Charles H. Ludlum, M.D., a successful physician of Hempstead and president of the Board of Education in this village, was born in the town of Jamaica, near what is now the village of Hollis, February 21, 1843. His father, Daniel, who was born on the same place, devoted his entire active life to agricultural pursuits and now lives retired in the village of Jamaica. In religious connections he is identified with the Presbyterian Church.

The family of which our subject is a member was one of the first to settle on Long Island, having come hither from England in an early day. The first of the name of whom we have any authentic information was William Ludlum, who died in 1766. His third son, Nicholas, was born in 1732 and died in 1788, having been a captain in the British Army prior to the Revolution. His grandson, Nicholas, was a prominent and wealthy merchant in New York, and it was he was erected the cemetery chapel in Jamaica. Since the period of their settlement on the island the family has been represented by men of ability and intelligence, who have been prospered in their various callings.

The Doctor’s mother Judah Smith, was born in the town of Jamaica, at what was called One Mile Mill, her father, Thomas Smith, being the owner of the mill. She died in Jamaica in 1893. Her brother Thomas lives two miles south of that place. Our subject was the only child of his parents who attained mature years. He obtained his education in the district schools and in Union Hall Academy, after which he entered the University of New York, and graduated from the literary department with the degree of A. B. in 1863. Two years later he graduated from the medical department, after which he spent two years in Bellevue Hospital, where was added to his theoretical knowledge a broad fund of professional information gained from practical experience.

On severing his connection with the hospital the Doctor opened an office in New York City, where he carried on a general practice for seven years. Later, for three years, he was engaged in active practice in Boonton, N.J. In 1878 he came to Hempstead, where he at once took a leading position in his profession and here he has met with marked success in practice. He has also taken an active part in local affairs and has done his full share to make Hempstead the thriving and beautiful place it now is. Warmly interested in educational affairs, he has been for seven years a member of the Board of Education and is now its president. While a stanch Republican, he has never sought political honors, preferring to give his time to his private interests.

In 1868 Dr. Ludlum was united in marriage with Mary Jane, daughter of Samuel White, of Brooklyn. They are the parents of five children, namely: Clinton W., who is with the Franklin Trust Company of Brooklyn; Herbert A., who is employed in the First National Bank at Drayton, N. Dak.; Walter D., a graduate of the University of New York and now a medical student; Marion C. and Alice C., who are at home. Socially the Doctor is connected with the Royal Arcanum, in which he is past regent. He is a member of the Presbyterian Church, and for a number of years has filled the position of elder. A man of broad and humane impulses, he is by nature and education fitted for the profession which he has so successfully followed for thirty years and in which he has established a reputation for painstaking skill.

Source: "Portrait and Biographical Record of Queens County (Long Island) New York"
(Copyright 1896 by Chapman Publishing Company)

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