Fred A Vaughan
FORMER SECRETARY OF STATE VICTIM OF APOPLEXY
Johnson County Mourns the Death of One of Its Most Popular Citizens.
Funeral Sunday
Last Friday morning the people of this section were shocked and saddened when the news flashed from lip to lip of the sudden Death of Judge Fred Vaughan of Paintsville. Business was paralyzed for the day because of the death of our leading citizen which was the chief topic of conversation and the source of great sorrow and regret.
Death came very suddenly to Judge Vaughnan when he was stricken with apoplexy and died at 10 o'clock. On Thursday he complained of not feeling very well but was in his office. Thursday night he went home complaining of a sore throat. Friday morning he was still ill and Mrs. Vaughan phoned for a physician when she discovered he was in serious condition. Neighbors were called but he was dead when the physician arrived. For the past few years Judge Vaughan had been in poor health due to high blood pressure and was treated at Frankfort before coming to Paintsville. Funeral and Burial Sunday afternoon.. The Funeral was conducted at the M E Church of which he was a member. He was a teacher at the men’s bible class at the church. Rev Foley, pastor of the church assisted the rev Webb of the First Baptist church and Rev Sowards of the Mayo Memorial Church were in charge of the service. The Johnson County Bar Association attended the funeral as a body.
Not withstanding the incessant down pouring of rain in the afternoon the church was packed with citizens to pay their last final tribute of respect to an honored townsman. Burial was on the Point overlooking Paintsville in the Mayo Cemetery.
The floral offerings were many and beautiful. Telegrams and letters of condolences were sent to Mrs. Vaughan evidenced the love and high esteem in which the judge was held by people of all sections of Kentucky. Many persons of prominence were in Paintsville Sunday to attend the funeral.
Fred A. Vaughan served two terms as judge of Johnson County and two terms in the Kentucky Legislature. During his serving as county judge he placed the county on a solid financial basis and is a well known fact that he made the county the best judge in its history. While serving as county judge he was elected Secretary of State of Kentucky and served for four years under the Morrow administration. in this capacity he rendered efficient service and at the close of the Morrow administration he was easily the outstanding figure of that four years of state government.
Last year he was removed to Paintsville and opened an office for the general practice of law. From the start he enjoyed a large practice. For the past few months he had been making an active canvas of the counties of Johnson and Marin for the office of Circuit Judge of the Twenty-fourth Judicial district. He was, without doubt, one of the most popular men of Johnson County and had he lived it was the consensus of opinion that he would have been nominated and elected by a large margin.
He is survived by his wife, his mother and a number of brothers and sisters. Mrs. Vaughan is a native of the Bluegrass section of Kentucky and was before her marriage was Miss Mary Muir Halestead of Bardstown.
The death of Judge Vaughan removes from Kentucky of this sections most prominent and able men. His Genial smile and hearty greetings had won for him the deep love and admiration of the people who knew him. In his death the county had suffered a difficult loss which would be hard to itemize.
The Rev Henry Sowards of the Mayo Church gave a history of the life of Judge Vaughan and his family connections. This account is very interesting and is published below:
(paper is torn and missing) Paintsville...Dec 8 18...his life in .. is fifty years and thirteen ... He died January 21, 1927.
In this Appalachian highland is found the descendants of the fine old families represented in our early American colonization. It was often said that it is no where in the world that you can find purer Anglo or Saxon blood in these descendants from the English colonist. The inaccessibility of these hills, isolated them from the mixture of other races and pride of family has kept the stock pure. Fred A. Vaughan was a distinguished descendant from one of these fine English families. He was the son of H S and Mary Burgess Vaughan. His father was born in Halifax VA and his mother was from Lawrence County/ His fathers first marriage was to Mary Turner of Paintsville who died in 1865. The children of the first marriage was George Bascom, Martha and Jessie and the children of the second marriage were Mary A., who married W P Williams, Alexander, Lou Emily who married the Rev W H Munsey, a Methodist minister, Jenny who married J M Williams, Fred A., Isabella, Maude and Roscoe are still living.
Fred's father H S Vaughan died at Mud Lick in 1910 and his mother is still living there.
This family in its life is an affirmation of the old adage "blood will tell". In the father of Fred Vaughan and in the grandfather and no doubt for many generations there was a strong development of the Godly piety and useful leadership. They were identical with, and active members of the Methodist Church. Fred's father was a local minister in that denomination. There is a good fortune coming out of stock such as this while in a few instances, men thus nobly born prove unworthy of such rich heritage, in the majority of the cases where Godly piety or a strong religious development enters into the legacy of life, the offspring fully measures up to the old family standards. Fred Vaughan felt the spirit of his noble ancestry within his soul. He interpreted the call and yielded himself to the life of service. He was educated in the public schools of Paintsville and in the Kentucky State College which is now the University of Kentucky.
