Encyclopedia of Virginia Biography

[Pages 427-428]
Arlington Cecil Jones, M. D. Although hardly yet in the prime of life, Dr. Jones has attained high rank as physician and surgeon and is honored and esteemed both within and without the profession. Since 1900 he has devoted himself to private practice in Covington, Virginia.
He is a son of Dr. H. H. Jones, born in Highland county, Virginia, in 1842, and after a most useful life is yet living in his native county. He is a graduate M. D., University of Virginia, class of "68," and a Confederate veteran, enlisting as private in the Thirty-eighth Virginia Infantry, rising to the rank of captain. He safely survived the perils of war but was severely wounded at the battle of Chancellorsville. After graduation he began medical practice in Highland county and has many old friends still demanding that he minister to their ills. He married Jemima Jane Eakle, born in Highland county, in 1846, daughter of Samuel Cook and Martha (Hiner) Eakle.
Dr. Arlington Cecil Jones was born in Highland county, Virginia, February 17, 1872. He pursued courses of preparatory study in the grammar and high schools of the county until graduation in 1887. In the fall of 1877 he entered Virginia Polytechnic Institute, continuing there two years. Having decided to follow the profession of his father he entered the medical department of Virginia University in 1891 and was there graduated M. D., class of "94." For the succeeding five years, 1894-99, he was demonstrator in surgery at his alma mater, then for a time was officially connected with the Orange Memorial Hospital at Orange, New Jersey. In 1900 he located in Covington, Virginia, where he has been continuously engaged in the practice of medicine and surgery. In addition to his large practice, Dr. Jones is surgeon for the West Virginia Pulp and Paper Company of Covington, one of the extensive plants there located. He is a member of the American Medical Association, the Virginia State Medical Society and the Alleghany County Medical Society, serving the latter as director. For three years he has served as a member of Covington's Board of Health and is president of the town board of school directors. He is a member of the Methodist Episcopal church, and in political faith is a Democrat. His college fraternity is S. A. P., his club the University. Fond of out-of-door sports and interested in their promotion, Dr. Jones spends his ours off duty in the open, and as president of the Covington Base Ball Club of the "Mountain League" has developed a strong organization.
Dr. Jones married, in 1906, Ann Constance Shanahan, born in 1882, daughter of Cornelius M. Shanahan. Children: Arlington Cecil (2), born in Covington, July 8, 1910, and Henry Harrison, born December 15, 1911.

[Pages 428-430]
Thomas Bernard Dornin. In the eighteenth century there was living in Paris, France, a family named Simonette, whose daughter, Marie Constance, born in 1752, married Edouard Garreau,, attorney to the King. Having large possessions in San Domingo, he was on the island at the time of an insurrection of the negro slaves. Monsieur Garreau was entertaining a part of gentlemen when a slave warned them of the uprising, and they hurriedly sought safety, their host being shot while standing in his doorway. The faithful slave rescued the wife and children, concealing them under the sweet potato vines until he could get them aboard a vessel leaving for Spain. In Paris one of the daughters, Constance Rosalie, married Count Joseph Boudar, who was forced to leave the country at the time of the insurrection of the people against the nobility. This was the French revolution. He encountered many difficulties in making his escape, being driven into the sea by his pursuers, but was rescued by a passing vessel and brought to the United States, where his wife had preceded him, and given birth to their eldest child, Marie Rosalie, who was born March 2, 1800. When she was eighteen months old her parents went to Cuba, locating in Havana, and they were living there in 1810 when the insurrection of the native occurred, and although she was but ten years of age at the time she always retained a distinct recollection of the terrible scenes. She remembered seeing the mob from the garret window, where she and her brother, Thomas Boudar, had been concealed by the porter. Madam Boudar was away from home when the mob was forming and knew nothing of it until she met the governor driving rapidly down the street, who took her into his carriage and drove her out of the city, and out of the way of harm. The scene that Marie Rosalie witnessed from the window as she looked out upon the mob was horrible beyond description. The streets were running with blood, and the ground was nearly covered with the bodies of the slain; maddened negroes were going about with human heads impaled upon sticks, while some of the rioters were dressed in the handsome silks and jewelry of the murdered women, and all were shouting and screaming as loud as they could.
As soon as possible the Boudar family returned to the United States. They first located in the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, then in Norfolk, Virginia, and then in Richmond, the same state. At the commencement of the war of 1812 they removed to Lynchburg, then Lynch's Ferry, and several years later Marie Rosalie visited her brother, Thomas Boudar, in Richmond, Virginia, and there she met William Dornin, whose wife she became. They returned to Lynchburg together, and there the family has resided ever since.
