Marcellus Hartley Dodge Sr. (February 28, 1881 – December 25, 1963) was the chairman of the board of
Remington Arms Company
Remington Arms Company, LLC was an American manufacturer of firearms and ammunition, now broken into two companies, each bearing the Remington name. The firearms manufacturer is ''Remington Arms''. The ammunition business is called ''Remingto ...
and a member of the family associated with the
Phelps Dodge Corporation
Phelps Dodge Corporation was an American mining company founded in 1834 as an import-export firm by Anson Greene Phelps and his two sons-in-law William Earle Dodge, Sr. and Daniel James. The latter two ran Phelps, James & Co., the part of the o ...
. He was the president or director of several companies and the president of
YMCA
YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams (philanthropist), Georg ...
in the United States. He was a well-known
philanthropist with significant donations to many institutions and organizations and he was a major contributor to the successful efforts to protect the
Great Swamp.
[
]
Biography
He was born on February 28, 1881 to Emma Hartley who died from complication of childbirth on March 3, 1881, and Norman White Dodge.
His paternal grandfather was William E. Dodge Sr., an abolitionist
Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people.
The British ...
, but also a partner at Phelps, Dodge, a company that exported cotton from the deep south to Liverpool, England. Phelps, Dodge was also in the business of importing copper from England and diversified into mining and smelting. He was a promoter of the rights of Native Americans who served as the president of the National Temperance Society from 1865 to 1883, represented the New York 8th congressional district in the United States Congress
The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...
for a portion of the 39th United States Congress in 1866-67, and was a founding member of YMCA
YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams (philanthropist), Georg ...
in the United States. He had married Melissa Phelps (1809-1903), the daughter of Anson Greene Phelps and Olivia Egleston and in 1833, William E. Dodge and his father-in-law founded the mining firm Phelps, Dodge, and Company, one of America's foremost mining companies.
His maternal grandfather was Marcellus Hartley, a merchant and financier of Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
. His grandfather had provided a home on Thirty-seventh Street adjoining his on Madison Avenue for his daughter, Emma, as a wedding present when she had married Norman W. Dodge on May 6, 1880. Emma died on March 3, 1881, a few days after the birth of her son
Several years after the death of his mother, his father remarried on January 5, 189
and Marcellus was raised by his maternal grandparents
Marcellus Hartley died in 1902 and left his grandson as heir to $60 million (approximately $ today) at the age of twenty-one, while he was attending Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
and living with his grandmother, Frances Chester Hartley, at 282 Madison Avenue in Manhattan.
Education and early adulthood
In 1903, Dodge was graduated from Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
, where he was president of his class, manager of the track team, and coxswain
The coxswain ( , or ) is the person in charge of a boat, particularly its navigation and steering. The etymology of the word gives a literal meaning of "boat servant" since it comes from ''cock'', referring to the cockboat, a type of ship's boa ...
of his class crew
A crew is a body or a class of people who work at a common activity, generally in a structured or hierarchical organization. A location in which a crew works is called a crewyard or a workyard. The word has nautical resonances: the tasks involved ...
(sometimes referred to as college rowing).
Upon his graduation, he and his maternal aunt, Helen Hartley Jenkins (Mrs. George W. Jenkins), presented the Hartley Hall
Hartley Hall was the first official residence hall (or dormitory) constructed on the campus of Columbia University's Morningside Heights campus, and currently houses undergraduate students from Columbia College as well as the Fu Foundation School ...
dormitory to Columbia. The building became Columbia's largest dormitory and created more of a college atmosphere for the new campus in Morningside Heights.
Well known in society and an avid yachtsman
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 ...
, on July 11, 1906 Dodge took a party of his friends on the ''Wakiva I'', his large pleasure and cruising yacht, on a month-long tour to the upper waters of the Amazon River, the Orinoco in Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
and Colombia, the Guianas
The Guianas, sometimes called by the Spanish loan-word ''Guayanas'' (''Las Guayanas''), is a region in north-eastern South America which includes the following three territories:
* French Guiana, an overseas department and region of France
* ...
: British Guiana, Surinam, and French Guiana
French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic coast of South America in the Guianas. ...
. They visited many locations in the Caribbean, including Cuba
Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...
where they toured the battle fields of recent armed rebellion before returning to Tampa. His guests included Nicholas Crosby, international law authority John Bassett Moore, historian H. A. Cushing, Everitt Dominick, Eugene Delano Jr., cartographer and historian William Robert Shepherd, J. R. Thompson, and Dr. James R. Cannon. Photographs and some remembrances of the trip by Eugene Delano were published in the Yale Courant, Volume 43 May 1907, pages 686–693, under the title, ''Les Iles du Salut''.
