Mississippi : comprising sketches of towns, events, institutions, and persons, arranged in cyclopedic form Vol. III, Part 40

Author: Rowland, Dunbar, 1864-1937, ed
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: Atlanta, Southern Historical Publishing Association
Number of Pages: 938

USA > Mississippi > Mississippi : comprising sketches of towns, events, institutions, and persons, arranged in cyclopedic form Vol. III > Part 40

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Holland, James B., head of the firm of J. B. Holland & Company, leading retail grocers of Meridian, exemplified the pro- gressive spirit which has urged forward the industrial and civic prosperity of what is designated as the "New South," and he has gained marked success through his own efforts in the directing of his energies and abilities along legiti- mate lines of endeavor. He was born at Marion, Lauderdale county, Miss., March 17, 1877, and is a son of William T. and Sallie (Dickinson) Holland, both of whom were born in Alabama and the latter of whom died in 1885. William T. Holland was a soldier in the Mexican war and also in the Civil war, in which latter he upheld the cause of the Confederacy, and for more than thirty years he was engaged in the general merchan- dise business at Marion, where he still resides, venerable in age and respected by all who know him. James B. Holland is indebted to the public schools of his native place for his earlier educational training, which was supplemented by a three months' course in the

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Queen City business college, at Meridian, Miss. In 1897-8 he was employed in a newspaper office in his home town, and he then came to Meridian and took a clerical position in the office of the Lyle wholesale grocery house, where he was employed until 1903, when he entered into partnership with Jos. W. Stainton and en- gaged in the fancy grocery business, under the title of J. B. Hol- land & Company. Until 1906 he was the sole manager of the busi- ness, whose volume of business attained an annual aggregate of about thirty-five thousand dollars, a fact which bespeaks the high executive and business powers and wise policy of Mr. Holland, whose financial resources at the time of his arrival in Meridian were summed up in fifteen dollars cash. In April, 1906, he pur- chased the interest of Robt. F. Ormond in the firm of Bailey, Stainton & Ormond, real estate and insurance, which association still continues. Mr. Holland is president of the Mississippi Retail Merchants' Association. In politics he is a stanch Democrat, and both he and his wife are valued members of the Fifth Street Metho- dist Episcopal church, South, in which he is a steward and trustee and superintendent of the Sunday school, being also president of the Epworth League Union of the city and secretary of the Epworth League of the Mississippi conference. He is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and the Knights of Pythias. On Feb. 5, 1901, Mr. Holland wedded Miss Mabel E. Roberts, daughter of E. D. and Bettie (Richardson) Roberts, of Meridian, and they have three children-William H., James Leland and Annie Leslie.

Holleman, George W., of Purvis, will have to his credit in the annals of Lamar county the distinction of having been one of its early officials, since he is the first to serve the county as sheriff, being in- cumbent of the office at the time of this writing (1906). He was born in Hancock county, Miss., Aug. 19, 1865, and is a son of John W. H. and Annie J. (Murphy) Holleman, the former of whom was born in Lawrence county, this State, while the latter was born in Alabama. After com- pleting the practical curriculum of the common schools and a course in the high school at Columbia, Marion county, the future sheriff of Lamar county took up the active responsibilities of life, and he finally engaged in the mercantile business in Columbia, while later he was identified with the same line of enterprise in Purvis-his operations in the line covering a period of about ten years. On Jan. 1, 1900, he was appointed deputy sheriff of Marion county, and on May 11, 1904, was elected sheriff of Lamar county, for a term of four years. His administration has amply justified the confidence reposed in him and his record as sheriff will stand to his credit and to the honor of the county which he has thus served.

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He is a loyal adherent of the Democratic party, is a Mason and a member of the Knights of Pythias, and both he and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church, South. On March 7, 1888, Mr. Holleman was married to Miss Stella Foxworth, daughter of Stephen and Harriet (Barnes) Foxworth, of Marion county, and they have four children-May, Eunice, Annie and Vernon.

