The Goodspeed Publishing Co., Nashville TN, 1886-1887

Biographical Sketches Shelby County

transcription donated by Rose-Anne Cunningham Bray

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 I. Callahan & Co., plumbers, gas-fitters, etc., are located at 217 Second Street, Memphis. Mr. Callahan, the principal member of the firm, is a native of Ireland, and immigrated to the United States with his parents when but an infant. He is the son of John and Mary (Sweeney) Callahan, and came to this city in 1859, serving for three years as an apprentice with Kennedy & Smith. He worked at his trade in St. Louis,. and in 1878 returned to this city, where he established his present business. In 1876 he married Mary Gloreing, who died in 1880, leaving three children. In 1885 Mr. Callahan married Mary Gallager, of Memphis, and this union resulted in the birth of one child. Our subject and family are members of the Catholic Church.

William D. Cannon, sheriff of Shelby County, was born in Fayette County, Tenn., April 29, 1843, and is the son of Henry J. and Sarah S. (Peebles) Cannon, both parents being natives of North Carolina. His father came to Tennessee in 1843, and located in Fayette County, where he very successfully followed agricultural pursuits. He was an exemplary citizen, and in 1861 moved to Memphis, where he died in January, 1862. Early in life he had prepared himself for the practice of law, but relinquished it for the life of a planter, which pursuit better suited his tastes. He was active and prominent in politics, but was not an aspirant for office, and on one occasion refused the nomination to Congress. William D. passed his youth without noteworthy event, and in 1861 came with his parents to Memphis. He entered the Confederate service in 1865, and continued to serve until the final surrender. After the war he followed agricultural pursuits in Shelby County until 1870, when he was elected constable of the Eighteenth Civil District. He served thus until September, 1874, when he became a deputy sheriff under Charles Anderson. He served as deputy eight years, and was then (April, 1882) elected sheriff to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Sheriff Athy. At the general election of 1884 he was elected sheriff by the largest vote cast for any one on the ticket. He is one of the most popular sheriffs the county has ever had. Early in the seventies, while farming, he served two terms as Master of Melrose Lodge, P. of H. August 1, 1870, he was united in marriage with M. Florence Jackson, a native of Fayette County, and by her is the father of four children — two sons and two daughters. He is a Knight Templar of the Masonic Order; is a member of the K. of P. and the K. of H. In 1886 he was nominated by acclamation by the local Democracy, and was supported by the Republicans for the office of sheriff, and was elected by a handsome majority, a noticeable indorsement of his popularity.

Rev. John B. Canada, a talented minister of the Missionary Baptist Church, was born in Halifax County, Va., June 19, 1817. His parents were Willis C. and Annie (Wilkes) Canada, and were also natives of the above named country and were married in Virginia in 1814. They were of Irish and English descent. Our subject was the second child of a family of five sons and a daughter. The father enlisted in the war of 1812, and was stationed at Norfolk, Va. He was a farmer and died in his native country in 1843. Our subject was reared on a farm, receiving a limited education. In 1843 he became a licensed preacher in the Missionary Baptist Church, but realizing the necessity of a more thorough education he devoted the next six years to earnest study. The first three years were passed at Botatott Seminary and the last three in the Columbian College, at Washington, D. C., where he graduated with high honors. December 1, 1849, he went to Memphis, Tenn., and in 1850 was an ordained minister. Mr. Canada has been an earnest and conscientious minister and has been rewarded with great success in his work. He has preached to the congregation at Bartlett, Tenn., for twenty-four years, and Beaver Creek Church nineteen years, and to other churches from ten to fifteen years. He was married at Germantown, October 17, 1850, to Miss C. J. Dennis, daughter of J. S. Dennis, a merchant and a native of Maryland. Ten children have blessed the union, seven of them living. Mrs. Canada was born in Baltimore, Md., September 15, 1831. Mr. Canada is a Democrat and a prominent Mason. His wife and most of the children are members of the Baptist Church. Mr. Canada owns 376 acres of land in Fayette County and 150 acres six miles south of Memphis. He resides in Collierville, where he is loved and esteemed as a true Christian and a cultured gentleman.

Richard S. Capers, Clerk of the Shelby County ,Criminal Court, was born in Haywood County, Tenn., June 21, 1847, and is the son of Benjamin H. and Rebecca J. (Greaves) Capers, both parents being natives of Abbeville District, S. C. In January, 1850, Richard S. was brought by his parents to Memphis, and in this city he was reared to manhood. His education was finished at St. Thomas Hall, Holly Springs, Miss., and at Urnes College, Clinton, Miss. Upon the breaking out of the war in 1861 he enlisted in the Confederate service, but was discharged on account of his youth; but in 1863 he again enlisted in Company F, Forrest's old regiment of cavalry, and served faithfully until the close of the war as a private. In May, 1865, he accepted a position as deputy clerk of the criminal court, which position he held continuously through all the various official changes of this court until August, 1886, when he was rewarded for his long and faithful execution of court duties by election to the position he now holds. He is recognized as a conscientious, trustworthy and obliging officer, and is one of the substantial citizens of Memphis. February 3, 1883, he was united in marriage with Miss Alice J. Tapscott, of Marshall Institute, Mississippi. The issue of this marriage is one son, Richard T. He is a member of the orders, K. of P. and Commander of Progress Division.

A. T. Chambers, an influential citizen of Shelby County, was born in Virginia, and in 1854 went to Texas, where he was engaged in farming and stock raising until 1860. He then came to Tennessee, and in 1861 enlisted in the Fourth Tennessee Regiment Infantry as a private, but upon the reorganization in 1863 he was elected third lieutenant, which office he filled until the close of the war, receiving his parole at Greensboro, N. C., in April, 1865. He then returned to Tennessee and located in Shelby County, and has been identified with the best interests of the people up to the present time. His parents, J. P. and Rebecca. (Farro) Chambers, were living in Virginia at the time of their death, which occurred about 1846 and 1880, the mother dying first. In 1867 our subject married Mrs. Henrietta (Polk) Bolten, widow of Leonidas Bolten. Two children were born to her first marriage, and six were born to her union with our subject. In 1867 Mr. Chambers located on his present farm, and has tilled it up to the present time. The Chambers family are originally of Scotch lineage, and have made honorable, law-abiding citizens. Mr. Chambers is a Democrat in politics, and he and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church South.

