USA > Connecticut > Hartford County > History of Hartford County, Connecticut, 1633-1928. Volume III > Part 13
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 | Part 47 | Part 48 | Part 49 | Part 50 | Part 51 | Part 52 | Part 53 | Part 54 | Part 55 | Part 56 | Part 57 | Part 58 | Part 59 | Part 60 | Part 61 | Part 62 | Part 63 | Part 64 | Part 65 | Part 66 | Part 67 | Part 68 | Part 69 | Part 70 | Part 71 | Part 72 | Part 73 | Part 74 | Part 75 | Part 76 | Part 77 | Part 78 | Part 79 | Part 80 | Part 81 | Part 82 | Part 83 | Part 84 | Part 85 | Part 86 | Part 87 | Part 88 | Part 89 | Part 90 | Part 91 | Part 92 | Part 93 | Part 94 | Part 95 | Part 96 | Part 97 | Part 98 | Part 99 | Part 100 | Part 101 | Part 102 | Part 103 | Part 104 | Part 105 | Part 106 | Part 107 | Part 108 | Part 109 | Part 110 | Part 111 | Part 112 | Part 113 | Part 114 | Part 115 | Part 116 | Part 117 | Part 118 | Part 119 | Part 120 | Part 121 | Part 122 | Part 123 | Part 124 | Part 125 | Part 126 | Part 127 | Part 128
RICHARD T. STEELE
Richard T. Steele, one of the younger members of the Hartford bar, practicing in this city since 1925, was here born July 13, 1899, a son of Edward Lee and Julia G. (Simonds) Steele and therefore a representative of a prominent and honored family. His father, Judge Steele, was for many years a distinguished attorney and jurist and died November 25, 1926, honored and respected by all who knew him.
134
HARTFORD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT
The excellent educational system of Hartford afforded Richard T. Steele his early educational privileges, and when he had completed his high school course he entered the Wesleyan University at Middletown, Connecticut, where he completed his classical course in 1921, at which time the Bachelor of Arts degree was accorded him. He determined to follow in the professional footsteps of his father, and to this end entered the Yale Law School, where he won his Bachelor of Laws degree in 1925. In September of the same year he was admitted to the bar and at once began practice with his father, the association continuing until the latter's death, since which time Richard T. Steele has practiced independently. He has those qualities which make for success. His training was thorough and comprehensive, his interest in his calling is deep and sincere and a marked sense of honor makes him most loyal to the interests of his clients, and although he is still a young man, he has gained a gratifying place as an able lawyer.
Mr. Steele votes with the republican party and is now serving as alderman from the fourth ward, giving his support to all measures and projects which he deems of practical value in improving conditions in the city or promoting its upbuilding. He belongs to the Hartford Golf Club and in the line of his profession has connection with the Hartford County Bar Association. What he has already accomplished argues well for the future.
BENEDICT MICHAEL HOLDEN
In the court records not only of Connecticut, but also of New York as well, the name of Benedict Michael Holden frequently appears in connection with cases that have attracted attention throughout the length and breadth of the land. He is one of the most forceful and able members of the Connecticut bar, his high standing being the logical result of the efficiency which he has displayed in a calling where diligence and mental alertness are the vital factors in winning advancement. Mr. Holden is a native son of Connecticut, having been born at Bristol, February 17, 1874, his parents being Felix and Jane (Farley) Holden, both of Irish lineage. The father lived a life of industry as a farmer and merchant.
In the boyhood days of B. M. Holden there were no particularly exciting or spec- tacular phases, his time being largely given to the acquirement of a common school education, while gradually there developed in him the determination that he would some day become a member of the bar. To receive the necessary training, however, meant that there must be an intermediate period in which he would provide for his own support and secure the funds that would enable him to pursue his law studies. Accordingly he obtained employment in a factory and the hours which are usually termed leisure were devoted to study, through which method he managed to master those branches of learning that constitute the usual high school course, school teach- ers and tutors aiding him at times in his work. He recognized the fact that a liberal general education must precede ascendancy in the law. His reading included Shake- speare, the Constitutional histories of England and other European countries and of the United States. He also took up the study of Blackstone and never did he deviate from the course which he marked out for himself in early manhood. When his industry and economy had brought him sufficient funds to enable him to pursue a college law course he entered the Yale Law School in New Haven and mastered the entire course in a single year as a member of the class of 1895, and when he attained his majority he was admitted to the Connecticut bar.
