Gentlemen's club in New York City
The Knickerbocker Club (known informally as The Knick ) is a
gentlemen's club in
New York City that was founded in 1871. It is considered to be the most exclusive club in the United States and one of the most
aristocratic
gentlemen's clubs in the world.
[1]
[2]
[3]
The term "Knickerbocker", partly due to writer
Washington Irving 's use of the pen name
Diedrich Knickerbocker , was a byword for a New York
patrician , comparable to a "
Boston Brahmin ".
[4]
[5]
History
The 1882 clubhouse, located at
Fifth Avenue and 32nd Street
The Knickerbocker Club was founded in 1871 by members of the
Union Club of the City of New York who were concerned that the club's admission standards had fallen.
[6] By the 1950s, urban
social club membership was dwindling, in large part because of the movement of wealthy families to the suburbs. In 1959, the Knickerbocker Club considered rejoining the Union Club, merging its 550 members with the Union Club's 900 men, but the plan never came to fruition.
[6]
The current clubhouse at 2 East 62nd Street, photographed in 2011
The Knick's current clubhouse, a
neo-Georgian structure at 2 East 62nd Street, was commissioned in 1913 and completed in 1915,
[7] on the site of the former mansion of Josephine Schmid, a wealthy widow.
[8] It was designed by
William Adams Delano and
Chester Holmes Aldrich ,
[6] and it has been designated a city landmark.
[7]
Membership
Members of the Knickerbocker Club are almost-exclusively descendants of British and Dutch
aristocratic families that governed the early 1600s
American Colonies or that left the Old Continent for political reasons (e.g. partisans of the Royalist coalition against
Cromwell , such as the
"distressed Cavaliers" of the aristocratic Virginia settlers ), or current members of the international aristocracy. Towards the middle of the 20th century, however, the club opened its doors to a few descendants of the
Gilded Age 's prominent families, such as the Rockefellers and Stillmans.
E. Digby Baltzell explains in his 1971 book Philadelphia Gentlemen: The Making of a National Upper Class :
The circulation of elites in America and the assimilation of new men of power and influence into the
upper class takes place primarily through the medium of urban clubdom. Aristocracy of birth is replaced by an aristocracy of ballot. Frederick Lewis Allen showed how this process operated in the case of the nine Lords of Creation who were listed in the New York Social Register as of 1905: “The nine men who were listed [in the Social Register] were recorded as belonging to 9.4 clubs apiece,” wrote Allen. “Though only two of them,
J. P. Morgan and
Cornelius Vanderbilt III , belonged to the Knickerbocker Club, the citadel of
Patrician families (indeed, both already belonged to old prominent families at the time), Stillman and Harriman joined these two in the membership of the almost equally fashionable
Union Club ; Baker joined these four in the membership of the
Metropolitan Club of New York (magnificent, but easier of access to new wealth); John D. Rockefeller, William Rockefeller, and Rogers, along with Morgan and Baker were listed as members of the
Union League Club (the stronghold of Republican respectability); seven of the group belonged to the
New York Yacht Club . Morgan belonged to nineteen clubs in all; Vanderbilt, to fifteen; Harriman, to fourteen.” Allen then goes on to show how the descendants of these financial giants were assimilated into the upper class: “By way of footnote, it may be added that although in that year [1905] only two of our ten financiers belonged to the Knickerbocker Club, in 1933 the grandsons of six of them did. The following progress is characteristic: John D. Rockefeller, Union League Club; John D. Rockefeller Jr.,
University Club ; John D. Rockefeller 3rd, Knickerbocker Club. Thus is the American aristocracy recruited.”
[2]
Christopher Doob wrote in his book Social Inequality and Social Stratification in U.S. Society :
Personal wealth has never been the sole basis for attaining membership in exclusive clubs. The individual and family must meet the admissions committee's standards for values and behavior.
Old money prevails over
new money as the Rockefeller family experience suggests. John D. Rockefeller, the family founder and the nation's first billionaire, joined the Union League Club, a fairly respectable but not top-level club; John D. Rockefeller Jr., belonged to the University Club, a step up from his father; and finally his son John D. Rockefeller, III, reached the pinnacle with his acceptance into the Knickerbocker Club (Baltzell 1989, 340).
