1791-1865 John Breed
John Breed was the son of John McLaren Breed, the second mayor of Norwich. For more than half a century, he was a prominent merchant in Norwich, primarily engaged in the hardware business and occasionally pursuing other business ventures. The sign of “John Breed & Co.,” representing the partnership of John Breed and his brother Simeon, was first displayed on their store on Water Street, where his father and grandfather had transacted business.
Mr. Breed entered into several subsequent partnerships; there was Trumbull & Breed, John & James Breed, or Breed, Prentice & Co., and, following John’s death in 1865, A. W. Prentice & Co. In 1889, with the arrival of Luther Eaton and Albert Chase, the business reformed under the name Eaton, Chase & Co. The company sold a variety of goods, including hardware, cutlery, machinists’ and carpenters’ tools, all workers’ tools, agricultural implements, electrical and mill supplies, cordage, paints, athletes’ goods, firearms, fishing tackle, bicycles, and more. The firm was the sole agent for DuPont’s powder, Miner’s Friend dynamite, Howe’s scales, and leather belting.
John Breed had experience in a variety of other businesses over the years. He was one of the first incorporators and vice president in 1824 for the Norwich Savings Bank, the largest and second-oldest savings bank in the state. Dorcas Mansfield made the first deposit for $200 on July 23, 1824. The bank had two business days per month, first and third Mondays. It was several years before it opened daily. The amount of deposits in January 1881 was $7,522,744.67.
Mr. Breed had himself become so identified with the city that he seemed a part of it, always present at its public meetings. In later life, tall, with white locks, and wearing a white hat, every child knew him, and no face was more familiar to the citizens of Norwich than John Breed.
His name is commemorated in Breed Hall, which John Breed erected with the thought of providing a convenient hall for lectures, concerts, and other large assemblies, etc, all desired by the citizens of Norwich. This building was completed in February 1860 and dedicated to the memory of his father. John Breed died suddenly in December 1865, at the age of seventy-five.
1793-1855 Charles Coit
Colonel Charles Coit was born in February 1793 and, at a young age, took part in the War of 1812. Afterward, Charles was active in the militia, rising to the rank of colonel in the artillery. He came to Norwich in 1817 and engaged in the mercantile business, which he pursued in various forms, particularly the grocery business, which he actively pursued until his death in October 1855 at the age of sixty-two.
Charles was a member of the Second Congregational Church, serving as Deacon and superintendent of the Sabbath School.
Charles married Lucretia Tyler in May 1821, who died in 1822. He soon married again, Lydia Tyler, the sister of his first wife, who died in October 1834. From this second marriage, two children were born, Lucretia and one unnamed, both of whom died in infancy.
A third marriage took place when Charles married Sarah Perkins Grosvenor, the daughter of General Lemuel Asa Grosvenor. They had four children: Ellen Grosvenor (1835), Charles Morgan (1838 – 1878), Sarah Perkins (1840 – 1843), and George Douglas (1845-1906). Following her husband’s death, Ellen Grosvenor Coit left Norwich to spend her winters in New York and her summers at Eastern Point in Groton.
1793-1882 Reverend Alvan Bond
Alvan Bond was born in Sutton, MA, in April 1793. He graduated from Brown University in 1815 and studied theology at Andover Theological Seminary. Following graduation, he was ordained in the Congregational Church in Sturbridge, Massachusetts. Following ten years as pastor, Alvan became Professor of Sacred Literature at the seminary in Bangor, Maine. Finding the climate too severe for his health, Alvan came to Norwich in 1835 and was installed as pastor of the Second Congregational Church, which had a membership roll of approximately 360 names. Under Rev. Bond’s leadership, the church remained full. After seven years, 98 of the most active members chose to split off and form the Broadway Congregational Church, leaving 40 vacant pews to fill. Rev. Bond worked tirelessly throughout the year to attract new members. His congregation caught his enthusiasm, and when the sale of pews came around the following year, all seats were taken. Rev. Alvan Bond supplied the pulpit for twenty-eight years, missing but one communion service.
At the outbreak of the Civil War and throughout that terrible struggle, Rev. Bond’s church, stimulated by his leadership and his example, was in the very forefront of the conflict. Responding to a call to aid Norwich soldiers, no less than twelve of his people give freely from two hundred to a thousand dollars apiece.
At the first great “war-meeting” in Breed Hall, on Saturday evening before the memorable “Battle Sunday,” Bond’s voice was heard invoking the name of Jehovah, and inspiring the people to trust in an Almighty Helper. The following Sunday, while the women of the city made garments for the volunteers scheduled to depart the next day, he preached to the men of his congregation upon “The overwhelming catastrophe and the need of girding the loins for the most intense endeavor.” His sermon was boldly prophetic. Upon invitation, received during the intermission, it was repeated that afternoon at the Broadway Church, in exchange with its pastor.
In December 1864, at his request, Alvan Bond was dismissed from the pastorate he had so long and so faithfully held. For nearly ten years afterwards, he continued to preach in various pulpits, and at intervals in that of the Second church. The last time his voice was heard in public, he bore part with the present pastor at a communion service for that church, and uttered words of fervent appeal which will long linger in the memory of those who were fortunate enough to hear them.
