USA > Missouri > Johnson County > Portrait and biographical record of Johnson and Pettis counties, Missouri ; containing portraits and biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens of the counties, together with biographies and portraits of all the presidents of the United States > Part 6
USA > Missouri > Pettis County > Portrait and biographical record of Johnson and Pettis counties, Missouri ; containing portraits and biographical sketches of prominent and representative citizens of the counties, together with biographies and portraits of all the presidents of the United States > Part 6
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80
ABRAHAM LINCOLN.
that he was soon engaged in almost every noted case in the circuit.
In 1854 the great discussion began between Mr. Lincoln and Mr. Douglas on the slavery ques- tion. In the organization of the Republican party in Illinois, in 1856, he took an active part, and at once became one of the leaders in that party. Mr. Lincoln's speeches in opposition to Senator Douglas in the contest in 1858 for a seat in the Senate, form a most notable part of his history. The issue was on the slavery question, and he took the broad ground of the Declaration of In- dependence, that all men are created equal. Mr. Lincoln was defeated in this contest, but won a far higher prize.
The great Republican Convention met at Chi- cago on the 16th of June, 1860. The delegates and strangers who crowded the city amounted to twenty-five thousand. An immense building called " The Wigwam," was reared to accommo- date the convention. There were eleven candi- dates for whom votes were thrown. William H. Seward, a man whose fame as a statesman had long filled the land, was the most prominent. It was generally supposed he would be the nomi- nee. Abraham Lincoln, however, received the nomination on the third ballot.
Election day came, and Mr. Lincoln received one hundred and eighty electoral votes out of two hundred and three cast, and was, therefore, con- stitutionally elected President of the United States. The tirade of abuse that was poured upon this good and merciful man, especially by the slave- holders, was greater than upon any other man ever elected to this high position. In February, 1861, Mr. Lincoln started for Washington, stop- ping in all the large cities on his way, making speeches. The whole journey was fraught with much danger. Many of the Southern States had already seceded, and several attempts at assassi- nation were afterward brought to light. A gang in Baltimore had arranged upon his arrival to "get up a row," and in the confusion to make sure of his death with revolvers and hand-gren- ades. A detective unravelled the plot. A secret and special train was provided to take him from Harrisburg, through Baltimore, at an unexpected
hour of the night. The train started at half-past ten, and to prevent any possible communication on the part of the Secessionists with their Con- federate gang in Baltimore, as soon as the train had started the telegraph-wires were cut. Mr. Lincoln reached Washington in safety and was inaugurated, although great anxiety was felt by all loyal people.
In the selection of his cabinet Mr. Lincoln gave to Mr. Seward the Department of State, and to other prominent opponents before the convention he gave important positions; but during no other administration had the duties devolving upon the President been so manifold, and the responsibilities so great, as those which fell to his lot. Knowing this, and feeling his own weakness and inability to meet, and in his own strength to cope with, the difficulties, he learned early to seek Divine wisdom and guidance in determining his plans, and Divine comfort in all his trials, both personal and national. Contrary to his own estimate of himself, Mr. Lincoln was one of the most cour- ageous of men. He went directly into the rebel capital just as the retreating foe was leaving, with no guard but a few sailors. From the time he had left Springfield, in 1861, however, plans had been made for liis assassination, and he at last fell a victim to one of them. April 14, 1865, he, with Gen. Grant, was urgently invited to attend Ford's Theatre. It was announced that they would be present. Gen. Grant, however, left the city. President Lincoln, feeling, with his char- acteristic kindliness of heart, that it would be a disappointment if he should fail them, very re- luctantly consented to go. While listening to the play, an actor by the name of John Wilkes Booth entered the box where the President and family were seated, and fired a bullet into his brain. He died the next morning at seven o'clock.
Never before in the history of the world was a nation plunged into such deep grief by the death of its ruler Strong men met in the streets and wept in speechless anguish. His was a life which will fitly become a model. His name as the Savior of his country will live with that of Wash- ington's, its Father.
ANDREW JOHNSON.
ANDREW JOHNSON.
NDREW JOHNSON, seventeenth President of the United States. The early life of All- drew Johnson contains but the record of pov- erty, destitution and friendlessness. He was born December 29, 1808, in Raleigh, N. C. His par- ents, belonging to the class of "poor whites" of the South, were in such circumstances that they could not confer even the slightest advantages of education upon their child. When Andrew was five years of age, his father accidentally lost his life, while heroically endeavoring to save a friend from drowning. Until ten years of age, Andrew was a ragged boy about the streets, supported by the labor of his mother, who obtained her living with her own hands.
