But Mr. Parsons was not confined to his favorite pursuits; he had a thirst for knowledge generally, and improved every opportunity for research in the various departments of science and the arts with a proportionate zeal and accuracy. Evidences of this are furnished in a Journal[U] which he, at the age of only nineteen, kept while on a tour to the North Western Territory during the spring and summer of 1788, in company with his father, who was about that time appointed by President Washington Chief-Judge in and over the Territory, which included the States of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, and Michigan. The geology of the country, the customs, manners, and language of the native sons of the forest, are described and commented upon with a minuteness and vivacity interesting alike to the geologist, the antiquary, and the philosopher.
He was, we believe, one of the original investigators of the tumuli at Marietta, the first and at that time the only settlement of importance in that region of country. A description of one of these remarkable mounds, excavated and explored by him, he communicated in 1789 to President Stiles of Yale College, and is preserved among his manuscripts in the College Library.
May 14, 1789, Mr. Parsons was appointed by Gov. Arthur St. Clair, Register and Clerk of the first Probate Record Office, established in the county of Washington, which was the first county erected north-west of the river Ohio. He there remained, faithfully discharging the duties of this appointment, until April, 1790, when he resigned and returned to Middletown, Ct., his family residence, and was appointed by the General Assembly of the State at their ensuing session, in May, High Sheriff of Middlesex County. This office he accepted, being then only twenty-one years of age; and he continued to perform its duties with fidelity and public acceptance, till he attained the age of 49, a period of twenty-eight years; when he was compelled by ill health and various imperative avocations, to relinquish its fatigues and solicitude.
During the period of his official duties as Sheriff, Mr. Parsons was also actively engaged in various other public avocations, and in mercantile business. He was called to preside over different local institutions and organizations in the place where he resided; acted a while as Secretary to an Insurance Company, and was repeatedly elected an Alderman of the city of Middletown, and Representative in the General Assembly of the State. He was also presented by his Congressional friends as a rival candidate of the late President Harrison in the year 1791 for the office of Secretary and ex-officio Lieut. Governor of the N. W. Territory, but he declined the nomination. He likewise declined the honor, though repeatedly solicited, to represent his fellow-citizens in the councils of the nation. His own private affairs too much required his attention to permit him to engage in this high trust.
In the year 1816, when the late Bank of the United States was incorporated, Mr. Parsons, believing that the establishment of a Branch in Connecticut, (by many deemed impracticable,) would materially promote the commercial interests of its citizens, visited Philadelphia in company with other gentlemen, with a view to this object. By the most persevering efforts, and through his active and efficient influence and exertion, a Branch was located in Connecticut at Middletown. He was chosen a Director of the institution immediately upon its organization, and continued in the direction during the existence of the Charter.
In 1818 he was elected President of the Connecticut Branch, on the resignation of the Hon. Samuel W. Dana, then a Senator in Congress; and was annually elected, until it was transferred from Middletown to Hartford, in the spring of 1824. Having removed thither himself about the same time, he was re-elected, and continued to preside over the institution with acknowledged impartiality, ability, and firmness, and the most unflinching integrity, during the operations of the Branch in Connecticut, and until the expiration of the Charter.
Though educated a merchant and eminent as a financier, Mr. Parsons was also a sound lawyer; not by profession or practice, but by the acquisition of the requisite legal knowledge. The office of Sheriff, when he was called to fill it, was one of honor as well as profit. Its incumbent was the companion of the Judges. He attended at their "chambers" as well as in the "court-room." He listened to, and participated in, their deliberations and discussions. Thus Mr. Parsons breathed a legal atmosphere. Being by his official duties, through a period of twenty-eight years, in familiar intercourse with the Bench and the Bar, and having read the best elementary writers, endowed, as he was, with a remarkably retentive memory and a logical and inquisitive mind, it is not surprising that he retained to the close of life the principles and maxims of jurisprudence thus deeply implanted. Though not a member of the Bar, his opinions on elementary points were seldom questioned.
Mr. Parsons wrote some, but reflected more. His published writings are few and chiefly political. His unpublished manuscripts are numerous and mostly in an epistolary form, relating principally to the subject of finance.
In all the relations of domestic and social life, Mr. Parsons was beloved and respected. He was twice married, and left three children by the first marriage, and one by the second; two only of whom survive him; namely, one residing in Hartford, Ct., Samuel H. Parsons, Esq., and one in the State of Ohio. In these relations, he was ever the generous and affectionate husband, and the kind and faithful parent. His habits and feelings were social and communicative; and in his intercourse with his fellow-men, dignity was seen blended with the utmost courtesy and kindness. He was a true gentleman of the olden school, and every son of New England will understand what this means.
His personal appearance was dignified and commanding. His stature large and well-proportioned; high forehead and bald, with dark blue eye, and a countenance indicative of his mental characteristics of thought, deliberation and energy, blended with mildness.