Biographical and historical memoirs of Mississippi, embracing an authentic and comprehensive account of the chief events in the history of the state and a record of the lives of many of the most worthy and illustrious families and individuals, Vol. II, Part 68

Author: Goodspeed Brothers
Publication date: 1891
Publisher: Chicago, Goodspeed
Number of Pages: 1314

USA > Mississippi > Biographical and historical memoirs of Mississippi, embracing an authentic and comprehensive account of the chief events in the history of the state and a record of the lives of many of the most worthy and illustrious families and individuals, Vol. II > Part 68

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Virginian, and comes of old Virginia stock, his parents, John and Mahala (White) Miller, being natives also of the Old Dominion. The paternal grandfather was a native of Scotland. The parents were reared in their native state, were there married, and there reared a family of eleven children, six of whom are now living, and all in Virginia, with the exception of John H. The parents both died in Virginia, the mother in 1875 and the father in 1885. John H. Miller, the eldest son of the above-mentioned family, was married in his native state in 1846 to Miss Mary Susan Harris, of Buckingham county, Va., and daughter of Col. John M. Harris. In 1848 he moved to Mississippi, located in Marshall county, and has been a resident and honored and respected citizen since. His marriage was blessed by the birth of eight children-six sons and two daughters-five sons and one daughter now living. Mr. Miller is the owner of nine hundred acres of land, five hundred acres under cultivation, and is engaged in raising cotton principally. He is a practical agriculturist, and keeps thor- oughly apace with the times. His sons are all farmers, but in connection also deal largely in mules. His sons, Eugene and J. C., have a large livery business in Greenwood, Miss., and are successful business men. Mr. Miller and wife are members of the Christian church, Mr. Miller having joined nearly fifty years ago. He is now in his seventy-fourth year, but is still hale and hearty. He has been a resident of Marshall county for forty-two years, and his reputation in that and adjoining counties is that of a first-class citizen, and an honest, upright man. He is universally respected, and no man stands higher in the estimation of the people. He was appointed by Governor Lowry as one of the commissioners to represent the state at the State fair of Georgia, held at Atlanta. The Miller family is one among the old- est of Marshall county, and the members have ever been honorable and esteemed citizens.

Among the substantial and reliable men of Greenwood, Miss., is Eugene L. Miller, a native of Marshall county, Miss., born December 17, 1851. John H. Miller, his father, was born in the state of Virginia, where he grew to man's estate. He was there united in mar- riage to Mary S. Harris, also a Virginian by birth. He removed to Mississippi about the year 1849, and was one of the pioneer settlers of Marshall county. He opened a plantation near Holly Springs, where he now resides, and is one of the prominent planters of the county. Eugene L. Miller is one of a family of five sons and one daughter, all of whom have grown to maturity, and three of whom are heads of families. Our subject spent his youth on his father's plantation, receiving a common English education in the county in which he was born. After reaching his majority he engaged in planting in Marshall county; also trading and dealing in livestock. He removed to Greenwood in January, 1889, and in that city erected a large barn and embarked in the livery business. He buys large numbers of horses and mules, and is one of the most successful livestock dealers in Le Flore county. He has won for himself an enviable position in the business circles of Greenwood. He was married in Virginia, in October, 1874, to Miss Mary Ann Lipscomb, daughter of George Lipscomb, Esq., and a native of Virginia. Mr. and Mrs. Miller have one son, Robert Miller, a lad of thirteen years. Mr. Miller is a member of the Masonic fraternity, and also belongs to the Knights of Pythias and the Knights of Honor. He is a man of genial disposition, enterpris- ing and public-spirited, and possessed of those sterling traits of character that go to make the best citizenship.

A livery stable is a most essential institution, both for pleasure and convenience, and to be able to command at any moment a horse and rig for a drive in the country, or for business or other purposes, is a great privilege, indeed. Foremost among the prominent business men of Booneville stands the name of J. T. Miller, who is a native of this state, born in Marshall county on the 25th of July, 1841. His father, Kedar Miller, was born in Tennessee in 1815,