Maj. John A. Cheatham was born in Davidson County, in the suburbs of Nashville, June 6, 1826, and was a son of Col. Leonard P. Cheatham, a soldier with Jackson in the war of 1812, and a native of Virginia. He came to Tennessee at an early age. The Cheatham family were among the earliest settlers of Robertson County, and were recognized as leading men in that part of the State. Anderson Cheatham, the grandfather of our subject, was sheriff of Robertson County, and instrumental in forming the society and establishing the civilization of that locality. Sen. Richard Cheatham, who represented that district in the Legislature for a number of years, and was also a member of Congress, and Col. Edward Cheatham, who had been a member of both houses'of the Legislature, and for whom the county of Cheatham was named, and who did a great deal toward the construction of the Nashville & Edgefield Railroad, were numbered among the prominent members of the Cheatham family. The present member of Congress from that district, Hon. Joseph E. Washington, is a descendant of the Cheatham family; his father, the Hon. George A. Washington, formerly vice-president of the Louisville & Nashville Railroad, and one of the wealthiest and most prominent citizens oI the State, was descended from the Cheathams on the mother's side. The father of our subject married Elizabeth Robertson, a granddaughter of Gen. James Robertson, for whom the county was named. He was the pioneer, and the acknowledged leader of the colony that settled the locality around Nashville. His life and virtues have been well portrayed by Col. Putman, in his "Life of Robertson." It was from this source that the late Gen. Cheatham, a brother of our subject, inherited his bravery during the late war, and his ability to command. Our subject's parents both died in Nashville, the father in March, 1863, and the mother December 23, 1881. The father was a lawyer and a politician of wide reputation, and held the position of postmaster under President Polk. The family consisted of eleven children, our subject being the fifth child. He was raised on a farm, and has made a business of farming and merchandising. He enlisted in the Confederate Army, belonging to an Arkansas regiment, but was afterward transferred to Gen. Cheatham's staff, and served from 1862 until the war closed, and was surrendered at High Point, N. C. January 17, 1882, he was married in Memphis, at the First Methodist Episcopal Church, to Mrs. Charlotte W. Cheatham. Mr. Cheatham has always been a Democrat, and cast his first presidential vote for Cass. He has a beautiful home three miles from Memphis, and a fine plantation in the Mississippi bottom, sixteen miles south of Memphis. He is well known in Middle and West Tennessee.

Hon. W. L. Clapp, speaker of the House of Representatives and member of the law firm of Beard & Clapp, graduated at the University of Mississippi in 1872, after which he read law with his father in Memphis, and was admitted to the bar in 1874. He practiced his profession in the firm of Clapp & Meux until 1879, when the firm of Clapp & Beard was formed, our subject's father being senior member. In 1883 the elder Clapp became silent partner, and so remained until 1885, when the firm name was changed to Beard & Clapp. The father was a native of Abingdon, Va., and the mother, whose maiden name was Lucas, of Sumner County, Tenn. They were married at Holly Springs, Miss., where the father practiced law. During the war he was chief of the Produce Loan for the Confederacy, receiving his appointment from President Davis. Since 1867 he has practiced law in Memphis. He was elected to the State Senate in 1878 without his knowledge that he was a candidate. He was several terms a member of the Mississippi Legislature, and was a member of the Confederate Congress. Our subject is one of nine children, four girls and four boys yet surviving. In November, 1874, he was joined in marriage to Miss Lamira Parker, a native of this city, who has borne her husband the following children: Jerl, Lucas, Robert, Parker and Aubrey B. Mr. Clapp has been first lieutenant of the Chickasaw Guards since 1880, and has been president of the Tennessee Club two years. He was elected to the speakership of the House in 1886–87 over some of the strongest and most popular men of the State, and presides with exceptional skill and urbanity.

James E. Clary, chief of the Memphis fire department, is a native of Ireland, where his birth occurred in 1845. About a year later his father, Patrick Clary, came to the United States and located in Memphis, and here James E. was reared to manhood. He secured a limited education in youth, and upon the breaking out of the war ran away from home and school and enlisted in Company H, One Hundred and Fifty-fourth Senior Tennessee Confederate Regiment, and served as a private throughout the entire war. Returning home he accepted a position as a horse-man in the city fire department, and has remained in this service ever since, having filled every official position. He was elected chief in 1881, and in this trying and responsible position has given excellent satisfaction. Under his supervision the fire department is more efficient than ever before. In 1874 Mr. Clary was united in marriage with Miss Ellen Corbett, a native of South Carolina. To this union are six living chilaren—one son and five daughters. Mr. Clary is a Democrat, and is a member of the orders K. of I., K. of H. and A. F. & A. M., being a Knight Templar of the latter.

J. W. Cochran, president of the German Bank, and of the Panola Oil and Fertilizer Company, of the Hanauer Oil Works, and trustee in the American Cotton Oil Trust, is a native of Virginia and is of Irish descent, and is the son of Conley and Nancy A. (Cassady) Cochran. The parents were natives of the "Emerald Isle." Upon coming to the United States they first located in Virginia, but in 1844 came to Shelby County, and followed agricultural pursuits until their respective deaths—the father in 1852 and the mother in 1847. Our subject was born May 24, 1835, and at the age of nine years began life for himself. He followed various occupations until his majority, then became clerk for a lumber firm of this city. In 1869 he embarked in the oil business, the nucleus of the present oil industry. He was treasurer and manager of this company—Memphis Oil Company—until 1875. He has also been largely interested in oil-mills in Arkansas, and in 1883 he and others founded the American Cotton Oil Trust, of this city, with which organization he is yet engaged. He was for several years one of the directors of the German Bank, and June 15, 1886, became its president. December 20, 1866, he was united in marriage with Miss Ida C. Williams, a native of Fayette County. They have these children: John Knox (deceased), Ida (deceased), — (deceased), and Mabel and Maggie living.

R. L. Cochran, dealer in lumber, shingles, doors, sash, blinds, packing boxes, etc., and senior member of the firm of R. L. Cochran & Co., is a native of this city and was born in 1850. Since he began in business for himself, except two years when he was in the grocery trade as a member of the firm of Cochran & Barton, he has been engaged in the lumber trade. He has been quite successful in his business undertakings. In youth his education was finished at Emory and Henry College, Virginia, and at the Kentucky Military Institute. In 1875 he was joined in marriage to Miss Anna E. Gates, who bore him one child, Richard L., still living. This lady died in 1876 and in 1879 he married Mamie Taylor, who has borne him the following children: William T., Marcus E. and Henry L. By appointment of Gov. Bate, Mr. Cochran served an unexpired term as commissioner of Memphis. He is a member of the board of directors of the Bank of Commerce. He and family belong to the Methodist Episcopal Church and he belongs to the following secret orders: F. & A. M., I. O. O. F. and K. of H. His father, M. E. Cochran. established the lumber business here in 1844 and controlled it until his death in 1873. The firm then assumed its present name, the members being R.L., C. A. and M. A. Cochran. The parents were both natives of Virginia, but came to this county at an early day and were here married. The mother, Sophy (Leake) Cochran, is still living.

