A Centennial biographical history of the city of Columbus and Franklin County, Ohio, Part 122

Author: Lewis Publishing Company
Publication date: 1901
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1156

USA > Ohio > Franklin County > Columbus > A Centennial biographical history of the city of Columbus and Franklin County, Ohio > Part 122

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RICHARD EDIE HULL.

The citizens of Columbus are justly proud of the records of their military men. One of the most popular of these is Captain Richard Edie Hull, adjutant of the Fourth Regiment, Ohio National Guard. Captain Hull was born in Columbus, in 1866, a son of Robert C. Hull, who came to Columbus in 1850 from Steubenville, Ohio, and saw one hundred days' service in the federal army during the Rebellion. Captain Hull is a great-grandson of General William Hull, who fought for the independence of the colonies in the Revolutionary war and performed distinguished services in the war of 1812. His life covered the period from 1753 to 1825. His son, Marmaduke Hull, was a pioneer settler in Stark county, Ohio, and removed from there to Cincinnati, where he died. Robert C. Hull, son of Marmaduke Hull, was born in Stark county, in 1809, and died at Columbus in 1878. He was proprietor of a wholesale bookstore which stood on the site of the present Smythe store, was secretary of the State Bank of Ohio and was identified with other prominent interests and was well known as an Odd Fellow. He was for several terms president and was long a member of the city council. He married Anna Edie, a granddaughter of Jacob Nessley, a hero of the Revolution, who in 1770 made the first settlement on the site of Steubenville, Ohio, and at one time owned nearly all the land along the river between Steubenville and Pittsburg, Pennsylvania.

Captain Hull received his primary education in the Columbus high school and took a two-years course in mining and engineering at the Ohio State University. In a business way he has become prominent as a dealer in elec- trical supplies and as a contractor of electrical construction. He married Miss Beatrice Eams, of Louisville, Kentucky, daughter of William Eams, who fills a responsible position in the service of the Pullman Palace Car Company, and she has borne him two children, named Catharine and William.

Captain Hull enlisted in Company A, of the Fourteenth Regiment, Ohio' National Guard, in 1883, and was made sergeant in 1884. For four years he was absent from the state with leave and was then honorably discharged, re- enlisting in 1889. He was commissioned second lieutenant of Company A, in November, 1889, and first lieutenant in January, 1890, and resigned in July, 1891. May 3, 1898, he enlisted in Company F. Fourteenth Ohio Regi- ment, for service in the Spanish-American war, and was sergeant and first ser- geant. He was mustered into the United States service May 9. 1898, and hon-

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orably discharged January 20, 1899. His regiment served in Porto Rico and he participated in the battle at Guyama. In June, 1899, he enlisted in the Fourteenth Regiment, Ohio National Guard, and in August following was appointed first sergeant. He was appointed second lieutenant and battalion adjutant September 2, 1899, and captain and regimental adjutant May 30, 1900.

ROBERT WILSON MOORE.

America owes a debt of gratitude to Scotland for the valuable quality which has been contributed by the land of the thistle to her citizenship. The Scotch character is hardy, honest, industrious and persevering and has done much to advance many of her important interests, and everywhere our citizens of Scotch birth or descent are leaders among their fellow men and worthy examples to those who would succeed in life by praiseworthy methods. The subject of this sketch is of Scotch descent, his grandfather, Moore, having been born in Scotland. Mr. Moore's grandfather was brought to this country when a mere lad and died before Mr. Moore was born, but Mr. Moore was about seventeen years old at the time of the death of his grandmother, Moore, who was born in the United States, in the latter part of the eighteenth century.

His great-grandfather, Abner Barton, was born the 5th day of April, 1757, on his father's farm, which is now the site of the city of Chester, Penn- sylvania, near Philadelphia. He died in Belmont county, Ohio, December 26, 1827. His great-grandmother, Sarah ( Pyle) Barton, was born the 5th day of May, 1766, near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and died in Belmont county, April 27, 1865. His grandfather, Jesse Barton, was born in the city of Chester, Pennsylvania, on the 25th day of December, 1804, and died in Bel- mont county, Ohio, August 23, 1887. He was a judge of the courts for a num- ber of years in Belmont county. His grandmother, Catharine Ann ( Mul- vaney ) Barton, was born March 3, 1804, in Pennsylvania, near the city of Chester, and died in Belmont county, Ohio, February 27, 1846.