Hollingsworth, John C., one of the prominent business men and popular citizens of Yazoo City, of whose board of aldermen he has been a member for the past twelve years, was born in Yazoo county, Feb. 17, 1865, and has here maintained his home to the present time. He is a son of Isaac G. and Amanda Melvina (Perkins) Hollings- worth, the former of whom was born in Macon, Ga., in May, 1825, his death occurring Feb. 24, 1887, and the latter of whom was born in Benton, Yazoo county, Miss., June 23, 1836, her death occurring Aug. 31, 1893. The father enlisted for service in the Confederate army at the time of the Civil war, becoming a member of a Mis- sissippi regiment, but he was later transferred and made superin- tendent of a foundry in Alabama, the same having been operated by the Confederate government. His brother, David M., served under Jefferson Davis in the Mexican war. Another brother, John M., was probate clerk of Yazoo county for many years, and R. J. Perkins, a maternal uncle of the subject of this sketch, was long in service as probate judge of the county. John C. Hollingsworth attended the public schools of Yazoo county until he had attained to the age of eleven years, when he became associated with his father's mercantile business, eventually being admitted to partnership and continuing with his father until the latter's death, in 1887. He then worked as brakeman on the Illinois Central railroad about eighteen months, was later engaged as clerk in a mercantile estab- lishment for four years and for nearly two years he was identified with railroad construction work on the Yazoo & Mississippi Valley railroad and the Gulf & Ship Island railroad. He has been engaged in the general mercantile business in Yazoo City since 1892, and has also been buying cotton for a number of years and has built up a most prosperous enterprise, his annual transactions being of wide scope. In politics Mr, Hollingsworth is arrayed as a loyal supporter of the principles of the Democratic party, and for twelve years was a valued member of the city board of aldermen, representing the Second ward. He is affiliated with the Masonic fraternity, includ- ing the Mystic Shrine, and also with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and the Knights of Pythias. On Dec. 14, 1887, was solemnized the mar- riage of Mr. Hollingsworth to Miss Molly Eleanor Bustin, daughter of Benjamin Hunter Bustin and Martha T. (Farmer) Bustin, of Sumter county, Ala. Mr. Bustin was a Confederate soldier in the Civil war and sacrificed his life in the cause, having been killed in the battle near New Hope church, Ga., in 1864. Mr. and Mrs. Hol- lingsworth have seven children, whose names, with respective dates of birth, are as follows: Douglas Gibson, Aug. 9, 1888; May Mel-

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vina, Jan. 24, 1890; John C., Jr., Feb. 26, 1892; Evelyn R., Jan. 18, 1894; Isaac Hunter, Aug. 8, 1896; Lucille, July 7, 1898; and Bessie, Oct. 1, 1902.

Holman, William Andy, who is serving his fourth term as mayor of Winona, the official center of Montgomery county, was born in Montgomery county, Miss., April 21, 1857, being a son of Dr. James W. and Martha W. (Bennett) Holman, representatives of old and distinguished families of the State, where the father took up his abode in 1840, having come hither from North Carolina. He com- pleted a course in a leading medical college in Louisville, Ky., and became one of the leading physicians and surgeons of Carroll county, Miss., while he continued to be actively engaged in the practice of his profession for fully thirty years, being held in af- fectionate regard by the many families to which he had so long and faithfully ministered. He died in 1881 and his cherished wife passed away in 1884, while of their eight children six are living. The maternal grandfather of Winona's mayor was Henley Bennett, who represented the Fourth district of Mississippi in the Thirty-fourth congress of the United States, his district having been at that time one of very large area. He was also circuit judge, presiding on the bench from 1846 to 1854, and having lived in Columbus, Lowndes county, and later in Grenada, Grenada county. Wm. A. Holman duly availed himself of the advantages of the public schools of Montgomery county, while he early identified himself with active business as salesman in a local mercantile establishment. For fully twenty-five years he has followed this vocation, and he has been a resident of Winona since 1868, known as one of the most able and popular salesmen and one of the most public-spirited citizens of the thriving little city of which he is now mayor. He was first elected to this office in 1890, and has since been retained at the head of the municipal government, through successive re-elections which amply attest the estimate placed upon his services by the people of the city. At the time of his first election the Winona Times spoke of the mayor as follows: "He has been a prominent citizen of Winona for many years. The State has no bigger-hearted or better man than Mr. Holman, nor one more loyal to his friends or more liberal. He will fill the responsible office of mayor of our progres- sive city with credit both to himself and our citizenship." For two years Mr. Holman has also held the office of notary public. His political proclivities are indicated in the stalwart allegiance he accords to the Democratic party. He is a member of the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows and his religious affiliations are accorded the Presbyterian church. In 1882 Mr. Holman was united in marriage to Miss Hill, daughter of Dr. Samuel Hill, who came to Mississippi from North Carolina in an early day. Mrs. Holman lived only a few months after her marriage, as her death occurred in November, 1882.

