USA > Connecticut > Representative citizens of Connecticut, biographical memorial > Part 9
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Besides the many business ventures in which Mr. Camp was engaged he was closely associated with many other departments of the life of the community. He was greatly interested in the political issues which at that time agitated the country, and was a firm adherent of the principles of the Republican party. He was a devoted member of the Congregational church, and most active in the work of the congregation. He contributed substan-
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Caleb Jackson Camp
tially to the support of the many benevolences connected with the church and to its advancement generally. He also gave much of his time to the temperance cause in Winsted. At his death he left a fund of twenty-five thousand dollars to be used in bettering the condition of people who had met with reverses after having seen better times.
Mr. Camp's personality was well expressed in his appearance. The large, well developed head, the clear and candid eye, the firm mouth, bespoke their analogues in his character. There was much to suggest the gentleman of the old school in both looks and manners, and the coutesy of the one and the uncompromising firmness of the practical man of the world fittingly complemented and modified each other. During the many years of his residence in Winsted he was looked up to as few other men in the com- munity; with respect for the unimpeachable integrity, the clear-sighted sagacity, and strong public spirit that marked him, but with affection also for his tact in dealing with men, his spontaneous generosity, and the demo- cratic attitude he maintained towards his fellowman, which made him easy of approach and appreciative in listening to the humblest. There is many a man in Winsted to-day who has good occasion to remember these traits as Mr. Camp showed them, many a man whose start in life was assured by the generous assistance, the kindly advice of this worthy man.
Mr. Camp was married, May 22, 1839, to Mary Beach, a native of Win- sted, and a daughter of the Rev. James Beach, for thirty-six years the pastor of the Congregational church in that place. They were the parents of five children, three of whom survive their parents. They are Mary Mehitable, now Mrs. Hermon E. Curtis, of Redlands, California; Augusta, now Mrs. Franklin A. Resing, of Winona, Minnesota, and Ellen Baldwin, of Win- sted. The two other children, James and Anna, died very young. Mrs. Camp died December 18, 1880, and on November 1, 1883, Mr. Camp married Sarah M. Boyd, of Waldoboro, Maine.
Burton Gould Bryan
B URTON GOULD BRYAN, in whose death, May 20, 1911, the city of Waterbury, Connecticut, lost one of the most promi- nent of her citizens, and the banking world of Connecticut a most conspicuous figure, was a member of an old New Eng- land family which for many generations has held a respected place in the regard of Milford and the surrounding region. Indeed, his emigrant ancestor was one of those that founded the old town in early colonial days. Alexander Bryan came from England in 1693 and with several other settlers purchased the site of the present town of Milford from the Indians. The price paid for this concession was, we are informed by the ancient records, six coats, ten blankets, one kettle, twelve hatchets and hoes, two dozen knives and one dozen small glasses. Mr. Bryan's father was Edward Bryan, a farmer of Litchfield county, Connec- ticut, in the region of Watertown. The elder Mr. Bryan was well known in the community for his upright life and high sense.
Burton Gould Bryan was born September 27, 1846, in Watertown, Con- necticut, and spent the first eighteen years of his life on his father's farm, gaining there that splendid training which was once the lot of a large pro- portion of the youth of America, and of which nothing yet discovered can quite take the place, not even "higher education." Of the advantages of the latter Mr. Bryan was quite innocent, the schooling of which farmers' boys could avail themselves being in that day and generation decidedly meager. Nevertheless the youth grew up with abundant ambition, and the bright wits and steadfastness of purpose to realize it. Indeed, he was typical of so many men bred in that region and age, men who decided in mere childhood upon some career, and never wavering, bending all circumstances to their pur- pose, finally realized their early hopes. In the case of Mr. Bryan the career was banking. While still a boy attending school and doing light work on his father's farm he settled it in his own mind that he would be a banker, and to this end he marshalled all his powers and resources. When eighteen years of age he managed to get three months' study at the Eastman Business College in Poughkeepsie, New York, and after this rather slight prepara- tion he entered upon the career which was eventually to raise him to the office of bank president and make him one of the powers in the Connecticut business world. His first position was with a real estate concern in Water- bury, which gave him employment as a bookkeeper, and to this city he removed and there began a residence which was to continue during the greater part of his life. Leaving the real estate company Mr. Bryan next found employment with the Naugatuck Woolen Company in the same capacity, that of bookeeper, where he remained for a few years. His next move was a long way from home, but it was into the desired line of work. The skill and ability which he displayed in his comparatively humble posi- tion of bookkeeper began at length to win him recognition, and he received an offer from the Freedman's Savings and Trust Company of Wilmington,
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Button Gould Bryan
North Carolina, to become its cashier. Mr. Bryan accepted, but did not stay a great while in the South, returning to Waterbury to take the position of teller in the Manufacturers' National Bank of that city. At length, with a number of other men prominent in banking circles, Mr. Bryan set on foot the movement to organize the Fourth National Bank of Waterbury, and at length had the satisfaction of seeing his project triumphantly begun. He first took the office of cashier of the new concern, but in 1889 was chosen president, an office which he held until his death. His connection with the banking world was not limited to this one concern, however. In addition thereto he held the position of secretary in the Colonial Trust Company, and served on the directorates of a number of important financial and indus- trial institutions.
