The biographical encyclopaedia of New Jersey of the nineteenth century, Part 4

Author: Robson, Charles, ed; Galaxy Publishing Company, publisher
Publication date: 1877
Publisher: Philadelphia, Galaxy publishing company
Number of Pages: 924

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facture of the gun or in its management. In the summer of 1844 the vessel returned to Philadelphia, and her officers infested those waters. After this important service had and crew, at the request of the municipal authorities, been rendered he returned to the United States, and for landed and assisted in preserving the peace during the several years was absent on leave; and during this period "formidable church riots occurring in that year. In October, identified himself with the movement taking place in his native State relative to the establishment of canals and rail- roads, chiefly between New York and Philadelphia, and including what is now termed the " United Companies of New Jersey." In 1838 he was ordered to the ship-of-the- line " Ohio," as Flag-Lieutenant to Commodore Hull, with

1845, he sailed for the Pacific with several vessels to re- inforce the squadron in those waters, then under the com- mand of Commodore Sloat, whom he relieved while in the. harbor of Monterey. At that time the war with the Mex - can republic was in progress, and, aware of the importance of acquiring the western coast of that power, he assumed whom he sailed to the Mediterranean, serving in that the responsibility of capturing the same. He landed with capacity for about a year, when he was commissioned a force of Goo sailors and marines, and was subsequently Captain, and recalled. He had for many years been en- | joined by several hundred Californian settlers and adven- gaged in solving the problem as to the best mode of apply- turers, thus forming an earnest and formidable body, who

BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA.

seized upon the territory, over which he established a politics. In 1858 he was offered by President Buchanan provisional government. Meanwhile Brigadier-General Kearny had marched overland and had defeated the Mexicans at San Pascual and at San Gabriel, and him- self had also established a provisional government. The old feud hetween the army and navy relative to questions of rank and of supreme command arose, which was finally settled at a court martial convened for the express purpose. Commodore Stockton returned to the United States via the

In plains in 1847, and in 1849 resigned his commission. 1851 he was elected by the Legislature of his native State a Senator of the United States, which position he held for two years only, resigning in 1853. During this time he succeeded in introducing a bill for the suppression of flog- ging in the navy as a punishment; and he also advocated the non-intervention of the United States in the quarrel between Austria and Hungary, in opposition to the solicita- tions of Kossuth, who at that time was urging not only the people of the United States, but also the two houses of Con- gress, in support of this measure. In 1856 some of his admirers pressed his claim upon the country as an available candidate for the Presidency, and during the same year his " Life, Speeches and Letters " were published in New York city. Towards the close of his life he lived in retirement at Princeton, having suffered a reverse of fortune; and died in that town, October 7th, 1866.

TOCKTON, HON. JOHN P., Lawyer and Legis- lator, of Trenton, was born in Princeton, New Jersey, August 2d, 1826. He comes of the family so long distinguished in the history of the State for their brilliant qualitics and devoted ser- vices to the country. After a superior prepara- tory course he became a student at Princeton College, from which he was graduated in 1843. Adopting the law, he passed through the usual preparation, and was licensed as an attorney in 1846. Three years later he was called to the bar as a counsellor. He very speedily attained a high position in his profession, and in connection therewith re- ceived some high trusts, being appointed a member of the Commission for the Revision of the Laws of New Jersey, and subsequently Reporter to the Court of Chancery. In this latter capacity he published three volumes of " Equity Reports " which bear his name. He has been engaged in a number of the leading causes of his time, and was a prominent counsel for the Pennsylvania Railroad Company in the long and intricate litigation rendered necessary by assaults upon the privileges acquired by it from the corpora- tions known as the United Railroads of New Jersey. This litigation absorbed an extraordinary attention, and forms the greatest railroad war in the annals of the State. Politically a Democrat, inheriting his principles from a long line of ancestors, he has taken an active and conspicuous part in

the position of Minister-Resident at Rome, which he ac- cepted and filled until 1861, when he was recalled at his own request. In 1865 he was elected by the Legislature to the United States Senate for the term ending in IS71. A contest, however, arose, and after he had occupied the seat for rather more than a year his election was declared by the Senate to have been informal. He was accordingly un- seated, and thereupon returned home to prosecute his pro- fession. In 1868 he was again elected to the United States Senate as the successor of Hon. Frederick T. Freling- huysen, and took his seat on March 4th, 1869. On the ex- piration of this term, in March, 1875, he resumed close attention to his profession.