Abner Barton and family came to Ohio in 1814, where he purchased a farm of nearly a thousand acres in Colerain township, Belmont county, which, the greater part of the farm, with the old homestead, is still in possession of the heirs of the late Judge Jesse Barton.

John Wilson Moore, father of Robert Wilson Moore, was born at Zanes- ville, Ohio, September 23, 1823, and when about fourteen years old was ap- prenticed to learn the carpenter's trade. In 1846 he assumed charge of a river barge and made several trips to New Orleans, Louisiana, by way of the Muskingum, Ohio and Mississippi rivers. He entered upon a career as a railroad man in 1850, his first position having been as baggagemaster on the old Central Ohio Railway. In 1851 he became a conductor on a passenger train which ran between Zanesville and Newark, Ohio, and after the line was com- pleted his run was between Columbus and Bellaire, Ohio. The Central Ohio Railway became a part of the Baltimore & Ohio system about 1865, and Mr.

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Moore continued in the employ of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad Company, his service as a conductor covering the long period of thirty-one years.

John Wilson Moore was married in Belmont county, Ohio, in 1857, to Miss Elizabeth H. Barton, a daughter of Judge Jesse Barton, of that county, who was born in Belmont county, Ohio, January 24, 1836. In 1862 they came to Columbus, Ohio, and made this city their home, buying a lot at the northeast corner of Chestnut and Front streets, on which he built a residence in 1867, where his wife died September 3, 1888. She was laid to rest in Greenlawn cemetery, Columbus, and Mr. Moore, still hale and hearty, is now living with his son Jesse T. Moore, at Carnegie, near Pittsburg, Pennsylvania.

John Wilson and Elizabeth H. (Barton) Moore had three sons, who will be here mentioned in the order of their nativity : Jesse Thomas Moore was born March 2, 1860, and has for eighteen years been a freight and passenger con- ductor on the Pennsylvania Railroad west of Pittsburg. He is married and lives at Carnegie, Pennsylvania. Robert Wilson Moore, of Columbus, one of the most popular conductors on the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad, was born at Bellaire, Belmont county, Ohio, March 29, 1862. Edward Barton Moore died in infancy in 1863.

Robert Wilson Moore was brought to Columbus, Ohio, by his parents when he was only six months old, in the fall of 1862, and has lived there contin- uously from that time to this. He was educated in the public schools of the city and when a mere boy was employed for one year in the office of the Con- ductor's Life Insurance Company, of Columbus. After that he busied himself in different ways until October, 1879, when he became a brakeman on a passenger train of which his father had charge as conductor. He remained in that position only two years and a half, however, before he was promoted to be baggagemaster and after six months' service in the last mentioned capac- ity he was, in 1882, advanced to the responsible position of freight and passen- ger conductor. For a time he ran as an "extra" on passenger trains, and then, after six months' service as a freight conductor, he was given a regular run on a Baltimore & Ohio passenger train from Chicago, Illinois, to Wheeling, West Virginia, and had charge of a limited train for six years. In October, 1888, at his own request, he was transferred to the Columbus, Cincinnati & Midland branch of the Baltimore & Ohio system and he has run over that line ever since.

He was married in Columbus, Ohio, April 15, 1890, to Miss Cora Mc- Ghee, who was born June 3, 1868, in Hamden, Vinton county, Ohio, of Scotch- Irish descent.

Mr. Moore is a member of Division No. 166, Order of Railway Con- ductors. After having taken subordinate degrees he took the degrees of chivalric Masonry in Mount Vernon Commandery, No. 1, Knight Templar, of Columbus, Ohio, March 29, 1888, and was constituted, created and dubbed a Knight Templar, and he was one of the charter members of Aladdin Temple, of Columbus, Ohio, of the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. His father and brother are also members of Mount Vernon Com-

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mandery. His mother was a devoted member of the Rev. Dr. Washington Gladden's Congregational church, of Columbus.

Mr. Moore is a strong and unswerving Republican and, as he claims, "a Jacksonian Democrat." While not a practical politician, he takes an intelligent and helpful interest in political work and has in many ways demonstrated that he is a citizen of much public spirit.

CHARLES H. ARMSTRONG.

