Page:The Biographical Dictionary of America, vol. 08.djvu/230

 PARSONS

PAKTON

PARSONS, Theophilus, author, was born in Xewburyiwrt, Miiss.. May 17, 1797 ; son of Judge Tlieophilus (q.v.) and Elizabetli (Greenleaf) Par- sons. He was graduated at Harvard, A.B., 1S15, A.M., 1818, studied law under William Prescott and was admitted to the bar in 181!). He traveled in Euroi>e. and on his return settled in practice in Taunton, Mass., and then in Boston, and sub- sequently devoted himself to literary pursuits, founding and editing the United States Free Press. He was Dane professor of law at Har- vard, 1848-70 ; a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences ; a member of the Massa- cliusetts Historical society, and president of the Magazine club. He received the degree LL.D. from Harvard in 1849. He was an early convert to Swedenborgianism, and is the author of the following works on Swedenborgianism : Essays (1845); Dens Homo (1867); The Infinite and the Finite {1S72}, and Outlines of the Religion and Philosojjhy of Swedenborg (1875). His legal writings include : TJie Law of Conscience (2 vols., 1853. 5th ed., 3 vols., 1864): Elements of Mercantile Law (1856); Laics of Business for Bus- iness Men (1857); Maritime Laic (2 vols., 1859); Notes and Bills of Exchange (2 vols., 1862); Shijj- jnng and Admiralty (2 vols., 1869); and The Po- litical, Personal and Property Rights of a Citizen of the United States (1875). He also published Memoir of Judge Parsons, his father (1859). He died in Cambridge, Mass.. Jan. 26, 1882.

PARSONS, William Barclay, civil engineer, was born in Xew York city, April 15, 1859 ; .son of William Barclay and Eliza (Living.ston) Parsons; grandson of William Burrington and Ann (Bar- clay) Parsons and of Schuyler and Eliza (Glass) Livingston, and a descendant of Henry Barclay, D.D., and of Cadwallader Golden. He was grad- uated from Columbia college, N.Y., A.B., 1879; C.E. 1882, and was married, May 20, 1884, to Anna DeWitt, daughter of Sylvanus and Caroline (Gal- lup) Reed of New York city. After service on the Erie railway he engaged in business in New Y'ork as a civil engineer and was appointed chief engineer of the Rapid Transit commission of New York and chief of engineers of the National Guard of the State of New York with the rank of brigadier-general. He was electeii tru.stee of Columbia university in 1898, a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers in 1881 and of the Institution of Civil Engineers of Great Britain. He is the author of : Tract (1885) ; Turn- outs (1885); An American Engineer in China (1900;.

PARTON, Arthur, artist, was born in Hudson, N.Y., March 26, 1842 ; son of George and Elizabeth (Woodbridge) Parton, and brother of Ernest Par- ton (q.v.). He studied art with William T. Rich- ards in Philadelphia, Pa., 1859-61 , and at the Penn-

sylvania Academy of Fine Arts ; removed to New York city in 1865 and established a studio, and studied in Paris, 1870-71. He was chosen a mem- ber of the American Water-color society and of the Artists" Fund .society ; was elected an associate of the Academy of Design in 1871, and academi- cian in 1884. In 1886 he was awarded a gold medal by the American Art association, and in 1888 the Temple medal of the Pennsylvania Ac- ademy of Fine Arts. Among his most famous pictures are: November (1867); On the Road toMt. Marcy (1873); A Mountain Brook (1874); Sycamoi-es of Old Shokam (1876); The Delaware River near Milford (1879); Nightfall (1880); Tlie Morning Ride (1884); Winter on the Hudson (1885); TJie Evening after the Rain (1886), and Evening on the Harlem River (1887). He received honorable mention at the Paris exposition (1889).

PARTON, Ernest, artist, was born in Hudson, N.Y., March 17, 1845. He was educated at Hud- son academy and by private tutors and devoted himself to art at an early age. He studied art under his brother Arthur and in 1865 opened a studio in New Y^ork city and engaged in oil painting. In 1873 he visited Scotland and Wales, and later established himself in London. He visited New Y'ork in 1884-86. He was elected a member of the Royal Institute and of the Artists' Fund, New York, and exhibited his paintings in the Royal Academy, the Academy of Design, N. Y. city, the Grosvenor academy, and the Boston Ai't institute. Among his paintings are : Morning Mist (1873); Pajm's Luncheon (1875); Placid Stream (1876); Sunny September (1877); TJie Silent Pool (1878) ; An Bord de I'Eau (1878) ; The Wan- ing of the Year (1879) ; Silver and Gold (1882); Fall- ing Leaves and Fading Trees (1883) ; Wliere Mem- oi-y Dwells (1884) ; Streutley-on-Thames (1885) ; Last of October (1886). In 1902 he was residing in London, England.

PARTON, James, biographer, was born in Can- terbury, England, Feb. 9, 1822. He immigrated to the United States with his parents in 1827, at- tended the public .schools of New York city, and a private school at White Plains, N.Y'., continu- ing his education in Europe. He taught school in Philadelphia and New York city, engaged in literary work, became an editorial contributor to the Home Journal New York city, and devoted himself principally to biographical writing. He was married in January, 1856, to Sara Payson (Willis) Eldredge (Fanny Fern) (q.v.), who died Oct. 10, 1872, and he married secondly in 1874, Ellen W., daughter of Charles H. and Sara Pay- son (Willis) Eldredge. Under the laws of Ma.ssa- chusetts, this marriage was shown to be illegal, and they lived apart until, on his petition, the legislature amended the law. He removed from New Y'ork city to Newburyport, Mass., in 1875; lee-