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 78

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 78

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clearing and improving and will soon have a magnificent property. Mr. Nelson is an ener- getic young man of a high order of business attainments, and by giving earnest and careful attention to business he is enabled to transact any commission expeditiously, and to warrant satisfaction in every instance. He was one of the organizers of the Capital Cooperage and Manufacturing company, and is treasurer of the same. In 1881 he was united in marriage to Miss Ida Langley, a native of Jackson and a daughter of Willis Langley, a well known merchant of the city. To Mr. and Mrs. Nelson the following children having been born: Frank C., Jr., Fred., Bessie May, William Nugent, and Annie Marion. Mr. Nelson and his wife are members of the Episcopal church, in which he is a vestryman and secretary of the Sunday school. Mr. Nelson's brothers and sisters are as follows: Willie F., who is engaged in planting in Carroll county; Mary, Samuel, Prentiss, Flora and Lillie, the two last named being still in school.

Dr. J. C. Nelson has been a resident of the town of Austin, Tunica county, Miss., since 1850, but has been a worthy citizen of the state since 1840. He was born in Tennessee October 5, 1818, to Robert and Mary (Combs) Nelson, both of whom were born in the Pal- metto state, but were married in Tennessee, where they reared a family of six sons and two daughters, Stephen C., a resident of Humphreys county, Tenn., and Dr. J. C. being the only ones who are living. Those deceased are: George L., Joshua, William A., Robert L., Myra J., and Cora G., who became the wife of William B. Foster, of Tennessee. The parents of these children spent their declining years in Tennessee, and were there called from life in 1873 and 1878 respectively. Dr. J. C. Nelson is the only one of the family who came to Mississippi, and in Marshall county, of this state, he was married in 1845, Miss Mary C. Fer- guson becoming his wife and in time the mother of his four children: Dr. William J., of Tunica; Mattie A., wife of W. G. Jaquess, clerk of the county court of Tunica county; Florence G., wife of W. A. Warfield, and Cora G., wife of Dr. M. J. Alexander. The mother of these children, who was a most estimable and intelligent lady, was called from life at Austin, Miss., in 1868, and the following year the Doctor's second marriage was consum- mated, his wife being Mrs. Virginia Perry, of Marshall county, Miss. Their union resulted in the birth of one child that is dead. The Doctor obtained his medical education in his native state, and his first practice was done in Pontotoc county, Miss., in 1845, since which time he has practiced continuously, now ranking among the oldest and most successful prac- titioners of the state. His success in life as a member of the medical fraternity, and his high position as a practitioner of the healing art have been obtained rather by the force of native talent and culture than by tact, and owing to his thorough knowledge of his profession and his long practice, it is conceded by all competent judges that he ranks among the eminent members of the medical brotherhood. His second wife was called from life in 1870, at her home in Austin, and the Doctor now makes his home with his daughter, Mrs. Cora Alexander, whose son, William J., is one of the leading physicians of the county. Although in his seventy-third year, Dr. Nelson shows but little the ravages of time, either mentally or phys- ically, and yet has a good and paying practice. He has been a resident of the bottoms for over forty years, and as his health has always been very good, he has never been obliged to move to other climes to recuperate. He has always interested himself in the political affairs of his section, and his public services have been characterized by a noticeable devotion to the welfare of the county, and his fidelity and faithfulness in discharging the duties of the posi- tions he has filled have been an excellent example to his successors, and has tended to make and keep the public service pure. His intelligent views on all subjects and the interest he took in public affairs soon placed him as a leader of his party, and in 1850 he was elected

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by his numerous friends to the position of clerk of the court of Tunica county, Miss., at which time there were but forty-eight voters in the county, he receiving forty-five of the votes polled. He filled this position with ability for twelve years, at the end of which time he was elected probate judge, in which capacity his sterling integrity, sound judgment, broad intelli- gence, and liberal aud progressive ideas were exercised for the benefit of mankind. His decisions were not made without careful and painstaking study of the evidence adduced, and upon retiring from the bench at the end of three years he bore with him the confidence and respect of all. He was postmaster of Austin for a number of years, and is a worthy mem- ber of the Masonic fraternity.