Charles H. Armstrong is one of the native sons of Columbus and is a worthy representative of an honored pioneer family. His grandfather, Jere- miah Armstrong, was one of the first settlers in this portion of the state. The specific history of the west was made by the pioneers; it was emblazoned on the forest trees by the strength of sturdy arms and gleaming ax, and written on the surface of the earth by the track of the primitive plow. These were strong men and true that came to found the empire of the West,-these hardy settlers who, building their rude domiciles, grappled with the giants of the forests, and from the sylvan wilds evolved the fertile and productive fields which have these many years been furrowed by the plowshare. The red man in his motley garb stalked through the dim, woody avenues, and the wild beasts disputed his dominion. The trackless prairie was made to yield its tribute under the effective endeavors of the pioneer, and slowly but surely were laid the steadfast foundations upon which has been builded the magnifi- cent structures of an opulent and enlightened commonwealth. To establish a home amid such surroundings and to cope with the many privations and hardships which were the inevitable concomitants, demanded an invincible courage and fortitude, strong heart and willing hands. All these were char- acteristics of the pioneers, whose names and deeds should be held in per- petual reverence by those who enjoy the fruits of their toil. During his boy- hood Jeremiah Armstrong was captured by the Indians and remained with them for many weeks. He became an active factor in the development and upbuilding of Franklin county and was a member of the first village council of Columbus. He owned the Logan Tavern on High street, one of the first houses of public entertainment in the city. It was located just south of the Lazarus store and a part of the building is still standing. As its proprietor he became well known among the pioneer settlers of the state and in the community where he resided he was recognized as a man of sterling worth. Harrison Armstrong, the father of our subject, was born in Columbus, in 1821, and for many years was engaged in the conduct of a harness shop and livery stable. He married Miss Charlotta Manger, who was born in Berks county, Pennsylvania, and came to Ohio during her girlhood, where her father located on a farm in Licking county. The father of our subject died April 13, 1896, at the age of seventy-five years, and thus passed away one of the oldest of the native sons of Franklin county.

Charles H. Armstrong is indebted to the public school system of Coluni-

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bus for the educational privileges which he enjoyed, and since entering upon an independent business career he has been for some years in the railway ser- vice, connected with the Big Four, the Baltimore & Ohio and the Hocking Valley Railroads. In his political views he is a Democrat. He does not follow in the footsteps of the other members of the family in this direction, for all are Republicans. Mature consideration of the questions of the day, however, have led him to endorse the Democratic principles and he is an active worker in his party. He has served in the council and the city committees and has been honored with a number of positions of public trust. He served on the city board of equalization, has occupied a position in the county auditor's office, and in the year 1900 is serving as a land appraiser in his ward. He has always retired from office as he entered it,-with the confidence and good will of the public. His entire life has been passed in Columbus, and the fact that his record has ever been an honorable one is indicated by the other fact that among his stanchest friends are many who have known him from boy- hood.

JAMES J. THOMAS.

In the city of Columbus, James J. Thomas is a well known figure, and his devoted to the public good and his reliability in matters affecting the welfare of the city is above question. He is now president of the city council and as. such is manifesting marked loyalty to the public good, laboring earnestly for the progress of Ohio's capital along those lines which contribute to the advance- ment, prosperity and happiness of his fellow men.

Mr. Thomas was born in 1867 in the state which is now his home and the following year he was brought to Columbus by his parents, David and Jane (Jones ) Thomas, both of whom were natives of Wales and in early life crossed the Atlantic to the United States, taking up their abode in Columbus, where they still reside.

Mr. Thomas, of this review, is indebted to the public school system of that city for the preliminary educational privileges which he enjoyed. Subsequently he pursued a commercial course in what was at that time the Columbus Busi- ness College. He began his career as a newsboy, selling papers on the street for Sheer & Reed. Later he entered the employ of the United States Express Company as a messenger boy. There his fidelity to duty, his earnest desire to please and the business ability which he manifested led to his advancement step by step through all the departments until he was promoted to his present re- sponsible position as cashier of what is now one of the leading corporations of the country. His connection with this company covers a period of over sixteen years. He has mastered every detail of the business and has thus been pro- moted and at all times has been found most loyal to the trust reposed in him.

Mr. Thomas is a Republican in his political affiliations and has studied closely the questions and issues of the day so that he is able to uphold his posi- tion by intelligent argument. In the spring of 1891 he was elected a member

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of the city council and was re-elected in 1900. Soon afterward he was chosen president and is now the incumbent in that position. He has made a close study of the needs of the city and has exercised his official prerogatives in support of the needed reforms and improvements. Socially he is connected with the Na- tional Registrar, Magnolia Lodge, F. & A. M., and Temple Chapter, R. A. M. He is also prominent in the Knights of Pythias fraternity and has been in all of its various offices. Mr. Thomas is a young man of genial manner, courteous and obliging disposition, of excellent executive ability, keen discrimination and sterling worth, and these qualities have won him the high regard of a host of warm friends among whom he is very popular.

