USA > Mississippi > Mississippi : comprising sketches of towns, events, institutions, and persons, arranged in cyclopedic form Vol. III > Part 24
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91 | Part 92 | Part 93 | Part 94 | Part 95 | Part 96 | Part 97 | Part 98 | Part 99 | Part 100 | Part 101 | Part 102 | Part 103 | Part 104 | Part 105 | Part 106 | Part 107
212
MISSISSIPPI
county, and was a youth of eighteen years at the time when the dark cloud of the Civil war cast its gruesome pall over the national horizon. Thoroughly loyal to the cause of the South, he enlisted as a member of Company A, Eighteenth Mississippi regiment, with which he first saw service as a private, while he rose to the rank of lieutenant-colonel on the staff of General Longstreet before the close of the war. He was with Longstreet in his campaigns in northern Virginia and participated in the memorable bat- tles of Chickamauga, Ga., and Bristol, Tenn., while his record is one which stands flawless in its fidelity to duty and in its intrepid valor during the long and weary struggle which brought final defeat to the Confederacy and left to the world the history of the "lost cause." After the war Colonel Dobson returned to Rankin county, where he was engaged in teaching country schools for a few terms. After acquiring a small capital he established a general store at Cato, beginning operations on a modest scale and gradually build- ing up a good business. He there continued to reside until 1872, when he removed to Brandon, the county seat, where he has since maintained his home. In 1885 he was elected sheriff of Rankin county, and that he gave satisfactory services in the connection is shown by the fact that he was continued in the office, by successive re-elections, for a period of ten years. About eight years later he was elected to his present office of chancery clerk, and no more able and popular official has ever been represented on the corps of Rankin county. The colonel's personal attitude is shown in his statement that he is the youngest man of his age in this section of the State. In 1860 Colonel Dobson was united in marriage to Miss Felicita N. Laird, of Biloxi, Miss., and she died in November, 1865, being survived by one child, Bettie E., who is now the wife of L. O. Gayden, of Brandon, Miss. In 1868 Colonel Dobson wedded Miss Mary Alice Spann, and they have two sons-Dr. T. L., who is engaged in the practice of medicine at Leland, Washing- ton county ; and Dr. W. B., who is likewise a member of the medi- cal profession and who is associated with his brother in practice.
Donald, George L., mayor of the city of Quitman, Clarke county and major of the Thirteenth Mississippi infantry in the Civil war, is one of the best known and most highly honored citizens of Clarke county and has served his State in various offices of public trust. Major Donald was born in Sumter county, Ala., Sept. 29, 1838, and is a son of Simon and Ann (Dotson) Donald, the former of whom was born in South Carolina and the latter in Georgia. The father located in Sumter county, Ala., in an early day and became one of the extensive planters of that section, owning many slaves. He died there in 1841, in the prime of life. He was a Democrat in poli-
213
BIOGRAPHICAL
tics and was a member of the Methodist Episcopal church. He was a son of John Donald, whose parents were native of Scotland, whence they came to America about the year 1700, settling in Vir- ginia and later removing to South Carolina. Simon and Ann (Dot- son) Donald became the parents of six children, Major Donald being the only one living. The mother died in Clarke county, Miss., in 1862, having been a devoted member of the Baptist church. She came from Alabama to Mississippi shortly after the death of her husband, first settling in Lauderdale county and thence coming to Clarke county, where the subject of this sketch was reared to maturity. Here Major Donald attended school in Quitman until 1856, when he entered the University of Mississippi, at Oxford, from which he was graduated in 1859, with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. He then took up the study of law, but soon there came the call of duty, when the Confederate States seceded and precipitated the Civil war. In 1861 he enlisted in Company I, Thirteenth Mis- sissippi infantry, which became Company G after the reorganization of the regiment. During the first year of service Major Donald was first lieutenant of Company I. In 1862, upon the reorganization of the command he was elected captain of Company G. After the battle of Gettysburg he was commissioned major of his regiment, and as the colonel was killed and the lieutenant-colonel captured in the battle of Knoxville, Tenn., Major Donald assumed command of his regiment and remained at its head until the close of the war. He took part in the historic engagements at Manassas, Leesburg, Chancellorsville, Appomattox, Cold Harbor, the seven days' fight at Richmond, Fredericksburg, Harper's Ferry, Antietam, Cedar Run, Gettysburg, Knoxville and Chickamauga, doing much gallant and oftentimes hazardous service but never having been captured or wounded, though in one engagement his sword was severed as. he held it in his hand. The Thirteenth Mississippi had joined Gen- eral Lee at Richmond and Major Donald, who had been at home on furlough, was on his way to rejoin his command when he learned of the surrender of General Lee. He then turned back and made his way homeward, so that he was spared the humiliation of sur- rendering. The major turned his attention to planting after his return to Clarke county, and this enterprise occupied his time until 1870, when there came a partial diversion, since he was then elected to represent his county in the State legislature, serving one term. In 1876-8 he was superintendent of the State penitentiary, having been appointed by Governor Humphreys and having been thereafter elected to the office, remaining incumbent three years. In 1890 he represented Clarke county in the State constitutional convention. In 1870 he was given the office of land agent for the Mobile & Ohio railroad, serving as such until 1886, when, having been elected sheriff of Clarke county, in the autumn of 1885, he resigned the position. He remained in tenure of the shrievalty for ten succes- sive years, having been re-elected by most gratifying majorities on each occasion, while no further testimony of popular approval could be asked than that implied in his long retention of the office.
