- Francis Martin Drexel
Infobox Person
name = Francis Martin Drexel
image_size = 250px
caption =
birth_date =April 7 ,1792
birth_place =Austria
death_date =June 5 ,1863
death_place =Philadelphia
occupation =Banker
spouse = Catherine Hookey (1795-1870)
parents =
children =Anthony Joseph Drexel
Joseph William Drexel
Francis Anthony Drexel Francis Martin Drexel (
April 7 ,1792 –June 5 ,1863 ) was aPhiladelphia banker and artist. He was the father ofAnthony Joseph Drexel , the founder ofDrexel University and the grandfather ofSaint Katherine Drexel .Drexel was born in
Dornbirn , in theAustria nVorarlberg in 1792. In 1803 he was sent to study Italian and the fine arts in a Catholic institution nearTurin . When he returned in 1809 he found Austria invaded by the French, and to escape conscription he crossed the border intoSwitzerland and then went toParis, France . In 1812 he returned to the Tyrol incognito. Conscription was still in force, so he went toBerne and continued his study of painting. He sailed for theUnited States in 1817, fromAmsterdam , and settled inPhiladelphia . After a few years, he went toPeru andChile , painting portraits, including one of GeneralSimon Bolivar . He visited South America twice, and went toMexico . After his permanent settlement in Philadelphia, he founded the banking house ofDrexel & Co. in 1837, which became one of the largest banks in the United States. The original business of Drexel & Co. was discounting privately issued bank notes. they were no more good than the character of the principal officers of the issuing bank. The exposure to the principals gained from portrait painting is said to have given Drexel inside knowledge.The Paris firm, Drexel, Harjes & Co., was founded in 1868, and the New York firm, Drexel, Morgan & Co., in 1871.Children
*
Anthony Joseph Drexel , was born onSeptember 13 ,1826 inPhiladelphia . He foundedDrexel University .
*Joseph William Drexel , was born onJanuary 24 ,1833 . He retired from banking in 1876, then became trustee of theMetropolitan Museum of Art , trustee of theU.S. National Academy of Sciences , and director of theMetropolitan Opera house.
*Francis Anthony Drexel who was born onJune 20 ,1824 inPhiladelphia . He was the father ofSaint Katharine Drexel .Death
Francis died in 1853 and was buried in
The Woodlands Cemetery inPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania .References
*Appletons
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