Page:The Biographical Dictionary of America, vol. 08.djvu/225

 PARROTT

PARSONS

Fisher in December, 1864, and January, 1865; was present at the surrender of Charleston, S.C., and commanded the receiving ship Boston, 1865- 68. He was promoted captain, July 25, 1866; commanded the navy yard at Portsmouth, N.H., in 1869: was promoted commodore, April 22, 1870; commanded the navy yard at Mare Island, Cal., 1871-72; the Asiatic station, 1873-73, and was promoted rear-admiral, Nov. 8, 1873. He was placed on the retired list, April 4, 1874, and died in New York city. May 10, 1879.

PARROTT, John Francis, senator, was born in Greenland, N.H., in 1768. He attended the district school. He was a representative in the New Hampshire legislature in 1811; was de- feated as a war candidate for representative in the 13th congress in 1812; was a representative in the 15th congress, 1817-19; U.S. senator, 1819-25, and was appointed postmaster at Portsmouth, N.H., by President Adams in 1826. He was the father of Robert P. Parrott (q.v.). Senator Parrott died in Greenland, N.H., July 9, 1836.

PARROTT, Robert Parker, inventor, was born in Lee, N.H., Oct. 5, 1804; son of John Francis Parrott (q.v.). He was graduated from the U. S. Military academy in 1824 and was pro- moted brevet 2d lieutenant and 2d lieutenant, 1st artillery, July 1, 1824. He served as assistant professor of natural and experimental philosopliy at the U. S. Military academy, 1824-26; assistant professor of mathematics, 1826-28, and as princi- pal assistant professor of natural and experi- mental philosopliy, 1828-29. He was promoted 1st lieutenant, 3d artillery, Aug. 27, 1831; was in garrison and on ordnance duty, 1831-35, and dur- ing the Creek Indian war in 1836 served on staff duty. He was promoted captain of ordnance, Jan. 13, 1836, resigning Oct. 31, 1836, to accept the position of superintendent of the West Point iron and cannon foundry at Cold Spring, N.Y. He invented a rifled cannon and projectile which bear his name. The Parrott gun was made of cast-iron, strengthened by successive hoops of wrought-iron, which were shrunk over the cast- ing. This gun was adopted by the U. S. govern- ment and was first used at the battle of Bull Run. He was judge of the court of common pleas of Putnam county, 1844-47. He severed his connection with the cannon foundry in 1867 and became associated with various manufac- turing enterprises. He died in Cold Spring, N.Y., Dec. 24, 1877.

PARSONS, Albert Ross, musician, was born in Sandusky, Ohio, Nov. 16, 1847; son of Brev. Lieut. -Col. John Jehiel Preston and Sarah Vol- inda (Averill) Parsons; grandson of Aaron and Emily (Stow) Parsons, and of Samuel and Chris- tabel (Kibbe) Averill. and a descendant of Joseph and Mary (Bliss) Parsons. Joseph Parsons, a

native of England, immigrated to Massachusetts in 1635; became cornet, or 3d in command, in the Hampshire company of cavalry, in 1678; was partner of Pynchon in the fur trade; a founder of Springfield, in 1636, and of Northampton, Mass., in 1645, and was for fifty years the richest man in the Connecticut valley. Albert Ross Par- sons began the study of the pianoforte in 1853, and in 1856 appeared in concert in Buffalo, N.Y. He removed to Indianapolis, Ind., with his par- ents in 1858; was a church organist there until 1863, and studied harmony and counterpoint under Fi'ederick Louis Ritter in New York city, 1863-67. He was graduated at the Leipzig Con- servatory of Music in 1870, and at the Berlin academy in 1872, and in the latter year settled in Nesv York city where he engaged in teaching, and became prominent in musical affairs, being oi'ganist of Holy Trinity and the Fifth Avenue Presbyterian churches, 1874-95. He was mar- ried, April 23, 1874, to Alice Eva, daughter of Cornelius Henry and Deborah Schuyler (Bradt) Van Ness of New York city. He was a member of the New York Historical society, the New York Genealogical and Biographical society, the Society of the Sons of the Revolution, the Mili- tary Society of the War of 1812 in New York, and an honorary member of the Society of the Cincinnati in the State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations; president of the Music Teachers' National association in 1889, and a charter member, incorpoi-ator, examiner and fellow of the American College of Musicians, of which he was elected president at the World's Fair in Chicago, 1893, and annually re-elected. He was also vice-president and director of the pianoforte department of the Metropolitan Col- lege of Music, New York city; pianoforte ex- aminer at Evelyn college, Princeton, N.J., and president of the American Society for the Promo- tion of Musical Art, M.T.N.A., in 1890. He trans- lated Wagner's philosophic study entitled Beetho- ven (1870); edited Benham's Review (1872), and is the author of: Parsifal the Finding of Christ through Art, or Riclmrd Wagner as a Tlieologian (1888); New Light from the Great Pyramid (1896) , which was cordially commended by Prof. Dr. George Ebers; a Garrard-Spencer Chart (1899); Cornet Joseph Parsons, a sketch, unth Parsons Genealogies (1901). His musical compositions in- clude: The Night Has a Thousand Eyes (1878); Break, Break (1880); Crossing the Bar (1901); Humoresqiie-Tarantelle and The Lion and Lizard (1900), and a new national anthem My Country 'tis of Til ee (1902).

PARSONS, Andrew, governor of Michigan, was born at Hoosack, N.Y., July 22, 1817; son of John Parsons of Nevvbviryport, Mass., and grand- son of Andrew Parsons, a Revolutionary soldier.