Gilbert Hovey Grosvenor

Gilbert Hovey Grosvenor
Born October 28, 1875(1875-10-28)
Died February 4, 1966(1966-02-04) (aged 90)
Known for National Geographic Magazine
Relatives Alexander Graham Bell, father-in-law
William Howard Taft, cousin

Gilbert Hovey Grosvenor (October 28, 1875 – February 4, 1966), the father of photojournalism, was the first full-time editor of National Geographic Magazine, serving from 1899 to 1954. Grosvenor is credited with having built the magazine into the iconic publication that it is today. As president of the National Geographic Society, he made it into one of the world's largest and best known science and learning organizations, aided by the bold chronicling in its magazine of ambitious natural and cultural explorations around the globe.[1]

Contents

Biography

Grosvenor was born to Edwin A. and Lilian Waters Grosvenor[2] in Istanbul, Turkey (Constantinople), and educated at Worcester Academy and at Robert College.[3] He attended Amherst College and graduated with the AB degree magna cum laude in 1897. Grosvenor became the President of the National Geographic Society (1920–1954). Grosvenor married Elsie May Bell (1878–1964), the daughter of Alexander Graham Bell.

Grosvenor's policy of complete neutrality and positive, upbeat journalism was maintained through two world wars, the Great Depression, and the beginning of the Cold War. However, this style (which had been innovative in the opening years of the 20th century) was quite dated and ossified by the 1950s. Grosvenor and his staff (most of them close to his age) had become conservative, complacent, and unwilling to modernize, and Geographic subscription fell as a result. After 50 years at the helm, he stepped down in 1954 at the age of 78.

Grosvenor's health deteriorated following the death of his wife and he died peacefully in his sleep at the age of 90 on February 4, 1966.

He was also:

Legacy

Grosvenor is buried in Rock Creek Cemetery alongside his wife and members of the Bell family. Grosvenor Arch, a sandstone double arch located in southern Utah, is named after Gilbert Grosvenor. In 1931 Grosvenor bought a property in Coconut Grove, Florida next door to his brother-in-law, David Fairchild. He called this estate Hissar after the small town in Turkey where he was born. After Fairchild's estate, the Kampong, was aquired by the National Tropical Botanical Garden they bought Hissar also.[4]

Family relations

Further reading

References

  1. ^ "Dr. Gilbert H. Grosvenor Dies. Head of National Geographic, 90. Editor of Magazine 55 Years Introduced Photos, Increased Circulation to 4.5 Million.". New York Times. February 5, 1966, Saturday. http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F10E1FFE3A5D127588DDAC0894DA405B868AF1D3. Retrieved 2007-07-21. "Baddeck, N.S., Feb. 4, 1964 (Canadian Press) Dr. Gilbert H. Grosvenor, chairman of the board and former president of the National Geographic Society and editor of the National Geographic magazine from 1899 to 1954, died on the Cape Breton Island estate once owned by his father-in-law, the inventor Alexander Graham Bell. He was 90 years old." 
  2. ^ "Grosvenor Family Papers". Library of Congress Manuscript Reading Room. http://www.loc.gov/rr/mss/text/grosvenr.html. 
  3. ^ "Where East Meets West.". Time (magazine). 24 April 2007. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,855428,00.html. "Robert College stands at the Bosporus narrows, where Europe and Asia are only 800 yards apart. Its 19th-century buildings overshadow a 15th-century Turkish fort. Engineers trained at Robert have built modern Turkey's factories, railroads and sewage systems. Basketball, softball, other U.S. sports have spread through Turkey from the college. Robert's noted students: Bulgaria's first education minister; a confidential secretary of the late President of Turkey, Ismet Inönü; Editor Gilbert Grosvenor of the National Geographic (his father taught there)." 
  4. ^ "National Tropical Botanical Garden - Kampong - History". http://ntbg.org/gardens/kampong-history.php. Retrieved 12 December 2011. 
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