USA > South Carolina > History of South Carolina > Part 65
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In November he was made a squadron commander and sent to the American front to take command of and organize a squadron at Colombey-La-Belle. When the armistice was signed he was ordered to Vendee as instructor of aerial gunnery at the American school at St. Jean. As soon as demob- ilization began he was ordered home and mustered out of service with the designation of military aviator as noted above. He was credited by the American War Department with having destroyed eleven German planes and ranks as the third living American ace.
The Prince of Wales, on his visit to this country
in November, 1919, bestowed upon Captain Springs the Distinguished Flying Cross which had been awarded him for service at the front. He was also awarded the special war medal of the Aero Club of America in recognition of his services abroad.
Captain Springs has kept in touch with flying and was a contestant in the New York-Toronto air- plane race in August, 1910. He was prevented from finishing the race by crashing into a corn field near Buffalo.
Since his return Captain Springs has been as- sociated with his father in the cotton manufacturing business in South Carolina. He has been secretary and treasurer of the Kershaw Cotton Mills and assistant treasurer of the Lancaster Cotton Mills, after having spent some time in the mills them- selves, learning the business from the standpoint of a technical worker.
For all his distinguished service abroad for his country, Captain Springs upon his return to his state was impressed into the service of the Victory Loan Campaign Committee much against his will. The modest soldier reluctantly consented to take part in the drive, but he proved to be one of the most potent factors in making a success of that campaign, and South Carolina went over the top, her record of patriotism and of unselfishness se- cure in her contribution of men and of resources to the winning of the war.
JOHN FLETCHER MAULDIN. A family name long identified and prominent in South Carolina is that of Mauldin, one of whose capable representatives in Anderson County is John Fletcher Mauldin, whose enterprise has brought him prominence as one of the leading farmers of that locality.
Mr. Mauldin was born in Anderson County Octo- ber 15, 1868, a son of Benjamin Franklin and Martha ( Elrod) Mauldin. His father was a native of An- derson County, a son of Rucker N. and Katy ( West- brooks) Mauldin, the former a native of Virginia. The grandfather was both a farmer and Methodist minister. Benjamin Franklin Mauldin served in the Confederate army for four years, and aside from that experience gave his time and energies chiefly to farming. He lived to the age of seventy-five and his widow is still surviving at the age of eighty. They were the parents of five children: Belle. widow of L. J. Smith; Sallie, deceased wife of WV. A. Cason: John F .; Annie, wife of James M. Long : and William Samuel Mauldin.
John Fletcher Mauldin grew up on a farm and remained at home to the age of twenty-four. He acquired a common school education, and from young manhood has depended upon hard work and has benefited by each year's experience. His farm, acknowledged as one of the best in Anderson County, comprises 300 acres. He also operates a cotton gin and is one of the busy men of his commu- nity.
Mr. Mauldin married Miss Marietta Wilson, a daughter of W. M. Wilson of Anderson Countv. They are members of the Baptist Church and he is a master Mason.
IUDGE THEODORE A. BECKETT. This biographical review has to do with a character of unusual force, for Judge Theodore A. Beckett has for many years
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been one of the best known and most popular citi- zens of the Johns Island neighborhood, having come from one of the oldest and best-known pioneer fam- ilies of South Carolina, while he himself has assisted in many ways in advancing the interests of the com- munity with which his life has been identified. While he has carried on a special vocation in such a man- ner as to gain a comfortable competency for him- self, he has belonged to that class of representative citizens who promote the public welfare while ad- vancing individual success. He possesses sterling traits which have commanded uniform confidence and regard and he is beloved by a host of warm and loyal friends.
Theodore A. Beckett was born in Marion County, Florida, on July 15, 1855, and is the son of Edward M. and Sarah Love (Royall) Beckett, the former a native of Johns Island and the latter of James Island. The subject's paternal grandfather was William Beckett, a native of Edisto Island, and whose father was born in England. The subject's mother was a daughter of Crosskeys Royall, a native of James Island and of Irish and French descent. Edward M. and Sarah Beckett are both deceased, the former passing away at the age of seventy-six and the latter at the age of eighty-four. They were the parents of nine children, of whom seven are living and of which number the subject is the third in order of birth.
