1 Henry Flagler and Florida Philanthropy

Henry Flagler and Florida Philanthropy: The Stetson University Connection

Debbi Dinkins

Associate Dean of the Library

Stetson University, duPont-Ball Library [email protected]

386-822-7179

Henry Flagler and Florida Philanthropy: The Stetson University Connection

Henry Morrison Flagler (1830-1913), John D. Rockefeller’s business partner in the Standard Oil

Company, first came to Florida in 1878. Flagler saw the potential for growth and financial prosperity in the state if someone took the time to develop the infrastructure. In 1885, he broke ground on his first hotel in St. Augustine and made the city his winter home. A series of hotels along the east coast of

Florida followed and he developed the Florida East Coast Railway system to link them, thus opening the area to visitors and allowing farmers to ship produce from southern Florida to the rest of the nation.

There is much evidence of Henry Flagler’s efforts to help families and businesses as he developed the east coast of the state. In a 1910 article by Edward LeFevre, the author quoted Flagler’s subordinates regarding his efforts to build communities as he built railroads and hotels along Florida’s east coast. “In the towns he has built he has begun work on a church and a schoolhouse at the same time that he began his railroad station.”1 Furthermore, Flagler believed in having his railroad builders and workers bring their families to Florida, where “the women-folk can have neighbors and their children schooling.”2 Mr. Flagler regarded churches as the social centers of the community and he

“always respond[ed] to appeals for schools and for churches – without respect for denomination.”3

In St. Augustine, Flagler contributed to the improvement of roads as he built his two hotels, the

Ponce de Leon and the Alcazar. He built church buildings and a modern hospital for the residents. He contributed financially to a City Hall building, a project to pave city streets, an African-American school building, water and sewer projects, and the building of homes for many of his employees.4

1 Edwin LeFevre, “Flagler in Florida,” Everybody’s Magazine, v.22 January-June 1910, p. 178. 2 Ibid. 3 Ibid. 4 Sidney Walter Martin, Florida’s Flagler, Athens, Ga., University of Georgia Press, 2010, p. 240.

In denying a spring 1899 request for money for the Students Aid Fund from President John

Forbes of Stetson University, Flagler wrote that the February freeze of 1899 had almost ruined many of the shippers and fruit growers in southeastern Florida and he felt compelled to support them over

Forbes’ request for Stetson University. “There was nothing to do except to stand by them, and I at once instructed Mr. Ingraham that he might render assistance to the extent of $100,000.”5 James Ingraham was the president of Flagler’s Model Land Company, which had started as a part of the Florida East

Coast Railway, but was incorporated as a separate entity in 1896. The Model Land Company, under the direction of Ingraham, handled the sales and management of land acquisitions on the east coast of

Florida.6 Flagler implored Forbes to keep the information confidential concerning his efforts to assist those affected by the freeze.7

Henry Flagler’s relationships with institutions of higher learning were generous at times, always anonymous, and followed no identifiable pattern. He was not equally philanthropic to all colleges and universities who applied to him for funding. He refused many requests. Because Flagler himself was educated only through the eighth grade in the 1840s, he did not always understand the advantages of a college education. In one letter to a petitioning parent, he wrote, “I can say with positive knowledge that a very large percentage of the successful men in our country with whom I am acquainted had no more education than was acquired in our common school. If your boy has got the right kind of STUFF in him, he can get on in life with very little of the education which is obtained from books.”8 When his good friend and pastor in Palm Beach, Dr. George Ward, who also served as the president of Rollins College in

Orlando, Florida, asked Flagler what his purpose was in developing Florida, he replied, “I believe this state is the easiest place for many men to gain a living. I do not believe anyone else will develop it if I do

5 Letter from Henry Flagler to J.F. Forbes, April 17, 1899, Stetson University Archives.

6 Martin, p. 129. 7 Letter from Flagler to Forbes, April 17, 1899. 8 Letter from Henry Flagler to Mrs. J.W. Whitman, August 28, 1901, Henry Morrison Flagler Museum Archives.

3 not … I believe it’s a thousand times better than your colleges and universities, but I do hope to live long enough to prove I am a good businessman by getting a dividend on my investment.”9

During his lifetime, Henry Flagler tried to remain anonymous as he contributed to the welfare of the people and the institutions in Florida. Because of his reluctance to be acknowledged as a donor, researching his philanthropic activities is difficult. In an effort to trace his influence and impact on higher education institutions in Florida, the University of Florida, Rollins College, Flagler College and

Stetson University were discovered to be directly or indirectly impacted by Henry Flagler. This article traces the connection between Flagler and Stetson University.

Early History of Stetson University

DeLand Academy was established in 1883 by Henry DeLand to create an educational center for

Florida in the town that also bore his name. Henry DeLand built a two-story building to house the school and named it DeLand Hall. The building still stands today and is the oldest continuously-used educational building in the state. In parallel, the Florida Baptist Convention began discussions in 1882 to establish a women’s college near Gainesville. A ten-member committee, of which Henry DeLand was a member, was appointed. One month after the 1884 Convention meeting, Henry DeLand proposed his own town as the location for the new college. He offered the use of the newly-built DeLand Hall, as well as cash pledges and additional land for the purpose. The offer was approved by the Florida Baptist

Convention in December of 1885, although the school would be co-educational rather than the originally planned women’s college. Henry DeLand was named President of the Board of Trustees and the new institution was named DeLand College.10

9 David Leon Chandler, "The Man Who Built Florida," The Orlando Sentinel, October 12, 1986: 9, accessed February 02, 2016, http://infoweb.newsbank.com/resources/doc/nb/news/0EB4EAD6C8B92CF1?p=AWNB.

10 Gilbert Lycan, Stetson University: The First 100 Years. DeLand, FL: Stetson University Press, 1983, p. 6-7.

One of the trustees of DeLand College, Reverend David Moore, was responsible for hiring the first full-time president of the college, which was to be Dr. John F. Forbes. Reverend Moore spent part of the year in Rochester, New York and Dr. Forbes served as a professor at the nearby State Normal

School in Brockport. He was offered an annual salary of $2,000 with room and board for himself and his family. He accepted the position and started at DeLand College in the summer of 1885.11 A charter for the college was approved in 1887, renaming the institution DeLand University. The charter also took the first step in making the university a self-governed body by making the Board of Trustees independent of the Florida Baptist Convention.12

Almost immediately, Dr. Forbes began lobbying for a dormitory to serve the student body, staff, and faculty. The Trustees agreed to build the dormitory in 1886, calling for half the money to be raised in DeLand and the other half outside of the city. Henry DeLand pledged $1,000 but the pledges in

DeLand almost fell short until C. T. Sampson, a shoe manufacturer from Massachusetts who was spending time in Lake Helen near DeLand, pledged an additional $1,000. External fundraising for the dormitory, however, was at a standstill until Henry DeLand suggested Dr. Forbes contact John B.

Stetson, a hat manufacturer from Philadelphia, who had bought property in DeLand recently. Mr.

Stetson donated $3,500 for the building and its furnishings. When the dormitory was completed in late

1886, it was named Stetson Hall. In 1889, John B. Stetson was elected to the Board of Trustees.

