USA > Virginia > City of Norfolk > City of Norfolk > History of Norfolk County, Virginia and representative citizens, V.2 > Part 12
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mains almost intact, they were removed to Norfolk and placed by the side of the departed wife. Five children were born to Edward and Catherine ( Heffley) Face, namely: William H .; Edward W .; Vandalia E., wife of Jesse Ewell ; Virginia, wife of Larkin Davis, of Nor- folk; and Samuel A.
Edward W. Face attended the school con- ducted by John B. Carey at Hampton, Vir- ginia, and after his school days was apprenticed to the trade of a carpenter. He remained at that but a short time, when he became appren- ticed to Henry W. Herbert, and served thus five and a half years. He then went to Wash- ington, D. C., and after working there three years removed to Norfolk. Virginia, where, in 1855, he began to work at his trade as a brick- jayer. It was just prior to this date that the yellow fever was raging and wiped out many entire families in a short period, hardly enough surviving at times to bury the dead. Graves could not be dug fast enough and coffins had to be brought from Baltimore, and as a result the dead were buried in trenches. Mr. Face con- tinued at his trade until IS88. when he began the manufacture of brick. having bought out the establishment of William H. Turner, who was his ardent friend, and contributed much to his early success, for which Mr. Face will always feel grateful. He began on a small scale and each year the business was increased. An output of 5,000 bricks per day was then considered very large, but at the present time he turns out about 30.000 daily. He employs about 40 men and has four barges and a tug to bring clay from the Nansemond River. He has one shed with a capacity of 500,000 bricks and two with a capacity of 300.000 each. There is a demand for all he can manufacture, and during the year 1901 he had but few brick left in the yards. When Mr. Face first came to Norfolk, there were no houses in the beautiful part of the city in which he is now located. It was called "Gun Point." because. the cannons were fired liere to avoid breaking
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windows in the residences. He has taken an active part in the development of the city and has held various offices of public trust. He served two terms as councilman and refused to serve longer. During his second term he offered the resolution disbanding the volunteer fire department and establishing a paid depart- ment. In consideration of that action he was made fire commissioner for the city and served in that capacity seven or eight years. He was then appointed fire marshal by Judge Bur- roughs. He was appointed harbor master by Gov. William E. Cameron, and served 26 months. Upon the death of Captain Kennedy he was appointed to succeed that gentleman as powder officer and was afterward appointed by Governor Cameron for a full term of four years.
Mr. Face was joined in marriage March 27, 1851, with Elizabetli W. Dunbar, a native of Norfolk, and a daughter of James and Ann Dunbar, old and highly esteemed residents of Norfolk, who are deceased. Mrs. Face is a great-granddaughter of Capt. Jonathan Bar- ret, of the Continental Army. Six children were born to bless this union, namely: Sarah C., widow of William K. Furguson; Walter E., who first married Annie E. Powell, and after her death, was united to Egmont S. Shine; Florence B .. wife of Almore Reed, of Baltimore, Maryland; Louise D., wife of W. A. Minter; George S., who married Edmonia V. Powell; and Lillie, who lives at home with her parents. March 27. 1901. Mr. and Mrs. Face celebrated their golden wedding anniver- sary. A large number were present, but none who attended the marriage ceremony 50 years before, they having passed away or moved to distant homes. It was an event of rejoicing and congratulation. Mrs. Face and all the children are members of the Presbyterian Church. The subject of this sketch is very fond of travel, and in 1900 visited the Paris Exposition. He has been to Cuba and Mexico,
and in 1901 attended the Pan-American Ex- position. He is one of Norfolk's most highly esteemed citizens.
CLAY KILBY, one of the most pro- gressive business men of Norfolk, Virginia, was born in Suffolk, Vir- ginia, in 1852, and is a son of Hon. James R. Kilby. His great-great- grandfather fought in the Revolutionary War, under John Paul Jones, and was in the cele- brated fight between the "Serapis" and "Bon- homme Richard."
