Leading Business Men of Fairfield County

In the year 1865, Stillman T. Clapp was Mayor; his endeavors to get the city on a good working basis and started again on the old line of progress which had been interrupted by the war, were ably seconded by such citizens as General W. H. Noble, Monson Hawley, P. T. Barnum and Nathaniel Wheeler. All the depart- ments of the city were established on a wider and more efficient basis. The Fire Department in particular received attention for the first time since 184 V, R. B. Lacey being one of most earnest and powerful movers in this matter. The steam fire engines D. H. Sterling No. 1, Protector No. 2, and Excelsior No. 3, the first ever used in Bridgeport were added to the department in '64 and '65. The volunteer system was perfected and a high order of discipline attained. The volunteer fire department was disbanded in 1872, and a regular paid depart- ment established. Charles A. Gerdenier, who had been the able chief fore- man of the " volunteers " since 1869, was now appointed chief-engineer, which office he has held ever since. The various equipments of the department at present, con- sisting of the best kind of engines, carriages, bell-towers, alarms, and houses, are estimated to have cost over $100,000. The whole force numbers sixty-two men, and 34 BRIDGEPORT, PAST AND PRESENT. is under the control of a Board of Commissioners consisting of Samuel W. Baldwin, Wm, E. Seeley, Eli Dewhurst and Henry Atwater. The efficiency of this department in the past has been an important element in the prosperity and growth of the city. The Police Department was also improved at the same time, and has been main- tained at a high standard of efficiency up to the present time. It now consists of about fifty men under the command of its able chief, Captain William E. Marsh. Another important work which has been carried on is the development and im- provement of the harbor. In 1872, the first dredgings below the Lower Bridge were made, and have since been continued with great success. The harbor, formerly one of the best on the coast, has been made yet more navigable. Where there was five feet of water at low tide before, now, through the excellent engineering work, there is always twelve, allowing all vessels, except those of extraordinary weight, to to enter at any time. The advantages which have accrued commercially through this improvement are very great. The United States engineers are planning to con- struct a channel, twelve feet deep and three hundred wide, from Long Island Sound lip to the Lower Bridge, and to extend the break-water 1,380 feet out from the eastern shore. Other improvements are contemplated above the Lower Bridge where the encroachment of new buildings erected out into the stream have created a need of a better channel. The improvement and growth of East Bridgeport since the war has been one of the most important events in the history of the city. General W. II. Noble, to whom the greatest part of the present East Bridgeport, formerly belonged, and P. T. Barnum saw the natural advantages of the place, and for a decade before the war unitedly effected many important benefits for it. In 1850, General Noble mapped out all the land into streets and building lots as they are at present with a few exceptions. Following up General Noble's idea, Mr. Barnum decided to join in the development of the real estate property. He purchased one-half of the property and promised to advance money if more land were needed for this new district of the city. Washington Park was laid out and ground and money given for the erec- tion of the M. E. Church at its northwest corner. One important step was taken,, when these creators of a new town had the foresight to plant along all the streets,. rows of beautiful and majestic trees. Houses, stores and manufactories soon began to spring up in all directions. In 1852, the Center Bridge was built by Messrs. Bar- num and Noble, at a cost of $16,000. It continued to be a toll bridge until pur- chased by the city. Nathaniel Wheeler, William H. Perry, Elias Howe, Jr., J. D. Alvord, Frederick Hurd and other strong business men joined in the movement and soon the financial standing of East Bridgeport was firmly established. The war in- terrupted progress, though no backward steps were taken. Since the war great additions and improvements have been continually made, so- that the growth has been marvellous. More land has been added to the original property, and many of the largest industries in the city or State have settled here, erecting buildings not surpassed in magnitude or value by any in the country. " Old Mill Green," now called Pembroke Green, has been made into a beautiful park of about twenty acres. James W. Beardsley has given a tract of one hundred and fifty acres at the extremity of Noble avenue, to be made into a park by the city on condition that $30,000 be spent upon it within ten years. The sum of $12,000 has already made this a most picturesque and beautiful park, and when completed it BRIDGEPORT, PAST AND PRESENT. 