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James Schoolcraft Sherman - All the way around the block

Published in SOY Newsletter, September 2000 with three photos
(Additional photo of Toni holding the linen piece printed in December 2000)
By Art Cohan

On the 21st of June 2000, I received an email from SOY member Jean Friedman. She wrote: "I attended a Valley Quilters Guild meeting yesterday and we had a speaker regarding "red work". She has collected lots of quilts and quilt blocks from various areas in the country. She had a block that had various signatures embroidered on it." Jean went on to describe the piece of linen, that had the signature "Hon. J. Sherman" large across the middle on it. She said that someone had told the speaker that it was the signature of John Sherman; Senator brother of Gen. W.T. Jean was writing me, because she suspected that Toni's info was wrong..

After several emails back and forth, and an introduction to the RedWork Lady (Toni Baumgard), I suspected that it was not the signature of the good Senator (date and place wrong). At first I thought it might be the signature of the grandfather of John H. Sherman (author of the "Sherman Directories"). Once I saw the photo and saw that it was "James" (not John), I realized it was the signature of James Schoolcraft SHERMAN (JSS), Vice President under President William Taft.

I visited Toni's website to learn a little about her, and-at the same time-was in email contact with SOY member Deborah Williams about an article she was planning about JSS. From that point, we worked together to learn more, and Deb's fine article came to fruition, as this one about the linen has.

The printing around the edges of the linen piece, identifies it as 22 Feb 1906, North Brookfield. This small town lies in Madison Co., NY - just a few miles south of Utica (home of JSS) in Oneida Co., NY. The date, being George Washington's birthday, probably indicates a political gathering of some sort.

I phoned the local Historical Society, and Gwen Whitter was kind enough to search all the local newspapers, for several weeks on either side of that date, with nothing found. Apparently it was a private affair. Then, to confirm the location, I ordered the 1910 census film, which includes North Brookfield-and was able to identify many of the names on the linen piece.

Toni kindly scanned the linen for SOY, and then sent a photo of herself holding the piece. It was given to her by an elderly friend in 1999, who had found it in a garage or estate sale.

She writes, "If you look closely at the pictures of the Sherman Linen, you will see that the autograph was embroidered over the ink with cotton Turkey Red Thread. The ink may have been permanent, but the stitches are so tight and close, I cannot see any ink remaining.

Autographed pieces done in Redwork were immensely popular in the first part of the 1900s and fortunately for us the dye was basically color fast and the Turkey Red Thread was very strong and has endured almost 100 years. Had it not been embroidered over, this piece may not have survived."

The history of Redwork begins with the Turkey Red Dye which was used to dye thread for Turkish Carpets.  The Dye was made from the Madder Plant, Oil, and other secret ingredients.

The dye eventually made its way to Europe where it was used to dye cotton thread.  The Turkey Red Thread was popular because it was color fast and would hold up well under repeated washing and laying out in the sun. It was used primarily for embroidery on linens.

When the German speaking immigrants came to our country and settled in Pennsylvania and Ohio,  they brought their love of Redwork with them and their use of the thread resulted in it being imported from Europe.

By the late l800s and early 1900s Turkey Redwork Embroidery had spread ethnically and geographically in America and was very popular.  By that time it was being used in summer coverlets and spreads as well as linens.  Patterns transferred to muslin squares could be obtained for one cent at the dry goods store and catalogs,  resulting in the term " Penny Squares."  Many patterns were hand drawn or traced from magazines and newspapers.  Later, many patterns appeared in catalogs and could be ordered.

The popularity of Redwork was on the wane by the 1920s as cotton embroidery thread became readily available in other colors.

Redwork, an almost forgotten part of our quilting and needlework history, is now enjoying a revival!

Reprinted by permission. Copyright, 1999, Toni Baumgard, The Redwork Lady

Toni Lives in Roseville, CA with her husband Charles and four rescued cats. She is a teacher, lecturer and author; mostly about Redwork.

The twenty-seventh Vice President of the United States was James Schoolcraft SHERMAN. He was an effective Vice President serving under William Howard TAFT during a period that saw growing divisions in the Republican Party ranks during the early 20^th century’s Progressive Era.

James Schoolcraft SHERMAN, also known as "Sunny Jim" for his affable disposition, was born to a prominent family from Utica, Oneida Co., New York on October 24, 1855. Descended from the Hon. Philip SHEARMAN and Sarah ODDING of Portsmouth, Rhode Island on both his father and mother’s side, SHERMAN came by his civic duty honestly. (His father’s lineage is as follows: Richard Updike, Willet H., Robert, Jonathan, Jonathan, Benjamin, Hon. Philip SHEARMAN.)

His father, Richard Updike SHERMAN (1819-1895) was a newspaper editor and holder of several appointive offices in the state government. Known as General Sherman, he undoubtedly influenced his son’s pursuit of a career into public service. Some of the positions held by him were Brigadier General in the New York militia and various city offices from 1841 through 1857. He was elected clerk of the New York State Assembly from 1851 to 1857 and served as an Assemblyman for the first Oneida County District, 1857 and 1875-1876. He was an assistant clerk of the U.S. House of Representatives 1859-1870 and for eleven years, 1879-1890, was the secretary of the New York State Fish and Game Commission. In this capacity he rendered the state great service in restocking the lakes of the Adirondack region with desirable fish and protected the forests from unscrupulous lumber dealers and others.

On January 13, 1845, Richard married a very distant relative, Mary Frances (nee) SHERMAN. {(Her lineage is: Richard W. SHERMAN, Jahaziel, Prince*, Jabez, Philip, John, Hon. Philip SHEARMAN.) Mary Frances was also descended from Pilgrims John HOWLAND and Elizabeth TILLY.**} Richard and Mary had six children: Richard W., a civil engineer and twice the mayor of Utica; Stalham W., who died in 1894; Mary Louise, wife of Henry J. COOKINHAM and law partner of James; James S., vice president of the United States; Sanford F., president of the New Hartford Canning Company; Willet H., who died in New Hartford in 1868 at age six.

James attended the Utica public schools and prepared for college at Whitestown seminary. He pursued a collegiate education at Hamilton College in Clinton, New York where he received his bachelor’s degree. SHERMAN was not a brilliant student, but he was a distinguished debater according to his professors and peers.

