The First Tycoon_ The Epic Life Of Cornelius Vanderbilt Part 11

Another essential collection, one that is already well known, is the Gibbons Family Papers at Drew University Madison, New Jersey. This collection includes the largest number of letters in Vanderbilt's own hand, many of which were not cited by Lane or subsequent writers. It also sheds light on the crumbling culture of deference, and the failure of Thomas Gibbons's son William to come to grips with the compet.i.tive culture that his father and Vanderbilt had contributed to so notably. This episode is also illuminated by the Livingston Family Papers at the New-York Historical Society (NYHS).

My exploration of Vanderbilt's move into Long Island Sound, and his consequent a.s.sumption of the presidency of the Stonington railroad, owes much to the Comstock Papers at the American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Ma.s.sachusetts. But I relied in particular on the William D. Lewis Papers at the New York Public Library (NYPL). Lewis, an official of the Girard Bank of Philadelphia, was the trustee of the Stonington railroad, and often corresponded with its senior officers. It was a delight to read letters labeled "Burn This" or "Destroy Immediately"-a sign of the rare glimpse into the secret world of antebellum business afforded by these papers. They offer the most acute look at Vanderbilt in the 1830s and 1840s available (including a transcription of a conversation with him by the line's chief engineer), and illuminate the complex relations.h.i.+p between steamboat proprietors and early New England railroads.

In Part Two, covering Vanderbilt's Central America operations and Atlantic steams.h.i.+p line, I also drew heavily on the Old Records Division of the New York County Clerk's Office. I found invaluable the published correspondence of the State Department (as well as originals at the National Archives, College Park, Maryland) and the congressional reports that reprinted numerous primary sources related to the "transit question." The William L. Marcy and John M. Clayton collections at the Library of Congress contain many important letters, not only from Vanderbilt but from Joseph L. White as well, a figure long overlooked in histories of this period. The Baring Brothers archive, on file in microfilm at the Library of Congress, was invaluable to my understanding of the fate of the Nicaragua ca.n.a.l project, and I am grateful to the ING corporation for granting me permission to view it. The archive of R. G. Dun & Co., Baker Library, Harvard Business School, proved equal to its great reputation. By looking up reports for many of Vanderbilt's businesses, relatives, allies, and enemies, I was able to develop a much fuller picture of both Vanderbilt and his contemporaries.

Two little-used sources in particular allowed me to write a substantially new account of the activities of Vanderbilt, Cornelius K. Garrison, and Charles Morgan during William Walker's rule of Nicaragua. First, the files of the Costa Rican Claims Convention, housed at the National Archives, College Park, contain eyewitness testimony about the final campaign that brought Walker down, as well as a copy of the lengthy deposition of Joseph N. Scott, taken from the lawsuit Murray v. Vanderbilt Murray v. Vanderbilt. Second, the papers of lawyer Isaiah Thornton Williams, NYPL, contain extensive depositions from the lawsuits that sprouted out of the collapse of the Nicaragua transit. These depositions contain everything from discussions of relative fuel costs of the transit routes to the nature of Garrison's and Vanderbilt's relations.h.i.+ps with Walker. In addition, the papers of H. L. Bancroft, held by the Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley, include important doc.u.ments, including William Walker's own deposition in one of the transit lawsuits and an invaluable interview with Lambert Wardell. The Williams Family Papers at Trinity College, Hartford, shed important new light on a long-disregarded side of Vanderbilt's personality, as he fondly corresponded, often in his own hand, with his daughter-in-law's family. Finally, the miscellaneous NYHS ma.n.u.scripts relating to Vanderbilt add significant details.

