Encyclopedia of the history of Missouri, a compendium of history and biography for ready reference, Vol. II, Part 26

Author: Conard, Howard Louis, ed. 1n
Publication date: 1901
Publisher: New York, Louisville [etc.] The Southern history company, Haldeman, Conard & co., proprietors
Number of Pages: 800

USA > Missouri > Encyclopedia of the history of Missouri, a compendium of history and biography for ready reference, Vol. II > Part 26

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Coronado, Francisco Vasquez de, "Spanish explorer, was born in Salamanca, Spain, about 1510, and died in 1542. On the arrival in Culiacan of Cabeza de Vaca from his journey from Florida in 1536, when he brought news of the existence of half-civil-

Memorial Chapel. Erected ty. Mas Amanda Corby in memory of her tate husband John corby.

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CORONER'S JURY-CORRIGAN.

ized tribes far to the north, an expedition was sent out under Marco de Niza, in 1539, to explore that region. On its return a sec- ond expedition was fitted out under Coro- nado, which departed from Culiacan, on the Pacific Coast, in April, 1540. He passed up the entire length of what is now the State of Sonora to the River Gila. Crossing this, he penetrated the country beyond to the Lit- tle Colorado, and visited the famed cities of Cibola, mentioned by Cabeza de Vaca and De Niza. In the kingdom were seven cities. The country, he says, was too cold for cot- ton, yet the people all wore mantels of it, and cotton yarn was found in their houses. He also found maize, Guinea cocks, peas, and dressed skins. From Cibola, Coronado traveled eastward, visiting several towns, similar to the existing villages of the Pueblo Indians, till he reached the Rio Grande, and from there traveled 300 leagues to Quivira, the ruins of which are well known, being near latitude 34 degrees north, about 170 miles from El Paso. There he found a tem- perate climate, with good water and an abundance of fruit. The people were clothed in skins. On his way back in March, 1542, Coronado fell from his horse at Tiguex, near the Rio Grande, and is said to have become insane. The narrative of this expedition fur- nishes the first authentic account of the buf- falo, or American bison, and the great prairies and plains of New Mexico." ("Ap- pleton's Cyclopedia of American Biogra- phy.")

Coroner's Jury .- The jury summoned by the coroner of a county to hold an inquest on the dead body of a person-whose death was by violence, or involved in uncertainty -- and, after examining witnesses, render a ver- dict as to the cause and manner of death. In cases of death by violence, the verdict of the coroner's jury usually determines the course to be taken by the officers of the law in the next treatment of the matter.

Corps de Belgique .- A secret polit- ical organization designed to aid the seces- sion movement, which came into existence in Missouri in 1862, and which is said to have owed its origin to General Sterling Price. It was named in honor of Charles L. Hunt, who was then the Belgian consul at St. Louis. All of its movements were conducted with great

secrecy, and the extent of its membership in St. Louis has never been definitely ascer- tained. Toward the close of the war it is said to have affiliated with and become a part of the secret political organization originated by Clement L. Vallandigham, of Ohio, and P. C. Wright, of New York, which was known as the American Knights, or Knights of the Golden Circle.

Corrigan, Bernard, conspicuous in the establishment of the street railway system in Kansas City, is the youngest of three brothers, who were born in Canada, of Irish parents, Patrick and Elizabeth (Murray) Corrigan. Thomas Corrigan, the oldest of the brothers, came to Kansas City in 1859, and died in 1895. His memory is commemo- rated by the beautiful chimes of the Catholic Cathedral, presented by his wife, who sur- vived him but two years. Edward, the sec- ond of the brothers, divides his time between California, New York and Chicago. Bernard Corrigan, the youngest, who came to Kan- sas City in 1868, alone remains, and has made that city his home continuously to the present time. The brothers followed contract work until 1875, their largest operations be- ing in the building of railways. In the latter year Thomas and Bernard, with the former as the leading spirit, effected the organization of a company which purchased all the street railways in Kansas City except that between Market Square and Westport. They extended the system to cover the entire city, and to Kansas City, Kansas, all mule lines, until 1886, when they arranged to apply cable power. At this juncture the Metropolitan Street Railway Company was organized, and they sold their properties to that corporation for one million dollars. Since retiring from street railway interests Mr. Bernard Corri- gan has principally concerned himself with the care of his large real estate and financial interests. The family name is held in as- sociation with the Baltimore Hotel, which he erected, and in which he is a one-half owner, the estate of his deceased brother, Thomas, holding the remainder. Mr. Cor- rigan is also a stockholder and a director in the National Bank of Commerce and in the First National Bank. He was among the leaders in the establishment of the barge lines between Kansas City and St. Louis, which, in 1878, and for some years there-

