John Adams Morgan (September 17, 1930 – January 23, 2025) was an American

sailor A sailor, seaman, mariner, or seafarer is a person who works aboard a watercraft as part of its crew, and may work in any one of a number of different fields that are related to the operation and maintenance of a ship. While the term ''sailor'' ...

, Olympic champion and the founder of Morgan Joseph. His father, Henry Sturgis Morgan, was the co-founder of

Morgan Stanley Morgan Stanley is an American multinational investment bank and financial services company headquartered at 1585 Broadway in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. With offices in 42 countries and more than 80,000 employees, the firm's clients in ...

and his great-grandfather was

J. P. Morgan John Pierpont Morgan Sr. (April 17, 1837 – March 31, 1913) was an American financier and investment banker who dominated corporate finance on Wall Street throughout the Gilded Age and Progressive Era. As the head of the banking firm that ...

, founder of J.P. Morgan & Co.

Early life

John Adams Morgan was born on September 17, 1930, in Oyster Bay on Long Island to Henry Sturgis Morgan and Catherine Lovering Adams. His mother was the daughter of Frances Lovering and

Charles Francis Adams III Charles Francis Adams III (August 2, 1866 – June 10, 1954) was an American lawyer and politician, who served as the 44th United States Secretary of the Navy under President Herbert Hoover from 1929 to 1933. He was the captain of the '' Resolut ...

, the

U.S. The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

Secretary of the Navy The Secretary of the Navy (SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department within the United States Department of Defense. On March 25, 2025, John Phelan was confirm ...

under

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...

Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was the 31st president of the United States, serving from 1929 to 1933. A wealthy mining engineer before his presidency, Hoover led the wartime Commission for Relief in Belgium and ...

, and a descendant of U.S. Presidents

John Adams John Adams (October 30, 1735 – July 4, 1826) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father and the second president of the United States from 1797 to 1801. Before Presidency of John Adams, his presidency, he was a leader of ...

and his son

John Quincy Adams John Quincy Adams (; July 11, 1767 – February 23, 1848) was the sixth president of the United States, serving from 1825 to 1829. He previously served as the eighth United States secretary of state from 1817 to 1825. During his long diploma ...

. John attended the

Groton School Groton School is a Private school, private, college-preparatory school, college-preparatory, day school, day and boarding school located in Groton, Massachusetts, United States. It is affiliated with the Episcopal Church (United States), Episcop ...

, graduating in 1949. He then attended

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

, graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in 1953.

Career

Olympic career

Morgan competed at the

1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics (, ), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad (, ) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952, were an international multi-sport event held from 19 July to 3 August 1952 in Helsinki, Finland. After Japan declared in ...

Helsinki Helsinki () is the Capital city, capital and most populous List of cities and towns in Finland, city in Finland. It is on the shore of the Gulf of Finland and is the seat of southern Finland's Uusimaa region. About people live in the municipali ...

, where he won a gold medal in the '' 6 metre class'' with the boat ''Llanoria''.

Business career

From 1956 to 1966, Morgan was a partner in Dominick & Dominick. From 1966 to 1982, he worked at

Smith Barney Morgan Stanley Wealth Management is an American Multinational corporation, multinational financial services corporation specializing in Broker, retail brokerage. It is the wealth & asset management division of Morgan Stanley. On January 13, 2009, ...

, serving as a senior vice president in charge of the corporate finance department, and as vice chairman of

in charge of the firm's merger and acquisition activities, a member of the executive committee and a director of Smith Barney International Inc. In 1982, Morgan, the great-grandson of

, established an investment banking firm known as Morgan Lewis Githens & Ahn, Inc. In 1985, it organized a leveraged buyout with the

Olin Corporation Olin Corporation is an American manufacturer of ammunition, chlorine, and sodium hydroxide. The company traces its roots to two companies, both founded in 1892: Franklin W. Olin's Equitable Powder Company and the Mathieson Alkali Works. Acciden ...

, an industrial chemical concern based in

Stamford, Connecticut Stamford () is a city in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States, outside of New York City. It is the sixth-most populous city in New England. Stamford is also the largest city in the Western Connecticut Planning Region, Connecticut, Weste ...