[1]
Selected notable members
Charles Francis Adams III (1866–1954),
Ambassador , great-grandson of the sixth U.S. President
John Quincy Adams (1767–1848), and a great-great-grandson of the second U.S. president and
Founding Father
John Adams (1735–1826). Member of the prominent
Adams family
His Royal Highness
Prince Amyn Aga Khan ,
Imam of
Nizari Ismailism
His Royal Highness
Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan (1933–2003),
Imam of
Nizari Ismailism . Statesman and activist who served as
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees from 1966 to 1977
Gianni Agnelli (1921–2003), principal shareholder of
Fiat , and Italian
Senator for life . He is the great-great-grandson of business magnate
Giuseppe Francesco Agnelli (1789–1865) of the
Agnelli family . Through his mother
Princess Virginia Bourbon del Monte he is also a member of the Princely House of
Bourbon del Monte Santa Maria
Winthrop W. Aldrich (1885–1974),
United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom and scion of the prominent political Aldrich family. Son of the influential
Senator
Nelson W. Aldrich (1841–1915) who was referred to by the press and public alike as the "general manager of the Nation." Descendant of
John Winthrop (1587–1649)
Baron
Carlo Amato (1938–2021),
Ambassador of
The Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta
[9]
Chester Alan Arthur II (1864–1937), sportsman, art connoisseur, and son of U.S. President
Chester A. Arthur (1829–1886). Descendant of
General Uriah Stone, who served in the
Continental Army during the
American Revolution
Count
Alessandro Guiccioli de Asarta (1843–1922),
Senator of the Kingdom of Italy and
Congressman of the Kingdom of Italy
Waldorf Astor, 2nd Viscount Astor (1879–1952), British politician and member of the
House of Lords . Great-great-great-grandson of
John Jacob Astor , the richest man in America at the time. Member of the prominent
Astor family
Robert Bacon (1860–1919),
United States Secretary of State then
U.S. Ambassador to France . Scion of the
Boston Brahmin Bacon family whose members included philosopher and scientist
Viscount
Francis Bacon (1561–1626), U.S. Senator and Chief of Justice
Ezekiel Bacon (1776–1870), and Massachusetts Congressman
John Bacon (1738–1820)
Arthur Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour (1848–1930),
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom , then
First Lord of the Admiralty . Often associated to the
Balfour Declaration , public statement issued by the British government in 1917 announcing support for the establishment of a "national home for the Jewish people" in Palestine
His Royal Highness
Prince Franz von Bayern, Duke of Bavaria , head of the
House of Wittelsbach
Count Guerin De Beaumont (1896–1955), French
diplomat and active member of the
Bilderberg Group . Member of the
House of de Beaumont
His Royal Highness
Count Folke Bernadotte of Wisborg (1895–1948),
diplomat and grandson of
King of Sweden
Oscar II . In World War II he negotiated the release of about 31,000 prisoners from German concentration camps. After the war, Bernadotte was unanimously chosen to be the
United Nations Security Council mediator in the Arab–Israeli conflict of 1947–1948
Anthony Joseph Drexel Biddle Jr. (1897–1961),
General and U.S.
Ambassador to seven countries. Scion of the prominent
Biddle family
Francis Beverly Biddle , attorney general and Nuremberg judge (1886–1968). Scion of the prominent
Biddle family
Prince
Livio Borghese (1874–1939), Italian
Diplomat in the Ottoman Empire and in China. Scion of the
Princely Borghese House
John Moors Cabot (1901–1981),
U.S. Ambassador to five nations during the Truman, Eisenhower, and Kennedy administrations. Descendant of John Cabot (born 1680), a highly successful merchant of the prominent
Boston Brahmin
Cabot family
John Lambert Cadwalader (1836–1914),
United States Secretary of State . Descendant of