Mrs. Luly L. Nelson, widow of Samuel Nelson, formerly a planter of Issaquena county, Miss., was born in this county on the farm where she now resides, and is the daughter of Zach and Martha (Bowie) Leatherman. Zach Leatherman was born in Mississippi in 1813, and like his father and grandfather before him was a wealthy planter and a slaveowner. He moved to Issaquena county in 1836, resided on Dunbarder plantation and managed the same for Mr. Dunbar for a number of years. He then bought the farm on which Mrs. Nelson now resides, which then consisted of five hundred and twenty-one acres, but which has since been added to until it now numbers fifteen hundred acres with seven hundred acres improved. It is now one of the handsomest plantations on the river. During the late war Mr. Leatherman practiced medicine and continued this for a few years afterward in Arkansas, where he made his home during those troublesome times. His death occurred in 1883, but his wife still survives. After his death she married Captain Burns, of Canada. By her first marriage she became the mother of three children, only Mrs. Nelson now living. One child died in infancy and the other, James B., received his final summons in January, 1891. Mrs. Nelson's paternal grandfather, Samuel Leatherman, was a native of Mississippi, and her great-grandfather was a native of the Keystone state, having emigrated to Mississippi when it was French territory. Her maternal grandparents, John J. and America (Watkins) Bowie, were natives of Louisiana and Mississippi respectively. The Bowie family was originally from Scotland, three brothers of that name having emigrated from that country to this at a very early period. One settled in Maryland, the other two in North Carolina, and the branch of the family of which Mrs. Nelson is a descendant came from the last named state. She is a relative of ex-Governor Bowie of Maryland, and is also a grand-niece of Col. James Bowie, after whom the world- famed bowie-knife was called, and who was one of the most wonderful men of his day. He was a brother of her grandfather Bowie. Mrs. Nelson was married to Samuel Nelson in 1873. He was a native of Tennessee, and was the son of Samuel Nelson, Sr., who was a soldier in the War of 1812. The elder Nelson moved to Mississippi at an early day and was quite prominent in the early settlement of Issaquena county. Samuel Nelson, Jr., served with distinction as a scout in the Confederate army during the Civil war and afterward became one of the prominent young planters of the county. He filled the office of levee commissioner and was holding that position at the time of his death, which occurred in 1883, at the age of forty-four years. By his marriage he became the father of one child, J. Howard Nelson, who is attending school at Memphis, Tennessee. Previous to this marriage Mr. Nelson had mar- ried a Miss Emma Holden of Thibodeaux, La., whose parents came from the Buckeye state. The fruits of this union were four children, three living: Emma H. N., wife of W. B. Wilmans, of Dallas, Texas; Samuel, of the Merchants' National bank, at Vicksburg, and William P., who resides in Greenville, Miss. Mr. Nelson was a member of the Knights of Pythias, Hay's Landing, lodge No. 16, was the first chancellor commander of the lodge, and the first member of the same to die. Mrs. Nelson is an intelligent and cultured lady and a very interesting

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conversationalist. She resides on her fine plantation near Arcadia, and uses excellent judg- ment in its management.

