USA > Virginia > Men of mark in Virginia, ideals of American life; a collection of biographies of the leading men in the state, Volume V > Part 1
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Gc 975.5 M52 v.5 1333086
DENTALDEY COLLECTION
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY 3 1833 02167 863 3
GENEALOGY 975.5 M52 v.5
Men of Mark in Virginia
Ideals of American Life
A Collection of Biographies of the Leading Men in the State
LYON G. TYLER, LL.D. President William and Mary College Editor-in-Chief
VOLUME V.
Illustrated with many Full Page Photo-Steel Engravings
MEN OF MARK PUBLISHING COMPANY Washington, D. C.
1909
Copyright, 1909 by Men of Mark Publishing Co.
1333086
(5 vs) 12-10- 65 # 101
yours Truly to Duval Admis
WILLIAM DUVAL ADAMS
A DAMS, WILLIAM DUVAL. In every community, even the largest, there are a few men who seem, in a peculiar and special sense, at home as distinguished from the restless sojourner, the seeker of novel opportunities, or the citi- zen of the world-men who seem, even in their very appearance, to belong where they are, to be a part of the locality and of its life, "native here and to the manner born," loving the atmos- phere and thriving therein. Such a man is William Duval Adams. It is not difficult to account for the impression which he makes upon others. He is a member of a family that for a long period has taken a prominent part in the social and material affairs of Lynchburg. In every section of the town are his kins- folk, and numberless personal ties of friendship and affection bind him to the "city of hills."
Mr. Adams was born at Lynchburg, Virginia, July 10, 1835. Although he has passed the age of three score years and ten, his eye is clear, his step elastic, and apparently he still is to have a long period of usefulness and happiness here. With the excep- tion of a portion of his boyhood, his long life has been passed in his native place. He has seen it grow from a small town to a city of many thousands, and to a commercial importance rela- tively far greater than that indicated by the growth of popula- tion. He has passed with it through the crucial epoch marked by war and change of governments; has seen the channels of its trade enlarged; its industry revolutionized and a physical trans- formation effected, that has left hardly more than the everlasting hills to recall the picture of the past. A patriot by nature and inheritance, he has borne his part in the introduction and en- largement of varied activities; at the same time observing with genuine interest and encouragement the development about him, rejoicing with neighbors and friends, in their days of prosperity and sympathizing with them in their times of sorrow and adver- sity. It is because of this that few men in Lynchburg are so well beloved as Mr. Adams and few so serenely enjoy the returning Vol. 5-Va .- 1
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WILLIAM DUVAL ADAMS
sunshine that has radiated from one's own personality in the years that have passed.
Mr. Adams on the paternal side is of Scotch-Irish ancestry that has furnished so large and forceful an element to the citizen- ship of this country; on the maternal side he is of Huguenot descent. His parents were Isaac and Susan Elizabeth (Duval) Adams. His mother was a daughter of Major William Duval, who was an officer in the Revolutionary war, and a member of the house of delegates.
When he was twelve years of age William Adams went to Appomattox county to live. Here he attended the neighboring schools, but when they were not in session he was employed on a farm. Here, too, he formed a taste for the country and country life which time has not effaced. He returned to Lynchburg shortly after attaining his majority, and, while business interests have made him a resident of the city since that time, horses and the farm have always retained their fascination for him and he has kept in touch with the life of the field and forest. His lik- ing for fine horses-of which he is a judge par excellence-he still gratifies. In his more active days his favorite sports were those of the rod and gun. This love for the fresh free air, to- gether with the enjoyment of outdoor pleasures has doubtless contributed in no small degree to that zest of life and geniality of spirit, with which his days are brightened.
Mr. Adams was one of the first to introduce latter-day methods in the lumber trade in Lynchburg, his first independent business venture having been in that line, sometime in the fifties. The partnership of which he was a member was dissolved after a short period, and Mr. Adams, still a young man, became a clerk in the city postoffice, which position he held for a year.
By reason of this experience, when the Civil war began and he was about to go to the front, he received orders from Gover- nor Letcher to report for work in the railway mail service. He remained in this branch about fifteen months, and afterward, during the latter part of the war, was assigned to duty in con- nection with the mining of coal in Montgomery county for the Confederate navy. After the war he again engaged in the lum- ber business in the firm of Adams and Brother, and has con-
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WILLIAM DUVAL ADAMS
tinued in this line, in various relations, to the present time. He is now connected with the extensive and widely known coal, wood and lumber enterprise of Adams Brothers-Paynes Com- pany.