John Cadwalader (1742–1786) (general during the
American Revolutionary War , who served with
George Washington ) and
Thomas Cadwalader (1707–1779). Member of the prominent
Cadwalader family and
Van Cortlandt family
His Royal Highness
Prince Alfonso, Count of Caserta (1841–1934), pretender to the
throne of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
Adna Chaffee (1842–1914),
General and
Chief of Staff of the United States Army , taking part in the
American Civil War and
American Indian Wars , playing a key role in the
Spanish–American War , and fighting in the
Boxer Rebellion in China. Descendant of Thomas Chaffee (1610–1683), businessman and landowner of the Massachusetts Colony, and scion of the
Boston Brahmin Chaffee family
William A. Chanler (1867–1934), explorer, soldier and New York politician. Descendant of
Edward Sutton, 2nd Baron Dudley (1460–1531) , Member of Parliament of England,
John Winthrop (1587–1649) , one of the founders of the
Massachusetts Bay Colony , and
Peter Stuyvesant , the last Dutch
Director of New Netherland from 1647 to 1664, after which it was renamed
New York
Count Ghislain Clauzel (1907–1992), French
Ambassador . Descendant of
Count Bertrand Clauzel (1772–1842),
Marshal of France during the
Napoleonic Wars
Charles A. Coffin (1844–1926), co-founder and first president of
General Electric corporation. Descendant of
Tristram Coffin (1609–1681), a British aristocrat who had to flee the
English Civil War and who is best known for purchasing
Nantucket . Scion of the prominent
Coffin family
Calvin Coolidge (1872–1933), 30th
President of the United States . During his presidency, he is known to have restored public confidence in the White House after the many scandals of his predecessor's administration. He was a direct descendant of John Coolidge (1604–1691), a member of the English landed gentry who emigrated to Massachusetts in 1630 and a member of the
Boston Brahmin Coolidge family
Pierre de Cossé Brissac, 12th Duke of Brissac (1900–1993), French aristocrat and author who wrote a series of historical memoirs. Head of the
House of Cossé-Brissac
Frank Crowninshield (1872–1947), journalist, developer of
Vanity Fair , scion of the
Boston Brahmin
Crowninshield family whose members include Massachusetts Governor John Crownshield (1649–1699) and Secretary of the Navy
Benjamin Williams Crowninshield (1772–1851).
[10]
Harvey Cushing (1869–1939), American
neurosurgeon , pioneer of brain surgery who was the first exclusive neurosurgeon and the first person to describe
Cushing's disease . Scion on the
Cushing family whose notable members include American
Founding Father
Thomas Cushing III (1725–1788),
William Cushing (1732–1810) nominated
Court's Chief Justice by President
George Washington and English theologian Thomas Cushing (1512–1588). Direct descendant of
John Cotton (1585–1652), the great 16th century Puritan theologian
Richard Henry Dana Jr. (1815–1882), lawyer and politician who gained renown as the author of the classic American memoir
Two Years Before the Mast . Both as a writer and as a lawyer, he was a champion of the downtrodden, from seamen to fugitive slaves and freedmen. Descendant of
Founding Father
Francis Dana (1743–1811), and of French
Huguenot Richard Dana (1620–1690) who arrived in Massachusetts during the later end of the Puritan migration to New England.
Robert Williams Daniel, Jr. (1936–2012), member of the
U.S. House of Representatives . Son of financier
Robert Williams Daniel , descendant of
William Randolph (prominent figure in the history and government of the English
colony of Virginia ) and
Edmund Randolph (the seventh
Governor of Virginia , the first
Attorney General of the United States and later served as
Secretary of State ).
[11]
Michel David-Weill , French investment banker and former Chairman of
Lazard Frères , art collector. Great-great-grandson of
Alexandre Weill , co-founder of
Lazard Frères
Henry A. Dudley (1913–1995), U.S.
