Herbert L. Satterlee

Herbert Livingston Satterlee (October 31, 1863 – July 14, 1947) was an American lawyer, writer, and businessman who served as the Assistant Secretary of the Navy from 1908 to 1909.^[1]

Herbert Livingston Satterlee
Satterlee circa 1915
Assistant Secretary of the Navy
In office December 3, 1908 – March 5, 1909
Appointed by	Theodore Roosevelt
Preceded by	Truman Handy Newberry
Succeeded by	Beekman Winthrop
Personal details
Born	(1863-10-31)October 31, 1863 New York City, New York, U.S.
Died	July 14, 1947(1947-07-14) (aged 83) New York City, New York, U.S.
Spouse	Louisa Pierpont Morgan ​ ​ (m. 1900; died 1946)​
Children	2
Parent(s)	George Bowen Satterlee Sarah Wilcox
Education	Columbia University Columbia Law School

Early life

Herbert Livingston Satterlee was born in New York City in 1863.^[2] He was the son of George Bowen Satterlee (1833–1903) and Sarah Brady Wilcox (b. 1836).^[3] His siblings included Marion Satterlee and Richard T. Satterlee.^[3]

Through his paternal grandmother, Mary LeRoy (née Livingston) Satterlee (1811–1886), he is a member of the Livingston family and a direct descendant of Robert Livingston, the 1st Lord of Livingston Manor.^[4] His second cousin was Henry Yates Satterlee (1843–1908), the Episcopal Bishop of New York.^[3]

Satterlee graduated with a B.S. from Columbia College in 1883, received his M.A. in 1884, as well was Columbia Law School with a Ph.D. and LL.B. law degree in 1885.^[1][5][6][7]

Career

Satterlee was admitted to the bar in New York in 1885, entering the office of Evarts, Choate and Beeman.^[5] During the Spanish–American War, he volunteered for duty in the Navy, serving as a lieutenant in the Navy Department in Washington, D.C.

Before and after the war, Satterlee pursued a successful law practice, focused primarily on corporate law and commercial law. Together with George F. Canfield and Harlan Fiske Stone, he was a founding law partner of Satterlee, Canfield & Stone, a predecessor of the present-day firm Satterlee Stephens Burke & Burke LLP.^[2]

In 1908, President Theodore Roosevelt nominated Satterlee as Assistant Secretary of the Navy. Satterlee held this office from December 3, 1908, to March 5, 1909.^[8] He served as President of The Union League Club from 1938 - 1939.^[1]

Satterlee authored several books, including a 1939 biography of his father-in-law entitled J. Pierpont Morgan: An Intimate Portrait.^[1][9]

Personal life

On November 15, 1900,^[10] he married Louisa Pierpont Morgan (1866–1946), the oldest daughter of J. Pierpont Morgan. In 1910, Satterlee and his wife purchased the Sotterley Plantation in Hollywood, Maryland.^[11] Together, they were the parents of two daughters:

• Mabel Morgan Satterlee (1901–1993), who married Francis Abbott Ingalls II (b. 1895), brother of Laura Ingalls, in 1925.^[12]
• Eleanor Morgan Satterlee (1905–1951), who married Milo Sargent Gibbs, the son of Milo Delavan Gibbs, in 1929.^[13] They divorced shortly after.^[14]

In failing health, Satterlee committed suicide with a pistol shot through his right temple at his apartment at 1 Beekman Place in Manhattan, New York City on July 14, 1947, at the age of 83.^[1]

References

1. "H.L. Satterlee Ends Life with a Pistol. Noted Lawyer and Son-in-Law of Elder J.P. Morgan Found Dead in Home Here at 83". New York Times. July 15, 1947.
2. Pirtle, Jeanne K. (2013). Sotterley Plantation. Arcadia Publishing. p. 62. ISBN 9781439643945. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
3. "DEATH LIST OF A DAY.; George B. Satterlee". The New York Times. 19 September 1903. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
4. Fitch, Charles Elliott (1916). Encyclopedia of Biography of New York: A Life Record of Men and Women Whose Sterling Character and Energy and Industry Have Made Them Preëminent in Their Own and Many Other States. American historical society, Incorporated. p. 41. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
5. Columbia Alumni News. Alumni Council of Columbia University. 1917. p. 914. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
6. "Columbia Daily Spectator 18 February 1909 — Columbia Spectator". spectatorarchive.library.columbia.edu. Retrieved 2020-06-18.
7. Catalogue of Officers and Graduates of Columbia University from the Foundation of King's College in 1754. New York City: Columbia University. 1906. p. 589.
8. Wolraich, Michael (2014). Unreasonable Men: Theodore Roosevelt and the Republican Rebels Who Created Progressive Politics. Macmillan. p. 275. ISBN 9780230342231. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
9. Carosso, Vincent P.; Carosso, Rose C. (1987). The Morgans: Private International Bankers, 1854-1913. Harvard University Press. p. 740. ISBN 9780674587298. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
10. Strouse, Jean (2014). Morgan: American Financier. Random House Publishing Group. p. 387. ISBN 9780812987041. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
11. Sotterly Plantation website
12. "MABEL SATTERLEE WEDS F. A. INGALLS; Granddaughter of the Late J. Pierpont Morgan Married in Bar Harbor, TROTH WAS TOLD IN JULY Relatives Only. at the Ceremony Bridegroom, a Harvard Graduate, Served in the World War". The New York Times. 20 September 1926. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
13. "ELEANOR SATTERLEE WEDS MILO S. GIBBS; Niece of J. Pierpont Morgan Is Married at Parents' Summer Home in Greenwich. A LARGE BRIDAL PARTY Reception and Breakfast Follow the Ceremony--Many New Yorkers Are Among Guests". The New York Times. 13 October 1929. Retrieved 25 January 2018.
14. "Mrs. Satterlee Held Fearful of Husband". The New York Times. 4 March 1952. Retrieved 25 January 2018.

External links

• Herbert L. Satterlee at Find a Grave
• Satterlee in c.1944 with actress Julia Marlowe

Government offices
Preceded by Truman Handy Newberry	Assistant Secretary of the Navy December 3, 1908 – March 5, 1909	Succeeded by Beekman Winthrop