William Welsh Harrison Explained

William Welsh Harrison (May 5, 1850 – March 4, 1927) was an American businessman best known for building Grey Towers Castle.

Early life

Harrison was born on May 5, 1850, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He was a son of George Leib Harrison (1811–1885) and Sarah Ann (Waples) Harrison (1816–1850).[1] Among his siblings were Harriet Morgan Harrison (wife of William W. Frazier),[2] Charles Custis Harrison, and Alfred Craven Harrison.[3] From his father's second marriage to Letitia Henry Mitchell (a sister of Dr. Silas Weir Mitchell,[4] he had a younger half-brother, Mitchell Harrison.[5]

Through his uncle, Thomas Harrison, he was a first cousin of chemical manufacturer George Lieb Harrison, who married Emily McMichael (a daughter of Mayor Morton McMichael). His grandfather, John Harrison, started a chemical firm that was taken over by his cousins John Skelton Harrison and Thomas Skelton Harrison (and later sold to E. I. du Pont de Nemours and Company).[6]

He was educated at the Germantown Academy and the University of Pennsylvania, graduating in 1869.[7]

Career

Harrison joined his elder brothers in business with Harrison, Havemeyer and Co. at the Franklin Sugar Refinery, the largest refinery in Philadelphia of which his father had been proprietor. In 1892, they sold their stock to H. O. Havemeyer and the American Sugar Refinery.[8]

Shortly before his death, Harrison sued his broker, Francis Ralston Welsh, charging that Welsh defrauded him of $239,000 over a ten-year period.

Personal life

Harrison was married to Bertha Marie White (1857–1933). In 1903, their houseman robbed Bertha of $17,000 worth of jewels from their Glenside home while the family was eating Thanksgiving dinner.[9] He was later arrested and the jewels were returned.[10] Together, they were the parents of:[11]

Harrison was a member of the Philadelphia Country Club, the University Club and the Rittenhouse Club. He died at his home in Glenside, Pennsylvania, on March 4, 1927.[14] In his will, he dictated that his bachelor son must wed to keep a $1,000,000 bequest within the family.[15] His widow died at her home in Oak Lane, Philadelphia in August 1933.[16]

Grey Towers

In 1881, 31-year-old Harrison purchased Rosedale Hall Glenside, Pennsylvania, from J. Thomas Audenreid and expanded the estate to 138 acres by 1891. He hired architect Horace Trumbauer to build new stables and a gate house, completed in 1892.[17] In 1893, Rosedale Hall burned to the ground and Harrison again hired Trumbauer, in what is considered his first major commission, to build a new home on the site. Trumbauer designed an imposing 40-room mansion, inspired by Alnwick Castle, the medieval seat of the Dukes of Northumberland.[18] The house cost an estimated $250,000 and was completed five years in 1898. After his death in 1927, his widow sold Grey Towers in 1929 to Beaver College (now Arcadia University), for $712,500 equal to $ today.[19]

External links

Notes and References

  1. Book: Harrison . William Welsh . Harrison, Waples and Allied Families: Being the Ancestry of George Leib Harrison of Philadelphia and of His Wife Sarah Ann Waples . 1910 . private circulation only . 88 . 18 April 2022 . en.
  2. News: TIMES . Special to THE NEW YORK . W.W. FRAZIER JR., RETIRED EXECUTIVE; Vice President and General Manager of the Franklin Sugar Refinery Co. Dies . 18 April 2022 . . 26 August 1939.
  3. News: ALFRED CRAVEN HARRISON; Wealthy Retired Sugar Dealer of Philadelphia Dies at Age of 81. . 18 April 2022 . . 31 July 1927.
  4. News: Times . Special to The New York . Mrs. Letitia Mitchell Harrison. . 20 April 2022 . . 31 December 1914.
  5. News: MITCHELL HARRISON INJURED.; Millionaire Representative of J.P. Morgan in Railroad Wreck with His Physician and Valet. . 20 April 2022 . . 17 March 1902.
  6. News: G.L. HARRISON, 99, DIES; WAS CHEMICAL MAKER; Ex-Philadelphia Manufacturer Sold Products to Government Throughout the Civil War. . 20 April 2022 . . 7 March 1935.
  7. Web site: William Welsh Harrison (1850-1927) . househistree.com . HouseHistree . 21 April 2022.
  8. Zerbe . Richard . 1969 . The American Sugar Refinery Company, 1887-1914: The Story of a Monopoly . The Journal of Law & Economics . 12 . 2 . 339–375 . 10.1086/466672 . 724757 . 154995370 . 0022-2186.
  9. News: Times . Special to The New York . JEWELS WORTH $17,000 STOLEN; William Welsh Harrison's Home, Near Philadelphia, Scene of Robbery. . 18 April 2022 . . 28 November 1903.
  10. News: JEWEL THIEF ARRESTED; Gems Valued at $20,000 Found on Man Caught in This City. Admits He Is Alfred Waltz, Who Disappeared from Country House Near Philadelphia at Same Time as Ornaments. . 21 April 2022 . . 30 November 1903.
  11. Book: Harrison . William Welsh . Mervine, Ed. by . William M. . The Royal Ancestry of George Leib Harrison of Philadelphia . 1914 . Privately printed . 20 April 2022 . en.
  12. News: NO LEGAL AIRING. Domestic Affairs of Millionaires Will Not Go to Court . 20 April 2022 . . 4 September 1903 . 8.
  13. Web site: Harrison family papers 3103 . www2.hsp.org . . 20 April 2022.
  14. News: Times . Special to The New York . WILLIAM W . HARRISON DIES.; Retired Sugar Refiner Was Socially Prominent in Philadelphia . 18 April 2022 . . 5 March 1927.
  15. News: TIMES . Special to THE NEW YORK . BACHELOR MUST WED TO HOLD $1,000,000; Father of W.W. Harrison of Philadelphia Provided for Its Division if Son Had No Heirs. . 20 April 2022 . . 13 March 1927.
  16. News: TIMES . Special to THE NEW YORK . MRS. W. W. HARRISON. . 20 April 2022 . . 18 August 1933.
  17. Web site: The Story of Grey Towers Castle . www.arcadia.edu . . 20 April 2022.
  18. Web site: Grey Towers. 2008-07-02. National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20121007210358/http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=1833&ResourceType=Building. 2012-10-07.
  19. http://www.arcadia.edu/prospective/default.aspx?id=579 Grey Towers Castle at Arcadia.edu

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