Ambassador . Member of the ancient prominent
Dudley family , whose members include
Lord
Henry Dudley (1517–1568),
Thomas Dudley (1576–1653) Founder and Governor of the
Massachusetts Bay Colony and a founder of
Harvard University , and
Joseph Dudley (1647–1720) Colonial Administrator of the
Dominion of New England
Angier Biddle Duke (1915–1995), youngest
American Ambassador in history and
Chief of Protocol of the United States . Heir of the
Duke Family business empire in tobacco and electric power, and major benefactor of
Duke University , named after his family (one of the
First Families of Virginia ). Also a scion of the prominent
Biddle family , and a great-great-grandson of financier
Anthony Joseph Drexel who founded with
J. P. Morgan the bank
Drexel, Morgan & Co. (later
J.P. Morgan & Co. )
David Eccles, 1st Viscount Eccles (1904–1999), member of the
House of Lords and prominent British
politician who served as
Minister of Education ,
Minister of Works , and as
President of the Board of Trade
T. S. Eliot (1888–1965),
Nobel Prize-winning poet, playwright, and literary critic. Member of the aristocratic
Boston Brahmin Eliot family , whose notable members include
Charles William Eliot (1834–1926) the longest serving
President of Harvard University , and
Charles Eliot Norton (1827–1908) progressive social considered the most cultivated man in the United States by his contemporaries
William Crowninshield Endicott (1826–1900),
United States Secretary of War . Member of the prominent
Endicott family , and direct descendant of
John Endecott (1589–1665), one of the Fathers of
New England and the longest-serving governor of the
Massachusetts Bay Colony
Marquis
Ruggero Farace di Villaforesta (1909–1970), Italian
Ambassador , and member of the highly aristocratic family Farace di Villaforesta, whose origins have been documented back to the aristocratic families of the
Byzantine Empire , and which is directly related to figures such as
Queen Natialia of Serbia or
Princess Aspasia of Greece and Denmark . He was married to
Princess Catherine Ivanovna of Russia , great-great-granddaughter of
Tsar Nicholas I of Russia , a niece of King
Alexander I of Yugoslavia , and second cousin of
Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
Baron
Carlo de Ferrariis Salzano (1905–1985), Italian
Ambassador . Scion the Princely
House of Gaetani dell'Aquila d'Aragona from his mother side and of the Princely
House of Morra from his paternal grandmother
Frederick Theodore Frelinghuysen (1817–1885),
Secretary of State . Grandson of
Continental Army
General
Frederick Frelinghuysen (general) (1753–1804) and great-great-grandson of
Dutch Reformed Church minister
Theodorus Jacobus Frelinghuysen (1691–1747). Member of the
Frelinghuysen political dynasty
Francis Warrington Gillet (1895–1969) was an American
flying ace who served in both the American and British armed forces as a pilot during World War I. Member of the prominent
Gillett family whose members include colonist Jonathan Gillett (1609–1677) and
Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
Frederick H. Gillett (1851–1935)
Ogden Goelet (1851–1897), yachtsman and heir to one of America's largest business empires at the time. Member of the prominent
Goelet family , descendants of an aristocratic family of
Huguenots in France who escaped from religious persecutions and arrived in New York in 1676. His daughter,
Mary Goelet , married
Henry Innes-Ker, 8th Duke of Roxburghe
Baron Amaury de La Grange (1888–1953), aviator and politician
Baron Frederick G. d'
Hauteville (1838–1918), politician, member of the
House of Hauteville
Baron Paul G. d'
Hauteville (1875–1947), Captain of the Red Cross, member of the
House of Hauteville
Count
Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck , German film director, best known for writing and directing the 2006
Oscar-winning dramatic thriller
The Lives of Others
His Serene Highness
Prince Friedrich of Hohenzollern (1924–2010), head of the
Princely House of Hohenzollern for over 45 years, and scion on his mother side of the
Royal House of Wettin and through his paternal grandmother of the
Royal House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies
Baron Rodolphe Hottinger , banker and member of the House of Hottinger
Peter Augustus Jay (1877–1933),
Ambassador . Great-great-great-grandson of
John Jay (1745–1829),
Founding Father and first
United States Chief Justice . Member of the
Jay family of Huguenots who had come to New York to escape religious persecution in France
Woodbury Kane (1859–1905), a noted
yachtsman and bon vivant, and member of
Theodore Roosevelt 's
Rough Riders . Great-great-grandson of
John Jacob Astor
John Knowles (1926–2001), American novelist best known for
A Separate Peace . Scion of the prominent
Knowles family and direct descendant of
Royal Navy Admiral
Sir Charles Knowles (1754–1831)
Amos A. Lawrence (1814–1886), key figure in the United States
abolitionist movement in the years leading up to the
American Civil War . Son of philanthropist
Amos Lawrence (1786–1852) and scion of the
Lawrence family who descend from John Lawrence (1609–1667) of England
Robert J. Livingston (1811–1891), businessman, member of the prominent
Livingston family , which descends from the 4th
Lord Livingston (died 1518),
[12] and whose members include
Robert Livingston the Elder (1654–1728) and signers of the
United States Declaration of Independence (
Philip Livingston ) and the
United States Constitution (
William Livingston ). Several members were
Lords of
Livingston Manor .
