Mississippi : comprising sketches of towns, events, institutions, and persons, arranged in cyclopedic form Vol. III, Part 82

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 82

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bar of Mississippi. Mr. Rouse's grandfather, John Wesley Atkinson, held a captain's commission in the Seminole Indian war, Mexican war and the Civil war, while on both the father's and mother's side his forefathers were prominent in North Carolina and Virginia.

Rubush, Charles M., of Meridian, is known as one of the leading contractors and builders of the State of Mississippi, where he has resided since 1868. He has erected many important public and busi- ness buildings in divers sections of this commonwealth and in addition to his con- tracting work he also does a large busi- ness in the handling of all kinds of building materials and supplies. Mr. Rubush was born in Indianapolis, the beautiful capi- tal city of the State of Indiana, March 11, 1844, being a son of Rev. George and Susan (Dinkle) Rubush, the former a native of Virginia and the latter of Penn- sylvania. Rev. George Rubush was a clergyman of the Methodist Episcopal church, and for a time he was intimately associated with Rev. William Gannaway Brownlow, of Tennessee, known as the "fighting parson," and also as "Parson Brownlow," and one of the notable figures in the history of that State, of which he was governor during the reconstruction period. Rev. George Rubush died in Hamilton county, Ohio, about 1878, and his wife passed away in 1880. Charles M. Rubush secured his educational training at New Haven, Ohio, and during the Civil war he was a member of Company D, Seventeenth Indiana mounted infantry, in Wilder's brigade. He rose to the rank of sergeant and took part in the various engage- ments in which his brigade was involved, including the battles of Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, the campaign from Dalton to Atlanta, and innumerable minor engagements, having been in ser- vice for a period of four years. Mr. Rubush served a thorough apprenticeship at the trade of brickmason, becoming a skilled work- man, and he followed the work of his trade in Indiana and Ohio after the close of the war, but in 1868 he came to Meridian, Miss., where he has since maintained his home and business headquarters. Upon coming to Meridian he established himself in business as a contractor and builder, and in this line of enterprise his reputation is second to that of none in the State. He erected the main building of the State Agricultural and Mechanical college, at Starkville; the original building of the Mississippi Industrial institute and college, at Col- umbus; a number of the best court houses in the State, including the new court house of Lauderdale county, which was completed in 1905, at a cost of about $125,000 including furnishing; while he has erected the greater majority of the principal business blocks of Mer- idian, besides many of the finest private residences in that and other · cities of the State. Fidelity to contract and upright business meth- ods have characterized his career, and thus he has maintained a strong

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hold on public confidence and esteem. His building material busi- ness was established about 1890, and has become an enterprise of much incidental importance, while it affords him the best of facil- ities in his individual contracting work. In politics Mr. Rubush is a stanch Democrat, and he has completed the circle of the York- Rite Masonry and is identified with Homasa Temple of the Mystic Shrine, of which he was potentate two years; and with the Benevo- lent and Protective Order of Elks. On Oct. 18, 1871, Mr. Rubush was married to Miss Martha Wedgeworth, daughter of Rev. Joel and Margaret (Smith) Wedgeworth, of Alabama, and they have seven children: Pearl, wife of Charles Girten, of Beaumont, Tex .; Charles M., Jr .; Ruby, wife of E. S. Bostic; Jodie; Zula, wife of William Perry; Elmer, and Hazel.

Rush, J. Hack, D. D. S., one of the lead- ing practitioners of dentistry in Meridian, was born at DeKalb, in Kemper county, Miss., Sept. 6, 1868, a son of William V. and Julia R. (Key), both natives of Kem- per county, Miss. The father, who was treasurer of his native county for several years and is now a resident of Wayne county, is a son of William C. Rush, who immigrated to Kemper county fron North Carolina about 1836. Dr. Rush received his preliminary education in the DeKalb schools and his technical training in the Southern medical college, which he een- entered in 1889 and at which he graduated two years later with the degree of Doctor of Dental Surgery. He had a year of practical work as a dentist in DeKalb, and then returned to the Southern medical college to become an instructor in the dental department of the institution. After two years there he returned to DeKalb and entered the practice of his chosen profession. That he has been highly successful is evidenced by the steady increase in the amount of his work, and in the satisfaction of his patients with that work. In politics Dr. Rush is a Democrat, but has never sought office. He is identified fraternally with the Free and Accep- ted Masons, the Knights Templars, and the Knights of Pythias. In religious matters he is connected with the Central Methodist Epis- copal church of Meridian. On June 21, 1896, Dr. Rush was united in marriage to Miss Mary C. Hunnicutt, daughter of John L. and Eliza (Smith) Hunnicutt. Mr. Hunnicutt is a merchant at Oak Grove. To Dr. and Mrs. Rush three children have been born-Lowry, Dorothy and Leslie V. The father is not only a leader in his profes- sion, but is recognized as one of the foremost citizens in any move- ment made for the betterment of the city or State.

