USA > Connecticut > Illustrated popular biography of Connecticut > Part 14
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WILLIAM HENRY POST, HARTFORD : Mer- chant.
William H. Post is a descendant in the seventh generation from Stephen Post, one of the first settlers of Hartford, who came to America from Chelmsford, England, in 1633, and was a member of the congregation which Rev. Mr. Hooker led through the wilderness in 1636 to found the new colony of Connecticut. His name is inscribed on the monument in the an- cient cemetery of the Cen- ter church, erected by the citizens of Hartford in memory of the found- ers of that city. The W. H. POST. subject of this sketch was born in Andover, Tolland county, April 1, IS33. He received his education at the " little red school- house " in Columbia, and divided his attention be- tween study and filial duties at his father's home- stead until his sixteenth year, when he went to the neighboring village of Hebron to assume the duties of clerk in a country store. After six months' ser- vice in that capacity he was called to Hartford to a more responsible position in the dry goods estab- lishment of Talcott & Post, -his brother Amos being junior partner in the firm. Upon the death of his brother, three years later, he took the vacant place as partner, January 1, 1853, and was con- nected with the firm twenty-eight years, or until its dissolution in 1881. In April of the year last named he opened a carpet house in Hartford, under the firm name of William H. Post & Company, E. S. Yergason being the junior partner. This estab- ishment is one of the most extensive of its kind in the state, and stands at the head of the carpet houses of Hartford, embracing all lines of interior decorations, and enjoying a reputation of national extent. Mr. Post's business ability has been well evidenced in the success of the two firms of which he has been the financial and managerial head. It is further illustrated in the positions of trust which he has been called by his fellow-citizens to occupy since his residence in Hartford. He is a director in the Hartford National Bank and the Society of Savings - two of the strongest and best managed financial institutions in the state; and is on the boards of management of many other enterprises of which Hartford is the home. He takes an active interest in social, educational, and religious affairs. Under the pastorate of Dr. Horace; Bushnell he united with the old North church - now the Park church - in 1852, and has been greatly privileged in having that distinguished divine, and his suc-
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cessor, the late Dr. Burton, not only as pastors, but as intimate personal friends. Mr. Post married in September, 1858, Miss Helen Maria Denslow, daughter of the late William Judd Denslow of Hartford, and they have four children -- one son and three daughters. Two of the latter are mar- ried: Helen Louise is Mrs. Thomas Brownell Chap- man of Hartford, and Alice Maria is the wife of Frederick Everest Haight of Brooklyn, N. Y. The only son, William Strong Post, is engaged in the New York house of W. & J. Sloane, and the juvenile member of the family, Miss Anne Wilson Post, a young lady of twelve, is attending school in Hartford.
ANTHONY AMES, DANIELSONVILLE: Retired Mer- chant and Banker.
Anthony Ames of Danielsonville was a member of the general assembly in 1889 and served with credit on the republican side of the house. On ac- count of his connection with the state board of education, his influence was of great importance in the lines of public school improvement. Mr. Ames was born at Ster- ling, Jan. 18, 1826, and was educated in the West Killingly academy at Dan- ielsonville. At the age of 18 he commenced teach- ing school and followed ANTHONY AMES. that pursuit for six years. When he was 28 years of age, he engaged in the dry goods business at Dan- ielsonville in partnership with George Leavens. Subsequently, he disposed of his interest and estab- lished himself in the business of a merchant tailor. In 1858 he was elected town clerk, treasurer, and registrar of births, deaths, and marriages, retaining the position for twenty years. In 1878 he was ap- pointed treasurer of the Windham County Savings Bank. Ten years afterwards he was compelled to give up this place on account of impaired health. In 1889 he represented Killingly in the legislature, serving on the railroad committee and the committee on education. He has been a member of the school board at Killingly for 30 years, and is at present the acting school visitor. Mr. Ames will complete his third term as a member of the state board of education in July, 1892. He is a member of Moriah Lodge, F. and A. M., of Danielsonville, occupying the po- sition of secretary. The lodge is one of the largest and most influential in eastern Connecticut. The wife of Mr. Ames, who is still living, was Miss Abby M. Wheaton prior to marriage. There are
no children. The subject of this sketch is most fa- vorably known throughout the State in which he has represented the best interests of education and citizenship.
