Notes on Julius Lucien Bristow (1836-1893)

By Neil Allen Bristow

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Julius Lucien Bristow was the eldest child of Reuben Louis Bristow (1811-1871) and Statira Bonaparte Stephens Bristow (1817-1902). He was born 14 December 1836 in northeastern Boone County, on a farm near the banks of the Ohio River that his grandfather, James Bristow (1770-1855) had sold to Reuben that spring.¹ He was the first of three Bristow men to bear the names and was named for two uncles: Julius Clarkson Bristow (1799-1863) and Lucien Bonaparte Stephens (1819-1899).

The first public notice of his existence was in the 1850 Census, when he was listed with his parents and siblings on their farm near Independence.²

Reuben Louis Bristow with Julius Lucien Bristow Daguerreotype, 1851

The following year, he sat with his father for a daguerreotype portrait before going off to school in Petersburg. He inherited his father's curly hair, though he retained his slender frame until well into his maturity.

In 1857 Julius married Georgie Ann Conde Corlis, daughter of Dr George William Russell Corlis and Rebecca Shropshire. Her father, a New Hampshire native, had migrated to the Bluegrass with his parents about 1814.³ Although George Corlis lived in Bourbon County, his sister, Susannah Conde Russell Corlis Respess, and brother, John Corlis, Jr (also a doctor), were neighbors of Reuben and Statira Bristow near Independence.⁴ George Corlis had died in Nov 1841, when his daughter was just a toddler.⁵ Her widowed mother married again in 1846, becoming the third wife of Lewis Coppage, who was — like the Bristows and many other early Kentuckians — from Virginia.⁶ Young Georgie soon had three half-brothers.⁷

In August of 1858 the young couple greeted a son named William, but he died before the 1860 census and there were no other known children. By 1860 Julius and Georgie had set up housekeeping in Bourbon County where he tried his hand at farming, probably with some help from Georgie's mother's family, the Shropshires.⁸

Although most of his family were supporters of the South, and a younger brother, James Jerome Bristow, did join the Confederate Army, Julius apparently managed to remain a civilian, though he did register for the draft in Bourbon County in July 1863. Accompanying Jerome into the CSA was Georgie's first cousin, William Corlis Respess (1837-1910). Willie took time out from his military duties to marry Julius' sister, Catherine Sanford Bristow (1844-1875).

By the war's end, Julius had decided to return to northern Kentucky. His grandfather, General Leonard Stephens, reported in Feb 1866, "Julius and Georgia Bristow are here. They sold out in Bourbon sometime back and he is looking around to see where they will probably relocate or settle. He has not fully decided whether he will buy a farm & persue the business of farming or whether he will try some other calling. He has gone to Covington today on that business. Their being here now is quite a relief to my feelings as I should certainly be in a bad fix without someone about while I am sick & they are both very good nurses & ready & willing to do anything they can do for Grandpa."⁹

Roebling's Covington Bridge in 1867

Julius took a job as a toll collector on the new bridge linking Covington and Cincinnati.¹⁰ The wonderful suspension span — still in use in the twenty-first century — had been proposed in the 1850s, but unsettled economic conditions and the disruptions of war had delayed its completion. Designed and built by Roebling, it was a forerunner of the much more famous Brooklyn Bridge.

Georgie's mother Rebecca had died in 1862, and when her stepfather, Lewis Coppage, died in 1866, her minor half-brothers, Joseph and Alonzo Coppage, chose Julius as their guardian.¹¹

Not long after they had moved to Covington, Georgie died in 1867. She was buried with her mother's people in Bourbon County.¹² The widower (and his young brother-in-law, Lonnie Coppage, who also worked as a toll collector) took rooms at a boarding house, where they were counted in 1870.¹³

When Reuben Bristow died in 1871, Julius served with his brother, Benjamin Franklin Bristow, as executors of their father's will.¹⁴

In 1874, probably with the aid of his uncle, Napoleon Bonaparte Stephens (1814-1887), who had followed his father, the General, into politics, Julius was elected Kenton County Clerk. (Following a term in the State legislature, Napoleon had served as Clerk of both County and Federal Courts, and by the 1870s was President of the Covington City Council.)

