Can you imagine spending some fun time with famous people like Henry Ford, Mark Twain, Andrew Carnegie, Thomas Edison, John D. Rockefeller, Theodore Roosevelt, George Westinghouse or William Taft? Well, there was one person who had the pleasure of enjoying all these famous men’s company and his name was John Pierpont Morgan, the famous American banker, financier and art collector. There is no one who can tell us exactly how their time together was like, but there are some things that can suggest what having fun meant for them, over a century ago.
In 1890, J. P. Morgan commissioned his 241-foot yacht, called “Corsair II”. On this vessel all the aforementioned personalities had the opportunity of spending some memorable days and nights, so when it had to be scrapped, many of Morgan’s personal belongings were kept. Today they reveal more bout his personality and favorite activities than words can. Around 220 such items, including a mahogany poker set with ivory chips, embroidered table linens, and canvas-covered wicker provision trunks will be soon auctioned off by Boston Harbor Auctions on May 1.
Some of his belongings are worth over $200,000 and we know there are enough antique lovers who would be willing to spend that king of money on them. Other valuable pieces include a Tiffany & Co. cigar cutter, Boston-made brass clocks, an old bottle of whisky with engraved tumblers and even a completely restored launch boat from the Corsair III.
