USA > Tennessee > Notable men of Tennessee. Personal and genealogical, with portraits, Volume I > Part 4
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27
49
NOTABLE MEN OF TENNESSEE
term. In I898 he was nominated by the Democracy of Tennessee for the office of governor, and in November of that year was triumphantly elected. Two years later he was re-elected, holding the office for four years in all. After twenty years as a legislator Mr. McMillin stepped into the executive department of a state government without the slightest incon- venience. His administration as governor was marked by statesmanship of a high order, and when he retired all the state institutions were in a healthy and prosperous condition. As an orator Mr. McMillin is forcible and convincing in his logic. with a fine command of language that entertains his audiences to an extent that even his political opponents remain to listen to poetic eloquence even if they refuse to be converted by his arguments.
W. J. McMURRAY, M. D., of Nashville, Tenn., president of the state board of health, is one of Nash- ville's leading medical men. He was born near that city Sept. 22, 1842. His family is of Scottish origin. In March. 1792, Samuel McMurray was killed by the Indians within six miles of Nashville. His son, also named Samuel, was for many years a well- to-do farmer of Davidson county, and a personal and political friend of Andrew Jackson. The stones that cover the graves of Jack- son and his wife came from the McMurray farm. John Mc- . Murray, a son of Samuel, Jr., and father of Doctor McMurray, was a gentleman of fine education and a noted teacher. Both the father and grandfather of Doctor McMurray were natives of Davidson county. Doctor McMurray was educated in part by Professor Didiot, a Frenchman; graduated from Nolens- ville academy in 1867, as valedictorian of his class; entered the medical department of the University of Nashville and graduated in due time, again being honored as valedictorian. He was considered the best anatomist in the college and two 1 -- 4
-
50
NOTABLE MEN OF TENNESSEE
months after his entrance was graduated in that branch, being the only one of his class who answered correctly a question prepared by the professor of anatomy. For three years he practiced medicine near Nashville, then moved into the city. where he was at once elected county physician, a position which he held for seven years. He was then elected a mem- ber of the city board of health, and then for twelve years in succession was elected physician for the Tennessee Industrial school. In 1896 he was appointed a member of the state board of health by Gov. "Bob" Taylor and succeeded him- self twice by reappointment by Governor McMillin. For four years he has been president of the board. For the past eight years he has been surgeon-general on the staff of Lieut .- Gen. Stephen D. Lee, of the United Confederate veterans. He is a member of the Tennessee State and the Davidson County Medical societies. On April 15, 1861. at the age of about seventeen years, he joined Company B, Twentieth Tennessee infantry, and served with that command until the close of the war, taking part in the battles of Laurel Bridge, Ky., Wild Cat, at Fishing Creek, Shiloh, the first siege of Vicksburg, Baton Rouge, both battles of Murfrees- boro, Hoover's Gap, Chickamauga, Rocky Face Ridge, Dalton, Resaca, Dallas, Pine Mountain, Kenesaw Mountain, Peach Tree Creek and around Atlanta, in 1864. He was wounded in the left breast in Breckenridge's charge at Murfreesboro and left on the field all night. In Stewart's charge at Chickamauga he was shot in the right groin and again lay on the field until the following day. He was shot in the left leg at Resaca. His left arm was lost in front of Atlanta and was. twice amputated on the field by Dr. D. J. Roberts. He was, removed to the hospital at Macon. Ga., gangrene set in and the wound was three times cauterized with nitric acid. He finally recovered, reported for duty in January, 1865, and was recommended for post duty. After his wound at Chicka- mauga the first engagement in which he participated was that of Rocky Face Ridge. While lying in line there he greeted the first Yankee shell that came over with the words, "Wel- come, thrice welcome, thou unfriendly visitor." He went into-
+ فية٢ جات ماجدبياد
51
NOTABLE MEN OF TENNESSEE
that battle with a stick and crutch, and broke down and was taken from the field on the major's horse. Henry Morse says that three days later, while the Twentieth Tennessee was in the heat of the battle at Resaca, and the minie balls were flying thick, Doctor McMurray broke out and sang a verse of the "Home Spun Dress." The next day he was wounded on the same field. He was in command of the skirmish line at the foot of Kenesaw Mountain, when General Polk was shot and killed. Doctor McMurray is a charter member of Cheatham bivouac, United Confederate Veterans, and was chairman of the committee on credentials for four years; was elected president of Frank Cheatham bivouac, then president of the state 'association of United Confederate Vet- erans; has been connected with the Confederate State soldiers home of Tennessee ever since its inception; was appointed a member of the board of trustees by Gov. "Bob" Taylor, in 1889, and has been a member of the executive board from the beginning, and was president of the home from 1898 to 1903. Doctor McMurray was married in 1872 to Miss Frances Marian McCampbell, a daughter of Hon. T. C. Mc- Campbell, state senator from Knoxville in the fifties, and they have one child, Adele Morton, now the wife of Chas. L. Ridley, Jr., a grandson of Chancellor Bromfield Ridley. In politics Doctor McMurray is a Democrat. He is a member of the Methodist church. He is the author of a history of the Twentieth Tennessee regiment in the war, a work of five hundred pages, just about ready for the press, and which is a history of the Army of Tennessee.
