USA > New Jersey > Biographical, genealogical and descriptive history of the first congressional district of New Jersey, Volume I > Part 6
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Solomon H. Stanger learned the glass-blower's trade, at which he worked and also engaged in farming., He was one of the foremost farmers of his time and made great progress in agricultural affairs. He was a prominent member of the Protestant Methodist church and held all of its offices, at different times. He was also prominent in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, taking an active part in their meetings. He was public spirited to
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a degree, losing no opportunity to advance the welfare of the community. He married a lady whose maiden name was Hannah Simmerman, a daughter of John Simmerman. She passed to her reward in 1883, and he on April 6, 1887, leaving a family of four children to mourn their death.
To obtain an education our subject attended the public schools of his native place until he was twenty-one, when he left school and began farm- ing. The first two years he worked for his father and then purchased the farm. This vocation was continued until 1880, when he rented a building and opened a store in this village. The following year he moved into a larger building, the famous old "Temperance House," now occupied by him, where he has one of the largest and most complete stocks of goods to be found in this part of the country. At one time he was connected with the Grange, acting as its agent, and he still retains all his old-time interest in the farming element. He is a remarkably shrewd business man, but thoroughly honest and upright in all his dealings, and his conduct is beyond question. He was married in 1860 to Miss Lydia B. Shute, a daughter of Isaac Shute, and their only children are two sons,-C. Fleming and Frank R.,-both of whom are able assistants of their father in the store.
Mr. Stanger is a stanch Republican and has been chosen by his friends to fill several offices of various importance. He was elected freeholder in 1885 and held that place continuously for ten years, serving at the same time as the treasurer of the almshouse committee. In 1892 he was elected to the assembly and was an incumbent of that office four years, one year longer than any previous member from that county had held it, and it was sorely against his will that he was nominated the last time, but his friends insisted and he was obliged to yield to their wishes. In 1896 he was elected to the state senate, and here he has done all in his power for the general good and has upheld the high standard his constituents placed for him. He has ever been a friend of the laboring man and has striven to lighten their load whenever practicable. During the session of 1898-9 he introduced and worked for the passage of an act compelling the payment of wages at least once in two weeks. He succeeded in getting this bill through the senate, but it was killed in the house. This bill was intended to compel the glass companies to pay their employes cash and not force them to patronize the companies' stores, as had been done before. Mr. Stanger was in no sense a politician, as he never made promises of what he would do, and was not a wire puller or schemer for office. His record has been pure and clean and will readily admit the searchlight of Truth to be turned on at every point. He is a director of the Glassboro Building & Loan Association and takes pride in the institutions of the town.
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He is connected with various fraternal societies and ranks high in them. In 1867 he was made an Odd Fellow and has passed all the chairs. In 1875 he was elected secretary of the Glassboro Lodge, No. 58, and is still an in- cumbent. He is a member of Fraternal Encampment, No. 23, I. O. O. F., of Woodbury, and was made a Mason in 1882, in Glassboro Lodge, No. 55, and in that also he has passed all the chairs. He later joined Trenton Chap- ter, Gebal Council, and Palestine Commandery, No. 4, Trenton. He is a thirty-second-degree Mason, belonging to the Consistory at Camden, and is also a Shriner, belonging to Lulu Temple, of Philadelphia. In 1895 he joined Pocahontas Council, No. 48, of the Junior Order of American Mechanics. He is prominent in church work, as a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and has been a trustee and steward for years. His popularity is shown by the large majority received by him when a candidate for election to public office.
THOMAS W. TRENCHARD.
The name of Trenchard has figured conspicuously in connection with public affairs of New Jersey for several generations, and he of whom we write has added new luster to the family record by his honorable career. He was born in Centerton, Salem county, New Jersey, December 13, 1863, and now resides in Bridgeton, Cumberland county. He is a lineal descendant of George Trenchard, who came from east Jersey and settled in Salem county in 1720. His paternal great-grandfather, John Trenchard, resided in Fair- field township, Cumberland county, where for a number of years he success- fully engaged in the operation of a gristmill, in vessel building and shipping of lumber, acquiring thereby a handsome competence. He was a public- spirited man and a recognized leader in the community, and at one time a member of the legislative council of New Jersey.
