Mississippi : comprising sketches of towns, events, institutions, and persons, arranged in cyclopedic form Vol. III, Part 9

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 9

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teen years assumed a clerical position in the store of his uncle, Will- iam Atkinson, at Magnolia. In 1902 Mr. Atkinson and Junius L. Bacot, together with the subject of this review, organized the pres- ent William Atkinson & Bacot Company, of which the uncle is president and of which Samuel A. Bacot has been secretary and treasurer from the start. The concern handles general merchandise and has a large and well equipped establishment. The company handles annually from eight to ten thousand bales of cotton and does a general plantation supply business of large proportions. Mr. Bacot has gained reputation as a progressive and reliable business man and his rise has been gained through merit and been fortified by personal popularity and public spirit. He is a Democrat in his political allegiance and is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, South. He is a bachelor.

Bailey, Charles W., one of the progressive business men and rep- resentative citizens of Meridian, was born in Shubuta, Clarke county, Miss., April 17, 1872, and is a son of Charles R. and Lydia L. (West) Bailey, the former native of Virginia and the latter of Mississippi. Charles R. Bailey came from Lunenburg county, Va., to Mississippi about 1867, settling in Clarke county where he passed the remainder of his life. He became the leading druggist of the city of Quitman, and was mayor of the city at the time of his death, which occurred July 6, 1898. He served as a Confederate soldier in the Army of Northern Virginia, during the Civil war, having been adjutant of his company, while he was wounded and captured a number of times. Charles W. Bailey was educated in the schools of Quitman and Meridian, and after leaving school was identified with agricultural pursuits in Clarke county for about three years. On July 20, 1891, he took up his residence in Meridian, Miss., and for the ensuing period of about six years was employed as a mechanic in the works of the Progress Manufacturing Company, after which he was for a short while a clerical employee in the local office of the Queen & Crescent railroad. In 1899 he engaged in the insurance business, as representative of the New York Mutual Life Insurance Company, becoming one of the most successful insurance men of the city, and Aug. 1, 1904, entered into partner- ship with J. W. Stainton, under the firm name of Bailey & Stainton, in the general insurance, real estate and bonding brokerage busi- ness. They control a large and important business, which is con- stantly expanding in scope. Mr. Bailey is a stockholder in the Southern bank, The Moore Drug Company, The Meridian Wooden- ware Manufacturing Company, The Meridian Wagon Factory, The Peoples Savings bank, Lamar Mutual Life Insurance Company of Mississippi, The Meridian Fire Insurance Agency, and also has farming interests in Clarke county. He is a thorough-going Demo- crat in his political proclivities, and is affiliated with the Masonic fraternity, Knights of Pythias, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, Knights of the Maccabees, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, and the Benevolent Knights of America, while he is a member of the State Grand Lodges of the Odd Fellows, and Knights of

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Pythias. On June 13, 1894, Mr. Bailey was united in marriage to Miss Carrie C. Eakens, daughter of Joseph Eakens, and she died in the following November. On April 17, 1901, Mr. Bailey wedded Miss Mary A. Halsell, daughter of Martin V. B. Halsell, of Meridian, and they have two children-Margaret L. and Chas. M. Mr. and Mrs. Bailey are members of the Methodist Episcopal church.

Barry, Thomas F., is one of the repre- sentative planters of Bolivar county, his finely improved estate, in the famous Delta district, being eligibly located near the thriving village of Benoit. He was born at Oxford, Lafayette county, Miss., March 7, 1864, and is a son of William A. and Sarah R. (Boone) Barry, both of whom were born in Abbeville district, S. C. William A. Barry located in Lafay- ette county, Miss., in 1837, and there be- came a successful planter, continuing his residence in the county until his death in 1885, his wife also dying in that county. He entered the Confederate service at the outbreak of the Civil war, was captured by the enemy, after having received a severe wound, and the ill treatment he received in the Federal prison caused his health to be very precarious during the remainder of his life. He was sent home, being put off the boat at Greenville, Miss., as a dead man, but through the kindly minis- trations of Stevenson Archer, of that place, he was resuscitated and sent to his home and family, partially recuperating his energies with the passing of time. After attending the common schools of his native county, Thomas F. Barry continued his studies in the University of Mississippi. He has been identified with plantation interests from his youth to the present, and he now owns one of the best plantations in the Delta district, having come to Bolivar county in 1893. He is a stanch advocate of the cause of the Democratic party and is now serving as magistrate of the Fourth district, being held in unqualified confidence and esteem in the community. Both he and his wife are members of the Presbyterian church, and he is affiliated with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, the Masonic fraternity, the Knights of Pythias and the Woodmen of the World. Feb. 27, 1895, recorded the marriage of Mr. Barry to Miss Margaret L. Burrus, daughter of John C. and Margaret L. (Barrett) Burrus, of Bolivar county, and the three children of this union are Archie Louise, Edwin McGehee and Margaret Grace.