He then, having never attended a school one day, and being unable either to read or write, was apprenticed to a tailor in his native town. A gen- tleman was in the habit of going to the tailor's shop occasionally, and reading to the boys at work there. He often read from the speeches of distinguished British statesmen. Andrew, who was endowed with a mind of more than ordinary ability, became much interested in these speeches; his ambition was roused, and he was inspired with a strong desire to learn to read.
He accordingly applied himself to the alphabet, and with the assistance of some of his fellow- workmen learned his letters. He then called upon the gentleman to borrow the book of speeches. The owner, pleased with his zeal, not only gave him the book, but assisted him in learning to com- bine the letters into words. Under such difficul- ties he pressed onward laboriously, spending usu- ally ten or twelve hours at work in the shop, and then robbing himself of rest and recreation to de- vote such time as he could to reading.
He went to Tennessee in 1826, and located at
Greenville, where he married a young lady who possessed some education. Under her instructions he learned to write and cipher. He became prominent in the village debating society, and a favorite with the students of Greenville College. In 1828, he organized a working man's party, which elected him Alderman, and in 1830 elected him Mayor, which position he held three years.
He now began to take a lively interest in political affairs, identifying himself with the work- ing-class, to which he belonged. In 1835, he was elected a member of the House of Represent- atives of Tennessee. He was then just twenty- seven years of age. He became a very active member of the Legislature, gave his support to the Democratic party, and in 1840 "stumped the State," advocating Martin Van Buren's claims to the Presidency, in opposition to those of Gen. Harrison. In this campaign he acquired much readiness as a speaker, and extended and increased his reputation.
In 1841, he was elected State Senator; in 1843, he was elected a Member of Congress, and by suc- cessive elections held that important post for ten years. In 1853, he was elected Governor of Tenu- essee, and was re-elected in 1855. In all these responsible positions, he discharged his duties with distinguished ability, and proved himself the warm friend of the working classes. In 1857, Mr. Johnson was elected United States Senator.
Years before, in 1845, he had warmly advocated the annexation of Texas, stating, however, as his reason, that he thought this annexation would probably prove "to be the gateway out of which the sable sons of Africa are to pass from bondage to freedom, and become merged in a population congenial to themselves." In 1850, he also sup- ported the compromise measures, the two essen-
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ANDREW JOHNSON.
tial features of which were, that the white people of the Territories should be permitted to decide for themselves whether they would enslave the colored people or not, and that the free States of the North should return to the South persons who attempted to escape from slavery.
Mr. Johnson was never ashamed of his lowly origin: on the contrary, he often took pride in avowing that he owed his distinction to his own exertions. "Sir," said he on the floor of the Senate, "I do not forget that I am a mechanic; neither do I forget that Adam was a tailor and sewed fig-leaves, and that our Savior was the son of a carpenter."
In the Charleston-Baltimore convention of 1860, he was the choice of the Tennessee Democrats for the Presidency. In 1861, when the purpose of the Southern Democracy became apparent, he took a decided stand in favor of the Union, and held that "slavery must be held subordinate to the Union at whatever cost." He returned to Tenn- essee, and repeatedly imperiled his own life to protect the Unionists of that State. Tennessee having seceded from the Union, President Lincoln, on March 4, 1862, appointed him Military Gov- ernor of the State, and he established the most stringent military rule. His numerous proclama- tions attracted wide attention. In 1864, he was elected Vice-President of the United States, and upon the death of Mr. Lincoln, April 15, 1865, became President. In a speech two days later he said, "The American people must be taught, if they do not already feel, that treason is a crime and must be punished; that the Government will not always bear with its enemies; that it is strong not only to protect, but to punish. * * The people must understand that it (treason) is the blackest of crimes, and will surely be punished." Yet his whole administration, the history of which is so well known, was in utter inconsistency with, and in the most violent opposition to, the princi- ples laid down in that speech.
In his loose policy of reconstruction and general amnesty, he was opposed by Congress, and he characterized Congress as a new rebellion, and lawlessly defied it in everything possible to the ut- most. In the beginning of 1868, on account of
"High crimes and misdemeanors," the principal of which was the removal of Secretary Stanton in violation of the Tenure of Office Act, articles of impeachment were preferred against him, and the trial began March 23.
