Emily Roebling Cadwalader Explained

Emily Roebling Cadwalader should not be confused with Emily Warren Roebling.

Emily Roebling Cadwalader
Birth Name:Emily Margaretta Roebling
Death Date:May 15, 1941
Death Place:Fort Washington, Pennsylvania
Nationality:American
Occupation:socialite
Known For:owned two historic yachts, the USS Sequoia and the MV Savarona

Emily Margaretta Roebling Cadwalader (died May 15, 1941) was an American socialite and philanthropist, based in Philadelphia. She is best known as the owner of two historic yachts, the USS Sequoia and the MV Savarona.

Early life

Emily Roebling was the daughter of Charles Gustavus Roebling and Sarah (or Sallie) Ormsby Mahon Roebling.[1] Her father was an engineer, president of John A. Roebling's Sons, a steel wire and cable company.[2] Her Prussian-born grandfather, John Augustus Roebling, was best known as the civil engineer behind the Brooklyn Bridge.[3]

Roebling was raised in Trenton, New Jersey. In 1905 she rescued her father's stable of horses during a fire, and assisted firefighters in their work.[4] In 1908 she unveiled the bronze statue of her grandfather in Trenton.[5] She was an avid tennis player and horsewoman, and was considered one of the first women in Trenton to drive her own automobile.[6]

Wealth and philanthropy

Blind education

Roebling took an interest in blind education in New Jersey, and was appointed to a commission to study the needs of blind residents of the state before she married and moved to Philadelphia.[7] [8] As part of that work, she organized an exhibit of work by blind crafters of New Jersey, including handmade lace, crochet, and knit items, at Atlantic City in 1909.[9] She was also editor-in-chief of the newspaper for the 1908 Charity Fair in Trenton.[10]

Fairwold

After marriage, Cadwalader lived part-time in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, in a house known as Fairwold.[11] They expanded the house significantly, adding a ballroom, a pipe organ, and a solarium among other features. Fairwold was used as a convalescent hospital during World War I, while the Cadwaladers lived in their Philadelphia townhouse. Since 1995, Fairwold has been a synagogue of the congregation Or Hadash.[12] [13]

Yachts

Cadwalader had a longtime interest in yachts. Her first yacht, purchased in 1924, was the 85-foot Sequoia. The following year she acquired the Sequoia II. The USS Sequoia became property of the United States government in 1931, and was used by presidents from Herbert Hoover to Gerald Ford. President Jimmy Carter ordered the Sequoia to be sold in 1977.[14] As of autumn 2019, it was being restored in Belfast.[15]

Cadwalader was the original owner of three German-made yachts named Savarona, purchased in 1926, 1928, and 1930.[16] [17] [18] The last Savarona, at the time, was the "largest, most luxurious, most expensive private yacht ever created".[19] [20] In 1937 the yacht was a factor in charges of tax fraud against the Cadwaladers.[21] The Cadwaladers sold the 440-foot yacht to Turkish president Kemal Atatürk in 1938.[22] The yacht remains in Istanbul and was restored in the 1990s; it is still considered "one of the world's largest yachts".[23] After a scandal in 2010,[24] the Turkish Cultural Ministry purchased the Savarona, and it is now used by the Turkish president for hosting state events.[25]

Personal life

Emily Roebling married banker Richard M. Cadwalader Jr., the grandson of Thomas McCall Cadwalader, in 1909.[26] [27] She died at her home in Fort Washington in 1941.[28] [29] [30]

