Capt. John A. Robinson owned a steamship line that sailed from Norwich. The company built the ships “Water Lily” and “Tiger Lily,” on which he served as captain.
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William C. Robinson
Jurist and educator, William C. Robinson was born in Norwich, Connecticut, in July 1834, the son of John Adams and Mary Elizabeth (Callyhan) Robinson. After preparatory studies at Norwich Academy, Williston Seminary, and Wesleyan University, he entered Dartmouth College, from which he graduated in 1854. He then entered the Theological Seminary of the Protestant Episcopal Church, graduated in 1857, and was ordained to the Episcopalian Ministry, in which he served first at Pittston, PA, and then at Scranton, PA. He was received into the Catholic Church in 1863, was admitted to the Bar in 1864, and was lecturer and professor in law at Yale University (1869-95).
For two years (1869-71), he served as judge of the City Court and later as judge of the Court of Common Pleas at New Haven, Conn. In 1874, he served as a member of the Legislature. From Dartmouth College, he received (1879) the degree LL.D., and from Yale University the degree M.A. (1881). He married Anna Elizabeth Haviland in July 1857 and, following her death, Ultima Marie Smith in March 1891. His thorough knowledge of law made him eminent as a teacher and enabled him to render important service to the Church. In 1895, he was appointed professor at the Catholic University of America, where he founded the School of Social Sciences and served as Dean of the School of Law. This school eventually merged to become the Columbus University School of Law in 1954. William Robinson died in Washington, DC, in 1911.
The family had a fear of being buried alive and, as a result, had a metal door installed in their tomb in the Yantic Cemetery. Burial instructions requested that a hammer be placed inside the tomb to use in banging on the door and drawing attention. The tomb rules also called for the coffin, with an open lid, to be placed in the center aisle so that one could easily gain access to the hammer. Wine and food were also to be left behind.
The tomb was built in 1874 by William A. Robinson, who relocated his father from the city cemetery and his mother from the Chapman tomb;17 inside, seven on top.
Callyhan – Robinson Tomb
William Callyhan was born in 1783. He was a hatter and came to Norwich from the Waterford area at an early age. William was trained as a tin smith and invented the “Tin Baker,” a beehive-style oven made of tin, which he had patented by his grandson, Hon. William C. Robinson, a trained patent attorney. He retired in 1850, having accumulated a substantial real estate portfolio. William Callyhan owned, among other things, the Mansfield Block and the Lanman property. He died in 1853.
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Ezra Yerrington, born in Norwich in August 1828, operated a large wholesale and retail business, which he founded in 1862, located at 131 Main Street in downtown Norwich, and which specialized in a wide variety of home furnishings and decorations that were in high demand to furnish a Victorian home during the boom times of the mid-1800s. The first floor of his store was devoted to the sale of wallpapers, curtains, borders, oil cloths, and other wall coverings, along with an assortment of traditional Victorian novelties. The second floor was utilized for the sale of pianos and organs; a selection of at least twenty-five was on display at any time. On the third floor, you would find a large selection of carpets, mats, and other floor coverings.
Well-known among business people and athletes, Mr. Yerrington was celebrated as one of the top trap shooters in Connecticut.
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