Barnard, William H., M. D., of Anguilla, is one of the successful and popular representatives of his profession in Sharkey county, and it is pleasing to record that he was born in the house in which he now resides, the date of his nativity having been July 26, 1849. He is a son of Joseph L. Barnard, who was born and reared in Natchez, Miss., being of English descent. Rebecca Frances (Robb)

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Barnard, mother of the subject of this sketch, was born in Adams county, this State, and both she and her husband continued to reside in Mississippi until they were called to the life eternal. Dr. Barnard secured his earlier educational discipline in the schools of Pass Christian, Miss., supplementing this by study in Oakland college. In preparing for his profession he entered the Hospital college of Medicine, in the city of Louisville, being graduated in that institution in February, 1877, and receiving his degree of Doctor of Medicine. After his graduation he served as interne in a Louisville hospital for one year, and then located in Anguilla, where he has since remained in general practice as a physician and surgeon-a period of more than a quarter of a century, within which he has gained distinctive precedence in his profession, ever con- tinuing a close student of the same and having been very success- ful in his efforts. He is a citizen of worth and influence and is held in unqualified esteem in his native town and county. He is a mem- ber of the State medical association, is affiliated with the Masonic fraternity and is a stalwart Democrat in his political proclivities. He has served as a member of the board of county supervisors and is now (1906) a member of the State levee commission. On June 6, 1880, Dr. Barnard was united in marriage to Miss Ida Creath, daughter of Daniel Creath, of Vicksburg, Miss., and she died in July of the following year, leaving no children; she was a com- municant of the Catholic church.

Beemer, George H., is the popular and able superintendent of the Taylor Compress Company, of Corinth, and also of the Corinth Ice Company, in each of which corporations he is a stockholder. He has held his present offices since 1902, prior to which time he had been a clerical employe in the Corinth offices of the Southern railway for a period of twelve years. He is well known in the city and is recognized as an able executive and progressive business man. The plant of the Taylor Compress Company is one of the largest in the State, and in the same an average of about 50,000 bales of cotton is handled each year. Mr. Beemer is a native of the State of Alabama, and there he was reared and educated. The family was originally founded in Virginia, whence representatives finally removed to Alabama. The father of the subject of this review was a loyal soldier of the Confederacy in the Civil war. Mr. Beemer is a stanch adherent of the Democratic party and is prominently identified with the Masonic fraternity and also affil- iated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias. He has passed the official chairs in the local lodge, chapter and council bodies of the Masonic order, is a member also of the Corinth commandery of Knights Templars and is a noble of the Temple of the Mystic Shrine in the city of Meridian.

Bell, Benjamin Franklin, is one of the representative members of the bar of his native county and is established in a large and suc- cessful practice at the county seat, Starkville. He was born on the home plantation, in Oktibbeha county, Miss., Sept. 1, 1874, and is a scion of one of the old and honored families of this section of the

