When the Civil War broke out, Dan Harkness was among the first in Bellevue, Ohio to enlist in the Union efforts. Now, imagine two hundred-plus years have passed. Nothing major just language that "[made] incurable insanity a ground for divorce.". After his first wife's death, Flagler developed a . It kept oil prices low to stave off competitors, made its products affordable to the average household, and, to increase market penetration, sometimes sold below cost if necessary. "[35], Flagler and Rockefeller continued to consolidate their oil interests as best they could until New Jersey, in 1909, changed its incorporation laws to effectively allow a re-creation of the trust in the form of a single holding company. [32] More threatening to Standard's power was the Sherman Antitrust Act of 1890, originally used to control unions, but later central to the breakup of the Standard Oil trust. Was Colonel Henry Ostrom's first wife Elizabeth FLAGLER? Standard's most potent weapons against competitors were underselling, differential pricing, and secret transportation rebates. What kind of a man was Henry Flagler and why do you think this? He was also a key figure in the development of the eastern coast of Florida along the Atlantic Ocean and was founder of what became the Florida East Coast Railway. This field trip will walk you through the life of Henry Morrison Flagler and the great impact he made on South Florida. The family being of moderate means, Henry struck out from New York to Republic, Ohio in 1844. Flagler engaged Thomas Hastings and Jean Carrere of the Carrere & Hastings architectural firm to design the hotel. Julia was born in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1849 to Ephraim Sturtevant and his wife. Henry Morrison Flagler (January 2, 1830 - May 20, 1913) was an American industrialist and a founder of Standard Oil. https://staughs.com/the-mary-lily-kenan-conspiracy/. Thus began an era of Flagler's life that he never spoke about to the press one of scrimping and scraping. Eldest daughter Jennie Louise died when she was a young woman (more on her later). In fact, Henry Flagler was so pleased with his Florida projects that he began the construction of a second hotel, just across the street from the Ponce de Leon. [11] Part of this scheme was the announcement of sharply increased freight charges. Estate All the things he owned. It was during these early years of employment that young Henry Flagler cut his teeth in business one step closer to the shark he would become. When asked by the president of Rollins College in Winter Park about his philanthropic efforts, Flagler reportedly replied, "I believe this state is the easiest place for many men to gain a living. Jul 1, 2020 - Explore Patricia Cipolla's board "Henry Flagler" on Pinterest. Mrs. To get a more in-depth narrative of the life of that building complex, visit The Ponce de Leon Hotel's Historical Place profile on our website. [citation needed], When looking back at Flagler's life, after Flagler's death, George W. Perkins, of J.P. Morgan & Co., reflected, "But that any man could have the genius to see of what this wilderness of waterless sand and underbrush was capable and then have the nerve to build a railroad here, is more marvelous than similar development anywhere else in the world. This is a major source for this Historical Person Profile highly recommended! Henry Morrison Flagler was born in Hopewell, New York on January 2nd, 1830 to Isaac Flagler and Elizabeth Caldwell Harkness Flagler. As success quickly mounted for the young corporation, Flagler began to better provide for his family, moving them to Euclid Avenue in Cleveland, Ohio. After two years of institutionalization and much assessment by the courts, Ida Alice Shourds Flagler was legally ruled incurably insane in 1899. A major New York refiner, Charles Pratt and Company, headed by Charles Pratt and Henry H. Rogers, led the opposition to this plan, and railroads soon backed off. [16] The railroad, seeing Standard's incursion into the transportation and pipeline fields, struck back and formed a subsidiary to buy and build oil refineries and pipelines. It was first established in Ohio. But in the aftermath of that battle, in 1879 the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania indicted Flagler and Rockefeller on charges of monopolizing the oil trade, starting an avalanche of similar court proceedings in other states and making a national issue of Standard Oil's business practices. The church was dedicated in March 1890. Version accessed: St. Augustine, FL: Historic Print & Map Company, 2004. The committee ultimately discovered the previously unknown scope of Standard Oil's business interests. The judge instructed the jury to find them not guilty because the "prosecution had failed to prove 'an agreement of minds with evil intent to conspire'. This project sparked Flagler's interest in creating a new "American Riviera." Both of Henry's parents had been married previously. 