USA > Connecticut > Encyclopedia of Connecticut biography, genealogical-memorial; representative citizens, v. 10 > Part 53
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There is no profession more honorable than that of medicine, and in his career Dr. Stevenson has furnished an exempli- fication of the highest virtues of this call- ing
JANSEN, Edward Overton, Lawyer, Public Official.
The influence exerted by Edward O. Jansen, one of the leading lawyers of Stamford, and his usefulness in his com- munity cannot be gauged by a mere enumeration of the offices held by him. He is one of the most public-spirited of Stamford's citizens and his success in his professional life is a well deserved one. Mr. Jansen was born in Stamford, Janu- ary 18, 1883, son of Emil and Oline (An- derson) Jansen.
Emil Jansen, his father, was born in Norway in 1853, and died in 1907. He was about eighteen years of age when he came to America, and here learned the trade of iron moulder. He was first em- ployed by the Stamford Foundry Com- pany and later by The Yale & Towne Manufacturing Company. After some years he entered the employ of the Dav- enport & Tracy Piano Company and was with them until his death. Mr. Jansen was a member of Rippowam Lodge, In- dependent Order of Odd Fellows, of Stamford. He married Oline Anderson, a native of Norway, and they were the parents of the following children: I.
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Jennie, wife of Frank Pinney, of Sound Beach. 2. Antoinette, wife of J. Clarke Foster, of Haydenville, Massachusetts. 3. Lillian, wife of Archie M. Webb, of Stamford. 4. Edward Overton, of fur- ther mention. 5. Emma, married Walter E. Hoyt, of Stamford. 6. Alfred, of Stam- ford. 7. William, deceased. 8. Oscar, of Stamford. 9. Christine, married William M. Conron, of Stamford. 10. James Leon, served in the late war. The family are members of St. John's Episcopal Church of Stamford.
Edward Overton Jansen was born in Stamford. He was educated in the pub- lic schools of that city. In 1902 he grad- uated from the Stamford High School, and for the ensuing year taught school in Littleton, New Hampshire. On his re- turn to Stamford he entered the law office of Reid & Young and there took up the study of law, supplementing this with tutoring. In January, 1910, Mr. Jansen was admitted to the Connecticut bar, and has since been engaged in active prac- tice, never having admitted a partner.
He has ever been interested in public matters, and in politics is an Independ- ent Republican. Since 1911 he has been a member of the Common Council, and has served on most of the committees. He has been identified with all the con- structive measures that have been passed while he has been in the Council. When Mayor Brown died Mr. Jansen was coun- cilman-at-large and was considered the logical candidate to succeed him, but lost the election by one vote. He has done work on the stump in every election. For about two years he served as prosecuting attorney of the City Court.
Mr. Jansen married Annie Waterbury, daughter of George Henry Waterbury, of Darien, Connecticut, and they were the parents of four children: George E., Mary E., Doris A., Robert A.
Mr. and Mrs. Jansen with their family attend St. John's Episcopal Church, of which Mr. Jansen has served as treas- urer of the chapel, and at one time was a member of the executive committee of the chapel.
(The Waterbury Line).
(I) The first to settle in Stamford of this name was John Waterbury, who was among those who came from Wethers- field, Connecticut. He received a grant of land in 1650, and died eight years later. Lieutenant David Waterbury, his son, was born in 1655. He married Sarah Weed and they were the parents of David (2) Waterbury, born November 9, 1701. His son, David (3) Waterbury, married, in December, 1751, Jemima Knapp, and they were the parents of Moses Water- bury. The latter was born May 26, 1770, and married Keziah Weed. Their son, William Waterbury, was born October 30, 1802, and married Barbara Hall. Their son, Jonathan Miller Waterbury. was born in 1830, and died June 3, 1904. He was a farmer throughout his lifetime. He married Josephine Johnson, daughter of Captain Henry Johnson, of the town of Greenwich. Their son, George Henry Waterbury, was born February 26, 1857, in Noroton, and was educated in the pub- lic schools. He began to follow the water as a boy and became owner of a sloop in partnership with Frank Webb. Later he was employed in the ice business for about twenty-four years, and since that time has been engaged in farming. He is a member of the Senior Order of United American Mechanics ; and Leeds Council, of Stamford. He married Elizabeth Neil, daughter of Robert Neil, born August 3, 1856, died January 3, 1917. They were the parents of seven children, among whom was Annie, who became the wife of Edward O. Jansen, as above noted.