For Part Three, various congressional reports reveal Vanderbilt's role in the Civil War, as do the Stanton Papers at the Library of Congress and the well-worn but still-essential Official Records of the War of the Rebellion Official Records of the War of the Rebellion. To follow Vanderbilt's career as he moved into railroads, the New York Central Railroad papers in the PennCentral Collection, NYPL, is irreplaceable. This collection includes the directors' minutes for all the railroads that would eventually make up the Vanderbilt system, as well as financial records that show Vanderbilt's personal support for his corporations' finances. (It also sheds light on Vanderbilt's early involvement in railroads, as the minutes of the Long Island Railroad ill.u.s.trate how his control of steamboats naturally led to his entrance onto the boards of connecting railways.) The reports and testimony published by the New York State a.s.sembly and Senate comprise another oft-cited but critical source. These prove particularly important for understanding Vanderbilt's relations.h.i.+p with the New York Central when he was head of the Harlem and Hudson River railroads. So, too, are the papers of Erastus Corning, Albany Inst.i.tute of History and Art, Albany, New York. This rich collection builds an understanding of Vanderbilt as corporate diplomat. More than that, it includes many letters from John M. Davidson, a business partner of Corning's who played the stock market and mingled with such Tweed cronies as Judge Barnard, shedding abundant light on the dim world of Wall Street through 1870. Vanderbilt's notes to James H. Banker, NYHS, reveal his concern for secrecy when it came to the financial markets. The James F. Joy Papers, Detroit Public Library (with some copies at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor), also offer insight into Vanderbilt's role as railroad chief, and are suggestive of how other railroad officials differentiated between the management styles of the Commodore and his son William. The Joy papers (along with those of Frank Crawford Vanderbilt) are the only case in which I was forced to resort to paid research a.s.sistants. I regret being unable to travel to conduct the research myself, and accept that much of importance may have been missed.

Some important collections also shed light on Vanderbilt's intimate world in the last period of his life. Frank Crawford Vanderbilt's letters, at the Detroit Public Library, and her diary, NYHS, paint a complex portrait of Vanderbilt as controlling, temperamental, and yet still loving. The many letters of Cornelius J. Vanderbilt and his wife, Ellen, to Horace Greeley, in the Greeley Papers, NYPL, illuminate the complicated relations.h.i.+p between the Commodore and his son. The Colt Family Papers, University of Rhode Island, contain the papers of George Terry, which include numerous letters from Cornelius J. Vanderbilt and legal doc.u.ments related to his settlement with his brother William and his final bankruptcy. Numerous other collections, such as the Samuel J. Tilden Papers, NYPL, also offer occasional items that throw light on the Commodore as a man.

Finally, there is the abundant testimony of the Vanderbilt will case, much of it (but far from all) collected in sc.r.a.pbooks and microfilm at NYPL. This is a treacherous source. Many of the witnesses and theories offered by the attorneys of Mary La Bau and Cornelius J. Vanderbilt were simply incredible. They claimed, for example, that William H. Vanderbilt hired someone to impersonate Corneil and engage in disreputable behavior. The notion is absurd, not because William was a saint, but because it was so unnecessary; and William proved willing to alter the will in the end. Unfortunately, the more outrageous claims of the testimony continue to color the imagination of writers who address the Commodore. So, too, do the self-serving a.s.sertions (and outright lies) told by Tennessee Claflin and Victoria Woodhull. I have found no evidence of Vanderbilt's business business involvement with them (as opposed to medical or supernatural), except from the mouths of Woodhull and Claflin themselves. They were impressive individuals, no doubt-even admirable, as they brashly battled strictures on women. They were also veteran confidence artists who were pulling off the biggest con of their lives when they opened their "brokerage house," which is not known to have conducted any business on Wall Street. involvement with them (as opposed to medical or supernatural), except from the mouths of Woodhull and Claflin themselves. They were impressive individuals, no doubt-even admirable, as they brashly battled strictures on women. They were also veteran confidence artists who were pulling off the biggest con of their lives when they opened their "brokerage house," which is not known to have conducted any business on Wall Street.

The testimony of magnetic healers and the declamations of Woodhull and Claflin need not be dismissed in their entirety (Vanderbilt did hire such healers, and he did have a friends.h.i.+p with the sisters, especially Claflin), but they need to be treated skeptically, with an insistence on more evidence. The image of the Commodore has been shaped by prejudice from the early years of his life-when he drew sneers for his claim to be a man of honor-to the present, when he is often dismissed as a brutal, uncharitable vulgarian. The prejudice is in itself interesting, but it is no subst.i.tute for investigation.

