USA > Pennsylvania > Luzerne County > Families of the Wyoming Valley: biographical, genealogical and historical. Sketches of the bench and bar of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, vol. I > Part 10
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The earliest of the name to cross the water, of whom we have record, was Richard Woodward, who emigrated from Ipswich, England, on April 10, 1634, nearly two hundred and fifty years ago, with his wife, Rose, and liis sons, George and John. He was one of the earliest "proprietors" of the town of Watertown, Massachusetts, where he was admitted a freeman, September 2, 1635. His eldest son, George, was admitted to like title, honors, and rights, May 6, 1646, and in 1674 was elevated to the position of Selectman.
John Woodward, grandson of Richard, and son of George, settled in Newton, Massachusetts, at an early age. His first wife was Rebecca, daughter of Richard Robbins, of Cambridge. He married a second time Sarah Bancroft, of Reading, in that State, on July 7, 1686.
Richard Woodward, great-grandson of the first Richard, and son of John, was born December 26, 1677. He purchased some land in Canterbury, Connecticut, on November 8, 1708, as some old records show, and probably moved thereto about that date, but of this there is no absolute certainty. Amos, his son, was born at Newton, April 2, 1702, and died January 29, 1753, at Canterbury.
Enos Woodward, son of Amos, was born January 31, 1726. About a year before the Declaration of Independence, he removed from his Yankee home to the Wallenpaupack, in what is now
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Pike county, Pennsylvania. It was a wild, border country at that time, of course, and the brave pioneer was greatly harassed by the Indians, and frequently during the Revolutionary war driven off by them, but he as invariably returned, made his clearing, and farmed it, reared his family, and died and was buried there. His wife survived him many years, and when she, too, was called away from a peaceful old age, her remains were interred at Cherry Ridge, in Wayne county.
Abishai Woodward, son of Enos, was born at Canterbury, Connecticut, January 10, 1768, and was consequently but seven years old when his father entered the North Pennsylvania forests. Raised amid such surroundings, and coming of such sturdy parentage, he could not but imbibe early courageous convictions and self-reliant habits, which made him, as a man, distinguished among his neighbors. He was married in Paupack, October 6, 1789. A few years after this he lost his left hand by an accident, which, unfitting him for the stern physical toil of the farmer of those days and in those parts, he set himself to acquire the knowlege necessary for school teaching. Having achieved this, he removed to Bethany, Wayne county, and opened a school. Here, besides caring for his school, he was successively Constable, Deputy Sheriff, Justice of the Peace, Sheriff, and Associate Judge, in all which positions he never once forfeited his own self-esteem, but earned the love and admiration of all his fellow-citizens. He died on his farm, near Bethany, November 27, 1829.
His son, George Washington Woodward, was born after the father removed to Bethany, on March 26, 1809, and was educated at Geneva Seminary and Hobart College, Geneva, New York. From here he was transferred to the Wilkes- Barre Academy, then under the charge of Dr. Orton. . He studied law with Thos. Fuller, of Wayne county, and with Hon. Garrick Mallery, at Wilkes-Barre. He was admitted to the bar August 3, 1830, and married, September 10, 1832, Sarah Elizabeth, only daughter of George W. Trott, M. D. In 1836 he was elected a Delegate to reform the Constitution of the State. In 1841 he was appointed President Judge of the Fourth Judicial District, composed of the counties of Mifflin, Huntington, Centre, Clearfield, and Clinton. In 1844 he was the caucus nominee of the Democratic members
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of the Legislature of Pennsylvania for United States Senator, but was defeated in the election by Simon Cameron, the candidate of the Whigs and of a faction representing the Native American party. In 1845 he was nominated by President Polk a Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, but his confirmation was defeated in the Senate. In 1852 Governor Bigler appointed him a Judge of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, and in the fall of that year he was elected for the full term of fifteen years. In 1863 Judge Woodward became the Democratic candidate for Governor of the State against Andrew G. Curtin, but he was defeated by a majority of 15,000, although Luzerne county gave a majority of 2,786 in his favor. For four years prior to the expiration of his term of office on the Supreme bench, he acted as Chief Justice, by virtue of the seniority of his commission. In 1867 and 1868 he was elected to represent the Twelfth District in the Fortieth and Forty-first Congress. In 1873 he was elected as a Delegate-at-Large to the last Constitutional Convention on the Democratic ticket. He died in Rome, Italy, May 10, 1875.
