USA > Connecticut > Hartford County > History of Hartford County, Connecticut, 1633-1928. Volume III > Part 52
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
Charles L. Gibson pursued his education in the public and high schools of his
1
- - -
(Photograph hy Blank & Stoller)
V. RUSSELL LEAVITT
أ
١
567
HARTFORD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT
native city and this constituted his training for the duties and responsibilities of later life. When his textbooks were put aside he became associated with the Travel- ers Insurance Company in 1903 as an errand boy and has since filled numerous positions with this company, each one marking a steady advance and a merited recognition of his capability on the part of those whom he served. Thus step by step he reached his present position in 1923 and has recently celebrated the twenty- fifth year of his service with this company. The occasion was fittingly recognized on the 20th of April, 1928, by the Travelers' employes, who presented him with a valuable desk set, and he received many congratulatory letters and telegrams from those unable to be present.
On the 18th of November, 1918, Mr. Gibson was united in marriage to Anna Gilmartin, of Hartford, and they are the parents of two children, Virginia Rita and Robert William. The family resides at 75 Sumner street in Hartford. Mr. Gibson is a member of the Travelers Club and he has many warm friends in the city in which his life has been passed and where he has made steady progress through merit and fidelity.
JOHN PORTER
John Porter, active in the financial interests of Hartford and conducting his business at 36 Pearl street, was born in Gilead, town of Hebron, Connecticut, May 25, 1873, his parents being John Sumner and Electa Ann (Brown) Porter, who were also natives of this state. The Porter family is of English lineage and was founded in Windsor, Connecticut, at an early period, after which representatives of the name participated in the wars that have safeguarded American interests and principles. His father was a farmer by occupation and also took an active and prominent part in the public life of community and state, serving as representative from his district to the general assembly in 1887, the father's death occurring September 17, 1892, when he was fifty-nine years of age, while his wife died at the age of forty-two years.
John Porter pursued his education in the schools of Gilead, supplemented by a business course in the Hannum & Stedman Business College, now the Morse Business College. He remained upon the home farm, aiding in the work of the fields until he had reached the age of twenty-one years, when thinking to find other pursuits more profitable, he secured a position as traveling salesman with J. B. Williams & Com- pany, soap manufacturers of Glastonbury, with whom he remained for about a year, when he decided to learn the retail grocery business and became an employe of B. S. Carrier, who owned a general store at Highland Park, in South Manchester. When twenty-five years of age he embarked in the grocery business on his own account on Main street, in South Manchester, where he remained for about five years, building up a good trade. He then had an excellent opportunity to sell his business, and feeling that there were greater opportunities in Hartford, he came to this city in 1903 and established a dairy lunch business at 711 Main street. Success attended the new enterprise and after a few months he opened a second restaurant in Spring- field, Massachusetts. This was followed by the further extension of his business by the establishment of three restaurants in Worcester, Massachusetts, two in Portland, Maine, one in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, one in Waterbury, Connecticut, as well as two added in Hartford, and three in New Haven. Having thus steadily developed his New England business through a period of eight years, he then opened similar stores in New York city and Brooklyn, New York, where he developed a business of mammoth proportions, as indicated in the fact that he increased his establishments to the number of eight in New York and Brooklyn, making a total of twenty-two altogether, conducted under the name of the Capitol Lunch System. Mr. Porter con- tinued in the business until January 1, 1921, when he sold out to the Waldorf System, Inc. Since then he has been devoting a portion of his time to Central real estate and investments and has become well known in the financial circles of Hartford and in other centers. His business judgment is sound, his enterprise unfaltering and thus his cooperation has been sought in other fields, so that he is now a director of the Third National Bank & Trust Company of Springfield and is a director of the City Bank & Trust Company of Hartford. He is likewise a director of the Storm Drop Forging Company of Springfield, Massachusetts, of the East Springfield Home
568
HARTFORD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT
Builders Company, is a trustee of the Eastern States Exposition at Springfield, Massachusetts, and president and director of the Hotel Bond Company at Hartford. Thus his business connections cover a broad field both in volume and in character, and his opinions carry great weight in business conferences because in his individual affairs he had demonstrated his capability, resourcefulness and wise management.