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after, aided materially in developing the com- merce of the city through its own service and the securing of competitive railway rates. He was also an organizing director of the Kansas City Agricultural and Horticultural Fair Association in 1887, which gave several successful exhibitions. Generously benevo- lent, he has at all times afforded liberal aid and intelligent assistance to the establish- ment and maintenance of hospitals, orphan- ages and other charitable institutions. Discerning through his business instincts the necessity for the administration of charity in a methodical manner, he was among the first to suggest the organization of the United Charities of Kansas City, in October, 1899, and became one of the incorporating directors. In politics he is a Democrat. Mr. Corrigan was married to Miss Mary Shan- non, now long deceased, who was a daughter of Patrick Shannon, an early mayor of Kan- sas City. Of nine children born of this mar- riage, John Corrigan is city editor of the Omaha News, Edward Corrigan is a brick manufacturer in Kansas City, and Bernard Corrigan is a law student in the University of Michigan, at Ann Arbor. Mr. Corrigan was married, in January, 1898, to Miss Hat- tie Fout, of Martinsburg, Virginia, of which marriage one son, Francis Lee Corrigan, has been born.

Corrigan, Thomas, whose name was for a quarter century linked with the growth and prosperity of Kansas City, was born in 1835, in Huntingdon County, Province of Quebec, Canada. His parents were Patrick and Elizabeth (Murray) Corrigan, both na- tives of Ireland, who came to America in 1824. They first settled in Pennsylvania, and six years later removed to Canada. The father was a man of much force of character, and for three years served as commissioner of Huntingdon County. The son, Thomas Corrigan, had but meager educational ad- vantages, but his deficiencies were compen- sated for by natural abilities of an exception- ally high order, and a large fund of practical knowledge acquired through observation and dealings with men. Among his acquisitions was a speaking familiarity with the French language, which at times served him to good advantage. In 1859 he came to Missouri and took employment with a building crew on the Hannibal & St. Joseph Railway.

He was a diligent workman, commanding the best wage, and he was also frugal and saving. In little more than a year he was enabled to buy a farm in Kansas, near the site of the present town of Hiawatha. He was associated with his brother, John, in farming until 1861, when the disordered con- ditions of the region impelled them to re- move to St. Joseph, Missouri. There, in partnership with ex-Mayor Shepard, of that city, he organized a freighting expedition to Pike's Peak. Arriving at that point, they sold their outfits and merchandise at con- siderable profit. Mr. Corrigan soon returned to St. Joseph, and thence to Leavenworth, Kansas, where he entered the employ of Ross & Steele, a large contracting firm, with whom he remained for three years, during the time being their superintendent of con- struction on the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railway. Having married, he made his home at Lawrence, Kansas, and en- gaged in contracting upon his own account on the Kansas Pacific Railway, the Kansas Southern Railway, now a portion of the Santa Fe system; the Memphis Railway, and the Lexington branch of the Missouri Pacific ·Railway; in the last named work he was as- sociated with the late General Joseph Shelby, a warm personal friend. Removing to Kan- sas City, he was engaged, in 1869-70, in grad- ing contracts there, his first important work being the grading of Grand Avenue south- ward from Fifth Street. He afterward secured the contract for building the National Water- works, and made $120,000 on the work. He was sued by Amos Green for one-half of the earnings, and defeated the suit in the United States Supreme Court. In 1876, in association with his brother, Bernard, he began to engage in street railway opera- tions. Their first venture was the construc- tion of what was then known as the "Reser- voir Line," now the Broadway line, from Sixth and Main Streets to Seventeenth and Madison Streets. This line was unprofit- able, and was for some years operated at a loss. The two brothers, with D. E. Dick- erson, then bought a controlling interest in all existing street railways, and organized the Corrigan Consolidated Street Railway Com- pany. Afterward Thomas Corrigan bought out his two partners and became sole owner of the entire stock, with the exception of three shares committed to others in order

Jemand Bongan

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CORTAMBERT.

