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George Lothrop Bradley

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George Lothrop Bradley

Birth	:	4 Oct 1846
Death	:	26 Mar 1906
Burial	:	McMahan Cemetery, Snowball, Searcy County, USA
Coordinate	:	35.9253998, -92.8315964
Plot	:	Group 35, Location L, Lot 0, Space 10
Description	:	George Lothrop Bradley, third son of the late Chief Justice Charles Smith and Sarah (Manton) Bradley, was born in Providence, R. I., October 4, 1848. He was educated in private schools in Providence, and in Newton, Mass., later attending the Providence University Grammar School of Providence, where he prepared for Harvard and Brown Colleges, passing the preliminiary examinations for both institutions. He entered neither, however, but becoming deeply interest in metallurgical engineering, went to Freiburg, Germany, where he pursued a course in this science at the School of Mines, from which he was graduated in 1867. On... Read More	George Lothrop Bradley, third son of the late Chief Justice Charles Smith and Sarah (Manton) Bradley, was born in Providence, R. I., October 4, 1848. He was educated in private schools in Providence, and in Newton, Mass., later attending the Providence University Grammar School of Providence, where he prepared for Harvard and Brown Colleges, passing the preliminiary examinations for both institutions. He entered neither, however, but becoming deeply interest in metallurgical engineering, went to Freiburg, Germany, where he pursued a course in this science at the School of Mines, from which he was graduated in 1867. On his return to America, he went to Colorado for the purpose of developing some mining property, making the journey across the plains in a stage coach, at a time when Indians and marauding bands of outlaws infested the region. The coach preceding that in which he was a passenger was attacked by Indians and all its occupants killed. After a short period spent in the West, which was filled with the thrilling experiences of the pioneer days, he returned to his home, and shortly afterward went to South America to investigate mining conditions there. On his return, in Boston he met Professor Alexander Graham Bell, then a teacher of a new system of communication for deaf mutes, who subsequently went to Salem, Mass., and, while giving instructions there, devoted considerable time to the study and development of the telephone. Professor Bell later came to Providence, where he met Norman N. Mason, who was then in the apothecary business, and they with others placed the telephone on a practical working basis. Mr. Bradley, deeply interested in the project, and keenly alive to its possibilities, was induced to introduce the invention in Boston, where in 1876 he organized the New England Telephone Company. In the following year he organised the National Telephone Company in New York City. In the meantime the Western Union Telegraph Company had acquired the Edison patents for the telephone, and there was a contract between the two companies for the monopoly of the system. This contract between the two companies resulted in a compromise which gave the Bell Company an undisputed field. Its stock had gradually increased in value from one to fifty dollars per share, and eventually rose to eight hundred dollars per share. Through his holdings in the company, Mr. Bradley realized a goodly profit. His name ranks among the foremost in the history of the telephone, and he probably did more to make it a business success than any other man in the country. He saw from the outset the great financial possibilities in what others of recognized foresight had regarded as a mere mechanical toy, and became one of the original investigators and promoters of the invention which has played so important a part in human progress in the past three decades. In his researches he was associated with Professor John Pierce and Professor Blake, of Brown University, and, encouraged in the undertaking by the late Hon. Rowland G. Hazard, of Peace Dale, who was confident that the telephone would be as univerally used as gas and water. After establishing the telephone on a financial basis, in 1883 Mr. Bradley settled in Washington, D. C., and became actively interested in the Mergenthaler Linotype Company, which had been a business failure for more than six years. With the assistance of the late Hon. William C. Whitney, who was secretary of the United States Navy in President Cleveland's cabinet, Mr. Bradley put the latter company in such a sound financial condition that its stock was greatly enhanced in value. Mr. Bradley later became interested in the Florida Coast Line Canal and Transportation Company, investing heavily in its stock. The company was organized for the purose of constructing an island waterway five hundred and sixty miles in length along the eastern coast of Florida. Mr. Bradley gave this enterprise not only great financial aid, but in addition took an active ineterest in the management of the corporation, and for several years served as its president. In order to form a continuous navigable inland waterway, it was necessary not only to construct canals through the divides separating natural waters, but to remove shoals from the channels of these waters, and in places cut through sharp bends and increase the width of a number of tortuous salt-water creeks which form a portion of the route selected by the company. The canal is operated under a State charter and has the right of eminent domain, and privilege of charging tolls on all canals constructed and channels improved, the tolls to be fixed by the president and directors of the company, and to be approved by the board of trustees of the internal improvement fund of the State of Florida. In addition to the rights acquired by the canal company under the above law the State Legislature, by special act granted to the company a land subsidy of 3,840 acres per mile for the purpose of enabling those interested in the project to obtain the necessary capital for the construction of the canals and improvements along the natural waterways. This policy on the part of the State resulted in the Canal