His Serene Highness
Prince Edouard de Lobkowicz (1926–2010), Austrian-American
Ambassador and investment banker. Member of the Princely
House of Lobkowicz and member of the Royal
House of Bourbon-Parma
Henry Cabot Lodge Jr. (1902–1985),
United States Ambassador and prominent American politician. Scion of the patrician
Lodge family , he is the grandson of
Senate Majority Leader Senator
Henry Cabot Lodge (1850–1924), the great-grandson of
Secretary of State
Frederick Theodore Frelinghuysen (1817–1885), and great-great-great-grandson of Senator
George Cabot (1751–1823)
Joseph Florimond, Duke of Loubat (1831–1927), yachtsman, bibliophile, antiquarian, and philanthropist
A. Lawrence Lowell (1856–1943),
President of Harvard University . Scion of the Patrician
Lowell family , whose notable members include Percival Lowell (1571–1665), minister
John Lowell (1704–1767), delegate to the
Congress of the Confederation
John Lowell (1743–1802),
Ambassador and
poet
James Russell Lowell (1819–1891), and mathematician and astronomer
Percival Lowell (1855–1916) who led the discovery of
Pluto
Anthony Dryden Marshall (1924–2014), theatrical producer,
C.I.A.
intelligence officer former
ambassador . Great-great-grandson of
John Fairfield Dryden (1839–1911), founder of
Prudential Insurance Company and a United States Senator from 1902 to 1907.
[13]
Frederick Townsend Martin (1849–1914), writer and anti-poverty advocate, referred to as the "millionaire with a mission."
Paul Mellon (1907–1999), philanthropist and an owner/
breeder of
thoroughbred
racehorses .
[14] Co-heir to one of America's greatest business fortunes; member of the prominent
Mellon family
Baron Jean de Ménil (1904–1973), Franco-American businessman, philanthropy, and art patron
George Minot (1885–1950), winner of the
Nobel Prize in Medicine . Great-great-grandson of historian George Richards Minot (1758–1802), and cousin of
Charles Sedgwick Minot (1852–1914) anatomist and a founding member of the
American Society for Psychical Research . Scion of the
Boston Brahmin Minot family
Count Gebhardt von Moltke (1938–2019),
Ambassador , and direct descendant of
Prussian
field marshal
Count Helmuth von Moltke , and great-great-grandnephew of
Chief of the Great German General Staff
Count Helmuth von Moltke
Antoine-Amédée-Marie-Vincent Manca Amat de Vallombrosa, Marquis de Morès et de Montemaggiore (1858–1896), famous
duelist , railroad pioneer in Vietnam, and a politician in his native country France
J. P. Morgan (1837–1913). banker and financier, descendant of
William Morgan (1582–1649) and
Miles Morgan (1616–1699). Member of the prominent
Morgan family . Resigned when a friend he had sponsored for membership was
blackballed and founded the
Metropolitan Club of New York
Marquis Guy-Philippe de Montebello , director of the
Metropolitan Museum of Art
Edward N. Ney (1925–2014),
Ambassador . Descendant of
Michel Ney ,
Marshal of the Empire during the
Napoleonic Wars
Kichisaburo Nomura (1877–1964), Japanese
ambassador
Count Jehan de Noüe (1907–1999), Chief of Protocol of the
United Nations . Member of the ancient aristocratic
de Noüe family
John Bertram Oakes (1913–2001), iconoclastic and influential U.S. journalist known for his early commitment to the environment, civil rights, and opposition to the Vietnam War. Great-great-great-grandson of
General
Sir Hildebrand Oakes (1754–1822)
Baron Max von Oppenheim (1860–1946),
archaeologist , famous for discovering the site of
Tell Halaf in 1899. Member of the prominent
Oppenheim family
Charles Jackson Paine (1833–1916) railroad executive, yachtsman, and a
general in the
Union Army during the
American Civil War . Great-great-grandson of
Robert Treat Paine (1731–1814)
Founding Father of the United States who signed the
Continental Association and the
Declaration of Independence
The Lord Palumbo , property developer and art collector, member of the
House of Lords
Marquis Lelio Pellegrini Quarantotti (1909–1990), Italian
Grand Prix motor racing driver
Johnston Livingston de Peyster (1846–1903), colonel during the civil war, and known for running for mayor of Tivoli-on-Hudson against his father, and winning. Member of the prominent
De Peyster family and
Livingston family . Great-great-great-grandson of
Abraham de Peyster (1657–1728), an early
Mayor of New York City , whose father was
Johannes de Peyster (
c. 1600 –1685). Descendant of
William Livingston, 4th Lord Livingston (died 1518)
Wendell Phillips (1811–1884) was an American
abolitionist , advocate for Native Americans, orator, and attorney. According to George Lewis Ruffin, a Black attorney, Phillips was seen by many Blacks as "the one white American wholly color-blind and free from race prejudice." Son of
John Phillips (1770–1823), first mayor of Boston, and descendant of English-born Puritan minister
George Phillips (1593–1644). Scion of the
Boston Brahmin
Phillips family , which counts among its notable members
Samuel Phillips, Jr. (1752–1802), and
John Phillips (1719–1795), founders of the
