Emily Vanderbilt Sloane

Emily Vanderbilt Sloane Hammond (September 17, 1874 – February 22, 1970) was an author, philanthropist, and socialite. She was a member of the Vanderbilt family, and mother of music producer John Hammond.[1] She was a keen musician and was president of numerous charitable societies.

Emily Vanderbilt Sloane
Born	September 17, 1874 Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States
Died	February 22, 1970 (aged 95) 136 East 64th Street Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States
Occupation	Heiress, author, philanthropist
Spouse(s)	John Henry Hammond
Children	Adele Sloane Hammond Alice Frances Hammond Rachel Hammond John Henry Hammond II
Parent(s)	Emily Thorn Vanderbilt William Douglas Sloane
Relatives	See Vanderbilt family

Biography

Emily Vanderbilt (1933)
Photo by Carl Van Vechten

Emily Vanderbilt Sloane was born on September 17, 1874 to Emily Thorn Vanderbilt (1852–1946) and W. & J. Sloane heir William Douglas Sloane (1844–1915).[2][3] She was the granddaughter of William Henry Vanderbilt.[1]

She was raised in New York, and summered at Elm Court, a mammoth shingle-style cottage in Lenox, Massachusetts.[1] Uninterested in the débutante social circles of her peers, she preferred playing the piano at Sunday school. She took a keen interest in religion, delivering small sermons to her brothers and sisters, and later considered her faith important to mask the guilt of being born into a wealthy family.[4]

As an adult, Emily regularly attended opera and public lectures, and employed a social secretary. She disliked alcohol and tobacco and forbade either of them to be consumed in her house.[5]

Philanthropy

Vanderbilt Sloane was enthusiastic about donating money to good causes and social demands.[5] She was a supporter of educationalist Martha Berry and made many financial contributions to Berry College; correspondence between the two women was later made public.[6] A major activity of hers was the restoration of the Theodore Roosevelt House at 28 East 20th Street. She was president of the Women's Roosevelt Memorial Association for many years. She was president of the Home Thrift Association, supporting a Yorkville settlement house, and was president for 43 years of the Three Arts Club, a residence for women studying music, painting and drama. She was a founder of the Parents' League of New York in 1914, and later became its president. She was the president of the Peoples' Chorus of New York, and a commissioner of the Girl Scouts of Westchester County.[5]

After her husband's death in 1949, she donated the family's 277-acre Mount Kisco estate, Dellwood, to the controversial Moral Rearmament movement.[5][7]

Residence

John Henry Hammond House, home of Emily Vanderbilt Sloane Hammond

Emily's parents commissioned the architectural firm of Carrère and Hastings to design a mansion for the couple at 9 East 91st, on land purchased from Andrew Carnegie; it was known as the John Henry Hammond House. The house has since been restored and is now the Consulate General of the Russian Federation.[8]

The reception rooms on the second floor – a ballroom,[9] library and music room – routinely sat three hundred guests, at concerts often featuring Vanderbilt Sloane on piano, and her son John Hammond, Jr. playing violin or viola. Many greats of jazz played in the house, including Benny Goodman[10] Rachel Hammond Breck noted that her mother's parties never went for long, mainly due to her refusal to serve alcohol.[10]

Personal life

On April 5, 1899, she married John Henry Hammond I at St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church. He was the brother of Ogden H. Hammond, U.S. Ambassador to Spain.[3][11][12] Together, they had four children:

• Adele Sloane Hammond (1902–1998), who married John K. Olyphant Jr. in 1927.[13] After his death in 1973,[14] she married John Josiah Emery, Jr. (1898–1976).[15]
• Alice Frances Hammond (1905–1978), who married George Arthur Victor Duckworth (1901–1986) in March 1927.[16] They divorced in January 1942.[17] She married Benny Goodman (d. 1986)[18] in March 1942.[19]
• Rachel Hammond (1908–2007),[20] who married Richard L. McClenahan.[21] They divorced in February 1942 and she married John Gordon Ferrier Speiden (1900−1970) in May 1942.[22] They also divorced and she married Manley du Pont Breck (1906−1972) in 1961.[23]
• John Henry Hammond II (1910–1987), who married Jemison "Jemy" McBride in 1941. They divorced in 1948 and in 1949, he married Esme O'Brien Sarnoff.[3][24]

John Henry Hammond I died in 1949.[25] Emily died on February 22, 1970 at her home at 136 East 64th Street, aged 95.[1][26]

Descendants

Her son John Henry Hammond became a jazz impresario and record producer.[24] Grandson John P. Hammond is a blues singer and guitarist. Daughter Alice Frances Hammond married jazz musician Benny Goodman. Her daughter, Adele Hammond, is the paternal grandmother of actor Timothy Olyphant (b. 1968).