Replacing Henry DeLand, John B. Stetson had become the principal benefactor of the university13 and the institution was renamed John B. Stetson University.14

Henry Flagler and his Marriages

11 Lycan, p. 5. 12 Lycan, p. 8. 13 Lycan, p. 20. 14 Lycan, p. 14.

Henry Flagler had married Ida Alice Shourds in June of 1883, after the death of his first wife,

Mary. Alice had served as one of his wife’s nurses. Alice had worked as an actress briefly and unsuccessfully before finding work as a practical nurse. She was not interested in intellectual pursuits, but Flagler was fascinated by her red hair, blue eyes, fair skin, and petite build. She also possessed a fiery temper, which Henry Flagler accepted and tried to accommodate.15

During Flagler’s marriage to Alice, the couple travelled between New York and Florida often, using Flagler’s railroad car, the Number 90, which Flagler called “Alicia” in honor of his wife.16 These years were productive for the development of the east coast of Florida. Flagler and Alice honeymooned in St. Augustine at the San Marco Hotel and it was during this trip that Henry Flagler began to think about building a hotel there himself.17 The Ponce de Leon Hotel was finished in May of 1887 and opened for the new winter season in January of 1888. Almost immediately, Flagler began construction on the

Alcazar Hotel across the street from the Ponce de Leon. Flagler envisioned the Alcazar as a hotel for travelers who were not quite as wealthy as those staying at the Ponce de Leon.18

Ten years later, Alice Flagler had lost touch with reality and was institutionalized. By most accounts, her problems started with an obsession with an Ouija board, given to her as a gift in 1893.19 By

1895, Alice had convinced herself that she was in love with the Czar of Russia and her husband stood in her way. She began to show violent tendencies towards Flagler. Friends advised him to institutionalize her, which he did in October of that year.20 Alice returned home briefly in the summer of 1896, but was recommitted by the following March of 1897.21 Flagler never saw Alice again, but supported her

15 Martin, p. 91. 16 Chandler, p. 104. 17 Chandler, p. 96. 18 Chandler, p. 104. 19 Chandler, p. 110. 20 Chandler, p. 113. 21 Martin, p. 185.

6 throughout her life by establishing a trust for her care. When she died at 82 in 1930, the trust was worth

$15 million.22

Henry Flagler met Mary Lily Kenan through the Pembroke Jones family in St. Augustine in 1891.

The Jones family was from North Carolina and routinely wintered in St. Augustine. Mrs. Jones and Mary

Lily Kenan were close friends. Both Henry and Alice Flagler had become acquainted with Mary Lily and were impressed by her elegance and grace. Mary Lily was also a friend of Mr. Flagler’s niece, Eliza

Ashley. After Alice Flagler’s mental breakdown, Flagler found himself without female companionship.23

Eliza and Mary Lily visited him frequently during the season in Palm Beach. They stayed at his cottage on the beach while he stayed in his suite at the Ponce de Leon Hotel.24 Flagler and Mary Lily traveled in the same social circles, and although Flagler was 37 years older than Mary Lily, their paths crossed frequently.

In 1899, even though he was still married to Alice, Flagler made his intentions known to Mary

Lily’s family. He wanted to marry her and he gave her a string of Oriental pearls with a 12-carat diamond clasp as an engagement present. The Kenans were concerned about Mary Lily’s reputation as the newspapers were speculating about her relationship with Flagler. Flagler told the Kenans that he planned to divorce Alice and to show his intentions were serious, he transferred one million dollars of

Standard Oil stock into Mary Lily’s name and began construction on a home for her in Palm Beach.25

Henry Flagler was a legal resident of the state of New York in 1899. At that time, it was impossible to divorce on the basis of insanity in New York or in Florida. In order to obtain a divorce from

Alice, Flagler’s first course of action was to ask the New York Supreme Court to declare her insane and incompetent. The court complied with his petition on June 28, 1899.

22 Chandler, p. 115. 23 Martin, p. 192. 24 Chandler, p. 117. 25 Chandler, p. 189-190.

In April of 1899, Flagler changed his legal residence from New York to Palm Beach, Florida, stating that living full time in Florida would allow him to better oversee his business interests there.

Additionally, he wished to avoid the inheritance tax imposed in New York.26 Flagler then began to lobby and build support for changing the divorce laws in Florida, allowing a husband to divorce his wife if she had been declared legally insane.27

On April 9, 1901, a bill was introduced in the Florida Senate and signed into law by Governor

W.S. Jennings on April 25, 1901. The heading for the law was, An Act Making Incurable Insanity a

Ground for Divorce of Husband and Wife, and Regulating Proceedings in Such Cases.28 The law stated that insanity in either a husband or a wife must be judged as such by a court of law and the insanity must have existed for at least four years prior to the divorce petition. Also, the court was responsible for appointing a guardian for the insane person and a husband was responsible financially for providing for a divorced wife. By design, Flagler’s divorce met all of the conditions stated in the law.29

The newspapers in Florida were divided on why the bill had passed so easily. While most of the major papers, such as the Tampa Tribune and the Tampa Herald, condemned the law and hinted at bribery and payoffs, two notable newspapers supported the law. The Ocala Banner, edited by Frank

Harris, supported the law. Harris also served on the Board of Trustees of the Florida Agricultural

College.30 Shortly after the law passed, the college, located in Lake City received a $10,000 gift from

Flagler for a new gymnasium.31 In 1903, the Florida Agricultural College became the University of Florida

26 Martin, p. 186. 27 Chandler, p. 191. 28 “Acts and Resolutions adopted by the Legislature of Florida at its Eighth Regular Session (April 2 to May 31, 1901) under the Constitution of A. D. 1885, together with an appendix containing a Statement of Receipts and Expenditures for 1899-1900 as required by the Constitution,” Tallahassee, Fla.: The Tallahassee Book and Job Print, 1901, p. 118. 29 Martin, p. 186. 30 Chandler, p. 190-191. 31 “The Southern Reporter containing all the decisions of the Supreme Courts of Alabama, Louisiana, Florida, Mississippi, January 22 = May 28, 1902, Permanent Edition”, St. Paul, Minn.: West Publishing Co., 1902, p. 349.

8 and moved to Gainesville. Flagler donated another $10,000 at that time. Joseph R. Parrott, president of Flagler’s Florida East Coast Railway, was on the board of the Florida Agricultural College as well.32 To no one’s surprise, the Times Union in Jacksonville, a paper owned by Flagler, also supported the new divorce law.

Flagler filed for divorce in June of 1901 and the divorce was granted in August of that year.

After the divorce was finalized, Flagler paid his attorneys for their services. Former Florida Governor

Francis P. Fleming was paid $15,000 for representing Alice Flagler in the proceedings. George P. Raney, a member of the Florida legislature, was paid $14,500 for his representation of Flagler in the divorce.

Such sums were higher-than-average for legal representation in 1901. Some authors have speculated that the large legal fees were for lobbying efforts in the legislature in order to pass the bill into law.33

Evidence of Flagler’s belief that money could influence legislation is found in a later letter he wrote to

J.R. Parrott, advising him that Flagler was willing to make donations to kill an anti-monopoly bill in the

Florida legislature.34

Henry Flagler and Stetson University President John F. Forbes

Despite Henry Flagler’s personal issues, his growing Florida empire was an attractive target for pleas from colleges and universities. In 1897, President John Forbes of Stetson University felt that the university’s endowment should be increased. The University had been running at an annual deficit for several years, and the deficit was growing each year. Forbes believed an increased endowment would help with this problem.

After Forbes discussed with John B. Stetson the need to raise $100,000 for the endowment, Mr.

