Who were the Glendinnings? Where do they fit into the the Clark family history?
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| Kelso Abbey, 18th c. , Kelso, Roxburghshire, Scotland |
Stuart Benson Clark married Elisabeth McMichael
Her parents were: Clayton Fotterall McMichael and Elizabeth Butcher Glendinning
Her parents were: Robert Glendinning and Ellen Elizabeth Butcher
His parents were: Robert Glendinning and Elizabeth Kennedy
Robert Glendinning was from Kelso, Roxburghshire, Scotland, his wife was from Leith, Scotland. They were married on November 5, 1833/4 in Kingston, Ontario, Canada and came to America in 1832. Here is their story pieced together from obituaries, newspapers, census records and books.
Robert Glendinning (b. 1805/d. 1878) married Elizabeth Kennedy (b. 1813/d.1897)
Their children were:
Robert Glendinning (b. 1838/d.1893)
Walter S. Glendinning (b. 1845/d. 1885)
Elizabeth Glendinning (b. 1947/d. ?)
William Glendinning (b. 1848/d. 1881)
Charles S. Glendinning
James Glendinning
unknown male child
unknown male child
Robert Glendinning (b. 1838/d. 1893) married Ellen Elizabeth Butcher (b. 1845/d.1903)
Their children were:
Annie Elizabeth Glendinning (b. 1865/d. 1866)
Robert Edward Glendinning (b. 1867/ d. 1937) married Elizabeth Rodman Fisher Carpenter
children: Elizabeth Carpenter; Mary Fisher; Ellen; Robert
Elizabeth Butcher Glendinning (b. 1869/d. 1899) married Clayton Fotterall McMichael
children: Clayton Fotterall; Elisabeth
Henry Percival Glendinning (b. 1874/d. 1903) married Louise T. Young
children: Henry Percival
Member 1837, Secretary 1839-43
ROBERT GLENDINNING, SR., Born May 13, 1805, in Kelso, Scotland. Died in Philadelphia, March 4, 1878.
He was educated at and graduated from the University of Edinburgh, and came to this country in 1832, and was engaged in mercantile pursuits for about twenty years. He was identified with building associations, and also the Mantua Saving Fund, which later developed into the Third National Bank, Philadelphia, of which he became cashier, remaining with that bank from the date of its opening until he retired, in 1876, on account of ill health.
In 1834 he married Elizabeth Kennedy, a native of Scotland, and they had seven sons and one daughter.
Mr. Glendinning was greatly interested in religious work, being a rigid Scotch Presbyterian, and was one of the founders of the First Presbyterian Church, Mantua, West Philadelphia, serving as elder there until his death. This church is now known as the Northminster Presbyterian Church, Thirty-fifth and Baring Streets.
Of Robert Glendinning, Sr., The Philadelphia Press, for March 5,
1878, said:
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3405 Baring Street, Philadelphia, PA
where the family lived |
“Robert Glendinning, a well known
Philadelphian, died suddenly of heart disease yesterday morning at his
residence, No. 3405 Baring Street, in the seventy-second year of his age. Mr. Glendinning was born in Kelso, Scotland,
whence he emigrated to this country, and engaged in mercantile pursuits. In a few years he acquired a competency sufficient
to allow him to retire from active business life and enable him to live on his
income. When the project of starting the
Third National Bank was begun, he took an active part in the movement, becoming
one of its founders, and was subsequently elected cashier, which position he
filled with signal ability till about two years ago, when he resigned. He was an active member of the West
Philadelphia Presbyterian Church and was also one of its deacons. The deceased was the father of “Robert
Glendinning, Jr., of the well-known firm of Glendinning, Davis & Co.,
Brokers.”
Of his wife, Elizabeth Kennedy Glendinning, the Philadelphia Evening Bulletin, for Friday, September 20, 1872 said:
“Mrs. Elizabeth Glendinning - Many have penned
eulogical lines, cited the graces and virtues of fond mothers now departed, and
we would fain drop a tear of tender sympathy for those left to mourn their
loss. But our all-absorbing theme at
this time is of one whose noble womanly bearing is not often met with.
