History of North Carolina: North Carolina biography, Volume V, Part 1

Author: Connor, R. D. W. (Robert Digges Wimberly), 1878-1950; Boyd, William Kenneth, 1879-1938. dn; Hamilton, Joseph Gregoire de Roulhac, 1878-
Publication date: 1919
Publisher: Chicago : New York : Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 730

USA > North Carolina > History of North Carolina: North Carolina biography, Volume V > Part 1

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GENEALOGY COLLECTION

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Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2016

https://archive.org/details/historyofnorthca05conn_0

J. J. Alderman

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HISTORY

NORTH CAROLINA

VOLUME V NORTH CAROLINA BIOGRAPHY BY SPECIAL STAFF OF WRITERS

J. J. Alden

ILLUSTRATED

THE LEWIS PUBLISHING COMPANY CHICAGO AND NEW YORK

1919

1357289

Respecto form friss

HISTORY OF NORTH CAROLINA

FRIES FAMILY. Fries is a family name in Western North Carolina, and it has specially prominent associatious in and around Winston- Salem. The following brief genealogy is pre- sented for reference in connection with sketches of individuals of the family published herewith.

I. Sigismund Eberhard von Fries, colonel, and commandant of Hoechst am Main, married Ju- liana Anna, Lady Hamilton, a Scotch woman. Their son

II. Heinrich Sigismund von Fries, gentleman of the Bed-Chamber in Hesse-Homberg, and lieuten- ant in the Army of the Emperor, fell in battle October, 1683. His widow (a daughter of Philipp Moritz von Erckebrecht, warden of the Court of Hanau), bore a son five months after the death of her husband. This son

III. Johann Konrad von Fries was born at Frankfort am Main March, 1684, and died Janu- ary 3, 1763. His mother lost the greater part of her fortune through a second marriage, and Kon- rad was apprenticed to an apothecary in Erfurt, who required him to renounce his rank. As Konrad Fries he later settled at Montbeliard (or Moempelgard), France, where he continued as an apothecary and also became burgomaster.

He married (1) Catharine Duvernoy, their son, George Conrad, having many descendants; married (2) on January 22, 1715, Judith Scharfenstein, who died in February, 1747, leaving three children. The youngest son

IV. Peter Konrad Fries was born at Montbe- liard, November 3, 1720. Took the degree Doc- tor of Philosophy at Strassburg. Served as pas- tor at various places (Lutheran) until 1758, when he joined the Unitas Fratrum or Moravian Church. November 30, 1763, he married Christine Jaeschke (born August 17, 1738, at Herrnhut, died there November 22, 1798), daughter of Michael Jaeschke (born September 27, 1701, at Sehlen, Moravia, died September 16, 1772, at Herrnhut), a de- scendant of members of the Ancient Unitas Fra- trum and himself one of the company that to secure religious liberty emigrated from Moravia to Saxony in 1722, and settled on the estates of Count Zinzendorf, where the Unitas Fratrum was renewed in 1727. Peter Konrad Fries was a man of marked ability aud held many important positions in the Moravian Church, finally becom- ing a member of its governing board, the Unity 's Elders' Conference. He died at Barby, September 12, 1783, and was buried in the graveyard at Herrnhut. He left two sons, Jakob Friedrich, who became an eminent Doctor of Philosophy, Professor of Mathematics and Logic at the Uni- versity of Jena, and the author of numerous books and pamphlets; and

V. Johann Christian Wilhelm Fries, born at Barby, November 22, 1775. Was educated at

Niesky, and became a cabinet maker. Emigrated to America in 1809, reaching Salem, North Caro- lina, October 31st. On October 13, 1811, he mar- ried Johanna Elisabeth Nissen, who was born March 15, 1787, and died January 21, 1864. She was the daughter of Tycho (or Toego) Nissen (born March 14, 1732, in Gestrop, Holstein), who came to America in 1770, settling among the Moravians in North Carolina. He married Salome Meuer (born January 20, 1750, in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, and died May 4, 1821, in Salem), daughter of Philipp Meuer, born March 25, 1708, in Ingweiler, Alsatia, and died April 15, 1759, in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Philipp Meuer's wife, whose name was Kraft, died March 17, 1756. Tycho Nissen was pastor at Friedland, North Carolina, from 1775 to 1780. He died in Salem, February 20, 1798.