Phillips Academy and
Phillips Exeter Academy
Henry Hepburne-Scott, 10th Lord Polwarth (1916–2005), businessman, Minister of State of Scotland
George P. Putnam (1887–1950), American publisher, author and explorer. Husband of
Amelia Earhart the first female aviator to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean. Grandson of
George Palmer Putnam (1814–1872), founder of the prominent publishing firm that became
G. P. Putnam's Sons . Descendant of army
general
Israel Putnam (1718–1790) and English Puritan John Putnam (1580–1666)
Edmund Quincy (1808–1877),
abolitionist and editor of
National Anti-Slavery Standard . Grandson of
President of Harvard University
Josiah Quincy III (1772–1864) and scion of the prominent
Quincy family
His Serene Highness
Prince Dominik Radziwiłł (1911–1976), head of the
House of Radziwiłł
His Serene Highness
Prince Anthony Radziwill (1959–1999), member of the
House of Radziwiłł and nephew of
First Lady
Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis (wife of President
John F. Kennedy ).
Laurence Rockefeller (1910–2004), financier, philanthropist and major conservationist. Grandson of
John D. Rockefeller , considered to be the richest person in modern history. Member of the
Rockefeller family
David Rockefeller (1915–2017), banker, chairman and chief executive of
Chase Manhattan Corporation . Grandson of
John D. Rockefeller , considered to be one of the richest people in modern history. Member of the
Rockefeller family
His Imperial Highness
Prince Alexander Romanov (1929–2002), member of the
Imperial House of Romanov
Theodore Roosevelt Sr. (1831–1878), father of President of the United States, member of the patrician
Roosevelt family He was Secretary of the Union League Club and a Founding Member of the Knickerbocker Club in 1871.
Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945), President of the United States, member of the patrician
Roosevelt family —joined in 1903 upon his graduation from
Harvard University . Resigned from the club in 1936.
Viscount Paul de Rosière (1908–1995), Cartier's Chief Executive.
Count Teofilo Guiscardo Rossi di Montelera (1902–1991), Italian
bobsledder who competed in the early 1930s, and a world champion
power boat racer , winning world championship in 1934, 1937, 1938, and was set to defend the Gold Cup in 1939 when war broke out. He was the heir of the aristocratic family Rossi di Montelera
Baron
Guy de Rothschild (1909–2007), owner of the
Rothschild banking family of France and head of the French branch of the
House of Rothschild
Leverett Saltonstall (1892–1979),
Senate Majority Leader and Minority Leader and
Chair of the Senate Republican Conference . Direct descendant of
Sir Richard Saltonstall (1586–1661), and member of the prominent
Saltonstall family
John Singer Sargent (1856–1925), artist, considered the leading
impressionist portrait painter of his generation. Direct descendant of
Epes Sargent (1690–1762), and scion of the patrician
Sargent family , whose notable members include
Winthrop Sargent (1753–1820),
Henry Sargent (1770–1845), or
Charles Sprague Sargent (1841–1927)
His Imperial Highness
Zera Yacob Amha Selassie , grandson of Emperor
Haile Selassie and son of
Amha Selassie of the
Ethiopian Empire . Current head of the
Imperial House of Ethiopia
Baron Ottavio Serena di Lapigio (1837–1914),
Senator of the Kingdom of Italy , historian, and prominent figure in the
Unification of Italy
William Watts Sherman (1842–1912), businessman, member of the patrician Sherman family
[15]
Viscomte Henri de Sibour (1872–1938), architect
Count Alexander von Stauffenberg (1905–1964), German aristocrat and historian. His twin brother
Berthold Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg and younger brother
Claus Schenk Graf von Stauffenberg were among the leaders of the
20 July plot against Hitler in 1944. Member of the
Schenk von Stauffenberg family which included prominent figures such as
Prussian
Field marshal
Count August Neidhardt von Gneisenau
Augustus Van Horne Stuyvesant Jr. (1870–1953) New York landowner and last direct descendent of
Peter Stuyvesant (1592–1672), the Dutch
governor of
New Netherland before it became New York. Scion of the prominent
Stuyvesant family
Baron David Swaythling (1928–1998), Member of the
House of Lords and chairman of many notable British companies, such as
Rothschild & Co ,
Samuel Montagu & Co. or
Midland Bank
Nathaniel Thayer III (1851–1911), American banker and railroad executive. Scion of the
Boston Brahmin
Thayer family , and through his mother a descendant of the Dutch Aristocratic
Van Rensselaer and
Schuyler families
Marquis
Filippo Theodoli ,
Duke of Nemi (1930–1990), owner of the first high-performance luxury yachts company
Magnum Marine Corporation
Baron Hans Heinrich Thyssen-Bornemisza (1921–2002), noted industrialist and art collector
Count Antoine Treuille de Beaulieu (1804–1885), Army General, known for developing the concept of
rifled guns in the French Army.
