USA > Connecticut > Encyclopedia of Connecticut biography, genealogical-memorial; representative citizens, v. 8 > Part 19
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Wilmot B., born November 8, 1850. 9. Virgil, born August 23, 1854.
(VIII) Watson Emmons Rice, son of Rev. Gardner and Sarah (Morse) Rice, was born December 15, 1848, at Shrews- bury, Massachusetts. His education was mainly obtained under the able precep- torship of his father, and his youth was spent in the various towns where the Rev. Gardner Rice conducted his schools. Sub- sequently, Dr. Rice prepared himself for teaching and for six years followed this calling in his native State, and also in Parkersburg, West Virginia. While a resident of the latter town he became in- terested in the medical profession, and under Dr. William Gilman he studied and prepared to enter the University of Mich- igan, at Ann Arbor. He graduated in 1872, and part of the same year practiced in Plymouth, Michigan. Returning East he located at North Grafton, where for twenty years he was one of the leading physicians and among the highly re- spected citizens of the place. The West again called him and he spent the winter of 1891-92 in Seattle, Washington. In the spring of 1892 he came to Stamford, Connecticut, where he has remained to the present time.
Dr. Rice has won many friends for him- self, and he possesses the art of keeping a friend, which is better still. He has always been of a modest, retiring nature, and does not seek public attention of any kind, although in 1898 he represented Stamford in the General Assembly, and was reëlected for a second term of two years. He served on Humane Institu- tions and Public Lands committees.
While in the Legislature, Dr. Rice tried to arouse interest in a project to estab- lish a State farm where inebriates and other ne'er-do-wells might be sent in hope of making men of them. He recognized
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that more evil than good comes from sending such individuals to the usual penal institutions. His plan was to in- crease the length of the sentence on each recurring commitment so that incurables would ultimately be kept on the farm under healthful conditions and helpful environment. Dr. Rice's idea was too advanced for the time, but he has had the pleasure since then of seeing the plan partially put into operation. Dr. Rice has ever been interested in educational mat- ters, and has served twenty-four years as a member of the School Board, having been its chairman for fourteen years. A new school, containing twenty-four rooms, in Stamford, has recently been named in his honor, the Rice School. He is on the staff of the Stamford Hospital, and visiting physician of the Children's Home.
Fraternally he is a member of Union Lodge, No. 5, Free and Accepted Masons ; Rittenhouse Chapter, Royal Arch Ma- sons, of Stamford; Hiram Council and Worcester County Council of Worcester ; Rose Croix, of Worcester; Pyramid Shrine, at Bridgeport.
McNALL, George Gordon, Lawyer, Man of Affairs.
George Gordon McNall was born in Utica, Oneida county, New York, June 2, 1857, the son of John Alexander and Mary (Tilden) McNall. He removed to Green- wich in boyhood, was educated in the local schools, became a clerk in the town clerk's office, and was elected town clerk when twenty-one years of age. He stud- ied law under the preceptorship of Myron L. Mason, was admitted to the bar in 1883, and subsequently elected judge of probate. On the establishment of the Borough Court in Greenwich, he was appointed deputy judge and succeeded the
late Husted W. Hoyt on his death. Since his retirement from that office he has de- voted his time entirely to the practice of his profession. He is connected with many of the industrial enterprises in his town, and is a director of and attorney for the Greenwich National Bank and the Maher Brothers' Corporation. In religion he is a member of Christ Episcopal Church. He is prominent in Masonic circles in Connecticut, having been elected grand master in 1899.
On April 24, 1899, Mr. McNall married Mrs. Emma F. McNall.
PENFIELD, William W., Laverne H., Manufacturers.
The first of the name of Penfield in Connecticut was William Penfield, who was early settled in Middletown, in 1663. Since that time there have been many bearing the name throughout the State engaged in the professional, the public and business life of their respective communities. They have been among the useful and upright citizens, and prom- inent among them are William W. Pen- field and his son, Laverne H. Penfield, manufacturers of Stamford.
The family from which they are de- scended was long settled in New Haven, Connecticut, and it was there that the great-grandfather of Laverne H. Penfield, William Barnes Penfield, lived. The lat- ter was a sea captain, and the Christian name of his wife was Elvira.
