{"id":98792,"date":"2024-04-30T09:16:44","date_gmt":"2024-04-30T13:16:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.genealogybank.com\/?p=98792"},"modified":"2024-05-02T09:00:42","modified_gmt":"2024-05-02T13:00:42","slug":"worlds-richest-woman-dies-genealogist-finds-true-heirs-part-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/worlds-richest-woman-dies-genealogist-finds-true-heirs-part-1.html","title":{"rendered":"World\u2019s Richest Woman Dies \u2013 Genealogist Finds True Heirs (part 1)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Introduction:<\/em><\/strong> In this article, Melissa Davenport Berry describes how a genealogist was needed to determine the heirs of the world\u2019s richest woman when she died. Melissa is a genealogist who has a website, americana-archives.com<\/a>, and a Facebook group, New England Family Genealogy and History<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n

When the richest woman in the world, Henrietta Howland Robinson Green (1834-1916) \u2013 aka the \u201cWitch of Wall Street,\u201d met her maker, a wave of Howland heirs besieged the trustees claiming that ancestral ties made them legitimate legatees.<\/p>\n

\"Photo:<\/a>
Photo: Henrietta \u201cHettie\u201d or \u201cHetty\u201d Howland Robinson Green. Credit: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The shrewd, eccentric Yankee Quaker-raised lady died on 3 July 1916, leaving an estate estimated at several billion dollars (in today\u2019s market).<\/p>\n

The headlines all read something to this effect: WORLD\u2019S RICHEST WOMAN IS DEAD.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
Flint Journal (Flint, Michigan), 3 July 1916, page 1<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

There was a will. Hettie\u2019s son and daughter would inherit most of the money and assets, but a portion of the monies ($1,500,000 \u2013 about $44,672,000 today) was to be distributed among the lineal descendants of the Howland heirs as specified in a trust.<\/p>\n

When Hettie\u2019s father, wealthy whaling and oil merchant Edward Mott Robinson (1800-1865) died, she inherited $1 million in cash and about $5 million in properties. Her father, a Quaker, was the son of Revolutionary War soldier James Robinson and Mary Attimore.<\/p>\n

\"Photo:<\/a>
Photo: Edward Mott Robinson. Credit: New Bedford Public Library Photograph Collection.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

That same year Hettie\u2019s aunt Sylvia Ann Howland (1806-1865), single with no issue, also died, leaving her $1 million from the family estate. Sylvia was the daughter of Gideon Howland Jr. (1770-1847) and his wife Mehitable Howland. Mehitable was the daughter of Isaac Howland, Gideon\u2019s cousin, and the widow of both Otis Slocum and James Allen.<\/p>\n

\"Photo:<\/a>
Photo: Sylvia Ann Howland. Credit: New Bedford Public Library Photograph Collection.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Aunt Sylvia and her sister Abby Slocum Howland Robinson (1809-1860) \u2013 Hettie\u2019s mother \u2013 were the heiresses to the whaling fortune of their father Gideon Howland Jr. of Dartmouth, Massachusetts.<\/p>\n

\"Illustration:<\/a>
Illustration: Abby Slocum Howland Robinson. Credit: New Bedford Public Library Photograph Collection.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Hettie took her many millions and invested the money. She lived frugally and accumulated a vast fortune.<\/p>\n

However, the inheritance from her aunt Sylvia would be for Hettie\u2019s lifetime only \u2013upon her death it was to be dispersed among the living heirs of Gideon Howland Jr.<\/p>\n

In 1867 Hettie married Vermont tea and silk trader Edward Henry Green (1821-1902), son of Henry Atkinson Green and Anna Amory Tucker.<\/p>\n

\"Illustration:<\/a>
Illustration: Edward Henry Green. From \u201cChronicling America: The Aged-Herald,\u201d 19 February 1899, Section 3, Page 24, Image 24. Credit: Library of Congress.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Before the marriage Green signed a contract, or prenup, stipulating that all of Hettie\u2019s fortune would stay in her hands.<\/p>\n

