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[Page 145]
      Bedinger, George Michael, born in Virginia about 1750, died at Lower Blue Licks, Kentucky, about 1830. He was one of the early emigrants to Kentucky, and served as adjutant in the expedition of 1779 against Chillicothe, as major at the battle of Blue Licks in 1782, and did valuable service as an Indian spy throughout the war. He commanded the Winchester battalion of Sharpshooters in St. Clair's expedition of 1791, and was a major of United States Infantry in 1792-93. He was a member of the Kentucky legislature in 1792, and represented that state in congress from 1803 to 1807.

[Pages 145-147]
      Clark, George Rogers, was born near Monticello, Albemarle county, Virginia, November 19, 1752; son of John and Ann (Rogers) Clark; and grandson of Jonathan and Elizabeth (Wilson) Clark. He practiced surveying and in 1771 or 1772 made a long tour through the upper Ohio valley and cleared and improved land, in Grave creek township, twenty-five miles below Wheeling. In Dunmore's war, Clark was either on Dunmore's staff or in command of a company, and rendered such efficient service that he was offered a position in the British army, which he declined. In 1775 he was deputy surveyor under Capt. Hancock Lee to lay out lands on the Kentucky river for the Ohio company, and remained there until the fall, making his headquarters at Leestown and Harrodstown. In 1776, after a visit home, he returned to Kentucky, where he became a leader of the settlers. He was chosen a member of the Virginia legislature and after a journey to Williamsburg found that body adjourned. It was necessary for the settlers in Kentucky to be supplied with gunpowder, and Clark obtained from Gov. Patrick Henry a letter to the executive council. They refused to comply with Clark's request unless Clark would be responsible for the value of the powder if the legislature failed to legalize the transaction. Clarke declined to assume any risk, on the ground that if Virginia claimed Kentucky she should protect it. The ammunition was granted and Kentucky was recognized as a part of Virginia. On the reassembling of the legislature Clark was present and succeeded in gaining formal recognition of the Kentucky country and its organization as a county with the same name and boundaries it now has as a state. In January, 1777, gunpowder was delivered in Kentucky. Clark stopped at Leestown and McClelland's and set about to organize aggressive warfare against the Indians, who had been making serious depredations. He was given the rank of lieutenant-colonel, and instructed by Gov. Henry to enlist seven companies of soldiers, of fifty men each. With this force he was to attack the British post at Kaskaskia. Early in May, 1778, he departed from Red Stone with only one-third of the troops expected. He stopped at the mouth of the Kentucky river and finally to the falls of the Ohio and selected Corn Island for his camping ground. His men numbered about one hundred and seventy, and on June 24, 1778, they started for Kaskaskia, arriving there on the evening of July 4. Before daylight they had disarmed the town. Clark sent a part of his force to take possession of the French villages up the Mississippi, Capt. Joseph Bowman succeeding in capturing Prairie du Rocher, Cahokia, and other villages. Meanwhile Clark secured the allegiance of the inhabitants of Vincennes, the most important post on the river. At Cahokia he met representatives from several tribes, and secured treaties of peace. On February 5, 1799, the little army left Kaskaskia for Vincennes. For ten days they marched through the waters then overflowing the Wabash river and all its tributaries; Fort Sackville and Vincennes were captured after considerable fighting. Clark received a commission from Gov. Henry, dated December 14, 1778, promoting him colonel. He contemplated attacking Detroit, but decided it to be impracticable, owing to his scanty force. On June 12, 1779, Virginia presented Col. Clark with a costly sword in recognition of his services. He returned to the falls of the Ohio later in 1779 and found that the garrison had removed to the mainland and constructed a fort in what is now Louisville, Kentucky. Early in 1780 he proceeded to the mouth of the Ohio river and built Fort Jefferson, but owning to sickness and Indian attacks, the fort was abandoned in 1781. In that year he was commissioned brigadier-general and began to recruit troops for an attack on Detroit. This expedition, through the failure of Col. Lochry to reach Wheeling until after Clark's departure, was unsuccessful, and the defeat embittered Clark's after life. On Clark's return to the west he set about organizing the militia. Fort Nelson, on the site of Louisville, was constructed, and early in November, 1782, at the head of one thousand men, he marched against the Indians on the Miami river and subdued them. In January, 1783, the treaty of peace with Great Britain was ratified by congress and attention was turned to the vast territory of land acquired through the efforts of Gen. Clark, but Virginia, exhausted by the war, failed sufficiently to provide for his troops, and on June 2, 1783, he was relieved of his command. His financial condition rendered impossible the purchase of food and clothing, and necessity led him to appeal to the government. The appeal was unheeded, and even the half pay allotted to all Continental officers was denied him, as he had been a member of the Virginia militia and not of the Continental army. He lived in obscurity until 1785, when he was appointed a commissioner to treat with Indian tribes. In 1786 he again acted as United States commissioner, negotiating a treaty with the Shawnees. Later in that year he commanded a campaign against the Indian tribes on the Wabash, but it proved a failure, and he was unjustly censured by Virginia and congress. Mortified by his treatment and neglect Gen. Clark accepted a commission from the French government of "major-general in the armies of France and commander-in-chief of the French revolutionary legion on the Mississippi river." He was to lead a force of two thousand men against New Orleans and the Spanish possessions on the lower Mississippi with a view to revolutionizing the Spanish control and government of that region. This plan was never carried out. In 1781 Gen. Clark was granted 8049 acres of land in Indiana for his services in reducing the British posts. He resided in Clarksville many years, living alone in a log house, stricken with paralysis, ill, helpless and poor. The general assembly of Virginia, in a letter written by James Barbour, dated Richmond, October 29, 1811, conveyed to him the intelligence that that body had voted him an annuity of $400, tendered him their earnest sympathy and notified him of the act of assembly in causing to be made a sword with appropriate devices, emblematic of his actions, which with the annuity would be duly forwarded to him. On receiving the letter he said: "I am too old and infirm to ever use a sword again, but I am glad that my old mother state has not entirely forgotten me, and I thank her for the honor." He died a few years later at the home of his sister, Mrs. Lucy Groghan. In 1869 his remains were removed to Cave Hill cemetery, Louisville, Kentucky, and is grave marked with a handsome monument. On February 25, 1892, the anniversary of the capture of Fort Sackville, a movement was inaugurated in Indianapolis, Indiana, to raise a suitable statue to his memory, and on February 25, 1895, it was placed on its pedestal in Monument Place, Indianapolis.

