USA > North Carolina > History of North Carolina: North Carolina biography, Volume VI > Part 75
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Mr. Watkins was always a charitable man, in an entirely unostentatious way, and contributed much for worthy causes. He was also a very en- terprising and public-spirited citizen of Charlotte, being identified in a substantial way with every progressive movement and contributing liberally to various worthy enterprises, such as Elizabeth College, the building of the Norfolk & Southern Railway, etc. In his own business affairs he was
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exceptionally successful and acquired a substantial fortune, for the most part invested in gilt-edged farm and city properties. Beside the Spring Dale Dairy he owned several hundred acres of fine farm- ing land in the Steele Creek community in Meck- lenburg County. He believed in good agricultural lands as the best and most enduring of resources, and in the improvement of land as a means of increasing its value. He was exceptionally keen and foresighted in his judgment of real estate and its probable increase in value in the future, and his purchase of land adjoining Myers Park, which has developed into one of the most beautiful and aristocratic residence suburbs in the South, is an indication of his wise foresight and judgment in such matters. Mr. Watkins was always a hard- working man, whose energetic nature never allowed him to be idle, but kept him working persistently at anything which he undertook. A strong, virile man, a faithful friend, a promoter of his com- munity 's interests and a loyal and public-spirited citizen, in his death, which occurred at his home March 3, 1915, Charlotte lost one of its best and most representative citizens.
Shortly after he went into business Mr. Watkins was married at Charlotte to Mrs. Lillie (Hender- son) Neal, who was born in Mecklenburg County. Three children were born to this union. Mr. Wat- kins willed to his son, Daniel Hatcher Watkins, the Spring Dale Dairy farm, with a fatherly in- junction to continue the business upon the same high standard that had characterized it from the beginning. Accordingly, Hatcher Watkins is the owner and proprietor of this splendid farm and conducts the general dairy business. He was reared and received his early education at Char- lotte, and was a student for two years at Davidson (North Carolina) College. For some time he was engaged in journalistic work at Charlotte and was a reporter on the Charlotte News. His tastes and talents, however, are for farming and stockraising, and he has availed himself of the best sources of study and knowledge of modern farming and stock- raising. He is particularly ambitious in the matter of raising fine, pure-bred cattle. .
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Mr. Watkins married Miss Agnes King, of Charlotte, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. George H. King, the former deceased. Mr. King prior to his death had been for a long number of years connected with one of Charlotte's express com- panies, in an official capacity, and was one of the city 's best known citizens. Mr. and Mrs. Hatcher Watkins are the parents of two little daughters: Lucinda McDonald and Agnes King.
HON. OWEN H. GUION. Many years ago Mr. Guion won an enviable position as a member of the Craven County bar, and his splendid work as an attorney has been augmented by equally efficient service in posts of trust and responsi- bility in his district and the state at large. He was twice a member of the Legislature and for four years was a judge of the Superior Court of the state.
Owen Haywood Guion was born at Newbern June 21, 1861. The Guion family has been prom- inent in Craven County for more than a century. Judge Guion was educated in the public schools of his native city but left school when quite young to take up a business career. Fortunate- ly his inclinations were finally directed to the law and after a course of study under Simmons & Manly he was admitted to the bar and in a few
years had built up a large practice. With the scholarship and resourcefulness of the lawyer he has combined an unimpeachable integrity of character that has made him not only successful in the profession but a man of mark and leader- ship in his community.
He first entered politics during the vital cam- paign of 1898, when the adoption of the consti- tutional amendment proved a turning point in the state's history. He made a series of speeches during that campaign and also in the campaign of 1900 and in 1902 was chairman of the county executive committee.
He was elected in 1902 from Craven County to the House of Representatives, and during the ses- sion of 1903 was chairman of the committee on appropriations and at once took a place in the House among its most forceful leaders. In 1904 he was renominated by acclamation and upon the organization of the house he was elected speaker. The splendid impartiality and dignity with which he presided over the house and directed its delib- erations during the session of 1905 has not yet been forgotten by the people of North Carolina.
