The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1902-01-24
The NE W SENATOR
John F. Dryden, Financier
and Public Spirited Citi-
zen-- His Career.

| John +. Dryden, president of the Pru-
Dental Insurance Company of America
| and a leading capitalist in banking and
other large enterprises, has his home in
Newark. In person he is tall, spare and
| well knit. In demeanor he is dignifieds
| yet kindly and courteous In mental
ability he is equalled by few of the men.
who have attained, like him, great sucs,
| cess in life, and few men are equal to the
great burdens and responsibilities that
! Mr.. Dryden has borne for years, and that
he seems to bear lightly.
/ John II. Dryden is of old New England
| stock. He was born on August Z, 1885,.
| at Pennington, Me-, and was educated
| for the legal profession. His training I'M
! law has been of great use to him in his
| subsequent career. He was not verys
| strong, physically, and was of retir-s
| ing and studious disposition At Yale
| University, where his parents sent him.
/ he devoted himself closely to study, with
| the result of impairing his health, and
| by advice of his physicians he was com
PEELED to give up his hopes of graduation
| and left the university.
| The subject of insurance early engaged
| Mr.. Drydens attention, and he devoted
his time to study of its principles m.as-
tering the theory of finance the con-
struction of tables averages, percentages,
| compounds, futurities and scientific none
tary economy. About 1865 he obtained
report on the subject of industrial insaIr-
ance submitted to the Massachusetts
Legislature by Professor El.zur Wright,
the State Insurance Commissioner 1t
criticized the methods of the Prudential
| Assurance Company, of London, England.
Mr. Drydne procured all the reports of
| the company and analyzed them, and de-
| cided that the Insurance Commissioner
| was wrong. This gave him tine idea of
| formulating an industrial insurance syG-
TEN for the United States. He submitted
| plans to some New England capitalists,
| but they were not received with favor.
In 1873 Mr. Dryden went to Newark. and
| interested such mon as Noah F. Bianch-
ard William H Murphy father of Gov
ernor Murphy; Horace Alling, Leslie D.
Ward, and others. bill was, passed by
the Legislature, and, in 1915, the Prudsn-
tial Insurance Company of America was
founded From it's inception Mr.. Dryden
was the soul and spirit of the enserprise.
For several years he was secretary, and
when Noah r. Blanchard, the president.
retired, Mr.. Dryden succeeded him.
The steady faith, the unconquerable
will and indomitable energy of Mr.. Dry
| den carried the company through several
crises and overcame many formidable
difficulties, until the company became
firmly planted and began its great
growth. From the basement of the State
Bank. the institution moved into the
Iremlin building. and thence to the 81, ,000,-
/ 600 stone structure at Broad and Bank
streets, built by the company, which has
recently been added to by other great
and ornate buildings, making the finest
single group of office buildings in the
| world.
Mr. Dryden was one of the founders of
the Fidelity Trust Company, started fif-
teen years ago which is about to in
crease its capital to $5.000,000 and to
| organize two or more banks into one
| large bank under its control. He is
| largely interested in the North Jersey
Street Railroad Company, and is one of
the owners of the Newark and South Or
| ange line, subsidiary company of the
| North Jersey system. These and other
interests are, however, commonplace to
him compared to his love for the Pru-
| Dental, the great child of his creation,
| and his interest in its workings. He is
| in close touch with the multitude of de-
tails of the vast system. In the con-
| struction of the office buildings he gave
daily audiences to the architect, and
worked on the plans and estimates with
an interest that never tagged His re-
creation is taken in superb home at