[Page 147]
      Parker, William Harwar, of "Rock Spring," Westmoreland county, Virginia, born in 1752, son of Judge Richard Parker and Mary (Beale) Parker, his wife. He served with distinction in the revolutionary war; was an officer in the Virginia state navy, 1776-80; commanded the Tempest. He married Mary Sturman.

[Pages 147-148]
      Porterfield, Robert, was born in Frederick county, Virginia, February 22, 1752, brother of Charles Porterfield (q. v.). He was appointed second lieutenant in the Eleventh Virginia Regiment, December 24, 1776; served in Col. Daniel Morgan's Company through the campaigns of 1777-79; was promoted first lieutenant, June 1, 1777; adjutant, April 19, 1778; was transferred to the Seventh Virginia Regiment, September 14, 1778, and served as aide to Gen. William Woodford, 1778-79, taking part in the battles of Brandywine, Germantown and Monmouth. He was promoted captain-lieutenant, July 2, 1779; captain, August 16, 1779, and in December, 1779, accompanied Gen. William Woodford to Charleston, South Carolina, where he took part in the defense of that city, and on its fall surrendered as a prisoner of war, May 12, 1780. He was exchanged and transferred to the Second Virginia Regiment, February 2, 1781, where he served until the end of the war. He was married to Rebecca Farrer, of Amelia county; removed to August county, Virginia, in 1783, and settled on a farm which he called "Soldier's Retreat." He was a brigadier-general in the Virginia militia during the war of 1812. He was justice of the peace for half a century, and served as high sheriff for two terms. He died in augusta county, Virginia, February 13, 1843.

