Albert C. Bostwick Jr.

Albert Carlton Bostwick Jr. (April 1, 1901 – September 26, 1980)[1] was a member of the wealthy and prominent Bostwick family who became a steeplechase jockey and a Thoroughbred racehorse owner, breeder and trainer.

Albert C. Bostwick Jr.
BornApril 1, 1901
Manhattan, New York, U.S.
DiedSeptember 26, 1980
Old Westbury, New York, U.S.
OccupationSteeplechase rider, Racehorse owner/breeder
Spouse(s)
Eleanor Purviance Sage
​
​
(m. 1936⁠–⁠1980)​
ChildrenAlbert C. Bostwick III
Parent(s)Albert Carlton Bostwick Sr.
Mary Lillian Stokes
RelativesDorothy Bostwick (sister)
Lillian Bostwick (sister)
Dunbar Bostwick (brother)
Pete Bostwick (brother)

Early life

Albert Bostwick, known to his family as "Brother", was the eldest boy of five children born to Mary Lillian (née Stokes) Bostwick and Albert Carlton Bostwick Sr.. Among his siblings was Dorothy Stokes Bostwick, Lillian Bostwick Phipps, Dunbar Bostwick, and Pete Bostwick. His father, a banker and sportsman, set early automobile speed records.[2] After his death in 1911, his mother remarried in 1914 to Fitch Gilbert Jr., a Harvard and Columbia Law School graduate and farmer.[3]

His maternal grandfather, Henry Bolter Stokes, was president of the Manhattan Life Insurance Company, and his paternal grandfather, Jabez Bostwick, was a founder and treasurer of the Standard Oil and a partner of John D. Rockefeller.[4]

On the death of his father in 1911, Bostwick inherited a sizeable fortune. His grandmother, Helen Celia (née Ford) Bostwick, upon her death in April 1920, left to him a sum of $1,156,818.[5]

Horse racing

Bostwick rode horses from a young age, taught by his uncle F. Ambrose Clark, and became a successful amateur steeplechase rider in the United States and in England.[1] He also became involved in the sport of Thoroughbred flat racing and is best known as the owner/breeder of Mate, winner of the 1931 Preakness Stakes.[6] A member of The Jockey Club, in 1932 he obtained a license to train horses.[7]

He was a member of the Union Club, the Racquet and Tennis Club, the Turf and Field Club, the Meadow Brook Club and the River Club.[8]

Personal life

In 1936, Bostwick was married to Eleanor (née Purviance) Sage (1904–2004).[9] Eleanor was the former wife of Henry Williams Sage (a descendant of Henry W. Sage) and was the daughter of John Nelson Purviance and Helen (née Morgan) Purviance.[8] Before their divorce, they lived on the 15th floor of the Rosario Candela designed 778 Park Avenue (the apartment, a floor below Brooke Astor's apartment, was later owned by Roone Arledge),[4] and had one son together:[9]

  • Albert Carlton Bostwick III (b. 1939), who in 1960 married socialite Mollie (née Netcher) Bragno (1923–2002), heiress to a Chicago department store fortune. The wedding, which took place at her home in Chicago, was performed by Judge Julius Hoffman and the best man was New York attorney Roy Cohn. They divorced, and in 1970, she married for the third time to Paul C. Wilmot Jr.[10]

The Bostwick's had an estate in Old Westbury on the north shore of Long Island.[11] The estate featured an 1888 Georgian revival manor house with 18 rooms that was updated by architect James O'Connor in the 1930s.[12] After his widow's death in 2004, the estate was sold and subdivided.[13]

Bostwick died in 1980 at age 79 at his home in Old Westbury. His funeral was held at the Church of the Advent in Westbury.[1]

References
  1. "A.C. Bostwick, 79, Racing Figure Who Won the Preakness in 1931" (PDF). The New York Times. September 28, 1980. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  2. "ALBERT C. BOSTWICK". New-York Tribune. November 11, 1911. p. 7. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
  3. "ENGAGEMENT HAS BEEN ANNOUNCED | Former Eau Claire Boy Will Wed Wealthy Society Leader of New York". Leader-Telegram. May 16, 1914. p. 5. Retrieved 15 February 2019.
  4. Finn, Robin (7 June 2013). "A Private Listing at Candela-Designed 778 Park Avenue". The New York Times. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  5. "$29,264,181 TO HEIRS OF MRS. BOSTWICK; Widow of the Standard Oil Man Gives Practically All to Her Own Family. $350,000 GEM COLLECTION $20,000,000 in Standard Stock, $2,000,000 in Liberty Bonds--Fortune in Paintings and Furniture". The New York Times. November 5, 1921. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  6. "Reading Eagle - Google News Archive Search". news.google.com. Retrieved 2017-09-26.
  7. "LICENSE AS TRAINER GRANTED BOSTWICK; Owner of Mate Included Among Croup of 129 Approved by the Jockey Club. 35 GET RIDING PERMITS List of Jockeys Authorized to Race on Tracks Announced by Governing Body". The New York Times. 1932-03-19. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-09-26.
  8. "A.C. BOSTWICK WEDS MRS. ELEANOR SAGE; Mrs. F. Ambrose Clark Attends Bride -- George H. Bostwick Acts as Best Man. COUPLE TO GO TO EUROPE Bridegroom Served in World War -- Like Brother Has Won Note as Gentleman Rider" (PDF). The New York Times. 13 August 1936. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  9. "Paid Notice: Deaths BOSTWICK, ELEANOR P." The New York Times. 2004-05-20. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2017-09-26.
  10. "Mrs. Mollie Bostwick Is Married To Paul C. Wilmot Jr. in Florida". The New York Times. 17 December 1970. p. 63. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  11. Mann, Laura (December 23, 2009). "Old Westbury estate goes on market for $17.75 million". Newsday. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  12. L, Zach (September 27, 2010). "The A.C. Bostwick Estate". Old Long Island. Archived from the original on 3 December 2010. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  13. Fischler, Marcelle S. (4 August 2011). "Developers Building for 'Today's Gatsby' - In the Region/Long Island". The New York Times. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
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