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Hood, John T., the able and popular county superintendent of education for Copiah county, has been very successful in educational work and in his present office has shown marked discrimination and administrative ability, having done much to elevate the standard of the schools in his jurisdiction. He was born in Copiah county, June 24, 1875, and here practically his entire life has been passed, his home now being in the thriving little city of Hazlehurst. He is a son of Thomas J. and Melissa (Templeton) Hood, both likewise native of Copiah county, the father being of Irish lineage and the mother of English. After due preliminary discipline in the public schools of his native county, Mr. Hood continued his studies in Mississippi college, at Clinton, and Burritt college, at Spencer, Tenn., and in 1900 he was graduated from the University of Nashville, Tenn. For a decade he was successfully engaged in teaching in the public schools of Mississippi, thus continuing until his election to his present office, in 1903. He is a Democrat in his political allegiance and is a member of the Baptist church. He is well known throughout his native county and has the unqualified confidence and esteem of its people.

Hopkins, Ferdinand, a contractor and builder of means with head- quarters in Meridian, was born in Brookville, Noxubee county, Miss., Feb. 24, 1857. He is a son of Dr. Wade and Martha E. (Stoker) Hopkins, the former born near Macon, Miss., about 1838 and the latter in Noxubee county. The father served in the Con- federate army throughout the great internal struggle of the early sixties. After the war he studied medicine and after receiving his degree as Doctor of Medicine, practiced in Brookville until his death in 1880. The subject of this sketch received his scholastic training in the schools of Brookville, after the completion of which he took up farming. Six years later he learned the trade of car- penter and hired out for three years, or until he began contracting for himself in 1894. In that year he came to Meridian and this city has since been his home. The old Meridian furniture plant was purchased in 1904 by Mr. Hopkins, who remodeled it and made of it a plant for the manufacture of building materials, such as doors, sash and blinds. Aside from this he still does an extensive con- tracting business. His political affiliations are with the Democratic party, but he takes no active part in politics other than to exercise his right in franchise. In a fraternal way he is identified with the Knights of Pythias, the Woodmen of the World, the Ancient Order of United Workmen, the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the fraternity of American Citizens. His religious connections are with the East End Methodist Episcopal church of Meridian, in which congregation he is a member of the board of stewards.

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On Nov. 15, 1892, Mr. Hopkins was united in marriage to Miss Eva L. King, a daughter of Edward D. and Bettie J. (Moore) King of Meridian. The children of this union are six in number-Eva Lillian, Bessie, Ferdinand, Jr., Leland, Helen and Juanita.

Hotel Cowan. This popular hostelry is one of the finest of the commercial hotels of the South, and the city of Greenville is signally favored in having this definite attraction. The fine modern building was erected in 1901-2, at a cost of $92,000, the builders being the Greenville Hotel Company, a local corporation organized for the purpose. The present owners, Messrs. James G. Smith and George W. Turner, secured the property and opened the hotel to the public on March 5, 1902. In architectural design the equipment and appointments of the Cowan are unexcelled by any hotel in the State, being thoroughly metropolitan in every respect, while its management is all that skill, experience and discrimination can offer. The building has 121 rooms, the fine dining hall has a seat- ing capacity for an equal number of persons, and the office and rotunda are the most attractive to be found in any hotel in the State. In April, 1904, the lessees, Smith & Turner, purchased the property, to which they completed a forty-room addition before the close of 1905, and their action best signifies how gratifying has been the popular support accorded to the hotel under their effective management. James G. Smith, senior member of the firm, is pro- prietor of the Natchez hotel, in the city of Natchez, and the management of the Cowan thus devolves entirely upon Mr. Turner. Mr. Turner came from Memphis, Tenn., to Mississippi in 1871 and engaged in the hotel business in Grenada, and he has been identified with that line of enterprise throughout his entire business career, and is one of the best known and most popular hotel men of Mis- sissippi.