In 1906 Mr. Guion was called to a still higher post of responsibility as judge of the Superior Court to succeed Judge Henry R. Bryan, who at that time retired from the bench. The same fair- ness and evenness of temper which distinguished him as speaker of the House were the marks of his work as a judge, and it was only a reflection of general opinion when the Franklin County Bar at the conclusion of his term in April, 1910, re- ferred to him as "one of the ablest, most im- partial, learned, industrious and courteous judges that ever adorned the Superior Court Bench of North Carolina."
Since his retirement from the bench Judge Guion has resumed his private practice and also took into partnership with him his two sons, both brilliant young lawyers, Rodman and John, un- der the firm name of Guion & Guion. While the law practice of this firm has absorbed most of his time and strength he has continued to exert a large influence in affairs and in his political party, and in 1914 he responded to a general re- quest that he became candidate for Congress.
FREDRICK COLBERT GEER. In his ninety-fifth year Fredrick Colbert Geer is still a familiar figure in Durham, has borne an unusual weight of business responsibility through a long period of years, has been identified with much that is considered important history in the upbuilding and development of his home city and probably knows more by personal recollections of the life and af- fairs of this community than any other living citizen.
Mr. Geer was born near his present home in what is now Durham County, formerly Orange, October 30th, 1823, the son of Jesse B. and Mary (Williams) Geer. His father was a man of sub- stance and of character and his people have been planters and farmers for generations. He grew up at a time when there were few or no schools but yet he acquired that education which strong natrres and strong minds in daily contact with forest and field and the association with other men are able to endow themselves with, and the precepts and example of his father made great and deep impression upon him. In early life he worked for three years as a plantation overseer for a friend of his father and after that bought a plantation of his own and became a successful
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farmer. With the rise and growth of the young city of Durham, Mr. Geer invested largely in its real estate and in time became possessed of large and valuable holdings; nevertheless his chief de- light and his chief occupation during all the years has been planting and farming. He still owns more than four hundred acres, constituting the old Geer Homestead, on the outskirts of Durham City.
On March 23rd, 1914, a great conflagration swept away more than a block of the center of the City of Durham and with it was destroyed a number of store buildings belonging to Mr. Geer, standing at the very heart of the city's business, the corner of Main and Corcoran streets. Mr. Geer was then ninety years of age, but yet undaunted he at once made ready to erect on the site of the burned buildings a modern fire proof five-story office and business building of brick, limestone and steel. This building, known as the Geer Building, stands as a monument to the courage of this old man and the faith he had in the future of his home city; and there is not a handsomer building in the State of North Carolina.
Mr. Geer is possessed of remarkable memory. The marvelous course of events through which his own community, his state and his nation have passed in his lifetime has left vivid impressions upon him and his reminiscences possess deep in- terest. He has seen his country develop from rude back-woods and sparsely settled frontier into a modern world of rapid transportation and electric flash of information.
Back in the '30s, as a small boy, he saw laid the corner stone of the present classic Capitol Building in Raleigh and was an interested specta- tor at the ceremonies. A few years later he heard Henry Clay, candidate for the presidency, in his historic speech delivered at Raleigh, when Clay remarked that he had not expected to have the whole of North Carolina greet him; for so tre- mendous were the crowds who thronged to hear the political idol of the day with his matchless oratory. Again Mr. Geer looked upon one of the famous Log-cabins that figured in that thrilling campaign in another period of American history and drank some of the "Hard Cider." He heard President Polk when he visited his alma mater, the State University; and many of the historic events con- nected with the early days of our great university he witnessed.
When the Civil war began Mr. Geer had already come near to middle age and was appointed by Governor Vance a magistrate; but he bore arms during the last few days of the great conflict.
Mr. Geer has always been marked by a great common sense and even temper and calmness; and possibly no man has ever lived in the state who had fewer enemies and who was spoken of more generally with kindness and real affection. He has had faith in and has trusted those with whom he associated in business and his faith in them was justified. His belief in them and his own judgment abundantly rewarded him, for he ac- cumulated a large estate and has held no small place in the business of his community. His generosity and kindliness of heart have marked him no less than his common sense. The poor and unfortunate, the church and every object which appeals to him as deserving have ever received his generous aid.
