Page:The Biographical Dictionary of America, vol. 10.djvu/146

 THOMAS

THOMAS

in isr>4. and joinod Oeiieral nunisidt'"s army, April IM. 1S(4. He waspljiceil in c-oinmaiul of the 2d brijjade. -Ith division, 9th army corps. Army of the Potomac, and was present at the battles of the Wilderness, May, 18G4, Si)Ottsylvania, May, ISGt, and Petersburg. July, 18G4; was assigned to a sejmrate command at MaJichester, Va.; brevetted major. May 10, 1S64, for gallantry at Spottsyl- vania and lieutenant-colonel, July 30, 18G4, for services at Petersburg : promoted brigadier-gen- eral, U.S.A., Nov. 30, 1864. and brevetted colonel, brigadier-general ami major-general of volun- teers, March 13, 1865, for services during the war. He was assigned to the 1st division, 25th army corps. Army of the James, in January, 18G.5, and was honorably mustered out of the volunteer service in 1866. He was a member of the Freed- men's bureau in Kentucky and Virginia, ISGT- 69 ; was on frontier duty in Dakota, commantl- ing the troops, protecting the construction of the Northern Pacific railroad, 1869-72, and served on frontier duty in Wisconsin, W^yoming and Omaha. 1872-^4. He was on sick leave, 1884-91, and was retired from active service, July 2, 1891. Ill January, 1893. he removed to Oklahoma, O.T., where he died. Jan 23. 1897.

THOMAS, Isaiah, printer, was born in Boston, ^lass., Jan. 19. 1749 ; son of Moses Thomas. He served as apprentice to Zachariah Fowles, printer, 1755-66, whose partner he became in

1770, having meanwhile visited the West Indies and Nova Scotia. In connection with Fowles he founded The Mnasarkiisetts Sjiy, a Whig publi- cation, after a few months becoming sole editor, and for his opposition to British oppression was ordered prosecuted by Governor Hutchinson in

1771, but was not indicted. On account of its independent policy which was displeasing to many in Boston, he removed the Sjyy to W^orces- tor in April, 1775, which became its permanent location, with the exception of its temporary publication in Boston, 1776-77. He was asso- ciat<'d with Paul Revere in giving the memorable warning on April 18, 1775, against the advance of the British, and took part in the battle of Lex- ington. He issued the Neic England Almanac, 1775-1817 ; was the pioneer in importing and using music-type, 1786 ; publi.shed books and was joint printer of the Farmer's Museum, Walpole, N.H., and in 1788 founded the firm of Tiiomas &, Andrew.s, book-publishers, Bo.ston, ]\Iass., with branches in various other cities, publisiiing the Massachusrtts Magazine, eight volumes, 1789-90; a folio Bible, 1791; Watts's "Psalms and Hymns," and almost all the Bibles and school books in common use. He founded the Amer- ican Antifjuarian society of Worcester, acting as its first president : received the honorary degree of LL.D. from Allegheny college, Pa., 1818, and

is the author of a History of Printing (2 vols.). His extensive library, which contained a valu- able file of new.spapers, he bequeathed to the Antiquarian society, as well as land and a hall, with property amounting to $24,000 for its main- tenance. See memoir by Benjamin L. Thomas (1S74). He died in Worcester, Mass., April 4, 1831.

THOMAS, James, governor of Maryland, was born at De la Brooke manor, St. Mary's county, M.I., :\Iarch 11, 1785: son of William and Cath- arine (Boarman) Thomas ; grandson of Capt. John and Elizabeth (Reeves) Thomas and of Roger Brooke, and a descendant of Com. Robert Brooke, who came to America in 1650, and was the founder of De la Brooke manor. He attended Cliarlotte Hall academy, St. ]Mary's, Md., until 1804, and was graduated from the Philadelphia Medical college, 1807, entering into the practice of medicine in St. Mary's county. He was mar- ried, Jan. 26, 1808, to Elizabeth, daughter of Maj. William and Elizabeth (Thomas) Coates. He was commissioned major of the 4th Maryland cavalry, 1812, and gained tiierank of brevet majoi--general for efficient services ; was a Republican represen- tative in the state legislature, 1820-26, and was governor of Maryland, 1833-35. During his admin- istration he was forced to seek aid from President Jackson in subduing the bank riot, which followed the latter's order for the government deposits to be diverted from the national bank ; secured a loan of $2,000,000 from the legislatui'e for the comple- tion of the Baltimore and Ohio railroad, and a loan of $1,000,000 to the Susquehanna railroad, and was actively interested in the organization of a state militia. Governor Thomas died at Deep Falls. St. Mary's county. Dec. 25, 1845.

THOMAS, Jesse Burgess, senator, was born in Shepardstown, Va., in 1777 ; son of Jesse and Sabina (Symmes) Thomas ; grandson of Thomas and Elizabeth Thomas, and a descendant of Lord Baltimore. He removed with his parents to the west in 1799 ; subsequently studied law in Mason count}', Ky., and began practice ia Lawrenceburg, Indiana Territory, in March, 1803. He was a member of the territorial legislature, 1805-08, serving as speaker of the house ; w.as elected a delegate to congress from Indiana Ter- ritory (which included Illinois), to complete the unexpired term of Benjamin Parke, resigned, serving, Dec. 1, IBCS-March 3, 1809; removed to Kaskaskia, and later to Edwardsville, and upon the erection of Illinois into a territory, including the present state of W^isconsin and a part of ^Michigan, March 7, 1809, lie was appointed by President Madison judge of the U.S. supreme court for the northwestern judicial district, which position he held until 1818. He was a delegate from St. Clair county to the convention that framed the state constitution in July, 1818,