USA > Connecticut > Encyclopedia of Connecticut biography, genealogical-memorial; representative citizens, v. 3 > Part 10
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from Wethersfield, and with John Daven- port, pastor ; Theophilus Eaton, subse- quently governor for twenty years, and others, held their first meeting, April 18, 1638, under a branching oak, and entered into a covenant by which the New Haven Colony was formed and its first form of government constituted and established, being made permanent in 1639. Captain Seeley was a prominent and respected member of the New Haven Colony, occu- pying the fourth seat in church (seats be- ing arranged in order of prominence, the governor occupying the first). He was marshal of the colony, commander of the militia, on the committee of the General Court and other judicial committees, rep- resenting the colony in times of peace, leading its forces in times of war, at all times a wise counsellor and an efficient public servant. In addition to Water- town, Wethersfield and New Haven, he was one of the founders of Fairfield and Stamford, Connecticut ; Huntington, Long Island, and Elizabethtown, New Jersey. He died October 19, 1667, leaving a wife and one son, Nathaniel, his other son, Obadiah, being then deceased.
Obadiah Seeley, son of Robert Seeley, died in Stamford in 1657. He married the widow of John Miller, and they were the parents of Obadiah Seeley, who had chil- dren: John, Nathaniel, Mercy, Obadiah and Susanna. The eldest of these, John Seeley, born August 25, 1693, lived ir. Stamford with his wife Abigail. Their eldest son, John Seeley, born June 1, 1727, resided in Stamford with his wife Ann. Their eldest son was John Seeley, born May 16, 1756, and married, March 31, 1783. Rhoda Scofield, perhaps a daughter of Jonah and Mary (Smith) Scofield, of Stamford. Their eldest son was William Seeley, born November 15, 1790. He lived with his wife Patty in Waterbury, Connecticut. They were the parents of
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Charles Seeley, born 1821, whose earlier years were passed in farming in Water- bury. Subsequently he became a stone mason contractor, located in Meriden, Connecticut, as early as 1858, and died there, November 25, 1890, at the age of sixty-nine years. He married, December 25, 1843, in Waterbury, Amy Pritchard, who was born in that town, daughter of Roger and Chloe (Nichols) Pritchard. Roger Pritchard was a soldier of the War of 1812, a son of Roger Pritchard, born March 7, 1782, in Waterbury, who was a son of Amos Pritchard, a soldier of the Revolution, who died in that town, July 25, 1813. Amos Pritchard was born Au- gust 27, 1739, in Waterbury, and married there, August 20, 1777, Mary, widow of Samuel Adams, born March II, 1743, in Waterbury, daughter of Edward and Han- nah Tompkins. Roger Pritchard, father of Mrs. Seeley, lived in the town of Waterbury, where he was a farmer. Charles Seeley had six children, of whom five lived to reach maturity. The second of these receives further mention below.
George Simeon Seeley was born Febru- ary 2, 1846, in Waterbury, where he re- mained until twelve years old, removing then with his parents to Meriden. His education was supplied by the common schools, and when nineteen years of age he set out to maintain himself. He im- mediately began an apprenticeship at the metal turner's trade, and this continued to be his occupation for a quarter of a century. He was industrious and saved his earnings, and in time was able to en- gage in business on his own account. He established a real estate and rent col- lecting agency, in which he was more than usually successful because of his industry, faithfulness and high rectitude. The confidence in which he was held by the people of the city is shown by his re- peated elections to the Board of Select- men of the town, and to the office of
mayor of the city, in which position he served two terms. Mr. Seeley was a man of very pleasing manners, and his candor and sincerity were at once made apparent to any who came in contact with him. He was very active in many organizations calculated to benefit society. With his family he was affiliated with St. Andrew's Episcopal Church, of which he was fifteen years a vestryman, and served as treas- urer from April 4, 1899, until his death, November 11, 1914, and was highly esteemed by his associates in that body. He held membership in several fraternal orders, was a Mason and Knight Tem- plar, a member of Silver City Lodge, No. 3, Ancient Order of United Workmen, and Meriden Center Lodge, No. 68, Inde- pendent Order of Odd Fellows, of which he was treasurer from March 17, 1888. A sincere and consistent adherent of Repub- lican principles, he was one of the workers of his party in the city, was chairman of the Republican town committee from May, 1900, and served as alderman and councilman from the Third Ward. In December, 1901, he was elected mayor of the city, was installed in that office in January, 1902, and continued in its in- cumbency for two terms.
