USA > Connecticut > Encyclopedia of Connecticut biography, genealogical-memorial; representative citizens, v. 10 > Part 6
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having done work of exceptional value in connection with the chemistry of India rubber in Akron, Ohio, and in Liverpool, England.
The name of Spence, which is the same as Spens, signifies "the place where pro- visions are kept," "the clerk of a kitchen," and "a yard or enclosure," and is an an- cient one in Scotland, the Spences of Lathallan tracing continuously to 1296. In "Landed Gentry of Great Britain" it is recorded that "the Count de Spens, ranking among the first of the Swedish nobility, and generalissimo of their forces, sprang from this family."
(I) David Spence, grandfather of Dr. David Spence, was born in the Parish of Kingsbarns, Fifeshire, Scotland. He was engaged in business as a furnishing clo- thier and tailor. His political principles were those of a Liberal Unionist, and he was a member of the Church of Scotland (Presbyterian). He married Eliza Scott, and their children were: Alexander, men- tioned below; Helen, Jane Ritchie, David, Eliza, John, James, and Thomas Ritchie.
(II) Dr. Alexander Spence, son of Da- vid and Eliza (Scott) Spence, was born January 10, 1846, in the Parish of Kings- barns, Fifeshire, Scotland. In 1873 he graduated from the University of St. An- drew's with the degree of Master of Arts. In 1910 he received from the same Uni- versity the degree of Doctor of Divinity. After serving for a time as assistant min- ister in the Tron Parish, Edinburgh, he was appointed, in 1876, minister of the Parish of Udny, Aberdeen. He is now clerk of the Presbytery of Ellon, and rep- resentative of East Aberdeenshire on the Dick Bequest Trust, also holding other public appointments. Dr. Spence has never taken any active part in politics, but inclines to the Conservative party. During the late war he was a member of the Military Tribunal of the district of
Ellon. Dr. Spence affiliates with the Scottish Order of Odd Fellows. He mar- ried, June 15, 1876, Agnes Barclay, born in the Parish of Kingsbarns, Fifeshire, Scotland, daughter of John Barclay, a well known and much esteemed farmer of Randerston, in the east of Fife, Scot- land. Mr. Barclay retired first to Elon- park, Leven, Fifeshire, where the mar- riage of his daughter took place, and then to Edinburgh, where he died. Dr. and Mrs. Spence are the parents of the fol- lowing children : Agnes Morton Barclay, born November 12, 1879, now the wife of Dr. Harold Edgar Smith, ophthalmic sur- geon, Aberdeen; David (2), mentioned below; Eliza Barclay, deceased ; and Jo- hanna, born November 10, 1886.
(III) Dr. David (2) Spence, son of Dr. Alexander and Agnes (Barclay) Spence, was born September 26, 1882, in the Par- ish of Udny, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. He received his preparatory education at Robert Gordon's College, Aberdeen. He then entered the Royal Technical College of Glasgow, graduating with the degree of Bachelor of Science. At the same in- stitution he afterward specialized in chemistry and did post-graduate work. He then spent three years at Jena Univer- sity, Germany, receiving the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. On returning home he went to London and took the degree of Fellow of the Institute of Chemistry of Great Britain. While at Jena University he was the author of a thesis in organic chemistry.
While in Liverpool, Dr. Spence was as- sistant to the professor of Biological Chemistry in the University of Liverpool, retaining this position for about two years. It was at this time that he first turned his special attention to the inves- tigation of India rubber, and while doing research work in physiological and bio- logical chemistry, he devoted his spare
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time to the investigation of the nature of India rubber, and published several orig- inal papers thereon. His work attracted the attention of the Diamond Rubber Company of Akron, Ohio, and in 1909 he came to the United States for the pur- pose of establishing research laboratories for this company. He was in charge of that work until the company was ab- sorbed by the B. F. Goodrich Company, after which he was placed in charge of the combined laboratories of the two or- ganizations. He retained this position until 1914, when he resigned and came to Norwalk, Connecticut, as vice-president and general superintendent of the Nor- walk Tire and Rubber Company, in charge of manufacturing.