Company becoming such a considerable owner of land on the east coast of Florida that when an opportunity came to secure the construction of a railroad along the coast of Biscayne Bay, the Canal Company decided to grant a land subsidy of about 270,000 acres of land to the railway company, which resulted in the construction of one of the best railroads in the south. It soon became apparent that the directors of the Canal Company had made no mistake in subsidizing the railroad, as the construction of this railroad not only transformed the eastern section of Florida from a wilderness into the greatest winter resort in the United States, but, in addition, gave great impetus to the development of the agricultural resources of that country by giving rapid transportation to the growers of delicate fruits and vegetables, which enabled them to place the products of their plantations in the northern and western markets in good condition. The vast improvements of the Canal Company, too, had drained large bodies of rich marsh land, which, when the water was lowered, were ready for the plow, and resulted in new agricultural enterprises, as well as the building of new towns and villages on both sides of the waterway from practically its entire length. A line of passenger and freight steamers was placed in commission and operated between Titusville and Jupiter, one hundred and thirty miles to the south, another important factor in the opening up of this country. Until the year 1892 the inside waters of the Florida coast were supposed to be controlled by the State, and the canal company, under its charter, improved the channels of the Indian river where necessary. In the latter year, however, through the efforts of the late Senator Matthew S. Quay, of Pennsylvania, an appropriation was made by Congress to be expended in still further improving the river and in enlarging the canals owned by the land company. The question of jurisdiction being raised, the United States Attorney General gave the opinion that the appropriation should not be expended until the Florida Coast Line Canal and Transportation Company waived its rights to charge tolls on the channels improved by the company between Titusville and Jupiter. After some negitiations an agreement was made which provided that no tolls should be collected on that section of the waterway, and the money appropriated was then spent on the channel, and subsequently additional appropriations were made for the same purpose. The remainder of the waterway, however, is still controlled by the canal company. In the launching of this colossal enterprise, in the financing of it, and in the subsequent work of placing it on a firm business basis, Mr. Bradley was one of the leaders. To his consummate genius as a business organizer, executive and financier, a great part of the success of the Florida Coast Line Canal and Transportation Company is due. As one of the founders of this company he had no small part in the influential place it holds in the growth and development of the interest of eastern Florida. In the difficulties which beset the establishment of so phenomenal an enterprise, he was ever the wise counselor, the keen, sagacious, foresighted man of business, and his own belief in the future greatness of the gigantic scheme infused into all engaged in it the courage which carried it through to completion. Mr. Bradley possessed the calm, judical type of mentality, was essentially an individualist and an original thinker. Although an idealist, he was endowed with a genius for the practical which made him a farsighted but dependable leader a man whose vision might be relied upon, for it was tempered always with a regard for the practical. The broad understanding and tolerance for the cosmopolite, the culture which comes with wide travel, constant association with men of influence in the world of finance, business and the professions, was his in a marked degree. He was a linguist of no mean ability, a fine conversationalist, a forceful and compelling speaker. He was deeply interested in literature and the arts, and his home was the center of a thoughtful and brilliant society. He was essentially a diplomat, a man of affairs, of large visions. Nothing of a mean nature entered into his life; he was above the petty disagreements. Mr. Bradley was a lover of nature and outdoor life, and took an especial pride in his estate, comprising over eight hundred acres of land, in Pomfret, Conn., an ideal spot, commanding a magnificent view of the surrounding country. He was one of the founders of the Pomfret School for Boys, and maintained a deep interest in it until the time of his death, serving as a member of the board of trustees. Mr. Bradley was prominent in social and club circles in New York and Washington, D. C. He was a member of the Metropolitan, Cosmos, Elite, Chevy Chase, and Country clubs of Washington; of the Reform and the Players' clubs of New York City; and also of the National Geographical and various other societies. He was a man's man, generous, chivalrous and upright in every detail of his life, surrounding himself with none of the barriers which men who have attained the place of distinction which was his are apt to erect about themselves. In consequence, he was not only honored and respected but loved by a vast number of friends and acquaintances. On June 12, 1878, Mr. Bradley married Helen McHenry Chambers, daughter of Dr. John Mason Duncan Chambers, a prominent physician of Virginia, and his wife, Emma Pendleton Ward. Mrs. Bradley, who survives her husband and resides on the Bradley estate in Pomfret, Conn., is a descendant from some of the earliest Virginia families. She is well known in social circles in Rhode Island and Washington, D. C. Mr. and Mrs. Bradley were the parents of a daughter, Emma Pendelton Bradley. George Lothrop Bradley died at his home in Washington, D. C., on March 26, 1906, in the sixtieth year of his age. By the terms of his will, the Bradley estate in Providence, R. I., containing twelve acres of land, became the Emma Pendleton Bradley Home for Convalescents and Invalids, in memory of his only daughter, Emma Pendelton Bradley.

