Encyclopedia of Connecticut biography, genealogical-memorial ...

where he died September 15, 1843. He
married Honor Goodrich, born about 1793,
daughter of Luther Goodrich, of Chatham,
and probably of his first wife, Freedom
(Bidwell) Shepard, who died about
1797.
(VIII) Nelson Shepard, third son of
Erastus and Honor (Goodrich) Shepard,
was born December 25, 1820, in Portland,
and made his home in that town through-
out his life, inheriting from his father a
farm of sixty acres. On this he built a
handsome residence in 1856, occupying
the site of the house in which he was born.
He was among the first in Connecticut to
engage in tobacco culture, and made great
success in the venture, which brought
him a comfortable fortune. Mr. Shepard
was one of the most public-spirited citi-
zens of Portland, and a man of genial
manners and kindly heart, the friend of
mankind, active in promoting public wel-
fare and useful in various official capaci-
ties. For three years he was a member of
the Board of Selectmen, represented Portland
in the General Assembly, and was
for three years a county commissioner.
He was a communicant of the Protestant
Episcopal church of Glastonbury, of
which he was a vestryman, and was a
supporter of the Republican party in pol-
itics from the time of its organization.
Mr. Shepard was interested in several
business institutions of his home town, a
stockholder in the Middlesex Quarry Company,
trustee of the Freestone Savings
Bank, and director and vice-president of
the National Bank of Portland.
Mr. Shepard married, in November,
1844, Elizabeth, daughter of Noah and
Elizabeth (Goodrich) Tryon. They were
the parents of four daughters and a son.
The eldest daughter, Gertrude Elizabeth,
became the wife of Henry Cromwell, who
was a soldier of the Civil War, in the
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BIOGRAPHY
226
Twentieth Connecticut Volunteer Infan-
try. The second daughter, Isabella Iceland,
is the wife of Erastus Hubbard
Crosby. The third and fourth daughters
died before attaining maturity. The son,
Andrew Nelson, is mentioned below.
(IX) Colonel Andrew Nelson Shepard,
only son of Nelson and Elizabeth (Tryon)
Shepard, was born May 5, 1862, on the
paternal homestead in the northern part
of Portland, near the Glastonbury line.
Here he grew to manhood, receiving his
education in the public schools, the Glas-
tonbury Academy and the Cheshire Mili-
tary Academy. During vacations, he
worked upon the paternal acres, and
passed the usual life of farmers' sons in
the neighborhood. Agriculture occupied
his attention on attaining man's estate,
and since 1888 he has been very extensively
engaged in growing tobacco. His
home is at Gildersleeve Post Office, in
the village of Portland, and here he has
established a large plant for housing,
packing and dealing in tobacco. He is
among the most progressive, scientific
and successful agriculturists of the State,
and has been distinguished also in public
life. From 1883 to 1893 he was auditor
of the town of Portland ;
from
1899 to
1909 was a member of the Board of Relief
and represented the town in the General
Assembly in 1901, serving as a mem-
ber of the house committee on appropria-
tions. In 1907 he was elected to the State
Senate and acquitted himself with credit
to the town, serving as chairman of the
committee on State institutions. Like his
father, he maintains the principles and
policies of the Republican party, and is
active in banking affairs, being a director
of the First National Bank, and president
and trustee of the Freestone Savings
Bank. He was a member of the staff of
Governor George A. Lilley, and was ap-