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On August 29, 2010, I was surprised to find no mention of Henry Rosenberg in the numerous memorials listed on Find a Grave.com, because there was a time that the better part of our nation, found they were reading about the passing of one of the earliest and most well beloved Texas philanthropists. The Baltimore Sun of June 1st, 1893 proclaimed, "The remains of Henry Rosenberg, the Texas philanthropist, were consigned to their final resting place in Loudon Park Cemetery yesterday afternoon. The Body was brought to Baltimore from Galveston, of which the deceased was an honored citizen. The funeral services held there were elaborate, the whole city testifying to the esteem in which he was held".
The passing of Henry Rosenberg was a horrible surprise to many Galvestonians as well as most of the residents of the Lone Star State, and to make it more unbearable they learned that they would lose his final remains to yet another State (Maryland), where he was to lie in permanent slumber. You see most of the people that lived with Henry for nearly fifty years did not know of his never-ending commitment to his first wife, Miss Letitia Cooper, nor that it was his wish to be buried at her side in Baltimore, the city of her death back in 1888. So on May 12, 1893, following a painful illness, Henry Rosenberg a man that helped many in need, ended his earthly career. His body lay in state at the Rosenberg Free School building, where it was viewed by thousands who wished to bid him farewell. The same school building that owed its very existence to the benevolence of Henry Rosenberg. Next an elaborate funeral service was held at Assembly Hall, followed by a second even more impressive service held at Grace Episcopal Church by the rector, Rev. J.R. Carter. The body was then temporarily deposited in Payne vault in the Cemetery at Galveston, awaiting removal and transport to Baltimore, Maryland. Hundred of newspapers throughout the country placed editorials extolling the life of Mr. Rosenberg.
Henry was born on June 22, 1824 in Bilten, Glarus Canton, Switzerland and immigrated to Galveston, The Republic of Texas in February, 1843. On this adventure, he accompanied the son of his old employer, a man named John Hessly. The men became partners in what was to prove to be a very successful dry-goods store. In three years time however, Mr. Rosenberg bought Mr. Hessly's share of the business and later went on to become a financier, investor, real estate magnate, and banker. In 1866, he was appointed vice consul of Switzerland for the State of Texas and three years later, he became the Swiss Consul, a position he held until the time of his death. His list of accomplishments were many such as, director of the First National Bank of Galveston, president of the Galveston City Railroad Company, City Alderman, chairman of the licenses and assessments committee and the revenue committee. Henry was twice on the library committee, helped to organize the Galveston Bank and Trust Company, of which he served as its president and manager. Mr. Rosenberg was not through yet however, and became the president of the Colorado and Santa Fe Railway Company from 1874 to 1877, and from 1889, until his death he served as vice president of the Galveston Warf.
Mr. Rosenberg was first a vestryman of the Trinity Episcopal Church, and contributed almost half the cost of Eaton Memorial Chapel, one of Galveston's loveliest historical buildings. He withdrew his membership from Trinity in 1884, and became a member of Grace Church. Then two years later he donated the Rosenberg Free School to the city. The residents of Galveston were well aware of Mr. Rosenberg's fine and numerous gifts, but after his death they finally realized the depth of his commitment to the city he loved. At the time of his death, Henry Rosenberg had amassed a fortune valued at $1,200,000.00, and after bequeathing $450,000.00 to his surviving widow, relatives, and friends the corpus, or remainder went to educational and charitable purposes. He provided for the building of a Church in his native village in Switzerland, The Island City Protestant Orphans' Home, $30,000; Grace Church parish, $30,000.00; Ladies' Aid Society of the German Lutheran Church, $10,000.00; a Women' Home, $30.000.00; the YMCA, $65,000.00, a monument for the memory of the heroes of the Texas Revolution, $50,000.00; and for drinking fountains for man and beast, $30,000.00.
The following portion of the residuary clause in Henry's will read:
"In making this bequest I desire to express in practical form my affection for the city of my adoption and for the people among whom I have lived for many years, trusting that it will aid their intellectual and moral development and be a source of pleasure and profit to them and their children and their children's children."
The passing of Henry Rosenberg was a horrible surprise to many Galvestonians as well as most of the residents of the Lone Star State, and to make it more unbearable they learned that they would lose his final remains to yet another State (Maryland), where he was to lie in permanent slumber. You see most of the people that lived with Henry for nearly fifty years did not know of his never-ending commitment to his first wife, Miss Letitia Cooper, nor that it was his wish to be buried at her side in Baltimore, the city of her death back in 1888. So on May 12, 1893, following a painful illness, Henry Rosenberg a man that helped many in need, ended his earthly career. His body lay in state at the Rosenberg Free School building, where it was viewed by thousands who wished to bid him farewell. The same school building that owed its very existence to the benevolence of Henry Rosenberg. Next an elaborate funeral service was held at Assembly Hall, followed by a second even more impressive service held at Grace Episcopal Church by the rector, Rev. J.R. Carter. The body was then temporarily deposited in Payne vault in the Cemetery at Galveston, awaiting removal and transport to Baltimore, Maryland. Hundred of newspapers throughout the country placed editorials extolling the life of Mr. Rosenberg.