William Barnes Penfield, grandfather of Laverne H. Penfield, was born in New Haven, and died March 17, 1914, aged seventy-four years. He was edu- cated in the public schools, and at an early age went to sea, making voyages to for- eign ports, especially the West Indies. After a few years he gave up the sea and took up cabinet-making in Fair Haven,
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in the plant of the Fair Haven Extension Table Company. Mr. Penfield was with them a good many years, until the busi -. ness was abandoned, when he entered the employ of the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad Company in its repair shop, and was with them as long as he lived. Mr. Penfield was a member of the old Volunteer Fire Department, No. 6, and when the permanent department was organized in Fair Haven, he became a call man for a short time. He married Josephine Davis, daughter of Captain John Davis, of New Haven; they were members of St. James' Episcopal Church, of Fair Haven. Of their two children, William W. was the one who grew to maturity.
William W. Penfield, son of William Barnes and Josephine (Davis) Penfield, was born in New Haven, Connecticut, July 20, 1861, and was educated in the public schools there. He learned the trade of tool-maker and machinist, and has worked in various shops in New Haven, Waterbury and New Britain, get- ting valuable experience which has been of untold value to him in later years. For seventeen years he was with the Traut & Hine Manufacturing Company of New Britain, much of this time hold- ing a position as foreman. In 1916 Mr. Penfield engaged in business on his own account in Stamford, and on August I, 1918, the business was incorporated under the name of William W. Penfield, Inc., with W. W. Penfield as president and treasurer, and L. H. Penfield as vice- president. The product of manufacture is snap fasteners for silk gloves and other brass novelties, and this is sold direct to glove manufacturers and manufacturers of other lines into whose products the various things made by the Penfield plant enter.
Mr. Penfield is a member of Harmony
Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons ; Washington Commandery, Knights Tem- plar, of Hartford; Sphinx Temple, of Hartford, and Connecticut Consistory, of Norwich.
Mr. Penfield married Sarah Elliott, daughter of James Elliott, and they were the parents of two sons: Leroy, now de- ceased, left one child, Barbara Elliott Penfield ; Laverne H., of further mention. Mr. and Mrs. Penfield are regular at- tendants of St. Mark's Episcopal Church of New Britain.
Laverne Howard Penfield, son of Wil- liam W. and Sarah (Elliott ) Penfield, was born in Waterbury, December 25, 1891, and was educated in the schools of that city and in New Britain. After attending the high school, he worked under his father in the plant of the Traut & Hine Manufacturing Company, in New Britain, and since that time has been associated with him. On April 15, 1918, Mr. Pen- field entered the Franklin Union Train- ing School in Boston and pursued a course in aeroplane and tractor mechanics. The following July he left there and went to Camp Jackson, South Carolina, where after two weeks he sailed for France. After arriving in France he joined the 32nd Division, 12Ist Field Artillery Head- quarters Company, remaining with them until the armistice was signed. Subse- quently, Mr. Penfield was transferred to the Central Records Office of Bruges, Belgium, as a courier between that point and London. Each trip he spent three days in traveling and three days in Lon- don, thus giving him an opportunity to see the English metropolis. Mr. Penfield has many unusual and interesting inci- dents to tell of his days as courier and of the many interesting sights he saw be- tween posts. On July 4, 1919, he sailed from Brest for the United States, and was discharged from Camp Mills on the 24th
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of the same month. After his discharge Mr. Penfield returned to Stamford and took up his duties as vice-president of the Traut & Hine Manufacturing Company, and since that time has been actively en- gaged in looking after his business in- terests.
His fraternal affiliations are with the Masonic order, and he is a member of Union Lodge, No. 5, Free and Accepted Masons, and of the American Legion.
FROST, General Russell,
Lawyer, Active in World War.
For many centuries back in English history there is found mention of the Frost family. There was a Henry Frost of Cambridge, who founded the hospital of the Brothers of St. John in 1135, out of which grew St. John's College, Univer- sity of Cambridge.
(I) The ancestor of General Russell Frost's branch of the family, Edmund Frost, was born in Hartest, County Suf- folk, England, about 1600, a son of Rev. John Frost, a non-conformist minister. On October 16, 1634, Edmund Frost with his wife Thomasine, and infant son John, sailed for America on the "Great Hope," which was shipwrecked off Great Yar- mouth, England. Fortunately, all the pas- sengers were saved. Again they sailed, August 10, 1635, on the ship "Defense," arriving the following October at Boston. Edmund Frost settled at Cambridge, where he was stationed a freeman, and died July 17, 1672. His will is on record there. In Cambridge, Edmund Frost was a ruling elder of Rev. Thomas Shepard's church.
