Marshall Field III (September 28, 1893 – November 8, 1956) was an American

investment bank Investment is the dedication of money to purchase of an asset to attain an increase in value over a period of time. Investment requires a sacrifice of some present asset, such as time, money, or effort. In finance, the purpose of investing i ...

er, publisher, racehorse owner/breeder, philanthropist, grandson of businessman

Marshall Field Marshall Field (August 18, 1834January 16, 1906) was an American entrepreneur and the founder of Marshall Field and Company, the Chicago-based department stores. His business was renowned for its then-exceptional level of quality and customer ...

, heir to the

department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store made a dramatic app ...

fortune, and a leading financial supporter and founding board member of

Saul Alinsky Saul David Alinsky (January 30, 1909 – June 12, 1972) was an American community activist and political theorist. His work through the Chicago-based Industrial Areas Foundation helping poor communities organize to press demands upon landlords ...

's community organizing network

Industrial Areas Foundation The Industrial Areas Foundation (IAF) is a national community organizing network established in 1940 by Saul Alinsky, Roman Catholic Bishop Bernard James Sheil and businessman and founder of the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' Marshall Field III. The IAF p ...

Early life

Born in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Cook County Cook County is the most populous county in the U.S. state of Illinois and the second-most-populous county in the United States, after Los Angeles County, California. More than 40% of all residents of Illinois live within Cook County. As of 20 ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

, he was the son of Albertine Huck and Marshall Field, Jr. He was raised primarily in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, where he was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, ...

and the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a public collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world's third oldest surviving university and one of its most pr ...

. In 1917, he joined the

1st Illinois Cavalry The 1st Illinois Cavalry Regiment was a cavalry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War and Spanish–American War. Civil War Service Companies "A" to "G" of the 1st Illinois Volunteer Cavalry were mustered into ...

and served with the 122nd Field Artillery in

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 ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. He built an estate in 1925.

Early career

On his discharge after the war, Field returned to Chicago where he went to work as a bond salesman at Lee, Higginson & Co. After learning the business, he left to open his own investment business. A director of Guaranty Trust Co. of

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, he eventually teamed up with Charles F. Glore and Pierce C. Ward to create the investment banking firm of Marshall Field, Glore, Ward & Co. In 1926, Field left the firm to pursue other interests. Already a recipient of substantial money from the estate of his grandfather

, on his 50th birthday he inherited the bulk of the remainder of the family fortune. His brother, Henry Field, who was to have shared in the fortune, had died in 1917.

Publishing industry

He was primarily a publisher, and in late 1941 he founded the ''

Chicago Sun The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the '' Chicago ...

'', which later became the ''Chicago Sun-Times''. The primary investor in the newspaper '' PM'', he eventually bought out the other investors to become the publisher. He also created '' Parade'' as a weekly magazine supplement for his own paper and for others in the United States. By 1946, ''Parade'' had achieved a circulation of 3.5 million. In 1944, Marshall Field III formed the private holding company

Field Enterprises Field Enterprises, Inc. was a private holding company that operated from the 1940s to the 1980s, founded by Marshall Field III and others, whose main assets were the ''Chicago Sun'' and ''Parade'' magazine. For various periods of time, Field Enter ...

. That same year, he purchased

Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest pu ...

and

Pocket Books Pocket Books is a division of Simon & Schuster that primarily publishes paperback books. History Pocket Books produced the first mass-market, pocket-sized paperback books in the United States in early 1939 and revolutionized the publishing ...

. After his death, his heirs sold the company back to its founders,

Richard L. Simon Richard Leo Simon (March 6, 1899 – July 29, 1960) was an American book publisher. He was a Columbia University graduate, co-founder of the publishing house Simon & Schuster, and father of singer-songwriter Carly Simon. Early life Richard Leo ...

and M. Lincoln Schuster, while

Leon Shimkin Leon Shimkin (April 7, 1907 – May 25, 1988) was an American businessman who helped to build Simon & Schuster into a major publishing company. Shimkin was responsible for many self-help bestsellers turning Dale Carnegie's lectures into t ...

and James M. Jacobson acquired Pocket Books.

Thoroughbred racing

A polo player, Field invested heavily in

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...

racehorses Horse racing is an equestrian performance sport, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its basic pr ...

in the United States and in

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the northwest coast of continental Europe. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the largest European island and the ninth-largest island in the world. It i ...

. Among his successful British horses were three fillies, who won the

Irish Oaks The Irish Oaks is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile and 4 furlongs (2,414 metres), and it i ...

Golden Corn Golden Corn (1919 - 1935), was an English-bred, throughbred filly horse who was one of the top rated two-year-olds of 1921. Her wins in 1921 included The Middle Park Stakes. She stayed in training for three seasons, adding the July Cup in 1923. ...

