American businessman; naturalized British citizen; paternal grandfather of author Agatha Christie.
Nathaniel Frary Miller was named for his mother's stepfather. His parents were both from colonial Massachusetts families; his father was a pedlar of cutlery who also invested in a small way in real estate. By spring 1845, Nathaniel had relocated to New York City, where he worked as a clerk, and eventually landed a job with Bulkley & Claflin, wholesale dry goods merchants in Cedar Street.
He married Martha Messerve on 4 July 1845 in New York City in a ceremony performed by the Rev. Mr. Chase (New-York Daily Tribune, 10 July 1845, page 3). Their only child, Frederick Alvah Miller (“Fred”), was born in Manhattan the following year. They later moved to lodgings in Brooklyn, first in Myrtle Avenue, then in Lawrence Street.
In a startling sequence of events, in June 1849 Nathaniel and Martha, along with her cousin Jane Struthers, were arrested and charged with sending a series of anonymous, obscene letters to the residents of a Lower East Side boarding house where they had formerly lived. The charges apparently were soon dropped, and the incident appears to have had no effect upon his career. (New York Herald, 15 June 1849, page 2, and 17 June 1849, page 2.)
In July 1851, Nathaniel's business reorganized: Not yet thirty, he was made a junior partner of wholesale dry goods firm Claflin, Mellen & Co., founded by fellow Massachusetts men Horace B. Claflin and William H. Mellen. This success was quickly overshadowed by Martha's death from pulmonary tuberculosis in February 1852.
It was this year that Nathaniel joined the New England Society, a charitable group which assisted the widows and orphans of former New Englanders who died in New York. Fred was sent to live with relatives in Massachusetts, while Nathaniel travelled regularly to Europe on buying trips. By the mid-1850s, he was spending so much time in England that he had “a settled place of residence” in Manchester, Lancashire. His office and warehouse were in St. Peter’s Square; from there, he oversaw the purchase and export of British goods, mostly textiles, for his company’s New York headquarters. There was also the occasional business trip to Paris, and probably journeys to Switzerland to see Fred at his boarding school in Vevey.
On 18 April 1863, he married an Englishwoman, Margaret West, at St. John the Baptist's Church in Westbourne, Sussex (Hampshire Telegraph, 25 April 1863, page 5); the official witnesses were Margaret's uncle Richard Kelsey, Nathaniel's friend Roderick Beers Perry of New York, and Margaret's nine-year old niece Clarissa Boehmer (”Clara”), whose father had died just a fortnight before. In early 1864, the couple settled in Timperley, Cheshire, with Clara, who had become their foster child soon after their wedding. (Clara would marry Fred, Nathaniel's son by his first marriage, in 1878.)
Now with Margaret at his side, Nathaniel continued to travel to the United States on business and to visit family. He remained with his firm following the retirement in January 1864 of his friend and senior partner William H. Mellen, when the organization was renamed H.B. Claflin & Co.; due to health problems, however, Nathaniel himself retired circa 1865. He became a naturalized British citizen on 17 May 1866. That same day, he purchased a small piece of property in Sussex, which had belonged to Margaret’s family for generations; this he gave to his wife to provide a secure retirement home for her elderly Kelsey relatives. He and Margaret still resided in Cheshire, where he was registered to vote in 1868, and where in September of that year he signed the codicil to his will. He continued to manage his investments—mostly New York real estate—from overseas. His last visit to his homeland was in spring 1868.
Nathaniel died from liver disease at the Kelsey home in Prinsted, Sussex (which was then in Westbourne parish, Sussex, but today is part of Southbourne, West Sussex). His remains were escorted by family on the RMS Scotia to the United States for burial in Brooklyn; the funeral service was held at the Madison Square Presbyterian Church in Manhattan, conducted by the esteemed Rev. Dr. William Adams (Hampshire Telegraph, 12 May 1863, page 3; New York Herald, 10 June 1869, page 8). Fred arranged to have his mother reinterred in this lot; Nathaniel rests beside her, directly behind his monument. Nine years after his death, his widow dedicated to his memory a large stained glass window in the west wall of St. John the Evangelist’s Church in the new parish of Southbourne, Sussex, England.
