Page:Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography (1900, volume 5).djvu/91

Rh ton, D. f'., 30 May. 1887. He was descended from John Poore, an English yeoman, who came to this country and, in 1650, purchased "Indian Hill Farm," the homestead, which still remains in the family. When Perley was eleven years of age he was taken by his father to England, and there saw Sir Walter Scott, Lafayette, and other notable peo- ple. Leaving school after his return, lie served an apprenticeship in a printing-office at Worcester, Mass., and had edited the Athens, Ga., " Southern Whig," which his father purchased for him, fur two years before he was twenty. In 1841 he visited Europe again as attache of the American legation at Brussels, remaining abroad until 1848. During this period he acted in 1844 '8 as the historical agent of Massachusetts in France, in which capacity he filled ten folio volumes with copies of important documents, bearing date 1493-1780. illustrating them by engraved maps and water-color sketches. He was also the foreign correspondent of the Bos- ton "Atlas" during his entire stay abroad. After editing the Boston "Bee" and "Sunday Sentinel," Mr. Poore finally entered in 1854 upon his life- work, that of Washington correspondent. His let- ters to the Boston "Journal " over the signature of ' Perley," and to other papers, gained him a national reputation by their trustworthy character. For several years he also served as clerk of the committee of the U. S. senate on printing records. He was interested in military matters, had studied tactics, and during his editorial career in Boston held several staff appointments. About the same time he organized a battalion of riflemen at New- bury that formed the nucleus of a company in the 8th Massachusetts volunteers, of which organiza- tion Mr. Poore served as major for a short time during the civil war. He was also in 1874 com- mander of the Ancient and honorable artillery company of Boston, and had made a collection of material's for its projected history. Maj. Poore's vacations were spent at Indian Hill, where the farm-house contained sixty rooms filled with his- torical material, of which its owner was an indus- trious collector. During thirty years of Washing- ton life he made the acquaintance of many emi- nent men, and his fund of reminiscences was large and entertaining. He told good stories, spoke well after dinner, and was much admired in society. Among his publications were "Campaign Life of Gen. Zachary Taylor," of which 800,000 copies were circulated, and " Rise and Fall of Louis Philippe " (Boston, 1848) ; ' Early Life of Napoleon Bonaparte" (1851); "Agricultural History of Es- sex County, Mass." ; " The Conspiracy Trial for the Murder of Abraham Lincoln " (1865) ; "Fed- eral and State Charters" (2 vols., 1877); "The Political Register and Congressional Directory" (1878) ; " Life of Burnside " (1882) ; and " Perley's Reminiscences of Sixty Years in the National Me- tropolis" (Philadelphia, 1886). As secretary of the U. S. agricultural society, he became the editor of its " Journal " in 1857. He began to edit the Congressional directory in 1867, supervised the indices to the " Congressional Record," and brought out the annual abridgment, of the public docu- ments of the United States for many years. By order of congress he compiled " A Descriptive Catalogue of the Government Publications of the United States, 1774-1881 " (Washington, 1885), and also made a compilation of the various treaties negotiated by the United States government with different countries.

POPE, Albert Augustus, manufacturer, b. in Boston, Mass., 20 May, 1843. He was educated at public schools, but even as a boy was compelled to earn his own living. In 1862 he was commissioned 2d lieutenant in the 35th Massachusetts ivgimrnt. with which he continued until the close of the war, when he was mustered out with the brevet rank of lieutenant-colonel. Soon afterward he became head of a shoe-finding business. In 1877 he began to take an interest in bicycles, and during that year ordered eight from Mam-hester, England. Subse- quently he became actively engaged in their manu- facture, and it is chiefly due to his enterprise that most of the improvements of the bicycle in this country have been brought about. Col. Pope was instrumental in founding " Outing," a journal that for several years was published by him. His twin sisters. Emily Frances and ('aniline Autrusta, physicians, 1).' in Boston, Mass., 18 Feb., 184t>, were graduated at the Brookline high-school, and at the New England medical college in 1870. Subse- quently they devoted some time to hospital study in London and Paris, and on their return became attached to the New England hospital for women and children. In 1873 they established themselves in general practice, in which they have been suc- cessful. Both are members of the New England hospital medical society, and of the Massachusetts medical society, and, with Emily L. Call, they pre- pared "The Practice of Medicine in the United States " (Boston, 1881).

POPE, Charles Alexander, surgeon, b. in Huntsville, Ala., 15 March, 1818; d. in Paris, Mon- roe co., Mo., 6 July, 1870. He was educated at the University of Alabama, and studied medicine at Cincinnati medical college and at the University of Pennsylvania, where he was graduated in 1839. He spent the next two years in study in France and Germany, and on his return began to practise in St. Louis, Mo., where he soon took high rank. He became professor of anatomy, and afterward of surgery, in St. Louis university, aided in organiz- ing St. Louis medical college, and was president of the American medical association in 1853. He also took an active part in promoting the cause of edu- cation generally. Soon after the close of the civil war he gave up practice and retired to Paris, Mo., where he resided until his death.

POPE, Franklin Leonard, electrical engineer, b. in Great Barrington, Mass., 2 Dec., 1840 ; d. there, 13 Oct., 1895. He was educated in his native town, became a telegraph operator, was made assistant engineer of the American telegraph company, and filled a similar office in the Russo-American telegraph company. In association with George Blenkinsop, of Victoria, British Columbia, he made, while in that service in 1866, the first exploration of the extensive region between British Columbia and Alaska, about the sources of Skeena, Stickeen, and Yukon rivers. Subsequently he settled in New York city, where he had his office, and was engaged as an electrical engineer and expert. With Thomas A. Edison he invented in 187U the one-wire printing telegraph, known as the "ticker," which is employed in large cities for telegraphing exchange quotations. He also invented in 1872 the rail-circuit for automatically controlling electric block signals, now used on the principal railroads of the United States, and he has patented other improvements relating to railway and telegraphic service. In 1885 he was elected president of the American institute of electrical engineers. Mr. Pope had since 1884 been the editor of "The Electrical Engineer," and, besides articles in the technical, historical, and popular periodicals, is the author of " Modern Practice of the Electric Telegraph " (New York. 1871) and " Life and Work of Joseph Henry " (1879).