USA > Maryland > Portrait and biographical record of the Sixth congressional district, Maryland V. 2 > Part 37
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In 1846 Dr. Harding married Mary Virginia Valdenar, daughter of Francis and Elizabeth Valdenar, and great-granddaughter of a French- man. Her father, who was a farmer, spent his entire life in this section and one of his farms is now owned by Mrs. Bradley. At one time he was county commissioner and for many years served as tobacco inspector in Baltimore. He was a prominent member of the Episcopal Church and a man of consistent Christian char- acter. He had two sons, but both of them died many years ago. Mrs. Harding was born about six miles from her present place of residence and was educated in Patapsco Institute at Elli- cott City, Md. Of her ten children, all died in infancy or when quite young, except one son and two daughters. The son, Franklin, was engaged in business in Kentucky for thirty-four years, but is at present at home. Marion Sands married W. W. Riley, of Washington, and the other daughter, Henrietta, is unmarried and resides with her mother. The family residence is a comfortable house, near Grace Church, on the street car line which runs from Washington to Forest Glen.
In politics Mr. Harding was first an old-line Whig and afterward an adherent of Democratic principles. In the Episcopal Church he officiated as a vestryman for many years. He had a prac-
tice that extended for many miles in every direc- tion from his home. His reputation was that of a skillful, painstaking physician, who was ac- curate in diagnosis and successful in treatment. As a citizen he favored all measures for the benefit of the people of his community and the advancement of the resources of the county,
HOMAS E. NOLAND was born upon the farm adjoining the one he now owns, in Berry District, Montgomery County. His entire life, covering a span of more than seventy years, has been spent in the neighborhood where he now lives, and he is well known among the old residents of his community. Owing to his advanced years, he can not take the active part in public affairs manifested by younger men, nor can he manage his farm as actively as in the past, for he is no longer able to engage in manual labor. However, he is quite hearty for one of his years.
The father of our subject, Dade P. Noland, was born and reared on a farm in Virginia, and remained in that state until after his marriage, when he removed to Maryland, settling in Mont- gomery County. In Virginia he had engaged in merchandising, but after coming to Maryland he turned his attention to farming. In politics he was a Whig, and in religion a member of the Catholic Church. His death occurred in :1838, when he was fifty-eight years of age. During the War of 1812 he served in the American army, having inherited a patriotic spirit from his father, Thomas, a Virginian, who served in the Revolu- tion. The family came to this country from Ireland in an early day.
Our subject's mother, Caroline Frances Hard- ing, was a daughter of Edward Harding, a farmer of Montgomery County, and a granddaughter of Thomas Butler, who came to this country at the same time with the Carroll family and owned about nine thousand acres of land in this section. Our subject's father and mother were married in
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1816, and she died in 1863, twenty-five years after his death. . Their family was composed of three sons and five daughters, Thomas being the oldest; Samuel S. is deceased; James C. is with our subject; Mary Ellen died when sixteen; Jane Elizabeth married Joseph T. Bailey; Anna But- ler died at twenty years; Agnes M. resides with our subject; and Mary Caroline is the wife of Sylvester C. Jones, a farmer, whose sketch ap- pears in this work. James and Agnes spent twenty-one years in Rockville, but came to make their home with our subject some years ago.
The subject of this sketch was born in 1826. He has spent his entire life close to his present home, and was educated in the schools of the district and Rockville Academy. In 1867 he married Maria Peerce, a native of this county, where she died in 1885. Since 1871 he has re- sided upon his present farm, which he cleared and placed under cultivation. In politics a Democrat and active in the party, he served as judge of elections, as member of important com- mittees, and in 1876 was clerk of the house of representatives. Prior to the war he owned slaves. In religious belief he is a Catholic, to the support of which religion he has been a reg- ular contributor for years.
EN. G. W. GETTY, retired, U. S. A., was born in Georgetown, D. C., in 1819. His father, Robert Getty, was born in Ireland but came to the United States at eight years of age, and received his education in Philadelphia. In early life he engaged in the mercantile business in Georgetown, together with his cousin, Amber Ross. For many years, and until his death, in 1843, at the age of sixty-four years, he was an employe in the treasury department of the United States. In religion he was a Presbyterian and a prominent member of his church. Politically he supported old-line Whig principles. He married Margaret, daughter of John Wilmot, of Annap- olis. Mrs. Margaret Getty died in Georgetown
when eighty-six years of age. In her family there were ten sons and three-daughters, of whom the following survive: G. W., of this sketch: Robert; and J. H. C., of Western Port, Allegany County, Md.