Mr. Seeley married, November 24, 1867, Anna G. Lee, daughter of Melvin C. and Esther (Guy) Lee, of Meriden, and they were the parents of three children: I. Frank Guy, married, November 20, 1890, Nettie M. Pendexter and they have two sons: Guy Pendexter and Lee Stevens Seeley ; they reside in Mt. Vernon, New York. 2. Candora Anna, became the wife of James H. Guernsey, of Ansonia; they have one son, James Seeley Guernsey. 3. Arthur Deshon, married, April 24, 1913, Jennie Pauline Miller, daughter of Charles B. and Emily (Downing) Miller, of Meri- den ; they are the parents of two children : Warren Miller and Anna Downing See- ley.
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ROCKWELL, Charles Francis, Business Man, Financier.
The family of Rockwell is one of the oldest in Connecticut and has furnished many distinguished and useful citizens, people in every walk of worthy endeavor, and several representatives have been prominently identified with the business interests of the city of Meriden. Savage says the family is descended from Wil- liam Rockwell, who was one of the dea- cons of the church formed at Plymouth, England, March 20, 1630, and sailed on the ship "Mary and John," May 30, of that year. He was one of the first select- men of the town of Dorchester, where he had land grants, and moved, in 1636, to Windsor, Connecticut, where he was dea- con of the First Church, and a leading man until his death, May 15, 1640. Re- cent investigation, however, would seem to indicate that Savage is in error, as the John Rockwell, son of William Rockwell, does not seem to be identical with the pioneer of this family in Connecticut.
John Rockwell, one of the first settlers of Stamford, Connecticut, was there De- cember 7, 1641, and resided there until 1669, when he sold his property and re- moved to Rye, New York, where he died in 1676. By vote of the town of Stamford, February 19, 1668, he had liberty to mow Norton Island. He married Elizabeth Weed, and their eldest child was John Rockwell, who died in Stamford in 1673. The inventory of his estate was made March 10 of the following year. His sec- ond son, Thomas Rockwell, born about 1667, in Stamford, died in June, 1712. He married, at Norwalk, December 9, 1703, Sarah, daughter of John Resco. Their son, Thomas Rockwell, born December 13, 1708, in Norwalk, settled in Ridge- field, Connecticut, where he died Novem- ber 4, 1789. He married, May 18, 1732,
Ruth Benedict, born December 3, 1711, died June 22, 1807. They were the par- ents of James Rockwell, born June 9, 1750, in Ridgefield. He was a lieutenant in the Revolutionary army, and his commission, signed by Jonathan Trumbull, is now pre- served by his descendant, Charles Lee Rockwell, of Meriden. He lived in Ridge- field, and married, October 17, 1769, Abi- gail Hawley, born October 24, 1749, died January 6, 1821. Their eldest son and fourth child, Thomas Hawley Rockwell, was born May 21, 1776, and was a cabi- netmaker, residing in Ridgefield, where he died September 25, 1865, at the age of eighty-nine years. He married, July 20, 1800, Polly Smith, born October 1, 1783, died February 27, 1869. Their eighth child and seventh son, Francis A. Rock- well, was born April 12, 1818, in Ridge- field, where he was a manufacturer, and died September 24, 1881. He married, October 6, 1840, Mary Lee, born October 7, 1816, daughter of Captain Aaron and Lucy (Smith) Lee, of Ridgefield. Cap- tain Aaron Lee was a soldier of the Revo- lution.
William Francis Rockwell, second son of Francis A. and Mary (Lee) Rockwell, was born January 12, 1845, in Ridgefield, and at the time of his death was president of the Miller Brothers Cutlery Company of Meriden, one of the leading establish- ments of its kind in this country. His education was supplied by private schools and the Fort Edward Collegiate Institute of Fort Edward, New York. At the age of eighteen years he embarked upon a business career, in the office of the for- warding and commission house of Miller Brothers, in New York, and subsequently, during the Civil War, held an important position as a representative of that firm at Norfolk, Virginia. In 1868 he located at Washington, New Jersey, and in asso- ciation with a partner engaged in the mer-
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cantile business, under the style of Cum- mings, Rockwell & Company. Six years later he returned to his native State, and became treasurer of the United States Shear Company. In 1876 Mr. Rockwell participated in the reorganization of the Miller Brothers Cutlery Company of Meri- den, and became treasurer and general manager. Mr. L. J. Curtis was the first president of this company, and at his death, in 1893, was succeeded by Isaac C. Lewis, one of the foremost business men of Meriden. On the death of Mr. Lewis, Mr. Rockwell became president of the company, which position he retained until his death, January 5, 1901. He was one of the organizers and first president of the American Pocket Cutlery Manufac- turers' Association, an organization formed to further the interests of the trade in the matter of tariffs. Mr. Rock- well was a forceful and energetic busi- ness man, as evidenced by his business success, and was highly esteemed among his associates in Meriden. He was promi- nently identified with the Republican party in both State and National affairs ; was a personal friend of President Mc- Kinley, and closely associated with Sena- tor O. H. Platt, in State politics. He was a Knights Templar Mason, and a member of the Sons of the American Revolution. He married, September 26, 1876, Louise Taylor, of Washington, New Jersey, daughter of James Davidson and Sarah (Bird) Taylor, of Washington, New Jer- sey. They were the parents of one child, Charles Francis, of further mention in the next paragraph.
