Crabb, of well- known Revolutionary war fame. The Howards are among the best-known families of Maryland, and have been represented in several counties with highly patriotic and honored branches of the original parent-stock. Major England's chil- dren were named as follows: Susan R., Thomas H., Harriet V., Henry C., Mary and John G. Thomas H. resides on the old homestead, and Henry C., who was a promising member of the bar, was accidentally killed by the electric cars at Kensington.
DWARD ANDERSON, M. D., a represent- ative physician of Montgomery County, is of the third generation of Andersons who have been engaged in the practice of the healing art in this immediate section of Maryland, cover- ing a period of about one hundred and ten years. He enjoys a wide general practice and keeps abreast of all modern discoveries in the line of his professional work, by the perusal of the leading medical magazines and journals, and by being identified with prominent medical associations. Personally he is well liked by all who have the pleasure of his acquaintance, for he possesses those sterling qualities of heart and mind that in- spire respect and genuine esteem in one's neigh- bors and associates.
A son of James W. and Mary (Minor) Ander- son, whose history is given at some length in the biography of the doctor's brother, Capt. James Anderson, elsewhere printed in this volume, Ed- ward Anderson was born within a mile of Rock- ville on a farm, May 3, 1841. He was reared in this vicinity and, after finishing his common
school education became a pupil in Rockville Seminary, where he pursued the higher branches of study. He continued to dwell in the old home until 1870, when he engaged in teaching school, and followed this vocation with success for some three years. In the meantime he devoted his leisure time to the study of medical works, and in 1874 he entered the University of Maryland. He was graduated from the medical department of that celebrated institution of learning with the degree of Doctor of Medicine in 1875. He at once located in the town of Norbeck, this county, and practiced there for two years. He then came back to Rockville, opened an office, and has since found his time amply occupied in attending to the needs of his numerous patients. He is a member of the Medical and Chirurgical Faculty of Maryland, which organization his grandfather, Dr. James Anderson, assisted in founding one hundred years ago, in 1799. He also belongs to the American Medical Association and others of a local nature. For the past ten years he has held the position of house physician to the Mont- gomery County Almshouse. His articles for publication are eagerly looked for, as he is a man of wide experience, and has the faculty of ex- pressing his idea in a clear, convincing and forci- ble manner. Among other magazines and jour- nals in which they occur from time to time are the Philadelphia Medical News (the official organ of the American Medical Association) and the Maryland Medical Journal and the Charlotte Medical Journal.
December 3, 1883, the doctor married Mrs. Alice Thompson, widow of Dr. Benedict Thomp- son, of Washington, D.C. Her father, J. J. Lawn, was a prominent business man in Baltimore, in which city Mrs. Anderson was born. Dr. Ander- son and wife have one son, named for him, Ed- ward, Jr.
The paternal grandfather of the doctor was Dr. James Anderson, who, for over forty years, be- ginning in 1791, practiced medicine in this coun- ty, and was succeeded by Dr. John W., his son, and he in turn by Edward Anderson, of whom this notice is written. Colonel Richard, brother of Dr. James Anderson, was born January 16, 1752,
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was made first lieutenant of the Seventh Mary- ships sunk by the British, of which he was the land troops in the Revolutionary war; was pro- owner. The father of our subject sought a home in what was then the wilds of western Penn- sylvania, with the other members of his family, when he was a youth. Near the little town of Loretto (Pa.), which was founded by Rev. Deme- trius Augustine Gallitzin, prince and priest, the early years of Father Rosensteel were passed. He was born across the state line in Emmitsburg, Frederick County, Md., May 13, 1855. Brought up under the influence of the Catholic religion, he early formed the earnest desire to devote his life to the priesthood, and studied hard and un- wearyingly with that end in view. moted to a captaincy November 5, 1777; was wounded at the battles of Camden and Guilford Courthouse, N. C., and was distinguished for his bravery and gallantry in several hard-fought engagements and important battles. His com- mission as captain bears the signature of John Jay, afterwards chief-justice of the United States supreme court. August 16, 1780, Captain Ander- son was severely wounded at the battle of Cow- pens, about two miles from Camden; January 17, 1781, he covered himself with honor at the encoun- ter with the enemy at the Cowpens and the 15th of the following March had his left arm shattered by a bullet at the battle of Guilford Courthouse.
EV. CHARLES OSCAR ROSENSTEEL, the beloved pastor of St. Mary's Catholic Church, of Rockville, is now in the prime of life and usefulness. Not only does he minister to the needs of the people of this parish, but he is also in charge of the two flourishing missions of St. John's Church, at Forest Glen, and St. Peter's Church, at Mount Zion. Possessing fine scholar- ship and superior ability, he moreover is thor- oughly sympathetic and considerate by nature and the tie of love and appreciation between him and his spiritual flock is plainly apparent to the most casual observer. He enters into their joys and sorrows, striving ever to direct their minds to higher things and to impress upon them the fact that life is short, that "these light afflictions" endure but a moment, and if borne in the right spirit may "work out for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory."
Father Rosensteel is a worthy representative of an old and honored family of Baltimore. His an- cestors came to the United States prior to the Revolutionary war, and in that conflict his pater- nal great-grandfather, Capt. George Rosensteel, rendered service and lost a vessel at sea. Mrs. Rosensteel's father, Capt. Joseph White, had two
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