USA > Pennsylvania > Luzerne County > Families of the Wyoming Valley: biographical, genealogical and historical. Sketches of the bench and bar of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania, vol. II > Part 29
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OCTOBER 24, 1888.
WILLIAM LEWIS.
William Lewis, who was admitted to the bar of Luzerne county January 5, 1825, is a descendant of Ralph Lewis (according to Smith's History of Delaware county, Pa.), who, with his wife Mary and family, emigrated from the parish of Illan, in Glamor- ganshire, Wales, and came over in 1683 or 1684 and settled in Haverford, Delaware county, Pa. Ralph Lewis was a member of the Society of Friends by convincement, and the certificate brought with him attests the excellence of his character and the innocency of his life. He died in 1710 and his wife in 1704. His son, Thomas Lewis, married Jane, daughter of Rees Mere-
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dith, of Radnor, and his son Abraham married Mary, daughter of Anthony Morgan, and Samuel married Phoebe, daughter of Josiah Taylor, of Marple. From one of these sons William Lewis, the subject of our sketch, descended. One of these sons had a son " Josiah Lewis, and his mother is believed to be Martha Allen." This according to Smith's History of Chester county.
William Lewis, son of Josiah Lewis, was born in Edgemont, Chester county, Pennsylvania, February 2, 1751. When of the proper age he was put to a common country school in the neigh- borhood of his residence, from which he was afterwards removed to a Seminary of a higher order established by the Society of Friends at Willistown. There his progress was so rapid as quickly to require tuition beyond the usual course, and the ex- traordinary trouble was rewarded by a double compensation. At a very early age he expressed a strong inclination for the profession of the law, which, though it received his father's sanc- tion, was disapproved of by his mother, both of whom were members of the Society of Friends, and he continued on the farm, assisting in the usual labors of agriculture, till his 17th year. It was probably about this time that the following incident oc- curred : Having driven his father's wagon to the county town, he found the court in session. Curiosity led him to enter the court room for the first time, when he was so much captivated by the conduct of a trial and the oratory of the lawyers that the person who accompanied him was unable to persuade him away. The latter was compelled to return with the wagon to the farm, leaving young Lewis on the spot, who remained until the court rose, late in the evening, and early next morning appeared at his father's house, to which he had returned on foot, with a stronger resolu- tion than ever to study the law if the consent of his parents could be obtained. His mother having at length agreed, he was removed to Philadelphia and placed under the tuition of Robert Proud, who then had the care of the Friends' public school, for the purpose of receiving instruction in the Latin language. He continued about eighteen months with his venerable preceptor. After leaving Mr. Proud he went for a few months to a German school, in which language it is not recollected that he made much proficiency. At that time the proportion of persons in Pennsyl-
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WILLIAM LEWIS.
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vania who made use of that language alone was much greater than at present, and an acquaintance with it was found very useful to those who practiced in the country courts, which the most eminent members of the Philadelphia bar were then in the habit of regularly attending. Their quarterly journeys generally ex- tended as far as Easton to the northward and York to the west- ward. In the year 1770 Mr. Lewis had the gratification of commencing the study of the law under Nicholas Waln, who, although still a young man, had acquired a high degree of emi- nence at the bar. Here Mr. Lewis's application was intense and unremitted, and, assisted by a quick perception and tenacious . memory, his qualifications for admission at the expiration of his time were seldom surpassed. Before his admission he had more than a usual share of the student's duties to perform. He had been in this office about a year when Mr. Waln, who had been one of the most gay and animated, as well as the most industri- ous, members of the bar, was suddenly struck with serious reli- gious impressions, which he publicly evinced by unexpectedly kneeling down in meeting and uttering a fervid and eloquent prayer. After recovering from a fit of illness that ensued, he determined to relinquish the practice of the law. Mr. Lewis remained in the office. His attachment and fidelity to his friend and preceptor, the abilities he had already manifested, and his knowledge of the business under the care of Mr. Waln, secured his confidence, and the clients, to whose option it was left to employ other counsel and receive back their fees, or at least in those cases where trials in court were not to take place, to leave their causes under Mr. Lewis's care, in many instances preferred the latter. He was admitted in the Court of Common Pleas, on motion of Miers Fisher, at December term, 1773, being then nearly twenty-three years of age. The period was not unfavorable to a young beginner. Of the elder class only Mr. Chew and John Ross continued in practice. In the ensuing year Mr. Chew was appointed chief justice, and the declining health of Mr. Ross, with some other causes, rendered him no formidable opponent. Among his younger brethren, of whom the court dockets at that day exhibit many truly respectable names, Mr. Lewis had to work his way, and he worked it with success. The entries of the last term
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WILLIAM LEWIS.