Charles Francis Rockwell was born April 26, 1878, in Meriden. He has proved himself one of the most progressive and successful business men of his native town. After passing through the public schools of that town, he entered Wesle- yan University in the class of 1899, and after graduation entered the office of the
Miller Brothers Cutlery Company as pay- master. He did not cease his effort at self-improvement on leaving college, and gave close attention to the business with which he was associated. Becoming gradually familiar with its details, he was made secretary, treasurer and general manager of the concern, and following the death of his father in 1901 he took entire charge of the plant. Under his adminis- tration the business was highly success- ful, and in 1912 Mr. Rockwell was made president of the company, which position he still retains. Like his honored father he occupies a high position in the com- munity, and is active in its social and political life. He is an earnest Republi- can in principle, and for seven years, from 1902 to 1909, was a member of the Board of Aldermen in Meriden. From 1912 to 1917 he was a member of the Board of Public Works, and is at present president of the Board of Education. He is presi- dent of the Meriden Industrial Company, and a trustee of the Meriden Savings Bank. He is actively affiliated with the Masonic fraternity, being a member of St. Elmo Commandery, Knights Temp- lar ; is a member of the Alpha Delta Phi of New York City, of the Home and High- land Country clubs of Meriden, and of the Connecticut Chapter, Sons of the American Revolution.
Mr. Rockwell married, October 7, 1903, Ada Louise Coe, daughter of John W. and Sarah (Williams) Coe, of Meriden. Mr. and Mrs. Rockwell are the parents of three children : William F., born Septem- ber 28, 1904: Bradley T., died in infancy, and Louise West, born September 20, 1912.
SOMERS, George Edwin, Captain of Industry.
The life work of George E. Somers is a record of achievement as a captain of industry, of a life devoted to upbuilding
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ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BIOGRAPHY
and development. A young man of nine- teen when he entered the industrial world, at his death the veteran of many years, there was never a time when he was not one of the world's workers, either as an employer, superintendent or executive of great corporations. When from the serene heights of old age and competence, this self-made man reviewed a life of use- fulness, it was in a world that was the better for his having lived in it. He gave to young men this word: "Good regular habits are the first essential to success," and "Don't expect complete success on eight hours a day, and remember that good things cost much labor of hand and head." 1
Mr. Somers traced his descent in the paternal line through six generations to Henry Somers, who is recorded as a land- owner in Stratford, Connecticut, March 27, 1668. The line is traced through the founder's son, "Sergeant" Samuel Somers ; his son, "Ensign" Samuel (2) Somers ; his son, John Somers; his son, David Somers; his son, Rufus Somers ; his son, George Edwin Somers, the octogenarian of Bridgeport. Through his mother, Esther (Peck) Somers, Mr. Somers de- scended from Joseph Peck, who came from England and located in New Haven, Connecticut, as early as 1643, later mov- ing to Milford. The line follows through his son, Joseph (2) Peck ; his son, Joseph (3) Peck; his son, Moses Peck ; his son, Enos Peck; his son, Abraham Peck; his daughter, Esther Peck, married Rufus Somers.