[Page 148]
      Rochester, Nathaniel, was born in Cople parish, Westmoreland county, Virginia, February 21, 1752, a descendant of Nicholas Rochester, who emigrated from, Kent England, in 1689, and settled in Westmoreland county, Virginia. He removed to Granville county, North Carolina, with his mother and stepfather, Thomas Critcher, in 1763, and in 1768 obtained employment as a clerk in a mercantile house in Hillsboro, North Carolina, becoming a partner in 1773. He was a member of the committee of safety of Orange county in 1775; a member of the first provincial convention of North Carolina; appointed paymaster, with the rank of major, of the North carolina line, and deputy commissary of the Continental army, May 10, 1776, but failing health caused his early resignation. He was a delegate to the house of commons; a commissioner to superintend the manufacture of arms at Hillsboro, and in 1778 engaged in business with Col. Thomas Hart. In 1783 they began the manufacture of flour, rope and nails at Hagerstown, Maryland. He was representative in the Maryland assembly; postmaster of Hagerstown and judge of the county court. In 1808 he was presidential elector, voting for James Madison; was first president of the Hagerstown bank, and was engaged in important mercantile transactions in Kentucky and Maryland. He made large purchases of land in New York state, and removing to Dansville, New York, in May, 1810, established a paper mill there. In 1815 he removed to Bloomfield, New York, and in 1818 settled at the falls of the Genesee river, and there founded the city of Rochester. He was secretary of the convention to urge the construction of the Erie canal; the first clerk of Monroe county; member of the state assembly, 1821 and 1822, and one of the organizers of the Bank of Rochester, and its first president. He died in Rochester, New York, May 17, 1831.

[Pages 148-149]
      Hardin, John, born in Fauquier county, Virginia, October 1, 1753; remained in his native state until 1765, when he accompanied his father to near the Pennsylvania line, which was then an unbroken wilderness, and the life he led there an unbroken wilderness, and the life he led there made him a skillful marksman, so much so that he was greatly feared by the hostile Indians; he was ensign in Lord Dunmore's expedition against the Indians in 1774, and served as a scout; he joined the Continental army at the beginning of the revolutionary war, acted as lieutenant in Gen. Daniel Morgan's rifle corps, and refused a major's commission, claiming that his services were of more use in the former rank; removed to Kentucky in 1786, and in the same year volunteered under Gen. Elisha Clarke on the Wabash expedition, and was appointed lieutenant-colonel of militia; he was a member of every expedition against the Kentucky Indians from 1787 until his death, except that of Gen. Arthur St. Clair; in April, 1792, he was sent by Gen. James Wilkinson with overtures of peace to the Miami Indians, and while he was bearing a flag of truce near Shawneetown, his fine horse and equipments attracted the cupidity of the chiefs, who treacherously shot him to obtain these spoils; this occurred on the Ohio river, in April, 1792; the county of Hardin, Virginia, which was formed in 1792, was named in his honor.

[Page 149]
      Innes, James, was born in 1754, in Virginia, son of the Rev. Robert Innes, a Scotchman, and a graduate of Oxford. He was a graduate of William and Mary College, and usher of the grammar school. At the beginning of the troubles with the mother country, he rallied a band of students and secured some stores about to be secreted by Dunmore, and he was dismissed from college, the faculty being yet loyal to the crown. In February, 1776, as captain of the Williamsburg volunteers, he marched against the enemy at Hampton. In November following, as lieutenant-colonel, he became an aide to Washington, and served at Trenton, Princeton, Brandywine, Germantown and Monmouth. In October, 1778, he was appointed a navy commissioner. In 1780 he entered the house of delegates. At the solicitation of Washington, he raised a regiment for home defense, and commanded it at the siege of Yorktown. He was a member of the convention of 1788, and eloquently supported the constitution. He then engaged in law practice and attained high rank at the bar, and later succeeded Edmund Randolph as attorney-general. Governor Tazewell pronounced him "the most classical, the most elegant and the most eloquent orator" to whom he ever listened. Washington held him in highest esteem, and tendered him the attorney-generalship, which his state of health obliged him to decline. He died August 2, 1798, before completing his forty-fourth year, in Philadelphia, while discharging his duties as commissioner under Jay's treaty, and was buried in that city, in Christ Church burial ground, not far from the grave of Franklin. He was a brother of Henry Innes, attorney-general of Kentucky (q. v., vol. i, 263).

