Prominent people of North Carolina: brief biographies of leading people for ready reference purposes

114 PROMINENT PEOPLE OF NORTH CAROLINA tered the dry goods and clothing bus¬ iness first with a partner, but in 1894 he started in business alone under the style of J. J. Baxter. He has been a county commissioner of Craven county for four years, and chairman of the board for two years. He is president of the Southern Jobbing Co., which he organized in 1902 with a capitalization of $5,000, to deal in wholesale dry goods and notions; the paid in capital of this concern is now about $12,000. He is an Odd Fellow, a K. of P., an Elk and a Woodman of the World and a steward in the Methodist church. He married Miss Mary G. Howard, of Hyde county, a daughter of Rich¬ ard Howard, a farmer of Hyde county, and has two daughters. THOMAS A. GREEN President of the Citizens' Bank of New Bern, was born in New Bern, N. C., June 25, 1846, a son of Thomas and Annie M. (Curtis) Green, both of Craven county. His father was lost at sea in 1852, and was a sea captain and joint owner of the vessel he com¬ manded, which was engaged in the West Indian trade. Mr. Green was "bound out” at the age of 12 to learn the carpenter’s trade, hut on the 14th day of March, 1862, the city of New Bern was cap¬ tured by General Burnside, and he was left a barefooted boy, desolate, without a cent to call his own. Dur¬ ing the rest of the period of the war between the states he occupied him¬ self at such odd jobs as chance threw in his way. In 1З68, having saved his earnings, he engaged in the mercan¬ tile business with Capt. Gates, the firm name being Gates & Green, and in 1872 he purchased the entire busi¬ ness which he conducted successfully until 1865. In that year he became associated in the banking business un¬ der the style of Green, Foy & Co., in which he controlled a one-half inter¬ est. He was one of the prime movers in the establishment of the Cotton Exchange at New Bern, of which he has been treasurer for a number of years and has also served as president of the New Bern board of trade. He is the oldest living fireman in the city and has been chief of the department. He was married in 1868 to Miss Harriet H. Meadows, a daughter of J. A. Meadows, of New Bern, and has been the father of six children, two of whom, Misses Maud Louisa and Clara Maria, survive. He has been chairman of the board of stewards of the Methodist Episco¬ pal church. South, for several years. Also prominent in Masonic order, be¬ ing Worshipful Master of St. John's Lodge, No. 3, A. F. & A. M., of this city, and High Priest of the Chapter of R. A. Masons and has been a di¬ rector of the Oxford Orphan Asylum for a good many years. He is also president of the board of trustees of the New Bern Academy; he is also superintendent of the Centenary M. E. Sunday school. JULIAN MEREDITH BAKER. ^ M. D. Of Tarboro, N. C., was born in Tarboro, October 27, 1857, a son of Dr. J. H. Baker, who with his father before him was a physician in Tar¬ boro, the present Dr. Baker being the third generation of physicians of that name to practice in Tarboro. Doctor Baker's mother was Miss Susan Fox- hall, whose father was a planter of Edgecombe county, whose ancestors lived in that county for nearly two hundred and fifty years being inti¬ mately associated with its greatest events. Dr. Baker was educated at Horner and Graves School and the University of North Carolina, from which he graduated in the class of 1877 with the degree of Bachelor of Science, and studied medicine in Bellevue Medical College, and the University of Mary¬ land. He began practice at Tarboro in 1880. He is an ex-president of the North Carolina Medical Society and the State Board of Medical Examin¬ ers and ex-member of the State Board of Health. He is a member of the Edgecombe County Medical Society, the North Carolina Medical Society, the American Medical Association the Seaboard Medical Association and the Tri-State Medical Society, and is surgeon in charge of the Pittman Hospital at Tarboro. He