USA > New Jersey > Morris County > A history of Morris County, New Jersey : embracing upwards of two centuries, 1710-1913, Volume II > Part 22
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Mr. Gordon married, October 24, 1889, Anna Trimble, a native of Dover, New Jersey, but who was reared in Boonton, daughter of James and Eliza- beth (Curry) Trimble, natives of Scotland, both deceased, who were the parents of three other children as follows: Matilda, wife of William W. Scott, attorney at Passaic, New Jersey ; Elizabeth J .; James. James Trim- ble ( father) was a millwright by trade and was employed at the Brooklyn Navy Yard for a number of years. Mr. and Mrs. Gordon have children : I. Newell, born September 26, 1890; a graduate of Princeton College, class of 1913, and now teacher in chemistry in that institution and also pursu- ing a post-graduate course in chemistry. 2. Emily E., born January 24, 1901. 3. Alice, born December 26, 1902. The family attends the Presby- terian church of Boonton, in which they are active workers, Mr. Gordon having served as elder for sixteen years and also as trustee.
FRANK E. MORSE
Carlyle says "History is the essence of innumerable biographies," and the annals of Morris county are formed of the lives of those who have been prominent factors in her educational, moral, political, military and business interests. For many years Frank E. Morse, of Boonton, Morris county, New Jersey, has stood forth as a central figure in the business life of his section of the country, and to his discretion, foresight and superior ability is due the splendid success which has crowned his efforts. In addition to his business interests his energies have long been devoted to the furtherance of many enterprises which have for their object the uplifting of mankind and the promulgation of higher standards. His paternal grandfather, Chauncey Morse, was a member of the legislature of Connecticut, from which State the family migrated to New Jersey.
Edwin B., son of Chauncey Morse, lived for a time in Massachusetts, and died in 1882. He was engaged in the insurance business. He married Harriet Lawrence, who survived him and now lives in Newark, New Jersey. They had children : Frank E., see forward; Grace, married Harry Bowers; May, censor of the Butterick Pattern Company; Annetta, married John Zisk; Edwin; Bessie, married Henry C. Faulkner.
Frank E. Morse was born in North Attleboro, Massachusetts, March 8, 1852. He was but five years of age when his parents brought him to New Jersey, so that he has practically spent his entire life in the latter State. His education was acquired in the public schools of Newark, New Jersey, where he displayed remarkable ability as a mathematician from his earliest years. Upon the completion of his education he obtained a position as clerk in a retail store, and left this to work for the Acme Cement Company for three years, then in the office of this company for a further three years ; after which he became a salesman for the same concern. In 1884 he decided that he had acquired a sufficient fund of experience to justify starting in business independently, and the successful results he has achieved have amply proven the wisdom of this decision. The Boonton Transportation & Garage Company, of which he is the president, was established in 1912, and his son is the secretary and treasurer. Mr. Morse is a director of the Boonton National Bank ; president of the Boonton Gas Company ; and presi- dent of the Frank E. Morse Company, which handles lime and cement. He has made his home in Boonton for the greater part of the past thirty years.
Mr. Morse married, 1883, Bertha Beaty, born in Morris county, daugh- ter of Nathaniel Beaty, who died during the Civil War. He married Anna
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Baldwin, and they had children : Bertha, mentioned above, and Sadie, mar- ried E. C. Peer, of Newark. Mr. and Mrs. Morse have had children : Ethel; Alberta, married O. J. Oswald, who was educated at Lafayette College and at Leipsic, Germany, and is now professor of German in the Trenton public schools ; Frank E., died at the age of one and a half years ; Lawrence, a student in Wesleyan University, class of 1914, is manager of the glee and other musical clubs and was president of his class last year ; Anna, student at the Putnam School, Poughkeepsie, New York. Mr. Morse is a member of the Methodist church, and was a delegate to the general con- ference held in 1912; he was treasurer, and was president of the board of trustees for many years. He is a member of the New Jersey State Chamber of Commerce, Boonton Club, F. and A. M. of Boonton, R. A. Honorable in business, loyal in citizenship, charitable in thought, kindly in action, true to every trust confided to his care, his life is the highest type of Christian manhood.
JAMES OAKLEY COOPER
The name of Cooper is an old and honored one in New Jersey, it hav- ing been planted here in the colonial epoch of our national history. The ancestry is of Dutch origin and is traced back to James Cooper, great-great- grandfather of James O. Cooper. He was born in Holland and immigrated to America as a young man, settling in what is now Sussex county, New Jersey, where he was one of the prominent old pioneer farmers. He married and had two sons, Peter and John, the latter of whom spent his entire life in Sussex county, where he married and reared to maturity the following children : John, Abraham, Joseph, Garret, Katie, Peggie, Hiley, Eliza, James. James Cooper, youngest of the foregoing children, lived and died in Sussex county, New Jersey. He married Nancy Wright, who bore him seven children, namely: John, Rachel, Sarah, Moses, James, Garret, Joseph.
