USA > Pennsylvania > Prominent and progressive Pennsylvanians of the nineteenth century. Volume III > Part 25
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34
When the Civil War broke out Edwin S. Osborne was one of the first to go to the front in defense of the Union, enlisting in April, 1861, in Company F, Eighth Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers. He was mustered in as Captain of Company F, One-hundred-and-forty-ninth Regiment, commonly known as the "Bucktails," on August 26, 1862, and this regiment was assigned to the First Corps of the Army of the Potomac. General Osborne served on the staff of General Wadsworth from September, 1862, to February, 1863, after which he returned to his regiment. He participated in all the battles of his corps until the close of the War. He was then assigned to duty in the Bureau of Military Justice in the War Department, and visited
334
EDWIN S. OSBORNE.
Andersonville to investigate charges of cruelty against Captain Wirz. He drew up the charge against him and prepared the case for its hearing. After this splendid record of services in the military body of his country, he resigned and returned to the practice of the law at Wilkes-Barre, meeting with great success.
In 1870, his military talents being again recognized, he was appointed Major-General of the National Guard of Pennsylvania, and served in that capacity until 1878. He commanded the troops during the labor troubles at Scranton in 1871, at Hazleton in 1874, and at the Susquehanna Depot in 1875. Through all those trying times General Osborne exhibited the greatest bravery, at the same time giv- ing every evidence of his possession of much coolness and clear-sight- edness. At Wilkes-Barre, in 1877, there were serious labor troubles and General Osborne commanded the troops there also. He was one of the originators of the present system of the National Guard of Pennsylvania, and was one of those chiefly concerned in its develop- ment and closely connected with its success. General Osborne was nominee of the Republican party for additional Law Judge in Luzerne County in 1872. He was Commander of the Department of Pennsyl- vania of the Grand Army of the Republic in 1883. He was a Delegate to the Republican National Convention held in Chicago in 1884.
On October 12, 1865, General Osborne was married to Ruth Ann Ball, daughter of William Ball, of Carbondale. They have six children, all of whom have attained considerable prominence either in public life or in society. One son, John Ball Osborne, was United States Consul at Ghent, Belgium, during the Harrison administration, and another, William H. Osborne, is a Lieutenant in the United States Army. The other children are Dr. Russell Osborne, Jenny G., who is married to Howard W. Middleton, Jr., of Philadelphia ; Clay Osborne and Fanny S. Osborne. While still engaged in the practice of law, General Osborne is very active in his participation in the military affairs of the State, and takes considerable interest in the political conduct of the Common- wealth. He is a member of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion, of the Society of the Army of the Potomac, Grand Army of the Republic, and of the Society of the First Army Corps. He is also connected with several other important organizations. In General Osborne the State possesses one of its most active and progressive men.
Edward Wr. Parton
The Rembrandt Enn Co Phyl_
EDWARD W. PATTON.
ROMINENT among those who have made Philadelphia famous as a city of homes, and who have contributed largely and in many ways to the growth and prosper- ity of this community, is Edward W. Patton, the subject of this biography. Earnest, ardent and per- sistent, and imbued with a courage that recognizes no such thing as defeat, he has attained for himself a high position in the community, which he fills with marked ability. With a vigor worthy of emulation he has kept steadily in the front rank of Philadelphia's material prog- ress, and that he worthily holds the confidence and esteem of his fellow-citizens is evidenced by his uniform success in the political field. Coming from Revolutionary stock, he is naturally proud of his ances- tors, and his posterity is, and will have reason to be, proud of him.
EDWARD WAGNER PATTON was born, June 9, 1846, on Powell Street, in the Fifth Ward of Philadelphia. His father, Price I. Patton, who married Margaret Read De Lavau, was for thirty-five years in business on Market Street below Fourth, as a manufacturer and jobber, and was one of the projectors of passenger railways in Philadelphia and President of several of the companies. Edward W. Patton's grand- father, Abraham Patton, was for many years engaged in the jewelry and watch-making business at what is now 130 Market Street, and his great-grandfather was an officer in the War of the American Revolu- tion. After passing through the public schools, in which he gave ample evidence of his thorough-going capabilities, Mr. Patton entered the Central High School in July, 1860. In 1863, when only seventeen years of age, he enlisted in Landis's Battery as a private and served during the period of emergency caused by Lee's invasion of Pennsyl- vania. A year later he was commissioned an officer in the United
335
3.36
EDWARD W. PATTON.
