The Jewel of Greenburgh: The Life of Charles Lewis Tiffany
By: Riley Wentzler & Felicia Barber
The village of Irvington is located within the town of Greenburgh. Over the years many prominent people have lived in the village or had summer homes here. One of the most prominent residents was Charles Lewis Tiffany. Many residents of Irvington know the name because of jewelry you purchased from Tiffany’s.
Charles Lewis Tiffany (February 15, 1812-February 18, 1902)
Charles Lewis Tiffany was the son of Comfort Tiffany and Chloe Draper. He was born in Killingly Connecticut on February 15, 1812 (https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/economics-magazines/tiffany-charles-lewis ). What was then Killingly, is now modern day Dayville (MICROSOFT ENCARTA, 1993-2003 Microsoft Corporation). His father was a cotton goods manufacturer, and for a while he helped his father run the family business until he decided to start his own business in 1837 (https://www.tiffany.com/world-of-tiffany/charles-lewis-tiffany/). At that point, he started a fancy goods store in New York City. This store originally sold stationery.
Four years after he opened up his store, he invited two friends John Young and J. L. Ellis to help him run the business https://www.britannica.com/biography/Charles-Lewis-Tiffany), and so it became known as Tiffany, Young, and Ellis (MICROSOFT ENCARTA, 1993-2003 Microsoft Corporation).Ellis had learned European jewelry making techniques and so they also slowly began to sell custom jewelry in addition to stationery.
Somewhere around this time he met John Young’s sister, Harriet Olivia Young, who he later married (https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/economics-magazines/tiffany-charles-lewis). They had six children. By 1844, it became apparent to Tiffany that jewelry took way longer to produce than stationery, but was also much more profitable, so in 1845, the company stopped selling stationery (https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/economics-magazines/tiffany-charles-lewis).
Aside from during the Civil War, when the company briefly made flags and swords for the Union Army, the company has had jewelry as its sole product ever since https://www.britannica.com/biography/Charles-Lewis-Tiffany). By 1868, the business was doing so well that in addition to the main branch in New York the company also had branches in: London England, Paris France, and Geneva Switzerland.
While his primary residence was in New York City, he had a summer home in Greenburgh’s Village of Irvington on Matthiessen Park North (https://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/story/money/real-estate/homes/2017/01/13/irvington-couple-built-their-dream-home-former-tiffany-estate/95608732/ ). Tiffany died in Yonkers of pneumonia on February 18, 1902 (https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/economics-magazines/tiffany-charles-lewis).
Previous Slices of History include:
Greenburgh’s BROTHERLY LOVE, RELIEF AND TRUTH: A History of The Freemasons in Greenburgh (9/12/18) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5658/BROTHERLY-LOVE-RELIEF-AND-TRUTH--in-Greenburgh
Greenburgh and The Arts (9/22/18) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5665/Greenburgh-AND-The--ARTS
A Final Resting Place for “Man’s Best Friend”: The Peaceable Kingdom (9/29/18) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5653/A-Final-Resting-Place--for-Mans-Best-Friend
Greenburgh’s Hall of Heroes: Ferncliff Cemetery Where Memories Live Forever (10/12/18)https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5667/Greenburgh-Hall-of-Heroes
Greenburgh at The Great American Crossroads: Greenburgh’s Civil War Story(10/19/18) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5666/Greenburgh-at-The-Great-American-Crossroad
A Different Kind of Rebel: Greenburgh’s Contributions to the Underground Railroad (10/27/18) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5680/A-Different-Kind-of-of-Rebel--Greenburghs-contributions-to-The-Underground-Railroad
"The Disappearing Railroad Blues" in Greenburgh: The Fate of the Putnam Railroad Line and the old Putnam Trail (11/6/18) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5675/The-Disappearing-Railroad-Blues-in-Greenburgh
A Thousand Words Which You Never Knew: The Forgotten Story of the Seal of Greenburgh (11/17/18) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5651/A--Thousand-Words-Which-You-Never-Knew-The-Forgotten-Story-of-The-Seal-of-Greenburgh
How a Flat Tire led to a Happy Escape: The Story of Carvel in Greenburgh (12/11/18) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5670/How-a-Flat-Tire-led-to-a-Happy-Escape
The Guardians of History: Greenburgh’s Historical Societies (1/6/19) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5676/The-Guardians-of--History
A Small House, an Important Meeting, a Huge Victory: The Story of the Odell House (1/12/2019) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5654/A-Small-House--an-Important-Meeting--A-Huge-Victory
The Intersection of Banking, Ballet, and School: Greenburgh’s Warburg Estate (Updated) (10/22/19)
Lost History: The Tragedy of Malkasten (1/26/19) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5673/Lost-History--The-Tragedy-of-Malkasten
A Beautiful View for the Perfect Event: The Belvedere Estate (2/9/19) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5652/A-Beautiful-View-for-The-Perfect-Event--Belvedere-Estate
The Power of Wealth and Humility: A Reflection on Two Highly Influential African Americans (2/18/19) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5679/Wealth-and-Humility
Greenburgh Under the Hollywood Lights: The TV shows and movies Filmed in Greenburgh Part I (2/23/19) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5668/Greenburgh-under-Hollywood-Lights-Part-I
Oh, The Places Your Mail has Gone: A History of The Hartsdale Post Office (3/9/2019) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5674/Oh-The-Places-Your-Mail-has-Gone
From Insurance to Symphonies: The Home of Charles Ives (3/16/19) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5664/From-Insurance-to-Symphonies--The-Home-of-Charles-Ives
Greenburgh Under the Hollywood Lights: The TV shows and Movies Filmed in Greenburgh Part II (3/29/19) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5669/Greenburgh-Under-the-Hollywood-Lights-The-TV-shows-and-movies-Filmed-in-Greenburgh-Part-II
