USA > Pennsylvania > The Biographical encyclopedia of Pennsylvania of the nineteenth century. Pt. 1 > Part 68
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of the American Philosophical Society ; " one On the Re- lation between Vigor and Sex in the " Proceedings of the American Association for the Advancement of Science; " and a paper on What to do Against Yellow Fever for the American Public Health Association, 1873. Ile contri- buted, 1872-'73, a number of important articles to John- son's New Illustrated Cyclopedia ; among which may be named, those on Anatomy Philosophic, Brain, Bread, Chess, Circulation of the Blood, Deaf-Mutes, and Evolution. Of these, the last was the most original and elaborate; en- deavoring to give a full and concise summary of the whole subject, with the conclusions justified by the present state of science. Ilis literary works embrace, Woman's Witch- craft, or the Curse of Coquetry, a dramatic romance, which appeared, in 1854, under the nom de plume of Corinne L'Estrange. This book is credited; by mistake, in the catalogue of the Philadelphia Library, to some lady author. Summer Songs, by H. II. M., were published in 1865. Hle has also contributed several poems to periodicals ; especially to Lippincott's Magazine, The Friend, and the Friends' Review ; and also prose literary essays to the first and last- named serials. Ile also contributed European Correspon- dence and other facetic to Vanity Fair, edited by Charles G. Leland, 1860-'61. In 1858, he filled the position of Secretary of the State Medical Society of Pennsylvania; and, in 1857-58, was Recorder of the Biological Department of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. Born a member of the Society of Friends, he has continued al- ways in membership with that Society, from deliberate con- viction. . He has written a great number of brief essays on religious subjects, published from time to time, especially since 1867, in the Friends' Review ; and has also taken part in the editorial department of that periodical since the fall of 1872. Ile was married, in 1849, to Mary E. Brown, daughter of Jeremiah Brown of Philadelphia.
HOMSON, J. EDGAR, Civil Engineer, President of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company, was born in Delaware county, Pennsylvania, in ISOS. His father, John Thomson, was also a civil engineer, well known for his enterprise and early efforts in the cause of internal improvements. Ile was among the oldest civil engineers of this country, and was early engaged in the location and construction of its canals, turnpikes and railroads. Towards the close of the last century he united his efforts with those of the celebrated Benjamin II. Latrobe, Sr., in laying out a canal between the Delaware and Chesapeake bays. Through the failure to raise the requisite means to accomplish the desired object, the project did not then succeed. For several years he was in the service of the great " Holland Land Com- pany," in Western Pennsylvania and New York. While thus engaged, in 1793, he encamped at Presque Isle, near
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Erie, Pennsylvania, where, with the ordinary tools used on | an engineering expedition, and with the aid of but one person, he built the schooner " White Fish," in which he sailed from that place to Philadelphia, the schooner having been hanled by teams of oxen around Niagara Falls to Lake Ontario, thence through this lake to near the site of the present city of Oswego, and up a small river to Oneida Lake. Passing through this lake, he again carried his vessel over land to the Mohawk river, and followed the imperfect navigation of this stream to the Hudson, along which he sailed to New York, from whence he reached the Atlantic Ocean, and, entering Delaware Bay, arrived at Philadelphia; there his schooner found a place in Inde- pendence Square, where it remained until destroyed by time. This was the first vessel that ever passed from Lake Erie to New York and Philadelphia. He also laid out and constructed, in 1809, what is said to have been the first railway in the United States. It extended from Leiper's Stone Quarries, in Delaware county, Pennsylvania, to the Delaware river ; a plan of it, found among his papers by Dr. Ash, was recently deposited by him with the Dela- ware County Institute. The parents of J. Edgar were both descended from the pioneers who accompanied William Penn to this country. One of these, Samuel Levis, was a minister of the Society of Friends, and a member of the first Legislative Assembly of the province; another, B. Copic, was a member of the first provincial council. After the requisite preparation received from his father, the youth commenced his professional career in the service of his native State, in the spring of 1827 (under Major Wilson, Chief Engineer), on the Philadelphia & Columbia Railroad, now a part of the line owned by the company of which he is President. He was transferred, in 1830, by Major Wil- son, from this work to the Camden & Amboy Railroad ; the eastern portion of which was located under his direc- tion and supervision. Soon after this, ever zealous in pursuit of knowledge appertaining to his profession, lic visited Europe to gather information regarding the railroad and canal systems of the old world, and, shortly after his return, received the appointment of Chief Engineer of the Georgia Railroad, a line which extends from Augusta to Atlanta, with a branch to Athens, in all, two hundred and thirteen miles of railway. IIe commenced the surveys for this work in 1834, and continued in charge of its location, construction and subsequent management until his unsoli- cited appointment, early in 1847, as Chief Engineer of the Pennsylvania Railroad, nearly thirteen years. The western terminus of the Georgia Railroad was named Marthasville, which, in view of the prospective importance of the place as a railroad centre, was changed by him to Atlanta, from the word Atlantic, the line of railroads from the West first touching the waters falling into the Atlantic Ocean at this point. During the period of his engagement at the South, the Montgomery & West Point Railroad, of Alabama, fell into bankruptcy, and was purchased in its unfinished con- : $200,000, unexpended. In order to enable the Pennsyl-
