History of Long Branch, (Monmouth County) New Jersey United States of America

William Hopkins Morris, soldier, was born in New York city, April 22, 1826; son of Gen. George Pope Morris . He was graduated from the U.S. Military academy in 1851; was promoted 2d lieutenant, Dec. 3, 1851; served at Fort Yuma, Cal., 1852-53, and resigned his commission in the U.S. army, Feb. 28, 1854. He was assistant editor of the New York Home Journal, 1854-61, and on Aug. 20, 1861, joined the volunteer army as captain of staff and assistant adjutant-general. He served in the defences of Washington, D.C., 1861-62, and was on the staff of Gen. J.J. Peck, Army of the Potomac, during the Peninsula campaign in 1862, his battles including Yorktown, Williamsburg and Fair Oaks. He resigned his staff position, Sept. 1, 1862, to accept the colonelcy of the 135th New York volunteers, and was transferred to the 6th artillery, Sept. 2, 1862. He was promoted brigadier-general of volunteers, Nov. 29, 1862, and took part in the defence of Maryland Heights and Harper's Ferry in 1862. He commanded the 6th artillery held in reserve at Gettysburg, July 1-3, 1863; took part in the action of Wapping Heights, July 23, 1863; in the Rapidan campaign, where he commanded the 1st brigade, 3d division, 6th army corps, and took part in the action at Locust Grove, Nov. 29, 1863. He participated in the battle of the Wilderness, May, 1864, and in the action near Spottsylvania, May 9, 1864, where he commanded the 6th army corps after the transfer of General Wright to the command of the corps on the death of General Sedgwick, and where he was severely wounded, and was on sick leave of absence, May and June, 1864. He was on courts martial and military commissions in July and August, 1884, and was mustered out of service, Aug. 24, 1864. He was brevetted major-general of U.S. volunteers for gallant and meritorious services in the battle of the Wilderness, March 13, 1865. He retired to "Briarcliff," his estate in Putnam county, N.Y., and was a member of the state constitutional convention of 1869, serving as chairman of the military committee. He was chief of ordnance, N.G.S.N.Y., 1866-70. He invented a conical repeating carbine in 1859, and is the author of: A System of Infantry Tactics (1865); Tactics for Infantry Armed wirh Breech-Loading or Magazine Rifles (1882). He died at Long Branch, N.J., Aug. 26, 1900.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor

Garret Augustus Hobart, twenty-fourth Vice-President of the United States, was born.in Long Branch, N.J., June 3, 1844; son of Addison W. and Sophia (Vandeveer) Hobart; and grandson of Roswell Hobart, a farmer in the Columbia valley, Coos county, N.H. His first ancestor in America, Edmund Hobart, of Norfolk, England, settled at Charlestown, Massachusetts colony, in 1633. Edmund's son Peter, born in Norfolk in 1604, graduated at Cambridge university, was a teacher and pastor of a church in Suffolk county, England, and emigrated to America in 1635, joining his father at Charlestown. He removed to, and named the town of Hingham after his birthplace, built the Congregational church there, and was its pastor for forty yeasts. He had four sons, John, Gershem, Japhet and Nehemiah. The last three named were graduated at Harvard in 1667, were all Congregational ministers, and Nehemiah was a fellow of Harvard, 1681-92. Of the next three generations little has been recorded. Mr. Hobart's father left the homestead in New Hampshire to teach school in Long Branch, N.J., where he was married to Sophia, daughter of David G. and Catherine Vanderveer. In 1846 he opened a county store in Keyport, and then removed to Marlboro, where he conducted a store and farm, and where young Hobart prepared for college. He entered the sophomore class of Rutgers college and was graduated in 1863. He then taught school in Marlboro to procure money to enable him to study law. In 1864 he went to Paterson, N.J., as a law student in the office of Socrates Tuttle, a native of New Hampshire, and a friend of his father. He was admitted to the bar as an attorney in 1866, and as a counseller in 1869, and the same year was married to Jennie Tuttle, daughter of his law preceptor. They had one son, Garret A. Hobart, Jr., and one daughter, Fannie, who died at Lake Como, Italy, in June, 1895. Mr. Hobart became an eminent corporation lawyer and was president or director of many important railway, banking and industrial corporations centering in Paterson, and acquired large wealth through careful investments. He served as counsel for the city of Paterson in 1871, as counsel to the board of chosen freeholders of Passaic county, 1872, and as representative in the state assembly, 1873-75, serving as speaker in 1874. He was state senator, 1878-82, and president of the senate in 1881-82. He was chairman of the Republican state committee, 1880-91, and the New Jersey member of the Republican national committee, 1884-96. He was the unsuccessful candidate for U.S. senator in 1884, but five times declined the nomination as representative in congress. He was delegate at large for New Jersey to the Republican national conventions of 1876 and 1880, and declined the nomination for governor in 1892 and 1895. He received the nomination for Vice-President of the United States on the ticket with William McKinley at the Republican national convention of 1896. He was elected and took the oath of office, March 4, 1897, and contrary to precedent became a confidential adviser of the President. In 1897 he gave to Rutgers college the sum of $5000. He died at Paterson, N.J., Nov. 21, 1899.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor

History of Long Branch, (Monmouth County) New Jersey

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