USA > Connecticut > The governors of Connecticut : biographies of the chief executives of the commonwealth that gave to the world the first written constitution known to history > Part 11
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The Governors of Connecticut
English supported the war and the administration and voted for the abolition of slavery in the District of Columbia.
He was a member of the committee on naval affairs, opposed the legal tender bill and national banking system.
At the time when almost every state was in the hands of the Republican party, English, solely on account of his great popularity, was nominated and elected by the Democrats in 1867 as governor.
He was re-elected in 1868, and his term in office was very satisfactory. Re-nominated in 1869 he was defeated at the following election by Marshall Jewell of Hartford.
Governor English was re-elected again in 1870, and served one more year as chief magistrate of the commonwealth.
In national politics Governor English was also an important factor. He was a presidential elector at large in the election of 1868, and at the Democratic National Convention which met in Tammany Hall, New York, July 4, of the same year, he received nineteen votes on the fifth ballot for president of the United States.
In 1875, Governor English was appointed United States senator by Governor Ingersoll to fill the vacancy caused by the death of the Hon. Orris S. Ferry. He served in this capacity until the spring of 1876.
During the later years of his life he did not hold any public office, but spent his time in attending to the various manufacturing and other enterprises in which he was interested.
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The Governors of Connecticut
Among other things he was president of the New Haven Savings Bank and a manager of the Adams Express Company.
Governor English gave freely to various worthy objects, and among his many acts of philanthropic character may be mentioned his gift of $10,000 to the Yale Law School, and $20,000 for the improvement of East Rock.
Governor English died at his home in New Haven on March 2, 1890, aged seventy-eight years.
His son, Henry F. English, is one of the most prominent residents of New Haven and inherits the liberal spirit of his dis- tinguished father. He has presented a handsome building on Grove Street to the New Haven Colony Historical Society, as a memorial to his father and mother.
273
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ose
ote
The FORTY- THIRD GOVERNOR of
CONNECTICUT was
MARSHALL JEWELL
The son of a tanner, who became a telegraph operator and electrician, finally returning to his father's business which developed into one of the leading enterprises of the state-After extensive European travels in the interests of the leather trade, he was elected to the gov- ernorship-President Grant appointed him minister to Russia and later postmaster gen- eral-His retirement from public life and his return to his old home was the occasion of a loyal demonstration and significant tribute
Marshall Sewill,
MARSHALL
JEWELL
M ARSHALL Jewell was born in Winchester, New Hamp- shire, October 20, 1825. His father was a tanner, as was also his grandfather and great-grandfather, so at an early age he became an apprentice in his father's tanyard. After learn- ing the trade he decided not to follow it for a business, and went to Boston where he studied electricity. Paying special attention to telegraphy he afterwards went to Rochester, where he became telegraph operator. From that city he went to Akron, Ohio, where he remained a short time, and then roved through several states. At the age of twenty-three Jewell had charge of the construction of the telegraph line between Louisville, Kentucky, and New Orleans.
In 1849 he was offered and accepted the position of general superintendent of the New York and Boston telegraph lines. When he came North to commence his duties he was called to Hartford to engage with his father in the manufacture of leather belting.
His father, Pliny Jewell, a prominent Whig in New Hamp- shire, had removed to Hartford, and established the belting business
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The Governors of Connecticut
in 1845. It had now become very successful, and Marshall Jewell was made a partner in the concern which was rapidly developing into one of the great enterprises of the state. He remained in partnership with his father until the latter's death. In 1859 he visited Europe, and made a special study of the large tanneries in England and France. He went abroad in 1860 and in 1867, visiting Asia and Africa. In 1867 Jewell attended the great exposition at Paris where he extended the business of his company to a large extent. The great ability of Jewell, his public spirit, and interest in public affairs, gave him prominence as a private citizen, and his unwavering support of the Union cause during the dark days of the Rebellion drew special regard to him as a man qualified by his energy, integrity and patriotism for the public service. He was one of the first members of the Republican party in Connecticut. In 1868 he was nominated for governor of Con- necticut, but was defeated by a small majority. The next year he was elected governor, and served one year, when he was defeated again by English, but in 1871 and 1872 he was re-elected. His work as governor is summed up by a writer as follows:
" Jewell's administration of the state government was marked by various legislative and executive reforms. Among these were the reorganization of the state militia, the laws of divorce, the government of Yale College, biennial elections, and the erection of the new state house at Hartford."
