USA > Pennsylvania > Colonial and revolutionary families of Pennsylvania; genealogical and personal memoirs, Volume IV > Part 8
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Joseph Wharton always remained true to the noble traditions of a virtuous and high- minded ancestry. His career was the culmination of generations of lofty living, and he stands before the world an illustrious example of the possibilities of great powers consecrated to far- reaching uses and having for their end the progress and enlightenment of race and the relief and education of humanity.
The heritage of a rich family background and a record of notable achievement were bequeathed to those who have survived this fine upstanding citizen and busi- ness leader, and who either perpetuate the name or its splendid tradition.
Pepper
The family of Pepper, long an honorable and influential name in Pennsylvania affairs, has a worthy representative in the former United States Senator, George Wharton Pepper, widely known Philadelphia lawyer, scholar and author. The family is of Irish origin. Early in the eighteenth century a son of the Pepper name emigrated from Ireland to Alsace, where he settled near Strassburg, changed the name to Pfeffer, and married an Alsatian girl. Their son, Johann Heinrich Pfeffer, was the founder of the Philadelphia branch of the family, which assumed again the original name of Pepper.
(I) JOHANN HEINRICH PFEFFER was born near Strassburg, January 5, 1739, and died in Philadelphia, March 11, 1808. With ninety-one other Germans and Palatinates he left Rotterdam in the "Minerva," commanded by Captain Thomas Arnott, and reaching Philadelphia he qualified as a subject of the English crown, October 13, 1769. For some years he made his home at Schaefferstown, Lebanon County, Pennsylvania, but in 1774 he established himself permanently in Philadel- phia. Gifted with foresight and business acumen he acquired a great deal of valu- able real estate, and eventually became one of the leading business men of the city. His will, dated December 17, 1807, and proven May 18, 1808, devised to his chil- dren and grandchildren houses and lots in different parts of the city, a brewery in Lycoming County and valuable real estate elsewhere. In the life and records of the city he had become generally known as Henry Pepper.
Johann Heinrich Pfeffer married Catharine, who survived him and was devised the house where he dwelt. They were the parents of the following children :
I. Catharine, named in her father's will as "eldest daughter" and wife of Jonathan Miller.
2. Philip, deceased at date of his father's will.
3. Elizabeth, named in father's will as his second daughter and wife of George Thomson.
4. Sarah, named in father's will as deceased wife of "late Adam Seybert."
5. George, of whom further.
6. Margaret, named in father's will as his youngest daughter.
(Jordan : "Colonial Families of Philadelphia," Vol. II, p. 1088.)
(II) GEORGE PEPPER, second son of of Johann Heinrich and Catharine Pfef- fer (or Pepper), was born in Philadelphia, March 15, 1779, and died there Janu- ary 6, 1846. While yet very young his father procured him a connection with the well-known firm of Willing and Francis, where, as apprentice in the counting house, he learned the details of business. This training, wholly compatible with his inborn talents, helped to make him one of the keenest men of the business world. He engaged in mercantile ventures for himself and became one of the wealthiest men of Philadelphia. For many years, also, he maintained substantial interests in the brewing business, and was the owner of several breweries, besides other valuable real estate in various sections of the city. His city residence was on Chestnut Street, while his summer home, "Fairy Hill," an extensive estate, was on the site which is now part of Laurel Hill Cemetery. His wealth was left in
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trust for the benefit of his children and grandchildren. His holdings were con- stantly improved. So great was the value advance of his properties, due to the city's growth, that only one other man's possessions exceeded the Pepper estate. Hospitals, free public libraries, and many other civic benefits have redounded to Philadelphia from the Pepper wealth.
George Pepper married, May 13, 1802, Mary Catharine Seckel, born in Phila- delphia, June 7, 1780, died June 21, 1861, daughter of John David Seckel, and granddaughter of George David Seckel, a prominent and wealthy citizen of Phila- delphia, who died in 1797, and his wife, Mary Catharine. George and Mary Catha- rine (Seckel) Pepper were the parents of the following children :
I. Henry, born in April, 1803; married, February 11, 1841, Sallie Norris, daughter of Joseph Parker and Elizabeth Hill (Fox) Norris.
2. David, born August 6, 1805, died in 1840; married Emily Platt.
3. Mary, born December 3, 1806; married, May 18, 1830, Isaac Norris.
4. George Seckel, born June 11, 1808, died May 2, 1890; was interested in many philan- thropic enterprises; trustee with nephew, Dr. William Pepper, and William Platt Pepper, of Henry Seybert fund for care of indigent children; left large estate, greater part of which was dedicated to public benefactions, principal one being establishment of Free Public Library of Philadelphia.
