USA > Connecticut > Fairfield County > History of Fairfield County, Connecticut, 1639-1928 > Part 41
Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).
Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46
The children of Mr. and Mrs. Hawley were as follows: Asa Huntington Hawley, who passed away leaving two daughters, Mildred Hawley and Mabel Hawley Clark, who reside in Dan- bury, Connecticut, and who are members of the Hawley Society ; Julia Minerva; Robert Norton; and Collis Stoddard. Mrs. Ida E. Hawley is also a member of the Hawley Family Society and she makes her home in Hawleyville, named in honor of the family of which her husband was a representative.
EDWARD THOMAS BEDFORD
No resident of Westport more nearly exemplifies the essential qualifications of ideal citizenship than does Edward Thomas Bed- ford, who though an active and successful business man has found time to contribute in large measure to the civic advancement of his community. Westport has been to a very considerable extent the beneficiary of his public spirit and his devotion to the general good and he therefore commands the respect and esteem of his fellow citizens to a marked degree.
Mr. Bedford was born in Brooklyn, New York, February 19,
35-VOL. 3
568
HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY
1849, a son of Frederick Thomas and Mary Ann Elizabeth (Pace) Bedford. After attending the public schools he completed his education in the Maplegrove Academy at Westport. He early became identified with business affairs and during subsequent years has been connected with enterprises of large importance. He is now president of the Corn Products Refining Company of New York and the Colonial Oil Company of New Jersey, a trustee of the Title Guarantee & Trust Company, a director of the Thompson-Starett Company, the Long Island Safe Deposit Com- pany and the Bush Terminal Company and is a member of the advisory committee of the United States Lloyds. His plans are always carefully formulated and promptly executed and a ready discrimination between the essential and the non-essential has been one of the potent forces in his continued business advance- ment.
In December, 1871, Mr. Bedford was united in marriage to Miss Mary Ann Durgee, of Bronxville, New York, and they oc- cupy a beautiful home at Greens Farms, Connecticut. Mr. Bed- ford is vice president of the Riding and Driving Club and belongs to the Parkway Driving Club of Brooklyn, the Bridgeport Yacht Club, the Black Rock Harbor Club and the Hokomin Golf Club. Believing sincerely in the axiom that "not the good that comes to us, but the good that comes to the world through us, is the measure of our success," Mr. Bedford has used his wealth in the promotion of the educational, civic and moral interests of the people. A local paper said: "His gifts to Norwalk and to Westport have been astonishing in their magnitude and magnificence." He gave to Westport its beautiful Young Men's Christian Association building and donated a liberal sum to the Norwalk Young Men's Christian Association. He erected two handsome school building's in Westport, meeting half the cost of the new junior high school, which in his honor is called the Bedford Junior high school. He also gave an equal amount for the Bedford elementary school and the Greens Farms school, besides contributing fifty thousand dollars toward new equipment for the junior high school. He pro- vided a central fire station adjacent to the Young Men's Chris- tian Association and in architectural harmony with it. He paid half of the cost of a splendid athletic field in connection with the junior high school and the Staples high school. He does not
569
1
HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY
believe in taking away the sense of civic responsibility from his fellow townsmen and therefore has been as sagacious in his good works as in his business and finance by making his contribution to the community on condition that the town match his offering dollar for dollar. This he did in raising money for the Nurses' Home, which has been called the Mary A. Bedford Nurses' Home in honor of his wife. Moreover, he gave half the cost of the hos- pital and recently announced a half-million-dollar gift to be used for the construction of an addition to the hospital. He entirely supports the Nurses' Home with a yearly endowment of ten thou- sand dollars and there are no conditions attached to this gift. He also donates ten thousand dollars annually for the maintenance of the hospital provided a similar amount is raised by the towns- people. He is unostentatious, open-hearted and candid, yet a man of strong individuality and sincere convictions who has studied the question of philanthropy and recognizes that the best way to aid mankind is to enable the individual to help himself. His life has indeed been far-reaching in its influence and its benefits, yet Mr. Bedford takes no special credit to himself for what he has accomplished, regarding his prosperity as a matter of stewardship for which he desires to render creditable account.