Rutledge, J. Fenton, cashier of the Bank of Collins, Covington county, is numbered among the popular and progressive young busi- ness men of this thriving new town, which was founded not a half decade ago and which has had a most rapid and substantial growth.

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Mr. Rutledge was born in Mount Carmel, Covington county, May 18, 1880, and is a son of William and Nannie (Easterling) Rutledge, the former of whom was born in Ireland and the latter in Covington county, Miss. They are now residents of Summit, Miss. J. Fenton Rutledge was afforded the excellent advantages of the public schools of his native town and secured a practical business training, well qualifying for the responsible duties of his present executive office. Upon the organization of the Bank of Collins, in 1901, he was chosen bookkeeper of the same, and in May, 1903, a fitting recognition of his ability and faithful service was accorded when the stockholders elected him to his present office, in which he has done much to con- serve the upbuilding of the substantial business now controlled by the bank, which bases its operations upon ample capital and which is recognized as one of the solid financial institutions of the State. Mr. Rutledge commands the unqualified confidence and esteem of officers of the bank and also of the local public in general, and is one of the loyal and progressive young business men of Collins. He is an adherent of the Democratic party and is identified with the Knights of Pythias. On June 3, 1903, Mr. Rutledge was united in marriage to Miss Beverly Neill, daughter of Capt. William C. and Mary (Phipps) Neill, of Oxford, Miss., and they have two children -Edith and Marguerite.

Rankin, George Henry, is to be con- sistently designated as one of the leading business men and influential citizens of Columbia, Marion county, where he has varied capitalistic interests of import- ance. He is a native son of this county and was born Sept. 20, 1859. His father, Thomas Jesse Rankin, was likewise born and reared in this county and was a repre- sentative of one of the old and well known families of this section of the Union, as was also his wife, whose maiden name was Sarah C. Ford. Thomas J. Rankin was one of those loyal sons of the Confed- eracy who went forth in defense of the principles thereof at the outbreak of the Civil war, in which he served with distinction, having enlisted as a private in Company F, Sev- enth Mississippi infantry, in which he was promoted to a captaincy, serving in this office until his death which occurred in June, 1863. The subject of this sketch secured a limited education, being wholly self educated and his early discipline in a practical way was that incidental to the great basic art of agriculture, his father having been engaged in farming during the major portion of his life. In 1887 Mr. Rankin engaged in the general merchandise business at Spring Cottage, Marion county, where he opened a small store and where he showed such discrimination and energy as to make the enterprise one of more than ordinary success. In 1898 he came to Columbia and purchased an interest in the mercantile business

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of Pitman, Ford & Company, with which he continued to be identi- fied for the ensuing three years, at the expiration of which he dis- posed of his interest in the concern. In 1901 he engaged in the opera- tion of a sawmill and shortly afterward in the manufacturing of cotton-seed oil, with both of which lines of enterprise he is still ac- tively concerned. In 1903 the firm of Burkett, Barrow & Com- pany was organized, and Mr. Rankin has been president of the firm from the start, its operations being in the line of a general mercantile business. For two years Mr. Rankin was general manager of the Columbia Cotton Oil Company, of whose directorate he was a mem- ber, and he is at the present time a member of the board of directors of the Columbia bank and is vice-president of the Columbia Com- press Company. In his political proclivities Mr. Rankin is unswerv- ing in his devotion to the Democratic party and the principles and policies for which it stands sponsor. While he has never been a seeker of the honors or emoluments of public office, his signal eligi- bility as a loyal citizen and straightforward man of business led to his being placed in nomination for the office of mayor of Columbia in 1901 and he was elected to this position, of which he remained incumbent three years, giving a most able and progressive admin- istration of municipal affairs and gaining unqualified popular en- dorsement and commendation. In a fraternal way he is identified with the local organization of the Knights of Pythias. He is at all times found ready to lend his aid and influence in support of enterprises or measures tending to conserve the general welfare of his home city and county, and to him is accorded unequivocal con- fidence and regard in this section, where practically his entire life has thus far been passed. On Jan. 6, 1880, Mr. Rankin was united in marriage to Miss Sallie Rawls, who was born and reared in Marion county, as were also her parents, James M. and Sarah (Barnes) Rawls. Mr. and Mrs. Rankin have seven children, whose names, with respective ages, in 1905, are here entered: James Thomas, twenty-four years; Clarissa Lorena, twenty-one; Sarah Elizabeth, eighteen; Henry Neville, twelve, Garland Howard, eight; Harry Longino, five; and Nellie May, two.