Mr. Porter married Miss Carrie Ethel Wetherell, a daughter of Captain Arthur J. and Mary Wetherell, of Manchester, Connecticut, and they now reside at 670 Farm- ington avenue. Mr. Porter belongs to the Connecticut Chamber of Commerce, to the Hartford Chamber of Commerce and the West Hartford Chamber of Commerce and is in hearty sympathy with the purposes of these organizations as factors in the upbuilding of their respective communities and in the advancement of those projects which are a matter of civic virtue and of civic pride. He is a Mason belonging to St. John's Lodge, No. 4, F. & A. M .; Pythagoras Chapter, No. 17, R. A. M .; Washing- ton Commandery, K. T .; and the Sphinx Temple of the Mystic Shrine, while along strictly social lines his connection is with the Hartford Club, the Wampanoag Country Club, the Sequin Golf Club, the Colony Club of Springfield, Massachusetts, and the Nayassett Club, also of Springfield. Genial and friendly, his social qualities make for popularity wherever he is known and he has a wide acquaintance throughout New England and in New York.
HAROLD GROSS HART
In financial circles Harold Gross Hart is widely known, having long been identified with the brokerage business, his present association being with the firm of F. E. Kingston & Company. Since starting out in the business world he has made steady advancement and from each experience has learned valuable lessons, bringing him a broader outlook and larger opportunities. He was born in Hartford November 4, 1881, and is a son of Artemas Elijah and Katherine A. O. (Litchfield) Hart, of whom men- tion is made elsewhere in this work. After leaving the public schools he entered the New York Military Academy at Cornwall, New York, and pursued his further studies in the Phillips Academy at Andover, Massachusetts. He next entered Trinity College of Hartford as a member of the class of 1907 and after studying two years started out in the business world by becoming an employe of E. H. Rollins & Sons of Boston, Massachusetts. For a year he represented that firm as a bond salesman and during the suceeding three years he was associated with Redmond & Company of New York, also acting as bond salesman for that house. He was manager of the Hartford office of J. S. Farlee & Company for three years, on the expiration of which period he took charge of the trading department of the well known New York firm of Paine, Webber & Company in their Hartford offices. In April, 1927, he entered into association with F. E. Kingston & Company, taking charge of the bank and insurance stocks depart- ment in the headquarters offices of the company in Pearl street. Mr. Hart has been closely identified with local market activities for many years and thus is well qualified to meet the large responsibilities that now devolve upon him. He is capable of speaking with authority upon financial matters and the value of commercial paper, and his labors are proving an important contributing element to the success of the company which he represents.
Mr. Hart was united in marriage to Miss Frances O'Brien, of Hartford. His children are Sarah Elizabeth and John Robinson and the family resides at No. 194 Four Mile road, West Hartford. The social qualities in the make-up of Mr. Hart have led to him becoming a prominent figure in the club circles of Hartford. He is a mem- ber of the Trinity College Alumni Association, the Wampanoag Club, the West Hart- ford Golf Club, the Hartford Gun Club and the Coventry Fish and Game Club. He is also identified with some of the patriotic organizations, including the Mayflower Society, the Sons of the American Revolution, the Founders and Patriots and the Veterans of Foreign Wars. His connection with the first named comes to him by reason of his long ancestral association with New England, for on his mother's side he is a direct descendant of John Robinson of Leyden and John Howland, a passenger on the Mayflower. His membership in the Veterans of Foreign Wars is a direct result of his service in the World war. He was appointed by the late Judge Edward L. Smith as chairman of the lay committee of the selective draft board, in which work
OBACHRACH
HAROLD G. HART
---
571
HARTFORD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT
he was highly conspicuous, and in May, 1918, he joined the American Red Cross and was in France from July of that year until January, 1919. Fraternally Mr. Hart is a Mason and has attained the thirty-second degree in the Scottish Rite. He is a lover of all outdoor sports, being particularly fond of fishing and hunting, to which he usually turns for recreation when time and business cares permit. His religious faith is indi- cated by his membership in Trinity Episcopal church. What he has accomplished represents the fit utilization of his innate powers and talents. At the outset of his career he realized that industry and perseverance are indispensable elements to the attainment of success and has ever cultivated these qualities, with the result that his progress has been continuous and his position in financial circles is now a most credit- able one.