ISAAC NEWTON JENKINS.

Among the sturdy, successful, self-made railroad men of Columbus, Ohio, none has gained his present prominence more creditably or is more pop- ular in railway circles and with the traveling public than is Isaac Newton Jen- kins, widely known as a passenger conductor on the Norfolk & Western Rail- way and prominent in connection with the Order of Railroad Conductors.

Isaac Newton Jenkins was born at Furnace, Jackson county, Ohio, March 12, 1857, a son of Isaac Jenkins, who died in 1871, at the age of seventy-one years. His mother died near Louisville, Kentucky, in 1864. He had brothers named Joseph, Archibald and Benjamin, and sisters named Mary, who maï- ried John Graham, and died in Jackson county, Ohio, four years ago. His brothers, Joseph and Archibald, served their country in the federal army during the Civil war and died in Tennessee more than twenty years ago. His other brother is now a resident of Alabama.

By the death of his parents he was thrown wholly upon his own resources when but a mere boy. His experience was a hard one and such education as he obtained was gained at odd times and by reading and study after long days spent in wearisome work, still he obtained a foothold in the world and was happily married February 3, 1881, to Miss Minnie Vogelsang, at Mount Vernon Furnace, Lawrence county, Ohio, and they have three children, all born in Lawrence county, Ohio, namely: Charles L., born October 2, 1882; Emerson M., October 23, 1886; Luella May, September 19, 1888. Mrs. Jenkins is a sister of Harmon Vogelsang, who fills the office of street com- missioner at Ironton, Ohio, also of Henry Vogelsang, and of L. C. Vogelsang, a wealthy iron operator now living in retirement at Wellston, Ohio. Mr. Jenkins and his family are members of the Neil Avenue Methodist Episcopal church, of Columbus, and are helpful to all its various important interests.

Mr. Jenkins's first regular employment was in a furnace when he was a mere boy. He was employed thus and otherwise until 1885, on the 4th day of March of which year he removed to Ironton, Ohio. June 17 following he became a section hand on the old Valley road which afterward became known as the Norfolk & Western Railway, and that was his introduction to rail- roading. A year later he was made foreman of a section and after service in

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that capacity for one year was given the position of brakeman in the yard, and in 1887 he became brakeman on a local freight train. He recalls with feelings of gratitude the kindness of Superintendent J. W. Campbell, shown him in many ways while he was endeavoring to make a beginning as a railroad man. While he was employed as a freight brakeman he lost the forefinger of his right hand while coupling cars, but the accident kept him from work only twenty-five days. In time he was appointed baggage master and from that po- sition was promoted to that of freight conductor, in which he served until he was given charge of a passenger train. As a freight conductor, by reason of being the oldest conductor in the service, he was given a preferred run, which he retained until June 14, 1899, when his promotion came. He was in about every imaginable kind of railroad wreck that a train man could ex- perience short of running into a river or plunging off from a high bridge. His accidents involved head-end, rear and side wrecks and the breaking of trains on steep grades, yet aside from the loss of the finger referred to he never received a personal injury worth mentioning and no member of his crew was ever seriously hurt.

Mr. Jenkins's first passenger run was between Columbus and Kenova, Wayne county, West Virginia, July 4, 1899. The day was very warm and he carried eleven hundred passengers, but was able to avoid accident of any kind. He recalls the fact that he had the honor of running the first train over the bridge across the Ohio river at Kenova. It was drawn by engine No. 43, with engineer Fred Hart at the throttle, and the cabin was filled with men and boys. Mr. Jenkins enjoys the distinction also of never having been called as a witness in a personal injury or damage case. He is one of the most popular passenger conductors on the road, and his efficient and courteous service is highly appreciated by the traveling public.

