BURIED TOGETHER
Partner John Pope, buried together
Queer Places:
405 E Cary St, Richmond, VA 23219
901 W Franklin St, Richmond, VA 23284
Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, 1800 Lakeside Ave, Richmond, VA 23228
The Jefferson Hotel, 101 W Franklin St, Richmond, VA 23220
Hollywood Cemetery, 412 S Cherry St, Richmond, VA 23220
Major
Lewis Ginter (April 24, 1824 – October 1, 1897) was a prominent businessman,
military officer, real estate developer, and philanthropist centered in
Richmond, Virginia. A native of New York City, Ginter accumulated a
considerable fortune throughout his numerous business ventures and became
Richmond's wealthiest citizen despite his exceptionally modest demeanor.[1]
While the Jefferson Hotel, Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden, and Ginter Park
embody some of Ginter's major urban contributions to Richmond, many of his
philanthropic gifts were given anonymously to charitable organizations and
individuals in need.[2]
His continued devotion to Richmond is captured in his famous remark, "I am for
Richmond, first and last."[3]
Lewis Ginter was born to John and Elizabeth Ginter, a Dutch immigrant
couple, on April 24, 1824 in New York City. His father owned a grocery store,
but died soon after Ginter was born. Several years later, Ginter's mother
died, leaving him to be raised by his older sister and brother with their
relatives.[4]
In 1842, at the age of eighteen, Ginter relocated to Richmond, Virginia to
open up a shop selling toys. He had visited the city at least once before with
an uncle. Ginter soon moved from selling toys to merchandising fine linens,
and encountered great success. By 1856, he formed a partnership with his
nephew, George Arents, and John F. Alvey to begin marketing wholesale linens.[4]
Ginter traveled throughout the United States and Europe in search of high
quality linens and amassed a considerable fortune before the beginning of the
American Civil War. Preparing for unpredictable times, Ginter invested in
large quantities of tobacco, sugar, and cotton that were stored in Richmond
warehouses in order to protect his wealth.[5]
Ginter’s House
Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden
Although he was originally from the North, Ginter supported his adopted
home in the Confederacy by buying Confederate bonds and waiving outstanding
debts. In 1861, he joined the Confederate Army and received praise from his
superiors for his heroic and logical behavior on several occasions, which
earned him the nickname "The Fighting Commissary." Ginter eventually rose to
the rank of Major under Generals Joseph R. Anderson and A.P. Hill, and
retained this title from affectionate Southerners long after the war ended.[6]
Ginter was present during Lee's surrender at Appomattox Court House, and
returned to Richmond several days later.[7]
Upon his return to Richmond, Ginter found the city in a state of total
disrepair. His warehouse stores of tobacco and sugar were destroyed during a
citywide fire, though his cotton remained unscathed. With little economic
opportunity in Richmond, Ginter decided to return to New York City to pursue a
career in banking.[5]
He joined the firm Harrison, Goddin, & Apperson and encountered great
financial success. But his regained fortune was short-lived. The Panic of 1873
forced Ginter to use his personal fortune to settle heavy debts his firm
incurred. Having lost all of his wealth once again, Ginter decided to return
to Richmond.[6]
In 1873, Ginter joined John F. Allen to form Allen & Ginter, a partnership
selling foreign made tobacco. Shortly after, Ginter thought of manufacturing
Virginia made cigarettes to compete with foreign products, and Allen & Ginter
released their first line of domestic cigarettes as the "Richmond Gems" in
1875.[8]
Early production began in a factory with twenty young ladies who hand-rolled
the cigarettes.[5]
The domestic cigarettes enjoyed phenomenal success, and Ginter began designs
for more brands. Allen & Ginter soon released "Perfection," "Napoleon,"
"Virginia Pets," and "Old Dominion." By 1888, the company employed over 1,000
workers and cigarette production increased from 100,000 per month to 2,000,000
per day. Allen & Ginter eventually opened offices in London, Paris, and Berlin
in order to meet foreign demand for their products.[8]
With growing competition in the tobacco industry, Ginter commissioned custom
designed cigarette machine rollers. Allen & Ginter continued to prosper until
they merged with J. B. Duke, Kinney Tobacco, and Goodwin & Company to form the
American Tobacco Company in 1890. Ginter was offered presidency, but declined
and remained a director until his death.[9]
Although Ginter had lived in Richmond for several decades, he did not
purchase his first home until 1886. He invited his sister, Jane Arents, and
her four children, George, Grace Evelyn, Joanna, and Minnie, to live with him
at 405 East Cary Street. In 1888, he built a Late-Victorian three-story house
at 901 West Franklin Street, currently known as the Ginter House.[9]
This construction sparked a trend as many elegant, new homes soon popped up
along Franklin Street.