In 1878, James began his study of the law in the office of Beardsley, Cookinham & Burdick and was admitted to the bar in 1880. He practiced law in Utica becoming a partner in his brother-in-law’s firm: Cookinham, Gibson and Sherman. SHERMAN remained there as a business adviser until 1907. Besides being an attorney, James also worked as a businessman and financial advisor using his talents as president of the Utica Trust & Deposit Co and taking control of the New Hartford Canning Co., which he had inherited, from his father.

On January 26, 1881, in East Orange, New Jersey, James was married to Carrie BABCOCK, daughter of Lewis Hamilton BABCOCK, a prominent attorney, and Ellen SHERRILL. Carrie and James had attended school together in Utica and had known each other since childhood. They had three children, Sherrill B., born in 1883; Richard U., born in 1884; and Thomas N., born in 1886. During her husband’s vice-presidency, Carrie founded the Congressional Club for Senators and Representatives wives. When in Utica, they resided in a home on Genesee Street and attended the Dutch Reformed Church where he was president of the trustees and church treasurer.

Shortly after his marriage, SHERMAN became active within the Republican Party against the advice of his father who was a Democrat. His first political victory came in 1884 when at the age of 29 he became the youngest mayor of Utica receiving a substantial majority in a heavily Democratic city. Although he made no outstanding achievements as mayor, James declined the nomination for a second term having set his sights on Washington. He was able to work his way into position for the Republican nomination for Congress in 1886, and defeated his opponent, Thomas J. SPRIGGS, a two-time incumbent.

Thus began a long and successful career into national politics. He was elected to 10 terms in the U.S. House of Representatives (1887-9I and 1893-1909) and in 1895, ran for Speaker of the House but the position went to David HENDERSON of Iowa. SHERMAN then debated whether or not to run for the Senate, but soon decided against it. Instead he further enhanced his reputation by serving as chairman of the Republican State conventions in Saratoga in 1895, 1900, and 1905.

While a member of the House of Representatives, James allied himself with the conservative Republican leadership and gained a reputation for being a skillful parliamentarian. He was chairman of the Committee of the Whole during important debates such as the Dingley tariff and the Cuban war revenue bills. During those times, the Speaker would entrust the gavel to no one else as his firmness and dignity made him the best presiding officer in the House. He was a member of the Committee on Interstate and Foreign Commerce, and was appointed chairman of the Committee on Indian Affairs a post that he held for 12 years. Other committees on which he served were the judiciary, civil service, and the census.

He is associated with little important legislation, as he preferred to give his attention to parliamentary management. However, he did introduce the false-branding bill that protected American manufacturers of cheese. He presented a committee report in 1896 strongly advocating government aid in the construction of an interoceanic canal in Nicaragua. He proposed numerous measures to ameliorate the condition of the Indians and he co-sponsored bills to construct a cable to the Philippines.

James did not run for an eleventh term in Congress. In 1908, after Theodore ROOSEVELT had dictated TAFT’S nomination for the presidency, congressional leaders agreed upon SHERMAN for the vice-presidency to balance the ticket. Speaker CANNON spoke for him at the convention and he was nominated on the first ballot. Their Democratic Party opponents were William Jennings BRYAN and progressive Indiana state legislator, John W. KERN.

During the Presidential campaign, the vigorous orator BRYAN was unable to make any headway in the campaign against the easygoing TAFT even though insinuations of wrongdoing had been leveled against SHERMAN. It was purported that SHERMAN had diverted congressional campaign funds in 1906 to secure his own reelection and that he was interested in dummy corporations to exploit Indian oil lands, but he ignored these insinuations. Despite these allegations, TAFT and SHERMAN easily won 321 electoral votes to BRYAN and KERN’s 162.

After TAFT and SHERMAN’s victory in 1908, they began to lose support with the Republican Party Progressives as early as 1909. The Progressives felt that TAFT was too cautious and had undermined the momentum towards reform that ROOSEVELT had begun. By the election of 1912, the Republican Party was split wide open, with the "old guard" on one side and the Progressives on the other. Theodore ROOSEVELT had himself become very dissatisfied with the leadership of the TAFT and SHERMAN administration and decided to make a bid for the Presidency once again.

Since TAFT and SHERMAN had secured the Republican nomination for reelection, TR was forced to form his own political party: The Bull Moose Party. This decision split the Republican vote, thus paving the way for a Democratic Party victory. The incumbents, TAFT and SHERMAN, came in third in the election losing to Woodrow WILSON.

But James S. SHERMAN never knew the outcome. His health had been deteriorating for some months and on October 30, 1912,at age 57, less than a week before the election, Sunny Jim died of heart disease at his home in Utica. (Some sources claim it was Bright’s disease.)

His death created a unique situation in American politics. As it was too late to replace him on the ballot, more than 3 million people voted for him! In the end, SHERMAN’s eight electoral votes were cast for Columbia University President Nicholas Murray BUTLER.

James Schoolcraft SHERMAN and his wife, Carrie, are interred in the Forest Hills Cemetery in Utica.
 

• Prince SHERMAN m. Sarah SHERMAN, thus making James’ mother a dual SHERMAN. Sarah SHERMAN’S lineage is: Jonathan, Joshua, John, Hon. Philip.

• Abridged Compendium, Frederick Virkus, p. 2934
• Biographical Directory of the American Congress, 1774-1949, Biographies.
• Cheater.com, http://www.cheater.com/homework/Homework/S…/24797977.html, 07/31/2000
• Dictionary of American Biographies, Chas. Scribner and Sons, 1935.
• Genealogical Library Master Catalog. New York State Library, Albany, NY.
• History of Oneida County New York, from 1700 to the Present Time, Vol.I, by Henry J. Cookinham, Chicago: The S.J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1912.
• Robert W. Cherny, "Sherman, James Schoolcraft." Discovery Channel School, original content provided by World Book Online, http://www.discoveryschool.com/students/homeworkhelp/worldbook/atozhistory/s/506600.html, 07/31/2000.
• "Sherman, James Schoolcraft," Microsoft ® Encarta ® 98 Encyclopedia © 1993-1997 Microsoft Corporation.

