History of Lynn, Essex County, Massachusetts, including Lynnfield ...

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I20 Biographical Sketches. Breed. Bridges.
Breed, Hiram N. — the ninth Mayor of Lynn — is another
creditable representative of the extensive family u^ho trace their
pedigree to the early settler, Allen Breed. A notice of him, with
a portrait, may be found in the Centennial Memorial. He was
born on the 2d of September, 1809, and is still, 1881, in active
life.
A fac-simile of his signature follows.
^-r-^.^ A. /^.-r^-
Breed, Isaiah — was for many years an active business man,
in the shoe-manufa6luring line,
and likewise took much interest
in public affairs. He was one of the principal founders of the
Central Congregational Society, and one of its chief supporters
for a number of years. A brief biographical sketch of him may
be found in the 1865 edition of the History of Lynn, page 541.
He was born in 1786 and died in 1859.
Bridges, Robert. Mr. Bridges — or Captain Bridges, as he
was usually called — because of his having been, as one may say,
the father of the first iron works in America, if for no other reason,
should be held in remembrance. It was in 1642 that he took
specimens of the bog ore found in Lynn, to London, and succeeded
in forming a company which soon after commenced
operations here, ere6ling a bloomary and forge, the site of which
is still shown by the " cinder banks," or heaps of scoria on the
margin of Saugus river, in the vicinity of Pranker's mill. And
although to its proje6lors the enterprise did not prove pecuniarily
successful, it cannot be doubted that the result was of great and
lasting benefit to the country at large, for it drew hither some
of the most skillful
workers in iron that England had produced,
several of whom, even before the attempt had been abandoned,
removed to other settlements and established works which under
better management were highly successful, and added immensely
to the general prosperity of the country. And it is a noteworthy
fa6l that descendants of some of the operatives at these Lynn
works, are at this day found among the
leaders of the great iron
trade of America. The iron turned out from the Lynn works
was considered of very good quality, and it had a ready sale