Page:The Biographical Dictionary of America, vol. 06.djvu/208

 KEENER

KEESE

Spencer. He attended the public schools of New Orleans, and was graduated from South- ern university, Greensboro, Ala., A.B., 1874. He was a clergyman in the Methodist Episcopal church, south, having joined the Alabama confer- ence in 1874. He was pastor at Cahaba, 1874-77, Wetumpka, 1877-79, and Glennville, Ala., 1879-80; Milton, Fla., 1880-83; presiding elder of Mobile district, 1883-86; of Selnia district, 1886-90; of Montgomery district, 1890-92; was stationed at Mobile in 1893 and at Greensboro, 1893-94. He was married, in 1879, to Phala, daughter of the Eev. John and Mary (Menefee) Mathews. In 1894, while serving as pastor of Greensboro Sta- tion, he was called to the presidency of Southern universit.y, where he remained until his death. The honorary degree of D.D. was conferred on him Ijy Soutliern university in 1893. He repre- sented his conference in the general conferences of 1894 and 1898, and in the Ecumenical confer- ence. He died at Greensboro, Ala., Dec. 31, 1898.

KEENER, William Albert, educator, was born at Augusta, Ga., March 10, 1856. He was grad- uated from Emory college, Oxford, Ga., A.B., 1874, A.M., 1877, and began the study of law in the office of J. C. C. Black, at Augusta, Ga. He was graduated from Harvard Law school, LL.B., 1877, subsequently taking a post-graduate course there. He was admitted to the New York bar in 1879, and formed a law co-partnership under the firm name of Asliley & Keener. In 1883 he be- came assistant professor of law at Harvard col- lege, and he held the Story professorship, 1888- 90. He returned to New York, having been elected to the chair of private law in Columbia college in 1890. He became dean of the law school and professor of law in 1891, and Kent professor of law in 1893. He received the degree of LL.D. from Western University of Pennsyl- vania in 1895. He is the author of: A Treatise on Qtui si-Contracts, and edited Cases on Contracts; Cases on Equity Jurisdiction; Cases of Quasi- Contracts; Cases on Corporations, and contrib- uted to various law journals.

KEEP, John, clergyman, was born in Long Meadow, Mass., April 20. 1781. He was graduated from Yale in 1803, studied theology with the Eev. Asahel Hooke of Goshen, Conn., and was ordained to the Congregational ministry in 1805. He was married in that year to Lydia Hale, of Goshen. He was pastor at Blanford, Mass., 1805-21; and Homer, N.Y., 1821-33. He then removed to Cleveland, Oliio, where he became pastor of a newly organized Presbyterian church and where he remained until 1836. He was elected trustee of Oberlin college in 1834, and in 1837 was appointed agent to raise funds for the college, lieaditig the list with his private suliscrip- tion of $10,000. He cast the deciding vote, Feb.

9, 1835, which admitted colored students into the college; and raised funds in England in 1838-39 to carry the college through a crisis. He was pastor respectively at VVooster, Ohio, Lockport and Albion, N.Y., Mansfield and Hartford, Oliio, Arcade, N.Y., and Litchfield, Ohio, 1840-50, and then made his home in Oberlin, Ohio. He was financial agent and a trustee of Oberlin college, 1850-70; a trustee of Hamilton college, Clinton, N.Y., 1827-34; and of Auburn Theological sem- inary, Auburn, N.Y., 1833-34; and was one of the founders of the A.B.C.F.M. He died at Oberlin, Ohio. Feb. 11 or 12, 1870.

KEEP, Robert Porter, educator, was born at Farmington, Conn., April 26, 1844; son of the Rev. John R. and Rebecca (Porter) Keep; grand- son of the Rev. Dr. Noah Porter, and a descendant of John Keep, of Springfield (Longmeadow), Mass., 1660, and of Robert Porter, one of the original proprietors of Farmington, Conn., 1640. He was graduated from Yale in 1865 and was a tutor there, 1867-69. He was U.S. consul at Piraeus, Greece, 1869-71; taught Greek at Wil- liston seminary, Easthampton, Mass., 1876-85; and became principal of the Free academy at Norwich, Conn., in 1885. He received the degree of Ph.D. from Yale in 1869. He is the author of: Autenreith's Homeric Dictionary (translated, 1876); Stories from Herodotus, Book VII. of the History (1879); Essential Uses of the Moods in Greek and Latin (1882); Homer's Hiad (Books L- IIT., 1879; I.-VL, 1883); Greek Lessons (1885), and other text-books.

KEESE, John, bookseller, was born in New York city, Nov. 24, 1805; son of William and Rebecca (Linn) Keese, and grandson of John Keese, assistant deputy quartermaster-general on Washington's staff, and of the Rev, William Linn. It was decided to educate him for the ministr}% but at his father's death it became nec- essary for him to engage in business. In 1828 he became a clerk in the book-store of Collins & Hannay in New York city, and in 1836 was ad- mitted to a partnership, the firm changing its name to Collins, Keese & Co., which firm dis- solved in 1842. He went into the book auction business in 1842 under the firm name of Cooley, Keese & Hill, which, through the retirement of Mr. Hill, became Cooley & Keese. The firm was dissolved in 1854 and Mr. Keese obtained the appointment of appraiser of books in the New York custom-hou.se, which position be filled un- til 1856, ineantime employing his evenings as a book-auctioneer. Peoi)le flocked to his sales, de- claring his flow of wit as entertaining as a play. He was a man of great versatility and had a remarkable talent for improvisation, it being not unusual for him to take up a newspaper or magazine and pretend to read from it a column