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REYNOLDS HISTORICAL GENEALOGY COLLECTION
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 01190 8693
,
BOOK
OF THE
SOCIETY OF COLONIAL WARS
IN THE
N.V.
STATE OF NEW JERSEY .
1917
Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2012
http://archive.org/details/bookofsocietyofc1917soci
F 8919.625
1788838
Compiled by the Year Book Committee, JOHN LENORD MERRILL, Ex Officio, HENRY ARTHUR GRIFFIN, Chairman, HORACE FRANKLIN NIXON, Secretary, ARTHUR ADAMS, Registrar.
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F 8319 .625
Society of colonial wars. New Jersey.
Book of the Society of colonial wars in the state of New Jersey. 1917,1923
[n. p.) 19 17-23 v. plates. 233em. 1917,1923
turned 1023
GC
973.206 Cover-title: Year book. "A list of civil officers in New Jersey prior to April 19, 1775." 1917, 56m 2 bp. [73,-85.
12.21-20 Have 1923
1. New Jersey - Hist. - Colonial period - Societies. 2. New Jersey- SHELF CARBiOg.
11-29627
Library of Congress
£186.3.N55
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SOCIETY OF COLONIAL WARS IN THE STATE OF NEW JERSEY.
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HE Society of Colonial Wars in the State of New Jersey was or- ganized May 1, 1894; chartered by the General Society of Colo- nial Wars May 8, 1894. First TEARS meeting of the Society to receive the charter and to elect officers, May 10, 1894. In- corporated under the laws of the State of New Jer- sey, July 26, 1894. Meeting on this day at the house of his Excellency, General Edward Burd Grubb, Edgewater Park, on the Delaware River, opposite the spot where Washington and Lafayette first met. The Second General Court was held at Newark, May 10, 1895. Re-incorporated under the Act of February 26, 1895. The Third General Court was held at the "Beechwood" Summit, May II, 1896. The Fourth General Court was held at the Somerset Inn, Bernardsville, May 10, 1897. The Fifth Gen- eral Court was held at the Club House of the Morris County Golf Club, Morristown, May 10, . 18gS. The First Semi-Annual Court was held at the Elizabeth Town and Country Club, December 3, 1898. The Sixth General Court was held at the Princeton Inn, Princeton, May 19, 1899. The Sec- . ond Semi-Annual Court was held at the Elizabeth Town and Country Club, December 2, 1899. The Seventh General Court was held at the Elizabeth Town and Country Club, May 10, 1900. The Third Semi-Annual Court was held at the University Club, New York, November 23, 1900. The Eighth Gen- eral Court was held at the Princeton Inn, Prince- ton, May 20, 1901. The Fourth Semi-Annual Court was held at the University Club, New York, No-
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vember 22, 1901. The Ninth General Court was held at the Princeton Inn, May 14, 1902. The Fifth Semi-Annual Court was held at the University Club, New York, November 21, 1902. The Tenth General Court was held at the Princeton Inn, Princeton, May 22, 1903. The Sixth Semi-Annual Court was held at the University Club, New York, November 21, 1903. The Eleventh General Court was held at the Laurel-in-the-Pines, Lakewood, May 13, 1904. The Seventh Semi-Annual Court was held at the University Club, November 19, 1904. The Twelfth General Court was held at the Laurel-in-the-Pines, Lakewood, May II, 1905. The Eighth Semi-Annual Court was held at the University Club, New York, November 17, 1905. The Thirteenth General Court was held at the Laurel-in-the-Pines, May 11, 1906. The Ninth Semi-Annual Court was held at the University Club, New York, November 24, 1906. The Four- teenth General Court was held at the Laurel-in- the-Pines, Lakewood, May 3, 1907. The Tenth Semi-Annual Court was held at the University Club, New York, November 23, 1907. The Fif- teenth General Court was held at the Laurel-in- the-Pines, Lakewood, May 1, 1908. The Eleventh Semi-Annual Court was held at the University Club, November 21, 1908. The Sixteenth General Court was held at the Laurel-in-the-Pines. Lake- .wood, May 7, 1909. The Twelfth Semi-Annual Court was held at the University Club, November 27, 1909. The Seventeenth General Court was held at the Laurel-in-the-Pines, Lakewood, May 6, 1910. The Thirteenth Semi-Annual Court was held at the University Club, November 26, 1910. The Eighteenth General Court was held at the Laurel-in-the-Pines, Lakewood, May 5, 1911. The
