"Imagination" in Play - Artist George Henry Story - (no date)

"Imagination"
Oil on Fibreboard
Artist - George Henry Story 1835-1922
(Public Domain - United States)



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Eckley Brinton Coxe, Jr. – Tribute to His Memory by John Cadwalader – Philadelphia Evening Bulletin – 1916

Eckley B. Coxe Jr., 1872-1916
University of Pennsylvania Painting Collection
Artist - Adolphe E. Borie 1877-1934
(Public Domain - United States)

Proceedings of the Numismatic and Antiquarian Society of Philadelphia, Volume 28 (page 31)

“Eckley Brinton Coxe, Jr.

 “Member 1914.

“Born May 31, 1872                                       September 20, 1916

“ Eckley Brinton Coxe, Jr. of 1604 Locust Street, died September 20 1916, at his summer home at Drifton, near Hazleton, Penna., after an illness of more than a year. He was a son of the late Charles Brinton Coxe and Elizabeth Sinkler Coxe.

“He entered the University of Pennsylvania in 1891 in Biology and received a certificate of proficiency in June, 1893. He was, therefore, a member of the Class of 1893 and of the Delta Phi Fraternity as his father and four uncles had been before him. He was President of the University Museum, a member of The Numismatic and Antiquarian Society of Philadelphia, and of the International Historical Society, also of the University, Rittenhouse, Racquet, Philadelphia, Philadelphia Country, and Huntingdon Valley Clubs.

“The tribute to his memory published in the Evening Bulletin and written by Hon. John Cadwalader gives such an interesting account of his family that it is here quoted:

“ ‘Eckley B Coxe, Jr. sustained the name and usefulness of one of the most distinguished families that this country has produced. Dr.Daniel Coxe, of London from whom he was directly descended, was in 1678 the proprietor of West New Jersey and of Carolina, which included all the territory between N. Latitude 31st to 36th parallels, and prepared the first general plan for a union of the colonies.

“ ‘Tench Coxe, the great grandfather at the age of thirty-three was a member of the Continental Congress, Assistant Secretary of the Treasury to Alexander Hamilton in 1789, filled many important posts until his death in 1824, and it was said of him that he “was never forgetful of the duty of exerting his peculiar talents for the good of his country.” The grandfather, Charles S. Coxe, was a judge of the district court, noted for its eminent judges, and rendered, among others, a most important decision relating to the privileges of consular as distinguished from diplomatic officials recognized generally by writers on international law. 

“ ‘His father Major Charles Brinton Coxe, was the youngest of the five sons of Judge Coxe, all of whom were men of unusual force of character and distinction.  The eldest Brinton Coxe, was one of the most learned lawyers of his day, as shown in his work on Bracton and his unfinished analysis of the Constitution of the United States.

“ ‘Eckley B. Coxe, after whom his nephew was named, was the most eminent mining engineer this country has produced, and held a very important position in the State, politically and as head of the firm of Coxe Brothers & Co., who operated the great anthracite coal fields owned by the Coxe family.

“ ‘Charles B. Coxe. the father was a scholar of a high order, having taken the highest rank in the University of Pennsylvania, in the class of 1862, that included many of our most successful citizens, among them two Provosts of the University.

“ ‘His services in the army, having been major of the Sixth Pennsylvania Cavalry, the only lancer regiment, were most conspicuous for bravery and unselfish devotion.  He was equally popular with his fellow officers and men. Several of those in his company were long in the service of Coxe Brothers & Co., of which Charles Coxe was a member.

“ ‘Eckley B Coxe, Jr. though not of vigorous frame, was full of determined energy and untiring in any work he undertook.  Unlike many young men of independent means, he had but one object in life, which was to be useful, following the example of his great-grandfather.  His father having died in Egypt, the son had always felt a deep interest in that land of the earliest civilization.  Growing out of this interest, he became connected with the Museum of the University of Pennsylvania, and secured for it the result of the exploring expeditions which he entirely supported under concessions granted by the Egyptian government.  Few persons understand to what extent this great department of the University has been dependent upon the liberality and generosity of a very few persons.

“ ‘Mr. Coxe became president of the Board of the Museum and had practically met the large annual outlay necessary to maintaining its work. This has been in addition to sustaining the expeditions and meeting the cost of the valuable publications constantly used.  Mr. Coxe did not limit his interest to these educational fields, but every charitable movement appealed to him.

“ ‘The Children's Hospital, the College of Physicians, the Orthopaedic Hospital, many fields of work in aid of the miners and their families in the anthracite coal region, and the Episcopal Diocese of Central Pennsylvania are only some of those that could be mentioned to which he has contributed on a very large scale.

“ ’There was a quiet, dignified reserve, with a gentleness of character, in Eckley Coxe rarely met with. Firm and decided wherever he had a positive view, it was always a pleasure to him to meet the wishes of those who appealed to him.  

“ ‘His generosity was not measured; but was indulged for the benefit of others, with little thought of himself. The concentration of wealth in the hands of such a man is productive of more good to the community than any possible distribution, among many could produce. His life was spent for the benefit of others and he maintained a reputation without a blemish. To those who learned to appreciate his generous thought and to his immediate family his loss is irreparable.

“ ‘He showed the value of inherited worth, and did not fail to sustain in every way what might have been expected of him.’ “

University Museum - University of Pennsylvania - Philadelphia

1604 Locust Street - Philadelphia (Google Maps)
Former Residence of Eckley B. Coxe Jr. 

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