USA > Connecticut > Encyclopedia of Connecticut biography, genealogical-memorial; representative citizens, v. 7 > Part 55
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Vice-President Webster entered the service of the Aetna Life in March, 1864, in New Hamp- shire. His adaptation to the work was so con- spicuous that he was made superintendent of agents by the company in 1873, and removed from the Granite State to this city, immediately after the appointment was made. In 18;9 he was made vice-president of the company, and has held that position going on twenty years. He has been a man of marked force in underwriting fields, winning the most gratifying success, as a man- ager of life and accident insurance.
Mr. Webster was for seventeen years a member of the board of trustees of the Hartford Trust Company ; a founder of the Horticultural Society of Hartford,
organized in 1887, and which he has served as president ; the Gentlemen's Driving Club of Hartford, which organi- zation he has served for many years as a director. He is an adherent of the prin- ciples of the Republican party, and although he has never sought to hold public office he has contributed his just share as a citizen in the public service. He has been a resident of the township of West Hartford for many years and has been foremost in the movements for the upbuilding and betterment of the com- munity. He opened Concord street in West Hartford, set out the beautiful trees which ornament it, and built the first four houses in the street.
Mr. Webster married (first) Sarah B. Norton, of Kingfield, Maine. She died in 1868, and he married (second) Mary L. Abbott, of Concord, New Hampshire, who died July 14. 1916. Mr. and Mrs. Webster were for many years active members of the First Unitarian Church of Hartford, and he was a member of the executive committee of the church.
MOORE, Nelson Augustus,
Well Known Landscape Painter.
Nelson Augustus Moore was born Au- gust 2, 1824, in Kensington, Connecticut, where he died, November 30, 1902. He was descended from Deacon John Moore, the first settler of that name in Windsor, who came over in the "Mary and John," in 1630, to Dorchester, Massachusetts. Five years later, he came down with Mr. Wareham to Windsor. He served as juror and deputy in 1643, and was or- dained deacon in Mr. Wareham's church, January 11, 1651. The succeeding gener- ations of Moores were sturdy and inde- pendent, and leaders in their communi- ties. One married a sister of Timothy
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Edwards, and another a niece of his only son, Jonathan Edwards.
Mr. Moore was educated at the Ber- lin Academy, and later taught in the Normal School, when it was first estab- lished in New Britain. At the age of twenty-two, he went to New York City and studied drawing and painting under Daniel Huntington and Thomas Seir Cummings. The latter was one of the founders and the first president of the National Academy of Design, and the former was later its president. Upon re- turning home from his studies, Mr. Moore assisted his father, who had many and varied interests and among other duties acted as station agent at Berlin for one year when the railroad was first built. Every leisure moment, however, was used to continue his work in painting. When Daguerre's discovery came to America, he was among the first to try the process and did some beautiful work which is still in existence. At the time of the Civil War, many soldiers camped in Pope Park in Hartford, and Mr. Moore made pictures of them singly and in groups, which were sent to relatives and friends, and in many instances were the only likenesses of the loved ones which they had. Many of these men never re- turned home, and the pictures aided somewhat in allaying the grief of their families. Mr. Moore first studied por- trait painting, but after a few years de- termined to make landscape painting his life work. For many years he spent part of every summer on Lake George, New York, and during his visits there trans- ferred to the canvas sunsets, the beauti- ful waters of the lake, and the atmos- phere that is found only in that re- gion. While he traveled elsewhere, Lake George, Lake Mohonk, the Berkshires, and his own Connecticut Valley were the spots he loved best to paint. Mr. Moore
was a great lover of music, he had a true artist's appreciation of it, and was also a reader of the best literature. Before the close of the Civil War, he was instrumen- tal in raising funds to build the first sol- diers' monument in the North, in memory of the Civil War heroes, and designed the simple shaft which stands in Kensington. In 1853. he married Anna Maria Pickett, daughter of Alanson Jaspar Pickett, of that portion of Litchfield now called Mor- ris. Their children were: Edwin Augus- tus, of whom further ; Ellen Mindwell, of whom further; Ethelbert Allen, of whom further ; and Alanson Jaspar Pickett, who died January 25, 1903.
Edwin Augustus Moore was born Au- gust 25, 1858, in Kensington, and has devoted his entire life to the profession of painter. He studied many years in New York and abroad, and some of the work he has done has probably not been excelled in this country. His tastes, like those of his father, have led him to the best in music and literature.
