USA > Mississippi > Mississippi : comprising sketches of towns, events, institutions, and persons, arranged in cyclopedic form Vol. III > Part 77
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legislature to enable the city to erect the building, and for some time he was one of the school trustees. Politically, in a broader sense, he never swerved in his allegiance to Democratic principles, and in 1888 he was strongly urged to accept the nomination of that party for the office of governor of Mississippi, but he declined the honor in a card which was widely commented upon by the press of the State, one newspaper stating that "Dr. P. W. Peeples declined to allow the further use of his name in connection with the governor's office. His communication, vigorous, straightforward and strong, is characteristic. His action, however, will cause his friends keen regret, for there were many of them who have firmly believed him to be the man of the hour. Well poised, firm and sincere, indecision, vacillation or hypocrisy have no place in his nature. He is a man who would have given distinction and individuality to a wise and brilliant administration of a high office." He was a close student of public matters, always ready to lend his aid to any movement for the up- building of his city and State, but he was never an aspirant for po- litical honors. Such as came to him came unsolicited, and when he accepted a trust it was more with the sense of the responsibilities involved than with the hope of private emolument. He was ap- pointed by the governor of Mississippi a delegate to the Nicaraugua convention, but was unable to attend on account of illness. In financial circles he was a conspicuous figure, serving for some time as president of the Jackson bank, and his advice was sought by finan- ciers in other cities. At the meeting of the Association of American Bankers, held in New Orleans, La., a few years before his death, he delivered an address which was printed and widely circulated, and which was favorably commented upon for its wise and conserva- tive tone. Dr. Peeples was a sufferer from chronic rheumatism for several years prior to his death, which occurred at Jackson, July 8, 1896. He left a wife and five children, who, with a host of friends and acquaintances, sincerely mourned his loss. As a husband and father he was kind and indulgent; as a business man his every act was guided by the strictest principles of honesty and fair dealing; and in public affairs he was actuated by the highest motives, his great objective being the "greatest good to the greatest number." Altogether his life was so well rounded that it may well be said of it that it was perfect in every relation. Endowed with a strong intel- lect, a great will power, a warm, generous heart, and a spirit that never faltered in defense of truth, justice and right, he used these attributes unselfishly for the moral and material advancement of the community in which he lived. His name and influence will live in Mississippi, long after he has joined the silent majority, and to use an expression somewhat hackneyed but none the less full of meaning, "the world will be the better for his having lived in it."
Percy, Leroy, is one of the able and successful members of the bar of Washington county and is engaged in the practice of his pro- fession at Greenville. He is a member of one of the prominent and honored families of the State, which has been his home from the time of his nativity. Mr. Percy was born in Washington county,
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Miss., Nov. 9, 1861, being the second in order of birth of the five children born to Col. William A. and Nannie E. (Armstrong) Percy, the former of whom was born in Alabama and the latter in Tennessee. Of the other children it may here be recorded that Fannie died in 1882; William A. is a representative lawyer of Memphis, Tenn .; Walker is successfully established in the practice of law at Birming- ham, Ala .; and Lady is the wife of Charles McKinney, of Knoxville, Tenn. Col. William Alexander Percy secured his early educational training in Alabama and Mississippi. When a youth he came with an elder brother to Washington county, Miss., where he assisted in reclaiming a tract of land, of a portion of which he became the owner. His higher education was secured in Princeton college, N. J., and the University of Virginia, in the law department of which latter he was graduated about 1855. Thereafter he made his home in Washington county, Miss., until his death, and he attained high prestige at the bar of the State and as a citizen of sterling attributes of character. He entered the Confederate service at the inception of the war between the States and valiantly battled for the cause until the close of the great struggle. During the siege of Vicksburg he was a member of the staff of General Bowen, and thereafter he was in the Army of Virginia. He was captain of the first company which went forth from Washington county and held the rank of colonel of his regiment at the time of the final surrender. From 1876 to 1880 he represented Washington county in the State legis- lature, and he was finally chosen speaker of the house, an office which he filled with distinctive ability and discrimination. He never per- mitted his name to be considered in connection with political office after his retirement from the legislature. He was summoned to the life eternal Jan. 19, 1888, honored as one of the leal and loyal citizens of the State and as one who had made his life count for good in all its relations. His wife survived until 1897, when she too passed away. Leroy Percy, the immediate subject of this review, has well sustained the high prestige of the family name, both as a citizen and as a lawyer. He was for some time a student in the University of the South, Sewanee, Tenn., and thereafter he con- tinued his studies in the University of Virginia, in which his father and two of his brothers had been graduated. He completed the prescribed course in the law department of this historic old institu- tion, after previous study under the preceptorship of his father, and in 1881 he was admitted to the bar, his examination having been given on his twenty-first birthday. After his admission to the bar he became associated in practice with the firm of which his father was a member, and after the death of the latter he remained with the surviving partner, under the firm name of Yerger & Percy, until the death of Wm. G. Yerger. He was then associated in the practice with R. B. Campbell, under the firm name of Percy & Campbell and is at present associated with Judge C. C. Moody, the firm name being Percy & Moody. They control 'a large and important professional business and Mr. Percy is known as a vigorous and able trial lawyer and a duly conservative
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counselor. He has ever accorded an unqualified allegiance to the Democratic party, has been an active worker in its ranks and has been chairman of its executive committee in Washington county. December 9, 1883, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Percy to Miss Camille E. Bourges, who was born and reared in Louisiana, and they have one son, namely : W. A. Percy.
