History of Hudson County, New Jersey

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Newspaper Stories of Hudson County, New Jersey

Georgia Weekly Telegraph January 21, 1873
The Richest Boy in American - A Magnificent Inheritance (from the New York Mercury)
Everybody has heard of the late Edwin A. Stevens, of Hoboken. His father, Col. John Stevens, invested nearly all his wealth in Hoboken lands, and soon became the possessor of the vast tract that stretches from the Elysian Fields to a point beyound the line of the terminus of the Morris and Essex Road and from the river to the Palisades. From a small village the tract became a town, and from a town a ? and lots that were purchased by the Colonel for less than one dollar each, were soon worth five hundred times that amount. The Colonel did not retire upon his golden laurels. He projected the Camden and Amboy and New Jersey railroads, and lived to see both in a fair way to completion. His hand and fortune were visible in every improvement, and his genius and disposition descended to his son, the late Edwin A. Stevens. The latter was the principal manager of the Camden and Amboy Railroad, and he applied steam, then comparatively in it's infancy, to all the various ? And projects which had emanated from his busy brain. Forty two years ago Edward A. Stevens was regarded as
the most active business man in the United States, and, making due allowance for age, he preserved his reputation up to within two or three years of his death. The great iron battery, which was the last
embodiment of his genius, was the forerunner of our monitors. Edwin A. Stevens left two sons. The eldest is called after himself. His is a bright lad of seventeen, unaffected in his manners. The mother, who is still a young woman, resides with her children in the "castle" above the banks of the Hudson, near the heart of Hoboken. The boy does not seem to realize that he is heir to an estate worth $40,000,000 and that in four years more he will probably be the richest man in the world.
When he reaches his majority, the interest on his fortune will amount to a larger sum than the salary of any crowned head in Europe. It would be really difficult to compute what the Stevens establishment will be worth in five years more. A large number of leases of valuable houses and lots, now held at nominal rents, will then revert to young Stevens, and he will be the sole possessor of bonds and other securities which are now valued at $4,000,000. Should he live to the age of his father, and be as lucky in his venture, his wealth will be greater than Rothschilds. The lad, however, seems to be unconscious of his destiny. He may be seen daily playing on the lawn in front of the castle where his father passed his maturer life. [Submitted by Dena Whitesell]

Part Heir to $2,000,000
Foster Son Learns that his own Father Died Wealthy
John Gilmore Hall, adopted son of Mr. and Mrs. Charles T. Hall of Arlington, N.J., is believed to be the heir, together with three other children, to $2,000,000 left by his father, John Gilmore, who is said to have deserted the four children twenty-three years ago at Crestline, O. after placing them in an orphan home. Mr. And Mrs. Hall adopted John when he was five years old and brought him up as one of their own family. A year ago the young man entered the army and is now stationed at Fort Riley, Kan. According to information received by Hall, Gilmore went to Mexico where he took up mining and died wealthy. On his deathbed he told his partner of his children and begged him to take up the search for them. All have been found except a daughter. [Williamsburg Journal & Tribune – Williamsburg, Iowa – after 1900]

Jersey City, N.J. -- Michael Schiavone, junk dealer, bought the bankrupt New York and Naseau Traction company for $15,000. It was valued at $1,650.00 in 1919. [7-25-1922, The News Sentinel. Submitted by Barb Ziegenmeyer]