The daily gazette., 1878-12-30
NEW YORK MILLIONAJREs

h"'N ali pasoou AWAY.
John Jacob Astor arrived in this citv
at period of great depression, in 1888.
During the latter part of 1888 some fif-
teen thousand refugees, men, women and
children, left New York, Long Island
and Staten Island, for Nova Scotia and
St. John, among them many persons of
fortune and estate. These estates Astor
began to buy whenever he could spare
the money, as soon as he got a little
ahead in the world. John Jacob Astor,s
first purchase of city real estate-two lots
on the Bowery lane or road, near Eliza
beth street-was made in August, 1889,
and from that date to the time of his
death, March, lS4S, he was a steady and
constant buyer Of real estate. The last
conveyance TO John Jacob Astor was
made shortly before his death, in 1885,
The conveyance made to him during the
fifty-nine years which elapsed between
his first and last purchases of real estate
In this city form seven pages of closely
printed matter IN the index of convey
ances on file in the Registers office.
These wise investments have with time
swollen into enormous wealth, and the
Astor fortune to-day, as represented by
Mr.. John Jacob Astor and Mr.. William
Astor (grandsons of the first Astor) Is
one OF the great fortunes of the world.
AT the time OF John Jacob Astor's death,
in 1S4S, his fortune WAS estimated at from
$3O,OOO,OOO to $40,000,000, and he was
counted the fifth on the list of rich men
Baron De Rothscbild, Louis Philippe,
the Duke of Devonshire, and Sir Robert
Peel only exceeding himself.
The late Mr.. Robert Lenox, like Mr..
Astor, was a self-made man. He was,
when he first began, an entire stranger
in this city, where the name of Lenox Is
now so greatly venerated because Of the
noble deeds of charity and the lavish
donations for literary and religious pur-
poses of his only son, James Lenox.-
Mr.. Robert Lenox commenced business
in 17S3-the year before John Jacob As
tor arrived-and remained here perma-
nently until bis death, which occurred in
December, 1880, in the seventy-first year
OF his age. For many years his opera
tions exceeded those of any other mer-
chant in the country at that day. He
became eventually one Of the most sue
Noooiui III thC ~ nlICu oldtCos
Mr.. Lenox invested his accumula ions
chiefly in city real estate. In 1917 and
1918 he bought for less than $1,000
about thirty acres OF land running from
Sixty-eight to Seventy y-fourth street, be-
tween Fourth and Fifth Avenues, known
as the "Lennox Farm" much of which
is now covered with first-class brown
stone houses. The enormous increase in
the value of this land, sold for the most
part at the prices between 1864 and 1872,
gives Mr.. James Lenox a high rank
among New York millionaires. The
LenoX farm to-day, without brick on
it, would be worth eight million dollars.
While the Lenox fortune is modest, in
deed, when compared with the colossal
accumuiations of the Astors, Vanderbilts
and Stewarts, we venture hazard that
Mr.. James Lenox has quietly given away
as much as the late Mr.. Peabody. His
donations in land and money to charita-
BILE, literary and religious institutions
situated on the Lenox farm alone amount
to over $2,500,000. This is noble ex-
ample to those who WELD the great for
tunes of New York. 1t is to be regret
ted that the name of Lenox, so far as the
founder of the family in this city is con-
cerned, dies with the present Mr.. James
Lenox, bachelor now advanced in
years. AS long as New York exists his
memory will be remembered and cher
ished.
The fortune of A. T. Stewart-of
quicker growth than that of Astor-was
accumulated in one lifetime. At Mr..
Stewards death, in 1876, it was estimared
at $50 ,000.0 900, or twice the amount of the
highest estimate of John Jacob Astor's
fortune when he died in 1913. In 1875,
Mr.. Stewards city real estate-situated
for the most part below Union Square
was assessed at ST, ,70e; at that time
the assessed valuation represented only
sixty per cent. of the real value, so that
the then actual value of the real estate
was Sl0,354 800, which forms but an
eighth of his estimated wealth. Mr..
Stewart, however, owned real estate In
nearly every city in which he had deal
ings. He owned number of woollen
and thread mills In this country, among
them the Mohawk and ElbGuf, at Little
Falls the New York Mills, at Holyoke;
the Woodward Mills, at Woodstock; the
Yantlco Mills, in New Jersey; the Wash
inQton Mills, at New Hartford; the Cats
kill aud Waterville Woollen Mills.
There are also large mills at N Nottingham,
England, and Glasgow, Scotland. The
property of the house of A.. Il. Stewart &
Co, is greatly scattered. 1t owns proper
ty in most of the large cities here and
abroad, and has continually in Its en-
ploy, outside Of New York, over 5000
persons. There are branch houses at
Bradford, Manchester, Belfast, Paris,
Lyons, Berlin, and in Chemnitz, in Saxo-
nv. The transfer by Cornelia NJ. Stew
art, widow of the late A. T. Stewart, to
Henry Hilton, of all her interest In the
firm of A. 4. Stewart g. Co., give Mr..
Hilton conspicuous place among New
York millionaires.
Probably Mr.. William II. Vanderbilt is
to-day the richest man in New York.
He Inherited the bulk OF Commodore
Vanderbilt's fortune, who at the time of
his death was accounted richer man
than either of the present AsUors. With
the single exception Of William II. Van
derbilt our chief New York millionaires
draw their revenues from the rents, in
comes and profits OF real estate, which
has shrunk fully one-third since 1873. If
the Astor fortune was then S90,00O,OOO,
It is to-day not worth over S6O,0OO,OOO,
and SO on throughout the list. Since
1926 New York has grown with a rapidi-
ty hitherto unknown in any of the great
cantres of nopulationio iof the world, and