Ellen Mindwell Moore was born De- cember 4, 1862. She has also studied art for many years in New York and Boston, and is well known as a miniature painter.
Ethelbert Allen Moore was born No- vember 30, 1864, in Kensington. He obtained his early education in the schools of Kensington. He then entered the West Middle Grammar, and later the Hartford High School, graduating in 1885. His business life began with The Bradley and Hubbard Manufacturing Company, of Meriden, where he remained for two years. The succeeding two years were spent in studying and teaching at Watertown, Connecticut, where for one year Mr. Moore was principal of the Cen- tral School. In 1889 he entered the em- ploy of The Stanley Works, of New Bri- tain, and was promoted from one position to another, until in 1918 he was elected
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president of the company. His ability and organization in management have greatly influenced the growth of that company, which now operates some twenty-one plants, and under his manage- ment the company has become one of the largest and strongest industries in the State. A public-spirited man, Mr. Moore has taken an active interest in public affairs. He was for years a member of the Board of Education, and has been active in the industrial life of the State. He is a director or trustee of many finan- cial and industrial corporations, and also in several institutions organized for the betterment of community life. Mr. Moore married, June 18, 1891, Martha Elizabeth Hart, daughter of William H. and Martha (Peck) Hart, of New Britain. They are the parents of the following children : Barbara (Mrs. Maurice H. Pease) born April 13, 1892; Allen, born September 23, 1896; Martha, born De- cember 30, 1901 ; Roswell, born Novem -. ber 12, 1903; and Maxwell, born January 12, 1908.
CRAIG, John M., Brass Founder.
Of all the varied interests which cen- ter in the city of Hartford, the manufac- ture of metal devices and mechanisms is perhaps the greatest. The preparatory processes through which these meta13 must pass demand the greatest skill and patience. In all life and industry the work demanding these two qualities is performed by men of great mental capac- ity. Individual taste determines the kind of work chosen, but big men choose work which requires skill, and that element of chance which only skill can govern. In the brass foundry on Arch street, Hart- ford, one branch of metallurgy has
reached a high point of perfection, and the man at the head is John M. Craig.
The name of Craig is the anglicized form of cairaig, signifying rock, or bul- wark. The name in this case, as so often is noted, has its parallel in the physical characteristics of its bearer, whose splen- did physique is indicative of strength and power of achievement.
John M. Craig was born in Quincy, Massachusetts, November 17, 1860, and is a son of Joseph and Mary (Riley) Craig, His father was born in County Meath, Ireland, in 1830, and came to America about 1850. He located first in Lowell, Massachusetts. After a short time he went to Quincy, where he found employ- ment in the granite quarries. During the latter part of the Civil War he removed to Springfield, Massachusetts, and worked in the arsenal there. He was a hard- working man, quiet and thrifty, and am- bitious to make his way in the new coun- try. He denied himself many pleasures to lay aside a little money, and at length established himself in the trucking busi- ness. This was about 1867, and for a number of years he continued in this work, finally selling out his teams and equipment, after which he entered the employ of Perkins & Nye, with whom he remained until his death. He met a tragic end, which was a great shock to all his friends. He was killed at a railroad crossing. He was survived by his widow. and the following children, named in order of birth : John M., of further men- tion : Elizabeth, who died in 1885: Mary, who married Charles S. Hope, of Spring- field ; Julia, widow of Edward French, of New Haven: Christiana, who married Fred Landry, of Springfield : and Joseph, also of Springfield, Massachusetts.
John M. Craig received most of his formal education in the Springfield pub- lic schools. After leaving school, like
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most youths with their future before them, he engaged in various employ- ments until he discovered the line of work which appealed to him for a lifetime voca- tion. In 1879 he went to work in the foundry of the Stebbins Manufacturing Company, where he learned the trade of moulder. He remained there three years, and then entered the employ of P. P. Emery for a year. Next he was with Peck Brothers, of New Haven, for about three years. He went to the O'Connells of Springfield, for three years, then with Sargeant, in New Haven, for three years ; then came to the Colt Patent Fire Armis Manufacturing Company, of Hartford. remaining for two years. At each one of these different factories he followed the same general line of work; but the point he wished to make was the acquiring of a broad experience, which he was convinced was the most practical preparation for en- tering upon a manufacturing venture of his own. In 1894 he established himself in business in Hartford, and has steadily increased the business until now it is a prosperous and growing establishment. The product includes brass, bronzc and aluminum castings, and while the work done is largely for local concerns. the most important of the Hartford manufac- turers are among his patrons. Mr. Craig has a thorough knowledge of metals and the practical details of handling them. He has done some very interesting and much very fine work; in fact he delights in difficult work. When he started in business he did all the work himself; but now he employs about fifteen men on the average, and at times as many as fifty. Mr. Craig is a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, of Hart- ford; the Knights of Columbus; and the Ancient Order of Hibernians.