of the Common Pleas under the royal government evince that in the number of actions he then led the bar. This'was June term, 1776. On July 4 the declaration of independence suspended, till a new organization, all the business of the courts. The first ses- sion of the Common Pleas at Philadelphia, when the style of process was from the king to the commonwealth, was held in September, 1777. Only six attorneys were entered as admitted to practice, whose names are recorded in the following order : John Morris, John Haley, William Lewis, Andrew Robeson, Jacob Rush, and Jonathan D. Sergeant. The British army was at that time on its march from the head of Elk to Philadelphia, and before the end of the month the occupation of the city removed from it every vestige of the new-formed government, and drove away every individual attached to it who had the means of escape. Mr. Lewis's political opinions were always in favor of his country's rights. In some of the subsequent agita- tions of party he was not unfrequently charged with contrary sentiments, but his views were liberal, his spirit was independent, and he never gave way to popular delusion or popular violence. When the British standard was hoisted in Philadelphia he retired to his friends in Chester county, with whom he continued, pur- suing, however, his practice at those courts which were beyond the reach of the enemy's power till the departure of their army returned to the city its new republican character. Mr. Lewis then resumed his station at the bar, which, as well its compo- nent members as its forensic character, soon exhibited material changes. Subjects of higher importance than those which com- monly fell to the lot of provincial judicatures were brought forward. Motives competent to rouse all the latent energies of the mind were constantly presenting themselves. The bar was chiefly composed of young men possessing aspiring minds and industrious habits-George Ross, from Lancaster, Edward Bid- dle from Reading, Governuer Morris occasionally, Joseph Reed, C. W. Wilem, of Carlisle, in conjunction with others eminent in their profession-and Mr. Lewis found an assemblage of powerful and splendid talents which might have coped with an equal number of any other forum in America. The whole faculties of the bar were soon put in requisition by the prosecutions which
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WILLIAM LEWIS.
were commenced against some of the adherents of the British cause. ' The popular excitement against them was high, and the defense appeared to many a service of danger, but the intrepidity of the bar did not allow them to shrink from the conflict. Among the defenders Wilson and Ross took the lead. Mr. Lewis was, however, frequently employed, and always distin- guished himself. In the defense of Chapman he used with force and success the right of an individual on the commencement of a civil war to choose his party. McKean, the chief justice, was a zealous and heady republican, but, independent in his princi- ples and conduct, he discharged the duties of his office impartially and inflexibly. His decision in favor of Chapman evinced the soundness of his judgment and the disdain he felt for the popular clamor excited by the occasion. From the performance of these duties, often as painful as they were honorable, we trace the progress of Mr. Lewis to one not less delightful to humanity. In 1779 the Pennsylvania legislature took the lead in a public declaration of the illegality of that odious and disgraceful subju- gation of fellow creatures which had so long stained the character of America-a provision, perhaps necessarily imperfect, but car- ried as far as then appeared practicable, was made in favor of the descendants of Africa, by which a chance of emancipation to those then living, and a certainty of it to their issue, was secured. In support of this legislation, Act of March 1, 1780, which came from his pen, an association of private individuals was speedily formed for the purpose of securing its benefits to those who were unable, from ignorance, poverty and depression, to defend them- selves. Mr. Lewis became the champion of this order. With a voluntary dereliction of all professional emolument, he strenuously and boldly pursued oppression into its artful recesses, and suc- ceeded in securing to the injured African all the protection to be found in the text of the law, and thousands of the present generation of colored people are unconsciously indebted to him for his exertions, anxiety and exposure before they were born. This benevolent association was subsequently incorporated by an Act of the General Assembly. Benjamin Franklin was its first president, and Mr. Lewis retained till his death the rank of first, and for a long time the most efficient, of its counsellors. In the
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WILLIAM LEWIS.