Stetson agreed to donate $50,000 if President Forbes could raise the matching funds. Forbes launched a

32 Martin, p. 187-188. 33 Edward N. Akin, Flagler: Rockefeller Partner and Florida Baron, Kent, Ohio, Kent State University Press, 1988, p. 151. 34 Thomas Graham, Mr. Flagler’s St. Augustine, Gainesville, Fla.: University Press of Florida, 2014, p. 399.

9 campaign to meet that challenge in the fall of 1897. He travelled extensively throughout the eastern part of the country nearly exhausting himself. At the end of his travels, he visited John B. Stetson’s family in Philadelphia. Forbes suggested to the Stetsons that Henry Flagler would be willing to donate

$10,000, bringing the total raised to $95,000. John B. Stetson’s wife, Elizabeth Stetson, and his sons

Henry and John B. Stetson, Jr., pledged the remaining $5,000.35 Flagler was elected to Stetson

University’s Board of Trustees in 1897 but declined to serve.36

In Dr. Forbes’ letter of March 17, 1898, to Mr. Flagler, he wrote, “I received your letter of March

10th, enclosing voucher for the $10,000, and have also received a cashier’s check from New York, the same coming to hand last night.”37 He goes on to tell Flagler that all but $5,000 had been assured and

$76,000 of the $100,000 goal had been raised. Forbes expressed deep thanks for the gift from Mr.

Flagler in this letter.

“I wish I could put into fitting language my appreciation of your gift, but I really cannot put it into words. It is deeper than words will express. You made the result possible, and I pray, from my whole heart, that you may, and I know you will, receive your reward.”38 Dr. Forbes wrote to Mr. Flagler on January 31st, 1899 to invite him to the University’s second annual Presentation Day in February.39 Stetson University’s Presentation Day was a day-long celebration to present new buildings on the campus. Dr. Forbes thanked Flagler for his generosity the previous year during the campaign to increase Stetson’s endowment. Forbes wrote of visiting Mr. Flagler the previous winter with Mrs. Forbes and Dr. and Mrs. William R. Harper. Dr. Harper was the president of the

University of Chicago and Stetson University had recently started an affiliation program with that university. J.B. Salter, Mr. Flagler’s private secretary, responded to the letter stating that Mr. Flagler

35 Lycan, p. 61. 36 Lycan, p. 85. 37 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, March 17, 1898, Stetson University Archives. 38 Ibid. 39 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, January 31, 1899, Stetson University Archives.

“contemplates a trip to Nassau [and] I think it very doubtful if he will be able to be present. In his behalf, I beg to thank you for the cordial invitation you have extended.”40

Not to be dissuaded, Dr. Forbes wrote an unusually long letter to Mr. Flagler in March of 1899.

In the letter, he first outlined to Flagler his idea for a School of Technology for Stetson. He stated the

School would be “patterned after the Sheffield Scientific School of Yale, the Lawrence Scientific School of Harvard, and the Sage Scientific School of Cornell.”41 Forbes illustrates his talent for persuasion as he correlates the need for a School of Technology with the “establishment of our great R.R. Systems we need to train men here in our own country who shall be competent to do all kinds of expert work in connection with them.”42 Appealing to Mr. Flagler’s fascination with building railroads was good salesmanship. Forbes went on to call for a building to house the proposed School of Technology. In the same letter, he asked Flagler to consider buying the railroad line that accessed DeLand. At the time, the

Flagler railroad holdings stopped in Orange City several miles south, with a connection to DeLand over a

“fine shell road which is now nearly completed and toward which the University has pledged $100.00.”43

The railroad in question, referred to by Forbes as the “J.T. & K.W. R.R.,” was the Jacksonville, Tampa, and Key West Railroad. Certainly, it is easy to understand Forbes’ wishes to establish a stop in DeLand on the main railroad line as a convenience for Stetson students and faculty.

Seemingly relentless in his courting of Mr. Flagler’s favor and in asking for funding, Dr. Forbes again wrote to Flagler on April 7, 1899, requesting a donation to a Students Aid Fund, which he described would “meet the needs of students who lack a little money to enable them to go through the year.”44 In the same letter, Forbes expressed his disappointment that Flagler did not purchase the

40 Letter from J. B. Salter to J. F. Forbes, February 2, 1899, Stetson University Archives. 41 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, March 17, 1899, Stetson University Archives. 42 “R.R. Systems” undoubtedly refers to Flagler’s railroads in Florida. Letter from Forbes to Flagler, March 17, 1899. 43 Letter from Forbes to Flagler, March 17, 1899. 44 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, April 7, 1899, Stetson University Archives.

11 railroad spur in DeLand.45 J.B. Salter had replied to Forbes’ letter of March 7th on behalf of Mr. Flagler who was again in Nassau and indicated that Flagler’s buying of the DeLand railroad property was unlikely, mentioning “the effects of the recent freezes have been so disastrous that little inducement can be held out now to any possible purchaser of the property.”46 With Flagler on a trip to Nassau and

Key West at the receipt of Forbes’ April 7th letter, Salter again replied on Flagler’s behalf. Salter stated,

“appeals made to [Flagler] this year have been more numerous than ever, and he has never felt a greater necessity for discrimination in order that causes worthy, though small, may not be altogether slighted.”47 Salter points to previous contributions made by Flagler to Stetson University and says “I do not see how he can consistently contribute to the Students’ Aid Fund, but upon his return, I will bring the matter to his attention.”48

Flagler confirmed Salter’s reply to Forbes in his own letter ten days later. He reaffirmed that he was helping growers and truckers affected by the freeze a few months earlier. He also discussed his hotel projects in Nassau and Key West by saying, “I am spending a very large amount of money at

Nassau, and considerably more than $100,000 at Key West, and am compelled to be more than usually careful in my benefactions.”49 Flagler built and opened the Colonial Hotel in Nassau that same year.50 His work at Key West refers to extending his Florida East Coast Railway to Key West. As early as 1891,

Flagler had made mention of his goal to build a railroad all the way to Key West to connect to the only deep-water harbor in Florida. After a great deal of money and labor, the overseas railroad line was completed in 1912, one year before Flagler’s death.

45 Letter from Forbes to Flagler, April 7, 1899. 46 Letter from J. B. Salter to J. F. Forbes, March 23, 1899, Stetson University Archives. 47 Letter from J. B. Salter to J. F. Forbes, April 12, 1899, Stetson University Archives. 48 Letter from Salter to Forbes, April 12, 1899. 49 Letter from H. M. Flagler to J. F. Forbes, April 17, 1899, Stetson University Archives. 50 Chandler, p. 185.

