BIOGRAPHY, Rockbridge County, VA- "M" ********************************************************************** USGENWEB NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. ********************************************************************** MAURY-- Matthew Fontaine Maury, one of the foremost scientific men of the nineteenth century, was born in Spottsylvania county in 1806. At the age of nineteen, and as a midshipman, he began a voyage that extended around the world. In 1834 he was given charge of the National Observatory at the city of Washington, and the present Weather Bureau grew out of his suggestions. His knowledge of things maritime was so profound as to give him the title of "Pathfinder of the Seas." He instituted deep sea soundings, pointed out to Cyrus W. Field where an ocean cable should be laid, and wrote a standard work on physical geography. Offers of knighthood by the British government were refused, and he declined invitations to Russia and France. The last named country offered him the superintendency of the National Observatory at Paris. During the war of 1861 he supervised coast defenses for the Confederate government. After the surrender of Lee he went to Mexico, where he had a seat in the cabinet of the Emperor Maximilian, and he introduced the plant from which quinine is derived. From Mexico he went to England, where he was given the degree of Doctor of Laws by the University of Cambridge. In 1868 he was recalled to his native land, and he settled at Lexington as professor of meteorology in Washington College. After five years of usefulness in this final position, he died at the age of sixty-seven. By his special request his remains were afterward taken to Richmond for re-interment, and by way of Goshen pass during the rhododendron season. For this beautiful watergap he had a particular admiration. The will of Commodore Maury is noteworthy for its Christian spirit and for the way in which it distributes among his children the many medals he received from the governments of Europe. Source: A History of Rockbridge County, Virginia by Oren F. Morton, published in 1920. Transcribed and submitted by: "Marilyn B. Headley" , 1997 ************************************************************************************** WILLIAM MILLER - son of John and Anna (Leech) Miller, was born in Rockbridge county, on the 25th of May, 1828. He entered upon the marriage state in this county, in April, 1857, Nancy A. McCown becomming his wife. She was born in Rockbridge county, July 28, 1831, and James J. and Polly B. (Sprow) McCown were her parents. William Miller owns 226 acres of land on Kerrs creek, about one mile from Denmark P. O., where he receives his mail. Source: Hardesty's Historical and Geographical Encyclopedia (NY, Richmond, and Toledo: H. H. Hardesty and Company Publishers, 1884). p. 411-412. Transcribed and submitted by: Valerie F. Crook" , 1997 ************************************************************************************** FREDERICK MOHLER - a son of John and Elizabeth (Amic) Mohler, was born in Rockbridge county, December 30, 1828. In this county, June 17, 1851, he married Catherine R. Shelton, who was born in Augusta county, Virginia, June 2, 1827, and died in this county April 1, 1883. Their children were two sons and one daughter. John H. was born April 27, 1852, and was fatally injured in the great railroad disaster at Bellville, Illinois, March 27, 1884, and survived only about six hours; James W. was born March 15, 1864, and lives with his father. Sarah E., the daughter, was born August 25, 1855, and died August 8, 1862. The father of Frederick Mohler, born February 20, 1789, died July 2, 1881, and his mother, whose birth was in 1779, departed this life January 31, 1867. On the 24th of January, 1884, Frederick Mohler was united in wedlock with Elizabeth M. Horn. Her mother, whose maiden name was Ann Eliza Brown, is deceased, and her father, John Horn, resides in this county. Frederick Mohler is one of the largest land holders of the county, having 442 acres on North river, near Rockbridge Baths, and 435 acres on the Shenandoah Valley R. R. He has all his life been a farmer. His postoffice address is Rockbridge Baths, Rockbridge county, Virginia. Source: Hardesty's Historical and Geographical Encyclopedia (NY, Richmond, and Toledo: H. H. Hardesty and Company Publishers, 1884). p. 411-412. Transcribed and submitted by: Valerie F. Crook" 1997 ************************************************************************************** JOHN W. MOHLER - son of John and Nancy A. (Snider) Mohler, was born in Rockbridge county, near Rockbridge Baths, on the 31st of December, 1844. He owns a farm near the place of his birth, which he is conducting. Through the war between the States, he served under brave "Stonewall Jackson", and he continued in the same service after that General's death, Company D, 27th Virginia Infantry. In the course of the war he took part with his regiment in many hard-fought battles, the most important being Port