Publications

• The Golden Treasury of the Bible (1919)
• Comfort Thoughts for Those at Home (1923)
• A Trip that Kindles (1953)

References

Citations

1. "Emily Vanderbilt Hammond, 95, Dies". New York Times. February 23, 1970.
2. "William D. Sloane Dies In Aiken, S. C.; New York Merchant and Financier Expires After a Short Illness, at 71. A Trustee Of Columbia. Endowed with His Wife the Sloane Hospital for Women. A Benefactor of Yale". New York Times. March 20, 1915.
3. Dunstan Prial (2007). The Producer: John Hammond and the Soul of American Music. p. 9. ISBN 9780312426002.
4. Prial 2007, p. 21.
5. "Big Old Houses: The Russian Consulate". New York Social Diary.
6. "Martha Berry Digital Archive - Browse Items".
7. "John Hammond : Justice and music". New York Daily News. April 14, 1999. Retrieved January 27, 2016.
8. Guide to New York City Landmarks. John Wiley & Sons. 2008. p. 178. ISBN 978-0-470-28963-1.
9. "Purchase complete". The New York Times. 10 August 1975. p. 207. Retrieved 2009-10-11.
10. Moonan, Wendy (13 October 1994). "After the Revolution, A Russian Restoration". The New York Times. Retrieved 2009-10-10.
11. "Hammond – Sloane Union. Second Vanderbilt Easter Marriage Brings Many Sightseers. St. Bartholomew's Crowded. Exquisitely Decorated with Lilies and Roses. Many Elaborate Costumes". New York Times. April 6, 1899.
12. Note: Dunstan Prial's book incorrectly has their marriage as April 7, 1899
13. "ADELE S. HAMMOND WEDS J.K. OLYPHANT; A Special Train Takes Guests to Ceremony in St. Matthew's Church, Bedford. FATHER ESCORTS THE BRIDE Many Notables of Society Attend Reception at the Hammond City Home". The New York Times. 6 February 1927. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
14. Times, Special To The New York (6 October 1973). "JOHN OLYPHANT JR., HANOVER BANK AIDE". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
15. "Paid Notice: Deaths EMERY, ADELE HAMMOND OLYPHANT". The New York Times. 7 November 1998. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
16. "ALICE F. HAMMOND MARRIES A BRITON; Wed to George A.V. Duckworth of Somerset, England, in Chapel of St. Bartholomew's. CANON PRICHARD OFFICIATES Bride's Sister a Bridesmaid -- Many Society Notables at Reception at Hammond Home". The New York Times. 27 March 1927. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
17. "M.P. Granted Decree Nisi". The Times. London. 17 February 1945. pp. 2, col D.
18. Wilson, John S. (14 June 1986). "BENNY GOODMAN, KING OF SWING, IS DEAD". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
19. "MRS. DUCKWORTH WED TO BENNY GOODMAN; Bride a Daughter of J. Henry Hammonds and Nanderbilt Kin". The New York Times. 21 March 1942. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
20. "Paid Notice: Deaths BRECK, RACHEL HAMMOND". The New York Times. 3 January 2007. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
21. "MISS R. HAMMOND ENGAGED TO MARRY; Kin of Commodore Vanderbilt to Wed Richard L. McClenahan, Member of Princeton Club. LOUISE HUNT BETROTHED Milton (Mass.) Girl to Marry Chales P. Whitehead of London. a Graduate of Oxford". The New York Times. 17 December 1928. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
22. "MRS. R. H. M'LENAHAN MARRIED IN ARIZONA; Daughter of John H. Hammonds Wed to John G. F. Speiden". The New York Times. 1 May 1942. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
23. Times, Special To The New York (25 November 1961). "Mrs. Speiden Wed To Manley Breck". The New York Times. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
24. "John Hammond, 76, Critic and Discoverer Of Pop Talent, Dies". New York Times. July 11, 1987.
25. "Service Here, Abroad For John H. Hammond". New York Times. July 2, 1949.
26. "Emily Hammond". Daily Independent Journal. United Press International. February 23, 1970 – via Newspapers.com.

Sources

• Prial, Dunstan (2007). The Producer: John Hammond and the Soul of American Music. Macmillan. ISBN 978-1-429-93132-8.