Howard, John Brevard, is the popular mayor of Holly Springs and is one of the representative citizens and business men of his native county, from which also he went forth to do loyal service as a soldier in the Civil war. He was born on his father's homestead plantation, in Marshall county, Miss., Feb. 15, 1843, and is a son of Joseph H. and Mary T. (Sigman) Howard, the former of whom was born in South Carolina and the latter in North Carolina. The Howard family is of Eng- lish lineage and was early founded in South Carolina, whence representatives went forth to battle for the cause of in- dependence in the War of the Revolution. The father of the sub- ject of this sketch went from his native State to Alabama and later came to Mississippi, where he passed the remainder of his life. John B. Howard was reared to maturity in Marshall county, in whose schools he secured his early educational training. At the

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inception of the War between the States he promptly manifested his loyalty to the Confederacy, enlisting in 1861 as a member of Company H, Forty-fourth Mississippi regiment of Blythe's bat- talion. He took part in the many important engagements in which this command was involved until the battle of Nashville, in which he was wounded Dec. 16, 1864, and was taken prisoner and sent to Camp Chase, Ohio, where he was held in captivity until the close of the war. He was promoted to the rank of sergeant and later third lieutenant and was a gallant and faithful soldier. After the war, Mr. Howard returned to Marshall county, with whose civic and industrial interests he has ever since been closely identified, having been for many years past engaged in the planting business in Holly Springs and being one of the honored and public-spirited citizens of this attractive little city. He is a stanch adherent of the Democratic party and has served in various offices of public trust. He was elected sheriff of the county in 1879 and re-elected in 1881 and 1883. In 1886 he was elected chancery clerk, remaining in- cumbent of this office one term and having served one term as county assessor prior to 1879. He is affiliated with the United Con- federate Veterans. In 1904 he was called to the office of mayor of Holly Springs and he is still in tenure of the same, having given a most admirable and popular administration, and was re-elected in 1905 for another term. Mr. Howard married Miss Rosanna Falkner, daughter of John Falkner, of Tennessee, and they have four chil- dren : Mary Lou, now wife of A. S. Parker of New Orleans; Guy B., now of Baton Rouge, La .; Henry V., and Rosa Clark. All are residents of Holly Springs except Guy B.

Houston, David Winston, of Aberdeen, is well upholding the prestige of the honored name which he bears, both as a lawyer and judge, as well as a loyal citizen of his native State. He was born in Aberdeen, Oct. 1, 1866, and is a son of Judge Lock E. Houston, a memoir to whom is given in another paragraph, so that a farther resume is not demanded in the present connection. The subject of this sketch was graduated in the Mississippi Agricultural and Mechanical college, at Starkville, as a member of the class of 1884, and received the degree of Bachelor of Science. He passed the ensuing two years in the law office of the firm of which his father was senior member, and was then matriculated in the law department of the University of Virginia, in which he was grad- uated in 1888, receiving the degree of Bachelor of Laws. He was duly admitted to the bar of his native State and forthwith estab- lished himself in practice in his native city, where he entered into professional partnership with R. O. Reynolds and W. T. Houston, with whom he was associated until 1890, when W. T. Houston re- moved to the city of Meridian. Thereafter, the firm name of Houston & Reynolds obtained until the death of the junior partner, R. O. Reynolds, Jr., in 1899, since which time Judge Houston has conducted an individual practice. In March, 1903, he was sworn in as a member of the supreme court of the United States, and he is thus entitled to practice in all of the courts, State and Federal. On

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June 12, 1905, Governor Vardaman appointed him a temporary justice of the supreme court of the State, and he served on the bench about six weeks during the illness of the regular incumbent ; he was the youngest member ever appointed to the supreme bench of the State. He also served as special circuit and chancery judge for a short time by appointment of the same governor. In politics Judge Houston is a stalwart supporter of the principles and policies of the Democratic party, and in 1896 he was a presidential elector for his native State. He was a delegate to the Democratic national convention of 1900. He is vice-president of the Mississippi bar asso- ciation, in which office he has served several terms; is affiliated with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks; and both he and his wife are communicants of the Protestant Episcopal church. On April 14, 1898, Judge Houston was united in marriage to Miss India Rogers Sykes, daughter of Judge Eugene O. Sykes and India (Rogers) Sykes, of Aberdeen. They have one child-India Sykes Houston.