William Dornin was descended from a prominent family in county Antrim, Ireland, who owned and managed extensive cattle grazing lands. His parents offered every inducement to persuade him to remain in the land of his birth, but being possessed of an adventurous spirit, which was not easily subdued, he ran away from home at the early age of sixteen, emigrating to the United States, settling first in New York City, from whence he removed to Richmond, Virginia. After his marriage with Marie Rosalie Boudar he removed to Lynchburg, Virginia, and was prominently identified with the growth of that city. Mrs. Dornin lived a life of unselfish devotion to her church, her family, her friends, and all who needed her assistance. The first service of the Roman Catholic church in Lynchburg was held in her house, she having previously collected the children of Catholic families and taught them in her home, so that she enjoyed the distinction of being the mother of the Catholic church in Lynchburg. Her long life was spent in service to others, in nursing the sick and assisting the poor and distressed, and especially during the trying period of the civil war were her services helpful, she devoting her entire time to the sick soldiers in the hospitals, where in her untiring patience she ministered to those whose sufferings she knew so well how to relieve. She was exceedingly fond of flowers, and to her is due the credit of bringing the first lilies of the valley and the first Silesian rose bush to Lynchburg. Mr. and Mrs. Dornin were the parents of a number of children, among whom was Thomas Bernard, of whom further.
Thomas Bernard Dornin, fourth child of William and Mary Rosalie (Boudar) Dornin, was born in Lynchburg, Virginia, June 20, 1824, died November 5, 1912. He received his education in the schools of Lynchburg, and among his teachers were the famous "Aunt Owen," Tudor Yancy and John Cary. The first business position he held was in the office of Richard Tyree. Being possessed of a wandering spirit he went to Missouri to try his fortune in the west, making the long trip over the rough country roads. When the Mexican war broke out he enlisted in Company E, Third Missouri Mounted Volunteers, and went with them to the front, but hostilities were concluded before his command reached its destination. Shortly after his return to Missouri he joined a band of adventurous spirits, E. N. Eubank, of Virginia, being one of them, about to take the overland route to California in search of gold, the gold fever being then at its height. They left Bowling Green, Missouri, in 1849, and made the long and dangerous journey in a "Prairie Schooner," drawn by two sturdy oxen, one of which succumbed long before the completion of the journey. They met with many adventures, and saw wondrous sights in this then unknown and uncivilized region before finally reaching their destination. In his latter days m enjoyed talking of this trip, and always found attentive listeners to his graphic description of the boundless prairies, the great canyons of the Yellowstone, the spouting and streaming geysers and the might Rockies. They had little or no trouble wit the various tribes of Indians they encountered, but had always to be watchful as they found them treacherous and thievish. A Navajo squaw gave Mr. Dornin a basket so closely woven it held water without leaking. They saw great herds of wild horses and buffaloes, and once, when on the verge of exhaustion and nearly overcome with thirst, they came upon a post near the trail which bore the inscription "Dig five feet and find ice"; this they did, were refreshed and able to continue their journey with renewed vigor.
They found their first gold at Feather river and believed themselves in California, but many long and weary miles lay between them and their goal. After a year in the mining camps of California, with varied success, he returned East, by way of San Francisco, the Isthmus of Panama and New Orleans. In New Orleans he sold his gold dust, realizing about five thousand dollars, and finally reached Lynchburg, Virginia, possessed of considerable more capital than when he left, and richer by far in experience. Shortly after he engaged in business as a dealer in hardware in Lynchburg, in which line he was very successful, enlarging the scope of his business from time to time until it became one of the leading enterprises of the city. In addition to this, during the sixties, Mr. Dornin acted in the capacity of superintendent of the city water works, a position he filled marked fidelity.
In 1875, during the memorable revival at Centenary Methodist Church, conducted by Dr. Leonidas Rosser, when large numbers united with the church, Mr. Dornin was the last convert of the meeting. He then joined Court Street Methodist Church, and for a number of years he was one of its most active and energetic Christian workers serving in the capacity of steward from the time he joined up to almost the time of his decease. He was not only instrumental in building up the church with which he was connected, but he created a great interest among members of the various other churches in the city, hence his work was wide-spread and far-reaching. He was also greatly interested in philanthropic work, being one of the organizers of the Open Door Mission, of the King's Messengers and of the Rescue Mission, the latter the predecessor of the Florence Crittenden Home. Mr. Dornin identified himself so thoroughly with the needs of others that his place of business became a veritable rendezvous for all who were in trouble, as well as for his personal friends. Not only did he live t his beautiful life of righteousness, but he did what to him was more difficult, he overcame his natural timidity and spoke always and everywhere for the Savior he adored. While to him charity was much broader than almsgiving, still he rendered substantial aid to all who were in need, and his death caused deep sorrow and was mourned by many to whom he gave not only ready sympathy but the needful help in time of trouble, thus ministering to their material wants.
Mr. Dornin married, in 1852, Mary Snead Gannaway, daughter of Warren and Elizabeth (Snead) Gannaway. Children: 1. William Warren, married Anna Willing Nowlin, daughter of James Bowker and Evelyn (Byrd) Nowlin; children: Evelyn, married Harry L. Campbell; Annie, married John C. Adams, child, John C., Jr.; Elizabeth, married Frank B. Coldwell, children: Frank Brown and Thomas Dornin; Thomas B.; May; Catherine. 2. Mary Emma, married William Pate Gibbs; children: William Warren and Mary Constance. 3. Rosa Lee, unmarried.

