Stephen Salisbury III (1835–1905), also referred to as Stephen Salisbury Jr., was an American businessman, lawyer, and politician.
/ref> The son of a wealthy landowner, Salisbury helped manage the family's extensive properties and businesses in

Worcester County, Massachusetts Worcester County is a county located in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. At the 2020 census, the population was 862,111, making it the second-most populous county in Massachusetts while also being the largest in area. The largest city and tra ...

. Like his father, Salisbury served in the

State Senate A state legislature in the United States is the legislative body of any of the 50 U.S. states. The formal name varies from state to state. In 27 states, the legislature is simply called the ''Legislature'' or the ''State Legislature'', whil ...

, was president of the Worcester National Bank, and directed the Worcester & Nashua Railroad. He was a trustee of the Worcester City Hospital and the

Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) is a Private university, private research university in Worcester, Massachusetts. Founded in 1865 in Worcester, WPI was one of the United States' first engineering and technology universities and now has 14 ac ...

Biography

Stephen Salisbury III was born in

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engla ...

on March 31, 1835. He graduated from

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

in 1856, and studied abroad for two years at Friedrich Wilhelm University. He received a degree from Harvard Law School in 1861, and was admitted to the bar that October. Like his father, he maintained a long association with the

American Antiquarian Society The American Antiquarian Society (AAS), located in Worcester, Massachusetts, is both a learned society and a national research library of pre-twentieth-century American history and culture. Founded in 1812, it is the oldest historical society i ...

. He was elected a member in 1863, served on its board of councilors from 1847 to 1884, as vice-president from 1884 to 1887, and as president from 1887 until his death in 1905. He was also an active member of the

Worcester County Horticultural Society The Worcester County Horticultural Society is a non-profit American horticulture, horticultural society based in Boylston, Massachusetts, USA, whose stated mission in 2014 was to "inspire the use and appreciation of horticulture to improve lives, e ...

, servings as president from 1879 to 1881. A

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

, he was a member of the

Massachusetts Senate The Massachusetts Senate is the upper house of the Massachusetts General Court, the bicameral state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Senate comprises 40 elected members from 40 single-member senatorial districts in the st ...

from 1893 to 1895. In 1896, along with a group of prominent citizens of Worcester, he founded the

Worcester Art Museum The Worcester Art Museum, also known by its acronym WAM, houses over 38,000 works of art dating from antiquity to the present day and representing cultures from all over the world. WAM opened in 1898 in Worcester, Massachusetts, and ranks among th ...

. In 1900, he erected the Bancroft Tower, in honor of

George Bancroft George Bancroft (October 3, 1800 – January 17, 1891) was an American historian, statesman and Democratic politician who was prominent in promoting secondary education both in his home state of Massachusetts and at the national and internati ...

, a friend of Salisbury's father. Salisbury died from pneumonia at his home in Worcester on November 16, 1905, leaving his extensive collection of mostly American art to the museum. He also bequeathed $3 million to the museum.Worcester Art Museum, About WAM
/ref> Salisbury dedicated part of his time and economic resources to the research and popularization of the

Mayan culture The Maya civilization () of the Mesoamerican people is known by its ancient temples and Glyph, glyphs. Its Maya script is the most sophisticated and highly developed writing system in the Pre-Columbian era, pre-Columbian Americas. It is also ...

in the Yucatan peninsula. He wrote a number of articles in the ''Proceedings of the American Antiquarian Society'' about the subject, such as: ''The Mayas, the sources of their culture'', ''The statue of

Chac Mool A chacmool (also spelled chac-mool) is a form of pre-Columbian Mesoamerican sculpture depicting a reclining figure with its head facing 90 degrees from the front, supporting itself on its elbows and supporting a bowl or a disk upon its stomach. Th ...

'', ''Terracota figures from

Isla Mujeres Isla Mujeres (, Spanish for "Women Island" (formally “Isla de Mujeres”) is an island where the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea meet, about off the Yucatán Peninsula coast in the State of Quintana Roo, Mexico. It is approximately long ...

'', ''The K'atun of the Mayan History''.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Salisbury, Stephen, Iii 1835 births 1905 deaths People associated with the Worcester Art Museum Harvard College alumni Members of the American Antiquarian Society 19th-century American philanthropists