Elliott Fitch Shepard (1833–1893) was a New York lawyer, the owner of the Mail and Express newspaper, and a founder of three banks as well as the New York State Bar Association. He was born in Jamestown, New York, one of three sons of the president of a banknote-engraving company. During the American Civil War, Shepard earned the rank of colonel and was a Union Army recruiter. After attending the City University of New York, he practiced law for about 25 years. One of his residences, Woodlea, and the church he founded nearby, Scarborough Presbyterian, are contributing properties in the historic district of Scarborough-on- Hudson in the village of Briarcliff Manor. Woodlea, one of the largest privately owned houses in the United States at the time, is now part of Sleepy Hollow Country Club. Shepard was married to Margaret Louisa Vanderbilt, granddaughter of philanthropist, business magnate, and family patriarch Cornelius Vanderbilt. Deeply religious, Shepard became the controlling stockholder of the Fifth Avenue Stage Company so he could force it to close on Sundays.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elliott_Fitch_Shepard

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1139:

Prince Afonso Henriques led Portuguese troops to victory over the Almoravid Moors at the Battle of Ourique. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Ourique

1609:

During a hurricane, the crew of the English sailing ship Sea Venture grounded her on the reefs of Bermuda, which is widely believed to have inspired Shakepeare's The Tempest. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_Venture

1898:

Spanish–American War: After over two months of sea-based bombardment, the United States invaded Puerto Rico. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Puerto_Rican_Campaign

1957:

More than a year after obtaining independence from France, Tunisia abolished its monarchy, the Husainid Dynasty, and became a republic. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunisia

2007:

Pratibha Patil was sworn in as the first female President of India. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pratibha_Patil

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

eviscerate: 1. (transitive) To disembowel, to remove the viscera. 2. (transitive) To destroy or make ineffectual or meaningless. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/eviscerate

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

The autonomous individual, striving to realize himself and prove his worth, has created all that is great in literature, art, music, science and technology. The autonomous individual, also, when he can neither realize himself nor justify his existence by his own efforts, is a breeding call of frustration, and the seed of the convulsions which shake our world to its foundations.   --Eric Hoffer https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Eric_Hoffer