Mr. Adams has never sought political honors, but was elected to the city council some fifteen years ago, serving two terms with credit and ability as chairman of the committee on water.
In politics he is a Democrat. His religious affiliation is with the Methodist Episcopal Church, and he performs with unosten- tatious fidelity the duties which are imposed upon its members. He married in July, 1865, Miss Elizabeth V. Mullan, daughter of Rev. S. H. Mullan, of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. They have had eleven children, eight of whom are now living.
Soon after the above sketch was written Mr. Adams died at his home in Lynchburg, on August 26, 1906.
GEORGE STATTON ALDHIZER
A LDHIZER, GEORGE STATTON, druggist and miller, was born in the village of New Hope, Augusta county, Virginia, on July 4, 1856. His parents were James Henry and Nancy C. Aldhizer, and his father was a laborer. His paternal grandfather, Joseph Aldhizer, came to Virginia from Scotland when a youth; and his maternal grandfather, William May, emigrated to America from Germany.
When Mr. Aldhizer was seven years old, his father, a gallant Confederate soldier, was killed in the battle of Gettysburg; and later the Federal troops destroyed nearly everything that his mother had in the world, leaving her with three small children to support as best she might. The boy was put out on a farm to work for his food and clothing, and remained there until he was fifteen years old. He had always had a taste for machinery, and it then occurred to him that he would learn the milling business. So, with the consent of his employer, Mr. James T. Kerr, of Augusta, he procured a position in the Snow Flake Mills at Mount Meridian, Virginia, with Mr. W. H. Birely, going to school during the day, and working in the mill in the morning and evening and half the night, through a period of three years. At the end of that time he worked on a farm in the morning and evening and on Saturdays for his board, in order that he might go to school, and then took charge of a mill and conducted it for some years. In 1884, he began the drug busi- ness at Broadway, Rockingham county, Virginia, and has followed that to the present time with great success. He has been a prominent figure in the business life of his com- munity, and has occupied since 1895 the position of president and general manager of the Broadway Milling company, limited, and, since its organization in 1902, the office of president of the First National bank of Broadway.
Mr. Aldhizer is a member of the Junior Order of American Mechanics, and of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, and has filled most of the principal positions in both organizations.
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GEORGE STATTON ALDHIZER
In religious preference, Mr. Aldhizer is a Missionary Bap- tist, and is superintendent of his local Sunday school. In politics he is a Democrat, and has never wavered in his party allegiance.
Mr. Aldhizer is a public spirited man, and takes an active interest in the welfare of his neighborhood and community. He has served for many years on the school board of his district, and has shown great interest in educational matters.
On November 23, 1879, Mr. Aldhizer was married to Alice A. Moore. They have had seven children, all of whom are now (1908) living. The address of the family is Broadway, Rock- ingham County, Virginia.
CHARLES WARE ALLEN
A LLEN, CHARLES WARE, was born near the village of Fairfield, in Rockbridge county, Virginia, December 14, 1861. His parents were Alphonzo Samuel Allen, a farmer of that county, and Frances Elizabeth Allen.
Mr. Allen is descended from Scotch-Irish stock, his colonial ancestors having been of the immigration of Ulstermen, who set- tled the southern section of the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia in the early half of the eighteenth century.
Mr. Allen's boyhood was spent in the country, where he worked on his father's farm, and attended an old field school during the winter months. This early training was of a rigor- ous character, and served to develop in Mr. Allen a marked ability to overcome many of the difficulties that lie in the way of the man who has to carve out his own career in life unaided. He was a student in the College of William and Mary at Williamsburg, Virginia, during the session of 1889-1890; and in the fall of 1890 he entered the University of Virginia, remaining there during the ensuing sessions of 1890-1891, 1891-1892. Hav- ing determined to follow the profession of law, he pursued the study of that subject during his stay at the University of Vir- ginia; and in 1892 he settled in Charlottesville, Virginia, and opening a law office there, began the practice of his profession, which he has since that time continued with success.
Mr. Allen is a Democrat in politics; but, while he is always interested in the success of his party, and has taken an active interest in forwarding its aims and policies, he has had little inclination to be at any time an office seeker, preferring to give, as far as possible, his undivided attention to his business as a lawyer. He has, however, held for a term of two years, from July, 1900 to July, 1902, the honorable and responsible position of mayor of Charlottesville, declining a reelection at the expira- tion of his term.
