CAPT GEORGE W. HURLEY/MRS MARY L. BOYD -
JACKSON CO; ARKANSAS.
Capt
George W. Hurley (retired). Newport, Ark. The career of the above
mentioned
gentleman affords a striking example of encouragement for the
youth
of the present day who have not very favorable circumstances
surrounding
them, and yet who are desirous of attaining to positions of
trust
and esteem in the communities where they may hereafter reside.
Left
an orphan at an early day, Mr Hurley attained his growth without
the
influence and tender care of parents, and for this reason, if for no
other,
he deserves great credit for his success in life, not only in
material
affairs, but as a man. His birth occurred in Frederick County,
Md.,
on the 1st of May 1829, and he is the son of Morris and Catherine
Hurley,
both natives of County Clare, Ireland. The parents were married
in their
native country, and in about 1829 emigrated to America, where
the
father, who was a civil engineer and contractor, worked on the
Chosapeake
and Ohio Canal. He was a large contractor on the canal, and
had
his headquarters at the Point of Rocks. They were the parents of
these
children: John, Catherine, Charles and George W., the first three
of whom
died in the year 1833, as did also the parents, leaving George
W. Hurley,
only four years of age, alone and among comparative
strangers.
He was taken by a family who thought considerable of him,
received
as good an education as they could afford, and, when nine years
of age,
was apprenticed to learn the tailor's trade. When about thirteen
years
of age he ran away from his master, went to Baltimore, and shipped
as a
cabin-boy on board the brig Edith. He made a trip around Cape
Horn,visited
Santiago, and numerous other places on the Pacific slope,
and
remained on the ship for about two years, being quite a favorite of
the
Captain and his wife. Mr Hurley relates an incident which took place
while
on the vessel, and gives it as a reason for leaving the sea. It
was
his duty to wait upon the table, and one day, after dinner, he put
some
nuts, raisins, etc., in the pockets of his little sailor's suit.
The
Captain, who frequently indulged too freely at the noon meal, met
George
on deck, and asked what was in his pockets. The boy replied,
"Nothing,"
which so incensed the Captain that the latter gave him a
severe
whipping. George was ever after afraid of the commander,and at
the
first opportunity left the vessel and returned to Baltimore. There
he finished
his trade as a tailor, and soon after went to Washington,
thence
to Richmond, Va., where he was taken sick and came very near
dying.
He became penniless, but, through the charity of friends,
obtained
enough money to return to Baltimore,where he obtained
employment,
and there remained until the breaking out of the Mexican
War.
He then enlisted in the Second Baltimore Battalion, under Col
Hughes,
and served one year, receiving a sabre and lance wound at the
battle
of Monterey, for which he now receives a pension. After
recovering
he was placed in the quartermaster's department, and was on
the
Southern route. Upon his second return to his home he had some means
saved,
and located at New Richmond, Ohio, where he started up a modest
tailoring
establishment, but only remained there a short time. He then
sold
out and moved to Indianapolis, Ind., where he secured a position as
cutter
in a large establishment; but, at the end of one year, he became
restless,
and enlisted in the Cuban Lopez expedition. He, with about 200
old
Mexican soldiers, went to Cuba; eighty-six were captured, fifty-two
were
taken to Havana and shot, and thirty-four carried on the steamer
"Pizarau,"
a large Spanish man-of-war- and was taken to Spain, with
about
thirty-four other comrades. They were kept prisoners some six
weeks,
and during that time, which seemed, no doubt, like so many years,
experienced
some of the most heartrending scenes imaginable, being taken
out
every day and counted, with the expectation of being shot. They were
finally
released by President Fillmore, who sent a United States cutter
for
them. They were treated like kings on the vessel, being given money,
clothes,
etc. He came to Kentucky, being again entirely broken up, and
invented
a patent for garment cutting, with which he traveled over
several
different States, and made considerable money on the same. He
subsequently
went to Keokuk, Iowa,
where
he started another tailoring establishment, and carried it on
until
1857. From there he went to Jackson, Tenn., where he was married,
and
removed with his family to White County, Ark., being there engaged
in agricultural
pursuits. In 1861 he was appointed by Gov Rector, of
Arkansas,
as quartermaster of the State troops, and in the organization
of a
regiment at Mound City, was appointed by Colonel-elect (afterward
General)
Cleburne, quartermaster of the first State troops. The regiment
moved
to Pocahontas, where State troops were abandoned and regiments for
the
Confederacy formed. Being, as a consequence retired, he returned
home
and organized a company, of which he was made first lieutenant, and
afterward,
for meritorious conduct, was promoted to a captaincy. He
participated
in all the general engagements on this side of the
Mississippi
River, receiving one slight wound from a shell. In 1864 he
asked
for retired papers, and then took the superintendency of cutting
and
fitting clothes for the soldiers at Shreveport, La. His family still
living
in White County when he came home, he moved with them to Augusta,
Woodruff
County, Ark., where he remained for nine years, being engaged
for
two years in the livery business, and after this took the traveling
agency
for a cotton commission house at New Orleans. Having speculated
too
heavily in cotton, he became involved, and then entered the hotel
and
confectionery business, which he carried on until 1873, when he came
to Newport,
then a town of about thirty-one inhabitants. He embarked in
the
wholesale and retail liquor and tobacco business, afterward turning
his
grocery and general planters' supplies, and buying cotton, in which
he was
very extensively engaged until about 1880. Since that time he has
been
engaged in the real-estate business, and in building up Newport,
owning
five large brick business buildings and several residences. He
also
owns a good farm, and is one of the leading citizens of Jackson
County.
He has taken great interest in secret orders, is a member of the
Masonic
fraternity, advancing as far as a Knight Templar. He is also a
member
of the I. O. O. F., is Past Grand Master, and has been a member
of the
order since 1847; was initiated in Mechanic's Lodge No. 15, at
Baltimore,
Md., being subsequently connected with the order in the
States
of Ohio, Indiana and Kentucky. He is the founder and originator
of Newport
Lodge No. 71, Newport, Ark., which was organized May 17,
1875.
He has been honored with nearly every official position with in
the
gift of the order; has served as Grand Master, was Grand
Representative
to the Sovereign Grand Lodge for six years, and Grand
Patriarch
in the Encampment branch for two years. In 1876 he represented
the
State of Arkansas in the Sovereign Grand Lodge, at Philadelphia, and
in 1882
at Toronto. He is an indefatigable worker in the interests of
Odd
Fellowship, and is one of the most highly honored members of that
fraternity.
He is also a member of the Knights of Pythias, and a member
of the
Royal Arcanum, of which he is past officer. His marriage to MRS
MARY
L. BOYD occurred in 1858, and one child, now
deceased, was the
result
of this union. Mrs Hurley is a member of the Episcopal Church.
Both
Mr Hurley and Mrs Hurley are hale and hearty in their old age.
Source:
Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Eastern Arkansas,
Chicago:
Goodspeed Publishers, 1890
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NOTE:
Use this data as a finding tool,just as you would any other
secondary source. When you find the name of an ancestor
listed, confirm the facts in original sources.
Kind
Regards,
Karen
Schrode from Ohio, USA
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