James Cooper, fifth in order of birth of the children of James and Nancy (Wright) Cooper, was born in Sussex county, New Jersey, July 16, 1823. He passed his boyhood and youth on his father's farm, in the work and management of which he early became an important factor, and he was educated in the neighboring district schools. After reaching his legal majority he too engaged in farming operations and continued to devote many years of his life to that line of enterprise. Naturally studious, he gradually accumulated enough knowledge to pass the requirements of teachers in the State of New Jersey and during many a winter term he taught school, caring for his farm during the summer season. His pedago- gic efforts were not confined to rural schools, however. He taught in the Dover schools for a number years and served as principal of the public schools in that city for several years. He was a man of broad mind and keen observation and as a teacher was a great systematizer. He was in poor health during the last few years preceding his demise, which occurred at Dover, September 6, 1911. In politics he was a stalwart Democrat, and in religious faith was a fervent member of the Methodist Episcopal church. He married Phoebe Jayne Davenport, born at Milton, Morris county, New Jersey, November 30, 1825, died June 5, 1912. The marriage ceremony was performed at Milton, New Jersey, October 27, 1849. The following children were born to James and Phoebe Jayne (Davenport) Cooper : Hen- rietta, married David Lee and is now deceased ; Sarah J., married D. H. Dalrymple and they reside at Center Grove, New Jersey : James O., whose
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name forms the caption for this article; Eugene J., mentioned in a follow- ing paragraph; Carrie, deceased; Frank R., married Emma Jenkins and is now deceased.
James Oakley Cooper was the third child born to James and Phoebe Jayne (Davenport) Cooper. His birth occurred on the homestead farm in Randolph township, Morris county, New Jersey, September 30, 1858. After completing the curriculum of the district schools of his native township, he attended and was graduated in the Dover High School as a member of the class of 1876. He immediately began to teach school and subsequently pur- sued a post-graduate course in high school. He also completed the three- year course in pedagogy at the State Normal School and he continued his studies until he received the highest teacher's certificate given in the State. For several years he was a member of the Morris county board of examin- ers for teachers' certificates and for fourteen years taught in the public schools of this section, during seven years of which he was principal of the Mount Hope schools. He gained the reputation of having the best school in northern New Jersey, and in 1890 was appointed to fill the unexpired term of Dr. B. C. McGee as superintendent of the Morris county schools. He served in that capacity with the utmost efficiency for the ensuing four years, at the end of which he engaged in the real estate and insurance busi- ness at Dover, at the same time operating a farm near this city. He erected a beautiful residence in Dover and here maintained his home until 1908, at which time he went to Texas, there spending a year and a half, during which time he was secretary of a Commercial Club at Sulphur Springs and superintendent of the public schools of Mertzon, in western Texas. The teachers and general public gave him credit for organizing the best and most efficient system of high school work ever introduced into the Lone Star State. The teachers in a radius of seventy-five miles disbanded their schools for a week and came to Mertzon in order to study the methods of Mr. Cooper.
Owing to ill health Mr. Cooper was forced to seek a more salubrious climate than that of Texas and in 1910 went to California, locating in the San Joaquin Valley, where he followed general contracting work for a year and a half. No sooner had his own health improved than he was sent word of the declining health of his parents owing to their advanced years. He returned home to Dover in June, 1911, and lived on the old homestead with his parents until their respective deaths, the mother passing away in June, 1912, and the father in September, 19II.
In April, 1913, Mr. Cooper purchased the Trethaway property, an estate of one and a half acres adjoining the James Cooper estate of twelve acres. He now owns all this property, with two fine residences, and he devotes his attention to the growing of fruits and vegetables. During his leisure time he writes for periodicals and for agricultural papers. During the winter of 1912-13 he had articles published in the papers and journals of New Jersey which were commented upon by literary authorities as being the best writ- ten and edited of any papers that have appeared in publications of northern New Jersey for many years past. Mr. Cooper is a valued and appreciative member of the Dover Choral Society and he takes an active part in musical work in his home community. He is a Presbyterian in religious faith. In politics he has always been a Democrat and he has taken an active part in the local councils of that party. He was secretary of the Democratic county committee for seven years and has served as a delegate to numerous con- ventions, including county, State, congressional and gubernatorial, and in 1913 was a candidate for State senator.
