Reginald Claypoole Vanderbilt (January 14, 1880 – September 4, 1925) was a member of the Vanderbilt family. He was the father of Gloria Vanderbilt and maternal grandfather of Anderson Cooper. An avid equestrian, Vanderbilt was the founder and president of many equestrian organizations. He gambled away most of his inheritance.
Reginald Claypoole Vanderbilt | |
|---|---|
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| Born | January 14, 1880 Manhattan, New York, U.S. |
| Died | September 4, 1925 (aged 45) Portsmouth, Rhode Island, U.S. |
| Burial place | Vanderbilt Family Cemetery and Mausoleum, Staten Island, New York, U.S. |
| Education | Yale University |
| Occupation | Equestrian |
| Spouses | |
| Children | Cathleen Vanderbilt Gloria Vanderbilt |
| Parent(s) | Cornelius Vanderbilt II Alice Claypoole Gwynne |
| Family | Vanderbilt family |
Early life
editReginald Claypoole Vanderbilt was born on January 14, 1880, in Manhattan, New York. He was the youngest son of Cornelius Vanderbilt II (1843–1899) and Alice Claypoole Gwynne (1845–1934).[1] Among his siblings was Gertrude Vanderbilt (1875–1942), who married Harry Payne Whitney,[2] Alfred Gwynne Vanderbilt (1877–1915),[3] and Gladys Moore Vanderbilt (1886–1965), who married Count László Széchenyi.[4][5]
Reginald was a grandson of William Henry Vanderbilt (1821–1885), and great-grandson of Commodore Cornelius Vanderbilt (1794–1877).[6]
He attended Yale University, but did not graduate. One elder brother, Cornelius Vanderbilt III (1873–1942),[7] married Grace Wilson against his parents' wishes and was disinherited. Another elder brother, Alfred, inherited the bulk of the family fortune, though Reginald and several sisters also received some inheritance.[5]
Personal life and death
edit
In 1903,[8] Reginald married Cathleen Neilson (1885–1927)[9] at Parker Cottage in Newport, Rhode Island.[10] She was the daughter of Isabelle Gebhard Neilson, the niece of Frederick Gebhard (c. 1860–1910), and the great-granddaughter of Thomas E. Davis, a prominent New York real estate developer.[11] Before their divorce in 1920,[12] the couple had one daughter:[6] Cathleen Vanderbilt (1904–1944),[13] who married Henry Cooke Cushing III (1895–1960) in 1923. After their divorce in 1932, she married broadcasting executive Lawrence Wise Lowman (1900–1980) in 1932.[14] They divorced that same year and in 1940, she married for the third and final time to Martin Arostegui, a publisher in Havana, Cuba.[15][13]
On March 6, 1923,[16] he married Gloria Mercedes Morgan (1904–1965). Together, they were the parents of his second daughter: Gloria Laura Vanderbilt (1924–2019),[17] the fashion designer.
Reginald Claypoole Vanderbilt died from cirrhosis due to alcoholism on September 4, 1925, at his country home, Sandy Point Farm, in Portsmouth, Rhode Island.[6][18] In his will, he left the vast majority of his estate to his daughters with a residue to his widow, which was not to exceed $1,125,000 and his New York townhouse, located at 12 East 77th Street, and Sandy Point Farm.[19] He is buried in the Vanderbilt Family Cemetery and Mausoleum in Staten Island, New York.[citation needed]
Descendants
editThrough his eldest daughter, Vanderbilt was the grandfather of Henry Cooke Cushing IV (1924–2000),[20] who was married to Georgia Walters "Georgette Windsor" (b. 1924), Ruth Swift Dunbar (1932–2010), Rosalba Neri (b. 1939), and Laura Alvarez.[20]
Through his daughter Gloria, he is the maternal grandfather of Leopold Stanislaus Stokowski (b. 1950), who married Ivy Strick and Emily Goldstein (b 1964), Christopher Stokowski (b. 1952), Carter Vanderbilt Cooper (1965–1988),[21] and Anderson Hays Cooper (b. 1967), the television news anchor.[22]
References
edit- ^ "Mrs. Vanderbilt Sr. Dies In Home At 89. Widow Of Financier, Long Ill. Was A Leader In Brilliant Era Of New York Society". New York Times. April 23, 1934. Retrieved September 21, 2017.
- ^ Times Wide World (27 October 1930). "H.P. WHITNEY DIES AT 58 OF PNEUMONIA; ILL ONLY A FEW DAYS; Sportsman and Financier Succumbs Unexpectedly at HisFifth Avenue Home.CAUGHT COLD ON TUESDAY His Wife, the Former GertrudeVanderbilt, and Their ThreeChildren at Bedside.HE INHERITED A FORTUNE Built Up Vast Properties and Became One of Nation's Richest Men-- Famed for Racing Stables. One of America's Richest Men. H.P. WHITNEY DIES AT 58 OF PNEUMONIA Heir to Wealth and Prestige. Guggenheim Guided His Start. Known Also as Dog Fancier. Many Concerns Now Merged". The New York Times. Retrieved 30 November 2016.
