History of Chester County, Pennsylvania, with genealogical and biographical sketches, Part 186

Author: Futhey, John Smith, 1820-1888; Cope, Gilbert, 1840-1928
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Philadelphia, L. H. Everts
Number of Pages: 1162

USA > Pennsylvania > Chester County > History of Chester County, Pennsylvania, with genealogical and biographical sketches > Part 186

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HISTORY OF CHESTER COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA.

THOMAS BUCHANAN READ,* the distinguished poet and painter, who attained such eminence in two entirely dis- tinct yet congenial fields of art, was born March 12, 1822, in a modest farm-house, situate near the Great Valley of Chester County, in what is now East Brandy wine township, near Downingtown, within the shadow of " the blue hills of Uwchlan," where his youth was passed, and from the romantic scenery of which locality were derived those in- spirations and accurate descriptions of nature which fre- quently appear in his poetry.

The writer of this sketch has frequently heard him relate that his first knowledge of the Bible was derived from hearing it read aloud in the family circle, and he would dwell at length upon the lasting impression made upon his youthful mind by its beautiful imagery, and as he listened

patrons as Gen. Harrison, then a candidate for the Presi- dency, Maj. (subsequently Gen.) Anderson, the distin- guished and heroic defender of Fort Sumter, Nicholas Longworth, and others. In 1841 he removed to Boston, and in its cultivated literary society his poetical talents were developed, first finding expression through the columns of the Boston Courier.

In his early literary career he received kindly and hearty encouragement from Longfellow, with whom his relations were always intimate and cordial, and in his art studies he enjoyed the friendship and counsel of Allston as long as that great painter lived.

In 1846 he found a home in Philadelphia, where, by the force of his genius, his genial manner, wit, and cultivated intellect, he widened the circle of his appreciating friends

to the scriptural narrative of the Saviour's ministry on earth, his boyish fancy would locate and associate all its in- cidents and events upon and with the hills and valleys which lay around him as he listened.

The inroads of death caused a breaking up of the family while Read was still a mere lad, and at the early age of seventeen he was thrown upon his own resources for a livelihood.

In the year 1839 he commenced his career as an artist, in the atelier of Clevenger, the sculptor, at Cincinnati. His tastes, however, soon led him on to a more congenial field of art culture, that of painting. His skill and suc- cess as a painter of portraits soon attracted attention, and obtained for him the favor and esteem of such distinguished

and admirers, and devoted his time industriously to his twin mistresses, poetry and painting. At this time appeared his first volume of poems (Boston edition of 1847), which manifested so much poetic power, and gave such promise of future excellence, as to attract the favorable notice of the English critics. In a criticism of his poems from the pen of Leigh Hunt in the North British Review, his " Closing Scene" was pronounced worthy to stand beside "Gray's Elegy."

In 1850 he made his first visit to Europe, spending some time in England, where he formed the acquaintance of her leading literary men and women, and subsequently reached Italy, where, dividing his time between Rome and Florence, he devoted himself diligently to the execution of the orders with which he had been intrusted by appreciating friends

* By Henry C. Townsend.

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BIOGRAPHICAL AND GENEALOGICAL.

in Philadelphia and elsewhere. In 1852 he returned to the United States, and passed the winter in Cincinnati. In 1853 he again returned to Europe, accompanied by his family, consisting of his wife and two young daughters, and made a home in Florence, where he surrounded himself with all that could make life pleasant and attractive. "He was by this time recognized as a brilliant poet and a suc- cessful artist, and he fully realized and enjoyed the rewards of his distinction. His life at this time was full of enjoy- ment, but its happiness was soon and suddenly changed into the deepest sorrow. A prevailing epidemic, severely fatal in character, swept away hundreds of the inhabitants of Florence, and among them his wife and youngest daugh- ter, his darling " Lilian," well known to his intimate friends as " the light of his household."

It was during the mental depression produced by this profound domestic sorrow that, seeking refuge with his surviving daughter from the ravages of the pestilence, he repaired to the " Baths of Lucca," where, in the course of a few days, he wrote his remarkable poem, "The House by the Sea," which, by some competent critics, is regarded as the most original and imaginative of his works.