The present Judge Woodward, and subject of this sketch, is the eldest son of the deceased Chief Justice. He was prepared for college at the Episcopal High School of Virginia, located near Alexandria, Va., and at Wyoming Seminary. Kingston, where Governor Hoyt was his instructor in Latin and Greek. From here he went to Yale College, where he distinguished himself particularly in the literary and forensic departments of the college course, this fact being marked by his winning several prizes for excellence in English composition, and by his election at the hands of his classmates as editor of the Yale Literary Magasine, the oldest college magazine in the United States, and which is still in full vigor and a leading publication. He was also a mem- ber of the famous college fraternity, known as the "Skull and Bones Society," to which honor his eldest son, John Butler Woodward (now a Senior at Yale), has succeeded him. Mr. Woodward graduated from Yale College in 1855. He began the study of the law in New Haven, during his senior year, and upon graduation entered the law office of his cousin, Hon. Warren J. Woodward, afterwards Judge of the Supreme Court of Pennsyl- vania, now deceased. He was admitted to the bar of Luzerne
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county August 4, 1856. Hon. A. T. McClintock moved for his admission, just twenty years later than his own, which was upon motion of Hon. George W. Woodward, the father. Warren J. Woodward had just been appointed to the President Judgeship of the district composed of the counties of Wyoming, Columbia, and Sullivan, and Mr. Woodward succeeded at once to a consid- erable practice, retaining many of the old clients, as well as the old office of his father and cousin. He has often, however, nar- rated the pangs which he endured when a former client would call and politely ask for the papers in some case, which he felt it necessary to entrust to "some older lawyer." From the time of . his admission until his appointment to the bench by his former instructor and life-long friend, Judge Woodward enjoyed a large and lucrative practice, having been for. most of the time one of the counsel of the Delaware, Lackawanna, and Western Railroad Company, the Lackawanna and Bloomsburg Railroad Company, the Delaware and Hudson Canal Company, and the Central Railroad of New Jersey, and having besides a large miscellaneous practice.
Judge Woodward for many years has been one of the Trustees of the Home for Friendless Children, and his wife is one of the lady managers. He was attorney and solicitor of this institution for ten years, his services having been entirely gratuitous.
During the late civil war he was Captain of Company H, Third Pennsylvania Regiment of Militia. He remained in this service at this time about two months. This was in 1862, and was known as the Antietam campaign. In 1863 he was Captain of Company A, Forty-first Regiment of Pennsylvania Militia. This was in the Gettysburg campaign, and he remained at the front then for three months. Such men as Edward P. Darling, William L. Conyngham, John Richards, and Jerome G. Miller were pri- vates in Capt. Woodward's company. In one of the campaigns he raised his company in one night.
In 1865 Mr. Woodward was a candidate for the State Senate on the Democratic ticket, but was defeated by Hon. L. D. Shoe- maker by over two hundred majority.
In 1872 he was a candidate for Congress in the district com- posed of the counties of Luzerne and Susquehanna, having Mr.
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Shoemaker again as his competitor, and he was again defeated. The county of Susquehanna was more largely Republican than Luzerne was Democratic.
In 1879 Mr. Woodward was appointed Additional Law Judge of Luzerne county to fill a vacancy caused by the resignation of Hon. Garrick M. Harding. This appointment was made by Governor Hoyt, and was a grateful recognition of Mr. Wood- ward's abilities at the hands of a political opponent. In the fall of 1880 he received the nomination for Additional Law Judge at the hands of the Democratic party for the period of ten years, and was elected by a majority of nearly one thousand over both his competitors, Hon. Hubbard B. Payne, Republican, and Agib Ricketts, Esq., National.