frequently asked questions (FAQ):

Where is George Lothrop Bradley's memorial?
George Lothrop Bradley's memorial is located at: McMahan Cemetery, Snowball, Searcy County, USA.
When did George Lothrop Bradley death?
George Lothrop Bradley death on 26 Mar 1906 in
Where are the coordinates of the George Lothrop Bradley's memorial?
Latitude: 35.9253998
Longitude: -92.8315964

Family Members:

Parent

Charles Smith Bradley

(1819 - 1888)

Sarah Manton Bradley

(1818 - 1854)

Spouse

Helen McHenry Chambers Bradley

(1856 - 1919)

Siblings

Joseph Manton Bradley

(1843 - 1879)

Charles Bradley

(1845 - 1898)

Mary Bradley

(1849 - 1850)

Susan Bradley

(1852 - 1854)

James Saunders Bradley

(1859 - 1880)

Janet Laurie Bradley

(1861 - 1864)

Children

Emma Pendleton Bradley

(1879 - 1907)

Flowers:

Left by Anonymous on 18 Dec 2012

In commemoration of the founding of BRADLEY HOSPITAL: According to its online history,"Bradley Hospital was the nation's first neuropsychiatric hospital for children. The hospital was named for George and Helen Bradley's only child Emma Pendleton Bradley, who was born in 1879." Stricken with encephalitis at age 7, Emma was left with multiple disabilities for which her parents searched diligently for cures. Eventually realizing that their daughter would not get better, George and Helen requested in their wills that Baton House, the family's Providence estate, be converted into a treatment facility for children. Officially dedicated on April 8, 1931, the hospital followed the terms of George Lothrop Bradley's will and gave first preference to poor, needy children from Rhode Island. Read less

Left by Anonymous on 29 Apr 2015

Nearby Cemetories:

1. McMahan Cemetery
Snowball, Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9253998, -92.8315964

2. Snowball Cemetery
Snowball, Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9094009, -92.8221970

3. Whisenant Cemetery
Snowball, Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9472008, -92.8292007

4. McDaniel Cemetery
Snowball, Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9122009, -92.7972031

5. Slay Cemetery
Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9578018, -92.8399963

6. Hall Cemetery
Eula, Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9241982, -92.8886032

7. Christy Cemetery
Point Peter, Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9661810, -92.8631459

8. Hendrix Cemetery
Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9103012, -92.8996964

9. Givens Cemetery
Pine Grove, Dallas County, USA
Coordinate: 35.8951200, -92.7706600

10. Pleasant Grove Cemetery
Marsena, Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.8727989, -92.8000031

11. Arnold Cemetery New
Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9771996, -92.7900009

12. Ruff-Norton Cemetery
Snowball, Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.8658000, -92.8551333

13. Dongola Cemetery
Dongola, Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9103012, -92.7558975

14. Arnold Bend Cemetery Old
Silver Hill, Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9766000, -92.7799000

15. Cash Cemetery
Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9042015, -92.9100037

16. DePriest Cemetery
Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9481010, -92.7500000

17. Silver Hill Cemetery
Silver Hill, Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9611015, -92.7438965

18. Mays Cemetery
Saint Joe, Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9962000, -92.7855800

19. Love Cemetery
Saint Joe, Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 36.0116005, -92.8174973

20. Bear Creek Cemetery
Marshall, Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.8541985, -92.7600021

21. Holder Creek Cemetery
Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9514920, -92.7190820

22. Turney Cemetery
Saint Joe, Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 36.0232000, -92.8102000

23. Hensley Cemetery
Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9785995, -92.9357986

24. Parks Cemetery
Baker Hollow, Searcy County, USA
Coordinate: 35.9063988, -92.6996994