JAMES McLAUGHLIN, president of the Merchants' National bank, of Nashville, Tenn., is a native of Davidson county. He grew to manhood in his native county, received his primary schooling there, and completed his education at Mt. St. Mary's college, Emmetsburg. Md. Upon leaving col- lege he became a bookkeeper in Nashville and followed that occupation until the war broke out. After the war he engaged in the wholesale grocery business, as a member of the firm of Mclaughlin, Butler & Co., and continued in that line of
52
NOTABLE MEN OF TENNESSEE
business for a number of years. In 1886 he became cashier of the Merchants' bank, of Nashville, which position he held for twelve years, and in 1898 was elected to the presidency. Here his capacity and qualifications have proved of such value to the institution that the stockholders have kept him in the place ever since. The bank was reorganized as the Merchants' National bank Jan. 1, 1903, and the capital stock fixed at $300,000. Mr. Mclaughlin devotes his entire time to bank- ing. He has been a member of the board of trustees of the Central Hospital for the Insane for thirty years and president of the board for eight years. He was married in 1871 to Miss Elizabeth Warner, of Nashville, and they have two children, Thomas, of Nashville, and Grace, wife of P. M. Estes, an attorney of the city. Mr. Mclaughlin and his family are members of the Catholic church.
THEO. F. KING, Nashville, Tenn., comptroller of the state treasury, was born in Memphis, June 27. 1864. He lived there until 1878, when he moved to Bartlett, in the same county, and in 1882 to Dyersburg, which continues to be his home. He attended public and private schools at Bartlett and graduated from a business college in Memphis in 1881. . He then entered the employ of the Southern Express Company as agent at Dyersburg and remained in that place until 1899. when he was elected to his present position, and twice re- elected, in 1901 and 1903. There was no opposition to Mr. King in his second race and but little in his last. From 1882 until 1899 he was interested with his father in the whole- sale and retail grocery business in Dyersburg as T. J. King & Son. Mr. King was trustee of Shelby county from 1890 to 1894 and has always been an active party worker. He is a member of the Cumberland Presbyterian church, a Mason, a Knight of Pythias and an Elk. He is second vice-president and superintendent of agencies for the Volunteer Life Insur- ance Company of Tennessee, which was organized in 1903. with $200,000 capital and now has $50,000 surplus. His father, Thomas J. King, was born in Wake county, N. C., in 1832. He was taken in childhood to Tennessee by his
53
NOTABLE MEN OF TENNESSEE
parents, first to Madison county and soon after to Shelby county, where he received such education as the common schools of that day afforded. In 1849 he accompanied a party overland to California, where he remained some years, engaged in carrying on a wagon train and freighting busi- ness. Returning to Memphis, he went into business, and was so engaged when the war broke out. He lost all by the war, removed to Bartlett in 1878, and to Dyersburg in 1882, where he engaged in the grocery business and in real estate, following those lines until his death in 1900.
JOHN W. OVERALL, of Nash- ville, Tenn., United States marshal for the middle district of Tennessee, was born in DeKalb county of that state. His father, Wesley Overall, was a son of the Jacob Overall who came to Tennessee from Virginia in 1800. He was a veteran of the Revo- lutionary war. John W. Overall se- cured his higher education in the Cumberland university at Lebanon. In 1886 he engaged in business at Liberty, DeKalb county, and was county superintendent of schools there for four years. He has been a member of the county board; always prominent in public affairs, especially in politics; is a Republican and was a delegate to the national conventions at Minneapolis, St. Louis and Philadelphia; was appointed United States marshal for Middle Tennessee by President McKinley, March 10, 1897, and reappointed by President Roosevelt. In 1894 he was married to Mary Oliver, of Smith county, daughter of Luther Oliver, who was killed in the Confederate army. Mr. Overall is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and the Knights of Pythias. He is interested in the firm of Overall Bros., of DeKalb county, owning the pike from Lebanon to Smithville, thirty-seven miles, the finest in the state, and has large farm- ing and mercantile interests.