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and the latter's first marriage was to Miss Aun Campbell, daughter of John K. Campbell. She died, leaving three children: John, Thomas and Mary. Mr. Miller was then married to Miss Parthenia Dalton, daughter of Terry and Nancy (Low) Dalton, and five children are the fruits of this union: Kedar, James T. (subject of this sketch), Anna L., William L. and Emma. The mother of these children was a member of the Methodist church, and died in Prentiss county in 1852. Subsequently Mr. Miller took for his third wife Pris- cilla Forbes, who bore him five children: Parthenia, Jessie, Benjamin, Sallie, and Katie (who is in the millinery business at Booneville). Mr. Miller died about 1876. He was a member of the Methodist church, and was active in his support of all public affairs of a laudable nature. He was a Mason, and in his political views was a democrat. Kedar Miller was the son of James and Pollie Miller, both of whom died when their grandson, James T., was small. It was the latter's lot to grow up with a farm experience, but at the age of twenty-five years he started out to fight life's battles for himself. Miss Sallie Perkins, who became his wife, and who was the daughter of E. M. and Elizabeth Perkins, was a native of Tennessee. This felicitous union resulted in the birth of six children: Ebby Terry, William Albert, Elizabeth, Katie, Lucian and Esma, all now living. Mr. Miller followed farming until about 1870, when he moved to Booneville and engaged in the draying business. Later he embarked in the livery business, and has won the reputation of being one of the thorough, wideawake business men of the place. He is what is called a self-made man, and what he has acquired in the way of this world's goods is the result of hard work and close atten- tion to business. He is a member of the Methodist church, and in politics is strongly demo- cratic. He espoused the cause of the Confederacy, and in 1861 enlisted in a company of the Twenty-sixth Mississippi, under Captain Davenport. He was in the battles of Collinsville and Town creek, and was wounded in the ankle at the former place, being disabled from duty for a month. He then enlisted in the Seventh Mississippi cavalry, company A, Capt. · Tom Ford, Colonel Falconer, and was in regular service for two years, participating in the battles of Harrisburg and Tupelo. He was discharged in 1865. Aside from his livery busi- ness, Mr. Miller is the owner of two hundred and eight acres of land on Wolf creek, and has about one hundred acres of this under cultivation. He also owns property in Booneville.

William D. Miller's parents, Calvin and Catherine B. (Comfort) Miller, were natives respectively of North Carolina and New Jersey, and his father left his native state to locate in Hinds county, Miss., in 1836. He was reared in North Carolina, but was educated at Miami, Ohio, and later entered the West Point Military college, where he was not able to finish his course on account of ill health. After leaving the school he was offered an appoint- ment in the navy, which he did not accept, but instead accepted a professorship in Washing- ton, D. C., which he held up to the time of his removal to Mississippi. Soon after being admitted to the bar of the supreme court he practiced law in Jackson, Miss., until 1839, when he removed to Panola county, where he had a very successful practice for nearly forty- two years. As a lawyer he was well read and profound, and his argumentative powers were clear, vigorous and incisive. He never saw but one side to a case, and that was his own. He possessed to an eminent degree the two most requisite characteristics of a successful lawyer- patience and perseverance. He had an aversion to politics, and could never, though often solicited to do so, run for any political office. He was a Mason of high rank, and was instru- mental in establishing many lodges of that order in the state. He was a gifted and polished gentleman, and a strict member of the Episcopal church. It is said of him that he never swore an oath in his life, and never permitted any one to tell a vulgar joke or story in his presence. His death occurred in 1881, and his widow followed him to the grave seven years

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later. The paternal grandfather, John Miller, was one of North Carolina's most prominent men, and lived on a farm that was first settled by Daniel Boone. He was a member of the state senate of North Carolina. The maternal grandfather, Daniel Comfort, was a native of New Jersey, and came to Clinton, Miss., at an early day. He accepted the presidency of the school at that place, and retained his position in the college until his death in 1859. He was an educator of rare ability, and many prominent men of Mississippi, among whom are several ex-governors, received their education under him. He was a minister in the Presby- terian church. William D. Miller was born in Hinds county, Miss., on the 17th of Novem- ber, 1840, and was the second in order of birth of three children born to his parents. His boyhood days were pased in Panola county, and his literary education was obtained at La Grange, Tenn., and Frankfort, Ky. He subsequently attended law school at Oxford, Miss., but was kept from graduating by the breaking out of the war. Soon after leaving school he entered the Confederate army, attached himself to company F, Twenty-eighth Mississippi cavalry, commanded by Col. P. B. Stork, and participated in the battles of Franklin, Atlanta, siege of Vicksburg and surrender at Oakland, Miss. When the war ended he returned to Panola county, began the practice of law and has continued this up to the present time. He is an able attorney, and as custodian of the people's interests he has ever been vigilant and watchful. His practice has been very gratifying and satisfactory in every way. From 1878 to 1879 Mr. Miller was a member of the legislature, and his career as a public man has been characterized by honesty and perseverance. He has inherited many of his father's good qualities, and his aim in life is to do credit to his father's memory. He is the owner of nine hundred acres of land, a handsome residence in Sardis, and a well-equipped office. In 1871 he married Miss Annie Gillion, a native of Mississippi, and a daughter of John Gillion, who was born in Georgia. This union resulted in the birth of two children: Katie Heard and Caloin. The daughter was educated at Stanton, Va., and the son is now in school at Oxford. Mr. Miller and family are members of the Episcopal church.