STREB FUR CUTTING COMPANY
The Streb Fur Cutting Company, of which Philip Streb is part owner and the active manager, is one of Norwalk's chief en- terprises in connection with the hat industry and is enjoying a very satisfactory measure of prosperity. Mr. Streb was born in Germany in 1864, his parents being August and Dorothy (Webber) Streb, also natives of Germany and now deceased. He was reared and educated in the fatherland and for a number of years was associated with various furriers in Germany. Later he went to Belgium, where he remained identified with the same line of business, in which he became an expert. On September 14, 1896, Mr. Streb arrived in the United States and located in Newark, New Jersey, where he was superintendent of the Behr- ing Hat Company for four years, after which that company sent him to Yonkers, New York, as superintendent of its factory there.
570
HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY
In July, 1923, Mr. Streb came to Norwalk, Connecticut, and established the Streb Fur Factory, which is now owned by Cavanagh-Dobbs, Inc., and he is still successfully managing that business. He has a thorough knowledge of the technical phases of the business, is giving his close attention to its operation, and has proven in every way well qualified as a manager of an im- portant enterprise like this.
In 1888 Mr. Streb was united in marriage to Miss Anna Fied- ler, also a native of Germany, and to them have been born three children, namely : Ellis, deceased; John, who is living in Canada ; and Lulu, who is the wife of Julius Timm, of Yonkers, New York.
Mr. Streb is a member of the Independent Order of Odd Fel- lows and, due to his strong character, excellent personal qualities and his kindly manner, is extremely popular among his associates and highly respected throughout the range of his acquaintance.
FRANCIS CASH McMAHON, M. D.
Among the learned, skilled and successful physicians and sur- geons of Fairfield county, Dr. Francis C. McMahon, of Stamford, holds a prominent place and enjoys a large and remunerative practice. He was born in Stamford on the 31st of October, 1895, a son of William E. and Honora (Cash) McMahon. His father was born in Stamford, August 28, 1865, and when a young man was appointed to the police force, at which time there was one other on the force. He filled that position for twenty-six years, excepting four years while serving as constable, and at the time of his death, which occurred December 29, 1927, he was court sergeant. He was highly respected as a man of integrity and as an honest official. Police officials from all over the state and also from New York city were at his funeral and the police club of New York city sent a choir of sixteen men to sing the requiem high mass at St. John's Roman Catholic church. City officials of Stamford and the police department paid a wonderful tribute to his memory and there were two lines of policemen in front of the police station through which the funeral cortege passed. He was a democrat in politics and a member of St. John's Roman Catholic church. His parents, Owen and Ann McMahon, were natives of
571
HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY
Ireland and are both deceased, the father dying at Bethel, Con- necticut, and the mother in Stamford. Honora (Cash) McMahon was born in Stamford, July 25, 1877, and died in this city, Octo- ber 29, 1925. She was a daughter of Martin and Margaret (Con- roy) Cash, the former of whom was born in Ireland and died in Stamford, Connecticut. He was a veteran of the Civil war and was for many years in the employ of the Stamford Foundry Com- pany. He was a democrat and a Roman Catholic in his religious faith. His wife was born in New York city and died in Stamford.
Francis C. McMahon attended the public schools of Stamford, graduating from high school in 1914, and then matriculated in the medical school of Fordham College, New York city, from which he was graduated with the degree of Doctor of Medicine in 1919. He served as interne in the Misericordia and Knicker- bocker Hospitals in New York city and entered upon the private practice of his profession at Fisher's Island, New York. In 1920 he came to Stamford, where he has since been actively engaged in the practice of medicine and surgery, in both of which branches he is regarded as able and competent. He is a member of the associate staff of the Stamford Hospital and has served as police surgeon for the past nine years. He is a member of the Stamford Medical Society, the Fairfield County Medical Society, the Con- necticut State Medical Society and the American Medical Asso- ciation.
