Manasses Jacob Grove (1824-1907)

From the Portrait and Biographical Record of the Sixth Congressional District, Maryland, 1898.

  Sporting a pair of fashionable 19th-century sideburns, Manassas Jacob Grove was a leading producer of lime in Frederick County, Maryland, and was the founder of the M.J. Grove & Son and the M.J. Grove Lime Company. A former U.S. Postmaster at Burkittsville, Maryland, Grove was elected to two non-consecutive terms in the state house of delegates from Frederick County. The son of George Washington and Elizabeth (Biser) Grove, Manasses Jacob Grove was born in Middletown, Maryland on February 17, 1824. Bestowed the unusual name Manasses, this name has its origins in antiquity, being the name of several biblical figures. These figures include the son of Joseph and Asenath mentioned in the Book of Genesis, a King of Judah, and a Hebrew tribe. The name is also spelled Manasseh, and Grove's first name has a variation in spelling, being given as "Manassas".

  A student at the Middletown Academy, Grove underwent private tutoring in Latin and Greek, and at an early age began a teaching career that extended four years. At the dawn of the Mexican-American War, Grove left his teaching post and enlisted in a cavalry company that had been raised by his maternal uncle, George Cost Biser (1810-1895). Due to a vast number of volunteer companies that had previously applied for service, Grove's company never saw combat. He returned to teaching sometime later and taught in schools in Arnoldstown, Broad Run, Jefferson, and near Middletown.

  In 1851 Grove left teaching and established a mercantile store in Broad Run, and in the year following married Susanna Jarboe (1830-1889). The couple's near four-decade marriage produced eight children: William Jarboe (1854-1937), Carrie Estelle (1859-1932), Edward Dawson (1862-1934), Margaret (died in infancy in 1865), Bernard Lee (1866-1927), James Henry (1869-1930), Eugene Ashby (died 1929), and Laura Regina (1876-1945).

  Following his marriage Grove removed to Burkittsville, Maryland, where he established another mercantile store. He first entered public life in 1852 when he was appointed U.S. Postmaster at Burkittsville, serving until 1859. Grove undertook a career change in 1859, having seen lucrative opportunities in the manufacture of lime. He would purchase a tract of land containing substantial limestone deposits in Limekiln, an area near Frederick. Grove relocated to this area around 1860 and later founded M.J. Grove & Son, a lime-producing concern that included his son William. Grove's business flourished, and by the 1890s his business was accorded substantial mention in the Portrait and Biographical Record of the Sixth Congressional District, which notes:

"The supply of fine grade limestone appears to be inexhaustible. At Lime Kiln large quarries are being worked and they own several lime kilns there, one being iron clad for the manufacture of lime with wood. They are also operating at Frederick two plants of eighteen lime kilns, three of which are iron clad for the manufacture of lime with wood. During the busy season about one hundered men are employed in the quarries and kilns."

  After many years of success Grove organized the M.J. Grove Lime Company in 1889, and also established plants in Stephens City, Virginia, and Washington, D.C. Grove accumulated substantial wealth from his business dealings, and also owned "a number of buildings and tenement houses and several fine farms aggregating about eight hundred acres." Widowed in 1889, Grove remarried in 1891 to Josephine Wilson (1849-1931), to whom he was wed until his death. 

  Remarked as "an ardent Democrat", Grove became a candidate for the Maryland House of Delegates in 1887 and was elected in November of that year. During the 1888-89 session Grove was named to the committees on Inspection, Labor, and Temperance, and in 1891 was a candidate for a second term. Profiled in the October 26, 1891 edition of the Frederick News, Grove's business dealings and previous term were highlighted, with the News remarking:

"His life has been closely identified with the progress of Frederick county, and in such matters as the improvement of public roads, the advancement of legislative measures calculated to favorably effect the interest of the greatest number, he has always been foremost and helpful on the side of the right. If reelected he would be a credit to his party and the people generally, and an honor to the official body of which he would again become a member."

From the Frederick News, October 26, 1891.

  Grove won the election that November and during the 1892-94 session sat on the committees on Amendments to the Constitution, and Pensions. After his term, Grove traveled widely, including visits to California and Canada, and was a member of the Reformed Church and the Enterprise Grange of Buckeystown, Maryland. Manasses Jacob Grove died at his home in Lime Kiln Station on February 3, 1907, aged 83. He was survived by his second wife and several of his children and was interred at the Burkittsville Union Cemetery in Burkittsville, Maryland.

From the Catoctin Clarion, February 7, 1907.