THE HENDERSON FAMILY AND THE CALIFORNIA PERFUME COMPANY
GREGORY FORD HENDERSON
THE HENDERSON FAMILY AND THE CALIFORNIA PERFUME COMPANY Copyright Š 2019 by Gregory Ford Henderson. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission from the Author. The text is available for modification and reuse under the terms of the: Creative Commons Attribution-Sharealike 3.0 Unported License and the GNU Free Documentation License (unversioned, with no invariant sections, front-cover texts, or back-cover texts).
ISBN-13: 978-1977682048 ISBN -10: 1977682049
FOURTH EDITION v9.19
Dedicated to my parents, Alexander Dawson Henderson III and Patricia Ford Crass
Table of Contents
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Table of Contents Preface...........................................................................................................VI Acknowledgments.....................................................................................VII CHAPTER ONE Captain Joseph Henderson.................................................1 Charleston, South Carolina (1826 - 1842)................................................2 New York City (1842 - 1853).....................................................................6 Brooklyn, New York..................................................................................8 St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church..............................................................9 Seamen’s Institute....................................................................................10 983 Myrtle Avenue (1859-1880)..............................................................11 From Sandy Hook to 62.........................................................................12 Sandy Hook Pilots’ Benevolent Association.........................................12 Pilot Boat Elwood Walter, No. 7.............................................................17 Pilot Boat George W. Blunt, No. 11........................................................17 The Civil War (1861-1865).......................................................................18 Pilot Boat William Bell, No 24................................................................21 Henderson v. Spofford............................................................................25 The Silver Spoon......................................................................................26 U.S. Passport.............................................................................................26 The Brooklyn Bridge................................................................................27 633 Willoughby Avenue (1879-1920)......................................................28 Steamer Adelphi.......................................................................................29 Steamer Otranto.......................................................................................30 Sandy Hook Pilot Boat Company..........................................................30 Statue of Liberty.......................................................................................32 Steamship Celtic.......................................................................................35 Martello v. Willey....................................................................................35 Blizzard of 1888........................................................................................37 Steamer Teutonic......................................................................................38 US Cruiser Baltimore...............................................................................38 Joseph’s Death..........................................................................................39 The Green-Wood Cemetery....................................................................47 CHAPTER TWO Angelina Annetta Weaver.................................................49 Sarah Rebecca Henderson (1850-1919)..................................................53 Maurice D. Henderson (1852-1923).......................................................57 Joseph Henderson Jr. (1854-1908)..........................................................60
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Table of Contents Mary Ann Henderson (1861-1947).........................................................67 Angelina A. Henderson (1863-1903)......................................................74 Stanley L. Wilcox......................................................................................77 Alexander Dawson Henderson Sr. (1865-1925)....................................86 Angelina Henderson’s Death.................................................................86
CHAPTER THREE Pilot Boat Pet, No. 9........................................................89 Rescuing the Emily (1872).......................................................................90 Spirit of the Times (1877)........................................................................91 Pet Stories (1878)......................................................................................94 Life Aboard a New York Pilot Boat........................................................98 CHAPTER FOUR Alexander Dawson Henderson Senior..........................99 Union Warehouse Company................................................................101 St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church..........................................................104 The California Perfume Company.......................................................108 Goetting & Company............................................................................113 CPC Plant................................................................................................114 New Businesses......................................................................................115 Mecca Oil Company..............................................................................123 Manufacturing Perfumers' Association...............................................124 Art Color Plate Engraving Co...............................................................132 Hatfield Auto Truck Company.............................................................132 174 Pulaski Street (1897 – 1905)............................................................133 Midwood Street (1905 – 1910)..............................................................134 Suffern, New York..................................................................................135 State Charities Aid Association............................................................140 Travels.....................................................................................................144 Panama-Pacific International Exposition............................................146 Ramapo Valley Independent................................................................147 Lafayette Theater....................................................................................147 Death and CPC Resolution...................................................................148 CHAPTER FIVE Ella Margaret Brown........................................................153 Joseph Dawson Henderson..................................................................156 Alexander Dawson Henderson Jr........................................................157 William J. Brown....................................................................................157 Girard Brown Henderson.....................................................................158 Suffern, New York..................................................................................158 Holding Company.................................................................................163 Ella’s Death.............................................................................................163
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CHAPTER SIX Alexander Dawson Henderson, Jr...................................168 New York Military Academy (1912 – 1915)........................................170 Dartmouth College................................................................................171 World War I............................................................................................172 California Perfume Company...............................................................174 Mary Barnes Anthony...........................................................................175 Tallman, New York (1927 – 1934).........................................................177 New York City........................................................................................179 Holding Company.................................................................................182 Allen Douglas Henderson....................................................................182 Florida.....................................................................................................184 Philanthropy...........................................................................................184 Hillsboro Country Day School.............................................................185 Hillsboro Mayor.....................................................................................185 Saint Andrew's School...........................................................................186 A. D. Henderson Foundation...............................................................188 Henderson Clinic...................................................................................188 Funeral and Obituary............................................................................189 Alexander D. Henderson University...................................................193 CHAPTER SEVEN Girard Brown Henderson............................................195 Storm King School (1916 – 1923)..........................................................197 Dartmouth College................................................................................198 Jerry Enters the Work Force..................................................................198 First Marriage.........................................................................................201 Love for Aviation...................................................................................203 Henderson Motor Co.............................................................................206 Alexander Dawson Inc..........................................................................208 Mahwah, New Jersey.............................................................................214 Laurel Hill Plantation............................................................................216 Avon Products........................................................................................218 The Alarm Company and MPTV.........................................................220 Thirsty Thursday Club..........................................................................224 Alexander Dawson Foundation...........................................................225 Stapps Lake Ranch.................................................................................226 The Colorado Junior Republic School.................................................229 Colorado Health Education Center.....................................................232 New York World’s Fair.........................................................................233 Time Magazine.......................................................................................235 Forbes Magazine....................................................................................237 Blue Channel Seafood Company.........................................................237
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Table of Contents Boating....................................................................................................238 Dawson 26..............................................................................................239 Las Vegas................................................................................................239 Second Marriage....................................................................................240 Theodora Holding Corporation...........................................................241 Trip to Europe........................................................................................244 Colorado Aero Tech...............................................................................245 Alexander Trust Company...................................................................246 Gulfstream American Corporation......................................................246 Grizzly Riders.........................................................................................250 Underground House in Las Vegas.......................................................250 My Visit with Uncle Jerry.....................................................................253 Turn the Clock Back, Sam.....................................................................255 Cecil Peak Station...................................................................................256 Helicopter Experiences..........................................................................258 Jerry’s Passing Away.............................................................................260 Alexander Dawson School at Mountain.............................................263
CHAPTER EIGHT Alexander D. Henderson III.......................................266 Tallman, New York (1929-1934)............................................................268 New York City (1934-1938)...................................................................271 Englewood, New Jersey........................................................................273 High School............................................................................................275 World War II...........................................................................................276 Joining the Workforce...........................................................................279 Drive to California.................................................................................280 Marriage..................................................................................................282 San Jose, California................................................................................283 Move to Florida......................................................................................284 Gold Coast Finance................................................................................286 Summer Vacations.................................................................................287 Sea Ranch Lakes.....................................................................................287 Divorce....................................................................................................289 Second Marriage....................................................................................289 Aspen, Colorado....................................................................................291 Farming...................................................................................................291 Horse Racing..........................................................................................292 Move back to California........................................................................293 CHAPTER NINE Patricia Ford Crass..........................................................295 San Francisco, California.......................................................................301
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Move to Pasadena..................................................................................303 Santa Fe, New Mexico...........................................................................303 Los Angeles (1941-1945)........................................................................306 Chicago, Illinois......................................................................................307 Carmel Valley.........................................................................................309 Pre-Marriage...........................................................................................313 Marriage..................................................................................................313 San Jose, California................................................................................314 Move to Florida......................................................................................316 Divorce....................................................................................................317 Move back to California........................................................................318 Second Marriage....................................................................................319 Art............................................................................................................320 Travels.....................................................................................................322 The Vi in Palo Alto.................................................................................325 DESCENDANT CHART..................................................................................327 ABOUT THE AUTHOR...................................................................................334 California................................................................................................335 Florida.....................................................................................................335 California................................................................................................336 Menlo College (1972-1974)....................................................................337 University of the Pacific........................................................................337 First Marriage (1978-1984)....................................................................337 San Francisco State.................................................................................338 Work Experience....................................................................................338 Second Marriage....................................................................................339 Bibliography...............................................................................................341 Index................................................................................................CCCXLIV
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Preface
Preface This story is about the Henderson family and their involvement in the California Perfume Company, which became Avon Products, Inc. in 1939. My name is Greg Henderson. When I was a teenager, I was told that my grandfather worked for a cosmetics company called Avon, and that he was on the Board of Directors. I became curious about this and soon found out that my great grandfather started as a bookkeeper for the company and later became Vice President and Treasurer; and that my grandfather’s brother (my grand-uncle) was also on the Avon board. As more information came my way, I realized how lucky I was to have this interesting history in our family! It motivated me to write down the genealogy of my family and their involvement with Avon Products. I began writing this book in 2006. The story begins with my great-great grandfather, Captain Joseph Henderson, who had the good fortune to acquire the means to pass down enough money so that one of his sons could invest in a company that would become one of the largest cosmetics companies in the world. Since many of our family stories, photographs, and possessions have been lost through time, it is my hope that this book will survive and contribute towards a better understanding of the Henderson family and their relationship to the California Perfume Company. Greg Henderson September 1, 2019
Acknowledgements
Acknowledgments
vii
Acknowledgments I would like to thank the following people for helping me write this book: Allen Douglas Henderson, Farrow J. Smith, Bernice Pratt, Owen Patrick, Robert B. Henderson III, Alexander Dawson Henderson III, Patricia Ford Crass, Audrey F. Cordrey, and my editor Susan Hernandez. I want to especially thank my wife, Louise, and my family, for putting up with my long hours of research that went into writing this book. I am also thankful for the vast amount of information that is available on the web, Wikipedia, FamilySearch.com, and various books listed in the appendix.
Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson
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CHAPTER ONE Captain Joseph Henderson
Captain Joseph Henderson 1826 - 1890
O
ur story begins with Captain Joseph Henderson, who was my paternal great-great grandfather. Joseph was a legendary figure in New York during the 1880s. He co-owned a fleet of pilot ships with other members of the New York Sandy Hook Service, which guided large vessels into and out of New York Harbor. He The Sandy Hook Pilots Association provided this picture of Joseph Henderson, which came from an album of the Sandy Hook pilots.
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Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson
was thoroughly acquainted with the Atlantic coast from Maine to Texas, and worked the Atlantic seaboard during the Civil War. Joseph had six children, one of whom was Alexander D. Henderson Sr., who partnered with David H. McConnell to develop and expand the California Perfume Company, which later became Avon Products. We will talk more about Alexander Henderson in a later chapter. Let’s first find out more about Captain Joseph Henderson. Charleston, South Carolina (1826 - 1842)
Joseph Henderson was born in Charleston, South Carolina on September 9, 1826. Most of what we know about Joseph was either passed down through family legend or found via federal and state census records, New York area newspapers, and other government documents. There is some debate over who Joseph’s parents were and how he got to New York. Family legend tells us that at sixteen years of age (in 1842), Joseph Henderson left Charleston to find passage to New York City as a cabin boy on a ship traveling there. Joseph’s grandson, Girard (Jerry) Brown Henderson, wrote the following perspective in his autobiography: “It is alleged by my father and my aunts and uncles that Joseph Henderson was an orphan raised by a mean uncle. He ran away at sixteen to become a cabin boy and changed his name. He retained his given name Joseph, but whatever his
Joseph’s birth date is from the Green-Wood Cemetery tombstone inscription. His birthplace is also documented in the January 6, 1849 New York Literary American Newspaper, the 1865 New York State Census, and his 1878 passport application
Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson
3
family name was he didn’t like it and changed it to Henderson.” If Joseph was an orphan, he may have been registered at the Charleston Orphan House. A Charleston Orphan House Records register of children from 1790-1949 is available on microfilms at the Charleston County Public Library. The register records would include the child’s date of admittance, date of discharge, and parents’ names. His parents must have died prematurely, which meant that he had to enter an orphanage. Then, at some point, his uncle was allowed to take him from the orphanage. Mary A. Lathrop, first wife of Alexander D. Henderson Jr. (Joseph’s grandson), wrote about Joseph Henderson, “that he was raised in the Carolinas by foster parents, running away as a teenager to sea as a cabin boy, and becoming a sea captain at the age of twenty-one.” According to Joseph’s New York Death Certificate, No. 15592, he was “born in U.S.” as were his father and mother. Both the 1880 U.S. Federal Census records and New York newspaper references support the fact that Joseph Henderson and his parents came from South Carolina. The 1880 U.S. Census reports that Joseph, his father and his mother were all born in South Carolina. If Joseph’s parents were born in South Carolina, then there should be some record of them, how they died, and the children they had. This has been a roadblock for many years. A. Douglas Henderson, great-grandson of Joseph Henderson, Girard B., So Long, It's Been Good to Know You, autobiography, page 1 Charleston Country Public Library Website (http://catalog.ccpl.org) Lathrop, Mary Anthony, Mary’s Family Connections, Page 99
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Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson
Henderson, hired a certified genealogist, Brent H. Holcomb, back in 1993 to discover the parents of Joseph Henderson. Mr. Holcomb reported; “I think that we have a very good case for Alexander Henderson as the father of Joseph Henderson.” This statement was based on ship and marriage records. Ship records indicate that a passenger arrived in 1821, at the port of Charleston on the ship Jane. He was “Alexander Henderson, age 21, Male, Laborer, from Liverpool, to inhabit the United States.” Marriage records from the St. Phillip’s Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina indicate that Alexander Henderson married Jane Eccles on July 18, 1822. This church is located at 142 Church Street. Alexander Henderson’s marriage occurred prior to the birth of Joseph Henderson. The 1825 Charleston City Directory lists Alexander Henderson as living at 84 Queen Street, Charleston, South Carolina as a watchmaker; and that he was born in Monaghan, Ireland. Alexander Henderson died on March 4, 1826 and was buried at the First Scots Presbyterian Church in Charleston, South Carolina. This church is located at 53 Meeting Street. On March 4, 1826, Alexander Henderson’s obituary said:
South Carolina Magazine of Ancestral Research, Volume XIX, Number 1, Winter 1991 Register of St. Philip’s Church, Charleston, South Carolina, 1810 - 1822 First Scots Presbyterian Church Cemetery and Find A Grave Index
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Died – The friends and acquaintances of Mr. and Mrs. Alexander Henderson, and the Members of the American Friendly Association, are invited to attend the funeral of the former from his late residence No. 84 Queen Street, this afternoon, at 4 o’clock, without further invitation.
On Saturday, March 11, 1826, The Charleston Courier, carried the following obituary: Departed from this transitory world of trouble and probation, on the 4th. Mr. Alexander Henderson, a native of Monaghan, Ireland, age 26 years, deeply regretted by his brother soldiers, and those who knew him from early youth, as the warm hearted and generous friend. His death has terminated the hopes and means of earthly usefulness, and saddened the fond, but bleeding heart of disconsolate and affectionate widow, and a helpless family, whose only consolation is that Divine Providence, who tempers the wind to the shorn lamb.
These obituaries confirm that Alexander Henderson was a soldier, and that when he died he had a wife and children. Since Joseph Henderson was born on September 9, 1826, it is possible that he was conceived before his father died, which would explain why he became an orphan. If the connection with Alexander Henderson is correct, Joseph Henderson’s ancestry can be traced back to Monaghan, Ireland. Alexander Henderson’s tombstone inscription reads: To the memory of Alexander Henderson, A native of Monahan, Ireland who departed this life on the 4th of March 1826 in the 26th year of his age. He was a loving husband.
Issue of March 4, 1826 Tombstone Inscriptions from Charleston Churchyards, 1936
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Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson
New York City (1842 - 1853)
In 1842, at the age of sixteen, Joseph Henderson was a cabin boy on a boat headed for New York City. As a cabin boy, he would have run from one end of the ship to the other carrying messages and becoming familiar with the sails, lines, and ropes in all sorts of weather. Because he was an employee of the ship, he may not have been listed as a passenger in the New York Passenger Lists from 18201957. For the next three years (1842 – 1845), no written information is available regarding where Joseph was living. However, by 1845, he must have been well established as a New York pilot. The New York Herald notes: "Some men on South Street remember him in 1845 as a pilot of some standing even then." In 1846, when he was twenty years old, Joseph emerged as "Henderson Joseph, mariner, 325 Front Street, New York City." Front Street is one of the main historic streets on New York City’s East River waterfront. The original shoreline was several streets west near Pearl Street. Over time the piers were filled in, which made room for first Water Street, then Front Street and then South Street. These new streets fronted deeper water that could accommodate the sailing ships of the 19th Century. Today, Front Street consists of 11 restored 18th-century buildings and three modern buildings between Beekman Street and Peck Slip, one block south of the Brooklyn Bridge. By the fall of 1847, at the age of twenty-one, Joseph was captain of his own schooner, self-educated in seamanship, “Half a Century of Piloting," New York Herald, October 12, 1890, pg 26 Doggett's New-York City Directory for 1846, Page 184
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and a New York Sandy Hook pilot. This was quite an accomplishment for someone in those days. In the 1848-1849 edition of Doggett's New York City Directory, Joseph Henderson is listed as a seaman at 325 Front Street, New York City. He does not appear in the previous year’s (1847-1848) edition. Joseph appears in the 1849-1850 edition of Doggett’s New York City Directory, age 23, as living at 93 Roosevelt Street, New York City. Roosevelt Street was located in the borough of Manhattan from the colonial period to the early 1950s, running from Pearl Street southeast to South Street. Joseph most likely used the Roosevelt Street or Fulton Ferry, which connected New York City with Brooklyn. In 1848, Joseph knew a pilot by the name of Maurice D. Weaver, who was about seven years older than Joseph. Maurice probably introduced Joseph to his half-sister Angelina A. Weaver, because on February 11, 1849, Joseph married Angelina Weaver at the Baptist Tabernacle Church in New York City. The October 15, 1850 U.S. Federal Census lists Pilot Joseph Henderson, age 23, born in South Carolina; Angelina A. Henderson, age 18, born in New York; and Sarah R. Henderson, only five months old. They were living in New York City, Ward 4, which is on the East Side of Manhattan Island near the waterfront. The next chapter talks more about this marriage and Joseph’s children.
“United States Court of Commissioners of Alabama Claims,” Google Books, 1882-85 Roosevelt Street. (2014, August 27). In Wikipedia, retrieved October 16, 2014
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Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson
The 1851-1852 edition of the New York City Directory lists Joseph as living at 90 Roosevelt Street. His occupation was noted as “Pilot.” Brooklyn, New York
By 1853, Joseph and his family had moved to a brownstone house in Brooklyn’s Flatbush District. The 1853 New York City Directory lists Joseph as living in Brooklyn, New York and working at 69 South Street, New York City. The address, 69 South Street, is where the office of the Board of Commissioners of Pilots was located. Today, the Board of Commissioners is located further south at 17 Battery Place. The 1854 New York City Directory lists the family as living on Franklyn Avenue, between Willoughby and DeKalb Avenues in Brooklyn, New York; not too far from the Brooklyn Navy Yard. The 1854-1855 edition of the New York City Directory lists Joseph as pilot, working at 69 South Street, and living in Brooklyn. The 1856 Smith’s Brooklyn Directory lists Joseph as a pilot living on Franklyn Avenue near DeKalb Avenue. The 1857 New York Directory lists Joseph Henderson as pilot, 69 South, and home at 72 Market Street. St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church
The Episcopal Church of St. Matthew was organized as a parish on May 25th, 1859, and was located on Throop Avenue, in Brooklyn’s Ninth Ward. It was located in a neighborhood where, according to records, “the streets were not then graded, and cornfields were frequent, though “New York City Mayor’s Office,” The New York Times, July 22, 1858 Published by J. Lain Company of Brooklyn, 1856 to 1908, The Brooklyn Public Library
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buildings were multiplying and population fast increasing.” In June of 1859, a gift was given for a lot located on the southeast corner of Throop Avenue and Pulaski Street, on which to erect the church. However, the money necessary for a building was not received until April 15, 1860, which included a lot on Myrtle Avenue. The building was first opened for worship in February of 1861. About the same time, an amalgam bell was received from the New York Pilots of Sandy Hook, through the Rev. I. F. Cox. Various friends and members provided other articles of furniture. St. Matthew's Church was a frame building, forty-five feet wide by eighty feet deep; in gothic style with a bell tower twelve feet square and a spire one hundred and thirty feet high, and seated four hundred and fifty persons. It cost $9,209.64. Joseph and Angelina Henderson were some of the earliest members of the Episcopal Church of St. Matthew. On April 24, 1874, Mrs. Angelina Henderson was on the committee in charge of a church strawberry festival that was held in the church’s Sunday school room. Seamen’s Institute
The Seamen’s Institute in New York City serves mariners through education, pastoral care, and legal support. It is also responsible for holding the records of many New York seamen.
A History of the City of Brooklyn, Volume 3, 1870 A History of the City of Brooklyn, Volume 3, 1870 Episcopal Churches at: http://www.panix.com
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Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson
In his autobiography, Jerry Henderson wrote that “there was a room in the Institute named the Joseph Henderson room, and the history of Joseph Henderson is duly documented in the archive of the New York Seamen’s Church Institute.” In 1912, The Lookout published by the Seamen’s Church Institute of New York at One Slate street, offered memorial bedrooms at $100.00. There is one listed as for: Alexander D. Henderson, “In Memory of Capt. Jos. Henderson.”
The memorial plagues were part of the Seamen’s Church Institute’s fundraising efforts for their headquarters at 25 South Street. According to the senior archivist at the Seamen’s Church Institute, they are no longer in possession of this tablet. Perhaps, this is what Jerry was referring too in his autobiography. The Institute had a brass plate bearing the name of the donor and inscription containing the name of the person memorialized placed over the door. The archive collection is located at Queens College, City University of New York. The Institute has also digitized a portion of its archives. One area includes photographs of memorial tablets, letterheads, and plates.
So Long, It's Been Good to Know You, Jerry Henderson's autobiography The Lookout, June, 1912, The Seamen’s Church Institute of New York Memorial Tablets, SCI Digital Archives, http://www.seamenschurch-archives.org/sci/items/show/238
Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson
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983 Myrtle Avenue (1859-1880)
By 1859, the Henderson family had moved a few blocks east of Franklin Avenue, to 983 Myrtle Avenue, at the corner of Throop Avenue in Brooklyn. They stayed in this home for over twenty years. The family is listed in the Brooklyn City Directory as: "Jos. Henderson pilot, h. Myrtle av. c. Throop.” The 1862-1869, 1871, 1875-1876, 1878-1880 editions of the Brooklyn City Directory, show Joseph still living at the Myrtle Avenue address: “Henderson Joseph, pilot, h. Myrtle av. c. Throop av.” In May of 1863, the U.S. Tax Assessment registered Joseph Henderson as having income at his residence on Myrtle and Throop. The total amount of tax due was $58.50, based on income of $1,950. This income would be worth about $35,723 today. In May of 1865, the U.S. Tax Assessment listed Joseph Henderson as having a piano and watch at his residence on Myrtle and Throop Street. The total amount of tax due was $5.00 based the value of the piano and watch, which was $540.00. The 1872 New York Directory lists Joseph Henderson as a pilot working at 75 South Street, and his home as Brooklyn. The 1874-1875 and 1877-1878 editions of the New York Directory listed Joseph as a pilot working at 809 Water
HEARNE'S 1859-60 Brooklyn City Directory Published by J. Lain and Company, 1863, Brooklyn City Library U.S. IRS Tax Assessment Lists, 1863-1864, New York District 2 U.S. Tax Assessment Lists, 1865, New York District 2
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Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson
Street, N. Y., and his home at 983 Myrtle Avenue, Brooklyn, New York. From Sandy Hook to 62
Charles Edward Russell wrote one of the most interesting stories of Captain Henderson’s experiences and exploits in his book From Sandy Hook to 62, published in 1929 by the Century Co., New York. Russell paints an especially good picture of the times when he writes about Joseph Henderson, “Almost at once he began to attract attention for his skill at his craft, which did not fall short of genius, and for his perfectly reckless spirit of the daredevil. The courage of Joseph Henderson was in the marrow of his bones and thence all the way out. He was of the rare but veritable genus of the human species that literally does not grasp the concept of fear.” Sandy Hook Pilots’ Benevolent Association
The Sandy Hook Pilots’ Benevolent Association has been the governing body for New York pilots since 1694. The Association still exists, and has provided valuable research information referenced in this book. Joseph worked for the Sandy Hook Pilots’ Benevolent Association, bringing steamboats into and out of the New York Harbor. He was well known to all of the large steamship owners, both in New York and abroad. In 1811, there were only 10 Sandy Hook pilots. By 1854, there were 100 pilots that owned 21 schooners. Between Russell, Charles Edward, From Sandy Hook to 62, The Century Co. 1929, page 149 “History of the Sandy Hook Pilots,” website at: http://www.sandyhookpilots.com/history.asp
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1830 and 1850, the number of foreign vessels arriving in New York increased five-fold. Incoming ships were often forced to pick up a local fisherman and have him show them the way through the dangerous waters because of the scarcity of pilots. A pilot could earn $140 for piloting a large steamer to her berth in the winter months. In 1859, the Board of Pilot Commissioners is listed in the New York City Directory as headquartered on 69 South Street. Sandy Hook pilots were listed at 179 South Street. Three fourths of the Sandy Hook pilots lived in Brooklyn. The Sandy Hook pilots numbered 133 in 1881. There were 21 pilot boats, which the pilots owned. About six pilots cruised together in one pilot boat. Pilot boats were sometimes called “Clipper Ships” because they were fast, yacht-like vessels. Pilot boats were classic sailing ships of the 19th Century, renowned for their beauty and speed. A hearing was held on March 16, 1867, on behalf of a committee of ship owners who asked that the 28th By-law of the Board of Pilot Commissioners be repealed or modified. Pilot Henderson opposed any change in the existing regulations. “Mr. Henderson claiming that a pilot who had, in the discharge of his duty, by going far out to sea to board a ship, was entitled to the privilege of taking her again out, instead of her being taken out by some velvet-footed stay-at-home, who might be a favorite and pet of the owner.” On November 3, 1867, The New York Herald listed Joseph Henderson as one of the New York Sandy Hook pilots in the article "Sandy Hook Pilots.” It talks about the duties, Pilots, Pilot Schooners of North America and Great Britain, 2001 Brooklyn Daily Eagle newspaper, March 26, 1881
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Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson
names of pilots and boats, rates of piloting, penalties and rewards, and the dangers encountered. To the pilots of Sandy Hook, the great salt water pathfinders of the metropolis, are the commercial men and people generally of the entire world largely indebted for services which, although partially paid for with money, are not always appreciated as they deserve. Few men labor so hard, run so many risks and endure such hardships as the pilots, of whose duties in detail very little is known to the public generally. Therefore some information on the subject may be found both interesting and instructive.
It goes on to say that pilots made from $1,000 to $2,000 per year. In 1860, there were 21 New York pilot boats, with four under New Jersey’s dispensation. No.
Ship Name
Tons
No.
Ship Name
Tons
1
Moses H. Grinnell
90
12
Moses H. Grinnell
90
2
Edmund Blunt
120
13
Mary Ann
70
3
Charles H. Marshall
110
14
Edwin Forrest
100
4
Washington
80
15
Edwin J. D. Jones
115
5
David Mitchell
80
16
Christian Bergh
100
6
Mary and Catherine
90
17
Fannie
80
7
Elwood Walter
100
18
Enchantress
70
8
Isaac Webb
19
Mary A. Williams
90
9
James Avery
20
Nettle
65
80
“Sandy Hook Pilots,” New York Herald, Page 8 Russell, Charles Edward, From Sandy Hook to 62, The Century Co. New York, 1929
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J. M. Waterbury
80
11
G. W. Blunt (1861)
130
21
W. H. Aipinwall
15
90
By 1867, there were 29 pilot boats with 172 pilots; and an average of six pilots to each boat. Pilot boats sailed as far as 600 miles in search of ships to guide into the New York harbor. When a ship was sighted, a pilot went aboard to guide it safely across the treacherous waters. This kind of hard work kept pilots in the open sea in all kinds of weather. Pilots referred to scouting the waters off Nantucket and Nova Scotia as “sailing the Eastern chance.” Joseph owned six Sandy Hook pilot boats at different times. Pilot boats were made of the best timber; copper fastened, and averaged 77 feet in length. Pilot boats cost, at that time, about $18,000 each, which was usually split between several pilots. Bars of iron were used for ballast. To get a pilot’s license, you had to work as a seaman for seven years or more, three of which must have been spent as ‘boatkeeper’ of a pilot boat. Then, you had to appear before the Board of Pilot Commissioners and pass an exam showing your knowledge of sailing and management of a square rigged vessel. The need for pilots increased as steam powered ships replaced sailing vessels. New developments in ship construction led to larger ships. The deeper channels required knowledgeable pilots to navigate the waterways and avoid groundings. “It was the pilots’ job to minimize the number of accidents.” If there were a lot of inbound vessels, a pilot boat might discharge six pilots in three or four days. They were often out for ten days before all the pilots were assigned to boats. Pilot boats had to be very fast. There was sometimes a race to see which pilot boat would board a steamer first. This made them excellent
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Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson
racers. “In 1851, a Sandy Hook pilot, Captain Richard Brown, won the Queen’s Cup with the schooner America, which was built based on designs for the pilot boats. The Queen’s Cup, of course, thereafter became known as the America’s Cup.” An ocean liner would start her voyage on time and with a Sandy Hook pilot as Captain-in-command. It was usually the same pilot who had boarded the steamer at sea and brought her in on her last trip to the port. The pilot would take her out again to sea, guiding the vessel through the shoals and currents of the Lower Bay and over the sandbar off Sandy Hook into the Atlantic. A short distance outside of the bar, a pilot boat would be found waiting to bring back the pilot. He usually climbed down a rope ladder over the steamer’s side into a small boat manned by a single oarsman. It was common practice for Joseph to stay onboard an outgoing vessel during heavy storms that prevented him from returning to his boat after the outer bay was reached. Pilot Boat Elwood Walter, No. 7
On May 16, 1853, Joseph Henderson was documented as one of the pilots and owners of the pilot boat Elwood Walter, No. 7, belonging to the Merchant Pilot Association. The pilot boat was named after the president of the Mercantile Insurance Company, and was built by Mr. Edward T. Williams, of Green Point. The boat weighed 90 tons and was 71 feet long.
Shaw, David W., Inland Passage On Boats & Boating in the Northeast, 1998 Page 57 Harper's Round Table, 1890, Volume 11, Page 589 ProQuest Historical Newspapers, The New York Times, pg. 3
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Joseph received his license as a Branch Pilot on the Elwood Walter on September 13, 1853, from the Board of Commissioners of Pilots. On the same day, his brother-inlaw, Morris D. Weaver, received his license on the Pilot Boat J. M. Waterbury. Branch Pilot is the highest grade that a pilot can reach. Joseph kept his license until his death in 1890. The Pilot Boat Elwood Walter, No. 7 was reported in The New York Times on August 3, 1855 in a Memorandum stating that “Elwood Walter, No. 7, reports: July 31, boarded ship S, Jones, from Cardiff, Wales for New York.” On May 20, 1858, the ship Samaritan, having sailed 31 days from Liverpool to New York, was boarded by a pilot from Pilot Boat Elwood Walter, No. 7. Pilot Boat George W. Blunt, No. 11
On December 17, 1856, Captain Joseph Henderson was listed as being one of the captains for the pilot boat George W. Blunt, No. 11. It was said that on this ship, he had fallen from the masthead. Apparently, “he sighted an unusually large vessel, and in his joyful excitement, raised both hands to his mouth to trumpet the good new below, when he fell, adding notably to his record of fractures.” The Blunt was a two-masted, 85-foot long, 122-ton schooner, fully 20 tons larger than any other boat in the Sandy Hook fleet. Her stern was ornamented with a scroll and shield, on which were displayed the national flags of England, France, and America. Russell, Charles Edward, From Sandy Hook to 62, The Century Co., New York, 1929, page 150 New York Daily Times, December 17, 1856
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Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson
On January 21, 1857, Joseph Henderson was listed as being on the George W. Blunt, No. 11, anchored at Coney Island, but hemmed in by ice. A snowstorm was reported in Brooklyn, and there were reports of shipwrecks on the coast and loss of life due to a winter storm. On 1875, the Pilot boat George W. Blunt, No. 11, sprang bleak off Gay Head and was run ashore at Jones's Inlet, twenty-eight miles of Sandy Hook. She was bilged and proved a total loss. In 1860, 21 New York pilot-boats, and four under New Jersey’s jurisdiction, plied the waters off New York. The next year, the Civil War came, and five or six vessels from the combined fleet underwent transformation into government dispatch boats. The Civil War (1861-1865)
On December 20, 1860, South Carolina seceded from the Union; by May of 1861, Mississippi, Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Virginia, Arkansas, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Louisiana had seceded as well. President Lincoln imposed a naval blockade on the Confederacy. On November 23, 1861, at the start of the Civil War, the Union Navy acquired the schooner G. W. Blunt. The Navy New York Herald, January 21, 1957
Hudson NY Daily Star, 1875
Russell, Charles Edward, From Sandy Hook to 62, The Century Co., New York, 1929, page 159
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used her as a gunboat in support of the Navy blockade of the Confederate waterways. She arrived at Port Royal, South Carolina on December 11, 1861, serving as a mail and dispatch boat for the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron between Charleston, South Carolina, Wassaw Sound, Georgia, and Fernandina, Florida. On April 19, 1862, she captured a blockade-running schooner with a cargo of cotton. She was decommissioned on June 2, 1863 but rejoined the blockading squadron off Charleston, where she patrolled small inlets and bays near the main harbor. After working on salvage duty, she was decommissioned on August 16, 1865 at Port Royal, South Carolina. In his book, From Sandy Hook to 62, Charles Edward Russell wrote about Joseph Henderson and the Sandy Hook men during the Civil War. He notes: “Among the valuable services performed by the Sandy Hook men in that contest was the guiding of naval vessels through the intricate channels of southern waters, conspicuously Albemarle and Pamlico Sounds,” which are in North Carolina. Russell continues: “In 1862 he [Joseph Henderson] was snapped up by the Federal Government to do pilot work on the southern sounds with which, it is said, he had some youthful acquaintance. His work for the Government was so valuable, ingenious, and efficient that he received not only thanks but unusual reward in bankable funds.” “The moment he had the funds in hand he went forth and invested them with singular skill and foresight, so that by 1867 he had a small but competent fortune and need not thereafter have labored at anything. Instead of a life of ease, which he might reasonably have regarded as his portion,
Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships
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Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson
Mr. Henderson insisted upon continuing his labors as a pilot, which he did.” On October 15, 1861, Joseph was listed as a pilot on the transport USS Arago. The ship traveled from Newport News, Virginia to Port Royal, South Carolina. On one occasion, the USS Arago departed Eastport, Maine and proceeded to the New York Navy Yard at Brooklyn, New York, where she received weapons. The Arago then joined the expedition destined to capture Port Royal, South Carolina. The information that she obtained provided the South Atlantic Blockading Squadron with its most important base for the remaining years of the conflict. The Arago was a schooner borrowed by the Union Navy from the United States Coast Survey during the Civil War. She was outfitted as a gunboat and deployed by the Union Navy as a picket and patrol vessel on Confederate waterways. Joseph Henderson was a pilot on the USS Fulton, a steamer that served the U.S. Navy prior to the Civil War. The Confederates captured the USS Fulton when they took the Pensacola yard on January 12, 1861. The Fulton was considered for use in the Confederate States Navy, but was never fitted out. On May 10, 1862, the Confederates destroyed her in the evacuation of the yard.
Russell, Charles Edward, From Sandy Hook to 62, The Century Co., New York, 1929, page 150 The Evening World, October 08, 1890, EXTRA 2 O'CLOCK USS Arago (1854), in Wikipedia, retrieved May 5, 2016
"Pilot Henderson Dead," The Evening World, New York City, October 8, 1890
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Pilot Boat William Bell, No 24
The pilot boat William Bell, No. 24, was built in Greenpoint, Long Island, N.Y. in the year 1863-64 by Edward F. Williams for Joseph Henderson, William Anderson, John Van Dusen, and James Callahan, all Sandy Hook pilots. A two-masted schooner, she weighed 118 tons and cost about $16,000. She was built of white oak, red cedar, and yellow pine. Her deck was without a knot, fastened with galvanized spikes, and trimmed with mahogany and brass. She was placed in commission on July 20, 1864. On August 12, 1864, the William Bell was 70 miles southeast of Sandy Hook when she came upon a steamer, which the captain believed would want to be taken into port. Since the pilots believed she was fair game for pilotage, competing pilots raced to be first at the ship’s side. The expected peaceful mission turned out to be an encounter with the Confederate raiding steamer Tallahassee. The William Bell won the race, but was captured, as well as the unsuspecting James Funk. The Tallahassee caused serious trouble for the New York Sandy Hook pilots during the summer of 1864. Confederate raider Captain John Taylor Wood’s objective in capturing a pilot boat was to secure a pilot who could take the Tallahassee through Hell Gate and into Long Island Sound. Joseph was at sea at the time of the capture, acting as pilot for the Government on another vessel.
"The William Bell, A New York Pilot Boat,” the 1969 issue of The Log of Mystic Seaport, page 17 PILOT LORE From Sail to Steam, United New York and New Jersey Sandy Hook Pilots Benevolent Associations, 1922
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On September 29, 1864, The New York Times put out an article entitled: “The Tallahassee Complete Rebel History of Her Depredations.” The article transcribes the day-today narrative from a Confederate diary about being on the pirate cruiser Tallahassee. It describes how on Sunday, August 7, at daybreak, Captain John Taylor Wood was reading service on the quarterdeck to all hands. He saw a large school of porpoises rolling and tumbling in the water. On Thursday, August 11th, the diary talks recounts capture and burning of pilot-boat 22, the James Funk, and pilotboat 24, the William Bell. On the Bell, owner James Callahan was described as a ‘gentlemanly person’; Capt. Wood endeavored to make his fate an easy as possible, which Callahan later disputed. The Confederate diary goes on to talk about the week’s conquests, which included one ship, three barks, three brigs, and eight schooners. Charles Edward Russell describes the chase of the Tallahassee against the pilot-boat William Bell. Confederate Colonel Wood sent an armed boarding party to the Bell that annexed everything movable and ordered the Bell to be burned. Captain Wood commanded, "Turpentine her and set her on fire." On August 24, 1864, funds amounting to $5,150 were received for the purchase of new boats for the pilots of the captured James Funk and William Bell. After the loss of the "William Bell,” a second "William Bell" was constructed and completed in February of 1865. On May 6, 1865, the William Bell, No. 24, was launched
Russell, Charles Edward, From Sandy Hook to 62, The Century Co., New York, 1929, page 139 “The Pilots and the Tallahassee,” The New York Times, August 24, 1864
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from the yard of Edward F. Williams, Greenpoint, New York. Her dimensions were: Length of keel, 82 feet; breadth of beam, 21 feet; depth of hold, eight feet. The price for boats had gone up because of the war, so the second William Bell cost about $24,000. She was a duplicate of the first William Bell, built for speed and strength. On March 7, 1867, the William Bell lay full of water, a mile inside the outer bar at Amagansett, Long Island. There were four pilots on board at the time she struck on the beach. She was part owned by Captain Joseph Henderson (5/16th). The vessel was reported as a total loss. On February 17, 1883, Joseph Henderson, John Van Dusen, William Anderson, and James Callahan petitioned the United States, via the Alabama Claims award, for compensation of their loss. On June 5, 1883, Henderson was compensated for $6,170.31, since he owned 5/16 shares in the William Bell. In the petition, Joseph Henderson answers several questions: Q: State your name, age, residence and occupation and when and where you were born? A: Joseph Henderson, 56 years of age: I reside in Brooklyn, N Y; I am a Sandy Hook pilot, born at Charleston, South Carolina, Sept. 9, 1826. Q: Where did you reside between the 13th day of April 1861 and the 9th day of April 1865, both inclusive? A. In Brooklyn—my home was there; I was piloting for about a year and a half in and out of New York by way of New York Herald, New York, NY, March 7, 1867, Issue: 11146, Page 7 The Court Of Commissioners of Alabama Claims, February 10, 1883
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Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson Sandy Hook, and the rest of the time was permanent pilot in the U. S. transport service between New York, Port Royal, S.C. and New Orleans. Q: Have you ever bought or sold any interest in Sandy Hook pilot boats, if so, to what extent? A. Well, I have owned in half a dozen at different timesbought and sold. Q: How long have you been a Sandy Hook pilot? A. Since the fall of 1847. Q: Where were you at the time of the destruction? A. I was at sea, acting as pilot for the Government.
Henderson v. Spofford
In December of 1869, Joseph Henderson offered his services to pilot the steam vessel Tybee out of the port of New York, leaving for San Domingo, Dominican Republic; but the shipmaster refused to employ him. The Tybee proceeded to sea without having any pilot of the port on board. The appellant Paul N. Spofford owned the Tybee. Henderson reported the Tybee incident. On February 16, 1870 a judgment was made in the district court of New York City in favor of Joseph Henderson (plaintiff) for thirty-eight dollars and eighteen cents plus the costs for pilotage fees out of the Port of New York. The law stated: “Every sea-going steam vessel, now subject or hereby made subject to the navigation laws of the United
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States, and to the rules and regulations aforesaid, (of which the Tybee was one), shall, when under way, except upon the high seas, be under the control and direction of a pilot licensed by the inspector of steam vessels.” In 1871, the judgment was appealed in the case HENDERSON against SPOFFORD, but the judgment was affirmed in favor of Henderson. The Silver Spoon
A silver spoon, believed to have belonged to Joseph Henderson, has been passed down as a family heirloom. The name “Henderson” appears on the spoon handle; the inscription on the back reads "Wm Carrington & Co." In 1830, William Carrington arrived in Charleston, South Carolina. Around 1838, he founded his own firm, W. Carrington & Co, which remained independent until 1872. I received this spoon from A. Douglas Henderson, who received it from Jerry Henderson, who is the grandson of Joseph Henderson. Jerry Henderson is portrayed in Chapter Seven titled, “Girard Brown Henderson.” U.S. Passport
On June 17, 1878, Joseph was issued a U.S. passport to travel abroad to Great Britain and Europe with his wife, Angelina (46) and daughter, Mary Ann (18).
Reports of Practice Cases, Determined in the Courts of the State of New York, HENDERSON against SPOFFORD, 1871, page 140. Reports of Cases Argued and Determined In The Court Of Common Pleas of the City and County of New York, Joseph Henderson v. Paul N. Spofford and Others, page 361
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The passport application describes Joseph as a man, age 52, height of 5 feet 3 inches, with gray eyes and gray hair. The passport lists his date of birth as September 9, 1826 and his birthplace as Charleston, South Carolina. The Brooklyn Bridge
Construction of the Brooklyn Bridge, designed by John A. Roebling, began in 1869. By 1872, the Brooklyn tower was 100 feet tall. In 1879, Captain Joseph Henderson was called upon as an expert seaman to determine the height of the water span of the Brooklyn Bridge, a new bridge from Brooklyn to New York City. Before the bridge was built, people used ferryboats to get back and forth. On Friday, March 21, 1879, The Evening Post published an article “The East River Bridge – Doubts Expressed of its Asserted Strength.” The article went on to say, “Captain Joseph Henderson, a Sandy Hook pilot, was the next witness called. He testified as to the difficulties masters of ships would experience in bringing their ships under the bridge when completed.” The next day, The New York Times printed “The Obstacles to the Bridge - Views of Engineers – Its Supposed Shakiness – The Regulation of Passenger Traffic.”
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There were glances of admiration bestowed by the inland members of the committee upon Capt. Joe Henderson, one of the oldest pilots around New York, when that mariner reeled off a lot of nautical terms in his testimony. Even the Chairman, who has learned among many other things that there is no difference in the height of masts at low or high water, a point which he has persisted in raising several times, and which has always been settled as a joke at his expense— listened intently. The pilot described the increased difficulties in navigating the East River within the last quarter of a century, not the least of which is the bridge”
The Brooklyn Bridge was opened for use on May 24, 1883. The bridge originally carried horse-drawn and rail traffic, with a separate elevated walkway along the centerline for pedestrians and bicycles. Over 150,000 showed up for the opening of the bridge. 633 Willoughby Avenue (1879-1920)
On April 24, 1874, the County Court of Kings County filed a pursuance of judgment of foreclosure and sale for a portion of a large piece of ground (Ward 21), which Joseph Henderson and Angelina A. Henderson owned, granted and conveyed unto behalf of George A. Wilhelm, his heirs and assigns. In 1879, Joseph and Angelina moved from their 983 Myrtle Avenue Brooklyn address into a brownstone house on 633 Willoughby Avenue in the Flatbush district. From 1879 to 1890, Joseph was listed as living at 633 Willoughby Avenue. Joseph lived at the Willoughby address until his death in 1890. His wife and other family members continued to live at the 633 Willoughby address for 40 The New York Times, March 22, 1879 Brooklyn Daily Eagle, pg. 4, May 13, 1874 Lathrop, Mary Anthony, Mary's Family Connections, 1979, pg. 100
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years, from 1879 to 1920. The 1920 U.S. Census shows Mary Hendrickson living at 639 Willoughby Avenue. The street numbers may have changed. The 1881 through 1888 New York directories listed Joseph as pilot, 69 South, N. Y., and home at 633 Willoughby Avenue. The 1883-1887 and 1889 editions of the Brooklyn Directory list Joseph Henderson, pilot, 309 Water N.Y, h 633 Willoughby Avenue, Brooklyn, New York. In 1909, Joseph Henderson and some of his family were listed in the Annual Record of Assessed Valuation of Real Estate for the Borough of Brooklyn, New York City. Below is a list by property owners, street numbers and the assessed value. Alex Henderson Angelina Wilcox Joseph Henderson Robert Henderson
639 Willoughby Ave 635 Willoughby Ave 633 Willoughby Ave 617 Willoughby Ave
$2,400 $2,300 $2,500 $2,400
Steamer Adelphi
On April 1, 1880, Joseph Henderson was named in a New York newspaper titled Collision at Hell Gate. Joseph was the pilot at the wheel of the steamboat Adelphi, with 200 passengers on board. A three-masted schooner, going at a high rate of speed, collided with the steamer Adelphi. The damage to the Adelphi was above the waterline. “COLLISION AT HELL GATE. THE STEAMER ADELPHI RUN INTO BY AN UNKNOWN SCHOONER – A PANIC BUT NO LIVES LOST. The steamboat Adelphi, while making her daily trip from Norwalk to this city yesterday Lain’s Brooklyn Directory, Published by Lain and Company, 1889, Brooklyn Public Library Annual Record of Assessed Valuation of Real Estate In The City of New York, 1909, Borough of Brooklyn, Section 1, Blocks 1 to 280
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with 200 passengers was run into and badly damaged by a schooner in the Sound. No lives were lost. The Adelphi left Norwalk at 8 a. m., Pilot Henderson at the wheel. Two hours later the boat had reached the open stretch of water between Fort Schuyler and Hell Gate, when a three-masted schooner under full sail was observed approaching in a zigzag course. Pilot Henderson kept steadily on his way until the two vessels were within a few hundred feet of each other. Both were going at a high rate of speed. The schooner suddenly tacked, as if to cross the bows of the Adelphi, but the time was too short. With a crash the bowsprit of the schooner plunged through the framework of the Adelphi, on the starboard side, making a hole ten feet square, and then snapped off and dropped into the water. A second plunge drove the stem of the schooner through the paddle box, tearing away the wheel beam and the ‘A’ frame.”
Steamer Otranto
On February 16, 1881, Joseph Henderson appeared in The New York Herald article entitled "Guardians of the Harbor." At a regular meeting of the Board of Pilot Commissioners, Pilot Henderson was granted permission to go to Boston on the steamer Otranto. It was most likely a British steamship. Sandy Hook Pilot Boat Company
On August 30, 1883, Joseph Henderson and four other men created the Sandy Hook Pilot Boat Company, under the Limited Liability Act, with a preliminary certificate from the Secretary of the State. The company’s mission was the ownership and control of vessels and equipment for pilots’ use in the prosecution of their businesspiloting vessels to and from the harbor and port of New York and adjacent waters by way of Sandy Hook. The proposed capital stock was $100,000, which New York NY Tribune, April 1, 1880 “Guardians of the Harbor,” The New York Herald, Feb 16, 1881
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was to be invested in boats. The company’s principal office was in New York City. On September 2, 1883, an article appeared in The Sun newspaper entitled, “Pilots forming a Corporation.” The article talks about the Sandy Hook Pilot Boat Company having filed a preliminary certificate of incorporation, with a proposed stock of $100.000. The incorporators include Joseph Henderson. On September 4, 1883, an article entitled, “The Pilots and Politics” appeared in The Brooklyn Union and talked about the pilots having the right to form themselves into an association to protect their interests. “The Pilot Commissioners have a monopoly that has been able to fix their compensation at lower rates and curtail some of their privileges. A Pilot Fee bill, introduced by the Chamber of Commerce and endorsed by other mercantile bodies, was introduced in the last Legislature to reduce the fees of the Sandy Hook pilots. The bill was defeated by the pilots getting together to explain their issues and from a $12 a plate dinner to pay for a fund of $10,000 to defeat the bill.”
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Statue of Liberty
The Statue of Liberty was a gift to the United States from the people of France to celebrate America’s 100th birthday in 1876. Frederic A. Bartholdi, a French sculptor, designed the copper statue. Joseph Henderson was expressly selected to escort the French steamer Iséré, laden with the Statue of Liberty, into New York Harbor to Bedloe's Island. His appearance on the ship was printed in several New York newspapers. On Tuesday, June 16, 1885, The New York Times published an article entitled "Liberty, Ahoy!” which said, “About ten miles off Sandy Hook lightship, a pilot boat ran close under
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the bows of an odd looking, bark-rigged propeller. Pilot Henderson got into a small boat and headed for the vessel, saying ‘She's got that big Liberty aboard.’ The next day, a New York Evening Post article printed the following heading “The Isere – Bartholdi’s Gift Reaches the Horseshoe Safely. “Pilot Henderson was taken aboard but judged that the night was too dark for safe crossing of the bar. He, however, took charge of the ship and stood offshore waiting for daylight.” On Thursday, June 18, 1885, the newspaper article, "Arrival of the Big Statue - the Isere Anchored Down the Bay," reported that on "On Tuesday Pilot Boat No. 9 was sighted and Pilot Joseph Henderson was taken on board. The bar was reached about midnight, but the night was foggy, rainy and dark, and it was deemed best to anchor until daylight, when the bar was crossed and the vessel brought to her anchorage.” That same day, The New York Herald newspaper came out with a front-page article entitled “The Isere Arrives – Bartholdi’s Statue of Liberty Brought to Anchor in the Port,” which noted: “Pilot Joseph Henderson, of the pilot boat Pet, No. 9, ran across her about ten o’clock on Tuesday night, about ten miles outside the lightship.” On Saturday, June 20, 1885, The New York Times said: WELCOMING THE STATUE. A brilliant scene on the waters of the Harbor. The Iséré Escorted to the site of the The New York Times, June 16, 1885 The Evening Post, June 17, 1885 The New York Tribune, June 18, 1885 The New York Herald, June 18, 1885
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great statue by gaily decked vessels, amid the noise of cannon and whistles. The Statue of Liberty, after many weary years of delay, reached Bedloe’s Island at 1 o’clock yesterday afternoon, snugly packed in the hold of the French transport Iséré. The transport was met off Sandy Hook by a flotilla of American craft that dotted the waters of the Upper and Lower Bays from the light of the cape to the buoy at City Point, and from Governor’s Island far out into the blue Atlantic.” It was 15 minutes after the vessels came together before a bridge was secured, and the only man that got aboard the Iséré from the Atlantic before that was Old Pilot Henderson, who jumped from the skylight down on the quarter deck, between Admiral Lacombe, Capt. De Saulne, and Lieut. Amet. Pilot Henderson, not speaking French, was somewhat embarrassed when the officers, who do not speak English, took off their caps to him, and he looked wistfully back to the Atlantic, but Capt. De Saulne slapped him on the back, and then the old pilot went aft to find a sailor who could speak English.