* General paresis is progressive, marked by wild behavioral aberrations and rapid loss of motor control. When untreated it leads to total paralysis and finally death within three or four years of its manifestation. Private letters, newspaper reports, and the directors' minutes of Vanderbilt's railroads show him to have been active, in character, and intelligent up to his final illness, often presiding at meetings where William H. Vanderbilt was not present. See Deborah Hay-den, General paresis is progressive, marked by wild behavioral aberrations and rapid loss of motor control. When untreated it leads to total paralysis and finally death within three or four years of its manifestation. Private letters, newspaper reports, and the directors' minutes of Vanderbilt's railroads show him to have been active, in character, and intelligent up to his final illness, often presiding at meetings where William H. Vanderbilt was not present. See Deborah Hay-den, Pox: Genius, Madness, and the Mysteries of Syphilis Pox: Genius, Madness, and the Mysteries of Syphilis (New York: Basic Books, 2003), 2937, 549, 3178; Allan M. Brandt, (New York: Basic Books, 2003), 2937, 549, 3178; Allan M. Brandt, No Magic Bullet: A Social History of Venereal Disease in the United States since 1880 No Magic Bullet: A Social History of Venereal Disease in the United States since 1880 (New York: Oxford University Press, 1985), 913; Edward W. Hook III and Christina M. Marra, "Acquired Syphilis in Adults," (New York: Oxford University Press, 1985), 913; Edward W. Hook III and Christina M. Marra, "Acquired Syphilis in Adults," New England Journal of Medicine New England Journal of Medicine 326, no. 16 (April 16, 1992): 10609; Catherine M. Hutchinson and Edward W. Hook III, "Syphilis in Adults," 326, no. 16 (April 16, 1992): 10609; Catherine M. Hutchinson and Edward W. Hook III, "Syphilis in Adults," Medical Clinics of North America Medical Clinics of North America 74, no. 6 (November 1990): 13891454; Roger P. Simon, "Neurosyphilis," 74, no. 6 (November 1990): 13891454; Roger P. Simon, "Neurosyphilis," Archives of Neurology Archives of Neurology 42, no. 6 (June 1985): 60613; John H. Stokes, 42, no. 6 (June 1985): 60613; John H. Stokes, Modern Clinical Syphilology: Diagnosis, Treatment, Case Studies Modern Clinical Syphilology: Diagnosis, Treatment, Case Studies (Philadelphia: W. B. Saunders, 1926), 9067; Loyd [sic] Thompson, (Philadelphia: W. B. Saunders, 1926), 9067; Loyd [sic] Thompson, Syphilis Syphilis (Philadelphia: Lea & Febriger, 1916), 589; H. Houston Merritt, Raymond D. Adams, and Harry C. Solomon, (Philadelphia: Lea & Febriger, 1916), 589; H. Houston Merritt, Raymond D. Adams, and Harry C. Solomon, Neurosyphilis Neurosyphilis (New York: Oxford University Press, 1946), 34; D'Arcy Power and J. Keogh Murphy, eds., (New York: Oxford University Press, 1946), 34; D'Arcy Power and J. Keogh Murphy, eds., A System of Syphilis A System of Syphilis, vol. 4: Syphilis of the Nervous System Syphilis of the Nervous System (London: Oxford University Press, 1910), 259. For examples of William's travels to Europe, see (London: Oxford University Press, 1910), 259. For examples of William's travels to Europe, see Chicago Tribune Chicago Tribune, June 9, 1869, and the New York Times New York Times, July 4, 1872.

Notes.

ABBREVIATIONS.

(The following is not a complete list of sources cited in the notes.) Ma.n.u.sCRIPT COLLECTIONS.

AAS.

American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Ma.s.s. American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Ma.s.s.

ATC.

Accessory Transit Company v. Cornelius K. Garrison Accessory Transit Company v. Cornelius K. Garrison, New York Superior Court, box 1, Isaiah Thornton Williams Papers, 18331918, Ma.n.u.script Division, New York Public Library BB.

