Frank Winfield Woolworth

AKA:
F. W. Woolworth
Birth Name:
Frank Winfield Woolworth
Birth Date:
April 13, 1852
Birth Place:
Rodman, New York
Death Date:
April 8, 1919
Place of Death:
77 Crescent Beach Road, Glen Cove, New York
Age:
66
Cause of Death:
Tooth infection
Cemetery Name:
Woodlawn Cemetery
Claim to Fame:
Business and Finance
Associates:
F. W. Woolworth was an American entrepreneur, the founder of F. W. Woolworth Company, and the operator of variety stores known as "Five-and-Dimes" (5- and 10-cent stores or dime stores) which featured a selection of low-priced merchandise. He pioneered the now-common practices of buying merchandise directly from manufacturers and fixing the selling prices on items, rather than haggling. He was also the first to use self-service display cases, so that customers could examine what they wanted to buy without the help of a sales clerk

Fun Fact

Frank Woolworth had an absolute hatred of going to the dentist, a prejudice that led to his death in April 1919, when he died suddenly due to a tooth infection at his Glen Cove Estate. Unbelievably, he died with his will unsigned, and all the money (about $30 million) went to his wife Jennie.

Sadly at the time of Frank’s death, Jennie was having problems all her own, having been declared ‘mentally feeble‘ and legally incompetent by this time. “DEMENTED WIFE GETS ALL” screamed an not-so-subtle New York Times headline. However historians now believe it appears from the description of her condition that Mrs. Woolworth was suffering from Alzheimer’s.

Cemetery Information:

Final Resting Place:

Woodlawn Cemetery

4199 Webster Avenue

Bronx, New York, 10470

USA

North America

Map:

Map of Woodlawn Cemetery in The Bronx, New York
Cemetery map of Woodlawn Cemetery in The Bronx, New York

Grave Location:

Pine Plot, Section 135, Woolworth Mausoleum

Grave Location Description

From the Jerome Avenue entrance, drive straight ahead on Central Avenue (it’s the painted road that runs through the center of the cemetery) and shortly after you cross West Border Avenue you will see the large Woolworth Mausoleum on your left about 80 feet from the road.

Grave Location GPS

40.8886888, -73.87586407

Visiting The Grave:

Photos:

[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]
[+]

Read More About Frank Winfield Woolworth:

Videos Featuring Frank Winfield Woolworth:

See More:

Hugh Hefner

popular name: Hugh Hefner

date_of_death: September 27, 2017

age: 91

cause_of_death: Sepsis and cardiac arrest caused by an E. coli infection

claim_to_fame: Business and Finance

best_know_for: Hugh Hefner transformed the adult entertainment industry with his groundbreaking publication Playboy. From the first issue featuring Marilyn Monroe in December 1953, Playboy expanded into a multimillion-dollar enterprise mirroring the often controversial, if not outright sleazy, sensibilities of its founder. By the early 1960s, it was a huge success, soon expanding to open its namesake clubs all over the world. It also moved into TV with Playboy After Dark. By the 1970s, Hefner set himself up at the Playboy Mansion West in California, remaining editor-in-chief of the magazine he founded while daughter Christie ran the day to day operations. Once worth in excess of $200 million, upon his death the Playboy empire was worth $55 million while the magazine folded in 2020.

David Sarnoff

popular name: David Sarnoff

date_of_death: December 12, 1971

age: 80

cause_of_death: Mastoid infection

claim_to_fame: Business and Finance

best_know_for: David Sarnoff was an American businessman and pioneer of American radio and television. Throughout most of his career he led the Radio Corporation of America in various capacities from shortly after its founding in 1919 until his retirement in 1970. It all began in 1920 when Sarnoff reiterated his “radio music box” memo and was given a small amount of money to develop a radio prototype. As RCA’s new general manager, he demonstrated radio’s market potential by broadcasting the boxing match between Jack Dempsey and Georges Carpentier (July 2, 1921); the broadcast created a sensation. Within three years RCA sold more than $80 million worth of receiving sets. In 1926 RCA formed the National Broadcasting Company (NBC). As early as 1923, Sarnoff had perceived the potential of television, which the contributions of several inventors were making technically feasible. His meeting in 1929 with Westinghouse engineer Vladimir Zworykin convinced him that home television was possible, and Sarnoff persuaded Westinghouse to back Zworykin’s work. In 1930 Westinghouse’s television research and Zworykin were transferred to RCA. By 1939 Sarnoff was able to give a successful demonstration of the new medium at the New York World’s Fair. And as they say ... the rest is history.

Armand Hammer

popular name: Armand Hammer

date_of_death: December 10, 1990

age: 92

cause_of_death: Bone marrow cancer

claim_to_fame: Business and Finance

best_know_for: After earning his medical degree from Columbia University Armand Hammer went on to become a successful entrepreneur before retiring in his 50s. Shortly after he was approached by a friend who suggested that he finance two wildcat oil wells being drilled in Bakersfield, California by the near-bankrupt Occidental Petroleum Corporation. Hammer financed the wells, which unexpectedly struck oil, and he quickly increased his holdings in Occidental, becoming the firm’s chief executive officer and chairman of the board in 1957. Within 10 years the company was generating over $2 billion is sales.

Back to Top