Corcoran, William Wilson – Cornell, John Henry
Corcoran, William Wilson
banker, philanthropist, was born Dec. 27, 1798, in Georgetown, D. C. The state department selected him as its financial agent in 1841; and in 1842 George W.
Riggs and he founded the afterward famous banking house of Corcoran and Riggs, which rose into prominence through sales of government bonds at the time of the Mexican war and later. He earned the title of philanthropist by numberless gifts, which amounted during his lifetime to about $4,000,000. He died Feb. 24, 1888, in Washington, D. C.
Cordley, Richard
clergyman, was born Sept. 6, 1829, in Nottingham, England. During 1850-54 he attended the Michigan university; and the three years following studied at the Andover Theological seminary; and graduated with honors from both institutions. In 1857 he moved to Kansas and preached his first sermon as pastor of the Plymouth church of Lawrence, which position he filled for eighteen years. During 1875-78 he was pastor of the congregational church of Flint, Mich.; during 1878-84 in the congregational church of Emporia, Kan.; when he again became pastor for the second time of the Plymouth church of Lawrence, Kan. During all the busy years of his ministry he has been a frequent and valued correspondent of the religious press. He is often called The Nugget Preacher, because his short and original sermons teem with golden nuggets of thought.
Cordova, Alfred De
stock broker, was born Aug. 19, 1848, in Jamaica. First a broker in petroleum, he purchased a seat in the stock exchange of New York city in 1875, and his firm of Alfred de Cordova and Son have since been successful in the brokerage of stocks. In 1894 he was elected a governor of the stock exchange of New York city.
Core, Jesse Franklin
soldier, clergyman, was born Sept. 15, 1846, in Hillsboro, Pa. He served gallantly as a soldier in the civil war, and was twice wounded. He attended the Methodist college of Millersburg, Ky.; and received the degree of D. D. from Waynesburg college. He was twice presiding elder in the Pittsburg conference of the Methodist Episcopal church; and twice a member of the General conference of that denomination. He is also well known as a brilliant pulpit orator and lecturer; has served many of the best churches in his conference; and was offered the nomination for congress.
Corey, Charles Henry
clergyman, was born Dec. 12, 1834, in Canaan, N. B. In 1867 he was appointed principal of the Augusta institute, Augusta, Ga., and in the next year was transferred to Richmond, Va., as president of an institution for the training of colored preachers and teachers.
Corlet, Elijah
educator, was born in 1611 in London, England. He established himself in Cambridge soon after the settlement of the town, and taught the grammar school there for forty-six years. The society for the propagation of the gospel compensated him for preparing Indian scholars for the university. He died Feb. 24, 1687, in Cambridge, Mass.
Corlett, William W
lawyer, congressman, was born April 10, 1842, in Concord, Ohio. He was appointed postmaster at Cheyenne, Wyoming territory, in 1870; and was a member of the council in the territorial assembly in 1871. He was elected prosecuting attorney for Laramie county in 1872, 1873 and 1875; and was elected a delegate from the territory of Wyoming to the forty-fifth congress as a republican. mer-
Corley, Manuel Simeon
merchant, legislator, congressman, was born Feb. 10, 1823, in Lexington county, S. C.
During 1854-56 he was editor and owner of the South Carolina Temperance Standard. In his youth he was apprenticed to learn the tailor's trade, and became a successful merchant tailor of Lexington, S. C. In 1868 he was a member of the South Carolina constitutional convention; and in 1868-69 a member of the fortieth congress. He has been United States treasury agent; chief of South Carolina bureau of agricultural statistics; and treasurer of his county. From boyhood he has loved freedom and hated slavery, and his utterances on these questions for a long time imperiled his life.
Corliss, George Henry
inventor, was born June 2, 1817, in Easton, N. Y.
He invented many ingenious devices, among which is a machine for cutting the cogs of bevel-wheels, an improved boiler, with condensing apparatus for marine-engines, and pumping-engines for water works. He was a member of the Rhode Island legislature in 1868-70, and was a republican presidential elector in 1876. He died Feb. 21, 1888, in Providence, R. I.