Twice married, one of his children, James Howell Trenchard, was born in Fairfield township, Cumberland county, on May 20, 181I, and became one of the early civil engineers and land surveyors of this section of the state. He attended school at Easton, Pennsylvania, under Rev. Dr. George Junkin. During his early manhood he resided in Centerton, Salem county. but afterward took up his abode at Bridgeton. He was actively connected with various business enterprises, and in connection with his work as civil engineer conducted a mercantile establishment and also owned and operated saw and grist mills. He gave his political support to the Whig party until its dissolution, when he joined the ranks of the new Republican party and was one of its stalwart supporters until his death. He served as a member
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of the city council of the city of Bridgeton, and also represented Salem county in the state legislature, being elected to that body in the year 1848, on the Whig ticket. His sound judgment and patriotic spirit made him par- ticularly popular and efficient in public office, and his efforts in behalf of the general welfare were very effective. He married Miss Mary Barrett, a daughter of William Barrett, at one time a merchant of Fairton, New Jersey. She is still living, at the advanced age of ninety years, but ,Mr. Trenchard has passed away, having died after a brief illness, February 27, 1877. In their family were seven children. Richard, the eldest, born December 1I, 1838, was three times married, his first union being with Emily Whitaker, by whom he had three children,-Elizabeth, Mary and Herbert. His second wife was Mary Hitchner, by whom he had two children,-Joseph and Della. For his third wife he chose Eva Breese. As a means of livelihood he en- gaged in manufacturing, in Bridgeton. William B. was the second of the family. James W., born September 17, 1843, was twice married, and by the first union, with Miss Gertrude Bond, had one son, Frank. For his second wife he chose Amanda Powell. He was one of the organizers and is at present the cashier of the Bridgeton National Bank. Eleanor, born Septem- ber 10, 1848, is the wife of James T. Williams, a tinware manufacturer of Philadelphia, and they have had three children, Alice P., Joseph H. and James T. Jeannetta, born November 10, 1851, is the wife of Charles R. Elmer, of Bridgeton, New Jersey, and they have two children. Thomas W. was born August 18, 1846, and died June 7, 1860. Araminta, born February 10, 1856, died February 27, 1857.
William B. Trenchard, the father of our subject, has for more than a quarter of a century been a resident of Bridgeton and has figured conspicu- ously in connection with public affairs. His birth occurred in Centerton, Salem county, October 1, 1840, and after attaining his majority he removed to Fairton, where he engaged in general merchandising. About 1870 he came to Bridgeton, where he joined his father in the surveying business under the firm name of James H. & William B. Trenchard. Upon his father's death he continued the business alone and was actively connected with the profession until elected county clerk of Cumberland county. For many years he served as city surveyor, resigning on his election to the clerkship. He was also a justice of the peace for several terms and represented the Fourth Ward of Bridgeton on the Board of Chosen Freeholders of Cumber- land county, where he was soon recognized as a leader in the conduct of the affairs of the county. That office he also resigned when elected county clerk. As a surveyor he did much work in Cumberland, Salem, Gloucester, Camden, Cape May and Atlantic counties. He surveyed the great tract of Atlantic
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county, known as the "Walker tract," and also the big section of country where Carmel is now located. In addition to his wide knowledge of the country acquired in this way and the fund of information which he has gained through personal experience, and which cannot be acquired from books or records, he came into possession upon his father's death of some very valu- able papers, maps and other writings which cannot be secured in any other place. In 1889 he was elected county clerk of Cumberland county for a term of five years, and on the expiration of that period was again chosen to the office. At the first election he received a plurality of three hundred and fifty-nine votes, and in 1894 his plurality over the Democratic candidate was twenty-seven hundred and nine,-a fact which indicates how well he had discharged his duty during the first term, thus winning the confidence and support of the public. He is a man of sterling worth, very earnest and con- scientious in the discharge of his duty, and during his long connection with Cumberland county he has won the respect of his fellow men in all the rela- tions of life.
