The Wardner family were prominent members of the Windsor, Vermont community throughout the nineteenth century. This postcard depicts the family farm near the town and probably refers to Henry Steele Wardner (1867-1935).
Henry Steele Wardner was born July 8, 1867 in Windsor. He was educated at St. Paul's School in Concord, New Hampshire, and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Harvard College in 1888. Continuing at Harvard Law School, Henry graduated with a Bachelor of Laws degree in 1891 and was admitted to the New York State Bar the following year. After working two years in the office of the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Henry opened a private practice in New York City. In 1914 he married widow Lillian Millard Darrach.
While permanently residing in New York, Henry kept his family home in Windsor and was active in Vermont organizations. As the Vermont Journal eulogized in 1935, "Vermont interests held a very large place in his affections." An amateur historian, he authored The Birthplace of Vermont: A History of Windsor to 1871 in 1927. He is also indebted for saving records for the years 1769-1785 for the town of Windsor, which he found under a woodpile in the basement of the town hall. A breeder of horses, Henry served as the first president of the Morgan Horse Club. A collection of pamphlets and photographs pertaining to the club is held by the Vermont Historical Society. Henry also promoted forest preservation and was a proponent of the creation of the Green Mountain National Forest in the late 1920s. He died in New York City of pneumonia on March 5, 1935 and was buried three days later at Ascutney Cemetery in Windsor. He and his wife had no children, and I am unsure of who inherited the property.
Henry was descended from Johann Phillip Wardner, who emigrated from southwest Germany in the 1700s and eventually settled in Reading, Vermont on what is now referred to as Wardner Hill. Son Frederic moved to Windsor in 1800 with his wife Rebecca Waldo Wardner and children (seven of whom are Abigail, Polly, Calvin, Luther, Allen, Shubael, and James). Son Allen Wardner became a notable citizen of Windsor. Allen was born on December 13, 1796 in Alstead, New Hampshire. He attended West Point for one year, after which he returned to Windsor to partner in a mercantile business with a Dr. Green. After Dr. Green retired, Allen brought his brother Shubael into the firm, which was renamed A. & S. Wardner. Allen served as director of Old Bank of Windsor and president of Ascutney National Bank. He represented Windsor twice in the Vermont House of Representatives and was appointed State Treasurer in 1837, an office he held for one year. Allen married Minerva Bingham in 1814, and they had twelve children (George, Henry, Helen, Helen Minerva, Charles, Charlotte Pettes, Edward Allen, Ann Elizabeth, William, Maria Louisa, Caroline Crane, and Martha). After Minerva's death in 1841, Allen retired from his business affairs, handing them over to son Henry.
Henry Wardner was born in Windsor on February 10, 1817. He worked in his father's mercantile store, and later joined the Ascutney National Bank. There he became acquainted with Caroline Paine Steele, daughter of the bank's cashier. They married in 1866 and had three children (Henry Steele, Susan Ellen, and Allen). He later assumed the position of cashier, which he held even after taking over the bank from his father. He retired in 1883 and moved to Springfield, Massachusetts with his family. He died of complications from a stroke on February 15, 1891, shortly after his seventy-fourth birthday.
Henry Steele Wardner was born July 8, 1867 in Windsor. He was educated at St. Paul's School in Concord, New Hampshire, and earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from Harvard College in 1888. Continuing at Harvard Law School, Henry graduated with a Bachelor of Laws degree in 1891 and was admitted to the New York State Bar the following year. After working two years in the office of the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Henry opened a private practice in New York City. In 1914 he married widow Lillian Millard Darrach.
While permanently residing in New York, Henry kept his family home in Windsor and was active in Vermont organizations. As the Vermont Journal eulogized in 1935, "Vermont interests held a very large place in his affections." An amateur historian, he authored The Birthplace of Vermont: A History of Windsor to 1871 in 1927. He is also indebted for saving records for the years 1769-1785 for the town of Windsor, which he found under a woodpile in the basement of the town hall. A breeder of horses, Henry served as the first president of the Morgan Horse Club. A collection of pamphlets and photographs pertaining to the club is held by the Vermont Historical Society. Henry also promoted forest preservation and was a proponent of the creation of the Green Mountain National Forest in the late 1920s. He died in New York City of pneumonia on March 5, 1935 and was buried three days later at Ascutney Cemetery in Windsor. He and his wife had no children, and I am unsure of who inherited the property.
Henry was descended from Johann Phillip Wardner, who emigrated from southwest Germany in the 1700s and eventually settled in Reading, Vermont on what is now referred to as Wardner Hill. Son Frederic moved to Windsor in 1800 with his wife Rebecca Waldo Wardner and children (seven of whom are Abigail, Polly, Calvin, Luther, Allen, Shubael, and James). Son Allen Wardner became a notable citizen of Windsor. Allen was born on December 13, 1796 in Alstead, New Hampshire. He attended West Point for one year, after which he returned to Windsor to partner in a mercantile business with a Dr. Green. After Dr. Green retired, Allen brought his brother Shubael into the firm, which was renamed A. & S. Wardner. Allen served as director of Old Bank of Windsor and president of Ascutney National Bank. He represented Windsor twice in the Vermont House of Representatives and was appointed State Treasurer in 1837, an office he held for one year. Allen married Minerva Bingham in 1814, and they had twelve children (George, Henry, Helen, Helen Minerva, Charles, Charlotte Pettes, Edward Allen, Ann Elizabeth, William, Maria Louisa, Caroline Crane, and Martha). After Minerva's death in 1841, Allen retired from his business affairs, handing them over to son Henry.
Henry Wardner was born in Windsor on February 10, 1817. He worked in his father's mercantile store, and later joined the Ascutney National Bank. There he became acquainted with Caroline Paine Steele, daughter of the bank's cashier. They married in 1866 and had three children (Henry Steele, Susan Ellen, and Allen). He later assumed the position of cashier, which he held even after taking over the bank from his father. He retired in 1883 and moved to Springfield, Massachusetts with his family. He died of complications from a stroke on February 15, 1891, shortly after his seventy-fourth birthday.
Sources:
Lewis Cass Aldrich and Frank R. Holmes, eds., History of Windsor County, Vermont (Syracuse, NY: D. Mason & Co., 1891): 917-920 (Allen Wardner).
Allen Wardner, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allen_Wardner.
"Biographical Sketch," Henry Steele Wardner (1867-1935) Morgan Horse Collection, 1893-1917, Vermont Historical Society, Barre, VT.
Henry Wardner, https://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi/page/gr/search.ancestry.com/Browse/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=156435539.
The Vermont Journal, March 7, 1935.
Lewis Cass Aldrich and Frank R. Holmes, eds., History of Windsor County, Vermont (Syracuse, NY: D. Mason & Co., 1891): 917-920 (Allen Wardner).
Allen Wardner, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allen_Wardner.
"Biographical Sketch," Henry Steele Wardner (1867-1935) Morgan Horse Collection, 1893-1917, Vermont Historical Society, Barre, VT.
Henry Wardner, https://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi/page/gr/search.ancestry.com/Browse/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=156435539.
The Vermont Journal, March 7, 1935.