Mr. Holden entered upon his active professional work in the office of the Hon. Marcus H. Holcomb, afterward governor, with whom he was associated until 1898. His rise was rapid. The same qualities of thoroughness and determination which had marked his student days gave him understanding of the cases which came before him and in his presentation of a cause he manifested marked mental alertness, while his deductions were at all times sound and logical and legal principles were applied with accuracy to the points at issue. When the country became involved in war with Spain he immediately joined the army and was sent to the Philippines, holding the rank of sergeant-major in the Second Battalion, Twenty-seventh, U. S. A. He served for three years, being honorably discharged in 1901.
With his return Mr. Holden again took up his abode in Connecticut and resumed
BENEDICT M. HOLDEN
137
HARTFORD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT
his interrupted law practice. Through the intervening years he has made steady advancement as a member of the Hartford bar and his prominence is indicated by the fact that he has been retained as counsel for the defense or prosecution in many of the most notable civil and criminal cases of the state, including the famous Tucker case, in which he secured an acquittal, the George La Febre case, the Radicco case and the Gilligan poison case. While he has thus handled various notable criminal cases, he has preferred to devote his attention to civil law and in this field has gained distinction. He was legal adviser to the first Yellow Taxicab Company in New York city and he has tried many prominent labor union cases and has also served on several arbi- tration boards. Since 1920 he has engaged in no court work, giving his time and attention to corporation and tax law, representing various organizations in this connection. He has been retained as counsel in connection with some of the most important interests of the Connecticut insurance companies and was active in the trial of the memorable arson cases in New York at the time that Governor Whitman was district attorney. Mr. Holden's labors have not only been a source of individual advancement and success but have also featured in promoting the welfare and safe- guarding the interests of Connecticut. In 1911 he presented the question of weights and measures and of adulterated foods before the general assembly and his efforts resulted in the passage of a weights and measures law which was the first of the kind adopted in the United States and has served as a model for many other states of the Union. He likewise was instrumental in bringing about the adoption of a pure food law and a net weight package law, and in 1924 he was made foreman of the extraordinary grand jury which investigated the medical diploma mill frauds, resulting in driving about two hundred quack doctors out of the state. It was Mr. Holden who prepared the healing arts bill, and secured its passage before the state legislature, whereby there was established a board of laymen to supervise the exami- nation in fundamentals of all candidates for certificates to practice any branch of the healing arts. That Mr. Holden is a man of marked public spirit is indicated in the fact that in all these connections he gave his services to the state without re- muneration, being actuated by the utmost devotion to the public good. He has always been a republican in politics but has ever placed the welfare of the country before partisanship and the advancement of his state before the preferment of the office seeker.
In still another field Mr. Holden has rendered valuable aid to his country. With America's entrance into the World war the regiments of the Connecticut National Guard were sent to the federal camps and on behalf of the state's war emergency board Mr. Holden organized, uniformed and equipped the Connecticut State Guard, including five regiments of fifteen thousand men, representing the best manhood of Connecticut over the draft age, including a supreme court justice and distinguished lawyers, bankers, manufacturers and insurance men, who became pri- vates in the ranks. During the war period he was called to Washington by General Goethals, who requested him to take charge of the principal army depot in Phila- delphia, with instruction to cut the red tape that was hampering all activity and start supplies for France at once. A commission as colonel was offered him but he preferred to act as a civilian and at once set about the important task to which he was called, having supervision over the labors of fifteen thousand men and women in his department. This supendous work accomplished, he was also placed in charge of supply depots in Pittsburgh, in Columbus, Ohio, and in Toronto, Canada. In this connection a contemporary writer has said: "As depot quartermaster, Mr. Holden cut red tape in such a ruthless manner that he was brought to the 'carpet' in Wash- ington, but in the passage of words with the secretary of war he won out, as has always been his custom with everything he has undertaken. He was the only civilian depot quartermaster in the United States."
