Whipple Van Buren Phillips

Whipple Van Buren Phillips (November 22, 1833 - March 28, 1904) is the maternal grandfather of Howard Phillips Lovecraft.
Phillips was a successful businessman who owned much of the land in and around the town of Greene, Rhode Island. There he founded Freemason Ionic Lodge No. 28 in 1870. He had four children with his wife Robie Alzada Place Phillips: Sarah Susan Phillips Lovecraft (1857 - 1921), Emeline Estella Phillips (1859 - 1865), Edwin Everett Phillips (1864 - 1918), and Annie Emeline Phillips Gamwell.
After H. P. Lovecraft's father Winfield was committed to Butler Hospital for a nervous disorder, Lovecraft was largely raised by his mother and grandfather. Phillips heavily encouraged his Howard's passion for reading, with a focus on classical literature and English poetry. After his death in 1904 he was buried in Swan Point Cemetery, Rhode Island. Though he left his family a substantial inheritance, it was greatly mismanaged.
"The Dunwich Horror" story by Lovecraft is frequently considered autobiographical to some extent, with Whipple van Buren being compared to Wizard Whateley.
== In the Mythos==
According to one account, Lovecraft was raised by his Freemason father Winfield Lovecraft, instead of his grandfather. He was Egyptian and possessed Picatrix of Maslama ibn Ahma al-Magritit (a.k.a. pseudo-Magriti) and Godziher’s Book of the Essence of the Soul of which Lovecraft's Necronomicon is a mere portion. (: introduction to the Hay Necronomicon)
According to another account, Van Whipple was a Freemason and member of the Stella Sapiente and manufactured the creation of his grandson so that his writings would bring enough power to his creation that they could manifest in the future. This was done in a way similar to the real life counterpart of Old Whateley. (: Providence)
Category:Real World People
Category:Deceased (Real World)