dition by him and a few friends, and under his direction, as Consulting Engineer, it was completed and became a very profitable enterprise. The Nashville & Chattanooga Railroad was also laid out by him during this period and built, immediately after his return to the North, upon the route he had traced. While Chief Engineer of the Penn- sylvania Railroad, he was offered large inducements to return to the South and take charge of the Charleston & Memphis, Nashville & New Orleans lines, and other works of that region ; but having become deeply interested in the location and construction of a line of railway over the diffi- cult country between Harrisburg and Pittsburgh, he de- clined all other engagements until this work should be completed. In IS51, while absent in the West, he was nominated for the position of President of the Pennsylvania Railroad Company. Ilis interests and inclinations prompted him to decline this nomination, but the circumstances sur- rounding his selection were such that he felt compelled to permit his name to be used as a candidate, and his election followed by a large majority. When he assumed the duties of his new position, the treasury of the company was en- tirely empty and heavy obligations pressing for payment. In a short time, however, by his efforts, its finances were fully restored, and the company has ever since enjoyed the highest credit. After the consolidation of the several lines between Pittsburgh and Chicago, in which the Pennsylvania Railroad Company had become interested as a shareholder to the extent of nearly one million of dollars, he was elected a director of the consolidated company, of which George W. Cass was made President. Eighty miles of this railroad, extending from Plymouth to Chicago, were at the time un- finished. In this condition, the line proved neither profit- able to the shareholders nor advantageous to the public. Its funds were nearly exhausted and its credit became un- available. The directors spent weeks in deliberating upon what measures should be taken to preserve the property to the shareholders, without reaching a satisfactory conclusion. IIe was sent for to assist in these consultations, and after investigating the condition of the company and estimating the probable cost of completing the line, without which its affairs could not be improved, he proposed that the Board should appoint him their Chief Engineer, and place in his hands all the assets of the company applicable to its con struction-they had no cash-and that he would then sce the road through. They unhesitatingly accepted this offer, and shortly afterwards, for the purpose of facilitating the construction of the work, also elected him President of the company. With the assets thus furnished to him and the use of his individual credit, the railway was speedily fin- ished, the finances of the company were then thoroughly reorganized, and the entire line soon became one of the best and most successful enterprises of the Union. Of the assets handed to him to complete the extension beyond Plymouth, he was enabled to return to the company about
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vania Railroad Company to obtain its share of the South- west travel and freight, he directed his attention to the completion of a direct line from Pittsburgh to Cincinnati. The Pennsylvania Railroad Company having advanced large sums prior to the financial disasters of 1857-58, to the local companies, in order to secure this trade; but in consequence of the difficult character of the country which this line of road traverses, added to the unexpectedly high prices they were compelled to pay for labor, the aid, though deemed ample, proved insufficient, and the affairs of the different companies upon the route fell into seein- ingly inextricable confusion, from which, however, his system, knowledge of the railroad business and skill in finance finally released them and placed the entire road upon a satisfactory basis. Finding that these arrangements entered into to obtain continuous railway communications between the Pennsylvania Railroad and the trade centres of the West (through assistance liberally extended to effect the construction of the most important works undertaken for that object) would not secure the permanent adherence of such lines to the main stem, but would render the com- pany at all times liable to have its sources of business di- verted to other channels, by stock gamblers and other interests, he determined to change the policy pursued, and, instead of becoming allies by contracts of doubtful legality, to obtain control of these lines by lease, or through the ownership of a majority of their shares, that they might be placed in a position to be worked as one harmonious sys- tem, without rivalry with each other and with a view to the best interest of the parent stem. To effect this object, he caused the procurement of the charter of the Pennsyl- vania Company, and all the interest in leases and railroad stocks held by the Pennsylvania Railroad Company west of Pittsburgh, that had been completed for use, were trans- ferred to it, and its capital stock, to the extent of $8,000,000 (or two-thirds