Robert Henry McCurdy

Robert Henry McCurdy
Born 1800
Lyme, Connecticut, U.S.
Died April 5, 1880
Resting place Green-Wood Cemetery, Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Occupation Businessman
Political party Whig Party
Religion Presbyterian
Spouse(s) Gertrude Mercer Lee
Children Richard Aldrich McCurdy
Parent(s) Richard McCurdy
Ursula Griswold
Relatives Matthew Griswold (maternal great-grandfather)
Charles J. McCurdy (brother)

Robert Henry McCurdy (1800 – April 5, 1880) was an American businessman and political candidate. He amassed great wealth with partner Herman D. Aldrich as the co-founder of McCurdy and Aldrich, a commission firm which traded Southern cotton and other dry goods prior to the Panic of 1857. He lost his bid for Congress as a Whig in the late 1850s, and served as Commissary-General for the State of New York during the American Civil War.

Early life

Robert Henry McCurdy was born in 1800 in Lyme, Connecticut.[1] He was of Scotch Irish descent on his paternal side; as early as 1503, King James VI leased the vast majority of the Isle of Bute to the MacKurerdy family (later McCurdy). His paternal grandfather, John McCurdy, emigrated to the United States from Ireland prior to the Declaration of Independence.[1] His father, Richard McCurdy, served in the Connecticut House of Representatives.[1] His mother, Ursula Griswold, was of English descent. His maternal great-grandfather, Matthew Griswold, served as the 17th Governor of Connecticut from 1784 to 1786.[1]

His brother, Charles J. McCurdy, went on to serve as the United States Chargé to the Austrian Empire from 1850 to 1852.[2]

Career

McCurdy moved to New York City in 1814, and started working for Stephen Lockwood, a merchant.[3] Shortly after, he was sent for work for Lockwood in Petersburg, Virginia, where he purchased cotton on commission.[3] In 1820, McCurdy co-founded McCurdy and Aldrich, a dry goods commission firm, with Herman D. Aldrich.[4] It later became known as McCurdy, Aldrich and Spencer.[4] They retired with great wealth prior to the Panic of 1857.[3]

McCurdy ran for the 35th United States Congress as a Whig in 1857, but he lost to Democratic politician John Cochrane.[3] During the American Civil War, he was a staunch supporter of the Union,[1] and he served as Commissary-General for the State of New York.[1] Additionally, McCurdy made contributions to the Union Defense Committee of New York.[1] It was also during the war that he became a founding member of the Union League Club of New York.[1]

McCurdy was a co-founder of the Continental Fire Insurance Company.[1] He was also a founding trustee of the Mutual Life Insurance Company.[3] He also served on the Board of Directors of the Merchants Exchange Bank and the American Exchange National Bank.[1]

Personal life

McCurdy married Gertrude Mercer Lee.[1] They had a son, Richard Aldrich McCurdy.[1][4]

Death

McCurdy died on April 5, 1880.[5] His funeral was held as a joint ceremony with Herman D. Aldrich, who died on the same day, at the Calvary Church.[5] The funeral was attended by Peter Cooper, William E. Dodge, Frederick Theodore Frelinghuysen, James Watson Webb, Thurlow Weed, etc.[6] His sermon was given by George L. Prentiss, a Presbyterian pastor of the Union Theological Seminary.[7] He was buried at the Green-Wood Cemetery next to Aldrich.[5]

McCurdy's portrait was commissioned by the Chamber of Commerce of the State of New York in 1886.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 Weeks, Lyman Horace (1898). Prominent Families of New York: Being an Account in Biographical Form of Individuals and Families Distinguished as Representatives of the Social, Professional and Civic Life of New York City. New York, New York: The Historical Company. p. 386. Retrieved December 3, 2015.
  2. ↑ Salisbury, Edward Elbridge (1892). The Griswold Family of Connecticut. New Haven, Connecticut: Tuttle, Morehouse & Taylor. p. 333. Retrieved December 3, 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Some Hit and Miss Chat. Stray Bits of Gossip From an Observer's Note Book. Portraits of Old New Yorkers. R. H. M'Curdy's Career--Business in the South". The New York Times. July 18, 1886. p. 4. Retrieved December 4, 2015 – via Newspapers.com. (subscription required (help)).
  4. 1 2 3 Ingham, John N. (1983). Biographical Dictionary of American Business Leaders. Santa Barbara, California: Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 896.
  5. 1 2 3 "The Scythe of Death. Two of New York's Oldest and Most Esteemed Citizens Laid Side By Side.". Record of the Times. Wilkes-Barr, Pennsylvania. April 8, 1880. p. 1. Retrieved December 3, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ "New York Notes.". Detroit Free Press. Detroit, Michigan. April 11, 1880. p. 16. Retrieved December 4, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ "Current Events.". The Brooklyn Daily Eagle. Brooklyn, New York. April 8, 1880. p. 2. Retrieved December 4, 2015 – via Newspapers.com.
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