Besides his business connections Mr. Bryan took an active part in many other departments of the community's life. He was particularly interested in the conduct of public affairs, and exercised a considerable influence in local politics, though he made and adhered strictly to the rule not to accept any public office, a rule which he but twice departed from, once when he served for a time as clerk of the Board of Common Council, and again when he was elected town treasurer for two years. He was a prominent figure in the social life of Waterbury and in fraternal circles there, and a member of many orders and clubs. Among these may be named the Royal Arcanum and the Independent Order of Odd Fellows. He was also a member of the Masonic order and had received the thirty-second degree in the Scottish Rite and held every position up to the commandery. In spite of his many and onerous duties Mr. Bryan found time to engage in outdoor life and exercise, which he enjoyed and held to be essential as a relaxation from the tension of business. He was especially fond of golf and belonged to the Waterbury Golf Club. His religious affiliation was with the Congregational Church, and he was a faithful member of the Second Church of that denomi- nation in Waterbury, aiding effectively in the work of the congregation and materially supporting the many benevolences connected therewith.
Mr. Bryan married, April 14, 1868, Fannie K. Peck, of Watertown. To them were born two children, of whom one, a son, Wilbur Peck Bryan, is now living. Mr. Bryan, Jr., has followed in the footsteps of his father and entered the banking business, in which he is now treading the high road to success, and already holds the office of cashier in the Fourth National Bank. He married Agnes Smith, of Waterbury, and they are the parents of two children, a son, Alexander. and a charming daughter, Helen Bryan.
Miles Ammi Cuttle
- DEALS and standards change from age to age, from epoch to epoch, one might almost say from year to year, and a world which but a brief period in the past was still devoted to the general notion of aristocracy has now become frankly demo- cratic and scorns what it once held sacred. Our own Amer- ica was of course, one of the first among nations to accept the new standards in this particular, and now, for over a century, the United States has stood as the type of republican institutions before the world. And yet, despite all changes of the kind, there is always a core of the permanent in human ideals that perseveres even in the midst of a reaction so violent as the post-Revolutionary hatred of aristocracy in this country, so that even here, amid the new ways of life, a new aristocracy- that of ability-found soil in which to flourish. Nowhere did this demo- cratic aristocracy-if the phrase is permissible-display itself in more char- acteristic garb than in the city of Hartford, Connecticut, where, indeed, the virtues of both systems seemed to go hand in hand. Nowhere could be seen the graces and amenities generally associated with a privileged class to greater advantage than there, and nowhere could be found a more simple, democratic attitude combined therewith. Many are the names of families which from that day to this have maintained the beautiful traditions of virtue and honor which have exerted so great an influence for good in the growth and development of our nation.
