William M. Blair
Encyclopedia
William McCormick Blair was an American
financier.
.
His father, Edward Tyler Blair, was the son of William Blair, who founded the first wholesale hardware house in Chicago. Edward was a Yale
graduate in 1879, who wrote several books including a history of the Chicago Club
, and spent his life working in his father's firm. He was very wealthy, and employed four Swedish
servants to manage the house while his children were growing up.
William McCormick Blair's mother, Anna Reubenia "Ruby" McCormick (1860–1882), was the daughter of the agricultural machinery manufacturer William Sanderson McCormick
(1815–1865). Her grandfather was Robert McCormick (1780–1846), who invented a mechanical reaper
.
William graduated from Groton School
in 1903, and received a BA from Yale in 1907. At Yale, he was on the rowing crew and a member of the Skull and Bones
society.
He later received honorary degrees from Northwestern University
in 1964 and Lake Forest College
.
Upon graduation he entered the Northern Trust Company of Chicago. Shortly after, he entered the bond brokerage firm, David Reid & Company. In 1909 he moved to Lee, Higginson and rose through the ranks, becoming managing partner of its Chicago office.
When it looked as if America
would enter World War I
in 1917, Blair was involved with the Four-Minute Men of Chicago, giving speeches during film intermissions. He was also active in the sale of War Bonds. When the Four-Minute Men were absorbed by the Committee on Public Information
, he went to Washington, DC to be its director. Woodrow Wilson
sent him a letter of thanks.
As the war came to a close he enlisted in the Army
and trained in a New York
base.
After the war he continued with Lee, Higginson, but due the underwriting of Swedish magnate Ivar Kreuger
the firm went bankrupt.
In 1934 he was associated with Francis A. Bonner, who was also at Lee, Higginson. Together the two were organising a financial company of their own. Blair was left with no money after the collapse of Lee, Higginson, but he managed to obtain $50,000 from Joseph and Edward Ryerson, John and Douglas Stuart of Quaker Oats and Roger Shepherd.
Their firm was opened on January 8, 1935 as Blair, Bonner & Company with an office in the Marshal Field Building at 135 South LaSalle Street
in Chicago.
The firm specialized in financing homes in the midwestern United States
. In its early days it assisted the growth of the Household Finance Corporation, Continental Casualty and Continental Assurance.
In 1941 Bonner left the company, and it was renamed William Blair & Company
. The firm was managed by five partners: William Blair, Wallace Flower, Donald Miehls, Lee Ostrander and Daniel Ritter.
Blair married Helen Hadduck Bowen (1890–1972), daughter of banker Joseph Tilton Bowen and Louise deKoven (1859–1953). In 1912 her mother endowed the summer camp for poor children of Hull House
known as the Bowen Country Club.
In 1946 Blair's sons, William McCormick Blair, Jr.
, Edward McCormick Blair (born 1915) and Bowen Blair (born 1918) joined the firm. Blair, Sr. stepped down as managing partner in 1961, and handed the reins over to son Edward. Bowen Blair died on September 11, 2009.
Edward retired in 1977 and died December 22, 2010.
Blair was a director of the Continental Casualty Co., the Continental Assurance Co. and the Peoples Gas Light and Coke Co. He was a Life Trustee of the Art Institute of Chicago
, a University of Chicago
Life Trustee, Trustee of the Field Museum of Natural History
, Trustee of Groton School
, and Trustee of the Yale Alumni Board. Blair was also on the Board of Trustees at The Scripps Research Institute
.
He remained a senior partner of William Blair & Company until his death. The firm stayed relatively small, and still had offices in the same building on LaSalle street.
He died March 29, 1982 at his home in Chicago.
. The center is located on the property that once was the home the architect David Adler
, who bequeathed it to the city. Blair had been the client, neighbor, and friend of Adler, and had recruited Adler to become a trustee of the Art Institute of Chicago
in 1925.
