History of North Carolina: North Carolina biography, Volume IV, Part 8

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

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The year 1862 brought with it for him as for the young manhood of the country a momentous change. Early in the year he returned home and at once volunteered in the Confederate army.

Then came the stirring years of service under General Lee in the Army of Virginia. He was at first a private in Company G, Second North Caro- lina Battalion of Infantry. He was captured at Gettysburg and imprisoned in Baltimore City jail and Point Lookout, Maryland, for a period of six months-a brief time, it is true, but one which sowed the seed of intense suffering in many a subsequent year. In January, 1864, he was exchanged and in the course of the year was trans- ferred into Company B, First North Carolina Bat- talion of Sharpshooters, in which he became known for his fearless spirit in many a terrible encounter. He was with General Lee to the day of the sur- render at Appomattox, bright, active and unshaken to the very last hour before the coming of disaster. It was in this final struggle that he was appointed captain of the sharpshooters, but in the confusion of those days the commission could not be deliv- ered and he laid down his rifle as a private-a fact to which in later years he often referred with pride.

Paroled at Appomattox, he walked the long way home, arriving weary, sick and hungry at his father's door, after being given up for dead, in April, 1865. Active and fearless as he had been on the great scenes of warfare and deeply inter- ested in all his life in the veterans of the conflict and in their memorial occasions, his sympathetic spirit shrank with a peculiar horror from what he had seen and endured, so that for years he could hardly be persuaded to refer to these events, and especially to his own part in them; and when at last the ice was somewhat broken his occasional addresses and papers, written in beautiful and vivid style, breathe out a tone of sympathy for all who suffered whether with him or against him, which make them to be among the choicest pieces of our great war literature.

The war over, he began to prepare himself for the profession which he had chosen. In 1867 he graduated in the medical course of the University of Pennsylvania and received in addition his diploma in practical and surgical anatomy, the line in which he himself became especially eminent and in which he earned the lifelong friendship of the great specialist under whom he had been instructed, Dr. D. Hayes Agnew, of Philadelphia. Next he went abroad and studied at the Universities of Berlin, Prague and Utrecht, and finally returning home in 1869 entered upon his medical practice in Salem.

His long service is a part.of the medical history of his community and of Western North Carolina. The writer was once with him on a distant pleasure journey, when a child was presented to the doctor with a pitiful, distorted, suffering face. We can never forget how, under his sympathetic and skill- ful touch, the signs of suffering were smoothed away. A quick stitch here and there or slight incision gave the little face a pleasing, human look once more. It was as if a wonder had been wrought before our very eyes.

So he went in and out, for nearly fifty years, among the sick and suffering. What he was for the needy, for the widows, for God's ministering servants, probably no one will ever know or even guess .at except perhaps some pastor whose work might lead him into the same homes and on similar occasions for service. Some thirty years ago he became the house physician of the Salem College and Academy. This appointment grew into a wide field for his particular gifts and capa-

HISTORY OF NORTH CAROLINA

bilities. He had a native genius for diagnosis, so perfected by long study and practice that he became a very precious help to those in charge by skillful advice, which either comforted parents at a distance or warned them of unexpected dangers in case of their children. He loved the institution and cherished its students. As a lover of flowers, his own rich stores were at the frequent disposal of the academy on its great occasions and of its pupils in times of illness. His last notable service was in the spring of 1916 when he led the com- pletely successful effort to ward off a threatening epidemic from the college, an effort so wisely planned and carried out as to cause the commenda- tion of federal and state inspectors and to deserve the lasting gratitude of the institution and of the community. Such a career naturally called for wide commendation, both at home and abroad.

He was at the time of his death surgeon of the Southern Railway System and president of its Board of Surgeons and also chief surgeon of the Winston-Salem Southbound Railway Company. He had been president of the North Carolina Medical Society, president of the State Board of Health, secretary of the State Board of Examiners, member of the Board of Directors of the State Hospital at Morganton, member of the American Public Health Association, of the Tri-State Medical Association, honorary member of the Virginia and other medical societies, and at the time of his departure his nomination lay before the National Board of United States Surgeons.

He was the first commander of Piedmont Com- mandery No. 6 on its organization, and held the office for a number of years. He was a Thirty- second Degree Mason and was elected to receive the thirty-third degree, but was prevented by cir- cumstances beyond his control from attending the meeting at which he was to receive the degree.

