USA > Connecticut > New Haven County > Waterbury > The town and city of Waterbury, Connecticut, from the aboriginal period to the year eighteen hundred and ninety-five. Volume III > Part 48
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LIBRARIES, BOOK-STORES, LITERARY SOCIETIES.
country and settled in Brooklyn, N. Y .; his mother's name was Anne Ellis. Mr. Patton was for some time a button chaser in New York, and came to Waterbury to pursue that business. He was one of the first skilled chasers in this city. His fondness for read- ing, however, turned his attention to the book business, and he became the pioneer bookseller of Waterbury. He continued in the business for over forty years. In 1848 he published a newspaper. Mr. Patton died December 2, 1883. His wife, who survived him, was a daughter of Hampton Dunham, M. D., of New York city, a surgeon in the war of 1812. They had two children, Alice I. and William Hampton (for whom see page 1029).
A. F. ABBOTT.
Anson F. Abbott was born in Middlebury, April 23, 1830. He attended school in New Haven and Watertown, and came to Water- bury about 1850. He was for six years engaged in the store of the Benedict & Burnham Manufacturing company and was afterward secretary of the Benedict & Scovill company. In 1856 he became connected with the Savings Bank and Building association of Waterbury, and continued with it until about 1861, when it closed its business. He then became engaged, with his brother, C. S. Abbott, in the book, stationery and picture business. Their estab- lishment on Centre square was the first picture store in Waterbury. In 1864 Mr. Abbott purchased a lot on Bank street (where the store of P. J. Bolan now is) and erected upon it a frame building for the post office and for the business of his firm.
After this he became largely engaged in real estate transactions and in the investment business. In 1873 he opened Abbott avenue, and extended Spencer avenue and Park avenue to connect there- with (see pages 80, 86). In 1883 he bought the Valley View Park property-a rough and rocky tract of ten acres-and developed it into a residence section. Of late years he has represented various investment companies, in whose debentures money could be placed in sums of from $100 to $500 each, and in connection with this con- ducts a fire insurance business.
On October 21, 1852, Mr. Abbott married Nancy Holcomb, laughter of George F. Merriman of Watertown .. These seven children have been born to them: Mary Merriman; Anna Eliza- beth, wife of the Rev. T. M. Peck; Charles Frederick; George Benjamin ; Kate Beers, who was married to Frank B. Deane and lied July 23, 1894; Burton Lewis, who died in infancy ; and John Vincent.
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
LITERARY AND SCIENTIFIC SOCIETIES.
In the intellectual development of Waterbury certain literary and scientific organizations have come into existence which have fulfilled a function similar to that of the public libraries and book- stores in the dissemination of knowledge and the encouragement of study and research. Some of these are extinct or at least inactive; others are in a flourishing condition. They are placed on record here in the order of their origin.
THE YOUNG MEN'S INSTITUTE.
The Young Men's institute was organized in 1852 with the fol- lowing officers : President, Green Kendrick; vice-president, C. S. Sperry; secretary, G. L. Townsend; treasurer, A. F. Abbott; direct- ors, the Rev. S. W. Magill, the Rev. J. G. Easton, the Rev. Joseph Smith, Henry W. Benedict, John Andrews. It was incorporated in 1854. The following advertisement, which appeared in the Water- bury American of December 24, 1852, indicates the place which it was intended to fill in the life of the community:
YOUNG MEN'S INSTITUTE. Certificates of membership are now ready, and may be procured of the secretary, at the American office, Gothic hall. Members of the institute will be entitled to free tickets to the valuable course of lectures announced above. They will also be entitled to free access to the reading room, fitted up in a neat and pleasant style, and supplied with newspapers and periodi- cals from all parts of the Union, together with some of the foreign reviews. The committee have also secured convenient rooms for a sitting room and for class instruction, under competent teachers, free to all members of the institute. In addition to the above, a valuable library-a generous donation to the institute- and to which additions of valuable and entertaining books will be made, is to be opened in a few days for the use of the members.
