USA > Connecticut > History of Connecticut, Volume III > Part 45
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Resuming his education following his honorable discharge from the service in 1945, Mr. Ritter studied at Yale Law School, where he received his Bachelor of Laws degree in 1946, and thence was ap-
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pointed a Sterling Fellow there in 1946-1947. In 1947-1948 Mr. Ritter received a Travelling Fellowship from Yale Law School, which enabled him to study in twelve countries in Europe. He was admitted to practice in New York State in 1947, and in Connecticut in 1950. He has been a member of the firm of Ritter and Satter in Hartford since 1952. In November 1958, the firm became known as Ritter, Sat- ter and Newman.
Mr. Ritter became corporation counsel of the City of Hartford on January 1, 1956, and served until January 1958. He is a member of the American Bar Association, the Connecticut State Bar Associa- tion, the New York State Bar Association, and the Hartford County Bar Association. His other memberships include the Yale Club of Hart- ford, and the Civitan Club in that city. He is very active in civic af- fairs, and serves on the board of directors of the Citizens Charter Committee. His religious affiliation is with the Society of Friends. While at Rutgers, Mr. Ritter was president of the Class of 1941, and was captain of the tennis team. He finds recreation in that sport.
At Dennis, Massachusetts, on June 9, 1946, George J. Ritter married Patricia Kingsley Sleezer, daughter of Norman and Mabel (Kingsley) Sleezer. Mrs. Ritter, a native of Freeport, Illinois, re- ceived her degree of Bachelor of Arts at Iowa University in 1941 and was a Phi Beta Kappa student there. She also attended Yale Divinity School, and holds a degree of Master of Arts in Education from Yale University. The couple are the parents of the following children : I. Martha Kingsley, born July 26, 1948. 2. Scott Robinson, born July 24, 1951. 3. Thomas Drummond, born November 24, 1952. 4. Penn Joseph, born January 15, 1955. 5. John Lathrop, born October 16, 1956. All of the children were born in Grace Hospital in New Haven.
PETER NICHOLS
A full record of valuable public service to the Town of Wethers- field has been that of Judge Peter Nichols, who in private life is an attorney practicing at Hartford. He was formerly councilman of his township, being elected to the first town council, which superseded the town meeting form of government, this form having been in effect for more than three centuries. Then, following a brief period of service as deputy judge, he was appointed judge of the Town of Wethersfield by Governor Ribicoff, his term on the bench continued thru June of 1959. In June, 1955, Judge Nichols was honored for his role in
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public affairs by being chosen Man of the Year by the American- Hellenic Educational and Progressive Association.
He is a native of Norfolk, Virginia, and was born on October 23, 1916, son of George and Evangeline (Zantos) Nichols. His parents reside in New York City. Judge Nichols completed his public school education in that city, graduating from George Washington High School. He began his advanced studies at St. John's University, and completed his professional training at that university's Law School, where he received his degree of Bachelor of Laws on October 9, 1942. However, he was not admitted to the Connecticut State Bar until June 28, 1946, having in the meantime served in the United States Army from 1943 to 1945. As a sergeant in the 66th Infantry Division, he served in the European Theater of Operations, and received the Bronze Star.
Besides being admitted to the state bar, Judge Nichols has been admitted to practice before the United States District Court and be- fore the Board of Immigration. He commenced his practice of law in Hartford in 1946, and continues in the general private practice of law there. He holds membership in the Connecticut State Bar Associa- tion and the Hartford County Bar Association.
Active in the American-Hellenic Educational and Progressive Association, which conferred on him the honor of Man of the Year in 1955, Mr. Nichols served as district governor of its Yankee Dis- trict No. 7 in 1952. This district comprises chapters in the states of Connecticut, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. He is a member of the Veterans of World War II, and is a communicant of St. George's Greek Orthodox Church in Hartford. Fond of music as a hobby, he enjoys singing and playing the piano.
In Hartford, on February 17, 1946, Judge Peter Nichols married Bernie Bacus, daughter of Spiro and Angeline ( Metropolis) Bacus. Mrs. Nichols is a graduate of Wethersfield High School and of Con- necticut State Teachers College in New Britain. She taught school at Middletown prior to her marriage. The couple are the parents of the following children, all of whom were born in Hartford: I. George Bacus, born March 10, 1947. 2. Spere Bacus, born on July 20, 1948. 3. Peter Bacus, born on April 22, 1950. 4. Ann Gail Bacus, born on October 10, 1951. 5. William Bacus, born on May 12, 1958.
