From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jekyll Island Club
Jekyll Island Club
Jekyll Island Club Designated NHLD: June 2, 1978[2]
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
The Jekyll Island Club was a private club located on Jekyll
U.S. National Historic Landmark District Island, on the Georgia coastline. It was founded in 1886
when members of an incorporated hunting and recre-
ational club purchased the island for $125,000 from John
Eugune du Bignon. The original design of the Jekyll Island
Clubhouse, with its easily identifiable turret, was com-
pleted in January 1888. The club thrived through the ear-
ly 20th century with an exclusive limited membership
consisting of many of the world’s wealthiest families at
the time, most notably the Morgans, Rockefellers, and
Vanderbilts. The club lasted 54 years, closing at the end
of the 1942 season due to complications from World War
II. In 1947, after 5 years of funding a staff to upkeep the
lawn and cottages, the island was purchased from the
club’s remaining members for $675,000 during condem-
nation proceedings by the state of Georgia.
The State tried operating the club as a resort for some
time, but this was not financially successful and the en-
tire complex was closed by 1971. The complex was des-
ignated a historic landmark in 1978. It was restored and
reopened as a luxury resort hotel in 1985.
The Founding of the Club
Location: Jekyll Island, Georgia
Coordinates: 31°3′38″N 81°25′19″W / 31.06056°N
81.42194°W / 31.06056;
-81.42194Coordinates: 31°3′38″N
81°25′19″W / 31.06056°N 81.42194°W /
31.06056; -81.42194
Built: 1886 Jekyll Island Clubhouse
Architect: Multiple At the end of the plantation era of Jekyll Island, Newton
Architectural style: Queen Anne Finney, John Eugene Dubignon’s brother-in-law, had big
ideas for Jekyll Island. Finney had suggested to Dubignon
Governing body: State
the potential of selling the island to Northern business-
NRHP Reference#: 72000385[1] men as a winter resort. The two men received help from a
New York backer to assist with the purchase of the entire
Significant dates
island. By 1885, Dubignon was the sole owner of Jekyll.
Added to NRHP: January 20, 1972
1
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jekyll Island Club
During 1885, Newton Finney had also partnered with When the club started out, hunting was a major
Oliver K. King who was an associate of Finney’s from New recreational activity for both men and women. A game-
York. They brought together a group of men and peti- keeper was hired to keep the island well stocked with
tioned the Glynn county courts, becoming incorporat- pheasants, turkeys, quail and deer.
ed as the “Jekyl Island Club” on December 9, 1885. They All members were to report daily what they had
agreed to sell 100 shares of the Jekyll Island Club stock to killed and turn it over to the club. Wild game was a com-
50 individuals at $600 a share. mon sight on the menu of the clubhouse. A taxidermist
Finney had no difficulty selling the shares. Six of the shop was located within the club compound, specifically
first seven shares went to the men who signed the char- for mounting the prize game.
ter petition: Finney, Dubignon, King, Richard L. Ogden, As the club grew, other recreations became popular.
William B. D’Wolf, and Charles L. Schlatter. In all, Finney Golf eventually took over as the Club’s dominant sport.
was able to find fifty-three individuals to join the Club, The first course was located just to the north of the Club
including such famous names as Henry Hyde, Marshall compound. Later, in the 1920s, an oceanside course was
Field, John Pierpont Morgan, Joseph Pulitzer, and Wil- built. A portion of this historic golf course is still intact,
liam H. Vanderbilt.[3] and can be played.