G. L. TOWNSEND, Secretary.
Of the several departments here outlined, there were two that received more attention than the others-namely, lecture courses and the library. For several years courses of lectures were con- ducted by the managers of the institute, with the success which was so easily attained during the earlier lecture era in American life. Some of the eminent men who were brought here under these auspices are mentioned further on in this chapter. The interest in the library continued to increase for some years. In February, 1853, it contained 380 volumes, 300 of which were received from the Waterbury Library association. In 1857 the number of volumes was 1087. In 1868 the institute owned 3000 volumes, which by vote
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LIBRARIES, BOOK-STORES, LITERARY SOCIETIES.
of the directors were passed over to the board of agents of the newly organized Bronson library. By this action the career of the institute was practically closed.
THE CATHOLIC INSTITUTE.
The Waterbury Catholic institute was organized June 28, 1856. It was a strong and flourishing society for ten years or more, with literary objects chiefly in view. It collected a considerable library, which when interest declined was divided among the members who remained. Some of its officers were Michael Donahue, Patrick Donahue, John Ryan, Michael O'Connor, John O'Neill, Thomas Donahue, John Fitzpatrick, James Coyle.
THE SCIENTIFIC SOCIETY.
The Waterbury Scientific society was organized October 19, 1868, as the Waterbury Scientific club. The original members were Josiah McWhinnie, H. F. Bassett, Leroy S. White, George E. Somers, Leroy Upson, Clark M. Platt, Henry Munson, H. K. Brown, Thomas Kirk, F. W. Platt and Samuel Geddes. At the May session of the legislature next following its organization the club received a charter. The name was changed to the Waterbury Scientific society, and the charter members were the persons above named, together with the following: D. B. Hamilton, W. H. K. Godfrey, J. A. Bunnell and W. W. Bonnett.
Regular meetings of the society were held on Monday evenings once in two weeks. At these meetings the members read papers on scientific subjects or discussed scientific questions. For several years the society conducted courses of scientific lectures, open to the public, in which the members sometimes took part. These were generally well attended, down to the time when the public sud- denly lost interest in popular lectures of all sorts. The society had an active existence from its organization until 1881, and its records show that it had at one time nearly a hundred members. Several efforts to resuscitate the old society or organize a new one on the same basis have been made within a few years, but have not been successful.
YOUNG MEN'S CATHOLIC LITERARY SOCIETY.
This flourishing organization was founded on August 15, 1869, in the old school building that stood opposite the church of the Immaculate Conception, on the site now occupied by St. Patrick's hall. The name then given to it was the Young Men's Christian
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
Doctrine and Literary association. Its first officers were: Presi- dent, Alpin J. Cameron; vice-president, James Bradley; treasurer, John H. Moran; secretary, William C. Keenan. On June 19, 1870, the society was reorganized and its name changed to that which it now bears. Its primary object, from its organization until now, has been mutual improvement in elocution, history and debate. It has a library of over 400 volumes and a membership of ninety in good standing.
The society has gained an enviable reputation in other than · intellectual fields. It has on more than one occasion assisted the needy and contributed generously to religious and patriotic objects. In 1879, when famine swept over Ireland, it contributed $75 for the relief of the sufferers. In 1881 it donated $100 on the occasion of laying the corner stone of St. Patrick's church. It was in the rooms of this society that the representatives of the different Catholic societies of the city met during the Land League agitation of 1884, and perfected arrangements for the lecture which was given in the City hall by John Boyle O'Reilly, and which netted $1000 for the Irish cause. In their rooms also the remains of the Irish patriot, Stephen J. Meany (page 987), lay in state until prepared for transportation to Ireland for burial. The body was taken over in charge of Martin Scully, a member of the society, who was chosen for this honorable and responsible duty by the Catholics of Waterbury and the Press club of New York city.