HITTINGHAM, EDWARD THOMAS, M. D., of Millburn, New Jersey, was born April 22d, 1821. He is of English parentage. He was educated at the College of St. James, an Episco- pal institution in Hagerstown, Maryland, from which he graduated in July, 1849, and pursued his medical studies in the medical department of the Uni- versity of Maryland at Baltimore, graduating in March, 1852. He first settled in Baltimore, Maryland, whence in 1854 he removed to Millburn, Essex county, New Jersey, where he has since resided, excepting the interval of his military service, extending from the outbreak of the civil war to 1864. He is a member of the Essex County Medi- cal Society, and of the Essex Medical Union, and was for- merly a member of the Medico.Chirurgical Society of Mary- land. His contributions to medical literature consist prin- cipally of his reports as a Surgeon in the army, though these, considering his general culture and professional skill, not to mention the variety and multiplicity of surgical expe- riences in the field, can scarcely be regarded as unimportant. He was Assistant Surgeon in the United States army during the critical years of the civil war, serving with various com- mands and in the several campaigns of the Army of the Potomac. He was married in 1859 to Martha G. Condit, daughter of J. D. Condit, of Millburn, New Jersey.

OUDINOT, HON. ELISHA, Lawyer and Judge of the Supreme Court of New Jersey, and brother of Elias Boudinot, of whom a sketch appears above, was born in 1742. After a good prepara- tory education he studied for the bar, and was in due course admitted as attorney, and sub- sequently as counsellor. He was called to be a sergeant- at-law in 1792. An able lawyer and of exalted character, he attained a high position in his profession. His practice was commenced in Newark, where he chiefly resided dur-

BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA.

ing his lifetime. When, in 1798, an act was passed by the Legislature authorizing the appointment of an additional Justice of the Supreme Court, which then consisted of the Chief-Justice and two associates, Mr. Boudinot was elected to the new seat, which he occupied during one term of seven years. In 1804 this law was repealed and the court reduced to its former status, which was maintained until 1838. Mr. Boudinot was widely respected and esteemed, not only as a lawyer and a judge, but as a private citizen. He died in 1819.

HOMSON, JOHN R., late United States Senator from New Jersey, was born, September 25th, 1800; in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, where he was also educated. After leaving school he entered the counting-house of one of the most prominent merchants in that city, whence he pro- ceeded to China, where he was for several years a resident, largely engaged in the tea trade. While abroad he received from President Monroe the appointment of United States Consul for the port and district of Canton. He returned to the United States in 1825, having amassed an ample compe- tence, and shortly after married a sister of the late Commo- dore Stockton, and settled in Princeton, New Jersey. He was among the first to manifest an interest in the construc- tion of the Delaware and Raritan Canal, and was the first Secretary of that company, and one of the Board of Direc- tors until his death. ' He was also an early advocate for the building of the Camden & Amboy Railroad, and subse- quently for the various lines of railway which were after- wards known by the name of the " United Companies of New Jersey; " and was also a prominent stockholder and director of the latter. In political belief he was a Democrat of the Andrew Jackson type, and took an active part in the several presidential campaigns occurring after 1828 in that State. In 1842 he was among those who advocated the framing of a new constitution, and he thoroughly canvassed the State in favor of that object. The convention assem- bled in 1844, during which year he was the Democratic candidate for Governor, but failed of an election. After this period he retired from political life for a while, until 1853, when his brother-in-law, Commodore Stockton, resigned his seat in the United States Senate, and he was chosen for the unexpired term. In 1857 he was again elected to that body for the term of six years, ending March 3d, 1863. But he was not destined to occupy that exalted position for that period. A lingering illness confined him at home for a considerable time, and he died September 13th, 1862. At a meeting of the stockholders of the Delaware & Raritan Canal Company, held at Princeton, May 11th, 1863, Hon. Robert F. Stockton, in his annual report, paid a high tribute to the character and services of Mr. Thomson. He said : " Mr. Thomson was secretary of the Delaware & Raritan Canal Company from its first organization, and a member