In all that concerns the welfare and progress of his community, Dr. Spence takes the helpful interest of a good cit- izen. He is a director and chairman of the executive committee of the Norwalk Hospital. The professional organizations in which he is enrolled include: The Royal Society of Arts; the "Institute of Chemistry" of London, of which he is a fellow; the Society of Chemical Industry, of London; the German Chemical So- ciety ; the American Chemical Society ; and the Society of Automotive Engi- neers. His clubs are: The Royal So- cieties' Club of London; the Chemists' Club of New York; the Woodway Coun- try Club ; and the Norwalk Country Club. Dr. Spence is the inventor of several val- uable processes in connection with the manufacture of India rubber. He is also the author of several works dealing with the chemistry of India rubber, and of many papers written for scientific jour- nals, dealing with the results of his re- search work in the various fields. Of his published works may be mentioned the following: "Lectures on India Rubber ;" "On the Presence of Oxydases in India
Rubber, with a Theory in regard to their function in the Latex;" "Ueber einige einleitende Versuche zur Klärung der Ursache des Leimigwerdens von Roh- gummi;" "Ueber die Bewertung des Kautschuks von Kickxia elastica ;" "Bei- trage zur Chemie des Kautschuks" (eight publications) ; "On the Action of Chromyl Chloride on India Rubber;" "Comparison of Some Methods for the Estimation of Sulfur in Vulcanized Rubber, with es- pecial reference to Electrolytic Oxida- tion ;" "Catalysts in Vulcanization ;" and "Ueber die unloslichen Bestandteile des Rohkautschuks."
Dr. Spence married, October 15, 1913, Doris Louise Stacy, born August 29, 1892, daughter of George Wesley and Jean Catherine (Martin) Stacy, of Bos- ton, and they are the parents of one child, Jean Barclay Spence.
(The Stacy Line).
The Stacys are an ancient family of English origin, a branch of which has been long resident in Boston and its vi- cinity. The original form of the name is Stacé, a corruption of Eustace or Statius. It is probably of continental origin, as the final "e" is sometimes accentuated, and from Stacé we get Stacey and Stacy.
James Babson Stacy, father of George Wesley Stacy, was born in Wiscasset, Maine. He married Lydia Gavett, who was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The Gavett family originally came from the Isle of Jersey.
George Wesley Stacy, son of James Babson and Lydia (Gavett) Stacy, was born December 29, 1860, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and died in Worcester, Massachusetts, in 1914. He received his education in the public and private schools of Cambridge. For twenty-one years of his business life Mr. Stacy was in charge of the varnish department of
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Wadsworth, Howland & Company, of Boston. In politics Mr. Stacy was a Re- publican, and he was a member of the Odd Fellows. Mr. Stacy and his family were members of the Broadway Congre- gational Church, of Somerville, Massa- chusetts.
Mr. Stacy married, in Cambridge, Mas- sachusetts, in March, 1883, Jean Cather- ine Martin, born in Cambridge, January 30, 1865, daughter of Thomas and Cath- erine (Colloton) Martin, the former a cabinet-maker, born in Newton-Stewart, Scotland, the later born in England. Mr. and Mrs. Stacy were the parents of three children: I. Gardner Wesley, born Au- gust 14, 1884, a student at Bowdoin Col- lege, now (1920) branch manager in Ak- ron, Ohio, for the Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company. 2. Jessie Florence, born September 14, 1886. 3. Doris Lou- ise, who married Dr. David Spence.
WRIGHT, Wilbur Seaman, Lawyer, Active Man of Affairs.
Wilbur Seaman Wright, son of Benja- min and Abigail R. (Mead) Wright, was born in Greenwich, Connecticut, Novem- ber 16, 1871.
His father, Benjamin Wright, was born in Yorktown, New York, December 14, 1834, the son of Joel and Anne (Banks) Wright. The family came to Greenwich about the year 1855, and Benjamin Wright engaged in business there. At the outbreak of the Civil War he enlisted for service and was mustered in, Septem- ber 30, 1861, as first sergeant of Company I, Ioth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry. He was promoted, September I, 1862, to second lieutenant of Company A, and in January, 1863, to first lieutenant of Com- pany C. He was for some time acting captain of Company A, and a part of the time was assistant adjutant-general of
the brigade of which the 10th Regiment was a part. He served on General Plai- sted's staff in the campaign around Pet- ersburg, Virginia. He was honorably dis- charged from the service, October 17, 1864.
In the civil life of Greenwich, Benja- min Wright was prominent. He served for three terms in the House of Repre- sentatives of Connecticut, and was for several years a member of the State Re- publican Committee. He was a charter member of Lombard Post, Grand Army of the Republic, in the organization of which he had been very active, and was its first commander. He had been for many years up to the time of his death the post quartermaster. He was a mem- ber of the Second Congregational Church, for thirty-three years its clerk, and for many years one of its deacons. He was vice-president and a trustee of the Green- wich Savings Bank.