On June 10, 1925, in Stamford, Dr. McMahon was united in marriage to Miss Amy Gertrude Wallace, who was born in Arn- prior, Ontario, Canada, February 19, 1897, and is a daughter of James and Alice (O'Bryan) Wallace, both of whom were born in Canada. Her father, who still lives in that country, is a dealer in live stock and is a member of the Presbyterian church. His wife is deceased. Mrs. McMahon was educated in the public schools of Canada and was graduated from the Stamford Hos- pital training school for nurses, after which she practiced her profession in this city prior to her marriage. She is a director. of the Stamford Hospital Nurses Alumni Association and is a member of the Connecticut Council of Catholic Women. Dr. and Mrs. McMahon are the parents of a son, Douglas Francis, born July 19, 1926.
The Doctor has always supported the republican party and has taken a good citizen's interest in public affairs, particularly
572
HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY
such as have pertained to the welfare of his home community. He is a member of the Knights of Columbus, the Benevolent Pro- tective Order of Elks, the Loyal Order of Moose, the Fraternal Order of Eagles, the Improved Order of Red Men, the Lions Club, the Hubbard Heights Golf Club and the Stamford Chamber of Commerce. He and his wife are members of St. John's Roman Catholic church. The Doctor, who is a man of strong character and attractive personality, has a host of warm and loyal friends throughout this community, and all who know him hold him in the highest regard for his professional ability and his worth as a man and citizen.
THOMAS J. BOWEN
As one of the officials of The Mallory Hat Company, Thomas J. Bowen participates in the activities of an organization which has earned world wide renown for the excellence of its product and the integrity of its directorate.
Mr. Bowen was born in Wales, England, a son of Thomas and Jane (Williams) Bowen, and came to America at the early age of six on the death of his parents, making his home with his pater- nal grandparents at Ansonia, Connecticut, where he received his preliminary education. He entered the Sheffield Scientific School of Yale University in 1893, graduating in 1896 with the degree of Ph. B. He then entered the Yale Law School and graduated with the degree of LL. B. in 1899, having been admitted to the bar in 1898. He opened an office for the practice of law at Nau- gatuck, Connecticut, immediately after graduating from the law school, and was active in the legal and political circles of that city until 1911, during that period having the honor to serve the state and the community in which he lived and practiced his profession in many official capacities, being elected a member of the general assembly in 1903, again in 1905, and in 1909 was elected to the state senate. Taking advantage of an unusual opportunity, he cast his lot with The Mallory Hat Company, of Danbury, Con- necticut, and entered on his duties as credit manager of that com- pany in 1911, being subsequently elected a director, assistant treasurer and secretary, all of which positions he now occupies.
573
HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY
In 1905 Mr. Bowen married Miss Belle Mallory, a daughter of William E. Mallory, treasurer of The Mallory Hat Company, and Fannie C. (Raymond) Mallory, of Danbury. The children of this union are Barbara Jeanne and Thomas J., Jr.
Mr. Bowen is secretary and member of the board of managers of The Danbury Hospital, a trustee of The Union Savings Bank of Danbury, a member of the board of estimate and taxation of the city of Danbury, a member of the school board of Danbury, and a vestryman of St. James Episcopal church. He is also a Mason, a member of Sheperd Lodge of Naugatuck, Connecticut, Crusader Commandery of Danbury, and Pyramid Temple of Bridgeport. He is also a noble grand of Centennial Lodge, I. O. O. F., of Naugatuck, and a member of the Naugatuck Lodge of Elks.