Marriage
In 1907, Dodge became engaged and married to (Ethel) Geraldine Rockefeller of 689 Fifth Avenue. She was a child of William
William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...
and Almira Geraldine Goodsell Rockefeller, and was estimated to have her own fortune of more than 100 million dollars. They were said to be the wealthiest newlyweds in the country when they married. Initially, when they resided in New Jersey, they lived together at ''Hartley Farms'', a country estate in New Vernon purchased by Marcellus and his aunt, Helen Hartley Jenkins, in 1904.
Soon, they bought all of the land between two estates held by his family in Morris County, New Jersey that lay between Spring Valley Road in the community of New Vernon and Madison Avenue in Madison. Most of the area is part of the Harding Township area that extends from Chatham to Morristown. The last portion purchased, that had belonged to Charles W. Harkness, the third largest stockholder of Standard Oil shares, named Giralda Farms Giralda Farms was the estate of Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge in Madison, New Jersey
Madison is a borough in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 16,937.
Located along the Mor ...
, was purchased by Geraldine in 1923. She maintained it as a grand country estate among the rolling hills.
Eventually, they resided separately on the adjoining estates. He preferred the New Jersey setting and maintained his residence in New Vernon throughout his life, but his wife regularly stayed in her Manhattan residence for two or three days each week.
Dodge expanded the house at "Hartley Farms", which initially had been used as a country retreat associated with his family's charitable organization, "Hartley House" in Manhattan. After it became his residence, he added two wings and some interior enhancements to the house as well as secondary living quarters, barns, stables, and a polo field. The property has been preserved with a conservation easement
In the United States, a conservation easement (also called conservation covenant, conservation restriction or conservation servitude) is a power invested in a qualified private land conservation organization (often called a "land trust") or gover ...
and his residence has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
. At one time ''Hartley Farms'' extended for a thousand acres (4 km2).
They had one child, Marcellus Hartley Dodge Jr., who died in an automobile crash in Mogesca, France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...
in 1930. His mother built an extensive memorial to him as a civic center in Madison along with the train station she built opposite the center. They also donated a structure on the campus of Princeton University
Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the ...
, from which their son had been graduated shortly before his death.
At the time of his marriage, Dodge was the president and a director of the Union Metallic Cartridge Company
The Union Metallic Cartridge Company (UMC) was an early manufacturer of cartridge ammunition for small arms. The company was founded in 1867 during the most rapid evolution of cartridge design to date. Following merger with Remington Arms in 1912, ...
, president of the Bridgeport Gun Implement Company, director of the Equitable Trust Company, director of International Banking Company, director of M. Hartley Company, a member of the Lawyers Club of New York City, the Essex County Country Club, and the City of New York Club.
An accomplished equestrian
The word equestrian is a reference to equestrianism, or horseback riding, derived from Latin ' and ', "horse".
Horseback riding (or Riding in British English)
Examples of this are:
* Equestrian sports
*Equestrian order, one of the upper classes i ...
, Dodge also founded the Spring Valley Hounds, a hunt club that not only conducted hunts for their members among the many estates nearby, but also held a major annual horse show
A horse show is a judged exhibition of horses and ponies. Many different horse breeds and equestrian disciplines hold competitions worldwide, from local to the international levels. Most horse shows run from one to three days, sometimes longer ...
in New Jersey. Competitions included those for hunters and open jumpers, as well as for saddle horses of three and five gates. Many of the competitors followed the international horse show circuit that closed its season with the November exhibition at Madison Square Garden on Fiftieth Street and Eighth Avenue in Manhattan
Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...
each year. Nearby, the United States Equestrian Team
The United States Equestrian Team (USET) refers to the American national teams in Olympic and non-Olympic disciplines of horse sport. US Equestrian, the governing body of horse sport in the United States, selects, trains and funds the teams. The O ...
formed for the Olympics from these ranks in 1950, it was founded just off of Spring Valley Road, on van Beuren Road at the Coates estate.
Remington Arms Company
Eventually, Dodge became the chairman of Remington Arms Company
Remington Arms Company, LLC was an American manufacturer of firearms and ammunition, now broken into two companies, each bearing the Remington name. The firearms manufacturer is ''Remington Arms''. The ammunition business is called ''Remingto ...
, taking the place of his maternal grandfather. The Remington Arms and Union Metallic Cartridge factories at Bridgeport, Connecticut were described as the greatest small arms and ammunition plant in the world by the editor of the New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
in 1916. Cash control of the company was acquired by E. I. du Pont de Nemours Company of Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington (Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...
in 1933, but Dodge remained at the head of the business.
Following the business tradition established by his grandfather at the time of the American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states ...