Among these names none deserves a higher place than that of Tuttle which, from the time of its founder, William Tuttle, who in the year 1635 landed in Boston, has handed down through several collateral lines the ster- ling traits and abilities that from the first distinguished its bearers. His arms are described as follows: Azure, on a bend doubly cotised, a lion pas- sant, sable. Crest. On a mount vert, a bird, proper, in the beak a branch of olive. Motto, Pax. It is from one of these lines descended Joseph Tuttle, a younger son of the above-mentioned William Tuttle that Miles Ammi Tuttle, whose career forms the subject-matter of this sketch, was sprung. He was of the seventh generation from the original William Tuttle, and the son of Samuel Tuttle, who for many years took rank among the most prominent merchants of Hartford. The great mercantile business in Hart- ford, so long associated with the name of Tuttle, was founded by Samuel Tuttle, who in the early part of the century began a trade in groceries, grass seed and various supplies. He gradually specialized in grindstones, and it was in this commodity that he eventually built up his great business. He was married to Betsey Hotchkiss, a daughter of Isaac and Lydia (Fields) Hotchkiss, of Cheshire, Connecticut. To Mr. and Mrs. Tuttle were born ten children, as follows: Esther Rowe; Miles Ammi, mentioned at length below; Samuel Hotchkiss, died in early youth; Sally, died in early youth; Samuel Hotchkiss (2), died in early youth; William Frederick, of whom a sketch appears in this work; Sarah Elizabeth, who married Dr. Gurdon W.
SAMUEL TUTTLE. (Born 1773, died 1850) Founder of the firm of S. Tuttle & Sons, Hartford, Conn.
PAX
Tuttle
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Miles Ammi Cuttle
Russell, and died July 16, 1871 ; Samuel Isaac and Reuel Hotchkiss, of both of whom there appear sketches in this work.
Miles Ammi Tuttle, the second child and eldest son of Samuel and Betsey (Hotchkiss) Tuttle, was born December 21, 1802, in New Haven, Connecticut. While still a mere child he accompanied his parents to Hart- ford, when they took up their abode there, and it was with that city that his whole life is associated. It was here that he grew to manhood and received his education, and it was here that he first entered the business world in which he was to experience so marked a success. By the time he was ready to engage in business his father had established a reputation second to none as a merchant, and was able to give a position in his own establishment to his eldest son, of whom he was justly proud. Besides his connection with his father's concern the young man was an adjuster for the Ætna Fire Insur- ance Company of Hartford, and also a director in the company, travelled extensively about the country, thus laying the foundation of that great taste for travel that in later life distinguished him. He was eventually admitted as a partner in his father's firm, and in 1851, after the death of the elder man, became its senior member, holding that position until his own death, Octo- ber 26, 1858. He occupied a position of great influence in the business and financial world of Hartford, and the mercantile trade which had already reached such great proportions under his father's management grew still larger under his. He continued his association with the Ætna Fire Insur- ance Company also and was elected a director thereof, and he held a similar position with the Farmers' and Mechanics' National Bank of Hartford for a number of years. Among the other financial institutions with which he was connected should be mentioned the Society for Savings, of which he was a trustee. In spite of his great activity in this line, the interests of Mr. Tuttle were far from being confined to the business world. He inherited his full share of the public spirit of his ancestors, and identified himself with many of the most important movements for the betterment of the community and the advancement of the common weal. He was particularly interested in religious work and was a devoted member of the Christ Episcopal Church of Hartford and engaged actively in the work of the parish, teaching in the Sunday school and otherwise assisting in the advancement of its objects and ends. He was also a director of the Hartford Hospital and materially assisted other important philanthropic causes.
Mr. Tuttle was a man of wide experience and general knowledge of the world, a cultured man with an interest in all that was best in human knowl- edge, and he stood as a type of enlightenment and cosmopolitanism in his home community. His fondness for traveling has already been remarked, and he journeyed to many parts of the world for his own pleasure, and it was during a trip to Paris for his health that he met his death. He was buried in the city of Hartford, December 22, 1858, where his name still stands among those who have represented the best ideals of business and good citizenship.