Thomas Whitaker Trenchard, whose name introduces this review, was born in Centerton, Salem county, on the 13th of December, 1863, and at the usual age entered the public school in which he was graduated when fifteen years of age. He then entered the South Jersey Institute and was graduated in 1882. Thus well equipped for the practical and responsible duties of life and with a broad general knowledge to serve as a foundation upon which to rear the superstructure of professional wisdom, he began reading law in the office of Potter & Nixon, in September, 1882, and was admitted to the bar at the November term of the supreme court, in 1886, being licensed a counselor of law in 1889. In the former year he located in Bridgeton, where he opened an office, since which time he has steadily added to his reputation as an able representative of the legal profession. His knowledge of the law is comprehensive and thorough, and his application of its principles to the points in litigation is very accurate, so that he is fully competent to discharge the duties of judge of Cumberland county, to which position he was ap- pointed by Governor Vorhees, in April, 1899. On the bench he has added to the high reputation he had previously won, and although he is the young- est law judge in the state his prestige is creditable and enviable. He served as city solicitor of Bridgeton and has held other offices, having in 1888 been the nominee of the Republican party for assemblyman. He was elected to represent the first district by a plurality of six hundred and three votes, and was the youngest member of the house, being at that time only twenty-four years of age. The following year he declined to be a candidate for renomi- nation, preferring to devote his attention entirely to his law practice. The
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position of city solicitor; however, being in the direct line of his professional duties, he accepted the office in the spring of 1892 and continued therein until 1899, when he was elevated to the bench. He was one of the organ- izers of the Cumberland County Bar Association, of which he is now serving as the president, and is one of the charter members of the State Bar Associa- tion.
In politics Judge Trenchard has always been a stalwart Republican and for four years he served as a member of the state central committee. In 1896 he was chosen one of the presidential electors and represented his con- stituents by casting his ballot for McKinley and Hobart. He was also a solicitor of the board of health of Bridgeton for several years, and is a mem- ber of the Society of the Sons of the Revolution.
In November, 1892, Mr. Trenchard was married to Miss Harriet A. Man- ning, a daughter of Rev. Dr. Joseph K. Manning, of Trenton, New Jersey, who for many years was a Baptist clergyman of that place. The Judge and his wife have a wide acquaintance in the southern section of the state and enjoy the warm regard of their many friends, to whom they extend a gracious hospitality in their pleasant home.
OWEN L. JONES.
To this gentleman is due that tribute of respect and admiration which is always given-and justly so-to those men who have worked their way upward to positions of prominence through their own efforts, who have achieved wealth through their own labors, and by their honorable, straightfor- ward dealing commanded the esteem and confidence of those with whom they have been thrown in contact. Success and prominence in almost any calling lie along the line of patient, persevering and faithful work. This Mr. Jones realized, and resolved that if earnest labor could secure success it should be his. His career has therefore been characterized by this factor of prosperity, and supplementing this were his keen perception, sound judg- ment and natural abilities. There are no other qualities absolutely essential to advancement, and upon the ladder of his own building has he climbed to eminence and affluence in commercial circles.
Owen L. Jones was born at Bricksboro, near Port Elizabeth, in Cum- berland county, New Jersey, his parents being Owen and Elizabeth (Lore) Jones. His paternal grandfather, Jonathan Jones, removed from Burling- ton county, this state, to Port Elizabeth, where he carried on agricultural pursuits throughout the remainder of his life. He was a member of the
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Hicksite division of the Society of Friends, belonging to the Maurice River monthly meeting, and occasionally preached for the denomination. He married Miss Mary Owen, and to them were born four children. A daugh- ter, Sarah, became the wife of Isaac Baner, and they removed to Ohio, where both died. The grandfather of our subject died when about eighty- two years of age, and his wife passed away at the age of ninety. A native of Burlington county, New Jersey, Owen Jones, the father of our subject, was reared to the occupation of farming, and followed that pursuit in connection with the butchering business, in Bricksboro, where he spent the greater part of his life. In 1855, however, he removed to Salem and retired from business there, living in the enjoyment of the fruits of his former toil until called to his final rest in 1869. In politics he was first a Whig, and on the dis- solution of that party he joined the ranks of the new Republican party, with which he ever afterward affiliated. He held various township offices, includ- ing that of freeholder, and was quite prominent in local affairs. In religious belief he was connected with the Society of Friends. The three children of the family are: Sarah, the wife of Clement Acton, a lumber and hardware merchant of Salem; Owen L .; and Elizabeth, wife of Thomas B. Wood, who formerly engaged in dealing in lime and grain in Cumberland county, New Jersey, but is now deceased.