Joseph L. Cody was born in Alabama and came to Tennessee in October, 1867, locating in Fayette County, but subsequently in 1874 came to Shelby County. His parents, Miles F. and Minerva Cody, were natives of Tennessee and Mississippi respectively. The father was a farmer by occupation and resides in Marion County, Ala. The mother died in 1862. In 1865 the father married Jane Duke. In 1861 our subject enlisted in the Confederate service, Sixteenth Alabama Regiment, Infantry, and remained in service until the battle of Murfreesboro, which rendered him unfit for duty for about three months. He again returned to the army and was the second time wounded at the battle of Shiloh, which disabled him about two months. After recovering he again joined the army, and in 1864 was commissioned captain in Col. Hetherington's regiment. In 1865 he was again wounded, while in battle near Mobile, Ala., and this disabled him from active duty the remainder of the war. He was paroled at Columbus, Miss., in May, 186. In January, 1868, he married Harriet A. Cody, of Fayette County, and daughter of Thomas and Jane (Thomas) Cody. Four children have blessed this union, three of whom are living: Maude, Ola and Elsie. Mr. Cody resides in the village of Arlington and is engaged in farming and running a cotton-gin. He is a Mason and a K. of H.

A. E. Cole, of the firm of Hughes & Cole, dealers in staple and fancy groceries, general merchandise, and who established their business in 1880, is a native of Shelby County and the son of Winfield and Frances A. (Massey) Cole, both natives of Virginia. After living a few years in Alabama they came to Shelby County, where the father followed agricultural pursuits until his death in 1860. The mother, too, passed away in 1877. Mr. Cole, the junior member of the firm, was reared on a farm and followed agricultural pursuits until 1874, when he was elected constable of the First District of this county, which office he held for six years. One year previous to the time he engaged in his present business, he was employed as traveling salesman for J. R. Godwin & Co., of Memphis. In 1871 he married Mattie Douglas, of this county, and the daughter of G. L. and J. Douglas. Five children blessed this union, four of whom are living. Mr. Cole is a member of the K. of H. F.

M. Hughes, the senior member of this firm, is a native of Lincoln County, Tenn., and the son of Joshua and Temperence (Gunter) Hughes, both natives of North Carolina. They came to Tennessee about 1825 and here the father followed the occupation of a farmer. He died in 1878 in his eighty-first year, and the mother preceded him in death about two weeks. Our subject's father, mother, sister and brother-in-law, all died in the same house within two weeks' time. F. M. Hughes was reared on a farm and followed agricultural pursuits until about five years since. He came to Shelby County with his parents about 1854. In 1861 he enlisted in the Confederate service, Ninth Tennessee Regiment Infantry, and remained until the close of the war. He was twice taken prisoner, and after being released the second time was attached to Forrest's cavalry. In 1863 he married M. E. Stewart, of this county, and daughter of James T. and Mary Stewart. Two children were born to this union: Luna May and Emma Grace. Our subject's eldest daughter is a graduate in music, and November, 1884, she married J. L. Mercer, of Memphis. They have one child — Mary Grace. Mr. Hughes has been interested in the mercantile business most of the time since the war. He has taken all the degrees in Masonry, including the Chapter degree, and is also a member of the K. of H.

James M. Coleman, justice of the peace, notary public, and commissioner of deeds, is a native of Louisiana and was born September 14, 1830, to the marriage of Daniel Coleman and Amelia Stutts, natives respectively of Georgia and Louisiana. The father, Daniel Coleman, a skillful physician, came with his family, in 1836, to Tennessee, locating at Raleigh, this county, where he practiced his profession until his death in 1871. It was here that our subject was reared and educated. Upon reaching manhood he engaged in mercantile pursuits, continuing until 1874, when he was elected justice of the peace for the Sixth District and opened his office in Memphis, and has occupied this position by re-election until the present. Squire Coleman was formerly an old line Whig, but for many years has been a staunch Democrat, and has taken an active part in local politics, having served as chairman of the Shelby County Democratic Central Committee, as coroner of the county, as chairman of the poor-house committee eight years, during which last official term he was instrumental in securing the erection of the present poor-buildings. June 1, 1851, he married Miss Susan Bayless, a native of this county, and to this union there are two living sons: George B., deputy register of the county, and James M., deputy sheriff. He was appointed coal oil inspector of Shelby County by Gov. Robert L. Taylor.

Capt. Charles H. Collier, superintendent of the Memphis public schools, is the son of C. Miles and Sarah (Cowles) Collier, both of whom were born, reared and married near Fortress Monroe. In early life the father was an officer of "the line" in the United States Navy and afterward a mail contractor for eastern Virginia. His family consisted of four sons, who took active parts in the late war and at its termination returned home without receiving any wounds or being imprisoned. Two were in the army, one a surgeon, the other a captain. The other two were in the navy, one a midshipman and our subject an engineer. He was a native Virginian, born August 25, 1846, and educated in the Hampton Military School. After finishing there he began to prepare himself for the United States naval service, but the war broke out about this time and he enlisted in a company known as Wythe Rifles. After serving a year as private he was transferred to a naval engineer corps, where he remained until the close of the war, principally under Dozier, Rochell and Tucker. In 1871 he came to Memphis and engaged as assistant teacher in the Memphis High School. He was afterward principal of Market Street and Linden Street schools. In 1875 he married Evelin Belcher, who lived only four months, In 1879 he wedded Julia Bingham, by whom he had four children, three of whom are now living. Our subject is a member of the Episcopal Church, as his parents were before him. In 1880 he was chosen superintendent of the public schools, which position he is now holding. The schools are well organized and in fine working order.

A. M. Cooke, assistant general manager of the Louisville, New Orleans & Texas Railroad, was born in Virginia, October. 17, 1850, and received his education at the Virginia Military Institute. He was, for some time, connected with the freight department of the Atlantic, Mississippi & Ohio Railroad, and after the consolidation of the express department he was also connected with that. In 1885 he became purchasing agent for the road with which he is now associated, and in 1886 was promoted to the position he is now occupying. He is one of Shelby County's best citizens and a wide-awake business man.