Of the many fine qualities of mind and heart that have already been alluded to the one that stands out as most characteristic is courage, both physical and moral. He was a man of strong con- victions, which he dared maintain with force and boldness. He was no trimmer. And his was more than the courage that flares up and shortly dies down-not alone the gallantry of the battle field that with cheerfulness faced death at the cannon's mouth, but also of the finer quality that for years bore with fortitude the suffering incident to a diseased elbow joint and for months the heart- rending agonies of the agina pectoris which caused his death.

He was married November 3, 1870, to Miss Adelaide de Schweinitz, daughter of Bishop de Schweinitz. The young wife was quickly called from his side on August 3, 1871. His second mar- riage, on April 14, 1874, was to Miss Emma C. Fries. Their union was blessed with six children. Two of them, Henry and Carrie, died in childhood. The four surviving are: Frederic F. and Agnew Bahnson, both mentioned on other pages; Mrs. Holt Haywood, of New York; and Miss Pauline Bahnson. It was a most affectionate family circle and one in which helpers and dependents were most kindly considered. And the end corresponded to the way in which they had journeyed together. Wife, daughters and sons were in constant attend- ance in and around the sufferer's sick chamber.

Doctor Bahnson had been baptised in his infancy. He was confirmed in the First Church of Philadelphia on July 29, 1866. His religious

convictions had been deepened during the war. He had read the Greek New Testament through from cover to cover as he carried it in his knapsack through the weary marches of the long campaigns. These convictions abode with him for a lifetime. The reading of the scriptures and family devo- tions were steady and unfailing rules of his life, and his character and practice of his profession corresponded with his religious Christian views. He entered freely into religious interests and was one of the most faithful subscribers to the Young Men's Christian Association. He dearly loved the church of his father and mother; served in its various offices; liberally aided in its work; was a member of its college and seminary boards at the time of his departure.

For years he had been a sufferer, to whom occa- sional journeys and seasons of recreation afforded but partial relief, and to whom outdoor life, almost to the end, proved to be the main and blessed tonic of refreshment. Amid increasing physical burdens he resolutely continued his medi- cal work until on September 8, 1916, the weary frame had to cease from its lifelong toil. Then. with fortitude, with faith, and with the promise of the grace given by his Saviour, he entered into rest January 16, 1917, aged seventy-one years, ten months, twelve days.

FREDERIC FRIES BAHNSON. A son of the late Dr. H. T. Bahnson, whose life work has been recorded on other pages, Frederic Fries Bahnson during his youth had an ambition to follow in his father's footsteps, but failing eyesight compelled. him to give up his studies in medicine and he turned to a more active vocation and has gained successful prominence in the field of electrical and mechanical engineering, particularly in his chosen field of air conditioning.

He was born in Winston-Salem March 6, 1876,. son of Dr. Henry T. and Emma Christina (Fries) Bahnson. He prepared for college in the Salem Boys' School and entered the University of North Carolina with the class of 1896. He was gradu- ated Ph. B., cum laude, and for the next few months diligently pursued his studies in medi- cine. On being obliged to discontinue this work he took up electrical engineering, and for seven years followed that work, most of the time away from his old home. On returning to Winston- Salem he was for five years associated with the F. & H. Fries Woolen Mills, then for two years. with the Briggs Shaffner Company, mechanical engineers and machinists. Since then Mr. Bahnson has been head of the engineering department of the Normalair Company of Winston-Salem, de- voting his time to problems in air conditioning.

He was married in 1910 to Blecker Estelle Reid. Mrs. Bahnson was born in Charlotte, North Caro- lina, daughter of Edward S. and Nannie (Alex- ander) Reid. They have two sons, Frederic Fries Bahnson, Jr., and Edward Reid Bahnson. Mr. and Mrs. Bahnson are members of the Home Moravian Church. He served as secretary of the committee which drew up the present rules of the Moravian "Congregation of Salem and Its Vicinity," has. served on boards of the congregation and in 1917, was made an elder in the Home Moravian Church. He has taken an active part in Masonry, being affiliated with Winston Lodge No. 167, Ancient. Free and Accepted Masons, is Past High Priest of Winston Chapter No. 24, Royal Arch Masons, and.

