The Hon. William Oscar Seymour was one of the leading citizens of the first decade of the 20th Century. Perhaps flustered a bit by Mr. Seymour's importance, the Press obituary writer said on the front page Jan. 26, 1911: "He was a man among men, a consistent Christian, a good citizen, one of the few whom our town could afford to lose." Born in 1833 in Ridgefield, he became a teacher in the schools here, and in 1860, started his own private school in town. By 1870, he had turned to civil engineering, and soon became chief engineer of the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad. He eventually headed west, designing lines for railroads in Wisconsin and Illinois. By the late 1880s, he was back in his home town and served his town and state in many capacities. At his death at the age of 77, he was a state railroad commissioner, a state representative from Ridgefield, and vice-president of the Ridgefield National Bank, which he helped found in 1900. He'd been a borough warden and a member of the Board of Estimate and Apportionment, forerunner of the Board of Finance. (Bio thanks to Jack Sanders)
The Hon. William Oscar Seymour was one of the leading citizens of the first decade of the 20th Century. Perhaps flustered a bit by Mr. Seymour's importance, the Press obituary writer said on the front page Jan. 26, 1911: "He was a man among men, a consistent Christian, a good citizen, one of the few whom our town could afford to lose." Born in 1833 in Ridgefield, he became a teacher in the schools here, and in 1860, started his own private school in town. By 1870, he had turned to civil engineering, and soon became chief engineer of the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad. He eventually headed west, designing lines for railroads in Wisconsin and Illinois. By the late 1880s, he was back in his home town and served his town and state in many capacities. At his death at the age of 77, he was a state railroad commissioner, a state representative from Ridgefield, and vice-president of the Ridgefield National Bank, which he helped found in 1900. He'd been a borough warden and a member of the Board of Estimate and Apportionment, forerunner of the Board of Finance. (Bio thanks to Jack Sanders)
Family Members
Sponsored by Ancestry
Advertisement
Advertisement
