Born in Bordentown, Richard Watson Gilder (1844-1909) was a gifted individual that served as editor of one of the country’s most accomplished magazines of its day, The Century Illustrated Monthly Magazine. From 1881 until his death in 1909, he steered the helm of this mighty enterprise with success by mustering as much talent as he could for his articles and illustrations.
The names were quite familiar to the world of literature with Richard inserting his poetry as an appetizer to the main course. Some of his poems reflected on his own life. In particular was The Old House which spoke of his childhood home in Bordentown. Undeniably, as his parents Reverend William Henry Gilder (1812-1864) and June Nutt Gilder (1816-1885) raised an astute and caring son, they also experienced countless challenges as they nurtured 10 other children under the same roof.
Although three children did not survive to adulthood, the others prominently contributed to American society in their own right, with Richard being the most successful.
John Francis Gilder (1837-1908) was the eldest child in the family. He was born in Philadelphia when his father was publishing a quarterly literary review about his church. Fascinated by the angelic sounds of organ music as it powerfully emanated through the walls of the church every Sunday, John developed a deep love of music.
When the family moved to Flushing, Queens in 1848, the New York landscape was slowly rising with the construction of factories, houses, and transportation centers. Driven by industrial might with the influx of European immigrants, society looked to art and entertainment as an outlet for the nation’s productivity.
Taking advantage of such services, John fostered his natural ability as a pianist and composer. By the 1880s, his name and music was associated in most concert halls His circle of friends included band leader John Philip Sousa, soprano Marcella Sembrich, and Italy’s greatest tenor, Enrico Caruso. He never married, and died after an illness at the Gilder family home in Bordentown.
William Henry Gilder, Jr. (1838-1900) was also born in Philadelphia and never married. His entire life was rich with adventure that would make an ordinary man blush. During the Civil War he served as captain of the 40th New York Volunteer Infantry under Union General Thomas Egan, and was severely wounded while fighting on the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg. With his arm and leg bleeding profusely, he managed to escape Confederate capture by running a mile through dense woods and open fields while under enemy fire. Due to the extent of his injuries, he was discharged with the rank of brevet major.
After his brother Richard founded the Newark Morning Register, he served as managing editor from 1871 to 1877. A year later, he became a news correspondent for the New York Herald. Upon learning that the American Geographical Society was sponsoring an expedition to search for the lost Arctic voyage of British Captain Sir John Franklin and his crew, who disappeared in 1845, William decided to accompany a team of four men and an Inuit guide with great interest for a story.
Under the watchful leadership of seasoned explorer, U.S. Army Lieutenant Frederick Schwatka (1849-1892), William was chosen as second in command. Supported by U.S. businessmen, the team made the harrowing journey aboard the schooner Eothen, sailing north to Hudson Bay before the men trekked overland through extreme conditions. Travelling 3,200 miles with crucial supplies strapped to sleighs, they achieved the longest journey of its type on record.
During the expedition, they discovered relics and gravesites pertaining to Franklin’s party largely through interviews with Inuit citizens who remembered the stranded sailors. However, the search for detailed journals, believed to have been stored under cairns, were never found.
William published an illustrated account of this adventure in 1882 under the title Schwatka’s Search. That same year, he also wrote a book about his search for another lost ship, the Jeannette. Entitled Ice-Pack and Tundra, the book recounts his 1881 participation aboard the steamer U.S.S. Rogers under the command of Capt. Robert Berry. After their ship was trapped between dense ice packs and drifted for months in the Bering Strait with no chance of breaking free, it was burned to the keel by its crew.
With an obligation to report the news, William was selected to make an incredibly daring 2,000-mile trip by dogsled through the tundra to telegraph for a rescue party. For the remainder of his life, he wrote and edited news stories as well as obtaining a deep admiration for the culture of the Inuit people.
Jeannette Leonard Gilder (1849-1916) was born in Flushing, Queens, as were the rest of her siblings. Like most of her brothers, she was a news correspondent, and starting in 1868, worked alongside them for the Newark Morning Register. In 1875, she left the editorial department and moved to New York City to join the New York Herald as its literary editor. She later became its drama and music critic. She also contributed to the Boston Evening Transcript where she wrote under the pen name, “Brunswick.”
She worked with her brother Richard as the literary editor for Scribner’s Monthly until they co-founded a biweekly journal of criticism called The Critic. This occurred during the same year that he became editor-in-chief of The Century Illustrated Monthly Magazine in 1881.
Jeannette shared responsibilities as editor of The Critic with her younger brother Joseph until 1906 — quite an achievement for a woman in her day. She also wrote several books, including two popular novels: The Autobiography of a Tom-boy (1900) and its sequel, The Tom-boy at Work (1904). Among her cherished friends was Good Grey poet Walt Whitman. Unmarried, she died at her home in New York in 1916.
Martina Pintard Gilder Puron (1851-1922) and her sister, Almyra Gambault Gilder Cholmeley-Jones (1853-1886) were both married and had children. Almyra was married to an Englishman named Edward Cholmeley-Jones. Upon her early demise, her sister Jeannette lovingly raised her children as her own until Edward remarried.
Martina married Juan Garcia Puron in 1882. Born in Spain in 1854, he settled in Mexico at a young age and became a medical colonel in the Mexican Army. Eventually growing disenchanted with the country’s political nature, he moved to New York City in 1880. Two years into his marriage, he earned the distinction of becoming the first foreign physician to legally practice in the U.S. In addition, he wrote several textbooks on health and education in the Spanish language. Returning to his native Spain around 1900, he continued his medical practice until his death in 1912.
Robert Fletcher Gilder (1856-1940) was an adventurer like his brother, William. He studied painting when he was young but was more fascinated about stories on the western plains and wanted to see it before it was tamed.
In 1887, family squabbles drove his conviction to the prairies of Omaha, Nebraska, where he joined the Omaha World Herald as a journeyman printer and typesetter. He quickly advanced to reporter, and work as an editor wasn’t far behind. In 1919, after 32 years on the job, he decided to leave. Not one to rest on his achievements, he devoted his full energy to his avocations of archaeology and painting.
In 1916, he built a home and studio south of Omaha called “Wake Robin.” Located in the town of Bellevue, it may or may not be coincidental that the town’s name was also the name of his family home in Bordentown. In any case, he made many trips to the southwestern part of the country for archeological work as well as inspiration for his paintings. The desert landscape appealed to him almost as much as the Missouri River basin. If there was a picturesque scene that attracted his attention, he painted it.
Describing his technique as impressionist, he was a skillful master of composition and light. On a regular basis, his work was shown at Whitmore’s Art gallery in Omaha as well as several galleries. Another passion was serving as chief archeologist of the University of Nebraska for 12 years. He is the only family member not buried in Bordentown Cemetery.
Joseph Benson Gilder (1858-1936) attended the U.S. Naval Academy for two years before deciding to join his siblings in the editorial field. In 1881, he shared editorial responsibilities on The Critic with his sister, Jeannette. He did so until 1906, when its publication merged with Putnam’s Magazine. In 1910-11, he was the book editor for the New York Times. He edited several books during his career, including Andrew Carnegie’s Gospel of Wealth in 1900.
The Gilders were one of many distinguished families in our country that achieved wealth and influenced the behavior of society. Although their last name is not as synonymous as Vanderbilt, Rockefeller, or Mellon, their contributions to the world of literature, art, music, sculpture, theater, and architecture were and are nonetheless as impressive. We are fortunate that the glitter left by their legacy still sparkles in the little place where it all began…Bordentown.
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