Mr. Allen is a member of the Kappa Alpha college frater- nity, and of the Independent Order of Odd Fellows, the Knights
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CHARLES WARE ALLEN
of Pythias, the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, and Widows Sons lodge, Number 60, of Masons.
On January 25, 1899, Mr. Allen married Margaret May Camp.
His address is Court House Square, Charlottesville, Virginia.
JAMES ALBERT ANDERSON
A NDERSON, JAMES ALBERT, M. D., of Lynchburg, Virginia, was born in Fluvanna, Virginia, on the 23rd of January, 1857. His father, Richard I. Anderson, whose biography appears in this volume, was prominently con- nected with the manufacture of lumber and of cotton and was for several years a member of the Virginia legislature.
James Albert Anderson passed his early life in the country. The circumstances of his family were such as to open the way to him for the best school facilities in preparation for college. He spent three years, from 1872 to 1875, as a student at New London academy, in Bedford county, Virginia. He was matriculated at the University of Virginia in 1875, and was graduated in medi- cine in June, 1879. He took an additional year for the study of medicine at the University of New York, receiving the degree of Doctor of Medicine in 1880, and was soon afterward connected with the Marine Hospital service at New York city. In 1887 he established himself at Danville, Virginia, for the practice of medicine which he has since followed uninterruptedly.
In 1899 he removed from Danville to Lynchburg; and with the history of his profession in that city he has been intimately connected.
On the 12th of January, 1887, he married, at Milton, North Carolina, Miss Ella Henry Hatcher, daughter of Henry C. Hatcher, of Milton, North Carolina. They have had three chil- dren, all of whom are living in 1908: Richard H. Anderson, a student at Washington and Lee university; James A. Anderson, Jr., a student at the Virginia Military academy ; and Elizabeth S. Anderson, the youngest of the family.
Dr. Anderson is indentified with the Methodist Episcopal church. By political conviction, he is a Democrat; and he has supported the Democratic candidates except that when free silver was the issue, he declined to support Bryan, and voted for a " gold Democrat."
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JAMES ALBERT ANDERSON
Dr. Anderson is a Mason and a member of the Knights Tem- plar. He has never sought to hold office of any kind, though he was elected a member of the city council while a resident of Dan- ville, Virginia.
JOSEPH REID ANDERSON
A NDERSON, JOSEPH REID, was born in Botetourt county, Virginia, February 16, 1813, and was the son of William and Anne (Thomas) Anderson.
The founder of the family in Virginia was Robert Anderson, who emigrated from County Donegal, Ireland in 1755 and set- tled in Botetourt county, Virginia, about 1766. His son, Wil- liam, was a soldier in the Revolutionary army at sixteen years of age and fought at the battles of Cowpens and King's Moun- tain; was the colonel of a Virginia regiment in the War of 1812 and afterwards commissioner of the state of Virginia for the construction of the turnpike from Covington to Charleston, Kanawha county. He is reported to have been a man of "probity, piety, public spirit, practical sense and disregard of wealth."
The subject of this sketch was reared on a farm and received his primary education at neighboring country schools under in- spiring social and intellectual surroundings, as is abundantly evinced by the fact that his three brothers, William, Frank and John T., all became men of the highest standing for character and usefulness. Having received an appointment to the United States Military academy at West Point, he was graduated at that institution with distinction in 1836, was assigned as lieutenant to the corps of engineers, United States army and served in Florida ; at Fort Pulaski, Georgia; and at Fortress Monroe, Virginia.
On May 3, 1837, he was married to Miss Sarah E. Archer, to whom twelve children were born, five of whom survived him. He was married the second time on November 2, 1882 to Miss Mary E. Pegram, who ministered to him tenderly till the hour of his death, which occurred at one of the Isle of Shoals, New Hampshire, September 7, 1892, where were also gathered all his surviving children.