Republic, Winchester, McDowell, Kernstown, and Cross Keys. In Rockbridge county, February 28, 1867, John W. Mohler married Margaret A, Montgomery, who was born in this county, June 11, 1841, a daughter of James H. and Julia E. (Hull) Montgomery. Mr. and Mrs. Mohler are the parents of: Hugh M., born Novemeber 13, 1868; Charley C., February 1, 1870; Lula May, December 5, 1871; Leanna, April 8, 1874; Frank W., August 18, 1876; David O., August 1, 1878; James W., May 21, 1881. The post office address of John W. Mohler is Rockbridge Baths, Rockbridge county, Virginia. Source: Hardesty's Historical and Geographical Encyclopedia (NY, Richmond, and Toledo: H. H. Hardesty and Company Publishers, 1884). p. 411-412. Transcribed and submitted by: Valerie F. Crook" 1997 ************************************************************************************** MONTGOMERY-- Humphrey Montgomery, who settled on Buffalo Creek, was a son of Humphrey Montgomery, of Pennsylvania, and served under Captain Samuel Lapsley in 1777-79. Source: A History of Rockbridge County, Virginia by Oren F. Morton, published in 1920. Transcribed and submitted by: "Marilyn B. Headley" , 1997 ************************************************************************************** MOORE-- Andrew Moore, a son of David, was born at "Cannicello," in this county in 1752. In his youth he was shipwrecked while on a voyage to the West Indies. In consequence, he and several companions were marooned several weeks on an island, doubtless one of the Bahamas, and the lizards on which they subsisted must have been iguanas. This vegetable-eating reptile is considered a great delicacy. He was admitted to the bar in 1774 and was a very successful lawyer. In 1776 he was commissioned a lieutenant, and enlisted 100 men, securing nineteen at a single log-rolling. During the next three years he was a captain of riflemen under Daniel Morgan. In 1779 he resigned and from 1781 to 1789 was in the state legislature. In 1788 he was a member of the state legislature. In 1788 he was a member of the state convention that ratified the Federal Constitution. Ratification had been made a distinct issue in the campaign which resulted in sending Andrew Moore and William McKee to the Convention. But Patrick Henry wielded a great influence in that body, and because of his opposition, a large public meeting at Lexington instructed the delegates to vote against ratification. Both Moore and McKee decided that they were justified in disregarding these instructions and voted accordingly. A change of only five votes would have defeated ratification. Moore was re-elected when he again ran for office. He was defeated only once in twenty-nine candidacies, and then only by one vote. Throughout Washington's administration he was in the House of Representatives. After again returning to the General Assembly, he was once more a Congressman and then a member of the Federal Senate. In 1809 he was commissioned a major-general, and the next year was appointed a United States Marshall, holding this office until 1821, the year of his death. His wife was Sally, a daughter of Andrew Reid. Samuel McDowell Moore, a son of General Andrew Moore, was born in 1796 and died in 1875. He was a man of powerful build, strongly marked countenance, and commanding force. He thought and acted for himself, called a spade a spade, and was not a person to be improperly interfered with. In any arena he was a dangerous antagonist. He was a leader in the Rockbridge bar and was a Congressman in 1833-35. Mr. Moore was a Whig in politics, of anti-slavery feeling, and in the state convention of 1861 he vigorously combated the arguments of the secession leaders. He was married to Evalina, a daughter of Andrew Alexander. His only child was a daughter, who married John H. Moore. William, the elder brother of General Andrew Moore, married Nancy McClung and lived near Fairfield. He was a merchant, and sheriff, and had a furnace on South River. His children were Samuel, David, John, Eliab, Jane, Isabella, Elizabeth and Nancy. William Moore was a man of most unusual physical strength. In the battle of Point Pleasant, John Steele was wounded and about to be scalped. Moore shot the Indian, knocked another down with his gun, and although Steele was heavy, he took him up and bore him to a place of safety. Perhaps this feat undermined Moore's constitution, for he only reached the age of about ninety-three years. Source: A History of Rockbridge County, Virginia by Oren F. Morton, published in 1920. Transcribed and submitted by: "Marilyn B. Headley" , 1997 ************************************************************************************** DAVID EVANS MOORE - was born in Lexington, Rockbridge county, August 5, 1840, a son of David E. and Elizabeth M. (Harvey) Moore. His father was born near Lexington, in 1798, and his mother was born in Botetourt county, Virginia, November 30, 1810, and made her home in Rockbridge county, at her marriage. His father was an honored resident of Rockbridge county until his