Page:Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography (1889, volume 6).djvu/53

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TAPPAN
TAPPAN

but afterward joined in the free-soil movement at its inception. He was widely known for his droll- ery and wit and for his anti-slavery sentiments. Judge Tappan published " Cases decided in the Court of Common Pleas," with an appendix (Steu- benville, 1831). — The second Benjamin's brother, John, philanthropist, b. in Northampton, Mass., in December, 1781 ; d. in Boston, Mass., 25 March, 1871, entered mercantile life in Boston in 1799, be- came a partner in his employer's firm in 1803, and in 1807 was sole manager of the large house that was known by his name, but withdrew in 1825. He was president and treasurer of the American tract society, and was actively interested in mis- sions and in many benevolent associations of Boston. — Another brother, Arthur, b. in Northampton, Mass., 22 May, 1786 ; d. in New Haven, Conn., 23 July, 1865, was locked up while an infant in a folding bedstead. When he was discovered life was almost extinct, and headaches, to which he was subject daily through life, were ascribed to this accident. He received a common-school edu- cation, and served a seven years' apprenticeship in the hardware business in Boston, after which he established himself in Portland, Me., and subse- quently in Montreal, Canada, where he remained until the beginning of the war of 1812. In 1814 he engaged with his brother Lewis in importing British dry-goods into New York city, and after the partnership was dissolved he successfully con- tinued the business alone. Mr. Tappan was known for his public spirit and philanthropy. He was a founder of the American tract society, the largest donor for the erection of its first building, and was identified with many charitable and religious bodies. He was a founder of Oberlin college, also erecting Tappan hall there, and endowed Lane seminary in Cincinnati, and a professorship at Auburn theological seminary. With his brother Lewis he founded the New York "Journal of Commerce " in 1828, and established " The Eman- cipator" in 1833, paying the salary of the editor and all the expenses of its publication. He was an ardent Abolitionist, and as the interest in the anti-slavery cause deepened he formed, at his own rooms, the nucleus of the New York city anti- slavery society, which was publicly organized un- der his presidency at Clinton hall on 2 Oct., 1833. Mr. Tappan was also president of the American anti-slavery society, to which he contributed $1,000 a month for several years, but he withdrew in 1840 on account of the aggressive spirit that many members manifested toward the churches and the Union. During the crisis of 1837 he was forced to suspend payments, and he became bankrupt in 1842. During his late years he was connected with the mercantile agency that his brother Lewis es- tablished. He incurred the hatred of the southern slave-holders by his frequent aid to fugitives, and by his rescuing William Lloyd Garrison from im- prisonment at Baltimore. See his " Life," by Lewis Tappan (New York, 1871). — Another brother, Lewis, merchant, b. in Northampton, Mass., 23 May, 1788; d. in Brooklyn, N. Y., 21 June, 1873, received a good education, and at the age of six- teen became clerk in a dry-goods house in Boston. His employers subsequently aided him in establish- ing himself in business, and he became interested in calico-print works and in the manufacture of cotton. In 1827 he removed to New York and be- came a member of the firm of Arthur Tappan and Co., and his subsequent career was closely identi- fied with that of his brother Arthur. With the latter he established in 1828 the" Journal of Com- merce," of which he became sole owner in 1829. In 1833 he entered with vigor into the anti-slavery movement, in consequence of which his house was sacked and his furniture was destroyed by a mob in July, 1834, and at other times he and his brother suffered personal violence. He was also involved in the crisis of 1837, and afterward withdrew from the firm and established the first mercantile agency in the country, which he conducted with success. He was chief founder of the American missionary association, of which he was treasurer and after- ward president, and was an early member of Plymouth church, Brooklyn. He published the life of his brother mentioned above.


TAPPAN, Henry Philip, clergyman, b. in Rhinebeck, N. Y., 23 April, 1805; d. in Vevay, Switzerland, 15 Nov., 1881. He was graduated at Union college in 1825, and at Auburn theological seminary in 1827, and after serving for a year as associate pastor of a Dutch Reformed church in Schenectady, N. Y., became pastor of a Congrega- tional church in Pittsfield, Mass., but resigned, owing to impaired health, and visited the West Indies. In 1832 he became professor of moral phi- losophy in the University of the city of New York, which post he resigned in 1838, and opened a pri- vate school. In 1852 he was elected first chancel- lor of the University of Michigan, and secured valuable additions to the literary and scientific re- sources of the university, among which were sev- eral fine instruments for the observatory. He re- tired in 1863, and spent the rest of his life in Europe. In 1859 he was elected corresponding member of the French imperial institute, and president of the American association for the advancement of edu- cation. He devoted much attention to the subject of university education, and studied the systems of England and Germany. Union gave him the de- gree of D. D. in 1845, and Columbia that of LL. D. in 1853. Dr. Tappan published a " Review of Ed- wards's ' Inquiry into the Freedom of the Will ' " (New York, 1839) ; " The Doctrine of the Will de- termined by an Appeal to Consciousness " (1840) ; " The Doctrine of the Will applied to Moral Agency and Responsibility " (1841 ; with additions, Glas- gow, 1857) ; " Elements of Logic, together with an Introductory View of Philosophy in General and a Preliminary View of the Reason " (1844) ; " Trea- tise on University Education" (1851); "A Step from the New World to the Old, and Back Again (1852) ; and an " Introduction to Illustrious Per- sonages of the Nineteenth Century " (1853).


TAPPAN, Mason Weare, lawyer, b. in New- port, N. H., 20 Oct., 1817; d. in Bradford, N. H., 24 Oct., 1886. His father, a well-known lawyer, settled in Bradford in 1818, and was a pioneer in the anti-slavery movement. The son was educated at Kimball union academy, studied law, was ad- mitted to the bar in 1841, and acquired a large practice. He was early identified with the Whig party, and afterward was a Free-soiler and served in the legislature in 1853-'5. He was elected to congress as a Free-soiler, by a combination of the Whigs, Free-soilers, Independent Democrats, and Americans, at the time of the breaking up of the two great parties, Whigs and Democrats. He served from 3 Dec, 1855, till 3 March, 1861, and was a member of the special committee of thirty- three on the rebellious states. On 5 Feb., 1861, when a report was submitted recommending that the provisions of the constitution should be obeyed rather than amended, he made a patriotic speech in support of the government. Mr. Tappan was one of the earliest to enlist in the volunteer army and was colonel of the 1st New Hampshire regiment from May till August, 1861. Afterward he re-