From Chasing Rabbits to Setting Records: The Amazing Story of Larry James (4/7/2019) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5661/From-Chasing-Rabbits-to-Setting-Records
From Fixing Cars to building Infrastructure: How Massaro Park Got its name (4/13/2019) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5663/From-Fixing-Cars-to-Building-Infrastructure-How--Massaro-Park-Got-Its-Name
There is no church here, but “the brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated” this ground: The Story of The Little White Church Cemetery (4/27/19) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5678/There-is-no-church-here-but-the-brave-men-living-and-dead-who-struggled-here-have-consecrated-this-ground
Irvington in Chains and our Process A History of Slavery in Irvington and A look at how Slices of History are made (and our interview with historian Robert Marchant) (5/11/2019) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5671/Irvington-in-Chains
From Farmland to Shopping District: The Rise of Central Avenue (5/25/2019) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5662/From-Farmland-to-Shopping-District-The-Rise-of-Central-Avenue
Like a long lost friend”: The story of how summer recreation has evolved in Greenburgh (6/7/2019) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5672/like-a-long-lost-friend
Abandon Ship!!! The Story of United Nuclear Corporation and their Short-lived Elmsford Facility (6/28/19) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5656/Abandon-Ship
Beyond Heritage Versus Hate Toward Hope and Reconciliation: The story of Mount Hope Cemetery and its Confederate Monument (7/13/19) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5657/Beyond-Heritage-Versus-Hate-Toward-Hope-and-Reconciliation---The-story-of-Mount-Hope-Cemetery-and-its-Confederate-Monument
Hidden History: The Story of Fairview Fairgrounds Part I (7/27/19) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5660/fairgrounds
Entertainers for Justice (8/3/2019) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5659/Entertainers-for-Justice
A Tale of Two Towns: Greenburgh, NY, and Muncy, PA (8/23/ 2019) https://www.greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/5655/A-Tale-of-Two-Towns--Greenburgh-NY-and-Muncy-PA
Ashes “Ashes, Ashes!!We all Fall Down”(3/23/2020)
https://greenburghny.com/DocumentCenter/View/6653/Ashes-Ashes-We-all-Fall-Down
About the Authors:
We are both Assistant Town Historians at Greenburgh Town Hall and we are engaged to be married and are currently looking for permanent employment.
Riley Wentzler:
I was born and raised in a small rural town in central Pennsylvania. In high school, I took every honors course available including four years of Spanish. I received A’s in all of them. I graduated third in my class of 146 students. This brought me to Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. Once there, I continued my trend of academic excellence. I graduated summa cum laude in Political Science with a minor in Spanish and a Master’s in Communication Studies, with a G.P.A of 3.94. It was also there that I met my lovely fiancée, Felicia Barber. My Master’s in Communication has promoted public speaking, teamwork, and customer service. My Political Science degree has developed my research skills using computer-based tools and provided me with experience using the Microsoft Office products. My minor in Spanish has facilitated my bilingual capabilities. During my internship at Greenburgh, I created the petition for the State Roads project using website tools. My diverse education and areas of interest have provided me with a wide range of skills. I look forward to finding a career opportunity in business or government. To suggest a topic for next week’s article, you can contact me at assistanthistorian@greenburghny.com, or to help me find employment, you can contact me at rjwentzler413@gmail.com
Felicia Barber:
I was born in New York City and raised in Hartsdale, New York. I graduated from Ardsley High School. I recently earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in Graphic Design at Edinboro University of Pennsylvania. It was here that I met my fiancé, Riley Wentzler. As a result of my academic excellence, I won a scholarship every year. I learned and applied many graphic design skills to projects during my summer internships and at school. I am proficient in using Adobe graphic design applications including Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign. For my Identity/branding course at Edinboro, I created logos to appear on the tee-shirts of Physical Education majors. For a veteran’s upcoming event, I used a typeface to focus the reader to the soldier in the poster. For the State Roads Legislative Campaign project, I created the embedded graphic-photo that accompanied the petition I am looking for a job to utilize my skills as a Graphic Designer in an agency, print shop, company or government To suggest a topic for next week’s article, you can contact me at assistanthistorian@greenburghny.com. To learn more about my artwork or to help me find employment you can contact me at feliciadbarber@gmail.com.
Two Interviews with the authors:
https://riverjournalonline.com/around-town/a-love-of-history-and-each-other/13708/
https://wcbs880.radio.com/articles/news/stories-main-street-couple-cerebral-palsy-brings-manytalents-town-greenburgh
References:
Cengage . (2020, July 12). Tiffany, Charles Lewis. Retrieved from Encyclopedia.com: https://www.encyclopedia.com/education/economics-magazines/tiffany-charles-lewis
Croke, K. (2017, January 13). Irvington Dream home on a Tiffany Estate. Lo Hud , pp. Online at https://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/story/money/real-estate/homes/2017/01/13/irvington-couple-built-their-dream-home-former-tiffany-estate/95608732/.
Editors, E. B. (2019, (NOT GIVEN) (NOT GIVEN)). Charles Lewis Tiffany. Retrieved from The Encyclopedia Britannica: https://www.britannica.com/biography/Charles-Lewis-Tiffany
Microsoft Corporation. (1993-2003, (Not Given) (Not Given)). Encarta Encyclopedia . Redmond , Washington , United States of America .
Tiffany and Company. (2020, (NOT GIVEN) (NOT GIVEN)). The Legacy of Charles Lewis Tiffany. Retrieved from Tiffany&Co.: https://www.tiffany.com/world-of-tiffany/charles-lewis-tiffany/