101 - 123). "How Slave Labor Built the State of Florida Decades After the Civil War." This conflict created a breach between father and son that lasted until Henry Flagler was on his deathbed. The voyage was harrowing and long northern tourists traveled by railroad, steamship, and mule-driven omnibus. Flagler was the only person to be divorced under the law before it was repealed in 1905. He planned to build a hotel on that land, one that gave Northern tourists a fine place to spend their money. [8] By 1872, it led the American oil refining industry, producing 10,000 barrels per day (1,600m3/d). Finally, Dan Harkness (7 perhaps Henry's favorite sibling), was Henry's mother's son from her first husband. Castleden, Louise Decatur. [17]This subsidiary, the Empire Transportation Company, which Joseph D. Potts created in 1865 and also ran, owned other assets including a small fleet of ships on the Great Lakes. Flagler found the city charming, but the hotel facilities and transportation systems inadequate. Carolina Story: Virtual Museum of University History", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mary_Lily_Kenan_Flagler_Bingham&oldid=1125142626, This page was last edited on 2 December 2022, at 11:49. . [1], Flagler was born in Hopewell, New York. Along with that, Henry Flagler being referred to as a 'Robber Baron' alongside businessmen like Carnegie and Rockefeller is no exaggeration. [7] The partnership eventually grew into the Standard Oil Corporation. Generally, we are not often able to share specifics about the man himself. His attention was consumed by the business of his hotel chains and expanding railroad empire. So, when sources from the time period say that Ida Alice Shourds Flagler was insane, one must look closely and think critically. Henry Morrison Flagler (January 2, 1830 - May 20, 1913) was an American industrialist and a founder of Standard Oil, which was first based in Ohio. Henry's birth heralded the beginning of a decade and perhaps a new start for his family. When Mary contracted tuberculosis, at her doctor's recommendation they traveled . Enamoured by what Henry Flagler had been up to down south, droves of rich tourists made that harrowing journey to St. Augustine. This 'FEC' project had been underway since the late 1880s, when Flagler purchased the St. Augustine & Halifax Railroad in Jacksonville. Control of the Flagler fortune largely passed into the hands of Mary Lily Kenan's family of sisters and brother, who survived into the 1960s. Last (and perhaps most importantly), the truth is a hard thing to garner when it comes to what happened in the past even harder than it is today. According to Florida historian Thomas Graham in his book The Awakening of St. Augustine, an acquaintance of the businessman once inquired about whether his judgment was sound when he decided to invest in Florida (one can imagine that they may not have been acquaintances for very long afterward). (2022). Flagler also met one Dr. Andrew Anderson, who would almost immediately become a lifelong partner and friend. Henry Flagler is a famous Entrepreneurwho has a net worth of $60 Million. He returned to St. Augustine in 1885 and made Smith an offer. Their efforts to monopolize the oil industry are referred to as the 'Cleveland Massacre,' and though John D. Rockefeller is generally more well-known than Henry Flagler, quotes from Rockefeller credit Flagler with the monopolization idea. All this is to say that the winter and spring of 1885 were life-changing for Henry Flagler and his circle. An immense engineering effort was required to cut through the wilderness and marsh from St. Augustine to Palm Beach. Henry Morrison Flagler (January 2, 1830 - May 20, 1913) was an American industrialist and a founder of Standard Oil, which was first based in Ohio. The state provided incentive in the form of 3,840 acres (15.5km2) for every mile (1.6km) of track constructed.[49]. Harry and Annie's daughter Jean Louise Flagler made Palm Beach a large part of her life. It seems that if too many limits had been placed on Henry Flagler's projects, St. Augustine would not be the city we know today. Only his son Harry survived of the three children by his first marriage in 1853 to Mary Harkness. Cutthroat Cruel business man. See more ideas about flagler, key west, florida. The Flagler family, originally spelled Flegler, hailed from the southwestern corner of Germany known as the Palatinate region. Featuring air conditioning, The Henry Flagler offers accommodations in Layton. PROLOGUE: In 1844, Henry Flagler dropped out of school. The family moved as was necessary for Isaac's job, having lived in Virginia and Ohio during Henry's childhood. Melbert Cary died in 1941, and after his death Mary continued to divide her. However there were many reports harsh working conditions and forced indebtedness to the company, and malfeasance by labor agents who hired men for the railway. Although not much is known about Ida Alice Flagler, many sources claim she became fond of opulent parties and leisurely pursuits that were available to the fabulously wealthy. He is also known as a founder of the cities of Miami and Palm Beach, Florida. His parents were very poor and struggled to feed their family. 