DR. FELIX BLANC
Dr. Felix Blanc, director of Connecticut's Commission of Phar- macy, has been called "the watchdog of pharmacy in the state legis-
Dr. Felif Blanc
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lature," being constantly on the alert to improve the status of the profession in his home commonwealth. His reputation has extended far beyond its confines, and in 1957, he was elected to the highest national office in the profession-the presidency of the National As- sociation of Boards of Pharmacy.
A native of Athol, Massachusetts, he was born on September 6, 1894, son of Felix and Marie (Sweiss) Blanc. Both of his parents were natives of Switzerland, and they had come to this country in 1890. The elder Felix Blanc followed the trade of cabinetmaking. In 1896, the family moved from Athol to Bethel, Connecticut, and there the pharmacist received his public school education. As a high-school student, he became interested in pharmacy as a profession, largely through the immediate influence of the Bethel Drug Store, operated by P. J. Garvin. He sought employment with Mr. Garvin, and remain- ed with him for eight years.
His work there was interrupted by World War I military service, which took him overseas. A casualty of combat, he returned on a hos- pital ship, but it was during the months of recovery that he made his definite decision in favor of a career in pharmacy. Once his health was restored, he entered the Stoughton Drug Company in Hartford, and while working there, studied at home during the evenings to prepare himself for the state examination. He soon became a registered pharmacist.
Meantime, his former employer, P. J. Garvin, had become in- spector for the State Pharmacy Commission. Asked to name a deputy, he chose Dr. Blanc. The latter acquired valuable experience visiting many pharmacies throughout the state. When Mr. Garvin died in 1934, Dr. Blanc succeeded him as inspector. He made such an out- standing record that the following year he was appointed Chief In- spector for the Pharmacy Commission. In 1944 he was named execu- tive secretary of the Connecticut Board of Pharmacy, and in 1947, became Commissioner of Pharmacy.
He has been most influential in securing a sound pharmaceutical program for his state, one which has been emulated elsewhere. He is particularly justified in taking pride in his role in founding the College of Pharmacy at the University of Connecticut, which came into being largely through his untiring efforts. He owns a token one- hundred-dollar share in the college.
Dr. Blanc received his honorary degree of Doctor of Pharmacy from the Rhode Island College of Pharmacy in 1954. In conferring the degree, Dr. Albert Whitman Claflin, president of the college, said :
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"It was with pleasure that I reviewed the achievements you have com- piled in your many years of association with pharmacy in Connecticut, and it is a great privilege to have the opportunity to make this presen- tation, through the powers vested in me as Chairman of the Board of Trustees." Dr. Blanc is a member of the Connecticut Graduate Chapter of Kappa Psi pharmaceutical fraternity, in which he was awarded honorary membership in January, 1952. The honor is con- ferred only on those who have made a distinctive individual contribu- tion to the profession. Dr. Blanc was the twelfth of fifteen honorary members admitted to the fraternity since it was founded in 1879. In September, 1956, Kappa Psi further recognized his achievements by awarding him one of its special plaques for "great and continuing services to pharmacy." At about the same time he received an achieve- ment plaque from Rho Pi Phi. He had been elected to honorary mem- bership in this latter fraternity in November, 1952; and he became an honorary member of Alpha Zeta Omega in June, 1955, at which time the fraternity presented him with a painting of himself.
In November, 1957, Dr. Blanc was elected president of the Na- tional Association of Boards of Pharmacy, the highest office in his profession. He served for a year. He has also held office as a director of the Connecticut Pharmacy Commission, and is a member of the National Association of Retail Druggists, the American Pharmaceu- tical Association, the Pharmaceutical Society of Hartford County, the New Haven Pharmaceutical Association, the Southwestern Con- necticut Pharmaceutical Association, and the Bridgeport Druggists' Association. He is a director of the board of control of Connecticut Pharmacist, the monthly journal of the Connecticut Pharmaceutical Association. Apart from his professional connections, Dr. Blanc is a member of the Euclid Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons, and attends the Methodist Church.
On June 25, 1917, at Windsor Locks, Connecticut, Dr. Felix Blanc married Helen M. Brusie, daughter of Harry A. and Florence M. (Babcock) Brusie. Mrs. Blanc died in September, 1951. The cou- ple were the parents of two children: I. Florence Helen, who was born in Hartford on August 6, 1918, and who died in January, 1957. She was married to Howard W. Griffin of Unionville, and they had two sons. 2. Felix H. B., born in Hartford on January 1, 1924. He graduated from Farmington High School, and during World War II, served in the army in the European Theater of Operations. He was wounded in action. Felix H. B. Blanc is now married to Carolyn Nevins, and they have one daughter, Lisa Helen.