Henry was born on June 22, 1824 in Bilten, Glarus Canton, Switzerland and immigrated to Galveston, The Republic of Texas in February, 1843. On this adventure, he accompanied the son of his old employer, a man named John Hessly. The men became partners in what was to prove to be a very successful dry-goods store. In three years time however, Mr. Rosenberg bought Mr. Hessly's share of the business and later went on to become a financier, investor, real estate magnate, and banker. In 1866, he was appointed vice consul of Switzerland for the State of Texas and three years later, he became the Swiss Consul, a position he held until the time of his death. His list of accomplishments were many such as, director of the First National Bank of Galveston, president of the Galveston City Railroad Company, City Alderman, chairman of the licenses and assessments committee and the revenue committee. Henry was twice on the library committee, helped to organize the Galveston Bank and Trust Company, of which he served as its president and manager. Mr. Rosenberg was not through yet however, and became the president of the Colorado and Santa Fe Railway Company from 1874 to 1877, and from 1889, until his death he served as vice president of the Galveston Warf.
Mr. Rosenberg was first a vestryman of the Trinity Episcopal Church, and contributed almost half the cost of Eaton Memorial Chapel, one of Galveston's loveliest historical buildings. He withdrew his membership from Trinity in 1884, and became a member of Grace Church. Then two years later he donated the Rosenberg Free School to the city. The residents of Galveston were well aware of Mr. Rosenberg's fine and numerous gifts, but after his death they finally realized the depth of his commitment to the city he loved. At the time of his death, Henry Rosenberg had amassed a fortune valued at $1,200,000.00, and after bequeathing $450,000.00 to his surviving widow, relatives, and friends the corpus, or remainder went to educational and charitable purposes. He provided for the building of a Church in his native village in Switzerland, The Island City Protestant Orphans' Home, $30,000; Grace Church parish, $30,000.00; Ladies' Aid Society of the German Lutheran Church, $10,000.00; a Women' Home, $30.000.00; the YMCA, $65,000.00, a monument for the memory of the heroes of the Texas Revolution, $50,000.00; and for drinking fountains for man and beast, $30,000.00.
The following portion of the residuary clause in Henry's will read:
"In making this bequest I desire to express in practical form my affection for the city of my adoption and for the people among whom I have lived for many years, trusting that it will aid their intellectual and moral development and be a source of pleasure and profit to them and their children and their children's children."
On August 29, 2010, I was surprised to find no mention of Henry Rosenberg in the numerous memorials listed on Find a Grave.com, because there was a time that the better part of our nation, found they were reading about the passing of one of the earliest and most well beloved Texas philanthropists. The Baltimore Sun of June 1st, 1893 proclaimed, "The remains of Henry Rosenberg, the Texas philanthropist, were consigned to their final resting place in Loudon Park Cemetery yesterday afternoon. The Body was brought to Baltimore from Galveston, of which the deceased was an honored citizen. The funeral services held there were elaborate, the whole city testifying to the esteem in which he was held".
The passing of Henry Rosenberg was a horrible surprise to many Galvestonians as well as most of the residents of the Lone Star State, and to make it more unbearable they learned that they would lose his final remains to yet another State (Maryland), where he was to lie in permanent slumber. You see most of the people that lived with Henry for nearly fifty years did not know of his never-ending commitment to his first wife, Miss Letitia Cooper, nor that it was his wish to be buried at her side in Baltimore, the city of her death back in 1888. So on May 12, 1893, following a painful illness, Henry Rosenberg a man that helped many in need, ended his earthly career. His body lay in state at the Rosenberg Free School building, where it was viewed by thousands who wished to bid him farewell. The same school building that owed its very existence to the benevolence of Henry Rosenberg. Next an elaborate funeral service was held at Assembly Hall, followed by a second even more impressive service held at Grace Episcopal Church by the rector, Rev. J.R. Carter. The body was then temporarily deposited in Payne vault in the Cemetery at Galveston, awaiting removal and transport to Baltimore, Maryland. Hundred of newspapers throughout the country placed editorials extolling the life of Mr. Rosenberg.
Henry was born on June 22, 1824 in Bilten, Glarus Canton, Switzerland and immigrated to Galveston, The Republic of Texas in February, 1843. On this adventure, he accompanied the son of his old employer, a man named John Hessly. The men became partners in what was to prove to be a very successful dry-goods store. In three years time however, Mr. Rosenberg bought Mr. Hessly's share of the business and later went on to become a financier, investor, real estate magnate, and banker. In 1866, he was appointed vice consul of Switzerland for the State of Texas and three years later, he became the Swiss Consul, a position he held until the time of his death. His list of accomplishments were many such as, director of the First National Bank of Galveston, president of the Galveston City Railroad Company, City Alderman, chairman of the licenses and assessments committee and the revenue committee. Henry was twice on the library committee, helped to organize the Galveston Bank and Trust Company, of which he served as its president and manager. Mr. Rosenberg was not through yet however, and became the president of the Colorado and Santa Fe Railway Company from 1874 to 1877, and from 1889, until his death he served as vice president of the Galveston Warf.
