George Washington Watts (18 August 1851 – 7 March 1921) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

manufacturer, financier and philanthropist. Alongside

James B. Duke James Buchanan Duke (December 23, 1856 – October 10, 1925) was an American tobacco and electric power industrialist best known for the introduction of modern cigarette manufacture and marketing, and his involvement with Duke Universit ...

, he co-founded the

American Tobacco Company The American Tobacco Company was a tobacco company founded in 1890 by J. B. Duke through a merger between a number of U.S. tobacco manufacturers including Allen and Ginter and Goodwin & Company. The company was one of the original 12 members of ...

. He also founded

Watts Hospital Watts Hospital, located in Durham, North Carolina was the city's first hospital, operating between 1895 and 1976. The hospital opened in 1895, funded entirely by George W. Watts, as a private, 22-bed, modern hospital dedicated to the care of Durh ...

, which was the first hospital in

Durham, North Carolina Durham ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina and the county seat of Durham County, North Carolina, Durham County. Small portions of the city limits extend into Orange County, North Carolina, Orange County and Wake County, North Carol ...

, and prompted the establishment of

Duke University Duke University is a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1892. In 1924, tobacco and electric power industrialist James ...

Biography

Born in

Cumberland, Maryland Cumberland is a U.S. city in and the county seat of Allegany County, Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its s ...

, George W. Watts was the son of Gerard Snowden Watts and Ann Elizabeth Wolvington. He received his early education in private schools in

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, and graduated from the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

in 1871 with a degree in civil engineering. Watts married Laura V. Beall in 1875. The two had one child together, Annie Louise Watts, before separating in 1915. Two years later, He married Virginia Ecker, whom he stayed with until his death in 1921. After graduation, Watts joined his father's tobacco commission business in Baltimore. Becoming associated with

Washington Duke Washington Duke (December 18, 1820 – May 8, 1905) was an American tobacco industrialist and philanthropist. During the American Civil War he enlisted in the Confederate States Navy. In 1865, Duke founded the "W. Duke, Sons & Co.", a tobacco ma ...

of Durham, North Carolina in 1878, he helped organize and incorporate W. Duke Sons and Company, a tobacco business of which he became a stockholder, secretary, and treasurer. However, being the only non-family member in the company created some animosity between Watts and the oldest Duke son, Brodie. This resentment resulted in Brodie purchasing multiple streets in Durham, North Carolina, and naming them so they read "Washington, Hated, Watts," referring to his father, Washington Duke. Years later, "Hated St." was changed to "Gregson St." In 1890, Watts helped organize the American Tobacco Co. and in 1892, the Erwin Cotton Mills Company. Invested in the welfare of his employees, Watts built libraries, parks, and playgrounds for them. He also built and endowed Watts Hospital in Durham, North Carolina. Watts was heavily involved in other businesses as well, as listed below: * President: Pearl Cotton Mill, Home Savings Bank and Trust (co-founder), Commonwealth Club of Durham * Vice-President: Locke Cotton Mill * Director:

Seaboard Air Line The Seaboard Air Line Railroad , which styled itself "The Route of Courteous Service," was an American railroad which existed from April 14, 1900, until July 1, 1967, when it merged with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, its longtime rival, t ...

, Durham and Southern Railway Company, Virginia-Carolina Chemical Company, Southern Cotton Oil Company, Fidelity Bank, Durham Loan & Trust Company (co-founded with his son-in-law

John Sprunt Hill John Sprunt Hill (March 17, 1869 – July 29, 1961) was a North Carolina lawyer, banker and philanthropist who played a fundamental role in the civic and social development of Durham, North Carolina, the expansion of the University of North Ca ...

)

Watts Hospital Legacy

Duke University

By 1922, Watts Hospital's quality of care and philanthropic mission to provide healthcare to the working poor was so well-regarded that

and North Carolina Governor

Cameron Morrison Cameron A. Morrison (October 5, 1869August 20, 1953) was an American politician and the 55th governor of the U.S. state of North Carolina from 1921 to 1925. Early life and career He was born in 1869 in Richmond County, North Carolina. In 189 ...

proposed the creation of the state's first four-year medical college,

. The goal was to educate students in conjunction with clinical services provided at Watts Hospital.

Watts School of Nursing

In addition to founding the clinical hospital, George Watts also established the Watts Hospital Training School for Nurses at the hospital, in 1895. It was then renamed the Watts School of Nursing (Watts SON), and had its first graduate, Ethel Clay, in 1897. Watts SON has been housed at

Durham Regional Hospital Duke Regional Hospital (DRH), located in northern Durham, North Carolina is a general-services hospital that has been part of the Duke University Health System since 1998. The hospital has 369 beds and over 500 physicians on the medical staff, a ...

since 1976, and is now a part of the

Duke University Health System The Duke University Health System combines the Duke University School of Medicine, the Duke University School of Nursing, the Duke Clinic, and the member hospitals into a system of research, clinical care, and education. Member hospitals Duke U ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Watts, George Washington 1851 births 1921 deaths University of Maryland, College Park alumni Businesspeople from Cumberland, Maryland Businesspeople from Durham, North Carolina American manufacturing businesspeople American chief executives American philanthropists American bankers