He himself still rents his land and looks after his other interests despite his advanced years.
He is the oldest living native of Durham County, North Carolina, and possibly the oldest man liv-
ing in the State of North Carolina. Indeed his is a long-lived family. His father and mother lived to be more than eighty years of age and two sisters lived beyond the scriptural limit of three score and ten years, and another sister, Miss Mary Geer, a charming, placid and active lady, still lives in the City of Durham at the age of eighty-two and is possessed of good health and a keen interest in her friends and every day happenings.
Mrs. Nannie Tatum, Mr. Geer's niece, has been living with Mr. Geer since she was a little girl and is caring for his household. Her son, Fredrick Geer Tatum, is a soldier in the United States Army.
GEORGE W. WILSON. Among the distinguished families of the Old North State, one of the most highly honored and which has been thoroughly and typically North Carolinian from its earliest generations in America, is that bearing the name of Wilson. Its members have been prominent as planters, as business men and in the various pro- fessions, but particularly in the domain of the law, in which connection an able and worthy rep- resentative is found in the person of George W. Wilson, eminent lawyer of Gastonia and solicitor of the Fourteenth Judicial District. Mr. Wilson was born in 1867, at Lenoir, Caldwell County, North Carolina, and is a son of Jethro and Lou- ise J. (Round) Wilson.
The original ancestors of the Wilson family came to America from Scotland in 1720 and set- tled near Edenton and in Perquimans County, in the east shore country of North Carolina, where some of the name still reside. The paternal great-grandfather of George W. Wilson was a mem- ber of the Society of Friends and married an- other member of that faith, Eunice Worth, whose family was of English origin, and the early mem- bers of which first settled on Nantucket Island, but later moved to Guilford County, North Caro- lina, and subsequently to Randolph County. Jethro Wilson, the grandfather of George W. Wilson, was a prominent lawyer in Randolph County before moving to Caldwell, and was one of the founders and builders of the Town of Le- noir. The old home at Lenoir, which is still in the family's possession, is on the- site of old Fort Grider, of the Revolutionary period, where Sev- ier and the "Mountain Patriots" joined Cleve- land's forces in the defense of the fort against the British. Jethro Wilson was a man of wealth and influence and was associated with Col. J. E. Harper in many of the enterprises of the town and community. He was born in Randolph Coun- ty and married a daughter of Reuben Wood, a leading citizen of that day, a lawyer of ability and distinction, and a member of the council of state for many years, with a large influence in public affairs. Joseph Wilson, the brother of Jethro Wilson, and granduncle of George W. Wilson, also married a daughter of Reuben Wood, and under whom he studied law. Joseph Wilson was a dis- tinguished lawyer and statesman and his name ap- pears prominently in the history of North Caro- lina. He resided and died at Charlotte, Meck- lenburg County, which for many years was the scene of his service and honors. His academic education was received under Rev. David Cald- well, and after he completed his legal training under Mr. Wood was given his license to practice in 1804. By reason of his high character, force of intellect and steady application, he arose to eminence in his profession, and was a member of the House of Commons of North Carolina in 1810, 1811 and 1812. Much of his reputation as a
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fearless prosecutor and great lawyer came to him as a result of his services as solicitor of a large judicial district embracing nearly all of Western North Carolina. He died in August, 1829.
Jethro Wilson, the father of George W. Wilson, was born at Lenoir, Caldwell County, North Car- olina, and there passed his entire life, passing away in 1908. During the war between the states he held a civil office under the government of the Confederacy, and in later years was the incum- bent of several offices in Caldwell County, among which may be noted those of clerk of the Superior Court and register of deeds.