Katherine Almira Coombs about 1875

Two years later, on 19 Sep 1876, the 39-year old married for the second time, to Katherine Almira Coombs, the 22-year old daughter of John D. Coombs (1807-1881) and Almira Oaks Coombs (1814-1858). The ceremony, at the First Baptist Church of Covington, was performed by Dr. W. H. Felix, Pastor.¹⁵

The couple resided at 39 West 11th Street, in what was then a solid middle-class neighborhood of substantial brick and stone dwellings. An 1877 Atlas of Covington shows J L Bristow as the owner of parts of lots 135 & 134, at 39 11th St in the 4th ward of Covington.¹⁶ They appeared at this address in several editions of the city directories.¹⁷ Their neighbors included the Sheriff and the Mayor (who was Napoleon's son-in-law).

Like several of his uncles (and several descendants) Julius was a Mason, belonging to both the regular Blue Lodge and the Covington Commandery of the Knights Templar. Such fraternal ties were helpful to anyone holding or seeking elective office.

In 1880 the Bristow household included two young children, Georgie Elizabeth (1877-1891) and Beatrice Oberia (1880-1969), as well as Julius' brother Louis Lunsford Bristow (1854-1921), a graduate of the University of Virginia Law School who was just beginning practice, and their sister, Lucy Jane (1856-1939) and her husband William Chamberlain Martin (1851-1921).¹⁸ Jane and Bill were expecting the birth of their daughter, Kate, who would arrive the 11th of July.

Julius and Kate had their first son the following year. Reuben Louis Bristow, born 3 Nov 1881, was named for his grandfather, who had died ten years before — to the month. Other recent deaths in the family included Kate's father, John D. Coombs, who had died 30 April, a month after her eldest brother, Thomas Monroe Coombs, a veteran of Morgan's Raiders.¹⁹

A no-longer slender Julius about 1885

In May of 1882, Julius announced that he would leave his office as County Clerk, having served eight years.²⁰ Whether he thought two terms were long enough or whether he believed he could better his financial situation, he decided to try his hand at business.

Two years later Kate's younger brother, Joseph Bontura Coombs (1857-1951) wed Julius' youngest sister, Statira Benning Bristow (1859-1952) on 6 Feb 1884.²¹

A family tragedy made news when his uncle Napoleon's financial plight became public. Front-page headlines in The Daily Commonwealth of 17 May 1884 revealed that "N B Stephens Estate Insolvent. Debts Total $33 Thousand." The story went on to say that the former councilman was "hopelessly insolvent, [although] thought to be a rich man." He was described as being "still very weak and almost helpless from paralysis." His son, John L. Stephens, who had been a trustee for his ailing father for about two years, was not able to rescue the estate from bankruptcy. Among the creditors were Julius (mistakenly identified as a brother-in-law rather than a nephew), who was owed $1500, and a son-in-law, D Brainerd Bayless, owed $1400.²²

Things looked up that summer with the birth of their second boy, named for his father. An item in The Daily Commonwealth announcing the birth of Julius Bristow, Jr, took a political tone, "The happy father says the young Democrat is already crying for Cleveland and Hendricks."²³

Some time after leaving his County office, Julius and one of his brothers went into the hardware business together. The 1890 Williams Directory lists J. L. Bristow, Wholesale and Retail Dealer in Iron and Steel at 16 Pike Street.

Pike Street about 1890, looking west from Madison JLB's Iron shop would have been on the right in the second or third building

On Independence Day, 1891, the eldest daughter, Georgie Elizabeth Bristow, died of heart disease, less than three weeks before her 14th birthday.²⁴

By 1892, his hardware business folded, and he turned to other work. An item in the Kentucky Post in January noted that he had joined Menninger's Undertakers in an unspecified capacity.²⁵ Williams Directory for that year identified him as the Superintendent of the Lexington Turnpike Company. His selection for the position may have been aided by the fact that his mother's family had been longtime investors in the company.

A posthumous listing in the 1894 Williams Directory identified him as a general agent for Covenant Building & Loan.²⁶

Although his various commercial ventures had not worked out as he might have hoped, he continued to serve his community as a member of the Covington school board.