Patterson, Robt. Bonner, who is now connected with one of the leading mer- cantile establishments of Pontotoc, served for twelve years as circuit clerk of Pon- totoc county, which has been his home from the time of his birth, Mar. 29, 1859. He is a son of Nelson G. and Elizabeth (Newell) Patterson, the former of whom was born in North Carolina, whence he came to Pontotoc county when a youth. He became one of the successful planters of the county and is now living retired in the city of Pontotoc, at the age of eighty- four years (1907). He served three years as a soldier of the Confederacy, and during the greater portion of this time was a scout. His wife, who is still living, is a daughter of Samuel W. Newell, who was one of the first settlers of Pontotoc county. Mr. and Mrs. Patterson have cele- brated the fifty-ninth anniversary of their marriage, and of their fifteen children nine are living-all resident of Pontotoc county. The subject of this sketch secured his rudimentary education in the common schools and thereafter continued his studies in Blue Moun- tain academy and at Vanderbilt university, Nashville, Tenn. For eleven years he was engaged in teaching in the schools of his native county, and he was distinctively successful as a representative of the pedagogic profession. In 1891 he was elected circuit clerk, and he was chosen as his own successor in the elections of 1895 and 1899, thus remaining incumbent of the office for twelve years, at the expiration of which he declined renomination. He has been an active worker in the cause of the Democratic party and is one of its leaders in Pontotoc county. He is a Royal Arch Mason and a member of the Knights of Pythias. On April 14, 1897, Mr. Patter- son was united in marriage to Miss Ida Williamson, daughter of John H. and Elizabeth (Johnson) Williamson, of Pontotoc. Mr .. and Mrs. Patterson are members of the Baptist church.
Porter, F. A., of Jackson, Miss., was born in Kentucky from whence he removed to Texas. He was employed by the Paris Cotton Oil Company as office boy in 1890. In the cotton oil business he filled various positions, acquiring a large experience of its manufacture. When the Jackson Cotton Oil Company was organized in Jackson, Miss., he was made manager and is also one of the stockholders .. The Jackson Cotton Oil company has an invested capital of $125,000, and employs 100 men when in operation. It supplies a large de- mand of the home market and exports considerable quantities of
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oil. Under Mr. Porter's management the company has been very successful. He is a member of the fraternal orders of Elks and Knights of Pythias.