Shepherd S. Neville, a prominent planter and merchant of Giles, Kemper county, Miss., was born in Sumter county, Ala., in 1858, and is a son of William H. and Sharah H. (Spen- cer) Neville. William H. Neville, his father, was born in South Carolina in 1812, and was a son of William and Elizabeth (Lindsey) Neville. He merchandised for some years and afterward retired from business and engaged in planting, and removed to Sumter county, Ala., at an early day. He was married in Pickens county, Ala., in 1848, and reared a family of seven children: Robert S., William H., Jr., Belle, Helen, Shepherd S., Martha W., and Mary R. He was a man who was prosperous in business, and who took a deep interest in home enterprises. Politically he was a stanch democrat. He represented his county in the legislature in 1882, and was chairman of the democratic county committee of Sumter county. He was a member of the Masonic fraternity. His death occurred in 1887, in the month of July, in Sumter county, Ala. His wife was born in South Carolina in 1829, and she was a daughter of Shepard and Elizabeth (Harrison) Spencer. Her parents were both natives of South Carolina, and died in Noxubee county, Miss. She is living in Sumter county, Ala. Shepherd S. Neville was born in Sumter county, Ala., at Gainesville, in 1858, and received his education in the common schools of that day. At the age of seventeen years he engaged in the milling business and planting, which he continued until 1888. In that year he was united in marriage to Miss Maria C. Giles, only daughter of Simmons H. and Maria F. (Jones) Giles. He and his wife are zealous members of the Episcopal church. He is a demo- crat in his political views, and is a zealous supporter of the movements of that party. He owns about eight thousand acres of land in Sumter county, Ala., and Noxubee and Kemper counties, Miss.

Simmons H. Giles was a conspicuous character in the early settlement of Kemper county, where he located with his father in 1835. He was born in North Carolina in 1827, April 6th, and was a son of Jacob and Nancy L. (Harrison) Giles, natives of North Carolina. Jacob Giles was born July 27, 1799, and died April 22, 1860. He was a son of John Giles, a son of Nathaniel and Charity Giles, who was born August 29, 1750. Jacob Giles, as before stated, came to this county in 1835. He had poor educational advantages in his youth, but at the time of his death was one of the best informed and most public-spirited men of his day, whose sterling integrity and uprightness of life commanded the love and respect of all. Giles postoffice is named for him, he being the first settler in that community. He was married in North Carolina to Nancy L. Harrison, and they reared one of the four children born to them. He died in Kemper county, April 22, 1860, and his wife died January 3, 1885. Simmons H. was born in North Carolina April 6, 1827, and was educated at Jackson, Tenn. In 1854 he was married to Maria F. Jones, a daughter of Dr. B. A. and Maria (Cross) Jones. The father was a native of Virginia but removed to Tuscumbia, Ala., where he practiced medicine a number of years and finally settled in Sumter county, Ala., where he died in 1858, having given up medicine and successfully engaged in planting for twenty years in that county before his death. His wife died the same year. After his mar- riage Mr. Giles settled in Kemper county, and opened up a fine plantation, on which he built a beautiful residence. In 1860 he removed to the old plantation where his father had died. He and his wife reared one child, Maria C., who was born February 20, 1859. She is the wife of Shepherd S. Neville. In 1863 Mr. Giles enlisted in the Confederate service, and fought until the surrender. He was ever a friend of home enterprises, and contributed liberally of his means in the support of churches and educational institutions. He was a democrat,

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and a stanch adherent to the principles of his party. He was a very prosperous planter, owning about twelve thousand acres. He carried on a successful mercantile business in Scooba up to the time of his death, which occurred September 8, 1870. In his death the county lost a valued citizen, one whose sterling traits of character were an inspiration and in whom the poor and needy found ever a true friend and willing helper.