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The Governors of Connecticut
Retiring as governor in 1873, President Grant immediately appointed him minister to Russia. Although his residence in Russia was brief, yet during the time he was at the Russian Court he arranged a convention protecting trade-marks, and made the most of a golden opportunity to learn the art of manufacturing the far famed " Russia leather."
He made a practical application of his knowledge when he returned to the United States and introduced into this country the Russian process of tanning leather.
In July, 1874, Governor Jewell was appointed by President Grant, postmaster general of the United States to succeed J. A. J. Cresswell of Maryland. Hurrying home from his foreign mission, Governor Jewell accepted this honorable position in the president's cabinet, and began the duties of the office, August 24, 1874. While at the head of the post office department he instituted several needed reforms in the service, and was the pioneer in establishing the system of fast mail trains, which has since been extended, and become such an inestimable boon to the public. He was also active in the whiskey ring prosecution.
In 1876, owing, it is said, to the selfish interest of a political cabal, President Grant asked for Jewell's resignation, although he was on the best of terms with the chief executive. Jewell resigned the same time as Benjamin H. Bristow, secretary of the treasury. Seven years later the "New York Tribune" declared that Jewell's
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The Governors of Connecticut
removal was brought about in order to strengthen the Republican party in Indiana for the fall election. On July 12, 1876, Jewell was succeeded by James M. Tyner of Indiana.
Governor Jewell's return to Connecticut was made the occasion of a loyal demonstration in honor of her distinguished son. At Hartford he was met by a great concourse of citizens, and the cele- bration was one of the largest ever held in the city. A great procession was formed, salutes of artillery fired, speeches of welcome were made by distinguished men and in various other ways the city paid tribute to the faithful public servant who had returned to private life.
After this he held no political office, but was always in great demand as a popular campaign orator. He was interested in various business enterprises including the great belting establish- ment, and was president of the Jewell Pin Company, the Southern New England Telephone Company, and the United States Tele- phone Association.
Governor Jewell was not in sympathy with General Grant's candidacy for a third term, but did not openly oppose him on account of having been a member of his cabinet. After General Garfield was nominated, Governor Jewell was immediately elected chairman of the Republican National Committee, and on him fell the duty of supervising the campaign. This task he fulfilled with great energy and success as was shown by the following election. 280
The Governors of Connecticut
The vast amount of work connected with this campaign seriously affected his health, and shortened his life.
Returning to Hartford he spent the remaining years in busi- ness, and died at his home in that city on February 10, 1883, aged fifty-eight years.
It is related that shortly before he died, Governor Jewell said to his physician : " Doctor, how long does it take ?" The physician inquired what he meant, and he replied: "How long does it take for a man to die?" "In your condition, governor, it is a matter of only a few hours," answered the physician. "All right, doctor," said the dying statesman, and he settled back quietly upon his pillow to await the end.
28I
The FORTY - FOURTH GOVERNOR of
CONNECTICUT
was
CHARLES R. INGERSOLL
The product of five generations of state patriot- ism, and son of a United States minister to the court of St. Petersburg, he received the broaden- ing influences of a higher education and travel and as a prominent jurist entered public life, receiving many honors and never suffering defeat in the pop- ular vote of his fellow citizens-For more than a half century he was one of the most esteemed men in the state, and died in his eighty-second year
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CHARLES
ROBERTS
INGERSOLL
F OR five generations members of the Ingersoll family were prominent in the affairs of this commonwealth.
Jonathan Ingersoll, the great-grandfather of Charles R. Ingersoll, was a graduate of Yale College in the class of 1736, pastor of a church in Ridgefield for forty years, a chaplain in the French War in 1758, and a brother of the Hon. Jared Ingersoll, chiefly known in Connecticut history from his having accepted the office of "Stamp Distributor" just before the Revolution.