During the World war Mr. Bowen made the utmost of his abilities to serve the allied cause as a member of the local military company and as a "Four-Minute Man," and actively participated in all drives for the support of the government and the organiza- tions concerned with the welfare of our soldiers.
LEOPOLD L. BARZAGHI
One of America's industrial leaders has said: "Experience is the harvest of life, and every harvest is the result of a sowing." Leopold L. Barzaghi has sown wisely and well, and his life has been a succession of harvests. For many years he has made his home in Stamford, and since his retirement from business his time and attention have been given to the supervision of his ex- tensive property holdings. A native of Italy, he was born July 1, 1857, and is a scion of one of the old and illustrious families of that country. His father, Bernardino Barzaghi, was born in Erba, situated in the province of Como, Italy, and died there. An engineer of national repute, he aided in building the St. Got- thard Railroad, which connects Italy with France. His wife, Maria, Countess Visconti Brebbia, was a direct descendant of Barnabo Visconti, duke of Milan, and was born in that city, in which she passed away in 1922, when eighty-six years of age.
Leopold L. Barzaghi was graduated from the Politecnich Uni-
574
HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY
versity of Milan, completing a course in civil engineering, but did not follow that profession and chose a commercial career instead. In 1881, when a young man of twenty-four, he yielded to the lure of the new world and located in New York city. There he embarked in business as a caterer, winning a position of leadership in that connection, and successfully conducted the enterprise for twenty-five years. He retired in 1921 and has since devoted his energies to the management of his estate, which comprises valuable real estate holdings in New York city, Stam- ford and Italy. His Stamford home at No. 134 Ocean Drive, East, was purchased in 1902, and the grounds cover sixteen acres. The tract is situated on Long Island Sound and its de- sirability is enhanced by eight hundred and fifty-six feet of water front, to which Mr. Barzaghi has the riparian right. In making his investments he has displayed marked foresight and keen sagacity and derives a large income from his holdings. He never purchased a piece of property without first seeking the advice of Mrs. Barzaghi and attributes a large share of his success to the rare judgment and sound advice of his wife, who has been a true helpmate and an ideal companion.
Mr. Barzaghi married Miss Rosa Ughetta, a native of Italy and a daughter of Gerome and Maria (Cardarni) Ughetta, who were lifelong residents of that country. Mr. and Mrs. Barzaghi have two children. The daughter, Gabriele, was born in New York city and graduated from the Sacred Heart Academy of that city. She is the wife of Louis Kennedy, a member of the firm of P. J. Kennedy & Son of New York city, publishers of Catholic directories and other books of interest to communicants of that faith. Mr. and Mrs. Kennedy are the parents of five children : Louis, Rose Mary, Patricia, John and Thomas. The son, Arthur J. Barzaghi, was graduated from Cornell University and is now a prominent architect of New York city. He was the winner of a prize offered by the Fifth Avenue Association for the best work accomplished in altering a building. The structure which he altered is located at No. 49 East Thirty-fourth street in New York city and owned by Emanuel Gerli & Company, importers of raw silk. Mr. Barzaghi married Miss Julia Coffey, of New York, and they have one child, Gerome.
Mr. and Mrs. Leopold L. Barzaghi are earnest, helpful mem- bers of St. Mary's Roman Catholic church of Stamford. Mrs.
575
HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY
Barzaghi is active in the work of the Shippan Point Garden Club and manifests a deep interest in all worthy public projects. Both are endowed with fine qualities of heart and mind and have won the esteem and friendship of all who are privileged to know them.
V
EDWARD T. BUCKINGHAM
During the thirty years of his connection with the Bridgeport bar Edward T. Buckingham has aided materially in upholding its dignity and prestige, at the same time winning success in his pro- fession, and is also well known because of his public service, which has been varied and important. His ancestors were among the earliest settlers in Connecticut and figured conspicuously in events which shaped its history. They were Puritans and of English lineage.