Owen L. Jones, whose name initiates this review, was educated in private schools and in the academy at Port Elizabeth, then one of the leading educational institutions of that day. He also spent one term in a private school in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He continued with his father until 1843, when he came to Salem and entered upon an independent business career. He entered the employ of the firm of Acton & Cattell, dealers in lumber and hardware, and thus familiarized himself with business plans and methods, gain- ing a practical knowledge of commercial procedure. For six years he re- mained with that firm and then joined Clement Acton in the continuance of the lumber business, under the firm name of Acton & Jones. That relationship continued for two years, when Mr. Acton withdrew on account of ill health and was succeeded by Richard Woodnut, under the firm name of Jones & Woodnut. For fifteen years they carried on a large and profitable business, at the expiration of which time Mr. Jones became connected with the extensive enterprise which now claims his attention. He formed a part- nership with James K. Patterson, under the firm name of Patterson & Jones, for the purpose of engaging in the canning business in Salem, at that time located on Church street. In 1881 the senior partner sold his interest to James Ayers, and the firm of Jones & Ayers has since carried on the business up to the present time. Their factory was erected in 1876 at
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their present site, for the purpose of securing convenience and better shipping facilities, and is now one of the largest in the state, furnishing employment to two hundred and fifty persons. The plant covers an acre of ground, an improvement has been added to the rear of the buildings, and the latest and best improved machinery and apparatus have been put in, so that their facilities for carrying on the business in the most approved way are very complete. They can tomatoes, and their brand is widely celebrated for its superiority. They manufacture their own cans, and in that department of the works employ a large force of men throughout the year. Their ship- ping department is situated upon their own private wharf on the Salem creek. Throughout Mr. Jones' connection with the business it has con- stantly increased, both in volume and in importance, until at the present time they are turning out a million cans a year, and its goods are now shipped throughout a wide territory. They also command the best market prices and the house sustains a most enviable reputation for reliabilty in all trade transactions. Mr. Jones is also the owner of a fine farm of one hundred and thirty-five acres on Lower Penn's Neck.
While prominent in business circles, he has gained equal prominence in political life, and has been an important factor in the public life of Salem. In his political views he is a stanch Republican, well informed on the issues of the day and unswerving in his allegiance to the measures of the party. For sixteen years he has been a member of the city council of Salem, and in that capacity has labored earnestly and effectively for the progress and improvement of the city. The cause of education found in him a valued friend during his six years' service on the school board, and he was a member of the most important legislature that ever convened in New Jersey,-the assembly of 1861,-which passed all the war measures of the state during that period. He was also subsequently elected the sheriff of Salem county, serving in the years 1862, 1863 and 1864. His official record is without a blot, having ever been characterized by loyal and progressive service in behalf of the general good. He belongs to that class of representative American citizens who while advancing individual prosperity conserve also the public good, and his own name is deeply and honorably engraved on the commercial history of Salem.
H. L. SABSOVICH.
Among the institutions which have contributed to the substantial de- velopment and material progress of southern New Jersey none is more worthy of complimentary and favorable mention than the Baron de Hirsch
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Agricultural and Industrial School, of which Professor Sabsovich is the superintendent. The time has long since passed when education was thought to be merely a preparation necessary for the so-called learned professions. As a class the farmers are equal in intelligence to almost any other class of business men, while the advancement they are making in this direction is most remarkable. No longer does the agriculturist put his seed in the ground and content himself with waiting till the time of harvest; he can tell you the qualities necessary in the soil to produce certain crops; and the knowledge how to obtain the needed qualities is becoming widely dissem- inated. He can tell you what is demanded in order to secure good returns from the garden, the orchard and the dairy, and he knows how to care for field, meadow, fruit and stock. The work which Professor Sabsovich is conducting in connection with the Agricultural and Industrial School, at Woodbine, is a most humane one. He is instructing young men of Jewish birth and parentage to become practical, progressive farmers, to understand the scientific principles underlying their work and at the same time how to conduct their labors so as to bring the merited financial reward. Who can measure the influence of such a work? Its effect is incalculable by any known standard, but all recognize its benefit.