A son of the first Jonathan, bearing the same name, was also a Yale graduate, and for many years held a distinguished place at the Connecticut bar. He died while holding the office of lieu- tenant governor. His son, the Hon. Ralph Isaacs Ingersoll, father of the late Governor Ingersoll, was a leading member of the Connecticut Legislature, and afterwards went to Congress where he represented his district in an able manner from 1825 to 1833. Later in life he was attorney general of the state, and United States minister to the Court of St. Petersburg.
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The Governors of Connecticut
Charles Roberts Ingersoll was born in New Haven, Septem- ber 16, 1821, and entered Yale College in 1836, where he gained many honors as a thoughtful, brilliant student. He was graduated in 1840, near the head of his class, and prominent for his attain- ments in the social and literary circles of the college. Soon after graduation Ingersoll sailed for Europe on the United States frigate " Preble," of which his uncle, Captain Voorhees, was commander. Remaining abroad for two years, he visited various portions of the continent, and then returned to his home to study law. He entered the Yale Law School, graduated in 1844, and was admit- ted to the bar in New Haven the following year. Commencing at once to practice in New Haven he remained there the remainder of his life, following his profession. His superior ability soon brought him success, and gave him a prominence in the political life of the state. In 1856 Ingersoll was elected a member of the General Assembly, and was re-elected in 1857 and 1858. He was elected a delegate to the Democratic National Conven- tion in 1864, and in 1866 was chosen for the fourth time a mem- ber of the House of Representatives. The senatorship was offered him from his district in 1871, but he declined the honor, and then represented New Haven in the Lower House of another session. Ingersoll was now one of the most prominent Democratic leaders in Connecticut, and in 1873 he was elected governor by a flatter- ing majority. The following year he was re-elected by a majority 286
The Governors of Connecticut
of 7,000. His administration proved so successful that he was nominated and elected for the third time in 1875. In that year the term of office for a governor was changed from one to two years, and by constitutional amendment the term from 1876-7 was made to expire in 1877.
The opponents of Governor Ingersoll in the two last elections were both graduates of Yale College, Henry B. Harrison, after- wards governor, and Henry C. Robinson of Hartford. In 1876 Governor Ingersoll was a presidential elector, and in 1877 declined a renomination as governor of the state. A curious fact of his political career is that he was never defeated for an office.
A writer, commenting on his career in politics, has said :
" His record in political life is one which most statesmen can only hope for or envy, and has received the praise of his bitterest political antagonists."
After his retirement from the governorship, Ingersoll never held any political office, but devoted his time to the practice of his profession in New Haven. On resuming his professional work in 1877 he was often called not only into the State and Federal courts, but into the United States Supreme Court at Washington. One of the important cases before the Supreme Court in which he was counsel was that of the Bridgeport Bran Company, in which the law on the reissuing of patents was finally determined. He was afterward engaged as counsel for Yale University, and his argu-
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The Governors of Connecticut
ments in the case of Yale vs. the Connecticut Agricultural College, over a congressional appropriation attracted wide attention. A writer has said that Governor Ingersoll was the last survivor of a famous quartet of Connecticut lawyers, who were in the prime of their bar leadership twenty-five years ago. The other three were Jeremiah Halsey of Norwich, Richard D. Hubbard of Hartford and John S. Beach of New Haven.
" His career in the Elm City," says a newspaper biographer, "for the past fifty years, his venerable white head, his military bearing and his thoroughly attractive personality, is a by-word throughout the state." His venerable figure was until recently familiar about the streets of the city he loved so well.
Many honors were bestowed on Governor Ingersoll, and in 1874 Yale University conferred the degree of Doctor of Laws upon her distinguished graduate. Governor Ingersoll once told the writer that he had seen and conversed with every governor of Connecticut under our present constitution from Oliver Wolcott, who was a frequent visitor at his father's house, to George P. McLean.
Governor Ingersoll died at his home in New Haven on January 25, 1903, and his funeral was attended by the state's most prominent citizens. "The Hartford Courant" in commenting editorially on his death said :
" He was the oldest of Connecticut's honored ex-governors.