.
54
NOTABLE MEN OF TENNESSEE
JOHN W. THOMAS, of Nash- ville, president of the Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis railway, was born at Nashville, Aug. 24, 1830. He entered the railway service in No- vember, 1858, as agent for the Nash- ville & Chattanooga railway at Mur- freesboro and remained in that posi- tion until January, 1863; was then in charge of rolling stock until July, 1865; auditor and paymaster until September, 1868; superintendent until September, 1872; general superintendent of the Nashville Con- solidated until September, ISS3; general manager of the Nash- ville, Chattanooga & St. Louis railway for a year; general manager and superintendent until January, 1899, and since that time president. He graduated in 1852, and was for a time a tutor in Union university. During the war he acted as master of transportation, moving the troops to Atlanta and Wilmington, running the blockade. and hauling cotton all through the war. He was married in 1852 to Miss Elizabeth Thomas and they had one son, John W., born Aug. 24, 1856. In 1891, some time after the death of his first wife, he was married to Miss Evelyn DeBow. John W. Thomas, Jr., was educated at Vanderbilt university. In 1878 he entered the railway service and has since been connected with the road of which his father is president. He was a locomotive engi- neer three years; was appointed train master in 1884, and served two years; became secretary to the president and general manager in 1886; acted as purchasing agent during that time; was assistant general manager and purchasing agent for ten years following; was appointed general manager Jan. 2, 1899, which position he holds at the present time. His entire rail- road service has been with the Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis railroad. He has been engineer, conductor, operator, office man, etc., advancing from point to point until he has become his father's right-hand man and one of the best in- formed and most efficient men in the railroad service.
----------
55
NOTABLE MEN OF TENNESSEE
ALBERT S. WILLIAMS, mayor of Nashville, Tenn., was born in Davidson county in 1853. His father, William A. Williams, was a Virginian by birth, but moved to Tennessee in 1804 and was one of the earliest settlers and school teachers of David- son county, following that profes- sion during his life. Mayor Wil- liams was educated in the public schools of Nashville, graduated from the Oak Plain institute in 1870 and afterward took a complete course in the Bryant & Stratton Commercial college at Nashville. He kept books until 1876, when he was elected mayor of Edgefield and served two terms. In 1878 he was elected clerk of the criminal court of David- son county and served four years. His opponent in that race was Gen. Samuel Donelson, one of the most prominent men about Nashville, and it was one of the hottest political con- tests ever held in that county. Upon the expiration of his term he then became clerk of the committee on election of president and vice-president in the Forty-ninth Congress, and held that position for two years. In 1893 he returned to Nashville, where he became cashier of the City Savings bank, and con- tinued in that position until 1901, when he was made presi- dent, which office he occupies at the present time. He was elected mayor of Nashville Oct. 8, 1903. Mr. Williams is also interested in real estate operations. He was married in 1880 to Miss Amanda Rear, of Nashville, and they have two children, Albert and Beryl. He is a Royal Arch Mason, a past eminent commander in the Knights Templars, belongs to the Independ- ent Order of Odd Fellows, and is president of the board of stewards of the McFerrin Memorial Methodist church. Mr. Williams enjoys the admiration of his friends and the respect of his enemies.
WILLIAM G. BAKER, judge of the city court of Nash- ville, Tenn., is a native of Davidson county, in which Nash-
56
NOTABLE MEN OF TENNESSEE
ville is located. He is the son of "Squire" W. D. Baker, who was magistrate of the second district for thirty years prior to his death in 1891. Judge Baker grew to manhood in his native county; was educated in the Davidson county schools ; has been a tiller of Davidson county soil, and is a part of the warp and woof of its civic fabric. In 1871 he engaged in the grocery business, as a member of the firm of Baker & Tanks- ley, and followed that occupation for four years. Upon retiring from the grocery he became a member of the police depart- ment of Nashville, where he served as patrolman for sixteen years; was then sergeant for four years, and lieutenant for one year. His active campaign against intemperance, gambling and other forms of vice gained for him the ill-will of the law- less element of the city, and, with the connivance of a few of their friends on the police force, they succeeded in having him reduced to the ranks. The best citizens of Nashville knew that he had only been doing his duty and in time rewarded his courage and fidelity by a promotion at the ballot box. He served as patrolman without a murmur, faithfully performing the duties assigned him, until the spring of 1903. when he resigned to become a candidate for the position of city judge and was elected by a large majority, thus being completely vin- dicated of all charges. He is now serving in this office, for which his long experience on the police force has given him special qualifications, and he has already established a record for fairness in the enforcement of the laws and a fine sense of judicial discrimination.
