Robert J. Collier | |
|---|---|
 Collier circa 1900 | |
| Born | Robert Joseph Collier (1876-06-17)June 17, 1876 New York City, U.S. |
| Died | November 9, 1918(1918-11-09) (aged 42) New York City, U.S. |
| Resting place | Collier High School, Wickatunk, New Jersey |
| Education | Georgetown University Harvard University Oxford University |
| Known for | Collier Trophy |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 |
| Parent(s) | Peter Fenelon Collier (1849–1909) Katherine Louise Dunue (1948–1918) |
| Relatives | Robert Collier (cousin) |
Robert Joseph Collier (June 17, 1876 – November 8, 1918) was the son ofPeter Fenelon Collier. He was a principal in the publishing company P. F. Collier & Son. Upon his father's death, he became head of the company and, for a time, was editor ofCollier's Weekly. He was president of theAero Club of America.[1]
Collier was born in New York City, the only son of Katherine Louise Collier (née Dunue) andPeter Fenelon Collier.[1] He attended St. Francis College, then transferred toGeorgetown University and graduated in 1894, winning the Merrick Medal from thePhilodemic Society that same year. He received the degree of A. B. fromGeorgetown University.[2] He then spent two years atHarvard University andOxford University.
Collier assumed the role of editor and publisher ofCollier's Weekly, where he was known to have converted the illustrations in the publication from black and white ink to color.[3]
Collier was an aviation enthusiast. A friend ofOrville Wright and a director of theWright Company,[who?] purchased aWright Model B aircraft in 1911 and lent it to theUnited States Army, which assigned it to LieutenantBenjamin Foulois. Foulois and civilian Wright Company pilotPhil Parmalee. They used this aircraft to fly along theRio Grande border of Mexico and the United States in one of the first scouting duties by the U.S. Army using an airplane. Foulois and Parmalee later crashed the airplane into the Rio Grande but escaped from drowning. Having that plane repaired, he then took it to flyJimmy Hare to film the construction of the Panama Canal by flying over the construction site in the same Wright Biplane, B type.[4] He commissioned ahydro-aeroplane plane to be constructed in 1913 to attempt to cross the Atlantic.[5]
Collier had many influential friends and an active social life. An enthusiast of polo, he encountered many injuries. In 1899, he was playing polo withGeorge Jay Gould I for theLakewood Team when he fell and broke hiscollarbone.[6] In 1906 he was playing againstHarry Payne Whitney when he took a mallet strike to his eye and tore his eye socket.[7]
In 1901, inWickatunk, New Jersey, Collier constructed his country estate for himself and his wife,Sara Steward Van Alen. He built his summer home on property bought from State Assemblyman John D. Honce.[8] Called "Rest Hill", it was used for many years as the location of personal parties and celebrations including the townshipDecoration Day celebrations,[9] it was later donated and eventually became theCollier High School. He used the estate partly as a landing strip to fly his plane. The estate had grasstennis courts,croquet course, extensive horsestables andfox hunting hounds.[10] Spanning many farms and properties, the area was widely used for an annual fox hunt of the "Monmouth County Hounds" which started in East Freehold and ended at the Collier Estate.[11][12][13] Collier was known to fly his plane toFreehold, dismount his bi-plane mount a polo pony and lead the fox hunt.[14] He was also known to have commissioned flights overhead to observe the Fox hunt while participating in 1911.[15]
On July 26, 1902, Collier was married to Sarah Steward Van Alen (1881–1963) inNewport, Rhode Island.[16] Sara was a daughter ofJames John Van Alen and Emily (née Astor) Van Alen as well as a granddaughter ofWilliam Backhouse Astor Jr. andCaroline Webster Schermerhorn. Before his marriage he dated the showgirlEvelyn Nesbit, amongst others.
