James Tuttle Bates (29 September 1844 – 24 December 1914) was an American businessman who founded the daily newspaper ''

Tribune de Genève The ''Tribune de Genève'' (English: ''Geneva Tribune'') is a Swiss French-language, regional daily newspaper, published in Berliner format by Edipresse in Geneva. History and operations The ''Tribune de Genève'' was first published by Jame ...

'' on 1 February 1879.

Early life

Bates was born in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. He was a son of shipowner Joseph C. Bates and Abigail (

née A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...

Carleton) Bates (1820–1873). He enlisted at age 17 in the

Union army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

, attaining the rank of

lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

at age 21.

Career

After the war, Bates became a stockbroker in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. After making a fortune, he moved to

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

, the hometown of his wife, in 1875. Soon after moving, he acquired the newspaper ''The Continental Herald and Swiss Times'' in 1876, which shortly thereafter became the daily ''

'' on 1 February 1879. In 1887, he founded the "Union Bank", which was absorbed into the

Union Bank of Switzerland Union Bank of Switzerland (UBS) was a Swiss Investment banking, investment bank and financial services company located in Switzerland. The bank, which at the time was the second largest bank in Switzerland, merged with Swiss Bank Corporation in ...

(later to become

UBS AG UBS Group AG is a multinational Investment banking, investment bank and financial services company founded and based in Switzerland. Co-headquartered in the cities of Zürich and Basel, it maintains a presence in all major financial centres ...

) in 1919.

Personal life

On 8 December 1873, he married Amélie Chenevière (1846–1889), the daughter of Geneva

state councilor A state councillor () is a high-ranking position within the State Council, the executive organ of the Chinese government (comparable to a cabinet). It ranks immediately below the Vice-Premiers and above the ministers of various departments. Si ...

Arthur Chenevière and the former Susanne Firmine Munier. Together, they were the parents of six children, five of whom lived to maturity, including: * Marguerite Bates (1874–1964), who married René Monod (1872–1965), a Swiss Private Banker with Darier & Cie, in 1896. * Alice Bates (1876–1949), who married Humbert de Cerjat (1867–1900) in 1899. After his death, she married Alfred Adolphe Gautier (1858–1920), member of the

International Committee of the Red Cross The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC; french: Comité international de la Croix-Rouge) is a humanitarian organization which is based in Geneva, Switzerland, and it is also a three-time Nobel Prize Laureate. State parties (signato ...

and a judge of the

Court of Cassation A court of cassation is a high-instance court that exists in some judicial systems. Courts of cassation do not re-examine the facts of a case, they only interpret the relevant law. In this they are appellate courts of the highest instance. In th ...

, in 1907. * Maurice-Edmond Bates (1877–1877), who died in infancy. * Gertrude Violette Bates (b. 1880), who married Paul Wladimir

Sarasin Sarasin is a surname, originating (unrelatedly) in Switzerland and Thailand. * Arsa Sarasin (born 1936), Thai diplomat and businessman * Edouard Sarasin (1843–1917), Swiss scientist * Fritz Sarasin (1859–1942), full name Karl Friedrich Saras ...

(1871–1940), a grandson of Vice Admiral Georges de Bock, '' aide-de-camp'' to Alexander II, in 1903. * Edmée-Mina Bates (b. 1881), who married Belgian André Gouzée, manager of the Mortgage Company of Canada, in 1910. * Frederick-Norris Bates (1883–1972), a director of the Union Bank who married Renée Brot (1894–1978) in 1915. On 2 March 1903, he married Henriette (née Baron) Pictet (1858–1943) in Geneva. Henriette, the widow of Léonce Pictet, was a daughter of Jacques Louis Aimé Baron. He was a founder and an active member of Emmanuel Episcopal Church, also known as the "American Church" of Geneva. Bates died in Geneva on 24 December 1914. His widow died in 1943.

References

External links

Bates, Frederick Norris
at Diplomatic Documents of Switzerland 1848-1975 {{DEFAULTSORT:Bates, James T 1844 births 1914 deaths People from Boston Union Army officers American emigrants to Switzerland American financial company founders 19th-century American businesspeople Military personnel from Massachusetts