States Navy, serving until honorably discharged in 1865. He was then appointed Paymaster's Clerk of the District of Pennsylvania, stationed at Baltimore. The district included New Jersey, Delaware, Maryland, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania west of Harrisburg. He held the position until August, 1867, resigning after his office had been moved to Indianapolis. Returning to Philadelphia, he engaged with his father in extensive building operations. As a sample of their industry and push may be noted the fact that, during the four years preceding 1871, the firm erected over four hundred houses in this city, all being examples of the most improved construction at that time. Mr. Patton studied conveyancing, while employed in building opera- tions, and has been actively engaged in real estate and conveyancing ever since, being generally recognized as one of the best informed in his line. He has been an officer of the Fernwood Building and Loan Association for twenty-seven years, and Treasurer during much of that time. He is also President of the Powelton Real Estate Associa- tion and sole agent of several underground conduit companies. One of Mr. Patton's chief interests is found in his capacity as the head of Edward W. Patton & Company, Law, Conveyancing and Real Estate firm. He is a member of the Protestant Episcopal Church of The Transfiguration, at Thirty-fourth Street and Woodland Avenue, and for the past twenty-five years has held the position of Vestryman in that church.
In Masonic orders Mr. Patton is very prominent. He was for- merly a member of Meridian Sun Lodge, No. 158, and is now a mem- ber of Fernwood Lodge, No. 543, and Past Master thereof. He is a member of the Fernwood Chapter, No. 156, and Corinthian Chasseur Commandery, Knights Templar, Lulu Temple, Nobles Mystic Shrine, also of the Grand Lodge of Pennsylvania, and also held the position of Grand Sir Chief, the highest office of the Knights of Birmingham. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the Masonic Home, and also of Courtland Saunders Post, No. 21, Grand Army of the Republic. In politics he is a staunch Republican, and in February, 1877, was elected to represent the Twenty-seventh Ward in Select Council, to fill the unexpired term of O. H. Wilson. He was re-elected in 1878, 1881, 1884, 1887, 1890, 1893 and 1896, the last election being practically
337
EDWARD W. PATTON.
unanimous. More than half the residents in his Ward signed a petition urging him to accept the nomination after he had declined to again be a candidate. He finally submitted to their wishes. He highly prizes the petition, has had it bound and keeps it as a souvenir and as an evidence of the high esteem in which he is held by his fellow-citizens. Mr. Patton is President of the Bayard Smelting and Milling Company, of New Mexico; of the Powelton Real Estate Asso- ciation, of Philadelphia ; and is Treasurer of the Electric Milling and Mining Company, of South Dakota.
In 1868 Mr. Patton married Mary Lee, of Baltimore. They have two sons, J. Lee Patton, attorney-at-law, and Price I. Patton, electrical engineer, of whom they are justly proud. Mr. Patton is fond of his home and devotes much of his time to his interesting family at his elegant residence.
-
III .- 22
ALFRED L. PEARSON.
A LFRED L. PEARSON comes of fighting stock and has won distinction not only as a soldier, but as a civil- ian. That he is a man of great moral courage and of far more than ordinary mental strength has been .proven by his strict adherence to duty of the most difficult character, notably as Commander of the National Guards of Pennsylvania during the riots at Pittsburg and elsewhere in 1877. For having executed his orders and done his full duty as an officer at Pittsburg, during the railroad riots, he was publicly accused of murder by some of the rioters and their sympathizers, and an attempt was made to have him indicted. The Grand Jury ignored the bill, how- ever, and it never became necessary for him to stand.trial upon such a ridiculous charge. He was born in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, Decem- ber 28, 1838. His father was Joseph Pearson, who served under Wellington and who left the English Army shortly after the Battle of Waterloo, and his mother was Mary Miller. The latter's ancestors came to America before the Revolution, her grandfather having served as a soldier under Washington.