[Pages 430-432]
Nash-Francis. The Nash family of Virginia springs from Thomas Nash, who came from Monmouthshire, England, in 1661, and settled on land granted to him in Virginia. He was accompanied by his wife, Ann (Nash) Nash, who was also his cousin, and servants. He located in St. Bride's parish, on the Elizabeth river, in Norfolk county, Virginia, where he was a planter and ship builder, the water in the river at that time being sufficiently deep to permit the launching of vessels of large size. He was a member of the Established church of England.
(II) Thomas (2) Nash, son of Thomas (1) and Anna (Nash) Nash, followed in his father's footsteps, conducting the same lines of business, and also founded and expanded the town of Nashville. He married Diana Bouchet.
(III) Thomas (3) Nash, son of Thomas (2) and Diana (Bouchet) Nash, continued along the same lines of activity established by his grandfather, and followed by his father, the Nash Ship Yards turning out many vessels and becoming famous in their line. He married Mary Herbert. He was a vestryman of St. Bride's parish from 1761 until near the year 1800.
(IV) Thomas (4) Nash, son of Thomas (3) and Mary (Herbert) Nash, was born in 1758.He was a large plantation owner, and a man of influence in the community in which he resided. He served in the revolution, fighting as a boy at the battle of Great Ridge, and also served in the war of 1812. He married Elizabeth Herbert.
(V) Thomas (5) Nash, son of Thomas (4) and Elizabeth (Herbert) Nash, was born in St. Bridge's parish, Norfolk county, Virginia, May 12, 1805, died August 9, 1855. He studied medicine, located in Norfolk, Virginia, and during the yellow fever epidemic in that city, in August, 1855, sacrificed himself in order to help others, exposing himself recklessly to the fever, which soon claimed him. He was noted for his Christian character, his mild and engaging manner and deeply sympathetic nature. He married Lydia Adela Herbert, born in 1805, died in September, 1849. The Herberts settled in Norfolk county, Virginia, in 1650, and for a century and a half men of the family were prominent in official and business life. Mrs. Nash's grandfather, Maximillian Herbert, was educated in England, and then carefully studied the scientific principles of ship building. On his return to Norfolk, Virginia, he became connected with ship building in Norfolk, and industry for which that place was long famous. His house is still standing, where Cramp's Ship Yard is now located, the Herbert family reserving the right to the graveyard when the property was sold to the Cramps. Children of Thomas and Lydia A. (Herbert) Nash: 1. Lucretia, of whom further. 2. Herbert Milton, of whom further. 3. Thomas (6), married Sue Foster, and had child, Thomas (7), who married Hattie Lane, and had child, Thomas (8), making eight generations bearing the name Thomas, in direct line from Thomas Nash, the emigrant. 4. Mary, married Edwin Steever; family all deceased. 5. Lydia Adela, married Peter Dillard, and had issue: i. Herbert Nash, married Mary Green, five children: Mary Adela, Elizabeth Nash, Peter Dillard, Celestia Talaferrio, Herbert Nash Jr. ii. Dalton, married Ethol Hale, two children: Lydia Hale and Josephine Claiborne. iii. John, married Mary Taylor, one child, Elizabeth. iv. Lydia Adela, married Kent Sheppard, two children: Benjamin and Lydia Adela. v. Percy D. vi. Carter Lee, deceased. vii. Luie Francis married Haigh Dangerfield, one child Adela Carter.
(VI) Lucretia Nash, eldest daughter of Thomas (5) and Lydia Adela (Herbert) Nash, was born in 1828, died in Norfolk, Virginia, in 1909. She married, in 1855, John Taylor Francis, born in 1825, died in 1862, son of William (2) and Martha (Street) Francis, and grandson of William (1) Francis. William (2) Francis was born in Norwich, England, and came to Virginia, in 1801. He settled in Norfolk, was a commission merchant and a man of importance. He became a naturalized citizen of the United States, in 1812, but was not called upon to serve against his native land during the war of 1812. He was a member of Christ Protestant Episcopal Church, and aided in the erection of the first Christ Church in Norfolk. He married Martha Street.