[16]
Baron Léon van der Elst (1856–1933), Belgian
Ambassador and one of
King Albert I of Belgium 's closest advisers
Baron Georg von Ullmann (1922–1972), owner of the German
Thoroughbred stud
Gestüt Schlenderhan that has had a major impact on the breeding history of Thoroughbreds. Scion of the prominent
Oppenheim family
Count Mario di Valmarana (1929–2010), architect, owner of the
Palladian Villa
"La Rotonda"
Pierre Van Cortlandt III (1815–1884), New York landowner. Scion of the prominent
Van Cortlandt political dynasty whose members include
Pierre Van Cortlandt (1721–1814), the first
Lieutenant Governor of New York , and
Philip Van Cortlandt (1749–1831), a founder of the
hereditary
Society of the Cincinnati
Cornelius Vanderbilt III (1873–1942), general. Member of the prominent
Vanderbilt family . Great-great-grandson of the railroad and shipping tycoon Cornelius Vanderbilt ("The Commodore"), one of the richest American in history. Descendant of the famous Dutch corsair
Jan Janszoon (1570–1641)
Harold Stirling Vanderbilt (1884–1970), railroad executive, yachtsman, bridge player, and a member of the prominent
Vanderbilt family . Great-great-grandson of the railroad and shipping tycoon Cornelius Vanderbilt ("The Commodore"), one of the richest American in history. Descendant of the famous Dutch corsair
Jan Janszoon (1570–1641)
Alexander Van Rensselaer (1850–1933), philanthropist, and professional tennis player and champion. Member of the prominent
Van Rensselaer of Dutch Aristocratic origins, whose members include
Kiliaen van Rensselaer (1586–1643) one of the founders and directors of the
Dutch West India Company and an instrumental figure in the establishment of
New Netherland ; and
Stephen Van Rensselaer III (1764–1839), Governor of New York and
Grand Master of the
Masonic Grand Lodge of New York and one of the richest people in history (net worth of US$3.1 billion at the time of his death—equivalent to $112.5 billion in 2021)
Count
Leonardo Vitetti (1894–1973),
Permanent Representative of Italy to the United Nations
Baron
Egon von Vietinghoff-Scheel (1903–1994), German-Swiss painter, author, philosopher and creator of the Egon von Vietinghoff Foundation. He reconstructed the lost painting techniques of the
Old Masters , and created some 2.700 paintings
Craig Wadsworth (1872–1960), diplomat, steeplechase rider, and member of
Theodore Roosevelt 's
Rough Riders . Grandson of Union general
James S. Wadsworth . Scion of the prominent
Wadsworth family of Connecticut, and descendant of one of the
Founders of Hartford, Connecticut ,
William Wadsworth (1594–1675)
James Montaudevert Waterbury Sr. (1851–1931), businessman, industrialist. Member of the prominent
Livingston family , which includes the 4th
Lord Livingston ,
[12] and signers of the
United States Declaration of Independence (
Philip Livingston ) and the
United States Constitution (
William Livingston )
Baron Béla Ferenc Xavér Wenckheim (1811–1879),
Prime Minister of Hungary
Henry White (1850–1927),
U.S.
ambassador ,
[17] and one of the signers of the
Treaty of Versailles .
[18]
Robert Winthrop (1833–1892), banker, direct descendant of colonial governors
John Winthrop (1587–1649),
John Winthrop Jr. (1606–1676), and
Fitz-John Winthrop (1637–1707).