George W. Wilson received his early education in the public schools of Caldwell County, and subsequently entered Guilford College, from which he was graduated in 1892. For nearly five years after leaving college he was in the employ of Gant & Holt, in their old Alamance (cotton) Mills, being a part of the time in the stores and the rest of the period in other departments of their industries in Alamance County. No doubt, however, he had inherited an inclination for the law from his distinguished ancestors; at any rate, he left his position in 1897 and took up the study of law at Columbia University, where he spent three years, his legal studies being supplemented with post-graduate work in other departments of the University. He graduated from the Columbia Law School in 1901 and in that year came to Gastonia to begin the practice of his profession, in which he has won a distinguished place. In addition to taking care of the interests of a large and important clientele, he is capably discharg- ing the duties connected with the office of solici- tor for the Fourteenth Judicial District, which embraces Gaston and Mecklenburg counties. From the very outset of his career Mr. Wilson's thorough- ness of preparation in whatever litigation has been entrusted to him has inspired confidence which has been infectious and an assurance of success. In social life he is a gentleman of schol- arly tastes and broad general information, aris- ing from his wide acquaintance with men and with the best literature. He is social, tolerant, generous and genial, and, with his rare fund of knowledge and conversational powers, is a most congenial companion.
Mr. Wilson is not the only member of his fam- ily to acquire distinction in professional life, for his three brothers and his sister are well known in the field of education. Edward M. Wilson is particularly successful and distinguished as an educator, being the owner and head master of Haverford School for Boys, near Philadelphia, Pennsylavnia, a school famous for its efficiency and for the prominence of the families who send their boys there to receive their preparatory edu- cation. He has under him thirty teachers, all of the highest qualifications, and the institution is known as one of the most noted and successful preparatory schools in America. Robert Wilson, another brother, is one of the professors of Trin- ity University, Durham, North Carolina. The other brother, Louis R. Wilson, is at the head of the extension department of the University of North Carolina, where he has done and is doing a great work for the state, his success being so notable that beginning with the fall session of 1916 his department was given an increased scope of activity, which will still further increase its usefulness and beneficence. Mr. Wilson's sister, Miss Alice Wilson, is also an educator, being teacher of botany at Winthrop College.
George W. Wilson married Miss Osie Shuford,
a daughter of Martin H. Shuford, a prominent member of the Old Palatinate Germans who were among the earliest colonists of America, first settling in Pennsylvania, from whence many came to North Carolina and settled in the Ca- tawba Valley. Mrs. Wilson is paternally descend- ed from Johannis Shuford, who was the first to settle on the south fork of the Catawba, in Lin- coln County. The Shufords fought at the battle of Ramsauer's Mill and in other battles in North Carolina during the Revolutionary war. On the maternal side Mrs. Wilson is descended from the Revolutionary patriot, Valentine Mauney, mem- ber of another of the old German families of North Carolina, and who was one of the organ- izers of old Tryon County. Mr. and Mrs. Wilson have two children: Louisa and George Wood, Jr.
COLLEGIATE INSTITUTE, MOUNT PLEASANT. A number of well known North Carolina men whose names and careers are mentioned in these pages give credit for part of their early training and preparation for life to the old North Carolina College, now the Collegiate Institute at Mount Pleasant. Under the different names and charters the institution has a continuous history dating back to ante-bellum days. Its possibilities for useful service are now greater than ever, but it is also an institution with many traditions and associations that are cherished in the hearts of hundreds of pupils long since engaged in the seri- ous work of the world.
As now constituted Collegiate Institute is a sec- ondary school for boys and young men. It pre- pares for the junior class in college and thus ranks as a junior college.
The school was founded in 1853 by the North Carolina Evangelical Lutheran Synod, and was first known as the Western Carolina Male Acad- emy. The first professor in charge was the Rev. William Gerhardt, D. D., a graduate of Gettys- burg College, who was inaugurated in May, 1853. Doctor Gerhardt resided at Martinsburg, West Vir- ginia, the latter years of his life, where he died in 1917, at the advanced age of one hundred. The school prospered during the five years of Doctor Gerhardt's incumbency. In 1859 it was chartered as North Carolina College. Rev. D. H. Bittle, D. D., was elected first president. A substantial endowment fund was raised and the patronage continued to grow until the outbreak of the Civil war, when the institution was closed, many of the students joining the Confederate army. The lit- erary society halls were stripped of their carpets and the ladies of the town cut them into blankets for the soldier boys. The calamities of that war were not confined to individuals but fell alike upon institutions. In addition to losing its student body North Carolina College lost its endowment fund.