214
MISSISSIPPI
Since his retirement from the office of sheriff Major Donald has given his attention to the supervision of his farming interests, while he is new serving his second term as mayor of Quitman. He is the owner of a landed estate of about 1,000 acres, in Clarke county, and his fine homestead plantation, with spacious and attractive residence, is located two miles west of Shubuta, though he has re- sided in Quitman since the time of his election to the office of sheriff. The major is an uncompromising Democrat, and both he and his wife hold membership in the Baptist church, in which he is a deacon, while he is identified with the Knights of Honor. No citizen of the county is held in higher regard, and his life has been made to count for good in all its relations. In 1867 Major Donald married Miss Mary Eliza Hicks, daughter of Thomas F. and Eliza (Everett) Hicks, of Clarke county, and of this union have been born nine children: George L. is engaged in the mercantile busi- ness at Magee, Simpson county, and was a major in a Mississippi regiment during the Spanish-American war; Benjamin H. is circuit clerk of Clarke county ; Simon Sidney is a merchant in New Hebron,
. Lawrence county; Walter B. is in the employ of the Mississippi Milling Company, at Quitman ; Robert, Anna, Margaret, Mary and Laura remain at the parental home.
Dobyns, John Robert, the honored and able superintendent of the Mississippi institution for the education of the deaf and dumb, in the city of Jackson, was born at Columbus, Johnson county, Mo., March 31, 1850, and is a son of Dr. Benja- min Franklin and Margaret Ruth (Mor- row) Dobyns. Dr. Dobyns was born at Mays Lick, Mason county, Ky., and for many years was one of the leading phy- sicians and surgeons of Johnson county, Mo., where both he and his wife con- tinued to reside until their death. He was a son of Berry and Mary (Porter) Dobyns. The family is of French Hu- guenot ancestry and the original spelling of the name was D'Aubigne. From France the family removed to England, where the orthography of the name was changed to its present form. Berry Dobyns was a son of Edward and Frances Dobyns, both native of Mason county, Ky., where the former was born Dec. 7, 1743, and the latter May 6, 1751. Margaret Ruth (Morrow) Dobyns was a daughter of Rev. Robert Davis Morrow, D. D., and Elizabeth (Ray). Morrow. Dr. Morrow was of Irish lineage and was born in Lancaster district, S. C., Dec. 26, 1796. The family removed to Montgomery county, Tenn., in 1804. He became a distinguished and useful member of the clergy of the Cumberland Presbyterian church and was its first missionary in Missouri. The church erected an imposing monument to his memory at Columbus, Mo., where his death occurred. John R. Dobyns, the immediate subject
215
BIOGRAPHICAL
of this sketch, secured his early education in public and private schools in his native county, after which he entered Westminster college, at Fulton, Mo., where he was graduated as a member of the . class of 1874 and where he received the degree of Bachelor of Arts. In 1876 the same institution conferred upon him the degree of Master of Arts, and in 1904 the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws. Shortly after his graduation Mr. Dobyns became an instruc- tor in the Missouri institution for the education of the deaf, at Fulton, and from 1877 to 1879 he was principal of the Texas insti- tution for the education of the deaf, at Austin. On March 1, 1881, he assumed the office of superintendent of the Mississippi institu- tion for the education of the deaf and dumb, and he has most ably discharged the duties devolving upon him and has brought the institution up to a very high standard in all departments. He is secretary of the American association of the teachers of the deaf, and since 1898 he has been secretary of the bureau of information in this association. He is a stanch adherent of the Democratic party, is an elder in the Presbyterian church, and is affiliated with the Beta Theta Pi college fraternity. At Mineral Point, Mo., June 26, 1878, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Dobyns to Miss Eliza Roxana Webster, daughter of Dr. Ashbel Wheeler Webster and Julia (Strong) Webster, of St. Louis, Mo. Dr. Webster was a descendant of John Webster, fifth governor of the colony of Con- necticut. His wife was a daughter of Judge John B. Strong, of St. Augustine, Fla., who was United States district judge for Florida, Georgia and Alabama. Mr. and Mrs. Dobyns are the parents of three children, namely: Ashbel Webster, who is a resident of Van- couver, Wash., and Richmond Smoot and Robert Morrow, who reside in McRaven, Hinds county, Miss.