Judge Woodward's connection with the Wilkes-Barre Fire Department began in 1857, when he joined the Good Will Fire Company as a private. Two years later he was elected Assistant Engineer, and upon the retirement of Walter G. Sterling, Esq., was made Chief Engineer, in which capacity he continued to serve until his resignation, in 1879, the department meanwhile having been reorganized as a paid fire department. During his administration it was classed by the Board of Underwriters as among the most efficient in the country, being placed by them, with six other cities, in the first class. The reputation thus acquired it continues to maintain. On Judge Woodward's retire- ment from the Fire Department, the City Council unanimously passed the following preamble and resolutions:
WHEREAS, After twenty-one years of continuous service in the Fire Department, during which time he has earned the highest meed of praise for efficient, honorable, and faithful public service, Hon. Stanley Woodward, Chief Engineer of the Fire Department of the city of Wilkes-Barre; has tendered his resignation as a member of the Fire Department of this city; therefore, be it
Resolved, That the long and faithful service of Chief Engineer Woodward has impressed itself so thoroughly on the Fire Department, that this Council, representing the citizens and tax- payers of the city of Wilkes-Barre, feels reluctant to part with him in his official capacity, or to sever his connection therewith. A natural fireman and an executive leader, Chief Woodward has brought the department lately under his control to such efficiency that the citizens and property-owners, as well as the Board of
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Underwriters, have at all times expressed a sense of safety from the ravages of fire, unequalled under any other Chief Engineer, and co-equal with that of any other city in the country.
Resolved, That the thanks of the people of this city, represented by this Council, are most cordially tendered to Chief Woodward, and while we regret that he has tendered his resignation, we part with him with the assurance of our sincerest personal regards, and our warmest wishes for his future welfare and success in whatever position he may occupy, either in public or private life.
Resolved, That we congratulate Chief Woodward upon his recent elevation to the bench, and the people of the county upon their acquisition of the service of a tried and faithful public servant.
From 1860 to 1863 Judge Woodward represented the Second ward in the Council of the borough of Wilkes-Barre.
During the latter part of 1855 and early part of 1856 he edited the Luzerne Union, then owned by Mr. Bosee.
In 1876 Governor Hartranft appointed Mr. Woodward one of his aids, with the rank of Colonel.
In 1878 Colonel Woodward was a member of the Executive Committee having charge of the Wyoming Centennial Celebra- tion. He procured the subscription of more than one-half of the funds raised to defray the expenses, and was Chief Marshal of the grand parade on July 4th of that year, which will long be remembered as the most remarkable demonstration ever witnessed in Northeastern Pennsylvania, and at which President Hayes and a portion of his cabinet were present.
Judge Woodward married June 3, 1857, Sarah Richards Butler, daughter of Col. John Lord Butler, and great-granddaughter of Col. Zebulon Butler, whose name is interwoven with all the history of the Revolutionary war, and particularly with that por- tion of it known as the Wyoming Massacre. The first Court held in Luzerne county was at the house of Col. Zebulon Butler. Judge Woodward now owns the property, which is located at the corner of River and Northampton streets. On her mother's side, Mrs. Woodward is a descendant of Thomas Richards, one of the Puritan fathers of New England. Her grandfather, Deacon Samuel Richards, was Captain of a company in the Connecticut line during the Revolutionary war. He marched from Farming- ton, Conn., to Boston in time to participate in the battle of Bunker
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Hill, and served throughout the entire war. He kept a journal, or diary, of every day's occurrences, which is still in the posses- sion of his daughter, Mrs. Butler, the mother of Mrs. Woodward, and which is regarded, of course, as a relic of great value. It contains, among other things, a graphic description of the execu- tion of Major Andre, of which he was an eye witness. As an interesting co-incidence, it may be mentioned that Col. Zebulon Butler and Capt. Richards, the one the paternal and the other the maternal ancester of Mrs. Woodward, were both stationed at West Point at the same time during the war, and were on terms of intimate friendship. Capt. Richards was a member of the Cincinnati Society, and his certificate of membership is in posses- sion of the family. He married April 27, 1796, Sarah Welles, daughter of Jonathan Welles, of Glastenbury, Conn., by his wife, Catharine Saltonstall, granddaughter of Thomas Welles, great- granddaughter of Samuel Welles, and the great-great-grand- daughter of Thomas Welles, the immigrant. Roswell Welles, who was admitted to the bar of Luzerne county in 1787, the year of its organization, was a son of Jonathan Welles, and the great-uncle of Mrs. Woodward. Mrs. Richards' mother was the daughter of Roswell Saltonstall, of Branford, by his wife, Mary (Haynes) Lord, the daughter of John Haynes, A. M., of Hartford, and granddaughter of Rev. Joseph Haynes, A. M., of Hartford, and great-granddaughter of John Haynes, Governor of Massachusetts in 1635, and the first Governor of Connecticut, in 1639. Roswell Saltonstall was the son of Governor Gurdon Saltonstall, of New London, who was the son of Colonel Nathaniel Saltonstall, of Haverhill, and grandson of Richard Saltonstall, of Ipswich, and great-grandson of Sir Richard Saltonstall, embassador from Eng- land to Holland. Mr. and Mrs. Woodward have had a family of three children, a daughter, who died in infancy, and two sons, John Butler, who is now, as before stated, a Senior in Yale College, and George Stanley, who has just. prepared for the Freshman class in the same institution.