However, the spirit if not the body of the insti- tution lived during those dark days of warfare and reconstruction, due to the fact that brave men dared to labor on in the cause of Christian education and to hope for better things.
In the thirty years from 1871 to 1901 thou- sands of young men were given the opportunity of a liberal education at old North Carolina College. Seventy men were awarded diplomas of gradua- tion. From the standpoint of thorough training and solid accomplishment these graduates will measure up with a like number of men from any institution in the state. More than forty-five per cent entered the ministry, serving ably and well both North and South. Early graduates and for-
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mer students gained success and distinction in the professions of medicine, law and teaching and in other pursuits. Professor H. T. J. Ludwig was one of the first graduates and for more than twenty-five years filled the chair of mathematics, physics and astronomy in his alma mater. He was easily one of the ablest mathematicians in the South, had raised his department to a standard equal if not superior to that of any other in- stitution in the state, the university not excepted. A member of several mathematical societies, he contributed original problems and solutions to a number of leading mathematical journals of the country. Education has been said to be largely a matter of personality. It is certain that Doctor Ludwig has stamped his influence upon hundreds of young men who remember him as their most influential teacher.
It is a fact worthy of note that a number of those whose services have contributed in a marked way to the development of the public school sys- tem of Cabarrus County were graduates of North Carolina College, One was Professor J. P. Cook, superintendent and later chairman of the board of education; another, Professor H. T. J. Ludwig, superintendent, also. Professor C. E. Boger, super- intendent, and Superintendent D. S. Lippard, a graduate of Collegiate Institute.
Since 1902 the school has been conducted un- der the name Collegiate Institute. Under that title it has enjoyed a steady growth and patron- age, reputation and influence. The course of study embraces four years of work, two of prepa- ratory and two of college work. Eighty-five young men have graduated from the institute in twelve years, and the majority of them have gone to college and completed their course in two years. The honors and prizes won by institute men who have gone to college have been all out of propor- tion to the number of students. The graduates enter the junior class of leading colleges and the sophomore class of the State University without examination. The institute's graduates and for- mer students have been winners of medals, scholar- ships and honors in the University of North Car- olina, Trinity, Wake Forest, Catawba, Lenoir, Roanoke, Emory and Henry and Newberry col- leges and other schools in recent years. Thus Collegiate Institute has an established reputation for good work. It offers what young men want- training for efficiency under cheerful and whole- some conditions-work, and some play and inno- cent amusement with it. It offers what young men need-thorough, conscientious instruction and care- ful oversight.
Graduates of the institute have usually excelled in debating and public speaking-student ac- complishments indicative of the highest training. This is due to the emphasis placed upon literary society work. Every student in the school be- longs to one or other of the three literary soci- eties. A teacher is always present at the meeting to assist and to grade on individual performance. A serious deficiency of most American schools has been the inadequacy of training in practical ex- pression and ability to formulate logical thought and words to utter it. The Collegiate Institute deserves all the more credit for the splendid train- ing it has given in this department.
The normal enrollment at the institute num- bers 100 or more. North Carolina, South Caro- lina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia, as well as other states, have been represented in the school. The faculty is made up of men from some of the best known colleges and universities of the
country, who possess not only ripe scholarship but the power of leadership and ability to inspire as well as to instruct. The principal and the pro- fessor of mathematics and physics is Mr. George F. McAllister, and associated with him are J. B. Moose, T. C. Johnson, B. L. Stanley, J. W. Weeks, L. Harkey, J. E. Schenck, Jr., and Dr. J. M. Earnhardt. A number of years ago the institute adopted a military system of training. It has proved a valuable aid in regulation and govern- ment and in affording that open air exercise and discipline which is probably of more value to a young man whose character is just forming than excellence in any one department of science or classical learning.
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