Dr. Forbes’ reply to this letter from Flagler was full of understanding. “I wish to express my personal gratitude, in connection with all good people in this state, for your assistance to our needy fellow-citizens in time of disaster and loss. I feel that we ought rather to contribute toward the same fund than ask you for contributions [to the Students’ Aid Fund], under the circumstances.”51

Dr. Forbes wrote Mr. Flagler on February 6, 1900, to, once again, extend an invitation to

Stetson’s annual Presentation Day. He thanked Flagler for the gift he had given to Stetson in 1898

($10,000 for the endowment) and gave him an update on the growing student body, with 300 students registered. Once more, Forbes mentioned Flagler’s railroad interests and the possibility of a connection spur to DeLand. Forbes discussed his own conversations with J.R. Parrott, President of the Florida East

Coast Railway, in which he had done his best to persuade Parrott that including a spur to DeLand was in the railroad’s best interest.52 Flagler wrote back to Forbes on February 7th that he was unable to attend the Presentation Day celebration as he would be in Key West.53

As evidenced by Dr. Forbes’ letter to Mr. Parrott of February 16th, Forbes sometimes received passes on the Florida East Coast Railway. In this particular letter, he referred to a “trip pass to Palm

Beach and return,”54 and he expressed his thanks. His reason for needing a railroad pass was a trip to

Palm Beach to visit with Mr. Flagler. In the letter, he describes his agenda as follows:

“We want the East Coast [rail]road here very bad, and I hope still to convince you that it is the right thing to do. I believe the right plan is to build from Orange City to DeLand, then, if a further extension north is ever possible, that link will be built. DeLand is going ahead rapidly and is going to go ahead faster in the near future. We want a connection with the East Coast System and I am going to keep at it till I get knocked out anyway.”55 In his next letter to Mr. Flagler shortly after his visit, Dr. Forbes mentions that Mr. George T.

Pearson was staying at the College Arms Hotel in DeLand. Mr. Pearson was the architect of most of the

51 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, May 5, 1899, Stetson University Archives. 52 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, February 6, 1900, Stetson University Archives. 53 Letter from H. M. Flagler to J. F. Forbes, February 7, 1900, Stetson University Archives. 54 Letter from J. F. Forbes to J. R. Parrott, February 17, 1900, Stetson University Archives. 55 Letter from Forbes to Parrott, February 17, 1900.

13 buildings on Stetson’s campus. Forbes continued to lay the ground work for Flagler’s financing of the new science building, writing:

“I shall at once avail myself of [Pearson’s] services, in the matter of a preliminary plan for the building which I contemplate [a new science building] and shall, in as short a time as possible, get a complete statement, with reference to it, and forward to you, as you so kindly permitted me to do.”56 H. S. Winters of the Internal Revenue Service’s District of Florida Collector’s Office in Jacksonville wrote Dr. Forbes on May 8, 1900 that he had had a “long talk with Mr. Calloway, Secretary of the Lake

City College”57 when he was travelling from Savannah to Jacksonville. The “Lake City College” was the

Florida Agricultural College which would later become the University of Florida. According to Winters,

“[Mr. Calloway] seems to think that they have a big chance to get a nice donation from Mr. Flagler through Mr. Parrott, their new trustee.”58 Winters continued that he did not mention to Mr. Calloway that Forbes and Stetson University “had already secured a good hold on Mr. Flagler’s donations for school purposes for some time to come.”59

In November, Dr. Forbes wrote to Mr. Flagler about preliminary plans for a partnership with the

University of Chicago to establish a marine biological station somewhere on the east coast of Florida.

Forbes worked with Professor C. M. Child in the zoology department at the University of Chicago on this idea. Forbes wrote that Dr. Child “came down here a few weeks ago and made a thorough investigation of points at Daytona, New Smyrna, and finally at Miami.”60 He indicated in the letter that J. R. Parrott had supplied transportation for Professor Child on the FEC Railway at Forbes’ request. Forbes included

Professor Child’s report with his letter, stating

“the proposition would mean the erection of small convenient buildings and the purchase of a small steam launch and some rowboats, with some simple apparatus for making collections,

56 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, February 20, 1900, Stetson University Archives. 57 Letter from H. S. Winters to J. F. Forbes, May 8, 1900, Stetson University Archives. 58 Letter from Winters to Forbes, May 8, 1900. 59 Ibid. 60 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, November 21, 1900, Stetson University Archives.

etc., for the use of students, and we have estimated the total cost of the plant at not more than $2000.00 or $3000.00 to start with.”61 According to Forbes, the University of Chicago would provide half of the funds and Stetson would provide half but, “there is no occasion for any action until the plans are more fully matured and in definite shape.”62 Forbes expressed his excitement to let Flagler know about the project and felt sure that Flagler would be interested. Forbes referred to the marine biological station at Woods Hole,

Massachusetts as a similar station to that planned for the Stetson-University of Chicago partnership in

Florida.63

Dr. Forbes wrote to University Trustee John B. Stetson in December, stating Flagler was showing interest in the marine biological station project.

“I have a letter from Mr. Parrott saying that Mr. Flagler had written him about the project for a Marine Biological Station at Miami, and Mr. Parrott asks me to state what would be the costs of the enterprise, so far as our part of it is concerned.”64 Later in this same letter, Dr. Forbes outlined his plan that he calls an “endowment scheme,”65 to increase Stetson’s endowment. “What I want to get is … $50,000 for a Mechanic Arts building, to be given by Mr. Flagler, and $100,000 more from him to endow it. The other $100,000 I should try to get from Mr. [John D.] Rockefeller through the [American Baptist] Education Society.”66 He continued, “… this fund would properly endow the Law School and School of Mechanic Arts and put us in a position to supply all of our needs for at least 10 years to come, and would make this institution absolutely first in solidity of equipment, strength of endowment, and in standard and breadth of work, and place it upon a foundation as solid as the hills.”67

61 Letter from Forbes to Flagler, November 21, 1900. 62 Letter from Forbes to Flagler, November 21, 1900. 63 Letter from Forbes to Flagler, November 21, 1900. 64 Letter from J. F. Forbes to John B. Stetson, December 17, 1900, Stetson University Archives. 65 Letter from Forbes to Stetson, December 17, 1900. 66 Letter from Forbes to Stetson, December 17, 1900. 67 Letter from Forbes to Stetson, December 17, 1900.

On the subject of the American Baptist Education Society and John D. Rockefeller’s contribution to Stetson University, a document from the Society, signed by Rockefeller on October 28th, 1897, pledges $10,000 to Stetson, “provided that on or before October 1st, 1898, a supplemental sum of not less than ninety thousand five hundred dollars shall be contributed to the said John B. Stetson University in cash or pledged to the same.”68

On March 11, 1901, Forbes wrote to Professor C. M. Child, Head of the Hull Zoological

Laboratory at the University of Chicago about the status of the Marine Biological Station on the east coast of Florida. He stated, “I saw Mr. Parrott and Mr. Flagler a few weeks ago and they both inquired when we were going to take some active steps. Mr. Flagler particularly asked whether we could use a hospital building at Miami, which he offers to us if suitable.”69 Child responded a few days later with a long letter outlining the roadblocks he encountered from colleagues and Dr. Harper regarding the idea of a marine biological station in Miami. First, he said the hospital building offered by Mr. Flagler would not be suitable for their purposes because its location was near the river and the marine station needed to be on the bay. He continued by describing his department head’s reluctance to support a station in

Florida. “Dr. Whitman, Head of the Department, is Director of the Wood’s Holl [sic] Laboratory. Dr.

Whitman is not interested in the scheme for a Florida station, and indeed rather discourages it.”70

Professor Child stated that students would have a difficult time travelling to Florida for research without financial backing. His students received “inducements to go to Wood’s Holl [sic] in the summer and most of them cannot afford to make independent trips to points as far away as Florida.”71 Finally,

Child stated that President Harper did not support the idea of a research station so far away. “President

Harper says that the University needs many things before it spends money so far away. Of course I

68 American Baptist Education Society document, signed by H. L. Morehouse and J. D. Rockefeller, October 28, 1897, Stetson University Archives. 69 Letter from J. F. Forbes to G. M. Child, March 11, 1901, Stetson University Archives. 70 Letter from C. M. Childs to J. F. Forbes, March 14, 1901, Stetson University Archives. 71 Ibid. 16 realize that this is simply a way of turning off a scheme which does not seem to him to be adequately supported, and pushed by the Head of the Department.”72 In April, Dr. William Harper at the University of Chicago wrote to Dr. Forbes after talking with Child and gave a more hopeful opinion.

