The Biographical cyclopedia of representative men of Rhode Island, Part 24

Author: National biographical publishing co., pub
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Providence, National biographical publishing co.
Number of Pages: 868

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OBINSON, MATTHEW, Lawyer, only son of Robert Robinson, was born in Newport, in 1709. His father was a man of considerable distinction in colonial times. He was appointed Searcher of the Customs, by Queen Anne, and is said to have sustained many honorable posts under the reigns of this Queen, and also of those of King George I. and George II. The sub- ject of this sketch received the best education of the times in which he lived, and is said to have been an apt and rcady Latin and Greek scholar. He pursued his law studies in Boston, and opened an office in Newport when he was not far from twenty-six years of age. He gained a high reputation as a lawyer, his business not being con- fined to Newport, but being considerable on the circuits. About the year 1750 he moved to Narragansett, where he purchased a landed estate, which, after various additions had been made to it from time to time, contained eight hundred acres. On this estate, which was near the spot where now stands the railroad station in Kingston, he built an elegant mansion, after the style of the English lodge, which he called " Hopewell." Mr. Robinson was a man of more than ordinary literary and professional attain- ments. He had one of the largest and best-selected pri- vate libraries in the colony. He had a passion for collecting rare and valuable pamphlets, and it is said that the size and worth of this collection placed it in advance of any similar one in the colony, perhaps in New England. He was very fond of English history, and prided himself on the accuracy of his knowledge in this department of learn-

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ing. He knew more in detail, about matters pertaining to Rhode Island history, than any person of his time. The notes which he made on the books and pamphlets he read, would make many good-sized volumes. He kept a very minute journal of all the events of the day, said to have been full of the most curious and entertaining matter. His biographer says that this journal was in existence in 1806, but it has disappeared beyond all hope of recovery. His house was the scene of many a social festivity. The most intelligent and highly-cultivated gentlemen of the colony were wont to meet there, and wit and wisdom ruled many a delightful hour. The wife of Mr. Robinson was Mrs. Johnson, the mother of Augustus Johnson, afterwards Attorney-General. She was the daughter of Mr. Lucas, a French Huguenot, of wealth and good social standing, who had become an exile from France upon the revocation of the Edict of Nantes. She died soon after her removal to Narragansett. She was a lady of rare accomplishments, and her death was a sore bereavement to her husband. He died in October, 1795, and was interred in the family burial-ground on his farm.

ERNON, WILLIAM, second son of Samuel Vernon, and grandson of Daniel Vernon, was born January 17, 1719. His grandfather, Daniel Vernon, born in London, September 1, 1643, came to America about 1666; resided at Narragansett, where he married Ann Dyre, widow of Captain Edward Hutchin- son and granddaughter of Anne Hutchinson ; she died January 10, 1716. Samuel Vernon, son of Daniel, born December 6, 1683, married Elizabeth Fleet, of Long Island, April 10, 1703. He resided at Newport, held the office of Assistant from 1729 to 1737, and was Judge of the Superior Court of Judicature. He died December 5, 1737, and his wife died March 5, 1722. William Vernon, the subject of this sketch, was the second son of the above Samuel. In early life he entered upon a mercantile career, and soon became prominent as a merchant; his name appearing as early as 1740, as an importer from London, where he soon had an extended correspondence. In 1744 he was asso- ciated with his elder brother, Samuel, under the firm name of Samuel & William Vernon, and together they were actively engaged in business up to the breaking out of the war. In 1750 their trade extended to the leading ports in Europe, the West Indies, and the coast of Africa. They were also interested in privateering, and were part owners, with Godfrey Malbone, of the privateer Duke of Marlborough. The prize ship Experiment, captured by the Duke of Marl- borough, was taken to Charleston, S. C., where, when sold, she was bought by David Manigault, of Charleston, Cap- tain Robert Morris and William Vernon, when her name was changed to the Vernon Galley, and she was freighted for London. The privateer Molly was owned by the Ver-

