Dudley Olcott Explained

Office:President of the Mechanics' and Farmers' Bank of Albany
Term Start:1880
Term End:1919
Predecessor:Thomas W. Olcott
Successor:Robert Olcott
Birth Date:21 September 1838
Birth Place:Albany, New York
Death Place:Albany, New York
Education:The Albany Academy
Alma Mater:Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Parents:Thomas W. Olcott
Caroline Dwight Pepoon
Relations:Frederic P. Olcott (brother)
Signature:Signature of Dudley Olcott (1838–1919).png

Dudley Olcott (September 21, 1838 – December 28, 1919) was an American banker who served as President of the Mechanics' and Farmers' Bank of Albany.

Early life

Olcott was born on February 23, 1841, in Albany, New York. He was the eleventh and last child of Thomas Worth Olcott (1795–1880)[1] and Caroline Dwight (Pepoon) Olcott (1797–1867). His father served as President of the Mechanics' and Farmers' and the Mechanics' and Farmers' Savings Bank of Albany. Among his siblings was brother Frederic P. Olcott, the 24th New York State Comptroller.[2] [3]

He was educated at The Albany Academy,[4] before attending the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, where he studied civil engineering.[5]

Career

After graduating from the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1858, he became an accountant in the Mechanics' and Farmers' Bank of Albany, of which his father had been president since 1836. The younger Olcott became assistant cashier, followed by cashier for thirteen years until he was chosen as vice president of the bank on December 31, 1878.[5] Upon his father's death, he was elected president of the Bank in March 1880.[5] Olcott served as president until his own death in 1919 when he was succeeded as president by his nephew, Robert Olcott (son of his brother Thomas Worth Olcott Jr.).[6]

In 1867, he was appointed Paymaster General by fellow Republican Governor Reuben Fenton, serving until 1869. Olcott also served as president of the Albany Bankers' Association and a trustee of the Central Trust Company of New York.[7] He was a member of the board of governors of the Albany Hospital, trustee of Home for Aged Men, a trustee of Albany Orphan Asylum, and a trustee of the Albany Academy for Girls.[5]

Personal life

Olcott spent his vacation salmon fishing on the Restigouche River in Canada for over thirty years. He died in Albany on December 28, 1919. He was buried at the Albany Rural Cemetery of which he had been president and treasurer of the Albany Cemetery Association.[8]

Although he did not have any children, his brother Frederic named his son, Dudley Olcott II (1874–1946), the prominent banker, after him.[9] [10] Dudley Olcott II, a horse trotter,[11] [12] also purchased the Herald Square Hotel for over $1,000,000 in 1913.[13]

Notes and References

  1. News: A Veteran Banker Dead. . 2023-05-12 . . Albany, New York . 4 . 1880-03-23 . 24 March 1880 . Newspapers.com.
  2. News: Frederic P. Olcott, Financier, is Dead. He Was ex-President of the Central Trust Company and Once Controller of the State Death Follows a Shock; He Reorganized Many Tottering Railroads--Flowers and Fast Trotters His Hobbies--Died on His Farm. . 2023-05-12 . . 9 . April 16, 1909.
  3. News: Thomas Olcott, 82, Street Car Official; Ex-Secretary and Treasurer of Union Railway Co. Dies . 20 October 2021 . . 19 . 20 July 1938 . subscription.
  4. Book: Rathbone . Albert . Josiah Olcott and Deborah Worth, His Wife: A Record of Their Descendants and Notes Regarding Their Ancestors . 1937 . Press of B.H. Tyrrel . 39–40 . 20 October 2021 . en.
  5. Book: Reynolds . Cuyler . Hudson-Mohawk Genealogical and Family Memoirs: Olcott . 1911 . Lewis Historical Publishing Company . New York . 133–137 . 29 November 2021.
  6. News: Robert Olcott, 82, Bank Official, Dies; Board Chairman of Mechanics, Farmers in Albany Headed Institution for 26 Years . 21 October 2021 . . 60 . 11 May 1947 . subscription.
  7. Book: Manning . James Hilton . New York volume . 1917 . B.F. Buck & Company . 106 . 29 November 2021 . en.
  8. News: Dudley Olcott, Albany Banker. . 2023-05-12 . . Albany, New York . 9 . 1919-12-28 . 29 December 1919 . Newspapers.com.
  9. News: Dudley Olcott 2d, Long a Banker, 72 . 20 October 2021 . . 22 . 28 June 1946 . subscription.
  10. News: Syndicate Gets Estate In Locust Valley, L.I. (Published 1946) . 20 October 2021 . . R171 . 29 September 1946 . en . subscription.
  11. News: The Wind-Up at Belmont.; Dudley Olcott Won the 2:23 Class Trot After Seven Heats. . 2023-05-12 . . Philadelphia, Pennsylvania . 2 . 1893-07-07 . 8 July 1893 . Newspapers.com.
  12. News: Split Heats at Fleetwood.; Eskimo, Dudley Olcott, and Clayhontas Secured the Prizes. . 2023-05-12 . . 6 . 13 September 1894 . Newspapers.com.
  13. News: The Real Estate Field; Dudley Olcott Buys Herald Square Hotel for Over $1,000,000 -- Forty-second Street Sale -- Big Acreage Purchase at Tompkinsville -- Long Island and New Jersey Deals. . 2023-05-12 . . 19 . 24 May 1913 . Newspapers.com.