of the Board of Directors until his decease. Possessed of business talents of the highest order, he devoted himself to the duties of his position with zeal. Industrious, faithful and accurate, for more than thirty years he served the com- pany with a fidelity never questioned, and with an intelli- gent aptitude for the duties devolved upon him which could not be excelled. In serving the company he served the people of New Jersey, whose State pride is gratified, and whose interests are largely promoted by the success of this great work. He took part, at an important epoch in the history of the State, in urging the adoption of the present Constitution of New Jersey, as a substitute for the imperfect organization of the State government which preceded it, and he closed his career while representing New Jersey in the Senate of the United States, to which distinguished po- sition he was twice elected by the Legislature. Valuable as Mr. Thomson's services were to these companies, distin- guished as was his political career, yet by us, who were his companions and friends, he will be regretted for those social qualities of which he was so eminently possessed; his memory will be recalled by the recollection of the delight- ful hours we have passed in companionship with him. We will mourn on our own account the society of the friend we have lost, the charm of his conversation, his cheerful smile and pleasant anecdote. His vacant seat leaves a social vacuum that can never be filled. His absence is a loss which we cannot cease to feel with peculiar force on the re- currence of our annual meetings. Identified with the his- tory of the Delaware & Raritan Canal Company from its origin, his name will likewise be remembered in the history of New Jersey, while his memory will be cherished by a large circle of personal friends."

ROWNING, HON. ABRAHAM, Lawyer, of Camden, was born, July 26th, 1808, on his father's farm, in the vicinity of the city, where he has since resided. The family to which he be- longs is one of the oldest in the State of New Jersey, and has always occupied a high social position. Its American founder, George Browning, grand- father of Abraham, camc immediately from Holland, al- though of ancient English lineage. Ile arrived in this country about the year 1735, being then quite young, and settled near Pea Shore, in Camden county. Ilere he pur- chased large tracts of land, and devoted himself to agricul- tural pursuits. He also became extensively interested in the fisheries on the Delaware river. These fishery interests were bequeathed to his heirs and have been handed down from generation to generation, being still retained in the Browning family. George Browning's son, Abraham, fol- lowing in his father's footsteps, became a farmer also, and continued to reside in the old homestead and to cultivate the lands his sire had acquired. He married Beulah

BIOGRAPINCAL ENCYCLOPEDIA.

Genge, who, like himself, was a native of New Jersey, but whose parents were English, arriving in America from London about the year 1760. From this marriage sprang the subject of this sketch and a numerous progeny, in whose veins the mingled Dutch and English blood has flowed to good purpose, the city, the State, and the country alike, de- riving benefit from their active, honorable and public-spirited lives. Abraham obtained his earliest education-apart from the training of home influences-at the country schools in the neighborhood of his home. The standard of the common schools of those days was far from high, but the ordinary routine was in his case supplemented by private study. Pos- sessed of a large capacity for acquiring knowledge, and gifted with a studious temperament, he made most effective use of all his opportunities, and laid a solid foundation, broad and deep, for the superstructure of after years. After an elementary course thus satisfactorily pursued, he was placed at the academy at Woodbury, in Gloucester county, then in charge of the Rev. Joseph Jones, and his brother, Samuel Jones. From this he was transferred to the re- nowned school of John Gummere, in Burlington. This in- stitution was, at that time, one of the most valued educational establishments in the State, and to it nearly all the first families of West Jersey sent their sons. The enlarged ad- vantages here offered Abraham Browning were industriously improved, and he secured a very thorough English and a limited classical education. But mathematics was his forte. It having been determined that he should enter the legal profession, on leaving school he became a student in the law office of Hon. Samuel L. Southard, at Trenton, in 1830. With that gentleman he remained about a year, vigorously prosecuting his preliminary studies, and making it very mani- fest that, in choosing the course for his career, a very wise decision had been reached. From the first he developed a special and marked aptitude for the calling, and progressed rapidly in the attainment of legal knowledge. At the ex- piration of a year passed in preliminary study, he entered the law school of Yale College, where he remained between 1wo and three years, gaining for himself a high and emi- nently deserved reputation for scholarship. Returning home he enjoyed the exceptional advantages of a connection with the office of the well-known Philadelphia lawyer, Charles Chauncey. There he continued, however, but a short time, being admitted to the bar in September, 1834, and immediately thereafter beginning the practice of his profession in Camden. In this city he has ever since resided, laboring in his chosen career. He early became noted for the care and ability with which the business intrusted to his care was managed, and as a natural consequence he made steady and rapid progress through the ranks. With clear perception, a well-trained and well-stored mind, to which constant study was ever bringing valuable contributions, in- domitable industry, and never-tiring investigation of detail, he obtained so thorough a mastery over his cases as to be entirely invincible when he advised contest, and to secure

