USA > Tennessee > A history of Tennessee and Tennesseans, the leaders and representative men in commerce, industry and modern activities, Volume V > Part 17
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In September, 1874, Mr. MeGlothlin was married to Miss M. C. West, daughter of David and Mary (Wright) West, natives of Robertson, Tennessee, where they spent their lives in agricultural pursuits. Mr. and Mrs. McGlothlin are members of the Methodist Episcopal church. He is a Master and Royal Arch Mason and a Democrat in politics.
JAMES THOMAS BASKERVILLE. Prominent among the legal talent of Sumner county. Tennessee, is James T. Baskerville, of Gallatin, a former
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state senator from this district, who is not only one of the best lawyers of Gallatin but is of high standing as a citizen and business man. He springs from Revolutionary ancestry on the paternal side and is of Irish lineage by maternal descent, and both the Baskervilles and his mother's people, the McGlothlins, are numbered among the oldest and most re- spected connections of Sumner county, the former having been established here as early as 1801. The Revolutionary ancestor referred to was Rich- ard Baskerville, the great-grandfather of James T., who fought in the Revolution as a Virginia patriot and whose son, Thomas, born in the Old Dominion state, came to Tennessee as a settler in 1801. Thomas located on a farm in Sumner county, where he spent his remaining years as an agriculturist. His son, Abner, the father of James T., was born in Sumner county, Tennessee, in 1838 and is yet living. As a loyal soldier of the South he served the cause of the Confederacy during the Civil war as a member of the Thirtieth Tennessee Regiment and partici- pated in all of the principal engagements in Tennessee up to and includ- ing the battle of Chickamauga, where he was severely wounded. He was detained in the hospital several months but upon his discharge was un- able for further military service and returned to his home in Sumner county. He took up farming as his vocation, and in later years has filled different public offices of responsibility, having served as tax asses- sor of Sumner county from 1892 to 1896, and as a county trustee from 1900 to 1906. In political affairs he has always been a stanch adherent of the Democratic party, and in church membership he is identified with the Christian denomination. He owns a good farm in this county and now devotes all of his time to its management. In this county he wedded Nancy J. McGlothlin, who was born in Sumner county in 1840 and passed away at the old homestead here in 1907, a devoted member of the Metho- dist Episcopal church, South. Her father was James McGlothlin, an early settler of Sumner county, who continued his residence here until his death. His father, Joseph, immigrated to this country from Ireland. Of the children born to Abner and Nancy (McGlothlin) Baskerville, five are living and are as follows: James T., of this review; R. H., a Sumner county farmer ; J. A., a bookkeeper in the comptroller's office at Nashville, Tennessee; Sallie, who is a teacher and resides at Portland, Tennessee ; and J. E., who also is a resident at Portland, Tennessee.
James T. Baskerville was educated in the common schools of Sumner county and in the Franklin training school, Franklin, Kentucky, and was prepared for law at Cumberland University, Lebanon, Tennessee, where he was graduated in 1896. Shortly thereafter he began the active practice of his chosen profession at Gallatin, where he rose rapidly at the bar and now stands at the fore among the best legal talent of Sumner county. He has a large clientage and is admitted to practice in all the courts of the state, his success being the reward of merit and untiring effort to make his professional efficiency that of the highest order. He
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has been city attorney of Gallatin eight years. Like his father, Mr. Baskerville is a stanch Democrat and is one of the strong and influen- tial workers in Sumner county in behalf of his party. He was a member of the state Democratic executive committee 1906-1907. He was his party's successful candidate for the state senate in 1908 and sat in that body in 1909 and 1910, proving an exceptionally energetic and able member during his service. The high appreciation in which he was held by his colleagues was attested by his important committee duties and other responsible distinctions. He was chosen to serve on the judiciary committee, the committee on ways and means, as well as on several other committees, and was made chairman of the committee on constitutional amendment. He is a good business man as well as a good lawyer and holds a number of profitable investments in this vicinity. As a prominent member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows in this state he is now serving as conductor in the Tennessee grand lodge of this order; and through his firm belief in its benevolent principles and his homiletic skill as an expositor of its teachings he has been of much service to the order in making addresses before its different lodges in this state and for years has been frequently called for this service. His religious faith is expressed by membership in the Christian church.