nons, who sent her to Louisbourg when a flect was raised to attack that place. The extent of Mr. Vernon's shipping interest at that time cannot now be ascertained, but in one of his letters, under date of 1758, he speaks of having lost seven vessels by capture, and he feared that one other would be added to the number. In various other ways Mr. Ver- non showed himself to be public-spirited. He was one of the incorporators of the Newport Artillery Company. In 1773 the General Assembly appointed him, with Aaron Lopez and George Gibbs, a committee to address a letter to the King, touching the interest of Rhode Island in the cod-fishery, in and near the Gulf of St. Lawrence, then endangered by a bill pending in the House of Com- mons. This was followed by his appointment, May 20, 1774, with John Collins, Samuel Fowler, and Henry Ward, a committee of correspondence, on the subject of the shutting up of Boston harbor ; and, with William Ellery and others, in 1775, he was instructed to collect the facts connected with losses inflicted upon the Colonies by the British forces then in the country. May 6, 1777, Congress elected Wil- liam Vernon, of Rhode Island, and James Warren and John Deshon, of Massachusetts, members of the Eastern Navy Board, at Boston; of which Board, Mr. Vernon was President during the whole time that its services were re- quired by the country, and this without emoluments of any kind. While so engaged, he repeatedly advanced considerable sums of money to meet immediate demands upon the government, and for which no interest was charged. During these years he gave his whole time un- sparingly to public business, and brought to the aid of the government much experience in the building, equipping, and sailing of vessels, at the time that the American Navy was first organized. He was acquainted with many of the prominent men of the day,-Adams, Jefferson, Lafayette, and others,-and he left a large family correspondence with the Wards, Ellerys, and Vernons. He was fond of reading, was conversant with a number of languages, and was one of the original corporators of the Redwood Li- brary, of which institution he became the President, after the death of Abraham Redwood. Many public works in and out of Newport received aid at his hand. He was active in raising funds for the erection of the Freemasons' IIall, Newport, the Long Wharf, the bridge that connects Rhode Island with the mainland, and for Princeton College, where his son William H. Vernon was educated. He was one of the underwriters of the Newport Insurance Company, was instrumental in establishing the Rhode Island Insur- ance Company, of which Samuel Vernon was President ; and in 1803, he was the founder of the Newport Bank, at which time he was eighty-four years of age. Mr. Vernon lived in the house on the corner of Mary and Clarke streets, Newport, long known as the Vernon House, and which was placed by him at the disposal of Rochambeau, who made it his headquarters during the time that the French troops were in Newport. He died December 22, 1806.

Hoenry Leranspore

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Mr. Vernon married Judith, daughter of Philip Harwood, and great-granddaughter of Governor Walter Clarke and Governor John Cranston. She died August 29, 1762, aged thirty-eight years. They had three children, Samuel, William H., and Philip Harwood.

HAMPLIN, CHRISTOPHER, the first Grand Master of the Masonic Fraternity in Rhode Island, son of Colonel Christopher and Hannah (Hill) Champ- lin, was born in Charlestown, R. I., in 1731. His father, a prominent farmer in his day, possessed one tract of land of over one thousand acres ; and the entire Champlin estate embraced two thousand acres. Colonel Christopher's sons, Christopher, George, and Robert, in early life removed from Charlestown to Newport, and be- came eminent men. Christopher was an enterprising and successful merchant, and was chosen President of the Bank of Rhode Island. He was a prominent member of the Masonic fraternity, and in 1791 became the first Grand Master of that order in the State, which position he filled for three years, and was followed by Hon. Jabez Bowen, LL.D. He left three children, one son and two daughters. His son, Christopher Grant Champlin, who graduated at Harvard University, married Mehetabel Redwood (daugh- ter of Abraham Redwood), was elected a Representative to Congress in 1796, United States Senator to Congress in 1809, and died in Newport, about the Ist of April, 1840. One of his daughters married John Coffin Jones, of Boston ; the other married Benjamin Mason, M.D., of Newport, and had a son, George C. Mason, now residing in Newport, and a daughter, who married Commodore Perry. Mr. Champ- lin lived a pure and useful life, and died April 25, 1805, in the seventy-fifth year of his age. His remains were in- terred in the North Burial Ground at Newport. His brother, George Champlin, born: in 1739, became an enter- prising shipmaster, and in 1775 was chosen Lieutenant- Colonel Commandant of the First Regiment of Militia. After the Revolution, he was a Representative from New- port, and in 1785 and 1786 was a member of the Conti- nental Congress. In the State Legislature he held a seat for sixteen years, by a semi-annual election, exerting a large influence in that body and in the State. He was three times successively an elector of President and Vice-Presi- dent of the United States. Meantime he carried on an extensive commercial business. He was President of the Bank of Rhode Island. As a member of the State Con- vention, he used his influence for the adoption of the Fed- eral Constitution. He was greatly esteemed for his en- dowments, public services, and Christian character. He died November 16, 1809, in his seventy-first year. His brother, Robert Champlin, also became a shipmaster. He married Lydia Gardiner, daughter of John Gardiner, and granddaughter of. William Gardiner, of Boston Neck, Nar- ragansett, and had a daughter, Mary, who married Colonel