, who won England's

Middle Park Stakes The Middle Park Stakes is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to two-year-old colts. It is run on the Rowley Mile at Newmarket over a distance of 6 furlongs (1,207 metres), and it is ...

and Champagne Stakes in 1921 and the July Cup in 1923. In the United States, Nimba was the 1927

American Champion Three-Year-Old Filly The American Champion Three-Year-Old Filly is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually to a female horse in Thoroughbred flat racing. It became part of the Eclipse Awards program in 1971. The award originated in 1936 when both ...

, and

Tintagel Tintagel () or Trevena ( kw, Tre war Venydh, meaning ''Village on a Mountain'') is a civil parish and village situated on the Atlantic coast of Cornwall, England. The village and nearby Tintagel Castle are associated with the legends surroundin ...

won the 1935 Futurity Stakes and was voted

American Champion Two-Year-Old Colt The American Champion Two-Year-Old Male Horse is an American Thoroughbred horse racing honor awarded annually in Thoroughbred flat racing. It became part of the Eclipse Awards program in 1971. The award originated in 1936 when the '' Daily Racing F ...

. In 1926, one year after his estate was built, Marshall Field partnered with Robert A. Fairbairn, William Woodward, Sr., and Arthur B. Hancock to import Sir Gallahad III from France to stand at

stud Stud may refer to the following terms: Animals * Stud (animal), an animal retained for breeding ** Stud farm, a property where livestock are bred Arts and entertainment * Stud (band), a British progressive rock group * The Stud (bar), a gay ba ...

in the United States. One of their horses, named Assignation, born in 1930, was the great-great grandfather of

Secretariat Secretariat may refer to: * Secretariat (administrative office) * Secretariat (horse) Secretariat (March 30, 1970 – October 4, 1989), also known as Big Red, was a champion American thoroughbred racehorse who is the ninth winner of the Ame ...

. The Marshall Field III Estate is a mansion built in 1925 on Long Island Sound which was designed by

architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to provide services in connection with the design of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the buildings that h ...

John Russell Pope John Russell Pope (April 24, 1874 – August 27, 1937) was an American architect whose firm is widely known for designing major public buildings, including the National Archives and Records Administration building (completed in 1935), the Jeff ...

. It was built on the grounds of a estate, now called Caumsett State Historic Park Preserve, which he purchased in 1921. an
''Accompanying 16 photos, exterior and interior, from 1975 and 1976''
/ref> It is a New York State Historic Site.

Philanthropy

Field supported a number of charitable institutions and in 1940 created the

Field Foundation The Field Foundation of New York was one of the two organizations that had split off from the original Field Foundation in 1960, the other being the Field Foundation of Illinois. The foundation in New York was originally led by Ruth Field, the widow ...

. He personally served as president of the

Child Welfare League of America The Child Welfare League of America (CWLA) is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that coordinates efforts for child welfare in the United States, and provides direct support to agencies that serve children and families. The organization's visio ...

. He also donated substantial funds to support the

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic, officially the Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc., globally known as New York Philharmonic Orchestra (NYPO) or New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, is a symphony orchestra based in New York City. It is ...

symphony

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

and served as its president.

Death and family

Field died in 1956 of brain cancer. His widow and third wife, Ruth Pruyn Field, who had previously been married to sportsman

Ogden Phipps Ogden Phipps (November 26, 1908 – April 21, 2002) was an American stockbroker, court tennis champion and Hall of Fame member, thoroughbred horse racing executive and owner/breeder, and an art collector and philanthropist. In 2001, he was induc ...

, died on January 25, 1994, at 86. They had two daughters, Phyllis Field and Fiona Field. By his first wife, Evelyn Marshall (the daughter of

Charles Henry Marshall Charles Henry Marshall Jr. (February 19, 1838 – July 2, 1912) was an American businessman, art collector and philanthropist who was prominent in society during the Gilded Age. Early life Marshall was born on February 19, 1838 in Easton, New Y ...

), he had daughters Barbara Field and Bettina Field and son

Marshall Field IV Marshall Field IV (June 15, 1916September 18, 1965) was the owner of the ''Chicago Daily News'' from 1956 to 1965. Early life and education Marshall Field IV was born in New York City on June 15, 1916, to Evelyn (née Marshall) Field and Marsha ...

. By his second wife, of whom he was the second husband, Audrey Evelyn James (April 21, 1902 - February 14, 1968), whom he married on August 18, 1930, and divorced in

Reno Reno ( ) is a city in the northwest section of the U.S. state of Nevada, along the Nevada-California border, about north from Lake Tahoe, known as "The Biggest Little City in the World". Known for its casino and tourism industry, Reno is the ...

, Washoe County,

Nevada Nevada ( ; ) is a state in the Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. Nevada is the 7th-most extensive, ...

, in 1934, he left no issue.