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He was a member of the educational committee and was also on the committee having in charge the interests of the State University. For ten years he was a member of the board of Regents of the Eastern Kentucky State Normal School Fred, like his father was a member of the Methodist Episcopal Church and a warm friend of the Christian community and all people of the Christian faith,
In 1914 Fred Vaughan ,married Mary Muir Halstead, a daughter of Col Nat W. Halstead and Susan Muir Halstead of Bardstown. The married life of Mr and Mrs Vaughan had been one of devotion to each other. They have known such enrichment and congenial fellowship as to pronounce new meaning the value of the old fashion marriage and home building. Mrs Vaughan survives her husband.
This brief resume of work done by Mr Vaughan fails to convey to those who did not know him the real value of his untiring service; of the scrupulous care he gave his responsibilities of the efficiency of which he discharged each task committed to him. But you who knew him well could easily complete the picture presented. His many activities only help reveal the real character of the man, His never failing success as a candidate for office is also an expression of the high esteem and favor which he was regarded,
It has been said that he who would have friends must show himself friendly. This is but another way of saying that the number of a mans friends depends upon the character of the man.
"Friendship, peculiar boon of heaven,
The noble minds delight and pride
To men and angels only given
To all the lower world denied."
Few men had the capacity for friendship; few ever take such keen personal interest in the welfare of others. The reaction to his general warmth and the friendly atmosphere he carried was high esteem and appreciation. He made new acquaintances daily, tomorrow they were old friends. He never out himself forward but seemed to move in a charmed circle which radiated warmth in every direction. I(paper missing)
Twenty years is a long time to keep a friendship warm toward a man whom you have never see nor even hear from except indirectly. Only such a man as Fred Vaughan can hold such a a place in the lives and memories of man. When you have multiplied this one instance by many thousands you will have an accurate of the high esteem inspired by Mr Vaughan in the field of education.
Love of home is a noble emotion. Love of home, of the homeland, of the home folks is the characteristic of the Kentucky Mountaineer.
"His home, the spot of earth supremely blest."
A dearer, sweeter dearer spot than all the rest
Judge knew prominent men of his state and nation but to him they were no people like the folks of his own hills. He knew their weaknesses and knew their strength. He loved them. Out of this emotion comes true patriotism. Love of the home expresses itself in love of the home land. Love of the country can never rise higher than love of home. Fred Vaughan was born here. He grew to manhood here. He knew the birds, the animals - wild and tame, the flowers the trees and the houses, the streets the streams - and he knew the folks. These scenes to him were associated with the sunshine, the glow of the sunset and the rosy tints of the dawn.
Beautiful and sweet, sacred, hallowed memories arose from these childhood scenes and came up thru the vista of the past years to give him pleasure and pride in his native land. You can understand why and how well he appreciated and loved the Kentucky hills.
"Breathes there a man with soul so dead
Who never to himself has said,
This is my own, my native land!"
Patriotism is the nations greatest need. Without the true loyalty and devotion of its citizenship the nation can not endure. Without seeming to make any effort to do that, Fred Vaughan was a living exponent of noblest patriotism. He spent full twenty years in public service and in all that time his constituency had absolute confidence in his integrity. This man is a public servant in whose record Johnson County and the Sate of Kentucky may well take superlative pride. In these days when criticisms and investigations are the rule, in this dear departed friend of ours, we have a citizen whose integrity has always been above question. This modestly in public office, this faithfulness in the discharge of duty is the type of patriotism the nation needs.
It seems like only a few days ago since we were quite happy over the news that Mr and Mrs Vaughan were coming home again. We knew again his cheery greeting and his contagious smile. The honors of the high office had only enriched the jovial friendliness of our dear old friend. He was ours. We were his. Last Friday morning he went away again.
"Peace and rest at length have come,
All the day's toil is past;
And each heart is whispering "Home at last."
Our Lord's paschal sermon contains many comforting assurances. For two thousand years this address has been treasured by all whose hearts are aching "Let not your heart be troubled. In my Father’s house are many mansions. I go to prepare a place for you. I will come again and receive you unto myself. I will pray the Father and he shall give you another comforter. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."
God created man and crowned him the greatest of his works. It follows that the greatest thing in man is his manhood. If I were to write a eulogy on the manhood of Fred Vaughan I would want moths for its preparation and hours for its delivery. Yet a superlative tribute may be paid in a single paragraph. He has built for himself an imperishable monument in the memory of his friends and family. He was faithful as a husband, faithful in all his family relations, faithful as a friend, Now all men pay him the highest tribute that can be paid to any man in rendering a verdict on his life and character, they find him a GOOD MAN. And because there is no greater tribute to pay him and because this is so thoroughly in keeping with the quiet simplicity and the sincerity of his life, and because nothing better can be said about him, we feel we have done our utmost when we say: "He was a very good man." Nothing can be added to this. When a man has lived half a century and left behind him this unanimous verdict, he needs no other testimonial; no eulogy, no funeral oration. I commend the faithful sorrowing wife and friends to the consolation that is Christ Jesus. For even grief hath his master.
(paper missing)
The Paintsville Herald
January 20, 1927 Thursday