USA > Connecticut > History of Connecticut, Volume IV > Part 31
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Mr. Treadway is a Republican, although he takes no active in- terest in party affairs. His memberships include The Hartford Club, Hartford Golf Club, the University Club, Hartford Gun Club, King- dom Game Club, and St. Bernard Fish and Game Club. His fra- ternity is Delta Kappa Epsilon, which he joined at Yale University. He is a communicant of Asylum Hill Congregational Church in Hartford.
At Plantsville, Connecticut, on June 20, 1929, Graham R. Tread- way married Dorothy Clark Dickerman, daughter of Raymond Por- ter and Louise (Clark) Dickerman. The couple are the parents of the following children: 1. Graham Richards, Jr., who was born on August 23, 1930, in Bristol. He married Florence Waterhouse. 2.
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John Laird, born April 13, 1933, in Hartford. He graduated from Yale University in 1955. On June 14, 1958, he married Barbara Eaton. 3. Andrew Terry, born on October 2, 1936, in Hartford. He is now a senior at Washington and Lee University. He is married to the former Miss Eleanor Langford.
SEYMOUR ROE PECK
Joining the management staff of the Bristol Savings Bank in the early 1930s, Seymour Roe Peck has been president of the organi- zation for some years. Its resources, and the scope of its services, have been appreciably expanded under his capable direction. Mr. Peck has held public office, serving on his city's board of finance.
He is a native of Bristol, and was born on November 5, 1901, son of Howard Seymour and Florence Edna (Roe) Peck. His father, born at Bristol on May 16, 1874, was in the insurance and banking fields, and served in the Home Guard. The family is descended from Zebulon Peck, and among the banker's forebears, Seymour Peck was among the early settlers in his region. Mrs. Peck was born on October 16, 1878, in upper New York State. Seymour R. Peck re- ceived his early education in local public schools, attended Bristol High School for three years, 1915 to 1918, then transferred to Phil- lips Exeter Academy to complete his preparatory courses, graduating there in 1919. He went to Yale University for his advanced studies, and took his degree of Bachelor of Arts there in 1923.
He began his business career in that year with the Travelers Insurance Company. Beginning in its cashier's department, he was promoted to branch office administration work, and was field assistant at the time he left the insurance firm in 1928. At that time he re- turned to his native Bristol and joined the insurance agency of Peck, Barnard and Olmsted. He remained with that organization until 1931, when he accepted a position as secretary-treasurer of the Bristol Savings Bank. At that time it was a small organization with eight employees on its staff. Mr. Peck was promoted to the presidency of the bank in 1942. As its chief executive, he has proved himself a dy- namic force in its growth, enlarging its mortgage activities, and in- troducing combined insurance and savings programs. There are now thirty-four people on its payroll.
Mr. Peck is a director of the Bristol Bank Trust Company and of Middlesex Mutual Assurance Company. Active in the Savings Bank Association of Connecticut, he formerly served as its president. A Republican in politics, he was elected to Bristol's board of finance
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in 1933 and served until 1939. His memberships include the Hartford Golf Club and the Franklin Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons. He and his family attend First Church of Christ, Congregational, in Farmington.
In New York City on May 13, 1933, Seymour R. Peck married Margery Earl. She is the daughter of the late Edward Earl and Caro- line (Felter) Earl of Montclair, New Jersey. Both of her parents are deceased. Mr. and Mrs. Peck are the parents of two children: I. Mar- gery Seymour, who was born at Bristol on March 22, 1934. She is now the wife of Edward W. Bush, Jr. 2. Juliana Seymour, born on November 19, 1941 ; attending Oxford School.
WILLIAM CHARLES STRONG
Since he began the practice of law, William Charles Strong has had offices at Greenwich, and is a partner in the firm of Hirschberg, Pettingill and Strong, whose address is 289 Greenwich Avenue. He has a creditable record of service on the bench of the local court.
Born December 15, 1900, at West Haven, he is a son of William Benjamin and Matilda (Swanson) Strong. Both parents are deceased.
Attending the public schools of his native place, William C. Strong graduated from West Haven High School in 1919, and en- tered Dartmouth College, where he took his degree of Bachelor of Arts in 1923. For his professional training he enrolled at Yale Law School, which conferred on him his degree of Bachelor of Laws in 1925. Admitted to the bar of his state, he began practice in Green- wich the following year. The city has been the center of his profes- sional career, and he has been a partner in Hirschberg, Pettingill and Strong since 1935.
