Hon. Joshua R. Salmon

NJGenWeb ~ Morris County, New Jersey

Source: History Morris County New Jersey, Volume II, Lewis Publishing Co., 1914

The SALMON family, represented in the present generation by Hon. Joshua R. SALMON, serving in the capacity of judge of Morris county, can be traced in Scotland and England back to A. D. 1315, when a member of the family was knighted by Robert Bruce. The coat-of-arms of the family is a crest above three fishes, and a hand with an uplifted sword in it guarding the crown bonnet. During the Highland wars the family, or a portion of it, crossed over the border from Scotland and settled in the eastern part of England, in Suffolk county. It is safe to infer that some members of the family remained in Scotland, as the name is not uncommon there, and those bearing the name to a greater or less extent are engaged in business connected with boats and fishing, thus giving a plausible reason for the design on the coat-of-arms and perhaps for the name as well.

William SALMON, the pioneer ancestor of the family, was born in England in 1610, died near Southold, Long Island. He emigrated to this country in May, 1635, locating in St. Christopher, from whence he removed to Hashamonoque, Long Island, in the vicinity of what is now Southold. He married (first) Katherine, widow of Matthew SINDERLAND and (second) Sarah CURTIS, who after his death became the wife of Captain John CONKLIN. He was the father of six children, five daughters and one son, four by the first marriage and two by the second.

John SALMON, only son of William SALMON, died in 1697-98. He married, August 23, 1863, Sarah BARNES, who died November 3, 1738, aged eighty-two years. Children: William, born 1684, married Hannah BAYLEY; Sarah, born 1687, married Nathan DIMOND; and Joseph Terry; Mary, born 1690, married Thomas REEVE; Amy, born 1693, died December 18, 1726-27; John, born 1698, married Lydia PAINE.

William SALMON, son of John and Sarah (BARNES) SALMON, born 1684, died May 10, 1759. He married Hannah BAYLEY, who died February 2, 1754. Children: Hannah, born 1710, married John HEMPSTEAD; Joshua, born 1712; William, of whom further; Nathaniel, born 1716, died August 27, 1717; Abigail, married John ROGERS; Nathaniel, married Mary LUDLAM; Stephen, married Margaret FROST; John born 1727, married Nancy OGDEN.

William SALMON, son of William and Hannah (BAYLEY) SALMON, born 1714, left Long Island, where his ancestors had resided for many generations, and settled at or near Mt. Olive, New Jersey, where became the owner of large tracts of land. He married, April 11, 1737, Elizabeth BRADDICK, and their children were: William, born October 17, 1738, died 1764; Peter, of whom further; John, born April 21, 1743, died in infancy; Elizabeth, born May 14, 1744, died June 11, 1801; John, born July 17, 1747, died January 29, 1813; Richard, born June 27, 1750, died January 25, 1813; Cutler, born September 4, 1753, died August 27, 1777.

Captain Peter SALMON, son of William and Elizabeth (BRADDICK) SALMON, was born November 25, 1740, died 1825. He married, January 27, 1763, Margaret STARK, and their children were: William, born February 13, 1764; Sarah, born December 12, 1765; Aaron, born August 3, 1768; Peter, of whom further; Elizabeth, born November 20, 1772; John, born March 15, 1775; Anna, born August 30, 1777; Stephen, born November 26, 1779; Elizabeth, born January 28, 1782; Margaret, born September 20, 1784; Cutler, born February 22, 1788, died 1826.

Peter SALMON, son of Captain Peter and Margaret (STARK) SALMON, was born July 9, 1770, died February 16, 1849. He married, May 27, 1797, Priscilla STEPHENS, who died February 16, 1862. Children: Gideon, born June 10, 1798, married Jane VAN FLEET; Joshua, born February 9, 1800; Dolly, born January 3, 1803, married ______ COREY; Richard Stephens, born June 16, 1810, died December 10, 1838.