HISTORY OF NORTH CAROLINA

Past Commander of Piedmont Commandery No. 6, Knights Templar. He is a member of the Ameri- can Society of Heating and Ventilating Engineers, and an associate member of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.

AGNEW HUNTER BAHNSON. One of the leading mill men and manufacturers of the Winston-Salem industrial community is Agnew Hunter Bahnson, who found his real work early in life and has devoted himself to it with a spirit, enthusiasm and energy that sufficiently well accounts for his rapid advancement and his secure position when only a little past his thirtieth birthday.

Mr. Bahnson was born at Salem March 10, 1886, a son of the late Dr. Henry T. and Emma Christina (Fries) Bahnson. Of his father, one of the greatest physicians and kindliest men North Carolina ever had, an appropriate sketch appears on other pages of this publication.

The son was liberally educated and had the best of home training. He attended private school, the Salem Boys' School, and in 1906 graduated from the University of North Carolina. For the follow- ing year he traveled abroad, and then with all that a liberal education and a knowledge of the world could give him he entered upon an apprenticeship in the Mayo Mills at Mayodan in Rockingham County. As an apprentice he worked for 65 cents a day. He continued his apprenticeship in the Washington Mills at Fries, Virginia, and had not been there long when he was advanced to the duties of the loom fixer. After a few months he became superintendent of the Pomona Mills at Greensboro, but soon resigned to become agent of the Washington Mills at Fries, Virginia. While there he was not only agent but manager of the mills and store and also the town, a place of 1,800 inhabitants. It was a work that required great executive and administrative ability and he performed his duties with utmost satisfaction for two years.

Resigning, he was engaged in the sale of cotton mill machinery until 1912, when he was elected secretary and treasurer of the Arista Mill Com- pany at Winston-Salem. He has been actively identified with that large local corporation ever since, and in 1915 was elected president and treas- urer. In the fall of 1915 he also organized the Normalair Company, and has been president of this business. The company has its factory in Winston- Salem, and though in existence less than two years has developed a flourishing business. Its machin- ery products are shipped to all the states, to Canada, Mexico and Cuba, and to six other for- eign countries. The company maintains offices in New York, St. Louis and Charlotte.

Mr. Bahnson was married November 18, 1914, to Miss Elizabeth Moir Hill, who was born in Winston-Salem, daughter of William P. and Elizabeth (Ogburn) Hill. Mr. and Mrs. Bahnson have one son, Agnew Hunter, Jr. They are active members of the Home Moravian Church, with Mr. Bahnson as president of its board of trustees. He is also president of the Moravian Brotherhood of the Southern Province and a member of the Young Men's Christian Association Board of Directors. He is an officer of the North Carolina Cotton Manufacturers' Association.

DOUGLAS ALEXANDER NANCE has been enrolled among the successful members of the Winston- Salem bar since 1911. He is a lawyer of thorough

scholarship and mature accomplishments, and has already made a mark in the profession.

What he has attained has been due to the energy of his own nature and a determined ambition. He was born in a log cabin in Western Prong Town- ship of Columbus County, North Carolina, and he gained his education largely through his own efforts. His great-grandfather Daniel Nance was a native of England and on coming to America set- tled in that part of Bladen County now included in Columbus County, North Carolina. David Nance, grandfather of the Winston-Salem lawyer, was born in Columbus County and was a farmer. His wife, whose maiden name was Eliza Shipman, died at the age of eighty-one years. Her ancestors were among the pioneers of Bladen County. The grandparents reared four children: Richard, Marshall, Edward and Alexander. Of these Rich- ard was a Confederate soldier, died during the war, and was buried at Wilmington.

Alexander Nance, father of Douglas A., was born in Columbus County, North Carolina, in September, 1854, and has made farming his regu- lar vocation. After his marriage he bought a tract of land in Western Prong Township and started his household and business on a small scale. Industry and good judgment enabled him to meet the critical times of his career successfully, and as a result of long and thorough experience he is now a farmer on an extensive scale. He married Virginia Douglas Bridgers, daughter of Eugene Bridgers, and they have reared ten children: Luther, Sallie, who died at the age of eighteen, Douglas A., Claude, Marshall, Henry, Richard, Alexander, Laura, and Mattie.