John Taylor Francis was born in Norfolk, Virginia. He prepared for college in the Norfolk Academy adn then entered the University of Virginia, from which institution he received the degrees of A. B. and A. M. He studied law, was admitted to teh bar and practiced his profession in Norfolk in association with Tazewell Taylor. He was United States commissioner, and prior to his enlistment in the Confederate army went through some stirring and trying scenes in Norfolk. He was a member of the Norfolk Light Artillery Blues, and died on his way to Knoxville, in May, 1862, at the early age of thirty-six years, death ending a most promising career. Children of John Taylor and Lucretia (Nash) Francis: 1. Lulie Archer, born 1858, died December 16, 1914; she was a resident of Norfolk, Virginia; her remains were interred in Cedar Grove Cemetery. 2. John Taylor (2), born in 1859, in Norfolk; was educated in the public schools, Blacksburg College, and the medical department of the University of Virginia, obtaining his degree of M. D. from the latter institution, class of 1881; after a post-graduate course at the University of New York, he began private practice at Rocky Mount, Virginia, continuing there four years; he then located in Norfolk, Virginia, associating in practice with his uncle, Herbert Milton Nash, M. D., continuing until his early death, January 8, 1893, from typhoid fever, aged thirty-three years; he was a skillful surgeon and learned physician, was of a brilliant mind and boundless ambition, destined, had not death interferred, to have risen to the foremost rank in his profession; he was president of the Virginia State Medical Association, adjutant of the Lee Rifles, and a member of Christ Church, as were his father and grandfather; he married, in 1888, Mildred Lee, daughter of Carter and Lucy (Taylor) Lee, and a niece of General Robert E. Lee, the great commander of the Confederacy; the only child of Dr. John Taylor (2) and Mildred (Lee) Francis is Mildred Lee, born in 1889, married, April 26, 1904, Miles P. Refo, United States navy.
(VI) Dr. Herbert Milton Nash, eldest son of Thomas (5) and Lydia Adela (Herbert) Nash, was born in Norfolk, Virginia, May 29, 1831. He acquired his preparatory education in the James D. Johnston Classical School and Norfolk Military Academy, his instructor in mathematics being Colonel John B. Strange, later an officer of the Confederate army, killed at the battle of Crampton's Gap. In September, 1851, he entered the medical department of the University of Virginia, whence he was graduated M. D. in June 1852. During the twelve months following, he attended clinics in New York City, and in 1853 began practice in Norfolk. He was in the thick of the yellow fever epidemic in 1855, and was the last survivor of that noble band of medical heroes who fought the dread disease day and night, without rest and scarcely a moment's sleep until help came from the outside. Again in 1862 his practice was interrupted by the war between the states, he at once volunteering for service in the Confederate army. He was assistant surgeon of Virginia troops, attached to the post at Craney Island until May, 1862, when Norfolk was evacuated. He was then with the Army of Northern Virginia in the battles around Richmond and in the events following. He was then raised to the rank of surgeon, serving with Mahone's brigade at Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville and Gettysburg. Later he was attached to the artillery division of A. P. Hill's corps and was with the division at Mine Run, the Wilderness, Cold Harbor, and the siege of Petersburg. At Petersburg he was placed in charge of the medical department of the artillery of the Third Corps, as chief surgeon, and on the evening before the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia, at Appomattox, was disabled and captured in a cavalry charge made by the Federals upon the Confederate Reserve Artillery. He made his escape a few days afterward and returned to Norfolk.
There he again began building up a medical practice and in a few years, by hard work, he had regained the losses incident to the war. He often said the hardest work he ever did was in 1865 and 1866, for during the four years of war the surgeons of the Southern army had been deprived of most of the knowledge concerning medical progress through their inability to obtain the medical journals devoted to the subjects of deepest interest to them. He had, however, gained a wide knowledge of surgery, and he soon decided to specialize in that branch, a branch that had hitherto been neglected in Norfolk. He began by giving special attention to plastic surgery and gynecology, and was the pioneer physician in Norfolk to specialize in these branches. He continued in his practice in Norfolk until his death in 1910, and it was noteworthy that some of the most successful and most difficult operations in surgery were performed by him after passing his seventieth year. He was a great surgeon and was recognized as such by the profession. He was a lifelong member of the Norfolk Medical Society, and several times its president; was an ex-president and honorary fellow of the Virginia Medical Society; vice-president of the Medical Examining Board of Virginia; member of the American Medical Association; American Public Health Association; an ex-president of the Norfolk Board of Health; president of the Board of Quarantine Commissions, Elizabeth River District; visiting physician and surgeon to St. Vincent's Hospital and Norfolk Protestant Hospital; medical examiner for the Equitable and other life insurance companies, and was always a voluminous writer upon medial and surgical subjects. He was greatly honored by his professional brethren, and on June 16, 1902, was the guest of honor at a dinner given by the faculty of the University of Virginia on the fiftieth anniversary of his graduation.
Dr. Nash married, in February, 1867, Mary A., daughter of Nicholas Wilson and Elizabeth (Boush) Parker, of Norfolk. Mrs. Nash was a granddaughter of Copeland Parker, long an officer of the United States customs, appointed by Thomas Jefferson. Colonel Josiah Parker, a brother of Copeland Parker, was an officer of the Virginia line during the revolution, and the first member of Congress from his district under the Constitution. The Parkers were a promient family of Isle of Wight county, Virginia, the ancestor coming from England. Children of Dr. Herbert Milton and Mary A. (Parker) Nash: 1. Elizabeth, born in 1874; married (first) Edwin G. Lee, M. D., and had issue: Margaret Page and Herbert Nash; married (second) J. N. Willis. 2. Mary Louisa, born in 1876; married, in 1910, Edward Brockenbrough, of Norfolk, son of John Mercer Brockenbrough.

