Bechtel, Edwin DeTurck, 1880-1957

Edwin De Turck Bechtel (1880-1957) was President and Board Chairman of the New York Botanical Garden. He was an amateur rosarian and art collector. He was winner of the Jane Righter Rose Medal of the Garden Clubs of America in 1953. The Bechtel Rose Garden at the New York Botanical Garden was named in his honor in 1972. A lawyer by profession, he was associated with the firm of Carter, Ledyard and Milburn. He graduated from Harvard University. He was married to Louise Seaman, founder of the children's department at Macmillan. Bechtel collected Callot and Daumier. He gave his collection to the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Bechtels lived at Bedford Four Corners, N.Y. on a 32-acre estate where they established a rose garden of more than 300 varieties. Louise Seamans Bechtel wrote a memoir of her husband titled "The Boy with the Star Lantern". He died at home on July 4, 1957.

From the description of Edwin De Turck Bechtel papers 1930-1971. (New York Botanical Garden). WorldCat record id: 44400416

Edwin De Turck Bechtel (1880-1957) was an attorney, art collector, and scholar of rose culture. He received his Harvard Bachelor of Arts in 1903; Master of Arts in 1904; and Bachelor of Laws in 1905. Bechtel wrote about roses and their culture and studied various techniques of rose hybridization. He was a winner of the Rose Medal of the Garden Clubs of America; president and board chairman of the New York Botanical Garden and chairman of the Horticultural Society of New York. His interests also included philosophy, prints, and etching. In 1933, Bechtel endowed an annual prize at Harvard for the best student essay on a philosophical subject; in 1955, he bequeathed a fund for the establishment of the Alfred North Whitehead Lectures at Harvard.

From the description of Correspondence of Edwin De Turck Bechtel, 1900-1901. (Harvard University). WorldCat record id: 768583882

L'Association mensuelle lithographique published twenty-four caricatures of Louis Philippe between 1832 and 1834 during an era of struggle for freedom of the press. The caricatures, or "charges," are illustrated in the published book.

From the description of Freedom of the press and L'Association mensuelle : Philipon versus Louis Philippe : typescript, 1951. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 122516158

Bechtel earned his Harvard AB in 1903, his Harvard AM in 1904, and his Harvard LLB in 1908.

From the description of Student notes and theses, 1899-1904. (Harvard University). WorldCat record id: 77074434