After recovering somewhat from the severe shock of this domestic affliction, he again returned to America, remain- ing here only a few months, and then revisited Europe, and was residing in Rome, busily engaged at his easel, when the Rebellion of 1861 aroused his native land and stimulated all her patriotic sons to action on her behalf. Abandoning at once the attractions which surrounded him, and sacri- ficing the bright pecuniary prospects before him, and real- izing that every loyal son of America owed a solemn duty to his country in her hour of extreme peril, he hastily re- turned home, entered the military service as a volunteer, serving for a time in the field upon the staff of Gen. Lew Wallace, and by his voice and pen, in patriotic addresses and poems, gave hearty encouragement to his countrymen in the great work of saving the national life. In this heroic struggle none surpassed Read in patriotic ardor and devotion, Gens. Grant, Sherman, and Sheridan having all left upon record their hearty appreciation of the value of his services. His ode known as "The Patriot's Oath," and his more widely known and spirited lyric, "Sheridan's Ride," are forcible expressions of his devoted loyalty and intense hatred of treason. The distinguishing characteristics of Read's nature were purity of thought, refinement of feeling, gentleness of manner, generosity of disposition, geniality and unselfish devotion to others, and the posses- sion of all those qualities of mind and character which at- tract and attach friends. Tenderness of feeling and delicacy in treatment were marked traits in all his work, whether with the pen or the pencil. Gifted with an extraordinary genius, Read was unlike many other men thus formed by nature. He relied for success not upon sudden, uncertain, and spasmodic impulses, but was a faithful, diligent, and con- scientious worker by turns in the two distinct yet congenial fields of labor to which his talents were devoted, finding his only rest and recreation in the alternate use of his pen or pencil.

As an artist, his distinguishing features were originality and force in composition, the skill and grace with which

the poetical creations of his pure and active imagination were placed upon the canvas. The same characteristics mark his genius in poetry. It may without exaggeration be said of him that his poems are pictures in their close fidelity to truth and nature, and his pictures are poems in the grace and beauty with which each face and form are outlined, and the harmony and effect with which his groups are combined. Among some of his more important paint- ings, the greater part of which have been executed for ap- preciating friends, and still enrich their galleries, may be mentioned " The Embarcation of Cleopatra," " The Cul- prit Fay," " Excelsior," "Diana and Endymion," "The Woodland Bath," " Time Rescuing Proserpine," " The Fall of the Last Pleiad," " Undine Rescued by the Knight," " The Ivory Carver," "The Spirit of the Age," "The Ascension of the Innocents," " Milton," " Dante," " The Spirit of the Waterfall," " Abou Ben Adhem and the Angel."

The popular appreciation of Read as a poet, and his in- dustrious devotion to his pen, would seem to be manifested by the repeated editions of his writings called for by culti- vated readers, and which were brought before the public by the following publishers, and in the order named :

The Boston Edition of a modest volume in 1847.

Lays and Ballads. Phila .; 1848.

Poems. London, by Delf, and illustrated by Kenny Meadows ; 1852.

Poems. Phila., by A. Hart; 1853.

Poems. Phila., by A. Hart, illustrated ; 1853.

" The New Pastoral." Phila., Parry & McMillan ; 1855.

"The House by the Sea." Phila., Parry & McMillan ; 1855.

"Sylvia, or the Last Shepherd." Phila., Parry & McMillan ; 1857. Rural Poems. London, Longman, Brown & Co. ; 1857.

Pocms. Complete Edition, in 2 vols. Boston, Ticknor & Fields ; . 1860.

" The Wagoner of the Alleghanies." Pbila., J. B. Lippincott & Co .; 1862.

" A Summer Story," and other Poems. Phila., J. B. Lippincott & Co .; 1865.

And the last complete edition in 3 vols., by J. B. Lippincott & Co. ; 1865.

"Drifting." Illustrated. Philadelphia, J. B. Lippincott & Co .; 1880.

His own belief was that "The New Pastoral," which so truthfully and graphically describes the life and pursuits of a rural community such as he knew in his youth in Chester County, was his best work, and that his poetic reputation would rest chiefly upon that poem.

Mr. Read was in failing health for some months prior to his decease, and although much enfeebled by disease, con- tinued to work diligently through the long and sickly winter of 1871-72 at Rome. In the spring he felt an irresistible yearning to return to his native land, fully believing that it would be to die here. He left Rome in April, and sailed from Liverpool on April 20th. On board the steamer he was stricken down with pneumonia, but with the aid of tender nursing he was enabled to reach New York, and was carried to the Astor House, where, attended by his devoted wife and kind friends, he breathed his last on May 11, 1872, and his remains were deposited in North Laurel Hill Cem- etery, Philadelphia.