Nathaniel Frary Miller was named for his mother's stepfather. His parents were both from colonial Massachusetts families; his father was a pedlar of cutlery who also invested in a small way in real estate. By spring 1845, Nathaniel had relocated to New York City, where he worked as a clerk, and eventually landed a job with Bulkley & Claflin, wholesale dry goods merchants in Cedar Street.
He married Martha Messerve on 4 July 1845 in New York City in a ceremony performed by the Rev. Mr. Chase (New-York Daily Tribune, 10 July 1845, page 3). Their only child, Frederick Alvah Miller (“Fred”), was born in Manhattan the following year. They later moved to lodgings in Brooklyn, first in Myrtle Avenue, then in Lawrence Street.
In a startling sequence of events, in June 1849 Nathaniel and Martha, along with her cousin Jane Struthers, were arrested and charged with sending a series of anonymous, obscene letters to the residents of a Lower East Side boarding house where they had formerly lived. The charges apparently were soon dropped, and the incident appears to have had no effect upon his career. (New York Herald, 15 June 1849, page 2, and 17 June 1849, page 2.)
In July 1851, Nathaniel's business reorganized: Not yet thirty, he was made a junior partner of wholesale dry goods firm Claflin, Mellen & Co., founded by fellow Massachusetts men Horace B. Claflin and William H. Mellen. This success was quickly overshadowed by Martha's death from pulmonary tuberculosis in February 1852.
It was this year that Nathaniel joined the New England Society, a charitable group which assisted the widows and orphans of former New Englanders who died in New York. Fred was sent to live with relatives in Massachusetts, while Nathaniel travelled regularly to Europe on buying trips. By the mid-1850s, he was spending so much time in England that he had “a settled place of residence” in Manchester, Lancashire. His office and warehouse were in St. Peter’s Square; from there, he oversaw the purchase and export of British goods, mostly textiles, for his company’s New York headquarters. There was also the occasional business trip to Paris, and probably journeys to Switzerland to see Fred at his boarding school in Vevey.
On 18 April 1863, he married an Englishwoman, Margaret West, at St. John the Baptist's Church in Westbourne, Sussex (Hampshire Telegraph, 25 April 1863, page 5); the official witnesses were Margaret's uncle Richard Kelsey, Nathaniel's friend Roderick Beers Perry of New York, and Margaret's nine-year old niece Clarissa Boehmer (”Clara”), whose father had died just a fortnight before. In early 1864, the couple settled in Timperley, Cheshire, with Clara, who had become their foster child soon after their wedding. (Clara would marry Fred, Nathaniel's son by his first marriage, in 1878.)
Now with Margaret at his side, Nathaniel continued to travel to the United States on business and to visit family. He remained with his firm following the retirement in January 1864 of his friend and senior partner William H. Mellen, when the organization was renamed H.B. Claflin & Co.; due to health problems, however, Nathaniel himself retired circa 1865. He became a naturalized British citizen on 17 May 1866. That same day, he purchased a small piece of property in Sussex, which had belonged to Margaret’s family for generations; this he gave to his wife to provide a secure retirement home for her elderly Kelsey relatives. He and Margaret still resided in Cheshire, where he was registered to vote in 1868, and where in September of that year he signed the codicil to his will. He continued to manage his investments—mostly New York real estate—from overseas. His last visit to his homeland was in spring 1868.
Nathaniel died from liver disease at the Kelsey home in Prinsted, Sussex (which was then in Westbourne parish, Sussex, but today is part of Southbourne, West Sussex). His remains were escorted by family on the RMS Scotia to the United States for burial in Brooklyn; the funeral service was held at the Madison Square Presbyterian Church in Manhattan, conducted by the esteemed Rev. Dr. William Adams (Hampshire Telegraph, 12 May 1863, page 3; New York Herald, 10 June 1869, page 8). Fred arranged to have his mother reinterred in this lot; Nathaniel rests beside her, directly behind his monument. Nine years after his death, his widow dedicated to his memory a large stained glass window in the west wall of St. John the Evangelist’s Church in the new parish of Southbourne, Sussex, England.
