John Emory Andrus
Encyclopedia
John Emory Andrus was mayor
of Yonkers, New York
, a U.S. Congressman from New York, and founder of the SURDNA Foundation
.
, Andrus attended Charlotteville Seminary in Schoharie County, New York
and graduated from Wesleyan University
in 1862. He taught school in New Jersey
for four years and then pursued his talents as an investor and businessman. His primary operating business, the Arlington Chemical Company, manufactured typical medicines of the late 1800s and distributed them worldwide. Mr. Andrus' extraordinary skills, however, lay in finding and purchasing undervalued assets, usually in partnership with a knowledgeable operator. His holdings included several buildings and land in Minneapolis, Minnesota, large timber tracts in California, mineral-rich acres in New Mexico as well as significant land holdings in Florida, New Jersey and Alaska. He served as president of the New York Pharmaceutical Association, and of the Palisade Manufacturing Co. of Yonkers, Westchester County.
Andrus was elected mayor of Yonkers in 1903. In 1904, he was elected as a Republican
to the 59th United States Congress
and to the three succeeding Congresses, serving from March 4, 1905 to March 3, 1913. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1912, after which he resumed his former business pursuits in Yonkers, New York
.
The son of a Methodist minister, Mr. Andrus was active as a lay leader of the Methodist Church. In his 60s, he was elected mayor of Yonkers, New York, followed by four terms in the U.S. Congress. He held long-term posts as a trustee of Wesleyan University and as a director of New York Life Insurance Company
.
He was interred in Kensico Cemetery, Valhalla, New York
.
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
of Yonkers, New York
Yonkers, New York
Yonkers is the fourth most populous city in the state of New York , and the most populous city in Westchester County, with a population of 195,976...
, a U.S. Congressman from New York, and founder of the SURDNA Foundation
SURDNA Foundation
The SURDNA Foundation was established as a charitable foundation in 1917 by John Emory Andrus to pursue a range of philanthropic purposes.-History:...
.
Biography
Born in Pleasantville, New YorkPleasantville, New York
Pleasantville is a village in Westchester County, New York, United States. The population was 7,019 at the 2010 census. It is located in the town of Mount Pleasant. Pleasantville is home to a campus of Pace University and to the Jacob Burns Film Center...
, Andrus attended Charlotteville Seminary in Schoharie County, New York
Schoharie County, New York
As of the census of 2000, there were 31,582 people, 11,991 households and 8,177 families residing in the county. The population density was 51 people per square mile . There were 15,915 housing units at an average density of 26 per square mile...
and graduated from Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University
Wesleyan University is a private liberal arts college founded in 1831 and located in Middletown, Connecticut. According to the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, Wesleyan is the only Baccalaureate College in the nation that emphasizes undergraduate instruction in the arts and...
in 1862. He taught school in New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
for four years and then pursued his talents as an investor and businessman. His primary operating business, the Arlington Chemical Company, manufactured typical medicines of the late 1800s and distributed them worldwide. Mr. Andrus' extraordinary skills, however, lay in finding and purchasing undervalued assets, usually in partnership with a knowledgeable operator. His holdings included several buildings and land in Minneapolis, Minnesota, large timber tracts in California, mineral-rich acres in New Mexico as well as significant land holdings in Florida, New Jersey and Alaska. He served as president of the New York Pharmaceutical Association, and of the Palisade Manufacturing Co. of Yonkers, Westchester County.
Andrus was elected mayor of Yonkers in 1903. In 1904, he was elected as a Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
to the 59th United States Congress
59th United States Congress
The Fifty-ninth United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from March 4, 1905 to March 4, 1907, during the fifth and sixth...
and to the three succeeding Congresses, serving from March 4, 1905 to March 3, 1913. He was not a candidate for renomination in 1912, after which he resumed his former business pursuits in Yonkers, New York
Yonkers, New York
Yonkers is the fourth most populous city in the state of New York , and the most populous city in Westchester County, with a population of 195,976...
.
The son of a Methodist minister, Mr. Andrus was active as a lay leader of the Methodist Church. In his 60s, he was elected mayor of Yonkers, New York, followed by four terms in the U.S. Congress. He held long-term posts as a trustee of Wesleyan University and as a director of New York Life Insurance Company
New York Life Insurance Company
The New York Life Insurance Company is one of the largest mutual life-insurance companies in the United States, and one of the largest life insurers in the world, with about $287 billion in total assets under management, and more than $15 billion in surplus and AVR...
.
He was interred in Kensico Cemetery, Valhalla, New York
Valhalla, New York
Valhalla is an unincorporated hamlet and census-designated place that is located within the town of Mount Pleasant, New York, in Westchester County. Its population was 3,162 at the 2010 U.S. Census...
.