COL. WILLIAM H. STEVENSON, BRIDGEPORT: Vice-President and General Manager of the Housatonic Railway System.
Colonel Stevenson was born in Bridgeport in 1847, and, after receiving a thorough literary train- ing and education, graduated early in life from Eastman's National Busi- ness College with the de- gree of Master of Ac- counts. In 1864 he entered the offices of the Housa- tonic railway in Bridge- port and remained there for several years. In 1872 he was appointed special agent of the New York & New Haven railroad, an office which he filled for two years, when he was appointed paymaster of the New York Central W. H. STEVENSON. & Hudson River railroad, and in the same year was made superintendent of the Shore Line road. This line he brought to a high state of efficiency, placing it in a better position and condition than it had ever before attained, and as a consequence he became in demand by several lines, and in 1882 accepted the office of superintendent of the New York division of the New York, New Haven & Hartford railroad. In this position, as in all the offices he had filled, he displayed so much energy, ability and capacity for managing and controlling large interests, that he became one of the acknowl- edged railway experts of the east, and in 1885 was elected president of the association of American railroad superintendents, in 1887 was brought back to the railroad in which he received his first lessons in railroading and was made vice-president and general manager of the Housatonic railway. It would scarcely be expected that a man who gave so much attention to so vast a subject as railroad- ing, and who had by great application and ability risen rapidly to the head of a prominent system in so short a time, could have given much thought to anything else; yet Col. Stevenson has found time to do a great many other things and to rise to prominence in other ways as well as in the great business of his life. In 1875 he was elected coun- cilman in Bridgeport and served on the finance committee, and in 1876 he was returned as alder- man, and in 1877 was reelected, and served on the most important committees of the board. During this year he was honored with the democratic
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BIOGRAPHY OF CONNECTICUT.
nomination for the legislature, against Hon. P. T. Barnum. In 1878 he was again elected alderman and was chairman of the finance committee and also the committee on ways and means. In this year lie passed the required examination as a law- yer and was admitted to the bar of Fairfield county. In 18SI he was nominated by the democratic party for mayor, and in 1884 was elected president of the young men's democratic Cleveland and Hendricks club and took an active part in the campaign which resulted so favorably for his party. He served on the democratic state committee during the cam- paign of 1888. But he gave attention to and attained prominence in yet another field, and was appointed aid-de-camp with the rank of captain on the staff of Brigadier-General S. R. Smith of the Connecticut National Guard in 1879. He served as captain until 1884, when he was promoted to the office of brigade commissary, with the rank of major, on the staff of General Smith. In the same year he was again promoted, acting as aid-de- camp with the rank of colonel on the staff of Gov- ernor Thomas M. Waller. He was the third presi- dent of the old Eclectic Club of Bridgeport, which was for ten years one of the most popular social institutions in the city. In 1884 he was elected grand master of the grand lodge of Independent Order of Odd Fellows for the state of Connecticut, and in the following year was sent as representa- tive to the sovereign grand lodge I. O. O. F. by the grand lodge of Connecticut, at which time he was elected grand marshal of the sovereign grand lodge. In 1886 he was appointed general aid, with the rank of colonel, on the staff of Lieut .- General Underwood of the military branch of patriarchs militant of the order of Odd Fellows. He is also a member of the Masonic order, and in 1885 was chosen exalted ruler of the Bridgeport order of Elks. In 1887 he was elected director and president of the New York, Rutland & Montreal railroad, and also a director in the New York & New England railroad. In the following year he was made president of the New Haven & Derby railroad. He is also a director in the Danbury & Norwalk railroad and a director in the West Stock- bridge railroad. One of his projects, which has been successfully carried through, was the extension of the New Haven & Derby railroad to the Housatonic railroad, the latter road building a branch to meet it, which was completed in Novein- ber, 1888, and opened with great enthusiasm on the part of the general publie, because of its making a new and independent route from New Haven to the west. Under the able management of Col. Stevenson the Housatonic railroad is fast becoming one of the leading railway systems of New Eng- land. Recently Col. Stevenson was elected one of the directors and vice-president of the Shepaug,
Litchfield & Northern railroad. In 1890 he was a leading figure in the political campaign and was the choice of a large portion of the democratic party for governor, but he declined to be considered a eandidate, his business interests demanding all his attention.
