History of North Carolina: North Carolina biography, Volume IV, Part 106

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: 750

USA > North Carolina > History of North Carolina: North Carolina biography, Volume IV > Part 106

Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).

HARRY HENLINE BARKER. Scholarly in his at- tainments, and well versed in legal lore, Harry Henline Barker, of Elkin, Surry County, has made rapid strides in his professional carecr,- his suc- cess being due to the sturdy application of his natural and acquired forces. A son of Dr. Larkin Jones Barker, he was born, March 22, 1886, on a farm in Knob Township, Yadkin County, North Carolina. He is of pioneer stock, being a grand- son of Howell Barker, Jr., and great-grandson of Howell Barker, Sr., a pioneer of Iredell County.

Howell Barker, Sr., was an extensive landholder, owning and occupying a plantation in Iredell County. He was born February 24, 1750, and died September 11, 1847, aged ninety-seven years, six months, and eleven days. His will, dated Novem- ber 15, 1839, is now in the possession of the subject of this sketch.

Howell Barker, Jr., was born on the home farm in Iredell County, and there spent his earlier life. Moving to Yadkin County about 1850, he bought a tract of land near Jonesville, and with slave labor improved a good plantation, on which he resided until his death. The maiden name of his second wife, through whom the line of descent is traced, was Rebecca Henline. She was born in Iredell County, and died on the home plantation in Yadkin County.

The only child of his parents, Larkin Jones Barker was born November 13, 1842, in Iredell County, about eighteen miles from Statesville, on a farm bordering on Rocky Creek. Having been graduated from the Jonesville High School, he began the study of medicine with Dr. E. B. Hamp- ton, of Jonesville, and later attended lectures at the Baltimore College of Physicians and sur- geons. Receiving his degree of M. D., Barker located in Jonesville, and having built up an extensive and lucrative practice remained there until his death, November 25, 1897.

On May 3, 1870, Doctor Barker married Mary E. Martin, who was born in Wilkes County, Feb- ruary 15, 1850, a daughter of Leland Martin, and granddaughter of James Martin. Her paterual great-grandfather, Benjamin Martin, a soldier in the Revolutionary army, was one of the first settlers of Wilkes County. He subsequently bought large. tracts of land on the Yadkin River, about two miles from the Roaring River Railway Station, and on the farm which he improved lived and died, his remains, with those of his wife, being laid to rest on the old homestead. James Martin inherited both land and slaves, his plantation bordering on the Yadkin River, extending five miles on the north side, his home being located near the present site of the Roaring River Railroad Station. Public- spirited and patriotic, he served as a soldier in the

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War of 1812. His wife, whose maiden name was Elvira Bryan, was born in Virginia, a daughter of John Bryan, a soldier of the Revolution, and a member of the well-known family of that name, prominent in the annals of Virginia.

Leland Martin was born in Wilkes County in 1826. He inherited a part of his father's estate, and also a few negroes, and in addition to carry- ing on general farming engaged in the manufac- ture of tobacco. His home was pleasantly situated on the Yadkin River, two miles above the present site of Roaring River Railroad Station, and there his death occurred at the advanced age of eighty- three years. For upwards of forty years he served as postmaster at Brier Creek, and in the final settlement the United States Government sent him a check for one penny, which was his just due. The grandmother of H. H. Barker was born in Burke County, on a plantation bordering on the Johns River. Her father lost his mother when quite young, and not liking the stepmother which his father provided him, he ran away from home, and from that time was self-supporting. At the time of his marriage with Laura Perkins, the daughter of a wealthy planter of Burke County, he settled on land that his wife had inherited, in Burke County, and from that time until his death was successfully engaged in farming. He took an active part in public affairs, in 1833 represent- ing Burke County in the State Legislature. Mr. and Mrs. Leland Martin reared six children, as follows: Mary E., Ella, James D., Calara, Harry, and Phlete. Mrs. Mary E. (Martin) Barker reared five sons and one daughter, namely: Walter Bryan; Edgar Reid; Ralph Lee, deceased; Ethel; Royden Jones; and Harry Heuline. Ethel is the wife of Dewey L. Rayman, of Statesville, North Carolina. The mother is now living and makes her home with her children. Both she and her husband united with the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, in early life, and brought up their children in the same religious faith. Her hus- band was a member of the Masonic fraternity.