Mr. Craig married Catherine Miller, of New Haven, and they are the parents of
four children: Ethel M., Rita J., Vera M., and Florence M. The family are members of St. Michael's Roman Catho- lic Parish, of Hartford.
Personally Mr. Craig is a man of splen- did mental as well as physical endow- ment. He has fine executive ability, but being ever mindful of the labor and strug- gle which won his present success, he is considerate of his employees, fair-minded and capable, and willing to look at both sides of a question. As a manufacturer, he maintains the highest ideals and will permit no product to leave his plant that is not perfect in every way. His never- failing courtesy and pleasing personality assure him the cordial friendship of all those with whom he comes in contact.
CONWAY, John W., Brass Founder.
The man who rises to every opportun- ity for advancement, and who looks far ahead into the future of achievement, al- lowing his eyes to rest only on the goal of his ambition, is the individual who attains in his undertakings. Such a man is John W. Conway, brass founder, of Hartford, Connecticut, in which city he was born November 17, 1868, the son of John and Bridget (Garvey) Conway. Mr. Conway supplemented his natural skill by earnest and searching study which, crowned with a wide experience, has de- veloped in him expert powers, and he is a recognized authority in his business. Square and business-like in his dealings, he is possessed of uncommon acumen and tact. He plans with shrewdness and his plans are executed in the same masterly fashion. His career in the retrospect is one to be justly proud of; from the posi- tion of an obscure mechanic, he rose to be a prominent factor in the industrial life of his native city.
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John Conway, father of John W. Con- way, was born in Dingle, County Kerry, Ireland, and in his youth came to Amer- ica, settling in Hartford, where he died, June 9, 1900. He married Bridget Gar- vey, and they were the parents of seven children, six of whom grew to maturity. Those surviving are: John W., of further mention ; Mary, wife of William T. Lar- agy, of Hartford ; Katharine, a nun in the Convent of St. Joseph's, Hartford. In the early days of the organization of the Father Matthews temperance movement, Mr. Conway took an active and leading part in the work of that organization.
John W. Conway attended the old Brown School of Hartford, and early be- gan to learn the trade of molder in the old Phoenix Iron Works, at one time located on Arch street. He soon per- ceived the necessity of being better equipped in business training, and for a year followed a business course at the Hunstsinger Business College, thereby gaining valuable business knowledge. Subsequently Mr. Conway became asso- ciated with the Pratt & Cady Company, of Hartford, as an iron molder. So well did he perform his work and give diligent attention to the mastering of all the de- tails that he was promoted to the posi- tion of assistant foreman in the course of a year and shortly after received the ap- pointment as foreman. Mr. Conway con- tinued thus employed for about five years. He had a very broad knowledge of his trade, both theoretical and practical. Mr. Conway started in business on his own account, and from a very modest start the business has steadily and consistently grown and flourished. There were origi- nally about four men employed, and now the plant employs one hundred men and covers about twelve thousand square feet of space.
A man worthy of confidence and of
strong personality, Mr. Conway enjoys well deserved respect and esteem. He is gifted with the qualities which distin- guish the man of ability and power to accomplish. Mr. Conway is a member of the Hartford Chamber of Commerce, and although at all times interested in the civic matters of his city and State, he does not seek to hold public office. He per- forms his duty as an upright citizen and true American, and any worthy cause for the benefit of the general public can always count on his support. Frater- nally, he affiliates with the Knights of Columbus, and is active in the work of that organization.
Mr. Conway married Gertrude Clare, daughter of John Carroll, of Hartford, and they are the parents of three chil- dren: John, who is associated with his father in business; Charles, a student at the Hartford High School; and Marie, who attends the Washington street school of Hartford. Mr. Conway and his fam- ily attend St. Augustine's Church.
GORDON, Andrew, Hon., Manufacturer, Legislator.