By 1886, financial preparations were completed and Other leisure activities included carriage driving, ten-
Finney, as a representative of the newly formed Jekyll nis, and bicycling.[4]
Island Club, was prepared to sign paperwork. On Febru-
ary 17, 1886 Newton Finney signed an official agreement
with Dubignon, selling Jekyll Island to the Jekyll Island
Role in the history of the Fed-
Club for $125,000. eral Reserve
On April 1, 1886, a meeting was held in New York to
Jekyll Island was the location of a meeting in November
create the constitution and by-laws, and to nominate of-
1910 in which draft legislation was written to create the
ficers for the club. The first president was Lloyd Aspin-
U.S. Federal Reserve. Following the Panic of 1907, bank-
wall, vice president was Judge Henry Elias Howland, trea-
ing reform became a major issue in the United States.
surer was Franklin M. Ketchum, and Richard L. Ogden
Senator Nelson Aldrich (R-RI), chairman of the National
became secretary. These men faced the difficult task of
Monetary Commission, went to Europe for almost two
turning the undeveloped property into a social club for
years to study that continent’s banking systems. Upon
the wealthy upper class of America.
his return, he brought together many of the country’s
Lloyd Aspinwall only served 5 months as the club
leading financiers to Jekyll Island to discuss monetary
president before he died suddenly. Henry Howland then
policy and the banking system, an event which was the
took up the position as president of the Club.
impetus for the creation of the Federal Reserve.
Committees were formed to get the club off the
On the evening of November 22, 1910, Sen. Aldrich
ground. Charles A. Alexander of Chicago was chosen to
and A.P. Andrews (Assistant Secretary of the United
design the clubhouse, and William Shaler Cleveland, a fa-
States Treasury Department), Paul Warburg (a natural-
mous landscape architect, was chosen to design and lay
ized German representing Kuhn, Loeb & Co.), Frank A.
out the grounds.
Vanderlip (president of the National City Bank of New
Ground was broken on the clubhouse building in mid-
York), Henry P. Davison (senior partner of J. P. Morgan
August 1886. After some setbacks the clubhouse was
Company), Charles D. Norton (president of the Morgan-
completed on November 1. The club officially opened its
dominated First National Bank of New York), and Ben-
doors when the executive committee arrived for the 1888
jamin Strong (representing J. P. Morgan), together repre-
season on January 21.
senting about one fourth the world’s wealth at the time,
Several nationally important events took place on
left Hoboken, New Jersey on a train in complete secrecy,
Jekyll Island during the Club era, including the first
dropping their last names in favor of first names, or code
transcontinental telephone call made by Theodore N.
names, so no one would discover who they all were. The
Vail, president of AT&T, to Alexander Graham Bell,
excuse for such powerful representatives and wealth was
Thomas A. Watson and President Woodrow Wilson in
to go on duck hunting trip on Jekyll Island.
1915; and the development of the Aldrich Vreeland Act
Forbes magazine founder Bertie Charles Forbes wrote
for the National Monetary Commission in 1908.
several years later:
Recreation during the club era Picture a party of the nation’s greatest bankers
stealing out of New York on a private railroad car
The Jekyll Island Club was a unique resort, more family
under cover of darkness, stealthily riding hundreds
oriented than the Union Club of New York or the Chicago
of miles South, embarking on a mysterious launch,
Club. Women were encouraged to hunt, ride and camp.
sneaking onto an island deserted by all but a few
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jekyll Island Club
servants, living there a full week under such rigid purchased the island through a condemnation order for
secrecy that the names of not one of them was once $675,000 (or approximately $5,563,416 in 2003 dollars).[6]
mentioned, lest the servants learn the identity and The club was turned into a public resort by the state,
disclose to the world this strangest, most secret ex- but closed by 1971, a financial failure. It was made a his-
pedition in the history of American finance. I am toric landmark in 1978 and restored and reopened as the
not romancing; I am giving to the world, for the Radisson Jekyll Island Club Hotel in 1985. Radisson ceased
first time, the real story of how the famous Aldrich managing the hotel some years later, and it currently op-
currency report, the foundation of our new curren- erates as the Jekyll Island Club Hotel.