of the whole), received therefor. This arrangement has fully accomplished the object desired, producing the best results to the public and to the Pennsyl- vania Railroad Company, and as a whole, it returns reason- able dividends upon the share capital invested in it. His tastes, interests, education and life-long experience, all tended to make him thoroughly acquainted with every branch of his profession, and hence he could see and over- come difficulties that were not observed by others. Per- sonally, a more dignified, refined and courteous gentleman, of kind heart and generous hand, never lived. As the official, he is a strict disciplinarian, insisting that those under him should fully live up to the rules which ever guided himself; regularity, punctuality and personal ac- countability in the discharge of their several duties being ever demanded of every employee, from the highest to the lowest subordinate. As a financier, his talent seems innate; aside from bringing successfully several immense corporations out of the abyss of ruin and enriching the stockholders thereof far beyond even their most sanguine
expectations, he has amassed a reasonable fortune for him- self, which he has ever managed with the same wisdom that marks his administration of railroad affairs. The political arena he has, throughout his entire life, refused to enter. Numerous tempting offers of high political position have been made him at different times; and still higher could have been obtained, had he sought such honors, but he would have none of them. Public notoriety he despises, still he was ever very popular. While never seeking selfish gain, power, office, or applause, he is fully alive to his duties as a citizen, and anxious to discharge them to the utmost; in patriotism, he is second to none, and his ser- vices to the Union cause during the war of Secession, in aiding the President in the forwarding of troops and in numerous other ways, known and fully appreciated by the then commanding authorities, fully attest his devotion and loyalty to his country. The chief characteristic of such a mind as his is growth. Perhaps the process is slow, but it is none the less sure. In such a mind the great progres- sive ideas of this century may have to battle against old- established prejudices ; but, having once gained entrance, they become part of the man's nature. Few men have so harmoniously united common sense with genius. He has had as great responsibilities to meet as any man of his pro- fession ever had; but there never was a time when he was not equal to the occasion. It is needless to speak of the benefits to the State and the public generally resulting from his labors. Diligently and perpetually the talents given him he has admirably employed in the advancement of great works, the influences and grand results of which, in the improvement of the rural districts, morally, physi- cally and intellectually, which advanced as his lines of railroads pushed their way forward, in the encouragement given to education and useful labor, banishing at once ignorance and idleness, are destined to be felt by the entire community for all future time. [He died May 27th, 1874.]
NDREWS, SILAS MILTON, D. D., Clergyman, was born in Rowan county, North Carolina, March 5th, 1805. Both father and mother were Scotch-Irish, and the family have been Presby- terians from time immemorial. He was prepared for college at Bethany Academy, in North Caro- lina, and entered the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, in 1822, whence he graduated in 1825. The follow- ing three years, he spent as teacher in an academy and a tutor in the University. Ile entered the Theological Semi- nary at Princeton, New Jersey, in 1828, and having gra- duated, in 1831, proceeded directly to Doylestown, where he was ordained and installed pastor of the church com- posed of the congregations of Deep Run and Doylestown, on the 16th of November, 1831. He married, April ISth, 1833, Matilda M. Dubois, daughter of Reverend Uriah
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Dubois, the former pastor of the church. For seventeen years he taught a select school in addition to his ministe- rial duties. During his pastorate of over forty years he has labored zealously in the cause of religion, and his con- gregation has grown from a mere handful of devout wor- shippers to be one of the largest and most prosperous churches of that section. The old church had been en- larged and remodelled several times, and finally, in 1871, to attest its appreciation of his protracted and efficient labors, as well as to provide increased accommodations, the con- gregation erected upon the former site a handsome brown- stone structure, with a main audience room capable of seat- ing about one thousand persons, with chapel, Sabbath- school. rooms, etc., in the lower story. For twenty-two years previous to the union of the two branches of the Presbyterian Church he was Clerk of the Synod of Phila- delphia, and he has been for many years a member and Secretary of the Board of Trustees of Lafeyette College. The degree of D. D. was conferred by Washington College. Ilis first wife died April Ist, 1863, and he was married again, on the 16th of May, 1865, to Harriet M. Waller, the daughter of Phineas Waller, of Wilkesbarre, Pennsylvania. HIe is distinguished for punctuality and method: His en- gagements are kept to .he very minute, and all his affairs are managed in the most systematic manner. Though past the meridian of life he has lost little of his active energy, and his counsels are greatly esteemed in the ecclesiastical courts of his church. His devoted piety commands the respect of all, and his social temperament renders him be- loved by young and old.