It is not too much to say that Judge Woodward is a note- worthy member of a noteworthy race. In every sphere of life to which either duty or inclination has called him, he has shown himself possessed of the qualities that shine. At the bar, in the
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army, as a fireman, and on the bench, he has labored with an adaptability of merit and temperament to his situation and its requirements that have always brought success. As an advo- cate, he has impressed juries with his eloquence, no less than with his thorough understanding of the rights and wrongs of the causes he has essayed to discuss, and won verdicts against what seemed almost insurmountable obstacles. In pleading to the court, his capacity to develop all the strong points in his client's favor, and present them at once tersely and vigorously, has upon all occasions brought him deserved compliment, and generally, what was still better, a judicial affirmance of the law as he under- stood and rendered it. As a soldieir, he united the qualities of a successful disciplinarian with those which invariably brought him the good will and esteem of his command. As a fireman, he was cool-headed, deliberate, and wise in discretion, and untiring and fearless in execution. The fire department, under his guid- ance, always had the confidence, as well as the respect, of the . . populace. On the bench, though, comparatively speaking, he has but newly come to it, he has already exhibited, not only a remarkable familiarity with the fixed principles and rulings of the law, but a perspicacity, independence, and justice of conception in adjudicating new points, that prove him eminently fitted for the high and responsible station he occupies.
Personally, he may be said to be liked by everybody, and to like everybody. His uniform courtesy and unvarying good nature make him a welcome addition to the best social circles. His unusual powers of repartee, and remarkable capacity for saying happy things in after-dinner and other extempore speeches, contribute, in no small degree, to the popularity he enjoys with all who have the good fortune of his acquaintance. Tall, fine looking, the picture of good health, he is likely to be preserved to a long life of usefulness to the public, and advantageous com- panionship to his family and unnumbered friends.
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AGIB RICKETTS.
Agib Ricketts was born in Orangeville, Columbia county, Pennsylvania, in 1833. He is the son of the late Elijah Green Ricketts, an old settler of Columbia county, and is of English and Scotch extraction. In his young days he entered Wyoming Seminary, after which time he taught school in his native place, subsequently graduating at Dickinson College, at Carlisle, Pa. He then entered the law office of William G. Hurley, at Blooms- burg, and was admitted to the bar of Columbia county in 1856, and on the 6th of January, 1857, was admitted to the bar of Luzerne county, where he has been in continual practice since.
On May 17, 1862, Mr. Ricketts was appointed Chief of Police of the borough of Wilkes-Barre. It was during his term in this office that he arrested the late Hon. Ezra B. Chase, at one time Speaker of the House of Representatives of Pennsylvania, and at that time District Attorney of the county; Ira Davenport, a prominent merchant of Plymouth, and Geo. B. Kulp. Speaking from personal knowledge, the writer, as one of the persons arrested, has never learned the cause of his arrest, although more than twenty years have passed since the event. Mr. Ricketts claimed that it was by virtue of the following order of the War Department:
August 8, 1862.
Ordered, that all Chiefs of Police of any town, city, or district, be and they are hereby authorized and directed to im- prison any person or persons who may be engaged by any act of speech or writing in discouraging volunteer enlistments, or in any way giving aid and comfort to the enemy, or any other dis- loyal practice against the United States.
EDWIN M. STANTON, Secretary of War.
