Edward Bech
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Edward Bech (May 4, 1812 – July 9, 1873) was a Danish diplomat and businessman who lived in the United States. His former home is now part of
Marist College Marist University is a private university in Poughkeepsie (town), New York, Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Marist was founded by the Marist Brothers, a Catholic Church, Catholic religious institute, in 1905 to prepare brothers for their ...
.


Early life

Bech was born on May 4, 1812, in
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
,
Denmark Denmark is a Nordic countries, Nordic country in Northern Europe. It is the metropole and most populous constituent of the Kingdom of Denmark,, . also known as the Danish Realm, a constitutionally unitary state that includes the Autonomous a ...
. He was a son of Ellen Sophie Magdalene (
née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...
Meyer) Bech (1784–1846) and Jørgen Peter
Bech Bech is a commune and small town in eastern Luxembourg. It is part of the canton of Echternach, which until 2015 was part of the district of Grevenmacher. , the town of Bech, which lies in the east of the commune, has a population of 459. Villa ...
(1782–1846), a prosperous Copenhagen merchant and friend of
Crown Prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title, crown princess, is held by a woman who is heir apparent or is married to the heir apparent. ''Crown prince ...
Frederick Frederick may refer to: People * Frederick (given name), the name Given name Nobility = Anhalt-Harzgerode = * Frederick, Prince of Anhalt-Harzgerode (1613–1670) = Austria = * Frederick I, Duke of Austria (Babenberg), Duke of Austria fro ...
.The family lived at Nybrogade 24 (until 1816 in a now demolished building at No. 22) and had an estate south of Copenhagen, near the border in territory that was later absorbed into
Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. Bech studied in Berlin and attended the
University of Copenhagen The University of Copenhagen (, KU) is a public university, public research university in Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. Founded in 1479, the University of Copenhagen is the second-oldest university in Scandinavia, after Uppsala University. ...
before going to
Lübeck Lübeck (; or ; Latin: ), officially the Hanseatic League, Hanseatic City of Lübeck (), is a city in Northern Germany. With around 220,000 inhabitants, it is the second-largest city on the German Baltic Sea, Baltic coast and the second-larg ...
for a commercial education. His younger brother was
August Willads Bech August Willads Bech (21 July 1815 - 28 May 1877) was a Danish landowner. He owned Valbygård at Slagelse and Borupgård at Borup. Valbygård is still owned by his descendants. Early life and education Bech was born on 21 July 1815 in Copenhagen ...
, who owned
Valbygård Valbygård is a manor house and estate located four kilometres northwest of Slagelse, Denmark. Created by Joachim Castenschiold in 1874 from land that had previously belonged to Antvorskov Abbey, the estate was in 1846 acquired by August Willads ...
at
Slagelse Slagelse () is a town on Zealand (Denmark), Zealand, Denmark. The town is the seat of Slagelse Municipality, and is the biggest town of the municipality. It is located 15 km east of Korsør, 16 km north-east of Skælskør, 33 km south-east of Ka ...
and Borupgård at Borup.


Career

Bech immigrated to New York in 1838 becoming the Danish Consul in New York. He remained in that position for the next twenty years and was knighted by King Frederick VII on October 5, 1854. In 1842, after working for others, Bech formed his own firm which traded in wine (where he partnered with Michael Lienau) and iron (where he worked with Joseph Tuckerman). Bech and Tuckerman invested in several joint ventures in the mid-
Hudson River The Hudson River, historically the North River, is a river that flows from north to south largely through eastern New York (state), New York state. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains at Henderson Lake (New York), Henderson Lake in the ...
area. After moving to
Poughkeepsie, New York Poughkeepsie ( ) is a city within the Poughkeepsie (town), New York, Town of Poughkeepsie, New York (state), New York. It is the county seat of Dutchess County, New York, Dutchess County, with a 2020 census population of 31,577. Poughkeepsie i ...
in 1851, he became involved with the
pig iron Pig iron, also known as crude iron, is an intermediate good used by the iron industry in the production of steel. It is developed by smelting iron ore in a blast furnace. Pig iron has a high carbon content, typically 3.8–4.7%, along with si ...
trade and started the Tuckerman and Bech Iron Company, a successful riverfront business that prospered with the advent of the
Delaware and Hudson Canal The Delaware and Hudson Canal was the first venture of the Delaware and Hudson Canal Company, which would later build the Delaware and Hudson Railway. Between 1828 and 1899, the canal's barges carried anthracite coal from the mines of northeast ...
and
Railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...
. Bech also became a partner in the
Cunard Steamship Company The Cunard Line ( ) is a British shipping and an international cruise line based at Carnival House at Southampton, England, operated by Carnival Corporation & plc#Carnival UK, Carnival UK and owned by Carnival Corporation & plc. Since 2011, ...
. After his father died in 1853, Edward inherited money which he used to invest in the Poughkeepsie Iron Company, eventually buying out Tuckerman's share in the business and purchasing another site further along the Hudson River where he could produce pig iron for sale to other foundries. At the time of his death he was President of the
Port Henry Port Henry is a Hamlet (New York), hamlet (and census-designated place) in Essex County, New York, United States. The population was 1,194 at the 2010 census. Port Henry lies on the eastern side of the town of Moriah, New York, Moriah and is app ...
Iron Company of
Lake Champlain Lake Champlain ( ; , ) is a natural freshwater lake in North America. It mostly lies between the U.S. states of New York (state), New York and Vermont, but also extends north into the Canadian province of Quebec. The cities of Burlington, Ve ...
and senior member of the firm of Edward Bech & Co of New York City.


