Daniel Remshart Thomas (1843 - 1916)

Born 27 Aug 1843 in Savannah, Chatham, Georgia, United States

Ancestors

Husband of Jeanne Marie Estelle (Manget) Thomas — married 1867 in Savannah, Chatham, Georgia, United States

Died 7 Apr 1916 at age 72 in Savannah, Chatham, Georgia, United States

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Biography

From: A History of Savannah and South Georgia by William Harden Volume I, Illustrated - The Lewis Publishing Company, Chicago and New York, 1913

DANIEL REMSHART THOMAS. Mr. Thomas was born in Savannah August 27. 1843. He is a son of the late John T. Thomas, whose grandparents were among the French Huguenots who arrived in Charleston about the middle of the last century, while his maternal ancestors were Salzburgers and among the early settlers of the colony of Georgia.

As a child, a delicate constitution and imperfect sight interfered with Mr. Thomas' education. In 1862 he enlisted in the Confederate array with the Tattnall Guards, First Volunteer Regiment of Georgia. After a prolonged sickness he was, on the recommendation of the post surgeon and his commanding officer, detailed for duty at district headquarters and in the war tax office. His services in this position were mostly of a clerical nature and were performed with such exactness and efficiency as to win the highest commendation.

Soon after the close of the war Mr. Thomas began business as an insurance agent in Macon, where he remained until March, 1866. From Macon he returned to Savannah, and in July of the same year became associated with Capt. D. G. Purse (now deceased), in the commission, fertilizer and coal business, which, by the application of close and undivided attention, soon became large and profitable. In December, 1878, the firm of Purse & Thomas was dissolved, Mr. Thomas continuing in the coal trade.

In 1874, his sight having become so impaired and his suffering so great, Mr. Thomas sought the aid of an oculist and an optician, from which he obtained such relief and benefit as to greatly change his life and interest him in what was transpiring about him, especially with reference to public affairs in Savannah. In the compromise made by the city with the bondholders he took an active interest. In December, 1878, upon the organization of the Sinking Fund Commission, a new department of the municipal government of Savannah, Mr. Thomas was elected an original member of this commission and served as its secretary until January, 1883, when he resigned to accept the office of alderman, to which he was elected in that year. After serving six years in the council, he was in 1891 re-elected a member of and secretary of the Sinking Fund Commission, serving at that time six and a half years, after which he was again elected a member of the city council.

Mr. Thomas served the city with great usefulness as an alderman, under the administrations of Mayors Lester, Meldrim and Myers, for a period of thirteen and a half years. He was a member of the sanitary-commission, making a thorough study of the city's system of sewerage and house drainage. He has long been known as one of the best posted authorities on these matters, and his advice, embodying the practical results of his knowledge thereof, has been considered of much value by each city administration. He was an active member and at various times chairman of several important committees of the council, including those on accounts, finance, streets and lanes, city lots and opening of streets. As chairman of the special committees on city extension and house drainage he took a very lively interest. In appreciation of his services to the city of Savannah Thomas park was named in his honor.

As treasurer of the committee for the relief of the sufferers by the Yamacraw fire, Mr. Thomas devoted a great deal of time to that beneficent work.

During the period that Mr. Thomas was a member of the council, no alderman was better acquainted with the affairs of the city than he. It is doubtful if the city ever had a public servant with such a thorough grasp of its varied affairs as had Mr. Thomas, nor one who so ably discharged his duties. The amount of money he has saved the city in various ways could hardly be estimated.

Fully a year before the expiration of Mayor Lester's last term, public sentiment apparently crystalized about Mr. Thomas as the best and most available successor. At a convention of the Democratic club held in Masonic hall January 4, 1889, Mr. Thomas was nominated for mayor, another candidate having been in the field for more than a month. The election came on in a few days and was a close one, Mr. Thomas being defeated. The following strong endorsement of him is from an editorial in the Morning News appearing during that campaign: "Mr. Thomas is a man of fine business qualifications. He has proven himself to be one of the most competent and progressive councilmen the city has ever had. The greater part of the improvements that have been made during the last few years is the result of his earnest, consistent and conscientious efforts. He may not have pleased everybody, but he has done so much better than most of those who preceded him in his present position, that those who have been disposed to find fault have not found willing listeners. He is economical and careful."