William Frederick Cuttle
T HE GAINING of great material success for himself and a position of power and control in the business world of Hart- ford, Connecticut, has been in no wise incompatible in the case of William Frederick Tuttle, with the rendering of great service to the community of which he was so distin- guished a member prior to his death, February 22, 1895. To those who actually witnessed his career with their own eyes it appeared, indeed, that his personal interests were of secondary import- ance, so much greater was the energy and time spent by him in affairs of wider and more general interest. Preëminently a man of affairs he made his activities subserve the double end of his own ambition and the public wel- fare, activities so numerous and varied in their scope and character that it is a matter of difficulty to think of any one of them as particularly his own. Hartford was the scene of his active career and his memory is there held in the highest respect and veneration by all those who knew, or even came into the most casual contact with him, and by the community at large, which is not insensible of the good influence which his example exerted and still exerts. He was a scion of the Tuttle family of Connecticut, of which some slight particulars have been given elsewhere in this work, and through which he was related to many of the proudest New England names, from which he inherited the sterling traits of mind and character which marked him.
William Frederick Tuttle, the seventh child of Samuel and Betsey (Hotchkiss) Tuttle, was born April 8, 1812, in Hartford, Connecticut, and reared there. At first he attended a school kept by Miss Rebecca Butler, on North Main street, next, the Center District School, and at the age of twelve years became a pupil at the Literary School kept by Mr. George Patten, from which he was graduated at the age of fifteen years, and then commenced his business career as a clerk in his father's store, a connection which was maintained until he had attained his majority. At this period he became a member of the firm of S. Tuttle & Sons, dealers on a very exten- sive scale in groceries, grass seed, gypsum and grindstones, making a specialty of the latter commodity. This great business, which had been established and operated by the business genius of his father, was well known throughout the city, and returned a substantial fortune to one and all of the partners. In the year 1850 the father died, and Mr. Tuttle continued to conduct the business in association with his two brothers, Miles Ammi and Samuel Isaac Tuttle, of whom sketches appear in this work. With the death of the eldest brother, Miles Ammi Tuttle, in 1858, Frederick Wil- liam Tuttle also withdrew from the business. This retirement did not mean a withdrawal from business life generally, however, for Mr. Tuttle continued many of the important associations he had formed and even entered into others at this time. He succeeded his brother as director of both the Ætna
William & Tuttle
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aGilliam Frederick Cuttle
Insurance Company of Hartford and the Farmers' and Mechanics' National Bank of the same city, holding these honorable offices thirty-seven years.
But it was not alone in business that Mr. Tuttle became prominent in the community. There were but few departments of the city's life in which he was not a conspicuous figure, politics being about the only exception, a realm from which he voluntarily remained aloof. But in religious and phil- anthropic work, in social life, and even in military circles, his name was well known. He was affiliated with the Episcopal church, and a lifelong member of Christ Church of that denomination in Hartford, holding for many years the office of warden and vestryman, was a teacher in the Sunday school, and did much active work for the advancement of both. He was a director of the Hartford Hospital and the Retreat for the Insane, and auditor of the accounts of the last-mentioned institutions. He held the rank of lieutenant in the body of militia known as the Governor's Foot Guard, was a member of the Veteran Association, and a member of the Hartford Volunteer Fire Department. He also held membership in the Hartford Horticultural Soci- ety, the Connecticut Agricultural Society, the Hartford Club, the Piscato- rious Club of Hartford, and gave his political support to the Republican party. For many years he was a subscriber to "The Hartford Courant," the "Atlantic Monthly" and Littel's "Living Age." His favorite newspaper was "The Boston Transcript." He was fond of the studies of history and astronomy ; his favorite novelist was Sir Walter Scott and his favorite poet was James Russell Lowell. He was quiet and unassuming in manner, and loved his home and family.
Mr. Tuttle was united in marriage with Sarah Ramsey, of Hartford, on November 1, 1838. Mrs. Tuttle was a daughter of Jonathan and Sarah (Allyn) Ramsey, of Hartford, and a member of one of the oldest and most honorable houses, both in this country and Great Britain. As early as the year 1200 the Ramseys or Ramsays were well known in Scotland, and through various collateral lines the present members of the family can trace their descent from many of the greatest kings of antiquity, both in France and England. The Ramsey coat-of-arms is thus described : An eagle displayed sable, beaked and membered gules. Charged on the breast with an escutch- eon of the last. Crest : A unicorn's head couped argent, maned and horned or. Motto: Spernit pericula virtus. The founder of the line in this country was Hugh Ramsay, who is known to have lived in Londonderry, New Hampshire, as early as 1720. To Mr. and Mrs. Tuttle were born four chil- dren: Sarah, deceased; Catherine, deceased; Grace, died January 31, 1883; and Jane, who makes her residence in Hartford, where she is a prominent figure in the Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution, and in the Connecticut Society of the Daughters of Founders and Patriots of America.