Hon. James R. Kilby was born in Hanover County, Virginia, December 31, 1819. His father died and the widowed mother, having sole charge of a number of small children, was unable to give him the education he otherwise would have had. Although his attendance at school amounted to little, he became a very learned man through individual study and re- search. At the age of 14 years he became as- sistant to the clerk of the court of Nansemond County, and a few years later accepted a po- sition as deputy sheriff of that county. In the meantime he had determined to prepare himself for the practice of law, and qualified himself for that profession during his incum- bency of the above nanied positions. He was licensed to practice, and in time became a well- known public figure in Virginia, both as law- yer and in connection with the affairs of his State. He was a State elector and served in State and National conventions. He repre- sented Nansemond County in the General As- sembly of Virginia in 1851, 1852 and 1853. and was a member of the convention held at Richmond in April, 1861, which passed the ordinance of secession. He was sheriff of Nor- folk County one term. and after his removal from Portsmouth to Suffolk practiced his pro- fession for a period of 30 years. He was a
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devout Christian and joined the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1843. Three of his chil- dren are living, namely: . Mrs. Dr. W. W. Murray, who resides in Suffolk. Virginia; Judge Wilbur J., also of Suffolk ; and L. Clay. 1 .. Clay Kilby received a good educational training at Randolph-Macon College in the sessions of 1809-1870. He then took a course of study in Bryant & Stratton's Business Col- lege, during the fall of 1870. He came to Norfolk as a clerk for the Kilby & Ashburn Lumber Company, and was afterward in the employ of the John L. Roper Lumber Company for a period of nine years, having full charge of its immense shipping department. He then formed a copartnership with Robert Johnson, under the firm name of Johnson & Kilby, as general merchandise brokers, manufacturers' and packers' agents. In January, 1898, this firm was dissolved and Mr. Kilby has since continued in the business alone. He has at- tained a high degree of success and represents some fifty houses of manufacturers and pack- ers, among which is the American Sugar Re- fining Company. Mr. Kilby has taken an en- thusiastic interest in all that pertains to the welfare of Norfolk and the county in general. and has identified himself with all organiza- tions tending to the betterment of the public conditions. He served as a member of the Board of Health in 1894. having been elected on the Prohibition Reform ticket. He was one of the organizers of the Norfolk Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animal's, in 1891, of which Mr. Irving was president two years. Mr. Kilby theu succeeded as president. and has since continued in that capacity. His work as such has been in the nature of a blessing to the horses ; through his society and other simi- lar bodies, the passage of splendid state laws was secured for the prevention of cruelty to animals. His efforts as president of this body have been attended by success, and he has gained the hearty approval and co-operation of the best citizens of Norfolk.
Mr. Kilby was joined in marriage with
Susie Borum, a daughter of the late Samuel R. Borum, and they have two children living, Annette and Elizabeth. The subject of this sketch has been an active member of the Y. M. C. A. for some years, and has taken an ac- tive interest in all worthy enterprises of a like character. He is a member of the Epworth Methodist Episcopal Church, South, of which he has been treasurer for the past 15 years. He was assistant superintendent of the Sun- day-school for 17 years.
COLLINS ARMISTEAD, a member of the firm of Armistead & Myers. en- gaged in the real-estate and insurance business in the city of Portsmouth, Norfolk County, Virginia, is a mem- ber of one of the prominent families of Nor- folk County. His seventh maternal ancestor was one of the earliest landowners of Virginia and possessed property granted by Queen Anne in 1719. Mr. Armistead was born in Norfolk. County and is a son of Beverly A. Armistead and grandson of Francis N: Armistead. Francis N. Armistead came to Norfolk County from Maryland. Beverly A. Armistead was born three miles from Portsmouth, where he lived all his life. He was at one time president of the Bank of Portsmouth, succeeding Mayor Grice, after that gentleman's death. Beverly A. Armistead died in 1886. aged 52 years. He had been retired from active business duties for several years prior to his death. He married Laura Collins, who was born in Portsmouth. and was a daughter of John Collins. She died in 1895. Her great- grandfather was the second rector of Trin- ity Protestant Episcopal Church, at Ports- mouth. Besides the subject of this sketch. Mr. Armistead and his wife reared five chil- dren, as follows: Mrs. William Hart: Mrs. E. Alexander Hatton : Francis Noble. who died aged 21 years: and Margaret B .. the wife of Rev. Z. S. Farland, the rector of St. John's
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CAPT. IRA W. TAPLEY.
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Protestant Episcopal Church, of Portsmouth. Rev. Mr. Farland is a Virginian by birth : he attended William and Mary College, and the Theological Seminary of Virginia. He took up the ministry at Richmond, where he was rector of St. Paul's Church for a number of years. In 1896 he removed to Portsmouth to accept the rectorship of St. John's Protestant Episcopal Church.