In an attractive residence in Hartford, Grace Frances (Farrell) Holden presides over their home and there Mr. Holden finds his greatest happiness. His wife is a daughter of James and Ellen Farrell of New Britain, Connecticut. Their marriage has been blessed with two children: Mary Holden, who attended the Finch School in New York; and Benedict M., Jr., who was a student in the Taft School at Water- town, Connecticut. The daughter was born September 8, 1905, and the son Octo- ber 22, 1908. His entire career has been characterized by determined purpose that has ever measured up to the highest standards of honor and integrity. In his vocabu- lary there is no such word as fail. Obstacles and difficulties have seemed to serve as
138
HARTFORD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT
an impetus for renewed effort on his part, and never stopping short of the successful accomplishment of his purpose, he has risen to a place of distinction at the bar, being now one of the foremost corporation lawyers of Connecticut, and to a place of prominence in public life because of the intrinsic worth and value of the service that he has rendered to the state.
HENRY TRUMBULL
A native of Connecticut, Henry Trumbull was born January 12, 1875, in East Hartford, a son of Hugh and Mary A. (Harper) Trumbull. He was educated in the public schools of Plainville, was associated with the Eddy Electric Company, and later went to Ampere, New Jersey, and for two years filled a position in the motor- building department of the Crocker-Wheeler Company. During the next four years he was identified with construction work with the New England Engineering Com- pany of Waterbury, Connecticut, and later was in the service of the Reynolds Con- struction Company at Hartford. In 1899 he joined his brother, John H. Trumbull, the present governor of Connecticut, in forming the Trumbull Electric Manufacturing Company, a Plainville corporation. An expert electrician, Henry Trumbull took charge of the manufacturing end of the business, later becoming secretary of the firm, of which he has also been treasurer for a period of eighteen years. He is president of the Plainville Realty Company, a subsidiary of the Trumbull Electric Manufacturing Company, and vice president of the Plainville Trust Company. At his country estate, Pinnaclerox Farm, near the village of Plainville, he maintains a herd of registered Jersey and Ayrshire cattle, from which he has developed a good trade in certified milk in the surrounding cities. In recognition of his ability and pro- gressive spirit he has been chosen vice president of the Hartford County Farm Bureau; president of the State Agricultural Society and the Connecticut Fair Association; and vice president of the National Manufacturers Association.
Mr. Trumbull was married October 21, 1903, to Miss Nettie P. Northrop, of Bridgeport, Connecticut, and to this union has been born a daughter, Esther. In addition to his residence in Plainville, Mr. Trumbull has an attractive summer home in Guilford, Connecticut, where the family spends the summer months. He is a republican but not active in politics. In 1926 he was elected president of the Plainville Chamber of Commerce and is now vice president of the Connecticut Chamber of Commerce, also first secretary of the New England Council, which comprises twelve members from each state. He is a thirty-second degree Mason and Shriner and along social lines is connected with the Sachem Head Yacht Club, the Farmington Country Club and the Shuttle Meadow Country Club.
HERBERT FIELD FISHER
A man of well balanced capacities and powers, Herbert Field Fisher has occupied a creditable place on the stage of action almost from the time when his initial effort was made in the field of business, and his labors have found culmination in the establishment and management of what is now an extensive real estate and insurance business, with offices at 64 Pearl street in Hartford. Moreover, his efforts in behalf of the city along lines of civic improvement and public welfare have been far-reaching and effective and his worth as a man and citizen is widely acknowledged. He was born here September 16, 1881, his parents being Charles G. and Eleanor J. (Field) Fisher, the former a native of Connecticut and the latter of Massachusetts. The father filled the office of commercial and freight agent with the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad for many years but is now living retired, enjoying the fruits of his former activity.
Herbert F. Fisher, after completing a public school education by graduation from the Hartford Public High School, started out in the business world in 1900 by becom- ing office boy with the Connecticut Mutual Life Insurance Company. He worked diligently, performed his tasks acceptably to those whom he represented and won successive promotions until he was made inspector of agency accounts and subse-
(Photograph by The Johnstone Studio)
HENRY TRUMBULL
141
HARTFORD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT
quently was advanced to the position of assistant superintendent of agencies. He was also gaining valuable knowledge and experience as the years passed by and winning for himself a well merited reputation for progressiveness and enterprise. In 1919, after almost two decades of association with the Connecticut Mutual, he with- drew to establish business on his own account as an insurance broker and later took over the real estate business which he now conducts. As a realtor he displays the qualities of alertness and adaptability so necessary to success in that field and he has informed himself thoroughly concerning property values, while at all times he is a close student of the conditions of the realty market, therefore being able to foretell a possible diminution or rise in values, so that he has ably and wisely directed investors.