On June 26, 1860, Mr. Wright married Abigail R. Mead, daughter of Colonel Thomas A. Mead. The genealogy of this branch of the Mead family is fully traced in Spencer P. Mead's genealogy of the Mead family. The children of this mar- riage were: Rev. Benjamin M. Wright, now deceased; Clara, Abby Louise, and Wilbur Seaman. Mrs. Wright died Oc- tober 15, 1897, and Benjamin Wright died May 16, 1913.
Wilbur Seaman Wright received his preparatory education in the public schools of the town of Greenwich and at the Greenwich Academy. He then en- tered Yale University, graduating in 1893 with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. After attending the New York Law School for one year, he completed his legal studies in the office of the Hon. R. Jay Walsh, of Greenwich, and on Janu- ary I, 1899, was admitted to the Connec- ticut bar. In the practice of his profes-
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sion Mr. Wright was associated with Judge Walsh until the latter's death, when he formed his present partnership with William Smith Hirschberg, under the firm name of Wright & Hirschberg. This firm is engaged in the general prac- tice of law. In politics Mr. Wright is a Republican. He was assistant prosecut- ing attorney for the town of Greenwich for a number of years, and is now gen- eral counsel for that town. He is a mem- ber of the committee on the admission to the Fairfield county bar of attorneys from other states without examination. He is a director and vice-president of the Western Connecticut Title & Mortgage Company, and his firm is the Greenwich counsel for that company. The principal office of that company is in Stamford, and John C. Durey of that place is its general counsel.
Besides his legal interests, Mr. Wright is active in a number of local business en- terprises. He is a director and treasurer of the Belle Haven Land Company, di- rector and vice-president of the Boswell Drug Company, a director and treasurer of the Martin Clothing Company, and a trustee of the Greenwich Savings Bank, now in process of dissolution.
He is a member of the Volunteer Fire Company, of the Field Club of Green- wich, and of the Greenwich Casino Asso- ciation. He is a member of the Second Congregational Church and has served that church in various capacities, having been member of its business committee for six years, chairman of the committee for the reconstruction of its spire, chair- man of the last pastoral committee, and the clerk of the church since the retire- ment of his father in 1912.
GOULDEN, Edward Morris,
Founder of the Goulden Van Company.
The memory of a wholesome, genial spirit is cherished by every one whose life comes within its influence. It is emi- nently fitting that the name of Edward Morris Goulden should be recorded among the names which the city of Stam- ford delights to honor. There is no serv- ice to mankind which fills a larger place in the community than the practical every-day activity of those who minister to the homely needs of the people, and the name of Goulden will long be a house- hold word in many families whose com- fort he has served.
Mr. Wright has given largely of his The name of Goulden is one of those names which are derived from the per- sonal characteristics of some ancestor who first became known by the name. Its origin is found in the Anglo-Saxon personal name, Golda, signifying golden, and was usually given to one of golden hair. In the early records it was spelled in many different ways, various forms being: Goulding, Goolding, Golding, and the form herein denoted, Goulden. The family was established in England for many generations before this branch was transplanted to America. time to public affairs. He was a member and the chairman of the Board of Esti- mate and Taxation of the town of Green- wich from its organization in 1909 to 1917, and has been chairman of the vari- ous committees which have in recent years arranged une bond issues for that town. He way a member of the Green- wich War Bord, is a director of the Young Men's Christian Association, a member of the Greenwich Library, of the Greenwich Council of Boy Scouts of America, and nas recently ended a term of service on the board of directors of Mr. Goulden's great-grandfather was the Greenwich Social Service League. a resident of Hanley, Dorset, England.
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It is said that the family of this name was the most numerous in that section. The head of this branch was an intelli- gent, upright man, well considered in the community, and for many years a soldier in the British army.
James H. Goulden, his son, was a native of Hanley. He was a carpenter by trade, and highly respected; indeed was held to be a man of considerable dignity, fill- ing the office of chorister and bell-ringer at Salisbury Cathedral. But with many other progressive men of that day, he looked ahead for the future of his chil- dren, and came to America with his fam- ily about 1836 or 1837. He married Lydia White, who was born not far distant from Hanley. She died in Elmira, New York, aged eighty-seven years.