regular business of his profession Mr. Lewis soon acquired that ascendancy to which his talents and his industry entitled him. In him it was verified that genius never shines more brightly than when it is enforced by the closest industry. By the great number of causes in which he was concerned, the judgment which directed and the energies which accompanied both the prepara- tion and the management of the trials, evinced the justice of the general confidence that was reposed in him. In the doctrine of pleading, in questions on devises and the nature of estates, he was particularly felicitous. In mercantile law he was, perhaps, equally eminent. Whatever points he made in a cause he was generally able to support as well by authority as by argument. The closeness of his reasoning was seldom weakened by unneces- sary digressions nor impeded by ebulitions of wit or the illusions of fancy. Although pleasant and facetious in social conversation, his public speaking was rather of a grave and serious cast and often of the highest syllogistic order, the premises he laid being finely carried on to conclusions which the hearer did not antici- pate, but was ultimately obliged to acknowledge. In 1787 he was elected a member of the legislature of Pennsylvania, in which he soon attained a great ascendancy and rendered most important services to his fellow citizens. Many measures of the highest general interest adopted by that body originated with him. One of these was the restitution of the charter of the col- lege of Philadelphia, which, in a paroxysm of political jealousy, had been taken from them; but a much more important pro- cedure was the alteration of the constitution of the state. He was re-elected to the legislature in 1788 and 1789, and in the latter year was a member of the convention that framed the constitution of 1790. To the latter body he dedicated the chief portion of his time. With these services. terminated the labors of Mr. Lewis as a legislator. In 1789, the present constitution of the United States having come into operation, he had the honor to receive from the father of his country the appointment of attorney for the United States for the district of Pennsylvania. This commis- sion bears date September 26, 1789. On the death of Mr. Hop- kinson, Mr. Lewis accepted the appointment of judge of the District Court of the United States. This commission bears date
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WILLIAM LEWIS.
July 14, 1791. These commissions are in parchment, and are signed by George Washington, president, attested by Thomas Jefferson, secretary, and are in possession of Josiah Lewis, of this city, his grandson. He soon resigned his position as judge ; pecuniary consideration induced him to return to the bar. He did not find the eminence of his rank affected by his temporary absence from the bar. His business as counsel in matters of difficulty and value continued to be great, and for a long time his industry was undiminished. The supreme court of the United States and the higher tribunals of Pennsylvania were the chief theatres of his employment, and his emoluments were as considerable as his reputation was exalted. He was not a selfish, " sordid man; his friendships were warm and his charities were unrestrained. Horace Binney, in his volume on The Leaders of the Old Bar of Philadelphia, says: "From Maryland to Massa- chusetts there was in several of the states some one name at the bar which, in the view of persons removed a few hundred miles, loomed very large and overshadowed all other lawyers in the same state. Theophilus Parsons at Boston, Luther Martin at Baltimore, and William Lewis at Philadelphia, were respectively such overshadowing names." The last case he tried was Willing v. Tilghman, in the spring of 1819. He died August 15, 1819, at his residence, now in Fairmount Park, Philadelphia. Mr. Lewis was married twice. His children were by his first wife.
Josiah Lewis, son of William Lewis, was born in Philadelphia in 1772, and removed to Luzerne county in 1805. He resided in this city, Kingston, and finally removed to Pittston (now Old Forge) township, Luzerne (now Lackawanna) county, where he died May 2, 1851. In 1821 he was appointed deputy surveyor for Luzerne county. He owned several thousand acres of land in the Lackawanna coal field, and sold some of it as low as four dollars an acre, and even as late as 1837 he realized but seven dollars an acre. One of the farms which he sold at four dollars an acre has since been sold for twelve hundred dollars an acre. He married, March 28, 1799, Margaret Delaney, a daughter of Sharp Delaney, of Philadelphia. Mr. Delaney was born in county Monaghan, Ireland, and established himself in the drug business in Philadelphia in 1764. He was a deputy to the pro-
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CALEB EARL WRIGHT.
vincial convention in January, 1775, and to the provincial confer- ence which met in June of the same year. In 1776 he raised a company of militia and was chosen captain, and in 1779 was colonel of the second battalion of Pennsylvania militia. He was a signer of the Bills of Credit in 1775, a commissioner "to seize the personal effects of traitors" in 1777, and an "agent for forfeited estates" in 1778. In March, 1784, he was appointed by the assembly collector of the port of Philadelphia, and when the office passed to the control of the federal government, was re- appointed by General Washington in 1789. The executive coun- cil of the state passed a resolution of thanks for the efficient manner in which he filled the position. He was one of the original members of the Hibernia Society, and an honorary member of the Society of the Cincinnati. He was also a mem- ber of the American Philosophical Society, and his grandson, Josiah Lewis, of this city, has the original certificate, dated July 20, 1786, and signed by Benjamin Franklin, president. Mr. De- laney died in Philadelphia May 13, 1799, aged sixty years.
