Frederick Douglas Underwood

Frederick Douglas Underwood (February 1, 1849 – February 18, 1942) was president of the Erie Railroad from 1901 to 1926 the son of Enoch Downs Underwood and Harriet Flint (Denny) Underwood. He attended the public schools of Wauwatosa and Wayland Academy, Beaver Dam, Wisconsin. In 1867 he entered the employ of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad, rising from clerk and brakeman to division superintendent.

In 1875, he married Sara Virginia Smith, by whom he had two sons, Enoch William and Russell Sage Underwood. They were divorced in 1886, and in 1893 he married Alice Stafford Robbins.

Railroad career In 1886 Underwood was named general superintendent of the Minneapolis and Pacific Railway. Before the end of the year he was superintendent of construction of its successor, the Minneapolis, St. Paul and Sault Ste. Marie Railway (Soo Line). However, with control of the B&O by the Pennsylvania Railroad in the offing, Underwood accepted J. Pierpont Morgan's offer of the presidency of the Erie Railroad in May 1901. During his tenure he made good use of limited financial resources to rebuild the long-troubled Erie as a first-class railroad, especially as a freight carrier. From 1920 to 1926 he was also chairman of the executive committee. A number of executives who served under him went on to fame in their own right, most notably Daniel Willard. Underwood retired from the Erie in 1926.

The 340-foot, 3,045-ton package freighter Ramapo, built in 1896 at Buffalo, New York, was renamed F.D. Underwood by the Erie Railroad in 1910. Although sold to the Great Lakes Transit Corporation in 1916, the steamer continued to carry Underwood's name until she was sold for scrap in 1940.

Later life A licensed captain, Underwood owned three yachts in succession. He was also an early automobile owner. He owned two farms, one in Wauwatosa and another in Farmington, Minnesota; usually he spent his summers at the latter.

Underwood retired as president of the Erie Railroad on December 31, 1926. He died of pneumonia at his home at 151 Central Park West, New York City, at the age of 93 on February 18, 1942.