USA > Pennsylvania > Allegheny County > Pittsburgh > Biographical review : v. 24, containing life sketches of leading citizens of Pittsburgh and the vicinity, Pennsylvania > Part 23
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George R. Wallace removed with his par- ents in 1879 to Sewickley, which has been his home since. In 1891 he graduated from Princeton University, being valedictorian of his class on that occasion. In 1889 he was registered as a law student in the office of his uncle, George D. Riddle; and, having con- tinued his studies after his graduation, he was admitted to the bar in March, 1894. Mr. Wallace at once began the practice of his pro- fession in Pittsburg, being made general man- ager of the Lawyers' Title Abstract Company. In the following year he promoted the estab- lishment of the Pennsylvania Title and Trust Company, merging the other into it. He is also a director of the Pittsburg & Ohio Oil Company.
Mr. Wallace is an uncompromising Repub- lican in politics and an active worker in its ranks, each campaign doing a portion of the stump speaking. Somewhat given to literary pursuits, he has written a history of Prince- ton, entitled "Princeton Sketches," which has been widely circulated and highly commended. He is a member of the University Club of Pittsburg. Very prominent in religious cir-
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cles, he belongs to the Sewickley Presbyterian Church, being superintendent of the Sunday- school connected therewith. Also a member of the Y. M. C. A. of that place, he has been for some years the secretary of its Board of Directors.
HARLES STONER SHAW, M.D., an esteemed physician of Pittsburg, is a descendant of John Shaw, who emigrated from Scotland soon after the close of the Revolutionary War. John Shaw had been employed for several years before leaving his native land in one of the largest iron es- tablishments of Scotland. On coming to this State, he located in Pittsburg, where he erected one of the first foundries of this vicin- ity. Subsequently going eight miles north, to a place that is now in Shaler township, he built a saw-mill and grist-mill, and afterward a sickle factory, living there until his demise. He reared a family of four sons and two daughters, all of whom lived for eighty or more years. Their names were: Thomas Wilson, John, James, Alexander, Mary Ann, and Eliza Jane. Thomas Wilson, the eldest, and the grandfather of the Doctor, died at the age of ninety-three. An extended account of his life and good works may be found in the Commercial Gasette of January 15, 1889. He was always interested in the public welfare, being especially anxious to elevate the edu- cational status of the county; and it was through his efforts that the first school-house in this section was built, and the present school system inaugurated. For forty years he was engaged in the manufacture of sickles and scythes, carrying on a fine business until the advent of reaping and mowing machines, after which he operated for many years the Glenshaw coal mines. He married Sarah Scott, a daughter of Colonel Samuel Scott,
one of the founders of Perrysville, this county. They had eight children, of whom Margaret, Sarah, and an infant named Louisa are de- ceased. The others are: Mrs. Elizabeth Ar- buthnot, Mrs. Samuel Spencer, Mrs. Robert Watson, Martha, and Thomas Wilson Shaw, M.D.
THOMAS WILSON SHAW read medicine with Dr. J. P. Gazzan, and in April, 1849, was graduated from the medical department of the University of Pennsylvania. After receiving his degree, he entered upon his professional career in Pittsburg, where he is a veteran practitioner and one of the most highy es- teemed members of the medical fraternity. On March 8, 1854, he married Catherine Stoner, daughter of Solomon Stoner, a Pitts- burg merchant. She has borne him nine chil- dren, namely: Henry C., a member of the Lewis Foundry and Machine Company; Dr. Charles Stoner, the subject of this sketch; George E., an attorney-at-law; Thomas W., Jr., of the Solar Iron Works; Howard and Woodward, students; Margaret, the widow of George R. Lawrence, who was an attorney ; Catherine, who died at the age of twenty years; and Elizabeth, who is still pursuing her studies.
Charles Stoner Shaw was born September 13, 1858, at Pittsburg, where he received his preliminary education. He subsequently at- tended the University of Pennsylvania, from which he was graduated in 1879, receiving the degree of Doctor of Medicine. The fol- lowing two years he spent in perfecting his knowledge of the cause and cure of diseases. In ISSI he commenced practice with his father, with whom he has since remained, having built up a good practice, and obtaining a place of influence among his professional brethren. He is a member of the Pennsyl- vania Medical Society, of which he is first
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vice-president ; of the Allegheny County Med- ical Society; and of the American Medical Association. He is the professor of child diseases in the West Penn Medical College, one of the managers of the Pittsburg Free Dispensary, and senior staff physician of the Rosalie Foundling Society and the Maternity Hospital. The Doctor is also well known in literary circles, having been for a number of years editor of the Pittsburg Medical Review. In politics he is a "straight" Republican. He is actively interested in educational mat- ters, and for three terms served as president of the School Board of the Fourth Ward.