American businessman; naturalized British citizen; paternal grandfather of author Agatha Christie.
Nathaniel Frary Miller was named for his mother's stepfather. His parents were both from colonial Massachusetts families; his father was a pedlar of cutlery who also invested in a small way in real estate. By spring 1845, Nathaniel had relocated to New York City, where he worked as a clerk, and eventually landed a job with Bulkley & Claflin, wholesale dry goods merchants in Cedar Street.
He married Martha Messerve on 4 July 1845 in New York City in a ceremony performed by the Rev. Mr. Chase (New-York Daily Tribune, 10 July 1845, page 3). Their only child, Frederick Alvah Miller (“Fred”), was born in Manhattan the following year. They later moved to lodgings in Brooklyn, first in Myrtle Avenue, then in Lawrence Street.
In a startling sequence of events, in June 1849 Nathaniel and Martha, along with her cousin Jane Struthers, were arrested and charged with sending a series of anonymous, obscene letters to the residents of a Lower East Side boarding house where they had formerly lived. The charges apparently were soon dropped, and the incident appears to have had no effect upon his career. (New York Herald, 15 June 1849, page 2, and 17 June 1849, page 2.)
In July 1851, Nathaniel's business reorganized: Not yet thirty, he was made a junior partner of wholesale dry goods firm Claflin, Mellen & Co., founded by fellow Massachusetts men Horace B. Claflin and William H. Mellen. This success was quickly overshadowed by Martha's death from pulmonary tuberculosis in February 1852.
It was this year that Nathaniel joined the New England Society, a charitable group which assisted the widows and orphans of former New Englanders who died in New York. Fred was sent to live with relatives in Massachusetts, while Nathaniel travelled regularly to Europe on buying trips. By the mid-1850s, he was spending so much time in England that he had “a settled place of residence” in Manchester, Lancashire. His office and warehouse were in St. Peter’s Square; from there, he oversaw the purchase and export of British goods, mostly textiles, for his company’s New York headquarters. There was also the occasional business trip to Paris, and probably journeys to Switzerland to see Fred at his boarding school in Vevey.
On 18 April 1863, he married an Englishwoman, Margaret West, at St. John the Baptist's Church in Westbourne, Sussex (Hampshire Telegraph, 25 April 1863, page 5); the official witnesses were Margaret's uncle Richard Kelsey, Nathaniel's friend Roderick Beers Perry of New York, and Margaret's nine-year old niece Clarissa Boehmer (”Clara”), whose father had died just a fortnight before. In early 1864, the couple settled in Timperley, Cheshire, with Clara, who had become their foster child soon after their wedding. (Clara would marry Fred, Nathaniel's son by his first marriage, in 1878.)
Now with Margaret at his side, Nathaniel continued to travel to the United States on business and to visit family. He remained with his firm following the retirement in January 1864 of his friend and senior partner William H. Mellen, when the organization was renamed H.B. Claflin & Co.; due to health problems, however, Nathaniel himself retired circa 1865. He became a naturalized British citizen on 17 May 1866. That same day, he purchased a small piece of property in Sussex, which had belonged to Margaret’s family for generations; this he gave to his wife to provide a secure retirement home for her elderly Kelsey relatives. He and Margaret still resided in Cheshire, where he was registered to vote in 1868, and where in September of that year he signed the codicil to his will. He continued to manage his investments—mostly New York real estate—from overseas. His last visit to his homeland was in spring 1868.
Nathaniel died from liver disease at the Kelsey home in Prinsted, Sussex (which was then in Westbourne parish, Sussex, but today is part of Southbourne, West Sussex). His remains were escorted by family on the RMS Scotia to the United States for burial in Brooklyn; the funeral service was held at the Madison Square Presbyterian Church in Manhattan, conducted by the esteemed Rev. Dr. William Adams (Hampshire Telegraph, 12 May 1863, page 3; New York Herald, 10 June 1869, page 8). Fred arranged to have his mother reinterred in this lot; Nathaniel rests beside her, directly behind his monument. Nine years after his death, his widow dedicated to his memory a large stained glass window in the west wall of St. John the Evangelist’s Church in the new parish of Southbourne, Sussex, England.