respectful attention for any opinion he might utter. Gradu- ally his successes brought him into the very front of the pro- fession, where to-day he holds a commanding position, en- joying a very large, important and lucrative practice. But while he has reached so proud an eminence, he is not un- mindful of the means whereby it was gained. Nowhere in the ranks can a harder student be found ; not one among the aspirants to similar fame devotes more faithful and painstaking labor to his clients' interests. Indeed, the amount of work he does in special cases is simply tremen- dous. Of course, a lawyer with such qualities and attain- ments, and of so many and great successes, could not fail of recognition outside of his own State. His aid has been sought in many important issues beyond its borders, and his reputation has become national. While there are very few lawyers in New Jersey who can be classed as his peers, the number is not greatly enlarged even when the range of vision covers the nation. As a constitutional lawyer he is a recognized authority, and his opinion on points of consti- tutional issue carries great weight everywhere. In railroad cases, also, he is regarded as especially strong, and he has been engaged in many important cases involving difficult and delicate points of railroad law. His famous contest with Hon. Theodore Cuyler, a foeman worthy of his steel, in the Pennsylvania Railroad case in 1871, will long be re- membered by members of the profession for the profound legal learning, easy mastery over the mazy difficulties of a peculiarly intricate litigation, readiness of resource, patient endurance and overwhelming strength he manifested. On some of the most celebrated issues of his time his opinion has been called for, and has always been received with re- spect by the highest, and has exercised great influence in the final decision. To him, in part, New Jersey owes its present constitution, inasmuch as he was an active and prominent member of the convention called in 1844 for the revision of the then existing instrument. He was also the first Attorney-General under the constitution so revised, be- ing appointed to that position by Governor Stratton in the same year. This office he held during the regular term of five years. His successes as a lawyer do not bound his career. He has stepped beyond merely professional boun- daries in his studies and researches, and in whatever direction his tastes have led him, the same thoroughness and success have marked his efforts. A notable illustration of this is found in his oration delivered at the Centennial Exposition on the State-day of New Jersey. He had been appointed the historian of the State for the occasion, and his effort will long be treasured and quoted as an exhaustive and complete synopsis of the State's history, elegant in its diction and elo- quent in its appreciation of the achievements of his native home. Mr. Browning was married, May 23d, 1842, to Elizabeth, daughter of Hon. James Matlack, of Woodbury, New Jersey, whose American ancestor, William Matlack, was among the Quakers who settled at Burlington, New Jersey, about the year 1670.

Agrowoning

BIOGRAPHICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA.