William Goulden, father of the late Mr. Goulden, was also born in Hanley. He was only a boy when he came to America with his father. They settled in Bridge- port, Connecticut, and he grew up with the training of the American youth. He learned the trade of carpenter, taking a whole-souled interest in the work of con- struction, and putting into it the thorough excellence of workmanship which makes a structure something more than a shel- ter, something of greater significance and value. He located in Fairfield, Connecti- cut, where he engaged in business as a contractor and builder, erecting many of the best residences in that vicinity. It was a distinct loss to the community that he died in the prime of life, in 1863, at the age of thirty-eight years. He married Harriet Louisa Sturges, who was born in Fairfield in 1827, and died in 1882.
Through his mother, Mr. Goulden is descended from the early settlers of this part of Connecticut. John Sturges came to Fairfield in 1660, at which time he was thirty-seven years of age. He was made a freeman, May 14, 1669, and his name
appears on the list of three selectmen in October, 1669. He purchased a home- stead, and shared in the division of lands, becoming, as time passed, owner of a large estate. His will is dated March 4, 1697. He married Deborah, daughter of John and Ann Barlow. John Barlow was also an early settler of Fairfield.
Joseph Sturges, their son, was born in 1653, and died in 1728. He was, like his father, prosperous and a leading man in the community. He married (first) Sarah Judson, daughter of Jeremiah and Sarah (Foote) Judson, born in Stratford, April 17, 1662; a descendant of William Judson, one of the first inhabitants of the settlement of Stratford.
Solomon Sturges, the next in line, was born in Fairfield, Connecticut, in 1698; he was a man of influence and note, and took a gallant part in the War of the Rev- olution. He married, March 3, 1723, Abigail Bradley, born in 1695, daughter of John and Hannah (Sherwood) Brad- ley. Solomon Sturges met his death at the hands of the British soldiers, July 7, 1779.
Hezekiah Sturges, his son, was commis- sioned ensign of the militia company in 1765; lieutenant in 1767, and captain in 1771. He was noted for bravery and loy- alty to the cause of the Colonies. Noth- ing discouraged him, and he was utterly fearless in making known his stand on the questions of the day. His home was burned by the British, and he built again, in 1779 or 1780. His Revolutionary rec- ord was one of unswerving faithfulness. He married Abigail Dimon, born in 1732, daughter of Ebenezer and Mary (Burr) Dimon, who died in 1803. He died in 1792.
Samuel Sturges, their son, was bap- tized in 1766. He inherited considerable property from his father, which he sub- sequently lost through litigation. His
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home was burned, and he endured a suc- cession of severe trials, but he was pos- sessed of a spirit of wonderful resilence and power and won his way back to com- petence. He married Sarah Sherwood, August 12, 1798. She died February 12, 1823.
Morris Sturges, the next in line, was born May II, 1800, and baptized April 10, 1806. He married Eunice Burr Davis, of Greenfield Hill, May 31, 1824. She was a daughter of a Revolutionary soldier, and they were the parents of Harriet L., of further mention.
Harriet Louisa Sturges was born No- vember 22, 1827. She married, March 26, 1846, William Goulden, born in Dor- setshire, England.
Edward Morris Goulden was born in Fairfield, Connecticut, June 25, 1854, and died in Stamford, September 29, 1914. He was a son of William and Harriet Louisa (Sturges) Goulden. When he was only nine years old his father died, and he went to Danbury, where he lived on a farm until he became sixteen years of age, en- during many of the hardships of the lad on the farm who is always being re- quested to make himself useful. His educational opportunities were limited, but he was endowed with a mental ca- pacity for absorbing information from every available source, and a determina- tion to let no obstacle bar his way to suc- cess. He made use of every possible hour of leisure for reading and study along the lines which most interested him, ac- quiring general information when no other offered. At the age of sixteen he went to New Canaan, where he followed farming until a few years after his mar- riage, when he took up his residence on the old homestead in Fairfield. Here he engaged in the meat business, developing, unaided, a successful trade. Later he removed to Southport, and engaged in the
ice business for a time. Along these lines of experience he had the opportunity of closely observing the possibilities af- forded in the rapidly growing towns of the section for the development of a line of business in the nature of public serv- ice. Appreciating to the full the dignity and importance of every line of effort con- tributing to civic order and household necessity, he embarked in the business of moving and drayage. He was successful from the start, and a few years later, find- ing himself in a position of assured per- manence, opened a storage warehouse. The business grew constantly, and a few years before his death Mr. Goulden in- corporated it under the name of the Goul- den Van Company. He held the office of president until his death, when he was succeeded in that office by Mrs. Goulden. The business has grown and developed, following the lines instituted by its foun- der, until it is the largest of its nature in Stamford, operating four automobile vans.