RUSSELL L. JONES
Russell L. Jones, an assistant secretary of the Phoenix Mutual Life Insurance Company at Hartford, was born in New York city, April 21, 1867. His father, Frederick C. Jones, was a native of Millington, Connecticut, and became engaged in business in New York city as a wholesale dealer in dry goods. He married Josephine Graham Young, who was born in New York, and both have now passed away.
Russell L. Jones attended the preparatory school at Lawrenceville, New Jersey, and then went to Princeton College, where he was graduated with the class of 1891. In the fall of the same year he became identified with the Phoenix Mutual Life Insur- ance Company, with which he has since been associated, and he is now an assistant secretary of this company.
On the 29th of June, 1904, he married Miss Harriet Arnold Ingersoll, of Haddam, Connecticut. They are the parents of a son, Graham, who is a student in Princeton College.
Mr. Jones finds recreation through his membership in the Hartford Golf Club and he also belongs to the Princeton Club of New York, the Nassau Club of Prince- ton, the Ivy Club of Princeton and several game clubs.
PATRICK J. DE PASQUALE
Patrick J. De Pasquale, of the firm of Curtin & De Pasquale, engaged in the real estate and insurance business at 1026 Main street in Hartford, was born in Italy, April 21, 1900, and was brought to America by his parents, Biaggio and Flor- ence De Pasquale, in 1905. The family home was established in Hartford, where the parents still reside, the father being engaged in the bakery business on Front street.
Patrick J. De Pasquale was a little lad of but five summers when brought to this city, so that his education was acquired in the public schools of Hartford, while later he had the benefit of instruction in the Morris Business College. He then became as- sociated in business with his father, with whom he remained for about eight years, but in February, 1927, he turned his attention to the real estate and insurance busi- ness, entering into partnership with William A. Curtin under the firm style of Curtin & De Pasquale. They not only handle all kinds of real estate but also casualty and fire insurance, representing several of the old and well established companies. Al- ready their business has reached gratifying proportions and their close application, thoroughness and progressive spirit make for progress in this field.
On the 20th of January, 1923, Mr. De Pasquale was united in marriage to Miss Anna May Abbott, of Hartford, and they are the parents of one child, Frederica, born August 7, 1924. The family home is at No. 219 Grandview terrace.
The political belief of Mr. De Pasquale is indicated in the fact that he belongs to the Republican Club. He has been somewhat active in politics, serving as alder- man from the second ward in 1925, during which time he was on the police and zoning committees. He has also rendered public service as a member of the state boxing commission and of the board of relief and on May 23, 1928, was appointed street com- missioner of the city of Hartford. He has membership with the Knights of Colum-
572
HARTFORD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT
bus, with the Sons of Italy and with the Allah Club and he has become recognized as a substantial and loyal citizen and as a progressive business man, his course being marked by steady advancement since he started out independently.
HOWARD WHITAKER
Among those who have been active in the development of a business that has con- tributed to making Hartford one of the tobacco trade centers of the country is num- bered Howard Whitaker, who is handling leaf tobacco at 241 State street, where he has built up a business of gratifying proportions. Pennsylvania numbers him among her native sons, he having been born in Lancaster, January 21, 1882, his parents being George W. and Lacy A. (McCleneghan) Whitaker, who were also natives of Lancaster county, where the father engaged in tobacco growing to the time of his death.
The public schools of his native county accorded Howard Whitaker his educational opportunities, although in the school of experience he has been an apt pupil and has learned many valuable lessons. As a boy he became interested in his father's tobacco business and eagerly acquired a knowledge of tobacco growing and of the trade. He spent ten years in Jamaica in the tobacco business as a grower and manufacturer after being two years in Porto Rico and Cuba, where he devoted his attention to the manufacture of cigars, spending twelve years altogether in the West Indies and meet- ing with substantial success during that period. Believing that he might find a profitable field in Hartford, he came to this city in 1917 and turned his attention to the shade growing and tobacco packing business. He now handles all kinds of tobacco and in addition to his warehouses in Hartford has a plantation in Hazard- ville, Connecticut. He does a general Connecticut leaf tobacco business and has been closely associated with the trade from boyhood, so that his broad experience and activity enable him to speak with authority upon the question of growing and handling tobacco.