[Pages 432-433]
Edwin Alonzo Barber. The Barber family of New York, whence sprang Edwin Alonzo Barber, is descendant from Thomas Barber, who came from England in the ship "Christian" in 1635, at the age of twenty-one years, settling in Massachusetts. He served in the Pequod war, and after the Indians were subdued settled in Connecticut, the forbear of numerous descendants.
Edwin Alonzo Barber was born in Lyons, Wayne county, New York, December 18, 1840, but removed with his father and sister to Chatham, Virginia, when a youth. He died at his home in Richmond, Virginia, March 5, 1910, being only son of Gaylord Samuel and Asenath (Hinckley) Barber, and grandson of Samuel and Thankful (Lewis) Barber, all of New York state.
Edwin A. Barber probably inherited his most marked characteristics from his mother. She was of a serious, earnest nature, a stanch Presbyterian, strong in her convictions, and lived what she believed. She died young, when Edwin A. was but four years of age, leaving besides, an only daughter, Maria Hinckley Barber, who died in Richmond, Virginia, March 19, 1912, having never married.
Edwin A. Barber received an unusually varied education at home and abroad, peculiarly fitting him for the responsible and important appointments to which he was early assigned. In 1859 he was appointed deputy clerk of the circuit court of Pittsylvania county, which office he acceptably filled until April, 1861, when he enlisted in the Confederate army, and left with the Chatham Grays for Richmond, being mustered into active service April 26, 1861, as lieutenant of Company A, Fifty-third Regiment. At the time of his death he was a member of the R. E. Lee and Pickett Camps Confederate Veterans.
After the war closed, Mr. Barber was appointed auditor of the Piedmont Railroad, Danville, Virginia. In May, 1866, he was appointed secretary and treasurer of the Richmond and Danville, Railroad, newly organized. He at that time came to Richmond to live, making his home in Richmond until his death (1910). In 1872 he became auditor, and in December, 1886, was made comptroller of the same railroad, now known as "The Southern." When the railroad changed hands and the offices were moved to Washington, D. C., Mr. Barber, preferring to remain with his family in Richmond, resigned. For twenty-two years he was associated with this road in an official capacity, competently and surely directing the work of the departments of which he was the head. He was esteemed by his associates as an executive of decision, power and personality, and his wise counsel was always given careful consideration, its accurate value realized through repeated experience. In the latter years of his life, Edwin A. Barber pursued the profession of expert accountant, being associated in business with his son Edwin Barber, Jr. In all of his private relations, as in his business affairs, honor and integrity were markedly present, and during a busy and useful lifetime He was accorded the confidence and trust of his associates and friends. He affiliated with the Democratic party, and was a communicant of the
Edwin Alonzo married at Danville, Virginia, December 10, 1866, Emma Whitmell Rison, born at Chatham, Virginia, daughter of Colonel William and Sally Ann (Townes) Rison, and granddaughter of John and Jane (Foster) Rison, of Chesterfield, and of Colonel George Towns (a member of the Virginia senate) and Elizabeth Barker (Tunstall) Townes of Pittsylvania, daughter of Colonel William and Sara Winifred (Pugh) Tunstall. Colonel William Tunstall was the son of Colonel William Tunstall, of Henry county, one of the most gallant gentlemen of olden time and of Betsy Barker, his wife, a noted beauty and celebrated English heiress, and ward and relative of Peyton Randolph. Sarah Winifred (Pugh) Tunstall was the daughter of William Scott and Winifred (Hill) Pugh, son of Colonel Thomas and May (Scott) Pugh, son of Francis and Pheriba (Savage) Pugh of Williamsburg, the former named son of Francis Pugh, who came to Jamestown from Caernarvonshire, in 1666 and settled in Nansemond parish near Suffolk, Virginia, son of Hugh (or ap Hugh) Glendower, younger son of Sir Owen Glendower, descendant from Llewellyn, last Welsh Prince of Wales. Children of Edwin Alonzo and Emma W. (Rison) Barber: Annie Townes, married William MacKnight Fisher, and died in Richmond, Virginia, aged twenty-five years; Edwin Alonzo, of whom further; Irene; Elizabeth Tunstall and Louise Virginia Barber.
