Broadstreet Henry Mason was born in Monroe, Maine on April 8, 1881. Though his full name is
Broadstreet Henry Mason, he went by B. Henry, so we will do the same here. He was not quite 11 years
old when his father Erastus Mason passed away. He
spent his childhood on the family farm in Monroe and attended the local schools. B. Henry
attended Bowdoin Medical College in Maine.
Here are a couple of pictures of B. Henry in his younger days:
B. Henry had a long and rather illustrious career in hospital administration. After
interning at Maine General Hospital and a stint as Assistant Physician at the
Worcester State Asylum, he opened up a general practice in Portland. Three months
later,
in 1914, he was named Asst. Superintendent of Worcester State Hospital in Massachusetts. In 1918,
he was made Superintendent at Worcester State. It was during this time, on July 15, 1915,
that he married Rena Helen Ferguson. She was born in Denmark, Nova Scotia and
came to the United States for training to be a nurse. She was working as a nurse
in Worcester, MA when they met. They were married in Westbrook, Maine.
B. Henry and Rena had three sons:
Charles Henry Mason, born March 28, 1917, died September 6, 1960
Lloyd Ferguson Mason, born March 28, 1923, died July 13, 1976
Robert Broadstreet Mason, born February 7, 1925
When the oldest boy, Charles, was about 4, the family moved to Michigan for a couple of
years. B. Henry had taken a position as Asst Director of the Ann Arbor Psychopathic
Hospital. He was very busy during this time. While in Michigan, he was neuro-psychiatrist
of the U.S. Veterans Bureau and also taught Psychiatry at the University of Michigan
Medical School from 1921 to 1923.
But New England has a way of getting in your blood and in 1923, B. Henry, Rena and their now
six year old son, Charles, headed back east. In January of 1923, B. Henry became
First Asst. Superintendent of the Peter Bent Brigham Hospital in Boston, which today
is the prestigious
Brigham and Women's Hospital. He stayed there
until late 1927, when the family - now with three boys - moved to Connecticut. B. Henry
had been named Superintendent of
Waterbury Hospital, a position he would hold until his
retitrement in August of 1941.
B. Henry was very involved in several medical associations and served as President of the
Connecticut Hospital Association for two years. He was also a 32nd degree Mason. But it wasn't
all work and no play. B. Henry was very family oriented. He kept a small vegetable garden, liked to
fish and often on Sunday afternoons would take the family on short automobile trips. In
his younger days her also played golf and tennis. Every summer, the family spent a month
in Ocean Park, Maine and also take a trip to Monroe to visit B. Henry's half-sister
Mary Minnie Mason and her husband Charles Quine. Rena
kept busy with the Women's Club in Waterbury and all the various activities they held. The
family were members of the Second Congregational Church.
B. Henry Mason passed away on January 1, 1942. He is buried in Fairview Cemetery in
West Hartford, CT. His wife, Rena, passed away in 1957.
I have to extend a special thanks to B. Henry and Rena's son Robert for virtually
all the material on this page. Bob has provided me with a wealth of information
about his line of the family and many other segments of the Mason line. Another
cousin I've never met - but need to soon!
As a small child
College Graduation 1907
Thank you Bob!!!