Robert Hoe (1839-1909)
Manufacturer, Book Collector & 1st President of the Grolier Club, New York City
He was an extensive collector of rare books and manuscripts as well as silver, miniatures, and other objets d'art. His various collections were valued at several million dollars and even the catalogues of his library were unique and valuable from both a typographical and bibliographical standpoint. He co-founded the Grolier Club in 1884 which was created to promote book-binding and book-making as an art. His own rare book collection was sold at auction during 1911 and 1912 with almost half going to Henry E. Huntington including a Gutenberg Bible. He married Olivia, one of the daughters of Daniel James, a founding partner of Phelps, Dodge & Co. They were the parents of nine children and at his death he left a fortune of $8.3-million.
