Herbert Parsons Patterson (September 3, 1925 – January 29, 1985), was an American banker who served as president of the Chase Manhattan Bank.

Early life

Patterson was born on September 3, 1925, at Sloan Maternity Hospital in New York City. He was the second son of

Morehead Patterson Morehead Patterson (October 9, 1897 – August 5, 1962) was an American businessman, a diplomat, an inventor, and president, CEO and chairman of American Machine and Foundry, the company founded by his father Rufus Patterson. Patterson led expa ...

and Elsie ( Parsons) Patterson (1901–1966). His elder brother was Rufus Lenoir Patterson III, a Lieutenant with the USAAF who was killed in action during

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 opposin ...

. His parents divorced in 1929 and his mother married John Drummond Kennedy in 1934. His father was an inventor who served as president and chairman of American Machine and Foundry. His paternal grandparents were

Rufus L. Patterson Jr. Rufus Lenoir Patterson Jr. (July 11, 1872 – April 11, 1943) was an American businessman who founded American Machine and Foundry and served as a vice president of the American Tobacco Company. Early life Patterson was born in Salem, North Car ...

, founder of AMF, and Margaret Warren ( Morehead) Patterson, a descendant of North Carolina Governor

John Motley Morehead John Motley Morehead (July 4, 1796 – August 27, 1866) was an American lawyer and politician who became the 29th governor of the U.S. state of North Carolina (1841 to 1845). He became known as "the Father of Modern North Carolina." Early and ...

Blandwood Blandwood Mansion is a historic house museum at 447 West Washington Street in Greensboro, North Carolina. Originally built as a four-room Federal style farmhouse in 1795, it was home to two-term North Carolina governor John Motley Morehead (1841 ...

. His maternal grandparents were

U.S. Representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

Herbert Parsons and

Elsie Clews Parsons Elsie Worthington Clews Parsons (November 27, 1875 – December 19, 1941) was an American anthropologist, sociologist, folklorist, and feminist who studied Native American tribes—such as the Tewa and Hopi—in Arizona, New Mexico, and Mexi ...

(a daughter of British-American financier

Henry Clews Henry Clews (August 14, 1834 – January 31, 1923) was a British-American financier and author. Early life Clews was born on August 14, 1834, in Staffordshire, England.Ingham, John N. "Clews, Henry." 'Biographical Dictionary of American Business ...

and Lucy Madison Worthington, a grandniece of President

James Madison James Madison Jr. (March 16, 1751June 28, 1836) was an American statesman, diplomat, and Founding Father. He served as the fourth president of the United States from 1809 to 1817. Madison is hailed as the "Father of the Constitution" for hi ...

). After graduating from the

Groton School Groton School (founded as Groton School for Boys) is a private college-preparatory boarding school located in Groton, Massachusetts. Ranked as one of the top five boarding high schools in the United States in Niche (2021–2022), it is affiliated ...

in 1942, he attended

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

, where he earned a bachelor's degree in 1948. During

, he was a junior officer in the Navy serving in the Pacific.

Career

In 1949, he joined Chase Manhattan Bank, where he spent his entire banking career. After a succession of posts, starting as an assistant manager and including assistant treasurer, vice president and executive vice president, he became president of the bank in 1968 when the previous president, David Rockefeller, also the bank's largest individual shareholder, became chairman and chief executive. Patterson was a trustee of the National Council on Crime and Delinquency, a member of the

Council on Foreign Relations The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) is an American think tank A think tank, or policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, mi ...

and the Mayor's Fiscal Advisory Committee. In 1972, after the bank was losing its competitive position and suffering a decline in earnings, he was replaced as president by Willard C. Butcher, and left the bank. After Chase, he served as a financial consultant to Marshalsea Associates and then as president of the Stonover Company, a financial consulting firm he founded in 1977. He also served on the board of directors of AMF, the company founded by his grandfather and which was run by his father as well.

Personal life

In July 1949, Patterson was married to Louise Sargent ( Oakey) McVeigh (1925–1968), an operatic and concert soprano, at the River Club. Louise, the widow of David Malcolm McVeigh, was a daughter of Francis Oakey of New York and The Studio in Southampton, New York. Her only attended was her sister, Joan Oakey Benjamin (wife of Samuel Nicoll Benjamin), and his best man was his cousin, Casimir de Rham Jr. Louise's grandmother, Ellen ( Sargent) Oakey, was a cousin of the artist

John Singer Sargent John Singer Sargent (; January 12, 1856 – April 14, 1925) was an American expatriate artist, considered the "leading portrait painter of his generation" for his evocations of Edwardian-era luxury. He created roughly 900 oil paintings and more ...

. Before her death in 1968, they were the parents of: * Katheryn Clews Patterson, a

Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (Harvard Law or HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest continuously operating law school in the United States. Each class ...

graduate who married Thomas L. Kempner Jr., co-founder of

Davidson Kempner Capital Management Davidson Kempner Capital Management LP (“Davidson Kempner”) is a global institutional alternative investment management firm with over $38 billion in assets under management. Davidson Kempner is headquartered in New York City, with additional ...

, in 1979. After the death of his first wife, he married

Stanford Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is considere ...

graduate Patricia ( Shepard) Norris (1925–2016) in 1970 at the Dana Chapel of the

Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church is a member church of the Presbyterian Church (USA), located at 73rd Street and Madison Avenue on the Upper East Side of New York City. In 1927 George Arthur Buttrick succeeded Henry Sloane Coffin as minister. ...

followed by a reception at the

Colony Club The Colony Club is a women-only private social club in New York City. Founded in 1903 by Florence Jaffray Harriman, wife of J. Borden Harriman, as the first social club established in New York City by and for women, it was modeled on similar ...

. Patricia, the former wife of Bruce A. Norris (owner of the

Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the East ...

), was a daughter of Chester Ames Shephard of New York and Pebble Beach, where he was a real‐estate investor. He was a member of the Racquet and Tennis Club and the Lenox Club. Patterson died of pulmonary failure Tuesday at his home in New York City on January 29, 1985. After a funeral in New York, he was privately buried in

Lenox, Massachusetts Lenox is a town in Berkshire County, Massachusetts. The town is based in Western Massachusetts and part of the Pittsfield Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 5,095 at the 2020 census. Lenox is the site of Shakespeare & Company and T ...

, where he was a trustee of the Lenox Library. After his death, Stonover, his family's estate in Lenox, was sold and today is operated as a bed and breakfast.

References

;Notes ;Sources {{DEFAULTSORT:Patterson, Herbert Parsons 1925 births 1985 deaths Groton School alumni Yale University alumni American bank presidents