In April, 1901, Mr. Baskerville was happily married to Miss Lua King, a daughter of William H. and Mary E. (Harcourt) King. Mr. King was a native of Mississippi but removed to Sumner county, Tennes- see when a young man and was agent for the Adams Express Company at Gallatin for many years. He passed away in Sumner county .. Mr. and Mrs. Baskerville are the parents of three children, named: Marion, Nancy and Amelia, who are now aged respectively ten, seven and two years.
ROBERT EDWARD SAUNDERS, the well known live stock dealer of Sum- ner county, is one of the prosperous and substantial farmers of that county, where he was born February 14, 1859, a son of H. H. and Eliza- beth M. (Bondurant) Saunders. The birth of H. H. Saunders occurred in the same county in October, 1819, while his wife was born in Davidson county in 1829. H. H. Saunders engaged in agricultural pursuits with much success, becoming the owner of over six hundred acres of land, and he and his brother, William, were the pioneer merchants of Saun- dersville, the former also having served in the Seminole Indian war. Of the eleven children born to him and his wife, four are now living, of whom the subject of this sketch is the sixth in number. Previously a Whig, after the war he became a Democrat, and he and his wife were enthusiastic workers in the Methodist Episcopal church. He died in 1879, she surviving until September, 1906.
One of the first preachers of the Methodist Episcopal denomination in Tennessee, Rev. Herbert Saunders, the paternal grandfather of R. E.
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Saunders, came in 1798 from Culpeper county, Virginia, to Sumner county, Tennessee, where he built the first Methodist Episcopal church in the county-Saunders' chapel. He married a niece of Patrick Henry -Miss Russell, who had seven brothers in the Revolutionary war, one of whom was Robert Russell, a general of note under General Washing- ton. The maternal grandfather of R. E. Saunders, Jacob Bondurant, settled early in Davidson county and engaged in farming, becoming the owner of a large estate and a large slave holder. Rev. Hubbard Saunders was a great lover of fine horses and imported some very val- uable ones from Virginia. He raised Tenn, Oscar, Nell Saunders, and imported from Europe, Wonder, one of the greatest stallions in the South. Rev. Herbert Saunders and wife and also the father and mother of Robert E. Saunders, are buried in the Saunders cemetery on the old Saunders homestead.
After his common school education was completed, R. E. Saunders attended high school, being instructed by Capt. C. S. Douglas, who con- ducted a high school in Hendersonville. Farm life has appealed to Mr. Saunders from the beginning and he has never diverted his attention from this pursuit, being especially interested in live stock. He owns the good farm where he lives and where live also his brothers, W. B., Joseph E. and J. T. Saunders, together with whom he owns the homestead which has been in the family for over one hundred years. He is a heavy trader in all kinds of live stock. A magistrate for twelve years, he has been reelected for six years more, has been a school director for ten or twelve years, is a Democrat in politics, and a Mason, being past master of Saundersville lodge, No. 359. Mr. Saunders has never married.
JAMES W. BLACKMORE. One of the best known and most highly re- spected citizens of Sumner county, Tennessee, is James W. Blackmore, of Gallatin, prominent for years as one of the ablest members of its bar, as one of its leading financiers, and who as soldier and public official has performed that service that gives him recognition among Tennes- see's honored men. He wore the "gray" four years in defense of the southland, and his service in a later period as state senator was marked by the same earnest effort and conscientious devotion to the interests and welfare of his state of Tennessee, while as president of the First National Bank of Gallatin he has long been a dominant factor in the financial circles of Sumner county. The name of Blackmore is a familiar one in Sumner county, for the family was established here more than a century ago and its members have ever maintained the name in high prestige for worth and attainment.