Johann Christian Wilhelm Fries bought a house on Main Street, Salem, and was superintendent of the Brothers' House carpenter shop. Later he bought a farm on the edge of town and moved there and died January 26, 1866. He had three children : Carolina Amanda, born June 16, 1817, married Edward Belo, had seven children, and died February 14, 1881; Henry William, born March 5, 1825, died November 4, 1902; while the eldest was

VI. Francis Levin Fries, who was born Octo- ber 17, 1812, in Salem, North Carolina. On May 24, 1838, he married Lisetta Maria Vogler, who was born March 3, 1820, and died October 23, 1903. He was one of the pioneer manufacturers of North Carolina and a leader in the affairs of town, county and state. He died August 1, 1863, leaving seven children:

VII. Carrie Fries, born October 8, 1839, mar- ried Dr. John Francis Shaffner, who was born July 14, 1838, died September 18, 1908, and had five childreu. Mary Elisabeth Fries, born August 31, 1844, married Rufus Lenior Patterson, who was born June 22, 1830, and died July 15, 1879, and they had six sons. John William Fries, born November 7, 1846, married Agnes Sophia de Schweinitz, who was born August 12, 1849, and died February 2, 1915, and they had two daugh- ters. Emma Christina Fries, born June 25, 1852, married Dr. Henry T. Bahnson, who was born March 4, 1845, died January 16, 1917, and they had six children. Francis Henry Fries, born Feb- ruary 1, 1855, married (1) Letitia Patterson, who was born January 22, 1860, and died May 28, 1884, their only daughter dying in infancy; and married (2) Anna Paulina de Schweinitz, who was born October 28, 1860, and is the mother of one daughter. Henry Elias Fries, born Septem- ber 22, 1857, married Rosa Mickey, born May 24, 1860, their only daughter, Anna Marguerite, died at the age of twenty-three years. Louisa Sarah

Vol. V-1

HISTORY OF NORTH CAROLINA

Fries, born December 8, 1859, married Rev. Walter William Moore, born June 14, 1857, and had four children.

FRANCIS LEVIN FRIES, mentioned in the gen- ealogy of the Fries family, was one of the real founders of the modern City of Winston-Salem, and a pioneer manufacturer and civic leader there. As such his career deserves some special atten- tion.

He was born at Salem, October 17, 1812, a son of John Christian and Johanna Elisabeth (Nis- sen) Fries. For his higher education he entered Nazareth Hall in Pennsylvania, and after the completion of his course taught school. He stu- died law under the prominent attorney, Emanuel Shober, and was admitted to the bar and began practice at Salem. His real life work, however, was not in the law. Soon after beginning prac- tice he was appointed agent for the newly organ- ized Salem Manufacturing Company. In that ca- pacity he visited cotton mills in various north- ern cities, studied their business methods and acquired a thorough understanding of the machin- ery involved in cotton manufacture. Then in 1836 he superintended the erection of and in- stallation of the machinery in the first cotton fac- tory in what is now the City of Winston-Salem. In 1839 Mr. Fries severed his connection with the Salem Manufacturing Company, and erected a wool mill of his own. In 1846 his brother, Henry, be- came associated with him, making the firm which for so many years operated in Winston-Salem, under the name of F. and H. Fries.

Mr. Fries continued in active business until his death on August 1, 1863.

The energies of his character were not ex- pressed alone in business activity. When Forsyth County was erected he was appointed by the Leg- islature one of the commissioners to select a site for the courthouse and to purchase land and have it surveyed and sold into lots. Thus he arranged for the purchase of 5114 acres at $5 an acre. This land included what is now the heart of the business section of Winston-Salem as well as the courthouse site. For several years he served as chairman of the Court of Common Pleas and Quarter Sessions, was also a justice of the peace, and one of the first board of commissioners when in 1856 Salem was incorporated. Later he was mayor of the city. He was a strong advocate and liberal supporter of higher education. Thus he became identified with the Salem Female Acad- emy and College. He carefully planned and made the drawings and specifications for the main hall of that institution, which even today is a much admired piece of architecture. The hall was built in 1856.

Before the railroad era and when transporta- tion was by wagons and teams, he became a pro- moter of the plank road from Fayetteville west- ward. He was also a promoter of and a stock- holder and director in the North Carolina Rail- road. In 1857 he represented his county in the Legislature. Mr. Fries for a number of years was a trustee of the Moravian Church at Salem.

On May 24, 1838, he married Lisetta Maria Vogler, who was born March 3, 1820, and died October 23, 1903. She was a daughter of John and Christina (Spach) Vogler. Christina Spach was born August 17, 1792, a daughter of Gott- lieb and Elizabeth (Hege) Spach and a grand- daughter of Adam and Martha Elizabeth (Gue- ter) Spach. Elizabeth Hege was the daughter

of Balthaser and Juliana (Frye) Hege. Francis L. Fries and wife were the parents of seven chil- dren, as mentioned in the Fries family sketch.