William Neville, a substantial merchant at Giles, Kemper county, Miss., was born in Sumter county, Ala., and is the eldest son of A. L. and Mary (McDow) Neville. The father was born in South Carolina in 1820, and removed thence to Greene county, Ala., in his boy- hood; afterward he went to Sumter county. He was a son of William Neville, Sr., and Elizabeth (Lindsey) Neville. He was married in Greene county, Ala., in 1840, and seven children were born of the union: William, Samuel, Lucy, Mary, Andrew, Robert and James H. The mother died in 1852. She was born in 1820, in South Carolina, and was a daugh- ter of William L. McDow. She was a worthy member of the Presbyterian church. After her death William Neville was married a second time, being united to Mrs. Nancy James. They had born to them three children: Pope, Fannie and George. The father died in Giles, Kemper county, in 1882. He was a member of the Presbyterian church, and in his political opinions adhered to the principles of the democratic party. At one time he was taxcollector of Sumter county. He was a merchant in Mobile, Ala., and was very pros- perous. He was a man of deep integrity of character and a loyal citizen. Two of his sons were in the late war, William and Samuel; both were wounded, the latter at Seven Pines; he was an attorney by profession and died in Texas. William Neville spent his early days in Mobile, Ala., where he was a clerk in a store. In 1861 he enlisted in the Confederate army and was attached to the Third Alabama regiment. He saw some very hard service, participating in the battles of Seven Pines, Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville. At the last named place he received a gunshot wound which necessitated the amputation of his right foot. He was then discharged and sent to the hospital. After his recovery he went back to Sumter county, where he was engaged in merchandising. Later he became interested in farming. He was married in 1869 in Kemper county, Miss., to Miss Sallie P. Blocker, a daughter of George M. and Margaret (Perrin) Blocker. She was born in South Carolina in

1846 and was taken by her parents to Kemper county, Miss., in 1851. Mr. and Mrs. Neville

. are the parents of three children: Mary, George B. and Samuel A. The, mother died in 1881. She was a member of the Episcopal church. Mr. Neville is identified with the demo- cratic party and is well posted on all the leading issues of the day. He devotes his time and attention to his mercantile interests in Giles and is very successful. He is a member of the Episcopal church, and belongs to the Knights of Honor.

James H. Neville, district attorney of the second district of Mississippi, and practicing attorney at Scooba, Kemper county, Miss., was born in the state of Alabama, September 28th, 1852, and is the son of A. L. and Mary (McDow) Neville. His father. was a native of South Carolina, born in 1820 and a son of William Neville. He was a wholesale mer- chant and cotton factor at Mobile, Ala., for ten years before his death, which occurred in 1882. He was actively interested in the political questions of the day, being allied with the democratic party. He was reared to the occupation of planting, but soon after he came of age he embarked in the mercantile trade, which he made his life's vocation. He was married in 1840 and seven children were born of the union: William, Lucy, Samuel, Mary, Andrew, Robert and James H. Mr. Neville was a man of rare business qualifications and held a posi- tion in the commercial circles of his county of which any man might have been proud. The mother of our subject was born in Greene county, Ala., and died in 1852, three days after the

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birth of James H. The father was married a second time to Mrs. James, of Mobile. Three chil- dren were born to them: Pope, Fannie and George. James H. Neville was reared in Sum- ter county, Ala., and was educated in the common schools. In 1871 he began the study of law and two years later he was admitted to the bar of Sumter county. In 1875 he removed to Kemper county, Miss., and located at Scooba, where he has since resided. In 1878 he was married at Scooba to Miss Susan Hart, a daughter of James E. and Susan (Harwood) Hart. They are the parents of three children: Florence, William and James. The parents are members of the Presbyterian church and take an active interest in all the movements of the community which tend to elevate the morals and improve the educational facilities. Mr. Neville is a democrat in his political views. He was elected district attorney in 1883 and was re-elected in 1887; was renominated for district attorney in July, 1891, for his third term without opposition. From 1878 to 1884 he was engaged in journalistic work, being during that time the editor of the Kemper Herald. He is a member of the Masonic order and of the Knights of Honor. In all his public career he has been a friend to the oppressed and a champion of the weak. He has displayed an unusual fitness for the work to which he has been called, and has reflected great credit upon his constituency.

