State of New York Issued to Vincent Astor -1946 dated $10,000 Bond
Inv# AG3168B Bond
$10,000 5% Bond Issued to Vincent Astor, not signed. Loan for Highway Improvement. Printed by Quayle & Sons, Albany, N.Y.
William Vincent Astor (November 15, 1891 – February 3, 1959) was an American businessman, philanthropist, and member of the prominent Astor family. Called Vincent, he was born in New York City on November 15, 1891. He was the elder son of John Jacob Astor IV, a wealthy businessman and inventor, and his first wife, Ava Lowle Willing, an heiress from Philadelphia. He graduated in 1910 from St. George's School in Middletown, Rhode Island, and attended Harvard University from 1911 to 1912, leaving school without graduating. Like his father, Astor belonged to the New York Society of Colonial Wars. He served as commodore of the New York Yacht Club from 1928 to 1930.
Astor was interested in trains. In the early 1930s, he established an estate in Bermuda which included a private narrow-gauge railway and union station with the Bermuda Railway. The estate is now divided between several private owners, none of whom are part of the Astor family. As recently as 1992, the remains of some of his rolling stock were visible. Vincent Astor was, according to family biographer Derek Wilson, "a hitherto unknown phenomenon in America: an Astor with a highly developed social conscience." He was 20 when his father died and, having inherited a massive fortune, he dropped out of Harvard University. He set out to change the family's image from that of miserly, aloof slum landlords who enjoyed the good life at the expense of others.
Over time, he sold off the family's New York City slum housing and reinvested in reputable enterprises, while spending a great deal of time and energy helping others. He was responsible for the construction of a large housing complex in the Bronx that included sufficient land for a big children's playground, and in Harlem, he transformed a valuable piece of real estate into another playground for children. Astor appeared at No. 12 on the first list of America's richest people, compiled by Forbes magazine. His net worth at the time was estimated at $75 million. Among his holdings was Newsweek magazine, and he was its chairman. The magazine had for a time its headquarters in the former Knickerbocker Hotel, which had been built by his father.
A bond is a document of title for a loan. Bonds are issued, not only by businesses, but also by national, state or city governments, or other public bodies, or sometimes by individuals. Bonds are a loan to the company or other body. They are normally repayable within a stated period of time. Bonds earn interest at a fixed rate, which must usually be paid by the undertaking regardless of its financial results. A bondholder is a creditor of the undertaking.
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