James F. D. Lanier Explained

James Lanier
Birth Date:25 June 1858
Birth Place:New York City, New York, U.S.
Death Place:New York City, New York, U.S.
Education:St. Paul's School
Parents:Charles D. Lanier
Sarah Eggleston Lanier
Children:2
Relations:James Lanier (grandfather)
Charles Lawrance (nephew)

James Franklin Doughty Lanier II (June 25, 1858 – May 16, 1928) was an American banker and sportsman who was prominent in New York society during the Gilded Age.

Early life

Lanier was born at his grandmother's residence, 10 Fifth Avenue in New York City, on June 25, 1858. He was the son of Charles D. Lanier (1837–1926)[1] and Sarah (née Eggleston) Lanier (1837–1898).[2] Among his siblings was Sarah Eggleston Lanier, who married Francis C. Lawrance Jr. (parents of engineer Charles Lawrence[3] and Kitty Lanier Lawrance who married W. Averell Harriman;[4] [5] Francis married Susan Ridgway Willing after Sarah's death);[6] Fanny Lanier,[7] who married Francis Randall Appleton;[8] and Elizabeth Gardner Lanier,[9] who married George Evans Turnure.[1] [10]

His maternal grandfather was Thomas Eggleston.[11] His paternal grandparents were his namesake, James Franklin Doughty Lanier and Elizabeth (née Gardner) Lanier.[1] [12] In 1655, his ancestor, Thomas Lanier, a French Huguenot refugee, came to America accompanied by John Washington, the great-grandfather of President George Washington. Thomas, who settled in Westmoreland County, Virginia, married Washington's daughter, Anne Washington (1662–1697).[1]

Lanier attended St. Paul's School in Concord, New Hampshire, and graduated from Princeton University in 1880.

Career

After graduating from Princeton in 1880, Lanier joined the family banking business of Winslow, Lanier & Co., founded by his grandfather in 1849. Lanier worked at Winslow, Lanier until his father's death in 1926,[13] when he was succeeded by his surviving son, Reginald.

Society life

In 1892, Lanier and his wife were included in Ward McAllister's "Four Hundred", purported to be an index of New York's best families, published in The New York Times.[14] [15] Conveniently, 400 was the number of people that could fit into Mrs. Astor's ballroom.[16]

He was one of the founders of the Meadow Brook Hunt Club,[17] and one of the first automobile drivers in America, strongly interested in motor touring and racing. He was a member of the Automobile Club of America, the Knickerbocker Club, the Racquet and Tennis Club, and the Turf and Field Clubs. Soon after the incorporation of the Mead Brook Club, Lanier had an estate, designed by prominent architect James Brown Lord, built in Old Westbury on Long Island that was completed in 1891.[18] He sold the home, which he had been renting to Clarence Mackay, in 1900 to Hamilton Cary for $100,000.[19] The Laniers also spent summers at "Gravel Court",[20] off of Clay Street, in Newport, Rhode Island.[21]

Personal life

In 1885, Lanier was married to Harriet Bishop (1866–1931).[22] Harriet was the daughter of Heber R. Bishop.[23] In early 1900, Lanier purchased two adjacent 1854 brownstones located between Park and Lexington Avenues in Murray Hill, for $31,000 which he torn down to build his family residence.[24] In 1903, Lanier and his wife moved into the, now landmarked, home they had built at 123 East 35th Street in Murray Hill.[25] The home was designed in the Beaux-Arts style by Hoppin & Koen. Together, they were the parents of:

Upon his father's death in 1926, the elder Lanier left an estate valued at $9,677,364, the bulk of which was left to James and his siblings.[29] [30] Lanier died on May 16, 1928, at St. Elizabeth's Hospital in New York City.[31] He was buried alongside his wife at Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn, New York. Upon his death, he left an estate valued at around $10,000,000 which was left to his son Reginald after his widow's death,[24] in 1931.[23]