McRea, of the United States Army. Robert died in the meridian of life.

RANSTON, HON. HENRY Y., son of Peleg and Elizabeth Cranston, was born in Newport, Rhode Island, October 9, 1789, and was a descendant of Governor Samuel Cranston. He learned a trade at an early age, and at seventeen opened a store in New Bedford, Massachusetts, where he remained a few years, and then returned to Newport to engage in the commission business, in which he continued with success until 1815. About this time his attention was turned to the study of law, and in due time he was admitted to the bar. He pursued his profession in his native city, where he acquired a lucrative practice. From 1818 to 1833 he held the office of Clerk of the Court of Common Pleas; was a member of the House of Representatives from 1827 to 1843, and served several years in the same capacity from 1847 to 1854, being frequently chosen Speaker. During the trou- blous times of 1842, Mr. Cranston was a stanch advocate of law and order. From 1843 to 1847 he was a Repre- sentative in Congress, where he was "distinguished for his urbanity, integrity and industry." He was a member and Vice-President of the Convention which framed the Constitution of the State of Rhode Island, and presided over a great part of the deliberations of that body. For many years he was Moderator of all the town meetings of Newport, and for a long time was Colonel of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery of that city. He married, July 15, 1813, Mary, daughter of Nathan and Catharine Ham- mett, of Newport. She was born August 2, 1784, and died November 24, 1857. Their children were Elizabeth Young, Narcissa Young, William Henry, who died in in- fancy, William Henry, who was for nine years Mayor of Newport, and died October 10, 1871, Catharine, and Julia Ann, of whom only the two last-named are living. Mr. Cranston died in Newport, February 12, 1864, aged sev- enty-four years. The confidence reposed in him by the community was attested by the various trusts committed to his care. He was a self-made man, and in appearance, costume, and manner, a true gentleman of the old school. At the time of his death, one of the Newport papers said of him : " Possessed of great frankness, strict integrity, perfect gentility of manners, ever ready to aid and accom- modate all those who sought his kindness, he made friends of all who thus knew him."

ILES, REV. SAMUEL, oldest child of Nathaniel and Sarah (Sands) Niles, was born on Block Island, May 1, 1674. He was the first graduate of Harvard College from Rhode Island, taking his diploma in 1699. Immediately after graduation he settled as a minister on his native island, where he con-