It is a popular notion that the reward of merit is often withheld until after the death of him who should receive it, and that recognition is only accorded too late to be enjoyed. But this is but a poor compliment to the perception of humanity at large which, as a rule, is far too keen not to both note and reward such talents as tend to its own advantage. Certainly this
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William Frederick Cuttle
is true of the intelligent and generously disposed people of this country, as the lives of thousands of our men of talent and ability most admirably illus- trate, and none better than that of the subject of this sketch. A normal, wholesome life, typical of the virtues of his race, well filled with healthy endeavor and the exercise of his faculties, he stands as an admirable example of worthy success to all ambitious of the same, of a success won, not at the expense of the rights and interests of others, but almost as an incident, a byproduct of the pure act of living, which to him was in itself the great end.
Samuel Tsaar Cuttle
T HE INFLUENCE of a man of culture in a community is of that subtle, intangible kind well-nigh impossible to gauge or measure by ordinarily accepted standards. Here is noth- ing definite to lay our yard-stick to, as it were, no record of dollars amassed, of laws enacted, of unfortunates given assistance, or of the thousand and one things that are the pledges of other lines of accomplishment, whereby men cal- culate the degree of their success. For in the case of culture its immediate effect is often hardly realized even by those experiencing it, and its enlight- ening, uplifting influence, even when strong enough to be directly felt, can rarely be traced accurately to its source. Yet the influence is none the less real because it is difficult to measure, and its result is often to be perceived when least expected in some spontaneous expression of regard or respect for the man who stands for its ideal, or in the loosening of some prejudice, the surrender of some provincialism on the part of those who, through con- tact with such an one, have imbibed something of his larger outlook While the Tuttle family of Connecticut has distinguished itself in many depart- ments of endeavor, while its name during the past century has been identi- fied with many concrete achievements, and especially with one of the import- ant mercantile enterprises of the city of Hartford, it is probably as exponents of general enlightenment and culture that its members have exerted the greatest influence upon the communities where they have resided. This was conspicuously the case with Samuel Isaac Tuttle, whose name heads this brief record, and whose career, successful in many things, was chiefly noticeable for the kind of achievement just described. He was a son of Sam- uel Tuttle and Betsey (Hotchkiss) Tuttle and was related on both sides of the house to many of the oldest and most prominent families in the State. His father was one of the best known merchants and business men in Hart- ford during the first half of the nineteenth century and the founder of the firm of S. Tuttle & Sons.
Samuel Isaac Tuttle was born December 16, 1819, in Hartford, Connec- ticut. He passed his whole life in Hartford, where his father was engaged in business during his youth, gaining there his education, attending the excellent public schools of the city. Upon reaching the age of manhood he was, like his brothers, taken into partnership in the firm of S. Tuttle & Sons, and was engaged actively in this business for a number of years. The enter- prise, already large at the time of the father's death, continued to still further grow under the most capable management of Mr. Tuttle and his brothers, Miles Ammi and William Frederick Tuttle, of whom sketches appear in this work, until the three gentlemen came to be regarded as among the most important factors in the business situation in Hartford.
On March 31, 1842, Mr. Tuttle was united in marriage with Louisa Ramsey, of Hartford, a daughter of Jonathan and Sarah (Allyn) Ramsey, of that city, and by this union allied the Tuttle family with some of the
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Samuel Isaac Cuttle
oldest and most distinguished houses both in this country and abroad. To Mr. and Mrs. Tuttle were born four children, as follows: I. Ellen, now Mrs. D. Waldo Johnson, and the mother of one son, Waldo Tuttle Johnson, who married Emma Crozier, of Philadelphia; they have four children: Ethel Frances, deceased; Arthur Crozier ; Sydney Guilbert, and Samuel Isaac Tut- tle Johnson. 2. Louisa, died aged three years. 3. Alice Gertrude, who resides in Hartford. 4. Samuel William, who married Anna E. Strong, a daughter of Elsworth Strong, of Portland, Connecticut.
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