Dick Cookenham sent the following article to me. I believe The Observer-Dispatch and Daily Press in Utica, New York originally published it. No date or author was given.

A cold November wind swept along LaFayette Street, across the Busy Corner, and over Bleecker Street. The rain of the night before had stopped, but black clouds still hung over the city.

Downtown Utica, normally bustling with activity on a Saturday afternoon, was strangely quiet. Shops were closed. Many windows were draped with black.

At 2 p.m. the city’s trolley cars, no matter where they were, stopped for five minutes. Some of the passengers bowed their heads and said a silent prayer.

A city doesn’t stop when one of its people dies. No matter how important, no matter how respected, admired or loved the person might be, the city keeps going. But, in Utica, on Nov. 2, 1912, the city hesitated a bit.

Utica’s leading citizen, the vice president of the United States, James S. Sherman was dead.

Sherman, 57, former Utica mayor and congressman, had died four days earlier in his home on Genesee Street, near Clinton Place. Sherman had heart disease and his health had been deteriorating for months. Once a common sight walking downtown, chatting with old friends, shaking hands with new friends, Sunny Jim, an appropriate nickname, spent the final months of his life confined to his home and his final days confined to his bed. On Oct. 30, Sherman went into a coma. He died at 9:42 p.m.

Moments later, bells at City Hall, First Presbyterian, Grace, and St. John’s churches tolled.

A band playing in the Hotel Utica ballroom stopped its dance music, played "Nearer My God, To Thee," packed its instruments and went home. The city was going into mourning.

On Nov. 1, a Friday, Sherman’s body was brought to the Oneida County Courthouse. An escort of some 1,000 friends and admirers headed by Thomas R. Proctor, one of the city’s most prominent citizens, walked down Genesee to the courthouse. People on the street stopped as the procession passed. The long sad line included a detachment of Utica policemen, city officials, members of the Elks Lodge, a group of Civil War veterans, the Utica Boosters Club, and the Republican Club, to which Sherman belonged for many years.

Sherman’s mahogany casket trimmed with silver, was placed on a catafalque, draped with American flags and black streamers, in the courthouse rotunda. On the casket were wreaths of roses, carnations, and orchids. The body lay in state for about six hours.

There was a spontaneous outburst of esteem and love. More than 25,000 Utica area people paid their last respects. Many cried.

A Utica policeman, Timothy McCarthy, was one of the first in line. McCarthy stood before the coffin and remembered his days as the vice president’s bodyguard. Some 200 members of the Utica Council, Knights of Columbus passed by the casket later that night. Many of them had been in Washington, D.C. a few months earlier and remembered the warm reception given to them by the vice president.

And then it was Saturday and the time for Sherman’s funeral. It was attended by some of the most prominent people in the United States. Numerous U.S. Senators, congressmen and state governors attended as did U.S Supreme Court Justice Charles Evans Hughes and Mahlon H. Pitney. The biggest name was last to arrive----William Howard Taft, the president of the United States.

Taft got to Utica at 1:30, just 30 minutes before the funeral. The train depot was crowded with Uticans hoping to catch a glimpse of the president. Scores of photographers, amateur and professional, had hoped the same thing. But Taft was in no mood for pictures. Taft, two aides, and a Secret Service agent hurried to a Pierce Arrow touring car. He said nothing to the crowd. Taft was in the middle of his re-election campaign, but he was in Utica to say goodbye to his friend and running mate, not to campaign.

Meanwhile, people gathered at First Presbyterian Church. Its doors opened at 1:35 and all but the reserved seats immediately filled.

It was past 2 when President Taft, just finished with his quick visit to the Sherman home, walked slowly down the center aisle to a front pew. The crowd stood until Taft was seated. The crowd stood again as the casket was brought into the church. Mrs. Sherman followed behind. She leaned on her son Richard’s arm for support and was helped to her pew by sons Thomas and Sherrill.

The long ceremony ended with a prayer from Dr. M.W. Stryker, president of Hamilton College, Sherman’s alma mater, and a close friend. Stryker’s voice quivered during the prayer.

And when he got to the final words, Stryker’s voice broke and tears flowed. "Good-bye," Stryker said, "good-bye good and faithful servant, great heart, gentle friend, good-bye."

While searching for information to help me write the article about Vice President James Schoolcraft Sherman, I located a website for Oneida County, New York. Listed on the site were the names of several volunteers who had agreed to assist genealogists locate information. One of the names listed was Dick Cookenham.

Having already found some information about the Vice President, I knew that the VP had been a partner in the law firm of Cookinham and Sherman. Crossing my fingers that there might be a connection, I sent an e-mail to Dick and asked whether he might be able to help me find some information about JSS for our SOY newsletter. Much to my delight, Dick replied saying that he is the great grandnephew of the vice president and that he’d be happy to help. In the same note, he also mentioned that he has a desk in his possession which "family word of mouth" claims belonged to VP Sherman and that the VP used it at his home on Genesee Street in Utica. Pressing my luck further, and with Art Cohan’s help, we asked Dick to send us a picture of himself and the desk. He graciously agreed and also added the following biographical information at our request.

Edward Dixson Cookenham was born June 25, 1943 in Utica, New York. At the age of 13, he changed the spelling of his last name after discovering that the first NY census of 1790 showed a distant relative, Daniel Cookenham, spelling his last name with an "e" rather than an "i".

Dick spent his pre-teen years in a very small town north of Utica, called Trenton Falls, once famous for its beautiful waterfalls. At the age of 12, he and his family moved to Clinton, New York, home of Hamilton College, the alma mater of Vice President Sherman.

Dick joined the Navy right out of high school where he remained for twelve years and then became a reservist. He again went on active duty and finally retired in June 1994. He and his wife, Commander Leanne Braddock, USN, currently reside in Memphis, Tennessee. Since retiring, Dick has been a travel agent and is currently employed with Ideal Travel Concepts specializing in international destinations.

"I received this from another list. I also had read the piece about the Signers of the Declaration of Independence. Actually, I think I first saw it about this time (close to 4 July) last year. Someone else had sent a letter similar to the one I'm sending on to you.

"I've also seen the original one (almost identical to the one you had in your letter) in a Letter to the Editor in our local paper here."*

[*This refers to a letter sent by a member of another list I'm on, and I sent this corrected version to her. She took it with great doubts, as was shown by the letter she then wrote me.]