Acquiring a practical education in the schools of Jonesville and Elkin, Harry Henline Barker en- tered upon a professional career when eighteen years old, and for two terms taught school in the Reddies River District. Having previously decided upon a legal career, he then entered the law de- partment of the University of North Carolina, and having completed the required course of study was admitted to the bar on February 3, 1908. Im- mediately locating in Elkin, Mr. Barker has con- tinued in practice here since, his clientage being large and eminently satisfactory.

Mr. Barker married, November 10, 1909, Miss Edith Grier, who was born in Charlotte, Mecklen- burg County, a daughter of James and Virginia Dare (Vail) Grier. Three children have been born of the union of Mr. and Mrs. Barker, namely: Mary Virginia, Harry H., Jr., and Margaret. Religiously Mr. Barker belongs to the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, while Mrs. Barker is a member of the Presbyterian Church. Fraternally Mr. Barker is a member of Elkin Lodge No. 454, Ancient Free and Accepted Order of Masons; of North Wilkes- boro Chapter, Royal Arch Masons; of Bryau Lodge No. 167, Independent Order of Odd Fellows; of Piedmont Lodge No. 96, Knights of Pythias; of Elkin Council, Junior Order of United American Mechanics; and of Winston-Salem Lodge, Benevol- ent and Protective Order of Elks.

WILLIAM LANIER HILL has played a varied and useful part in his home city of Warsaw, Duplin County. He is a lawyer of more than thirty-five years' experience, has carried on extensive opera- tions as an agriculturist and farmer in Duplin County, and is also one of the leading bankers and men of affairs of that locality. He was born at Faisons, North Carolina, October 28, 1857, a son of Col. Christopher Dudley and Mary Faison (Hicks) Hill. His father was a nephew of Gov- ernor Edward B. Dudley of North Carolina. His mother was the great-granddaughter of Thomas Hicks, the colonial congressman, and also a great- granddaughter of George Miller, who served with the rank of captain in the Revolutionary war.

William L. Hill was educated in the Bingham School at Mebane, and besides his preparatory education had some military training there and was a first sergeant in 1875. He was graduated in June, 1879, with the degree A. B. from the University of North Carolina, and then took his law course in the Dick & Dillard Law School at Greensboro. Mr. Hill was licensed to practice law in 1882. Throughout his career agriculture and other business affairs have had an urgent de- maud upon all his time and attention, oftentimes to the exclusion of his regular law business.

He is president and was the organizer of the Citizens Bank of Warsaw and was chairman of the committee that erected the handsome bank building. When he was a child in 1860 his grand- father, Gen. William Lanier Hill, willed the grandson a magnificent piece of property at War- saw, and William L. Hill has since been the main factor in making Warsaw a splendid and beauti- ful city and business center through the develop- ment of this property. His real estate interests also include large holdings of farm lands in Dup- lin County and for twelve years he was president of the East Carolina Truckers' Association, for fourteen years he was chairman of the Demo- cratic Executive Committee of the Third Congres- sional District, is a director of the State Hospital at Goldsboro, and is a trustee of the University of North Carolina. Mr. Hill is a stanch demo- crat, but has never evinced any political aspira- tions. He is affilated with the Masonic fraternity, is senior elder of the Presbyterian Church at War- saw, superintendent of its Sunday school, and he contributed most of the means for the building of the church home. Mr. Hill is a member of the Sons of the American Revolution.

On January 2, 1895, at Clinton, North Carolina, he married Mary Lou Brown, daughter of John Bright and Mary Penelope (Morisey) Brown. Her father was a grandson of Gen. Thomas Brown of Bladen County, a leader in Revolutionary times. Mary Penelope Morisey, her mother, was descended from Col. Richard Clinton and Gen. James Kenan, both prominent figures in the colonial records. Mr. and Mrs. Hill have two sons, Dudley Brown, who volunteered for the training camps and is with Pershing's army in France in the Signal Corps, and Jolin Bright, who is a cadet at West Point. Both are members of the class of 1917 in the University of North Carolina. Mr. Hill is chairman of the Council of Defense, also chair- man of the Exemption Board of Duplin County, and very active in all work pertaining to the war.