Rumble, Stephen E., has been prominently identified with the business affairs and civic history of the city of Natchez for nearly half a century, is a veteran of the Confederacy and is a citizen to whom is accorded the unstinted confidence and esteem of the com- munity in which he has so long maintained his home. He is senior member of the Rumble & Wensel Company, cotton factors, whole- sale grocers and commission merchants, and this concern is one of the oldest in the line in the city, having been established in 1865 and having been incorporated in 1890. Mr. Rumble was born in Marshall county, W. Va., Feb. 22, 1837, and is a son of Godfrey and Anna (Lucky) Rumble, both of whom were born in Pennsylvania. The father was there reared and educated and he became a success- ful school teacher in West Virginia, where he died in' 1853. His wife survived him by a number of years, her death occurring in 1858. In the schools of his native county the subject of this sketch secured

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his early educational discipline and he has been essentially the archi- tect of his own fortunes, having won success and prestige through normal and legitimate lines of business enterprise. In 1859 he took up his residence in Natchez, and at the outbreak of the war between the States he promptly tendered his aid in defense of the cause of the Confederacy, enlisting in the Seventh Mississippi infantry, in 1861. His regiment became a part of Chalmers' brigade in the army of Tennessee, and he was made brigade quartermaster, in which capacity he served until the close of the war, having lived up to the full tension of the great internecine conflict and having shared in all the vicissitudes which fell to the portion of his noble brigade. He received his parole at Mobile, Ala., after the final surrender, and then returned to Natchez, where, in the same year, he engaged in the grocery business, also establishing a steamboat agency. His was the courage which animated so many others in the trying and depressing period following the war, and he ably contributed to the re-establishing and upbuilding of the prostrate business interests of his home city, to which his loyalty has ever been insistent and inviolable. He has been continuously identified with the grocery trade and the house of which he is now the head is one of the largest and most important in this section of the State, its operations being based upon ample capital and the highest reputation for integrity and fair and honorable dealing. His only son is associated in the business which he himself established more than forty years ago. Mr. Rumble has identified himself with the various industrial and progressive movements which have conserved the advancement and prosperity of Natchez, lending his influence and capitalistic support to various enterprises of noteworthy order. He is a stanch adherent of the Democratic party, is affiliated with the United Confederate Veterans and the Masonic fraternity, and both he and his wife are members of the Presbyterian church. In August, 1866, was sol- emnized the marriage of Mr. Rumble to Miss Fannie McMurtry, and of their six children four are living, namely: A. L. Wilson, and Misses Rebecca, Anna and Mary.

Ratcliff, William Horton, is a scion of one of the old and prominent families of Mississippi, a veteran of the Confederate service in the Civil war and recognized as one of the representative planters of Adams county, where he has a fine landed estate, near Washington. He was born in Gloster, Amite county, this State, Aug. 20, 1846, and is a son of Alford and Elizabeth Ratcliff, the former of whom was likewise born in Amite county, in 1810, while the latter was born in South Carolina, in 1820, three of her uncles having been soldiers in the Continental line during the War of the Revolution, serving under Gen. Francis Marion. William H. Ratcliff was reared on the homestead plantation and was afforded the advantages of the schools of Gloster, having been about fifteen years of age at the time of the inception of the great fratricidal war between the States. His loyalty to the rights and institutions of the South led him to tender his aid in defense of the Confederacy as soon as it became feasible for him so to do. On March 1, 1864, he enlisted as a private

