Grinnell J. Willis

The Howland Heirs: Being the Story of a Family and a Fortune and the Inheritance of a Trust Established for Mrs. Hetty H. R. Green
William Morrell Emery
E. Anthony and Sons, Incorporated, 1919 - 484 pages

• Transcription: 418. Hannah Haydock Willis (Grinnell Willis,5 Cornelia Grinell,4 Cornelius Grinell,3 Sylvia2Howland, Gideon1), daughter of Grinnel and Mary B. (Haydock) Willis, was born Dec.31,1875. She married (1)Harvey Ladew Williams; (2)Robert W. Locke. Children:
  

By First marriage
i. Harvey Ladew, b. July, 1900. Is serving with the ambulance section in Italy.
ii. Rebecca, b. Feb., 1904.
By second marriage:
iii. Grinnell Willis, b. May 18, 1911.
iv. Hannah Haydock, b. May 13, 1914.

Grinnell Willis (1848-1930) was a textile merchant and philanthropist, and the son of noted poet Nathaniel Parker Willis. Willis founded and ran Grinnell Willis & Company. He also funded several civic projects in the Morristown, New Jersey area.[1]

Early life and education

Willis was born to Nathaniel Parker Willis and Cornellia Grinnell Willis in New York City on April 28, 1848. He grew up in Idlewild, his family's country estate near Cornwall-on-Hudson on the banks of the Hudson River in New York state. After preparing for college with William Atkinson, Willis entered Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts in 1866. While at Harvard, he played on the varsity rowing team[1] and served as captain of the Class of 1870 Boat Club.[2] Willis graduated from Harvard in 1870.

Merchant career

After graduating from college, Willis joined the commission house of Almy & Co. He worked for the company and then its successor, Lewis Brothers & Co., until 1889. In 1879, Willis began overseeing their business relationship with Wamsutta Mills, a textile manufacturer (now a brand of Springs Global). He founded Grinnell Willis & Co. in 1889.[3]

Philanthropy

Willis served on the Board of Trustees of Morristown School (now Morristown-Beard School) for 15 years (1905-1920) and as board president for 12 years (1908-1920). He donated funds to help construct a gymnasium for the school and its Headmaster House (now the school's Alumni House). Willis dedicated the gymnasium fund to his wife Mary Baker Hadock Willis.[4]

During World War I, Willis served with the Morristown Infantry Battalion of the New Jersey Militia Reserve. After a fire severely damaged the Morristown Library and Lyceum, he and Samuel Gillespie funded the conversion of the structure into the Morristown Armory.[5] In 1917, Willis donated $56,000 to fund the construction of a new library for Morristown. He also gave donations to create the building's children's room and a $200,000 fund to meet future needs.[6]

Family

Willis married Mary Baker Hadock Willis on October 24, 1874. They had three children together: Hannah, Cornellia, and Joseph. After Mary died in 1911, Willis married Katherine Tappert , the librarian at Morristown's public library.[3] on June 2, 1927.

References

1. "Grinnell Willis, Civic Leader". The New York Times. 21 December 1930.
2. "College Societies". The Harvard Advocate. 2 (10). 1867.
3. "Grinnell Willis". Harvard College Class of 1870 Secretary's Report (8). 1905.
4. "Grinnell Willis". Harvard College Class of 1870 Secretary's Report (10). 1920.
5. Rae, John W. (2002). "Morristown Armory". Morristown: A Militiary Headquarters of the American Revolution.
6. Morristown Library News

• Referemce: http://books.google.com/books?id=e88UAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA17&lpg=PA17&dq="grinnell willis"&source=bl&ots=UzRnX3Yx2w&sig=uiBV5rBUR2q558Hev6BjlkSRTWM&hl=en&ei=QD1uTYfWGYuitges_ZT8Dg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=10&ved=0CFEQ6AEwCQ#v=onepage&q="grinnell willis"&f=false
• Reference: Ancestry Genealogy - SmartCopy: Aug 4 2023, 20:57:31 UTC schwartz
• Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Aug 4 2023, 21:51:26 UTC

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• Residence: 1855 - E.D. 1, Cornwall, Orange, New York, United States
• Residence: 1860 - Town of Cornwall Canterbury, Orange, New York, United States
• Residence: 1865 - District 01, Cornwall, Orange, New York, United States
• Residence: 1870 - Massachusetts, United States
• Residence: 1880 - Englewood, Bergen, New Jersey, United States
• Residence: 1900 - Morristown town Ward 4, Morris, New Jersey, United States
• Residence: 1905 - Morris, New Jersey, United States
• Residence: 1910 - Morristown Ward 4, Morris, New Jersey, United States
• Residence: 1915 - Morristown Township, 4 ward, 4 district, Morris, New Jersey, United States
• Residence: 1920 - Morristown Ward 4, Morris, New Jersey, United States
• Residence: Feb 18 1921 - Morristown, New Jersey
• Residence: Dec 20 1930 - United States
  • Reference: FamilySearch Family Tree - SmartCopy: Aug 5 2023, 15:45:58 UTC