Theodore A. Beckett remained in Florida until thirteen years of age, when he came to Charleston and for five years pursued his education in the pri- vate schools. In 1873 he returned to Florida and engaged in the orange trade, in which he was suc- cessful. In 1880 he came back to South Carolina and entered upon the cultivation of a tract of land on Johns Island. This has been his home since that time and the judge has always maintained it at a high state of fertility.
In 1885 Judge Beckett was elected a member of the Board of County Commissioners, holding the office two years. During the following two years he served as trial justice and then was again elected a member of the Board of Commissioners. In 1888 he was appointed hy Governor John P. Richardson a magistrate and has discharged the duties of this important position continually from that time to the present, a period of over thirty years. During his incumbency of this office he has so discharged his official duties in such a manner as to win the approba- tion of all and today nonie is more popular in his home community than he.
On August 31, 1877, Judge Theodore A. Beckett was married to Margaret Elizabeth McClung, the daughter of C. B. McClung, of Rockbridge, Virginia. To Judge and Mrs. Beckett have been born eleven children, nine of whom are living. namely: Edith M., Anna Elizabeth, Edward M., Theodore A., Jr., Moffett M., Mary P., Seymour, Alice Wescott. Lydia Walpole; those deceased are, William Royall and Thomas F.
JOHN BELTON WATSON, throughout his life was a resident of Anderson County. He became known over the state through his services as a legislator, but in the main was quietly devoted to his farm and home, and while his activities were not therefore
widespread they were none the less important and valuable.
He was born March 1, 1853, and died at h. · - try home four miles north of the City of 1 :! !
July 10, 1915, in his sixty-third year. Hl: ow. was in keeping with his sturdy and Ingh nan .! cestry. He was a son of David M. and ( Burriss) Watson. His mother was born : .: D. son County, a daugliter of Rev. Jacob litr: . vid Mf. Watson was a son of David M. Ba! Mirs (Gary) Watson, and both the David M. V .... . , were natives of Anderson County. The gicaat .. ta . .. father, Jonathan Watson, was born in Viga of a native Irishman who settled in the Way commonwealth. Jonathan Watson was a Re. : . tionary soldier and one of the carly settlers of .\ ... derson County in South Carolina. Mary Gary V. a. son was born in Newberry County, South ( ... lina, a daughter of John Gary, a native of Virg :.... granddaughter of Thomas Gary, a native of t . same state and of Irish lineage, and likewise a kes»- lutionary patriot. David M. Watson, Jr., served !! the Confederate ariny, was a farmer by occupation, and died in 1872.
Jolin Belton Watson was nineteen years old when his father died. He soon afterward left Ligon's Academy in Anderson, where he completed his eda- cation, and took the active management of the old homestead. After that continuously he gave luis best energies to farming.
December 22, 1874, he married Miss Hivzie H. Allen. She died March 20, 1887, the mother of Wade A., J. Earle, M. Amna and Fritz N. On Apal 25, 1888, Mr. Watson married Miss Martha Jane Britt. They had one son, David J., a graduate of Clemson College in 1915 and is now with 1.15 mother on the old homstead, known as "Cross Roads." This farm, formerly the property of thr late Elias Earle, was acquired by Mr. Watson soon after his first marriage. He not only maintained atul developed it to the highest standards of pro luctive. ness, but acquired much additional farming land and in every sense was a progressive in agriculture. He was thoroughly a business man, and it was his pub- lic spirit that led him to consent to public service. He was elected a member of the State Legislature in the years 1884, 1892, 1804. 1908, and 1910. Hle im- pressed his careful thought and ability upon nut: - h of the Legislature in these widely separated permet !s He was a Royal Arch Mason and throughout In manhood was a member and generous supporter of the Salem Baptist Church.
G, H. W. BRUGGEMANN. A review of the life of the subject of this review must of necessit !. 1: and general in its character. To enter tolly i.to the interesting details of the career of G. H. W. Bruggemann, touching the struggles of his early manhood and successes of later days, would iar transcend the limits of this article. He fills a large place in the ranks of the enterprising and public. spirited men of today and his record forms 10 in- considerable chapter in the history of his chosen city, where he has worked and achieved success. But sufficient is submitted to prove him entitled to the honorable position hie occupies among the self-
Henry Carlton
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made men of South Carolina. By enterprise and unswerving integrity he has forged to the front and earned the enviable position he now enjoys in the esteem of all who know him.