HILO N. FRENCH, the general superintendent and a director of the A. French Spring Company of Pitts- burg, was born January 26, 1860, in Racine, Wis., son of Aaron French. (An account of his ancestry will be found in the biography of his father.)
But two years of age when his parents came from their Western home to Pittsburg, his elementary education was received here. Subsequently he spent four years at Greylock Institute in South Williamstown, Mass., after which he studied for a year at Lehigh Uni- versity. During the succeeding three years he was employed in the drawing-room of Mc- Intosh, Hemphill & Co., manufacturers. At the same time he continued his study and practice of mechanical engineering, in which he became notably proficient. Then, having accepted a position with the company with which he is now associated, he worked in the office, also having charge of the machinery until 1887, when he was made general super- intendent. In this capacity he has entire charge of all the machinery required to carry on the extensive business of the firm, and the
control of the three hundred or more employ- ees, all of whom, with possibly a few excep- tions, are skilled laborers. A talented and able business man, as well as a practical en- gineer, Mr. French is well qualified for the responsible position he holds. He is also a director of the Canton Steel Company, of Canton, Ohio.
On January 1I, 1887, Mr. French was mar- ried to Miss May Elizabeth Dabbs, a daughter of B. L. H. Dabbs, of whom a sketch appears elsewhere in this work. Two children have been born of the union - Mary Elizabeth and Aaron. Mr. French attends the Calvary Episcopal Church, toward the support of which he is a generous contributor. The family home is located not far from the church, on South Negley Avenue, at the East End. Made a Mason in this city, Mr. French belongs to Zerubbabel Chapter, No. 162; Tankard Commandery, No. 48; Rose Croix, Princes of Jerusalem; Syria Temple, Mystic Shrine; and to the Valley of Pittsburg Con- sistory, in which he received the thirty-second degree. He is likewise a member of the Duquesne Club, of this city. In politics he is a stanch Republican.
EV. JAMES M. WALLACE, pastor of the Eighth United Presbyterian Church of Pittsburg, Pa., since 1881, was born in Hopewell township, Beaver County, this State, on July 5, 1835, son of Joseph and Rachel (Spence) Wallace. His great-grandfather, William Wallace, was a Scotsman and a Presbyterian. On account of religious persecution he left Scotland, and went to Ireland, where he died at an advanced agc.
The next in the ancestral line was William Wallace's son James, who came to this coun-
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try, and was an early settler of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Later he was one of the pioneers of Beaver County, going there early in the century, when Joseph, above named, was two years old. Almost the whole country was wooded land, and he cleared a homestead.
Joseph Wallace was a boat-builder in early life, and worked at Monongahela City, where he became acquainted with and married his wife. He subsequently settled in the woods in Beaver County, and cleared a farm for him- self, and later bought other farms, and became very well-to-do. He was a man of quiet and unassuming manners, highly respected as a sincere Christian. He was elected Elder in the United Presbyterian church, but was un- willing to occupy the position. He died at the age of eighty-eight years. His wife, to whom he was married in 1830, was born in County Down, Ireland. Her father, James Spence, who was of Scotch ancestry, came to New York City, and subsequently removed to Monongahela City. Mr. Spence was drowned in the Monongahela River, and at his death left four children, of whom Rachel was the eldest. She died in her eighty-sixth year. Joseph and Rachel (Spence) Wallace had a family of eight children. Mary, the eldest, married in 1876 John C. Reed, a brother of Dr. Reed, of Steubenville. The second child was James M. Nancy Wallace is living on the homestead. Washington is a clergyman of the United Presbyterian church at Con- cord, Ohio. Joseph R. is now pastor at New Bethlehem. Previous to being settled there, he was for twenty years pastor of the church at Jamestown, Pa. Rachel is the wife of Dr. W. J. Asdale, professor in the medical de- partment of the Western University of Penn- sylvania. Elizabeth is the wife of William Calvert, a merchant of New Sheffield, Beaver
County ; and John S. Wallace is living on the old homestead.