Personal life

On September 11, 1846, Bech was married to Canadian born Charlotte ''Elizabeth'' McCarty (née Hossack) Braëm (1808–1900), the widow of Rudolph Gothard Sighart Braëm. From her first marriage, she was the mother of two sons, the Danish consul Henri Monad Braem (who married Emily Maria Forbes Bridge, a sister-in-law of Stuyvesant LeRoy). Together, they were the parents of two daughters and two sons: * Mary Elizabeth Bech (1847–1900), who married Count Karl Heinrich von Linden (1838–1910) in 1877; Linden served as High Chamberlin under
King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...
Charles I of Württemberg Charles (; 6 March 18236 October 1891) was King of Württemberg from 25 June 1864 until his death in 1891. Charles I married Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia in 1846 and ascended to the throne in 1864. Despite their marriage, the couple h ...
. * Sophie Marguerite Bech (1848–1935), who married Danish nobleman Carl Arthur O'Neill Oxholm (1843–1914), eldest son of Oscar O'Neill Oxholm of Rosenfeldt Manor at
Vordingborg Vordingborg () is a market town and old ferry town on the south coast of the island of Zealand in Denmark. Because of three large estates surrounding the town, a coherent urban development has not been possible, which is the reason why three sat ...
, in 1872. * Edward Michael Hossack Bech (1850–1862), who died young. * George Albert Bech (1856–1890), who married Mary Stevens Strong (1855–1880), a granddaughter of
John Austin Stevens John Austin Stevens Jr. (January 21, 1827 – June 16, 1910) was a leader of business, an adviser of government and a student of the American Revolution. While he was born to a prominent banking family with political connections, it was his inte ...
, in 1879; Mary and their son, Edward Henri Peter Bech, died during childbirth. After her death, he married Julia May (1859–1954) of Baltimore, a daughter of
U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...
Henry May, in 1887. Her sister, Lillian, later married
William Bagot, 4th Baron Bagot William Bagot, 4th Baron Bagot JP (19 January 1857 – 23 December 1932), was a British peer and Conservative politician and art collector. Early life Bagot was the eldest son of two sons and five daughters born to William Bagot, 3rd Baron Bag ...
. After his death, Julia married William Babcock and moved away from Rosenlund. Bech died from
tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...
on July 9, 1873, in
Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...
,
Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...
. His body was returned to the United States and he was buried at
Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery The Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery is a rural cemetery located in Poughkeepsie, New York and includes the gravesites of several notable figures. It also has a crematory. The forty-four acres of land used for the cemetery were purchased by Matthew Vas ...
in a mausoleum was designed by
Detlef Lienau Detlef Lienau (17 February 1818 – 29 August 1887) was a German architect born in Holstein. He is credited with having introduced the Rococo, French style to American building construction, notably the mansard roof and all its decorative flourish ...
in 1862 for Bech's eldest son Edward who died young. At his death, Bech left an estate valued at $1,837,342 of which one third went to his son George, and 1/9 each to his daughters. The remaining third was left in trust for his widow from which she received about $25,000 per year. His son George continued managing his businesses until his death in 1890.


Hudson River estate

In 1851, Bech moved his family to Poughkeepsie where they lived at 57 Market Street, across from the
Court House A courthouse or court house is a structure which houses judicial functions for a governmental entity such as a state, region, province, county, prefecture, regency, or similar governmental unit. A courthouse is home to one or more courtrooms, ...
, for nearly ten years. In 1863, the Bechs purchased a 65-acre country estate in
Poughkeepsie, New York Poughkeepsie ( ) is a city within the Poughkeepsie (town), New York, Town of Poughkeepsie, New York (state), New York. It is the county seat of Dutchess County, New York, Dutchess County, with a 2020 census population of 31,577. Poughkeepsie i ...
known as Hickory Grove from David Ely Bartlett, who had operated a school for the deaf on the property which formerly was the farm of Abraham Van Anden. Between 1863 and 1868, he pieced together five parcels, which the Bech's renamed Rosenlund. He hired Danish architect
Detlef Lienau Detlef Lienau (17 February 1818 – 29 August 1887) was a German architect born in Holstein. He is credited with having introduced the Rococo, French style to American building construction, notably the mansard roof and all its decorative flourish ...
, the younger brother of his wine trading partner, Michael Lienau, who designed a gatehouse, gardener's cottage, carriage house, and a main house in the
Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...
style, but died before the main house was built. The Rosenlund estate passed to his widow Elizabeth and, after her death in May 1900, it was willed to her son Henri, who died in
Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...
in February 1900, therefore, it passed to her granddaughter, Pauline Elizabeth (née Braem) von Nauendorf (1871–1916). After the Braem estate was settled in 1905, Pauline sold Rosenlund to Brother Louis Zephiriny of the
Marist Brothers The Marist Brothers of the Schools, commonly known as simply the Marist Brothers, is an international community of Catholic Church, Catholic religious institute of Religious brother, brothers. In 1817, Marcellin Champagnat, a Marist priest from Fr ...
in 1908, which increased their property to and eventually became
Marist College Marist University is a private university in Poughkeepsie (town), New York, Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Marist was founded by the Marist Brothers, a Catholic Church, Catholic religious institute, in 1905 to prepare brothers for their ...
.


References


External links


Photograph of Bech Family at Rosenlund
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bech, Edward 1812 births 1873 deaths University of Copenhagen alumni Danish emigrants to the United States 19th-century Danish businesspeople Consuls for Denmark in the United States People from Poughkeepsie, New York Burials at Poughkeepsie Rural Cemetery