- ^
Homans, James E., ed. (1918). . The Cyclopædia of American Biography. New York: The Press Association Compilers, Inc.
- ^ Times, Special To The New York (4 October 1907). "MISS VANDERBILT WILL WED A COUNT; Gladys, Youngest Daughter of Mrs. Cornelius Vanderbilt, the Financee of Laszlo Szechenyi. HUNGARIAN HERE FOR BRIDE Young Court Chamberlain Is a Guest at the Breakers, Newport -- Betrothal Made in Europe Last Summer". The New York Times. Retrieved 15 April 2017.
- ^ a b Arthur T. Vanderbilt II (1989). Fortune's Children: The Fall of the House of Vanderbilt. New York: Morrow. ISBN 0-688-07279-8.
- ^ a b c "Reginald Vanderbilt Dies Suddenly Today". The Meridien Daily Journal. 4 September 1925. Retrieved 15 March 2011.
- ^ "Gen. C. Vanderbilt Dies On His Yacht. Great-Grandson and Namesake of Commodore Succumbs in Miami to Brain Hemorrhage. Family With Him At End. He Won Distinction as Soldier, Inventor, Engineer, Yachtsman. Often Host to Royalty". New York Times. Associated Press. March 2, 1942.
- ^ "VANDERBILT WEDDING APRIL 15; Reginald Vanderbilt to be Married to Miss Cathleen Neilson in Newport". The New York Times. 21 March 1903. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
- ^ "Mr. and Mrs. Vanderbilt Elude the Curious by Leaving Their Train at Roxbury Crossing" (PDF). The New York Times. April 15, 1903. Retrieved 2010-11-06. (PDF)
- ^ "Famous Newport Villa May Be Sold for Taxes; R.C. Vanderbilt and Miss Neilson Wed From It". The New York Times. 30 March 1928. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
- ^ "R.C. VANDERBILT SUED FOR DIVORCE; His Wife, Formerly Cathleen Neilson, Charges Desertion and Asks Custody of Child. SEPARATED SEVERAL YEARS Husband Receives Papers at His Sandy Point Farm, Portsmouth, R.I.--Contest Not Expected". The New York Times. 19 August 1919. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
- ^ "Final Decree in Vanderbilt Divorce". The New York Times. 17 April 1920. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
- ^ a b "Mrs. M. Arostegui, a Vanderbilt, Dies; Inherited With Mrs. di Cicco Bulk of $7,000,000 Estate of Father, Reginald Vanderbilt". The New York Times. 1944. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
- ^ "DIVORCE FOR MRS. LOWMAN; Former Cathleen Vanderbilt Gets Decree in Cuban Court". The New York Times. 9 June 1940. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
- ^ "MRS. C.V. LOWMAN MARRIED IN HAVANA; Daughter of the Late Reginald Vanderbilt and First Wife Wed to Martin Arostegui". The New York Times. 10 October 1940. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
- ^ "Reginald C. Vanderbilt and Gloria Morgan To Wed Tomorrow". Providence News. 5 March 1923. Retrieved 15 March 2011.
- ^ "CUSHING CHILD BAPTIZED.; One of the Sponsors Is Mrs. Vanderbilt -- Vanderbilt Christening Today". The New York Times. 15 May 1924. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
- ^ "Vanderbilt Dead After Hemorrhage Last Night". The Evening Independent. 4 September 1925. Retrieved 21 August 2014.
- ^ "R.C. VANDERBILT LEFT CHILDREN $6,250,000; RESIDUE TO WIDOW; Her Share May Not Exceed $1,125,000 Plus Town House and Sandy Point Farm. LED BY FATHER'S WISH Does Not Change Disposition of Trust Funds -- One Not Effective Till Mother Dies. SMALL GIFTS TO FRIENDS Family Portraits Willed to Mrs. Cushing -- Present Value of Entire Estate Not Known. R. VANDERBILT LEFT CHILDREN $6,250,000". The New York Times. 25 September 1925. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
- ^ a b Pace, Eric (27 October 2000). "H. Cushing IV, Polo Player And Investor, 76". The New York Times. Retrieved 21 September 2017.
- ^ "Ms. Vanderbilt's Son Plunges to His Death". The New York Times. 23 July 1988. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
- ^ Green, Penelope (2 April 2016). "At Home With Gloria Vanderbilt". The New York Times. Retrieved 18 January 2019.