At the age of sixteen the subject of this sketch entered the United States Military Academy at West Point, from which he graduated in 1840. He rendered active service during the war with Mexico and also the war with the Seminole In- dians and the conflict with the Sioux Indians on the plains of the west. Under General Mcclellan he took part in the battle of South Mountain. He also participated in the battles of Antietam and Fredericksburg, the Siege of Suffolk, Va., and the skirmishes around Richmond, the battles of the Wilderness, Fisher's Hill, Cedar Creek, Petersburg and the surrender of General Lee's army at Appomattox. He was severely wounded in the battle of the Wilderness, was also wounded at Fredericks and Petersburg, and had three horses shot under him. At South Mountain he was chief of the artillery, and in 1862, soon after the battle of Antietam, he was commissioned a general.
At the close of the Civil war General Getty was ordered to New Mexico, from there to Charleston, S. C., and various points on the Atlantic coast. In 1883 he retired from active service and since then has resided in Berry District, where he owns a mansion erected in 1857 by an Englishman. He is a member of the Military Order of the Loyal : Legion of the United States and is also identified with other fraternal organizations. In 1848 he married Elizabeth G. Stevenson, of Staunton, Va., whose father was postmaster of that city during the war. One of her brothers, John D. Stevenson, was a soldier in the Federal army.
The family of General and Mrs. Getty consists of three sons and three daughters. Wilmot, the eldest son, is in business in St. Paul and married a lady residing in that city; Robert Nelson, who is captain of the Twenty-second United States Infantry, in the war with Spain, married Cornelia Colgate, of Washington, D. C .; George, who manages the home farm, married Louise Stratton Burr, daughter of Joseph F. Burr, of Colesville,
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Md .; Annie is the wife of Maj. Charles McClure, paymaster, U. S. A., now on the way to the Philippine Islands for service in the war with Spain; Caroline married Washington E. Page and they reside near New York; Maude is the wife of Vernon Walsh, a farmer of Red Banks, Miss. The general has eighteen grandchildren.
ON. JOHN C. MOTTER, associate judge of the Sixth Judicial Circuit, and one of the leading citizens of Frederick County, was born in Emmitsburg, this county, December 4, 1844, and is a son of Jacob and Jemima (Troxell) Motter. He is a member of a family that was identified with the history of Pennsylvania dur- ing the early days of its settlement, later genera- tions removing to Maryland. Of the genealogi- cal history, however, but little is known defi- nitely, except that the members of the family have been upright and honorable in every cir- cumstance of life, showing little taste for public affairs and preferring to give their attention to private business matters. His grandfather, John, died when the grandson was a small child.
The father of our subject was for years a prominent tanner of Emmitsburg, in which place he passed the principal part of his life, owning a fine home there. . He was a Republican in poli- tics, but never sought public office. A zealous member of the Methodist Episcopal denomination . and an officer of the local church, his home be- came the headquarters for ministers in the days when churches were not as numerous as now. He assisted in the erection of a number of edi- fices, and in other ways promoted the cause of Methodism in his community. Honored and .respected by all, he was an ideal type of the Christian gentleman. At the time of his death, in 1870, he was fifty-eight years of age.
The maternal grandfather of our subject, George Troxell, was a farmer and large land owner living on Toms Creek. He was connected with the Reformed Church and assisted in the
erection of a house of worship for that denomina- tion at Mechanicstown. His wife was a Miss Crabbs, a native of Pennsylvania. He died when our subject was quite small. Judge Motter was one of four children, his brother being George T. Motter, M. D., who stands at the head of the medical profession in Taneytown, while his sur- viving sister is the wife of Ezra Zimmerman, president of the school board of this county. Anna died a short time after her graduation at Dickinson Seminary, Williamsport, Pa.
