William S. Caldwell

William S. Caldwell
Born	William Shakespeare Caldwell (1821-02-11)February 11, 1821 Fredericksburg, Virginia
Died	May 23, 1874(1874-05-23) (aged 53) New York City, New York
Spouse	Mary Eliza Breckinridge ​ ​ (m. 1853; died 1867)​
Children	Mary Gwendolin Caldwell, Marquise des Monstiers-Mérinville Mary Elizabeth Caldwell, Baroness von Zedtwitz
Parent(s)	James H. Caldwell Maria Carter Hall Wormeley
Relatives	Waldemar von Zedtwitz (grandson)

William Shakespeare Caldwell (February 11, 1821 – May 23, 1874) was an American philanthropist.

Early life

Caldwell was born on February 11, 1821, in Fredericksburg, Virginia. He was the eldest son of English-born American James H. Caldwell and Maria Carter (née Hall) Wormeley Caldwell (1784–1859).^[1] His mother was the widow of Warner Wormeley of Rose Gill. From that marriage, he had an elder half-brother, Dr. Carter Warner Wormeley. His father was a theatre actor and entrepreneur who owned the New Orleans Gas Light Company.^[1]

His maternal grandparents were Dr. Elisha Hall (family physician to Mary Washington) and Caroliana (née Carter) Hall (a daughter of Charles Carter, the longtime member of the Virginia House of Burgesses).^[2][3]

Career

Mr. and Mrs. William Shakespeare Caldwell, The Catholic World Vol. LVI, No. 334, January 1893

Caldwell is considered "one of Louisville's first multimillionaires", he used his inheritance to acquire several large tracts of land in Louisville, including at Brook and Breckinridge Streets as well as parts of downtown Louisville and the land that became Bowman Field, Seneca Park and part of Cherokee Park.^[4] After the U.S. Civil War, Caldwell and his wife moved to New York City. At the same time, they bought an Italianate style cottage in Newport, Rhode Island on the southeast corner of Kay and Ayrault Streets that formerly belonged to Boston merchant Caleb Chace.^[5][6][7]

A devout Roman Catholic, he used his wealth, under the guidance of Cardinal James Gibbons, to establish the home for the charitable Catholic order Little Sisters of the Poor in Richmond, Virginia.^[1] In honor of his wife, who died in 1867, he funded the construction of the Sisters Mary and Elizabeth Hospital Louisville, which opened in 1874 shortly before his death.^[8]

Personal life

Caldwell sisters monument, Cave Hill Cemetery, in 1913.

In 1853, Caldwell married Mary Eliza Breckinridge (1830–1867), a daughter of Mary Eliza (née Grayson) Breckinridge and U.S. Representative James D. Breckinridge.^[9] The Caldwells had a mansions in Louisville, New York City, and Newport, Rhode Island.^[4][10] Together, they were the parents of:^[4]

• Mary Gwendolin Byrd "Mamie" Caldwell (1863–1909), who was engaged to Joachim, 4th Prince Murat, the grandson of the King of Naples Joachim Murat and Caroline Bonaparte (sister of Napoleon I).^[11][12] She broke off their engagement and married François Jean Louis, Marquis des Monstiers-Mérinville, in 1896. Despite giving to Catholic charities, she renounced Catholicism in 1904.^[13][14]
• Mary Elizabeth Breckinridge "Lina" Caldwell (1865–1910), who married Baron Moritz Curt von Zedtwitz in 1890. A German diplomat who served as Minister to Mexico and belonged to the old Zedtwitz noble family, which rose under the Electorate of Saxony, he died in 1896 when his yacht Isolde was rammed during the Royal Albert Regatta at Southsea by Kaiser Wilhelm II's royal yacht, Meteor.^[15][16]

Caldwell died in New York City on May 23, 1874.^[17]

Descendants

Through his daughter Lina, he was a grandfather of Baron Waldemar von Zedtwitz, a bridge champion who never married.^[18][19] In 1931, he sold the family's Newport mansion, which was torn down to make room for residential development. The John La Farge stained glass widows in the house which had been commissioned by the Caldwell sisters, were saved by Bishop James Edwin Cassidy for installation in the convent of St. Patrick's Church at Fall River. When the convent was demolished in 2004, the windows were acquired by Salve Regina University and returned to Newport.^[5]

