Flora Curzon, Lady Howe
The Countess Howe | |
---|---|
Personal details | |
Born | Florence Hamilton Davis January 27, 1870 New York City, U.S. |
Died | 15 April 1925 Amersham, Buckinghamshire | (aged 55)
Spouse(s) |
|
Children | 3 |
Parent(s) | John Hagy Davis Florence Chapman Davis |
Known for | Lady Terence Blackwood Marchioness of Dufferin and Ava |
Flora Curzon, Lady Howe (born Florence Hamilton Davis; January 27, 1870 – April 15, 1925) was an American heiress and singer who twice married into the British aristocracy.[1]
Early life
Florence Hamilton Davis was born in New York City around 1865.
In 1898, her father, who was as "conspicuous in society as he [wa]s in Wall Street," married for the third time, out of four overall, to South African born Mary Ethel Jackson, a friend of Flora's who was about thirty-three years his junior.[7]
Singing career
In December 1910, Lady Dufferin, a singer, made her public debut at
Personal life
On October 16, 1893, Flora was married to
- Lady Doris Gwendoline Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood (1895–1984), who married Captain Cecil Bernard Gunston, MC (1885–1934) of the Coldstream Guards, son of Major Bernard Gunston, formerly of the 5th Dragoon Guards, in 1922.
- Lady Ursula Florence Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood (1899–1982), who married Arthur Swithin Newton Horne, formerly of The King's Own Royal Border Regiment and Government Secretary of the Federated Malay States.
- Lady Patricia Ethel Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood (1902–1983), who married Henry Russell, the former director of the Boston Opera Company and the son of musician Henry Russell, in 1926.[15]
During the Devonshire House Ball of 1897, then Lady Terence Blackwood, attended as Flora, Goddess of Flowers and was photographed by Walker & Boutall.[16] Her husband went as Captain Blackwood of the Royal Navy.[17]
Upon the death of Terence's older brother Archibald, Earl of Ava at the Siege of Ladysmith in the Second Boer War in 1900,[18] he became the heir and assumed the courtesy title Earl of Ava himself before succeeding his father in 1902.[19] Lord Dufferin died from pneumonia on 7 February 1918 and was buried at the Dufferin ancestral seat of Clandeboye, County Down.[14]
In December 1919, nearly two years after Lord Dufferin's death, the Marchioness of Dufferin and Ava remarried to widower
Lady Howe died of heart disease following influenza and pneumonia at Penn House, Amersham, Buckinghamshire on 14 April 1925.[20]
Descendants
Through her eldest daughter, she was the grandmother of Hermione Hamilton Gunston (b. 1923), who married Lt. Col.
References
- ISBN 9780761171959. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
- ^ "Florence Davis (ca. 1865-1925)". www.nyhistory.org. New-York Historical Society. Retrieved 19 December 2019.
- ^ "JOHN H. DAVIS RETIRES FROM STOCK EXCHANGE; Was a Member for More Than Half a Century -- Transfers Seat to His Son" (PDF). The New York Times. 9 May 1924. Retrieved 19 December 2019.
- ^ Chambliss, William H. (1895). Chambliss Diary: Or, Society as it Really is. Chambliss. p. 16. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
- ^ "John E. Davis Dies; a Stockbroker, 66" (PDF). The New York Times. 26 March 1966. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
- ^ "Paid Notice: Deaths DAVIS, MAUDE BOUVIER". The New York Times. 25 August 1999. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
- ^ "JOHN H. DAVIS AGAIN MARRIED.; It Is Announced that He Wedded Miss Mary Ethel Jackson on July 16" (PDF). The New York Times. 30 July 1898. Retrieved 19 December 2019.
- ^ a b "LADY DUFFERIN IN CONCERT; Will Make Her Debut as a Public Singer in London on Dec. 15" (PDF). The New York Times. 4 December 1910. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
- ^ "TO BE LADY BLACKWOOD.; EARL DUFFERIN'S SECOND SON TO WED MISS FLORA DAVIS OF NEW-YORK" (PDF). The New York Times. 19 November 1892. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
- ^ Black, Charles Edward Drummond (1903). The Marquess of Dufferin and Ava: Diplomatist, Viceroy, Statesman. Hutchinson. p. 392. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
- ^ "A Biography of Dufferin" (PDF). The New York Times. 11 April 1903. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
- OCLC 60396009.
- ^ "THE BLACKWOOD-DAVIS WEDDING.; The Religious Ceremony Celebrated Yesterday in Paris" (PDF). The New York Times. 17 October 1893. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
- ^ a b "MARQUIS OF DUFFERIN DIES. Diplomat's Widow Was Formerly Miss Florence Davis of New York" (PDF). The New York Times. 8 February 1918. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
- ^ "LADY PATRICIA IS WED TO HENRY RUSSELL; Actress, Daughter of Countess Howe, Becomes Bride of Opera Impresario in Paris" (PDF). The New York Times. 12 June 1926. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
- ^ "Florence (née Davis), Marchioness of Dufferin and Ava (later Countess Howe) - Person - National Portrait Gallery". www.npg.org.uk. National Portrait Gallery, London. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
- ^ "Terence John Temple Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, 2nd Marquess of Dufferin and Ava when Lord Terence Blackwood as Captain Blackwood, R.N." www.npg.org.uk. National Portrait Gallery, London. Retrieved 19 December 2019.
- ^ The Current Encyclopedia: A Monthly Record of Human Progress. Hearst's International. 1902. p. 1124. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
- ^ "LORD DUFFERIN IS DEAD; Famous Diplomat's Last Days Were Clouded by Misfortune. He Never Wholly Recovered from the Shock of His Eldest Son's Death--The New Marquis Married Miss Flora Davis of This City" (PDF). The New York Times. 13 February 1902. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
- ^ a b "LADY HOWE DIES' IN ENGLISH HOME; Former Flora H. Davis of New York a Victim of Heart Disease Following Influenza" (PDF). The New York Times. 15 April 1925. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
External links
- John Temple Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, 2nd Marquess of Dufferin and Ava photogravure at National Portrait Gallery, London (1897 photograph)
- Florence (née Davis), Marchioness of Dufferin and Ava (later Countess Howe) at National Portrait Gallery, London (1897 photograph)
- Florence Davis (ca. 1865-1925) at the New-York Historical Society