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State. He is a son of Benjamin Franklin and Anna (Pressley) Bell. His father was born in Oktibbeha county, Aug. 24, 1841, and here he continued to make his home until his death, which occurred June 18, 1902. He was a son of James M. Bell, who came with his family from Fairfield district, S. C., to Oktibbeha county, settling on a plantation three miles southwest of Starkville, and afterward removing to Canton, Madison county, in order to afford his children better educational advantages. He was a man of fine mentality and of deep and fervent religious convictions, ever commanding the esteem of his fellow men. Five of his sons, including the father of the subject of this review, were valiant soldiers of the Confederacy in the Civil war-Henry A., Jeremiah G., William M., John and Benjamin F. The last mentioned served during the entire course of the war, having enlisted in the spring of 1861 in what was known as Rescue company, which was mustered in as Company C, Four- teenth Mississippi infantry. He participated in the battle of Fort Donelson, where he was captured, being taken to Camp Douglas, near Chicago, where he was held a prisoner of war about five months, at the expiration of which his exchange was effected. He rejoined his command, which was reorganized, and later took part in Hood's memorable campaign in Tennessee. He took part in the battle of Franklin, and in the sieges of the cities of Atlanta and Vicksburg, besides the various other important engagements in which his command was involved, and he remained with his regi- ment until the close of the war, having been promoted to a lieu- tenancy. After the end of his long and faithful service as a soldier of the Confederacy, he resumed farming operations in Oktibbeha county, where he passed the remainder of his life-a man of invio- lable integrity and one who wielded much influence in a quiet way, though he would never consent to become a candidate for public office. He was a stanch adherent of the Democratic party and was a zealous member of the Associated Reformed Presbyterian church, as is also his wife, who still maintains her home in Oktibbeha county. She is a daughter of Rev. David Pressley, who was pastor of the Associate Reformed Presbyterian church at Starkville for forty-five years, and who died at the age of seventy-six years. Benjamin F. Bell, Jr., the immediate subject of this sketch, secured his fundamental education in the common schools and was grad- uated in the high school at Brookville, after which he took a course in the Capital commercial college, in the city of Jackson, being grad- uated in that institution. He then took up the study of law under private preceptorship and for a short time was a student in the law department of the University of Mississippi, passing an examination before the board of examiners of that institution and later before Chancellor Muldron, of Starkville, being admitted to the bar in December, 1899, and immediately establishing an office in Starkville. He imagined that his professional novitiate would prove of pro- tracted order, as is usually the case, but he was favored in securing an appreciative support from the start and has built up a large and important law business in that section of the State, his success being

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of the most unequivocal order and indicating his technical knowl- edge and his devotion to his chosen vocation. Since the spring of 1901 he has been associated in practice with G. Odie Daniels, under the firm name of Bell & Daniels. In politics Mr. Bell is aligned as a stanch supporter of the principles and policies of the Democratic party, and while he shows a zealous interest in the promotion of its cause, he has invariably refused candidacy for office. In 1903 he was strongly urged to become a candidate for State senator from his district, but he refused the overtures; on three different occa- sions he has been requested to become a candidate for the office of mayor of Starkville. He is affiliated with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights and Ladies of Honor, and both he and his wife are members of the United Presbyterian church. On Sept. 2, 1891, Mr. Bell was united in marriage to Miss Ellen Bailey, daughter of William B. Bailey, a resident of the State of Virginia. Mr. and Mrs. Bell have six children, namely: Benjamin Franklin (3d), Paul Watt, Viola Fair, Elbert Bailey, Thelma Elizabeth and Ellen Pressley.

Blanks, Charles F., 'is a leading mer- chant of Bonita. He was born Dec. 22, 1863, at Why Not, Lauderdale county, Miss., and is a son of James L. and Elizabeth (Williams) Blanks, the former a native of Georgia and the latter of Mis- sissippi. The father came from Georgia in 1848 and settled in Lauderdale county where he engaged in planting. For a short time he was a member of a Missis- sippi regiment in the Civil war, and a few years before his death, which occurred on April 24, 1904, while still keeping an active interest in his plantation, he en- gaged in the mercantile business at Why Not. Charles F. Blanks was educated in the common schools of Lauderdale county. After the completion of his schooling he en- gaged in farming and has been more or less actively interested in it all his life, at the present time having agricultural lands in Ala- bama as well as in Mississippi. In 1898 he embarked in the general mercantile business in Why Not, and two years later went to Bonita and established himself in the same line of business. At Cyril, Ala., at which place his Alabama farming lands are situated, he is also engaged in the mercantile business under the firm name of Blanks & McLinder. In his political views Mr. Blanks is a Dem- ocrat, but takes no active part in the campaigns. His religious affiliations are with the Primitive Baptist church, to which his parents before him belonged, and he has been clerk of the church at Why Not. On Dec. 15, 1887, Mr. Blanks married Miss Viola Mooney, a daughter of L. J. and Mary (Robinson) Mooney, of Choctaw county, Ala. The children of this union are five in num-

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ber-Percy, Mary, Frank, Edwin and James. Mr. Blanks is a man of fine business capacity, keen perception and sterling integrity.