J. Collins Armistead, whose name heads these lines, attended the high school at Ports- mouth, Virginia, and also the Episcopal High School at Alexandria, after which he went to McCabe's school at Petersburg. A year after his return to Portsmouth he engaged in busi- ness. He is interested in various enterprises and is president of the E. D. Clements Dry Goods Company. The real-estate and insur- ance firm of Armistead & Myers is one of the best known in Portsmouth, and conducts a large business, which increases annually. Mr. Armistead is notable for keen business per- ception, sound judgment and reliable business methods, and is considered one of the most trustworthy men of the city.
The subject of this sketch is a member of the Masonic order. Religiously he is an Epis- copalian.
ILLIAM F. SMITH, who is master shipwright of the Norfolk Navy Yard, Norfolk, Virginia, was born in Baltimore, Maryland, and is a son of William F. Smith. His father conducted a shipvard in Baltimore for many years.
William F. Smith, the subject of this sketch, learned the trade of a ship-builder with his father, and in 1856, at the age of 19 years removed to Norfolk, Virginia. He entered the Navy Yard as a journeyman, and was soon after made quarterman and later foreman. His marked ability was again recognized by pro- motion and he was made master shipwright, a position he has since retained with great cred- 35
it to himself. His first work in ship-building was on the "Colorado" and "Roanoke." The mast-house, block-makers' department and cooper shop of the Navy Yard are all in one building. From 75 to 80 shipwrights are cin- ployed. together with about 12 spar-makers, 6 coopers and from 20 to 30 calkers. all of whent are under Mr. Smith's supervision.
Mr. Smith married Martha B. Nottingham, whose father was formerly employed at the Navy Yard. They have two children, Mrs. Aurelia G. Alexander, and Robert Irvin, both of Portsmouth. Mr. Smith was reared in the Episcopal faith, while his wife is a Methodist. He did not serve in the army during the war but was for many years a member of a rifle company before the war. He performs his du- ties in a faithful, conscientious manner, hav- ing a thorough knowledge of his trade, and is one of the oldest employes of the Norfolk Navy Yard.
APT. IRA W. TAPLEY. Among 5 the many well-known sea captains in the employ of the Old Dominion Steamship Company, is the gentle- man whose name heads these lines. who has his home in Brooklyn, New York. He was born at West Brooksville, Maine. Sep- tember 12, 1855, and is a son of Thomas and Lucy H. (Wasson) Tapley.
Capt. Thomas Tapley was a master mariner for 40 years and sailed in many parts of the world. He followed the life of a seaman from the time he was 10 years old until his retire- ment some years ago. He is now enjoying the pleasures of home life at West Brooksville, where he has lived for many years. Of seven children born to Captain Tapley and his wife, all are living, and their names are as follows : O. L., a merchant ; Ira W. : O. W., a dealer in insurance: T. S .. a physician : Eugene, also a physician : Lucy H. ; and Mrs. Eliza C. Smith. Capt. Thomas Tapley and Iris wife celebrated their golden wedding August 26, 1901, and at
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their table 20 children and grandchildren sat down to dinner.
Ira W. Tapley, whose name heads this sketch. grew to manhood in West Brooksville, where he was taught in public and private schools. At the age of 15 years he began his sea-faring life as deck-boy on his father's ves- sel, and was in the Mediterranean and South American trade. He has filled all the positions from deck-hand to master, becoming a cap- tain at the age of 30 years. His first vessel was the "Hessian Republic," a . steamer of about I, TOO tons, and he sailed between Bos- ton and Hayti. He has been in the employ of several steamship companies. His duties with the Old Dominion Steamship Company began in 18So, when he was master of the "City of Columbia." With the exception of a short time he has been in the service of that company ever since. The three vessels which he has commanded since entering the company's employ are the "City of Columbia;" the side- wheeler. "Old Dominion;" and his present command, "Jamestown." The "Jamestown" is a vessel of 3,000 tons, and is one of the finest ships owned by the Old Dominion Steamship Company.
Captain Tapley was wedded to Carrie A. Stover. of Brooklyn, New York, and they have two daughters, Mildred W. and Carrie E. He is a member of the Royal Arcanum. He has always been very fortunate in his sea career, and is an excellent commander, highly es- teemed by his employers and by those whoni he has in charge. His portrait accompanies this sketch.
R ICHARD B. FENTRESS, a gentleman whose career in the business world has been marked by the greatest activity, is identified with numerous enterprises which have been a credit to the city of Norfolk, as well as to their promoters. He is president of the Norfolk Refrigerating & Stor-
age Company, and also of the Norfolk Cutlery Company.