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in Company D, Thirty-eighth Mississippi cavalry, with which he continued in service until the close of the war, having taken part in a number of engagements, including that at Benton, Miss., and having been wounded at Harrisburg, July 14, 1864, though not long incapacitated for service. After the close of his military service Mr. Ratcliff set to himself the task of doing his part toward reviving the prostrate industrial life and prosperity of the South, which had suffered so cruelly from the ravages of the war. He returned to Mississippi, and here he has ever since been actively identified with agricultural pursuits, being numbered at the present time among the substantial planter and progressive and public-spirited citizens of Adams county. He has been a zealous worker in the ranks of the Democratic party, and served twelve years as a member of the Democratic executive committee of his county, while for six years he was a member of the school board. He is now a member of the county board of supervisors, in which capacity he is rendering valu- able service, as has he done in the various other positions of trust to which he has been called. He is a member of the United Con- federate Veterans and he and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church, South. On Sept. 20, 1867, Mr. Ratcliff was mar- ried to Miss Eletha Idola Bonds, and she died, being survived by three children, Wallace H., A. B. and C. B. On July 30, 1890, Mr. Ratcliff consummated a second marriage, being then united to Miss Bessie M. Winston. They have no children.

Ratliff, William Thomas, was born Sept. 16, 1835, in Raymond, the county seat of Hinds county, Miss., and is one of the county's best known and most hon- ored citizens, having been for many years active and influential in all its public affairs. He has held the offices of probate clerk, chancery clerk and sheriff, and is now county administrator. His father, William Ratliff, moved to Hinds county, soon after its organization, from Pike county, where his grandfather, Richard Ratliff, a Georgian by birth, had resided as one of the first settlers of the State of Mississippi. William Ratliff, Sr., married Miss Jane Davis of Hinds county, in 1834, and died before attaining his majority. Two years later the mother, Jane Davis Ratliff, died, leaving the custody of her only child to her mother, Mrs. Isa- bella Spencer, who was an exceptionally intelligent and cultured woman, having been educated in the best schools of Belfast, Ireland. Captain Ratliff grew to manhood on a farm near Clinton, Miss., and in 1852 became a student of Mississippi college where he remained for four years. After his marriage on June 18, 1856, to Miss Mary Olive Cook of Edwards, he moved to the western part of the county, where he engaged in planting, teaching school, and reading law. On the breaking out of war between the States, he laid aside the

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duties that had for years engaged his attention and left his wife and three small children to become a soldier. After serving two months with an infantry command in Kentucky, during the winter of 1861-2, he joined Company A, First Mississippi light artillery. At the organ- ization of the company at Jackson April 8, 1862, he was elected to the position of first lieutenant, giving him command of two guns, in an eight-gun battery. Very soon after this the company was or- dered to Vicksburg, where it participated in all of the engagements that took place around that historic city until its capture in July, 1863. On May 6, 1863, Captain Ratliff while still a lieutenant, was put in command of Company C, of his regiment, a battery of four guns, and during the siege of Vicksburg was made chief of artil- lery of Hebert's brigade, Forney's division, having charge for thirty days of portions of five batteries of light artillery. After the siege of Vicksburg he was made captain of Company A, his old company, and served in this capacity until the close of the war, receiving his parole May 12, 1865, in the city of Jackson, Miss. At the first elec- tion after the war was over, he was elected to the office of probate clerk of Hinds county, taking up his residence near Raymond where he has since maintained his home. He later served as chancery clerk for twelve years, and as sheriff of the county for four years, and since 1889 has been county administrator. While much of his time has been given to official life, yet he has all the while been prominent in the local councils of the Democratic party. He was chairman of the Hinds county Democratic committee during the reconstruction period and personally led the forces that finally brought about the overthrow of the odious "carpet-bag" regime, in the coun- ty. In 1874, at his suggestion, he with others organized the Tax- payer's league in Hinds county, he being the first and only president and as such performed a valued service to the county. He is a deacon of the Baptist church of Raymond, and for the past thirty- five years has been president of the board of trustees of his alma mater, Mississippi college. While a student of the college he organ- ized the Hermenian literary society and was its first anniversarian. On June 18, 1906, Captain and Mrs. Ratliff celebrated their golden wedding, their children, relatives and many friends being present on this occasion. There were born to this union ten children, viz .: William Davis, Alma (Mrs. B. D. Gray), Percy Cook, Mckinney Cook, Thomas Wilson, Mary, Paul D., Jeannette, Clifton, and Isa- bella (Mrs. J. C. Ballard). Mckinney Cook died in October, 1868, Thomas Wilson in November, 1893. The others are still living.