Berry, Joel Halbert, who died at his home in Baldwyn, Miss., in 1875, left a definite impress upon the history of his time and was a citizen of prominence and influence. He was born in Anderson county, S. C., in 1808, and in that State he was reared and educated. In consequence of poverty in his early life, his educational ad- vantages were very poor. He had a thirst for knowledge while quite young, and availed himself of every opportunity for study. By brilliant lights of pine knots he would study until late at night. When shut in by bad weather or otherwise hindered from out-door work, his book was his companion. Frequently while plowing he would take his book to the field, place it open on the fence, so as to catch a sentence as he turned his horse, and between the plow handles would solve some problem or master some principle of grammar. By this means he acquired a fair English education with- out the advantages of even an academic course. In 1843 he came to Mississippi and took up his residence in Tippah county, where he developed one of the finest plantations in this section of the State, the same having secured a premium in 1859 for being the best con- ducted farm in the county. He was a man of forceful individuality and wielded no little influence in connection with public affairs. Prior to coming to Mississippi he served two terms as a member of the legislature of South Carolina, and from 1848 until 1860 he was a member of the Mississippi legislature, having been in the senate during eight years of this interval. While in the legislature he accomplished a noteworthy work in behalf of the cause of popu- lar education in the State. He introduced a bill regulating the distribution of the public-school fund in such a way as to enable those in indigent circumstances to give their children proper educa- tional advantages, and this bill as enacted proved altogether benef- icent. He was ever a stanch advocate of the free school system and took deep interest in the cause of education in the State. He was a member of the convention which adopted the ordinance by which Mississippi seceded from the Union, and during the war he loyally supported the Confederate government by all means at his command. His political support was given to the Democratic party. He was a member of the Baptist church. In his church he was looked upon as a leader. Wise, prudent and aggressive, he won the esteem of others who delighted to follow his leadership. He was recognized as a leader in all denominational and church work. For twenty-five years he was chairman of the executive board of Chick- asaw Baptist association, which is considered the mother of asso- ciations in northern Mississippi. His active but humble Christian life extended over a period of more than fifty years. In South Carolina was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Berry to Miss Martha M. Simpson, daughter of Rev. David Simpson, a clergyman of the Presbyterian church, and she survived her husband by several years. Concerning their children, the following data are entered : Martha L. is the wife of Dr. R. M. Leavell, who is professor of logic

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in the University of Mississippi, at Oxford. Rev. Julius S. is a clergyman of the Baptist church and resides at Baldwyn. He was a lieutenant in the Civil war. Prof. William E. Berry is one of the owners of Blue Mountain female college, with which he has been identified since 1875, and he is one of the well known and popular educators of the State. He was for many years professor of Latin and Greek in this institution, of which he is now business manager. James A., the next in order of birth, is deceased. Corrie is the wife of Rev. James Buchanan, of Blue Mountain, who is a prominent clergyman of the Baptist church. Etta is the wife of William R. Nelson, of Baldwyn, Miss.

Boone, William Alexander, has been cashier of the Merchants' and Farmers' bank of Pontotoc from the time of its or- ganization, in 1900, and his able and conscientious efforts have had marked in- fluence in building up the splendid busi- ness which this substantial financial in- stitution now controls. He is a native of Pontotoc county, where he was born Aug. 4, 1866, and is a son of William S. and Ophelia A. (Watson) Boone, both of whom were born in Lafayette county, that State. The father was a valiant soldier in the Confederate service during the Civil war, as a member of a Missis- sippi regiment, and William Boone, grandfather of the subject of this review, was a soldier in the War of 1812; he came to Missis- sippi from South Carolina in an early day and became a successful planter in Lafayette county. The maternal grandparents, David B. and Amanda Watson, were likewise early settlers of that county. William A. Boone, whose name initiates this article, was reared to manhood in Pontotoc county and after attending its common schools, continued his studies in Toccopola college. Prior to assum- ing his present executive office he gave his attention principally to agricultural and mercantile pursuits, and he is well known in his native county, where he is recognized as a reliable and able business man and loyal citizen. He gives his allegiance to the Democratic party, and is affiliated with the Masonic fraternity, including the Mystic Shrine, and with the Knights of Pythias. In 1890 Mr. Boone was united in marriage to Miss Haidee Avent, daughter of Thomas L. Avent, of Lafayette county. She died in 1893, and is survived by two children-Alice Loy and Sanford Lundy. In 1899 Mr. Boone contracted a second marriage, being then united to Miss Celma Furr, daughter of William M. Furr, of Pontotoc county, and they have two children-Mary Watson and William Furr.