GENERAL EDWARD E. BRADLEY, NEW HAVEN: President New Haven Wheel Company and Boston Buckboard and Carriage Company.
General Edward E. Bradley occupies a foremost place among the business men of New Haven, be- ing at the head of one of the largest and most im- portant industries in that city. His standing as a public representative is equally notable. The
General was born in New Haven January 5, 1845, and received a thorough public school education. At the age of sixteen he engaged in the employ of the New Haven Wheel Company, beginning as shipping clerk. He is now the president of the E. E. BRADLEY. corporation, which has business relations throughout the world, its trade extending to most European and South American countries. General Bradley is also the president of the Boston Buckboard and Carriage Company. He has but few superiors in his section of the state as a business manager, and the rapid promotions which he has met with in life have been deserved. In 1861 he became a member of the New Haven Grays, one of the celebrated military companies of the state at that time. The soldierly traits and instincts which he manifested at the outset attracted attention, opening the way for the brilliant series of advancements in the service that awaited hin. He was placed at the head of the company and became a field officer in the Second Regiment within a dozen years from the date of his enlistment as a private in the Grays. Under the administration of Governor R. D. Hubbard he was made paymaster- general with the rank of brigadier in the service. General Bradley represented the town of Orange in the general assembly during the years of 1883 and 1884, his career in the house proving him to be a legislator of decided capability and leadership. The constitutional amendment providing for bien- nial sessions was introduced in the house by General Bradley during the session of 1883 and was ordered published in the laws of that year. The amend- mient that had been submitted to the people in Is79 had been overwhelmingly rejected and it was feared at the beginning that General Bradley's renewal of
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the idea would prove ineffective. But the General's influence was an important factor in getting the proposed amendment incorporated in the session laws. In 1884 the legislature ordered the submis- sion to the people for ratification and it was adopted at the October election in that year. General Bradley was elected a member of the senate from the seventh district in 1885 and ably served in that body through the session of 1886. The democratic state convention of 1886 was held in New Haven and resulted in the selection of General Bradley for the second place on the state ticket, the Hon. Ed- ward S. Cleveland of Hartford being the candidate for the governorship. The superb enthusiasm with which the general's nomination was received in the convention was the most complimentary of tributes to his popularity. His total vote at the polls was larger than that of his chief and exceeded by 1,979 the total received by the republican candidate for the governorship. General Bradley is a mem- ber of the New Haven Park Commission and of the New Haven Chamber of Commerce. He is also a director in the New Haven County Na- tional Bank, and president of the New Haven Grays Veteran Association. He is a communi- cant of St. Paul's Church in that city and is a gentleman of the most exemplary personal char- acter. His family consists of a wife and three daughters. The former was Miss Mary E. Kimberly prior to her marriage with General Bradley.
EDWARD DEACON, BRIDGEPORT : Secretary Consolidated Rolling Stock Company.
Edward Deacon was born in England in 1840, descended from an old Bedfordshire family of that name. He completed his education at Liverpool College; Very Reverend Dean Howson (now Bish- op of Chester), Principal. Shortly afterwards he came to this country with other older members of the family, who settled in Howard county, Iowa. Leaving the farm he en- tered mercantile life in 1864, in the service of Captain "Diamond Jo" Reynolds of Mississippi steamboat fame, in his EDWARD DEACON. then immense grain and pork business at McGregor, Iowa, and soon proved himself so capable that large financial interests were entrusted to his care. Subsequently he assisted in the construction of the Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad in 1866-7, being paymaster for
the contractors, Judge Greene of Iowa, Alexander Mitchell of Milwaukee, and Russell Sage of New York. In this capacity it becaine his duty to pur- chase and pay for large supplies for the army of men and horses, which was strung along the un- broken prairie, at that time almost entirely unset- tled and unknown. With one attendant and well armed, he would drive over the prairies from sec- tion to section between Austin, Minn., and Ossian, Iowa, carrying forty to fifty thousand dollars, pay- ing the men by day upon the estimates of the engineers, and sleeping at night in the tents and shanties of the workmen with his cash box under his head.
