Galen Luther Stone (November 21, 1862 – December 26, 1926) was an American

financier An investor is a person who allocates financial capital with the expectation of a future return (profit) or to gain an advantage (interest). Through this allocated capital most of the time the investor purchases some species of property. Type ...

and philanthropist.

Biography

Stone was born in

Leominster Leominster ( ) is a market town in Herefordshire, England, at the confluence of the River Lugg and its tributary the River Kenwater. The town is north of Hereford and south of Ludlow in Shropshire. With a population of 11,700, Leominster i ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

. In his teens, he worked as an office clerk in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

, Massachusetts. He became financial editor of the '' Boston Advertiser'' in his 20s. Together with Charles Hayden, he founded the stock brokerage firms of Hayden, Stone & Co. and Haystone Securities Corporation of Boston and

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

. In 1919, his firm hired fellow Bostonian

Joseph P. Kennedy Joseph Patrick Kennedy (September 6, 1888 – November 18, 1969) was an American businessman, investor, and politician. He is known for his own political prominence as well as that of his children and was the patriarch of the Irish-American Ken ...

. In 1889, he married Carrie Morton Gregg (1866–1945) of Boston and the couple eventually made their home in Brookline, Massachusetts. An avid yachtsman, in his later years, Stone owned the

yacht A yacht is a sailing or power vessel used for pleasure, cruising, or racing. There is no standard definition, though the term generally applies to vessels with a cabin intended for overnight use. To be termed a , as opposed to a , such a pleasu ...

''Arcadia''. Stone held financial interests in numerous companies and was president of the Atlantic Gulf and West Indies Steamship Company, and in 1900 he and his associates formed the Eastern Steamship Lines He was chairman of the Pond Creek Coal Company and the Pike County,

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

, mining town of

Stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...

was named in his honor. Wellesley college massachusetts

Stone used his fortune for a number of

charitable The practice of charity is the voluntary giving of help to those in need, as a humanitarian act, unmotivated by self-interest. There are a number of philosophies about charity, often associated with religion. Etymology The word ''charity'' or ...

causes, many of which centered on the arts and

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty ...

. In 1915, through the fundraising efforts of the educator

Charlotte Hawkins Brown Charlotte Hawkins Brown (June 11, 1883 – January 11, 1961) was an American author, educator, civil rights activist, and founder of the Palmer Memorial Institute in Sedalia, North Carolina. Early life Charlotte Hawkins Brown was born in Hender ...

, he became aware of

Palmer Memorial Institute The Alice Freeman Palmer Memorial Institute, better known as Palmer Memorial Institute, was a school for upper class African Americans. It was founded in 1902 by Dr. Charlotte Hawkins Brown at Sedalia, North Carolina near Greensboro. Palmer Mem ...

, an

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...

preparatory school in Sedalia,

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and ...

. Stone became the institute's largest benefactor. As well, his

philanthropic Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private good, focusing on material ...

work was recognized with the creation of the Galen Stone Professor of International Trade chair at the

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

Institute for International Development. A trustee of Wellesley College from 1915 to 1925, he donated the funds to build the Galen Stone Tower at Green Hall. The high tower is a focal point on the campus and houses the 32-bell carillon which is actively played by a student guild of carillonneurs for major College events as well as between and after classes. He was once vice-president of the trustees of the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Stone was honored for his philanthropy by initiation as an honorary member of

Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity of America (colloquially known as Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, Phi Mu Alpha, or simply Sinfonia) () is an American collegiate social fraternity for men with a special interest in music. The fraternity is open to men "w ...

fraternity in 1917 at the

New England Conservatory of Music The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest independent music conservatory in the United States and among the most prestigious in the world. The conservatory is located on H ...

in Boston. The fraternity's mission reflects Stone's values by developing young men to share their talents to create harmony in the world. Galen Stone died of heart failure at his home in Brookline in 1926. A

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

Liberty ship Liberty ships were a class of cargo ship built in the United States during World War II under the Emergency Shipbuilding Program. Though British in concept, the design was adopted by the United States for its simple, low-cost construction. Ma ...

, SS ''Galen L. Stone'', was named in Stone's honor. Stone's grandson, also Galen Luther Stone, served as United States Ambassador to Cyprus.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stone, Galen L. 1862 births 1926 deaths American financiers American investors American philanthropists Businesspeople from Massachusetts People from Brookline, Massachusetts People from Leominster, Massachusetts Stock and commodity market managers