L. P. Cooper, a member of the law firm of Craft & Cooper, of Memphis, Tenn., was born in Rutherford County, Tenn., January 8, 1830. His father, M. T. Cooper, moved to Bedford County when he was a small boy, where he grew to manhood and lived until he moved to Panola County, Miss., in 1857. He was educated at Union University, Mur freesboro, Tenn., from which he graduated in 1852. After graduating he was engaged in the business of teaching until 1856. In 1857 he attended the law school at Lebanon one session of five months. In the fall of 1857 he moved to Panola County, Miss., where he was engaged in the business of planting until the spring of 1862, when he entered in the Confederate Army as a private in the Forty-second Mississippi Regiment. Soon after he enlisted his regiment was ordered to Virginia. After the regiment arrived at Richmond he was made quartermaster of the regiment with the rank of captain. Late in the war regimental quartermasters were abolished. He, however, was retained as assistant brigade quarter-master and assigned to duty under Maj. Reid, quartermaster of Davis' brigade, in which capacity he served until the close of the war. For several months before the surrender he was acting brigade quarter-master. After the surrender he returned to his home in Mississippi. In August, 1865, he was elected as a delegate from Panola County to the Constitutional Convention of Mississippi, called by President Johnson, to amend and remodel the constitution so as to adapt it to the new condition of things. After the adjournment of this convention he returned to his home and commenced the practice of law in the town of Panola. In 1871 the county site was moved to Sardis, to which place he moved and continued the practice of law there until he moved to Memphis, in 1874. There he practiced alone until 1878, when he formed a partnership with Judge Craft, the senior of the present firm. His father, M. T. Cooper, was born in Rowan County, N. C., in 1806. Henry Cooper, the father of M. T., moved to what was then Rutherford, now Cannon County, in 1816. In 1828 M. T. Cooper was married to Miss Sallie A. Vincent, daughter of Henry Vincent, Esq., of Rutherford County. Of this marriage there were born thirteen children, six of whom are living. When the subject of this sketch was a small boy his father moved to Bedford County, where he grew up to manhood and lived until he moved to Mississippi. His father was a farmer and merchant and did considerable business in trading in produce and stock. L. P. was married January 24, 1854, to Miss Pauline H. Scales, daughter of Robert Scales, of Davidson County, Tenn. Six children were born of this marriage, three of whom are living — one daughter and two sons. He lost his first wife April 10, 1864, and was married to his second wife, Miss Cornelia Battle, a native of Shelby County, on the 10th of December, 1868. She is the daughter of the late William Battle, Esq., of Shelby County, who was originally from North Carolina, and who settled in Shelby County in 1830. L. P. Cooper and his wife are both members of the Central Baptist Church, of Memphis, and he is a Democrat.

Henry Craft, one of the oldest members of the Memphis bar, obtained his literary education at Oglethorpe University, Milledgville, Ga., completing the same in 1839. He then followed various occupations and in 1847 began the study of law at Holly Springs, Miss., with Hon. J. W. C. Watson. He attended law school at Princeton, New Jersey. He was admitted to the bar in 1848, in Holly Springs, Miss., and practiced his profession there ten years as a member of the firm of Watson & Craft. In 1858 he came to Memphis, where he has since resided. In 1862 he enlisted in the Confederate service and was a member of Gen. Chalmer's staff until his health failed. He has since practiced law, part of the time alone, and then as a member of the firm of Kortrecht & Craft, until 1873, and of Kortrecht, Craft & Scales until 1875. The present firm of Craft & Cooper was formed in 1878. His father, Hugh Craft, was born on the eastern shore of Maryland, in 1799, and his mother, whose maiden name was Mary E. Pitts, was born in North Carolina, in 1799. They married in Georgia, in 1819, and his father was a merchant there, residing first in Milledgeville and afterward in Macon until 1839. The family moved to Holly Springs, Miss., in 1839, and his father was land agent there until his death in 1867. His mother had died in 1826, and his father had married Martha Cheney in South Carolina, who soon died, and he married Elizabeth R. Collier, who bore him three sons and five daughters. This lady's death occurred in 1877. Our subject was one of two sons and three daughters of the first wife and was born April 8, 1823, at Milledgeville, Ga. In 1856 he married Miss Ella D. Boddie, daughter of Elijah Boddie, of Sumner County, Tenn. She has borne him the following children: Alfred D., born 1858, died 1884; Mary F., born 1861, died 1885; Henry, born 1866; Charles K., born 1868, died 1873; Paul, born 1870: Hugh, born 1874. Mr. Craft is a Democrat and himself and wife are members of the Presbyterian Church.

Richard G. Craig, wholesale agricultural implement and seed merchant, of Memphis, is a native of Hamilton County, Ohio, and was born in 1837. He was there reared and educated and came South and located in Memphis in 1860, engaging in his present business on a limited scale. He has continued the same to the present time, and now has the largest establishment of the kind in the city or in the South. He has been largely instrumental in inducing the farming community to use more modern and improved agricultural implements, to diversify their crops and to restore worn-out farms. He is president of the Memphis Fertilizing Company, the business of which was established in 1882. Mr. Craig is a conservative Democrat, is a Mason, a member of the Baptist Church, and is recognized as one of the most reliable and well-informed citizens, in agriculture, of the city. In 1858 he married Miss Sallie L. Bruce, of Ohio, and by her has three living children, two being sons.

Thomas B. Crenshaw, deputy county court clerk, is a native of this county and was born September 12, 1848, to the marriage of Thomas B. Crenshaw, Sr., and Miss Grace Booker, both natives of the Old Dominion." The father came to this county in 1836 and located in the Ninth Civil District, where he conducted a plantation until his death in 1866. He was magistrate of that district twenty-seven consecutive years, and was one of the most useful and substantial citizens of the county. Our subject was reared on his father's plantation and was there educated. He followed agricultural pursuits until 1878, when he was elected clerk of the circuit court at Bartlett, this county, which position he filled in a highly creditable manner. In 1885 the court was abolished, and he was then employed as bookkeeper at the same place, continuing until September, 1886, when he accepted his present responsible position under P. J. Quigley. He is a Democrat, and was candidate for the nomination for county register in 1886. He is a member of the K. of H. and is one of the rising young men of the city.

Mrs. E. J. Crockett, principal of the Memphis High School, is a daughter of Edward and Eliza (Johnson) Belcher. The father was a native of Boston, Mass., and the mother a native of Alabama. From Boston the father went to Virginia, and finally came to West Tennessee, locating at Bolivar, where he became distinguished as a lawyer. After marriage they lived at Bolivar a short time and then went to Oxford, Miss., where they made their permanent home. Both were active members of the Episcopal Church. Their family consisted of seven children — three sons and four daughters. Two of the boys chose the profession of their father. After an active, useful life the father died, but the mother, is now residing in Memphis. Our subject was born at Bolivar, Tenn. but received her education at Oxford, Miss., graduating from the female seminary. In 1862 she and William H. Crockett were married. During the late war he fought bravely for the Southern cause, being a staff officer of Gen. Hindman. At the battle of Shiloh he was severely wounded, from the effects of which he never recovered. To this union were born three children, only one of them now living. This one, Elise B. Crockett, is a member of the high school and partakes of her mother's love for books and learning. After the death of her husband Mrs. Crockett began teaching, and after assisting in the Memphis High School a time assumed the principalship of the same in 1875, and has filled that position ably ever since. She is a member of the Episcopal Church, as was her husband.

