USA > Connecticut > Fairfield County > Leading business men of Fairfield County : and a historical review of the principal cities > Part 26
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A few months later the New Haven Colony sold the land purchased at Stamford to the inhabitants of Wethersfield for thirty pounds sterling, the latter agreeing to adopt the New Haven church form of government in their management of affairs. Before the close of the year 1641, there were thirty or forty families from the Wethersfield Colony settled here, the latter in fact being practically abandoned because of the superiority of the soil and situation of Stamford.
This colony at Stamford was the most extreme toward the Dutch settlement at Manhattan and the Mohawks in eastern New York of any in Connecticut, and consequently it was subject to many fears of an hostile invasion from the west. At one time it looked very much like war with the Dutch, when brave one-legged Peter Stuyvesant, "Gouverneur of the Nieuw Nedterlandts," came galloping up along the coast through Stamford and New Haven to Hartford, where he gave his fearless challenge to the "Yankees." But the clouds happily blew over and were finally settled in 1664 by the conquest of New Netherlands by the Duke of York, and its annexation to the English Crown.
It was a considerable time also before they were relieved from the fears of a Mohawk invasion by their being driven back from the Hudson toward the western part of New York State. Hardly had they been freed from these when in 1653, serious troubles were threatened by the prospective revolt of the home Indians in their reservation near Stamford. If these had once started out upon the war-path there is no doubt that the infant colony would have been completely blotted out, but they were quieted just in time by the "prudent measures of the colony." After this, however, the colonists had to take part in the other colonial wars with the Indians, including that of King Philip, which resulted in the final suppression of any fear of "Indian massacres " in this part of the land.
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Stamford must have grown very slowly during the century from 1650 to 1750, as the records of the State show little evidence of its existence during that time. The name of the first minister does not seem to be easily obtainable, but the second was the Reverend John Davenport, son of John Davenport, the famous originator and leader of the New Haven Colony. The Rev. Mr. Davenport's pastorate in Stamford was thirty-six years in duration from 1695 to 1731, when he departed this life. He wrought a powerful work for good here and was greatly loved by the people. On his tomb it was written:
"Religion, while he dwelt below, Its sacred influence on him shed; Learning and grace adorned his brow, And round their balmy odors spread. Unfading honors shall his tomb surround, To guard and wait the prophet's sleeping clay, Till the last trumpet raise him from the ground, To join the triumphs of th' important day."
The Hon. Abraham Davenport, son of the Rev. John Davenport of Stamford, born here and a life-long resident, was for many years one of the Councillors of the Colony and later of the State of Connecticut. He was one of the most influential men of the State during the Revolution and the early days of the nation's life under the Constitution. The following accounts of him are related in the "Travels of Dr. Dwight," President of Yale College:
" The 19th day of May, 1780, was a remarkably dark day. Candles were lighted in many houses; the birds were silent and disappeared, and the fowls retired to roost. The legislature of the State was then in session at Hartford. A very general opinion prevailed that the day of judgment was at hand. The House of Represent- atives, being unable to transact their business, adjourned. A proposal to adjourn the Council was under consideration. When the opinion of Colonel Davenport was asked, he answered, ' I am against an adjournment. The day of judgment is either approaching or it is not. If it is not, there is no cause for an adjournment; if it is, I choose to be found doing my duty. I wish therefore that candles may be brought.' The other instance took place at Danbury, at the Court of Common Pleas, of which he was chief-justice. This venerable man, after he was struck with death, heard a. considerable part of a trial, gave the charge to the jury, and took notice of an article in the testimony that had escaped the notice of the counsel on both sides. He then retired from the bench, and was soon afterward found dead in his bed."
During the Revolutionary war Stamford sustained her part with honor. At the beginning of the war in 1775, the total valuation of Stamford was £34,078, only sur- passed by a dozen or so of the largest towns in the State, which shows that there had been a great increase during the last quarter century. It is known that some of her citizens marched to Lexington at the time of the alarm, because the town was paid £28 88. 4d. for their expenses by the Legislature.
The proximity of Stamford to New York made the town unusually subject to incursions from the British, who used frequently to land in the harbor, shooting and carrying off cattle.