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Fourteenth Semi-Annual Court was held at the University Club, November 18, 1911. The Nine- teenth General Court was held at the Laurel-in-the- Pines, Lakewood, May 3, 1912. The Fifteenth Semi-Annual Court was held at the University. Club, November 30, 1912. The Twentieth General Court was held at the Essex County Country Club, West Orange, May 2, 1913. The Sixteenth Semi- Annual Court was held at the University Club, New York, December 13, 1913. The Twenty-first Gen- eral Court was held at the Laurel-in-the-Pines, Lakewood, May 8, 1914. The Seventeenth Semi- Annual Court was held at the University Club, New York, December 5, 1914. The Twenty-second Gen- eral Court was held in the rooms of the New Jersey Historical Society, Newark, May 4, 1915. The Eighteenth Semi-Annual Court was held at the Uni- versity Club, New York, December 4, 1915. The Twenty-third General Court was held at the Laurel- in-the-Pines, Lakewood, May 5, 1916. The Nine- teenth Semi-Annual Court was held at the Uni- versity Club, New York, December 2, 1916.
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THE OLD BARRACKS AT TRENTON, ERECTED 1758-50. THE BUILDING ON THE RIGHT WAS THE OFFICERS' QUARTERS.
rences gave the signal for hostilities, although the war, which lasted until 1763, was not formally pro- claimed until 1756.
From the commencement of hostilities in 1754, the Province of New Jersey was in a constant state of apprehension of an attack by hostile Indians, and many accounts of their scalping and murdering within its borders were reported to the Governor.
During 1755, numerous petitions were filed by the inhabitants, asking that barracks be erected for the purpose of housing the troops that had been sent to the Province by the English. These troops were quartered with various residents of the State at two shillings and five pence per week for each soldier, and the mode of lodging had become most annoying to the people because the habits and morals of the soldiers were not of the best.
The near approach at times of the stealthy foe, the letters received in Trenton giving notice of the murder of men in Sussex County by the savages, made the demand more insistent that arrangements should be made for future protection. In the winter of 1755, a petition was filed with the General As- . sembly, signed by residents of various sections that felt the need of protection, and in quick order fol- lowed thirty-eight additional petitions.
In February, 1756, Governor Belcher was pe- . titioned by the most prominent men of the State,
. ·but it was not until the 15th of April. 1758, that a law was passed by the Council and General Assem- bly to provide for the erection of five barracks within the State, to be located at Perth Amboy, Elizabethtown, New Brunswick, Trenton, and Bur- lington. These buildings were shortly erected by the Colonists, and it was planned that each should house between 300 and 500 troops.
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Trenton, being the most centrally located town of the State, and one of the most important posts, had an officers' quarters added to its barracks during 1759. Much to the regret of all patriotic citizens, all of these buildings have been demolished except at Trenton, where the Barracks is being restored to its original condition by the State of New Jersey.
The building is of stone, two stories in height, with basement, located at the corner of South Wil- low and Front Streets and within 300 feet of the Capitol Building. The site was well chosen near the banks of the Delaware, and was within 100 feet of Petty's Run, which was filled with pure, spark- ling water. The main building is 180 feet in length and 181/2 feet in width, with two wings, each 56 feet in length, at either end thereof and projecting at right angles from the front of the Barracks. The officers' quarters were built at the end of the north- easterly wing.
The first authentic record of the occupation of the Barracks shows that a regiment of Highland- ers, on the second of October, 1759, were quartered there, and their peculiar dress created much interest among the people of the town. It was occupied al- most continually by troops until 1765, at which time the attention of the General Assembly was called to the fact that the perishable articles therein should be sold and the building kept in repair and rented. Within a year after the Assembly took action, it was necessary to again refit the building and furnish it with bedding, blankets, and other necessaries.