CAPT. HAMPTON J. CHENEY, city comptroller of Nash- ville, Tenn., is a native of Louisiana, having been born in that state in 1836. His father, also named Hampton J., was a native of South Carolina, who in his later years became a planter in the Red river district of Louisiana. Captain Cheney was educated at the Kentucky Military institute, near Frank- fort, graduating therefrom in 1858, with the degree of A. B. He followed farming until the outbreak of the Civil war, when he organized Company C, of the Second Tennessee (Bate's regiment), of which company he was elected captain in April,
-
57
NOTABLE MMEN OF TENNESSEE
1861, and with which he remained until after the battle of Shiloh. After that engagement he was assigned to a place on Gen. John C. Brown's staff and acted as adjutant and major until Johnston's surrender in North Carolina in 1865. Cap- tain Cheney was in practically all the engagements of the Army of Tennessee, the first battle of Manassas, and in numerous minor engagements in Virginia. Later he was severely wounded in the neck while defending Loo! out Moun- tain. After the war he engaged for a number of yours in the cotton and commission business and was for two years in the coal business. He was for a time assistant postmaster of Nash- ville and later represented Tennessee in the senate one session, a position which he resigned to become postmaster of Nash- ville during Cleveland's first term: was elected comptroller of Nashville in the fall of 1898 and re-elected in 1903 for a second term of four years. Captain Cheney was married in 1858 to Miss Amanda E. Stratton, of Nashville. daughter of Col. Madison Stratton, who was a prominent business man of that city. They have one child, Leonora. He is a mem- ber of the Improved Order of Red Men, Knights of Pythias and the Fraternal Order of Eagles; was a charter member of the Cheatham bivouac and of the United Confederate Vet- erans, but when Brown bivouac was organized he withdrew to become a charter member of the latter organization.
WILLIAM BLOUNT. territorial governor of Tennessee ("territory of the U. S. America south of the River Ohio") from the organization of the territory in 1790 to the admis- sion of the state in 1796, was one of the notable men of early Tennessee. He was born in Bertie county, N. C., March 26, 1749. The name was originally Le Blount, and was brought to England the time of the Norman invasion. The first of the family in America were Thomas Blount and two brothers, who came over in 1664 and settled in Virginia. The parents of William Blount were Jacob and Barbara (Gray) Blount, the former a native of Bertie county, and the latter of Scotch extraction. Jacob Blount died in Pitts county, N. C., in 1789 and left a large estate. William was given a good education,
58
NOTABLE MEN OF TENNESSEE
and from 1780 to 1790 was almost constantly a member of the legislature of North Carolina. In 1783 and again in 1786 he was elected to the Continental Congress, and in 1787 was a member of the convention which met at Philadelphia to frame the constitution of the United States. It was during the ses- sions of the convention that Mr. Blount formed the acquaint- ance of General Washington, and when the Territory of Ten- nessee was created three years later, the latter appointed Mr. Blount to be governor of the new political division. His ap- pointment was confirmed Aug. 7, 1790, and on October 10th he entered upon his duties. At the same time he was ap- pointed superintendent of Indian affairs. The legislature elected him a United States senator. When the state was admitted on June 1, 1796, his election as senator was declared illegal because it was made before the state was admitted. He was accordingly again elected by the same legislature and took his seat on Dec. 5, 1796. About this time an incident occurred that cast a shadow upon the character of Governor Blount. In a message to Congress, President Adams declared that there was conspiracy on foot to take New Orleans and the Floridas from Spain and turn them over to Great Britain. This was to be done by a co-operation of British troops and the Creek and Cherokee Indians, and the president asserted that Senator Blount was a party to the plot, or had at least been in cor- respondence with the conspirators. A few days later he was expelled from the senate, only one member of the twenty-six voting in favor of his retention. After his return to Tennessee he was elected to the legislature, the people of the state refus- ing to believe him guilty on the evidence of a single letter. Later a sergeant-at-arms came to Knoxville to arrest him and take him to Philadelphia for trial and impeachment by Con- gress, which was then in session. Blount refused to go and the sergeant could find no one willing to assist him. The result of the trial was that the court decided it had no jurisdiction because Mr. Blount was no longer a member of the senate. The people of Tennessee always refused to believe he was guilty of any traitorous conduct or intent. Blount county was named after him, and at his request the county seat was named Mary-
---
----------
----
59
NOTABLE MEN OF TENNESSEE
ville, in honor of his wife. These names still remain and bear witness to the esteem in which the territorial governor was held by his constituents. One of his sons, William Grainger Blount, represented Tennessee in Congress from 1815 to 1819, and a daughter was the wife of Gen. Edmund P. Gaines. Governor Blount died March 21, 1800, at Knoxville.