George D. Blackmore, the originator of the family here, born and reared in Maryland, ran away from home as a youth and after serving throughout the Revolution as a member of the patriot army, came to Tennessee. He settled on a farm in Sumner county and continued there
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until his death. He became a well known pioneer of this section, and as a major in the state troops took an active and leading part in driving the Indians from the state. His wife was Elizabeth Neely, a daughter of Capt. Alexander Neely, who was killed by the Indians. The career of William M. Blackmore, their son, and the father of James W. Black- more, of this review, is a part of the Tennessee history of his time. He was born on the Sumner county homestead in February, 1803, was edu- cated here and took up law as his profession, being admitted to the bar along in the '20s. Rising rapidly in his profession, he also became a prominent figure in the Democratic political circles of the state, and served as a member of the state legislature in 1848 and 1849. Previous to this he served as a soldier in the Mexican war, and was captain of Co. I, First Regiment, Tennessee Infantry. He was elected a brigadier of the state militia, and with his command participated in the battles of Mon- terey, Vera Cruz and Cerro Gordo. He was a prominent member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows in this state, was a charter mem- ber of Howard lodge, No. 13, at Gallatin, and at one time served as grand master of the Tennessee grand lodge of this old and honored order. As a lawyer he excelled and for years maintained an extensive practice. He served as attorney general of this district at one time and was a clerk and master in chancery of the Sumner county court at the time of his death in November, 1853. No less able and successful as a financier, he left a large estate at his death. Rachel J. Barry, who became the wife of William M. Blackmore, was born in Sumner county, Tennessee, in June, 1812, and died in her native county in June, 1843, a consistent member of the Presbyterian church, and the mother of three children, of whom James W. Blackmore is now the only survivor. She was the daughter of Redmond D. Barry, who was born near Dublin, Ireland, and was educated in the University of Dublin. As a surgeon he took service in the English navy, but later he resigned on account of his sympathy and friendship for the American colonies, finally deciding to cast his fortunes with them. Locating first in North Carolina, he practiced med- icine there a number of years, but subsequently took up the study of law under the father of John C. Breckenridge, and followed law in Tennessee for the remainder of his life, becoming a very wealthy man for his time. He died in Sumner county in 1821. He was a Catholic in religious faith but he married Jane Alexander, a daughter of William Alexander and a staunch Presbyterian, who reared her children in her own faith.
James W. Blackmore, the youngest child of his parents, was born in Sumner county, Tennessee, March 9, 1843. After pursuing the usual preliminary studies in the public schools of Gallatin he entered Central University, Danville, Kentucky, where he was a student in the sopho- more class when the Civil war broke out. In this struggle he was in sympathy with the South, convincing evidence of which loyalty he gave
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by promptly enlisting in Company I of the Second Tennessee Infantry, with which he remained in service four years to a day. He participated in the first battle of Manassas, Virginia; the battles of Richmond and Perryville, Kentucky; Shiloh, Murfreesboro, Chickamauga, and Mis- sionary Ridge, Tennessee; Dalton, Jonesboro and Atlanta, Georgia; and then served under General Hood to Nashville and on his retreat through Tennessee and into North Carolina, surrendering with the troops at Greensboro, North Carolina, on the day that closed his four years of service.
Resuming his interrupted studies, he completed his literary course and then took up the study of law with Judge Joseph C. Guild as his preceptor, subsequently completing his legal studies in Cumberland University, Lebanon, Tennessee, where he was graduated in law in 1867. On his admission to the bar immediately afterward, he began the prac- tice of law with George B. Guild, continuing this association until 1871, since when Mr. Blackmore has labored independently, his practice exten- ing to all the courts. He has always been a staunch Democrat and has always taken a prominent part in the local political councils of his party. As state senator representing Sumner, Robertson and Trousdale counties, he served in the Tennessee state legislature from 1883 to 1885 and at that time gave efficient service as a member of the bond committee that settled the state debt, serving also as chairman of the railroad committee. As a strong and able lawyer he has long stood among the fore in his pro- fession in Sumner county, and has served as city attorney of Gallatin. He has shown no less strength as a business man and as president of the First National Bank of Gallatin he has directed the affairs of the bank with wisdom, fidelity and great financial ability. He also has heavy boldings in land and city property hereabout and ranks as one of the most substantial men of Sumner county.