The statue’s pedestal was not completed until April, 1886. On October 28, 1886, President Grover Cleveland unveiled the Statue of Liberty. Steamship Celtic
On one occasion in 1886, Joseph was taken out to sea, under storm conditions, on the steamship Celtic, built for the White Star Line. While abroad, he visited every foreign steamship agent. He also formed many acquaintances, which gave him a material business advantage over his brother pilots.
The New York Times, June 20, 1885 “Captain Joseph Henderson Dead,” The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, October 9, 1890
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Martello v. Willey
On Saturday afternoon, May 7, 1887, the two and one-half ton British steamer Martello left her dock in Jersey City laded with merchandise, bound for Hull, England. “The weather was so foggy she could not go down the channel so anchored for the night in Gravesend Bay.” The next day, at 8 o’clock in the morning, the Martello left Gravesend Bay in Brooklyn and started for sea in the command of Captain Francisco E. Jenkins and Pilot Joseph Henderson. The vessel proceeded down the Swash Channel and through Gedney's Channel. “The weather was thick, but sufficiently clear to enable the buoys marking the channel to be seen.” The Martello’s engines were stopped and Pilot Henderson was discharged 40 minutes before hearing the horn of the American barkentine sailing vessel Freda A. Willey. The Willey was headed for New Haven, Connecticut with a cargo of yellow pine lumber. She had all her sails set and could do ten knots an hour. The two ships collided about 1 3/4 miles from the Sandy Hook lightship, resulting in the sinking of the barkentine Willey. The district court found both vessels to be at fault for excessive speed. However, On July 31, 1889, the Martello’s owners appealed to the Circuit Court, which reversed the District Court’s judgment and concluded that the Freda A. Willey was free from fault. The Martello was at fault for proceeding at an excessive rate of speed in a fog and was responsible for the collision and should pay $23,943.43. The suit said "Pilot Henderson has been a New York and Sandy Hook pilot for nearly forty-two years." “By the finding of the circuit court that, at the time the horn of the barkentine was heard upon the steamer, the latter was
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preceding at a speed of from five to six knots an hour. The Martello took no action to avoid the collision until after she saw the Willey looming up in the fog, which was a minute or two after hearing the horn. Under the circumstances, we think the steamer did not act with sufficient promptness.” It was said that the Willey was at fault for excessive speed and for failure to provide herself with a mechanical fog horn. Martello’s owners appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, for the collision between the Freda A. Willey and the Martello. The case was argued on March 15th and 16th 1894 and a final decision was made in favor of the Willey on April 16, 1894. Blizzard of 1888
The great storm of 1888, which occurred from March 11 to March 14, was one of the most severe blizzards in the history of the United States. Some 400 people died, including many sailors aboard vessels that were overwhelmed by gale-force winds and turbulent seas. In parts of New York City, snowdrifts reached up to the second story of some buildings. Seventeen pilot boats were out when the blizzard started. Of these, nine were wrecked near the shore, and seventeen pilots perished. “Many ships sank, with heavy loss of life. After that, pilots would, on occasion, refuse to sail out to ships in hazardous conditions.”
New York Daily Tribune, August 1, 1889 Cases Argued and Decided in the Supreme Court of the United States, The Lawyers Co-Operative Publishing Company, Rochester, New York, 1901 “Blizzard,” Wikipedia, August 21, 2014
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“Among this fleet of venturesome pilot-boats out in the gale and not heard from since is the pilot-boat Pet, No. 9. She left port twelve days ago, and when last heard from was 300 miles east of Sandy Hook. She carried a crew of six men and was in charge of Captain Joseph Henderson, one of the oldest pilots in the business.” Joseph was also on board the George Steers-designed pilotboat America, which came sailing into port, having ridden out the storm off Fire Island near Shinnecock Lighthouse. The Shinnecock Light was an important lighthouse on the south side of Long Island, New York. The name comes from the Shinnecock Indian Nation. In 1895, the New York State Board of Pilot Commissioners ordered that the New York and New Jersey pilots merge and pool their resources to coordinate their efforts and maximize safety. It is said that the pilots banded together and became known as the Sandy Hook Pilots. They did away with the schooner fleet and built the New York, the first steam pilot boat, then later added the New Jersey. Steamer Teutonic
On August 13, 1890, Joseph took the White Star Line passenger steamer SS Teutonic to sea on her first westward race across the Atlantic with the steamship liner SS City of New York. The race ended in victory for the Teutonic. The race from Queenstown harbor, Ireland to Sandy Hook, took five days, nineteen hours. The Teutonic was a 9,984 gross ton ship, built in 1889 by Harland & Wolff, Belfast for the White Star Line. After seeing the ship safely outside the Overdue Vessels Come In, New York Herald-Tribune, November 29, 1888 Inland Passage, On Boats & Boating in the Northeast, 1998 New York Evening Post, August 13, 1890
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Sandy Hook bar, the pilots were taken off and brought back to the harbor. On August 21, 1890, The New York Herald reported that Joseph Henderson was piloting the liner Teutonic, during its race against the steamship liner City of New York. US Cruiser Baltimore
On August 24, 1890, Joseph was allotted the task, an honor he was proud of, to take the USS Navy Cruiser Baltimore safely out to sea when she carried inventor Captain John Ericsson’s remains to their final resting place in Stockholm, Sweden. Ericsson was regarded as one of the most influential mechanical engineers and inventors of his time. The Baltimore was the first government vessel in seven years to employ a Sandy Hook pilot. She went down the bay at the rate of thirteen knots an hour on coal at the rate of thirty tons per day. Joseph’s Death
In what would become Joseph’s last outing, on Saturday, October 4, 1890, Joseph left home in his usual good health and sailed to Sandy Hook on board his pilot boat “America, No. 21”. During this trip, he became ill and was brought home to New York. Peritonitis set in on Monday. According to Wikipedia, “Peritonitis is an inflammation of the peritoneum, the thin tissue that lines the inner wall of the abdomen and covers most of the abdominal organs.” Peritonitis may result from an infection, often due to an inflamed appendix. New York Herald, August 21, 1890 New York Herald, Sunday, August 24, 1890, page 14
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On Tuesday, October 7, 1890, at age sixty-four, Captain Joseph Henderson died in his family home at 633 Willoughby Avenue, Brooklyn, New York of a “strangulated hernia” to the groin for which, after three days, he was operated on by Dr. William Fowler of 302 Washington Avenue, Brooklyn. His death certificate, No. 15592, says Captain Henderson died from the shock of the operation.
On Wednesday, October 8, 1890, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, The Evening World, The Evening Edition World, and the New York Herald newspapers carried notices of Joseph Henderson's death. The Evening Post wrote: DEATH OF AN OLD PILOT Joseph Henderson was one of the oldest, wealthiest, and most widely known pilots in the New York Sandy Hook service, died yesterday of peritonitis at his home in
Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson Brooklyn. Mr. Henderson was connected with pilot-boat America No, 21, and returned from a cruise on Monday last. He has been in the pilot service forty-five years, and was a Government pilot during the war. He leaves a widow and three sons. He was worth $100.000. Henderson took the steamer Teutonic to sea on her first westward race across the Atlantic with the City of New York. He it was who piloted the Baltimore to the ocean on the occasion of the Ericsson funeral. The funeral will take place from his late residence, 633 Willoughby Avenue, and will be attended by a number of shipping men, steamship officers, and the Board of Pilot Commissioners.
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle stated that: Funeral services from his late residence, 633 Willoughby Avenue, would be held Thursday evening at 8:00 o'clock. New York and Sandy Hook Pilots are respectively invited to attend. Charleston and New Orleans papers please copy.
The Evening World newspaper said: PILOT HENDERSON DEAD He was one of the oldest and best known of the Sandy Hook crew. The flag on the New York Sandy Hook pilots’ building, at 20 State Street, hung at half-mast this morning in respect to the memory of Capt. Joseph Henderson, one of the oldest pilots in the service, who died at his home, 633 Willoughby Avenue, Brooklyn, yesterday morning of peritonitis. Capt. Henderson was sixty-four years old, and had been a pilot since 1845. He had always been attached to the Sandy Hook station, and was regarded as one of the shrewdest and most efficient men in the service. During the ware Capt. Henderson was a pilot on the transports Arago and Fulton, running from Newport News to Port Royal. He was attached to the pilot boat America, No. 21, at the time of his death, and it was in this craft that Capt. Henderson was caught in the memorable blizzard of March 1888. He lay off the coast ninety miles east of Sandy Hook, The Evening Post, October 8, 1890 The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, October 9, 1890
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Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson and safely rode out the storm of Shinnecock Light. Capt. Henderson was a member of the Sandy Hook Pilots’ Benevolent Association and also of Hill Grove Lodge, No. 540, F. & A, M., of Brooklyn. He speculated in real estate in Brooklyn years ago and accumulated a fortune of $100.00. He leaves a window and three sons and three daughters. Funeral services will be held tomorrow evening at his late residence, and a delegation of his brother pilots will attend.
The New York Herald wrote: Joseph Henderson, Pilot Joseph Henderson, one of the oldest pilots in the service at this port, died at his home, No. 633 Willoughby Avenue, Brooklyn, of peritonitis, yesterday morning. He entered the pilot service in 1845 and has since that time served on various boats. He was at the time of his death attached to pilot boat No. 21, the America, and he was on the boat up to Monday morning, when he was taken home. He was thoroughly acquainted with the Atlantic cost from Maine to Texas. He was a government pilot during the war and rendered efficient service. Though for years there has been no necessity of his working, he preferred piloting to a life of ease on shore. He was on board the America during the great blizzard of 1888, when the vessel rode out the storm off Shinnecock Light. Mr. Henderson was sixty-four years old. He leaves a widow and three sons, and a fortune of something more than $100.00.
Joseph was a prominent free mason, and was a member of Hill Grove Lodge No. 540 in Brooklyn, New York. Members of the lodge were summoned to attend the funeral services. He also was a member of the Central Lodge No. 361, Free and Accepted Masons in Brooklyn, NY. On Thursday, October 9th, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle and The Sun carried front-page articles. The Brooklyn Daily The Evening Edition World, October 8, 1890 The New York Herald, October 8, 1890
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Eagle newspaper account described the life of Captain Joseph Henderson and his service as a New York Sandy Hook pilot: CAPTAIN JOSEPH HENDERSON DEAD An Old Pilot and a Long Resident of Brooklyn Passes Away. Funeral services will be held this evening over the remains of Captain Joseph Henderson, one of the oldest New York and Sandy Hook pilots, who died suddenly of peritonitis, in his 65th year, at his home, 633 Willoughby Avenue, on Tuesday. Captain Henderson had been a resident of the twenty-first ward of this city for over thirty-five years.
The Sun wrote: Joseph Henderson, the gray-bearded Sandy Hook pilot who took the cruiser Baltimore outside the Hook when she steamed away with Ericsson’s body, died at his home in Brooklyn, on Tuesday of peritonitis. He was 64 years of age, and was commissioned a pilot when he was 19. He was employed by Uncle Sam during the war. He returned from a cruise on the America No. 21 on Monday. He was on the staunch little vessel when she rode out the blizzard of Shinnecock in March 1888. He leaves a wife, three sons, and a fortune of about $100.000.
That same day, the Rev. Dr. A. Morrison, rector of St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church, conducted the funeral services for Joseph Henderson from the family home on 633 Willoughby Avenue. On Friday, October 10, 1890, Captain Joseph Henderson was buried in the family plot, lot #13244, and section 88, in the Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York.
Brooklyn Daily Eagle, October 9, 1890, page 1 The Sun, October 9, 1890
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Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson
On Sunday, October 12, 1890, Joseph's obituary appeared in the New Orleans Daily Picayune and again in the New York Herald. The obituary in the New York Herald said: HALF A CENTURY OF PILOTING The Late Joseph Henderson’s extraordinary record of disasters, accidents and lucky escapes. Joseph Henderson, the brave old salt who died last Wednesday, was the most remarkable man in the Sandy Hook pilot service as well as the oldest. His record as a pilot is set down as forty-five years, but some men on South Street remember him in 1845 as a pilot of some standing even then, so it must have been nearly half a century that he was taking vessels in and out of the harbor. He had been in more accidents than any two other pilots in the service. In his earlier days he was always getting smashed up. Pilots say he must have had most of the bones in his body broken at one time or another. When he was just beginning his career he was up at the masthead of the old George W. Blunt one day when he saw a ship. Up went both his hands as he hailed the deck and down went Henderson from the masthead. It was a wonder he wasn’t killed. He struck the stays and was sheared off from the anchor, which was just under him. He hit a yawl, had both legs broken and his front teeth knocked out. They carried him to New York, and about the time his brother pilots were going up to his house to see if he needed anything he appeared at the boat ready for duty.
Joseph’s will, dated April 11, 1887, left his entire estate to his widow, Angelina, with his six children as contingent legatees. In his will, Joseph states: I Joseph Henderson of the city of Brooklyn do make publish and declare this to be my last will and testament. I revoke all other former wills by me. I direct my Executor to pay all my just debts and funeral expenses. I give desire and bequeath
New York Herald, October 12, 1890
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all my estate real and personal to my wife Angelina A. Henderson to her and her heirs and assignees forever. I appoint my said wife Angelina to be sole Executor of this my last will and testament and authorize and empower her to sell any and all of my real estate and good and sufficient deeds to give therefore. In case, however I survive my said wife my will is as follows. I appoint the Bank and Trust Company a corporation located in the city of Brooklyn to be sole Executor of my last will and testament and direct it to pay all and just debts and funeral expenses. I give, bequeath and desire all my estate both real and personal to each of my six children, Maurice D., Joseph, Alexander D., Sarah R. Wells, wife of John H. Wells, Mary Hendrickson, wife of Charles Hendrickson, and Angelina A Wilcox, wife of Frederick Wilcox as shall service me, to them and their heirs and assignees forever, equally, share and share alike.
Joseph goes on to say, “My wife and I have from time to time made deposits in various savings Banks as trustees for our children. The amounts so deposited by both of us are to be accounted as a part of my estate, and the amount received by each child shall be subtracted from his or her share. In witness, whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal this Eleventh day of April, 1887.” The will was signed: Joseph Henderson. The entire estate was a considerable one, and according to family record, consisted principally of cash amounting to around $100,000.00 in various savings accounts in Brooklyn and New York banks. On October 15, 1890, his wife and six children signed the Probate of the last Will and Testament of Joseph Henderson. New York, Kings County Estate Files, 1866-1923 for Joseph Henderson
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On October 27, 1890, Angelina gave several notices in the Brooklyn Daily Eagle for any persons having claims against the late Joseph Henderson, in pursuance of an order of the Hon. George B. Abbott, Surrogate of the County of Kings. They had until May 1, 1891 to make such claims. There is no 1890 census record for Joseph and his family, as a fire at the Commerce Department in Washington, D.C. destroyed most of the 1890 Federal Census on January 10, 1921. The Green-Wood Cemetery
The Green-Wood Cemetery is a beautiful burial ground located in Brooklyn, New York. A long list of relatives is buried in the family plot, Lot 13244, Section 88 from the years 1862 through 1962. Cemetery records indicate that Captain Joseph Henderson purchased Lot 13244 on January 7, 1862, for Angelina’s half - brother, Maurice D. Weaver. Based on Green-Wood Cemetery records; Maurice D. Weaver’s remains were placed in a receiving tomb on January 10, 1861 and then removed to and interned in Lot 13244 on January 7, 1862. When Captain Joseph Henderson died in 1890, title to the cemetery lot passed to his children. Then, on May 28, 1942, according to a Green-Wood Cemetery sworn affidavit, title to Lot 13244 was transferred to Joseph Henderson Jr.’s two surviving heirs, Joseph and Robert B. Henderson. The Green-Wood Cemetery has sent me pictures of the family cemetery plot and tombstones, which include a large tombstone for Captain Joseph Henderson, his wife, and daughter Angelina A. Wilcox. They have been very helpful
Chapter One – Captain Joseph Henderson
in providing additional research material regarding the current title and a list of family members interned in the cemetery lot.
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Chapter Two – Angelina Annetta Weaver
CHAPTER TWO Angelina Annetta Weaver
Angelina Annetta Weaver 1833 – 1909
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J
oseph’s wife was Angelina Annetta Weaver. She was born on February 11, 1833 in New York City, the daughter of Joseph Weaver (1800–1862) and Mary Ann Diackery (1814-1844), then both of Brooklyn, New York. According to the 1880 Census, Angelina’s father was born in Italy and her mother in Pennsylvania. The “Italian Connection” was with Angelina’s father, Joseph Weaver, who was born in Italy. Her grandfather, on her mother side, was Joseph Diackery who was also Italian. His name may have been “Joseph Diacha,” which was the name listed in the 1910 Census, and “Joseph Deacary” in the 1920 Census. Joseph Diackery continued to live in New York and was listed in the New York Directory of 1830 as a “confectioner” at 390 Broadway and, in 1838 at 479 Washington Street. In the 1848 edition of Doggett's New York City Directory, Angelina’s half-brother, Maurice D. Weaver, was listed as “Pilot” at 309 Water Street. Maurice was later listed at 37 South Street. Maurice died on January 8, 1861 in Manhattan, New York at the age of 43. His address was listed as 95 Suffolk Street. On Sunday evening, February 11, 1849, sixteen-year-old Angelina Annetta Weaver married Joseph Henderson, before the Rev. Edward Lathrop, at the Baptist Tabernacle Church on Mulberry Street, near Chatham Square in New York City. Rev. Lathrop was from Beaufort, South Carolina, which is near where Joseph was born and raised as a child. The 1880 US Census; Naturalization Records in the Philadelphia Archives "New York, New York City Municipal Deaths, 1795-1949," database The Literary American, Volume 2
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Baptist Tabernacle Church was formed in 1839 by members of the Mulberry-Street Church." The marriage announcement appeared in The New York Herald newspaper on Tuesday, February 13, 1849. It reads: MARRIED On Sunday evening, the 11th by the Rev. Mr. Lathrop, at the Baptist Tabernacle, in Mulberry Street, Mr. Joseph Henderson, of Charleston, S.C., to Miss Angelina A. Weaver, of New York.
The marriage ID, 2220312882, is available on microfilm at the Family History Library, Salt Lake City, Utah and in the “Index to Marriages and Deaths in The New York Herald 1835-1855” by James P. Maher. Rev. Edward Lathrop continued his ministry on Mulberry Street until December 22, 1850, when the Baptist Tabernacle Church moved to a new building on Second Avenue, between 10th and 11th Street in New York City. In 1896, a New York Times article talks about the foreclosure of the property. “A Baptist Church Sold – Another of the Troubles of the Second Avenue Tabernacle Society.” It goes on to say that “At one time this church was one of the wealthiest Baptist societies in the United States. It has a large and rich congregation and did not want for money. But when the tide of fashion drifted up town, and the character of that part of the city about Second Avenue and Stuyvesant Place changed, the rich members began to drop away, and those who remained and the new The New York Times, October 8, 1889
“Married,” The New York Herald, Feb 13, 1849, page 4 Hansell, George H., Reminiscences of Baptist Churches and Baptist Leaders in New York City, , 1918
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recruits were less able to maintain their expensive property.” In 1928-30, on the site of the Tabernacle Church on Second Avenue, the Baptist Tabernacle Church was demolished and rebuilt. Henry Kaufman developed the fifteen-story Warren Hall, which incorporated a new home for the Baptist Tabernacle, at 162-168 Second Avenue (northeast corner of Tenth Street), designed by Emery Roth. The Church played an important role in the 1940s, as home to Italian, Polish, and Russian Baptist congregations. Today, the words BAPTIST TABERNACLE can be still be seen over the doorway at Warren Hall on 168 Second Avenue. The property is now owned by the Urban Outfitters store. In the next several sections, we will review the lives of Angelina’s and Joseph’s six children and then focus on Alexander D. Henderson, who later played a major role in the development of the California Perfume Company, which became Avon Products. Sarah Rebecca Henderson (1850-1919)
Angelina and Joseph’s first child was a girl, named Sarah Rebecca Henderson, born on May 12, 1850 in New York City. According to Doggett’s New York City Directory, the “A Baptist Church Sold,” The New York Times, 1896
Digital Collections, The New York Public Library
Loew, Karen, Hawks with a Taste for Quality Construction, March 19, 2015 From Abyssinian to Zion: A Guide to Manhattan's Houses of Worship 1900 United States Census for Brooklyn, New York, Kings County, Roll 1058, Page 109
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family was living at 93 Roosevelt Avenue. The family did not move to Brooklyn, New York until around 1853. By 1855, Joseph and Angelina were living with three children in Brooklyn. The 1855 New York State Census lists Joseph (28), Angelina A. (22), Sarah R. (5), Morris (4), Joseph (2) and servant Elizabeth McGrath (Ireland 14) living in Ward 7, Brooklyn City, Kings, New York. On July 12, 1860, at age 10, Sarah was listed in the 1860 U.S. Federal Census for New York. The census listed Joseph (32), Ann (29), Sarah (10), Maurice (8), and Joseph Jr., (6) and Cathie Ross (21 - servant) as living in the 9th Ward Brooklyn City, county of Kings. This was at 983 Myrtle Avenue, in Brooklyn, New York. On June 10, 1865, at age 15, Sarah is listed with her family in the New York State Census. The census listed Joseph (40), as living in Ward 9 of Brooklyn in Kings County with Angelina (32), Sarah (15), Maurice (13), Joseph (11), Mary (5), Angelina (2), Hannah (name later changed to Alexander) Henderson (4 mo.) and Mary Ann Fray (servant - 14). Joseph noted his birthplace as in Charleston, South Carolina. They were living at 983 Myrtle Avenue in Brooklyn at this time. On July 26, 1870, at age 20, Sarah is listed in the U.S. Federal Census. Joseph (age 46) and Angeline (36) are recorded as living in Ward 21 in Brooklyn with their three daughters and three sons: Sarah R. (20), Morris D. (18), Joseph Jr., (16), Mary A. (10), Angelina A. (8), Alexander D. (6), and servant, Mary Moaner (25). Joseph’s birthplace is listed as South Carolina and his occupation is listed as New York State Census, June 14, 1855, Index and images 1860 US Census for 9th Ward Brooklyn City, County of Kings
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Pilot. His wife is listed as housekeeper and his children are all listed as living at home. On June 4, 1880, at age 30, Sarah was still living at home. The 1880 U.S. Census, in Ward 21 on 983 Myrtle Avenue, was the first census to list where the father and mother of the head of the household were born. Joseph Henderson noted South Carolina as the birthplace of both his father and mother. Angelina noted that her father was born in Italy and her mother in Pennsylvania. The census lists the entire Henderson family: Joseph (age 52) and Angelina (48) living at home with their three daughters, Sarah R. (30), Mary A. (20), Angelina A. (18), and their three sons, Morris (28), Joseph (26), Alexander (15) and Barbra Stroller (20) Servant. Joseph Sr. was listed as "Pilot," Morris was listed as a sailmaker, and Joseph Jr. as a broker and married. Alexander was still at school in Brooklyn. On Sunday, August 15, 1880, the Rev. Charles C. Turner married Mr. John Herbert Wells and Sarah Rebecca Henderson in Brooklyn, New York. The marriage announcement mentioned that she was the eldest daughter of Joseph Henderson. They had no children. WELLS-HENDERSON On Sunday, August 15, 1880 by Rev. Charles C. Turner, Mr. John H. Wells to Miss Sarah R. Henderson, eldest daughter of Joseph Henderson, all of Brooklyn, L. L. No cards
The 1900 U.S. Census showed John H. Wells (54, salesman) and wife, Sarah R. (50), living on 200 Hart 1870 US Census, 21-WD Brooklyn, Kings County, New York, Series: M593, Roll: 961, Part: 1, Page: 349A 1880 US Federal Census for 983 Myrtle Ave., Kings (Brooklyn), New York City-Greater, New York New York Brides Record Index Results: Certificate Number 2138
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Street in Brooklyn, Kings County. The 1905 New York State Census listed John H. Wells (59) and wife, Sarah R. (55), living on 200 Hart Street in Brooklyn, Kings County. According to the New York Death Index, John H. Wells died on August 4, 1909 (Death Certificate No. 14733). He had lived in Brooklyn for the last 17 years and was from Cleveland, Ohio. Wells had been associated with the wholesale grocery firm Von Glahn & Sons. Two obituaries appeared in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle on the Thursday following Wells’ death. WELLS Suddenly, on Wednesday, August 4 1909, at his residence, 283 Hart St, JOHN H. WELLS, husband of Sarah R. Henderson. Funeral services on Friday, August 6, at 8:15 P.M., Interment private. (Cleveland O., papers please copy). JOHN H. WELLS John Herbert Wells, who made his home in Brooklyn since he was 17 years old, died yesterday at his residence, 283 Hart Street, of apoplexy. He was born in Cleveland O., and for some years had been associated with the wholesale grocery firm of Von Glahn & Sons. His widow, Sarah R. Henderson survives him. The funeral services tomorrow evening will be conducted by the Rev. Dr. Wright assistant rector of St. Matthew’s.
The 1910 US Census listed Sarah R. Wells, age 59, as a widow living as a lodger at a home on 283 Hart Street in Brooklyn, New York. On August 18, 1919, at age 69, Sarah died and was buried in the family plot at the Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York. The Brooklyn Eagle, New York, Thursday, August 5, 1909
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On August 19, 1919, a notice of her death appeared in The New Jersey Asbury Park Evening Press. It reads: “Wells, Sarah R. (Henderson) 72, 8/19/19.” The next day, The Brooklyn Daily Standard Union wrote: SARAH R. WELLS Widow of John H. Wells and daughter of the late Capt. Joseph Henderson, died Sunday at her home, 953 Greene Avenue (Brooklyn). She had lived in Brooklyn practically all her life. Funeral services were held this afternoon at her late home. Interment at the Greenwood Cemetery.
Maurice D. Henderson (1852-1923)
In 1852, Maurice D. Henderson, the oldest son, was born in New York City, most likely near Roosevelt Street. Maurice, who never married, lived with his mother at 633 Willoughby Avenue in Brooklyn for most of his life. His occupations included sailmaker and real estate broker. Maurice is listed in the 1855 and 1865 New York State Census and in the 1860, 1870, and 1880 U.S. Federal Census. The 1889, 1897, and 1902-1903 editions of the Brooklyn Directory list Maurice D. Henderson as a clerk living at 633 Willoughby Avenue, Brooklyn, New York. The 1903 directory lists Maurice’s occupation as “awnings.” On January 22, 1892, Morris D. Henderson was listed as earning a certificate for stenography, typewriting, bookkeeping, proofreading, regents, and languages. He Microfilm at the Alexander Library, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, NJ The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, 1892
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does not appear in the 1904, 1906-1907 Brooklyn Directories. On August 25, 1907, Maurice took an ad in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle that read: “LARGE and small houses to rent; apartments, floors and stores; in the Twenty-third Ward. MAURICE HENDERSON, 236 Tompkins av, near Gates.” The March 28, 1908, edition of The Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported on real estate sales by Maurice Henderson: BERGEN ST. 1233 n. s. 100 ft w Brooklyn av, 3 story, basement, cellar, brown stone dwelling. Mrs. E. Snedecor to E. Rue. PUTMAN AV. 403, n s, 200 ft w of Tompkins ave, 3 story, basement, cellar, three-family house, brown stone; Mrs. A Rich to M. Schwade. QUINCY ST. 505, 2 story and basement, cellar, brown stone dwelling; Mrs. M. S Bliss to J. J. Ritcher.
The 1910 Brooklyn Directory lists Maurice Henderson as: "M. Henderson, real estate 320 Tompkins Ave. home 639 Willoughby Ave.” On July 18, 1914, Maurice Henderson, of Brooklyn, was listed as visiting the Patchogue Inn in Patchogue, Long Island along with his sister Mary Ann Hendrickson and her husband and daughter. The article was entitled: City Dwellers Find Rest and Recreation in Long Island Resorts; Dancing and Yachting Vogue on South Shore.
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, New York, July 19, 1914
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On September 27, 1917, a property at Dunne Court and E. 7th Street was listed with the transfer of ownership to Maurice, who is listed as living at 639 Willoughby Avenue. The 1920 U.S. Census lists Maurice Henderson (60) as brother-in-law living at 639 Willoughby Avenue, in Brooklyn, with his sister, Mary Hendrickson (50), her daughter Angelina Hendrickson (30), and brother-in-law, Charles S. Hendrickson (52). On September 2, 1923, the Dunne Court property on E. 7th St. was advertised for sale by A. D. Henderson of 31 Park Place, N. Y. City. Henderson's telephone was listed in the ad. According to the Green-Wood Cemetery Catalog of Heirs, Maurice D. Henderson died on November 15, 1923. On November 17, 1923, Maurice’s brother, Alexander D. Henderson, wrote a letter to the Green-Wood Cemetery. The letter was written from Suffern, New York on First Baptist Church stationery. The First Baptist Church was located in Bloomfield, New Jersey. The letter directed the Green-Wood Cemetery to bury his brother in the family plot at the cemetery in Brooklyn, New York. In the letter he wrote, “Gentlemen, Please open grave for remains of my brother Maurice Henderson in lot no. 13244 for Saturday Nov 17, 1923 at 11:30 A. M.” The letter was signed “A. D. Henderson.” Maurice was buried at the Green-Wood Cemetery in the family plot, lot #13244 and Section #88. The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, New York, September 27, 1917 The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, New York, September 2, 1923 Green-Wood Cemetery burial inquiry results for Maurice Henderson
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On December 28, 1923, Alexander D. Henderson took out an ad in The Bloomfield NJ Independent Press, giving notice to the creditors of Maurice Henderson to provide evidence of any claims and demands against the estate within six months. On July 2, 1931, the Rockland County Leader reported, “Under the will of Maurice Henderson, bequests of $2,500 each are left to Girard Henderson and A. D. Henderson, Jr., nephews, of Suffern.” Joseph Henderson Jr. (1854-1908)
Joseph’s and Angelina’s third child, and second son, was Joseph Henderson Jr. He was born in 1854 in Brooklyn, New York. According to the New York City Directory, Joseph’s parents were living on Franklyn Avenue, between Willoughby and DeKalb Avenues. Joseph Jr., is listed in the 1855, 1865 New York State Census and in the 1860, 1870, and 1880 U.S. Federal Census. On January 6, 1876, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle carried Joseph’s marriage announcement, which read, “The Rev. Win. Platts married Minnie E. Duryea and Joseph Henderson, Jr., in Brooklyn, New York. Minnie Duryea was the eldest daughter of Elbert P. Duryea of Brooklyn. Long Island papers copy.” There is also an account of this marriage in the New York City Brides Record Index. The marriage certificate number is 41 in Kings County, and lists Mary Emma Duryea as the bride and Joseph Henderson as the groom. It also lists Bloomfield NJ Independent Press, 1923
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Mary’s mother as Alma J. Seaman and her father as Elbert P. Duryea. Mary Emma Duryea was born in Islip, Long Island on December 10, 1858. According to New Jersey June 15, 1880 U.S. Census and Green-Wood Cemetery documents, Joseph and Mary Henderson had three children. Their first child was named Joseph Henderson III, who was the grandson of Captain Joseph Henderson. Joseph was born on February 27, 1877 in Brooklyn, New York. Their second son, Robert Boyd Henderson Sr., was born in New York on July 25, 1879. So, by this time, Joseph and Angelina Henderson were the proud grandparents of two grandchildren. We also know from Church records that Joseph Henderson III, grandchild to Captain Joseph Henderson and Angelina Henderson, was baptized at St. Matthew’s Church in Brooklyn, NY on August 1, 1877. The four are listed in the 1880 U.S. Census for Jersey City, Hudson, New Jersey as: Joseph Jr. (28), Mary (25), Joseph (4), and Robert (2). Joseph Jr.’s occupation was listed as Clerk. His father’s birthplace was listed as Charleston. The family was living on 32 West Side Avenue, Jersey City, New Jersey. According to the Green-Wood Cemetery burial and newspaper records, their third and youngest son, Alexander D. Henderson Jr., was born in 1880 in Jersey City, New Jersey and died from drowning on Saturday, May 17, 1890. 1880 U.S. Federal Census for Jersey City, Hudson, New Jersey; Roll: T9_783; Family History Film: 1254783; Page: 116.2000; Enumeration District: 24; Image: 0502 Green-Wood Cemetery documents list the heirs of Joseph Henderson, who was part owner of Lot No 13244 in the Green-Wood Cemetery Church records from the Church of St. Luke and St. Matthew
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He was only 9 ½ when he died. At the time of their son’s death, the family was living at 618 Bramhall Avenue, Jersey City, New Jersey. The newspaper account of his drowning read: “While playing upon a raft in New York Bay, off Cavan Point, on Saturday afternoon, Alexander Henderson, 10 years old, of 619 Bramhall Avenue, fell overboard and was drowned. The body was recovered yesterday morning.” On May 20, 1890, the remains of their son, Alexander D. Henderson Jr., were interned in the family plot, Lot 13244 Section 88 at the Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York. On January 21, 1900, at age 21, their son Robert B. Henderson married Elizabeth E. Castell in Port Richmond, N.Y. She also went by the name ‘Lilly.’ The June 5, 1900 U.S. Census listed Robert B. Henderson Sr. (20) Elizabeth E. Henderson (20), and son Robert B. Henderson Jr., (1 month) living with his wife’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Castell, on 260 Schermerhorn Street, Brooklyn, New York. On November 28, 1904, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle carried an article about a birthday celebration for Elizabeth’s sister Emma J. Castell. Among the guests were Robert B. Henderson Jr., and other Castell family members. “A BIRTHDAY RECEPTION. On Thanksgiving night a birthday reception was tendered to Miss Emma J. Castell, at her home, 260 Schermerhorn Street, by her parents, Mr. “Boy Drowned,” The Evening Journal, May 19, 1890, page 5 New York State Marriage Certificate Robert B. Henderson is listed under births reported in 1900, Borough of Brooklyn. Certificate Number 8516
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and Mrs. E. W. Castell, and many friends, and a most enjoyable evening was spent.” On August 5, 1906 Joseph Henderson III married Jennie S. Strong in Manhattan, New York, New York. The groom's father was Joseph Henderson Jr. and mother Mary Duryea. The bride's father was Mark Strong and mother Jennie Smith. On March 23, 1908, Joseph Henderson Jr. died of pneumonia at the St. John's Hospital in Kings County, New York. He was only 54 years old. His mother, Angelina, was still living at the time of his death. His occupation was listed as Insurance Agent. His last residence was at 260 Schermerhorn Street, Brooklyn, New York. On March 25, 1908 Joseph was buried in the family plot, Lot #13244 and Section #88 at the Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York. The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, on March 24, 1908, listed the following obituary for Joseph Henderson: HENDERSON--JOSEPH HENDERSON MARCH 23, 1908, husband of Minnie E., of 260 Schermerhorn St. Funeral services Church of St. Matthew, Tompkins Ave., and McDonough St., Wednesday, at 2 P.M. On March 25, 1908, The New York Times posted a much shorter obituary for Joseph Henderson Jr., which read: HENDERSON At 260 Schermerhorn Street, March 23, Joseph Henderson. Funeral today.
1910 U.S. Census and New York Marriages, 1686-1980; film 1558669 New York Death Certificate Number #6101 The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, March 25, 1908, page 12
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Mary Emma Henderson, Joseph Jr.’s wife, remarried in 1910 to Mr. Nicholas Jones. Mary E. Jones is listed in the 1910 U.S. Federal Census for Kings County, New York. On May 27, 1914, Mary Emma Jones died. She was 55 years old. Mrs. Jones was listed as married; her last residence was at 800 West 179th Street, Borough of Bronx, New York City. The New York State death certificate number for Mary Emma Jones is #3551. This death certificate lists her mother as Alma J. Seaman and her father as Elbert P. Duryea. On May 29, 1914, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle posted the following obituary: MRS. MARY F. JONES Wife of Nicholas Jones died yesterday at her home, 800 West 179th street, the Bronx. The funeral services will be held this evening at 8 o’clock at her late residence. Before her marriage to Mr. Jones she was the widow of Joseph Henderson, Jr.
On May 30, 1914, Mary Emma Jones’ remains were interred in the Henderson family plot, Lot 13244 Section 88, front left corner grave, at the Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn. Her obituary appeared in The New York Times as “Jones, Mary E., 800 West 179th St., May 27.” The 1910 U.S. Federal Census for Brooklyn, Kings County, New York listed Robert B. Henderson Sr. (31) Lillian E. Henderson (31), and son Robert B. Henderson Jr., The Greenwood Cemetery records NYC Death Index Results, Certificate Number 3551 The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, May 29, 1914, page 3
The New York Times, May 30, 1914; (1851 - 2003), pg. 11
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(9) still living with his wife’s parents, Mr. and Mrs. Castell, on 260 Schermerhorn Street, Brooklyn, New York. During the time of WW I, Robert B. Henderson Jr. is registered with the US Veterans administration at his parents’ Schermerhorn address. The 1920 U.S. Federal Census for Brooklyn lists Robert B. Henderson Sr. (40 - waiter in restaurant), married to Lilly E. Henderson (40), and Robert Henderson Jr. (19) still living at 260 Schermerhorn Street, Brooklyn, New York. The 1930 U.S. Census for Brooklyn, New York lists Robert Henderson (51 - waiter at hotel), his wife Lilly Henderson (50), and their son, Robert Henderson Jr. (30), living at 36 Greene Avenue, Brooklyn, New York. On September 3, 1938, Robert B. Henderson Jr., married Anna Mae Snell, who was born in Peckville, Pennsylvania on June 4, 1920. Robert and Anna Mae had a son named Robert Boyd Henderson III, who was born in Brooklyn, New York on June 10, 1941. As of this writing, Robert is still living in Brooklyn, New York. A retired sales manager, he married Melvyn Vader on Sep 30, 2004 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. On March 11, 1941, Robert B. Henderson Jr. died. He is listed, as living at 695 Putnam Avenue in Brooklyn and his occupation was Electrician. He was buried at the Cypress Hills Cemetery on March 15th. In 1942, Robert B. Henderson Sr. was registered for the U.S. World War II draft registration. He was living at 16 Gates Avenue, in Brooklyn, New York. On May 28, 1942, Robert B. Henderson Sr. signed a sworn affidavit #39284 that listed the sole surviving heirs to the
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Green-Wood Cemetery family plot. The affidavit listed the addresses and names of Joseph Henderson Jr.’s two sons, who were married and both living in Brooklyn, New York. Robert B. Henderson Sr. was living at 16 Gates Avenue, Brooklyn, New York. He was married to Lillie (Castell) Henderson. Joseph Henderson III was living at 66 Bond Street, Brooklyn, New York. He was married to Jennie Henderson. On March 8, 1956, at 76, Robert B. Henderson Sr. died, per a Green-Wood Cemetery Sworn Affidavit #46847. His grandson, Robert B. Henderson III, is listed as part owner and heir to the Henderson family plot in the Green-Wood Cemetery. Robert B. Henderson III was living at 346 Hamilton Avenue, Brooklyn, New York on August 8, 1958 when the affidavit was signed. Anna Mae Henderson died on October 30, 1962, and was living at 196 Clinton Avenue, Brooklyn, N.Y. at the time of her death. She is buried in the Henderson family plot, Lot 13244 Section 88, at the Green-Wood Cemetery, in the rear right corner of the lot. According to the Green-Wood Cemetery records, Anna Mae Henderson was a widow when she died, and is the mother of Robert Boyd Henderson III, who is part owner of the family plot. Mary Ann Henderson (1861-1947)
Mary Ann Henderson was born on August 28, 1861 in Brooklyn, New York. She was also known as “Mamie” A. Henderson. She is the fourth child, and second daughter, of Joseph and Angelina Henderson. Mary Ann is listed in the 1865 New York State Census and in the 1870 and 1880 U.S. Federal Census. Green-Wood Cemetery record for Anna Mae Henderson
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Mamie A. Henderson married Charles Smith Hendrickson on October 21, 1882 at St. Matthew’s Church in Brooklyn, New York, as recorded in the Certificate of Marriage, Brooklyn #3306. Witnesses to the marriage were Mrs. Joseph Angelina Henderson and Mr. Nicholas S. Hendrickson. Charles S. Hendrickson was a wholesale produce merchant at 358 Washington Street, in downtown New York. They had a daughter Angelina (Angie) Hendrickson, who was born in July 1886. From 1887 to 1920, Charles S. Hendrickson was listed at the 639 Willoughby address. This would indicate that the family was living near Joseph’s and Angelina’s home during this time. The 1890 New York City Directory lists, “Hendrickson Charles S. produce, 196 Duane, h 639 Willoughby Ave. Brooklyn.” On February 8, 1893, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle had an article about their daughter, Angie Hendrickson, at St. Matthew’s Church: “A SUNDAY SCHOOL CONCERT. The children of St. Matthew’s Sunday school gave an entertainment in the church building at Throop and DeKalb avenues in the evening, before a large and delighted audience. Those who took part were Angie Hendrickson…” The Brooklyn city telephone directory names changed over time. The 1897 edition of the Brooklyn Directory lists, “HENDRICKSON Chas. S. com. Mer. 198 Duane N. Y. h 639 Willoughby Avenue.”
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The 1900 U.S. Census lists Charles S. Hendrickson (41), Mary (40), Angelina (14), and servant Bertha Burk (19), living at 639 Willoughby Avenue, Brooklyn, New York. On August 26, 1900, Mr. and Mrs. Charles S. Hendrickson and Miss Angie Hendrickson (age 14) were guests staying at the Grove Park Hotel in Long Island. The 1905 New York State Census lists Charles S. Hendrickson (46), Mary (45), and Angelina (19), living in Brooklyn, New York. The 1904, 1906 and 1910 editions of the Brooklyn City Directory list: “Charles Hendrickson com, mer Duane c Washn, Mhtn, h 639 Wil’by ave.” Shortly after Mary Ann’s mother’s death in 1909, an ad appeared in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle on September 16, 1909, for Conveyances: WILLOUGHBY AV, e s, 120 ft w Throop av, 20x100, A D Henderson to M A Hendrickson, quick claim. The 1910 U.S. Census lists Charles S. Hendrickson (50), Mary (49), Angelina (23), and servant Ernie Brucker (39), living at 639 Willoughby Avenue, Brooklyn, New York. On Nov. 12, 1911, an article appeared in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, which reported that: “PLAYED BRIDGE WHIST. Members of the Fort Greene Bridge Whist Club were entertained on Friday afternoon at the residence of Mrs. C. W. Hendrickson, 639 Willoughby Avenue. Cards were played from 2:30 until 4:30.” Brooklyn Daily Eagle, August 26, 1900, page 30 Upington's General Directory for the Borough of Brooklyn, City of New York, for the year 1906
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On November 13, 1912, an article appeared in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, about a Church Charity foundation holding its annual Kirmess at the Pouch Mansion on Clinton Avenue. Angelina Hendrickson appears in a picture showing the waitresses in the Kirmess Restaurant. The 1920 U.S. Census lists Charles S. Hendrickson (62), Mary (60), Angelina (30), and Maurice Henderson (60) as brother-in-law, living at 639 Willoughby Avenue in Brooklyn, New York. They were registered as Republicans in the 1919 List of Enrolled Voters, in the borough of Brooklyn. Soon after her brother, Maurice D. Henderson, died in 1923, the Hendrickson family moved from their 639 Willoughby Avenue, Brooklyn home to New Jersey. The April 8, 1930 U.S. Federal Census record lists Chas S. Hendrickson (71), Mary A. (69), and Angeline (43) living at 76 Sherman Avenue in Glen Ridge, New Jersey. Charles was listed as proprietor, Wholesale Produce. At age 44, Charles’ and Mary’s daughter, Angie Hendrickson, died. On October 12, 1930, she was buried in the family plot at the Green-Wood Cemetery. That same day, Mrs. Hendrickson wrote a letter to the Green-Wood Cemetery on Van Tassel & Roy, Inc. Funeral Home stationery (Bloomfield, N.J.), instructing the Green-Wood Cemetery to: "Kindly arrange to open grave #8 in lot #13244 for interment of my daughter Angelina Hendrickson, as per instructions of Van Tassel & Roy, Inc." The letter was signed, Mary “Henderson” Hendrickson. On January 7, 1934, Charles Smith Hendrickson died. The next day, Mrs. Hendrickson wrote a letter to the Green-
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Wood Cemetery on Van Tassel & Roy, Inc. Funeral Home stationery (Bloomfield, N.J.): "Gentlemen: Kindly arrange to re-open grave in which the remains of Angelina Hendrickson, placed, Oct. 12, 1930, in lot #13244, for interment of my husband, Charles S. Hendrickson. We are planning to arrive at cemetery office Wednesday morning, am. 10th between 10:30 and 10:45 o'clock." On January 8th, a special report was featured in The New York Times, which said: CHARLES SMITH HENDRICKSON For half a century a wholesale produce merchant at 358 Washington Street, New York, died here today at his home after a long illness. He was born 74 years ago in New York and for the last fourteen years had resided here. Mr. Hendrickson was prominent in Masonic circles. A widow survives.
On January 8th, The New York Times obituary read: HENDRICKSON At Glen Ridge, N. J., Jan 7, 1934, Charles Smith, husband of Mary A. Hendrickson. Funeral services at his home, 76 Sherman Av., Glen Ridge, on Tuesday evening, Jan 9, at 8 o’clock. Interment in Greenwood Cemetery, Brooklyn, at convenience of family.
On January 9th, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle reported: BEDFORD LODGE, No. 574, F. & A. M. – Brethren: You are requested to attend Masonic funeral services for our late Brother, CHARLES S. HENDRICKSON, on Tuesday evening, Jan. 9, 1934, at 76 Sherman Ave., Glen Ridge, N. J., at 8 o’clock. On January 9th, funeral services were conducted for Mr. Hendrickson at the family home, 76 Sherman Avenue, Glen Ridge, New Jersey.
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On April 3, 1940, Mary H. Hendrickson (80) is listed as a boarder at 49 Woodland Road in Glen Ridge, New Jersey. On November 1, 1944, Mrs. Mary A. Hendrickson, of 49 Woodland Road, Glen Ridge, N. J., wrote a letter to the Green-Wood Cemetery on George Van Tassel Community Funeral Home stationery (Bloomfield, N. J.), saying: "This will confirm my instructions to George Van Tassel, director of the Community Funeral Home, in Bloomfield, N. J., that upon my death my remains are to be placed in the grave with my late husband, Charles S. Hendrickson and late daughter, Angelina Hendrickson in lot #13244 in GreenWood cemetery, Brooklyn, N. Y.” The letter was signed Mary Henderson Hendrickson. Around 1946, Mary Ann Hendrickson moved to 2566 W. Shore Trail, Lake Mohawk, New Jersey. She died there at age 85 of a stroke on February 27, 1947. On Saturday, March 1, 1947, services were held at George Van Tassel’s Community Funeral Home in Bloomfield, New Jersey. The Rev. Charles Stires officiated at the funeral. At the time of her death, the Van Tassel Embalming Report listed her as 142 lbs., 5’ 2”, Brown eyes and gray hair with false teeth. A funeral car took her casket to the Green-Wood Cemetery, where she was buried, as instructed, in the same grave with her late husband and daughter, in the Henderson family plot at 500 25th St., Brooklyn, New York - Lot 13244, Section 88. The cost of the funeral was listed as $947.90, which 1940 U.S. Census, Essex County, Glen Ridge, New Jersey, 7-154A, Page 4 Van Tassel Funeral Home Records The Green-Wood Cemetery Catalog of Heirs 2993. The Van Tassel Funeral Home records
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was paid on March 13, 1947 by James Brunton. Mrs. James R. Brunton of 2566 W. Shore Trail, Lake Mohawk, NJ and Harry St. Clair of 58 Chestnut Road were listed under “Surviving Family” in the Van Tassel Funeral Home records. A tombstone was erected, with the following names carved in the headstone: Charles S. Hendrickson, Mary A. Hendrickson, and Angelina Hendrickson. This headstone still stands today in the Henderson family plot. The following obituary ran in The Newark Evening News (Friday), The Brooklyn Daily Eagle (Saturday), and The New York Times and Tribune (Saturday). HENDRICKSON Formerly of Glen Ridge, New Jersey at Lake Mohawk on Feb. 27, 1947. Mary A. Henderson, wife of the late Charles S. Hendrickson. Services at George Van Tassel’s Community Funeral Home, 337 Belleville Ave. Bloomfield on Saturday morning at 11:00 o’clock. Interment in the Greenwood Cemetery.
Angelina A. Henderson (1863-1903)
Angelina A. Henderson, the youngest daughter and fifth child of Captain Joseph Henderson, was born in January of 1863 in Brooklyn, New York. She is listed in the 1865 New York State Census and in the 1870 and 1880 U.S. Federal Census. Angelina lived with her parents until the age of 19, when she married Mr. Frederick Weeks Wilcox on Thanksgiving Day, November 24, 1880. They were prominent members of the Puritan Congregational Church in Brooklyn. Mr. Wilcox had two sons from a previous marriage: Stanley Tombstone on the Henderson plot at the Green-Wood Cemetery The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Nov. 9, 1888, page 4; Certificate Number 3357 (New York City Brides Record Index Results)
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Leroy Wilcox, of Brooklyn, and Fred W. Wilcox, Jr., of Chicago. Angelina’s husband, Frederick Wilcox, owned a company named Wilcox Paper Box Company, which had its main office in Chicago, Illinois. Among other unique paper products, Wilcox invented and held patents for an ice cream box and the ‘Congress-tie’ envelope, which is used for legal documents. Two of his patents were #529053 for a ‘Paper Pail,’ filed on Feb. 19, 1894, that was a paper bucket formed from a single piece of foldable material; and patent #584974, for a ‘Folding Box,’ filed on June 25, 1896, that had two parts which bent together by the end panels to form a lock for the box. On November 9, 1888, Angelina A. Wilcox petitioned for a separation from Frederick W. Wilcox. An article appeared in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, which read: "MRS. WILCOX WANTS A SEPARATION. She makes allegations of inhuman treatment against her husband. The suit for a separation brought by Angelina A. Wilcox against Frederick W. Wilcox, was set for trial this morning before Chief Judge Clement in the city court. Judge Clement granted the separation.” On January 18, 1894, Angelina filed a bill in the Circuit Court for a divorce from Mr. Wilcox, who was president of the F. W. Wilcox Paper Box Company of Chicago and New York. She charged her husband with cruelty, and said that on numerous occasions she was beaten and kicked by him.
