James Montaudevert Waterbury Sr.

James Montaudevert Waterbury Sr.
Born	(1851-09-05)September 5, 1851 New York City, New York, U.S.
Died	July 11, 1931(1931-07-11) (aged 79) New York City, New York, U.S.
Education	Columbia University
Spouse	Catherine Anthony Furman ​ ​ (after 1874)​
Children	8, including James Jr., Lawrence II
Parent(s)	Lawrence Waterbury Caroline Antoinette Cleveland

James Montaudevert Waterbury Sr. (September 5, 1851 – July 11, 1931) was an American businessman and industrialist. He was president of the New York Steel and Wire Company and the American Type Bar and Machine Company.[1]

Early life

He was born on September 5, 1851, in New York City. He was the only son born to Caroline Antoinette (née Cleveland) Waterbury (b. 1822)[2] and Lawrence Waterbury I (1812–1879),[3] who married in 1842.[2][4]

His maternal grandparents were Palmer Cleveland and Catherine (née Livingston) Cleveland.[5] His grandmother was the daughter of Henry Gilbert Livingston and he was a descendant of John Waterbury, who immigrated to the colonies in 1631 from England.[5]

He was an 1873 graduate of Columbia College.

Career

After graduating from Columbia, he began work at the Waterbury Rope Company in 1874,[1] which was founded by his father in 1845 as "Waterbury & Marshall, Ropes and Cordage."[4] Shortly thereafter became a partner in the Rope Company and upon his father's death in 1879, he inherited the company.[4] After the death of his father's brother, James M. Waterbury, his father inherited controlling interests in the Thirty-fourth Street and the Houston-Street Ferry Companies and thereafter served as president of both, which James himself inherited as well.[4]

He later served as president of the New York Steel and Wire Company and the American Type Bar and Machine Company.[1]

Personal life

In 1874, Waterbury was married to Catherine Anthony Furman, the daughter of John M. Furman and sister of John C. Furman.[5] Together, they were the parents of:[3]

• Catharine Livingston Waterbury
• James Montaudevert Waterbury, Jr. (1876–1920), a noted polo player.[6]
• Lawrence Waterbury II (1877–1943), also a noted polo player who married Maude Livingston Hall (1877–1952), daughter of Valentine Hall Jr. and aunt of Eleanor Roosevelt.
• John Cunningham "Jack" Waterbury (1880–1929), who married Sarah Roberts-Lawton in 1920.[7]
• Elsie Waterbury, who married Gouverneur Morris IV (1876–1953), grandson of Gouverneur Morris Jr. and great-grandson of Founding Father Gouverneur Morris.
• Cleveland Livingston Waterbury (b. 1886),[2] who declared bankruptcy in 1921.[8][9]
• Grenville Furman Waterbury, who married Alice Edwards Ingoldsby.
• Reginald Waterbury

Waterbury served as president of the Country Club of Westchester for 10 years. He was also a member of the Metropolitan Club, a life member of the Knickerbocker Club and the New York Yacht Clubs.[3]

He died on July 11, 1931, of apoplexy at his apartment at the Knickerbocker Club in New York City.[10]

References

1. Prominent and Progressive Americans: An Encyclopædia Of An Encyclopædia Of Contemporaneous Biography. New York Tribune. 1902. pp. 365–366. The subject of this sketch, James Montaudevert Waterbury, is the only son of Lawrence and Caroline Antoinette Waterbury. He was born in New York city in 1851, and was educated at Columbia College, from which he was graduated in the class of 1873. Upon leaving college, he entered, in 1874, his father's business office. In a short time he was made a member of the firm, and upon his father's death became the head of the company. Possessing business abilities of a high order, he has conducted his various enterprises with great and increasing success, and has been for years a prominent figure in the manufacturing, mercantile, and social worlds. He is at the present time president of the Waterbury Rope Company, of the New York Steel & Wire Company, and of the American Type Bar & Machine Company.
2. Greene, Richard Henry; Stiles, Henry Reed; Dwight, Melatiah Everett; Morrison, George Austin; Mott, Hopper Striker; Totten, John Reynolds; Forest, Louis Effingham De; Pitman, Harold Minot; Ditmas, Charles Andrew; Mann, Conklin; Maynard, Arthur S. (1956). The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record. New York Genealogical and Biographical Society. p. 239. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
3. Hall, Henry (1895). America's Successful Men of Affairs: The City of New York. New York Tribune. pp. 700–701. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
4. "LAWRENCE WATERBURY". The New York Times. September 6, 1879. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
5. Who's Who in Finance. Joseph & Sefton. 1911. pp. 715–716. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
6. "Monte Waterbury, Polo Player, Dead. Member of American Team Since 1902 Dies Suddenly at French Lick Springs. His Heart Was Affected. Played in 5 Matches Against England and Was Captain of Big Four When England Won Cup" (PDF). New York Times. August 29, 1920. Retrieved 19 September 2010. James M. (Monte) Waterbury, Jr., who was one of the most brilliant polo players in this country, died suddenly yesterday at French Lick Springs, Ind., where he had gone for a rest.
7. Thayer, William Roscoe; Howe, Mark Antony De Wolfe; Voto, Bernard Augustine De; Morrison, Theodore (1929). The Harvard Graduates' Magazine. Harvard Graduates' Magazine Association. p. 372. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
8. Editor and Publisher. Editor & Publisher Company. 1921. p. 72. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
9. "C.L. WATERBURY BANKRUPT.; Advertiser, Relative of Polo Players, Owes $93,230; Has $10 Assets". The New York Times. February 18, 1922. Retrieved 14 June 2018.
10. "James M. Waterbury: Former leading sportsman dies of apoplexy aged 79". The New York Times. July 13, 1931. James M. Waterbury, one of the founders of the New York Yacht Club, and father of Lawrence and the late "Monte" Waterbury, international polo players, died Saturday at his residence at the Knickerbocker Club, Sixty-second Street and Fifth Avenue of apoplexy. He was 79 years old.