Mr. Pearson's early education was secured in the public schools, at the Jefferson College of Pennsylvania, and Allegheny College. In July, 1861, he was admitted to the Bar of Allegheny County, and had barely begun the practice of his profession when the report that Sumter had been fired upon came up from the South, and Mr. Pearson began the work of recruiting a company. He was a few days late in offering the services of himself and his men, however, as the quota was filled. He then armed, uniformed and equipped a company and tendered the services of himself and his men without pay, but still they were not accepted. In August, 1862, he and the company were
338
a. L. Randon
339
ALFRED L. PEARSON.
regularly enlisted, and he was commissioned Captain of Company A, One Hundred and Fifty-fifth Regiment, Pennsylvania Volunteers. The patriotism, courage and strict observance to military duty brought to him quick promotions. He was successively made Major, Lieutenant- Colonel and Colonel of his regiment. There is an interesting story of how the star of the Brigadier-General was placed on his shoulder. It was at the Battle of Peeble's Farm, Virginia, in 1864. He was then the junior Colonel of the brigade, and his horse having, in the early part of the engagement, been killed, he was compelled to ride an almost unbroken colt. Orders to attack a strongly intrenched force were given, but the brigade did not move with alacrity, the brigade com- mander not being in front of his command. An aide to the com- mander of the corps rode up and called upon the young colonel to lead the brigade. The order to double quick was given, with Colonel Pearson in front. The fire they faced was a hot one and many fell, but under the leadership of Colonel Pearson the battery was taken. Following the orders of his superior officer, General Griffin, he held the position until relieved by order of Gen. John F. Hartranft. Then came a charge of the Confederates and the Union forces were driven back. Again Colonel Pearson was ordered to charge and again was the coveted ground regained. General Griffin then recommended that Colonel Pearson be brevetted a Brigadier-General for meritorious service and the star was forthcoming.
Again when it came to the securing of the second star and the rank of a Major-General, General Pearson's personal bravery played an important part. For a number of days preceding the 29th of March, 1865, General Pearson's command had been doing considerable hard fighting. At noon on that day General Meade had rested at a little log house at Lewis' Farm, and while the armies had been engaged, still the fighting had not been intense, and there was a short lull in the battle. The head of General Pearson's command had just arrived and was marching by the flank, when the enemy advanced in force. By order of General Bartlett he moved his command rapidly to the front, and, in throwing them into line of battle, a tremendous fire of musketry and artillery swept along his front, causing it to break and fall back. See- ing his men recoil he sank the spurs into his horse and, dashing up to
340
ALFRED L. PEARSON.
the center of his old regiment, the One Hundred and Fifty-fifth Penn- sylvania Volunteers, seized its colors and shouted : "Follow your flag or lose it," starting toward the enemy. The gallant zouaves, who never faltered or hesitated where he led, with wild yells dashed after him. After a fierce struggle the enemy retreated, followed closely by the veterans, chasing them across the plank road and holding the position until the lines were strengthened.
At this time Generals Meade, Griffin and Bartlett rode up, when the enemy again opened up with artillery. A piece of shell struck the sword of General Meade, carrying away part of the scabbard. Pear- son's men again advanced and soon drove the artillery from its posi- tion. General Bartlett, after the engagement, wrote a congratulatory letter, in which he said: "General Pearson's charge at Lewis' Farm was one of the most gallant of the War, and saved the Army of the Potomac one more battle for the Jerusalem plank road."
For this gallantry he was brevetted Major-General, and in Sep- tember, 1897, he received from Secretary Alger, at the direction of President McKinley, a medal of honor for "most distinguished gallantry in action," issued by the order of Congress. When he was mustered out of service he was in command of the First Brigade, First Division of the Fifth Army Corps. Returning to his native city at the close of the War, General Pearson entered upon the practice of the law and exhibited such ability that he was shortly afterward elected District Attorney of Allegheny County, a position which he held for three years. He also served as a member of Select Council of Pittsburg and was for a time a member of the Board of Health of Pittsburg. He was called upon to go into the National Guards of Pennsylvania and was made Major-General thereof, being in personal command of the troops at Pittsburg, Scranton, Carbondale and Plymouth during the railroad riots of 1877. Upon the death of General Hartranft, General Pearson was elected by Congress a member of the Board of Managers of the Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers, to fill an unexpired term. He was again unanimously re-elected and still holds that office. General Pearson was one of the founders of the Union Veterans' Legion and was twice unanimously elected the National Commander thereof. He was Second Department Commander of
341
ALFRED L. PEARSON,
Pennsylvania, Grand Army of the Republic, and was the first member of that order in Pennsylvania.
