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{{Short description|American philanthropist and industrialist}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=March 2023}}
{{Infobox person
| image = Henry J. Steere.jpg
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| birth_date = {{Birth date|1830|04|11}}
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1889|10|28|1830|04|11}}
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| signature = Signature of Henry Jonah Steere (1830–1889).png
}}▼
'''Henry Jonah Steere''' (1830–1889) was a prominent American [[philanthropist]] and [[industrialist]] from [[Rhode Island]].
==Childhood==
[[
Henry J. Steere was born in [[Providence, Rhode Island]] on April 11, 1830 to Alice Smith (1789–1863) and Jonah Steere (1788–1871), a manufacturer, saddler and harness maker. Henry was their only surviving child. Steere was a [[Yankee]], whose ancestor [[John Steere]] immigrated to the Providence from Great Britain before 1660 and married the daughter of Reverend [[William Wickenden]].<ref>James Pierce Root, ''Steere Genealogy: A Record of the Descendants of John Steere, who Settled
Steere served as a lieutenant in the First Light Infantry ==Business endeavors==
Steere entered the [[textile]] manufacturing business, eventually building mills in the towns of Providence, [[Burrillville, Rhode Island|Burrillville]], [[Smithfield, Rhode Island|Smithfield]], and [[Glocester
==Philanthropy and legacy==
[[File:Beneficent Congregational Church Pvd.jpg|thumb|right|Henry J. Steere was a member and large donor to [[Beneficent Congregational Church]].]]
[[File:Providence Home for Aged Men in Rhode Island now known as Steere House.JPG|thumb|right|Steere was the co-founder and benefactor of the Providence Home For Aged Men, now known as Steere House.]]
[[
Henry Steere left his $1.139 million fortune (about $22 million in 2006 dollars) to many individuals and charities. $654,000 was given to individuals in sums ranging from $10,000 to $100,000, including bequests of money and real property to the children of his first cousin Seth Hunt Steere, including Senator [[Arthur Steere]]. Other individuals receiving bequests and trusts included: [[Jesse H. Metcalf]], Mary Ann White, Lydia Jane Westcott, Charles H. Atwood, Horace Steere, Job Steere, Asa Westcott, Charles S. Westcott, Frances Irons, Smith Salisbury, Daniel Salisbury, Joseph Salisbury, Stephen Metcalf, Marton Metcalf, Eliza Radeke, Sophia Baker, Alfred Metcalf, Emily Arnold, Thomas Holden, Thomas Steere, Julia Miner, Charles H. Steere, Seth H. Steere Edward Knowles, Lee Salisbury, Nelson Steere, and Albert Steere. Steere donated $340,000 to charities including: Steere House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center (home of [[Oscar (therapy cat)|Oscar the cat]], noted for his purported ability to predict imminent death), [[Beneficent Congregational Church]], [[St. Stephen's Church (Providence, Rhode Island)|St. Stephen's Episcopal Church]], [[Rhode Island Historical Society]], [[Roanoke College]], and [[Tabor College
Throughout his life, Steere had been active as a member of the Franklin Society of the [[Rhode Island Historical Society]] and as a trustee of [[Rhode Island Hospital]]. Steere built [[Beneficent Congregational Church]] as a memorial to his father with a donation of $30,000. A descendant of [[Arthur Steere]], one of Steere's devisees currently runs the Henry J. Steere Orchards in [[Greenville, Rhode Island]].<ref name="The Providence Journal 1889,
==References==
*''John Steere Family Album'', (Chepachet: Steere Family Association, 1981).
*James Pierce Root, ''Steere Genealogy: A Record of the Descendants of John Steere, who Settled
*''The Providence Journal'', "The Will of Mr. Henry J. Steere in Detail," November 1, 1889,
*''The Providence Journal'', "Obituary: Henry J. Steere," October 29, 1889,
{{reflist}}
==External links==
* {{Internet Archive author |sname=Henry J. Steere}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20070526174338/http://www.steerehouse.org/matriarch/ Steere House]
*[http://www.artinruins.com/arch/stillinuse/wanskuckmill/ Steere's Waskuck Mill]
▲| NAME = Steere, Henry J.
▲| PLACE OF BIRTH =[[Providence]], [[Rhode Island]]
▲}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Steere, Henry J.}}
[[Category:American Civil War industrialists]]
[[Category:American chief executives of financial services companies]]
[[Category:American bankers]]
[[Category:American financiers]]
[[Category:
[[Category:American Congregationalists]]
[[Category:1830 births]]
[[Category:1889 deaths]]
[[Category:Burials at North Burying Ground (Providence)]]
[[Category:19th-century American philanthropists]]
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