1880 U.S. Federal Census, June 4, 1880 Official Gazette of the United States Patent Office, v.69, Dec. 25 1894 Brooklyn Daily Eagle, November 9, 1888
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On June 8, 1900, the U.S. Census listed Angelina A. Henderson, age 68, living as a widow, with daughter, Angelina A. Wilcox (38), son, “Morris” (Maurice) (46), nephew, Stanley W. Wilcox (17), and a servant, Louise Vollmer (19). They were all living at 633 Willoughby Avenue, Brooklyn, New York. Angelina’s father was listed as being born in Italy. Angelina Wilcox’s occupation was listed as ‘Stenography School.’ On June 13, 1900, a newspaper article appears in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle: "ATTACHMENT AGAINST WILCOX – His Wife Is Seeking to Recover Over $4,000 in Accrued Alimony.” The article says that on April 4th, her brother, Alexander D. Henderson, demanded from Wilcox all of the alimony to Mrs. Wilcox, but Mr. Wilcox refused payment. Mrs. Wilcox says that since 1888 she has supported herself and her child by typewriting." Two weeks later, Frederick W. Wilcox paid $4,500 in alimony, from November 1888 to 1900 to stay out of jail. Settlement papers were filed in the County Clerk's office. The headline said: “WILCOX PAYS UP. Settles his wife’s alimony for $4.500 and stays out of jail.” The 1901 New York City Directory lists the “Wilcox Paper Box Company, Frederick. W. Wilcox (President), Charles F. Wilcox (Secretary), Myron L. Wilcox (Treasurer); Capital $30,000, 258 Washington.” On September 26, 1901, an advertisement appeared in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, which read: "Select Academy, Shorthand and typewriting. 633 Willoughby Avenue near Tompkins, $5. Both sexes. Individual and class instruction. Complete preparation. Send for catalogue.” This ad also
The Trow Co-partnership and Corporation Directory of New York City, 1901
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appeared earlier in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle on September 14, 1891. At age 40, Angelina died on June 10, 1903, at her parents’ 633 Willoughby Avenue home, of tuberculosis. Her death certificate, number 10085, is listed in the Italian Genealogy Group database. She is listed as Angelina A. Wilcox, Kings County. On June 13th, Angelina was buried in the family plot at the Green-Wood Cemetery. A tombstone was later erected, with the following names carved in the headstone: Captain Joseph Henderson, Angelina A. Henderson, and their daughter Angelina A. Wilcox. On June 14, 1903, The New York Times included the following obituary: WILCOX, June 10, at 633 Willoughby Avenue, Brooklyn, Mrs. Angelina A. Wilcox, youngest daughter of the late Capt. Joseph Henderson.
On July 20, 1903, Angelina Wilcox’s brother, Alexander D. Henderson, who was her executor, entered her Probate and Will into the Surrogate’s Court of the County of Kings, New York. It listed Stanley Leroy Wilcox, of 633 Willoughby Ave, Brooklyn, as her son and heir to $5,000.00 (subject to a mortgage for $3,000.00). Stanley L. Wilcox
Stanley LeRoy Wilcox was born in September of 1882, the son of Frederick W. Wilcox. Instead of living with his father, soon after the separation in 1888 he began living with his stepmother Angelina Wilcox at the 633 Willoughby home in Brooklyn.
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The 1892 New York State Census lists Stanley L. Wilcox (9), living with Angelina A. Henderson (58), Morris Henderson (38), and his stepmother Angelina A. Wilcox (30). It records Stanley’s birthdate as 1883 and his birthplace as United States. The 1900 United State Census lists Stanley L. Wilcox as a nephew (18), living with Angelina A. Henderson (66), Morris Henderson (46), and his stepmother Angelina A. Wilcox (39). It records Stanley’s birthdate as 1882 and his birthplace as New York. Stanley attended New York University from 1899 to 1902 as Stanley Leroy Wilcox, Brooklyn, NY In the March 1900 Gamma Delta Fraternity book, he wrote an article entitled: “Chapter Correspondence Nu Epsilon New York University.” He signed the article ‘Stanley LeRoy Wilcox.’ On September 14, 1901, an article appeared in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, which talked about the “Young People’s League” of the Puritan Church on Lafayette and Marcy Avenues. The article announced a new four page “Puritan” publication. Stanley L. Wilcox, of 633 Willoughby Avenue, was in charge of collecting similar church publications. On December 6, 1903, the recent engagement of Stanley LeRoy Wilcox to Miss Irene Louise Young was printed in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Young was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Alnalle Young. The article said: “Mr. Wilcox is the only son of the late Mrs. Angelina A. Wilcox, 533 Willoughby Avenue.” Stanley and Irene married on April 3, 1904 in Brooklyn, Kings County, New York. His father, Frederick Wilcox his The Daily Standard Union: Brooklyn, Sunday, December 6, 1903
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mother, Angelina Annetta Henderson were listed as parents. The 1905 New York State Census lists Stanley L. Wilcox (22), wife and Ida Wilcox (22). It lists his birthdate as 1883 and birthplace as United States. He was living in Brooklyn, New York. His occupation was listed as advertising agent. By 1905, Stanley LeRoy Wilcox was connected with the J. Walter Thompson Company of New York, which is a wellknown marketing and advertising brand that has been in business since 1864. In the January 3, 1906 Printers’ Ink Journal for Advertisers, there was an article written by Stanley L. Wilcox, entitled: BUILDING MATERIALS – A GOLDEN CHANCE FOR ADVERTISERS. The article talks about how important it is for the builder of a new house to investigate, through advertising, the various building materials he will need, eliminating unnecessary repairs and alterations after the house is built. In the same journal, he was in charge of the advertising for two booklets from the Northrop, Coburn & Dodge Co., which compare wood, plaster, and metal ceilings. On June 12, 1907, the Printers’ Ink Journal for advertisers, said: “S. L. Wilcox is placing the advertising for National Home Remedies Company, Brooklyn, with daily papers, and Boericke & Tafel, New York City, olive oil, with dailies and trade publications.” Stanley Le Roy Wilcox, "New York, New York City Marriage Records, 1829-1940" Profitable Advertising, Kate June E. Griswold Publisher, Boston, Mass., 1905
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The April 3, 1907 to June 26, 1907 volume of the Printers’ Ink Journal for Advertisers carried the following statement: “Stanley L. Wilcox, formerly plan and copy man for J. Walter Thompson, has recently secured an interest in the business of Andrews & Coupe. He controls the following accounts: A. S. Hoyt, “Jelletac” paste; Pure Gluten Food Company; California Perfume Company; Getting & Company, perfumes; Standard Varnish Works, insulating varnishes; Boericke & Tafel olive oil, and The Sure Shot Company, corn cure, all of New York City; National Home Remedies Company, Brooklyn, and the National Herb Company, Washington, D.C.” David H. McConnell, president of CPC, purchased advertising in the leading monthly magazines for middle class women. He ran Goetting & Company perfume advertisements in some of the larger newspapers in the country. The July 3, 1907, Printers’ Ink Journal for Advertisers, noted: “Stanley L. Wilcox, New York, is using space in the New England newspapers, a series of 10, 5inch double column ads, for Goetting & Company, perfumes.” The same publication said: “The Insulator is an interesting house organ published by the Varnish Works and by Stanley L Wilcox, New York. Thirty thousand copies are sent out each issue. Advertising is being placed with trade publications and a circular campaign has been started.” Stanley and Irene had a daughter, Irene Annette Wilcox, who was born on August 17, 1907 in Brooklyn, New York. She went to high school in Brooklyn from 1921-1922 and attended the Pratt Institute, School of Fine and Applied Arts in Brooklyn from 1925-1928. On January 4, 1908, in The Fourth Estate, a weekly newspaper for publishers and advertisers, it said: “TEA AND COFFEESTRAINER, The advertising of the Cusa
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Manufacturing Company, manufacturers of the Cusa Patent Tea and Coffee Strainer, New York, is to begin this month. It will be placed by Stanley L. Wilcox of Madison avenue, this city in a selected list of metropolitan Sunday newspapers leading, weekly magazines and a few mail order papers. Both display and classified copy will be used.” David H. McConnell continued his advertisement campaign in 1908 for the California Perfume Company products. On April 1, 1908, The Printers’ Ink carried an article that reported: “The California Perfume Company, New York, has started an experimental magazine advertising campaign. A free picture of the “The C P Girl” is offered with each box of the Sweet 16 Face Powder at twenty-five cents a box. The advertisements are two inches and are appearing in the list of women’s magazines. The campaign is being handled by the Stanley L. Wilcox Advertising Agency, New York.” On July 1, 1908, The Printers’ Ink Journal for Advertisers stated: “Stanley L Wilcox, New York is placing the advertising of the Cusa Manufacturing Company, New York manufacturers of Cusa patent tea and coffee steamers, formerly called the “Gem.” The campaign will start about July 15th in a selected list of leading weekly magazines, metropolitan Sunday newspapers and a few mail order papers; both classified and display copy being used.” On January 22, 1909, at age 57, Stanley’s father, Frederick W. Wilcox, died at St. Luke’s Hospital of heart failure. He was buried in Hempstead, Long Island, New York, at the Greenfield Cemetery. For nearly forty years, he worked at The Printers’ Ink Journal for Advertisers, April 1, 1908, page 37 The New York Herald, Friday, January 22, 1909, Page 7
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the J. W. Wilcox Paper Box Company office at 109 Water Street, New York. In 1909, Stanley L. Wilcox, who resigned from the service department of the Butterick Trio, formed a serviceadvertising agency with Frank J. Coupe. The new agency was called the Coupe & Wilcox Company. Butterick Trio was a monthly magazine that advertised goods and services. Wilcox worked for Butterick Publications for a short period of time. The 1910 United States Census lists Stanley L. Wilcox (26), wife, Irene L. Wilcox (26), daughter, Irene A. [Annette] Wilcox (2), and servant, Irene Payne (22). It lists Stanley’s birthdate as 1884 and birthplace as New York. He was living in Brooklyn Ward 29, New York, and had an occupation as Advertiser. His father and mother were also listed as having been born in New York. In March of 1910, the Trow Co-partnership and Corporation Directory of the Boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx listed Stanley L. Wilcox as Secretary and Director of the Couple & Wilcox Company, New York. Frank J. Coupe was President; Arthur C. Dorrnbox was Treasurer. On May 30, 1910, Stanley L. Wilcox was involved in an automobile and carriage accident. He was living at 178 Lefferts Avenue, Brooklyn and was listed as an advertising agent at No. 261 Broadway. His wife, Irene Louise Wilcox, was 26 years old and her daughter Annette was two years old. The headline was “Women and Child Among Victims of Accident in Freeport and Only Clever Steering by Machine’s Owner Prevents Possible Deaths.” The New York Press, Monday, May 30, 1910, Page 1
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In June of 1911, the Home Pattern Company announced, “Stanley L. Wilcox, the well-known advertising man, has become associated with the advertising department of its publications, the Quarterly Style Book and the Monthly Style Books.” He had recently resigned his position as vicepresident of the Coupe & Wilcox Agency, New York City. In 1912, as an advertiser, he was secretary and sales manager of The Art Color Plate Engraving Company of New York City. The following full-page ad was placed in The Printers’ Ink journal for advertisers on October 2, 1912: THE ART COLOR PLATE ENGRAVING COMPANY takes pleasure in announcing to all who are interested in improving the Quality, Efficiency, or wider Use of Advertising and Printing in 2, 3 and 4 colors, that MR. STANLEY WILCOX is now a member of this company, and will in future service the Advertising and Publishing world in this important, specialized field as Secretary and General Sales-Manager. During the past twelve years Mr. Wilcox has been associated with the J. Walter Thompson Agency, the Coupe & Wilcox Agency, Success Magazine, the Butterick Publications and The Style Books. This experience in developing New Advertisers, in preparing Plans and Copy, and in the laying out and buying of all kinds of Art Work. Engraving and Printed Matter, is at the service of all users of “ARTCO” Color-Printing Plates who desire such co-operations. THE ART COLOR PLATE ENGRAVING COMPANY Ferdinand Hartel President, A. D. Henderson Vice President, John D. Schuller Treasurer 418-426 West 25th Street New York, Telephone Number 3888 Chelsea.
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By 1913, the Art Color Plate Engraving Co. was incorporated with John D. Schuller (Treasurer), Stanley L. Wilcox (Secretary), and Alexander D. Henderson (Director), with capital of $10.000. On Aug. 25, 1913, Stanley L. Wilcox filed patent No. USD48234S in New York for the ornamental design supporting a base for salt and peppershakers. In 1914, an advertisement noted that he was an officer of the Art Color Plate Engraving Company, as Secretary, and general sales manager. It went on, “During the past twelve years Mr. Wilcox has been associated with the J. Walter Thompson Agency, the Coupe & Wilcox Agency, Success Magazine, the Butterick Publications, and the Style Books.” The advertisement listed A. D. Henderson as Vice President and John D. Schuller as Treasurer of The Art Color Plate Engraving Company at 418-426 West 25th Street New York. The 1915 New York State Census lists Stanley L. Wilcox (32), birthdate 1883, and living in New York. The 1915 proceedings of the Board of Supervisors of the Country of Rockland, record that “Alexander D. Henderson who has a lien against a plot in the town of Ramapo, assessed to Stanley L. Wilcox, which sold for unpaid taxes and acquired by the County of Rockland at the 1912 and 1913 tax sales for $7.65 and 8.72 respectively, has applied for an assignment of the Country’s tax sale equity. The County Treasurer assigned the Country’s equity in the plot
R. L. Polk & Co., Trow New York, Co-partnership and Corporation Directory, Boroughs of Manhattan and Bronx Official Gazette of the United States Patent Office, v.220 Nov. 1915
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to Henderson for the amount of the respective sales tax, interest, penalty, and cost of deeds and redemption notice.” The 1920 US Census has a record of a Stanley L. Wilcox (37) being divorced and living as a lodger in Albany Ward 14, Albany, New York. He gave his trade as ‘Clerk’ and birthplace as New York as well for his mother and father. In September 11, 1929, Stanley and Irene’s daughter, Irene Annette Wilcox, married Russell Englis Melcher. Russell was the son of Mr. and Mrs. Josiah Russell Melcher of Englewood, N. J. The wedding took place at the Marble Collegiate Church, Manhattan. The 1930 United States Census lists Stanley L. Wilcox (45) in Middletown, Orange County, New York. It lists his birthdate as 1885 and birthplace as New York. He is listed as married, and a patient of the Middletown State Homeopathic Hospital. The 1940 United States Census lists Stanley L. Wilcox (56) as an Inmate of the Middletown State Homeopathic Hospital in Middletown, Orange County, New York. It lists his birthdate as 1885 and birthplace as New York. He is listed as married. The same 1940 New York Census lists his grandson, Russell W. Welcher (9) and daughter Annette Wilcox (32). Alexander Dawson Henderson Sr. (1865-1925)
Alexander Dawson Henderson Sr. was born on February 28, 1865 in Brooklyn, New York. See Chapter 4, which Proceedings of the Board of Supervisors of Rockland County for 1915, page 160 The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, New York, Wednesday, September 11, 1929
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recounts his life and his association with the California Perfume Company, which later became Avon Products. Angelina Henderson’s Death
On June 1, 1909, Angelina Henderson died at the age of 76, in her daughter Mary Ann Hendrickson’s residence, at 639 Willoughby Avenue, Brooklyn, New York. New York Death Certificate No. 10534 records the cause of death as "chronic endocarditis - senility," which was heart-related. She was not well for several years. On June 2, 1909, the first obituary was posted in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle: ANGELINA A. HENDERSON Angelina A., widow of Captain Joseph Henderson, an oldschool Sandy Hook pilot who died eighteen years ago, died yesterday, of diseases incident to old age, at the residence of her daughter, Mrs. Charles S. Hendrickson, 639 Willoughby Avenue. She was born seventy-seven years ago, and was one of the earliest members of the Episcopal Church of St. Matthew, of which she had always been an active supporter. She was for a long time the manager of Industrial School 5, on Throop Avenue. She leaves four children, Mrs. J. H. Wells, Mrs. Charles S. Hendrickson and Maurice and Alexander D. Henderson. The funeral services will take place at St. Matthew’s Church, McDonough Street and Tompkins Avenue, Friday afternoon, at 2:30 o’clock, the Rev. Dr. Norris officiating, and the burial will be in the family plot in Greenwood Cemetery.
On June 3, 1909, a second obituary was posted in The New York Times: ANGELINA A. HENDERSON Widow of Capt. Joseph Henderson, an old-time Sandy Hook pilot, died at her home, 639 Willoughby Avenue, Brooklyn, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, Wednesday, June 2, 1909, pg. 3
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On June 4, 1909, funeral services were held for Angelina A. Henderson at St. Matthew's Church, McDonough Street and Tompkins Avenue in Brooklyn. The Rev. Fredric W. Norris officiated. She was buried in the family plot, Lot 13244, at the Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn. A tombstone was erected with the following names carved in the headstone: Captain Joseph Henderson, Angelina A. Henderson, and their daughter Angelina A. Wilcox. When Angelina died, her four surviving children each received an inheritance of $25,000. In those days there was no inheritance tax, so each child received the money free and clear of taxes. Sarah R. Wells, “allegedly lost all her inheritance to Stanley Wilcox who allegedly was a con man.” Interestingly enough, the 1930 and 1940 U.S. Federal Census records list, Stanley L. Wilcox as an ‘Inmate’ in Middletown, Orange, New York. Maurice lost his money by investing in several losing businesses, and Mary Ann Hendrickson put her money into her husband’s wholesale produce business. Alexander invested his inheritance in a New York City warehouse and later in the California Perfume Company. In the St. Matthew Church 1931-1932 church bulletin, a Memorial section listed that one of her daughters gave a table in memory of Angelina A. Henderson. ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times, pg. 9
Henderson, Girard B., So Long, It's Been Good to Know You
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Chapter Three – Pilot Boat Pet, No. 9
CHAPTER THREE Pilot Boat Pet, No. 9
Captain Joseph Henderson’s Pilot Schooner Pet No. 9
J
oseph’s pilot boats were registered in the New York Record of American and Foreign Shipping from 1876 to 1885. For fourteen years he was commander of the pilot boat Pet. The pilot boat Pet also appears in the book, Pilots and Pilot Boats of Boston Harbor, In which the following information is cataloged about her, “The Pet, a boat of 54 tons, steered by means of a tiller, was built in 1866 by Edward E. Costigan at Charlestown, Massachusetts, for Pilot Captain Abel T. Hayden. She was in service for a
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number of years and was considered a very handsome pilot boat.” Rescuing the Emily (1872)
At 5 p.m. on October 28, 1872, Captain Joseph Henderson, of the New York pilot boat Pet, No 9, sighted the brig Emily. The crew of the Emily came on board the pilot boat Pet, which lay by the brig until 7 p.m., at which time the Emily capsized. It was not until the next day that the crewmembers were transferred from the Pet to the steamship Italy, from Liverpool, and brought to the New York port. On Nov 5, 1872, Joseph Henderson spoke at a meeting of the Board of Commissioners of Pilots in their office, No. 75 South Street, in the City of New York, about how he rescued the crew of the brig Emily. Joseph stated: Gentlemen: I respectfully report that on Monday Oct. 28, Block Island bearing North, forty miles distant, the pilotboat Pet, No. 9, it blowing a gale of wind East by North-east, fell in with the brig Emily, from Jacksonville, bound to Boston, in a sinking condition, colors flying union down: went to her and spoke to her; the master wished to abandon the vessel as the sea was making a clean breach over her and she could not float much longer. I therefore lay by her about one and a half or two hours, and succeeded in getting the crew and officers safely on board the Pet; timber was washing off and knocking around furiously all the time, rendering it difficult to use the boats safely; lay by the wreck till 7 P. M., 29th, when spoke to steamer Italy, and on reporting to Capt. Thompson, he very kindly waited to receive the shipwrecked crew and brought them to New York. New York Herald, page 10
ProQuest Historical Newspapers, The New York Times, Nov. 5, 1872, pg. 2
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The Board of Pilot Commissioners acknowledged Joseph’s effort with a resolution, which granted that a reward for such acts of personal risk be paid to the pilots for a sum of $250. Spirit of the Times (1877)
On February 3, 1877, an article from the Spirit of the Times newspaper wrote about Henderson and the pilot boat Pet: There is something attractive in the very notion of a pilotboat. It is associated with thoughts of exposure, hardship, and danger, to be sure, but undergone by men who ever with a frolic welcome take the tempest and the sunshine, and oppose mere hearts, free foreheads, and great as the risks may be, there is always a sense of security about a pilotboat, because it is manned by those who are specialists in the peril of the sea, who can detect the faintest premonition of a storm, and have weathered it out in the severest of gales. The eyes of the passengers who cross the ocean on the mammoth steamships strained, as they near the land, for the first glimpse of the tiny cockle-shell which bears the pilot, and when his foot strikes the deck of the great vessel, he is welcomed not only as a fresh-comer from the longed-for shore, but as the man of ability, to whom everything is entrusted. Nothing is too good for him. He is lord of all. Even those who have never seen the sea join in the sentiment, which attaches to pilots; in all minds they are privileged and popular members of the community. This week, in connection with a picture of the pilot-boat Pet, Joseph Henderson, Captain, we give a brief sketch, the object of which is to explain how the business of these craft is conducted in the port of New York. The Pet is selected simply as an example of her class, not because of her superiority over others, though she is acknowledged to be one of the best pilot-boats afloat. She is, like all the others, schooner-rigged, 125 tons burthen, 78 feet long, 21 ½ feet beam, 8 ½ feet depth of hold, draws 11 feet aft, and 6 ½ feet forward, and spreads about 1,800 yards of canvas to the
Chapter Three – Pilot Boat Pet, No. 9 three lower sails. The vessels of the fleet range from about 100 to about 180 tons burthen. There are 29 of them at this point, 22 licensed from New York State, and 7 from New Jersey, but all having the same privilege of running in and out of New York Harbor. The licenses are obtained from the Board of Pilot Commissioners, who in New Jersey are appointed by the Legislature, and in this State, by legislative enactment, by the Chamber of Commerce and Board of Underwriters. There is, at this port, comparatively little system in the pilotboat business. It has become a matter of individual competition, as far as incoming steamers are concerned, and their patronage is raced for as eagerly as men seek for fares at a railway depot. Each boat has its company of pilots, numbering about six or seven, generally, who, as a rule, own the boat jointly. Frequently, however, there are less forehanded pilots, who have no stock in the boat, but are merely attached to its company. The Internal economy of these little communities is regulated as follows: One-fourth of the earnings of each trip goes to the boat, and is divided among the owners, who keep the boat in repair. After the wages of the hands and provision bills have been paid, the remainder is divided equally among the pilots, who, in good times, earn about $1,500 a year. The crew of the boat consists of a boatkeeper, steward, and four men, and these always remain with the craft. When it is emptied of pilots, they speed back to port with it, and it is promptly made ready for another trip. The law of the sea, in regard to accepting pilots, is first come first served, and hence the competition. Not infrequently the pilot-boats race with each other far out on the ocean, going three or four hundred miles south, east, or northeast, in the track of approaching vessels. At such a distance from port there Is no use for a pilot, and It Is only a lack of system, which causes such needlessly long journeys. The shrewder men among the pilots are beginning to recognize this fact, and to agitate for reform. At the port of Liverpool, matters are managed very differently, and twelve pilot boats do the service there, though the commerce is greater than at New York. There are seven stations stretching out from the
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Chapter Three – Pilot Boat Pet, No. 9 Liverpool harbor, at each one of which there is always a pilot-boat, while five remain in port. In-coming vessels are supplied from the outermost station, and as soon as the pilots there are exhausted, a signal is made, the empty boat runs in to Liverpool, and the others move up a place in line, forming an endless chain. This appears a far better plan and more just all around than the “devil take the hindmost� method of the New York pilots. It is said there can be no dispute that this is the only port in the world where vessels approaching a dangerous coast can always be certain of meeting a pilot. The supply is greater than the demand, necessity urges them to enterprise, and at all times of the year, in all sorts of weather, like Mother Carey's chickens, they are to be found scudding around, on the alert for a job. The rates for pilotage are fixed by the Legislature, according to the draught of the vessel. For Incoming vessels they are: Under 14 feet draught, $3.70 per foot; from 14 to 18 feet, $4.50 per foot; From 18 to 21 feet, $5.50 per foot; over 21 feet, $6.50. To these rates one quarter is added if the ship is boarded sixteen miles or more outside of Sandy Hook, and $4 extra on each pilotage from Nov. 1 to April 1. The total pilotage for inward-bound vessels ranges from $168.75 to $178 75, and for outward bound from $16.20 to $118.75. It will naturally occur to the reader that it would be economy for the larger steamers, which make a number of round trips during the year, to engage a permanent pilot, but the objection to that is that obstructions might occur in the channel while these were out of port.
Pet Stories (1878)
On November 9, 1878, Henderson was on the pilot boat Pet, No 9, passing the sailing ship Sarah, of New Bedford, Massachusetts, which was wrecked and directly in the track
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of vessels coming from or going to the east of New York
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Harbor. On January 6, 1881, the New York pilot boat Pet No 9 and Joseph Henderson arrived at the port of Newport, Rhode
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Island. They put in for pilots and sailed back to the Port of
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New York. In 1881, the pilot manual recorded his pilot boat Pet as, “Official No. and Signal letters, 399-20-175; Name of Vessel and Master: Pet, Jos. Henderson; rig, schooner; length, 54; Hailing Port, Savannah; Breadth, 21.6, depth, 8.3; tons 56; when built, 1867; where built, Charlestown, Mass.; Owners, New York Pilots; Remarks: 0; lcf; M5, 79; last survey, New York 5, 1879.” On August 6, 1884, the pilot boat Pet, No. 9, at Newport, Rhode Island reported that they caught a gray shark 9 ½
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feet long, with a sheath knife sticking in its stomach, and a
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man’s right hand in the shark’s stomach. On March 11, 1885, The New York Times printed an article that read: A PILOT BOAT ASHORE. The New York pilot boat Pet, No. 9, mis-stayed in coming into the harbor last night during a heavy blow and went ashore in the upper harbor, near Fort Green, where she remains broadside on, exposed to the fury of the westerly gale.
On January 8, 1886, an articled appears in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle: AT SEA IN A HURRICANE. The Narrow Escape of Pilot Boat No. 9. Pilot boat no. 9, which is named the Pet, arrived in New York Monday, after having had a rough experience in a hurricane while at sea 300 miles from Sandy Hook. About three weeks ago the boat left New York for an outside cruise, having on board her captain J. Henderson, of this city. One of the party furnishes the EAGLE with the following graphic description of their sufferings and peril during the prevalence of the gale: ‘On the 26th of December, while lying to off George’s Shoals, in a hurricane, we were struck by a heavy sea, which threw the boat on her beam ends. She righted again by a miracle, having tern her sails into shreds. Our cabin was nearly half full of water when she righted. The only chance left us for our lives was to run before the gale, with our clothes all wet and no dry clothing to put on. Night closed in upon us, with a dreary prospect ahead, our stores all spoiled by salt water, that filled the storeroom, nothing to eat, with a prospect of gong to Davy Jones locker before morning. Add to this the screeching of ten thousand demons in our ears, making the night more hideous, and you have a true description of the horrors of the night that we spent on the Pet. We ran seventeen hours before the gale and found ourselves in the Gulf of Steam seven days afterward. We were supplied with provisions by the steamship Alosia, Captain Vallat, who met us at sea. Our little craft came home
Chapter Three – Pilot Boat Pet, No. 9 after being absent eighteen days, showing signs of having
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Chapter Three – Pilot Boat Pet, No. 9 been very roughly handled.’
On November 29, 1888, a newspaper account titled: "Overdue Vessels Come In - Rough Weather Reported By All. Few Of Them Seriously Damaged," talks about not hearing from the pilot-boat Pet. no. 9. She had left port twelve days earlier, and when last heard from was 300
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miles east of Sandy Hook. She had a crew of six men, and
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Joseph Henderson was in charge. On March 19, 1889, Joseph Henderson, from the pilot-boat Pet, went aboard the British steamship “Wingates” to tow it
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safely to the Sandy Hook port. The heavy seas off the east
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end of Long Island had broken the steamship’s shaft. On November 20, 1889, Joseph was commander of the pilot boat Pet, No. 9, which was lost in the Newport, Road Island harbor. The New York Times reported: A PILOT BOAT ASHORE. Pilot boat Pet, No. 9, of New York went ashore this morning on the east side of Conanicut Island, half way between Beaver Tail and Mackerel Cove. She left here at 3 o’clock and went well over to the west side of the channel passage, the wind died out. She let go her anchor, but it would not hold, and the heavy sea drove her boat on the rocks. The sea broke over her and she filled and sank. Capt. Joseph Henderson and Pilots William V. Germond and Bernard Brady, and all six of her crew came ashore in the vessel’s boats. As soon as the sea subsides the Captain will go off and strip her and wreckers will try and get her off tomorrow. The boat is a bad situation and may be a total loss.
On November 21, 1889, another report appeared in The New York Times saying: "She dragged her anchor near Mackerel Cove, Rhode Island and drove ashore, proving a total loss. The agile Henderson escaped with his life." The author Charles E. Russell reported that: “He was on the pilot boat Pet when she dragged her anchor near Mackerel Cove in the fall of 1889 and drove ashore, proving a total loss. The agile Henderson excepted with his life, and making his way on foot to Newport, saw another pilot-boat
Chapter Three – Pilot Boat Pet, No. 9
at anchor there, went on board, calmly took one of the
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berths and went to sea.” Life Aboard a New York Pilot Boat
Below is a description of the New York pilot boat Caprice. The cabin was coziness itself; a stove was firmly fixed in the center, on a brightly burnished plate of brass. On each side were a stateroom and two berths that could be closed by sides. The galley and quarters of the crew were amidships, and were divided from the cabin by a bulkhead. The crew included four able seamen, a swarthy lascar cook, a cabin boy and the boatkeeper. The latter command, the schooner, and take her back to port after all the pilots haven been put
Chapter Three – Pilot Boat Pet, No. 9 on board other vessels. But before that, the boat is under the
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Chapter Three – Pilot Boat Pet, No. 9 direction of the pilot whose turn it is to board the next ship.
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CHAPTER FOUR
Alexander Dawson Henderson Senior
“Shipping News,” New York Herald, page 10 New York Herald, page 10 Worcester Daily Spy newspaper (Worcester, MA), Volume 39, Issue 189, Page 1 The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, 1886 New York Herald-Tribune, New York, NY, Page: 3 New York Herald-Tribune, New York, NY, Page: 4 Russell, Charles Edward, From Sandy Hook to 62, The Century Co. 1929, page 151 Pilots: Pilot Schooners of North America and Great Britain, WoodenBoat Books, 2001
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Alexander Dawson Henderson Sr. 1865 – 1925
M
y great-grandfather was Alexander Dawson Henderson, Sr., who was the sixth and last child of Captain Joseph Henderson and Angelina Annetta Weaver. He was born on February 28, 1865. His parents were living at 983 Myrtle Avenue, Brooklyn, New York at the time. Not much is known of his early childhood. He is listed as only four months old in the 1865 New York State Census and six years old in the 1870 U.S. Federal Census. The 1880 census lists Alexander D. Henderson as sixteen years June 1865 State Census for Brooklyn, New York
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old, going to school and living with his parents at 983 Myrtle Ave, Brooklyn, New York. At eighteen years old, he graduated from the Brooklyn Central Grammar School for boys in 1883. The Central Grammar School opened in September of 1878, and was located on the corner of Court and Livingston Streets in downtown Brooklyn. On November 28, 1886, at age 21, Mr. Alexander D. Henderson hosted the opening reception of “The Orchis” at his residence, 633 Willoughby Avenue, at 9 o’clock in the evening. This may have been a coming-out party for young Mr. Henderson, who chaired the Reception Committee for the event. It included dancing, music, and refreshments. Among those present were: Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Henderson, Mr. Maurice Henderson, Mr. and Mrs. Charles Hendrickson, and Mr. and Mrs. Frederick Wilcox. Miss Sadie E. Schuller and Mr. John D. Schuller also attended the party. Alexander was 25 when his father died on October 7, 1990. He continued to live with his mother at the family home on 633 Willoughby Avenue in Brooklyn. The 1888 through 1890 editions of The Brooklyn, New York Directory state that Alexander D. Henderson was living at 633 Willoughby Avenue. His occupation was listed as clerk. The same New York directories list his father as pilot and Maurice D. Henderson as clerk. Union Warehouse Company
In 1890, the year his father died, Alexander became Secretary at the Union Warehouse Company. The Union Warehouse was a very large building located in New York City, worth over $100,000.00. Alexander’s salary was The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, pg. 50, March 21, 1909
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$100.00 a week. This was a large amount of money in those days. On March 15, 1891, Alexander loaned Mr. Edward. B. Bartlett $25,000 and received notes of the firm and stocks and bonds as collateral security for payment. These notes were payable to the order of Mr. Alexander D. Henderson, and were endorsed to his mother. Mr. Bartlett was a stockholder and member of E. B. Bartlett & Co. On May 1, 1892, Mr. Bartlett entered into a written agreement with Alexander to sell 250 shares of the Union Warehouse Company stock at its par value of $100 per share. By the terms of this agreement, Alexander was to take the stock and pay the sum of $25,000. Bartlett agreed that at any time prior to May 1, 1894, on thirty days’ notice in writing, he would take back the stock at its par value, in which event he would pay interest upon the purchase price at the rate of 6% per annum, and was to receive under such circumstances all dividends paid or accrued thereon. During this time, Alexander was devoted to his mother, and had breakfast with her before he went to work. He was also the advisor and management force behind his mother’s “fortune,” and she relied chiefly upon him. The money invested in the warehouse was “family” money, which he inherited when his father died, but was actually in his mother’s name. A misfortune occurred on May 24, 1894, when Mr. Edward B. Bartlett of the Union Warehouse died. The headlines in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle read: "A BIG BROOKLYN The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, pg. 1, December 13, 1897 Official Edition, Reports of Cases Heard and Determined in the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Marcus T. Hun, Reporter, 1938
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FIRM FAILS." The article said that Mr. E. B. Bartlett had died two weeks earlier, which resulted in Bartlett & Co. going into debt to its creditors, including the loans made by Mr. Alexander Henderson in 1891. The insurance company refused to honor the loss claim, resulting in Mr. Henderson’s losing his $25,000 investment in the warehouse and his position as Secretary. On June 9, 1894, Alexander was mentioned in an article with the headline “THE BARTLETT FAILURE – No Statement Will Be Ready Before Monday Afternoon or Later. A. D. Henderson, Secretary of the Union Warehouse Company, said his force was doing everything it could in the statement. Work would go on tomorrow, and things would be in shape by Monday afternoon, if possible.” Because of this bad luck, Alexander was left with no job, a wife and a child to support. His hair turned white overnight. For the first time, the family was faced with no income. Alexander learned a lesson from this experience, and coined the following expression, “You will never be out of work; you will always have a job, even if you are only shoveling coal down a chute, if you keep one eye on the coal shovel and the other eye out looking for a better job.” On December 15, 1897, the money invested with Mr. Bartlett and the Union Warehouse was recovered by winning a suit brought against Mr. Bartlett. The Brooklyn Daily Eagle carried an article that read: VERDICT FOR $30,300 In the suit of Angelina A. Henderson against Maria H. M. Bartlett, widow of the late E. B. Bartlett of the Union Warehouse, tried before Justice Jesse Johnson and a jury in the Supreme Court, to recover $25,000 and interest for loans The Evening World, June 9, 1894, Page 2
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Chapter Four – Alexander Dawson Henderson Senior to Mr. Bartlett, the jury at 6 o’clock last evening returned with a verdict for $30,300, the amount claimed. The plaintiff alleged that her son, A. D. Henderson, an employee at the Union Warehouse Company, as agent for her, loaned $15,000 to Mr. Bartlett on March 15, 1891, and $10,000 on March 24 of the same year.
In 1898, the case, Henderson v. Bartlett, was published in the report of cases determined in the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York. Angelina A. Henderson was listed as the "Respondent" in the case against Maria H. N. Bartlett, as Executrix of the Last Will and Testament of Edward B. Bartlett, Deceased, Appellant. St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church
Like his father, Alexander Henderson Sr., was a member of the Church of St. Matthew in Brooklyn. A staunch churchgoer, he was listed many times in the local newspaper regarding his involvements with St. Matthew’s Church. On, May 19, 1886, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle announced: “ANIVERSARY – THE ORDER OF NEXT WEDNESDAY’S PARADE. The committee of the Brooklyn Sunday school Union to organize an anniversary parade. Alexander D. Henderson was an assistant marshal for Section 4, St. Matthew’s P. E. Church.” On Saturday, June 1, 1889, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle announced a “BIG PARADE – Sixty thousand Sunday School Pupils will March.” Schools in the area assembled in the churches. Alexander D. Henderson was one of the assistant marshals for the Tompkins Park Division. The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, pg. 4 Reports of Cases Heard and Determined in the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of the State of New York, July Term, 1898
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On March 25, 1899, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle published a notice about the St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church, saying that with the endorsement and approval of the Rev. A. A. Morrison, rector of St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church, the young men of the church had formed the “Young Men’s Association” of St. Matthew’s Church. Membership in this church must have been important, since Joseph Henderson III, the great-grandson of Captain Joseph Henderson and son of Joseph Henderson Jr., was a third-generation member. On April 5, 1899, The New York Times announced that Alexander D. Henderson Sr. became Vestryman of St. Matthew's Church in Brooklyn during the Easter Vestry Elections. On June 7, 1890, Alexander D. Henderson Sr., as a member of St. Matthew’s P.E. Church in Brooklyn, helped arrange the reception held in honor of the Rev. Fredric W. Norris as the new Pastor of the church. According to The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, “The room was very prettily decorated with American flags, palms, flowers, and Chinese lanterns. The Rev. and Mrs. Norris received the guests at the left of the main entrance and under a bower of palms and plants.” On March 27, 1900, Alexander D. Henderson Sr. attended a reception and dance at the Hotel St. George in New York City given by Mr. N. M. Roberts. About one hundred and fifty guests were present. The St. George, which occupied a full city block, once drew celebrities and athletes congregating in its many ballrooms.
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, June 7, 1900, Page 8
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In the Easter church elections from 1901-1903, The New York Times announced, Alexander D. Henderson of St. Matthew’s Church was re-elected Vestryman. On April 15, 1903, an article appeared in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle titled “ST. MATTHEW’S FREE OF DEBT Easter offering of $1,200 Devoted to the Building Fund.” A. D. Henderson Sr. was elected Vestryman for the church. On April 7, 1904, an article appeared in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle titled “EASTER ELECTIONS.” A. D. Henderson Sr. was noted as Vestryman at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church on Throop Avenue. On July 23, 1905, the St. Matthew's Church on Throop Avenue near Pulaski Street joined the Church of the Epiphany on McDonough Street near Tompkins Avenue. The Church of the Epiphany was valued at $100.000. The consolidated parish was called the Church of St. Matthew. Alexander D. Henderson became one of the Vestrymen for the newly enlarged church. The newly enlarged parish acquired the property at Tompkins Avenue and McDonough Street when the alliance took place. In 1906, Alexander D. Henderson Sr., living at 171 Midwood Street, was listed as Churchwarden and Vestryman at the Church of St. Matthew, which was now located at the corner of Tompkins Ave. and McDonough St. On April 7, 1907, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle published an article entitled “EASTER ELECTIONS,” A. D. Henderson was again elected Vestryman at St. Matthew’s Church. Diocese of Long Island, Journal of the Fortieth Convention, 1906
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On October 17, 1908, Alexander D. Henderson was mentioned as church Vestryman and part of the consecration of St. Matthew’s Church located at McDonough Street and Tompkins Avenue. Henderson participated in the effort to relocate the church and establish a building fund, which grew to $50,000. On May 26, 1909, A. D. Henderson was mentioned as part of St. Matthew’s 50th anniversary celebration. Rev. F. W. Norris delivered an address congratulating those present upon the church’s good condition. In his speech, Alexander reminisced about the church and its parish. On April 20, 1910, at an annual dinner for the St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church’s Men’s Club, Alexander D. Henderson was elected as one of the governors of the Church. The Men’s Club dined at the Hotel Bossert, which is located at 98 Montague Street in Brooklyn Heights. It was the fourth annual dinner of the club. On May 4, 1910, a New England supper was served in the parish hall of the Episcopal Church of St. Matthew, McDonough Street, near Tompkins Avenue. Alexander D. Henderson was one of the speakers; his topic was the “High Cost of Living.” The March 25, 1919 St. Matthew Church bulletin describes the 60th Anniversary of the church. "The rector stated that so far as he was able to discover, two persons only, whose wills have been probated, have devised and bequeathed legacies to the church. They are Angelina A. Henderson and Margarita S. Demarest. Funds in varying amounts have The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, May 26, 1909, page 6 “A New England Supper,” The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, May 4, 1910, page 24
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been contributed to the church by the living in memory of the departed, and they are not forgotten. Mrs. A. D. Henderson was listed." The memorial section of the St. Matthew Church bulletin for Easter, 1932, showed that Angelina’s daughter, Sarah R. Wells, gave a table in memory of Angelina A. Henderson and that a Communion Service was offered in memory of Captain Joseph Henderson. Today, St. Matthew’s Church is part of the Church of St. Luke and St. Matthew, located at 520 Clinton Avenue, Brooklyn, New York. The California Perfume Company
As the Victorian Era's conventional attitude toward using cosmetics shifted at the close of the 19th Century, the perfume business took its first steps toward becoming a major manufacturing enterprise. This section focuses on the rise of a new company called the California Perfume Company, which was originally founded by David H. McConnell. The CPC was officially established in 1888 and incorporated in 1905. McConnell was born in Oswego, New York on July 18, 1858. In 1877, during school vacations, he became a ‘book agent’ selling magazines, greeting cards, and book sets door-to-door for Charles L. Snyder of the Manhattan New York book-selling agency called Union Publishing House.
Church Notes from the records of the Church of St. Luke and St. Matthew Church bulletin from the records of the Church of St. Luke and St. Matthew
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In the summer of 1878, at age 20, McConnell left his father’s farm to become a full-time salesman for the firm, earning $40.00 per month plus commission and expenses. He worked at Union Publishing House for nine years and held several positions within the company. From 1882 to 1884, he was general manager of the New York office. He worked in Chicago’s main office, and at the Atlanta, Georgia branch from 1884 to 1886. In 1881, Charles Snyder published the book Decorum A Practical Treatise On Etiquette and Dress of the Best American Society under the Union Publishing House of Chicago’s imprint. McConnell started out as a “drummer,” which means a salesman who peddled merchandise from a wagon, door-todoor, farm to farm. He traveled to New England on horseback selling titles such as Pilgrim’s Progress and The American Book of Home Nursing. While selling books of knowledge to farmers from house to house, Mr. McConnell discovered that by offering prospective clients a small vial of perfume as a means of getting his foot in the door, he attracted immediate attention. In fact, the perfume attracted more attention than the books! McConnell soon realized that the farmer’s wife was more interested in the perfume than the books. Autobiographical notes entitled David H. McConnell, Avon Archives
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In August 26, 1884, a Union Publishing House post card announced the delivery of the book The Water World. On July 8, 1886, a Union Publishing House Envelope bore the address 126 Chambers Street, New York. In 1888, Mr. McConnell purchased the Union Publishing House for $500.00 when Mr. Snyder moved to South America, and later on to California. Mr. Snyder, McConnell’s employer and personal friend, gave McConnell a loan for $500.00. McConnell said, “On my return from Chicago, I purchased the entire business from my employer and managed it myself for some time. During this time the one thing I learned successfully was how to sell goods to the consumer.” On July 6, 1888, D. H. McConnell’s name was on the Union Publishing House’s letterhead with the title Treasurer and General Manager. Persis Foster Eames Albee of Winchester, New Hampshire was McConnell’s first employee and sales representative. The fifty-year-old woman welcomed the chance to sell perfume as a second career, earning income to raise her two children. She was one of his top saleswomen from the book business. She pioneered the company’s now famous faceto-face “direct selling” method. “She could sell perfume just as well as books, and soon became his ‘depot manager,’ in charge of recruiting, training, and managing other saleswomen. The company started out with a staff of four: Albee, McConnell, McConnell’s wife Lucy, and a stenographer.” During this time, McConnell developed the business in a small office at 126 Chambers Street, in lower Manhattan. A Brief History of the California Perfume Company, 1903 Verveer, Melanne and Azzarelli, Kim K., Fast Forward: How Women Can Achieve Power and Purpose, 2015
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The business grew rapidly. Soon, it occupied two floors of the building on Chambers Street. By 1890, McConnell, now president, had developed a company that was to become the origin of a multi-billion dollar cosmetics company. In 1892, Snyder wrote letters to McConnell describing California and suggested that he change the name of the business from the Union Publishing House to the California Perfume Company, because of the great abundance of flowers in California. Mr. McConnell had a sizable sales force selling books, so in 1892, he asked them to help introduce a new scheme for selling perfumes and extracts. To distinguish his company and representatives from drummers and peddlers, McConnell created an all-female sales force, which worked and sold in their hometowns. They were called “Depot Agents,” because they often lived in towns with a railroad depot. Most agents were married and needed flexible hours and extra income. Each agent earned a straight 40% commission. Perfume, at this time, was a blend of floral fragrance with alcohol. In the early days of the company, McConnell himself blended all of the company's perfumes. On March 29, 1895, Josephine Sawyer, a secretary at the Union Publishing House on 126 Chambers Street, helped McConnell, when his hands and face caught fire as he was pouring alcohol from one bottle to another and a flame from a gas jet ignited the alcohol. McConnell was taken to
McConnell, Sr., D. H., A History of the California Perfume Company, 1903, Page 8 Interview with David McConnell, Sr., April 15, 1936. Avon Archives, IE7, 1936
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the Hudson Street Hospital. He was treated and released with only his hands having suffered appreciably. In 1894, Alexander answered an advertisement in The New York Times for a bookkeeping job for David Hall McConnell. The Outlook magazine said: “Mr. Henderson ranks next to Mr. McConnell for he became associated with the Company on May 30th, 1894.” Alexander was hired at a salary of $15.00 a week. This was a lot less than the $100.00 a week he had been receiving, in his previous position, as Secretary of the Union Warehouse. The rapid growth of the CPC necessitated the establishment of branch offices and warehouses. In 1895, the Luzerne, Pennsylvania branch was opened, with Judson D. Tiffany in charge. Tiffany offered to pay Mr. McConnell a royalty fee to operate the perfume business in the state of Pennsylvania. The Tiffany agreement became very successful, and volume increased because of this expansion. It must have been interesting to work in a company and watch it grow. It was like a “startup” that we have today. The CPC was a family company; there is no doubt that Mr. McConnell and Mr. Henderson were the architects of it. By the close of 1896, the California Perfume Company was well on its way to greatness, led by a true visionary and exceptional entrepreneur, David H. McConnell. Under McConnell’s seasoned leadership, and with the joining of Alexander D. Henderson as McConnell’s business partner in
The New York Times, March 29, 1895 The Outlook, Roll of Honor, 1922
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1895, the California Perfume Company was definitely set for great success! The company was expanding, and more capital was required to keep up with its rapid growth. As the perfume business flourished, McConnell raised Henderson’s salary. This made Henderson feel prosperous once again. In 1896, one of the CPC’s first products was called the Little Dot Perfume Set, which included five fragrances: Violet, White Rose, Heliotrope, Lily-of-the-Valley, and Hyacinth. They were natural perfumes made of the flower and by the process used by French perfumers. CPC soon added flavoring extracts to the line, which were produced with the same chemical process used to make perfumes. These included vanilla, peppermint, and almond. The first all text catalog was produced on November 2, 1896. William Scheele was hired in 1897. The Outlook magazine said: “Mr. Scheele entered the organization on December 13th, 1897, thus becoming an advocate of the theory that there is no such thing as back luck in ‘13’.” Goetting & Company
In 1896, McConnell hired Adolph H. Goetting as his Chief Chemist. Goetting was a German immigrant with 25 years of experience in the fragrance industry. He had operated his own successful business, Goetting & Company, from 1871 until 1896, when McConnell purchased the business. Goetting now mixed the essential oils and alcohol to assemble the vials of perfume. All the perfumes and The California Perfume Company: Part I The Earliest Years, by Russell L. Mills, July, 2012 Grant, Tina, International Directory of Company Histories, Vol. 19, 1896
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extracts were manufactured, packaged, and shipped from the office on 126 Chambers Street in New York City. Goetting began to make other items such as talcum powder, sachet powders, and toilet waters, and the line expanded as the “ladies” knocked on more and more doors and rang more and more doorbells to sell their perfumed cosmetics. McConnell continued the manufacture and distribution of these products under the Goetting label through 1909. In 1906 and 1909, A. D. Henderson and D. H. McConnell were documented as representing Goetting & Co when attending the annual Perfumers' Association Convention. The company was listed at 31 Park Place, New York. CPC Plant
In March 1897, contractor Harley Wanamaker constructed a 3,000 square-foot plant or “laboratory” at Suffern, New York on Fair Street. This facility developed and manufactured fancy soaps and perfumes, which greatly expanded operations and manufacturing capability. When it opened in December of 1897, twelve people were employed. The first $500 day was also recorded in December of 1897. Alexander came to Suffern in 1905 to be close to the laboratory and plant David McConnell had built to develop and manufacture the company’s perfumes for the California Perfume Company. The CPC plant soon occupied the entire four-story warehouse for offices and shipping rooms used to American Druggist Pharmaceutical Record, Volume 48, 1906 CP Historical Overview, www.californiaperfumecompany.net, 1895
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manufacture the perfume. Each floor was 4,800 square feet. Over time, the plant had nine additions! New Businesses
Mr. McConnell and Mr. Henderson were opening new businesses and were connected with the following companies:
Goetting & Co. (David H. McConnell & Alexander D. Henderson) 126 Chambers Street McConnell D. H. & Co. (David H. McConnell & Alexander D. Henderson) 126 Chambers Street Mecca Oil Co. (N. Y.) (David H. McConnell, Pres. Alexander D. Henderson Treas., Capital, 450,000, Directors: David H. McConnell, Alexander D. Henderson, Edward P. Fowler, William H. Carey, Frederick Roosevelt, Frederick Crane, Montague Douglas, C. C. Bowles), 126 Chambers Street Mutual Manufacturing Co. (N. Y.) (David H. McConnell, Pres. Alexander D. Henderson. Sec. Capital $3,000. Directors: David H. McConnell, Alexander D. Henderson) 126 Chambers Street South American Silver Co. (David H. McConnell & Alexander D. Henderson) 126 Chambers Street
On July 30, 1897, The New York Times announced: “New Companies Incorporated. Mutual Manufacturing Company of New York City, to manufacture jewelry, silverware, and household articles: capital stock, $3,000. The directors were: Alexander D. Henderson and Elijah H. May of Brooklyn, and David H. McConnell of Suffern.” So, The Throw Co-partnership and Corporation Directory of the Boroughs of Manhattan and the Bronx, City of New York, March 1909 ProQuest Historical Newspapers The New York Times, pg. 2, 1897
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McConnell and Henderson sold jewelry, silverware, and household items under the name of the Mutual Manufacturing Company. The company continued through the 1910s-1920s. Also In 1897, another company, called the South American Silver Co., was working out of the CPC New York office at 126 Chambers Street. McConnell was now selling tableware. In the “Documents of the Assembly of the State of New York, McConnell avowed: “We are more than satisfied that if you should adopt this line of tableware that you will find it to give you better service for the money than anything you have ever tried. Hoping to receive a favorable reply from you shortly, we beg to remain, Sincerely yours, SOUTH AMERICAN SILVER CO Per D. H. MCCONNELL” For example, there were several flatware patterns marked “So. Am. Silver Solid.” Some of the flatware was marked “D. H. Mc C & Co.” There was also an ad: D. H. McConnell & Co. Manufacturers and Dealers in Gold Aluminum Table Ware, 126 Chambers Street, New York. On April 3, 1898, an ad appeared in The Philadelphia PA Inquirer. “AGENTS WANTED. Everywhere; send your address; we guarantee success of every man or woman reading this; we furnish everything; don’t miss our wonderful offer; full information free, Mutual
Documents of the Assembly of the State of New York, 1899
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Manufacturing Company. 126 Chambers Street, New York.” In April 1897, the California Perfume Company published the first issue of the Outlook, its catalog-cum-magazine. McConnell wrote an opening story about Depot Managers. Alexander D. Henderson was recorded as Treasurer. In 1906, the catalog described 177 different products. In 1898, the California Perfume Company employed 5,000 women going door to door, selling perfumes and other cosmetics, cookbooks, moth repellents, shoe and furniture polishes, shaving soaps, and headache cures. The company expanded to New Jersey, and in 1898 saw the opening of the San Francisco office. By 1900, 48 Traveling Agents recruited and trained over 6,500 door-to-door Sales Managers. Agents were selling perfumes, extracts, vegetable colorings, tooth tablets, shampoo, witch hazel and almond balm creams, baking powder, olive oil, silver polish, and furniture polish. In 1901, the book The Authentic Life of William McKinley was published by the California Perfume Co. It was the last book published from the 126 Chambers Street CPC offices. In 1903, the Kansas City Branch opened. In 1905, Good Housekeeping Magazine published the company’s first print ads. The first color catalog was produced in October of 1905. In 1909, the New York City CPC offices at 126 Chambers Street were moved to 31 Park Place, at the corner of Church Street in the heart of Manhattan. 1963 Oswego-County Historical Society, 1963
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On June 16, 1909, an agreement was made between David H. McConnell and Alexander D. Henderson as partners trading as D. H. McConnell and Company, Goetting and Company, and California Perfume Company to sell these holdings over to the California Perfume Company, a corporation of the State of New Jersey. The bill of sale was for $220,000.00. Prizes were given to representatives with the highest monthly orders. For example, in July 1911, CPC offered a Brush Runabout automobile to the representative with the highest six-month sales record. Effie Miller of Stayton, Oregon won the Runabout on $1,088.43 of CPC sales. On February 20, 1913, Alexander and McConnell were plaintiffs in a successful suit against the City Trustees of Kings City, California for enforcing an ordinance to impose a “license tax of $25 a day on all solicitors for retail trade not having a fixed place of business in the city.” This was reported in The San Francisco Chronicle with the headline: "Court Enjoins Charging of License for "Drummers." In 1914, the first international CPC office was opened in Montreal, Canada. On May 7, 1915, The New York Times announced new incorporations, which included the “California Perfumery Co., Jersey City, to deal in perfumery, toilet preparations, $5,000: Alexander D. Henderson, William Scheele, William H. Carey, all of Jersey City.” The CPC Company Officials included: William Scheele CPC Secretary and General Manager, Alexander D. Henderson CPC Treasurer, and
Hagley Museum and Library, 1909
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David Hall McConnell CPC President. Up until then, the company had been a sole proprietorship. On September 29, 1915, A. D. Henderson and D. H. McConnell came in their cars to downtown Suffern to help fight a fire. Firemen and policemen rescued two hundred people during the blaze, which destroyed a block of frame buildings on Main Street. In January of 1916, when Mr. McConnell needed to raise more capital to handle the expansion of the business, Mr. Henderson offered to invest his own money. He invested $25,000 in the company, acquiring one-quarter of the entire stock. This was a very good investment; both men and their families prospered. On January 28, 1916, the California Perfume Company was incorporated in New York State. An announcement was placed in The New York Times: “California Perfume Co., Suffern, perfumes, cosmetics, flavoring, extracts, fruit juices, household supplies, carry on business with $75,000: W. Scheele, A. D. Henderson, D. H. McConnell, Suffern.” From 1916 to 1921, David H. McConnell and Alexander D. Henderson appear as directors of the California Perfume Company Employees' Savings and Loan Association, 31 Park Place, New York, N. Y. In 1917, the Mecca Oil Company appeared in the First Annual Report of the State Oil and Gas Supervisor of California: “Mecca Oil Company, Bakersfield Cal. D. H. ProQuest Historical Newspapers, The New York Times, pg. 17 The Evening World, September 2, 1915, Page 1 Annual Report of the Superintendent of the Banking Department of the State, 1916
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McConnell President, A. D. Henderson Secretary, April 23, 1901, $450,000 Kern, County. MECCA OIL COMPANY N0 2, Bakersfield Cal, D. H McConnell President, A. D. Henderson Secretary July 9 1912, $100,000, Seven wells, Kern, County.” Wallace J. Alley joined the CPC in 1918 as secretary and assistant to Henderson. When Henderson died in 1925, Alley became Secretary and Treasurer of CPC. In 1920, CPC reached $1 million in sales. At the end of 1922, CPC was earning $280,000 on sales of $1,205,000, giving them net earnings of $215,000. In this report, under Accounts Receivable, A D Henderson, Sr., was listed with an account receivable for $2,000.00. On May 3, 1923, the auditing firm Hurdman and Cranstoun issued a report on the books and records of the California Perfume Company. On December 11, 1924, William Scheele died, which was a great loss for CPC. As General Sales Manager, he was in charge of all sales. Mr. Scheele was a young man in his thirties, and died of complications from an appendectomy. Mr. Alonzo E. Williams, manager of the Western division of the CPC New York Office, succeeded him as Secretary and General Sales Manager. On August 10, 1926, CPC moved to 114 Fifth Avenue, New York. On May 1, 1928, CPC introduced its first “Avon” brand products, which included a toothbrush, powdered cleanser, vanity sets, and talcum powder. Sales representatives were active in all 48 U.S. states. First Annual Report of the State Oil and Gas Supervisor of California, 19171918 1936 Avon Annual Report
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In 1929, CPC reached $2,500,000 in sales. The number of sales representatives grew from 16,000 in 1920 to 25,000 in 1929. CPC had created a complete “Avon” line. Each package had a blue and silver design. During the great depression, CPC experienced sluggish sales in 1930 and 1931. By 1930, Mr. McConnell Sr. started to take a back seat to corporate decision-making. His son, David McConnell, Jr. took over as Vice President after his graduation from Princeton. On January 20, 1937, David H. McConnell Sr. died at his home in Suffern, New York at age 78. His son, David McConnell, Jr. became the new President Around 1937, the company changed its name from California Perfume Company to Allied Products, Inc. On May 25, 1937, Allied Products, Inc. moved its headquarters to the 47th floor of 30 Rockefeller Plaza in New York City. On October 6, 1939, the company changed its name to Avon Products Inc. Today, sales representatives number about five million. Avon products are sold in over 100 countries around the world. Some of the patents filed by the California Perfume Company included: Manko, Katina L., Now You Are in Business for Yourself: The Independent Contractors of the California Perfume Company, 1886-1938, page 15
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Design for a font of display letters, Grant USD104541S Design for a cap for bottles, jars, Grant USD102368S Design for a bottle, Grant USD103051S Combined bottle and stopper, Grant USD119304S Design for a jab, Grant USD103050S Mecca Oil Company
The Mecca Oil Company was incorporated in New Jersey on February 7, 1901, with property located in the Kern River Field at Bakersfield, California. By 1912, McConnell and Henderson were operating 20 wells on 60 acres of property in the Kern River Oil District outside of Bakersfield. Dividends were paid from 1908 to 1922. Officers and directors included D. H. McConnell and A. D. Henderson. In 1920, The Mecca Oil Company was headquartered at 31 Park Place New York City. Their California address was Box 293 Bakersfield. D. H. McConnell was President, and A. D. Henderson was Secretary. Mecca Oil Company’s production in 1921 totaled 48,297 barrels. In 1922, Mecca was listed again: “MECCA OIL COMPANY No. 2. Bakersfield Cal. D. H. McConnell President, A. D. Henderson, Secretary, July 9, 1912, $100,000, Seven wells, Kern County.” On January 27, 1926, The Fresno Bee announced that the Mecca Oil Company would sell its 20 oil wells in Seventh Annual Report of the State Oil and Gas Supervisor of California Moody's Manual of Railroads and Corporation Securities, Part 2, published in 1922 Summary of Operations California Oil Fields, San Francisco, July, 1921
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Bakersfield, California for $155,000 to the Associated Oil Company. Manufacturing Perfumers' Association
The Manufacturing Perfumers' Association (MPA) was founded in 1894 by five individuals and led by New York perfumer Henry Dalley. It included Bowles Colgate, who was President of Colgate & Company. One factor for establishing the Association was the extremely competitive nature of the industry at the time. However, Dalley's reason for bringing together a group of colleagues was pending Congressional legislation that would increase the tariff on imported raw materials, affecting the cost of producing perfumery and toilet goods. Annual meetings began on October 2, 1894, which was the first organization meeting. To give you an idea how the industry was changing, “the number of U.S. firms manufacturing perfumery and toilet goods increased from 67 in 1880 to 262 in 1900. This represented a nearly 400-percent increase over that 20-year period. The value of products jumped from $2.2 million in 1880 to more than $7 million in 1900.” As early as February 5, 1903, Alexander was mentioned at the Ninth Annual Meeting of the Manufacturing Perfumers' Association, held at the Down Town Club, 60 Pine Street, New York City. Henry Dalley was the Secretary and at this time, A. D. Henderson was an active member present at the meeting representing Goetting & Co. In December of 1908, the Manufacturing Perfumers’ Association published the seventh edition of Trade Names Statistics from the Department of Commerce Annual Meeting of the Manufacturing Perfumers' Association, Volume 9
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of Perfumes and Toilet Articles. Henderson, as Chairman of the Committee on Fraternal Relations, wrote the preface to this edition, saying: The object of this work, containing approximately 1,438 registered and 2,423 unregistered trade names, making a total of 2,861, has been to record all trade names in use in the United States and those registered at the United States Patent Office Washington, D. C., to the end that duplication may be avoided. At the Convention held in 1908 it was recommended that the Committee on Fraternal Relations, in issuing future editions of Trade Names, include all trade names of perfumes and toilet articles in use in the United States, including geographical names, and excluding only names of common flowers.
