Gilbert Dixon Fox (b. Abt. July, 1849; d. October 4, 1908)
Connecticut. White.Occupation: Newspaper reporter, Clerk P.O. Dept, Clerk Govt.
Father's occupation: clergyman, farmer, teacher.
Gilbert (or Gil) Dixon Fox was born in Connecticut to Henry J. and Clarinda Fox. Henry J. was a Methodist minister who served as a professor of English at the University of South Carolina. His brothers Clarence, Irving, and Henry A. also attended the university. Their entries include additional details about the family.
When Gil was born, his father Henry was working as pastor in Hartford, CT. However, when Gil was three years old (in 1852), the family moved to New York City. They remained there for five years, until 1857. That year they relocated to Greene county (in the Catskill mountains) where Henry founded a school and ran a farm. Henry's school ran for four years. Unfortunately, during the last year, the school building was destroyed in a fire. The school was closed, and the family returned to New York City. Gil would spend his teenage years in the city.
Gil attended the New York City Free Academy (a precursor to the City College of New York) for several years. He entered in fall 1863 as a member of the Introductory (or pre-Freshman) class. He remained at the academy for four years (until the end of the 1866-67 academic year), although it appears that he did not advance past the freshman class and did not receive a degree. Two years later (during the 1869-70 academic year), Gil attended Columbia University. Gil was listed as a "special student pursuing a partial course" in the School of Mines.
Gil moved with his family to South Carolina in early 1869 to found a farming community in Chesterfield county. By August, Gil had left Chesterfield county for the city of Columbia by August 1870.
In Columbia, Gil worked as a newspaper reporter. He worked a correspondent for the Charleston News and Courier, as editor for the Charleston Republican, and as city editor for a Columbia daily paper. He is also reported to have established an (unnamed) weekly newspaper in Sumter in 1872. He wrote an important account of Ku Klux violence in Chesterfield county in 1870. His writing is reproduced in the entry "Letter from the Fox Family"
Gil's journalism got him into trouble in 1871. That January the General Assembly began to impeach T. O. P. Vernon, the judge for the 7th Judicial Circuit. The reasons for impeachment are unclear. Vernon's accusers claimed that he had habitually shown up to court drunk and was generally neglecting his duties. However, White Conservatives alleged that the impeachment was politically motivated. The impeachment charge was based on an investigation that was launched shortly after Vernon issued a writ of habeas corpus that freed a group of White men who were accused of murdering several Republicans on the day of the 1870 election. Some Conservatives alleged that investigation was an act of retaliation.
Upon receiving notice of the impeachment charges, Vernon responded by offering to resign from his judgeship. This created confusion. It was unclear if his resignation would be accepted and, if accepted, whether the impeachment proceedings would continue. Some expressed concern that continuing with impeachment, in light of Vernon's offer to resign, would be a needless financial expense.
Gil commented on the impeachment proceedings in a January 20 article in the Charleston Daily News. In an article titled "The Impeachment Job," Gil wrote that "the impeachment trial has turned into a job which will be put through to the benefit of" state senator B. F. Whittemore. Despite Judge Vernon offer to resign, Whittemore planned to move forward with proceedings. Whittemore stood to financially benefit from this decision, according to Gil. Gil wrote that the proceedings would generate about $4800 in ticket sales, and a resolution authorized the clerk of the Senate to draw $1500 for incidental expenses.
State legislators evidently took great offense at Gil's article. A Senate special committee was appointed to inquire into the charges that he had made. Three days later (on January 23), Gil responded in a letter sent to the committee chairman. He explained that his article was intended "entirely as a joke" and offered an apology "[i]f I have been so unfortunate as to make it appear a serious matter."
In its report, the committee confirmed that there was no evidence supporting the charges in Gil's article. They further reported that another reporter (left unnamed) said that Gil wrote the article "for the purpose of creating a sensation." Rather than accepting Gil's explanation that he had made a harmless joke, the committee wrote that they were of the opinion that he had "wantonly trifled with the character and good name of the Senate, and of a Senator." Upon the Committee's recommendation, Gil was expelled from the Senate floor. At the end of the month, the Charleston Daily News announced that it had ended its connection with Gil. No explanation was offered, although given the timing, this was presumably in response to the rebuke by the General Assembly.
Judge Vernon resignation was accepted shortly after Gil's article appeared (on January 24). By this time, the state Senate had already organized a court of impeachment, but the senators unanimously passed a vote to adjourn the court sine die, effectively bringing the matter to a close.