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tinucd two years. From 1702 to 1710 he prcached in Kingstown. His formal ordination occurred in Braintree, Mass., in 1711. IIis first wife was a daughter of Peter Thacher, of Milton, Mass., whom he married in 1716. He married his second wife, Ann Coddington, in 1732. His chief writings were A Brief and Sorrowful Account of the Churches in New England, published in 1745; A Vindication of Diverse Important Doctrines of Scrip- ture, issued in 1752; Scripture Doctrines of Original Sin, written in 1757; History of the French and Indian Wars, written in 1760, and afterwards published in the Third Series of Massachusetts Historical Collections, Vol. VI. In his latter years Mr. Niles returned to Rhode Island and became " pastor of a church in Charlestown composed chiefly of Indians." This was the so-called Indian church, made up largely of the Niantics, and was a fruit of the Great Revival. The church still maintains its visibility. Mr. Niles was understood to be a Prcsbyte- rian, but assumed some latitude of practice, as this last church has always been counted among the Baptists. His son, Hon. Samuel Niles, became distinguished in Brain- tree, Mass. Rev. Samuel Niles, of Abington, Mass., was his grandson. Of this family was Hon. Nathaniel Niles, born in South Kingstown in 1741, who was a Judge, a member of Congress, and the author of " The American Hero," a popular war song of the Revolution.

ENCKES, DANIEL, Merchant, son of Rev. Ebenezer Jenckes, was born in 1710. His father was an associate pastor of Rev. James Brown, in the First Baptist Church in Providence. He early embarked in business, and became a man of wealth, and of distinction on account of the civil offices which he held. For forty years he was a member of the Rhode Island General Assembly, and for thirty years Chief Justice of the County Court. His name appears prominent in the transactions of the General Assembly during the exciting times which preceded the Revolutionary War. At a special meeting of the body in the summer of 1764, called to take action with reference to the " Sugar" and " Stamp" Acts, he was chosen a committee, with Governor Hopkins and Nicholas Brown, to remonstrate with the English govern- ment against these acts. Also, at the session of the Gene- ral Assembly, in 1765, he was on a committee which, while it declared the sentiments of loyalty which it felt for the King and the Parliament, was authorized to announce to the British authorities that the people of Rhode Island meant " to assert their rights and privileges with becoming freedom and spirit." Mr. Jenckes was, from the outset, mainly interested in the establishment of the new College in Rhode Island. Hc was present at the first mecting of the corporation held in Newport, the first Wednesday in September, 1764, where he, with twenty-three others, quali-

ficd themselves by taking the oath prescribed by the char- ter. In that charter he, therefore, took a special interest. In July of 1763, there had been a meeting in Newport of Baptist gentlemen, called by President Manning, to take into consideration the desirablencss of starting a literary institute of a high character in Rhode Island, which should be subject to the Baptists, and at the same time should allow gentlemen of other denominations to become mem- bers of the corporation. The proposition being favorably en- tertained, Hon. Josias Lyndon and Colonel Job Bennet were requested to draw up a charter to be laid before the Gen- eral Assembly, accompanied with a petition that it pass into a law. These gentlemen, urging that they hardly had the proper skill to draw up such a charter, suggested that the matter be placed in the hands of Rev. Ezra Stiles, an ac- complished scholar and a leading Congregational minister of Newport. Accordingly, Mr. Stiles drew up a charter. When it was brought before the Assembly for action, Mr. Jenckes protested against the immediate taking of the vote on the passage of the bill granting the charter, which was strongly urged by some of the members. In listening to the reading of the instrument, it seemed to him that the governing power was not to be with the Baptists, as was originally contemplated, but placed in the hands of the " Fellows" of the corporation, a majority of whom were not Baptists. The needed alteration was made, and in February, 1764, the charter, as it now stands, was granted. Judge Jenckes was a trustee of the College from 1764 until his death, ten years later. He was a liberal contributor towards the erection of the meeting-house of the First Baptist Church. One purpose for building so spacious and elegant a church being, that there might be a suitable place " to hold commencements in." He also gave liber- ally towards the erection of " University Hall." He was a member of the First Baptist Church for forty-eight years. The record speaks of his relation extending through this long period " without censure." The wife of Judge Jenckes, whom he married May 10, 1724, was Joanna Scott, a daughter of Richard Scott, who came to this country in 1638, and was one of the thirteen original proprietors of Providence. They had several children, among whom was Rhoda, their fifth daughter, who married, May 2, 1762, Nicholas Brown, the eldest of the " Four Brothers," and the father of Hon. Nicholas Brown, from whom the University takes its name,