James M. Wallace, after attending the com- mon schools of his native county in his early years, taught school during the winter, and worked on the farm in the summer until he was twenty-five years old. He then continued his studies at Newell & Davis School at Alle- gheny and later at Beaver Academy. He finally entered the Junior class of Westminster College in Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, and took his Bachelor of Arts degree from that institution in 1864. After teaching a select school in Illinois for a year, he matriculated at the United Presbyterian Theological School at Monmouth, Ill. He completed his profes- sional course at the Seminary of Allegheny, having previously, in 1867, been licensed to preach in the First United Presbyterian Church in the city of Chicago. Before finish - ing his course, he had received several calls to preach; and, having accepted one from Viola, Ill., he was ordained and installed pas- tor of that church on September 29, 1868. He remained there for two years, the congre- gation increasing in members during that time, and prospering financially. In 1870 he accepted a call to Youngstown, and during the twelve years of his pastorate the church doubled in members. It was a mission settle- ment when Mr. Wallace went there, but he left it a church entirely self-supporting. While at Youngstown he was for many years clerk of the Presbytery, and always took a prominent part in its work. He was also a member for some years of the Board of Trus- tees of Westminster College. From Youngs- town, in 1881, Mr. Wallace was called to hi- present pastorate in Pittsburg, where he had preached by exchange. The church was built thirty years ago, in September, 1867, and has now a strong corps of active workers. On
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account of the many facilities for transit be- tween the city proper and the suburbs, many of the younger churches have drawn largely from its membership. The effort made in recent years, therefore, to keep up the growth in membership has had counteracting circum- stances.
The Rev. Mr. Wallace is a member of the Board of Publication of the United Presbyte- rian Church, and was on the Board at the time the fine new building was erected. He has also been for many years one of the directors of the United Presbyterian Seminary of Alle- gheny. Since coming to Pittsburg, he has been very active in the Presbytery, and has been a member of the Committee on Supplies. He has taken a deep interest in the Home Missions Department of the church, and through his efforts many new societies have been formed, and many struggling churches have been encouraged to become self-support- ing.
Mr. Wallace married Mary J. Nevin, daugh- ter of John Nevin, of Beaver County, Penn- sylvania, who was a prominent resident there and an Elder in the United Presbyterian Church. The Nevin family is of Scotch an- cestry, and came to this country from Ireland. The Rev. and Mrs. Wallace have four chil- dren, namely: Thomas H., a practising phy- sician of Pittsburg; Bertha; Millie; and Guian de Armond, the last two named being still in school.
AMES C. ELLIOT, a real estate and insurance broker of Pittsburg, with an office at 27 Chartier Street and a resi- dence at 179 Island Avenue, was born January 18, 1826, in Pittsburg, on Second Avenue, be- tween Ross and Grant Streets, son of James W. and Mary (Chapman) Elliot. The first
representative of the family here was of Ger- man origin, and was a teacher of the German settlers who first came here. Many men, who afterward became well known in this section, took their first lessons in English from him. There is also a strain of French blood in the family.
James W. Elliot, born in Lancaster County, March 4, 1792, spent his youth in the place of his nativity. When a young man he came to Pittsburg, and worked for a time in McComb's carriage manufactory on Fourth Avenue. Later he became owner of a black- smith shop that occupied the site on which the Monongahela House now stands, and there carried on business when Pittsburg was only a village. He also owned real estate in various places near here. In 1840 he went into the florist and nursery business in Brownstown, where he had a number of greenhouses. Shortly after he opened a florist business in Pittsburg, being the first person to start in that line in the city. The store at 114 Market Street was kept open by one of his sons until recently.
His death occurred November 5, 1865. He was a prominent member of the First South Side Methodist Protestant Church, and was very active in forwarding the interests of the society, and of the denomination. His wife, Mary, died when James C. was seven days old. He married again, and his second wife bore him four sons and a daughter.
James C. Elliot attended the public school on Water Street, under the instruction of Mr. Meads. Subsequently he went into the iron business, apprenticing himself to Robinson, Minis & Miller, with whom he served four years and a half, learning engine building. He then apprenticed himself to James Elliot, a blacksmith, and learned the blacksmith trade. Soon after he became manager of the
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Klosnaus Rail Mill at the South Side, in which capacity he served for three years. Then he went to Toledo, Ohio, as superin- tendent for the Smith Bridge Company, and supervised the construction of a number of large bridges. Under Captain William Nel- son and James Anderson he superintended the construction of the Illinois & St. Louis Bridge. This was the first bridge of the kind built in the United States, and was the first Mississippi River bridge at St. Louis. With a large force of workmen he was over a year in putting in two caissons, which were sunk in the river to bed-rock, a remarkable feat. Mr. Elliot's next work was the bridge across the Maumee River at Toledo. Since then he has built many smaller bridges, including that of the Pittsburg, Fort Wayne & Chicago Railroad across the Allegheny, which is known as one of the best bridges in the coun- try. He continued in this line of work until about ten years ago, during the latter part of the time being with the Anderson & Dupuy Company, of McKee's Rocks. Also for some eleven years he successfully speculated in the oil business in Western Pennsylvania. He has bought property in the vicinity of Pitts- burg, and now carries on a real estate and in- surance business.
