The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1903-03-24
DEATH OF GURDON S. Colt.
FOR SEVENTEEN YEARS CLERK
ON THE Old LINE STEAMBOATS,.

Was Brother-in-iaw OF Captain Fred
&, erioh j. Peck, Son OF the Late commo-
dore Peck of New Haven-HeId Many
Positions of Trust.
Gurdon S. Colt, for seventeen years
in the employ of the Old Line Steam
boat company, serving at different times
as secretary, clerk, purser, chief clerk
and steward on the steamers Traveller,
Elm City, Continental, and C. H. North
am, and who was a brother of the late
Mrs. Peck, wife of Captain Frederick
J. Peck of this city, died at his home in
Bridgeport Sunday after an illness of
long duration.
Deceased was a son of the late Rev.
Gurdon Saltonstall Colt, who was for
years rector of Christ church, West
Haven, and afterward rector of a
Bridgeport church for years, and Flea
nor Forester Carlyle, and was born in
Bridgeport February 4, 1889, in house
then owned by Alexander Hamilton,
and which was on the site now occu-
pied by the Fairfield county court
house. His ancestry can be traced back
to six colonial governors of Connecticut
and he was named after Governor Sal
tonstall. He attended school kept by
Miss Hunt and later one on Lafayette
street kept by "Aunty'' Worden. His
next schooling was in the school kept
by George Yates on Courthouse hill in
that city. One day on plate at do
nation party his father found a receipt
ed bill from Rev. E. w. Andrews, pro-
prietor of the Algier institute at Corn
wall Hollow, Conn.,. for one years
board and tuition for Gurdon S. Colt.
This was kept up for three years and
no one knew who placed the receipted
bill there. 1t remained a mystery until
1858, when it appeared that Mrs. H. X.
Harral, wife of the mayor of Bridge
port, at that time, was the donor. Mr.
Harral took the young man into the
saddlery office of Harrall & Calhoun
when he graduated, where he remained
until 1851. He was then sent south on
a collecting trip for the company.
When he was in Charleston the attack
was made on Fort Sumter and was wit
messed by him.
On his return home during the war,
he was sent to Boston by Henry San
ford, then q prominent member OF ST..
Johns church, Bridgeport, and was CIV
en- the position of cashier in the Adams
Express office in Boston. Later he left
the express eompany's employ and took
service with the New York and New
Haven Steamboat company, and was
employed by that company as above
stated. Mr.. Colts pleasing personality
won him many friends, among whom
were some or national prominence He
became very friendly with John Kelly,
the noted Tamnnany leader in New
York; Ex-Governor Thomas H. Seymour,
United States Senator William H.
Eaton Of Hartford, Colonel Bausom,
who won fame in the battle of Chapul-
tepec. and Peter Dorlon of New York
city. These men travelled considerably
by boat from New Haven to New York,
which threw them into Mr.. Colts COM
pany. He has pictures of them hung
in his bedroom, and in his dying days
it was pleasure to him to gaze upon
them and recall the pleasantest recollec-
tons of his adult days
Later he was employed on John H.
Starin's line Of boats. While thus en-
ployed he received word that his broth
er Forester was dying in China and