G. H. W. Bruggemann, proprietor of the River- side Iron Works, Charleston, was born in Augusta, Georgia, on September 27, 1863, remaining in his native city until about eighteen years of age. He received his education in the public schools of Angusta, but when but little past thirteen years of age he laid aside his textbooks and started in to make his own way. He was apprenticed to learn the trade of a machinist in the shops of the Georgia Railway, where he served three years and seven months. After completing his apprenticeship he went to Savannah and entered the employ of the Plant System, now known as the Atlantic Coast Line, with which he remained about ten months. In 1881 Mr. Bruggemann came to Charleston and en- tered the employ of Miller & Kelly. At the age of twenty years he was made foreman of their machine shop, a splendid tribute both to his technical knowl- edge of his trade and to his character. After filling that position three years, Mr. Bruggemann became superintendent of the Palmetto Mines, which he operated for three years, when he became superin- tendent for the Peter B. & Robert S. Bradley Bulow Mines. In 1899 he resigned that position and estab- lished the Riverside Iron Works, a stock company, of which he became secretary, treasurer and man- ager, the president being R. H. Lockwood. The Riverside Iron Works was prosperous from the in- ception of the enterprise and for many years . has been numbered among the important industrial con- cerns of Charleston. On October 12, 1909, Mr. Bruggemann bought the interests of Mr. Lockwood in the company and has since that time remained sole owner of the concern. The wonderful success which has characterized Mr. Bruggemann's efforts in the industrial and business world have demonstrated in no uncertain manner that he is the possessor of executive and administrative qualities of a high order, and that his business affairs have been con- ducted on a high plane and in accordance with the finest of business ethics.
In February, 1882, Mr. Bruggemann was married to Martha J. Robinson, the daughter of B. E. Robin- son. This union has been blessed in the birth of the following children: Eugenia Cleo, Estel Theo- dore. George Frederick, Lena Marie and Mary Equilla (twins), Francis Harold and G. H. W., Jr.
Fraternally Mr. Bruggemann is a member of Land- marks Lodge, No. 76, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, and his religious faith is that of the Lutheran Church, with which he is identified. A man of genial and unassuming disposition, he has easily made friends, who are held by the strongest of ties, for he possesses to a notable degree those qualities which commend him to the esteem and re- gard of men. He has unreservedly given his sup- port at all times to such movements as have prom- ised to advance the best interests of the community and has for many years been numbered among the representative men of Charleston.
LEGRAND G. WALKER, who recently rounded out a quarter of a century of service in the State Senate of South Carolina, is a prominent Georgetown law-
yer and has gained enviable success in his profession and in public affairs.
He was born at Georgetown January 28, 1850, of English descent and a son of Hasford and Mary E. ( Allen) Walker. He attended high school at Marion, and in 1872 graduated from Princeton Uni- versity of New Jersey. After studying law under Judge A. J. Shaw at Marion he was admitted to the bar June 18, 1873, and with the exception of a few years spent in teaching has been practicing steadily at Georgetown ever since. In his profes- sion he has represented the Atlantic Coast Lumber Corporation continuously as counsel since 1891. Senator Walker is also attorney for the Planters Fertilizer & Oil Company and for the Georgetown Land & Homeseekers Land Company.
Colonel Walker was first elected a member of the State Senate from Georgetown County in 1894, and his continuous service in that body constitutes al- most a unique record in the legislative history of the state. His influence and prestige have steadily grown and his experience has enabled him to give effective counsel to the Legislature in many vital problems.
In December, 1873. Colonel Walker married Miss Kate T. Kelley, daughter of Rev. J. W. Kelley of Marion. On May 8, 1901, he married Mrs. Julia T. Hayes of Morganton, North Carolina.
HENRY ASIUIEIGH MOOD, M. D. A physician and surgeon at Sumter his work has brought him in- creasing recognition and prestige during the last thirteen years, Dr. Henry A Mood is a former president of the Sumter County Medical Society and was a member of the District Medical Advisory Board during the late war.
He is a son of Dr. Julius A. and Janie (Brogdon) Mood, his father a Sumter physician whose career has been reviewed elsewhere. The son was born at Sumter February 12, 1884, was educated in the public schools, in Clemson College and graduated in 1006 from the Medical College of Virginia. Since then he has been busily engaged in a general medical and surgical practice. He is a member of the Sumter County, State and American Medical associations.