5. William, of whom further.
6. Charles, born January 29, 1812, died February 22, 1812.
7. Catharine, born February 20, 1813, died April 5, 1883; married (first) Charles Rock- land Thompson; married (second) E. B. Gardette.
8. Frederick Seckel, born December 20, 1814, died January 14, 1891; married Adeline Worrell.
9. Charles (a twin), born March 11, 1817, died May 3, 1887; married Margaret Lamb.
10. Edward (a twin), born March 11, 1817, died March 1, 1892; married Sarah H. Cave.
11. Lawrence Seckel, born at Philadelphia, October 28, 1819, died there September 10, 1886; became a doctor.
(Ibid., pp. 1088, 1089.)
(III) DR. WILLIAM PEPPER, son of George and Mary Catharine (Seckel). Pepper, was born in Philadelphia, January 21, 1810, and died there October 15, 1864. When, in 1829, he was graduated from the College of New Jersey (now Princeton University), he came away with first honors. He then absorbed him- self in the study of medicine, under Thomas T. Hewson, M. D., and at the medical department of the University of Pennsylvania. He was graduated with his medi- cal degree in 1832, and was about to start for Paris for further study, when a cholera epidemic developed in Philadelphia. He deferred his going to devote him- self to the patients in the pesthouse, and he remained in the city until the disease was entirely eradicated. Under the best doctors in Paris he worked for two years to deepen and to broaden his knowledge for his chosen field. Toward the end of the year 1834 he began the practice of medicine in Philadelphia, and his reputation as a doctor of exceptional capability. grew quickly. As a consultant in serious cases he soon stood as a recognized leader. For twenty-six years he was attached as doctor to the Pennsylvania Hospital, and for some years to Will's Eye Hospital. In 1860 he was elected professor of the theory and practice of medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, which post he retained until 1864, when failing health forced him to resign. He was a member of the College of Physicians of Philadel- phia, of the various medical organizations, and of the American Philosophical
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Society. That he should be called from his worthy work at the apex of his career was a shock to the world in which he moved. One who knew him wrote:
At the early age of fifty-five years he died, just in the maturity of his mental ability and of his capacity for usefulness; at the period when the arduous labors of a lifetime would have shown their best results; when the richest fruits of large study and ripe experience were about to be gathered, giving still higher honor to him and greater benefits to the community.
Dr. William Pepper married, June 9, 1840, Sarah Platt. They were the par- ents of two distinguished sons :
I. George, of whom further.
2. William, born in Philadelphia, August 21, 1843, died July 28, 1898; noted as physician, scientist and scholar; was for twenty years provost of the University of Pennsyl- vania; married, June 25, 1873, Frances Sargeant Perry, daughter of Christopher Grant and Frances (Sargeant) Perry, the former a son of Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, by his wife, Elizabeth Champlin Mason, and the latter daughter of the Hon. Thomas Sargeant, of Philadelphia, by his wife, Sarah Bache, a grand- daughter of Dr. Benjamin Franklin.
(Jordan : "Colonial Families of Philadelphia," Vol. II, pp. 1091-92.)
(IV) GEORGE PEPPER, M. D., elder son of Dr. William and Sarah (Platt) Pepper, was born April 1, 1841, and died September 14, 1872. He was graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, college department, in 1862, and from the medical department in 1865. Having enlisted as a private for service in the Civil War, September 15, 1862, he was assigned to the Sixth Regiment of Pennsylvania Cavalry. He was promoted to lieutenant, but, having been disabled, May 22, 1863, he was honorably discharged. Under his distinguished father he took up the study of medicine and won distinction, even though his career was lamentably brief, for he was only thirty-two when he died. In the founding of the Philadelphia Obstetri- cal Society he was the chief promotor, and served it as secretary until prevented from doing so by his last illness. He was affiliated with a number of medical and learned associations and societies. Shortly before his death he was elected accoucheur to the Philadelphia Hospital.
Dr. George Pepper married Hitty Markoe Wharton, daughter of the Hon. George Mifflin and Emily (Markoe) Wharton. She married (second) Ernest Zantzinger. Dr. George and Hitty Markoe (Wharton) Pepper were the parents of two children :
I. George Wharton, of whom further.
2. Frances, born November 19, 1869; married, November 4, 1896, J. Alison Scott, and their children were: i. Frances Wharton, born September 3, 1897. ii. Joseph Ali- son, born January 21, 1900. iii. Ernest N., born December 25, 1903.
(Ibid., pp. 1091, 1092.)
