Leading Business Men of Fairfield County

The season of prosperity seems to have continued uninterruptedly until the Em- bargo Act in 1808, and the War of 1812 threw a damper on Bridgeport's commerce, at the same time that all the other New England towns were similarly afflicted. Although the citizens qf Bridgeport achieved no conspicuously brilliant thing in the War of 1812, they maintained the cause of the country with patriotic devotion, par- ticularly on the sea. At the close of the war, commerce revived, and the main facts of the succeeding half century are the rise and fall of the shipping trade and its supercedence by the increasing extent of manufactures. Bridgeport soon came to have a fleet excelled in numbers and efficiency by few on the Sound. Considerable trading was done with New York, Boston, Baltimore and the West Indies. The West Indian trade, in particular, increased rapidly until about 1840, when it began to decline. One great benefit of this trade was the impetus it gave to the work of the coopers and millers. In 1820 the population of the borough had reached eight hundred and twenty. In the following year, the government of Bridgeport was changed by legislative enactment, from that of the borough to the town, to meet the exigencies of its recent growth. The valuation of the town for 1820 was reported to be #24,701. From this time on the advance of Bridgeport was rapid. The advent of steam- boats was one important item in the bringing about of this result. In 1824, a charter was granted to a steamboat company in Bridgeport, being the third one granted, up to that time, in the State; but it does not appear that the comj^any went into active ■operation before 1832. On the 16th of April, 1S32, the steamboat "Citizen," Cap- 24 BRIDGEPORT, PAST AND PRESENT. tain Brooks, began to make regular trips between Bridgeport and New York. Two- years later, in July, 1834, the steamers " Nimrod," Captain J. Brooks, Jr., and " Fairfield," Captain Peck, were added to the line. One of the early maritime ventures was whale fishing. This industry having proved so profitable in other New England seaport towns, Bridgeport decided to try her hand at it, and whaling vessels were sent to the North Atlantic and to the North and South Pacific on long voyages. The business prospered so for a time- that in 1833 a firm, called the Bridgeport Whaling Company, was incorporated here with a capital stock of $100,000. Four vessels were owned and sent out by this company: "Harvest," "Hamilton," "Atlantic," and "Steiglitz." Whale fishing off Newfoundland did not prove so successful, and after a decade or two the entire business passed into oblivion, as better and cheaper materials for lighting came into> the market. Many voyages to China and India were made by the old " skippers " of Bridge- port. Among the more famous of these old naval heroes were: Captain Ezekiel Hubbell, who sailed in all more than 245,000 miles upon the sea, and upon a large number of his voyages carried cargoes valued at over $100,000; Captain Henry Wilson, who sailed in all more than 370,000 miles, and Captain Isaac Burroughs, who made many voyages and owned a large number of vessels plying from thia port, beside being one of the most prominent citizens in the town itself. The population of the town in 1830 was rated at about eighteen hundred. In 1833, scientific arrangements were first made for supplying the town with water. Previous to that time it had been conveyed around the town in bored-out logs, a plan originally made by the Rev. Elijah Waterman. The Bridgeport and Golden Hill Aqueduct Company, formed in 1833, with a capital of $10,000, was one of the first in the country to apply scientific methods to the distribution of the water supply. They were succeeded by the Bridgeport Water Company in 1853. In 1836, a new era was inaugurated in Bridgeport by the incorporation of the Housatonic Railroad Company. The movement which resulted in the railroad began in 1835, and was one of the earliest in the country. It was originally proposed to encourage traffic in the Housatonic Valley, by joining Naugatuck and New Mil- ford by a canal. In 1835, however, the citizens of the various towns and cities in the region decided that a railway would be much superior, and through the energetic efforts of Alfred Bishop of Bridgeport, it was decided that its termination should be made here. Coincident with the moveme nt for the railway, a city charter was granted to Bridge- port— a suggestive incident. Thus in 1836 Bridgeport began its career as a city and became possessed of its first railroad company. The new city showed its appre- ciation of the latter by making a loan to it of $150,000. This was the first experi- ence Bridgeport had had with a debt, and at first several misunderstandings arose in regard to the payment of the interest and other collateral items, but the citizens "soon " saw the point," and became glad to make a small sacrifice for the general good. Beside Alfred Bishop, Wm. P. Bushnell, Wm. H. Noble, Jesse Sterling and other prominent citizens were deeply interested in the new railroad. The road was com- pleted and opened as far as New Milford in 1839, but the present line was not entire- ly completed until 1844. In 1845 a charter was granted to the Naugatuck railroad and in 1848 the trains began running as far as Winsted. Timothy Dwight of New BRIDGEPORT, PAST AND PRESENT. 