Donald, Jefferson Davis, M. D., en- gaged in the practice of his profession in Hattiesburg, and at present the mayor of the city of Hattiesburg, was born in the opening year of the Civil war and was named in honor of the distinguished president of the Confederacy. The doctor was. born in Claiborne, Jasper county, Miss., Oct. 4, 1861, and is a son of Robt. L. and Cynthia L. (Powell) Donald, the former of whom was born in South Caro- lina and the latter in Mississippi. Robt. L. Donald, a farmer by vocation, laid aside the labors and responsibilities of individual sort when the Civil war was inaugurated and the call came for volunteers to aid in upholding on the field of battle the cause of the Confederate States. He en- listed in Nixon's regiment of cavalry, a command organized and equipped in Mississippi, and during his term of service was prin- cipally engaged in skirmishing through this State. After the war he devoted his attention to farming until the close of his life, both
216
MISSISSIPPI
he and his wife passing the closing years of their lives in Jasper county, Miss. After completing the curriculum of the public schools Dr. Donald formulated plans for his future career and determined to fit himself for the exacting profession in which he has attained to so marked success and prestige. He was duly matriculated in the medical department of the University of Alabama, in the city of Mobile, where he completed the prescribed courses in medicine and surgery and was graduated as a member of the class of 1884, receiving his degree of Doctor of Medicine from this finely equipped institution to which he takes pride in reverting as his alma mater. He initiated the active work of his profession in Jones county, Miss., later located in Heidelberg, Jasper county, and thence, in 1897, con- fident of finding a broader field of usefulness, he removed to Hat- tiesburg, where he has built up a practice of a lucrative order and of a scope which bears witness to his skill and fidelity in the work of his noble calling. In 1889 the doctor took a post-graduate course in the celebrated New York Polyclinic, in the national metropolis. He is a member of the American medical association, the Missis- sippi State medical association and the Perry county medical society, while he is also a valued member of the State board of health. His political faith is that represented in the basic tenets of the Democratic party which honored him by electing him mayor of the city of Hattiesburg in 1906, which position he now fills with exceptional credit to himself and his constituents. He is identified in a fraternal way with the Masonic order and the Woodmen of the World. On May 16, 1896, Dr. Donald was united in marriage to Miss Maud M. Orr, daughter of Dr. O. J. and Mary (Heidelberg) Orr, of Paulding, Miss., and they have a winsome little daughter, Maud Katherine.
Downing, William W., the able and popular chancery clerk of Hinds county, was born in the thriving little city of Raymond, his present home, April 24, 1851, being a son of Gerard and Hannah R. (Belcher) Downing, the former of whom was born in Mississippi and the latter in the Dominion of Canada. The father, who was of stanch Irish lineage, was one of the representative citizens of Hinds county, where he was called upon to serve in various official capacities, and he was a valiant soldier of the Confed- eracy in the war between the States. He died, in Raymond, in 1871, his wife surviving him by a number of years. The subject of this review was afforded the advantages of the schools of his native town, where he was favored in having able instructors, and he initiated his business career by becoming a clerk in a local mercantile estab- lishment, following this vocation for several years. He was then appointed deputy chancery clerk of Hinds county, retaining this
217
BIOGRAPHICAL
incumbency several years and then being made station agent for the Illinois Central railroad at Raymond. He filled that position, with great acceptability, until elected to his present office, that of clerk of the court of chancery, the duties of which position he is discharging with the maximum discrimination and ability, his previous experience having eminently fitted him for the office. He enjoys unqualified popularity in his native county, where his ac- quaintanceship is wide and representative. He is a stanch adherent of the Democratic party, and is affiliated with the Masonic fra- ternity, the Knights of Pythias, the Knights of Honor and the Woodmen of the World. Both he and his wife are communicants of the Protestant Episcopal church and are prominent in the social life of the community. Mr. Downing has been thrice married, his first union having been with Miss Alice Tymes, whom he wedded Feb. 10, 1876. Two children were born of this union and one is living, Merle, who was born Jan. 14, 1880, and who remains at the paternal home. Mrs. Downing was summoned into eternal rest in March, 1882, having been a devoted member of the Methodist Epis- copal church, South. On Dec. 21, 1887, Mr. Downing was united in marriage to Mrs. Lila Coor, daughter of Everard G. Baker, of Hazlehurst, Miss., and she passed away Nov. 24, 1896, being sur- vived by her only child, William Walter, Jr., who remains at home. On Sept. 14, 1898, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Downing to Miss Emma Askew, daughter of Dr. James B. Askew, of Vicks- burg, Miss. One child has been born of this marriage-James B. Askew Downing.