On the 14th of July, 1915, Mr. Fisher was married to Miss Louise Morrow Hennion, of Paterson, New Jersey, and they have become parents of five children: Herbert Field Jr., John Hennion, Richmond Griswold, Eleanor Morrow and William Wood, all yet under the parental roof.
Mr. Fisher is a member of Trinity church and his wife of the Catholic church. He is well known socially owing to the fact that he has been a lifelong resident of Hartford and is identified with many of her leading organizations, including the Hartford Golf Club, the Automobile Club, the City Club, the Get Together Club, and the Republican Club. The last named is indicative of his political belief and in matters of citizenship he has demonstrated his marked devotion to the public welfare in effective support of many valuable civic measures. He is now efficiently serving as president of the commission on the city plan, organized for better planning of the city's improvements in her highways, boulevards and civic centers, to advise in matters relating to civic development and to create public sympathy for the good of the city. He also served as president of the zoning commission, whereby Hartford was divided into various zones set aside for business, apartment and residential districts. Whatever concerns the welfare of the city is of deep interest to him. His breadth of view has readily recognized possibilities for Hartford's development which his patriotism has prompted him to quickly utilize.
JAMES BUEL HENRY
James Buel Henry, recognized as the peer of the ablest members of the Hartford bar, his entire course reflecting honor and credit upon the profession with which he is identified, is now accorded a most extensive practice and his clientele is notable in character. Mr. Henry was born in Enfield, Connecticut, December 21, 1878, a son of Parsons M. and Sophronia M. (Abbe) Henry, people of sterling worth identified with the farming interests of that locality and representatives of an honored pioneer ancestry. A course in the Nash school at Amherst, Massachusetts, covering a period of two years, supplemented the early instruction which he received in private schools. He was graduated in 1901 from the Massachusetts Agricultural College at Amherst with the Bachelor of Science degree, and then having made choice of the law as his life work, he began preparation therefor as a student in the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor and received his LL. B. degree by his graduation with the class of 1904. On the 11th of January, 1905, he was admitted to the Connecticut bar and at once began professional work, becoming an assistant to Edward M. Day, with whom he remained until 1906, when he formed a partnership with Terry J. Chapin under the firm style of Chapin & Henry. The firm soon gained recognition as one of the leading firms of the city and the partnership was maintained until 1912, since which time Mr. Henry has practiced alone, his course being marked by continuous progress and notable achievement in handling important litigated interests. He is a strong advocate in the trial of cases before the court and a safe counselor whose opinions on legal questions are seldom, if ever, at fault. He formerly served as prosecuting attorney of the town of West Hartford and with the establishment of the town court there in 1923 was chosen judge and has since presided over the sessions of that court, in which connection he renders decisions that are strictly fair and impartial, while his rulings also indicate his comprehensive familiarity with the principles of law.
On the 16th of October, 1907, Mr. Henry was united in marriage to Miss Henri- etta Georgianna Parker, a daughter of William R. and Sarah (Wolf) Parker, of
142
HARTFORD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT
Warehouse Point, Connecticut. In his fraternal relations Mr. Henry fully exemplifies the spirit of Masonry, having membership in Dorick Lodge No. 94, F. & A. M., at Thompsonville. He has always voted with the republican party and keeps in touch with those vital questions and problems which have to do with civic interests and welfare. In a word, he is never too busy to faithfully discharge his duties of citizen- ship notwithstanding the fact that his practice has constantly increased in volume and importance and that he ranks today with the leading members of the Connecticut bar.
