Frederic Christopher "Buck" Dumaine Jr. (September 5, 1903 – March 13, 1997) was an American business executive who served as the president of the

New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad , commonly known as The Consolidated, or simply as the New Haven, was a railroad that operated principally in the New England region of the United States from 1872 to 1968. Founded by the merger of ...

Avis Rent a Car System Avis Car Rental, LLC is a Global car rental company headquartered in Parsippany, New Jersey. Along with Budget Rent a Car, Budget Truck Rental and Zipcar, Avis is a unit of Avis Budget Group. Avis Budget Group operates the Avis brand in ...

, and the

Delaware and Hudson Railroad The Delaware and Hudson Railway (D&H) is a railroad that operates in the Northeastern United States. In 1991, after more than 150 years as an independent railroad, the D&H was purchased by the Canadian Pacific Railway (CP). CP, which would it ...

Early life

Dumaine was born on September 5, 1903 in

Concord, Massachusetts Concord () is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. In the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the town population was 18,491. The United States Census Bureau considers Concord part of Greater Boston. The town center is n ...

. He graduated from the

Pomfret School Pomfret School is an independent, coeducational, college preparatory boarding and day school in Pomfret, Connecticut, United States, serving 350 students in grades 9 through 12 and post-graduates. Founded in 1894, it is located in the Pomfret St ...

in 1923. Dumaine was a standout hockey player at Pomfret and also played for the Boston Hockey Club and the

Boston Athletic Association The Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) is a non-profit dedicated to organized sports, with a focus on running, in the Greater Boston area. The B.A.A. hosts such events as the Boston Marathon, the B.A.A. 5K, the B.A.A. 10K, the B.A.A. Half Mar ...

Business career

Dumaine began working for his father as an errand boy and eventually became the #2 man in his business empire. Following the elder Dumaine's death in 1951, Frederic succeeded his father as president of the

and the

Amoskeag Company The Amoskeag Company was a privately owned American holding and operating company. It was calved off from the Amoskeag Manufacturing Company (AMC) of New Hampshire in 1925, which went bankrupt a decade later. Through its subsidiary the Pillowt ...

. In 1954, Patrick B. McGinnis won a

proxy fight A proxy fight, proxy contest or proxy battle is an unfriendly contest for control over an organization. The event usually occurs when a corporation's stockholders develop opposition to some aspect of the corporate governance, often focusing on dir ...

for control of the New Haven and succeed Dumaine as president. In 1956, Dumaine was part of a group of Boston businessmen who purchased Avis Rent a Car System. He served as the company's treasurer until 1957, when he was elevated to the role of president. In 1962, Amoskeag sold control of Avis to

Lazard Freres Lazard Inc. (formerly known as Lazard Ltd and Lazard Frères & Co.) is a financial advisory and asset management firm that engages in investment banking, asset management and other financial services, primarily with institutional clients. It is ...

and Robert Townsend succeeded Dumaine as the head of the company. In 1966, Dumaine was elected chairman of the Delaware & Hudson Company; the parent company of the

. Seven months later he was also given the position of president and chief executive officer. He resigned the following year prior to a vote on a merger with the

Norfolk and Western Railway The Norfolk and Western Railway , commonly called the N&W, was a US class I railroad, formed by more than 200 railroad mergers between 1838 and 1982. It was headquartered in Roanoke, Virginia, for most of its existence. Its motto was "Precisio ...

, which a majority of the D&H board supported, but Dumaine opposed. Dumaine also served as an executive with the

American Woolen Company The American Woolen Company is a designer, manufacturer and distributor of men's and women's worsted and woolen fabrics. Based in Stafford Springs, Connecticut, the company operates from the 160-year-old Warren Mills, which it acquired from Loro P ...

Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company The Lehigh Coal and Navigation Company (LCAN) (1988–2010) was a modern-day anthracite coal mining company headquartered in Pottsville, Pennsylvania. It acquired many properties and relaunched the Lehigh Coal Companies brand in 1988. The LCAN ra ...

Waltham Watch Company The Waltham Watch Company, also known as the American Waltham Watch Co. and the American Watch Co., was a company that produced about 40 million watches, clocks, speedometers, compasses, time delay fuses, and other precision instruments in the Un ...

Fanny Farmer Fanny Farmer was an American candy manufacturer and retailer. Fanny Farmer was started in Rochester, New York, by Canadian politician and businessman Frank O'Connor in 1919, and grew to over 400 stores before being bought and consolidated. His ...

Boston Edison Company The Boston Edison Company (BECo) was incorporated as the Edison Electric Illuminating Company of Boston in 1886.; citing: International Directory of Company Histories, Vol. 12. St. James Press, 1996. It was one of the earliest electric utility com ...

Bangor and Aroostook Railroad The Bangor and Aroostook Railroad was a United States railroad company that brought rail service to Aroostook County, Maine, Aroostook County in northern Maine. Brightly-painted BAR boxcars attracted national attention in the 1950s. First-genera ...

Pittsburg and Shawmut Railroad The Pittsburg and Shawmut Railroad , also known as the Shawmut Line, was a Short-line railroad, short line railroad company operating passenger and freight service on standard gauge track in central and southwestern Pennsylvania. Since 2004, it ...

Boston and Maine Railroad The Boston and Maine Railroad was a United States, U.S. Class I railroad in northern New England. It was chartered in 1835, and became part of what was the Pan Am Railways network in 1983 (most of which was purchased by CSX in 2022). At the e ...

, Boston Garden-Arena Corporation, and Springfield and Eastern Street Railway.

Politics

From 1963 to 1965, Dumaine was the Chairman of the

Massachusetts Republican Party The Massachusetts Republican Party (MassGOP) is the Massachusetts branch of the U.S. Republican Party. Originally, the party was formed in 1854. Soon after its founding, the party quickly became the dominant party in the state with Massachuse ...

. He put together an aggressive grassroots organization that helped the party win the offices of

Governor A governor is an politician, administrative leader and head of a polity or Region#Political regions, political region, in some cases, such as governor-general, governors-general, as the head of a state's official representative. Depending on the ...

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

, and

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

in the

1964 Massachusetts elections A Massachusetts general election was held on November 3, 1964, in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The election included: * #Statewide elections, statewide elections for United States Senate, United States Senator, Governor of Massachusetts, ...

Personal life

Dumaine donated the land for the original Our Lady of Good Voyage Chapel in Boston. He died on March 13, 1997 in

Weston, Massachusetts Weston is an affluent town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, located approximately west of Boston. At the time of the 2020 United States census, the population of Weston was 11,851. Weston was incorporated in 1713, and protect ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dumaine, Frederic C. 1903 births 1997 deaths 20th-century American railroad executives American transportation businesspeople Boston Athletic Association ice hockey players Delaware and Hudson Railway Massachusetts Republican Party chairs New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad People from Weston, Massachusetts Pomfret School alumni

Early life

Business career

Politics

Personal life

See also

References