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THOMAS E. RUSSELL
One of the younger leaders of the bar at Wethersfield, Thomas E. Russell has already distinguished himself in public life. He served his town as prosecuting attorney, and then became Democratic candi- date for the Connecticut State House of Representatives.
Born April 5, 1925, at Haverhill, Massachusetts, he is a son of Theodore and Florence (Howarth) Russell. This family seems to have been particularly productive of legal talent, for Mr. Russell's sister, Hazel, is a graduate of Portia Law School in Boston, and is now practicing at Haverhill. Thomas E. Russell attended the public schools of that city, graduated from Haverhill High School, and be- gan his advanced courses at the University of Illinois, where he took his degree of Bachelor of Science in 1949. His studies had been inter- rupted by service in the army at the time of World War II. Going into uniform in 1943, he was assigned to the Eighth Armored Division, and served in the European Theater of Operations. He received his honorable discharge in 1946.
After receiving his Bachelor of Science degree, Mr. Russell en- rolled at Harvard Law School, which conferred on him his degree of Bachelor of Laws in 1952. He was admitted to practice before the Connecticut bar in July of that year, and began practice at Wethers- field, where he has since had his offices at 364 Silas Deane Highway.
Mr. Russell became prosecuting attorney of the Town of We- thersfield in 1956. His excellent record of service in that office recom- mended him for a higher post at the state level, and the Democratic party chose him as its candidate for State Legislature from the Town of Wethersfield.
As a lawyer, Mr. Russell belongs to the Connecticut State Bar Association and the Hartford County Bar Association. At Wethers- field he holds membership in the Exchange Club and the Business Men's Association. His favorite sport is golf. He and his family attend Trinity Episcopal Church.
It was in that church, on September 8, 1951, that Thomas E. Russell took as his wife Miss Virginia Marianella of Wethersfield, daughter of Louis and Margaret (Galli) Marianella. The couple are the parents of two children : 1. Susan, born February 4, 1954. 2. Peter, born June 24, 1957. Both of the children were born in Hartford.
ALBERT K. MILLER
A bank executive of many years' experience, Albert K. Miller now holds the offices of executive vice president, treasurer, director
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and trustee of the Deep River Savings Bank, at Deep River. He takes an active part in the programs of bankers' groups and in community affairs.
A native of Old Lyme, he was born on April 22, 1910, son of Albert H. and Jane B. (Slate) Miller. His parents still live in Old Lyme, where the banker was reared and attended grade school. He also attended Old Lyme High School and Chapman Technical High School in New London, and started his banking career in 1929 as an office boy on the staff of the Essex Savings Bank, advanced to teller, and in 1935 became assistant secretary of that bank. He left to join the Deep River Savings Bank as a teller in 1943. In 1946 he assumed additional duties as secretary and assistant treasurer, and in 1949 was elected a director and trustee. In 1956, he was named executive vice president of the Deep River Savings Bank.
Mr. Miller is active in the Savings Bank Association of Connec- ticut, Group 5, and is currently serving as president. He is treasurer of the Middlesex County Young Men's Christian Association, and is a member of the Deep River Chamber of Commerce and of Pytha- goras Lodge of the Ancient Free and Accepted Masons, at Old Lyme. He is a communicant of the Old Lyme Congregational Church. Mr. Miller devotes his spare time to the home-centered hobbies of mechanics and woodworking.
In Providence, Rhode Island, on December 15, 1936, Albert K. Miller married Grace C. Carter of Old Lyme, daughter of Elmer and Lucy (Chapman) Carter. The couple are the parents of the following children: 1. Carole M., born in New London on July 15, 1938. She is a graduate of Old Lyme High School, and is the wife of Richard Lamourine of New London. They have two children: Richard and Christopher. Mr. Lamourine is now with the United States Air Force in Germany. 2. John A., born in New London on December 15, 1945. He is attending Old Lyme Junior High School. 3. Mary M., born November 14, 1946 in New London. She is attending Old Lyme Public School.
SOLOMON Z. BROMBERG
Partner in the law firm of Rosenthal, Bromberg and Appleton, Solomon Z. Bromberg has practiced law in Hartford since his admis- sion to the bar. He is a veteran of service in the Army Air Corps in World War II. Since he entered his profession at Hartford, he has developed a considerable interest in community and organizational affairs.