decease, January 30, 1875, and his mother still lives here. The paternal ancestors of David Evans Moore were among the earliest settlers of Rockbridge county, and the family one of the most eminent of the Shenandoah valley. His grandfather, General Andrew Moore, was a participent in the battle of Point Pleasant, October 10, 1774, and served with rank of captain in General Morgan's Rifle Regiment during the Revolution; was a member of the Virginia Convention of 1789 which ratified the Federal Constitution; represented the Shenandoah Valley District in the United States Congress convened in New York in 1790, and, later, represented Virginia in the United States Senate- the only man ever elected from a county west of the "Blue Ridge" to represent the "Old Dominion" in that body. David E., father of the subject of this sketch, was born at the seat of his honored father, General Moore, near Lexington, was reared and educated in the county, and for half a century was one of the most active citizens, often placed in positions of honor and trust which he ever ably filled. He was for many years connected with the Virginia Military Institute, several years represented Rockbridge county in the General Assembly, and was one of that eminent body of statesmen who made up the Constitutional Convention of 1850-1. By the amended constitution the office of the commonwealth attorney was made elective- and under it he was the first chosen to fill the office. He was a trustee of Washington and Lee University for more than thirty years, and a representative member of the Franklin Society of Lexington. It is worthy of record that some representative of the family has been a member of every Constitutional Convention of the commonwealth since it entered upon its existence as a sovereign State. The grandfather of Daniel Evans was a member of that of 1789, his father that of 1850-1, his uncle Samuel McD., that of 1829-30, and again of the Convention of 1861 which passed the ordinance of secession. Matthew Harvey, maternal grandfather of Daniel Evans Moore, was a gallant soldier of "Light-Horse Harry Lee's Legion" of the Revolution. David Evans Moore entered the Confederate States service in April, 1861. He was teaching at Montgomery, Alabama, at the outbreak of hostilities, and hastened to his native State to defend her soil and sovereignty. He enlisted as a private in the 1st Rockbridge Artillery, was corporal and gunner some time; and upon re-organization in April, 1862, was made sergeant, with which rank he served till the close of the war, receiving parole at Appomattox C. H. He was appointed commonwealth attorney, in 1875, at the death of his father, to serve out his term, and by sucessive elections has continued in the officeto the present time. Postoffice address, Lexington, Rockbridge county, Virginia. Source: Hardesty's Historical and Geographical Encyclopedia (NY, Richmond, and Toledo: H. H. Hardesty and Company Publishers, 1884). p. 411-412. Transcribed and submitted by: Valerie F. Crook" 1997 ************************************************************************************** DAVID H. MOORE- born in Rockbridge county, Virginia, March 8, 1840, was a son of James C. and Ellen R. (Moffatt) Moore, natives of this county. They had six sons, all of whom served the cause of Virginia in the war between the States. These sons were: David H., Robert, Benjamin F., John, Horace C., and Samuel R. Moore. Robert was wounded, and died from his wound; Samuel was wounded at Sharpsburg, Maryland, and died at Winchester, Virginia; Horace was taken prisoner, and died at Fort Delaware; John died from wounds; the others returned home. The subject of this sketch was severely wounded at Cedar Mountain. He is now a farmer living about one mile from Lexington, having five bright children it is his delight to educate. His wife is Virginia A., daughter of James and Mary C. (Moore) Holden, natives of this county, and she was born here May 14, 1844. Their marriage was solemnized January 28, 1868, in Rockbridge county, and their children were born: Mary E., April 24, 1869; Horace R., June 14, 1871; Maggie M., August 30, 1874; Lily V., July 8, 1877; Davis Hiram, June 28, 1883. David H. Moore's postoffice address is Lexington, Rockbridge county, Virginia. Source: Hardesty's Historical and Geographical Encyclopedia (NY, Richmond, and Toledo: H. H. Hardesty and Company Publishers, 1884). p. 411-412. Transcribed and submitted by: Valerie F. Crook" 1997 ************************************************************************************** JOHN C. MOORE- is one of the substantial land-owners of Rockbridge county, farming in Walkers Creek district. He was born in this county, March 31, 1850, a son of John N. and Christian J. (Carson) Moore. His wife is Ellabel B., daughter of James E. A. and Catherine Gibbs, and they have one child, Edward Guy Moore, born April 21, 1883. Ellabel B. Gibbs was born in Pocahontas county, (then) Virginia, October 9, 1859, and the fortunes of war caused her father to remove to