“I agree with you that we ought to make an effort to make a beginning at Miami, provided we can get financial arrangements of a satisfactory character. Here is a chance for cooperation of a high order. I should like very much indeed to see something done.”73 Negotiations continued on the project between the two universities but it never came to fruition. Dr.

Harper eventually ended it, believing students at the University of Chicago would not want to travel to

Florida for such research. 74

Although the concept of a joint Marine Biology Station effectively died in 1901, Dr. Forbes had continued his push for a School of Technology. William Charles Hays, an architect in Philadelphia, sent the first floor plan of what he called the Hall of Science to Dr. Forbes on November 14, 1900. The plan was drawn to Professor Osborne’s specifications.75 Professor Osborne was a math and physics professor at Stetson who Forbes had charged with designing the new science building. In the summer of 1900,

Osborne travelled to various universities and colleges with schools of technology and applied sciences to determine equipment and building specifications.76

Correspondence from Dr. Forbes to Mr. Flagler, thanking him for a “smooth and dustless ride from Palm Beach to Orange City”77 on the FEC Railroad, dated February 13th, 1901, indicates that Forbes visited with Mr. Flagler at that time in Palm Beach. In a letter written the next day to William C. Hays, the architect in Philadelphia, Forbes states, “I have been to see the gentleman from whom we may expect to get the money to erect our building, took with me all the documents, including the picture,

72 Ibid. 73 Letter from William R. Harper to J. F. Forbes, April 26, 1901, Stetson University Archives. 74 Lycan, p. 83. 75 Letter from William Charles Hayes to J. F. Forbes, November 14, 1900, Stetson University Archives. 76 Lycan, p. 89. 77 Letter from J. F. Forbes to Henry M. Flagler, February 13, 1901, Stetson University Archives.

17 and he has practically assured me that he will furnish the money, but cannot do it until May, so the work will have to be postponed until that time.”78 He goes on, rather flippantly, to say “there is an advantage in knowing that the work will go on ultimately, if the gentleman lives.”79 At this point, Flagler was 71 years old and Forbes had no way of knowing that Flagler would provide for Stetson University with his pledge of $60,000 for the science building in his 1902 will. The will states,

“I have agreed by letter addressed to John F. Forbes, to contribute to the John B. Stetson University, the sum of sixty thousand dollars ($60,000) to be paid from time to time as the needs of said University shall seem to require, and if any portion of said sixty thousand dollars ($60,000) shall remain unpaid at the time of my death, I hereby direct my said executors to pay said balance of any moneys or property coming into their hands as such.”80 Forbes let Mr. Hays know that Flagler suggested the building be finished with stucco and Forbes stated he would obtain an estimate for the operation. It is important to note that Forbes did not name

Flagler in this letter, but referred to him throughout as “the gentleman.”81

Ultimately, Forbes’ relentless pursuit came to fruition and Henry Flagler donated $60,000 to

Stetson University for a new academic hall to house science, engineering, and law programs. As seen by the correspondence between Dr. Forbes and Flagler, the payment installments started in 1901 along with construction of the building. Flagler did not want his name on the building and he did not want to be publically associated with the donation. In the official ledger of donations for 1901, the gift is noted as from “a friend.”82

In Forbes’ letter to Mr. Flagler dated June 10, 1901, Forbes suggests an acceptable payment schedule for the $60,000 Flagler pledged to the university. Forbes wrote, “if the money could be furnished us as follows, viz: $5000 July 1st; $5000 September 1st; $5000 November 1st and January 1st.

78 Letter from J. F. Forbes to William C. Hays, February 14, 1901, Stetson University Archives. 79 Ibid. 80 Last Will and Testament, with Codicils Thereto of Henry M. Flagler, Deceased, February 1, 1902, p. 1, accessed February 20, 2016, http://ufdc.ufl.edu/UF00095317/00018/37j. 81 Letter from Forbes to Hays, February 14, 1901. 82 Journal of Gifts [Stetson Ledger 1901-1902], p. 20, Stetson University Archives.

From January 1st, the payments would have to be about $10,000 per month, as we should then be putting in the equipment, and final payments would have to be made on the building.”83

In a handwritten letter from J. A. Holloman of the Times-Union and Citizen newspaper in

Jacksonville to Dr. Forbes dated June 27th, Holloman discussed an editorial item written by Forbes. “I am running in the TU&C tomorrow morning your communication about the $60,000 gift, and giving it a good place on the Editorial page. I congratulate you and Stetson on this very handsome donation.”84

Forbes wrote to W. H. Beardsley, Mr. Flagler’s private secretary in New York to confirm receipt of the first installment of $5,000 of Flagler’s pledge to the university on July 4, 1901.85

Dr. Forbes and Professor Osborne corresponded later in July about the location of the new science hall. In a letter dated July 20, 1901, Professor Osborne wrote, “the question of the location of the new building was not finally decided when I left Mr. Stetson’s. I think though that he will consent to the location west of Elizabeth Hall.”86 Later in the letter, Osborne wrote that he thought John B. Stetson would agree to give the university the land for the building. He cautioned, “I would not quote this.”87

Osborne wrote Forbes again on July 21st, with general comments on the architecture of the science hall.

In the letter he wrote, “as soon as Mr. Stetson decides about the location [of the science hall] Mr. Hays should be notified.”88 John B. Stetson officially deeded the land to Stetson University in the fall of 1903 after construction finished on the new Science Hall.89

Forbes wrote to Mr. Flagler on December 31, 1901, to wish Mr. and Mrs. Flagler a Merry

Christmas and Happy New Year. He went on to give Flagler an update on the status of the science building project and states the walls had been put in place up to the second story. Forbes also updated

83 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, June 10, 1901, Stetson University Archives. 84 Letter from J. A. Holloman to J. F. Forbes, June 27, 1901, Stetson University Archives. 85 Letter from J. F. Forbes to W. H. Beardsley, July 4, 1901, Stetson University Archives. 86 Letter from F. R. Osborne to J. F. Forbes, July 20, 1901, Stetson University Archives. 87 Ibid. 88 Letter from F. R. Osborne to J. F. Forbes, July 21, 1901, Stetson University Archives. 89 Lycan, p. 86.

19 him on the enrollment at the university with registration close to 500 students. He stated that the dormitories will be “full and running over after the holidays,”90 no doubt laying the groundwork with Mr.