Passing to her longed-for rest on the morning
of the 16th instant, trusting in the
merits of her great Redeemer, she leaves behind her the testimony of her being
a devoted wife, a faithful mother, a true friend. But she was like a diamond, left to shed its
rays of light only in a casket of jewels, laid aside from public gaze. So with
her; the brilliancy of her nature, her noble hearing, her uncommon taste for
superior literature, her energy, her earnestness of heart, were scarcely known,
excepting to the little circle of her own family among whom she was indeed the center of
all they could imagine of worth in a Christian mother.
Prevented by illness from mingling much in
society of late years, few really knew her superiority. Now, however, that she has passed away from
our midst it is fitting to recognize the dignity of her character and the
brightness of her mind. Would that we
were able to imitate the virtues of her to whose memory we now pay the humble
tribute of affection.”
Robert and Elizabeth Glendinning had two (this is not accurate, I am quoting) sons,
Robert, born in 1838; and
William, ten years younger; the latter moved to Illinois, and died there,
October 14, 1881.
The Philadelphia Press, for Tuesday, October 18, 1881, had the
following short account of him:
“Death of William Glendinning: -William
Glendinning, formerly of this city died at Evanston, Illinois on Friday last,
at the age of thirty-two years. He was
the son of the late Robert Glendinning, for many years the Cashier of the Third
National Bank,
and the brother of Robert Glendinning, the well-known banker of this city. Some years ago he removed to the west, and by
his industry and ability succeeded in establishing a business which extended
over that large section.”
The Evanston
Index, in referring
to his death says:
"William Glendinning
was one who made friends wherever he went. Kind and genial in his daily intercourse, he
attracted the regard of all. True and
warm in his friendship, he bound to himself by the strongest ties those who
knew him intimately. But in the home
circle his life was so pure, so full of self sacrifice, that his loss will be
felt more and more as years go on. A
Christian gentleman, one who was ever true to the dictates of conscience and never ashamed of the Gospel of Christ, the
influence of his life will be felt throughout the wide circle of his
acquaintance.”
Colonial Families of Philadelphia
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| Robert Glendinning & Co. |
ROBERT GLENDINNING, JR., born in Philadelphia, August 10, 1838, died
there March 5, 1893, son of Robert and Elizabeth Glendinning, in early life
decided to follow in his father's footsteps and devote his career to financial
affairs. To this end he entered the
banking and brokerage office of Abraham Barker, one of the earliest and best
known members of the Philadelphia Stock Exchange. In 1864 he went into business on his own
account and four years later established a branch in New York, from which time
until 1879 the business was transacted under the firm name of Glendinning,
Davis & Co., the New York partner being Mr. John H. Davis, whose daughter
afterwards married Lord Terence Blackwood. In 1879, this partnership was dissolved by
mutual consent, and from that time forward the firm rapidly advanced to a
position of great prominence, under the firm name of Robert Glendinning &
Co. Mr. Glendinning was conspicuous in
numerous important financial enterprises. He was especially active in promoting the
passenger railway systems of the city, and much is due him for their
development. He was the first
Philadelphia banker to establish (in 1870) private telegraphic communication
with New York, and also was the first of Philadelphia brokers to secure a seat
in the New York Stock Exchange, while he was likewise the first to commence the
issue of daily financial letters from this city, as well as the first to adopt
the private blackboard system for recording the daily stock fluctuations. In 1870 Mr. Glendinning made a contract with
the New York Stock and Indicator Company to place twenty-five of their machines
in this city, and that was the nucleus of the present elaborate and extensive
system.
The Car, a periodical devoted to the interests of street railways,
published in Philadelphia, had the following in April, 1893:
“Robert Glendinning was
quite a student of the heterodoxical impulses that control the movements of
finance, and being a close observer of events, he won early a reputation for
alertness, sagacity and foresight. His
manner was diametrically opposed to the volatile characters usually seen on the
‘street’ and a quiet and unassuming disposition hid from the desultory observer
the strong individuality and keen perception through which he won for the firm
bearing his name, the extended and envied reputation it bore. He admitted to his firm men whose Sagacity and
integrity were judicious complements to his own, and thus caparisoned, the firm
conducted many brilliant financial enterprises to successful issues,
prosecuting all accounts with a sound and watchful conservatism, which
Glendinning himself considered most necessary for the protection of his
clients."