James O. Cooper
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Mr. Cooper is the father of four children: Lela H., at the parental home; Martha D., graduated in the Dover High School and for the past three years has been a popular and successful teacher in the Morris county schools ; James B., a graduate of the Dover High School, now in the em- ploy of the Prudential Life Insurance Company ; Millie E., graduated in the Dover High School in June, 1913, now at home.
While superintendent of the Morris county schools, Mr. Cooper gained much distinction as an educator in this section of New Jersey, and during his long connection with the schools of this locality he succeeded in greatly raising the intellectual standard and promoting the efficiency of the system as a preparation for the responsible duties of life. Indeed, the constant aim and general character of Mr. Cooper's work as an educator might be sum- med up in the famous dictum of Sidney Smith, "The real object of education is to give children resources that will endure as long as life endures ; habits that time will ameliorate, not destroy ; occupation that will render sickness tolerable, solitude pleasant, age venerable, life more dignified and useful, and death less terrible." Mr. Cooper is still deeply interested in educational work and through his writings and in politics works enthusiastically for improved conditions. He is a representative and high-minded citizen, the type that reflects credit upon any community. His life has been exemplary in all respects and stands as a worthy model to the youth of Morris county.
(The Davenport Line).
Among the earliest settlers of northern Morris county were the Daven- ports and Kimbles, who came from Devonshire, England, and the Pollisons, Mowersons, Vanderhoofs and Coles, who came from Holland.
Humphrey Davenport, wife and three sons settled at Newfoundland, Passaic county, New Jersey, about 1720. He was a surveyor. His son, John, came into possession of lands at Milton about 1740 or 1750.
Humphrey Davenport Jr. had seven sons, two of whom are mentioned below, namely: Cornelius and John.
Captain Cornelius Davenport, son of Humphrey Davenport Jr., served in the Revolutionary War. He was the proprietor of a store and tavern, and built the first grist mill at Milton. He married Rachel Davenport, who bore him nine children as follows: 1. Captain Enos, of whom further. 2. John C., married Delilah Turner ; children: i. Mary Ann, born March 6, 1812, died March 23, 1891 ; married Mahlon Jennings, of Milton, born April 16, 1814, died November 25, 1882, both buried at Oak Ridge. ii. Lavinia, married Thomas K. Norman, of Milton. 3. Nathan. 4. Charles. 5. Cor- nelius. 6. Phebe. 7. Julia Ann. 8. Fanny. 9. Mahala.
John Davenport, son of Humphrey Davenport Jr., married and had chil- dren : I. John, married Jemima Brooks; children: i. Polly, married Fred- eric Cole ; lived at Clinton. ii. Leah, married Samuel Newmans. iii. Peter, married Mrs. Mackley ; lived at Milton. iv. Solomon, born 1788, died Feb- ruary 16, 1860; married, January 12, 1811, Hila, born April 30, 1788, died January 14, 1865, daughter of John Cooper ; both buried at Oak Ridge ceme- tery ; children, all born in Milton: a. Charles, born April 13, 1812, died March 13, 1885, married, December, 1835, Rachel Ross, of Stockholm, born 1816, died December 6, 1889. b. George, born May 4, 1814, died young. c. Sarah Jane, born March 13, 1817, died July 24, 1856, married, April 28, 1838, Abner Webb, of Vernon, born April 3, 1813, died December 11, 1894; both buried at Oak Ridge. d. John, born September 25, 1820, died Jan- uary 3, 1892, married (first) Phebe Allington, born March 19, 1832, died December 31, 1866, married (second) Sarah Jane Peacock, who died Octo-
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ber 25, 1898, all buried at Stockholm. e. Catharine C., born February 6, 1823, married, March 18, 1848, William B. Hunter, of Sugar Loaf, New York, born October 5, 1818, died January 17, 1881, buried at Warwick, New York. f. Eliza Ann, born November 10, 1827, died at Middletown, New York, March 31, 1888, married, May 22, 1849, John Winters, died June 22, 1892. g. Albert, born August 17, 1832, died March II, 1852. 