The Houghton family is a prominent

New England New England is a region comprising six states in the Northeastern United States: Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. It is bordered by the state of New York to the west and by the Canadian provinces ...

and

Upstate New York Upstate New York is a geographic region consisting of the area of New York State that lies north and northwest of the New York City metropolitan area. Although the precise boundary is debated, Upstate New York excludes New York City and Long Is ...

business family. The

Corning Glass Works Corning Incorporated is an American multinational technology company that specializes in specialty glass, ceramics, and related materials and technologies including advanced optics, primarily for industrial and scientific applications. The co ...

were founded and run by some members of the family.

Family members and descendants

Their family includes: * Amory Houghton Sr. (1812–1882), founder of Corning Glass Works (1851), married Sophronia Mann Oakes (1814–1880) * Amory Houghton Jr. (1837–1909), former president of Corning Glass Works, married Ellen Ann Bigelow (1840–1918) *

Jesse Houghton Metcalf Jesse Houghton Metcalf (November 16, 1860October 9, 1942) was an American politician, he served as a United States senator from Rhode Island. Early life Born in Providence, Metcalf was educated in private schools there, studied textile manu ...

(1860–1942),

United States Senator The United States Senate is the Upper house, upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives being the Lower house, lower chamber. Together they compose the national Bica ...

from Rhode Island (1924–1937) * Alanson Bigelow Houghton (1863–1941), son of Amory Houghton Jr, former president of Corning Glass, former

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 ...

from New York (1919–1922), former

U.S. Ambassador to Germany The United States has had diplomatic relations with the nation of Germany and its principal predecessor nation, the Kingdom of Prussia, since 1835. These relations were broken twice (1917 to 1921, and 1941 to 1955) while Germany and the United St ...

(1922–1925), and former U.S. Ambassador to Britain (1925–1929), married Adelaide Wellington (1867–1945) * Arthur A. Houghton Sr. (1866–1928), son of Amory Houghton Jr, former president of Corning Glass, married Mahitbel Hollister (1867–1938) *

William J. Tully William John Tully (October 1, 1870 in Corning, Steuben County, New York – August 22, 1930) was an American lawyer and politician from New York. Life He was the son of Joseph J. Tully and Sarah (Byers) Tully. He attended Corning Free Academy, ...

(1870–1930), son-in-law of Amory Houghton Jr.; father of Alice Tully; New York State Senator 1905 to 1908 *

Katharine Martha Houghton Hepburn Katharine Martha Houghton Hepburn (February 2, 1878 – March 17, 1951) was an American feminist social reformer and a leader of the suffrage movement in the United States. Hepburn served as president of the Connecticut Woman Suffrage Associa ...

(1878–1951),

suffragist Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...

and

birth control Birth control, also known as contraception, anticonception, and fertility control, is the use of methods or devices to prevent unwanted pregnancy. Birth control has been used since ancient times, but effective and safe methods of birth contr ...

advocate, mother of actress Katharine Hepburn * Edith Houghton Hooker (1879–1948), suffragist *

Amory Houghton Amory Houghton (July 27, 1899 – February 21, 1981) served as United States Ambassador to France from 1957 to 1961 and as national president of the Boy Scouts of America. He was chairman of the board of Corning Glass Works (1941–1961). In 195 ...

(1899–1981), son of Alanson Bigelow Houghton; father of Amo, Jamie, and Arthur Houghton; former Corning Glass president and chairman; and former Ambassador to France (1957–1961); ; co-founded the

Corning Museum of Glass The Corning Museum of Glass is a museum in Corning, New York in the United States, dedicated to the art, history, and science of glass. It was founded in 1951 by Corning Glass Works and currently has a collection of more than 50,000 glass obje ...

Alice Tully Alice Bigelow Tully (September 14, 1902 – December 10, 1993) was an American singer of opera and recital, music promoter, patron of the arts and philanthropist from New York. She was a second cousin of the American actress Katharine Hepburn. ...

(1902–1993), granddaughter of Amory Houghton Jr, philanthropist and founding benefactor of

Alice Tully Hall Alice Tully Hall is a concert hall at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in the Upper West Side neighborhood of Manhattan in New York City. The hall is named for Alice Tully, a New York performer and philanthropist whose donations assist ...

Arthur A. Houghton Jr. Arthur Amory Houghton Jr. (December 12, 1906 – April 3, 1990) was an American industrialist who served as the president of Steuben Glass Works, the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the New York Philharmonic. Early life Houghton was born in Cornin ...

(1906–1990),

philanthropist Philanthropy is a form of altruism that consists of "private initiatives, for the Public good (economics), public good, focusing on quality of life". Philanthropy contrasts with business initiatives, which are private initiatives for private goo ...

, former president of Steuben Glass Co., a former division of Corning Glass; co-founded the

* Katharine Houghton Hepburn (1907–2003), four-time

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

-winning actress, and named the greatest female star of

classic Hollywood cinema Classical Hollywood cinema is a term used in film criticism to describe both a narrative and visual style of filmmaking which became characteristic of American cinema between the 1910s (rapidly after World War I) and the 1960s. It eventually be ...

by the

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private funding and public membership fees. Leade ...

. *

Amo Houghton Amory Houghton Jr. (August 7, 1926 – March 4, 2020) was an American Republican politician from the U.S. state of New York. He served as a member of the United States House of Representatives and was a member of one of upstate New York's most p ...

(1926-2020), former CEO of Corning Glass and former

from New York (1987–2005) *

James R. Houghton James Richardson Houghton (April 6, 1936 -- December 20, 2022) was the chairman of the board of Corning Incorporated. Early life Houghton was born in 1936. He is the third son of Amory Houghton, former U.S. Ambassador to France, and his wife, th ...

(b. 1936), retired chairman of Corning Inc. *

Katharine Houghton Katharine Houghton (born Katharine Houghton Grant; March 10, 1945) is an American actress and playwright. She portrayed Joanna "Joey" Drayton, a white woman who brings home her black fiancé to meet her parents, in the 1967 film ''Guess Who's ...

(b. 1945), actress *

Mundy Hepburn Mundy Hepburn is an American artist who designs and builds glass sculptures filled with luminous electrified inert gases—the same technology used in neon signs. Hepburn developed many of the glass and lighting techniques he uses in his sculptur ...

(b. 1955), sculptor *

Schuyler Grant Schuyler DeBarthe Ranson Grant (born April 29, 1970) is an American former actress best known for playing Diana Barry in ''Anne of Green Gables'' (1985) and for other supporting roles in television. Education Grant graduated from Columbia Uni ...

(b. 1970), actress, ''

Anne of Green Gables ''Anne of Green Gables'' is a 1908 novel by Canadian author Lucy Maud Montgomery (published as L. M. Montgomery). Written for all ages, it has been considered a classic children's novel since the mid-20th century. Set in the late 19th century, t ...

External links

Houghton Surname Project
{{DEFAULTSORT:Houghton Family American families History of glass Political families of the United States People associated with the Corning Museum of Glass

Family members and descendants

See also

External links