Warren Newcomb, 1814-1866

Warren Newcomb (1814-1866) was frequently called a sugar merchant in New Orleans. But he was much more than that, owning, with his brother Horatio Dalton Newcomb, a very prosperous wholesale business that took cotton, molasses, and other southern products to the growing midwest markets of the United States. Though born in New England, he engaged in such work from Louisville, where Jo, summering there with her sister’s family, met him. They married in 1845, but continued to live between various cities: New York, in hotels, yet with their own carriage, coachmen, and silver; Louisville, at least at some point, with Warren’s brother, H.D. Newcomb, and his family; and for shorter periods in New Orleans and Paris. Warren and Josephine do not appear as enslaving people of African descent in the 1850 and 1860 censuses. We have not found any conveyance records that indicate they were enslavers. But, we do know that they benefitted monetarily many times over from the slave economy. We also know that in the 1840s and 1850s, H.D. Newcomb’s household contained four enslaved persons who would have been known to JLN and Warren. JLN does not mention enslaved persons in her letters.

In New York, in 1853, Warren and Jo had a son who died at birth, and in 1855, a daughter, Harriott Sophie. In 1863, Warren retired from his business, a millionaire. In 1865, he again established a partnership with his brother Horatio, this time, narrowing their trading to tobacco and cotton. The firm-name in New York was called Warren Newcomb & Co. But just as Warren had done this, he died of cirrhosis of the liver in 1866, leaving a fortune that today would be valued at about 14 million dollars. JLN would work with brokers to increase this amount.

Warren via his large family—he was one of thirteen children—provided JLN and certainly Sophie with a number of aunts, uncles, and cousins who came in and out of their lives. Besides H.D., they were close to Warren’s sister Mary, and HD’s son Victor.

JLN’s membership in this family also provided her with further reason to learn about legal and fiduciary matters. Warren was interested in Washington College, later Washington and Lee, and he established there a scholarship in Sophie’s honor. After his death, JLN continued to give to the College. The library, still there today, bears Warren’s name. Because of this donation of funds, she also became reacquainted with William Preston Johnston (they had met earlier in Louisville), since he taught there. Johnston would become another link to Tulane University for JLN when he assumed its presidency in 1884.

In other matters, Warren also created reasons for JLN to learn about money. Though seemingly amiable with the Newcomb brothers, JLN had to file suit against the family in order to control the money left to her by Warren. This suit was still not decided at the time of her death. A legal case, via this link, has the record for all the cases that deal with construing Warren Newcomb’s will.

The family also had troubles in terms of mental illness as described in the biography of H.D. Newcomb. That possibly also became an influence on JLN’s seemingly strange behavior.