This document listed all the trade names being used by the California Perfume Company. Some of these included: Jockey Club, Sweet Sixteen Face Powder, California Bouquet, The Proceedings of the Fifteenth Annual Meeting of the Manufacturing Perfumers’ Association of the United States was published in April of 1909. A. D. Henderson was one of the members in attendance in New York City during the April 13, 14, and 15 meetings, as Chairman of the Committee on Fraternal Relations. He provided a report of the Committee on Fraternal Relations, and also served on the Committee to report on a plan for the Death Benefit Fund. In April 1913, the Proceedings of the Nineteenth Annual Meeting of the Manufacturing Perfumers’ Association of the United States was published. A. D. Henderson attended Trade Names of Perfumes and Toilet Articles, Manufacturing Perfumers' Association of the United States, 1908
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in New York City on April 22, 23 and 24, along with David H. McConnell. Henderson was one of the Officers, elected as Secretary representing Goetting & Co. William A. Bradley was elected president; A. B. Calisher became Treasurer. Henderson retained the Chairmanship of the Fraternal Relations committee. In the president’s address to the membership of the Manufacturing Perfumers’ Association, Bradley said: “Mr. A. D. Henderson, as Secretary of the Association and Chairman of the Committee on Fraternal Relations, does his work so well and with so little noise that he is often overlooked. The book of proceedings of the eighteenth annual meeting was published this year at an earlier date than ever before, and is a testimonial to Mr. Henderson's devoted services.” Alexander said in his Report of the Secretary: “Mr. President and Gentlemen: Your Secretary presents herewith the annual report covering the membership of the Association.” He also presented the report of the Committee on Fraternal Relations: “Mr. President and Gentlemen: During the past year we have added 201 unregistered names and 192 names registered at Washington to our list, so that the original Seventh Edition with supplements covering the years 1909-1910-19111912, and the first supplement for 1913, issued April 1st, contains 5,285 registered and unregistered names.” In the business proceedings, Alexander made a report regarding the Ready Relief Fund: “This being a special committee, I have no written report, but will state that on June 4, 1912, at a meeting of the Executive Board, the Board requested your Secretary to look into this matter and report to the Execute Board.” He continued:
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Chapter Four – Alexander Dawson Henderson Senior I think it is but timely that we should consider under the heading of New Business whether we want a Ready Relief Fund connected with our Association. We have discussed this subject for two or three years, and as you know we started out with a plan, only to find out that we were going contrary to the laws of the State of New York. But as I read in my report to the Executive Board we discovered a way whereby, by making the amount given to the beneficiary but $100, we can carry out a ready relief fund. I think it is quite opportune now for us to decide whether we want to have a Ready Relief Fund, with an amount equal to $100, of insurance. I think, Mr. President, that we should decide that question now, before we take up the matter further, as to whether or not we shall make any changes in our Constitution and By-Laws, which we will have to do, should we decide to have the Ready Relief Fund. It is true that two or three years ago you did vote in Convention that you wanted a Ready Relief Fund, and left it to the Executive Board to formulate such Ready Relief Fund. I myself have met some members who felt that it was not necessary to have this fund in our Association. I have heard from others, however, that it was very desirable, that we have in our midst men—and we cannot tell but what we may be one of them ourselves—whose families, in the event of their death, would be very glad to receive $100 at such a time of stress, when funds are not always quickly available and are very much needed. The plan as outlined means a very slight expense on the Association, as each member of the Association is entitled to a membership in the Ready Relief Fund without any charge, and other members of such firms and corporations are entitled to membership by the payment of $1.00 assessment on the death of any member of the Society, so if we if we had fifty members, on the death of one member, the Association will pay $50, and the other members will contribute $50. It is not for me to recommend, or to make any suggestions, but for you to give thoughtful consideration to the fact, that, should we have an unfortunate member in our midst, at some
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time in the future, who might die in circumstances of a somewhat straightened nature, whether the benefit which would go to his family from this ready relief fund would not be doing a wonderfully good service at a very small expense. With reference to what my friend Mr. Merrell had to say, with regard to the work of changing our Constitution and By-Laws, do not let that stand in your way, because that would be a small matter.
The proceedings go on to vote on and pass the Ready Relief Fund. Alexander brought up the ‘Amendment to the Constitution and By-Laws as to Method of Electing Members,’ the ‘Outline of Proposed Work of Postal Express Federation,’ and the ‘Report of the Committee on Fraternal Relations.’ He also outlined the proposed work for the Postal Express Federation for the coming year. This included such things as changes in the postal rates. Alexander was re-elected as Secretary and said at the meeting: "Gentlemen, I thank you for making me your Secretary again. I feel very much honored in having been nominated and elected. I hope to serve you to the best of my ability this year, and I thank you.” (Applause) The Index to The American Perfumer and Essential Oil Review Vol. VIII (March 1913 - February 1914) was an index of monthly journals devoted to perfumery, soaps, and flavoring extracts, and mentions Henderson numerous times. For example, the May 1913 issue of the journal published a report of the “Nineteenth annual convention of the Proceedings of the Nineteenth Annual Meeting of the Manufacturing Perfumers' Association, 1913
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Manufacturing Perfumers’ Association of the United States, held in this city in the rooms of the Whitehall Club on April 22, 23, and 24 with the president, William A. Bradley, in the chair and Alexander D Henderson at the secretary's desk. The business sessions were more interesting and productive than in several previous conventions and the banquet proved to be an entertaining feature of the meeting.” The journal shows pictures of the officers, including A. D. Henderson as Secretary, along with President Bradley, two Vice --Presidents, and a Treasurer. The journal quoted from the annual meeting, which included: “Mr. HENDERSON: I feel that the great majority of the members of the Manufacturing Perfumers Association of the United States have felt that one of the great detriments to our business has been the severe competition we have had with foreign made goods. That is one of the things which we have fought tooth and nail since this organization was started. I believe we have made a constitution and by-laws that will be lived up to by all our members. I think they should be made so that we can live up to them and everybody treated alike.” The April 1916 edition of the American Perfumer and Essential Oil Review Journal had the following account: “California Perfume Co., of New Jersey has filed a certified copy of its charter to manufacture and deal in perfumery, toilet articles, and flavoring extracts in San Francisco. Capital stock, $5,000; 40 shares at $100 each; amount subscribed, $1,000. Place of business, Jersey City, N.J. Subscribers: A. D. Henderson, 8 shares; Wm. Schuler, Wm H. Carey, 1 share each.” Active members included David The American Perfumer and Essential Oil Review, 1913-14, Vol. 8, pages 57, 58, 64
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H. McConnell and Alexander D. Henderson for the California Perfume Co., New York City. The April 1918 edition of the American Perfumer and Essential Oil Review Journal listed active members as D. H. McConnell and A. D. Henderson for the California Perfume Co., New York City. According to Proceedings of the Twenty-Sixth Annual Meeting of the Manufacturing Perfumers’ Association, A. D. Henderson was nominated for President of the association. Mr. Bradley spoke at this meeting and said: “He is one of the oldest members in our Association, a man of long experience, and I would like to see his name included in the nominees for President, if there is no objection on the part of the members.” This edition lists the California Perfume Co. at 31 Park Place, New York; and Alexander D. Henderson as Vice-President and Treasurer. In the ‘Index to The American Perfumer and Essential Oil Review Vol. XVI (March 1921 - February 1922)’, the May 1921 edition has Henderson listed as an active member along with D. H. McConnell representing the California Perfume Co. Henderson appeared in the July, 1921 edition in an article about a special meeting of the Tariff Committee.
The Index to The American Perfumer and Essential Oil Review, Vol. XI, (March 1916 - February 1917) The Index to The American Perfumer and Essential Oil Review, Vol. XIII, (March 1918 - February 1919) Proceedings of the Twenty-Sixth Annual Meeting of the Manufacturing Perfumers’ Association, 1920 Index to The American Perfumer and Essential Oil Review Vol. XVI (March 1921 - February 1922), Perfumer Publishing Company
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In 1922, the Manufacturing Perfumers' Association was renamed the American Manufacturers of Toilet Articles (AMTA). Art Color Plate Engraving Co.
In 1915, William Scheele, CPC’s general manager, designed a new Color Plate Catalog, which cost over $10,000, a large amount for a small company. The catalog displayed products in full size and exact packaging. In August 1915, the Art Color Plate Engraving Co was incorporated by John D. Schuller Treasurer, Capital $25,000. Directors included Alexander D. Henderson and David McConnell, 418 W 25th Street, New York. Hatfield Auto Truck Company
McConnell and Henderson partnered with Arthur S. Hoyt to launch the Hatfield truck business. In March of 1912, the Hatfield Auto Truck Company of Elmira, N. Y. incorporated, with capital of $1,500,000. The incorporators were David H. McConnell, Alexander D. Henderson and Arthur S. Hoyt. In 1913, the Hatfield Company outgrew its headquarters and moved to Middle West, Pennsylvania. 174 Pulaski Street (1897 – 1905)
Mr. Alexander Henderson Sr. and his family lived at 174 Pulaski Street in Brooklyn, New York, for about eight Polk's New York Co-partnership and Corporation Directory: boroughs, Page 57
Elmira NY Star Gazette, 1912
Operation & Maintenance, Published by Chilton Class Journal Co., 1912
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years, from 1897 to 1905. The house was a multiple occupancy home that encompasses 2,715 sq. ft. and was built around 1897. The 1897 and 1898 editions of the Lain's Directory listed Henderson as: “HENDERSON Alex. D. mgr. h 174 Pulaski.” The 1899 and 1902-1904 editions of the Brooklyn Directory list Alexander D. Henderson as manager, living at 174 Pulaski Avenue, Brooklyn, New York. The 19031904 Directories list Henderson as working at the 38 Murray Street, Manhattan offices. The 1900 U.S. Federal Census listed the Henderson family as living at 174 Pulaski Street in Brooklyn, New York: Alexander Sr. (36) and Ella B. (35), Alexander Jr. (5), and servant Mary Kiley (23). In 1904, Alexander Dawson Henderson was listed in the Brooklyn Directory at 38 Murray Street, Manhattan, New York. His residence was listed at 174 Pulaski Street in Brooklyn, New York. In the Directory of Directors in the City of New York, Volumes 1903-1905, Alexander D. Henderson was listed at 38 Murray Street as Secretary and Director of the Goetting & Co. and Mutual Manufacturing Company. Midwood Street (1905 – 1910)
By 1905, the family had moved from 174 Pulaski Street to 171 Midwood Street, Brooklyn, New York. See Chapter 7 for more details about Girard B. Henderson. The house is a single-family home that contains 2,932 sq. ft. and was built in 1905. Upington’s General Directory of Brooklyn, New York, 1902, Published by George Upington, Brooklyn Public Library
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On September 10, 1905, an ad appeared in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle that read: “BUILDERS CORNER PLOT. S. E. corner Throop av and Pulaski st; 100 feet on Throop av, 125 feet on Pulaski st. Inquire A. D. HENDERSON, 126 Chambers st., New York.” The 1906-1908 Brooklyn Directory shows Henderson as "Alex D. Henderson Sec. 126 Chambers St. Manhattan. h 171 Midwood." Note that the street numbers may have changed, because the 1908 city directory lists the street address as 142 Midwood. On May 20, 1908, Alexander put an ad in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. “WANTED two combination horses for ladies to ride and drive; must be safe; also double harness, A. D. HENDERSON, 142 Midwood st; tel, 632-R Flatbush.” On July 6, 1908, an article appeared in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle newspaper: “WHERE BROOKLYNITES SPEND THE SUMMER - Mrs. A. D. Henderson, whose home is at 142 Midwood Street, will remain at Suffern, Rockland County, N. Y. for the season.” On March 21, 1909, The Brooklyn Daily Eagle ran an article about Henderson’s graduation from school: “THE CHUMS OF '83, an organization composed of graduates of the class of 1893, Central Grammar School, now the Boys High School, held their annual dinner at the Crescent Club on Saturday evening, March 13, the twenty-sixth anniversary of their graduation. No set speeches were made, those present indulging in reminiscences of school days.”
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, New York, Sunday, March 21, 1909
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On February 20, 1910, Mr. and Mrs. A. D. Henderson and Master Henderson were reported as staying at the Hampton Terrace Hotel, Augusta, Georgia. On May 22, 1910, A. D. Henderson took out an ad in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle: “BROUGHAM and double harness; cost $400 short while ago; sell for $125; can be seen at Weller’s: Flatbush av car. Malbone St. A. D. HENDERSON, owner, 142 Midwood St.” The 1910 Brooklyn Directory listed Henderson as "Alex D. Henderson Sec. 126 Chambers St. Manhattan. h 142 Midwood." The 1910 U.S. Census lists the Henderson family as Alexander Sr., age 45, Ella B., age 42, and their two sons, Alexander Jr., age 15, Girard B. age 5, and Lizzy Martys (servant – age 15) living at 142 Midwood Street, Brooklyn, Kings, New York; Ward 29. Suffern, New York
Suffern is a small town in Rockland County, New York, which is near the New Jersey State line. In 1993, D. H McConnell and wife, Lucy (Hays), moved to Suffern, New York. Because of the expansion of the CPC Company, in the spring of 1897, McConnell built a 3,000 square foot laboratory and plant on Fair Street in Suffern, NY to develop and manufacture his fragrances. By 1902, two large additions to the building were needed to keep pace with the demand for his products. The Erie Railroad brought summer tourists, which included Mr. and Mrs. Henderson. They came to Suffern in 1905 as summer visitors and boarders at Tilton’s Hotel, which was a very famous boarding house in those days. This hotel is on property now owned by Avon Products. They did not move The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, New York, February 20, 1910, page 41 Avon Company History, Page 1
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permanently to Suffern until after Mr. Henderson’s mother, Angelina, died in 1909. The Erie Railroad allowed Henderson to commute into New York City in one hour. Suffern became a center of business, community, and social life for the McConnells, the Hendersons, and the company families who were friends and neighbors. Mr. McConnell had a son and two daughters. Mr. Henderson had two sons Alex and Jerry. Through the years, the three boys were all associated with Avon Products. After his mother Angelina’s death in 1909, Mr. Alexander Henderson hired an architect, Mr. William Hoar, to draw up plans for a home he wanted to build on fourteen acres of farmland a mile out of Suffern, New York. The house, built by a contractor named Charles Wannamaker was completed in 1910. According to the 1920 New York Census, the house was located at 173 South Monsey Road, Suffern, New York; near the Nyack Turnpike (Route 59). The house was a large Georgian style home, which sat on the hill at Campbell Avenue and the Nyack Turnpike. A butler and household cook accommodated the household. Mrs. Henderson (Ella Brown) had a fourteen-acre working farm with a dairy cow, large vegetable garden, icehouse, stocked fish, and a huge greenhouse. She ran a wellappointed house in the manner of the day, with fine silver, crystal, dishes, the best of linen, and oriental rugs. A postcard was made of the Hendersons’ Suffern home, looking at the residence from the bottom of the driveway. The printing at the top of the postcard reads: "Residence of Mr. A. D. Henderson, Suffern, N.Y."
Suffern Free Library, Suffern, New York, postcard, 1931
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Suffern House, Campbell Avenue, Suffern, N. Y. In Mrs. Henderson’s room hung a picture of Captain Joseph Henderson in a large gold frame. He apparently looked like Andrew Carnegie, with a square face, sideburns, and chin whiskers. There was also an oil painting in the downstairs hall over the fireplace of the pilot boat Pet, No. 9. The hall was large enough to sit in. The Suffern home was razed in 1941. Mr. Henderson and Mr. McConnell worked well together. They both had a religious background, a compulsive sense of ethics known in the Protestant concept of religion as a dedication to “good works,” and they both had a sympathetic regard for others, especially people who worked for them. They believed in the value of work themselves, and promoted the idea in others. There was no playing baseball on the Henderson’s front lawn on Sundays, or any playing of cards in the house. This was also true of the McConnells. On August 24, 1913, Mr. and Mrs. A. D. Henderson, A. D. Henderson Jr., and Master G. B. Henderson were reported
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as staying at Clifton Beach in Patchogue, Long Island, a village on the south shore. In January of 1914, the Hendersons and McConnells went to Florida for a two-week vacation. Mr. McConnell and Mr. Henderson were ardent golfers and thoroughly enjoyed playing the game. The children stayed in New York as boarders in school. Also, in 1914, Alexander was listed as Secretary and Chairman of the Committee on Fraternal Relations of the Manufacturing Perfumers Association and a member of Goetting & Co of 31 Park Place, New York (established 1872). Mr. David H. McConnell was also listed. The following picture shows Alexander Henderson, Adolph Goetting, and David H. McConnell together in 1914.
The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, August 24, 1913, page 36 Proceedings Twentieth Annual Meeting of the Manufacturing Perfumers' Association, 1914
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Henderson, Goetting, and McConnell The 1915 New York State Census lists Alexander D. Henderson (50), Ella B. Henderson (47), Alexander D. Henderson Jr., (20) and Jerry (10), living in the village of Suffern in Rockland County. Alex and Jerry were listed as in School. On Friday, December 3, 1915, an ad appears in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle about their home on 142 Midwood Street, which meant that Henderson still owned the home while living in Suffern. The ad read: WILL SACRIFICE 142 MIDWOOD STREET Chance for Broker To Make Quick Sale Terms to Suit A. D. Henderson 31 Park Place, N. Y.
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The 1920 U.S. Federal Census lists Alexander D. Henderson (55), Ella B. Henderson (52), Alexander D. Henderson Jr., (25) and James, their butler, living at 173 South Monsey Road, Suffern, NY, Rockland County. According to the Suffern newspaper, “when Mr. Henderson selected Suffern as his permanent home, he became interested in every movement that spelt progress for the community. He was for many years a member of the vestry of Christ Church in Suffern. He was a member of the Board of Governors of the Houvenkopf County Club”. State Charities Aid Association
From 1915 to 1924, A. D. Henderson of Suffern was listed as President of the State Charities Aid Association, Central Office at 105 East 22nd Street, New York City. He was involved in the Rockland County Agency for Dependent Children in Spring Valley, New York. The agency’s objective was to assist the county superintendent regarding the poor in Rockland County and in the care of State-dependent children. Mr. Henderson was interested in the American Red Cross, giving it much time and thought. He later became Chairman of the Red Cross drive for funds during World War I in the Ramapo Valley. He held a dinner at the local inn “where pledges were offered which totaled over $50,000, success beyond the fondest expectations of his associates.”
New York Legislative Documents, 142rd Session, 1920 Annual Report of the State Board of Charities, 1916
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On December 9, 1916, Henderson was at a meeting of the Board of Managers of the Rockland County branch of the State Charities Aid Association was held in Nyack, New York. On April 28, 1917, the Rockland County Times reported that, A. D. Henderson gave the welcoming address for the Rockland County Society banquet at the Hotel Astor in New York City. He was the Rockland County Society president. On December 15, 1917, Henderson was on the Ramapo Chapter of the Red Cross membership Christmas drive committee for new members. D. H. McConnell and A. D. Henderson were listed as Suffern members.
Rockland County Times, December 9, 1916 Rockland County Times, December 15, 1917
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In 1918 and 1920, the Rockland County branch of the State Charities Aid Association reported record sales of the Red Cross Christmas seals: $1,200 in 1918 and $2,984 in 1920 to help in the war against tuberculosis. A. D. Henderson was listed in the committee. In April 15, 1921 and May 28, 1821, the Rockland News and the Rockland County Times reported that the Rockland County branch of the State Charities Aid Association had record sales of Red Cross Christmas Seals and that the Board of Directors had met in Spring Valley. A. D. Henderson was listed as president and chaired at the meetings. On November 8, 1924, the Rockland County Times, reported that A. D. Henderson as the President of the Rockland County Tuberculosis and Public Health Committee appointed a nurse to attend the semi-annual conference in Syracuse on November 10th and 11th. On October 16, 1930, the Rockland County Evening Journal, reported: “Under the leadership of the late Alexander D. Henderson, the organization was put on a firm financial basis and its activities multiplied rapidly, until today its books show that over 1,500 families have been assisted in getting a new start.”
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Travels
In June of 1914, Alexander took his family on a two-month vacation-business trip to Europe to buy "essential oils from the French." The essential oils for his company’s perfume came from France and Germany. The family visited the oil factories and the fields of beautiful flowers in France. On Thursday, June 11, 1914, The New York Herald noted in an article entitled “Call of Europe for Summer Attracts Many,” that Mr. and Mrs. Alexander D. Henderson, Mr. Girard B. Henderson, and Mr. Alexander D. Henderson, Jr. were onboard the Adriatic, of the White Star Line, bound for Liverpool.” On July 12, 1914, the Hendersons and the McConnells were “Brooklynites in Paris.” They were all registered at a Paris hotel called Eagle Mureau, 53 Rue Cambon. The trip included Ireland and Scotland, where Alexander Jr. held his brother Jerry by the heels so he could kiss the Blarney Stone, a block of bluestone built into the battlements of Blarney Castle. Blarney is about five miles (eight km) from Cork, Ireland. David H. McConnell quotes a letter that Alexander D. Henderson wrote from Luzern, Switzerland on July 22, 1914, which described the process of harvesting flowers and the making of perfume for the California Perfume Company. The letter recounted: As we motored toward Grasse we passed field after field of Jasmine in blossom but not quite ready to harvest. A few
“The Story of Perfumery,” CPC Web site
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Chapter Four – Alexander Dawson Henderson Senior weeks ago the Roses were gathered, when tons and tons were brought to the laboratories to have their sweet perfume removed and preserved, so that the dwellers in less favored parts of the world might enjoy the delicate odor they possessed. To give an idea of the number of flowers picked each year in this valley, I find a carefully prepared statement gives it as 10,000,000,000.
The letter is signed, “Alexander D. Henderson, VicePresident and Treasurer, California Perfume Company.” On the return trip from Germany to New York, Alexander and his family were stranded in Brussels, Belgium for two weeks because of the World War I panic. Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany was warning that he would sink any ship flying a French or English flag. Eventually, Alexander got accommodations on the SS New York and sailed from South Hampton, England back home to New York City. Alexander D. Henderson Sr. got an annual fishing license ($5.00) for the Big Timber Creek in Gloucester County. Big Timber Creek is a 5.6-mile-long stream in southwestern New Jersey. On January 26, 1923, Alexander was issued a passport to travel abroad, which was delivered to his office at 31 Park Place, New York City. Mary A. Hendrickson signed an affidavit as his sister. The passport described him as 57 years old, 5 feet, 6 inches tall, with grey eyes and hair, and included pictures of himself and his wife, Ella B. Henderson. It listed his father as born in Charleston, South Carolina. The passport recorded that Henderson would visit Portugal, Italy, Spain, Egypt, France, and Turkey. They left the port of Boulogne-Sur-Mer, France on April 25, 1923, Annual Report of the Commerce and Navigation New Jersey, 1920 U.S. Passport Applications, 1795-1925
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traveling home on the ship Rotterdam. They arrived back in New York on May 4, 1923. Panama-Pacific International Exposition
In 1915, Alexander took the train to San Francisco, California to set up a booth to advertise and exhibit perfume products at the 1914-1915 Panama-Pacific International Exposition. By train, it took four days to get there. The CPC exhibit was in the Liberal Arts Building. This was a world’s fair, and prizes were given for the best products exhibited. The entire line of perfumes, toilet articles, and household products was entered in the competition. A Gold Medal was awarded for the quality of the products and for the beauty of the packaging. On June 14, 1915, Western Union delivered the following telegram from George. J. McConnell, then manager of the San Francisco office of CPC and brother of David H. McConnell: “Have been awarded Gold Medal on perfumes toilet articles and extracts on three points, quality of goods, display and artistic design.” Winning the Gold Meal gave the perfume company a great deal of recognition. The Gold Medal appeared on all packaging and product brochures until 1931, when the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval replaced it. The Good Housekeeping Seal was awarded to 11 CPC products.
Passenger Lists of Vessels Arriving at New York, New York, 18201897; National Archives Microfilm Publication M237, 675 rolls; Records of the U.S. Customs Service, Record Group 36; National Archives, Washington, D.C. Henderson, Girard B., So Long It's Been Good to Know You, pg. 3
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Ramapo Valley Independent
Alexander believed in a good local newspaper, so he became Treasurer and Director of The Ramapo Valley Independent when the old Suffern Independent was sold in 1922. The Ramapo Valley Independent was published semi-weekly on Tuesdays and Fridays. A. D. Henderson appeared in the masthead as Treasurer. Lafayette Theater
Alexander advocated a good, clean, up-to-date motion picture theater in Suffern. From the organization of the Suffern Amusement Company, Henderson assisted in the designing and building of the Lafayette Theater. The theater was designed by architect Eugene DeRosa and commissioned by the Suffern Amusement Company in 1921. It opened on March 3, 1924, with the silent film Saramouche. Ticket prices were 14 cents for a matinee and 25 cents for an evening show. Death and CPC Resolution
On January 5, 1925, while still working for CPC, Alexander D. Henderson Sr. died at age 59, in Suffern, New York after a very short illness. During this time the directors were putting all the money back into the business. Mr. Henderson was receiving a salary of $50,000 a year, a good amount in 1925. When Mr. Henderson died, Mr. McConnell paid $50,000 to Mrs. Henderson for one year "Suffern Independent Sold To Corporation," Nyack Evening Journal, Wednesday, September 6, 1922 Lathrop, Mary Anthony, Mary’s Family Connections, 1979 Mazziotti, Thomas, From Silent to Sound in Suffern, December 2011, Issue 215
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after his death. Mrs. Henderson had no other income. For the second time, the family was faced with no income. Henderson’s son, Alexander D. Henderson Jr., signed his father’s death certificate number 5375. The death certificate listed “N.Y. & N.J. Cremation Co.,” and the date of burial [cremation] was “Jan. 8, 1925.” Alexander Dawson Henderson's obituary appeared in the January 6, 1925 New York Times: HENDERSON-ALEXANDER DAWSON, on Jan. 5, 1925, in his 60th year, beloved husband of Ella B. Henderson. Services Wednesday evening, 8 o'clock, Jan 7, at Suffern, N. Y.
His family and associates truly mourned him. Mr. Henderson helped shape CPC’s policies and assisted in its growth. It was a great loss for the company. His wife was honored with a resolution from the Board of Directors, adopted and recorded in the minutes by the Board of Directors and officers of the California Perfume Company, attesting to the invaluable work done by Alexander Dawson Henderson. An embossed copy of the resolution was issued to Mrs. Henderson. Mr. D. H. McConnell (President) and Alonzo E. Williams (Secretary) signed it. The resolution included the following text: At a meeting of the Board of Directors of the California Perfume Company held January eighth, one thousand nine hundred and twenty five, it was unanimously resolved that the Directors enter upon the minutes of this meeting the following expression of their regard for Mr. Alexander Dawson Henderson whose death occurred on January 5th 1925.
ProQuest Historical Newspapers, The New York Times, pg. 25
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Chapter Four – Alexander Dawson Henderson Senior Since he joined our organization on May 30th, 1895, our association with Alexander Dawson Henderson has been close and intimate to a degree that lends keenness to our sense of loss and bereavement at this time. Mr. Henderson began his work with us as a bookkeeper and ever since the early months of his career with the California Perfume Company he had the accounting and financial branch of our business under his special charge and oversight. He became our Vice President and Treasurer at the time of our incorporation and held these offices continuously until his death. He had largely to do with our finances and with the successful working out of our banking and financial problems. Mr. Henderson was a man who inspired, and who was entitled to the confidence of everyone with whom he was associated. His wonderful ability and tact won for him and for our company, through our different banking associations a position of high trust and respect. A man of action always looking forward and planning ahead, he possessed the sprit of progress and advance, which we as individuals, and our organization as a whole will ever seek to emulate. Further Resolved, that the Directors and Officers express their profound sympathy to the family of Mr. Henderson, and that the Secretary transmit an embossed copy of this resolution to Mrs. Henderson.
The following is another newspaper statement about Mr. Alexander Henderson: “Generous in his living, scrupulous in his work; above all a family man, essentially a man of deeds, beloved, respected, admired-and mourned. Taken in the fullness of his prime at the height of a long and useful career, ending an illness mercifully swift.” On January 8, 1925, Alexander was cremated at the New York and New Jersey Cremation Company (now called the Garden State Crematory) in Bergen, Hudson County, New January 5, 1925 newspaper
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Jersey. Henderson's cremated remains were mailed to Peter S. Van Orden & Sons Funeral home in Spring Valley, New York on January 9, 1925. The Rev. Dr. Charles P. Bispham, clergy of the Christ Episcopal Church, Suffern, officiated at his burial. On January 10, 1925, the Rockland County Times reported: A. D. HENDERSON To all those in Rockland County who received a Christmas Seal letter, the name of Mr. A. D. Henderson, the President of the Rockland County Tuberculosis and Public Health Committee of the State Charities Aid Association, will be familiar, and the news of his death at his home in Suffern on Monday, January 5, will come as a shock.
On April 15, 1925, The Newburgh Daily News provided an article about the Night Templar and reported membership deaths for the year, which included Alexander Dawson Henderson.
Letter from the Garden State Crematory, 1925, Cremation #10508 Letter from Rev. Dale L. Cranston, Rector of the Christ Episcopal Church in Suffern The Newburgh Daily News, Knight Templar Election Is Held, April 25, 1925
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Jerry Henderson commissioned the artist M. J. Keith to paint a portrait of Alexander D. Henderson. He had several copies made and gave one to my father back in the 1950’s. Today, this portrait now hangs in my house. Farrow Smith, Jerry’s long time business partner and friend, sent the painting to me from Jerry’s ADI Company in Las Vegas. I selected this portrait to be on this book’s dust jacket. In October 1941, Alexander Henderson Sr. was mentioned in an issue of the Allied Avon Magazine about the "old timers." A picture (seen in this chapter) shows Henderson next to Adolph Goetting, and David H. McConnell. On November 1, 1941, the Henderson home caught fire as workmen were tearing it down. The combined efforts of the Suffern and Tallman fire departments saved it from complete destruction. The house was sold in September of 1944 to Le Roy Sherwood.
Allied Avon, Family Album, 1941 The Journal News, Rockland Country Newspaper, 1941
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CHAPTER FIVE
Ella Margaret Brown
Ella Margaret Brown 1869 – 1940
O
n February 28, 1869, Ella Margaret Brown was born in the Washington, DC. She was the oldest daughter of William Little Brown and Margaret G. Lamb. Her father was a banknote “plate” printer. Her
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brother, William John Brown, was born on January 18, 1870. He was an engraver with American Bank Note Company in Brooklyn. Ella’s sister, Sarah E. Brown, was born in June 1873. We called her Aunt Sadie. She never married and survived her sister, Ella M Brown, by many years. Miss Sadie Brown worked in a New York law firm and was very much a member of the Henderson family in Suffern. Mary Henderson, the wife of Alexander D. Henderson Jr., remembers her well. She later moved to Florida to be close to her nephew, Alexander D. Henderson Jr. On February 17, 1892, on the strength of his salary from the Union Warehouse Company, and at age 26, Alexander D. Henderson, Sr., married Ella Margaret Brown, age 23. According to the Brooklyn License Bureau, Reverend John Hampstone, of the Emmanuel Baptist Church on 291 Ryerson Street in Brooklyn, New York, married the Hendersons. The marriage announcement appeared in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle: HENDERSON-BROWN. Miss Ella M. Brown, niece of the late United States Marshal Daniel Lake, was married yesterday afternoon, at 2 o’clock, to Mr. Alexander Henderson, private secretary to Mr. W. B. Bartlett of this city. The ceremonies were held in the parlors of the bride’s parents, 260 Quincy Street, the Rev. John Hampstone of the Lafayette Avenue Baptist church officiating. The couple entered the parlor to the strains of Mendelssohn’s “Wedding March,” played by Miss Laura Lake. Mr. John D. Schuller acted as best man and the maid of honor was Miss Sadie Brown. The bride wore a costume of pearl silk, and entrains, and carried a bouquet of pink roses. She was given away by her brother William Brown. An informal reception followed, during which the newly married couple departed on an extensive honeymoon to Canada and other objective points. Among the guests at the wedding were Mr. and Mrs. Joseph
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Henderson, Mr. And Mrs. Charles Hendrickson, Mrs. Wells, Mrs. Wilcox, and M. Henderson…
The Brooklyn Marriage License Bureau recorded the marriage as: Groom:
Bride:
Witnesses:
Alexander D. Henderson 632 Willoughby Avenue Aged 26, born Brooklyn Parents: Joseph and Angelina Weaver Henderson Ella M. Brown 269 Quincy Street Aged 23, born Brooklyn Parents: William L. and Margaret G. (Lamb) Brown William Brown and John D. Schuller
At the Emmanuel Baptist Church 291 Ryerson Street, February 17, 1892
Ella and Alexander Henderson rented a brownstone house in the Flatbush District of Brooklyn; in the area where Captain Joseph had first established a residence and where Alexander had grown up. It was a three-story house at 142 Midwick Street. The kitchen, as is true of most brownstones, was on the second floor, the parlor and the entrance to the house were on the first floor, and the bedrooms were all on the third floor. On June 22, 1905, Ella’s mother Margaret G. Brown-Corr died in Washington D.C. She lived with her daughter Ella B. Henderson at 171 Midwood Street, Brooklyn. She was a member of St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church. Joseph Dawson Henderson
On January 4, 1893, Ella’s and Alexander’s first child, named Joseph Dawson Henderson, was born. He was
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baptized on April 2, 1893 at St. Matthew’s Church, sponsored by Angelina A. Henderson and Mr. Brown. On November 5, 1893, according to Jerry Henderson, “As a baby his mother would put him in the highchair at the breakfast table, and she, my father, and the baby would have breakfast together. When it came time to leave to go to work, he would go downstairs to go out of the house. His wife Ella would always go downstairs with him to kiss him goodbye at the front door before he left. They would leave the little baby in his highchair, on the second floor. One day, the baby apparently wiggled out of his highchair when he was left alone and hung himself on his bib. When my mother came back to the kitchen the baby was dead.” This was their first child; it was a traumatic experience for a young married couple. On November 9, 1893, their first son, Joseph D. Henderson, was buried in the family plot, lot 13244, section 88, at the Green-Wood Cemetery. His tombstone reads: DAWSON JOSEPH DAWSON HENDERSON ELDEST SON OF ALEXANDER D. AND ELLA B. HENDERSON BORN JAN. 4, 1893 DIED NOV. 5, 1893 The Brooklyn Daily Eagle published his obituary, in the Wednesday, November 8,, 1893 edition: “On Sunday, November 5, Joseph Dawson Henderson, only son of Alexander D. and Ella M. Henderson age 9 months and 22 days. Friends and relatives are invited to attend the funeral St. Matthew Church Records from the Church of St. Luke and St. Matthew
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services, at the residence of his parents, 48 Hart St. Brooklyn, on Wednesday evening, November 8, at 8 o’clock.” Alexander Dawson Henderson Jr.
Eventually, on February 16, 1895, Mr. and Mrs. Henderson had their second child, also a boy. He was named Alexander Dawson Henderson Jr. After the sad experience of their first baby, they were even more careful, and watched over, loved, and cherished this second child. See Chapter 6 for more information about Alexander D. Henderson, Jr. William J. Brown
In April 24, 1896, The Daily Standard Union reported that Mr. and Mrs. Alexander D. Henderson attended the wedding of Ella’s brother, William J. Brown, and Ruth Doughty. William Brown was an engraver with the American Bank Note Company in Brooklyn. The sister of the bridegroom, Miss Sadie E. Brown, was the maid of honor. Mrs. Ella Henderson had been reluctant to leave Brooklyn after moving to Suffern. She returned to shop at Abraham & Straus, taking her daughter-in-law, Mary Henderson (Nonny), with her in the car with the chauffeur. On June 19, 1900, Ella Henderson was mentioned in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. “For Conveyances, for the Skillman Street property at Union Avenue for Margret G Corr, formerly Brown, Ella M Henderson, formerly Brown, William J. Brown and Sarah E. Brown, widow, children and devises, William L. Brown to Francesco Di Falco
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2,800.” Margret G. Corr was the wife of John Brown, the grandfather of Ella Brown Henderson. Girard Brown Henderson
On February 25, 1905, Girard Brown Henderson (“Jerry”) was born in Brooklyn, New York. See Chapter 7 for more information about Girard. Suffern, New York
After Alexander Henderson’s death in 1925, Mrs. Ella Henderson stayed in Suffern in the large house on the Nyack Turnpike. She began to do more on her own. She became Treasurer of the Suffern Women’s Club and gave a gift of $200.00 to the Sun-Roxy Radio Fund to provide headphones for the disabled soldiers in U.S. hospitals so they could enjoy music over the radio. In 1925, she paid $4,626 in income taxes for the eastern section of New York State. Ella Henderson traveled to Europe, came back smoking a cigarette in a long holder and, on her doctor’s orders, had a daily stint of bourbon or rye whiskey as an “old fashioned” cocktail. On March 23, 1925, Ella sailed with her son Jerry and sister Sarah E. Brown to Colombia on the ship Carrillo. On November 12, 1926, it was announced in The New York Evening Post, that “APARTMENTS LEASES ON THE The Brooklyn Daily Eagle, June 19, 1900, page 17 The Sun, July 16, 1924 The New York Times, September 4, 1925
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EAST SIDE - Mrs. Alexander D. Henderson Takes Suite in 277 Park Avenue Building.” On August 8, 1928, Ella Henderson took a trip to Alaska and continued though Canada before coming home. The 1930 New York Social Blue Book listed Mrs. Henderson as living in her house in Suffern, New York and that she also had an apartment at 277 Park Avenue, New York. The April 15, 1930 U.S. Census lists Ella B. Henderson (63), and James and Lucinda Winne as her servants, living at Nyack Turnpike in Ramapo, Rockland, New York. The value of her home was given as $100,000. The census included that Mrs. Henderson owned a radio set. During the Depression, Mr. McConnell had cancelled the dividends on the common stock of the CPC, so Mrs. Henderson’s income was cut in half. Mrs. Henderson felt the pinch seriously, without Alexander’s former salary, and spoke to Mr. McConnell about the possibility of receiving some sort of pension or annuity income from the company. Mr. McConnell felt that this was not possible, but told her he would be glad to buy her common stock in the company. Mrs. Henderson replied, “her husband had told her never to sell it.” According to Jerry Henderson, this incident caused the rift between the Hendersons and McConnells that continues to this day. Until the last 10 to 20 years, the Henderson family was not recognized in the archives of Avon Products. New York Evening Post, Friday, November 12, 1926, page 14 The Rockland County Leader, August 9, 1928 Nyack Evening Journal, August 22, 1928
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Jerry Henderson also told us the story, that during the Great Depression, Mrs. Henderson was operating an antique store out of her home in Suffern and selling the family heirlooms to make ends meet. Jerry intervened and convinced his mother not to sell. On May 25, 1930, an ad was placed in The New York Times advertising the Suffern home for rent during the summer: SUFFERN--For rent, furnished, from June 1 - Oct. 1, 18room residence, with servants’ quarters, 4-car garage; grounds beautifully landscaped; 30 miles from New York City; estate 1 mile from main line Erie Railroad station. Replies to secretary of Mrs. A. D. Henderson Sr., 114 5th Av.
On May 31, 1930, Ella Henderson and Mrs. Perley Morse left Suffern for a trip to Europe during the summer. Twelve days later the Rockland County Leader announced that they were touring England. On December 5, 1930, some months after returning to Suffern, Ella Henderson and Mrs. Perley Morse spoke about their travels to the Woman’s Club members at the Suffern clubhouse. “Glimpses of Italy” was the subject chosen by Ella Henderson. She loved the true nature and personality of the Italian people. In 1931, Ella Henderson spent the winter in Palm Beach, Florida. My father has said that his grandparents had a great fruit farm in Palm beach, Florida. According to the Journal News, on September 7, 1932, Ella Henderson returned from a summer stay at West Dennis, Cape Cod. In June she had flown to Hyannis, Massachusetts piloted by her son, Girard Henderson. The Rockland County Leader, June 5, 1930 The Rockland County Leader, June 17, 1930 Rockland County Evening Journal, December 5, 1930 Rockland County Evening Journal, March 28, 1931
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On November 16, 1932, Ella Henderson and Mrs. Perley Morse presented to the Travel Study Group for the Suffern Woman’s Club the story of their trip together through Death Valley that they took three years ago. The meeting was held in the Henderson home on Nyack Turnpike. Ella presented pictures she took on the trip. To avoid the cold winter months, in January 1933, Ella Henderson sailed on the SS Conte Grande for Palma de Mallorca, Balearic Islands off the coast of Spain. A Miss Ruth G. Arnold of Westfield, New Jersey accompanied her. They were away two and half months, with a stop in Palermo, a city in southern Italy on the island of Sicily. On April 17, 1933, Ella Henderson returned to her residence on the Nyack turnpike in Suffern. In May she spoke at the Travel Reading Group of the Suffern Woman’s Club about her travels and the resort town of about Mallorca, Spain. The Rockland County Journal News reported on June 15, 1933, that Ella Henderson left Suffern by car for Cape Cod, Massachusetts, to remain for the summer. Her son, Girard Henderson flew up to meet her. On June 7, 1935, Ella Henderson and Mrs. C. A. Perkins of Suffern left for Cape Cod, Massachusetts for the summer season. They had adjoining cottages on Cape Cod.
Rockland County Journal News, November 13, 1932 Rockland County Journal News, January 7, 1933 List of United States Citizens, sailing from Palermo to New York Rockland County Journal News, April 17, 1933 Rockland County Journal News, June 7, 1935
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According to the Rockland Journal News, on January 21, 1938, Ella Henderson spent several months in Washington D. C. On December 1, 1938, Ella Henderson continued the work of her husband with the Christmas Seal bond in the 1938 campaign to raise funds for the anti-tuberculosis work carried on in Rockland County. She purchased the first Christmas Seal. Holding Company
On December 17, 1935, Ella B. Henderson created a holding company for two reasons. One, for inheritance tax purposes and two, so that Alex and Jerry could have a small income during her lifetime, which was very generous of her. She transferred her 5,000 shares of Allied Products stock into this holding company. Ella’s Death
At 72, On January 17, 1940, Mrs. Ella Brown Henderson died at her home, Nyack Turnpike, Suffern, New York. Her obituary in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle read: HENDERSON-ELLA B., wife of the late Alexander D. Henderson, suddenly, at her home, Nyack Turnpike, Suffern, N. Y., Jan. 17, 1940, in her seventy-second year. Funeral services will be held at her home Jan. 19, 1940 at 2 P. M. Interment will be at the convenience of the family.