Mr. Strong served as judge in the local court in 1939 and again in 1941. He is a Republican in politics. For some years he served on the board of Greenwich Academy. As a lawyer he belongs to the Greenwich Bar Association, the Connecticut Bar Association and the American Bar Association. For many years he was a member of the Standing Committee for Fairfield County and is a member of the Bar Examining Committee of the State at the present time. Mr. Strong's fraternity is Lambda Chi Alpha, which he joined at Dart- mouth College. He is a communicant of the Second Congregational Church in Greenwich.
In Greenwich, on February 22, 1929, William Charles Strong married Virginia Clair Ackerman. She is a native of New York City, and daughter of Julian A. and Cora (Hollister) Ackerman.
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Both of her parents are deceased. Mrs. Strong completed her second- ary studies at Greenwich High School. She and Mr. Strong are the parents of a daughter, Barbara Hollister, who was born at Green- wich on May 25, 1939. She attended Greenwich Academy, and gradu- ated from Greenwich High School in 1957. She is now attending the music school of Ithaca College, and while in her first year was one of only three freshmen singing with the school's traveling choir.
REVEREND EMIL U. CHAGNON
Pastor of Saint Anne's Roman Catholic Church in Bristol since 1956, and a member of the Catholic clergy since 1934, Father Chag- non is the third priest to serve as pastor of the parish, which was founded in 1908 by Reverend Joseph Phillip Perreault. Father Chag- non was born in Wauregan, Connecticut, on January 1I, 1909, the son of Joseph N. and of Albina (Couture) Chagnon. He attended public schools for three years, and then graduated from Saint Anne's School in Bristol, Connecticut, in 1923, and from Crosby High School in Waterbury in 1927. He attended Saint Thomas Seminary in Hart- ford for two years and he completed his study for the priesthood at Saint Mary's Seminary in Baltimore, Maryland, where he was a student for three years. He was ordained a priest in 1934, by the Most Rever- end Le Serrand, Bishop of St. Brieux, France.
His first post was as curate in Saint Mary's Parish in Jewett City, Connecticut, where he served from 1934 to 1939, and he then became curate at Saint Anthony's Parish in Bridgeport, serving from 1939 to 1942. During World War II, he was a chaplain in the Army Air Force for four years, from 1942 to 1946, and he served in Africa, Sardinia, Corsica, France, Germany and England.
On his discharge from military service in 1946, Father Chagnon was named curate of Saint Anne's Parish in Bristol, Connecticut, and he became pastor in 1956. It was while he served as administrator that a new church was constructed at a cost of six hundred and fifty thousand dollars, and under Father Chagnon's direction as pastor, a convent is being constructed to house the nuns who teach in the parish school, which has nearly six hundred students.
RALPH HALSEY LINSLEY
Identified with the Bristol Federal Savings and Loan Associa- tion for more than two decades, Ralph Halsey Linsley is now presi- dent of this Bristol financial institution. He has taken a full part in the civic and organizational life of his city.
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Mr. Linsley is a native of Bristol, and was born on February 3, 1903, son of Ray Keyes and Flora (Ladd) Linsley. He attended local public schools, and in 1921 graduated from Bristol High School. He then received appointment to the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis, where he graduated in 1926. Thereafter until 1936 he was in active service in the United States Navy, starting with an ensign's commission and advancing to the rank of lieutenant, junior grade.
As of January 1, 1936, Mr. Linsley joined the staff of the Bristol Federal Savings and Loan Association as manager of its office. At that time this institution had assets of eighty-eight thousand dollars. He gained experience in the operation of its various departments, and held office successively as assistant secretary, secretary and vice president, becoming a director on September 13, 1937. In 1949 he was promoted to the presidency. Under his capable executive management, it has grown steadily in resources and in the scope of its services. To- day it has assets of seventeen million dollars, and employs eighteen people.
Mr. Linsley's memberhips include the Lions Club, Chippanee Golf Club, and Sachems Head Yacht Club, the Bristol Town Club, and Bristol Fish and Game Club. He is a Republican in politics and attends the Bristol Congregational Church.
In his native city of Bristol on June 1, 1929, Ralph Halsey Linsley married Bernice Rockwell Ward. Born on December 30, 1907, at Hartford, she is a daughter of George Burwell and Bernice (Rock- well) Ward. Mrs. Linsley attended New Haven High School, House in The Pines, Norton, Massachusetts, and Erskine School, Boston, Massachusetts. The couple are the parents of the following children: 1. Ward Halsey, born on December 5, 1933, at Long Beach California. He attended Deerfield Academy, and graduated from Hobart Col- lege in 1954, with the degree of Bachelor of Arts. 2. Ralph Trenwith, born on August 2, 1934, in Washington, D. C. He too graduated from Deerfield Academy, and in 1956 received his degree of Bachelor of Arts from Colgate University. 3. Keyes Burwell, born on August 23, 1940, in Bristol. He graduated from Deerfield Academy in 1958.