In November, 1871, was solemnized the marriage of Mr. Blackmore and Miss Mariah L. Ewing, daughter of William B. Ewing, who was a successful farmer of Davidson county, Tennessee. She was an active and consistent member of the Methodist Episcopal church, South, and died in March, 1896. In 1900 Mr. Blackmore took as his second wife, Miss Lola Ezell, a native of Marshall county, Tennessee, and a daughter of J. B. Ezell, a prominent farmer of that county. Mr. and Mrs. Black- more are both members of the Methodist Episcopal church, South, and Mr. Blackmore has been superintendent of the Sunday school of that denomination in Gallatin since 1877. He is a member of the Beta Theta Phi college fraternity. An able worker in his various avenues of activity, his life and services have been of that character which well entitles him to consideration in this history of Tennessee and Tennesseeans, for in every service he has honored the state that gave him birth.
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MORRIS STRENG WILE. The ability to make a prosperous career from a beginning without capital and with only the resources of personal character has been well displayed in the life of Mr. Wile, who is head of the Gallatin Milling Company and otherwise prominently connected with local business affairs.
Mr. Wile is a native of Sumner county, where he was born August 13, 1868. His parents were L. and Jennie (Streng) Wile. The maternal grandparents were Joseph and Fannie Streng, both of whom were na- tives of Germany, and the former died in Mississippi of the yellow fever in 1878. He spent a number of his years as a merchant. Mr. L. Wile, the father, was born in Germany in 1824, and passed away in 1911. His wife was born in New York state in 1845. The father, coming to America a young man, met and married his wife at Louisville, Kentucky, in 1866. From that city he came to Gallatin, where he was a merchant, running a general store for a number of years. He accumulated a very good estate, although he had some severe business reverses during a portion of his career. Of his two children the only one now living is the Gallatin miller. The family were members of the Jewish faith, and the father was in politics a Democrat. During the Civil war he served as a soldier on the southern side, and from a wound received in service carried a bullet to his grave.
Morris S. Wile attended the common schools at Gallatin as the begin- ning of his education, but when he was thirteen years old his father failed in business, and from that time on he had to make his own way. It was with this handicap that he started in life, and has always been self-sup- porting. Up until he was about twenty-one years of age, he was em- ployed chiefly in his father's store. At that time he began work in a mill, and milling has since been his principal occupation. He finally acquired the majority of the stock in the Gallatin Milling Company. The mill has a capacity of one hundred and fifty barrels of flour per day, is a modern and up-to-date institution, and its products are shipped through- out the state. At the present writing over sixty thousand bushels of wheat are stored ready for the grinding, besides a large amount of corn and other grains, these figures indicating the extent of the business. Mr. Wile is also a stockholder and director in the First National Bank of Gallatin.
He was married in January, 1899, to Bettie Abraham. She is a native of the state of Mississippi, and they are the parents of one child, named Simon A., now nine years old. The family are communicants of the Jewish church, while Mr. Wile is affiliated with the Masons and the Knights of Pythias, being past chancellor commander of the latter order and for some years has taken an active part in the work of the order. In politics he is a Democrat.
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THOMAS Y. CARTER, M. D. All of the efforts of Dr. Thomas Y. Carter are centered in the profession for which nature and education have fitted him-the practice of medicine. This concentration of effort has rendered his skill and ability unusually effective and has resulted in a high degree of efficiency in his work.
Dr. Carter was born in Sumner county, Tennessee, November 22, 1879, the only child of J. A. and Alice (McDole) Carter, both of whom are now living in that county. Born in Virginia in 1848, Dr. Carter's father in his early youth came with his parents to Tennessee, where he has been very successful in his agricultural pursuits. Politically, he is a Democrat, and has served as steward in the Methodist Episcopal church. Dr. Carter's mother was born in Sumner county in 1856.
A Virginian by birth, Thomas Carter, paternal grandfather of Dr. Carter, came to Tennessee about 1850, where he bought a large portion of land, and at the time of his death was the owner of six hundred or seven hundred acres. The maternal grandfather of Dr. Carter, F. A. J. McDole, was also a native of Virginia and a successful farmer, who came to Tennessee from Kentucky.
Choosing the medical profession as his life work, Dr. Carter pursued his studies at Bowling Green, Kentucky, and Vanderbilt University, Nashville, graduating from the latter institution in 1905. Since then he has been practicing medicine in Westmoreland, where he is held in the highest esteem and where the undivided attention he gives his work is much appreciated.
