Born in London, England, while his parents were touring Europe. Son of Hetty Green known as the "witch of Wall Street." She refused to hire a doctor to treat her son's injured leg. Because of the lack of proper treatment, the leg had to be amputated. He invented a law degree reported in some biographies. Married Mabel E. Harlow July 10, 1917. She was a former prostitute who had been his mistress for the previous 24 years.

Director of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and other railroads. President of Texas Midland Railroad after 1893. Active in Republican politics. He was chairman of the Texas Republican State Committee. Director of the St. Louis Exposition of 1904. He died at Lake Placid, New York.

At one time he owned all five known examples of the 1913 Liberty Head nickels. He also owned the full 100 stamp sheet of 24 cent “inverted Jenny” stamps. He had a collection of pornographic films described as the “world’s choicest.”

On October 25, 1936 his collection was transferred from South Dartmouth to the First National Bank of Boston. The move required eight armored cars, sixteen private guards and seven state policemen. At the time the value of his coin collection was estimated at $5 million. His stamp collection was only worth $3.5 million. In 1937 F. C. C. Boyd was asked to make an appraisal of the collection. The courts determined that the value for tax purposes was $1,240,299. His total estate was valued at more than $40 million.

bio: ApCAB; WWWA-1 obit: NUM 49 Jul 1936 pp. 542-543