In 1868 he started for himself in the wholesale agricultural implement business, with headquarters at McGregor, Iowa, and established agencies for the sale of threshers and reapers in nearly every county of southern Minnesota, northern Iowa, and western Wisconsin. In this he was fairly success- ful, but the hard times in the West antecedent to the panic of 1873 compelled him to close up his business and remove to Detroit, Mich., where he married and accepted a position in the First National Bank of that city. A few years later he engaged with the great seed house of D. M. Ferry & Co., in which he became a stockholder, and re- mained with them several years.
Having had some previous knowledge of the rolling stock business, upon the organization of the Consolidated Rolling Stock Company of Bridgeport Mr. Deacon was tendered the office of secretary of the company, which he accepted and removed with his family to that city in 1886. This company, whose capital stock is $4,000,000 (four millions), owns many thousand freight cars, and maintains three shops, located in the west, for the building and repair of its rolling stock. These shops are under the management of Mr. Dcacon, who acts as purchasing agent and superintendent for the com- pany. Mr. Deacon is a director of the Detroit Rolling Stock and other similar companies. He married, in Detroit, Miss Eliza Stoddard, daughter of Rodman Stoddard of Connecticut, the fifth in descent from Rev. Solomon Stoddard, the first librarian of Harvard College, who was grandfather of the celebrated Jonathan Edwards, and was also the ancestor of Aaron Burr and General W. T. Sherman. The result of this union is a son and daughter, who are both living.
Mr. Deacon has neither sought nor held publie office, his tastes rather inclining to a literary turn. He is the possessor of a fairly well filled library, and enjoys the privileges which membership in the Fairfield County Historical Society and the Bridge- port Scientific Society brings to him. He is a member of the Presbyterian church and a repub- lican.
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JOHN N. NEAR, BRIDGEPORT : Mercantile Printer and Publisher.
John N. Near was born in Rhinebeck, N. Y., June 15, 1837, of Dutch ancestry, the name being originally spelled Neher. At fourteen years of age he entered the office of the American Mechanic in that place as an appren- tice. In 1855 he left there to accept a position on the Berkshire County Eagle at Pittsfield, leaving there in 1856 to accept the fore- manship of the Daily Farmer at Bridgeport, Conn. In 1857 he left this position on a trip to better his fortunes, but after an absence of several weeks J. N. NEAR. he returned to Bridge- port, and took the foremanship of the City Steam Printing House. At this time he engaged in active politics, and was elected town and city treasurer. The printing house soon after went into a joint stock concern, and after a few years the owners sold the business to young Near, without the pay- ment of a dollar down.
From this time forth he withdrew from all active participation in politics, refusing to accept any office, though often tendered, preferring to devote his entire time to the business, having a laudable desire to pay off his obligations, and become in fact, as well as in name, the owner of the property. After several years of hard work and personal supervision of the business he has the satisfaction of seeing his hopes realized and himself in posses- sion of the largest job printing business in Bridge- port. The office now no longer requiring all his attention, being in charge of his sons, and being again drawn into politics, he was elected a member of the council, and president of the board in 1885- 6. In 1886, and again in 1887, he was the candi- date of his party for mayor. Each time he was de- feated, owing to the active opposition of the saloon element in his party. They had been allowed to keep their places open, not only after 12 o'clock at night, but also on Sundays, and it was published that if he were elected the laws would be enforced. Although defeated for mayor, yet when he came before the people as a candidate for representative in 1888, he was elected by over five hundred ma- jority.