William R. Cross is a native of Cross County, Ark., where he was born August 12, 1854. His father, Col. David C. Cross, after whom our subject's native county was named, came to Memphis in 1866, but died in Arkansas, in 1874. Our subject finished his education at the University of Mississippi, and in 1874 engaged in the mercantile business at Bartlett, this county, and has since conducted the same enterprise. In 1882 he was elected a justice of the peace and yet retains that position. He is an able and conscientious officer, and has the highest confidence of the public. In August, 1884, he accepted his present position as clerk to the chairman of the county court, C. E. Smith, and has retained it since. In 1875 Mr. Cross was united in marriage with Miss Loula Person, of this county, and these parents have three living daughters. Mr. Cross is a stanch Democrat, is a member of the I. O. O. F., K. of P., of which latter he is chancellor commander. Himself and wife are members of the Methodist Episcopal Church.

Hugh B. Cullen, real estate agent and notary public, was born in Louisa County, Va., July 12, 1851, and is the son of Hugh M. and Anne (Booth) Cullen, natives respectively of Ireland and Virginia. Hugh B. was reared and educated in his native State and came to Memphis in 1871 and took a position as deputy county court clerk under James Reilly, continuing under Owen Dwyer until 1882, when he was elected to the office of clerk and served one term of four years, at the expiration of which he entered his present business and has met with good success. In 1873 he was united in marriage with Miss Lizzie Gibbs, of this city, and these parents now have five living children — two sons and three daughters. Mr. Cullen is a Knight Templar in Masonry, a member of the Encampment in Odd-Fellowship, and is a member of the K. of P. and the K. of H. orders.

John Cummins, dealer in staple and fancy groceries, liquors, grain, feed, cigars and tobaccos, was born in Memphis, where he passed his youth and manhood. He is the son of William and Bettie (Quintan) Cummins, natives of Ireland and Ohio, respectively. They came to Memphis about 1852, and at the breaking out of the late civil war William enlisted and fought bravely in defense of the Southern cause. He died about 1865. Our subject is one of those wide-awake, energetic business men with push and energy enough to succeed in any undertaking. The business that he is now engaged in was established in 1878 and is situated at 216 and 218 Poplar Street.

P. Cunningham (deceased) was a blacksmith and wagon-maker, whose shop was situated on the southeast corner of Monroe and De Soto Streets. He established his business in 1858. After locating in this city he was associated with different partners, and at one time sold out and went to Mississippi, where he was employed in the arsenals at Columbus and at Selma, Ala. When the war closed he returned to Memphis and resumed his former business. From 1878 up to the time of his death, which occurred August 5, 1885, Mr. Cunningham ran the business alone. He manufactured carts, trucks and scales, also always kept on hand seasoned lumber, from which he executed the most finished and difficult work in his line. He served his apprenticeship in Dayton, Ohio, which is of itself a sufficient guarantee of his proficiency. He was a native of Ireland, and immigrated to Canada in 1842, and from there to the United States in 1850, locating in Memphis in 1855. In the following year he married Mary Welch, of Belfast, Ireland, and eight children were born to them, six of whom are living. Since the death of our subject, his daughter, Fannie, has taken charge of the entire business, with John Fox, an experienced workman, as foreman, and is conducting it successfully.

 W. H. Dale & Co., leading farmers and saw-mill men, own 960 acres of the best land of the county. This company is composed of J. C., W. H. and D. M. Dale. The father, J. C. Dale, was born in Sumter County, Ala., 1832, being the first white child born in that county, his parents being Hugh and Catherine (Clanton) Dale. Hugh Dale was a native of Ireland, who came to Quebec in 1820; being nineteen years of age at that time: Soon after lie moved to Alabama, where he married. The family consisted of ten children, five now living. He followed farming, and died in 1867. His wife is now living at the advanced age of eighty-two. Our subject had the very best advantages for an education, which he improved, graduating from La Grange College, Ala., in 1851. He then engaged in farming, and the following year married Elizabeth A. Mayes, a graduate of Athens Female Institute. To this union were born ten children—four sons and six daughters. Having lived in Alabama and Mississippi till 1884 our subject and wife came to the plantation, where they now live. Mr. Dale is a Royal Arch Mason, a Democrat in politics, and for about three years has taught school.

Squire Henry E. Cannon was born in Wake County, N. C., July 5, 1840, and is a son of Henry J. Cannon, who was born in North Carolina and moved to Tennessee in 1843, settling near Somerville, Fayette County, He was a graduate of Chapel Hill College, North Carolina, and was licensed to practice law. but preferred farming to the legal profession. He was a well-read man, especially upon agriculture, and a member of the Agricultural Bureau of the State, and president of the district fair, which included Fayette County. Before leaving North Carolina he married Miss Sarah P. Peebles, a native of that State and educated at Raleigh. Five sons and two daughters were born to them, six living to be grown. Our subject was the second child. The father moved to Memphis in 1860, where he remained until his death, in the fall of 1861. Henry E. Cannon was raised and educated on the farm. He enlisted in the Confederate Army in May, 1861, in the Seventh Tennessee Cavalry, under Col. W. H. Jackson, and was at the battle of Corinth, Miss., and on the retreat from Dalton to Atlanta, being wounded while scouting around Lost Mountain, and was disabled for six weeks. He served through the entire war, and was surrendered near Gainesville, Ala. Mr. Cannon was married at St. Mary's Church in Memphis, October 29, 1872, to Miss Susie Virginia Devereaux Dunlap, daughter of Devereaux and S. Virginia (Ragland) Dunlap. The issue of this marriage was Sarah Virginia, Susie Dunlap, Henry Hugh, Mary Dunlap, Elizabeth Love, Charles Devereaux Dunlap and Robert Dudley. Susie D. and Elizabeth Love both died. The mother of this family was born in Shelby County, Tenn., January 20, 1855. Mr. Cannon is a Democrat and a Mason, and himself and family are members of the Episcopal Church. He has 3,000 acres of land, 1,280 acres in Louisiana 1,100 in Washington County, Miss.. 80 in Arkansas, and the rest in Shelby County, six miles southeast of Memphis. Mrs. S. Virginia Dunlap, the mother-in-law of our subject and a co-subject of this sketch, was born in the suburbs of Memphis, April 14, 1832. Her father, Dr. Nathaniel Ragland, who was the first druggist of Memphis, was born in Virginia, and moved to Kentucky in 1816. He was a well-informed man, with a strong mind and unbending character, with clear judgment and strict integrity. He was married in Louisville, Ky., to Miss Elizabeth Love, daughter of Matthew Love, a native of Pennsylvania. Mrs. Dunlap was married in 1853, near the present home, to Devereaux Dunlap, son of Gen. Hugh W. Dunlap, a prominent and well-known citizen of Tennessee, and twin brother to Hon. W. C. Dunlap, who served on the supreme bench and was a member of Congress for a number of years. Charles Devereaux Dunlap was educated in Kentucky and at La Grange, Ala., and died when still a young man on his plantation in Madison Parish, La., September 16, 1855. Dr. Ragland's family consisted of three daughters and one son: Louisa A. (Anderson), now living in Texas; M. E. (Rambert), residing in the suburbs of Memphis, and our co-subject, Mrs. Dunlap, and Edward D., a soldier in the late war and a graduate of the law department at Lebanon, Tenn., who is at resent a planter in Lee County, Ark.