On October 1, 1878, Mr. Elliot married Miss Susanna Doyle, of Pittsburg, who was born on the South Side, daughter of Charles ~and Mary (Robinson) Doyle. Mrs. Doyle's family lived in Lancaster, and owned property where the Lancaster court-house now stands. This marriage has been blessed in the birth of four children: Mary, the eldest child, is now the wife of J. Oakley; Harriet E. is the wife of Mr. James B. Culley, who is the secretary and treasurer of Typographical Union, No. 7; Harry A. lives in Pittsburg; and J. B. Elliot, the youngest child, at McKee's Rocks.
AVID McCARGO, the general super- intendent of the Allegheny Valley Railway Company, with which he has been officially connected for twenty-one years, is an esteemed resident of the city of Pittsburg, Pa., where his birth occurred June 6, 1335. He comes of Scotch ancestry on the paternal side, his father, Nathaniel McCargo, having been born and bred in Wigtonshire, Scotland, in the village of Kirkmaiden. Na- thaniei left his native land in 1819, and came to Pittsburg, where, chiefly engaged in farnı- ing, he remained until his death, at a vener- able age, in 1881. He was well known to the cid-time residents of the city as toll-keeper of the Greensburg pike, in which capacity he acted for many years. He married Miss Isa- bella A. Sayle, who was born in the town of Ramsey, Isle of Man. She died in 1841, leaving six children, namely: John, who was for some years City Comptroller of Pittsburg, and died leaving two sons - John and Wall- ace, now in St. Louis; Robert, who was professor of music in the public schools of this city, and left one son; Charles, the late general freight agent of the Allegheny Valley Railroad, who died leaving four daughters - Mrs. Ellen Mason, Clara, Gertrude, and Mrs. Edith Williamson; Frank, who died when young; Elizabeth and Isabella, both also de- ceased. The father belonged in earlier life to the Presbyterian church, but later united with the Methodist Episcopal church, with which his wife was identified. Her parents, who were also prominent members of that de- nomination, often entertained at their hospi- table board the Rev. Charles Wesley.
David McCargo obtained his education in the public schools of his native city and in the University of Western Pennsylvania. At the age of fourteen years he entered the ser- vice of the Atlantic & Ohio Telegraph Com-
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pany, and three years later became an opera- tor. In 1852 he accepted the position of assistant operator with the Pittsburg, Cincin- nati & Louisville Telegraph Company, which had lines running to those cities. In 1858 he was appointed superintendent of telegraph for the Pennsylvania Railway Company by the late Colonel Thomas A. Scott, then general superintendent of the road, and had his office at Altoona. Soon after the breaking out of the war, while occupying that position, Mr. McCargo, at the request of Colonel Scott, or- ganized the first corps of military teleg- raphers, taking them from operators on the line of the Pennsylvania Railroad, and sent them to Washington. He continued in Al- toona until 1864, when he was made assistant superintendent of the Pittsburg division of that road, Andrew Carnegie being at that time the superintendent. A short time afterward he was chosen superintendent of the Oil Creek and Allegheny River Railway; and in 1866 he became division superintendent of the Northern & Horicon division of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad, of which he had charge for two years. In 1868 he ac- cepted the superintendency of the Pacific & Atlantic Telegraph Company, which he man- aged until 1874. Then he resigned to be- come vice-president of Oil Creek & Allegheny River Railroad. In the following year he was appointed receiver of the Oil Creek & Alle- gheny River Railroad, and in the same year he accepted the office which he now holds.
On December 12, 1860, Mr. McCargo was united in marriage with Miss Ellen Simpson, daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth (Verner) Morrison, of Pittsburg. They have two chil- dren - Elizabeth Verner and Grant. The latter is a prosperous business man of this city, being the manager and one of the mem- bers of the Pennsylvania Lubricating Oil
Company. Mr. David McCargo is a trustee of the Carnegie Library, having been ap- pointed to the Board by Mr. Carnegie. He is also a trustee of Christ Methodist Episco- pal Church.