To one of Connecticut's successful manufacturers, and to a citizen who was able to render valuable service to his fel- lows in the State Legislature, the Hon. Andrew Gordon, this record is dedicated. Mr. Gordon's long life was marked by Civil War service as well as duty in the legislative quorum, and in the field as in the factory, and on the Legislature floor, he proved the worth and merit that en- deared him to his friends.
Andrew Gordon was born in Glasgow, Scotland, November 4, 1843, son of Wil- liam and Jean (Bachop) Gordon (q. v.). He was brought to the United States in infancy, and was reared in Enfield, Hart- ford county, Connecticut, there attending
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the public schools. During his youth he learned the cooper's trade, and was for some time employed by the Hazard Pow- der Company. In April, 1861, he enlisted in the First Connecticut Light Battery for three months and three weeks, but was never called into active service. On Sep- tember 27, 1861, he enlisted as a private in Company B, Eighth Connecticut Vol- unteer Infantry, and at Antietam. Sep- tember 17, 1862, was wounded in the left shoulder by a minie ball. On September 24, 1863, he reënlisted for three years, or the duration of the war, was promoted to the rank of corporal, March 26, 1864, was again wounded at the battle of Cold Har- bor. June 2, 1864, and was honorably dis- charged on a surgeon's certificate of phy- sical disability. May 31, 1865. Upon re- turning to his home, Mr. Gordon was for a time foreman of the A. D. Bridge Key Factory, and subsequently entered the firm of Gordon Brothers, taking active part in all of the operations of this com- pany during his business years. Mr. Gor- don was elected as a Republican to the Connecticut Legislature and served in both houses of this body. His public record is one of usefulness and courage- ous defence of his convictions, and his district and the State profited from his diligent application to his representative and senatorial duties.
The associations of his wartime experi- ence were always very dear to Mr. Gordon. and he was a member of Samuel Brown Post, No. 56, Grand Army of the Re- public, and in 1899 was elected senior vice department commander of the Grand Army of the Republic. He was an ex- emplary member and steward of the Methodist Episcopal church of Hazard- ville, and fraternized with Doric Lodge, No. 94, Free and Accepted Masons, Wash- ington Chapter, No. 30, Royal Arch Ma-
sons, and Washington Council, Royal and Select Masters, of Suffield.
Andrew Gordon married, May 6, 1866, Miranda, daughter of Asa and Louisa (Lyon) Lewis, of Hazardville, her mother a cousin of General Lyon. They were the parents of Lewis Edward, born April 24, 1872; George Judson, born July 12, 1874, and Eleanor Margaret, born August 5, 1885.
GORDON, Arthur George, Manufacturer, Legislator.
At the age of twenty years, Mr. Gordon entered the business of Gordon Brothers, Inc., a concern in which the family name is prominently known in Connecticut in- dustry, and of which his father was an early member. Mr. Gordon was born in Hazardville, Connecticut, September 17, 1870, son of George B. and Caroline (Smith) Gordon. He attended the pub- lic schools of his birthplace, and after a course in Bordentown Military Institute, of Bordentown, New Jersey, he entered Wesleyan Academy, at Wilbraham, Mas- sachusetts. Upon the completion of his education he became associated with Gor- don Brothers, Inc., in 1890, and is now (1920) assistant treasurer of that organi- zation. Gordon Brothers, Inc., is a lead- ing firm in its line, and has occupied honorable position in the textile industry from the time of its founding. Mr. Gor- don is a Republican in political faith, and in 1907 represented his town, Enfield, in the Connecticut Legislature. He is a communicant of the Methodist Episcopal church of Hazardville.
Mr. Gordon married, at Bernardston, Massachusetts, December 12, 1894, Flora Belle, daughter of Albert Pearl and Ma- tilda (Stearns) Hare.
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Homer Haley Hildreth.
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BIOGRAPHY
HILDRETH, Homer Wesley, Clergyman, Author.
A descendant of an old Massachusetts family which has been distinguished in many ways, Homer Wesley Hildreth was born August 24, 1871, in New York City. The ancestoral records of the family in this country date from the coming of Richard Hildreth from England. His name is found in a company of twenty men from the towns of Woburn and Con- cord, who petitioned in 1652 for a tract of land lying on the west side of Concord or Musketaquid river, where the petition- ers say : "they do find a very comfort- able place to accomodate a company of God's people upon." The petition was granted and a settlement was founded which proved to be very prosperous.
