17 letters, 19 pp., 1 envelope, dated 17 Nov 1894 to 12 Feb 1935; plus 1 postcard, written to Louis Wiley, dated 1933; of the 17 letters, 14 are written to Louis Wiley, with 2 of them related and mentioning Wiley, and 1 letter unclear if related to Wiley, or not.
Correspondents Include:
Benjamin Folsom, cousin of the wife of President Grover
Cleveland, was consul to England; his letter appears to pertain to the sale of
a magazine, possibly Wiley’s “The Tidings” magazine.
James Goold Cutler (1848-1927), prominent Rochester,
NY architect and businessman, mayor of Rochester (1904-1907); inquiring about
work for someone.
John Sharp Williams (1854-1932), a U.S. Congressman
(1893-1909) and a U.S. Senator (1910-1923) from Mississippi; thanking Wiley for
his kind words;
Edward Anthony Bradford, worked for fifty years for
the New York Times, various positions, for many years an editorial writer; writes
about their mutual medical problems.
Wenona Marlin, Washington, DC, war clerk; thanking
Wiley & the NYT, for helping to bring about the inauguration of the
air-mail line via Washington, Philadelphia, and New York.
C. B. Alexander, New York, NY, millionaire lawyer and
director of numerous companies including The Equitable Life Insurance Company,
Middletown & Unionville Railroad, The Hocking Valley Railroad and several
banks; thanks him for a dinner card at the Biltmore, which he is looking
forward to attending, even though he “[has] seen several things to regret in
the general tone of young persons at the Biltmore…”
Norman Davis (1878-1944), U.S. Diplomat, served as
President Wilson’s Assistant Secretary of Treasury, later as Undersecretary of
State; thanking him for getting the NYT mid-week pictorial, and looking forward
to seeing him.
Thomas W. Lamont (1870-1948), former newspaper man, he
left the industry and became a successful American banker; concerns his helping
Wiley with exchanging bonds.
William Lyon Phelps (1865-1943), an American author,
critic and scholar; taught the first American university course on the novel,
wrote syndicated newspaper column; thanks him for his letter, very much
appreciated.
Clarence Barbour (1867-1937), American Baptist
clergyman, educator, President of Brown University (1929-1937); he writes three
letters; thanks him for the reprints of the “Jefferson matter,” another letter thanks him for sending a humorous
letter about “not raising hogs,” the final letter is about Barbour going to
Wiley’s home for a visit.
William Mather Lewis (1878-1945), American teacher,
mayor of Lake Forest, ILL (1915-1917), state and national government official,
president of George Washington University (1923-1927), president of Lafayette
College (1927-1945); thanks him for accepting to speak at Lafayette’s
“Founder’s Day Convocation” and looking forward to seeing him.
Two letters are not in English, unclear what language,
but appear to address Louis Wiley at the beginning, possibly East European,
maybe Slovenian, difficult to read.
Plus: 1 letter written by G.L. Heins, state architect
of New York, to Dr. A. E. Macdonald, general superintendent, Manhattan State
Hospital; unclear how and if this letter is related to collection; thanking
Macdonald for pointing out an overcharge for stationary.
Louis Wiley (1869-1935)
Louis Wiley was born at Hornell, NY, on 31 May 1869,
the son of Benjamin Wiley, merchant of Hornell, NY and Mount Sterling, KY. He
was educated in private schools at Mount Sterling. At the age of 16 he became a
reporter for The Fort Wayne Journal and for the Fort Wayne Gazette.
His father died in 1886, and the family moved to Rochester, NY, where Wiley got
work as a reporter for The Union and Advertiser. He then took a job with
the Post Express in Rochester. While he was with the Post Express,
he founded a weekly called The Tidings, which he ran between 1887 to
1893, when he became business manager of the Post Express, where he
remained until 1895. He organized the Rochester Press Club in 1888. He left
Rochester for New York City where he took a job with The Sun, before
leaving there and joining Adolph Ochs at the New York Times in 1896, the
year Ochs bought the Times. In 1906, he was appointed the business
manager of the New York Times, a position he held for twenty-nine years, until
his death on 20 March 1935. He was buried at Kensico Cemetery in Westchester
County, NY. Upon his death, United States’ President Roosevelt, New York’s
Governor Lehman, and New York City Mayor LaGuardia, all paid tribute to him. He
was also friends with English prime ministers, members of parliament, diplomats
and business leaders in England and America. The presidents of Columbia and
Brown Universities were honorary pallbearers, as was Supreme Court Justice
Benjamin N. Cardozo. Upon his death he was considered to be of the most widely
known newspaper executives in the world.