[Page 149]
      Williamson, Andrew, born in Virginia; married Betty, daughter of John Tyler, of Essex county; removed to South Carolina. In 1775 he was major of South Carolina militia, and served in the battle of Ninety-six; afterwards fought the Cherokee Indians, and suffered defeat; made colonel, he retrieved his ill fortune and devastated the Indian country, and was made brigadier-general. He served at the siege of Savannah, ultimately went to Charleston and was taken under British protection.

[Pages 149-150]
      Cropper, John, was born in Accomac county, Virginia, December 23, 1755, son of Sebastian Cropper, Jr., and Sabra Corbin, daughter of Col. Coventon Corbin. He was a captain in the Ninth Virginia Regiment of the revolutionary forces in 1775, was promoted to be major of the Fifth, engaging in the battle of the Brandywine, where his regiment suffered severely. He became colonel of the Seventh, taking part in the battles of Germantown and Monmouth. May 15, 1778, he was made lieutenant-colonel of the Eleventh Regiment, and afterwards promoted to be colonel of this regiment. In augusta, 1779, he withdrew to his farm, and remained there till the war closed. In 1781 he was appointed county lieutenant, and rendered much assistance in supplying provisions and equipment to the troops. In December, 1782, he joined in an attack on a lot of British barges off Accomack Bay, but the Americans were defeated and Cropper was wounded and taken prisoner. Subsequently he was a member of the house of delegates (1784-1792). In the war of 1812 he served as colonel of militia, and in 1815 he was commissioned brigadier-general of the Twenty-first Brigade. Served in the state senate from 1813 to 1817, and in 1816 was president of the Virginia branch of the Cincinnati Society. He was a great friend of Gen. Washington, and spoke always in most affectionate terms of the great commander. He died at his residence, January 15, 1821. His daughter, Sarah Corbin, married Major John Wise, speaker of the senate, and was mother of Gen. Henry A. Wise.

[Page 150]
      Kenton, Simon, born in Fauquier county, Virginia, in March, 1755, of Scotch and Irish parents. He did field labor, and in his sixteenth year, in a quarrel arising from a love affair, severely wounded his rival, and fled to the mountains. AT Cheat river he changed his name to Simon Butler, and with George Yeager and John Strader engaged in hunting. In 1771 went exploring to "Kaintuckee," and later, while hunting along the Little Kanawha, they were attacked by Indians and retreated to the Green Briar. Kenton was afterward a spy for Lord Dunmore, at Fort Pitt. Later he again explored Kentucky, and planted the first corn there. The settlement was repeatedly attacked by Indians, and Kenton is credited with saving the life of Daniel Boone. In 1778 he was captured by the Indians, and after being tortured was doomed to death, but was saved by Samuel Girty. He was afterward to be burned, but through intercession of Chief Logan was held for ransom, and subsequently escaped. He traveled to vincennes and joined Gen. George Rogers Clark, who made him captain of a company of volunteers at Harrod's Station. After defeating the Indians the company was disbanded, and Kenton, learning that his foeman of years ago had survived his wounds, resumed his proper name, and returned home. In 1784 he founded a settlement at Limestone, and gave to Arthur Fox and William Wood a thousand-acre tract on which they laid out the town of Washington. In the Indian war of 1793, Kenton served as major. He was now one of the wealthiest men in Kentucky, but owing to his ignorance of legal proceedings, was reduced to poverty. In 1802 he settled at what became Urbana, Ohio, was made brigadier-general of militia, and served under Gen. Harrison in the battle of Moravia township. He died in Ohio, in April, 1836.

