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John R. Wilder

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John Randolph Wilder
BornMarch 18, 1816
DiedNovember 1, 1879(1879-11-01) (aged 63)
NationalityAmerican
Occupationbusinessman

John Randolph Wilder (March 18, 1816 – November 1, 1879) was an American businessman based in Savannah, Georgia, where he was a prominent civic leader, cotton merchant and planter.[1] His shipping and cotton exporting houses were regarded as some of the leading businesses in Savannah.[2] He was also a slave-owner.[3]

Life and career

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A descendent of Captain Thomas Wilder, who served in King William's War, Wilder was born in 1816 in Leicester, Massachusetts, to John Wilder and Lucinda A. Washburn.[4]

He married Anna Drucilla Lewis in 1840.[2]

After moving to Savannah, Georgia, Wilder went into the cotton business with his only child, son Joseph John, who was born on January 5, 1844.[1] Joseph continued the business after his father's death; it was known for a period as Wilder & Fullerton, then J. J. Wilder & Co.[5]

In 1868, Wilder and his family purchased what is now known as Mercer House, in Savannah's Monterey Square, from General Hugh W. Mercer, great-grandfather of Savannahian songwriter Johnny Mercer.[6][1]

He became consul of the Russian government in Savannah, a role which his son later inherited.[2]

Wilder studied in Germany during much of the American Civil War of 1861–1865.[1]

The Wilder family owned around 325 acres (132 ha) of land in the Oakton district of Marietta, Georgia, where they summered up until the outbreak of the Civil War.

Death

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Wilder died in Marietta in 1879, aged 63.[2] He was interred in Savannah's Laurel Grove Cemetery, alongside his wife, who preceded him in death by two years.[2]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d "King and Wilder families papers". ghs.galileo.usg.edu. Retrieved 2022-12-20.
  2. ^ a b c d e Georgia: Comprising Sketches of Counties, Towns, Events, Institutions, and Persons Arranged in Cyclopedic Form ... State Historical Association. 1903. p. 581.
  3. ^ Catron, Staci L. (2018). Seeking Eden: A Collection of Georgia's Historic Gardens. University of Georgia Press. p. 225. ISBN 9780820353005.
  4. ^ Davis, George Lucien (1884). Samuel Davis, of Oxford, Mass., and Joseph Davis, of Dudley, Mass., and Their Descendants. George L. Davis. p. 185.
  5. ^ The Atlanta Constitution, September 11, 1900
  6. ^ "Mercer House, Savannah. The Collection of the Late James A. Williams. Contents to be Sold by Sotheby's New York on October 20" Archived 2020-03-17 at the Wayback Machine – Sothebys
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