JOHN WILLIAM FRIES, the oldest son of the late Francis L. Fries, was for many years actively identified with the cotton mill industry of North Carolina and has filled with distinction many other posts in commercial and civic affairs.

He was born at Salem November 7, 1846. He was educated under private tutors, and in the Salem Boys School, and in 1861 at the age of fifteen entered the offices of F. and H. Fries, under his father and uncle, and was with that cot- ton mill firm until 1866, throughout the period of the war. He then continued his higher education in the University of North Carolina until 1868. Returning to the mills he was one of their man- aging officials for a great many years, and ac- quired a highly technical knowledge of the cotton industry. Mr. Fries has invented and patented several machines which are now in general use.

Mr. Fries served as director of the Fries Man- ufacturing and Power Company, and of the North Carolina Midland Railroad Company, of the Wachovia Loan and Trust Company, was formerly president of the Arista Mills and now a director and is president of the Fealty Building and Loan Association.

Since 1912 Mr. Fries has given his time to the affairs of the People's National Bank of Win- ston-Salem, of which he is president. He is one of North Carolina's recognized authorities on finan- cial matters and at a convention of the Commer- cial Organizations of the United States held at Indianapolis in 1896 to devise means for the per- petuation of the gold standard, he was elected a member of its executive committee and subse- quently was transferred to the Monetary Com- mission.

The public welfare has always bespoken a large share of his studious attention. He served several terms as commissioner of the Town of Salem and as a magistrate, he was a member of the board of county commissioners and for six years was judge of the County Court. He was one of the trustees of the local Moravian Church, was a delegate to two general synods held at Herrnhut, Germany, and is now a member of the board of provincial elders of the Southern Province of the Moravian Church. He is also a trustee of Salem Academy and College and of the University of North Carolina.

Mr. Fries married Agnes Sophia de Schweinitz, who was born August 12, 1849, and died Febru- ary 2, 1915. She is survived by two daughters,. Mary E. and Adelaide. Mary is the wife of Col. W. A. Blair and their three children are Margaret,. Marian and John Fries. Miss Adelaide is a grad- uate of Salem College, has pursued studies abroad, and inherits marked literary talent from her father. She is a ready writer and is the author of several historical works, and is now engaged in a trans- lation of the Memorabilia of the Home Moravian Church.

COL. FRANCIS HENRY FRIES. In the making 0 Winston-Salem a modern commercial city hardly one individual factor has accomplished more than Col. Francis Henry Fries, widely known over North Carolina and also Virginia as a banker and manufacturer. Colonel Fries has had many points of contact with the world, with men and affairs, and though his name has figured little

HISTORY OF NORTH CAROLINA

in political life he has the qualities of the pub- lic leader. His best years have been devoted to constructive achievements.

A son of Francis L. and Lisetta M. (Vogler) Fries and of the prominent Fries family else- where mentioned in this publication, Colonel Fries was born in Salem February 1, 1855. He was prepared for college in his native city. It was his intention to take his college work in the Uni- versity of North Carolina, but when he was ready the blight of reconstruction times had fallen upon the State University and its doors were tem- porarily closed. He therefore entered Davidson College and was graduated with honors from that institution in 1873.

His father had been a prominent pioneer man- ufacturer at Salem, and the young college grad- uate immediately entered the mills of F. and H. Fries, starting work in the garb of the me- chanic and in the blacksmith shop. By the ex- perience of those early years he was able to take the laborer's viewpoint, and he had a thorough fellowship with toil. He worked his way through every department of the business, from the han- dling of the raw materials until the product was finished, and the technical knowledge of detail thus acquired has no doubt been one of the im- port factors in his success.

Much of his breadth of sympathy and large- ness of view can be attributed not only to his very active business life in North Carolina, but also to the influence and associations derived from a period of travel and residence abroad. In 1878 he went with his brother, Henry E. Fries, and his uncle, Henry W. Fries, to Europe, and in the course of the tour visited Ireland, England, Scot- land, France, Germany, Switzerland and Italy. It was part of a liberal education, not merely a pleasure trip.

After his return from Europe Colonel Fries be- came superintendent of the F. and H. Fries mills, and gave his entire time to that business until 1887. He personally instituted or had some di- rect connection with all the many changes brought about in the business during that period. Methods of manufacturing were improved and the many problems involved in finding a market for the finished goods had been met and solved.