Joseph and Edwin Newberger, who comprise the firm of Newberger Bros., are the sons of Leopold Newberger. The father began business in Coffeeville in 1842, and gained for himself the title of Old Reliable. No man in the state of Mississippi is more favorably and honorably known. He was born in Felheim, Bavaria, Germany, and emigrated to the United States at the age of sixteen years. He landed at Philadelphia in November, 1840, and journeyed thence by stage to Grenada, Miss., where his uncle, William Tandler, was a pioneer. The uncle gave him a stock of goods valned at about $20, with which he began to peddle in the country. He had but a limited education in his native language, and his know- ledge of English was decidedly meager, so that his first business experience was anything but flattering; however, he was blessed with a great deal of determination, which is strongly characteristic of the German race, and he persevered until his efforts were crowned with success. He had been in this country but a year when Judge Carberry induced him to come to Coffeeville and go into business. Although he had but a few hundred dollars to invest, he rented a building and put in as large a stock as his means would permit; as his patronage grew he was enabled to increase his stock, and in an incredibly short time he took the lead among the merchants of Coffeeville He also dealt largely in slaves, being local agent for Forrest & Walton, of Memphis. In 1872 he went to New Orleans and engaged in the cotton commission business with the firm of R. Nugent & Co., remaining there for a period of three years, during which time he managed successfully both houses. He returned to Coffeeville, and in 1868 he established a branch store at Oakland, Miss., which is under the management of a son, Silvan Newberger. Mr. Newberger now resides in Louisville, Ky., where he has made his home since 1886, at which time he turned his business over to his sons. He was united in marriage in Louisville, Ky., in 1856, to Miss Esther Lichtenstader, whose father was a gentleman of great learning, a professor of one of the universities of Frankfort, Ger- many, and a member of a distinguished Jewish family; four of the brothers are connected with famous institutions of learning in Europe. Mrs. Newberger was a woman highly educated and of rare attainments; she took an especial delight in the rearing and training of his children, and was an ornament to the high social position which she occupied; she died in 1885, at the age of forty eight years; she was born in Germany, and came to this country in 1856. To Mr. and Mrs. Newberger were born fourteen children, ten of whom are yet living: Joseph, Silvan, Charles, Dora, Hellen, Cornelia,

The Goodshaed Pub Co Churque

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Edwin, Samuel, Isadore B. and Alma I .; those deceased are: Max, William, Josephine and Marcella. When a resident here Mr. Newberger took no especial part in politics further than to look after the interests of his people and the protection of his property. He is a man self-made, self-educated; he has been a constant reader and is thoroughly informed on all the leading topics of the day. In 1884 he became a Mason, joining Coffeeville lodge No. 83. For many years he was an alderman of the place and also served as town treasurer. He had a most beautiful home, which was known far and wide as the seat of the most ele- gant hospitality. Distinguished visitors to the place were often entertained there, and it was known as the home of prominent politicians when making a canvass. The children have been well educated, and in this a legacy has been bequeathed them of which no man can deprive them. Joseph Newberger, the eldest of the family, is a member of the Coffeeville lodge No. 83, A. F. & A. M., and he also belongs to Oakland lodge, I. O. O. F. In politics he takes an active interest and was tendered the nomination of state senator but declined; in a recent canvass he made more than twenty speeches in behalf of W. V. Moore, candidate for representative, and carried the election. Charles Newberger is also a member of the Masonic order. Joseph Newberger was the prime mover in the building of the new court- house, and it was through his energy and untiring efforts that it was carried through. New- berger Bros. are the most extensive cotton dealers in northern Mississippi; they handle some twenty thousand bales yearly and do a business of $300,000 per annum. They buy cotton at all stations of the Illinois Central railroad of the Memphis branch, and have pur- chasing agents at Oxford, Coffeeville, Grenada, Vaiden, Eupora, Water Valley, Torrance, Winona, West Station, Tillatoba, Oakland and a number of smaller places. The property of the Newberger family is yet undivided, but it is all managed by the sons, each working for the interest of the whole. Charles Newberger is a traveling salesman for the firm of L. Moses & Co., Louisville, Ky.