WHITEFOORD R. COLE, of Nashville, Tenn., a member of the board of state charities, was born in that city, Jan. 14, 1874. His father, E. W. Cole, now deceased, was for years president of the Nashville, Chat- tanooga & St. Louis railway. W. R. Cole was educated at Vanderbilt university, from which institution he graduated in the year 1894, with the degree of A. B. Soon after he be- came associated with several of the leading corporations in and about Nashville, and ever since has been prominent in the management of their affairs. For eight years he was general manager of the Napier Iron Works, and is now president of the company, and for many years was vice-president and general manager of the Sheffield Coal, Iron and Steel Company, of Sheffield, Ala. He is president of the Crescent Coal Company, and is a director in many large corporations, notable among which are the Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis railway, the First National bank of Nashville, the Nashville Trust Company, the Nashville Gas Company, the Nashville & Decatur Railroad Company, the Cumberland Telephone and Telegraph Company, etc., etc. He keeps in close touch with all the influences that have a tendency to affect the industries with which he is so prominently con- nected; has sound judgment, is possessed of a high order of executive ability, and is an indefatigable worker. Mr. Cole was married in 1901 to Miss Mary Conner Bass, daughter of John M. Bass, of Nashville. He is a member of the Method- ist Episcopal Church South, is a member of the executive
60
NOTABLE MEN OF TENNESSEE
committee of the board of missions of that church, a member of the board of directors and treasurer of the Tennessee Indus- trial school, and a member of the executive committee and board of trustees of Vanderbilt university.
JOHN A. PITTS, lawyer and banker, of Nashville, Tenn., was born in Wayne county, of that state, June 3, 1849, and is the son of John F. Pitts. Mr. Pitts was educated at Clifton Masonic academy and grad- uated from the law department of Cumberland university in 1871. The same year he began practicing at Savannah, Tenn., and remained there until 1884. when he removed to Jack- son. In 1888 he located in Nash- ville, where he has since remained. In early manhood Mr. Pitts showed an aptitude for handling business propositions of magnitude. This aptitude has grown with his growth and has been broadened by time and experience until he is gen- erally recognized as a man of sound judgment, rare tact and fine mental acumen. As a lawyer he stands well in his pro- fession, commanding by his learning and dignified demeanor the respect of both bench and bar. But it is as the adviser and promoter of large enterprises that he shows his greatest strength. In 1886, while living in Jackson, he organized the Second National bank of Jackson and was president of that institution until he left there. In 1891 he organized the Peo- ple's bank of Clifton, of which he has been president ever since. He is now second vice-president of and general counsel for the Tennessee Central Railroad Company; counsel for and vice-president of the Nashville Terminal Company; a director in and the counsel for the Grey & Dudley Hardware Company of Nashville; attorney in Tennessee for the Virginia-Carolina Chemical Company; president of the Beech River Phosphate Company, and is interested in other enterprises. Mr. Pitts was married in 1872 to Miss Ellen Ricketts, of Clifton, Tenn.
61
NOTABLE MEN OF TENNESSEE
She is a daughter of the late Samuel S. Ricketts, who, at the time of his death, was the leading business man of Clifton. Mr. and Mrs. Pitts have one child, Catherine W .. now the wife of A. J. Williams, teller of the bank of Savannah, Tenn. Mr. Pitts is a member of the Vine Street Christian church of Nashville, and of the Masonic fraternity.
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.