While the success of the mills was assured so far as the opportunities of the location and the community were concerned, other problems con- nected with the continued advancement and pros- perity of Winston-Salem were being presented. In 1887 only one railroad passed through Winston- Salem, thus restricting the transportation facili- ties which are the vital consideration in any large enterprise. This railroad was the Rich- mond & Danville. Some of the local men who were striving to place Winston-Salem more ad- vantageously on the commercial map, projected a line to extend from Winston-Salem across the Blue Ridge to Roanoke, Virginia. At the solici- tation of his friends Colonel Fries accepted the responsibilities of financing and building this road. He withdrew from all other business activities and gave the railroad his entire time and atten- tion. At the beginning the only money avail- able was $40,000 raised by subscription in and around Winston-Salem. After four years of stren- uous labor the road was completed at a total cost of $2,081,000. That road did more than anything else to fix the future of Winston-Salem. When it was completed Colonel Fries declined further active association with the line, and justly felt that

the burdens of its maintenance and operation should be carried by others.

In 1896 with a few associates Colonel Fries built the Mayo Mills and established the Village of Mayodan on the Mayo River in Rockingham County, North Carolina. In 1899 Colonel Fries and associates built the Avalon Mills, two miles above Mayodan. In 1902 he had a prominent part in the construction of the Washington Mills at Fries, Virginia. He and his associates secured large tracts of land bordering on New River in Carroll and Grayson counties, Virginia, and on part of that land laid the foundation for one of the largest cotton mill properties in the South. For his part in the enterprise his associates in- sisted that the name of the manufacturing town be called Fries. Another important work of Colonel Fries was the projection of the Winston- Salem Southbound Railroad, in 1893, when the Roanoke & Southern Railway was merged with the Norfolk & Western Railway. Colonel Fries organized the Wachovia Loan & Trust Company, which in turn was merged in 1911 with the Wacho- via National Bank, the same being now known as the Wachovia Bank and Trust Company, with its home office at Winston-Salem and branch of- fices at Asheville, Salisbury, High Point, North Carolina. It is the oldest and largest bank and trust company in the State of North Carolina and one of the largest in the southern states.

The usefulness and vigor of Colonel Fries in industrial affairs in North Carolina are now just at their high tide. At this writing he is president of the Wachovia Bank and Trust Company of Winston-Salem; president of the Washington Mills at Fries, Virginia; president of the Mayo Mills at Mayodan, these mills since their original construc- tion having been converted into a knitting mill, which is one of the largest of its kind in the South; he is also president of the Brown & Wil- liamson Tobacco Company of Winston-Salem; he is vice president of the Oakdale Mills at James- town, North Carolina; vice president of the Ma- line Mills and the Indera Mills, both at Winston- Salem; and director of the Arista and South Side Mills of Winston-Salem.

It is only natural that national recognition should be accorded to a man who has accomplished so much in his native state. This came with the presidential appointment on November 15, 1917, of Colonel Fries as state director of the National War Savings Committee. In making this appoint- ment the Government selected the one man in North Carolina who is best known as a success- ful organizer. At this writing Colonel Fries has already effected a strong state machine, and is se- curing state-wide co-operation to a most unusual extent. It is confidentially expected that North Carolina will fulfill its requirements under the strong leadership of the state's leading financial organizer.

Colonel Fries is undoubtedly one of North Car- olina's most powerful and ablest financiers. His ability has been frequently recognized. He has served as president of the State Bankers' Asso- ciation, and also a member of the executive committee of the American Bankers' Association, and in 1911-12 was president of the trust section of the American Bankers' Association.

Such a career is naturally, in the highest degree, of constructive benefit to the general public. He could not have accomplished any more, if as much, had he held any number of political offices and he has widely abstained from politics so far as

HISTORY OF NORTH CAROLINA

office holding is concerned. However, he served with the rank of colonel on the staff of Governor A. M. Scales. In his youth he became a member of the Home Moravian Church, in 1874 one of the teachers in its Sunday school, and from 1885 to 1905 was Sunday school superintendent. He has been a member of the board of elders of the church for twenty-five years, until he became a member of the central board of trustees of which body he is now president.

Colonel Fries was married in 1881 to Letitia Walker Patterson, who was born January 22, 1860, and died May 28, 1884. She was a daughter of Hon. Rufus L. and Maria (Moorehead) Patter- son, and a granddaughter of Governor Moorehead of North Carolina. Mrs. Fries' death occurred near that of their only and infant daughter. In 1886 Colonel Fries married Anna P. de Schweinitz, who was born October 28, 1860, daughter of Bishop E. A. de Schweinitz and member of the old fam- ily of that name elsewhere mentioned in this publication. Colonel and Mrs. Fries have one daughter, Eleanor. This daughter married Rich- ard F. Willingham of Macon, Georgia, and is the mother of two children, Eleanor Ross and Francis Fries Willingham.

