Wilson P. Foss Jr.

Foss was born in Haverstraw, New York. Foss Sr. rose from being an explosives expert and dynamite manufacturer to being president and board chairman of the New York Trap Rock Corporation; he was an avid collector of pottery and the National amateur billiards champion from 1901 to 1904. Foss Jr. attended The Hill School in Pottsville, Pennsylvania, graduating in 1910. In the summer of 1910, he and his sister vacationed at Mount Washington in New Hampshire. For the trip, they drove a Matheson automobile. During World War I, he trained at Plattsville Camp and became a captain in the infantry. In August 1917, he was assigned to First Company of the New England Regiment to train recruits from Harvard at Plattsville. Later, he was assigned to military intelligence. == Career ==

Foss was the president of the Haverstraw Trap Rock Corporation from 1914 to 1916. Foss became a well-known collector of oriental rugs, Persian pottery, Chinese pottery, and other items from the East. He bequeathed his personal collection of more than 100 items to the Yale University Art Gallery. In 1930, Foss followed his father as chairman of the board of the New York Trap Rock Corporation. In that capacity, he also served on the New York State Highway Users Conference which was petitioning for better highways. In October 1941, the New York Trap Rock Corporation refinanced by releasing $3.5 million in bonds through Smith, Barney & Co. On November 29, 1948, the Department of Justice charged Foss with violating the Sherman Antitrust Act as chairman of the New York Trap Rock Corporation. Also charged were his son, Wilson P. Foss III, who was president of the company, and the vice-president, J. C. Dooley. As part of the consent decree ruling, the company was prohibited from enlarging its holdings for two years and from interfering with their customers use of other vendors. == Personal ==

Foss married Mary Burns around 1914. In March 1932, portraits of both Foss and his wife by John Young-Hunter were included in an exhibition in Boston at the Doll and Richards gallery that was organized by Louise Whitfield Carnegie, wife of Andrew Carnegie. The exhibit was also at the American-Anderson gallery in New York City. His father died in 1930 leaving an estate worth $30 million. Foss was an active sportsman and member of the Triton Fish and Game Club of Canada. In 1957, he died at the age of 66 from cancer at the Memorial Hospital in New York City. His funeral was held at St. James Episcopal Church on Madison Avenue in New York City. == References ==