Rockbridge county in 1861. An interesting sketch of his life is given on another page of this volume. The marriage of John C. Moore and Ellabel B. Gibbs was solemnized at Raphine, Virginia, November 11, 1879. His postoffice address is Brownsburg, Rockbridge county, Virginia. Source: Hardesty's Historical and Geographical Encyclopedia (NY, Richmond, and Toledo: H. H. Hardesty and Company Publishers, 1884). p. 411-412. Transcribed and submitted by: Valerie F. Crook" ************************************************************************************** SAMUEL H. MOORE-farmer and vegetable gardener of South River district, took up his residence in Rockbridge county in April, 1866. He was born in Rockingham county, Virginia, March 28, 1845, and on the 2d of April, 1862, he enlisted as a private in Company B, 7th Virginia Cavalry. After one year's service he was discharged by the Confederate congress, being under eighteen years old, but in the same year and month, April, 1863, he re-enlisted, joining Captain McNeal's Independent Rangers. He was taken prisoner, January 3, 1864, at Burlington, West Virginia, and sent to Camp Chase, Ohio; held there one month and then transferred to Fort Delaware, where he was held till the close of the war. In Rockbridge county, April 20, 1869, Sophia F. Yount became his wife, and Graham Y. L., their son and only child, was born September 16, 1877. The wife of Mr. Moore was born in Rockingham county, Virginia, July 18, 1842, and in March, 1851, her parents, Joseph and Elizabeth (Branner) Yount, came to Rockbridge county. Both died in 1863, her father on the 18th of January, aged seventy-three, and her mother on the 30th of June, aged sixty-three. George W. Moore, father of Samuel H., died November 1, 1860, aged forty-five, and his mother, whose maiden name was Mary Showalter, died in May, 1853, aged forty-two years. Samuel H. Moore's postoffice address is Riverside, Rockbridge county, Virginia. Source: Hardesty's Historical and Geographical Encyclopedia (NY, Richmond, and Toledo: H. H. Hardesty and Company Publishers, 1884). p. 411-412. Transcribed and submitted by: Valerie F. Crook" 1997 ************************************************************************************** MORRISON-- James D. Morrison, a son of William, was a graduate of Washington College, and in the civil war was a captain in the 58th Virginia Infantry. He was sent to the Assembly in 1872, and five years later he founded the "Rockbridge Citizen". He died in 1902, aged about seventy years. Captain Morrison married Laura Chapin, and his children were William, Kenneth, and Irene. Source: A History of Rockbridge County, Virginia by Oren F. Morton, published in 1920. Transcribed and submitted by: "Marilyn B. Headley" , 1997 ************************************************************************************** SAMUEL BROWN MORRISON, M. D. - was a son of James and Fannie (Brown) Morrison, who made the home of their married life in Rockbridge county, Virginia, about 1818. He was born near Brownsburg, in this county, September 13, 1828. His paternal ancestors were from Cabarrus county, North Carolina, and his mother's family were Virginians, from Bedford county. His great-grandfather's family were all destroyed by the Indians except for his grandmother, Mary Moore, and her brother James, who were captured and taken to Canada, and held there five years. For a further history of Dr. Morrison's mother's family, see "Captives of Abbs Valley", a little book written by his uncle, to be found at the Presbyterian Publishing House, Richmond. In the war between the States Samuel B. Morrison, with his two brothers, were in the Confederate service. The subject of this sketch enlisted in the 17th Virginia Cavalry, and after two months service was commissioned surgeon of the 58th Virginia, with which he remained fifteen months, when he was made chief surgeon of General Ewll's Division. His brother, Henry Rutherford Morrison, was killed in the battle of Spotsylvania C. H. He had been commissioned lieutenant for volunteering to enter the city of Chambersburg in advance of McCausland's command, and was only eighteen years of age. The wife of Dr. Morrison is Mary E., daughter of William and Mary (Steele) Gold. She was born at Brownsburg, July 22, 1835, and they were married in Augusta county, Virginia, near Newport, October 19, 1854. Their children were born: Mary Moore, August 1, 1855; Emma Gold, June 21, 1857; Fannie Brown, August 4, 1859; Nannie Jane, March 27, 1862; Henry Rutherford, March 28, 1865; Harriet Newell, May 3, 1867; William Gold, April 8, 1869; Bettie Walker, May 29, 1871; Samuel Brown, August 13, 1876. Mary lives in this county, Emma in Franklin county, this State, and the others at home. Dr. Morrison is widely engaged in the practice of his profession, and is proprietor of the renowned sanitarium of this county. Postoffice address, Rockbridge Baths, Rockbridge county, Virginia. Source: Hardesty's Historical and Geographical Encyclopedia (NY, Richmond, and Toledo: H. H. Hardesty