Charles Hayden (banker)

Charles Hayden
Born	Template:Birth date Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died	January 8, 1937(1937-01-08) (aged 66)
Occupation(s)	Financier, banker, entrepreneur, philanthropist
Known for	Senior partner of Hayden, Stone & Co.; philanthropy including the Charles Hayden Foundation and Hayden Planetarium

Charles Hayden (July 8, 1870 – January 8, 1937) was a prominent American financier, banker, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. As the senior partner of Hayden, Stone & Co., he wielded considerable influence in the financial sector; James W. Gerard described him as one of those "too occupied to hold office themselves, yet who decide who shall." Hayden significantly contributed to the funding of copper mines and smelting operations in Arizona, with the smelting community of Hayden, Arizona named in his honor.

Background

Charles Hayden was born in Boston, Massachusetts to Josiah Willard Hayden, a merchant specializing in shoes and leather goods. He attended public schools before pursuing higher education at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he focused on mining investments and graduated in 1890. After spending a year traveling, he began his professional journey as a clerk at Clark, Ward, & Co., a Boston banking institution.

Remaining unmarried throughout his life, Hayden lived at the Savoy-Plaza Hotel in Manhattan. His personal interests included participating in steeplechase events and playing bridge.

Career

In 1892, Hayden joined forces with fellow Clark, Ward & Co. clerk Galen L. Stone to found Hayden, Stone & Co. He earned recognition for his firm decision-making and brokerage expertise. Foreseeing the rise of electrification, he amassed wealth by investing strategically in copper mining ventures. The company grew from its Boston origins to establish a New York City branch in 1906.

Hayden's influence extended beyond brokerage; he served as director for 89 companies during his lifetime and held 58 directorships at the time of his passing. He was instrumental in developing major copper mining enterprises such as Utah Copper, Chino Mines, Ray Consolidated Copper Company, and Nevada Consolidated Copper Corporation, facilitating their consolidation into the Kennecott Copper Company. Additionally, he chaired both the International Nickel Company and the Hotel Waldorf-Astoria Corporation.

Philanthropy

A committed philanthropist throughout his life, Hayden contributed US$100,000 annually to the American Red Cross during World War I. In 1926, he anonymously donated US$100,000 to establish an uptown New York City branch of the Boys Club. Responding to President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s appeal in 1933, he led the Boy Scout Maintenance Fund for the Boy Scouts of America.

His charitable efforts also extended to aiding poverty relief and supporting cultural organizations. In 1934, Hayden gifted US$150,000 to New York's American Museum of Natural History for creating a planetarium that now bears his name. The following year, he chaired a fundraising committee that secured $9.44 million to sustain charitable hospitals across New York. He was also part of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s governing corporation.

His enduring contributions are commemorated by the Hayden Planetarium in New York, the Charles Hayden Planetarium at Boston's Museum of Science, and through the establishment of the Charles Hayden Foundation.

Charles Hayden Foundation

Upon his death in 1937, Charles Hayden’s estate designated roughly US$50 million (adjusted for present-day value) to create the Charles Hayden Foundation. This organization is dedicated to enhancing educational opportunities and promoting welfare for boys and young men. The Foundation annually distributes between US$10 million and US$20 million supporting youth initiatives within the Boston and New York metropolitan regions. Its funding has also supported major projects such as the Charles Hayden Library at MIT and residential buildings named Hayden Hall at Stevens Institute of Technology and New York University School of Law.