During the Revolutionary War the Barracks was occupied at various times by companies of British and Hessian troops and recruits for the American army. For two weeks prior to the battle of Trenton it was occupied by English Dragoons and German
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Yeagers, together with a number of Tory refugees from Monmouth and Burlington Counties. It con- tinued until the end of the war as a place for quar- tering the soldiers of either army who happened. to be in possession of the surrounding territory.
In 1787 the building was sold and divided into apartments, and in 1793, Front Street, to a width of 35 feet, was extended from Willow Street to the State Capitol, passing directly through the Bar- racks, a portion of which was razed for its accom- modation, parallel and quite close to the north wing.
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TABLETS ERECTED BY THE SOCIETY OF COLONIAL WARS IN THE STATE OF NEW JERSEY.
HE purposes for which the Society of Colonial Wars in the State of New Jersey exists are stated in the Preamble of its Constitution. As one means of perpetuating the memory of prominent events of Colonial history the Society has initiated the erec- tion of tablets commemorative of persons, sites, and events.
Between the years 1910 and 1916 four tablets were erected by the Society : those marking the site of the first court house of Somerset County, at Six Mile Run, and the site of the second court house of Somerset County, at Hillsborough ; that commemo- rative of the settlement of Elizabeth Towne; and that in memory of Hendrick Fisher, President of the first Board of Trustees of Queen's College, now Rutgers College. The two Somerset County tablets and the Hendrick Fisher tablet are the work of Albert Weinert; the Elizabeth Towne tablet is the work of John Williams, Inc. Photographs of these tablets and historical sketches are included in this volume. Of the first and second court houses in Somerset County, the sketches have been prepared by Charles Wolcott Parker, Justice of the Supreme Court of New Jersey, formerly Governor of the So- ciety of Colonial Wars in the State of New Jersey. Those which deal with the Elizabeth Towne tablet and the tablet to the memory of Hendrick Fisher are the contributions of Arthur Adams, Registrar of the Society of Colonial Wars in the State of New Jersey.
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MAMINOTO 0113DOS 3H1/8 030843
SINSOMERSETCOUNT SITE OFFIRST COURTHOUSE
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TABLET ERECTED TO MARK THE SITE OF THE FIRST COURT HOUSE IN SOMERSET COUNTY. UNVEILED NOVEMBER 15. 1010.
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TABLET MARKING THE SITE OF THE FIRST COURT HOUSE OF SOMER- SET COUNTY, NEW JERSEY.
HIS tablet is at Franklin Park, a small village six miles southwest of New Brunswick, on the main road to Princeton, now called the Lincoln Highway, which is one of the principal automobile routes to Philadelphia. The place was formerly called Six Mile Run, and the road, a very old one, was in 1710 known as "the great road that leads from Inian's Ferry (now New Brunswick) to Cranberry Brook." It is laid down on the map of New Jersey published in London in 1777, and the "Low Dutch Church" of Six Mile Run is also indicated thereon. The tablet is on the west side of the main road about three hundred yards north of the present church building; and was unveiled on the 200th anniver- sary of the church, November 15, 1910, as the joint gift of the Society of Colonial Wars in the State of New Jersey and the Somerset County Historical Society.
Nothing of special historic importance attaches to the site: the principal points of interest are its an- tiquity and the locality of the county seat at the time in view of subsequent growth of the county. Som- erset was first set off as a new county, somewhat vaguely, in 1688; but had no county seat and de- pended on Middlesex for its courts. In 1710 its boundaries were better defined, and ever since that year the boundary line between Middlesex and Som- erset has run along the centre of the road already mentioned. No doubt the placing of the first court house in 1717 at the boundary line and practically
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. in a corner of the county, depended on the prox- imity of the church, the gathering of most of the population in this neighborhood, and the selection of the site by popular vote.
