USA > New Jersey > Memorial cyclopedia of New Jersey, Volume II > Part 8
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Selecting Newark as his field of practice, patent. He was regarded by the legal fra-
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CYCLOPEDIA OF NEW JERSEY
ternity as a most formidable adversary in all those cases where the title to land was involved. Having been a practitioner in the Supreme Court for some years, during which period he had been noted for his thorough research and capacity for patient labor, he was named Reporter for that tri- bunal, and held that position until 1855. He removed from Hackensack in 1849, and selected Jersey City as his future, and, as it proved, his final residence. To the peo- ple of this county he was no stranger, for Hudson county had been until 1840 a por- tion of the county of Bergen, of which lat- ter Hackensack was the shire town.
In 1850 he was nominated for the State Senate and elected, his term of service in- cluding the years 1851, 1852 and 1853. While a member of that body he took an important part in legislation, and came in personal contact with many leading men in the State, which proved of great benefit to him afterward. He was also one of the committee of citizens who framed the vo- luminous charter of Jersey City, passed March 18, 1851, some of its provisions be- ing drafted by him. During his senatorial career he was the means of having a good and sufficient lien law and also the "wharf act" passed. He was the author of the "Long Dock Charter," which became a law in February, 1856, by which means the com- pany bearing that cognomen were enabled to provide the necessary means to bring the New York & Erie railroad to their new terminus in Jersey City. During the same year he was elected a director of the New Jersey Railroad and Transportation Com- pany, and held that position until he was made Chancellor, ten years afterward. He soon became master of the situation, thor- oughly conversant with all the affairs of the company, not only as regarded the road but the rolling stock, the workshops, and the multifarious data of so large a con- cern. He was nominated, in 1859. by Gov- ernor Newell for the office of Chancellor of the State, but as the Senate was polit-
ically opposed to the Governor, it declined to confirm him, and the memorable strug. gle commenced which left the State for a year without a Chancellor. At the next clection Charles S. Olden was chosen Gov- ernor, but again the Senate was opposed to him; and as he deemed that the interests of the State required that his name should not be submitted to the Senate-although he was his first choice-another was named for the position. He was finally nominated by Governor Ward, in 1866, and confirmed by the Senate, and became Chancellor, May 1, 1866. He performed the arduous duties of Chancellor with a promptness which has never been surpassed by any other officer who had held that position. During his ad- ministration business had greatly increased, yet ro cause was allowed to linger by rea- son of a want of time for his examination and decision. And these decisions betoken a positive and independent mind, manifest- ing great labor and research, and have es- tablished for him an enduring fame as a jurist. About the period when the great monopoly, as it was justly termed, was about to cease its arrogant demands, it was rumored that it sought an extension of twenty years, commencing January 1, 1869, and much discussion prevailed throughout the State. At this juncture a public meet- ing was held in Jersey City to oppose the renewal of these monopoly privileges, when Chancellor Zabriskie made a speech taking strong ground against the renewal, and de- clared that, rather than have so odious a contract perpetuated, the people should, with pick-axe in hand, tear up the rails. For this expression of public indignation he earned the soubriquet of "Captain of the Pick-axe Guard." But the independent por- tion of the community sustained his earnest declaration, and the State was relieved of the obnoxious restriction. He repeated his speech before a committee of the Legisla- ture at Trenton, and the monopoly exten- sion scheme was dead. It was the crown- ing act of his life to defeat this giant cor-
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CYCLOPEDIA OF NEW JERSEY