to preserve a legal directory. In 1882 he sought a thirty-year franchise extension. At the time none of the franchises had less than six years to run, and some of them had eighteen years. In 1884 the city council passed an extension ordinance, and this ac- tion aroused bitter opposition, growing out of the desire of local capitalists to acquire franchise rights. Feeling ran high, and there were threats of tearing up the tracks and of hanging the aldermen who favored the extension ordinance. The mayor interposed his veto, and an attempt to pass it over his veto was ineffectual. In those turbulent times Mr. Corrigan was determined, imper- turbable and self-contained. A year later a modified extension ordinance was passed without trouble; this measure provided for various improvements, and for the use of cable power in lieu of animals, and Mr. Cor- rigan at once began work on the Fifth Street line in order to comply with the lat- ter requirement. In 1886 he sold all his lines to a syndicate, and the formation of the pres- ent Metropolitan Street Railway Company was effected as the successor. In this trans- action he received a half-million dollars in cash and an equal amount in the bonds of the new company. When he began his street railway operations he found but two illy equipped lines ; when he retired the pres- ent admirable system was, in greater part, established, and the great achievement was, in far larger part, the result of his own indefatigable effort. While the foregoing tells of his most monumental work, it is to be said that Mr. Corrigan was at the same time deeply interested in many other enter- prises for the development of the city, fur- nishing means and advisory aid in various directions. A Democrat in politics, he was a sagacious leader, exerted a controlling in- fluence in local affairs, and made the local party a mighty factor in State policies. With sufficient prestige to secure any position to which he might aspire, he was but once an officeholder, from 1874 to 1881, when he was police commissioner, and he retired volun- tarily, refusing to perform further service. He was a Catholic in religion, and the only civic society with which he was connected was the Catholic Knights of America. He was unusually strong in mind and body. None could surpass him in feats of labor and endurance, and often when an employer

he set example to his men by his own hercu- lean effort. He was honest and straightfor- ward in his financial undertakings, shrewd and discerning in his plans and calculations, and resolutely determined after once form- ing a purpose. With a somewhat brusque manner, he was kindly-hearted and devoted to his friends. He was liberal in his bene- factions to charities, particularly to the House of the Good Shepherd, the Orphans' Home and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, an organization for the relief of the poor. Aside from these, he constantly con- tributed of his means to alleviate per- sonal sufferings and wants. In 1864 Mr. Corrigan married Miss Catherine McGinley, like himself a native of Huntingdon County, Province of Quebec, Canada. Of this mar- riage were born four children, now living: Elizabeth, Catherine, Agnes and Mrs. John C. Bourke. Mr. Corrigan died in Kansas . City, March 1, 1894, and his wife died March 24, 1896. Mrs. Corrigan was a devout Cath- olic, and a woman whose benefactions were liberally extended to all needy objects. She devoted much of her husband's ample for- tune, upwards of one million dollars, to pur- poses near to her heart. To the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception she presented one of the finest chimes of bells in America ; this was a memorial to her husband, and each bell bore upon it the name of a member of the Corrigan family. She contributed lib- erally to various Catholic societies, in which she held membership, and was a principal donor of the beautiful marble altar and rail- ing in the chapel of the Orphans' Home.

Cortambert, Louis Richard, was born in France, in 1808, and emigrated to the United States while a young man. He was highly educated, earnest and simple, a profound thinker and an able writer. His philosophy in many respects resembled that of Thoreau. He even undertook to dupli- cate Thoreau's Walden experience, but Walden near Highland was a thing very dif- ferent from Walden near Concord, and the malaria of the Illinois bottoms soon ended the experiment. Cortambert was a Social Republican, and one of the early abolition- ists, and if his creed was at times too radi- cal, he was at least sincere and unfaltering in the advocacy of the brotherhood and fra- ternity of man. He refused better positions

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and larger salaries on more influential papers elected to the Forty-eighth Congress as a than he was connected with, because, he said, Democrat. he wrote from conviction, and his pen was not for sale. In 1851 he tendered his resig- nation as vice consul of France in St. Louis as a protest against the "coup d'etat."

In 1855 he edited the "Revue de l'Ouest" (see "French Newspapers"), and from 1864 to the time of his death the "Messager Franco-Americain" of New York. He was the brother of the learned Paris geographer, Eugene Cortambert, and the uncle of Louis Cortambert, the promising young litterateur, who died all too early. Cortambert had the reputation of being the ablest writer in French who has ever written in the United States. Several of his books were published by leading Paris houses. The great histo- rian, Henri Martin, wrote a preface for his "Histoire Universelle selon la Science Mod- erne," and Victor Hugo praised his "Religion du Progres." Among his other works were "L'Histoire de la Guerre Civile Americaine" (written in conjunction with F. de Tranal- tos), "Les Trois Epoques du Catholicisme," "Voyage au Pays des Osages" and "La France et la Republique." He married Suson, one of the daughters of Auguste P. Chouteau, and died in New York, March 28, 1881, aged seventy-three years. Five of his grandchil- dren, John F., Philip .A., Emily, Louis R. and Marie L. McDermott are living in St Louis- 1899.