and Company Publishers, 1884). p. 411-412. Transcribed and submitted by: Valerie F. Crook" 1997 ************************************************************************************** JOHN L. MORTER- one of the farming residents of Rockbridge county, was born in this county, on the 30th of November, 1843. For two years he was in the civil war, a member of a Rockbridge county cavalry company for a few months, and afterward in Company I, 11th Virginia Cavalry. He has served one year in his district in the pffice of constanble. He is a son of David and Mary J. (Davis) Morter, and he married Carrie A., daughter of William B. and Caroline (Echard) Dixon. She was born in Rockbridge county, February 4, 1855, and here they were married, on the 21st of May, 1872. Their children are two daughters and two sons; Mary C., born April 6, 1873; Anna V., December 1, 1874; Lewis B., January 16, 1877; Charles D., August 27, 1881. John L. Morter's postoffice address is Rockbridge Baths, Rockbridge county, Virginia. Source: Hardesty's Historical and Geographical Encyclopedia (NY, Richmond, and Toledo: H. H. Hardesty and Company Publishers, 1884). p. 411-412. Transcribed and submitted by: Valerie F. Crook" 1997 ************************************************************************************** THOMAS BRADLEY MULLEN- is a native of the "Keystone State," born in Franklin county, Pennsylvania, September 15, 1839. In 1847 he accompanied his parents, William and Jane (Gorman) Mullen, to Rockbridge county. Here his father died at the age of sixty-two years. Thomas B. Mullen and his brothers, William, James B., and John L., were soldiers of the South in the war between the States. James B. was severely wounded in the battle of Kernstown, March 21, 1862; William was mortally wounded in the battle of Seven Pines, and John L. died of wounds received at Gettysburg in 1863. The subject of this sketch served through the war, and was a participant in the battles of Falling Waters- the first fought in Virginia, first Manassas, Cross Keys, Antietam, second Manassas, Chancellorsville, the Wilderness, Spotsylvania, and the other minor engagements. He was a member of the "Rockbridge Rifles", Company H, 27th Virginia Infantry, Jackson's Brigade. In Rockbridge county, August 4, 1874, Thomas Bradley Mullen and Mary Elizabeth Sheridan were united in marriage, and their daughter, Mary Christena, was born July 7, 1875. Four years later, August 1, 1879, another daughter was born to them, whom they named Catharine Jane. The wife of Mr. Mullen was born at Staunton, Augusta county, January 19, 1854. She was a daughter of Dennis and Mary (Caffery) Sheridan, and came with her father to Rockbridge county in 1862. He died in 1872, at the age of about sixty-three. The subject of this sketch is the man who, without any artillery drill, charged a cannon and fired upon a brigade of Federal soldiers in first Manassas battle, causing their retreat. (See Pollard's History of the Lost Cause.) He owns a foundry and machine shop, dwelling house and lots, in Lexington, where he resides and carries on business. Source: Hardesty's Historical and Geographical Encyclopedia (NY, Richmond, and Toledo: H. H. Hardesty and Company Publishers, 1884). p. 411-412. Transcribed and submitted by: Valerie F. Crook" 1997 ************************************************************************************** JAMES B. MUSE- son of William and Frances (Blackerby) Muse, was born in Roanoke county, Virginia, November 11, 1824. His father was born in Roanoke county and his mother in Northumberland county, Virginia. They both died in Roanoke county shortly after the war. In Albemarle county, Virgnia, September 8, 1876, he married Mary E. Hartman, who was born in that county, September 14, 1850. Their daughter, Eva Grove, was born November 7, 1877, and their son, Hubert Tyler Hartman, was born August 13, 1879. Henry T. and Mary Anne (McClung) Hartman are the parents of Mary E., wife of James B. Muse. He served in the 4th Alabama Infantry in the civil war, and his brother, Joseph M., was in the same regiment in the first year of war. Afterward Joseph M. served in the "Roanoke Greys", and was three times wounded, the last time mortally. He was wounded in the first and second Manassas battles, and then at Sharpsburg, Maryland, from which wound he died at Jordans Spring, Virginia. James B. Muse came to this county in 1882, and owns about 140 acres of land, and has one of the largest and finest fruit orchards in the State. He is also a successful stock-raiser. His farm lies on Timber Ridge, within nine miles of Lexington, three miles from the S. V. R. R., and one and a half miles from the Valley R. R. His postoffice address is Fairfield, Rockbridge county, Virginia. Source: Hardesty's Historical and Geographical Encyclopedia (NY, Richmond, and Toledo: H. H. Hardesty and Company Publishers, 1884). p. 411-412. Transcribed and submitted by: Valerie F. Crook" 1997 **************************************************************************************