poration, and the result is seen already in the free railroad law of the State. He was in all respects a most successful man. His practice was large and lucrative, whereby he was enabled to gain an ample com- petence. As a lawyer, his learning was great and varied, as already detailed; and of his ability as a judge all of his com- peers bear full witness. He was regarded by business men as eminently sagacious in the management of affairs; and in these particulars not only was his advice sought for, but he was chosen to fill many posi- tions of trust in various institutions. He was, as already stated, one of the directors of the New Jersey railroad, and held the same position in a bank, a life insurance and trust company, and in the Jersey City Gas Company ; also as a trustee of the old Jersey City Savings Bank, besides in sun- dry other institutions. When engaged in business he gave his whole attention to the matter before him; and when his labors were over he sought recreation. During his life he was somewhat of a traveller, and more than once visited the "old world." Here again his methodical spirit asserted itself; for not only was the day of his de- parture fixed upon, but all the minutiae of his travels abroad were predetermined be- fore he left his home, and the day of his return thither indicated. He also journeyed through a greater portion of the Union at various times, and he always adhered to the plan which he marked out to pursue. After his term as Chancellor expired he de- sired to visit the Pacific states, and in com- pany with a friend set out upon what proved to be his last journey on earth. Together they passed from the East to the West, over the great iron highway that binds the At- lantic and Pacific shores of the imperial republic in an unbroken link, passing over the fertile fields, the boundless prairies, the extended plains, the Rocky Mountains, and the dreary wastes of the great basin inter- vening between this rocky barrier and the Sierra Nevada, into the golden State and
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to the shores of the Pacific. After being impressed with the glories of the most sub- lime natural scenery on the continent they retraced their steps, and upon their home- ward way he was suddenly stricken by a sickness which proved mortal. He had been reared in the doctrines of the Re- formed Dutch church, and although he had never become a communicant member of that denomination, he was essentially a Christian man. He was a most charitable man, and never wearied in doing kind- nesses; and .he was also a most conscien- tious man, for he took pains to know his duty, and when known he faithfully dis- charged it. He was a most diligent student, not only well read in law, but in history, the natural sciences, anatomy, medicine and theology; and what he studied at all was thoroughly studied. He died at Truckee, California, June 27, 1873, and the news of his decease, transmitted by telegraph, pro- duced a most profound impression through- out the State, calling forth eulogia upon his fame, not only as a lawyer, Senator, jurist and Chancellor, but also as a private citizen, a neighbor and a friend.
FORT, George Franklin,
Governor, Masonic Writer.
Governor George Franklin Fort was born in Pemberton, Burlington county, New Jersey, in May, 1809. After receiv- ing an ordinary education in the common schools at his home and in that neighbor- hood, he entered the Medical Department of the University, from which he was gradu- ated with the degree of Doctor of Medi- cine in 1830, the year in which he attained his majority. He entered upon practice, and with a degree of success which held out before him most promising prospects, but he became interested in politics, which, with the duties of the public positions to which he was called by reason of his polit- ical activity, commanded his attention throughout the remainder of his life.
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CYCLOPEDIA OF NEW JERSEY
He served for some time as a represen- tative from Monmouth county in the State Assembly. He was a useful member of the convention of 1844, called to frame a new State Constitution, and soon after that body had completed its labors, he was elec- ted to the State Senate. In 1850 he be- came Governor of New Jersey, and served until the completion of his term in 1854. He was almost immediately appointed to a seat in the Court of Errors and Appeals, and also served as a member of the Prison Reform Commission, and also held other offices at various times. While educated for the medical profession, by private reading he had gained a very fair knowl- edge of law, and he was found wanting in no position to which he was called. He was deeply interested in Masonry, and in 1875 published in Philadelphia a volume entitled "Early History and Antiquities of Freemasonry." In 1847 he received from the College of New Jersey the hon- orary degree of Master of Arts. He died in New Egypt, New Jersey, April 22, 1872.
PEDDIE, Thomas Baldwin,
Man of Affairs, Statesman, Philanthropist.
Thomas Baldwin Peddie was one of the most progressive and public spirited citi- zens of Newark, New Jersey, and may justly be credited with a large share of those activities which have, within recent years, placed the city in the forefront of American industrial centers. Himself a typical example of the keen and large minded business man who carries the weight of affairs of the utmost importance, he was ever ready to undertake another burden, if by so doing he might by deed or example benefit or further any movement pointing towards the betterment of indus- trial or municipal conditions.