REENE, GOVERNOR WILLIAM, Second, son of Gov- ernor William and Catharine Greene, was born in Warwick, August 16, 1731. When he had passed his majority a few months, he was admitted a free- man of the colony, in May, 1753. Twenty years later he was Deputy from Warwick, and was re-elected in 1774, '76, and '77. In August, 1776, he was chosen First Associate Justice in the Superior Court, the Chief Justice

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being Hon. Metcalf Bowler. The enemy having taken possession of Rhode Island, he was appointed, December 10, 1776, one of the Council of War. The following May he was elected Speaker of the House, and in October of the same year, was appointed, a second time, one of the Council of War. In February, 1778, he was chosen Chief Justice of the Superior Court, and in May, he was chosen Governor of the State, to succeed Governor Nicholas Cooke. Jabez Bowen was at the same time elected Deputy-Governor. "It illustrates," says Governor Arnold, "the simple manners, as well as the physical vigor of the men of Revolutionary times, that Governor Greene, although possessed of an ample fortune, was accustomed, two or three times a week, during the sessions of the Assembly, at Providence, to walk up from Warwick, or we might say from Greenwich, as he resided on the dividing line of the two towns, and home again in the afternoon." The post of Governor was filled by him for eight years-1778-86. They were among the most eventful years in American history, and the office of governor was anything but a sinecure. The correspondence which Governor Greene carried on with different persons during this stirring period may be found, in part, in Vol. V. of the Collections of the Rhode Island Historical Society, in Vols. VII., VIII., and IX. of Rhode Island Colonial Records, and in Staples's Rhode Island in the Continental Congress, edited by Dr. Reuben A. Guild, Librarian of Brown University. "All this correspondence," says Dr. H. E. Turner, " is charac- terized by unwavering patriotism and by eminent ability. The bow, constantly strung during that trying period, never relaxed; how trying, we can hardly now conceive." "The most vivid imagination can hardly form an adequate pic- ture of the distresses of the people, all of which must of necessity have constantly wrung the heart of him to whom, as head of the government, all looked for succor. Calm, strong, immovable, he passed through that cruel ordeal with a reputation for wisdom and integrity accorded to but few men, even in that period of exceptional superi- ority." After retiring from public life, he continued to reside in Warwick, where he died November 29, 1809. His wife was Catharine, daughter of Simon and Deborah (Greene) Ray, of Block Island. Their children were Ray, who married Mary M., daughter of George Flagg, Esq., of Charleston, S. C .; Samuel, who married Mary, daughter of Colonel Joseph Nightingale, of Providence; Phœbe, who married Colonel Samuel Ward, son of Governor Ward; and Celia, who married Colonel William Greene, her cousin.

BRADFORD, HON. WILLIAM, a Senator of the United States, son of Samuel Bradford, was born in Plympton, Plymouth County, Massachusetts, in November, 1729. His early-developed tastes in- clined him to the study of medicine, which he pur-

sued under the tuition of Dr. Ezekiel Hersey, of Hingham, Massachusetts, distinguished as a generous benefactor of Harvard College. Having completed his preparatory studies, he commenced the practice of his profession in Warren, where he was eminently successful, especially as a surgeon. Several years were spent in Warren, and then he removed to Bristol, where he erected an elegant man- sion at Mount Hope. For what appeared to him good reasons, he decided to abandon the profession of medicine, and to enter that of law. After fitting himself for his new vocation, he threw himself, with great enthusiasm, into civil life, and soon acquired distinction both as a lawyer and a politician. When the war of the Revolution com- menced, he was a prominent member of the Committee of Correspondence, and a warm, devoted friend of his country. During the evening of October 7, 1775, the village of Bristol was cannonaded by the British vessels of war, the Rose, Glasgow, and Siren. Mr. Bradford risked his life by going on board the Rose, on behalf of the inhabitants, and Captain Wallace was induced to put a stop to the bombardment. In this conflagration his own house was burned. From November, 1775, to May, 1778, he was Deputy-Governor of the State. For many years he was Speaker of the General Assembly. He was elected a Senator to Congress in 1792. He did not long hold the position, but resigned to return to the coveted retirement and quiet comfort of his pleasant home in Bristol. Gov- ernor Bradford was a lineal descendant in the fourth gen- eration from Governor William Bradford, the second gov- ernor of the Plymouth colony. He married, in 1751, Mary Le Baron, of Plymouth. She died October 2, 1775. He lived a widower thirty-three years. One of his sons, the eldest, Major William Bradford, was Aid to General Charles Lee of the army. Governor Bradford was a Trustee of Brown University from 1785 to his death. He died July 6, 1808. He was the possessor of an independ- ent fortune, acquired by industry and economy, a portion of which he was always ready to share with the needy and the destitute. It was his practice, for many years, to place in the hands of his clergyman a liberal sum, which he was authorized to distribute among the poor, at his discretion. His habits were simple, and to his temperance and mod- eration in the enjoyment of the good things of life, was due the long life to which he attained.