Corliss, Guy C. H
lawyer, jurist, was born July 4, 1858, in Poughkeepsie, N. Y. In 1879 he was admitted to the bar; and in 1886 moved to Grand Forks, N. D. In 1889 he was elected chief justice of the supreme court of North Dakota, which office he still fills.
Corliss, John B
lawyer, congressman, was born in Richford, Vt. He was elected city attorney of Detroit in 1881 and re-elected in 1883; during his four years' incumbency of the office of city attorney he prepared the first complete charter of Detroit, which was passed by the legislature in 1884 and is still the fun'damental law of the municipality. He was elected to the fifty-fourth and reelected to the fifty-fifth congress as a republican.
Corliss, Mrs. Mary E
was born Dec. 22, 1832, in Great Falls, N. H. Her poems have appeared in the periodical press. She has collected her poems and published them in book form.
Cornaby, Mrs. Hannah
poet, was born March 17, 1822, in England. In 1881 she published a volume entitled Autobiography and Poems, which attracted considerable attention in her native state.
Cornelius, Elias
physician and patriot, was born in 1758 on Long Island. He obtained the appointment of surgeon's mate in the second Rhode Island regiment. He was captured and confined in the prison-ship Jersey, but escaped in March, 1778, rejoined the army, and continued with it till 1781. In later years he obtained a large practice. He died June 13, 1823, in Somers, N. Y.
Cornelius, Elias
educator, missionary, author, was born July 31, 1794, in Somers, N. Y. He was a missionary to the Cherokee Indians who wrote The Little Osage Captive, an Authentic Narrative. He died Feb. 12, 1832, in Hartford, Conn.
Cornell, Alonzo Barton
governor of New York during 1880-83, was born Jan. 22, 1832, in Ithaca, N. Y. He received an academic education, and at an early age engaged in the telegraph business, and became operator, manager, superintendent, director, vice-president and acting president of the Western Union Telegraph company. He is the son of the late Ezra Cornell, the founder of the Cornell university, who was associated with Prof. Morse in the early development of the electric telegraph. In 1872 he was elected to the legislative assembly of the state of New York, and was chosen speaker. Jan. 1, 1880, he was inaugurated governor of the state of New York, and served with distinction for three years. / He has been a trustee of Cornell university from its foundation; and president of the Cornell library association. His only publication is True and Firm, a Biography of Ezra Cornell, a Filial Tribute.
Cornell, Ezekiel
soldier, congressman, was born in Scituate, R. I.
He was a member of the continental congress in 1780-83, and chairman of the military committee. He was a mechanic before the war, but was self-educated, and established a valuable library in his native town.
Cornell, Ezra
pioneer, was born Jan. 11, 1807, in Westchester, N. Y. When congress had appropriated $30,000 to build a telegraph line from Washington to Baltimore, and Mr. Cornell invented a machine to be drawn by eight mules for laying the wires underground and was employed as superintendent to carry out his idea. Next year a line was built by him under contract from New York to Philadelphia, and in 1846 one from New York to Albany. In 1847 he organized a company and built a telegraph line from Troy to Montreal, and in 1848 formed the New York and Erie and the Erie and Michigan Telegraph companies, to construct lines from New York to Lake Erie and thence to Milwaukee. He gave a $75,000 building to Ithaca for a free library and made a further gift for books. For the founding of Cornell university he gave nearly a million dollars and so located the agricultural college land grant, which New York state had transferred to the university, that it produced three or four times its original value.
Cornell, John Black
manufacturer, inventor, was born Feb. 7, 1821, in Long Island, N. Y. In 1847, with his brother, W. W. Cornell, he opened a factory in New York, which subsequently grew to large proportions. At these works the proprietors made an immense amount of architectural iron, including the iron for the elevated railroads in New York city. He died Oct. 27, 1887, in Lakewood, N. J.
Cornell, John Henry
musician, composer, was born May 8, 1828, in New York city. He was a musician and organist of New York city, and the author of Primer of Modern Musical Tonality; Practice of Sight Singing; Easy Method of Modulation; Theory and Practice of Musical Form; A Manual of Roman Chant; and Congregational Tune Book.
He died in 1894.