From the date of an old gravestone, preserved by the Hildreth Family Asso- ciation, and standing in the burying ground at Chelmsford, Massachusetts, it has been ascertained that Richard was born in the year 1612. This same Rich- ard was declared a freeman May 10, 1643, and died at Chelmsford in 1688. His first wife, Sarah, died June 15, 1644; he mar- ried a second wife, Elizabeth, who died at Malden, August 3. 1693, aged sixty- eight years. His children by the first wife were Jane and James ; and by the second wife he had Ephraim, Abigail, Joseph, Persis, Thomas and Isaac. Samuel Pres- cott Hildreth was born in Massachusetts in 1783, and settled in Ohio in 1806. He wrote a "Pioneer History of the Ohio Valley," and "Biographical and Historical Memorials of the Early Settlers of Ohio." He was of the sixth generation from Rich- ard Hildreth the progenitor. The dis- tinguished journalist and anti-slavery writer, author of a "History of the United States of America," Richard Hildreth
( 1807-1865), was also a direct descendant of this carly settler.
Joseph Hildreth, son of Robert and Elizabeth Hildreth, was born April 16, 1658, in Woburn, and died January 28, 1707, in Chelmsford. He married, in Wo- burn, February 25, 1683, Abigail Wilson, born there August 8, 1666, daughter of Jolin Wilson, and they were the parents of Joseph Hildreth, born in 1689, who lived in that part of Chelmsford now Westford. He died November 17, 1764. His wife, Deliverance, was probably a na- tive of Littleton. She died March 3, 1776, in Chelmsford, in her eighty-seventh year. Their second son, Lieutenant John Hildreth, born December 24, 1712, in Chelmsford, died there March 17, 1752. His first wife, Hannah, died in 1737, aged twenty-four years. He married, June 13, 1738, at Concord, Hannah Spaulding, born February 7, 1709, in Chelmsford, daugh- ter of John and Mary ( Barrett) Spauld- ing, died in Chelmsford, November 4, 1758. Their son, Ephraim Hildreth, born June 26, 1743. in Chelmsford, and re- moved to Lyndeborough, New Hamp- shire, before 1791, and died there March 6, 1811. He had probably lived at some time in southern New Hampshire. His wife, Elizabeth Lindsay, was of un- doubted Scotch ancestry, and probably belonged to one of the Scotch-Irish fami- lies of southern New Hampshire.
Jacob Hildreth, their son, was born February 3, 1791, in Lyndeborough, was a carpenter by trade, and lived for some time in Londonderry, Vermont. He died in Nashua, New Hampshire. September 2, 1863. He married, March 5. 1811. Lucy Reede, probably a daughter of William and Abigail (Howard) Reede, of Am- herst, New Hampshire. The Reede fam- ily came from Westfield, and was very numerous in Lyndeborough.
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Jairus Collins Hildreth, son of Jacob and Lucy Hildreth, was born March 5, 1816, in Londonderry, Vermont, and was a painter and builder. He lived for many years in Lawrence, Massachusetts, and died February 5, 1878, in Lowell, that State. He married, November 18, 1838, Ruth Emmeline Watson. Their son, John Homer Hildreth, was born November 25, 1847, in Lawrence, Massachusetts. He is of pure New England stock, some of the family having been actively engaged in the Revolutionary struggle, his ma- ternal grandfather having fought at Bunker Hill. He prepared for college at Wesleyan Academy, Wilbraham, Massa- chusetts. Having removed to New York City, he enter Columbia College Law School, and was graduated in 1869 with the degree of Bachelor of Laws. He was admitted to practice in both the Supreme Court and the United States Courts soon afterward, and speedily achieved promi- nence in his chosen profession. Though a Republican in politics, he never held public office, but in many ways he ren- dered public service. For years he was a member of the Bronx Board of Trade, and was one of the incorporators, and at the time of his death, November 3, 1919, was vice-president and director. For many years, he was a vestryman of St. Ann's Church, New York City. He was also prominent in the Bronx Building and Loan Association as its counsel. He was actively interested in the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and Ancient Free and Accepted Masons. He was a Fellow of the American Geological Society, and the New England Society of New York. He often served as referee ; was president of the Bronx Bar Association, and mem- ber of the American Bar Association. He married Fannie Johns Benner, born June 13, 1850, at Red Hook, New York, daugh- ter of William and Mary Benner, descend-
ants of ancient Dutch families of that State. She died in New York City, No- vember 1, 1879, aged twenty-nine years. He married a second wife, Corrilla Julia Birch, February 16, 1882. She died March 22, 1916.
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