SAMUEL NEWBERN HARRELL. M. D. As superin- tendent of the Edgecombe General Hospital and

A. Z. Hill .

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member of its staff, Doctor Harrell enjoys a place of special distinction among the physicians of Edgecombe County and has been steadily gaining success and honors as a talented physician during a period of twenty years in which he has prac- ticed at Tarboro.

Doctor Harrell was born in Martin County, North Carolina, April 13, 1875. His parents were Augustus and Harriet ( Whiehurst ) Harrell, sub- stantial farming people of Martin County. Doc- tor Harrell was educated in public schools, in the Davis Military School, and took both his literary and medical course in the University of Virginia, graduating M. D. in 1897. Since that date he has been in general practice at Tarboro. Among other associations he was for four years county coroner and superintendent of health two years, was president of the Edgecombe County Medical Society in 1916 and its secretary for ten years, and also belongs to the Fourth District and the North Carolina State Medical Societies and the American Medical Association. Doctor Harrell is an active member of the Presbyterian Church.

June 6, 1900, he married Miss Isabell Gillesby Fairley, of Manchester, North Carolina.

STEPHEN FERRAND LORD. Distinguished not only for the honored ancestry from which he traces his descent but for his own blameless record as a man and a citizen, Stephen F. Lord, of Salis- bury, is conspicuously identified with the business activities of the city, and is an important factor in promoting its best interests. He was born in Salisbury, a son of the late Hon. John B. Lord.

Born in Wilmington, North Carolina, about 1820, John B. Lord was left fatherless when young, and his mother married again and moved to South Carolina. He took advantage of every offered op- portunity for acquiring an education, preparing himself for the legal profession. Admitted to the bar before he was twenty years old, he came to Rowan County, and immediately opened a law office in Salisbury, where he continued a resident until his death. Wheeler's History says of him as follows: "John B. Lord, who died in June, 1851, amid the lamentations of his family and friends, was a patriotic and useful citizen of Salisbury. He was a native of Wilmington, of good family, fine acquirements and benevolent feelings. In 1842 and 1844 he was a member of the House of Commons, and at the time of his death was a director of the Central Railroad Company.''

John B. Lord married Ann Ferrand, a daughter of Dr. Stephen and Margaret (Steele) Ferrand. Her maternal grandfather, Gen. John Steele, was born in Salisbury, North Carolina, November 1, 1764, being a son of William and Elizabeth Steele, the latter a heroine of the Revolutionary war, who patriotically did not only "her bit, " but the very best she could to aid America's cause. In Barnes' Centenary History we find the following account of her generosity : On the night of February 1, 1781, Gen. Nathaniel Greene, during his famous retreat from the enemy, alighted at the Salisbury Inn after a hard day's ride through mud and rain. The army physician, who had charge of the sick and wounded prisoners, met him at the door and inquired after his well-being. "Fatigued, hungry and cold, and penniless," was the heavy-hearted reply. The patriotic landlady, Mrs. Elizabeth Steele, overheard the words. Lighting a cheerful fire, she spread a warm supper before him, and then, quietly producing two bags of specie, her

hoarded treasure, said, "Take these; you will want them, and I can do without them." It is hard to decide, says the historian, which was the happier, the noble-hearted giver or the relieved receiver, who renewed his journey with a lightened heart. Mrs. Elizabeth Steele died November 22, 1790. A tablet marks the spot where the tavern stood, and the Daughters of the American Revolution have named the Salisbury Chapter in her honor.

Gen. John Steele, great-grandfather of the sub- ject of this sketch, became influential in public affairs in early life; in 1787 he was elected to the House of Commons, and re-elected in 1788. He was a member of the convention that assembled at Hillsboro July 21, 1788, and in 1790 was elected a member of the first Congress held under the Con- stitution, and served until 1793. In 1794 he was again honored with an election to the House of Commons, and served continuously until 1813, in the meantime having been speaker of the House several times. In 1806 he was appointed com- missioner to adjust the boundary lines between the two Carolinas, succeeding General Davie. He was appointed as the first comptroller of the treasury, and served through the administrations of both Washington and Adams. On the day of his death, August 14, 1815, he was again elected to the House of Commons. He married Mary Nesfield, who outlived him many years. They reared three children, namely: Ann, who married first Gen. Jesse A. Pearson, and married second, Archbald Henderson; Margaret, who married Dr. Stephen Ferrand; and Eliza, who became the wife of Col. Robert MacNamara.