(V) GEORGE WHARTON PEPPER, elder child and only son of Dr. George and Hitty Markoe (Wharton) Pepper, was born in Philadelphia, March 16, 1867. He received his degree of Bachelor of Arts at the University of Pennsylvania upon graduation in the class of 1887, and his Bachelor of Laws degree at the same institution in 1889. Honorary degrees have been conferred upon him as follows : Doctor of Laws, University of Pennsylvania, 1907; Yale University, 1914; Uni- versity of Pittsburgh, 1921; Lafayette College, University of Rochester, and Pennsylvania Military College, 1922; Kenyon College, 1924. Doctor of Civil Law, University of the South, 1908; Trinity College, 1918. From 1893 to 1910
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he was Algernon Sydney Biddle Professor of Law at the University of Pennsyl- vania, and in 1915, Lyman Beecher Lecturer at Yale.
Mr. Pepper's public career began in January, 1922, with appointment as United States Senator from Pennsylvania as successor of the late Boies Penrose. He was elected for the term ending in 1927. In the Senate he distinguished himself as one of the most learned members of that body, being also a loyal supporter of the administration, and influentially active on the floor of the chamber and in commit- tee work. He is a member of the Republican National Committee and exerts not a little influence in the proceedings of that body. Since his return to private life he has given his time to his exacting law practice as the senior member of the firm of Pepper, Bodine, Stokes and Schoch.
Besides his national reputation as an exponent of the law and as a legislator, Mr. Pepper has made a further name for himself as the author of books that have received wide and favorable reading, including treatises on the law that have won recognition as authoritative. A list of his works includes :
"The Borderland of Federal and State Decisions," 1889; "Pleading at Common Law Under the Codes," 1891; "Digest of the Laws of Pennsylvania," 1700-1901; "Digest of Deci- sions and Encyclopedia of Pennsylvania Law," 1754-1898 (with William Draper Lewis) ; "The Way," 1909; "A Voice from the Crowd," 1915; "Men and Issues," 1924; "In the Sen- ate," 1930; "Family Quarrels, the President, the Senate, the House," 1931.
He has served as receiver of the Bay State Gas Company, among other numerous court designations. In religion he is an Episcopalian, and has been for years a member of the Board of Missions of the Protestant Episcopal Church, serving also as a deputy to its General Convention.
Senator George Wharton Pepper married, November 25, 1890, Charlotte R. Fisher, daughter of Professor George P. Fisher, of Yale University. Their children were:
1. Adeline Louise Forbes, born March 11, 1892; married Theodore S. Paul.
2. George Wharton Pepper, Jr., of whom further.
3. Charlotte Eleanor, born May 30, 1897, died in June, 1930; married F. Eugene Newbold.
(VI) GEORGE WHARTON PEPPER, JR., second child and only son of George Wharton and Charlotte R. (Fisher) Pepper, was born in Philadelphia, January 14, 1895. He received his Bachelor of Arts degree at the University of Pennsyl- vania in the class of 1916 and his degree of Bachelor of Science in Architecture in 1919. During the World War he served as a first lieutenant in the Coast Artillery Corps. He is a member of the firm of Tilden, Register and Pepper, architects, with offices in Philadelphia, and is active in the interests of the University of Penn- sylvania, and various church and other philanthropic enterprises. He is a member and vestryman of St. Martin's Protestant Episcopal Church, Radnor, Pennsyl- vania, which he represents as a delegate to the Diocesan Convention.
George Wharton Pepper, Jr., married Marion Twiggs Myers. They have five children :
1. George Wharton, 3d, born May 4, 1917.
2. Heyward Myers, born November 1, 1918.
3. Charlotte, born April 30, 1920.
4. William Sargeant, born July 11, 1922.
5. Marion Twiggs, born September 6, 1924. (Family data.)
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Morris
(I) The American progenitor of the Morris family was ANTHONY MORRIS, 2D, a member of the Society of Friends, who came from England to Burlington, New Jersey, in 1682. He moved to Philadelphia in 1685. There he promptly became a leader and rendered valuable public service as presiding justice of the Court of Common Pleas of the city, as justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania from 1693 to 1698, as mayor of Philadelphia from 1703 to 1704, as provincial councillor in 1696, and as representative in the Assembly of the Province from 1698 to 1704. Anthony Morris was four times married. In 1676, he married (first) Mary Jones, who died in 1688; (second), in 1689, Agnes Barr, who died in 1692; (third) Mary Coddington, who died in 1699; (fourth) Elizabeth Watson.
