Scovill, William H.

William H. Scovill (1796-1854) of Waterbury, Connecticut, businessman and founder of the Scovill Manufacturing Company; and Rebecca Beecher (1800-1876), of Kent, Connecticut.

From the description of Scovill-Beecher letters, 1816-1864. (Duke University Library). WorldCat record id: 643562608

William H. Scovill (1796-1854) was born in Waterbury, Connecticut. At seventeen he began working as a clerk, first in New Haven, then in Waterbury. In 1817, he relocated to Berwick, Pennsylvania, in an attempt to gain some measure of financial success, but abandoned this venture in 1819 to travel to Saint John, New Brunswick, Canada, where he hoped to enter into business with his uncle. In 1820, disappointing news about the business resulted in his return to Waterbury for a short time before establishing a successful business in Turner's Crossroads, Halifax County, North Carolina. Scovill returned to Waterbury in 1827 and bought a half interest in the firm of Leavenworth, Hayden and Scovill. Together with his older brother, James Mitchell Lamson Scovill, he established the firm of J.M.L. and W.H. Scovill which consolidated with other branches of the company in 1850 to become the Scovill Manufacturing Company, a leading supplier of fasteners.

Scovill married twice, in 1827 to Eunice Ruth Davies (d. 1839) and in 1841 to Rebecca Smith. He had two surviving daughters with his first wife and one surviving son with his second wife.

Source consulted: Anderson, Joseph, and Anna L. Ward, eds., The Town and City of Waterbury, Connecticut, from the Aboriginal Period to the Year Eighteen Hundred and Ninety-Five, Volume II (New Haven: The Price & Lee Company, 1896), 278-82.

Rebecca Beecher (1800-1876) resided in Kent, Connecticut, until 1817 when she relocated to New Haven to board with Mr. and Mrs. David Hoadley. In 1820, she married Jared Foote (1800-1873). They settled in North Haven, had six children, and later moved to a farm in Hamden, Connecticut, where they remained until their deaths.

From the guide to the Scovill-Beecher Letters, 1816-1864, bulk 1817-1820, (David M. Rubenstein Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Duke University)