Maj. R. W. Millsaps, president of the Capital State bank, of Jackson, Miss., is a native of Copiah county, Miss., where he was born on the 30th of May, 1833, being the second in a family of eight children born to Reuben and Lavinia (Clowers) Millsaps, both of whom were Georgians by birth. The paternal grandfather, William Millsaps, who was also a Georgian, came to Mississippi with his family in 1830, and was a resident of Copiah county when that country was a wilderness, inhabited by wild animals and Indians, having first made a temporary residence in Jasper county. He became a planter, reared a large family of children, and died in 1834. His family, which was of Irish lineage, settled in South Car- olina during colonial times. The maternal grandfather, William Clowers, was born in Geor- gia and came to Mississippi about 1830, settling in Copiab county, where he became a prom- inent citizen. Reuben Millsaps was reared in Copiah county, and by his own efforts secured a good education, becoming the first schoolteacher of that county. He afterward married, and became a planter, but throughout life was deeply interested in the cause of education, and gave his children good advantages. He was called from life in 1854, his wife having died the year previous, both being earnest members of the Methodist Episcopal church. Maj. R. W. Millsaps was educated in Hanover college, which he attended two years, afterward entering Asbury university (now De Pauw university), from which he graduated in 1854. After returning to Mississippi he taught school, in order to obtain means to enter the law depart- ment of Harvard university, from which he was honorably graduated in 1858, locating soon after at Pine Bluff, Ark., where he practiced until the opening of the late war. He then joined company A, Ninth Arkansas infantry, and on the day on which it was organized he was

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elected lieutenant, and was soon after chosen adjutant, and was afterward made lieutenant- colonel. The regiment was sent to Kentucky and Tennessee, during which time he participated in the battle of Shiloh, where he was wounded. After remaining in the hospital at Jackson for some time, he rejoined his command at Corinth in 1862, and was in the movements about Vicksburg in 1863, being a participant in the battle of Champion's Hill. He then joined Bragg's army in Georgia, after which he was transferred to the inspector's department, and was inspector-general of Loring's division, with the rank of major. He was in all the fighting about Atlanta, was then with Bragg on his Tennessee campaign, was a participant in the battle of Franklin, and was wounded in the engagement at Nashville. Following this, he went to North Carolina with Johnston, and was in the last battle of the war at Bentonville. While on his way back to join the trans-Mississippi department, and had reached Jackson, Miss., the news came of Lee's surrender. Immediately succeeding this, he turned his atten- tion to cotton dealing in several counties until 1866, when he began merchandising at Brook- haven, where he continued in business for about sixteen years, having branch establishments at Hazlehurst and Union Church. In 1880 he closed out all his interests in Mississippi, and went to St. Louis, Mo., where he started a wholesale grocery and cotton commission business, under the firm name of Millsaps, Magee & Co. In 1884 he closed out this business, and for one year thereafter traveled with his family in Europe. After returning to America, he established the Merchants and Planters' bank at Hazlehurst, of which he had charge until 1887, when he moved to Jackson, and the next year, with a few others, bought out the Capital State bank, and was elected its president. He is also a stockholder and director of the Delta Trust and Banking company, of Vicksburg; the First National bank, of Greenville; the Bank of Greenville; the Merchants and Planters' bank, of Greenville; the Bank of Rosedale, at Rosedale, and the Clarksville Bank and Trust company, of Clarksville. He owns large planting interests in Washington and Sunflower counties, some of his land being the finest in the state. He is president of the Jackson Compress company, treasurer of the Jackson Fertilizer company, and a director of the Jackson Light, Heat and Water company. Major Millsaps was married in 1869 to Mrs. Mary F. Younkin, a daughter of Horace Bean, a wealthy banker, of New Orleans, and as their union has not resulted in the birth of any chil- dren, they have an adopted daughter, named Josie. The Major and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church South, in which he is a very active worker. It has long been a cherished scheme of Major Millsaps to found a college in Mississippi, for the general and economical education of the youth of the state, the germ of this idea being originated in the fact that his own early opportunities for obtaining an education were very meager, not- withstanding the fact that he was very desirous of obtaining a good education. A short time since he offered $50,000, should a like sum be raised, to make a fund of $100,000, to found a college at some point in the state. Although various towns were anxious to secure the honor of the site, Jackson finally won, and the ground for the same was donated by Major Millsaps, who also made further cash contributions, amounting to nearly $75,000 in all. The college will soon be an established fact, to the pride and satisfaction of all loyal Mississippians and to the honor and credit of Major Millsaps. Although the Major has been compelled to make his own way in the world from earliest youth, he has been successful, for he has been devoted to his business, and is now one of the wealthiest and most prominent men of the state. He is of unpretending disposition, but his numerous admirable qualities are well known and highly appreciated.