On the 12th of August, 1911, Mr. Whitaker was united in marriage to Miss Elsie Bowen, of New York city, and they are the parents of three sons: Paul Bowen, How- ard, Jr., and Seth Warner. Mr. Whitaker and his family reside in Windsor and he is a member of St. John's Lodge, A. F. & A. M., of Hartford, and also of the Hart- ford Chamber of Commerce. There have been no spectacular phases in his career, but to him has come the thrill of successful achievement and the knowledge that his labors, intelligently directed, have brought him to the front in his particular line of business, while his reliability as well as his enterprise has gained for him the respect of all who know him.
EPHRAIM P. ARNOLD
Ephraim Pierson Arnold, who passed away in Hartford, August 28, 1926, was a representative of one of the old and honored pioneer families of Connecticut. He traced his ancestry back to John Arnold, who was one of the twenty-eight original proprietors who located in Haddam in 1662. Judge Ephraim P. Arnold, Sr., father of him whose name introduces this review, was born in Haddam, March 26, 1839, and became one of the distinguished citizens of that place. He always took pride in the fact that he owned the land on which his ancestor, John Arnold, had settled and which is situated just opposite from the county court house. Judge Arnold attended the schools of Haddam to the age of twelve years, when he left home in order to work in the ship yards of Hezekiah and Chauncey Childs at Higganum, where he remained for six months. He then returned home and attended the Brainerd Academy, thus qualify- ing for the profession of teaching, which he followed for three terms. In 1876 he turned his attention to the lumber business and for many years enjoyed a large trade, his close application and progressive business principles gaining for him a gratifying patronage. His political allegiance was given to the democratic party and he was a recognized leader in its local ranks. In 1877 he was elected a member of the state legislature and did active duty as a representative in the general assembly until
1 1
---
EPHRAIM P. ARNOLD
575
HARTFORD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT
1879. In 1882 he was elected judge of the probate court of Middlesex county and again rendered valuable service to his community. On the 28th of September, 1862, Judge Arnold was united in marriage to Miss Ellen M. Brainerd, a daughter of Harvey E. and Harriett (Williams) Brainerd. The wife passed away June 23, 1863, at the age of twenty-two years, and on the 17th of August, 1864, Judge Arnold married Sarah H. Arnold, who was born January 26, 1838, a daughter of Chauncey and Maria (Car- rier) Arnold and a great-granddaughter of Jabez Arnold, whose father was Gideon Arnold, a son of John Arnold, the pioneer ancestor of the family from which her hus- band in another line was also directly descended. To Ephraim P. and Sarah Arnold were born four children: Ellen M., Phillip C., William H. and Ephraim P.
The last named was born at the family home in Haddam, October 24, 1875. He supplemented his public school education by a course in Huntsinger's Business College, from which in due time he was graduated. He initiated his business experience as an employe in the Deep River National Bank, but his knowledge of electricity led him to accept a position with the Farmington River Light & Power Company, with which he remained for many years in the responsible position of electrical engineer. He next became associated with the Cutaway Harrow Company of Higganum, with which he remained for several years, and later he was identified with the Underwood Type- writer Company, where again his knowledge of electrical engineering and his skill in that field proved of great value to the corporation which he represented.
In young manhood Mr. Arnold was united in marriage to Miss Nina G. Clark, a daughter of Thomas J. and Sophia M. Clark, of Higganum. She passed away in 1918 and on the 18th of November, 1922, Mr. Arnold was again married, his second union being with Miss Ida L. Schuetze of New Britain.
Mr. Arnold attended the services of the Second Church of Christ, Scientist, and fraternally he was associated with Granite Lodge, No. 112, A. F. & A. M .; Washington Chapter, No. 6, R. A. M .; Columbia Council, No. 9, R. & S. M .; and Cyrene Command- ery, K. T. He was always loyal to the high teachings and purposes of the craft and in every relation of life he measured up to those standards whereby men rate their fellows as of value to the community. He became well known throughout Hartford county and enjoyed the high esteem of all.