35 will have few or no equals in New England. Pembroke Cemetery in East Bridge- port was enlarged and made one of best in the city in 1870. Barnum and Noble avenues, two of the most beautiful in this region, will continue to transmit to a grateful and admiring posterity the remembrance of what these two " fathers " of East Bridgeport have accomplished for it. Under the wise administration of its leading citizens and as the natural result of the immense expenditure of care and money in internal improvements, the popula- tion of Bridgeport increased from 19,876 in 1870 to 29,153 in 1880. The present decade has witnessed yet more rapid progress. At the present time the population of the city is estimated by the best authorities to be about 40,000; truly a wonder- ful progress to have been accomplished almost entirely within fifty years. A few words in reference to some of the chief workers in the development of the city seem pertinent. Hon. P. T. Barnum was born in Bethel, Connecticut, July 5th, 1810. The persevering genius with which he made his great show one of most re- markable successes in the history of this or any other country and built up a massive fortune, is well known to all, and a matter of national history. In 1848 he took up his residence in Bridgeport, erecting the beautiful villa "Iranistan." Since that time his devotion to and sacrifices for the advancement of our beautiful city have been most generous, and the results will constitute the most lasting of all monuments. The movement for Seaside Park, now one of the most lovely in the State, was first practically inaugurated by his donation of seven, and later of thirty, acres of land. In more ways than can well be recorded he has lent a strong hand in everything tending to build up the city. He has been mayor of Bridgeport, a mem- ber of State Legislature four times, and held the presidency of the Pequonnock Na- tional Bank, besides many other important offices. The remarkable success of his life and the devotion to high moral principle, united to unceasing work, which are the underlying causes of it, furnish a striking parallel to the history of the city which he has so loved and befriended. General W. H. Noble was born in Newtown, Connecticut, August 13, 1813. He was graduated at Yale College with honors in the Class of 1832. He came to Bridgeport in 1834, for some time was a teacher in his father's academy on Golden Hill, and was admitted to the bar in 1836. The great value of his services in build- ing up East Bridgeport, and his brilliant military record have already been men- tioned. He has held many important offices in the city and State, and has won the esteem and gratitude of all who have experienced the worth of his character and kindness of his life. In the affairs of her city government Bridgeport has been fortunate in having able men who have been untiring in their efforts for the advancement of her prosper- ity. Among these we may note Daniel H. Sterling, Frederick W. Parrott, Rowland B. Lacey, E. B. Goodsell, Amos S. Treat, and Curtis Thompson, besides many other eminent citizens. To sustain her legislative interests, she has had such men as James C. Loomis, Philo C. Calhoun, Judge L. M. Slade, S. B. Beardsley, Judge D. B. Lock- wood, Colonel J. W. Knowlton, Daniel N. Morgan, Russell Tomlinson, and P. W. Wren. Her interest in, and appreciation of the value of railroads is well demon- stated by the services which her citizens like the Hon. W. D. Bishop, Colonel W. H. Stevenson, Colonel Thos. L. Watson, Alfred Bishop and W. S. Knowlton have rendered them. Among the most honored of all her noble men is Henry S. Sanford, 36 BRIDGEPORT, PAST AND PRESENT BRIDGEPORT, PAST AND PRESENT. 37 the originator of the movement which resulted in the formation of Societies for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals all over the country, and who had devoted much toil to that work. The history of Bridgeport is but just begun. Only the few first lines have been written of that epic song which shall continue harmoniously into far distant time. Though her citizens have " not builded better than they knew," the structure, already of great beauty and size, contains elements of almost unlimited expansion, and the future is bright with hope. As long as the spirit and genius of her early sons inspire their descendants, so long will Bridgeport advance, with even greater rapidity than in the past, to a commanding position among the cities of our land. THE MAYORS OF THE CITY OF BRIDGEPORT. 1836, Isaac Sherman, Jr. 1887, Daniel Sterling. 1838, Alanson Hamlin. 1839, Charles Foote. 1840, Charles Bostwick. 1841, Wm. P. Burrall. 1843, James C. Loomis. 1844, Henry K. Harral. 1847, Sherwood Sterling. 1849, Henry K. Harral. 1851, John Brooks, Jr. 1852, Henry K. Harral. 1853, Charles B. Hubbell. 1854, John Brooks, Jr. 1855, P. C. Calhoun. 1858, Silas C. Booth. 1860, D. H. Sterling. 1863, Clapp Spooner 1864, Jarratt Morford. 1865, Stillman S. Clapp. 1866, Monson Hawley. 1868, Jarratt Morford. 1869, Monson Hawley. 1870, Jarratt Morfoud. 1871, E. B. Goodsell. 1874, Robert T. Clarke.