John Joy Edson (May 17, 1846 – July 15, 1935), was president of the
Washington Loan and Trust Company,
Equitable Co-operative Building Association
The Equitable Co-operative Building Association is a historic building, located at 915 F Street, Northwest, Washington, D.C., in the Penn Quarter neighborhood. As of November 2018, it houses the second location of the restaurant Succotash.
Histor ...
, treasurer of the
American Geographical Society
The American Geographical Society (AGS) is an organization of professional geographers, founded in 1851 in New York City. Most fellows of the society are United States, Americans, but among them have always been a significant number of fellows f ...
, and Chairman of the Board and treasurer of the
National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society, headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, is one of the largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations in the world.
Founded in 1888, its interests include geography, archaeology, natural sc ...
.
Biography
John Joy Edson was born on May 17, 1846, in
Jefferson, Ohio
Jefferson is a village in Ashtabula County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. The population was 3,226 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Ashtabula micropolitan area, northeast of Cleveland.
Modern-day Jefferson sports the world' ...
. He attended public schools in Ohio.
At 14, he enlisted in the
61st New York Volunteers serving in the
Civil War
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
in the Virginia and Maryland campaigns. He was a clerk in the office of the
Comptroller of the Currency
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) is an independent bureau within the United States Department of the Treasury that was established by the National Currency Act of 1863 and serves to corporate charter, charter, bank regulation ...
, from 1863 to 1875.
He graduated from
Columbia Law School
Columbia Law School (CLS) is the Law school in the United States, law school of Columbia University, a Private university, private Ivy League university in New York City.
The school was founded in 1858 as the Columbia College Law School. The un ...
in 1868 with a
J.D. He practiced patent law from 1875 to 1881 with his brother, Joseph Edson.
In 1879, he organized the
Equitable Co-operative Building Association
The Equitable Co-operative Building Association is a historic building, located at 915 F Street, Northwest, Washington, D.C., in the Penn Quarter neighborhood. As of November 2018, it houses the second location of the restaurant Succotash.
Histor ...
, serving as secretary, and president from 1898 to 1935. He was vice president of the
Washington Loan and Trust Company from 1889, serving as president from 1894 to 1917, and chairman of the board from 1917 to 1935.
He served on the board of
Columbia National Bank,
National Metropolitan Bank, and
Potomac Fire Insurance Company.
He was president of the
Greater Washington Board of Trade from 1901 to 1902, and
Washington Bankers Association, and was treasurer of the
U.S. Chamber of Commerce from 1912 to 1935. He chaired the Citizens' Executive Committee, for the
Grand Army of the Republic
The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army (United States Army), Union Navy (United States Navy, U.S. Navy), and the United States Marine Corps, Marines who served in the American Ci ...
in 1892. He was president of the
Civil Service Reform Association from 1895 to 1907. He was treasurer of the Associated Charities from 1903 to 1934, and was president of the District government's Board of Charities. He was a delegate to the Pan-American Financial Congress in 1914.
Personal life
Edson was married to Elizabeth Berthrong and had three children: Elizabeth Edson, John Joy Edson Jr. (1871–1921) and another son that died in infancy.
In 1928, he was hit by a car crossing F Street in
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
He died on July 15, 1935, at his home in Washington, D.C. He was interred at
Arlington National Cemetery
Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia.
...
in
Arlington, Virginia
Arlington County, or simply Arlington, is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Virginia. The county is located in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from Washington, D.C., the nati ...
.
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Edson, John Joy
American Geographical Society
1846 births
1935 deaths
People from Jefferson, Ohio
Grand Army of the Republic officials
Burials at Arlington National Cemetery