Thomas Baldwin Peddie was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 1808, and there re- ceived a substantial and practical educa- tion. To this he added largely by means
of home study and the use of his keen powers of observation, which made of him a man of fine executive ability and an ex- cellent judge of human nature. An earnest reader from his earliest years, he was chiefly attracted by books of travel, and these inspired him with the idea of visiting America, as offering finer prospect for ad- vancement than the Old World had to offer. When he came to the United States in 1833 he had no fixed plans as to his fu- ture line of conduct. Had he been dis- appointed in conditions here, at that time. this country would probably never have had the benefit of his wise counsel and en- terprise during the many years he remain- ed a resident here. Upon his arrival he went at once to the City of Newark, New Jersey, as a fitting place for the carrying out of the plans he had already partly formulated. He became immediately identified with the manufacturing interests of the city, in that he visited factories of various kinds, and finally applied for a position in the manufacturing establish- ment of Smith & Wright, manufacturers of saddlery. Himself was his best and only recommendation, and this sufficed to obtain the position he was seeking, and two years were spent in this factory during which Mr. Peddie acquired a thorough mastery of the business customs in vogue here. He then established himself inde -* pendently in the manufacture of leather . trunks and carpet bags, commencing on a small scale, and during the ten years which followed his efforts were attended with such an amount of success that at last he found himself unable to take care of his growing responsibilities alone. According- ly, in 1846, he admitted to a partnership John Morrison, and this connection was uninterrupted until the death of Mr. Mor- rison in 1861. For a time Mr. Peddie again attempted to conduct his extensive interests alone, but as this was entirely out of the question, because of the large re- sponsibilities involved, he accepted as a
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M. B. Reddie
CYCLOPEDIA OF NEW JERSEY
partner George B. Jenkinson, one of his assistants, who had for many years become thoroughly familiar with every detail of all the departments of the concern. The firm name was changed to read T. B. Peddie & Company, and was thus continued until the death of Mr. Peddie, February 16, 1889. Many other business enterprises .claimed a share of the time and attention of Mr. Peddie. He was a member, and at one time president, of the Newark Board of Trade; director in the Essex County National Bank; president of the Securi- ty Savings Bank.
The cause of education ever found in him a most ardent advocate and liberal supporter. He was one of the most inter- ested workers in behalf of erecting the academy at Hightstown, New Jersey, which is now called Peddie Institute, as a mark of respect and appreciation for the services he rendered. The Newark Tech- nical School is another institution which largely owes its inception to the personal efforts of Mr. Peddie while he was a mem- ber of the Newark Board of Trade. For many years he was a trustee of the Newark City Home, and he was a generous contrib- utor to all worthy enterprises of a charita- ble nature. One of the noblest structures in Newark, but one which Mr. Peddie did not live to see finished, is what is now called the Peddie Memorial. It was presented by Mr. Peddie to the congregation with which he had associated himself upon his first coming to the city, and stands upon the main street, almost facing one of the parks. It seats three thousand worshippers, and is constructed in the Byzantine style of archi- tecture. The name it now holds was sug- gested after the death of Mr. Peddie. His ideas and plans with regard to this build- ing, as far as he had expressed them, were faithfully carried out by his widow and, in compliance with another wish expressed by him, she donated to the church valuable property in New York City and elsewhere. The fine moral character of Mr. Peddie
made him the choice of his fellow citizens for positions of public trust and responsi- bility, and he served in the State Legis- lature in 1863-64, where his counsel was of inestimable value during the troubled times of the Civil War; from 1866-69, he was of great benefit to the city as its mayor ; and in 1876, as a representative of the Sixth Congressional District of New Jer- sey, he was a member of the Forty-fifth Congress, declining renomination upon the expiration of his term. His social mem- bership was with the Union League Club of New York, the Essex Club of Newark and the Essex County Country Club of Orange.
Mr. Peddie married in Newark, in 1858, Sarah Annette Ogden, who died in 1893. The charities of Mr. Peddie, were numer- ous, but generally pursued in so unosten- tatious a manner that the world will never know their full extent. They were char- acteristic of the kindness of heart which was one of his strong features. Few men ever brought to public duties a greater amount of conscientious principle. Every public act was governed by that law of jus- tice and of right which would stand the test of closest scrutiny. He preferred the true to the false, the substantial to the pre- tentious, and his life was one which may be studied by all who seek distinction, re- spect and success.
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MECUM, James Wright
Prominent in Community Affairs.
In the home in Salem which he built and to which James Wright Mecum brought his bride in 1840, and where all his chil- aren were born, are many valuable articles closely associated with the lives of mem- bers of the family from which are descend- ed the present owners, children of James Wright Mecum. There is the sword carried by Dr. Samuel Dick while a surgeon in the army besieging Quebec under the immortal Wolfe; another carried by Major William Mecum during the Revolutionary War ; and
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a third worn by Captain Josiah Harrison. Major Mecum's sword is doubly valuable as an heirloom, from the fact that it has a silver hilt, made from his own shoe and knee buckles. Well preserved old furni- ture, hallowed by hands long since stilled, portraits of honored forbears, tapestries, and pictures, all testify to the veneration with which these mute evidences of valor, gentle blood, and domestic happiness are held by the children of James Wright Me- cum, who own not only the original nome of their parents .but also the Mecum lands in Lower Penn's Neck township, where part of their honored father's life was passed.
