Edward Russell Thomas

Edward Russell Thomas (December 30, 1875 – July 6, 1926)[1] was an American businessman and sportsman.

Edward R. Thomas
BornDecember 30, 1875
Columbus, Ohio, U.S.
DiedJuly 6, 1926(1926-07-06) (aged 50)
New York City, New York, U.S.
Alma materYale University
OccupationBusinessman, newspaper publisher
Spouse(s)
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(m. 1901; div. 1912)​

Elizabeth Finley
​
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(m. 1912; div. 1924)​

​
​
(m. 1924; his death 1926)​
ChildrenLucetta Thomas
Parent(s)Samuel Russell Thomas
Ann Augusta Porter Thomas

Early life and education

Edward Russell Thomas was born in Columbus, Ohio on December 30, 1875.[2] He was a son of Ann Augusta (née Porter) Thomas (1847–1944) and Union general Samuel Russell Thomas (1840–1903), who left a fortune estimated at $20,000,000.[1][3] His younger sister, Eleanor Thomas,[4] was married to Robert Livingston Beeckman, who served as the Governor of Rhode Island from 1915 to 1921.[5]

He graduated from Yale University in 1894.[3]

Career

Thomas was a senior member of Thomas & Thomas, a Wall Street firm.[3] In 1904, he acquired the New York Morning Telegraph from the estate of William Collins Whitney.[6]

On October 31, 1905, board vacancies of Consolidated National Bank were filled by E. R. Thomas, O. F. Thomas, Robert Maclay, and George B. Hays, all who were selected by E. R. Thomas.[7] E.R. Thomas sold his interest in the Consolidated National Bank in October 1907, also resigning from his positions.[8]

He was a member of the Union Club of the City of New York.[3]

Personal life
Thomas' third wife, Lucy Cotton.

He was the first American to kill someone in a car accident.[1]

On June 29, 1901, he married 17 year old Linda Lee Thomas, a member of the prominent Lee family of Virginia, at Newport, Rhode Island. Linda, who was "known as one of the country's most beautiful women," was introduced to Thomas by friends and after their marriage, they lived a life of luxury, with houses in Palm Beach, Manhattan, and Newport. They divorced on October 26, 1912 and she later remarried to well-known musical theatre composer Cole Porter.

In 1912, on the day his first wife obtained her final divorce decree, he married Elizabeth Finley, a daughter of Henry Finley of New York City. Before their 1924 divorce in Florida, they were the parents of one son together: Samuel Finley Thomas (1913–1989), who became a medical doctor.[9]

In 1924, he married actress Lucy Cotton, the daughter of Adelaide Wisby Cotton and Warren Jefferson Cotton. Together, they lived at 320 Park Avenue and were the parents of one daughter:[10] Lucetta Cotton Thomas (1925–1980), who changed her name to Mary Frances Thomas and married Kenneth Oscar Bailey.[11]

Thomas died after a three day illness at the Harbor Sanitarium in New York City on July 6, 1926. He was buried at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Sleepy Hollow, New York.[1] His daughter Lucetta inherited Thomas' fortune.[10]

See also

References
  1. "E. R. THOMAS, NOTED SPORTSMAN, DIES; Was an Owner of The Morning Telegraph and a Former Banker | HAD SPECTACULAR CAREER | Inherited a Fortune and Lost' Heavily in Panic -- Early Auto-Racing Enthusiast" (PDF). The New York Times. 7 July 1926. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  2. Ingham, John N. (1983). Biographical Dictionary of American Business Leaders. Greenwood Publishing Group. pp. 1453–1455. ISBN 9780313213625. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  3. "About Clubmen". The New York Times. 10 August 1902. p. 45. Retrieved July 5, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. "MRS R. L. BEECKMAN DEAD IN VIRGINIA -- R I Governor's Wife Was Stricken Suddenly". The Boston Globe. December 21, 1920. p. 11. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  5. "ROBERT BEECKMAN, EX-GOVERNOR, DIES; Descendant Also of Livingstons Served 3 Terms, 1915-21, as Rhode Island Executive. WAS FRIEND OF HARDING Republican, 68, Was Mentioned for Vice President--Had Been in State Legislature" (PDF). The New York Times. 22 January 1935. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  6. "THE MORNING TELEGRAPH SOLD. Secured from the Whitney Estate by E. R. Thomas" (PDF). The New York Times. 22 March 1904. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  7. "O.F. THOMAS NOW HEADS CONSOLIDATED NATIONAL; Is Elected President to Succeed Willis S. Paine. NEW DIRECTORS ARE NAMED E.R. Thomas Probably Will Be Allowed to Fill the Remaining Vacancies" (PDF). The New York Times. 1 November 1905. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  8. "BANKS SOUND; WILL BE BACKED; The Strength of the Clearing House Is Pledged to Give Needed Support. THE THOMASES OUT NOW Seth M. Milliken Heads Mercantile and W.F. Havemeyer the Bank of North America. UNDESIRED CONTROLS END And Speyer, Schiff, and Other Leading Bankers Agree That the Situation Is Now Cleared Up" (PDF). The New York Times. 21 October 1907. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  9. "Samuel Finley Thomas, M.D., 1913-1989 - AAC Publications - Search The American Alpine Journal and Accidents". publications.americanalpineclub.org. American Alpine Club. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  10. Murrell, Muriel V. (2003). Miami, a Backward Glance. Pineapple Press Inc. p. 125. ISBN 9781561642861. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
  11. "Mrs. Astor and the Gilded Age". mrsastor.com. August 19, 2008. Retrieved 29 March 2019.
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