River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1879-01-09
New York Times. !

Added to It-FecUitGritieS Of Their Bstsi-
ness and Social Reiations-Their LirtHG
Representatives..
New York Times.
The founders of the great New York for
tunes of the present century-John Jacob
Aston, Robert Lenox, Alexander i. Stewart
and Cornelius Vanderbilt-have all passed
away.
John Jacob Astor arrived in this city at
period of great depression, in 1854. During
the latter part of 1888 some $4,000 refugees,
men, women and children, left New York,
Long Island and Staten Island for Nova
Scotia and st. John, among them many per
sons of fortune and estate. These estates
Aston began to buy whenever he could spare
the money as soon as he got little ahead IN
the world. John Jacob Astor's first pur
chase of city real estate--two lots on the
Bowery lane or road, near Elizabeth street
was made in August, 1888, and from that
date to the time of his death, March, 1848,
he was a steady and constant buyer of real
estate The last conveyance to John Jacob
Aston was made shortly before his death in
1S47. The conveyances 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 iii the index of conveyances on file
in the registers office. These wise invest
ments have with time swollen into enormous
wealth, and the Astor fortune to-day, as
represented by Mr.. John Jacob Astor and
tyr. William AstorJ (grandsons of the first
Astor), is one of the greatest fortunes of the
world. At the time of Johu Jacob Astor's
death, in 1913. his fortune was estimated at
from S30,0O0,o00 to $40,000,000, and he was
counted the fifth on the list of rich men,
Baron de Rothschild, Louis Philippe, the
Duke of Devonshire and Sir Robert Peel
only exceeding him.
The late Mr.. Robert Lenox. like Mr.. Aston,
was 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 religious
and literary purposes of his only son, James
Lenox. Mr.. Robert Lenox commenced
business in 1763--the year before John
Jacob Astor arrived--and remained here per-
manently until his death, which occurred in
December, 1879, in the 8lst year of his age.
For many years his operations greatly ex-
ceeded those of any other merchant in the
country of that day. He became, eventually,
one of the most successful merchants in the
United States. Mr.. Lenox invested his ac-
cumulations chiefly in city real estate. In
$1,000, about thirty acres of land, running
from Sixty eighth to Seventy fourth street.
between Fourth and Fifth avenues, known as
the ''Iennox 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 top prices be-
tween 1861 and 1872, gives Mr.. James
Lenox a high rank among New York mil
ionaiires. The Lenox farm to-day, without
a brick on it, would be worth SS,O0O,000.
While the Lenox fortune is modest indeed,
when compared with the colossal accumula-
tions of the Astors, Vanderbilts and Stew
arts. we venture to hazard the opinion that
Mr. James Lenox has quietly given away
as much as the late Mr.. Peabody. His do
nations in land and money 20 charitable,
literary and religious institutions situated on
the Lennon farm alone, amount to over
So. 800, 600. This is q noble example to
those who WELD the great fortunes of New
York. 1t is to be regretted that the name of
Ienox, so far as the founder or the family
in this city is concerned, dies with the pres
ent Mr.. James Lenox, a bachelor now adj
vanced in years. As long as New York ex-
lists his memory will be remembered and
cherished.
The fortune of A. I. Stewart-of quicker
growth than that of Astor-was accumulated
in one lifetime. At Mr.. Stewards death, in
1876, it was estimated at $80,000,000, 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 es-
iate-situated for the most part below Union
assessed at S6,212 700 at that
time the assessed valuation represented only
go per cent. of the real value, SO that the
then actual value of the real estate was So,
354. 800, which forms but an eighth Of his
estimated wealth. MIR. Stewart, however,
owned real estate in nearly every city in which
he had dealings. He owned a number of
WOODEN and thread mills in this country;
among them the Mohawk and Elbouf, at
Little Falls; the New York mills, at Holyoke;
the Woodward mills at Woodstock; the
Yantico mills, in New Jersey: the Washing
ton mills, at New Hartford: the Catskill and
Waterville Wooden mills. There are also
large mills at Nottingham, England, and
Glasgow, Scotland. The property of the
house of A. Il. Stewart &c Co. is greatly scat
tered. 1t owns property in most of the
large cities here and abroad, and has con-
tinually in its employ, outside of New York,
over six thousand persons. There are branch
houses at Bradford, Manchester, Belfast,
Paris, Lyons, Berlin, and Chemnitz in
Ssxony. The transfer by Cornelia n. Stew
art. widow of the late A. Il. Stewart, to
Henry Hilton of all her interest in the firm
of A. T. Stewart & Co, gives Mr.. Hilton
place among New York million
aires.
Probably Mr. William H. Vanderbilt is to-
day :l,e richest man in New York. He in
herited the bulk of Commodore Wander
bits fortune, who, at the time of his death.
was accounted richer man than either of
the present Astors. With the single excep-
ton of Mr. VIM. H. Vanderbilt, our chief New
York millionaires draw their revenues from
The rents, income and profits of real estate,
which has shrunk fully one-third since
1878. If the Astor fortune was then $780,
900. 900, it is to-day worth not over @60.OOO,-
900, and SO ON throughout the list. Since
1926 New York has grown with a rapidity
unknown in any of the great centers
Of population Of the world, and this growth
gave wealth to the fortunate few who bought
Or inherited city real estate. Their descend
ants are among our richest citizens
Chief among real estate own
srs who rank as nillionaires
are the Astors, the RhineIanders, the Goe-
let's Mrs. A. Z. Stewart, the Lorillards, the
the Lenoxes, Robert j. Liv-
ingston and Frederic Stevens, who is the /
youngest millionaire on the list, and who oc-
cupies, on the corner of Fifty-seventh street |