Let’s examine some of the statements more closely.

"Five signers were captured by the British as traitors and tortured before they died."

This passage, to me at least, implies that the signer were captured under charges of treason and died under torture.

Five signers were indeed captured by the British, but not necessarily as traitors.

Richard Stockton (NJ) was the only one who was probably captured and imprisoned just for having signed the Declaration of Independence. Ferris and Morris also note that he was not well treated in captivity and was in ill health when released. He never completely recovered. He did not die in prison, however.

George Walton (GA) commanded militia at the Battle of Savannah in December 1778. He was wounded and captured at that time. Thus he would have been considered a prisoner of war, not a traitor. He was released within a year, which implies that his signature on the Declaration was not as important a factor in his captivity as his active military role in defending Savannah (prisoners of war were exchanged on a regular basis, a traitor would have been hanged). Walton lived to serve as Governor of Georgia and U.S. Senator, dying in 1804.

Thomas Heyward, Jr., Arthur Middleton, and Edward Rutledge (SC) were all captured at the Siege of Charleston in 1780. They were held at St. Augustine (then under British control) until September 1781 with other Continentals.

Two months after his release, Arthur Middleton returned to Philadelphia to resume his seat in the Continental Congress. Despite the destruction of his estate, he was able to rebuild it and live there until his Death in 1787. Edward Rutledge sat in the State Legislature from 1782 to 1798. He was elected Governor of South Carolina but died before completing his term...in 1800. Ferris and Morris report that he died a very wealthy man.

Thomas Heyward, Jr. served as a circuit court judge from 1782 to 1787. He served as a state legislator at the same time. Heyward lived into the 19th century, dying in 1809.

I checked about 8 general histories of the American War for Independence and one or two specialized works on the southern campaigns. None of them even mentioned that signers had been captured at Charleston or Savannah, let alone mention that any were singled out for harsh treatment. This seems to indicate that their capture was part of the "normal" course of war, not a special effort.

After the British took Charleston, Gen. Sir Henry Clinton had men of military age left in the city rounded up. Most were released soon after, including most of the militia troops. He had originally allowed the officers to keep their swords, but changed his mind when they began to shout rebel slogans. Only the Continental troops were held for any length of time (Middlekauff, The Glorious Revolution)

I found only one reference to the treatment of prisoners from the southern campaigns, in Lynn Montross, "Rag, Tag, and Bobtail". This work states that the continental troops from the siege of Charleston were held on prison ships. Conditions were poor and about a third of the prisoners died.

If one takes the word "torture" to mean pain and suffering, then I suppose these men were tortured. To my mind, however, torture implies an intentional infliction on pain, usually either to extract information or to punish. I have found no evidence of the latter.

Here is an interesting passage from Larry G. Bowman, North Texas St. Univ., on Prisoners of war: "Prisoners of war did suffer during the American Revolution. No other conclusion can be reached regarding the welfare of captives on both sides. Men were beaten, deprived of food by corrupt officials, denied bedding and clothing, and harassed in other ways but, fortunately, such incidents of outright cruelty were not routine events. Actually, most of the suffering of the men came from the more subtle torment Usually brought on by neglect on the part of their captors. Neither the American nor the British authorities sought to induce suffering among the men in their prisons, yet men did want for basic services. The shortcoming on both sides of the conflict in providing for the captives was evident, but the motivations behind the failures were not evil or vindictive in their origination. Neither party entered a program of deliberately tormenting prisoners. "Encyclopedia of the American Revolution", v. II, p. 1334 (New York: Garland Publishing, 1993).

So, when Hildreth writes, "But they signed the Declaration of Independence, knowing full well that the penalty would be death if they were captured."

The British undoubtedly put a price on the heads of rebel political officials (not just signers) and the signers no doubt feared that the British would make good on the threat. The reality is, however, that none were executed for their treason.

Let's look at another assertion....

Nine of the fifty-six fought and died from wounds or the hardship of the Revolutionary War.

On my list two were wounded in action, but NONE DIED OF WOUNDS. My count shows 17--not 9--men who held commissions (or did medical duty) during the war. With the possible exception of Thomas Lynch, Jr. and Gwinnett, I would not say that any death here was attributable to the war with the British. Gwinnett's death, though, is hardly glorious:

1. Josiah Bartlett (NH) as surgeon with Gen. John Stark's troops at Bennington. Bartlett declined national offices (citing fatigue or ill health) but remained active in state affairs and died in 1794.

2. Button Gwinnett (GA) in a failed campaign to take St. Augustine. Killed in a duel precipitated partly by an argument over military strategy in 1777.

2a. George Clymer served with the Pennsylvania militia. Died in 1813.

3. Thomas Heyward, Jr. (SC). Wounded in 1779 near Port Royal Island, SC. Recovered and served in the siege of Charleston. Died 1809.

4. Thomas Lynch, Jr. (SC). Military career cut short by illness in 1775. He then was elected to the Continental Congress. In an attempt to restore his health, he left for the West Indies, but was shipwrecked and killed in 1779.

5. Arthur Middleton (SC). Captured at the siege of Charleston. See above.

6. Lewis Morris (NY). Brigadier General of Westchester Co. troops during the NY invasion. After the war, he served in state government and was active in public affairs. Died 1798.

7. Thomas Nelson, Jr. (VA). commanded the Virginia militia. Served in several campaigns in Virginia, including Yorktown. Nelson's retirement from public life was financially motivated. He died in 1789.

8. William Paca (MD). Served in the Maryland militia. After the war, he was active in MD. affairs and served as a Federal district judge after the Constitution was ratified. Died in 1799.

9. Caesar Rodney (DE). Brigadier General of militia. Active in campaigns against Loyalists in Delaware. Despite having advanced skin cancer, Rodney served as president of Delaware, and speaker of the state senate until his death in 1783.

10. Benjamin Rush (PA). Appointed surgeon general of the Middle Department of the Continental Army. Resigned after 8 months in a dispute over charges he made that the medical corps was not run properly. Extremely active in public affairs, both medical and governmental, Rush died in 1813.