Notes and References

  1. News: Brooklyn Society: The Roeblings Again in the News. July 17, 1927. Brooklyn Times Union. October 27, 2019. 9. Newspapers.com.
  2. Web site: Charles Roebling. Roebling Museum. 2019-10-27. 2020-02-25. https://web.archive.org/web/20200225155858/http://roeblingmuseum.org/ourstory/charles-roebling/. dead.
  3. Book: MacTaggart, Ross. Millionaires, Mansions, and Motor Yachts: An Era of Opulence. 2004. W. W. Norton & Company. 9780393057621. 170–171.
  4. News: Society Girl to Rescue. June 29, 1905. The Fair Haven Era. October 27, 2019. 6. Newspapers.com.
  5. News: Honors to Designer of Brooklyn Bridge. July 1, 1908. The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. October 27, 2019. 24. Newspapers.com.
  6. News: Many Fair Trentonians Drive Own Automobiles. April 25, 1908. Trenton Evening Times. October 27, 2019. 16. Newspapers.com.
  7. News: Treatment for Blind Children. August 23, 1909. The Post-Crescent. October 27, 2019. 2. Newspapers.com.
  8. News: Victor L. Mason is Re-Appointed. May 26, 1908. Passaic Daily News. October 27, 2019. 5. Newspapers.com.
  9. News: Many Art Exhibits at Federation. April 26, 1909. Trenton Evening Times. October 27, 2019. 10. Newspapers.com.
  10. News: Miss Roebling to be Editor. April 15, 1908. The Central New Jersey Home News. October 27, 2019. 8. Newspapers.com.
  11. News: R. M. Cadwaladers Report Gem Theft. October 23, 1934. The New York Times. 42. ProQuest.
  12. Web site: From Fairwold to Or Hadash. Or Hadash. 2019-10-27.
  13. Anderson, A. Engler. "Moving on: Or Hadash shines a new light on a stately old mansion" Jewish Exponent (July 14, 1995): 6. via ProQuest.
  14. https://www.penbaypilot.com/sites/default/files/2019/10/field/attachments/__USS%20Sequoia%20Fact%20Sheet%20vF%2010-14-19.pdf USS Sequoia Fact Sheet
  15. News: 'Floating White House' on its way to Belfast where it will be restored to its former glory. Curtis. Abigail. October 20, 2019. Bangor Daily News. October 27, 2019.
  16. News: $2,000,000 Yacht for Cadawalders [sic]. July 16, 1927. The New York Times. 11. ProQuest.
  17. News: Biggest Yacht Built for American Woman. January 27, 1931. The New York Times. 12. ProQuest.
  18. News: Gold-Plated Hardware Features New Yacht Commanded by Woman. Kinnaird. Clark. February 3, 1928. Evening Independent. October 27, 2019. 2. NewspaperArchive.com.
  19. Wisner. Bill. December 1975. The Golden Age of Yachts. Motor Boating and Sailing. 66.
  20. News: Mrs. Cadwalader Wins $192,750 Suit. May 22, 1934. The New York Times. 18. ProQuest.
  21. News: U. S. Charges Tax Fraud to R. M. Cadwaladers. October 16, 1937. The Philadelphia Inquirer. October 27, 2019. 1. Newspapers.com.
  22. News: Sells $3,000,000 Yacht to President of Turkey. March 25, 1938. The Evening Sun. October 27, 2019. 2. Newspapers.com.
  23. Web site: 9: Savarona. April 28, 2017. Yachts International. en. 2019-10-26.
  24. Web site: Defendant rebuts yacht sex case accusations. December 20, 2010. South Florida Business Journal. 2019-10-27.
  25. Web site: Savarona used for first time as Turkish state yacht since prostitution scandal. Merl. Risa. March 24, 2015. Boat International. en. 2019-10-27.
  26. News: Roebling-Cadwalader. September 10, 1909. The Philadelphia Inquirer. October 26, 2019. 3. Newspapers.com.
  27. News: R. McC. Cadwalader Jr.. September 25, 1960. The New York Times. 88. ProQuest.
  28. News: Wealthy Woman Dies. May 16, 1941. Republican and Herald. October 27, 2019. 11. Newspapers.com.
  29. News: Emily Roebling Dies; Her Marriage Event. May 16, 1941. The Semi-Weekly Spokesman-Review. October 27, 2019. 4. Newspapers.com.
  30. News: Prominent Matron Found Dead in Bed. May 15, 1941. The Evening Sun. October 27, 2019. 7. Newspapers.com.

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