Adler designed a house for Blair on an 11 acres (4.5 ha) estate they purchased in 1926 when the Crab Tree Farm of Henry Williams Blodgett
in Lake Bluff, Illinois
was broken up by Scott Sloan Durand (1869–1949). Their garden was designed by Ellen Biddle Shipman
. His son Edward also built a house on an adjacent parcel, designed by George Fred Keck
. The family bought the rest of Crab Tree Farm in the 1950s.
The estate was added to the National Register of Historic Places listings in Lake County, Illinois on January 31, 2008.
It was later owned by John H. Bryan
.
It is located at 982 Sheridan Road
, 42°17′25"N 87°50′4"W.
He was decorated as a chevalier in the Légion d'honneur
and as a commander in the Royal Order of Vasa.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
financier.
Life
William McCormick Blair was born May 2, 1884 in ChicagoChicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
.
His father, Edward Tyler Blair, was the son of William Blair, who founded the first wholesale hardware house in Chicago. Edward was a Yale
YALE
RapidMiner, formerly YALE , is an environment for machine learning, data mining, text mining, predictive analytics, and business analytics. It is used for research, education, training, rapid prototyping, application development, and industrial applications...
graduate in 1879, who wrote several books including a history of the Chicago Club
Chicago Club
The Chicago Club, founded in 1869, is a private social club located in downtown Chicago. Its membership has included many of Chicago's most prominent businessmen, politicians, and families.-Press coverage:...
, and spent his life working in his father's firm. He was very wealthy, and employed four Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
servants to manage the house while his children were growing up.
William McCormick Blair's mother, Anna Reubenia "Ruby" McCormick (1860–1882), was the daughter of the agricultural machinery manufacturer William Sanderson McCormick
William Sanderson McCormick
William Sanderson McCormick was an American businessman who developed the company that became the major producer of agricultural equipment in the 19th century...
(1815–1865). Her grandfather was Robert McCormick (1780–1846), who invented a mechanical reaper
Reaper
A reaper is a person or machine that reaps crops at harvest, when they are ripe.-Hand reaping:Hand reaping is done by various means, including plucking the ears of grains directly by hand, cutting the grain stalks with a sickle, cutting them with a scythe, or with a later type of scythe called a...
.
William graduated from Groton School
Groton School
Groton School is a private, Episcopal, college preparatory boarding school located in Groton, Massachusetts, U.S. It enrolls approximately 375 boys and girls, from the eighth through twelfth grades...
in 1903, and received a BA from Yale in 1907. At Yale, he was on the rowing crew and a member of the Skull and Bones
Skull and Bones
Skull and Bones is an undergraduate senior or secret society at Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut. It is a traditional peer society to Scroll and Key and Wolf's Head, as the three senior class 'landed societies' at Yale....
society.
He later received honorary degrees from Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
in 1964 and Lake Forest College
Lake Forest College
Lake Forest College, founded in 1857, is a private liberal arts college in Lake Forest, Illinois. The college has 1,500 students representing 47 states and 78 countries....
.
Upon graduation he entered the Northern Trust Company of Chicago. Shortly after, he entered the bond brokerage firm, David Reid & Company. In 1909 he moved to Lee, Higginson and rose through the ranks, becoming managing partner of its Chicago office.
When it looked as if America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
would 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...
in 1917, Blair was involved with the Four-Minute Men of Chicago, giving speeches during film intermissions. He was also active in the sale of War Bonds. When the Four-Minute Men were absorbed by the Committee on Public Information
Committee on Public Information
The Committee on Public Information, also known as the CPI or the Creel Committee, was an independent agency of the government of the United States created to influence U.S. public opinion regarding American participation in World War I...
, he went to Washington, DC to be its director. Woodrow Wilson
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson was the 28th President of the United States, from 1913 to 1921. A leader of the Progressive Movement, he served as President of Princeton University from 1902 to 1910, and then as the Governor of New Jersey from 1911 to 1913...
sent him a letter of thanks.