The early education of our subject was obtained at Emmitsburg, after which he attended school at Dickinson Seminary, Williamsport, Pa. He began the study of law in the office of Grayson Eichelberger, of Frederick, one of the leading attorneys of that time. In 1868 he was admitted to the bar, and during the same year opened an office in the city of Frederick, where he was suc- cessful from the first. It is said that he has won more cases at court than any other member of the bar of Frederick, and he is recognized as one of the leading attorneys of western Maryland. In early manhood he took an active part in poli- tics and this deep interest has not abated through the succeeding years. In 1875 he was elected by a large majority to the office of state's attorney, which position he filled with ability, serving so satisfactorily that he was re-elected, holding the office for eight years. In 1881 he was the choice of his party for associate judge of his district, and carried Frederick County by a majority of over six hundred, but was defeated by the oppos- ing vote in Montgomery County. An ardent Republican, his advice is often sought in the local councils of the party and he has also been a prominent figure in county, state and national conventions. In the fall of 1897 he was again his party's choice for associate judge of the dis- trict. The contest was close and he had strong men to battle against, but he won by a large ma- jority.
In addition to his work at the bar and on the bench, Judge Motter has other important in- terests. He was attorney for and is now a direc- tor of the Citizens' National Bank, director of the Frederick & Middletown Railroad and the Hygiea
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Ice Company, and is connected with other im- portant enterprises. A man of strong and un- tiring energy and will power, he has worked his way to success by the force of a determined character and ambitious spirit. Since his elec- tion many important and intricate cases have come up, and in these he has rendered his deci- sion to the satisfaction of the unprejudiced and impartial. His broad knowledge of the law and accurate judgment of human nature have en- abled him to fill his responsible position credit- ably to himself and satisfactorily to others.
The marriage of Judge Motter, in 1875, united him with Effie B., daughter of Josiah Merklin, of Frederick, who is a successful business man. Judge and Mrs. Motter have three sons and five daughters, in whose intelligence and refinement they may justly take a deep pride. Some years ago he purchased a beautiful place adjoining Frederick, on the Frederick and Opossumtown turnpike, and here they have established a happy home, with every comfort that can enhance the pleasure of existence.
D HARLES H. WATERS, M. D., was the founder of the Fairview Seminary, formerly located in Dawsonville, but for the past three years situated in Gaithersburg, Montgomery County. He has attained prominence, not only in the medical profession, but in the educational · field, and his genuine love for children and inher- ent understanding of their needs and gradually expanding minds make him specially qualified to guide them in the paths of knowledge. The institution which he succeeded in starting has rap- idly risen in importance as a factor in the educa- tion of the young people of this community, and now, within its beautiful environment each year about one hundred pupils, from numerous states in the Union, gather to do homage to the goddess of wisdom. Recently, the doctor commenced to build a private school of his own on Monument View Hill, about one and a-half miles from
Gaithersburg. This school, which is charmingly situated as to location, is exclusively for girls. The doctor personally supervises everything, giv- ing lectures on mathematics and scientific sub- jects, and employs four other teachers.
Born July 1, 1849, Dr. C. H. Waters is a son of Samuel and Mary Waters. He is a native of Howard County, but his father was born within three miles of Gaithersburg. The latter was a son of Ignatius Waters, who in turn was a son of Dr. Richard Waters. Both were natives of Montgomery County, and R. Waters was at one time the owner of large estates (several thou- sand acres) in Montgomery County. He was a nephew of General Williams, who founded Williamstown, Md., and served on the staff of General Washington. Samuel Waters, father of our subject, was a prosperous farmer, and for many years occupied a prominent place before the public in official positions. He sympathized with the south in most things during the stormy days of the '6os, but was not in favor of seces- sion. He was an ardent Democrat in later life and was elected to act as judge of the orphans court-a post which he filled for years with credit. Religiously he was a Baptist. He died in 1883, aged sixty-five years. Of his family four sons survive .. Thomas-is a retired farmer, living in Tacoma. He has represented his county in the state legislature several terms and has been very active in political life. Richard is a successful agriculturist of Burnt Mills, Montgom- ery County. Samuel D. has been engaged in merchandising in Tacoma for years and has held numerous appointive offices.