Notes and References

  1. News: CHARLES LANIER, BANKER, DIES AT 89; Senior Member of Winslow, Lanier & Co. for 63 Years Is Victim of Apoplexy. CAME OF A NOTED FAMILY Had a Common Ancestor With Washington -- In Many Big Transactions -- Funeral Tomorrow. October 2, 2017. The New York Times. 8 March 1926.
  2. Book: Welles. Albert. The Pedigree and History of the Washington Family: Derived from Odin, the Founder of Scandinavia, B.C. 70, Involving a Period of Eighteen Centuries, and Including Fifty-five Generations, Down to General George Washington, First President of the United States. 1879. Society Library. 121. 2 October 2017. en.
  3. News: C.L. LAWRANCE, 67, AN INVENTOR, DIES; Developed Wright Whirlwind Engine That Powered Noted Distance Plane Flights. October 2, 2017. The New York Times.
  4. News: Staff. MISS LAWRANCE TO WED W. A. HARRIMAN Romance in Match of Late Railroad Magnate's Son and C. Lanier's Granddaughter. FIANCEE A SPORTS DEVOTEE Just Recovered from Injury Received While Horseback Riding with the Young Financier.. October 2, 2017. The New York Times. July 3, 1915.
  5. News: Mrs. W. Averell Harriman Dies; Former Governor's Wife Was 67 . New York Times . September 27, 1970 . October 2, 2017.
  6. Web site: Kerstein. Bob. Charles Lanier. smokershistory.com. Bank History, Central Trust Company of New York. https://web.archive.org/web/20210305011406/http://smokershistory.com/Central.htm. October 2, 2017. 2021-03-05.
  7. News: Times. Special To The New York. Obituary -- APPLETON. October 2, 2017. The New York Times. 5 June 1958.
  8. News: FRANCIS R. APPLETON DIES AT COUNTRY HOME; Retired New York Business Man and a Former Harvard Overseer.. October 2, 2017. The New York Times. 3 January 1929.
  9. News: MRS. ELIZABETH TURNURE; Her Ancestor and Washington's Came to America Together.. October 2, 2017. The New York Times. 26 December 1935.
  10. News: GEORGE E. TURNURE, BANKER, DIES AT 77; Was a Director of Insurance Companies -- Father of Avia- tor Killed in War.. October 2, 2017. The New York Times. 26 December 1933.
  11. News: DIED. Lanier. 2 October 2017. The New York Times. 19 April 1898.
  12. News: THE FUNERAL OF JAMES F.D. LANIER.. October 2, 2017. The New York Times. 31 August 1881.
  13. Book: Ingham . John N. . Biographical Dictionary of American Business Leaders . 1983 . Greenwood Publishing Group . 9780313239083 . 759 . 19 July 2018 . en.
  14. News: McAllister. Ward. THE ONLY FOUR HUNDRED WARD M'ALLISTER GIVES OUT THE OFFICIAL LIST. HERE ARE THE NAMES, DON'T YOU KNOW, ON THE AUTHORITY OF THEIR GREAT LEADER, YOU UNDER- STAND, AND THEREFORE GENUINE, YOU SEE.. 26 March 2017. The New York Times. 16 February 1892. en.
  15. Book: Patterson . Jerry E. . The First Four Hundred: Mrs. Astor's New York in the Gilded Age . 2000 . Random House Incorporated . 9780847822089 . 212 . 1 June 2018 . en.
  16. Book: Keister. Lisa A.. Getting Rich: America's New Rich and How They Got That Way. 2005. Cambridge University Press. 9780521536677. 36. 20 October 2017. en.
  17. Book: Pommer . Alfred . Pommer . Joyce . Exploring Manhattan's Murray Hill . 2013 . Arcadia Publishing . 9781625845153 . 35–36 . 19 July 2018 . en.
  18. Book: Mateyunas . Paul J. . Long Island's Gold Coast . 2012 . Arcadia Publishing . 9780738591315 . 43 . 19 July 2018 . en.
  19. Book: Real Estate Record and Builders' Guide . 1900 . F. W. Dodge Corporation . 390 . 19 July 2018 . en.
  20. Book: Social Register, Summer . 1917 . Social Register Association . 168 . 19 July 2018 . en.
  21. Web site: 2017 Portraits Patrons . www.newportmansions.org . 19 July 2018.
  22. News: LANIER--BISHOP.. October 2, 2017. The New York Times. November 25, 1885. en.
  23. News: NOTABLES MOURN MRS. H. B. LANIER; Artur Bodanzky Leads Chorus of Friends in Music From St. John Passion. ORCHESTRA MEN ATTEND figures in Music World Also Join Relatives in Tribute to the Founder of Group.. October 2, 2017. The New York Times. 4 November 1931.
  24. News: A Piece of Paris in Murray Hill: The James F.D. Lanier Residence . 19 July 2018 . . October 1, 2013.
  25. , p.106
  26. News: CHARLES LANIER II DEAD . 19 July 2018 . . December 7, 1918 . en.
  27. News: Reginald Lanier, 90, Ex-Banker; Headed Land and Cattle Concern . 19 July 2018 . . August 30, 1979 . en.
  28. News: MISS CAMERON WED TO REGINALD LANIER; Bishop Rhinelander, Bride's Cousin, Performs Ceremony in Cathedral of St. John. RECEPTION AT KING HOME Bride Is the Daughter of the Late Archdeacon Lewis Cameron of New Jersey. . 27 March 2019 . . 13 December 1921.
  29. News: LANIER'S WILL LEAVES GIFTS TO CHARITY; Banker's Will Gives Silver Zodiac Tray to J.P. Morgan -- Employes Remembered.. 2 October 2017. The New York Times. 23 March 1926.
  30. News: LANIER LEFT ESTATE OF $9,677,364 NET; Broker's Securities Appraised at $4,402,858 and His Interest in Firm $4,617,418. BULK GOES TO FAMILY His Secretary Gets $40,000 Bequest -- Memento to His Friend J.P. Morgan.. October 2, 2017. The New York Times. 22 November 1927.
  31. News: J.F.D. LANIER, BANKER, DIES IN HIS 70TH YEAR; Member of Old Family of Financiers Was a PioneerAutomobile Driver. . 19 July 2018 . . May 17, 1928 . en.

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