Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1907-05-24
FRIEND OF PRESIDENTS
Notable Career Of Henry A. Will.
ard Of Washington, D. C.
Versary-Hls Part In Development Of
Washington Since 1847.

surrounded by % 1rlen0S on MS SDtn
birthday anniversary, Henry Augustus
willard was on Tuesday, May Is, both
the host and the guest of honor at din
ner given the Oldest Inhabitants associ-
alton in Washington, d. c. The dinner
served in the lower room of the Oc-
cidental hotel of which Mr.. Willard is
proprietor, and It was largely In the ma
ture of a surprise party, as Mr.. Willard
knew nothing about the preparations I'M
til that morning. The upper end of the
long table was covered with flowers most
of the clusters being gifts with special
Significance
The most conspicuous piece was a clus-
ter of IS American beauty roses from Mr.
WIZARDS family-his wife, son and
daughter-in-law, and his three grandchll-
dren, Henry Augustus Willard I'd, William
Bradley Willard and Sarah Kellogg Will
lard. There was another cluster of flow
ers from his only surviving sister, Mrs.
Susan Dickinson of Charlestown, ~ II.
1t consisted of eight white roses and eight
deep red roses. There were a score of
other clusters in vases and strewn about
the table, and a large collection of pot
ted flowers.
On the walls there were a number of
prints from Mr.. Wizards collection of
Washingtonia, including several rare por-
traits of Gen. Washington and quaint old
engravings and Autographs representing
him in receiving Lafayette at Mt. Vernon,
the historic CROSSING OF the delaware ana
Washington at Valley Forge. One re-
markable Autograph was a picture of the
Washington monument as 1t was origi-
nally designed, with the surrounding base
of columns, and a bird's-eye view of
Washington, with the James creek and
18th street canals spanned with artistic
bridges, as it was believed in the early
days of the last century that they would
be- Mr.. Willard is a member of the
Washington Monument association, and
his collection of early Washington pic
lures and literature is unique.
In the absence of Allison Nailor, pres
ident of the Oldest Inhabitants assoca-
ton, who was prevented from presiding
by Illness, B. H. Warner asted as master
of ceremonies. He spoke of Mr.. Wizards
good fortune in being identified with
Washington during a greater part of its
development, and of his friendship with
Henry Clay, John G. Calhoun, Thomas II
Benton, Lincoln, Grant, Garfield, Arthur,
Cleveland, Harrison, Mckinley and Roose-
welt. He referred particularly to the Inn
portant work done by Mr. Willard, as
vice president and co-laborer of the late
Gov. Shepherd, in making Washington
modern and beautiful city. Simon Wolf
and l.. p. Shoemaker made congratulatory
remarks and a letter was read from
Allison Naior, jr. II. X. Willard, son of
the host responded for his father, and in
the course of his remarks said:
MY father, Henry Augustus Willard,
was the son of Joseph Willard and Susan
Dorr Clapp Willard. He was born in
Westminster, VT, May IA, 1922 The fam
lily is derived from Maj. Simon Willard
who came from Horsmonden, Kent, Eng
land, to Boston in May. 1894 Mai Simon
Willard removed later to Concord, where
he held various positions of trust during
a long and distinguished career. He was
In command of the colonies forces sent
against the Mantle Indians in the Mar
raganset war, and afterward in 1875 with
46 dragons, calamity rescued the people
of Brookf1eld, Mass, from destruction by
the Indians in King Phillips war A
great grandson, Rev. Joseph Willard, was
graduated from Yale in MA, and killed
and scalped by the Indians near Rutland,
VT, in 1923. His son William was a SOL
der and frontiersman in Vermont, who
made himself disliked by his neighbors
for defending the New York court
party" in its claim to the Hampshire
grants, being involved in the Westminster
massacre, 1775.
my father is also descended, through
his mother, from Joseph Dorr of Bos-
ton teaparty fame. AS a boy my father
worked hard on the farm in summer and
earned and saved enough money to attend
school in the winter.
when a mere lad he began his bust
ness career in John Baxtor's store in Bel
lows Falls, VT, later being a clerk in
Chase's hotel in Brattleboro, VT. From
Brattleboro, as a young man about 81. he
went to Troy N. Y, and was a steward
on the New York and Troy steamboat
line plying on the Hudson river between
New York and Troy. While in this en-
ployment he met Mrs. Phoebe Warren
a sister of Mr.. Benjamin Ogle Tayloe,
who owned the City hotel in Washington
Mrs. Warren said to Mr.. Tayloe, DO you
want bright, capable and energetic
young man to take charge of your hotel?"
He said he did. She said: 81 have found
just the young man for you in Henry
"A. Willard" The result was my father
came to Washington in 1S47 and opened
the City hotel, changing its name to
Wizards hotel. He was the first of the
i've Willard brothers-Edwin, Joseph,
Stevens, Caleb and himself-to come to
Washington, and he gave all the other
brothers the start which led to their
success in after life.
MY father kept the hotel by himself
until 1853 when he took his brother, Jo-
seph in as partner. The brothers kept the
hotel until 1861, when they retired from
active hotel business and leased the prop
erty to other parties until 1892, when my
father sold his half interest to his brother
Joseph. The present Occidental hotel
was, in war times. occupied as a part of
the Willard hotel property. My father
mas been largely identified with most of
Washngtons financial institutions. hav-
AnS organized in 1867 and been the first
president of the National Savings and
Trust company. My father was vice pres
tdent of President Grants board of pub
lie works which may be said to have
built modern Washington. He was an
intimate friend and adviser of Gov. Alex !
ander r. Shepherd. For nearly sixteen
years he was president of the Columbia |
Railroad company from 1873 to 1889, which
developed the northeast section of the |
city.
''He was the largest individual sub
scriber to the building of All Souls /!
church, and but for his financial support |
the church would not have been built 1t |
was built by his efforts and the contri- |
buttons he solicited. He was for many |
years vice president of the National Met |
ropolitan bank up to 1893. He organized !
the Columbia Fire Insurance company,
and was its president without pay for II |
years from 1881 to 1892. With Mr. Justice
Miller and Mr. Reginald Fendall, he was
one of the incorporators of the Garfield
Memorial hospital He is vice president
of that institution now.
MY mother, to whom my fathers sue
cess in life is largely due, also descends
From Puritan stock. She is a great-grand-
daughter on her mothers side of Stephen
Per SOn0