OHN M. OAKLEY, formerly a well- known stock broker of Pittsburg, was born in this city, July 23, 1840, son of John M. and Catherine (Murphy) Okely. The family is of English origin. Mr. Oak- ley's great-grandfather, John Okely, born in Bedford, England, came to this country in 1742, joining the Moravian colony at Bethle- hem, where he became a Deacon in the Mora- vian church, and was very prominent in pub- lic affairs. In 1774 John was commissioned a Justice of the Peace by Governor Penn, and on the breaking out of the Revolutionary War he was appointed Assistant Commissary -gen- eral. He died at Lancaster in 1792, and at the time of his death was the owner of all Lancaster County. John Okely (second), son of the first John by a third wife, was born at Bethlehem, Pa., April 22, 1778. He married Allisanna Wilson, and removed to Baltimore, where he was numbered among the Quaker residents of that city.
John M. Okely, the father of the subject of this sketch, born in Baltimore, Md., moved to Pittsburg, where he became a member of the firm of Knap & Totten, manufacturers of ord- nance for the United States Navy. He sub- sequently formed other business connections, the firm being known as Scaife, Atkinson & Okely, and carried on a large foundry busi- ness, owning many steamers on Western waters. He and his wife resided in Pittsburg until just before the Civil War. Then they removed to St. Louis, Mo., where he died January 12, 1862. Three of their children, Mary, Emily, and Harry, are now residents of
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Philadelphia. The wife, Catherine, was a daughter of Andrew Murphy, who, born in the County Wexford, Ireland, emigrated to Amer- ica early in life, bringing with him the ma- chinery necessary for the manufacture of woollens, and first settled in Pittsfield, Mass. In 1821 he came to Pittsburg, establishing in this city the first woollen-mill west of the Alleghanies. His establishment, which was a large one for those days, included a six- hundred-acre lot, with a factory and tenement houses for his employees. He married Miss Mary Mead, of Pittsfield, Mass., a leading belle of her time, and a direct descendant of William Mead, who came to this country about the year 1629.
After preparing for college in the schools of his native city, John M. Oakley entered the Western University of Pennsylvania, and finished his studies in New York City. In 1861 the young student enlisted in the Friend Rifles of St. Louis, was promoted to the rank of First Orderly Sergeant, was transferred to a New York company and made First Lieu- tenant, and six months later was made Cap- tain of Company A, First Regiment, Sickles's brigade. At the battle of Fair Oaks, while in the field hospital, he was taken prisoner, and sent to Libby Prison, from which, after a confinement of thirty days, he escaped with two brother officers. The romantic story of the adventures of him and his companions is well known to the readers of our magazines. The youngest officer of the brigade, he had passed his twenty-first birthday amid the hor- rible surroundings of the famous Southern prison pen. On account of his youth and pre- ferment much jealous feeling had been ex- cited among the older officers of his regiment, so that, upon his return after his escape, he found himself confronted with a court-martial on the charge of desertion. Heartily sick-
ened of his regiment by a further detention of six weeks under arrest, he resigned with the permission of his general, returned to Pitts- burg, and re-enlisted. Throughout the re- mainder of the war young Oakley served on the staff of the commanding officer of the Third Division, Sixth Army Corps. After the close of the war he spent two years in the War Department at Washington, and on his return at the end of that time he became con- nected with the Pennsylvania Railroad. In 1884 Mr. Oakley, having developed a decided talent for finance, established a banking and brokerage business in Pittsburg. His house became at once the leading firm on the street, and at the end of ten years he was able to re- tire with a comfortable fortune. After his retirement from active business he spent much time in travel. On March 2, 1897, while on his way to Japan, he was fatally stricken with apoplexy. At this time he was a director of the United States Bank and a member of the Society of the Sons of the Rev- olution.
On April 13, 1880, Mr. Oakley married Imogen Brashear, a daughter of Dr. Basil Brown Brashear, of Cleveland, Ohio, and a descendant of Benois Brasseuir, a French Huguenot, who, to escape religious persecu- tion in his own country, came to America in 1658. He received a grant of land, signed by Lord Baltimore, in Prince George's County, Maryland. From him the line of descent continued through Robert, Samuel, Sr., and Samuel, Jr. The last named, at the age of eighty, was a member of the Colonial militia and an active soldier in the War of the Revo- lution. His son, Otho Brashear, the grand- father of Mrs. Oakley, was born October 25, 1793, at Brownsville, Pa., where he resided until his migration to Ohio after his marriage with Miss Hannah Colvin. He fought in the
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