1794-1880 Leonard Ballou
Leonard Ballou, the first cotton manufacturer in Killingly, CT, was born February 23, 1794, in Cumberland, RI. The eldest son of Noah Ballou, a shipbuilder and farmer, Leonard initially attended a local school, then later a private school, all the while working in his father’s shipyard and on the farm. It was through this work that Leonard Ballou discovered his interest in mechanical processes and a natural facility in the use of tools. In his mid-20s, Leonard continued to develop his engineering skills while working on several mill construction projects in Rhode Island. Word of his exceptional engineering skills soon spread. He was selected by Watson, Tingley & Rathbone of Providence to construct their new mills and waterwheels in Willimantic, CT. He later completed projects for Wilkinson’s, Slater’s, and Brown’s, all leading manufacturers in Rhode Island at that time.
Leonard soon realized that his financial success would require him to go into business for himself. In 1825, as a result of his hard work, he had accumulated a small sum of money. In November of that year, along with his father-in-law, Jabez Amsbury, he purchased a mill privilege on the Five-Mile River in Killingly, CT, which eventually became Ballouville.
The property contained a small gristmill used in grinding rye for the production of gin. Leonard, with his engineering background and skills, recognized that the mill would require numerous improvements before it could become a profitable cotton mill. With the additional help of his two brothers-in-law, George Weatherhead and Mowery Amsbury, improvements were made to the waterpower efficiency, and the mill was expanded to three stories, measuring 50 feet by 32 feet. In the fall of 1826, the mill began operations with 10 looms. Funding for the initial capitalization from all four parties amounted to $6,000.
Ballou soon realized the mill was too small to turn a profit. He sought help from a Providence merchant, and due to his reputation for hard work, honesty, and business skills, he was able to borrow the necessary funding to expand the mill. Business increased, and in 1834, the capacity of his mill more than doubled. In 1836, Ballou bought out his partners, who he had helped set up their mills on the same river, and became the sole owner. As the years passed, he continued to expand his mill and introduced new equipment to increase profits and lower production costs.
In 1845, after twenty years in Killingly, Leonard moved his family to Norwich. Two of his homes can still be seen on Washington Street (171 and 183). Ballou had entertained the idea of retiring when he reached the age of three score and ten. In February 1864, he sold his property along Five Mile River to his Norwich neighbors, Lorenzo Blackstone and Henry Norton, who ran the mills as part of the Attawaugan Manufacturing Company. In 1865, Leonard’s income as reported by the Norwich Board of Trade was $12,042 ($278k in today’s dollars)
In his later years, Ballou was director of the First National Bank of Norwich, trustee of the Norwich Savings Society, President of the Norwich Water Power Co., the Occum Water Power Co., director of the Norwich Bleaching, Dyeing & Printing Co., and Director of the Norwich City Gas Co. Leonard Ballou was an active Congregationalist. A member of Second Congregational Church, he was an advocate and one of the most significant contributors to the construction of Park Congregational Church (1873).
During his lifetime, Leonard was married twice: first to Ann Amsbury in 1822, and then, after she died in 1852, to Dolly Kingsley in 1854, who died in 1862. He was survived by two daughters, Lydia, who married John B. Young of Tiffany & Young now Tiffany’s in NYC, and Amelia, wife of Albert H. Almy of Norwich, and a grandson, Leonard Ballou Almy, who became a physician in Norwich.
The unusual success of Leonard Ballou in manufacturing cotton goods, despite many failures, was due to his mechanical education and superior intelligence in the manufacturing process, which enabled him to adopt or reject the various new theories or systems presented daily during nearly half a century of business life. His unimpeachable integrity, promptness in meeting his financial obligations, and never having to sue or be sued by any other person all contributed to his honor and respectability within the community. His name was a synonym for honesty and fair dealing.
He died at his home on Washington Street, August 5, 1880, in the eighty-seventh year of his age.
1795-1863 William Charles Gilman
William C. Gilman was born in 1795 in Exeter, N.H. He soon moved to Boston, where he pursued a successful career in the mercantile business for many years. In 1816, Mr. Gilman moved to Norwich. Immediately foreseeing the financial opportunities available in the Yantic Falls area, he purchased a section of land along the river, previously owned by Goddard and Williams, and had a nailery built.
In his factory, Mr. Gilman had installed one of the first automated nail-cutting machines in the country. While in operation, folks would regularly come from all around to listen to the “clink” of the machine and watch the finished nails pile up in the collection barrels. In 1824, William Gilman invited William P. Greene, also of Boston, to settle in Norwich. They formed a partnership that gave rise to the Thames Manufacturing Company and the Norwich Falls Company, both of which operated cotton mills.
Mr. Gilman was the first president of the Norwich & Worcester Railroad, which was capitalized in 1836 at $2,825,000. He also served as president of the First National Bank of Norwich.
He was the mayor of Norwich from 1839-1840.
As a businessman, William Gilman was highly perceptive and could quickly identify business opportunities, accurately presenting them to others. He consistently persevered in promoting plans and projects calculated to develop the resources or advance the moral and religious interests of the Norwich community he loved.
William Gilman is credited with planning the industry that led to the establishment of Greeneville.
The “Panic of 1837″ caused the failure of many smaller businesses at the Falls, and eventually led Mr. Gilman to leave Norwich around 1845, where he settled in New York, spending the remainder of his life. He died in June 1863, and his remains were brought back to Norwich for interment.