, of Olin's Ecusta cigarette paper business. In 1987, the firm assisted with the acquisition of Service America Corp. from Alleco Inc., formerly Allegheny Beverage Corporation, for $450 million in cash and securities. In 2001, the firm and Morgan's broker-dealer license, was bought by the newly established MLGA Holdings. Morgan, along with Fred Joseph (1937–2009), the former president and

chief executive officer A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

of the investment bank

Drexel Burnham Lambert Drexel Burnham Lambert Inc. was an American multinational investment bank that was forced into bankruptcy in 1990 due to its involvement in illegal activities in the junk bond market, driven by senior executive Michael Milken. At its height, i ...

during the 1980s, co-founded the new entity, which became known as Morgan Joseph LLC in 2002, sought to create a high-yield business for mid-size companies and take advantage of investment bankers who were laid off during the technology stock bubble of 2000. After the new firm was established, Morgan served as chairman of the board of directors of Morgan Lewis. In December 2010, Morgan Joseph LLC merged with Tri-Artisan Partners LLC to form Morgan Joseph TriArtisan Group, Inc. In April 2011,

Apollo Global Management Apollo Global Management, Inc. is an American asset management firm that primarily invests in alternative assets. , the company had $548 billion of assets under management, including $392 billion invested in credit, including mezzanine capita ...

invested in Morgan Joseph TriArtisan, and registered as a brokerage firm to find clients and deals for its buyout and hedge funds.

Board of trustees

From 1969, Morgan served as a director of Upham & Co., Inc. From 1989 until January 1998, he was a director of TriMas Corporation until it was acquired by Metaldyne Corporation. He then served as a director of Metaldyne from 1984 until its recapitalization in November 2000. As of 2001, he was a director of Furnishings International Inc. and a trustee of the Provident Loan Society of New York. He was also a director of the

Morgan Library & Museum The Morgan Library & Museum (originally known as the Pierpont Morgan Library and colloquially known the Morgan) is a museum and research library in New York City, New York, U.S. Completed in 1906 as the private library of the banker J. P. Morg ...

Personal life

Marriages and children

Morgan was married five times: In 1953, he married his first wife, Elizabeth Robbins Choate (1953–1957), the daughter of Robert Burnett Choate and the sister of Robert B. Choate Jr. * Before their divorce in 1957, they had John Adams Morgan Jr. His second marriage was in 1962, to Tania Goss, an alumna of the

Ethel Walker School The Ethel Walker School, also commonly referred to as "Walker's", is a private, college preparatory, boarding and day school for girls in grades 6 through 12 plus postgraduate located in Simsbury, Connecticut. History Founded in 1911, the ...

and

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States. The college be ...

who was the daughter of Natalie Holbrook and Chauncey Porter Goss (d. 1964) of

Middlebury, Connecticut Middlebury is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 7,574 at the 2020 census. The town is part of the Naugatuck Valley Planning Region. It is a suburb of the nearby city of Waterbury to its south, and is on ...

. * in 1964 they had a son, Chauncey Goss Morgan, who had a career in management primarily of manufacturing businesses. His third marriage was to Anne Chute in 1992. In the late 1990s, he met his fourth wife, Sonja Tremont, now known as one of the stars of the

Bravo Bravo(s) or The Bravo(s) may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Groups and labels * Bravo (band), a Russian rock band * Bravo (Spanish group), represented Spain at Eurovision 1984 * Bravo Music, an American concert band music publishing compa ...

television show, ''

The Real Housewives of New York City ''The Real Housewives of New York City'', abbreviated ''RHONY'', is an American reality television series that premiered on Bravo on March 4, 2008. Developed as the second installment of ''The Real Housewives'' franchise, it has aired fifteen s ...

''. Morgan and Tremont were said to have met at San Pietro, an Italian restaurant in New York City on Madison Avenue where she was a hostess. After running into each other again in Aspen, they had dinner together and later that night, he proposed to her. They were married a few months later in 1998. * Before their divorce seven years later in 2006, they had one daughter together, Quincy Adams Morgan. His fifth wife was Connie H. Morgan, to whom he was married from 2018 until his death in 2025. They did not share any children.

Residences

Morgan owned Caritas Island, a 3.5 acre private island compound off the coast of

with a 26-room, 14,000 square foot home originally built in 1906. In 2011, Morgan listed the island for sale for $18.9 million.

Death

Morgan died on 23 January 2025, at the age of 94.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Morgan, John Adams 1930 births 2025 deaths People from Oyster Bay (town), New York Sportspeople from New York (state) American male sailors (sport) Sailors at the 1952 Summer Olympics – 6 Metre Olympic gold medalists for the United States in sailing Medalists at the 1952 Summer Olympics Morgan family Adams family Groton School alumni Yale University alumni