Mrs. Henderson was cremated at the New York and New Jersey Cremation Company (now called the Garden State Crematory) in Bergen, New York. On January 20, 1940, Mrs. Henderson's cremated remains were mailed to the Letter from Alexander D. Henderson to Sarah E. Brown on February 8, 1947
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Wanamaker-Carlough Funeral home in Suffern, New York. There are no records as to what happened to her cremated remains. According to her son, Jerry Henderson, in her will she asked that the house be burned or destroyed. Jerry saved a door with the family coat of arms on a glass panel. This was later placed in his underground home in Las Vegas. On January 19, 1940 The Ramapo Valley Independent ran an article about Ella’s death: ONE OF SUFFERN’S FINEST RESIDENTS DIES SUDDENLY Mrs. A. D. Henderson Well Known Through Vicinity For Kindly Deeds Citizens of the entire community were shocked Wednesday to learn of the sudden death of Mrs. Ella B. Henderson widow of the late Alexander Henderson, one of the founders of the California Perfume Company, now known as the Allied Products Corporation. Mrs. Henderson passed away Wednesday morning at her home on the Nyack Turnpike in her seventy-second year. Mrs. Henderson has been a resident of Suffern for the past 31 years during which time she has endeared herself to all citizens of this entire section by the active interests she took in all matters pertaining to the betterment of the community. She was a charter member and former officer of the Suffern Women’s Club, a former member of the Kings’ Daughters and the Rockland County Branch of the State Charities Aid Association. She was also an ardent worker in Church affairs, being a member of Christ Episcopal Church of Suffern.
On February 10, 1940, an article appeared in The Journal News of Rockland County. Letter from the Garden State Crematory regarding records for Mr. and Mrs. Henderson
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SUFFERN WOMAN GENEROUS TO HER FRIENDS AND EMPLOYEES Mrs. Henderson’s Estate Divided Up Into Many Shares by Will Friends and employees of the late Ella B. Henderson of Suffern are to share in her estate, according to the terms of her will admitted to probate by Surrogate John A. McKenna. Mrs. Henderson died on January 17, leaving an estate in which the personal property is said to exceed $10,000, and the real property to exceed a like amount. She also set up four trusts, two for $10,000, one for $15,000, and another for $30.000. Mary Hendrickson of Suffern, a sister-in-law, received one of the $10,000 trusts. The $30,000 trust was setup for her sister, Sarah E. Brown, of New York. The rest of her estate is to go to her two sons, Alexander Henderson of Pelham, NY and Girard Henderson of Ruxton, Maryland.
On Sunday, November 1, 1941, the family home in Suffern Park caught fire as workmen were tearing it down. The Suffern and Tallman fire departments saved the partly demolished building from complete destruction. The local newspaper article reported: “FIRE HASTENS RAZING OF HENDERSON HOME. One of the most pretentious residences in Suffern Park, the Henderson home caught fire yesterday as workmen were engaged in tearing it down. The combined efforts of the Suffern and Tallman fire departments saved the partly demolished building from complete destruction.” Another article appeared on Thursday, November 6, 1941, which said that the Henderson home was demolished because it could not be either sold or rented. A fire broke The Rockland County Journal News, November 1, 1941
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out in a pile of lumber near the large house owned by A. D. Henderson, which was being demolished by Joseph Codispoti, a Suffern contractor. On September 14, 1944, an article appeared in The Ramapo Valley Independent: “HENDERSON PLACE IS SOLD TO L. SHERWOOD. The former Henderson homestead on the Nyack Turnpike at Campbell Road was sold this week to J. Le Roy Sherwood of 26 Hillside Avenue, Buena Vista Heights. James L. Brown was agent for the owners, Alexander and Girard Henderson. Purchased by their father, Alexander Henderson, from Charles Trumper, now of Jersey Avenue, Suffern, about 40 years ago, the property consists of 18 acres on both sides of Campbell Road. On a three-acre parcel in the angle made by Campbell Road against the turnpike, there is still a cow barn and a 60 by 120 foot swimming pool, but the spacious home there was recently torn down. The rest of the tract lies south of Campbell Road and has on it a large garage with living quarters above.”
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CHAPTER SIX Alexander Dawson Henderson, Jr.
Alexander Dawson Henderson Jr. 1895 – 1964
M
y grandfather was Alexander Dawson Henderson, Jr. He was born in Brooklyn, New York on February 16, 1895, the son of Alexander D. Henderson, Sr., and Mrs. Ella Brown Henderson. At the
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time of his birth, the Hendersons were living on 174 Pulaski Street, in Brooklyn, New York.
Alexander D. Henderson Jr. circa 1899 The 1900 U.S. Census for New York lists the Henderson family living on 174 Pulaski Street in Brooklyn, New York: Alexander Sr. (36), Ella B. (35), Alexander Jr. (5), and servant Mary Kiley (23). In 1909, the family moved to Suffern, New York. Young Alexander spent most of his early life in Suffern, in the large Georgian house on the hill fronting the Nyack Turnpike in New York. The 1910 U.S. Census lists the Henderson family living at 142 Midwood Street, Brooklyn, New York: Alexander Sr. (45), Ella B. (42) Alexander Jr. (15), and Girard B. (5).
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New York Military Academy (1912 – 1915)
From 1912 to 1915, Alexander attended the New York Military Academy, a boarding school at Cornwell-on-theHudson, just south of Newburg, New York. The 1915 Shrapnel yearbook included the graduating class of the New York Military Academy, with a page dedicated to each student. Henderson’s ‘record’ indicates that he was captain of the Football, Basketball, and Tennis teams. His ‘history’ said “If ‘Hendy’ missed getting any honor or ‘job’ in the gift of the cadets, it was an oversight. Quiet and unassuming in manner, modest in speech, but all there in action, the list of his friends is a roster of the corps. He is a splendid athlete, a good soldier and a staunch friend. It goes without saying that, so far as the girls are concerned, he is ‘a heart masher and a social bear.” The 1914-1915 New York Military Academy Catalogue lists Alexander Dawson Henderson in the Junior Class and as a Lieutenant in Company B. Cadet A. D. Henderson was also listed as a captain of the Basketball First Team and on the Athletic Associates Executive Council. In June of 1914, when Alexander was 19, his father took the family on a two-month vacation-business trip to Europe. They saw the beautiful fields of flowers and bought essential oils from the French. The family also visited the oil factories that made the perfume for the California Perfume Company. While Alexander was attending the New York Military Academy, he met Mary Barnes Anthony at a costume party given by Mrs. Elmer Snow for her son Jack and daughter New York Military Academy – 1915, page 136 University of the State of New York, New York Military Academy, 1914-1915
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Olive, at Miller’s Inn in Mahwah, New Jersey. Mrs. Snow later invited Mary to a dance at the Houvenkopf Country Club in Suffern. Alex Henderson was listed in the 1915 New York State Census with his family: Alexander D. (50), Ella B. (47), Alexander (20), and Jerry (10), living in the village of Suffern in Ramapo, Rockland County. Alex and Jerry were listed as going to school. Dartmouth College
In 1916, Alexander left home to attend Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire, and belonged to the ZETA Chapter of the PSI Upsilon Fraternity, which was founded in 1842. His membership in the ZETA Chapter was cataloged under the heading ‘1919’ as initiated by the LAMBDA Chapter, and again in the LAMBDA Chapter as from Suffern, NY. While attending college, Alexander was a captain of several sports teams. He was a member of the Dartmouth glee club and had a very good voice. Meanwhile, Mary Anthony was going to the National Park Seminary School at Forest Glen, Maryland, just outside of Washington D.C. The seminary, a finishing school for girls, was one of the most prestigious women’s schools in the country. While at Dartmouth College, Alexander continued to see Mary. By midyear, he decided to leave Dartmouth and New York State Census, 1915, index The 12th Catalogue of the PSI Upsilon Fraternity, May 1917 Mary's Family Connections, 1979
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volunteer for the U.S. Army during World War I.
Camp Dix WW1 1919 World War I
On April 2, 1917, the United States Congress voted to declare war on Germany. That same year, at age 22, Alexander D. Henderson Jr., of Rockland, New York, signed a World War 1 Draft Registration Card at the Student Officer Training Camp in the Ramapo, Rockland, New York Precinct. Because of his experience at the New York Military Academy, Mr. Henderson was able to become a Lieutenant in the Calvary, stationed at Fort Dix, New Jersey, which was a training camp for embarkation overseas. He later became Captain. On August 16, 1917, he was listed in the newspaper and United States Official Bulletin as being in the Sixth
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Company with the rank of Second Lieutenant, Infantry from Suffern, N. Y. During the war, he wrote a letter to his mother describing his military command, role as Company Commander, and his desire to buy Mary Anthony an engagement ring. The letter was written from Co. D, Hughes High School, in Cincinnati, Ohio on July 5, 1918. In the letter he invited his father and mother out West to visit him. In this letter he wrote, “I have spoken with Mary and we both feel that perhaps this time next year we will decide on something definite. And I think that when I come home the first of September, if I do, I shall get Mary an engagement ring. I want her to have it and I know she wants it.” The letter was signed, “Your Loving Son, Alexander” He was discharged from the army on January 28, 1919. California Perfume Company
Alexander D. Henderson Jr. started working for the California Perfume Company in 1919 in the Shipping Department. He and his father followed a daily routine. After an early breakfast, his father's car and chauffeur drove them first to the CPC plant in Suffern. They were then driven to the train station to take the train to the New York offices. They played cards on the train, the same foursome at bridge, morning and night. The February 11, 1920 U.S. Federal Census lists Mr. Alexander D. Henderson Jr., (25) living with his parents at the 173 South Monsey Road address in Suffern, NY. The Official Bulletin, August 16, 1917; Watertown Daily Times, August 12, 1917
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In 1921, Alexander developed an interest in merchandizing and the purchasing of raw materials. He became CPC’s assistant buyer of raw materials for the manufacture of products. He remained in this position until 1931, when he became Vice-President in charge of merchandizing. According to the June 10, 1922 “New Incorporations” notice in The New York Times, A. D. Henderson Jr., was involved in the following corporation, “New York & Suffern Express, Suffern, $10,000; William Van Allen Clark, A. D. Henderson Jr., L. Riley. (Attorney, M. Lexow, Suffern).” On April 12, 1940, the Orangetown Telegram and The Pearl River Searchlight reported that Henderson had resigned as vice-president of the Allied Products Company of Suffern, after 23 years of service. He would remain a director of the company. He was going to engage with a boyhood chum, Sanford M. Treat, in the management of a soft drink “Dr. Sweet’s Original Root Beer.” Mary Barnes Anthony
Alexander married Mary Barnes Anthony on Valentine’s Day, February 14, 1920. The wedding took place in Mary’s family house in Ridgewood, New Jersey. At their wedding, Mary’s father, Walter Dayton Anthony, had a room on the third floor, where drinks were served covertly out of respect for the senior Hendersons. Mary’s grandfather, Daniel Anthony (1827 - 1894) was a ship builder, who in 1874 was building steamboats on the Hudson. On February 20, 1920, The Huntington Press published a marriage announcement: Avon Outlook, July 1939, California Perfume Company
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Chapter Six – Alexander Dawson Henderson, Jr. HENDERSON-ANTHONY It announced the marriage of Lieutenant Alexander Dawson Henderson, Jr., son of Mr. and Mrs. A. D. Henderson of Suffern, N. Y., and Miss Mary Anthony, daughter of Walter D. Anthony of Ridgewood, N.J. The marriage took place at the Anthony home in Ridgewood, on February 14. Lieunt. Henderson trained the A. T. C. in Huntington in 1918. Miss Anthony is a graduate of National Park Seminary at Washington, D C. Mr. and Mrs. Henderson will make their home in Suffern, N. Y.
Alexander’s father built the couple a house in Suffern, New York, across the road from their own house on 173 South Monsey Road. Mary remembers Mrs. Hendrickson (Aunt Mamie) with her husband, Charles, and their daughter “Angie,” and with “Uncle Maurice.” They would often come to the Henderson’s home in Suffern for Thanksgiving. Mr. and Mrs. Henderson had two children. Their first child, was Mary-Ella Henderson, was born on April 17, 1922 in Suffern, New York. She was named after her mother Mary and her grandmother Ella Brown Henderson. Mr. Henderson Sr. was delighted to have a granddaughter, and was greatly attached to her during her first years. The younger Henderson’s second child (my father) was Alexander Dawson Henderson III, born at the Fifth Avenue Hospital in New York City on March 26, 1924. He was born not quite a year before his grandfather died, but was old enough for his grandfather to know that he had a namesake and an heir. The picture below of Mr. Henderson Sr., and Mr. Henderson Jr., holding his newborn son Alexander D. Henderson III, in front of the Suffern house. See Chapter 8 to learn more about him. Huntington Press, Huntington, Indiana, Friday, February 20, 1920, page 3
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Henderson Sr., Henderson Jr., and Henderson III After his father died in 1925, Mr. Henderson, Jr. became Vice President of Purchases for CPC. He bought the ingredients from which everything in the CPC line was made. "As such, he is, of course, a most important factor in maintaining the high quality and low prices of the products you sell.” Upon his father’s death in 1925, Alexander Henderson Jr. was listed as head of house, living in Ramapo, Rockland, New York, age 30, in the 1925 New York State Census. Tallman, New York (1927 – 1934)
In 1927, the family moved from Suffern to a large, twostory home in Tallman, New York. They lived in Tallman for four years with a staff consisting of a chauffeur, cook, Introducing You To The CPC, booklet New York, State Census, 1925
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and an upstairs maid. Alexander’s polo pony, Ginger, was kept in the barn. The five-acre property had an apple orchard. His mother-inlaw, Mrs. Laura Josephine Frontgous-Anthony had a lovely cottage on the property, behind the orchard. They also had a red setter named "Ciders." The April 3, 1930 U.S. Census lists Alexander D. Henderson (35), Mary (30), Mary Ella (7), Alexander (5) and Laura J Anthony (60), living on Cherry Lane in Ramapo, Rockland, New York. On December 19, 1929, Nonny and her mother (Laura Anthony) were in an automobile accident near their home in Tallman. A truck driver had fallen asleep and ran into the car Nonny was driving. Both suffered minor injuries. On October 14, 1930, the Rockland County Evening Journal reported: “Mr. and Mrs. A. D. Henderson Jr., of Tallman, dined at the Houvenkopf Country Club Sunday evening.” On May 18, 1931, the Rockland County Evening Journal Society Notes section said: Mr. and Mrs. A. D. Henderson, Jr., of Tallman were invited to an out-of-doors luncheon during the apple blossom season. Other guests included
Rockland County Leader, December 19, 1929
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Henderson’s mother, Mrs. David H. McConnell, and Mr. and Mrs. David H. McConnell, Jr. On May 28, 1932, the Rockland County Evening Journal announced: Mr. and Mrs. Alexander D. Henderson, Jr., of Tallman were hosts at a buffet dinner in the Henderson residence. Mrs. Henderson’s sister, Mrs. Olive Holmes of Montclair, N. J. attended. New York City
In 1934, Mary and Mr. Henderson moved to the Hudson View Gardens apartments at 183rd Street and Pinehurst Avenue, apartment D21, overlooking the Hudson River in New York. On July 31, 1934, Alexander D. Henderson (39) and Lucy M. Ernst (23) were reported as sailing to Hamilton, Bermuda on the ship Southern Cross. The passenger list recorded them as living at separate U.S. addresses. Henderson was still listed at his home on 183rd Street and Pinehurst Ave, Hudson View Gardens, New York. Lucy was listed at 86 Haven Avenue, New York City. She was a secretary at Avon, where Henderson worked. Mary and Alexander soon separated, and he moved into his own apartment in the city. They were divorced in Las Vegas in 1935. Mary Henderson later married Charles Leonard Lathrop, whom she met on a cruise ship. They lived on Lathrop Farm in Lebanon, Connecticut during the summer and wintered in New York City. Mr. Lathrop died in 1980. Mary died on June 3, 2000 in Greenwich, CT. She was 100 years old when she died.
New York, New York Passenger and Crew Lists, July 31, 1934
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On March 28, 1936, at age 41, Henderson Jr. married, for the second time to, Lucia Maria Ernst in New York City. The marriage record lists the names of their parents. Her parents were Joseph Ernst (1866-1927) and Lucia Berth Doering (1882-1941), and were both born in Germany. Lucia was born on September 12, 1910 in Brooklyn, New York. She was only 25 years old when they married. I did not meet Lucy until much later, when they moved to Florida. We called her “Aunt Lucy” but she was really my step-grandmother. In 1963, Lucy and my grandfather gave me a book for my birthday. The inscription inside the book reads: “To Gregory, Happy Birthday, Aunt Lucy & Grampy, Sept. 27, 1963.” The title of the book is Railroads in the Days of Steam, which I still have today. On January 23, 1937, when David H. McConnell died in Suffern, Henderson was a pallbearer at the funeral that was held at McConnell’s home in Suffern. Alexander Henderson, Jr. loved to play golf, and appeared in The New York Times on several occasions. On May 29, 1937, he was listed in the paper as, “Henderson Makes First Flight With 83” - Alex Henderson of Pelham, N. Y., former Houvenkopf champion and holder of the course amateur record of 71, qualified in the first flight with an 83.” On September 16, 1939, Alexander was listed in The New York Times sports section. “Alex D. Henderson, 1938 victors, that advanced in golf tournament at Tamarack Country Club in Port Chester, New York.” The 1940 US Census lists Mr. Henderson and Lucy Henderson living in Pelham (Westchester County), New New York, New York City Marriage Records
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York. They were renting an apartment at the Fairway Apartments, on Wynnewood Road, Pelham Manor, New York. It is believed that Ella Brown Henderson purchased a Cape Cod house in West Dennis, Massachusetts in the 1930s. Henderson Jr. inherited this Cape Cod house when his mother passed away. Lucy and Alexander rented an apartment in New York City for the last few months before her pregnancy. They had been at the West Dennis House on Cape Cod during the summer of 1945, and Lucy did not feel comfortable giving birth on Cape Cod. West Dennis is in the town of Dennis in Barnstable County, Massachusetts. Holding Company
When his mother died in 1940, Alexander Henderson felt that the holding company had served its purpose and that the beneficiaries of the holding company should have the privilege of managing their own affairs as individuals. This was not done at this time because Jerry and their attorney, John G. Turnbull, felt that the block of Allied stock was very important and that it should be voted as one stock. The Holding company developed into the Alexander Dawson Inc., which was named after his father, Alexander Dawson Henderson, Sr. See the section “Alexander Dawson Inc.” in Chapter 7, “Girard Brown Henderson,” for more details about this company.
Conversation with Doug Henderson on February 14, 2016 Letter from Alexander D. Henderson to Sarah E. Brown on February 8, 1947
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Allen Douglas Henderson
On March 9, 1946, Allen Douglas Henderson was born in New York City. After Doug’s birth, his parents returned to Cape Cod until the family went to Florida in September of 1946. Doug’s father later sold the West Dennis house and bought a two-story house in 1949, in Oyster Harbors on Osterville, Massachusetts on the Grand Island in Cape Cod. The house was across the street from the Oyster Harbors golf course. Doug’s earliest memories were around 1950, watching an early black & white TV set. One of their neighbor’s families down the street had a TV. Since his father was born in 1895, he thought that the advent of TV was a passing fancy. On August 10, 1955, the family took a trip to Hawaii. The Passenger and Crew List of Vessels Arriving at San Francisco listed: Alexander D (60), Lucy E. (44), and Alexander Douglas (9) arriving in San Francisco on the cruise ship Lurline, which sailed from Honolulu, Hawaii. They stayed at the Royal Hawaiian Hotel, on Oahu. Doug learned to surf with an instructor, and was really into reading age appropriate adventure and sports stories. The family traveled to and from Oahu on a cruise ship, wherein Doug was very lucky in the horse racing dice deck games; perhaps, premonitions of Doug’s future racing career. In June 1964, Doug graduated from Saint Andrew’s High School for boys. Conversation with Doug Henderson on February 14, 2016 Passenger and Crew Lists of Vessels Arriving at San Francisco, 19541957
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On Saturday, November 12, 1966, Doug married Cassandra Northway at the St. Martin’s in the Fields Episcopal Church in Pompano Beach, Florida. The reception was at his wife’s parent’s home. They served a nice dinner, a wedding cake, and champagne. From this marriage he has a daughter Lucia (Lucy) Angeline Levesque, who lives in Sudbury, Massachusetts. She is married and has two children. Doug divorced Cassandra on September 2, 1970. Around 1972, Doug was involved with Rosemary “Pinky” Lapera and formed the Parkland estate raising racehorses. In 1974 an article “New Breed Of Rancher Springs Up in Florida appeared” in the Sun-Sentinel. It talks about the Marablue Farms of 12 acres in the Parkland area. In 1979, she sued Doug for $1.7 million but was only awarded $167,000. Doug also owned he Beowulf Restaurant in Lighthouse Point and formerly of the New York Mets. Doug married his second wife, Barbara Kay Farsang in Broward County, Florida on December 4, 1982. He divorced Barbara in 1997 and is now with Melinda Smith. Florida
Mr. Henderson, Jr., having retired from Avon, moved with his wife to Broward Beach, Florida in 1946. They first lived in a rental house on the northern end of Fort Lauderdale Beach (A1A goes in between the house and the beach). It was a rectangular one-story house with a courtyard on one side connected to a garage apartment. They later moved to a white, two-story house at 1011 Hillsboro Mile (A1A) Hillsboro Beach (Broward County), California Family Law Report, 1980 Letter to Sarah E. Brown on February 8, 1947 lists his residence at 1531 N. Atlantic Blvd., Fort Lauderdale, Florida
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Florida. The house had a beautiful ocean view, a pool, and a guesthouse. Henderson, Jr. was a member of the Royal Palm Yacht and Country Club in Boca Raton, the Country Club of Florida in Delray Beach, the Pine Tree Golf Club in Boynton Beach, the Oyster Harbors Club in Massachusetts, and the New York Athletic Club. Philanthropy
A.D. Henderson’s interest in philanthropy was influenced during his boyhood years when he lived in Suffern, New York with his parents. His father, Alexander D. Henderson Sr., was involved in church and philanthropic organizations like the Rockland County Tuberculosis Association and the Red Cross War Fund. Like his father, Mr. Henderson felt compelled to use his fortune to benefit others. He became involved in philanthropic projects after moving to Florida in 1951. A.D. Henderson and his wife Lucy created the Hillsboro Country Day School in 1956. He created the A. D. Henderson Foundation in 1959. Early childhood education was a key mission for the foundation. The foundation contributed Avon stock to the Henderson Clinic in 1960 and Saint Andrew’s School in 1961. During this time, A.D. remained on the board of directors for Avon. Hillsboro Country Day School
Throughout his life Henderson gave generous support to educational institutions. In 1956, Mr. Henderson, Jr. founded the Hillsboro Country Day School in Pompano Beach, Florida. The school held classes from nursery Sun-Sentinel newspaper, July 10, 1964
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school through eighth grade. He devoted his time and financial resources to the operation of this school, later acquiring the Avon-by-the-Sea apartments across the street from the school. After her husband died, Lucy continued to run the school. On April 18, 1969, The E. B. R. Corporation bought both the Hillsboro Country Day School and the Avon Apartments. Lucy E. Henderson Edmondson sold the property for $975,000. Hillsboro Mayor
Mr. Henderson Jr. was elected Mayor of Hillsboro Beach, Florida for six consecutive years, (1956-1964). In 1958, the Florida Municipal Record reported “Mayor A. D. Henderson was elected Mayor for a third straight term in the Town's general election.” He died while still in office. After Mr. Henderson died, the Hillsboro Town Commission held a reorganization meeting to appoint a successor to fill out Henderson's unexpired term, which extended through March 1965. Mr. Henderson, a staunch Republican, had an outgoing personality. He liked being with people and gave good speeches. Saint Andrew's School
Alexander and Lucy Henderson made significant contributions needed to help start the Saint Andrew's School, an Episcopal school for boys in Boca Raton, Florida. In August of 1960, Mr. Henderson offered $375,000 to open the school for 100 students in the fall of 1961 (grades 7-12). Founded by people of Scottish Florida Municipal Record - Volumes 32-33 Sewanee News, Alumni Magazine, University of the South, Vol. 26, 1960
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heritage, Saint Andrew's School was named for the patron saint of Scotland. Groundbreaking for Henderson Hall took place on December 17, 1961 and was named for Mr. Henderson. Henderson Hall contains offices and a 14,000-volume library. Mr. Henderson became a Trustee of the school. In June 1964, Saint Andrew’s graduated its first class of 12 students. Douglas Henderson was among the first graduates of Saint Andrew’s School.
On April 19, 1967, the Chapel of Saint Andrew, located on the campus of Saint Andrew's School in Boca Raton, Florida, was dedicated in memory of Alexander D. Henderson.
Saint Andrew’s School website Saint Andrew’s School website
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The Saint Andrew's School website history page said: The Episcopal School Foundation chartered Saint Andrew's School in 1961. The Rev. Hunter Wyatt-Brown, Jr. (Headmaster from 1962-63) and Eugene Curtis, Jr. (Headmaster from 1964-71) led the effort to secure the land and funds necessary to build the school. Many in the community came forward to support the project, most notably Lucy and Alexander Henderson, who gave the majority of the funds needed to start the school.
A. D. Henderson Foundation
In 1959, Alexander D. and Lucy E. Henderson established the A. D. Henderson Foundation, which continues to support efforts furthering the goals of family planning, affordable day care and education for all children. The foundation provides ongoing grants in South Florida and Vermont. Today, their son, A. Douglas Henderson runs the foundation, along with a Board of Directors. The foundation’s website is at: http://www.hendersonfdn.org. The Mission: The A. D. Henderson Foundation supports early learning for children ages birth to eighth in the state of Vermont and Broward County, Florida.
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Henderson Clinic
Mr. Henderson was well known in South Florida for his philanthropic work in support of the Henderson Clinic in Fort Lauderdale. In 1960, Henderson and Lucy gave a generous amount of his Avon stock to the Henderson Mental Clinic of Broward County for emotionally disturbed children in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The sale of the stock funded the buildings and support for the mental clinic. Today, the clinic is called Henderson Behavioral Health (HBH) and offers comprehensive behavioral health services. Below is an excerpt from their website: In 1960, the late Mr. Alexander D. Henderson and his wife Lucy gave the Clinic stocks in Avon Products as well as property, which is the current site of our “Central” Program on SW 27th Avenue in Fort Lauderdale. The money from the sale of the stock enabled us to build the structure and purchase the furnishings. The Clinic was renamed Henderson Clinic of Broward County in 1961.
Funeral and Obituary
In 1964, Henderson Jr. was not feeling well. He decided to go up to the New England Deaconess Hospital in Boston, where there were better doctors. He had lost 50 pounds. On Thursday, July 9, 1964, at age 69, Alexander D. Henderson Jr. died at the New England Deaconess Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts of a heart-related blood disease. On July 10, 1964, The New York Times covered his death:
Sun-Sentinel, July 10, 1964 https://www.hendersonbh.org/
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Alexander D. Henderson, Avon Products Director Alexander D. Henderson of Hillsboro Beach, Fla., a director and former vice president of Avon Products, Inc., cosmetics company, died Wednesday in New England Deaconess Hospital in Boston. He was 69 years old. Mr. Henderson, a native of Brooklyn, spent most of his early life in Suffern, N. Y. He had lived in Hillsboro Beach since 1951 and had been Mayor there for the last six years.
On July 10, 1964, The Sun Sentinel, of Pompano Beach, ran the obituary: HENDERSON, 69 DEAD Alexander D. Henderson, 69, mayor of Hillsboro Beach the past six years, died Wednesday at the New England Deaconess Hospital in Boston. Henderson, who came here in 1951 after resigning as vice president of Avon Products, Inc., was well-known in South Florida for his philanthropic work in support of the Henderson Clinic in F. Lauderdale. He was active in establishing and supporting the Hillsboro Country Day School and the St. Andrew’s Episcopal School for Boys in Boca Raton. Henderson was a member of the Royal Palm Yacht and Country Club in Boca Raton, the Country Club of Florida in Delray Beach, the Pine Tree Golf Club in Boynton Beach, The Oyster Harbors Club in Massachusetts and the New York Athletic Club. Born in Brooklyn, N. Y., Henderson spent most of his early life in Suffern, N.Y. He attended Dartmouth College, and, in 1919, became associated with the California Perfume Co., Inc., predecessor of Avon Products, Inc. He was made vice president and director of Avon Products in 1925. He resigned as vice president in 1940 but continued as a director until his death.
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Chapter Six – Alexander Dawson Henderson, Jr. Mr. Henderson is survived by his widow, the former Miss Lucy Ernst; two sons, Alexander D. Henderson III, and A. Douglas Henderson; a daughter, Mrs. Stuart W. Hinrichs, nine grandchildren; and a brother, Girard B. Henderson. The Hillsboro Town Commission will hold a reorganizational meeting to appoint a successor as mayor and name someone to fill out Henderson’s unexpired commission term, which extends through next March.
The Kraeer Funeral Home in Pompano Beach was in charge of funeral arrangements. The service was held at St. Martins-in-the Field Episcopal Church in Pompano Beach at 10 a.m., on Monday, July 13. The family requested that contributions be made to the Debbie-Rand Foundation, Inc. in Boca Raton, Florida. Henderson's body was shipped back from the Waterman Funeral Home in Boston to the Kraeer Funeral Home in Pompano Beach, Florida. The Kraeer Funeral Home in Pompano Beach was in charge of funeral arrangements. Henderson was interned at the Forest Lawn Memorial Gardens Central at 499 Northwest 27th Ave, Fort Lauderdale, Florida in mausoleum Unit 1, Section No. 67, South. On October 25, 1991, his second wife, Lucia Henderson Edmondson died and was interned in the same crypt. The service was held at St. Martins-in-the Field Episcopal Church in Pompano Beach at 10 a.m., Monday, July 13th. The family requested that contributions be made to the Debbie-Rand Memorial Service League, Inc. in Boca Raton, Florida. A lot of people came to the service. Forest Lawn Memorial office, Phone: 954-581-9033 Sun-Sentinel , July 10, 1964
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In August of 1964, the Bagpiper of Saint Andrew's School paid tribute to Mr. Henderson. In a "Henderson Memorial Resolution," the school recognized Henderson as a "good citizen, a man outstandingly successful in his career, a devoted public servant, a generous benefactor, and most important of all, a staunch and loyal friend." On September 23, 1964, Avon Products Inc., announced it had filed a proposal with the Securities and Exchange Commission, for the sale of 720,000 shares of capital stock by the estate of Alexander D. Henderson, director of the cosmetics company. On April 19, 1967, The Chapel of Saint Andrew, located on the campus of Saint Andrew's School in Boca Raton, FL., was dedicated in memory of Alexander D. Henderson. The Chapel of Saint Andrew is an Episcopal Church. Lucy Henderson was remarried to Thomas E. "Tex" Edmondson on Friday, October 11, 1968 in Las Vegas Nevada. Jerry Henderson was best man at the wedding. Lucy sold the Hillsboro Beach and Cape Cod houses and moved into a large condo in Boca Raton, Florida. Edmondson was a host on a Norwegian cruise ship as well as an entrepreneur in real estate and investments. Lucy died on October 27, 1991 in Boca Raton, Florida. After her death, her estate gave a gift of $1,000.000 to Saint Andrew’s School. Her husband, Tex contested Lucy’s Will and Trust. Tex Edmondson died on May 11, 2003 in Boca Raton, Florida.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WFW1Y8TQt7E Texas Obituary and Death Notice Archive, Page 132
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Alexander D. Henderson University
On September 30, 1965, Lucy donated $750,000 to FAU in memory of her late husband Alex D. Henderson. The money will be allocated for the construction and operation of a laboratory school on the campus that will provide programs from the pre-school level through the eighth grade. On Sunday, December 1, 1968, the dedication of the Alexander D Henderson University School and special convocation honoring Lucy Henderson was held at the Florida Atlantic University Campus in Boca Raton, Florida. The school was made possible by a gift of $1,350,000 to the State and Florida Atlantic University from Alexander’s widow, Lucy E. Henderson. Lucy received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree. Countless generations of school children will benefit from this generosity. Alexander’s widow, Mrs. Lucy Henderson Edmondson, established the Alexander D. Henderson Memorial Scholarship. On December 15, 2004 the Alexander D. Henderson School on the Boca Raton campus of Florida Atlantic University was officially recognized as one of 239 Blue Ribbon schools in the United States, and one of only five in Florida. http://www.adhus.fau.edu
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Chapter Seven – Gerard Brown Henderson
CHAPTER SEVEN Girard Brown Henderson
Girard Brown Henderson 1905 – 1983
O
n February 25, 1905, Girard Brown Henderson was born at No. 171 Midwood Street, Brooklyn, New York. Girard was the third son of Alexander Dawson Henderson, Sr., and Ella Brown Henderson. He was ten years younger than his brother, Alexander D. Henderson Jr, and liked to be called “Jerry.”
State of New York Certificate of Record of Birth
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In 1909, his parents moved to Suffern, New York to be near the California Perfume Company factory. He lived with his mother and father in their house in Suffern, New York up until he was married. In June of 1914, when Jerry was 9, the family took a twomonth vacation-business trip to France. The family visited the oil factories that made the perfume for the California Perfume Company. The trip included Scotland and Ireland, where his brother held Jerry by the heels so he could kiss the Blarney Stone, a block of bluestone built into the battlements of Blarney Castle. Blarney is about five miles (eight km) from Cork, Ireland. Jerry attended the Grammar School in Suffern, but when he got back from the family trip to Europe in 1915, his mother enrolled him in the Catholic convent school called the Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus. In Jerry's autobiography, he says, “The Catholic Sisters were highly educated, and I got a very fine basic education in mathematics, arithmetic, reading, and penmanship.” He left the Catholic school after three years and entered Ridgewood School, a private school in Ridgewood, New Jersey. Jerry, age 10, was listed in the 1915 New York State Census along with his family: Alexander D. (50), Ella B. (47), Alexander D. Jr., (20), living in the village of Suffern in Rockland County. Alex and Jerry Henderson were listed as being in School. Storm King School (1916 – 1923)
In 1916, Jerry became a boarder at the Storm School, later called Storm King School in Cornwall on the Hudson, New York, which was a preparatory school through high school. So Long, It’s Been Good to Know You, 1982
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He was captain of the football team, and received letters from the basketball and baseball teams, graduating in the class of 1923. Jerry recalled, “I liked the Storm King Mountain where the school was located. I liked to walk on the trails through the woods there.” The headmaster was Alvan R. Duerr, a German man who taught Latin and German. Duerr changed the name of the school in 1923 from Storm School to Storm King School. The February 11, 1920 U.S. Census does not show Jerry as living at home. Instead it lists his brother, Mr. Alexander D. (25), living with their parents, Henderson Sr. (55) and Ella B (52), at their home on 173 South Monsey Road, in Suffern, NY. Jerry was still at the Storm King School. While in high school at Storm King School, Jerry attended his brother’s wedding on February 14, 1920. It was the middle of winter, and the snowdrifts were ten feet high around the school. No roads were open for automobile traffic. So, Jerry skied down the mountain from the school carrying a little suitcase to the railroad station, which was at least eight miles distant. He then took the train down to Suffern, New York to attend his brother’s wedding. One of Jerry’s early life lessons came from a math teacher named J. C. Clarke, who told him, “You’re always right until you’re proven wrong. If you are proven wrong, admit it immediately, but remember, Henderson, you are always right until proven wrong.” Jerry was so impressed by his interactions with his math instructor that he later gave substantial gifts to the school for buildings and educational programs, and had one of the So Long, It’s Been Good to Know You, 1982
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academic buildings named the “John C. Clarke Building.” Jerry accepted an offer to be a trustee of the school. The Henderson Outdoor Program at Storm King School is named for Henderson (Class of '23), and is generously supported by Alexander Dawson, Inc., which supports the School's recreational athletic program. Dartmouth College
Jerry passed the college boards and was accepted to Dartmouth College in 1924. He only attended his freshman year before dropping out, stating that he was not properly prepared academically. “When I flunked out of Dartmouth I was very low in sprit, and I came back to the old family homestead in Suffern… I wanted to go to work; I did not want to go to any more schools.” Jerry Enters the Work Force
Jerry's friend, Elliot Reid, referred him to Henry Kiesel, who was able to help Jerry get a job as a shipping clerk for a silk manufacturer in New York City called the Chaney Silk Company, which was located at 342 Madison Avenue. This was his first commercial job, and he got paid $15.00 dollars a week. He stood on his feet eight hours a day, cutting and filling orders for silk. The Chaney Silk Company was a very successful company supplying dress manufacturers and department stores. At this time, Jerry lost his father, and his family faced some difficult financial challenges. His father’s $50,000-a-year salary with the California Perfume Company was gone. As a result, in 1925, Jerry started selling pots and pans of cast aluminum door-to-door for the Club Aluminum Company of Chicago. He learned to cook, and gave cooking demonstrations in his home for groups. He even borrowed his mother’s butler to help in these presentations. Jerry
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became a very successful salesman. He learned a number of valuable lessons about entrepreneurship, both in terms of handling his finances and in dealing with customers. In October 21, 1925, Jerry traveled with his mother from Cherbourg, France on the ship S. S. Reliance. By 1928, Jerry quit his job at Club Aluminum and took a job with a stock brokerage in Patterson, New Jersey at $115 a week. In 1929, the stock market crashed on “Black Friday.” The brokerage firm cut back and Jerry lost his job. The stock market crash wiped out Jerry’s assets, including his home, on which he had a $18,000 mortgage. It was sold at auction for $9,000. The bank also sued him for the deficiency. Jerry considered filing for bankruptcy, however the family attorney, John G. Turnbull, advised him against it. Mr. Turnbull was also Jerry’s attorney until Mr. Turnbull’s death sometime in the mid-t- late 1960s. Jerry wrote, “I will never forget how angry I was at the brokerage firm of the New York Stock Exchange and Wall Street, the whole lousy business. They were forced to cut back, and I was the first to get the axe. My $115 a week was gone like that. I had a wife and no income. I was furious. Another traumatic experience.” Jerry went on to vow, “My God, I’ll get even with the New York Stock Exchange someday. Someday I’m going to buy not just one seat on the New York Stock Exchange, I’m going to buy two seats and make a couch out of them and lie there and laugh like Hell at these bastards!”
So Long. It’s Been Good to Know You, 1982
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Jerry’s luck turned around to land him on his feet when his friend, Elliot Reid, again referred him to Henry Kiesel, who introduced Jerry to Alexander Cowan, head of the New York branch of Phoenix Mutual Insurance Company. When he was offered a job selling life insurance for Alexander Cowan at the Phoenix Mutual Insurance Company on Madison Avenue in New York City, Jerry accepted. He became very successful in the life insurance business, and was soon selling million dollar policies. Jerry had a salesman’s natural charm, and became known as a “million-dollar-man.” “I’ll never forget the continual complaint from the salesmen that Mr. Cowan was unjust, unfair; that he should have done this or he should have done that, etc.,” Jerry wrote. “He would listen very attentively to their gripes but his reply was always the same, and one which I, myself, have used many times in my lifetime. “I can feel for you. I know just how you feel. You think I’m not fair, but I’ve got news for you. I have such a high opinion of my own fair sense of values that I don’t care to rely on yours or that of anyone else.” He would repeat the phrase again lest it was not heard the first time… By saying that, everyone would shut up… there was nothing else to say… I would like to repeat that I have used the above reply when people have come to me with gripes and crying and complaining about injustice. My thanks to Alexander Cowan.” First Marriage
On the strength of this job, Jerry (age 21) married Theodora Gregson Huntington (age 22) on January 28, 1927 in Crestwood, New York. Theodora was from Spring Valley, New York, a town five miles north of Suffern. Her marriage to Jerry was listed in the Alumnae News, which said she
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was in the Class of 1925. For their honeymoon, they sailed on the S. S. Veendam, from New York on January 29, 1927 and arrived back in New York on February 14, 1927. The Rockland County Times reported the marriage on February 12, 1927: Miss Theodora G. Huntington, daughter of Dr. T. G. Huntington and Mrs. Huntington, of South Main Street, Spring Valley, was married Saturday to Mr. Girard B. Henderson of Suffern.
Theodora’s nickname was “Theo.” She was born on March 2, 1904 in Mt. Vernon, New York. Jerry and Theo had two daughters; Theodora G. Henderson and Dariel Henderson. Theodora was born in Brownsville, New York on January 25, 1928. On March 12, 1929, “Mrs. G. B. Henderson and her daughter, Theodora, of Mahwah, N. J.,” were mentioned in the Bronxville Press in connection with Mrs. Henry Frankenberg having a birthday party for their one year old daughter. Dariel Henderson was born in Mahwah, New Jersey on February 7, 1933. On December 3, 1981, Dariel Henderson Firestone, Jerry’s youngest daughter, died of lung cancer. She was living at Friday Harbor, Washington. Both Jerry and Theo were members of the Marble Collegiate Church on Riverside Drive in New York City. Jerry taught Sunday school at this church. The pastor for 52 years was Dr. Norman Vincent Peale, whom Jerry knew very well. Dr. Peale wrote 46 books, one of which was The The Alumnae News, January 1921-1927
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Power of Positive Thinking. He traveled to Las Vegas several times for seminars, which Jerry and his business partner, Farrow Smith, attended. They were also personal friends of Dr. Fosdick. On June 1, 1929, The Rockland County Evening Journal listed under “Transactions”, that Ella B. Henderson and Alexander D. Henderson Jr., gave a lot in Ramapo to Jerry’s wife. On November 29, 1930, The Rockland County Evening Journal mentioned: “Mrs. Girard B. Henderson, with her mother, and daughter, Theodora, have left their place in Cragmere Park and have gone to Florida for the winter.” Love for Aviation
Charles Lindberg,, who made the famous nonstop flight from New York to Paris in 1927, had a great influence on Jerry. This was a milestone in the history of aviation. Jerry watched the parade up Broadway when Lindberg came back from Paris by boat and landed at the Battery Plaza in New York City with his plane, the Spirit of St. Louis. Jerry said, “Lindberg made his famous nonstop flight from New York to Paris. There was a big parade up Broadway, and they came right past the White Star Line. I went up to see my friend Bob Walker because I knew he had a window in his office that overlooked Broadway. There, I watched
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the parade. The streets were mobbed. It was exciting seeing people throw papers from the windows. Lindberg was sitting in a car with the Mayor of New York. I was truly impressed with all this fanfare for him. It was at that time I decided that I was going to get into aviation.” As Jerry witnessed the evolution of aviation, he learned to fly at the Newark Airport in an open cockpit plane. He was one of the nation’s earliest pilots, earning his license at age 20 in 1925, which was prior to instruments being used, and also which he never learned. To him IFR meant "I Follow Roads." His pilot's license number was in the upper four digits and was signed by the surviving Wright Brother, who was head of the CAA, or Civil Aviation Authority. The CAA later became known as the FAA, or Federal Aviation Authority. This was the beginning of Jerry’s romance with aviation, which became a life-long passion. These were the days of barnstorming! In 1929, while he was working for Phoenix Mutual Insurance Company, Jerry bought an airplane in Marshall, Missouri. It was a two-seat, open cockpit, low-wing model called the Nicholas-Beasley. The pilot sat in the rear; the mechanic up front. The plane had a Pratt & Whitney Whirlwind engine, took off at 90 MPH, flew at 90 MPH, and landed at 90 MPH. Jerry loved this airplane. Jerry talked Mr. McConnell’s son, David, who he had known since growing up, into having the company charter Jerry’s plane to transport executives going from Philadelphia and Albany on business. He worked the airplane business along with the life insurance business.
So Long. It’s Been Good to Know You, Jerry Henderson, 1982
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During the 1930s, David McConnell Jr. had become the president of CPC and bought cabin planes, which were much better and cost $10,000 each. Jerry became the pilot of a beautiful Stagger Wing Beechcraft used by Mr. McConnell. During Prohibition, Jerry would fly up to Canada and buy two cases of whiskey, which he would sit on, leaving the seats behind. On July 16, 1931, the Rockland County Evening Journal said: “Girard B. Henderson of Mahwah, piloted his plane to Canada for a short stay last week.” The Rockland County Evening Journal wrote on June 11, 1932 the following story: WOMAN FLIES FROM MONSEY WITH HER SON Mrs. Alexander Henderson, of Nyack Turnpike, Suffern took off today from Monsey Field in the plane owned and piloted by her son, Girard Henderson of Cragmere. They are en route to Hyannis, Mass., on Cape Cod, where Mrs. Henderson will leave the plane and continue by motor to the home of friends in West Dennis for an extended visit. When she left the landing field at 9:30 this morning, it was only the second time Mrs. Henderson had been in an airplane. Her first flight was made with her son last week, and she enjoyed it so greatly that she decided to fly to Hyannis, rather than to go by motor car. The trip will occupy about two hours, it was believed, the distance being about 200 air miles. Immediately upon landing at the Hyannis field, Pilot Henderson will take Mrs. Richard Wheelock, of Tarrytown, aboard the plane and return her to Armonk Airport, he declared this morning.
On July 1, 1932, Jerry, living in Cragmere, New Jersey, wanted permission to operate a private landing field as a
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commercial airport. He applied for a permit to the Ramapo Zoning Board and presented the signatures of 12 Monsey Park citizens. The opponents contended that there was too much noise from the sound of the airplane engines. In 1934, Jerry took his nephew, Alexander D. Henderson III, up in his two-seater open cockpit airplane from Suffern, New York. On the evening of August 15, 1935, minor trouble forced an airplane piloted by Jerry Henderson, of Suffern, down onto the grounds of the Matteawan State Hospital in Beacon, N.Y. Henderson and Kenneth Burnham, Jerry's life-long friend, were not injured. They were en route from Greensboro, Vermont to Suffern. The plane’s engine plane suffered a cracked cylinder. The Rockland Journal News reported on October 5, 1937, that Jerry Henderson and David McConnell Jr., of Suffern, returned from a trip made by plane to Fort Worth, Texas. The Aviation News, reported on October 21, 1946, that Girard B. Henderson was president of the Air Trading Corporation, a New York export and import firm. The company was seeking certification of nine Grumman Avenger torpedo bombers as additions to its cargo fleet. Henderson Motor Co.
In 1933, Jerry opened the Henderson Motor Co., a Chrysler Dodge dealership, in Suffern, New York with Kenneth Burnham.
Evening Journal, Rockland County, July 1, 1932 The Poughkeepsie Eagle News
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Ernest Gordon Pratt, in his book Life of an Unknown Man, noted: “[Jerry] told me stories of the early ‘30s when he was struggling desperately to keep his Chrysler auto agency afloat. He told me how in one terrible period he had gone directly to Walter Chrysler himself in an effort to change certain policies that were pushing Jerry to the wall.” According to Farrow Smith, “Jerry borrowed $500 from his mother and bought a used Dodge truck from a sheriff’s sale. He then joined the Teamsters Union and started working around the docks in New York City. This grew into a fleet of trucks. He had the rights from the Interstate Commerce Act (ICC) in all the states.” On May 26, 1934, Jerry was mentioned as president of the Henderson Motor Company of Suffern, in Rockland County News in connection the Rockland County Flower Show judging. Jerry later landed a contract to truck materials for Avon from New York City to Suffern. According to Burnham, “Henderson’s mother, who was a major stockholder in Avon at the time, arranged the deal.” On April 12, 1935, an ad was placed in the Rockland County News saying: HENDERSON MORTORS, INC., Suffern, N. Y., has opening for salesmen of proven ability. Apply 10 A. M. Saturday. On November 21, 1935, the Rockland Journal News reported that Jerry’s mother had hired a handyman in the Fall to rake leaves and do other odd jobs at her Suffern estate and that she kept him through the Winter. She then lent the handyman to her son, Girard Henderson, to help in
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moving his garage at Henderson Motors, Inc., in Mahwah, New York. The handyman was apparently injured and was seeking compensation from Mrs. Henderson’s insurance carrier. On January 10, 1936, it was reported in the Journal News that: “Suffern and Ramapo town police are investigating a complaint registered by the owners of Henderson Motor Company’s garage in Orange Avenue, Suffern, against a motorist who is said to have deliberately driven his car into the side of the building early this morning, breaking a hole in the wall.” The Henderson Motor Company and the Henderson Trucking Company may have been separate companies. Farrow Smith says that Jerry did not sell his interest in the trucking company until the early 1970’s. Alexander Dawson Inc.
On December 17-18, 1935, Ella B. Henderson and her two sons, created a holding company called the Alexander Dawson Inc. (ADI), which was named after Jerry’s father, Alexander Dawson Henderson. His mother transferred 5,000 shares of Avon stock (at that time called Allied Products Inc..), along with other securities, to the company in exchange for shares of preferred and common stock in ADI. The Certification of Incorporation included a trust fund between the Brooklyn Trust Company and Mrs. Henderson, which was dated April 22, 1929. The first meeting and minutes of incorporation for the ADI Corporation were recorded on December 18, 1935 at 111 John Street, Borough of Manhattan, City, County, and State The transfer of Mrs. Henderson’s stock was listed in the Certificate of Incorporation for the Alexander Dawson Inc., December 17, 1935.
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of New York. Mr. John G. Turnbull, the family attorney, presided. In this meeting, Mr. Turnbull stated that the Certificate of Incorporation of the Company had been filed and recorded in the office of the County Clerk of Bergen County on December 17, 1935, and that the said Certificate had been filed with the Secretary of State at Trenton, New Jersey, on December 18, 1935. Directors were elected at this meeting as well. Ella B. Henderson became President, Alexander D. Henderson was elected Vice-President, and Jerry was voted as Secretary. The second board meeting for Alexander Dawson, Inc. was held the following year, on January 21, 1936. In this meeting, it was resolved that the funds of the Corporation be deposited with the Brooklyn Trust Company, Brooklyn, New York. On December 31, 1936, a meeting of the board of directors for Alexander Dawson Inc., was held at the home of Mrs. Ella B. Henderson in Suffern, New York. In this meeting, they elected John G. Turnbull as a fourth director of the Company, to serve until the next annual meeting of stockholders. In addition, the income of the Company was examined. It was found that sufficient income was available to pay a dividend of its preferred and common stock to stockholders of record. On June 10, 1938, The Journal News reported that: SISTER WOULD OUST BROTHER, IRVING TRUST Dorys Hall Faile Goes to Court to Prevent Possible Disaster to Business of Allied Products Efforts to thwart claimed “rubber stamp” control of the board of directors of the Allied Products, Inc., of Suffern, by David H. From the Minutes and Meeting of Incorporators, Alexander Dawson Inc., December 18, 1935
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McConnell Jr., its president, and to prevent a possible “disaster” to the company’s business because of McConnell’s alleged “inattention” to it, were brought to light in Surrogate’s Court yesterday when his sister, Mrs. Dorys Hall Faile of Westport, Conn., filed a petition for the removal of her brother and the Irving Trust Company as executors of the estate of her dead father, David H. McConnell Sr.