William C. Davis, chief of the Memphis police force, is a native of Tipton County, this State, and was born March 25, 1845. He is the son of Lewis W. and Margaret C. (Freeman) Davis, natives respectively of Kentucky and Tennessee. Our subject was reared and educated in his native county, and in 1861 enlisted in the first company raised in the county, called the " Tipton Rifles." It was assigned to the Fourth Tennessee Confederate Regiment. After one year's service he was discharged on account of his youth. In 1863 he again entered the service as a substitute for his father, serving in the First Tennessee Heavy Artillery until the surrender of Vicksburg, when he entered the Fourteenth Regiment Tennessee Cavalry and served as a private until the battle of Franklin, when he was promoted second lieutenant by Gen. Forrest for gallantry in that battle, and served thus until the final surrender. His father was captured by the Federals while at home on sick list and imprisoned at Alton, Ill., where he died, refusing to the last to take the oath of parole. After the war our subject engaged in mercantile pursuits in Tipton County until 1868, when he came to Memphis and in 1870 was appointed a patrolman on the city police force. During the yellow fever scourge in 1878 he was promoted to a captaincy, and in 1880 he was appointed chief, in which capacity he has officiated ever since to the satisfaction of the public. March 15, 1866, he was united in marriage with Miss Nancy H. Sullivan, of Tipton County. To this union there are three living sons and two living daughters. Mr. Davis is a positive Democrat, is a member of the K. of H. and A. O. U. W., and himself and wife are Methodists.

William P. Deadrick was born in Shelby County, Tenn., north of Memphis, September 20, 1826, and is a son of J. G. Deadrick, who was born in Nashville, Tenn., and married Eliza G. Dunn, a daughter of David Dunn, a farmer and a native of Virginia. They had four children who lived to be grown, our subject being the second child. The father moved to West Tennessee before 1825 and settled on Big Creek, in Shelby County, where he died December 24, 1831. The mother was born in Brunswick County, Va., and died near Buntyn Station, Shelby County, November 2, 1845. William P. Deadrick was raised on a farm and after attending the common schools in the county he spent two years at college at Georgetown, Ky. He was married at Jackson, Tenn., in May, 1855, to Miss Rachael J. Hays, daughter of Samuel J. Hays, a planter and a native of Tennessee. One son, Sam Hays (deceased), was born to this marriage. Mrs. Deadrick was born in Jackson, Tenn., in 1833, and died December 13, 1861. Mr. Deadrick was again married December 6, 1866, in Memphis, to Miss Mattie S. Park, daughter of David Park, one of the well known citizens of Memphis. By this marriage he has three daughters: Jennie Barron, Elese Garland and Anna May. The mother was born in Memphis, February 21, 1844. She is a member of the Presbyterian Church and Mr. Deadrick of the First Baptist Church. In politics he is a Democrat. He owns sixty acres of land four miles south of Memphis. He is a man of fine principles and of a frank and generous disposition.

James Degnan, vice-president of the board of education and dealer in wall paper, painters' colors, etc., is a son of Philip and Margaret (Cassarly) Degnan, both natives of County Roscommon, Ireland, and both came to America about 1854, the father settling in Tennessee and the mother in New York. Their marriage occurred at Cincinnati, Ohio, and after living a short time in Mississippi and Paris, Tenn., they came to. Memphis in 1862. Both were members of the Catholic Church. In their family were three children — two sons and one daughter. The father was a railroad contractor. He died in 1863, and about two years later the mother married Robert Walsh (deceased) by whom she had one son. The mother is still living. Our subject was born June 1, 1856, in Mississippi. His early educational advantages were very meager, having only attended school part of three sessions. Having commenced as a newsboy he followed that till about the age of sixteen, when he took an apprenticeship in his trade. In 1880 he began business on his own capital and has since had a good share of patronage, making a specialty of decorative work. In 1883 he was chosen vice-president of the board of education, which position he has held in a highly creditable manner since. He belongs to the following societies: A. O. U. W., K. of H., K. of I. and K. of R. B. In both politics and religion Mr. Degnan is independent.

S. A. Douglas, farmer, of Shelby County, was born in Tipton County, in 1856, and is the son of Andrew J. and Laura (Smith) Douglas. The father was a native of Virginia, and when young came to West Tennessee and married Miss Smith. They made their home in Tipton County, and their family consisted of four sons, of whom our subject was second. He received his early education in the common schools, and subsequently attended the University of East Tennessee, situated at Knoxville. In 1878 he married Carrie T., a native of Shelby County, born in 1862, and the daughter of Rev. Andrew H. Kerr, D. D., a native of Virginia, born in 1812. Mr. Kerr came to West Tennessee about 1854, and the town of Kerrville, which was laid out in 1873, was named in honor of him. He was one of the leading lights in the Presbyterian Church, spending about forty-four years of his life in the ministry. The Newport News & Mississippi Valley Railroad would have run one and a half miles east of where the town of Kerrville now stands, but Andrew H. Kerr offered forty-four acres of land, 100,000 bricks for a depot, and $3,500 to turn it through the town. The population of this village is about 150. They have a two-story school building, a Presbyterian Church, five stores, and adjoining the school grounds is a fair ground of eighteen acres. Our subject and wife are members and active workers in the Presbyterian Church. They have a fine farm of 1,900 acres, on which they settled soon after marriage, and where they have since remained. Mr. Douglas is a thorough Democrat in politics.

G. L. Douglass, a farmer and resident of the First District of Shelby County, was boin in Virginia and is a son of John Douglass. The father moved to Tennessee when our subject was eighteen years old, and settled in the First district of Shelby County. G. L. Douglass attended school in Virginia, but left before his education was completed, and acquired a great deal of information from his general reading at home. He has always made farming a business. In 1835 he was married in Georgia to Miss Joanna Sanderford. They have had eleven children; seven of them are living: Bettie, wife of Dr. D. G. Godwin, a physician in the First District of Shelby County; Kate, the wife of Dr. C. M. Stewart, a physician also in the First District; Dr. J. P. Douglas, a physician at Arlington, in the Eighth District; Dr. J. B. Douglass, a physician in the Sixth District; Mattie, wife of A. E. Cole, a merchant at Arlington ; G. R. Douglass and A. C. Douglass, both farmers in Shelby County. The children that died were Mollie, the wife of J. A. Stewart, a merchant at Memphis; Anna, Emma, and Alice. The entire family are members of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. Mr. Douglass is a Mason and is a sound Democrat.

