Charles Lewis Tiffany

Charles Lewis Tiffany
Born	February 15, 1812(1812-02-15) Killingly, Connecticut
Died	February 18, 1902(1902-02-18) (aged 90) Yonkers, New York
Resting place	Green-Wood Cemetery
Citizenship	American
Net worth	USD $35 million at the time of his death (approximately 1/616th of US GNP)[1]
Spouse	Harriet Olivia Avery Young
Children	Louis Comfort Tiffany, Charles Lewis Tiffany, Jr., Annie Olivia Tiffany Mitchell, Louise Harriet Tiffany, Henry Charles Tiffany, Burnett Young Tiffany

Charles Lewis Tiffany (February 15, 1812 – February 18, 1902) founded Tiffany & Co. in New York City in 1837. A leader in the American jewelry trade in the nineteenth century, he was known for his jewelry expertise, created the country's first retail catalog, and, in 1851, he introduced the English standard of sterling silver.

His son, Louis Comfort Tiffany, was a decorative glass and lamp designer famous for his stained glass windows and art glass.

In addition to his business, Tiffany was a patron of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and one of the founders of the New York Society of Fine Arts.^[2]

Life and career

Born in Killingly, Connecticut on February 15, 1812, Tiffany was educated in a district school and in an academy in Plainfield, Connecticut. Starting at the age of 15, he helped manage a small general store started by his father, the owner of a cotton-manufacturing company. Charles Tiffany later worked at the office of his father's mill. The Tiffany family descended from Humphrey Tiffany, who had lived in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1660.^[2]

Charles Lewis Tiffany (left) in his store, about 1887

In 1837, with $1,000 borrowed from his father, Tiffany and a school friend, John B. Young, set up a small stationery and gift shop in New York City. Their first three days in business brought them only $4.38 in total sales, but two years later they were still in business, selling glassware, porcelain, cutlery, clocks and jewelry.^[2] On November 30, 1839, he married John B. Young's sister, Harriet Olivia Avery Young (1816–1897) with whom he had six children, Louis Comfort Tiffany, Charles Lewis Tiffany, Jr. (1842–1847), Annie Olivia Tiffany (Mrs. Alfred Mitchell; mother-in-law to Hiram Bingham III)(1844–1937), Louise Harriet Tiffany (1856–1937), Henry Charles Tiffany (1858–1859),and Burnett Young Tiffany (1860–1945).

The store expanded in 1841 and changed its name to Tiffany, Young and Ellis. It established a reputation for selling only the finest goods and specialized in Bohemian glass and porcelain. It also began manufacturing its own jewelry. In the early 1850s, the company was reorganized under the name Tiffany and Company and opened branches in Paris (1850) and London (1868). The store also relocated uptown to a Fifth Avenue location in that decade.^[2]

Tiffany was terribly embarrassed in an 1872 diamond and gemstone hoax perpetrated by Philip Arnold that cost investors more than half a million dollars.

One of the great achievements in his life was when he teamed up with Thomas Edison and together they created foot lights and other ways of electrically lighting theaters. As a result of this, Broadway and other shows became more popular during that time.

The firm acquired and sold some of the French crown jewels in 1887, firmly establishing its reputation.^[3]

At his death in Yonkers, New York on February 18, 1902 at the age of 90, Charles Tiffany's company was capitalized at more than $2 million and acknowledged as the most prominent jewelry company in North America.^[2]

Honors

Tiffany was made a chevalier of the Legion of Honour in 1878.^[4]

References

Notes

1. ^ Klepper, Michael; Gunther, Michael (1996), The Wealthy 100: From Benjamin Franklin to Bill Gates—A Ranking of the Richest Americans, Past and Present, Secaucus, New Jersey: Carol Publishing Group, p. xii, ISBN 9780806518008, OCLC 33818143 
2. ^ ^{a b c d e} Roth, David M., editor, and Grenier, Judith Arnold, associate editor, "Connecticut History and Culture: An Historical overview and Resource Guide for Teachers", published by the Connecticut Historical Commission, 1985, page 155
3. ^ Tiffany & Co. | Biographies | Charles Lewis Tiffany |
4. ^  Chisholm, Hugh, ed (1911). "Tiffany, Charles Lewis". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. 

External links

• Charles Lewis Tiffany – designer profile at Fashion Model Directory
• Charles Lewis Tiffany Biography
• Charles Lewis Tiffany at Find a Grave

Persondata
Name	Tiffany, Charles Lewis
Alternative names
Short description	Jewelry businessman
Date of birth	February 15, 1812
Place of birth	Killingly, Connecticut
Date of death	February 18, 1902
Place of death	Yonkers, New York