Читать книгу History of Bridgeport and Vicinity, Volume 2: Biographical - George Curtis Waldo jr. - Страница 29

Charles Booth Buckingham, president of N. Buckingham & Company, owning one of the leading furniture houses of Bridgeport and also well-known in other business connections, is a native son of this city, where he figures so prominently in commercial and financial circles, enjoying the honor and respect of all with whom he has been brought in contact. He was born September 20, 1847, a son of Nathan and Mary A. (Booth) Buckingham, the former a merchant, descended from an old English family that was established at Milford, Connecticut, in 1639. In the maternal line he also comes of English ancestry, the Booth family having been established at Stratford in 1640.

Charles Booth Buckingham attended the public schools of Bridgeport and afterward became a student in the military school conducted by Colonel Emory F. Strong but left that institution when a lad of sixteen years in order to enter the business world as an employee of his father. It was in 1863 that he began work in his father's furniture factory and store and he speedily mastered all the details of the furniture business concerning the methods of both making and selling furniture. In this way he won promotion from time to time until he was given in part executive control and administration of the business. Through the various offices he has advanced until he is now president and treasurer of N. Buckingham A. Company and thus has leading voice in the management and direction of the extensive furniture business owned and controlled by that firm — a business which has added to Bridgeport's well-earned reputation of being the industrial center of Connecticut. He is moreover a trustee of the City Savings Bank of Bridgeport.

In 1875 Mr. Buckingham was united in marriage to Miss Justine H. Bellows and they had three children, of whom two are living, Nathan C. and Earl M., both associated with their father in business. The wife and mother passed away in September, 1905. Mr. Buckingham was married in 1908 to Miss Susan Christine Gillette, a daughter of William and Susan Buckingham Gillette, and a representative of an old Milford family. Mr. Buckingham is a member of the Sons of the American Revolution and served on its state board for six years, while of the General Silliman branch of that society he was president in 1905 and 1906. He manifests the military spirit and the patriotic loyalty of his ancestry and for five years had military training and experience as a member of the Connecticut National Guard. He belonged to the Bridgeport Board of Trade for many years, also to the Bridgeport Business Men's Association and does everything in his power to advance the city's interests and extend its commercial connections. Politically he is a republican. His religious faith is that of the Universalist church and along purely social lines he has connection with the Independent Order of Odd Fellows and with the Seaside Club. His activities in business have centered along a single line and under his wise guidance his interests have grown to gratifying proportions.