William Lewis, son of Josiah and Margaret Lewis, was born in Philadelphia March 6, 1801, and removed with his parents to Luzerne county in 1805. He read law with Garrick Mallery and practiced in this city for a number of years. He subse- quently removed to Brooklyn, Schuyler county, Illinois, where he now resides. Josiah Lewis, of this city, is a brother of William Lewis.
CALEB EARL WRIGHT.
Caleb Earl Wright was admitted to the bar of Luzerne county, Pa., August 9, 1833. His grandfather was Caleb Wright, and his father Joseph Wright, of Plymouth. (For a sketch of the Wright family see Historical Sketches of Plymouth, and the article "Harrison Wright" in this series of sketches.) Mr. Wright was born in Plymouth, Pa., February 4, 1810, and was educated at the Plymouth and Wilkes-Barre academies, and read law with Chester Butler, in this city, and John G. Montgomery, of Dan-
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CALEB EARL WRIGHT.
ville, Montour county, Pa. He immediately removed to Doyles- town, Pa., and commenced practice. He remained at the Bucks county bar about nineteen years, where he held the office of dis- trict attorney under the administration of Governor Porter. He was also president of the first borough council of Doylestown. In the summer of 1853 he returned to Luzerne county and prac- ticed here for a period of twenty-three years. During this time he held the office of internal revenue collector under President Johnson. He was also a member of the constitutional conven- tion of 1874. In 1876 Mr. Wright returned to Doylestown, where he now resides, having given up his practice as an attorney. Mr. Wright married, April 30, 1838, at Doylestown, Phebe Ann Fell, daughter of William Fell, who was the son of Amos Fell, of Pittston. (For sketch of the Fells see page 687.) Mr. and Mrs. Wright have two children living. Wilson Wright, the eldest, is a farmer in Monmouth county, N. J., and Warren Wright, the youngest, is an invalid. Mr. Wright was appointed a local preacher of the Methodist Episcopal church at Wilkes- Barre in 1863. He was ordained a deacon by Bishop Ames in April, 1869, and an elder by Bishop Haven in April, 1874. Mr. Wright is the author of "Wyoming," from the press of Harper Brothers, 1845, New York ; "Marcus Blair," 1873, from the press of J. B. Lippincott & Co., Philadelphia; "On the Lackawanna," 1886, and "Legend of Bucks County," from the press of B. McGinty, Doylestown, 1887; and "Rachel Craig," 1888, from the press of Robert Baur, Wilkes-Barre.
Joseph Wright gave three sons to his country of whom any father might well be proud-Hendrick Bradley and Harrison, both of whom figure in this series of sketches, and Caleb Earl, the subject of this one, a man of many virtues and conspicuous capacities as a lawyer and citizen. He was a painstaking and successful practitioner during his nearly half century at the bar, figuring in many notable cases and earning liberal fees and excel- lent reputation. He is a man of strong convictions, and his career is shown, even as above briefly noticed, to have been one of unremitting industry. His democracy is of the uncompro- mising type, and the appointments he held were fully earned by .continuous and energetic work in his party's behalf. His literary
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LEWIS JONES.
efforts have attracted wide attention and the friendly notice even of the most exacting critics. Though they have of necessity involved the expenditure of much time and more or less labor and research, his books were not undertaken for gain, but mainly to indulge a rich and ambitious fancy and give congenial employ- ment to leisure hours. He has always been an ardent lover of the sports of forest and stream, and experiences in that line in which he has been a participant are among the pleasantest recol- lections of many of our older and best known citizens. To the church of his selection his services have been of a useful and painstaking character. Few combine so many of the character- istics that make at once the genial companion, the' consistent christian, the successful business man, and the prudent, useful, patriotic citizen.
LEWIS JONES.
Lewis Jones was admitted to the bar of Luzerne county, Pa., August 5, 1834. The early settlers along the Susquehanna river in Luzerne county were from Connecticut. Among the number who came in 1785 were three brothers, Jesse, Nathan and Benjamin Jones. Jesse Jones settled on Buttermilk Falls creek (now in Wyoming county), and built a grist mill near its confluence with the Susquehanna river. This mill was built of logs, twelve feet square, its mill stones were of the size of a half bushel measure, made from conglomerate rocks found along the Lackawanna river, for the purpose of grinding corn, which came from the settlements above, near Wyalusing, in canoes, for as yet very little corn, if any, had been raised in the vicinity of the falls. In 1790, as the population increased, the business of farming began to assume more system, and as it increased step by step wheat and rye began to be raised in small quantities, and to meet the exigencies of the times Mr. Jones placed a bolting apparatus in his little grist mill. This bolt was turned by a crank by hand, and persons going to mill had to do the operation of the bolting them-
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LEWIS JONES.