Until he was about twelve years old Dr. Waters lived on the old homestead, but at that age he accepted a place as a clerk in the store of John Windsor, of Clarksville, Howard County. At the end of four years the youth entered the Phrenakosonian Academy of his native county, and was but seventeen when he began his peda- gogic career. He continued to teach for three years, at the same time reading medicine with Dr. William A. Waters, of Montgomery County. In 1871 he graduated with the degree of Doctor of Medicine from the medical department of the
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University of Maryland. He immediately opened an office in Spencerville, Montgomery County, and gave his whole attention to his profession. In 1885 he removed to Dawsonville, and there continued the practice of the healing art, which he has not abandoned entirely, though of late years he has devoted himself chiefly to educa- tional work. He is still called into consultation with his brother-physicians, who greatly value
- his opinion and experience. He is quite inde- pendent in his political ideas, and while he usu- ally votes the Democratic ticket, he does not feel bound to the party. He is an associate editor of Zion's Advocate, published in Virginia, in the in- terests of the Baptist denomination. In 1880 the doctor was ordained a minister of the Baptist church, and at present has charge of four congre- gations, though he has never accepted a salary, and discharges these duties through genuine love for the work.
December 21, 1871, Dr. Waters married Ella O. Yates, daughter of Elder Paul W. Yates, a Baptist minister of Rappahannock, Va. The eldest child of this worthy couple, Alice May, a gifted and beautiful girl, died when about twenty years old. Their living children are as follows: Mary Lee, Paul Y., Charles L., Anna T., Bessie B., Lucy G., William C., Samuel D. and Eleanor. Mary is an associate teacher in the academy.
e ABIN JOHN BRIDGE HOTEL. Near the bridge whose name it bears, this well- known hotel occupies a picturesque location, in Potomac District, Montgomery County, and seven miles from the city of Washington. It has recently been rebuilt and enlarged to twice its former capacity, and contains a number of dining rooms for parties; broad verandas affording a beautiful outlook, and a pavilion where every evening a fine orchestra furnishes music. A con- cert is also given every afternoon during the sea- son. Every modern convenience is to be found
in the hotel -- hot and cold water, electric bells, electric lights, electric fans, gas, steam heat and every accommodation for the convenience and com- fort of the guests. It has been made a League hotel and special attention is paid to cyclists. Among the patrons, who drive or ride over from Washington, are celebrated members of congress, statesmen and diplomats. The hotel is conducted by the Bobinger Brothers. The elder of these, William H., was born in Montgomery County, February 2, 1363, a son of Joseph and Rosa Bobinger. He was educated in the local schools and from an early age was interested in the hotel established here by his father. His father died in May, 1881, and afterward he and his brother, George, assisted their mother in the business. On the latter's death, December 31, 1893, they succeeded to the management of the place. During the past eight years they have made con- stent improvements, investing large sums an- nually for this purpose. The hotel is surrounded with beautiful grounds, laid out by landscape gardeners, sloping down to the banks of the Potomac River, and here families visit and resort for many months of the year. This part of the noble river furnishes excellent fishing and the angler may rely upon excellent sport during the entire fishing season. The younger brother, George, was born November 9, 1865, and has spent his entire life here. Both brothers are in- terested in the work of the Presbyterian Church and the older one is a Mason, belonging to Mont- gomery Lodge No. 195, A. F. & A. M., at Rock- ville.
Cabin John bridge, from which the hotel takes its name, is the largest stone arch bridge in the world. It is built of granite, with a Seneca stone coping along the roadway. In length it measures four hundred and fifty feet; in height, one hun- dred and five feet. It cost $250,000 and stands unsurpassed in the history of bridge building. The arch has a clear spring of two hundred and twenty feet and is twenty feet longer than the arch of the Grosvenor bridge, which spans the River Dee and is next in length. It is on the line of the conduit road, extending from the capital to the Great Falls of the Potomac, and
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was built by the government, across Cabin John Creek, which rises at Rockville and flows into the Potomac a few hundred feet below the bridge. The erection of the bridge was commenced in the early part of 1857. From May, 1861, until July, 1862, active work on the bridge ceased by reason of the Civil war. December 5, 1863, water was turned into the conduit, but the bridge itself was not completed until 1864. The parapet walls were built in 1872-73, prior to which time there was only a log guard for protection. The engineer in charge of the aqueduct was Capt. Montgomery C. Meigs, United States corps of engineers.