A. DALE MITCHELL
President of the Waterbury Farrel Foundry & Machine Co. of Waterbury, Division of Textron Inc., manufacturers of metal work- ing machinery, and associated with the company since 1942, Mr. Mitchell is a director of the Citizens and Manufacturers National
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Bank of Waterbury, and he was active in the public accounting field before assuming his present post.
He was born in Peachbottom, Pennsylvania, on August 24, 1902, the son of Albert O. Mitchell and of Annie E. (Boyle) Mitchell. Both of his parents are now deceased. Mr. Mitchell attended grade school in Bethlehem, Connecticut, graduated from Woodbury High School in 1920, and received the degree of Bachelor of Arts from Trinity College in 1924 with honors in Economics and History. He was elected to Phi Beta Kappa in 1923.
An accountant with General Electric Company for one year, he was then active in public accounting for seventeen years in Chicago, New York and Waterbury, being associated with the firm of Barrow, Wade, Guthrie & Co., now merged with Peat, Marwick, Mitchell and Company. It was in 1942 that he became controller and assistant treasurer of the Waterbury Farrel Foundry & Machine Co., he was made treasurer and a director in 1954, and he became president of the company in 1956.
Mr. Mitchell enjoys social connections as a member of the Water- bury Country Club, the Waterbury Club and the University Club of Waterbury. He is a Republican in politics and his church is the Federated Church of Bethlehem.
He was married in Chicago, on November 15, 1925, to Helen E. Littlejohn, the daughter of John Littlejohn and of Ada (Fenton) Littlejohn of Woodbury.
Mr. and Mrs. Mitchell have three children : 1. Alice Marilyn, now Mrs. Harris Hinckley of Cape Elizabeth, Maine, and they have three daughters, Priscilla, Lucy and Betsey. 2. Judith Ann (Mitchell) Plummer is the mother of three sons, Dale, John and Dana. 3. Nancy Bennington, now Mrs. John Doroshuk. Her husband is a lieutenant in the United States Navy and they have two children, Barth and Lisa.
KARL WILLIAM HALLDEN
As founder of Haliden Machine Company, Karl William Hallden has given Thomaston one of its important industries, making an im- portant contribution to its economic life and community stability. The organization is an outgrowth of the inventiveness, mechanical ingenuity, and qualities of leadership possessed by a man who came to this country from Sweden at an early age, and who has found here the opportunity for the full development and use of these gifts.
His native place is Halmstad, which lies along the west coast of Sweden, tucked in a bay of the Kattegat opposite Denmark. Born
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there on February 12, 1884, he is a son of Axel and Kristina (Sven- son) Hallden. When he was nine years old, the family came to this country and settled at Bakersville, Connecticut. He attended the pub- lic schools, to which he had to walk a distance of several miles; quick- ly picked up a knowledge of English; and showed an interest in music, playing clarinet in a band in Torrington. When he had completed his public school studies, he took a position as machinist in the Hendey Machine Company at the age of seventeen. In his free time, he studied mechanical engineering, and after three years received his papers. While working as a draftsman, he began taking special courses at Trinity College, and in 1905, enrolled there as a full-time student. He graduated in 1909 with the degree of Bachelor of Science.
The same year, he moved to Thomaston, where he took a posi- tion as assistant chief engineer with the Plume and Atwood Manu- facturing Company. From 1913 to 1915 he was chief engineer with the Seymour Manufacturing Company. His work in this connection involved the responsibility of special assignments-projects which tested his ingenuity and fostered his interest in an improved design for the flying shear. Such a shear had first been built by Victor Ed- wards in 1897, but was still in an evolutionary stage.
Seeing a better opportunity to use his experience in an organiza- tion of his own, Karl W. Hallden established the Hallden Machine Company at Waterbury in 1916. Its first location was on Cottage Place, and he later moved to Benedict Street. The next step in his firm's growth brought him to Thomaston in 1924. There he leased the property of the Waterbury Jewel Company, on the Naugatuck River next to the Seth Thomas Clock Works. In the difficult days fol- lowing the 1929 stockmarket crash, he had enough confidence in the future of his organization to purchase this property, and at about the same time he put into effect plans to incorporate the business. On January 6, 1930, the title of The Hallden Machine Company was reg- istered by the State of Connecticut, and it has been known by this slightly changed name since.