On April 9, 1893, the rooms of the society were destroyed . by the fire that occurred in the Lilley block. When the building was ready for occupancy the society returned and fitted up more elegant rooms than they had before occupied.
When the late Bishop McMahon was selecting lay delegates to represent the diocese of Hartford at the World's Fair Columbian Catholic congress, which convened in the Art Institute, Chicago, on September 4, 1893, the society was honored by the appointment of its president, Martin Scully, to represent the Catholics of Water- bury.
During its twenty-five years of existence the society has brought to the city many lecturers of national reputation. Its rooms have been the scene of many intellectual gatherings. Its influence among the Catholic young men of the city has been most salutary. The following were the officers of the society in 1895: President, James M. Lynch; vice president, Henry J. Kennaugh; secretary. Christopher P. Bannon; assistant secretary, William J. Gilhuly; treasurer, William C. Keenan; librarian, Charles H. Bannon.
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LIBRARIES, BOOK-STORES, LITERARY SOCIETIES.
THE MATTATUCK HISTORICAL SOCIETY.
As long ago as 1875 an historical society was projected by some of the citizens of Waterbury, but the scheme did not take definite shape until 1877, the bicentennial of the settlement of the town, when a special interest in local history was aroused. The first meeting was held in December, but the officers were not elected until the following January. They were: President, Frederick J. Kingsbury; vice-presidents, the Rev. E. G. Beckwith, D. D., and Willard Spencer; treasurer, Israel Holmes; directors, E. L. Bron- son, N. J. Welton and D. B. Hamilton. "The object of the society shall be," says the constitution at that time adopted, "to collect and preserve whatever in the opinion of its members may serve to explain or illustrate the history, civil or ecclesiastical, the archæol- ogy or the natural history of the state of Connecticut, and especially the region originally included in the town of Waterbury, and for- merly known as Mattatuck." At first a considerable interest was taken in the society, and lectures under its auspices were well attended, but of late years no meetings have been held.
THE PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY.
A number of Waterbury young men established a Philosophical society in February, 1881. This society lived for three or four years and held its meetings in Bronson hall. The exercises consisted of declamations and debates and the reading of original essays and selections. Among the memorabilia still cherished in its records is a letter of acknowledgment from the widow of the martyred Gar- ield, to whom the club sent its expression of sincere condolence. The first officers of the society were: President, John Mabbott; rice-president, F. W. Kelsey; secretary and treasurer, E. F. Lewis.
THE WOMEN'S CLUB.
The Waterbury Women's club was organized in April, 1889. A meeting was held on April 3, in response to invitations sent out by Irs. George S. Abbott, at which a committee was appointed to raft a constitution and by-laws and to nominate officers for the ear. At an adjourned meeting, April 9, a constitution and by- tws were adopted and the following officers elected: President, orinne R. Morrow; vice-president, Elizabeth R. Webster; corre- ponding secretary, Elizabeth O. R. Abbott; recording secretary, arriet E. Meers; treasurer, Harriet Elton Stevens; auditor, Jennie . Upson. The object of the club was twofold: "first, mutual iprovement; second, to do good and useful work in this commu- ty or elsewhere."
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
The first regular meeting of the club was held in the parlors of the First church on October 8, 1889. Since that time meetings have been held at the same place on the second and fourth Tues- days of each month, commencing in October and closing in April. The club was organized with forty-four members; at the close of the fourth year its membership had increased to 135. Many inter- esting papers have been prepared by the members and read at the meetings, and many of the ladies are indefatigable in their efforts to promote the welfare and advance the objects of the organiza- tion. Friends of the club, residents of Waterbury, have delivered lectures at different times on various subjects, while each year lec- turers from abroad have added to its enjoyment and success.
The Waterbury Women's club was represented at the biennial meeting of the General Federation of clubs by its president and a delegate and four other members. A delegate was also sent to the Women's congress held in Chicago, May 18, 1893. An exhibit was prepared for the Columbian exposition, consisting of a volume containing a history of the club, with selections from various papers written by members, the club annuals, copies of the original "mag- azines" and photographs of the officers and of the club rooms.