In the fall of 1893 he suffered a stroke, but seemed to recover. However, two days before Thanksgiving the malady returned. "Within a few steps of his house, at Fourth and Russell Streets, Tuesday evening at 5 o'clock, Julius L. Bristow dropped on the pavement and in a few moments was dead."²⁷

His funeral followed on Friday at the Baptist Church, with the Knights Templar in charge.²⁸

The respect he was accorded by his fellow citizens is shown by the extensive news coverage of his death and the continuing observances. A memorial service closed out the year, held by the YMCA.²⁹

His widow, Kate, and the children remained in Covington for a time. By 1900 she had moved to Georgetown, where her brother-in-law, Judge Louis Lunsford Bristow, lived. He aided in the education of young Lucien. When the boys came of age, they moved to the Indian Territory. When Reuben's wife, Agnes Julia Cleary, died in 1909, Kate followed to the Great Plains.³⁰

Julius and Kate and Georgie are buried in the Bristow plot at Highland Cemetery in Fort Mitchell.

 

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Notes:

¹ See my Notes on Reuben Bristow.

² 1850 Census, Kenton County, Kentucky, 129. "Julius Bristow 14 -- KY." Independence, fam 47.

³ See the sketch of his nephew, John William Respess Corlis, MD, in Biographical Cyclopedia of the Commonwealth of Kentucky (Chicago: John M. Gersham, 1896 [Reprint 1980]), 402. Photocopies of the Russell and Corlis Bibles are included in the Corlis file, Kentucky Historical Society. The Filson Club has a collection of Respess and Corlis papers.

⁴ See Letters of Leonard Stephens, 1839-1840.

⁵ There is some slight confusion in published records as to the exact date of his death. An obituary notice appeared in the Paris Western Citizen, 3 Dec 1841: "Dr. George W R Corlis, of this county on Tuesday the 13th ult. A physician of considerable attainments." The item was reprinted in Bluegrass Roots, 10:15 with the year given as 1831, which seems to be a typo. His gravestone was cited in Hisel's Headstones, Bourbon County Cemeteries, 2: George W R Corlis, MD/born at/ Providence, R I/ Dec 21, 1790/ died/ Nov 21, 1841/ Bourbon County/ age 50 yrs 11 mos. However, the Corlis Bible gives 24 Nov 1841.

⁶ Marriages of Campbell, Boone and Kenton Counties, Kentucky, 1795-1850. Coppage, Lewis & Rebecca S. Corlis, 22 Mar. 1846, m by SK, bond Wm. [Respess], notation that "both previously married", Kenton Co., KY.

⁷ 1850 Census, Bourbon County, Kentucky. 2nd district, hh 293. Lewis Coppage 48 merchant-farmer VA, Rebecca 33 KY, Russell 3, Joseph 1; George Ann Corlis 10. The brothers were Russell, Joseph and Alonzo. See John E. Manahan and Arthur Maxim Coppage, Coppage, Coppedge Chronicle, 1542-1975 (United States: s.n., 1975), 272-274. [This source lacks dates and omits Joseph.]

⁸ William's birth was recorded by the Boone County Clerk (and transcribed by ancestry.com indexers as "Wm Briston"). The Commonwealth's first effort at keeping vital statistics did not last through the Civil War years.

1860 Census, Bourbon County, Kentucky, 572. 1st District, Family 637. Julius Brister [sic] 24 MW Farmer 8,000/13,000; Georgie A C " FW 20; Russel Coppage 12, Alonzo " 10. On the Slave Schedule Julius reported a total of 18 slaves, ranging in age from 52 down to 1 year. The young couple were surrounded by Shropshires, most with even more substantial holdings in both land and slaves. He may have had some help from his parents and grandmother, Jane Bristow, as well.

⁹ Leonard Stephens to William Stephens, 20 Feb 1866. The sale of his land is recorded in Bourbon Deeds 53: 436, Bristow to Jacob & Jno Keller; also 52: 117, Bill of Sale to Edw Smith. It should be noted that whatever slaves he managed to keep during the war were freed by the legislation implementing the Thirteenth Amendment which had gone into effect in December 1865. Like other family members who had held slaves, Julius lost a significant portion of his net worth. See Aunt Polly's Diary for more on the subject.

