Leonard Jerome | |
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| Born | Leonard Walter Jerome (1817-11-03)November 3, 1817 |
| Died | March 3, 1891(1891-03-03) (aged 73) Brighton,East Sussex, England |
| Education | Princeton University Union College |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 4, includingLady Randolph Churchill |
| Relatives | Winston Churchill (grandson) |
Leonard Walter Jerome (November 3, 1817 – March 3, 1891)[1] was an American financier inBrooklyn, New York, and the maternal grandfather ofWinston Churchill.
Leonard Jerome was born inPompey inOnondaga County, New York, on November 3, 1817. He was one of nine sons and one daughter born to Aurora (née Murray) Jerome (1785–1867) and Isaac Jerome (1786–1866). Isaac was a descendant of Timothy Jerome, aFrenchHuguenot immigrant who arrived in the New York Colony in 1717. Jerome was born on a farm in thecentral New York town ofPompey, nearSyracuse. His paternal grandmother was Betsy Ball, a relative ofGeorge Washington.[1] His maternal ancestry was Scottish.[1]
He originally enrolled inPrinceton University, then known as the College of New Jersey (where two of his brothers studied theology and becamePresbyterian ministers), as a member of the Class of 1839, before leaving forUnion College, where he studied law with his uncle, known as Judge Jerome, and set up a practice inRochester, New York.[1] He later moved toNew York City, where he became a stock speculator and promoter.
Jerome was a flamboyant and successful stock speculator. He made and lost several fortunes, and was known as "The King ofWall Street". He held interests in severalrailroad companies and was often a partner in the deals ofCornelius Vanderbilt.[2] He was a patron of the arts, and joined in the founding[citation needed] of theAcademy of Music, one of New York City's earliestopera houses.
During theNew York Draft Riots, Jerome defended theNew York Times office building with aGatling Gun.[3] Although he had significant holdings in theTimes,[4] he was not the majority shareholder as is sometimes erroneously claimed.
TheJerome Mansion, on the corner of Madison Avenue and 26th Street, had a six-hundred-seat theatre, a breakfast room which seated seventy people, a ballroom of white and gold with champagne- and cologne-spouting fountains,[5] and a view ofMadison Square Park. It was later sold and housed a series of private clubs. The mansion was demolished in 1967.
Jerome was an avid sportsman. He enjoyedyachting with his friend,William K. Vanderbilt. They shared a passion forthoroughbred horse racing and helped found theAmerican Jockey Club.[6]
In the late 1860s, Jerome was part of several hunting trips in theAmerican West. These trips were guided byBuffalo Bill Cody.
In 1866, Jerome bought the estate and mansion of James Bathgate nearOld Fordham Village in what was then ruralWestchester County, but is nowThe Bronx. Jerome and financierAugust Belmont, Sr. builtJerome Park Racetrack on the Bathgate land; the firstBelmont Stakes was held there in 1867. Jerome and his brother Lawrence had a wide boulevard made fromMacombs Dam to the track, which city authorities attempted to name "Murphy Avenue" after a local politician. This incensed Jerome's wife so much that she had bronze plaques saying "Jerome Avenue" made up and bolted into place along the road, forcing the city to accept the name.[6] The racetrack was acquired and demolished by the city in 1894, to make way forJerome Park Reservoir. The Bathgate mansion served as a summer home for the Jerome family. In the early 1900s, the mansion was razed and replaced by theKingsbridge Armory.
Jerome became a resident of Brooklyn. He, Vanderbilt, and other investors founded the Coney Island Jockey Club which in 1884 built theSheepshead Bay Race Track.
On April 5, 1849, Jerome married Clarissa Hall (1825–1895),[7][8] daughter of the wealthy Amos Hall, inPalmyra, New York. Together, they had four daughters. One daughter, Camille, died at age eight. The other three – Jeanette, Clarita, and Leonie – became known, in some quarters, as "the Good, the Witty and the Beautiful". Leonard Jerome's wealth afforded his daughters the opportunity to spend much time in Europe, where they associated with the aristocratic elite of the day. All three daughters married British orAnglo-Irish husbands:[1]
Jerome was also rumored to be the father of the Americanopera singerMinnie Hauk.[9] He also had an affair in the 1860s withFanny Ronalds, then separated from her husband. Ronalds later lived in London, where she remained a friend of Jerome's daughter Jennie.[10]
Leonard Jerome died at the age of 73 inBrighton, England, surrounded by his wife and surviving daughters.[1] He was originally buried atKensal Green Cemetery in England,[11] and later buried in theGreen-Wood Cemetery in Brooklyn.[12]
Jerome Avenue in the Bronx, Jerome Avenue in Brooklyn,Jerome Park Reservoir, and theJerome Stakes are all named after him.
In 2023 Jerome was posthumously inducted into theNational Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame as a Pillar of the Turf for his contributions to thoroughbred racing.[13]
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