Thomas Buckingham, the American progenitor of the family, sailed from London in 1637 and arrived in Boston on the 26th of June. On March 30, 1638, he became a resident of Quinnipiack, now called New Haven, and a year later removed to Milford, Con- necticut, where his first wife, Mrs. Hannah Buckingham, passed away June 28, 1647. She was the mother of five children: Han- nah, Daniel, Samuel, Mary and Thomas. By his second wife, Mrs. Ann Buckingham, he had one son. The line comes down through Samuel Buckingham, who was baptized at Milford, June 13, 1640, and died March 17, 1699. On December 14, 1663, he had married Sarah Baldwin, whose father, Timothy Baldwin, was one of the first settlers of Milford, and they had ten children : Sarah; Mary; Samuel, who died in infancy; Samuel; Hannah; Thomas; Anne; Mary; Hester and Ruth. Of these Samuel, the second son and fourth child, was born November 1, 1668, and died October 29, 1708. He was one of the proprietors of the town of Milford although he never established his residence there. His wife, Mrs. Sarah Buckingham, united with the church in Mil- ford, May 17, 1696. They were the parents of seven children : Samuel, Ebenezer, Sarah, Thomas, Elizabeth, Esther and Nathaniel.
Samuel Buckingham (III), who was the direct ancestor of Edward T. Buckingham in the fourth generation, was baptized
576
HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY
November 21, 1693, and died in old Milford, December 29, 1749. He was married May 20, 1774, to Silence Clark, by whom he had eleven children: Sarah, Deborah, Abigail, Ann, Samuel, Ebe- nezer, Esther, Jared, Nathan, Elizabeth and Enoch. The third son and eighth child was Jared Buckingham, who was born Octo- ber 16, 1732, and passed away at Oxford about 1812. He was the father of four children: John; Samuel, who was born in 1772 and married a Miss Wooster, of Oxford, Connecticut; Isaac, whose natal year was 1774; and Eunice, who was born in 1775 and died in 1880.
John Buckingham, representative of the family in the sixth generation, was born in 1770 and was married in 1791 to Esther Osborne. Their family comprised nine children: Fanny, who was born in 1792 and became the wife of Roswell Hill, with whom she removed to Ohio; Hezekiah, who was born in 1794 and mar- ried Matilda Ann Wooster; Lucy, who was born in 1796 and married E. Bartiss; Letson, born in 1799; Susan Matilda, born in 1802; David Harson, who was born September 19, 1805, and mar- ried Anne Marie Scofield; Lucius E. Linus, born in 1807; Meroe, who was born in 1811 and married Cornelius Cahoe; and Laura L., who was born in 1813 and on November 2, 1835, became the wife of Joel F. Webster.
Lucius E. Buckingham, the grandfather of Edward T. Buck- ingham, was the seventh child of that family. He was born March 17, 1807, and when a young man followed the occupation of farming near Roxbury, Connecticut, later becoming a stone- cutter and monument builder. He was married June 13, 1832, to Julia A. Taylor, of New Milford, and they made their home in Woodbury, Connecticut, where he passed away in 1903. They were the parents of six children: Mary A., who was born April 2, 1833, in Roxbury and on December 31, 1863, became the wife of Isaac B. Prindle, for thirty years cashier of the Pequonnock National Bank of Bridgeport, in which city she died April 30, 1910; Esther A., who was born July 16, 1835, and died Decem- ber 11, 1855; Walter; George, born in Roxbury, November 14, 1846; Ellen L., who was born December 11, 1848, and became the wife of Henry E. Ward; and Alice A., born April 5, 1853. She was united in marriage to Dwight Halleck and died in 1895.
