Frederic Adrian Delano

Frederic Adrian Delano II (September 10, 1863 – March 28, 1953) was an American railroad president.[1]

Frederic Delano
Vice Chair of the Federal Reserve
In office August 10, 1914 – August 9, 1916
President	Woodrow Wilson
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Paul M. Warburg
Member of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors
In office August 10, 1914 – July 21, 1918
President	Woodrow Wilson
Preceded by	Position established
Succeeded by	Henry A. Moehlenpah
President of Monon Railroad
In office 1913–1914
Preceded by	Fairfax Harrison
Succeeded by	Harry Kurrie
Personal details
Born	Frederic Adrian Delano II September 10, 1863 Hong Kong
Died	March 28, 1953 (aged 89) Boston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Children	5
Relatives	Warren Delano Jr. (Father) Sara Ann Delano (Sister) Warren Delano IV (Brother) Franklin D. Roosevelt (Nephew)
Education	Harvard University (BA)

Early life

Delano was born in Hong Kong on September 10, 1863.[2][1] He was a member of the Delano family as a son of Warren Delano Jr. and Catherine Robbins Lyman. He was a brother of Warren Delano IV and Sara Ann Delano, and uncle of U.S. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt.[2]

Like his older brother Warren, he graduated from Harvard University in 1885.[2]

Career

After his graduation from Harvard, Delano was employed by the Chicago, Burlington, and Quincy Railroad in various capacities, rising from the position of civil engineer to be general manager at Chicago. For a time he was consulting engineer to the United States War Department in respect to the railroads of the Philippine Islands. In 1905, he became president of the Wheeling and Lake Erie Railroad, of the Wabash Pittsburgh Terminal Railway, and of the Wabash Railroad. Delano was appointed one of the receivers for the Wabash in 1911, and in 1913, he was elected president of the Monon Railroad (succeeding Fairfax Harrison[3]). He was vice president of the American Unitarian Association in 1907.

His addresses were published under the titles Questions of the Hour (1911) and Are Our Railroads Fairly Treated? (1913). He was also the chairman of the influential National Capital Park and Planning Commission and helped approve and oversee the building of the Pentagon.[4]

Legacy

His philanthropic work through the Commercial Club of Chicago, which has been said to have strongly impacted his nephew's presidential policies. Delano was Chairman of the Committee on the Regional Plan for New York and Its Environs, which released the regional plan for New York on May 27, 1929.[5]

He was also a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago which affected the development of Chicago in the 19th and 20th centuries. Delano was the first vice-chairman of the Federal Reserve and the National Resources Planning Board.

His house on 2244 S Street NW in the Kalorama neighborhood of Washington DC, designed by Waddy Butler Wood in 1924, survives as the Residence of the Irish Ambassador.[6]

Personal life

In 1888, Frederic was married to Matilda Anne Peasley (1867–1953). Together, they were the parents of five children, all daughters, including:[1]

• Catherine Lyman Delano (1889–1951),[7] who married Alexander Galt Grant.
• Louise Delano (1891–1923), who married Sherwood Alfred Cheney (1873–1949), Commandant of the U.S. Army Engineer School.
• Laura Delano (1893–1978), who married James Lawrence Houghteling (1883–1962). His sister Josephine Houghteling was married to financier Frank Gray Griswold.[8][9]
• Matilda Delano (1899–1911), who died young.
• Alice Delano (1903–1904), who died young.

Delano died in Newburgh, New York on March 28, 1953.[2]

References

1. "Roosevelt Genealogy". www.fdrlibrary.marist.edu. Franklin D. Roosevelt Presidential Library and Museum. Archived from the original on 1 March 2019. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
2. "FREDERIC A. DELANO IS DEAD IN CAPITAL; Uncle of Late President Ran Railroads, Had Long Career as Planner of Cities" (PDF). The New York Times. March 29, 1953. Retrieved 26 February 2019.
3. Monon Railroad Historical and Technical Society (2004–2006). "Presidents, Receivers and Trustees". Retrieved November 22, 2013.
4. This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Gilman, D. C.; Peck, H. T.; Colby, F. M., eds. (1905). New International Encyclopedia (1st ed.). New York: Dodd, Mead. Missing or empty |title= (help)
5. United States. National Capital Planning Commission; Frederick Gutheim; Antoinette J. Lee (15 November 2006). Worthy of the Nation: Washington, DC, from L'Enfant to the National Capital Planning Commission. JHU Press. pp. 170–. ISBN 978-0-8018-8328-6. Retrieved 27 July 2013.
6. Emily Hotaling Eig and Julie Mueller, Traceries (1989). "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Sheridan-Kalorama Historic District".
7. "Portrait of Catherine Lyman Delano :: Franklin D. Roosevelt Library". www.hrvh.org. Retrieved 18 July 2018.
8. "ROOSEVELT WILL VISIT NEWPORT; President and Wife Expected to Be the Guests of Commodore and Mrs. Vanderbilt. MRS. CANFIELD REMARRIES Wedded to Frank Gray Griswold in London -- Ambassador Reid Present at the Ceremony". The New York Times. July 30, 1907. Retrieved 13 June 2018.
9. "GRISWOLD -- CANFIELD". The New York Times. July 30, 1907. Retrieved 13 June 2018.

External links

• Frederic Adrian Delano at Find a Grave
• Statements and Speeches of Frederic A. Delano
• Collection of various works and letters written by Adrian Delano