11. Edward Rutledge (SC). Served at the battle of Port Royal Island (1779). Captured at the siege of Charleston. See above.

12. James Smith (PA). Brigadier General of militia. Practiced law until he retired at age 82 in 1801. He died in 1806.

13. George Walton (GA). Colonel of militia. Wounded at the Battle of Savannah, 1778. Died in 1804.

14. William Whipple (NH). Brigadier General of militia. Saw quite a bit of active service, including the Saratoga and Newport campaigns. Died, aged 55, in 1785.

15. William Williams (CT). Colonel of militia to 1776. Mostly active in state affairs, he died in 1811.

16. Oliver Wolcott (CT). Rose to Major General of militia. Wolcott served in the Saratoga campaign and the defense of Ct. against loyalist raids from NY. Lived to attend the Constitutional Convention and to serve as Governor of Ct. Died 1797.

Some, like John Hart or Thomas Nelson, died of fatigue or exhaustion brought on by travel and active service. In that sense, the war may indeed have shortened their lives. Then again, how can we know in an age where illness was so commonplace. By the way, would we accept "fatigue" as a cause of death today? Or would we find some more precise explanation. In any case, I don't know if I would list this cause of death in the same sentence as a reference to battle service.

Now.... Let's look at some of the personal stories told....

Carter Braxton of Virginia, wealthy planter and trader, saw his ships swept from the sea by the British navy. He sold his home and properties to pay his debts, and died in rags.

"The War for Independence brought financial hardships to Braxton. At it’s beginning, he had invested heavily in shipping, but the British captured most of his vessels and ravaged some of his plantations and extensive landholdings. COMMERCIAL SETBACKS IN LATER YEARS RUINED HIM." (p. 42).

If Braxton sold his home, he did not sell all of them. This entry also notes that Braxton was able to retain his family seat at Chericoke, and died in his Richmond townhouse.

No doubt Braxton's fortunes were changed by the war, but can we say, truthfully, that his death in poverty was entirely due to the sacrifices of war???

Thomas McKeam was so hounded by the British that he was forced to move his family almost constantly. He served in Congress without pay, and his family was kept in hiding. His possessions were taken from him, and poverty was his reward.

So far, this is correct. But Ferris and Morris state that McKean was able to rebuild his fortune" "McKean lived out his live quietly in Philadelphia. He died in 1817 at the age of 83, survived by his second wife and four of the 11 children from his marriages. He was buried in Laurel Hill Cemetery. HIS SUBSTANTIAL ESTATE CONSISTED OF STOCKS, BONDS, AND HUGE LAND TRACTS IN PENNSYLVANIA (p. 102).

British soldiers looted the properties of Ellery, Clymer, Hall, Walton, Gwinnett, Heyward, Ruttledge and Middleton.

Also William Floyd (NY), John Hart (NC), William Hooper (NC), Philip Livingston (NY), Lewis Morris (NY).

Oddly, enough, however, the British had the opportunity to loot the homes of several very prominent signers and did not do so. Although the British evacuated Boston before the signing, why didn't they vandalize the homes of well-known rebels such as Sam Adams and John Hancock during their occupation of Boston?

The British occupied Philadelphia through the winter of 1777, yet the homes of Benjamin Franklin (who surely must have been public enemy #1), James Wilson, Benjamin Rush, Robert Morris were not damaged. James Wilson's home was attacked by Americans, including militiamen, during food shortages in 1779 (does it count if the suffering was caused by your own side?).

Thomas Jefferson was almost captured at Monticello. Why didn't the British burn the estate?

At the battle of Yorktown, Thomas Nelson, Jr. noted that the British General Cornwallis had taken over the Nelson home for his headquarters. The owner quietly urged General George Washington to open fire, which was done. The home was destroyed, and Nelson died bankrupt.

Ferris and Morris also repeat this story, although they qualify it as "family legend". Nelson was unable to rebuild his fortunes after the war and did indeed die in poverty.

Francis Lewis had his home and properties destroyed. The British jailed his wife, and soon after she died. This is true. Although Lewis lived until 1802 (and was 89 when he died), he essentially retired from public life after his wife's death.

John Hart was driven from his wife's bedside as she was dying. Their 13 children fled for their lives. His fields and his gristmill were laid waste. For more than a year he lived in forests and caves, returning home after the war to find his wife dead, his children vanished. A few weeks later he died from exhaustion and a broken heart.

The story is essentially true, but Hart survived two years after his return from exhile, not a few weeks.

Morris and Livingston suffered similar fates

Philip Livingston, a member of the extremely influential NY Livingston family, had several properties in New York and Brooklyn that were occupied by the British. He sold other properties to support the War effort before fleeing the British occupation of NY. He died, at the age of 62, in 1778.

There were two signers of the Declaration surnamed Morris. LEWIS Morris of New York, had to flee his home, Morrisania, which was damaged in the British occupation. Ferris and Morris note that he was able to rebuild Morrisania.

ROBERT Morris, of Pennsylvania may be even more intriguing. Generally recognized for his fundraising efforts during the war, he was later accused (though vindicated) by Thomas Paine of profiteering. As Superintendent of Finance (1781-1784) he was responsible for keeping the young country afloat financially. In 1789, he declined to serve as Secretary of the Treasury (Alexander Hamilton got the job), but served instead as a Senator from PA. Morris' own financial dealings were not as successful. He speculated on western lands on credit, lived extremely well, and embarked on an ambitious home building project. All of this led to personal bankruptcy and time in debtor's prison in 1798. His wife was granted a pension that sustained the family. Robert Morris died in 1806.
 

"So there you have it. A grain of truth in everything, but some broad wording that makes for a good story but an inaccurate portrayal of our founders.

These things seem to take on a life of their own, and they keep getting repeated and repeated and repeated, until people take them as Gospel.

I hope you don't mind my sending this...it's just that I hate to see mistakes or half-truths perpetuated."
 

[Ed: Again, the author of the original research is unknown. SOY welcomes any knowledge of "who", so that credit may be given.]

Socrates Norton SHERMAN was born in the town of Barre in Washington Co., VT on July 22nd, 1801; the eldest of five sons, of Asaph and Sophia (NORTON) SHERMAN. His family were of the yeomanry of the Green Mountain State, who practiced and cultivated the sterling qualities of frugality, industry, and honest economy, and to whom none other than the education of the common school was possible.