Houston, Lock E., who died at his home in Aberdeen, Jan. 20, 1897, was one of the able legists and jurists of Mississippi, and was a citizen of prominence and influence, commanding the high esteem of the general public and of his professional confrères. Judge Houston was born in Blount county, Tenn., in the year 1814, and was a son of Robert and Martha (Blackburn) Houston, both of whom were born in Virginia. The latter's father, Capt. William Blackburn, was killed in the battle of King's Mountain, in the War of the Revolution, and her uncle, Rev. Gideon Blackburn, was known as the "fighting preacher." Judge Houston was reared and educated in Tennessee, having been graduated in the academic de- partment of the State university, at Knoxville, from which he re- ceived the degree of Bachelor of Arts. After his graduation, he was a successful teacher in Tennessee and Alabama, in the meanwhile taking up the study of law. He was admitted to the bar at Eutaw, Ala., and in 1843 he came to Mississippi and located in Aberdeen, where he passed the remainder of his life and where he attained to marked distinction in his profession. During the "reconstruction" period, after the Civil war, he rendered great service to the State in keeping the negroes under proper subjection and in rehabilitating the prostrate civic and industrial life of this commonwealth. During this period, and for many years thereafter, he was chairman of the Democratic committee of his county, having been one of the most loyal supporters of the cause of his party. Shortly after taking up his residence in Aberdeen he was elected to the legislature, and he was a member of the same during the war, being speaker of the house the greater portion of this critical era in the history of the State. He was also a member of the constitutional convention of 1865. Prior to the war he served as judge of the circuit court and during the administration of Governor Lowry he was again ap- pointed to this office, which he resigned some time prior to his death. The governor conferred this appointment upon him in March, 1887. He dignified the bench by his able services, even as

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did he his profession, and his life counted for good in all its rela- tions. He was affiliated with the Masonic fraternity and the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows, in the Aberdeen lodge, of which latter he was the first incumbent of the office of "Noble Grand." His religious views were in harmony with the tenets of the Pres- . byterian church, though he was not formally identified with the same. For more than forty-two years the firm name of Houston & Reynolds has stood continuously representative of the prominent legal associations of Monroe county, the original principals having been the subject of this memoir and Col. R. O. Reynolds, and the present members of the firm being the respective sons, Judge David W. Houston and R. O. Reynolds, Jr. In 1857 Judge Houston was united in marriage to Miss Sue Maury Parish, daughter of David Winston Parish, of Nashville, Tenn., and cousin of Commodore Maury, and she preceded him to the life eternal, her death having occurred in October, 1885. Of the seven children of this union the following brief record is entered: Mary is the wife of Benjamin H. Gillespie, of Aberdeen ; Robert P. is a successful business man of Aberdeen ; Elizabeth is the wife of John F. Johnston, of Decatur, Tex. ; Doctor Lock E. died in Aberdeen in 1902 at the age of thirty- nine years ; David W. is individually mentioned in this compilation ; Joseph S. is commercial agent for the Cotton Belt railroad and resides in Memphis, Tenn .; and Sue Maury, who resides in the city of Aberdeen.

Houston, Robert E., has for many years been engaged in the practice of law at Aberdeen, Monroe county, and is known as one of the representative mem- bers of the bar in this section of the State. He rendered gallant service in the Con- federate ranks during the Civil war and rose to the rank of captain. He has held various public offices and is at the present time (1906) a member of the State senate. Captain Houston was born in Madison- ville, Monroe county, Tenn., May 27, 1839, and is a son of Joseph E. and Eliza (Haire) Houston, the former of whom was born in Blount county, Tenn., Jan. 1, 1812, and the latter of whom was born at historic old King's Moun- tain, S. C., April 16, 1814. Both were residents of Madisonville, Tenn., at the time of death, the mother having passed away in 1888: and the death of the father having occurred Aug. 7, 1903, at which. time he was ninety-one years of age. One of his uncles was the. only man killed in Sevier's command in the battle of King's Moun- tain, in the War of the Revolution. Both the paternal and maternal grandfathers of the subject of this sketch were soldiers in the War- of the Revolution, and near the home of the paternal grandfather,. Gen. Sam Houston, a close relative, was reared. Joseph E. Houston, was a prominent and influential citizen of Tennessee, where he held

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Mississippi : comprising sketches of towns, events, institutions, and persons, arranged in cyclopedic form Vol. III, Part 40

Author: Rowland, Dunbar, 1864-1937, ed Publication date: 1907 Publisher: Atlanta, Southern Historical Publishing Association Number of Pages: 938

Author: Rowland, Dunbar, 1864-1937, ed
Publication date: 1907
Publisher: Atlanta, Southern Historical Publishing Association
Number of Pages: 938