Col. David Waterbury, one of the most active workers for the Continental Government in this part of the State, raised a regiment from this vicinity late in the summer of 1775, which he led into Canada with the expedition made by General
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Montgomery and Benedict Arnold. For meritorious service during this campaign, Colonel David Waterbury was promoted to be a Brigadier General. The records of the State give evidence that even during the time of the Revolution some trade had already sprung up with the West Indies.
In the early part of 1778, a company of twenty-four men and a commander were stationed here as a guard to the region round about. The Continental naval force in the Sound, which was not very large, used to make the Stamford harbor a frequent rendezvous, because of its security and fine situation for making a sudden descent upon the enemy. Most of the prisoners which the Continental troops captured in this region were stationed first at Stamford and then despatched to Hartford. There also seems to have been quite a number of tories here, who were sent to Hartford along with the prisoners and either obliged to sign an oath of allegiance to the Continental Government or remain in the State dungeon.
Stamford seems to have done trading about this time with the West Indies in New England Rum, which, however, never came to be an important part of their merchandise.
According to the existing records Stamford and the surrounding region must have furnished a very large and unusual amount of supplies to the Continental army. Another company under Captain Abraham Bradley was ordered to be stationed here by Governor Trumbull, July 7, 1777.
Two days later, July 9, 1777, the Legislature appointed Reuben Scofield, of Stamford, to be the captain of a battalion of men raised in the State "to guard the seacoast toward New York."
In January of the following year, 1778, as the State papers show, yet another company was raised and stationed at Stamford under the command of John Bear. This would demonstrate that the Governor and Legislature fully appreciated the strategic importance of Stamford. Probably the fact that it was such a rendezvous for troops was the reason that it was never invaded by the British. Its sons, however, were not lacking in any important engagement, and fought with the cool and enduring courage for which the Connecticut troops were renowned, at Bunker Hill, Brooklyn, White Plains, Trenton, Princeton, Saratoga, Brandywine and York- town, as well as suffered with patience indomitable the horrors of Valley Forge and the " Black Prison " in New York.
After the Revolution Stamford did not progress as rapidly as might have been expected from the start which she had made. The shipping business went down almost as quickly as it had arisen, in fact was nipped in the bud by the embargo of 1812. Stamford's part in this war was not very conspicuous, owing doubtless to the lack of ships, with which New England achieved most of her fame at this time.
By 1830, the influence of manufactures was beginning to be felt, and in 1836, there were in the town " ten or twelve stores, one iron foundry, one rolling mill, one . wire factory, and two large boot and shoe manufactories; a bank, with a capital of $100,000, chartered in 1834, and a postoffice." Increase from this time on was steady. In 1840 the population of the town had reached 3,516, and in 1850 it was 5,000.
The outbreak of the war in 1861 was not unexpected nor met with hesitation in Stamford. A full quota of men was sent out in the Third Connecticut Regiment, Co. D, which took part and fought bravely in the battle of Bull Run.
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Stamford was also represented by brave men in Co. I of the Ninth Regiment, Co. G of the Tenth, Co. B of the Thirteenth, Co. B, Capt. Charles A. Hobbie, of the Seventeenth, and in the Twenty-eighth by Co. A, Capt. Francis R. Leeds, and Co. B, Capt. Cyrus D. Jones, both entirely from Stamford, and by men in Co. C of the same regiment.
The records of the Ninth and Seventeenth Regiments have been given in the history of Bridgeport. The men of the Tenth first saw active service off the coast of North Carolina and later during an invasion of that State. They fought with exemplary courage in the series of battles in Charleston Harbor and won distin- guished honors at the battle of Fort Wagner. For two years they helped to preserve Florida to the Union and passed through the final series of battles around Richmond under Grant, completing their four years' service by witnessing the surrender of Lee at Appomattox Court House.
The Thirteenth was called a " dandy regiment," but soon showed what metal it was made of. First at New Orleans, then at Port Hudson and the other battle-fields around Vicksburg, and finally under Sheridan in the Shenandoah valley, the chivalric spirit of the gallant men who composed it was exemplified by many noble deeds. The Twenty-eighth also showed a brave and patriotic devotion, particularly in the battles around Vicksburg, where many of its noblest and best men were slain.