Baring Brothers Archive, Ma.n.u.script Division, Library of Congress Baring Brothers Archive, Ma.n.u.script Division, Library of Congress BL.

Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley CRCC.

Costa Rican Claims Convention of July 2, 1860, RG 76, National Archives, College Park, Md. Costa Rican Claims Convention of July 2, 1860, RG 76, National Archives, College Park, Md.

CFP.

Comstock Family Papers, American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Ma.s.s. Comstock Family Papers, American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Ma.s.s.

CV-NYHS.

Cornelius Vanderbilt Papers, Misc. Ma.n.u.scripts, New-York Historical Society Cornelius Vanderbilt Papers, Misc. Ma.n.u.scripts, New-York Historical Society CV-NYPL.

Cornelius Vanderbilt Papers, Misc. Files, Ma.n.u.script Division, New York Public Library Cornelius Vanderbilt Papers, Misc. Files, Ma.n.u.script Division, New York Public Library Duke Rare Book, Ma.n.u.script, and Special Collections Library, Duke University, Durham, N.C. Rare Book, Ma.n.u.script, and Special Collections Library, Duke University, Durham, N.C.

ECP.

Erastus Corning 1 Papers, Albany Inst.i.tute for History and Art, Albany, NY. Erastus Corning 1 Papers, Albany Inst.i.tute for History and Art, Albany, NY.

EMSP.

Edwin M. Stanton Papers, Ma.n.u.script Division, Library of Congress Edwin M. Stanton Papers, Ma.n.u.script Division, Library of Congress GP.

Gibbons Family Papers, Archives and Special Collections, Drew University, Madison, N.J. Gibbons Family Papers, Archives and Special Collections, Drew University, Madison, N.J.

GP-R.

Gibbons Papers, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, N.J. Gibbons Papers, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, N.J.

HL.

Huntington Library, San Marino, Calif. Huntington Library, San Marino, Calif.

HGP.

Horace Greeley Papers, Ma.n.u.script Division, New York Public Library Horace Greeley Papers, Ma.n.u.script Division, New York Public Library Hone ms.

Ma.n.u.script diary of Philip Hone, New-York Historical Society Ma.n.u.script diary of Philip Hone, New-York Historical Society JBP.

James Buchanan Papers, Microfilm Copy, Columbia University James Buchanan Papers, Microfilm Copy, Columbia University JFJP.

James F. Joy Papers, Burton Hstorical Collection, Detroit Public Library James F. Joy Papers, Burton Hstorical Collection, Detroit Public Library JFJP-2.

James F. Joy Papers, Henry B. Joy Hstorical Research Collection, Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor James F. Joy Papers, Henry B. Joy Hstorical Research Collection, Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor JMC-P.

John M. Clayton Papers, Ma.n.u.script Division, Library of Congress John M. Clayton Papers, Ma.n.u.script Division, Library of Congress LFP.

Livingston Family Papers, New-York Hstorical Society Livingston Family Papers, New-York Hstorical Society LOC.

Ma.n.u.script Division, Library of Congress Ma.n.u.script Division, Library of Congress LW Dictation "Dictation Taken from the Lips of Lambert Wardell," H. H. Bancroft Notes on the Vanderbilt Family, Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley "Dictation Taken from the Lips of Lambert Wardell," H. H. Bancroft Notes on the Vanderbilt Family, Bancroft Library, University of California, Berkeley MacDonald Lawsuit Charles J. MacDonald v. Cornelius K. Garrison and Charles Morgan Charles J. MacDonald v. Cornelius K. Garrison and Charles Morgan, New York Court of Common Pleas, box 42, Isaiah Thornton Williams Papers, 18331918, Ma.n.u.script Division, New York Public Library NA.

National Archives, Was.h.i.+ngton, D.C National Archives, Was.h.i.+ngton, D.C NACP National Archives, College Park, Md. National Archives, College Park, Md.

NP.

Neilson Papers, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, N.J. Neilson Papers, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, N.J.

NYCC.

Old Records Division, New York County Clerk's Office, New York, N.Y Old Records Division, New York County Clerk's Office, New York, N.Y NYCRR.