In addition to his newspaper work, Gil received several government appointments. In August 1870, he was appointed a Notary Public by Governor Scott. In that capacity, he took an affidavit related to an important controversy. In early January 1871, the New York Sun newspaper published an article that alleged that an agent for Governor Scott had traveled to New York City and recruited twenty-five "roughs" led by Colonel James E. Kerrigan, a former Union army officer. Ostensibly, Kerrigan's men were commissioned as state constables and were brought to South Carolina to protect a gold mine in York county. However, the article alleged that they were in fact brought in to commit acts of violence. The governor allegedly offered them $30,000 if five men were "removed" from Union county. In a subsequent meeting, the governor's private secretary was alleged to have explained to Kerrigan's men that they were to "clean out" seventy citizens in the county. At the same meeting, state senator Joseph Crews (a scalawag from Laurens county) allegedly asked the men to rob and murder three men in his county. Both Crews and the governor's secretary were said to have offered the Kerrigan's men legal protection and financial compensation. The article reported that Kerrigan had instructed his men not to carry out the requested attacks until they were offered more money. Rather than increasing their compensation, the Chief of Police recalled them and then the governor paid them to leave the state.
Governor Scott, Senator Crews, and their supporters publicly denied the allegations in strong terms. In support of his statement, Crews submitted an affidavit that was sworn to and subscribed before Gil (in Gil's capacity as notary public). Crews acknowledged that he had met with Kerrigan's men. However, he denied trying to employ them to commit murder. Instead, he said they approached him and offered to assassinate anyone he wanted "out of the way." Crews said he responded by stating that he expected to address seek redress for any offensives through civil law rather than by hiring assassins. He then ended the meeting and resolved to only meet with Kerrigan again if other witnesses present.
According to Crews, Kerrigan's men left for Union county after their meeting when him. Upon their return to Columbia, he said that one of the men asked him to influence the governor to increase the men's pay. Crews said he declined to do so. Later, Crews said, some of Kerrigan's men visited him a third time while he was in New York City. He alleged that one of the men threatened to "publish a card" against him unless they were given a sum of money. Crews again declined to help them obtain further financial compensation. This final meeting, Crews said, brought his involvement with the matter to an end.
The governor's secretary also submitted an affidavit sworn to and subscribed before Gil. The secretary's affidavit was a brief statement saying that he never had a conversation with any of Kerrigan's men on the topic of assassinations and he knows nothing of any communications regarding the topic.
South Carolina newspapers reported on the allegations regarding Kerrigan's men and published the affidavits by Crews and the governor's secretary as well as affidavits in support of the original allegations. Although one state legislator (Timothy Hurley) proposed that the Legislature conduct an investigation, this was not done, and the matter appears to have fallen out of the public eye by February 1871.
Gil was also appointed as Aide-de-Camp in the state militia by Governor Scott in April 1872. It appears that Gil did not serve in this role for long as he does not appear in a list of militia officers published in the Adjutant's October 1873 report to the General Assembly. It would have been natural for him to step down from the position in December 1872 since Scott's term as governor ended that month.
Gil also worked as a bookkeeper for the state Lunatic Asylum and as a census taker for Chesterfield county in 1870,
While Gil appears to have supported the Republican Party, he was also employed by Conservative Democrats. In 1871, he worked as the stenography for a state Tax-Payer's Convention (an important meeting of Conservatives) held that May.
Gil appears to have been active as a stenographer during this time. According to a newspaper article, Gil published several treatises on subject. Unfortunately, the article does not mention the titles of these publications, and they have not otherwise been identified.
Gil continued his education while living in Columbia. On October 7, 1874, he matriculated into the law school of the University of South Carolina. He never completed a degree, although he was still enrolled as a law student in January 1876.
In 1876, Gil began working in Washington DC. That year he was hired by U.S. Vice President Thomas W. Ferry to serve as his private secretary. He later served as private secretary for Senator Nathaniel P. Hill of Colorado. It is unclear exactly when Gil served as Hill's secretary, although it was presumably during Hill's time in office (from 1879 to 1885).
Gil had moved to Washington DC by 1878. In addition to his work as a private secretary, Gil was hired as a federal clerk. He would remain in the profession for the rest of his life. He worked in the Office of the Surgeon-General around 1889 and for the Senate Committee on Post Offices and Post Roads. However, most of his time was spent working for the post office. He worked for the railway mail service during the late 1870s (serving the line running from Washington DC to New York City). In the 1890s and 1900s, he was employed in the General Office of the Post-Office Department. His last position was in the office of the Third Assistant Postmaster General.
Gil moved to Hyattsville, Maryland around 1900. Hyattsville is a suburb of DC, and Gil continued to work in DC. However, he became active in local affairs. He served as a steward in the Metropolitan Methodist Episcopal Church and was active in the church choir. Gil had long been involved with the Methodist church. For example, in 1876 he wrote a biographic sketch of the Methodist bishop John Philip Newman (an aquantance of hsi father's) that was published in the Christian Union of New York.
Gil was also active in local politics. He was especially supportive of the prohibition movement. In 1903, he ran as a Prohibition party candidate for the Maryland House of Delegates. Gil (along with all other Prohibition party candidates) lost the election by a wide margin. He only received 51 votes, while each winning candidate received roughly 2000 votes. All the winning candidates were Democrats, and in general, the Democrats swept the county elections that year.
In April 1905, Gil was appointed as a clerk for the upcoming Hyattsville mayoral election. Unfortunately, he fell ill that around the end of November. His health worsened, and on October 4, he died. The cause of death was given as nephritis and pneumonia. He was buried in Glenwood Cemetery in Washington DC.