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NICHOLS, Clifford Le Grande, Dentist.
The Nichols family has been resident in New England for many generations, exemplifying that type of citizenship which leads in national growth and prog- ress. The immigrant ancestor of the family, Sergeant Francis Nichols, was born in England, and was among the early settlers of Stratford, Connecticut, where he was living as early as 1639. He had a military training and belonged to the Horse Guards of London, it is be- lieved. He was closely related to Colonel Richard Nichols. He owned land in Southold, Long Island, and his estate was distributed among his children before his death.
(I) A descendant of this worthy pio- neer, Andrew B. Nichols, was born in Newtown, Connecticut, and removed to Trumbull, Connecticut, with his brother, David Nichols, and they farmed in part- nership for some years, later separating each to a farm owned personally. An- drew B. Nichols married Mary Thorpe.
(II) Plumb Beach Nichols, son of An- drew B. and Mary (Thorpe) Nichols, was born in Trumbull, Connecticut, where he still resides. Mr. Nichols has always been a farmer on the old homestead, and has been among the substantial and worth-while citizens of his community many years. In politics he is a Repub- lican, and served as selectman, and has been an office holder in the Congrega- tional church more or less all his life. He is also a member of the Grange. Mr. Nichols married (first) Esther Hudson, daughter of William Hudson, of Bethle- hem, and she died in 1888. He married (second) a widow, Mrs. Ida Watrous. By the first marriage there were two chil- dren : Clifford Le Grande, of further men-
tion, and Lena Grace, wife of Harold Holmes, of Stratford, Connecticut.
(III) Clifford Le Grande Nichols, son of Plumb B. and Esther (Hudson) Nich- ols, was born September 10, 1871, in Trumbull, Connecticut. He remained on the home farm until he was seventeen years of age. Then he began the study of dentistry under the preceptorship of Dr. A. C. Peck, of Woodbury, Connecti- cut, with whom he remained three years. He then went to Bridgeport, Connecti- cut, and was associated with Dr. Hinds- ley there for a year. On September 10, 1892, Dr. Nichols opened an office of his own in the very quarters he now occupies in Westport ; after six years he removed to Guilford, Connecticut, where he prac- ticed for three years, thence he went to Woodbury, remaining for thirteen years. His health failing about this time, Dr. Nichols took a needed rest until Septem- ber 1, 1919, in which year he re-opened the office where he first started to prac- tice. Dr. Nichols is a member of the Connecticut State Dental Society, and is among the well-esteemed citizens of Westport.
Dr. Nichols married Edith L. Row- land, daughter of Charles Rowland, of Bethel, Connecticut, and they are the par- ents of three children : I. Clifford Row- land, resides in Westport; he enlisted when he was seventeen years old in the Norwalk 6th Company and was sent to Fort Terry; from there he was trans- ferred to the 56th Coast Artillery and went to France as a first cornet player in its band; when his division started for the front he went forward as an automo- bile mechanic for the supply company, but when the armistice was signed and his division was ordered home he was asked to take his place in the band which he was glad to do. In his younger days,
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Dr. Nichols played a trombone in a band for six years. 2. Rutherford Lyon, born January 7, 1906. 3. Harold Judson, born March 20, 1917.
JAEGER, Charles Rene, Floriculturist.
The thorough technical training that Mr. Jaeger received in European insti- tutions qualifying him for advanced chem- ical research has been used by him in his American home only indirectly. Floricul- ture has claimed him since 1901, and he is now engaged in that line in Rowayton, Connecticut. Mr. Jaeger is a son of Hugo and Caroline (Danner) Jaeger, his father born in Aarau, Canton of Aargau, Switz- erland, in 1840. Hugo Jaeger as a young man was a travelling salesman for a silk house, covering Northern Africa, and in his travels experienced the discomforts and dangers of the Sahara, and contact with rude peoples. Subsequently he be- came a dealer in dye stuffs, and was en- gaged in business in Rouen, France, nearly all his life. His death occurred in 1900. His wife, Caroline Jaeger, was a daughter of Eugene Danner, and was born in Rouen. They were the parents of: Maurice, deceased, who succeeded his father in business, and resided in Rouen ; Henri E., a florist of Pasadena, California ; and Charles Rene, of whom further.