References

1. Reynolds, Cuyler (1911). Hudson-Mohawk Genealogical and Family Memoirs: A Record of Achievements of the People of the Hudson and Mohawk Valleys in New York State, Included Within the Present Counties of Albany, Rensselaer, Washington, Saratoga, Montgomery, Fulton, Schenectady, Columbia and Greene. Lewis Historical Publishing Company. p. 957. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
2. Mary, College of William and (1914). William and Mary College Quarterly Historical Magazine. College of William and Mary. p. 137. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
3. Stevens, Ashlie (April 5, 2019). "Curious Louisville: Who Were The Caldwell Sisters?". WFPL. Retrieved August 31, 2022.
4. Kleber, John E. (11 July 2014). The Encyclopedia of Louisville. University Press of Kentucky. p. 155. ISBN 978-0-8131-4974-5.
5. Yarnall, James L. (Summer 2006). "John La Farge's Windows for the Caldwell Sisters of Newport" (PDF). Rhode Island History. Vol. 64, No. 2: 31–38. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
6. Miller, Paul (15 November 2008). Lost Newport. Applewood Books. pp. 28–29. ISBN 978-1-55709-091-1. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
7. "Watercolor rendering of the main hall of the Caldwell House, Kay St., Newport, Rhode Island". www.historicnewengland.org. Historic New England. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
8. "Religious Communities of Women". The Catholic Church in the United States of America: Undertaken to Celebrate the Golden Jubilee of His Holiness, Pope Pius X. Catholic Editing Company: 101. 1914. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
9. Elson, Martha (18 September 2015). "Louisville ties to pope's D. C. visit". The Courier-Journal. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
10. Nuesse, C. Joseph (1990). The Catholic University of America: A Centennial History. CUA Press. p. 27. ISBN 978-0-8132-0736-0. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
11. "SHE WILL MARRY A PRINCE; MISS CALDWELL ASKS HER GUARDIANS' APPROVAL. MR. EUGENE KELLY RECEIVES LETTERS PRAISING PRINCE MURAT VERY HIGHLY--A LOVE MATCH". The New York Times. 23 July 1889. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
12. "PRINCE MURAT IS DEAD.; Was Born in New Jersey in 1834 -- His Mother Was an American". The New York Times. 25 October 1901. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
13. "MARQUISE DES MONSTIERS RENOUNCES CATHOLICISM; Founded Roman Catholic University at Washington. WAS MISS M.G. CALDWELL Says She Has Long Been Dissatisfied with the Church -- Follows Her Sister's Example". The New York Times. 16 November 1904. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
14. Times, Special to The New York (22 November 1904). "MAY SUE CHURCH UNIVERSITY.; Report That Marquise des Monstiers Will Try to Recover Money She Gave". The New York Times. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
15. "BARON ZEDTWITZ KILLED; ROYAL ALBERT REGATTA INTERRUPTED BY A FATAL ACCIDENT. The Meteor Crashes into the Isolde, Fairly Wrecking the Little Yacht -- Baron von Zedtwitz, the Owner, Thrown into the Water and Killed -- The Crew Knocked Overboard, but All Safely Rescued -- The Races Postponed". The New York Times. 19 August 1896. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
16. "CUTTER ISOLDE SET ASHORE.; Yacht Which Cost Baron von Zedtwitz His Life Lifted from Manitou's Deck Yesterday". The New York Times. 12 June 1901. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
17. "William Shakespeare Caldwell". history.ky.gov. Kentucky Historical Society. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
18. Truscott, Alan (6 October 1984). "WALDEMAR VON ZEDTWITZ DIES; TOP FIGURE IN CONTRACT BRIDGE". The New York Times. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
19. Truscott, Alan (8 May 1986). "Bridge: Dinner in Hawaii to Honor Memories of Von Zedtwitz". The New York Times. Retrieved 2 August 2024.