, his company was the supplier of sixty-nine percent of the arms, ammunition, and munitions being used by the federal government during the Second World War
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 opposi ...
. Secret meetings about this were held on his country estate, ''Hartley Farms'', at his polo fields which, except for the war years, were also used from 1927 as the site of the exhibition of the Morris and Essex Dog Show held by his wife, Geraldine. During these meetings General Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...
and he became close friends.
Columbia University board of directors
He was a member of the board of trustees of Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
, his alma mater.
As noted repeatedly in this article, he made many donations to the university and he was the founder of the Marcellus Hartley Dodge Cup that is awarded in crew. The Marcellus Hartley Dodge Award is bestowed in his honor. A bronze plaque dedicated to Dodge and bearing his likeness is displayed at the university.
Champion of the Great Swamp
When the remnants of Glacial Lake Passaic
Lake Passaic was a prehistoric proglacial lake that existed in northern New Jersey in the United States at the end of the last ice age approximately 19,000–14,000 years ago.Stanford, Scott D. “Glacial Lake Passaic.” ''Unearthing New Jerse ...
, the Great Swamp that abutted Dodge's estate, was targeted for development as an airport by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey
The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, PANYNJ; stylized, in logo since 2020, as Port Authority NY NJ, is a joint venture between the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey, established in 1921 through an interstate compact authorize ...
, nearby citizens formed the ''Jersey Jetport Site Association'' in 1959 to protect it by purchasing properties to assemble for donation to the government as a federal park. Dodge, being close to the area and fiscally capable, joined their efforts.
Dodge was one of the first trustees of the ''North American Wildlife Foundation'' that completed the acquisition of enough of the Great Swamp to protect the massive natural resource. Legislation was introduced that was championed by Stewart L. Udall while he was a congressman from Arizona. It was passed on November 3, 1960 protecting the important natural resource. In 1964 the park was dedicated by Udall, who had become Secretary of the Interior to president John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination ...
and continued in the same role under Lyndon B. Johnson
Lyndon Baines Johnson (; August 27, 1908January 22, 1973), often referred to by his initials LBJ, was an American politician who served as the 36th president of the United States from 1963 to 1969. He had previously served as the 37th vice ...
.
The Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge
The Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge is located in Morris County, New Jersey. Established in 1960, it now is among what has grown to be more than 550 refuges in the United States National Wildlife Refuge System.
The initial portion of th ...
was dedicated in 1968. It was named the M. Hartley Dodge Wildlife Refug
in honor of his son.
Death
Dodge died on Christmas Day
Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, ...
, December 25, 1963, at Giralda Farms Giralda Farms was the estate of Geraldine Rockefeller Dodge in Madison, New Jersey
Madison is a borough in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 16,937.
Located along the Mor ...
in Madison, New Jersey
Madison is a borough in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 16,937.
Located along the Morris & Essex Lines, it is noted for Madison's historic railroad station becoming on ...
. He is buried at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery
Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Sleepy Hollow, New York, is the final resting place of numerous famous figures, including Washington Irving, whose 1820 short story " The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" is set in the adjacent burying ground at the Old Dutch ...
, at Sleepy Hollow, in
Westchester County, New York, USA Find a Grave - Marcellus Hartley Dodge, Sr.
/ref> in the Rockefeller Family
The Rockefeller family () is an American industrial, political, and banking family that owns one of the world's largest fortunes. The fortune was made in the American petroleum industry during the late 19th and early 20th centuries by brot ...
plot alongside of his son and where, ten years later, his wife also would be buried.
Legacy
In ''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'', Dodge was described as an outstanding citizen, remembered above all for the warmth and generosity of his personality. He was a well-known philanthropist. Beginning with a donation of fountains on the plaza before Low Memorial Library
The Low Memorial Library (nicknamed Low) is a building at the center of Columbia University's Morningside Heights campus in Manhattan, New York City, United States. The building, located near 116th Street between Broadway and Amsterdam Avenu ...
and a residence building for students in 1903, Hartley Hall
Hartley Hall was the first official residence hall (or dormitory) constructed on the campus of Columbia University's Morningside Heights campus, and currently houses undergraduate students from Columbia College as well as the Fu Foundation School ...
, that he and his aunt, Helen Hartley Jenkins, donated, he provided many gifts to Columbia Universit
and numerous other institutions and organizations. After his death his family and estate underwrote the construction of Dodge Physical Fitness Center at Columbia, and the university renamed another of its buildings Dodge Hall in his honor.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dodge, Marcellus
20th-century American businesspeople
Philanthropists from New York (state)
Dodge family
Rockefeller family
People from the Upper East Side
People from Harding Township, New Jersey
1881 births
1963 deaths
YMCA leaders
Columbia College (New York) alumni
Burials at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery