Philip Dakin Wagoner (July 24, 1876 – November 25, 1962) was an American businessman who became chairman of the

Underwood Typewriter Company The Underwood Typewriter Company was an American manufacturer of typewriters headquartered in New York City, with manufacturing facilities in Hartford, Connecticut. Underwood produced what is considered the first widely successful, modern typewri ...

Early career

Philip Dakin Wagoner was born on 24 July 1876 in

Somerville, New Jersey Somerville is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in and the county seat of Somerset County, New Jersey, Somerset County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Stevens Institute of Technology Stevens Institute of Technology is a Private university, private research university in Hoboken, New Jersey. Founded in 1870, it is one of the oldest technological universities in the United States and was the first college in America solely de ...

Hoboken, New Jersey Hoboken ( ; ) is a City (New Jersey), city in Hudson County, New Jersey, Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Hoboken is part of the New York metropolitan area and is the site of Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub. As of the ...

, in 1896. His thesis was typewritten, which was very unusual at the time. His first job was with

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston. Over the year ...

(GE). By 1910 he had become president of General Vehicle Company, a GE subsidiary. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

(1914-1918) this company made airplane engines for Great Britain.

President of Underwood

After the war Wagoner was appointed president of the Elliott-Fisher Company, parent of the Underwood Typewriter Company and the Sundstrand Corporation. Wagoner was quoted in a 1923 article in ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine founded by B. C. Forbes in 1917. It has been owned by the Hong Kong–based investment group Integrated Whale Media Investments since 2014. Its chairman and editor-in-chief is Steve Forbes. The co ...

'' as saying, "In doing business the work of a corporation or an individual has no real permanency unless it is rendering a service to business or to humanity." In 1927 he reorganized the company into Underwood-Elliott-Fisher, which later became the Underwood Corporation.

John Thomas Underwood John Thomas Underwood (April 12, 1857, in London, England – July 2, 1937, in Osterville, Massachusetts) was an American entrepreneur and investor who founded the Underwood Typewriter Company. Biography He was the elder brother of missionary H ...

was elected chairman and Wagoner president of Underwood Elliott-Fisher. Wagoner had a house built on a property in the West Mountain District of

Ridgefield, Connecticut Ridgefield is an affluent New England town, town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. Situated in the foothills of the Berkshire Mountains and on the New York state border, Ridgefield had a population o ...

, named "Oreneca". This was (and is) a large and pretentious 1932 Georgian Revival style stone building. World War II broke out in September 1939 when Germany and the Soviet Union invaded Poland. The USA remained neutral. On 26 June 1940, one day after the surrender of France,

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of Texaco sponsored a celebratory dinner for Gerhardt Westrick at the

Waldorf Astoria New York The Waldorf Astoria New York is a luxury hotel and condominium residence in the Midtown Manhattan neighborhood of New York City, New York. The structure, at 301 Park Avenue between 49th and 50th Streets, is a 47-story, Art Deco landmark des ...

. Westrick represented many large U.S. companies in Germany, and was visiting New York to drum up support for the Nazi regime. Wagoner attended, as did

Sosthenes Behn Sosthenes Behn (January 30, 1884 – June 6, 1957) was an American businessman, and the founder of ITT. He held the rank of lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army. Biography Early years Sosthenes Behn was born in the island of St. Thomas, then pa ...

of ITT,

James D. Mooney James David Mooney (18 February 1884 – 21 September 1957) was an American engineer and corporate executive at General Motors who played a role in international affairs in the 1930s and early 1940s. His career was disrupted for being a Nazi sympa ...

General Motors General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The company is most known for owning and manufacturing f ...

and

Edsel Ford Edsel Bryant Ford (November 6, 1893 – May 26, 1943) was an American business executive and philanthropist, who was the only child of pioneering industrialist Henry Ford and his wife, Clara Jane Bryant Ford. He was the president of Ford Motor C ...

of the

Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational corporation, multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. T ...

. Westrick told the guests that Britain would be defeated in three months, and there would then be huge opportunities for trade between America and the German Empire. Later there was a press outcry against Westrick, and many of his business associates no longer wished to be associated with him.

Later years

In 1945 Wagoner was elected chairman of the board of Underwood, and Leon C. Stowell was elected president. Wagoner remained chief executive. Wagoner was given an honorary degree of doctor of engineering by the Stevens Institute in 1949. He retired as chairman of the board of Underwood in 1956. Philip Dakin Wagoner died on 25 November 1962 at the age of 86 in St. Luke's Hospital in

Manhattan, New York City Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the smallest county by area in the U.S. state of New York. Located almost entire ...

References

Citations Sources * * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Wagoner, Philip Dakin 1876 births 1962 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople People from Somerville, New Jersey American business executives American Nazis General Electric employees Stevens Institute of Technology alumni