Walter Buckingham, the third child in that family, was born
577
HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY
in Dover, Dutchess county, New York, October 25, 1841, and in 1844 went with his parents to Sing Sing, where his father en- gaged in the stove business for a number of years. During that time Walter Buckingham attended the famous old Gunnery school and among his schoolmates were Captain Bob Beedes and a son of Judge Van Cott, late postmaster of New York city. When the family removed to Woodbury, Connecticut, Walter Bucking- ham secured a position in a dry goods store and later went to Chicago, Illinois, where he spent two years devoting his attention to the wholesale commission business. The climate proved in- jurious to his health and he returned to the east. For three years he was clerk in French's Hotel, which for an extended period was rated among the leading hostelries of New York city. Later he was the proprietor of a grocery store in South Norwalk, Con- necticut, and was elected the first city clerk of Norwalk, serving two terms. He next went to Metuchen, New Jersey, becoming superintendent of a railroad engaged in constructing a line through that section of the country. At Mount Vernon, New York, he was identified with the same line of work and built the first macadam road in New York city. Returning to Woodbury, he became insurance agent and was thus occupied for three years. In 1881 he established his home in Bridgeport and was a book- keeper for the John H. Way Manufacturing Company until the factory was destroyed by fire. Afterward his services were sought by other corporations, as he was an expert accountant and a conscientious worker. For eight and a half years he was deputy collector of customs at Bridgeport. He died December, 1927. In politics he was a stalwart democrat, while fraternally he was a Mason, belonging to King Solomon Lodge, No. 1, F. & A. M., at Woodbury, the oldest lodge in the state. He served as its secretary for several years and on locating in Bridgeport he became a member of St. John's Lodge, No. 3. On November 8, 1865, he married Helen E. Tolles, whose father, Robert I. Tolles, was a sash and blind maker of Plymouth, Connecticut, and they were the parents of two children. The daughter, Eda E., mar- ried T. W. Joyce, of Bridgeport, by whom she had two children, Louis B. and Helen L.
The son, Edward T. Buckingham, was born May 12, 1874, in Metuchen, New Jersey, and when a child of seven was brought
578
HISTORY OF FAIRFIELD COUNTY
to Bridgeport by his parents. His early instruction was acquired in the Grand Street grammar school and in 1891 he completed his high school course in Bridgeport. In 1895 he was graduated from the academic department of Yale University and two years later received the degree of LL.B. from his Alma Mater. He was ad- mitted to the bar in Connecticut and in 1898 began his profes- sional career in Bridgeport, where he has since practiced, except during his tenure of those public offices which have demanded his entire attention. He is well versed in legal science, and the court records bear proof of his ability as an attorney, showing that he has successfully handled much of the important litigation tried in the courts of this district. His office is at No. 1024 Main street, and his clientele is large and lucrative.
Mr. Buckingham was married June 3, 1903, to Miss Bessie R. Budau, a daughter of John B. and Annie (Russell) Budau and a granddaughter of John Diedericks Budau, who was born in Libeck, Germany, October 14, 1817, and came to the new world when a youth of sixteen. For a time he was a sailor and next worked for a railroad in New Orleans, Louisiana, receiving a wage of fifty cents a day. On leaving that city he journeyed northward, and his first independent venture was in the grocery business. Afterward he opened a dry goods store in Bridgeport and soon established the business on a paying basis. Later he sold his stock of merchandise to the firm of Beacon & Smith, and the next change in ownership made Radford B. Smith the proprietor of the store. Following his withdrawal from the field of mer- chandising Mr. Budau turned his attention to the settling of estates and also opened a real estate office. A sagacious, far- sighted business man, he prospered in all of his undertakings, and his integrity was above question. His talents were also exerted for the benefit of his city, and during the period of his service as street commissioner some of the principal streets and avenues of Bridgeport were laid out. Mr. Budau held membership in St. John's Lodge and in Hamilton Commandery, Knight Templars. He passed away in Bridgeport, November 20, 1888, and was buried with Masonic honors. In 1845 he had married Louise Jane French, who was one of the nine children of Wheeler French and passed the ninetieth milestone on life's journey. Her father was born in 1792 and always followed the trade of a carpenter
Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.