Phelps, Alonzo Jefferson, M. D., B. A., and surgeon was a distinguished repre- sentative of his profession and a citizen of marked prominence and influence, commanding the unequivocal confidence and regard of all who knew him. Dr. Phelps was born in Piketon, Pike county, Ohio, June 17, 1835. After due prelimin- ary discipline he entered the University of Ohio in Columbus in which he gradu- ated with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. He then continued the study of medicine under the able preceptorship of his father, Dr. Orlando John Phelps and was finally matriculated in the Columbus medical college from which he received the degree of Doctor of Medicine in 1852. In 1854 after effective post-graduate work, he received a diploma from the New York College of Medicine, thus coming forth admirably fortified for the work of his chosen calling. He returned to his native town and was there associated in practice with his father until the outbreak of the war between the States, then he promptly tendered his services to the Union. From a tribute to his memory given at the time of his death by the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States, commandery of the State of Illinois, of which he was an honored member, the following epitome of his military career is quoted: "October 31, 1861, he was appointed assistant surgeon of the Thirty-third Ohio infantry, United States volunteers, and on December 31, following, was promoted brigade surgeon (later known as surgeon United States volunteers), but by reason of a severe epidemic then raging in his regiment he refused to qualify for the new position until April 4, 1862, when he was com- missioned as major and surgeon, United States volunteers. He received the brevet of lieutenant-colonel March 13, 1865, 'for faith- ful and meritorious services during the war.' Having tendered his resignation, he was honorably mustered out, in compliance with special order No. 3, war department, dated Jan. 4, 1866. His ser- vices covered a large territory, he having been on duty continuously, at the front and in the field, from September, 1861, to August, 1864. He participated in the eastern Kentucky campaign under General Nelson and in Mitchell's division of the Army of the Ohio. On April 22, 1862, he was assigned to temporary duty under General Halleck, then before Corinth. He was assigned as medical director of the Twenty-first corps, participating in the battle of Stone's river, the occupation of Chattanooga and the battles of Chickamauga and Missionary Ridge, and when the Twentieth and Twenty-first corps were consolidated to form the Fourth corps he was assigned to the staff of Gen. Gordon Granger as medical director of the new organ-
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ization, and later of the Army of the Cumberland. On April 27, 1864, he was transferred, at the request of General Grant, to the Army of the Potomac, where he was assigned to duty as acting medi- cal inspector of field hospitals. At his own request he was relieved Aug. 16, 1864, and assigned to special duty in the Northern Depart- ment of Ohio. In February, 1865, he was transferred to the Depart- ment of Kentucky and assigned as medical director, with the rela- tive rank of colonel, on the staff of Gen. John M. Palmer, command- ing, which he held until the termination of his services. Tall and slender of stature, graceful and cordial in manner, his winning smile prepossessed in his favor, all whom he met. This impression was justified by his manly character and his kind and genial disposition. A physician of rare talents, a man of wide reading, he was interested in his profession as a science rather than an art." During his tour of duty at Louisville, Ky., he met Miss Mary Bullock Vick, and their marriage was solemnized there Oct. 18, 1865, and there they lived until they went to Mississippi. Miss Vick was the daughter of Col. Henry W. Vick, of Vicksburg Miss., and a lineal descendant of Gen. Jona- than Clark and a great-great-grandniece of Gen. George Rogers Clark of Revolutionary fame and William Clark, the explorerer of the great Northwest. (See sketch of John Wesley Vick, deceased.) Nitta Yuma, where the last part of their life was spent, was a portion of Col. Henry W. and Sarah Pearce Vick's estate. The name Nitta Yuma was given by the Indians to the possessions of the "White Feather," Col. Henry W. Vick's father, Burwell Vick, whom the Indians much liked and whom they so called on account of his snow-white hair, and Dr. Phelps retained the name and identified it with his wife's portion of the estate. Colonel and Mrs. Vick lived in Vicks- burg where their residence on Cherry street is yet to be seen admir- ably preserved in the midst of fine old trees. The plantation was inland from the nearest Mississippi river landing, nineteen miles over roads almost impassable in the rainy season and only visited by Colonel Vick on business. When Dr. Phelps came South to look after the property he was attracted by the country and foreseeing its bright future disposed of his interests in the North and re-invested them in the development of the property, and managed with such success that after giving their four children the advantages of exten- sive travel and education and society in the most brilliant social centers of this and foreign countries, left them one of the finest prop- erties of the Deer Creek country. In 1877 when Dr. and Mrs. Phelps took up their residence at Nitta Yuma the house formerly occupied . by Colonel Vick had burned down and nothing remained of a dwell- ing place but some out-houses and offices. Some of these were moved together and built onto with the only available material- rough boards from the saw mill-and the walls covered with canvas. As the years passed, this was added to and embellished, but the crude abode was that to which Dr. Phelps moved with his family and where for twenty years he maintained his home dispensing a gracious and generous hospitality and living a life of signal useful- ness and honor. There was entertained every visitor of prominence