Flagler for another building project. Finally, Forbes closes by suggesting that Mrs. Trueblood, the “head of the Department of Elocution and the University Glee Club,”91 should make some engagements at

Flagler’s hotels during the winter months.92

In 1902, while the new Science Hall was being built on Stetson’s campus, a controversy erupted between the Board of Trustees and Dr. Forbes. John B. Stetson accused Forbes of moral misconduct with a female instructor during the summer of 1901. Mr. Stetson attempted to dismiss Forbes without a hearing. Henry Flagler heard of the controversy and made it known, through J.R. Parrott that he supported Forbes and thought he should at least be given a hearing.93

The reports of misconduct revolved around Dr. Forbes and a female instructor in the Normal

School, Mrs. Lena Mathes. The Peabody Education Fund had sponsored a summer workshop for public school teachers in the summer of 1901 with Stetson University as the location for the workshop, and both Mathes and Forbes taught during the workshop. Forbes’ family, as was their usual habit, spent the summer in Penfield, New York, leaving Forbes to spend the summer living alone in the President’s Home on Stetson’s campus.94

Sworn testimony of students, other teachers, and staff members asserted that Dr. Forbes and

Mrs. Mathes were known to spend a great deal of time together. Forbes was seen late at night climbing into Mathes’ room in the women’s dormitory, Chaudoin Hall, through an open window. Mathes was

90 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, December 31, 1901, Stetson University Archives. 91 Ibid. 92 Ibid. 93 Akin, p. 203. 94 Lycan, p. 92.

20 seen walking onto Forbes’ front porch after dark. A number of teachers testified that Mathes was frequently in Forbes’ office and the door was kept closed.95

As evidence began to accumulate indicating questionable behavior between Forbes and Mathes,

Mr. Stetson, as chairman of the Board of Trustees, called for special hearings held in his suite of rooms at the College Arms Hotel in DeLand, beginning on February 19, 1902.96 Forbes’ accusers, as well as Dr.

Forbes and Mrs. Mathes, testified at this hearing, with Mr. Stetson, W.H. Stewart, a trustee, and Dr.

George B. Forster of the University of Chicago acting as judges.97

Mr. Stetson asked for Forbes resignation at the end of the first day of hearings but Forbes refused. Stetson was reluctant to sign a verdict of innocence but was finally convinced to do so for the sake of the faculty and institutional harmony. The statement from the hearings said that Forbes had not been proven guilty of any wrongdoing. Furthermore, every faculty member was presented with a copy of the signed statement from the hearings, asking that all discussion of the issue be immediately abandoned.98

Rumors continued, however, about Dr. Forbes and Mrs. Mathes, and Forbes submitted his resignation in April of 1902, but then withdrew it in May after discussions with his twin brother, George.

George Forbes advised his brother to fight back and threaten suit against Mr. Stetson for slander and libel. Dr. Forbes wrote to the members of the board about being persecuted by Mr. Stetson because of

Stetson’s jealousy of Mr. Flagler and because of Stetson’s unwillingness to share control of the university.99 In Stetson University and the Florida Baptists, the author, Harry C. Garwood, stated the following:

95 Copies of Evidence: John B. Stetson University Scandal, [1902], p. 3-7. 96 Lycan, p. 93. 97 Ibid. 98 Ibid. 99 Lycan, p. 94.

“It was charged that Mr. Stetson turned against Dr. Forbes because the latter turned to Mr. Flagler for aid in building the much-needed Science Hall; that Mr. Stetson resented this because he considered the University his own private project; that it was for this reason that he charged Dr. Forbes with being too ambitious and demanded that he get out; and that this attitude on the part of Mr. Stetson was the real reason for his unconscionable pressing of the charges against Dr. Forbes.”100 There are three letters, accessible through the Florida Memory Project, two from Dr. Forbes to

Mrs. Mathes and one from Dr. Forbes to Mrs. Dickinson, Mrs. Mathes’ maid and companion. All are dated in June of 1902. In the letter to Mrs. Dickinson, Forbes updated her and Mrs. Mathes on the status of the defense he is building for the Board of Trustee meetings scheduled for the following

September.101 Dr. Forbes writes with an informal style, indicating a certain level of familiarity between the two parties. There is no indication in the letters of anything more than friendship and the purpose of the letters appears to be simply informative, keeping Mrs. Mathes apprised of Dr. Forbes’ strategy to clear his name with the board. His salutations in the letters to Mrs. Mathes read, “My Dear Mrs.

Mathes.” And Forbes signs all three letters as “J. F. Forbes.”102

Mr. Stetson repudiated charges of jealousy in his initial statement to the trustees at a special

Board meeting in September of 1902. He also presented the sworn testimonies of all of the previous witnesses and a few more. Stetson’s lawyer in the matter, I.A. Stewart, also a local county judge, had travelled around the country collecting testimonies of those present on Stetson’s campus during the summer of 1902. As Mr. Stetson took more than four hours to read the various testimonies, the trustees began to turn their support towards Dr. Forbes. By the end of the trustees’ meetings, only two

100 Harry C. Garwood, Stetson University and Florida Baptists, DeLand, Fla.: Florida Baptist Historical Society, 1962, p. 84. 101 Letter from John F. Forbes to Mrs. Dickinson, June 18, 1902, State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory, accessed January 16, 2016, https://www.floridamemory.com/items/show/89754. 102 Letter from John F. Forbes to Lena B. Mathes, June 20, 1902, State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory, accessed January 16, 2016, https://www.floridamemory.com/items/show/89748.

22 trustees, Henry A. DeLand and David Moore, stood in support of Mr. Stetson and the rest supported Dr.

Forbes.103

The controversy apparently behind him, Dr. Forbes renewed his efforts with Mr. Flagler. On

October 13, 1902, he wrote to Flagler, asking his opinion on a stock opportunity for the university. The

John B. Stetson Company was issuing common stock to their shareholders. Stetson University, owning

1,362 shares, was entitled to buy 227 shares of common stock. Forbes stated that the stock holdings had been paying 17% per annum and he thought buying more stock was a good financial opportunity.

However, the university only had on hand for investment “a little over $5000.”104 Forbes estimated the university needed an amount more in line with $10,000 or $15,000.105 The letter was written in the tone of asking for financial advice, but Forbes included a great deal of detail about the amount on hand and the amount needed to be raised to take advantage of the opportunity. His intent could have been to ask Mr. Flagler for another donation indirectly.

Flagler wrote back to Forbes on October 15th, responding “I have no knowledge whatever of the

John B. Stetson Co., but assuming that your analysis and views are correct, it would seem to me to be a good investment for the College providing you know where the money can be obtained to pay for it. I do not feel able to contribute any part of it.”106 The letter was less than a page long and very direct and to the point. Perhaps Flagler was growing weary of Forbes’ solicitations for contributions at this point, for in the second codicil to Flagler’s will, dated February 1, 1902, Flagler had already revoked the section of his original will which made a “provision for the payment of forty thousand dollars to the John B.

Stetson University.”107

103 Lycan, p. 95. 104 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, October 13, 1902, Stetson University Archives. 105 Ibid. 106 Letter from H. M. Flagler to J. F. Forbes, October 15, 1902, Stetson University Archives. 107 Last Will and Testament, Flagler, 1902, p. 11.

In correspondence between Flagler and Forbes later in October of 1902, Forbes suggested

“borrowing” the funds for the stock buy from Flagler’s donated funds for the science building project.

He estimated, under the advice of University Trustee Mr. T. C. Search of Philadelphia, that the university could gain $10,000 to $12,000 from buying the stock for the endowment. Forbes formally asked

Flagler’s permission to use the donated funds, about $10,000, to make the stock purchase. Forbes assured Flagler that the money would be returned to the building fund after the stock was sold.108

Flagler gave his permission in a return letter.109

In a December 8, 1902 letter to Mr. Flagler, Dr. Forbes thanked Flagler for a personal loan made to him the preceding summer and enclosed a draft of a little more than $500 to pay off the principal and interest of the loan. At this point, Forbes had ingratiated himself enough with Flagler to become a personal friend. In the same letter, Forbes reports on the stock deal and the return of Flagler’s donation to the science building fund. As a result of the stock buy, the university added over $11,000 to its endowment.