Its growth since that time has been steady. The first addition to the plant at Thomaston was made in 1937, and second and third addi- tions were made during the war years. 1941 and 1942. Another small wing was constructed in 1951. In 1954 the company launched a major expansion program as its answer to the challenging fact that demand for its product has always remained ahead of supply. The new assem- bly room, completed in 1955, collected tons of debris in the course of the flood in August of that year. A more recent addition, more than
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one hundred percent larger than the 1955 one, brings total floor space at the plant to about sixty thousand square feet. The Hallden Machine Company now has a payroll of about one hundred and sixty-five.
The firm specializes in the production of flying shears, which are used in a wide range of manufacturing applications, from such heavy industries as steel and automobiles to the production of electri- cal equipment and such specialized production as bakelite items and wire. Its role is indispensable in assuring today's rapid rate of pro- duction in each of these fields. Flying shears of modern construction have been developed, and are now manufactured, primarily by this one company, a fact attesting to the vital role which one relatively small organization can play among industrial giants. Its products are sold abroad as well as in this country, and are in great demand in such industrial economies as those of England, Belgium, and the Ruhr. In England, the W. H. A. Robertson and Company, Ltd., has become a production associate of The Hallden Machine Company.
Since his days at Trinity College in Hartford, Mr. Hallden has retained a loyal interest in the institution. In 1946 he gave funds for a new engineering laboratory, and plans are presently going forward for its expansion. He has also endowed the Hallden Professorship of Engineering. He serves the college as a life trustee. In recogni- tion of his services, Trinity College conferred on Mr. Hallden an honorary degree of Doctor of Science in June, 1955. A creative and effective program of interrelationship has been developed between the company and the college, which has as its goal the advancement of engineering training and practice.
Besides his major business connection, Mr. Hallden has bank- ing interests, serving on the boards of directors of the Thomaston Savings Bank, and the Colonial Trust Company at Waterbury. His memberships include the Waterbury University Club, Waterbury Country Club, Waterbury Club, Litchfield County University Club, Hartford Club, the Triton Fish and Game Club of Quebec, Canada, and the Hartford University Club. His fraternity is Tau Alpha, and he is active in the Free and Accepted Masons and the higher bodies of Masonry, holding the Thirty-second degree and belonging to the Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine. He attends the Episcopal Church, and is a Republican in politics.
In Chicago, Illinois, on July 5, 1931, Karl William Hallden mar- ried Margaret M. Maligan, daughter of John George and Mary Jane (O'Konian) Maligan.
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LEO VINCENT GAFFNEY
Leo Vincent Gaffney has had three decades' experience in the practice of law in New Britain. In the course of that time he has rendered distinguished service in public office as assistant attorney general of his state, and as assistant United States District Attorney.
He is a native of New Britain, and was born on April 14, 1903, son of Bernard Francis and Alice (Sherlock) Gaffney. His father too was an attorney-at-law, who served his community as judge of probate and as chairman of the school board. Leo V. Gaffney attended the public schools of the city and graduated from New Britain High School in 1920. He then entered Yale College, taking his degree of Bachelor of Arts there in 1925; and he received his professional training in Yale Law School, where he graduated with the degree of Bachelor of Laws in 1928.
In that year he was admitted to the bar of his state, and opened offices in his native town. His offices are located at 272 Main Street.
Mr. Gaffney became assistant attorney general of the State of Connecticut in 1935 and served until 1944. In that year he became assistant to the United States district attorney, serving in that office for several months.
He is a member of Phi Alpha Delta legal fraternity and of Beta Theta Pi. In his home city he belongs to the Yale Club and Shuttle Meadow Country Club.
At Middletown, on October 21, 1930, Leo Vincent Gaffney mar- ried Marjorie Ruth Boylan, daughter of James Edward and Mar- garet (Smith) Boylan. The couple are the parents of three children: I. Patricia Ann, born on July 27, 1931. She is now Mrs. Hewes. 2. Judith Lee, born on February 2, 1935. 3. Brenda Boylan, born April 20, 1940.
FERDINAND LENO ARRIGONI
Some of the largest contracting assignments in the state of Connecticut have been undertaken by the Arrigoni firm of Durham. Members of this family have long exerted leadership in the region, have served in the legislature and in other public offices, and have es- tablished a splendid example of citizenship. Ferdinand L. Arrigoni is now carrying on in this tradition, and is a partner in the firm of D. Arrigoni.
