WILLIAM

See also:

• COLLINS, ANTHONY (1676-1729)
• COLLINS, JOHN CHURTON (1848-1908)
• COLLINS, MORTIMER (1827-1876)
• COLLINS, WILLIAM (1721-1759)
• COLLINS, WILLIAM (1787–1847)
• COLLINS, WILLIAM WILKIE (1824–1889)

COLLINS

See also:

• WHITNEY, ELI (1765-1825)
• WHITNEY, JOSIAH DWIGHT (1819-1896)
• WILLIAM COLLINS WHITNEY (1841-1904)
• WHITNEY, WILLIAM DWIGHT (1827-1894)

WHITNEY (1841-1904)  , American political leader and financier, was born at Conway, Massachusetts, on the 15th of July 1841, of Puritan stock . He graduated at Yale in 1863, studied law at Harvard, and practised with success in New York City . He was an aggressive opponent of the " Tweed Ring," and was actively allied with the anti-Tammany organizations, the " Irving Hall Democracy " of 1875-1890, and the " County Democracy " of 1880-1890, but upon the dissolution of the latter he became identified with Tammany . In 1875-1882 he was corporation counsel of New York, and as such brought about a codification of the laws relating to the city, and successfully contested a large part of certain claims, largely fraudulent, against the city, amounting to about $20,000,000, and a heritage from the Tweed regime . During President Cleveland's first administration (1885-1889), Whitney was secretary of the navy department and did much to develop the navy, especially by encouraging the domestic manufacture of armour plate . In 1892 he was instrumental in bringing about the third nomination of Mr Cleveland, and took an influential part in the ensuing presidential campaign; but in 1896, disapproving of the " free-silver " agitation, he refused to support his party's candidate, Mr W . J . Bryan . Whitney took an active interest in the development of urban transit in New York, and was one of the organizers of the Metropolitan Street Railway Company . He was also interested in horse-racing, and in 1901 won the English Derby with Volodyovski, leased by him from Lady Meux . He died in New York City on the 2nd of February 1964 .