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A native of Hartford, he was born on September II, 1921, son of David and Molly ( Buchstane) Bromberg. His parents are both living and reside in Hartford. There Solomon Z. Bromberg received his public school education, and he graduated from Weaver High School. He then enrolled at Trinity College, where he took his degree of Bachelor of Arts in 1943. Before he went on with his law training, Mr. Bromberg served in the Army Air Corps, which he entered in 1943. He served until 1946. Resuming his studies after the war, he took courses at the University of Connecticut School of Law, and received his degree of Bachelor of Laws there in 195I.
Admitted to practice in that year, he opened his offices in Hartford. He has been a partner of Mr. Rosenthal since 1951, and the address of their firm is 18 Asylum Street. Morton W. Appleton, an associate was made a partner January 1, 1959. They engage in a general practice. Mr. Bromberg is a member of the American Bar Association, the Connecticut State Bar Association, the Hartford County Bar As- sociation, and the National Association of Claimants Compensation Attorneys.
Mr. Bromberg is a member of the Mount Sinai Hospital Asso- ciation in Hartford and Norfeldt School P.T.O. A member of Jonathan Lodge No. 66, Independent Order of Odd Fellows, he was noble grand of his lodge in 1958. He is also a member of Charter Oak Aerie, Fraternal Order of Eagles, and the local post of the American Le- gion. His religious affiliation is with Beth El Temple. Gardening is his favorite pastime.
At Brooklyn, New York, on May II, 1945, Solomon Z. Brom- berg married Sylvia Seiler, daughter of Louis and Rose (Wiener) Seiler. Mrs. Bromberg is a graduate of Brooklyn College in the Class of 1942. The couple are the parents of two children: I. Fern, who was born on May II, 1947, in Brooklyn. She attends Norfeldt School. 2. Cynthia, born August 27, 1953, in Hartford. The family resides at 3 Karen Road in West Hartford.
JOHN C. KELLY
Police Commissioner of the State of Connecticut from 1953 to 1959, John C. Kelly has had a long and useful career as a law-en- forcement officer. He is a resident of Ridgefield.
A native of that city, he was born on October 30, 1895, son of Cornelius and Margaret (Downey) Kelly. His grandfather, also named Cornelius Kelly, came to this country from Ireland, arriving
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as a young man and settling in the Ridgefield area, where he became a farmer. His was the second Irish family to locate in this section. Margaret Downey, whom the second Cornelius Kelly married, was also born in Ireland, but came to Ridgefield as a young girl.
The future Police Commissioner attended the public schools of Ridgefield, and later took courses in law enforcement at Harvard University. At the outset of his career, he planned to be a pharmacist, and for a time worked in a drug store owned by his brother, James J. Kelly. However, he lost interest in pharmacy as a profession, and entered the employ of S. P. Church of Seymour, drilling artesian wells.
When this country became involved in World War I, Mr. Kelly entered the United States Navy. As a machinist's mate, second class, he was assigned to the crew of a submarine chaser. He served from 1917 to 1919, and on receiving his honorable discharge, rejoined Mr. Church in well-digging.
His career in the employ of the state began on March 1, 1921, when he joined the Connecticut State Motor Vehicle Department as an inspector. When the law was enacted merging this department with the State Police Department, Mr. Kelly became a patrolman. His progress through the grades of sergeant, lieutenant, and captain was rapid, and he finally became a major, serving as an executive of- ficer. In 1949, he took a leave of absence from the State Police De- partment to serve as State Liquor Commissioner, an office he capably filled until October, 1953. At that time, on the death of Edward Hickey, Commissioner of Police, John C. Kelly was appointed by Governor Lodge to succeed him. He was reappointed by Governor Ribicoff in 1955, and served until 1959.
Mr. Kelly's memberships include the International Police Chiefs Association, the Police Chiefs' Association of Connecticut, the State Police Association of Connecticut, Ridgewood Country Club in his home city, and the Knights of Columbus. He is a charter member of the Ridgefield Post of the American Legion. A Roman Catholic, he attends St. Mary's Church in Ridgefield. His favorite sport is golf.