The following inscription appears upon the tablet:
Washington Aqueduct. Begun A. D. 1853. President of the United States, Franklin Pierce. Secretary of War, Building A. D., 1861. President of the U. S., Abraham Lincoln. Secretary of War, Simon Cameron.
When the tablet was first put up the name of Jefferson Davis appeared as secretary of war, but this was afterward erased at the command of the secretary of the interior.
Cabin John, from whom the bridge and hotel take their name, was a picturesque character of early days. Little is known about him. His life was shrouded in mystery. He had no other name than that of Cabin John by which he was known to others. In his rude cabin he had no companions save fierce dogs. He passed his time in hunting and fishing, and clothed himself almost entirely from the skins of wild animals, and his principal food was their flesh. While his life was wild and lonely, he was cheerful and kind. As suddenly as he had appeared at his lonely home, he disappeared one day, no one knew whither. His dogs deserted their rocky kennel in the mountain side, his cabin crumbled and fell, and the only thing left to recall his memory was the creek that bore his name. Dur- ing the days of slavery superstitious negroes claimed they often saw the ghost of the lonely man haunting the neighborhood of his de-
serted cabin. In 1825 the following verses were found under a grain-bin in an old mill on the the Cabin John Creek.
"John of the cabin, -- a curious wight,
Sprang out of the river one dark stormy night; He built a warm hut in a lonely retreat, And lived many years upon fishes and meat.
"When the last lone raccoon on the creek he had slain, It is said he jumped into the river again, As no name to the creek by the ancients was given, It was called Cabin John after John went to heaven."
ILLIAM THOMPSON, deceased, was born in Montreal, Canada. When he was very small his parents died; and when he was eleven years of age he and his brother went to Burlington, Vt., where their grandfather lived. There, near the blue waters of that beautiful Jake, Champlain, they spent three years, then went to Washington, D. C. A few years later they started in the gas-fitting and plumbing busi -. ness, in which they were very successful and made a fortune.
On retiring from business Mr. Thompson pur- chased a valuable homestead near Silver Spring. This property, which was formerly owned by the banker, George Riggs, contains seventy acres of choice land, embellished by an elegant residence attractively located in the center of the place, and containing fine forests, beautiful drives and lawns. After the war he settled here, where he resided until his death. For many years he was vice-president of the Metropolitan National Bank, of which his brother, John W., was the president for many years.
Near the beginning of the war Mr. Thompson married Miss Helen L. Nourse, daughter of John R. Nourse, who was born in Washington, D. C., and spent his active life as chief of a division in the treasury department. Politically he was a strong Republican and in religion was identified with the Presbyterian Church. He was a de- scendant of Joseph Nourse, who emigrated from
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England and was the first treasurer of the United States. Mrs. Thompson's mother was a Miss Skinner and was born in Connecticut. In her family there were four daughters, those besides Mrs. Thompson being Mrs. Pratt, of Washington, Mrs. McCaffery and Mrs. Richard H. Hall. Mr. and Mrs. Thompson had no children. Since his death she has continued to reside on the home- stead, which is near the electric car line from Washington to Forest Glen and only a few min- utes' walk from the Metropolitan branch of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. She is a lady of charming manners and genial disposition, and received splendid educational advantages in Washington, where she resided until her removal to her present home.
With no desire for public office and no taste for the excitement of public life, Mr. Thompson was nevertheless a man of strong convictions and held firmly to the principles of the Republican party ... He was a man of Christian character, a member of the Presbyterian Church, and an active worker in that denomination. In addition to his other business affairs, he was for some time con- nected with the steamship line between Washing- ton and Norfolk, this, however, being but a side issue. He was a man of progressive disposition, great energy and upright character, and his death, which occurred July 23, 1896, was a loss to the community where he made his home.
HE DADE FAMILY. One of the most beautiful homes in Montgomery County is Walldene, located midway between Boyds and Poolesville, and only two miles from the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad. This handsome property, now owned by William E. Wall, was the ancestral home of the well-known Dade fam- ily, of Montgomery County, who are direct de- scendants of Robert Dade, a pioneer settler of Virginia during the early part of the seventeenth century, and are also closely allied with nearly all the old settlers of Virginia. Townshend and
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