Nathaniel Frary Miller was named for his mother's stepfather. His parents were both from colonial Massachusetts families; his father was a pedlar of cutlery who also invested in a small way in real estate. By spring 1845, Nathaniel had relocated to New York City, where he worked as a clerk, and eventually landed a job with Bulkley & Claflin, wholesale dry goods merchants in Cedar Street.
He married Martha Messerve on 4 July 1845 in New York City in a ceremony performed by the Rev. Mr. Chase (New-York Daily Tribune, 10 July 1845, page 3). Their only child, Frederick Alvah Miller (“Fred”), was born in Manhattan the following year. They later moved to lodgings in Brooklyn, first in Myrtle Avenue, then in Lawrence Street.
In a startling sequence of events, in June 1849 Nathaniel and Martha, along with her cousin Jane Struthers, were arrested and charged with sending a series of anonymous, obscene letters to the residents of a Lower East Side boarding house where they had formerly lived. The charges apparently were soon dropped, and the incident appears to have had no effect upon his career. (New York Herald, 15 June 1849, page 2, and 17 June 1849, page 2.)
In July 1851, Nathaniel's business reorganized: Not yet thirty, he was made a junior partner of wholesale dry goods firm Claflin, Mellen & Co., founded by fellow Massachusetts men Horace B. Claflin and William H. Mellen. This success was quickly overshadowed by Martha's death from pulmonary tuberculosis in February 1852.
It was this year that Nathaniel joined the New England Society, a charitable group which assisted the widows and orphans of former New Englanders who died in New York. Fred was sent to live with relatives in Massachusetts, while Nathaniel travelled regularly to Europe on buying trips. By the mid-1850s, he was spending so much time in England that he had “a settled place of residence” in Manchester, Lancashire. His office and warehouse were in St. Peter’s Square; from there, he oversaw the purchase and export of British goods, mostly textiles, for his company’s New York headquarters. There was also the occasional business trip to Paris, and probably journeys to Switzerland to see Fred at his boarding school in Vevey.
On 18 April 1863, he married an Englishwoman, Margaret West, at St. John the Baptist's Church in Westbourne, Sussex (Hampshire Telegraph, 25 April 1863, page 5); the official witnesses were Margaret's uncle Richard Kelsey, Nathaniel's friend Roderick Beers Perry of New York, and Margaret's nine-year old niece Clarissa Boehmer (”Clara”), whose father had died just a fortnight before. In early 1864, the couple settled in Timperley, Cheshire, with Clara, who had become their foster child soon after their wedding. (Clara would marry Fred, Nathaniel's son by his first marriage, in 1878.)
Now with Margaret at his side, Nathaniel continued to travel to the United States on business and to visit family. He remained with his firm following the retirement in January 1864 of his friend and senior partner William H. Mellen, when the organization was renamed H.B. Claflin & Co.; due to health problems, however, Nathaniel himself retired circa 1865. He became a naturalized British citizen on 17 May 1866. That same day, he purchased a small piece of property in Sussex, which had belonged to Margaret’s family for generations; this he gave to his wife to provide a secure retirement home for her elderly Kelsey relatives. He and Margaret still resided in Cheshire, where he was registered to vote in 1868, and where in September of that year he signed the codicil to his will. He continued to manage his investments—mostly New York real estate—from overseas. His last visit to his homeland was in spring 1868.
Nathaniel died from liver disease at the Kelsey home in Prinsted, Sussex (which was then in Westbourne parish, Sussex, but today is part of Southbourne, West Sussex). His remains were escorted by family on the RMS Scotia to the United States for burial in Brooklyn; the funeral service was held at the Madison Square Presbyterian Church in Manhattan, conducted by the esteemed Rev. Dr. William Adams (Hampshire Telegraph, 12 May 1863, page 3; New York Herald, 10 June 1869, page 8). Fred arranged to have his mother reinterred in this lot; Nathaniel rests beside her, directly behind his monument. Nine years after his death, his widow dedicated to his memory a large stained glass window in the west wall of St. John the Evangelist’s Church in the new parish of Southbourne, Sussex, England.
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