Charles Rene Jaeger was born in Rouen, the historical capital of Normandy, Au- gust 27, 1880. He attended the Lyceé Corneille, and after the completion of his course in that institution entered the chemistry school, whence he was gradu- ated B. S. in 1898. He pursued post- graduate work in chemistry at Winter- thur, Switzerland, and after two years in Switzerland came to the United States. He joined his brother Henri E., then a re-
tail florist of New York City, in 1901, and became a partner in his business, which was conducted under the firm name of Henri E. Jaeger, Incorporated. After an association of eight years, Henri E. Jaeger went to Pasadena, California, where he is now (1920) engaged in the same line. Mr. Jaeger continued the New York business independently until 1917, and on August I, 1917, moved to Rowayton, Connecticut, to take charge of the green houses of Treandley & Schenck, florists of New York City. The houses of this firm are under 182,000 square feet of glass, and about fifty men are employed under Mr. Jaeger's direction, this force specializing in the production of roses, their bushes yielding about three million blooms a year. Mr. Jaeger is a skilled florist, master of the most modern methods of floriculture, and able through his tech- nical training to make fine discrimina- tion between those soil ingredients best suited for different forms of plant life. Mr. Jaeger is a member of South Nor- walk Lodge, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks.
Mr. Jaeger married Ada Murphy, a native of Lancaster, England, and they are the parents of one son, André Hugo, and a daughter, Shirley.
NASH, William Augustus,
Man of Enterprise.
One of the representative manufactur- ers of South Norwalk, Connecticut, and one of its leading citizens, William Au- gustus Nash, formerly superintendent of Jerome Frank & Company, dress manu- facturers, was born July 1, 1868, in Whitestone, Long Island, son of Captain David and Betsey (Wood) Nash. Mr. Nash is a member of one of the oldest New England families, which from the
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earliest Colonial times has held a dis- tinguished place in the regard of the com- munity.
The name of Nash is of Saxon origin. In the early times the prefix, atte, was much used with the first surnames; as atte Wood, and for euphony, an "n" was often added. Such was the case with the name Atte-n-Ash. In the natural evolu- tion of the name, the prefix was dropped and the name became Nash. In all prob- ability the first bearer of the name lived near an ash tree or an ash wood.
The earliest known ancestor of the family, Edward Nash, was born in Lan- caster, England, in August, 1592, in the reign of Queen Elizabeth.
Edward (2) Nash, son of Edward (1) Nash, was the ancestor of the New Eng- land family. He was born in Lancaster, in 1623, and emigrated to America about 1649-50. He resided in Stratford, Con- necticut, for two years, where his daugh- ter, Anna, was born January 18, 1651. In 1652 he removed to Norwalk, Connecti- cut, and there followed his occupation of tanner near where Christ Episcopal Church now stands in East Norwalk. There was a stream of water there which was used by Edward Nash in his busi- ness of tanner. It is believed that he was the first hearthstone occupant of the town of Norwalk, and the early records give no cause to doubt it. In 1690 he had a large estate rated at £216, and unvary- ing tradition says he lived to the age of seventy-six years. His son, John Nash, was the first male white child born in Norwalk. It is from this immigrant that the father of William A. Nash descended.
Captain David Nash was born in West- port, Connecticut. He was in the oyster business from boyhood, and at one time was engaged in oyster planting on his own account. While yet a young man, Captain Nash became commander of a
vessel. He married Betsey Wood and they were the parents of two children: Annie, widow of Daniel Greene, and Wil- liam A., of further mention. Captain Nash with his family attended the Meth- odist church of Westport for many years.
William A. Nash was educated in the public schools of East Norwalk, of which town his parents became residents when he was a small lad. For six years after leaving school Mr. Nash was employed in a box factory, and the training he received there led him to a position in the box de- partment of the R. & G. Corset Company. After five years Mr. Nash became a cor- set cutter with the same firm, and was associated with them until January 6, 1919. The same month and year he ac- cepted the position of superintendent of Jerome Frank & Company, the dress manufacturers of South Norwalk, which position he held until 1921. Mr. Nash was particularly well qualified for the position through his experience and his executive ability. He had about forty- five people under his supervision. The business acumen of Mr. Nash has fre- quently shown him opportunities which he was quick to take advantage of and which have proved profitable. About
seven years ago he held concessions at Compo Beach, and within two years of that time purchased the property. He has a restaurant and about two hundred and twenty-five bath-houses, most of them leased by the season, to which in- terests he is now giving his entire time. The fraternal connections of Mr. Nash are: Member of Butler Lodge, Independ- ent Order of Odd Fellows; Improved Order of Red Men; Loyal Order of Moose; Benevolent and Protective Or- der of Elks; Putnam Hose Company, all of these organizations being in South Norwalk.