Blount, Lucius L., clerk of the circuit court of Water Valley, was born at Pittsboro, Calhoun county, Miss., May 11, 1875, a son of I. T. and Susan M. (Hubbard) Blount. The father was born in Rip- ley, Miss., and the mother in Greensboro, N. C. After receiving a

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preliminary education in the schools in the vicinity of his child- hood home, Lucius L. Blount matriculated at the University of Mississippi, at Oxford. He went from college to Water Valley, where he was employed for a time as bookkeeper and stenographer. In politics he is a Democrat and as the candidate of that party has been twice elected clerk of the circuit court. Fraternally he is identified with the Knights of Pythias, the Woodmen of the World and the Free and Accepted Masons. On Dec. 26, 1897, Mr. Blount was united in marriage to Miss Evelyn N. Boyn, daughter of S. D. and Addie G. (Newberry) Boyn, of Coffeeville, Miss. To this union have been born three children-Lucille, I. T., and Lucius L., Jr. Mr. Blount is a man of genial, courteous manner and eminently fitted for the position of trust which he now holds.

Boyd, George F., the able and efficient superintendent of schools in the city of Kosciusko, was born in Chickasaw county, Miss., March 30, 1864. His parents were George W. and Caroline (Bram- lett) Boyd, natives of South Carolina. The common schools of Chickasaw county, the University of Mississippi and a normal school, furnished Professor Boyd with a broad education. After the completion of his collegiate work in 1886, he did his first teach- ing in a school in the county of his nativity. For this labor he received $12.40 per month, but the nobility of the vocation was fully appreciated and the decision to make teaching his life calling was made after the first month's work had been completed. For three years he was at the head of the Plattsburg, Miss., schools and. for two years held the same position at Louisville, Miss. In 1893 Professor Boyd was made the superintendent of the Kosciusko schools. Under his excellent management the school roll of the city has increased from 166 to 471, while the increase of population in the city has been but forty per cent. As an evidence of the appre- ciation of the fine work of Professor Boyd is the fact that the city has razed all the old school buildings and built new structures at a cost of $30,000. Politically Mr. Boyd is a Democrat. In 1886 he was appointed county examiner of Chickasaw county by Judge Locke E. Houston, in 1886, and for four years held the same office in Winston county. In 1902 he was made president of the State teachers' association and the following year was chairman of a committee to investigate and report upon the status of the public schools of the State. He is also the incumbent of the office of chairman of the State library board. In religious matters, Professor Boyd is affiliated with and a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and is a member of the board of stewards of the Kosciusko congregation. He is also the superintendent of the Sunday school, which position he has held for the past five years. His wife is a member of the Baptist church. On Aug. 26, 1892, Professor Boyd married Miss Lillian, daughter of Mrs. Ellen Anthony of Torrance, Miss. At the time of her marriage Mrs. Boyd was occupying the chair of history in the Blue Mountain college. By her marriage to Professor Boyd she is the mother of two children, Ellen L. and

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George F., Jr. Professor Boyd is a member of the Knights of Pythias and of the Woodmen of the World.

Bozeman, Albert L., State's attorney for Lauderdale county, is one of the representative members of the bar of the city of Meridian, where he controls a large and important practice. Mr. Bozeman has the distinction of being a native of the Old Dominion State, having been born in the city of Richmond, Va., Jan. 2, 1864, and being a son of Rev. Joseph W. and Mary (Smead) Bozeman, the former of whom was born in Alabama and the latter in Richmond, Va. Rev. Joseph W. Bozeman was a clergyman of the Baptist church, was a man of high attainments and labored long and suc- cessfully in his noble calling, having come to Mississippi when a young man and having held important pastoral charges at Lexing- ton, Aberdeen, Meridian and other places. He continued to reside in this State until his death, which occurred in 1895, in the city of Meridian. The subject of this review secured his preliminary edu- cation in public and private schools and then entered historic old Mississippi college, at Clinton, where he was graduated as a member of the class of 1883, receiving the degree of Bachelor of Arts. He then took up the study of law and in 1887 he entered the law de- partment of Columbian university (now George Washington univer- sity), in Washington, D. C., from which institution he received the degree of Doctor of Laws, in 1888. He forthwith began the prac- tice of his profession in the city of Meridian, where he has since continued and where he has attained to distinctive prestige and success. In 1890 he was a member of the law firm of Cochran & Bozeman, and in 1904 he became a member of the firm of Fewell, Bozeman & Fewell. He is now conducting an individual practice. Mr. Bozeman is a stanch supporter of the cause of the Democratic party and has been an effective worker in its ranks. He served for a time as city attorney of Meridian, has been State's attorney for the county since 1896 and is also local attorney for several railroads entering Meridian. On Aug. 24, 1899, Mr. Bozeman was united in marriage to Miss Sarah Hoskins, of Brookhaven, Miss., and they have one child-Albert L., Jr.

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Mississippi : comprising sketches of towns, events, institutions, and persons, arranged in cyclopedic form Vol. III, Part 9

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