The newspaper article goes on to say that Edna McConnell Clark, Ella B. Henderson, Minna E. Scheele, and Dorys Hall Faile had setup a voting trust with sufficient stock to control the company. Each deposited 1,500 shares of stock, a total of 6,000 shares. John G. Turnbull was the attorney. The purpose of the voting trust agreement was to assemble a block of stock which, taken together with the holdings of any other two large stockholders, would constitute control of the company and the actions of David H. McConnell Jr. in his capacity as president. On March 1, 1940, a special meeting of the board of directors for Alexander Dawson Inc., was held at room 2707, 111 John Street, Borough of Manhattan, New York City. At this meeting, it was announced, “With deep sorrow, the death of Mrs. Ella B. Henderson on January 17, 1940, was recorded.” The board voted and elected Alexander D. Henderson, Jr. as President of the Corporation. Girard B. Henderson was elected Vice President and Treasurer. Girard Henderson was living in Ruxton, Maryland at this time. On March 29, 1940, a special meeting of the board of directors for Alexander Dawson Inc., was held at room 2707, 111 John Street, New York City. It was decided at this meeting to open an account with the Chase National Bank of New York, at the Rockefeller Center Branch, so that dividends from Allied Products Inc., could be Rockland Journal News, June 10, 1938, Page 1, 12
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deposited. In addition, it was declared that the company provides dividends on shares of its preferred stock, payable on April 15, 1940, and that yearly salaries be paid to the President and Vice-President. On October 29, 1940, a special meeting of the board of directors for Alexander Dawson, Inc. was held at room 2707, 111 John Street, New York City. It was resolved at this meeting that a dividend of $5.00 a share be declared on the common stock of the Company, to be paid October 29, 1940, to stockholders of record as-of that date. Mr. Turnbull reported that securities recently sold to the Company by the Executors of the estate of Ella B. Henderson had been transferred to the Company. Jerry Henderson stated that he was going to Suffern, New York, and that he would cancel the lease of the safe deposit box at the Lafayette Bank & Trust Company and withdraw all of the securities. On December 26, 1940, a special meeting of the board of directors for Alexander Dawson, Inc. was held at room 2707, 111 John Street, New York City. It was resolved at this meeting that a dividend of $22.00 a share on the common stock of the Company ($22,000) be paid to stockholders of record as-of that date. In addition, it was decided to close the estate of Ella B. Henderson, and that Alexander D. Henderson and Girard B. Henderson assume payment of loans totaling $56,000 to the estate. On January 14, 1943, the annual meeting of stockholders for Alexander Dawson Inc., was held at room 2707, 111 John Street, New York City. The minutes note a motion that was made and seconded to elect four directors for one year: A. D. Henderson, G. B. Henderson, Lucy B. Henderson, and Theodora Henderson. In addition, the minutes state the number of shares each stockholder owned:
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A. D. Henderson G. B. Henderson Trustees of E. B. Henderson Lucy E. Henderson T. G. Henderson (Mrs.) T. G. Henderson (Miss) D. A. Henderson
1,250 shares preferred & 300 shares common 1,250 shares preferred & 338 shares common 500 shares preferred stock 200 shares common stock 65 shares common stock 48 shares common stock 48 shares common stock
On January 13, 1944, the annual stockholders’ meeting for Alexander Dawson Inc., was held at Colony Gardens, Beaufort, South Carolina. The minutes show that the bylaws were amended to provide that meetings of the stockholders could be held anywhere in the continental United States. The Corporation’s accountant was noted as Mr. Adolph Manson, who prepared the 1943 balance sheet and the profit and loss statement. On January 9, 1945 the annual meeting of stockholders for Alexander Dawson Inc., was held at Colony Gardens, Beaufort, South Carolina. The minutes state that that the Chairman announced that he and the Secretary had acted during the past year as the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors. They had declared dividends to be paid on the preferred and common stock, had attended all the stockholders’ meetings at Allied Products, Inc., and Avon Products Ltd. of Canada, and had voted the stock held by the Corporation. The Chairman authorized G. B. Henderson to vote all the stock held by this Corporation at such stockholders’ meetings. Alexander Henderson did not get along with Jerry, perhaps because of their ten year age difference. Alexander called Jerry a “fanatic” and said he was often embarrassed over
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his actions. He cites one occasion where Jerry asked his brother to make a sunburn lotion as his family had joined a nudist colony. Alexander also said that “he is a most difficult person to sit down and discuss any subject as his ideas are a closed book and he knows all the answers.” On October 6, 1945, from his home in West Dennis, Massachusetts, A. D. Henderson wrote a letter to Jerry talking about an agreement they had made in 1939 whereby if either one of them should die the other would have the privilege of buying control of the holding company. He reluctantly went into this agreement. In this letter, Alexander said he feels the agreement is invalid and that if something happened to Jerry, he would not want to the responsibility of managing the affairs of his family. A few years later, Jerry agreed to cancel this agreement. Sometime after 1945, Jerry’s brother resigned from ADI. The two wanted to go their separate ways. Jerry moved to California; his brother stayed in New York and later moved to Florida. Jerry became the sole owner, chairman, and CEO of ADI. It has been said by my father that Jerry was jealous of his brother who was the ‘shining light’ in business and sports. Prior to 1955, Jerry gave 27% of his ADI common stock (and some ADI preferred stock) to his then wife, Theodora Henderson, while maintaining his personal control of ADI. In 1955, Girard and Theodora separated and later were divorced. In the mid-1970s, Jerry built the Alexander Dawson Building, an office complex on 4045 Spencer Street and Flamingo Road in Las Vegas, Nevada. It was later Letter to Sarah E. Brown on February 8, 1947 from Alexander D. Henderson
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expanded into two side-by-side office buildings and renamed the Dawson Buildings, which became the location of the Alexander Dawson Foundation offices. The South Wing was built first in 1971, and is two stories high with approximately 40,000 square feet. The North Wing was started around 1973, and has two floors underground and four floors above ground. Jerry had a restaurant in the office building called Alexander's. Alexander’s restaurant was doing well until the local Culinary Union became involved and caused problems. It was later sold, and eventually closed. ADI leased the entire bottom, or underground, floor on B Level of the North Wing to the Summa Corporation, which was owned by the recluse Howard Hughes. They liked it for security reasons, since it had two underground floors. Other tenants occupied the underground A Level and the remaining four floors above ground. Jerry had the only private aircraft hangar at the Las Vegas airport. All other private aircraft either leased tie down spaces or hangars. Jerry built the hangar on land leased from the county with the cooperation of Hughes Aviation. After his death, ADI was able to sell the hangar and get out of the lease for the land. Mahwah, New Jersey
Jerry established an office and home in Mahwah, New Jersey. After he moved to California, the house became “a place for him to live during his monthly trips to his Avon board meetings. The double-wall-insulated construction was to provide a quiet and dark place to sleep in, and to make it as Owen Patrick, a radio repair technician Jerry later met in California
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impenetrable as possible to avoid vandalism. The added result of this kind of construction was that it was easy to heat.�
1970 Avon Board Members Christine McConnell ran the office in Mahwah, and when her husband retired, Jerry moved them and the office to Las Vegas. Laurel Hill Plantation
In 1939, Jerry sailed a 77 ft. two-masted schooner called Zora from New Jersey to Beaufort, South Carolina. The reason he chose Beaufort was he knew Dr. Pratt, a medical doctor and administrator of the Beaufort County Hospital. Dr. Pratt was originally from New Jersey; his son became a prominent veterinarian in Beaufort.
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Before coming to Beaufort, S.C., Jerry had purchased the Zora from the Bromo Seltzer heir, who had a very unpleasant experience at sea and was anxious to sell his boat. At the beginning of World War II, Jerry and his family again sailed from New Jersey to Beaufort, where they settled until the end of the War. He was convinced President Roosevelt was going to get the United States involved in the war with Europe, so he moved his family to Beaufort, where he knew he could continue to provide for them. Jerry formed a Sea Scout Troop of teen-age boys to help him sail the boat and patrol the Carolina coast for U-boats during World War II. A unit of Marines knocked on his door one night and told him they had a report of a German submarine in St. Helena’s Sound. They asked if they could use Jerry’s motorboat, and for him to show them around. Jerry took the Marines out into the sound looking for the Uboat. After a while he said to them, "Boys, if we find this submarine, I do not believe we are large enough to capture it," to which they agreed. Jerry then said, "I have a better idea; let's go back to my house and have a drink." They did not find any U-boats and soon left. According to an interview with Willie Scheper of Beaufort, Jerry, “was a staunch supporter of the community, especially the Sea Scouts, where Willie was a scout and Jerry was Scout Commander. He taught them how to sail aboard the Zora. On Lady's Island, Jerry built a house of concrete blocks, which were mixed on site and poured in molds. Jerry's home was on the east side of Sam's Point Road. According to Jerry's daughter (Terry), the doors and stained-glass windows from his parents’ house in Suffern appointed this house. The house was 100 feet long and had seven
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fireplaces. According Willie Scheper, Jerry brought “his mom’s home in Suffern, New York to Lady’s Island piecemeal and re-assembled it around a block frame.” There was a rough landing strip on the east side of Jerry’s house on Lady’s Island. It was dirt, with tall trees on the south end and water on the other end. An old pole formed the windsock frame. The FAA designation for Laurel Hill Plantation Airport is SC05. Shortly after Jerry purchased a Gulf Stream Aircraft in Savannah, GA, Mario Borini and a pilot landed there. By the time they parked, the propeller was dark green. They also landed Jerry’s King Air A100, which was probably the largest airplane Jerry had permission to land, at the Marine Corps Air Station in Beaufort with the larger airplanes. In fact, someone painted the MCAS air station letters on the tail of one of the airplanes, which Jerry did not remove. There is a photo of Jerry and Mary, his second wife, sitting on the tail wing with MCAS stenciled on the tail. Effort is underway to approve restoration of the windsock and pole at the north end of the field. There are also plans for placing a plaque next to the pole commemorating Jerry and his friends who landed there. While Jerry was In Beaufort, he was a member of St. Helena Episcopal Church, which dates back to the early 1700s and was commissioned by the King of England. Jerry was the distributor for liquid toothpaste in Virginia. When he stopped selling it, he brought the remaining stock to his home in South Carolina, which he stored above his garage. He also distributed Pronto Pup corn dogs.
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At the end of the war, Jerry and his family moved to California. The property where Jerry built his home in Beaufort was sold when he relocated. Across the road and West of this property is the Laurel Hill Plantation, which was owned by the Corporation and consisted of approximately 200 acres on Lady's Island. Avon Products
During a trip to England in 1928, the beauty of StratfordUpon-Avon, home of playwright William Shakespeare, impressed McConnell. The trade name Avon was adopted in 1929 by applying the name to new CPC products. For example, Avon Talc for Men sold for 37 cents per can in 1935, and offered an "essentially masculine" smell, according to a 1935 advertisement of the California Perfume Company. By 1935, the California Perfume Company had changed its name to Allied Products, Inc., and later to Avon Allied Products, Inc., with the following subsidiaries: Avon Products, Inc., distributors of Avon cosmetics and toiletries; Perfection Household Products; Avon Products of Canada, Ltd.; Hinz Ambrosia, Inc.; and Technical Laboratories, Inc. The Company name did not change to Avon Products Inc. until October 6, 1939. In 1940, Jerry Henderson was elected to serve on the board of directors for Avon Products, and served for 35 years. His brother,
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Alexander Henderson, was Vice President of Purchasing. Together, by 1961, they owned over one million Avon shares, worth $88 million dollars. In 1942, during World War II, 40 percent of Suffern’s output was devoted to a war contract for military manufacturing. This expanded to 50 percent in 1943. On March 27 1946, Avon Allied Products, Inc. of New York City registered 37,220 shares of preferred stock and 100,000 shares of common stock. This was the company’s first over-the-counter offering of stock to the public. Avon was not listed on the New York Stock Exchange until April 20, 1964. The first television advertising was launched in 1953. In 1972, sales of Avon reached $1 billion. In 1975, Jerry Henderson retired as a member of Avon’s board of directors. During his 35 years on the board, he participated in many important, far-reaching decisions, which helped shape Avon. On July 19, 1950, Girard Henderson (age 45) and his wife Theodora (age 46) went on a cruise on the ship Lurline, from California to Honolulu, Hawaii. They returned from Hawaii to San Francisco on July 17, 1950 on the same ship. Their daughter Dariel (age 17) was with them. The Alarm Company and MPTV
In 1945, Jerry came to Carmel by the Sea in California with his wife and family. They both fell in love with the village of Carmel, and bought a house overlooking the Carmel Hawaii, Honolulu Passenger Lists, 1900-1953, Roll 258 vol 378; Carmel Pine Cone, June 16, 1950, page 8 California, San Francisco Passenger Lists, 1983-1953, Roll 413
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Mission, that had been previously owned by the Hollywood actor, Melvin Douglas. The address was 2756 Mission Road. Jerry lived in this house with his wife and two daughters. In 1948, Jerry met Ruben Tice, who owned an electrical supply store in Monterey. Jerry worked for Tice Electric "for free," where he met Owen Patrick, who worked as a radio repair technician. According to Owen Patrick, Jerry came to the door of the repair shop looking like a farmer that had just plowed the back forty. He said, “I’m Jerry Henderson, and I want to learn something about electronics. I’ll sort resistors and other parts, and I’ll even sweep the floors. My price is right; I’ll work for nothing.” Owen replied without hesitation ‘you’re hired.’ Jerry did everything he promised and then some. While working for Tice Electric, Jerry created the “Alarm Corporation,” because someone had stolen a potted geranium from his front porch in Carmel. Owen Patrick went out to Jerry’s house, which was the first time they knew their “stock boy” and janitor lived in Carmel. Jerry had also told them he would be off one week each month, but did not say he was attending Avon board of directors meetings. Jerry and Owen Patrick developed, in Jerry’s garage, a silent burglar alarm system that would phone the police and play a prerecorded message telling the police that a burglar had just entered. Owen Patrick became Vice President and engineer of the Alarm Corporation. Oswald “Oz” Gutsche started working for Jerry at the Alarm Corporation around 1960 while still a senior in
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Monterey high school. Upon graduating, he started working full time. Instead of buying a TV, customers could rent them from the Alarm Corp. Oz's first job was delivering the TVs and setting them up for the customers. Oz Gutsche was born in Germany. His Father tested early jet fighters. In 1942, he was killed during World War II in a crash testing the Messerschmitt ME 210 bomber in Germany. Ernest Gordon Pratt, who was living on the James estate in the Carmel Highlands, helped set up the books and organized the Alarm Company as a California corporation. According to Gordon, “Cappy Martin, a local political lawyer, handled the incorporation and various franchises. He was the Alarm Corp. attorney for 22 years.” Gordon goes on to talk about Jerry, “he had a home in Sea Island, Georgia and an apartment in New York City. He held a 9% interest in the stock of Avon Products. He had a major interest in the Flying Tigers airline and an interest in one of the largest trucking companies in the United States.” In 1950, Jerry had another idea. Television was just coming in at this time, but Carmel could not get a good picture because a hill in Pebble Beach blocked the signal coming from San Francisco. The MP-TV (Monterey Peninsula Television) Company was created in Carmel, with offices located on 7th and Lincoln Street. The company provided underground cable service to Carmel residents. All of the corporate stock for MP-TV was issued in the name of Alarm Corporation. Jerry and his crew placed an antenna on a balloon and searched for the best signal from San Francisco. This is how MP-TV located its receiving antenna site on the high ground of Pebble Beach at Huckleberry Hill. Jerry was able to purchase this property and built a "shack" for the
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equipment. The signal was sent from here by coaxial cable to customers’ homes in Monterrey and Carmel. Jerry worked out a contract with Samuel F. B. Morse (cousin of the inventor of the telegraph and Morse code), who owned the Pebble Beach Lodge. Mr. Henderson put cable in each room of the Lodge, which proved to be a great success. There was a “success” party at the Del Monte Lodge afterwards. On March 27, 1953, The Carmel Pine Cone put out an article about Girard B. Henderson as owner and developer of Monterey Peninsula Television Company. The article talks about how Jerry was able to fix the TV reception problem by erecting a receiving station at a summit in Pebble Beach and laying cable from it to Carmel. The article said that the Carmel Meadows subdivision put their utilities underground and arranged for MPTV to add their cable too. While Jerry was occupied with MPTV, his daughter Dariel Henderson was keeping busy as the maid of honor to brideto-be Mavis Jones. Dariel was the hostess at a linen shower at the Henderson home on Dolores and Franciscan. The older daughter, Terry Henderson had left for college in 1951 to the Pine Manor College in Newton, Massachusetts. Bill McPheeters joined the company to assist Owen. He later became President, and stayed until the company was sold. Gordon Pratt, after a couple of years, left the company to raise and sell orchids. About five years after Gordon left the company, Owen Patrick left to teach electronics technology at Monterey Peninsula College (MPC). Owen stayed at MPC for over 25 years. Owen and Gordon remained board members at MP-TV. The Carmel Pine Cone, October 23, 1953, page 12
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Carl S. Rohr Electric, who helped sell TVs in Carmel advertised, “By using a scientifically located central receiver and amplifiers, clear signals are received by individual sets through an underground cable. For an initial installation cost and small monthly payments, people in Pebble Beach and Carmel now, or soon, will be able to receive excellent television programs.” According to Ernest Gordon Pratt, “there were a lot of problems at Alarm Corp.; sometimes they seemed absolutely overwhelming. Antennas, miles of special cable, amplifiers to buy, county franchises to negotiate, city franchises for Carmel, Monterey, Seaside, Pacific Grove, and then there were building permits, zoning regulations, new employees to hire, technical instruments, and just plain trucks to buy.” In May of 1953, Girard Henderson (48) and his wife Theodora (49) took a long cruise and tour of the world. They were listed as passengers arriving in the port of San Francisco on the ship, President Cleveland. Their address was listed as Mahwah, New Jersey. Jerry came back to California, but Theo went to Seattle. In 1955, Girard B. Henderson and his then wife, Theodora G. Henderson, entered into a separation agreement. In 1967, MP-TV moved to Monterey, next to the Monterey airport. A Street called "Henderson Way” went to the MPTV headquarters and is still there today. The cable TV company was the second cable company in the country. The first one was in Lansford, Pennsylvania. In 1972, the company sold for five million dollars to the San Francisco Chronicle publishing company.
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Oswald Gutsche moved to Las Vegas around 1975 shortly after the cable company was sold. He worked for the San Francisco Chronicle for a while after they acquired their cable TV division. He came back to work for Jerry in 1976. In 1980, Jerry bought Clearwater Communications, Inc., Coeur d’Alene, ID, which was also a cable TV company. Ted Hughett, who formerly worked for Jerry at MP-TV, later bought this company. The Carmel Pine Cone reported that on June 26, 1953, while living in Carmel, Jerry assisted on the International Mercury Regatta Committee that had five days of racing in Stillwater Cove in Pebble Beach. Thirsty Thursday Club
According to Owen Patrick, the “Thirsty Thursday Club,” as he called it, met each Thursday evening in Pebble Beach at Jimmy Hatlo’s home named “Wits End.’ Jimmy was a syndicated cartoonist that drew a comic strip called ‘Little Iodine.’ Hank Ketchum, also a cartoonist, famous for his strip ‘Dennis the Menace,’ and Bing Crosby, who had a home near Hatlo’s place, would occasionally join in the poker party. They played table stakes, which can be a vicious form of betting.” Alexander Dawson Foundation
Jerry created the Alexander Dawson Foundation in 1957, which was named after his father, Alexander Dawson Henderson. Jerry dropped "Henderson" from the foundation's name to deflect attention from himself. Jerry said the reason he did not like his given name was that THEODORA HOLDING CORPORATION v. HENDERSON, 1969
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anytime his Mother would yell "Girard" he knew he had done something wrong and would wet his pants. The foundation, a non-profit charitable trust dedicated to education, was set up as a tax-exempt 501 (C) 3 organization. The Alexander Dawson Foundation is now the parent organization. Its mission is "to support its educational organizations that prepare young adults to excel in college and society by providing the highest quality academic instruction and by developing self-respect, selfdiscipline and self-reliance through hard work, personal responsibility and respect for authority. By so doing, we strive to cultivate future leaders." Today, the Alexander Dawson Foundation’s Board of Trustees includes: John D. O’Brien, Oswald Gutsche, Kimberley Johnston, and Farrow J. Smith. John O’Brien has been Jerry’s attorney, as well as the Foundation’s, since 1972. Farrow J. Smith was Secretary-Treasurer and Vice President of ADI. Jerry, personally and through ADI, made a series of donations to the Alexander Dawson Foundation ranging in value from $27,923 to $467,750, and occurred from 1960 through 1966. The foundation used the funds to support the activities at the Colorado Junior Republic School. ADI shareholders approved each of these donations. Jerry divorced his wife, Theodora G. Henderson, in 1960. Theodora G. Henderson died in 1979. Jerry and Farrow J. Smith went to the services in New York. She owned onequarter interest in ADI, which was given to her by Jerry at the time or before they separated. The ADI Company held almost all of Jerry’s assets, including his stock in Avon. Later, according to Louis
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Kilzer, from The Denver Post, “More than 14 million shares of the preferred stock in the company were set-aside in 1979 by Jerry for the Alexander Dawson Foundation.“ Stapps Lake Ranch
Jerry greatly loved the outdoors, so in 1958, he bought a 320-acre ranch at Stapps Lake, northwest of the historic mining town of Ward, Colorado, in the middle of the Roosevelt National Forest 9,400 feet high in the Colorado Rockies on the Continental Divide. According to Kenneth Burnham, “Jerry wanted to find a permanent place in Colorado.” With Burnham’s help, they scouted out a spot near Ward. Jerry arrived with a woman he would marry six years later, Mary Hollingsworth.” Jerry was the second owner of Stapps Lake Ranch, named for the Stapps Brothers who had homesteaded it through a Federal Land Grant. Teddy Roosevelt enjoyed hunting and fishing there prior to becoming President. The surrounding area was the first national forest authorized by Congress, which was named the Roosevelt National Forest after TR became President. The ranch was one of the nation’s first dude ranches, with a lodge, several cabins, and lakes. Operated by Mr. Stapps’ son for many years, the ranch was most recently used for the summer campus of the Alexander Dawson School, which has its main campus in Lafayette, Colorado. At an elevation of 9,400 feet, it enjoys clean air, spectacular views, and nine lakes, three of which have been stocked for many years to offer sportsmen a wide variety of fishing pleasures. Henderson Lake offers up rainbow and brook trout, while Lily Lake jumps with German browns. In the 17acre Big Lake, one will find mature rainbow and mackinaw (also known as lake trout).
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The numerous buildings at the retreat include the fully equipped main lodge built in 1982, a 2,700-square-foot, two-story building well suited for its most recent use as the main dining room and entertainment hall; a cozy caretaker’s house of stone and brick; a large metal warehouse; two historic lodges which need rehabilitation; 23 summer cabins; a fourplex used for storage and many auxiliary buildings. Offered at $1.5 million.
Jerry liked to spend his summers at the ranch riding horses, fishing, and boating. He hired Jack Lawrence and his wife to work on the ranch. Jerry contacted Kenneth and Jay Swayze of Plainview, Texas when he read about the underground homes they were building in Plainview. In 1964, Kenneth and his brother Jay built the spacious 3,400 sq. ft. underground house on the Stapps Lake Ranch. Jerry spent $104,000 on the hydroelectric plant that supplied the house with power. The home was enclosed in a weatherproof concrete shell, under a man-made hill at the edge of Big Lake. The entrance was built to look like a mineshaft. The house was completely underground, and included four bedrooms, a swimming pool, and murals of the skyline of San Francisco on one side and New York on the other side. American artist Jewel Smith, from Plainview, Texas, lived in the guesthouse for three years while she hand-painted the murals. The murals feature some of the Jerry’s favorite places. One section is in winter with a blanket of snow under evergreen trees. Jerry’s nephew and nephew’s family can be seen in one mural leaning on a gate to Jerry’s ranch in Colorado. Previes Inc. listing brochure, 1986
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Lighting in the house could be adjusted to make it appear that the sun was rising over New York and setting over San Francisco. The underground home had a helicopter pad on top for quick getaways. After Jerry’s death, in the winter of 1983, Farrow Smith was assigned the task of inventorying his personal property. It took a week for the caretaker to snow plow the dirt road so they could drive in. There was a snow bank at least ten feet high on both sides of the road. The trustees of Alexander Dawson Foundation placed the house on the market for $1.5 million. After a little over two years, in June 1986, it sold for $1.16 million to a religious group from India. It became holy ground; and they called it Sacred Mountain Ashram. After one winter, they placed it on the market. There were several articles in the local newspapers regarding the Indian religious group. The Colorado Junior Republic School
In 1967, the Alexander Dawson Foundation began its first educational endeavor by establishing the Colorado Junior Republic School (CJR) at Stapps Lake, Colorado. Originally a summer school for underprivileged children, the school began to educate teenagers from broken homes. “There’s no such thing as delinquent kids, only delinquent parents,” Jerry would say, and he tried to give the students a second start in life. By 1970, the school had moved to its present site at the foot of the Rocky Mountains in Lafayette, Colorado. Not only does it provide a good, basic high school education, but it also creates for students a mini-society called the Colorado Junior Republic. Students, or “citizens” as they were called, work the Republic’s farm, dairy, ranch, slaughterhouse, greenhouse, and print shop,
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and are paid in the Republic’s own currency, which is convertible to U.S. dollars. Another interesting characteristic of the school in those early years was that it offered flight instruction at the school’s airstrip to students who, through hard work and determination, achieved high grades and showed that they could handle the additional responsibility of flight training. Besides its own money system, this private school had laws and courts, grew its own food, and supplied its own water. It had an airport where small airplanes could land. Jack Lawrence, one of Henderson’s long-time friends, said, “Henderson got the idea from the George Junior Republic in Freeville, New York,” which catered to underprivileged children. According to Gordon Pratt, Jerry “made a deal with the New York City Police Commissioner, who would select the most incorrigible, the toughest juvenile delinquents that New York City produced. These were the lads that were selected for Jerry’s school. There was but one requirement and that was that the boy had to have above average intelligence. Jerry would talk with the boy and he’d promise the lad, if the boy would come out to this school, all of the lad’s expenses through high school, college, and even to a doctorate if the boy so chose, would be paid by Jerry. The boy was promised a horse of his own, a private room, special teachers and each year at roundup the boys would spend one entire month on the open range.” In 1970, the school moved to Lafayette. Colorado. The school was later expanded into a year-round program, and then in 1980 was converted to a college preparatory
Kilzer, Louis, “Colorado’s Mystery Millionaire,” Denver Post, 1983
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program. The campus now occupies approximately 110 acres. In 1978, Jerry found oil on school property in Colorado. There was both oil and natural gas on the property. Jerry inspected his first oil well and drilling rig, and was very proud of the fact that he had struck oil! In 1980, the Alexander Dawson Foundation changed the name of the school from Colorado Junior Republic School to Alexander Dawson School, again in honor of Jerry’s father. Also at this time, the school was converted to a coeducational, private college preparatory school for students in grades 9-12. Additional grades were added over the next two decades, until now, Alexander Dawson School annually educates approximately 460 students in grades K12. After the school moved to Lafayette, there was no need for the large ranch. Following Jerry’s death in November of 1983, Stapps Lake Ranch was placed on the market. In 1986, Previews Inc. in Denver, Colorado, listed the property for $1.5 million. In June of 1988, it was sold for 1.17 million to a religious group called the Truth Consciousness organization of Sacred Mountain Ashram. Jerry Henderson wanted to foster the whole child and develop students’ self-respect and self-sufficiency. He believed that if young people are given responsibility, are made accountable for their actions, and are surrounded by adults who truly care about them, they would thrive. Jerry believed that work was a source of pride and gave meaning to life. He was thankful for nature’s bounty and for the freedom won for us by the sacrifice of patriots, and so was always demonstrating his love of our country.
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While Timothy Leary was telling kids to “Tune in, turn on, drop out,” Jerry was telling them, “Work hard, love your country, get a haircut.” Jerry was a strong-willed decisive man. With Jerry as its model, the school developed the twin mottos, “Love of the Land” and “Nothing without Labor,” and so the Republic taught its citizens self-reliance, self-respect, and the value of hard work. This was the basic nucleus for the building of character, of society’s future leading citizens. On June 20, 2013, the Daily Camera newspaper reported that the Boulder County panel approved more students and more space for the Alexander Dawson School. Members of the planning panel voted unanimously to recommend that the Board of County Commissioners approve the private school's plans for adding 24,521 square feet of additional floor area to its complex of buildings at 10455 Dawson Drive. The Planning Commission also approved the school's proposal to increase the county's cap on the number of students it can have present on campus at any given time, raising the number of students from 460 to 540 students. Colorado Health Education Center
Jerry, having become interested in the Pritikin Health Diet, established a nutrition clinic on the school campus in Lafayette, Colorado, called the Colorado Health Education Center (CHEC). It had a staff of doctors, a lab for blood work, etc., classes on food preparation and proper diets, and other facilities The four major elements in CHEC’s program were: Education, Diet, Exercise, and Stress Management. A Jet Powered Life: Allen E. Paulson, Aviation Entrepreneur, by Donald J. Porter, 2019
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The clinic served the elderly and the obese, and it studied the link between diet and longevity. It was partly designed for Jerry to address his own health issues, after suffering a mild stroke in 1979. Jerry was a “lifelong learner.” He learned to fly a helicopter in his 70s, and he started learning to play the organ. Jerry had an organ in both his home and his office, where a music teacher came in almost daily to give him lessons as therapy following his stroke. Following Jerry's death, the center was closed and given over to the school to be used in 1984 as a dormitory, and then later as the main classrooms for the Upper School, now known as Henderson Hall. New York World’s Fair
During the Cold War, President Kennedy encouraged everyone to be prepared with water, dried foods, and a fallout shelter. Jerry liked the idea but felt it should be more comfortable, like living at home. Jerry read constantly and saw articles on Jay Swayze. Kenneth and Jay Swayze formed a company called Underground World Homes that designed several full-sized underground homes. Jerry bought a 51 percent share of the Underground World Home Corporation, which was located in Mahwah, New Jersey. The Swayzes were convinced that the surface of the earth would one day not be inhabitable, and proposed everything from underground homes to underground schools and shopping malls. Kenneth Swayze wrote in his book Underground Gardens and Homes, published in 1980, “The
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nuclear age was upon us, and long-range planning was necessary to protect humanity from possible ill effects.” Jerry pioneered underground living, and sponsored the Underground Home exhibit at the 1964-1965 New York World's Fair. The “house of tomorrow” was fifteen feet under gourd. The exhibit covered such topics as “Why live underground?” and “How to build underground.” The Underground World Home was built exactly like the homes Swayze was hoping to sell, with a concrete shell enclosing a 5,600-square-foot area. The roof and floor were each 10 inches thick, with 13-inch walls. A particular construction challenge was the marshy soil at the Flushing Meadow site, for it required additional waterproofing protection and bracing. In fact, the souvenir book available at the Fair described the site as "a Long Island swamp! What did visitors to the Underground Home see? Before descending into the home itself, there was a display about the construction techniques used and the benefits of living underground. Then it was downstairs, where guides took visitors for a tour of the three-bedroom home. After looking around at the house and terrace, visitors then climbed back upstairs, where they could buy a booklet with more information on how they could arrange for their own subterranean chalet. Michelle Dearmond, Associated Press Writer, Las Vegas Cotter, Bill, The Underground World Home
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Underground living was advertised as a way to control the climate, atmosphere, sound, security, and privacy of your home. The brochure given out at the exhibit advertised “A few feet underground can give ‘…an island unto himself;’ a place where he controls his own worlda world of total ease and comfort, of security, safety, and above all, privacy.
Jerry’s good friend, Johnny Mann, wrote the album “At the bottom of the fair.” On the back of the album, Johnny Mann wrote: "The first time I was in an underground home was in the Colorado Rockies under a mountaintop 9500 feet above sea level! And it was here that I met the owner, Mr. Jerry Henderson. As his guest, I soon became aware of the fantastic possibilities of underground living, and at the same time struck up a lasting personal friendship with Jerry.” After the World’s Fair, the company disbanded. According to Kenneth Swayze, “We split up, and there wasn’t enough market for the thing.” Time Magazine
On Friday, June 17, 1966, TIME magazine published an article about Jerry Henderson entitled, “Avon Paying," which talked about Jerry’s being a director of Avon and his recent sale of stock. The article said: Girard Brown Henderson, a director of Avon Products Inc., owes his wealth to the cosmetics firm’s cheery, door-to-door sales technique, but he is not the kind of fellow that a stranger comes calling on. A 5-ft. 6-in., onetime barnstorming pilot, Henderson at 61 is one of the richest men in the U.S., and one of the most secretive.
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Though he has interests in half a dozen businesses ranging from investment companies to a community antenna television outfit in California, and is a member of the New York Stock Exchange, he is rarely seen at his Wall Street office. His addresses in Mahwah, N.J., and Las Vegas are mere post-office-box numbers; another residence, just west of Boulder, Colo., is entirely underground. Henderson, whose Underground World Home Corp. showed off a model house at the New York World’s Fair last year, likes subterranean living. Last week the New York Stock Exchange issued an ‘Insiders’ Stockholdings report that told a lot about Henderson’s financial condition. In a deal closed two months ago, one of his holding companiesin which he has a 49% interest-sold 271,455 shares of Avon stock, worth $23 million. Spokesmen for the exchange and the Securities and Exchange Commission called it ‘a normal market transaction.’ Even after that deal, Henderson still ‘indirectly owned’ 1,035,410 Avon shares, worth $88 million; these are also held in the name of his holding company. How did he get so much in this day of soaring taxes? The stake came from his father, who at the turn of the century invested in Avon Founder David McConnell’s struggling perfume business-and watched it grow. In the last decade, Avon’s earnings have ballooned 485%, to $47.5 million in 1965, and its stock, after allowing for several splits, has gone up 19,000%.
Forbes Magazine
On July 1, 1973, Henderson appears in an article about Avon in Forbes Magazine. The article talks about Avon Products and Henderson as the biggest individual shareholder next to the founding family. At this time, he was worth $135 million in Avon shares alone. He told Forbes magazine that before he became a director he made TIME Magazine, June 17, 1966
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deliveries for the company. He owned Avon stock at 1 cent a share. Blue Channel Seafood Company
Jerry got involved in the Blue Channel Seafood Company in Port Royal, South Carolina, in 1964, and acquired full ownership in 1968. Sterling Harris, Founder and President, was looking for financial assistance and contacted Jerry in California. They had become acquainted while Jerry was living in Beaufort during WW II. Blue Channel Corporation was originally a Maryland corporation, and later became a division of ADI, with seafood plants in Port Royal, S.C. and Belhaven, N.C. Farrow J. Smith became associated with Jerry in 1963 when he was with Blue Channel Corporation in Port Royal, S.C. He came out to Las Vegas in 1970 to work for Jerry. Willie Scheper was a Director, and also became President of Blue Channel Corporation. Jerry owned Blue Channel for approximately 15 years. It was sold to Borden Foods approximately two years after Jerry's death. Farrow Smith began his career at Blue Channel and is where he met Jerry. In 1990, the foundation made a contribution to the Beaufort County Library. The funds were used to furnish a meeting room. A memorial to Jerry in the Beaufort County Library was presented on February 1993 along with one for Walter Zachowski, who was the president of Blue Channel Corporation in Port Royal, S.C. and served as a Director for ADI for several years.
“Wall St. Loves Avon,” Forbes Magazine, July 1, 1973
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Boating
Jerry was commodore of the 85-foot yacht Roosterfish. The yacht featured spacious luxury for entertaining or relaxing in the "Deck House" plus a 21-inch color TV set. It was advertised in a brochure that directed: “for further details and rates, write Commodore Jerry Henderson, P.O. Box 18, Mahwah, New Jersey.” I remember when Jerry brought this boat to Ft. Lauderdale, Florida to visit my father and our family. We all went out on the boat for a ride. It had one of the first color TVs, nice rooms, and was big as a house! We enjoyed our uncle taking us for a ride on his boat. Farrow Smith says that the boat was converted from a PT (Patrol Torpedo) boat used during WW II. The brochure says the boat was built in 1946 for the U.S. Army. She was designed as an “Air-Sea Rescue Craft,” capable of speeds up to 43 Knots for the purpose of picking up fighter pilots downed at sea. It was sold as war surplus in 1951, and was later converted to a luxurious yacht. Dawson 26
Jerry negotiated the purchase of the Trail-Yacht Company, located south of Los Angeles, in 1972 from William Alland. Jerry called Farrow Smith after completing the deal and said everything was being loaded onto flatbed trucks and heading for Las Vegas. He asked Farrow to arrange for a suitable building to manufacture the boats. Farrow was fortunate to locate a building in North Las Vegas almost immediately after the trucks started arriving. The Dawson Yacht Corporation was located at 1208 Wagner Avenue, North Las Vegas, Nevada.
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You ordered your boat, and when it was ready, you drove to Las Vegas and picked it up. They built and sold about 200 Midship boats from 1972-1974. The company then moved production to Florida and changed the name of the boat to Dawson 26. They built about 130 Dawson 26 boats, which were popular in Florida. Captain Parker, a New Englander, bought the molds and tooling, built renditions re-named Parker Dawson 26, and promoted them heavily at boat shows. A company brochure entitled Story of the Windship Prodigal, talks about Bob Lengyel’s three-week journey on his Dawson 26 ‘Prodigal.’ The trip began in June of 1975, from Virginia Beach, Virginia, and ended in September at Plymouth, England. Las Vegas
In 1969, Jerry moved ADI and his headquarters from Mahwah, New Jersey to Las Vegas, Nevada, when it was still relatively small (60,000 people). This move was in part spurred by his strong dislike of paying income tax and his desire to avoid supporting a government that was so dependent on the taxation of the income of its citizens. Nevada had no state-personal or corporate income tax. Jerry clearly expresses these feeling in the book, Turn the Clock Back Sam, which outlined this libertarian political philosophy. Jerry, at first, lived in a home in Las Vegas that was partially underground. This became the offices for ADI. Farrow sent me photos of this yellow-colored house dated September 1971.
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Second Marriage
Jerry married his second wife, Mary Franklin Hollingsworth (1905-1988) on June 5, 1964 in Las Vegas. Her maiden name was Franklin. She previously owned a hair studio on Rodeo Drive in Hollywood; and did the hair for Hollywood celebrities including Elizabeth Taylor. Jerry’s stepson from his second marriage, Roy Brown Hollingsworth, was Executive Vice President at ADI. In 1971, The Foundation Directory listed Roy Hollingsworth as Vice Chairman. During 1972, Roy, whose background was in the movie industry, left the company after buying an interest in a California company that made television commercials. Jerry also had a home on Doheny Drive in Los Angeles, because Mary loved Los Angeles, especially Beverly Hills. To avoid California taxes, the Doheny Drive home was in trust with her son, Roy Hollingsworth, as the trustee. Jerry kept a diary to prove he spent less than 50% of his time in California to avoid inheritance and income taxes. Mary got cancer of the salivary glands later in life. Jerry took her to doctors who specialized in that type of cancer at the M. D. Anderson Hospital in Houston, Texas. Finally, The Foundation Directory, Foundation Center, 1971, Page 225
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they ended up with Dr. Hans Nieper in Hanover, Germany, who treated her with Laetrile, which saved her life. She recovered completely. At 83, Mary Henderson died on October 1, 1988 in Las Vegas. She was buried at the El Camino Memorial Park in San Diego. Her son Roy Hollingsworth died in 2014 and was cremated and his remains are buried at the El Camino Memorial Park as well. Theodora Holding Corporation
In 1967, Jerry’s former wife, Theodora G. Henderson, formed her own holding company, Theodora Holding Corporation (THC). In September of 1968, Theodora and THC initiated a public lawsuit against Alexander Dawson, Inc. (ADI), Henderson, and another corporate officer. The complaint alleged losses sustained as a result of certain mismanagement of business transactions and corporate contributions to the Alexander Dawson Foundation. As ADI was a Delaware corporation, the case was filed in the Court of Chancery in Wilmington, Delaware. The New York City law firm of Cravath, Swaine & Moore (CS&M) was the law firm Jerry hired and used during the trial. This case is recognized as classic in the development of the law permitting a corporation to make reasonable gifts for worthy charitable purposes. The suit uncovered the following facts:
On May 3, 1967, the plaintiff, THC, became owner of Mrs. Henderson's 11,000 of the 40,500 issued shares of common stock of the defendant Alexander Dawson, Inc. At that time, her shares had a fair market value of $15,675,000. Mr. Henderson, by his holdings of
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common and preferred stock of Alexander Dawson, Inc., had a net worth of approximately $150,000,000.
On December 8, 1967, it was alleged that Girard B. Henderson, by virtue of his voting control over the affairs of ADI, caused the board of directors to be reduced in number from eight to three persons, namely himself, the defendant Bengt Ljunggren, and Mr. Henderson's daughter, Theodora H. Ives.
That same month, it was alleged that Mr. Henderson (over the objection of the Director, Mrs. Ives) caused the board and the majority of the voting stock of ADI to improperly contribute $528,000 to the Alexander Dawson Foundation.
As of September 30, 1968, Theodora G. Henderson, in addition to her interest in the THC, was the holder of the following shares of preferred ADI stock, namely, 3,000 of first preferred, 12,000 of second preferred and 22,000 of third preferred.
The case went to trial in 1969. In September of 1969, the court issued its decision. The plaintiff limited its claims regarding ADI’s purchase and sale of a seat on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and ADI’s charitable contributions to the Foundation. The judged ruled: The gift here under attack was made from gross income and had a value as of the time of giving of $523,000 in a year in which Alexander Dawson, Inc.'s total income was $19,144,229.06, or well within the federal tax deduction limitation of 5% of such income. It is accordingly obvious, in my opinion, that the relatively small loss of immediate
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Trip to Europe
Jerry made Oz Gutsche learn how to fly soon after he joined the company. In August of 1973, Jerry and four others flew to Europe on his King Air A100 airplane. Bill Falconer was the pilot and Oswald Gutsche was co-pilot. Mario Borini, Jerry, and Farrow Smith were passengers. For safety reasons, the pilot made refueling stops half the range of the airplane. They left on August 13, 1973 and returned home August 25, 1973. They started in Denver, Colorado with the following stops: Montreal, Canada (where they met up with Lucy and Tex); Sept-Îles, Canada; Frobisher Bay and Baffin Island, Canada; Søndre Strømfjord, Greenland (where they had to chase a caribou off the runway so they could land); Reykjavík, Iceland; Inverness, Scotland; Zürich, Switzerland; Naples and the Isle of Ischia, Italy. The return trip was from Frankfurt, Germany; Hanover, Germany (where Jerry met with Dr. Hans Nieper, who was in alternative medicines such as Laetrile and had cured Mary Henderson of throat cancer after the M D. Anderson
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Hospital in Houston had given up); Dundee, Scotland; Reykjavík, Iceland; Narssaq, Greenland; Sept-Îles, Canada, New York City (to drop off Mario Borini); Denver, and home to Las Vegas. The two main stops were Naples and the Isle of Ischia, Italy, where Jerry knew someone originally from Carmel. The other stop was to visit his friends with the Swiss Bank Corporation, as Jerry had not thought of establishing his own bank at that time. Jerry and Mario played cards almost the entire trip while on the airplane, especially poker, but whenever Jerry played, he never raised the stakes beyond the means of his friends. Oswald Gutsche, who had worked for Jerry since 1960 in the Cable TV operation, became a Trustee of the Alexander Dawson Foundation in 1967, and a Director and Vice President of Alexander Dawson, Inc. in 1976. Another trip on the King Air was to the grand opening of Walt Disney World on October 1, 1971. Jerry, Mary, Lucy, Tex, Alex and Donna (Alex’s 2nd wife) flew to Orlando, Florida, to celebrate the opening in a private tour. Colorado Aero Tech
Jerry established an airframe and power plant school, Colorado Aero Tech, located on one end of the Jefferson County Airport at Broomfield, Colorado, which was a school for aircraft mechanics. He also had a fixed base operation at this airport to service aircraft. Jerry learned to fly a helicopter at age 72. To help pay for his hobby, he said he liked making "Uncle Sam his partner." That way, he could charge everything to the
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business, including depreciation. Jerry formed the High Country Helicopters Company near the school in Lafayette, Colorado, which did work for utility companies, took skiers to high altitudes to ski back, etc. This company was personally owned by Jerry, and had four or five helicopters. Jerry again did not learn instruments; to him, IFR, still meant "I Follow Roads." He was an excellent pilot, and not afraid of anything. He had another company in Las Vegas, which, until shortly after his death, was called Dawson Aviation. The company was an aircraft broker as well as buying and selling used airplanes. Ed Pardi ran this company. Ed also worked for Jerry in Broomfield, Colorado. Alexander Trust Company
The Alexander Trust Company was incorporated in Zurich, Switzerland, and operated under Swiss law. Its aim was to give to a limited number of clients an efficient and personal service in the field of investment banking, with particular emphasis on the management of customers’ portfolios, trading in securities, precious metals, commodities, and foreign exchange on its clients’ behalf. The company purchased silver bullion and Swiss francs. The company was sold about the same time as the Cecil Peak Station in 1987 to a sheik from Saudi Arabia. Employees, both Fritz Haueter and Inge, continued with the company until their retirement. Gulfstream American Corporation
Jerry read about Allen E. Paulson’s developing the “Hustler” in Van Nuys, California. He was always interested in anything innovative, especially with aircraft.
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Allen was president of American Jet Industries at the Van Nuys Airport, which converted passenger airplanes to cargo airplanes. The Hustler Model 400 had a turbo prop engine in the front and a jet engine in the rear. American Jet Industries evolved into a full-scale airframe manufacturer, and was a leading innovator and developer of specialized military, business and commercial aircraft. In 1966, Grumman Aerospace Corporation relocated their civilian component to Savannah, Georgia, which had the executive Gulfstream jet line. The new building opened in June of 1967. Grumman was involved in production and flight-testing for the Gulfstream II. Jerry and Paulson began looking for a place to manufacture the Hustler 400, which is how Jerry came to invest in Gulfstream. Gulfstream then became his primary interest. The first Hustler was developed at the Van Nuys hanger in November 1977. The Hustler did a 40 minute test flight on January 11, 1978. It took off from Van Nuys and landed at Mojave. The Hustler was never built commercially. In 1972, Grumman Aerospace Corporation of Bethpage, N.Y acquired the American Aviation Corporation of Cleveland, Ohio to become its light aircraft division, and was renamed Grumman American Aviation Corporation. Despite the popularity of the corporate jet, the business jet industry fell on hard times during the recession of the late 1970s, prompting Grumman to sell off its business jet Wikipedia - Gulfstream Aerospace article A Jet Powered Life: Allen E. Paulson, Aviation Entrepreneur, by Donald J. Porter, 2019 Wikipedia - American Aviation
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assets and concentrate on its main industry, the manufacture of military aircraft. Paulson had exhausted his sources for financing, and Jerry approached him at the right time. Jerry’s love of flying encouraged him to buy interest in American Jet Industries. On September 13, 1976, Alexander Dawson, Inc. acquired a 45% interest in American Jet Industries consisting of 4,000 shares of preferred stock. On September 1, 1978, American Jet Industries, Inc. purchased all of the preferred and common stock of Grumman American Aviation Corporation for $32 million and $20.5 million in preferred stock. The name was subsequently changed from Grumman American Aviation Corporation to Gulfstream American Corporation. American Jet Industries, Inc. was merged into Gulfstream American Corporation. Paulson became the president and CEO of Gulfstream American Corporation. His first priority became developing the Gulfstream III, a new aircraft designed to achieve greater range and speed than the Gulfstream II. Gulfstream American’s 1978 annual report came out on April 1, 1979, with Paulson as Chairman of the Board and Jerry as one of the directors. Jerry wanted someone to look out for his interest, so he made a deal with Mario Borini to move from NYC to Savannah. Jerry also included his own daughter, Terry for a total of three investors.
“Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation Retrieved” 31 July 2011 Salpukas, Agis, “Gulfstream Aerospace Plans Big-Stock Offering,” April 4, 1983 Gulfstream American Corporation 1978 Annual Report, December 31, 1978
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The Gulfstream III made its first flight in December of 1979, with the first delivery of the aircraft occurring in 1980. It was the first business jet to fly over both poles. I was told that Jerry got one of the first Gulfstream III jets off the assembly line as part of the 1978 Grumman deal when it was sold to American Jet. He flew it to New Zealand, Manila and Hong Kong.
Jerry and Mary in front of the Gulfstream III In January of 1979, Gulfstream American Corporation, in Savannah, Georgia, was responsible for the production and rollout of the Hustler 500 airplane. The Hustler had a turboprop in the front and a powerful turbofan jet in the tail. It was a seven-passenger plane priced at $800,000.00. By 1980, Paulson and Jerry could not get along. They argued about the path Gulfstream was taking. Paulson was able to secure financing from a Chicago bank, and bought Jerry’s interest in Gulfstream American for approximately three times the original investment. Jerry had invested http://www.gulfstream.com/news/history/
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approximately 20 million dollars, his sold holdings for $75 million dollars 18 months later. In 1985, Paulson sold the company to the Chrysler Corp for $750 million but continued running it as CEO and president. Grizzly Riders
Jerry played the washboard with the Grizzly Riders band at Bud Ozmun’s ranch, near Missoula, Montana, with a set of thimbles on his fingers. The Grizzly Riders was part of a foundation associated with the University of Montana. They would camp and ride in the wilderness for several days each year, and would invite alumni and supporters. Jerry was also a member of the Roundup Riders of the Rockies in Colorado. They would ride during the day; at the end of the day a camp was set up for them to sleep and have meals. Jerry would ride a mule instead of a horse. Underground House in Las Vegas
In 1978, Jerry had Oswald Gutsche supervised the construction of a 6,000-square-foot luxurious underground home within a 15,000-square-foot shell, where he lived near the Alexander Dawson buildings in Las Vegas. You take an elevator 25 feet below ground into the underground home. There is a main two-bedroom house, heated swimming pool with a 15-foot cascading waterfall made of rock imported from southern Utah, a one-bedroom guesthouse and "outdoor" walkways. It has a remotecontrolled lighting system, which could turn a starry night sky into a beautiful sunrise, all with a push of a button! The underground house is surrounded by an Astroturf lawn, fake trees, and a fireplace designed to send smoke through the trunk and tree limbs of a false tree on the surface. A four-hole putting green completes the residence.
