George Walker Weld (1840–1905), youngest son of
William Fletcher Weld
William Fletcher Weld (April 15, 1800 – December 12, 1881) was an American shipping magnate during the Golden Age of Sail and a member of the prominent Weld family. He later invested in railroads and real estate. Weld multiplied his family's f ...
and member of the
Weld Family of
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 ...
, was a founding member of the
Boston Athletic Association
The Boston Athletic Association (B.A.A.) is a non-profit, running-focused, organized sports association for the Greater Boston area. The B.A.A. hosts such events as the Boston Marathon, the B.A.A. 5K, the B.A.A. 10K, the B.A.A. Half Marathon, the ...
(organizers of today's
Boston Marathon) and the financier of the
Weld Boathouse
Weld Boathouse is a Harvard-owned building on the bank of the Charles River in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is named after George Walker Weld, who bequeathed the funds for its construction.
History
Weld Boathouse is the second of two boathou ...
, a landmark on the
Charles River
The Charles River ( Massachusett: ''Quinobequin)'' (sometimes called the River Charles or simply the Charles) is an river in eastern Massachusetts. It flows northeast from Hopkinton to Boston along a highly meandering route, that doubles b ...
.
Life
Weld was born in 1840 and later attended
Harvard College
Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...
. He was athletic as a student and for some years afterward. He was also mischievous. His younger cousin
Stephen Minot Weld Jr. described how George came to his room one right with a plan to
...screw in one of the tutors, named Pearce. The plan was to take a hinge and screw one part to the bottom and the other to the sill of the door, so that in the morning... earcewould find himself locked in and unable to attend prayers, and so could not mark us for our absence.[''War diary and letters of Stephen Minot Weld, 1861-1865''](_blank)
/ref>
Pearce heard the Welds and their friend Osborne and chased them down the stairs. At the bottom, the Welds hid under the stairs while Pearce chased Osborne out into a heavy snowfall.
Osborne plunged into a snow-drift and stuck there, and Pearce jumped on him. They had a row and a good deal of scuffling, and in it Pearce, who wore a red wig, lost it. It got lost in the snow and was never found until the next spring.
Osborne was expelled and got his degree many years later, but George's quick wit in swinging beneath the stairs saved the Welds from discipline.
In July 1865, Weld traveled to Europe with his half-sister Anna, who was suffered from illness. Their father paid for
Louisa May Alcott to travel with them as a nurse and companion.
As a wealthy bachelor, Weld belonged to several Boston clubs as well as 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. ...
. Weld was part of the syndicate that built the
America's Cup defender ''
Puritan
The Puritans were English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries who sought to purify the Church of England of Roman Catholic practices, maintaining that the Church of England had not been fully reformed and should become more Protestant. ...
'' and often invited friends to cruise on his 80-foot steel schooner, ''Chanticleer'' — considered one of the finest steam yachts in the United States.
[Lambert, C.A. "The Welds of Harvard Yard"](_blank)
/ref>
When Weld was about age forty he was afflicted with an unknown malady, possibly a neurological
Neurology (from el, νεῦρον (neûron), "string, nerve" and the suffix -logia, "study of") is the branch of medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the brain, the spinal c ...
disorder, which left him partially paralyzed
Paralysis (also known as plegia) is a loss of motor function in one or more muscles. Paralysis can also be accompanied by a loss of feeling (sensory loss) in the affected area if there is sensory damage. In the United States, roughly 1 in 5 ...
. A newspaper from his time notes "The illness of George Walker Weld has assumed a sad form and he has been carried to the Somerville insane asylum."
However, no other evidence from that time suggests that Weld suffered from mental illness. Indeed, 19th century psychiatric
Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of mental disorders. These include various maladaptations related to mood, behaviour, cognition, and perceptions. See glossary of psychiatry.
Initial psy ...
diagnosis was notoriously inconsistent and inaccurate by modern standards. Weld seems to have faced his handicap with courage and dignity, and continued to attend Harvard athletic events in a wheelchair
A wheelchair is a chair with wheels, used when walking is difficult or impossible due to illness, injury, problems related to old age, or disability. These can include spinal cord injuries ( paraplegia, hemiplegia, and quadriplegia), cerebr ...
or carriage until his death at age 64.
Weld Boathouse
George Walker Weld created two boathouses at Harvard. The first was built in 1889. The second was built to replace it in 1906 with funds that Weld bequeathed for that purpose. It is this famous Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...
landmark, perhaps best viewed from Boston looking across the Charles
The Charles is a building on the Upper East Side in New York City.
Location
It is located at 1353-1355 1st Avenue on the Upper East Side, in New York City.
History
In 2007, R. Ramin Kamfar, the chief executive of Bluerock Real Estate, purchase ...
, whose centennial was celebrated in 2006.
Next to the boathouse is the Anderson Memorial Bridge
Anderson Memorial Bridge (commonly but incorrectly called Larz Anderson Bridge) connects Allston, a neighborhood of Boston, and Cambridge. The bridge stands on the site of the Great Bridge built in 1662, the first structure to span the Charles ...
built in 1913 by Weld's niece Isabel Weld Perkins
Isabel Anderson (March 29, 1876 – November 3, 1948), , was a Boston heiress, author, and society hostess who left a legacy to the public that includes a park and two museums.
Life
Early life
Born at 284 Marlborough Street in Boston's B ...
and her husband Larz Anderson
Larz Anderson (August 15, 1866 – April 13, 1937) was an American diplomat and ''bon vivant''. He served as second secretary at the United States Legation to the Court of St James's, London; as first secretary and later '' chargé d'affai ...
.
Notes
References
''Harvard Magazine'' November-December 1998, "The Welds of Harvard Yard" by associate editor Craig A. Lambert
Project Gutenberg, ''Book of Annals and Reminiscences of Jamaica Plain'' by Harriet Manning Whitcomb
{{DEFAULTSORT:Weld, George Walker
Harvard College alumni
1840 births
1905 deaths
McLean Hospital patients
19th-century American philanthropists