The building was burned, with its records, in 1737, by which time the public needs called for another county seat, which was then moved to Mill- stone and later to Somerville, while Franklin Park remains as it began two centuries ago, a quiet coun- try village clustered around its church, and astride of the "old road" (as it was called in 1714) "lead- ing from Inian's Ferry by Jedediah Higgins' house toward the Falls of the Delaware."
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TO MARK THE SITE OF THE SECOND COURT HOUSE , F INTHIS PLACE THEN CALLED HONOMOSSTTH BUILT IN 1738~BURNED OCTOBER 26. 1779 BY TORY RAIDERS UNDER LT. COL.SINICOE OF THE QUEEN'S RANGERS
THIS TABLET WAS SET UP BY THE SOCIETY OFCOLONIAL WARS IN THESTATE OF NEW JERSEY THESOCIETY OFSONS OF THE REVOLUTION
THE SOMERSET COUNTY HISTORICALSOCIETY CONOMY
1911:
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هيومتوقع بعد العمالفى السحب بور شالمن بعث
TABLET .MARKING THE SITE OF THE SECOND COURT HOUSE OF SOM- ERSET COUNTY, NEW JERSEY.
HIS tablet is set in a large boulder at the side of the main road lead- ing through Millstone ; a road not so familiar to motorists as famous for its historical associations. It was by this road that Washing- ton's army marched from Princeton to Morris- town after the battle of Princeton in January, 1777, bivouacking at Somerset Court House on the night of January 3. Throughout the period when that army, at Morristown, was planted on the flank of the British communications between New York and Philadelphia, Somerset Court House, or Hillsbor- ough, as it was then called (the name has been transferred to another place several miles away) was more or less debatable ground, but usually within the American lines. In the spring of 1777 it was held by General Dickinson with the Jersey militia. In June of that year General Howe, leav- ing New Brunswick, occupied Millstone with his right wing for several days, hoping to draw Wash- ington down out of the hills. In October, 1779, Colonel Simcoe and the Queen's Rangers swept through on their famous sixty-mile raid from Staten Island, released three royalists confined in the jail, and burned the court house with all its records except the road book and one book of mortgages. It was not rebuilt, but the county seat was moved to what is now Somerville.
The building was of brick or stone, and the ma- terials were sold by the county after its destruction.
Apart from the matters of military interest con-
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nected with this building, it was the scene of a jail delivery by a mob in 1747; an execution by burning in 1752; the meeting place of the Somerset Com- mittee of Correspondence in 1775 ; and a place des- ignated for the sessions of the Supreme Court from 1777 to 1779.
The tablet was erected at the joint expense of our Society, the Society of Sons of the Revolution in the State of New Jersey, and the Somerset County Historical Society. The land whereon it stands was purchased by private subscription and the title vested in the Historical Society, as trustee for the three societies participating.
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OCTOBER 27TH c. A. D. 1914. LASHIO MIN AO AIVIS BULL NI SIVA TVINOTOO 40 ALMIDOS
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TABLET TO COMMEMORATE THE TWO HUNDRED AND FIFTIETH ANNIVERSARY OF THE SETTLEMENT OF ELIZABETH TOWNE. NOW ELIZABETH. CEVFILED OCTOBER 27, 1904.
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THE ELIZABETH TOWNE TABLET.
N pursuance of the policy of mark- ing by appropriate tablets the chief historical sites of the State as occasion should arise, and be- cause the fitness of things de- manded, the Council of the Soci- ety of Colonial Wars in the State of New Jersey resolved to share in the celebration of the Two Hundred and Fiftieth Anniversary of the Founding of Elizabeth Towne to be held in the year 1914.
Elizabeth Towne was settled in the year 1664 by a company from Long Island, though most of the founders originally had been identified with the New Haven Colony. This was the earliest per- manent settlement of Englishmen within the pres- ent State of New Jersey.
Soon after the founding of the Town, Philip Carteret came from England as Governor to repre- sent Sir George Carteret, to whom the Province had been sold by the Duke of York. Carteret iden- tified himself with the infant settlement, and, in honor of the Lady Elizabeth, wife of the Proprietor · Sir George Carteret, it received the name Elizabeth Towne.