Mr. Near married Miss Sarah F. Barnum of Bridgeport, and has two children. He is a demo- crat, and as such has held the offices of town and city treasurer, city councilman, and president of the board, representative in the general assembly, and is now chairman of the board of fire commission-
ers. He is a member of the Universalist church, and of the order of Knights of Pythias. Ile is em- phatically a " self-made man," having by dint of strict business methods and unswerving integrity won an honorable position in the business and social world, and a competence at the same time. It is a pardonable boast of the subject of this sketch, that, starting with nothing, he has never seen the time when he was absolutely in want of a dollar. His credit has always been unlim- ited, for the reason that he never has failed to pay when promised. To-day, the business which he has established ranks as the second largest in this line in the state.
SELLECK Y. ST. JOHN, NEW CANAAN: Banker.
S. Y. St. John was born at South Salem, in the state of New York, February 10, 1819. His educa- tion was obtained in district schools and academies, where was laid the solid foundation upon which his successes in business pursuits have since been constructed. He was en- gaged in mercantile affairs for many years, but his connections have been chiefly with banking and other financial institu- tions. He was treasurer of the New Canaan Sav- ings Bank for seventeen years from its organiza- tion in 1859, and has been S. Y. ST. JOHN. cashier of the First National Bank of that place since it was organized under the national banking law in 1865. He has been director of the New Canaan Railroad for a number of years, and was president of the company from 1876 to IS78. He is also president of the New Canaan Cemetery Asso- ciation, and has held a number of local offices in that town, including that of town clerk for nine years, and justice of the peace for even a mucli longer term. Mr. St. John is a republican in poli- tics, and as such was elected, successively in 1879, 18SI, and 1882, to represent New Canaan in the general assembly of the state, where he rendered important service to his constituents and the state. The subject of this sketch is a prominent citizen of his town, deeply and actively interested in all public affairs, and highly estcemed by all who know him. He married December 1, 1840, Miss Mary A. Sey- mour, daughter of Holly Seymour of New Canaan, and they have had two children, neither of whom is now living. A granddaughter, who is 11- married and resides with them, is their only representative.
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ANER SPERRY, HARTFORD: Trustee in Settle- ment of Estates.
The subject of this sketch was born in the town of Russia, Herkimer County, New York, February 5, 1812. For a great many years he was in active business in Hartford, and well-known throughout the city and county. He practically retired years ago, and has since devoted his attention to the settle- ment of estates. His erect form is still a famil- iar one on the streets of Hartford; and, although nearly eighty years of age, his step is firm and his eye bright. He has ANER SPERRY. personally prepared a sketch of his life, which is printed verbatim below, and will be read by his acquaintances with greater relish than anything which the editor could offer in its place.
Mr. Sperry writes: " My father and mother went from New Haven to Russia, N. Y., in the year 1800, and settled on a farm in the wilderness. They had then one daughter, Laura; they con- structed a log house in which they lived several years, but the family increased and a larger house was required. It was built at the foot of a small hill, of logs, and in this house I was born. I take great pleasure in visiting the spot where the old log house stood, and looking at the little babbling brook near by where I have taken so much comfort in wading in the water, building dams, and after school filling my fish basket with speckled trout, or picking twelve quarts of blackberries and carrying them to ' the corners,' one and a half miles away. I could generally get two cents per quart, but if the market was dull Esq. Frink would take them and give me a yard of cotton cloth that was worth one York shilling. Mother could always find use for it, as I had five sisters and two brothers. The school-house was one and a half miles away, and I did not spend much time there. Father was a tailor and spent most of the winters in 'whipping the cat,' and that left the chores and wood-chopping for me to do. The old bay mare ' Cub ' was a great help to me in getting up the wood; she also carried us to mill and to meeting. We had about three acres of orchard and I remember the names of nearly every tree. Father built a frame barn and one of our neighbors had a frame house; he died one day and father bought the house for fifty dollars, and the neighbors that had oxen came and moved the house to our place and we dug a cellar under it and that made us a very good home. It was a hard struggle for our parents to clear up the land and
raise so large a family. We were all brought up in the Methodist faith and the fear of hell was before our eyes; but I 'did not see it.' Our advantages for knowing what was in the future were very limited. The answer to any and all questions was 'faith.' Our farm was very hilly and it made lots of hard work. The soil was good. A brook ran through the south part of it, and a spring supplied the north part; we had a good sugar bush. Our neighbors were kind and agreeable. I took lots of comfort attending singing school.
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