Edwin Alonzo Barber, Jr., son of Edwin Alonzo and Emma W. (Rison) Barber, was born in Richmond, Virginia, died June 24, 1914, aged thirty-nine years. He was educated in the private schools of Richmond and the University of Virginia, after completing his studies becoming secretary and treasurer of the Virginia Navigation Company, which offices he held until the merger of that company with the Old Dominion Steamship Company. Afterward he formed a partnership with his father, as E. A Barber & Company, public accountants, which firm enjoyed a prosperous continuance. Mr. Barber was a skilled and able certified public accountant, and a member of the Virginia Society of Public Accountants, was several times honored by appointment to important committees, and at his death was vice-president of the organization. He twice represented Madison ward in Richmond council, pressure of business affairs finally causing his resignation. He was prominent in fraternal and social circles, and at his death belonged to the Commonwealth Club, was a Scottish Rite Mason, his lodge Joppa, No. 40, Free and Accepted Masons, and he also affiliated with Acca Temple, Ancient Arabic Order Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. For many years he was a member of the Broad Street Methodist Church.
Edwin Alonzo Barber, Jr., was the center of a wide circle of friends in Richmond, who sincerely mourn his death, the more so since his achievements had apparently but begun. His popularity in many relations to his fellow-men was the result of his uniform courtesy and a most attractive personality, a tribute to an upright and useful life.

[Pages 433-435]
The Foster family. A family of seafaring men with few exceptions, the Fosters are known as sea captains of the first class, vessel owners, men of daring bravery, level-headed judgment and as men to whom with safety lives and property may be consigned.
(I) Captain Isaac Foster, who served in the war of 1812, was a sea captain, engaged in the coasting trade, owning several vessels and other property. He was a devoted Methodist and gave much time and money to the furtherance of the interests of the church he loved. He married Mary Miller and had issue: Julia, Baldwin, John, Seth, Isaac, Elizabeth, Shepard.
(II) Baldwin Foster, eldest son of Captain Isaac and Mary (Miller) Foster, was born in Mathews county, Virginia, in 1815. He attended public schools and learned the blacksmith's trade, he being one of the Fosters who did not exclusively follow the sea. In 1855 he located in Norfolk, passed through the yellow fever epidemic of that year in safety and attained fortune and prominence in the public life of his native county. He was for many years sheriff of Mathews county, owned a great deal of property in vessels and land and was one of the most generous, helpful of men, never refusing any call upon his sympathy, or pocket. He married Rebecca James. Children: 1. Adeline, born in 1846, married in 1867, H. K. Evans. 2. Leora, born in 1848, married in April, 1865, John C. Thomas; children: Charles T., Lessie, Virgie. 3. Lemuel, born in 1850. 4. John Baldwin, of further mention. 5. Edward, born in 1854, married Nannie Hunley; children: Muse, Henry, Percy. 6. Fannie, born in 1857, married Charles Wicks. 7. William Shepherd, of further mention.
(III) John Baldwin Foster, son of Baldwin and Rebecca (James) Foster, was born in Mathews county, Virginia, August 1852. He attended public schools and from early life has followed the sea. In youth he became familiar with the waters of Chesapeake Bay, upon which Mathews county borders, his explorations rendering his knowledge most exact and extensive. He made many voyages to coastwise ports on his father's vessels and became a thoroughly capable seaman. He qualified as a pilot and until he was thirty-five years of age was an active member of the Chesapeake Bay Pilot's Association, rating one of the most capable and trustworthy of that fine body of men. In 1887 he located in Norfolk and for twenty-seven years has been in the constant employ of the Norfolk and Portsmouth Ferry Company. He is a member of the Chesapeake Bay Pilots' Association and of the Masters' and Mates' Association, these being composed exclusively of pilots, captains and mates, who are or have been pilots, captains or mates in actual sea service. His record of efficiency is a proud one and his rating in marine circles is A-1. John Baldwin Foster married, December 15, 1875, Estelle Herbert. Children are as follows:
(IV) Herbert Rogers Foster, eldest son of John Baldwin Foster, was born July 22, 1877, in Norfolk. He obtained his education in the Robert Gatewood school. He chose his father's calling and served the rigorous apprenticeship through which all must pass. who would write after his name "Pilot." He served later as quartermaster with the New York, Portsmouth and Norfolk Steamship Company, then entered the service of the Merritt and Chapman Wrecking Company, as mate. He was advanced to the command of the wrecking steamer "I. J. Merritt" and is now captain of the steamer "Relief," stationed at Kingston, Jamaica. He is a member of the Masters' and Mates' Association of New York, Norfolk and Kingston, and one of the hardy capable men who "do down to the sea in ships." He is a member of the Masonic order and highly esteemed by his brethren of that fraternity. Captain Herbert R. Foster married Vivian Dashiell. Children: Herbert G., born July 14, 1904; George Baldwin, December 30, 1906; Stanford Lee, May, 1908.
(IV) Caroll Baldwin Foster, second son of John Baldwin Foster, was born August 24, 1884. He was educated in the Robert Gatewood school at Norfolk. He also served a regular apprenticeship as pilot and is now one of the capable pilots of the Virginia coast. He married (first) Annie Willard Jacobs, born in 1889, died May 8, 1910, leaving s son, Caroll B. (2), born January 11, 1908. He married (second) Ola Wilson.