(II) ANTHONY (3) MORRIS, son of Anthony (2) and Mary (Jones) Morris, was born in 1681, and died in 1763, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His public service took the form of membership in the Pennsylvania Assembly, alderman and associate justice of the City Court of Philadelphia. He married Phoebe Guest.
(III) ANTHONY (4) MORRIS, son of Anthony (3) and Phœbe (Guest) Mor- ris, was born in 1705 and died in 1780, in Philadelphia. He married Sarah Powell.
(IV) Their son, CAPTAIN SAMUEL MORRIS, born in 1743, died in 1812, was captain of the First City Troop of Philadelphia Light Horse, and was a member of the Pennsylvania Assembly for many years. Captain Samuel Morris was gov- ernor of a club, the "State in Schuylkill," and he married Rebecca Wistar, daugh- ter of Caspar Wistar.
(V) Their son, ISRAEL WISTAR MORRIS, born in 1778, died in 1870, was a com- mission merchant in Philadelphia. He married Mary Hollingsworth.
(VI) CASPAR MORRIS, son of Israel Wistar and Mary (Hollingsworth) Mor- ris, was born in 1804, and died in 1884. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1826 with the degree of Doctor of Medicine and soon became pre- eminent in Philadelphia as physician, philanthropist, and writer on medical sub- jects. He was greatly beloved throughout the city, where he founded and man- aged many charitable institutions. Dr. Caspar Morris married, in 1829, Anne Cheston, who was born in 1810, and died in 1880. They were the parents of :
I. James Cheston Morris, born May 28, 1831.
2. Israel Wistar Morris, of whom further.
3. Mary Hollingsworth Morris, born in 1835, died in 1919, who married Henry M. Murray.
4. Galloway Cheston Morris, born in 1837, who married Hannah Perot.
5. Cornelia, born in 1840, died in 1842.
6. Daniel Corrie Morris, born in 1842, and died in 1845.
(VII) ISRAEL WISTAR (2) MORRIS was born June 1, 1833, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, son of Caspar and Anne (Cheston) Morris. His education was sup- plemented by a thorough business training in the firm of Morris, Tasker & Com-
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pany, iron pipe manufacturers, and in early manhood he became interested in the development of the anthracite coal regions of Pennsylvania. He devoted his tal- ents as an engineer to that industry and became recognized as a leader. He oper- ated mines in Schuylkill County prior to the Civil War, and at the time when anthracite coal for domestic purposes was unknown west of the Allegheny Moun- tains made an introduction of its use in Cincinnati, Ohio. During the progress of the Civil War, Mr. Morris became associated with Robert Hare Powel in both the anthracite and bituminous coal trade, and spent much time in Washington in con- nection with the preparation of tariff bills bearing upon the industry. Subsequent to the war, he became president of the Locust Mountain Coal Company, and a number of lesser companies connected with the operations of the Lehigh Valley Railroad. He made an examination of coal properties for the railroad and pur- chased for that company many of their most valuable holdings. Mr. Morris remained in charge of the Lehigh Valley Railroad Company's coal properties until he had reached the age of seventy years, when he retired from active business. In politics, Mr. Morris was first a Whig and later a Republican. He was earnestly interested in all enterprises for the improvement and social culture of his city, and actively aided a number of associations by his influence.
Upon his retirement from business life, Israel Wistar Morris thereafter devoted his time to historical research, writing, the management of his private affairs, and to active participation in philanthropic work. He had a wonderful knowledge and memory regarding all local historical matters of interest to Philadelphians, and had long been a collector of books, prints and data relating to the history of the city. His library included a unique copy of Watson's "Annals of Philadelphia," extended from the original two volumes, as published, to six volumes by the inser- tion of rare engravings, prints, and illustrations of all sorts, of the history of the city. He was one of the most active and interested members of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, serving on its board of councillors and making daily visits to its headquarters. He belonged to the American Philosophical Society, the Society of Mining Engineers, and various other literary and scientific organiza- tions. He was also a director of The Girard Trust Company.
Always a man of fine presence, the appearance of Israel Wistar Morris in his later years was strikingly courtly. He was just short of six feet in height, and of dignified bearing; his head was crowned with iron-gray hair and his strong fea- tures were accentuated by a white moustache, side whiskers and beard.
On December 3, 1855, Israel Wistar Morris married his cousin, Annie Morris Buckley, daughter of Effingham Lawrence and Hannah (Morris) Buckley, of New York. Mr. and Mrs. Morris were the parents of a son :
1. Effingham Buckley, of whom further.
The death of Mrs. Israel Wistar Morris occurred March 6, 1915.