As the war came to a close he enlisted in the Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
and trained in a 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...
base.
After the war he continued with Lee, Higginson, but due the underwriting of Swedish magnate Ivar Kreuger
Ivar Kreuger
Ivar Kreuger was a Swedish civil engineer, financier, entrepreneur and industrialist. In 1908 Kreuger co-founded the construction company Kreuger & Toll Byggnads AB which specialized in new building techniques. By aggressive investments and innovative financial instruments he built a global match...
the firm went bankrupt.
In 1934 he was associated with Francis A. Bonner, who was also at Lee, Higginson. Together the two were organising a financial company of their own. Blair was left with no money after the collapse of Lee, Higginson, but he managed to obtain $50,000 from Joseph and Edward Ryerson, John and Douglas Stuart of Quaker Oats and Roger Shepherd.
Their firm was opened on January 8, 1935 as Blair, Bonner & Company with an office in the Marshal Field Building at 135 South LaSalle Street
LaSalle Street
LaSalle Street is a major north-south street in Chicago named for Sieur de La Salle, an early explorer of Illinois. The portion that runs through the Loop is considered to be Chicago's financial district...
in Chicago.
The firm specialized in financing homes in the midwestern United States
Midwestern United States
The Midwestern United States is one of the four U.S. geographic regions defined by the United States Census Bureau, providing an official definition of the American Midwest....
. In its early days it assisted the growth of the Household Finance Corporation, Continental Casualty and Continental Assurance.
In 1941 Bonner left the company, and it was renamed William Blair & Company
William Blair & Company
William Blair & Company is privately held employee-owned financial services firm that provides investment banking, equity research, brokerage, asset management and private capital services.William Blair & Company, L.L.C. was founded in 1935...
. The firm was managed by five partners: William Blair, Wallace Flower, Donald Miehls, Lee Ostrander and Daniel Ritter.
Blair married Helen Hadduck Bowen (1890–1972), daughter of banker Joseph Tilton Bowen and Louise deKoven (1859–1953). In 1912 her mother endowed the summer camp for poor children of Hull House
Hull House
Hull House is a settlement house in the United States that was co-founded in 1889 by Jane Addams and Ellen Gates Starr. Located in the Near West Side of , Hull House opened its doors to the recently arrived European immigrants. By 1911, Hull House had grown to 13 buildings. In 1912 the Hull...
known as the Bowen Country Club.
In 1946 Blair's sons, William McCormick Blair, Jr.
William McCormick Blair, Jr.
William McCormick Blair, Jr. served as U.S. Ambassador to Denmark from 1961 to 1964 and U.S. Ambassador to the Philippines from 1964 until 1967. A lawyer, he also was a close associate of Adlai Stevenson....
, Edward McCormick Blair (born 1915) and Bowen Blair (born 1918) joined the firm. Blair, Sr. stepped down as managing partner in 1961, and handed the reins over to son Edward. Bowen Blair died on September 11, 2009.
Edward retired in 1977 and died December 22, 2010.
Blair was a director of the Continental Casualty Co., the Continental Assurance Co. and the Peoples Gas Light and Coke Co. He was a Life Trustee of the Art Institute of Chicago
Art Institute of Chicago
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago is one of America's largest accredited independent schools of art and design, located in the Loop in Chicago, Illinois. It is associated with the museum of the same name, and "The Art Institute of Chicago" or "Chicago Art Institute" often refers to either...
, a University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
Life Trustee, Trustee of the Field Museum of Natural History
Field Museum of Natural History
The Field Museum of Natural History is located in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It sits on Lake Shore Drive next to Lake Michigan, part of a scenic complex known as the Museum Campus Chicago...
, Trustee of Groton School
Groton School
Groton School is a private, Episcopal, college preparatory boarding school located in Groton, Massachusetts, U.S. It enrolls approximately 375 boys and girls, from the eighth through twelfth grades...