General Pearson and Elizabeth Harwood Stewart were married July 10, 1858. They have three children, Mrs. George H. Sands, wife of Captain Sands of the United States Army ; Alfred Lawrence Pear- son, a member of the Pittsburg Bar, and Katherine McKee Pearson. He and his interesting family reside at their delightful home, " Har- wood," on the Ohio River, about fourteen miles from Pittsburg.
WILLIAM H. PIPER.
P OWER, heat, light, comfort and almost existence, under the conditions of the present, depend upon coal. That inert mass of mineral practically holds within itself the march of civilization. Coal is the artificial warmth, the light, the power of civilization. Many millions of dollars are invested alone in the mining of the fuel, and thousands of men are employed in the work of digging it from the ground and distributing it to consumers ; and to those who have their capital invested in the great industry, no less than to the men who perform the physical labor, is the world indebted. Of the former stands prominently William H. Piper, the subject of this biography. The wheels of manufacture, the commerce of the world, the distri- bution of merchandise, in fact, all industries, are almost entirely dependent upon either anthracite or bituminous coal, and to cut off the supply would be to paralyze progress. The great navies, the ponder- ous and powerful enginery of transportation and trade, the manufactur- ing of artificial light, the preparation of proper food, and the consequent health of the people; the absolute comfort, if not the very life of civilization, would be imperilled should there be a sudden and unexpected closing of the coal mines, because of the absorption of that mineral. That the ingenuity of man may, and probably will, in the near future, discover or invent a power for the production of heat is not improbable; but at the close of the Nineteenth Century the world depends upon coal and upon the men who have that amorphous substance mined from the bowels of the earth and distributed over the face of the globe, by railroad, canal and vessel.
WILLIAM H. PIPER was born, December 27, 1842, at Williams- burg, Blair County, Pennsylvania. His parents were interested in the
342
101+, sipes
343
WILLIAM H. PIPER.
mining of coal, and upon his leaving school, as a youth, he was intro- duced into the business of mining and shipping this great product. He learned the business of both mining and transportation well, even before he had attained his majority, and, in a degree, his success in life has been due to the thoroughness of his early instruction. That a measure of material success has attended Mr. Piper's efforts is attrib- utable as much to his personal qualifications as to his early training in the business in which he is engaged. He is possessed of an intellect of more than ordinary brightness, coupled with good judgment and sagacity, and he has few errors of business discernment with which to charge himself. Mr. Piper's parents were John Piper and Eliza Aurandt. He attended the public schools of the section in which he lived and afterward passed through Cassville Academy, where he fin- ished his theoretical education. He was still in his teens when, upon leaving the academy, he was taken into the office of a coal mining and shipping company. Alert, and ambitious to get to the top, Mr. Piper was not long in acquiring a thorough knowledge of the business in which his employers were engaged. His promotion was corres- pondingly rapid, and it was but a few years before Mr. Piper was financially interested in the mining and shipping concern. He was for a time a member of the firm of Dysart & Company, coal operators, but subsequently became the senior member of the firm of W. H. Piper & Company, and he still holds the position as the head of that successful organization. Few men of the Keystone State are so well equipped by nature and experience for the successful carrying on of the coal mining and distributing business as he. In every branch of the coal industry he is well informed, and his excellent standing and reputation in the trade are sufficient to show how well he is regarded by those with whom he comes into direct competition. Mr. Piper is also interested in gold and silver mining, principally in Mexico. Some years ago he became financially as well as actively connected with the Hercules Mining Company in Mexico, and is still assisting in their operations. These mines produce gold in fairly well paying quantities and give promise of great future wealth when they have been properly developed.
He is also principal owner and President of the Philadelphia Gold Mining Company of Telluride, Colorado.
344
WILLIAM H. PIPER.
Mr. Piper and Ida Boud were married February 10, 1876, and the fruit of their union is two children, William Dysart Piper and Adele Leith Piper.
PEFrancis & Co
HUGH PITCAIRN.
