Abram Hewitt
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Abram Stevens Hewitt | |
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William H. Barnum | |
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Born | Abram Stevens Hewitt July 31, 1822 Columbia College |
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Abram Stevens Hewitt (July 31, 1822 – January 18, 1903) was an American politician, educator,
The son-in-law of the industrialist and philanthropist Peter Cooper, Hewitt is best known for his work with the Cooper Union, which he aided Cooper in founding in 1859, and for planning the financing and construction of the first line of what would eventually develop into the New York City Subway, for which he is considered the "Father of the New York City Subway System".[1]
Early life
Hewitt was born in
Hewitt earned a scholarship to attend
From 1843 to 1844, Hewitt traveled to Europe with his student, Edward Cooper, the son of industrialist entrepreneur Peter Cooper, and another future New York City mayor. During their return voyage, the pair were shipwrecked together. After this, Hewitt became "virtually a member of the Cooper family", and in 1855 married Edward's sister, Sarah Amelia.[2][3]
Corporate career
In 1845, financed by Peter Cooper, Hewitt and Edward Cooper started an iron mill in
Hewitt supervised the construction of the Cooper Union, Peter Cooper's free educational institution, and chaired its board of trustees until 1903.[4]
Political career
In 1871, inspired by reformer Samuel J. Tilden, Cooper prominently campaigned to remove the corrupt "Tweed Ring", led by William M. "Boss" Tweed, from control of Tammany Hall, and to reorganize the Democratic Party in New York, which Tweed controlled for years through his political machine. Hewitt first ventured into electoral politics in 1874, when he won a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, where he initially served two terms representing New York's 10th congressional district, from March 4, 1875, to March 3, 1879. During his first stint in Congress, he was made head of the Democratic National Committee in 1876, when Tilden ran unsuccessfully for President.[4]
After defeating
Hewitt was elected mayor of New York City in 1886. He defeated the labor candidate Henry George as well as the Republican candidate Theodore Roosevelt. Hewitt's election campaign had the support of Tammany Hall. The endorsement was formal and included organizational muscle.[6]
Hewitt refused to review the Saint Patrick's Day parade, a decision that alienated much of the Democratic Party's Irish–American base in the city. Hewitt also refused to allow Tammany the control of patronage they wanted,[4] and Croker saw to it that Hewitt was not nominated for a second term.[7]
Hewitt was considered a defender of sound financial management. He is quoted as saying "Unnecessary taxation is unjust taxation". Hewitt also upheld the civil service reform in the United States. He developed a plan to fund and construct the New York City Subway system.[citation needed]
A 1993 survey of historians, political scientists and urban experts conducted by Melvin G. Holli of the
Entrepreneurial career
Hewitt had many investments in natural resources, including considerable holdings in
One of Hewitt's investments handled by Rogers and Page was the Loup Creek Estate in
In 1890 Hewitt partnered with Edward Cooper and Hamilton McKown Twombly in forming the American Sulphur Company, which then entered into a 50/50 agreement with Herman Frasch and his partners to form the Union Sulphur Company.[9]
Philanthropy
As philanthropist Hewitt was interested in education.
In 1876, he was elected president of the
Death and family
Abram Hewitt died at his New York City home on January 18, 1903, and was interred at Green-Wood Cemetery. His last words, after he took his oxygen tube from his mouth, were "And now, I am officially dead."[10]
Hewitt's daughters, Amy, Eleanor, and Sarah Hewitt, built a decorative arts collection that was for years exhibited at the Cooper Union and later became the core collection of the
Hewitt's youngest son, Erskine Hewitt (1871–1938), was also a lawyer and philanthropist in New York City. He donated
Legacy
- One of Cooper Union's academic buildings was named in his honor. It was demolished and replaced by Brooklyn, New York, where it now stands on Abram S. Hewitt's memorial plot.[13]
- A New York City Abram S. Hewitt, which served from 1903 until 1958 was named in his honor. The fireboat was eventually scrapped, and its remains may be found at the Witte Marine Scrapyard in Rossville, Staten Island.
- There is a life-sized white marble statue of Hewitt in the Great Hall of the Chamber of Commerce of the State of New York in Albany, New York.
- The historic village of Hewitt, New Jersey, located within the Township of West Milford, is preserved within Long Pond Ironworks State Park. The village contains the ruins of the iron smelting furnaces operated by Cooper and Hewitt.
- Ringwood Manor in Ringwood, New Jersey, the Hewitt family's summer estate from 1857 to the 1930s, is preserved as the centerpiece of New Jersey's Ringwood State Park.
- Abram Stevens Hewitt School (P.S. 130) in the Bronx, New York, was named for him.
- Hewitt Hall of Barnard College at Columbia University is named for him.
- Abram S. Hewitt State Forest along the Appalachian Trail was named in his honor.[14]
References
- ^ "The Great Subway". The Week's Progress. New York, NY: The Wilson Company. October 8, 1904. p. 321 – via Google Books.
- ^ The Dictionary of American National Biography, Oxford University Press, (2000)
- ^ "Cooper Hewitt Family at Ringwood Manor"
- ^ ISBN 978-0-300-11465-2., p.594
- ^ a b Chisholm 1911.
- ISBN 9780199837014.
- ISBN 0-195-11634-8.
- ISBN 0271018763.
- ^ Haynes, Williams (1959). Brimstone, The Stone That Burns. Princeton: D. Van Norstrand Company, Inc. pp. 32–39, 60.
- Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Oriental Bank Merged", The New York Times, Charleston, West Virginia, p. 6, February 19, 1909, retrieved April 20, 2022 – via Newspapers.com
- ^ "Allison Heads Bank Merger", The New York Times, p. 16, March 3, 1909, retrieved April 20, 2022 – via Newspapers.com
- ^ "The Cooper Union Builds". Archived from the original on September 7, 2006. Retrieved September 1, 2006.
- ^ "NJDEP - New Jersey State Park Service".
- Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 13 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 417.
- United States Congress. "Abram Hewitt (id: H000552)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.