(IV) Russell Sage Foster, third son of John Baldwin Foster, was born April 14, 1886. He was educated in the public schools and after completing his studies broke away from family tradition and instead of adopting the family calling entered mercantile life as clerk. After several years he capitalized his knowledge of the goods he had been selling for several years for others and opened a gentlemen's furnishing store in Norfolk and has now a well established profitable business. He is a member of St. John's Lodge, No. 5, Free and Accepted Masons, belongs to the Loyal Order of Moose, is a member of the Memorial Methodist Episcopal Church and secretary of the Sunday school connected therewith. He married April 17, 1911, Daisy Powell Wilson, daughter of Richard Taylor and Bessie (Garland) Wilson.
(IV) Edwin Lipscomb Foster, fourth son of John Baldwin Foster, was born September 24, 1888. He was educated in the grammar and high schools of Norfolk. He entered he employ of the Merritt, Chapman Wrecking Company and is now first officer of the San Francisco and Portland, Oregon, vessels, employed on the Pacific coast, between Portland and San Francisco, having made the voyage from the Atlantic to the Pacific station, via the Cape Horn route. He is a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks and a young man of fine promise. He married, in April, 1914, Maude Allen, in Portland, Oregon.
(IV) Frank Hedges Foster, fifth son of John Baldwin Foster, was born in Norfolk, December 14, 1892. He was educated in the public schools, graduating with the highest honors from Maury High School. He filled twenty-two class positions during his high school term, including the office of president of his fraternity. He adopted a seafaring career and is at present quartermaster of the New York and Porto Rico Steamship Company.
(III) William Shepherd Foster, youngest child of Baldwin and Rebecca (James) Foster, was born in Mathews county, Virginia, October 25, 1859.His father, although the "village blacksmith," was also a vessel owner. After completing his studies in the public school, William S. Foster went to sea with Captain Louis Hudgins, followed the sea for three years, and in 1876 went to South America, also with Captain Hudgins, who was engaged in the coffee trade with Rio and the West Indies. He then served for five years as apprentice aboard a pilot boat. He was thoroughly familiar with the channels of the Chesapeake Bay, and probably none of the larger vessels has entered or left the bay that at some time had not been under the temporary command of "Captain William S. Foster." He has passed through every phase of the life of a pilot, from apprentice upward, and is one of the highest rated among the men of his hazardous and important calling. He is a member of the Virginia Pilot's Association and of the Coast Pilots' Association, and is affiliated with Atlantic Lodge, No. 2, Free and Accepted Masons.
Captain William S. Foster married, in January, 1886, Julia Owens. Children: 1. William Shepherd Jr., born in 1888. 2. Clifford Smith, born July 18, 1890; married July 12, 1913, Helen Stuart Webb, and has a son, Clifford Smith, Jr., born May 13, 1914. 3. John Brooks, born in 1892. 4. Hugh, born November 30, 1894. 5. Robert Allen, born November 30, 1898. 6. James Asbury, born September 19, 1901. 7. Julia Owens, born November 30, 1904.

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Bennett T. Gordon. Since 1906 a judge of the Twenty-ninth Judicial Circuit, to Bennett Taylor Gordon has been granted a plentiful share of legal honors, for his career in that profession has been successful in a gratifying measure, both in his private practice and in his public service. In the first he was known as an attorney, able and strong, in his present judicial capacity his reputation is of a judge upright, impartial and discerning. in both he has been marked by a sense of honor, lofty and discriminating, these the qualities have determined his path in life.
Judge Gordon is of Scotch descent, his grandfather, Samuel Gordon, born in Lochdougan, Scotland, the locality taking its name from the family estate. In his native land he was Laird of Lochdougan, a distinction that he lost when he entered into mercantile trade in Liverpool, England, where he gained prominence as a leading merchant of the day. In his young manhood he came to the United States, being for a time engaged in business in Fredericksburg, Virginia, and although he did not find there the career of which he had been in search, he found a wife, being there married to Agnes Knox, a native of Fredericksburg. One of their sons was William, of whom further.
William Gordon, son of Samuel and Agnes (Knox) Gordon, was born in Liverpool, England, July 25 1815, died in Nelson county, Virginia, November 18, 1888. He was a lad of but sixteen years when he immigrated to the United States, settling in Fredericksburg, Virginia, where he entered mercantile dealing as a clerk. Upon his retirement from active participation in the movements of the business world he took up his residence in Nelson county, Virginia, where he died. He married, November 8, 1842, Charlotte M. Cocke, of Albemarle county, Virginia, daughter of Dr. Charles Cocke. Her father was a prominent and well loved physician, honored in professional and public life, at one time a member of the Virginia seanate. Children of William and Charlotte M. (Cocke) Gordon: Sallie, married Thompson B. Maury, of New York City; Charles, a cotton broker of Houston, Texas; S. Lenox, died aged fifteen years; Agnes S., born in 1849, died in 1899; William Fitzhugh, died in Texas in 1879; Basil B., a civil engineer of Greenville, Mississippi; Bennett Taylor, of whom further; and R. Walker, died in 1899.