April 28. 1008, he married Margaret Ethel Cobb of Jacksonville, Florida. They have three children, Preston Maurice, Norwood Cobb and Henry Ash- leigh, Jr.
HENRY CARLTON. The gentleman whose life his- tory is here taken under consideration is one of the strong, sturdy characters who has contributed largely to the material welfare of the community where he lives, being a business man of more than ordinary foresight and sagacity, and as a citizen, public-spirited and progressive in all that the term implies, heing ranked as one of the leaders in farm- ing and business circles of South Carolina, and yet a plain, unassuming, straightforward gentleman whom to know is to admire and respect.
Henry Carlton was born in Saratoga County. New York, on November 1, 1873, and is a son of Henry Carlton. Sr., who was a farmer and hotel proprietor. His wife, who had horne the maiden name of Mar- tha Rogers, was also a native of that locality. She became the mother of four children, three sons and a daughter, of whom the subject of this review is
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the youngest. His boyhood days were spent under the parental roof and he secured a good practical education in the neighborhood schools and in the high school at Stillwater, supplementing this by a course in the Troy Business College. At the age of eigliteen years he started for himself in the produce business in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in which he met with pronounced success, so that in: 1912 he was encouraged to brauch out on a larger scale. He was instrumental in the organization of the Carlton-Moon Company, produce commission merchants, in 1912, and in the following year he organized the A. C. Fruit Company at Font Valley, Georgia, his attention having for some time been fixed on the South as a field for profitable fruit and truck growing. This company immediately set out 300 acres. Their operations here have been success- ful to the highest degree and today they are con- sidered one of the leading planting concerns in this section of the South. In 1900 Mr. Carlton planted some 750 acres of trucking, of which 535 acres are devoted to potatoes. The Carlton interests control 1,000 acres of fine cultivable land, practically all of which is devoted to the raising of produce for the market and to fruit growing. Their shipments of produce are enormous, embracing practically all of the large cities, and they enjoy an enviable repu- tation because of their business methods and square dealing. Mr. Carlton is the moving spirit in these enterprises and is considered a man of keen judg- ment and shrewd foresight. He is also interested in a number of other corporations and business in- terests, among which is the Argyle Hotel at Charles- ton.
In 1900 Henry Carlton was married to Anna May Erb, a native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. No children have been born to this union. Mr. Carlton is an appreciative member of the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, the Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine and the Benevolent and Pro- tective Order of Elks at Charleston. Because of his many fine personal qualities and his genial disposition Mr. Carhon has a host of warm and loyal personal friends.
LEE EUGENE KNIGHT, owner of a fine farm in Hopewell Township of Anderson County, is member of a family that deserves special representation in this publication.
He is a son of the late Dr. John Gambrell Knight, one of the most useful men who ever lived in Ander- son County. He was born in Laurens County and died in Anderson County September 4, 1886, at the age of sixty-one. Doctor Knight, who was a son of James and Katy Knight, grew up on his father's farm in Laurens County, and in early life taught school and later graduated in medicine. He was practicing at Williamston when the war between the states broke out, and served throughout as a sur- geon with the Confederate army. At the close of the war he returned to Williamston to resume his private practice, and soon afterward spent a year in Texas, where prospects did not please him and he then returned to Anderson County. After that he lived on a farm in Hopewell Township and combined the cultivation of his acres and a steadily growing country practice. On account of failing health he gave up his practice the last few years of his life.
He suffered from heart trouble and that was the cause of his death.
Doctor Knight married Mary Parks Mclain, who survives him and makes her home with her son Lee Eugene. She was the mother of three sous : James McLain, a resident of Atlanta, Geotgn; John Wister and Lee Eugene, both farmers in 11 ge- well Township. Doctor Knight and wife were united with the Baptist Church, and he was also affiliated with the Masonic Order.
Lee Eugene Knight was born on his father's farms in Hopewell Township June 15, 1873. Ile acquired a common school education, and for many yea past has cultivated the paternal acres. He has also served eight years as chairman of the local schont board, and is affiliated with the Masonic Order, the Improved Order of Red Men and the Woodmch of the World.
