WILLIAM JAY DUTTON

San Francisco County

Biographies

WILLIAM JAY DUTTON

DUTTON, WILLIAM JAY, President of the Fireman's Fund Insurance Company, was born in Bangor, Maine, January 23, 1847, the son of Henry Dutton and Frances Cushing (Stevens) Dutton, Of English origin, he counts among his distinguished American ancestors his paternal great-grandfather, Colonel Samuel Dutton of Revolutionary fame, and a maternal forbear, Chief Justice Cushing, who had the additional honor of swearing in George Washington as President of the United States. On December 15, 1868, Mr. Dutton was married in San Francisco to Miss Mary Grayson Heydenfeldt, and is the father of Robert McMillan, Henry Stevens, William Grayson, Frank Cushing, Mary Page and Mrs. Gertrude (Dutton) Howell.

His education may be summed up as follows: A few years in a primary school in Bangor, the public schools in San Francisco from 1855 to 1860, the next three years at the San Francisco High School, and from 1863 to 1867 at the old City College, where he took a course in classics and higher mathematics, whence he was graduated into the North British Insurance Co. As junior clerk.

In a few months he left that company to organize the Marine Department of the Fireman's Fund. Thenceforth his rise was rapid, marked on the way up by his selection as secretary of the Marine Department in 1869, assistant secretary in 1873, general secretary of the company in 1880, vice president and manager in1890, and by his election to the presidency in 1900.

During these years Mr. Dutton has built a lasting reputation as an expert in marine underwriting. His company has today the most extensive system of agents of any American company west of the Ohio River and is the only California organization of any kind represented in every State and city of the United States.

The Fireman's Fund was a heavy loser in the San Francisco disaster of 1906, and, with all its records burned, its local assets largely unsalable and facing almost 6,000 claims, aggregating over $11,000,000, the case certainly looked hopeless. Under Mr. Dutton's direction a new company—the Fireman's Fund Corporation—was formed, with a million dollars of new capital and a million of surplus. The new corporation then reinsured all the outstanding policies and continued the business just as though no disaster had occurred. Instead of 35 or 40 cents on the dollar, which experts reported might be realized within three years under a receivership, the company paid all policy-holding claimants their first 50 cents within three months.

Within a year the agency plant and outstanding business throughout the United States were repurchased from the corporation, its stockholders' subscriptions returned to them in case of re-invested in the stock of the old company, and in April, 1907, the old Fireman's Fund resumed its old position.

For ten years Mr. Dutton was pres. or vice pres. Of the Board of Fire Underwriters of the Pacific, and for 20 years chairman of the legislative committee; pres. Board of Marine Underwriters of San Francisco 21 years, and 35 years a member of its adjustment committee. He was on the committee of three who selected the executive committee of the Panama-Pacific Exposition, and its pres. Of the Fireman's Fund Insurance Company, Home Fire and Marine Insurance Company, Chairman San Francisco Municipal conference of 1911, vice pres. Merchants' Exchange of the California Development Board, treas, Presidio and Ferries Railroad, chairman of Trustees First Congregational Church, director San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, vice pres. Hospital for Children and Training School for Nurses.

Clubs: Union League, Commercial, Pacific-Union, Commonwealth, Presidio Gold, S. F. Golf and Country and Claremont Country.

Transcribed 11-18-06 Marilyn R. Pankey.

Source: Press Reference Library, Western Edition Notables of the West, Vol. I, Page 119, International News Service, New York, Chicago, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Boston, Atlanta. 1913.

California Biography Project

San Francisco County

California Statewide

Golden Nugget Library