Page:The Biographical Dictionary of America, vol. 03.djvu/236

 DENSMOKE

DENTOX

he was a teacher in Washiiij^ton university, St. Louis. Mo., and in 1802 was graduated from Harvard divinity scht>ol. In October, 1S62, lie succeeded the Rev. Andrew P. Peabody as luustor of the Soutli Parish, Portsmoutli, N.H., and became a prolific contributor to periodiciils, espe- cially the i'liiturinn Jicrior^ of which he became editor in 11S!S'2. lie was also for several years a director of the American Unitarian a.^ociation. In 1SJ<:J he resigned his jKistorate in Portsmouth to take charge of the First Church in Roxbury, Bos- ton, Mass., made famous by its early pastor, John Eliot, the ai)ostle to the Indians. In 1884 he was elected president of the trustees of the Roxbury Latin .school; on Dec. 3, 1890, a member of the New England historic, genealogical societ}'; in 1893 a trustee of the Boston public library; and in June. 1898, a member of the Massachusetts historical society. Harvard conferred uy>ou him the honorary degree of D.D. in 1898. He is the author of: Historical Sketches of South Parish, Portsmouth, X.U. (1874); Historical Sketch of First Church, Eoxhury, Boston (1896); several magazine articles: and between forty and fifty published sermons.

DENSMORE, Amos, inventor, was born in Rochester, N.Y., Jan. 28, 1825; son of Joel Dens- more, a soldier in the war of 1812; and a brother of James Densmore. He was educated in the public schools and at Allegheny college, Mead- ville, Pa., and for a time assisted his father in operating a sawmill and wooden bowl factory. He engaged in the oil business near Meadville, Pa., with his brother James from 1861 until 1867, when they became interested in the Sholes & Glidden writing macliine, and from that time Amos devoted himself to its improvement and promotion. In 1888 he sold to his brother James his interest in the Remington macliine, the first typewriter put on the market, and gave his whole attention to the Densmore. In 1848 he was married to Priscilla, daughter of Hugh Compton, a .soldier in the war of 1812. He died in New York city, Oct. 14, 1893.

DENSMORE, James, manufacturer, was born in Moscow, N.Y., Feb. 3, 1820; son of Joel Dens- more. He was educated at Allegheny college and in 1848 removed to Oshkosh, Wis., where he estiiblished the Trtte Deviorrat, the first new.spaper published in the northwest. In 1851 lie removed to Huil.son, Wis., where he publislied the Star. He was next as.sociate editor of the Press, at St. Paul.. Minn., and finally of the Free Dimorrnt, at Milwaukee. Wi.s. In 1801 he removed to Mead- ville, Pa., and with his brother Amos engaged in the oil business until 1807, when he became interested in a writing machine, invented by Christopher Latham Sholes, who had been as.so- ciated with him in editing the Free Democrat.

Mr. Densmore gave to this macliine the name " tj'pewriter,'" and in company with George W. N. Yost devoted the remainder of his life to manufacturing tyi^ewriters, the Remington being the first machine put on the market by the firm of Densmore & Yo.st. lie gave the name " cali- graph ■■ to an improved machine and a later improvement was named in his honor the Dens- more t}'pewriter. He was married in 1849 to Artelis.sa Finch of Crawford county. Pa., who died in 1854; and in 1864 to Mrs. Delia R. Bar- ron. He died in Brooklyn, N.Y., Sept. 10, 1889. DENT, Frederick Tracy, soldier, was born in White Haven, St. Louis county, Mo., Dec. 17, 1820; son of Frederick F. and Ellen (Wrenshall) Dent; and brother of Julia Dent, wife of Gen. Ulysses S. Grant. He was graduated at the U.S. military academy in 1843 and served in the Mexican war, in the siege of Vera Cruz, at San Antonio, at Churubusco, where he was wounded, and at Molino del Rey. For " gallant and meri- torious conduct " at the last named battle he was brevetted 1st lieutenant and captain. In 1863 he was promoted major, commanded a regiment in the arm}' of the Potomac, was on duty in New York during the draft riots of 1863, and .served as a member of the commission for the trial of state prisoners from January to March, 1864. He was assigned to the staff of Lieutenant-General Grant with the rank of lieutenant-colonel in March,

1864, and was an aide-de-camp and present at all the engagements of the Richmond campaign to the surrender of Lee, after which he Mas military commander of the city of Riclimond, Va., and of the troops stationed in Washington, D.C., in

1865. In 1866 he was colonel and aide-de-camp on the staff of the general-in-chief and served as private secretary to President Grant, 1869-73. He was promoted brevet brigadier-general, U.S.A., and brigadier-general of volunteers in 1865 for " gallant and meritorious services in the field during the civil war"; in 1866 was trans- ferred to the 14th U.S. infantry, in 1867 to the 32d infantry as lieutenant-colonel, in 1881 to the 1st artillery as colonel, and in December, 1883, was retired at his own request, after forty years' service. He died in Denver, Col., Dec. 24, 1892.

DENTON, Franklin Evert, journalist and poet, was born in Chardon, Ohio, Nov. 22, 1859; son of Richard Evort and Lydia (Pomeroy) Den- ton; grandson of Dr. Evert Denton, a graduate of Columbia, and a distinguished practitioner in Ohio; and a lineal descendant of the Rev. Rich- ard Denton, the first Presbyterian minititer in America. At seven years of age he began to learn typesetting in the office of the Geauga Pepnhliran, published in Chardon, Ohio, and his connection with that paper continued, with occa- sional brief intervals spent at school, for eighteen