In 1868 he married Miss Mary Othella Burgess. Their happy union was continued for nearly twenty years, until Mrs. Knight was taken away from her family by death March 18, 1917. She was the mother of the following children: Ruby Lee, Grace McLain, Edith Sue, James Glenn, Leon Eugene, Lucia Othella and Mary Beatrice.
FITZ HUGH MCMASTER, city editor of The State, son of George Hunter and Mary Flenniken MeMas- ter was born in Winnsboro, South Carolina, July 22, 1867. He received his early education at Mt. Zion Academy. He graduated from the University of South Carolina with the degree of A. B., in ISS's, and with the degree LL. B. in 1889. He was vale- dictorian of his class in 1888. After practicing law in Columbia as a partner of Francis Il. Weston he engaged in newspaper work. For eight years he was business manager of The Evening Post, Charleston, South Carolina, and during that time represented that county in the Legislature. Ile be- came connected with The State in 1903 and was elected the first insurance commissioner of South Carolina in 1908. This office he held for ten years, resigning in 1918 to take his present position.
In 1910 he established the "MeMaster Medal" which has been awarded several times by the Uni- versity of South Carolina to alumni of that insti- tution of "distinguished service to mankind." For several years he was a member of the South Caro- lina historical commission and is now a member of the personal staff of Governor Cooper. During the World war he was chairman of the Columbia Chap- ter of the American Red Cross, which did mest excellent service to the soldiers and during the in- fluenza epidemic in 1918. Later he was chairman of the Salvation Army campaign and was very active in all war relief measures.
He is a director and member of the finance com- mittee of the Palmetto National Bank, and a director of the Homestead Bank. For several years he has been a ruling elder of the First Presbyterian Church of Columbia. He is a member of the Sons of the Revolution and of the Sons of Confederate Veterans and of several fraternal orders. On November 2, 1892, he married Miss Elizabeth Waring of Colum- bia, South Carolina.
G. DOUGLAS OSWALD. The name of G. Douglas Oswald, of James Island, is certainly entitled to special mention in a compendium of the nature of
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the one in hand, for he has long been one of the influential citizens of his community. A man of forceful individuality and marked initiative power, he has been well equipped for the duties of citizen- ship, while his probity of character and his genial personality have gained for him universal esteem and friendship in the locality where he has spent the major portion of his active and useful life.
G. Douglas Oswald, who today probably ranks as one of the leading producers of the famous sea island cotton, was born in the State of Georgia on the 7th of August, 1863. His father, Robert Os- wald, and his grandfather, also named Robert, were both born, reared and lived in Beaufort, South Carolina, and the family .is of direct Scottish de- scent and sprang from the same stock as Lord Don- ald McGill Oswald and the late Colonel Washing- ton Oswald of Walterboro, South Carolina. The subject's mother, whose maiden name was Anna Lawton, was the daughter of Robert Lawton, of Georgia, though of English descent. Of the ten children born to Robert and Anna Oswald, the sub- ject of this sketch is the sixth in order of birth. He was reared in South Carolina and secured his education in the public schools of Charleston and in Porter Military Academy. While still in his teens he began working on the plantation of E. M. Clark as an assistant to the owner, but in a few years he was placed in general charge of the entire farm, in which he was eminently successful, exhibiting ad- ministrative qualites of the highest order. His ex- perience also revealed to Mr. Oswald the possibili- ties in the business for a man willing to hustle, and a few years later he bought the farm from MIr. Clark and has since operated it on his own ac- count. He has about two hundred aeres under cuiti- vation and so manages his crops and handles the soil as to conserve its fertility. For several years Mr. Oswald has specialized in the raising of sea island cotton, for which there is always a steady demand, and in this particular line he has earned a reputation that extends far beyond his home community. His 1918 crop comprised 375 pounds per acre of lint, which was one of the largest erops ever picked on his place.
In ISSo G. Douglas Oswald was married to Flor- ence Davis, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. William C. Davis, of Beaufort, South Carolina. To them have been born six children, namely: Alma Louise, wife of Keff A. Smith, of Memphis, Tennessee ; George D., Jr .: Sara D .; Robert D .; Caroline Walter and Florence Ruth. Mr. Oswald has been township commissioner and also school trustee of James Island for many years.
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