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THOMAS B. USHER
Originally published in 1900 |
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THOMAS B. USHER, of West Hoboken, Secretary of the New Jersey
State Board of Taxation since its inception in 1891, is descended from
sturdy Scotch ancestry, being connected with the family of which the Very
Right Rev. James Usher, D.D., Archbishop of Armagh, Ireland, was a distinguished
member. James Usher, his father, was born in Edinburgh,
Scotland, came to America about 1842, and first settled in Canada, whence
he removed in 186() to West Hoboken, N. J. He was a genealogist and
writer of family history. His large and valuable library, comprising more
than three thousand volumes, covered nearly every phase of the history of
this country, and was regarded as one of the best and finest in its line in
the United States. He died in West Hoboken. His wife, who also died
there, was Harriet Birks, daughter of John Birks and a native of England,
and their children were James Usher, of the Town of Union, a member of
the New Jersey Assembly in 1891 and 1895 and in the latter year the leader
of the Democratic minority and the party nominee for Speaker of the
House; Thomas B. Usher, the subject of this article; Walter Scott Usher, a
Captain of the police force of West Hoboken; and Wallace Bruce Usher, of
West Hoboken.
Thomas B. Usher was born in Bonnsville, Hudson County, N. J., on the 30th of March, 1861. He received a common school education in West Ho- boken, supplemented his literary studies by a business course at Cooper Union, New York, from which he was graduated at the age of nineteen, and then became a clerk in the book store of Alexander Denham, of the latter city. Subsequently he entered the employ of Bradley & Smith, brush dealers, of New York, where he remained until 1890, when, having been elected a member of the New Jersey Legislature from West Hoboken, he took his seat in the House of the Assembly and served with honor as Chairman of the Committee on Labor and Industries and as a member of the Revision Committee and of the Committee on Towns and Townships. In 1891 lie served a second terns and held the same positions on those committees. Mr. Usher had long made a serious study of those vital problems which affect the welfare and liberty of the people. His studies and observations were along original lines, principally in the field of moral and muni cipal reforms, and on entering the Legislature he at once took a prominent part, not only in the measures coming before that body, but also in the introduction of various bills, which soon gained for him a recognized leadership, especially in reform legislation. Among these bills was one separating prisoners confined in the State prisons on a basis according to their moral standing, and, although it was defeated, the measure attracted wide attention and received the support of the better elements of society. He also introduced a bill allowing a will to be probated during the lifetime of the testator, thus eliminating the chances of a legal contest and permitting the testator to see that his or her intentions were carried out. He originated and secured the passage of a bill authorizing the floating of the American flag on public school houses, another providing for the establishment and maintenance of free reading rooms in different cities, and many others of equal note and importance. On the organization of the New Jersey State Board of Taxation in March, 1891, Mr. Usher was appointed by Governor Leon Abbett the Secretary of that body, and has ever since discharged the duties of the office with credit and ability. To him is due in a large measure the board's constantly increasing usefulness. Mr. Usher is a Democrat in polities, has served as a member of the Hudson County Democratic Committee, and enjoys the confidence and respect of the entire community. He was married in September, 1882, to Dora Beegen, daughter of William and Mary Beegen and a descendant of old Holland Dutch stock. They reside in West Hoboken, and have two sons: James and Edward, both students at Blair Presbyterial Academy, Blairstown, N. J.
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