Samuel P. Bush
Encyclopedia
Samuel Prescott Bush was an American
industrialist
and entrepreneur
, and the patriarch of the Bush political family
. He was the father of U.S. Senator
Prescott Bush
, grandfather of former U.S President
George H. W. Bush
, and great-grandfather of former U.S. President George W. Bush
.
, the son of Harriet Fay and the Rev. James Smith Bush
, an Episcopal priest
at Grace Church in Orange. He grew up in New Jersey
, San Francisco, California
, and Staten Island
, New York
, but spent the majority of his adult life in Columbus, Ohio
. He married Flora Sheldon on June 20, 1894. They had five children: Prescott Sheldon Bush
, Robert (who died in childhood), Mary (Mrs. Frank) House, Margaret (Mrs. Stuart) Clement, and James.
His wife, Flora, died on September 4, 1920 in Narragansett, Rhode Island
when she was hit by a car. He remarried to Martha Bell Carter of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
at Hoboken, New Jersey
in 1884, where he played on one of the earliest regular college football
teams. He took an apprenticeship with the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad
at the Logansport, Indiana
shops, later transferring to Dennison, Ohio
and Columbus, Ohio
, where in 1891 he became Master Mechanic, then in 1894 Superintendent of Motive Power. In 1899, he moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin to take the position of Superintendent of Motive Power with the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad
.
In 1901, he returned to Columbus to be General Manager of Buckeye Steel Castings Company
, which manufactured railway parts. The company was run by Frank Rockefeller
, the brother of oil
magnate John D. Rockefeller
, and among its clients were the railroads controlled by E. H. Harriman
. The Bush and Harriman families would be closely associated at least until the end of World War II
. In 1908, Rockefeller retired and Bush became President of Buckeye, a position he would hold until 1927, becoming one of the top industrialists of his generation.
He was the first president of the Ohio Manufacturers Association, and cofounder of Scioto Country Club
and Columbus Academy
. He was an avid sports enthusiast and a skilled carpenter.
was asked to reorganize the War Industries Board
as the U.S. prepared to enter World War I
, and placed several prominent businessmen to key posts. Bush became chief of the Ordnance, Small Arms, and Ammunition Section, with national responsibility for government assistance to and relations with munitions companies.
Bush served on the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland
(as well as of the Huntington National Bank of Columbus). In 1931, he was appointed to Herbert Hoover
's President's Committee for Unemployment Relief, chaired by Walter S. Gifford, then-President of AT&T. He was once recommended to serve on the board of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation
, but Hoover did not feel he was sufficiently known nationally.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
industrialist
Business magnate
A business magnate, sometimes referred to as a capitalist, czar, mogul, tycoon, baron, oligarch, or industrialist, is an informal term used to refer to an entrepreneur who has reached prominence and derived a notable amount of wealth from a particular industry .-Etymology:The word magnate itself...
and entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
, and the patriarch of the Bush political family
Bush family
The Bush family is a prominent American family. Along with many members who have been successful bankers and businessmen, across three generations the family includes two U.S. Senators, one Supreme Court Justice, two Governors, one Vice President and two Presidents...
. He was the father of U.S. Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Prescott Bush
Prescott Bush
Prescott Sheldon Bush was a Wall Street executive banker and a United States Senator, representing Connecticut from 1952 until January 1963. He was the father of George H. W. Bush and the grandfather of George W...
, grandfather of former U.S President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
George H. W. Bush
George H. W. Bush
George Herbert Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 41st President of the United States . He had previously served as the 43rd Vice President of the United States , a congressman, an ambassador, and Director of Central Intelligence.Bush was born in Milton, Massachusetts, to...
, and great-grandfather of former U.S. President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
.
Early life
Bush was born in Brick Church, Orange, New JerseyEast Orange, New Jersey
East Orange is a city in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census the city's population 64,270, making it the state's 20th largest municipality, having dropped 5,554 residents from its population of 69,824 in the 2000 Census, when it was the state's 14th most...
, the son of Harriet Fay and the Rev. James Smith Bush
James Smith Bush
Rev. James Smith Bush was an attorney, Episcopal priest, and religious writer, and an ancestor of the Bush political family. He was the father of business magnate Samuel Prescott Bush, grandfather of US Senator Prescott Bush, great-grandfather of former US President George H. W. Bush and...
, an Episcopal priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
at Grace Church in Orange. He grew up in New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, San Francisco, California
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
, and Staten Island
Staten Island
Staten Island is a borough of New York City, New York, United States, located in the southwest part of the city. Staten Island is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull, and from the rest of New York by New York Bay...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, but spent the majority of his adult life in Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
. He married Flora Sheldon on June 20, 1894. They had five children: Prescott Sheldon Bush
Prescott Bush
Prescott Sheldon Bush was a Wall Street executive banker and a United States Senator, representing Connecticut from 1952 until January 1963. He was the father of George H. W. Bush and the grandfather of George W...
, Robert (who died in childhood), Mary (Mrs. Frank) House, Margaret (Mrs. Stuart) Clement, and James.
