Page:The Biographical Dictionary of America, vol. 08.djvu/96

 XIXON

NIXON

NIXON, John Thompson, jurist, was born in Fairton, N.J.. Aug.;J1. l5<-,'0; son of Jeremiah S. Nixon, wiio removed with liis family to Bridgeton soon after his son's birth. He was graduated from the College of New Jersey, A.B., 1841. A.M., 1844, and was a tutor at the college a short time and in the family of Judge Pennybacker at Staunton, Va., where he studied law and was a<lmitted to the bar of Virginia in 1845. lie had made arrangements to form a partnership with Judge Isjiac S, Pennybacker, but upon the latter's death, Jan. 12, 1847, returned to Bridgeton, N.J., where he practised law with Judge Charles E. Elmer, one of the justices of the state supreme court, recently retired. He was a representative in the stale legislature, 1848-49, and speaker of the house in 18r)0. He was married in 1851 to Mary H.. daughter of Lucius Q. C. Elmer (q.v.), justice of the state supreme court, 1852-59. He was a Republican representative in the 36th and 3Tth congresses, 1859-63, serving on the commit- tee on commerce, and failing to secure a desired appointment as judge of the U.S. district court from President Lincoln in 1863. President Grant in 1870 appointed him as successor to Judge Richard S. Field, deceased, to whom President Lhicoln had given the office in 1863. He was a trustee of the College of New Jersey, 1864-89. In 1875 he was one of the four residuary legatees chosen by John Cleve Green (q.v.) to distribute his estate, exceeding $7,000,000. for charitable and benevo- lent objects. He was active in the old-school as- sembly of the Presbyterian church in 1809, held for the purpose of re-uniting its two branches; was a member of the committee of the general assembly to revise the form of government, and the book of discipline; was a delegate to the Pan Presbyterian council at Edinburgh, in 1877, and a director of the Princeton Theological semi- nary, 1883-89. The honorary degree of LL.D. was conferred on him by the College of New Jer- sey in 1877. He is the author of three I'evised editions of Elmer's Digest uf the Laws of New Jersey (1838), known as Nixon's Digest (1858, 1861 and 1868), and of Foiins of Proceeding under the Laics of New Jersey, an outgrowth of Elmer's Book of Forms. He died in Stuc'Kbridge, Mass.. Sej.t. 28, 1889.

NIXON, Lewis, sliipbuilder, was born in Lees- burg. Va., April 7, 1861; son of Joel Lewis and Mary Jane (Turner) Nixon; grandson of Joel and Hannah (Milburn) Nixon, and of George and Mary Pane (Beattie) Turner, and a descen- dant of John Nixon, who came to New Jersey from Inniskillcm, Ireland, about 1710. He at- tended the common schools of Leesburg. and was appointed midshipman in the U.S. navy in 1878. He was graduateil from the U.S. Naval academy at Annapolis in 1882, standing first in his cla.sSj

and was sent by the navy department to the Royal Navy college, Greenwich, England, in 1882. He was transferred to the construction corps of the U.S. navy in 1884, and in 1890 designed the battleships Oregon, Indiana and Massachusetts. He resigned from the navy in 1891; served as superintending constructor at the Cramp ship-

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yard, Philadelphia, 1891-95, and established the Crescent shipyard at Elizabeth, N.J., in 1895, where among other vessels he constructed the sub-marine torpedo boat Holland, the monitor Florida, the torpedo boat O'Brien and the cruiser Chattanooga. He was married, Jan. 29, 1891, to Sally Lewis, daughter of Col. Lafayette B. and Margaret (Robertson) Wood of Washington, D.C. He was appointed by Mayor Van Wjxk president of the East River Bridge commission in January, 1898, and was appointed consulting naval architect of the Cramp Shipbuilding com- pany: president of the International Smokeless Powder and Dynamite company; of the U.S. Long Distance Automobile Co.; the Carbon Axle Co.; the New East River Bridge commission; a trustee of Webb's Academy and Home for Ship- builders; a director of the Idaho Exploration and Mining Co.; a delegate from New York to the Democratic national convention of 1900, and vice-president of the Democratic Club of New York. On Dec. 17, 1901, lie was appointed one of twelve prominent citizens to represent capital on the board of arbitration of the industrial de- partment of the National Civic Federation, con- vened in New York city, Dec. 16, 1901, and on Jan. 11, 1902, succeeded Richard Croker (q.v.) as leader of the Tammany Hall organization in New York city, which position he resigned. May 14, 1902. He is the author of: Military Value of the Shipyard (1897), and Commercial Value of the Shipyard {\S^~,),hot\\ of which appeared in the North American Review.

NIXON, Oliver Woodson, editor, was born in Guilford county, N.C., Oct. 25, 1825; son of Samuel and Rhoda (Hubbard) Nixon; grandson of Barnabas and Sarah (Ilunnicutt) Nixon, and a descendant of Pliineas and Mary Nixon. His grandfather, Barnabas Nixon, was a prominent mover in the antishivery question in Virginia