N the profession of medicine there is no more not- -X able figure than that of Dr. Hugh Pitcairn, of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, the subject of this biog- raphy. Doctor Pitcairn's connection with the practi- cal and scientific branches of his profession extends over a considerable period of years and is marked by some notable achievements. While he is active as a Doctor of Medicine, he is also prominent in the affairs of state, and his latest advancement has been won in his appointment as Consul to Hamburg, Germany. Doctor Pitcairn has also been prominent especially as a railroad man, and he achieved distinction as Superintendent of the Pittsburg, Cincinnati and St. Louis Railway Company, a position he held for some years.
DR. HUGH PITCAIRN was born in Johnstone, Scotland, August 16, 1845. His parents were John and Agnes Pitcairn, both Scotch. He came to America in 1846, with his parents, who first settled in New Jersey. A year or so later, his family removed to Allegheny City, and there made their home. Doctor Pitcairn's primary educa- tion was acquired in the common schools of that city, so his early training was gained on Pennsylvania soil. Upon the completion of his studies in 1859 he entered the office of the Pennsylvania Rail- road in Pittsburg, to learn telegraphy, and manifested such an ener- getic disposition and so great an ability that he was placed in charge of the telegraph office, situated at the end of double track, Mill Creek, Huntingdon County, in less than six months. A year afterward he was appointed an operator at the general office in Altoona, and remained there as operator and clerk until 1865, with the exception of a short service in the Army. He was then called to Harrisburg as
345
346
HUGH PITCAIRN.
Assistant Train Master of the Northern Central Railroad Company, and two months later he received the appointment of Acting Assistant Superintendent and Superintendent of the Susquehanna Division. Appreciating fully his talents and administrative ability, the Directors at the ensuing meeting confirmed him, and he served creditably for two years. At the expiration of this time he was offered the position of Superintendent of the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company Rail- road, with office at Mauch Chunk, Pennsylvania, now known as the Lehigh and Susquehanna Railroad, leased by the Central Railroad of New Jersey. Later he was sent by the late J. Edgar Thomson, and also Colonel Scott, to Kentucky, for the purpose of completing and taking charge of the Evansville, Henderson and Nashville Railroad. After the completion of the road he was appointed General Super- intendent and assisted in the purchase of the Edgefield and Kentucky Railroad, thus making a through line from Nashville, Tennessee, to Evansville, Indiana. He continued in charge of this road until its sale to the St. Louis and Southeastern Railroad. In 1873 he accepted the proffered position of Superintendent of the Pittsburg Division of the Pan Handle Line, in which capacity he served two years. In 1875, on account of broken health and after the death of his wife, he resigned this position and commenced the study of medicine, taking a course at Jefferson Medical College and, later, at Hahnemann Medical College, of Philadelphia, from which he graduated. In connection with a European tour, he attended clinical lectures in the hospitals of London. He entered upon the practice of medicine at Harrisburg, in 1880, and later, in 1884, pursued his studies at the University of Vienna and at the University of Berlin in 1894.
Doctor Pitcairn is the junior editor and proprietor of The Altoona Daily and Weekly Tribune, and, as such, has wielded a large influence in the affairs of his district, exhibiting his interest in the leading industries of the State and his thorough energy as a man of pro- gressive ideas. He was a Delegate to the General Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, in Cincinnati, in 1880, being the Repre- sentative from the Central Pennsylvania Conference. His connection with the progress of his profession is further indicated by his election as President of the Pennsylvania Homeopathic State Medical Society
347
HUGH PITCAIRN.
in 1888. He has been a member of the State Board of Medical Examiners since 1893 and is now President of that Board.
Doctor Pitcairn was married, in 1866, to S. Frances Sherfy, daughter of Solomon Sherfy, of Altoona, and she died in 1875. After extensive traveling in Europe, Doctor Pitcairn returned to this country and was married to the only sister of his first wife. His chief interests at present, besides his duties as Consul at Hamburg, Germany, are centered in real estate and manufacturing industries. His newspaper connection as junior editor and proprietor of The Altoona Daily and Weekly Tribune, which property he has held for twenty-one years, has always occupied a large portion of his time. However, Doctor Pitcairn's recent appointment in the consular service necessarily overshadows all his duties and demands his chief attention, and as it takes him to Europe for several years, he will be removed from active participation in the affairs of his State, yet he will, just the same, continue to be a thoroughly representative Penn- sylvaniar and one of whom the Commonwealth may well feel proud, at home or abroad.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.