ALEXANDER N. DE MENIL.

Cosby .- A village, on the Chicago, Bur- lington & Quincy Railroad, in Andrew County, and an important shipping point for grain and live stock. Near by, on the Platte River, is a large flouring mill. There are in the place a lodge of Odd Fellows and a Grand Army of the Republic post. Popula- tion, about 200.

Cosgrove, John, lawyer and member of Congress, was born in Jefferson County, New York, September 12, 1839. He received a good education, studied law at Watertown, New York, and after practicing for a time in his native State, came to Missouri and located at Boonville, where he pursued the practice of his profession. In 1872 he was elected prosecuting attorney of Cooper County, and served also as city attorney of Boonville for four years. In 1882 he was

Cosmopolitans .- A society which orig- inated in New England, and whose objects were semi-religious, embracing an investi- gation of spiritualism. On May 7, 1882, City Lodge, No. I, of the Cosmopolitans was es- tablished in St. Louis, but after an existence of a few years its membership was absorbed by other organizations.

Cote Sans Dessein .- One of the early French settlements on the Missouri River, west of St. Charles. It stood on the north bank of the river, two miles below the mouth of the Osage, in what is now Callaway County. It took its name, which means "Hill without design," from an. irregular limestone cliff, standing alone in the alluvial bottom. The place was settled in 1808, and four years later the blockhouse built for the defense was gallantly held against an In- dian attack by a French hunter, Baptiste Louis Roy, and two other men, efficiently as- sisted by Roy's wife and the wife of one of the other men. In the protracted fight one of the men and fourteen Indians were killed.

Cottey College .- A school for the higher education of girls, at Nevada. It is conducted by private parties, under the advisory direction of a board appointed by the Southwest Missouri Annual Conference of the Methodist Church, South. The colle- giate department affords courses leading to the degrees of master of arts, bachelor of science, and bachelor of letters. Music, elo- cution, painting and drawing are specially taught. In 1900 there were 10 teachers and 160 pupils in attendance, of whom 80 were boarding pupils. The school was established in 1884, by the Misses Cottey, of Knox County, Missouri, who erected the building, the citizens of Nevada donating the grounds. It was first known as Vernon Seminary. Additions were afterward made, and the edi- fice now consists of a central three-story por- tion, with two-story wings, high basements underlying the whole. The cost aggregated about $30,000.

Cotton Belt Route .- See "St. Louis Southwestern Railroad."

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COTTON EXCHANGE, ST. LOUIS-COTTONWOOD POINT.

Cotton Exchange, St. Louis .- A number of merchants handling cotton met informally in the office of Theodore G. Meier, and after some consultation decided to call a formal meeting in the directors' room of the old Merchants' Exchange Building, on Main Street, between Market and Walnut, October 17, 1873. This meeting was held and resulted in the organization of the St. Louis Cotton Association, with Theodore G. Meier for president, William M. Senter for vice president, Myron Coloney for secretary, and William P. Shryock, Henry Drucker, Miles Sells, S. A. Bemis, Harlow J. Phelps, D. W. Marmaduke and John T. Watson for directors. The association thus brought into existence numbered eighty-one members, paying an initiation fee of $5 and an annual assessment of $20 each. Subsequently- August, 1874-it was incorporated, having already conspicuously challenged the atten- tion of Southern planters and merchants by offering $11,000 in cotton premiums for that year, an offer which was repeated year after year till 1881. In 1874 it dropped its original name, and was incorporated as the St. Louis Cotton Exchange, and next year it removed from the room fronting on Main Street, on the third floor of the building adjoining the Merchants' Exchange, to new quarters at the corner of Main and Chestnut Streets. In 1880 the membership had increased to 300, the membership fee having been successively raised, first to $250, then to $500, and last to $1,000. As the business results that had followed the establishment of the Cotton Exchange had amply vindicated the wisdom of it, and the institution was now recognized as one of the most important permanent business organizations of the city, it was decided that it was entitled to be housed in a special building. Accordingly, in No- vember, 1879, a committee composed of D. P. Rowland, W. M. Senter, J. L. Sloss and William L. Black was appointed to choose a suitable location. The site recommended and selected was the southwest corner of Main and Walnut Streets, and a company called the Cotton Exchange Building Com- pany was formed to erect a suitable edifice. The result of its labors was the building of the spacious, attractive and substantial Cotton Exchange, now occupying the chosen site, which was dedicated and opened for business May 14, 1882. The ceremonies of

