Edward Prime
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Edward Prime | |
|---|---|
| 8th President of the New York Stock Exchange | |
| In office 1835–1836 | |
| Preceded by | R. D. Weeks |
| Succeeded by | R. D. Weeks |
| Personal details | |
| Born | December 10, 1801 New York City, U.S. |
| Died | August 21, 1883 (aged 81) |
| Spouses | Anne Bard
(m. 1827; died 1834)Charlotte Wilkins Hoffman
(m. 1836) |
| Relations | Comfort Sands (grandfather) William Seton III (nephew) |
| Parent(s) | Nathaniel Prime Cornelia Sands Prime |
| Occupation | Banker |
Edward Prime (December 10, 1801 – August 21, 1883)[1] was an American banker who served as president of the New York Stock Exchange.
Prime was born on December 10, 1801, at 54 Wall Street in New York City. He was the eldest son of Nathaniel Prime (1768–1840) and Cornelia (née Sands) Prime (1773–1852), who married in 1797. Among his sisters was Cornelia Prime (wife of Robert Ray, a brother-in-law of New York Gov. John Alsop King), Emily Prime (wife of U.S. Navy Capt. William Seton and son of Elizabeth Ann Seton), Matilda Prime (wife of Gerard Holsman Coster), and Laura Prime (wife of John Clarkson Jay, a son of Peter A. Jay and grandson of John Jay).[2]
His maternal grandparents were Comfort Sands, the merchant, banker and Continental Congressman, and Elizabeth (née Cornell) Sands.[2] His paternal grandparents were Joshua Prime and Bridget (née Hammond) Prime.[2]
Prime was educated at McCulluck's boarding school in Morristown, New Jersey, where his father and other family members were educated.[3]
Career
Five years before his birth, his father organized "Nathaniel Prime, Stock and Commission Broker" which made money buying and selling bank stocks before he opened his own private bank where he allowed customers to deposit money and then loaned it out.[4] In 1808, his father brought Samuel Ward III in as a partner and the firm was renamed Prime & Ward,[5] followed by his uncle Joseph Sands in 1816 when the firm became Prime, Ward & Sands.[6] In 1824, the firm was again reorganized as Prime, Ward, Sands & King when James Gore King became a partner upon his return from England.[7] After Sand's death in 1826, the firm became Prime, Ward & King.[8]
In 1826, Prime entered the firm and was made a partner of Prime, Ward & Co. upon his father's retirement in 1832.[8] His father, in ill health, committed suicide on November 26, 1840, by cutting his throat.[9] The firm collapsed in 1847,[10][11][12] and Prime established the firm of Prime & Co., which consisted of him and his four sons, where he worked until his retirement in 1867,[3][13] at which point his sons also retired.[1]
Philanthropy
Prime was one of the founders of the New York Eye and Ear Dispensary. He was also a vestryman in St. Philip's Church in Manhattan and a warden of Christ Church in Riverdale.[1]