is a Mason and a Knight Tem- plar. . One June 17, 1884. he was marriea to Miss Elizabeth Howard, a daugh¬ ter of Mr. George Howard, of Tar- PROMINENT PEOPLE OF NORTH CAROLINA 115 boro, and is the father of three daugh¬ ters. He has contributed several notable articles to the medical journals of the nation on surgery and gynaecology, and was the author of the Pittman Prize Essay of the Medical Society of North Carolina for 1887. He ranks among the leaders of his profession as a scientific practitioner and thoughtful student of medicine. FRANCIS WADE HUGHES Was born in New Bern, N. C., Sep¬ tember 9, 1856. He is a son of Dr. Isaac W. Hughes, a physician who practiced in New Bern tor fifty years and was a nephew of F. W. Hughes, who was a leading prosecuting attor¬ ney in the famous Molly McGuire trial, together with Franklin B. Gowan, of Philadelphia, and a des¬ cendant of John Hughes, the first stamp officer of the colonies ap¬ pointed in 1765 through suggestion of Benj. Franklin, who was also a warm personal friend of Franklin's and was later in 1771, made collector of the port of Charleston, South Carolina. Dr. Hughes graduated from Prince¬ ton University, N. J.. in class of 1877, and from the Medical Department of the University of Pennsylvania in 1880, since which date he has been in the active practice of medicine at New Bern. He is a member of the Craven County Medical Society and the North and is a Mason. On October 16, 1883, he married Miss Caroline Ann Winder, a daugh¬ ter of John C. Winder. Dr. Hughes has given considerable attention and means to the improve¬ ment of New Bern. He served for eight or ten years 011 the finance com¬ mittee of the Atlantic and North Car¬ olina Railroad. PATRICK HENRY WILLIAMS Was born in Camden county, N. C., near Shiloh township, September 29, 1869. His father, Robert Wil¬ liams, a farmer, and his mother was Miss Renda Torksey, a daughter of John Torksey, a farmer of Camden county. He was educated at Randolph- Macon College from which he gradu¬ ated in the class of 1896 and in the law department of the University of North Carolina, from which lie gradu¬ ated in 1898. He practiced law in Elizabeth City until 1902, when he en¬ tered the hosiery and cotton mill bus¬ iness as secretary of the Elizabeth City Hosiery Company, and was made president of the Elizabeth City Cot¬ ton Mill in 1904. He is a director in the. First National Bank of Elizabeth City, the Savings Bank and Trust Co., the Crystal Ice and Coal Com¬ pany of Elizabeth City, the Culpepper, Griffin, Olds and Grice Insurance Company (incorporated), and Ayd- lette Brothers & Co., wholesale groc¬ ers, of Elizabeth City, and the Atlan¬ tic Fire Insurance Company of Ral¬ eigh, N C. He was an alderman of Elizabeth City for two years ending May, 1905. He is an Odd Fellow and superin¬ tendent of the City Road Methodist Sunday school. He has been twice married. First in T890, he was wedded to Miss Min¬ nie White, of Sampson county, who died in 1891 and the second time, in 1898, to Miss Ella Kramer, a daugh¬ ter of D. S. Kramer (deceased), who was, during his lifetime, a lumber manufacturer of Elizabeth City. Mr. Williams is the father of three daughters. HON. JOHN HUMPHREY SMALL Is a son of J. H. Small, of Beau¬ fort county. His mother was Miss Sallie A. Sanderson, of Plymouth, Washington county. Hr was born August 29, 1858, in Washington, N. C. : was educated in the schools of Washington, and at Trinity College, North Carolina; is a lawyer in active practice; left college in 1876 and taught school from 1876 to 1880; was licensed to practice law in January, 1881 ; was elected reading clerk of the state senate in 1881; was elected su¬ perintendent of public instruction of Beaufort county in the latter part of 1881; was elected and continued to serve as solicitor of the inferior court of Beaufort county from 1882 to 1885; was proprietor and editor of the Washington Gazette from 1883 to 1886; was attorney of the board of commissioners of Beaufort county from 1888 to 1896; was a member of