Mr. Nash married Amelia Louise Fitch,
Conn-9-25
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daughter of Theodore Fitch, of East Nor- walk, and with his wife attends the Meth- odist Episcopal church, contributing to its good works.
BACON, Addison Morris, Business Man.
Bacon is a place name derived from the ancient seigniory in Normandy whence the ancestors removed to England. The great Suffolk family of Bacon was founded by one Grainuld or Grimaldus, a relative of the great Norman chieftan, William, who came to England at the time of the Conquest and settled near Holt in Suffolk. His great-grandsons took the place name of Bacon for a sur- name. The name is still in use in the North of France. In 1082 William Bacon endowed the abbey of Holy Trinity at Caon. The Battle Rolls of England in the eleventh century and the Hundred Rolls in the thirteenth century bear the name with occasional variations in spell- ing, such as Bacun, Bachun, and Beacon. Descendants of the family were very early in Virginia. A worthy representative of this ancient surname, Addison Morris Bacon, was born in Greenwich, Connec- ticut, January 28, 1893, son of Harry M. and Gertrude (Palmer) Bacon.
Harry M. Bacon was born in New York City. When he was a small lad his Mr. Bacon married Jennie May Young, daughter of James Young, of Sound Beach, and they have one child, Harold Addison, born in January, 1917. Mrs. Bacon is a member of the Episcopal church of Sound Beach. parents located on what is now known as Keeler's Hill, Sound Beach, but which for many years has been known as Ba- con's Hill. He learned the trade of ma- chinist in Stamford with Samuel C. In- gersoll, and has followed his trade in vari- ous places since that time. Mr. Bacon married Gertrude Palmer, daughter of MUNSON, Leonard W., Addison Palmer, of Sound Beach, who Physician. engaged in business as an oyster planter Leonard W. Munson, M. D., one of the most prominent physicians of Stamford, for many years. The Palmer genealogy will be found in connection with the Connecticut, where he has been engaged
sketch of his brother, M. K. Palmer, on another page of this work. Mr. and Mrs. Bacon were the parents of the following children : Addison Morris; Martha, wife of Frederick Loeser, of Stamford; Paul- ine, wife of Richard Carter, of Stamford. The mother of these children died in 1896.
Addison Morris Bacon was educated in the public schools of Sound Beach, and then learned the trade of machinist with Adams & Company of that place. For eight years he followed his trade as a journeyman, and then for four years was a marine engineer, serving on steamers plying between Boston and New York. In 1915 he gave up the sea and became driver of the auto fire engine for the Sound Beach fire department, a position which he still holds. About two years ago, Mr. Bacon formed a partnership with Charles C. Summers, and under the firm name of Bacon & Summers they have the agency for the Essex and Crawford auto- mobiles and operate a repair and service station. There are as many as five me- chanics employed in the garage counting the members of the firm. While Mr. Ba- con is in no sense of the word a poli- tician, he is a very public-spirited citizen and can always be counted on to do his share of public service. He has held the office of constable for two years.
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in practice for many years, is a member of an old New England family, the mem- bers of which are identified with Derby, Connecticut, for many years and after- wards removed to various parts of the country.
Dr. Munson's grandfather, George Mun- son, was a native of Connecticut, and was left an orphan by the death of his parents when he was a small child. For a time he made his home with rela- tives, and later went to Breakneck, Maine, where he became in time a dealer in stone on a large scale. It was Mr. Munson who supplied the stone for the construction of the great "High Bridge" in New York City, across the Harlem Valley, and while that structure was be- ing erected he removed to the city and made his home in its vicinity for some years. While in New York he accumu- lated considerable real estate. He also established a coal, lumber and stone yard at Hastings-on-the-Hudson, and after a time opened a grocery store in connec- tion with his other business, which en- terprise proved successful. He married Frances Jones, and they were the parents of several children, one of whom was Ezra Edwin Munson, the father of Dr. Munson of this sketch.
