3010. Henry Tillinghast SISSON [scrapbook]-3897 (David , Lemuel , Mary , Richard , Richard , George , Richard ) was born on 20 Aug 1831 in Fall River, Bristol Co., Massachusetts. He died on 19 Oct 1910 in Providence, Providence Co., Rhode Island. He was buried in Little Compton, Newport Co., Rhode Island.
Henry Tillinghast Sisson inherited the family farm at The Point in Little Compton, Rhode Island. He was a Republican and fought in the Civil War as a Lieutenant in 1861 to the rank of Colonel in 1864. In July 1861 he was in the Battle of Bull Run under General Ambrose Burnside. While with the 44th Massachusetts Regiment he escaped Confederate capture on the Pimlico River at Ft Washington, North Carolina, April 13, 1863, also rescuing Major General Foster. In 1864 he was in command of the 5th Rhode Island Artillery. He was elected Secretary of "The Sisson Family" at the Sep 16, 1869, "annual gathering." Henry lived most of his life in Little Compton, RI. Family tradition states that Henry had many schemes that spent the family fortune. Henry served as Lieutenant Governor of Rhode Island from 1875 to 1881. In 1890 Henry is reported to have incurred a disability of deafness during the War. Rhode Island and Massachusetts erected a statue to him in the Cemetery at the Commons, and Massachusetts acting governor Calvin Coolidge unveiled the statue. See the note for Lucinda (Sisson) Burlingame (Richard 1, George 2, Thomas 3, Peleg 4,5, Lodowick 6, Lucinda 7). It is Henry Tillinghast Sisson's report of Sep 17, 1871, which incorporates the minutes of the gathering of the Little Compton, RI, family of Sissons help on Sept 16, 1869, and of the gathering of Sept 17, 1870. The report was later typed by Henry's son David and a copy was sent to David's brother Frank Harris Sisson whose granddaughter Shirley Madden copied it for me, David Arne Sisson.
When Henry T. Sisson was 23 years old, he received a patent for the first loose-leaf ring binder.
Thanks to Neil Madden for permission to post the outstanding photograph of Henry Tillinghast Sisson, and the pictures of the patent documents. For more information on the family, more pictures, and history of the Civil War in Rhode Island, see Neil's website at http://www.henrytsisson.com.