, and Trustee of the Yale Alumni Board. Blair was also on the Board of Trustees at The Scripps Research Institute
The Scripps Research Institute
The Scripps Research Institute is an American medical research facility that focuses on research in the basic biomedical sciences. Headquartered in La Jolla, California, with a sister facility in Jupiter, Florida, the institute is home to 3,000 scientists, technicians, graduate students, and...
.
He remained a senior partner of William Blair & Company until his death. The firm stayed relatively small, and still had offices in the same building on LaSalle street.
He died March 29, 1982 at his home in Chicago.
Legacy
In 1980, Blair guided the founding of the David Adler Music and Arts Center (formerly known as the David Adler Cultural Center) in Libertyville, IllinoisLibertyville, Illinois
Libertyville is an affluent northern suburb of Chicago in Lake County, Illinois, United States. It is located west of Lake Michigan on the Des Plaines River. The 2000 census population was 20,742; the 2005 estimate was 21,760...
. The center is located on the property that once was the home the architect David Adler
David Adler
David Adler was a prolific architect, designing over 200 buildings...
, who bequeathed it to the city. Blair had been the client, neighbor, and friend of Adler, and had recruited Adler to become a trustee of the Art Institute of Chicago
Art Institute of Chicago
The School of the Art Institute of Chicago is one of America's largest accredited independent schools of art and design, located in the Loop in Chicago, Illinois. It is associated with the museum of the same name, and "The Art Institute of Chicago" or "Chicago Art Institute" often refers to either...
in 1925.
Adler designed a house for Blair on an 11 acres (4.5 ha) estate they purchased in 1926 when the Crab Tree Farm of Henry Williams Blodgett
Henry Williams Blodgett
Henry Williams Blodgett was a United States federal judge.Blodgett was born in Amherst, Massachusetts in 1821. He moved to Illinois with his parents in 1831...
in Lake Bluff, Illinois
Lake Bluff, Illinois
Lake Bluff is a village in Lake County, Illinois. It is the closest moderate-sized town near the Great Lakes Navy Base and is North of Lake Forest. The population is 6,056 according to the 2000 census. The town has a police department and volunteer fire department.-History:In 1836, John and...
was broken up by Scott Sloan Durand (1869–1949). Their garden was designed by Ellen Biddle Shipman
Ellen Biddle Shipman
Ellen Biddle Shipman was an American landscape architect known for her formal gardens and lush planting style.Born in Philadelphia, she spent her childhood in Texas and the Arizona territory. Her father, Colonel James Biddle, was a career Army officer, stationed on the western frontier...
. His son Edward also built a house on an adjacent parcel, designed by George Fred Keck
George Fred Keck
George Fred Keck was an American modernist architect based in Chicago, Illinois. He was later assisted in his practice by his brother William Keck.-Biography:...
. The family bought the rest of Crab Tree Farm in the 1950s.
The estate was added to the National Register of Historic Places listings in Lake County, Illinois on January 31, 2008.
It was later owned by John H. Bryan
John H. Bryan
John Henry Bryan, Jr. is the former CEO of the Sara Lee Corporation.A graduate of Rhodes College in Memphis, Tennessee and Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, he is also affiliated with the French Legion of Honor, the World Economic Forum, and was a Member of the Board for Sara Lee,...
.
It is located at 982 Sheridan Road
Sheridan Road
Sheridan Road is a major north-south thoroughfare that leads from Diversey Parkway in Chicago, Illinois, north to the Illinois-Wisconsin border and beyond to Racine. Throughout most of its run, it is the easternmost north-south through street, closest to Lake Michigan...
, 42°17′25"N 87°50′4"W.
He was decorated as a chevalier in the Légion d'honneur
Légion d'honneur
The Legion of Honour, or in full the National Order of the Legion of Honour is a French order established by Napoleon Bonaparte, First Consul of the Consulat which succeeded to the First Republic, on 19 May 1802...
and as a commander in the Royal Order of Vasa.