Biography of Chambers, Henry Edward Orleans Parish, Louisiana Submitted by Frances Ball Turner December 1997 ********************************************** Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ********************************************** From the History of Louisiana by Chambers, pub. 1925 Vol. III, pg. 85 HENRY EDWARD CHAMBERS, author of the present "History of Louisiana," has for a number of years been regarded as one of the ablest historical and educational authorities in the South. He has long been a student and writer on the history of Louisiana. His text books upon United States history have gone through many editions and have been widely used for more than twenty-five years. He was a fellow in Johns Hopkins University and some of his special studies are monographs published by the Johns Hopkins University Press. Mr. Chambers was born at New Orleans, March 28, 1860, son of Capt. Joseph A. and Maria (Charles) Chambers. His paternal grandfather was Anthony Chambers, who came from New Rose, County Wexford, Ireland, while his paternal grandmother was Nancy Palmer of Connecticut. Mr. Chambers' mother, Maria Charles, was a daughter of Caleb and Sarah Charles of Lovell, Oxford County, Maine, and a lineal descendat of John Charles, first of the name and a pioneer settler of Charlestown, Massachusetts. This John Charles settled at Charlestown, Massachusetts, in 1636 but later joined the White colony when it touched at Charlestown on its way to plant the settlement of New Haven, Connecticut. Descendants of the John Charles were identified with the early history of Brantford, Connecticut, Springfield and Brimfield, Massachusetts. John Charles V., of the name of Brimfield, for his participation as "Minute Man" in the Lexington Alarm; as a soldier of Gate's "Northern Army," that captured Burgoyne at the battle of Saratoga, New York, and in other campaigns of the Revolution, was awarded a tract of land in the district of Maine by the commonwealth of Massachusetts and founded one of the principal branches of the Charles family in America, of which there are many descendants not only in the vicinity of Fryburg, Lovell and other Oxford County Maine, localities, but in many other places throughout the country. Henry Edward Chambers received his primary education in French and German private schools, attended the Boys' High School at New Orleans, and acquired his higher education in Tulane University of Louisiana and Johns Hopkins University of Baltimore. Among his instructors at the last named institution was Woodrow Wilson. A great many of his former students and friends will appreciate a chronological record of his work as a teacher. He taught in Louisiana rural schools from 1877 to 1881; principal of the Mineral Springs, Arkansas, High School in 1881-82; principal of Monticello, Arakansas, of the Male and Female Academy in 1882-83; superintendent of Monticello Graded Schools in 1883-84; superintendent public schools at Beaumont, Texas, 1884-85; principal McDonogh No. 12 School, 1885-87; professor Boys' Central High School at New Orleans, 1887-90, and again from 1896 to 1900, and from 1902 to 1905; while in the meantime he was assistant professor of science in Tulane University from 1890 to 1893; spent the year 1893-94 as postgraduate student and fellow at the Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, and from 1894 to 1896 was principal of the Monroe, Louisiana, High School. He acted as training teacher of the Louisiana State Normal College at Natchitoches and conductor of State Teacher's Institute from 1900 to 1902. Mr. Chambers in 1905 abandoned the teaching profession because of threatened deafness. Entering business, he founded the Chambers Advertising Agency, Inc., of which he was president from 1905 to 1910. Selling his interest in that concern he helped organize the La Valliere Manufacturing Company of which he has been vice president and treasurer since 1912. Mr. Chambers was editor of the Progressive Teacher from 1885 to 1889, editor of the Louisiana School Review, 1893-94; was president of tthe Department of Secondary Education of the National Educational Association of the United States in 1890; president of the Louisiana Education Association, 1892-93; president, New Orleans Teacher's Association, in 1899; superintendent Louisiana State Summer Chautauqua in 1893; director of the Louisiana State Chautauqua ten years; vice president of the Chautauqua Board four years, and its president in 1902. During the Spanish-American war period in 1898 he was sergeant of the First Troop, Louisiana Cavalry, but the war ended before his troop reached the front. Mr. Chambers is a democrat. His only membership in a fraternal organization is in the Sons of the American Revolution. He belongs to the University Club, Louisiana Historical Society, Mississippi Valley Historical Association; American Historical Association, and the New Orleans Chess, Checkers and Whist Club. He has long been a devotee of chess, winning tournament honors on two occasions and winning one out of two games played with Capablanca, the present wold champion during one of the latter's visits to New Orleans. Mr. Chambers is a Presbyterian. He is author of the following published works: Twenty Lessons in Bookkeeping, 1885; A School History of the United States, 1887; A Busy Work Speller, 1888; a Higher History of the United States, 1889; Search Questions in American History, 1890; The constitutional History of Hawaii, 1896, a Johns Hopkins University Press Publicaiton; West Florida and Its Relation to the Historical Cartography of the United States, 1898, also by the Johns Hopkins Press; Louisiana, Past and Present, 1902; the Legend of the God Votan, 1906; the Territory of New Orleans and Modern Louisiana, comprising volumes in the South in the Building of the Nation; Mississippi Valley Beginnings, a notable contribution of the history of the Middle West, published by G.P. Putnam's Sons in 1923; Subjectivity of Certain Economic Concepts, 1904, a Johns Hopkins Press publication. He is also author of two dramas, a number of short stories appearing in magazines, and many essays and articles on historical, economic and scientific subjects. Mr. Chambers married at Jackson, Mississippi, December 27, 1883, Miss Ellen White Taylor, daughter of Capt. John White Taylor, and Ellen Bell Alexander. Both the Taylor and Alexander families were of Scotch-Irish Presbyterian stock. Both her grandfathers were ministers of the Gospel and pioneers in church work in Kentucky. Her father, Capt. J.W. Taylor, was captain of Company I, Bagby's Regiment of Tom Greene's Texas Brigade of the Confederate Army, that rendered such conspicuous service against General Banks, whose famous "Red River" campaign ended in that Federal General's defeat at the battle of Mansfield, Louisiana. Prior to that Captain Taylor had been an officer in the famous Sibley expedition into New Mexico at the beginning of the Civil war, participating in the Battles of Val Verde, Peralta and Glorietta. He lost his life in the battle at Irish Bend near Franklin, Louisiana, in 1863, under most heroic circumstances. Mr. and Mrs. Chambers have two sons: John Taylor Chambers and Maj. Henry E. Chambers, Jr. John Taylor Chambers married Marion Monroe, daughter of Chief Justice Frank Adair Monroe of Louisiana. Maj. Henry E. Chambers, Jr. married Fanita McMillan of San Antonio, Texas, a descendant of pioneers of Texas, including the Howard, Trueheart and McMillan families. Respectfully submitted, Frances (Ball) Turner Vancouver, WA