Walter Howe (May 3, 1849 – August 22, 1890) was an American lawyer and politician from
New York
New York most commonly refers to:
* New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States
* New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York
New York may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* ...
.
Early life
May 3, 1849 in Manhattan. He was the eldest child of Ann Elizabeth (
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 ...
Massie) Howe (1824–1901) and Augustus Howe (1819–1888), a successful merchant who left the family in affluent circumstances. His siblings included Sarah Massie Howe, architect Augustus Howe Jr., Nicholas Murray Howe, Anne (née Howe) Hurin, and Albert Howe. Another sister, Lavinia Taylor Howe, was the wife of William Travers Jerome, the
New York County District Attorney
The New York County District Attorney, also known as the Manhattan District Attorney, is the elected district attorney for New York County, New York. The office is responsible for the prosecution of violations of New York state laws (federal l ...
from 1902 to 1909. After his father's death, his mother resided at the family homestead in
Elizabeth, New Jersey
Elizabeth is a City (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Union County, New Jersey, Union County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.
Howe graduated from the College of the City of New York in 1868 followed by
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 1870.
Career
Howe was "a lawyer of wide acquaintance and unblemished reputation." He was first elected as a Republican to the
New York State Legislature
The New York State Legislature consists of the Bicameralism, two houses that act as the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York: the New York State Senate and the New York State Assem ...
in 1882, representing the 11th District in the
New York State Assembly
The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature, with the New York State Senate being the upper house. There are 150 seats in the Assembly. Assembly members serve two-year terms without term limits.
The Ass ...
in 1883 and serving in the 106th, 107th, and 108th Legislatures until December 31, 1885. In 1885, he ran for the
New York State Senate
The New York State Senate is the upper house of the New York State Legislature, while the New York State Assembly is its lower house. Established in 1777 by the Constitution of New York, its members are elected to two-year terms with no term l ...
Schuyler Hamilton
Schuyler Hamilton (July 22, 1822 – March 18, 1903) was an American soldier, farmer, engineer, and a grandson of Alexander Hamilton.
Early life
Hamilton was born on July 22, 1822, in New York City. He was the fifth of 14 children born to John C ...
; grandson of
John Church Hamilton
John Church Hamilton (August 22, 1792 − July 25, 1882) was an American historian, biographer, and lawyer. He was the son of Alexander Hamilton, one of the Founding Fathers of the United States.
Early life and education
Hamilton was born on Au ...
; and great-grandson of
Treasury Secretary
The United States secretary of the treasury is the head of the United States Department of the Treasury, and is the chief financial officer of the federal government of the United States. The secretary of the treasury serves as the principal a ...
Alexander Hamilton
Alexander Hamilton (January 11, 1755 or 1757July 12, 1804) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the first U.S. secretary of the treasury from 1789 to 1795 dur ...
). In 1888, Mayor
Abram Hewitt
Abram Stevens Hewitt (July 31, 1822January 18, 1903) was an American politician, educator, ironmaking industrialist, and lawyer who was mayor of New York City for two years from 1887 to 1888. He also twice served as a U.S. Congressman from an ...
Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...
(who had yet to become New York's
Police Commissioner
A police commissioner is the head of a police department, responsible for overseeing its operations and ensuring the effective enforcement of laws and maintenance of public order. They develop and implement policies, manage budgets, and coordinate ...
,
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 ...
, or President) penned a tribute to Howe, writing:
"As a friend and former fellow-legislator of Walter Howe, I am unwilling to let his death pass without expressing in some public way my sense of what the city of New-York owes him. Although a man keenly appreciative of artistic and literary work, and himself fond of using both pen and brush, the services by which he especially rendered the city his debtor were done in public life."