It was very tedious, continuing for nearly three months. A test article of the impeachment was at length submitted to the court for its action. It was certain that as the court voted upon that ar- ticle so would it vote upon all. Thirty-four voices pronounced the President guilty. As a two-thirds vote was necessary to his condemnation, he was pronounced acquitted, notwithstanding the great majority against him. The change of one vote from the not guilty side would have sustained the impeachment.
The President, for the remainder of his term, was but little regarded. He continued, though impotently, his conflict with Congress. His own party did not think it expedient to renominate him for the Presidency. The Nation rallied with enthusiasm, unparalleled since the days of Wash- ington, around the name of Gen. Grant. Andrew Johnson was forgotten. The bullet of the assassin introduced him to the President's chair. Not- withstanding this, never was there presented to a man a better opportunity to immortalize his name, and to win the gratitude of a nation. He failed utterly. He retired to his home in Greenville, Tenn., taking no very active part in politics until 1875. On January 26, after an exciting struggle, he was chosen by the Legislature of Tennessee United States Senator in the Forty-fourth Congess, and took his seat in that body, at the special ses- sion convened by President Grant, on the 5th of March. On the 27th of July, 1875, the ex-Presi- dent made a visit to his daughter's home, near Carter Station, Tenn. When he started on his journey, he was apparently in his usual vigorous health, but on reaching the residence of his child the following day, he was stricken with paralysis, which rendered him unconscious. He rallied oc- casionally, but finally passed away at 2 A. M., July 31, aged sixty-seven years. His funeral was held at Greenville, on the 3d of August, with every demonstration of respect,
ULYSSES S. GRANT.
ULYSSES S. GRANT.
LYSSES S. GRANT, the eighteenth Presi- dent of the United States, was born on the 29th of April, 1822, of Christian parents, in a humble home at Point Pleasant, on the banks of the Ohio. Shortly after, his father moved to Georgetown, Brown County, Ohio. In this re- mote frontier hamlet, Ulysses received a common- school education. At the age of seventeen, in the year 1839, he entered the Military Academy at West Point. Here he was regarded as a solid, sensible young man, of fair ability, and of sturdy, honest character. He took respectable rank as a scholar. In June, 1843, he graduated about the middle in his class, and was sent as Lieutenant of Infantry to one of the distant military posts in the Missouri Territory. Two years he passed in these dreary solitudes, watching the vagabond Indians.
The war with Mexico came. Lieut. Grant was sent with his regiment to Corpus Christi. His first battle was at Palo Alto. There was no chance here for the exhibition of either skill or heroism, nor at Resaca de la Palma, his second battle. At the battle of Monterey, his third en- gagement, it is said that he performed a signal service of daring and skillful horsemanship.
At the close of the Mexican War, Capt. Grant returned with his regiment to New York, and was again sent to one of the military posts on the frontier. The discovery of gold in California causing an immense tide of emigration to flow to the Pacific shores, Capt. Grant was sent with a battalion to Ft. Dallas, in Oregon, for the protec- tion of the interests of the immigrants. But life was wearisome in those wilds, and he resigned his commission and returned to the States. Hav- ing married, he entered upon the cultivation of a small farm near St. Louis, Mo., but having little
skill as a farmer, and finding his toil not re- munerative, he turned to mercantile life, entering into the leather business, with a younger brother at Galena, Ill. This was in the year 1860. As the tidings of the rebels firing on Ft. Sumter reached the ears of Capt. Grant in his counting- room, he said : "Uncle Sam has educated me for the army; though I have served him through one war, I do not feel that I have yet repaid the debt. I am still ready to discharge my obliga- tions. I shall therefore buckle on my sword and see Uncle Sam through this war too."
He went into the streets, raised a company of volunteers, and led them as their Captain to Springfield, the capital of the State, where their services were offered to Gov. Yates. The Gov- ernor, impressed by the zeal and straightforward executive ability of Capt. Grant, gave him a desk in his office to assist in the volunteer organiza- tion that was being formed in the State in behalf of the Government. On the 15th of June, 1861, Capt. Grant received a commission as Colonel of the Twenty-first Regiment of Illinois Volunteers. His merits as a West Point graduate, who had served for fifteen years in the regular army, were such that he was soon promoted to the rank of Brigadier-General, and was placed in command at Cairo. The rebels raised their banner at Padu- cah, near the mouth of the Tennessee River. Scarcely had its folds appeared in the breeze ere Gen. Grant was there. The rebels fled, their banner fell, and the Stars and Stripes were un- furled in its stead.