Ginter was inspired by the suburban developments in Melbourne and Sydney
that he visited on one of many business trips marketing for Allen & Ginter.
Beginning in 1888, Ginter and John Pope began purchasing large tracts of land
on the northern side of Richmond in Henrico County with the intention of
developing suburbs. Their purchases included Westbrook Plantation, which they
developed into a grand country estate. The Westbrook house included a private
barbershop and one-lane bowling alley."[10]
Ginter and Pope divided the large swaths of land into residential plots and
provided many extravagant amenities, such as fresh artesian wells, tile sewer
lines, roads covered with crushed stone, and the extension of the Richmond
Union Passenger Railway, the nation's first electric tram system. The
neighborhood, known as Ginter Park, attracted the Union Theological Seminary
and was eventually annexed to the City of Richmond.[11]
Ginter also had a hand in developing several nearby neighborhoods. He
established the Lakeside Wheel Club in 1894, and built a nine-hole golf course
and a small zoo.[5]
Always eager to improve Richmond, Ginter hired architects Carrere and
Hastings in 1892 to design a world-class hotel known as the Jefferson. An
estimated 5-10 million dollars were invested in the realization of the hotel
before it opened on October 31, 1895.[12]
Upon opening, it was immediately praised as one of the finest hotels in the
country. Ginter commissioned Edward V. Valentine to create a life-size
sculpture of Thomas Jefferson from Carrara marble to be displayed as the
centerpiece of the upper lobby. Additional novelties included exotic palm
trees from Central and South America, numerous antiques, Turkish and Russian
baths, electric elevators, and for a brief period, alligators in the outdoor
fountain.[13]
Not only did the Jefferson become an icon of Ginter's immeasurable dedication
to his adopted city, it symbolized Richmond's growing post-war prosperity.
The Jefferson Hotel, 101 W Franklin St, Richmond, VA 23220
While working as a banker in New York City, Ginter met
John Pope, a young messenger boy who
delivered packages to Ginter's firm.[14]
Pope was born in New York City in 1856 to a German immigrant family. His
father was a shoemaker, and Pope acquired the delivery job at the age of 14 to
help his family make ends meet. Ginter recruited Pope to join his newly formed
tobacco company, Allen & Ginter.[15]
Shortly thereafter, Ginter relocated back to Richmond, and brought Pope along
with him.
The two began an enduring partnership that would last for the remainder of
their lives. Pope quickly became Ginter's trusted business partner and assumed
a number of executive roles, including Vice President of Allen & Ginter in
1888, and President of the Crystal Ice Company, James River Marl and Bone
Phosphate Company, and Powhatan Clay Manufacturing Company. Like Ginter, Pope
was involved in a number of philanthropic activities, and strove to avoid the
public's eye.[16]
Ginter and Pope remained lifelong bachelors and lived together until Pope's
death in 1896.[17][18]
Pope was buried in a plot in Hollywood Cemetery that Ginter had reserved for
himself.[19]
While their relationship was never explicitly romantic, Ginter reportedly
"never sought the company of women."[17][20]
The death of Ginter's close companion John Pope left him noticeably
distraught. Ginter also suffered from diabetes, and his health quickly
declined before being bedridden at his Westbrook estate. After two months of
severe debilitation, Ginter died on October 2, 1897. His funeral was regarded
as one of the largest in Richmond's history, and he remains interred in a
private mausoleum in Hollywood Cemetery, overlooking the James River.[21][22]
He left everything to his niece, Grace
Arents.
My published books:
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