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The Governors of Connecticut
He inherited a distinguished name, and enriched it with added distinction. One of the handsomest men of his generation, he lived up to his looks; his nature was fine and his life was fine. New Haven, the city of his birth, watched with pride but not with surprise his successes at the bar, where he was long a leader, and his growth in the respect and confidence of his political associ- ates. He was a popular governor, relinquishing the chair at last (more than a quarter-century ago) of his own volition. Once and again he was mentioned for the Senate. He continued in the practice of his profession after his retirement from politics. Indeed, up to a comparatively recent time he went to his law office on pleasant days and stayed there for an hour or two, sitting at the window, looking out on his beloved New Haven Green, hearing the details of cases from the younger men, and bringing to bear on their difficulties his ripe experience and learning. He lived to see his eighty-second year."
His children are Miss Justine Ingersoll of New Haven, a writer of prominence; Mrs. Henry Ganz of Wilmington, Dela- ware; Mrs. George Havens of New York, and Francis Gregory Ingersoll of New Haven.
289
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T, Y
ral de he re
The FORTY-FIFTH GOVERNOR of
CONNECTICUT was RICHARD D. HUBBARD
Born in Berlin, and left an orphan, he worked his way through Yale College, studied law and rose to a lofty position at the bar-As congress- man and governor he gained celebrity as one of the most convincing orators in the country -By patient toil he forced himself to the top and compelled recognition, obtaining a com- plete mastery of many scholarly subjects-It was during his administration that the woman's property law was passed in Connecticut
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1
-
RICHARD
DUDLEY
HUBBARD
G OVERNOR Hubbard was a poor boy who rose by his own exertion to the highest place at the bar, and became an orator of national reputation.
Born in Berlin, September 7, 1818, he was the son of Lemuel Hubbard, an old resident of the town who descended from George Hubbard, one of the early magistrates of Guilford, and a frequent deputy from that town to the General Court.
The young man was left an orphan early in life, without means to pay for an education. However, he decided to attend college, and after a preparatory course at East Hartford, entered Yale College in 1835. He was obliged to support himself while studying at Yale, but he took high rank in his class and was graduated in 1839. Then he studied law in the office of William Hungerford at Hartford and was admitted to the bar in 1842. In 1846 Hubbard was chosen state's attorney for Hartford County, and this office he held with the exception of two years until 1868. He often represented the city in the General Assembly and rose to a lofty position as an able lawyer.
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The Governors of Connecticut
Entering into politics early in life Hubbard was always prominently identified with the Democratic party, yet during the Civil War he was an unwavering supporter of the Federal government.
In 1867 he was elected to Congress from his district, and was a member of that body during the 40th session. Life at Washington was apparently uncongenial to Hubbard, for at the next election he declined being renominated. He again took up his law practice and having formed a partnership with Hon. Loren P. Waldo and Alvin P. Hyde devoted the remaining years of his life to his profession.
In 1877 Hubbard was nominated for governor of the state, and elected by a good majority. He was the first one to serve under the two years' term.
In speaking of the importance of some of the enactments during Governor Hubbard's administration, the late John Hooker in publishing the personal correspondence between them, in his "Reminiscences," says :
"Governor Hubbard in his first message to the General Assembly stated in very strong terms the injustice done to married women in respect to their property by the law as it stood, being the ancient English law with a few recent modifications."
Mrs. Isabella Beecher Hooker in her autobiography in "The Connecticut Magazine" says: "In 1870 I presented a bill to the
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The Governors of Connecticut
Connecticut Legislature making husband and wife equal in prop- erty rights and persisted in its passage without avail through succeeding legislatures until 1877. Governor Richard D. Hub- bard was an intimate friend of my husband and myself and had become much interested in our cause. He requested Mr. Hooker to draft a bill for a public act remedying the injustice. The bill was passed in 1877 and still holds its place in the statute book without material change."
This notable enactment has had far reaching consequences and proved a master stroke at the opportune time. It gave woman her property emancipation in Connecticut, abandoning the old idea of the superior rights of her husband. Samuel Bowles, the distinguished editor of "The Springfield Republican," pro- nounced it "a great step forward."