The following passage from the address of Mrs. D. F. Webster, upon her retirement from the presidency in 1892, felicitously tells the story of what the club has accomplished:
From a very dependent state, we have become largely independent of outside talent to sustain our club work; from an uncertain purpose we have made the bent of our work to be educative; from separate interests we have become united by ties of attachment in a bond of fellowship; from hitherto unknown mental charac- teristics we now associate with individual members distinctive qualities of thought and disposition; from a personal influence we have acquired a united influence which has drawn to us many able members whose activity has greatly increased the resources of our club; from an uncertain existence we have secured for our. selves the prospect of permanence, meeting a want felt by the cultivated women of our city; from a scant treasury we have placed ourselves on a sounder financial basis; from timid speakers we have changed to ready talkers.
The present officers (1895) are: President, Mrs. Charlotte B. Hill; vice-presidents, Mrs. Emily W. Frisbie, Mrs. Flora S. Russell, Mrs. Charlotte A. Elton; recording secretary, Mrs. Mary S. Wot- kyns; corresponding secretary, Mrs. Emma L. Kingman; treasurer, Mrs. Jennie A. Upson; auditor, Mrs. Mary F. Deacon.
THE CATHOLIC WOMEN'S ASSOCIATION.
The Catholic Women's association was organized on June 4, 1894, at which time a constitution was adopted and officers were elected. The charter members numbered fifty-three. The object
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LIBRARIES, BOOK-STORES, LITERARY SOCIETIES.
of the association, as expressed in the constitution, is "the social, intellectual and religious benefit of the members." The Convent of Notre Dame made a gratuitous offer, which was gratefully accepted, of a large room for meetings and classes. Members and classes soon became so numerous that larger accommodations were required, and two rooms were secured in St. Patrick's block on East Main street. The success of the society during its first year was shown in an exhibition of class work and an evening's entertainment given at the rooms on May 21, 1895. On the secretary's roll there were then 183 names,-a large increase from the original number. The present officers are: Spiritual director, Rev. W. J. Slocum, successor of Vicar General J. A. Mulcahy, under whose auspices the associa- tion was formed; president, Emma McCarthy; first vice-president, Mrs. C. A. Jackson; second vice-president, Katherine Callaghan; recording secretary, Mary O'Connor; assistant, Mary Lawlor; finan- cial secretary, B. J. Purdy; assistant, Mary Fitzgerald; treasurer, Mrs. Charles Roper; auditor, Mrs. Herman Herringer. These with ten directors constitute an executive board for the business manage- ment of the society.
THE NATURALISTS' CLUB.
The Waterbury Naturalists' club was organized in May, 1895, with the following officers: President, Wilbur W. Judd; vice-presi- dents, Walter H. Cook and Samuel B. Hill; recording secretary, Mary A. Cass; corresponding secretary, Homer F. Bassett; treasurer, John Dallas. Meetings of the society are held weekly on Tuesday evenings at the Bronson library. Papers are read and discussed, after which there is a general talk on the subject of the paper or on other matters of interest to naturalists .*
CHARLES E. WEBSTER.
Charles Edward Webster is the son of the Rev. Richard and Elizabeth (Cross) Webster. He was born in Mauch Chunk, Penn., May 5, 1842. He was educated in the common and private schools of that town, and graduated at Princeton college in 1862. His pro- fession is that of civil engineer, and in its pursuit he has been con- nected with the location and construction of these railroads: The New York and New England, the Chesapeake and Ohio, the Cincin- nati Southern, the New York, Chicago and St. Louis, the South Pennsylvania, and the St. Louis and San Francisco. Mr. Webster has been twice a resident of Waterbury, once in 1868 and again in 879, in connection with work upon the New England railroad. In
* A Waterbury Horticultural society was organized in 1863. It had the following officers: President, Villiam Lamb; vice-presidents, A. B. Wilson and Nelson J. Welton; secretary and treasurer, Guernsey S. 'arsons; directors, Nathan Dikeman, J. W. Webster, J. P. Elton, F. J. Kingsbury. Its career was brief.