The life of General Anderson seems to have been strenuous, though thoughtful and sedate, from the beginning to its end and to have been filled with deeds of the highest virtue. His physi- cal health in youth and manhood, down to a ripe old age, was re-
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JOSEPH REID ANDERSON
markable and he presents a striking illustration of thousands of country boys, reared under genial moral and religious domestic and social influences, who have afterwards taken their places in metropolitan circles as leaders, exemplars and guides. His course at West Point, placing him in a rank near the head of his class of sixty-eight members, was but the outgrowth and con- firmation of the principles of conduct adopted and wrought in him in his native home and at the same time the precursor of the life of large and distinguished usefulness which was to open be- fore him. He was a man of industry, of work, of deeds. While yet a lieutenant in the army during a long vacation, he became assistant engineer of the state of Virginia and had charge of the construction of the Valley turnpike from Staunton to Winches- ter and also of the Northwestern turnpike from Staunton to Parkersburg. He then resigned from the army and about 1841 became the agent of the old Tredegar Iron company at Richmond. In 1843 he leased these works for five years and at the termina- tion of the lease purchased the property. From 1843-1867, the business was conducted either in his own name or in that of J. R. Anderson and company and on its organization in 1867 he be- came president of the Tredegar company which office he held until his death.
General Anderson occupied many positions of honorable use- fulness to which he gave time and earnest attention. As a mem- ber of the city council of Richmond and its president, of the house of delegates of the general assembly of Virginia both be- fore and after the war; as president of the chamber of commerce of the city of Richmond; as vestryman in St. Paul's Episcopal church, Richmond, from its organization and its senior warden during the later years of his life; as brigadier-general in the provisional army of the Confederate states from September. 1861, to August, 1862, when at the request of the Confederate authori- ties he resigned that he might give his undivided attention to the creation of munitions of war and railroad supplies,-in all these diversified spheres of action he illustrated the great powers he possessed and did his utmost for the accomplishment of objects worthy of and dear to himself and all true and loyal Virginians.
General Anderson was an " old line Whig " before the war
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JOSEPH REID ANDERSON
but when, about 1856, this party began to affiliate with the anti- slavery movement and to show itself hostile to the South, he joined the Democratic party, with which he co-operated until his death. He was a man of large public spirit and found his re- laxation and recreation chiefly by active co-operation in church, social, civic and political affairs. He could not be idle but always had something on hand for the benefit of the church, the state, the community of his fellow men.
Shortly after the death of Mr. Anderson, highly complimen- tary " Resolutions of Respect " were adopted by the vestry of St. Paul's church, Richmond.
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Truly R I anderson
RICHARD IVY ANDERSON
A NDERSON, RICHARD IVY, was born in the town of Lindsays, Louisa county, Virginia, August 14, 1826, and is a fine specimen of American manhood as developed from the early colonists. His American ancestry dates back to the latter part of the seventeenth century, when two brothers of the name of Anderson came to this country from Scot- land. One of them settled in Hanover county, Virginia, by name Thomas Anderson. From this brother sprung Nathan Anderson, grandfather of the subject of this sketch. Nathan Anderson was imbued with an intense love for the new land of his birth, and served in the War of the Revolution as a member of the Continental army. John Anderson, the father of Richard, was a farmer by occupation. He was known among his neighbors as a man of strict integrity and exacting in duty. He held several minor offices in the county. He was married to Nancy Lasley, who became the mother of the subject of this sketch.
The early life of Richard I. Anderson was passed in the country, and he worked on a farm until twenty years of age. In childhood and youth he was of robust constitution, and the habits formed then have remained with him since, contributing, no doubt, to the long and useful life which he has led. He had diffi- culties to overcome in securing an education. His actual school- ing was received in the common schools of the country, but he has been a reader and a student all his life.
At the age of twenty-one, an ambitious youth, he quit the labor of the farm to become the manager of a lumber mill in Fluvanna county, Virginia. Although this event seems to have been brought about by circumstances over which he himself had no control, it proves to have been the turning-point of his life, and the actual commencement of a prosperous career.
For thirty-six years or until 1883, he remained in the lumber manufacturing business. In the latter year he embarked in the business of cotton manufacturing, in which he is still engaged. Mr. Anderson is well-known in business circles, where his name
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RICHARD IVY ANDERSON
has long been synonymous with integrity and ability. He is a director in many flourishing concerns such as the Riverside Cotton mills at Danville, the Dan Valley Cotton mills of the same place, the Danville Lumber and Manufacturing company, and the National Exchange bank of Lynchburg.
In spite of his life of extraordinary business activity, Mr. Anderson has found time to devote himself to the interests of the public in official capacity. During the Civil war he was detailed on special duty. He served in the legislature of his state during the years 1883 and 1884, and was again elected in 1889, serving continuously until 1894.