Governor Hubbard was renominated in 1879, but failed to be elected. His administration as governor was marked by his earnest desire to serve the state as well as possible, and to do his whole duty irrespective of any partnership whatever. Retiring from the office, he never held a public position afterwards and his lucrative practice engaged his attention until his death, which occurred on February 28, 1884, at his home in Hartford.
When George D. Sargeant died in 1886 it was found he had left $5,000 for a statue of Governor Hubbard. One was made, placed in a conspicuous place on the Capitol grounds, and it faces
295
The Governors of Connecticut
Washington street. The statue represents the governor standing in a position as though addressing the court or jury. It was unveiled on June 9, 1890, in the presence of the state officials and other prominent citizens. It bears the inscription : "Richard D. Hubbard, Lawyer, Orator, Statesman."
" As an example of a self-made man," says a biographer, " there was none more shining. From a poor boy, through years of patient toil and studied application to his books he forced himself to the top and compelled admiration and respect of every- body in his native state, not excepting political foes."
The following professional estimate of Governor Hubbard is taken from the " Judicial and Civil History of Connecticut."
" It was, however, in the field of the law that he won his great success. He was not only the first lawyer in the state, but its greatest orator. His superiority as a lawyer was owing less to a laborious study of books, though he was always a diligent student and very thorough in the preparation of his cases, than to his perfect comprehension of legal principles. He obtained a complete mastery of the science of law. He had strong common sense, by which he tested everything, and with sound men of judgment he united great quickness of apprehension and brilliancy of imagination. His mind was eminently a philosophical one, and found recreation in abstract speculation: nothing interested him more than the great mysteries and baffling questions of life. 296
The Governors of Connecticut
" It was as an orator that he was best known to the general public. With great natural powers of speech he improved himself by a good classical education and by a life-long study of ancient and modern classics. There was in his speeches a special quietness of manner, an exquisiteness of thought, a fertility of imagination, and a power and grace of expression that made them captivating. Some of his addresses, in commemoration of his deceased brethren at the bar, are remarkable for their beauty. That upon William Hungerford is one of the finest pieces of composition that our language contains. To his profession he was ardently attached; he loved its science, its eloquence, its wit, its nobility. He was proud of its history, of its contribution to philosophy and literature, and its struggle in defense of human rights, and assaults upon human wrongs. While he was the ablest and most accomplished lawyer of our state, his culture was peculiarly his own. He sought and studied the great arguments and orations of the past and present. He was a profound student of Shakespeare and Milton ; he delighted in John Bunyan, Thomas Browne, Thomas Fuller and Jeremy Taylor. He was cultivated in the French language, and enjoyed the suggestive methods of French wit, and was familiar with their great dramatists and public orators."
297
The FORTY - SIXTH GOVERNOR of
CONNECTICUT
was
CHARLES B. ANDREWS
The son of a clergyman who, after an academic course at Amherst College, studied law and was admitted to the Fairfield County bar, later re- moving to the Litchfield County bar and becom- ing one of its most eminent practitioners. After a legislative experience he became a leader in state politics and during his administration as governor counseled many reforms. As chief jus- tice of the Supreme Court he won recognition for his great power of analysis and absolute sagacity
Parles B. andrews -
CHARLES
BARTLETT
ANDREWS
O HARLES Bartlett Andrews, the former chief justice of the Connecticut Supreme Court, was a descendant of Wil- liam Andrews, one of the first settlers of Hartford, and for a long period its town clerk. His father was Rev. Erastus Andrews, pastor of a church in North Sunderland, Massachusetts, he having removed to that state with his family early in life.
Judge Andrews was born in Sunderland, November 4, 1834, and entered Amherst College in 1854, where he was graduated with high honors four years later. He then studied law in the town of Sherman, Connecticut, and in 1860 was admitted to the Fairfield County bar, beginning practice in the small town of Kent. His progress was rapid and he soon became known as one of the ablest young men of the section. When John M. Hubbard of Litch- field was chosen a member of Congress in 1863, he secured Andrews to take charge of his large law practice while the former was attending the sessions in Washington. Hubbard was at that time the leader of the Litchfield County bar, and his selection of so young a man to look after his business was a great compliment to the legal ability of Andrews.
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