Topic summary
Henry Mercer
Extracted from the Wikipedia article Henry Chapman Mercer.
Family and early life
Henry Mercer was born in Doylestown, Pennsylvania, on June 24, 1856 to Mary Rebecca Chapman Mercer and William Mercer. The Mercer family was wealthy and locally prominent; his father, a grandson of Founding Father John Francis Mercer, was a former naval officer who became a judge and gentleman farmer, and his mother was a daughter of congressman Henry Chapman. Mercer's travels, education, and business pursuits would be largely financed by his wealthy maternal aunt Elizabeth, the widow of Timothy Bigelow Lawrence (son of industrialist Abbott Lawrence).