Alister Greene (September 28, 1854 – March 8, 1923) was an American soldier and social leader during the

Gilded Age In United States history, the Gilded Age was an era extending roughly from 1877 to 1900, which was sandwiched between the Reconstruction era and the Progressive Era. It was a time of rapid economic growth, especially in the Northern and Weste ...

Early life

Greene was born in New York City on September 28, 1854. He was the son of Martin E. Greene (1826–1907) and Matilda Mary (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Zabriskie) Greene (d. 1898), who had been well known in the older New York society. His maternal grandparents were Mary (née Ryerson) Zabriskie and Andrew Christian Zabriskie, and the Zabriskie family descended from

Albrycht Zaborowski Albrecht Zaborowskij (also rendered Saboroweski; Anglicisation, anglicized as Albert Zabriskie; 1638–1711) of Prussia (present-day Poland and Russia) settled in what is now New Jersey on August 31, 1662. Early life and emigration Saborowski, a ...

, a

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken *Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin screenwr ...

immigrant Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

from Angerburg (Węgorzewo) in

Ducal Prussia The Duchy of Prussia (german: Herzogtum Preußen, pl, Księstwo Pruskie, lt, Prūsijos kunigaikštystė) or Ducal Prussia (german: Herzogliches Preußen, link=no; pl, Prusy Książęce, link=no) was a duchy in the region of Prussia establish ...

, who settled in

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

in 1662 alongside a

Dutch Dutch commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands * Dutch people () * Dutch language () Dutch may also refer to: Places * Dutch, West Virginia, a community in the United States * Pennsylvania Dutch Country People E ...

community. His cousin, Andrew Christian Zabriskie was married to Frances Hunter in 1895, and Alister served as best man. Another cousin,

Eliot Zborowski William Elliott Morris Zborowski (1858 – April 1, 1903) was a racing driver. Born in Elizabethtown, New Jersey, USA, he was the son of Martin Zborowski (or Zabriskie) and Emma Morris. In 1892 he married a wealthy American heiress, born ...

, was married to Margaret Astor Carey, a niece of William Astor Jr.,

Caroline Astor Caroline Webster "Lina" Schermerhorn Astor (September 22, 1830 – October 30, 1908) was a prominent American socialite of the second half of the 19th century who led the Four Hundred. Famous for being referred to later in life as "the Mrs. Asto ...

, and granddaughter of

William Backhouse Astor, Sr. William Backhouse Astor Sr. (September 19, 1792 – November 24, 1875) was an American business magnate who inherited most of his father John Jacob Astor's fortune. He worked as a partner in his father's successful export business. His massive in ...

of the prominent

Astor family The Astor family achieved prominence in business, society, and politics in the United States and the United Kingdom during the 19th and 20th centuries. With ancestral roots in the Italian Alps region of Italy by way of Germany, the Astors settle ...

. He was a graduate of Columbia College and

Columbia Law School Columbia Law School (Columbia Law or CLS) is the law school of Columbia University, a private Ivy League university in New York City. Columbia Law is widely regarded as one of the most prestigious law schools in the world and has always ranked i ...

Career

After Greene graduated from law school, he "devoted his life to study and research in law" but never actually practiced law. He was also a volunteer with the 10th company of New York's 7th Regiment, which was referred to as the "silk stocking" regiment or "Blue-Bloods", due to the disproportionate number of its members who were part of New York City's social elite,

Society life

In 1892, Greene, who was well known in the "New York club and society worlds," was included in

Ward McAllister Samuel Ward McAllister (December 28, 1827 – January 31, 1895) was a popular arbiter of social taste in the Gilded Age of late 19th-century America. He was widely accepted as the authority as to which families could be classified as the cream o ...

's "

Four Hundred 400 (four hundred) is the natural number following 399 and preceding 401. Mathematical properties 400 is the square of 20. 400 is the sum of the powers of 7 from 0 to 3, thus making it a repdigit in base 7 (1111). A circle is divided into ...

", purported to be an index of New York's best families, published in ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

''. Conveniently, 400 was the number of people that could fit into

Mrs. Astor Caroline Webster "Lina" Schermerhorn Astor (September 22, 1830 – October 30, 1908) was a prominent American socialite of the second half of the 19th century who led the The Four Hundred (1892), Four Hundred. Famous for being referred to later ...

's ballroom. He was a member of the

New York Genealogical and Biographical Society The New York Genealogical and Biographical Society (NYG&B or NYGBS) is a non-profit institution located at 36 West 44th Street in New York City. Founded in 1869, it is the second-oldest genealogical society in the United States, and the only state ...

, serving on its executive committee, a life member of the

New-York Historical Society The New-York Historical Society is an American history museum and library in New York City, along Central Park West between 76th and 77th Streets, on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. The society was founded in 1804 as New York's first museum. ...

(since 1896), and was a member of the

Union Club of the City of New York The Union Club of the City of New York (commonly known as the Union Club) is a private social club in New York City that was founded in 1836. The clubhouse is located at 101 East 69th Street on the corner of Park Avenue, in a landmark building de ...

, the

Metropolitan Club The Metropolitan Club of New York is a private social club on the Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded as a gentlemen's club in 1891 for men only, but it was one of the first major clubs in New York to admit women, t ...

, the University Club, the Army and Navy Club, the

New York Yacht Club The New York Yacht Club (NYYC) is a private social club and yacht club based in New York City and Newport, Rhode Island. It was founded in 1844 by nine prominent sportsmen. The members have contributed to the sport of yachting and yacht design. ...

, and the

American Bar Association The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students, which is not specific to any jurisdiction in the United States. Founded in 1878, the ABA's most important stated activities are the setting of acad ...

Personal life

Greene, who did not marry, lived at 65

East 72nd Street 72nd Street is one of the major bi-directional crosstown streets in New York City's borough of Manhattan. The street primarily runs through the Upper West Side and Upper East Side neighborhoods. It is one of the few streets to go through Cen ...

in New York City, one of two four story (and basement) dwellings, covering a plot 40 ft. by 102 ft along with 63 East 72nd Street which was owned by his father. Greene died of pneumonia at his New York residence on March 8, 1923. His funeral was held at the Church of the Incarnation on

Madison Avenue Madison Avenue is a north-south avenue in the borough of Manhattan in New York City, United States, that carries northbound one-way traffic. It runs from Madison Square (at 23rd Street) to meet the southbound Harlem River Drive at 142nd Stre ...

. A month after his death, the heirs of his and his later father's estates sold the East 72nd Street properties. In November 1923, his estate sold additional property owned by Greene at 102 Franklin Street (in the modern neighborhood of

Tribeca Tribeca (), originally written as TriBeCa, is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan in New York City. Its name is a syllabic abbreviation of "Triangle Below Canal Street". The "triangle" (more accurately a quadrilateral) is bounded by Canal Stre ...

) which consisted of a five-story and basement building on a lot of 25 by 100 feet.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Greene, Alister 1854 births 1923 deaths Columbia College (New York) alumni Columbia Law School alumni Social leaders