Judge Uriah Millsaps, a retired lawyer and a prominent citizen of Hazlehurst, a son of Thomas and Elizabeth (Holliday) Millsaps, was born in Copiah county in 1828. His father

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was born in Pendleton district, S. C., January 1, 1799, and his mother was born in Georgia about 1804. They came to Mississippi with their parents, and were married in Copiah county, about 1824, beginning life in the woods, near the waters of Bayou Pierre. There Mr. Millsaps cleared and improved a plantation, and there he lived until his death in 1882, his wife having died in 1841. Mr. Millsaps married Mrs. Hanna Griffith, of Covington county, the second time. He was one of twelve children, who came with their parents to Copiah county. The educational advantages were limited, but he was an energetic and suc- cessful business man, who had the respect of the community at large. His father was Will- iam Millsaps, of South Carolina, who lived in that state until about 1810, when he came to Perry county, Miss., moving his family and all his earthly psssessions through the then wilderness. He located in Copiah county, about 1823, and both he and his wife died about ten years later, while on a visit to a son in Perry county. He was a successful planter and amassed a considerable property. Some of his sons became well known in the state. His father, Thomas Millsaps, was a native of Ireland. Ayres Holliday, Judge Millsaps' grandfather on his mother's side, was a Georgian, who removed to Washington parish, La., at an early date, and thence to Copiah county, afterward returning to Louisiana, where he died. Thomas Holliday, one of his sons, was for many years sheriff of Copiah county. Our subject was the second of three sons and three daughters born to his parents: William died when young; Martha, who is also dead, became the wife of John S. Beesley; Mary, married Thomas E. Millsaps; Sarah is the widow of the Rev. William Wadsworth, a Method- ist minister; Hon. Thomas J. Millsaps, the youngest brother of the Judge, was born in Copiah county in 1834. He passed his early life on a farm, receiving his primary educa- tion at the country schools, afterward attending Hanover college, in Indiana, and later attending the Centenary college, in Louisiana. He afterward read law until the begin- ning of the war. In 1862 he joined the Thirty-sixth Mississippi infantry as a private. He was in the battles of Corinth, Iuka and Vicksburg, being captured at the last-named place, and held as a prisoner for some time. Rejoining the army just before it reached Atlanta, he came back with Hood's command to Franklin and Nashville and on the retreat south was taken sick and was in the hospital at Macon, Ga., at the time of the surrender. After his recovery he walked home to Copiah county. Soon after his arrival he engaged in planting, which he has continued till the present time. In 1870 he was married to Missis- sippi, the daughter of Hon. John Fatheree, and a native of Holmes county, which he once represented in the legislature with much honor. After his removal to Copiah county he became one of the leading planters, and one of the most prominent citizens. He was a widely known and brilliant member of the Masonic fraternity. When he died he was uni- versally respected. Mrs. Millsaps, his daughter, was born in Copiah county. In 1887 Mr. Millsaps was elected to represent Copiah county in the state legislature. He was reelected in 1889, and served as chairman of the committee on commerce and manufactures. He was a member of the executive committee of the state alliance, and was in every way a useful citizen, honored for what he has accomplished. Our subject, Judge Uriah Millsaps, was educated at Hanover college, Indiana, and at Danville, Ky., where he graduated. He after- ward studied law with Judge Daniel Mayes, of Jackson, and was admitted to the bar in 1854. He hung out his professional shingle at Gallatin, and was a successful legal practi- tioner there for some time until after the war, when he removed to Hazlehurst, where he has since lived. In 1856 he married Sarah Lewis, the daughter of Bryant Lewis, who was born in Copiah county, being one of nine children, two of whom are still living. Her father was a native of South Carolina and removed to Copiah county, where he became a promi-