J. P. Douglas, M. D., a prominent physician of Shelby County and a native of that county, is the son of G. L. and J. W. (Sanderford) Douglass. The parents are natives of Virginia and Georgia, respectively. The father followed agricultural pursuits, and he and wife are now residing in this county, the father being seventy years of age and the mother sixty-nine. Our subject received his education in the best school of the county, and his medical education at the University of Nashville, graduating from that institution in 1873. He then located first at this place and has since practiced in Tipton County, but returned to Arlington and resumed practice in 1880. In 1873 he married C. L. Pittman, of this village, a daughter of Capt. and M. T. Pittman. One child, Oscar P., was born to this union. He died September 3, 1883. In 1862 Dr. Douglas enlisted in the Confederate Army, in the Fifty-first Tennessee Regiment Infantry, and at the expiration of twelve months he joined Forrest's cavalry and remained with him until the close of the war, surrendering at Gainesville, Ala., in 1865. He is a member of the K. of H.

Judge A. H. Douglass, ex-criminal judge, was admitted to the bar at Somerville, Tenn., in 1843, and practiced there a few months and then removed to De Soto County, Miss., and followed agricultural pursuits in connection with real estate dealings until 1850, when he came to Memphis and has since resided here. He was a non-participant in the war, and at its close resumed the practice of law. He was mayor of Memphis from 1855 to 1857, and during that time the celebration of the completion of the Memphis & Charleston Railroad took place. In August, 1884,. he was elected criminal court judge. Our subject's parents were Burchett and Martha (McGee) Douglass, natives of Smith County, Tenn., and were among the earliest settlers there. The paternal grandmother, in more than one engagement with the Indians at Fort Lick Creek, loaded the guns for the men to disperse the savages. Soon after marriage the parents settled in Wilson County, but in 1836 moved to Fayette County, where they both died. The father served in both houses of the State Legislature from Wilson and Fayette Counties, and was speaker of both the Senate and House. He was a very useful, honorable and prominent public man. He was for many years president of the branch State Bank at Somerville. Our subject is one of seven children, and was born August 28, 1820, in Wilson County. He attended Clinton College, graduating in 1837. In 1843 he married Miss Martha A., daughter of Gen. A. C. N. Robertson, of Hardeman County. They have one child — Margaret — Mrs. John West, of Mississippi. The mother died in 1848, and in 1850 he married Miss Eliza B. Randolph, who has borne him the following children: Eliza A., Richard R., Ida May, Adda H., Eugene B. and Mattie. The mother died April 30, 1886. Judge Douglass is a Democrat and a member of the K. of P. and the A. F. & A. M.

Dr. William H. Douglass, a farmer and retired physician of Shelby County, was born in Smith County,Tenn., June 30, 1826. His father, Ila Douglass, was born in the same county November 17, 1797. He was a farmer and moved to Shelby County in 1850, settling ten miles from Memphis, on the "pigeon roost" road, and died March 20, 1885. The mother's maiden name was Miss Elizabeth Harris, a daughter of John Harris, a native of Virginia. She died in Wilson County, Tenn., four miles north of Lebanon, in 1845. The Douglass family were among the very early settlers of the State. Elmore Douglass, our subject's grand-father, moved to the State when the land where Nashville now stands was unbroken and without a house, and they could only live in forts. He had seven brothers who came from Virginia to this State at the same time, our subject's father being next to the youngest brother. Edward Douglass, who died in Missouri, was a soldier in the war of 1812 and was at the battle of New Orleans, and Burchett Douglass was a representative in the General Assembly of the State, when the statutes of the State were revised by Nicholson and Caruthers, and he afterward represented Fayette County in the Legislature. Our subject was raised on a farm and had fine educational advantages. He spent three years at Irving College, Warren County, Va., then read medicine with Dr. Felix McFarland, of Haywood County, Tenn., then attended lectures at Louisville, Ky., and commenced the practice of medicine in Shelby County, where he now lives, and continued it with marked success until the close of the war. He was married in Shelby County in 1861, to Miss Ann Eliza Wynne, daughter of W. D. Wynne, a farmer, and a native of Tennessee. He died in De Soto County, Miss., where he had moved some time before. No children have been born to this union. Dr. Douglass owns 600 acres of land, 400 being in the home place six miles southwest of Germantown, where he has a handsome residence. Dr. Douglass is extensively known and very popular in his neighborhood, where he exerts an influence for good, and is one of the leading farmers in the county.

Julius J. Du Bose, judge of the criminal court of Shelby County, was born in this county December 13, 1839, and is the son of the late Dr. A. B. C. and Camilla F. (Dunn) Du Bose, natives, respectively, of South Carolina and Alabama. Dr. Du Bose, in his day, was one of the most successful planters and prominent citizens of Shelby County. His death occurred in 1865. Julius J. was liberally educated in youth, finishing his education in Oxford, Miss., and in Wesleyan University, at Florence, Ala. He then studied law in Cumberland University, Lebanon, graduating in 1860. In 1861 he enlisted in the Ninth Arkansas Regiment (Confederate), and served as ensign twelve months, and was assigned to duty in the trans-Mississippi department. In 1862 he was promoted to second lieutenant. and was assigned to duty in Arkansas. About a year later he was made chief of ordnance and inspecting officer of North Arkansas and Indian Territory, ranking as captain of ordnance. Returning home after the war he secured an interest in and edited the Public Ledger, of this city, three years. In 1870 he was elected to the State Senate, representing Shelby and Fayette Counties. From 1873 to 1886 he practiced law in Memphis, and was then elected judge of the criminal court, and in this position is yet serving. November 29, 1870, he married Miss Mary M., daughter of Col. George W. Polk, of Columbia, Tenn. They have three sons and three daughters living.

John J. Duffy, one of the wholesale and retail grocers of Memphis, was born in Ireland, in 1849. His father, James Duffy, was teller in a bank in the old country, and died in 1850, shortly after coming to America. Our subject in his youth received his education in the schools of Memphis. For about eight years he was bookkeeper for E. Mulholland & Co., of that city. He was for a time senior member of the firm of Duffy & Cary, but this firm soon dissolved partnership and Mr. Duffy established his present business in 1880. The following year he married Jennie J. Barry, of Memphis, by whom he had two children — John and Ella M. For about twelve years our subject was a member of the board of education, and two years of that time he was vice-president of the same. He took an active part in introducing the present system of city school laws. During the yellow fever scourges of 1873 and 1878 Mr. Duffy was a member of the Citizens' Relief Association and also a volunteer member of the Howard Relief Association. He holds the position of president of the Security Building & Loan Association and is director in the Arlington Insurance Company. He is also director of the Irish American Building & Loan Association. For two years he was one of the commissioners to provide a sinking fund to discharge the city debt, being appointed by Gov. Hawkins.

