Commemorative Biographical Record of Fairfield County, Connecticut

In political sentiment, Mr. Talbot was a Re- publican, but he always declined official honors. From early life he was a sincere and earnest Chris- tian, a faithful member of the Methodist Church, with which he was officially connected, and he was always a liberal contributor to all Church work. For many years he served as superintend- ent of the Sabbath-school, and only resigned when his health compelled it. He was a man of stern integrity and honesty of purpose, and de- spised all unworthy or questionable methods to secure success in any undertaking or for any pur- pose, or to promote his own advancement in any direction. 224 COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. To Mr. and Mrs. Talbot were born the fol- lowing children: (i) William K., a resident of Port Chester, N. Y. , married I^ydia Stootlioff, and has one daughter, Nellie K. Chester died in childhood. (2) Sarah J. is the wife of Alburt Grigg, of Port Chester, and had six children — Maud, Eugenie, Frederick (who died in infancy), Harold, Walter and Hazel. (3) George E. mar- ried Virginia Sparks, and died in Greenwich at the age of thirty-nine years. (4) Carrie M., at home, was her father's bookkeeper for several years. (5) Louise is the wife of George Tyler, of Round Hill, Fairfield county, and had five children — William, Laura, Chester (died at the age three years), Fred and Helen. (6) Rie E. is the wife of George H. Merrill, of Greenwich. (7) Louis died in infancy. (8) Emma married T. A. Newton, of Greenwich, and has two children — Walter and William Talbot. (9) Estelle M. is at home. (10) Harry is a plumber's apprentice. Mrs. Talbot was left entire charge of a partially involved estate, and her management reflects great credit upon her as a business woman. She was an excellent wife, and at all times is a most highly respected lady. D.AVID SHERMAN BEACH, the founder of J the "North American Investment Com- pany," is one of the sons of Fairfield county at whom our citizens point with pride. He was born in Bridgeport February 26, 1861, one of the five children of John H. and Mary E. (Mer- chant) Beach. The other children were: James E., Amelia B.,Edmond H. and Frederick H. The two last died in infancy. John H. Beach was a son of Isaac E. Beach, and a grandson of Dr. James Eaton Beach, the latter of whom served with distinction in the war of the Revo- lution. He was the first doctor in Bridgeport, whither he had come from Cheshire, Connecticut. Our subject received an unusually good educa- tion, as he attended Guy B. Day's seminary from his seventh year until his twelfth year, and then was two years at S. B. Jones' Park Avenue In- stitution. At the age of fourteen he became in- terested in partnership with the firm known as J. H. Beach & Sons, and at eighteen was en- rolled as a student in the Eastman Business Col- lege at Poughkeepsie, N. Y. , where he remained ten weeks. Having here acquired a thorough theoretical knowledge of business methods, he returned to the old firm and took an active interest as partner in business with them for ten years. Being always much interested in horti- culture, he decided to make it his life work. Accordingly at the age of twenty-eight he began this work for himself, and to-day is one of the largest growers of table delicacies under glass, in New England. He has 50,000 square feet of glass in greenhouses, is also a large holder of valuable real estate, and has experienced unin- terrupted success, although in his second year he had the misfortune to be burned out. His in- domitable energy and pluck caused him to per- severe, however, and he re-built on a larger scale. Of late years Mr. Beach has given consider- able study to corporations and the laws govern- ing them, and has prepared a valuable work as the result of his researches. He has paid par- ticular attention to the laws of New Jersey, and his chief work, the formation of the North Amer- ican Investment Company, was incorporated under the laws of New Jersey. The offices of the company are located in Bridgeport and Jersey City. The object of this corporation, of which our subject is the chief executive, is pre- sented in the following introduction to a pam- phlet, setting forth the advantages of this system. "It is after years of mental research and science that I have been led to organize tlie North American Investment Company, which will supply that long felt want that has never been filled intelligently heretofore — placing Capi- tal and Labor on such an equal basis that both will become as one; giving to the purchaser, ren- ter, or borrower, an opportunity to realize from his expenditures and savings, under this system, such untold advantages, which will bring joy and' relief to him and his beloved ones, placing nO' barrier of impossibilities