He entered the service with great determina- tion and immediately began active duty. This was the beginning, and until the surrender of Lee at Richmond he was ever pushing the enemy
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ULYSSES S. GRANT.
with great vigor and effectiveness. At Belmont, a few days later, he surprised and routed the rebels, then at Ft. Henry won another victory. Then came the brilliant fight at Ft. Donelson. The nation was electrified by the victory, and the brave leader of the boys in blue was immediately made a Major-General, and the military district of Tennessee was assigned to him.
Like all great captains, Gen. Grant knew well how to secure the results of victory. He imme- diately pushed on to the enemies' lines. Then came the terrible battles of Pittsburg Landing, Corinth, and the siege of Vicksburg, where Gen. Pemberton made an unconditional surrender of the city with over thirty thousand men and one hundred and seventy-two cannon. The fall of Vicksburg was by far the most severe blow which the rebels had thus far encountered, and opened up the Mississippi from Cairo to the Gulf.
Gen. Grant was next ordered to co-operate with Gen. Banks in a movement upon Texas, and pro- ceeded to New Orleans, where he was thrown from his horse, and received severe injuries, from which he was laid up for months. He then rushed to the aid of Gens. Rosecrans and Thomas at Chattanooga, and by a wonderful series of strategic and technical measures put the Union army in fighting condition. Then followed the bloody battles at Chattanooga, Lookout Moun- tain and Missionary Ridge, in which the rebels were routed with great loss. This won for him unbounded praise in the North. On the 4th of February, 1864, Congress revived the grade of lieutenant-general, and the rank was conferred on Gen. Grant. He repaired to Washington to receive his credentials and enter upon the duties of his new office.
Gen. Grant decided as soon as he took charge of the army to concentrate the widely-dispersed National troops for an attack upon Richmond, the nominal capital of the rebellion, and endeavor there to destroy the rebel armies which would be promptly assembled from all quarters for its de- fense. The whole continent seemed to tremble under the tramp of these majestic armies, rushing to the decisive battle-field. Steamers were crowd- ed with troops. Railway trains were burdened
with closely-packed thousands. His plans were comprehensive, and involved a series of cam- paigns, which were executed with remarkable energy and ability, and were consummated at the surrender of Lee, April 9, 1865.
The war was ended. The Union was saved. The almost unanimous voice of the nation de- clared Gen. Grant to be the most prominent in- strument in its salvation. The eminent services he had thus rendered the country brought him conspicuously forward as the Republican candi- date for the Presidential chair.
At the Republican Convention held at Chicago, May 21, 1868, he was unanimously nominated for the Presidency, and at the autumn election received a majority of the popular vote, and two hundred and fourteen out of two hundred and ninety-four electoral votes.
The National Convention of the Republican party, which met at Philadelphia on the 5th of June, 1872, placed Gen. Grant in nomination for a second term by a unanimous vote. The selec- tion was emphatically indorsed by the people five months later, two hundred and ninety-two elect- oral votes being cast for him.
Soon after the close of his second term, Gen. Grant started upon his famous trip around the world. He visited almost every country of the civilized world, and was everywhere received with such ovations and demonstrations of respect and honor, private as well as public and official, as were never before bestowed upon any citizen of the United States.
He was the most prominent candidate before the Republican National Convention in 1880 for a renomination for President. He went to New York and embarked in the brokerage business under the firm name of Grant & Ward. The latter proved a villain, wrecked Grant's fortune, and for larceny was sent to the penitentiary. The General was attacked with cancer in the throat, but suffered in his stoic-like manner, never complaining. He was re-instated as General of the Army, and retired by Congress. The cancer soon finished its deadly work, and July 23, 1885, the nation went in mourning over the death of the illustrious General,
RUTHERFORD B. HAYES.
RUTHERFORD B. HAYES.