25 Haven, and Wm. P. Burrall, Philo Hurd and Alfred D. Brittain of Bridgeport, were among the chief movers of this enterprise. The New York and New Haven railroad, which had been chartered in 1844, also commenced running trains through Bridgeport in 1848. Bridgeport men had an im- portant influence in the beginning of this great enterprise, which has never been in- terrupted. Wm. P. Burrall and Stephen Tomlinson, both of Bridgeport, were mem- bers of the original board of directors, no other city in Connecticut having more than one. Alfred Bishop of Bridgeport was the chief contractor and builder of the entire road. Wm. D. Bishop, son of the former, was for many years president of the road, and contributed a large share toward its prosperity. At the present time Bridgeport has two directors of the road: Hon. Wm. D. Bishop and Hon. Nathan- iel Wheeler; and superintendent: Mr. John T. Moody. The importance and benefit to the city of the great railroad lines can perhaps be partially estimated by the census, the population of Bridgeport having risen from 1,800 in 1830 to 4,570 in 1840, and 7,558 in 1850. During the decade from 1850 to 1860 there was another rapid advance, the city almost doubling its population and reaching the number of 13,299. Many of the manufacturing industries were established during this period. As the clouds began to gather before the breaking of the storm, the citizens of Bridgeport made preparation for the struggle which all thoughtful men recognized as imminent. The troubles in Kansas, and the expedition of John Brown caused great excitement. As the elections of 1860 drew near a number of active supporters of the South and slavery made themselves prominent in the city, but they received nothing but opprobrium from the great majority of the people. With the elec- tion of Lincoln the resolution of all but a few was finally made to stand by the Union. Immediately upon the announcement of the fall of Fort Sumter, April 12, 1861 the patriotic spirit burst forth in great mass meetings and assemblies for volunteer- ing in answer to the call of the governor. Mayor D. H. Sterling and Wm. H. Noble were two of the chief leaders of the " Union spirit." At the mass meeting held on the evening of the day news of Fort Sumter's fall arrived, seven thousand dollars was raised on the spot in behalf of volunteers and their families. A few davs later the city officially set apart ten thousand dollars for this purpose. The enthusiasm and excitement increased hourly. In the First Connecticut Volunteers Regiment, collected immediately at New Haven, Bridgeport was represented by a complete company called the " Bridgeport Rifles," Captain John Speidal. In the Third Regi- ment, recruited a few days, later, Company D, Captain Frederick Frye, was composed •of half Bridgeport men and the rest from other parts of Fairfield County. These regiments immediately marched to the defence of Washington. In the battle of Bull Run they were in the front of the line and were the last to retire, with unbroken ranks, an unexcelled rear guard. Capt. John Speidal was made a Lieutenant-Colonel for gallant service in the battle that day, and particularly recommended for honorable mention. When the brave volunteers returned home to Bridgeport in August 1861, they received a most enthusiastic welcome. All now perceived that the struggle would be a long and bitter one. A large majority of the returned soldiers re-enlisted, and many new volunteers came forward. Meanwhile there were a few so-called "peace " men in Bridgeport who endeavored 26 * BRIDGEPORT, PAST AND PRESENT. like blind men to stem the tide. The Bridgeport Farmer was one of the most ram- pant upholders of the " anti-war doctrines " in the State. By several strong edito- rials, wishing the rebels success and approving their actions, it drew upon itself the hostile attention of the city, with the exception of a few hesitating sympathizers. So bitter did the Farmer become that at last, excited and exasperated, a large crowd took possession of its office, ruined the type, paper and presses, and by " hooting, groaning and insulting " its recreant editor, Mr. Morse, whenever he appeared in public, induced him after a few days to take a hurried leave and join his South- ern friends, via Canada. In the new regiments which were now immediately formed, Bridgeport was rep- resented as follows: Sixth Regiment by Major John Speidal, and Company I, Captain Thomas Boudren; Seventh by Capt. Gray, and part of Company I; Ninth by Lieutenant-Colonel Richard F. Gibbons, Major Frederick Frye, and Company D, Captain Thomas C. Coats; Twelfth by Company I, Captain J. W. DeForest.