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that came to the country, and every stranger found a welcome thrice blessed, for there was no other white family's dwelling within five miles, and in those early days it was a curious sight to see there in the backwoods away from civilization this plain wood house fur- nished with the elegance of a city residence and meet ladies and gentlemen driving out in fine carriages drawn by Kentucky thorough- bred horses; for with Dr. Phelps came some young professional men and others assisting him in the offices of the plantation and teachers for his children, and these gathered under his roof as one family and have since, almost without exception become successful and prominent citizens. With the coming of the railroads, for which he incessantly worked, the family coach made a last trip to the county seat on the gala occasion of a tournament of the cavaliers of the county, and was then put away in the coach house where it rotted away; the intimate circle dispersed and in its place new faces thronged the city hall nightly as for sometime here was the terminus of the railroad and many strangers brought or introduced by some friend or acquaintances sought his hospitality. Dr. Phelps was a vestryman of St. Andrew's church Episcopal in Louisville, Ky., was identified with the Grand Army of the Republic, a member of the Loyal Legion, a Mason, besides other fraternal and professional organizations, and a Democrat in his political allegiance. He served as the president of the Mississippi Levee board from 1890 until his death. He died on the evening of Sept. 28, 1897, at his beautiful home, Nitta Yuma, where his remains were interred. After the death of his loved and devoted wife, Feb. 5, 1901, his body was exhumed and both were laid side by side in Cave Hill cemetery at Louisville, Ky. They were survived by four children-Nannie W., who married Mr. Peter George, of Dunformline, Scotland; Henry Vick, Mary Pearce, wife of Count Renato Piola-Caselli, of Rome, Italy; and Ellen Bodley Vick, wife of Dr. Robert Poe Crump, of Nitta Yuma. Prentice, Edwin I., of Poplarville, is one of the extensive land owners and real estate dealers of southern Mississippi, and is a valued citizen contributed to this commonwealth by the old Buckeye State. He is a native of the city of Lockport, N. Y., where he was born Dec. 17, 1842, and is descended from stanch old colonial ancestry. His great-grandfather, Col. John Prentice, was a patriot soldier in the War of the Revolution, in which he served as an officer of the Continental forces. His son John, grandfather of the subject of this review, was a captain in the War of 1812 and was wounded in the battle of Sackett's Harbor, N. Y. Edwin I. Prentice, to whom this sketch is dedicated, is a son of Horatio Nelson Prentice and Martha T. (Mott) Prentice, both of whom were likewise native of the Empire State, the former having been born in Jefferson county and the latter
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in Oneida county. The father in his youth served a thorough ap- prenticeship at the trade of wagon and carriage-making, and after completing his apprenticeship he became associated with his brother in the manufacturing of wagons and carriages in the city of Lock- port, where he was thus engaged for several years. In 1849 he re- moved with his family to Columbus, Ohio, where he became one of the editors and publishers of the Ohio Statesman and editor of the Western Agriculturist. He retired from these positions in 1858 and thereafter he devoted his time principally to literary work, in the preparation of articles for various magazines and papers, until 1880, when he began the compilation of a history of Defiance county, Ohio, which work necessarily included the campaigns of General Wayne against the Indians of the then Northwest. This work was successfully completed and the volume is a valuable contribution to the history of the Buckeye State. He passed the closing years of his life in Paulding, Ohio, where he died in the spring of 1885; his widow survived him by ten years. The subject of this sketch was seven years of age at the time of his parents' removal to Ohio, and he was reared to maturity on his father's farm, near Columbus, in the meanwhile duly availing himself of the advantages of the com- mon schools. He continued to be associated in the work and manage- ment of the home farm until he was eighteen years of age, when he tendered his services in defense of the Union. He enlisted as a private in the Forty-sixth Ohio volunteer infantry, but was soon afterward discharged, in order that he might enlist in the Twenty- second Ohio battery, with which he served two years and with which he took part in the following named battles, besides many minor engagements: New Creek, Culpepper Court House, Ball's Bluff and Winchester, all in Virginia. He remained with his command until the close of the war and after receiving his honorable discharge he returned home and resumed his association with the