After the death of her husband Mrs. Ann (Fer- rand) Lord married for her second husband Rev. John Haywood Parker, rector of Saint Luke's Church. By her marriage with her first husband, Hon. John B. Lord, she had three children, namely : William Campbell, who was the oldest of the chil- dren, was captain of a company in the Fifty- seventh Regiment, North Carolina Troops, and lost his life while in the Confederate service; Stephen Ferrand, the subject of this sketch, and a daughter who married Maj. N. E. Scales, of the Confederate Army.

After preparing for college at Brigham's Aca- demy in Orange County, Stephen Ferrand Lord entered the University of North Carolina, but left before graduation to enter the service of the state in the paymaster's department, with which he was associated until the close of the Civil war. The ensuing three years he was ticket agent on the North Carolina Railroad at Salisbury, and was then discharged for having voted the democratic ticket. Locating then at Third Creek, now Cleve- land, Rowan County, Mr. Lord was there engaged in mercantile pursuits for six years. Removing then to the farm which his wife had inherited, it being located on the line dividing Salisbury and Locke townships, he remained there as an agri- culturist for six years. Coming then to Salisbury, Mr. Lord has since been actively identified with the business life of the city, and as a prosperous and extensive dealer in real estate has bought and sold many valuable pieces of city, suburban and farm property, and has also served as president of the Perpetual Building and Loan Association. He has been prominent in the administration of municipal affairs, having served for six years as alderman, and for two years as mayor of the city.

Mr. Lord married Ann McCoy, a daughter of William S. and Aun McCoy. She passed to the higher life in 1879, and their only child died in

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infancy. Religiously Mr. Lord is a member and a warden of Saint Luke's Episcopal Church.

FRANCIS MARION THOMPSON. For many years actively and prosperously identified with the busi- ness affairs of Salisbury, and prominent in political circles, Francis Marion Thompson has accomplished a satisfactory work, and is now living retired, en- joying all the comforts of life at his pleasant home. A son of Joseph Hiram Thompson, he was born at Tyro Shops, Tyro Township, Davidson County, North Carolina, of English antecedents.

His paternal grandfather, Dr. Frederick Thomp- son, was born, it is supposed, in England. Coming to America, he lived first in Richmond, Virginia, and then located in Salisbury, North Carolina, where he practiced medicine until 1814. In that year he purchased land in what is now Tyro Town- ship, Davidson County, and there spent the re- mainder of his life, following not only his pro- fession, but improving a farm.

Joseph Hiram Thompson was born in Salisbury, North Carolina, in 1810, and as a boy of four years was taken by his parents to Tyro Township, and there grew to manhood on the home farm, to the ownership of which he subsequently suc- ceeded. He was a natural mechanic, and having established a foundry and machine shop on his farm the locality became known as Tyro Shops. Successful in all of his undertakings, he became an extensive landholder, purchasing 500 acres in Yadkin Valley, near Yadkin College, and managed with slave labor. He continued his residence in Tyro Township until his death, in July, 1872.

Joseph Hiram Thompson was twice married. He married first Cynthia Ratts, who spent her life in Tyro Township, dying in 1847. He married for his second wife, Ellen Elizabeth Ratts, a sister of his first wife. She was born in Tyro Township in 1823, and died in 1889. By his first marriage, there were eight children, Louise, Mary, John Fred- erick, Sarah, William L., Charles M., Joseph, and Cynthia. By his second marriage there were five children, Francis Marion, Patrick Henry, Richard Baxter, Robert Fulton, and George McDuffie.

Francis Marion Thompson was fitted for college under private tutorship, and subsequently attended North Carolina College, in Mount Pleasant. Upon leaving college, he opened a hardware store at Lexington, Davidson County, where he continued until 1889. Coming to Salisbury in that year, Mr. Thompson was engaged in the manufacture of tobacco for four years, and the following four years was superintendent of the North Carolina division of internal revenue. In 1897 he was elected mayor of Salisbury, and served for two years, when, on account of ill health, he gave up active business cares, and retired to private life.