Stamford was also represented in the battles of Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Cedar Creek, and most of the other important battles of the war. Men, money and supplies were furnished with generous patriotism hardly surpassed even in our own State. More than $74,000 were subscribed by the citizens of the town to maintain the Union and its defenders, while the devoted women labored without ceasing that the gallant soldiers might not be in need of anything in the physical, mental, or religious spheres.
Many homes were left desolate by the war. Among the number of the noble dead we find the names of the following: Captain Francis R. Leeds, formerly cashier of the Stamford Bank, who died in Florida, December, 1862, a victim to over exertion in his devotion to the country and the effects of the Southern climate; Lieutenant Charles Durand, who was shot while leading his command in the charge at Port Hudson; Corporal James Vail and Jason Wardell, who were also shot during the same charge. All these, and others whose names we do not now find, were among the most beloved and honored citizens of Stamford, and though their loss created deep mourning, yet now their memory brings no thought save that of sacred peace and the noble work which they helped to achieve.
It is since the war that most of the progress of Stamford has been made. As the beauties and facilities of the place have come to be better known it has rapidly advanced both as a manufacturing center and as a summer resort.
The manufacturing interest has grown so extensively that it has placed the town in the front rank among the busy cities of this busy State. A line which has made the town famous in all parts of the country is the manufacture of locks, one of the largest houses of the kind, probably, in the world, being located here. Large quan- tities of stoves, iron, brass, copper, and hollow ware, hot air and cooking ranges, castings, boots and shoes, wire and edge tools, carriages, billiard tables, wall paper (Lincrusta-Walton), fire-brick, drain pipes, marble and stone carvings, are also made here and exported. The town has assumed already that air of modern progress and
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enterprise which mark the larger cities of the State. Many massive and elegant structures have arisen of late years to represent the business of the town. In their lines the buildings of the Yale & Towne Company, the Brunswick & Balke Company, and the Stamford Bank have few superiors in the State.
A beautiful town-hall building, of brick and Onio stone, has been erected at a cost of $150,000. The Ferguson Library, one of the best in this part of the State and thoroughly appreciated by the people, also occupies an elegant building. There are twelve churches in the town, all well sustained, and some of their edifices are very beautiful. Three enterprising newspapers are published here, and admirably sustain the public interests. There are also two national and two sav.ngs banks, beside a large number of mercantile houses, some of large proportions and wide reputation.
The situation of Stamford has played no small part in its recent development. Hardly more than an hour's ride from New York by rail, it was not possible that its advantages could long escape observant and admiring eyes. At the present time, twenty-eight trains a day stop at Stamford coming from New York, and as many going the other way, beside a special train which the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad Company have recently added to meet a growing need of those coming up from New York late in the evening from the theatres. A steamboat line has also been established, and daily trips are made back and forth from the metropolis.
Stamford has now come to be one of the most popular residences for business men in the vicinity of New York city. The pure, invigorating atmosphere, the magnificent scenery toward the Sound and back toward the country, its fine roads for riding, and the unusual social and church privileges for a country residence have justly rendered it one of the most delightful of all our places of country residence or summer resort. The town is said to have " more elegant private residences than any other of its size in the State."
The beautiful situation and advantages of "Shippan Point " are too well known to need description.
In addition to the good points we have already named, the facilities for sea- bathing, boating and fishing, the large number of first-class hotels with every ac- commodation, and the lack of dazzle and glare which confound many as the true aim of a season's recreation, have made Stamford one of the most popular of our summer resorts for those who can discern and appreciate the "real " advantages of a watering place. The ever-increasingly large number who spend a few weeks or months of the summer here, goes to show that this is a growing class among our people, and that Stamford is rightly coming to take a high rank among the best watering places on the New England coast.