2 UTHERFORD B. HAYES, the nineteenth President of the United States, was born in Delaware, Ohio, October 4, 1822, almost three months after the death of his father, Ruther- ford Hayes. His ancestry on both the paternal and maternal sides was of the most honorable char- acter. It can be traced, it is said, as far back as 1280, when Hayes and Rutherford were two Scottish chieftains, fighting side by side with Baliol, William Wallace and Robert Bruce. Both families belonged to the nobility, owned extensive estates, and had a large following. Misfortune overtaking the family, George Hayes left Scotland in 1680, and settled in Windsor, Conn. His son George was born in Windsor, and remained there during his life. Daniel Hayes, son of the latter, married Sarah Lee, and lived from the time of his marriage until his death in Simsbury, Conn. Ezekiel, son of Daniel, was born in 1724, and was a manufacturer of scythes at Bradford, Conn. Rutherford Hayes, son of Ezekiel and grandfather of President Hayes, was born in New Haven, in August, 1756. He was a farmer, blacksmith and tavern-keeper. He emigrated to Vermont at an unknown date, settling in Brattleboro, where he established a hotel. Here his son, Rutherford Hayes, the father of President Hayes, was born. He was married, in September, 1813, to Sophia Birchard, of Wilmington, Vt., whose ancestors emigrated thither from Connecticut, they having been among the wealthiest and best families of Norwich. Her ancestry on the male side is traced back to 1635, to John Birchard, one of the principal founders of Norwich. Both of her grand- fathers were soldiers in the Revolutionary War.
The father of President Hayes was an industri- ous, frugal, yet open-hearted man. He was of a
mechanical turn of mind, and could mend a plow, knit a stocking, or do almost anything else that he chose to undertake. He was a member of the church, active in all the benevolent enterprises of the town, and conducted his business on Chris- tian principles. After the close of the War of 1812, for reasons inexplicable to his neighbors, he resolved to emigrate to Ohio.
The journey from Vermont to Ohio in that day, when there were no canals, steamers, or rail- ways, was a very serious affair. A tour of in- spection was first made, occupying four months. Mr. Hayes decided to move to Delaware, where the family arrived in 1817. He died July 22, 1822, a victim of malarial fever, less than three months before the birth of the son of whom we write. Mrs. Hayes, in her sore bereavement, found the support she so much needed in her brother Sardis, who had been a member of the household from the day of its departure from Vermont, and in an orphan girl, whom she had adopted some time before as an act of charity.
Rutherford was seven years old before he went to school. His education, however, was not neg- lected. He probably learned as much from his mother and sister as he would have done at school. His sports were almost wholly within doors, his playmates being his sister and her asso- ciates. These circumstances tended, no doubt, to foster that gentleness of disposition and that del- icate consideration for the feelings of others which were marked traits of his character.
His uncle, Sardis Birchard, took the deepest interest in his education; and as the boy's health had improved, and he was making good progress in his studies, he proposed to send him to college. His preparation commenced with a tutor at home;
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RUTHERFORD B. HAYES.
but he was afterwards sent for one year to a pro- fessor in the Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn. He entered Kenyon College in 1838, at the age of sixteen, and was graduated at the head of his class in 1842.
Immediately after his graduation he began the study of law in the office of Thomas Sparrow, Esq., in Columbus. Finding his opportunities for study in Columbus somewhat limited, he de- termined to enter the Law School at Cambridge, Mass., where he remained two years.
In 1845, after graduating at the Law School, he was admitted to the Bar at Marietta, Ohio, and shortly afterward went into practice as an at- torney-at-law with Ralph P. Buckland, of Fre- mont. Here he remained three years, acquiring but a limited practice, and apparently unambitious of distinction in his profession.
In 1849 he moved to Cincinnati, where his am- bition found a new stimulus. For several years, however, his progress was slow. Two events occurring at this period had a powerful influence upon his subsequent life. One of these was his marriage with Miss Lucy Ware Webb, daughter of Dr. James Webb, of Chillicothe; the other was his introduction to the Cincinnati Literary Club, a body embracing among its members such men as Chief Justice Salmon P. Chase, Gen. John Pope, Gov. Edward F. Noyes, and many others hardly less distinguished in after life. The mar- riage was a fortunate one in every respect, as everybody knows. Not one of all the wives of our Presidents was more universally admired, reverenced and beloved than was Mrs. Hayes, and no one did more than she to reflect honor upon American womanhood. The Literary Club brought Mr. Hayes into constant association with young men of high character and noble aims, and lured him to display the qualities so long hidden by his bashfulness and modesty.
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