Personal life
In 1873, Howe was married to Mary Anne Bruce Robins (1850–1922), a daughter of George W. Robins and Margaret (née Bruce) Robins. Together, they lived at
Madison Avenue
Madison Avenue is a north-south avenue in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, New York, that carries northbound one-way traffic. It runs from Madison Square (at 23rd Street) to meet the southbound Harlem River Drive at 142nd Stree ...
and
34th Street 34th Street most commonly refers to 34th Street (Manhattan)
34th Street is a major crosstown street in the New York City borough of Manhattan. It runs the width of Manhattan Island from the West Side Highway on the West Side to FDR Drive on t ...
in Manhattan and were the parents of two sons:
* Ernest Howe (1875–1932), a Connecticut State Assemblyman and State Senator who was editor of the ''
American Journal of Science
The ''American Journal of Science'' (''AJS'') is the United States of America's longest-running scientific journal, having been published continuously since its conception in 1818 by Professor Benjamin Silliman, who edited and financed it himself ...
'' who married Anne Wilson (1880–1963), the first Republican state central committeewoman from the 30th Senatorial District after passage of the Women's Suffrage Amendment.
* Walter Bruce Howe (1879–1954), an international lawyer who married noted composer and pianist
Mary Carlisle
Mary Carlisle (born Gwendolyn Witter; February 3, 1914 – August 1, 2018) was an American actress, singer, and dancer, best known for her roles as a wholesome ingénue in numerous 1930s musical-comedy films.
She starred in more than 60 Holly ...
(1882–1964) in 1911.
He was a member of the
Union League Club
The Union League Club is a private social club in New York City that was founded in 1863 in affiliation with the Union League. Its fourth and current clubhouse is located at 38 East 37th Street on the corner of Park Avenue, in the Murray Hi ...
(where he served as Secretary), the Commonwealth Club, the
Century
A century is a period of 100 years or 10 decades. Centuries are numbered ordinally in English and many other languages. The word ''century'' comes from the Latin ''centum'', meaning ''one hundred''. ''Century'' is sometimes abbreviated as c.
...
Downtown Club
The Downtown Athletic Club, also known as the Downtown Club, was a private social and athletic club that operated from 1926 to 2002 at 20 West Street, within the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. The Downtown Athletic Cl ...
.
Howe drowned on August 22, 1890, while bathing at his summer residence (the former Glover Cottage which was next to Mayor Hewitt's cottage) on Beacon Hill near Castle Hill beach in Newport. After a funeral conducted by the Rev. George W. Douglass of Washington, Howe was buried at
Island Cemetery
The Common Burying Ground and Island Cemetery are a pair of separate cemeteries on Farewell and Warner Street in Newport, Rhode Island. Together they contain over 5,000 graves, including a colonial-era slave cemetery and Jewish graves. The pai ...
in Newport. After his death, his widow remarried to Dr.
Arnold Hague
Arnold Hague (December 3, 1840 – May 14, 1917) was an American geologist who did many geological surveys in the U.S., of which the best known was that for Yellowstone National Park. He also had assignments in China and Guatemala. He became a m ...
, a well known
geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the structure, composition, and History of Earth, history of Earth. Geologists incorporate techniques from physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics, and geography to perform research in the Field research, ...
, in November 1893. She died in Washington in January 1922.
Descendants
Through his son Ernest, he was posthumously a grandfather of Walter Howe (1907–1966), who served as
Speaker of the Connecticut House of Representatives
The speaker of the Connecticut House of Representatives is the Speaker (politics), presiding officer of the Connecticut House of Representatives.
Speakers, 1699-1818
A list of speakers of the Speaker of the Connecticut House of Representatives ...
and President
Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...
's Ambassador to Chile from 1958 to 1961, and Margaret Bruce Howe, the founder of the ''Prospect Press'' in
Hartford
Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...
who became the wife of Herbert L. Crapo, editor of the ''Litchfield Enquirer''.
Through his son Walter, he was posthumously a grandfather of three, Dr. Bruce Howe, Dr. Calderon Howe, and Molly (née Howe) Lynn.