HENRY ELIAS FRIES. The youngest of the three sons of the late Francis L. Fries, Henry Elias has not only made his life conform to the worthy traditions of one of the best known fam- ilies of Western North Carolina, but has con- tributed new distinctions and achievements to the record. His name could hardly be omitted from any list however small supposed to repre- sent the dominant figures in North Carolina's commercial and industrial life.

Doubtless the best answer to the questions which might be asked concerning who he is and his work and service and the experiences and influ- ences of his life are to be found in an article written by an old acquaintance and business as- sociate in Winston-Salem. It is from that article that the following paragraphs are chiefly con- structed.

He was born at Salem September 22, 1857. of this parentage and ancestry little need be said here, since it is all set forth on other pages of this publication. The influences of his youth were not only those of loving and devoted par- ents but also of the Moravian Church in which he was reared. Another influence, of more sin- ister character, was the great conflict between the North and the South which was raging when his first conscious recollections of life began. Though too young to comprehend its meaning and its re- sults, the war was in fact one of those mighty influences which often sway men's future lives for good or ill. Physically he was rather fragile and delicate, but in school learned his lessons well, though he became somewhat restless at times and longed for the fields and the woods and the open places of the world. He was six years of age when death darkened the household and took away his honored father, a man whose life was of the greatest potency in Winston-Salem, and concerning whom more is written elsewhere. For- tunately the subsequent years were guided and inspired by the noble strength and beautiful char- acter of his mother. He also came to look upon his uncle, H. W. Fries, and his elder brother, J. W. Fries, somewhat in the light of a father, and they were always ready with counsel, advice and help.

He was educated in the Salem Boys School, an institution which has been the inspiration for hundreds of young men in Western North Carolina. When not in school he spent much time around the cotton and woolen mills owned by the family and in the machine shops. He acquired some- thing of an expert knowledge of tools, and of the many details of factory work, and at the same time learned the point of view and the problems of the laboring classes.

At the age of seventeen he entered Davidson College. His uncle's parting words, "Never do anything to cause regret or shame," lingered with him and kept him through his college career as wall as in later years honest, industrious, tem- perate, thrifty and always endeavoring to meas- ure his own life up to the highest standards of human conduct. He was in Davidson College three years. He had to give up his course because of failing eyesight but he lost no time in idle- ness between his college work and his practical career.

He was soon made manager of the Wachovia Flouring Mills, owned by the firm of F. and H. Fries. He was at the head of that successful enterprise for more than a score of years. Near Salem had been established a Sunday school, and he found in that an outlet for his spiritual and religious nature and became its superintendent, a post he has now retained for forty years. The finishing touch to his education, worth more be- cause of its opportunities for observation and study of the world at large than a full college course, came in 1878 when he went abroad with his uncle and other members of the family and visited all the larger countries of Europe.

In 1881 Mr. Fries married Miss Rosa Mickey, who was born May 24, 1860. They had known each other from childhood, and her co-operation and interest in all that he has done and is doing has proved a source of unbounded inspiration, en- couragement and help. Mr. and Mrs. Fries have one child, a daughter.

Mr. Fries was chosen chairman of the great State Exposition, which signalized the birth of a new industrial era in North Carolina. To his ability and intelligent effort was largely due the success of that exposition, held in the year 1884. In 1886 he was chosen a member of the board of education of Forsyth County which dis- tinguished itself by a magnificent constructive program, resulting in the building of numerous convenient and improved schoolhouses throughout the county. The work of this board was not only of great benefit to the immediate county but to other counties in the state, which thenceforth used the schools of Forsyth County as a model.

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History of North Carolina: North Carolina biography, Volume V, Part 1

Author: Connor, R. D. W. (Robert Digges Wimberly), 1878-1950; Boyd, William Kenneth, 1879-1938. dn; Hamilton, Joseph Gregoire de Roulhac, 1878- Publication date: 1919 Publisher: Chicago : New York : Lewis Publishing Co. Number of Pages: 730

Author: Connor, R. D. W. (Robert Digges Wimberly), 1878-1950; Boyd, William Kenneth, 1879-1938. dn; Hamilton, Joseph Gregoire de Roulhac, 1878-
Publication date: 1919
Publisher: Chicago : New York : Lewis Publishing Co.
Number of Pages: 730