ZOMER, REV. JOHN, the eldest son of John and Mary Comer, was born in Boston, August 1, 1704. GUT When he was but two years of age he lost his father, who died at Charleston, S. C., being on his way to England to visit his relatives there. The child was thus left to the care of a widowed mother and his grandfather of the same name. He early manifested a devout spirit, and an earnest love of books. By his grand-

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father's direction, who acted as his guardian, he was bound as an apprentice for seven years to learn the glover's trade. For two years hc yielded to the wishes of his guardian, but his heart was not in his work. The only complaints his master made of him was that he " read too much for his business." In his diary, written when he was but fifteen years of age, lie inade at the close of the year this entry : " This year I composed a set Discourse from Eccles. xii. I-Remember thy Creator, etc." It is clear that he thought more of preaching than he did of making gloves. The celebrated Rev. Dr. Increase Mather became so much interested in this promising youth, that he persuaded his grandfather to obtain his release from his employer, and he was placed at his studies, which he pursued partly at Cambridge and partly at Yale College. Ill-healtlı pre- vented him from taking such a course as would have se- cured for him a Bachelor's Degree. While in Cambridge he became a member of the Congregational Church, but subsequently changed his sentiments, and joined the First Baptist Church in Boston. He began to preach in 1725, and after supplying the pulpit of the venerable Baptist Church in Swanzey, Mass., for a short time, he was in- vited to become co-pastor of the First Baptist Church in Newport, the pastor being Rev. William Peckham. He accepted the call, and was ordained May 19, 1726, being then not quite twenty-two years of age. " He entered," says Rev. Mr. Barrow, in his Historical Discourse, " into his work with all the ardor of youth, and gave a decided impetus to the church life. Singing, which seems to have fallen into disuse, was reintroduced into the public wor- ship." The records of the church also were kept with regularity, and much material was gathered up by the youthful pastor, which was to be of great service to future compilers. At length, after having been the pastor of the Church more than two years, his mind was directed to a subject, which in those early colonial times was one of much discussion, namely, the doctrine of the "laying on of hands;" and he came to the conclusion that the rite was as much enjoined, and was of the same perpetual obligation, as the rites of Baptism and the Lord's Supper. Having preached on the subject in November, 1778, the strong position which he took offended some of his members, who opposed their pastor's determination to enforce the observance of the ceremony referred to, and the result was that he felt it his duty to resign, and was accordingly dis- missed in January, 1729. For two years he supplied the pulpit of the Second Baptist Church, which more nearly sympathized with him in his views. Subsequently, and for a short time, he was pastor of a " Six Principle Baptist Church " in Rehoboth. IIe died May 23, 1734. Mr. Comer was a most careful and industrious collector of facts connected with the history of the Baptist denomination in this country, which have been utilized by historians of a later date. During his brief ministry of only nine years, he reached a commendable rank as an industrious, zealous,

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The Biographical cyclopedia of representative men of Rhode Island, Part 24

Author: National biographical publishing co., pub Publication date: 1881 Publisher: Providence, National biographical publishing co. Number of Pages: 868

Author: National biographical publishing co., pub
Publication date: 1881
Publisher: Providence, National biographical publishing co.
Number of Pages: 868