On June 9, 1920, John C. Kelly married Violet Maria Pearson of Ridgefield, daughter of Nelson and Louisa (Reicharter) Pearson. The couple are the parents of the following children : 1. James Arthur, who was born at Ridgefield on May 25, 1921. A graduate of that city's high school and of a commercial art school in New York, he now fol- lows the profession of commercial artist. During World War II, he served in the United States Army Air Corps as a radio specialist with
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the rank of sergeant, and was in the Pacific Theater. 2. Joan, born in Ridgefield on August 29, 1925. She attended the public schools there, and the University of Connecticut. She is now the wife of Thomas Doyle of South Plainfield, New Jersey, and they have three children: i. Katherine. ii. Joan. iii. Mary Elizabeth. 3. Patricia, born in Ridgefield on February 16, 1928. She married John Mudry of Danbury, and they have one son, Shawn Mudry.
GEORGE J. CONKLING
Connecticut's Commissioner of Finance, George J. Conkling as- sumed the duties of his present office in 1957, following twenty years of service to the state.
A native of Troy, New York, he was born on July 27, 1905, son of William T. and Catherine (Galbreath) Conkling. The Conkling family has long been established in New England, a forebear having come from Nottingham, England, about 1672, and settling at Salem, Massachusetts. Not long after that, a branch of the family was es- tablished on Long Island, later moving to Goshen, New York. Com- missioner Conkling's parents moved from Troy to West Haven in 1916, and he attended the public schools of the latter place and grad- uated from West Haven High School. He took evening classes in ac- counting and finance at New Haven College over a period of seven years, and for nineteen years served as instructor at that institution.
Meantime, in 1937, Mr. Conkling had joined the staff of the Public Works Department, State of Connecticut, as an accountant. In 1942 he was transferred to the State Auditor's Department, in which he served until 1951. He was appointed Deputy Commissioner of Finance in 1951, and was named Commissioner of Finance, and a member of Governor Ribicoff's cabinet, in 1957.
Commissioner Conkling is a member of the Sons of the American Revolution. A Roman Catholic, he attends Our Lady of Mount Car- mel Church in North Haven. His hobby is stamp collecting.
On September 5, 1934, George J. Conkling was married to Evelyn Pardee of New Haven, in a ceremony at New York City. Mrs. Conk- ling is a daughter of Joseph and Sophia (Warzel) Pardee, and she is a graduate of New Haven High School. The couple are the parents of three children : 1. George J., Jr., who was born at Milford on August 31, 1936. He graduated from Hopkins Grammar School in New Haven, and from the University of Connecticut in the Class of 1958. 2. John V., born on February 15, 1940. He graduated from Hamden Conn.III-36
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High School, took additional courses at Hartford Technical Institute, and is now studying Art at Pailer Art School in Hamden. 3. Helen C., born on April II, 1944. She is attending North Haven Junior High School.
WILLIAM A. PARSONS
Since 1950, William A. Parsons has headed his own sheet-metal manufacturing firm at Durham, The W. A. Parsons Company. Under his capable direction it has grown from modest beginnings to become one of the vital industries of the area.
Mr. Parsons is a native of Durham, and was born on January 25, 1910, son of Harold Camp and Edith (Burr) Parsons. His mother died in 1912, when he was only two years old, and his father's death occurred in 1925. Although he had lost both of his parents before his education was completed, he continued and finished his courses at Durham schools, and attended its high school. However, he did not have the opportunity to take advanced studies, but began his career in industry in 1930, gaining practical experience as both carpenter and electrician over the next eight years. From 1938 to 1950 he was employed by the Durham Manufacturing Company, and there his advancement was rapid. He held the office of vice president and pro- duction manager at the time he resigned to establish his own organi- zation.
The W. A. Parsons Company of Durham was incorporated in March, 1950, with a staff of five employees. The original sheet-metal fabrication plant was a wooden frame structure with thirty-three hundred square feet of floor space. In the same year, and again in the next year, additions were made to this plant. A fire in September, 1951, destroyed the paint and packing rooms, but with the full coopera- tion of the employees and the loan of painting equipment by a fellow townsman, production and shipping schedules were met on time. In the spring of 1952 the company decided to embark on a building program of fire-resistant buildings and advanced production techniques to meet present-day conditions. A new plant of five thousand square feet was constructed during the year to house the shear and press departments. During 1953 a five-thousand-square-foot addition was made to the new plant to expand the forming and welding departments, which completed the fabrication facilities. A new office was completed dur- ing 1955. Containing twenty-three hundred square feet, it was much more adequate than the original office, which had been located in a garage attached to the W. A. Parsons homestead. This phase of the
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