He participated in the labors of the family farm until the age of twenty, when he entered the office of Dr. Van Sicklin, as a student of medicine,, supporting himself by teaching school in the winter, until he graduated from Castleton Medical College , in 1824.

In the early part of 1825, Dr. SHERMAN moved to Heuvelton in St. Lawrence Co., NY, to practice his profession, where he soon entered into partnership with Dr. Joseph W. Smith, then the most prominent doctor in St. Lawrence Co. Dr. SHERMAN remained in Heuvelton, except when called away by official duties, for the remainder of his life.

He had great enterprise and great physical endurance, and applied himself devotedly to the study and practice of medicine, gaining steadily the love and respect of his patience. He eventually dissolved his partnership with Dr. SMITH, and established a drug, stationery and book store, while continuing his practice of medicine. His penchant for overextending his energies distinguished him, until he soon turned his total efforts once again to his profession exclusively. His patient territory expanded to the adjoining towns, and his increasing reputation of great skill, both in physic and surgery, soon extended his visits over nearly the entire county.

Dr. SHERMAN's frank and manly character, his graeat and unfeigned kindness of heart and of manners, made his patients his friends. To them he devoted himself, never sparing himself day or night, in storm or calm or heat or cold, but promptly rushing to the relief of the distressed, regardless of their condition in life or the prospect of remuneration. By these means, the Doctor early achieved an influence which rendered him an influence in the community in all public debates and in politics.

His early action was with the anti-Masonic organization, and when the fusion of the anti-Masons with the Democratic-Republicans formed the Whig party, he was one of its most active and influential leaders. He continued in that position until the formation of the Republican party, when he joined it's ranks. In 1860 he was elected a member of the Thirty-seventh Congress for the district encompassing St. Lawrence and Herkimer counties.

His congressional career, which opened favorably, was arrested by the Civil War, in which, against the remonstrations of his friends, he persisted in volunteering, as a surgeon in the army. Early in 1861 he was commissioned in the 34th NY Vols. Dr. SHERMAN participated in the battles of South Mountain and Antietam in Sept. 1862; and the battle of Fredericksburg in Dec. 1862. He so devoted himself to the relief of the sufferings and disease of his comrades, and became so conspicuous for his skill and zeal, that, on the expiration of his term of enlistment in his regiment, he was retained, commissioned in the regular army, and made the Medical Director of the Department of Western Virginia, where he remained until the end of the war. In the service, he contracted the disease which terminated his life; but this he never regretted, believing it was his duty serve his country in her need.

He was always liberal and progressive in his views. His love of children was a distinguishing trait, and his appreciation of the benefits of a liberal system of popular education was such that he was almost single-handedly able to conduct a campaign that culminated in the establishment of the free and graded schools under a board of education. The more important of the magnificent structures in Ogdensburg in the late 1890's, devoted to that cause, are monuments to his success.

Thought devoted to public interests and professional pursuits, he by no means neglected his social duties. Four brothers, who subsequently became highly respected in the same noble profession, owe much of their success to his aid, precept, and example.

Dr. SHERMAN married Miss Lois LOW, a native of VT, but then a resident of Ogdensburg, in 1828. They had two children, Sophia and Low Franklin. The daughter married Dr. BLODGETT, of Malone in Franklin Co., NY - and his son died in 1863 at the age of twenty-seven. Mrs. SHERMAN died in VA in 1864 on a visit to her husband, and Dr. SHERMAN died in Ogdensburg in 1873.

Asaph and Sophia's second son, Mason Gates SHERMAN, born in 1805 in Barre, VT, traveled to Ogdensburg about 1828, and labored for some time as a mechanic. After then following the sea for two years, he returned to Ogdensburg, studied medicine, and graduated at Fairfield, NY in 1836. He practiced in Rossie, NY from 1836 to 1840, when he removed to Ogdensburg and practiced until 1845. He subsequently moved to Canada for two years, and then re-visited California in 1850. He returned to Ogdensburg in 1852, and then moved to Michigan City, IN. He served as surgeon with the 9th IN Infantry from 1861-1865 and was NEVER off duty a day.

Dr. M.G. married Charlotte HARTWELL in 1843, and they had two daughters and one son. The son, George, died at the age of seven. Dr. Sherman died in 1890.

Dr. Asaph Bradley SHERMAN, the fourth son, was born in 1814 in Barre. He went to Ogdensburg about 1830-31, and was a clerk in his brother Socrate's bookstore. He bought his brother out in 1835, read medicine for a few years, and then closed the business in 1837 to attend school. He graduated in Pittsfield, MA in 1838, and practiced medicine in Ogdensburg with his brothers until 1840. He practiced in Rossie for a few years, and then in Waddington until 1848, when he removed to Morrisburg, Canada where he was still practicing in 1898. Click here to see a sketch of the mansion in Morrisburg.

Benjamin Franklin SHERMAN, the last son of Asaph and Sophia, was born in 1817 in Barre. He settled in Ogdensburg in 1835, and taught school there from 1837 until 1840 while he studied medicine with his brother. He attended Albany medical college and graduated in 1841. He practiced for two years each in Hammond and Potsdam (St. Lawrence Co.), and then returned to Ogdensburg in 1845 to practice with his brother. He remained there until his death in 1897.

Dr. B. F. SHERMAN married Charlotte CHIPMAN in 1847, and they had two sons and three daughters.

Dr. Frank Roger SHERMAN, son of Dr. B.F. and Charlotte, studied with his father and graduated at Cornell University in the scientific department, and subsequently at Bellevue hospital college, in 1875. He practiced in Ogdensburg for about one year, and removed to Michigan City, IN, where he remained in 1898.

"History of St. Lawrence Co., NY"-printed 1898 by Everts & Co., Phil.

"History of Dundas & Glengary Counties" (no date) via Larry Sherman

Our modern multi-million dollar Public Library here in Harlingen, TX has a wonderfully computerized Index system, with the most horrible indexing! A few years ago, while trying to trace a family "legend" about an ancestor who ran the first stagecoach line on Long island (NYC), I located only one book in our library. It covered primarily western stages. While replacing it on the shelf, I used my previously learned method of searching there - to physically look at the other call numbers around it. The other 4-5 books about stages (not in the computerized index) included one called "Horse Power" by Marylian and Sanders Watney; pub.1975 by Hamlyn Publishing Lmtd.; printed in Prague, Czechoslovakia. [The book is entirely about coaching!?!].