George Edwin Somers, third child and second son of Rufus and Esther (Peck) Somers, was born in Newton, Fairfield county, Connecticut, January 21, 1833, died in Bridgeport, December 18, 1915. He was educated in the public schools. He left home at the age of nineteen, and after service in Naugatuck, Waterbury
and Ansonia shops as a skilled mechanic spent four years in the shops of the Gor- ham Manufacturing Company at Provi- dence, Rhode Island, his particular serv- ices there being as a maker of tools re- quired by that well known manufacturing firm of silversmiths. He then returned to Ansonia, where he had formerly been em- ployed by the brass manufacturing firm of Wallace & Sons, and remained with them another year. He removed to Waterbury in January, 1865, was for one year in the employ of the Army and Navy Button Company, later and until 1881 being master mechanic and superintend- ent for the Benedict & Burnham Com- pany, of Waterbury. While in the em- ploy of Benedict & Burnham he was sent to Europe in the interest of the company, and upon his return possessed the knowl- edge upon which the manufacture of seamless brass and copper tubing and copper wire in the Naugatuck Valley be- came an assured success. One or two other concerns in New England were making the same materials, but not in a satisfactory manner, and their manufac- ture did not become a genuine success, until Mr. Somers first introduced the methods that made them so. The busi- ness he there introduced is now a most important line of manufacture.
In 1881 Mr. Somers came to Bridge- port as superintendent of the plant of the Bridgeport Brass Company, and from that year his connection with the com- pany continued as superintendent, direc- tor and executive. He was elected presi- dent of the company, and under his wise management the company, ever a prosper- ous one, has advanced to still greater heights and has become one of the lead- ing industrial corporations of Bridgeport, employing over a thousand hands in the manufacture of brass and copper wire, tubing and sheets, seamless brass and
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copper tubing and a great variety of brass and copper goods. The company was the first to manufacture "Hard Drawn" cop- per wire now in general use by telegraph. telephone and railway companies. His connection with the upbuilding of so vast an enterprise and its executive manage- ment would be the worthy achievement of a lifetime, but President Somers comes by this title in other ways. He was long connected as director and president with the Bridgeport Electrical Manufacturing Company, the Bridgeport Crucible Com- pany, and the James M. Somers Com- pany, and also served the First National Bank as a director. The years he carried granted him exemption from the heavier burdens of business life, but until the last he was the able, wise man of affairs, hon- ored, respected and referred to.
He was a Republican in politics, and served well both cities in which his resi- dence was permanent, Waterbury and Bridgeport. In Waterbury he served sev- eral years as fire commissioner and in Bridgeport as a member of the board of public works gave valued service. In 1896 he was elected by a very large ma- jority to represent Bridgeport in the Con- necticut House of Representatives and served faithfully on the committee on manufactures. He was a member of Park Street Congregational Church, the Sea- side, Bridgeport Outing and Boys clubs, the last named one of Bridgeport's most commendable institutions of helpfulness to the boys of the city. He was a mem- ber of the Masonic order of long and honorable standing, took all degrees of lodge, chapter, council and commandery, held many of their offices, and as a char- ter member of Clark Commandery of Waterbury aided in the organization of that body of Knights Templar, and served as its eminent commander. In Scottish Rite Masonry he attained the thirty- second degree.
Mr. Somers married (first) in Novem- ber, 1858, Sarah J. Noble, who died in August, 1863, daughter of David Noble, of South Britain, Connecticut. He mar- ried (second) December 6, 1865, Mrs. Fannie Elizabeth (French) Clark, born January 21, 1840, daughter of Miles and Elizabeth (Sperry) French, of Bethany, Connecticut. Mrs. Somers is of the eighth generation of the family founded in Amer- ica by William French, who came from England to America in the ship "De- fense" in 1635. The line is traced from William French through his son, Fran- cis French ; his son, Francis (2) French ; his son, Israel French; his son, David French, a Revolutionary soldier ; his son, Adonijah French ; his son, "Squire" Miles French : his daughter, Fannie Elizabeth, married George Edwin Somers. Mr. and Mrs. Somers were the parents of a daugh- ter, Jennie S., wife of William T. Rawlins, of English descent, a leading lawyer of Honolulu, Hawaii. They twice traversed the wide expanse of land and sea that separated them from their daughter and granddaughter, Elizabeth French Raw- lins, making the last visit in 1909. Mrs. Somers survives her husband and con- tinues her residence at No. 365 East Washington street, Bridgeport.
WILCOX, George Horace, President of International Silver Company.
It has been the privilege of two genera- tions of the Wilcox family, Horace C. and George H. Wilcox, father and son, to have an intimate relation with a great business, one that has fastened upon Meriden, Connecticut, the name Silver City. It was the work of the father to found, organize and develop this great business through the medium of differ- erent companies, a task he grandly per- formed, and it has been the work of the son to gather these conflicting silver pro-
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ducing companies into one, and first as vice-president and then as president of the International Silver Company he has welded into one great corporation former business rivals with beneficent results to all.