2. Peter, married and had one child: John P., born October 24, 1801, died April II, 1846; married Delilah, born April 23, 1810, died April 11, 1846, daughter of Edward and Catherine (Mowerson) Pollison, and their children were: a. Charles Edward, born May 15, 1827, died October 25, 1875; mar- ried Sarah, born January 23, 1827, died December 27, 1878, daughter of Peter Fredericks, of Oak Ridge, New Jersey ; lived at Newfoundland, New Jersey. b. Lewis, born April 22, 1830; married, April 14, 1852, Christianna, daughter of William Eckhart; resides at Newfoundland, New Jersey. c. David, born March, 1833, died December, 1898; married, March 13, 1858, Maria, daughter of Peter Fredericks. d. Lydia, born February 20, 1836, died February 1, 1900; married Mahlon Weaver, born January 19, 1831, died August 3, 1897; both buried at Oak Ridge, New Jersey. e. James, married, April 15, 1863, Susan, daughter of Elias Davenport, of Milton, New Jersey ; resides at Oak Ridge, New Jersey. 3. Jane, born June 3, 1777 ; married, April 29, 1805, Samuel Tharp, born January 3, 1780, died April 19, 1863, son of Paul Tharp, of England, and his wife, Barbara Allen (Star) Tharp, of Germany, who settled in northern Morris county; children: i. Barbara, born July 28, 1806, died August 16, 1862. ii. Sarah, born July 18, 1807; married, December, 1826, Courtland Pettenger, born March 27, 1802, died June 8, 1846. iii. Eliza or Elizabeth, born July 8, 1809, died May 13, 1867; married Daniel Durling. iv. Mary, born May 5, 1811 ; married David Cory. v. Jane, born July 20, 1813, died August 16, 1815. vi. Joseph, born August 16, 1815, died August 30, 1815. vii. Nancy Jane, born July 9, 1817. viii. Rachel, born January 2, 1820; married, November 12, 1840, Abraham Post. ix. Margaret Ann, born December 6, 1827; married, March 13, 1844, Josiah McPeak.
Captain Enos Davenport, eldest son of Captain Cornelius Davenport, was born March 14, 1792, died May 6, 1879, and on his headstone in the Oak Ridge cemetery is inscribed: "Captain Enos Davenport, a soldier in the War of 1812." He was a very prominent man in his home community, serving as postmaster at Milton and as justice of the peace. He was in- terested in a number of local business enterprises, owning a flour mill, a saw mill, a cider mill, a store and a farm. He married, May 1, 1819, Fanny Keepers, born November 8, 1798, died April 3, 1890, daughter of Thomas and Tabitha (Jones) Keepers, the former named having been one of the early settlers of Russia, near Milton, New Jersey, and operated the Russia Forge. His wife, Tabitha (Jones) Keepers, was a resident of Bottle Hill, New Jersey, now known as Butler, and her brother, William Jones, was a gallant soldier in the Revolutionary War, wounded in one of the battles of that conflict. Joseph and William Keepers, brothers of Thomas Keepers, also served as soldiers in the Revolutionary War. Children of Captain Enos and Fanny Davenport: 1. Rosemond, married Christopher Zeek ; lived and died at Durham, New Jersey. 2. Susan, married James Barton ; lived and died at Three Rivers, Tulare county, California. 3. James L., married (first) December 21, 1843, Mary Ann Coil; (second) Betsey Norman, born 1813, died February II, 1900; lived and died at Green Pond, New Jersey. 4. Phoebe Jayne, married James Cooper : lived and died near the old Quaker church, south of Dover, New Jersey ; children : James O. and Eugene J.,
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sketches of whom accompany this. 5. Adams, married, December 20, 1854, Eliza S. Lum ; lived and died at Millbrook, New Jersey. 6. Charles, mar- ried Effie Spencer ; lived and died at Berkshire Valley, New Jersey. 7. Rachel, married Joseph Doland; lives in Terrell, Kaufman county, Texas. 8. Jane, married William Winterbottom, June 7, 1868; lives at Milton, New Jersey. 9. Jefferson, married (first) in California and had several children ; married (second) Cora Blanchard; lived and died in Millbrook, Morris county, New Jersey.
EUGENE J. COOPER
Eugene Jefferson Cooper, son of James and Phoebe Jayne (Davenport) Cooper, was born in Morris county, New Jersey, south of Dover, on May 7, 1861. His boyhood was passed on his father's farm, and his education re- ceived at the Millbrook schoolhouse and in the schools of Dover. At the conclusion of his studies, he taught school for awhile in Morris county, but this lasted for only a short time; he then entered mercantile business in connection with Richard Beach & Company, operating at Hibernia, Dover, and Chester. About the year 1882, he went west and became a bookkeeper in Tucson, Arizona, where he remained for a short while, going on after- wards to California where he engaged in business in Los Angeles, San Fran- cisco, and Sacramento. Turning his attention to the acquisition of a pro- fession, he began reading law in 1884, in the offices of James H. Neighbor and A. C. Smith, and in 1888 was admitted to the bar. He has ever since this time been engaged in the practice of his profession, and is now con- sidered one of the most prominent attorneys in Dover and an ornament to the Morris county bar. He is a master of chancery, and is a member of the Morris County Bar Association.