Ezra Edwin Munson was born in 1844, in New York City, New York, and was seventeen years of age when the Civil War between the North and South broke out. He was anxious to join the Union army but his parents, thinking him too young to endure the hardships of a sol- dier's life, sent him to the West to visit his cousins in Illinois, hoping that the war fever would be less there than in the East. They were mistaken, however, and the youth, taking advantage of his opportunity, promptly enlisted as a pri- vate in Company C, 36th Regiment, Illi-
nois Volunteer Infantry, and served for three years in the army. He took part in many engagements and was wounded severely in the thigh. After the close of hostilities, he returned to his home and was taken into partnership by his father in the latter's coal, lumber and stone busi- ness at Hastings-on-the-Hudson, and he was also active in the grocery establish- ment there. After two years of this as- sociation the elder man retired from ac- tive management, and the son took over the entire business which he conducted successfully until 1883. In that year he sold out his interests to Jno. Bonnett, his brother-in-law, went on the road as a wholesale grocery salesman, and con- tinued in that line until his death. He married Emma S. Zarr, of Bedford, New York. Mrs. Munson was a woman of strong character and most lovable person- ality, a Baptist in religious belief, who was much beloved both by her family and the host of friends she made. They were the parents of five children, four of whom survive, as follows: Lillian Louise, now a deaconess of the Episcopal church at Yonkers; Leonard W., with whom we are especially concerned ; Laura, who be- came the wife of Frederick Cummings, of Yonkers; Lester D .; Herbert E.
Leonard W. Munson was born Novem- ber 16, 1868, at Hastings-on-the-Hudson, New York. He received his education in the public schools of his native place. He completed his preparation for college at the Hastings High School, in the build- ing designed and constructed by his grandfather, and then matriculated at Fort Edwards College. After his grad- uation from that institution, which took place in 1887, he remained there for three years in the capacity of instructor, and then went to New York City, where he secured a clerical position in a hardware
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establishment, and there became thor- oughly acquainted with business meth- ods. After two years spent in that occu- pation, the young man determined upon a professional career, and with this end in view entered the office of Dr. Erdman Brant and read medicine under that cap- able physician's preceptorship. He then entered the Medical Department of Georgetown University, Washington, D. C., from which he was graduated with the class of 1896, taking his degree of M. D. The young man was then ap- pointed assistant surgeon at the Emer- gency Hospital, Washington, where he remained about one year. In 1897 he re- moved to Stamford, Connecticut, and there established himself in general prac- tice, continuing successfully there ever since. Dr. Munson rapidly made an en- viable reputation for himself in his adopted community, and is now one of the recognized leaders of his profession in Stamford. He enjoys a large and high class patronage, and the complete confi- dence, not only of his clientele, but of his professional colleagues without exception. He has always taken a keen interest in the general advancement of his profession, the highest standards of which he has consistently observed in his career, and is a member of the Stamford Medical So- ciety, the Fairfield County Medical Soci- ety, the Connecticut State Medical Soci- ety and the American Medical Associa- tion.
Dr. Munson was united in marriage, April 11, 1897, with Margaret Elizabeth Berkley, a daughter of George and Louisa (Reed) Berkley, of Cumberland, Mary- land, the former a native of Pennsylvania. Dr. and Mrs. Munson are the parents of one child, Louise Frances, born March 11, 1900.
RUTLEDGE, James Bernard,
Hotel Proprietor.
The pages of biography tell of the achievements of men who have succeeded through their own efforts. These men can look back on their careers with pride, and such is true in the case of James Bernard Rutledge, one of the leading hotelmen of Fairfield county. Mr. Rut- ledge was born in County Leitrim, on the river Shannon, Ireland, September II, 1884, son of James and Mary (Costello) Rutledge.
James Rutledge, his father, was born in the same county, where he is now liv- ing. He is engaged in the dairy busi- ness. Mr. Rutledge married Mary Cos- tello, a native of that county, and they were the parents of four children, two of whom are now living. They are: Francis W. and James B. The former is asso- ciated with his brother in the hotel busi- ness.
James Bernard Rutledge received his education in a Brothers School in Carric- on-Shannon, and also in the schools in Cambridge, Massachusetts. He came to America in 1898, and lived for two or three years in East Cambridge, finding employment at whatever his hand found to do. He then went to New York City and found employment at the Waldorf- Astoria Hotel, which move was to deter- mine the entire current of his future life. For ten years he was at this hotel, start- ing as a bell-boy, working his way up step by step to more important and re- sponsible work, all the time closely ob- serving and studying a way in which to benefit himself. Such perseverance could not help but be rewarded. There is no place in the world where human nature can be better studied than in the hotel business, and it is a never ending study.
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