Smyrna times., 1869-11-10
Death of Mr.. Peabody.

Oeorge Peabody, the great phllanthropist,
merchant, and banker, died in London at i
clock on Thursday night last We give the
following summary of his eVenttul life from
the Philadelphia Ledger
George Peabody was born on Februarv 18th
l193, at Danvers Mass He received merely
the elements Of district school education. and
at the age OF eleven was employed in grocery
store at Danvers. In 1871 he became clerk in
ms brother dry goods store at Nawburyport.
Mass, but the great fire at that town burned
out the establishment, and Mr. Peabody re.
moved to Georgetown, ID. c., where an uncle,
who had also been ruined by the Newburvport
hre, carried on business, in the name of his
nephew. This arrangement not proving salts
factory, he, although but nineteen years of age,
was established i'll business for himself at
georgetown upon capital furnished by Elisha
Klggs, and III 1915, the house was removed to
Baltimore, Md, and in 1922 branches were or,
ganlzed in Philadelphia and New York. Bv
the retirement of Mr.. Riggs, in 1929, Mr..
Peabody became the senior partner, and hav-
ing made several voyages to Europe on his
private affairs, he was also entrusted by the
State OF Maryland with important financial ne
gotatlOns which re-established the credit of
that Commonwealth.
In 1887, Mr. Peabody removed to London.
having become the representative, in Europe.
OF the banking firm of Peabody, Riggs & Co..
and IN lS43, dissOlviDg his connection with
that house, established himself as a merchant
and banker in the EagliSh capital In this
position he interested himself in preserving
the credit of the different States of the
Union, and constituted his banking house
the centre OF American interests. In 1851.
ne advanced the sum of $4,000 for the
proper arrangement of the Department allOt-
ted to the United States in the great Interna-
tlOnal Exhibition, and by these means, as
well as by establishing the custom of cele-
brating the Fourth of July by the American
visitors in London, he became the representa-
tive man of our country in Europe.
In 1852 he contributed the sum of $40. 900
towards fitting out the Kane Expedition in
search OF Sir John Franklin, and on the occa-
sion of the celebration of June 10th. IS52 Of
the two hundredth anniversary of the settle
ment OF Danvers, he founded the Peabody In.
stltute and Library, in his native town, by the
git OF $50 900, which was afterwards expand
ed to 100000.
This was the beginning of his series of great
gifts to the cause of education and to the poor
OF this country and of England. Mr.. Pea
body visited the United States in 1857. 1866.
and 1869, and during those visits and in the in
tervals in England, he made the following
princely gifts: To the cause of education in
the Southern States, $2,5O0,O00; to build
and cheerful dwellings, for the
London poor, 81, 100000; for the foundation
OF the Peabody Institute in the city of Balti
more, 81 400, 900; to the Peabody Institute,
Danvers, Mass, $200,0O0; for museums and
Protessorships of geology and archaeology at
Harvard University, Mass, and Yale College,
New Haven, Conn, 100000 to the Essex
Institute, Salem, Mass, $l4O,0OO; to Wash
inngton College, Lexington, Va, 500, 900; to
the Phillips Academy, Andover, Mass, $25,-
600; to the Massachusetts Historical Society,
$2O, 900; to the Maryland Historical Society,
$2O, 900; to the Georgetown Library, Mass,
$4,000; to the Georgetown, ID. c., Library,
$l5 900; to the Newburyport, Mass. Library,
$I5 900; to the Thetford, VT, Library, $4,000
These munifcent gifts in the cause of educa-
ton and the poor, amount to Sc, 491 600, of
which about $5,000,000 were bestowed in the
United States But besides these he gave
5 100, 900, for a memorial church to his mother,
in Georgetown, Mass, and about 81, 800 900 to
his relatives. These increase the sum of his
more recent and well-knOwn gifts, to $S.O9l,-
900, and there can be but little doubt that if
those made in former years were added, the
princely aggregate of hi, benevolence, while
living, reached ten millions of dollars