(II) Thomas Frost, eighth son of Ed- mund and Thomasine Frost, was born in Cambridge, about 1647. He served as a private from Cambridge with Captain Jo- seph Sill's company of militia, in King
Philip's War. In 1685 he was a towns- man of Sudbury ; in 1700 was constable ; and in 1712, tithing man. Thomas Frost was one of the eighteen original members of the First Congregational Church. He married, November 12, 1678, Widow Mary (Gibbs) Goodridge, daughter of Matthew Gibbs.
(III) Samuel Frost, son of Thomas and Mary (Gibbs-Goodridge) Frost, was born November 23, 1686, in Sudbury, and died at Framingham, August 2, 1736. He was a farmer, a member of the Framing- ham Church, and an elder in that insti- tution. He married, February 1, 1710, Elizabeth Rice, a descendant of Edmund Rice.
(IV) Amasa Frost, son of Samuel and Elizabeth (Rice) Frost, was born Janu- ary 24, 1717, in Framingham, Massachu- setts. He served in Colonel Joseph Buckmaster's company of militia from Framingham, April 26, 1757, in the French and Indian War. He was an early settler of Williamsburg, Massachusetts, where he lived, and was a deacon in the church at its organization in 1771. He died there, January 6, 1795. He married Abigail Livermore, of Framingham, a de- scendant of Joseph Livermore.
(V) Deacon John Frost, son of Amasa and Abigail (Livermore) Frost, was born December 22, 1759, in Framingham, and in 1765 removed to Hatfield, Massachu- setts. He enlisted there in the Revolu- tion before sixteen years of age, and served from October, 1775, to July, 1778. He removed in 1823 to Western New York, first locating at Knowlesville, and later in Evans, Erie county, New York, where he died October 16, 1853, in his ninety-fourth year. He married, April 12, 1781, at Williamsburg, Massachusetts, Amy Tenant, born February 22, 1761, died in 1816, at Sandgate, Vermont.
(VI) Russell Frost, son of Deacon
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John and Amy (Tenant) Frost, was born in Williamsburg, Massachusetts, Febru- ary 7, 1787, and died November 8, 1865. He went to New Hartford, Oneida county, New York, then removed to Skaneateles, New York, and bought a farm. He built a home on the western shores of Skaneateles Lake. Russell Frost was a member of the Society of Friends. He married, May 11, 1811, at Sullivan, Madison county, New York, Louisa Allen, born August 16, 1789, died September 6, 1871, daughter of Caleb Allen; they celebrated their golden wed- ding in 1861.
(VII) Caleb Allen Frost, son of Rus- sell and Louisa (Allen) Frost, was born September 12, 1814, in New Hartford, New York, and died in Delhi, New York, December 30, 1892, in his seventy-ninth year. He was educated in the public schools of Central New York, and in early manhood became a cloth manufacturer. He was the owner of a woolen mill in Delhi, New York, and later a hardware merchant in the same town. About ten years before his death he retired from active business. Mr. Frost was a Greeley Republican, and held various town and county offices. While his religious scru- ples would not let him fight in the Civil War, he was active in organizing com- panies, and went to the front with them, performing valuable non-combatant serv- ice. Mr. Frost married Mary Griswold, born February 16, 1824, died December II, 1910, daughter of Horace and Mary (Eells) Griswold, and granddaughter of Joshua Griswold. Horace Griswold was a descendant of the old Griswold family of Connecticut, and among his ancestors were the Colonial governors, Edward and Matthew Griswold.
(VIII) General Russell Frost, son of Caleb A. and Mary (Griswold) Frost, was born February 18, 1850, in Delhi, New
York. At fifteen years of age he left school and entered the employ of the Delaware National Bank of Delhi; at eighteen he was acting cashier of that bank, then for a year he was associated with his father in the hardware business. The desire for a college education was so strong, however, that he entered Dela- ware Academy of Delhi, where he pre- pared for college entrance. He was graduated from Yale College in the class of 1877 with high honors, and having pursued his law studies in Delhi, was ad- mitted to practice in New York, in 1879. He was assistant to the district attorney of Delaware county for two years, and after three years' practice in Delhi was appointed by the Federal government a pension inspector, assigned to duty as an assistant to the United States district at- torneys in cities in Ohio, Kentucky, In- diana, and other States, in the prosecu- tion of forgery, perjury and frauds in connection with pension cases.