Sources
1) 1850; Census Place: Hartford, Hartford, Connecticut; Roll: 41; Page: 300b
2) Census of the state of New York, for 1855. Microfilm. Various County Clerk Offices, New York
3) 1860; Census Place: Ashland, Greene, New York; Page: 897; Family History Library Film: 803758
4) 1870; Census Place: Old Store, Chesterfield, South Carolina; Roll: M593_1491; Page: 366A; Family History Library Film: 552990
5) 1870; Census Place: Old Store, Chesterfield, South Carolina; Roll: M593_1491; Page: 359A; Family History Library Film: 552990
6) 1880; Census Place: Washington, Washington, District of Columbia, District of Columbia; Roll: 123; Page: 284D; Enumeration District: 057
7) 1900; Census Place: Hyattsville, Prince George, Maryland; Page: 4; Enumeration District: 0092; FHL microfilm: 1240626
8) Columbia, South Carolina, U.S., City Directories, 1875
9) Washington, District of Columbia, City Directory, 1878
10) District of Columbia, Glenwood Cemetery Records, 1854-2013. Salt Lake City, UT, USA: FamilySearch, 2019
11) "Personal" National Republican (Washington, DC). June 14, 1876. p. 1.
12) The Charleston Daily News, January 1871. p. 2.
13) "Personal" National Republican (Washington, DC). October 3, 1876. p. 1.
14) The Daily Phoenix (Columbia, SC). August 16, 1870. p. 2.
15) "The Charge Against Governor Scott." The Charleston daily news, January 19, 1871, p. 2.
16) "Experience of New York Roughs in South Carolina." The daily phoenix, January 24, 1871, p. 2.
17) "The 'Roughs' of New York Outdone." The daily phoenix, January 26, 1871, p. 2.
18) "The Assassination Plot" The Charleston Daily News, January 25, 1871. p. 1.
19) "The Assassination Business." The daily phoenix, January 31, 1871, p. 2.
20) The Charleston daily news, January 31, 1871, p. 2.
21) "Legislature of South Carolina." The Anderson intelligencer. [SC], February 2, 1871, p. 1.
22) "Local Items." The daily phoenix, June 22, 1871, p. 2.
23) "Local Items" Daily Phoenix, April 19, 1872. p. 2.
24) The Anderson intelligencer, May 2, 1872, p. 2.
25) "Personal." National Republican [Washington DC], May 13, 1876. p. 1.
26) "Personal." National Republican [Washington DC], October 3, 1876, p. 1.
27) "Official Ballot of Prince George's County." The Prince George's Enquirer and Southern Maryland Advertiser. October 23, 1903. p. 2.
28) "Prohibitionists Nominate Candidates for House of Delegates." Evening Star [Washington, DC]. October 27, 1903. p. 18.
29) "Results may be mixed." Evening Star [Washington, DC]. November 3, 1903. p. 20.
30) The Prince George's Enquirer and Southern Maryland Advertiser. November 6, 1903. p. 2.
31) "Hyattsville Council Meets." Evening Star [Washington DC], April 24, 1908. p. 15.
32) Evening Star [Washington, DC]. October 4, 1908.
33) "Gilbert D. Fox Dead." Evening Star [Washington, DC], October 5, 1908. pp. 4.
34) "News of the State." The News [Frederick, Maryland], October 6, 1908. p. 5.
35) "Hyattsville." Evening Star [Washington, DC], July 28, 1893. p. 8.
36) Catalogue of the Officers and Students of Columbia College for the Year 1869-1870. D. Van Nostrand, New York (1869).
37) Fifteenth Annual Register of the Free Academy of the City of New York, 1863-1864. Macoy & Herwig, New York (1863).
38) Sixteenth Annual Register of the Free Academy of the City of New York, 1864-1865. Unknown publisher, New York (1864).
39) Seventeenth Annual Register of the Free Academy of the City of New York, 1865-1866. Unknown publisher, New York (1865).
40) Eighteenth Annual Register of the Free Academy of the City of New York, 1866-1867. Unknown publisher, New York (1866).
41) Official Register of the United States, Containing a List of Officers and Employees in the Civil, Military, and Naval Service, Vol. 2. (1879). p. 21.
42) Official Register of the United States, Containing a List of the Officers and Employees in the Civil, Military, and Naval Service Together with a List of Vessels Belonging to the United States, Vol. 1. (1889). 291.
43) Official Register of the United States, Containing a List of the Officers and Employees in the Civil, Military, and Naval Service Together with a List of Vessels Belonging to the United States, Vol. 1. (1899). p. 881.
44) Department of Commerce and Labor, Bureau of the Census. Official Register of the United States, Containing a List of the Officers and Employees in the Civil, Military, and Naval Service: 1905,
45) Reports and Resolutions of the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina at the Regular Session, 1870-'71. Republican Printing Company, Columbia SC (1871). pp 1400-1401.
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