LARK, GIDEON, Brigadier-General United States Volunteers, and Register of Wills for the City and County of Philadelphia, was born in that city, June 19th, 1822. He is a son of Thomas and Hannah (Walker) Clark, the former a native of Maryland and the latter of New Jersey, her father being the Rev. John Walker of the Methodist Protestant Church. His father and two of his uncles served in the War of 1812, one of the latter, for whom he was named, was a First Lieutenant in one of the Maryland regiments and fell at the battle of Lundy's Lane, which was won by
the late General Scott. Both his grandfathers were sol- diers of the Revolutionary War. He was educated at Brown's Academy, and on leaving school was apprenticed to Gaskill & Copper to learn the business of engraving, which having mastered he commenced this avocation on his own account, about the year 1850. 'As may be imagined, he took a great interest in all that related to military matters, and at the age of twenty joined the Philadelphia Greys, an artillery company under the command of Captain (now . General) George Cadwalader. When the War with Mexico broke out he volunteered in the organization which that officer effected, composed of a majority of his command,
which was designed to be a " flying artillery " company. The President, however, declined to receive them as the complement from Pennsylvania was full. He continued his membership with the company, and on the breaking out of the Rebellion was Second Lieutenant of the " Greys." He assisted to raise two companies which were attached to the First Regiment of Artillery of Philadelphia, and was appointed, by Colonel F. E. Patterson, Adjutant of the same, which was afterwards known as the 17th Regiment Pennsyl- vania Volunteers. On his return from the three months' service, he was appointed, by Colonel P. C. Ellmaker, Lieu- tenant-Colonel of the 119th Regiment, which he took into camp in the vicinity of Nicetown, and, on September Ist, 1862, marched to the front, where he participated in the splendid campaigns of the Army of the Potomac. At Sa- lem Church .he rendered faithful service under General 'Sedgwick. . He commanded the regiment and led the charge at Rappahanock Station, November 7th, 1863, and carrying the works at the point of the bayonet captured the entire force, with artillery and battle- flags, Colonel Ellmaker :being 'in command of the brigade. In 1864, the latter having resigned from the service, and after the Mine Hill -
campaign, the regimental command devolved on Colonel Clark. In the spring campaign, under General Grant, he participated with his regiment in the battles of Germania Ford, the Wilderness, and Spottsylvania ; at the latter point his regiment‹ planted their colors on the enemy's works. On June 12th, 1864, General Eustis being relieved by a special order, he was placed in command of the brigade over a superior officer. At Bermuda Hundred and Ream's Station he rendered excellent service; and at Cold Harbor he led the charge in that action and carried the works. He was subsequently complimented in special orders for driving in the enemy's picket line in the Shenandoah Val- ley, and establishing a new and better one for our troops, and was breveted Colonel. The service rendered by his regiment with Sheridan at the battle of Winchester was especially brilliant. On April 2d, 1865, he assaulted and carried the enemy's works in front of Petersburg, on which occasion, after penetrating the enemy's lines, he captured three forts, eight pieces of artillery, two battle-flags, and a large number of prisoners. He was severely wounded after capturing the third fort (Steadman). One week afterwards the rebel surrender took place. For these gallant and meri- torious services he was breveted Brigadier-General of Vol- unteers. With the regiment, he was mustered out of the service June 19th, 1865. He has served as a School Di- rector for many years in the Twentieth and Twenty-ninth Wards. In October, 1866, he was appointed Master War- den for the Port of Philadelphia, by Governor Curtin, and was subsequently re-appointed by Governor Geary. In 1872, he was appointed Bank Assessor by Auditor-General Ilartranft, and the following year was made Mercantile Collector of Delinquent Taxes by City Treasurer Widener. In the autumn of that year, he was nominated by the Re-
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publican party as their candidate for the office of Register | Not only was he a highly successful merchant, but he gave of Wills, and was elected at the general election in Oc- tober. Ile was originally a Democrat, but united with the Republicans in defence of the country, when he took up arıns in its behalf. He is a genial, warm-hearted, generous man. During his administration of the office of Port War- den he did much to advance the interests of the city. He was an active member of the Volunteer Fire Department for seventeen years. ` He was married September Ist, 1850, to Louisa D., daughter of Hon. Thomas Guirey, of the old township of Passyunk.
