The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1904-05-20
A BRIEF BIOGRAPHY
Of J. S. R. Wedding---W Written
by a Friend of his Boy
hood.

was so1 OF Robert and Mary (Ha!e)
Wedding. and the young,s st OF fam
| lily of nine children. His mother
] died in his iufIncv, and at thirteen
he was thrown upon his own resour-
ces To make his way in the world.
BY industrious eff,rt he prepared
himself for and began teaching school
rat the earl aye of seventeen. His
! first school was taught near his Old
home. His fidelity to his iriends-a
marked characteristic throug hout his
liie-is fifty illustrated by an incident
connected with his first school He
kept a record of the first trustees who
favored him with employment, and
the first pupils who houored him with
obedience. and requested that this
record should be. at his death, placed
In his casket, which was faith fully
done Now will net those whose
names he so lovingly embraces In
de ath diop a flower on his grave in
the beautiful lakewood Cemetery? |
would if were they.
AT twenty-five the young man went
to HART, RI TO study law and read in
the office of c. NJ Pendleton. A few
months later he was admitted TO the
Hartford bar; Hon. H. D. McHenry,
as special Judge, signing his license
to practice law. Mr.. Wedding be-
came at once a prominent factor In
the ocal and political affairs in his
county and Safe. In 1892. Mr.. We'd
ding. rs Chairman of the Republican
| Executive Committee of Ohio county,
won from the Democrats the first dis.
tinctively Republican victory. elect
ing Morton County Judge and Rog
ers Superintendent OF Schools, which
opened the way to a complete Repub.
lican victory three years later.
About this time Gel Wedding
went before the Ohio Fiscal court to
interest its members Ia building an
iron bridge across Rough river at
Bairett's Ferry. near his old home, an
eff ri in which he WI successful, and
for which he received the gratitude OF
the peop ( of this part Of the county
Mr.. Weddings commanding per-
sonsl appt arauce and splendid ability
IS an oratt early brought him in.
to prominence as a stump spe aker.
He sp, k for the Republican party in
many towns and cities in the Com
mon WEI lth. and was several times
pitted against ex-Gcv Butkner in
Joint debate. On one occasion the
old warrior" paid a splendid tribute
to his young antagonists ability and
department. In 1892 Col. Wedding
was Vice Presider OF the Repu blican
State Convention. which met in Lou
isville In the same year he was In
dorsed BY several counties in his dis.
trict as a candidate for Congress In
that year also he orgau;z-d the first
Mckinley club lat Taylor Mines) in
the United States He organized
clubs at various other points and
stumped the greater part Of the State
for the nation al ticket that year.
December %. 1898, Col. Wedding
married Mss Lucy B. Townsend, OF
Hartford. Miss Townsend was q
daughter ofthe late Judge J. c. Town
send and lady of rare taste, culture
and intelligence-6tted to share with
her husband the sublimer. as we'll
IS the ordinary affairs of lite. "
In 1896 Col. Wedding was nomjna.
ted an elector on the Republican tick
ct for the Fourth Cong ressionsl dis
trict. He stumped the district for
Mckinley and Hobart. and was elect.
ed. being the first Republican or Ills
district to sit In a Kentucky elector-
Al college. As member from the
Stste-at-large on the committee on
resolutions In the Louisville conven
ton he helped to write the gold stand
ard platform OF that year. Col. We'd
ding was prominently mentioned by
the State papers In 1899 and again In
I9 3 as suitable candidate for the Re.
publican nomination for Lieut.. Gov.
ernor, but being a person ofexalted no.
tions OF personal dignity, and possess
ing a very sensitive nature he had al
ready tired of the indignities to which
an aspirant for political honors must
submit, and had determined to devote
his whole time to the practice of his
profession as lawyer. However. In
Il 4 ~