New York Central Railroad Papers, PennCentral Collection, Ma.n.u.script Division, New York Public Library New York Central Railroad Papers, PennCentral Collection, Ma.n.u.script Division, New York Public Library NYHS.

New-York Historical Society New-York Historical Society NYMA.

New York Munic.i.p.al Archives New York Munic.i.p.al Archives NYPL.

Ma.n.u.script Division, New York Public Library Ma.n.u.script Division, New York Public Library NYSL.

Ma.n.u.scripts and Special Collections, New York State Library Ma.n.u.scripts and Special Collections, New York State Library RG.

Record Group Record Group RGD.

Records of R. G. Dun & Co., Baker Library, Harvard Business School ("NYC" indicates volumes for New York City, followed by volume and page numbers) Records of R. G. Dun & Co., Baker Library, Harvard Business School ("NYC" indicates volumes for New York City, followed by volume and page numbers) RWG.

Richard Ward Greene Papers, American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Ma.s.s. Richard Ward Greene Papers, American Antiquarian Society, Worcester, Ma.s.s.

SctDP Deposition of Joseph N. Scott, Deposition of Joseph N. Scott, David Colden Murray v. Cornelius David Colden Murray v. Cornelius Vanderbilt Vanderbilt, fold. 1, box 1, Costa Rican Claims Convention of July 2, 1860, RG 76, National Archives, College Park, Md.

VFP.

Vanderbilt Family Papers, New-York Historical Society Vanderbilt Family Papers, New-York Historical Society WFP.

Williams Family Papers, Watkinson Library, Trinity College, Hartford, Conn. Williams Family Papers, Watkinson Library, Trinity College, Hartford, Conn.

WDLP.

William D. Lewis Papers, Ma.n.u.script Division, New York Public Library William D. Lewis Papers, Ma.n.u.script Division, New York Public Library WLMP.

William L. Marcy Papers, Ma.n.u.script Division, Library of Congress William L. Marcy Papers, Ma.n.u.script Division, Library of Congress

GOVERNMENT DOc.u.mENTS.

HsR United States House of Representatives Report United States House of Representatives Report HED.

United States House of Representatives Executive Doc.u.ment United States House of Representatives Executive Doc.u.ment NYSAD.

New York State a.s.sembly Doc.u.ment New York State a.s.sembly Doc.u.ment NYSSD.

New York State Senate Doc.u.ment New York State Senate Doc.u.ment OR.

The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies (Was.h.i.+ngton, D.C: Government Printing Office, 18801901), 128 vols. (Was.h.i.+ngton, D.C: Government Printing Office, 18801901), 128 vols.

OR Navy Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion (Was.h.i.+ngton, D.C: Government Printing Office, 18941922), 30 vols. (Was.h.i.+ngton, D.C: Government Printing Office, 18941922), 30 vols.

SR.

United States Senate Report United States Senate Report SED.

United States Senate Executive Doc.u.ment United States Senate Executive Doc.u.ment

NEWSPAPERS.

AltaC San Francisco Alta California San Francisco Alta California ARJ.

American Railroad Journal American Railroad Journal AtlC Atlanta Const.i.tution Atlanta Const.i.tution BE.

Brooklyn Eagle Brooklyn Eagle BG.

Boston Globe Boston Globe BM.

Bankers' Magazine and Statistical Register Bankers' Magazine and Statistical Register CT.

Chicago Tribune Chicago Tribune EP.

New York Evening Post New York Evening Post HC.

Hartford Courant Hartford Courant HW.

Harper's Weekly Harper's Weekly JoC New York Journal of Commerce New York Journal of Commerce LT.

London London Times Times MM.

Merchant's Magazine; Merchant's Magazine; also also Hunt's Merchant's Magazine Hunt's Merchant's Magazine NAR.

North American Review North American Review NBF.

New Brunswick Fredonian New Brunswick Fredonian NR.

Niles' Register Niles' Register NYH.

New York Herald New York Herald NYT.

The New York Times The New York Times NYTr New York Tribune New York Tribune NYS.