Elizabeth Towne played a prominent and honor- able part in the history of the Province. Here, for example. on May 26, 1668, was held the first Gen- eral Assembly of the Province of East Jersey. Here also, in 1746, was established the great University of the State known to us as Princeton, but to earlier generations as the College of New Jersey. During the period of the Revolution, too, Elizabeth bore nobly her part of the privation and suffering of the time, and performed worthily her share of those
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great deeds through which independence was won.
The Society of Colonial Wars in the State of New Jersey, in appreciation of the honorable rôle played by Elizabeth Towne in the Colonial history of our State, caused the Tablet illustrated herewith to be placed on the walls of old St. John's Church. The ceremony of presentation took place on October 27, 1914, during the Celebration held to commemo- rate the Two Hundred and Fiftieth Anniversary of the Founding of the City.
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THE HENDRICK FISHER TABLET.
N invitation to join in the Celebra- tion of the One Hundred and Fiftieth Anniversary of its found- ing was extended to our Society by the authorities of Rutgers Col- . lege. The Council determined that the part of the Society in the Celebration should consist in the presentation, with appropriate exercises, of a tablet in memory of Hendrick Fisher, a person prominent in the Colonial History of the State, and active in the founding of the Col- lege.
Rutgers College had its origin in the need for an educational institution felt by the churches of the Reformed Dutch faith scattered through New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. After years of effort on the part of the Reverend Theodorus Jacobus Frelinghuysen and his son, the Reverend Theodorus Frelinghuysen, the movement was finally crowned with success under the leadership of the Reverend Jacob Rutsen Hardenburg and the lay- man, Hendrick Fisher. The Charter for Queen's College, the original name, was granted in the name of the King by Governor William Franklin under date of November 10, 1766, making Rutgers the eighth in order of foundation of the Colonial col- leges.
It would be difficult to overestimate the impor- tance of the work of Hendrick Fisher in bringing about the long-desired result. That charters were not lightly granted for colleges by the Governor and Council may be seen from the story of the diffi- culties encountered in securing the Charter for the College of New Jersey only a score of years earlier,
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even though the Presbyterians were much more nu ..... ous and wealthy than the members of the Dutch Church. Fisher's long service in the Assem- bly and his extensive acquaintance with those prom- inent in public life must have been of the greatest help in securing the coveted Charter.
Hendrick Fisher was born in the Palatine, and emigrated to America when only a boy. The fam- ily settled near Bound Brook, and became identified with the Dutch Church. In 1746 Fisher took for the first time his seat in the Assembly of the Prov- ince. He served continuously for thirty years; his long membership, his unquestioned integrity, and his considerable ability making him most influential in that body.
In 1765 he was appointed Paymaster of the New Jersey Regiment that had served in 1764. In that year also he was one of the three delegates of the Province to the Stamp Act Congress; and in 1775 he was President of the First Provincial Congress of New Jersey.
He it is to whose efforts the securing of the Royal Charter of Queen's College at the hands of Gover- nor Franklin was largely due. Doubtless it was in recognition of his worth, his eminence, and his serv- ices in securing the Charter that he was made the President of the first Board of Trustees of the . College.
To keep the name of this Colonial worthy in per- petual remembrance, and in recognition of his part in the founding of the College, the Society of Colo- nial Wars in the State of New Jersey presented to the President and Trustees of Rutgers College the tablet erected within the walls of the beautiful Kirk- patrick Chapel.
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PRIZE ESSAY COMPETITION IN PRINCETON UNIVERSITY.
N 1914 the Council decided to offer a prize of fifty dollars for annual competition, to be awarded to the undergraduate of Princeton University who shall have sub- mitted the best written disserta- tion upon some subject of American Colonial His- tory, assigned by the Department of American His- tory. It was intended to cover fully this period in the history of New Jersey.
The conditions of the competition are as follows :
The dissertations to be at least five thousand words in length and to be accompanied by bibliog- raphies of the sources used; specific reference to the sources to be given throughout the essays.