The Mecum family of Salem county spring from Edward Mecum, and through intermarriages are connected with the Sin- nickson, Dick, and other leading early fam- ilies of West Jersey, also with the Harrison family of Newark and Orange, New Jer- sey, who sprang from Richard Harrison, of Connecticut, 1640, and Sergeant Richard Harrison, who settled in Newark. New Jer- sey, in 1667. The Mecums came in the lat- ter part of the seventeenth century and the Dick family between 1730 and 40. Each furnished eminent sons that proved their worth and value as citizens of the common- wealth that gave them homes and opportu- nity.
Edward Mecum, the founder, great- grandfather of James Wright Mecum, first appears on Salem county records in 1706, as a juror, but in 1701 he purchased land of Thomas Penn. He was the father of William Mecum, who rebuilt a house in 1737 on his farm of two hundred acres in Penn's Neck township, that is still stand- ing. This William Mecum married, in 1728, Margaret Vickery, the mother of Major William Mecum, of Revolutionary fame.
Major Wiliam Mecum, of the third gen- eration in Salem county, owned lands in Lower Penn's Neck township, was a pros- perous agriculturist, prominent in civil life. and a soldier of the Revolution. He was
a justice of the peace from 1774 until 1776; judge of Saiem county courts from 1777 until 1782, also in 1786 and 87. He served as major of the First Battalion Salem County Militia, and saw service in the field both in New Jersey and New York, lead- ing his troops in the latter State as part of the "Flying Brigade" commanded by General Newcomb. The sword with the silver hilt that was part of his equipment is preserved by his great-great-grandchildren in their Salem home previously referred to. Major Mecum married (first) Dorcas Gib- son, whose only child died in infancy. He married (second) Eleanor Sinnickson, sec- ond daughter of Andrew and Sarah Sin- nickson, a descendant of Andrew Sinnick- son (Anders Senecason), who came to America about 1627. (See Sinnickson me- morials in this work).
Andrew, son of Major William Mecum and his second wife, Eleanor Sinnickson, was born at the homestead in Lower Penn's Neck township, February 3, 1780, and died October 4, 1814. He was one of the lead- ing agriculturists of the county, accumu- lated considerable wealth, and was the own- er of several farms. He married Ann, daughter of James Wright.
James Wright, only son of Andrew and Ann (Wright) Mecum, was born on the homestead in Lower Penn's Neck township, yet owned by his children, December 9, 1809, died in Salem, November 19, 1878. He was educated in private schools and in Salem Academy, devoting several years of his youthful manhood to the duties of as- sistant to the county clerk of Salem. He was the owner of several valuable farms in Low- er Penn's Neck township, and to the man- agement of these the greater part of his life was devoted. In addition to the manage- ment of his own estates he was for many years treasurer of the Farmer's Mutual Fire Insurance Company, a trustee of Rutgers College and of St. Mary's Hall, of Burling- ton. He was a man of influence in his com- munity, using his wealth justly and giving
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hearty support to the church with which his family had been connected for many generations, the Episcopal. He was a com- municant of St. John's Church, of Salem, served as vestryman and warden, was lay reader for many years, and also superinten- dent of the Sunday school. He had no taste for public official life, yet was keenly alive to his responsibilities as a citizen. He was a Whig in early life, later becoming a Democrat, and affiliating with that party until his death. He was a man highly re- spected, proud of the achievements of his ancestors, jealous of the fame of the Me- cum name, and transmitted it to his chil- dren untarnished by act of his.