Forbes also invited the Flaglers to visit DeLand in the near future to see the almost-completed science building. Forbes alluded to Flagler’s wish for anonymity in his association with the donation for the building.110 On December 10th, Flagler must has written of his plans to quietly visit the university to see the new building. Forbes responded on December 13th, “with very great pleasure”111 regarding

Flagler’s plan to visit. He agreed to meet the Flaglers at the train station in Orange City and drive them via carriage to DeLand.112

108 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, October 20, 1902, Stetson University Archives. 109 Letter from H. M. Flagler to J. F. Forbes, October 22, 1902, Stetson University Archives. 110 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, December 8, 1902, Stetson University Archives. 111 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, December 13, 1902, Stetson University Archives. 112 Ibid.

The Flaglers must have visited the campus between the 13th and 20th, because Dr. Forbes’ letter to Mr. Flagler, dated December 20th, refers to their visit. In this letter, Forbes said he “forgot to clinch the especially important matter of securing as promptly as possible the portrait of yourself for placing in the Science Hall.”113 In the letter, Forbes suggested that he will place the portrait in the courtroom in the section of the building devoted to the Law School. He also referred to enclosing copies of the articles in the local papers of the Flaglers’ visit to DeLand.114

In Flagler’s reply, he must have complained about the press coverage of his visit. Again, he had hoped for anonymity in connection with any contributions made to Stetson University. Forbes responded, in a letter dated December 27, 1902, that “it would have been almost impossible to have kept the visit a secret, as many people in the city and some in the University knew some of your railway officers and would readily infer that you were there.”115 Forbes went on to say that he “kept the matter carefully prior to your coming in order to avoid any annoyance to you.”116 In a letter that Flagler wrote to J.R. Parrott concerning the visit to DeLand, he wrote, “I don’t want anyone at DeLand except

Professor Forbes to know of my visit.”117 He continued, “try and fix it so the telegraph operator won’t know who is making the trip.”118

The articles referred to by Forbes probably included an article in The Volusia County Record, dated December 20, 1902. In the article entitled, Here to Inspect Science Hall: Mr. and Mrs. Flagler and

Officials of the F.E.C. Ry. Visit DeLand, the visitors are listed as the Flaglers, J.R. Parrott, J.E. Ingraham, J.

P. Beckwith, and R.T. Goff. The article stated that Dr. and Mrs. Forbes met the party in Orange City. The

113 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, December 20, 1902, Stetson University Archives. 114 Ibid. 115 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, December 27, 1902, Stetson University Archives. 116 Ibid. 117 Graham, p. 411. 118 Ibid.

25 group inspected the new Science Hall, and the article contends, “the party expressed great surprise that such a building could be erected for the money spent upon it.”119

The visitors joined the Forbes at their home where “dainty refreshments were served by several charming young ladies, students of the University.”120 After being escorted back to Orange City, the

Flaglers gave Dr. and Mrs. Forbes a tour of their private railway car, the private parlor, sleeper, and dining cars. They also received a tour of Parrott’s private car, which had been Flagler’s previous car,

Number 90.121

In Dr. Forbes’ letter of January 14, 1903, he referenced Mr. Flagler’s letter indicating that Mr.

Parrott would represent Flagler at the dedication ceremony, scheduled for February of that year, for the science building. Forbes states,

“You do not at present desire your name connected with Science Hall. You understand that up to this time, I have not revealed the name of the donor and all statements connecting your name with it are speculation only, though of course many people naturally refer the matter to you. I will respect your decision thoroughly, though I shall be very glad indeed when the time comes that it may be fully known that you have done this splendid thing for education in this state.”122 It should be noted that Mr. Parrott was not present for the dedication but the reason for his absence is unknown. Dr. Forbes wrote to Mr. Flagler suggesting that Rev. W. A. Hobson, pastor of the First Baptist

Church in Jacksonville, take Parrott’s place.123

Two letters in the archives of the Henry Morrison Flagler Museum in Palm Beach from Mr.

Flagler mention the portrait requested by Dr. Forbes for the Science Hall on Stetson University’s campus.

In a letter dated January 12, 1903, from Henry Flagler to J. A. McGuire, his building contractor in St.

Augustine, Flagler stated, “I wish you to ship the large portrait I sent you from New York to J.F. Forbes,

119 “Here to Inspect Science Hall,” The Volusia County Record, December 20, 1902, page unknown. 120 Ibid. 121 Ibid. 122 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, January 14, 1903, Stetson University Archives. 123 Letter from J. F. Forbes to H. M. Flagler, February 5, 1903, Stetson University Archives.

DeLand.”124 He continued by asking McGuire to “send it express via Palatka,” and “have it marked,

Handle with Care.”125 Oddly, in a letter dated January 23, 1903 from Flagler to McGuire, Flagler instructed, “Don’t ship the portrait to Mr. Forbes at DeLand as directed in the letter I wrote you on the

12th inst.”126 It is unclear what could have changed Henry Flagler’s mind about donating his portrait for the Science Hall. Perhaps Flagler had been made aware of issues that would arise at the upcoming

February trustees meeting in DeLand.

Though the earlier controversy over the Forbes-Mathes relationship and the disagreement with

John B. Stetson had been settled to the satisfaction of Dr. Forbes and his supporters, a rift still existed in the leadership of the university. At the next trustees meeting in February of 1903, Mr. Stetson was voted out as president of the Board of Trustees. Mr. Stetson was in DeLand during the time of the meeting but did not attend due to illness. He was also served notice of a suit filed by Forbes and Mathes seeking $250,000 each for damages due to slander and libel. The suit was later dropped.127 Ironically,

Mr. Stetson’s support in the public’s eye grew after losing his position at the university and as news of the suit spread. Forbes tried to put the controversy behind him and get back to the business of running the university, but over the next year he realized his credibility as a leader at the university and in the community was damaged. He submitted his resignation as President of the University in September of

1903 and it was accepted by the Board in February of 1904.128

No more correspondence between Dr. Forbes and Mr. Flagler is present in the Stetson

University Archives. The Flagler Museum Archives in Palm Beach include two more letters from Flagler to Forbes. On September 7, 1903, Flagler wrote, “I am strong in the belief that this matter will come out

124 Letter from H. M. Flagler to J. A. McGuire, January 12, 1903, Henry Morrison Flagler Museum Archives. 125 Ibid. 126 Letter from H. M. Flagler to J. A. McGuire, January 23, 1903, Henry Morrison Flagler Museum Archives. 127 Lycan, p. 98-99. 128 Lycan, p. 101.

27 as well, if not better, than you hoped for.”129 Presumably, Flagler is referring to Forbes’ resignation as president of Stetson University which Forbes submitted that month. Another letter from November 25th of the same year told Dr. Forbes, “I will be glad to see you two p.m. Saturday.”130 Apparently, Forbes was visiting his friend Flagler once more before he left Florida for Rochester, New York. Forbes eventually bought the Rochester Business Institute with a group of friends and developed the school to a degree that it became a prominent national institution.131

On April 11, 1908, Flagler wrote to Rev. William J. Harkness, a professor at Stetson, discouraging

Harkness from visiting St. Augustine by stating, “let me say that it is impossible for me to do anything in the way of pecuniary assistance. Some years ago, I gave a large sum of money which was invested for the benefit of the University, and I have so many other very worthy objects of an educational and religious character on my hands, far more needy than Stetson, I cannot, as already stated, render any further aid to that University.”132 And he did not.