As an appropriate close to this inadequate sketch of, and sincere tribute to, the memory of his life-long friend, the

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HISTORY OF CHESTER COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA.

writer adds an extract from a familiar letter written to him by Mr. Read, a short time before his decease, which will give his friends and admirers an insight into the inner life and character of this gifted son of genius, whose public writings and works have given him a world-wide repu- tation :

"DUSSELDORF.

" MY DEAR FRIEND,-Just as I write that word friend it seems to strike upon my heart as on a golden hell, setting it into interminable vibrations. There are few words so beautiful, so comprehensive. It includes devotion, self-sacrifice, defense against all things, including calumny and misfortune; but best of all, joy in another's joy, and exultation in his prosperity, this being in my mind the highest proof of friendship. It is easy to sympathize with misfortune,-the heart full of envy and malice might even do that,-but devoid of these must that beautiful soul be that can look upon a friend's success with gladness, having no other interest than that of pure enjoyment of his happiness. When I look abroad over the world I feel humbled- humbled before that high Benefactor, when I see how all unworthy as I am, with what a host of just such devoted and disinterested friends as yourself I am blessed. I have never yet lost a friend. Some fancied ones may have dropped away from me. . ..

" But all this is not replying to your dear, kind, but too long- neglected letter. You are not one to believe that silence on my part implies indifference. Oo the contrary, I no sooner received your letter informing me of your bereavement than I indited these verses on its back :

"Some etars there are with sudden glow Burst in full brightness oo the gaze, And to the wondering world below A little seeson stand aod blaze, Till on their unknown orbits whirled, Their disks with splendor overrun,

They tura their glory from the world, Still gaziog oo their pareot sun. Aod so the iofant form of grace That beamed a while upon your sight ; She has but turned her cogel face To gaze upoo her oative light.

"Again while writing you, an inspiration strikes me and moves itself in number thus :

" We nightly die ourselves to sleep, Then wherefore fear we death ? 'Tis but a slumber still more deep, And undisturbed by breath.

" We daily wakeu to the light, When morning walke her way, Theo wherefore doubt Death's longer night Will bring a brighter day ?

" You see how deeply (in spite of silence) your heart of sorrow has poured itself into my own, making it to overflow in such melody as is native to it. Now let me show you how, the other day, on the anni- versary of my darling Lily's departure, I sang with joyful sorrow. You see the poetry in these two words :

"MY LILY ON THE VIRGIN'S BOSOM.

" The quo was white in all the streets of Florence, The splendor burned upoo the bridge and river; While Fate rained dowo her pestilence in torrents, Bereaviog me forever.

"Nay, not forever,-on the Virgin's bosoni I see the emblem of my sainted daughter ;

She holde my Lily in perpetual blossom ; I find her where I Bought her.

"Close to her heart, with all a mother's patience, She bears my flower, enticing me to meet her. Dear Virgin, at thy Soo'e appointed stations,

I kneel and koeel and climb that I at last May greet her.

" There having lain these flowers upon your altar draped in orape and white, and while the angels are still chanting a requiem in the choir, I reverently withdraw beyond the chapel door, bearing away with me a sense of benediction. . I want to tell you now and solemnly that a deep sense of my duty to my God as well as to my fellow-man has gradually been descending upon me, and it is to me a source of

infinite pleasure that I can look back upon all the poetry I have ever written, and find it contains no line breathing a doubt upon the blessed Trinity and the great Redemption of man. When I have written my verses I have been alone with my own soul and with God, and not only dared not lie, but the inspiration of the truth was to me so beautiful that no unworthy thought ever dared obtrude itself upon the page. This was entirely owing to the goodness of God, who saw what it was to be, and saved me from subsequent mortification and regret."

REEVES, SAMUEL J .- The Phoenix Iron-Works at Phoenixville, in this county, is the largest establishment of its kind in the United States. Its mills and manufactories, which cover an area of sixty acres, are described in another department of this work .*

These works were established in 1790, and, after various mutations, came into the possession of the late David Reeves and his then associates in 1827. These works were operated by the firm of Reeves, Buck & Co. until 1855, when it was dissolved, and "The Phoenix Iron Com- pany" incorporated by an act of the Legislature. David Reeves and his son, the late Samuel J. Reeves, were the sole owners (with the exception of an insignificant interest) of the stock of this corporation, and the present proprietors are their lineal descendants. David Reeves was the first president of the company, and Samuel J. Reeves the vice- president and treasurer. The former held the office until his death, in March, 1871, and the latter succeeded him as president, and so continued until his death, in December, 1878, when he was, in turn, succeeded by his son, David Reeves, the present head of the company.