JAMES NOEL HOWARD CAMPBELL
The career of James Noel Howard Campbell as a member of the bar was one of steady progress, but the broader opportunities offered in the field of investment and securities led him to turn his attention to the brokerage business. He is now head of the firm of Campbell & Company, with offices at 49 Pearl street in Hartford. He has also extended his efforts into other lines of business and finance until a laudable ambition and intelligently directed effort have brought him notable success. A native of Hartford, Mr. Campbell was born on Christmas day of 1881, his parents being James and Mary (Pettibone) Campbell, the former one of the distinguished physicians of this city for a quarter of a century. He was a representative of the family in the fourth generation to bear the name of James and of the sixth generation in the new world, the ancestral line being traced back to William Campbell, who about 1718 came from the north of Ireland with the Scotch-Irish colony that settled in New Hampshire and Massachusetts. The records of 1719 mention William Campbell, of Charlestown, Massachusetts, who also lived in Boston. The line of descent comes down through James Campbell, the pioneer ancestor, James (II), Benjamin, James (III) and James (IV) to James Noel Howard Campbell. Dr. Campbell was born in Manchester, Connecticut, March 14, 1848, and after acquiring a public school education he became a student in the College of Physicians and Surgeons of New York city and also in the University of Vermont. He entered upon the active practice of his profession in Minnesota, when twenty-three years of age, but returned east for further study and his later preparation included eighteen months spent in the hospitals and clinics of Berlin, Prague and Vienna. With his return he opened an office in Hartford in 1874 and remained a successful and honored medical practitioner here until his death October 17, 1899. In addition to a large private practice he was for fifteen years at the head of the city board of health as president, and during thirteen years of this period, from 1886 until 1899, was also a professor in the Yale Medical School. For many years he was a member of the medical staff of Hartford Hospital. As above stated, his professorship at Yale covered the period from 1886 until 1899, and in 1891 Yale University conferred upon him the honorary degree of Master of Arts. When he retired the Yale Corporation awarded him an official vote of thanks for his long and excellent service, also expressing regret at his withdrawal. They did not accept his resignation, so that until his death he remained a member of the faculty of the Medical School. His service on the city board of health was one of great public benefit, for he studied closely the subjects of sanitation and other important problems and instituted many measures of relief and improvement. He held membership in the Hartford, Hartford County, Connecticut State and American Medical Associations and was frequently called upon to prepare papers to be read before those organizations. He was medical director of the Aetna Life Insurance Company and belonged to the Association of Medical Directors of Life Insurance Companies of the United States and Canada and to the New York Academy of Medicine. Fraternally he was a Mason of high rank in both the York and Scottish Rites and also belonged to the Knights of Pythias and the Odd Fellows, to the Hartford Club, to the Connecticut Society of Sons of the American Revolution and to the Church Club of the Episcopal Diocese. Dr. Campbell was married October 15, 1874, to Mary Cornelia Pettibone, who was born at Hartford, February 18, 1846, and she passed away in September, 1907. Their first born, James Malcolm, died in infancy, and their youngest child, Grace, who was born in October, 1884, died in July, 1906.
The surviving member of the family is James Noel Howard Campbell, who in 1899 was graduated from the Hartford high school, after which he pursued his classical
-
(Photograph by The Johnstone Studio)
JAMES N. H. CAMPBELL
145
HARTFORD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT
course in Yale University, winning the Bachelor of Arts degree at his graduation in 1903. Thinking to make law practice his life work, he then entered the Yale Law School and the LL. B. degree was conferred upon him in 1906. In June of the same year he was admitted to the Hartford county bar and began practice but in 1909 turned his attention to the brokerage business by becoming a member of the firm of H. K. Taylor & Company of Hartford, with which he remained until 1913. For a period thereafter he continued in the security business under his own name and then organized the firm of Campbell & Company with H. J. Zweigartt as the junior partner. In July, 1926, the firm merged with that of Buell & Company under the style of Buell, Campbell & Company, and in 1928 this organization was dissolved and he is now operating as Campbell & Company. Mr. Campbell's long experience has made him thoroughly familiar with the value of commercial paper and a safe counselor for those who seek investments. His efforts, too, have extended into other fields and his sound business judgment and enterprise have constituted a potent force in the success of the Capitol National Bank, of which he is a vice president and director, in the Amiesite Asphalt Company of Philadelphia, of which he is treasurer and director, in the Interstate Amiesite Company of Wilmington, Delaware, of which he is a director, and in the First Bond & Mortgage Company of Hartford, of which he is director and assistant treasurer.
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.