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The ranch style one-level underground structure has brick veneer siding but is enclosed in a waterproof concrete shell and covered with a compacted earth berm. A mineshaft opening used to be the only visible outside indication of the presence of the building… To make the house functional, over $104,000 was spent on just the hydroelectric system that supplied the underground dwelling with power. Water for the system flowed from glacial snowpack on Mt. Audubon. The Las Vegas underground home was modeled after others built by Jay Swayze, a Plainview Texas building contractor. However, Jerry preferred having Frank Zupancic, a private contractor who had built Oswald Gutsche's home, build his Las Vegas underground home. The home has its own underground generator and fuel tank and is designed to sustain life for about a year. Jerry had discussed the idea of constructing a tunnel to connect his home with his office across the street, but it was never built. There were many rumors to the contrary. The underground home was featured on the Travel Channel in 2003. The show featured the “Ten Best Bathrooms in Vegas.” Mrs. Henderson’s all-pink bathroom was listed as number 3. The Home and Garden Television station also carried an episode on the underground home in Las Vegas. Instead of windows, Jewell Smith painted murals of outdoor scenery on the perimeter walls of the home. They illustrate four areas of the world that were important to Jerry: his sheep ranch in New Zealand, a ranch he owned in Colorado, a view of Beverly Hills, and his childhood home in Suffern, New York. One of the walls of the ranch in The Mountain-ear, October 13, 1988
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Colorado shows his nephew, Alexander D. Henderson and his children. After Jerry died, Mary Henderson lived in the underground house. She later took out the false rock structure and built a small two-story home on top to do bead work and play cards with friends. She wanted to look out of the windows above ground. Thomas “Tex” Edmonson (second husband to Lucy Henderson) purchased the underground property from Mary’s estate under the Tex-Tex Corporation. The house above ground was expanded and used as a caretaker’s house. You now go into the courtyard and take the elevator to the underground home. A local booking agency, Activity Planners, Inc., sometimes rented out the underground home for corporate parties. An article appeared in The New Yorker magazine, which talked about Susan Roy, a magazine editor and architecture historian, who saw images of the underground house in Nest magazine back in 2003. The experience resulted in a book, Bamboozled: How the U.S. Government Misled Itself and Its People into Believing They Could Survive a Nuclear Attack (Pointed Leaf Press). On April 7, 2014, the underground house at 3970 Spencer St., Las Vegas was sold. The headline read: "Underground house used as Cold War hideaway sold for $1.15 Million." The house was initially listed at $1.7 million; on March 28, 2014 it sold for $1.15 million. The buyers have chosen to The New Yorker, May 30, 2011, page 26
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keep their identity concealed for the time being. They are listed on the paperwork as the Society for the Preservation of Near Extinct Species. My Visit with Uncle Jerry
In March of 1980, my then wife and I flew down to Las Vegas to visit Uncle Jerry and Aunt Mary. When we arrived at the Las Vegas airport, Jerry was already waiting for me at the baggage claim area. He wore a white suit and cowboy hat, and seemed happy to see me. I introduced him to my wife and, after retrieving our bags, Jerry drove us to his underground home in his white Cadillac. When we arrived at his home, all we could see was a mound of boulders. One of the fake boulders worked like an electric door, which opened into the elevator that led to his underground residence. The boulder door was actually mounted on a truck axle. Jerry used a remote control similar to a garage door opener to open and close it. He enjoyed pressing it while it was in his coat pocket and saying "Open Sesame” to his friends and guests. It was exciting to see how a mound of boulders led to an underground residence. There was a guesthouse, swimming pool, putting green, and main house. There were murals on the walls depicting city and country scenes. There was a mural of Jerry’s New Zealand farm, his parents’ home in Suffern, New York. There were even murals of a San Francisco landscape on one side of the house and New York on the other. At one point during my visit, his doctor came to check his blood pressure (Jerry had had a stroke in May of 1978). He was paralyzed on the left side, but with therapy, remediated
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most of his physical problems. I remember him saying that he wished he had started eating right at my age. We had dinner in a room that was designed for the future. Again, Jerry did things a little differently. He used an early version of a projection TV, where the picture was displayed on the wall in front of you. That night we talked a lot and Jerry recited a poem for us. Later that night, we went to a Las Vegas show. When we arrived at the casino, an usher walked us up to the front row near the stage. I remember Uncle Jerry giving the usher a fifty-dollar casino chip for giving us such good seats. The show was great, with sexy showgirl costumes and dancing on stage. My wife and I spent the night in a comfortable guesthouse in the underground residence. The next day, Jerry was leaving to fly up to San Francisco on business, So he offered us a ride. This was another surprise, because it was to be a ride in his very own jet! Before we left for the airport, Mary showed my wife her beaded ornament collection and gave her one to take back home. The flight to San Francisco was exciting. Jerry sat facing us so we could talk. We could hear the quiet hum of the engines. I looked out the cabin window and could see the brown desert landscape, and remember thinking that Las Vegas was truly a desert. It was exciting to be flying with my uncle in his private jet. At the San Francisco airport, we said our goodbyes and went home to our ordinary life. Uncle Jerry was truly an amazing man. He had all the money he ever needed, yet he was humble and straightforward thinking. He made money on his own, and knew how to use it.
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Turn the Clock Back, Sam
In 1981, Jerry wrote the book Turn the Clock Back, Sam, which is about having less federal government and raising fewer taxes. Jerry's long-time friend, Dr. Norman Vincent Peale, wrote the foreword. Jerry published the book himself. Jerry said in his book: Every thinking citizen knows that the government has become a glutton. You only have to look at your pay envelope to see how much today’s government costs. For some, the direct tax bite is large and for others nominal, but in the aggregate, the U.S. government takes over 25% in taxes of all goods and services in the U.S. State and local governments get their bite too… an average adding up to around 45% to 50% of a tax payer’s income. People prosper when they are free and deteriorate when they surrender to a powerful government. I have watched our country change over the last 70 years. The unmistakable drift in this country is toward a stronger central government, more and more taxes and above all, less freedom. The sole role of a legitimate democratic government founded upon “natural law” is to provide for common activities, such as defense, police, and court, that individuals cannot easily provide for themselves.
Jerry had become a Libertarian, and supported Libertarian candidates and causes across the nation.
Turn the Clock Back, Sam, 1982
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Cecil Peak Station
Jerry discovered the Cecil Peak Station sheep ranch while on vacation in New Zealand during the late 1960s. In 1976, Jerry loaned “Popeye” Lucas, the owner of the Cecil Peak Station, money secured by the station. Popeye was a WW II pilot and war hero whom Jerry liked. The station was on Lake Wakatipu across from Queenstown, New Zealand (South Island). The only access was either by boat or the grass landing strip Jerry built. Jerry had to foreclose, because Mr. Lucas had breached the agreement by letting the property run down and selling the cattle and sheep far below the minimum stated in the loan agreement. The foreclosure became a political issue in New Zealand, and made all the national and local news. It was finally settled in Jerry’s favor. The New Zealand government then passed a law that no foreigner could own more than five acres of land without prior government approval. Jerry built an octagonal home on the Cecil Peak Station prior to ADI’s acquiring it. The Cecil Peak Station was sold in 1986. It covered over 34,000 acres. At one point it had 10,000 sheep, 1,000 cattle, and 200 red deer in addition to the tourist attraction. The “Cecil Peak Sheep Station” tour was advertised as running twice a day. A 66-passenger boat would arrive at the wharf in Collins Bay, Cecil Peak. Visitors would then board two diesel buses enroute to the 100-year-old homestead. Part of the visit included a chance to watch a sheep dog at work, rounding up sheep and bringing them close for visitors to touch and photograph.
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Around 1977, Jerry flew an executive Convair 580 turbo prop airplane, originally built for Bethlehem Steel Corporation for corporate use, taking off for New Zealand with only himself, Farrow Smith, and Bill Falconer aboard. Jerry had just purchased the Convair. Bill Falconer was not certified yet to pilot the plane, so Jerry arranged to hire the pilot from Bethlehem Steel. Bill flew as co-pilot and later became certified. According to Farrow Smith: We landed in Honolulu, and since it had a bed, Jerry decided we would spend the night on the airplane. The pilot was sleeping below in the cargo bay. During the night, a security guard was riding his bicycle across the runway and asked how we could afford the fuel if we could not afford hotel rooms. We left that evening for Bora Bora, an island in French Polynesia, and landed with approximately one hour of fuel on board. The galley was well equipped, and Jerry decided to roast a chicken in flight, that was immediately confiscated by customs when they landed in Auckland, New Zealand. This upset Jerry, since he did not like losing money. On the return trip we landed in Honolulu. The crew did not take into account that this is a Landing Rights Airport, which required prior permission. Jerry did not seem concerned when Customs was going to charge the crew, but came alive when he heard they were going to impound his airplane. I do not know what he did or said, but he took off like a bolt and went inside. He came back with everything straightened out.
Helicopter Experiences
Jerry liked flying helicopters, and flew the Bell 222, a twinengine, light helicopter built by Bell Helicopter.
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Once, while he and Mary were flying to Redwood City, California from Van Nuys, California, he encountered a dense fog. He spotted a basketball court at a Jewish private school, so he decided to land on the school grounds and telephone for the nearest airport. The helicopter was a huge hit with the children. Jerry conducted a learning session for them on helicopter technology. He then departed, once the fog lifted. Jerry once flew from Van Nuys, California to Las Vegas. While in the office, Oswald “Oz” Gutsche asked him the route he had taken. After hearing Jerry’s reply, Oz asked, "Didn't you come across Edwards Air Force base?" to which Jerry replied he did. Oz was amazed that the Air Force did not challenge his flying through the most restrictive air space in the U. S. Jerry said he was squawking on Transponder Channel 1200, and wasn't concerned. One day, Jerry flew from Van Nuys, California to Las Vegas, and had asked Farrow Smith to meet him. When Farrow got there, Jerry had arrived and was parked in the hangar. Farrow asked how he had gotten the helicopter inside the hangar with it headed towards the entrance. Jerry said, "Simple Son, I flew the SOB inside, turned it around and set it down." Since Jerry wanted a helicopter in Las Vegas, he decided to fly one from Broomfield, CO over the Rockies. After crossing the Rockies, he needed to refuel, so he landed in a motel parking lot in Utah. After making a phone call and locating an airport, he took off. Jerry and Oz flew a Hughes 500 helicopter from the Stapps Lake Ranch to a King Super Market in Boulder, Colorado,
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and landed in a vacant lot next to market’s parking lot. While checking out, Jerry heard someone mention the police had been called to report a helicopter parked next door. Jerry and Oz checked out with the cashier and took off, dropping some of the groceries. As the apples rolled down the parking lot, Jerry shouted, "To hell with the apples, let's get out of here." When they got to the helicopter, the private security guard for the Boulder Gun Barrel shopping center was already there. Jerry was quick to explain that the owner of King Super Market was a friend of his, and that he had permission to land there and go shopping. On April 17, 1982, Jerry flew from Las Vegas to Portola Valley, California to attend my brother’s weeding; David Girard Henderson and Marie Theresa Fanelli. He came to the Church wedding and the reception at my mother’s house in Atherton. This picture shows Jerry, my father Alex, and brother Dawson Henderson. Jerry’s Passing Away
Jerry was mentally alert right up to the end. The previous stroke had affected him only physically. Farrow J. Smith was in his underground home in Las Vegas the evening the doctor thought he should go to the hospital. Farrow and the husband of a couple who worked in his home formed a seat with their hands, carried Jerry outside to the car, and drove him to the hospital. On November 16, 1983, at age 78,
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Girard B. Henderson died in Las Vegas, Nevada of a heart attack. After experiencing a rocky ride on a trip to South America on a freighter ship, Jerry decided he would build his own cruise ship. Oz Gutsche helped get one designed. However, the cost was going to be over 55 million so he scraped this idea. Jerry always quoted The Song of the Mary Glouster from memory, and originally wanted to be buried in the Tasman Sea in the South Pacific Ocean, between Australia and New Zealand. In fact, his will originally stated the exact coordinates from this poem. According to Louis Kilzer from The Denver Post, Jerry’s 1982 will, filed in Boulder County, said, “I direct that my body be dressed in a brown suit, white shirt and narrow green tie, be deep-frozen and placed in a deep-freeze box and that I be buried in a mausoleum on Laurel Hill Plantation, Lady’s Island.” As it turned out, the body was not frozen, because it was not practical to be buried on an Island in South Carolina. Farrow J. Smith had to take the special clothing items mentioned in the will to the mortuary. On November 18th, at 2 PM, services were held at the Palm Valley View Chapel in Las Vegas. It was illegal to ship a body across state lines that had not been cremated, Farrow learned. So, they chartered a corporate jet from one of the casinos that had been converted from passenger service and was large enough to take all the family and a few friends. The casket was sealed and could not be opened.
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The day after Jerry’s Las Vegas service, his body was flown out to Beaufort, South Carolina. There was also a barbeque dinner at the Laurel Hill Plantation. On a wet November 20th, funeral services were held at the Laurel Hill Plantation on Lady’s Island near Beaufort. There was music, the poem “If” by Rudyard Kipling read by Mark Ives, the Encomium read by John D. O’Brien, and the Eulogy read by Mario Borini. Not long before his death, Jerry instructed Oz to build a small "chapel" where he wished to be buried. There was enough space for two, however Mary Henderson was buried in California. The Alexander Dawson Foundation owns the property on which the chapel is located. Jerry Henderson is buried inside his chapel on a one-acre plot of land on Laurel Hill Plantation, which is in the name of the Alexander Dawson Foundation. On the bottom of Jerry's headstone, it reads: "If your hands are clean, your cause is just, and if your request is reasonable you cannot be denied." There are large oak trees with moss around the chapel, which is on the bank of a large pond with several kinds of birds. The street leading to the chapel is named Henderson's Way, which is very appropriate. Inside the chapel are some beautiful paintings from the Old Testament in the Bible, painted by Jerry’s friend, Jewell Smith. Many of the paintings are from book the Book of Exodus. These paintings are fastened to both sides of the ceiling and the walls. Jewell Smith also painted the murals for the underground homes in Colorado, Las Vegas, and the New York World’s Fair exhibit. Sometime following his death, ADI sold Laurel Hill Plantation, except for one acre for the chapel, and retained
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the rights of ingress and egress. A cemetery lies adjacent to this one-acre parcel that has been there for many years, to which ADI also retains the access rights. Jerry’s will left an estimated $57 million in trust for the foundation that runs the Alexander Dawson Schools. In his will, Jerry directed that the remaining assets not bequeathed to any person or organization would go to the Alexander Dawson Foundation. A group of Foundation trustees, former employees, and friends returns to Jerry’s Chapel in S.C. every two years to pay respects. On April 9, 1995, Tom Collins and Walter Sarad paid homage to Jerry by playing Taps and “Turn the Clock Back, Sam,” a tune based on Jerry’s book. Alexander Dawson School at Mountain
On March 31, 1999, the Alexander Dawson Foundation completed a second private school, at a cost of approximately $35 million, at 10845 West Desert Inn Road in Las Vegas, Nevada. The school opened in 2000 offering a rigorous, traditional liberal arts curriculum. This new venture, the Alexander Dawson School at Rainbow Mountain, serves over 670 students in grades PK-8. The state-of-the-art school offers the highest quality pre-college prep education available. The Alexander Dawson School in Las Vegas is impressive. Its architecture was designed to blend in with the desert landscape, with rich red, brown, and yellow colors. The school was built after Jerry’s death by its Board of Trustees, most of whom knew Jerry and continue to promote his mission.
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The Board of Trustees of the philanthropic Alexander Dawson Foundation continues to run the Alexander Dawson Schools and the Alexander Dawson Foundation from the Dawson Buildings at 4045 South Spencer Street in Las Vegas, Nevada. On February 25, 2005, the Board of Trustees celebrated the 100th anniversary of Jerry's birthday at the Alexander Dawson School in Colorado. Continuing its commitment to providing the highest quality educational opportunities, the Alexander Dawson Foundation decided to branch out into the public sector by initiating free summer and academic year enrichment programs for public school students. Two Centers for Excellence in Teaching and Learning were founded in 2009, and are based at the two private Alexander Dawson Schools in Lafayette, CO and Las Vegas, NV. These Centers, and their programs, utilize the facilities of their private school cousins, but they are totally focused on providing enrichment and support for public school students in their respective regions. The goals of the Centers are to provide premier programs and faculty, thereby encouraging high achieving students in the public schools to remain focused on the benefits of continued education, as well as providing these students the highest levels of enrichment and additional resources to help them excel in school and in life. The summer program renamed “College Bound,” serves several 5th and 6th grade students recommended by the principal and teachers from each of the public schools in Clark County, NV and Boulder County, CO. This amounts to several hundred new students each year. The program lasts for six weeks. A new theme is chosen each year. Outstanding public school teachers are recruited each year, mostly from out of state, with all expenses paid. You can find more at www.adsrm.org or at www.dawsonschool.org.
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On February 25, 2010, the Las Vegas school celebrated their 10th anniversary, which was also Jerry’s 105th birthday. On May 28, 2014, the Alexander Dawson Foundation gave $1,000,000 to the Alexander Dawson School’s Legacy Endowment Campaign. Because of this gift, the Alexander Dawson School in Rainbow Mountain unveiled the G.B. Henderson Administration Building, which was named for Jerry as the founder of the school.
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CHAPTER EIGHT Alexander D. Henderson III
Alexander Dawson Henderson, III
M
y father, Alexander Dawson Henderson III, was born at the Fifth Avenue Hospital in New York City on March 26, 1924 at 11:45 A.M. He weighed 6 pounds 15 ounces. Alex is the second child of Alexander D. Henderson, Jr., and Mary (Nonny) Barnes Anthony, and is the third Henderson to carry down the Alexander Dawson Henderson family name. He is Joseph Henderson’s great grandson, Joseph being an early American Sandy Hook pilot who guided large vessels in and out of the New York harbor. Alexander’s older sister, Mary-Ella, was born on January 17, 1922.
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Suffern House where Alex was born – March 24, 1924 Alexander D. Henderson Sr., built Alex’s parents a cottage in Suffern, New York, across the road from their own twostory house on 173 South Monsey Road. Alex and his sister, Mary-Ella, lived in this house from 1922 to 1929. His parents’ German nanny lived in the cottage’s upstairs attic. On January 25, 1925, Alex’s grandfather died in Suffern, New York. Alex was less than a year old, but old enough for his grandfather to know that he had a namesake and an heir. Alex is listed in the 1925 New York State Census as living in Ramapo, Rockland, New York with his parents and sister, Mary-Ella. Grandmother Henderson (Ella Brown) lived at the five-acre Suffern house, which had a long driveway leading up to it. Her chauffeur drove a Packard limousine that had glass vases, which held flowers. Alex's sister, Mary-Ella, Mary's Family Connections, pg. 85, 97 NY Death Certificate #5375 and the Suffern newspaper
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remembered playing with the gardener's children. His grandmother was sick, and lived in the upstairs room with a ventilator to help her breathe. She would sometimes bring her grandchildren to her home in Suffern for visits. Alex was impressed by the farmland and Ice pond. Tallman, New York (1929-1934)
In 1929, at age 5, Alex and his family moved into a large two-story country home in Tallman, New York, because it was out in the country, with more room than the Suffern cottage. The house included a servant quarters where a husband, wife, and daughter lived and worked for the household. They lived in Tallman for four years. Alex’s father kept his polo pony "Ginger" in the barn. He had served in the Calvary during World War I, so had a passion for riding. The Polo Club, where Alex’s father played polo, was only a half-mile away from the house. Alex remembers seeing the light brown polo pony. The five-acre property had an apple orchard and birch trees. Grandmother Anthony (Laura Josephine Frontgous), Nonny’s mother, had a lovely cottage on the property behind the orchard. Alex remembers his grandmother living in the cottage. The family had a red Irish setter named "Ciders," chickens, and some rabbits, and Alex received a baby white goat for one of his birthdays. His father would go out to the back pasture and hit golf balls. He was an enthusiastic golfer. If he wasn’t working, he was playing golf. When the Hendersons moved to New York City, grandmother Anthony stayed with her other daughter, (Nonny’s sister) Eleanor Gardner, in Marblehead, Letter from Mary-Ella Henderson Griswold
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Massachusetts. Eleanor Gardner had a son, Peter Gardner, who was married to Joan Gardner. Alex remembers his Aunt Irene Anthony Cable, sister to Grandmother Anthony’s husband, who lived in Ridgewood, New Jersey. Her husband (Alex’s uncle) worked for a coal mine and made model trains in his garage. In Tallman, Alex and his sister Mary-Ella attended a tworoom red schoolhouse. Each room had one row per class, with four classes in each room. This was a country schoolhouse with farmers’ kids. The student body consisted of about 40 students. His sister was in the second room, since she was in a higher grade. When the Great Depression began, the California Perfume Company cut their shareholder dividends, which resulted in a loss of income for the Henderson family. Alex’s father’s salary was cut from $20,000 to $10,000 a year. The 1930 U.S. Census lists Alexander D. Henderson (35), Mary “Nonny” (30), Mary Ella (7), Alexander (5) and grandmother Laura J Anthony (60), living on Cherry Lane in Ramapo, Rockland, New York. In 1931, Alex, Mary-Ella, and their mother returned to Tallman after spending the summer in Spring Lake, New Jersey. Alex remembers going to the lake in the summer. For several winters (1932-1933), Alex accompanied by his sister and mother, took a boat down to Jacksonville, Florida, with their car onboard. They drove the car from Henderson, Girard B., So Long, It's Been Good to Know You, pg. 5 1930 United States Federal Census, Ramapo, Rockland, New York; Roll 1641; Page 1A; Enumeration District 38 The Rockland County Leader, September 24, 1931
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Jacksonville down to Palm Beach, Florida, where they rented a house and the children attended a public elementary school for several months during the winter. Alex’s father visited occasionally, but ended up going back and forth to New York for CPC board meetings. The family went swimming, and Alex’s father took them fishing in Palm Beach harbor on a charter boat equipped with big fishing rods used for deep-sea fishing.
Alex and Mary Ella in Palm Beach, Florida (1932) New York City (1934-1938)
In 1934 (age 10), Alex’s parents moved the family to the Hudson View Gardens in a two-bedroom, two-bath apartment at 183rd Street and Pinehurst Avenue, apartment D21, overlooking the Hudson River in New York City. While living in New York City, Alex remembers playing in the park, having a collection of marbles, and playing stick hockey on roller skates in the streets. Alex enjoyed going to Rockland County Journal News, January 7, 1933 Mary's Family Connections, pg. 111
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the movies on Saturday. His mother and father soon separated, and Mr. Henderson moved into his own apartment in the city. In 1934 (age 10), Uncle Jerry Henderson took Alex up in his two-seater, open cockpit prop airplane from Suffern on a farm field. Alex remembers bumping his head, perhaps when the plane was landing. Jerry was living in Suffern at the time. There is a picture of Alex’s sister, Mary-Ella, standing in front of the plane in Spring Lake, New Jersey. Alex went to a public elementary school in New York City, PS 182, in the borough of Queens. The school was near the 8th Avenue subway at the 186th Street station, which was the last stop. This was the same subway station where Alex, when he was around 12 years old, took a part-time job selling the Lady's Home Journal and the Saturday Evening Post. For three summers, 1934-36, Alex went to YMCA Camp Dudley for boys at Westport-on-Lake Champlain, New York. It was the first time Alex got outdoors and lived in a Woodcraft cabin. It took two summers for him to learn how to swim. He enjoyed canoeing, fishing, archery, and won medals for Riflery. He learned how to play chess from another camper. The camp had an outdoor chapel, which lay on a bank off the hillside with a nice view. His father and Lucy came up to visit him one summer. Alex sent a post card from Camp Dudley to his mother at their Hudson View Gardens apartment saying: Dear Mother, This is the cabin I was in last year. A bee stung me yesterday. It is very hot up here. I will send you
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some pictures. Love, Alexander, XX In the summer of 1935, his mother went to Reno to get a divorce. She had to live in Reno for six weeks to become a legal resident before she could file for divorce. While his mother was in Reno, Alex went to Camp Dudley. On March 28, 1936, his father married Lucia Maria Ernst in New York City. She was a secretary working for Avon. Englewood, New Jersey
In 1938 (age 13½), Alex’s mother decided to move into a two-bedroom, one bathroom apartment on 100 East Palisade Avenue, Englewood, New Jersey. She moved because her friends from Suffern said it would a better environment to raise two children than New York City. Alex remembers that the apartment was on the top floor with cathedral ceilings, and was in a nice area. Alex’s mother volunteered as head of the gift shop in the Englewood Hospital. She also wanted her children to develop socially. So, she joined the Englewood Field Club, which had tennis courts and a swimming pool. Alex enjoyed playing tennis at the field club. Alex joined the Boys Scout troop at the Presbyterian Church in Englewood, New Jersey. He also loved his bicycle and went everywhere in Englewood on it. At age 14, he started to play bridge with some of his friends, since their parents also played bridge. This experience started a lifelong love for the game. Nevada State Journal, August 28, 1935 Mary's Family Connections, page 111
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Alex, Nonny, and Mary-Ella Henderson (1941) Bay Head Beach, N. J. The family went to Spring Lake, New Jersey in the summertime, to enjoy its nice beaches. Alex also enjoyed Sea Girt Beach and Bay Head Beach, located elsewhere in New Jersey. In 1938, Alex’s mother got him interested in stamp collecting as a way to learn more about history and geography. His stamp album was entitled the International Junior Postage Stamp Album. They would buy blocks of stamps and collect special editions. The stamp album is still in the family today.
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High School
Alex enrolled at the Englewood School for Boys, near the Dwight School for Girls, that his sister attended in Englewood, New Jersey in 1938 (age 14). His father paid the expenses for the private college preparatory school. Alex was on the school’s baseball and tennis teams. In 1939 (age 15), Alex’s mother sent him to dancing school, where he learned the tango and ballroom dancing. This is where Alex met Ann, his first girlfriend, who was a year younger. Later, he met Mary Ella McKay at an Englewood party. She was a very nice girl. This was his first romantic relationship. After he joined the service and returned, they reunited. They cared a lot for each other. She was a bright girl, attending Columbia University in New York. In August of 1939, at age 16, Alex attended the Birch Island Sailing Camp in Maine. He became a Junior Racing Skipper and raced 26-foot, gaff-rigged, sloop sailboats. Fifteen campers worked on the boats and lived on the Island. At the end of the season, they would take the paint off the boats and repaint them, in preparation for the next spring. The camp had a membership at the yacht club. Alex got a certificate as a “Junior Racing Skipper,” which meant that he had satisfied all requirements and demonstrated his ability in racing tactics, handling of sails, and equipment in the Twelve Foot Class. The 1940 U.S. Census lists Mary A. (46), Mary-Ella (17), and Alexander D. Henderson (16) living in an apartment at the Dwight Manor, 100 E Palisade Avenue, Englewood New Jersey. His father was listed in the 1940 U.S. Census: Alex (45) and Lucy (29) living in Pelham, Westchester, New York. He and Lucy were renting at the Fairway 1940 US Census, ED 2-71; Englewood, Bergen, New Jersey
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Apartments, on Wynnewood Road, Pelham Manor, New York. On January 17, 1940, at age 71, Alex’s grandmother Ella Henderson died in Suffern, New York. Alex went to the funeral and reception for his grandmother. The cemetery was down the street where she lived. Uncle Jerry was there. In 1941, Alex was sent away to boarding school at the Williston Academy, which is a private college preparatory high school in Easthampton, Massachusetts. He played tennis, baseball, and soccer and was on the high school tennis team. He liked Science and Math. Williston Academy is near many well-known colleges within the Easthampton area. In 1942 (age 18), Alex graduated from the Williston Academy. World War II
On December 7, 1941, the attack on Pearl Harbor prompted the US to declare war on Japan an enter World War II. After Alex graduated from Williston Academy in 1942, he applied for the US Air Force in their cadet training flying program but was turned down because he was too young. He applied in Hackensack, New Jersey. On August 4, 1943 (age 20), Alex was drafted into the U.S. Army at Fort Dix, New Jersey. He did his basic training in ProQuest Historical Newspapers, The New York Times, page 23 Conversation with Alex Henderson; The Log, 1942-Year Book
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Miami Beach, Florida. He did a lot of testing, including an IQ test. In September of 1943, while training in Florida, Alex applied for the U.S. Air Force, and this time got in. In January of 1944, Alex joined the Air Force cadet program for flyers at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania. There were about 86 thousand student pilots at this time, but by February 1944, the Air Force cancelled the pilot program, because it was toward the end of the war. During this time, on October 23, 1943, Alex’s sister, Mary Ella, married Stuart Walter Hinrichs at Saint James Church, Madison Avenue, New York. They took the train to California for their honeymoon. Stuart stayed in the military service for six months in San Francisco. Mary Ella and Stuart moved to Greenwich, Conanicut and had four children: Robert Stuart Hinrichs, Peter Anthony Hinrichs, Susan Hinrichs Thomas and Sally Hinrichs H. Lawrence. Later, Alex attended the Army Aerial Gunnery School in Las Vegas, Nevada to become a machine gunner on aircraft. But Alex, not wanting to be a gunner, went swimming in the pool and got his eyes red from the chorine. Then, they decided he couldn’t fly because of the high altitude and non-pressurized cabin.
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Alex Henderson with U.S. Army Air Forces patch Alex studied aerial photography in Casper, Wyoming at a B-24 bomber Air Force base. He was going to become an aircraft radio operator. He tried to transfer to radar school, but could not get into this class. Instead, he went to a radio school in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, where he learned Morse code. He was stationed there for six months. The Air Force then Alex flew to Florida on his way to Cuba, and later Jamaica. In Puerto Rico, he was stationed at Air Force Bomber bases, where he continued working in aerial photography. Alex was often transferred to a new location to relieve soldiers that wanted to come home. For example, he was sent to Seattle, Washington on his way to Guam. It took ten days by ship to get to Guam. The ship had five-tier bunk beds, so Alex decided he would rather
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sleep on deck than in a bunk. About 10,000 military men were on the Island. As a Private First Class, Alex was stationed with the B-29 Squadron in Guam and the South Pacific, where he did photography. This same B29 Air Force squadron dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. Alex was also trained as a barber while stationed in Guam. In 1944, Alex was listed in the section entitled "Men in Service." He appears in the Class of 1944 yearbook as Alexander D. Henderson, III, U.S. Army Accessions Command (USAAC). On August 15, 1945, Japan surrendered, ending World War II. On March 8, 1946, Alex was discharged from military service in San Francisco, having received the following medals: American Campaign medal, Asiatic-Pacific Campaign medal, and the World War II Victory Medal. These were usually given without any fanfare. On March 9, 1946, Alex’s half-brother, Allen Douglas Henderson, was born in New York City. There was a twenty-two year age difference between them. Joining the Workforce
Alex returned to his mother's Englewood apartment. He signed up for the government unemployment program for veterans known as the "52-20 Club.” They gave you $20 a week for 52 weeks. Alex remembers that Uncle Jerry visited Nonny and her children in New York from time-totime. Jerry had a house in Ridgewood, N.J. From 1946 to 1948, Alex worked selling fabrics at the Williston Academy Alumni staff
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Johnson and Faulkner (later shortened to JOFA) Wholesale Fabric Company at 45 East 53rd Street, New York City. They sent him to Chicago, where he spent six months setting up showrooms and interviewing architects. The company wanted him to travel on the road, but Alex did not like that. He was getting paid $35.00 a week and took the 8th Avenue subway to 53rd Street. He said there were a lot of gay people in the business. Drive to California
One day, Uncle Jerry asked Alex to come out to California, where all the action is. He talked Alex into going to college in California in the fall of 1948 to get a new start on life, Alex and a friend drove two new cars to California for Uncle Jerry, who came along and drove a new Lincoln Continental. The reason for this special trip was that you could not buy these models in California. Alex and his friend drove a 1948 Ford convertible to give his cousin ”Terry” for her 21st birthday. After arriving in Carmel, Alex lived with Uncle Jerry for a while. Alex’s friend, who came with him to California, took off on his own. In 1948, Alex needed a job, so he moved to San Francisco and worked at the California State Automobile Association selling memberships at 150 Van Ness Avenue, San Francisco. He lived in a Pacific Heights boarding house for $70 a month. In 1949, at age 82, his grandmother, Laura Frontgous Anthony (Nonny's mother), died in Ridgewood, NJ. Alex did not know her very well. All veterans were eligible for the program known as The G. I. Bill of Rights. The Government paid for all tuition, books
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and fees, plus $75 a month for living expenses. So, in 1949, Alex enrolled in the Monterey Peninsula College (MPC). While attending MPC, Alex worked as a salesman at the Bill Maher Men's Store on Ocean Avenue in Carmel for $1.00 an hour. The store’s tailor lived in a house in Carmel near the Golden Bough Theater. Alex rented a room from him. Mr. Maher sailed a 23 ft. Mercury sailboat, and Alex was part of his crew. He later met some guys his age and rented a house for $150.00 a month. One roommate, Gene Style, was acting in a play at the Sunset Center in Carmel, which is now the premier performing arts facility of the Monterey Peninsula. In 1949, Alex graduated with a twoyear degree from MPC in Monterey, California. In the fall of 1949, Alex moved to a house 189 South 3rd St. San Jose, where he rented a room in preparation for beginning his studies at San Jose State University. Alex played tennis, and joined the Pebble Beach & Tennis Club at the Del Monte Lodge. Jerry Henderson was also a member. John Gardiner was the tennis pro and ran the club. Later, Gardiner created the very first tennis resort operating clinics for adults and a tennis camp for children at John Gardiner's Tennis Ranch in Carmel Valley. On February 11, 1950, Alex met Patricia Ford at a party, and again later at the Carmel Ski Club. They would sometimes meet at the Mission Ranch Bar & Restaurant in Carmel for cocktails and dancing. They frequently went to the Sugar Bowl Ski Resort to go skiing. Before asking for her hand, Alex wrote two letters to Pat, which said how much he missed her, and that it had been a Servicemen's Readjustment Act of 1944, http://www.gibill.va.gov
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month since they were together. Pat had been with her mother in Mexico. Alex was looking forward to spending the weekend with Uncle Jerry in Carmel. He went down to see the California Amateur Golf Tournament at Pebble Beach, afterward driving Pat’s car back to San Jose. In San Jose, he said the hot weather made it difficult to study. The Carmel Pine Cone reported that on August 25, 1950, Alex would meet his cousin, Dariel Henderson at Jerry’s home in Carmel along with 25 young contemporaries for cocktails and a buffet. Marriage
On December 9, 1950, The Monterey Peninsula Herald announced the engagement of Patricia Ford to Alexander D. Henderson. On February 17, 1951, at age 26, Alex married Patricia Ford at his mother-in-law’s Moon Trail Ranch in Carmel Valley. They honeymooned in Ensenada, Mexico. Pat’s father, Byington Ford, had a reputation as a good businessman. Alex’s father flew to California from Florida to attend the wedding. Alex learned to shoot a 300 Savage lever-action 32 caliber rifle at the Moon Trail Ranch with Mary Jane’s (Pat’s sister) husband, Dean Wolter, Dean was a cowboy and rodeo man. The two of them would go horseback riding up to the hayfield on the 400-acre property. Alex also owned a 16-caliber shotgun, for shooting pigeons, and an air pistol. On September 14, 1951 Alex presented the Third Place award in the Labor Day Mercury Races at Stillwater Cove, in Pebble Beach, to Ralph Suchon of Carmel. Jerry Monterey Peninsula Herald, December 9, 1950
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Henderson, of Carmel, donated the awards. Jerry was very involved in Pebble Beach community affairs. San Jose, California
In 1951, Alex and Pat set up housekeeping at their 797 E. William Street apartment in San Jose, California. Alex was still going to San Jose State University, majoring in Economics, while minoring in Psychology. Rather than study, Alex enjoyed going to the racetrack during the season at nearby Bay Meadows racetrack in San Mateo. He would study the racing sheets in hopes of picking a winner! Their first baby was born on November 19, 1951 at the Carmel Hospital. He was named after his father, Alexander Dawson Henderson IV. The next year (1952), Alex graduated from San Jose State University with a Bachelor of Arts Degree. In the fall of 952, Alex and family moved to Alameda, California for a job at Montgomery Wards as a merchandiser. Alex did not like Alameda and wanted to transfer to another store in San Francisco. So, in July of 1953, Alex and his family moved to an apartment at 609 Genevieve Lane in San Jose for a job as an Investigator at Household Finance Corporation. He was an assistant manager.
The Carmel Spectator, September 14, 1951 California Birth Index, 1905-1995
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While living in the apartment, they went to some open houses, finally finding a great house on Pruneridge Street in San Jose for $13,250. This house was part of the Crestview homes. The $12,950 model was 1250 sq. ft. with two full baths. Since the Army Veterans’ FHA loans were available, they were able to buy the house that was similar to the model home they looked at. On July 29, 1953, their second son was born several months premature in Carmel, California. They named him, Gregory Ford Henderson. On April 4, 1955, their third son was born in Santa Clara, California. His name was David Gerald Henderson. Move to Florida
In 1954, Alex’s father retired as Vice President of Avon and moved to Hillsboro Beach, Broward County, Florida. He lived in a white, two-story house on 1011 Hillsboro Mile (A1A) with an ocean view and pool. On July 5, 1957, Alex’s mother convinced him to move to Florida to be closer to his father. The family flew from California to Florida by prop airplane. They stayed at his father's Avon by the Sea apartments in Hillsboro, Florida while a new house was being built. All the children went to the Hillsboro Country Day School, which was developed and run by Alex’s father. The school was developed because Alex’s father didn’t like his son going to public schools. New class grades were added as Doug progressed in school. The school expanded up to the eighth grade. His very generous father paid for the house and set Alex up in the business that became Gold Cost Finance. The family moved into their new house at 3532 N.E. 31st California Birth Index, 1905-1995
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Avenue, Pompano Beach, Florida, on the Intracoastal Waterway. Alex later bought a 26-foot, wood, six-cylinder Sea Skiff fishing boat with a canvas top. The house had a boat dock and a hoist to pull the boat out of the water. Alex lived on one side of the Intracoastal and his father on the opposite side along A1A in a large two-story house. Alex could boat over to his father’s house and tie up at his father’s dock. His father and his wife Lucy would sometimes come over to his house for dinner. They would usually have a steak that was always cooked medium rare. On March 10, 1958, Scott Douglas Henderson was born at the Holy Cross Hospital in Pompano Beach, Florida. On one side of the house, there were two bedrooms with a bathroom in-between. Dawson and Greg lived in one bedroom, and David and Scott lived in the other bedroom. The hallway leading into these rooms had a cork floor, which was unusual. Alex and Pat had the master bedroom on the other side of the house separated by the kitchen and living room. In the front of the house our family had a patio and a fort that was built for us to play in. Trees and bushes surrounded the front. The family had barbecues on the front patio. A newspaper article said “Mr. and Mrs. Alex D. Henderson of Hillsboro Beach were on holiday in Nassau. The couple was among a large group of Broward Countians who spent the weekend at the British Colonial. They relaxed on the shuffleboard court before a dinner with dancing.” Alex enjoyed business, and almost invested in a golf course on Sample Road in Florida, which he could have picked up for $500,000. Instead, he invested in property with a gas
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station, which he leased to a gas company. Later in life, he looked at investing in a Napa Valley vineyard, if Dawson would help run it. He also invested in a limited partnership for a motion-picture company in Chicago. Gold Coast Finance
With his father’s financial help, Alex created the Gold Coast Finance Company to provide credit to middle income consumers. Alex worked there from 1957-68. Pat worked there as a bookkeeper for the first year. Alex had a separate office and a picture of his grandfather, Henderson Sr., on the wall behind his desk. Alex opened a second branch office in North Ft. Lauderdale. One of his employees wanted to be a manager, so he ran the office. Summer Vacations
Around 1960, the family took a summer vacation to Ocho Rios, Jamaica, where they rented a beautiful two-story house on the ocean for one month. The house came with a cook, a maid, and a pool man. They had to get a nurse for Scott because he was so young. We often went to the hotel nearby and used their beach. I remember getting a ride on a donkey cart the hotel used to clean up the beach. We would also swim out to an Island from the beach in front of the hotel. The family hiked to Ocho Rios Falls and went river rafting. On the way home, Pat had one of us kids put a smuggled breadfruit plant in a carryon so as not to be stopped by customs. Our family took another summer vacation to Pine Orchard, Connecticut. Alex’s mother thought it was a nice place for a family vacation. We rented a large two-story house near the water from a friend in Hillsboro. Doug stayed with us in
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one of the rooms on the second floor. He had a spear gun that he used for skin diving. Doug became friends with our maid that was rather attractive. My parents belonged to the Pine Orchard Yacht and Country Club. The Club held dances every week, which the children would attend. Pat and Alex hosted a cocktail party at their house. The first time Alex met Lucy, his stepmother, was when his father and Lucy came up to Pine Orchard to visit. Sea Ranch Lakes
In 1963, the family moved to a bigger house in the gated community called ‘Sea Ranch Lakes’ in Ft. Lauderdale by the Sea, Florida. Sea Ranch Lakes has two lakes, a clubhouse on the beach, and a pool. A concrete wall surrounds the community. The pool at their house had a beautiful rock diving area with a waterfall. It was surrounded by palm trees, hibiscus flowers, banana plants, and completely screened in. They even built a tiki hut to resemble a Polynesian-style setting. They remodeled the house to add a second story for four boys to live in. There were two bedrooms and two bathrooms upstairs and a maid’s room off the garage. On November 5, 1963, Holly Alexandra Henderson was born at the Holy Cross Hospital in Pompano Beach, Florida. Our maid, whom we later called ‘Mrs. X’, apparently was an alcoholic, and was found drunkenly babysitting Holly. I remember her last day, and how she was picked up in a moving van. One year Uncle Jerry came to visit Alex and his family in Florida. He took a picture of everyone in the living room. He also recorded the children’s voices using a state-of-the-
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art tape recorder. On one visit, he took everyone out on his PT-51 Roosterfish yacht, which was berthed in Florida. The boat was very modern for its day, with a color TV, and was fast. The kids had fun being on the boat, but some got a little seasick. Alex remembers staying with Lucy when his father was in Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. His father later died on July 9, 1964, of a heart related disease. After his father died, Alex took his half-brother Doug (14 years old) to a big bridge tournament. Alex would often play bridge with Lucy and Doug in Hillsboro, and later visited Lucy and Doug at their home in Cape Cod. In 1967, Alex sold the Gold Coast Finance Company he had founded and paid off a loan he had with his father for $250.000. Also in 1967, Uncle Jerry opened the Colorado Junior Republic School (CJR) in Lafayette, Colorado, which had a dude ranch on the property. The school started as a summer school for underprivileged children. Divorce
Alex would sometimes drive the kids to school in his white Porsche on the way to work at Gold Cost Finance. Before his divorce, while driving to school, he told us that our parents were going through a separation. Alex moved into a one-bedroom condo in Hillsboro Beach that had a pool and ocean access. He dated a girlfriend, Nancy, for three years. In January of 1968, Pat and Alex divorced in Broward County. Later that year, Alex took a trip around the world with a tennis group, visiting Portugal, France, Spain, Iran, Japan, and Hawaii, before returning home. In the summer of 1969, Pat and her children moved to Florida Divorce Index, Certificate Number: 208
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Carmel Valley, California to be closer to her mother. Second Marriage
Alex met Madonna (Donna) Marie Schaffner on a Sunday afternoon when he and Bill Hood, stockbroker, tennis player, and mutual friend, were on their way to a party with some girlfriends. While sitting at the Silver Thatch bar waiting for others to arrive, Alex asked if he could buy Donna a drink. The group tried to talk him into going with them, but he didn't want to. A year later, Donna met Alex again at another party given by Bill Hood and they hit it off. He asked Donna out, and after several dates, they finally got together. Donna knew nothing about him, didn't realize he was recently divorced and had five children. They dated for two years and broke up. Donna was planning on moving to San Francisco to start a new life. Alex then asked Donna to marry him. On April 9, 1970, Alex married Madonna Marie Schaffner in West Palm Beach, Florida at the Palm Beach Court House. They flew to London, staying at the landmark Savoy Hotel. They spent their honeymoon in northern Italy at an upscale resort on Lake Como, and then went on the People to People tennis tour of Europe. In 1970, Alex and Donna traveled to Japan, where they attended the Kyoto Night Tour and experienced a traditional dinner with tea ceremony. Alex and Donna travelled the world on the People-to-People tennis tour, stopping in England, France, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy. They also took a Nile river cruise down Egypt and explored Israel and the Dead Sea.
Florida Marriage Collection, 1927-2001; Certificate Number: 018335
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In 1984, Alex and Donna built their dream house on the ocean at 1212 Hillsboro Mile, Hillsboro, Beach, Florida. The unique design won several awards and appeared on the TV show "Miami Vice." Later, they sold this house when it became too big. They bought a smaller house in Deerfield Beach, Florida. Aspen, Colorado
In 1973, Alex and Donna rented a condo in Aspen, Colorado to go skiing. They would take their cats with them when they traveled. From 1975-1999 Alex and Donna owned a home on a golf course in Aspen, Colorado. It had a guesthouse, which was mostly rented by a woman Dawson’s age. Alex’s children would often come to visit in the winter to go skiing, or in the summer to go hiking and enjoy the good weather. Aspen is unique because of its location in Colorado’s Rocky Mountains. It is also a famous ski resort town. Special trips and events included taking a llama-hiking trip, the Maroon Bells hike, visiting the Ashcroft Ghost Town, and eating at the Crystal Palace restaurant. I remember flying from Denver to Aspen in a smaller plane and feeling a lot of air turbulence because of the quick decent into the Aspen airport. We would all continue to go out to Aspen in the summer or winter for several years, until my father sold the house to move to California. Dad enjoyed skiing, and while living in Aspen, he and Donna took the John Jay Ski Tour, which went abroad for one month of skiing in Austria, Italy and Switzerland. They spent a delightful week skiing in each country.
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Farming
Alex always enjoyed farming. When he was living in San Jose during the 1950s, he almost purchased a prune farm in Gilroy, California. He was going to buy 50 acres at $1,200 an acre. Unfortunately, he never pursued the deal. While living in Florida, one of his first farming investments was when he bought into a limited partnership with the Jasmin Groves Company as a tax shelter. Jasmin Groves was located in Bakersfield, California. However, in 1975, the company went through bankruptcy. This is where he met Gary L. Suthers, who helped him get out of the partnership. What was attractive about these kinds of investments was that instead of paying 70% in income taxes, you could use an investment in real estate or movie production as way to take tax deductions. Dad also met Win Savory. I remember him on a trip I took with my Dad to the Cayman Islands. From 1976-1982, Alex purchased farmland in Fresno, Madera, and Bakersfield California. He grew apples, almonds, and kiwifruit. At one point, Dawson, Scott, and I had our own similar farmland as an investment. Alex sold these farms in 2006. Horse Racing
Alex’s interest in horse racing goes back to the early days when he was going to college in San Jose and would go the Bay Meadows race track to bet on the horses. Later in life, Alex started to invest in racehorses with his half-brother Doug, who owns the Marablue farm in Ocala, Florida.
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Alex raced horses from 1996 through 2003. In 1996 he won a race with the horse Proud Birdie. In 1999, Alex owned the horse Kiwi Mint and kept it at Doug’s Marablue Farm. Move back to California
Alex and Donna traveled to California to see Alex’s children, sometimes renting a home in Carmel or Pebble Beach. In 1997, Alex bought a home at the Carmel Valley Ranch Club, where Alex and Donna live today. The property has access to the golf course, tennis courts, a clubhouse, and hotel, and overlooks the golf course. The Garland Ranch Regional Park is nearby. Alex loves playing competitive bridge, and in 2008, he won the title of "Bridge Master.” Donna enjoys her cats, cooking, and playing bridge. Alex and his family went to see his mother (Nonny) on her 100th birthday in Greenwich, Connecticut. His sister and Alex were very proud to see their mother have such a good time at her birthday party. The event was held at Mary Ella’s and John G Griswold’s house in Greenwich. On June 3, 2000, Nonny died in Greenwich at the age of 100. There was a service on September 21, 2000 (Nonny's birthday) at the cemetery where Leonard Lathrop, her second husband, is buried. On January 17, 2014, Alex’s sister Mary Ella Griswold died in Hobe Sound, Florida. She was 91 years old. Her occupation was listed as Sculptor. She was cremated and Thoroughbred Daily News, 7-18-99, page 6 The Palm Beach Post, Jan 13, 2014
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her remains were placed in two urns. One urn was buried at the Christ Church in Greenwich, Connecticut and one buried next to her husband John Griswold at the Griswold Cemetery in Old Lyme, Connecticut. Following the worship service, a reception was at the Round Hill Club at 33 Round Hill Club Road in Greenwich. On March 26, 2019, Alex turned 95 years old and still lives in Carmel Valley with his wife Donna. Alex enjoyed playing bridge and keeping up with numerous stock portfolios. He has also kept up with the latest in technology, and owns two Apple iMac computers, an iPad, two iPhones, and an a Apple TV.
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CHAPTER NINE Patricia Ford Crass
Patricia Ford Crass
M
y mother, Patricia Ford Crass, was born in San Francisco on May 17, 1923. She is the second daughter of Marion Boisot and Lewis Byington Ford. Pat’s older sister, Mary Jane, was born on August 22, 1921 (now deceased); her younger sister, Audrey (Tommy), was born on December 4, 1926. The announcement of Pat’s birth was published in a San Francisco literary magazine called The Argonaut, which reported: “Mr. and Mrs. Byington Ford of Pebble Beach are being congratulated on the birth of a daughter.”
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Tommy’s birth in San Francisco appeared in The San Francisco Chronicle: “Mr. and Mrs. Ford are being congratulated upon the birth of a daughter, which occurred at the Dante Sanatorium in San Francisco.” Patricia lived in Pebble Beach, California for 11 years, from 1923 to 1934. The family lived in a house on 17-Mile Drive overlooking the first tee on the Pebble Beach golf course. The Spanish Colonial home, designed by the noted architect Bernard R. Maybeck, was divided. She and her sisters lived on one end, while her parents lived on the other. She did not see a lot of her mother and father, because they had a governess. She would take walks in what she called ‘Fairy Woods’ and would leave graham crackers for the fairies. Her father, Byington Ford, was manager of the Del Monte Properties in Pebble Beach, which was formed by Samuel F. B. Morse in 1919. Ford rode horseback through the undeveloped parts of the Del Monte Forest. He headed their Pebble Beach Real Estate Department for 12 years. SFB Morse might well have considered Byington the California Birth Index; San Francisco Chronicle, Page 8 Pebble Beach Historic Context Statement - Monterey County, August 29, 2013
In 1907, SFB Morse became associated with the Crockers, and after
successfully manning the Crocker-Hoffman Land and Water Co., was offered a position managing the Pacific Improvement Co. in 1915. Since the heirs of Southern Pacific’s original owners had sold the railroad, they were also interested in liquidating the Pacific Improvement Co. The liquidation became Morse's job, and he expedited about 90 percent of that task in his first five years. On February 1, 1919, Morse bought the Pacific Improvement Co. land (five forested areas) on the Monterey Peninsula and formed Del Monte Properties, which he developed into a resort and private real estate e.g. Pebble Beach and Cypress Point.
