Charles DeKay

Charles Augustus de Kay
Born	July 25, 1848[1] Washington, D.C., US
Died	May 23, 1935 (1935-05-24) (aged 86)[1] New York City, US[1]
Alma mater	Yale[1]
Employer	The New York Times
Spouse	Edwardlyn Coffey[1]
Children	8
Signature

Charles Augustus de Kay (July 25, 1848 – May 23, 1935) was a linguist, poet, critic, and fencer. He was a son of George Coleman De Kay, a naval officer.^[2]

He graduated from Yale College in 1868.^[3]

He was best known for founding the National Sculpture Society, the Authors' Club, the National Arts Club and the Fencers Club.^[1][3] He was inducted into the United States Fencing Hall of Fame in 2008. He was an art and literary critic for The New York Times for 18 years. He was a co-founder of the Circle of Friends of the Medallion.^[4]

He also wrote under the pseudonyms "Henry Eckford"^[4] and "Louis Barnaval".^[5]

In June 1894, he was nominated by Grover Cleveland to be Consul General at Berlin^[3] and took over the post shortly thereafter.^[6] In keeping with his lifelong love of fencing, he had the honor of opening the fencing club in Berlin while serving as Consul General.^[7]

He was buried in Saint George's Church Cemetery, Hempstead, New York.

Writing

• The Bohemian (New York, 1878)^[8]
• Hesperus (1880)
• Vision of Nimrod (1881)
• Vision of Esther (1882)
• Love Poems of Louis Barnaval (1883).
• Bird Gods, with an accompaniment of decorations by George Wharton Edwards. New York : A.S. Barnes (1898).^[9]
• Life and Works of Barye^[10]
• Life and Works of Louis Comfort Tiffany^[10]

According to Appletons' Cyclopædia (1900), his best-known story is "Manmatha".^[2]

See also

• List of USFA Hall of Fame members

References

1. "Brief Biography of Charles deKay" Archived July 17, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, United States Fencing Hall of Fame website. Retrieved on December 02, 2010.
2. Wilson, J. G.; Fiske, J., eds. (1900). "De Kay, James Ellsworth" . Appletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography. New York: D. Appleton.
3. "NEW CONSUL GENERAL AT BERLIN.; Charles de Kay of This City Appointed by the President -- Other Nominations". The New York Times. June 27, 1894. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
4. Homren, Wayne (editor). "Numismatic Writer Charles De Kay", The E-Sylum, volume 5, number 43, October 27, 2002, Article 4. Retrieved August 29, 2021.
5. Barnaval, Louis, in Who's Who in America, 1901-1902 edition; p. 58; via archive.org
6. "CHARLES DE KAY THEIR GUEST; DINNER GIVEN TO THE CONSUL GENERAL TO BERLIN. Members of The Fencers' Club, The Authors' Club, The Sculpture Society, and Other Personal Friends Bid the New Official Farewell -- Repast Served in True German Style in Liederkranz Hall -- German Con- sul and Others Make Speeches". The New York Times. August 31, 1894. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
7. "BERLIN HAS A FENCING CLUB.; Charles de Kay and Lord Granville Do the Honors at the Opening". The New York Times. January 26, 1896. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
8. "A NEW STORY.; THE BOHEMIAN, A Tragedy of Modern Life. By CHARLES DE KAY. New-York; CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS". The New York Times. January 6, 1879. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 7, 2022.
9. De Kay 1898: OCLC 1065202268 (all editions) (see also: OCLC 1087093329 (all editions) etc.); digital copy at Internet Archive; digital copy at University of Michigan.
10. "CHARLES DE'KAY, 8.6, POET, CRITIC, DEAD; Prominent in Literary, Art and Social Circles Many Years-Former Envoy to Berlin. A LINGUIST AND A FENCER Editor and Writer With The Times 1876-94 Member of a Distinguished Family". The New York Times. May 24, 1935. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved July 7, 2022.

External links

• Works by Charles DeKay at Project Gutenberg
• Works by or about Charles DeKay at the Internet Archive / Works by or about Charles DeKay at the Internet Archive
• Works by Charles DeKay at LibriVox (public domain audiobooks)
• Louis Comfort Tiffany and Laurelton Hall: an artist's country estate, an exhibition catalog from The Metropolitan Museum of Art Libraries (fully available online as PDF), which contains material on DeKay