his attention to other interests outside of his own business sphere. Ile was President of the Board of Trustees of the City Gas Works; a Director of the Lehigh Valley Rail- road Company, in which he was largely interested; a Di- rector of the Philadelphia Saving Fund Society; of the North American Fire Insurance Company ; of the Girard Life Annuity and Trust Company ; of the American Steam- ship Company ; and for a number of years an Inspector of the County Prison. In business, he was a liberal, honorable merchant, and by his enterprise contributed largely towards the development of the city's commercial prosperity. In society, he was genial, cultured and generous; in all the relations of life his influence was great.
ROTTER, NATIIAN, Merchant, was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the year 1787. While yet a youth, he entered the counting- house of his elder brother, William, who had been engaged in mercantile pursuits for a con- LLEN, WILLIAM HENRY, M. D., LL.D., President of Girard College, was born near the city of Augusta, Maine, March 27th, 1808. He is the son of Jotham and Thankful Allen, and his paternal grandfather was a descendant of the Braintree branch of the Allens of Massachusetts. His early life was spent at home on a farm until he en- tered the Wesleyan Seminary (Maine), where he received his education preparatory to entering Bowdoin College, which he did at the age of twenty-one, graduating there- from. after a four-year course. Immediately after leaving college, he was called to take charge of the Greek and Latin classes at the Oneida Conference Seminary, at Cassa- novia, New York, where he remained for two and a half years; when his worth and ability being appreciated by his own towns-people, he was invited to return to Augusta, and preside over the High School in that city. IIe re- mained in this latter locality, however, but six months, as he had been tendered the Professorship of Chemistry and Natural Philosophy at Dickinson College, Carlisle, Pennsyl- vania, which he accepted. This chair he occupied for ten years, and was then transferred to that of English literature in the same institution, which he filled for three years. During much of the time he resided in Carlisle he was a regular contributor to the Methodist Quarterly Review. Ile also wrote and delivered numerous addresses and lec- tures on educational and general subjects. He has delivered lectures in several cities of the Union-among them, Phila- delphia, Boston, Baltimore, and Indianapolis. In January, 1853, at the request of the municipal authorities of Phila- delphia, he pronounced a Eulogy on America's greatest statesman, Daniel Webster. This eloquent and able dis- course was highly esteemed by the public. It was pub- lished, and took rank with others delivered by prominent men throughout the country. In January, 1850, he was appointed President of Girard College, succeeding Judge Jones, who had held the position from the opening of the siderable time, as may be learned from Claypoole's American Daily Advertiser, of August 22d, 1800, wherein the latter advertised his then recent importations of tin and steel. It is believed that his business had commenced some five to ten years previous to the last-named date. In 1813, he was admitted into partnership .. . The firm con- tinued until March, 1815, when his brother died, and he thereupon assumed the management of the business. A short time thereafter he admitted his brother, Joseph, and the firm was styled Nathan Trotter & Co .; which con- tinues to this day, a period of fifty-nine years. Joseph Trotter withdrew from the house, in 1830, to enter the Bank of Pennsylvania, first as clerk, then cashier, and lastly as President. The senior partner continued the business, and, on January Ist, 1844, admitted his two sons, Edward II. and George, into the firm ; and six years later two other sons, William II. and Charles W., became members of the partnership. The senior member took an active part in many of the enterprises of the day, and, in connection with others, was instrumental in organizing the Lehigh Crane Iron Company. This company erected the first fur- nace for the manufacture of pig-iron with anthracite coal ; their works were located on the Lehigh river, at Catasauqua, under the supervision of David Thomas. IIe was also. a Director of the Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company, and of the Bank of Pennsylvania. He died in January, 1853, but the business of the house, which he founded, was carried on by the surviving members, his sons, who re- tined their father's name. With the close of the year 1.854, George Trotter terminated his connection with the firm, leaving his three brothers to continue the prosperous business. Edward HI. Trotter, the then senior member of the house, after receiving his education in his native city, spent a year in Europe, and immediately after his return to the United States had entered his father's store to arrive at a full knowledge of the business that he was, at a later date, to participate in and control, as previously mentioned. I institution two years previously. The Board of Directors
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