[Pages 150-151]
      Parmale, Elisha, was born at Goshen, Connecticut, February 22, 1755, graduated from Harvard in 1778, and in 1779 came to Virginia because of his health and taught in Surry county. In July 1779 he came to Williamsburg, Virginia, and became a member of the Phi Beta Kappa fraternity of William and Mary College. On December 5, 1779, the society refused him permission to establish a society "to be conducted in a less mysterious manner than the Phi Beta Kappa." They thanked him, however, for his zeal, and granted him leave to establish a branch at Harvard, to be called the Epsilon, and one at Yale to be called the Zeta, and from these the fraternity spread to many colleges in the North. He settled in Lee, Massachusetts, and was given a church in 1783. His health declined and he returned to Virginia, but died suddenly at the seat of Col. Abraham Bird on the Shenandoah river, August 2, 1784, aged twenty-nine years, and was buried in the burying ground in the vicinity.

[Page 151]
      Dale, Richard, was born near Norfolk, Virginia, November 6, 1756, died in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, February 26, 1826. He entered the merchant service at the age of twelve, and at nineteen commanded a ship. In 1776 he was a lieutenant in the Virginia navy, was soon captured and confined in a prison ship at Norfolk. Persuaded by some Royalist schoolmates he embarked on an English cruiser against the vessels of his state; was wounded in an engagement with an American flotilla. After the Declaration of Independence he became a midshipman on the American brig Lexington, which was captured on the coast of France by the English cutter Alert in 1777. Dale, with others of the officers and crew, was thrown into Mill prison, at Plymouth, on the charge of high treason; escaping with many of his fellow prisoners, in February, 1778, he was recaptured, escaped again, disguised as a British naval officer, reached France, where he joined John Paul Jones' squadron as master's mate. Jones soon made him first lieutenant of the Bon Homme Richard, and in that capacity he fought with distinction in the famous battle with the Serapis, on September 23, 1779, receiving a severe splinter wound. After the sinking of the Bon Homme Richard in that engagement, Dale served with Jones in the Alliance, and afterward in the Ariel. Returning to Philadelphia, February 28, 1781, he was placed on the list of lieutenants in the navy, and joined the Trumbull, which was captured in August of that year, Dale receiving his third wound in this engagement. He was exchanged in November, obtained leave of absence, served on letters of marque and in the merchant service until the close of the war. He was appointed captain in 1794, served on a short cruise in the "Ganges," during the trouble with France, and in 1801 was given command of a squadron and ordered to the Mediterranean during the hostilities with Tripoli. Although greatly hampered by instructions, so that no serious enterprise could be attempted, he prevented the Tripolitans from making any captures during his command. Returning to the United States in 1802, he was again ordered to the Mediterranean, but resigned his commission December 17, and having gained a competency, spent the rest of his life in retirement. Dale enjoyed the unusual distinction of having been praised by Lord Nelson, who after critically watching the seamanship of the commodore's squadron, said that there was in the handling of those transatlantic ships a nucleus of trouble for the navy of Great Britain. The prediction was soon verified. Two of Commodore Dale's sons held commissions in the navy.

[Pages 151-152]
      Pendleton, Nathaniel, was born in Culpeper county, Virginia, in 1756, son of Henry Pendleton, and grandson of Philip Pendleton, the emigrant. He joined the revolutionary army, 1775; was promoted brevet-major, serving as aide-de-camp to Gen. Nathaniel Greene, and received the thanks of congress for his gallantry at Eutaw Springs, South Carolina, September 8, 1781. On the close of the war he studied law and was subsequently appointed United States district judge for Georgia. He was proposed to President Washington as a candidate for the office of secretary of state, but was objected to by Alexander Hamilton, who afterward became his friend and for whom Pendleton acted as second in his duel with Aaron Burr. He was a delegate from Georgia to the Federal constitutional convention in 1787, but was not present when the constitution of the United States was signed. He was a member of the Virginia Society of the Cincinnati. In 1796 he settled in practice in new York City, where he married his second wife, Susan, daughter of Dr. John Bard. He became judge of Dutchess county, residing on a farm at Hyde Park, New York, where he died October 20, 1821.

[Page 152]
      Beckley, John James, born in 1757, son of Sir William Beckley (or Bickly), baronet, who died in Louisa county, Virginia, March 9, 1771, Grimsby says he was a classmate of Fox, at Eton. In 1779 he was clerk of the state senate, and in 1781 he was elected clerk of the house of delegates, which position he held for many years. he was clerk of the convention of 1788; of the United States house of representatives from 1789 to 1799, and from 1801 to 1807. He was also first librarian of congress from 1802 to 1807, being the only person who ever held the two offices of clerk and librarian. He died in Washington City, April 8, 1807, in his fiftieth year.