The dissertations to be submitted anonymously before May Ist in each year. The names of the authors to be inclosed in sealed envelopes and at- tached to the dissertations.
The prize to be awarded by the Professor or Pro- fessors in charge of the department of American History, and the decision to be announced at Com- mencement.
The subject for the year 1914-1915 was: "Wil- liam Franklin, Last Royal Governor of New Jer- sey." The winner of the prize was James Boyd Hunter of Jersey City, N. J.
The subject for the year 1915-1916 was: "New Jersey Under Governor Lewis Morris, 1738-1746." The winner of the prize was Allan Hunter of River- side, Cal.
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The subject for the year 1916-1917 is: "The Judicial System of Colonial New Jersey."
For this report the Year Book Committee is in- debted to Professor William Libbey of Princeton, formerly Governor of the Society of Colonial Wars in the State of New Jersey.
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OFFICERS OF THE GENERAL SOCIETY OF COLONIAL WARS.
Honorary Governor-General. HOWLAND PELL, ESQUIRE, 31 Nassau Street, New York.
Governor-General.
RICHARD MCCALL CADWALADER, ESQUIRE, 133 South 12th Street, Philadelphia, Pa.
Vice Governor-General.
MAJOR GENERAL CHARLES FRANCIS ROE, 35 East 37th Street, New York.
Secretary-General.
JOHN LENORD MERRILL, ESQUIRE, 517 Park Avenue, East Orange, N. J.
Deputy Secretary-General. JOHN FRANCIS DANIELL, ESQUIRE, 759 Broadway, New York.
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Treasurer-General.
WILLIAM MACPHERSON HORNOR, ESQUIRE, 429 Walnut Street, Philadelphia, Pa.
Deputy Treasurer-General.
FRANCIS HOWARD WILLIAMS, ESQUIRE, 1300 Locust Street, Philadelphia, Pa.
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Registrar-General. GEORGE NORBURY MACKENZIE, ESQUIRE, 1808 Park Avenue, Baltimore, Md.
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Historian-General. FREDERICK DWIGHT, ESQUIRE, 43 Cedar Street, New York.
Chaplain-General. REVEREND CHARLES LEWIS HUTCHINS, D.D., Concord, Mass.
Chancellor-General. HON. HENRY STOCKBRIDGE, Baltimore, Md.
Surgeon-General. HENRY ARTHUR GRIFFIN, ESQUIRE, M.D., 91 Park Avenue, New York.
Deputy Governors-General.
California,
ORRA EUGENE MONNETTE, Citizens Trust & Savings Bank, Los Angeles, Cal.
Colorado,
Connecticut, COLONEL LOUIS R. CHENEY, Hartford, Conn.
Delaware, JOSEPH WILKINS COOCH, Newark, Del.
District of Columbia, WALTER C. CLEPHANE, 1521 H Street, Washington, D. C.
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Georgia, JOHN AVERY GERE CARSON, Savannah, Ga.
Idaho,
Illinois,
JOHN SMITH SARGENT, 115 South Dearborn Street, Chicago, Ill. Indiana,
WILLIAM B. WHEELOCK, I West Washington Street, Indianapolis, Ind. Iowa,
STEPHEN A. SWISHER, Iowa City, Iowa.
Kentucky,
GEORGE T. WOOD, 417 West Main Street, Louisville, Ky. Maine,
FRITZ HERMAN JORDAN, Portland, Maine.
Maryland,
J. APPLETON WILSON, 800 Law Building, Courtland Street, Baltimore, Md. Massachusetts, . JOSEPH GRAFTON MINOT, Boston, Mass.
Michigan,
ALLEN S. COLTON, P. O. Box 1437 City Post Office, Washington, D. C. Minnesota,
HON. ELI TORRANCE, Minneapolis, Minn.
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Missouri,
HON. JOHN B. WHITE, IIII Long Building, Kansas City, Mo.
New Hampshire, JOHN CALVIN THORNE, Concord, N. H.
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