Nahum Stetson
businessman (1807-1894)

Nahum Stetson (August 21, 1807 - October 6, 1894) was a businessman from southeastern Massachusetts during the 19th century. He is best known for his role in establishing the Bridgewater Iron Company as one of the largest iron works in the United States during the mid-1800s. Stetson was also involved in several other iron companies throughout the southeastern New England region, as well as other notable businesses, including banks and railroads. His grandson, Nahum Stetson (1856-1933) was part of the Steinway & Sons piano company, as part of its sales team and board of directors.
Personal life
Nahum Stetson was born in 1807 to Captain Abisha Stetson and Alice (Allen) Stetson. He was the fifth of eight children. His father had been among the founders of the Marshfield Cotton Factory, along with Jonathan Stetson and Jacob Perkins. Nahum attended local schools, finishing with two years at Bridgewater Academy. He then went to work at a mercantile house in Boston. After about four years, he returned to Bridgewater in 1825 to work in the store of Lazell, Perkins & Company.
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This entry incorporates text from “Nahum Stetson” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.