Notable Families and People
Robert Taft I, settled here in (1680) and was patriarch to the Taft political dynasty and Presidential family line. The Tafts became synonymous with Uxbridge. Robert Taft, 2nd was elected to the founding board of selectmen, and Benjamin Taft built the town's first iron forge. Taft's grandson's widow, Lydia (Chapin) Taft, became "America's first woman voter" in 1756 and voted in three town meetings. Bezaleel Taft, Sr., Lydia's son, was an American Revolution Captain, a state representative and state senator. He appears in a succession of five generations of Tafts from Uxbridge to serve Massachusetts in public service, including his son, Senator Bezaleel Taft, Jr.. Samuel Taft hosted President George Washington's overnight stay here on his inaugural tour of New England. Ezra ("T".) Taft Benson was an LDS Church Apostle, Hawaii missionary, and Utah legislator. Great grandson, Ezra Taft Benson, was U.S. Secretary of Agriculture and LDS President. Luke Taft built 2 water powered textile mills, and his son, Moses Taft built Stanley Woolen Mill. Peter Rawson Taft I's son, Secretary of War Alphonso Taft delivered a speech on Taft family history at an Elmshade reunion. Alfonso's son, President William Howard Taft, visited Samuel Taft House in 1910 with Gov. Eben Draper.
Rev. Willard Preston, D.D. became the 4th President of the University of Vermont. Arthur MacArthur, Sr. became Governor, Lt. Governor and Supreme Court Justice in Wisconsin and Washington, D.C.. His son was a famous US general, and his grandson, was General Douglas MacArthur. Seth Read founded Erie, PA and Geneva, NY, and his descendents were Congressmen and Great Lakes ship captains. Paul C. Whitin, founded the Whitin Machine Works. Phineas Bruce and Benjamin Adams were U.S. Congressmen. Joshua Macomber and William Augustus Mowry were noted educators. Effingham Capron was a prominent abolitionist and industrialist. Edward Sullivan (US Marine), won a Medal of Honor in the Spanish-American War. Justice Willard Bartlett rose to become Chief Justice of the New York Court of Appeals. Willard's brother, Franklin Bartlett, served the State of New York in the United States Congress.
Charles Aurthur Root built the Uxbridge Worsted Company into a multi-state manufacturing giant along with Edward Bachman of New York City. Charles's son-in-law, Harold Walter, a Colorado native, took the company to the top of the US woolen and women's fashion industry. Alice Bridges won an Olympic bronze in the backstroke in the 1936 Berlin Olympics. Tim Fortugno was a relief pitcher for the California Angels, Chicago White Sox and Cincinnati Reds, in the 1990s. Senator Richard Moore was a FEMA executive (1994–1996), a key co-author of the 2006 landmark Massachusetts healthcare access law, and a President of the National Conference of State Legislatures, (2010–2011). Brian Skerry is a "legendary" photojournalist with National Geographic and a passionate advocate for preservation of global sea life. Arthur K. Wheelock, Jr. is a curator of Baroque Art at the National Gallery. Jacqueline Liebergott,was the first woman president of Emerson College. Jeannine Oppewall, film art producer and screenwriter, has 30+ films, and 4 Academy Awards nominations for best art direction of LA Confidential, Pleasantville, "Seabiscuit" and The Good Shepherd. Her work can be seen in: The Big Easy, The Bridges of Madison County and Catch Me If You Can. (see list of notable residents)
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