"Mr. Glendinning was in possession of more valuable information
possibly than any other of his confreres, but when asked to discover it by some
wily newsmonger,—knew less than the man knowing nothing. The first identification of the firm with
street railway securities was in 1885, in the financing of the Market and
Columbia Avenue cable lines. For the
intelligent explanation of, at that time, as abstruse and almost
incomprehensible a problem as cable rope traction, Mr. Glendinning had
constructed a miniature cable-railway, which gave a tangible explanation of the
‘ropes and pulleys and grips’ and so on, which non-plussed the ‘street’ at that
day.
“The firm were always large dealers in gas and street railway securities,
and have been for many years trusted brokers for many wealthy corporations in
this city as well as in New York and Chicago. The Philadelphia Traction
syndicate, who have been the originators of the largest and most powerful city
passenger railway companies in the world, have dealt through this firm, and the
business conducted b them recalls to mind the financing of the Philadelphia
Traction Company, the Baltimore Traction Company, the Pittsburgh Traction
Company, the Metropolitan Traction Company, the West and North Side Street
Railroads of Chicago, the volume of which dealings have been enormous.”
Robert Glendinning was for many years a member of the Union
League of Philadelphia. He died at his residence, 2002 Spruce Street, where
funeral services were held March 8, 1893, by Rev. Dr. J. N. Blachard, of St.
James’ Protestant Episcopal Church, and he was buried in Woodland Cemetery.
The
Philadelphia Times, of March 9. 1893, said:
"It is not often that such an array of men, representing
such diversified interests, meet as were present yesterday at the funeral of Robert
Glendinning. It illustrated the far reaching
character of his friendships and the confidence he inspired, which led his
friends to stick to him through thick and thin. Yesterday closed the last sad scene in the
adventurous and in some respects brilliant career of one of the most inimitable
and agreeable men who ever belonged to the Philadelphia Stock Exchange."
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| Robert Edward Glendinning |
ROBERT EDWARD GLENDINNING (January 28, 1867-April 20, 1936) entered the University of Pennsylvania in 1884. He was the son of Robert Glendinning and Ellen Elizabeth Butcher.
Glendinning's stay at the University of Pennsylvania was a very short one. He attended the University for only his freshman year.
During his freshman year he was a member of the shooting team, cricket team, baseball team, tug-of-war team, Racket Club, and Canoe Club. He was the marshall of the University Republicans, chairman of the Constitution Committee, Chairman of the Baseball Committee, Chairman of the Freshman Committee and Chairman of the Baseball Committee. He won the standing broad jump during the spring sports competition. As an undergraduate, Glendinning also served as one of the models for Eadweard Muybridge's landmark study, Animal Locomotion. He lived in the Zeta Psi fraternity until he was dropped from the rolls owing to his absence during examinations.
After his short sojourn at University of Pennsylvania, Glendinning later became very successful as a banker and head of Robert Glendinning and Co. He was the first person from outside New York to hold the position of Governor of the New York Stock Exchange. He was also a member of the New York Curb Exchange, Philadelphia Stock Exchange, and Pittsburgh Stock Exchange.
An aviation enthusiast, he contributed substantially to American wartime aviation during the First World War. For his service as commander of the American air force in Italy, Glendinning was awarded the Italian Order of the Crown by the Italian King Victor Immanuel. He also served in the Spanish-American War. Before ending his military career as a colonel, he was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal by the United States government.
A resident of the Chestnut Hill section of Philadelphia, Glendinning was one of the founders of Chestnut Hill Hospital, Philadelphia School for the Deaf and the Philadelphia School of Aviation at Essington (later Chandler Field). He served served at various times as Treasurer of the Fairmount Park Commission, Director of the Philadelphia Zoological Society, and Finance Chairman of the Republican State Committee. His interesting and successful life was ended by pneumonia in 1936.
