The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1911-01-09
$. H. WHEELER TO BE GIVEN
 TESTIMONIAL Civic Organizations Recognize
 Progressive Business
 Spirit IS BENEFACTOR OF THE CITY Erection of Stratfield and BuSi- ness Buildings a Boom For Bridgeport
IS BENEFACTOR OF THE CITY

A citizens movement has beer started whereby some action will bt | taken by the people of this city te show their appreciation of what Sam
 uel H. Wheeler has done for Bridge l tion of his pride in the city of his ma i tivity by providing it with a magnif. cent hotel, and the development o1 it's business section.
 For a long time there has been g strong sentiment expressed bS Bridgeporters in all walks of life thai
 the feelings of the citizens toward a man with the public spirit of MT Wheeler
 The nature of the testimonial, and the manner in which it will be eX- pressed has not been decided upon as
 yet, but this will be arranged by d
 committee now in process of forma-
 tion under the auspices of the Manu-
 lecturers association, The Board Of
 Trade, and the Bridgeport Business
 Mems association, from which the
 project gets it's initiative.
 MT. Samuel H. Wheeler who is a
 man of quiet and retiring disposition got wind of the project some time ago and protested against receiving a testimonial, but many prominent cit lzens have overruled MT. Wheeler s verecund attitude and the event will take place some time during the month of March.
 A prominent citizen and business man said this morning: MT. Wheeler has no realization of how much his push and business foresight are ap- preciated by the public at large. He does not think that he has done any thing that anyone else could not do.
 But, all of Bridgeporters know that when everyone said a big hotel would be white elephant in Bridge port, MT. Wheeler built the Stratfield and it has been a success from the start. For many years Bridgeport capitalists refrained from building business buildings. They said that there were too many office buildings already and that no one would rent them if they built. While other aSt Bridgeport ge capitaiists were looking Wheeler built the Security building and after he had filled that he built the Newfield building and he filled that with tenants. For years the business center of the city did not ex- tend more than 100 feet north of Wheeler extended the range of the business center to Congress street and the indications are that he is going to carry them north of Con gfeSS street. our c1tlZenS can we'll afford to demonstrate their apprecia- ton of this man who has invested his money so that it has been a benefit to the city at large.
 There was considerable sentiment back of MT. Wheeler's effort to give the city a fine hotel and modern buildings. Besides being the city of his birth it is the city where his fath- CT and he lived the greater part of their lives The Wheeler & Wilson Sewing Machine Co.,, the predecessor of the Singer Co.,, in this city was an industry that helped make Bridge port famous under the guidance of Nathaniel w. Wheeler and Samuel H. Wheeler, and when the latter dispos- ed of his interests in the concern he did not take the money out of but reinvested here. Any thing that is done in the way of a testimonial to MT. Wheeler should be fitting. Other cities have taken steps to appreciatae their public spir-
 Members of the6uildfng trades in this city who heard to-day that a was afoot to give a testi- monial to MT. Wheeler said they wanted to be counted in. They have the greatest regard for the builder of the Security building and the Stratfield for he saw to it that the wages paid were the highest ev- CT paid in the building trades in this city.