P. H. Duffy, grocery merchant at 175 De Soto Street, established this business in May, 1881. Mr. Duffy is a native of Ireland and came to America in 1868. He came direct to Memphis and began clerking. In 1870 he became a member of the police force and in 1873 a member of the fire department, discharging the duties of these offices with credit and satisfaction. In 1878 he again engaged in the grocery business, which he continued until he established the business for himself. He married Bridget Roper, also a native of the "Emerald Isle," and to them have been born five children, only two of whom are living. In June, 1875, Mr. Duffy returned to Ireland, the place of his nativity, on a visit to relatives and friends. He was accompanied by his daughter, Miss Maggie. Mr. and Mrs. Duffy are members of the Catholic Church. He is a member of the K. of H., the K. of I., and a stanch Democrat in politics.

Dr. George K. Duncan was born in Limestone County, Ala., April 24, 1828. His father, Benjamin Duncan, was a native of Virginia. He moved to East Tennessee and settled near Greenville; was a stonemason by trade, but was afterward a merchant at Mooresville, Ala. He was married in East Tennessee to Nancy Ross, and they had six sons and four daughters, our subject being the youngest. The father moved, in 1835, to Shelby County and settled on Big Creek, on. the old Jesse Benton farm, and died at Raleigh, Shelby County, June 21, 1860. The mother was a native of East Tennessee, and died at the home on Big Creek in 1838. Dr. Duncan was raised in Shelby County and educated in the common schools. He read medicine under Dr. Samuel H. Lapsley, of Raleigh, and graduated from the Jefferson Medical College, at Philadelphia, in 1851, and has since then practiced medicine in Shelby County. In 1873 he was elected physician of the poor asylum of the county, and in 1876 was made superintendent and physician, and still holds the position. He was married in Shelby County, March l., 1854, to Miss Annie Lamphier, daughter of John Lamphier, a native of Virginia. They had three children — Edith V., Elizabeth and Albert B. The mother was born in Kentucky, and died July 11, 1881, at Raleigh, and Dr. Duncan was married again in Memphis, March 5, 1884, to Miss Sophia Anderson. He was an old line Whig before the war but is now a Democrat and a member of the A. O. U. W. As a physician he has met with great success, and as a man has been greatly esteemed for his many excellent qualities.

Oliver M. Dunn, superintendent of the Memphis line division of the Louisville & Nashville Railroad, was born in La Grange County, Ind., August 14, 1847 ; is a son of William B. Dunn and Emma (Hatch) Dunn, natives of Elmira, N. Y., and Great Bend, Penn., respectively, who immigrated to La Grange County, Ind., in 1835, when that country was comparatively a wilderness. Their family consisted of five sons and two daughters. By occupation the father was a lawyer and merchant and took quite an active interest in politics, being a stanch Republican from the organization of that party. Our subject received a fair common-school education; in 1868 he married Hattie Seely, a native of New Jersey and then a resident of Brimfield, Ind. To this union one child was born, Seely, who now holds the position of private secretary to his father. Mr. Dunn entered the service of the Michigan Southern & Northern Indiana Railroad (afterward consolidated with the Lake Shore, and now known as the Lake Shore & Michigan Southern) in 1864, and remained in its employ in various capacities, as warehouseman, telegraph operator, ticket and freight agent, etc., at different points until 1872, when he was offered and accepted a position with the Louisville & Nashville Railroad as agent at Shepardsville, Ky., where he remained until 1874, when he was appointed to the agency at Pulaski, Tenn., from which, position he was appointed to the general agency at Owensboro, Ky.; from there to the charge of transportation department, New Orleans division same road, at Mobile, Ala., where he remained over two years, when he was made superintendent of the Owensboro & Nashville Railroad, a line owned by the Louisville & Nashville Railroad Company, and then under construction, After that road was completed he was made superintendent of the New Orleans & Mobile division of the Louisville & Nashville Railroad, with headquarters at New Orleans, La., and in 1886 was again transferred to the position he now holds. The prominent positions Mr. Dunn has held speak well for his efficiency as an officer. He is prompt and courteous in his dealings with the public and his employes, and wins a large circle of friends wherever he goes.

Samuel H. Dunscomb, president of the Bank of Commerce, is a son of Samuel D. and Ann W. (Rayburn) Dunscomb. The father was born in New York City and the mother in Montgomery County, Va. At an early day they removed to Kentucky, where they were married. In their family were four children—two sons and two daughters—of whom only one is now living. The father was a farmer by occupation. During the war of 1812 he went on the campaign to Canada, under Shelby. After his death the mother married William C. Baker, by whom she had two children. Our subject is of English and Irish descent, born December 18, 1822, in Simpson County, Ky. He received his education in the common schools, and at the age of eighteen began as salesman in a mercantile house, where he remained about eight years. In 1846 he came to Memphis and engaged in the commission, cotton and grocery business. In 1854 he married Marietta C. Elder, and by her had five sons, two of whom are in the commission business and one secretary of the Hernando Insurance Company. Mr. Dunscomb, his wife and three children, as well as his mother, are Methodists, he having been steward and treasurer of the First Methodist Episcopal Church about twenty-eight years. Since 1869 he has been in the banking business, having been elected vice-president of the De Soto Bank, which position he held till 1874, when that consolidated with the Bank of Commerce, and in 1880 he was elected president thereof. Besides he holds other places of trust and honor, having been president of Hernando Insurance Company since 1867; was also vice-president of the DeSoto Building & Loan Association; director in the Water Company; treasurer of the Board of Educacation, and trustee and treasurer of the Lee Orphan Asylum some twenty years. He is a member of the I. O. O. F., was a Whig before the war, but since that time.has voted with the Democrats. As a business man Mr. Dunscomb has been very successful, having started on a small capital, and has accumulated all his property by close attention to business and a firm reliance in an over-ruling Providence.

Albert L. Duval, manager of the Memphis & Para Rubber Company, of this city, was born in Philadelphia, Penn., September 10, 1848, being the son of George W. and Margaret (Lavallette) Duval, both parents being of French descent, born respectively in South Carolina and Pennsylvania. They came to Memphis in 1846, the father being a lieutenant in the United States Navy, coming here with our subject's maternal grandfather, Commodore Lavallette, to establish the navy yards. Albert L. was born while his parents were on a visit East, and was brought up and educated in this city. For five years he was in the employ of Bigley, Mellersh & Co., in the coal business, and was then with B. J. Semnrers & Co. until 1883, when he engaged in his present business and has been highly successful. January 4, 1882, he was joined in matrimony, to Miss Nannie V. Bowles, of this city, and by her has one son, Albert L. Mr. Duval is a Democrat, a Knight Templar in Masonry, and himself and wife are members of the Calvary Episcopal Church, of Memphis.