Mr. Fentress was born in Princess Anne County, Virginia, May 29, 1863, and is a son of Richard Fentress-coming of a prominent old Virginia family. He attended the public schools and was reared on a farm. After two years spent in the retail grocery business he founded the commission business of C. W. Fentress & Company, wholesale dealers in but- ter and cheese. They built up a very large trade and exported the products of Virginia to a large extent. In 1898 a stock company was formed with Richard B. Fentress as president ; Charles Wesley Fentress, vice-president; and B. Watkins Leigh, secretary and treasurer. In 1899 they purchased the premises irom No. 24 to No. 26 Foster's lane, which were then occupied by a few old dwellings, and there caused to be erected one building, five stories high, and 95 by 125 feet, in dimensions ; one building, five stories high, and 50 by 80 feet in dimensions; one building of three stories, 25 by 269 feet in dimensions : and one, three stor- ies high, 25 by So feet in dimensions. The storage capacity is 500 cars and the buildings are complete in every detail of equipment. The capacity of the plant is being enlarged in order to meet the great increase in demand. The company now employs about 20 men. Mr. Fentress is president of the Norfolk Cutlery Company, which succeeded the old Bridgeport Silver Plate Company, in February, 1901, and mannfactures all kinds of silver plated cutlery. This company employs about 100 men. and its officers are Richard B. Fentress, president, and S. Q. Collins, vice-president. Its directors are Richard B. Fentress, S. Q. Collins. W. T. Simco, A. E. Krise, B. Watkins Leigh and A. F. McFarland. An idea of the enormous bus- iness transacted may be gained from the fact that the weekly pay-roll is between $Soo and $1,000. Mr. Fentress is one of the organizers of the Belt Line Stock Yards, of which he is secretary and treasurer. He is associated with the Wiltten Manufacturing Company. manu-
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facturers of tankage. He has submitted to the Council, and is about to be granted, a franchise for a hot-and-cold-air distributing plant. He has done considerable building in Norfolk, alone, as well as in association with others. He built two blocks of modern residences on Han- ilton avenue and three residences on Mowbury Arch, where his own residence is also located. Although a man of great prominence in the community, he has never sought to turn his popularity to political advantage.
Mr. Fentress was united in marriage with Lottie L. Gunn, a native of North Caroline, and a daughter of W. HJ. Gunn, of Norfolk. They have three children: Charles Linwood; Milton A. : Mabel L.
Mr. Fentress has recently secured a fran- chise in Baltimore, Maryland, for a cold stor- age plant, the plans for which are being drawn. The plant will be constructed as soon as the plans are completed, at an estimated cost of $1,500,000.
ON. HARRY LEE MAYNARD, a gentleman who has done much toward the development of the city of Portsmouth, Virginia, is the Rep- resentative of this Congressional Dis- trict in the United States Congress. He was born June 8, 1861, at Portsmouth, and is a son of John W. Maynard. The latter was born in Virginia, resided in Norfolk County after the war and was engaged in truck farming until his death, in 1897. His widow, a daughter of John C. Neville, is now living, at the age of 62 years.
Harry Lee Maynard was educated in the public schools of Norfolk County, and the Vir- ginia Agricultural and Mechanical College. from which he was graduated in 1880. He then moved to Portsmouth, became a clerk in a wholesale house, and for many years was con- nected with a New York wholesale commis- sion house. He has always taken an active part in political affairs, and in 1800 was elected
a member of the House of Delegates. In 1894 he was elected to the State Senate and re-elected to that body in 1808. While serving in that capacity he was elected to Congress, in No- vember. 1900, and is proving one of the most able representatives this district has ever had. During the last 10 or 12 years he has been en- gaged in the real-estate business, with an office in the Commercial Building. He is an official in different enterprises, and is a director of the Portsmouth Dime Savings Bank. He is iden- tified with various land improvement com- panies and other enterprises tending to im- prove Portsmouth.
Mr. Maynard was united in marriage with a daughter of E. C. Brooks, and they have five sons and one daughter.
R. JOSEPH GRICE, who is engaged in the practice of medicine in Ports- mouth, is one of the most prominent of the young physicians of Norfolk County, Virginia. He is a native of that city, as was his father, Maj. George W. Grice.
The Grice family in America dates back to an early period in the eighteenth century, when an ancestor came from Wales and settled in Delaware. He married a daughter of Walter Martin, who came from England and pur- chased a farm in Pennsylvania. They had a son, Francis Grice, who was born March 29, 1732. He married Mary Brockenborough. whose parents were from England, and they had the following children : Francis and Charles, who settled in North Carolina: and Joseph, the great-grandfather of the subject of this sketch.
