Edwin D. Morgan III

Edwin Denison Morgan III (born Alfred Waterman Morgan; October 19, 1854 – June 13, 1933) was an American businessman and yachtsman.

Life and career Born in 1854 as Alfred Waterman Morgan, he was the grandson of New York governor Edwin D. Morgan, and a distant relative of financier J.P. Morgan. He graduated from Harvard College in 1877. He changed his name to Edwin Denison Morgan III at the request of his grandfather after the premature death of his father, Edwin Denison Morgan II (1834–1879).

After college, he became a highly successful businessman and was the founder of Nassau Light and Power, a shareholder in many significant livestock interests, and the president of mining companies in Mexico (including the Corralitos Company and Candelaria Mining Co.) at the beginning of the 1900s.

Notable residences

Beacon Rock Beacon Rock was Morgan's summer home in Newport, Rhode Island. It was completed for him around 1890 and nicknamed the "Acropolis of Newport". It was designed by architect Stanford White of McKim, Mead & White. Morgan owned over 650 acres in Wheatley Hills at the time. It became one of Long Island's largest and most complete estates.

The estate's stables burned down in 1907. The home was sold to Randall J. Le Boeuf in 1937. Parts of the house were demolished in the 1950s for a residential development. The home is now in pieces, with both wings of the house constituting separate houses. The home's chapel was also made into a private residence. The majority of the former estate now comprises The Wheatley School.

Yachting activities

Morgan was rear commodore (1887–8), vice commodore (1891-2) and then commodore (1923-4) of the New York Yacht Club. He was part of the winning team of the America's Cup Yacht Race in 1901 aboard the yacht Columbia. Name Year built Builder Specifications