Ray, Hugh E., is one of the popular and successful business men of the city of Corinth, where he is an interested principal in the Poca- hontas Lumber Company, manufacturers of and dealers in lumber sash, doors, blinds, etc. Mr. Ray was born in Tippah county, Miss., and the section of the county in which he was born is now a part of Alcorn county. He is a son of Hon. H. H. Ray, now a resident of Corinth and formerly a planter in the western part of the State. He was born in South Carolina, whence he came with his parents to Tippah county, Miss., when a young man, and became one of

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the prosperous planters of that county. He was a soldier of the Confederacy in the war between the States, having served under Gen. Joseph E. Johnston. He served two terms as a member of the State legislature. His wife, whose maiden name was Sallie N. North- cross, is a daughter of Dr. John Northcross, who was one of the pio- neer physicians of Tippah county, whither he removed from North Carolina. The subject of this sketch was reared and educated in Mississippi and he has risen to a position of marked relative prestige as a business man. For a number of years he was engaged in the lumber and manufacturing business in Pocahontas, Tenn., from which place he came to Corinth in 1900 and organized the Pocahontas Lumber Company, in company with Lloyd F. Garrett. They erected a fine modern plant and have extensive lumber yards. They do both a wholesale and retail business and their manufactured pro- ducts are largely shipped to the Northern States. Mr. Ray is a loyal supporter of the principles of the Democratic party and in a fraternal way is identified with the Masonic order and the Knights of Pythias. He married Miss Etta Garrett, daughter of Col. George W. Garrett, who now resides in Corinth, whither he came from Poca- hontas, Tenn. He is vice-president of the Bank of Corinth and has other important capitalistic interests. He served with distinction in the Civil war, in which he rose to the rank of colonel in the Con- federate service. Mr. and Mrs. Ray have three children-Madge, May and Edwin.

Ray, Thomas Jackson, M. D., of Centerville, is one of the able and popular physicians and surgeons of Wilkinson county, where he controls a large and representative practice. He was born in Winston county, Miss., April 18, 1866, and is a son of Jackson H. and Margaret (Brown) Ray, the former of whom was born in Ala- bama and the latter in Mississippi. His father was a valiant soldier of the Confederacy in the war between the States. He served as a member of the Eleventh Mississippi infantry, which was a part of Longstreet's corps in Gen. Joseph Davis' brigade. He was cap- tured at Petersburg, three days before the final surrender, and was then paroled. He was a successful planter after the war and con- tinued to reside in Mississippi until his death. Dr. Ray, after due preparatory study, entered the Mississippi Agricultural and Mechan- ical college, at Starkville, in which institution he was graduated as a member of the class of 1887, with the degree of Bachelor of Science. In 1896 he was graduated in the Memphis Hospital medical college, Memphis, Tenn., and from the same received his degree of Doctor of Medicine. After his graduation he followed the work of his pro- cession in Madison county until 1901, when he took up his residence in Centerville, where he has built up a most excellent practice and where he holds high rank in his profession. He is a member of the American Medical association, the Mississippi medical association and the Wilkinson county medical society. He is identified with the Masonic fraternity and both he and his wife hold membership in the Presbyterian church. In 1897 Dr. Ray was united in marriage to Miss May Allison, a daughter of Andrew Allison, who was born in

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Scotland and who came to Mississippi prior to the Civil war. Dr. and Mrs. Ray have two children, Edward Hunt and Thomas Jack- son, Jr. It is worthy of special note that Dr. Ray is vice-president of the Ray medical society, whose membership is composed of those of the name of Ray throughout the Union. Nearly every State is represented on the membership roll.

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Mississippi : comprising sketches of towns, events, institutions, and persons, arranged in cyclopedic form Vol. III, Part 82

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