On page 29 (in a chapter about English coaching), along with several sketches of the era, is "There were numerous coach proprietors involved in the exacting and complicated business of running and horsing the mail and stage coaches, and several of them at the London end were in a very big way of business. Two of the largest were William Chaplin of "The Swan With Two Necks" in Lad Lane, and Edward Sherman of " The Bull and Mouth", St.Martins-le-Grand. Some indication of the size of the undertaking is that Chaplin owned 1,700 horses, while Sherman had over 1,000."

Then more about the assent to coaches, and their latter decline as railroads took over in the mid-1840's; but that is the only specific passage about Edward. There is one other paragraph about how all of the main mail coaches left London at precisely 8PM, from St. Martins-le-Grande - so I presumed that was Edward's line. Info xeroxed and added to my "pile" for the future.

In August of 1999, SOY member Al Beasley wrote: "I ran across this story a few years ago:

Stagecoaches became popular at the beginning of the 1800's. There were half a dozen popular coaching inns of which the Bull and Mouth was one. All inns had stabling for bringing horses in late at night and taking them out early in the morning. The London coaching business was mainly in the hands of six competitors, of which Edward Sherman was one.

Edward Sherman, who established himself at the Bull and Mouth, St. Martin's-le-Grand in 1823 was second only to Chaplin in the coaching business. He was the pioneer of the long-distance day coaches to Carlisle, Glasgow, Liverpool, Manchester, Holyhead and other places in North Wales.

After marrying three elderly, rich women in quick succession he was able to rebuild his seventeenth-century galleried inn, with a courtyard large enough to accommodate 30 coaches.

The Bull and Mouth became the Queen's Hotel after rebuilding, in 1830 and was the favorite inn long after coaches were off the road.

..Mary Catheart Borer, The City of London, (New York 1978) pg.247"

[Art Cohan's Note: her info does not seem to be entirely accurate, based on the following from the period.]

After the superb article by David Paul Sherman in our April 2000 issue of SOY about his family, I recovered the article about Edward, and wrote David. On April 28th he replied, "I have now discovered exactly where Martins-Le-Grand is, and the Hotel he owned. It is on the same street as St Paul's Cathedral (Aldersgate Street, London)." He was "bitten", and graciously began some research into Edward's story.

By early June, David sent me the first packet of collected info about Edward, including (interalia) his parent's marriage record, his christening, his death certificate, and a most interesting article from the September 29, 1866 issue of the "City Press", London.

That article reads: "The Late Mr. Edward Sherman. This gentleman, whose decease was announced in our last issue, filled, during his life, so important a position that we cannot be content to pass by the record of his death without calling to mind, in some measure, what manner of man he was. Mr. Sherman's life was one of those which appear like links to bind two generations together. He saw, as a coach proprietor, the last glories of the road, and as a shareholder in some of the earliest formed of the railway companies, he watched by the cradle of the rail. He was not however, one of those who inherit wealth or fame, and all that he had he won for himself. He came to London in the year 1793, too poor to pay for his ride from Berkshire, and obtained an engagement at 12s [shillings] a week. Out of this there could be but little to spare, yet he contrived to save money, and little by little he pulled ahead, until about 1814 he became the proprietor of the Bull and Mouth hotel, which, fourteen years later, he rebuilt at a cost of about 60,000(l), styling the new pile the Queen's Hotel. He was at that time one of the largest coach proprietors in England, keeping sixteen or seventeen hundred horses at work in various parts of the country, and carrying on a business, the annual returns of which have been estimated at half-a-million. When railways wee introduced he saw at once the value and importance of the new mode of transit, and exchanged his coaches for waggons, in which heavy goods were conveyed in the old style. He was also one of the promoters, and then a director, of the first steam packet company, which plied between London and Margate. Prosperity poured upon him from all directions, and he was well known on 'Change, where he dealt largely in the various stocks. He lived long to enjoy the fruits of his enterprise and industry, and died at the ripe age of ninety years."

From the other materials David sent:  

• Edward's death was recorded at the General Registrar's office, Cheswick, Brentford district, in co Middlesex on Sep. 15th, 1866. He was 91 per that certificate (b: abt 1775).
• Edward Sherman married Mary Sawyer on 5 Jan 1775 in South Moreton, Berkshire. (his parents)
• A son, Edward, born to Edward & Mary Sherman, christened on 16 Jan 1777 in South Moretown.

David also sent (and I have found in the San Antonio library) from the "Dictionary of National Biography" pub: 1917 by Oxford University Press, the following: [I've extracted]  

• "Edward, coach proprietor, was born in Berkshire in 1776."
• The Queens Hotel has "since been absorbed by the General Post Office."
• "-- he also was a promoter, and then a director, of the Thames, the first steam-packet plying between -- " [apparently the name left out of the newspaper article, above]
• "He died at the Manor House, Chiswick, Middlesex, on 14 Sept. 1866."

In 1851, J. P. Morgan, the famous American financier, was sent by his father Junius Morgan to apprentice under William Watt Sherman. He was to learn the art of "American banking." Mr. Sherman would later say of J. P., "I think him a very promising young man."

By 1851, New York City had replaced Philadelphia as the financial center of American. Alexander Duncan and William Watt Sherman established one of the few investment houses to specialize in railroad financing. They be came the most prominent of all of them. Their offices were on the corner of Pine and Nassau Streets just a few blocks from the New York Stock Exchange.

William Watt Sherman resided in the fashionable 5th avenue residences where Italian Renaissance mansions were being built. His neighbors were people like August Belmont, the American representative of ROTHCHILDS. The Morgans lived only a few blocks away and J. P. would walk to the offices of Duncan, Sherman & Co., each morning to clerk and learn, as an unsalaried employee. His father paid him $200.00/mo. allowance.