Douglas A. Nance was educated in the rural schools, in the High School of Lumberton, and prepared for college at Buiss Creek Academy. He took his law studies in Wake Forest College, and in 1911 was admitted to the bar. Since then Mr. Nance has practiced successfully at Winston and his achievements as a lawyer leave no doubt as to his thorough qualifications for the profession.

In his career, both at home and in his profes- sion, he has been ably assisted by his cultured wife. Mrs. Nance, whose maiden name was Stella Elizabeth Phelps, was born in a log cabin in Old- town Township of Forsyth County. They were married in 1904. Her father Melvin Phelps was born in McPherson County, North Carolina, January 16, 1845, and when only seventeen years of age he entered the Confederate Army and going to the front participated in many hard fought battles and was twice wounded. After the war he settled down to the peaceful occupation of farm- ing in Oldtown Township and besides cultivating his crops he worked at the carpenter's trade. His death in 1900 was due to an accident on the rail- road. Melvin Phelps married Nancy Paulina Grubb, who was born in Oldtown Township in 1857, daughter of John and Mary Ann ( Aldridge) Grubb. Her father was a farmer, spent his life in Forsyth County, and her mother died there at the age of eighty-four. Mrs. Nance is one of three children, her two brothers being William Ells- worth and Roscoe Drake.

Mrs. Nance was liberally educated. She attended the Winston graded schools and in 1898 graduated in the commercial course from Salem Academy College and from the literary depart- ment in 1900. During the summer of 1916 she attended the law department of the University of North Carolina. She had also studied law in the

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office of her husband, and in the summer of 1917 she passed the examination of the Supreme Court. She then took the oath in the Superior Court before Judge W. J. Adams, and was ac- corded the distinction of being the first woman to be sworn in as an attorney at Winston-Salem. She is now associated with her husband in prac- tice.

Mr. and Mrs. Nance are active members of the First Baptist Church. He is affiliated with Twin City Camp No. 27 Woodmen of the World, Salem Lodge No. 56, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and Liberty Council No. 3, Junior Order of United American Mechanics and Winston Lodge No. 449, Benevolent Protective Order of Elks. Both he and his wife are members of Evangeline Rebekah Lodge No. 27.

VESTAL TAYLOR has spent his life in Surry County, is a farmer by occupation, but for many years has been concerned with official duties. He is a former county surveyor and register of deeds, and the people of that community have looked upon him for leadership in many matters. of im- portance.

Mr. Taylor was born in Westfield Township of Surry County October 29, 1870. His grandfather, Thomas Taylor, was a native of Virginia, and on coming to North Carolina located in Westfield Township where he bought a farm and where he spent many years. He finally sold his position and with his wife and son, Newell, and daughter, Mary, moved west to Utah, where he and his wife spent their last years. Two of their sons, Martin and Henry, remained in North Carolina.

Martin Taylor, father of Vestal, was born ac- cording to the best information obtainable in Westfield Township of Surry County. For his time he acquired a good education, and was a school teacher. He bought land in Westfield Town- ship and followed general farming for many years. During the war he was exempt from service on account of physical disability. He continued to live on his farm until his death in 1910 at the age of seventy-five. He married Mary Ann Sum- mers, who was born in Westfield Township, a daughter of Jonas and Betsy (Inman) Summers. Her death occurred when she was sixty-nine years of age. Her children were: Tizzie; Martha, who married James McIver; Vestal; Mickey, who mar- ried John T. Inman; and Eliza, who married Job McGee.

Vestal Taylor during his childhood attended the district schools and also the Mount Airy High School. At the age of eighteen he taught his first term of school. It was his practice to teach a part of each year and the rest of the time was spent as a farmer. Mr. Taylor located on his present farm in 1910. This is near the Village of White Plains. Besides general farming Mr. Tay- lor has dealt extensively in horses and other live- stock and has attained a substantial business posi- tion in the community.

In 1892 he married Nannie Nichols, who was born in Eldora Township of Surry County, a daugh- ter of William A. and Martha (Marshall) Nichols. The family of Mr. and Mrs. Taylor comprise four children, Bertie P., Perry, Alma and Herbert R. The daughter, Bertie, is the wife of Maurice E. Miller, and they have a son, Billy.

