Simon Guggenheim

John Simon Guggenheim (December 30, 1867 – November 2, 1941) was an American businessman, politician and philanthropist.

Early life and education

Guggenheim was born in Philadelphia of Jewish descent on December 30, 1867, the son of Meyer Guggenheim and Barbara Guggenheim, and was the younger brother of Daniel Guggenheim and Solomon R. Guggenheim. He attended Central High School and the Peirce School of Business Administration, both in Philadelphia.

Career After graduating from Peirce School of Business Administration, Guggenheim relocated to Pueblo, Colorado, where he worked as the chief ore buyer at M. Guggenheim's Sons, his father's mining and smelting company.

In 1898, he was the Republican candidate for Governor of Colorado, but withdrew after riots broke out at the state convention in Colorado Springs, during which one man was killed and several injured.

U.S. Senate In 1907, Simon Guggenheim was elected as a Republican to the United States Senate, representing Colorado from 1907 to 1913. During his term in the Senate, he chaired the Committee to Establish a University of the United States, and the Committee on the Philippines.

While he was in Congress, one of Guggenheim's older brothers, Benjamin Guggenheim, died in the RMS Titanic catastrophe.

Business After his U.S. Senate term expired, he and his wife Olga returned to New York City. Guggenheim joined the board of American Smelting and Refining Company, and was later appointed chairman of the board. From 1919 to 1941, he was the company's president.

Personal life After moving to Denver in 1892, Guggenheim married Olga Hirsch on November 24, 1898, at the Waldorf Astoria New York in Manhattan. To celebrate their marriage, the Guggenheims provided a Thanksgiving dinner to 5,000 poor Manhattan children.

Their first child, John Simon Guggenheim, was born in 1905. To commemorate the event, Simon Guggenheim made an $80,000 donation to the Colorado School of Mines to build a namesake building, Simon Guggenheim Hall. At the time, it was the largest private grant ever made to a state institution.

In 1907, Olga gave birth to their second son, George Denver Guggenheim. In 1909, Simon donated a law school building at the University of Colorado.

In 1922, Guggenheim's son John died of mastoiditis just before leaving for college. In 1925, in his memory, Guggenheim and his wife established the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation.

In 1939, the Guggenheims' second son, George, committed suicide in a Manhattan hotel at the age of 32.

Death On November 2, 1941, Guggenheim died in New York City, at age 73. He is interred in the Woodlawn Cemetery in The Bronx.