William Russell Grace

William Russell Grace

William Russell Grace (born May 10, 1832, Ballylinan, County Laois, Ireland;died March 21, 1904, New York) was the first Roman Catholic mayor of New York and the founder of W. R. Grace and Company.

Business

He began his business career in Peru, where he was a partner with the firm of John Bryce, later to become Grace Brothers & Co., and then W. R. Grace & Co.

Philanthropy

William Russell Grace was a renowned philanthropist, at one point contributing a quarter of the aid delivered to Ireland aboard the steamship "Constellation" during the famine of the later 1870s [ [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06714a.htm Hery A. Brann, "Catholic Encyclopedia" v. VI (1909)] ] . In 1897, he and his brother, Michael, founded the Grace Institute for the education of women, especially immigrants.

Reform politics

Opposing the famous Tammany Hall, Grace was elected as the first Irish American Catholic mayor of New York City in 1880 [ [http://memory.loc.gov/learn/features/immig/irish7.html "Irish Identity, Influence and Opportunity", Library of Congress] ] . He conducted a reform administration attacking police scandals, patronage and organized vice; reduced the tax rate and broke up the Louisiana Lottery. Defeated the following year, he was re-elected in 1884 on an Independent ticket but lost again the following year [ [http://www.irishmidlandsancestry.com/content/laois/people/grace_william-russell.htm "Irish Midlands Ancestry,"; from "Laois Association Yearbook" (1981)] ] . During his second term, Grace received the Statue of Liberty as a gift from France.

ee also

*W. R. Grace and Company

References

Biography

* Marquis James, "Merchant Adventurer: The Story of W. R. Grace," Wilmington, Delaware: Scholarly Resources (1993) ISBN 0842024441

External links

* [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06714a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia]
*Clayton, Lawrence A. [http://www.irlandeses.org/dilab_gracewr.htm] "Grace, William Russell (1832-1904), merchant" in "Irish Migration Studies in Latin America" 4:4 October 2006 (www.irlandeses.org).
* [http://www.irishmidlandsancestry.com/content/laois/people/grace_william-russell.htm Biography from www.irishmidlandsancestry.com]


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