Charles Sumner Dennison (1858 - 1912)

Born 20 Jun 1858 in Newton, Middlesex County, Massachusetts

Husband of Mary Rosabelle (French) Dennison — married 21 Feb 1883 in Boston, Massachusetts

Died 22 Aug 1912 at age 54 in Falmouth, Barnstable County, Massachusetts

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Biography

Charles was born in 1858. He is the son of Eliphalet and Lydia A. Dennison. He passed away in 1912. ^[1]

From Biographical Dictionary of American Business Leaders, Volume 1, Pg. 259: (excerpted)

Dennison, Charles Sumner (June 20, 1858 - August 22, 1912). Charles S. Dennon was born n Newtonville, Massachusetts, son of Eliphalet Wharf Dennison and Lydia Ann Beals. He was educated n public schools in Newton, Massachusetts, Highland Military Academy, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In 1878 he entered the employ of the family's Dennison Manufacturing Company, Framingham, Massachusetts, working in the machine shop. Two years later he was sent to New York City to work in the company store. In 1884, when the London office was established, he took charge of the business there. He was recalled in 1887 and made purchasing agent, and in 1893 was elected a member of the board of directors. Later he served as treasurer for sixteen years and as vice-president for three years, and in 1909 was elected president until he died in 1912.

The Dennison Manufacturing Company had been started in 1843 by his uncle, Aaron Lufkin Dennison, a watchmaker who was finding it difficult to obtain boxes for his watches. Aaron Dennison, known as the "father of American watchmaking,", was at the time engaged in the factory manufacture of watches, the first such attempt in America. Although he was later forced into bankruptcy with the venture, the firm went on to become American Waltham Watch Company, which was then the largest watch company in America. He set up his father, Andrew Dennison, a shoemaker, in the box-making business in New Brunswick, Maine. Shortly thereafter, Andrew and Aaron devised a paper box-making machine for cutting and scoring cardboard and greatly increased the activities of the business. Aaron returned to watchmaking, and his brother, Eliphalet W. Dennison, joined the family business in 1849. Six years later he became the sole owner, and in 1863 formed the partnership of Dennison and Company. In that same year, Eliphalet Dennison invented a new kind of shipping tag, with the hole in the tag reinforced by a paper washer on each side. With this innovation the Dennison business grew rapidly. He incorporated the business in 1878 and retired in 1886, when he was succeeded by his son, Henry Beals Dennison.

Henry Beals Dennison was president of Dennison Manufacturing Company from 1886 to 1892, when he was ejected because of his alcoholism. Henry's son, Henry S. Dennison, became president after Charles' death in 1912, serving in that position until his death in 1952.

During the 1880's, while Charles S. Dennison was a member of the firm, the merchandise line was expanded rapidly, as other types of fine boxes, shipping and merchandise tags, gummed labels and papers, stationer's goods, and tissue paper were added. They also introduced crepe paper toAmerica, first importing it from England, and then manufacturing it in their own plant. Following this, they began to market Christmas wrapping papers, seals, and tags, and later began to market for other holidays. The Dennison operations were finally consolidated in a large factory in Framingham, Mass. in 1897 - 1898, with branch offices in New York, Philadelphia, and Chicago.

During Charles S. Dennison's presidency, the annual sales of the company increased from $4,723,000 to $5,252,000 in just three years, and a program of developing export sales was launched, with a subsidiary established in Great Britain. He was a Republican member of the Newton City Council from 1903 to 1906. A Unitarian, he married Mary Rosabelle French of Boston in 1883. He had three daughters.

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Sources

• Biographical Dictionary of American Business Leaders, Volume 1, by John N. Ingham, Greenwood Publishing Group, Westport, Connecticut, 1983. Charles Sumner Dennison, Pg. 259.
• Massachusetts, Marriage Records, 1840-1915: Charles S. Dennison and Mary R. French, 21 Feb 1883, Boston. His parents listed as Eliphalet and Lydia A. Dennison; her parents listed as Abram and Sophia J. French.^[2]

See also:

• Welcome to Dennison Manufacturing Co.: Its History, Products, Programs, and People, by Patricia Lavin and Laura Stagliola, Framingham History Center; 1st edition (October 18, 2015)

• Add sources here.

Footnotes

1. ↑ Information from Sharon, Massachusetts genealogy and history researcher, Nick Dann, 25 Dec 2019.
2. ↑ Massachusetts Vital Records, 1840–1911. New England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, Massachusetts