Francis Grice, son of Francis and Mary (Brockenborough) Grice, enlisted in the Revo- lutionary War in the spring of 1776, at the age of 17 years, and served with credit in various capacities. He was taken prisoner by the British, and many were the hardships he
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endured. He was exchanged in January, 1780. His later life was mainly spent in building gov- ernment ships at his private shipyard at Phila- delphia. He married Mary Smith, December 12, 1780, and their children were,-Francis;
eral Taylor, in 1862 or 1863, asked for his transfer to the Trans-Mississippi Department, with plenary powers as assistant quartermas- ter general, but Major Grice declined the ser- vice. He was especially active in securing and Samuel ; Charles : George ; Joseph; and another ; promptly furnishing supplies to General Lee's who died young.
army, and in this his services were invaluable
: Joseph Grice, the great-grandfather of Dr. , to the cause. As chief of subsistence and Grice, moved from Philadelphia to Virginia some time between 1812 and 1818, and with his sons engaged in furnishing large supplies of timber to the government. His son. Joseph, grandfather of the Doctor, married Abby Cox, July 26, 1823. She was a descendant of some of the early settlers of New Jersey. her father having been a soldier in the Revolution. When Mr. Grice died he left a widow and three children, of whom the oldest was George W.
Major George W. Grice was born at Ports- mouth, Virginia. May 16, 1824. His father died in 1831, and he was obliged to leave school at the age of 14 years, to support his. widowed mother and his sisters. He soon won his way to the front, commanding the confidence and respect of all, and even as a young man, at- tained a high degree of success. He held many important public and municipal offices. In 1861, he was among the first to enlist in the cause of the South, being then chief magistrate of Portsmouth. By his plans and fine execu- tion he materially assisted in causing the panic among the Federals. which resulted in their burning and evacuating the Gosport Navy Yard in April, 1861. He was later appointed captain and acting quartermaster in the Con- federate service and assigned to duty as post quartermaster at Portsmouth. He was the rep- resentaive of the city who met the well-known 3rd Georgia Regiment and assigned it to quar- ters. When the brigade was ordered to evacu- ate Portsmouth in 1862, he marched with them as brigade quartermaster, and served in the battles about Richmond, ending at Malvern
transportation for the States of South Caro- lina, Georgia, and Florida, with headquarters at Columbia, South Carolina, he, by almost superhuman efforts, collected and forwarded to General Lee his sorely needed supplies. He continued to serve in that capacity until the close of the war. Upon receiving his parole lie bravely faced the situation and encouraged others. He returned to Virginia in the fall of 1865, and immediately set to work to repair his shattered fortune. He assisted in founding the Bank of Portsmouth in 1867. and served as its president until his death. In September, 1875, he was elected president of the Raleigh & Gaston Railway, also the Raleigh & Augusta Air Line Railway, both now being parts of the Seaboard Air Line. These positions hie filled only one month before his death from apoplexy, November 12, 1875. Major Grice first mar- ried Margaret Nash Edwards, who died in 1864, without issue. November 29, 1866, he formed a second union, wedding Henrietta Harding, of Norfolk. Virginia, and they had three children-Nenie, who died in infancy; George W .. Jr., who died in childhood; and . Joseph, the subject of this biography.
Dr. Joseph Grice was born September 29. 1869. and was primarily educated in the pri- vate schools of Portsmouth and Norfolk. In the fall of 1889, he entered the University of Virginia, where he took an academic course and a medical course, graduating June 14, 1893. He then went to New York and was on the staff of the City Hospital of New York City for a year and a half, in the meantime
1 Hill. He was elected a member of the Senate pursuing post-graduate work. In Deceniber. of Virginia and served a number of terms. Af- 1895, he entered upon his practice in Ports- ter his promotion on the staff of the army, Gen- ! mouth and success has crowned his efforts in
CORNELIUS MICHAEL CRUSER.
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the community. He has served as president of the Board of Health for two terms.
Fraternally, Dr. Grice is a member of the. State Medical Society of Virginia: the Sea- board Medical Society of Virginia and North Carolina ; and the Norfolk Medical Society. of which he is vice-president. In June. 1900, he was elected to the City Council of Portsmouth from the First Ward. He is a trustee of the Portsmouth Orphan Asylum. Religiously, he is a member of St. John's Protestant Episcopal Church, of which he is a vestryman.
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