In many respects the character of the two original pro- prietors presented striking features of resemblance. They were both men of remarkable learning and unusual intel- lectual resources; and they possessed, in addition, an indi- vidual strength of purpose, and a degree of energy and enterprise, without which mere intellect is but as the sculp- tured pediment to the massive column. Both were endowed to an extraordinary extent with the power to resist and overcome adverse circumstances, and they were as strong in the face of disaster as they were signal in reaping the fruits of prosperity. In both a vigorous physical system was united to a mental determination and a moral force which no obstacles could subdue. Through the period of their incumbency respectively of the office of president of this company, there were many occasions when the manu- facturers of the United States encountered reverses which, in numerous instances, were overwhelming in their conse- quences. Through them all those men, by their prudence, foresight, sagacity, and integrity, were able to conduct the company in safety. Father and son together met the finan- cial storm which swept over the land in 1856, and averted its force. Again, from 1873 to 1877, when the iron-masters of Pennsylvania were threatened with annihilation, and hun- dreds of furnaces extinguished their fires, Samuel J. Reeves successfully maintained the business and credit of the com- pany, and-though with greater responsibilities-his deter- mined efforts, aided by his lofty character and the implicit confidence of the community, enabled him to overcome the accumulated trials of that disastrous epoch. So many mills for the manufacture of iron rails had sprung up during the period anterior to the incorporation of this company in

# See Mills and Manufactures, p. 350.

Samo Lituano

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BIOGRAPHICAL AND GENEALOGICAL.

1855, and such was the competition in this branch of the business, that it was deemed wise to carry on a more general system of manufacture.

It soon became evident that the great railways of the country which were then in operation would be obliged to supply themselves with better and more durable bridges than those which had been originally erected, and which were already either falling into decay or inadequate to meet the needs of a vastly increasing traffic. To supply this want it was determined by this company to devote a large part of its energies to the manufacture of iron bridges and viaducts. Before this change had been fully accomplished the civil war broke out, and further effort in this direction was for a time suspended. The company then turned its attention to war material, and soon after-through the in- genuity and inventive talent of the general superintendent, John Griffen-a cannon was designed and submitted to the government. But a short time elapsed before this de- sign was adopted, and the work of fulfilling the large orders thereupon received was commenced and actively carried forward. The gun was a rifle piece of three-inch calibre, and intended for field artillery. Several hundred were fur- nished, and their successful service upon many battle-fields was the best test of their utility. Indeed, it is a historical fact that the capture of any of these guns gave greater satisfac- tion to the enemy than any similar success. In 1862 active measures were recommended for the prosecution of the busi- ness of iron bridge construction ; and this was materially stimulated by the invention in that year of the hollow wrought-iron post or pillar, which, under the name of the Phoenix column, has attained a world-wide celebrity. This invention was the product of the genius of Samuel J. Reeves, the patentee, and its introduction at once effected a remarkable revolution in the art of bridge-building, and opened a new and most extensive field for the employment of wrought or rolled iron. Some idea of the magnitude of the business which it practically created may be formed from the fact that to, and including, 1880, upwards of thirty thousand tons of these columns were manufactured and shipped by the Phoenix Iron Company. In addition to bridge construction, this company has manufactured rolled iron beams for buildings and other structures in im- mense quantities for many years past. They have also in different forms entered largely into the construction of iron ships, and thousands of tons of Phoenix beams and angles are now afloat upon near and distant seas.

Perhaps the greatest achievement of the Phoenix Iron Company has been the construction of the Metropolitan Elevated Iron Railway in the city of New York, and at the same time the manufacture of a large part of the ma- terial of which the New York Elevated Railway is com- posed. The former work was in great part designed, man- ufactured, and carried to a successful completion by this company, with the aid of the engineering firm of Clarke, Reeves & Co. It is a monument of mechanical skill and manufacturing enterprise.