In November, 1885, he resigned from the government service and began the practice of law in South Norwalk, Con- necticut. His practice became active in litigated cases ; he was a forceful trier of causes before the jury, conspicuous as a skillful and resourceful cross-examiner of witnesses, and an eloquent advocate. He specialized in electric and street railway law and practice ; he was active in secur- ing charters for new roads and the exten- sion and operation of lines from Norwalk into and through adjoining towns in the western part of Fairfield county. He was a leader in the establishment of the Town Court of Norwalk, and the first judge by unanimous choice of the General Assem- bly of that court, holding the office for six years and until his professional practice compelled his retirement.
In 1897 he was chosen as representative of Norwalk in the General Assembly,
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where he served as chairman of the Com- mittee on Cities and Boroughs. He was a successful leader in many contests aris- ing out of reports from this committee. He acquired recognition as a promoter of good legislation and a fair and effective debater. He rendered conspicuous serv- ice in doing away with numerous State commissions doing perfunctory work, or whose duties were overlapping or cross- ing each other. As a result of his efforts, commissions were consolidated under unified heads, making for efficiency and economy in the administration of the busi- ness of the State.
Immediately on coming to Norwalk, he became identified with military activities. He served for six years as captain of Company D, 4th Infantry, Connecticut National Guard. From that rank he was elected by the officers of that regiment as colonel, and continued in that command until January 5, 1897, when he was pro- moted by the governor of the State as brigadier-general, commanding the mili- tary forces of the State. In 1904 he was selected by the War Department of Washington to command a brigade in General Frederick D. Grant's Division in joint military maneuvers by regular and State troops at Manassas and Bull Run, Virginia. He was the only National Guard officer to be chosen by the Secre- tary of War for that high command. In his brigade were regular army troops, as well as those from several Northern and Southern States. After eleven years' service as brigade commander, and twen- ty-one years of continuous military serv- ice, he retired in December, 1907.
After five years as vice-president of the First National Bank of South Norwalk, General Frost became president of that bank in 1895 and held that office for seven years.
General Frost was made a Mason in
Delhi, New York, in 1881, and is still a member of Delhi Lodge. He is a member of the South Norwalk Lodge, Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks; belongs to the Sons of the American Revolution ; and is one of the council of the Connecticut Society of Colonial Wars. He is a mem- ber of the Delta Kappa Epsilon Society at Yale, of the University Club of New York City, the Yale Club of that city, and a former member of the Army and Navy Club of New York. General Frost is a trustee of the Norwalk Hospital As- sociation. He belongs to the Congrega- tional church of South Norwalk.
In the Spanish-American War, Connec- ticut's quota was less than a brigade, and General Frost was not therefore eligible for service in his rank, but he was active in the preparation of the organizations which went into that service. He is an honorary member of Mckinley Camp, Spanish War Veterans of Norwalk.
Although disqualified by the age limit for active service in the World War, Gen- eral Frost was actively engaged in the promotion of enlistments and forming organizations for service. He was chair- man of the Mayor's Committee of Safety appointed to preserve order and guard against attempted injury to property or person by sympathizers with the enemy ; he cooperated in this work with the United States Secret Service. He was head of the Military Department of the Fairfield County Mobilization of Re- sources Association, and traveled over the State in the interest of that work. He was chairman of the Norwalk War Bu- reau, cooperating with the State and National Councils of Defense. He was chairman of the United War Work cam- paign for the maintenance of the seven relief and welfare organizations serving American soldiers overseas and in camps and cantonments on this side. In Lib-
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erty Loan drives, and other war and relief activities, General Frost was a constant and reliable worker, and in continuous demand as a "four-minute" speaker. In promoting the local organization of the American Legion he was active. He is an honorary member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars; is a supporter of the work of the Salvation Army ; and for five years was chairman of the Norwalk Council, Boy Scouts of America. He was the chairman and organizer of the noted welcome-home celebration given at Nor- walk to the soldiers, sailors and marines returning from the World War.
General Frost has active business in- terests in New York City, where he is a director in several financial and com- mercial corporations, and is a member of the Chamber of Commerce of the State of New York.
On May 27, 1885, General Frost was married to Augusta Ayres Ely, daughter of Hon. Dudley P. and Charlotte (Phelps) Ely, of South Norwalk. Hon. Dudley P. Ely was a prominent banker, with busi- ness interests in New York. He was the first mayor of the city of South Norwalk, and its leading citizen. The Ely family and the Phelps family in the maternal line of Mrs. Frost are among the oldest in Colonial history. General and Mrs. Frost were the parents of Russell Frost, 3rd, of whom further.
