James Blanchard Clews
James Blanchard Clews | |
|---|---|
| Born | Error: Invalid birth date for calculating age Dunkirk, New York, U.S. |
| Died | 17 December 1934 (aged 75) Manhattan, New York City, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Railroad executive, banker |
| Known for | Senior partner at Henry Clews & Co., president of Toledo, Ann Arbor and Northern Michigan Railway Company |
James Blanchard Clews (August 4, 1859 – December 17, 1934) was a prominent American figure in the railroad and banking sectors.
Early life
Born on August 4, 1859, in Dunkirk, New York, Clews was the son of John Clews and Sabina (née Dayman) Clews. His elder sibling, John Henry Clews, also pursued a career in banking.
His family connections included his uncle, the financier and writer Henry Clews. Among his distinguished relatives were cousins such as Elsie Clews Parsons, married to U.S. Congressman Herbert Parsons, and the artist Henry Clews Jr., known for residing at the Château de la Napoule in France. On his paternal side, his grandparents were Bessie (née Kendrick) Clews and James Clews, who was a prosperous manufacturer of Staffordshire pottery.
Clews completed his education at Chamberlain College in Randolph, New York in 1888.
Career
Clews gained practical experience within the administrative offices of the Red Line Transit Company and the Union Steamboat Company based in Buffalo, New York, focusing on railroad and transportation operations. He later took on the role of president during the restructuring phase of the Toledo, Ann Arbor and Northern Michigan Railway Company. As chairman of the Stockholder's Committee for the Ontario and Western Railroad, he played a pivotal role in terminating the Voting Trust after prolonged efforts.
His leadership positions extended to serving as chairman of the board for Standard Cordage, president of the Cannabis Manufacturing Company, and holding directorships at Irving Publishing Company and New Amsterdam Casualty Company. Additionally, he was a trustee for East River Savings Institution and acted as governor for the Northwest Dispensary.
Joining his uncle’s financial enterprise, Henry Clews & Co., located at 15 Broad Street in Manhattan’s financial district, he became a partner. Upon Henry Clews’s passing in 1923, James assumed the position of senior partner.
Personal life
In November 1908, Clews married Leta Alicia (née Nichols) Livingston (1865–1919) in Bernardsville, New Jersey. Leta was previously married to Oscar Frederick Livingston and was the daughter of Washington Romaine Nichols and Alicia (née MacKay) Nichols. She was also a great-granddaughter of General Benjamin Romaine. The couple resided at 1039 Fifth Avenue and had one daughter:
- Leta Clews (1912–1991), who wed Seymour LeGrand Cromwell Jr. (1902–1965), son of former New York Stock Exchange president Seymour L. Cromwell, in 1936. Leta Cromwell became known for her philanthropic work in St. Thomas, U.S.V.I.
Following Leta’s death, Clews remarried Mary Ann Payne (1890–1973), daughter of Mrs. Edward Raphael Payne from Baltimore, on October 2, 1926, at New York City’s Plaza Hotel. Mary Ann traced her lineage back to Sir Robert Payne, an early settler of Virginia. The couple maintained a summer residence named La Lanterne in Brookville on Long Island.
Clews passed away at his home located at 1 East 62nd Street in Manhattan on December 17, 1934. His funeral took place at St. Bartholomew's, after which he was interred at Locust Valley Cemetery in Locust Valley, New York. After his demise, Mary Ann remarried multiple times: first to banker George Blumenthal, who presided over the Metropolitan Museum of Art; then to General Ralph K. Robertson; and finally to Russian Baron Charles P. von Wrangell-Rokassowsky. She died in 1973 at age 84.
At the time of his death, Clews’s estate was appraised at $1,690,064; notably, his net worth had been $4 million in 1929.