Encyclopedia of Connecticut biography, genealogical-memorial ...

son of Rev. Samuel C. and Mary-
Abigail G. (Abbe) Fessenden. He re-
ceived his education in the Lewiston Falls
Academy in Auburn, Maine. Although
only a lad at the outbreak of hostilities
between the North and South, he at-
tained manhood at one leap, as did so
many youths of that day. He chafed for
two years under the restraint of his fam-
ily's objections, then at sixteen enlisted
as a private in the Seventh Maine Vol-
unteer Battery. He made a brilliant rec-
ord. He repeatedly displayed great gal-
lantry in action, and on December 14,
1864, General Grant recommended him for
promotion. He was appointed a first
lieutenant of the Second United States
Infantry by President Lincoln, who also,
before the close of the year, offered him
the rank of captain. Meanwhile he had
been recommended for a commission in
the artillery service of his native State,
which he decided to accept. He received
his commission as second lieutenant of
the First Maine Volunteer Battery, then
at the front, January 15, 1865. Not long
after, he was transferred to the staff of
Major-General Albion P. Howe, where he
served as aide until the close of the war.
He took part in the battle of the Wilder-
ness, also in the battles of Spottsylvania,
Cold Harbor and Petersburg. To the
rank and file he was a hero, his gallantry
in action more than once saving a forlorn
hope, and he won the favorable recogni-
tion of his superior officers on many occa-
sions.
Upon taking up once more the pursuits
of peace, it was perhaps only natural that
the young man's mind should turn to a
future of public service. The struggle
which had racked the whole country had
left bitter need of reconstruction in the
North, as well as in those districts which
felt most heavily the physical devastation
ENCYCLOPEDIA OF BIOGRAPHY
in the wake of battle. Endowed by na-
ture with a broad outlook on life, trained
among thousands more mature than him-
self in the ultimate realties of life and
death, the opportunities offered by the
legal profession for shaping the public
destiny appealed to the young man as
worthy of his highest effort. He entered
Harvard Law School, and taking the full
course was graduated with the degree of
Bachelor of Laws. He located in Stam-
ford, Connecticut, and on March 4, 1869,
was admitted to the bar of Fairfield
county.
From the first he took a keen interest
in the political affairs of his adopted State.
He was a Republican by choice, and the
party organization of Fairfield county
was quick to recognize in him the possi-
bilities of popularity as a leader. In 1874
he was nominated to the lower branch of
the State Legislature, and was elected
with the party ticket. During this term
he was made a member of the judiciary
committee and was an eloquent partici-
pant in their debates. On one occasion it
was said that he "made one of the ablest
speeches of the session on the parallel
railroad project, carrying the House by
the eloquence and force of his presentation
of the case." At the Republican Na-
tional Convention in Cincinnati in 1876,
Mr. Fessenden represented the State of
Connecticut, and after the usual complimentary
vote cast every other ballot for
the nomination of James G. Blaine.
Again elected to represent Stamford in
the General Assembly in 1879, he achieved
great popularity by his championship of
the vital issues of the day, and became a
leader of his party in that body. He was
an active and honored member of every
Republican State Convention held in Con-
necticut for many years. In all his politi-
cal affiliations he was a man who could