The Wilcox family is of Saxon origin, and was seated at Bury St. Edmunds, County Suffolk, England, before the Nor- man Conquest. Sir John Dugdale, in the visitation of the county of Suffolk, men- tioned fifteen generations of this family previous to the year 1600. This traces the lineage back to the year 1200, when the surname came into use as an inherited family name. On old records the spell- ings Wilcox, Wilcocks, Wilcoxson and Willcox are used interchangeably. Coat- of-arms : Argent, a lion rampant gules, on a chief azure, the front elevation of a fortification or. Crest: An eagle dis- played proper accompanied on the dexter side by a rose, and on the sinister side by a fleur-de-lis argent. Motto: Fidus et auda.r ("Faithful and bold").
John Wilcox lived in Hartford, Con- necticut, was chosen surveyor in 1643-44. and surveyor of the jury in 1645. He served first as selectman in 1640, and died in 1651, his will being dated July 24, 1651. He was buried in the Center Church burying ground in Hartford, and his name is on the monument with that of the other first proprietors. His wife died about 1668. His son, John Wilcox, was born in England, and came to Hartford, Con- necticut, with his father, where he was one of the first proprietors in 1639. In 1655 he removed to Middletown Upper House, where he died May 24, 1776. He had agreed to settle in Middletown, but failing to do so promptly, the General Court voted in 1653 to compel him to occupy his grant or to find a substitute. On March 10, 1657, he bought the home- steads of Joseph Smith and Matthias
Treat and afterwards sold them to his cousin, Samuel Hall. In 1659 he was a member of the committee on roads, and June 30, 1660, he was granted lands at Wongunk. It has been claimed that he removed to Dorchester, where he resided for a few years. He purchased land and built a house prior to November 1, 1665, on land occupied by the Beaumont-Ham- mer House. He married, as his fourth wife, Esther Cornwall, born May, 1650, died May 2, 1733, daughter of William Corn- wall, and their son, Ephraim Wilcox, born July 9, 1672, in Middletown, removed to East Middletown, where he died Janu- ary 4, 1713. He married, August 23, 1698, Silence, daughter of Benjamin Hand, who had moved from Guilford to Middletown. John Wilcox, son of Ephraim and Silence (Hand) Wilcox, was born August 8, 1712, in Cromwell, where he made his home, and died October 21, 1795. He married, July 6, 1738, Hannah Wilcox, probably a daughter of Samuel Wilcox, of Crom- well. Their son, Joseph Wilcox, was born March 29, 1746, in Cromwell, lived in Westfield Parish of Middletown, and died October 23, 1838. He married, No- vember 30, 1785, Miriam Bacon, born Feb- ruary 7, 1762, died March 19, 1825, daugh- ter of Josiah and Sybil Bacon. Elisha Bacon Wilcox, son of Joseph and Miriam (Bacon) Wilcox, was born June 29, 1795, in Westfield Parish of Middletown, and made his home there. He married, Janu- ary 26, 1818, Hepsebah Cornwell, daugh- ter of Daniel and Lucy (Hamlin) Corn- well, of Middletown, later of Charlestown, New Hampshire, and they were the par- ents of the late Horace C. Wilcox, of Meriden.
Horace C. Wilcox was born in West- field Parish, Middletown, Connecticut, January 24, 1824, died August 29, 1890. His first important business connection was as traveling salesman for James
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Frary, a manufacturer of Britannia ware, an association which began in 1850, but in 1852 Mr. Wilcox with others formed the Meriden Britannia Company, he be- coming the first secretary-treasurer of that company and succeeding to the presi- dency in 1866, a position he filled with great ability until his death. The com- pany soon ceased the manufacture of Bri- tannia ware and began making plated sil- verware, becoming the leading concern of its kind in the world, a position yet maintained. The world became its mar- ket and large factories to supply the de- mand were built in Meriden, Connecticut, and Hamilton, Canada. The executive management of so vast an enterprise was but one of the tasks to which Horace C. Wilcox addressed himself with marvelous energy and success. He was the founder and president of the Wilcox & White Organ Company ; a director of the Meri- den Silver Plate Company, Manning, Bowman & Company, Æolian Organ & Music Company, Meriden Street Railroad Company, Rogers Brothers of Waterbury, R. Wallace & Sons Company of Walling- ford, William Rogers Manufacturing Company of Hartford, Meriden Fire In- surance Company, Home National Bank, Republican Publishing Company, Wal- nut Grove Cemetery Association, and a trustee of the City Savings Bank. He organized the Meriden, Waterbury & Connecticut River Railroad Company, in- vesting in that enterprise a vast sum from his private fortune, although at the time there was little hope of an adequate return.
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