Mr. Thompson married, at the age of twenty- three years, Virginia Elizabeth Reid, one of his fellow-students at North Carolina College. She was born near Mount Pleasant, North Carolina, a daughter of William Reid. Her father, a farmer, operated his land with slave labor. During the Civil war he was detailed to secure wood for the railroads, all of the engines at that time having been wood burners. He married Julia Melchoir, a daughter of Christopher and Elizabeth (Miller) Melchoir. Christopher Melchoir, Mrs. Thompson 's maternal grandfather, was very prominent and in- fluential in public life. He represented Cabarrus County in the House of Commons in 1819-21-23 and '24, and in the Senate in the years of 1829- 30-31-36-38 and '40. He lived to the venerable

age of ninety years. William Reid lived to be eighty-five years old, but his wife died at the age of fifty-one years. They reared five children, as follows: John Monroe; Virginia Elizabeth, now Mrs. Thompson; Minnie Lee; James Calvin; and Robert Eugene.

Mr. and Mrs. Thompson are the parents of five children, Lena, Claude, Ernest, Eugene, and Em- mett. Lena married Dr. R. L. Ramsay, and they have eight children, Robert Lamar, Margaret Belle, Marion Elizabeth, Lena Thompson, Mary Ellen, James Alston, Virginia Moore, and John Andrew. Claude, who married Johnsye Sloop, died, leaving one daughter, Johnsye. Eugene married Ida How- ard, and they have four children, Francis Eugene, Herbert, Claude, and Reid. Emmett married Ger- trude Wise, and they are the parents of three children, Francis Marion, Emmett Gray, and Ger- trude Wise. Both Mr. and Mrs. Thompson are. members of St. John's Lutheran Church.

HON. STEPHEN MCINTYRE is senior member of the law firm McIntyre, Lawrence & Proctor at Lumberton. In scope and importance of interest entrusted to them this firm is without question one of the strongest and most successful in the state.

Besides his record as a lawyer Mr. McIntyre has enjoyed many of those distinctions that are so often given the true and able lawyer, and every trust and duty thus conferred upon him he has discharged with a degree of fidelity and effi- ciency that adds much honor to his commendable record.

Mr. McIntyre is a worthy descendant of an honored family in North Carolina. The McIn- tyres are of pure Scotch origin, his ancestors. having come to North Carolina prior to the Revo- lutionary war along with the many Scotch Pres- byterian families who first settled the Cape Fear region. His grandfather, Stokes McIntyre, learned the trade of millwright and doubtless be- cause of his efficiency in that line he left his na- tive section of the state along the Cape Fear River and moved into the region of the Yadkin, Rocky and other rivers whose streams furnish abundant of opportunities for development of water power. In this locality Stokes McIntyre built some of the earliest mills in Stanley and Anson counties. His own home was on the Rocky River in Anson County.

Mr. Stephen McIntyre was born in Union Coun- ty, North Carolina, April 16, 1867, son of Isaiah and Martha (Hill) McIntyre. Isaiah McIntyre was born in Anson County and when a young man moved to Union County, where he followed farm- ing.

Stephen McIntyre's early environment was his father's farm in Union County. The best oppor- tunities of his life have been those he sought or created for himself. With the education of the common schools he so managed his affairs as to be able to enter Wake Forest College in 1890, and was graduated there in the classical A. B. course in 1893. The following two years he was teacher at Louisburg, North Carolina. He was the first law pupil to matriculate in the now famous law school of Wake Forest College. He was licensed by the Supreme Court of North Carolina to prac- tice law in February, 1896. It was soon after receiving his license to practice that Mr. McIntyre moved to Lumberton, and has thus been a factor in the professional, business and social affairs of that city and county for over twenty years. His

Stephen Mightyme,

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first partnership was with the late E. K. Proctor, Jr. This firm continued from October 15, 1896, until the death of Mr. Proctor in 1902. In 1903 Mr. McIntyre formed a partnership with Mr. R. C. Lawrence, and their relationship still continues. In 1906 the junior member of the firm McIntyre, Lawrence & Proctor, a son of the late E. K. Proctor, Jr., was admitted to the firm.

This firm commands a practice in all the State and Federal courts. Some idea of the extent of their legal connections is obtained by noting their associations as Division Counsel for the Seaboard Air Line, special counsel for the Southern Rail- way and the Raleigh & Charleston Railroads, the Aberdeen & Rockfist Railroad, the Western Union Telegraph Company, and they are also attorneys for several of the cotton mills at Lumberton and other corporations. Besides handling the legal business for these corporations they do an exten- sive general practice.