JOSEPH D. CASTONGUAY
Joseph D. Castonguay, president and treasurer of the Castonguay Electric Com- pany, Inc., is contributing in substantial measure to the commercial and industrial development of Hartford through the exercise of his activities in this connection. Varied interests have claimed his attention at different periods and at all times his cooperation is regarded as a valuable asset to any organization with which he has become affiliated. Born in Hartford, October 5, 1889, he is a son of David and Alphonsine (Pelltier) Castonguay, who were natives of the province of Quebec, Can- ada, and crossed the border about 1885, establishing their home in Hartford, where the father conducted business as a carpenter.
Joseph D. Castonguay was educated in the parochial schools of this city to the age of fifteen years, when he put aside his textbooks in order to provide for his own support. He entered the employ of Pratt & Whitney, serving an apprenticeship with a wage of two dollars and four cents per week. He afterward became an apprentice with the firm of Billings & Spencer, there remaining until 1908, when he joined the United States navy and made a trip around the world with the fleet sailing under orders from President Roosevelt. He was in the service for four years on the U. S. S. Nebraska and was a petty officer when discharged at Natchez, Mississippi, on the expiration of his term.
Mr. Castonguay then returned to Hartford and entered the employ of the Colt Manufacturing Company as a tool maker, there remaining for two years. In 1914 he became associated with his brother, L. J. Castonguay, in the electrical business, which was incorporated in 1922. The only stockholders of this corporation at the present time are Joseph D. Castonguay, president and treasurer, Ernest M. Biron, vice president, and C. A. Castonguay, secretary. The above are also the directors. The corporation has developed its interests to extensive proportions and substantial success has rewarded its intelligently directed effort.
576
HARTFORD COUNTY, CONNECTICUT
On the 25th of August, 1914, Mr. Castonguay was united in marriage to Miss Celina A. Castonguay, of Pine Meadow, Connecticut, and they are the parents of four children: Angeline, David, Antoinette and Anita A. In 1923 Mr. Castonguay erected his present home at 127 Grandview terrace. In 1924 he was elected presi- dent of the State Association, which is a union of Franco-American people and which held its convention in Hartford in 1926. In 1928 he was elected to the presidency of the local French-American Club and he is likewise president of the Hartford County French-American Clubs. At different times he has been interested in various enter- prises but has abandoned all these in order to concentrate his attention and efforts upon his personal business, in which he is meeting with well deserved success. He is truly a self-made man, having worked his way upward since starting out independ- ently as a youth of fifteen years. Whatever he has accomplished is the direct result and reward of his own labors.
.
HON. HUNTINGTON PHELPS MEECH
As research man with the National Fire Insurance Company and as former member of the state senate, Hon. Huntington Phelps Meech has played an important part in shaping the development and promoting the improvement of this section of the state. In other lines, too, he has done important work, his influence being always on the side of intellectual and moral progress and of civic advancement and improve- ment. Born in Norwich, Connecticut, January 17, 1877, he is a son of James M. and Hannah Phelps (Huntington) Meech, also natives of this state. In the paternal line he is a direct descendant of Elder Brewster and in the maternal line of Major-General Huntington of Revolutionary war fame. His father, a banker of Norwich, was city clerk there for a number of years and was active in the business and public life of the community.
At the usual age Huntington P. Meech began his education as a public school pupil and afterward attended the Hartford high school and the Bryant & Stratton Bus- iness College at Buffalo, New York. He readily mastered his lessons and throughout his career he has ever quickly converted necessity into opportunity. He was a youth of but sixteen years when he came to Hartford and he had previously had experience as an employe in a fire insurance agency in Norwich. He took up his abode in the capital city in 1893 and the following year became connected with the National Fire Insurance Company, with which he has since been identified, covering a period of more than a third of a century. Steadily he has advanced, winning various promotions until now he occupies a position of large responsibility, making research of all the company's statistics and important papers, and the conclusions which are thereby reached constitute a valuable element in directing and shaping the policy of the cor- poration. In addition to his business activities with the insurance company he is vice president and a trustee of the West Hartford Trust Company.
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.