He is a native of Durham, and was born on February 23, 191I, son of Dionigi and Rose ( Pellozini) Arrigoni. His father was born in Italy on February 8, 1880, and died in 1957 in Durham. Miss Pello-
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zini, whom he married, was also a native of Italy. Born May 10, 1885, she died in 1930 in Durham.
Ferdinand L. Arrigoni attended the public schools and graduated from Middletown High School in 1930. In that year he entered his father's contracting business, the firm of R. Arrigoni, and familiarized himself with the various aspects of road construction, in which the firm specializes. Major contracts on which they have worked in- clude the Wilbur Cross Parkway, Merritt Parkway, Atchison Drive in Middletown, Westchester County Parkway, Bolton Parkway, the Waterbury Expressway, and many others.
Mr. Arrigoni, a Republican in politics, was elected to the Con- necticut State Legislature in 1951 and served until 1953. He was for several years chairman of his town committee. He is a veteran of World War II, serving from May, 1942, to 1945, and was overseas three years with the Aviation Engineers. In the course of that time, he was stationed in North Africa, Italy and France.
Affiliated with the Benevolent and Protective Order of Elks, Mr. Arrigoni has served as exalted ruler of his lodge, and he is a past president of the Lions Club. In religious faith he is a Roman Catholic. His hobby is stamp-collecting.
On October 9, 1941, at Hamden, Ferdinand L. Arrigoni married Evelyn May Chasser. Born on October 12, 1908, she was the daughter of Alfred and Lillian (Lawrence ) Chasser. Her grandfather, George Wilson, gave a wing to the Kings County Hospital. The family came from Scotland, her father arriving here at the age of nineteen. Mrs. Arrigoni passed away February 3, 1959, being survived by her hus- band and one son, Richard Alfred, who was born on April 1, 1951, at Middletown, Connecticut.
JUDGE PAUL LATHROP MILLER
Judge of the Bridgeport Probate Court from 1915 to 1925 and judge of the Bridgeport City Court from 1936 to 1946, Judge Miller has been associated with the legal profession since 1908 and is a mem- ber of the law firm of Miller, Bent and Smith of Bridgeport, Con- necticut. He has been active in civic affairs throughout most of his career, served as alderman of Bridgeport from 1911 to 1914, was a member of the Board of Apportionment and Taxation from 1928 to 1936, and is appeal agent of the Bridgeport Draft Board.
Judge Miller was born in Bridgeport on January 5, 1885, the son of William R. Miller and of Clarissa Jackson (Garrigus) Miller. His father was born in New York City on May 17, 1838 and was an ac-
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countant with the American Graphophone Company of Bridgeport. He was active in Republican politics, served as alderman of Bridge- port, attended religious services as a member of the Baptist Church and was noted for his charity work. He was a member of the famous New York Seventh Regiment during the Civil War, served in the defense of Washington in 1861, and was a member of the Guard of Honor at President Lincoln's funeral. He died on October 10, 1910. The Miller family came to America before the American Revolution, settling in Hartford and Wethersfield, Connecticut. Mr. Miller's moth- er was born at Rockaway, New Jersey, on January 28, 1844, and she was a housewife and active in the Baptist Church. Her great-grand- father was John Garrigus, who served at the siege of Yorktown as a member of the Continental Line and is buried at Rockaway, New Jersey.
Judge Miller graduated from Bridgeport High School in 1903 and obtained his Bachelor of Laws degree at Yale University Law School in 1908. He then entered law practice in Bridgeport and is a member of the firm of Miller, Bent and Smith. He has been active in professional organizations and is a member of the American Bar Association. He was a member of the Judicial Council of the State of Connecticut from 1938 to 1957, and he is a former vice president, 1940 and 1941, and president, 1941 and 1942, of the Fairfield County Bar Association. He is also a past president of the Bridgeport Bar Association. A member of the board of associates of Bridgeport Uni- versity, he has been trustee and secretary of the Peoples Savings Bank since 1926.
A past commander of Hamilton Commandery, Knights Templar, and a member of all York and Scottish Masonic rites, Judge Miller is past potentate of Pyramid Temple and he is a life member of the Elks. He is a Republican in politics. He attends religious services as a member of the Methodist Church and he is a member of the board of trustees of the church. His social connections include membership in the Rotary Club, the University Club and the Algonquin Club.
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