agricultural industry. Soon afterward, however, he engaged in the lumber business, to some branch of which he gave his attention about twenty- five years, meeting with varying success. He then, in 1889, removed to southern Mississippi, where he has since given his attention largely to the handling of real estate and to the management of his farming and lumbering interests. He is the owner of about 7,000 acres of farm and timber land, besides valuable town property, and his resi- dence is the finest in the village of Poplarville, with whose upbuild- ing and civic progress he has been intimately and loyally identified. In politics Mr. Prentice has ever been aligned as a stalwart supporter of the principles of the Democratic party, and he held to his party at a time when the same was subject to much opprobium in the North, during the Civil war period. He was the only man in his battery at that time who voted for Clement L. Vallandingham, Democratic candidate for governor of Ohio, and this was his first vote. Though he has always manifested a proper interest in public affairs he has never permitted his name to be used in connection with nomination for political office. He is affiliated with the Masonic fraternity and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. Mr. Prentice has been
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thrice married. He first wedded Miss Sarah L. Noe, of Columbus, Ohio, who died at the birth of their only child, Florence O., who is now the wife of Alonzo B. McMillan, of Albuquerque, N. M. Mr. Prentice's second marriage was to Miss Augusta N. Lewis, of Lewis Center, Ohio, and she died July 9, 1885, being survived by three sons, Lewis E., Ralph Earl, and Lloyd G. In 1887 Mr. Prentice married Mrs. Elizabeth (Hittle) Wagner of Prairie City, Ill. They have no children. Mr. Prentice is still (in 1907) actively engaged in the management of his farming and real estate interests and both he and his wife, at their ripe old age, are perfect pictures of health and a living demonstration of the beneficent influences of the Gulf coast climate.
Price, James Houston, is one of the leading and most successful lawyers in the State of Mississippi, and is now en- gaged in the practice of his profession in the town of Magnolia, the judicial seat of Pike county. He was born in Rankin county, this State, Aug. 26, 1861, being a son of Aaron and Fanny (Deer) Price. The father was a native of South Caro- lina, of Scotch-Irish descent, and the mother was born in Rankin county. Judge Price spent his boyhood days upon his father's farm, learning by much prac- tical work the science of agriculture and obtaining a rudimentary education in the public schools of his neighborhood; at the age of twenty, he en- tered Mississippi college, and by severe privations and hard manual labor, managed to support himself and pay his way through college, finally graduating in 1885 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. For several years prior to his graduation, Judge Price had spent his vaca- tions teaching rural schools, and the year following was elected a member of the faculty of Gillsburg collegiate institute, at Gillsburg in Amite county, and the next session was placed at the head of that institution, remaining in that capacity until the summer of 1889, when he resigned to take up the study of law. He entered the University of Mississippi's law department in the fall of 1889, and by incessant application was able to complete the two-year course in one year, receiving his diploma with honors, in June, 1890. Prior to his university career, Judge Price had married Miss Ida Gill, the daughter of W. A. Gill, founder of the Gillsburg collegiate institute, and to them two children-a boy and a girl-had been born. Upon the completion of his course at the university, he moved his family to Magnolia, where he rapidly forged to the front ranks of the lead- ing lawyers of this section. In March, 1903, Gov. Longino appointed him associate justice of the supreme court to fill the unexpired term of Justice Terral, deceased. Within a few days of receiving this high distinction, his wife died suddenly in Magnolia. Judge Price remained upon the supreme bench until the following August, when
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feeling that his duty to his children was paramount, and that he could not discharge his obligation to them and remain at the State capitol, he resigned and returned to Magnolia, where he has since been actively engaged in the practice of his profession. In April, 1904, he was most happily married to Miss Emily Frances Hyer, a daughter of Dr. William F. Hyer, deceased, who at one time was a State senator from Marshall county and for many years occupied a leading position in the medical fraternity of this State. Judge Price has three children by his first wife: Will Gill, now completing her collegiate education in Sophie Newcombe college, New Orleans; Kenneth Gill, in his junior year in Mississippi college, Clinton; and James Hyer, the youngest, a student in the Magnolia graded school. Judge Price has always taken an active interest in politics, but beyond serving as delegate to national and State conventions, and as member of State and county Democratic executive commit- tees, he has never held office or been an aspirant for political honors. He is a Mason, an Odd Fellow, and a stanch member of the Baptist church, while in the State at large, and the community where he lives, there is none held in higher esteem.
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