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younger brother he never had. SFB Morse and Byington played on the same baseball team in the Abalone League. They went to parties together and lived near each other in Pebble Beach. The whole concept of Pebble Beach was to sell lots, and Byington and Marian Hollins (the United States Women's Amateur golf champion in 1921) were SFB’s lead brokers. Byington Ford later went to work at the Carmel Realty Company. In 1882, the Pacific Improvement Company bought the Los Laureles Rancho, which they later (1900s) liquidated (10,000 acres). Del Monte Properties, headed by Samuel FB Morse, acquired the land in 1919. In 1923, Del Monte Properties divided the Carmel Valley land into 11 parcels. Marian Hollins bought 2,000 acres. In 1926, Frank Porter bought 600 acres of old Rancho Los Laureles. The Potters later acquired a portion of the Marian Hollins ranch. Byington Ford bought 400-acres from Frank Porter. Pat spent the summers at the ranch swimming and riding horses. The ranch included an entrance from the Carmel Valley Road, a horse barn, gatekeeper, two cottages, and the hayfield at the top of the mountain called The Mesa. Her mother commissioned a local artist, Jo Mora, to create three life-size portrait figures in bronze of each daughter. She thought that the age of three was the optimum age in childhood, so she had the children frozen in time. The statues were made in Mora’s large studio in Pebble Beach. Pat was three years old when she posed for her statue. In Pat’s statue she is holding a frog. Mora said: “It was questioned who had more fun in the making, the children or Marian Hollins died on August 27, 1944 in Monterey, California Fink, Augusta, Monterey County The Dramatic Story of Its Past, Monterey Bay, Big Sur, Carmel, Salinas Valley, 1972, Western Tanager Press/Valley Publishers, San Francisco, page 202
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I.” The statues were used as garden fountains in the Ford home in Pebble Beach and later in Marion’s Carmel Valley home, where all three statues stood above a fountain on their patio, which overlooked the valley.” In 2003, Patricia and her sister Tommy were at the Maritime Museum of Monterey for artist Jo Mora. Pat brought the statue that Jo Mora had made of her when she was three years old. Tommy brought her statue, too. Today, Pat’s statue stands in the backyard on her ocean property in Carmel. Tommy has her statue where she lives in Bradley, California. She is holding a dog in her statue. Mary Jane’s statue has her holding a duck, and is now in a private collection in Canada. In February of 1927, Pat’s father was in the play The Bad Man, presented by the Carmel Players on the evenings of February 18 and 19, under the direction of George M. Ball. The cast included Jo Mora, leading man, Ruth Austin, and Byington Ford. Pat’s grandfather, Tirey L. Ford, was a successful and noted San Francisco attorney, State Senator, and AttorneyGeneral of California. On June 26, 1928, Tirey L. Ford died at the Pacific Union Club in San Francisco. The Funeral service was held at Gary's Chapel on Divisadero Street at Post. Interment was private at the Holy Cross Cemetery mausoleum in Colma (south of San Francisco). On April 4, 1930, the United States Federal Census listed Byington Ford (39), Marion B. (32), Mary Jane (8), Patricia
Winsor Josselyn, California Arts and Architecture, February 1931
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(6), and Audrey (3) living in Pebble Beach, California. Mary Jane was a good friend of Mary Morse, the daughter of Samuel F. B. Morse. Patricia called Morse ‘Uncle Sam,’ because he was married to her father’s sister Relda Ford. The Morses lived at River Ranch in Carmel Valley next to Patricia’s mother’s ranch. There was a pool at the River Ranch, which Patricia remembers swimming in. The Morses also had a house in Pebble Beach next to the lodge. On several occasions Mary Jane would ride horses with Mary Morse and would participate in horse shows. Pat met the actor Clark Gable in Carmel Valley, who was on his honeymoon with Carol Lombard, at Rosie’s Cracker Barrel country store. Pat was getting on her horse and Gable patted it and said it was a nice horse. On May 29, 1931, The San Francisco Chronicle had an article entitled “Pebble Beach Students to Hold Gymkhana.” It went on: “Patsy and Mary Jane Ford, daughters of Mr. and Mrs. Byington Ford, and Mary Morse, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. S. F. B. Morse, all of Pebble Beach. They will also enter mounts in the children’s classes of the second annual Presidio Monterey Peninsula Horse 1930 United States Federal Census, Monterey, California; Roll: 179; Page: 2A; Enumeration District: 31; Image: 865.0
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Show at the Del Monte polo field on June 19 to 21.” Pat frequently rode in horse shows. When she was six, Pat learned how to ride at Douglas School, which is now the Robert Louis Stevens School in Pebble Beach. Her first mount was a donkey. In 1932 (age 9), Patricia received a 4th grade monthly report card from the Douglas School. She received As in art, French, music, penmanship, and reading. The Douglas School was unusual, because it had activities like swimming, rifling, archery, polo, horseback riding, and tennis. Grace Douglas started the Douglas School in 1928. She hired her son, Dick Collins, as the business manager and athletic director. Collins worked at the Equestrian Center when Pat was going to Douglas School. Dick Collins was from Ireland, and later became the polo coach. When I was going to school at RLS, I wrote at the Equestrian Center and would see Dick Collins from time-to-time. On April 19, 1935, ‘Patsy’ Ford took part in the annual Easter egg hunt held on the lawn of the Hotel Del Monte. Her grandparents, Emil Kellogg and Lilly Reid Boisot, vacationed for a month in a very nice cottage on the grounds of the hotel. Pat saw her Boisot grandparents every Sunday for lunch. They always had a large jigsaw puzzle going. My mother has kept up with this tradition and has a card table in her home dedicated for working on a jigsaw puzzle. When we go to visit we help her complete the puzzle. The Navy acquired the Hotel Del Monte during WW II, and San Francisco Chronicle (San Francisco, California), Page: 10 San Francisco Chronicle (San Francisco, California), Page: 21
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later converted it into the U.S. Navy Post Graduate School. Lilly Boisot was a wonderful grandmother. Her dining room table always looked beautiful. Lilly passed down a set of German hand blown glass deer, trees and snow centerpiece that is used as the centerpiece on the dinner table for each Christmas. On June 14, 1935, Pat’s parents divorced. She was 11 ½ years old. Marion got the ranch in lieu of child support payments. She sold the house in Pebble Beach and moved to San Francisco. Pat’s father re-married in 1937 to Ruth A. Austin, who taught modern dance at Douglas School. Ruth died, age 96, on November 12, 1994 in Alhambra, California. San Francisco, California
Pat lived in a flat on the second floor at 2170 Jackson St., San Francisco, with her mother and two sisters. However, her sister, Mary Jane was mostly off as a boarder at the Katherine Branson School, a private school for girls in Ross, Marin County, California. From 1936-38 (age 13-15), Pat spent 7th and 8th grade at the Sarah Dix Hamlin School for girls in San Francisco, California, graduating on June 10, 1938. Her cousin, “Buzzie” (Deborah) Boisot went to Hamlin, as well as her granddaughters Farah and Flora Fouladi. On June 16, 1937, when school was over, Pat left San Francisco to spend the summer at their ranch in Carmel Valley. She enjoyed the ranch, especially riding her horse ‘Freddie’ and swimming in the river. In September, Pat went to see a play at California’s First Theatre in Monterey, called Ten Nights in a Bar-Room. Her
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father was master of ceremonies, and had a part in the play. Ruth Austin was listed as the Dance Director. On Saturday, March 12, 1938, at 8:30 in the evening, in the gymnasium at the Katherine Branson School, Mary Jane Ford played the Wood Carver in a play called “The Robe of Wood.” On Saturday, April 2, 1938, the senior class at the Sarah Dix Hamlin School held a fashion show. Gowns were from Davis Schonwasser & Co. Pat had written in her 1938 diary: “Had fashion show. Tommy wore an adorable dress with a white panama hat in the fashion show.” The next day, they went to Miramar Fish Grotto in San Francisco. She said: “I had a shrimp cocktail, crab salad, fried crab and French fried potatoes.” On May 14, 1938, Pat’s mother received a Western Union telegram telling her that the Brownmoor School, in Santa Fe, New Mexico, had a place for Patricia, and that she should come see the school before commencement day, May 24th. The telegram went to their home in San Francisco on Jackson Street. On May 18, 1938, another Western Union telegram came, this time from Pat’s mother in Flagstaff, Arizona, saying she would visit the Brownmoor School in Santa Fe, New Mexico School the next day. Pat had a postcard collection and on June 2, 1938, she wrote in her dairy: “Made this stamp for my postcard collection – Pat Ford’s Collection.” She had over one thousand postcards! One day Mary Jane through the collection out the window and Pat had to put it back together. Pat always collected something, including oil painting postcards, silver and gold coins, Beanie Babies, and lovely art book journals.
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Move to Pasadena
On September 20, 1938 (age 15), the family moved into Pat’s grandparents’ (Emil Kellogg Boisot) home in Pasadena, which was at 585 Bellefontaine Street. Pat and her sister Tommy did a lot of roller-skating. Pat remembers roller-skating down to the bottom of the driveway. Her grandparents had a chauffeur to drive them places. Pat was very fond of her grandmother, Lilly R. Boisot. For two years (1938-1939), Pat, (age 15-16) attended the Westridge Private High School for Girls in Pasadena. These were Pat’s ninth and tenth grade years. One of Pat’s favorite subjects was debating. She remembers Aunt Peggy, her mother‘s cousin, and Peggy’s daughter, Georgiana. Georgiana was closer to the age of Mary Jane. Santa Fe, New Mexico
Pat’s grandmother, Lilly Reid Boisot, wanted Pat to go to the Brownmoor High School, a girl’s boarding school in Santa Fe, New Mexico (1939-1941). These were Pat’s eleventh and twelfth grade years (16 and 17 years old). She went skiing every weekend. After a chemistry class on Fridays, the girls would leave to go skiing. It was at Brownmoor that Pat tried using her left hand to try to become ambidextrous. On August 27, 1939, at age 79, Pat’s grandmother Lilly R. Boisot, died in Carmel Valley, California. She set up a small trust fund with Wells Fargo Bank called the Lilly R. Boisot Trust for her grandchildren. She said it would provide her grandchildren with ‘pocket money’ later in life. All three grandchildren were in the trust. On November 7, 1939, Pat wrote an essay for an English
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III class called "Such is Life,” for which she received an "A" grade. The story was about a girl who didn't get a part in a play. She ended the story saying, "life is often very real and unfair to people who need a chance." On December 16, 1939, Pat’s mother married Dr. Howard W. Ernst in Pasadena, California. He had a small plane and was a good pilot. It was written that Dr. Ernst flew Dr. Gordon M. Goodfellow, NCA president, up from Los Angeles to the Oregon State convention in Portland.
Pat’s graduation at Brownmoor High School In 1939, Mary Jane went to the University of Oregon in The announcement appeared in The Chicago Tribune on December 24, 1939
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Eugene. Pat, her mother, and husband, Dr. Ernst, were on the way to the graduation in his airplane when they had to turn back because of a storm. They missed Mary Jane’s graduation. On April 16, the 1940 U.S. Federal Census listed Howard W. Ernst (40), Marion B. (42), Mary Jane (18), Patricia (16), and Audrey (13) living in Pasadena, California. On February 1, 1941, at age 81, Pat’s grandfather, Emile Kellogg Boisot, died in Pasadena, California. A special report to The New York Times said: “EMILE KELLOGG BOISOT – Retired President of the First Trust and Savings Bank of Chicago Dies in Pasadena at 81.” In June of 1941 (age 18), Patricia graduated from Brownmoor High School in Santa Fe, New Mexico among a small senior class. She enjoyed her time at Brownmoor. Along with a lot of skiing Pat enjoyed archery. Her class would also visit the Indian Pueblos quite often. Los Angeles (1941-1945)
Pat’s family lived in Los Feliz Hills in Los Angeles (North Hollywood). Her mother bought Pat a new Ford convertible so she could drive herself around. On December 7, 1941, the attack on Pearl Harbor prompted the U.S. to declare war on Japan. In 1942, Pat’s father enlisted in the Air Force and became a Lieutenant Colonel. Her sister, Mary Jane, joined the Women’s Army Corp. (WACs). Here is a picture of Pat’s father and May Jane sitting side-by-side in their military uniforms.
1940 Census, Pasadena, Los Angeles, California; Roll: T627_242; Page: 7A; Enumeration District: 19-481
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Mary Jane, at age 23, was presented with the Soldier's Medal at Camp McCoy, Wisconsin. for her heroic efforts to save the life of a drowning soldier (Falvius M Hopkins). She was on duty with the Signal Corps in the Military District of Washington and is the second WAC to be decorated with this medal and the only one in the USA. Major General Harry C. Ingles, Chief Signal Officer, presented the award. Unfortunately, soldier Hopkins did not survive, even with Mary Jane's heroic attempt to save his life. A cartoon-like drawing depicted the man drowning and Mary Jane attempting to save his life. Pat worked for a hospital as a ‘Candy Striper.’ She also worked as a hostess at the Officers Club in Los Angeles. She would dance with the officers. One day, at the bar, she stood next to the famous actress Shirley Temple. Chicago, Illinois
Pat did not want to go to college; she wanted to go to art school, so her Boisot grandparents sent her to The Chicago Art Institute. In 1944, Pat drove from California to Chicago, Illinois with her friend Mary to attend the Art Institute of Chicago for one year. She lived at The Three Arts Club in Chicago, which was founded in 1912 by a group of women who were active in Chicago social reform, education, and the arts. The ‘three arts’ stand for Literary, Performance, and Visual. Pat wrote her mother after the first day of school (September 9, 1944). The letter was written from 1300
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North Dearborn Street, Chicago, Illinois and written to “Mrs. Howard W. Ernst, Jamesburg Route, Monterey, California.” Below is a passage from the letter: Dear Mother, Everything fine – staying at Three Arts tonight. Today was the first day of school. I take figure painting every morning, also an hour of art history two days in afternoon! Not at all what I wanted. My room is very nice and has a nice view of the court. I haven’t received my trunk yet after I have written Howard twice. Will write again tonight. Love, Reid
On Sept 28, 1944, Pat sent a postcard to her mother (Mrs. Howard Ernst) at 4818 Bonvue Ave, Los Angeles, California. The front of the card was a painting by Auguste Renoir from the Art Institute of Chicago. The card said: “Dear Mother, Love this painting. All is well. School is very interesting and I should get a lot out of it. Having lots of fun. XXO Reid.” Pat started to use the name “Reid” just to be different. Pat asked her mother for some money to buy a winter coat, since it was very cold in Chicago. On one occasion, she could not make a $45.00 car payment and asked her father for the money. He wrote back saying she should learn how to budget. She never forgave her father for this. Pat rarely saw her father after the divorce. Later, in Chicago, her car was stolen. On March 28, 1945, Pat sent another postcard to her mother in Los Angeles. The front of this card had a painting by Edgar Degas from the Art Institute of Chicago. The card said: “Happy Easter. Have an Easter Bonnet by Degas. Much love, P.”
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A letter arrived on March 28, 1945, from Pat to Mrs. Howard Ernst in Los Angeles, from Chicago. The letter thanked her mother for sending her a check for $260.00. She goes on, “how thankful she is for all the things she took for granted; the ranch, horses, income, and the endless things you’ve done for us, etc.” In 1946, her mother divorced Howard Ernest and married George Faunce Whitcomb in San Francisco. Whitcomb wrote several books about poetry: Eagle Quills in 1919, Jewels of Romance in 1922, and Serpent’s Credo in 1931. He was very intelligent, having attended Harvard from 1912-1914. In 1947, Pat returned to Los Angeles to attend the Chouinard Art Institute, because it was too cold in Chicago. This is where she met Nadine Cardwell, a lifelong friend. Her mother thought she should take a one-year commercial course, which included lettering, drawing, painting, etc. The idea was to get a job for an advertising agency, newspaper, magazine, or graphic design firm. Nadine went on to become an interior decorator.
Harvard College Class of 1916, June 1922
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Carmel Valley
Pat would spend summers at the Carmel Valley Moon Trail ranch with her mother and sisters. Cousins Buzzie and Diane Boisot often visited over the summers. Buzzie’s grandfather, Louis Marsten Boisot, was Marion’s (Pat’s mother) brother. Every summer, they would spend their time riding horses, swimming at the Carmel Valley Inn (now Bernardus Lodge & Spa) and going to rodeos in Salinas. They sometimes rode their horses over the Los Laureles Grade. This picture shows (from left to right) Betty Hunter, Pat Ford, and Polly Hunter. Pat and Tommy lived in the “Pink” cottage above her grandmother’s house. Pat’s mother had a cook for many years named Wong. In 1946 Pat’s father, and his brother Tirey Ford Jr., developed the Carmel Valley Village and Airway Market, with a general store, a barbershop, a drugstore and soda fountain, a beauty shop, and a liquor store. All were within walking distance of the Airpark and decorated to resemble a Mexican village. The airpark was developed in the late 1930s because Ford was convinced that mass production of small aircraft would put a plane within the reach of anyone who could afford a car. Ford Road was named in honor of Byington Ford, which is the street that borders part of the
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airstrip. On October 14, 1946, Mary Jane married Roy Dean Wolter in Reno, Nevada. When Mary Jane married Dean, she saw less of Mary Morse. The Morses were ‘high society’ girls and Dean, who was a cowboy, apparently, could not hold a conversation at a dinner party. Dean Wolter died on October 18, 1963 in a plane crash due to faulty part installation. He was a partner with his brother Jimmy in cattle ranching until he got involved in the Stirrup Cup bar in 1953. Mary Jane and Dean Wolter ran the Stirrup Cup. They had two children Carolyn (1947) and Ford (1949). On November 15, 1949, Pat, Mary Jane, and Tommy appeared as Chorus Liners in The Paisano newspaper at Robles Del Rio, California. It was described as “Party of the Month,” sponsored by their mother, Mrs. Marion B. Whitcomb. Byington Ford was there along with Mary Morse Osborne. Pat and Tommy painted the mural decoration and the pretzel barrels. Robles Del Rio is a small town in Carmel Valley that was acquired in 1926 by Frank Porter, of Salinas. The town had a nice restaurant called “The Ridge” on top of a hill called Robles Del Rio Lodge. Pat showed her oil paintings at the Carmel Valley White Oak Inn in an exhibit called Portraits by Patricia. Pat and Tommy launched “Pataud,” which was the trade name for exclusive after-ski and cocktail skirts and sweaters that sold for $40-$100. They had local women knitting sweaters and sewing skirts. They also developed Carmel Valley Historic Airpark Society
Fink, Augusta, Monterey County The Dramatic Story of Its Past Monterey Bay, Big Sur, Carmel, Salinas Valley, Western Tanager Press/Valley Publishers, San Francisco, California. Copyright 1972
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Ski Postcards, which were hand painted and distinctive. On November 9, 1951, Audrey Cordrey and Gay Fletcher opened Gabrielle’s house of fashion. Audrey was for some years a professional designer and has had a lifelong interest in creating clothes. Marion sold the 400-acre ranch in 1970 to William “Jim” May Garland II (son of William May Garland), who later sold it to the Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District in 1975. Garland later died in an airplane crash on May 7, 1975. This area is now called the Garland Ranch Regional Park. After Marion’s property was sold to Garland, Tommy, who owned her own piece of property next to the park, no longer had gate access to ride her horses on the new park boundaries. Rather, she had to use the public access to the park. She later sold her property and moved to Bradley, California, where she lives today on a large property with her daughter Christie and Christie’s husband. Pat and Tommy were close and worked for a short time at the Telamir Television Production Company in Monterey doing commercial art. To be near work, Tommy and Pat later got a place in Monterey on January 28, 1950. At Telamir, Pat worked on a new television series called The Flying Tigers. They skied almost every weekend. They belonged to the Carmel Ski Club, where they had races. One winter, Pat broke her leg downhill skiing at the Sugar Bowel Ski Resort. She was skiing down a trail, and was turning into an open field where other skiers were going downhill. She had to check herself to stop, but with the old-style wooden ski, she fell and broke her leg. Her boyfriend at the time, Bud Foster, drove her home. The Carmel Pine Cone, November 9, 1951, Page 10
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On June 20, 1943, Mary Morse married Richard L. Osborne in New York. They had four children: Susan, Charles, Ellen and Lillie. Richard ran the Monterey Peninsula Country Club for 20 years Pat wrote about the Osbornes in her 1950 diary: Cocktails at the Osbornes on March 16, 1950. Saw new arrival Polly (1950), Charlie (1947) and Susan (1944). Took Carolyn to Charlie Osborne’s Birthday Party in the afternoon. Uncle Sam and Aunt Relda were there, cute party.
Pre-Marriage
On February 11, 1950, Pat met Alexander D. Henderson III at a going away party for a friend named Maggie. They later met at the Carmel Ski Club in Carmel, and would sometimes go dancing at the Mission Ranch Bar & Restaurant in Carmel. They sometimes went to Sugar Bowl, in Norden, California, to ski. On April 29, 1950 Pat’s sister, Audrey (Tommy) and Phil Cordrey got engaged. They were married on November 5, 1950 in Carmel Valley and had three boys: Chester (Chet), Philip (By), Timothy (Timmy), and one girl: Christina (Christie). Pat was a little jealous that her younger sister was married before her. Marriage
On December 9, 1950, the engagement of Patricia Ford to Alexander D. Henderson was announced in The Monterey Pat’s 1950 diary on March 16, 1950 Pat’s 1950 diary on February 11, 1950
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Peninsula Herald. The announcement said, “Mrs. George Faunce Whitcomb announces the marriage of her daughter Patricia Ford to Mr. Alexander D. Henderson on Saturday, the seventeenth of February 1951 Carmel Valley, California.” On February 17, 1951, Pat married Mr. Henderson at the family’s Moon Trail Ranch in Carmel Valley. The wedding was written up in the Monterey newspaper. Alex’s parents and sister from the East Coast flew out for the event.
The wedding guests pictured above included George Faunce Whitcomb, Marion Whitcomb, Alexander D. Henderson Jr., Pat, Alex, Mary Henderson, Byington Ford, Audrey Ford Cordrey, and Mary Jane Wolter. Other guests included: Phil Cordrey, Dean Wolter, Jerry Henderson, Alex’s sister Mary-Ella Hinrichs, and close friend Isabel Hollins from Pebble Beach. As a wedding present, her father gave Pat a lithograph of the Monterey Cypress trees by Paul Whitman, who was one Monterey Peninsula Herald
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of the original members of the celebrated Carmel art community. The lithograph hangs in my house today. Alex and Pat honeymooned in Ensenada, Mexico. They went to the Benson’s Vista al Mar for a night of dancing and cocktails. San Jose, California
In 1951, Alex and Pat set up housekeeping at their 797 E. William Street apartment in San Jose, California. Alex had already started his studies at San Jose State University. On November 19, 1951, Alexander Dawson Henderson IV was born in Carmel, California. They were visiting Pat’s mother when Dawson was born. Her sister Tommy’s baby ‘Chet’ was due that week, but Dawson took the date instead. Alex was still going to San Jose State University, graduating in 1952. He and Pat went to the horse races at Bay Meadows almost every day. Alex spent more time studying the racing form than he did his studies. In the fall of 1952, they moved to Alameda, California, because Alex got a job at Montgomery Ward as a merchandiser. They soon move, in July 1953, to 609 Genevieve Lane in San Jose for Alex’s job as an Investigator at Household Finance Corporation (HFC). While living in the apartment, they went to some open houses, finally finding a great house on Pruneridge Street in San Jose for $13,250. This house was part of the Crestview homes. The $12,950 model was 1250 sq. ft. with two full baths. Alex told Pat, “If you want to buy this house, you will have to sell your Avon stock.” So, Pat sold her shares of Avon stock to put a down payment on the house.
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On July 29, 1953, at 8:22 PM, Gregory Ford Henderson (myself!) was born at the Peninsula Community hospital in Carmel, California. Greg was several months premature and weighed only 2 lbs. 6 ½ ounces. Pat’s mother insisted that Pat come down to Carmel from San Jose to have the baby. The doctor allowed this only if she traveled by ambulance. The bumpy ambulance ride induced the baby to arrive early. The birth was announced in The Monterey Peninsula Herald. Greg spent several months in the hospital and was well liked by all the nurses! He had to weigh five pounds before the hospital would release him. While he stayed at the hospital, Alex and Pat drove down to Carmel to visit him. On April 4, 1955, David Gerald Henderson was born in Santa Clara, California. His middle name came from his Great Uncle Girard B. Henderson. Move to Florida
On July 5, 1957, Alex’s mother convinced Alex to move to Florida to be closer to his father. The family stayed at Alex’s father’s Avon by the Sea apartments in Hillsboro, Florida while a new house was being built. The children went to the Hillsboro Country Day School, which was developed and run by Alex’s father. The family moved into the new house at 3532 N.E. 31st Avenue, Pompano Beach, Florida. There was a fort house in the front yard surrounded by trees and bushes. Pat had a tiny art studio off the garage. She would paint there and sometimes come to the Hillsboro Country Day School to paint or draw other children. A newspaper article talked about Pat and Alex spending a California Birth Index, 1905-1995
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weekend holiday in Nassau in the Bahamas along with group of other folks from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. On March 10, 1958, Scott Douglas Henderson was born at the Holy Cross Hospital in Pompano Beach, Florida. I remember Scott coming home from the hospital, and I was happy to see a newborn baby. In 1960, the family took a summer vacation to Ocho Rios, Jamaica. Soon after, they took another summer vacation to Pine Orchard, Connecticut. During the summer, Connecticut was hot and humid, and there was sometimes a threat of hurricanes. In 1963, the family moved to a bigger house in a gated community called ‘Sea Ranch Lakes’ in Ft. Lauderdale by the Sea, Florida. On November 5, 1963, Holly Alexandra Henderson was born at the Holy Cross Hospital in Pompano Beach, Florida. She had her own room on the main floor of the Sea Ranch Lakes house that was painted pink and had a playhouse, a lot of stuffed animals, and a rocking horse. Divorce
Pat learned from a tennis friend that Alex was having an affair with a woman called ‘Nancy.’ Pat and Alex later separated. She met Richard (Dick) Reid Crass on a trip to the Montego Bay Tennis Club in Jamaica with a friend. Dick was living in Wilmington, Delaware, and was Vice Treasurer of DuPont. He had two children from a previous marriage, Linda and Susan. Dick was very intelligent and loved to read about U.S. history. Dick visited Pat in Florida. In the summer of 1968, Dick
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drove Greg from the airport to the Meadowbrook Manor Riding Farm in the Pocono Mountains in Pennsylvania. On January 1968, Pat and Alex were divorced in Broward County. Pat took a trip to La Jolla near San Diego, California, where her Aunt Peggy lived. Pat stayed at the La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club. Holly and Scott accompanied her. Move back to California
In the summer of 1969, Pat and her children moved to Carmel Valley, California to be closer to her mother. Greg flew home separately, because he was attending a riding school, JO-AN Farms, in Milan, Missouri. Greg enrolled in the Robert Louis Stevenson School in Pebble Beach. He would take the RLS bus to school and back home each school day. David and Scott were in a school in Carmel Valley and later attended RLS. Dawson came out a few months earlier with his girlfriend, Cindy, and went to Menlo High School. Pat’s mother married Dr. Dudley P. Sanford, who was Pat’s favorite stepfather. Dudley graduated from Stanford University in 1936. He was a retired Dermatologist. Pat and her family rented a house on a hill in Carmel Valley, stayed there the first year, and later bought a house on 1st and Dolores Street, near downtown Carmel. The house payments were only $280 a month, while she had been paying $400 a month in Carmel Valley. Pat dated Jay Clancy in Carmel, who was a successful stockbroker. A recovered alcoholic, he always ordered nonalcoholic drinks. He did not want to get married, so Pat Florida Divorce Index, Certificate Number: 208
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decided to end the relationship. After breaking up with Jay Clancy, Pat moved to Oahu, Hawaii, and joined the Outrigger Club in Honolulu. She lived there for about eight months. Scott and Holly attended the local elementary school. There were only a few white people in their classes. They came back to California, but left their scuba, gear since they were planning to come back. They never did, because Pat married Dick and they stayed in California. Second Marriage
Dick announced his retirement from DuPont on March 29, 1970. On December 5, 1970, Mrs. Patricia Ford Henderson and Richard Reid Crass were married at the All Saints Chapel, Grace United Methodist Church, in Delaware. The Rev. Paul McCoy officiated at the ceremony. They returned to Atherton, California after December 20th. In 1972, Pat and Dick purchased a house in Lindenwood, Atherton, California. They later moved to 91 Inglewood Lane in Atherton because the Lindenwood house had no sun in the backyard and they wanted a swimming pool. Pat loved the Inglewood house. They built a swimming pool and pool house. Pat used the pool house as a studio and spent a lot of time painting and gardening. They later bought a weekend home in Carmel on Carmelo Road close to the ocean. They also had a rental house on Orange Street in Menlo Park and another on Taylor Street in Carmel. Pat’s mother loved Dick. They would often go down to Carmel Valley to visit her. Dick had to be somewhere near Atherton so he could continue to work. He was semi-retired at this time. He got a job at Bank of America in San Francisco as a consultant. New York Times, March 29, 1970 Newspaper clipping dated 12/19/70
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Pat volunteered at the Allied Arts Guild in Menlo Park, California, which provides a place for working artists and visitors. Their mission is to raise funds to support the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital. Art
Pat has always been interested in art. Her father had a Cartoon Film Company in San Francisco before WW1. Pat remembers copying the funny papersMaggie and Jiggs. She always likes to draw. She went to art school before getting married. During her married life, she continued painting and often would come to her children’s school to paint some of the students in charcoal or pastels. She always had a little studio in each house. Pat also liked to write and keep scrapbooks of sketches, places she visited, and artists. The collection includes books from 1981 through 1983. In the 1983 scrapbook, she describes painting under the teachings of Jane Hofstetter. She wrote in this scrapbook: “Once you learn how to paint, the only limits are your own.” The scrapbook included going to Santa Barbara, where she painted and sketched the Santa Barbara Mission.
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Pat attended many watercolor workshops,
including some given by Charles Reid, Don Andrews, Jane Hofstetter, and Jade Fon. She was also a member of the Menlo Art League in Menlo Park, California, where she has shown her oils and watercolors. Pat knew Anne S. Longman (1924-2012), who she knew through watercolor painting and bridge. Anne was best known for her educational work. She worked with Koko, the gorilla and taught him to read and paint. She wrote a book “Spelling Syllable Approach to Spelling.” Travels
In 1983, Pat and Dick took a Scandinavian cruise, which included visiting the Tivoli Gardens in Copenhagen, Denmark and dinner with some tour companions at a Gardens restaurant. Another trip that Pat and Dick took together included travels through Spain from April-May of 1984. On January 19, 1985, at age 94, Pat's father, Byington Ford,
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died at his home in Ventura, California. Pat drove down with both sisters to visit him before his death. When she asked her father ‘why he never saw us when they lived in Carmel?’ His response was ‘I did not want to interfere with the way your mother raised you.” On September 8, 1986, Pat took a trip to England with resident artist and instructor Jane Hofstetter. Painting was done on location at the different places they visited. In 1988, Pat sold the Carmel rentals and purchased a house on Scenic Drive in Carmel for $750,000. The house has a panoramic ocean view. Dick tried to talk her out of it because it was so expensive, but she bought it anyway, realizing that it was a good time to buy on Scenic Drive. She remodeled the house and it is still in the family today. The house is used now for Thanksgiving, Christmas, birthdays, and special weekend visits. It is sometimes rented by a San Carlos agency to pay taxes and insurance. The house is now worth around five million dollars. Dick and Pat went to Yugoslavia from September 6th through 29th 1988. They flew from San Francisco to New York and from New York to Zagreb, Yugoslavia (Croatia). Pat has a photo album dedicated to this trip along with many handwritten notes Dick placed in the album. We started to go on family vacations each August around 1988. One of the first trips was to Maui, Hawaii. All family members were there including Dick, who had recently undergone a heart bypass surgery. The family has taken trips to Puerto Vallarta, Cabo San Lucas, and Akumal, Mexico; Maui and Kawai, Hawaii; Napa and Sonoma, California; Flagstaff, Arizona; and Alaska. Pat went to Italy in 1989. The trip started in Milan and
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ended in Rome before flying back to San Francisco. She made a scrapbook of the trip, which included postcards, daily journals, and drawings she made while on the trip. One watercolor is of a ruin in Rome. Another painting depicts the canals in Venice. On December 10, 1989, at age 81, Richard R. Crass died in his bed at their home in Atherton. Pat and Holly were away in Chico visiting David, who had a restaurant in Chico called the Deja-Vu Mining Company, when Dick died. Scott also lived in Chico and worked at the restaurant. Pat had called Dick from Chico the night before. He said he wasn’t feeling well and was too sick to go to church that Sunday (which he never missed). When they came back home, they knew something was wrong, because all the lights were off and he was not breathing. Pat called the mortuary service to pick up the body. He was cremated. There was a memorial service at the Menlo Park Presbyterian Church. His daughters, Linda Greenwood and Susan Stubblefield, came from Montana to be at the service. On June 15, 1990, Pat's mother, Marion Sanford, age 92, died at her home in Carmel Valley, California. Later, there was a memorial at her house. Mary Jane, Tommy, and Pat attended, as well as the Cordreys and the Henderson children. Pat took a trip to France with Nadine Cardwell and a group of art friends, including Jane Hofstetter, from September 10 through 28, 1992. The trip was called “In the Footsteps of the Impressionists with Jane Hofstetter.” They took a direct flight from San Francisco to Paris. She saw Monet’s Water Lilies on one outing.
Journal Pat wrote on her trip to France in 1992
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Pat’s children would often go to the Atherton house for weekend visits. The outside pool was a gathering place to swim and relax. We had great dinners in the dining room. Pat made the best salad, and a dressing which we called ‘Grammy’s Dressing.’ The salad consisted of lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, avocado, and radishes. The dressing was three parts oil to one part Apple Cider Vinegar with crushed garlic and salt & pepper. Pat took another trip to England from September 5 through 23, 1994. This trip was called “An Artist’s Tour of Great Britain with Jane Hofstetter.” Pat painted a watercolor of a castle with a bridge over water. Pat attended the baptisms of her grandchildren Annette and Chantal, the daughters of Scott and Sandra Henderson. She has a total of ten grandchildren: Farah and Flora, daughters of Holly and Bijan Fouladi; Katie and Kelly, daughters of David and Marie Henderson; Ryan, Chris, Sean and Leah, children of Greg and Louise Henderson. On November 3, 2015, Kelly Henderson-Studer, daughter of David G. Henderson, had a baby boy named Mikko. This is Pat’s first great grandchild! The Vi in Palo Alto
In July of 2011, Pat sold her house in Atherton to the Pacific Peninsula Group and moved into the Vi in Palo Alto at 620 Sand Hill Drive, which is a luxury senior living community. At the Vi, she draws every week in a sketching group, plays a lot of bridge, does jigsaw puzzles, and likes to work out at the gym. Her children are very good about going to lunch with her almost every Sunday. Holly lives in San Francisco, Greg in Campbell, David in Dublin, Scott in Redwood Shores, and Dawson in Flagstaff, Arizona.
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In September of 2011, Pat gave her first art show at the Vi, which was a collection of watercolors and oils. The latest art show was in October of 2015. She showed two paintings; one a portrait of a woman holding a basket, the other a floral arrangement. For Thanksgiving, Christmas, and birthday parties, the family all go to the Carmel house. Since Pat is over 95, Buzzie Boisot, her cousin, often drives her down. Alex Henderson, who is still alive and living with his wife Donna in Carmel Valley, joins us. We often play a lot of Rummikub, or sometimes a game of bridge. Pat enjoys playing her stocks with a Charles Schwab account on her Apple iPad. She loves trying to pick out the best ones, which pay high yields.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
M
y name is Gregory Ford Henderson. My middle name comes from my mother’s father, Byington Ford. I was born on July 29, 1953 in Carmel, California. I am the second oldest of five children born to Alexander D. Henderson III and Patricia Ford Crass. I was born at the Peninsula Community Hospital in Carmel at 8:22 in the evening. My birth was announced in The Monterey Peninsula Herald. California
From 1950 to 1957, my parents lived in California. My Peninsula Community Hospital records
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brother Dawson Henderson was born on November 19, 1951 in Carmel. On April 4, 1955, my brother David Gerald Henderson was born in Santa Clara. He was only a toddler on our flight from California to Florida. Florida
At age 4 (July 5, 1957), we moved from California to Florida so my father could reestablish his connection with his father, his stepmother Lucy, and his half-brother Doug. On March 10, 1958, my brother Scott Douglas Henderson was born at the Holy Cross Hospital in Pompano Beach, Florida. I remember Scott coming home from the hospital and how happy I was to have a baby brother. We first lived in a small cottage at my grandfather's property called Avon-by-the-Sea in Pompano Beach. The bungalows were across the street from my grandfather’s Hillsboro Country Day School, which we attended as children. There were rows of individual cottages surrounding a large pool, where I enjoyed swimming. The property had a view of the ocean. As children, living in Florida, we went to my grandfather’s Hillsboro Country Day School when I was five years old. I went from nursery school through the seventh grade at this school. I remember seeing my grandfather while he was running the day-to-day affairs of the school. Once a year, on his birthday, he would have a carnival at the school. There was a cakewalk, train rides, and game booths. I remember him handing us a string of tickets for the rides. While living in Florida, Nonny (Mary A. Lathrop), my paternal grandmother, would sometimes come down from New York City to visit us. My maternal grandmother,
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Marion Boisot Sanford, and her husband Dudley P. Sanford, would come from California for a visit and stayed at our house in Pompano Beach. Around this time, my parents were expecting their fifth child. So in 1963, we moved to a larger house located in a gated community called Sea Ranch Lakes in Fort Lauderdale. This community had a private gate with a police force and beach club. On November 5, 1963, my sister, Holly Alexandra Henderson was born at the Holy Cross Hospital in Pompano Beach, Florida. On Christmas Day we would open our presents at our house and then get dressed in a coat and tie and go to my grandfather’s house to open presents that Lucy handed to us from under the Christmas tree. My grandfather’s sisterin-law, Sarah E. Brown, came to Christmas, too. We called her Aunt Sadie. She was very old, and I was too young to appreciate the history she might have taught us. California
In 1968 (age 15), my parents were divorced. Because of the divorce, in 1969, we moved back to California. I flew back from Missouri, since I was attending a summer riding camp at JO-AN Farms. I remember flying back and seeing the sun set as I descended into San Francisco. I started high school at Robert Louis Stevenson (RLS) School in Pebble Beach from 1969-1972. My mother went to the same school when it was called Douglas School for girls, which was started by Grace Douglas in 1928. RLS was a private school for boys. I was a ‘day student’; most of the other kids were boarders. We
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lived in a small, three-bedroom house in Carmel on Dolores Street. In June of 1972, I graduated from high school at RLS and came back to live with my mother and stepfather in their house in Atherton, California. Menlo College (1972-1974)
I was accepted into Menlo College, in Menlo, California, a private college specializing in a two-year business AA degree. Most of my classes were at the School of Business Administration. In 1974, I graduated from Menlo College with a two-year AA business degree. University of the Pacific
In the fall of 1974, at age 21, I transferred to the University of the Pacific (UOP) in Stockton, California (1974-75). I first moved into a one-bedroom apartment in Stockton. At UOP, my major was Religious Studies. First Marriage (1978-1984)
While in Clearwater, I met Susan Patricia Grant, who was attending a training class at the church. We started dating, and soon decided to meet her parents in England. On December 27, 1978 (age 25), we flew to London’s Heathrow Airport to meet her parents. While staying at her parents’ house, we decided to get married. So, on December 30th, we were married in Bromley, England. It was a civil wedding with a reception at John Grant's home in Bromley. John Grant was a Member of Parliament. Soon after we were married, we flew back to California. After 4 years of marriage, we decided to divorce to pursue other interest.
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San Francisco State
In 1984 (age 34), I graduated from San Francisco State University (SFSU) with a BS degree in Business and Information Systems. That same year, I bought my first computer; an Apple Macintosh, for $2,500.00. It had no hard drive and ran off two 3.5-inch floppy disks. The main feature that convinced me to buy a Mac was it had a graphical user interface. This was very much unlike other computers at that time, which ran on the IBM DOS OS. DOS required you to type commands into the keyboard to do anything. Work Experience
In September of 1984, my first job out of college was as a COBAL programmer for Lockheed Missiles & Space (now called Lockheed Martin Corporation) in Sunnyvale (198586). Shortly thereafter, I saw an ad in the newspaper for contract test engineer positions at Apple Computer. This was my dream job! I ended up getting the job and worked as a Quality Assurance (QA) Engineer for Apple Computer from 1987 to 1993. I have enjoyed working at several other companies in the bay area, including two startups. Second Marriage
In December of 1988 (age 35), I met Louise Zellie Gloor at a San Francisco nightclub called DV8. I got her number and we started dating. We went skiing in Yosemite, hiking in Marin, and nightclubbing in San Francisco. While working at Apple, I bought a condo in Mountain View, CA on 280 Easy Street from Tina Johnson, my realtor. It was a one-bedroom, one-bath in a converted apartment building complex. Louise would often come down to spend time together.
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On December 30, 1989, Louise and I were married at her parent’s home in Mariposa, California. We had a lovely weeding in the main living room with a three-piece orchestra. A Presbyterian priest married us. After the wedding ceremony, there was a buffet dinner at the house. Our honeymoon was in Mariposa and then New Year’s night at Yosemite National Park. Dawson Henderson and Sharon Galbreath came up to visit us at the Ahwahnee Hotel. Louise and I have four children: Ryan Alexander Henderson (May 27, 1990), Christopher Ford Henderson (Feb 18, 1992), Sean Murray Henderson (March 12, 1994) and Leah Louise Henderson (September 19, 1996).
Wedding for Katie P. Henderson and Amir M. Ghoreichi Nov 19, 2014 - Asilomar, Pacific Grove, California
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In 1989, I created the website: Hendersonfamilytree.com, which is an online record of the Henderson family as well as many related surnames, including: Ford, Boisot, Byington, Gloor, Stein, and Campbell. In December 2018, I published my second book titled: Tirey Lafayette Ford. This book is available online on Amazon Books.
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Bibliography
Bibliography Alexander Trust Company brochure, Alexander Trust Company, Zurich, Switzerland American Jet Industries, Inc. brochure, Van Nuys, California A Jet Powered Life: Allen E. Paulson, Aviation Entrepreneur, by Donald J. Porter, 2019, McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, Jefferson, North Carolina Blue Channel Company brochure, Port Royal, South Carolina California Perfume Company Financial Report, published 1923 Colorado’s Mystery Millionaire, 1983, Louis Kilzer, Denver Post Crosby, Gregory. “Tales of Vegas Past: Going Underground.” Las Vegas Mercury, 24 July 2003 Dawson 26 Sail Boat brochure Dawson Aviation brochure, Las Vegas, Nevada Dawson Yacht Corporation brochure, Las Vegas, Nevada From Sandy Hook to 62, Charles Edward Russell, 1929, The Century Co., New York
337 Bibliography
Gulfstream American Corporation brochure, Savannah, Georgia Inland Passage, On Boats & Boating in the Northeast, David W. Shaw, 1998 Life of an Unknown Man, Ernest Gordon Pratt, 1991, Carmel, California Mary’s Family Connections, Mary A. Lathrop, 1971, Lebanon, Connecticut Now You Are in Business for Yourself: The Independent Contractors of the California Perfume Company, 1886-1938, Katina L. Manko
Pilots and Pilot Boats of Boston Harbor, 1956, Ralph M. Eastman PILOT LORE From Sail to Steam, United New York and New Jersey Sandy Hook Pilots Benevolent Associations, 1922 Roosterfish Yacht brochure, Dawson Boat Sales, Mahwah, New Jersey So Long, It's been Good to Know You, autobiography by Girard B. Henderson Story of the Windship Prodigal, Pamphlet, "Dawson Yacht Corporation,” North Las Vegas, Nevada New York Military Academy Catalogue 1914-1915, The Shilling Press, Inc., 137-139 East 25th Street, New York City.
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Bibliography
“There’s More to Crabbing Than You Think,” Saturday Evening Post article Turn the Clock Back Sam, Jerry Henderson, 1982 The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Sailor, Bob Lengyel The Story Of Perfumery and the CPC, William Scheele, 1916, Issued by California Perfume Company United States Coast Pilot Atlantic Coast Section B Cape Cod to Sandy Hook 1933, US Government Printing Office
339 Index
340 Index
Index 126 Chambers, 111, 135, 136 126 Chambers Manhattan, 135, 136 142 Midwick, 155 16 Gates Avenue, 66 171 Midwood Street, 134 173 South Monsey Road, 137, 141, 174, 197, 269 174 Pulaski Street, 134, 169 200 Hart Street, 55 260 Quincy Street, 154 260 Schermerhorn Street, 63, 64 277 Park Avenue, 160 283 Hart Street, 56 309 Water Street, 50 31 Park Place, 119 32 West Side Avenue, 62 342 Madison Avenue, 199 358 Washington Street, 68, 71 36 Greene Avenue, 66 37 South Street, 50 618 Bramhall Avenue, 62 633 Willoughby Avenue, 39, 41, 44 639 Willoughby Avenue, 59, 69, 70, 87 66 Bond Street, 67 69 South Street, 8 93 Roosevelt Street, 7 953 Greene Avenue, 56 983 Myrtle Avenue, 28
341 Index Abraham & Straus, 158 Adolph Goetting, 152 Alarm Corporation, 221, 222 Alexander Cowan, 200 Alexander D Henderson University, 193 Alexander D. Henderson, 100, 105, 116, 120, 144, 145, 209, 212 Alexander D. Henderson Foundation, 188 Alexander D. Henderson III, viii, 176, 206, 316 Alexander D. Henderson, Jr., 3, 62, 140, 141, 157, 174, 196, 211, 268 Alexander D. Henderson, Sr., 154, 169 Alexander Dawson Foundation, 226, 265 Alexander Dawson Henderson, 86, 134, 148, 149, 168, 176, 225 Alexander Dawson Henderson III, 268 Alexander Dawson Henderson IV, 285 Alexander Dawson Henderson, Sr., 99, 195 Alexander Dawson Inc., 180, 208, 211, 212, 213 Alexander Dawson School, 265 Alexander Trust Company, 247 Allied Products Inc., 209, 211, 219 Allied Products, Inc., 214 Alma J. Seaman, 65 American Jet Industries, 248 American, No. 21, 39 Angelina A. Henderson, 74 Angelina A. Wilcox, 48, 75, 76, 77, 88 Angelina Annetta Weaver, 49, 100 Angelina Hendrickson, 70 Anna Mae Henderson, 67 Anna Mae Snell, 66 Anne Longman, 324 Audrey Ford, 316 Avon Allied Products Inc., 219 Avon by the Sea, 185 Avon Products, 219 Avon Products Ltd. of Canada, 214
342 Index
Bill McPheeters, 223 Bing Crosby, 225 Blue Channel Seafood Company, 238 Bob Walker, 203 Brooklyn Daily Eagle, 47, 76, 102, 163 Brooklyn Trust Company, 209 Bud Ozmun, 251 Byington Ford, 298, 314 California Perfume Company, 122, 144, 145, 345 Cappy Martin, 222 Capt. Thompson, 91 Carl S. Rohr, 223 Cecil Peak Station, 258 Chaney Silk Company, 199 Char. L. Snyder, 109 Charles Hendrickson, 46, 69, 100, 155 Charles Leonard Lathrop, 180 Charles Lindberg, 203 Cherry Lane, 178 Christine McConnell, 216 Christopher Ford Henderson, 342 Club Aluminum Company., 199 Colorado Aero Tech, 246 Dariel Henderson, 202 David Gerald Henderson, 286, 319, 338 David H. McConnell, 112, 116, 144, 152 David H. McConnell Jr, 211 David McConnell Jr., 206 Dawson 26, 240 Dawson Aviation, 247, 345 Dawson Henderson, 338, 342 Dean Wolter, 313 Deborah Boisot, 304 Dorys Hall Faile, 210
343 Index Doug Henderson, 26 Douglas Henderson, 281 Dr. Hans Nieper, 245 Dr. Norman Vincent Peale, 257 Dudley P. Sanford, 339 E. B. Bartlett, 102, 103 Ed Pardi, 247 Edna McConnell Clark, 210 Elbert P. Duryea, 65 Elijah H. May, 116 Elizabeth E. Castell, 62 Ella B. Henderson, 149, 208, 209, 211, 212 Ella Brown Henderson, 169, 195 Elwood Walter, No. 7, 17 Emile Kellogg Boisot, 298 Ernest Gordon Pratt, 207, 222, 224, 346 Farrow J. Smith, 226, 227, 263 Farrow Smith, 152, 203, 240 Frank Porter, 300, 314 Frank Zupancic, 253 Franklyn Avenue, 9 From Sandy Hook to 62, 15, 98, 345 From Sandy Hook to 62ď‚°, 12 George A. Wilhelm, 28 George B. Abbott, 47 George Faunce Whitcomb, 312, 317 George W. Blunt, No. 11, 18 Girard B. Henderson, 2, 211, 212, 262 Goetting & Co., 116 Green-Wood Cemetery, 47, 48, 59, 61, 65, 67, 71, 72, 87 Gregory Ford Henderson, 286, 337 Grizzly Riders, 251 Grumman Aerospace Corporation, 248
344 Index
Hank Ketchum, 225 Harley Wanamaker, 115 Henderson Hall, 186 Henderson Motor Co., 207 Henderson, Alexander D., 85 Hill Grove Lodge, 42, 43 Hillsboro Country Day School, 185, 338 Holly Alexandra Henderson, 290, 339 Houvenkopf County Club, 141 Howard Ernst, 312 Howard Hughes, 215 Howard W. Ernst, 307 Hurdman and Cranstoun, 121 Jack Lawrence, 228, 230 Jane Eccles, 4 Jay Swayze, 234, 252 Jennie S. Strong, 63 Jennie Smith, 63 Jerry Henderson, 273 Jewell Smith, 229, 253 Jim Garland, 314 Jo Mora, 301 John D. Schuller, 100, 154 John G. Turnbull, 200, 209, 210, 211 John Gardiner, 284 John H. Wells, 56 John O’Brien, 226 Joseph Dawson Henderson, 156 Joseph Ernst, 180 Joseph Henderson, 1, 20, 43, 47, 63 Joseph Henderson III, 61, 63, 66, 105 Joseph Henderson Jr., 60 Judson D. Tiffany, 113 Kenneth Burnham, 206, 207, 227
345 Index Kenneth Swayze, 234 Lafayette Theater, 147 Laura Frontgous Anthony, 283 Laura Josephine Frontgous, 178 Laura Lake, 154 Le Roy Sherwood, 152 Leah Louise Henderson, 343 Lilly Reid, 306 Lucia B. Doering, 180 Lucia Maria Ernst, 180, 275 Lucy E. Henderson, 193, 213 M. J. Keith, 152 Madonna Marie Schaffner, 292 Margaret G. Lamb, 153 Margret G. Corr, 158 Marian Hollins, 300 Marion B. Whitcomb, 314 Marion Boisot, 298 Marion Boisot Sanford, 339 Mark Strong, 63 Mary A. Lathrop, 3, 339, 346 Mary Ann Henderson, 67 Mary Ann Hendrickson, 73, 86, 88 Mary Barnes Anthony, 175, 268 Mary Duryea, 63 Mary Ella Henderson, 176 Mary Emma Jones, 64 Mary Henderson, 179, 242, 253, 263 Mary Hollingsworth, 227, 241 Mary Morse Osborne, 314 Maurice D. Henderson, 57 Maurice D. Weaver, 47, 50 Mecca Oil Co, 116 Minna E. Scheele, 210 Moon Trail Ranch, 317
346 Index
Mutual Manufacturing Company, 116 Myrtle Avenue, 11 New York World's Fair, 235 Norman Vincent Peale, 202 Nyack Turnpike, 137, 159, 160, 163, 169 Oswald Gutsche, 245, 246, 252, 261 Owen Patrick, 215, 221, 223 Panama-Pacific International Exposition, 146 Patricia Reid Ford, 298 Pet, No. 9, 90, 95, 138 Peter Anthony Hinrichs, 279 Philip Cordrey, 316 Puritan Congregational Church, 74 Rev. Dr. Morrison, 44 Rev. F. W. Norris, 87 Rev. John Hampstone, 154 Richard L. Osborne, 315 Richard Reid Crass, 322 Robert B. Henderson, 48, 62, 65, 66, 67 Robert B. Henderson III, viii Robert B. Henderson Jr., 63, 66 Robert B. Henderson Sr., 61 Robert Boyd Henderson III, 66 Robert Stuart Hinrichs, 279 Roosterfish, 239 Roy Hollingsworth, 241, 242 Ryan Alexander Henderson, 342 Sadie Brown, 155 Saint Andrew's School, 186, 187, 188 Sally Hinrichs Lawrence, 279 Samuel F. B. Morse, 223, 299
347 Index San Jose State University, 286 Sandy Hook Pilots Association, 13 Sanford M. Treat, 175 Sarah E. Brown, 339 Sarah Rebecca Henderson, 53 Scott Douglas Henderson, 287, 338 Sean Murray Henderson, 342 Sharon Galbreath, 342 Sisters of the Holy Child Jesus, 196 St. Matthew Church, 10, 44, 87, 106 Stanley L. Wilcox, 85 Stapps Lake Ranch,, 227 Statue of Liberty, 32 Storm King School, 197 Stuart Walter Hinrichs, 279 Susan Hinrichs Thomas, 279 Tallman, 177, 270 Tamarack Country Club, 181 Ted Hughett, 225 Teutonic, 38 Theodora G. Henderson, 202, 224, 227, 242 Theodora G. Huntington, 201 Theodora H. Ives, 243 Tirey Ford Jr., 313 Tirey L. Ford, 302 Underground World Homes, 234 Union Publishing House, 109 Union Warehouse, 101, 103, 113 US Cruiser Baltimore, 39 Van Tassel & Roy, 71 W. B. Bartlett, 101 William Brown, 155 William Goetting, 114
348 Index
William H. Carey, 120 William L. Brown, 153 William Scheele, 120 William Scheper, 217 Zora, 216