The population, which in 1880 was 11,298, is now estimated to be not lower than 15,000, and will probably increase yet more rapidly in the near future. The school system is a most excellent one. There are seventeen common schools in the town, four graded schools and two academies, which are all managed by the most approved modern methods and offer exceptional privileges. Several private schools are also maintained. The management of the water and gas supply is most scientific and satisfactory, and great attention is paid to the efficiency of the fire and police depart- ments. To a very marked degree Stamford is coming rapidly to assume an import- ant position among the representative New England cities of to-day.
LEADING BUSINESS MEN OF STAMFORD.
BUILDING
MANTALS & DOORS
St. John, Hoyt & Co., Lumber Dealers, Canal Dock .- Since the business was inaugurated in 1868, this house has maintained its leadership among the representative mercantile concerns of Stamford, and the firm have long been identified with the growth of the town as a manufacturing and trade centre.
The office and large yards of the firm are ad- mirably located on Canal Dock, where they pos- sess every facility for receipt, handling, storage and shipment of large quantities of merchandise, the advantages for transportation from the lumber regions and to all parts of the country, either by rail or water, being all that could be desired. They have five hundred feet of dock front, and the piling ground covers five acres of land.
Messrs. St. John, Hoyt & Co. handle large quantities of all kinds of rough and dressed sea- soned lumber, and supply everything in their line with dispatch and at lowest possible wholesale and retail prices, and the promptitude in filling orders, liberal policy and honorable methods of these successful merchants, command universal commendation of their trade and correspondents.
About one-half the business is at wholesale and extends over the State; a track in the yard con- necting with the railroad, giving them unequaled facilities for shipping lumber promptly.
Messrs. John St. John, Harvey Hoyt and Wm. H. Judd are the individual members of this relia- ble firm. They are all natives of Stamford and are recognized as three of her most influential, public- spirited citizens. They are the president, vice president, secretary and treasurer, respectively, of the St. John Wood Working Co., the leading source of Sash, Door and Moulding supply in this section of New England.
Mr. St. John is one of the burgesses of the borough of Stamford, and Mr. Judd is a director of the Stamford Savings Bank.
The St. John Wood Working Co., Manufacturers of House Trimmings of every Description, embracing Pine, Hardwood and Cabinet Trim- mings, Mantels, Doors, Sashes and Blinds, Mouldings, etc., Carving, Turning, Lumber Yards, Factory, Kiln-Dryers and Office, Canal Dock. -This corporation is the outgrowth of the extensive Lumber business, inaugurated by Messrs. St. John, Hoyt & Co., in 1868, and its or- ganization was necessitated to sup- ply the great demand upon the re- sources of the firm named, for work- ed Lumber, Frames, Sash, Doors, and Wood work generally.
With a view of reducing the cost of production, and at the same time at- taining the highest standard of excel- lence in their manufactures, they have recently added to the works a kiln dryer, with capacity for 40,000 feet of lumber, and introduced in all departments of the manufactory the most improved wood working machinery obtain- able. Nothing but kiln dried lumber is used.
The company was incorporated in 1885, and possess ample facilities for their business, which is conducted on a scale of great pro- portions.
The extensive lumber yards, factory, kiln dryers and office are conveniently located on Canal Dock, and the buildings cover an area of several acres. The factory is supplied with best wood-working machinery in use, driven by a steam engine of 150 horse power, and a large force of workmen are employed in the various departments of the business.
Large quantities of house trimmings of every description, of new and elegant designs and standard excellence are annually turned out of the establishment, including Mantels, Doors, Sashes and Blinds, Mouldings and Hard-wood finish, and Cabinet Trimmings of all kinds, and Turning and Carving to order are executed with dispatch and in the most satisfactory manner. Estimates for all kinds of merchandise and work are furnished on application, and the honorable methods and worth of the management inspires universal confidence.
The officers are as follows: President, John St. John; vice president, Harvey Hoyt; secretary and treasurer, Wm. H. Judd; general manager, E. Johnson. The three first named constitute the firm of St. John, Hoyt & Co., the leading lumber house in this part of the State, and in municipal as in business affairs they are promi- nent and influential in all that goes to promote the general welfare.
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LEADING BUSINESS MEN OF STAMFORD.