Henry M. Flagler died on May 20, 1913 after a brief illness resulting from a fall in his home,

Whitehall, in Palm Beach. After his death, the press reported many varying accounts of the terms of his will. Most reports mentioned both Stetson University and the University of Florida as beneficiaries. One article, found in the Stetson Archives, quotes the will as leaving considerable amounts to both universities. The source of the newspaper article is unknown but it reads, “the will … includes among other bequests … $60,000 to the University of Florida and $75,000 to Stetson university.”133

Actually, the will, written on February 1, 1902, called for a bequest of $60,000 to Stetson

University, being the funding Flagler had promised to Stetson for the science hall. The will stated that

129 Letter from H. M. Flagler to J. F. Forbes, September 7, 1903, Henry Morrison Flagler Museum Archives. 130 Letter from H. M. Flagler to J. F. Forbes, November 25, 1903, Henry Morrison Flagler Museum Archives. 131 Lycan, p. 101. 132 Letter from H. M. Flagler to Wm. J. Harkness, April 11, 1908, Stetson University Archives. 133 “Flagler’s Millions Mostly Go to Widow,” [1913?], Stetson University Archives.

28 the balance of the $60,000 should be paid to Stetson if not already paid at the time of his death. Flagler was in the midst of working with Dr. Forbes on the Science Hall in 1902 at the time he wrote the original will. The Science Hall was completed later that year. Flagler added a similar bequest for the University of Florida (called the Florida Agricultural College at Lake City in the 1902 will) of $20,000 for a gymnasium.134 The original will, being 10 pages long, left an additional $80,000 to the Florida

Agricultural College, $40,000 to Stetson University, and $100,000 to Hamilton College in New York.135

Elihu Root, a member of Theodore Roosevelt’s cabinet and a close friend of Flagler, was a benefactor of

Hamilton College. William R. Kenan, Jr. told Sidney Martin in an interview that Kenan believed Flagler’s friendship with Root was the reason for his bequest to Hamilton College.136

The bulk of the estate was left to a trust to perpetuate his properties and companies in Florida, namely the Florida East Coast Railway and his hotel properties. William H. Beardsley and William R.

Kenan, Jr. were named executors of the will and trustees. Flagler directed that the trust should support his third wife, Mary Lily Kenan Flagler, with quarterly payments adding up to $100,000 annually. The trust was to pay an annual sum of $3,000 to the Memorial Presbyterian Church of St. Augustine. The bequests to the colleges were to be paid at the expiration of the trust.137 Two codicils to the will were added. In the second codicil dated April 28, 1904, the third item listed revoked the provisions for the

Florida Agricultural College and Stetson University.138 Thus, neither college received a penny through

Henry Flagler’s will.

The co-executor, William Kenan, Jr., Mary Lily Kenan Flagler’s younger brother was a chemical engineer and had worked for Flagler in his Florida businesses. Mary Lily Kenan Flagler inherited the bulk of Henry Flagler’s estate at his death. When she passed away in 1917, $100 million of her estate was

134 Last Will and Testament, p. 1. 135 Last Will and Testament, p. 4. 136 Martin, p. 200 footnote. 137 Last Will and Testament, p. 3. 138 Last Will and Testament, p. 12.

29 divided between her brother, sisters and a favorite niece, Louise Clisby Wise. Miss Wise also inherited the two Flagler homes, Whitehall in Palm Beach and Kirkside in St. Augustine. 139 The estate also included the Florida East Coast Railway, which went bankrupt in the 1930s during the Great Depression.

“Ed Ball, a bit of a robber baron himself and in command of the Alfred I. DuPont estate, slowly bought the railroad’s bonds until he had acquired a controlling interest.”140 (Coincidentally, the current library building at Stetson University, completed in 1964, is named the duPont-Ball Library for its benefactors,

Jessie Ball duPont and her brother, Edward Ball.141) At William R. Kenan, Jr.’s death in 1965, the William

R. Kenan Jr. Charitable Trust was established with a $160 million bequest.142 Kenan had always been an advocate for education, and according to the website of the Kenan Charitable Trust he stated in his will,

“I have always believed firmly that a good education is the most cherished gift an individual can receive, and it is my sincere hope that provisions of this [will] will result in a substantial benefit to mankind.”143

Flagler’s educational philanthropies lived on through the trust.

In an article in The Volusian dated October 16, 1997, news of a new scholarship endowment grant for Stetson University from the William R. Kenan Jr. Charitable Trust was described. The $100,000 endowment grant to Stetson University was given to “establish a scholarship program in honor of

Florida railroad magnate Henry Morrison Flagler.”144 The article also mentioned the building of Flagler

Hall, formerly known as the Science hall and built in 1902 with a $60,000 donation from Flagler. “The landmark [building] was renovated in the late 1970s under the leadership of Jean Flagler Matthews,

139 Chandler, p. 266. 140 Chandler, p. 268. 141 Ryan, Susan M., No Rubbish: A 125th Anniversary History of Stetson University’s Libraries, p. 32, accessed 3/5/2016, https://www2.stetson.edu/library/green/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/alumni_no_rubbish.pdf. 142 Ibid. 143 William R. Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust: William R. Kenan, Jr. accessed 3/22/2016, http://kenancharitabletrust.org/WRKJr.html. 144 “Trust Establishes Scholarship Fund,” The Volusian, October 16, 1997, Stetson University Archives.

Flagler’s granddaughter, who died shortly before a celebration of the project’s completion in May

1979.”145

The William R. Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust has endowed faculty chairs in three universities in

Florida as of June 30, 2015; Stetson University, University of Florida, and Rollins College.146 The Trust also granted an endowment for the William R. Kenan, Jr. Arts Scholarship in Honor of Mary Lily Kenan

Wiley to Flagler College and the Henry Morrison Flagler Scholarship at Florida Atlantic University.147

145 Ibid. 146 William R. Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust: Annual Report of the Trustees, Fiscal Year July 1, 2014 – June 30, 2015, accessed 3/5/2016, p.34-37, http://kenancharitabletrust.org/KCT_AR_2015.pdf. 147 William R. Kenan, Jr. Charitable Trust: Annual Report of the Trustees, Fiscal Year July 1, 2013 – June 30, 2014, accessed 10/6/2015, p.50, http://kenancharitabletrust.org/KCT_AR_2013_2014.pdf.

Illustrations

DeLand Academy, circa 1890

Photo courtesy of Stetson University Archives.

Place on page 3 near “Early History of Stetson University” heading.

Dr. John F. Forbes, Stetson University’s first president.

Photo courtesy of Stetson University Archives.

Place on page 9.

Stetson University Ledger book showing $60,000

Gift from “a friend” – Henry M. Flagler.

Photo taken by Angela Story, Stetson University Archives Specialist.

(For some reason, .eps photo will not display here. .jpg shown below.)

Science Hall under construction, 1902.

Photo courtesy of Stetson University Archives.

Place on page 23.

John B. Stetson, circa 1903.

Photo courtesy of Stetson University Archives.

Place photo on page 20.

Flagler Hall, circa 1941, previously known as Science Hall.

Photo courtesy of Stetson University Archives.

Place photo on page 25.