To enumerate the various structures which this company has either built from the foundation or in the erection of which it has furnished the iron, would be to swell this sketch far beyond the limit necessarily imposed. Some of

its principal works besides those mentioned are the Girard Avenue bridge in Philadelphia, the railway bridges over the Hudson River at Albany, the great International bridge over the Niagara River near Buffalo, the bridges over the Illinois River at La Salle and the Mississippi at Quincy, and the numerous railway bridges in Canada, Cuba, Central and South America. In this latter connec- tion it may be stated, in conclusion, that in the machine- shops of this company, by the application of the necessary machinery, great accuracy of work is obtained, and each part of an iron bridge can be exactly duplicated if neces- sary. This method of construction is entirely American, the English still building their bridges principally with hand-labor. Consequently, American iron bridges, notwith- standing the relative higher price of our iron, can success- fully compete in Canada and elsewhere with the bridges of English or Belgian construction.

REID, REV. WILLIAM SHIELDS, D.D., was a native of West Nottingham township, Chester Co., Pa., where he was born in April, 1778. He was the child of Adam and Martha Shields Reid, who had emigrated from the north of Ireland and settled in that township.

He graduated at Princeton College with honor in 1802. In 1804 he became a professor in Hampden Sidney Col- lege, Virginia, and shortly thereafter succeeded Dr. Archi- bald Alexander as president of that institution. He re- tained his connection with the college about five years, when he resigned and removed to Lynchburg, Va., where he spent the remainder of his long and useful life. He had been licensed by the Presbytery of Winchester in 1806.

Besides building up a Presbyterian Church in Lynchburg, to which he ministered, he established and conducted a female boarding-school, which was largely attended, and flourished for many years. In 1848 he retired from the active duties of life, and died June 23, 1853, at the age of seventy-five years.

He possessed vigorous talents and uncommon energy of character, and performed at some periods of his life an amount of labor almost incredible. In the community in which he lived he was a general favorite, and was regarded with great affection and veneration.

RENTGEN .- Clemens Rentgen and his wife, Catharine, and their children, came to the United States from Ger- many in 1793. The Sheeder family came in the same ves- sel. The name in Germany was spelled Rontgen, but the spelling was changed after they came to this country. They were familiarly called in early times the Rankys. They were steel-workers in Europe, at Saarbrücken, on the Upper Rhine. They first settled at the Falls of French Creek, but afterwards came farther down the stream and established iron and steel works near Kimberton, where they manufactured and furnished the government with ship iron during the war of 1812. Letters patent were granted them by the government. The ruins of the old slit-mill, as it was then known, can still be seen on French Creek, near Kimberton. Clemens Rentgen was born in July, 1754, in Saarbrücken, and died in Chester County, Dec. 15, 1833. His wife, Catharine, was born April 25, 1767, and died Dec. 3, 1845. Their children were William, Christian, Peter, and Cath-

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HISTORY OF CHESTER COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA.

arine. William Rentgen worked at Lawrenceville, Har- per's Ferry, and Philadelphia ; was master-armorer of the United States arsenal at Pittsburgh, and was afterwards in charge of the small-arms department at St. Louis, where he died of cholera in 1832, and was buried in the United States inclosure with military honors. He was twice married, and left a large family. One of his sons, Charles D. Rentgen, resides in Chester County, at or near Spring City. He occasionally writes poems for the papers. Chris- tian Rentgen was born Aug. 18, 1786, and died Sept. 19, 1866; and Peter Rentgen was born Oct. 9, 1788, and died Nov. 7, 1873. Clemens Rentgen and his wife, Cath- arine, and sons, Christian and Peter, are all buried at Zion (Lutheran) churchyard in East Pikeland township.

REYNOLDS, WILLIAM, is said to have married Mar- garet Exton, by whom he had John, b. 1650 ; Francis, b. 1652; and Henry, b. 1655.

HENRY REYNOLDS came from England in 1676, and settled in Burlington, N. J., after a passage of twenty-two weeks. He mas married there 11, 10, 1678, to Prudence, daughter of William and Prudence Clayton, of Chichester, to which place he removed, and there resided until his death, 8, 7, 1724, at the age of sixty-nine years. There is a tra- dition that he raised corn near Dock Creek, in what is now the city of Philadelphia. He took up 1000 acres in the Nottingham settlement, which he devised to his sons Henry and William. To his son Francis he gave the homestead of 290 acres, and 210 more to his son John.

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History of Chester County, Pennsylvania, with genealogical and biographical sketches, Part 186

Author: Futhey, John Smith, 1820-1888; Cope, Gilbert, 1840-1928 Publication date: 1881 Publisher: Philadelphia, L. H. Everts Number of Pages: 1162

Author: Futhey, John Smith, 1820-1888; Cope, Gilbert, 1840-1928
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Philadelphia, L. H. Everts
Number of Pages: 1162