In 1914, he developeduremic poisoning fromkidney failure at his summer home inRaquette Lake, New York.[17] He died of aheart attack at his dinner table on November 8, 1918, a few hours[18] after arriving home from France.[19] He was in France for work related to theKnights of Columbus and his publishing empire.[20] He was apparently reporting on the war and had press credentials. However, shortly before his return to New York,General Pershing had personally cancelled his press credentials and ordered him home.[21]
His funeral was held in theChurch of St. Jean Baptiste on Lexington Ave.Orville Wright,Condé Montrose Nast,Francis P Garvan,Finley Peter Dunne andJoseph Kennedy were some of his pallbearers.[22] His estate was valued at just $2,194.[23] He made no provision in his will for his wife; however, the beneficiaries of the will provided a renunciation of their part of the will so she could receive some funds.[24]
As detailed in the fourth episode of the first season of the TV seriesWho Do You Think You Are?, they had a son, Robert Jr., who was born prematurely and only lived for two days, April 22–24, 1903.[25] This little-known fact goes some small way in explaining his frittering away of his fortune, and his wife's decision to leave their country estate to nuns who would take care of children. He wrote a letter to the memory of his son which says in part:"This is your birthday little boy, your first little anniversary. So, your father's thoughts are with you. Have the dear angels lighted you this candle, and are you happy in their gifts and laughing for love of their bright faces around you? You may not remember the day you visited a dreary place called Earth, a year ago; but your mother and I remember. We were very selfish, I fear, little boy, for we wanted to keep you with us. Your mother is very lonely for you dear. There are times when only you could comfort her. You were to be our little..."At this point the letter stops and remained unfinished.
In his will he made three friends—Peter Finley Dunne, Harry Payne Whitney, and Francis Patrick Garvan—the residuary legatees of his estate and, thus, his publishing company. Collier evidently believed that his wife had sufficient money of her own. In fact, she did not and would receive only a few thousand dollars from her husband's will. Dunne, Whitney, and Garvan renounced the bequest so that Mrs. Collier could benefit fully.[26] In addition to selling the troubled publishing company, his wife donated their home in theWickatunk section ofMarlboro Township, New Jersey, to theSisters of the Good Shepherd who made it a home for troubled young women. This was later opened up to children of all ages and becameCollier High School.
He was largely responsible for starting theLincoln Farm Association which raised money to purchase the Lincoln birthplace estate which was then donated and turned into aNational Park.[2]
During World War II, a Liberty Ship was named in honor of Robert J Collier. Following the war, it was ordered to Belgium with a load of coal but was lost when it ran aground in theScheldt Estuary.[27]
In 1910, Collier, as president of theAero Club of America,[1] commissioned Baltimore sculptorErnest Wise Keyser to make the 525-pound (238 kg)Aero Club of America Trophy.[1][28] First awarded in 1911 toGlenn H. Curtiss for his successful development of thehydro-aeroplane.[28] Collier presented his namesake trophy several times before his death in 1918; after hisWorld War I service.[1] In 1922, when the Aero Club dissolved, the award was taken over by theNational Aeronautic Association (NAA) and it was unofficially renamed theRobert J. Collier Trophy, which became official in 1944.[29][1] The award is presented once a year by the NAA president for "the greatest achievement inaeronautics orastronautics in America, with respect to improving the performance, efficiency, and safety of air or space vehicles, the value of which has been thoroughly demonstrated by actual use during the preceding year."[1] The trophy is permanently displayed at the U.S.National Air and Space Museum.[1]
He was portrayed byPhillip Reed in the 1955 film on Evelyn Nesbit,The Girl in the Red Velvet Swing.
Interest in the Martin-Oelrichs wedding has been superseded in Newport society by the announcement of the early marriage of Miss Sara Van Alen and Robert J. Collier. The story that came from New York on Tuesday that the Collier-Van Alen wedding was to take place this week set everybody to wondering if it could be true.
Robert J. Collier, editor and publisher of Collier's Weekly, is critically ill with uremic poisoning. Late tonight he was removed from his Summer home here to his private carVagabondia, and will arrive in New York early tomorrow morning.
Robert J. Collier, editor of Collier's Weekly and President of the publishing house of P.F. Collier Son, died of heart attack at his home at 1,067 Fifth Avenue at 7:45 last night, a few hours after he had landed from an army transport upon which he had returned...
Robert J. Collier, owner of P. F. Collier Son, publishers of Collier's Weekly and other publications, who died suddenly at his home, 1,067 Fifth Avenue, on November 8, 1918, the day he returned from France, left a residuary estate of only $2,194 instead of $5,000,000, as estimated soon after his death.
| Media offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Collier's Weekly 1912-1914 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
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| National | |
| Other | |