C. O. Miller, dealer in Dry and Fancy Goods, Carpets, Shades, etc. Atlantic Square .- It will probably seem a work of supererogation almost to Stamford readers to call to their attention the house of C. O. Miller, but as no mention how- ever brief of the city's representative firms would be complete were not this universally known es- tablishment alluded to no apology is necessary for so doing, but rather because our space is so limited as to render little more than a mention possible. Mr. Miller founded his business in 1868, or nearly a score of years ago, and it is not too much to say that it gained at once the favor of the public and constantly and steadily increased in extent and importance until it now stands without a rival. A handsome building located in Atlantic square is occupied, 35x150 feet in dimensions. The store is elegantly fitted up and contains among other conveniences de- signed to facilitate trade and better accommodate the customers a thorough system of cash rail- way of the most approved typc. Employment is given to from fifteen to twenty courteous, effi- cient, and attentive clerks and the humblest cus- tomer is assured polite and speedy service and fair, equitable treatment. Dry and Fancy Goods, Carpets, Shades, etc., in stock in almost innumer- able variety and all prices will be found as low as the lowest. Notions and Trimmings a spe- cialty. There is no necessity of going to New York for any lines belonging to the Dry Goods trade, as Mr. C. O. Miller keeps on hand every- thing in the Dry and Fancy Goods trade, from a silk dress to a pocket handkerchief, and in addi- tion an immense stock of Carpets, Window Shades, etc., Mr. Miller is enabled to offer ad- vantages in the way of prices which cannot be given by New York dealers with expensive rents and other expenses. If ladies would calculate the expenses of a tiresome journey to another city in search of so called "bargains" they can by remaining at home and purchasing their goods at a reliable low-priced Stamford establishment (as for instance the store of Mr. C. O. Miller), obtain the same low prices.
Mr. Miller is a native of Bedford, New York, and is no less highly regarded in a social way than he is in business affairs, beyond which praise cannot go.
Stamford Foundry Co., Manufacturers of Stoves, Ranges, Warm Air Furnaces, Castings, etc., Canal near Pacific .- Among the valuable enterprises of this city the Stamford Foundry Co. is noteworthy, and as a representative indus- try of its class, deserves special mention.
This business was established by Messrs. J. D. Warren & Co. in 1850, and was incorporated as a stock company in 1869, with the following offi- cers: J. D. Warren, president and treasurer; J. J. Warren, secretary ; and J. D. Warren, I. Ward- well, J. J. Warren, directors.
They occupy for business purposes one large thrce-story building and two other large build- ings. These are fitted up with all the necessary machinery for the manufacture of their goods, a thirty horse-power steam engine furnishing the motive power.
They manufacture chiefly, Stoves and Fur- naces, also Castings, etc. They have every modern appliance necessary for the production
of the most perfect work in this line, and furnish employment to eighty skilled workmen.
All members of the company are natives of Stamford and are highly esteemed throughout the community. Mr. J. D. Warren has been a member of the House of Representatives of Con- necticut, and has held several minor offices in his native town.
With a good business location, capacity of a high order, a long practical experience, and all the necessary requisites of the trade, this house may be depended upon to faithfully execute all contracts entrusted to them, and to furnish honest and reliable goods in their line.
H. A. Hubbard, Real Estate Agent, 8 Park Row .- Among the prominent Real Estate brok- ers of Stamford may be mentioned Mr. H. A. Hubbard, who has an office at No. 8 Park Row, five minutes walk from Stamford depot, horse cars passing to and from the depot every five minutes. Mr. Hubbard's business is Real Es- tate and Insurance, also Auctioneer.
His business was established by him in 1875 and has assumed large proportions, mainly through strict attention given to all matters of business entrusted to his care, judicious manage- ment and strict integrity in all his dealings. Pursuant to this method of procedure, he has won and retains the confidence of a host of pat- rons, a large number of whom are non-residents, who have made investments in this city through correspondence with him.
In the Insurance business he represents several well known companies, among which are the following : Williamsburg City, Commercial Union, Merchants of New York, Glens Falls, Dutchess County Mutual and New York Life In- surance. These companies are too well known throughout the country for us to enter into any detailed account of them.
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