John Newbery, Yazoo City, Miss. The gentleman whose name heads this brief bio- graphical sketch dates his birth from the city of New Orleans, La., February 23, 1845. There were four children in the family, of whom he is the second. His parents were John P. and Caroline (Bower) Newbery, natives of North Carolina and Pennsylvania respectively. The father became a resident of Mississippi in 1855 and-followed planting until his death, which occurred in 1867. His wife died the following year. The subject of this notice was reared in Mississippi and attended the private schools of the neighborhood until 1860, when he entered Dolbear's Commercial college at New Orleans. He was graduated from this insti- tution in 1861, when he returned to his home to engage in husbandry. He now owns four hundred acres of land, cultivating two hundred and forty-five acres of the same. He was married in 1870 to Miss Lucy Ogden, of Mississippi, a daughter of Theophilus and Mary Ogden, who were also Mississippians by birth. Mr. and Mrs. Newbery are the parents of four children: Ella N., Kate H., Lucy and Estelle. When the late Civil war came and there was a call for volunteers Mr. Newbery enlisted, in 1861, in company F, Eighteenth Mississippi volunteer infantry, and was a member of this regiment until the battle of Gettys- burg, when he was captured and carried to Fort Delaware; there he was held fifteen months, and after his release did not enter the service again. He participated in the engagements at Malvern hill, the seven days' fight around Richmond, the two battles of Fredericksburg, Gettysburg and Sharpsburg. Politically he affiliates with the democratic party. He is a member of the Masonic order. In all the walks of life he has exhibited that probity and honesty that have won for him hosts of friends and given him a place in the front ranks of the citizens of Yazoo county.

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As a man of business Mr. David B. Newman's name and fame are coextensive with Jefferson and the surrounding counties. Every step of his financial and commercial career has been illustrated with acts of liberality, and with each vital interest of his section and his people he has been closely identified. If industry, hard work and ceasless activity, united with a strong and determined perseverance, can accomplish anything in this world, Mr. New- man will undoubtedly become wealthy, for in him are to be found all the characteristics mentioned, and he deserves more than ordinary credit for his career thus far in life. He was born in Franklin county, Miss., October 15, 1860, his father, Maxwell Newman, being also born there. The grandfather, Solomon Newman, was a native of South Carolina, but when a young man came to Mississippi, and after some time being spent engaged in planting in Franklin county, of this state, he returned to the Palmetto state and married, return- ing hither with his bride. He became a wealthy planter, and on his large plantation he reared his family and resided until his death, having filled with success a number of local offices. Maxwell Newman was married in Franklin county to Miss Margaret Herring, a native of the county. Like his father before him he was an agriculturist, and on the plantation where he had labored faithfully to obtain a competency for himself and family he quietly breathed his last in 1864. His widow survives him at this writing, having borne her husband three sons and four daughters, all of whom grew to mature years. B. S. is a planter of Franklin county, and A. M. a merchant of Vicksburg, Miss. One sister is now deceased. The early boyhood of David B. Newman was spent in his native county, and in Hiwasse college he acquired a thorough practical education, completing an English course of study in 1879, soon after which he began teaching school, following this occupation in Jefferson county for one year, after which he clerked in a store at Union Church for a num- ber of years. His next venture in earning his own living was to open a mercantile establish- ment near that place for one year, after which, in 1885, he formed a partnership with his brother, A. M. Newman, built a store and began business at McNair, their establishment being the second one opened at that point. The present firm of D. B. Newman & Co. was formed in 1890, and as their store room is large and roomy, their stock of general mechan- dise is well selected and large. Their trade, which amounts to about $40,000 annually, has been secured by honesty, fair dealing, and by studying and supplying the wants of the pub- lic. Mr. Newman has shown the best of judgment and tact, and as a natural result he is doing a thriving and constantly increasing business, and although he is yet a young man his outlook for the future is bright and promising. His marriage, which was celebrated in Franklin county, December 17, 1790, was to Miss Addie McNeil, a daughter of George McNeil (deceased). Mrs Newman was born and reared in Lincoln county, and being intelli- gent and well educated, she is proving a true helpmate to her husband.

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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 78

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