cy system, was written... The utmost secrecy was
enjoined upon all. The public must not glean a hint
of what was to be done. Senator Aldrich notified
List of members
each one to go quietly into a private car of which During the club’s inception, a limit of 100 members was
the railroad had received orders to draw up on an imposed to ensure the club’s exclusiveness. During the fi-
unfrequented platform. Off the party set. New nancially difficult Great Depression period, the club be-
York’s ubiquitous reporters had been foiled... Nel- gan referring to its members as founders and created the
son (Aldrich) had confided to Henry, Frank, Paul new Associate Membership. This membership was pur-
and Piatt that he was to keep them locked up at chased at a lower price, but with all of the benefits that
Jekyll Island, out of the rest of the world, until they the founders enjoyed, and limited to a total of 150.
had evolved and compiled a scientific currency sys- This list is in no way exhaustive, but it does feature
tem for the United States, the real birth of the pre- some of the more notable members.[7][3]
sent Federal Reserve System, the plan done on
Jekyll Island in the conference with Paul, Frank and Associate Members: (This class of membership was
Henry... Warburg is the link that binds the Aldrich adopted in 1933)
system and the present system together. He more
than any one man has made the system possible as
a working reality.[5]
Presidents
• 1886–1887 — Lloyd Aspinwall
• 1887–1896 — Henry Howland
Decline and closure of the club • 1897–1914 — Charles Lanier
The Great Depression in 1929 caused great changes on • 1914–1919 — Frederick Bourne
Jekyll Island. This depression touched even the very • 1919–1927 — Dr. Walter James
wealthy across the country and membership in an exclu- • 1927–1933 — Walter Jennings
sive club became an extravagance. Membership dropped • 1933–1938 — J.P. Morgan, Jr.
slowly through the 1930s as the depression continued. • 1938–1942 — Bernon Prentice
With the financial situation of the club worsening,
the executive committee decided to create a new level
of club membership in 1933. A more affordable level of
References
membership, the Associate membership was designed to [1] "National Register Information System". National
fit the needs, and pocketbook, of anyone. It was an at- Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
tempt to draw in new and younger people as well as to 2007-01-23. http://nrhp.focus.nps.gov/natreg/
draw more members back to the clubhouse. This new docs/All_Data.html.
membership did revitalize the club membership roster, [2] "Jekyll Island". National Historic Landmark summary
although only for a brief period. listing. National Park Service.
World War II was the final blow to the life of the Jekyll http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/
Island Club. The club opened as usual for the 1942 season. detail.cfm?ResourceId=1218&ResourceType=District.
However, by the beginning of March it was announced Retrieved 2008-06-21.
there would be an early close to the season due to the [3] ^ Hutto, Richard Jay (2006). Their Gilded Cage: The
club’s financial situation and the strain the war had on Jekyll Island Club Members. Macon, Georgia:
the labor situation. The 1942 season would turn out to be Henchard Press, Ltd.,. ISBN 978-0-9770912-2-5.
the final season for the Jekyll Island Club. [4] McCash, William Barton and June Hall McCash
There was hope by the president that the Club might (1989). The Jekyll Island Club: Southern Haven for
be reopened after the war with renewed interest. Howev- America’s Millionaires. University of Georgia Press.
er, in 1946 the state of Georgia entered the picture. The ISBN 0-8203-1070-0.
Revenue Commissioner, M. E. Thompson, wanted to pur- [5] Griffin, G. Edward (1998). The Creature from Jekyll
chase one of Georgia’s barrier islands and open it to the Island : A Second Look at the Federal Reserve. American
public as a state park. Finally, on June 2, 1947, the state Media. ISBN 0-912986-21-2.
