Houghton Surname Project

Jesse Metcalf¹

M, #28561, b. 4 March 1827, d. 20 December 1899

Family: Helen Adelia Rowe

Marriage*: Jesse Metcalf married Helen Adelia Rowe on Nov 22, 1852.^1,3

Biography

A Contributor to Houghton Surname Project

Corresponded with author

Birth

Mar 4, 1827

Providence, RI, USA²

Marriage

Nov 22, 1852

^1,3

Death

Dec 20, 1899

Providence, RI, USA^1,2

Burial

Swan Point Cemetery, Providence, RI, USA³

Biography

Beth Hurd: "He received all his educational training in Providence, attending Mr. Baker's Second District School on Meeting street, and later the private schools of Thomas C. Hartshorn and Joseph S. Pitman. Choosing to follow a mercantile career, he entered the employ of Truman Beckwith, with whom he remained until 1851, in which year he went to Augusta, Georgia, with Stephen T. Olney, as a cotton buyer. He followed that business with great success until the panic of 1857 began to make itself felt, and then returned to Providence, where with Mr. Olney he began the purchase of wool. In 1858 they commenced stocking the Glendale Mill, then operated by Lyman Copeland, and in 1859
acted in a similar capacity for the Greenville Mills, run by Messrs. Pooke & Steere. Both these concerns made cassimeres. They subsequently stocked the Mohegan Mills, where satinet was manufactured.

The Civil War put an end to the cotton business, and in July, 1862, Mr. Metcalf and Mr. Olney, in company with Henry J. Steere, commenced the
erection of the Wanskuck Mill. The formation and incorporation of the Wanskuck Company followed, Mr. Metcalf, Mr. Olney and Mr. Steere taking up the stock of the concern. In May, 1864, they shipped their first case of woolen goods to New York. On January 12, 1870, the Wanskuck Company shipped the first case of worsted goods for men's wear made in this country. The business grew rapidly from the very start, and had so expanded by October 1874, that work was commenced on a worsted mill, the machinery of which was put into motion in April, 1875. Further development rewarded their enterprise, and on July 12, 1884, the first delivery of yarn was made from the new Steere worsted mill. Early in 1897 the company assumed the management of the Geneva Mill, and in 1898 of the Mohegan Mill and Oakland Mill in Burrillville. All through the the period of the activity of the Wanskuck Company, Mr. Metcalf was an energetic and enthusiastic factor in its growth. He was a man not only of large vision, but of exceptional executive powers, and as president and treasurer of the Wanskuck Company from the time of its founding until his death, guided through the turbulent period of its infancy and set upon a solid foundation an organization which has since developed into one of the largest and most flourishing of its kind in the world.

Through his association with a business which was dependent to a large extent on the successful operation of other industries, Mr. Metcalf became interested in financial enterprises of magnitude and importance, and was active in their management and direction. He was associated with the Bank of North America for a considerable period, as a director, and later as president. He was also a director of the New York & New England Railroad; a director of the Providence Gas Company, and at one time its president; and a director of several manufacturers' mutual insurance companies, and for several years president of the Union Railroad Company. Though devoted to his extensive business interests, he was a man of social nature, and held membership in the Union League Club of New York, and the Hope Club of Providence. He was an honorary member of the Cobden Club of England, of which but few Americans are members; the late Rowland Hazard was also an associate member of this organization.

Originally a Republican in political affiliation, Mr. Metcalf later became an Independent. Despite the fact that he was deeply interested in public
affairs, the constant demands of his large business interests disbarred him from very active participation in this field. Nevertheless he served for
several years as a Republican member of the Rhode Island Legislature, and while a member of the house was influential in securing the passage of many valuable reforms. He was the first to introduce into the Legislature a measure changing the legal rate of interest. It became a law, the first of its kind in the United States, and set an example which many other States followed. Of this achievement he often spoke with justifiable pride. He also served as a member of the Board of Inspection of the State Prison, which body was the predecessor of the present Board of States Charities and Corrections, and had charge of the State's penal institutions. This Board of Inspection accomplished much excellent work during its period of office, and was given a vote of thanks by the Legislature. In 1888 Mr. Metcalf was a delegate to the National Convention held at St. Louis which nominated Grover Clevelend for the presidency. A pronounced free trader, it was remarked of him by an intimate acquaintance, that he was one of the few honest free trade manufacturers of the speaker's acquaintance; this gentleman was of the opinion that Mr. Metcalf would have put his ideas into practice if it had been possible for him to have his way.

Mr. Metcalf was at one time a member of the Commission on sinking Fund of the city of Providence. He left a monument to his generosity in the well appointed building of the Rhode Island School of Design on Waterman street. This school was erected as a tribute to the memory of his wife and her devoted labors, and in furtherance of its interests Mr. Metcalf donated the land upon which the building stands and contributed the money which assured its erection. He was a believer in practical philanthropy and took this means of accomplishing what he believed would benefit hundreds who would be permitted, because of his gift, to enjoy privileges which otherwise could hardly have come within their reach. The appreciation of the privileges and advantages of this school is best attested by the patronage which it has had. As a business man of many interests, as a man who performed his public duties with unswerving integrity and unquestioning fidelity, as a citizen who never forgot local interests in the larger questions which demanded his attention, as a friend, and intelligent Christian gentleman who recognized
his duty to his fellow-citizens in general, Providence had reason to be proud of Jesse Metcalf, and he was honored in his native city by all who
knew him."³