You are reading a page from The Fraternal American Table,
American Insurance Union (1926)
Part
of the American Term Life Insurance History Project
Term Life Insurance
THE LATE GEORGE DYRE ELDRIDGE, Actuary
Boston, Mass.
Georg-e Dyre Eldridge was born August 22, 1848, at
Rochester, Massachusetts, his father being- pastor of the
Christian Church at Mattapoisett, then a village near
the town of Rochester.
His father and mother were from Massachusetts fami-
lies, his father's mother being- Miriam Dyre from a Cape
family. His mother's maiden name was Howland, a well
known name even now In Dartmouth -and New Bedford,
and many of whom were in his boyhood largely inter-
ested in the whaling industry.
Changes in his father's pastorates carried the family
to Salisbury Point (now Amesbury), New Bedford, and
to Somerset, so that his earlier education began in the
public schools of Massachusetts. In 1859, shortly before
his eleventh birthday, they went to Bristol, Rhode Island,
where he attended grammar and high schools until the
spring of 1862, when they moved to Skowhegan, Maine.
At that time Skowhegan was the terminus of the rail-
road from Port'and along the line of the Kennebec
River, and the market town for the residents, for miles
around, from villages depending on stages for their mail,
which was distributed through the Skowhegan Post Of-
fice.
Here he attended the Bloomfield Academy, on the op-
posite side of the river, there being no public school of
the higher grade at that time in Skowhegan. He also
acted as clerk in the Post Office, where, with only one
mail coming in each day, he had opportunity to pursue
his studies, mathematics and languages appealing es-
pecially to him. And he made a start in a small way in
writing for publication, several articles being accepted by
magazines devoted especially to the interests of young
people.
In 1865, at the age of seventeen, he entered Antioch
College, at Yellow Springs, Ohio. Here he met his future
wife. Miss Alice Tillinghast, an Ohio girl and a student
at Antioch. He did not complete his college course, but
took a position in the office of her father, an insurance
publisher at Cincinnati. Here began Mr. Eldridge's real
study of insurance, leading to his choice of a profession
and final attainment of his position as one of the best
known consulting actuaries of this country, though, of
course, it was years before that point was reached.
On July 1st, 1870, he was married to Miss Tillinghast
at Antioch College, and they made their home for a few
years at Cincinnati, or just across the river at Coving- .
ton, Ky. Here a son was born to them', George Dyre, Jr.
Late in 1873, the publishing business was moved to
Boston, and Mr. Eldridge soon settled at Newton High-
lands, where his second son and his daughter were added
to the family. . During his residence at Newton he was
active in connection with City matters and served as
Representative during- one session of the Legislature.
In September, 1886, having accepted a call from Wash-
ington, D. C.. to take charge of a life Insurance company,
he moved his family to that city. Here a third son was
born, but he lived only until two years of age.
In April, 1894, Mr. Eldridge resigned, his position as
manager of the company where he had worked steadily
for several years, and asked that he be released at once.
At this time he had been an authority on actuarial mat-
ters for years, and immediately, Mr. E. B. Harper, then
President of the Mutual Reserve Fund Life Association
of New York City, renewed former efforts to gain Mr.
Eldridge's consent to come to New York and give atten-
tion to the problems which were becoming serious for
the largest assessment society of that day, and in May,
|ri[ 1894, he became officially connected with the Association,
44
where he spent more than thirteen years in as strenuous
a battle as one man could wage, even with strong sup
port, to put this great corporation where it belonged,
He made his home at Riverdale on the Hudson until
after the Mutual Reserve closed its doors in 1908. Dur-