[Page 152]
      Hammond, Samuel, born in Richmond county, Virginia, September 21, 1757; later settled in Savannah, Georgia, and was appointed surveyor-general of that state, was also elected to the legislature, fought in the Creek war of 1793, and was elected to congress, on the Democratic ticket, serving from October 17, 1803, until March 3, 1805; was appointed by President Jefferson military and civil commandant of Upper Louisiana, serving in that capacity from 1805 until 1824, and during the latter part of the time was receiver of public moneys in Missouri; in 1824 he returned to the South, locating in South Carolina, receiving appointment as a member of the legislature, as surveyor-general, in 1825, and as secretary of state, being appointed in 1831 and serving until 1835, in which year he retired from public life; he was also a soldier, volunteering in an expedition against the Indians under Governor Dunmore, distinguishing himself at the battle of the Kanawha; in 1775 he raised a company and took part in the battle of Longbridge, and four years later participated in the battle of Stono Ferry, South Carolina, under Gen. Lincoln; at the siege of Savannah he was appointed assistant quartermaster, and at Blackstocks he had three horses shot under him and was wounded; he was a member of the "council of capitulation" at Charleston, and was present at the siege of Augusta and the battles of King's Mountain, Cowpens, Eutaw Springs, where he was again badly wounded, and many other engagements; he was commissioned colonel of cavalry, September 17, 1781, and served under Gen. Greene until the end of the war; his death occurred near Augusta, Georgia, September 11, 1842.

[Pages 152-153]
      Lacy, Drury, born in Chesterfield county, Virginia, October 5, 1758, son of William and Elizabeth (Rice) Lacy, grandson of Thomas and Ann (Burnley) Lacy, and of James and Margaret (House) Rice; in early life he lost his left hand from the explosion of a gun, therefore was incapacitated from manual labor, and accordingly he acquired a thorough knowledge of the classical languages, and in 1781 was offered the position of tutor in Hampden-Sidney College, which he accepted, serving in that capacity for some time; he studied theology under the preceptorship of Dr. John Blair Smith, president of Hampden-Sidney College, and was licensed to preach in September, 1787, and ordained in October, 1788, in which year he was elected vice-president of the college, and upon Dr. Smith's resignation, in the year 1791, succeeded to the presidency, filling that honorable position until 1796, when he tendered his resignation, which was accepted, and during the remainder of his life he devoted his time and attention to supplying neighboring churches and also taught a classical school; he served as moderator of the general assembly of the Presbyterian church in 1809, and as clerk of the Hanover Presbytery during the greater part of his ministry; the loss of his hand was supplied by one of silver, and this fact, together with his clear and musical voice, gained for him the name of "Lacy with the silver hand and silver tongue;" his death occurred in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, December 6, 1815.

[Page 153]
      Short, William, was born at "Spring Garden," Surry county, Virginia, September 30, 1759, son of William Short, a planter of means, and Elizabeth Skipwith, his wife, daughter of Sir Peyton Skipwith. He was educated at William and Mary College, and was an original member of the Phi Beta Kappa fraternity, and its president from December 5, 1778, until its suspension in 1781. He was chosen a member of the executive council of Virginia in 1783, and when Thomas Jefferson was appointed minister to France in 1784, Short accompanied him as secretary of legation. After Jefferson's departure from France, Short was made chargé d'affaires, his commission being the first one that was signed by Washington as President. On January 16, 1794, he became minister to The Hague. He was next appointed a commissioner to treat with the Spanish government concerning the Florida and Mississippi boundaries, the navigation of the Mississippi, and other open questions. His negotiations resulted in a treaty of friendship, commerce and boundaries, which was signed October 27, 1795. he returned to the United States in 1801, having been absent in the service of the country for seventeen years. In 1849 he acted as the medium for the revival of the Phi Beta Kappa chapter at William and Mary College. He died in Philadelphia, December 5 of the same year.