The death of Israel Wistar Morris, which occurred December 18, 1909, deprived Philadelphia of one of her leading citizens, whose influence was always exerted in behalf of justice, and who had ever, in the various relations of life, set an example in all respects worthy of emulation.
(VIII) EFFINGHAM BUCKLEY MORRIS, chairman of the board of managers of The Girard Trust Company of Philadelphia, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsyl-
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Effingham B. Morris
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vania, August 23, 1856, son of Israel Wistar and Annie Morris (Buckley) Mor- ris. He received his early education in the classical school of Dr. John W. Faires, of Philadelphia, and then entered the University of Pennsylvania, graduating from the Department of Arts in 1875 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts, and from the Department of Law in 1878, with the degree of Bachelor of Laws. On February 22, 1928, fifty years after his graduation from the Law Department, his alma mater conferred upon him the honorary degree of Doctor of Laws. He entered upon the practice of his profession in association with P. Pemberton Morris, LL. D., pro- fessor of practice and pleading at law and equity in the University of Pennsylvania, and upon the retirement of Professor Morris succeeded to his practice. He was from 1881 general attorney for the Lehigh Valley Railroad, and general counsel for The Girard Trust Company from 1885 until 1887, and has been counsel for various other corporations.
In 1887, Mr. Morris was asked as counsel for The Girard Trust Company to act as president, when his predecessor, John B. Garrett, became financial vice- president of the Lehigh Valley Railroad. He agreed to do so on May 17, 1887, supposing his term of service was to be merely until the board could find a perma- nent successor to Mr. Garrett, as Mr. Morris had then no thought of giving up the active practice of his profession. However, he became so much interested in the development of the company that these supposedly temporary duties have now lasted forty-three years, and during this time practically all those who were heads of the banks and trust companies and savings fund societies of Philadelphia when Mr. Morris became president of The Girard Trust Company in 1887 have since then either died or retired from work. In 1928, Mr. Morris withdrew as presi- dent of The Girard Trust Company to become chairman of its board of managers, which position, with that of manager, he now holds. He was succeeded as presi- dent by A. A. Jackson.
The Girard Trust Company is, with one exception, the oldest of its kind in Pennsylvania. Under Mr. Morris' direction it has grown to be the largest in extent of its business in the State. In 1887, when he was elected president, The Girard Trust Company had a capital of $500,000, deposits of about $1,000,000, and trust funds of perhaps $10,000,000. Its entire office force, including officers, was less than a dozen persons. The capital, surplus and undivided profits of The Girard Trust Company in 1930 exceeded $20,000,000; its deposits, subject to check, are over $68,000,000; its trust funds are over $758,000,000; and its corporate trusts are over $1,500,000,000. The banking house of The Girard Trust Company, at the northwest corner of Broad and Chestnut streets, with its large armor-plate safe deposit and other similar vaults, cost $1,500,000, and the entire amount was charged off the books, the cost having been defrayed out of current surplus profits, over and above dividends, made during the three years occupied in construction of the building, prior to the occupation of it in 1908. The property is carried by the company as an asset at the cost of the bare ground only. In 1923 a seven-story addition to the office was made on South Penn Square, and its entire cost similarly charged off the books. In 1930 The Girard Trust Company purchased the West End Trust Office Building, at the corner of South Penn Square and Broad Street, which was converted into offices for the trust company.
Effingham B. Morris was chairman for many years of the Pennsylvania Steel Company, and also of the Cambria Steel Company, employing some twenty thou-
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sand men, until the sale of these companies to the Bethlehem and Midvale Steel companies, respectively, in 1916. He has been for thirty-three years a director of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, and of its allied lines, also of the Philadel- phia National Bank, Philadelphia Saving Fund Society, and other corporations. He is a trustee of the estate of Anthony J. Drexel, deceased.
The political service of Mr. Morris, in Philadelphia, has been limited to one term as member of the Common Council of Philadelphia, to which he was elected as a candidate of the "Committee of One Hundred," in the Eighth Ward in 1880-81. He was a trustee for the holders of Philadelphia city bonds secured on city gas works from 1882 until 1887, defeating David H. Lane in the election by the councils for that position. By appointment of the United States courts, in 1886, he became receiver of the Schuylkill Navigation Company, and in 1888 arranged for the settlement of its affairs in the reorganization of the Reading Railway. He was a trustee of the University of Pennsylvania for ten years, resigning in 1921. In March, 1917, Mr. Morris was appointed treasurer of the Council of National Defense and Committee of Public Safety of Pennsylvania, of which George Whar- ton Pepper was chairman, and was in active service with that committee during the entire World War.
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