(IX) Russell Frost, 3rd, son of Gen- eral Russell and Augusta A. (Ely) Frost, was born July 6, 1890. He was graduated from Yale University in June, 1914, with the degree of A. B., and is engaged in business in New York City. He married Mary Burnell, of South Norwalk, daugh- ter of Dr. J. J. Burnell, February 14, 1917, and they are the parents of two children : Mary Augusta, born November 5, 1917; and Russell Frost, 4th, born March 25, 1921.
RUNGEE, William Charles,
Lawyer, Public Official.
A leading member of the Fairfield county bar and prominent among the legal fraternity of Greenwich, Connecti- cut, William Charles Rungee holds a place of well deserved esteem. He was born in New Britain, Connecticut, Janu- ary 17, 1874, son of Henry John and Paul- ine F. (Liefield) Rungee, and grandson of John Henry Rungee, a lumber mer- chant. John Henry Rungee was the fa- ther of one son, of further mention; and two daughters.
Henry John Rungee, son of John Henry Rungee, was born September 22, 1840, and went to England with his parents. They remained in that country, but when Henry John was about twenty years old, he came to America. Previous to this time he had been serving an apprentice- ship at the wood-turning trade and this occupation was the one he followed after his arrival in America. At first he lo- cated at Elizabeth, New Jersey, thence removing to New Haven, Connecticut. In the latter city he was employed by the Hooker Company, an old established car- riage manufactory, and also by the New Haven Wheel Company. Another old firm in New Haven was the Bradley Com- pany, and Mr. Rungee was in charge of their woodworking department for many years. After leaving this firm he estab- lished his own business in New Haven, Connecticut, and was very successful until his death, which occurred May 15, 1896.
Mr. Rungee married, November 2, 1871, Pauline F. Liefield, daughter of Charles Augustus Liefield, who in 1854 located in New Haven. At this time his daugh- ter, Pauline F., was one and one-half years old; she was born May 14, 1852. The children of Mr. and Mrs. Rungee were: Augustus Henry ; William Charles,
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of further mention; Elizabeth N .; Julia Marie (Yale University, 1904, women's department), married Professor Charles P. Sherman, Yale, 1896, a member of the Yale faculty; Edward John, graduated Ph. B. in 1900 from Yale University, and is now a resident of San Diego, Califor- nia; Benjamin Frederick, Yale Univer- sity, 1904, men's department ; Lillian A., married Charles J. Schliff, of Waterbury ; Harry Albert, graduated B. A. from Yale University in 1912, and is now engaged in teaching in Kansas City, Missouri ; and Clarence Raymond, ex-1909, Yale Uni- versity. The Rungee family were mem- bers of the Baptist church in New Haven, which was founded by the Grandfather Liefield.
William Charles Rungee, son of Henry John and Pauline F. (Liefield) Rungee, received his education at the Sargent School in New Haven. For four years, from 1891 to 1895, he was assistant at the Yale Library, and during this time con- tinued his studies under private tutors. In 1895 he went to Hartford, Connecticut, and entered the employ of the Capewell Company as an inspector, remaining for four years. He then entered Yale Law School, and in 1903 received his degree of LL. B., being admitted to the bar the same year. For two years Mr. Rungee practiced in New Haven, removing in 1905 to Greenwich, Connecticut, where he was associated for about four years with the late Hon. Robert J. Walsh, former secretary of State of Connecticut. Soon after this time, Mr. Rungee opened an office of his own and has since been alone in practice.
Mr. Rungee has ever been interested in public matters, and has several times been honored with public office. He is a Re- publican, and has represented that party in the Legislature, in 1913 serving on the Judiciary Committee. For two years Mr.
Rungee was assistant prosecuting attor- ney, and has been a delegate to several party conventions.
During the World War he was active in all of the "drives," and was a member of the Legal Advisory Committee of the Draft Board. With his family, Mr. Run- gee attends the Second Congregational Church, and is superintendent of the Sun- day school ; he has served as treasurer of the church, and as clerk of the council. The fraternal affiliations of Mr. Rungee are; Member of Acacia Lodge, Free and Accepted Masons, of Greenwich; Hart- ford Lodge, Independent Order of Odd Fellows ; and Greenwich Lodge, Benevo- lent and Protective Order of Elks.
Mr. Rungee married, on September 7, 1908, Adeline Husted, daughter of Mills Hobby Husted, and they are the parents of two children : Gladys Muriel and Mar- ion Carol, twins, born December 18, 1912. Mrs. Rungee is recording secretary of the Israel Putnam Chapter, Daughters of the American Revolution, through Captain Mead on her mother's side and Mills Hobby on her father's side.
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