Mr. Taylor has for years been one of the lead- ing and influential republicans of Surry County. He cast his first presidential vote for Benjamin

Harrison. Various official dignities have been con- ferred upon him. When he was a very young man in 1893 he was elected county surveyor and by re-election was continued in that office for twelve years. He was then elected register of deeds and served four years, and in 1912 was a candidate for sheriff. Throughout his official and private career Mr. Taylor has been a constant advocate of good roads, and at the present time is superintendent of roads in Mount Airy Township. He is also chairman of the Mount Airy Township School Board, and was one of the men chiefly in- strumental in establishing the high school at White Plains in 1916, in which year the high school build- ing was erected. Mr. Taylor is now . serving as chairman of the executive committee of the re- publican party of Surry County.

THOMAS MEARES GREEN, M. D. Many well earned distinctions have come to Doctor Green during his active career as a surgeon, and his reputation is by no means confined to his home. City of Wilmington but has brought him prom- inently before the medical fraternity of the state at large.

Doctor Green was born at Wilmington March 28, 1879, a son of William Henry and Frances Iredell (Meares) Green. His father was a drug- gist and the atmosphere of that business no doubt had some influence over Doctor Green's choice of a permanent profession. He was well edu- cated in the public schools, under private tuition and in the Cape Fear Academy. He spent two years in the medical department of the University of North Carolina taking special work in chemistry at the same time. Later two years were spent in the University of Maryland, where he was gradu- ated in 1900. For three years after taking his degree he was employed as a surgeon in the hos- pital of the Maryland University and St. Joseph's of Baltimore, Maryland. In 1903 Doctor Green located at Wilmington, and his work has been almost exclusively in the field of surgery. He is a member of the surgical staff of the James Walker Memorial Hospital and is a surgeon of the Seaboard Air Line Railway Company.

Doctor Green has membership in the New Hanover County Medical Society, the Third Dis- trict, the North Carolina and the Tri-State Medi- cal societies, the Southern and the American Medical associations. He is a member of the Cape Fear Country Club, the Carolina Yacht Club, is a Chapter Mason and Knight of Pythias, and be- longs to the college fraternity Sigma Alpha Epsi- lon. November 16, 1905, Doctor Green married Emma West, daughter of Henry P. and Rebecca (Love) West. They have two children, Emma. West Green and Mary West Green.

WALTER READE JOHNSON, now a successful mem- ber of the Winston-Salem bar, has spent his life in this section of North Carolina, and for a number of years was engaged in commercial lines, chiefly as a traveling salesman. He has succeeded in building up a very fine practice and is a man of the highest standing both in his profession and as a citizen.

He was born in Yadkin Township of Stokes County, North Carolina, October 14, 1884. He comes of old Virginia ancestry. His great-grand- father, William Johnson, was born in Stokes County, North Carolina, where he remained during his life, and bought upwards of 1,000 acres of

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HISTORY OF NORTH CAROLINA

land in Yadkin Township of Stokes County. His extensive plantation he operated with slave labor and lived there until his death. The maiden name of his wife was Temperance Kiser. Both lived to a good old age.

William Wade Johnson, grandfather of Walter R., was born May 23, 1835, and inherited from his father a tract of land and subsequently bought more. He followed farming all his life, and at the time of his death owned about 300 acres. During the war he was a member of the Home Guard, physical disability having exempted from active service in the field. He married Susan Leake, who was born in the north part of Stokes County, daughter of Peter and Betsy Leake, pioneers in that section of the state. William Wade Johnson died at the age of seventy-two, his wife living to the age of eighty-two.

James Thomas Johnson, father of the Winston- Salem lawyer, was born in Yadkin Township of Stokes County November 8, 1857, and has enjoyed a substantial position as a farmer. He bought a farm from his father a half mile from the old homestead, and is still managing it as a general farming proposition. He married Regina Edwards. She was born in Yadkin Township of Stokes County May 23, 1863. Her grandfather, Nathan Edwards, was a native of Stokes County, where he spent his life. Her father, Solomon Edwards, was born in Stokes County in 1840, gave his active life- time to farming and also served as coroner and sheriff of the county. Solomon Edwards married Amelia Ann Westmoreland, a native of Stokes County. Solomon Edwards died in 1891, while his widow is still living, being eighty-two years old. Mr. and Mrs. James T. Johnson had seven children : Walter Reade, Claudia, Mallie, Nellie, Paul, Effie and Thelma.

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History of North Carolina: North Carolina biography, Volume IV, Part 8

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