which will occasion losses or indebtedness to his estate, making him' wholly the recipient in the end. He is, and will be now a permanent resident of the United: States, a taxpayer and an independent citizen, which this great country of ours offers to every- one, not equalled by any other nation on the globe." One of Mr. Beach's latest achievements is a municipal insurance system, whereby the pub- lic debt of any city may be extinguished with' economy by life insurance. Briefly stated, the plan contemplates that the city shall take out insurance policies on the lives of a number of the best and most influential citizens, from the age of twenty-five to fifty-five years, or more properly speaking that the citizens shall make applications fo. insurance on their lives for the amount of $i,'ooo or $10,000, as the case may be, in the form of an indemnity bond, or life policy, payable, say, in twenty years at a premium of so much per thousand, which will be an average rate for the ages mentioned, and have COMMEMORATIVE BIOGRAPHICAL RECORD. 225 these bonds or policies assigned to the city, the latter to pay the premiums. The economical and financial advantages of life insurance in individual business affairs is most clearly recog- nized to-day, and the plan is an application of the same principles to the affairs of the com- munity. It is a novel and striking proposition and an index to the mental brilliancy of the in- ventor. Mr. Beach has elaborated Tables, dem- onstrating the results of the system. The plan has attracted wide attention, and at present there is a Bill before the Legislature at Hartford to legalize the items mentioned in this plan. Many legal lights declare no legislation is neces- sary; but in order to avoid future complications, Mr. Beach thought best to secure Legislative sanction. On July 3, 1899, the mayor of Bridgeport appointed a special committee to con- sider the same. What the outcome will be is hard to conjecture, but from every standpoint there is the appearance of acceptance, though it could hardly be confirmed until made final. On October 15, 1885, at the age of twenty- four, Mr. Beach was married to Miss Mary Jane Meeker, of Westport, and to this union the fol- lowing children were born: John H., David Sherman, Jr., Harold Page and Mary Jane, the last named dying in infancy. Mr. Beach is one of Bridgeport's most reliable citizens, and his mathematical researches have been made with a view of bettering the condition of the working people. The people he has enlisted as his fol- lowers are among the best in the county, and this speaks well as to the faith reposed in him as a business man and a good citizen. M OYAL LACEY HIGGINS, M. D., a well- known resident of Norwalk, is one of the busiest and most successful physicians and sur- geons of Fairfield county, and there is no one more deserving of mention in this volume. He is a direct descendant of John Lacey, an early settler of Stratfield Parish. [See page 150, " History of Fairfield County."] Doctor Higgins is a native of Connecticut, having been born August 10, 1841, in Roxbury, Litchfield county, of New England ancestry. His grandfather, John Higgins, was a farmer in the town of Easton, and his father (John's), Abra- ham Higgins, had his home in an old stone house that is still standing. Lacey Higgins, son of John, and father of our subject, was born in Easton, Fairfield coun- ty, and learned the trade of general blacksmith and wagonmaker, in Newtown, which he after- ward followed in Roxbury, Litchfield countj-, 15 until about the year 1853, when he took up farming. (Ex-Governor Morris, of Connecticut, was an apprentice to Lacey Higgins, but did not finish his apprenticeship, because he wished to study law, anil Lacey Higgins gave him his time. In Fairfield county Lacey Higgins mar- ried Miss Priscilla Silliman, of the town of Mon- roe, a lineal descendant of Daniel Silliman, the first of the name to settle in Fairfield, having, so tradition says, emigrated from Holland. He died in 1690. His youngest son, Robert, mar- ried Sarah Hull, and died in 1748. His young- est son, Ebenezer, married Abigail Sellick, and their youngest son, Deodate (called "Date"), was the grandfather of Mrs. Lacey Higgins. To Lacey and Priscilla Higgins were born chil- dren as follows: Royal Lacey, Jerome Silli- man, Riverius, Thornton, Harriet Priscilla, Jane Eliza and John Sellick, all of whom live in St. Louis except Royal Lace)-. The mother of this family died at the home of her son in St. Louis, May 19, 1891, aged seventy-six years; the father died January 29, 1892, aged seventy-eight years. In politics he was a Democrat, and in 1852 he represented Litchfield county, and some years later Fairfield county, in the State Legislature. For several years he served as justice of the peace, and was notary public for ten years.