Daniel, Homer M., president of the Gulf Coast Realty Company, with head- quarters at Gulfport, Harrison county, is a young man who has intimately identi- fied himself with the progressive move- ment which is bringing about so mag- nificent a development in this section of the State, and the company with which he is identified is one of the most im- portant operating in real estate here. Mr. Daniel is a native of Mossy Creek, Jeffer- son county, Tenn., where he was born Oct. 16, 1880, being a son of John and Eliza (Powell) Daniel, both of whom were born in Wales, whence they came to America in 1867, locating in Ohio, whence they later removed to Tennessee, while they also resided in Kentucky for a time. In the public schools of Tennessee, Homer M. Daniel secured his pre- liminary educational training, which he supplemented by a course of study in the high school at Newport, Ky. After leaving school he was employed for a year in a clerical capacity in the law office of C. H. Avery, of Cincinnati, Ohio, and in 1901 he came to the South for the benefit of his health, making New Orleans his destina- tion, while in 1903 he came to Gulfport and took up his permanent
218
MISSISSIPPI
residence, here turning his attention to the real estate business, in which he has met with gratifying success. In 1905 he organized the Gulf Coast Realty Company, of which he is president. The company has acquired a large amount of valuable land in Gulfport and vicinity, has surveyed and platted a number of acres and has placed the property on the market, the same offering the most at- tractive inducements to investors as well as to those who wish to make this a permanent place of residence or a winter home. Mr. Daniel is recognized as a reliable and enterprising young business man and has gained a high place in the esteem of the people of Gulfport as well as in that of those with whom he has had business dealings. He is a member of the Presbyterian church. In 1906 Mr. Daniel married Miss Alma Majure Saxon, daughter of Dr. I. G. Saxon, who is a native of Oktibbeha county, Miss., and who has been prominently identified in the development of his native State.
Duncan, L. Alexander, one of the honored pioneer citizens of Meridian, has the distinction of being a native of the national metropolis, having been born in New York city, Feb. 16, 1829. He is a son of William and Louisa A. (Gardner) Duncan, the former of whom was born in the city of Glasgow, Scotland, and the latter in the city of New York, where their marriage was solemnized. The parents of William Duncan came to America when he was a boy, and he was reared and educated in New York city, where he continued to reside until 1830, when he removed to Alabama, while in 1838 he took up his abode in Grenada, Miss. He was a man of high scholarship and after coming South taught in female colleges in Courtland and Athens, Ala., as well as in Grenada, Miss. Later he engaged in the general merchandise business, while finally he located in the city of New Orleans, where he conducted a book store for a number of years, his death occurring in 1863, while he was on a business trip to New York. His wife passed to her eternal rest in 1847, in Grenada, Miss., and he was again married in 1848 to Mrs. Kate Easly of Middleton, Miss., who died in 1892 at Meridian, leaving no children: Of the children of the first marriage only one, the subject of this review, is living. L. Alexander Duncan completed his educational discipline in New York city, though he had passed his childhood in the South, having been an infant at the time of his parents' removal to Alabama. His first business ex- perience was gained in the book store of his father, in New Orleans, where they also conducted a newspaper for a time, the same having ceased publication in 1850. At the outbreak of the Civil war he was mustered into the Confederate service, as a member of a regiment of home guards in New Orleans, and he was discharged in the early
219
BIOGRAPHICAL
part of 1862, after which he was in the civil postoffice department of the Confederacy, having come to Meridian, Miss., in 1863. Here he engaged in the cotton and general merchandise business, in which he continued until 1868, while for the ensuing decade he followed various vocations. In 1878 he located in the city of Memphis, Tenn., where he engaged in the printing business, soon removing to the city of Jackson, where he became secretary of the ministerial educational society of the Baptist church. In 1879 he returned to Meridian, where he has ever since maintained his home and where his circle of friends is circumscribed only by that of his acquaintances. He has held various business and civic positions and for a number of years past has been prominently identified with building and loan enterprises. At the time of this writing he is closing up the business of the Mechanics' building and loan asso- ciation and the Savings building and loan association. He is a stanch advocate of the generic principles of the Democratic party, and for nearly sixty years has been a member of the Baptist church, being now a prominent and revered member of the Highland Bap- tist church of Meridian, in which he is senior deacon and senior superintendent of the Sunday school. For a number of years past he has been a most zealous worker in the Sunday school, in which connection his name is well known in church circles throughout the State. On Jan. 21, 1856, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Duncan to Miss Annie B. Payne, daughter of Edward C. Payne, of New Orleans, La., and she was a devoted wife and helpmeet and a woman of noble character, her death occurring in 1893. The publishers are indebted to Mr. Duncan for the historical sketch of the city of Meridian incorporated in these volumes.