[19]
James T. Woodward (1837–1910), banker, avid hunter and horseman. Member of the prominent Woodward family
Jerauld Wright (1898–1995), Commander-in-Chief of the
U.S. Atlantic Command (CINCLANT) and the Commander-in-Chief of the
U.S. Atlantic Fleet (CINCLANTFLT), and became the second
Supreme Allied Commander Atlantic (SACLANT) for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (
NATO ), from April 1, 1954, to March 1, 1960, serving longer in these three positions than anyone else in history. Son of General
William M. Wright . Descendant of Senator
William Wright (1794–1866) and
George Mason IV (1725–1792), a
Founding Father of the United States
Reciprocal clubs
The Knickerbocker Club has mutual arrangements with the following clubs:
See also
References
^
a
b Doob, Christopher (27 August 2015).
Social Inequality and Social Stratification in U.S. Society .
ISBN
9781317344216 .
^
a
b E. Digby Baltzell (27 August 2015).
Philadelphia Gentlemen: The Making of a National Upper Class .
ISBN
9781412830751 .
^ Macdonald-Buchanan, Rose (12 October 2015).
"The best gentlemen's clubs in the world" . Gentleman's Journal .
^
"Knickerbocker" . Dictionary.com. Random House, retrieved 2008-1-3.
^ Frederic Cople Jaher, "Nineteenth-Century Elites in Boston and New York", Journal of Social History Vol. 6, No. 1 (Autumn 1972), pp. 32–77.
^
a
b
c Gray, Christopher.
"Inside the Union Club, Jaws Drop" , New York Times (Feb. 11, 2007).
^
a
b Pollak, Michael.
"Was Anyone Killed at the Knickerbocker Club?" New York Times (Feb. 21, 2014).
^ Miller, Tom (2011-04-11).
"Daytonian in Manhattan: The Lost 1898 Del Drago Mansion – No. 807 Fifth Avenue" . Daytonian in Manhattan . Retrieved 2017-07-26 .
^
"Carlo Amato Obituary" .
^
"Art: Mr. Crowinshield Unloads" .
Time Magazine . November 1, 1943. Archived from
the original on December 14, 2008. Retrieved October 29, 2010 .
^
"Robert Daniel Jr. And Sally Chase Wed in Richmond; An Alumnus of Virginia Marries Graduate of Smith, '57 Debutante" . The New York Times . 3 May 1964.
^
a
b Henry Reed Stiles, ed. (1886).
The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record . New York Genealogical and Biographical Society. p.
85 .
^
"John F. Dryden Dies Worth $50,000,000. Ex-Senator from New Jersey Succumbs to Pneumonia, Following an Operation" .
The New York Times . November 25, 1911. Retrieved 2010-10-20 . Ex-United States Senator John F. Dryden, President of the Prudential Insurance Company of America, also known as the "Father of Industrial Insurance", died at 6 o'clock last night at his home, 1020 Broad Street, Newark, N.J. The ex-Senator was operated on a week ago to-day for the removal of gall stones.
^
"Obituary: Paul Mellon" . The Independent . 3 February 1999. Retrieved 18 May 2019 .
^
"The Sherman Family' " . The New York Times . February 19, 1865. p. 6.
^ A Dictionary of Military History and the Art of War by André Corvisier, p.44
[1]
^
"Henry White" . history.state.gov . United States Department of State History – Office of the Historian. Retrieved 21 July 2017 .
^
"HENRY WHITE WEDS MRS. WM.D. SLOANE; Ex-Ambassador to France Is 70 and Daughter of Late Wm. H. Vanderbilt Is 68. RELATIVES ONLY AT NUPTIAL Ceremony in St. Bartholomew's Chapel Follows Issuing of License --Couple at Bride's City Home" .
The New York Times . 4 November 1920. Retrieved 21 July 2017 .
^ Henry Anstice.
History of Saint George's Church in the City of New York, 1752-1811-1911. N,Y.: Harper, 1911, p. 450.
^
"Enquête sur les cercles et les lieux de pouvoir" [Investigation of circles and places of power]. Le Figaro (in French). 29 April 2010.
^
"Cercle Royal du Parc Reciprocities" .
External links
40°45′57.23″N 73°58′17.28″W / 40.7658972°N 73.9714667°W / 40.7658972; -73.9714667
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