On January
21, 1936, the Chicago Tribune
reported the death of two men well known in their circles – King George V of England
and John Jacob Glessner. Glessner had died the
previous day in his beloved Prairie Avenue home just six days before his 93rd
birthday. In the weeks that followed,
tributes were written and published by a number of organizations in which he
was prominently involved, including International Harvester which he had helped
to found in 1902, and Rush Medical College, where he served as president
emeritus.
One of the
most heartfelt tributes came from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra which had been
at the center of John Glessner’s life for 45 years. The full-page
tribute was written by Charles H. Hamill, president of The Orchestral Association,
and placed opposite the program page for the concerts of January 23 and 24,
1936. In remembrance of the 80th
anniversary of John Glessner’s passing, we reprint Hamill’s beautiful tribute
in its entirety.
John J.
Glessner
On the 20th of January, 1936, came
the end of the long and useful life of John J. Glessner. To no one man has The Orchestral Association
been more beholden. He was one of the
small group of men who in the Association’s first years of struggle were loyal
in their support and generous in their gifts.
The depression following 1893 made the early years a time of great
difficulty for both the Association and its friends, but Mr. Glessner never
flinched. During those years before
Orchestra Hall was built he contributed over $12,000 and then was one of the
largest contributors to the building and the later reduction of the mortgage. Only last year he made his latest gift,
bringing his total to nearly forty-five thousand dollars. But it was not only by his contributions he
showed his interest. Since 1898 he has
served as a Trustee and by his constant attendance on meetings and his sound
judgment has brought much needed help to his associates. Modest to the point of self-effacement, he
was clean of thought, and, when occasion required, vigorous in expression, and
always with the Association’s welfare vividly in mind.
He and his devoted wife while she lived were
always in their box to delight in the music their generosity made possible, and
in their hospitable home men of the Orchestra and their musical friends found
frequent and charming entertainment. The
loss to the Association of his wise counsel and the loss to his fellow Trustees
of his fine companionship find their only comfort in the reflection that he has
been discharged from the pains and penalties of extreme old age.
Charles H. Hamill,
President.
The
tone poem “Death and Transfiguration” by Richard Strauss was played in Glessner’s
memory at the concert on Tuesday February 11, 1936, conducted by the Glessners’
dear friend, Frederick Stock. In the
program for January 7 and 8, 1937, The Orchestral Association gratefully
acknowledged the receipt of a $50,000 bequest under the will of John J.
Glessner.
BELOW: Two photos showing one of the Glessners’
great-great-great granddaughters exploring their box at Symphony Center during
Glessner House Museum’s 125th Anniversary Gala on September 13, 2012. (Photos by Tim Walters)