His wife, Flora, died on September 4, 1920 in Narragansett, Rhode Island
Narragansett, Rhode Island
Narragansett is a town in Washington County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 15,868 at the 2010 census, but there is a greater population in the summer. The nickname for the town is "Gansett". The town of Narragansett occupies a narrow strip of land running along the eastern bank...
when she was hit by a car. He remarried to Martha Bell Carter of Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Career
Bush graduated from the Stevens Institute of TechnologyStevens Institute of Technology
Stevens Institute of Technology is a technological university located on a campus in Hoboken, New Jersey, USA – founded in 1870 with an 1868 bequest from Edwin A. Stevens. It is known for its engineering, science, and technological management curricula.The institute has produced leading...
at Hoboken, New Jersey
Hoboken, New Jersey
Hoboken is a city in Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population was 50,005. The city is part of the New York metropolitan area and contains Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub for the region...
in 1884, where he played on one of the earliest regular college football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
teams. He took an apprenticeship with the Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad
Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad
The Pittsburgh, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railroad, commonly called the Pan Handle Route , was a railroad forming part of the Pennsylvania Railroad system. Its common name came from its main line west from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania across the Northern Panhandle of West Virginia...
at the Logansport, Indiana
Logansport, Indiana
Logansport is a city in and the county seat of Cass County, Indiana, United States. The population was 18,396 at the 2010 census. Logansport is located in northern Indiana, at the junction of the Wabash and Eel rivers, northeast of Lafayette.-History:...
shops, later transferring to Dennison, Ohio
Dennison, Ohio
Dennison is a village in Tuscarawas County, Ohio, United States. The population was 2,992 at the 2000 census, while the 2006 Census Bureau estimate listed a population of 2,908.- History :...
and Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
, where in 1891 he became Master Mechanic, then in 1894 Superintendent of Motive Power. In 1899, he moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin to take the position of Superintendent of Motive Power with the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad
Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad
The Milwaukee Road, officially the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific Railroad , was a Class I railroad that operated in the Midwest and Northwest of the United States from 1847 until its merger into the Soo Line Railroad on January 1, 1986. The company went through several official names...
.
In 1901, he returned to Columbus to be General Manager of Buckeye Steel Castings Company
Buckeye Steel Castings
Buckeye Steel Castings was a Columbus, Ohio steelmaker best known today for its longtime president, Samuel P. Bush, who was the grandfather of President George H.W. Bush and great-grandfather of President George W. Bush....
, which manufactured railway parts. The company was run by Frank Rockefeller
Frank Rockefeller
Franklin "Frank" Rockefeller was the youngest surviving son of William Avery Rockefeller. His two older brothers were John Davison and William Rockefeller of Standard Oil fame....
, the brother of oil
Oil
An oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and does not mix with water but may mix with other oils and organic solvents. This general definition includes vegetable oils, volatile essential oils, petrochemical oils, and synthetic oils....
magnate John D. Rockefeller
John D. Rockefeller
John Davison Rockefeller was an American oil industrialist, investor, and philanthropist. He was the founder of the Standard Oil Company, which dominated the oil industry and was the first great U.S. business trust. Rockefeller revolutionized the petroleum industry and defined the structure of...
, and among its clients were the railroads controlled by E. H. Harriman
E. H. Harriman
Edward Henry Harriman was an American railroad executive.-Early years:Harriman was born in Hempstead, New York, the son of Orlando Harriman, an Episcopal clergyman, and Cornelia Neilson...
. The Bush and Harriman families would be closely associated at least until the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. In 1908, Rockefeller retired and Bush became President of Buckeye, a position he would hold until 1927, becoming one of the top industrialists of his generation.
He was the first president of the Ohio Manufacturers Association, and cofounder of Scioto Country Club
Scioto Country Club
Scioto Country Club, is a private country club and golf course in Upper Arlington, in suburban Columbus, Ohio. The course, designed by Donald Ross, opened in 1916 and since then has hosted five PGA tournaments throughout its history, including two majors...
and Columbus Academy
Columbus Academy
Columbus Academy is a selective, independent college-preparatory school for students from pre-kindergarten to twelfth grade. The private school is located on a large, secluded campus surrounded by wooded areas in Gahanna, Ohio in the United States, 8 miles from downtown Columbus. The Academy was...
. He was an avid sports enthusiast and a skilled carpenter.
Political prominence
In the spring of 1918, banker Bernard BaruchBernard Baruch
Bernard Mannes Baruch was an American financier, stock-market speculator, statesman, and political consultant. After his success in business, he devoted his time toward advising U.S. Presidents Woodrow Wilson and Franklin D. Roosevelt on economic matters and became a philanthropist.-Early life...
was asked to reorganize the War Industries Board
War Industries Board
The War Industries Board was a United States government agency established on July 28, 1917, during World War I, to coordinate the purchase of war supplies. The organization encouraged companies to use mass-production techniques to increase efficiency and urged them to eliminate waste by...
as the U.S. prepared to enter World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, and placed several prominent businessmen to key posts. Bush became chief of the Ordnance, Small Arms, and Ammunition Section, with national responsibility for government assistance to and relations with munitions companies.
Bush served on the board of the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland
Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland
The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland is the Cleveland-based headquarters of the U.S. Federal Reserve System's Fourth District. The district is composed of Ohio, western Pennsylvania, eastern Kentucky, and the northern panhandle of West Virginia. It has branch offices in Cincinnati and Pittsburgh....
(as well as of the Huntington National Bank of Columbus). In 1931, he was appointed to Herbert Hoover
Herbert Hoover
Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st President of the United States . Hoover was originally a professional mining engineer and author. As the United States Secretary of Commerce in the 1920s under Presidents Warren Harding and Calvin Coolidge, he promoted partnerships between government and business...
's President's Committee for Unemployment Relief, chaired by Walter S. Gifford, then-President of AT&T. He was once recommended to serve on the board of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation
Reconstruction Finance Corporation
The Reconstruction Finance Corporation was an independent agency of the United States government, established and chartered by the US Congress in 1932, Act of January 22, 1932, c. 8, 47 Stat. 5, during the administration of President Herbert Hoover. It was modeled after the War Finance Corporation...
, but Hoover did not feel he was sufficiently known nationally.
Death
Bush died on February 8, 1948, aged 84, in Columbus; he is interred at Green Lawn Cemetery, Columbus, Ohio.External links
- Samuel P. Bush at the Notable Names Database
- Samuel Bush residence