Davis, Jasper N., is specially deserving of representation in this publication for his life has been one of signal usefulness and honor, has been successful and has been one of close and prominent identi- fication with the civic and industrial up- building of the State of Mississippi. He was the founder of the thriving village of Sherman, Pontotoc county, where he now resides, venerable in years but vig- orous in both mind and body, and to him is accorded the unqualified regard of all who know him. No page of his life record needs a detersive, for there has been on the same no blot. Colonel Davis was born in Dallas county, Ala., in the year 1824, and is a son of James W. and Jane (Robertson) Davis, the former of whom was born in Virginia and the latter in South Carolina. James W. Davis was a soldier in the War of 1812, under General Floyd, and he came to Mississippi in 1836. He was a son of Moses Davis, who immigrated from England to America and settled in Virginia, re- moving thence to Georgia and later taking up his residence in
220
MISSISSIPPI
Dallas county, Ala., where he died in 1836. Jane (Robertson) Davis was a daughter of David Robertson, of South Carolina, who was there a government shipbuilder during the War of 1812. Jasper N. Davis was reared and educated in Mississippi, having been twelve years of age at the time of the family removal to this State. In 1847, at the age of twenty-three years, he purchased land in Pontotoc county and here was actively engaged in farming until the outbreak of the war between the States, when he laid aside his private interests to go forth in defense of the Confederacy. In 1861 he enlisted in Company C, First Mississippi infantry, in which he was soon promoted second lieutenant. He was taken prisoner at the battle of Fort Donelson and was thereafter held in captivity at Johnson's Island, in Lake Erie, for some time. After his exchange had been effected he rejoined his regiment and he became brigade commissariat at Port Hudson, with rank of major. After the sur- render of Port Hudson he joined the reserve corps, having been paroled, and he was promoted colonel of reserves just before the close of the war. Four of his brothers were likewise loyal soldiers . of the Confederacy-Dr. Moses, who served as surgeon; James, who was killed in the battle of Corinth; Lindsey, who met his death at Gettysburg; and William, who was wounded at Franklin, Tenn., and who is now engaged in the mercantile business at Blue Springs, Miss. Mr. Davis is a valued and appreciative member of the United Confederate Veterans. After the close of the war he engaged in the merchandise business at Macedonia, Noxubee county where he also had large farming interests. He there built and operated a steam flour and saw mill, being a man of indefatigable energy and of most progressive spirit. He also became associated with his brother, Dr. Moses Davis, in the conducting of a general store at Eureka. He finally disposed of these varied holdings and removed to Pontotoc county, locating at Poplar Springs, where he established a general store, also retaining his interest in the store at Eureka. He has always been a loyal supporter of the cause of popular education and his benefactions to the same have been large and judiciously disposed. At Poplar Springs he built and equipped at his own expense an academy, of which his son, Prof. D. H. Davis, assumed charge, the institution proving successful and doing an admirable work in the educating of poor but worthy youth. In 1890 Mr. Davis transferred his interests from Poplar Springs to Sherman, four miles distant, on the line of the Frisco railway. Here he ob- tained from the railway company the establishing of a depot and he platted the town and became its founder, giving to it the name of Sherman. Here he erected a hotel, a brick business block, boarding houses and other buildings, his interest in the new town being of the most insistent order and calling forth his aid financially and executively, so that the place soon advanced to the position of a thriving and attractive village. He contributed the greater part of capital utilized in the building of the fine academy building in the town, and the same was successfully conducted by his son D. H. and his son-in-law, D. C. Langston, for a number of years, being
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.