the dedication were of a very pleasant char- acter, consisting in addresses by officers and ex-officers of the Exchange, ex-Governor Hubbard, of Texas; ex-Governor Stanard, of Missouri, followed by the presentation of a silver service to Vice President William L. Black, who had been conspicuous in setting on foot the enterprise and pushing it for- ward to a consummation. The object of the Exchange, as stated in its constitution, is to "provide suitable accommodation for the meeting of its members, to establish uniform usages, rules and regulations for the cotton trade in the city of St. Louis; to adopt standards of classification; to acquire, pre- serve and disseminate useful information connected with the cotton interests through- out all markets, and generally to promote the cotton trade in the city of St. Louis." That it has done much in this direction, and par- ticularly to promote the cotton trade of St. Louis, the statistics strikingly exhibit. As early as the year 1870 cotton began to find its way to St. Louis, shipped to Chris. Peper, who was engaged in the leaf tobacco trade, but received occasionally a consignment of cotton. These occasional receipts seemed to indicate a disposition on the part of the planters to ship their crops to St. Louis if only a market could be established for it, and the history of the trade has borne out this indication. In the cotton year ending August 31, 1872, the total receipts of cotton in St. Louis were 36,421 bales, of which 16,- 706 bales were for sale in the St. Louis market. The next year the total receipts were 59,709 bales-34,215 bales for sale in St. Louis and 25,494 bales going through. In the year ending August 31, 1874, the total receipts were 103,741 bales-79,418 bales be- ing sold in St. Louis and 24.323 bales going through to other markets. In the year end- ing August 31, 1875, the total receipts were 133,969 bales-94,290 bales being sold in St. Louis and 39,679 bales going through. The receipts continued steadily to increase year by year, reaching in 1879-80 as high as 496,- 570 bales, of which number 324,284 bales were handled and sold in St. Louis. In the year 1899-1900 the receipts were 802,769 bales, of which 154,074 bales were sold in St. Louis.

Cottonwood Point .- A village, on the Mississippi River, in Pemiscot County,

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COUNCIL GROVES-COUNTIES.

eighteen miles south of Gayoso. It has a church, school, two sawmills, a cotton gin and a hotel. Population (estimated), 1899, 300.

Council Groves .- The Goodfellow farm of 1,500 acres, lying on the Natural Bridge Road, in the northwestern part of what is now the city of St. Louis, and which was purchased from Governor William Clark, became known as Council Groves on account of Governor Clark having had nu- merous conferences with the Indians there. It was a favorite camping ground for Indians during their migrations. When plowing on the farm in after years many Indian relics, especially arrow heads, were turned up from the ground.

Council of Jewish Women .- The special Council of Jewish Women at the Columbian Exposition of 1893 proved of such exceeding value and interest that a per- manent organization was formed then and there. A National Council, with headquar- ters at Chicago, and auxiliary societies all over the country, was the result, culminating in a National Congress, held in New York City, November 15, 1896, whose brilliancy attracted wide attention. Delegates from Canada were admitted to the Congress, and the word "National" was consequently dropped, as the Council had in that brief time overspread that limit.

The St. Louis Section of the Council of Jewish Women was organized in the fall of 1895, with the following officers : Mrs. Henry L. Wolfner, president; Bertha Sale, vice president; Rachel Baer, secretary; Mrs. Louis Straus, treasurer. Afternoon meet- ings were held monthly at the homes of the members from October till May. An even- ing meeting, in which gentlemen participate, is occasionally substituted. The object of the Council is three-fold-religious, philan- thropic and literary. Among the subjects of essays, followed by open discussion, during the year 1896-7 were the following: "Baron Hirsch; His Charities, a Success or Fail- ure? (a) Colonization, (b) Educational Meth- ods;" "What Are the St. Louis Jews Doing for Their Poor?" which was answered by reports from seven of the Jewish char- itable associations; "Has the Contribution of the Jews to the World's Litera- ture and Music Been of. Potent Influ-

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Encyclopedia of the history of Missouri, a compendium of history and biography for ready reference, Vol. II, Part 26

Author: Conard, Howard Louis, ed. 1n Publication date: 1901 Publisher: New York, Louisville [etc.] The Southern history company, Haldeman, Conard & co., proprietors Number of Pages: 800

Author: Conard, Howard Louis, ed. 1n
Publication date: 1901
Publisher: New York, Louisville [etc.] The Southern history company, Haldeman, Conard & co., proprietors
Number of Pages: 800