In 1888,. at the time of the national convention of the Brotherhood of Railroad Yardmen at Columbus, Mr. Jennings was initiated into that order. The lodge offices at the time were filled by officers of the national body, Grand Master Wilkinson presiding. After the initiation ceremonies, Columbus Lodge, No. 175, of which Mr. Jenkins had become a member, adjourned and attended the meeting of the grand lodge at the State Street Presbyterian church. Mr. Jenkins was a member of this order until 1897, when, at Ke- nova, West Virginia, he united with Lodge No. 3, State Division Order of Railroad Conductors, as a charter member. He is identified with the Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows, and has recently joined Capital City Lodge, I. O. O. F .. of Columbus, by card. He is also a member of the Knights and Ladies of Honor of Columbus.

ELMER E. THOMPSON.

Elmer E. Thompson, who is in the employ of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company in the capacity of an engineer. was born August 8, 1859, in Union county, Pennsylvania. He is a brother of W. H. Thompson, of this county, and

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for sixteen years he has been a resident of Columbus. The days of his child- hood and youth were quietly passed, unmarked by any event of special import- ance, but in 1879 he entered the railroad service as fireman on the Panhandle road, being assigned to the Indianapolis division. By close application to his work and faithfulness to the performance of duty he secured promotion on the 13th of September, 1885, and has since been continuously in the service of the road as engineer.

On the 15th of November, 1883, Mr. Thompson was united in marriage to Miss Annie Clarissa Reinier, the wedding being celebrated at Ansonia, Darke county, Ohio. Four children graced their union, of whom two are yet living, namely : Virginia May, born October 9, 1887; and Wilbur, born July 1, 1890. Elmer E. died at the age of thirteen months; and Edna Pearl, who was born March 25, 1889, died on the 8th of July, of that year.

Mr. Thompson is a genial man, pleasant, accommodating and obliging, and is a very efficient engineer, his long continuation with the company indi- cating his marked fidelity.

JAMES T. LINDSAY.

James T. Lindsay was born in Washington, Pennsylvania, April 18, 1847; his parents being Oliver and Jane (Taylor) Lindsay. On the maternal side he is of English lineage and tradition says that the ancestors of the family came to America from the merrie isle at a very early period in the development of New England. On the paternal side Mr. Lindsay is of Scotch descent. His grandfather, Ninon Lindsay, was a native of the land of hills and heather and when a young man became a resident of the new world. His wife was Kate Lindsay. Oliver Lindsay, the father of our subject, was born in Read- ing, Berks county, Pennsylvania, in August, 1808, and became a skilled machin- ist, working in different shops and factories during his early manhood. Subsequently he began the manufacture of agricultural implements in Wash- ington, Pennsylvania, and there continued actively engaged in business for a number of years. He wedded Miss Jane Taylor, who was born in Washing- ton county, in the Keystone state, in 1809. Her death occurred in 1892 and the husband passed away in 1894.

James T. Lindsay spent his early boyhood in the city of his birth and at- tended the public schools where he mastered the common branches of English learning. No event of special importance occurred to vary the routine of his life. He enjoyed the sports in which the boys of that period indulged and. as he grew older he prepared for Washington College, where he pursued a full scientific course. On its completion he entered the employ of the Adams Express Company and at the same time secured a situation in the service of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, filling both positions for nine years. On leaving the employ of the railroad he went to Cameron, West Virginia, where he embarked in merchandising, conducting a general store. He disposed of that at the time of his removal to Ohio, taking up his abode in Guernsey

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county, where he again opened a general mercantile establishment in Cam- bridge. His connection with mercantile interests in that place continued for four years. In 1884 he came to Columbus, Ohio, and purchased the grocery stock of the firm of Sargent & Wingate, the store being located at No. 610 North High street, where Mr. Lindsay has since continued in business, carrying a large line of staple and fancy groceries, produce and fruit. As the result of his long acquaintance, affable manner and genial treatment of his patrons, he has established a good business.

On the 16th of June, 1873, occurred the marriage of Mr. Lindsay and Miss Jennie Wallace, of Canonsburg, Pennsylvania, a daughter of Thomas and Nancy Arnold Wallace. They now have four children: Oliver, who is a graduate of the Ohio Medical College and is now the secretary of the city board of health, and is a prominent candidate on the Republican ticket for the office of coroner; Daisy D., who is a young lady of superior education and pleasing characteristics ; Carl W., a graduate in pharmacy and also of the Ohio Medical University, of Columbus ; and Violet Mary, now a student in the high school.

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A Centennial biographical history of the city of Columbus and Franklin County, Ohio, Part 122

Author: Lewis Publishing Company Publication date: 1901 Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Pub. Co. Number of Pages: 1156

Author: Lewis Publishing Company
Publication date: 1901
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 1156