Gladys Mills Phipps

Gladys Mills Phipps (June 19, 1883 - October 19, 1970) was a United States socialite, sportsperson, and a thoroughbred racehorse owner and breeder who began the Phipps family dynasty in American horse racing. She was known as the "first lady of the turf".[1][2]

Gladys Mills Phipps
Born
Elizabeth Gladys Mills

June 19, 1883
Newport, RI
DiedOctober 19, 1970(1970-10-19) (aged 87)
Roslyn, New York
OccupationRacehorse owner/breeder
Known for"First Lady of The Turf"
Spouse(s)
​
​
(m. 1907; died 1953)​
ChildrenOgden, Barbara, Audrey, Sonia
Parent(s)Ogden Mills
Ruth T. Livingston
RelativesBeatrice Mills (sister)
Ogden L. Mills (brother)

Early life

She was born in New York on June 19, 1883 to Ruth Livingston (1855–1920)[3] and Ogden Mills (1856–1929).[4] She had a twin sister, Beatrice, Countess Granard (1883–1972),[5] and a brother, Ogden Livingston Mills (1884–1937) who served as the United States Secretary of the Treasury.[6]

Career

This sportswoman was an avid ice skater and an excellent golfer; she won a number of tournaments, including a match play championship at the Newport, Rhode Island golf course in which she beat her male counterparts.[7][8] She was, however, first and foremost a lover of horses. Her father had owned racing stables in the United States and in France. Her twin, Beatrice, would inherit the French stable and become a leading owner in that country. Gladys Phipps became involved in the sport of Thoroughbred racing in 1926, when she and her brother Ogden L. Mills established the highly successful Wheatley Stable. Both of her children became involved in Thoroughbred horse racing.[2]

Personal life

In 1907, Gladys Mills married Henry Carnegie Phipps (1879–1953), son of the wealthy Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania businessman, Henry Phipps. Together they had:

  • Ogden Phipps (1908–2002), who was married to Ruth Pruyn (1907–1994), and later, Lillian Stokes Bostwick (1906–1987)
  • Barbara Phipps (1911–1987), who married Stuart Symington Janney Jr. (1907–1988). They were the parents of Stuart S. Janney III[9]
  • Audrey Phipps (d. 1992), who was married to Philip Dana Holden (d. 1973), an investment banker[10]
  • Sonia Phipps (1919–2006), who was married to Hans Christoph Farrell, Count of Seherr-Thoss (1912–1992).[11][12]

Gladys Mills Phipps died on October 19, 1970 in Roslyn, New York.[2][1]

Philanthropy

Following her brother's death in 1937, Gladys Mills Phipps inherited their parents' mansion at Staatsburg, New York. In 1938, she gave the house and 192 acres (0.78 km2) to the State of New York.[13]

References
  1. Alden Whitman (October 20, 1970). "Mrs. H.C. Phipps, Leader in Horse Racing, Dies; Wheatley Stable Owner, 87, Was Noted for Breeding of Winning Thoroughbreds". The New York Times. Retrieved 2015-04-28. Mrs. Gladys Mills Phipps, widow of Henry Carnegie Phipps and celebrated for many years as the First Lady of the Turf, died yesterday after a short illness at Spring Hill, her Westbury, L. I., estate. The New York and Palm Beach society leader and owner of Wheatley Stable was 87 years old.
  2. "Racing World Mourns Death". Associated Press. October 20, 1970. Retrieved 2011-03-29. ... at her home in Roslyn on Long Island.
  3. "MRS. OGDEN MILLS DIES IN PARIS HOME; New York Social Leader Who Was Noted for Her Aristocratic Gatherings.HUSBAND AT HER BEDSIDE Mother of Countess Granard, Mrs.H.C. Phipps and Ex-Senator O.L. Mills Was Ruth Livingston". The New York Times. 14 October 1920. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
  4. "Ogden Mills Dies At His Home Here. Financier Is the Victim of Pneumonia After Three Weeks Illness. He Was 72 Years Old. Active in Many Philanthropies and Long a Leader in Social Affairs. A Native of California. Interested in Racing". The New York Times. January 29, 1929. Retrieved 2013-12-18. Ogden Mills financier and father of Ogden L. Mills, Under-Secretary of the Treasury, died at 1:30 A.M. today at his home, 2 East Sixty-ninth Street, following an illness of more than three weeks. ...
  5. "Lady Granard, Daughter Of Ogden Mills, Dies at 88". The New York Times. 3 February 1972. Retrieved 18 December 2013.
  6. "Ogden Mills Dies Suddenly At 53. Former Secretary of Treasury Is Stricken by Heart Attack in His Home Here". The New York Times. October 12, 1937. Retrieved 2013-12-18. Ogden L. Mills, former Secretary of the Treasury and a Republican party leader often suggested as a possible Presidential nominee, died suddenly yesterday of a heart attack in his home at 2 East Sixtyninth Street.
  7. "Miss Gladys Mills Golf Winner". The New York Times. August 15, 1907.
  8. "The News Of Newport". The New York Times. August 16, 1900.
  9. Chris Korman, Maryland's Janney shuns limelight, even with Derby favorite Orb, The Baltimore Sun, May 01, 2013
  10. "Audrey P. Holden, 77, Active in Philanthropy". The New York Times. 14 July 1992. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
  11. "Sonia (Sunny) (Phipps) Countess of Seherr - Thoss". The Wickenburg Sun. June 21, 2006. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
  12. "Seherr-Thoss, Hans Christoph (1912-1992)". www.litchfieldhistoricalsociety.org. Litchfield Historical Society. Retrieved 25 February 2017.
  13. http://www.hvnet.com/houses/mills/
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