¹⁰ Bennett Covington & Newport Directory, 1867-68, 11. "Bristow, J L. collector, Cov & Cincinnati Bridge Co, h sec 11th & Washington."

¹¹ Kenton Orders 5: 156. 19 Feb 1866, "J L Bristow chosen as guardian by Coppage, G B, and J A (over 14); appt . R L Bristow, surety." The eldest brother, Russell Corlis Coppage, was of age.

¹² Hisel's Headstones, Bourbon County Cemeteries, 2. Georgie A G Bristow/ wife of J L Bristow/ dau of G W R & R S Corlis/died at Covington, Ky/ Nov 8 1867/ aged 27 yrs 6 mos 10 das.

¹³ 1870 Census, Kenton County, Kentucky, 252, 13 Jun 1870. "Julius Bristow 30 Collector Toll Bridge — KY." Boarding House of Augusta Heron. Also counted was Alonzo Coppage, 19. His move had taken place at least a year before, as shown in an entry in Williams Covington & Newport Directory 1869, 14. "Bristow, J L. collector bds 13 W 8th."

¹⁴ Kenton Wills 1: 410.

¹⁵ Kenton Marriage Book 1: 295.

¹⁶ Covington Atlas, 34. The parcel measured 37.5 x 190; it was w of Madison, e of Washington, s side 11th. The structure has vanished, and the lot is part of a truck storage yard.

¹⁷ Williams Covington Directory 1876-77, 50 "Bristow, J L. Clerk, Kenton Co Ct, nwc 3rd & Greenup, r 39 W 11th." Williams Covington Directory 1877-79, 55. "Bristow, J L. Clerk, Kenton Co Ct, nwc 3rd & Greenup, r 39 W 11th." Williams Covington Directory 1880-81, 43. "Bristow, J L. Clerk, Kenton Co Ct & Recorder... r 39 W 11th."

¹⁸ 1880 Census, Kenton County, Kentucky, ED 4, 299. Covington 4th ward, fam 109. 39 Eleventh St. 3 Jun 1880.

¹⁹ See his Civil War Diary.

²⁰ "County Clerk Julius L Bristow will retire on his laurels and not be a candidate for re-election to that office." Daily Commonwealth, 31 May 1882, 2.

²¹ Joe followed his brother-in-law in working for a time as a toll collector for the Covington-Cincinnati bridge. Williams Covington Directory, 1890.

²² Daily Commonwealth, 17 May 1884, 2.

²³ Daily Commonwealth, 22 Aug 1884, 4. The boy was christened Lucien Jerome, in part for an uncle, James Jerome Bristow (1840-1870), who had also ridden in the CSA Kentucky Cavalry with John Hunt Morgan and died young. Following his father's death in 1893, the nine-year-old orphan again became Julius Lucien Bristow, Jr. He was known throughout his life as Lucien, but passed the full name down to his son.

²⁴ Boone County Recorder, 9 Jul 1891, 3/1.

²⁵ "J L Bristow joins Menninger's Undertakers, non-union firm who are cutting prices below union." Kentucky Post, 23 Jan 1892, 1. What's up?

²⁶ Williams Covington Directory, 1894, 43. "Bristow, J L. genl agt, Covenant Bldg & Loan 517 Madison h 92 W 4th."

²⁷ Kentucky Post, 23 Nov 1893, 8. The hint of a familial predisposition to circulatory problems can be found in the fact that his uncle Napoleon Stephens died following a crippling paralysis and his brother Jerome died at age 30 of heart disease, as did his elder daughter, Georgie at age 18. (It is possible that Jerome's heart trouble was the result of infection contracted in his time with the 2nd Kentucky Cavalry.)

²⁸ Kentucky Post, 24 Nov 1893, 1.

²⁹ Kentucky Post, 30 Dec 1893, 1.

³⁰ In 1911 she married the recently-widowed Oxley Johnson (1835-1919) of Neodesha, Kansas, who was the grandfather of Lucien's wife, Iva Dell (Blossom) Lowe (1885-1980). Kate was thus both mother-in-law and (step)grandmother to Blossom.