Dr. Carter's marriage to Lillian Foster occurred in June, 1910. She is a daughter of W. B. Foster, a lumberman of Allen county, Kentucky. One child, Annie Joe, fourteen months old, has been born to bless the union of Dr. and Mrs. Carter. The doctor and his wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal church, and he belongs to the I. O. O. F., M. W. A., and W. O. W., and is a member of the county, state, South Medical and American Medical associations.
Exclusively devoted to his chosen profession, Dr. Carter has been eminently successful from the beginning and enjoys a very large and lucrative practice. The attention he gives his patients is not a perfunc- tory service, but is characteristic of the whole hearted manner in which he applies himself to his work.
JOHN M. HODGES. An important factor in any community is the banker. To him the patrons of his institution and others look for guid- ance in their financial affairs and upon the advice, which his investing experience enables him to offer, they often make decisions regarding their own problems. The stability of a bank is largely measured by the char- acter and conservatism, the wisdom and experience of its officers and directors. As cashier of the Westmoreland Bank, Mr. Hodges stands for all that is most desirable in an institution of this kind, and conducts Vol. V-10
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its affairs in a manner that gains the confidence of the people in general, who feel that he is a man whose judgment can be relied upon both in the investment of the funds of the bank and in assistance rendered its pa- trons. In the esteem of those with whom he has had direct business rela- tions, he stands very high.
Born in Sumner county, Tennessee, November 20, 1875, Mr. Hodges is a son of C. W. and Sophia (Martin) Hodges, both of whom were born in that county, the former in 1853 and the latter in 1858. C. W. Hodges, like his ancestors, belongs to that class of tillers of the soil who have found in farming both a profitable and satisfying occupation. Well known in his community and very prosperous, he now lives on his farm in his native county, where he raises wheat, corn, oats and tobacco. To him and his wife were born three children: John M., the subject of this sketch ; Belle, the wife of C. C. Brown, a farmer of Sumner county; and Thurman T., who died in 1912. C. W. Hodges is a member of the Meth- odist Episcopal church, and his fraternal affiliations are with the F. & A. M. and I. O. O. F., belonging to Bethpage Lodge, No. 521, F. & A. M. He is a Democrat in politics and has served as justice of the peace.
The Hodges were among the first settlers in Tennessee, coming from Virginia at a very early date, and the family is one of the oldest in the state. Samuel W. Hodges, father of C. W. Hodges and grandfather of John M. Hodges, was a well known and successful farmer and slave owner of Sumner county, who served under Jackson in the Seminole Indian war. In this county also John M. Hodges' maternal grandfather, Lewis L. Martin, was born and lived the life of a prosperous farmer.
John M. Hodges was educated in the public schools of his native county and later took a college course at Bethpage. The fourteen years of his pedagogical experience following fitted him well for the office he was to hold later, for in the study of human nature which teaching in- volves, he learned much of incalculable value in any business pursuit where insight is required.
In January, 1907, John M. Hodges was elected assistant cashier of the Westmoreland Bank, and in September of the same year cashier, which office he is holding at the present time. This bank has a capital of $8,000 and surplus and undivided profits of $1,000, and its average deposits amount to $50,000. In conducting the affairs of this bank, Mr. Hodges' prudence, insight and wisdom have been apparent on many occasions. He is justice of the peace and a member of the county Democratic execu- tive committee, and has served as auditor of the county officers' books. Belonging to the Methodist Episcopal church, and in politics a Demo- erat, his fraternal affiliations are with the F. & A. M. as past master, the I. O. O. F. as past grand, the Jr. O. U. A. M. as past councillor and the M. W. of A. as deputy head consul, being also a member of the O. E. S.
The marriage of Mr. Hodges to Carrie Bradley occurred in Septem- ber, 1898, she being a daughter of J. W. Bradley, a prosperous farmer
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of Summer county, now retired, who served for a period of four years in the Confederate army. To the union of Mr. and Mrs. Hodges were born five children : Joy and Virgil, Paul, Eve and Eva May, twins, in school, and Wayne, the baby.
Mr. Hodges' resourcefulness and his ability to meet in a masterful way every contingency which has arisen have marked him as a self-reliant man. His business integrity, character, ability and personality have made him most highly esteemed and respected among his fellow men. He is a self-made man in every sense of the word.
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