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
1869 he was a resident of Southbury, and there married on June 9, 1870, Mary Sophia, daughter of Elisha Wheeler of Southford. They have had three children.
GEORGE B. SIMPSON.
George Bancroft Simpson is the son of Ferdinand Gorges and Susan (Hall) Simpson, and was born in Boston, November 1, 1844. He is a brother of Lieutenant James Simpson of the United States army. He received his education at H. F. Bassett's private school, the Wilbraham (Mass.) academy and at Yale college, having entered there with the class of 1871. Before completing his course, an advantageous offer of a position on the geological survey of the state of New York was made to him, and as he had always intended following a scientific career, he decided to leave college and accept the offer. Since that time (about 1870) he has been connected with the New York survey, with the exception of two years, when he was connected with the Pennsylvania survey. Mr. Simpson has made more than ten thousand drawings from objects in all departments of natural history in water color, india ink, pen and process work, for the publications of the United States survey, the state surveys of New York, Pennsylvania and Indiana, and for various other pub- lications. In former years his water-color paintings met with a ready sale, but he gave up work as an artist because it interfered with strictly scientific work. His uncle, James Hall, the state geologist of New York, with whom he has been closely associated, says of him: "Mr. Simpson is better acquainted with the several classes of fossils which he has illustrated-namely, the corals, bryozoa, brachiopoda, cephalopoda and crustacea-than any other person in the country. His special work upon the anatomy and physiology of anodonta, has shown that he has ability of the highest order for biologic work. He also has wide knowledge of botany and of several departments of zoology." The titles of his works are as follows:
The Anatomy and Physiology of Anodonta Fluviatilis. Albany, 1885.
Bryozoa and Corals, in Vol. VI, of Palæontology of New York; sixty-seven plates and 1700 illustrations (as assistant to Professor James Hall, State Geologist). Albany, 1887.
New Species of Fossils from the Pennsylvania Formation; illustrated. Phila- delphia, 1888.
Catalogue of Fossils Collected during the Pennsylvania Geological Survey; Report ooo, pp. 175-260, inclusive. Philadelphia, 1889.
A discussion of the Genera of the Family Fenestellidæ, and a Glossary and Explanation of Specific Names; illustrated. Albany, 1894.
Anatomy and Physiology of Helix Albolabris, and Embryology and Anatomy of Limax Maximus; twenty-five plates.
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LIBRARIES, BOOK-STORES, LITERARY SOCIETIES.
WILLIAM H. PATTON.
William Hampton Patton, son of William and Sarah Frances (Dunham) Patton, was born in Waterbury, March 10, 1853. He was educated at the Waterbury High school and graduated in the class of 1870. He fitted for college at Williston seminary, Easthampton, Mass., entered Yale in 1872 and graduated in 1876. His profession after leaving college was that of a naturalist, and he devoted him- self in particular to zoology and entomology, in which he achieved eminence. He was an assistant in zoology at Yale college from 1876 to 1878, and was a special agent of the United States Entomological commission from 1879 to 1881. He was a resident of New Haven from 1876 to 1878, and of Washington, D. C., from 1880 to 1882, and has resided also in New York and Hartford. Mr. Patton has pub- lished no books, but has made valuable contributions to scientific journals, his "Notes upon Wasps " having been published (1894) in the Authors' Extras taken from the proceedings of the Entomologi- cal society of Washington and appearing in Extra No. I of Vol- ume III.
SCIENTIFIC PAPERS OF DR. E. O. HOVEY.
A sketch of Dr. Hovey's life appears in the chapter on the Schools of the Centre District (pages 514, 515). The following is the list there promised of his papers on scientific subjects:
A Cordierite Gneiss from Connecticut. American Journal of Science, July, 1888. The Trap-Ridges of the East Haven-Branford (Conn.) Region. Same journal, November, 1889.