Gideon SALMON, son of Peter and Priscilla (STEPHENS) SALMON, was born June 10, 1798, died May 11, 1883. He married, February 6, 1823, Jane VAN FLEET, who died August 6, 1879. Children: Maria, born December 29, 1823, married John SALMON; Elizabeth Caroline, born February 28, 1825, died June 11, 1833; Abraham Williamson, born November 23, 1826, married Caroline SMITH, died September 21, 1908; Priscilla, born October 21, 1828, died November 18, 1898; William Holdridge, born August 12, 1830, married Mary Jane PRASTER, died October 1, 1903; Harriet, born October 24, 1832, married John WOLFE; Peter V., born September 27, 1834, married Hannah BARTLEY, died March, 1905; Henry, born October 4, 1836, married Alma BARTLEY and Sarah E. SALMON; Richard Stephens, born February 16, 1839; Augustus W., born December 16, 1841, died November 30, 1862, at Fairfax Seminary, Virginia, while a soldier of the Civil War; Joshua S., of whom further.

Joshua S. SALMON, son of Gideon and Jane (VAN FLEET) SALMON, was born February 2, 1846, near Mt. Olive, Morris county, New Jersey, died May 6, 1902, while serving his second term in Congress from the fourth congressional district of New Jersey. He attended the seminaries of Charlotteville, New York, and Schooleys Mountain, New Jersey, and later was a student in the law office of the late Charles E. Scofield, of Jersey City, and in the Albany Law School, where he was graduated in 1873 with the degree of Bachelor of Laws. In March, 1873, he was admitted as an attorney and counselor to the bar of New York, and in November, 1875, as an attorney to the bar of New Jersey, and on December 21, 1894, was admitted as an attorney and counselor of the Supreme Court of the United States. He served as an attorney in Boonton and Morristown, winning reputation in the ranks of his professional brethren and an extensive practice. In 1876 he was elected a member of the city council of Boonton and served for six years; in 1877 he was elected a member of the State legislature; was the Democratic candidate for county clerk in 1878; the nominee of his party for State senator in 1883; on October 6, 1898, received the nomination for representative of the fourth congressional district of New Jersey, elected November 8 , and later re-elected for a second term. He married (first)( October 13, 1869, Deborah Virginia, a native of Morris county, daughter of Jeremiah and Esther (STOUT) EMMONS; she died March 12, 1892. He married (second) April 19, 1893, Mrs. Emma L. (MAINS) RICHARDS, widow of Jessie W. RICHARDS, of Lincoln Park, New Jersey. Children of first wife: Nellie S., wife of Fred A. TROWBRIDGE, of Morristown; Irving E., deceased, was an attorney; Norwood G., a title examiner; Joshua R., of whom further; Marie V., a registered nurse at Hartford, Connecticut; Aida H., a registered nurse at Hartford. Mr. SALMON was survived by his wife, who is now a resident of Boonton, New Jersey.

Joshua R. SALMON, son of Joshua S. and Deborah Virginia (EMMONS) SALMON, was born in Boonton, New Jersey, May 31, 1879. He attended the public schools of that town, graduating from the high school in 1896, and the remainder of that year he spent in his father’s office. He then accepted the position of assistant bookkeeper in the Boonton National Bank, of which his father was one of the directors from its organization until his death, and served as such until January, 1900, when he accepted the position of bookkeeper in the Greenwich Bank of New York, and while serving in that capacity studied law in the evenings at the New York Law School, and in this manner spent his time up to June, 1902, when he returned to New Jersey, and entered the law office of his brother, who conducted one in Boonton and one in Morristown, and remained under his guidance until July, 1904. He was admitted as an attorney to the bar of New Jersey in June, 1904, and at once engaged in the active practice of law, establishing offices in Boonton and Morristown, but since 1905 he has confined his practice to Boonton entirely. He is thoroughly versed in the law, and he has been successfully and prominently identified with many important cases, his services being widely sought by those desiring the best attainable legal talent. On April 3, 1913, he was appointed judge of Morris county for a full term of five years, and during the short time which has elapsed since his appointment he has conclusively proven his fitness for the high office he is efficiently filling. Judge SALMON is director and attorney of the Boonton Building and Loan Association; also director and attorney for the Boonton National Bank. He is a member of the Loyal Association of Morristown. He was elected four times by the town council as attorney for the town, each time by a Republican council. Mr. SALMON is a Democrat in politics, and an attendant of the Presbyterian church.

Mr. SALMON married, June 18, 1910, Bertha CONDIT, a native of Parsippany, New Jersey, daughter of Melvin S. and Alice (HENDERSHOT) CONDIT, and they are the parents of one child, John Condit, born February 17, 1913.

Transcribed by John Cresseveur (1949-2003)