Messrs. Chase, Davenport, and Kulp were arrested on Friday evening, August 29, 1862. They applied next day before Judge Conyngham for a writ of habeas corpus. Mr. Ricketts claimed until the following Wednesday for time to make answer, when
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he quoted the above order as his justification. Judge Conyng- ham remanded the prisoners to the custody of the Sheriff, claim- ing that the President had suspended the writ of habeas corpus, when, as a matter of fact, Congress had not passed the act author- izing the President to suspend the writ, until March 3, 1863. The following are the words of the law enacted at the last named date :
"That during the present rebellion the President of the United States, whenever, in his judgment, the public safety may require it, is authorized to suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus in any case throughout the United States, or any part thereof .-
It was estimated that over four thousand persons were arrested during the month of August, 1862, but the exact number was never given, as the War Department issued an order "that the names of parties arrested should not be published." The arrest of the persons named caused great excitement and indignation, and led to the resignation of Mr. Ricketts as Chief of Police, as appears from the following letter of his to the Town Council :
WILKES-BARRE, October 17, 1862.
Gentlemen of the Town Council: You will please accept my resignation of the position of Chief of Police of this borough. Having been told by members of your body that they considered me incompetent to discharge the duties of the office with proper judgment, and requested, therefore, to resign, it would be pre- sumption to retain it. It was impossible to resign at once in obedience to this request, as it would have then seemed disloyal and a shrinking from grave duty, but now recent action of the War Department has removed this difficulty. Permit me to return grateful thanks to those of you who have sustained me so manfully in the discharge of my duty.
Respectfully, A. RICKETTS.
During the three days, from Wednesday until Saturday, that Messrs. Chase, Daverport, and Kulp were under arrest, they amused themselves in the following manner: Mr. Chase in visit- ing Camp Luzerne, at Mill Hollow, where the 143d Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers were encamped, and in assisting Col. Hannum in editing the Luserne Union; Mr. Davenport in visiting
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friends and relatives in Wilkes-Barre; and the writer in visiting Scranton, Pittston, and other places in the valley. On Saturday morning they came to the conclusion that the whole matter was a farce, and they returned to their respective places of business, and that was the last they ever heard of the arrest. As almost every Chief of Police in the United States had arrested from three.to five men under similar circumstances, it became neces- sary for the War Department to issue the following order: ..
September 8, 1862.
Arrests for violations of these orders and for disloyal practices will hereafter be made only upon my express warrant, or by direction of the Military Commander or Governor of a State.
Because of the arrests by the Chiefs of Police throughout the North, the Democratic party carried the States of New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois in 1862, and after that time very few arrests of citizens were made.
During the Antietam campaign, Mr. Ricketts was Captain of Company I, Third Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers. He left for the seat of war on September 13, 1862, and remained in the service about three weeks.
In 1878 Mr. Ricketts presented a petition to the Legislature of Pennsylvania for the impeachment of the late Hon. Charles P. Waller, President Judge of Wayne county, and in 1879 for the impeachment of Hon. Garrick M. Harding. It is needless to say that none of the charges alleged as cause for impeachment were sustained.
In 1880 he was the Independent or Labor Refornt candidate for Additional Law Judge of Luzerne county. In a total poll of nearly 25,000 votes, he received 470.
In 1862 Mr. Ricketts married Annie Piper, of Carlisle, Pa. The couple have a family of five children, two sons and three daughters.
It is not the purpose of the writer of these papers to carp or criticise. Any attempt in that direction in the case of the gen- tleman whose biography is above briefly outlined would be con- strued as prompted by a desire for revenge, arising out of the circumstances of the arrests that have been alluded to, but we can honestly say that we entertain no such desire. Nevertheless,
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we feel that our task would be far from complete, our outlinings of the characters and records of our brothers of the legal frater- nity of Luzerne much short of accuracy, were we to refrain, even in this case, from the general summarizing with which all the previous sketches have ended.
Agib Ricketts is manifestly a man of great natural ability. He is a student of wonderful industry. He has been a great reader, not only in the field of jurisprudence, but of general literature; is a ready and concise writer, and an excellent speaker; has a remarkable memory, and a moral and physical courage that make him wholly insensible to fear. Yet there is an- erratic something that has always stood between him and success in his profession and in general life; that has resulted in his being dis- tanced by men of far less capacity, and far fewer of the qualities that usually achieve the victories of the professional arena, and that has caused him to net a much narrower margin of material gain than would seem to be the legitimate earnings of such ex- ceptional talents and energies as he undoubtedly possesses. He will quote the law of Moses against the Jew; will cite the teach- ings of Christ to correct the erring Christian; has, seemingly, a formidable array of the best authorities in support of every posi- tion he assumes; but very often they are like symmetrical and beautiful arches, perfect in every particular, saving only that they have defective keystones.
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