For several years he held the office of supervisor of Pittsyl- vania county, and that of school trustee as well. In 1895 he was chosen as one of Virginia's representatives at the " Good Roads Senate," held in Atlanta, Georgia.
When asked to name the source of his first strong impulse in life, he said " My mother's influence aroused within me the deter- mination not to be a failure in this world, and, above all things, always to earn my wages."
Mr. Anderson is a Mason. He is identified with the Metho- dist Episcopal church. In politics he is a Democrat, but changed his allegience in 1896, casting his vote for William Mckinley as president on account of the free silver plank in his party plat- form.
Mr. Anderson attributes his success in life, first, to home influence, and, second, to companionship, followed by contact with men in active life.
He was married, December 22, 1852, to Ann Eliza Allegree. Five children were born of this union, one of whom, Dr. James A. Anderson, is now living.
Since the above sketch was written Mr. Anderson died at his home in Elba, Pittsylvania county, Virginia, on January 11, 1906.
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JOHN HAMPDEN C. BAGBY
B AGBY, JOHN HAMPDEN CHAMBERLAYNE, son of George William Bagby and Parke Chamberlayne, his wife, was born in Middleburg, Loudoun county, Vir- ginia, July 20, 1867. His father, a descendant of James Bagby, a Scotchman who emigrated to Jamestown in 1650, was a grad- uate of medicine, but spent the greater part of his life, first as editor, and afterwards as state librarian of Virginia. He was a man of much literary ability and philosophical turn of mind and was admired for his humorous writings. His mother, a descendant of the Byrds and Chamberlaynes of Virginia, still survives. She is a remarkably gifted woman and holds a high rank among the Colonial Dames of Virginia.
When a child the subject of this sketch showed great fond- ness for machinery and everything pertaining to mechanics. At the early age of eight years he had the misfortune to be partially paralyzed, which left him frail and delicate in body, but, being ambitious and bright of intellect, he devoted much of his time to study and at an early age was graduated with high honors from the university school of Richmond. He then entered the University of Virginia, and in 1888 took the degree of Master of Arts; and in 1891, that of Mining Engineer. In 1893, return- ing to the university, he took the post-graduate course in physics and mathematics and obtained his degree of Ph. D. in 1895. While at the University of Virginia, he was initiated into the Greek letter fraternity of D. K. E.
In 1892 he accepted the professorship of physics and astron- omy in Hampden-Sidney college, Virginia, which position he still (1908) occupies. In politics he is a Democrat, but in the campaign of 1896, he declined to support the regular presidential candidates of the party and cast his vote for Palmer and Bucker.
His address is Hampden-Sidney, Prince Edward County, Virginia.
HARRY HUNT BAKER
B AKER, HARRY HUNT, mayor of Winchester, is one of the most interesting and public-spirited mayors of the Old Dominion. This little city of the Shenandoah Val- ley from colonial and revolutionary times has had a celebrity out of all proportion to its size, by reason of its prominence in the affairs of Virginia and of the valley. In the recent development of civic and industrial life in Winchester, Mayor Baker, for the past four years elected mayor without opposition at the polls, without effort on his own part, but with the general approval of both political parties, has had a most prominent part. He serves as mayor without salary, giving gratuitously to the city at least two-thirds of his time, many as are the demands of his own pri- vate interests. His ancestors since early in the eighteenth century have been progressive and successful business men of Winchester. Henry W. Baker, in 1785, established the first wholesale grocery business in that part of the country-a business which has been handed down from father to son without interruption until the present day.
Harry Hunt Baker, son of Henry Streit Baker and Mrs. Aletta Williamson (Hunt) Baker, was born at Winchester, on the 4th of June, 1859. His father was a merchant, for years a member of the city council of Winchester-a man of integrity and honor. After preparation in the schools of Winchester, he took a course of study at Princeton college but did not remain at that institution for graduation. Entering his father's store, he "began at the bottom" with the purpose of acquiring a thorough knowledge of the business, and he has steadily worked his way up, by exceptional business ability, until on the incorporation of the firm of Baker and company, wholesale grocers, on the 16th of July, 1897, he became the first president of that company. He has been vice-president of the San Juan (Mexico) Sugar cor- poration since June, 1905. In 1902 he was elected (the first) president of the Security Life and Annuity Company of America. Since 1893 he has been a director of the C. V. R. R.
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