1888: The Ponce de Leon Hotel in St. Augustine, 1888: The Casa Monica/ Cordova Hotel in St. Augustine, 1894: The Royal Poinciana Hotel in Palm Beach (on Lake Worth), 1897: The Royal Palm Hotel on the banks of the Miami River, 1901: The Breakers Hotel in Palm Beach (on the Atlantic Coast). However, a great cloud of bad luck was soon to fall over the Flagler family. He was also a key figure in the development of the eastern coast of Florida along the Atlantic Ocean and was founder of what became the Florida East Coast Railway. Researching those perspectives is like playing the telephone game with the dead; something is bound to get confused.). Municipal, State, and Federal government officials questioned how many limits they should place on these "Captains of Industry." Henry Morrison Flagler (January 2, 1830 - May 20, 1913) was a United States tycoon, real estate promoter, railroad developer and Rockefeller partner in Standard Oil. However, the boom did not last. He became known as the Father of Miami, Florida. Because Henry Flagler had not yet claimed Florida as his own, Savannah, Georgia was considered to be the last bastion of civilization on the East Coast. [13] Eventually, even former antagonists Pratt and Rogers saw the futility of continuing to compete against Standard Oil: in 1874, they made a secret agreement with their old nemesis to be acquired. His half-brother Daniel had left Hopewell to live and work with his paternal uncle Lamon G. Harkness, who had a store in Republic, Ohio. I was willing that they should combine and grow as big and wealthy as they could, but only by legitimate means. The grand marble building was named by the final Mrs. Flagler herself: "Whitehall." To add to the sting, Henry 'Harry' Flagler was generally known as Harry Harkness, showing more deference for his mother than his father. Ralph, Julian. His half-sisters Mary Esther (16 y/o in 1830), Jane Augusta (14), and Caroline (3.5) were the daughters of his father's first two wives. But they had never played fair, and that ruined their greatness for me." [citation needed]. Whatever the case may be, Flagler focused on his family and his fortune during the years of 1861 to 1865. St. Augustine, FL: Flagler College, 2013. If you ask the same question in Florida, most people will have known someone who lives on Flagler Blvd., in Flagler County, or down the road from the Flagler Museum. He served as a vice president through 1908 and was part of ownership until 1911. Keys, L. (2015) Hotel Ponce de Leon: The Rise, Fall, and Rebirth of Flagler's Gilded Age Palace. He declined the honor, persuading them to use an old Indian name, "Mayaimi". Along with the mounting unrest between himself and Ida Alice, Flagler was also butting heads with his son, Harry. Volume 86, Number 514, 1893. Last Train to Paradise: Henry Flagler and the Spectacular Rise and Fall of the Railroad that Crossed an Ocean (Paperback) by. HENRY FLAGLER "Father of Florida" American Industrialist Early Days was born on January 2, 1830 in Hopewell, New York, raised in a. Unfortunately, the Key West Extension is viewed as a business failure having "never earned the expected revenue before the Labor Day hurricane of 1935 destroyed it" (Akin 223). [43], When Flagler's first wife Mary (ne Harkness) fell sick, his physician recommended they travel to Jacksonville for the winter to escape the brutal conditions of the North. [2] Flagler's mother was Elizabeth Caldwell Harkness Flagler, Isaac's third wife and a widow who had a stepson, Stephen V. Harkness, and a son, Daniel M. Harkness, from her marriage to deceased widower David Harkness of Milan, Ohio. The company expanded into the grain and distillery businesses, and the latter was sold after making considerable money. [citation needed], In 1912, the Florida Overseas Railroad was completed to Key West. After her husband died, Julia and her children returned to Ft. Dallas and purchased 640 acres on the north shore of the Miami River. George Matthews, great-grandson of Henry Morrison Flagler, has served as the Flagler Museum's president for the past 42 years. Middle child Carrie died just before Christmas in the same year that Henry's mother died (1861). Mary Lily outlived her first husband, Henry Flagler and inherited his huge fortune, married again three years later, and died under suspicious circumstances at aged fifty. [11] The cartel received preferential treatment as a high-volume shipper, which included not just steep rebates of up to 50% for their product but also rebates for the shipment of competing products. We Floridians have a very specific image of Henry Flagler in our minds: he is an old man with bright eyes cast in bronze. As he grew older, he became determined to never be poor again. (Context from a 21st-century author: This story takes place nearly two generations before women were granted the right to vote a time when we were generally valued for being subservient, delicate, and fertile. Henry Flagler: A Man of Big Dreams Henry Flagler was born on January 2, 1830. Smith helped train the masons on the mixing and pouring techniques he used on Zorayda. Throughout it all, Mary was made to brave her condition without her husband, who had taken to staying at the Buckingham Hotel in New York, completely immersed in the business of Standard Oil. Indeed, Mary Harkness Flagler's ailments first brought Henry Flagler to Far Florida. He was also a key figure in the development of the Atlantic coast of Florida and founder of what became the Florida East Coast Railway. 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