Mr. Cooper is also a prominent member of the Masonic order, and be- longs to Acacia Lodge, No. 20, F. and A. M., as well as the R. A. In politics he is a Democrat, and has considerable influence in his party in Dover. In the year 1888 he married Martha B. Parsons, daughter of Charles O. and Annie M. (Bryant) Parsons. Mr. and Mrs. Cooper have five children, all resident in Dover: Carrie Parsons, graduated in the Dover High School, resides with parents ; Eugene E., graduated in the Dover High School, now associated in business with his father's outside interest ; Charles S., graduated in Dover High School, now in New York University of Law ; Francis E., attended high school for three years, now completing his last year ; Phoebe Ann, graduated from grammar school, class of June, 1913, now in high school.
CHARLES A. NORRIS
The leaders of the world in any line of business are few, the followers many. It requires great sagacity, splendid business and executive ability, unflagging energy and unabating zeal in the pursuit of one's purpose to gain leadership, and the man who does so is certainly deserving of great credit. Not alone is Mr. Norris at the head of many of the important business en- terprises of this section, but he is also the leading spirit. He is the son of Daniel C. Norris, born in the State of New Jersey, 1810, died 1875. Dur- ing the greater part of his life he was engaged in the mercantile business. He married Miranda Han Vill, born in New Jersey, 1811, died 1892. They had children : Mary, married Joseph Howard ; Frances, Emma, Hannah, John, Harriet, Charles A., Charles A., second ; William.
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Charles A. Norris was born in Boonton, Morris county, New Jersey, in 1846. The public schools of Boonton furnished his preparatory education, and this was completed at the Collegiate Institute of Newton, New Jersey. He commenced his business career as a clerk for an insurance company, and has been connected with this line of business for the past forty years. Dur- ing the past five years he has served as president of the United States Insurance Company of New York City, with offices in New York City. He is one of the directors of the Boonton National Bank; president of the Holmes Library at Boonton ; one of the organizers of the Boonton Building and Loan Association ; also a director in the last named corporation; and is a member of the board of directors of the Boonton Gas Light Company and of the Improvement Company of Boonton.
Mr. Norris married, November 12, 1884, Frances A., born in Boonton, daughter of George and Ellen (Wootton) Ely, the former connected with the Boonton Iron Works; in addition to Mrs. Norris they had a daughter, Helen. Mr. and Mrs. Norris have had children: Francis, who was grad- uated from Yale University, and the Law School of Columbia University, was admitted to the bar of New York, and is now practicing his profession in New York City; Eleanor, was educated at the Packer Collegiate Institute, of Brooklyn, New York; Cornelia, is a member of the class of 1914 at Vassar College, Poughkeepsie, New York; Ely, twin of Cornelia, a student at the Stevens School of Technology, Hoboken, New Jersey; Charles, at the institute with his brother, Ely. Mr. Norris and his family are members of the Episcopal church, and he is a member of the Boonton Club. Mr. Norris has consistently maintained his high rank among the ablest business men in his State. He is possessed of a commanding and pleasing person- ality, and always manifests courtesy and respect for those with whom he is brought in contact, whether they be high or humble, rich or poor. Easy of approach, of a charitable and sympathetic nature, and endowed with the distinctive characteristics of a gentleman, it is not a matter of wonder that Mr. Norris enjoys the esteem and full confidence of his fellow citizens.
CHARLES FERN HOPKINS
While it adds nothing to the personal value of a man to be able to look back upon a long and honorable line of ancestors, it is most certainly a grati- fying thing to be in a position to do so. In the case of Charles Fern Hop- kins, of Boonton, Morris county, New Jersey, this honorable line of an- cestry lead up to an equally honorable record for himself, in which he has added in a most decided manner to the prestige of the family.
His ancestors were of Mayflower stock in this country, and go back to 1554, in Coventry, England. They were famed for their military and naval service, the first admiral of the American navy was of the Hopkins line, as was the English admiral who had command of the British squadron at the Columbian naval parade in New York harbor in 1892. In intellect they were no less distinguished, and were fearless in the defense of rights and principles. Stephen Hopkins, the fourteenth signer of the Mayflower compact in 1620, was the direct ancestor of three brothers who lived one hundred and fifty years later. These were: Stephen Hopkins, a lawyer who settled in Rhode Island and was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence; Francis, an Episcopalian clergyman who settled in Hun- terdon county, near what is now High Bridge, New Jersey ; and Jonathan Hopkins, a farmer who located in northern New Jersey, in what was then
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