selves. Nathan Jones, a brother, lived with Jesse Jones, and attended to the milling business. In 1791 a settlement was com- menced on the river flats two miles below Buttermilk Falls, where Benjamin Jones, the other brother, erected the first tavern. Mr. Jones had near his inn a still house, which did a business of fair proportions, and constituted a valuable auxiliary to his tavern. Another of Mr. Jones's enterprises was the building of a store, which he kept during 1806 and 1807. Salt, which at that time cost four dollars per bushel, was the principal article of commerce. The salt was necessary for preserving the shad which the settlers took from the river, they being their only article of meat diet. The bears claimed and enforced the first right to all the hogs. This was the most thickly inhabited part of what now constitutes Falls township, in Wyoming county. This place was known for many years as Jonestown. Cloth was made from nettles that grew on this place. The first clothing was made from the skin of the deer, tanned by a composition made from the brains of the deer and buffed with a ball made of yellow clay rubbed over the surface of the leather, which added a beautiful luster to its ap- pearance. A buckskin coat, breeches and leather apron consti- tuted the winter apparel, and during summer a nettle shirt and leather breeches formed the only raiment.
Lewis Jones, son of Benjamin Jones, was born October 25, 1771, and was married to Sarah Benedict, of Pittston, Pa., De- cember, 15, 1794. She died in Exeter, Luzerne county, February 22, 1848. Mrs. Jones was a descendant of Thomas Benedict, of Not- tinghamshire. (See page 490.) John Benedict, son of Thomas Ben- edict was born at Southhold, L. I., and removed with the family to Norwalk, Conn., and married Phoebe, daughter of John and Sarah Gregory, of that place, November 11, 1670. He was a freeman of Norwalk in 1680, and succeeded his father as selectman in 1689. He was a selectman in 1692-94 and 1699, and also held some minor civil appointments in the town. He was occupied, however, with church affairs, having become deacon probably upon the death of his father. Thenceforth the records show him to have been constantly on committees having charge of the religious and educational interests of the communiy, now " ob- taining a minister," then "hyering a schoolmaster." In 1705 the
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church honored him by voting him a sitting "in ye seat before ye pulpit." He served as representative in the General Assembly in the sessions of 1722 and 1725. The date of his death is not ascertained, nor that of his wife. James Benedict, son of Deacon John Benedict, was born January 5, 1685, and married, in 1709, Sarah, daughter of Thomas and Mary Hyatt, of Norwalk, who was born December, 1686, and died February 9, 1767. In 1708 he and other inhabitants of Norwalk purchased a large tract of land between that town and Danbury. The purchase was made of Catoonah, the chief sachem, and other Indians, who were the proprietors of that part of the country. The deed bears date Sep- tember 30, 1708. At the Norwalk town session in 1709 it was ordained that it should be a distinct township by the name of Ridgefield. James Benedict was also one of the original settlers of this township. He was fence viewer in 1715 ; called Ensign, 1719, afterwards Captain, and 1737 Esquire. He was appointed justice of the peace for Fairfield county, Connecticut, in May, 1732, and was reappointed annually until 1743. He was repre- sentative for Ridgefield from 1740-45 and 1748-52. James Ben- edict was the second deacon of the church in Ridgefield until old age and its attendants rendered him unable to serve. He died November 25, 1762. James Benedict, son of James Benedict, was born February 19, 1720, at Ridgefield, Conn. He became a member of the Baptist church at Stamford, Conn., and was licensed by that church to preach the gospel. Having received a call to become pastor of the church at the new settlement of Warwick, Orange county, N. Y., he removed to that place and was ordained November 17, 1766. Some time during the troubles of the war of the Revolution he removed to Wyoming, and was with his family among the sufferers by the battle and massacre of Wyoming. His influence and character as a preacher with the Indians protected himself and family from personal injury at their hands, but his property was mostly lost or destroyed. After suffering great hardships he returned to the town of Warwick, where he resided until his death, September 9, 1792. John Ben- edict, son of Rev. James Benedict, was born in Ridgefield, April 24, 1747, married Hannah Wisner in 1771, and moved to Pittston in 1791. He served in the war of the Revolution, and was ap-
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