Mr. Mecum married, May 24, 1841, Lydia Ann Harrison, of Salem, New Jersey, daugh- ter of Josiah and Isabella S. (Dick) Harri- son, the ceremony being performed in St. John's by Rev. E. G. Prescott, the rector. Mr. Mecum made his bride mistress of the mansion he had caused to be erected at No. 33 Market street, Salem, and there their years of married happiness were passed and there all of their children were born. Chil- dren : Isabella, died aged three years ; George, died at the age of forty-four years, unmarried ; Ellen, of extended mention else- where ; James Harrison, died aged fourteen years; Maria Harrison, now residing in Sa- lem, in the home where she was born; Charles, a graduate of the law department of the University of Pennsylvania, class of 1881, now a practicing lawyer of Salem. He married, May 29, 1890, Margaret Howard, daughter of J. Howard and Elizabeth ( For- man) Sinnickson, and has children: Fran- ces Margaret ; Charles Harrison, a gradu- ate of the United States Naval Academy, class of 1914; and James Howard, a stu- dent in the University of Pennsylvania, class of 1917.
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(The Harrison Line).
Lydia Ann Harrison Mecum was a descendant of Richard Harrison, of New Haven, Connecticut, who came from West
Kirby, England, in 1640, was of Branford, Connecticut, in 1653, and New Haven in 1664.
Richard (2), son of Richard Harrison, the founder, settled in Newark, New Jer- sey, about 1667, and there died prior to 1691. He was known as "Sergeant Rich- ard."
Joseph, son of Sergeant Richard Harri- son, was born in 1649, died in 1742. He married Dorcas, daugliter of Sergeant Jolin Ward, of Newark; she died in 1738.
Stephen, son of Joseph and Dorcas (Ward) Harrison, was born in Newark in 1698, died in 1786, married, and left is- sue.
Jotham, born in 1751, died in 1806, a resi- dent of Orange, New Jersey, his farm now forming the central part of that beautiful suburban city. He married Lydia James, born in 1750, died in 1832.
Captain Josiah Harrison, son of Jotham and Lydia (James) Harrison, was born in Orange, September 22, 1776, died Febru- ary 25, 1865, in Salem. He was a gradu- ate of Princeton, class of 1790, a lawyer, a captain of Salem County Militia in the War of 1812. He practiced law in both Camden and Salem, also figuring prom- inently in public affairs during the early years of the Republic. It was his pride that he witnessed the inauguration of George Washington as the first President of the United States in New York City in 1789, and his greater pride that he lived long enough to be assured that the Union of States was of sufficient strength to resist the first armed attempt to destroy it. He possessed a rare collection of valuable books, some of them yet preserved among the many treasures of the Mecum home in Salem. As a lay reader he gathered a small congre- gation, that was the nucleus of the later St. Paul's Church, the largest Episcopal church in Camden. He was for many years a lay reader and warden of St. John's, Sa- lem, and was deeply interested in parish work. He married, in 1804, Isabella Stuart
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Dick, who died February 16, 1817. Their daughter, Lydia Ann, married James Wright Mecum.
(The Dick Line).
Isabella Stuart Dick was a daughter of Dr. Samuel Dick, and granddaughter of Rev. John Dick, son of a minister of the Presbyterian church in the North of Ire- land. Rev. John Dick married Isabella Stuart, of Scotch birth, a lady of culture and education. They came to America be- tween the years 1735 and 1740, as in the latter year they were living at Nottingham, Prince George county, Maryland. On No- vember 12, 1746, he was ordained pastor of the Presbyterian church at New Castle and Drawyers, Delaware, serving that and neighboring churches until his death in 1748.
Dr. Samuel Dick was born at Notting- ham, Prince George county, Maryland, No- vember 14, 1740, died at Salem, November 16, 1812, after a most distinguished pub- lic career as surgeon, physician, scholar, politician, and patriot. He was educated un- der the highest class of private tutors, spoke and wrote five languages besides his own, Hebrew, Greek, French, Spanish, and Lat- in, and was educated for the medical pro- fession in a Scotch university. He served as assistant surgeon with the colonial army in Canada in 1760, was with Wolfe at Que- bec, and in 1770 came with his widowed mother to Salem county, New Jersey, and there established in medical practice. His - home, built in 1730, was a brick dwelling on the corner of Walnut and Fenwick streets, which he purchased and there end- ed his days. In 1776 he was elected a mem- ber of the Provincial Congress of New Jer- sey, and was one of a committee of five ap- pointed to prepare a draft of a constitution for the State. He was commissioned col- onel and rendered efficient service during the Revolution. In 1780 he was appointed surrogate of Salem county by Governor Liv- ingston, an office he held for twenty-two
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