Mr. Goulden married Isabella R. Tait, daughter of William and Grace (Camp) Tait. Mrs. Goulden is a descendant of an old and honored Scotch family who have for a century played an important part in the manufacturing interests of the State of Connecticut.
The children of Edward Morris and Isabella R. (Tait) Goulden are: William E., born August 6, 1876, married Edith Munson, of New Haven, and has one child, Kathryn; Grace Belle, who mar- ried Francis Leach, of Noroton, and has one child, Edward Francis; and Harriet, who married Clinton L. Cudney, of Stam- ford, and has one child, Sanford G.
Andrew Tait was born near Edinburgh, Scotland, January 27, 1799, and died in Trumbull, Connecticut, January 27, 1891, his ninety-second birthday. The family had for many generations followed the
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business of paper making, and Andrew had served an apprenticeship of seven years in the same business, so it was with a remarkable equipment of skill and ex- perience that the young man made his start in this line in the new country. He came to America in 1820, locating in Morris county, New Jersey. After look- ing about in various Connecticut towns, he married and located permanently in Trumbull. He erected the paper mill of D. & P. N. Fairchild, directed the instal- lation of the machinery, and started the business in operation. Soon after he en- gaged for himself in the manufacture of special papers for the use of bookbinders. In 1856 he built "Tait's Mill," which has borne the same name for over sixty years, manufacturing strawboard. He early be- came a citizen of the country of his adoption, and was a loyal Whig and later a Republican. He married, June 14, 1822, Bella Ronaldson, who crossed the ocean to become his wife, the voyage taking forty-six days. She died May 22, 1875, five years after the celebration of their golden wedding.
William Tait, their eldest son, was born in Scotland, and died in Hartford county, Connecticut. · He received his education in the public schools of Trumbull, and learned the trade in which his father was making so definite a success. He re- mained with his father until 1848, when he went to California. Two years of adventure in the gold country assured him of the wisdom of patiently building his success, and he returned to Trumbull, where he was admitted to partnership in his father's interests. The company re- mained thus until 1872, when the founder of the industry withdrew from active par- ticipation in the management. William Tait became the head of the business, taking into the partnership a son, William Franklin Tait, and later another son, An-
drew Tait. In 1895 the plant was re- moved to North Bridgeport, where it still remains. Reorganized in 1896, it has ever since borne its present name, the Tait & Sons Paper Company. They now make boxboard exclusively.
William Tait is one of the few remain- ing veterans of the Civil War. He served as a corporal of Company D, Twenty- third Regiment, Connecticut Volunteer Infantry ; and later as orderly sergeant of Company C, Fourth Regiment, Connecti- cut National Guard. He is a prominent member of Elias Howe, Jr. Post, Grand Army of the Republic, of Bridgeport. He is well past ninety years of age, and still actively interested in all that concerns the public good, as well as in the business which has commanded his attention for so many years.
Mr. Tait married, May 31, 1848, in Mil- ford, Connecticut, Grace Camp, born in Milford, September 4, 1831, died January 6, 1917. In 1898 they celebrated their golden wedding, and were the recipients of many congratulations from friends and relatives. They were the parents of four children : William Franklin; Isabella R., who became the wife of Edward Morris Goulden, and since his death has been at the head of the business he established ; Andrew, now of Bridgeport; and Eliza- beth, who married Charles F. Plumb, of Bridgeport. The family have always been members of the Congregational church.
The people of Stamford, as well as the members of Mr. Goulden's family, will long remember the genial, warm-hearted man who was a part of the every-day life of the city. He was an honored member of Puritan Lodge, Independent Order of Odd Fellows; and a devoted member of the Congregational church. Mr. Goulden was a man who put all the genuine benev- olence and good will of his nature into the
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practical application of his religious con- victions. He was a deacon of the church for ten or twelve years, and for several years superintendent of the Sunday school. He was almost invariably in his place of worship, no matter what the cir- cumstances which might readily have ex- cused him. Forgetful of himself, and always ready to do a kind act, he carried his religion into his social and business relations in a way that commanded re- spect everywhere. The world has too few men like him, and his passing occa- sioned widespread and sincere regret.
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