he was educated in the common schools and served in the civil war, rising to the rank of captain. he married tallulah james brockman. she was of revolutionary ancestry, her father's great-grandfather, benjamin kilgore, having been a captain of a south carolina company in the war of the revolution. she was the daughter of james h. brockman, a native of greenville district, south carolina. her education was received in the fashionable schools of tuskegee and montgomery, alabama. their two elder sons, john hollis and william brockman, were practicing lawyers. the youngest, henry mcauley, was a student at the university of alabama. the elder daughter, louise, was the wife of ex-representative w. h. perry, of greenville, south carolina, and the younger, marie, was the wife of thomas mcadory owen, a historian by profession.