Mr. Rosenberg was first a vestryman of the Trinity Episcopal Church, and contributed almost half the cost of Eaton Memorial Chapel, one of Galveston's loveliest historical buildings. He withdrew his membership from Trinity in 1884, and became a member of Grace Church. Then two years later he donated the Rosenberg Free School to the city. The residents of Galveston were well aware of Mr. Rosenberg's fine and numerous gifts, but after his death they finally realized the depth of his commitment to the city he loved. At the time of his death, Henry Rosenberg had amassed a fortune valued at $1,200,000.00, and after bequeathing $450,000.00 to his surviving widow, relatives, and friends the corpus, or remainder went to educational and charitable purposes. He provided for the building of a Church in his native village in Switzerland, The Island City Protestant Orphans' Home, $30,000; Grace Church parish, $30,000.00; Ladies' Aid Society of the German Lutheran Church, $10,000.00; a Women' Home, $30.000.00; the YMCA, $65,000.00, a monument for the memory of the heroes of the Texas Revolution, $50,000.00; and for drinking fountains for man and beast, $30,000.00.
The following portion of the residuary clause in Henry's will read:
"In making this bequest I desire to express in practical form my affection for the city of my adoption and for the people among whom I have lived for many years, trusting that it will aid their intellectual and moral development and be a source of pleasure and profit to them and their children and their children's children."
The passing of Henry Rosenberg was a horrible surprise to many Galvestonians as well as most of the residents of the Lone Star State, and to make it more unbearable they learned that they would lose his final remains to yet another State (Maryland), where he was to lie in permanent slumber. You see most of the people that lived with Henry for nearly fifty years did not know of his never-ending commitment to his first wife, Miss Letitia Cooper, nor that it was his wish to be buried at her side in Baltimore, the city of her death back in 1888. So on May 12, 1893, following a painful illness, Henry Rosenberg a man that helped many in need, ended his earthly career. His body lay in state at the Rosenberg Free School building, where it was viewed by thousands who wished to bid him farewell. The same school building that owed its very existence to the benevolence of Henry Rosenberg. Next an elaborate funeral service was held at Assembly Hall, followed by a second even more impressive service held at Grace Episcopal Church by the rector, Rev. J.R. Carter. The body was then temporarily deposited in Payne vault in the Cemetery at Galveston, awaiting removal and transport to Baltimore, Maryland. Hundred of newspapers throughout the country placed editorials extolling the life of Mr. Rosenberg.
Henry was born on June 22, 1824 in Bilten, Glarus Canton, Switzerland and immigrated to Galveston, The Republic of Texas in February, 1843. On this adventure, he accompanied the son of his old employer, a man named John Hessly. The men became partners in what was to prove to be a very successful dry-goods store. In three years time however, Mr. Rosenberg bought Mr. Hessly's share of the business and later went on to become a financier, investor, real estate magnate, and banker. In 1866, he was appointed vice consul of Switzerland for the State of Texas and three years later, he became the Swiss Consul, a position he held until the time of his death. His list of accomplishments were many such as, director of the First National Bank of Galveston, president of the Galveston City Railroad Company, City Alderman, chairman of the licenses and assessments committee and the revenue committee. Henry was twice on the library committee, helped to organize the Galveston Bank and Trust Company, of which he served as its president and manager. Mr. Rosenberg was not through yet however, and became the president of the Colorado and Santa Fe Railway Company from 1874 to 1877, and from 1889, until his death he served as vice president of the Galveston Warf.
Mr. Rosenberg was first a vestryman of the Trinity Episcopal Church, and contributed almost half the cost of Eaton Memorial Chapel, one of Galveston's loveliest historical buildings. He withdrew his membership from Trinity in 1884, and became a member of Grace Church. Then two years later he donated the Rosenberg Free School to the city. The residents of Galveston were well aware of Mr. Rosenberg's fine and numerous gifts, but after his death they finally realized the depth of his commitment to the city he loved. At the time of his death, Henry Rosenberg had amassed a fortune valued at $1,200,000.00, and after bequeathing $450,000.00 to his surviving widow, relatives, and friends the corpus, or remainder went to educational and charitable purposes. He provided for the building of a Church in his native village in Switzerland, The Island City Protestant Orphans' Home, $30,000; Grace Church parish, $30,000.00; Ladies' Aid Society of the German Lutheran Church, $10,000.00; a Women' Home, $30.000.00; the YMCA, $65,000.00, a monument for the memory of the heroes of the Texas Revolution, $50,000.00; and for drinking fountains for man and beast, $30,000.00.
The following portion of the residuary clause in Henry's will read:
"In making this bequest I desire to express in practical form my affection for the city of my adoption and for the people among whom I have lived for many years, trusting that it will aid their intellectual and moral development and be a source of pleasure and profit to them and their children and their children's children."
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