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nent citizen, and there ended his days. In 1862 Judge Millsaps joined the Confederate cavalry as a private, but later he recruited the company in which he was first lieutenant, and afterward captain, which was attached to the army of the West, and which he com- manded until the close of the war. After peace was established he resumed the practice of his profession. In 1869 he was appointed judge of the fifth judicial district, and served with much honor until 1876, when he again returned to his legal practice, in which he has since been practically succeeded by his son, H. T. Millsaps. He is the owner of consider- able real estate, the management of which requires much of his attention, and which brings him a comfortable income. He is a Royal Arch Mason, and he and his wife are members of the Methodist church. Judge Millsaps is practically a self-made man, and he is a good and well-known citizen, and a member of one of the best families in the state. Major Mill- saps, of Jackson, the founder of Millsaps college, is a son of one of his father's brothers.

Dr. William D. Mims, physician, Wall Hill, Miss., the great-grandfather of David Mims, who married Miss Martha Dinguid, the 5th day of October, 1773. To them was born a son, Dinguid Mims, who was married to Miss Martha Massie the 1st day of November, 1804, of which marriage David Henry Mims, the father of Dr. Mims, was born on February 9, 1806. Dr. Mims' parents, David H. and Eliza A. (Cochran) Mims, were natives of Vir- ginia and Georgia, respectively, and both came to Mississippi when single, settling in Mar- shall county early in the thirties. They were married in that county, and there the father followed planting for the most part, but was also engaged in merchandising for some time in the thirties. Both died in Marshall county, the father in 1872, at the age of sixty-six years, and the mother in 1877, at the age of fifty-nine years. Both were consistent members of the Methodist Church South. They were the parents of ten children-five sons and five daugh- ters-eight of whom are yet living. Dr. William D. Mims was born in Marshall county, Miss., on the 24th of November, 1840, and when twenty-one years of age enlisted in the Con- federate army, company B, Seventeenth Mississippi infantry, under Col. W. S. Featherston, and was in the army of Virginia, participating in nearly all the hard fighting in that state. He was in the first Manassas, Leesburg, Richmond, Sharpsburg, Petersburg, Wilderness and various others. He was wounded and captured at Gettysburg, was in the hospital at David's island, N. Y., for nearly four months, and was then paroled and sent to Richmond. He rejoined his old command the following March and was captured again on the 6th day of April, 1865, near Petersburg, a few days before the surrender. He was taken to Point Look- out, Md., and was on the road back to Petersburg when General Lee surrendered. He was kept a prisoner until July, 1865, and after being released he returned to his old home in Marshall county, Miss. He engaged in farming for about five years and then took up the study of medicine in 1871, graduating at the University of Louisiana, now Tulane univer- sity, in 1873. He began practicing the same year at Red Banks, Miss., and removed to Wall Hill in the fall of the same year. There he has practiced his profession ever since, and has been very successful. He has availed himself of all new ideas and has put them in practice. He is in partnership with Dr. J. W. Sharp, under the firm name of Sharp & Mims. Aside from his profession the Doctor is now the owner of eight hundred acres of land, four hundred of which are under cultivation, and his principal crop is cotton, averaging one fourth of a bale to the acre. His farm is run by tenants. The Doctor also owns a nice residence in Wall Hill, where he makes his home. He was married in 1866 to Miss Martha E. Horn, of Byhalia, and two children were born to this union, both now deceased. Mrs. Mims died in 1870, near Byhalia. The Doctor's second marriage occurred in 1881, to Miss Emma Knight, daughter of R. K. and Violet (Aughey) Knight, the father a native of Ten-

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Biographical and historical memoirs of Mississippi, embracing an authentic and comprehensive account of the chief events in the history of the state and a record of the lives of many of the most worthy and illustrious families and individuals, Vol. II, Part 68

Author: Goodspeed Brothers Publication date: 1891 Publisher: Chicago, Goodspeed Number of Pages: 1314

Author: Goodspeed Brothers
Publication date: 1891
Publisher: Chicago, Goodspeed
Number of Pages: 1314