Bennett Taylor Gordon, son of William and Charlotte M. (Cocke) Gordon, was born on his father's estate, "Huntly," in Nelson county, Virginia, February 6, 1855, and there lived until he was eighteen years of age, acquiring a general education and assisting in the management of the home farm. For the four following years he was a clerk in a Lynchburg, Virginia, pharmacy, at the expiration of that time enrolling in the law department of the University of Virginia, soon after his graduation being admitted to the bar. He became a practicing lawyer of Lovingston, Virginia, when he was a young man of twenty- seven years, and has there since retained his residence. His practice was general in nature until 1891, when he became commonwealth's attorney of Nelson county, of which office he was the incumbent for fifteen years. In 1901 and 1902 he was a member of the Constitutional convention for his county, and in 1906 was raised to the bench of the Twenty-ninth Judicial Circuit, holding his place thereon to the present time. Judge Gordon is known among his professional brethren as a man of exceptional talent, which his never-failing energy has ably seconded to produce a lawyer and judge perfectly versed in legal lore, an advocate direct and forceful, a judge to whom specious presentation means little unless founded on legal fact. He is a member of the Protestant Episcopal church, and affiliates with the Masonic order.
He married, at Charleston, South Carolina, November 27, 1884, Annie P. Parker, born in that city, daughter of Captain Edward L. Parker, deceased, a captain in the Confederate States army, and his wife, Emma (McCord) Parker.

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Alfred Chambers Ray, M. D. Among the eminent clergymen of the Methodist Episcopal church in Virginia, none were more highly gifted, cultured, or useful then Rev. George Henry Ray, D. D., father of Alfred Chambers Ray, M. D., of Ashland, Virginia. Among the strong men of that church of the people, he was a leading and a striking figure, and when gathered to his fathers he bore with him the loving regard of thousands to whom he had ministered, and left behind him a record of pious devotion to the cause of Christianity that will long endure.
Rev. George Henry Ray, D. D., was born in the District of Columbia, in 1832, and died in Ashland, Virginia, March 18, 1911, son of James Enos Ray. He was highly educated at Randolph-Macon College, Washington and Lee University, later taking advanced courses in divinity and finally becoming an ordained minister of the Methodist Episcopal church, South. His learning, piety, fervid eloquence and devotion led him onward and upward, and as pastor of leading churches in Richmond, Norfolk, Petersburg, Lynchburg, and other cities in Eastern Virginia, he accomplished great results for his Master's cause. He was honored by his alma mater with the degree of Doctor of Divinity, stood high in the councils of his church, and was honored alike by clergy and laity. He married Virginia Chambers Scott, born in Lunenburg county, Virginia, in 1843, and died in Baltimore, in 1904, daughter of Edward Chambers Scott, her mother a Miss Moore. She had sisters, Lucy, Hettie and Hannah Scott. Rev. George Henry Ray had a brother Alfred who entered the Confederate army, serving in a Maryland regiment.
Alfred Chambers Ray, M. D., son of Rev. George Henry and Virginia Chambers (Scott) Ray, was born in Nottoway county, Virginia, August 2, 1874. He spent one year in the public schools of Ashland, Virginia, then in private schools of Petersburg and Ashland finished his preparatory studies. In 1887 he entered Randolph-Macon College from whence he was graduated A. B., class of "93." Then in pursuance of his settled purpose he entered the University College of Medicine at Richmond, Virginia, in 1894, pursuing a full course until he graduated M. D. with the class of "97." He took post-graduate courses at Polytechnic College of Medicine, New York City, in 1898 and 1899, and was interne at New York General Hospital for a time. After completing his years of preparation he chose Botetourt county, Virginia, as a location and there practiced until 1906 when he began general practice in Ashland, Virginia, where he is well established, honored and popular. He is health officer of Ashland and of Hanover county, using his skill to prevent by sanitary precaution the more common scourges that beset public health. He is a member of the Virginia Medical Society, and the Richmond Academy of Medicine, taking deep interest in these societies so valuable to the modern physician. He is physician to his alma mater, Randolph- Macon, Ashland being the seat of that famed institution. Dr. Ray is a Mason, an Odd Fellow, belongs to the Junior Order of American Mechanics; is a communicant of the Methodist Episcopal church, and in political faith is a Democrat.
Dr. Ray married, June 10, 1903, Carrie Lee White, born in Albemarle county, Virginia, June 10, 1880, daughter of George W. and Annie (Weyland) White. Children: Alfred Chambers (2), born July 13, 1904; Virginia Scott, born December 22, 1906; George Henry, born May 15, 1908; Edward Scott, born June 12, 1911; James Enos, born February 11, 1913. All but the eldest were born in Ashland.