Many of the large incorporated institutions of Savannah have received the benefit of the sound judgment and practical suggestions of Mr. Thomas. He has served as director of railroad companies, banks, investment companies and such enterprises as have contributed materially in building up the city. The Brush Electric Light & Power Company, which was succeeded by the Savannah Electric Company, and De Soto Hotel each received substantial support and liberal subscriptions from Mr. Thomas. In the former company he served as vice-president for many years. He was a director in the old Savannah & Western Railroad Company and in the Citizens' Bank, and is now a director in the Savannah Investment Company, and he is still a director of the Savannah Hotel Company, which built and owns and operates the De Soto Hotel. In 1910, after a service of thirty-one years in the various offices, including that of president, of the Union Society, Mr. Thomas retired, and is thus the only ex-president of that charity. By length of service, he is the senior ruling elder of the Independent Presbyterian church. Though no longer in public office, he is still keenly interested in all the important activities of the city, and, as in former years, his advice and counsels are sought in municipal affairs and in business matters.

Mr. Thomas was married in 1867 to Miss Jennie Manget of Marietta, Georgia, who still shares the fortunes of his life. They have two living children, Mrs. John A. Robeson and John Murchison Thomas. The latter has been a member of the firm of D. R. Thomas & Son since 1892. This firm, which was organized May 13, 1892, with father and son as senior and junior members, is one of the large and successful establishments of its kind in Savannah, carrying on an extensive coal trade. Mr. Thomas has taken the York rites in Masonry, being a member of Palestine commandery.

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Daniel R. Thomas was born in Savannah on August 27, 1843 to John T. Thomas and Jane Remshart. Following the Civil War, he moved to Macon and worked as an insurance agent. In March 1866, Thomas returned to Savannah and went into the commission, fertilizer and coal business with Captain D. G. Purse.

Source: "Official Souvenir Programme, Laying of Cornerstone, New City Hall, Savannah, Georgia, August 11th, 1904." (Savannah: Daily Record Print, 1904)

Vertical Files: Savannah-City Hall/City Exchange Georgia Room, Bull Street Branch, Live Oak Public Library, Savannah, Georgia Used with permission.

In December 1878, Thomas was elected as an original member of the Sinking Fund Commission, an important new department of the city government directed towards the retirement of general bond issues. Thomas served as the Commission’s secretary until January 1883 when he resigned to become an alderman (January 22, 1883 - January 21, 1889). After six years on the City Council, he returned to his position as secretary of the Sinking Fund Commission. In 1889, he made an unsuccessful bid for Mayor of Savannah. Thomas would again serve on City Council (June 29, 1898 - December 11, 1905), during which time he would serve on the special committee to build City Hall.

Mr. Thomas served the city with great usefulness as an alderman under the administrations of Mayors Lester, Meldrim and Myers, for a period of thirteen and a half years. He was a member of the Sanitary Commission, making a thorough study of the city’'s system of sewerage and house drainage. He had long been known as one of the best posted authorities on these matters. He was at various times chairman of the Accounts, Finance, Streets and Lanes, City Lots and Opening of Streets committees of the City Council.

In 1867, Thomas married Jennie (Jeanne, or Jane) Manget of Marietta, with whom he had two children, Mrs. John A. Robeson and John Murchison Thomas. Daniel R. Thomas died on April 7, 1915 at his home at 210 East Gaston Street. He was buried in Laurel Grove Cemetery.

Sources “Daniel R. Thomas,” GBS Notebooks. Georgia Historical Society, Savannah, Georgia.

'“Daniel R. Thomas Claimed By Death'.” Savannah Morning News (8 April 1915), 12:2.

File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher October 14, 2004, 11:51 pm

Author: William Harden p. 642-644

Daniel R. Thomas bio

Daniel R. Thomas bio

Daniel R. Thomas bio

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Sources

1. ↑ "Memoirs of Georgia, Volume 2", The Southern Historical Association, 1895, pp 414-416.

• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/42182843/daniel-remshart-thomas

other sources are noted within the biography above