Ueber Gang-diabas der Gegend von Rio de Janeiro, etc. Tschermak's Mineral- ogische und Petrologische Mittheilungen. 1893.
An Analcite-Copper Bowlder from the Keweenaw Range. Science, 1893.
Microscopic Structure of Siliceous Oolite. Bulletin of the Geological Society of America, Vol. V, 1893.
Note on the Petrography of certain Basaltic Bowlders from Thetford, Vt. Trans- actions of the New York Academy of Science, 1894.
A Study of the Cherts of Missouri. American Journal of Science, November, 1894.
The chapter on Cherts, in Winslow and Robertson's Report on the Lead and Zinc Deposits of Missouri. Jefferson City, Mo., 1895.
LECTURE COURSES.
We of to-day are inclined to look upon lecture courses as a re- rival of the popular platform oratory of forty years ago. But the popular lecture is of earlier date than that. Scientific lectures, at east, were given here in Waterbury at a much earlier period. A
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HISTORY OF WATERBURY.
prominent citizen recalls the fact that at the age of seven, that is, about the year 1830, he was taken by his father to the Academy building to hear a lecture on astronomy. While the lecture " boom" was at its height, many men whose fame is world-wide spoke from the platform here in Waterbury, most of them in the institute courses, and local talent also has been drafted into the service at more or less frequent intervals ever since. The course of 1853-54 included these names : Henry Ward Beecher, Wendell Phillips, Henry C. Deming, the Rev. A. L. Stone, D. D., and the Rev. E. H. · Chapin, D. D. The course of 1856-57 included Thomas Starr King, Arthur Gilman, and Fernando Wood. The course of 1858-59 in- cluded Bayard Taylor, John G. Saxe, the Rev. Dr. R. S. Storrs, Dr. J. G. Holland and Bishop Williams. A course conducted in 1869 included Professor E. L. Youmans, Isaac H. Bromley, Horace Greeley, Colonel Homer B. Sprague and Professor W. D. Gunning. In 1876 Schuyler Colfax lectured here on Abraham Lincoln. Among the more prominent local lecturers may be mentioned: The Rev. Dr. Anderson in 1879 on "Footprints of the Red Man in the Nauga- tuck Valley"; Mary M. Abbott in 1888 on astronomy, and Anna L. Ward in 1892 on " Untravelled Labrador and the Eskimo." In 1893-4 Professor Frank L. Sanders of Yale delivered a series of lectures on the Bible in the light of the "higher criticism." In reference to the University Extension courses, see page 539.
STENOGRAPHY AND TYPE-WRITING.
In Waterbury, as elsewhere, the extension of the employment of stenographers from courts and law offices to factory offices, stores, and similar business concerns led to the establishment of schools for instruction in shorthand reporting and the use of the type-writer. C. W. Loomis, of this city, had a private class for some time, and several other persons gave private lessons in stenography, but the first reg- ular school was that opened in the post office block on Bank street in the spring of 1890, by John F. Gaffey, as a branch of his New Haven establishment. Helen L. Mattoon was employed as the principal of the school, which was very successful. The following year, Miss Mattoon established a school of her own in the Lilley block, and the Gaffey school was shortly afterward discontinued. Miss Mattoon having been taken ill, one of her pupils, Alice J. Knight, was employed by her to carry on the work in her absence, and as Miss Mattoon's illness proved to be of long duration, Miss Knight assumed the charge of the school for herself. On the establishment of the Harrington Business college (page 532), the management of that institution bought out Miss Knight's school, retaining her as teacher of stenog- raphy. As a department of the business college, it has proved very successful. Another school of this kind was for a time carried on in the Castle block, North Main street, by M. L. Fitzsimons and B. H. Clark, and W. I. Munroe has a similar school at the present time on North Main street. Classes in stenography have also been a feature of the work of the Young Women's Friendly league.
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