Mr. McIntyre is both a business man and lawyer, is a director of the National Bank of Lumberton, is president of the Robeson Building & Loan As- sociation, and is a director of the Jennings and Dresden Cotton Mills.

With all the varied interests that demand some share of his attention Mr. McIntyre has found time to serve his church, the demands of social life, and those of public office. It is noteworthy that he is the only man in the state who at the same time has been a trustee of Wake Forest Col- lege, Meredith College and the Thomasville Or- phanage, the three great Baptist institutions of North Carolina. He is deacon of the First Baptist Church of Lumberton. Mr. McIntyre further added to his honors and his record of service by two terms as state senator from Robeson County. He was in the sessions of 1899 and of 1901, and while in the Senate in the session of 1901 he had an important part in the impeachment proceedings brought against Chief Justice Furches and Justice R. M. Douglass of the Supreme Court. He is also remembered as having introduced the bill and secured its passage appropriating the first $100,000 for the public school fund in North Carolina.

Mr. McIntyre married Miss Mitta Allen, daugh- ter of Romulus Allen, of Wake Forest. They were married at the home of Mrs. McIntyre in Wake Forest. Their four children are: Mildred, wife of L. P. Stack; Lillian, wife of E. R. McIntyre; Robert and Stephen, Jr.

WALTER GRAY JEROME was a teacher in early life, but gave up that vocation some years ago and entered the real estate business at Winston- Salem. He has been very successful in this line and his chief activity is the buying and improv- ing of city and suburban tracts for residence pur- poses and he has done much to develop certain sections of Winston-Salem.

Mr. Jerome is president of the Ardmore Com- pany, president of the Racine Company, president of the Fidelity Insurance Agency, Incorporated, secretary and general manager of the Banner In- vestment Company and a director of the Fealty Building & Loan Association. His business repu- tation and position are well assured, though he is not yet thirty years of age.

His birth occurred in the Methodist parsonage in Bladen County, North Carolina, August 29, 1887, while his father, Rev. Condon P. Jerome was pastor. His grandfather was named William Thomas Jerome. Rev. Condon P. Jerome was born

in Cabarrus County, North Carolina. The great- grandfather was a native of Connecticut, but in the early days came to North Carolina and spent the rest of his life in Cabarrus County. Grand- father Jerome was for a number of years a mer- chant in Cabarrus County. Rev. Mr. Jerome is a graduate of Trinity College and afterward joined the North Carolina Methodist Conference, in which he has been an active and well known worker ever since. He married Flora E. Gray, who was born in Randolph County, North Caro- lina, daughter of Abner and Mrs. (Blair) Gray, and the granddaughter of Samuel Gray. Rev. Mr. Jerome and wife reared nine children: Josie T., Walter Gray, Annie C., Fred D., Gladys, Grace, Eunice, Robert L. and Flora.

Walter Gray Jerome had a liberal education. He attended Fremont Academy and prepared for college at Gatesville High School. Entering Trin- ity College, his father's alma mater he was gradu- ated with the class of 1907. He spent one term teaching in the old Trinity High School, and from there came to Winston-Salem. Mr. Jerome was for three years an instructor in the high school at Winston-Salem. He resigned his position as a teacher to enter the real estate business, where his chief success in life so far has been gained.

Mr. Jerome was married in 1913 to Elizabeth Pollard. She is a native of Winston-Salem, daugh- ter of W. B. and Margaret (Brown) Pollard. Mr. and Mrs. Jerome have two children: Elizabeth Pollard and Walter Gray, Jr. They are members of the West End Methodist Episcopal Church South.

WILLIAM FRANCIS UTLEY. The arduous service and the wounds he sustained as a gallant fighting soldier of the Confederacy during the war proved no handicap to a successful business career in the case of William Francis Utley. For half a century he has been prominently identified with the commercial and civic life of Wake County, and is as well known in the capital city of Raleigh as in his home town of Apex.