William Watt Sherman8>(Watt7>Henry6>Nathaniel5>Henry4>Eber3>Eber2>Phillip1) was born in Albany co., Albany, New York Aug. 4 1842. He was the son of Watt and Sarah (Gibson) Sherman. He lived in Albany most of his young life, later moving with his family to England, then New York and Newport, Rhode Island. He was a physician by education and a banker by profession. On July 5th 1871 he married Annie Derby Rogers Wetmore (1848-1884), both were of prominent families of the area.

After the marriage they began to search for a special architect to design their home in Newport. It is supposed that they met the well-known architect Henry Hobson Richardson through their memberships in the exclusive clubs for the New York and Newport wealthy. Richardson, an intellect and famous in his field of art and architecture, would design them a house like not other in America. A first in this country, it would be the true American Queen Anne.

The house ranks as a major monument in American domestic architecture. Work on the house began around 1874 and was not completed until 1876. The house had another first, a yellow stained glass window in the front door. The window was rectangular and had intricate geometric patterns of textured hammered glass set in lead. Smooth on one side and rough on the other which faced to the outside, this was to catch and deflect the light. The craftsmanship of the window was of the highest and made by American painter and stained glass specialist. John LaFarge.

LaFarge made many works in buildings in Newport, Boston and New York, such as the Breakers, home of Cornelius Vanderbuilt II. He and Louis Comfort Tiffany were the most celebrated glass artists of their day. The William Watts Sherman's window is now part of the University of Victoria's Malwood Museum and Art Gallery Collection. Three major additions were added to the house in William's life time, commissioned by Stanford White. In 1949, the house left the hands of the Shermans and was acquired by the Baptist Church as a retirement home and by 1963 a modern dormitory wing was added. The building then became part of the women's dormitory and was owned by Salve Regina College. The college added a larger dinning room and new stairs. The house is still in use today.

This house and the large stained glass window is said to be a direct outcome of the aesthetic movement of that time.

After the death of Annie Wetmore Sherman in 1884, William Watt married Sophia Augusta Brown on Oct. 7 1885 in Newport, Rhode Island. He died Jan 22, 1912, in New York City. The child from his first wife was - Georgette Wetmor, b: 7/13/1872; from his second marriage - Irene Muriel Augusta, b: 6/9/1887; Mildred Constance, b: 7/3/1888.

Information taken from: Jean Strouse, Morgan American Financier.

Perennial Harper Collins 2000. and from web sites:
Http://www.finearts.uvic.ca/~whistory/Sandra_Eng/
http://www.charliemcmillian.com/info/qa.html
http://www.newportmansions.org/press8a.html
http://www.redwood1747.org/Notables/LAFARGE.HTM

Not to be confused with Sioux City (Woodbury Co.), Sioux County lies two counties to the north, on the western border of Iowa. The county was organized in 1860, in an area 24 miles n-s, and 35 miles e-w. The 507,000 acres have been called by many, "the garden spot of the world".

The first surveying took place in 1856, and the first major sale in 1857. Land speculators, lured by the rich soil and beauty of the country, came from almost every state of the union. The excitement was great, and so anxious were people to own some of this fertile land, that it sold for as high as $2.25 to $2.50 per acre, when it was inhabited by nothing but Indians, prairie dogs and wolves!

The land was ceded by the Indians to the United States in 1851. Though they never had any villages there, they traveled through while hunting buffalo and deer, and fished and trapped the rivers of beaver, otter and muskrat.

The population of Sioux Co. was only ten persons in 1860, and grew to eighteen by 1867. By 1870, a spurt brought the number to 576, and by 1876 there were 3,320. The first settlements began in 1869 and 1870 when farmers of German, Belgian, Irish and American descent began to settle on lands to the four edges of the county, and Hollanders in the more central parts.

Sherman Township was officially organized on January 4, 1876 as a division of Nassau Township. The name was suggested by John Emery, one of the early settlers, who was chosen as clerk. He had been a member of the 33rd Wisconsin regiment during the Civil War, and had admired General Sherman to the extent that he followed the examples of the citizens of Grant, Lincoln and Sheridan Townships to the north, within the county.

The first settlers (primarily Dutch) to Sherman Township found only trails in a winter that was dark and colorless, but a summer that brought a carpet of green prairie grass so tall that a man could get lost in it, and with beautiful wildflowers scattered throughout. Nothing interrupted the view, no matter which direction, and water was plentiful. The weather was excellent for crops, with the summer temperatures reaching 90/100 degrees, while the winters brought heavy snow and blizzards.

In the early 1800's, the Chicago & Northwestern RR had conceived building an artery into northwestern Iowa, and had received a land grant from the state in 1871. In 1881, the Toledo & Western (as it was then named), laid tracks into the middle of Sherman Township, and the town of Maurice was born. [The town was named after Count Maurice of Nassau (native province of Germany), who was the son of William of Orange (assassinated in 1584). Count Maurice had become the head of six Northern Provinces of the Netherlands, and was a "favorite" of the Dutch settlers.]

As the town grew, one of the early settlers was Alanson SHERMAN, b: 30 Jan 1829 in Genessee Co., NY. [Alanson was the son of Nathan, b: ca: 1782 in VT. Nathan was the son of Daniel, of VT, but further ancestry is still in doubt.]. Alanson completed the first residence, on the southeast corner of Third and Elm.

He had circulated a petition here concerning the possibility of establishing a Post Office, and received his papers from Washington, DC appointing him as postmaster, so that he was able to establish the post office in his home as soon as it was completed, August 25, 1882. His daughter Mary carried the mail to and from Orange City by horseback, twice a week, receiving "the enormous salary" of two dollars a month for her services. The home is still standing.

Other residences were built around Alanson's home, and businesses began locating in the village around him. An entry in the source states: "A. Sherman, postmaster, sold general insurance and real estate in 1884, he also sold notions, cigars, stationery, and ran a confectionery stand in 1890, all the while serving as postmaster."

By 1891 there were over 250 residents in Maurice, and it applied for incorporation.

During that time (ca: 1892) several other SHERMANs came to live in Maurice. Descended from another Nathan (b: Jun 1853 in Ogle Co., Illinois; son of Eleazer of NY), they removed to South Dakota and thence Iowa, and now reside on a farm a few miles from Maurice.

[Art's note: I am in contact with several descendants of this branch of Shermans, and know of several other Sherman families in the area.]