[Pages 153-154]
      Stuart, Archibald, was the son of Alexander Stuart, one of the founders of Liberty Hall Academy, now Washington and Lee University. He was educated at William and Mary College, which he left in 1780, and joined the regiment from Rockbridge, in which his father was major, and fought in the battle of Guilford Court House, where the father was wounded and taken prisoner. During the entire campaign, young Stuart had with him the official seal of the Phi Beta Kappa Society, of which he was vice-president, which seal, many years after his death, was found in a secret drawer in his escritoire. This seal his son, Hon. Alexander H. H. Stuart, transmitted to the society at its revival in 1849, but since the civil war it has been lost sight of. After the revolution, Mr. Stuart studied law under Thomas Jefferson. In 1783 he was elected to the house of delegates; he was later a member of the convention of 1788, of the Virginia senate, a presidential elector, judge of the general court, and, in brief, one of the leading men of Virginia until his death, which occurred July 11, 1832. He was father of Alexander H. H. Stuart, secretary of the interior in Fillmore's cabinet.

[Page 154]
      Cooper, Thomas, born in London, England, October 22, 1759; educated at Oxford, acquiring an extensive knowledge of medicine, the natural sciences and law; was admitted to the bar, and for a time followed a circuit practice; becoming involved in the political troubles of the time, he was sent to France by the Democratic clubs as a delegate to the French Democratic organization, and there he became an ardent sympathizer with the Girondists of the revolution, and upon his return to England created extreme hostility by his advocacy of that party; he was denounced in the house of commons by Edmund Burke, and in reply he brought out a violent pamphlet which was the cause of great sensation; soon after, he came to the new world with his friend, Dr. Joseph Priestley, and here his extreme views upon questions of government were again the cause of misfortune; he settled in Northumberland, Pennsylvania, where he soon built up a law practice, later was appointed a judge, but his arbitrary conduct led to his deposition by his own supporters; he occupied the chair of chemistry in Dickinson College, Carlisle, Pennsylvania, from 1811 to 1814, and in 1816 was appointed to the same position in the University of Pennsylvania; was called to the College of South Carolina in 1820, and remained there until 1834 as president of the institution and professor of chemistry and political economy; when Mr. Jefferson was projecting his plans for the University of Virginia, he entered into correspondence with Dr. Cooper, seeking his opinion upon various questions, and the value of Dr. Cooper's suggestions is evident from the fact that Mr. Jefferson later brought about his election as the first professor of Central College, having the appointment confirmed by the university; he was not allowed to serve, however, because of his religious views; he was renowned for his knowledge of law, medicine, chemistry, mineralogy, politics and political economy; Jefferson, in writing to Cabell, said of him: "He is one of the ablest men in America, and that in several branches of science * * * The best pieces on political economy which have been written in this country were by Cooper;" in politics he was a Republican; in religion a free thinker and allied with the Unitarian denomination; in philosophy a materialist; he died in Columbia, South Carolina, May 11, 1840, and left an important bibliography of which notable works are: "Letters on the Slave Trade," London, 1787; "Tracts, Ethical, Theological, and Political," 1790; "Account of the Trial of Thomas Cooper, of Northumberland," Philadelphia, 1800; "The Bankrupt Law in America Compared with that of England," 1801; "An English Version of the Institutes of Justinian," 1812; "Tracts on Medical Jurisprudence," 1819; "Elements of Political Economy," Charleston, 1826. In his "Letters on Emigration" Cooper used the notable words: "The government of the United States is a government of the people and for the people."

[Pages 154-155]
      Turberville, George Lee, born September 7, 1760, son of George Turberville, of Westmoreland county, and Martha Lee, his wife. He was captain in the Fifteenth Virginia Regiment, December 2, 1776; major and aide-de-camp to Gen. Charles Lee, May 26, 1778; retired September 14, 1778; in 1781 he served with Baron Steuben. After the war he was a delegate to the Virginia house of delegates, 1785-86-87; member of the convention of 1788; and sheriff of Richmond county in 1798. He was grandfather of Gen. R. L. T. Beale, United States congressman and brigadier-general C. S. A.