Green was a partner in the firm Russell Sturgis & Co. with Jonathan Russell. He was later the president of the Louisville & Nashville railroad.<\/p>\n

Despite any wealth he acquired, it was always eclipsed by that of Hettie\u2019s estate. He was an avid sportsman and society club goer.<\/p>\n

At one point Green lost a fortune in Wall Street speculation and Hettie separated from him. It was said he spent his remaining days as a bachelor and lived on a small pension from Hettie.<\/p>\n

They had two children, Colonel Edward \u201cNed\u201d Howland Robinson Green and Harriet Sylvia Ann Howland Green. Both married but had no children.<\/p>\n

Colonel Ned married Mabel Emmerson Harlow, a purported Chicago exotic dancer and call girl.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
Evening Nonpareil (Council Bluffs, Iowa), 9 July 1916, page 16<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Harriet married Matthew Astor Wilks, son of Matthew Wilks and Eliza Astor Langdon and grandson of John Jacob Astor I, America\u2019s first multi-millionaire.<\/p>\n

\"Photo:<\/a>
Photo: (from left to right) Hettie Green, Mathew Astor Wilks, and Harriet Sylvia Ann Howland Green Wilks. Credit: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Howland Heirs Hunt & Hustle<\/strong><\/p>\n

William Morrell Emery, a historian, genealogist, newspaper editor, and author, was hired by the trustees to research the ancestral lines.<\/p>\n

According to a newspaper report, Emery was busy building the Howland family tree before Hettie\u2019s death to figure in all the heirs of the \u201cSylvia Ann Howland Trust\u201d that would pass from Hettie.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
Evening Bulletin (Providence, Rhode Island), 19 July 1916, page 20<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This article reports:<\/p>\n

The beneficiaries under the Howland will, several hundred in number, are scattered all over the United States and abroad, and during the past two years Mr. Emery has devoted much time to compiling s full genealogy of these descendants of Gideon Howland and ascertaining the whereabouts of all the heirs. His list is regarded as the most nearly complete of any in existence and will furnish the basis on which he will continue the task of determining the names of the heirs, their lines of descent from Gideon Howland and their relationships. Mr. Emery has done a great deal of this kind of work for various large estates and old families with signal success in the last few years.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Emery published the story and his genealogical findings in a book entitled \u201cThe Howland Heirs; Being the Story of a Family and a Fortune and the Inheritance of a Trust Established for Mrs. Hetty H. R. Green<\/a>\u201d in 1919.<\/p>\n

Even though Emery was making an affirmative list of the rightful heirs, several claimants were springing up daily. A few were legitimate, while many just did not have the right pedigree.<\/p>\n

Fortune seekers came from everywhere. Emery noted in his book that even a little girl living in Valparaiso, Chile, sent on her photograph, so the trustees could see if she looked like the Howlands.<\/p>\n

Stay tuned! This is a genealogical drama with twists and turns you will not want to miss!<\/p>\n

Explore over 330 years of newspapers and historical records in GenealogyBank. Discover your family story! Start a 7-Day Free Trial<\/a><\/p>\n

Note on the header image:<\/em><\/strong> close-up of Henrietta Howland Robinson Green. Credit: Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In this article, Melissa Davenport Berry describes how a genealogist was needed to determine the heirs of the world\u2019s richest woman when she died.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":31,"featured_media":98806,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12557],"tags":[58826,58823,12,58825,58822,2663,58824,58827],"class_list":["post-98792","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-genealogy-stories","tag-abby-slocum-howland-robinson","tag-edward-mott-robinson","tag-genealogy","tag-gideon-howland","tag-henrietta-howland-robinson-green","tag-probate-records","tag-sylvia-ann-howland","tag-william-morrell-emery"],"acf":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/04\/photo-0430-2024-featured-graphic-henrietta-green-close-up.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98792","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/31"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=98792"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98792\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":98823,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/98792\/revisions\/98823"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/98806"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=98792"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=98792"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.genealogybank.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=98792"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}