Professor Sabsovich was born February 25, 1860, in Berdiansk, in the Crimea, and was educated in the University of Odessa and in the Zurich Polytechnic College, being graduated in the latter institution with the class of 1885. He subsequently established a chemical laboratory in the Univer- sity of Odessa, and was assistant agricultural chemist in that institution. Subsequently he became the superintendent of a large farm in the northern part of the Caucasus, where he proved the practicability of his scientific theories and knowledge, continuing in charge there until 1888, when he crossed the Atlantic to New York city. There he spent a short time, giving private instruction in chemistry, after which he accepted the position of chemist in the experimental station of the Colorado State College, where he remained for two years.
In 1891 Professor Sabsovich was elected the superintendent of the Wood- bine Land and Improvement Company, at Woodbine, New Jersey, and in 1893 was elected a director of the Baron de Hirsch Agricultural and Indus- trial School, which dual position he has since acceptably and capably filled. Few men throughout the entire country are better informed on the subjects which he makes his specialty or have done as much to promote agricultural interests. He is the vice president for Cape May county of the State Forest- ers' Association, is the secretary of the Cape May County Agricultural So- ciety, a member of the American Pomological Society and the State Agricul-
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tural Society. He also belongs to the board of education in Dennis town- ship, Cape May county, and is deeply interested in everything that tends to disseminate useful knowledge among men. Politically he is connected with the Democratic party, and socially with the Ancient Order of United Work- men. He is also a member of the Woodbine Brotherhood and the Wood- bine Synagogue. His home relations are very pleasant. He was happily married, April 25, 1882, to E. Catherine Grushko, of Odessa, Russia, and their union has been blessed with four children: Mary, Dora, Helen and Julia.
Professor Sabsovich is a very progressive, enterprising man and popular with all classes. He is accounted one of the leading citizens of Cape May county, where his strong intellectuality and broad human sympathy have prompted him to the execution of a work whose benefits are manifold. His service in connection with the school at Woodbine deserves extended men- tion, for the success of the institution is undoubtedly due to him. A Jewish colony has been formed at that place, which is now a thriving town of four- teen hundred inhabitants. It was founded by the trustees of the Baron de Hirsch fund in 1891, and the inhabitants are employed either in the four factories of the town or upon their farms. There is now a clothing factory, employing one hundred and eighty operatives, at an earning capacity of a dollar and twenty-two cents per day, and annually fifty-five thousand dollars is dispensed through the medium of the pay-roll. There are two machine shops, furnishing employment to one hundred and twenty men, with an earning capacity of a dollar and thirty-seven cents a day, paying out annually thirty-five thousand dollars; there is a basket factory, in which the employes earn on an average one dollar per day; and a brickyard. There are now three hundred and fifteen children in school. There are two public-school buildings, a kindergarten with forty pupils, an evening school with twenty- five pupils, an agricultural school of one hundred pupils; and a religious school. Seventeen instructors are employed in the town and the cause of edu- cation is one held in high esteem in this thriving little community. The colony comprises sixty-five farm-houses and one hundred and fifty town houses, erected at a cost of from five to fifteen hundred dollars each. The Jewish synagogue was erected at a cost of seven thousand dollars and is built in the colonial style of architecture. There are a brick public bath- house, a hotel and other good public buildings, and the land owned by the settlement comprises fifty-three hundred acres, of which fifteen hundred acres is under cultivation. The farmers engage in the cultivation of fruits, veg- etables and cereals, making a specialty of corn fodder, the latter being pressed in a silo. They also raise large quantities of peas and crimson clover: The
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