DeWitt Clinton Blair

DeWitt Clinton Blair (September 6, 1833 – June 3, 1915) was an American philanthropist and industrialist.

DeWitt Clinton Blair
Born(1833-09-06)September 6, 1833
Gravel Hill, New Jersey, U.S.
DiedJune 3, 1915(1915-06-03) (aged 81)
New York City, New York, U.S.
Alma materPrinceton University
Spouse(s)
Mary Anna Kimball
​
(
m. after 1864)
ChildrenClinton Ledyard Blair
James Insley Blair
Parent(s)John Insley Blair
Nancy Ann Locke Blair

Early life

Blair was born in Gravel Hill, New Jersey (later renamed Blairstown) on September 6, 1833. He was the son of entrepreneur and railroad magnate John Insley Blair and, his wife, Nancy Ann (née Locke) Blair (1804–1888), a granddaughter of Captain Locke, who was "killed at the battle of Springfield during the revolution."[1] Among his siblings was Emma Elizabeth Blair (wife of publisher Charles Scribner I), Marcus Laurence Blair, and Aurelia Ann Blair (wife of Clarence Green Mitchell).[1]

He graduated from Princeton University with the class of 1856, and later served as a Princeton trustee from 1900-1909 and was instrumental in expanding the campus and buildings (Insley, East and Locke) of Blair Presbyterian Academy.[2] In 1907, Blair contributed towards the expansion of Blair Hall at Princeton, which had originally been built with his father's donation to the school.[3][4]

Career

Blair continued his father's varied business interests and philanthropy and was partners in Blair & Co. with Edgar L. Marston.[1]

Personal life

On April 21, 1864, he married Mary Anna Kimball (1837–1914) with whom he had three sons, two of whom survived to adulthood:

  • John Insley Blair (1865–1866), who died in infancy.
  • Clinton Ledyard Blair (1867–1949), who married Florence Osborne Jennings. After her death, he married Harriet Stewart Brown.[5]
  • James Insley Blair (1876–1939), who married Natalie Bennett Knowlton (1883–1951), the daughter of Danforth Henry Knowlton.

The Blair Estate, in Belvidere, New Jersey, was built in 1865 and purchased by Blair in 1867. The estate was purchased by the Presbyterian Synod of New Jersey for use as an old-age home. Warren County purchased the site in 1970, which is now used for the Warren County Library and other county offices.[6]

Less than a year after the passing of his wife Mary Anna on February 12, 1914,[7][8] Blair died on June 3, 1915, at the age of 81, at his home, 6 East 61st Street in New York City.[9] After a funeral at his New York residence, he was buried at Green-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn.

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References
  1. Nelson, William (1913). Nelson's Biographical Cyclopedia of New Jersey. Eastern Historical Pub. Society. p. 720. Retrieved 8 October 2019.
  2. Blair Family Papers: Biographical Sketch of John Insley Blair Archived 2007-03-12 at the Wayback Machine, accessed January 1, 2007
  3. "Blair Hall, the University’s first Collegiate Gothic dormitory", Princeton Weekly Bulletin, May 8, 2006. Accessed November 26, 2007.
  4. "From Princeton's vault: A young millionaire's scrapbook". princeton.edu. Princeton Alumni Weekly. 21 January 2016. Retrieved 16 May 2017.
  5. "C. LEDYARD BLAIR; Co-Founder of Blair & Co. Here Was Yachtsman and Former- Stock Exchange Governor" (PDF). The New York Times. 8 February 1949. Retrieved 8 October 2019.
  6. The Blair Estate, Warren County Library System, backed up by the Internet Archive as of February 16, 2005. Accessed October 15, 2018. "It was in 1865 that Kleinhans built the D. C. Blair House. It acquired that name because Kleinhans sold it to the prominent DeWitt Clinton Blair in 1867."
  7. "Died" (PDF). The New York Times. 16 February 1914. Retrieved 8 October 2019.
  8. Mary Anna Blair obituaryThe New York Times, February 6, 1914. Accessed March 12, 2008.
  9. "Died" (PDF). The New York Times. 4 June 1915. Retrieved 8 October 2019.
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