3
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jekyll Island Club
Member Years
John J. Albright 1890-1931
Nelson W. Aldrich 1912-1915
Lloyd Aspinwall 1886-1886
Lloyd Aspinwall,Jr. 1886-1892
George Fisher Baker 1901-1931
Francis Bartlett 1886-1911
Frances Bartow 1931-1945
Anson Beard 1927-1929
John Eugene du Bignon 1886-1896
Cornelius Newton Bliss 1886-1911
Cornelius Newton Bliss, Jr. 1912-1921
Matthew Chaloner Durfree Borden 1892-1912
Frederick G. Bourne 1901-1919
Marion Bourne 1919-1937
Marjorie Bourne 1920-1929
Robert Elbert Bourne 1926-1929
Robert Brewster 1912-1939
Charles S. Brown 1924-1935
McEvers Bayard Brown 1886-1926
John Claflin 1886-1912, 1921-1938
Charles Richard Crane 1916-1924
Florence Higinbotham Crane 1919-1940
Richard Teller Crane 1911-1931
Robert Fulton Cutting 1923-1934
William Bayard Cutting 1886-1912
Charles M. Daniels 1924-1932
Charles Deering 1887-1902
John Eugene du Bignon 1886-1896
Marshall Field 1886-1906
Duncan Steuart Ellsworth 1895-1908
James Ellsworth 1915-1924
Nathaniel Kellogg Fairbank 1886-1903
Walton Ferguson 1887-1922
Walton Ferguson, Jr. 1902-1906
Marshall Field 1886-1906
Newton Sobieski Finney 1886-1897
Michael Gavin 1924-1933
Edmund Hayes 1886-1921
James J. Hill 1888-1916
4
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jekyll Island Club
Mary Hill 1916-1921
Bayard C. Hoppin 1925-1931
Gerard B. Hoppin 1923-1938
Alanson Houghton 1919-1941
Henry Howland 1886-1901
Dr. Walter James 1917-1927
Walter Jennings 1926-1933
Morris K. Jessup 1888-1908
John S. Kennedy 1898-1909
Charles Lanier 1886-1911
Cornelius "Connie" Lee 1919-1947
Pierre Lorillard 1886-1886, 1888-1891
John Magee 1893-1908
Valentine Everit Macy 1909-1927
Charles Stewart Maurice 1886-1924
Cyrus Hall McCormick, Jr. 1891-1936
John Pierpont Morgan 1886-1913
J.P Morgan, Jr. 1913-1943
William Fellowes Morgan 1925-1934
Richard Ogden 1886-1892
Rev. Charles H. Parkhurst 1894-1909
Bernie Prentice 1928-1947
Joseph Pulitzer 1886-1911
William Rockefeller 1905-1922
Grant B. Schley 1903-1917
Dr. Frederick Shattuck 1912-1929
Frederick Snow 1915-1918, 1925-1929
George Baker St. George 1925-1933
William Strassburger 1919-1924
Alexander Thayer 1929-1937
Theodore Vail 1912-1920
Cornelius Vanderbilt
William Kissam Vanderbilt 1886-1902
William Warren Vaughn 1919-1931
George Whitney 1928-1941
[6] Bagwell, Tyler E. (2001). Images of America: Jekyll
Island - A State Park. Arcadia Publishing. pp. 6–8.
External links
ISBN 0-7385-0572-2. • The Jekyll Island Museum - The Jekyll Island Museum
[7] Bagwell, Tyler E.; The Jekyll Island Museum (1998). • Jekyll Island Club Hotel - official website
Images of America: The Jekyll Island Club. Arcadia • New York Times - 1994 article about the restored
Publishing. ISBN 978-0-7385-1796-4. hotel
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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jekyll Island Club
Member Years
William Truman Aldrich 1933-?
Lynford Biddle 1928-1933
John Foster Dulles 1933-?
Robert Gardner ?
David Sinton Ingalls ?
Julian Myrick ?
George Herbert Walker 1933-?
A.J. Drexel Paul 1927-1933
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Jekyll_Island_Club&oldid=456981284"
Categories:
• Private clubs
• National Historic Landmarks in Georgia (U.S. state)
• Historic districts in Georgia (U.S. state)
• Organizations based in Georgia (U.S. state)
• 1886 establishments
• Buildings and structures in Glynn County, Georgia
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