IDEN, AARON, LI .. D., Lawyer, Statesman and | the study of law with his brother Robert, and was licensed Governor of New Jersey, was born, 1756, in as an attorney in September, 1784. He at once commenced the practice of his profession at Elizabethtown, where he made his mark and enjoyed a lucrative patronage; in fact, he was an accomplished lawyer, and took high rank at the bar. IIe was subsequently created a counsellor, and in 1794 a sergeant-at-law. In 1797 occurred the short war with the French republic, and a provisional army was raised ; he received the appointment of Colonel of the 15th Regiment, holding the same a few months, and until the additional troops were disbanded ; and from this he derived his appellation of Colonel, by which he was afterwards known. He was a prominent member of the Federal party, and in ISOI was elected by the Legislature United States Senator for two years, that being the unexpired term of Senator Schureman, who had resigned. Prior to his be- coming Senator he had been for several years Clerk of Essex county, but the Legislature having passed a law in 1801 that no member of Congress could hold a State officc, he was ohliged to yield the latter position, although he made considerable effort to retain it. In 1812 he was elected by the Legislature to the office of Governor, which position he retained one year. During his term as the executive of the State, he was nominated by President Madison Major- General of the army, and unanimously confirmed by the Senate. But he declincd the appointment, for good reasons, and subsequently was actively engaged in organiz- ing volunteers for the defence of New York, then thrcat- ened with invasion. He had, some while previous to his becoming a Senator, withdrawn from the practice of the law, and somewhere about 1810 or 18II he became en- gaged in steamboat navigation, in conjunction with Danicl Dod, operating a vessel plying between Elizabethtown and New York city. This enterprise proved an unfortunate onc, as Fulton and his associates had secured, by an act of the New York State Legislature, exclusive rights to the waters of New York. In 1813 New Jersey retaliated by confer- ring on Ogden & Dod an exclusive right to navigate the waters of New Jersey by aid of the same power. Living- ston, who was an associate of Fulton, sought to have this latter act repealed, and succeeded. Meanwhile, another opponent arose in the person of one Thomas Gibbons, who inaugurated an opposition line to Ogden & Dod. Much litigation ensued, not only as regarded the conflict of the States respecting the waters bounding each, but also as to the rights involved. Colonel Ogden, impressed with the equity and justice of his claims, resisted to the utmost the opposing forces; but all his efforts, which were of the greatest, were unavailing. He lost his fortune, and to add to this, domestic affliction supervened, and he never recu- perated. In 1829 he removed to Jersey City, and towards the close of that year was arrested for debt in New York city, where he was in confinement for several weeks, and although his friends offered to settle the amount, he for- Elizabethtown, and was the son of Robert Ogden, and the great-grandson of Jonathan Ogden, one of the original associates of the Elizabethtown purchase, and who died in 1732, aged eighty-six years. Aaron received an excellent education, and grad- uated from Princeton College before he reached the age of seventeen. After leaving college, in 1773, he became a tutor in Barber's grammar school, where among other pupils were to be found William Livingston and Alex- ander Hamilton. When resistance to British tyranny assumed the character of a revolution, the school was deserted and the pupils with their tutor volunteered in the patriot army. Ogden entered a corps of infantry at Eliza- bethtown, somc time towards the close of 1775. General William Alexander-more familiarly known as Lord Ster- ling, and, withal, an ardent patriot-had planned an expedi- tion having in view the capture of a large British store-ship near Sandy Hook, and this too while a British ship-of-the- line was anchored in New York harbor. The volunteer company in which Ogden was an officer formed part of this expedition, which embarked in boats and carried the store- ship by boarding. The prize was a valuable one, and the exploit was recognized by Congress, then in session at Phila- delphia, who passed a vote of thanks to the commander and the men engaged in the hazardous undertaking. Lieutenant Aaron Ogden participated with his regiment, of which his brother had command, at the battle of the Brandywine, in September, 1777. He was also present at the battle of Monmouth, where he was directed by General Washington to reconnoitre an important position; and upon his report being received, Washington ordered an advance, and the battle was with the Americans. He had already been pro moted to a Captaincy; and became subsequently aide to General Maxwell, and also Brigade Major. He greatly distinguished himself at the battle of Springfield, where he held a large force of the enemy in check. During the fol- lowing winter, while reconnoitring at night what proved to be a large force of British soldiers who were destined to surprise and capture the American troops quartered at Elizabethtown, he received a bayonet wound in his chest ; but he managed to reach the garrison, two miles distant, and give the alarm; but he was a long time recovering from the wound, which was a very dangerous one. He subse: quently participated in General Sullivan's campaigns against the Indians in 1779, where he again served as an aide to General Maxwell; and when the latter resigned he com- manded a company of light infantry under General La- fayette ; and was also with the latter in Virginia, and covered the retreat when Lord Cornwallis made his attempt to capture " the boy," as he termed the youthful marquis. He was an active participant in the siege of Yorktown, and received the personal commendation of General Washing- ton. At the expiration of the war, in 1783, he commenced bade them. As soon as these proceedings were known at

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The biographical encyclopaedia of New Jersey of the nineteenth century, Part 4

Author: Robson, Charles, ed; Galaxy Publishing Company, publisher Publication date: 1877 Publisher: Philadelphia, Galaxy publishing company Number of Pages: 924

Author: Robson, Charles, ed; Galaxy Publishing Company, publisher
Publication date: 1877
Publisher: Philadelphia, Galaxy publishing company
Number of Pages: 924