University of Pennsylvania Biographies:
ROBERT EDWARD GLENDINNING, son of Robert and Ellen E. (Butcher)
Glendinning, was born in Philadelphia, August 10, 1867. He entered the Towne Scientific School,
University of Pennsylvania, with the class of '88, in 1884, and left during
Freshman year; he was chairman of the class executive committee. He entered his
father’s firm of Robert Glendinning &
C0 and after his
father's death, conducted the business under the same name. He is a member of the
Rittenhouse and Markham Clubs of Philadelphia, the Union League,
the Philadelphia Barge, the Philadelphia Gun, the Philadelphia Cricket, and the
Huntingdon Valley clubs, and of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion; a
director of the Western National Bank, and a member of the Philadelphia, New York and
Chicago Stock Exchanges. He belonged to the First Troop Philadelphia city cavalry,
and was second Sergeant in that body when it was in the United States service
during the Spanish-American War.
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| Elizabeth R.F. Carpenter |
He married, 1896, Elizabeth
Rodman Fisher, daughter of George W. Carpenter, of “Wakefield,” Fisher’s Lane,
Germantown. Her mother Mary Rodman (Fisher) Carpenter, was born at
“Wakefield,” August 20, 1838, and was the daughter of Thomas Rodman Fisher, by
his wife Letitia Harvey Ellicott; granddaughter of William Logan and Mary (Rodman) Fisher, and
great-granddaughter of Thomas Fisher,
by his wife Sarah Logan, daughter of Dr. William and Hannah (Emlen) Logan, of
“Stenton.” “Wakefield,” the ancestral
home of the Fisher family, was originally part
of the Stenton estate and has therefore been the home of Mrs Glendinning’s ancestors for two
centuries. “Wakefield" was established on the Stenton Estate in 1795 by
Thomas Fisher, and since that time has been the home of Mrs.
Glendinning's direct ancestors. Fisher's
Lane takes its name from the family so long resident on that thoroughfare. Robert Glendinning and his wife lived for a
time at his father’s former home, 2002 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, and later
removed to Chestnut Hill, where their place is called “The Squirrels.” Mrs. Glendinning is a member of the Colonial
Dames.
University of Pennsylvania...
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| Robert and Elizabeth Glendinning |
Robert and Elizabeth Rodman Fisher Carpenter's children:
- Elizabeth Carpenter Glendinning (b. 1897/d.1898)
- Mary Fisher Glendinning (b. 1897/d.1953)
- Ellen Glendinning (b.1902/d.1976)
- Robert Edward Glendinning, Jr. (b. 1903/d.1966)
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| Mary Fisher Glendinning |
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| Ellen Glendinning |
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| Robert Glendinning |
More on Robert Edward Glendinning:
Flying: Vol. 4: The Curtiss Marine Flying Trophy
High Frontier:A History of Aeronautics in Pennsylvania
Aviation History: 1799 Lazaretto Interpretive Museum
Philadelphia in the World War: 1914-1919
Kings Views of the New York Stock Exchange
New York Social Diary
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Elizabeth Butcher Glendinning McMichael
with Clayton Fotterall McMichael, Jr. |
ELIZABETH BUTCHER GLENDINNING
b. November 6, 1869, Pennsylvania
Elizabeth
Butcher Glendinning married Clayton Fotteral McMichael, of Philadelphia on April
19, 1894; he entered Towne Scientific School, University of Pennsylvania, class
of '01, as a partial student in 1887, and left at the close of his Junior year.
He was member of a fraternity; one of the
founders of the Mask and Wig Club, the University’s celebrated dramatic club;
and joint author of “Ben Franklin Jr." and other plays produced by that
organization. He was also one of
founders, editors and editor-in-chief of college periodical, Red and Blue. After leaving college he became associate
editor of Philadelphia North American, of which his father was owner. At the time of his engagement to Miss
Glendinning, Town Topics, the New York society paper said: "Mr. McMichael
is son of Clayton McMichael, the publisher of the Philadelphia North American and is himself a clever young
journalist, who makes a specialty of dramatic criticism and society gossip. He is, too, a capital amateur actor and stage
manager, and it is largely owing to his efforts that the Mask and Wig Club of
the University of Pennsylvania has achieved its phenomenal success."
Clayton Fotterall McMichael and Elizabeth Butcher Glendinning had two children:
- Elisabeth
McMichael
- Clayton
F. McMichael, Jr.
More on this family in a separate post...