His birth occurred in Wake County July 9, 1844, a son of Quinton and Eliza Jane (Speight) Utley. His father not only had a farm but also conducted a general merchandise store in Raleigh in the early days of Wake County. William F. Utley had gained his early education in the local schools and in the Holly Springs High School before the war broke out. He was not yet seventeen when the hostilities were precipitated, and a few days later on May 14, 1861, he was enrolled as a private in Company D of the Twenty-sixth North Caro- lina Infantry. In 1862 he was advanced to the rank of orderly sergeant. For fully three years he discharged faithfully all the duties of a brave and efficient soldier. In the Battle of Gettysburg on July 3, 1863, he was wounded and captured, but after five weeks in prison was exchanged. He was also wounded in the Battle of the Wilderness, be- ing shot in the hand, but reported for duty the next day and was assigned to the ordnance depart- ment until he could handle a gun, when he again rejoined his regiment. His last engagement was Reams Station on August 25, 1864, where he lost a leg, and this permanently disabled him from further service and he was sent home.

For two years after the war he taught school. Then for three years was engaged in the lumber business at Apex, North Carolina, and following that opened a general stock of merchandise, con-

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tinuing in that line of business for thirty years and through it largely gaining those resources and that extensive acquaintance which have made him so large a factor in the business life of his county. He retired from merchandising in 1904.

Mr. Utley served as a director of the Carolina Trust Company of Raleigh until he sold his inter- ests, has been vice president of the Merchants Na- tional Bank of Raleigh since its organization, and was vice president of the Banking Loan & Trust Company of Sanford until he disposed of his in- terests; in 1910 he organized the Peoples Bank of Apex, which he served two years as president and is now active vice president; is a director of the Apex Consolidated Tobacco Company, and has various other interests, including a large amount of farm land, where he raises tobacco as his chief crop. .

Mr. Utley rendered some very effective service during his term as commissioner for Wake County, and he has served as alderman of Apex and for a number of years as a magistrate of Wake County. He is an active democrat and a member of the Missionary Baptist Church.

Mr. Utley married Miss Martha Elizabeth Gib- bons, whose father was the Rev. H. H. Gibbons, a native of Green County, North Carolina, who died in 1889. Mr. and Mrs. Utley are the parents of five children, three children now living: Dr. Harvey Gibbons is in practice at Gastonia, North Carolina; Lottie Edith is the wife of B. H. Parker, a cotton broker, Gastonia, North Carolina; Elizabeth Hardy is Mrs. Alfred J. Fletcher, wife of an attorney at Fuqua Springs, North Carolina.

ROBERT RUARK was admitted to the bar of North Carolina on his twenty-first birthday, That was on December 3, 1899. In the month of Sep- tember prior to his admission he had been grad- uated from the law department of the University of North Carolina, and was thus well prepared to take up all the serious responsibilities of life when he crossed that intangible dividing line between youth and maturity. The success which has

attended his efforts since then gives him a posi- tion among the leading lawyers of the state,

He was born in Southport, North Carolina, December 3, 1878, a son of James Buchanan and Sallie Potter Ruark. His father has been for many years a merchant in Southport. Prior to his entering the University, Robert Ruark attended private schools in his home town.

He was in practice at Wilmington until 1903, and during the year 1903 was assistant to the general attorney of the Western Union Telegraph Company. The years 1904-05 Mr. Ruark spent in Lexington, North Carolina, but then returned to Wilmington and has built up a splendid practice, largely corporation work, for lumber companies, insurance companies, banks and other business concerns. He is now legal adviser to the city council of Wilmington, Mr. Ruark is state coun- sel in North Carolina for the Fidelity and Casualty Company of New York, is local counsel for the Equitable Life and Assurance Company, and local counsel for the United States Fidelity and Guar- anty Company.

He is a member of the North Carolina Bar Association, the Cape Fear Club, the Carolina Yacht Club, and for many years has served on the Board of Stewards of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and is now a member of the Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church, being chairman of its finance committee and teacher of the Men's Bible Class.

On October 24, 1902, Mr. Ruark married Miss Hettie Gibbons Westbrook, of Faison, North Caro- lina. She is one of the four daughters of John Samuel and Frances (Gibbons) Westbrook. Her father was a farmer and nurseryman of more than ordinary achievements in the field of horticulture in this state. He was the first North Carolina horticulturist to engage in the growing of straw- berries for the northern markets. That was in 1873 and the scene of his operations was at Wilson.

Mr. and Mrs. Ruark have three sons: Samuel Westbrook, Robert James and Henry Gibbons.

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History of North Carolina: North Carolina biography, Volume IV, Part 106

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: 750

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: 750